PREMIER Brian Pallister announced last week that his government intends to reduce Manitobas public sector in two important ways. First, his government is exploring options to reduce the number of paid work days by up to 35 per year. Second, non-essential public servants would work roughly two days per week and would receive Employment Insurance for the remaining days. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion PREMIER Brian Pallister announced last week that his government intends to reduce Manitobas public sector in two important ways. First, his government is exploring options to reduce the number of paid work days by up to 35 per year. Second, "non-essential" public servants would work roughly two days per week and would receive Employment Insurance for the remaining days. While we have serious concerns about the message this sends about the role of public servants and the work being done to support government, the language that we use also matters here: which public-sector workers is the premier referring to? What positions are essential and non-essential during a pandemic? What about preparing for government actions to support Manitoba businesses, citizens and non-profit organizations after the most urgent part of this pandemic recedes? To be sure, Pallister has a long, tense relationship with Manitobas public service. As a junior cabinet minister under premier Gary Filmon, he participated in reducing the public service through the introduction of "Filmon Fridays," which required public servants to take unpaid Fridays in summer and established some of the most stringent balanced-budget legislation. Last weeks announcement was eerily reminiscent of his time in the Filmon government. While some may argue that government needs to reduce expenditures in response to the pandemic, what is most worrisome about last weeks announcement is the divisive rhetoric used to insinuate that non-front-line workers should be willing to accept layoffs to support those on the front lines. Pallisters words drive an unneccessary wedge between public servants and implies to the public that non-front-line workers are somehow expendable when the going gets tough. The message was essentially, "Gosh, well, arent you lucky; you are only getting partially laid off. You should be proud that you are showing solidarity!" Besides being manipulative, this rhetoric is also a myth. During a pandemic such as this, the business of government doesnt stop. Governance needs both front-line and non-front-line workers to develop good public policy and timely responses to arising problems, even during an emergency. Non-front-line workers include those who maintain IT systems, which provide essential data for policy and financial analysis. They also include public servants with expertise in agriculture in areas such as insects, plant diseases, biosecurity and farm management during droughts and floods. Moving Manitobas students to an online learning system requires teachers/professors, but also IT professionals and supervisors to develop new ways of teaching and learning. The list of those considered "non-front-line" is long. To reduce non-front-line workers in such an arbitrary way means that our province will have significantly reduced ability to identify and resolve policy problems. A better option is to engage in meaningful dialogue with senior bureaucrats and public-sector unions to identify areas that result in lower risk and discuss options for reduced work weeks. However, this arbitrary division means that some activities that are higher-risk are vulnerable. This wedge Pallister is driving into the core public service is even more concerning, given that much of the public service has been working without a contract since March 2019 after a salary increase of only 1.75 per cent over four years. The Manitoba Government and General Employees Union requested an arbitrator to bring government to the discussion table, but the Pallister government refused to appoint an arbitration panel. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. These actions reinforce an already-diminished trust and may lead to decreased morale in the public service. It also has significant implications economically, if peoples solid incomes are significantly reduced and they cannot spend to support Manitobas economy. Moreover, we also dont yet know if the federal government would allow public servants to access EI under these conditions. If Pallister is focused on making these short-term and drastic changes to the public sector, he should be up-front about the anticipated benefits but also be clear about the very real drawbacks. Implying that public servants who argue against this proposal are bad actors, failing to support Manitobans on the front lines, is poor leadership. Manitoba needs a strong and trusted public service if we hope to emerge post-COVID-19 as a united province ready to respond to a potential second wave of this pandemic. Karine Levasseur and Andrea Rounce are associate professors in the department of political studies at the University of Manitoba. Karine.levasseur@umanitoba.ca Andrea.rounce@umanitoba.ca Turkey defense minister expresses support for Azerbaijan in another military aggression against Armenia Pashinyan, Putin discuss Karabakh, Kazakhstan Toivo Klaar: Deeply worried by reports of renewed incidents and casualties on Armenia-Azerbaijan Germany: A record 80,430 COVID-19 cases detected per day 3 more persons die of coronavirus in Artsakh Criminal case launched into 3 Armenia soldiers killing by Azerbaijan shootings Copper rises in price One of main tasks of Armenia peacekeepers in Kazakhstans Almaty is to prevent water supply system poisoning About 80 Americans cannot fly from Afghanistan Turkey parliament ex-deputy speaker: Armenia must fulfill 4 preconditions Border situation in Armenias Gegharkunik Province was calm at night French FM says talks on Iranian nuclear deal are progressing slowly 289 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Gold slightly rises in price North Korea says it successfully tested another hypersonic missile OSCE calls on Azerbaijan, Armenia to refrain from the use of force Oil is trading without a single dynamic US State Department welcomes announcement on CSTO forces withdrawal from Kazakhstan Newspaper: Ex-ministers are summoned to Hayastan All Armenian Fund parliamentary inquiry committee MOD: Armenia soldiers dead body found at midnight after Azerbaijan provocation Newspaper: Casualties of Armenia PM Pashinyan's 'era of peace' US concerned about EastMed natural gas pipeline project Giant fish sold at auction for over 16 million yen German Marshall Fund: It Is not too early to think about political change in Turkey Armenian Foreign Ministry: We call on Azerbaijani authorities to refrain from provocations Armenia's Geghamasar community head: The situation is stable now Queen Elizabeth II's favorite fast food revealed Human Rights Defender: Azerbaijani troops open fire on Armenian sovereign territory World Economic Forum: Cybersecurity and space pose new risks to the global economy Defense Ministry confirms Armenian side has 2 victims Satanovsky on sending Armenian servicemen to Kazakhstan Unofficial data: 2 servicemen killed as a result of Azerbaijan provocation CSTO and Kazakh Defense Ministry developing plan WHO thinks it's too early to consider COVID-19 pandemic European Commission to require Poland to pay fine of nearly EUR 70 million White House announces $308 million humanitarian aid for Afghanistan Erdogan angry at minister after efforts to strengthen lira failed Armenian FM has phone call with US Assistant Secretary of State India imposes one-week quarantine even for vaccinated tourists Armenian ex-president expresses condolences on poet Razmik Davoyan's death Traction Programme to showcase 8 startups during the Digital Demo Day Azerbaijan uses artillery and UAVs, 3 Armenian soldiers wounded NEWS.am daily digest: 11.01.22 Austrian Chancellor confirms plan for mandatory COVID-19 vaccination in February Armen Sarkissian and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev discuss situation in Kazakhstan Gulf, Iran and Turkey FMs to visit China 20 pregnant women with COVID-19 die in Azerbaijan in year Armenia hands over wanted US citizen to United States Economy ministry: Organizing of accommodation and public catering increased by 61.1% in Armenia Armenia parliament speaker expresses condolences on European Parliament President death Azerbaijan opens fire toward Armenia village sector, one soldier wounded Shoigu: CSTO peacekeepers deployed in Kazakhstan thanks to Syrian and Karabakh experience Azerbaijan official pledges to remove Armenian toponyms from Google Maps UN offers two plans to help Afghans totaling $ 5 billion in 2022 Armenia attorney general travels to Moscow on working visit Azerbaijan MOD blames Armenian side for soldiers death Dollar drops in Armenia Shirak Province captives families hold protest outside Armenia government building Rolls-Royce sales rise to record high in 2021 Ombudsman: Azerbaijanis directed gun at Armenia residents car in which his wife, 3-year-old child were ANCA urges President Biden and Congress to hold Azerbaijan and Turkey accountable for war crimes Serbia's Orthodox Patriarch tests positive for COVID-19 Brothers, sisters of 2020 Artsakh war military casualties to get compensation in lieu of their deceased parents Turkish authorities sanction arrest of 33 suspected FETO ties Copper rises in price Erdogan's spokesman, Biden's adviser discuss Armenian-Turkish relations Armenia deputy defense minister: No one can rule out border tension at any moment New commander elected of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh Armenia official: Those 100 soldiers absence will not assume any change in terms of border tension Millionaire Robert Durst dies aged 78 Reuters: Over 1.13 million cases of COVID-19 detected in US per day Great Armenian poet Razmik Davoyan dies 2 new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh Deputy PM Matevosyan: About 1,190 subvention programs implemented in Armenia from 2018 to 2021 243 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Armenia MP: It would be right to put pressure on Azerbaijanis to remove their firing positions Oil is getting more expensive Nearly 10,000 people detained in Kazakhstan in connection with riots Tokayev: CSTO peacekeepers will pull out from Kazakhstan within 10 days Newspaper: Armenia businessmen pay customs duties to Azerbaijanis to go to Iran European Parliament speaker David Sassoli dies Alikhan Smailov appointed Kazakhstan Prime Minister Newspaper: Health minister makes decision full of contradictions in terms of Covid-related restrictions in Armenia Newspaper: Armenia authorities once again showed their being unprincipled, worthless, opposition MP says Germany teacher who had cannibalism fantasies is sentenced to life in prison 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 Medical staff in Thu Duc District, HCMC take samples from employees of the Linh Trung Export Processing Zone for Covid-19 testing, April 20, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran. The Health Ministry confirmed no new Covid-19 case Monday evening, keeping Vietnams active patient count at 54 with 214 discharged. The latest infection, confirmed Thursday morning, is a 16-year-old Hmong girl from the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang that borders China, where her three brothers work as freelancers. Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi have not recorded new infections in the last 17 days and seven days, respectively. On Monday, Vietnam discharged eight patients in the northern province of Ninh Binh, two in HCMC and two in the central province of Ha Tinh. The remaining patients are being treated at nine medical facilities across the country. Most of the patients are in stable health. Of the 54 active cases, seven have tested negative twice and 14 have done so once. "Patient 188," who relapsed Saturday three days after her discharge, tested Covid-19 negative Monday morning. The 44-year-old resident of the capital citys Chuong My District is an employee of the Truong Sinh Company, which provides food and logistic services for several hospitals in Hanoi, including the Bach Mai Hospital, a major Covid-19 hotspot. Health experts have cautioned that while Vietnam going four days without a new infection is a positive sign, it was vital that the nation remained vigilant and careful because the Covid-19 fight is likely to be long and complicated. They said people should continue to maintain social distancing, refrain from gathering in crowds, wear masks when going out and wash their hands often. Nationwide, nearly 51,000 people are in quarantine. Of these, 308 people are isolated in hospitals and more than 10,700 people in concentrated quarantine facilities. The rest are quarantined at home. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with nearly 165,000 deaths reported so far. Sorry! This content is not available in your region Sunday marked a terrible milestone, as the coronavirus death toll passed 100,000 across Europe. An additional 3,287 deaths yesterday take the number of officially recorded fatalities across the continent to 102,565. Nearly 1.1 million coronavirus cases (1,088,651) have been announced, meaning the 102,000 plus deaths represent a fatality rate of nearly 10 percent. Even as the big business media pointed to a lessening of the number of deaths in some countries, the gruesome death toll risesan indictment of the entire profit system. The five major states in EuropeGermany, France, Spain, Italy and the UKaccount for around 85,000 of the 100,000 plus deaths. In Spain, 565 deaths were reported Saturday, and 410 new deaths announced yesterday. Spains death toll stands at 20,453 deathsthe third country to reach the horrific milestone of 20,000 behind Italy and the United States. In Italy, 482 more people were announced dead on Saturday and 433 on Sunday, with 23,660 fatalities overall. This week, the Istituto Superiore di Sanita, Italys leading technical-scientific body, published a report revealing that 2,724 elderly patient deaths in residential medical facilities were certified COVID-19 infections. There is no precise number of COVID-19 deaths in care homes, where doctors often do not arrive and the deaths are not reported to municipal authorities. On Saturday, France recorded 642 deaths, and 395 more on Sunday (total deaths 19,718). In Germany, 186 deaths were announced Saturday and 104, Sunday. Germany is routinely described in the corporate media as a model in how to confront the virusbut deaths there are now approaching five thousand (4,642). Some 145,184 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded by Berlin. The UK is engulfed in a social catastrophe for which the ruling class is fully responsible. Britain is around four weeks behind Italy and Spain in terms of the spread of the virus, but has become the pandemics epicentre in Europe. On Saturday, 888 deaths were announced and 596, Sunday, as the death toll reached 16,060. Some 5,589 of these deaths have occurred in the last week. Claims of a glimmer of good news as the first wave of the virus reached its peak in the UK (Daily Mail) were shot down as Saturday's 5,525 new cases represented the third highest jump since the outbreak of the pandemic in Britain. An even higher 5,850 new cases were reported Sunday. Boris Johnsons Conservative government has refused to publish in its daily fatalities tally the number of people who have died in care homes or in their own home. It is estimated that the number of deaths could be double, if not more, than the official tally. The Tories are also concealing the true number of health workers who have perished. The Nursing Notes web site reported that 86 had already died by Sunday morningmainly through the chronic lack of personal protective equipment (PPE). This weekend, NHS hospitals were poised to run out of protective gowns and many warned that they were running short of oxygen. The devastating impact of the Johnson governments policy of herd immunity is being played out in the mass loss of life. The Sunday Times Insight team reported Sunday that despite being warned by scientists from mid-January of an unfolding catastrophe, the government pushed through its herd immunity strategy that was officially announced as policy by government chief science adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, on March 12. Johnson and his government did nothing to combat the virus for a five-week period from January 24 to March 2. On January 24, the government held an emergency COBRA meeting, but as the Times reports this was only to brush aside the coronavirus threat Matt Hancock, the health secretary, bounced out of Whitehall after chairing the meeting and breezily told reporters the risk to the UK public was low. Johnson, after holidaying with his fiancee, Carrie Symonds, from December 26 to January 5 in the Caribbean aboard a yacht and at a mansionpaid for him to the tune of 15,000 by mobile phone billionaire David Rosswas so unconcerned by the mounting coronavirus epidemic that he didnt attend the January 24 COBRA meeting or four subsequent COBRA meetings on COVID-19. On February 3, four days after the UK exited the European Union, Johnson gave a speech in London in which he declared, we are starting to hear some bizarre autarkic rhetoric, when barriers are going up, and when there is a risk that new diseases such as coronavirus will trigger a panic and a desire for market segregation that go beyond what is medically rational to the point of doing real and unnecessary economic damage, then at that moment humanity needs some government somewhere that is willing at least to make the case powerfully for freedom of exchange, some country ready to take off its Clark Kent spectacles and leap into the phone booth and emerge with its cloak flowing as the supercharged champion, of the right of the populations of the earth to buy and sell freely among each other. Johnson then disappeared with Symonds for another 12 days for a working holiday from the middle of February; this time at the governments grace-and-favour 115-room Chevening country estate. By March 2, when Johnson finally attended a COBRA meeting on Covid-19, it was simply to sign off on the herd immunity strategy that was to be announced 10 days later. His battle plan consisted of telling the population the government would contain, delay and mitigate the spread of the virus. Johnson and his partner attended alongside 81,520 other people the England v. Wales rugby game at Twickenham on March 7. Three days later the government allowed the Cheltenham horse racing festival to go ahead attended by 250,000 people over four days. A number of people immediately reported being taken ill after attending. The scale of deaths being contemplated is revealed by the Sunday Telegraph, which reported, Britain assumed a deadly virus would inevitably cripple the NHS and kill up to 750,000 people during a secret cross-government exercise held in 2016 to test preparedness for an outbreak, officials have admitted. In 2016, the government held its Exercise Cygnus into the impact on Britain of a novel respiratory influenza pandemic. The exercise revealed that the National Health Service would rapidly collapse, leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths. The Telegraph cites a senior Whitehall official involved in drawing up Cygnus, who said, Everything we planned for was based on the idea that a disease would kill lots and lots of people We didnt spend a lot of time exploring how we could prevent it in the first place. Instead we looked at how we could build up mortuary space and intensive care beds after it had already spread. The central theme of the British media, including the main supporters of the Tories in the Telegraph, Mail and Sun, is to insist Johnson return from nearly dying himself from COVID-19 and roll out a return to work to save the economy. The Sunday Mail headlined its front page, Get Britain moving again. It reported that a grand coalition of senior political and business figures is demanding the government lift the shutters and map out an end to the lockdown. Among these were Former Cabinet Ministers David Davis and Iain Duncan Smith, who have "joined forces with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and City bosses to warn the lack of a clear exit strategy could wreak lasting damage on the UK economy." This is the agenda of governments continent-wide. In Italy, the government plans to use a smartphone app developed by Milan-based tech start-up, Bending Spoons, to track people who test positive for the coronavirus as part of efforts to speed up the governments back to work before the end of the pandemic. This weekend, Spanish Socialist Party Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, after sending millions back to work last week, said, In the month of May we will begin taking the first steps towards a new normality. Brazils president appears at a protest calling on the army to intervene in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil, has come out in public to support hundreds of people defending military rule and protesting against stay-at-home orders issued by state governors to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. The crowd of about 600 people gathered in front of the armys headquarters in the capital, Brasilia, on Sunday, Brazils armed forces day. Protesters, many of whom were not wearing masks, called on the military to intervene in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and demanded the closure of the Supreme Court and Congress. Some held up posters declaring Military intervention with Bolsonaro. I am here because I believe in you. You are here because you believe in Brazil. We dont want to negotiate anything; what we want is action for Brazil, said Bolsonaro, a former army captain who has expressed nostalgia for the countrys 1964-1985 dictatorship. Since being sworn in on January 1, 2019, Bolsonaro has asked the defence ministry to organise commemorations of the two-decade-long military dictatorship, paid tribute to General Alfredo Stroessner, the military strongman in neighbouring Paraguay, and backed changes in school history curricula that would revise the way children view the 1964 military coup. Protesters demanding military intervention during a demonstration against physical distancing measures, in Brasilia [Sergio Lima / AFP] During his address, which was interspersed with fits of coughing, Bolsonaro made no response to the crowds call for military intervention or the demand to close Congress. You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom, he said. But for some, Bolsonaro crossed a line on Sunday. The president of the republic crossed the Rubicon, wrote Felipe Santa Cruz, president of the Brazilian Bar Association, on his official Twitter account. Time for Democrats to unite, to overcome difficulties and disagreements, in the name of a greater good called FREEDOM! Supreme Court Justice Luis Roberto Barroso focused his criticism on the protesters. It is frightening to see demonstrations for the return of the military regime, after 30 years of democracy, he wrote on Twitter. Many Brazilians were also angered at Bolsonaros defiance of the stay-at-home measures introduced by several state governors. Bolsonaro has stepped up public appearances in recent weeks, meeting supporters, protesters, passersby or business owners, in defiance of social distancing measures advised by the World Health Organization and Brazils health ministry. The president has been a fierce critic of the states stay-at-home measures, arguing that the economic harm could be more damaging than the illness. On Friday, he sacked his health minister, Luiz Henrique Mandetta, who had been promoting isolation measures. Brazil has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Latin America more than 38,000 and at least 2,400 deaths. The number remains relatively low in relation to the countrys population of 211 million, but the outbreak is not expected to peak until May. Small protests denouncing the pandemic restrictions also took place on Saturday, with demonstrators in trucks, cars and motorcycles honking their horns in the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Brasilia, calling for governors to resign over the lockdown measures. However, a majority of Brazilians approve the governments confinement regulations despite its impact on the economy, according to a poll published on Saturday. This article was originally published on December 20, 2019 in NYT Parenting. Youre doing it wrong! a slew of parenting guides released over the past decade seemed to shout from bookstore shelves. The 2010s were the peak parenting manual decade: New theories cropped up like clockwork to advise you to get off your childs back, light a fire under him or love him more efficiently. From helicopter parenting to benign neglect and back again, writers aimed to set parents on the right path to producing well-adjusted kids. Whether old-school Chinese- or Jewish-style mothering was best or the French had it right all along, there was a book that touted seemingly every viewpoint on child-rearing. Here, in no particular order, are 10 standouts published in the last 10 years: Image Credit... via Penguin Random House Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman (2012) [Penguin] According to the self-help book aisle, among the things French women dont do are: get fat, get face-lifts, and according to Pamela Druckermans Bringing Up Bebe coddle their kids. An American former newspaper reporter living with her husband and children in Paris, Druckerman translated the French way of parenting for a United States audience, to groans and oui-ouis alike. The French exert their authority by declaring, Cest moi qui decide (Its I who decide). The result of raising children French style, Druckerman writes, is a fully functioning society of good little sleepers, gourmet eaters and reasonably relaxed parents, read a Times review. The book served up an alternate approach to what was seen as weak and ineffectual American parenting, and boy did it hit a nerve. When Ms. Druckerman has trouble being firm with her children, parents in all 50 states are indicted, Susannah Meadows wrote in The Times. Image Credit... via Penguin Random House Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua (2011) [Penguin] Amy Chua, a Yale law professor, wrote the playbook for controversial mothering memoirs with Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. A shock to the laid-back American parenting conscious, Chuas look inside the highly restrictive, ultra-competitive parenting style that she attributed not only to Chinese parents but also to many old-world cultural traditions sent the public into a titter with allegations of child cruelty and just plain mean mommying. But mostly readers found Chua to be smug and unlikable with her tales of depriving her two girls of rites of passage like sleepovers and forcing hours of homework and music practice on them not that that hurt sales. The book is a diabolically well-packaged, highly readable screed ostensibly about the art of obsessive parenting, the critic Janet Maslin wrote in The Times. In truth, Ms. Chuas memoir is about one little narcissists book-length search for happiness. A Delta Airlines airplane is seen at gate at Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on April 11, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images) Delta Air Lines Faces Class Action Lawsuit Over Ticket Refunds Delta Air Lines is facing a class action lawsuit that accused the company of making it difficult for people to get refunds amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Airlines around the world are cancelling or delaying flights and travel plans are in disarray due to the spread of the the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from mainland China last year. The class action lawsuit against Delta was filed on behalf of Maryland resident Elliot Daniels and any others who were denied refunds or had difficulty obtaining them. Filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division, the suit (pdf) alleges Delta has acted deceptively in allegedly failing to honor requests for refunds in light of the pandemic. Daniels booked four round-trip tickets from the District of Columbia to Egypt in April, spending $3,090.22 for them. According to Hagens Berman, which filed the suit, Delta twice cancelled the flights, once for the initial date of departure and again after Daniels rebooked the flights to an earlier date. Daniels alleges he was denied a refund. Delta instead informed him he could have a travel voucher, good for one year. Colorized scanning electron micrograph of an apoptotic cell (red) heavily infected with CCP virus particles (yellow), isolated from a patient sample. Image captured at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland, published on April 2, 2020. (NIAID) At the time of his ticket purchase, Plaintiff understood that he would be entitled to a refund if his flight was cancelled, the suit states. Plaintiff seeks a refund because he does not know when or if he will be able to use a travel voucher. While Delta policy says passengers could get a full refund if a flight is cancelled or changed by more than 90 minutes, the company is focused on keeping money through providing travel credits, not refunds, Hagens Berman said in a statement. Simply put, we find Deltas actions in light of the pandemic utterly unacceptable, Steve Berman, managing partner of Hagens Berman and attorney for consumers in the class action, said in the statement. That Delta is offering time-limited vouchers during an unprecedented time of chaos and uncertainty in our nations history only underscores its primary focus of profits over people, and we intend to fight for their right to monetary relief. Americans are losing their sources of income at alarming rates. Vouchers just wont cut it. A Delta spokeswoman said in an emailed statement: Doing right by our customers through refunds and rebookings has beenand will continue to bea key focus as we manage through this unprecedented global pandemic. The named plaintiff in this suit first requested a refund on April 15two days before the lawsuit was filed. We expedited the refund process and gladly issued his refund. The company is providing full refunds to passengers who requested them and are eligible and processed more than one million refunds in March alone. United Airlines and Southwest Airlines are facing similar class action complaints. The latest suit came after some U.S. lawmakers said airlines are estimated to have more than $10 billion in travel vouchers that should have been dispersed as cash refunds. Most airlines declined to release numbers but JetBlue said it issued over $20 million per day of travel credits to customers in early March. Assuming a similar trend throughout the industry over the last month, this figure could mean that the airlines are sitting on more than $10 billion in customer cash, the lawmakers said. LAVAL, QC, April 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. ("Couche-Tard" or the "Company") (TSX: ATD.A) (TSX: ATD.B) today provided the following update with regards to its proposal to acquire Caltex Australia Limited (ASX: CTX) ("Caltex"). As a result of the committed efforts that teams at both companies have made, Couche-Tard would like to confirm that due diligence for the proposed transaction has been substantially completed. The Company's work confirms that Caltex is a strong strategic fit for Couche-Tard and an important component of its Asia Pacific expansion strategy. There are significant opportunities to be realized from combining both businesses and Couche-Tard remains highly interested in formalizing a transaction. However, the current situation in the world is highly uncertain. The COVID-19 crisis is first and foremost a human tragedy that has impacted millions of people and has also been meaningfully disruptive to economies and businesses around the world, including the Australian fuel and convenience retail industries. Moreover, Couche-Tard is focused on managing its own business through this period and prioritizing the health, safety and well-being of its employees, customers and the communities it serves. Given that uncertainty and the impact it is having on our outlook for Caltex's business, and consistent with Couche-Tard's disciplined approach to acquisitions, the Company is not in a position to make a revised proposal at this time, despite having secured the necessary financing commitments. Brian Hannasch, President and Chief Executive Officer of Couche-Tard, said: "We remain convinced of the long-term financial and strategic merits of an acquisition of Caltex and all the benefits it would offer to the shareholders of both companies. Despite the COVID-19 situation, we have worked to complete due diligence on schedule through a significant investment of time and money. Our current plan would be to re-engage the process once there is sufficient clarity as to the global outlook, and the work done to date should mean that we will be able to quickly formalize our proposal at that time." Mr. Hannasch added: "Couche-Tard's management team is grateful for the backing we received from all our stakeholders throughout this process. We want to thank our team members for their hard work during the due diligence and the people at Caltex for their focused effort made to address our questions. We have been impressed by their knowledge and dedication, especially during the challenging period through which we have all been operating. And finally, we want to thank our banking partners for their unwavering commitment, even in the face of increased market volatility due to the spread of COVID-19. We have been in regular discussion with them and they remain prepared to move forward in support of a transaction." About Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. Couche-Tard is the leader in the Canadian convenience store industry. In the United States, it is the largest independent convenience store operator in terms of the number of company-operated stores. In Europe, Couche-Tard is a leader in convenience store and road transportation fuel retail in the Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden and Denmark), in the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania), as well as in Ireland, and has an important presence in Poland. As of February 2, 2020, Couche-Tard's network comprised 9,799 convenience stores throughout North America, including 8,594 stores with road transportation fuel dispensing. Its North American network consists of 18 business units, including 14 in the United States covering 48 states and 4 in Canada covering all 10 provinces. Approximately 109,000 people are employed throughout its network and at its service offices in North America. In Europe, Couche-Tard operates a broad retail network across Scandinavia, Ireland, Poland, the Baltics and Russia through 10 business units. As of February 2, 2020, Couche-Tard's network comprised 2,697 stores, the majority of which offer road transportation fuel and convenience products while the others are unmanned automated fuel stations which only offer road transportation fuel. Couche-Tard also offers other products, including aviation fuel and energy for stationary engines. Including employees at branded franchise stores, approximately 24,000 people work in its retail network, terminals and service offices across Europe. In addition, under licensing agreements, more than 2,380 stores are operated under the Circle K banner in 15 other countries and territories (Cambodia, China, Egypt, Guam, Honduras, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Jamaica, Macau, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam), which brings the worldwide total network to more than 14,800 stores. For more information on Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. or to consult its quarterly Consolidated Financial Statements and Management Discussion and Analysis, please visit: https://corpo.couchetard.com. Forward-Looking Statements The statements set forth in this press release, which describes Couche-Tard's objectives, projections, estimates, expectations or forecasts, may constitute forward looking statements within the meaning of securities legislation. Positive or negative verbs such as "believe", "can", "shall", "intend", "expect", "estimate", "assume" and other related expressions are used to identify such statements. Couche-Tard would like to point out that, by their very nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties such that its results, or the measures it adopts, could differ materially from those indicated in or underlying these statements, or could have an impact on the degree of realization of a particular projection. Major factors that may lead to a material difference between Couche Tard's actual results and the projections or expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements include the effects of the integration of acquired businesses and the ability to achieve projected synergies, fluctuations in margins on motor fuel sales, competition in the convenience store and retail motor fuel industries, exchange rate variations, and such other risks as described in detail from time to time in the reports filed by Couche-Tard with securities regulatory authorities in Canada. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, Couche-Tard disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The forward-looking information in this release is based on information available as of the date of the release. SOURCE Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. Related Links http://corpo.couche-tard.com Members of the Oyo State House of Assembly have agreed to a 30 per cent cut in their monthly allocation. PREMIUM TIMES understands that the slash in the allocation takes effect from April. The agreement was reached when the state governor, Seyi Makinde, met with the lawmakers at the government house, at the weekend in Ibadan, the state capital. The slash, according to the lawmakers, is to assist the state government in its bid to pay salaries of workers as coronavirus bites harder on the global economy. The 30 per cent deduction includes both the lawmakers salaries and other monthly allowances entitled to them as State honourables. The lawmakers noted that they decided to take the step in order to ensure that the regular payment of civil servants salaries is not affected, irrespective of the economic situation in the state. At the meeting, Mr Makinde explained that the pandemic had resulted in about 60 per cent drop in the federal allocation and it is taking a toll on the states economy. The Chairman, Oyo House Committee on Information and Media, Kazeem Olayanju, in a statement on Monday said the lawmakers agreed to the slash in the interest of the smooth running of the state. Our income has been slashed by 30 per cent as our support towards COVID-19. The governor brought the idea and we agreed that effective this month, there should be the 30 per cent deduction. We were made to understand that the pandemic had greatly affected the economy of the country and the state as well as that the Federal Government has reduced allocation by 60 per cent. This situation could have affected regular payment of salary of Oyo State civil servants but the governor maintained that irrespective of the economic situation of Oyo state, the salary of civil servants must not be affected. Hence, we agreed that political office holders should make sacrifices. WASHINGTON - Nacole Thrower was running late, and her 3-year-old son was still snuggled in his sheets, his limbs sticking to the mattress. "Hudson, time to get up. Hudson," Thrower said. She lifted her half-sleeping toddler and carried him to the bathroom. He sat on a stepping stool, his eyes still mostly closed, and brushed his teeth. It was just before 7 a.m., on a rainy weekday in April. Things were quiet in their apartment building, a 12-story complex. Many of her neighbors - retail workers and security guards and administrative employees - no longer had jobs to get up for. But Thrower, a 41-year-old single mom, was still going into work at George Washington University Hospital, where she is a patient service specialist, scheduling and checking in patients for appointments in the OB/GYN department. That meant she needed someone to watch Hudson. So every morning, she piled him into the car and trudged him across the city, through the mostly empty streets of downtown, to Marie Reed Elementary, one of six emergency child-care facilities opened by the District of Columbia last month for the kids of essential health-care workers. It wasn't easy, deciding to send him during a pandemic. "Your child has to be around child-care workers, and you don't know where they have been," Thrower said. "But, at the same time, I don't have the option to say I am not coming to work." She could send him to her sister's house, where he'd be safe and fed, but his aunt doesn't have the time, or the tools, to help Hudson keep his crucial preschool learning on track. At Marie Reed, where Hudson's tuition is covered by the city, the workers help him complete homework packets that his KIPP DC charter school assigned him. "He has more stimulation," Thrower said. "He's very active. He can run around, and he can play." So they go. Hudson's resistance this morning had her running 30 minutes late. "What did mommy say about touching things?" she asked as they mobilized. She put on her gloves and mask and got in the elevator. Then she put Hudson's mask on. It's an adult-size one that she picked up at the hospital. She twisted the strings and wrapped them around his ears. "Keep it on, Hudson, until we get to the car." The drove to Marie Reed, an easy 10 minutes these days, half her usual commute. Parking during what should be rush hour: no problem. "Hey, Hudson," the staff members said as they approached the school. A woman lifted his green-dinosaur shirt and slipped a thermometer under his arm: 97.6 degrees. Thrower signed Hudson in at the security guard's table, which was armed with Lysol wipes and hand sanitizer. Then straight to the sink to wash their hands. That's something Hudson's good at, something that helps ease Thrower's stress about leaving him during the day: He knows to count to 20 when he washes his hands, even when Mom is not around. He washes his hands so much that she packs a container of cocoa butter in his backpack, to give his dry skin some relief during the day. Before all this, when Thrower dropped Hudson off at his regular school, she walked him in and kissed him goodbye. Nowadays, she tries not to kiss him much. Only small hugs. She waved and said goodbye. - - - A few hours later, just before noon, Hudson was in his classroom, draped in a blue smock, painting a rock that he collected on a walk. A woman walked in, clutching a clipboard. "Let's take Hudson's temperature," she said. That was Juliet Wright-Fuller. Fifty-two, with a colorful mask around her neck and her hair pulled tight into a bun, Wright-Fuller works for United Planning Organization, a nonprofit that runs child-care centers throughout the city. The center she usually runs, near her home, is federally funded, so even thought it closed last month, she was still collecting a paycheck. She was at home, with her retired husband, quarantining like so much of the city. Then, one morning, her boss called: Would she operate one of the city's emergency centers? "At first, I was like, 'Maybe, let me think about it,' " she said. She asked her husband what she should do. If she took the job, he said, she'd have to change out of her work clothes as soon as she got home in the afternoons. She asked one of her adult sons, too; he's a custodian who still takes public transportation to work. He assured her that she could report to work safely. She just needed to be cautious, he said. She took the job. "There is a virus going around, some people are dying, and this is what I love to do. How can I make sure I am going to be safe?" Wright-Fuller said. "Without us, they won't be able to do their job. In a way, I'm giving back. I am helping someone get to work." Wright-Fuller does what she can to keep herself safe: washes her hands regularly. Takes her temperature each day. Wears a mask outside and when interacting with families. There are sinks, Lysol wipes and hand sanitizer scattered across the school. But these are young children during a stressful pandemic, and she's been doing early child-care for more than 20 years. There's only so much socially distancing she can do. "We still give hugs," she said. "Every child needs that. Every child needs a rub on the back. We still have to give that to them." Still, her days look drastically different than they did before. For starters, there are only a few kids. D.C. officials have approved nearly 100 families to use these sites; about 10 kids show up most days, and they're spread across six sites. At Marie Reed, sometimes it's three children, and sometimes it's just Hudson. D.C. expects more families to take advantage of the sites if infection rates surge in the coming weeks. The city is also considering expanding eligibility for the sites, to help more working families whose day cares have closed. But for now, it's almost empty. The large preschool classroom - outfitted with books, a toy kitchen and indoor playground equipment - is quieter than usual. The playgrounds are shuttered. To get outside, Wright-Fuller and her staff take walks with the kids in the neighborhood. Sometimes they collect rocks. And throughout the day, Wright-Fuller makes sure to update the spreadsheet where she meticulously charts the temperature of each child and staff member. A teacher walked Hudson from the table to a nearby chair. He flipped through "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," not paying much attention as the teacher put a thermometer in his armpit. Wright-Fuller noted the result, 98.5, then followed the teacher as she walked Hudson to wash his hands. "What song do you want to sing this time, Hudson?" Wright-Fuller asked. " 'Row, row your boat?' Or count to 20?" - - - Thrower's shift at the hospital was eight hours that day. She spent it on the phone with new moms, making appointments for their first checkups, and with expecting ones, scheduling ultrasounds. She directs more patients to virtual appointments with their doctors these days, but she still interacts with 50 to 100 patients every shift, she said, collecting their insurance cards and IDs. She left work after 5 p.m., and - 10 minutes of driving, easy parking again - arrived back at Marie Reed just before 5:30. Thrower doesn't wear scrubs at work, so before she entered the school, she sprayed her clothes with Lysol, the same Early Morning Breeze scent she uses on Hudson's car seat. Just a light misting, so Hudson wasn't overwhelmed by the chemicals. She wanted to be ready in case he decided to hug her. "He'll start crying: 'Mommy, give me a hug,' " she said. "That hurts, when I can't give him a hug right away." On this day, though, Hudson was distracted by "Peppa Pig," which was flickering on his tablet. "Hudson, are you ready to go?" she said, but he wasn't budging. "OK, I'm going. Goodbye." She squeezed hand sanitizer into to both of their hands. Hudson, still entranced by the animated family of British pigs, rubbed his hands together, and then, clearly annoyed, shook the excess sanitizer from his hands. Say goodbye, Thrower told him, and he said goodbye. His teachers waved. It was only Monday. They'd be back tomorrow. Thrower pulled the mask over Hudson's face, twisting the strings around his ears, and they walked. A Moradabad doctor died due to coronavirus, taking the toll in Uttar Pradesh to 18 as the state reported 84 new cases of the infection, officials said on Monday. The new cases have taken the state-wide count of COVID-19 patients to 1,184, the UP health department said. The latest death took place in Moradabad, officials said in Lucknow. An official in Moradabad said the victim headed a government health centre in the district. The 35-year-old doctor was involved in the treatment of COVID-19 patients and later contracted the infection, he said. An official statement said 140 coronavirus patients out of the 1,184 in the state have been cured so far. Taking into account the deaths, UP now has 1,026 active cases. Among the 18 deaths so far, six took place in Agra, three each in Meerut and Moradabad and one each in Basti, Varanasi, Bulandshahr, Kanpur, Firozabad and Lucknow. Officials said 814 of all coronavirus positive cases in the state are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation which took place last month in Delhi's Nizamuddin. Participants carrying the virus had travelled to several parts of the country after the congregation. Principal Secretary (Health), Amit Mohan Prasad said 19 per cent of patients are in the age group of 0-20 years, 48 per cent are aged 21-40 years, 24 per cent 41-60 years, and 8.50 per are above 60. Males account for 78 per cent of the total cases, Prasad said. The number of elderly people getting infected with the virus is showing a downward trend, he added. Meanwhile, as some lockdown restrictions were eased in the state's non-containment zones, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday asked officials to ensure that the industries now being allowed to run follow social distancing norms. Adityanath also asked officials to ensure that the students brought back to the state from Rajasthan's Kota are quarantined. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pictures released by the state-owned China Daily newspaper in 2018 shows the inside of Wuhan's secretive Institute of Virology and it revealed broken seal on the door of one of the refrigerators used to hold 1,500 different strains of the virus, including the bat coronavirus which has transmitted to humans with such crippling and horrifying effect. The pictures were published on Twitter in March, but it was immediately deleted after an online uproar. One Twitter user stated that they have better seals on their refrigerator in their kitchen than that of the lab. On April 12, The Daily Mail revealed days ago that Ministers now fear that the pandemic could have started as the result of a leak, and not just someone who ate a bat soup in the province of China. Wuhan lab in poor condition Last week, The Daily Mail also disclosed that the institute had done coronavirus experiments on bats that were captured more than 1,000 miles away in Yunnan and it was funded by a $3.7 million grant from the US government. Investigation of the origins of COVID-19 has traced it to the bats found only in those caves. The Daily Mail's revelations led to President Donald Trump being asked at a press conference last week about the leak theory, to which the President state that they are doing a thorough examination of the horrible situation. President Trump also pledged on April 17 that the US will scrap funding for the Wuhan Institute. Also read: Your Feet May Show Signs of Coronavirus Even If You Don't Have Symptoms Meanwhile, US secretary of state Mike Pompeo has demanded that Beijing come clean over whether the coronavirus had leaked from the lab. He stated that there is still a lot of things to learn and that the US government is working diligently to figure it out. Pompeo added that one of the best ways that China could find to cooperate would be to let the world in and to let the world's scientists know exactly how the pandemic came to be and how the virus began to spread. The cover-up The suspicions of a Chinese cover-up increased further after the Washington Post reported that US diplomats in Beijing had written reports about the laboratory in Wuhan in 2018. The reports warned the state Department that the lab's work on bat coronaviruses and their potential human transmission represented a risk of a new pandemic that is similar to SARS. US intelligence sources say that right after the coronavirus outbreak began, Chinese officials at the lab destroyed samples of the virus and erased early reports and suppressed academic papers. The Chinese officials also tried to pin the blame on Wuhan's wet market, where wild animals such as bats are sold for consumption. The sources also said that "Patient Zero" was an intern at the laboratory in Wuhan, who unknowingly spread the virus into the Wuhan market. After accepting this theory, US intelligence officials, Britain and Canada are focusing on the Wuhan Institute, not least because of the level of coincidence required for the bats in Yunnan to have infected animals in Wuhan, which then transmitted the virus to humans. The World Health Organization, who is under the suspicion of complying with Beijing over the pandemic, accepted and propagated the wildlife market theory. French President Emmanuel Macron stated that there are things that have happened that other countries do not know about. Related article: U.S President Donald Trump Introduced 3-Phase Plan to Reopen Economy @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. All Ohio K-12 schools will remain closed for the rest of 2019-2020 academic year, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday. We balanced many issues in arriving at this decision. In the end, I believe this is what is best to protect the health of our children, our teachers, and our administrators, said DeWine. While our buildings are closed, we know that students continue to learn in new and innovative ways. I thank all of our teachers, administrators, support staff, and parents for all they have done and will continue to do in these challenging times. No decisions have been made regarding whether or not schools will reopen in the fall at this time, the governors office said in a statement. Kentucky Schools to Remain Closed for the Rest of School Year Kentuckys public schools will remain closed for the remainder of school year. Following a conversation with @kycommissioner and @GovAndyBeshear, its been recommended Kentucky schools do not return to in-person classes for the rest of 2019-20 year, the Kentucky Department of Education announced in a Twitter post on Monday. Following a conversation with @kycommissioner and @GovAndyBeshear, its been recommended Kentucky schools do not return to in-person classes for the rest of 2019-20 year. Our schools will continue @MyNTIky in order to reach 1,062 instructional hours. More info soon. #KyEd KY Dept of Education (@KyDeptofEd) April 20, 2020 Pennsylvania Extends Stay-at-Home Order to May 8 Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf announced on Monday that the states stay-at-home order will be extended to at least May 8. Wolf said curbside pickup at some state-owned liquor stores is allowed starting from Monday morning, and limited construction will be allowed statewide with strict social distancing beginning May 8. He will sign a law allowing online auto sales late Monday. We are taking small steps toward a degree of normalcy, Wolf said. Read more here Texas State Parks Reopen for Day-use Texas will start to reopen its state parks for day-use with new restrictions starting from Monday. All visitors are required to wear face coverings and maintain a 6-foot distance from individuals outside of their party. Any gathering with over five people is prohibited, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) announced. Read more here New York City Cancels All Public Events in June New York City canceled all public events scheduled for June, including a number of parades, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Monday. Its not a happy announcement, but its one we have to make, he said at a press conference in the borough of Manhattan. The decision affects all non-essential permitted events in June, including parades, concerts, rallies, and other large gatherings. Read more here From The Epoch Times Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Dr. Joss Reimer said Manitobans shouldn't be surprised to see restrictions return in waves after the province starts reopening its economy. The daily count of new novel coronavirus cases hasnt surpassed double digits in more than a week a pattern one public health expert predicts could soon prompt a roller-coaster of social distancing policies. No new COVID-19 cases in Manitoba were announced Sunday, marking the third time in seven days that the province had no new numbers to report. The daily average of cases announced last week was just under 2. "Manitoba is the perfect example of what flattening the curve looks like," said Dr. Joss Reimer, a public health physician at the University of Manitoba. "We got a little bit more warning than many parts of Canada about what was coming. We had the opportunity to change our approach sooner than other places did." Eight people are currently in hospital, including five in intensive care. There are 105 active cases and 143 people have recovered from the virus. Five people have died. Chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin has said Manitobans should remain "cautiously optimistic" about the low figures since the province is six weeks behind other hard-hit provinces. He has yet to hint at a timeline for when policies might be eased, saying only that the virus's basic reproductive number which is currently esimated at around 2.5 or 2.6 needs to decrease below one before changes are made. The province said 570 tests had been performed at Cadham Provincial Lab on Saturday, raising the number of tests conducted since early February to 19,752. In neighbouring provinces, Saskatchewan (315 current cases) has done nearly 24,000 tests while Ontario (10,578 current cases) has recorded upwards of 150,000. Reimer noted Manitoba's testing numbers aren't as high as what would be ideal, but preliminary figures show Manitoba's tally fares well, per capita, in comparison to other jurisdictions. Early warnings aside, she said the province has benefitted from tight travel restrictions and citizens abiding by social distancing measures and itll be key for those precautions to remain in place while the province ensures the health-care system is ready to handle a slow rollback of measures with personal protective equipment, space and a healthy workforce. If we do start to lessen things, its not that the risk is over; were trying to balance all of those risks and benefits. Not everythings going to return to normal; were still going to be asking people to be really conscious of physical distancing, of handwashing and considering wearing masks. Dr. Joss Reimer While unable to predict the future, she said Manitobans should expect some "back and forth" of tightened and loosened distancing policies as officials navigate life without a vaccine while they balance the publics physical and mental health, and the economy. "If we do start to lessen things, its not that the risk is over; were trying to balance all of those risks and benefits," Reimer said, adding that, "not everythings going to return to normal; were still going to be asking people to be really conscious of physical distancing, of handwashing and considering wearing masks." Roussin has made clear many times, most recently as Saturday's briefing no briefing was held Sunday a mask protects others, not the wearer, and shouldn't be seen as a tool for lessening compliance with stay-at-home orders. Meantime, doctors are urging patients to continue to seek care for non-virus-related issues. They say theyre concerned about a drop in the number of patients who seek help for other ailments, and fear people are putting their health on hold during the pandemic. "A lot of people think because of COVID-19, doctors are too busy to help with other medical concerns," said Dr. Fourie Smith, a Winnipeg family physician and president of Doctors Manitoba. "Thats not the case. Doctors are not only available, theyre ready to help, in new ways." 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. Doctors Manitoba recently surveyed more than 700 physicians and almost all of them reported a "concerning drop" in the number of people visiting their doctors to discuss their medical problems. The group says its important for doctors to monitor chronic diseases and address new health concerns. Many physicians are using phone or video appointments. If an in-person visit is needed, clinics are screening patients, regularly disinfecting common spaces and adhering to physical distancing measures. "Your doctor can help you decide if you should seek care now, or wait," Smith said. maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @macintoshmaggie 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. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor Concord Police Department Concord police are looking for Max, an 11-week-old Malinois puppy snatched Saturday afternoon from the garage of his owner, an emergency room nurse helping to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Max was stolen from the garage of a house on Montgomery Avenue by a suspect described as an adult male wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, dark ball cap, blue jeans, dark shoes and blue rubber gloves. The suspect fled on a gold-and-white bicycle while carrying Max under his arm. Meghan Markle is on a roll! After recently going out on public delivering meals to the residents of Los Angeles, walking her dogs out, and speaking up for the first time on a video chat since stepping down as a senior royal, the Duchess of Sussex is set to have her first shocking television interview. Yup, you read that right. Roughly three weeks after officially stepping down as senior members of the royal family together with her husband Prince Harry, the 38-year-old Duchess is about to give her first-ever interview with the American press. In a teaser clip aired on Saturday on ABC, "Good Morning America" announced that they would have a special interview with the former "Suits" actress this Monday (April 20). The teaser video said that Meghan Markle will exclusively talk about her breakthrough role as a voiceover narrator for Disney Plus documentary "Elephants." Meghan's special narration, which aired on Disney Plus last April 3, followed the journey of an elephant mother who travels across the Kalahari Desert together with her calf. The story highlighted the elephant's 1,000-mile journey across Africa in an extraordinary adventure that would change their lives. "On GMA Monday, Meghan Markle with an exclusive first look at the Disney documentary Elephant she narrated," the teaser clip stated alongside a photo of Meghan in a crisp white button-down shirt. However, the teaser clip did not reveal if the Duchess will be talking about her recent drama with the royal family, as well as her newfound Hollywood life with Harry. Tell-All Interview? It is also not clear if the upcoming interview is already the tell-all interview that Meghan reportedly accepted to spill the tea and dirt about what happened inside the Buckingham Palace. Earlier this April, a source revealed that Meghan Markle received a massive cash deal from an American TV station to talk about her and Prince Harry's controversial decision now dubbed as "Megxit." "It will be the most anticipated global T.V. interview even," the source told a U.K. news outlet. Meghan's explosive interview is expected to echo Princess Diana's famous 1995 television interview with Martin Bashir, where she dished all the dirt about her failed marriage with Prince Charles. The source said that the Duchess is "extremely serious" to win back the public's enthusiasm through a one-time big-time interview. "When she was part of the Royal Family, it would have been unthinkable for her to do a solo interview with anyone about her life and how being a princess has changed her world," the source said. "But now she's very much her own boss, and it has put her under pressure feeling that the public has lost their 'love' for her and Harry after they took the big step of going on their own." Live Or Pre-Recorded? According to Deadline, Meghan's representative clarified that it is a pre-recorded interview and the Duchess will not appear live on the morning show studio. The rep explained that the interview would come from a pre-recorded asset from the film "Elephants." JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. You should upgrade or use an You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser Shares of TVS Motor Company on Monday jumped over 7 per cent after the company said it has acquired Britain's iconic bike manufacturer Norton Motorcycles for GBP 16 million (around Rs 153 crore). The company's scrip advanced 7.16 per cent to Rs 323 on the BSE. At the NSE, it went up by 6.97 per cent to Rs 321.95. Founded by James Lansdowne Norton in Birmingham in 1898, Norton Motorcycles is among the most popular British motorcycle brands of all time. The company has acquired Norton in an all-cash deal for a consideration of GBP 16 million by acquiring certain assets of Norton Motorcycles (UK) through one of its overseas subsidiaries, TVS Motor Company said in a statement on Friday. "This is a momentous time for us at TVS Motor Company. Norton is an iconic British brand celebrated across the world, and presents us with an immense opportunity to scale globally," TVS Motor Company Joint Managing Director Sudarshan Venu said in the statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Nigeria Union of Journalists, FCT Council, has urged members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 that were at the burial rites of Abba Kyari, former Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, to excuse themselves from the daily briefing. In a statement on Monday in Abuja, the chairman of the council, Emmanuel Ogbeche, called on the members of the PTF which includes the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and National Coordinator, Boss Mustapha, to demonstrate dignified responsibility by not putting journalists and others who attend the briefing in harms way by not attending. Following the protocol already established by the PTF and the Presidency in asking all those who attended the funeral rites for the late Mallam Abba Kyari, former Chief of Staff to the President, the NUJ urges in particular, members of the PTF who were at the Defence House and Gudu cemetery, to respectfully not attend the daily COVID-19 briefing until after the 14 days isolation, the statement read. Mr Ogbeche said anything other than this will further cast doubt on the integrity of the PTF, and put the little gains already achieved in jeopardy. The FCT NUJ Chair advised journalists at the briefing to protest and possibly stage a walkout if any of the members that were at any of the rites shows up. READ ALSO: He charged journalists to be responsible for their safety by wearing appropriate PPEs and not become the news in their search for news. According to him, the council was still calling on media organisations to provide PPEs and hazard allowance to those covering the COVID-19 crisis, insisting that the union will declare an industrial dispute with all organisations that fail in this regard after the COVID-19 lockdown. Like other medical professionals, they are at high risk of exposure. At least seven Filipino employees of the NHS, including nurses, porters and a nurses assistant, have died from Covid-19, according to news reports. In the United States, the virus has claimed the lives of at least five nurses and a doctor from the Philippines. Image Ms. Buendias aunt, Araceli Buendia Ilagan, a nurse in Miami, died from Covid-19 last month. The common denominator is that were all scared, Ms. Buendia said of herself and her three housemates, who are also Filipino nurses. They all work at the same hospital in York and have been in England since September. Howard Catton, chief executive of the International Council of Nurses, a federation of national nurse associations, said migrant nurses had been massively important in helping countries like Britain, Spain and Italy fight the virus. But he said the crisis underscored the need for developed countries to train their own nurses rather than relying so heavily on migrants. This month, the Philippines, which says it needs about 300,000 more health care workers than it has, barred them from leaving the country, citing the need to protect them from infection and to ensure they were available to fight the virus at home. Migration is woven into the Philippines culture. As much as 10 percent of the population works overseas, sending money home, and nursing is one of the most popular options. On average, 13,000 nurses go abroad each year. Nursing recruitment agencies pave the way for visas and certifications so they can find jobs overseas. The NHS is now asking coronavirus survivors to donate blood in hope of trialing a promising plasma-based therapy on infected patients. Health regulators say the treatment - convalescent plasma - is already approved for British medics to use in tackling COVID-19. NHS Blood and Transplant says it is waiting on approval for a trial of the therapy, to see if it can boost recovery speed and survival odds. People who have recovered from COVID-19 have antibodies in their blood which can fight the virus. These could help a patient currently ill with the virus. Trials of the therapy are underway worldwide, but British scientists fear the UK has been too slow to adopt it. The NHS is now asking coronavirus survivors to donate blood in hope of trialing a promising plasma-based therapy on infected patients Trials of the therapy are underway worldwide, but British scientists fear the UK has been too slow to adopt it. Health regulators in the US followed the UK to approve CP, but trials are already underway involving more than 1,500 hospitals. Pictured, a patient donating in Seattle Convalescent plasma therapy (CP) was given the green light by medical regulators in the UK in early March in anticipation of the crisis. It means the NHS patients are allowed to receive the treatment, if a trial is set up. But no large-scale trials have begun yet. It's not clear how many British patients have - or could have - benefitted from the treatment so far, but scientists say CP could be the difference between life or death. Health regulators in the US followed the UK to approve CP, but trials are already underway involving more than 1,500 hospitals. NHSBT is now appealing to people who have recovered from COVID-19 to see if their blood can help critically ill patients in the UK. 'NHS Blood and Transplant is preparing to collect COVID-19 convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from this illness,' a spokeswoman said. WALES FIRST TO TRY BLOOD THERAPY Wales will be the first in the UK to convalescent plasma therapy (CP) for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Patients at the University Hospital of Wales (UHW) in Cardiff will be injected with blood plasma taken from people who have already recovered from the killer infection. Recovered patients are being invited by letter, if eligible, by Public Health Wales to donate blood to the scheme. The plasma will be collected and processed by the Welsh Blood Service from donors who have fully recovered and are virus free. It will be collected no sooner than 28 days after recovery and has to match the established safe blood donor selection criteria. Welsh health authorities are set to collect blood donations and give them to patients in 'the near future'. The Welsh government said the country was 'playing a leading role' in a UK-wide programme to test CP. Senior professional advisor to the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Gill Richardson, said: 'The Welsh Government has worked at speed with our expert scientists at the Welsh Blood Service, the Department of Immunology at University Hospital of Wales, critical care consultants and Public Health Wales to launch this innovative scheme. 'In the absence of any current vaccine or antiviral therapy, it has significant potential to aid the recovery of patients.' UHW is 'at the forefront', in part due to the expertise of its staff, according to Dr Richard Skone, clinical board director for specialist services, the BBC reported. Advertisement 'We envisage that this will be initially used in trials as a possible treatment for COVID-19. 'If fully approved, the trials will investigate whether convalescent plasma transfusions could improve a COVID-19 patients speed of recovery and chances of survival,' the blood service said. 'We are working closely with the government and all relevant bodies to move through the approvals process as quickly as possible.' People who have recovered from COVID-19 can register with the NHS if they are interested in donating plasma. They should not just turn up at blood donation centres, NHSBT said. Antibodies rise steadily in the blood stream when someone is ill and are thought to peak between 21 and 28 days after recovery, according to the NHS. Donors must have tested positive for the illness either at home or in hospital, but should now be three to four weeks into their recovery, ideally 29 days. According to an email sent by NHSBT, plasma can be taken by a machine similar to those used in regular platelet donation. The announcement follows concerns the NHS weren't being quick enough to start trials of CP, as the coronavirus death toll reached 16,060 yesterday. Professor Sir Robert Lechler, president of the Academy of Medical Sciences, told the BBC: 'I think there are many aspects of this pandemic we'll look back on and say, I wonder why we didn't move a little bit faster. I think this could be one of those. 'Let's hope that the NHSBT national trial gets into gear really quickly.' Professor Lechler is eager to use plasma for seriously ill patients that have no other treatment options, while a larger national trial is getting under way. He said: 'I would be disappointed if we weren't able to see some patients given this form of therapy within a couple of weeks.' Another leading doctor has said it was 'incredibly frustrating' only a handful of patients were getting the treatment, first used 100 years ago. Dr Colin Hamilton-Davies, of Barts Hospital in London, told SkyNews: 'We could be administering it, not just to one or two people, but hundreds of patients. 'It's not only myself, but many colleagues are saying "why aren't we looking at this in greater depth and in a faster timeframe?" 'There is a research framework which is up and running, which it may or may not become part of.' Dr Hamilton-Davies added: 'I very much hope it does. This is something we could get up and running very quickly indeed.' NHSBT is now appealing to people who have recovered from COVID-19 to see if their blood can help critically ill patients in the UK. The treatment is being used in countries including Qatar Scientists in the US, led by the Mayo Clinic, have organised a nationwide project in the three weeks since it was approved in the states. Pictured, a donor in Oklahoma The donated blood goes through a process to separate out blood cells so that all that's left is plasma (pictured) with antibodies BLOOD THERAPY HELPED INFECTED PATIENTS GET BETTER WITHIN THREE DAYS Convalescent therapy can help the infected get better within three days, a study has found. Ten COVID-19 patients in China who were severely ill in hospital saw their symptoms disappear or rapidly improve within 72 hours after the therapy. They were given a dose of plasma donated from COVID-19 survivors, which had the antibodies necessary for their immune system to clear the virus. The study in Wuhan where the coronavirus pandemic began in December was led by Kai Duan of China's National Biotec Group Co. Ltd. Because it was a pilot study, which assess the feasibility of a treatment, the findings are only preliminary. However, the results were published in a respected journal called the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences. Ten patients at three different hospitals were enrolled to get convalescent plasma therapy. They also received other promising drugs. The researchers said all clinical symptoms, which included the tell-tale signs of a fever and cough, subsided within three days. The patients' liver and lung function as well as blood oxygen levels were also found to have improved, signs they had fought off the virus. The numbers of disease-fighting white blood cells, lymphocytes, also increased, and antibody levels remained high after CP transfusion, the researchers said. Two of three patients who were hooked up to a ventilator to assist with breathing were taken off, and given oxygen delivered into the nose. The study was not designed to compare the outcomes for patients who received the antibody therapy with those who did not. That would have shown if it was the convalescent plasma that worked or the patients just recovered on their own. But the authors did create a control group from a random selection of ten COVID-19 patients treated in the same hospitals with a similar outlook. They were matched to the pilot study participants by their age, gender and illness severity. Over several weeks, there were shown to be obvious differences in how the control group patients deteriorated. Three died, six saw their conditions stabilize, and one got better during the course of the study. Of those who received convalescent plasma, none of the 10 patients died, three were discharged from the hospital, and the remaining seven were rated 'much improved' and ready for discharge by the end of the study. Advertisement For now, NHSBT donations will be used in clinical trials but the hope is that in future they could be used by doctors treating those suffering with the disease. Several groups in the UK have been looking into using blood plasma, including University Hospital of Wales (UHW) in Cardiff, believed to be the first to take on the challenge. Welsh health authorities are set to collect blood donations from people who have beaten COVID-19 and give them to patients in 'the near future'. The Welsh government said the country was 'playing a leading role' in a UK-wide programme to test CP. Another small-scale trial involving London hospitals is in the pipeline, led by Professor Lechler, who is also executive director of King's Health Partners. There is no proof the therapy works yet, but early studies have been promising. Dr Derek Gatherer, of Lancaster University previously told MailOnline there is every reason to believe blood plasma therapy can save lives during the global coronavirus pandemic. He said: 'Plasma therapy is a promising avenue... for really critical cases, it could make a life or death difference.' Eldad Hod, a transfusion medicine doctors leading trials at Columbia University's Irving Medical Center, said each donation 'can potentially save three to four lives'. The promising therapy, which was first used a century ago in the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, has been used already in China, Italy, Qatar, Germany, France and the US. Doctors in China, where the COVID-19 pandemic began in December 2019, were the first to attempt treating patients this way. Leading doctors claim to have had encouraging early results with COVID-19 patients having been using it since February. Scientists in the US, led by the Mayo Clinic, have organised a nationwide project in the three weeks since The Food and Drug Administration - the US version of the MHRA - approved the use of the blood-based therapy on March 23. Around 600 critically ill patients, who have little or no other options, have been treated using CP so far, the BBC reports. In the US, CP is regarded am 'experimental treatment' which can be used in clinical trials - the same as the UK. The American Red Cross helps to collect and distribute the plasma. CP has been used for around a century for other infections. It works by bolstering a patient's own immune system to fight the virus. The donated blood goes through a process to separate out blood cells so that all that's left is plasma with antibodies. Plasma makes up around 55 per cent of all blood volume and provides the liquid for red and white blood cells to be carried around the body in. By injecting this into patients it can provide their bodies with a vital dose of crucial substances called antibodies. Antibodies can only be created by people who have already been infected and learnt how to fight off an infection, such as SARS-CoV-2. Infusing patients with plasma has also been used to tackle the similar coronaviruses SARS and MERS, as well as the deadly infection Ebola. A key advantage to the blood based therapy is that its ready immediately and relies only drawing blood from a former patient. Leading scientists claim it could help to plug a treatment gap while pharmaceutical giants race to discover a wonder drug or vaccine. Experts have repeatedly warned an injection to protect millions against the SARS-CoV-2 virus could be 18 months away. Before donated blood can be used, it must be tested for safety. Scientists admit they still don't know how many antibodies the body produces when its faced with the coronavirus, or how long these provide immunity. But so far, the donated blood of survivors has shown improvement in current patients. Drone video shot on April 18 shows wildfires burning in Ukraine's Zhytomyr region, about 150 kilometers west of the capital, Kyiv. Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said that three planes and 600 firefighters battled about 15 blazes. Smoke from the fires contributed to air pollution in Kyiv. As of April 20, Avakov said that most of the fires were extinguished but that four were were still burning. The Delhi High Court has directed the Centre and the AAP government here to hold top-level meeting to deliberate on measures to curb domestic violence and protect the victims during the coronavirus lockdown. A bench of Justices J R Midha and Jyoti Singh further directed that a decision be taken in three days and steps required to protect victims of domestic abuse be immediately implemented. The April 18 order, uploaded Sunday night, came on an NGO's plea seeking measures to safeguard victims of domestic violence and child abuse amidst the coronavirus or COVID-19 lockdown. The court, which heard the matter via video conferencing on April 18, also issued notice to the Centre, the Delhi government and the National and Delhi women commissions seeking their stand on the petition by April 24. The NGO, All India Council of Human Rights, Liberties and Social Justice (AICHLS), has claimed that there were increasing number of domestic violence incidents since the nation was put under lockdown and sought an urgent intervention by the court. During the hearing, the Delhi government and Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) had told the court that there are sufficient measures in place to safeguard victims of domestic violence and child abuse amidst the COVID-19 lockdown in the country. The Women and Child Development department, represented by Delhi government additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose and advocate Urvi Mohan, had told the court that sufficient facilities were available to house victims of domestic violence and children in need of care and protection. The department had also said there were 24x7 helplines in place and when a complaint is received rescue of victim(s) is carried out immediately. The DCW, represented by advocate Rajshekhar Rao, had said that analysis of the calls received on its helpline during lockdown indicated no rising trend in domestic violence cases. "On the contrary, the number of cases reported to the helpline have decreased. While no definite conclusion can be drawn, this is probably due to the circumspection on the part of victims in reporting such incidents due to the presence of the perpetrators in the house and the fear of further violence if such attempt to report were made known to the perpetrator," the commission had said. It had also said that the cases of molestation, sexual assault, rape, kidnapping and stalking "have decreased manifold presumably since a large number of these incidents take place outside the domestic setting and by third parties". AICHLS in its plea has contended that incidents of domestic violence and child abuse have gripped not only India but countries such as Australia, UK and USA and the reports suggest that countries are witnessing a horrific surge in domestic violence cases since the COVID-19 outbreak and lockdowns. The plea has claimed that the helpline numbers across the country have received about 92,000 calls based on domestic abuse and violence in the first 11 days of the lockdown alone and sought to appoint nodal officers to attend such distress calls. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Joe Bidens campaign hasnt yet started the process of formally vetting or interviewing potential running mates. Theres been no private polling yet, and no focus-grouping of potential candidates. But the hunt for a vice presidential pick is already taking shape along familiar fault lines, mirroring the ongoing debate over whether the Democratic Party should focus more on winning back the white working class Rust Belt voters it lost to Donald Trump in 2016 or reenergizing the minority-powered coalition that elected Barack Obama to two terms. Selecting a running mate is always a big deal for a candidate, but given the unprecedented crisis facing our country, this is an opportunity for him to create a renewed momentum in his campaign, said Ashley Walker, a former Obama adviser in Florida who leads the progressive For Our Future super PACs battleground states program. His selection will help elevate a leader for the next generation of our party and will enable that person to influence party politics for years to come. Most of the pool of a dozen or so candidates that are either known or figure to be in consideration divide neatly into those geographical and demographic camps. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin are white and hail from the industrial Midwest all from states that figure to be closely contested. California Sen. Kamala Harris and former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams are African American, while Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham are Latina. The former vice president has indicated a preference for candidates who have been vetted by running their own campaigns, including former opponents. He has repeatedly said he wants a partner who can advise him, disagree with him when hes wrong yet remain simpatico with him on major issues, even though they may differ at times. On Thursday, Biden told donors during a virtual fundraiser that hes heeding the advice of Obama, who told him to surround himself with people who know more than you know. He also stressed the need to have a female running mate who looks like America. Story continues Former Obama campaign aides as well as top African American backers of Biden would prefer Biden pick a woman of color, arguing that it rounds out his candidacy better and has a photo-negative quality to the Obama-Biden ticket, which paired a younger black man at the top of the ticket with an older white man. Here, an older white man would be joined by a younger black woman. A black running mate, they say, would help not just in Sun Belt swing states like Florida and North Carolina, but also in Great Lakes states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, which are more often associated with white voters. To win them, Democrats need a good portion of white voters but also stronger black turnout in cities like Milwaukee, Detroit and Philadelphia. That didnt happen in 2016, when Trump flipped all three states. Sen. Amy Klobuchar is one of a number of possible veep choices representing a Midwestern state. In the battleground of North Carolina, Wayne Goodwin, the chairman of the state Democratic Party Chairman and a candidate for Insurance Commissioner, has a special fondness for the Obama-Biden ticket, which helped sweep him into a first term as insurance commissioner in 2008. After winning reelection in 2012, he lost in 2016 when Trump carried the state. Hes now running for a third, nonconsecutive term. I will be personally pleased and personally thrilled if Joe Biden chooses a black woman as a running mate because black women are the backbone of the Democratic Party, Goodwin said. Joe Biden brings his own coalition. But to further energize and maximize the strength of a Biden presidential campaign, it is I think the wisest choice and the best choice to select a woman of color. But the 46 electoral votes in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that flipped to Trump in 2016 lead many to view a candidate from the industrial Midwest as the best guarantee of success in November. In Wisconsin, the swing state Trump won by the narrowest of margins, former state party Chairman Mike Tate said he thinks people are underestimating Bidens existing support among black voters and that his home-state senator, Tammy Baldwin, has shown she can get white working class votes and turn out the base. As the first openly LGBT senator, Baldwin can also generate excitement with progressives, he said. If you see were falling behind in the Midwest and that those are going to be the ultimate swing states the Michigans, the Wisconsins and even Minnesota then you have to take a second look at a Whitmer or a Klobuchar, said Moe Vela, a former top aide in the vice presidents office. The partys weakness among white working class voters those without college educations that revealed itself so dramatically in the Midwest became apparent during Obamas second midterm election, and were downplayed by party elites, Democratic pollster Keith Frederick noted. The 2014 elections were the canary in the coal mine about how much the Democratic Party had run its string out [with many white voters], he said. Since Trump is making his strongest play to carry Florida, the nations biggest swing state, Frederick said, it might make more sense for Biden to pick a Great Lakes white woman as a running mate to peel off the regions potential swing-voting women without college degrees, who range in age from young to old. When Biden launched his candidacy last year, he fashioned himself as the candidate Obama chose in 2008 to appeal to those voters, particularly in the Great Lakes states. And though he initially lost white voters in the first three states during the primary this year only to have his campaign resurrected and powered by black voters starting in South Carolina Biden on Wednesday told donors that his campaign has determined that his base is among the people I grew up with, white working-class, high-school educated people. Biden grew up in swing-state Pennsylvania and has headquartered his campaign in Philadelphia. Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto is one of the Latino women that Joe Biden might be considering. Ruy Teixeira, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress who has written extensively about election demographics, said in the short term Biden may have settled the question between those who wanted the party to focus a little more on white voters and a moderate messenger or be more progressive and nonwhite. Still, Biden manages to blur the debate lines because he won such strong black support, was the heir to Obamas legacy and, Teixeira said, is now running on a pretty friggin left program when you compare it to Hillary and compare it to Obama and go back a few cycles. Teixeira said its possible Biden could go in an even more progressive direction by picking Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the primary rival who endorsed him last week. But he said its more likely that race and region would be bigger factors in Bidens selection. If I had to make a guess, it would either be the Kamala route or the Klobuchar-Whitmer route. Its pretty much a toss-up in my mind. It does reflect that debate, Teixeira said, adding that the center of gravity leans more toward a black running mate like Harris, Abrams or Florida Rep. Val Demings. At 77, amid speculation he would seek to serve only one term in the White House, Biden understands the critical role he is poised to play in shaping the partys identity for years to come. I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else, he said at a Detroit event in early March that featured Harris, among others. Theres an entire generation of leaders you saw stand behind me. They are the future of this country. While he hasnt tipped his hand on which direction he is leaning, Biden has already had public auditions of sorts, for some of the women on his shortlist. Whitmer was the first guest on his new podcast Heres the Deal. And earlier this month, Harris made a surprise appearance at one of his virtual fundraisers, where she introduced him. An adviser to Biden noted that he thought highly of three of his former opponents. He appreciated Klobuchars hard work to help him win Minnesota, Warrens attention to detail and policy, and Harris dynamic personality and her friendship with his son, Beau, who had passed away in 2015. Anyone who is telling you about whos leading in the so-called veepstakes is full of shit and doesnt know anything, the adviser said. Bidens campaign committee to oversee the vetting process is expected to start by months end. The committee is to include campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond a former Congressional Black Caucus chair legal counsel Dana Remus and Obamas former White House counsel Bob Bauer, the husband of one of Bidens top advisers, Anita Dunn. Bidens longtime adviser Ron Klain is also expected to play a role in the discussions. Neil Sroka, an activist with the progressive Democracy for America group and a city councilman in the Michigan city of Grosse Pointe Farms, said one factor Biden shouldnt overlook in his calculation is the importance of the progressive base. It would be a mistake for him to just focus on how you assemble the Obama coalition. It should be about where the party goes in the future, Sroka said. Hes acknowledged hes not the future of the party. Its precarious if he picks the wrong future, and thats going to be a real challenge. Michigans Democratic Party chair, Lavora Barnes, said shes conflicted over the choice. Whitmer would be on everyones shortlist for vice president because she is so terrific, she says, but Barnes doesnt want Whitmer to leave as Democrats build strength in the state and the governor faces off with Trump over fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Barnes said Biden, who played a big role in the Obama administrations auto-industry bailout, is so well-known in the state that hes a son of Michigan. As a black woman, she said, she prefers a woman of color on his ticket. Having a woman of color would tip the scales, she said. If you look at the way this country voted for Joe Biden, he doesnt have a race issue or a turnout issue. But I do think he can round out his candidacy and make the ticket stronger. Ten years ago, a powerful explosion destroyed an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 workers and injuring 17 others. Over a span of 87 days, the Deepwater Horizon well released an estimated 168 million gallons of oil and 45 million gallons of natural gas into the ocean, making it the largest accidental marine oil spill in history. Researchers from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) quickly mobilized to study the unprecedented oil spill, investigating its effects on the seafloor and deep-sea corals and tracking dispersants used to clean up the spill. In a review paper published in the journal Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, WHOI marine geochemists Elizabeth Kujawinski and Christopher Reddy review what they-- and their science colleagues from around the world--have learned from studying the spill over the past decade. "So many lessons were learned during the Deepwater Horizon disaster that it seemed appropriate and timely to consider those lessons in the context of a review," says Kujawinski. "We found that much good work had been done on oil weathering and oil degradation by microbes, with significant implications for future research and response activities." "At the end of the day, this oil spill was a huge experiment," adds Reddy. "It shed great light on how nature responds to an uninvited guest. One of the big takeaways is that the oil doesn't just float and hang around. A huge amount of oil that didn't evaporate was pummeled by sunlight, changing its chemistry. That's something that wasn't seen before, so now we have insight into this process." Released for the first time in a deep ocean oil spill, chemical dispersants remain one of the most controversial debates in the aftermath of Deepwater Horizon. Studies offer conflicting conclusions about whether dispersants released in the deep sea reduced the amount of oil that reached the ocean surface, and the results are ambiguous about whether dispersants helped microbes break down the oil at all. "I think the biggest unknowns still center on the impact of dispersants on oil distribution in seawater and their role in promoting--or inhibiting--microbial degradation of the spilled oil," says Kujawinski, whose lab was the first to identify the chemical signature of the dispersants, making it possible to track in the marine environment. Though the authors caution that the lessons learned from the Deepwater Horizon release may not be applicable to all spills, the review highlights advances in oil chemistry, microbiology, and technology that may be useful at other deep-sea drilling sites and shipping lanes in the Arctic. The authors call on the research community to work collaboratively to understand the complex environmental responses at play in cold climates, where the characteristics of oil are significantly different from the Gulf of Mexico. "Now we have a better sense of what we need to know," Kujawinski says. "Understanding what these environments look like in their natural state is really critical to understanding the impact of oil spill conditions." ### Additional authors of the review are chemist Ryan P. Rodgers (Florida State University), and microbiologists J. Cameron Thrash (University of Southern California, Los Angeles), David L. Valentine (University of California Santa Barbara), and Helen K. White (Haverford College). Funding for this review was provided by the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative, the Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine Gulf Research Program, and the National Science Foundation. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, non-profit organization on Cape Cod, Mass., dedicated to marine research, engineering, and higher education. Established in 1930 on a recommendation from the National Academy of Sciences, its primary mission is to understand the ocean and its interaction with the Earth as a whole, and to communicate a basic understanding of the ocean's role in the changing global environment. For more information, please visit http://www.whoi.edu. Key Takeaways Some coastal ecosystems around the Gulf of Mexico recovered, but in areas such as deep-sea coral communities, the oil, gas and dispersants combined with other stressors to create long-lasting impacts. Gene analysis tools, used on a wide scale for the first time, provided unprecedented insights into which microbes consumed oil, gas and dispersants in marine ecosystems. Advanced chemical analysis showed for the first time that weathering on the ocean surface, particularly by sunlight and oxygen (photo-oxidation), changed the composition of oil but reduced the effectiveness of dispersants applied to the surface. The spill science community can be most effective by working collaboratively across academia, industry and government in the event of future oil releases in the deep sea and high latitudes. On Saturday, the Mail launched a new series uncovering China's role in fuelling the coronavirus pandemic. We have investigated claims about the origins of the virus in Wuhan and documented the cover-up of the outbreak by the Chinese authorities. Today, in the concluding article, we explore fears that China is in prime position to exploit the West's economic implosion in the wake of Covid-19. With hindsight, one of the more surreal video clips to appear on the internet during this coronavirus global crisis was filmed halfway up a Swiss mountain on January 22. That was the day before the city of Wuhan which spawned the Covid-19 pandemic that has claimed more than 160,000 lives globally was put into belated lockdown by the Chinese authorities Huanan seafood market, thought to be the source of the contagion, had already been closed for more than three weeks. China's President Xi Jinping speaks during the opening ceremony of the B20 Summit For almost a month the Chinese Communist Party leaders in Beijing had been busy seeking to silence whistle-blowers including medical staff and researchers who were trying to warn their fellow citizens and the wider world that an epic disaster was unfolding. Still the truth continued to leak out. By the second half of January the spread of the virus was being documented by the world's press and there was already speculation about a Chinese cover-up. For some of the world's movers and shakers, however, it was business as usual as they gathered for the annual World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. Among the star speakers was distinguished Singaporean academic and former diplomat Kishore Mahbubani, the author of a new and much talked-about book called Has China Won? People work in a factory of motorbike and scooter parts in Suixi county in central China's Anhui province Friday, April 17, 2020. In it he examines Beijing's seemingly relentless march towards overtaking the U.S. to become the world's No1 economic superpower. The book was completed before the coronavirus crisis began. So a filmed interview with a representative of event sponsors Deutsche Bank began with the question its title posed. Had China 'won'? 'No,' Mr Mahbubani replied.' Then, with an enigmatic smile: 'Or more accurately, not yet.' During the ten-minute conversation the author compared America's 'plutocracy' with its geopolitical rival which, he said, 'has become a meritocracy and is run by the youngest and most dynamic leaders in China'. It was an assertion that was surely open to challenge, not least because, at 66, President Xi Jinping is no spring chicken. Even as Mr Mahbubani spoke, we now know that thousands of Chinese were being arrested, for speaking out about their leaders' handling of the unfolding crisis. But in Davos it was mentioned not once, by either interviewer or author. Mr Mahbubani has been a longstanding cheerleader some say apologist for the Chinese Communist Party and the economic 'miracle' it has wrought over the past 40 years. He has a habit of glossing over much of the totalitarian baggage including, it has been alleged, the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, as well as secrecy over Covid-19 key to the party's success. But he is important to this growing debate. The Economist magazine this week consciously echoed Mr Mahbubani's central question with a front cover headline asking: 'Is China winning?' Could it be that China will actually profit financially and in extending its influence from a global catastrophe that many regard to be of its own making? On Saturday, in the first part of this series on China's role in the coronavirus pandemic, we reported on how the country appeared to be swiftly returning to normal life, with record spending reported in some cities and factories resuming production. A farewell ceremony is held for the last group of medical workers who came from outside Wuhan to help the city during the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan It is predicted that after a sharp contraction in the first quarter, the Chinese economy will 'bounce' by eight per cent in the second. Meanwhile, much of the West still in lockdown heads for economic meltdown. The stock markets have collapsed, unemployment is soaring. In the UK, a worst-case collapse of up to 35 per cent in GDP is being predicted by the Office for Budget Responsibility, while the Resolution Foundation think tank estimates almost 12 million people could be furloughed or unemployed in the next three months. Is it any wonder, then, that a backlash against the Chinese leadership for triggering this savage downturn is already taking place? There has been talk of a 'reckoning' from Downing Street, and last week Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, now acting Prime Minister while Boris Johnson recovers from Covid-19, said China's relations with the UK will not be 'business as usual once the crisis is over'. Intermediate-range ballistic missile 'DF-26' drive past the Tiananmen Square during a military parade in Beijing, China 'We will have to ask the hard questions about how it came about and how it couldn't have been stopped earlier,' he said. Pressure has been growing for some weeks among leading Tory backbenchers for the Government to revise the controversial decision it made in January to allow the Chinese telecommunications giant, Huawei, to provide some of Britain's 5G infrastructure. But it is not only politicians who are angry. Yesterday, a Survation survey for the neo-Conservative think tank the Henry Jackson Society (HJS), suggested that more than 80 per cent of Britons want China to face an inquiry over the virus outbreak. Seventy-one per cent wanted the Government to sue China for damages which could be as high as 350billion. A security guard wearing a protective face mask holds the locked gate of the Forbidden City which remain closed for visitors following the new coronavirus outbreak in Beijing Some 74 per cent thought China was to blame for allowing Covid-19 to become a pandemic. Brussels is also watching Beijing with suspicion. The EU's competition chief, Margrethe Vestager, has urged the governments of member states to buy stakes in their countries' strategic asset companies, lest China snaps them up at bargain prices as share values crash. Too late, in many cases, say the hawks. Matthew Henderson, a former British diplomat in Beijing, is director of the Asia Studies Centre at the HJS. 'We have bent over backwards over the past two decades to believe that China is unstoppable and everyone is in a win-win situation by doing business with them,' he told the Mail. 'And that is nonsense. After this is over it will not be the same China we have fawned over. 'Let's have some straight thinking. What do we need from an aggressive China that could not be trusted to tell the truth about a global pandemic? Can we not avoid the current level of dependency we have on them for certain goods?' Mr Henderson said that a number of high-tech British industries and 'almost every single' academic research and development institution has already been 'colonised or penetrated' by the Chinese state. A man walks on the street in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China, 16 April 2020 'What can't be bought is copied and we have been letting them do this because, at the end of the day, we needed their money. 'We have to sit down with our partners and say, 'There is an existential challenge here.' If the rule-based order is undermined, we are all undermined. We must ring-fence our national assets, even if it costs us a little more. If you took the word 'Chinese' and substituted it for 'Russians' people would get more excited... [What China does] is not illegal, much of it, but at the end of the day the effect is malign.' The London-based Chinese author and dissident Ma Jian agrees. 'After more than two months we still do not know how many people are dead in China or the source of the virus,' he told the Mail this week. 'For the basic questions the answers are suppressed. 'The West has been dealing with a regime utterly unworthy of trust. It is naive to think it could lead China to democracy. And this virus is the most painful of lessons.' An employee works on the production line of surgical masks at Yilong medical instruments Co., Ltd amid the coronavirus outbreak on April 16, 2020 in Zunyi, Guizhou Province of China Since the late 1970s and the accession to the presidency of Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese Communist Party has been on an extraordinary mission to transform, root and branch, the country's economy while maintaining a strict control over society. Until a slowdown in the third quarter of last year which saw a 27- year low economic growth has been phenomenal. Even at its slowest it stood at 6 per cent, compared to the UK economy's own growth for 2019 of 1.4 per cent. In 1999, China was the UK's 26th largest export market. By 2018, it was our sixth. But far more was coming the other way. By 2018 China was the fourth largest source of imports to the UK. Annual Chinese imports here have grown for 19 years running. And every year we suffer a trade deficit. The latest figures showed it at an annual 22.1billion. Last year long before coronavirus it was predicted that this relentless surge would see the Chinese outstrip the United States economy sometime in 2020. 'It is important to step into the mindsets of China's leaders and understand the psychological forces driving them,' Mr Mahbuban said in his Davos interview. 'For them the most important [matter] is the hundred years of humiliation that China suffered from the Opium Wars [fought and lost against the British] between 1840 and 1949, when the People's Republic of China was established. Clearly, those were the worst hundred years of China's history in 4,000 years. 'The desire never to see that again means that China can be strategic, disciplined and focused on the long term whereas by contrast the U.S. is coming out of 100 years of triumphalism. They are so over-confident.' When he became President in 2013, Xi Jinping simply took up this baton and ran harder. In a speech last year he used the word 'struggle' no less than 60 times. He has pledged that by 2049 the centenary of the Chinese Communist Party seizing power, China will have achieved 'the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation'. And at any cost, its seems. On January 23 this year, the day of the Wuhan lockdown and with corpses lying in the streets, President Xi spoke at a reception in Beijing, where he ignored the looming disaster and told of the need to 'race against time and keep abreast with history to realise the first centenary goal of the dream of national rejuvenation'. One of the key stepping stones to this goal is Xi's 'Made in China 2025' plan to upgrade China's manufacturing base. He wants the country to move away from being the world's sweatshop, making low-value goods for export, to concentrate on high-tech, highvalue industries instead. Which is why there are so many Chinese postgraduates in the research and development departments of Western universities. The plan foresaw the growth of the Chinese middle classes and with it a decrease in dependence on foreign consumer demand. Beijing's crowing confidence in victory over a struggling America was illustrated in a remarkable opinion piece published by the official Xinhua News Agency on March 4, when the scale of the pandemic was only just beginning to be recognised. It acknowledged that the mercurial Donald Trump who has hit Beijing hard with trade war tariffs had praised Chinese efforts in the crisis. But it went on to boast: 'While China has made significant progress in controlling this new pneumonia, the United States is caught in a rain storm; more and more states are declaring a state of emergency, medical supplies in the U.S. are extremely scarce and a runaway new coronary pneumonia epidemic is almost inevitable. The stock market in the United States has plunged continuously, with a decline of more than 12 per cent in just one week...Once the stock market continues to plunge, it will not only affect the U.S. economy, but ... the challenges facing Trump's presidential throne are increasing.' There was no mistaking the message: America was weak, China was strong. And while President Trump did not seem much interested in helping those outside the U.S., Beijing engaged in what might be called PPE (personal protective equipment) diplomacy in one month sending abroad four million face masks, aid and debt relief to African nations and dispatching a train-load of supplies on to virusstricken Madrid. The Mail spoke to Mr Mahbubani this week and he remained staunch in his praise for Beijing's actions. The Covid-19 crisis had merely emphasised 'the strength and resilience of China' compared to the 'the Anglo-Saxon world'. He added: 'There were one or two initial stumbles and mistakes early on in this crisis, but very quickly the country got to grips with tackling the problem in order to protect the vast majority of its 1.4billion population. 'It is one of only a very few countries able to take very drastic action quickly and carry its citizens with it. It managed to shut down everything just before Chinese New Year. Can you imagine the U.S. being able to do the same two days before Thanksgiving? It wouldn't happen.' A number of commentators point out that if Western consumer demand collapses, there will be consequences for China, too. 'When their customers' economies hit bottom the tide will ebb; the cash will run out,' Mr Henderson said. 'In any case, I question their current growth figures.' Others counter that depression or recession in the West might not hit an increasingly self-sufficient China as hard as some think. Kerry Brown, professor of Chinese studies at King's College London and a former First Secretary at the British embassy in Beijing, says: 'The question is whether China's domestic sources of growth will be enough to make up for [the plunge in] its external growth sources,' he said. 'Beijing has worked on a 'soft decoupling' from [the need for] foreign demand for a number of years, but Covid-19 could cause it to accelerate. Europe is in a pretty precarious position. 'It already was, and is now more so. Globally, it's no longer a case of sink or swim together.' Prof Brown argues that Britain will need to take a rational approach. 'You have to strip the emotion away from it. 'If in a few months' time Europe's growth is poor, America is struggling but China is OK, who do we turn to to get good returns and find economic possibilities? At what point will political reservations be overruled by terrible growth?' He added: 'It's natural that people are very furious now and looking for someone to blame. But, as we emerge from this, the entity that we blame for starting the crisis might be the one which rescues us. It's a public health issue now but it will end up in the field of economics.' And in that there is one clear favourite: China. The winner's enclosure awaits. Additional reporting: Simon Trump The Maharashtra government on Sunday ordered a high-level inquiry into the Palghar mob lynching incident in which three people were killed on Thursday night Home minister Amit Shah asked Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray for a report on the Palghar mob lynching in which three people were killed on Thursday night. The Maharashtra government had ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident on Sunday. Meanwhile, two police personnel of Palghar's Kasa Police Station were suspended, district SP Gaurav Singh told ANI. Home minister Anil Deshmukh also warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. In a tweet issued from his handle, the home minister said, "Police have detained 101 people involved into the killing of three Surat-bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered high-level inquiry into these killings. Deshmukh further said that the police is keeping a close eye on those who wanted to use this incident to create a rift in society. "Those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings are not from different religions. I have ordered Maharashtra police and @MahaCyber1 to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media," Deshmukh said in a tweet in Hindi. - / @MahaCyber1 #LawAndOrderAboveAll ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) April 19, 2020 The Palghar Police said 101 people have been remanded to police custody till 30 April and nine of them have been sent to juvenile home. Most of those arrested belong to Gadchinchale village in Dahanu Taluka of Palghar district, The Wire reported. The incident occurred when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were headed towards Surat in a car to attend a funeral on Thursday night. Their vehicle was stopped in Palghar district. A large group of villagers surrounded the car and started attacking them with sticks and iron rods, Scroll reported. They were beaten to death on suspicion of being thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said that the accused will be brought to justice. Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible. CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) April 19, 2020 Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis condemned the mob attack and demanded a high-level inquiry to bring the perpetrators to justice. Over a quarter of $350bn fund to help US small businesses went to fewer than 2 percent of the firms getting relief. Shake Shack Inc said it will return the small business loan it received from the United States government, making it the first major firm to hand back money provided to help businesses ride out the impact of the coronavirus lockdown. The company will immediately return the entire $10m US Small Business Administration (SBA) loan as it was able to raise additional capital, CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said in a blog post on Monday. Last week, it raised about $150m in an equity offering. SBA, which is a key part of the governments $2.2 trillion aid package, is aimed at helping small companies keep paying their employees and their basic bills during the shutdowns so that they are able to reopen quickly when public health allows. More than 25 percent of the total $350bn fund went to fewer than 2 percent of the firms that got relief, including a number of publicly traded companies with thousands of employees and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual sales. This led to a backlash from smaller establishments and mum-and-dad restaurants, one of the hardest-hit sectors as diners stay at home due to lockdowns. Ruth Hospitality Group Inc, Potbelly Corp and Fiesta Restaurant Groups Texas Taco Cabana are among the chains to have borrowed money. Several franchises of McDonalds Corp and Dunkin Brands Group Inc are also said to have applied for the loan. If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding? Garutti and Meyer wrote. Shake Shack said the money it received could be reallocated to the independent restaurants who need it most (and) havent gotten any assistance. Shake Shack runs around 189 restaurants in the United States, with about 45 employees in each outlet. The company closed about half of its 120 locations worldwide, and furloughed or laid off more than 1,000 employees after sales fell 28.5 percent in March. On Sunday, President Donald Trump defended restaurant chains, hotel operators and hedge funds accessing funding meant for small businesses. US Democrats and Republicans are nearing an agreement on extra money to help small businesses, Trump said on Sunday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on CNN the deal being discussed with Congress would include $300bn more for the Paycheck Protection Program loan programme for small businesses. Watertown, NY (13601) Today Snow this morning will transition to snow showers this afternoon. High 34F. Winds SW at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of snow 70%. Snow accumulating 1 to 3 inches. Higher wind gusts possible.. Tonight Occasional snow showers. Low 27F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 40%. Snow accumulations less than one inch. Shake Shack is returning all $10 million it received from a federal loan program intended to help small businesses amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the popular burger chain announced in a statement late Sunday. "Our people would benefit from a $10 million [Paycheck Protection Program] loan but we're fortunate to now have access to capital that others do not," the company's executives, Danny Meyer and Randy Garutti, wrote in a letter shared on LinkedIn. "Until every restaurant that needs it has had the same opportunity to receive assistance, we're returning ours." The decision comes shortly after Shake Shack was identified in recent media reports as one of multiple large companies with revenue of more than $100 million that obtained loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, which maxed out last week and is no longer accepting claims. The $350 billion lending program, a central part of the massive $2.2 trillion stimulus passed last month, is meant to incentivize small businesses to keep people employed through loans that are forgivable if the workers are kept on payroll, according to the Small Business Administration. But as CNN reported over the weekend, scores of small businesses have had their loan applications rejected while larger companies including restaurant chains, hoteliers and other publicly traded corporations have received amounts in the millions. In Sunday's letter, Meyer, Shake Shack's founder, and Garutti, the CEO, explained that the chain initially applied for federal assistance because it qualified under a stipulation that loans could be paid out to any restaurant location with no more than 500 employees. Though Shake Shack has 189 locations, each individual restaurant only employs about roughly 45 people, the letter said. "The 'PPP' came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing," Meyer and Garutti wrote. "The best chance of keeping our teams working, off the unemployment line and hiring back our furloughed and laid off employees, would be to apply now and hope things would be clarified in time." The burger chain wasn't the only large restaurant business to benefit from the program, CNN reported. Potbelly Sandwich Shop, Ruth's Chris steak houses, and Kura Sushi USA Inc., one of the largest sushi chains in the country, among others, all received sizable loans, according to CNN. Meyer and Garutti said Sunday that they were not aware the federal program would be overwhelmed so quickly and acknowledged the outcry stemming from independent businesses that were not able to secure loans. The decision to return the $10 million loan was made immediately after Shake Shack secured separate funding last Friday "needed to ensure our long term stability," the letter said. The two executives went on to urge Congress to make sure that moving forward the program is adequately funded, writing, "It's inexcusable to leave restaurants out because no one told them to get in line by the time the funding dried up." "If this health crisis and the associated economic shock has taught us anything, it is that we are all in this together," Meyer and Garutti wrote. "Restaurants and their employees are craving the moment when we can safely be back in business and bring our guests back to the table. With adequate funding and some necessary tweaks, the PPP program can provide the economic spark the entire industry needs to get back in business." By Trend As many as 1,294 people have 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, 91 people have died from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours. Jahanpur added that the condition of 3,389 people is serious and critical. So far, more than 353,000 tests have been conducted in Iran for the diagnosis of coronavirus. Iran is one of the countries heavily affected by the rapidly-spreading coronavirus. According to recent reports from the Iranian officials, over 83,500 people have been infected, 5,209 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 59,200 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. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The Washington Post is providing this news free to all readers as a public service. Follow this story and more by signing up for national breaking news email alerts. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday urged China to be as transparent as possible about the coronavirus outbreak, as debate swirls about how the deadly pandemic started. "I believe the more transparent China is about the origin story of the virus, the better it is for everyone in the world in order to learn from it," she told reporters in Berlin. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With the threat of Coronavirus pandemic looming large over the world, the news is filled with stories of death and destruction. However, on the flip side, the internet is filled with heartwarming stories of generosity and kindness. From spiderman helping the elderly in Tukey to a customer financially aiding his favourite shop amid the recession in the US, the world is coming together with a spirit to defeat the COVID-19. 'Superhero' aids elderly According to reports, its been a few days since Burak Soylu took to streets, driving around Turkey in his fancy beetle car. Soylu, dressed in a spiderman costume, reportedly buys milk and groceries for elderly and delivers it at their footsteps. When he was asked about the reason behind the social service, he said that it was his "superpower to do good for the neighbourhood."The 'Friendly neighbourhood Spiderman' has captured the attention of netizens who are now showering him with plaudits. Read: Good News: Man Dressed As Superhero Delivers Groceries To Elderly Amid Lockdown In Turkey In Turkey, a man named Burak Soylu has been going around dressed like Spiderman. He drives around in a Beetle, buys milk and groceries for the elderly, and delivers it to their doorsteps. When he was asked why, he said "My superpower is doing good for the neighborhood." pic.twitter.com/KAYm3hyPyb Goodable (@Goodable) April 17, 2020 Animal, Birds roam freely Taslima Nasreen, a Bangladeshi writer and activist shared multiple pictures of animals and birds roaming freely on the streets of various cities across the globe. The pictures have garnered more than 370 likes on Twitter and over 30 users have retweeted it. Pictures and videos showing civet, deers, elephants, Kashmiri goats and other animals taking the streets in different parts of the world had been doing the rounds on social media for a long time now. I like when animals take over our cities. pic.twitter.com/2Gbt5xP9sx taslima nasreen (@taslimanasreen) April 20, 2020 Read: COVID-19: Animals, Birds Roam Freely On Streets Amid Lockdown Trapped leopard rescued Pictures and videos of leopard trapped inside a well were being widely circulated on social media on April 19. The video was reportedly from Madhya Pradesh, where the big cat fell inside a well and was struggling to come out on its own. A short clip was also shared by veteran Congress leader Digvijay Singh, who informed his followers that the video of the leopard is from Kherai Village of Raghogarh in Madhya Pradesh, where the incident took place. Later, it was rescued. Indian Forest Services officer Ravindra Mani Tripathi shared pictures from the resue operation on social media. According to Tripathi, the rescue was done using a ladder, which was lowered into the well and tied using a rope. The leopard supposedly climbed out of the well and went into the jungle. Video of Panther in Kherai Village of Raghogarh. pic.twitter.com/3MWiWyoDuk digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) April 19, 2020 #Creativity at its best.. A great leopard #Rescue in Aaron range of Guna #forest division of MP. A wooden ladder was tied along the wall and leopard climbed after few minutes and gone to the jungle.@rameshpandeyifs@dipika_bajpai @htTweets @IndiaToday @NatGeoIndia@JohnOberg pic.twitter.com/lGby2p1yld Ravindra Mani Tripathi (@ravindramtripa1) April 19, 2020 Dolphins participate in ocean Olympics Indian Forest Service officer Susanta Nanda shared a video of dolphins performing acrobatics, which he dubbed as 'Ocean Olympics'. Susanta Nanda shared the video on the morning of April 20 and it has since garnered more than 6,200 views on Twitter. In the video, the dolphins can be seen jumping out of the ocean, rotating in the air before landing back into the waters comfortably. Around seven dolphins are visible in the 22-second long video that was shared by Susanta. Tokyo Olympics postponed. But Gymnastics at Ocean Olympics started Dolphins jumping out and performing acrobatics..... pic.twitter.com/co9BMBShFB Susanta Nanda IFS (@susantananda3) April 20, 2020 Generous Customer Pays $1000 For Doughnut The Tremont Goodie shop, a bakery operating for the last 70 years in Upper Arlington, Ohio were facing trouble amid the current situation. However, an old customer decided that it was the right time to support his favourite sweet shop. The unnamed customer reportedly called and placed an order of his favourite pastry -a chocolate-covered, custard-filled. Surprisingly, he offered $1000 for the sweet, which would usually cost him $1.50 Read: COVID-19: Animals, Birds Roam Freely On Streets Amid Lockdown Read: 'Ocean Olympics': Video Of Dolphins Performing Acrobatics Breaks Internet Airtel has decided to pay the basic income for April to nearly 25,000 employees of its distribution partners and retail franchisee network to help them tide over the unprecedented situation arising out of the ongoing lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19. In a letter addressed to distribution partners in Delhi NCR, Airtel said it is acutely sensitive that this sudden lockdown has also reduced your (distribution partners) operations and returns during April. In order to help you tide over this tough time, we plan to extend a onetime support for the month of April. This is done with an endeavour to ensure that your FSE (field service executive) and other frontline colleagues get their basic income." Similar letters have gone out from various circle CEOs to distributors (of mobile connection and recharges), and retail franchisees network in other locations. While sources said that the move is expected to benefit about 25,000 employees of Airtel's distribution partners, the total monetary outgo for the company on this count could not be ascertained. "We are all going through an unprecedented situation requiring a lockdown, due to which we are seeing a sharp drop in our business as well. This disruption has impacted many categories sharply. In a way we are fortunate that we are associated with an industry that helps keep the 'lights on' thereby, keeping the country connected and people in touch with their loved ones," said the Airtel letter seen by PTI. It added that the company is absolutely confident that once the lockdown is over by 3rd May, it will spring back and win in the market place. According to a source, Airtel has also provided free Covid-19 insurance to all field service executives working with its distributors, as a gesture of gratitude. In addition, Airtel will continue to offer scholarship schemes for children of its distributors with the aim of supporting their families. The support to distributors and franchisee partners is part of 'Atoot Bandhan' campaign of the company. India, last week, decided to extend lockdown restrictions till May 3, to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, which has so far claimed 543 lives and infected 17,265 people. Bharti Airtel has said it is extending validity of 30 million low-income prepaid customers till May 3. These customers will now be able to receive incoming calls on their Airtel mobile numbers even after the validity of their plan is exhausted, it had said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the April 2 Community News (a Roosevelt County publication), Austin Knudsen, one of the two Republican candidates for attorney general, gave some advice on dealing with the COVID-19 crisis and boiled it down to one thing: Basically, be a decent neighbor. Its a good perspective, but I wish he would take his own advice. You see, Austin Knudsen and his family, Knudsen Limited Family Partnership (KLFP), have not been decent neighbors when it comes to their own hometown and a park that is owned by the American Legion Post of Culbertson. This park was donated to the American Legion in 1944 by a generous local family and is located along the beautiful Missouri River just southeast of Culbertson. For many years, Legion Park was the site for the American Legion gatherings, recreational activities for churches, school and the Boy Scout activities such as district camporees and local events. That was until Austin Knudsen and his family blocked access to Legion Park. Some years ago, Knudsen and his family acquired the land around the park and closed off the road to access the park. After years of trying to unsuccessfully access the area and several confrontations with the Knudsen family, the Legion and the town of Culbertson were fed up. The American Legion organized a community fundraiser to raise money to make improvements to the park to open up access to it with the support of the town. That led to litigation, which continues to this day. Our country has been or currently is involved in 17 conflicts which our service members have served or are serving since Knudsen acquired the park. The veterans of these 17 conflicts as well as those who served in Korea, Vietnam and even World War II, have been prohibited from visiting the park. This was a place designated for them to relax and recuperate. Now Austin Knudsen wants to be Montanas next attorney general. Its a bit difficult for us to hear him out on why he should take one of the most important public service jobs we have when we dont think he has taken his own advice to be a good neighbor. Keeping veterans, Boy Scouts and neighbors out of a park meant to honor people who have served their country is one of the most un-neighborly things for anyone to do, much less someone who wants to be our next attorney general. Another member of the KLFP, Rhonda Knudsen, is Austins mother and is running in a contested primary to represent House District 34. She currently holds the position. So I return to the original premise of basically, be a decent neighbor. When they shut the public including veterans and Boy Scouts out of a park, are the Knudsens being decent neighbors, or arent they? That will be up to you, the voter. Separate the wheat from the chaff. Peter Olson of Culbertson heads the Legion Park Committee of Thomas Mann Post No. 81 American Legion of Montana. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 1 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 5 Idaho State Representative Heather Scott compared coronavirus lockdowns to Nazi Germany and the state governor to Little Hitler in interviews calling the pandemic response unconstitutional. In a YouTube interview with Texas podcaster Jess Fields, Ms Scott said there is a problem when the government tells people their businesses are essential or non-essential. I mean thats no different than the Nazi Germany, where you had government telling people, you are an essential worker or non-essential worker and the non-essential workers got put on a train, she said. Residents have been gathering at Idaho Statehouse to protest Governor Brad Little after he extended the lockdown measures to the end of April. Ms Scott did not immediately respond when contacted by The Independent, but in a Facebook post to followers said that her recent analogies are poignant and relative to our times. In the hour-long interview, Ms Scott said that if the governor continued the lockdowns, it would destroy Idahos economy. This is life, liberty and pursuit of happiness and, for me, to act as a dictator when, the perceived emergency is over, maybe you made a mistake maybe not, but um, you cant take away peoples lives and property without compensation and thats exactly what he would be doing, she said. I mean, they are already calling him Little Hitler governor Little Hitler. And so I think people will start educating others and people will be more and more vocal until they will say enough of this and put the pressure, hopefully political pressure, on him. Thats what I would hope for. Ms Scott said Idaho had real men, God-fearing men, who know their rights and that the state could reach a tipping point if the government began cracking down and enforcing stay-at-home orders. Trouble. I think youre going to see trouble when it comes to that. I do not think Idahoans will stand for it, Ms Scott said. Its hard enough to watch our executive branch follow in the steps of the liberal governors of California and Oregon and Washington so if the executive branch goes that far I think youre gonna see trouble in Idaho for sure. By PTI NEW DELHI: India on Sunday trashed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's comments alleging targeting of Muslims in the country in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the "bizarre comments" by the Pakistani leadership was an attempt to shift focus from the "abysmal handling" of that country's internal affairs. In a tweet, Khan accused the Indian government of deliberately targeting the Muslim community against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis. "Instead of concentrating on fighting COVID-19, they are making baseless allegations against their neighbours," the MEA spokesperson said. He was responding to media queries on Khan's remarks. "On the subject of minorities, they (Pakistani leadership) would be well advised to address the concerns of their own dwindling minority communities, which have been truly discriminated against," Srivastava said. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Sunday urged India to take "urgent steps" to protect the rights of its minority Muslim community and stop the incidents of "Islamophobia" in the country. The OIC's Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission in a tweet also said the Indian media was negatively profiling the Muslims and subjecting them to discrimination. "OIC-IPHRC urges the #Indian Govt to take urgent steps to stop the growing tide of #Islamophobia in India and protect the rights of its" Muslim minority, it tweeted. India has previously hit out at the 57-member grouping of Muslim majority nations, saying bodies like OIC should not make irresponsible statements. Since Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered Californians to stay at home due to the coronavirus outbreak, the state's short-term vacation rental sites like Airbnb and VRBO have essentially been shuttered. But Bay Area residents are reportedly flouting the order and fleeing to rental homes in the Lake Tahoe area. Residents in the Truckee neighborhood of Sierra Meadows recently reported chalk messages scrawled on the street in front of vacation homes urging people to go home and shelter in place, and reminding them, "This is not a vacation." Social media posts over Easter weekend indicated that Tahoe-area second homes were flooded with cars in what were previously empty driveways. That has Tahoe City resident Greg Shaurette concerned. "We have one rule to follow right now, and that is shelter in place. That means keep people from moving around and when we are out, respect the boundaries," Shaurette said. "The idea that people would come from other locations here to Tahoe defies that very order. If people arent behaving, sometimes you need authorities to put those orders in place." With a limited number of hospital beds in the area Truckees Tahoe Forest Hospital has six intensive care unit beds and South Lake Tahoes Barton Memorial Hospital has an eight-bed ICU the worry is the strain that a flood of visitors could put on the local health care system if people were to contract COVID-19. As of April 16, the Tahoe Forest Health System has reported a total of 49 positive COVID-19 cases and one fatality. As of early April, Placer County which encompasses top Tahoe destinations like Squaw Valley, Northstar, Tahoe City and Kings Beach looked into 78 complaints regarding the use of short-term rentals and issued one citation. Violators could be issued a $500 fine. We are very encouraged that the vast majority of short-term rental property managers, owners and guests have been and are continuing to abide by the guidance we have received from the governor and our Placer County health officer, said Cindy Gustafson, county supervisor. The county reported that 3% of short-term rental properties had documented visitors during the last week in March, down from 6% the week before that. Those allowed to stay in short-term housing include the displaced or homeless, critical infrastructure workers like medical professionals, or the property owner and their immediate family. In parts of the state, especially those popular with visitors, local jurisdictions are restricting short-term rentals from operating for commercial purposes as long as the state is under a shelter-in-place order. Nevada County, Placer County and the city of South Lake Tahoe are enforcing the rental shutdown in Lake Tahoe. Many short-term rental websites with properties in the Tahoe area have delisted homes entirely or blocked off calendars for extended periods. Bookings may be permitted starting in early summer, depending on the the status of the coronavirus crisis. When you look at Airbnb, you can still search housing, but a warning pops up reminding you to check travel restrictions before booking. Vacasa, a site with homes around the world including Tahoe, is currently accepting bookings with check-in dates of May 1 or later, but that date is subject to change. On April 3, Airbnb launched a new global program, called Frontline, that allows hosts to offer up their homes to those fighting the pandemic, and so far, the program has housing for over 100,000 COVID-19 responders. Airbnb is working with local governments in real time to both address these orders and ensure short-term and longer-term rentals are an available resource for frontline responders and those sheltering in place during this crisis, said Matt Middlebrook, Airbnbs head of policy in California. Megan Michelson is a Tahoe-based freelance writer. Crenshaw pens book encouraging resilience U.S. Rep. and former Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw reveals that his recently released book, Fortitude, is intended to not only point out some problems in our country, but to offer real solutions. The Houston-area native who has an office in Kingwood spoke with The Tribune about Fortitude: American Resilience in the Era of Outrage which was released April 7. According to Crenshaw, the project has been in the making for well over a year. I started having conversations about this book in December of 2018, Crenshaw said. I wrote it for about a year and we got the final version done in early January. I was inspired by the problems we have around us. What I noticed is there are a lot of authors that write really well about the problems and I cite a lot of those authors throughout the book. But, fundamentally, I wanted to write a solution-oriented book. So, thats what inspired it, Crenshaw said. Although some have attached the label of memoir to the book, Crenshaw warns that is not completely accurate. Its not really a memoir, Crenshaw explained. A lot of people kind of assumed that it would be a memoir because that is a typical thing for a SEAL to do, but its really not. A lot of my personal story is wrapped into the book, but really the book is about mental toughness and living with fortitude and how individual Americans and the American culture can overcome the hopelessness and outrage that we have been feeling as of late. Each chapter is a lesson in mental toughness and living a better life. According to Crenshaw, The title was the hardest part in the process of completing the book. I didnt figure out the title until the book was done. We wrestled with titles for a year and I just couldnt get it right. Then I came across the word fortitude and it finally hit me that it was the right title for this book and the message I wanted to get across. Crenshaw said he searched for synonyms to words like strength and mental toughness when he came across the word fortitude in the thesaurus. Crenshaw added, The definition of fortitude is perfect for the message Im trying to send in the book. It reads: courage in pain or adversity. Thats exactly the take-away that I want people to get from the book. Although Crenshaw believes Fortitude can help its readers in many ways, he also shared that writing the book helped him as well. It was such a struggle to write, Crenshaw explained, because theres a lot of lessons that were learned over time. And youre not really sure how you learned them. So, theres this personal introspection that has to occur before you can even start writing. And then, you learn a lot about yourself. I learned that Im not a good storyteller. I had to rack my brain and ask family and friends for help. Im a concept person. Im not somebody who can repeat a story about what happened and recite the details of a history lesson. But I can understand concepts and put those into my own words very well, he said. In addition to strength and mental toughness, Crenshaw said he feels like readers will also take away a sense of how to live your daily life with fortitude and that they will understand at least one of the lessons on a deep level. I also want people to take away and understand the challenges that our culture and society are facing with respect to outrage culture and the way that we treat each other, and how to overcome that as culture. But as I note in the book many times, our cultural fabric is derived from the many threads of the individuals. So, it is up to us as individuals to live up to these lessons. That was a deeply American attribute for a very long time; the notion that it was up to us as individuals to overcome and look at what we can do, not what can be done for us in the words of JFK. But that storys been told in reverse. Weve become a nation of victims and. I want to bring us back to elements of the American spirit that I think are the strongest, he said. According to Crenshaw, his favorite quote is the last paragraph in the book because he believes it is the American ethos or creed. That paragraph reads, I told you before about the SEAL ethos. Perhaps we now need an American ethos. Perhaps it goes something like this: I will not quit in the face of danger or pain or self-doubt. I will not justify the easier path before me. I decide that all my actions, not just some, matter My purpose will be to uphold and protect the spirit of our great republic. I will do my part. I will live with Fortitude. Crenshaw said disappointingly that his preplanned schedule of book signings has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but he is looking into creative ways to ensure that those who would like a signed copy will still have the opportunity to get one. Ive been doing online book signings and I think that over the next six to eight months, our society will have to adapt to the reality of COVID-19 and will maybe add some drive-thru signings as well. There are all sorts of creative things that people can do to make sure that people get their signed book. If you can, buy it from your local bookstore if they are open. Every small business in America needs help right now, he said. The book is available for $17.05 on Amazon. By Trend SOCAR Petroleum CJSC, a subsidiary of Azerbaijans State Oil Company SOCAR, increased the number of filling stations under the SOCAR brand in Azerbaijan to 33, Trend reports citing SOCAR Petroleum. According to information, the commissioning of the new filling station took place on April 19 in Baku, in the Bilajari village, on the 2nd kilometer of the Baku-Sumgayit highway. Gasoline of Super, Premium and RON-92 brands, as well as diesel fuel will be sold in a new filling station. In order to ensure the convenience of drivers and prevent loss of time, seven filling stations are installed at the station. Thus, in order to simultaneously provide twelve small vehicles and two large-capacity trucks with fuel conditions have been created, said the message. This station also has a filling point with compressed natural gas. Thus, the total number of filling stations under the SOCAR brand in Azerbaijan equipped with Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) equipment reached 33. Currently, 27 people work at this filling point, the message said. SOCAR Petroleum has a network of 33 filling stations and 11 oil bases. The company has the only CNG terminal in the country, thus being the leader in introducing environmentally friendly fuels. SOCAR Petroleum CJSC was established in January 2008 and is engaged in the retail trade of petroleum products, expanding the network of filling stations under the SOCAR brand. The company opened its first filling stations in Azerbaijan in May 2010. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz A corrections officer has been charged with attempting to smuggle drugs and bullets into a prison. The man, 26, was arrested by police at a correctional facility in Sydney's north-west at 7.30am on Sunday. Police allege the man smuggled two packages into the corrections facility after being paid by the inmates' family members. A corrections officer has been charged with attempting to smuggle drugs and bullets into a prison The man, 26, was arrested by police at a correctional facility in Sydney's north-west at 7.30am on Sunday Officers allegedly found him with ice, tobacco and prescription medication. The drugs were allegedly stashed in the 26-year-old's underwear. NSW Police also searched the man's car. They allegedly found ammunition and documents when they searched his vehicle. He was taken to Riverstone Police Station and charged with six offences. The charges include knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime, having ammunition without a licence and smuggling items into a detention centre. Police allege the man trafficked two packages into the corrections facility after being paid by the inmates' family members Officers allegedly found him with ice, tobacco and prescription medication. The drugs were allegedly stashed in the 26-year-old's underwear He was also charged with two counts of an agent corruptly receive benefit and misconduct while holding a public office. The man's employment was suspended and investigations continue. He was granted bail and will appear in Blacktown Local Court on July 6, 2020. The man's charge comes after a 50-year-old corrections officer was charged with smuggling contraband into a facility on the New South Coast last month. The three packages are alleged to have included mobile phones and drugs. Police alleged the man received up to $6,400 from inmates family members for smuggling the banned items. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 16:51:32|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TOKYO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- COVID-19 cases in Japan increased to 10,810, according to the latest figures Monday, as a nationwide effort swings into gear to try and curb the spread of the virus. As the number and pace of cases continue to increase across Japan, Prime Minster Shinzo Abe on April 16 expanded the state of emergency over the virus to cover all of Japan's 47 prefectures, expanding the initial emergency declaration made on April 7 from just seven prefectures, in a bid to more proactively combat the spread of the pneumonia-carrying virus. The nationwide death toll from the virus has now increased to a total of 251, including those from a cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama near Tokyo, the latest figures showed. In Tokyo, the epicenter of Japan's outbreak, the number of COVID-19 cases has topped the 3,000 mark at 3,082 confirmed cases, accounting for well over one-third of all COVID-19 cases across the nation, followed by hard-hit Osaka Prefecture where cases stand at 1,211 infections. Kanagawa Prefecture, meanwhile, has recorded 782 infections, Chiba Prefecture 682 cases, Saitama Prefecture 664 infections, Fukuoka Prefecture has recorded 519 cases of COVID-19, while Hyogo Prefecture has 513 cases, according to the latest figures Monday. The health ministry here also said there are currently a total of 215 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 also said that in total, 1,713 people have been discharged from hospitals after their symptoms improved, according to the latest figures. Central and local government officials have voiced concern that the upcoming Golden Week string of national holidays beginning at the end of this month could see throngs of people return to their hometowns or take vacations in other parts of Japan, and in doing so spread the pneumonia-carrying virus even further across the archipelago. The National Governors' Association, in a meeting convened online on Friday, urged the central government to do its utmost to try and ensure that the public do not travel during Golden Week. Due to the expanded emergency declaration, prefectural governors now have increased power to limit the movements of people and business activities, and enhanced measures to dissuade travel during Golden Week are expected across many prefectures in Japan. Of particular concern is people who may be asymptomatic of having the virus or have extremely mild symptoms traveling to rural areas of Japan to visit elderly family members, who may be more susceptible to contracting the deadly virus. Local governors have also expressed their concern about people from large cities and urban areas descending on popular local vacation spots, that have relatively low infection rates and turning these rural, quaint areas into coronavirus hotspots, unequipped medically to deal with the potential fallout. Abe has strongly urged the public to reduce human-to-human contact by as much as 80 percent and has implored the nation's citizens across the country's 47 prefectures to refrain from going outside without good reason to help ease the burden on the already strained medical system here. Enditem NoBroker, a Bangalore, India-based apartment rental marketplace, raised $30m in additional Series D funding. The round was led by General Atlantic. The company intends to use the funds to continue to expand operations and its business reach. Founded in 2014 by alumni from IIT Bombay, IIT Kanpur & IIM Ahmedabad, NoBroker is a real estate search portal that connects flat owners and tenants directly with each other. The site lets people buy, sell, rent, find a PG or a flatmate without paying any brokerage. It serves 4 cities at present, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune and Chennai. FinSMEs 20/04/2020 The two corridors will benefit many southern localities The Ministry of Transport has just proposed the prime minister to give the thumbs-up to a project on developing southern waterways and logistics corridors utilising World Bank loans. The project aims to upgrade the inland waterways transport network in the Mekong Delta region and Ho Chi Minh City and would feature two waterway corridors the East-West corridor connecting the port complex of the Mekong Delta (and its economic hub Can Tho city), Ho Chi Minh City, Cai Mep, and Thi Vai and the North-South corridor connecting the Binh Duong-Dong Nai-Ho Chi Minh City-Cai Mep-Thi Vai port complex. The East-West corridor was designed to cross many major local rivers and channels such as Tra On River, Hau River, or Mang Thit Channel which will be upgraded to reach Grade II inland waterways standards (55m wide for channels and 75m wide for rivers) able to receive vessels reaching 1,500 tonnes in gross tonnage and three-layer container ships. The North-South corridor will also pass through many local rivers such as Dong Nai, Nha Be, or Thi Vai, which will also be upgraded to Grade II inland waterways standards (60m wide for channels and 90m wide for rivers), able to receive vessels of 3,000-5,000 tonnes in gross tonnage and four-layer container ships. The project will take place across the southern region, including Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho city, and stakeholder provinces of Vinh Long, Ben Tre, Tien Giang, Long An, Dong Nai, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau. In addition, the project involves upgrading the two bridges of Tra On and Cho Lach 2, building 16 passenger stopovers (replacing 10 existing ones and building six new ones), installing signs and a vessel transport management system in order to mitigate traffic congestions and facilitate transport. After completion, the project will help significantly reduce travelling distance and time for ships between the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City and key ports in the region, from there curtailing transportation costs and ensuring traffic safety. The total project would require VND5.786 trillion ($251.57 million) in total investment value, of which nearly $158 million would be offset by World Bank loans, $2.99 million would be granted by the Australian government, and the remainder to be provided by Vietnam in counter-funding. The project will be deployed in 2021-2025. After completion, the project will help significantly reduce travelling distance and time for ships between the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City and key ports in the region, from there curtailing transportation costs and ensuring traffic safety. Earlier in last July, the World Bank approved a credit plan to help four secondary cities in Vietnam build critically-needed municipal infrastructure and strengthen urban planning. The project aims to increase access to improved urban services for Ky Anh (Ha Tinh province), Tinh Gia (Thanh Hoa province), Hai Duong (Hai Duong province), and Yen Bai (Yen Bai province). Approximately 200,000 residents are expected to benefit directly from the project. The project will help reduce flood risks, improve sanitation, reduce travel times on new and improved roads, and develop high-quality public spaces. These improvements, in turn, are expected to help beneficiaries boost productivity, enable exports, create more jobs, and help generate sustained economic growth. The total cost of the project is $276.17 million, $194.36 million of which will come from the International Development Association (IDA). Eric Adams, holding a picture of his late mother, is sworn in as New York mayor during the New Years celebration in Times Square. (Reuters) In his first 10 days, Eric Adams has veered between swagger and tragedy, praise and criticism, as he begins leading the nations largest city. A state senator is calling on Gov. Phil Murphy to reopen churches and houses of worship in New Jersey amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Republican state Sen. Mike Doherty launched a petition Sunday asking for houses of worship to be reopened with social distancing measures. The petition has just under 700 signatures as of Monday morning. Gatherings of any size, including for religious services, have been banned in New Jersey since Murphy, a Democrat, a March 21 executive order. When many of us could be at Sunday services today replenishing a much-needed sense of hope in these uncertain times, we instead remain separated in our homes from the communities of faith that sustain us in good times and bad, Doherty, R-Warren, said in a statement on Sunday. Our new online petition will allow people of faith to share with Governor Murphy their belief that religion is an essential service and constitutionally protected right that should be allowed to resume immediately. Religious services would be safe if reasonable precautions, including outdoor services, social distancing, and limitations on the size of gatherings" were taken, Doherty said. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Churches across the nation have closed their doors during the pandemic, with many houses of worship switching to live streaming services. Several states, including Florida and Texas, have deemed houses of worship essential services. A Kansas order limiting the number of worshipers allowed at one time was struck down by a federal judge, but courts upheld a Kentucky ban on all large gatherings after it was challenged by a local church. Doherty previously called on Murphy to allow gun shops to operate as essential businesses after they were first ordered to close. They have since been allowed to reopen on an appointment-only basis. Murphy has said in recent days data shows the rates of infection and hospitalizations from COVID-19 is flattening in New Jersey, the state with the second-most cases and deaths in the US. But he says the numbers need to drop and the state needs to expand testing with help from the federal government before his can lift his restrictions. 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. Katie Kausch may be reached at kkausch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieKausch. 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. President Donald Trump on Sunday said he has wanted to send a team to China to investigate the start of the coronavirus outbreak that had killed more that 40,000 Americans till Monday and shut down the country with increasingly unpopular stay-at-home orders, but without any success yet. Were talking to China. We spoke to them a long time ago about going in. We want to go in; we want to see whats going on, President Trump told reporters at the daily briefing by the White House task force on the coronavirus outbreak. And we werent exactly invited, I can tell you that. Trump has escalated calls in recent days for increased scrutiny of Chinas version of the start of the outbreak from a wet market in Wuhan, as China has claimed and maintained to the true magnitude of its outbreak, which is suspected to be grossly under-reported. There are news reports in US media that the outbreak may have started at a virology lab in Wuhan. There has been no official confirmation of it, or denial. Fox News has reported that US intelligence is investigating this version of the origin of the outbreak and is to give the president a report shortly. US toll of coronavirus fatalities went up by 1,997 to 40,683 Monday morning and the number of confirmed infections by 26,889 to 759,786. New York state accounted for nearly half the deaths as the continuing epicenter of the American outbreak with 18,298; 14,451 in New York city alone. But hospitalization numbers have dropped in the state and other hotspots like New Jersey, Michigan, Louisiana and Illinois have shown signs of improvements which has given authorities the confidence to start reopening the country, and lifting stay-at-home orders, that are being protested across the country. Stay-at-home protests took place Sunday in Florida, Colorado, Illinois, Tennessee and Washington, following up similar protest in Maryland, New York, Michigan, California, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Utah and Virginia. They are demanding the removal of restrictions. Trump has backed them and there is a growing consensus around reopening the country. Most states agree, but insist they must be careful otherwise there could be a resurgence of cases. State governors have sought more testing kits for an enhanced surveillance system before they begin easing restrictions and have sought federal governments help, triggering a clash with the president, who have maintained its for states to ensure they have enough testing kits, and has called for governors to do their bit. To say that the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we arent doing our job, is just absolutely false, Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland and chair of the governors association, said to CNN Sunday. Trump has not backed out of the ongoing confrontation, but has said he will help them. Supreme Court to Consider Case Testing Scope of Computer Fraud Law The Supreme Court has agreed to consider a case that tests whether people who use their authorized computer access to obtain information for an improper purpose can be held liable under a federal computer fraud law. The top court on April 20 said it would take up the case involving a police officer who is appealing his conviction under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act for conducting a search on a law enforcement database for an acquaintance in exchange for money. The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, which was passed to address concerns about hacking, states that a person violates the law when they access a computer without authorization or exceed authorized access, and thereby obtain information from any protected computer. To exceed authorized access means to access a computer with authorization and to use such access to obtain or alter information in the computer that the accessor is not entitled so to obtain or alter, according to the law. Appeals courts are divided on the issue, with four circuit courts favoring a broader interpretation of the law, saying that a person violates the law if they exceed their authorized access whenever they obtain information for a non-business reason. Meanwhile, three other courts have ruled that the law is limited to situations where a person doesnt have access for any purpose at all. These courts say that the broader interpretation would criminalize the conduct of millions of ordinary computer users. A stock photo of a computer. (Shutterstock) In the case at hand, Nathan Van Buren, a former police sergeant in the city of Cumming, Georgia, was convicted for using his authorized access to a law enforcement database to look up a license plate of a dancer at a local strip club in 2015. Van Buren was suffering from financial difficulties at the time and had approached an acquaintance, Andrew Albo, for a loan. Albo alerted law enforcement, who, in turn, informed the FBI about the request. The FBI then devised a sting operation to see how far Van Buren was willing to go for money. The operation required Albo to offer Van Buren money for the information. Albo gave him $6,000 and Van Buren conducted the search. Van Buren was subsequently convicted on computer fraud law and one count of honest services wire fraud. The 11th Circuit took the broader interpretation of the law and upheld the computer fraud conviction. But it vacated Van Burens honest services wire fraud conviction and remanded it for a new trial in the lower court. Van Buren then appealed the decision to the Supreme Court in an attempt to overturn the computer fraud conviction. His lawyers argued in their petition (pdf) that a broader reading of the law would criminalize ordinary computer use throughout the country and invite arbitrary enforcement. Meanwhile, the Justice Department urged the Supreme Court (pdf) to not take up the case because it isnt finalized in the lower courts, and the jury in the district court convicted Van Buren after receiving instructions that were consistent with the narrow interpretation of the law. The case is expected to be heard and decided next term, which begins in October. Estela Fuentes, a Channelview kidney transplant recipient, felt her heart palpitate when she learned she had tested positive for the coronavirus. When doctors mentioned a clinical trial testing an experimental therapy, she jumped at the opportunity. A day later, her nephrologist told her he wasnt sure it was such a great idea. It might or might not help her beat the disease, he said, but he would probably have to take her off her kidney medication, possibly causing the organ to lose function and her to need dialysis. You need to make a decision, he said. I already made my decision, she replied. Fuentes enrolled in the Houston arm of a global trial of remdesivir, an antiviral drug thats one of the top therapeutic hopes in the fight against COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus currently spreading in Houston and around the world. While research involving hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug touted by President Donald Trump, and transfusions of blood plasma taken from people whove recovered from COVID-19 have attracted more attention, remdesivir is the would-be therapy farthest along in the testing process. Early research results generated optimism. In a study Now Playing: 'COVID-19 in 60': Houston coronavirus news in a minute Video: Houston Chronicle published in the New England Journal of Medicine on April 10, nearly 70 percent of 53 patients given remdesivir through whats known as compassionate use required reduced oxygen support and 17 of the 30 on ventilators were able to come off them. Then, on April 16, the online health news organization STAT reported that a University of Chicago video shows a doctor saying the institutions hospital has discharged most of the 125 participants in an ongoing remdesivir clinical trial, almost all of whom had severe disease. But hope took a step back Thursday when the World Health Organization inadvertently posted to its website a summary of a prematurely halted Chinese clinical trial, not yet peer reviewed and published, suggesting that remdesivir didnt show a benefit. Asian markets faltered in the aftermath Friday. Houston researchers downplayed the significance of the reports, arging that the leaks and not-yet-ready-for-publication papers only create more confusion and that no one should draw conclusions without seeing all the analyzed and peer-reviewed data from the ongoing clinical trials. Comparing outcomes Those trials include three in which theres a Houston arm the one, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, in which Fuentes is participating; and two sponsored by remdesivirs manufacturer, Gilead Sciences. Baylor College of Medicine is leading the first; Houston Methodist Hospital the other two. The attention seems understandable given the desperate need for therapeutic agents for the disease, which causes mild or moderate symptoms most of the time, but has killed nearly 200,000 people around the world, including more than 52,000 in the U.S. The risk of death, most often pneumonia, is greatest in older adults and people with underlying conditions. Effective treatment could enable the loosening of stay-at-home restrictions , the best defense people currently have against the virus. There is no approved therapy or vaccine. The NIH study, being conducted at 40 academic hospitals around the nation and globe, is considered the most rigorous of the trials. Patients sick enough to require hospitalization are randomly assigned to receive either remdesivir or a placebo, both delivered by infusion for up to 10 days. Investigators will compare outcomes in those who received remdesivir and those who received the placebo to determine whether the drug actually produced more of a clinical benefit. Outcomes are scored on a eight-point scale ranging from fully recovered to death. Preliminary data from the NIH study, which has completed the enrollment of more than 1,000 patients and will soon commence a second phase, are expected in early May. Dr. Hana El Sahly, a Baylor professor of molecular virology and microbiology and the principal investigator of the Houston research, noted that the size of the trial will give it more power to examine the efficacy of remdesivir than the halted study in China. Depending on the data, we should have a better idea then whether we have a therapy that could help COVID-19 patients or we need to examine other options, El Sahly said. The study is double blinded meaning neither the participant nor the researchers know whos receiving the drug and whos receiving the placebo so even El Sahly doesnt know how remdesivir is performing. A better target? At Methodist, COVID-19 patients enrolled in remdesivir trials sponsored by Gilead Sciences, the drugs manufacturer, all receive the actual therapy. The major difference: some get infusions for five days, others for 10. Dr. Kevin Grimes, a Methodist infectious disease specialist and trial leader, said hes very encouraged with patient responses to the therapy, though he acknowledged its possible they could have gotten better on their own. He said 20 of 34 severely ill patients on the trial have been discharged, including seven whod needed breathing tubes. The rest are still early in the treatment, he noted. None have died Remdesivir was born as a general antiviral candidate a decade ago and showed promise against the new coronavirus older cousins, SARS and MERS, in previous preclinical testing. It was tried against Ebola in 2015, but didnt perform as well as other candidate drugs and was dropped. But the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, could be a better target. Remdesivir, which works by interfering with the process coronaviruses use to make copies of themselves in the body, reduced the severity of symptoms in animals with SARS and MERS when given early enough in the course of the disease. More recently, the therapy prevented disease progression in monkeys infected with the new virus, according to an NIH study. Theres only one drug right now that we think may have real efficacy, Bruce Aylward, an assistant director-general at the World Health Organization, said at a briefing in Beijing in late February. And thats remdesivir. The NIH trials first patients, back in February, were the Americans repatriated after being quarantined aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship that docked in Yokohama, Japan. It has grown to more than 700 patients since then, said El Sahly, including about 15 at either Baylor St. Lukes Medical Center or Ben Taub Hospital. Ramping up Gilead Sciences, remdesivirs manufacturer, has already given the drug to more than 1,000 COVID-19 patients in the two trials at Methodist and around the globe one for patients with moderate disease, the other for those with severe disease. The trials second phases, already begun, will add more than 7,500 additional patients. Gilead also provided the drug to more than 1,500 COVID-19 patients on a compassionate use basis, so many that last month the company suspended the program except for pregnant and pediatric patients. It currently has roughly 1.5 million individual dosages, enough for at least 140,000 patients, and has set a goal of making 500,000 treatment courses by October and more than a million by the end of the year. El Sahly noted the NIH adaptive trial is in the first stage. If patients getting remdesivir fare better than those on the placebo, the drug would move to a second phase, where it typically would be compared to another drug to determine the most effective therapy. The timing of remdesivirs deployment, not acknowledged in the Chinese study summary, will also be an important data point in interpreting studies with the drug. I do not believe you can draw any conclusions from the leaked Chinese trial summary, said Katherine Perez, an infectious disease pharmacist at Methodist and a co-investigator of the studies there. There is no way to authenticate the results or put the findings into context. Fuentes ultimately remained on her kidney medication, in a lowered dose, in addition to getting remdesivir. She said she didnt notice a difference after receiving the infusion and still doesnt know if she got a placebo or the actual drug. She was discharged a few days later and is doing well, though very tired, back at home, where her husband and two grown daughters also have the virus. It was hard, said Fuentes, 53, a homemaker who sometimes teaches at a biblical institute. I just kept telling myself I was in the hands of good doctors and God. Chronicle photographer Marie De Jesus contributed to this report. todd.ackerman@chron.com Mira Vid was abandoned at birth in her native Croatia in the 1930s, escaped Communist Yugoslavia to come to Canada in 1967 and subsequently survived cancers of the colon, kidney, liver, bladder, ovaries and skin. The former TD Bank accountant and grandmother of two died of COVID-19 last Wednesday at the Salvation Armys Meighen Manor long-term-care home in midtown Toronto. Vid was 85. She survived all of those cancers, said her daughter Kokie Fiand, 58. She would say cut it out of me, I want to go on. But COVID was the end of her. Staff at the care home did their best, Fiand said Sunday. But she and her husband, Joachim Ravoth, are joining a chorus of family members, seniors advocates and experts who say chronic underfunding, poorly paid staff and lack of oversight in Canadas long-term-care system have left homes like Meighen Manor severely ill prepared for the pandemic. We blame the system, Fiand said. The home on Millwood Road, near Yonge Street and Davisville Avenue, is the latest seniors facility in the city to report a serious outbreak of COVID-19, with 50 confirmed cases and 10 deaths in the 168-bed residence. Fourteen staff members have also tested positive for the coronavirus and are self-isolating at home, executive director Julie Wong said in a letter to family members on Saturday. She did not respond to a request for an interview. We are deeply saddened to share this unfortunate news but would like to reassure you that the health and safety of our residents, staff and their families remain the top priority of the Salvation Army, Wong said in the letter. Other long-term-care homes in Toronto with significant outbreaks include Eatonville Care Centre in Etobicoke, with 111 confirmed cases and 30 deaths as of Friday; city-run Seven Oaks in Scarborough, with 97 confirmed cases and 21 deaths; and Scarboroughs Altamont Care Community, with 87 cases and 12 deaths, according to the citys COVID-19 website. As of Friday, there were 929 confirmed cases of the virus and 102 deaths related to COVID-19 in Toronto long-term-care facilities, retirement homes and hospitals, the citys website shows. Outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term-care homes and retirement homes are a particular area of concern for Toronto Public Health, said Dr. Vinita Dubey, Torontos associate medical officer of health. The city expects to see more cases in the coming weeks with increased testing, she added in an email. The Salvation Army home partnered with Sunnybrook Hospital last week to expedite COVID-19 testing of all residents and staff within Meighen Manor as a precaution, Wong said in her letter to families. The home has implemented all recommended infection control policies and protocols, including requiring all residents to self-isolate in their rooms with meal delivery, she said. All staff have access to personal protective equipment and are required to wear masks in resident areas. Staff are being asked to work in just one home and are screened daily for symptoms. And the home has boosted cleaning and sanitation efforts, especially of high-touch surfaces such as handrails, door handles and furniture surfaces, Wong added. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all impacted residents, staff and their loved ones during this extremely difficult and unprecedented time, she said. Fiand and Ravoth said they wished the home had acted more quickly. Residents were eating together in the dining room with staff coming and going to other homes while we were all self-isolating, Fiand said, describing the situation in the facility in mid-March, when her mother first developed a fever and cough. Staff had no masks or gloves. Residents were sitting side by side in the TV room. Everybody was coughing and there was no effort to separate people, she said. Her mother waited a week to be tested and still had no results when her fever spiked on April 9 and Fiand urged the home to take her to a hospital. She tested positive, but doctors advised against putting her on a ventilator because they said she will only suffer more. We were advised to send her back to the home with morphine and meds until she passes, Fiand said. It was very difficult. Vid will be cremated this week and Fiand said she will keep her ashes for a celebration of life when the crisis is over because my mom loved music and dancing. Fiand said she will remember her mother as a fighter. When the family came to Canada Fiand was six and her sister Sanja was eight her mother was determined to learn English and integrate, she said. She got a job at TD and was always the breadwinner. Fiands father, Costa Mijatovic, who died seven years ago at age 92, was a taxi driver. Her mother, who had been at Meighen Manor for about six years because her legs gave out, used a wheelchair and had some memory issues but was not sickly, Fiand said. I want people to be aware that nursing homes are not safe places for seniors, she said. British finance minister Rishi Sunak said on Tuesday that he was still not persuaded that the government should offer a 100% guarantee to banks which lend to small businesses hit by the coronavirus. The Bank of England has said a 100% guarantee would speed up the issuance of loans to small firms facing a cashflow crisis, by removing the need for banks to conduct credit checks for the 20% of lending they must underwrite under the current scheme. Sunak said banks had approved 12,000 loans under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, up from just over 6,000 as of April 14. I am not persuaded that moving to a 100% guarantee is the right thing to do, Sunak said at the governments daily news conference. Some people have made some comparisons with what is going on in other countries. I think when you look at the totality of what we are doing it is more significant in scope and scale, he added. Germany and Switzerland have offered 100% state guarantees on some small business lending. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The impact of COVID-19 on the Middle East and North Africa By Hussein Solomon With tens of thousands infected across the region and thousands of lives lost, it is clear that COVID-19 will exacerbate governance failures, sectarianism, tensions between secularists and Islamists, and deepen economic cleavages within and between the states. The impact of the corona virus will serve to exacerbate the multiple crises besetting the region. The esteemed historian Yuval Noah astutely observed, The storm will pass, humankind will survive, most of us will still be alive, but we will inhabit a different world (Dorsey, 2020). It is clear that the MENA region will not be the same after this pandemic. What form the post-pandemic region will take is dependent upon the choices governments make. As in discussion on the environment, while global climate change cannot be wished away, its effects could be mitigated as a result of sound governance. During the influenza epidemic of 1918 some authorities managed to successfully slow the infection and keep mortality rates low, while others acted too slowly and ineffectively and consequently paid a huge price. This is starkly brought out by the reactions of two U.S. cities St. Louis and Philadelphia in the face of the 1918 influenza epidemic. St. Louis responded early and aggressive towards the threat posed. Philadelphias delayed response, meanwhile, resulted in eight times more fatalities than in St. Louis. The Nature of the Threat Posed by the Virus and Responses to It The UAE and Saudi Arabia As in the case of these American cities, some states in the MENA region have reacted pre-emptively and have contributed to flattening the curve of infections in their countries. The United Arab Emirates, for instance, began implementing social distancing measures whilst the virus was still at its infancy. Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, adopted an aggressive approach towards the virus, including a curfew from dusk to dawn. Riyadh also adopted other radical steps like preventing religious pilgrimage to two of Islams holiest places Mecca and Medina. Iran Irans belated response and initial denials have transformed it into the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Middle East with tens of thousands of infections. The first reported COVID-19 deaths in the MENA region occurred in the Iranian holy city of Qom when two Shia pilgrims died as a result of the virus. Despite this knowledge, Tehran decided to proceed with the 21 February 2020 parliamentary elections in a dubious attempt to bolster their flagging legitimacy. Soon, every province and every city across Tehran was affected. The lies emanating from Tehran, as well as its refusal to impose a lockdown on its population in February 2020, has also allowed the virus to spread into other countries, including Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Lebanon. The mullahs in Tehran, meanwhile, have also continued their anti-Western and anti-U.S. rhetoric in the face of the pandemic. In an effort, to distract the publics attention from their own failed responses, Iran has accused Washington of developing a special strand of the virus, which specifically honed in on Iran and Iranians. The Iranian public, however, is quite sophisticated and can see through the excuses of their leadership, with many questioning the regimes propensity to fund regional military ventures as opposed to funding health services. Tehran has also attempted to politicize the virus by requesting international relief from the crippling sanctions imposed on it while at the same time turning aid away in the form of Doctors without Borders. Turkey Of course, Iran is not alone in following the Philadelphia option. By early April 2020, Turkey had the highest acceleration of COVID-19 cases in the region, largely on account of its mismanaged health system. When the virus first appeared on Turkish soil, social mobility was not prevented and testing was confined to only those who had travelled abroad. Its densely populated cities are most vulnerable. Sixty percent of all COVID-19 cases were located in the commercial capital of Istanbul, which accounts for 20 percent of Turkeys total population. The pandemic also highlighted the failures of Turkeys health system from the lack of organization to the shortage of equipment, beds, and health workers. Under the circumstances, the scathing pronouncement of the Istanbul Chamber of Physicians is understandable, It is evident that hospitals in the city have not prepared adequately in the two and a half months since the virus first came into the spotlight. The Haves and the Have-Nots In many ways, the corona virus has brought into sharp relief the tensions inside countries, specifically as it relates to the ever-widening gap between haves and have-nots and between foreign-born residents and citizens. Qatar is a case in point. While boasting the largest per capita income in the world and having a skyline dotted by skyscrapers and a superb health system for citizens, it is easy to forget that 85 percent of this emirates residents are foreign migrant laborers who live in squalid conditions, rendering Qatar ripe for infection. Reports of Doha cordoning off the migrants quarters would almost certainly serve to exacerbate tensions inside the country. A similar dynamic is at play in the Al Qaif province of Saudi Arabia a Shia majority province. When Riyadh placed the entire province under lockdown, Shia residents felt they were being unfairly targeted. Shia citizens have always felt marginalized and the lockdown might well contribute to existing cleavages between Shia and Sunni in the kingdom. The Saudi case suggests that where governments do engage in draconian legislation such as enforced lockdowns, it works better when governments are viewed as legitimate and that they practice inclusive governance. The actions they embark upon are then viewed as acting in the national interest. Tunisia The differing reactions of citizens in Tunisia illustrate the point well. Tunis has a new government which came to power in February 2020. It is viewed as an expression of the will of the electorate and therefore legitimate. Despite imposing strong containment measures such as a curfew and the closure of all borders for international travel, the government has received no push-back from its citizens. Tunisians, in fact, support the governments actions. Algeria The situation is markedly different in Algeria where the regime does not enjoy popular legitimacy. Algiers ban on political gatherings was seen as an opportunistic move on the part of the regime to quell the protests in the country which have been taking place for more than a year. Economic Impact Notwithstanding the human costs, the impact would be felt most on the economic front as capital markets tumble, tourists evaporate in the midst of a ban on flights and lockdowns, and oil prices contract. Chinese buyers are involved in a significant portion of real estate transactions in Dubai. With China still recovering from the virus, these Chinese buyers have postponed making new purchases. Given the bubble economy of Dubai with its glut of property, even before the virus, this city-state is confronting economic catastrophe. With the UAE cancelling its Expo 2020 and Saudi Arabia not allowing the annual haj pilgrimage to take place, hundreds of millions of dollars were lost for both states. The UAE was expected to attract 25 million visitors to its Expo 2020 event which was to be held in October 2020, and Saudi Arabia received 20 million religious pilgrims each year. Egypt, meanwhile, is losing an estimated US$1 billion per month in lost tourist revenue. It is perhaps in tumbling oil prices where the greatest economic impact will be felt. Oil is the core export for most Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states. Even before the pandemic, the price of a barrel of oil was on its way down, largely as a consequence of U.S. shale oil production and alternative renewable energy resources coming on line. Oil prices also went into free-fall after OPEC and Russia failed to arrive at a mutual agreement to cut oil production. Irked with Moscows recalcitrance, Riyadh decided to flood the market with oil, resulting in a calamitous decline in oil prices. The impact of the pandemic will further depress the oil price as demand dries up. By March 2020, the price of a barrel of crude oil was US$31.35. Consider that at the beginning of the year the price of the same barrel was an estimated US$60. While oil prices are expected to stage a moderate come-back and trade at US$40 per barrel by December 2020, this is far below the break-even point for the oil producers of the MENA region. This, in turn, holds political consequences. The rentier economies of the region are no longer sustainable and will have to tax their citizens. Will MENA citizens echo the battle-cry of American colonists against their British overlords in the 1700s and cry out in rage: No taxation without representation? It is clear that the already fragile polities across the region and ruling elites whose grasp of the political reins of power were always tenuous will have to open up political processes. Yemen When discussing the impact of COVID-19, it is imperative to add a caveat. The MENA region consists of states with differing capabilities and with widely divergent health systems and governance structures. While GCC countries have a GDP per capita of between US$20,000 and US$70,000 and can spend considerably more on health infrastructure, the same is not true of war-ravaged Yemen whose health system is ranked an abysmal 120th in the world. The war raging on its territory has also damaged health infrastructure and created large numbers of internally displaced people. A further 300,000 refugees, largely from Africa, adds to its burden. Yemens health systems inability to respond to the corona virus is already reflected in the fact that the country has been unable to control a cholera outbreak that has been raging for four years, affecting two million of its citizens. A similar dynamic is at play in war-ravaged Syria where whole cities are locked down, and where almost half a million people have no water and little access to health facilities on account of the shelling of hospitals. Syria also poses a regional vector for contamination if one considers the 5.5 million refugees residing in neighboring states in unsanitary camps. Lebanon Neighboring Lebanon, meanwhile, cannot embark on a stimulus package in the face of the pandemic. It defaulted on a US$1.2 billion Eurobond payment. As its economy is in free-fall, it does not have the wherewithal to fund its faltering health infrastructure. The shortage of foreign currency has also prevented Beirut from importing much-needed medical supplies. 2020 marks a century since Lebanon came into being. There will be no centennial celebrations as the year may well mark the countrys annus horribilis. Iraq Similar to Lebanon, Iraqs health system has been mismanaged for years on the part of the authorities. In Iraq, local authorities have no financial or technical resources to deploy against this health catastrophe. The shortage of medical supplies and equipment and dearth of competent staff in the nations hospitals speak to the decades of neglect of the health sector. Only 2.5 percent of Iraqs US$106.5 billion revenues is allocated to health. Another problem challenging Baghdads response to the pandemic is the fact that the government enjoys scant legitimacy amongst its citizens. This was revealed in early March when health authorities banned public gatherings in an effort to flatten the curve of new infections. Demonstrators, however, refused to end their public protests, questioning the governments motives in imposing the ban in the first place. According to the Iraqi Commission for Human Rights, more than 600 demonstrators were killed by security forces and government-supported militias. When this failed to quell the protest movement so the narrative goes government made use of the real threat of the pandemic spreading to curb all public protests. One of those protesting was Alqasem Ahmed, a journalist. He summed up much of the protestors attitude to the ban on public gathering when he stated, We see COVID-19 as a small threat when we are being killed with guns and live bullets. We have been facing death, poverty and corruption since 2003. This is the real virus and I dont think we will find a cure. The pandemic also brought into sharp scrutiny the close ties between the regimes in Baghdad and Tehran. Iran and Iraq share 21 border crossings. While Baghdad insisted that all border crossings were to close in fear of contagion spreading from Iran to Iraq, Tehrans ambassador denied this. This prompted protestors to mobilize under the hashtag: Shut the borders with Iran. They proceeded to block the road to one such border crossing in Diyala province. The seeming inability to close borders with Iran and the affinity between Iraqs fractious political leaders with the Iranian regime has resulted in further distrust towards the government and ordinary citizens questioning whether Iraq is a sovereign state or an Iranian colony. Concluding Insights Every crisis brings opportunities. The devastation wrought by the Black Death to Europe between 1347 and 1353 resulted in greater reorganization and reconfiguration of European society, setting the basis for the Renaissance. In order for a renaissance to occur in the MENA region, James Dorsey reminds us that it depends upon if governments and elites have the foresight and the political will to build a new world order that is not only equitable but also creates the political, economic and social conditions for management of future pandemics at a potentially lower social and economic cost for all (Dorsey, 2020). It is tempting to assume that with the COVID-19 virus raging across borders that political elites will demonstrate this foresight; that countries will bury past enmities and join forces against the pandemic. Despite these trying circumstances, old habits persist despite the existential nature of the threat. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, militants in the Gaza Strip decided to launch missiles on Israel whose armed forces retaliated against various Hamas targets (Abu Amer, 2020). Neither has the pandemic ameliorated the deep sectarian divisions within the region. Saudi Arabia intercepted two ballistic missiles fired by Tehran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Saudi capital, Riyadh, as well as the city of Jizan were targeted (Jerusalem Post, 2020). As Libyas Tripoli-based Government of National Accord announced the countrys first COVID-19 case, Khalifa Haftars forces pummeled the capital with airstrikes. As Yuval Noah stated, the world we will occupy after the pandemic will be a different one from the one we currently inhabit. This new world will require new ways of doing things as opposed to relying on old habits that have led the region to ruin. For the MENA region to experience its own renaissance, it needs political leadership to demonstrate the foresight to make a New World Order possible. Hussein Solomon is senior professor in the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State, South Africa; a visiting professor at Osaka University, Japan; and a senior research associate at the Jerusalem-based Research on Islam and Muslims in Africa (RIMA). Home Children have for years been considered 'super-spreaders' of common winter bugs and the flu. But doctors say the same may not apply for coronavirus, according to research that suggests they are not major spreaders of the disease. An infected nine-year-old boy in France did not pass the vicious virus on to anyone - despite being in contact with 172 people while contagious. The unnamed boy was at the centre of a cluster of cases which made international headlines in February. He and 10 others were struck down while staying in a ski chalet in the French Alps as Steve Walsh, one of the first Britons known to have the virus. The child went to three different ski schools in eastern France while unknowingly infected, and mingled with other people. All of those were placed in quarantine when the child tested positive, but only one other child contracted COVID-19. Neither of his siblings were struck down. Doctors suggested the boy was not the spreader of the virus to the one other case because he came into contact with so many people. Researchers who studied the child's case said it suggests children are not a primary concern when considering the viruses' main routes of transmission. This would mean its in stark contrast to other viruses like the common cold, which normally spreads rapidly among children. This is because youngsters often have poor hygiene and come into contact with lots of other youngsters, who have similar habits. Doctors have emphasised under 18s are just as at risk as any other age for picking up the virus - but unlikely to show severe symptoms. A nine-year-old boy infected with the coronavirus in France's Haute-Savoie region didn't pass it on to anyone - despite being in contact with 172 people The unnamed boy was at the centre of a cluster of cases which made headline news in February. He and 10 others were infected while staying in a ski chalet in the French Alps by the same man - Steve Walsh (pictured), one of the first Britons known to have the virus Eleven people who were with Mr Walsh tested positive, including Bob Saynor (pictured) who owns the chalet in France but live in Brighton. Their nine-year-old son also tested positive - but Professor Danis and colleagues did not explicitly say it was this child they studied The case of the nine-year-old boy was investigated by Public Health France and published in the US journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. They explained how the boy had continued to attend three ski clubs while he was unknowingly infected. Through rapid intervention by health authorities, it was ascertained the child, who only displayed mild symptoms, came into contact with 172 people while sick. All of those were placed in quarantine as a precaution, and 41 per cent had some respiratory symptoms (70). ARE YOUNG PEOPLE AT RISK OF CATCHING THE VIRUS? People of all ages can be infected by the new coronavirus, scientists have said. Everyone, no matter what their age, health status or race, is at risk of catching the virus. Therefore young people - including children and babies - may catch the infection. But there are some people who are more vulnerable to serious symptoms and even death. They are the elderly and those with pre-existing health conditions, such as asthma and diabetes. With a new virus such as that which causes COVID-19, nobody has the immune cells needed to fight it. When the body is faced with a new infection, it builds an immune response that can be activated the next time they become infected. But the body is not ready for the coronavirus, if it invades. This means anyone can get sick, even if they may appear healthy or go through every winter without being affected by flu or the common cold. The World Health Organization advises people of all ages to take steps to protect themselves from the virus, for example by following good hand hygiene. Advertisement In total, 73 people were tested and each result was negative except one who came back as positive while in hospital. The doctors ruled that the boy did not pass on the virus to the one case because of the 'large number of negative results of his tested contacts'. Some 64 per cent of those contacts tested positive for other seasonal illnesses such as flu. But no cases of COVID-19 appeared in the following two weeks. But because none of the other suspected cases were tested it cannot be said for certain that the boy did not pass it on to any in that group. The researchers noted that even the child's two siblings didn't catch the virus. They said that the case of the child could 'suggest that children might not be an important source of transmissions of this novel virus'. Other strains of the flu or respiratory viruses may be more easily spread between children, the team theorise. They added that if there are other viruses circulating among children - which is likely - these bugs could suppress the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. 'One child, co-infected with other respiratory viruses, attended three schools while symptomatic, but did not transmit the virus, suggesting potential different transmission dynamics in children,' Kostas Danis, an epidemiologist at Public Health France, and lead study author, told AFP. While coronavirus infections in children appear to be mainly mild, they are still capable of spreading the disease to older people at greater risk of serious illness. Dozens of countries have closed schools as they try to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in the hopes it will stem the spread of the virus to other households. Brighton was the centre of the coronavirus outbreak in the early days. At least ten sites in the city were linked to Steve Walsh - including two schools, two health centres and a care home The virus has now infected almost 125,000 people in the UK, causing 16,500 deaths Viruses typically concentrate in children because they come into very close contact with each other daily at nurseries and school. Officials expected the novel coronavirus to be no exception, which is one of many reasons why schools have been shut. But Professor Danis and colleagues write: 'Current evidence indicates that children develop COVID-19 less often than adults and the clinical manifestations of the disease are milder. The above suggest that children, being less likely to be infected and more likely to develop mild disease, may play a less important role in the transmission of this novel virus.' The boy had initially picked up the bug while in a ski chalet in France's Haute-Savoie region. He was part of an early coronavirus cluster in the country which centered around a British man called Steve Walsh. Mr Walsh made headlines in February because the 53-year-old was one of the first British people to be infected with the coronavirus. He had been to a business conference in Singapore in mid-January where he caught the virus. On his route home to Brighton he stopped of for a ski holiday in the French Alps on January 24. Mr Walsh, a father-of-two, spent three to four days in France with ten British adults and a British family - two adults and three children. He tested positive for COVID-19 on February 6 in Brighton, after learning that he had been in contact with confirmed cases in Singapore. Brighton became the centre of Britain's coronavirus crisis in its early days, with six cases. GPs, schools, gyms and nursing homes shut their doors as a result. Eleven people who were with Mr Walsh tested positive across the UK, France and Spain. This included Britons Bob Saynor and his wife Dr Catriona Greenwood, who owned the chalet in France but live in Brighton. Their nine-year-old son also tested positive - but Professor Danis and colleagues did not explicitly say it was this child they studied. But they did write: 'All cases were adults, apart from one nine-year-old who attended three different schools and one ski class while symptomatic.' Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 Country's major automobile manufacturers (original equipment manufacturers) are avoiding to restart their operations this week while most of them will start operating in a phased manner after May 3, sources said. India's major automobile manufacturers are not restarting their operations this week, and most of them of them will resume production in phases May 3, sources told CNBC-TV18. T The central government's guidelines allow for partial resumption of operations in non-hotspot zones from today. But local administrations in many states have drawn their own rules, making it difficult for vehicle makers restart work at their factories. The Home Ministry directive requires manufacturers to house staff and labour in the factory premises or a building adjacent to it. Automobile companies say this is difficult. Automobile manufacturers based in Maharashtra, such as Volkswagen, Skoda, Mercedes-Benz, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors are unable to open factories from today. Sources said many of M&M's plants , barring two of them are in containment zones, and its automotive factories don't have permission to operate yet. Maruti Suzuki's three facilities in Gujarat, Gurgaon and Mansesar will also begin full-fledged operations only after May 3 , and so will Hero MotoCorp. Hyundai, with its factory in Chennai in Tamil Nadu will also be unable to resume operations just yet because of the state govt's view to not implemenet the relaxations suggested by the Centre. Automakers cite operational constraints such as movement and housing of staff, supply chain bottlenecks and lack of retail sales for being unable to resume operations in the short span of time after the Home Ministry announced the relaxations. Vehicle makers are of the view that the absence of a functional retail and vendor network will block cash flow. They may utilize this time to assess manpower requirements, sources added. Meanwhile, Karnataka-based OEMs such as Toyota Kirloskar Motors and TVS Motor may look to begin skeletal operations, as there are fewer restrictions in the state in terms of mandating companies to accommodate staff within or adjacent to the factory. Automobile companies are engaging with local administration to draw up restart plans and obtain permissions. Due to the nationwide lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Salman Khan, who went to his Panvel farmhouse for a two-day short break, is currently stuck there with some of his family members. Recently, while speaking with a leading tabloid, the superstar said that the entire experience feels like living in the Bigg Boss house. Talking about his life in lockdown to Times Of India, the actor said, "I am still working, my mind is working and as soon as this lockdown is over, I know exactly what I want to do and how. Right now, this place feels like the Bigg Boss house. It's beautiful here with everyone around because no one is being eliminated, and so, no one is going after anyone. I am also making time to paint, and I am doing quite a bit of it. I might put it out at some point." Meanwhile, Salman has created his first independent song titled 'Pyaar Karona', which is all set to release today. The lyrics of the song have been penned by Salman and Hussain Dalal and composed by Sajid-Wajid. The Race 3 actor opened up and told the tabloid, "We came here (at his Panvel farmhouse) for just two days, but when the lockdown was implemented, we had to stay back for longer. It's been about a month now. This was the thing to do. In a situation like this, we can't shoot a movie here, though we are so many of us together in the house. But we could definitely do a song using the equipment we have with us, like phone cameras. I sang the track and we edited the video here, but the music was composed in Mumbai. The lyrics express exactly what I want to tell the world - pyaar karona, madad karona, sabr rakho na." He further added, "There is nothing better than music. Everyone is at home and most people who are at home have internet connections. People are consuming content, working and trying to do things to keep their mind active and distracted from their worries. Music is the best remedy in such times as it can help people de-stress." Salman also revealed that he has two more songs in the pipeline. Meanwhile, recently, the actor posted a 10-minute IGTV video, in which he spread awareness about the Novel Coronavirus pandemic and also slammed the lockdown violators, who are venturing out of their houses and putting their families at risk. Salman Khan Sneaks In During Rumoured Girlfriend Iulia Vantur's Live Chat Session Salman Khan Says There Is No Point In Being Brave, 'I Am Scared I Haven't Seen My Father In 3 Weeks' By Andreas Rinke and Micha Serr BERLIN/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germans returned to the shops on Monday, craving retail therapy after a month of lockdown, but Chancellor Angela Merkel urged them to remain disciplined to avoid a relapse in the fight against the coronavirus. Shops up to 800 sq metres, as well as car and bicycle dealers and bookstores, are allowed to reopen this week under an agreement with the leaders of Germany's 16 states, all keen to start the long haul of pulling the economy out of recession. Schools are set to begin reopening in two weeks. Europe's largest economy has relied more on domestic demand in recent years as the strength of its traditional export engine has faded, and the move echoes a slow easing in neighbouring countries, equally desperate to revive business and society. "We need life again. This whole time it was like a ghost town," said Michaela Frieser, not wearing a face mask, in Frankfurt's main shopping district. "The sun's out, we saved enough money and now we need to go out and spend it!" The federal and state governments have strongly recommended that Germans wear face masks when shopping and on public transport, and some states have even made that compulsory. Gertrude Sietzy, wearing a face mask and disposable gloves nearby, was thrilled to get outside. "I don't like ordering on the internet," she said, adding that, if shoppers kept their distance, "it should work". To the east, farmers' markets, craft shops, car dealerships and dog grooming salons opened in the Czech Republic, which had imposed one of Europe's earliest and strictest lockdowns. "This is relief from the stress that we will have to throw away the harvest," vegetable grower Milan Vystejn said at his stand in Prague's Tylovo Square. Germany's southern neighbour Austria took a first step in relaxing restrictions last Tuesday by letting DIY stores, garden centres and smaller shops reopen, and plans to reopen museums and libraries from mid-May. Story continues SPLIT CLASSES To the west, Luxembourg said a similar selection of stores could reopen, and that schools would begin reopening from May 4, starting with final year pupils taking exams. But when all schools reopen, classes will be split into two halves that each alternate between a week in school and a week studying at home. Merkel told officials from her Christian Democrats (CDU) that the danger of infection remained high in Germany, after weekend sunshine drew many into parks. She told reporters it would take 14 days to see if the easing was pushing up the infection rate, adding: "We must remain vigilant and disciplined." There was a risk that contagion would surge if the restrictions were eased too fast, and then they would have to be tightened again, Merkel said. Germany has the fifth highest COVID-19 caseload behind the United States, Spain, Italy and France, but has kept fatalities down thanks to early and extensive testing, and has only a third of the deaths of New York city alone. Its total of confirmed cases rose by 1,775 to 141,672 on Sunday, the second consecutive day that the number of new infections had fallen. The death toll rose by 110 to 4,404, the tally from the Robert Koch Institute showed. The gradual easing provides for social distancing rules to remain in place until May 3. Schools will start opening from May 4, with priority for final-year students. Hairdressers can also reopen then. The group will meet again on April 30 to review how to proceed after May 3. The Germany economy is now in a severe recession, according to the central bank, the Bundesbank, which said recovery was unlikely to be quick as many coronavirus restrictions could stay in place for some time. The government has tried to cushion the economic effect of the shutdown with measures including a 750 billion euro ($815 billion) stimulus package. (Writing by Paul Carrel and Michael Nienaber; Editing by Michelle Martin and Editing by Kevin Liffey) Click here to read the full article. Elyse Kroll may have been out of the trade show business since 2012, but the founder of ENK International has never strayed very far from her fashion roots. She has been so touched by the work of the nurses that she mobilized her former ENK team to help her create a charity for those frontline workers fighting the coronavirus in New York City. Called From Fashion With Love, the nonprofit is soliciting apparel, accessories and beauty brands to donate to gift bags that the organization is distributing to nurses staying in hotels in New York while they battle the pandemic. So far, Birkenstock, Rebecca Minkoff, Joes Jeans, Fossil, Century 21, Splendid, Michael Stars, Erika Harvey, Rhone, TruGrace, Moussy Vintage, Surfside Supply and others have all donated products. From Fashion With Love is asking for T-shirts, slides/flip-flops, footwear, ath-leisure, lingerie, sleepwear, socks, beauty and wellness items. It has created 1,000 From Fashion With Love tote bags so far with an initial goal of 2,500. They will be filled with the donated products and distributed at the New Yorker hotel, followed by the other hotels around town that are housing the health-care workers. If the donations are large enough, Kroll hopes to move beyond New York to other cities. If I get enough product, thats what well do, she said. Motivated by her sister, a retired nurse, as well as all the fashion companies who have pivoted into making masks and gowns, Kroll came up with the idea for From Fashion With Love. This is not charity, its a gift, she said. If I can make these nurses happy and put a smile on their faces, thats what I want to do. She said 75 percent of the nurses are women and 25 percent are men so the gift bags will be organized by gender to ensure all the workers have product suited to them. Volunteers will fill the bags and the nurses can begin picking them up at the New Yorker hotel later this week. Story continues A web site, fromfashionwithlove.org, went live on Monday morning that describes the charity and walks companies through the donation process. To reconnect with my ENK family to truly develop this idea of giving a smile to a nurse, one gift bag full of love at a time, has been joyous, Kroll said. We could never do the heroic jobs that these nurses perform every day. They need to be thanked. I want them to feel our love, appreciation and gratitude. Best of WWD Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Times Insider explains who we are and what we do, and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together. Every day, the print edition of The Times is divided into multiple sections. For some, though, there are really only two parts: the crossword and everything else. You may not quite think in those terms, but if you crave a daily dose of befuddlement, The Times is giving your brain more to untangle. Beginning today, puzzles are expanding to half a page on Mondays through Saturdays, with a rotation of new games that will accompany the crossword and KenKen. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, youll find a tweet-sized riddle called Brain Tickler. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the page will include Cryptogram, an amusing confluence of trivia, puzzles and jokes that you decode from encrypted text. Saturdays paper will feature a Wit Twister, a puzzle in the form of a verse. And two games of the spatial-reasoning exercise Two Not Touch will appear every day but Sunday. (Although these additional puzzles will be available only in the print edition, readers can still find an extensive selection of others on The Timess website.) Boxes, barriers, and shields of various types and designs are making their appearance the world around to protect vulnerable healthcare professionals and allied staff from picking up COVID-19 while undertaking their duties. One such new device is the intubation box from West Virginia University (WVU). Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic tube into the trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs. It is frequently performed in critically injured, ill, or anesthetized patients to facilitate ventilation of the lungs, including mechanical ventilation. The story behind the intubation box Every health professional is worried about the possibility of being infected with COVID-19 during the course of seeing and caring for patients, whether they are known to have the infection or not. One faculty member at WVU was especially anxious because of the exposure her husband, pediatrics head Dr. Chuck Mullett, faced every day during his clinical work. Lee Mullett, assistant professor and involved with the interior design program at one of the WVU institutions, took her worry a step further. Once she came across a report on intubation boxes designed to protect doctors from aerosol and droplet transmission during the high-risk time of intubation, she prompted her husband to investigate. He, in turn, informed his colleague Dr. Pavithra Ellison who worked in pediatric anesthesiology and also worried about their exposure to the virus. Some fields of medicine are at exceptionally high risk for the spread of infection. For instance, physicians need to intubate patients who require mechanical ventilators. The procedure may excite gagging and the escape of infectious virus-carrying particles in aerosol form. This risk is faced by anesthesiologists and respiratory therapists, as well, and medical personnel in the emergency and critical care departments. Lee Mullett decided to take action. She had earlier visited the Innovation Hub in the campus. Now she asked the director, Gene Cilento if he could help. This was during the early part of the shutdown due to the spread of the virus. Cilento remarks, The bottom line is that the new Innovation Hub is still coming online, but we saw an opportunity to help the medical profession in a critical time of need. The team at the Hub, including senior engineers and shop managers, began to design their own box inspired by the report of similar devices cropping up in hospitals around the world. They first consulted medics at the WVU School of Medicine to get input on how to make the boxes sturdy, comfortable, and functional, capable of being sterilized, and adequately protective. The design included access ports that would help the physician to do intubation from outside the box. The ports needed to be shielded to prevent cuts and scrapes from any inadvertent movements by the patient or medical personnel but had to provide a perfect seal. Dr. Matthew Ellison, Dr. Kevin McKillion, Dr. Hong Wang and CRNA Cole Mortellaro, the WVU Medicine anesthesia team practice COVID-19 intubations using the intubation box created in the Innovation Hub. The suite was set up by the trauma and critical care institute specifically for COVD-19 practice in the hospital. Intubation boxes help decrease aerosol spread from infected patients. (WVU Photo) The boxes were also needed on an urgent basis, which meant no shopping for new equipment. Says senior lab instrumentation specialist Jim Hall, We had to make it work with the equipment we had, keeping in mind that we needed to get them out the door as quickly as possible. Once shop manager Joshua Bintrim built the first rapid prototype, he received feedback from doctors in real-time. This helped him see how the box was actually used, and the final improved model was chosen a box with three sides, measuring 20 inches each way, with two holes, every 6 inches in diameter. The ability to compare notes virtually using WhatsApp meant that only one iteration was needed before the start of actual production. Once the learning curve is addressed, says Hall, it takes only half an hour to make a single intubation box. Chuck Mullett is impressed: They were perfectso simple, and yet so effective. The hospital asked for 40 boxes in all, for use in the emergency departments, the operating rooms and the intensive care units where the risk of aerosolization during intubation is at its peak. They got the boxes within a week. Describing the effort as a truly collaborative one, Ellison says it taught her that the amount that could be accomplished in a short period was remarkable. She says she works with an incredible team of professionals, and that The positive part of this is how we all work together as a team to help protect patients and also all our healthcare personnel. Aerosol boxes have been recommended and designed before this in various parts of the world, including India and the UK, and have been found to be efficient at containing infectious respiratory aerosols, while being easily sterilizable and inexpensive. Their use may require initial training, which may be difficult in the present situations where medical staff are already overstretched. The procedure may be rendered difficult with the box in place in cases where the patient is obese, propped up, has a short neck, and other situations where manipulation is already impaired. However, they do offer significant protection in some uncomplicated cases, and better designs, such as the one from WVU, are to be sought. The Innovation Hub has, meanwhile, extended its operations to the VA Hospital System in West Virginia, as well. Anuraag Singh By Express News Service BHOPAL: Alleged police brutality during the ongoing lockdown has led to the death of a 50-year-old farmer Banshi Kushwah in Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh early on Monday. Acting on the matter, the six police personnel, including an ASI, a head constable and four constables posted at Gora Bazar police station of Jabalpur were suspended and attached to district reserve police lines by the Jabalpur SP Amit Singh. According to ASP-Jabalpur Sanjiv Uike, the six policemen, including an assistant sub-inspector of police (ASI), a head constable and four constables have been suspended. "If the autopsy report establishes that the injuries unleashed by the cops caused the death, then the criminal case will be registered against them," said Uike. The shocking incident took place on the evening of April 16 evening, when the 50-year-old farmer Banshi Kushwah was returning home after watering his fields. In a video made before Kushwah's death, the farmer alleged that the six cops of Gora Bazar police station stopped him while he was returning from his farm and asked him about the gambling den operating in the area. "When I denied having knowledge about the gambling den, they (cops) started beating ne heavily. They beat me with lathis after which I fell unconscious and had to be carried home by neighbours," the farmer was seen telling in the video before his death. On Sunday, the farmer's condition started worsening, after which he was rushed to a hospital, where he died during the course of treatment early on Monday. With the opposition Congress, including Rajya Sabha member Vivek Tankha targeting the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government over the farmer's death and demanding monetary compensation to the bereaved family, the state government transferred present Jabalpur SP, the 2009 batch IPS officer Amit Singh as AIG at state PHQ and posted 2010 batch IPS officer and presently AIG PHQ Siddharth Bahuguna as the new Jabalpur SP. Protests continued on Thursday against Michigan's stay-at-home order, alongside similar protests in suburban New York and Washington, D.C. Other demonstrations were held this week in North Carolina and Rhode Island. Why it matters: Leading coronavirus modeling shows the country's collective sacrifice of an economic shutdown which has resulted in over 30 million jobless claims has likely prevented hundreds of thousands of deaths, serving as a sign that social distancing is effective. The big picture: Protests to reopen economies have been held across the U.S. over the last few months as the number of coronavirus cases and fatalities continues to rise. COVID-19 has infected more than 1.4 million people and killed over 85,000 in the U.S., per Johns Hopkins data. What they're saying: President Trump fueled reopening protests in Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia on April 17 in tweets, urging people to "LIBERATE" the states. He defended activists again at an April 19 news briefing, saying they "have got cabin fever" from having their lives "taken away from them." But in a rare rebuke of a Republican, Trump said he "strongly" disagrees with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's plans to reopen non-essential businesses. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned after protests in Albany there could be a potential "second wave" if restrictions were eased too soon and suggested people who want to work "get a job as an essential worker." Of note: Facebook said Monday the company deleted events for anti-quarantine protests in Nebraska, New Jersey and California that defied government guidelines. The bottom line: The U.S. cannot afford to stay on lockdown until a cure or vaccine arrives. Safely reopening communities and economies requires data that is currently difficult to find. Armed demonstrators in Lansing, Michigan on May 14. Photo: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images Members of the media outnumber demonstrators at the ReOpen DC rally on May 14. Photo: Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Protesters call for North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) to reopen the state on May 12. Photo: Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Protestors try to enter the Michigan House of Representative chamber on April 30. Photo: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images Armed protesters at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on April 30. Photo: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images Protesters from a grassroots organization called Reopen N.C. gather to pressure North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to reopen the state on April 28. Photo: Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Protestors outside the Louisiana Governor's Mansion on April 25 in Baton Rouge. Photo: Chris Graythen/Getty Images Protestors outside the Freedom Tower in Miami, Florida on April 25. Photo: Adam DelGiudice/AFP via Getty Images Protestors outside the Freedom Tower in Miami, Florida on April 25. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images Protestors outside the Texas State Capitol on April 25. Photo: Gary Miller/Getty Images Protestors outside the Texas State Capitol on April 25. Photo: Gary Miller/Getty Images Protestors outside the Louisiana Governor's Mansion on April 25 in Baton Rouge. Photo: Chris Graythen/Getty Images Protestors outside the Louisiana Governor's Mansion on April 25 in Baton Rouge. Photo: Chris Graythen/Getty Images Demonstrators gather in front of the Colorado State Capitol building for a "reopen Colorado" rally on April 19. Photo: Jason Connolly/AFP via Getty Images Demonstrators hold signs outside of the New York State Capitol Building on April 22 in Albany, New York. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images People take part in a "reopen" Pennsylvania demonstration in Harrisburg on April 20. Photo: Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images Some 2,500 people demonstrate outside the state Capitol to speak out against against Washington Gov. Jay Inslee's stay-at-home order on April 19. Photo: Alex Milan Tracy/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Protesters gather outside the Indiana governor's mansion. Photo: Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images New Hampshire residents rally at the State House in Concord on April 18, calling on the government to re-open the state for business. Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images Jessica Lilly, right, with her children aged 7 and 4, join a crowd gathered at the corner of Main Street and Walnut Avenue in Huntington Beach, Calif., to protest state closures on April 17. Photo: Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images Sarah Mason joins a crowd at Huntington Beach, Calif., to protest state closures on April 17. Photo: Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images Police officers watch the crowd at Huntington Beach, Calif. as they protest state closures on April 17. Photo: Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images Protestors in Huntington Beach, Calif. protest state closures on April 17. Photo: Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images Protesters yell in unison when Infowars' Alex Jones arrives for an April 18 protest at the State Capitol in Austin, Texas. Photo: Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images A protestor in Austin, Texas on April 18. Photo: Sergio Flores/Getty Images Protesters at the Texas State Capital on April 18 in Austin, Texas. Photo: Sergio Flores/Getty Images Hundreds of New Hampshire residents rally at the State House in Concord on April 18, calling on the government to re-open the state. Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images Hundreds of New Hampshire residents rally at the State House in Concord on April 18, calling on the government to reopen the state. Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images Hundreds of New Hampshire residents rally at the State House in Concord on April 18, calling on the government to re-open the state. Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images Protesters outside the Orange County Administration Building demanding the end of stay-at-home orders and the reopening of Florida businesses on April 17. Photo: Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images A "Reopen Maryland" rally outside the State House in Annapolis, Maryland on April 18. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images Go deeper: Michigan protesters rally over Gov. Whitmer's stay-at-home order Editor's note: This article has been corrected to reflect that more than 61,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus (not 217,000). The independent cyber security body tasked with reviewing the government's coronavirus tracing application has said it has no major concerns about the app. The Cyber Security Cooperative Research Centre, which was allowed to review the app after several MPs raised concerns the data collected could be pervasive or mishandled, said it found "nothing particular disturbing" in the app's architecture. The government wants at least 40 per cent of Australians to download the contact tracing app. Credit:AAP "I'm pleased with what I've seen to date," the centre's chief executive officer, Rachael Falk, said. "There's very little private data obtained." The Morrison government wants at least 40 per cent of Australians to download the app, expected to be made available by the end of the week, onto their phones to automate much of the contact tracing process that occurs once someone is found to have coronavirus. Marlborough, Mass. A driver killed in a crash last month in Marlborough, Massachusetts, has been identified as a Syracuse resident. Massachusetts State Police confirmed that 37-year-old Chayenne Fernandez Diaz was killed in the crash, which occurred around 4:40 a.m. March 13 on Interstate 495 north. Police said Diazs 2014 Toyota Camry crashed into the guardrail attenuator in the median of the highway. Diaz, the sole occupant of the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene, MassLive reported. Funeral services will be private, according to Diazs obituary. Mumbai, April 20 : Hours after Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray briefed Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday, the state government suspended two policemen and directed the Crime Invesigation Department to probe the sensational mob lynching of two Sadhus (mendicants) and their driver last week. In an address to the state this afternoon, Thackeray said that so far five of the masterminds and another more than 100 persons, including 9 minors have been arrested so far in the crime that took place during the lockdown. "We also need to find out the people who are creating communal tensions on social media, I requested Amit Shah. We will also find them and take action against them... No one will be spared," the CM warned. The two Sadhus and their driver, proceeding from Nashik to Surat, were lynched by a 200-strong mob outside the Gadchinchle village on April 16 in a police vehicle amid rumours that they were robbers or kidnappers. The mob also attacked the policemen and damaged two police vans, including one in which the Sadhus were shifted by the police. The victims were identified next morning as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavriksha Giri, 70, Sushilgiri Maharaj, 30, from the Shree Panch Dashnam Juna-Akhada order, and their driver Nilesh Telwade, 30. "The incident took place around 110 kms from Palghar town on the night of April 16, at Gadchinchle village, on the border with Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar-Haveli. While all of them are in police custody, the minors have been sent to a juvenile remand home," Thackeray said. "The investigation is handed over to CID, IGP Konkan Range is directed to enquire into police action. Two police officers are suspended," said Director-General of Police Subodh Jaiswal, on the probe to be conducted by CID Additional Director-General of Police, Atul Kulkarni. The incident occurred around 10 p.m on April 16 and a team led by the top district police officials reached there around midnight. They launched a hunt in the forests and managed to nab many of the accused hiding in the nearby forests, and some are still absconding. It is learnt that the Sadhus were turned back at the border from going to Gujarat and were reportedly returning back to Nashik when they met their tragic end in a desolate corner of the state that night. Revealing that the Centre has sought a report on the incident, Thackeray ruled out the involvement of any communal groups in the incident which happened in a remote state border area accessible only via the Dadra and Nagar Haveli in view of bad roads. "There is no involvement of any religious or communal groups, it's a mob-lynching case. Any persons attempting to give it a communal colour will be dealt with strictly," Thackeray added. We now have many Montanans wanting to work to support their families but in my opinion are prohibited from doing so by intrusive government regulations. Private homeowners and landlords in Montana that need to have maintenance work done and now qualify for low-interest loans are also hampered by the same laws. I understand that many professional service providers will not work doing minor maintenance on older homes or mobile homes, even though they can charge many times more than a handyman. If they do concede to work, I believe many do so by the hour, as they more than likely will not bid small jobs. It is my understanding that the Uninsured Employers Division of the Montana Workers Compensation Division claims anyone injured as a result of contracting without a state license may sue the hiring party. It seems the state claims that no matter if the individual cannot afford the license and insurance and wanted to assume the responsibility, they cannot contract out their services without providing the employer with a permission slip from the government even if they were hired temporarily and claimed they have other insurance. To me, this is government overreach at its worst. This should be against the constitutional rights of both the workers wanting to provide for their families and the hiring party wanting to economically maintain their property. Contracts make individuals accountable to each other for their actions, instead of being accountable to government. Being accountable to government usually equates to a handout rather than a hand up, which means more government control. Until changes are made, be wary of hiring your friend or neighbor to do any casual work, even with a contract that you believe will protect you against any legal action for an injury. State Workers Compensation should cut bureaucratic red tape and let our citizens go to work. Please, contact your representatives. John Rice of Missoula is a past chair of Montanans for Better Government. Love 4 Funny 2 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 2 Southern Lit Alliance will be hosting a virtual lecture on Facebook Live featuring critically-acclaimed and award-winning author Susan Meissner on Thursday, May 7 at 7 p.m. The event is part of our new South Bound Series that is now being held virtually on Southern Lit Alliance's Facebook Live, so viewers to participate safely from home.Ms. Meissner will be hosting a discussion about two of her historical fiction novels, "The Last Year of the War" and "As Bright as Heaven."The Last Year of the War tells the story of the U.S.government's little-known repatriation program during World War II and the many American immigrants who fought persecution in the war's final years. The novel takes the perspective of 14-year-old Elise Sontag, who is forced to live in an internment camp when her German-born father is suspected of being a Nazi sympathizer. While there, she befriends fellow internee Mariko Inoue, and after the girls are torn apart when Elise and her family are deported to Germany, she longs to reunite with her lost friend.As Bright as Heaven covers the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic from the perspectives of Pauline Bright and her young daughters living in Philadelphia, one of the hardest-hit American cities. The novel tells of the pandemic's tremendous impact on the Bright family and the world around them.Anyone can view the lecture through Facebook Live directly from their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SouthernLitAlliance/. Recovered senior COVID-19 patients Xu Ming (right) and Zeng Guangshun talk about their experience with the virus in Wuhan, Hubei province, on April 16, 2020. [Photo by Wang Jing/China Daily] After recovering from the novel coronavirus, Xu Ming, a 95-year-old resident of Wuhan, Hubei province, said he now looks forward to living to 100. When he was sent to the intensive care unit in mid-February, he lowered his expectations to just making it back to the general ward. On Thursday, Xu returned to the Wuhan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine where he had stayed between Feb 9 and Feb 23 to thank the medical staff there. "I now cook for myself at home because my daughters are either still under quarantine or in other cities. It's nice to be able to take care of myself again," Xu said. Xu, who was once a construction worker on the famous Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge completed in 1957, had been in good health with no major diseases before suddenly developing fever and other symptoms of the novel coronavirus such as a cough and poor appetite on Jan 31. He was admitted to the hospital on Feb 9 and became the oldest novel coronavirus patient there. "He had been experiencing difficulty breathing since Feb 10. We decided to transfer him to the ICU on Feb 13 because the condition of elderly patients can deteriorate very rapidly so we had to monitor him closely," said Zhang Jun, a doctor who treated Xu. Xu was overwhelmed after seeing so many strange machines at the ICU. "I wondered how much I had to pay to use those machines," he said. Recovered senior COVID-19 patients Xu Ming (right) talks about their experience with the virus in Wuhan, Hubei province, on April 16, 2020. [Photo by Wang Jing/China Daily] But later, he was told the treatment was free. "I often asked the doctors to take more care of other patients in worse condition, but they always said that all patients are equally important despite their age and condition," Xu said. After spending three days at the ICU, Xu's condition stabilized and he was transferred back to the general ward. Zhang, the doctor, said because Xu did not react well to antiviral drugs which can also cause more harm to the organs of elderly patients, doctors decided to use traditional Chinese medicine to boost Xu's overall immune system while also enhancing his oxygen supply. Zhang was also in charge of another patient aged 92. "Both of them are recovering well and we will keep monitoring their health condition," he said. "I'm so glad to see Xu is so energetic. It's the real bonus of being a doctor." Of the 675 COVID-19 patients treated at the Wuhan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 399 were over 65, said Li Xucheng, head of the hospital's emergency department. "The treatment method for all patients is actually quite the same, but elderly patients need more care both physically and mentally," Li said. Official data show that as of the end of Wednesday, Wuhan had registered 50,008 COVID-19 patients and about 2,500 of them are over 80. "About 70 percent of the patients over 80 in the city have been discharged. The oldest recovered patient is 108," Jiao Yahui, an official responsible for medical administration and supervision at the National Health Commission, said in an interview on Thursday in Wuhan. She said an average of 20 percent of COVID-19 patients would fall into severe condition, but among the elderly the ratio climbed to about 40 percent. "It's more difficult and resource-consuming to treat elderly COVID-19 patients, but we treat all people equally," she said. By the end of Friday, Hubei had 122 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including 27 in severe or critical condition, many of whom are elderly, according to local health authorities. While almost all the 42,000 medical staff who had come to help Hubei fight the disease from outside the province have returned home, a team of 20 intensive care experts remain in Wuhan to help treat severe and critical patients. While she said she didnt want to be the center of attention, friends, family, co-workers and county to state officials Friday made sure that retiring director LaVerne Jaros knew that her 32 years with the Kenosha County Aging & Disability Resource Center were more than appreciated. I dont think Ill be filling her shoes, Ill be stepping next to her shoes, said Rebecca Dutter, incoming ADRC director and an Adult Protective Services Supervisor. Her legacy is she started the path she put us on. I hope to continue its growth and expand all the programs shes created. Jaros, 71, leaves behind an enviable and long list of accomplishments since she began with the county in June 1988. She helped transform the original Center for Aging and Long-term Care into a model for aging and disability resource centers statewide. Working with state and county officials, and with research from UW-Madison researchers and Professor Jane Mahoney, Division of Geriatrics, she helped launch Stepping On, a community-based falls prevention program. The ADRC today offers dozens of programs and services aimed at helping the elderly and disabled. When you talk about LaVerne, you talk about passion, said County Executive Jim Kreuser, who presented her with a plaque honoring her years of service. Shes always been able to add value and broaden services, and been slightly ahead of the curve. When other people and counties cut services, she figured out a way. We worked together to expand services. She always found a way to get things done. Thats a true public servant. Honoring her with a state commendation from him, Rep. Tip McGuire and Rep. Tod Ohnstad, Sen. Bob Wirch recalled Jaros years of work, from serving with her on the county board to her current work with the ARDC. I remember the days LaVerne was a champion for our most vulnerable citizens out there, Wirch said. She did the best she could with very, very tight budgets. It was an honor for me to serve with LaVerne. Her work and dedication also garnered well-deserved praise from department heads to co-workers. When I think about LaVerne, what shes accomplished over the years, a few words come to mind: advocate, compassionate, honest, thoughtful, genuine and truthful, said John Jansen, director of the Kenosha County Department of Human Services. Carolyn Feldt, manager of elder and disability services, called working with LaVerne for over 30 years a privilege. You have many, many accomplishments, she said. Because of you we have the strongest staffing model. When things looked bleak, you took the next step. Your heart and mind resonate with Wisconsins state motto, Forward. For her part, Jaros said what she considers most rewarding was hearing that her work had positive results. Its hearing the comments of people in the community who appreciate the services they receive and the compliments they give to staff, she said. I think Kenosha County can be proud to have organizations that work together to make life better for its citizens. Jaros plans to continue working for advocacy and was appointed by Gov. Tony Evers to serve on the Governors Task Force on Caregiving. She also will be doing some volunteer work and spending time with family, and she said shed like to dabble in the arts. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Hubei, the Chinese province hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, will hold this year's national college entrance exam, or Gaokao, on July 7 and 8, according to authorities. Senior high school students who are expected to graduate this year in Hubei are set to return to classes on May 6. With the approval of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, this year's Gaokao was postponed for one month to July 7 and 8. However, the dates for Hubei and Beijing were not included in the list due to their special circumstances. On April 12, Beijing announced students in the city would take the Gaokao on July 7-10. With Hubei's time now settled, test dates across China have been determined. The delay will allow the 10.71 million students taking the exam enough time to catch up on missed preparation work. "The delay of one month surely gives more time to prepare for the exam," a high school principal in Chongqing told Xinhua. "Before the winter vacation, the third-year students still had about 10 percent of the content left to review; teachers are under great pressure due to the delay." Many parents supported the delay of the exam, as senior high school students are gradually returning to classrooms across the country. Although senior high school students have been given priority to return to class before other grades, the preparation time is still nearly two months shorter than that of previous years, leading to anxiety among some parents. However, with the postponement of the exam, parents can breathe a sigh of relief. Some teachers, on the other hand, have expressed concern. Yuan Lihong, a third grade teacher in Harbin, told Xinhua: "Students' independent review ability has a great impact on the quality of sprint preparation. Those students with strong self-discipline and high learning initiative are more likely to stand out, while those with poor self-discipline and weak independent learning ability may get worse scores." A police inspector, who had barged into the Jagannath Temple in Odishas Puri with his wife and daughters on Sunday evening, was suspended for defying the prohibition of entry of pilgrims into the 11th-century shrine during the lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic. Deepak Jena, an inspector at the Badachana police station in Jajpur district, reached the temple with his family at around 7pm in a police vehicle with a yellow beacon. When a plain-clothed Jena along with his family was trying to enter the temple through the temples southern gate they were stopped by an on-duty havildar. However, all of them forcefully entered the temple that has been shut for the pilgrims since March 20 following Covid-19 outbreak. Police officials said the inspector and his family spent around half an hour in the temple and had a darshan of the deities. Singhadwar police inspector Geli Kumari Sahoo said the inspector was later detained along with the family. He has been booked under several sections of IPC (Indian Penal Code). We will take necessary action against him as per law, said Sahoo. The number of new coronavirus cases recorded by Italy sharply dropped to 2,256 today - as the number of people currently infected fell for the first time since the pandemic began. The country, which has the second highest number of Covid-19 fatalities after the US, also reported 454 deaths due to the virus, marking a slight increase on yesterday's 433. Italy has now recorded 24,114 deaths in total, with 181,228 cases of the deadly virus confirmed across the nation compared to 178,972 on Sunday. The infection total, which is Italy's lowest in more than a month, compares to 3,047 recorded on Sunday and 3,491 on Saturday. Data released by the Civil Protection Agency also revealed the number of current infections has fallen for the first time since the outbreak began - with 20 less recorded today compared to Sunday. There are currently 108,237 active cases of Covid-19 in Italy, with 108,257 reported yesterday. Italian scientists want the government to conduct psychological tests on a sample of the population to determine how long people can stay confined to their homes, a report said Monday The number of patients recovered climbed to 48,877 today against 47,055 a day earlier, with 2,573 said to be in intensive care with the virus against 2,635 on Sunday. Lombardy remains the epicentre of the outbreak, where more than half of the nation's fatalities have been recorded - a total of 12,376. The fall in new cases comes as Italian scientists asked the government to conduct psychological tests on a sample of the population to determine how long people can stay confined to their homes. Scientists want to understand how long Italians 'are able to endure a lockdown' in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report seen by Corriere della Sera. The Corriere della Sera newspaper said scientists want to understand how long Italians 'are able to endure a lockdown' in the face of the coronavirus pandemic Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte will announce a new set of social guidelines this week that could include the tests, the report said. Italy entered into a progressively more restrictive lockdown over the first half of March that has since been replicated by most European nations. The Mediterranean country's 60 million citizens have been barred from walking more than 200 metres (650 feet) from their homes without a significant reason. Reports of domestic abuse have surged and scientists worry about the impact of such isolation on the elderly and the more vulnerable. Conte's government is now debating how it can lift the stay-at-home order and reopen businesses while there is still no coronavirus cure or vaccine. Italy's 60 million citizens have been barred from walking more than 200 metres (650 feet) from their homes without a significant reason On Saturday, Italy 12 other countries in calling for greater global cooperation to lessen the economic impact of the pandemic. 'It is vital that we work together to save lives and livelihoods,' they said. The group, which also includes Britain, France, Indonesia, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, South Korea, Singapore and Turkey, said it was committed to 'work with all countries to coordinate on public health, travel, trade, economic and financial measures in order to minimise disruptions and recover stronger'. The countries emphasised the need to maintain 'air, land and marine transportation links' to ensure the continued flow of goods including medical equipment and aid, and the return home of travellers. Oppo announced today an important switch among its senior executives - the President of Global Marketing Brian Shen resigned and will be replaced by Liu Li who is being promoted from his position of Chief Marketing Officer at Oppo China. Brian Shen explained on Weibo the reason for the change is personal health issues. His successor Liu Li will take the global business and Oppo reminded in a short press release that he was the person behind the Find lineup, as well as the Ulike and Real phone families. The new president will continue working on current smartphone projects and will report to Oppo mobile CEO Chen Mingyong. According to Jia Mo, an analyst at Canalys, the first challenge ahead of Liu Li will be coping with the COVID-19 aftermath. He added that Chinese manufacturers need to increase sales in China to ensure cash flow, given the uncertainty in major overseas markets like India and Europe. Source (in Chinese) | Via 1 Via 2 A good legal system is a reliable system, one that is never "arbitrary and capricious." The best hedge against tyranny is a legal system that is not dependent on a tyrant's whims or the emotional responses of a cabal of activist judges. Under that system, people have the necessary information to make decisions that will benefit themselves and society. Washington State does not allow those concerns to affect how it chooses judges. In a system subject to unpredictable, unequally applied whims, people are paralyzed. That's why it's important to have judges that (a) know both case law and statutory law, (b) respect the law and have the will to apply it equally, and (c) have the intelligence and education to analyze cases and determine the correct law. These three qualities are abstracts that apply regardless of a judge's race, color, creed, ethnicity, sex, or sexual orientation. Unfortunately, leftism, with its commitment to identity politics, has stripped the law of these reliable absolutes. Instead, it cares little whether a judge knows the law, respects the law, applies the law, or has functional knowledge and intelligence. The only thing that matters to the left is ticking off those little identity politics boxes. In 2001, eight years before Barack Obama nominated her for the United States Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor linked her judicial abilities to her race and sex: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life." In 2009, when the Senate contemplated Sotomayor's nomination, leftists backed away from her explicitly expressed belief that sex and race matter more than the rule of law. They focused, instead, on her academic credentials (Princeton and Yale) and her professional experience. Fast-forward eleven years, and leftists no longer bother to pretend intelligence, education, and professional skills matter when selecting judges. This tweet about Washington State's Supreme Court is illustrative: Chad Felix Greene had the perfect response: Believe or not, the Slate report behind the tweet is worse than the tweet itself when it comes to anchoring "justice" to skin color, sexuality, and other identity politics factors: Donald Trump's presidency has been a disaster for judicial diversity. His judges are overwhelmingly straight, white, and male. Many are wealthy corporate attorneys born into privileged American families whose connections guided them along a path to power. In other words, Trump judges do not look like the country they serve. While the federal bench grows more homogeneous by the day, Democratic governors are diversifying their state judiciaries to an unprecedented degree. On Monday, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, elevated Grace Helen Whitener to the state Supreme Court. Whitener is a disabled black lesbian who immigrated from Trinidad. She joins Inslee's two other appointees: Raquel Montoya-Lewis, a Jewish Native American who previously served on tribal courts, and Mary Yu, an Asian-American Latina lesbian who officiated the first same-sex marriages in the state. [snip] Washington now has arguably the most diverse court, state or federal, in American history. (In Washington, the governor can fill vacancies, state Supreme Court vacancies, and those justices must later run for election.) There are currently seven female justices, including the chief justice a record for any state Supreme Court and just one straight, white, male justice. Its closest competitor is the California Supreme Court. Three of Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown's four appointees to that court are people of color: Goodwin Liu (who is Asian-American), Mariano-Florentino Cuellar (who is a Latino immigrant), and Leondra Kruger (who is black). [snip] The Washington Supreme Court is notably liberal; in recent years, it has issued decisions abolishing capital punishment and juvenile life without parole while upholding LGBTQ non-discrimination laws and progressive public financing of elections. It represents a vision of a different kind of jurisprudence from a radically diverse bench what the federal judiciary might look like if a Democratic president and Senate controlled the judicial confirmation process. Joe Biden has already pledged to name a black woman to the U.S. Supreme Court if elected, but he'll have scores of lower court vacancies to fill, as well. He should look to states like Washington to learn how to reshape a judiciary to look more like the country it serves. The following video suggests that Whitener embraces her victim identity: Unless you want the federal bench, from the Supreme Court on down, to look like the Washington State court system a system awash in judicial activism grounded in identity politics you'd better vote for Trump in November. A medical laboratory scientist runs a clinical test in the Immunology lab at UW Medicine looking for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, a virus strain that causes COVID-19, in Seattle, Washington on April 17, 2020. (Karen Ducey/Getty Images) Most Antibody Tests Not Validated, Unclear Whether Recovered People Are Immune to Virus: Fauci Most antibody tests circulating among the public arent validated, Dr. Anthony Fauci said, while also saying it hasnt been proven that people who are infected with the CCP virus and recover are then immune from the illness. Antibody tests are being pushed as part of a package of measures necessary for reopening America. They measure proteins in the body that respond to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from mainland China last year and causes the COVID-19 disease. People produce the proteins when exposed to the virus. If people have antibodies, they were infected with the virus but have since recovered. A significant portion of patients who become infected never show symptoms, heightening the need, in some minds, for the test. The problem is, Fauci said during an appearance on ABCs Good Morning America on Monday, that most of the antibody tests are not validated. Another issue: the questions surrounding possible immunity. Medical laboratory scientist Alicia Bu runs a clinical test in the Immunology lab at UW Medicine looking for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, a virus strain that causes COVID-19, in Seattle, Washington on April 17, 2020. (Karen Ducey/Getty Images) We do not know exactly what an antibody titer means. Theres an assumptiona reasonable assumptionthat when you have an antibody, you are protected against re-infection. But that has not been proven for this particular virus. Its true for other viruses, said Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases. I think its a reasonable assumption so you wouldnt say thats an absurd ideait isnt. It happens with other viruses. But we dont know how long that protection, if it exists, lasts. Is it one month? Three months? Six months? A year? While antibody tests could signal immunity to the CCP virus, it cannot be proven until researchers can show a correlation between the antibody and protection, Fauci said. Dozens of patients in South Korea have re-tested positive for COVID-19, raising doubts about total immunity for patients who were once infected and later recovered. Staff members monitor a machine dispensing COVID-19 novel coronavirus antigen and antibody diagnostic material onto a membrane, on a production line making virus testing kits at the SD Biosensor bio-diagnostic company near Cheongju, south of Seoul on March 27, 2020. (Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images) This novel coronavirus appears to be very evil and shrewd, Kwon Jun-wook, deputy director of South Koreas Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters. Kim Woo-joo, an infectious diseases expert at Korea University Hospital, said the CCP virus may have mutated, leading to the relapse. The Trump administration is aiming to roll out 20 million new antibody tests by the end of April and top officials see them as a way to monitor for asymptomatic patients. Fauci told reporters last week that experts are assuming people with the antibody are protected based on experience with other viruses. But what we want to make sure that we know, and these are some of the challenges: What is the titer that is protective? How long is the protection? Is it one month? Is it three months? Is it six months? Its a year? So we need to be humble and modest that we dont know everything about it, but it really is an important test, he said. Antibody tests have been floated by some governors as a key part of reopening, with some proposals having people who test positive returning to work before others. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 By Ilhama Isabalayeva - Trend: Previously, only medical personnel, as well as patients and those in contact with them were recommended to wear masks, meanwhile presently everyone should do the same, Nabil Seyidov, head of the department of the Public Health and Reforms Center of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Health, told Trend on April 20. The agitation in this regard is underway in other countries as well, head of the department added. Seyidov stressed that even if quarantine measures are alleviated, people must continue to wear medical masks, observe personal hygiene. "No one can tell when the coronavirus pandemic will end, head of the department said. Therefore, wearing medical masks must remain the norm for a long time." Head of the Azerbaijani representative office in the World Health Organization (WHO) Hande Harmanci said that the issue related to coronavirus infection will remain on the agenda for a year. "So far, we cant provide any information on the duration of the coronavirus pandemic, Harmanci said. The reasons for the spread of the virus are still unknown." Advertisement Virgin Australia has gone into voluntary administration, putting 16,000 jobs under threat. The airline, which was already struggling before coronavirus restrictions hit cashflows, will be managed by Deloitte accountants while it restructures and looks for a buyer. Administrator Vaughan Strawbridge said there were no plans for redundancies and that workers will still be paid their wages, including those on the government's JobKeeper scheme. Raising hopes that the airline will be bought quickly, he said there were 'in excess of ten companies with a keen interest in being part of the restructuring'. Private equity firm BGH Capital is thought to be among them. But there are fears the restructure will involve scrapping less profitable routes, particularly to regional areas, meaning flag carrier Qantas will be the only provider and could increase fare prices. In an emotional press conference at Sydney Airport today, tearful Virgin employees begged for Prime Minister Scott Morrison to save their jobs after the government said it would not buy a stake in the company or give it a $1.4billion loan. Scroll down for video Virgin Australia has gone into voluntary administration, putting 16,000 jobs under threat. Pictured: Air-hostesses put on brave face at Brisbane airport today despite the announcement Devastated: One baggage handler named Scott (pictured), who has been working for Virgin for 16 years, described his colleagues as his 'brothers and sisters' A young flight attendant called Flynn (pictured) said: 'Virgin Australia is our family. Without it, it's like we are losing a family member.' An air-hostess named Kara (pictured) warned that if Virgin goes under then Qantas would be able to push up prices for flights Pilot Ken Winslow (pictured) said: 'It's been sad that the Federal Government hasn't been able to provide us with tangible support' Virgin called in administrators after a board meeting of its international shareholders voted against providing more financial support. Pictured: Staff in Brisbane today One baggage handler named Scott, who has been working for Virgin for 16 years, described his colleagues as his 'brothers and sisters'. In a message to the Prime Minister, he said: 'Sir, I could not do your job and I don't envy you, but please let me do mine. Don't clip our wings.' A young flight attendant called Flynn said: 'Virgin Australia is our family. Without it, it's like we are losing a family member.' Virgin Australia is ten per cent owned by billionaire Sir Richard Branson, who is battling to save his UK business Virgin Atlantic. He has asked for a $500million (AUD$1billion) loan from the UK government and offered his his own private Caribbean island of Necker - estimated by Forbes to be worth 80m (AUD$160m) - as collateral. In a letter to Virgin Australia employees, Sir Richard, 69, said he was 'so proud' of them and added: 'This is not the end of Virgin Australia. I believe in a new beginning.' Virgin Australia, which was already struggling with $5billion in debt before coronavrius grounded its planes, asked for a $1.4billion government loan - but the Coalition government was unwilling to risk such as vast amount of taxpayers' cash. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said today that voluntary administration represented an 'opportunity' for Virgin to strengthen. Other Australian companies such as Network Ten have successfully navigated administration, he added. Referring to the 2002 collapse of Aussie airline group Ansett, he said: 'This is not liquidation. This is not Ansett. This is not the end of the airline.' He said a bail-out was never on the cards, adding: 'The Government was not going to bail out five large foreign shareholders with deep pockets who, together, own 90 per cent of this airline.' Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways and Chinese conglomerates HNA Group and Hanshan own 20 per cent each. Sir Richard Branson, who owns ten per cent of Virgin Australia, tweeted: 'This is not the end of Virgin Australia. I believe in a new beginning' Virgin Australia is ten per cent owned by billionaire Sir Richard Branson (pictured), who is battling to save his UK business Virgin Atlantic Sir Richard Branson has asked for a $500million (AUD$1billion) loan from the UK government and offered his own private Caribbean island of Necker (pictured) - estimated by Forbes to be worth 80m (AUD$160m) - as collateral Virgin Australia could be sold within months Administrators intend to sell off Virgin Australia within months and don't plan to carve it up. The airline went into voluntary administration on Tuesday and a quick sale is now anticipated. 'There is an extraordinary number of parties keen to be involved,' administrator Vaughan Strawbridge, from Deloitte, told reporters on Tuesday. 'This is a matter of months, not longer than that.' As the hunt for a buyer rolls on, staff who still have jobs will continue to receive their wages, and eligible staff will get the government's JobKeeper payments. He said moving the airline's Brisbane headquarters to Sydney is not under consideration but added that issue would be worked through with potential buyers. Virgin Australia CEO Paul Scurrah said a sale was the best way of ensuring the airline survived, after it failed to secure the liquidity it needed from shareholders, governments and others. 'This is a tough day for our airline ... (but) we're certainly not collapsing,' he said. 'It is our absolute intention to emerge stronger. Australia needs a second airline and we are determined to make sure we are that airline.' He said the coronavirus crisis had severed the airline's oxygen supply, but a new buyer would hopefully ensure Australia has a second carrier when things get back to normal. Advertisement The government has appointed Former Macquarie boss Nicholas Moore to represent it in talks with the administrators, who have said they are 'confident' the airline has enough cash to survive the process. The Labor Party, which has called for the government to buy an equity stake in Virgin Australia, today slammed Prime Minister Scott Morrison for refusing to step in. Leader Anthony Albanese said: 'What we're talking about here is the Australian national interest. If 16,000 people directly lose their jobs, that is 16,000 people who are on the Centrelink queue. 'It's about time that Scott Morrison put aside the ideological blinkers and gave the support that is required.' Mr Albanese said he feared that regional areas will be left behind if a foreign airline, or a stripped-back Virgin, did not fly to smaller airports. The airline industry has been hammered by the coronavirus crisis which has hastened the collapse of UK regional airline Flybe and US regional carriers Trans States Airlines and Compass Airlines. Virgin Australia will still operate limited international and domestic flights during administration as executives hope to come out of the process 'as soon as possible.' The airline's frequent flyer program, Velocity Frequent Flyer, is a separate company and is not in administration. Customers will not lose their points. Virgin Australia CEO Paul Scurrah said: 'Our decision today is about securing the future of Virgin Australia and emerging on the other side of the COVID-19 crisis. 'Australia needs a second airline and we are determined to keep flying.' The airline will be managed by accountants from Deloitte while it restructures and looks for a buyer. Pictured: Staff in Brisbane on Tuesday CEO Paul Scurrah said: 'Our decision today is about securing the future of Virgin Australia and emerging on the other side of the COVID-19 crisis.' Pictured: Staff at Brisbane Airport on Tuesday Leader Anthony Albanese (pictured today) said: 'What we're talking about here is the Australian national interest. If 16,000 people directly lose their jobs, that is 16,000 people who are on the Centrelink queue' Who owns Virgin Australia? Abu Dhabi government - 21% Singapore government - 20% Nanshan Capital (China) - 20% HNA (China) - 20% Richard Branson - 10.4% Australian shareholders: 8.6% Source: Virgin Australia annual report Advertisement Virgin Australia called in administrators after a board meeting of its international shareholders voted against providing more financial support on Monday night. A last-ditch plea to the government for a $100 million grant for short-term relief was also denied, The Australian reported on Tuesday. Queensland state Development Minister Cameron Dick said he wanted to see Virgin continue operate flights in regional areas after the administration process. Regional Australians 'deserve two airlines and deserve the air to be fair,' he said. 'While this is a sad and disappointing day, we haven't yet reached the end of the runway.' Virgin Australia employs about 10,000 people and supports another 6,000 indirect jobs. Most full-time staff have already been temporarily stood down after the air travel and tourism markets around the country collapsed as the virus spread. But the latest development means their future is uncertain Cabin crew worker Daniel Pearce said his parents were left in tears by the news his job could be under threat. The 32-year-old was 13 when Ansett collapsed, putting his father John out of a job and costing his family their home. He said turning up to be greeted by shattered colleagues in an empty terminal brought about a sense of deja vu. 'My dad worked for Ansett for 20 years and my mum and dad were crying on the phone last night because it was bringing back all these memories,' Mr Pearce said. 'We were here, just across the terminal, to watch the last Ansett plane come in when I was 13. 'We lost our house, dad lost eight friends to suicide and I grew up really quick.' Virgin called in administrators after a board meeting of its international shareholders voted against providing more financial support on Monday night. Pictured: Grounded planes on Tuesday at Brisbane Airport Virgin Australia employee Tony Smith (centre) speaks to reporters at Melbourne Airport on Monday as the company battled to stay afloat Air-hostess Kara Lee, a mother of one, said she does not want to join queues outside Centrelink. 'My husband and I have acknowledged that we can't just survive on his wage, and I don't want to be relying on government benefits,' the 30-year-old said. 'I want to be out there working and contributing, which is also important to be setting an example for my daughter. 'I am hopeful the government comes to the party, because we've seen in Australia you really need two strong competing airlines. Pilot Ken Winslow, who is among the third generation of his family to work in the aviation industry, said he feared airlines will go under due to COVID-19. 'No one knows how long it's going to last. With the previous disaster of September 11 there was an end date, but there isn't here. 'It's hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel.' It is expected that Virgin Australia's existing management team will remain in place during the administration period during which the focus will be on debt restructure. In an open letter to staff globally, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard said Virgin Australia was 'fighting' for life. He said the airline and others in his group need government help in the form of loans to get through 'this catastrophic global crisis'. 'We are hopeful that Virgin Australia can emerge stronger than ever, as a more sustainable, financially viable airline,' he told staff. 'If Virgin Australia disappears, Qantas would effectively have a monopoly of the Australian skies. We all know what that would lead to.' Domestic tourism operators are terrified that if Virgin Australia's fleet is removed from the skies that a Qantas monopoly would cause airfares to rise, killing their businesses Aviation analysts have argued the federal government must ensure the aviation market remains competitive and Virgin's rival Qantas isn't left in the box seat. Independent analyst Brendan Sobie from Sobie Aviation says maintaining competition is crucial to keeping flight fares low. 'The government could put in something like a fare cap,' he said. The Australian airline market is still attractive over the long term, particularly the domestic segment. 'That's why you see all these investors waiting in the wings,' to move on Virgin, Mr Sobie said. Canadian oil companies have begun shutting down steam-driven oil sands production projects as prices continue to fall, Reuters reports, noting the move could have dire long-term consequences for the production facilities. Steam-driven oil sands production, also called steam-assisted gravity drainage, involves injecting steam into an oil sands deposit to melt the bitumen and make it flow up the well. To ensure long-term production, the temperature and pressure at such sites must be maintained at a certain level. Disruption, Reuters explains, could result in permanent damage, which would translate into a permanent loss of production. Yet Western Canadian Select, the heavy oil benchmark of Canada, has been trading below $10 for about ten days now, with a temporary spike to $10.13 a barrel last Thursday. At the time of writing, WSC was trading at $-0.01 a barrel. As a result, producers are being forced to cut. Husky Energy cut its oil sands output by 15,000 bpd. Cenovus reduced its production by 45,000 bpd and said it could raise this further to 100,000 bpd, nothing a cut of this size wouldnt damage the bitumen reservoirs. ConocoPhillips last week said it would cut its oil sands output by as much as 100,000 bpd. Earlier this month, ahead of a meeting between Alberta government officials and OPEC, the chief executive of Enbridge said oil producers in Western Canada could shut down as much as 20-25 percent of production in response to the price slide, brought about by the coronavirus outbreak that exacerbated the situation with the supply overhang. A cut of 20-25 percent translates into 1.1-1.7 million bpd. According to TD Securities, 135,000 bpd of this has already been cut, all in the oil sands, as of April 7. Now, the consultancy says that total production cuts in the oil sands amount to 300,000 bpd and could rise further to 1.5 million bpd. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: There has never been a better opportunity for creatives and innovators to step up and usher in new solutions to challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic than now. Botswana Innovation Hub (BIH) supports some innovations that consumers may find useful during this time of restricted movements, extreme social distancing and many other preventative measures to contain and prevent the spread of COVID-19. MyFoodness Delivery App is one such innovation. It is one of the fastest growing delivery Apps in Africa, according to BIH. MyFoodness delivers to the consumers doorstep with contactless delivery. Users order on the App and pay digitally. Items that can be ordered from the App include groceries from Spar G-West, restaurant food from Kebbabish, The Daily Grind, Saffron, Eastern Crescent, Fego, Pizzahut and The Meatin Joint. MyFoodness has fully trained their delivery staff to do contactless delivery, which they implemented recently to help their riders, restaurant partners and consumers stay safe and free from COVID-19. MyFoodness App is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Another App is ClassMate Online which makes home schooling more efficient. This is an inclusive, Social E-Learning platform for students and educators to access educational content and promote collaborative learning. The platform currently offers educational Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE) content such as syllabuses, past examination papers, education quizzes, e-library books, video tutorials. With Classmate Online, education is not limited to the classroom teaching environment. Download Classmate from the Google Play Store. SkymartBW on the other hand is an e-commerce online marketplace that is transforming the local and regional industry. With SkymartBW, customers can purchase their products online at their own convenience and comfort. Businesses can also pitch up a Sky Seller Store and sell their products and services online. SkymartBW has 210 merchants with over 7 000 items for customers to choose from. SkymartBW makes same day deliveries within Gaborone and surrounding areas and delivers within one to two days around Botswana through Sprint Couriers and DHL Botswana. SkymartBW also has delivery partners; Botswana Post EMS, DHL International and Fedex Economy for the rest of the world. Another life-saving App is PriceMate that enables consumers to compare prices before shopping. It gives consumers easy access and an opportunity to compare products as well as services across the country for free before they embark on shopping. Pricemate hosts shopping catalogues/specials from various merchants across Botswana, restaurant menus, newspaper front pages and it offers advertising slots for companies to advertise their products and services. The user-friendly website boosts more than 70 000 visitors to date. PriceMate is available on Google Play Store for android users as well as on its website. Retention Range is another innovation, which is an Open Source Software Company manufacturing computers, parts, components and accessories. The computers have three packages namely; RETENTIONedu which offers desktops and laptops for schools and home running on RETENTIONedu Operating system; RETENTIONclassic offering desktops and laptops running on linuxmint operating system and RETENTIONlegacy Desktops and laptops running on Microsoft windows operating system. RETENTIONedu comes pre-packaged with educational content for preschool, primary, secondary and tertiary students. The educational material is a combination of visual, audio, interactive, practicals and teaching aids that assist students in learning. The latest addition to the package is a desktop application for pre and primary school exercises and tests. These exercises and tests are currently offered online for free as a contribution towards education continuity in the face of the Covid-19. According to BIH Brand and Communications Manager, Kemiso Ben, in addition to these innovative solutions, BIH has a pool of developers who are ready to deploy the necessary solutions. Youre not a big smiler, are ya? says Shannon to Whigham. No, hes not. Then again, The Quarry is one of those movies in which no one really smiles or does a lot to muster their way out of the glumness. The films central hook is that Whighams reverend, standing up in his boxy plain church, preaching in barely disguised code about his own sin, strikes a chord among the members of his poor, mostly Mexican-American congregation. They can tell that hes as fallen as they are, and they respond. But not in a way that allows any of them to become an interesting character. In The Quarry, sin has its wages, but thats all it has. Its too dry to offer anything like temptation. Experts question if India can effectively fight the outbreak if it will only pay for some tests. Thyrocare, a private diagnostic laboratory in India, had just started testing for Covid-19, when the Supreme Court ordered all tests to be carried out free. We thought the order would say the rich would pay, and the government would pay for the poor, says Arokiaswamy Velumani, Thyrocares founder. At 4,500 rupees ($59; 47), its not a cheap test. But the court did not clarify if and how private labs would be reimbursed. Panic stricken, some, including Thyrocare, put testing on hold. An anxious federal government petitioned the court to reconsider - which it did. According to the new order, issued on 13 April, the government will reimburse private labs for testing the 500 million people covered by a flagship public health insurance scheme. The rest would have to pay. But the volte-face sparked a bigger question: can India scale up testing for Covid-19 if its not free? A steep price tag India's numbers - 15,712 active cases and 507 deaths - are relatively low for a country of 1.3bn. Many believe this is because it's still testing too little - as of Sunday there had been 386,791. But scaling up is a challenge. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved only one homegrown testing kit so far, imports are delayed because of a global surge in demand, and the protective gear and medical staff required to conduct tests are in short supply. Also the sheer size of Indias population, and the resources needed to reach every corner of the country, is daunting. All of this has made testing expensive. Its free at government hospitals and labs - and for months they were the only ones permitted to even test for coronavirus. But soon private players were roped in to support Indias underfunded and struggling public health system. The government capped the price of a test at 4,500 rupees at home, or 3,500 rupees in a hospital, based on the recommendations of an expert committeeincluding heads of private health firms. But the figure, says Malini Aisola, from the All India Drug Action Network, a health sector watchdog, is "arbitrary". Onevirologist said when he calculated the cost, it worked out to around 700 rupees. "If the private sector was part of the process of deciding the cost, the government should release the breakdown, argues Ms Aisola. But private lab owners say its a fair price. The supply chains are clogged - everyone is working on advance payments, says Zoya Brar, founder and CEO of Core Diagnostics. She says that the basic RT-PCR test kit - widely used to diagnose HIV and influenza - costs around 1,200 rupees. And this is supplemented with an extraction kit, used to pull DNA and RNA, another kind of genetic code, from the sample. This is in short supply and when its available, were getting it for around 1,000 rupees, which is a blessing. And then, she adds, there are the overheads - personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff; employees salaries; and the cost of running the lab overall. Thyrocare's Dr Velumani says he is also paying higher salaries than usual because staff are being pressured to stop working by their families who are scared they may contract the virus. The case for free testing Right now, Indians are getting tested only if a doctor advises them to do so. But the long wait at government hospitals, and the prohibitive cost at private ones, could deter even those with symptoms from showing up. If you want to contain a pandemic, you cant have testing determined by cost, says Jayati Ghosh, an economics professor at Delhis Jawaharlal Nehru University. And making it free only for the poorest Indians doesnt help either, according to some economists. Theres a big chunk of people just above the poverty line that are also struggling and there are middle-class workers who have been laid off and cant afford to pay for their families to get tested, says Vivek Dehejia, an economist. More importantly, the asymptomatic nature of the virus in many people means that India may soon have no choice but to begin mass testing. If you really want to push up testing rates across the country, you cant expect everyone to pay out of their pockets - for themselves and their families - especially if theyre not showing any symptoms, Mr Dehejia says. Singapore and South Korea have both been lauded for their aggressive testing, which is funded by the government. Vietnam, perhaps more comparable to India, has focused more on isolating infected people, but the government still foots the bill for testing. You cannot contain the virus unless you know who has it, says Prof Ghosh. So its in your interest to make sure there is universal access [to testing]. Who should pay? Economists who spoke to the BBC made a range of suggestions - including employers chipping in, and insurance covering it - but all seemed to agree the government should do more. Already, it is paying for the lions share of testing, however, Mr Dehejia says it should "encourage and subsidise free testing". You cannot rely on private charity to get you out of an international public health emergency. But India's health sector is poorly funded - it receives just about 1.3% of GDP - and is largely unregulated. Health insurance is not mandatory, and the market is fragmented - most policies cover hospitalisation but not diagnosis or medicines. And now with private hospitals in the mix, its going to be harder for the government to retain control of its testing strategy. A prominent hospital chain has just made testing mandatory at the time of admission, which runs counter to current guidelines, recommending testing only for those with symptoms or who have come in contact with a positive case. Of course, testing could become cheaper as more homegrown kits are approved, and supply outstrips demand. Some states are also experimenting with standardised collection points - such as mobile centres or kiosks - which means fewer PPE suits and lower transport costs. India is also considering pool testing, which involves collecting a large number of samples and testing them in one go. If the test is negative, nobody has the virus but if its positive, everyone who gave a sample has to be tested individually. Its definitely a good way to reduce costs - as long as its done efficiently and smartly, Ms Brar says. But the more immediate solution, she says, is to perhaps regulate prices. If you can fix the price of the raw materials, you can fix the overall price. BBC Coronavirus in India: Migrants running away from quarantine Migrants sent to coronavirus quarantine have either left their villages or are slipping in and out. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday discussed the latest situation in the Afghan peace process with his Afghanistan counterpart Hanif Atmar and said that the US-Taliban deal provides a "historic" opportunity to bring peace and stability in the war-torn country. Qureshi, during the telephonic call with Afghanistan's acting Foreign Minister Atmar, also reiterated Pakistan's support to the Afghan peace and reconciliation process. While discussing the latest situation in the Afghan peace process, Qureshi said, the US-Taliban Peace Agreement provides a historic opportunity for the Afghan leadership to jointly work for the ultimate aim of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. The US and the Taliban signed a landmark deal in Doha on February 29 to bring lasting peace in war-torn Afghanistan and allow US troops to return home from America's longest war. Under the US-Taliban pact signed in Doha, the US has agreed to reduce its troops in Afghanistan from 13,000 to 8,600 in the next 130 days and withdraw all its soldiers in 14 months. Qureshi further reiterated the importance of existing bilateral mechanisms, hoping that the next session of Afghanistan Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) would be held soon which would help further strengthen the cooperation between the two countries in various fields. The Foreign Minister highlighted that as a neighbour with abiding solidarity, Pakistan values its fraternal relations with Afghanistan. In view of the COVID-19, Qureshi said that Pakistan has taken a number of steps at the request of the government of Afghanistan to assist in movement of Afghan nationals and cargo trucks and containers. The Pakistan government has granted permission for the resumption of Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) activities through the Gwadar Port amid the pandemic. According to a notification of the Ministry of Commerce, the bulk cargo arriving at the Gwadar Port would be sent to Afghanistan in line with the international standards. The Pakistan Foreign Office said that the prospects of enhancing bilateral relations in all areas were discussed during the talks. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Amid the coronavirus lockdown, a group of people has taken the initiative of providing food to monkeys starving along the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway here in Maharashtra. On normal days, the primates in the Manor-Palghar hilly and forested belt here used to survive on food left by the travellers passing by the busy highway. But since the lockdown, there are hardly any travellers on the route, leaving the monkeys deprived of food and water. After coming to know about the plight of the apes, activists of a local organisation went to the highway on Monday carrying dozens of bananas and tomatoes and fed the animals. On seeing the fruits, a large number of monkeys gathered at the spot in no time and relished the feast, a member of the NGO said. He said the organisation would try to ensure that the stray animals in rural areas are not deprived of food during these unprecedented times. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Realme Narzo 10 launch postponed in India due to Coronavirus lockdown. Realme Narzo 10 and Narzo 10A were earlier scheduled to launch on April 21 but Indian government prohibits e-commerce companies to deliver non-essential goods Realme Narzo 10 series launch in India has been postponed due to the lockdown restrictions in place to curb the spread of the Coronavirus. Previously, the Chinese smartphone maker was gearing up to launch the Narzo 10 and Narzo 10A in India on April 21 but the Indian government backtracked its order prohibiting e-commerce companies to deliver non-essential goods like smartphones, TV and laptops to consumers until the lockdown lifts on May 3. Realme CEO Madhav Sheth took to Twitter to announce that the company wont be debuting its latest line of smartphones under the Narzo series on April 21 in India. The launch remains suspended until the government eases the restrictions in place, allowing e-commerce companies to function normally. Guys, I know you all have been eagerly waiting for #realmeNarzo series, however due to the latest news of the Government suspending E-commerce for non essentials, we're postponing the launch until further notice. May the power of Narzo be with you. pic.twitter.com/8QuSdnNojq Madhav @home (@MadhavSheth1) April 20, 2020 Just minutes after the official order was issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on April 19, Xiaomi India had to suspend its decision to re-open its Mi India Store that was previously slated to accept orders starting from April 20. Currently, consumer electronics products including mobile phones, laptops, TV, appliances and more are not categorized as essential goods by the Indian government and e-commerce companies are only allowed to deliver products listed as essentials by the government. Realme Narzo 10 series leaked specifications Realme Narzo 10 has been leaked in the past and is rumoured to feature a 6.5-inch HD+ (1600 x 720 pixels) resolution display. It is expected to be powered by Mediatek Helio G80 chipset with an octa-core processor and Mali-G52 graphics processor. This is paired with up to 4GB RAM and 128GB storage options to choose from. The Narzo 10 could have a quad-camera setup on the back consisting of a primary 48MP camera, an 8MP ultra-wide lens, a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor. Theres a 16MP front-facing camera for selfies as well. The phone could come with a 5,000mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging out-of-the-box. 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. Republican congressman Louie Gohmert falsely claimed that Germany is using a powder to help prevent health care workers from contracting Covid-19. Earlier this month, during an interview with KLTV in Texas, Mr Gohmert claimed that health care workers were being protected from coronavirus by the substance. It is being used in Germany as a mist, Mr Gohmert said. Health care workers go through a misting tent going into the hospital and it kills the coronavirus completely dead not only right then. Any time in the next 14 days that the virus touches anything thats been sprayed it is killed. Mr Gohmert said the government was trying to get approval for the treatment in the US. Madlin Mekelburg, of Politifact, fact-checked Mr Gohmerts claims in an article for the Houston Chronicle. Head of the German Hospital Association, Dr Jorn Wegner, told Ms Mekelburg that the congressmans claims are incorrect. What your congressman said is absolute nonsense, Dr Wegner said. There are no such tents and theres no powder or magical cure. He added that the only protection against the virus are personal protection equipment masks, disposable coats and gloves and proper hygiene. In March, Mr Gohmert gave students a tour of the US capitol, less than 14 days after being exposed to the coronavirus. He released a statement, explaining that he had spoken to a CDC physician before going back to work. We discussed all the specific circumstances of which he was aware along with my circumstances, including that I was and am asymptomatic, he said that all things considered I was cleared to return to Washington. He said he would return if he were me and advised that my staff and I should just be careful to observe proper hygiene protocols. Mr Gohmert added: I took the advice of the expert and returned to work. No one is panicking and we are observing the recommended precautions. Googles dedicated coronavirus page shows that Texas has upwards of 18,923 confirmed cases and at least 477 deaths. According to a tracking project hosted by Johns Hopkins University, nationally there are upwards of 760,425 people who have tested positive for coronavirus. The death toll has reached at least 40,690. CAIRO For over a thousand years, Cairos oldest mosques kept their doors open through the Black Death of the 14th century, the devastating cholera epidemics of the 19th century and the Spanish flu in the winter of 1918 that claimed 140,000 Egyptian lives. Then the coronavirus hit. On the first day of the lockdown at Al Azhar, a famed center of scholarship that opened in A.D. 972, tears flowed down the cheeks of the muezzin, Sheikh Mohamed Rashad Zaghloul, as he made the call to prayer in an empty hall. It was hard on my heart, he said after midday prayers one day last week at the mosque, where a stray cat meandered between the ancient pillars. When I call people, nobody can come. It feels like God is refusing us. The shuttered ancient mosques are a harbinger of another event that will be jarringly altered by the pandemic. Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, begins at the end of this week and promises this year to be the strangest experienced by any Cairene, not to mention 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide. Several hundred people gathered on the sidewalks around the Montana Capitol building Sunday afternoon to protest what they believe to be overreaching restrictions aimed at mitigating the spread of COVID-19. Rally organizers did not have a permit to congregate on the statehouse grounds, so attendees largely stuck to its perimeter. Some participants came from as far away as Sidney. Since March 28, Montana has been under Gov. Steve Bullock's stay-at-home order that limits nonessential business operations and travel. Some public health officials say the restrictions have led to a decrease in new cases of COVID-19. If that trend continues, Bullock said, he will start lifting some of his directives beginning April 24. The restrictions have also caused significant financial strain, with more than 71,000 people statewide filing for unemployment by the end of last week. "There are two sides to every story. Everyone is scared," said Butte resident Tracy Miller, who initially wished to remain anonymous but later consented to having her name published because the issue is "too important to hide." Many in attendance expressed that they were afraid of an overreaching government, afraid for their livelihoods and afraid for their way of life. "I believe the greater good is the 98% who will survive this," Miller said. "We trusted our medical professionals, as we should, but they overestimated. They need to retract their statements and get accurate info before people starve to death." Public health experts in Montana have cautioned against putting too much stock into models like the popular University of Washington predictions, saying they are making decisions from local data and using several sources of modeling. Some models have shifted their predictions on the number of cases and deaths downward in an acknowledgement of measures like stay-at-home orders. A group of three heavily armed men clad in camouflage stood in front of a pickup truck parked at the rally. Another man was grilling hot dogs in the truck's bed, handing them out to anyone who asked. "We're here to protect our constitutional rights, our freedoms and hand out some free food," said Thomas Allen, who identified himself as a member of the Yellowstone Militia in Billings. At least three of the men traveled from Billings, which is in a county with 16% of the states cases and confirmed community spread, to participate in the rally. They said they were "not at all concerned" about how their attendance might affect their health, and that their only concern was the "eroding" of constitutional rights. "Everyone is getting too used to the new normal," Allen said. "We want our country back, our rights back." The stay-at-home directive is afforded under the Montana Constitution and state statutes. Cassie Butler, a member of Butte High School's senior class of 2020, made the drive to Helena with her mother. Butler carried a sign around the Capitol that read "Free the class of 2020!" "I want to show support for all the (high school) seniors losing everything over nothing," she said. "What I'm concerned about is suicide rates going up." While public mental health hotlines have reported a spike in calls, theres no data showing a rise in suicides. She said many of her peers are finding it difficult to cope with depression, and that their typical methods of dealing with the woes of teenage life include participating in the very activities Bullock's orders have halted. "Usually I cope with things by singing," said Butler, a member of the school's choir. She said her choir friends can't sing together, the athletes can't play together and the drama students can't put on a play. "I still pray for the people who have the virus," Butler said. "But it's not so huge a deal to take it all away." Helena Police Chief Steve Hagen said he met with organizers earlier in the week to go over his department's expectations for the event. "Do I think everybody social distanced? No," Hagen said during a phone interview after the rally. "Given the nature of the event, we felt it was appropriate to let things go." None of the participants were cited, Hagen said. "I was there personally monitoring the situation and making the decisions," he said. Montanas protest stands in stark contrast to similar events being held across the country. Rallies in states such as Idaho and Ohio made headlines in part because of their particularly aggressive nature. The event also served as a de facto political rally, as "Trump 2020" and other candidate signs were as prevalent as those calling for a lifting of Bullocks stay-at-home directive. Republican political candidates from around the state had campaign vehicles at the event, including trucks promoting U.S. House candidate Debra Lamm and state auditor candidate Scott Tuxbury, an RV for governor candidate and state Sen. Al Olszewski and a tractor for U.S. House candidate Joe Dooling. State auditor candidate Troy Downing wore gloves while handing out hand sanitizer, and Americans for Prosperity set up a booth. The event was not without its detractors. Mike Noble walked to the rally Sunday afternoon. He attended the Women's March in January of 2017 and noted the attendance difference between the two events. The march three years ago filled the Capitol lawn and surrounding blocks, while on Sunday those who aimed for social distancing were able to maintain space between themselves on the sidewalks that surround the statehouse. That was a rally, Noble said. I just think this is wrong, this wanting the state to open up. We have a pretty smart governor, I think. Theyre entitled to their views, I know what the Constitution and the First Amendment says, but this is dangerous. I hope these people dont come down with anything because of close contact. On Friday, when Bullock announced the anticipated easing of restrictions, he told Montanans he understood the sacrifice theyd made to slow the spread of the virus. Matt Kelley, the public health officer in Gallatin County, said that while COVID-19 has been incredibly deadly in the U.S., with a death count of more than 40,000 since late February, Montanans have united to keep their neighbors safe. I have no doubt that the measures implemented locally in Montana and by the governor to reduce the contact between people in Montana has prevented cases and saved lives, Kelley said. I also know its caused a great deal of disruption and pain and loss. And thats why were moving forward toward a planned phased reopening that allows our businesses to start operating while doing everything we can to reduce the risk of having more cases and more deaths. The vast majority of Montanans have come together to support each other, by staying home as often as possible and showing support for essential workers, Kelley said, and thats been heartening to see. This is going to be tough and we need to get through it together, Kelley said. John Felton, the president and chief executive officer of Riverstone Health, the public health agency, said Montana has seen substantially fewer cases, hospitalizations and deaths than initially projected because of the measures in place. Theyre doing their part, Felton said. I know its extremely difficult for everybody. Every single Montanan is feeling the economic pains and social disconnectedness and physical challenges of whats been happening. But the way weve done things historically is we stand up and everyone does their part and we get through things together. Holly Michels, a reporter for Lee Enterprises' Montana newspapers, contributed to this story. 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. Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his chief rival have announced that they have forged a deal to form an "emergency" government, ending months of political paralysis. The deal averts what would have been a fourth consecutive election in just over a year as the country fights its coronavirus outbreak. Pedestrians pass an election campaign billboard with photos of Benny Gantz, left, and Benjamin Netanyahu in Ramat Gan, Israel. Credit:AP Netanyahu and former military chief Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue and White party, signed the power-sharing agreement after weeks of negotiations for what they termed a "national emergency" government meant to steer the country through the coronavirus outbreak. Although Netanyahu repeatedly came up short in three elections over the past year, the coalition agreement returns the long-serving leader as prime minister, defying critics who predicted his downfall and restoring his reputation as a political wizard. It means that Netanyahu will almost certainly remain in office for the duration of his upcoming trial on corruption charges. Copyright 2020 Albuquerque Journal Amber Arviso and her mother, Beverly, huddle around the sewing machine in their garage for hours. Amber cuts fabric, and Beverly sews masks for organizations on the Navajo Nation, which has been hit hard by COVID-19. The mother-daughter duo, who live near Fort Wingate, have donated about 550 masks to medical centers in Gallup, Crownpoint, Rehoboth, Fort Defiance and Kayenta, and to Navajo Police in Crownpoint, food pantries in Gallup and cafeteria workers at Church Rock Elementary. My mom taught me to sew when I was 8 or 9, and Ive been sewing ever since, so I already had the material and the supplies, Beverly said. I love my Navajo people. It is sad to hear whats happening on the reservation. I needed to help, and this is a way I can do that. The Arvisos said, at first, it felt like they were alone in sewing masks for the Navajo. But then the women joined a Facebook group of volunteers making masks for Navajo hospitals, police officers, nursing homes and dialysis centers. The group, subdivided for western and eastern Navajo seamstresses, uses funds from the Navajo and Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief Project for materials. In a few weeks, the groups have grown to nearly 400 members. I feel privileged to know all these volunteers, even though I havent met most of them in person, said Theresa Hatathlie, who coordinates the efforts. Part of our Navajo culture is Ke, our clan system, which brings energy and commitment to what we do. This is a labor of love. Hatathlie, who grew up in Coal Mine Mesa and lives in Apache Junction, Arizona, serves on the Dine College Board of Regents. The groups maintain a list of mask requests from Navajo organizations. Some seamstresses pass their masks out to elders and shoppers at Bashas Dine Markets. Often tucked into the masks are phone numbers for mental health services and a domestic violence hotline. We are making sure everything is disinfected and safe, and we are coordinating shipping and delivering to work within the curfew, Hatathlie said. Each one of us has been impacted by this virus. We know someone who has gotten ill or passed from this disease. The volunteers have donated thousands of masks, and some seamstresses have shifted to making surgical caps and hospital gowns. Protective equipment shortages on the Navajo Nation are personal for Hatathlie. Her sister is a local health care worker, and Hatathlie has been taking care of her nephews so her sister doesnt risk spreading to them the coronavirus that she is exposed to at work. My little nephew, who is 7, wants to help, so he measures the elastic and helps cut it, Hatathlie said. Sometimes he asks, Auntie, if we make all these masks, can I go home? Its a challenging time for all of us. Homemade masks are on the rise, which means materials are often in short supply. The Arvisos, faced with a shortage of elastic, are prepared to improvise with shoelaces or thick yarn. We reached our goal of 500 masks, but we couldnt stop there, Beverly Arviso said. Well keep going, one mask at a time, until we run out of supplies. Armenian News - NEWS.am presents a daily digest of top news as of 20.04.2020: The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 1,339 in Armenia, two more deaths reported. According to the latest data, 580 COVID-19 patients have recovered thus far, whereas 22 others have died. According to health ministry spokesperson Alina Nikoghosyan, the latest coronavirus casualties in Armenia were 62 and 90 years old. In the meantime, spokeswoman for Prosecutor Generals Office of Armenia Arevik Khachatryan noted that an Armenian prosecutor has tested positive for COVID-19. According to her, the prosecutor is feeling well. By the way, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan said during his live stream on Facebook that he has taken a coronavirus test for the third time and the result came negative. The mother who recently gave birth to the child and was infected with COVID-19 has recovered and has tested negative for COVID-19, said Armenian deputy governor of Syunik Province Narek Babayan told Armenian News-NEWS.am. The mother and child are feeling very well. The child will be sent home after being tested in a couple of days, he said. The woman gave birth to the child on April 16. With no recorded cases of coronavirus and all outstanding tests returning as negative, the Cook Islands government has declared the archipelago a "COVID-19" free zone, DW reported. The South Pacific island chain with a population of 17,000, is one of the first nations to declare itself such a zone. In March, when the first cases of this disease were reported in New Zealand, 3,000 km away, restrictions were imposed on the archipelago; but some of them have already been eased. Armenias former Minister of Justice Marat Aleksanyan has died at the age of 70 after a long and serious illness. From February 1996 to April 1998, Aleksanyan served as the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia (RA). By the decree of the President, he was awarded the high title of RA State Adviser of Justice. [UPDATE] The death toll of shootings in Canada has reached 19, CTV reported referring to police sources. The police warned that the death toll could increase, as the suspect traveled throughout the province and could shoot some more people. As reported earlier, police said Sunday night the suspected shooter, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was killed after being intercepted by officers in Enfield, Nova Scotia. Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and mother of two, was identified as the officer killed. Online groups spreading misinformation and calling for armed protests against coronavirus lockdown measures in the US are proliferating on Facebook after the technology giant said it would not take action against them. Pro-gun protestors from Kentucky, Michigan, Wisconsin and other states have used the social network to organise and coordinate anti-quarantine action. The groups have hundreds of thousands of members combined, and appear to be largely made up of Trump supporters. We are organising an armed march, a recent post to the group Michigan Militia states. We tried a regular unarmed march but they did not listen to us. Now it is time to use force... We will not stop until they hear us out and listen to us!! Many of the groups have surged in popularity in recent days, following the US Presidents call to liberate three states by ending strict confinement rules designed to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Save your great 2nd Amendment, he tweeted last week. It is under siege. The White House outlined three phases to allow states to reopen safely last week, however these were subsequently undermined by Trump when he endorsed protests over the weekend. If people feel that way, youre allowed to protest, he said on Sunday. Some governors have gone too far, some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate. A Facebook spokesperson acknowledged the groups but told The Independent that it did not plan to remove them unless they were explicitly breaking the law. Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organised on Facebook, the spokesperson said. For this same reason, events that defy governments guidance on social distancing arent allowed on Facebook. 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Show all 15 1 /15 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade against lockdown orders outside the State House in Annapolis, Maryland on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US People take part in a protest for "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" outside the Michigan State Capitol building in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Alex Jones, host of conspiracy theory outlet Infowars, joins the 'Reopen America' protest against lockdown measures in Austin Texas on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A group of protesters rally against lockdown orders outside the Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond on 16 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A protester holds a sign comparing Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to a Nazi during a demonstration at the State Capitol in Lansing over coronavirus lockdown measures AP 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A 2020 Trump Unity sign is displayed during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AP 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Anti-lockdown protesters drive by the Ohio State House in Columbus on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A protester takes part in a rally outside the Ohio State House in Columbus on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US People take part in a protest for "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" outside the Michigan State Capitol building in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form part of a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures outside the North Carolina State Legislature in Raleigh on 14 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters rally against lockdown measures outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures around the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Police urge people to spread out during a protest against lockdown measures outside the Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond on 16 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US An armed protester taking part in a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan EPA The policy appears to go against recent action taken by Facebook to crack down on people who post dangerous content relating to the coronavirus pandemic. Many of the groups promote the idea that the Covid-19 virus is no worse than a common flu, despite warnings from the World Health Organisation that it poses a greater risk to peoples lives. There have been more than 770,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the US and 41,316 deaths, making it the worst affected country in the world. Protestors have downplayed the scale of the crisis and called for local businesses to reopen amid record job losses and dire economic forecasts. Some of the Facebook groups have been set up by a trio of far-right provocateurs, according to The Washington Post, who tracked Facebook groups targeting Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Siblings Aaron, Ben and Christopher Dorr are reportedly behind many of the groups calling for mass disturbance. Polls show that most Americans support lockdown measures, with a recent Gallup survey revealing that more than 70 per cent of people would wait to see what happens with the coronavirus before resuming normal activities, even after government restrictions on social contact are lifted. Politicians have criticised a proposal to reopen schools for one day a week as part of the lifting of the Covid-19 restrictions. The Government has been accused of a "kite-flying extravaganza" after Health Minister Simon Harris signalled schools could initially reopen for one day a week as part of the gradual lifting of the pandemic restrictions. The Department of Education has made no firm decisions on when and how schools will reopen in the coming months, but the Government will set out a roadmap in the coming weeks. All schools are currently closed until at least May 5. Labour education spokesman Aodhan O Riordain said: "It's totally impractical for a whole number of reasons to fly a kite about going back once a week in June without talking to unions and parents. Meanwhile, Fianna Fail education spokesman Thomas Byrne said uncertainty over schools was causing "stress for students". He also said he was increasingly questioning the fairness of the Leaving Certificate going ahead when a survey by the National Parents Council Post Primary last week found that a fifth of students didn't have access to broadband. "The British are handing out free computers and 4G sticks to people. There is massive uncertainty from the Department of Education," Mr Byrne said. "I don't think they have fully identified the issues and they haven't begun to address them. What we want to see is a plan. I don't think it's fair to have this constant speculation." Mr Byrne wrote to the Department of Education on Friday seeking more details on how it plans to address difficulties students are currently facing in trying to study at home. Sinn Fein education spokesman Donnchadh O Laoghaire said there needed to be clear guidance for all schools on what measures they should take if they did reopen, including whether teachers should wear gloves and masks. "The preparation needs to be clear and we need to have a very uniform, phased approach," he said. A Department of Education spokesman said: "Decisions in relation to the reopening of schools will be taken based on the public health advice in the coming weeks." Problems A senior Government source said: "In two weeks' time people will need to know what the plan is around schools for the rest of the year and that is the intention." Denmark began reopening its schools last week - the first country in Europe to do so - with strict social-distancing rules in place. A school principal here has argued that social distancing in schools would not be possible for younger children, and that opening schools for a day each week would pose many logistical problems. "You cannot social distance in a primary school. It doesn't matter how many kids are there, it doesn't matter how you set it up, it's absolutely not possible. "If we're going to be going back, that needs to be taken as a given," said Catriona Golden, who is the principal at Ennis Educate Together. She said that stakeholders, such as teaching unions and parents, needed to be involved in discussions about reopening schools. While remote learning has been explored by some schools, not all students may have access to the technology while at home. "Everyone is doing some form of distance learning," said Ms Golden. "We are a DEIS school, so almost all of the kids don't have access to devices. It's a no-go. "Schools are not going to stay closed until there's a vaccine, they can't. That's not going to happen." Meanwhile, the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) said that teachers were ready to resume remote learning from today, but that mistakes made elsewhere must not be repeated here. "Any decision to reopen our primary schools must be led by public health advice. Engagement with workers and their unions must take place in advance of any such decision. "The health and safety of teachers, pupils and parents must be guaranteed before our schools reopen," said a spokesperson. "We should look closely at the small number of jurisdictions where some schools have opened and endeavour to avoid repeating any mistakes that may have been made elsewhere. "Primary teachers are ready to resume facilitating the continuity of learning remotely." In an interview with the Sunday Independent yesterday, Mr Harris said reopening schools for one day a week was just one of the measures being considered by the Government. He said any easing of current restrictions would be dependent on continued public compliance and the advice of public health officials. "I'd like to see a situation whereby our schools could come back, or at least could come partially back," he said. Mr Harris believed that this would be beneficial for the mental health and well-being of both students and parents. "Imagine if children could go into school, even one day a week to get the books, meet the teacher, get the homework for the week," he said. "From a socially distanced, safe point of view, meet their friends, and then go home. "That would provide breathing space for families and information." However on this day, Cipriani blew the lot. CCTV footage showed Hanson, accompanied by Carolan, in a heated confrontation with Cipriani at the casino. After promising to hand over his passport, Cipriani promptly caught a taxi to the airport and bolted. But not before making the call about the gun that was to bring them all undone. That night Carolan provided to the police the bare bones of the story, saying that he hadnt looked inside the bag but that Hanson had blown a lot of money at the casino and he had asked Carolan to mind the rest for him so he wouldnt lose more. He also told police that Hanson was intending to invest some of the cash in Carolan's weight-loss business. Craig Haeusler (left) with Owen Hanson in Sydney in 2011. The following day, organised crime figure Craig Haeusler made a dramatic entry into the cast of characters via convicted fraudster Brad Cooper, whod been out of jail for only a year after serving five years for bribing a former HIH executive and making false statements. Cooper knew just the person Hanson needed: Haeusler, a major organised crime figure who has business links to bikie bosses and other underworld identities. Haeusler arranged for Croke to represent the criminal group in their ill-fated attempt to convince the police that Hansons seized money was legitimate. Croke was less than complimentary about his client Carolan telling Haeusler: "Hes a shitbag, I dont know how you f--kin' find these c---s, Im tellin' ya." The jury didnt hear that one of Crokes previous clients was Haeusler himself. Haeusler was released in April 2003 after serving a four-and-half-year sentence for the manufacture and supply of a huge amount of methylamphetamine or ice. On the phone taps the jury heard Haeusler discussing his previous charges for violence. Law enforcement authorities were investigating Haeusler for something else when they began tapping his phone in mid December 2011. Colourful Sydney property developer Albert Bertini in 2012. Credit:Simon Alekna During the crime group's attempt to get the money back, more colourful people entered the picture. There was discussion about Carolans business partner Dr Les Blackstock helping Hanson in his dispute with Carolan over some weight-loss machines. Since then Dr Blackstock has been suspended from practising as a doctor and was last year was found to be "unprofessional and incompetent" after he botched a breast implant operation. Then there was colourful Sydney property developer Albert Bertini who was floated as someone who might falsely claim the money was his. But then Melbourne rock promoter Andrew McManus, a long-term friend of Haeuslers, entered the picture as the perfect person to legitimise the money. The scheme to lie about the seized money was hatched with Haeusler at a lunch at the China Doll restaurant in Woolloomooloo in March 2012. McManus denied he was drunk at the lunch but agreed he had consumed cocaine. "One or two lines, not much," he offered. Music promoter Andrew McManus. Credit:James Brickwood Hed also snorted a line of coke on his way to his police interview with Detective Sergeant Grant Findley, in which McManus grandiosely said of the money: "It's not the proceeds of crime, it's the proceeds of Andrew McManus." Although McManus thought hed "aced" his interview, Haeusler later complained that "Andrew f--ked up" by mentioning Haeuslers name as the go-between. "Because once he mentioned my name it makes the thing smelly, dirty, even," Haeusler is heard saying. McManus also big-noted to police that major investors in his business were businessman Frank Lowys son David and Liberal party figure Michael Kroger. Loading In June 2014 Croke represented Carolan when he unsuccessfully sued NSW Police to get the money back. Haeusler texted Hanson in America to say there was a "big article on all of us in The Sydney Morning Herald" about the case. "Crokey" assured them they had won the case and it was "in the bag". Endless calls concerned how the money would be divvied up. Haeusler was expecting to get a "drink" out of it, McManus was to get something for "putting his hand up," and Croke would put in for legal fees. The only one who was to get nothing was Crokes client Carolan, whom Croke described as "a f--king desperate". Researchers have uncovered the poignant story behind a gravestone of a First World War nurse in Belfast City Cemetery that carries parallels to today's health crisis. The story of Belfast Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) nurse Gertrude Ann Taylor (35), who passed away more than 100 years ago, was uncovered by History Hub Ulster researcher Nigel Henderson. He was undertaking research into Gertrude, who died of pneumonia on December 12, 1916 while nursing at the 1st London General Hospital at Camberwell. Gertrude was originally from Belfast. She was the daughter of Alexander Taylor of 'Strathearn', Strandtown, in the east of the city. After her death her body was brought back home for burial in Belfast City Cemetery and the memorial on her grave declares that she died "on active service". But the poignant words of Rev John MacDermott in his sermon on Sunday, December 17, 1916 at Belmont Presbyterian Church will resonate more than 100 years later with the families of NHS workers battling to save lives today during the worldwide outbreak of the Covid-19 virus. In the sermon, five days after Gertrude's passing, Rev MacDermott said: "Miss Taylor's death reminds us that not all the heroes in the war were men. "They were not all to be found among the fighters at the front. "Not infrequently they were to be found among those who, all unmentioned, faithfully performed their duties at the bedsides of the wounded and weary. "For them there was no roar of the guns, no excitement of the charge. "(For them) nothing but the endless battle against suffering and death. "But they were heroes and heroines all the same." History Hub Ulster chair Gavin Bamford said: "In the light of the current Covid-19 pandemic and the tremendous work being undertaken for all the community by the front line workers, the words spoken so gracefully by Rev MacDermott only too easily fit into today's praise." Boris Johnson's government has been accused of "deliberately rewriting history" over its handling of the coronavirus crisis. (Pippa Fowles/10 Downing Street via AP) The editor of a top medical journal has accused the government of deliberately rewriting history over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. In a scathing tweet, Richard Horton, editor of The Lancet, accused ministers of waging an ongoing COVID-19 disinformation campaign. His tweet followed a government statement in defence of its coronavirus response, released at the weekend in response to a damning analysis in the Sunday Times that accused Boris Johnson of failing to take the outbreak seriously and reacting too slowly. Just for the record: the UK government is deliberately rewriting history in its ongoing COVID-19 disinformation campaign. My Jan 24 tweet called for caution in UK media reporting. It was followed by a series of tweets drawing attention to the dangers of this new disease. pic.twitter.com/vMozGriWw2 richard horton (@richardhorton1) April 20, 2020 The statement from the Department for Health comprised a highly unusual rebuttal of the article, titled Response to Sunday Times Insight article, and said the piece contains a series of falsehoods and errors. It referenced a previous tweet by Horton in which he called for caution in media reports of the virus, but Horton argued the statement failed to mention the rest of his tweets, where he pointed out the dangers of this new disease. More follows Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) The Embassy made the warning after it and the Consulate General in Canada received reports that some organisations and individuals were collecting deposits to organise flights to bring Vietnamese citizens in Canada back to Vietnam. The Embassy affirmed that Vietnamese representative agencies in Canada are actively coordinating with authorised agencies back in Vietnam to respond to the wish to go back to Vietnam of Vietnamese citizens in accordance with the Vietnamese Prime Ministers instructions. Under the Governments instruction, priority will be given to children under 18 years old, the elderly and the sick when repatriation flights are arranged, the Embassy said. After such flights are licensed by the Government, the representative agencies will officially notify the citizens of the flights and relevant information. The Embassy asked the citizens to stay vigilant, and not to provide their personal information and engage in financial transactions with organisations and individuals that use the name of the representative agencies to collect money for unlicensed flights. Vietnamese representative agencies in Canada have received more than 1,100 applications registering for repatriation flights so far, which have been transferred to competent agencies at home for consideration. The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that defendants in criminal trials must be convicted by unanimous consent of the jury, outlawing a practice that has already been prohibited in all states except Oregon. The 6-3 ruling in the case, Ramos v Louisiana, was delivered with an unusual alignment in which conservative Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, and Brett Kavanaugh joined with Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Sonia Sotomayor for the majority opinion. Justices Samuel Alito, Elena Kagan, and John Roberts dissented. Wherever we might look to determine what the term trial by an impartial jury trial meant at the time of the Sixth Amendments adoptionwhether its the common law, state practices in the founding era, or opinions and treatises written soon afterwardthe answer is unmistakable, Gorsuch wrote in an opinion for the majority. A jury must reach a unanimous verdict in order to convict. While unanimous verdicts had previously been required for convictions in federal trials, most states have banned convictions by supermajority of a jury. The ruling applies a unanimous-conviction requirement in the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution to state law. Currently, Oregon is the only state which allows conviction of criminal defendants even if up to two jurors dissent. Louisiana outlawed the practice in 2019. The current Supreme Court case was brought by Evangelisto Ramos, who was convicted of murder in Louisiana court in 2016 by a 10-2 jury verdict. The Supreme Courts case could allow Ramos to receive a new trial. More from National Review By Jessica Jaganathan and Ekaterina Kravtsova SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) - The tanker Maran Gas Vergina has arrived in China with the first delivery of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 13 months, shipping data showed on Monday. This is the first shipment since March 2019 after a long-standing trade war in which China raised tariffs on LNG imports from the United States to 25% last year. The tanker berthed on Monday in Tianjin, where China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) and Sinopec <600028.SS> operate LNG terminals, ship-tracking data from Refinitiv and data intelligence firm Kpler showed. Aboard is a cargo that loaded at the Freeport LNG plant in Texas. Three more U.S LNG deliveries are expected in China in April and two cargoes are scheduled to be discharged in May, Refinitiv data showed. Two of the vessels expected in April, the Palu LNG and the Cool Explorer, loaded at Cheniere Energy's Corpus Christi plant in Texas and its Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana, respectively, according to the data. Another vessel, the SK Resolute, loaded at Sempra LNG's Cameron plant in Louisiana. The vessels expected in May, the Gaslog Geneva and the Arwa Spirit, are carrying cargoes loaded at Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi, respectively. Beijing has started granting tax waivers to LNG importers, three sources told Reuters earlier this month, with two of them adding the tariff had dropped to zero, though a separate value-added tax of 10% still applies. China announced in February that it would grant exemptions on retaliatory duties imposed against 696 U.S. goods after both sides reached a Phase 1 trade deal that took effect on Feb. 14. As the coronavirus lockdowns continue to put pressure on LNG demand in some of the key markets, an LNG trader said there were signs of "going back to normal" in China, with demand there slightly recovering. (Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan in Singapore, Ekaterina Kravtsova in London; editing by Jason Neely and Susan Fenton) A gunman in Canada posing as a police officer has killed 16 people after a 12-hour shooting rampage across Nova Scotia in the worst act of mass murder the country has seen in modern times. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapique, police said, and several homes were set on fire. Bodies were found at other locations and one police officer was also among the dead. Officials said the gunman, named as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, died after shooting people in several locations across the province. By Sunday night, the death toll had risen to 16, plus the gunman, who died during a standoff with police. Authorities believe he may have targeted the first victims before going on to commit random attacks. Related: Nova Scotia shooting: shock at killings by 'quiet, gentle' denturist Authorities said Wortman was driving what appeared to be a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) car and was wearing a uniform but later reported he was at the wheel of a Chevrolet SUV that had been modified to resemble a police vehicle one that he has basically made himself, said Brian Sauve, president of the National Police Federation. Police have said the suspect was not an employee or officer with the RCMP. RCMP Commanding officer Lee Bergman said on Sunday evening: Today is a devastating day for Nova Scotia and it will remain etched in the minds of many for years to come. The prime minister, Justin Trudeau, speaking to reporters in Ottawa, deplored what he called a terrible situation. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has far tighter gun control laws than the United States. RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said: We believe it to be one person who is responsible for all the killings and that he alone moved across the northern part of the province and committed what appears to be several homicides. Sauve said a police officer was among those killed in a shooting and another was injured. The dead officer has been identified as Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two who had served on the force for 23 years. Story continues Heidi answered the call of duty and lost her life while protecting those she served, Bergerman said on Sunday evening. Two children have lost their mother, and a husband has lost his wife. Parents have lost their daughter and countless others lost an incredible friend and colleague, he said. The massacre looked to be the worst of its kind since a gunman killed 15 women in Montreal in December 1989. A man driving a van deliberately ran over and killed 10 people in Toronto in April 2018 and a man shot dead six people at an Islamic cultural center in Quebec City in 2017. Police have not provided a motive for the attack, which reportedly began in the small Atlantic coastal town of Portapique, about 130km north (80 miles) of Halifax, the provincial capital. Online records show Wortman ran a denture clinic in the city of Dartmouth, across the water from Halifax. Portapique residents said the first they heard about the incident was late on Saturday when police urged everyone to stay indoors. Officers arrived at a house after receiving multiple emergency calls and found several casualties inside and outside the residence. One local resident said she had come across two burning police vehicles while out driving on Sunday morning. One man said he saw at least three separate fires. There was one officer we could see on scene and then all of a sudden, he went running toward one of the burning vehicles, Darcy Sack told the CBC. We heard gunshots, she said, adding that one police officer looked to have been injured. Among the dead was Heather OBrien, a nurse and grandmother from the town Truro in central Nova Scotia. I feel like Im outside of my own body, wrote her daughter, Darcy Dobson, who described texting her mother minutes before she died. I want everyone to remember how kind she was. How much she loved being a nurse. The way her eyes sparkled when she talked to her grandchildren and the way she just LOVED Christmas. Let those things define her. Not the horrible way she died. Greg and Jamie Blair, a husband and wife, were also among those killed. I have absolutely no words for the heartache my family & many others are going through, wrote Jessica MacBurnie on Facebook. The couple, married in 2014, leave behind their two children. Lisa Mccully, a teacher and mother of two, was also killed during the rampage, according to a post on Facebook by her sister, Jenny Kierstead. I never imagined when I went to bed last night that I would wake up to the horrific news that an active shooter was on the loose in Nova Scotia, Stephen McNeil, the Nova Scotia premier, said on Sunday. This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history, he added. He said it was an additional heavy burden amid efforts to contain the coronavirus. An RCMP officer at the checkpoint on to Portapique Beach Road after a suspected shooter was taken into custody. Photograph: John Morris/Reuters Resident Jenny Kierstead wrote on Facebook that her sister Lisa McCully was among those killed. This is so hard to write but many of you will want to know. Our hearts are broken today as we attempt to accept the loss of my sister, Lisa McCully, who was one of the victims of the mass shooting in Portapique last night, she wrote. Our condolences go out to the other family members who are affected by this tragedy. Thank you for your support, its a hard day. Tom Taggart, a lawmaker who represents the Portapique area in the municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken. This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable, Taggart said by phone from his home in Bass River. 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman is the suspect in our active shooter investigation in #Portapique. There are several victims. He is considered armed & dangerous. If you see him, call 911. DO NOT approach. Hes described as a white man, bald, 62-63 with green eyes. pic.twitter.com/Y2nJNULlkn RCMP, Nova Scotia (@RCMPNS) April 19, 2020 Sundays shooting also marks another grim milestone for the RCMP in the Maritime region. In August 2018, a man in the province of New Brunswick, which borders Nova Scotia, shot dead four people, including two police officers, in an apartment complex. In June 2014, in the same province, a man shot dead three police officers. MONTREAL, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - (NYSE: CAE ) (TSX: CAE) CAE announced today that it has recalled all remaining temporarily laid-off employees in Canada. Between recalls of employees providing essential services and recalls through the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program, approximately 1,500 employees will be back on the payroll this week; the vast majority are based in Montreal and will work from home. The temporary layoffs were part of a series of measures CAE announced on April 6 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. CAE also announced that it has signed a contract with the Government of Canada on April 10 to manufacture and supply 10,000 ventilators which will be used to help save lives of COVID-19 patients. The company is finalizing the design and testing of its CAE Air1 ventilator and is preparing for production. The first unit is expected to be delivered in early May to health authorities for certification. In addition, CAE announced that it is leveraging its global supply chain to source scarce N95 masks for humanitarian purposes in support of front-line health workers. To date, CAE has secured 100,000 N95 masks which will be delivered to the Quebec government. "I applaud the Government of Canada for its immediate and decisive action to support Canadians by creating the emergency wage subsidy program. It also allows Canadian industry to put staff back on payroll and be better positioned to rebound when the current challenges have passed," said Marc Parent, CAE's President and CEO. "CAE employees are proud to play a role in saving lives by equipping the country with a made-in-Canada ventilator, and by using the CAE global supply chain to obtain a significant quantity of N95 masks to protect our guardian angels who are caring for COVID-19 patients." About CAE CAE is a global leader in training for the civil aviation, defence and security, and healthcare markets. Backed by a record of more than 70 years of industry firsts, we continue to help define global training standards with our innovative virtual-to-live training solutions to make flying safer, maintain defense force readiness and enhance patient safety. We have the broadest global presence in the industry, with over 10,500 employees, 160 sites and training locations in over 35 countries. Each year, we train more than 220,000 civil and defence crewmembers, including more than 135,000 pilots, and thousands of healthcare professionals worldwide. www.cae.com Follow us on Twitter: CAE_Inc SOURCE CAE INC. Related Links http://www.cae.com/ "Food insecurity during COVID-19 is a pervasive problem affecting many of the communities we serve. Its impact on youth and families has been significant," said Yumi Clevenger-Lee, Executive Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer of Nestle Waters North America. "That's why we are so proud to support No Kid Hungry, which is working tirelessly to fulfill a critical need during this challenging time. We hope that by working together, along with the powerful voice of Titus O'Neil, we'll be able to extend the reach of the Free Meal Finder tool and further assist families in need." No Kid Hungry's Free Meal Finder is a digital map designed to help families with children who depend on school meal programs to access three meals a day during this crisis. Any family in need can use this online tool to find food distribution sites organized by schools and local community organizations. The service is free, available in both English and Spanish, and will be updated regularly to help ensure families have consistent access to free meals. "Nestle has been a longstanding supporter of No Kid Hungry and our work with Nestle Pure Life on the launch of our new Free Meal Finder digital map is the type of collaboration that makes a tangible difference during this crisis," said Jill Davis, Chief Revenue Officer at Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry campaign. "Their pivot to create a national PSA about this resource will help ensure families across the country know where they can find free meals in their communities." To spread the word about the new tool, Nestle Pure Life has repurposed national TV media to create and air a new PSA, featuring Titus O'Neil, a WWE Superstar who struggled with food insecurity during his childhood. The PSA will run nationally starting April 20, 2020. The PSA focuses on raising awareness of No Kid Hungry's Free Meal Finder, a response to the widespread school closures that have left some families without access to healthy meals. Titus has made it his life's work to affect transformational change to lift families out of poverty, and he has previously worked with Nestle Pure Life to help kids and families make healthy choices. "This cause, ensuring no kid goes hungry, is truly personal to me," said WWE Superstar Titus O'Neil. "I believe that no child should have to worry about when they are going to be able to eat. It is my hope that the resources communicated in this PSA can help lift this burden from kids and their families." Parents and caregivers nationwide in need of free meals for children can visit www.nokidhungry.org/help to find meals near them. Others can help by spreading the word about the Free Meal Finder tool, or visiting NoKidHungry.org to make a donation to support the organization. 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. About Nestle Waters North America Nestle Waters North America offers an unrivaled portfolio of bottled water brands for healthy hydration, including Poland Spring Brand 100% Natural Spring Water, Nestle Pure Life , Perrier and S. Pellegrino. The company also owns and operates ReadyRefreshSM by Nestle , a customizable water and beverage delivery service. Just Click and QuenchSM. Based in Stamford, Connecticut with approximately 7,000 associates in the United States, we manage natural resources for long-term sustainability, and we conserve more than 18,000 acres of natural watershed area. We currently source water for our six regional spring water brands from 38 active springs throughout the United States. We are also committed to creating shared value and being a good neighbor in the 140 communities where we operate in the U.S. For more information, visit us at https://www.nestle-watersna.com/en and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook: @NestleWatersNA. SOURCE Nestle Waters North America Related Links www.nestle-watersna.com Italys civil protection service says 108,237 people are either being treated in hospital or are recovering at home. Coronavirus-related deaths in the US exceed 41,000 with nearly half of all casualties in New York state, as protests against stay at home orders flared in a number of states. Italy reports lowest number of deaths in a week, while the pace of new infections also slowed. Spain registered its lowest daily death toll in almost a month. New Zealand will relax some of its restrictions among the most stringent in the world from next Monday. Globally, more than 2.4 million people have been diagnosed with the virus while over 168,000 have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. More than 643,000 people have recovered. China has said Australias calls for an investigation into the origins and spread of the virus are baseless. Here are the latest updates: Monday, April 20 20:56 GMT Saudi Arabia extends suspension of praying in the two holy mosques Saudi Arabia extended the suspension of praying in the Grand Mosque and Prophets Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan to stem the spread of the coronavirus, the presidency of the Two Holy Mosques said on Twitter citing its President General Sheikh Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz Al-Sudais. 20:48 GMT Ghanaians welcome end of lockdown with mixed emotions The streets of Accra buzzed with life on Monday, a day after Ghanas President Nana Akufo-Addo announced the end of a three-week lockdown on movement around the capital and the city of Kumasi. While some Ghanaians were relieved to get back to work, others were left fretting after the country became the first in Africa to lift a coronavirus lockdown. Read more here. 20:10 GMT New York nurses sue state over dangerous conditions The New York State Nurses Association launched three lawsuits on Monday against the state and two hospitals, alleging their members were exposed to dangerous working conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic, which hit the region especially hard. One of the suits charges that nurses were forced to work while sick, posing a danger to themselves and others, while another says nurses were intimidated against speaking out on their conditions. The suits say nurses were not given protective equipment and sufficient training. 20:00 GMT Coronavirus cases in Ecuador top 10,000 Ecuador reported more than 10,000 cases of the coronavirus on Monday, the fourth-highest tally in Latin America, as the disease ravages the economy of the oil-producing country. Read more here. Relatives of a person who died from COVID-19 carry the wrapped coffin in Ecuador [Jose Sanchez Lindao/AFP] 19:16 GMT Facebook removes anti-quarantine protest events in some US states Facebook Inc said it has removed events in Nebraska, New Jersey and California promoting protests against stay-at-home measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the new coronavirus. But the social media company, which has been under pressure to police harmful content and misinformation related to the pandemic, said it would only take down anti-quarantine protest events if they defied government guidelines. Facebook said it would align with those directives, and also remove events that defy social distancing guidelines. Facebook is seeking guidance to clarify the scope of state orders in New York, Wisconsin, Ohio and Pennsylvania. 18:55 GMT Kuwait expands curfew, extends public sector work suspension Kuwait will extend the suspension of work in the public sector including at government ministries until May 31 and expand a nationwide curfew to 16 hours, a government spokesman said. He told a televised news conference that the 4pm to 8am curfew would go into effect at the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, which could fall on Thursday or later this week depending on the sighting of the new crescent moon. 17:50 GMT Turkeys coronavirus death toll rises by 123 to 2,140 Turkeys confirmed cases of the COVID-19 disease increased by 4,674 in the past 24 hours, and 123 more people have died, taking the death toll to 2,140, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said. The total number of cases in the country stood at 90,980, he said, the highest total for any country outside Europe or the United States. A total of 13,430 people have recovered from the new coronavirus so far, and the number of tests carried out over the past 24 hours stood at 39,703, the minister said. The Turkish expats were brought from London to Ankara [Rasit Aydogan/Anadolu] 17:40 GMT France becomes fourth country to pass 20,000 death toll France officially registered more than 20,000 deaths from coronavirus infections, becoming the fourth country to go beyond that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States, and the pace of increase of fatalities sped up again after several days of slowing. But the number of people in intensive care fell for the 12th consecutive day, suggesting the national lockdown put in place more than a month ago is having positive effects in containing the disease. Frances public health chief Jerome Salomon told a news briefing the coronavirus-linked fatalities were up 2.8 percent, at 20,265, versus an increase of 2 percent Sunday. 17:25 GMT Man deported from US infects 14 migrants in Mexico At least 15 migrants from several countries tested positive for coronavirus at a shelter in northern Mexico, Tamaulipas state authorities said, adding a man carrying the virus and deported from Houston, Texas had infected most of the others. A Mexican man deported at the McAllen-Reynosa border has also tested positive, the Tamaulipas state health department said in a statement. 17:15 GMT Nothing hidden from member states: WHO US experts have been an important part of the World Health Organization (WHO) fight against COVID-19 since the outbreak began, and nothing has been hidden from any member state, WHO says. About 15 staff from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have been seconded to the UN agency since January, the organisation said. Having US CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general told a news conference. 17:05 GMT Turkey will impose four-day lockdown Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said a four-day lockdown would be imposed in 31 cities from Thursday. Turkey imposed lockdowns in 31 cities over the past two weekends. Erdogan said the lockdown would be longer this time due to a national holiday that falls on Thursday, April 23, adding that weekend lockdowns could continue for some time. Speaking after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan said Turkey aims to bring the outbreak to a level that would allow for a normalisation of life after the Eid al-Fitr religious holiday at the end of May, adding that steps could be taken before that. Doctors and nurses look at scans at the Acibadem Altunizade Hospital in Istanbul [Chris McGrath/Getty Images] 16:30 GMT Italy says current virus cases fall for the first time Italy reported its first drop in the number of people currently suffering from the novel coronavirus since it recorded its first infection in February. The civil protection service said 108,237 people were either being treated in hospital or were recovering at home after testing positive down 20 from the total reported on Sunday. 16:25 GMT Slovakia to reopen small shops, outdoor sports grounds The Slovak government plans to reopen small shops of up to 300 square metres, outdoor sports grounds and restaurants for takeaway from Wednesday, Prime Minister Igor Matovic said, in an easing of its coronavirus lockdown. Matovic said the plan was subject to approval by the countrys crisis committee on Tuesday, and any further steps would follow with a two-week delay upon evaluation of the initial relaxation. 16:23 GMT Over a million UK workers furloughed More than a million British workers have been put on temporary leave by their companies, based on applications in the first eight hours that a government wage support scheme has been open, finance minister Rishi Sunak said. He said more than 140,000 companies had applied to use the government scheme, which will pay 80 percent of the wages of staff furloughed due to the coronavirus outbreak, protecting over a million jobs until the end of June. As of four oclock this afternoon over 140,000 firms have applied, and the grants theyll receive will help pay the wages of more than a million people a million people who if they hadnt been furloughed would have been at risk of losing their jobs, Sunak said at the governments daily news conference. 16:07 GMT US medical workers stand up to anti-lockdown protesters At least two Colorado healthcare workers dressed in full scrubs with masks stood silently with their arms crossed as they blocked a line of vehicles full of protesters honking their horns and screaming, This is the land of the free. You go to work. Why cant I go to work! a protester can be heard shouting at the medical worker from her truck in the city of Denver. Read more here. 15:14 GMT Canadian coronavirus deaths rise by almost 7 percent The total number of people killed by the coronavirus in Canada rose by almost 7 percent to 1,611 from a day earlier, official data posted by the public health agency showed. In a statement posted shortly before 11:00 eastern time (15:00 GMT), it said the figure for those diagnosed with the coronavirus had climbed to 35,392. The respective figures on Sunday were 1,506 deaths and 33,922 positive diagnoses. 15:06 GMT North America extends travel restrictions: US official The United States, Mexico and Canada are extending restrictions on non-essential travel across their shared borders for an additional 30 days, US Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said on Twitter. As President Trump stated last week, border control, travel restrictions, and other limitations remain critical to slowing the spread of coronavirus and allowing the phased opening of the country, Wolf wrote. 14:39 GMT Dow tanks 490 points as crude sinks United States stocks tumbled on Monday as energy stocks continued to take a battering, with oil falling to its lowest levels since 1998 and investors bracing for earnings reports and data detailing the economic damage wrought by the coronavirus outbreak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down nearly 500 points or just over two percent, minutes into the open of trading in New York. The S&P 500 widely used gauge of US retirement and education savings accounts- was down 1.2 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index down 0.68 percent. Read more here. 14:35 GMT Coronavirus hits Rome squat of African refugees Volunteers unload stuffed-full plastic bags from the back of a car while two women from the Horn of Africa wait for their groceries behind the fence of Selam Palace, home to as many as 500 asylum seekers and refugees from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. They have been living behind closed doors since April 6, after two coronavirus cases were found inside their nine-storey squat. The army has closed the road to the main entrance, fenced off the whole area, and is patrolling all ways in or out. Read more here. 14:30 GMT How will the pandemic change Ramadan? Muslims around the world will observe the holy month of Ramadan under lockdown and tight restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak that has paralysed entire countries. Read more here. 14:18 GMT Merkel: EU budget bigger than discussed before pandemic German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she imagined the next European Union budget would look very different and bigger than that which was discussed before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. One can discuss about new treaties, but this will take two or three years to find solutions, Merkel told reporerts. Well need quick answers to address this pandemic and Germany will participate in answers of solidarity that go beyond the 500 billion euros that we already have. Merkel briefs the media about measures to avoid further spread of COVID-19 [Markus Schreiber/Pool via Reuters] 14:09 GMT Bahrain to cut government agencies spending Bahrain will slash spending by ministries and government agencies by 30 percent to help the country weather the coronavirus outbreak, a cabinet statement said after meeting. The Gulf island states government will also reschedule some construction and consulting projects in order to keep spending within the 2020 budget and make room for other spending needs emerging as a result of the diseases spread. 14:05 GMT IMF: COVID-19 crisis is worst since Great Depression The crisis sparked by the spread of the novel coronavirus is the worst since the Great Depression, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said. The fallout from the virus will mean that 170 countries will have negative economic growth this year, she told a video conference press briefing for the Bulgarian media. 14:00 GMT Hello, I am Tamila Varshalomidze in Doha, taking over the blog from my colleague Joseph Stepansky. 12:55 GMT House Republican leader: still no deal on money for small US businesses US House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy has said there was still no deal on a funding measure that would provide more relief for small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic. We could have been done yesterday, but the Democrats continue to hold up, even though we had agreed to all the numbers, McCarthy, the minority leader for the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, told Fox News. 12:45 GMT UKs main concern is to prevent second wave: PMs spokesman Britain needs to be sure that any lifting or easing of social distancing measures does not lead to a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said. The big concern is a second peak, that is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy, the spokesman told reporters. If you move too quickly then the virus could begin to spread exponentially again. What we need to be certain of is that if we move to lift some of the social distancing measures it isnt going to lead to the virus starting to spread exponentially again. 12:35 GMT Brazils Bolsonaro says he hopes quarantine measures end this week Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has said that he hoped this would be the last week of stay-at-home measures to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, wishing for an end to a policy that he has branded an ill-founded jobs killer. Speaking with supporters in Brasilia, he also opposed the view of a fan who called for the countrys supreme court to be shut, with Bolsonaro saying Brazil was a democratic country and the top court would remain open. 12:25 GMT Dutch cases rise by 750 with 67 new deaths The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the Netherlands has risen by 750 to 33,405, health authorities said, with 67 new deaths. Total confirmed deaths are now 3,751, the National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) said in its daily update. The RIVM cautions that the real number of cases and deaths in the Netherlands are higher, as it primarily tests only health workers and the very ill. 12:15 GMT Japan scientist very pessimistic Olympics will happen next year A Japanese professor of infectious disease has said he is very pessimistic the postponed Tokyo Olympics can open in 15 months. To be honest with you, I dont think the Olympics is likely to be held next year, said professor Kentaro Iwata on Monday. Holding the Olympics needs two conditions: one, controlling COVID-19 in Japan, and controlling COVID-19 everywhere. The Tokyo Olympics next July will be a uniquely risky event, demanding flexibility from organisers amid the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic, particularly if a vaccine has not been rolled out by then, medical experts say. Read more here. The Japanese PM announced the restriction will take effect on April 29 [File: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Reuters] 12:05 GMT Iran reopens shops, highways Iran on Monday began opening intercity highways and major shopping centres to stimulate its sanctions-choked economy, gambling it has brought its coronavirus outbreak under control. Stores from high-end malls to the meandering alleyways of Tehrans historic Grand Bazaar opened their doors, though the government limited working hours until 6pm. However, restaurants, gyms and other locations remain closed. Read more here. Irans economy suffered from a 20 percent unemployment rate among young people even before the outbreak [Abedin Tahernareh/EPA] 12:00 GMT Norwegian Air cuts 4,700 staff Norwegian Air has said four of its subsidiaries in Sweden and Denmark had filed for bankruptcy, affecting some 4,700 pilots and crew, as a result of the economic impact of the new coronavirus. It is heartbreaking that our Swedish and Danish pilot and cabin crew subsidiaries now are forced to file for bankruptcy, and Im truly sorry for the consequences this will have for our colleagues, Jacob Schram, chief executive of Norwegian Air, said in a statement. 11:40 GMT Putin says peak of crisis in Russia is ahead President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia had managed to curb the coronavirus crisis but the peak of the outbreak still lay ahead. The number of Russian confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 47,000 on Monday with a death toll of 405. 11:30 GMT Belgium says peak has passed, starts looking at lockdown exit Belgiums immediate coronavirus crisis appears to have passed its peak as the number of people admitted to hospitals with COVID-19 fell to its lowest level in a month, health officials have said. Belgium, with one of the highest per capita rates of confirmed COVID-19 cases and related deaths in Europe, announced that 232 people were taken into hospital on Sunday, the lowest level since March 19. There are several indicators that are going in the right direction and that continue to go in the right direction, Emmanuel Andre, spokesman for the countrys COVID-19 council, told a news conference. And so yes, by definition, we are going towards what is called de-confinement. That is to say a progressive enlargement of the safety zone around us so now were thinking about how to organise this. Members of the medical personnel gesture in the testing site for coronavirus disease at CHU de Liege hospital in Liege, Belgium [Yves Herman/Reuters] 11:20 GMT Kazakh activist released after being held for spreading false information A nationalist politician in Kazakhstan who has criticised the government has been released after two days detention on accusations of spreading false information during the coronavirus emergency, his sister said. Police detained political activist Arman Shorayev on Saturday and said the investigation involving him was ongoing. Officials have not said publicly whether he has been charged or what false information he was accused of spreading. Shorayevs sister Zhannar Shurayeva, who announced his release on Facebook, wrote on his behalf that the activist regretted publishing information that had not been fact-checked. The former television executive turned nationalist politician has often criticised members of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayevs cabinet while avoiding criticism of the president himself.In recent Facebook posts and interviews, Shorayev accused senior officials of corruption and criticised the governments borrowing plans and the cost of building a specialised hospital for coronavirus patients. 11:10 GMT Swiss authorities say positive tests rise by 204 to 27,944, deaths at 1,142 The Swiss death toll from the new coronavirus has reached 1,142, the countrys public health ministry has said, rising from 1,135 people on Sunday. The number of positive tests also increased to 27,944 from 27,740 on Sunday, it said. The slowdown in the number of new cases has allowed the Swiss government to start relaxing its lockdown restrictions from April 27. 10:55 GMT UKs Prince Philip breaks retirement silence to thank those fighting pandemic Prince Philip, the 98-year-old husband of Britains Queen Elizabeth, has made a rare statement to thank those involved in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from Covid-19, he said. On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected. Philip, who is staying with the queen at her Windsor Castle home during the outbreak, retired from public life in May 2017 and has been rarely seen in public since then. Prince Philip has thanked UK health workers [Alastair Grant/The Associated Press] 10:45 GMT Israelis demonstrate against Netanyahu amid pandemic Wearing face masks, waving black flags, and keeping two metres apart, thousands of Israelis demonstrated against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under strict coronavirus restrictions. Let democracy win, said one placard on Sunday, while some protesters wrote Minister of Crime on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahus upcoming trial for corruption. Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing, is under criminal indictment in three corruption cases. He is also negotiating a power-sharing deal with his rival Benny Gantz to form a coalition government that would end a year of political deadlock that saw three inconclusive elections. Read more here. Israel has reported more than 13,000 COVID-19 cases and at least 173 deaths [Daniel Bar On/Anadolu] 10:30 GMT As Brexit nears, EU workers fortify UKs pandemic front lines Thousands of EU migrants are working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic in the United Kingdom, as doctors, nurses, carers, porters and cleaners. Others are still out every day, repairing water boilers, stocking supermarket shelves, driving Londons buses. Every Thursday at 8pm, Britons take to their windows and balconies to applaud them for keeping the country on its feet. But the clock is still ticking towards the end of the transition period on December 31, as well as a June 21 deadline for EU citizens to apply to remain in the United Kingdom through the EU settlement scheme. Al Jazeera heard the stories, concerns, and hopes of four EU migrants who are keeping the UK ticking through the crisis. Read more here. 10:10 GMT Philippines activist, former senator dies Philippines activist and former senator Heherson Alvarez has died after contracting the coronavirus. He was 80, according to the Rappler news site. Alvarez rose to prominence as an activist against the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship and was among those who organised opposition to the regime from overseas, while exiled US. He went on to serve in many roles in the government, including senator, congressman, and Cabinet member. Alvarezs wife, theater artist Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, has also been infected by the coronavirus. 10:10 GMT Iran death toll from new outbreak rises by 91 to 5,209 The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in Iran has reached 5,209 with 91 deaths in the past twenty four hours, Health Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said in a statement on state TV. The total number of diagnosed cases of the new coronavirus in Iran, the Middle Eastern country hardest hit by the outbreak, has reached 83,505, he said. 10:00 GMT Lithuanian finance ministry estimates economy to shrink by at least 7.3 percent The Lithuanian economy will shrink by 7.3 percent this year if the spread of coronavirus is contained by summer, and by even more if not, countrys Finance Ministry has said. This is a significant downgrade of its forecast on March 17, when it saw the economy contracting between 1.3 percent and 2.8 percent in 2020. Its earlier forecast, from September, was for growth of 2.4 percent. On March 26, the countrys central bank said the economy will shrink will by 11.4 percent this year if a lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak lasts for two months or by 20.8 percent if it is extended to four months. 09:55 GMT Indonesia reports 185 new cases Indonesia has reported 185 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of infections in the Southeast Asian country to 6,760, health ministry official Achmad Yurianto said. Yurianto said there had been eight new deaths attributed to the disease, taking the total number to 590, while 747 people had recovered. More than 49,700 tests had been performed, he said 09:45 GMT Malaysia reports 36 new cases, no new deaths Malaysian health authorities have reported 36 new coronavirus cases, the lowest daily rise since the government imposed curbs on movement and business to contain the spread of the pandemic a month ago. The new cases bring the cumulative total to 5,425 cases. The health ministry reported no new deaths on Monday, keeping total fatalities at 89 09:40 GMT Spain total confirmed cases surpass 200,000 The number of people diagnosed with the new coronavirus in Spain has surpassed the 200,000 threshold, the countrys health ministry has said. The ministry said the number of cases rose to 200,210 from 195,944 cases on Sunday. Spain has the second highest number of diagnosed cases in the world after the United States, according to Reuters data. The cumulative death toll from the coronavirus rose to 20,852 on Monday from 20,453 the day before, the ministry said. 09:30 GMT Pakistan moves towards smart lockdowns Pakistans government has said is aiming to move towards smart lockdowns as opposed to the current countrywide restrictions on public movement and gatherings, as the countrys coronavirus outbreak saw cases cross 8,000 on Sunday. Moeed Yusuf, the Pakistani prime ministers advisor on national security, told reporters that the government wanted to trace and isolate specific areas where the virus had spread by increasing testing capacity and deploying tests in a targeted manner. As this testing capacity will be increased, this will enable us to know where the virus has spread so that we can go towards smart lockdowns or smart restrictions, not to shut down the whole country, he said. We should only shut down those areas where the virus has spread and then manage and treat that, get people healthy again, and allow regular life to resume slowly in the rest of the country. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has repeatedly warned of the economic risks of a full countrywide shutdown of the economy, which has already led to spiralling unemployment in the South Asian country, where many work for daily wages or in other ways that are outside of the formal economy. At this mosque in Islamabads F-8 neighbourhood, normally packed for Friday midday prayers, worshippers were advised to maintain at least six feet of distance between themselves [Al Jazeera] 09:20 GMT Italy mulls psychological tests to gauge lockdown impact Italian scientists want the government to conduct psychological tests on a sample of the population to determine how long people can stay confined to their homes. The Corriere della Sera newspaper said scientists want to understand how long Italians are able to endure a lockdown in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The Mediterranean countrys 60 million citizens have been barred from walking more than 200 metres (650 feet) from their homes without a significant reason. Reports of domestic abuse have surged and scientists worry about the impact of such isolation on the elderly and the more vulnerable. 09:05 GMT Novartis, US drug regulator agree to malaria drug trial Novartis has won the go-ahead from the US Food and Drug Administration to conduct a randomised trial of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 disease, the Swiss drugmaker has said, to see if it helps patients. The decades-old generic medicine got FDA emergency use authorisation this month for its unapproved use for coronavirus disease, but so far there is no scientific proof it works. There are currently no approved COVID-19 medicines. Novartis plans to start recruiting 440 patients for its Phase III, or late-stage, trial within weeks at more than a dozen US sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. 08:40 GMT It all feels a little off: Caution as China reopens As people return to work as China lifts lockdowns, it is not easy for them to resume their former routines. Friends have described being in Beijing right now as feeling like the night before a storm is going to hit, said Krish Raghav, who works for a local brewery. Everythings open, but it all feels a little off. Read more here. People are getting back to work in Beijing, but residents say life now is very different from what it was before the coronavirus appeared [Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo] 08:20 GMT Philippines records 19 new deaths, 200 more cases The Philippines health ministry has reported 19 new coronavirus deaths and 200 additional infections. In a bulletin, the health ministry said total infections have risen to 6,459 while deaths have increased to 428. But 41 more patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 613 08:10 GMT Refugee women face greater violence risk during crisis: UNHCR Displaced women and girls are facing a heightened risk of gender-based violence during the coronavirus crisis, the United Nations refugee agency has said. The UNHCR warned on Monday refugee and migrant women may also be forced into survival sex or child marriages. We need to pay urgent attention to the protection of refugee, displaced and stateless women and girls at the time of this pandemic, said Gillian Triggs, the UNHCR assistant high commissioner for protection. Read more here. Syrian women at a camp for displaced people in Atme town in Syrias northwestern Idlib province [File: Aaref Watad/AFP] 08:00 GMT Russian coronavirus cases surpass 47,000, new cases drop Russia has reported 4,268 new confirmed coronavirus cases, fewer than 6,060 on the previous day, which took the total number of cases to 47,121. Forty-four Russian coronavirus patients died in the last 24 hours, the Russian coronavirus crisis response center said. 07:50 GMT China says Australias questions on its outbreak handling groundless China has said Australias questioning of Beijings transparency on the coronavirus epidemic was groundless, saying the government has been open and transparent. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters during a daily briefing that Beijing had grave concerns about the remarks made by Australian foreign minister Marise Payne, who called for an international investigation into the origins of the virus and how it spread. 07:40 GMT Singapore confirms record jump of 1,426 cases Singapores health ministry has confirmed an additional 1,426 cases of COVID-19 infection, a record daily jump that took the city-states tally to 8,014. The ministry said the vast majority of the new cases were among migrant workers living in dormitories. A man wearing face mask is seen in Singapore [Zakaria Zainal/Anadolu] 07:30 GMT Bangladesh tightens lockdown after funeral gathering Bangladesh has tightened a clampdown on seven villages after tens of thousands attended the funeral of a popular local cleric in spite of a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus, officials said on Monday. The massive gathering for funeral prayers for Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari in Brahmanbaria district, about 60 kilometres east of the capital Dhaka, has raised concerns about the potential for a spike in infections in a country of 160 million people with poor medical infrastructure. Weve strictly ordered all residents of the seven villages to stay at home at all times at least for the next 14 days so we can identify if anyone contracted the virus following Saturdays gathering, a local police officer told Reuters news agency. The funeral for Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari was attended by thousands in Brahmanbaria, Bangladesh [Bishwajit Paul/Al Jazeera] 07:25 GMT Brazils Bolsonaro criticised for joining protest against curbs Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil, has come out in public to support hundreds of people defending military rule and protesting against stay-at-home orders issued by state governors to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. The crowd of about 600 people gathered in front of the armys headquarters in the capital, Brasilia, on Sunday, Brazils armed forces day. I am here because I believe in you. You are here because you believe in Brazil. We dont want to negotiate anything; what we want is action for Brazil, said Bolsonaro, a former army captain who has expressed nostalgia for the countrys 1964-1985 dictatorship. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro prepares to speak after joining his supporters taking part in a motorcade to protest against quarantine and social distancing measures to combat the coronavirus outbreak [Evaristo Sa/AFP] 07:20 GMT UK will review how it handled pandemic when time is right: Minister Britain will review its approach to the coronavirus pandemic to learn what it could have done better, Culture Minister Oliver Dowden has said, following criticism that the government was too slow to react. When were dealing with an unprecedented crisis like this were not going to have perfect 20:20 hindsight vision on this, he told BBC TV. Of course we will need to look back and see the things we could have done differently. But right now people would not be expecting us to be looking back over the past few months, they would be expecting us to be dealing with this crisis on a day to day basis. We have said that we will of course review all the lessons that we need to learn from this and indeed learn the lessons globally. 07:10 GMT Poland may retighten restrictions if cases spike: Minister Poland may reverse the loosening of restrictions to curb the spread of the new coronavirus if the number of new cases rises significantly, Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski has said. It can be always (reversed), Szumowski told public radio, asked if the loosening of restrictions might be reversed if there was a spike in the cases of new coronavirus infections. Poland started reopening parks and forests on Monday as the government eased a few of the restrictions that have brought daily life to a virtual standstill. On Sunday, 545 new infections were recorded in Poland, the biggest daily rise to date. 07:00 GMT Some Australia beaches reopen Some beaches in Australias Gold Coast and in Sydney have reopened as coronavirus cases continue to decline in the country. The state of Queensland recorded no new infection of coronavirus on Monday, while New South Wales recorded just six new cases. Coolangatta and Surfers Paradise beaches reopened midday on Monday after closing on April 7, Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate said, according to 7 News. Meanwhile, Coogee, Clovelly, Maroubra and Malabar beaches on Sydney were all reopened on Monday, three weeks after they were closed to prevent the spread of the virus. A jogger runs past a cordoned-off entrance to Bondi Beach in Sydney on April 1 [Loren Elliott/Reuters] 06:50 GMT Ghana uses drones to enable faster testing Ghana is using delivery drones from US-based startup Zipline to enable it to test people more quickly outside major cities for the novel coronavirus, the company has said. Ghana has 834 confirmed infections and nine people have died from COVID-19, the disease the virus causes. Zipline operated its first coronavirus test flight on April 1 and will now fly samples collected from more than 1,000 health facilities in rural areas to laboratories in the capital Accra and to Kumasi, the second-largest city. Using contactless drone delivery to transport COVID-19 test samples will allow the government to respond to the pandemic and help save lives more quickly, Zipline Chief Executive Keller Rinaudo said in a release. Workers of a local factory begin the production of personal protective gear for local frontline health workers in Accra [Francis Kokoroko/Reuters] 06:40 GMT UK to collect survivors blood for treatment trials The UK is preparing to collect the blood from COVID-19 survivors to investigate if convalescent plasma transfusions could improve a COVID-19 patients speed of recovery and chances of survival. NHS Blood and Transplant is preparing to collect COVID-19 convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from this illness, a spokeswoman said. We envisage that this will be initially used in trials as a possible treatment for COVID-19. If fully approved, the trials will investigate whether convalescent plasma transfusions could improve a COVID-19 patients speed of recovery and chances of survival, the blood service said. We are working closely with the government and all relevant bodies to move through the approvals process as quickly as possible, it said. Doctor Judah Eastwell, a GP at St Johns Medical Centre, puts on his PPE to assess a patient in the outdoor consultation tent on April 13, 2020 in Altrincham, England [Christopher Furlong/Getty Images] 06:30 GMT EU economics chief: 1.5 tn euros in aid needed to tackle pandemic The European Unions Economics Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni has told German magazine Der Spiegel that aid worth around 1.5 trillion euros ($1.63 trillion) could be needed to tackle the coronavirus crisis. The Eurogroup has now made proposals for aid worth more than 500 billion euros to finance healthcare and short-time work and to help small and medium-sized companies. That leaves at least one trillion euros. This is roughly the amount we need to be dealing with now. He said the funds could be raised via the EUs next multi-annual budget. 06:20 GMT Norway begins reopening nurseries after month-long closure Norway, which says it has the new coronavirus under control, has started opening up pre-schools after a month-long closure, according to the AFP news agency. Authorities have said the reopening was possible because children have been less affected by COVID-19, although some parents have expressed reservations over the decision. 06:10 GMT Thailand reports 27 new cases, no new deaths Thailand has reported 27 new coronavirus cases, bringing the nations total to 2,792 cases, a senior health official said. Of the new cases, 16 had come into contact with a previously confirmed case, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman for the governments Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration. No new deaths were reported for the third consecutive day. Thailand has had a total of 47 fatalities, and 1,999 patients have recovered. Hello, this is Joseph Stepansky in Doha taking over from my colleague Kate Mayberry . 06:00 GMT I am now handing over the blog to my colleagues in Doha. Thank you for reading. 05:55 GMT UN calls for $350 million for global emergency supply system The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has issued an urgent call for $350 million to scale-up the global emergency supply system and ensure crucial assistance to tackle the coronavirus gets to the worlds poorest countries. The system is co-ordinated by the World Food Programme and includes regional warehousing and staging hubs, shipping services, medical evacuation for front line workers, infrastructure and the construction of treatment centres. Every human being, in every nation around the world, is facing the same mortal threat, the UN body said in a statement signed by other UN and humanitarian organisations. Every step that speeds that recovery saves lives. 05:25 GMT China gets back to work, but caution rules in edgy Beijing Chinas getting back to work and traffic jams have reappeared on Beijings streets. But life in the capital is anything but normal as Kelly Dawson reports. 05:15 GMT The worlds biggest lockdown saves lives, but businesses fight for survival The worlds biggest lockdown is saving lives in India. But while theres been government help for some of the poorest, and big companies will be supported by changes to financial regulations, small and medium-sized businesses are struggling. Its pretty terrible, restauranteur Arjun Chawla told Al Jazeera. Im trying to use the time to experiment on new dishes and have the restaurant deep-cleaned. Thats pretty much all I can do. Read Tish Sangheras story for Impact here. 04:30 GMT Germany updates coronavirus situation Germanys Robert Koch Institute says confirmed cases rose by 1,775 to 141,672, a second day of decline. The number of deaths from COVID-19 rose by 110. 04:20 GMT New Zealand to relax lockdown from next week New Zealands Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the countrys nationwide lockdown will be extended slightly, but relaxed from next Monday although some restrictions will remain in force. New Zealand will move out of Alert Level 4 lockdown at 11:59pm on Monday April 27, one week from today, Ardern told a press conference. The country will then remain at Alert Level 3 for two weeks, with the government deciding on the way forward on May 11. #nzlockdown was going to end in 48 hours. To be safe, the government is extending it until after the long weekend. Alert Level 3 is basically still Alert Level 4, but less strict and more in line with other countries' lockdowns (eg: food delivery, takeout, online ordering, etc.) https://t.co/Lts3imGUEG Josh McConnell (@joshmcconnell) April 20, 2020 02:55 GMT Rare leatherback turtles return to Thai beaches empty of tourists Thailand has found the largest number of nests of rare leatherback sea turtles in two decades on beaches that have been emptied of tourists by the coronavirus pandemic, environmentalists say. The 11 turtle nests authorities have found since last November were the highest number in 20 years, said Kongkiat Kittiwatanawong, the director of the Phuket Marine Biological Center. This is a very good sign for us because many areas for spawning have been destroyed by humans, he told Reuters. No such nests had been found for the previous five years. A newly-hatched baby leatherback sea turtle makes its way to the sea for the first time in Thailands Phanga Nga district at the end of March. The turtles return to the same beach where they hatched to lay their eggs [Mongkhonsawat Leungvorapan/Reuters] 02:25 GMT South Korea cases below 20 for third day The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has just given its latest update on the coronavirus. The KCDC reported 13 new cases seven from overseas on Monday, bringing the total to 10,674. Its the third day in a row where cases have been below 20, Yonhap news agency reported. 02:15 GMT Malaysia parliament to resume on May 18 for single day Malaysias parliament will sit for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic on May 18, but only for a single day and with no debates. A power grab in Malaysia at in late February led to the resignation of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and the fall of the Pakatan Harapan administration leaving the country without a government for just over a week. The new leadership includes Mahathirs former political party (without Mahathir) and the parties that lost to Pakatan in May 2018. An extraordinary announcement yesterday. Parliament will restart on 18th May but. for only one day. This will be a ceremonial event with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong delivering the King's speech. (1/n) pic.twitter.com/4AckrqBDhA Wong Chen (@WongChenPKR) April 18, 2020 02:00 GMT New Zealand due to announce lockdown decision New Zealands Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is due to announce later on Monday whether to ease the lockdown imposed in late March to tackle the coronavirus. Ardern is expected to announce her decision in a couple of hours. New Zealand reported nine new cases on Monday and no deaths. 00:45 GMT China reports zero deaths for second day China has just released its latest coronavirus update. The National Health Commission says there were no deaths reported on the mainland on April 19, the second consecutive day. It also reported 12 new cases of coronaviurs eight of them imported as well as 49 new asymptomatic cases. 12 new confirmed #COVID19 cases reported on Chinese mainland on Sunday https://t.co/hYnHwN41Ru pic.twitter.com/OsmS7yvMMd China Xinhua News (@XHNews) April 20, 2020 00:00 GMT Pence says US has sufficient testing capability to support states US Vice President Mike Pence says the US has sufficient testing capacity nationwide to allow any of the states to start lifting lockdown orders, providing they meet other criteria required for relaxation. The other criteria include 14 days of declines in infections and enough hospital capacity to treat everyone who gets sick. 23:40 GMT (Sunday) Trump says willing to help Iran if asked US President Donald Trump says the US would be willing to provide aid to Iran to help with deal with the coronavirus pandemic if Tehran requested it. If Iran needed aid on this, I would be willing, he said at the daily press briefing in the White House. 23:00 GMT (Sunday) Economists in Australia urge continued lockdown A group of at least 170 economists in Australia have written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the countrys national cabinet to urge the government to continue social distancing measures, amid a growing debate over whether to ease the countrys lockdown to boost the economy. We believe a callous indifference to life is morally objectionable and that it would be a mistake to expect a premature loosening of restrictions to be beneficial to the economy and jobs, given the rapid rate of contagion, they wrote in an open letter. We recognise that the measures taken to date have come at a cost to economic activity and jobs, but believe these are far outweighed by the lives saved and the avoided economic damage due to an unmitigated contagion. Hello and welcome to Al Jazeeras continuing coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. Im Kate Mayberry in Kuala Lumpur. Read all the updates from yesterday (April 19) here. Union Ministry of Home Affairs issues orders to extend lockdown beyond May 4, by two weeks in order to contain the coronavirus spread mainly in the red zones of the districts. As India remains in lockdown for over a month, the total number of cases reported in the country crosses 36,000 and death toll exceeds 1,200 according to DH's tally. Meanwhile, the government has announced that there will be considerable lockdown relaxation in many districts in the country from May 4. Syracuse, N.Y. Testing for coronavirus antibodies is taking place at some Wegmans locations, including in Syracuse. A spokesperson for the Rochester, N.Y.-based supermarket chain confirms to syracuse.com | The Post-Standard that the New York State Department of Health conducted COVID-19 antibody testing at five stores, including the James Street location in Syracuse, on Sunday. Testing also took place at the Johnson City location in Binghamton; Amherst Street in Buffalo; Alberta Drive in Amherst; and East Avenue in Rochester. The Department of Health had approximately five nurses at each site conducting between 100 and 150 tests. Additional tests are expected at each location Monday. It is crucial that we all do our part in overcoming this virus and we are pleased to support the state in this important step, a spokesperson for Wegmans said in a statement. Testing for coronavirus antibodies is taking place at some Wegmans locations, including in Syracuse. This one is on James St. in Syracuse, Monday, April 20, 2020. According to Wegmans, the Department of Health is also conducting antibody tests at another 15 grocery stores statewide. The testing sample will be representative of the state by region, race, gender and age according to Gov. Andrew Cuomos office. Cuomo said 3,000 people across the state will receive tests to help determine what percent of the population may have been exposed to the virus. That will tell us, for the first time, what percent of the population actually has had the coronavirus and is now, at least short-term, immune to the virus, he said Sunday. This will be the first true snapshot of what were dealing with. The aggressive testing will help us to reopen and rebuild without jeopardizing what weve already accomplished," Cuomo added. Antibody tests are different from diagnostic testing, which can determine whether or not a person is infected. People cannot ask for the antibody tests, because they are a random sampling. Antibody tests can help determine whether a person had previously been infected even if they were asymptomatic. The antibody tests may also show whether they are now immune to the virus, although there are concerns about the tests accuracy and the World Health Organization said Friday that testing positive for coronavirus antibodies does not prove immunity. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Cuomo: State will expand coronavirus testing to look for antibodies Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay He has designated survivors. Ryan McMahon digs in for a long war against coronavirus Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Language barriers, homelessness and lack of access to wifi and technology have hit our at-risk minorities the hardest. During this pandemic, the needs of children who are living below the poverty level should come first. I am an English as a Second Language teacher who has worked a year-round school calendar for six years at Portlands Rosa Parks Elementary, where 95% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch and 19 languages are spoken. Despite Portland Public Schools decision to end the year-round calendar at Rosa Parks, the challenges posed by COVID-19 support considering the opposite: What if the state went year-round? The social emotional benefits of having school start in the summer and take frequent short breaks throughout the year has enormous potential to shift the achievement gap in marginalized populations.The program reduces summer slide and provides a consistent schedule for at risk students. There is a caveat though: The model only works when it is supported by a cluster of schools, or districtwide. Parents and teachers need a uniform calendar for all of their children. During times of hardship we can look for opportunities to better our educational system or succumb to them. The greatest summer slide in the history of our nation is looming. Lets fight back at Covid 19. What better way for our state to take the lead in the nation then to advocate for year round school for Oregon this July? Beyoung Yu, Portland We have all felt this pandemic in different ways. In many ways, it has made us question our identity as teachers or leaders because we went from the typical classroom and school building experience to going virtual, where it is uncomfortable and seemingly out of our control. There have been moments over the past month when we question how we fit into all of this. Some of us have tried to control every moment of a students day at home in fear that their parents might think we are not good teachers because we didnt assign enough school work to keep our students busy. From an educational standpoint, its mind-blowing to think about. UNESCO estimates that over 1.5 billion students , or 91 percent of all enrolled learners worldwide, have been out of school due to the coronavirus pandemic. Parents and caregivers are home with their children trying to balance their own work from home options. That, of course, is if they were fortunate enough to keep their jobs. Over time those parents have gone from feeling the pressure to make sure their children are doing everything assigned, to relaxing their homeschool teacher approach and reverting back to be a parent. Its a good thing, because in his research about what works and what doesnt work when schools are closed , educational researcher John Hattie recommends parents not putting their children under surveillance, because it could have a very negative impact. Teachers, who also may have their own children at home, have found themselves in a place where they cannot control the day-to-day operations of the classroom like they once did. They can provide the schoolwork, but that doesnt mean it is always going to get completed. Its overwhelming for so many educators to go from running the day-to-day operations of the classroom to having it all go online without much notice. Whats worse, and few people understand, are the students who do not find home to be a safe place or even a structured one. We see so many funny memes from parents and caregivers about trying to balance it all, but many teachers worry about the students whose parents arent finding the humor. They worry about the students whose parents have a different phone number each month, or children who lack access to technology or lack a quiet place to do schoolwork. They worry about the students who only get one good meal right now, which typically comes from school. According to the FDA, nearly 30 million students in the U.S. qualify for free and reduced-price lunch. Whats happening to those children? What does their day-to-day life look like right now? Five Stages of Grief I feel like most of us went through, or are currently going through, the five stages of grief. I mean, the suggestions of how to prevent the spread of the virus go against who most of us are and how we operate from day to day. We shake hands, we hug. I almost miss those people who do not respect personal space and lean in too close when they are talking to us. When it comes to the classroom, we try to provide deep learning through technology, but the reality is that its the personal connection and the contact that we enjoy as much as its the content we like to teach. The pandemic, and how it rocked our worlds, has made most of us question who we are as professionals. I feel like this has shattered the identities most of us have created for ourselves. The classroom and school have been so much a part of our identities, and now, we are not in those classrooms and schools every day. The smell, yes the smell, of the classroom when we first walk in. The students we always have to check in on when they come into our classrooms because we need to see if they got a good nights sleep the night before. The eerie quiet before students come flooding through our doors. The noise of children playing, laughing, and talking. We dont have that right now, we miss it, and thats hard. This pandemic has demanded that we all teach in new ways. We no longer have students or workshop participants right in front of us. We have to learn how to connect with our students in very different ways, and those different ways are all mostly virtual, which is uncomfortable for us. This rapid change in teaching and connecting has created a space where we are going through stages of grief, which were first written by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross so long ago. Those five stages include: Denial - Surely, we will not need to go to virtual learning? This will all be over quickly. We dont need to go virtual ... right? Im not sure I can do virtual teaching. Anger - We are out of school for two weeks! I am not a virtual teacher! I need to see my students every day! How do I virtually teach everything that I teach in the classroom? This is not what I signed up for! Do you know how many hours a day Im working!!! Bargaining - I will do this online teaching stuff now, but the moment I get back to the classroom with my kids, I want things to go back to the way they were. I will follow all the guidance right now because the sooner we get back to our classrooms the better. Depression - We are closed for another month. I miss my students. My seniors are missing out on their last months of school. I am not good at being a virtual teacher and Im definitely not having the impact I normally do. I dont think I want to do this anymore. Change is hard. Especially when we didnt have time to think about it. Acceptance - I need to figure out how to move on and have a deeper impact with my students. What virtual tools can I use that will help me meet this goal? Maybe I will join one of those Teaching During the Pandemic Facebook pages to ask questions about how I can improve my strategies. Can I offer surface, deep, and transfer learning opportunities during a time of review? How might we offer new content to students, at the same time we do not expect them to do school all day long? In the End The coronavirus has rocked our worlds in very real ways. Most of us identify with our professional selves. In my personal experience, I identified as a classroom teacher for 11 years, a principal for eight years, and as a consultant and author for the last six years. When people first introduce themselves to us, the most common question is, What do you do for a living? Our identities are wrapped up in what we do for a living. Now, we find ourselves needing to adapt and change quickly, which forced us to go through the five stages of grief. Know this, as we experience the stages in our own, personal ways, we will come out of this pandemic much better than when we went into this pandemic. Peter DeWitt, Ed.D., is the author of several books including his newest release Instructional Leadership: Creating Practice Out Of Theory (Corwin Press. 2020). Connect with him on Twitter or through his YouTube channel . Introduction photo courtesy of Getty Images. India on Sunday trashed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's comments alleging targeting of Muslims in the country in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the "bizarre comments" by the Pakistani leadership was an attempt to shift focus from the "abysmal handling" of that country's internal affairs. In a tweet, Khan accused the Indian government of deliberately targeting the Muslim community against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis. Follow live updates on coronavirus "Instead of concentrating on fighting COVID19, they are making baseless allegations against their neighbours," the MEA spokesperson said. He was responding to media queries on Khan's remarks. "On the subject of minorities, they (Pakistani leadership) would be well advised to address the concerns of their own dwindling minority communities, which have been truly discriminated against," Srivastava said. V&As broad-based expertise will be a great addition to the services we offer to our clients and advisors, and their actuarial practice will add depth to our current practice. We are very happy they are joining us, and we look forward to working with them. Northwest Plan Services (NWPS), announces the acquisition of Venuti & Associates (V&A), broadening its ability to meet growing demand for conflict-free, unbundled retirement and health & welfare plan services. Founded in 2002, V&A is a benefits and actuarial consulting firm, servicing multi-employer, single-employer and public defined benefit, defined contribution and health & welfare plans for over 20 clients and 25 plans. This acquisition brings a tenured team of retirement plan professionals from V&A to the NWPS staff, including a leader in the multi-employer trust area, V&A founder, David Venuti. NWPS has built a premium reputation in the retirement and health & welfare plan consulting, recordkeeping and administration marketplace. With this acquisition NWPS now serves some 1,050 plans nationwide with over 450,000 participants and over $35 billion of assets under administration. We have tremendous respect for V&A and the client service reputation the company has built, said Tim Wulfekuhle, President and Chief Executive Officer of NWPS. V&As broad-based expertise will be a great addition to the services we offer to our clients and advisors, and their actuarial practice will add depth to our current practice. We are very happy they are joining us, and we look forward to working with them. At Venuti & Associates, our approach has always been to put our clients and their participants first, added David Venuti, and we are excited about the synergies and growth opportunities NWPS will bring. The added depth and industry experience will serve to enhance what has always been our mission: to give plan sponsors the guidance they need to provide secure, reliable retirement income and health benefits to their plan participants and beneficiaries. About Northwest Plan Services: NWPS is a leading independent provider of retirement plan recordkeeping, actuarial and administration services. Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, NWPS provides a comprehensive suite of services for retirement plans with an unbundled, open architecture platform that enables employers to offer their employees access to thousands of investment options. In addition to recordkeeping, administration, actuarial, compliance and participant services, NWPS provides consulting, and employee communication services to a client base ranging from small and medium sized companies with 50 to 500 employees, to large employers with tens of thousands of employees. NWPS services 401(k), 403(b), 457, ESOP, Church, Taft Hartley and other types of defined contribution plans as well as cash-balance and defined benefit pension plans. For more information, please visit http://www.nwp401k.com. About Venuti & Associates: Established in 2002 with offices in Los Altos, California and Seattle, Washington, V&A provides benefits and actuarial consulting services to multi-employer, single-employer and public defined benefit, defined contribution and health & welfare plans. They service over 20 client-relationships, with over 25 plans and approximately 60,000 participants. Contact Information: Thomas O'Brien Northwest Plan Services, Inc. +1 847.492.0132 http://www.nwp401k.com Security forces apprehended two overground workers of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant outfit from Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, officials said. A joint team of security forces led by police arrested the two overground workers ofJaish during vehicle checking at Wachi in Shopian, a police official said. The arrested duo have been identified asZahoor Ahmad Koka and Uzair Ahmad Dar, both residents of Zainpora area in the district. Onepistol, and two hand grenades were recovered from the possession of the two OGWs, the official said He said a case under unlawful activities prevention act has been registered against them. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sandra Speier, a Miami resident, filed an application for unemployment benefits a month ago. Her application has been pending ever since. Here, she is pictured with her son. Sandra Speier is among the millions of Americans who have filed for unemployment benefits in recent weeks. But, a month later, her application is still in limbo. The Miami resident, a single mother and self-employed personal trainer, submitted an online application for jobless benefits on March 23. It's been "pending" ever since and has yet to be processed by the state's office. In the meantime, she explored low-interest loans from the Small Business Administration as a fallback if the unemployment delays persist. But those options have, too, failed to bring her cash, due to federal funding that's delayed or dried up. "I am beyond frustrated with what's been going on," Speier said. "Nothing has happened." At a time when Americans are desperate for financial aid, Speier's story shows that many are slipping through the cracks, with the historic $2.2 trillion stimulus package failing to reach many of its intended recipients. The law expanded unemployment benefits for jobless Americans by increasing weekly payments, boosting the duration of pay and extending benefits to previously ineligible groups like the self-employed, independent contractors and so-called gig workers. Benefits are taxable but aren't subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes (7.65% total) and, in many states, aren't subject to state and local tax. States, which administer unemployment and play a vital role in the disbursement of funds, are experiencing an unprecedented volume of claims and are struggling to keep up with the demand. Roughly 22 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits in the four weeks through April 11, according to seasonally adjusted figures from the U.S. Department of Labor. "It's what economists call a 'peak load problem,'" said Stephen Wandner, a labor economist and senior fellow at the National Academy of Social Insurance. "The system is overwhelmed." These challenges have pushed some state officials, like those in Florida, to suggest downloading and mailing in paper applications. That could result in even longer delays and lost applications, Wandner said. Some states have tried to increase their capacity to better manage the surge, which has alleviated some of the initial backlog. And Congress passed legislation allocating $1 billion to help states process the claims. But evidence suggests that state offices are still struggling to deal with the avalanche of claims. Some people have already waited more than a month. Anthony Stettner senior fellow at The Century Foundation "It's taking longer than it would typically take to get your unemployment insurance claim processed," said Anthony Stettner, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation. "Some people have already waited more than a month for their claim." In Florida, for example, the unemployment website crashes continually and phone lines are jammed for hours on end, according to users. Ohio says it won't even be able to begin processing unemployment claims from the expanded pool of eligible workers until mid-May. It's taken some people weeks to even get in their application, said Raul Martinez Jr., deputy chief of staff for Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Fla. Some have been able to apply but haven't received an answer in over a month, he said. Speier doesn't expect an unemployment check to ever come, and doesn't know where to turn. Speier's business, Precision Performance, which she's owned for more than two decades, has suffered tremendously as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. In the age of social distancing and stay-at-home orders, clients have stopped booking appointments. One program that could have offered stopgap funding via forgivable loans the Paycheck Protection Program exhausted its funding amid high demand from small businesses. Speier also applied for financial relief through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, which provides low-interest loans for small businesses and includes up to $10,000 in emergency grants. But, like many other business owners, she hasn't received funds or a response from the SBA. "Can't work because of this pandemic. No help from anyone," Speier said in a text message. "No health insurance anymore. And should be homeless soon." More than 33,000 Floridians who applied for unemployment benefits after March 15 have begun receiving their payments, according to figures released by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity on April 16. That's just about 5% of the roughly 648,000 people who applied between March 21 and April 11, according to the department. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order April 16 eliminating the biweekly requirement that applicants sign into the state's unemployment portal and certify that they're actively seeking work, which he said should relieve some stress on the system. "Ultimately, we need to get people paid," DeSantis said at a press conference that day. Still, the delays are leaving people like Dawn Hormanski in precarious situations. Hormanski was laid off from her job as a cashier at a bakery in Amherst, Ohio, in March. Ever since, she's been worried about how to come up with the money she needs for her medications. The 75-year-old has asthma and high blood pressure, among other ailments. Dawn Hormanski Source: Dawn Smith Kelowna, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - April 20, 2020) - Citation Growth Corp. (CSE: CGRO) (OTCQX: CGOTF) ("Citation" or "Company"), a licensed multi-state Cannabis cultivator, producer and retailer, is providing details of its upcoming virtual Annual General Meeting ("AGM") to be held on Thursday April 23, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. (Mountain Time). Listening to The Virtual AGM All shareholders will be able to listen to the virtual AGM and view the Company's slide presentation as guests via audio webcast at: https://78449.themediaframe.com/dataconf/productusers/cgc/mediaframe/37250/indexl.html Participant / Guest (Toll-Free): 877-407-2991 (Event 14) Participant / Guest (Toll): 201-389-0925 (Event 14) Please dial in/log in at least 15 minutes prior to the start time of the AGM on April 23, 2020. To Vote or Ask Questions At The Virtual AGM Citation's Notice of Meeting, Management Information Circular (the "Circular") and the accompanying form of proxy (collectively the "Meeting Materials") were mailed on or about March 18, 2020. If you have not yet received your Meeting Materials, please contact your broker if you are a non-registered shareholder or contact Computershare if you are a registered shareholder. In order to streamline the virtual meeting process, the Company encourages shareholders to vote in advance of the meeting using the Voting Instruction Form or the Form of Proxy mailed to them with the meeting materials no later than 1:30 p.m. Mountain Time on April 21, 2020. Shareholders wishing to attend the AGM may continue to do so by logging into the webcast or calling the number above, and instructions will be provided as to how shareholders entitled to vote at the AGM may participate and vote at the AGM. All shareholders wishing to have a question addressed at the virtual AGM can also submit them in advance to ir@citationgrowth.com. Citation is committed to addressing appropriate questions submitted by shareholders either live during the AGM or in advance, as timing and circumstances permit. Story continues About Citation Growth Corp. Citation Growth Corp. (CSE: CGRO) (OTCQX: CGOTF) is a publicly traded company that has been investing in the development of medical and recreational cannabis products since 2014. Citation has expanded its operating portfolio to include cultivation, production and retail offerings in our key North American legal jurisdictions Nevada, California, Washington and British Columbia. For more information, please visit www.citationgrowth.com. For Further Information: Erik Anderson, President and CEO 1-877-438-5448 Ext. 713 eanderson@citationgrowth.com Cannabis Industry Involvement: The Company owns marijuana licenses in California and Nevada. Marijuana is legal in each state; however, marijuana remains illegal under United States federal law and the approach to enforcement of U.S. federal law against marijuana is subject to change. Shareholders and investors need to be aware that federal enforcement actions could adversely affect their investments and that the Company's ability to support continuing U.S.-based operations and its access private and public capital could be materially adversely affected. Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements or information that relate to our current expectations and views of future events. These statements relate to future events or future performance. Statements which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, outlook, expectations or intentions regarding the future including words or phrases such as "anticipate", "objective", "may", "will", "might", "should", "could", "can", "intend", "expect", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "plan", "is designed to", "project", "continue", or similar expressions suggest future outcomes or the negative thereof or similar variations. Forward-looking statements may also include, among other things, statements about the future business strategy; expectations of obtaining licenses and permits; expectations regarding expenses, sales and operations; future customer concentration; anticipated cash needs and estimates regarding capital requirements and the need for additional financing; total processing capacity; the ability to anticipate the future needs of customers; plans for future products and enhancements of existing products; future growth strategy and growth rate; future intellectual property; changes in laws and regulations; regulatory approvals and other matters; and anticipated trends and challenges in the markets in which the Company may operate. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54637 GADSDEN, Ala. From the White House to the state house, and many of the houses throughout this community, people are clamoring to reopen the country. In the houses of the Woods, Posey and Porter families all relatives they think thats a mistake. While others talk about reopening their businesses, these families are preparing to close the caskets of three family members. In one weeks time, they lost Phacethia Posey, her father Billy Ray Woods, and cousin Michael Woods to COVID-19. Tyrone Posey said when the novel coronavirus started making news, his wife, Phacethia, began researching. The couple and other family members started doing the things they heard would help. Phacethia and Tyrone Posey are pictured. Phacethia died from COVID-19 on April 13, 2020. We were over steam, he said, and took vitamins. Phacethia took other suggested remedies elderberry and zinc. To think that shes gone because of that virus, Posey said. Phacethia Posey died April 13, after spending seven days hospitalized.The tragedy of her passing is only part of the story for her family. On Saturday, Billy Ray Woods, Phacethias father, died, and so did Michael Woods. Posey, Phacethias mother Barbara Woods, sister Johnjalene Woods, Kyra Porter and her husband Tony, all tested positive for COVID-19 a total of nine family members. Porter said Tyrone Posey Jr. was the first to get sick; Porters father was the first to be hospitalized, on March 30. Billy Ray And Barbara Woods are pictured. Billy Ray died from COVID-19 on Saturday, April 18, 2020. After that, we all started getting tested, Kyra Porter said. Porter said she sought testing at an urgent care facility in Gadsden, but was told they only had three tests and they were testing sparingly. They said I didnt have serious symptoms, she said, although she had a fever, coughing and chills. As some of the family members got sick, Johnjalene Woods took care of them. She was asymptomatic, Porter said, but she also tested positive for COVID-19. Family members quarantined themselves, they said, and continue to as some family members still are recovering. Kyra and Tony Porter live in Anniston. Billy Ray and Barbara Woods, Phacethia, Tyrone Posey and their son, Tyrone Jr.; and Johnjalene Woods live about 30 miles away in Gadsden. All of them, and their cousin Michael became infected. Story continues Kyra Porter said the family was always together on Sundays, but considering the way people fell ill, she didnt think it was a family gathering that caused the spread. They apparently contracted the virus in the course of normal activities, even though they were trying to avoid it. Some family members had worked in health care in the past, but were not currently. Posey and Porter shared their familys story Saturday, before they learned of Billy Ray and Michaels deaths. Posey said he believed people in Gadsden need to wake up to the danger of the virus that cost his wife her life, and take the social-distancing guidelines seriously. Phacethia took medication for rheumatoid arthritis and had slight high blood pressure. She wasnt being treated for the underlying conditions the heart, lung and kidney problems often cited as making people more vulnerable to the virus. For Phacethia, he said, the virus made her very weak, it just drained her. Her body started shutting down, he said. She really was a good person, Posey said. She was the type person, when she left the house, she presented herself well. She didnt go around and collect a lot of friends. But if social media is an indicator, Phacethia Posey had many good friends, who treasured her and her family. They have flooded Facebook in recent days with concerns for this family hit so hard by COVID-19. Theyve shared recollections of good times, good meals cooked, and kindnesses shown, by the members of the family lost to the virus, by those recovering for it, and dealing with its aftermath. With the toll its taken so far on their family, they know the seriousness of the virus and want others to know also thats why they spoke out. People arent taking this virus seriously, especially, it seems the younger people, Posey said. Hes seen people come to visit hugging on each other. I see people out without masks, Posey said. They know its happening, but theyre not taking it seriously. Porter and Posey are troubled by people shouting to reopen businesses and gathering places, as their family grieves. This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Coronavirus: 1 Alabama family, 3 dead, 9 positive tests of COVID-19 A mother-to-be and her carpenter partner are stranded on their sailboat in the Caribbean after the world's borders closed because of COVID-19, and they are desperate to make it back to Australia before the baby is due in October. Michael Okeefe and Jana McGeachy were anchored at Tortola, British Virgin Islands, when they first heard the term 'coronavirus', just days before Jana learned of her pregnancy. 'We were already planning to head back to Australia around April or May, so we didn't initially think too much about coming home early,' Jana told FEMAIL. 'We never in our wildest dreams imagined that there would be a global shutdown, that would result in us being stranded in a foreign country, with a baby on the way and a rapidly dwindling budget.' Michael Okeefe and Jana McGeachy were anchored at Tortola, British Virgin Islands, when they first heard the term 'coronavirus', just days before Jana learned of her pregnancy 'We were already planning to head back to Australia around April or May, so we didn't initially think too much about coming home early,' Jana told FEMAIL (pictured announcing their pregnancy) Sailing in the Caribbean, where they are currently stranded, is seasonal as the hurricane season extends from June through to December. As the pandemic was unfolding in March, Michael and Jana were in the process of heading south, out of the hurricane belt to Grenada, where they would haul the boat - or store it - and fly back to Queensland where they live when not sailing. 'We made it as far as Antigua before the world shut down,' Jana said. There is no movement in the Caribbean at all as land and sea borders have been closed to stop the spread of the infectious coronavirus. Sailing in the Caribbean, where they are currently stranded, is seasonal as the hurricane season extends from June through to December (pictured on their boat) As the pandemic was unfolding in March, Michael and Jana were in the process of heading south, where they would haul the boat - or store it - and fly back to Queensland 'We desperately want to get back to Australia but there aren't any flights out of the country at the moment and we most likely couldn't afford them even if there were flights operating,' Jana said. 'Before the airport closed we saw one way flights from Antigua to Brisbane ranging from $7000 to $17,000 per person one way. We can't sail anywhere else because once we leave Antigua no other country will let us in.' Thankfully there is food and supplies available in Antigua, even though the country is on lockdown with a strict curfew. The couple are allowed out from 7am to noon for food shopping but there are often long queues. Thankfully there is food and supplies available in Antigua, even though the country is on lockdown with a strict curfew Michael and Jana are hoping the travel bans will be lifted soon, so they can sail their boat to Grenada or Trinidad for hurricane season and then get back to Australia as soon as possible On the Thursday before Easter, Jana stood in line at the supermarket for three hours and came home without any food. 'We had just been anchored in a remote anchorage for a week, keeping away from the craziness, so we were low on supplies,' Jana said. 'The supermarkets just closed the doors, shut the shops for the 12pm curfew and that was that. Bad luck. Try again in four days after Easter.' Michael and Jana are hoping the travel bans will be lifted soon, so they can sail their boat to Grenada or Trinidad and then get back to Australia as soon as possible. Their baby is due on October 1, which only hastens their travels, but Jana is feeling 'pretty good', although she does 'have her days', Michael confirmed. Their baby is due on October 1, which only hastens their travels, but Jana is feeling 'pretty good', although she does 'have her days', Michael confirmed 'She feels a bit anxious about the potential for delivering this baby in Antigua, on the boat, in a hurricane, but hopefully it won't come to that.' The sailors bought their boat in Florida in November 2018 after surviving a horrific head-on car crash in the remote West Australian desert in 2016. The experience prompted them to start living the life they desired now, without waiting to fulfil their dreams later on. 'We wanted to travel the world, but we didn't have a big budget, so sailing was the best way for us to do that,' Jana said. 'We loved the idea of living on a yacht and taking our floating home with us all around the world, powered by the wind and the sun, leaving a minimal footprint. 'We loved the idea of living on a yacht and taking our floating home with us all around the world, powered by the wind and the sun, leaving a minimal footprint,' she said 'As surfers and divers, the ocean is where we are most at home. So we joined a local sailing club in Australia called Tweed Valley Sailing Club and learned the basics, then headed overseas to find our boat.' While they would ultimately love to sail full-time they can't afford to live that lifestyle yet. She feels a bit anxious about the potential for delivering this baby in Antigua, on the boat, in a hurricane, but hopefully it won't come to that So instead they spend six months of the year working in Australia and then set sail for as long as they can, returning home when the funds run dry. 'This year will be different though because of what's happening in the world. We aren't sure when we will get back to Australia or what kind of work will be available to us.' For now, there is little more they can do than hope travel bans get lifted in time for them to get back to Australia in time for the birth. You can follow Michael Okeefe and Jana McGeachy on their joint YouTube channel, Nauti Nook Sailing Adventures. Two men have appeared in court in connection with a string of burglaries on the same day, including an incident where an 83-year-old woman had savings of 2,700 stolen from her by thieves who posed as gardai. Anthony Horgan and Christopher Jones, who are both homeless, appeared before a special sitting of Cork District Court yesterday. Judge John King heard drug addict Mr Jones (27) had spent 1,200 on crack cocaine in the 12 hours before his arrest by gardai investigating burglaries in Cork city. He suffers from both heroin and crack cocaine addiction. Neither man made any reply when the charges were put to them under caution. Mr Horgan (44) was charged with nine offences, including his alleged involvement in six burglaries. He also faces one count of handling stolen property, possession of a knife and a threat to cause criminal damage whilst he was being questioned at Togher Garda Station. Mr Jones, who had been receiving support for his addiction until the Covid-19 restrictions, was charged with allegedly being involved in six burglaries and with one count of handling stolen property. The stolen property in both cases involved ATM cards which the men allegedly used at a convenience store in Cork city. In objecting to bail for both men, Detective Garda Padraig Harrington said the charges were very serious in nature. He alleged the men were involved in a "crime spree" which started with a robbery on April 9. A number of robberies occurred on April 17 in occupied houses at among other places High Street, Frankfield Villas and Tyrone Place in the city. In one house, an 83-year-old woman was sleeping in her downstairs bedroom when she woke to the sight of two men who claimed to be members of An Garda Siochana. They said they were investigating a burglary and asked her where her safe place was for her cash. When she directed them to the area they fled the scene with 2,700 in cash and 80 sterling (92). It is understood that five burglaries were carried out in Cork city on April 17 with gardai alleging that Mr Horgan and Mr Jones were the culprits. Det Gda Harrington said that during questioning at Togher Garda Station, Mr Horgan picked up a metal bin and threatened to throw it through the window. He said there was "strong evidence" against both men, including CCTV footage taken from the relevant areas. Eddie Burke, solicitor for Mr Jones, said his client's support system had shut down arising out of the Covid-19 restrictions. His client required methadone and sleeping tablets. He asked that his medical needs be tended to while in custody. Judge King remanded both men in custody. We sincerely apologize to all our customers and investors for causing concerns regarding the recent administrative actions by the MFDS (KFDA). Medytox, which was established in 2000 as a venture biotech company, developed Meditoxin as the first botulinum toxin product in Korea and fourth in the world. In 2013, Medytox developed INNOTOX, which is the first ever liquid botulinum toxin product. In 2016, Medytox also developed Coretox, which reduces the immune response risk by using non-animal sourced media in the manufacturing process for the first time in the world. Medytox now exports these three products to 60 countries. In addition, Medytox achieved 121.6 billion won in exports, which is 60 percent of total sales, in 2019. We are also anticipating the approval of the license in China this year, which will result in even greater sales. There have been no reports to date of any severe adverse effects for using Meditoxin, which has manufactured 1,690 vials (100 unit equivalent) from the date of initial launching in the market to 2019. The Meditoxin issue was initiated by actions by MFDS based on a report in 2019 to the Korea Anti-Corruption & Civil Right Commission by a former Medytox employee, surnamed A, who was working for Daewoong pharmaceutical in 2019. The issue arose from prosecution investigation based on a report that Medytox used ingredients without change of permission for some of Meditoxin products manufactured from December 2012 to June 2015. Following the above report, the MFDS and prosecution have investigated Medytox several times and currently related hearings are ongoing. On April 17, the MFDS suspended manufacturing and sales of Meditoxin 50 unit, 100 unit and 150 unit products, based on Article 71 of the Pharmaceutical Act. Medytox's position in regard to such decision by the MFDS is as follow 1. Actions of MFDS are based on the article 71 of the Pharmaceutical Act pertains to concerns over current "public health" based on sales and manufacturing. However, the period related to the Meditoxin issues was from the manufacturing period of December 2012 to June 2015. Meditoxin products manufactured during such period have all been used a long time ago and no longer exist. Therefore, no harm to public health can currently exist. 2. The Meditoxin products that are currently being distributed were manufactured after April 2017. Medytox not only received a conformity decision on the inspection for distributed products which was undertaken in 2016 and 2018 by the MFDS, but also had no issues whatsoever during the MFDS' numerous inspections concerning special observations and random collections for distributed products in terms of efficacy and safety within the shelf life. In this connection, Medytox submitted a request for suspension of execution on the MFDS' order and for cancellation of the MFDS' order to the Daejeon District Court at 9pm on April 19. Currently, based on the order by the MFDS, Medytox temporarily has suspended the manufacturing and sales of Meditoxin. In response to the above, Medytox plans to increase revenue by promoting INNOTOX and Coretox, which are advanced new botulinum toxin type A products. As a leading global company in the botulinum toxin industry, Medytox has developed the world's first pre-filled syringe botulinum toxin products for maximizing usage convenience. Also the R&D division, comprised of 20 percent of all employees, will soon develop innovative new bio products. Medytox again offers a sincere apology to its shareholders and customers. Taking this opportunity, Medytox will do our best to prevent this from occurring again in the future by preparing internal verification processes and strengthening a continuous monitoring system. Finally, the recent order of the MFDS is related to the production process of Meditoxin which occurred in the past. We note that this issue is a separate and unrelated issue from the legal disputes with Daewoong Pharmaceutical at the U.S International Trade Commission (ITC) and the civil and criminal cases with respect to the theft of Medytox's botulinum toxin strain and manufacturing process. The truth will start to unfold with the ITC's initial determination on June 5. WESTERNVILLE, N.Y. --- Governor Cuomo announced that he will be loosening the restrictions on marinas and boatyards to just personal use. 4 days ago, the Governor announced that he was limiting boat launches and marinas to use for only essential services. Some boaters were already trying to make their way out onto the water at A OK Marina in Westernville. Boater Dino Hluska said he is relieved to be back out on the water. "It's nice to feel like you're able to live again. We understand there's a big crisis, but it's nice to have a little bit of life back," said Hluska. A OK Marina owner Johnathan Bronsan said he too is relieved but worried that if social distancing isn't followed, the state could once again shut them down. He was also concerned with the state's lack of detail on the "personal use" aspect of the new rule. In a statement, the Governor's office stating, "Marinas, boatyards and marine manufacturers will be allowed to open for personal use as long as strict social distancing and sanitization protocols are followed." In that statement, there is no mention of recreational boating. Bronsan said its something that needs to be clarified. "I don't know how to define any of that. I guess we will be looking for guidance from my officials to tell me what we can do and what we cant," said Bronsan. "The state also said that chartered watercraft services or rentals will not be allowed, and restaurant activity at these sites must be limited to take-out or delivery only." In terms of demand, Bronsan said that he's already been getting numerous calls for people wanting their boats in the water. But doesn't currently have the staff to keep up with demand. "We don't have anybody in terms of staff back here to be taking care of things and when they do come back we are going to be just overwhelmed so hopefully they have the patience to wait for us," said Bronsan. The Dail and Seanad will have to sit in the Convention Centre at a cost of 50,000 per day because it would be unconstitutional to have virtual sittings during the coronavirus restrictions, TDs have been told. Taxpayers will foot the bill for TDs and senators moving to the 8,000-seater event and concert venue on Dublin's North Wall Quay after Oireachtas authorities were told virtual sittings, where some politicians would appear via video link, would be unconstitutional because they would not be covered by parliamentary privilege. Several Dail sittings of 50 or fewer TDs have taken place in Leinster House in recent weeks. However, all 160 TDs will have to be present for the vote to elect a new Taoiseach and, it has now emerged, for sittings on budget matters and possible legislative changes in the coming months. Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail said it was expected there would be a number of sittings in the Convention Centre as long as social distancing was in place. The Seanad will also use the venue when it is fully constituted. A number of TDs have questioned the Dail Business Committee's decision to approve the plan in recent weeks. Mr O Fearghail acknowledged to the Irish Independent there was a "significant cost" involved. "It's a huge cost, but there is a cost involved in every sitting in Leinster House as well," he said. While the Oireachtas has said there is no cost for hiring the Convention Centre, there will be an initial 110,000 outlay to equip its auditorium with microphones as well as broadcasting costs. Each sitting day will then cost around 50,000 raising the prospect of a substantial bill if the Dail sits there several times this year. In an email to Fianna Fail TD James Lawless last Friday, the Ceann Comhairle ruled out virtual sittings, saying: "The advice is that the virtual sitting facilitated by the IT system would be radically different to the type of parliamentary assembly authorised by the Constitution." Mr O Fearghail said the advice from a senior counsel was that politicians would not "benefit from immunities in respect of utterances" outside of Leinster House. "Mindful of the need for social distancing at present, the Business Committee has approved that the Dail will sit in the Convention Centre Dublin when there is a need for all 160 members to be present, such as for the nomination of Taoiseach and members of the Cabinet, estimates, legislation, etc," he said in his email. Mr Lawless said the Dail should be able to pass legislation or update standing orders to get around the constitutional issues. "I think a hybrid model, with some members present, and others participating online, may cover all bases and it may allow us to save significant, unnecessary costs." Fianna Fail TD Marc MacSharry said: "I am not convinced the strategy is necessary or in the best interests of limited taxpayer resources." He said voting and speaking times could be staggered to limit the numbers in the Dail at any one time. A Fine Gael source questioned why the Dail could not sit in Dublin Castle, and said the decision would have to be "revisited". Mr O Fearghail pointed out that the decision to locate to the Convention Centre was approved by the Business Committee, which has representatives from all parties. The UK parliament will hold a partially virtual sitting this week, with up to 50 MPs in the Commons and 120 online via Zoom. The European Parliament has allowed MEPs to vote via email and remote voting procedures are in place in Spain and Romania with other EU countries examining it. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rina Chandran and Kim Harrisberg (Thomson Reuters Foundation) Bangkok, Thailand/Johannesburg, South Africa Mon, April 20, 2020 15:17 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd30b66e 2 World coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-death-toll,cemetery,grave,burial,pandemic Free The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the problem of scarce burial space in cities, even as health concerns and tight budgets force more families to opt against traditional grave burials, land rights experts said on Monday. As cities around the world have rapidly expanded in recent decades, urban cemeteries have filled up or been dug up to build roads and homes, leading to an increase in cremations. "This trend will continue with urbanization. COVID-19 may just cause us to think about this in the immediate term," said Peter Davies, an associate professor at the department of earth and environmental sciences at Australia's Macquarie University. "There would be increasing pressure for cremations as a more cost- and space-effective, and possibly safer solution from a disease transmission perspective," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Globally, there have been more than 2 million reported cases of the coronavirus, and more than 165,000 people have died, according to a Reuters tally. Before the outbreak, in cities such as Singapore and Hong Kong where even columbaria for urns containing ashes have filled up, historians and conservationists moved to protect the last remaining cemeteries and safeguard their heritage and tradition. In Britain, cities where burials are still the norm have proposed shared burial plots as space runs out. The challenge facing city authorities now - to dispose of bodies quickly and safely - was brought to the fore when a New York City councilman said earlier this month that public parks may be used as temporary burial grounds. City officials refuted the claim, but said some recent burials in a so-called potter's field on Hart Island, which has been used since the 19th century for burying the poor or those with no known next of kin, included victims of the coronavirus. In Ecuador, authorities are preparing an emergency burial ground on land donated by a private cemetery in Guayaquil, the country's largest city, to address a shortage of burial plots. Communal graves Cemeteries in South Africa have been asked to identify land for emergency burials, and consider "communal graves" for 20 bodies in the event of many coronavirus deaths, said Pepe Dass, chairman of the South African Cemeteries Association. "South Africa has serious issues with access to land in metropolitan areas, but also in rural areas," said Dass, adding that conservation and residential developments take precedence, not cemeteries because they are not considered sustainable. "I definitely hope South Africa will become more sustainable in the way we think about burials. This is a wake up call." As the pandemic brings greater awareness of mortality and consideration of funerary practices, there is an opportunity to rethink how we care for the dead, said David Neustein, an architect in Sydney and an advocate of "natural burial". "It is the simplest, least energy-intensive alternative we have, and one that is highly compatible with environmental repair and regeneration," he said of the process in which a body is simply put into the ground in designated areas, casket-free. Neustein had earlier proposed a "burial belt", where bodies are placed in the soil among newly planted vegetation near towns and cities. It would reforest cleared land and create "near-limitless" land for burial, he said. "It can be implemented much more quickly than conventional cemeteries ... and provide lasting green monuments to this terrible time," he said. Some relieved to get back to work, others left fretting in country that has reported over 1,000 coronavirus cases. The streets of Accra buzzed with life on Monday, a day after Ghanas President Nana Akufo-Addo announced the end of a three-week lockdown on movement around the capital and the city of Kumasi. While some Ghanaians were relieved to get back to work, others were left fretting after the country became the first in Africa to lift a coronavirus lockdown. Jemima Adwoa Anim was overjoyed to be back out hawking her wares as pedestrians and cars returned to Accras central business district. It is a huge reprieve. We have a listening government, she was quoted as saying by AFP news agency. 200408192048642 It was a war-like situation. We had no money and we couldnt step out to work to earn some cash. God bless our president. Ghana has so far confirmed 1,042 infections, with nine deaths, from the novel coronavirus. The country of approximately 30 million has ramped up testing and checked over 68,000 samples. President Akufo-Addo announced the lifting of restrictions in a televised address late on Sunday, saying the decision was taken in view of our ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing of infected people, the enhancement of our capacity to test, the expansion in the numbers of our treatment and isolation centres. This decision to restrict movement has occasioned a number of severe difficulties for all of us across the country, especially for the poor and vulnerable, he said. However, around the capital, there was plenty of criticism for the decision to ease restrictions. This is totally ridiculous. How is it possible? asked 20-year-old student Francis Collison. We just recorded over 1,000 positive cases of COVID-19 and suddenly the president decided to lift the partial lockdown. Shopkeeper Rita Baido insisted she was not happy with the decision but had no option but to open her store and try to make money in the Accra suburb of Mallam. It has not been easy indoors, but I think it was the best solution to keep us safe, she said. Akufo-Addo said people were encouraged to wear a mask wherever you go to help contain the spread of the virus. Intensive care: Patients are treated for Covid-19 in an ICU in Porto Allegre, Brazil. Photo: REUTERS/Diego Vara Intensive care specialists have expressed serious concern about the ability to cope with the needs of severely ill patients who have the coronavirus or other illnesses as hospitals resume regular work. Dr Catherine Motherway, president of the Intensive Care Society of Ireland, and colleagues warned Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and other party leaders in an open letter that it is urgent critical care is properly funded and staffed to meet the demands of the ongoing crisis. Their warning came as the death toll from Covid-19 in Ireland rose to 610 yesterday with 39 more deaths announced. The number of confirmed cases of the virus now stands at 15,251. The risk of intensive care units (ICUs) being overwhelmed with the sickest coronavirus patients has receded for now and admissions to intensive care have stabilised or reduced due to the restrictive measures. Dr Motherway said that as of April 14 hospitals across the country could safely care for 421 patients needing critical care. But she said this additional critical care surge capacity was a short-term solution and not sustainable. "It is provided by staff who are redeployed working with the support of ICU staff," she said. "They will ultimately have to return to their usual posts to provide services to our non-Covid population who will require definitive care in the next few weeks to months as we move through this pandemic. "As the curve is controlled in due course, those patients requiring complex surgery for cancer, heart disease, transplant and other surgeries will need access to care and have the same right of access to critical care as patients suffering from Covid-19. "Ethically and morally this country must insist that the required expansion in ICU capacity is funded, so we can offer appropriate care to all our critically-ill patients and cope with the difficult months ahead." She pointed to the shortage of critical care beds before the coronavirus crisis hit and how various reports highlighting the need for an increase were not acted upon. It prompted the European Centre for Disease Control to assess that Ireland was at extremely high risk of saturation in advance of the emergency restrictions here. "Given our well-documented low number of public ICU beds per capita - 5.2 per 100,000 compared to European norms of 11.5 per 100,000 - this was no surprise." Paying tribute to the way the population complied with the restrictions, she said they "have saved many lives". She added: "The people of this country have heeded the advice of our public health doctors and NEPHT (National Public Health Emergency Team) and this has allowed us time to prepare our hospitals, particularly our ICUs. "For this, we thank our population who have made enormous contributions and sacrifices in the last number of weeks." As the prospect of a tsunami of very ill coronavirus patients loomed last month, the intensive care specialists with the help of large numbers of staff redeployed from many other specialities and "created additional capacity in a truly short time frame to cope with the expected surge in cases of Covid-19 presenting to our hospitals. "We are enormously grateful for the cooperation of all staff who have stepped up in this unprecedented situation. Most of our elective and semi-urgent work requiring critical care has been deferred to create capacity. "We are concerned for the many patients who wait anxiously with serious diagnoses for access to care and we are keen that their needs are addressed. "Our pre-pandemic ICU occupancy of 88pc nationally and over 96pc in major units is well above the international recommended rate of 75pc. "For too long the request of the critical care community for appropriate capacity has been deferred. "Serial reports over the past 15 years have consistently documented the inadequacy of critical care capacity in Ireland. "It is now time to identify how and where we can expand capacity in the short term. "We must assist hospitals to quickly build appropriate isolation facilities which are urgently required. We have to recruit and retain the additional staff required." Lao Christians attending an outdoor mass service in May 2019 in Kaleum Vangkae village in Savannakhet Province. A pastor in Kaleum Vangkae was arrested for organizing a mass service with permission, March 15, 2020. A Lao Christian pastor was arrested on March 15 for conducting a religious ceremony without permission from authorities and is being held without charge or visits from his family amid measures to counter the coronavirus epidemic, RFA has learned. Pastor Sithon Thiphavong, 34 was arrested on March 15 in the village of Kaleum Vangkae in the Chonnaburi District, of Savannakhet Province for organizing a mass service with permission, several villagers told RFAs Lao Service. He was arrested for teaching religion, a resident of the village said, confirming the arrest. On Sunday morning, March 15, the authorities invited him at the spot where the service took place to the village office, said a second source, a Christian in Savannakhet Province. The two parties talked but couldnt agree on anything. Then the authorities took him to the district where hes staying, the source said. The Christian added that the authorities have not formally charged Sithon with any offense, nor have they allowed family members to visit him. However, family members are allowed to send him food via the authorities every day and were told that his case will be dealt with after the COVID-19 lockdown lifts in Laos, the source added. RFA called the provincial police department, and office of the Lao Front for Construction, a government department that oversees religious affairs, but received no reply. While one-party communist Laos constitution ostensibly protects its peoples inherent right to religious freedom, regulations controlling religious observance in Laos are vaguely worded and open to interpretation by local authorities, said an April 2019 report by the bipartisan U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom. Those Laotians who believe in Jesus Christ are arrested. Right now, we were told not to go out and they (the Christians) didnt listen. The authorities have warned them; again they wouldnt listen. Thats why they (he) were arrested, a neighbor of the detained pastor told RFA on April 17. In December 2018, four Christians and their three leaders in the Phin district of Savannakhet Province were summoned and made to undergo reeducation at the district office for celebrating Christmas without permission. They were freed after seven days. On February 25, 14 people from three Christian families were evicted from their village in Long District in Luang Namtha Province because they refused to denounce their faith. Their houses were demolished. The Washington-based USCIRF placed Laos on its Tier 2 Watch List for what it called continuing serious abuses of religious freedoms.Some Lao authorities remained deeply suspicious of Christians, sometimes resulting in social exclusion, harassment, and arbitrary detention by law enforcement officials, the USCIRF said, adding that it had received reports throughout 2018 of persecution of Christians in Savannakhet, a province known for its religious intolerance. Reported by RFAs Lao Service. Translated by Max Avary. Written in English by Paul Eckert. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 14:30:13 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 874 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Naval radars are gaining traction due to rising terrorist activities across the globe and geopolitical tensions across all nationsROCKVILLE, MD / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Increased spending on defense to strengthen the naval fleet and secure the coastal line from terrorist threats and geopolitical tensions is driving the market for naval radars. Projecting the market growth at a steady CAGR of 4% during the forecast period (2019 - 2029), a new market study by Fact.MR provides an inclusive analysis of the naval radar market. The growth is further complemented by advancements in defense sectors of emerging economies, which are providing lucrative opportunities for manufacturers in the naval radar market.Naval Radar Market - Key TakeawaysSurveillance radars will remain the most sought-out product types and will grow 1.3X in value during the forecast period, owing to competition between nations for maritime resources utilized for scanning, searching, and identifying targets.Navigation radars will account for a quarter of market value and continue growing at a significant rate, on the back of their ability to prevent accidents.North America and Europe will collectively account for more than 1/3rd of market value, owing to their preparedness to counterterrorist attacks.Canada is also significantly investing to upgrade its defense sector, thereby contributing to the market value.Invigorated by increasing demand for surveillance radars for border surveillance and intelligence, South East Asia and Oceania will bestow substantial revenue opportunities for manufacturers, and grow market value at a higher CAGR.Request Sample Report-Naval Radar Market - Key Driving FactorsIncreasing terrorism threats are asserting nations to equip high standard defense mechanisms and logistics, thereby propelling the demand for naval radars.Favorable government initiatives and political intent to proliferate the growth of the shipbuilding industry in countries like China, South Korea, and Japan are positively influencing the market growth.Up-gradation of the existing radar platforms from existing radar systems to multi-band and multi-role radar system is propelling the market growth.Naval Radar Market - Key RestraintsThe market is highly dependent on the nation's economic standpoint, and an economic slowdown could take a toll on the defense budget, thereby limiting sales.The high costs associated with research & development activities and the manufacturing of naval radars activities is likely to adversely impact the market.Explore 78 tables and 132 figures in the study. Request ToC of the report at-The Coronavirus ImpactAs the world is focusing its resources towards combating the threat of the coronavirus outbreak, geopolitical maneuvers have largely flown under the radar. As the coronavirus continues to kill thousands and impacting crucial healthcare systems around the globe, government authorities have largely been occupied with the crisis.However, global militaries continue to remain on high alert to counter actions by international rivals. For instance, the United States has conducted missile tests in the Philippine sea. It has also sent guided missile destroyers through the Taiwan Strait. China has also continued to fly jet fighters towards Taiwan. With countries continuing to push military action around the world, the global demand for naval radars is unlikely to decline in the near future despite the outbreak, throughout the forecast period.Competition LandscapeSome of the key players in the naval radar market are Lockheed Martin Corporation, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Raytheon Company, Saab AB, and BAE Systems, among others. The market players are focusing on product innovations and are striving to provide advanced technology and customized solutions.About the ReportThis 170-page study offers readers a comprehensive market forecast of the global naval radar market. With historical demand data (2014-2018) and forecast statistics for the period, 2019-2029, the study divulges compelling insights on the naval radar market on the basis of type (surveillance radar, fire control radar, and navigation radar), application (merchant marine, fishing vessel, yacht/recreational boat, and military naval) and across 6 key regions (North America, Latin America, Europe, East Asia, South Asia & Oceania, and Middle East & Africa).Explore Fact.MR's Comprehensive Coverage on Industrial Goods LandscapeRemote Weapon Market - Learn more about the major influencing factors affecting the remote weapon market which is set for strong growth during the projection period (2019-2029).Military Rifle Market - Acquire in-depth insights about the global military rifle market through Fact.MR's detailed report covering end-use segments, market dynamics, recent material developments and prominent market players for the forecast period of 2019-2029.Ammunition Market- Obtain Fact.MR's exhaustive analysis on the global ammunition market spanning dynamic market factors, key trends and successful strategies of market leaders projected for 2019-2029.About Fact.MR Expert analysis, actionable insights, and strategic recommendations of the veteran research team at Fact.MR helps clients from across the globe with their unique business intelligence requirements. With a repository of over thousand reports and 1 million+ data points, the team has scrutinized the industrial Goods industry across 50+ countries for over a decade. The team provides unmatched end-to-end research and consulting services. Fact.MR's latest market reports and industry analysis help businesses navigate challenges and take critical decisions with confidence and clarity amidst breakneck competition.Contact:11140 Rockville PikeSuite 400Rockville, MD 20852United StatesEmail: sales@ factmr.com Web: https://www.factmr.com/ PR- https://www.factmr.com/media-release/1382/global-naval-radar-market SOURCE: FactMR Afghan Doctor Fights On The Front Line Of Iran's Coronavirus Battle 03/29/20 Source: RFE/RL Najibeh Gholami was already doing a medical internship at Mashhad's Imam Reza Hospital in February when the coronavirus pandemic reached that home of one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest shrines. An Afghan physician-in-training in her mid-20s, she quickly volunteered to help tend to COVID-19 patients in that northeastern Iranian city. Najibeh Gholami is caring for COVID-19 patients in Mashhad, Iran's second-largest city Thousands there have been infected with the virus, many of them fatally, making it one of the most beleaguered places in the region's hardest-hit country. "I'm doing my duty," Gholami, who came to Iran on a scholarship and studied emergency medicine, told RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan in late March. The deadly SARS-CoV-2 virus that emerged from central China is believed to have entered Iran through the city of Qom in February before waylaying ill-prepared hospitals and officials who spent weeks denying or downplaying the outbreak. The related, pneumonia-like illness, COVID-19, has now killed nearly 5,000 Iranians and around 78,000 more, according to official figures, which even officials themselves appear to acknowledge are vastly underreported. Despite tight censorship of social and other media, scenes have been shared of overwhelmed and underprotected medical staff working day and night amid reports of widespread shortages and high infection rates among doctors and nurses. Lives On The Line Just in the past few weeks, around 50 doctors and nurses have died in Iran after contracting COVID-19. Yet, Gholami said, she and her colleagues have overcome their fear of infection in order to do their jobs as best they can. "This is the path I've chosen, and I remain committed to the oath I took to serve the sick and help save their lives," she said. "There is fear, of course, but my colleagues have put their lives on the line and they are serving people tirelessly." Gholami said the happiness and relief of the families and relatives of patients who have recovered from the deadly coronavirus are among her best memories. Speaking late last month, she said that, while dozens of new COVID-19 patients were being admitted each day, that number was a fraction of the figure just weeks before. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that over 3 million Afghans are residing in Iran, including refugees and migrant workers, where some have complained of discrimination. Amid the worsening of the coronavirus outbreak in the Islamic republic, thousands have reportedly crossed the border and returned home. Gholami, who is now on staff at Imam Reza Hospital, said many Afghans have been treated there and recovered. "Medicine doesn't [differentiate]," she told RFE/RL. "We ask our patients about their problems and we try to help them. It doesn't matter where patients are from; if they need to be hospitalized, they will receive the care they need." Gholami said she hoped to one day use her experience to help those in need in her own country, Afghanistan, where only around 700 coronavirus infections have been reported. "The experience I've earned here working with top specialists has been very important to me." Written by Golnaz Esfandiari based on reporting by Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Nusrat Parsa. On April 9, Israels Jerusalem Post reported Trumps Department of Defense (sic) sent over a million face masks to the Israel Defense (Occupation) Forces, thus again demonstrating his neocon infested administration is busy making Israel Great Again (for Jewsall goyim are second class citizens). They put Kushner in charge of acquiring masks for the US which is experiencing a shortage. So he stole them from the US's allies then gave them all to Israel.https://t.co/jqa6kDHRYn Syrian Girl (@Partisangirl) April 11, 2020 It didnt take long for Americans suffering lockdown and a serious shortage of face masks and other PPE items to vent their anger. From Al Bawaba: An Israeli press report claiming the US Department of Defense had shipped one million face masks to Israel to help protect Israeli soldiers has angered Americans, causing some to question the Trump administrations priorities amid the coronavirus pandemic amid reports of shortages of protective equipment for US health workers. The IDF basically controls the media in Israel, so the mention was deleted from the Post. The Pentagons alleged shipment was initially reported by the Jerusalem Post, however mention of American involvement was later scrubbed, raising suspicions that US public anger may have forced Israeli military censors to act. Israels army is notorious for tightly monitoring media output, having barred or redacted over 2,000 stories just last year, according to the Movement for Freedom of Information. Meanwhile, due to serious shortages, the Pentagon has ordered the Department of Veteran Affairs to decide which workers get masks and which dont. A shortage of face masks has led the Department of Veterans Affairs to tell hospitals to decide which employees get masks and which dont, according to internal memos https://t.co/EVIlVj8i78 The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) April 12, 2020 And when workers complain, they are fired. But rest assured, the US taxpayer-financed occupationworse than apartheidof Gaza and whats left of the West Bank will continue and the enforcers of Israels ongoing crimes against humanity will be protected from the virus, thanks to Trump, his settler-friendly son-in-law, and the Pentagon. In the meantime, you should look for an old t-shirt to cut up and fashion into a worthless cloth fear mask that does virtually nothing to protect you. In early February, as their flight departed the airport in Wuhan, China, William Lowe and his wife, Xiaoli, thought they had escaped the most dangerous place on Earth. The Maryland couple and their 5-year-old daughter had been visiting Xiaoli's parents in Hubei province, the original hot spot of the novel coronavirus outbreak, when they were evacuated. When the cargo plane chartered by the U.S. government to fly them and other Americans out of China finally landed at Travis Air Force Base in California, William breathed a huge sigh of relief. Back on U.S. soil, he felt a sense of security. He believed the human and medical disaster unfolding in China couldn't happen here. He trusted the United States would respond with its scientific and economic might to prevent an outbreak of similar scale. That was then. Following a two-week quarantine at Lackland Air Force Base near San Antonio, the family returned to their Baltimore County home and soon realized the invisible threat they had escaped in China was already spreading quickly in the United States. Now, two months after leaving Wuhan, they find themselves anxiously waiting for the pandemic to peak in their community. And wondering about what will follow. In the meantime, the sense of security he felt about being back in the United States has evaporated. "I assumed the federal government would be doing things to prepare. The level at which that wasn't done is astounding and exasperating," William, who is on sabbatical from his teaching position at Howard County Community College, said in a phone interview. "That period of denial has put us in a much worse position." When they first arrived back from China, Xiaoli, a doctoral candidate in the school of education at the University of Maryland, would call her family every day to check on them and make sure none had caught the virus. Now the tables have turned. It is her family and friends in China who call and email to check on her health and safety. "They are all very worried about us," Xiaoli said. "My high school classmates have collected masks to send to me. Every day they ask me how I'm doing and what I need." In China, Xiaoli said, life is slowly starting to return to normal. Schools are still closed, but more and more people, including her siblings and her father, have returned to work. Her family and friends still get their temperature taken when they leave their homes in the morning and when they go into stores and supermarkets. There is an extensive tracking system that attempts to test and isolate anyone showing coronavirus symptoms. "People are relaxing a little bit, but I think everyone is being very cautious because they know there are asymptomatic people," she said. "No one really goes to public places. Big restaurants are not open." Having life return to normal in Maryland feels a long way off for Xiaoli, William and their daughter. Xiaoli has not left the home in more than a month, other than to take short walks in the neighborhood. All of the family's food is delivered. The only interaction with the outside world is on social media video platforms. William rides his bike, but at Xiaoli's urging he has gone out less. "I'm just more concerned all the time," Xiaoli said. "The message that this virus is very dangerous really registers with me both through my experiences and my mom's constant nagging." Xiaoli said she's pleased with how Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) has handled the pandemic and credits him for being among the first governors to shut schools and nonessential business. But like her husband, she is dismayed with the federal response and wishes the government would have acted sooner and with more urgency. "I really feel angry," she said. "I feel the federal government really played this down at the beginning before they took any strict measures." Until last year, Xiaoli taught in the Baltimore City school system. One of the most difficult things for her has been knowing how many low-income students are stuck at home without computers or laptops. For them, she said, the learning has stopped. "With this crisis I feel they will be left behind," she said, starting to cry. "The government really needs to allocate more resources to city students. My heart is with the students." Xiaoli said she takes comfort that so many Americans have practiced social distancing and made great sacrifices to keep themselves and others healthy. But as the death toll in the United States continues to mount and signs point to it becoming the country hardest hit by covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, William and Xiaoli can't help but think about their journey from Wuhan two months ago. "The irony is that the evacuation flight was to get us out of a danger zone," William said. "And now we're in a danger zone, and things are much worse here than they are in China." By Ismael Lopez MANAGUA, April 20 (Reuters) - Anti-government protesters in southern Nicaragua held a police officer captive for seven hours before he was set free on Monday, as they demanded the release of several youths they claimed had been arrested for opposing President Daniel Ortega. The protests in the town of Esquipulas on Ometepe island were among many small demonstrations and social media campaigns across Nicaragua over the weekend marking the two-year anniversary of the start of rallies against Ortega's government. The clashes between pro-government forces and protesters left more than 300 people dead and prompted thousands to go into exile. Henry Ruiz, the leader of an Ortega opposition movement in Ometepe who lives in Esquipulas, said several young people who took part in peaceful protests were arrested after waving flags in Nicaragua's traditional colors that symbolize opposition to Ortega. "The youths raised blue and white flags and the police came firing to stop them. They injured two and took five to jail," Ruiz said in an interview. "The people are furious." Videos on social media on Sunday night showed a group of people with machetes and sticks, including women and young people, standing in a circle around a bloodied police officer sitting against stone wall, and calling for the release of the activist group. Early on Monday, Nicaraguan authorities sent special troops to surround the community and freed the police officer. Nicaragua's police said in a statement that the officer had been beaten and taken to a residential home on Sunday after police apprehended a group of locals in what it called a "state of drunkenness." The U.S. government in March imposed sanctions on Nicaragua's police over accusations of human rights abuses, including shooting at peaceful protesters and carrying out extrajudicial killings, disappearances and kidnappings. (Reporting by Ismael Lopez, Writing by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Richard Chang) Iran finally frees Christian woman imprisoned for talking about Christianity Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment An Iranian Christian woman, who was sent to prison in 2018 after being convicted of spreading propaganda against the regime for discussing Christian doctrine inside a house church has been released, according to the U.K.-based group Christian Solidarity Worldwide. Fatemeh Bakhteri, who was sentenced to 12 months in prison on Sept. 22, 2018, after being found guilty of her charges, was released earlier this month, CSW said in a statement. The Iranian Christian convert, from the Church of Iran denomination, was granted temporary release from the infamous Evin prison on March 15 due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the Islamic countrys overcrowded prisons, CSW explained. On April 12, Bakhteri was told by prison authorities that she doesnt have to return to prison. Bakhteri was arrested along with another Christian, Saheb Fadaie, on the same charges. Fadaie was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Local sources told CSW that the verdict against them claimed that they discussed Christian doctrine in house churches which was considered an attack on Islam. We welcome Fatemeh Bakhteris release, but note that the charges against her were unfounded and amount to criminalizing Christian activities, CSWs Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said. Ms. Bakhteri has spent a year away from her loved ones for discussing Christian doctrine with fellow Christians, which is not illegal, Thomas added. She is amongst many Iranians who are being penalized for adopting a religion of their choice. Bakhteri was one of over 85,000 prisoners serving short-term prison sentences who were released around March in an attempt by the Iranian regime to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Around the same time, a 35-year-old Iranian Christian, Ramiel Bet Tamraz, was also released three months early from his four-month prison sentence for participating in house churches. Tamraz had been in prison since early January and was released in late February. We are very happy and excited that Ramiel is safe and back home. This was a big surprise and a miracle for our family, his sister, Assyrian Christian Dabrina Bet-Tamraz, told Al Arabiya English. We still pray for those who are in prison, for God's protection over their health. Dabrina had met with President Trump at the White House last July. Many who have gained their freedom in the mass release will only be released temporarily and will have to go back to prison at a later date. But Tamraz will not have to serve the remainder of his time. Iran has for years been designated by the U.S. State Department as a country of particular concern for religious freedom violations. Last December, nine Christians, who were arrested in January and February 2019, were sentenced to a combined total of 45 years in prison by Irans Revolutionary Court. In Iran, it is illegal for a Muslim to convert to Christianity. Iran ranks as the ninth-worst country in the world when it comes to Christian persecution on Open Doors USAs 2020 World Watch List. At least 169 Christians were arrested in Iran during the organizations 2019 reporting period Nov. 1, 2018, to Oct. 31, 2019. Hill County's May City, School Elections Moved To November Hill County cities and schools have delayed May elections to assist the state with its COVID-19 mitigation efforts. On March 18, Governor Greg Abbott suspended a portion of the Texas Election Code to allow entities to move elections scheduled for May 2 to November 3. At that time, the governor strongly encouraged those planning elections to delay them. That language was strengthened when the state's stay-at-home order went into place in April, and the Texas secretary of state's office instructed entities that they must delay their elections. While some local cities and schools did not need elections after all candidates were uncontested, several others will now be holding their scheduled elections Tuesday, November 3. The City of Whitney, Whitney Independent School District (ISD), the City of Hubbard, Aquilla ISD, and the City of Bynum have all announced November elections. Both the city and school will need elections in Whitney, with multiple candidates seeking office. The two-year terms of Chip Hundley, Robert Ross and Valery Peacock are expiring on the Whitney City Council. Peacock filed to keep her seat, and also filing for council positions were Jerry Barker, Mary Rae and Wendy Dove. The three-year terms of Ray Mabry and Lyle Eubank are expiring on the Whitney school board, and both will seek re-election. They will be challenged by Gary Northcutt and Stephen Hunt. The City of Hubbard will have nine candidates vying for three positions on its council. Filing were incumbents Kenneth Baldwin, Evelyn Hawthorne and Lynn Hammer along with Connie Davis, Simone Johnson, Chris Howell, Marty Kimbrough, Wayne Taylor and Will Brumley. Aquilla ISD has two positions available on its school board, with the terms of Tim Henderson and Jamie Simmons expiring. Simmons filed for re-election, and Tamara Harrison, Jade McCurdy and Will Pinner will also be candidates in the election. The City of Bynum has three candidates seeking the office of mayor, including incumbent David Waller, Thom Hanson and Casi Wood. "Right now, the state's focus is responding to COVID-19, including social distancing and avoiding large gatherings," Governor Abbott said last month. "By delaying this election, our local election officials can assist in that effort." Delayed elections will not otherwise adjust the term of office of those elected, according to the governor's proclamation. Three more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Jharkhand on Monday, taking the total in the state to 44, a top health official said. Principal Secretary (Health) Nitin Madan Kulkarni said one person each from Ranchi, Bokaro and Hazaribag districts tested positive for the virus. A 50-year-old man tested positive in Bokaro district's Sadam village, Chief Medical Officer Dr Ashok Kumar Pathak said in a report. He is a relative of a 70-year-old man who died of the disease on April 8. He is being treated at the isolation ward of Bokaro General Hospital, Pathak said. Jharkhand has reported two deaths due to coronavirus so far. Of the total, Ranchi district has reported 25 cases, followed by 10 in Bokaro, three in Hazaribagh, two each in Simdega and Dhanbad and one each in Koderma and Giridih districts. Meanwhile, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday expressed happiness at the recovery of four COVID-19 patients. "There is good from the health department. Four coronavirus patients have recovered fully. This is the signal of our victory," Soren tweeted. Crediting and saluting the 'warriors' against the novel coronavirus, Soren said, "I express my gratitude from deep of my heart to health workers, police personnel, cleaning staff, sisters of Sakhi Mandals and other warriors." Congratulating the entire staff of the Health Department, the chief minister expressed optimism about absolute victory over the virus. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nigerian Soldiers The Nigerian Army has announced that troops of Operation Lafiya Dole killed 105 Boko Haram members in a recent offensive that was carried out against the insurgents. In a statement released by the Nigerian Army spokesman Col. Sagir Musa on Sunday April 19, it was gathered that the terrorists were killed in north eastern Yobe state on the outskirts of Buni Gari village after Brigadier General Lawrence Araba followed a credible lead. Two soldiers were injured in the operations and a large amount of ammunition was seized. Chief of Army Staff, Yusuf Buratai reportedly felt elated after being briefed by the commander during his visit to the Field Abulance Logistic Base 3 and Special Forces School on Sunday. The statement reads; The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Yusufu Buratai, applauded the troops for their gallantry and resilience that led to the killing of the 105 terrorists at Buni Gari in Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe state on Saturday the 18th of April 2020. Gen Buratai visited two officers that were wounded in action during the Buni Gari encounter and other soldiers already on admission at the medical facility in Damaturu before proceeding to the Special Forces School in Buni Yadi where he and his entourage were briefed on the incident by the Commander, Sector 2 OPLD, Brig Gen Lawrence Araba. Araba informed Buratai that the recent success was as a result of intelligence report which revealed a plan by Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists to attack the village. Based on intelligence received about the plan by the terrorists to attack Buni Gari, our troops swiftly intercepted and engaged the criminals in fierce battle that led to the killing of 105 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists as well as the capture of several arms and ammunition from the criminals. Initial situation reports that 10 terrorists were neutralised. However, following exploitation by our troops, a total of 105 Boko Haram/ISWAP criminals are confirmed to have met their waterloo as a result of the encounter and some of the pictures are here for you to see sir. Ammunitions recovered from the terrorists include five (5) AK-47 rifles, three (3) GPMG, one (1) Duska anti aircraft gun, one (1) PKT Gun, two (2) handheld radios, two hand grenades, two magazines with ammunition and hard drugs were reportedly captured. One (1) gun truck was destroyed in the offensive. The Delhi government on Monday ordered use of 25 prisoner vans of Delhi Police to travel into the citys 79 containment zones to carry out large-scale random testing. A government source told Hindustan Times that the decision to quickly modify 25 such vans had been taken. The government targets close to 40,000 rapid tests in these containment zones over the next 3-4 days. Two vans will be assigned to each of Delhis 11 districts; the other three will be kept on standby at the headquarters. The decision was taken a day after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal expressed concern that 186 people who had been infected by Sars-Cov-2 on Saturday were asymptomatic. This has reinforced suspicions that silent spreaders were unknowingly infecting others, and underlined the need for extensive testing to isolate such patients. Also Watch | Covid-19 | Delhi received 42,000 rapid testing kits, trial run initiated: Satyendar Jain The Delhi government has not eased any restrictions clamped under the national lockdown because the city-state is seen as a high-risk zone. All 11 revenue districts in the state are now designated as virus hot spots. The government will review this situation on April 27. A top government official said the large number of positive cases had convinced the city government to go in for extensive testing. The availability of the testing kits had made this possible. Of the asymptomatic patients who had tested positive yesterday, the official said 35 cases were reported from Tilak Nagar, 30 from Tughlakabad Extension, 5 from Nabi Karim, 3 from Sadar Bazar and 2 more from Nizamuddin. These prisoner vans will go into the containment zones with police cover. In case there is resistance or untoward incidents, the possibility of deploying para-military forces is not ruled out There is some concern in the Delhi government that there were instances where police officers arent as proactive as the city administration would like them to be after the Chandni Mahal police station chief and some other personnel tested positive. The government had responded to this concern by extending Rs 1 crore ex-gratia cover to police personnel also besides asking them to take all precautions in handling people in Covid-19 hotspots. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Were going to get back to living life, even if it kills us Piers Morgan, the controversial host of Good Morning Britain, has criticised Donald Trump for playing petty politics and failing the American people during the coronavirus pandemic. According to ex-CNN host Mr Morgan, this was an emergency that needed a different approach from the traditional news anchor approach. His appearance on CNNs Reliable Sources on Sunday did not spare any criticism of the White House incumbent and Mr Morgans long-time friend who had prioritised himself at the expense of American lives and the November election. Mr Morgan described how he had been watching Mr Trumps White House briefings with mounting horror. Describing the presidents self-aggrandising, self-justifying, overly defensive, [and] politically partisan approach, the outspoken host warned against turning the coronavirus task force conferences into rallies. [Its] almost like whats more important is winning the election in November, added Mr Morgan.What is more important right now is saving American lives. Using the CNN interview to address the president directly, Mr Morgan said: You will win the election in November if you get this right. If you stop making it about yourself and make it about the American people and show that you care about them over yourself, you will win. He added: Conversely, you will lose the election in November if you continue to make it about yourself, you continue playing silly politics, continue targeting Democrat governors because that suits you for your electoral purposes. Aware that Mr Trump would not want to hear criticism of his handling of the coronavirus, the TV host used Twitter to urge the president to listen to him. Mr President @realDonaldTrump, you wont want to watch this, but I hope you do, wrote Mr Morgan. Please drop your angry, petty, disingenuous, blame-gaming, self-aggrandising daily briefing antics & start being a proper wartime president. Mr Morgan, who won the seventh season of Mr Trumps Celebrity Apprentice show in 2008, has known the US president for more than a decade and describes his opinion as that of a critical friend. While known for courting controversy, Mr Morgan has been applauded for his tough approach when challenging British officials on their handling of the pandemic in the UK. But with an eye on events across the Atlantic, Mr Morgan wrote in a Daily Mail column last week that America doesnt want a King Trump. According to CNN, he said he wrote the piece because he had grown aghast at these press conferences, which are typical Trump, but are so grating in a global pandemic crisis. IRELANDS largest film studio has been unveiled as Troy Studios in Limerick threw open its doors for the first time. The studio, running to some 350,000 square feet, is playing host to upwards of 800 people interested in working in the film and television production industry. A new website aimed at promoting Limerick as a film destination was also launched this Saturday morning at the facility, which Troy chairman Joe Devine said was now real and is going to be big. In studio A, we have got at least 800 people who are interested in finding out more about the opportunity here and that, queuing outside the door at 7.30am, (means) there is definitely something special going on here, Mr Devine told a room full of local politicians and council staff, including Mayor of Limerick City and County Cllr Kieran OHanlon and Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Patrick ODonovan. I said that when I stood up at 9am and it struck me that this is real and it is going to be big. The incredibly healthy attendance is indicative of the level of interest and support Troy has experienced from the start of the project. Mr Devine noted that Troy had 350,000 square feet under one roof, comprising 70,000 sq foot of soundstages, comprising 280,000 sq ft of support infrastructure and a five acre backlot, which he said meant that Troy here will truly offer world class facilities to cater for movies and tv productions of any scale. Soundstage C in @TroyStudios, which is about half the size of studio A. Incredible facility, a game changer for Limerick pic.twitter.com/NyP9TxNMmZ Alan Owens (@alanowens_limk) October 15, 2016 Siun Ni Raghallaigh, director of Troy, told the Limerick Leader that Limerick had come out in force to want to be involved in this industry, given the phenomenal interest in the film industry open day, being hosted by Screen Training Ireland, the Irish Film Board, in connection with Troy and Innovate Limerick, the councils investment arm, which has driven the studio deal from its conception. She said: We have somewhere near 900 people on A Stage listening to seasoned and experienced heads of department from the film industry talking about careers in the industry - so you cant get better than that at this stage." Wonderful talk & huge enthusiasm from the Art, Continuity, Props, Sets, Hair , Makeup and Costume departments @screentraining #FilmLimerick pic.twitter.com/EFNM59GXDW Yvonne Sweeney (@YvSweeney) October 15, 2016 Ms Ni Raghallaigh CEO of Ardmore Studios said that Troy was now in selling mode but declined to say when production would start in the Castletroy facility. It is expected that production will begin in the new year. Of the Film in Limerick website, which has been spearheaded by Innovate and will offer a shop window to potential productions looking at the region, the Troy director said it was a resource that will no doubt prove invaluable as part of our strategy to grow film production infrastructure in Limerick and the Mid-West region. Mike Cantwell, head of Innovate Limerick, said: Today's open day at Troy Studios is the first significant step in preparing film crews for an international film industry on the west coast of Ireland. Innovate Limerick has created Film in Limerick which is a shop window for national and international film producers looking for possible locations to shoot in Limerick and the Mid-West region. This one-stop shop will provide all the information a film producer needs while showcasing the landscapes, buildings, accommodation and expertise which the region has to offer, he added. Trish Long, Disney, Mike Cantwell, Innovate Limerick and Conn Murray, CEO Limerick Council Mayor OHanlon said it showed that the council is serious about Limerick becoming a major player in the film production industry. - For more, see the print editions of the Limerick Leader next week T hree men have been arrested on suspicion of firearms offences after failing to stop for police. A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said attempts were made to stop and search three men in Charlton, south east London. Two of the men were detained by officers, but one man in a vehicle failed to stop and short pursuit took place. All three were arrested on suspicion of firearms offences. The men remain in custody and enquiries are ongoing, the spokeswoman said. Video footage shared on social media shows a white van being chased by both marked and unmarked vehicles in Floyd Road. If you grew up as part of Nina Balduccis clan, the rhythm of the week was set by meals orchestrated with equal parts panache and tradition. Friday night supper, in keeping with her Roman Catholic faith, was fish. Saturday was steak night. Sunday was pasta and red sauce. And always there was bread, whose wrapper was stamped with the green Balduccis logo that she had helped design for the family grocery that was once the most important specialty food store in New York City. She created those experiences at the table every week so she could watch and enjoy her family, said her grandson T.J. Murphy, who runs the Balducci wholesale spinoff, Baldor. In business, she brought the same thing. It was always consistency, organization and strength. Mrs. Balducci, who infused Balduccis with a sense of style and stabilized the family during an operatic public battle over ownership of what would become a multimillion-dollar business, died on April 12 at her home in East Williston, N.Y., on Long Island. She was 91. Her niece Emily Balducci said the cause was colon cancer. The Pennsylvania Department of Health has reported 948 new coronavirus cases today, raising the statewide total to 33,232. At least 1,204 have died, including 92 new deaths reported today. All of those who have died are adults. The health department released new data on its website today. With the new figures, the state has reported less than 1,000 new infections in a day for the first time in April. There are 129,720 people who have tested negative for the virus. The health department has modified the way it tracks COVID-19 deaths over the weekend, leading to a substantial increase in fatalities now listed in the pandemics death toll. The state tracking now includes electronic records and probable-cause deaths are now being factored into the total. The department has reconciled its electronic submissions, such as those from hospitals and long-term care homes, among other places. Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said Sunday this allows for a more accurate picture of the scope of the pandemic. Levine has said the state has flattened the curve in terms of new cases but the states social distancing measures should continue. Meanwhile, hundreds are protesting in Harrisburg today to press Gov. Tom Wolf to lift the shutdown of the commonwealth. Wolf has ordered the closure of businesses that arent deemed life sustaining. Republican lawmakers have pushed measures to allow some businesses to open up, arguing that its possible to start bolstering the economy while protecting public health. The governor said hed veto a bill that would reopen some businesses. Wolf has said a wide-scale reopening of businesses would cost lives and harm the economy more in the long run if it leads to another shutdown of the economy. The state has also imposed new steps to limit the spread of the virus. Shoppers and employees in retail stores are now required to wear masks. Wolf announced the measure last week and it took effect Sunday night. A closer look Cases have been found in all of Pennsylvanias 67 counties. The health department has said cases are heavily concentrated in the Philadelphia area, the Lehigh Valley and northeastern Pennsylvania. Philadelphia leads the state with more than 9,000 cases and 262 deaths. Montgomery County now has more than 3,000 cases and 184 deaths. Lehigh County now has reported 2,245 cases and 33 deaths. Luzerne County has 1,767 cases and 36 deaths. Heres a look at the number of cases in the other midstate counties: York (493 cases and 6 deaths); Dauphin (386 cases and 9 deaths); Cumberland (186 cases and 4 deaths); Franklin (115 cases and no fatalities reported); Adams (85 cases and 1 death); and Perry (20 cases and 1 death). In central Pennsylvania, Lancaster County leads the region with 1,236 cases and 66 deaths, including 6 new deaths reported today. Lebanon County now ranks second in the midstate counties with 502 cases. Five people have died in Lebanon County, including a newly reported death today. The health department went live today with a map showing the concentration of people who have tested positive for coronavirus in every ZIP code. Nursing homes and hospitals More than half of the states COVID-19 deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, including nursing homes and personal care homes, according to state figures. At least 682 patients have died in those facilities, the health department said. About 5,200 infections have been reported in those facilities, according to state data. The vast majority have involved residents of those facilities but more than 500 workers have contracted the virus. Across the state, 2,702 patients are being treated in hospitals. Most who contract the virus recover without requiring hospital treatment. But the virus poses a serious health threat, particularly to seniors. Nearly half of those who have been infected are under the age of 50, so health care officials have urged people of all ages to take COVID-19 seriously. Poll: Most wary of lifting shutdown While some are protesting in Harrisburg, a national poll released over the weekend showed nearly 60 percent of Americans are worried social distancing orders could be lifted too quickly at risk of public health. The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found 58 percent said they fear lifting stay-at-home orders too quickly could accelerate the spread of the virus and lead to more deaths. The poll found 32 percent are more concerned the government will take too long to relax restrictions, further damaging the economy. More from PennLive Some blame Latinos for Hazletons COVID-19 outbreak, echoing divisions that once roiled city Buying beer and wine in supermarkets: Is using a separate register safer? Not everyone agrees Making a go of it: A look at restaurant owners staying open (carefully) during coronavirus Pa. liquor stores offering phone orders, curbside pickup starting Monday: Complete list of locations Face masks are mandatory in Pennsylvania: Heres what you need to know A friend of mine just told me that universities have lost their way, today they only talk about money. As the impacts of the coronavirus are felt and thousands of jobs are threatened, the message is re-iterated in another way universities, greedy for revenues from foreign students, have unwisely exposed themselves to risk, now they are getting what they deserve. Increasing levels of foreign students have helped universities fund research programs. Credit:Ryan Stuart I recall even when at UNSW we were introducing a new and more flexible academic calendar for our students, one student said to me this is just a trick designed to make the owners of the university even richer. But the university doesnt have any "owners". We are a not-for-profit institution, a registered charity, a public institution that serves the community. The tally of coronavirus cases crossed the 3,000-mark in Mumbai on Monday after 155 more people tested positive, while the death toll rose to 138 with the virus killing seven more patients here, the city civic body said. According to a BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) release, the number of COVID-19 cases now stood at 3,090. The spurt in cases has raised concerns among authorities about the pace of the coronavirus spread as 1,000 new cases were added in just four days. The BMC said 84 more patients have recovered from the disease and discharged from hospitals, taking the number of cured cases to 394. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) FORT EDWARD A Burgoyne Avenue garage, home to a motorcycle club and an auto body shop, was destroyed by fire Monday morning. The fire was called out at about 6:30 a.m. to the building, home to the True Order Motorcycle Club and an auto body shop, Wreckamended Autobody, at 1099 Burgoyne Ave. The metal building was engulfed in flames upon arrival by firefighters. Fort Edward Fire Chief Darcy Miller said the metal trapped the heat inside. Its a metal building so it holds all the heat in and it holds all the fire in and everything else, Miller said, so it makes it hard to get into it. Access to the fire was limited. A single dirt road was the only entrance to the building. Hoses had to be run from hydrants up on Burgoyne Avenue, Miller said. The entire roof was gone and firefighters were attacking from the exterior as the structure was unstable. The fire also caused some explosions, but it was nothing serious, according to Miller. Ron Hedrick, the first sergeant of the True Order Motorcycle Club, watched firefighters battle the blaze Monday morning. The club had rented the space in the building for seven years. We do a lot for the community, Hedrick said, fundraisers, benefits. The motorcycle club rented one bay of the large metal building, between two vacant bays. At the other end was Wreckamended Autobody. It puts a damper on things, Hedrick said, adding later, Well definitely have to find a new place. A GoFundMe page, https://bit.ly/2KjAzaf, has been set up by a friend of Mike Garand who has operated the auto body shop for about 20 years. By Monday evening, $850 of a $5,000 goal had been raised. Fire departments from Fort Edward, Kingsbury, Hudson Falls, South Glens Falls, Maple Avenue, Argyle, Greenfield, Middle Falls, along with state fire investigators, reported to the scene. After nearly three hours, firefighters had the fire under control and investigators were working the scene. No cause of the fire has been determined and it remains under investigation. According to Washington County property records, the building is owned by Zeyna Properties LLC. The building is set back behind some residential houses on nearly 3 acres. Digital editor Adam Colver contributed to this report. Love 30 Funny 24 Wow 22 Sad 81 Angry 17 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Giroir said during a 2018 meeting at the National Institutes of Health that an alternative must be as reliable as fetal tissue. But HHS later announced restrictions on the ability of some researchers to get federal funding for fetal tissue research, saying the importance of promoting the dignity of life from conception to natural death is one of the very top priorities of President Trumps administration. The announcement pleased Trumps political advisers but dismayed scientists. Giroirs views on the issue appear to put him at odds with White House policy. New Delhi, April 20 : Finance and Corporate Affairs minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday attended the 5th Annual Meeting of Board of Governors of New Development Bank through video-conference. Established by the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in 2014, the bank's purpose of the Bank is to mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging market economies and developing countries to complement the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development. NDB has so far approved 14 projects of India for an amount of $4,183 million. Sitharaman commended the NDB's efforts in establishing itself as a credible Global Financial Institution, delivering its mandate successfully by taking more sustainable and inclusive approach. On the discussion of Covid-19, she appreciated the NDB's effort on fast tracking of financial assistance of about $5 billion to BRICS countries including Emergency Assistance of $1 billion to India to combat COVID-19 pandemic. She also suggested that, assistance under this facility to be enhanced to $10 Billion. Sitharaman also mentioned about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative of creating a Covid-19 Emergency Fund and India's efforts in supplying critical medicine to the needy countries to tackle the disease. The Finance Minister of Brazil thanked India for the timely help it received from India in the form of critical drugs. Sitharaman also outlined various measures taken in India to respond to Covid-19, including allocation of $2 billion (Rs 15,000 crore) by the government for strengthening the healthcare system, and announcement of a scheme of social support measures amounting to $25 billion to alleviate the hardship of the poor and the vulnerable. She also encouraged NDB to take appropriate actions to join G-20 forum along with other Multilateral Development Bank (MDBs)/International Financial Institutions (IFIs). Rep. Adam Schiff spent months launching secret impeachment hearings, never thinking his conduct would be called into question. He is now caught in the crosshairs of a formidable government agent, Mr. Brendan Carr, Federal Communication Commissioner. The impeachment may be over, but Mr. Carr is formally investigating Rep. Schiff for violating privacy laws -- more like obliterating ethical boundaries -- by setting up his own surveillance state to target the presidents allies. Carr is currently uncovering the diabolical nature of the congressmans surveillance state. At the time, Schiff resorted to such desperate measures because he didnt have much of an impeachment case: Therefore, he issued secret subpoenas to phone carriers hoping to mine the private data of his political opponents, or in effect ransacking their private lives. The objective was to obtain and publish the calls of Trumps allies. Much to his delight, Schiffs subpoenas to the phone carriers resulted in their turning over nearly 4,000 pages of confidential records, in the process violating their customers rights to data privacy. None of this has escaped the notice of the top gun at the FCC. Carr is proposing a $200 million fine against the phone carriers for failing to protect their customers who have a legitimate expectation of privacy. The FCC commissioner, in reviewing the nearly 4,000 pages, had a very pointed question to ask as part of his investigative letter to the House Intelligence Committee (where Schiff serves as chairman). Is Rep. Schiff continuing to issue secret subpoenas? That translates to mean: Does the congressman plan to continue to run roughshod over the private lives of political opponents while employing abusive impeachment tactics? Before the FCC stepped in, Schiff had already performed much of his cloak-and-dagger work targeting some of the presidents most ardent supporters. Schiffs committee took additional clandestine measures in issuing the subpoenas, even slapping a gag order on Republican leaders. Undoubtedly, those targeted by the congressman were blindsided by the process because they were deprived of their legal right to fight the surveillance requests. They included Rudy Giuliani, attorney for the president, Rep. Devin Nunes, ranking Republican on the Intelligence Committee, John Solomon, conservative journalist, and others. As part of the FCC investigation, Carr dropped a major bombshell, which most likely wont make the news cycle on CNN or other leftist outlets. Carr lambasted Schiff for exceeding his authority by publishing call records that lack any apparent nexus to the Committees legitimate work. Some would argue this isnt the first time Schiff has strayed from legitimate work. The congressman, now serving his 10th term in the House, has carved out a special role for himself as the go to Trump-hating politician devoting hundreds of hours to interviews with fawning reporters. It can almost be argued that his audience is the media, filtering everything the public should hear. What more can a politician ask for? Many of those fawning reporters interviewing Schiff about the impeachment proceedings were the very same talking heads who had heard the congressman impart an endless stream of salacious gossip and credible leaks to fuel the Russia-collusion hysteria. The reporters lack of skepticism and unquestioning loyalty to the politician continues to greatly benefit the Democratic leader. He even gets a pass for his extensive history of fabrications -- bouncing from one partisan spectacle (Russia collusion) to another (impeachment proceedings). One must credit Schiff with manufacturing enough credible leaks from unnamed sources to keep the Russian-collusion narrative alive for an insufferable three years (no easy feat there). Rep. Schiff -- now onto a new ratings bonanza -- began revving up his partys latest attempt to impeach the president based on an alleged abuse of power. Nasty tactics started to surface about the congressmans insistence on secret meetings in the bowels of government buildings and barring all Republicans from attending. We expect leftist reporters to exhibit their standard bias, but today they are turning a blind eye. And dont expect to witness a major network interviewing Carr, or any other government agent investigating the congressman anytime soon. There isnt a hint of curiosity about Carrs assessment of the Intelligence Committee: It is a damning overview asserting the committee was created out of whole cloth in secret and effectively unreviewable and unchecked mechanism for obtaining call records on any and all Americans. That said, conservative politicians are cautioned to avoid getting on Schiffs bad side. None of this appears of concern to members of the leftist media. Many view Schiff as the most underestimated politician California has ever produced, according to Greg Miller, correspondent for the Washington Post. Miller, and many of his colleagues, agree that Schiff will leave a mark on history, exceeding nearly all contemporaries. It would be unfair to Schiff to say that his impeachment efforts came to nothing. The congressman cemented his rock-star status for his dazzling speech at the opening of the hearings, according to Jeffrey Toobin, CNN news analyst. I dont want to sound like a partisan, began Toobin before sounding like a partisan, but he thought it was one of the best speeches he has ever witnessed. Adam Schiff knows the facts. That is something that you cant fake, Toobin added. But can you repackage the truth to the point of making the facts unrecognizable (i.e. fake news)? Toobin was simply part of the media herd offering variations on the same corrupt narrative. Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post provided even more flowery praise of the congressman, saying: The most brilliant legal presentation I have heard, she wrote. None comes close to matching him. Perhaps Richard Stengel, the former editor of Time magazine, has the distinction of concocting the most hyperbolic praise for the congressman. When we get back to teaching civics in this country -- as we must do -- Adam Schiffs sweeping, beautifully-wrought opening argument, should be on the syllabus. Its frightening to think of what would be left off the syllabus. Reporters engaging in this sort of hyperbolic praise are effectively building an impregnable wall between themselves and their sacred duty to the public: Acting as the public watchdog. Apparently Carr, at the helm of the FCC, cannot be counted on to act in concert with Schiffs ardent fan base. But he can be relied on to protect the public from having to ask themselves who elses life is being plundered by powerful politicians abusing their office. To quote Schiff, who spoke the words ad nauseam while targeting the president, No one is above the law. As health care workers across Iowa risk their lives to treat others with COVID-19, some of them have needed alternate places to stay, not wanting to possibly spread the virus to loved ones. Hawkeye Hotels across the state are offering help. What we do have right now is hotel rooms, and even though its a challenging time for the industry as a whole, we were looking for ways to support the various communities where we have hotels in any way that we could, said Allison Ordman, a spokesperson for Hawkeye Hotels. Working with local hotels such as the Hampton Inns in Muscatine and Clinton and Radisson Quad Cities Plaza in Davenport, Hawkeye Hotels offer free or significantly discounted hotel guestrooms to health care workers and first responders who have been affected by COVID and need a temporary place to stay. We wanted to say thank you in some way to those health care workers and first responders and others who are essentially on the front lines of fighting the coronavirus for many weeks in a row now, Ordman said, Once we noticed there was a request on some workers for an extra space outside of their house, we realized that was our opportunity to help. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) London Mon, April 20, 2020 14:07 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd303ab0 2 People Prince-William,prince-charles,royals,Queen-Elizabeth,coronavirus,COVID-19 Free Britain's Prince William on Friday revealed his concern for his father Prince Charles after he contracted coronavirus -- and his worries for his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II. Charles, 71, the monarch's eldest son and heir, tested positive for COVID-19 last month but recovered after a week in isolation at his home in Scotland. "I have to admit, at first I was quite concerned, he fits the profile of somebody, at the age he is at, which is fairly risky," his oldest son Prince William told the BBC. "But my father has had many chest infections, colds and things like that over the years and so I thought to myself if anybody is going to be able to beat this, it is going to be him." In the end Charles had only mild symptoms, the 37-year-old said. The queen, 93, and her husband Prince Philip, 98, have been staying at Windsor Castle near London since the outbreak began. "Obviously I think very carefully about my grandparents," William added. "We are doing everything we can to make sure they are isolated away and protected from this but it does worry me." Read also: Britain at its best in a crisis, says Prince William William and his wife Kate, the duke and duchess of Cambridge, spoke to the BBC as part of their work supporting mental health charities. They urged people to look after their mental as well as their physical well-being during the lockdown. "There is going to be an ever-increasing need for people to look after their mental health and take it seriously," William said. The couple also spoke about their own life at their home in Norfolk, eastern England -- including the "challenging" task of homeschooling small children. Prince George is six, Princess Charlotte four and Prince Louis will be two next week. The duchess said they had faced "ups and downs" like many families -- and also admitted that getting her children to cooperate on video calls with relatives could be tricky. "It's quite hectic for them all to say the right thing at the right time without pressing the wrong buttons," she said. "But it's great and it's nice to keep in touch with everybody." WHATEVER IT'S WORTH (Pacific Theatre Encore) Here's a one-album encapsulation of the explosive energy that charged Sydney's music scene in the late 1960s. The musicians' idiomatic mobility flowing freely between rock, jazz, blues and R&B infused their playing, fuelling a dynamism further ramped up by the thousands of US servicemen swamping Kings Cross, on leave from Vietnam. Col Nolan & the Soul Syndicate, one of the era's great Oz bands, had a residency in the Cross when this was recorded in 1968, and all their vitality is caught on this beautifully remastered vinyl reissue. Nolan, who died last year, was this country's finest Hammond organist, whether creating psychedelic swirls, choppy funk or massive, swelling chords. John Sangster brings his unique spark to the drumming, a young Col Loughnan blazes away on tenor, Jimmy Doyle's guitar playing swerves between classy and thrilling, and the band is completed by John Allan's understated bass. Beyond playing originals, they reworked some unlikely covers Angel of the Morning, Ode to Billie Joel, Green, Green Grass of Home and (less successfully) By the Time I Get to Phoenix that would have packed the dancefloor. A gem. Col Nolan & the Soul Syndicate's album cover. -JOHN SHAND AVANT-GARDE ROCK Gary Lucas THE ESSENTIAL GARY LUCAS (Knitting Factory) Dubbed the "guitarist with 1000 ideas" by The New York Times, and best known for his collaborations with Jeff Buckley and Captain Beefheart, Gary Lucas has been bending strings and defying expectations for 40 years and on 30-plus albums. These 36 tracks (nearly three hours of music) showcase the many (many) sides of Gary Lucas, as he swings between driving rock with his regular band, Gods and Monsters, to 1930s Chinese pop, Hungarian folk, Indian influences and jazz the avant-garde works, essentially. My favourite moments are when Lucas and Nona Hendryx hit the sweet spot during their take on Captain Beefhearts Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles, and Poison Tree, sung by Mary Margaret OHara, which shows how well Lucas string-work complements a female voice. Elsewhere, the original version of Grace, which Lucas wrote with Jeff Buckley, strips the song back to its core, and Lucas quicksilver picking and Buckleys hushed vocals merge seamlessly. And if youve ever wondered whether a Mandarin take on All Along the Watchtower (as sung by Feifei Yang) could be as haunting as Bob Dylans original, the answer is a definite "yes". -JEFF APTER Gary Lucas's album cover. CLASSICAL Jayson Gillham/ASO/Nicholas Carter BEETHOVEN: THE PIANO CONCERTOS (ABC) Jayson Gillham's album cover. Over four concerts last year, lucky Adelaide audiences heard the Romantic movement unfolding before their ears, in the form of Beethovens five piano concertos played by the young Australian pianist Jayson Gillham, with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Carter. They have now been released in a three-album set. The concertos range from No.2 (composed in 1795, but published second) in a much more classical style similar to his great Viennese predecessor, Mozart, to the fourth (1805) and fifth, the Emperor (1810): two of the most searching and profound piano works in the repertoire. By this time, aided by advances in piano technology, Beethoven had taken the concerto somewhere new and wonderful. The modern concert grand is vastly more powerful and versatile than Beethovens fortepiano, and doubtless he would have relished it. Gillham certainly does: it was the G major concerto that brought him worldwide renown at the Montreal international competition. These are deeply satisfying performances: fresh, natural, youthfully adventurous and direct, with lovely flowing lines, and plenty of poetry. There seems a fine chemistry between soloist and conductor, matched by the ASO. Excellent sound. Patna, April 20 : With three new coronavirus positive cases reported in Monghyr, the number of corona infected patients in Bihar went up to 96. Health Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Kumar said three people from Jamalpur in Monghyr tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday evening. He said all the three patients are men and were in contact with the coronavirus infected people. A corona infected patient from Monghyr died in Patna AIIMS in March while a patient from Vaishali died on Friday. Of the total number of cases from 14 districts of Bihar, 29 are from Siwan, 20 from Munger, 11 from Nalanda, seven from Patna, five from Gaya, nine from Begusarai, three from Gopalganj, four from Buxar, three from Nalanda and one each from Bhojpur, Saran, Lakhisarai, Vaishali and Bhagalpur. A total of 11,401 tests have been done in Bihar as of now of which 96 are positive while 42 have recovered whereas results of 490 samples are awaited. Technavio has been monitoring the commercial foodservice market and it is poised to grow by USD 761.6 billion 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. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005404/en/ Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Commercial Foodservice 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. Brinker International Inc., Compass Group PLC, McDonald's, Starbucks Coffee Company, and Yum! Brands Inc. are some of the major market participants. The increasing restaurants worldwide 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 restaurants worldwide has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Commercial Foodservice Market 2019-2023: Segmentation Commercial foodservice market is segmented as below: Type Restaurants Caterers Drinking Establishments 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=IRTNTR31292 Commercial Foodservice 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 commercial foodservice market report covers the following areas: Commercial Foodservice Market Size Commercial Foodservice Market Trends Commercial Foodservice Market Industry Analysis This study identifies implementation of new technologies as one of the prime reasons driving the commercial foodservice market growth during the next few years. Commercial Foodservice Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the commercial foodservice market, including some of the vendors such as Brinker International Inc., Compass Group PLC, McDonald's, Starbucks Coffee Company, and Yum! Brands Inc. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the commercial foodservice 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 Commercial Foodservice Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023 Detailed information on factors that will assist commercial foodservice market growth during the next five years Estimation of the commercial foodservice market size and its contribution to the parent market Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior The growth of the commercial foodservice market Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of commercial foodservice 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 TYPE Market segmentation by type Comparison by type Restaurants Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Caterers Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Drinking establishments Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Market opportunity by type PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation Geographic comparison APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023 North America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Europe Market size and forecast 2018-2023 South America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 MEA 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 New packaging for takeaway foods Implementation of new technologies Increasing mergers and acquisitions PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview Landscape disruption Competitive scenario PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors Brinker International Inc. Compass Group PLC McDonald's Starbucks Coffee Company Yum! Brands Inc. 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. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005404/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ Fajman said she wouldve liked to see the commission allow for more in-person early voting days so that voters can come in over a longer period of time increasing the probability of social distancing. But, overall, she said she is pleased the commission allowed for some in-person early voting days. Iran Accuses U.S. Of Giving 'False' Account Of Persian Gulf Encounter 03/29/20 Source: RFE/RL Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has accused the United States of giving a false account of a recent encounter between the two states' navies in the Persian Gulf, after Washington blamed Iranian vessels for harassing its ships. "We advise Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman, and avoid any adventurism and false stories," the IRGC said in a statement on its official website on April 19. The force warned that any "miscalculation will receive a decisive response." The U.S. Navy had said that 11 vessels from the IRGC made "dangerous and harassing approaches" toward U.S. naval ships in the Gulf on April 15. The U.S. ships were in international waters carrying out exercises at the time of the incidents, according to the U.S. 5th Fleet, which is based in Bahrain. In the IRGC's telling, its forces were on a drill and faced "the unprofessional and provocative actions" of the U.S. ships. Close interactions with Iranian military vessels have occurred in the region in the past, drawing warning shots from U.S. Navy ships when Iranian vessels got too close. Tensions between Iran and the United States increased in January after the United States killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike in Iraq. With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters Omicron variant of COVID-19 identified in Antrim, Charlevoix counties The omicron variant of COVID-19 has been identified in one Antrim County resident and one Charlevoix County resident. Fury over coronavirus PPE shortages escalated today amid claims the government has been ignoring offers of help from businesses - and millions of pieces of PPE are still being shipped out of the UK in spite of the shortages. A British supplier said they were forced to sell millions of life-saving items overseas after attempts to equip the NHS were met with an impenetrable wall of bureaucracy. Other firms complained they had 'no choice' about sending masks, respirators and other pieces of kit abroad because the Government had repeatedly ignored offers of help. Meanwhile, an RAF plane collecting crucial PPE for the coronavirus battle is still grounded in Turkey today with ministers admitting the desperately-needed supplies might not be in the UK for days. The government originally declared that the 84 tonnes of life-saving equipment would arrive on Sunday, but it failed to turn up. They then claimed it would arrive yesterday, but the first military flight sent to pick it up has yet to start the journey back. Ambulance workers are seen putting on PPE outside a hospital in the capital. A fashion boss who turned his high-end ladieswear factory into a scrubs production line says red tape and bureaucracy in the NHS supply chain is putting frontline workers at risk The 84 tonnes of life-saving equipment set to be used in the NHS's fight against coronavirus, had been due to arrive in Britain last night but it failed to be delivered with RAF planes now being tasked with going to get it. Pictured: RAF Brize Norton Downing Street rejected the allegations it ignored offers from firms, while local government minister Simon Clarke said there is a 'standing presumption' that the Government will do its utmost to buy PPE 'wherever it can be sourced' and urged manufacturers to 'reach out' to the Cabinet Office to log their ability to make equipment. But shadow Cabinet Office minister Rachel Reeves told BBC Radio 4's Today programme she had been 'inundated' with manufacturers who have contacted the Government offering to make PPE but have heard nothing back. 'There are many, many businesses around the country who have perhaps furloughed workers but have the capability and the capacity and the skills to make this personal protective equipment and clothing - particularly the gowns - but have not heard back from the Government. 'Some of them are doing it on an ad-hoc basis for local hospitals or care homes, but this needs to be systematic - it needs to be a national effort, using all of our manufacturing and textile capacity and capability to ensure that the doctors and nurses and care workers ... have that equipment and clothing that they need.' Chancellor Rishi Sunak told the regular Downing Street briefing last night that government is pursuing 'every possible option' around the world to bolster supplies. Mr Sunak said the UK and other countries are facing an 'international challenge' to source the equipment and that ministers are 'working hard to get the PPE our frontline NHS and social care staff need'. He said Britain is still 'working to resolve the Turkish shipment of PPE as soon as possible' but was unable to say when it will arrive. He did reveal a shipment of 140,000 gowns from Myanmar was unloaded in the UK yesterday. One of three RAF jets that have been on standby left Brize Norton in Oxfordshire yesterday afternoon, but has reportedly yet to start the return journey. Officials in Istanbul told Sky News there was 'never a problem from Turkish authorities' and 'all permissions have been issued very swiftly'. The hold-ups come with hospitals warning they are close to running out of some items, and medical bodies saying doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Trusts have accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Michelle van Vuuren, who runs a London-based property company, turned her business into a PPE distributor working with Chinese suppliers last month as the virus began to spread around the world. After failed attempts to contact NHS procurement services, Miss van Vuuren contacted Health Secretary Matt Hancocks office on March 20. She was subsequently passed to the Cabinet Office but her inquiries went into a vacuum and were met with only an automated response. Despite offering to sell millions of masks, gowns and aprons she said she had spent five weeks hammering at the Governments door without response. Amid growing frustration, the Government said it had deployed every resource to get its hands on desperately needed PPE supplies and ventilators in recent months. NHS staff are pictured carrying out coronavirus tests in Lincoln Meanwhile, medics on the front line are given these cagoules Tearful nurses are being forced to wear cagoules instead of proper medical gowns as the NHS awaits supplies from Turkey. In a fiasco that prompted fury from health leaders, a flight which was meant to collect 84 tons of equipment from Istanbul was delayed for two days. The aircraft finally left Turkey yesterday evening and was due at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire early today. But it is nearly 48 hours later than ministers had promised. Two other UK flights bound for Turkey to pick up vital supplies, which include 400,000 protective gowns, were still awaiting take-off last night. Tearful nurses are being forced to wear cagoules instead of proper medical gowns as the NHS awaits supplies from Turkey Yesterday the Royal College of Nursing warned that its members were being left in tears at having to wear gowns that resembled cagoules or raincoats. Glenn Turp, of the RCNs Yorkshire and Humber regional team, said: Members have contacted us saying that they havent got adequate PPE [Personal Protective Equipment] and therefore have been provided with clothing that resembles cagoules. They are so worried and afraid. They cry before they go to work, they cry at work and they cry when they come home. Clearly our members are exceptionally concerned by this and they feel that they are not safe to practise and the Government have failed them. In addition to the stocks from Turkey, ministers have obtained supplies from Myanmar in Asia. Niall Dickson, of the NHS Confederation, which represents hospitals, said the UK needed to look at domestic production. Some hospitals have taken to carrying out trials of washing the gowns which should be single-use to disinfect them. Yesterday Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the Government was pursuing every option to get more PPE. The Prime Ministers spokesman said it was a global supply problem. Advertisement He called for them to contact the Government again and promised a response in the next 24 hours. But Miss Van Vuuren said: There is no point in ministers standing up in front of the world and saying they are open for business while being curtailed by an impenetrable wall of red tape behind doors. A fashion boss who turned his high-end ladieswear factory into a scrubs production line says red tape and bureaucracy in the NHS supply chain is putting frontline workers at risk. Christopher Nieper volunteered to help make scrubs and gowns for nurses and doctors more than a month ago but said he found himself left frustrated and angry by the procurement process. He was finally able to begin production last week, after bypassing central government and going directly to local hospital trusts. The BBC said it had been contacted by at least five companies who had been unable to contact the Government with offers of supplies. MPs also described failed efforts of businesses in their constituencies. Labour MP Diane Abbott said: I have at least one company that has hit a brick wall with the NHS bureaucracy. Downing Street insisted it had been well prepared for the crisis, adding that a billion pieces of PPE had been acquired and delivered to frontline staff, with another 25 million gowns procured from China. Four men died in crimes of violence in Birmingham between Friday and Sunday, including one who was part of a deadly rampage that began in Auburn. The Jefferson County Coroners Office on Monday identified three of the victims as: Emilio Aaron Elliot Jr., 23, Antione Harris, 36, and Charles Edward Gregory, 30. The fourth victim has not yet been identified. Elliot was shot at 11:47 a.m. Friday in Birminghams Southtown public housing community. Birmingham police Sgt. Rod Mauldin said South Precinct officers were on patrol in the area when they heard multiple shots ring out. They found a man lying unresponsive near a vehicle in the area of the 2400 block of Ninth Avenue South. Elliot, who lived in Bessemer, was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6:26 p.m. Friday. No arrests have been announced in his death. Harris was found dead Saturday morning inside a home in the 100 block of Briar Grove Drive. His is believed to have been shot during a home invasion at the hands of Derrick Lee Hightower, a 32-year-old Georgia man accused in at least four killings that began in Auburn early Friday and ended with Harris death. Birmingham police were notified about 11 p.m. Friday that a vehicle being sought out of Auburn was spotted at the USA Economy Lodge on Crestwood Boulevard. That vehicle, Mauldin said, was taken in Auburn and involved in the homicide there of 54-year-old Nancy Nash. Mauldin said they had also received reports that the suspect now identified as Hightower - was seen in the area of the motel. A silver sedan was seen leaving the area and Birmingham police tried to stop the vehicle. At that point, Mauldin said, a man got out of the sedan and exchanged gunfire with Birmingham police. Officers lost sight of the suspect after the shooting. Early Saturday morning, as police continued their search, evidence led them to a home in the 100 block of Briar Grove Drive. A resident in the area was letting his dogs out in the backyard to use the restroom when a black male wearing all black appeared seemingly out of nowhere and said, Hey, you got a phone? the resident told AL.com, asking that his name not be used for fear of retribution. The resident said, no, and the man fled on foot toward the area of Briar Grove Road. It was then, investigators believe, that the suspect broke into a home and a man was shot and killed. A woman and her three children live at the home but were not there when the home invasion and subsequent shooting took place. A short time later, the resident who encountered the suspect said, he heard a barrage of gunfire. The next thing he knew, his neighborhood was flooded by SWAT. It is believed he took a vehicle from the house on Briar Grove and was in that vehicle when Birmingham police tried to stop him. Harris was pronounced dead inside the Briar Grove Drive home at 7:04 a.m. Saturday. Birmingham police are working to obtain warrants in the case. Hightower, who had been shot in the arm during the exchange of gunfire with police, surrendered after an all-day manhunt. Gregory died early Sunday after he was shot in west Birmingham. According to the coroners office, the shooting happened at 12:56 a.m. in a private residence in the 1000 block of Alabama Avenue. Gregory was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 4:32 a.m. No additional details have been released about his slaying. Hours later, about 11 a.m. Sunday, Birmingham police responded to the 1400 block of 88th Street North on a report of a person down. Mauldin said when they arrived on the scene, the victim was unresponsive. He was pronounced dead a short time later. The victim is an adult black male, but authorities have not identified him. He was found on the side of the road in a remote residential area not far from the airport. Mauldin said the man had been fatally shot but the investigation is in its early stages. There were nine homicides in Birmingham between Monday and Sunday, bringing the citys total to 37 so far in 2020. Of those, four have been ruled justifiable and therefore are not deemed criminal. In all of Jefferson County, there have been 56 homicides including the 37 in Birmingham. Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777 The nation recently has faced a number of dangerous phenomena, including tornadoes in the south and earthquakes in Idaho and Utah. The Natural Hazards Mitigation Saves 2019 Report represents the most comprehensive benefit-cost analysis of natural hazard mitigation, from adopting up-to-date building codes and exceeding codes to the upgrade of utility and transportation infrastructure. A webinar to outline report specifics with the Mitigation Saves team now is in planning. Interested parties should check back on the NIBS website for webinar details. New to this year's report is the extensive coverage more than 100 pages addressing the strengthening of existing buildings to prepare for hazards like floods, high winds, fires, and earthquakes. This was funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. According to NIBS research, 127 million people are exposed to hurricanes, 85 million to earthquakes, 42 million to floods, and 59 million to fire. NIBS councils and partners are looking at next steps to increase the nation's mitigation investment by leveraging public assistance with private sector investments. The NIBS Multi-Hazard Mitigation Council calls for a COVID-19 stimulus package to help recover the nation's economy and prepare cities and communities for long-term disaster resilience and stability. "Our work is far from over," Woods said. "There are many layers of mitigation. The property owner and communities that have begun to protect against disasters must continue, and those that have not must start." The Atlantic Hurricane Season begins June 1. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts a stronger-than-normal hurricane season this year. These hurricanes undoubtedly will cause mitigation spending shortcomings by both federal and local governments, making even more vulnerable a number of communities that can barely handle additional blows in the current environment. Background The National Institute of Building Sciences has studied mitigation for more than two decades. In 2005, NIBS studied the value of mitigation. In 2016, the original report was revisited and expanded. Specifically, Mitigation Saves looks closely at: Building code requirements. Model building codes serve as the baseline to protect our built environment, setting minimum safety requirements for buildings. Compared with past (1990s-era codes), modern codes improve building resilience to natural disasters and save $11 for every $1 invested. for every invested. Federal grants. Federally funded grants to study mitigation have resulted in a national average benefit of $6 to every $1 invested in upfront mitigation costs. Every state in the nation is estimated to experience $10 million in benefits from federal grants to mitigate flood, wind, earthquake, or fire. The majority of states experience at least $1 billion in benefits. to every invested in upfront mitigation costs. Every state in the nation is estimated to experience in benefits from federal grants to mitigate flood, wind, earthquake, or fire. The majority of states experience at least in benefits. Retrofit. Updating utilities, transportation facilities, and existing buildings is a critical component of mitigation. Water, wastewater, electricity, rail, roads, highways, telecommunications, and existing building stock must be better positioned to resist future disasters. What's Next The goal of Mitigation Saves is to help communities, building owners, and representatives in the private finance, insurance, and real estate industries initiate a greater mitigation dialogue. The National Institute of Building Sciences also aims to assist Congress and policymakers to develop effective federal programs that support pre-disaster mitigation and encourage more mitigation investments from the public and private sectors. For more information, including comprehensive two-pagers on various kinds of natural hazards and the costs associated with mitigation, visit https://www.nibs.org/mitigationsaves. About NIBS National Institute of Building Sciences brings together labor and consumer interests, government representatives, regulatory agencies, and members of the building industry to identify and resolve problems and potential problems around the construction of housing and commercial buildings. NIBS is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization. It was established by Congress in 1974. For more information, visit nibs.org or follow @bldgsciences on Twitter and Facebook. SOURCE National Institute of Building Sciences Related Links https://www.nibs.org Facebook will begin removing some posts that promote anti-stay-at-home messages, Mark Zuckerberg announced Monday on Good Morning America." The companys CEO said those posts, which include calls for rallies and protests of stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic, can be considered harmful misinformation." That would make those posts a violation of Facebooks rules. More than normal political discourse, I think a lot of the stuff that people are saying that is false around a health emergency like this can be classified as harmful misinformation that has a risk of leading to imminent physical danger, Zuckerberg told GMA anchor George Stephanopoulos Monday morning. And well take that kind of content down. This week, protests have been organized in several states calling for businesses to be reopened and the stay-at-home orders to end. In Harrisburg, a large gathering of protestors filled the streets outside the Capitol, pushing for Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen the states businesses. The protest was organized by several Facebook Groups, including ReOpen PA, End the Lockdown PA and Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine. As of Monday morning, ReOpen PAs Facebook page listed more than 55,000 members. Facebook would take down posts created through the Facebook Events feature that promote such events in California, New Jersey and Nebraska, Facebook spokesman Andy Stone told CNN. Facebook is working to get answers from other state governments, including Pennsylvania, as to whether anti-stay-at-home protests are also prohibited under their social distancing guidelines, he said. 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. READ MORE The European Union's Economics Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told German magazine Der Spiegel that aid worth around 1.5 trillion euros could be needed to tackle the coronavirus crisis. "The Eurogroup has now made proposals for aid worth more than 500 billion euros to finance healthcare and short-time work and to help small and medium-sized companies. That leaves at least one trillion euros. This is roughly the amount we need to be dealing with now." He said the funds could be raised via the EU's next multi-annual budget. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie The Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Dr. Anthony Yaw Baah, is hailing the decision taken by President Akufo-Addo, to lift the 3-week restrictions imposed on some cities. According to the TUC boss, the lifting of the partial lockdown of Accra, Kumasi, Tema and Kasoa was a right decision taken by the President. Thanking President Akufo-Addo for the excellent leadership you have provided us to save us from the horrible situation we are witnessing in other countries, particularly Europe and the US, the TUC boss stated that the restrictions on movement have yielded some positive results, and we are all witnesses to this. Dr. Yaw Baah added that Yesterday, you eased some of these restrictions and emphasized that some of these restrictions must be complied with strictly. We think it is the right thing to do, given the dire economic consequences of prolonged restriction. The TUC Secretary-General made this known on Monday, April 20, 2020, when, at the invitation the President, he held discussions on measures to combat the spread of the Coronavirus in the country. Describing the impact of the health crisis on employment in Ghana as mind-boggling, Dr. Yaw Baah told the President that businesses are collapsing in almost all the sectors of the economy, many people have already lost their jobs, and many more would have lost their jobs without the easing of these restrictions. He continued, The fight of this coronavirus is a shared responsibility. We think you and your government is doing what is expected of you. It is time for us Ghanaians to do our part as individuals by observing the safety protocols that will protect us and others from this deadly virus. The TUC Boss used the opportunity to thank all health workers, the security personnel, utility workers, the media and all other workers, Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Information for providing all the essential services to the people of Ghana during this crisis. You risk your lives every day to protect the rest of us. You have made us very proud as workers' leaders and so we pray that God blesses you abundantly. Mr. President, that is why we appreciate the incentive package that you have put together for health workers. These workers deserve the package. The tax reliefs, the 50% salary increase, will provide the incentive for them to work even more diligently as we continue this fight against the virus, he added. With workers resuming work from Monday, he urged all local branch division and national unions to work with their employers to ensure strict compliance with the various protocols in the fight against this virus. May Day Off He revealed further that, with May Day some 11 days away, we have decided to cancel all the national and regional parades that have become the main feature of May Day celebrations in our country in compliance with the ban on public gatherings but all is not lost. Nonetheless, he revealed that the Director General of GBC, Professor Amin Alhassan, has assured the TUC of a live television programme to enable us to reach out to workers with a very strong message on the need for each and every worker to protect himself or herself and their families from this virus. We would like to invite you to join us to reach out to the working people of Ghana with a message of solidarity and encouragement in these difficult times. Dr. Yaw Baah reassured President Akufo-Addo that the working people of Ghana, will continue to play a role in the effort to restore growth to our economy so that businesses will flourish once again and workers can keep their jobs and those who don't have jobs now also have jobs. Finally, they should be able to defeat not only the coronavirus but also poverty. Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe ABC News Former President Donald Trump, his sister Maryanne Trump Barry and the estate of his late brother Robert Trump tried on Tuesday to convince a New York judge to dismiss a lawsuit by Mary Trump that accused her family of swindling her out of at least $10 million. Attorneys for the Trump siblings argued Mary Trump's claims are time-barred by a six-year statute of limitations and prohibited by legal releases she signed in 2001 when the family settled the estate of Fred Trump Sr., the former president's father. The Trumps also argued Mary Trump possessed "boxes and boxes of information" about the estate settlement that should have given rise to any claims at the time. Mainland reports smallest daily increase in infections in 32 days Global Times Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 14:10:53 Chinese mainland recorded 16 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Saturday, including nine imported cases and seven domestic cases, marking the smallest daily increase in the past 32 days. The newly confirmed imported cases from overseas dropped below 10 for the first time within a month. Northeast China's Suifenhe in Heilongjiang Province bordering Russia recorded zero imported cases and zero asymptomatic infections on Saturday. A total of 371 imported cases have been reported in Suifenhe as of Saturday, with one cured. The result was believed to be due to the closure of the border port, the dispatch of medical missions and strict management measures within the small city. China's National Health Commission also reported zero deaths and two suspected cases, together with 33 recovered cases. Among the seven new domestic infections, six were form Heilongjiang Province. Some analysts believe that the rebound of infections in Heilongjiang, especially in Harbin, which reported four cases on Saturday, was caused by the imported cases and lack of effective and strict epidemic prevention and control management. Ding Fengshu, the head of the Harbin health authority and 17 other officials, including the vice mayor of the city, were recently held accountable for the rebound. Wang Yongkang, vice governor of Heilongjiang and the head of Harbin's epidemic control guiding mission, said on Saturday that the prevention of domestic rebound and imported infections are currently the biggest task, and stricter management will be applied to curb the rebound as soon as possible. There are currently a total of 38 domestic cases reported in the province, with 36 found in Harbin. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A third of working women in the United States are performing essential jobs during the coronavirus shutdown, research has revealed. Sectors regarded as the backbone of society and vital to the virus war effort are dominated by women, who make up 52 per cent of these key workers. Frontline roles are overwhelmingly filled by them - 77 per cent of healthcare staff and 78 per cent of social care staff are female, according to New York Times analysis. In normal times, men occupy a majority of American industry, yet the epidemic has swiveled the spotlight on the workers hailed as the nuts and bolts to everyday life. This re-evaluation has filtered the workforce into essential and non-essential workers in a shake-down that has revealed women comprise the bulk of key staff. Sectors regarded as the backbone of society and vital to the virus war effort are dominated by women, who make up 52 per cent of these key workers (medics posing in Times Square yesterday) Dr Mignon Duffy, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell who is an expert in women and labor, told the Times: 'Now we're being forced to identify who the essential workers are. And guess who they are?' Nine in 10 nurses and nursing assistants are female, and they also account for the majority of respiratory therapists, pharmacists and technicians. Outside of hospital settings, they also dominate other industries providing necessities to households across the country. Women make up more than two thirds of grocery store and fast food cashiers. Non-white women are even more likely to be doing vital work, the newspaper's analysis discovered. The term 'key workers' has become common parlance since Covid-19 forced many businesses to shut under tough social distancing measures. Although keen to stem the spread of infection, Washington moved to ensure that societal functioning was not completely paralyzed. Medical workers stand outside NYU Langone Health hospital as people applaud to show their gratitude to medical staff and essential workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic Homeland Security officials drew up a list of 'essential critical infrastructure workers' who should not down tools but continue to work. These range from delivery drivers to farmers to police officers (female NYPD officer pictured) and retail staff Homeland Security officials drew up a list of 'essential critical infrastructure workers' who should not down tools but continue to work. These range from delivery drivers to farmers to police officers and retail staff. In most of these industries, men flood the majority of the employment market. But they are the minority gender of the overall essential workforce, mainly because woman occupy 77 per cent of by far the largest sector - healthcare, of which there are 19 million workers. However the female dominance of this sector has been reflected in the rate of infection. A report from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention found that 73 per cent of health worker to catch the disease have been women. Ten years, $12 billion and nearly 400,000 settled claims later, the impact of the Deepwater Horizon explosions still being litigated by dozens of companies seeking economic damages and thousands of people who say they got sick from the crude that contaminated the Gulf of Mexico, beaches and coastal marshes. What are left are the most complex cases of business cases and people who either chose not to join class-action settlement of medical claims, which paid victims of acute illnesses $3,000, or claim they suffered chronic illnesses, such as cancer, for which symptoms did not appear until after eligibility deadlines to receive compensation from the settlement passed. Craig Downs, a Florida lawyer representing more than 800 people making chronic-illness claims, estimated that some 5,700 of spill-related medical cases are still waiting to be heard by the courts. George Barisich, a shrimper from St. Bernard Parish and president of the United Commercial Fishermens Association, a Louisiana seafood trade association, is one of them. He said that he suffers from heart and respiratory problems and memory lapses, which he blames on the work he and hundreds of other fishermen did cleaning up the spill. To qualify for the roughly $60,000 offered in settlement, he had to see a doctor by April 16, 2012, but he says his symptoms did not appear until after that date. Many other fishermen who claim they became sick after working on the cleanup of the spill, also missed the diagnosis deadline to qualify for the settlement, said Barisich, who has acted as spokesman for many Louisiana seafood workers. They claim that exposure to chemical dispersants used to break down the spilled oil has caused a range of chronic illnesses, including cancer. Downs said it can take years for some cancers to appear. There is going to be a lot more of these kinds of cancer cases, Downs said. BP declined to comment on its settlement of medical claims. The more than $12 billion BP has paid economic and medical claims is just a small part of the $69 billion the company spent on damages, penalties, fines, cleanup and clean-up costs and environmental restoration. BP made an $18.7 billion settlement with the federal government in 2016 to resolve all economic and environmental claims related to the spill. It also made a $4.9 billion settlement with the five Gulf Coast states and an additional $1 billion settlement with 400 local jurisdictions. Two groups In the last report from the Deepwater Horizon Claims Center, which oversaw claims in a class action settlement, estimated that by July 31, 2018, some 390,721 of 390,783 case had been resolved. The remaining economic cases fall into two groups. The first group consists of plaintiffs for which it was difficult to determine how the class action rules applied to them. For example, in some cases, the issue revolves around the question of whether business activities fell within the geographical area known as the impact zone. Some businesses, such as banks and other oil companies, were excluded from the settlement. One business, represented by Brent Coons, a Beaumont lawyer, did not automatically qualify for the settlement because as a startup, it could not measure losses based on the previous years revenues. The settlement process was very complicated and ambiguous with a lot of subjectivity, said Coons, who represented more than 10,000 spill-related clients, including casinos, shrimp boats and processors, seafood restaurants and tourism businesses. Seafood claims settled Essentially all claims from the seafood industry were settled through a $2.3 billion seafood compensation fund. The size of the payouts depended on the previous income for seafood workers, meaning that fishing boat owners typically received much more generous compensation than deckhands. Whether the settlements have made the seafood industry whole is a more complicated question. As of 2017, the most recent year for which data was available, the oyster industry was producing about 13 million pounds of oyster meet, down from about 15 million in 2009, the year before Deepwater Horizon exploded. Other factors, such as warming oceans caused by climate change, may also have contributed to the seafood industrys slow recovery. But one thing is certain, said Joel Waltzer, a New Orleans-based partner with Waltzer, Wiygul, Garside, the fishery has changed. We dont see the fish where they were, said Waltzer, who represented hundreds of clients in the seafood industry. we dont see the crabs out there. emilysusanpickrell@gmail.com French English Presse Release Suresnes April 20, 2020 at 6 p.m. Bel First quarter 2020 financial information Sales First quarter sales increase 12.2% on published basis and advance 11.0% organically Half the growth was driven by exceptional sales at major retail chains in the second half of March, in connection with the global health crisis Amounts are expressed in millions of euros and rounded off to the nearest million. Ratios and variances are calculated based on underlying amounts, not rounded off amounts. In Q1 2020, Bel generated consolidated sales of 909 million, up 12.2% on a published basis versus 810 million in the prior-year period. The appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the euro accounted for the lions share of the foreign exchange effect, which positively impacted consolidated sales by 1.2% or 9 million. Excluding the foreign exchange impact, Bels consolidated sales advanced 11.0% organically y-o-y in Q1 2020. Bel estimates that the environment sparked by the global Covid-19 pandemic accounted for about half the reported Q1 sales growth. In March, the company observed an increase in sales due in part to stockpiling and daily household food purchases as a result of lockdown measures and the closure of restaurants and catering services. All company brands in all geographies contributed to the growth, with the exception of markets in the Levant region, which remains in a recession. Excluding the impact of the pandemic, organic sales growth was very dynamic and fueled by the strong fundamentals of the company's sales policy in Europe and preparations for the Easter and Ramadan holidays. The sales breakdown by market segment is as follows: First quarter (in millions of euros) 2020 2019 % change % organic growth Global Markets 747 690 +8.3% +7.3% New Territories 162 120 +34.6% +32.4% Total 909 810 +12.2% +11.0% Global Markets Bel reported strong sales momentum in the first two months of the year in global (mature) markets, prior to the March sales acceleration that arose from consumer lockdowns enacted in most countries. Bel still has a weak presence in the catering market, which was particularly hard hit by the pandemic. In Europe, 2020 began with buoyant sales growth, particularly in France and Germany, before the sales acceleration seen in all markets in March. The contraction in the Levant markets since the second half of 2019 accounts for the weak 2.3% Q1 sales growth reported in the Middle East, Greater Africa region. In North America, sales accelerated in March as governments began rolling out lockdown measures. New Territories Sales of all MOM products and brands in the New Territories market segment were particularly strong in the United States and France. Sales by geographic region 3 months millions of euros 2020 2019 % change % organic growth Europe 473 430 +10.1% +9.8% Middle East, Greater Africa 199 192 +3.2% +2.3% Americas, Asia-Pacific 237 188 +26.3% +22.9% Total 909 810 +12.2% +11.0% 2020 results outlook Against the backdrop of a global pandemic and economic crisis, and in view of the strong volatility in global demand expected to prevail in the months ahead, Bel is unable to provide a clear outlook at this time. The first weeks of April indicate a return to more normal consumer purchasing patterns, although coming trends in consumer purchasing remain uncertain. Bel continues to monitor the situation very closely in order to adapt its response as the pandemic evolves. As a major food sector player, Bel fully assumes its duty to do everything possible to ensure the continuity of its operations. To date, the company's production sites continue to operate, with mobilized and committed teams. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Bel has strengthened its safety procedures and health rules to ensure the health and safety of all its employees, in particular by implementing the strictest health and precautionary measures at all production sites, as noted in the company's March 31st and April 9th press releases. Along with its production teams, partner farmers and suppliers, Bel is doing everything to continue its operations and to participate in the collective effort to uphold the food supply chain. The company has: increased its food and packaging raw material inventories to ensure production continuity, taken measures to ensure the supply of raw materials to its plants and products to its retail partners, established plans for operations continuity at its plants, adapted its production lines to best meet the needs of consumers during the lockdown period, adapted its supply chain to ensure that products are delivered to market under the best conditions. Bel will also continue to evolve its distribution methods and product offerings with agility, to accommodate the new consumer trends expected to result from these unprecedented times in the markets where it operates. Bel's financial position remains healthy, with strong liquidity both in terms of cash and untapped credit lines. As a reminder, at December 31, 2019, Bel had 403 million in surplus cash and cash equivalents, with just 30 million in outstanding NEU CP commercial paper, and 820 million in untapped credit lines maturing in 2023 and 2024. Dividend cut In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Board of Directors meeting today voted to lower the 2019 dividend initially proposed by the March 11 Board of Directors, reducing it by nearly 30% versus the dividend paid out for the 2018 financial year. A dividend of 3.50 per share, with an ex-dividend date on May 20 and payable as of May 22, 2020, will be proposed for approval by the Annual General Meeting (AGM) scheduled for May 14, 2020. The conditions for the AGM will be provided in a separate, dedicated press release. With a long-term commitment to champion healthier and responsible food for all embodied by its new "For All. For Good" signature, Bel is fully in sync with a sustainable and profitable growth model. Bel's financial performance indicators The Group uses non-IFRS financial performance indicators internally and for its external communication. These non-IFRS indicators are defined below: Organic growth corresponds to reported sales growth, excluding impacts from foreign exchange fluctuations and changes in the scope of consolidation, i.e. on a constant structure and exchange rate basis. The organic growth rate is calculated by applying the exchange rate for the prior year period to the current year period. This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Such trend and/or target information should in no way be regarded as earnings forecast data or performance indicators of any kind. This information is by nature subject to risks and uncertainties that may be beyond the Company's control. A detailed description of these risks and uncertainties is provided in the Company's Universal Registration Document, available at ( www.groupe-bel.com) . More comprehensive information about the Bel Group can be found in the "Regulatory Information" section of the www.groupe-bel.com website. About Bel The Bel Group is a world leader in branded cheese and a major player in the healthy snack market. Its portfolio of differentiated and internationally recognized brands include such products as The Laughing Cow, Kiri, Mini Babybel, Leerdammer, Boursin, PomPotes, and GoGo squeeZ, as well as some 20 local brands. Together, these brands helped the Group generate sales of 3.4 billion in 2019. Some 12,400 employees in some 30 subsidiaries around the world contribute to the deployment of the Group's mission to champion healthier and responsible food all. Bel products are prepared at 32 production sites and distributed in nearly 120 countries. www.groupe-bel.com ------------ Public relations Bel Group Agence BCW Alice Dalla Costa / Cecile Pochard alice.dalla-costa@bcw-global.com / cecile.pochard@bcw-global.com +33 (0)1 56 03 12 26 / +33 (0)1 56 03 12 95 Attachment A string of satellites launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX has once again confused sky gazers with their unusual formation. The launch of the Starlink satellites, which are designed to beam high-speed internet back down to Earth, prompted a flurry of UFO sightings across social media on Sunday evening. Similar confusion was caused last year when SpaceX launched the first 60 Starlink satellites, with one UFO sightings site receiving more than 150 reports about the satellite train. "Saw these tonight in the sky," one Twitter user wrote. "Eerie they look like satellites... Anyone know what they are?" A website tracking UFO reports also received reports of "aurora" craft sweeping across the sky in straight lines. Recommended Elon Musk fears he will die before SpaceX makes it to Mars The satellites are being launched in batches and will eventually create a 12,000-strong constellation for the ambitious space-based internet project. "SpaceX is leveraging its experience in building rockets and spacecraft to deploy the world's most advanced broadband internet system," the company states on its website. "With performance that far surpasses that of traditional satellite internet and a global network unbounded by ground infrastructure limitations, Starlink will deliver high speed broadband internet to location where access has been unreliable, expensive, or completely unavailable." SpaceX is among a number of private firms aiming to deliver the internet to under-served areas of the globe using micro satellites, with online retail giant Amazon also planning its own network. Astronomers have warned that thousands of new satellites orbiting the Earth could risk ruining the view of the night's sky and interrupting radio frequencies used for observing the universe. Dr Dave Clements, an astrophysicist from Imperial College London, described the constellations last year as a "tragedy" that may even block sightings of Earth-bound asteroids. They present a foreground between what were observing from the Earth and the rest of the universe, so they get in the way of everything, he said. And youll miss whatever is behind them, whether thats a nearby potentially hazardous asteroid or the most distant Quasar in the universe. Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry Show all 8 1 /8 Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry US astronaut Alan B Shepard Jr sitting in his Freedom 7 Mercury capsule, ready for launch on 5 May 1961. Just 23 days earlier, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had become the first man in space. After several delays and more than four hours in the capsule, Shepard was ready to go, and he famously urged mission controllers to fix your little problem and light this candle. Pictures by Nasa/EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry Wernher von Braun (centre) explains the Saturn rocket system to President John F Kennedy at Launch Complex 37 while the president tours the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex, on 16 November 1963 Nasa/EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry A back-up copy of the first Russian Sputnik (satellite, right), and a small replica of the second Russian satellite displayed in a small museum in the cosmonaut training centre in Star City outside Moscow. The second satellite was launched just a month later on 3 November 1957 with dog Laika on board. EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry Jet propulsion laboratory director William Pickering (left), Dr James Van Allen (centre), and Dr Wernher von Braun (right) hold up a model of the first US satellite Explorer 1, which successfully launched on 31 January 1958 Nasa/EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry President Kennedy speaks to the nation at the joint session of congress, in Washington, DC, on 25 May 1961, where he said: I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth. Nasa/EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry A visitor passes in front of a picture of Yuri Gagarin, the first cosmonaut of the USSR, inside the Vostok 1 command capsule on display at the exhibition The way of Gagarin achievement of Russian manned cosmonautics in Moscow. On 12 April 1961, Gagarin performed a space flight aboard the Vostok-1 spacecraft, orbiting Earth in 108 minutes and landing safely near Smelovka village in the Saratov region's Ternovsky district. EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry A model of the worlds first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, hangs in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC EPA Race to Space: US and Soviet Union's Cold War rivalry Full length image of US astronaut Alan B Shepard Jr Nasa/EPA SpaceX previously told The Independent that it is coordinating with the European radio astronomy community and the US National Radio Astronomy Observatory in order to minimise any potential impact on radio astronomy activities. It also said it would begin painting the base of the Starlink satellites black "to help mitigate impacts on the astronomy community". The latest satellites launched by SpaceX will continue to be visible in the sky with the naked eye on Monday evening. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard announced on Monday that it has significantly upgraded the range of its anti-warship missiles, the state-run agency reported. The Guard says it now possesses surface-to-surface and subsurface anti-warship missiles with a range as high as 700 kilometres, according to its top naval officer, Adm. Ali Reza Tangsiri. In September, Iranian officials said the country's most advanced anti-warship missiles had a range of about 300 kilometers, some 180 miles. Iran periodically announces major advances in its weapons capabilities that cannot be verified independently. Its armed forces are believed to have surface-to-surface missiles with a range of 2,000 kilometres, or 1,250 miles, that can reach Israel and US bases in the Mideast. Tangsiri's remarks came a day after the Guard acknowledged its naval forces had a tense encounter with U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf last week. Tensions between Iran and the US remain high in the Gulf, following a year of escalating clashes between the two countries. The US withdrew from the nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers in 2018 and reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran. Tehran views the heavy presence of US forces along the Gulf littoral as a threat. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 01:58:35|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TEHRAN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Iran has increased the range of its naval missiles to 700 kilometers, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps navy commander said Monday. "There was a time when the farthest range of our naval missiles did not exceed 45 km and even that was achieved with assistance from American military advisors," Alireza Tangsiri was quoted as saying by Press TV. "However, we have developed subsurface and surface-to-surface missiles with a range of 700 kilometers, which have been totally made by domestic military elites," said Tangsiri. The Iranian commander urged for regional cooperation for establishment of security. Enditem Xiaomi is one of the very few companies in the world that makes 65W charging systems for its phones and other devices. In China, you can buy a 65W fast charging adapter from Xiaomi that can fill up batteries on select phones and laptops quite fast. However, the technology Xiaomi is relying on to make the fast charging safe has been proven to be vulnerable to hackers, leading Xiaomi to stop its sale in China. According to a report from Chinese website Tech Sina, a third-party security company has found a vulnerability in its 65W GaN charger. The issue could theoretically lead hackers to get into the system and damage the connected devices with high voltage. The Gallium Nitride based charger used a rewritable eFlash chip to solve issues with the system and update the charging protocols. It is this rewritable chip that can be hacked into damaging devices. Xiaomi has currently pulled off the charger from the Chinese market in order to avoid further sales. However, those who already have bought the charger need not worry. Xiaomi says that most of the devices supporting the 65W charging speeds have an overvoltage protection system built-in. Hence, if your charger is compromised, the phone's safety systems will cut-in and stop the charging once it detects higher than usual voltage flow. It is still unknown as to when Xiaomi will release an updated model of the 65W charger. The second fastest charging system from Xiaomi is the 30W system that is present in the Mi 10 series. Xiaomi also has a 33W fast-charging system for limited phones such as the Redmi Note 9 Pro Max and the Poco X2. In the smartphone market, the battle for developing fast charging systems has intensified. Oppo and Xiaomi are neck-to-neck in this duel, with Oppo currently offering a commercial smartphone with a 65W fast charging system. Oppo's subsidiary Realme has led the charge in India with its 50W fast wired charging system on the Realme X2 Pro. OnePlus, which is also part of the same group, has mastered a proprietary 30W wireless charging system. As for Xiaomi's 65W system, you cannot buy it in India as none of the phones it sells support that format of fast charging. However, that could change with the upcoming Mi 10 series, which is expected to be launched once the COVID-19 lockdown is lifted. The Mi 10 by default supports 30W fast wired and wireless charging but it can also make use of the 65W fast charger. The Queen is set to mark her 94th birthday tomorrow with a Zoom call with the rest of the royal family. Her Majesty, who is currently in isolation at Windsor Castle with Prince Philip, 98, cannot be visited by loved ones to celebrate the big day amid the coronavirus lockdown. Aides have been planning to set-up video calls to mark the celebration instead, allowing the Queen's children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to wish her a happy birthday. Last year, 16 members of the royal family were able to visit Her Majesty to mark her birthday - but the current restrictions mean video and phone calls will have to be used instead. The Queen has already asked that there be no gun salutes to mark her birthday for the first time during her 68-year reign amid the pandemic. The Queen, pictured celebrating her 93rd birthday last year, will celebrate with video calls tomorrow Prince William and Kate Middleton have already used Zoom, with the family set to use the app tomorrow to wish the Queen a happy birthday The monarch has also said Government buildings will be exempt from flying flags if it creates a problem. Her Majesty said she did not feel gun salutes would be appropriate in the circumstances of the crisis, which has claimed more than 16,000 lives in Britain. Gun salutes, in which blank rounds are fired across the UK, are typically used by the Royal Family to mark special occasions such as anniversaries and birthdays. The Queen's birthday parade, also known as Trooping the Colour, will also not go ahead because of the outbreak. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson did not confirm whether a Zoom call between the Queen and the rest of the family would go ahead, but added that any calls between the family 'would be private'. The Royal Family has already been active on Zoom during the lockdown, with Prince William and Kate Middleton enjoying conversations with school children and an interview with the BBC. They also revealed how they had been checking on the other royals, including the Queen and Prince Charles, through video calls. Kate said the family had been through 'ups and downs' during the lockdown 'like lots of families' since it was imposed on March 23, but they had stayed in touch with other family members using video conferencing apps. The Queen will celebrate her 94th birthday in isolation in Windsor Castle with Prince Philip, 98 The Queen at Trooping the Colour on June 8 last year, with her family including Prince Charles (second left), Prince Andrew (centre right) and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex (right, rear) The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery fire a 41 Gun Royal Salute to mark Queen Elizabeth II's 93rd birthday in Hyde Park, London last year She said the family were getting used to contacting each other in a different way - and trying to avoid dropping the computer halfway through, adding: 'It gets a bit hectic, I'm not going to lie. 'With a two-year-old you have to take the phone away. It's quite hectic for them all to say the right thing at the right time without pressing the wrong buttons. But it's great and it's nice to keep in touch with everybody.' They said Charles, Kate's parents Carole and Michael Middleton and 'our familes' have all enjoyed keeping in touch, but added of Louis: 'For some reason he sees the red button and he always wants to press the red button.' The Duchess also indicated that they might call Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in Los Angeles next month to celebrate Archie's first birthday on May 6. Kate told how the Cambridges are using video apps to 'share in on birthday calls and things like that' to ensure they keep in touch with the rest of the royals. In another Zoom call on April 8, William and Kate chaired a roundtable call in which they thanked mental health workers for supporting those who are struggling. It comes as the prospects of an early end to the crippling coronavirus lockdown receded today as Boris Johnson is understood to be prioritising staving off a second wave of infections. The Prime Minister has told colleagues his 'overriding concern' is to avoid a second peak in the pandemic that would plunge the country back into turmoil. Mr Johnson is still recuperating from the disease at Chequers, but conveyed his views during a two-hour meeting on Friday with foreign secretary Dominic Raab, senior adviser Dominic Cummings, communications director Lee Cain, and cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill. Government sources have also been frantically playing down suggestions circulated by senior Tories that schools could be reopened by mid-May, saying early June is more likely. The timetable emerged amid signs of Cabinet splits over how quickly to ease the draconian curbs, with fears the economic damage will kill more people than the virus itself. Mr Johnson seems to be taking a more cautious stance than Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove. Nearly three months have passed since anyone has seen or heard from 28-year-old Florida resident Cieha Taylor. And her family is desperate for answers. Im worried about her every single day, Ciehas mother, Canitha Taylor, told Dateline. We just want to know where she is. We want to know if shes OK. Cieha Taylor (Finding Cieha Facebook Page) Canitha told Dateline that Cieha previously lived with her in Dade City, Florida, but had been recently staying with her boyfriend about 45 minutes away in Plant City, Florida. According to a Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office press release, it was around 4 p.m. on February 6, 2020, when Cieha dropped her boyfriend off at his home on Cowart Road in Plant City, Florida, just a few blocks from a call center where she worked. A few hours later, around 7 p.m., Ciehas black 2000 Toyota Solaris was found abandoned about a mile away on railroad tracks at East Trapnell Road. The engine was still running. Her belongings, including her cell phone and debit card, were in the car. Ciehas sister-in-law, Porshia Taylor, who traveled from Iowa to help with the search, told Dateline it was unlike Cieha to leave her phone behind. If you know Cieha, you know she was never without her phone, Porshia said. She was always in contact with someone. Were just really worried about her. Cieha was reported missing and an investigation was launched by the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office. According to NBC affiliate WFLA, deputies have questioned Ciehas boyfriend, who was allegedly the last person to see her, but they have no leads at this time. Cieha Taylor (Finding Cieha Facebook Page) Ciehas family told Dateline that about three weeks after Cieha went missing, her shoes were discovered on a drainage pipe alongside the road near the railroad tracks where her carhad been found. A flier announcing her disappearance hung on a post next to the shoes. I feel like they were placed there, Canitha told Dateline. We searched in that area for weeks and never found anything. Those shoes were ones I gave her and I definitely would have noticed them. Story continues Crystal Clark, the Chief Communications Clerk for Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office would not confirm further details to Dateline, but said Ciehas disappearance is still an active an open case and that they are continuing to investigate. For weeks, family and friends searched the area around the railroad tracks, including the woods, but found no trace of Cieha. The searches have ended due to the recent spread of COVID-19. Porshia and her husband, who is Ciehas brother, returned to Iowa. Our world was turned upside down even before COVID, Porshia said. And now were even more worried. Its heartbreaking because we cant even go to Florida to be with our family or to help look for Cieha. Ciehas family describes her as afun, upbeat person who doesnt let things get her down. She lights up an entire room when she walks in, Canitha said. Shes the light of our lives. We just need our girl back. Ciehas family hopes someone with information will call authorities. They have also set up a Facebook page Finding Cieha, with the hope of finding answers in her case. Cieha was last seen wearing a gray, white, blue and red striped dress, possibly with a pink sweater over it. She is described as being approximately 56, and 170 lbs. She has auburn/red shoulder-length hair. Anyone with information on Ciehas whereabouts is asked to contact the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office at 813-247-8200. MADISON, Wis., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AkitaBox, the industry leader in building management software solutions, announced today that it will release AkitaBox DeepClean Assurance , a cloud-based software application that drives cleanliness best practices in buildings and enables a safe return to work. The application will be driven by disinfection guidelines set forth by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, AkitaBox understands the importance of building community trust, relieving occupant anxiety, and ensuring that the spaces we inhabit every day are cleaned and disinfected according to recommended government standards. The AkitaBox DeepClean Assurance software will help organizations achieve these goals by assisting custodial teams in following proper cleaning protocols and promoting transparency with stakeholders. The final result will be a shareable assurance certificate that identifies building units that have been cleaned and disinfected according to both CDC and EPA guidelines. Within the software, custodial teams can leverage location-based room pins on their building's digital floor plans to access cleaning routes, as well as customized checklists that identify areas, objects, and items that must be cleaned and disinfected. Additionally, each room assignment will feature a customized list of EPA-approved cleaning products that the team must use to qualify the room as properly cleaned and disinfected. The shareable assurance certificate ensures that EPA-approved products have been used to successfully eliminate COVID-19 and other contaminants. The certificate can be printed or digitally displayed for occupants to view, helping to eliminate anxiety around returning to work. "AkitaBox DeepClean Assurance gives peace of mind to building owners, staff, customers and the community as they'll know that buildings have been cleaned in accordance with strict CDC and EPA guidelines," says Matt Miszewski, Chief Executive Officer of AkitaBox. "The key for a safer return to our buildings is to have a simple, visual indicator that allows us to instantly understand that the buildings we are entering have been cleaned and disinfected properly. The peace of mind generated by this tool is priceless as we all return to the buildings in which we work, live and play." The AkitaBox DeepClean Assurance software has been designed with the mission of empowering organizations to: Provide assurance to building stakeholders as they enter buildings Promote a smoother transition of "back to business" following quarantine initiatives Implement standardized cleaning processes driven by CDC and EPA standards across their buildings Limit the spread of infectious disease to maintain business operations now and in the future If your organization is looking to learn more about the AkitaBox DeepClean Assurance software, please contact AkitaBox at (608) 729-9191 or visit www.Akitabox.com/deepclean-assurance . AkitaBox is the leading building management software provider dedicated to improving the way people manage and interact with the buildings they occupy. Founded in 2015, AkitaBox currently supplies accurate data management tools and implementation services to over 250 million square feet of educational, commercial, healthcare and governmental organizations in the United States. For more information, visit home.akitabox.com. Contact: Address: Pat Farley AkitaBox [email protected] 212 East Washington Ave, Floor 4 Madison, WI 53703 SOURCE AkitaBox Related Links https://home.akitabox.com/ Margaret Eleanor Atwood is one of the most famous novelists of the literary world, who wrote the book, The Handmaids Tale, made even more famous by the web series adaptation of it. Recently, for the Read A Letter initiative, she shared the story of how she managed to escape the coronavirus scare. Atwood spoke about how she managed to give the disease a miss as she had been travelling since January. Her story started with her saying, Hello, my name is Margaret Atwood and my letter is for friends and family members in distant locations. Thank you for all your messages of concern and support. I am thinking of you too and hoping that everything is going well for you or as well as it can go. Despite the annoyances considered, if we are inside a house, if we arent ill, if the kids and grandkids are alright and if we have enough money to get us through, we can consider ourselves lucky. That is far from being true for everyone. And please forgive me for being so late to reply. It is a strange time and I have been having a strange time as well. I just barely missed the big up curve of the virus and a week later I have found myself marooned in a foreign country. Here is the letter I did for #readaletter @letterslive, with good wishes to distant friends + family, my narrow escape from #COVID19 + Shingles (don't get it!) and so forth... https://t.co/lpOZHmT8SF Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) April 17, 2020 Atwood added, It started well in late January, fearing no harm, I set out with my sister and my brother-in-law to attend the Hay Literary Festival in Cartagena, Columbia. When this arrangement was made back in early 2019, I thought that Graeme Gibson (partner) would be with us. I had envisioned getting him to a warm place for February which is the coldest and iciest month in Toronto but as you know he died last September. However, the three of us forged ahead. Anyway, it is a lovely location and true, the festival is or was then very energetic and interesting. Then I travelled on solo to New Zealand and Australia for an 11 city speaking tour with two other people. Atwood spoke about the fundraising which she did and also the fact that at that time, the disease had not spread to the countries she was in. She said, Was I apprehensive? Increasingly so. As time went on, we can all remember where we were at certain abrupt moments of change. The assassination of Kennedy or 9/11 but the COVID-19 crisis unfolded slowly and so did my awareness of it. By the time I left Perth, Australia at the beginning of March, the virus was still showing a flat line globally, Atwood then spoke about going to Galway, Ireland, which had not reported any cases of the novel coronavirus till that point. I cut it very close. I could see when travelling through an almost deserted Heathrow (airport) on March 10 that things were suddenly getting serious. Fortunately, I had a container of hand sanitisers with me, though it leaked all over me in the plane while I was watching Despicable Me. Once back in Toronto, I went straight into self-isolation as the global curb shot almost straight up and here, I remain socially distancing and with sufficient toilet paper, all-purpose flour, yeast and frozen peas. Atwood ended by saying, Will there be another side to this crisis when we can emerge again and take up normal life? Yes, there will be. But, will normal life be the same as normal life before? No, it wont. We have been given a pause in which we must consider how we have been living on this planet, what the cost of that is and how we might do things better and why we really need to do them better? There is a good side to this bad moment and if you squint hard, you can almost see it, so long, for now, virtual hugs, wash those hands and keep well. We will be together again, then come to think of it, we are together now just in a different way. Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter The 21-year-old Alaska man behind a series of tweets claiming a Lafayette College student had converted to Islam, joined ISIS and threatened an attack on the campus has pleaded guilty. U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced Monday that Gavin Lee Casdorph, 31, of Anchorage, pleaded guilty via video teleconference to one count of willfully making false threats, according to a news release. Gavin Casdorph is a dangerous man whose Internet threats have real-life consequences, McSwain said in a news release. He thought he could cover his tracks by using phony information to register his Twitter account and an anonymous web browser. He was wrong." The charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a three-year period of supervised release. Sentencing is set for Aug. 3, according to a U.S. Attorneys Office spokesman. Casdorph was charged with making false threats after he claimed in May 2018 that he planned to detonate several bombs across the Easton colleges campus. Law enforcement quickly determined the bomb threats were a hoax, but the threats sparked anxiety across the College Hill campus and led to Lafayette moving its graduation ceremony location, the news release states. Casdorph was arrested in Anchorage in December of 2018 after an extensive investigation that spanned three states and two continents. He was brought to federal prison in Philadelphia where he remains in custody. The local and federal law enforcement agencies tirelessly working this case did not stop until the trail of evidence led them to Casdorphs door, McSwain said. "This case goes to show that if you make threats like those involved here, no matter who you are or where you are even as far as Alaska we will hunt you down and hold you accountable. Authorities determined the plot was hatched when Casdorph was playing online video games with two other people, one of whom was a Lafayette student. An argument ensued and a gamer going by the name Neuroscientist" asked Casdorph to send in an anonymous threat to Lafayette College. Casdorph took great steps to conceal his identity, using an anonymous web browser to set up his phony account and buying a fake phone number to provide to Twitter before making the threats. The online breadcrumbs appear to be set up to falsely point the threats back to the student, court papers indicate. Casdorph began posing as a radicalized Lafayette student using the Twitter handle BdanJafarSaleem" and tweeted that he planned to place bombs across the campus on May 5, 2018. He attached a letter to the tweets that claimed his grandfather had died, his girlfriend had broken up with him and he then found faith and healing in Allah. He also pledged allegiance to ISIS and included an ISIS flag image and photos of several firearms, captioned, Allah has graced us with these weapons of destruction to carry out his needs. Casdorph also sent an email blast to the Lafayette admissions office titled: ISIS Will Prevail: Allah Is the True God. In the email, he claimed he was a Lafayette economics student named Brendan and he was retaliating after being mocked for his religious beliefs. He warned that as word of his plan spread and students tried to evacuate, theyll be playing right into my plan. I have set up several pipe bombs, pressure cookers and nail bombs around the campus and I plan to inflict the most damage possible," according to a news release. Making false threats online isnt some harmless goof. Its selfish, short-sightedand a crime, said Michael J. Driscoll, special agent in charge of the FBIs Philadelphia division. The FBI takes all threats to life seriously, and so should anyone sitting behind a keyboard or staring into their phone, contemplating posting one. Consider whether you really want to end up where Gavin Casdorph is now, waiting to hear just how many years youre going to be spending behind bars. Lafayette College President Alison R. Byerly thanked all of the law enforcement agencies involved in arresting and prosecuting Casdorph. While the threats made against the campus in 2018 were determined to be a hoax, their impact on our students, faculty and staff were very real," Byerly said. "The conclusion of this matter provides our community with much-needed closure. 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. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is scheduled to travel to the Syrian capital on April 20 for talks with President Bashar al-Assad, according the Iranian Foreign Ministry. The ministry said on April 19 that Zarif will also meet with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem during his one-day trip to Damascus. Talks will touch upon bilateral relations, regional developments, and Syria's "fight against terrorism, it said. Zarif previously met Assad during a visit to Damascus a year ago. Iran, along with Russia, has provided crucial military support to Assad during the countrys long civil war, which entered its 10th year last month. More than 400,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict began with a crackdown on anti-government protesters in March 2011. Iran, Russia, and Syria often refer to any armed opponents of the Syrian government as "terrorists." live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Following strict directions from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and industry regulator DGCA, airlines in the country have stopped accepting bookings for travel from May 4. GoAir, which was accepting bookings until about 10 am on April 20, also later joined its peers and declined searches for travel on May 04. IndiGo and Vistara have opened their online counters for booking from June 01. On SpiceJet and GoAir, a customer can book tickets for travel from May 16. The changes will bring some semblance of certainty, especially after customers increasingly took to social media platforms to air their ire. The airlines had earlier allowed bookings for travel from April 15, hoping that the first lockdown - from March 25 to April 14 - will be lifted. But the government, on the face of increasing cases of COVID-19 infections, extended the lockdown to May 3. Airlines though kept counters open. 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 Customers who had booked hoping to travel from April 15 were unhappy about the flight cancellation, and airlines declining to refund tickets and instead, offering credit shells. The complaints prompted the ministry to swing into action. On April 18, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Twitter: "Airlines are advised to open their bookings only after a decision in this regard has been taken by the Government." But airlines continued to keep the booking lines open. Vistara and AirAsia India said they haven't received any government notice asking them to stop bookings. "Once there is clarity on steps to be taken beyond that date, we will comply accordingly," the spokesperson added. The next day, on April 19, the DGCA stepped in. The regulator pointed out that its earlier circulars, informing of suspension of flights during the lockdown period, hadn't given any directions allowing airlines to restart flights, and thus accept bookings. Adding that no decision has yet been taken on resuming flights operations, the DGCA ask the carriers to "refrain from booking tickets...further the airlines may note that they will be given sufficient notice and time for restarting of operations." By the morning of April 20, most of the airlines had fallen in line. Fares "Looking at the fares, it may feel as if airlines are going for the kill," said a senior executive from the industry. A Mumbai-Delhi one-way ticket for June 01 on IndiGo, costs Rs 2,500. The dare is exactly the same on SpiceJet for travel on May 16. On GoAir, fares are similar, and for some dates even lower. In March, the average one-way fare was about Rs 4,600. "It will be difficult for some of the airlines to sustain on these fares," added another executive from a low-cost carrier. The airlines will be further strained if the government directs them to maintain social distancing in flights, once the lockdown is lifted and airlines resume operations. That would mean that airlines will have to leave the middle seat vacant, losing one-third of their seats. While fewer seats would have pushed up the fares, that may not happen in the current circumstances. Despite airlines best attempts, customers may take some time before they are comfortable to take to the skies again. "Most of the demand for tickets right now is from passengers who are stranded in different parts of the country because of the lockdown and want to get back home. Long-term bookings are nearly nil," said an airline executive. Advertisement Anti-lockdown protests continued to gather momentum across the United States Monday as armed demonstrators waving Trump 2020 flags and ignoring social distancing rules called for America to reopen immediately. Crowds gathered close to one another in North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and California, calling for their 'liberty'. Armed militia groups protested alongside young families and Americans out of work, all calling for businesses to be reopened. Meanwhile, Facebook has been accused of working with various state governments to limit free speech as it shuts down pages that oppose stay-at-home orders. Some states mostly Republican-led ones have relaxed restrictions, and on Monday announced that they would take further steps to reopen their economies. But in North Dakota, upset protesters swarmed the capitol building while carrying 'Don't Tread on Me' flags and signs that called for freedom. Alexis Wangler is a member of Health Freedom North Dakota, the group who organized the protest, said she agreed to fight stay-at-home orders as a way to exercise the First Amendment, She told Grand Forks Herald: 'We want to exercise our First Amendment rights our freedom of speech and freedom to assemble and not have that limited by government. 'I would say that all across the nation, the executive orders have been violating people's rights.' Scroll down for video Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Hundreds have protested in cities across America against coronavirus-related lockdowns -- with encouragement from President Donald Trump -- as resentment grows against the crippling economic cost of confinement Columbus, Ohio: A local militia group is seen at a rally to protest the stay-at-home order amid the Coronavirus pandemic Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Hundreds have protested in cities across America against coronavirus-related lockdowns -- with encouragement from President Donald Trump -- as resentment grows against the crippling economic cost of confinement Columbus, Ohio: Protesters gather outside the Ohio State House Monday to protest the stay home order in effect until May 1 She added that she believes 'all businesses are essential and all livelihoods are essential'. 'That's why I said to a couple of different people, 'do we want to say anything about this?'' In Ohio, a local militia group brandishing firearms and wearing face coverings stood outside the Ohio State House in Columbus on Monday. People waved Trump 2020 flags and held signs that read 'Open Ohio' as they implored lawmakers to loosen restrictions. Hundreds of people also gathered to protest the lockdown in spite of shelter-in-place rules still being in effect at the state capitol building in Sacramento, California on Monday. Some intentionally jammed roads while honking and holding out signs while others disrespected social distancing rules by gathering in close proximity, blaring music and shouting to end the lockdown. In Pennsylvania, protesters gathered to fight stay-at-home orders while Facebook faced backlash for reportedly colluding with state governments to stop anti-lockdown protests. 'Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook,' a spokesperson said on the social network's policy in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Facebook officials said they reached out to states individually to understand their lockdown orders then removed posts that violated those rules. 'We reached out to state officials to understand the scope of their orders, not about removing specific protests on Facebook. We remove the posts when gatherings do not follow the health parameters established by the government and are therefore unlawful,' a company spokesperson said to DailyMail.com. The death toll in the U.S. stood at more than 40,000 Monday evening the highest in the world with over 800,000 confirmed infections. The true figures are believed to be much higher, in part because of limited testing and difficulties in counting the dead. Columbus, Ohio: For the third time in the last week, hundreds of protesters gathered at the Ohio State House to protest the stay home order that is in effect until May 1 Bismarck, North Dakota: Nathan Howard warns people attending a protest rally to be vigilant of their freedom, Monday Columbus, Ohio: Protesters are seen holding a banner that reads The cure is deadlier than the disease at a rally on Monday Columbus, Ohio: People waved flags and held signs that read 'Open Ohio' as they implored lawmakers to loosen restrictions Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: A massive protest took place in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Monday afternoon that was organized on the Facebook group 'Pennsylvanians against Excessive Quarantine Orders' Facebook says it will allow protests that abide by social distancing guidelines to go forth, but will shut down the ones that defy those health orders. The social network said it has already removed protest messages in California, New Jersey and Nebraska at the urging of state government who said the events violated stay-at-home orders. The move has led to outrage from Donald Trump Jr and Republican figures like Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who claim Facebook is violating Americans' First Amendment rights. Sacramento, California: A driver holds out a sign about being repressed as hundreds of people gather to protest the lockdown in spite of shelter-in-place rules still being in effect Columbus, Ohio: Protesters gather to protest the stay-at-home order amid the Coronavirus pandemic Columbus, Ohio: Protesters gather to protest the stay-at-home order amid the Coronavirus pandemic Columbus, Ohio: Protesters gather to protest the stay-at-home order amid the Coronavirus pandemic Sacramento, California: Some people intentionally jammed roads while honking and holding out signs while others disrespected social distancing rules by gathering in close proximity, blaring music and shouting to end the lockdown Sacramento, California: Some people intentionally jammed roads while honking and holding out signs while others disrespected social distancing rules by gathering in close proximity, blaring music and shouting to end the lockdown Boeing and at least one other U.S. heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed production and some states rolled out aggressive reopening plans Monday, despite nationwide concerns there is not enough testing yet to keep the coronavirus from rebounding. The company said it was putting about 27,000 people back to work this week building passenger jets at its Seattle-area plants, with virus-slowing precautions in place, including face masks and staggered shifts. Doosan Bobcat, a farm equipment maker and North Dakota's largest manufacturer, announced the return of about 2,200 workers at three factories around the state. The reopenings in the U.S. are a drop in the bucket compared with the more than 22 million Americans thrown out of work by the crisis. And in a dispute that has turned political, the president has been agitating to restart the economy, singling out Democratic-led states and egging on protesters who feel governors are moving too slowly. Bismarck, North Dakota: Protesters gather on the Capitol steps and grounds on Monday. The group oppose Gov. Doug Burgum's order to keep most businesses closed until at least the end of the month in an effort to contain coronavirus Bismarck, North Dakota: Protesters swarmed the capitol building while carrying 'Don't Tread on Me' flags and signs A representative from Pennsylvania's Department of General Services said the state has not heard from Facebook in regards to shutting down Facebook-organized protests. Demonstrators pictured ignoring social distancing rules as they defy Gov. Tom Wolf's lockdown on the steps of the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania state capitol building Monday Some states mostly Republican-led ones have relaxed restrictions, and on Monday announced that they would take further steps to reopen their economies. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced that gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors were among businesses that may reopen Friday as long as owners follow strict social distancing and hygiene requirements. He said that as of next Monday, movie theaters could resume selling tickets and restaurants limited to takeout orders could go back to limited dine-in service. Texas on Monday began a week of slow reopenings, starting off with state parks, while officials said that later in the week, stores would be allowed to offer curbside service. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced Monday that businesses across most of the state would begin reopening as early as next week. Both states are also led by Republicans. But governors from many other states say they lack the testing supplies they need and warn they could get hit by a second wave of infections, given how people with no symptoms can still spread the disease. 'Who in this great state actually believes that they care more about jet skiing than saving the lives of the elderly or the vulnerable?' Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer remarks, referring to restrictions in place in her state. 'This action isn't about our individual right to gather. It's about our parents' right to live.' Trump took to Twitter to complain that the 'radical left' and 'Do Nothing Democrats' are 'playing a very dangerous political game' by complaining about a testing shortage. At the same time, Vice President Mike Pence told governors that Washington is working around-the-clock to help them ramp up testing. Revealed: The three pro-gun activist brothers behind Facebook groups in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York organizing anti-quarantine protests claiming 'politicians are forcing us to hand over our freedoms' Three far-right, pro-gun brothers are behind a slew of anti-quarantine Facebook groups galvanizing protests and urging tens of thousands of followers to decry state lockdowns. Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights and siblings Christopher Dorr, the director of Ohio Gun Owners, and Aaron Dorr, the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners are behind at least four state anti-quarantine Facebook groups with a combined following of over 200,000 members. The three have created Facebook groups calling for protests in Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. While at first glance the demonstrations cropping up across the nation appear to be organic, the coordination of these brothers on Facebook means they're actually being engineered by a network of conservative directors. Their activism echoes President Donald Trump's tweets for the governors to 'liberate' states on coronavirus lockdowns, claiming states like Virginia have their Second Amendment rights 'under siege'. The Dorr brothers appear to manage a series of pro-gun groups that range across different states from Iowa, Minnesota to New York. All seek to discredit organizations like the National Rifle Association for being too restrictive on gun safety. The three attended the gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia in January of this year. Three conservative, pro-gun brothers Ben Dorr (above), Christopher Dorr, and Aaron Dorr are running at least four massive state anti-quarantine Facebook groups urging the public to protest. Ben is the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights Christopher Dorr (left) is the director of Ohio Gun Owners and Aaron Dorr (right) is the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners Ben Dorr created a Facebook group entitled Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine on Wednesday, which now has over 99,000 members. Its description says: 'It's time to OPEN OUR STATE and STOP Gov Evers' Excessive Quarantine! Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!' Dorr and group members created an event for a drive-in rally at the state capital of Madison next Friday according to a Washington Post report, that has already seen hundreds of members pledge to participate. The page also guides visitors to a website called 'Wisconsin Firearms Coalition' where people are encouraged to join for a fee. Another page asking users to join a Minnesota group of the Firearms Coalition offered several rates for membership, from $35 to $1,000. Chris Dorr created Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine that has over 65,000 members and Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine, which has more than 14,000 members. He is listed as the director for the board of Ohio Gun Owners, according to his social media. Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. In the description page he wrote: While seizing power at a breathtaking pace, Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral! This is madness. We are fighting back, with action steps fro New Yorkers who want to make their voices heard' Chris Dorr also created the Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine page, which has more than 14,000 members 'Chris first got involved in the fight to defend and advance our 2nd Amendment rights back in 2009 in his home state of Iowa where he helped Iowa Gun Owners get 'Shall-Issue' law passed in 2010,' his biography on the Ohio Gun Owners website says. Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. The descriptions on all of their pages are practically identical, accusing local governors of abusing power and controlling the lives of constituents. Similar Facebook groups have since cropped up in Michigan, Illinois, Texas and Delaware. In these Facebook groups some people peddle right-wing conspiracy theories. In the Wisconsin page, members posed the theory that Governor Tony Evers imposed a lockdown to 'appease pharmaceutical giants'. The groups also call for 'drive-in' protests that practice social distancing but still express dissent towards officials. Chris Dorr created Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine that has over 65,000 members. All the pages had similar description pages saying: Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms' Paul Atanga Nji, ministre de l'Administration Territoriale. Droits reserves Cameroons Minister of Territorial Administration, Atanga Nji Paul has again thrown jabs at Prof. Maurice Kamto, National President of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, CRM, party. Although the Minister fell short of calling Kamto by name, he said the Head of State, President Paul Biya is unlike the politics of spectacle known to certain misguided politicians who seek cheap popularity. Atanga Nji embedded his comments in an April 20, 2020 press release in which he announced a FCFA 2 billion worth Special Gift to the vulnerable masses across the country rolled out by President Paul Biya to bolster efforts aimed at containing the novel Coronavirus. Hear Atanga Nji: The Special Gift is testimony of the legendary generosity of the Head of State, H.E. Paul Biya who, unlike the politics of Spectacle known of certain misguided politicians in quest of cheap popularity, has always been with his compatriots in difficult situations, like natural disasters and crises that affect the population of some regions. When a sudden catastrophic release of gas from Lake Nyos on 21 August 1986 caused the deaths of at least 1700 people and almost 10,000 displaced in the North West Region, Atanga Nji says President Paul Biyas generosity came to play. Atanga Nji goes on to enumerate other instances that portray President Paul Biyas unmatched generosity. These include, his support for the victims of the Lake Nyos disaster, the Nsam fire disaster in Yaounde, the repeated floods in the Far North and North Regions; support for victims of the war against the terrorist group Boko Haram, internally displaced persons from the North West and South West Regions and more recently to the victims of the Ngouache landslide disaster in the West Region. Shortly after creating the Special National Solidarity Fund for the fight against the novel Coronavirus, Cameroons Head of State, President Paul Biya ordered that it be urgently credited with the sum of FCFA 1 billion. The fund has since been receiving contributions from private and corporate bodies. But the leader of the CRM, Prof. Maurice Kamto went on to create the Survie-Cameroon-Survival Initiative to raise funds to support the fight against the novel coronavirus, after noting that the President of the Republic, Paul Biya had failed to personally take charge of the fight. Cameroons Territorial Administration Minister ordered the closure of the account of the initiative lodged at Afriland First Bank and went on to asked that all funds collected by the Kamto initiative be frozen and an investigation opened by the National Agency for Financial Investigation (NAFI). Minister Atanga has since spared no opportunity to throw missives and jabs at Prof. Kamto who has also remained defiant and unmoved by threats from government. The Telangana government on Sunday ordered online food delivery platforms Swiggy and Zomato to shut down their operations in the state. Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao told a news conference after the cabinet meeting that they would not be allowed to operate from Monday during the lockdown period. He made the announcement while declaring extension of lockdown in the state till May 7. Rao said the government took the decision in view of an incident in Delhi where 69 persons were affected after supply of pizza by a delivery boy, who had tested positive for Covid-19. The Chief Minister said people should cook fresh food at home instead of ordering the food from outside, especially during the current lockdown period. He also said the government was not happy to order the shutdown of Swiggy and Zomato as it gets revenue through taxes, but the public health was more important than the revenue. The online food delivery platforms were so far allowed to function as they were included in the list of essential services as per the Centre's guidelines. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) in conjunction with the United Stated Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM), the Azrieli Foundation and Katahdin Productions, announces the launch of online Holocaust film screenings paired with survivor stories and experiences. In light of social distancing requirements and schools moving education to online formats, these Claims Conference-funded films are intended to provide students a virtual "fieldtrip," allowing them to watch limited-access films, a dynamic group discussion with Holocaust experts and hear direct testimony from Holocaust survivors related to the films. The online film screenings can be found on the Claims Conference website for the next 48 hours : http://www.claimscon.org/film/ The schedule and films are as follows: Monday, April 20 , beginning at 2:00 pm EDT Who Will Write Our History , written, produced and directed by Roberta Grossman , and executive produced by Nancy Spielberg Who Will Write Our History reveals how a clandestine group in the Warsaw ghetto vowed to defeat Nazi lies and propaganda not with guns or fists but with pen and paper. It is the first documentary about the effort code-named Oneg Shabbat. Led by historian Emanuel Ringelblum, a band of journalists, scholars, and community leaders secretly documented Nazi atrocities. The clandestine team faced constant danger, including the ever-present threat of being discovered by Gestapo agents. One of Ringelblum's greatest achievements was that the Germans never stumbled on the secret. The Oneg Shabbat resistors eventually buried 60,000 pages in hopes that the archive would survive the war, even if they did not. Holocaust survivor, Aviva Blumberg , a survivor from the Warsaw ghetto, will start the panel discussion by sharing her personal story. Additional subject matter experts include: Roberta Grossman , Writer, Director and Producer; Nancy Spielberg , Executive Producer; and Gretchen Skidmore , Director of Education Initiatives at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. , written, produced and directed by , and executive produced by reveals how a clandestine group in the ghetto vowed to defeat Nazi lies and propaganda not with guns or fists but with pen and paper. It is the first documentary about the effort code-named Oneg Shabbat. Led by historian Emanuel Ringelblum, a band of journalists, scholars, and community leaders secretly documented Nazi atrocities. The clandestine team faced constant danger, including the ever-present threat of being discovered by Gestapo agents. One of Ringelblum's greatest achievements was that the Germans never stumbled on the secret. The Oneg Shabbat resistors eventually buried 60,000 pages in hopes that the archive would survive the war, even if they did not. Additional subject matter experts include: , Writer, Director and Producer; , Executive Producer; and , Director of Education Initiatives at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Monday, April 20 , beginning at 8:00 pm EDT 116 Cameras, created and directed by Davina Pardo 116 Cameras is a documentary that follows Holocaust survivor, Eva Schloss as she embarks on an ambitious new project: preserving her story as an interactive hologram that will have conversations with generations to come. Holocaust survivor, Eva Schloss , a survivor from Austria and stepsister to Anne Frank , will start the panel discussion by sharing her personal story of survival. Additional subject matter experts include: Sara Bloomfield , Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Naomi Azrieli , Chair and CEO of the Azrieli Foundation; and Michael Berenbaum , writer, lecturer and teacher, consulting in the conceptual development of museums and historical films. Also promoting this program is the American Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, the Galicia Jewish Museum, Hillel International and the Museum of Jewish Heritage A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. About the Claims Conference: The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference), a nonprofit organization with offices in New York, Tel Aviv and Frankfurt, secures material compensation for Holocaust survivors around the world. Founded in 1951 by representatives of 23 major international Jewish organizations, the Claims Conference negotiates for and disburses funds to individuals and organizations and seeks the return of Jewish property stolen during the Holocaust. As a result of negotiations with the Claims Conference since 1952, the German government has paid more than $80 billion in indemnification to individuals for suffering and losses resulting from persecution by the Nazis. In 2020, the Claims Conference will distribute approximately $350 million in direct compensation to over 60,000 survivors in 83 countries and allocate approximately $610 million in grants to over 200 social service agencies worldwide that provide vital services for Holocaust survivors, such as homecare, food and medicine. SOURCE Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany Related Links http://www.claimscon.org/film Kerala on Monday rolled back some of its relaxations vis-a-vis the ongoing lockdown after the Centre's objection to 'dilution' of curbs, while Tamil Nadu and Karnataka said they would not scale down restrictions in force as part of their fight against the spread of COVID19. Kerala revised its decision to open up restaurants and MSMEs and operate public transport. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu belied any expectations of easing the curbs, although the BJP and AIADMK governments in the respective states armed themselves with some elbow room to revise the curbs should the need arise. Karnataka houses the country's IT capital Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu boasts of a robust manufacturing sector. Expectations were high in both states of easing of the curbs to allow select sectors to resume operations from today. The two states joined a list of others like Punjab and Delhi which made it clear there was no relaxing the curbs, even as Telangana had on Sunday extended the ongoing lockdown to May 7, four days beyond the Centre's scheduled deadline. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier announced extending the lockdown till May 3 to stem the spread of the pandemic, the Centre later said states can decide on April 20 over relaxing the curbs regarding certain sectors. The CPI(M) ruled Kerala, which announced relaxing some curbs on Sunday, however, decided not to allow plying of buses in cities, opening of restaurants and pillion riding on two- wheelers after the Centre took strong objection to the easing of restrictions. The Centre shot off a letter to the state government, coming down heavily for its decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME units in urban areas, saying it amounts to dilution of the lockdown guidelines and also a Supreme Court observation. Initially calling it a "misunderstanding" due to which the Centre had objected to easing of the lockdown protocol to control coronavirus, the government later decided to roll back some of the relaxations and Chief Secretary Tom Jose asserted that the Centre and the states "are in this fight (against coronavirus) together". The decision was taken at a meeting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan held with Jose on Monday, official sources said, adding, a formal notification on the rollback of the curbs will be made today. Only take away will be allowed in restaurants and barber shops will remain shut, the sources told PTI. The Union Home Secretary, in a letter to the Kerala chief secretary, objected to the additional relaxations, saying it amounted to "dilution" of lockdown guidelines issued on April 15 under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. It said Kerala had on April 17 circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities that are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated guidelines issued after the national lockdown was extended till May 3. The Kerala government had earlier decided to give relaxations in some COVID-19 restictions in Green and Orange B zones. These included allowing private vehicles movement in an odd-even basis and dine-in services at hotels from Monday. State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran admitted there was some "misunderstanding" due to which the centre had objected to relaxations, but insisted that the easing of curbs was done in accordance with the Centre's guidelines. Long queues of vehicles, including in hotspots, were witnessed as lockdown restrictions were eased in some places. At Thiruvananthapuram-Kollam border at Kilimanoor, a long line of four-wheelers was seen this morning in violation of the restrictions despite ban on inter-district travel. The BJP-ruled Karnataka also decided to keep the curbs on, but the state cabinet authorised chief minister B S Yediyurappa and the COVID-19 Task Force to meet in three or four days to review and further decide about any relaxation. The issue was whether to open up the industrial sector, including manufacturing, in areas where there was no virus problem, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister J C Madhuswamy said in Bengaluru. However, as it involved movement of people and transport among other things and the entire state cannot be considered as one unit, the cabinet decided against any relaxations. "Today cabinet has decided it (the norms) will be extended up to May 3...there will be no relaxation and the situation that exists as of today will continue," he said. He said there was no restriction on agriculture and horticulture sectors, their marketing and transportation. The Minister said the cabinet felt the measures should continue for some time, as any relaxation to the small-scale industry or organised sector or rural industry would mean movement of people from outside cannot be stopped. Tamil Nadu also announced keeping the restrictions in vogue till May 3 so as to take stringent measures for checking further spread of the deadly contagion. The decision was taken after an expert panel headed by Finance Secretary S Krishnan, tasked with discussing on easing the curbs as well as devising an exit stratgey post May 3, submitted its recommendations to Chief Minister K Palaniswami here. "The panel's recommendations were carefully assessed.Based on that, to implement stringent measures to prevent further spread of the pandemic, the state government has decided to follow the prohibitory orders, (implemented) according to the State Disaster Management Act 2005 and other curbs till May 3,2020 as announced by the Central government," an official release said. "After once again assessing the spread of the disease, if there is a dip, due decisions will be taken in lines with the prevailing situation," it said. Tamil Nadu is one of the worst COVID-19 affected states with 1,520 positive cases and 17 deaths as on April 19. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bangladesh on Monday reported ten more deaths due to the novel coronavirus, taking the total number of the COVID-19 fatalities in the country to 101, as experts warned that the visible scenario could be the tip of an iceberg in view of the growing number of cases. "The toll now stands at 101 as ten more patients died in the past 24 hours," an official from the directorate general of health services (DHHS) said during a media briefing here on the novel coronavirus situation. DGHSs Additional Director General Professor Nasima Sultana said that 2,779 COVID-19 suspects were examined in the last 24 hours and 492 were tested positive, the highest so far in a single day since the first detection of three simultaneous coronavirus cases in the country on March 8. According to the DGHS tally, the total number of the COVID-19 cases in the country has surged to 2,948. "The situation could be the tip of an iceberg, in view of the number of patients detected compared to the number of cases examined, another senior health official told PTI, preferring anonymity. He suggested further extension of the nationwide shutdown which is due to expire on April 25. He said that with limited healthcare facilities and equipment including ventilators in hospitals Bangladesh could witness a severe situation if the pandemic spreads in a geometric pattern. The official said even some developed western countries were forced to take a tough decision that the elderly COVID-19 victims will not be given ventilators to keep the life saving machine for relatively younger people. "Unless the spread of the virus could be contained by any means, extending shutdowns and enforcing physical distancing, we will have to take identical decisions, the official said. DGHS director Prof. Nazmul Islam Munna said Bangladesh's existing 17 COVID-19 testing labs could examine at least 3,060 people everyday but we are yet to ensure the optimum use of these facilities though the number of cases examined was increasing everyday. He said hectic efforts were underway as well to increase the number of such labs to 28 across Bangladesh by April end, but the social and religious leaders including public representatives at neighbourhood levels must encourage people to get them tested. "The people should voluntarily come forward for testing whenever someone feels the virus might have infected...both motivation and compulsion can be used as tools to expose them to testing, Munna said. The entire Bangladesh has been declared as a risky area of COVID-19 infection under the country's Infectious Disease (Prevention, Control and Elimination) Act, 2018, according to an order issued by the directorate general of health services (DGHS) on Thursday night. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina warned that the country may face a massive hike in COVID-19 cases in the coming days of April. Bangladesh has suspended prayers for the public at mosques across the country in a bid to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Proven and Probable Reserves Increased 46%Year-over-Year TORONTO, CANADA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Jaguar Mining Inc. ("Jaguar" or the "Company") (TSX:JAG) is pleased to report updated Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves ("MRMR") estimates as at December 31, 2019 for the Turmalina Gold Mine located in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Highlights Turmalina Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves ("2P") as at December 31st 2019 were 332,000 oz's of gold contained within 2.40 Mt at a weighted average grade of 4.31 g/t Au. This reflects an ounce increase of 63% year on year before mined depletion and an increase of 46% year-over-year, net of 2019 mined depletion of 39,000 oz's of gold. A gold price of $1300/oz and BRL$3.7:US$1 was used in both years. 2P Mineral Reserves now support an estimated six years of production at current mining rates. Orebody C 2P Mineral Reserves increased by 72,000 ounces of gold over 2018 Mineral Reserves net of 2019 depletion. Targeted drilling down plunge of both the C-SE and C-Central payshoots was enabled by a more precise determination of the payshoot orientation. Orebody A 2P Mineral Reserves increased by 32,000 ounces of gold over 2018 Mineral Reserves net of 2019 depletion. Proven Mineral Reserves increased 16% to 118,000 oz's of gold at a weighted average grade of 4.88 g/t Au Probable Mineral Reserves increased 69% to 213,000 oz's of gold at a weighted average grade of 4.04 g/t Au Mineral Reserves and Resources have been prepared in accordance with CIM definitions (2014) as in National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101"). Turmalina Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources update will be reported in the company's Annual Information Form (AIF) along with an updated Technical Report on the 29th April 2020. Pilar Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources are expected to be updated mid 2020, once geological data collected from infill drilling and development completed in 2019 and ongoing growth exploration drilling programmes have been incorporated into the Pilar Geological and Resource Models. Pilar Reserves and Resources as at December 31, 2019 reflecting depletion of the 2018 model with 2019 mined production, will be published in Jaguar's Annual Information Form on 29th April 2020. Vern Baker, CEO of Jaguar Mining stated; "Our geologic team did an excellent job in 2019. At Turmalina, the team focused on replacing reserves in the A Orebody, and then on understanding and delineating ore in our C Orebody. With very limited resources in 2019 the team was quite successful in both objectives. They maintained and even increased our reserve base in A orebody, and also significantly grew our reserve and resource base in C orebody. This is an outstanding achievement in a year where the Company faced multiple challenges. The hard work of our geologic team was rewarded with a significant increase in our overall ounce inventory, and they also provided Jaguar with some excellent targets to continue expanding our exploration success. At Pilar, we are currently limiting our update to a depletion calculation and expect to update the Pilar Mineral Reserves and Resources later this year now that work has been completed on Turmalina. In 2020, with the addition of two contract diamond drills operating at our mines, we look forward to delivering more positive news from our operations." Year- End 2019 Turmalina Gold Mine Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources Table 1 Turmalina Gold Mine Mineral Reserves Summary as at December 31, 2019, compared to December 31, 2018: Turmalina Gold Mine - Change in Mineral Reserves Gold Ounces (000's) Gold Grade (g/t) As at December 31 2019 2018 Change (%) 2019 2018 Change (%) Proven Reserves 118 102 16% 4.88 4.33 13% Probable Reserves 213 126 69% 4.04 5.82 -31% Total 332 228 46% 4.31 5.05 -15% Table 2 Turmalina Gold Mine Mineral Reserves as at December 31, 2019, by Orebody: Turmalina Gold Mine - Mineral Reserves, December 31, 2019 Ore Body Proven Reserves Probable Reserves Proven and Probable Reserves ROM (t) Au Oz ROM (t) Au Oz ROM (t) Au Oz (000's) (g/t) (000's) (000's) (g/t) (000's) (000's) (g/t) (000's) Orebody A 408 5.75 75 398 4.91 63 806 5.34 138 Orebody C 347 3.85 43 1244 3.77 151 1591 3.79 194 Total 755 4.88 118 1642 4.04 213 2397 4.31 332 Notes: CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Reserves Mineral Reserves were estimated at a break-even cut-off grade of 2.5 g/t Au Mineral Reserves are estimated using an average long-term gold price of US $1,300 per ounce Mineral Reserves are estimated using an average long-term foreign exchange rate of 3.7 Brazilian Reais: 1 US Dollar A minimum mining width of 2 m was used Numbers may not add due to rounding There are no known environmental, permitting, legal, title, socio-economic, political or other risk factors which could materially affect the Mineral Reserve estimates. For the December 31, 2019, estimates, the Company has prepared an updated geological and block model and a supporting Technical Report. For comparison purposes, Gold Price and Cut-Off Grade assumptions used in this press release are the same as those previously reported in Jaguar's 43-101 Technical Report published in March 2019 (SEDAR). Infill Drilling and Secondary Development completed in 2019 successfully replaced 2019 mined depletion of 39,000 oz's Au and added significantly to the Mineral Reserves which are now equivalent to more than six years of production at current production rates. Total 2P Mineral Reserves are 332,000 ounces of gold (2,40Mt at a weighted average grade of 4.31 g/t Au) (net of 2019 depletion of 39,000 ounces) which are 46% higher compared to 2P Reserves of 228,000 ounces at a weighted grade of 5.05 g/t Au as at December 31, 2018. Total Proven Mineral Reserves increased 16% to 118,000 oz's of gold, at a weighted average grade of 4.88 g/t Au. Orebody A Proven Mineral Reserves increased 29% to 75,000 ounces of gold at a weighted average grade of 5.75 g/t Au which reflects a 10% increase in grade year on year. Orebody C Proven Mineral Reserves decreased 2% to 43,000 ounces of gold at a weighted average grade of 3.85 g/t Au which reflects a 9% increase in grade year on year. Total Probable Mineral Reserves increased 69% to 213,000 oz's of gold, at a weighted average grade of 4.04 g/t Au which reflects a 31% decrease in weighted average grade year on year which is offset by an overall 143% increase in tonnage primarily added from Orebody C. Orebody A Probable Mineral Reserves increased 34% to 63,000 ounces of gold at a weighted average grade of 4.91 g/t Au which reflects a 15% decrease in grade year on year. Orebody C Probable Mineral Reserves increased 91%% to 151,000 ounces of gold at a weighted average grade of 3.77 g/t Au which reflects a 36% decrease in grade year on year offset by a 198% increase in additional tonnage year on year. Detailed mapping of primary and secondary underground development by Jaguar's geological team has allowed detailed structural kinematic indicator measurements which defined a more precise orientation of both the C-Central and C-SE (southeast) mineralized payshoots. The more accurate plunge direction allowed the 2019 drilling program to target and trace these main payshoots down their structural plunge. The C Central and C-SE payshoots remain open down plunge and these depth extensions remain the primary target for ongoing drill programs. At C-Central, exploration drilling first defined the high grade payshoot in March 2019 which was followed by targeted drilling down plunge, resource definition and estimation and underground access development. Initial stoping activities commenced in September 2019. Inclusion of Orebody C-Central Mineral Reserve into inventory for the first time was completed by year end. C-Central provides a new production area for Turmalina. At C-SE the definition of a more precise mineralization plunge direction allowed targeted drilling down plunge, increasing the mineralized extension from level 5 to level 8. All orebodies remain open down plunge for future drilling targets. The database used to prepare the estimates, with a cut-off date of December 16th, 2019, comprises 4,218 drill holes and 17,282 samples. The estimate was generated from a block model constrained by three-dimensional (3D) wireframe models. A capping value of 50 g/t Au was applied for all three orebodies. The wireframe models of the mineralization, block model, and excavated material for Turmalina were constructed by Jaguar. Separate wireframes were built for each mineralized lens for each orebody and were used to constrain the grade estimates into the block model. The Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves for 2019 will be presented in the companies AIF and Technical Reports to be published by the end of April 2020. Table 3. Turmalina Gold Mine Mineral Resources Summary as at December 31, 2019, compared to December 31, 2018: Turmalina Gold Mine - Change in Mineral Resources Gold Ounces (000's) Gold Grade (g/t) As at December 31 2019 2018 Change (%) 2019 2018 Change (%) Measured Resources 333 305 9% 5.14 5.37 -4% Indicated Resources 331 272 22% 4.66 5.70 -18% Total - M&I 664 577 15% 4.89 5.52 -11% Inferred Resources 248 148 68% 4.23 4.31 -2% Table 4. Turmalina Gold Mine Mineral Resources Summary as at December 31, 2019, by Orebody: Turmalina Gold Mine - Mineral Resources, December 31, 2019 Area Measured Resources Indicated Resources Total Measured & Indicated Resources Inferred Resources Tonnes Au Oz Tonnes Au Oz Tonnes Au Oz Tonnes Au Oz (000's) (g/t) (000's) (000's) (g/t) (000's) (000's) (g/t) (000's) (000's) (g/t) (000's) Ore Body A 1,020 6.40 210 473 5.90 90 1,493 6.24 300 364 4.65 54 Ore Body B 353 3.34 38 192 4.26 26 545 3.66 64 18 6.46 4 Ore Body C 641 4.13 85 1,548 4.33 215 2,189 4.27 301 1,436 4.10 189 Total 2,014 5.14 333 2,213 4.66 331 4,227 4.89 664 1,818 4.23 248 Notes: CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Resources. Mineral Resources are estimated at a cut-off grade of 2.10 g/t Au. Mineral Resources are estimated using a long-term gold price of $1,500 per ounce. Mineral Resources are estimated using an average long-term foreign exchange rate of 3.70 Brazilian Reais: 1 US Dollar. A minimum mining width of approximately 2 m was used. Bulk density is 2.83 t/m3 for Orebodies A and B and 2.91 t/m3 for Orebody C. Gold grades are estimated by the Ordinary Kriging (OK) interpolation algorithm using capped composite samples. Mineral Resources are inclusive of Mineral Reserves. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Numbers may not add due to rounding. Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources at Turmalina at a cut-off grade of 2.1 g/t Au comprise 4.23 Mt at a weighted average grade of 4.89 g/t Au - containing 664,000 oz. of gold. This reflects an increase of 15% in gold ounces year on year at 11% lower grade offset by a 30% increase in tonnage. The Inferred Mineral Resource at Turmalina is 1.82 Mt at an average grade of 4.23 g/t Au - containing 248,000 oz. of gold. Orebody A Measured Mineral Resources increased by 7% year on year to 210,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 6.40 g/t Au, which reflects a decrease in grade of 7% offset by an increase in tonnage of 14%. Orebody A Indicated Mineral Resources increased by 8% year on year to 85,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 5.90 g/t Au which reflects a decrease in grade of 22% offset by an increase in tonnage of 40%. Orebody A Inferred Mineral Resources decreased by 7% year on year to 54,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 4.65 g/t Au. Orebody C Measured Mineral Resources increased by 21% year on year to 85,000 ounces of gold at a grade of 4.13 g/t Au which reflects a decrease in grade of 2% offset by an increase in tonnage by 23%. Orebody C Indicated Mineral Resources increased by 32% year on year to 215,000 ounces at an average grade of 4.33 g/t which reflects a 18% decrease in grade offset by a 62% increase in tonnage. Orebody C Inferred Mineral Resources increased by 120% year on year to 189,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 4.10 g/t Au which reflects an increase in grade of 3% and an increase in tonnage of 112%. Orebody B Mineral Resources remained the same for all resource categories year on year. Figure 1. The distribution of Mineral Reserves at Turmalina Gold Mine as at December 31, 2019, (left) and December 31, 2018, (right) seen from the hanging wall looking towards the south west. Figure 2. The distribution of Mineral Resources at Turmalina Gold Mine as at December 31, 2019, (left) and December 31, 2018, (right) seen from the hanging wall looking towards the south west. Qualified Persons Jaguar Mining prepared the Mineral Resource and Reserve estimates under the supervision of Jonathan Victor Hill (FAUSIMM) and Bruno Tomaselli (Deswick Brasil and FAUSIMM) who are Qualified Persons within the definition of NI 43-101 for resources and reserves respectively. The effective date of the estimates is December 31, 2019. Quality Control All sampling and samples utilized at Jaguar for Mineral Resource and or Mineral Reserves estimation uses a quality-control program that includes insertion of blanks and commercial standards in order to ensure best practice in sampling and analysis. HQ, NQ, and BQ size drill core is sawn in half with a diamond saw. Samples are selected for analysis in standard intervals according to geological characteristics such as lithology and hydrothermal alteration. Rock channel sampling of the underground development follows the same standard intervals as for the drill core. Half of the sawed sample is forwarded to the analytical laboratory for analysis while the remaining half of the core is stored in a secure location. The drill core and rock chip samples for resource-reserve conversion and grade control samples are transported for physical preparation and analysis in securely sealed bags to the Jaguar in-house laboratory located at the company's Caete Complex, Caete, Minas Gerais. Growth exploration samples are sent to the independent ALS Brazil (subsidiary of ALS Global) laboratory located in Vespasiano, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The analysis of these exploration samples is conducted at ALS Global's respective facilities (fire assay is conducted by ALS Global in Lima, Peru, and multi-elementary analysis is conducted by ALS Global in Vancouver, Canada). ALS has accreditation in a global management system that meets all requirements of international standards ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and ISO 9001:2015. All major ALS geochemistry analytical laboratories are accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2005 for specific analytical procedures. For a complete description of Jaguar's sample preparation, analytical methods and QA/QC procedures, please refer to "Technical Report on the Roca Grande and Pilar Operations, Minas Gerais State, Brazil", a copy of which is available on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Mineralized material for each orebody was classified into the Measured, Indicated, or Inferred Mineral Resource categories based on the search ellipse ranges obtained from the variography study, the observed continuity of the mineralization, the drill hole and channel sample density, and previous production experience from these orebodies. The Mineral Resources are inclusive of Mineral Reserves. For those portions of the Mineral Resources that comprise the Mineral Reserve, stope design wireframes were used to constrain the Mineral Resource reports. The Iron Quadrangle The Iron Quadrangle has been an area of mineral exploration dating back to the 16th century. The discovery in 1699-1701 of gold contaminated with iron and platinum-group metals in the southeastern corner of the Iron Quadrangle gave rise to the name of the town Ouro Preto (Black Gold). The Iron Quadrangle contains world-class multi-million-ounce gold deposits such as Morro Velho, Cuiaba, and Sao Bento. Jaguar Mining is the second largest operating gold company tenement holder in the Iron Quadrangle, holding just over 25,000 hectares. About Jaguar Mining Inc. Jaguar Mining Inc. is a Canadian-listed junior gold mining, development, and exploration company operating in Brazil with three gold mining complexes, and a large land package with significant upside exploration potential from mineral claims covering an area of approximately 64,000 hectares. The Company's principal operating assets are located in the Iron Quadrangle, a prolific greenstone belt in the state of Minas Gerais and include the Turmalina Gold Mine Complex and Caete Gold Mine Complex. The Company also owns the Paciencia Gold Mine Complex, which has been on care and maintenance since 2012. Additional information is available on the Company's website at www.jaguarmining.com. For further information, please contact: Vern Baker Chief Executive Officer Jaguar Mining Inc. vbaker@jaguarmining.com +55 (31) 3232-7101 Hashim Ahmed Chief Financial Officer Jaguar Mining Inc. hashim.ahmed@jaguarmining.com 416-847-1854 Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements and information are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's expectations and plans relating to the future. All of the forward-looking information set forth in this news release is qualified by the cautionary statements below and those made in our other filings with the securities regulators in Canada. Forward-looking information contained in forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "are expected," "is forecast," "is targeted," "approximately," "plans," "anticipates," "projects," "continue," "estimate," "believe," or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may," "could," "would," "might," or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, may be considered to be or include forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and the dates of technical reports, as applicable. This news release contains forward-looking information regarding potential and, among other things, expected future mineral resources, potential mineral production opportunities, geological and mineral exploration statistics, ore grades, current and expected future assay results, and definition/delineation/exploration drilling at the Pilar Gold Mine and the Turmalina Gold Mine in Brazil, as well as forward-looking information regarding costs of production, capital expenditures, costs and timing of the development of projects and new deposits, success of exploration, development and mining activities, capital requirements, project studies, mine life extensions, and continuous improvement initiatives. The Company has made numerous assumptions with respect to forward-looking information contained herein, including, among other things, assumptions about the estimated timeline and for the development of the drill program at the Pilar Gold Mine (and its expanded exploration footprint) and the Turmalina Gold Mine; its mineral properties; the supply and demand for, and the level and volatility of the price of, gold; the accuracy of reserve and resource estimates and the assumptions on which the reserve and resource estimates are based; the receipt of necessary permits; market competition; ongoing relations with employees and impacted communities; and political and legal developments in any jurisdiction in which the Company operates being consistent with its current expectations including, without limitation, the impact of any potential power rationing, tailings facility regulation, exploration and mine operating licenses and permits being obtained and renewed and/or there being adverse amendments to mining or other laws in Brazil and any changes to general business and economic conditions. Forward-looking information involves a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including among others: the risk of Jaguar not meeting its plans regarding its operations and financial performance; uncertainties with respect to the price of gold, labour disruptions, mechanical failures, increase in costs, environmental compliance and change in environmental legislation and regulation, weather delays and increased costs or production delays due to natural disasters, power disruptions, procurement and delivery of parts and supplies to the operations; uncertainties inherent to capital markets in general (including the sometimes volatile valuation of securities and an uncertain ability to raise new capital) and other risks inherent to the gold exploration, development and production industry, which, if incorrect, may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described herein. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of gold exploration, development, mining and production, including without limitation environmental hazards, tailings dam failures, industrial accidents and workplace safety problems, unusual or unexpected geological formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding, chemical spills, and gold bullion thefts and losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance, or the inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks). Although we have 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 not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements 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. SOURCE: Jaguar Mining Inc. View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/585600/Jaguar-Mining-Reports-Updated-2019-Mineral-Reserves-and-Mineral-Resources-for-the-Turmalina-Mine-Brazil Sudan: The deadly coronavirus wraeks havoc all around the globe. As of now, the number of people who have died from this virus has exceeded 165000. The fear of this virus is spread among people. Doctors are still searching for treatment to fight this disease. South Korea: Physical distance rules will continue till this day In South Sudan, the African country with 11 million population, there are five Vice Presidents, but the availability of ventilator is only four. Similarly, there are only three ventilators for 5 million people of Central African Republic. Liberia, a country of about the same size, has six ventilators in working condition, but one of them is used by the US Embassy. America's people suffering from hunger, food banks are not mobilized According to WHO's director of Africa region, Matsidiso Moiti is spreading rapidly from capital cities to remote areas in South Africa, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Ghana. A report of the United Nations Economic Commission has already stated that about three lakh people may have died due to coronavirus infection in Africa. Corona wreaks havoc worldwide, countries suffering from lack of ventilator WIN for HIM By adding Dadis advanced sperm testing kit and storage capabilities to our clinical and behavioral care, it allows us to address the much under-served needs of men challenged with male-factor infertility," - Peter Nieves, Chief Commercial Officer with WINFertility WINFertility (WIN), the nations leading fertility benefits management company that provides access for millions of families to the best reproductive endocrinologists, fertility technology and clinical and emotional support, and Dadi, a cutting-edge male fertility company, making male fertility testing more affordable and easily accessible, today announced a comprehensive male-factor infertility health benefits solution for employees and consumers. The collaboration, announced during National Infertility Awareness Week, will enable men and couples to take control of their reproductive health by helping identify male factor infertility issues caused by age, disease and lifestyle, early on and addressing any fertility challenges in a safe and supportive environment. The WINFertility and Dadi initiative is a key component of WIN for HIM, a fertility advocacy program for men who want to be proactive about their fertility or are about to start their family-building journey. The WIN for HIM program will be available to employers as well as consumers in May of 2020. Historically, infertility has been widely viewed as a female-only issue, but since up to 50 percent of infertility cases are attributed to men, it's important men test their reproductive health. If a male factor defect is detected early, men and couples can be directed to the right treatment plan, thus saving time, money, and unnecessary procedures. Because society has largely ignored male factor infertility, most men have been apprehensive to test their sperm or talk about the fertility issues they may be facing. Together, WIN and Dadi have created a solution that makes it easy for men to get the right testing, information and support. The WIN for HIM program includes: Convenient at-home sperm collection kit Men collect their sperm sample in the privacy and comfort of their own home using Dadis FDA-licensed at-home sperm collection kit that is tamper proof and delivered and returned using express overnight shipping. State-of-the-art sperm storage solution - Sperm deposits are cryopreserved at Dadis cryogenic laboratory in a liquid nitrogen tank at -321F, a temperature which suspends all metabolic processes. Storage is complimentary for one year. Comprehensive reporting - Dadi measures sperm count, motility and morphology, the key parameters used to identify male-factor infertility thats typically caused by age, disease or lifestyle factors. All reports are analyzed by certified lab technicians and delivered within 24-hours of receipt. Virtual clinical guidance - 24/7 access to a WIN Nurse Care Manager who specializes in fertility advocacy and education to discuss causes of male infertility, screening options, and interpret test results. Where appropriate, the WIN Nurse Care Manager can facilitate access to top in-network reproductive endocrinologists, fertility pharmacies, and clinical protocols. Virtual emotional support Access to WINs reproductive emotional health specialists who will address the emotional challenges associated with infertility such as managing stress and marriage and relationship issues that may arise. Education content - WINs vast educational content on male-factor infertility through the WINFertility website and app. For more than 20 years, WINFertility has built a reputation of putting family first, says Peter Nieves, Chief Commercial Officer with WINFertility. Dadi shares our values and is committed to creating the best possible experience for fertility patients. By adding Dadis advanced sperm testing kit and storage capabilities to our clinical and behavioral care, it allows us to address the much under-served needs of men challenged with male-factor infertility. Male infertility is systemic and has been traditionally ignored by reproductive health services and employer benefits packages, said Tom Smith, Dadi Co-founder, and CEO. The collaboration with WIN enables us to extend Dadis mission to normalize the conversation around male factor infertility. With WINs 20+ years as the leader in the managed fertility benefits industry, experience supporting millions of families across various industries, and commitment to high-quality care and support, Dadi will better service men who want to take control of their fertility. Employers interested in including WIN for HIM in their corporate benefit offering can visit http://www.winfertility.com for more information. Consumers can also take advantage of the full WIN for HIM program directly through the WINFertility website and app. About WINFertility WINFertility is the nations leading family-building and fertility benefit management company, providing comprehensive solutions for employers, health plans and consumers. From fertility management, including medical treatment, pharmacy and genetics to surrogacy and adoption, WINFertility has helped more than 100,000 families by providing access to the best doctors, technology, and support. WIN works with the nations leading reproductive endocrinologists and integrates with national and regional insurance carriers, as well as the nations largest pharmacy benefit managers, to deliver the most advanced and effective fertility treatments and family-building solutions. WIN Nurse Care Managers navigate patients through the often complex process, providing clinical oversight, emotional support, advocacy, and education throughout the journey. Patients and clients that utilize WINs program see higher pregnancy rates, fewer multiple gestations, more efficient Rx utilization, and lower costs. The company headquarters are based in Greenwich, CT. About Dadi Dadi is the leading male fertility company that makes male fertility testing and storage more affordable and accessible. Dadi has created a simple, safe, and easy way for men and couples to make well-informed fertility preservation and family-building decisions as well as identify potential male factor infertility issues. Male factor infertility has been traditionally ignored and represents a systemic problem across industry-standard reproductive health services. Dadis at-home collection kit and cryogenic sperm storage solution is FDA-licensed across the USA in all 50 states and provides comprehensive lab testing and reporting for an overall experience that is faster, easier and less expensive than traditional sperm banks can provide. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Dadi was co-founded by Tom Smith, Gordon von Steiner, and Mackey Saturday. Since its launch in January 2019, Dadi has serviced customers in over 1,100 cities nationwide. For more information, visit http://www.dadikit.com. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Hannah McCann (The Jakarta Post) - Mon, April 20, 2020 16:26 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd3105f2 3 Lifestyle COVID-19,coronavirus,salon,hairdressing,lockdown Free As part of sweeping social-distancing measures, on March 24 Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced nail salons, tanning, waxing and most other beauty services would be closed but hair salons could remain open with a 30-minute per client time restriction. There was much criticism this limit was both unfeasible and highly gendered, and it was reversed. Salons can operate if they maintain one person per four square meters. While many hairdressing businesses have voluntarily closed their doors, others remain open. The issue has become a flashpoint in Australia for debate about what is an essential service. Touch and talk My previous research on the emotional aspects of salon work has shown hairdressers and beauty workers act like makeshift counsellors for many clients. The salon is not just about makeovers: it is a space of touch and talk. For some, the salon might be one of the only places they encounter regular verbal and physical contact. Increasingly, salon workers are being recognised as an important channel between members of the community and services such as family violence shelters. In ordinary circumstances, hair and beauty services might be considered essential due to the social and community welfare aspects of the job. However, in the context of a pandemic the close proximity required for hairdressing is a problem. Fearing for the well-being of those in the industry, the Australian Hairdressing Council has petitioned the government for hairdressers and barbers to be shut down. The initial mixed messages about rules for salons appear to have created confusion for salons and customers alike. This includes uncertainty about what subsidies are available for salons that have already closed voluntarily. It is not yet clear why the government continues to deem hair services essential. Given the original 30-minute ruling, it is unlikely the decision is based on concern for the maintenance of the social work aspects of hairdressing. The 67,000 people employed as hairdressers may be a more significant factor in the decision at a time when so many others have lost their jobs. Of course, the shutdown has already affected the 36,100 beauty therapists employed across Australia, but there may be an impression much beauty work (such as maintaining nails and body hair) can be done at home. There may also be a gendered element to this: these beauty services are more frequented by women and therefore may be more culturally coded as inessential or frivolous. It seems likely we would follow the lead of other countries that have already closed hair salons if further physical distancing measures are required. Digital salons In times of severe economic downturn, hair and beauty services remain popular. Even during the Great Depression people continued to pay for salon visits, forgoing other essentials. However, the length of time between salon visits appears to expand in times of downturn. Dubbed the haircut index, consumer confidence is thought to be signalled by more frequent trips. On the flip side, some argue consumers tend to buy more small luxury beauty items such as lipstick during recession (the so-called lipstick index). Even in difficult economic periods, people still care about keeping up appearances. In the context of COVID-19, however, social distancing complicates the situation for the beauty industry. With many shopfronts closed already, businesses have shifted to online services, finding creative ways to maintain connections with existing clients. Many salons have begun selling lockdown product packs online, producing short home maintenance videos, and some are even offering one-on-one live digital consultations. Then there are some who are simply taking matters into their own hands. Google Trends reveal an exponential increase in searches for how to cut your own hair since March 8. Buzzcuts are also gaining popularity as a no-fuss way to maintain short hair at home. People appear to be using the lack of salon guidance as an opportunity to get inventive with their appearance, or to try things at home they might be too scared to ask for from a professional. Limited social contact and the availability of online filters mean people might feel they can get more creative with their style. #hairtutorials continues to trend on TikTok. #QuarantineHair is being used on Twitter to document some of the highs and lows people are having experimenting with their looks in lockdown. Zoom beauty While it may seem ludicrous to some that people still care about makeup and hair products during a public health crisis, there are multiple reasons why this may be the case. Though sociality is reduced, many entrenched beauty norms will persist. People may feel the need to keep up some sense of appearance while still seeing colleagues, clients and friends on screen. There is also an important ritual element to maintaining ones appearance. In Western culture, ones outer presentation is seen as intimately connected to ones sense of identity and well-being. Maintaining a daily routine, including skin care, putting on makeup and styling ones hair, might give some people a sense they are looking after themselves especially when other things around them are much harder to control. At the very least, sharing mishaps and humorous experiences with self-styling in this digital beauty world offers people a new way to gain a sense of social connection. --- Hannah McCann, Lecturer in Cultural Studies, University of Melbourne This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. For the first time in many years, several stretches of the Ganga are conforming to Central Pollution Control Boards (CPCB) standards for the quality of river waters, a phenomenon that follows the nationwide lockdown imposed on March 25 and extended until May 3. In fact, some stretches of the river are recording CPCBs fit for drinking water norm with basic conventional treatment. Experts say this is mainly owing to industries not discharging toxic effluents into the river and less withdrawal of water for industrial and agricultural purposes as part of the lockdown that has shut industrial activity and restricted agricultural work. This will change on Monday when several sectors start reopening gradually. Water quality experts said the lesson from the lockdown is to strictly ensure industries meet effluent discharge standards. More than 80% of the pollution in the Ganga is contributed by domestic sewage from surrounding towns and villages and the rest by industrial effluents, according to the National Mission for Clean Ganga. CPCBs assessment of Ganga water from January 2020 had shown that most stretches of the Ganga from Garhmukteshwar in Uttar Pradesh to West Bengal were not only violating drinking water standard but also recorded hardly any dissolved oxygen (how much oxygen is dissolved in the water) and extremely high levels of total coliform (bacteria from human and animal waste). Many of the same stretches, according to CPCBs real time water quality monitoring of the Ganga on Sunday, met the drinking water standards; the biological oxygen demand was < 3 mg/l, dissolved oxygen i >4 mg/l and ph 6 to 9. The biological oxygen demand is the oxygen needed by the river to sustain life. There are many reasons for improvement in water quality in Ganga. Industries is one of them.... Some distilleries have also stopped discharging. Waste dumping by people around the river also contributes to higher BOD {biological oxygen demand} which may have stopped as people are in lockdown. Its difficult to identify any one factor, said a senior CPCB official who declined to be identified. CPCB will soon release its analysis of Ganga and Yamuna water quality during the lockdown period from March 25. Yes its true that we found dramatic improvement in water quality in many parts of the river but in some stretches we found that water quality has deteriorated after the lockdown was imposed. The reasons for this will have to be verified, the senior official cited above added. Experts urge policy makers to learn from the lockdown experience as access to clean water is also a public health issue and can play a critical role in tackling outbreaks like that of Covid-19. Industrial pollution is zero today. It is a major polluting factor for Ganga as it compromises the rivers capacity for assimilation. When sewage is mixed with industrial effluents, it is difficult for the river to assimilate the pollution. There is another reason for improvement and better dilution of pollutants. There were a very high number of western disturbances which brought rain and improved the flow in the river leading to better dilution. There are two key takeaways from thisindustries have to become zero liquid discharge and environmental flow is a must in the river, said Manoj Mishra, convenor of the Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan, descriptor. E-flow refers to quality, quantity and timing of water flows required to maintain life in the river. Improvement in Ganga water pollution is a function of both quality and quantity. Water is not being lifted by industries so there is more flow in the river and the pollution is getting diluted. At the same time effluents are also not being discharged. Its a same thing as you dilute something in a glass of water versus a bucket of water. Because of the harvesting season the agriculture sector also isnt withdrawing much water now. If you leave nature on its own, it survives and comes back to life. This is a clear example but levels will go back up as soon as we reopen, said Suresh Rohilla, senior director, water and waste water management, Centre for Science and Environment. Stretches that met drinking water quality standard on Sunday Stretches with biological oxygen demand (oxygen needed by the river to sustain life) is <3 mg/l, dissolved oxygen is>4 mg/l and PH is 6 to 9 Kannauj, bathing ghat and barrage in Kanpur, Fatehpur bridge, Narora, Varanasi bathing ghat 1, Sukartal Ghat, Bhitpur, and Ganga nullah, Murshidabad and Howrah Bridge in West Bengal Stretches with high pollution level on Sunday: Allahabad nullah with BOD of 15.35 mg/l and DO of 1.04 mg/l Haridwar nullah with BOD of 43.20 mg/l and DO of only 0.01 mg/l Nullah at Patna with BOD of 30.13 mg/l and DO of 0.25 mg/l Source: CPCB The American Human Rights Council (AHRC-USA) urges President Trump and Congress to provide all the necessary assistance to the US Postal service (USPS). The US Postal service is as essential. All postal service personnel and carriers have been providing a vital service to the country. Like first responders such as health-care workers and law enforcement, they are at the front line bravely serving the American public, providing services at reasonable price. They deserve all the support they need to continue to serve the nation. The financial crisis the USPS is facing has been forced on them. The Covid 19 crisis has resulted in a sharp decline in business in the US and closure of many businesses. As a result of the decline in economic activity, there is a sharp decline in mailings. This has resulted in a sharp decline in revenue for USPS. USPS employees are risking their health and life serving all Americans across the country. AHRC appeals to President Trump and Congress to provide USPS with the needed resources to be able to continue to advance its mission of serving the American people. The drafters of the US Constitution considered postal services vital to building a nation that Article 1, Section 8 states names establishing post offices and post roads as a federal power. USPS is still a vital American institution. We urge all elected officials to show support to the USPS by providing it with the needed funds to continue to operate. All Americans appreciate the dedication of USPS to serving all Americans everyone during these very challenging times. Imad Hamad is the executive director of the AHRC. IONIA, MI Herbrucks Poultry Ranch, Michigans largest egg producer, has donated more than 300,000 eggs to food banks during the coronavirus pandemic. The eggs were provided to Feeding America West Michigan and the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan in Flint, the company said in a press release. Herbrucks has also provided eggs to other community organizations, from Saranac to Ludington. At Herbrucks, we believe in going above and beyond to support our neighbors, Greg Herbruck, the companys president, said in a statement. We typically donate over a million eggs each year, and weve upped the ante to help ensure Michiganders in need have access to nutritious food during this pandemic. Weve already donated 300,000 eggs, which is about a quarter of what we usually donate each year, in the past three weeks and we have no plans to slow down. In addition to the eggs, the company says it has also donated 10,500 N95 masks to healthcare workers and first responders who are working on the front lines of the pandemic. Herbrucks is based in Saranac, and bills itself as the largest egg producer in Michigan. The company was founded in 1958 and supplies eggs to food service outlets and retailers across the country. It has about nine million laying hens and 900 employees at locations in Michigan, Indiana and Pennsylvania. PREVENTION TIPS Read more: New Michigan coronavirus deaths at lowest number in two weeks The mob lynching of three men, including two saints Kalpavriksha Giri Maharaj (70 years), Sushil Giri Maharaj (35) and their driver Nilesh Yalgade (30), in Palghar district, adjoining Mumbai last week during lockdown has triggered a political slugfest and accusations on Monday (April 20) as the state government vowed to act against those behind the attack. The shocking incident that took place on the night of April 16 when the two saints along with a driver of the vehicle were on their way to Surat in Gujarat. According to reports, they were lynched by villagers in Palghar on the suspicion that they were thieves. The two saffron-robed monks Kalpavriksha Giri Maharaj and Sushil Giri Maharaj, who took a route passing through Gadchindhali village, were stopped by locals who suspected that they were child-lifters. During the attack on them even the police vehicles were damaged by the mob. Zee Media reporter who reached the spot revealed several startling facts. The available facts and a few videos in possession of the Zee Media show inept handling of the situation by the police, who could have saved the precious lives of the trio. The policemen in the video are hardly seen taking any action to save an old saint who is mercilessly beaten to death by the attackers. The saint is seen in the video holding hands of a cop who failed the rescue the old monk and left him at the mercy of the crowd. Such a brazen attack also raises several questions like when the nation is under a lockdown due to the coronavirus COVID-19 threat, how did could a crowd of over 100 people gather in Palghar? Why did the police appear helpless in front of the crowd? Kalpavriksha Giri Maharaj, Sushil Giri Maharaj and Nilesh Yalgade, who was driving Maruti Eeco Van, were going to Surat to attend the funeral of a saint from their Kandivali ashram in Mumbai. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday (April 20) ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident. In a telephonic conversation with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Thackeray also made it clear to to him that there is no communal angle to the mob lynching incident. In a video message in Mumbai, Thackeray said he got a call on Monday from Shah who said there is no communal angle to the mob lynching incident, adding "I have urged him to initiate action against those who are giving a communal twist to the Palghar mob lynching. I also informed him that my government is definitely going to take action against the perpetrators." Thackeray said, "As per my information, the seers were on their way to Surat in Gujarat during the lockdown. They were stopped by the Dadra and Nagar Haveli police and sent back to Maharashtra," adding "The men, who took an internal route passing through Gadchindhali village, were stopped by locals who suspected that they were child-lifters." "Over 110 people have been arrested so far from Palghar, including five main accused. Two police officials have been suspended for dereliction of duty," he said, adding that out of the total accused, nine are juvenile and they have been sent to a remand home. He said that he has also informed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who had sought details about the incident, adding Inspector General of Police (CID) Atulchandra Kulkarni will head the probe into the lynching incident. Earlier, the state Home Minister, Anil Deshmukh, warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. Deshmukh said the attackers and the victims are not from different religions. Palghar Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh has reportedly ordered the suspension of Kasa police station's assistant inspector Anandrao Kale and sub-inspector Sudhir Katare for alleged dereliction of duty. In New Delhi, the Congress accused the BJP of playing politics on the lynching incident and said the saffron party's attempts at politicising and communalising the issue were shameful. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the incident is extremely unfortunate and his party unequivocally condemns it. Surjewala said the Congress has urged Thackeray to ensure an expeditious trial and punishment for the guilty. The BJP refuted the charge of giving communal colour to the mob attack and demanded a probe into the police in the incident. Many BJP leaders slammed the Shiv Sena-led coalition government - also comprising of Congress and the NCP - for the "administrative" failure to protect the Hindu seers. Shocked and agitated saints across the country, too, sought a transparent probe into the whole incident, besides demanding adequate compensation for the deceased. Please register or log in to keep reading. No credit card required! Stay logged in to skip the surveys. NEW YORK (AP) Coronavirus is dealing a gut punch to the illegal drug trade, paralyzing economies, closing borders and severing supply chains in China that traffickers rely on for the chemicals to make such profitable drugs as methamphetamine and fentanyl. One of the main suppliers that shut down is in Wuhan, the epicenter of the global outbreak. TIMELINE: Here are the important dates for the reopening of Texas Associated Press interviews with nearly two dozen law enforcement officials and trafficking experts found Mexican and Colombian cartels are still plying their trade as evidenced by recent drug seizures but the lockdowns that have turned cities into ghost towns are disrupting everything from production to transport to sales. Along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border through which the vast majority of illegal drugs cross, the normally bustling vehicle traffic that smugglers use for cover has slowed to a trickle. Bars, nightclubs and motels across the country that are ordinarily fertile marketplaces for drug dealers have shuttered. And prices for drugs in short supply have soared to gouging levels. They are facing a supply problem and a demand problem, said Alejandro Hope, a security analyst and former official with CISEN, the Mexican intelligence agency. Once you get them to the market, who are you going to sell to? Virtually every illicit drug has been impacted, with supply chain disruptions at both the wholesale and retail level. Traffickers are stockpiling narcotics and cash along the border, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration even reports a decrease in money laundering and online drug sales on the so-called dark web. The godfathers of the cartels are scrambling, said Phil Jordan, a former director of the DEAs El Paso Intelligence Center. Cocaine prices are up 20 percent or more in some cities. Heroin has become harder to find in Denver and Chicago, while supplies of fentanyl are falling in Houston and Philadelphia. In Los Angeles, the price of methamphetamine has more than doubled in recent weeks to $1,800 per pound. DISASTER EXPERT: Dealing with Houston's fear of COVID-19 and a possible rebellion You have shortages but also some greedy bastards who see an opportunity to make more money, said Jack Riley, the former deputy administrator of the DEA. The bad guys frequently use situations that affect the national conscience to raise prices. Synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine and fentanyl have been among the most affected, in large part because they rely on precursor chemicals that Mexican cartels import from China, cook into drugs on an industrial scale and then ship to the U.S. This is something we would use as a lesson learned for us, the head of the DEA, Uttam Dhillon, told AP. If the disruption is that significant, we need to continue to work with our global partners to ensure that, once we come out of the pandemic, those precursor chemicals are not available to these drug-trafficking organizations. Cartels are increasingly shifting away from drugs that require planting and growing seasons, like heroin and marijuana, in favor of synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, which can be cooked 24/7 throughout the year, are up to 50 times more powerful than heroin and produce a greater profit margin. Though some clandestine labs that make fentanyl from scratch have popped up sporadically in Mexico, cartels are still very much reliant upon Chinese companies to get the precursor drugs. Huge amounts of these mail-order components can be traced to a single, state-subsidized company in Wuhan that shut down after the outbreak earlier this year, said Louise Shelley, director of the Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center at George Mason University, which monitors Chinese websites selling fentanyl. The quarantine of Wuhan and all the chaos there definitely affected the fentanyl trade, particularly between China and Mexico, said Ben Westhoff, author of "Fentanyl, Inc." The main reason China has been the main supplier is the main reason China is the supplier of everything it does it so cheaply, Westhoff said. There was really no cost incentive for the cartels to develop this themselves. But costs have been rising and, as in many legitimate industries, the coronavirus is bringing about changes. Advertised prices across China for precursors of fentanyl, methamphetamine and cutting agents have risen between 25% and 400% since late February, said Logan Pauley, an analyst at the Center for Advanced Defense Studies, a Washington-based security research nonprofit. So even as drug precursor plants in China are slowly reopening after the worst of the coronavirus crisis there, some cartels have been taking steps to decrease their reliance on overseas suppliers by enlisting scientists to make their own precursor chemicals. Because of the coronavirus theyre starting to do it in house, added Westhoff. Some Chinese companies that once pushed precursors are now advertising drugs like hydroxychloroquine, which President Donald Trump has promoted as potential treatment for COVID-19, as well as personal protective gear such as face masks and hand sanitizers. Meanwhile, the gummed up situation on the U.S.-Mexico border resembles a stalled chess match where nobody, especially the traffickers, wants to make a wrong move, said Kyle Williamson, special agent in charge of the DEAs El Paso field division. Theyre in a pause right now, Williamson said. They dont want to get sloppy and take a lot of risks. Some Mexican drug cartels are even holding back existing methamphetamine supplies to manipulate the market, recognizing that no good crisis should be wasted, said Joseph Brown, the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Texas. Some cartels have given direct orders to members of their organization that anyone caught selling methamphetamine during this time will be killed, said Brown, whose sprawling jurisdiction stretches from the suburbs of Dallas to Beaumont. To be sure, narcotics are still making their way into the U.S., as evidenced by a bust last month in which nearly $30 million worth of street drugs were seized in a new smuggling tunnel connecting a warehouse in Tijuana to southern San Diego. Shelley said that bust was notable in that only about 2 pounds of fentanyl was recovered, much lower than usual shipments. Trump announced earlier this month that Navy ships were being moved toward Venezuela as part of a bid to beef up counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean following a U.S. drug indictment against Nicolas Maduro. But the pandemic also has limited law enforcements effectiveness, as departments cope with drug investigators working remotely, falling ill and navigating a new landscape in which their own activities have become more conspicuous. In Los Angeles County, half of the narcotics detectives have been put on patrol duty, potentially imperiling long-term investigations. Nonetheless, Capt. Chris Sandoval, who oversees special investigations for the Houston-based Harris County Sheriffs Office, said theres a new saying among his detectives: Not even the dope dealers can hide from the coronavirus. ___ Bleiberg reported from Dallas. AP writers Erika Kinetz in Rieti, Italy, Mark Stevenson in Mexico City and Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles contributed to this report. ___ Contact APs global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org The UK has one of the lowest coronavirus testing rates in the world, data has revealed. In a comparison of 17 countries with the largest coronavirus outbreaks, Britain ranks 15th above only Peru and India. Testing just 5.54 people per every thousand in its population, the UK sits miles below similar nations including Italy, Germany and Spain which are all testing more than 20 people per thousand, according to statistics compiled by Oxford-led researchers. Iceland, included in the comparison because of it's world-beating testing capacity, is testing 124.47 people per thousand - one in every eight people in the country. Testing people for COVID-19, and isolating them and others they have been in contact with, is seen by the World Health Organization as absolutely crucial to bringing the pandemic under control. The British Government, currently only testing medical workers and people in hospitals, has set a target of carrying out 100,000 tests per day by May 1. The UK is currently only testing hospital patients and health workers and their families - not the general public. Its scheme is gradually expanding to other key workers in the coming days and weeks (Pictured: A health worker prepares to swab someone at a drive-in testing centre in Wolverhampton) But the scale-up, inspired by Germany's massive testing capacity and now due in 10 days' time, looks like a tall order at the UK's current pace - just 19,316 were done yesterday, an increase of only 9,000 in almost three weeks from 10,215 on April 2. Statistics from the Our World in Data project, which is run by experts at the University of Oxford, shows testing data for countries around the world. Figures for 17 of the 20 countries with the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in the world - no data was available for Brazil, Iran or China - shows that the UK ranks poorly alongside similar nations. Britain, with 125,000 confirmed cases of the disease, is testing 5.54 people per 1,000 - 0.5 per cent of its population - according to the stats. Meanwhile, Switzerland (28,000 cases) is testing 25.52 people per thousand - 2.5 per cent. Other top performers also battling outbreaks affecting dozens of thousands of people include Italy (180,000 cases and 22.08 tests per 1,000); Germany (146,000 cases and 20.94 tests per 1,000) and Spain (200,000 cases and 20.02 tests). SCIENTISTS DEVELOP RAPID TEST THAT WORKS IN 20 MINUTES Scientists have created a portable machine that can analyse coronavirus swabs and give results in as a little as 20 minutes. The kit, developed by experts at the University of South Wales, costs less than 100 to manufacture and is currently being evaluated. It works by analysing a nasal swab for traces of the virus' DNA, known as a PCR test. It is able to detect people who are currently infected with the illness. The kit would cut the need to send samples to one of the centralised laboratories run by Public Health England or ones set-up in 40 NHS hospitals, which can take several days for results to be processed. The test and device are being evaluated by Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board and could be in use at its care homes within weeks. The test is said to use different chemicals to the current accredited test, allowing the university to avoid bottlenecks in the global supply chain. Shortages of trained staff, swabs and chemicals are thought to be to blame for the UK's meagre testing programme - as well as the Government's slow response to the crisis. However, it is not yet clear which chemicals the machine relies on to analyse swabs. The machine is based on work previously developed for the diagnosis of urinary tract infections four years ago. Dr Jeroen Nieuwland, who helped create the kit, said: 'We have been developing our diagnostic testing platform for the last few years. 'So we know it works well for other infections. So our work has enabled us to quickly switch it to detect the underlying virus for COVID-19. 'It is really pleasing to be able to support our frontline health workers, to help detect if they have the virus.' Advertisement Iceland was included in the comparison not because of the size of its outbreak (1,771 patients) but because of its high testing rate - 124.47 people per thousand. The 17 countries with the largest epidemics and data available were the USA, Spain, Italy, Germany, the UK, France, Turkey, Russia, Belgium, Canada, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, India, Peru, Ireland and Sweden. Ranking at the bottom of the table for testing was India, which has managed to test only 0.17 people per 1,000 - approximately one in every 6,000 - and Peru, with 4.08 per thousand. Above those came the UK and then France, with the slightly higher 7.05 tests per thousand. Testing does not appear directly linked to death rate, however. Italy, which has a death rate of 13.3 per cent, has a higher testing rate than Germany, where only 3.2 per cent of patients have died. France, meanwhile has a similar testing rate to Turkey - around seven per cent - but its death rate is 17.8 per cent compared to Turkey's 2.3 per cent. Britain's poor performance in comparison to other countries does not do much for the Government's hopes of hitting its 100,000-tests-per-day plan in the next 10 days. So far, Public Health England has maxed out at around 22,000 tests in a single day. There is lab space to conduct 38,000 tests a day but barely half of those are being carried out. This is partly because, having created capacity to test patients and NHS staff, ministers were too slow to expand the scope of programme to other vulnerable patients or front line workers. Scientists also say there is a shortage of key chemicals and swabs which are vital to carrying out the tests. Cabinet minister Michael Gove at the weekend insisted the Government remained 'on course' to hit the target set by Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust scientific research institute in London, said the Government had been too slow to increase testing. He said: 'If you look at what has happened in Korea and Singapore and indeed in Germany, there was a much quicker ramping up of testing. 'Testing will be critical as we come out of this epidemic.' British insurers are talking to the government about a backstop for trade credit insurance to support business supply chains hit by the coronavirus pandemic, an industry trade body said. States such as France, Germany and the Netherlands are giving guarantees to credit insurers in an attempt to keep coronavirus-hit companies afloat, as some firms cut cover for trade in the European Union. We are discussing with the government the scope for temporary state support to ensure that businesses can continue to obtain cover that meets their needs, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said in an emailed statement on Monday. Trade credit insurance covers the risk of non-payment if a firms customers become insolvent. The ABI said it had proposed a reinsurance scheme which would see insurers continuing to offer cover, with limited reduction in credit limits to customers, with the government acting as a reinsurer of last resort. British business secretary Alok Sharma held talks with insurance industry executives, including from the ABI and the British Insurance Brokers Association, about the plan last week, Sky News reported on Monday. Britain has already extended its government export insurance scheme to a broader range of countries, as commercial insurers pull out. For example Tradelock, a unit of trade credit insurer Euler Hermes focusing on British SMEs, has stopped offering cover to new customers. We have temporarily stopped onboarding of new customers while we make changes to the platform in the current economic environment, a Euler Hermes spokesman said. (Reporting by Carolyn Cohn, editing by Abhinav Ramnarayan and Alexander Smith) Related: Topics Carriers The sun sets behind an idle pump jack near Karnes City, Texas, on April 8, 2020. (Eric Gay/AP Photo) Oil Falls on Concern Over Storage and Earnings Oil prices fell on April 20, with a U.S. crude futures contract hitting its lowest level since 1999, depressed by concern that U.S. crude storage will soon be full while companies prepare to report the worst quarterly earnings since the financial crisis. Brent was down $1.12, or 4 percent, at $26.96 a barrel by 10:08 GMT. The front-month May WTI contract fell $4.79, or 26.2 percent, to its lowest since March 1999 at $13.48, though the sell-off was exaggerated by the contracts imminent expiry. The May contract is set to expire tomorrow and the bulk of the open interest and volume is already in the June contract, said INGs head of commodities strategy, Warren Patterson. The June contract, which is more actively traded, fell $2.18, or 8.7 percent, to $22.85 a barrel. Men wearing masks stand in front of an electronic board showing Hong Kong share index outside a local bank in Hong Kong, on April 15, 2020. (Kin Cheung/AP Photo) The volume of oil held in U.S. storage, especially at the Cushing delivery point for the U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) contract in Oklahoma, is rising as refiners throttle back activity in the face of weak demand. As production continues relatively unscathed, storage is filling up by the day. The world is using less and less oil and producers now feel how this translates in prices, said Rystads head of oil markets, Bjornar Tonhaugen. Oil in floating tanker storage is also estimated at a record 160 million barrels. The mood in other markets was also cautious as the first-quarter earnings season gets underway. Analysts expect STOXX 600 companies to post a 22 percent plunge in earnings, which would represent the steepest decline since the 2008 global financial meltdown, IBES data from Refinitiv showed. The German economy is in severe recession and recovery is unlikely to be quick, given that many CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus-related restrictions could stay in place for an extended period, the Bundesbank said on Monday. Japanese exports declined the most in nearly four years in March as U.S.-bound shipments, including cars, fell at their fastest rate since 2011. A protester holds up a sign that reads Prevent Economic Collapse at the Texas State Capital building in Austin, Texas, on April 18, 2020. (Sergio Flores/Getty Images) Bearish sentiment was reinforced by lowered oil consumption forecasts from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA). The oil industry has been reducing output swiftly to counter an estimated 30 percent decline in fuel demand worldwide. Production cuts from OPEC and allies including Russia will take effect from May. The OPEC+ group has agreed to reduce output by 9.7 million bpd. Officials in Saudi Arabia have forecast global supply cuts from oil producers could total nearly 20 million bpd, but that includes voluntary cuts from the likes of the United States and Canada, which are unable to turn production on or off in the way that most OPEC nations can. By Bozorgmehr Sharafedin Epoch Times staff contributed to this report. Goa: Fish, poultry sectors begin regular ops April 20,2020 | Source: The Times of India With fishermen having returned to the sea and the supply of chicken being strictly monitored after the bird flu outbreak in Karnataka and Maharashtra, the fish and poultry sectors have begun to function seamlessly, even before the lockdown relaxations on April 20. We have opened up fisheries since April 11. Retail sale of fish at jetties is not being permitted. The government will have to take a call on the open sale of fish since markets dont come under our purview, said fisheries director, Shamila Monteiro. The fisheries department is currently engaged in carrying out awareness drives on sanitation and social distancing at the jetties and fishing spots across the state. The transportation of chicken is also ongoing, provided traders carry the necessary documents for transportation of the birds. Besides the supply of these essential commodities being continued, the department of animal husbandry has issued 492 passes with validity upto May 3, to people to feed stray animals ensuring that they don't starve during the lockdown. The World Health Organization insisted Monday that it sounded the alarm on the novel coronavirus right from the very start and had hidden nothing from Washington about the deadly pandemic. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there were no secrets at the UN agency after being blasted by the United States for allegedly downplaying the initial COVID-19 outbreak in China. "We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight," Tedros told a virtual briefing in Geneva. The virus, which emerged late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has so far infected more than 2.4 million people globally and killed more than 165,000, according to an AFP tally. The United States has by far the highest death toll of any country, at more than 40,000 fatalities, and President Donald Trump has faced criticsm over his handling of the pandemic. Washington is the biggest contributor to the WHO but Trump is freezing funding, alleging that the organisation mismanaged and covered up the spread the virus. Tedros said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the WHO headquarters in Geneva meant there was nothing being concealed from Washington. The WHO said there were 15 staff from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US health protection agency, detailed specifically to work with the organisation on its COVID-19 response. "Having CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one. Because these are Americans working with us. It just comes naturally and they tell what they are doing," said Tedros. "WHO is open. We don't hide anything. Not only for CDC, them sending messages, or others -- we want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly." -Taiwan row - The US State Department has said the WHO was too late in sounding the alarm over COVID-19 and is overly deferential to China. It questioned why it did not pursue a lead from Taiwan flagged up on December 31 about reports of atypical pneumonia in Wuhan Debate has raged over the significance of Taiwan's email, which informed the WHO of the reports from Wuhan, and of at least seven patients being isolated -- something that would not be necessary for a non-infectious disease. The United States said Thursday it was "deeply disturbed that Taiwan's information was withheld from the global health community, as reflected in the WHO's January 14, 2020 statement that there was no indication of human-to-human transmission". But Tedros insisted that the WHO was already aware of reports emanating from Wuhan -- and said Taiwan's email was only seeking further information. "One thing that has to be clear is the first email was not from Taiwan. Many other countries were already asking for clarification. The first report came from Wuhan," said Tedros. "Taiwan didn't report any human-to-human transmission," he stressed. WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan said the email made no reference to anything beyond what had already been reported in news media. "Clusters of atypical pneumonia are not uncommon. There are millions of cases of atypical pneumonia around the world in any given year," he explained. Ryan said that the WHO tweeted the existence of the event in Wuhan on January 4, and on January 5 provided "detailed information on the epidemic" which all countries could access. Tedros also urged leaders not to exploit the pandemic for their own political capital. "Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points," he said. "It's like playing with fire. It's the political problem that may fuel further this pandemic." The United States is the biggest contributor to the World Health Organization, but President Trump is freezing funding, alleging that the organisation mismanaged and covered up the spread the virus WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there are no secrets at the UN agency (Newser) Believe it or not, there are still three cruise ships filled with passengers on the high seasbut all three are set to finally dock at various ports around the world on Monday, their around-the-globe itineraries thrown into disarray by the coronavirus pandemic. The BBC calls the MSC Magnifica, which departed Genoa, Italy, on Jan. 5, the "last cruise ship on Earth," and it documents the "political storm" the ship endured on its journey. When the ship left Europe in January, most of the 1,760 passengers likely hadn't even heard of the virus, but by mid-March, ports were turning it away. "It was clear that there was basically nowhere to go," says the ship's captain, Roberto Leotta. A few hundred people disembarked in Australia, but the rest opted to stay on board for the long sail back to Marseille, France, where it's scheduled to pull into port Monday. Reportedly, no one on the ship has the virus. story continues below Meanwhile, the Pacific Princess will dock in Los Angeles, after it made a brief stop in Honolulu last week to let four Hawaiians off, per KHON2. A Princess Cruises release notes the ship let Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Jan. 5 for a 111-day cruise, letting most passengers off in Australia on March 21 once the severity of the virus became known. There are 115 passengers still on board; it's not clear if anyone has the virus. Finally, Seatrade Cruise News reports the Costa Deliziosa, whose last official stop was in Australia in mid-March, will drop off 168 passengers in Barcelona, Spain, before docking in Genoa on Wednesday to let off more than 1,600 others. That ship, which set sail from Venice in early January, is said to be virus-free, per Italian media. "The return home will mean a radical change, a brutal one," one passenger tells the AP. "Fear is what made many passengers want to stay on board." (Read more cruise ships stories.) WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Crown Holdings, Inc. (CCK) has decided to withdraw its guidance for 2020 due to the uncertainty of the impact and duration of the coronavirus pandemic. The company noted that its Board-led strategic review is ongoing and a further update will be provided in due course. Crown Holdings also stated that the company is working to ensure that its 239 manufacturing facilities around the world remain operational and are equipped with the resources required to meet continually evolving customer demand. Timothy Donahue, CEO, said: 'The company performed well during the first quarter in the face of the emerging coronavirus pandemic. Global beverage can shipments advanced 10% in the quarter, led by double-digit gains in Brazil, Canada, Europe, the Middle East and the United States. Solid global food can volume reflected a notable increase in North American shipments.' 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. Motorola One Fusion+ and One Fusion could be the next phones from the company after its flagship Edge series is unveiled on April 22. Motorola One Fusion series could launch by end of Q2 2020. Motorola One Fusion will launch in India and the US. Motorola One Fusion+ and One Fusion could be the next phones from the company after its flagship Edge series is unveiled on April 22. Set to launch by the end of June 2020 in India, some key specifications and features of the One Fusion series have been leaked online. Earlier today, noted leakster Evan Blass took to Twitter to reveal two new Motorola phones that will launch by the end of Q2 2020. Motorola One Fusion goes by the codename Titan while the Fusion+ is codenamed Liberty. Following this, 91mobiles released its report revealing more information about the two upcoming phones by Motorola. The report by 91Mobiles cites a trusted source who provided the publication with details about Motorola One Fusion range of phones and therefore we advise our readers to take this with a pinch of salt. Going by the latest leak, the One Fusion+ will be available in India and the US sometime after the official launch, however, theres no word if the regular One Fusion will also be made available in these regions. Motorola One Fusion+ leaked specifications Motorola One Fusion+ could be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 chipset paired with 4GB / 6GB of RAM and 64GB / 128GB of storage options. The phone could have a multiple camera array on the rear and going by the leak, theres a 12MP primary camera on the back with no information about the other lenses if present. The Fusion+ is a dual-SIM smartphone and will be available in light blue and brown colours. The phone is said to be running the latest Android 10 out-of-the-box. Theres no word on the specifications of the regular One Fusion but we should know more about both the phones in the lead up to the launch in Q2 2020. For now, Motorola seems to be busy preparing for the launch of its flagship Edge series with waterfall display, Snapdragon 865 chipset and more on April 22. The event will be held virtually due to the Coronavirus outbreak in various parts of the world. Earlier, Motorolas flagship series was to be unveiled during MWC 2020, but the show was scrapped off due to the ongoing health crisis. Police implement new Community Auxiliary Guard program to ensure coronavirus compliance Cancun, Riviera Maya, Q.R. The Secretary of Public Security of Quintana Roo, Jesus Alberto Capella Ibarra announced that by order of the Governor, the Guardias Auxiliares Comunitarios (Community Auxiliary Guards program) will be implemented. He says the goal of those involved in the project will be to ensure community compliance to avoid further spreading of the coronavirus. During his announcement he also said, Please, we must use mouth covers in public places, which are being given away for free by Quintana Roo Police. The Quintana Roo police are already giving themselves the task of distributing a million face masks. We began with the first part 48 hours ago. In police headquarters there will be mouth masks free of charge to all citizens who require them, emphasized the police chief. He added that citizens should not circulate with more than two people in a vehicle and asked the population to abide by the provision, as this reduces the contagion of Covid-19 noting police will be very vigilant to ensure compliance. He explained that the Community Auxiliary Guards will be composed of young people from the same community who will be trained to help with surveillance in the community and for this, the Secretary of Finance will provide resources so that those who join the project can receive a stimulus to support their families. Be on the lookout. We are moving forward with the program to reduce mobility. If you have nothing to do, please stay home. If you go out to buy food, only send one person per family which will help us greatly reduce mobility, he concluded. The announcement comes after people have been found on beaches and numerous businesses and construction projects around the state have been shut down for ignoring the temporary coronavirus restrictions. In their public lives, Live Oak Councilman Anthony Brooks and businessman Phillip Tsai-Brooks were a well-known couple, dedicated community leaders proud to contribute to the San Antonio suburb they called home. In private, theirs was a late-blooming romance that was supposed to have a happily ever after ending, growing old together. It was not to be. The couple, married barely five years, died within days of each other in the same hospital, victims of the deadly novel coronavirus. Family members see it as a cautionary tale. We urge EVERYONE to stay home! Stop the spread! You dont want to go through what we are going through. Rest in peace, Tony and Phillip. Still in disbelief, reads a Facebook post by Anthony Tsai, one of Tsai-Brooks four brothers. He lives in San Antonio. CORONAVIRUS UPDATES: Stay informed with accurate reporting you can trust on HoustonChronicle.com Brooks, 52, an Air Force veteran, was a resource analyst at the Army Medical Command at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston. He first was elected to the Live Oak City Council in 2015 and was re-elected in 2017 and 2019. Tsai-Brooks, 42, was the owner of Extreme Opulence Hair Studio just outside Shavano Park. He was on the board of the Live Oak Economic Development Corporation and previously had served on the suburbs zoning board of adjustment. Brooks and Tsai met at a friends party in Houston and hit it off from the beginning, family members recalled. On March 29, 2014, they were married in San Francisco. They settled into their home in Bridlewood subdivision in Live Oak. Tsai-Brooks mother, Pacita, moved in and, by all accounts, the three got along famously. Its so amazing to see how impactful Phillip and Tonys love (was) for the community, friends, and all those people that crossed their path, said Alfred Tsai, another of Tsai-Brooks brothers. Alfred lives in Malpitas, Calif. The family traces the start of this difficult time to mid-March, when Brooks returned from an out-of-town conference, feeling sick. But he already was depressed and upset because his ailing father, James Brooks, had just died March 12 his mother, Littie Brooks, had died Jan. 21 and he wasnt paying much attention to his health. A few days later, Tsai-Brooks started feeling sick, too. But there were work responsibilities and family duties to carry out. He and his mother helped make funeral arrangements for his father-in-law, and a viewing was held at the funeral home March 18. Tsai-Brooks already was keeping up with news about the pandemic, noting developments and posting memes on his Facebook page, talking with his family and friends about how it was affecting business. CORONAVIRUS CHRONICLE: Subscribe to our new daily podcast for pandemic insights through a Houston lens On March 20, he went to the Northeast Methodist emergency room, suffering chills and body aches. The doctor thought he might be having a bad reaction to a whooping cough vaccination he had recently had and gave him medications, ordering him to lay off for 11 days no work, quarantine for those days, as Tsai-Brooks noted on Facebook. But on March 26, he was back at the hospitals emergency room with a fever of 102.9, short of breath, vomiting blood. This time, he was given a test, and it was positive for novel coronavirus. Be here for a couple of days, Tsai-Brooks wrote in his last Facebook post, then quarantine 14 days. He never came home. Brooks had continued to feel poorly. At one point, he did go see a doctor, his in-laws said. He was diagnosed with pneumonia and given medication. But after that, Brooks refused to seek medical treatment, his in-laws said, even after Tsai-Brooks was diagnosed with COVID-19. Despite multiple attempts to get Tony to go to the ER, he refused to go, said Robert Tsai, another one of Tsai-Brooks brothers, who lives in San Jose, Calif. I dont know if he thought he could fight through his symptoms. Neither Robert nor Alfred could come to Texas because of coronavirus travel restrictions. On March 31, Brooks wasnt responding to calls from his Fort Sam colleagues, so they called police and requested a welfare check. Officers found him unconscious on a living room sofa, Tsai-Brooks brother said. He was rushed to Northeast Baptist Hospital, where he tested positive for novel coronavirus. LIVE UPDATES: Stay on top of the latest coronavirus news, analysis and more with our daily live blog Now Playing: 'COVID-19 in 60': Houston coronavirus news in a minute Video: Houston Chronicle He was in a critical state and admitted to their COVID-19 ICU, Robert Tsai said. The next two weeks were a blur of talking with doctors and nurses by long distance, because Alfred had Brooks power of attorney, arranging for transfers for each of the men to Methodist Hospital Metropolitan downtown, and approving of rare medical techniques in hopes of saving their lives. Both men were on ventilators and were given the hydroxychloroquine cocktail, Robert said, referring to an experimental coronavirus treatment. Brooks underwent ECMO, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, an advanced life support technique used for patients with life-threatening heart and/or lung problems. Meanwhile, Pacita Tsai was back at the Brooks home, where she had self-isolated in her bedroom because of her sons illness since late March. She, too, has felt ill but has not had a fever, her sons said. Her other sons would bring her food and leave it outside her door. Difficult Easter Easter morning, Robert Tsai said, his brother seemed to be progressing. He was responding to the nurses and seemed to be in good spirits. Overall, we thought he would make it, Robert Tsai said. We were given the opportunity to video chat with Phil on Sunday early evening. By the time I was able to join the video chat Phil had a little trouble breathing so the nurse cut the session short. But Brooks wasnt doing well. Later that evening, Robert Tsai fielded a phone call from the hospitals night shift doctor, sparking concerns about Brooks. I immediately thought something happened to Tony, Robert Tsai recalled. It was actually about Phil. The doctor told him that when he made his early rounds, Tsai-Brooks had given him a thumbs-up sign. A bit later, Phils heart stopped. They tried for 38 minutes to resuscitate him, but werent able to do so. Tsai Brooks died Sunday night. Brooks, who had improved some after the ECMO treatment and a plasma transfusion, stopped responding. He died Tuesday night. Alfred Tsai said he doesnt know whether Brooks knew that the love of his life was gone. His brothers-in-law and mother-in-law, they say, take solace in the thought that the two men are together. Tony Brooks and Phillip Tsai loved each other so much, and they left this world together, Alfred Tsai said. Its a love story that ended too soon in this world, but in heaven, it will last for eternity. A thank you Alfred Tsai said the city of Live Oak has been exemplary with the family, especially his mother, who remains isolated in the house as she recuperates. Live Oak has stepped up, they really have, theyve helped us in every way they can, Alfred Tsai said. They are proof that Live Oak is an amazing place to live. Live Oak City Manager Scott Wayman said Brooks served the city well during his terms on the council. Anthony had worked for the city of San Antonio for several years, for the budget office, Wayman said. He was someone who knew his way around a budget. He had a good idea of how cities function, because he knew of those intricacies from his time in San Antonio. Wayman said Tsai-Brooks had served on the Economic Development Corporation for nearly four years. Being a small business owner himself, he was always insistent on helping small businesses in the city, Wayman said. Phillip Tsai is survived by his mother and four brothers, Alfred, Robert, Edwin and Anthony Tsai. An only child, Brooks only survivors are in his in-laws. Services are pending with M.E. Rodriguez Funeral Home in San Antonio. Tsai-Brooks brothers seek to remind others about the importance of trying to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. Its just so sad that Phil and Tony died without loved ones there with them. Its sad that even though my mom feels better, my brothers who live in San Antonio cant go to her and give her a hug, Robert Tsai said. Its sad that my family and Alfreds family cant just jump on a plane and be with them. Its just the reality we live in today. MIDDLETOWN City leaders are bracing for the number of COVID-19 cases in Middletown to reach a peak around the middle of May, weeks later than most recent predictions. It keeps getting moved, Mayor Ben Florsheim said. Maybe regions of the state have plateaued and are on the downswing, but thats not the case here. The inability to do large-scale coronavirus testing is one factor, he said. Meanwhile, the mayor has been conducting Facebook Live updates periodically to keep the public abreast of activities and information surrounding the outbreak, as well as answer questions. Florsheim led another session Sunday night, in which he addressed one of the biggest queries many residents have: How many have recovered from the virus? Quite a few, he replied. He acknowledged leaders have been a little disconnected about how we think and talk about the disease and the response, however, there has been some difficulty so far getting those figures because they are so hard to track. As of Sunday night, 35 individuals with COVID-19 were hospitalized throughout Middlesex County. That number indicates that people diagnosed with the coronavirus who are treated and subsequently discharged from the hospital likely are not returning, he said. As of Monday night, there were 218 positive cases in Middletown and 17 deaths. In all, 36 are hospitalized, according to Florsheim. The state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services reported Friday afternoon there were a total of 54 infected individuals throughout its facilities 20 patients and 34 staff, according to a press release. Connecticut Valley Hospital: 13 patients, 11 staff Whiting Forensic Hospital: Seven patients, 12 staff Capitol Regional Mental Health Center: Three staff Connecticut Mental Health Center: Three staff River Valley Services and Southeast Mental Health Authority: None Southwest Connecticut Mental Health System: Two staff Western Connecticut Mental Health Network: Three staff Middletown City Hall and other facilities are closed until May 5; that date will be reassessed this week, said Florsheim, who originally ordered the change March 16. Essential workers, including those in public works and sanitation, still are performing their duties, though in reduced numbers to avoid more than five people in a crew. Although many city employees presently are not working, some nonessential employees are getting their job done from home, Florsheim said. All are being paid their full salaries. Gov. Ned Lamonts order requiring face masks for every individual unable to keep a six-foot distance from others goes into effect Monday at 8 p.m. That is also the rule, for example, in the cases of spouses and children quarantined in the same household, Florsheim said. If you have to ask, you should be wearing one, he said. However, nobody is going to get arrested for not wearing one. You dont know who youre going to encounter. Its the safest and wisest thing to do. The city is in discussions with Wesleyan University over possibly housing people now living in congregate facilities, pointing to agencies such as Gilead Community Services, which helps those living with mental health and intellectual disabilities. The move would allow those with symptoms of the coronavirus to be quarantined as necessary. Were still ironing out the details, said the mayor, who called the situation at such group housing facilities very challenging. For information on coronavirus in Connecticut, visit portal.ct.gov/coronavirus. Access the citys website at cityofmiddletown.com. You might think that, as thousands of Americans get horribly sick and die, President Trump would finally take a break from sabotaging our health care system. Phil Murphy is among the dozen governors now urging him to at least re-open Obamacare, so all the people who just lost their jobs can easily enroll. But no. And not only is Trump refusing to do this, he is continuing his effort to destroy the health care law entirely, even as more New Jerseyans die of this virus than we lost in World War I. Its outrageous, because his opposition to the Affordable Care Act, in my opinion, is ideological, says Congressman Frank Pallone, D-6th Dist. Put your ideology aside for the next six months, so we can help people. Heres what will happen, first, because Trump wont re-open the sign-up period. Millions of uninsured people wont go to the hospital for coronavirus testing or treatment because they rightly fear they cannot afford it. They will continue to shop in our stores and ride our buses and spread the virus. Those most gravely ill will flood our hospitals, and charity care costs will skyrocket. So will health care premiums for the rest of us as doctors and hospitals spread their costs to the insured. It will not only be those without insurance who suffer the bad effects. It will be worse for them, yes, but when they go to our overcrowded ERs, this whole disastrous spillover begins. At a time when our health care system is already under enormous strain, it makes no sense to willingly allow even more individuals to go without coverage, as Sen. Cory Booker says. Keep in mind, too, that Republicans want to repeal the entire health law, stripping 23 million more people of insurance. And Trumps lawyers have joined a group of Republican states in trying to kill the law in court. We can only hope it blows up in their faces in November, just as it did in 2018, because voters dont want to lose their health care. Besides re-opening Obamacare, Pallone wants to increase subsidies to offset premium hikes, and expand the income limit so more qualify for this; both good ideas. Instead, Trumps alternative is to tap a $100 billion hospital relief fund as an uncompensated care kitty so if someone goes to the hospital and cant afford it, the hospital will get some reimbursement. Even that is a problem, because it only covers the uninsured, not those who have insurance but cant afford their high deductibles. And it wont help uninsured people get treatment for other diseases. They need health care for the long haul. When Vice President Mike Pence was asked about this, he went off on a tangent, praising insurers which, by the way, also support re-opening Obamacare. Trump lauded his evasion: Mike was able to speak for five minutes and not even touch your question. Thats what you call a great professional. The truth is much less artful: Trump does not have a replacement for Obamacare lined up. He simply cares more about destroying his predecessors legacy than saving lives in a pandemic. 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. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. These are the top stories at 9.00 pm: Nation: DEL8 VIRUS-CASESCOVID-19 death toll rises to 543 in country; number of cases climb to 17,265:Health MinistryNew Delhi: The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. DEL90 SINOINDIA-2NDLD TRADE India's new FDI norms violate WTO's principle of non-discrimination: China New Delhi: India's new norms featuring "additional barriers" for foreign direct investment from specific countries violate WTO's principle of non-discrimination and are against the general trend of free trade, a Chinese embassy spokesperson said here on Monday. DEL88 PREZ-LOCKDOWN Prez expresses gratitude to police forces for ensuring lockdown with sensitivity and professionalism New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday expressed gratitude to police forces for ensuring the ongoing lockdown to combat the coronavirus with sensitivity and professionalism. DEL20 LOCKDOWN-MHA-GUIDELINES Centre asks states, UTs to strictly comply with COVID-19 lockdown guidelines, not dilute them New Delhi: The Centre has asked states and union territories to strictly comply with the lockdown measures announced to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic and not to dilute them at any level. DEL68 VIRUS-MHA-2NDLD STATES MHA says COVID situation especially serious in Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur,Indore; deploys central teams New Delhi: The Union government has said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures risks the spread of the novel coronavirus further. DEL97 VIRUS-HEALTH MINISTRY Rate at which coronavirus cases doubling in India improves to 7.5 days: Health Min New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry said on Monday the rate at which the number of coronavirus cases in the country was becoming double in the last one week has improved to 7.5 days, as against 3.4 days before the nationwide lockdown was imposed. DEL112 VIRUS-ARMY-COLOURCODE Coronavirus: Army decides to place personnel under green, yellow, red' categories New Delhi: The Indian Army has decided to classify all its personnel reporting back from leave, temporary duties and training courses into three categories of 'green, yellow and red' as part of measures to check the spread of coronavirus, official sources said on Monday. DEL94 VIRUS-KITS-SKOREA India procuring 5 lakh coronavirus testing kits from South Korea New Delhi: India is procuring five lakh coronavirus testing kits from South Korea to meet their growing demand in view of rising cases of the infection, officials said on Monday. DEL40 VIRUS-PM LD MALDIVES COVID-19: PM says India will stand by Maldives in this challenging times New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke with Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on the "health and economic challenges" the COVID-19 pandemic poses for the island nation. DEL6 LOCKDOWN-MHA-KERALA Centre objects to Kerala easing lockdown restrictions New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry has taken strong objection to the Kerala government's decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it amounts to dilution of its lockdown guidelines. MDS 3 KL-LOCKDOWN-CENTRE Kerala govt denies dilution of lockdown guidelines Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government on Monday said there was some "misunderstanding", due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of thelockdown protocol after the state had allowed opening of restaurants and MSME industries in municipal areas among others. DEL89 CBI-MALLYA UK court's decision against Mallya validates CBI's painstaking, meticulous investigation: Officials New Delhi: It is a significant achievement for continuing the war against economic fugitives, an elated CBI said on Monday's verdict of a UK High Court rejecting the appeal of embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya who had sought an order against his extradition to India. DEL121 THAROOR-PAR-PANEL LS Speaker approves holding of meetings of Parl panel on IT by video conference: Tharoor New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has approved the holding of meetings of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology by video conference, senior Congress leader and chairman of the panel Shashi Tharoor said on Monday. DEL91 VIRUS-RAHUL Make all COVID-19 related equipment GST-free: Rahul Gandhi New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday urged the government to waive GST on all COVID-19-related equipment. Foreign: FGN54 UK-LDALL MALLYA Vijay Mallya loses UK High Court appeal, clock set for extradition to India London/New Delhi: Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a crucial appeal against his extradition to India with the UK High Court ruling that the ex-boss of Kingfisher Airlines did have a prima facie case to answer in the Indian courts over the alleged Rs 9,000-crore fraud associated with loans sought from Indian banks for his now defunct airline. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hong Kong's Bar Association on hit out at claims by Chinese officials that Beijing's liaison office in the city were authorized to play a "supervisory" role in its daily political life, and the running of its government. The HKBA said the ruling Chinese Communist Party's liaison office is subject to the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, which bars interference in the city's internal affairs by Chinese government departments. It dismissed earlier claims from Chinese officials in Hong Kong that the ban doesn't apply to them. The ongoing war of legal opinions came as Hong Kong police arrested 15 prominent pro-democracy figures in connection with large, peaceful street protests last year calling for fully democratic elections, among other demands. Article 22 of the Basic Law states: "No department of the Central People's Government and no province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own in accordance with this Law." The Basic Law also sets down the principle that Hong Kong shall be accorded a "high degree of autonomy" in running its own affairs, with the exception of foreign policy and defense. "The effect of Article 22 is to prohibit interference in the internal affairs of [Hong Kong] by any part of the [Chinese government], which is itself bound by the provisions of the Basic Law, being a national law of the People's Republic of China," the HKBA said in a statement on its website on . It said public comments made last week by officials of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) and Beijing's Central Liaison Office had claimed that the two bodies aren't subject to the law, as they are "authorized by the central government to handle Hong Kong affairs." Officials also claimed the right to "exercise supervision and express serious views" on Hong Kong affairs, the HKBA said. 'Deep public unease' "Regrettably, the recent public statements made by the [Liaison Office] and the [Hong Kong] government on such a highly important legal issue have caused deep public unease," the Bar Association said. "There would appear to be no question but that the HKMAO, being an administrative agency of the State Council of the PRC, and the [Liaison Office] ... are bound by the Basic Law, including the prohibition of interference in the internal affairs of [Hong Kong] under Article 22," it said. "There is no provision in the Basic Law which confers on [them] the power of 'supervision' over affairs which the [Hong Kong government] administers on its own," the statement concluded. Barrister Martin Lee, who founded Hong Kong's Democratic Party, one of those arrested and bailed at the weekend, said the claim that the two offices were exempt from Article 22 made "no sense." "It is impossible to argue that these two organizations aren't bound by Article 22 of the Basic Law," Lee said on . "No matter how high their status, they are still under the central government [in Beijing]." "It makes no sense for them to pretend." Civic Party lawmaker Alvin Yeung agreed. He said that government statements at the time that Beijing's Liaison Office changed its name from the Xinhua News Agency Hong Kong bureau made no mention of a supervisory role for the office. "Back then, [China's cabinet] the State Council issued a news release which clearly stated the role and responsibilities of the Central Liaison Office," Yeung said. "There was no mention of supervising the Hong Kong government." Beijing is now the 'driving force' Chung Kim-wah, assistant professor of social policy at Hong Kong's Polytechnic University, said it was likely no accident that the pronouncements on the status of the Liaison Office and the arrests of pro-democracy figures had come at the same time. "The Hong Kong government is no longer the main driving force here," Chung said. "This isn't even coming from the pro-Beijing faction." "I think it's a natural outcome of the Hong Kong government's incompetence ... so now we have Beijing taking the helm," he said. Members of the U.S. Congress hit out at the weekend's arrests. "At the urging of Beijing amid a global pandemic, the Hong Kong government has opted to arbitrarily arrest 15 pro-democracy activists," Sen. Marco Rubio said in a statement. "If Chief Executive Carrie Lam would like us to believe that Hong Kong remains deserving of its special status, then she must lead in a different direction," he said. "The true test of Hong Kongs autonomy is what happens when Beijing demands absurd arrests, intimidates judges and [lawmakers], or claims the Basic Law no longer limits their interference." Sen. Jim Risch said the arrests, along with growing pressure for Hong Kong to enact anti-sedition and anti-subversion laws, were "troubling developments" for the rule of law in the city, while Sen. Cory Gardner called on the administration of President Donald Trump to look at imposing sanctions on those violating human rights in Hong Kong. Reported by Man Hoi-tsan and Lu Xi for RFA's Cantonese and Mandarin Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Cadila, Biocon developing rapid antibody testing kits; Eris, Mylan, Gland importing. Indian pharma majors are gearing up to develop or import testing kits for the novel coronavirus as demand for testing picks up. Big names like Cadila Healthcare and Biocon (through Syngene) are in the process of developing indigenous testing kits (rapid antibody testing kits). Some such as Eris Lifesciences, Mylan, and Gland Pharma, among others, are also importing from international suppliers. There are two kinds of testing for the novel coronavirus - the real-time polymerase chain reaction test kit that uses throat or nasal swabs and provides results in a few hours, and the other is antibody-based rapid testing kit that use blood samples and provides results in a few minutes. Cadila has also got governments nod to import rapid antibody test kits from two Chinese firms - Hangzhou Clongene Biotech and Guangzhou Wondfo Biotech. These are CE certified, which means the product has been assessed by the manufacturer and deemed fit to meet EU safety, health, and environmental protection norms. A senior official from Cadila said: We felt that as a part of the health care industry we need to step in at this time. "We already have ties with traders in China, as we import raw material, and we can also import these kits that are now required in large numbers. The company is also in the process of developing a rapid antibody test kit in-house. Once we are able to develop the kit and get the approval from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the supplies can be stepped up, the official said. Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw had also indicated to Business Standard that Syngene was working to develop a rapid antibody test kit. She felt that rapid antibody test kits are quite accurate. Multinational player Mylan is also importing kits from Guangzhou Wondfo Biotech, while Ahmedabad's Eris Lifesciences is importing from Chinas Maccure Biotechnology. Hyderabad's Gland Pharma has approval to import kits from Shanghai Fosun Long March. Sudarshan Jain, the secretary general of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance that represents India's top 25 pharma firms, said: This is not being done as corporate social responsibility this is not also for profit making. "At this time of crisis, the pharma sector needs to pitch in, in all ways that it can. Recently 500,00 antibody test kits came in from China. But there have been adverse reports about the quality. A government source said, "Chinese authorities have taken note of reports that claim the kits are throwing up false positives. "They have made stricter rules for exporters. This has significantly reduced the number of exporters from China." The source said according to rough estimates, India needs to do 100,000 rapid tests per day. The government plans to have indigenous capacity to make a million rapid antibody test kits in the country from May. Meanwhile, a team at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research's Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology has developed a test that can throw results in minutes. Named after fictional sleuth Feluda, created by Satyajit Ray, the paper strip-based test uses a gene editing tool to identify the genomic sequences of the virus. Photograph: P Ravikymar/Reuters As many as 43 people tested positive for coronavirus in Tamil Nadu on Monday, taking the total number of cases to 1,520 in the state, Health Minister C Vijayabaskar said. While there were 43 new cases, a doctor died on Sunday and another died today taking the aggregate number of deaths in the state to 17, he told reporters here. The Minister hit out at the principal opposition DMK for targeting the government over the purchase of rapid test kits and asked the Leader of the Opposition not to indulge in politics in the fight against COVID-19 and condemned what he called "cheap politics." A total of 457 people have been discharged from various hospitals after recovery so far, including 46 today, he said. Though they have been discharged, they will be in home quarantine for 16 more days, he said, adding that of the 1043 active cases, six people alone needed "oxygen support." Of the total infected, 1,302 contracted the illness through a "single source," he said, in an apparent reference to an event held in Delhi last month. Chennai continued to top the list of infected districts with 303 cases and the State capital had the maximum of new positive cases (18) reported today. As regards testing, he said labs in the government sector have been increased to 23 and alongside 10 private facilities, the state now has 33 such amenities. "As many as 6,109 samples (confirmatory RT-PCR test) were tested today, of which 43 tested positive. Totally the figure stands at 46,985." The Minister said WHO officials have inspected the government facilities and appreciated the anti-COVID-19 initiatives like following protocol in state hospitals. To a question on the price of rapid test kits, he said the price of Rs 600 per kit was fixed by the Centre and procurement was done transparently. DMK chief M K Stalin had demanded that he government disclose the price of kits considering transparency and also had cited Chattisgarh's rate,which was lower than Tamil Nadu. Recently, Tamil Nadu received 24,000 testing kits from China and 12,000 from the Centre. Vijayabaskar said that while Andhra Pradesh had bought the kits at a higher price than Tamil Nadu, the opposition parties there had praised the government for action to get the equipment to test people, unlike in this state. "Please do not do politics in matters like fighting a disease....it is cheap politics. In Chattisgarh the kits have not yet been supplied. It is said it will take 10 more days for them to get it." The testing with rapid test kits was being done as per guidelines to ascertain if there had been community spread anywhere, he said. "There is no community spread so far. This should be a united fight against the virus. This is not the time to do politics involving the lives of the people," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) DUBLIN, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "COVID-19 Impact on Global B2C E-Commerce and Online Payments: 2020" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. Citizens in many areas of the world are being told by health or political authorities to remain in their homes to help halt the spread of COVID-19. As consumers are restricted in movement, they turn to online shopping for essential items to sustain their families. With schools closed and workers encouraged to work from home wherever possible, online sales of health products, food, and some educational and home office items have surged. The report cites the increase in such product categories in various countries around the world in the first quarter of 2020. Increase in online sales of essential items amidst the pandemic offset by drop in travel, big ticket items Even though the number of online orders in some nations has increased greatly, the decrease in the purchase of travel arrangements and higher-priced items could contribute to lower total online revenues, as projected in the report. Brick and mortar sales are projected to undergo an even greater decrease because of the economic uncertainty triggered by the coronavirus outbreak, which is expected to contribute to E-Commerce garnering an even greater share of total retail sales globally. Online payments increase in the COVID-19 crisis The worldwide spread of the coronavirus has led to a movement to digital alternatives to cash in stores as well as for payment of orders initiated online. Some consumers avoid cash as a COVID-19 vector, others simply move to plastic or digital payments as a consequence of ordering online. However, the report suggests that even though the number of online payment transactions has spiked, the total value of online payments will likely be lower for the current fiscal year as fewer big ticket items and less travel arrangements are purchased by consumers. Key Topics Covered: 1. Management Summary 2. Global Developments COVID-19 Impact on B2C E-Commerce, March 2020 COVID-19 Impact on Online Payment, March 2020 COVID-19 Impact on Online Travel, March 2020 COVID-19 Impact on Online Food Delivery, March 2020 Breakdown of Perceived Changes in Frequency of Buying Products Online That Were Normally Bought In-Store, in % of Internet Users, March 2020 vs. February 2020 vs. Year-on-Year Change in Weekly E-Commerce Sales of FMCG, By Selected Countries, in %, End of February/ Early March 2020 Shopping Activities Done More Often Than Usual Since the Coronavirus Outbreak, in % of Consumers in Canada , the UK, and the USA , March 2020 , the UK, and the , Expected Change in Shopping Behavior Due to Coronavirus Outbreak According to Consumers in Canada , the UK, and the USA , in % of Consumers, March 2020 3. Asia-Pacific 4. Europe 5. North America 6. Latin America 7. Middle East and Africa Companies Mentioned Alibaba Group Holding Inc Amazon.com Inc. Booking Holdings Expedia Group Flipkart Online Services Pvt Ltd. Instacart Inc. Mastercard Inc. Meituan Dianping Next Plc. PayPal Holdings Inc. Qunar.com Inc. Skrill Ltd. Square Inc. Trip.com Inc. Trivago NV Uber Technologies Inc. Visa Inc. Walmart Inc. For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/wbp0ix About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] 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 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 SOURCE Research and Markets Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com Prosperity is a great teacher, adversity even greater. And adversity in times of the lockdown has brought out the best in Subrata Pati who, unlike most other professionals, isnt working from home. A history teacher, he works from a nest perched on a neem tree, giving lessons to his students on events of seminal importance that shaped civilizations and obliterated them, conquests by kings and generals, and horrors of war and pestilence, as the epoch-making coronavirus disease savages the world. Taking classes online is a battle Pati, who teaches at two educational institutes in Kolkata, is fighting from his native Ahanda village in West Bengals Bankura district, where his cell phone screen blipped to life one moment and lay dead frozen the next. Exasperated, just as he was about to give up, he was struck by the thought of climbing a tree to see if getting a few yards closer to sky made any difference. And it did. Now, every morning, the 35-year-old man climbs up the neem tree next to his house and parks himself on a makeshift wooden platform tied to its branches and receives uninterrupted signals on his cell phone he uses too teach his pupils. Having set up the DIY (do-it-yourself) marvel with some help from his friends, the history teacher at Adamas University and RICE in the city doesnt find the chore tiring. "I have temporarily shifted from my Kolkata residence to Ahanda, which is a part of the state's Jangalmalal area, to be with my family in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. That done, I couldnt have shrugged off my responsibility as a teacher. The Internet network here is mostly patchy, so I had to look for a solution," he said. Pati takes food and water with him to the tree-top platform, made of bamboo, gunny sacks and hay, on days when he has to conduct two to three classes at a stretch. "Sometimes the heat and the urge to pee bother me, but I am trying to adjust... sometimes storms and thundershower damage the platform, but I try and fix it the next day. Under no circumstances I would want my students to be inconvenienced," he told PTI. The attendance is usually high for his classes, said Pati with a broad smile. "The students keep boosting my confidence. They have always been very supportive. They assured me that they would put in their best efforts to score well in my paper," he said. Buddhadeb Maity, one of his students at RICE Education, said Pati was an inspiration for him. "What he does for his students is exemplary. I never miss his classes, nor do my friends. In fact, he takes time out to answer our queries too. Attendance for his classes is usually 90 per cent," he said. Asked how he chanced upon the idea of setting up the bamboo structure, Pati explained that villagers often build 'machan' (makeshift watchtower) on tree-tops during the harvest season to keep an eye on elephants straying into their fields. "It is a common practice here. I sought help from some of my friends and together we set up the bamboo platform for my classes," he said. Samit Ray, the chancellor of Adamas University, said the institute was proud of Pati. He has been very sincere about his work from the start. He is shining example of how to surmount obstacles with hard work and willpower, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sisir Panigrahy By Express News Service BERHAMPUR: Even as stories of migrant labourers walking hundreds of miles to reach home abound in the post-lockdown India, a group of 27 fishermen from Odisha and Andhra Pradesh undertook a five-day perilous journey from Chennai along the sea route to return to their native villages.The fishermen purchased a boat for Rs 1.73 lakh and even risked their lives because the vessel was too small to accommodate 27 of them. Tired, sleep-deprived and hungry, they continued their sojourn back home through the nights till they reached their destination in the bordering zone off Ganjam district on Sunday evening. The boat anchored half-a-km from the coast near the confluence of Bahuda river and the fishermen stayed put till the administration gave clearance to anchor on Monday. The fishermen worked for trawler owners in Chennai. Of the 10 from Odisha, nine belong to Pati Sunapur in Chikiti block of Ganjam while another is from Gokharakuda in Krushnaprasad block of Puri district. When fishing was banned on March 15 following coronavirus outbreak, the fishermen were left with no work. Before they could decide to return home, the nationwide lockdown was imposed. With fishing harbours in the State under surveillance, no boat was allowed to operate. However, we decided to return and teamed up with 17 fishermen of Andhra Pradesh who were working with us. We decided to take the sea route as the roads were closed, recalled Harishchandra. They did not disclose their plan to their families apprehending they would be too stressed. The fishermen approached a boat owner who agreed to sell his boat for Rs 1.73 lakh. The boat wasnt big enough to accommodate them all but they had no other alternative. Every one contributed and bought the boat besides stocking drinking water, food, compass and 250 litre of diesel and two motor engines. Well versed with the sea route, the fishermen began their journey on April 15. The first three days were comfortable but problems started when sleeplessness started to take its toll. Crammed for space as they had to create a cooking area for all 27 of them, they would take their turns to rest. We could not sail round the clock as we had to give the motors rest. Off Vizianagaram, the boat developed minor snags, revealed Ramana. They resumed their journey after fixing the glitches. On Saturday night, they ran out of food but the determination to reach home kept the starved souls going. On reaching the coast at Bahuda river confluence, the fishermen called up their families who informed local authorities. Since they had travelled from a Covid-affected State, they were asked to wait until administrative clearance. On Monday, administrative officials of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh asked the fishermen to anchor at Dankuru village on Andhra Pradesh side of Bahuda river. They were sent to a quarantine centre at Pustapur. An Indonesian fashion designer/Instagram rich kid recently found himself at the center of an online controversy because of a fashion handbag he allegedly created from alligator tongues and an ethically sourced human spine. Arnold Putra originally showcased the controversial fashion accessory on his Instagram account back in 2016, but it went relatively unnoticed until a a few days ago when a tweet about it went viral, sending thousands of people flocking to the young designers Instagram, to check if the bag is real. Scroll down Putras page to content from 2016 and, low and behold, the creepy bag shows up complete with a description that reads alligator tongue and human osteoporosis spine bag by me. Obviously, people started asking questions Photo: @byarnoldpultra/Instagram The one-of-a-kind basket-style handbag was reportedly manufactured in Los Angeles and has a price of $5,000. In the description on @byarnoldpultra, an Instagram account different than the designers personal one, the accessory is described as having the handle made of an entire childs spine who had osteoporosis. The photos of the macabre accessory have been assaulted with negative comments in recent days. We all agree that this thing is a moral abomination, but what were forgetting is that its a total high crime against the concept of fashion, and even clothing itself, one Instagram user wrote. Such disrespect for the death of a child. Not to mention the alligators. This is not art nor is it fashion, another person commented. The outrage around Putras controversial handbag prompted several media outlets to launch an investigation into whether the handle was actually made from a human spine, and, if so, how it had been sourced. INSIDER contacted Putra himself about the handbag, asking him repeatedly if the spine had belonged to a child, but he declined to answer. Instead, he only said that the human spine had been ethically sourced from medical surplus in Canada. View this post on Instagram decalcifying spine handle detail Collection: amitayus Made is los angeles A post shared by @ byarnoldputra on Sep 25, 2016 at 12:08pm PDT Asked about the description mentioning a child who had suffered from osteoporosis, the Indonesian fashion designer said that the @byarnoldputra Instagram account was run by someone else and that he had only contributed to it. INSIDER contacted two child osteopaths about Putras handbag, and they both agreed that the handle was almost certainly made from a human spine, although they couldnt agree whether it belonged to a child. Interestingly, the spine and alligator tongue bag is part of an unfinished collection involving similar materials unprecedented in garment-making, which also includes leather jackets featuring hand-fastened genuine human ribs. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp on Saturday said it was hit by a Maze ransomware cyber attack, resulting in service disruptions for some of its clients. The information technology services provider said it was taking steps to contain the incident, with the help of cyber defense companies, and has also engaged with law enforcement authorities. Ransomware is a type of malicious program used by hackers to take control of files in an infected system and then demand hefty payments to recover them. According to cybersecurity firm McAfee, hackers who deploy Maze threaten to release information on the internet if the targeted companies fail to pay. We are in ongoing communication with our clients and have provided them with indicators of compromise and other technical information of a defensive nature, Cognizant added. It did not respond to a request from Reuters for further comments on the incident. The Maze operators denied responsibility for the cyber attack, according to security website BleepingComputer https://bit.ly/3bl88ol. However, the report added that Maze is likely not discussing it to avoid complications at this early stage. Insurer Chubb Ltd in March was hit by a computer security incident that may have involved unauthorized access to data held by an outside service provider. A group that deploys the Maze ransomware claimed to have locked up devices on Chubbs network during March, according to BleepingComputer. Kansas City Urban Farm Economy Growing Stronger City Bitty Farms keeping kitchen teams employed, feeding those in need during COVID-19 outbreak STARTING] WHAT WE'VE BEEN SAYING IS KEEP PEOPLE HEALTHY AND FEED PEOPLE HEALTH. KELEIGH: AT CITY BITTY FARM IN KANSAS CITY MISSOURI. THAT IS THE INITIATIVE. WITH THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK FORCING CLOSURES OF RESTAURANTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, THIS CROP NOW HAS NEW PURPOSE. THERE YOU GO. Latest Raytown Police Shooting Victim Postscript Highway patrol identifies man killed in officer-involved shooting at Raytown Walmart RAYTOWN, Mo. - The Missouri State Highway Patrol has identified the person killed in an officer-involved shooting Saturday night. The incident was reported just after 8 p.m. Saturday. Police said a man entered the Walmart off East 350 Highway, armed with a gun. An officer encountered the man and shots were fired, according to police. Library Life Lesson Johnson County Library employees creating safety masks for health care workers, first responders MAKERS AND ARTISTS ARE RESOURCEFUL PEOPLE AND WE ALWAYS FIND A SOLUTIO ALAN: THE PROBLEM, NOT ENOUGH SAFETY MASK PPE'S FOR FIRST RESPONDERS AND HEALTHCARE NATS WORKERS. Kansas City Drama Cont'd KC theaters navigate the continuing virus crisis Vanessa Severo and Nathan Darrow as Maggie and Brick // Photo: Don Ipock As spring and early-summer travel plans are being skewered by the pandemic, we have found some consolation in the promise of summer outings - to the theater, to the park, to the theater in the park. Sara In All Her Glory Victoria's Secret model Sara Sampaio turns up the heat during lockdown VICTORIA'S Secret model Sara Sampaio has made sure she stays in great shape during lockdown - no ifs or butts. The Portuguese beauty, 28, has her own gym in a converted garage at her 3.5million home in Los Angeles, California. She also posted a snap on Instagram of her completing a giant jigsaw of her dogs while isolating. Columnists Rebuke Prez Trump Column: By pushing to 'liberate' states, Trump is asking us to play Russian roulette with our lives "LIBERATE MINNESOTA!" "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" "LIBERATE VIRGINIA." With these three short tweets last week, President Donald Trump attempted to kick off the post-lockdown phase of America's coronavirus crisis. It should be called: "American Russian roulette: The COVID-19 version." What Trump was saying with those tweets was: Everybody, just go back to work. Sleazy Landlords Give Most Home Providers Bad Name Landlords are targeting vulnerable tenants to solicit sex for rent Some landlords are taking advantage of the coronavirus outbreak, soliciting sexual favors in lieu of rent payments from economically vulnerable tenants, according to advocates. TKC Reader Wonders If Swedes Show Us Viable Alternative COVID-19 Strategy Sweden left schools, bars, restaurants, and gyms open during the coronavirus pandemic. Experts say the strategy might be working. Sweden has seen some indications of success with its coronavirus mitigation strategies, the nation's top epidemiologist said. According to Bloomberg News, experts have reported a "more flat curve" with respect to its daily increase in new COVID-19 cases. King Of News Links Turns Against Prez Trump Conservative news mogul Matt Drudge fires back at Trump, says his web traffic is at record levels In a rare statement, Matt Drudge, the prominent conservative news mogul, refuted President Trump's Saturday claim that traffic to his website has plummeted as its coverage has grown more critical of him. Show-Me New Nurse Heroes Nurses' program shortened as Missouri coronavirus cases rise ST. LOUIS (AP) - A hospital system and Saint Louis University are trying to make it easier for retired nurses to return to caring for patients during the coronavirus pandemic. The move by the university and the SSM Health system comes as the number of confirmed cases and COVID-19-related deaths continue to rise in Missouri. Kansas Growing Season Kansas moves one step closer to commercial hemp program HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) - The process of establishing a new commercial hemp program in Kansas has taken a critical first step. The Hutchinson News reports that the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the plan by the Kansas Department of Agriculture to change the state's research-based commercial hemp program to a commercial program. Springtime Weather Outlook Temps in 60s with light showers Monday A FORECAST SO YOU -- EXCLUSIVE LI RADAR AT NINE-DAY FORECAST SO YOU WILL KNOW FIRST. TH IS EXCLUSIVE FIRST ALERT WEATHER. NEVILLE: IT WITH A MORE LIKE SPRING OUT THERE THIS WEEK AND WE WILL SEE SPRING SHOWERS FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. We take a peek at hottie Sara and continue checking pop culture, community news and info from across the nation . . .And this is thefor right now . . . Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram New Delhi, April 20, 2020 Authorities in Indian-controlled Jammu and Kashmir must immediately stop harassing journalists Masrat Zahra and Peerzada Ashiq, and let them report freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, police in Srinagar summoned and questioned Ashiq, a correspondent with daily newspaper The Hindu, over a story he published that day on tensions between Kashmiris and the police, according to a statement by the Kashmir Press Club, an elected, representative body of journalists in Kashmir. The same day, he was asked to travel to a police station in South Kashmir, where he was further questioned about the article, according to that statement. He was released after each interrogation, he told CPJ in a phone interview. Today, the Cyber Police in Srinagar called Zahra, a freelance photojournalist, and told her to appear at the police station tomorrow for questioning, she told CPJ in a phone interview. The summons is related to a police investigation into Zahras posts on social media, where she frequently uploads images from her reporting, according to Zahra and news reports. She said she has not received a copy of a formal complaint against her. Masrat Zahra and Peerzada Ashiq should be free to report on events in Jammu and Kashmir without facing harassment and intimidation from local authorities, said Aliya Iftikhar, CPJs senior Asia researcher, in New York. Police should drop their investigations into both journalists, and India should reform its laws to make such capricious actions by police impossible. Police opened an investigation into an alleged fake news item published by Ashiq, in reference to a story he published yesterday about the families of two deceased militants who wanted to exhume their bodies to perform funeral rites, according to an April 20 police press release, which CPJ reviewed. The police alleged the news item was factually incorrect and could cause fear or alarm in the minds of the public, according to the press release, which did not specify the exact laws which Ashiq is alleged to have violated. Ashiq told CPJ that, during questioning, police accused him of not giving authorities the right to reply to the allegations in the article, but said he showed them screenshots of requests for comment that he had sent. Ashiq said the police have not formally filed charges against him. Police also opened an investigation alleging that Zahra uploaded anti-national posts that violated Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, an anti-terror law, by advocating, abetting, advising or inciting unlawful activity, and Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code by intending to incite an offense against the state, according to a police press release dated April 18, which CPJ reviewed. If found guilty, Zahra could face a fine or imprisonment of up to seven years under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, and a fine and up to three years in prison under the penal code. The police press release, which does not cite any specific posts, claims that Zahras photographs on her Facebook account can provoke the public to disturb law and order and glorify anti-national activities and dent the image of law enforcing agencies. Police also cited a photograph Zahra posted to Twitter from a 2019 article she photographed for The New Humanitarian, according to news reports. In that article, Zahra photographed a Kashmiri woman whose husband was killed by Indian soldiers for his suspected militant connections. Avi Singh, a criminal lawyer who has argued before Indias Supreme Court, told CPJ via messaging app that if arrested, the chances of bail under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act are minimal. Under UAPA, bail conditions are more stringent, as the arrested almost has a burden of proving that no case exists against them, he said. Police arrested Indian journalist Gautam Navlakha pending an investigation for allegedly violating the act last week, as CPJ documented at the time. Kashmir Narrator journalist Aasif Sultan has been in prison since July 2018 while he is undergoing trial under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. CPJ messaged Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Dilbag Singh for comment, but did not receive any reply. [Editors note: The second paragraph has been updated to correctly identify the Kashmir Press Club.] SALEM, Ore. Over the weekend, the Oregon National Guard began distributing loads of sought-after personal protective equipment (PPE) to long term care facilities, according to Governor Kate Brown. The first major shipments of PPE that the state received went directly to hospitals and public health agencies across the state, intended for front-line health care workers that are treating COVID-19 cases. Now, Brown says, nursing homes and other facilities that house the state's highly susceptible populations will receive supplies as well. The staff of Oregon's long-term care facilities are on the front lines of our fight against COVID-19, and I am committed to protecting their health and safety," said Governor Brown. "This critical equipment will help protect both them, and the residents of these facilities, who are among the most at-risk Oregonians for exposure and infection." Though divided up among facilities around the state, Brown's office said that there were about 395,000 pieces of PPE in this shipment including about 177,000 surgical masks, 127,000 gloves, 55,000 N95 masks, 33,000 face shields, and 2,500 gowns. That equipment is supposed to help those facilities prevent the spread of coronavirus among residents and staff. "Long-term care providers across the state have been in dire need of personal protective equipment to ensure that our caregivers can follow best practices for infection, prevention, and containment," said April Diaz, vice president of clinical services for Marquis Companies. "We are grateful to all those involved in acquiring these much needed resources for Oregon's long-term care facilities." RELATED: Nursing homes now have to report coronavirus cases to families and federal government "Long-term care workers are on the front lines of this crisis, but just like every other year, they are under supported," said Melissa Unger, executive director of SEIU 503. "Prioritizing PPE for these facilities will save lives and protect the front-line workers who are putting their health at risk to support Oregon's seniors and people with disabilities." The National Guard began delivering the equipment to different facilities on Saturday. Thank you to our tireless National Guard members for making this rapid distribution of personal protective equipment possible," Brown said. "We continue to prioritize securing more PPE, including working with local manufacturers and the federal government to procure additional resources." Long-term care facilities like the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington and the Oregon Veterans Home in Lebanon have been the epicenter for some of the West Coast's most serious outbreaks of COVID-19. The Washington care facility, in particular, has been linked to dozens of deaths and an untold amount of positive cases. We are excited about having an international panel regarding IR fever detection screening for coronavirus/covi1d19 during our 2020 Annual Meeting & Scientific Session at Atlantas Emory University Conference Center, commented Jeffrey J. Lefko, Executive Director of the AAT. The American Academy of Thermology (AAT), which is the premiere organization in North America for the scientific development, healthcare training and clinical application of scientific medical infrared imaging, has announced the Program for its 2020 Annual Meeting & Scientific Session. It will take place on September 12-13, at the Emory University Conference Center in Atlanta, GA. This years program will have a dedicated session on the implementation of infrared fever detection screening at airports and other facilities. Speakers will include an international panel of experts from countries including the United States, China, and Brazil. For physicians who want to become trained in interpretation of Medical Thermology studies, a Physician's Medical Thermology Interpretation pre-course will be held on Friday, September 11th, also at the Emory University Conference Center. This is the second year that the AAT will be holding its Annual Meeting & Scientific Session in Atlanta. Last year's meeting was a big success. The Physicians Medical Thermology Interpretation pre-course and the Scientific Session were well attended and everyone enjoyed the venue. The high marks given prompted the AAT to retain the venue for its 2020 session. The 2-day event will feature a keynote address, multiple workshops and case studies, and opportunities for networking at a special Meet and Mingle reception on the evening of September 12th. Other session topics include neuro-muscuoloskeletal, breast, critical care, and surgical suite applications. In addition, there will be medical residency paper presentations (sponsored by Temple University Hospital) and on Friday, September 11th, there will be a special health and fitness seminar following the completion of the Physician's Interpretation pre-course. All activities are being planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME). Application for CME is pending. More information on the AATs 2020 Annual Meeting & Scientific Session, along with accommodation discounts for AAT members and non-members, will be published in the coming weeks at http://annualmeeting.aathermology.org. For additional information, interview requests or media inquiries, visit http://aathermology.org/contact, email info(at)aathermology(dot)org or call (864) 236-1073. About the American Academy of Thermology Founded in 1971, The American Academy of Thermology (AAT) is the premiere organization in North America for the scientific development, health care training and clinical application of medical infrared imaging. The AAT provides a forum for those who have interest in medically-related conditions that involve the autonomic nervous, peripheral vascular and immuno-inflammatory systems. The organization also holds annual conferences for the presentation of scientific and professional papers, and serves as the voice of its members in medical practice, health care finance, legislative and regulatory related matters. We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has sought data from custodians for analysing purposes. Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investor investment is already capped at 9.99 percent - which is safe in nature. A source close to the development told Moneycontrol, "We are just analysing data of investment especially from China, Hong Kong whether they have invested highly during the downfall - which is not in the alarming stage in listed companies as of now." A second source also confirmed with Moneycontrol, "Seeking details from custodians is a routine process for surveillance, where they feel ultimate beneficiaries are not not clearly known. In the FPI regime. There are clear instructions that FPI can only get 9.99 percent of stake where there is no fear of takeover in distress conditions. Earlier, also, we sought data of European Union or Mauritius based trade." Who is a custodian? A custodian is a financial institution that holds customers' securities for safekeeping in order to minimise the risk of their theft or loss. A custodian holds securities and other assets in electronic or physical form. Since they are responsible for the safety of assets and securities that may be worth hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, custodians generally tend to be large and reputable firms. A custodian is sometimes referred to as a custodian bank. Basically, a custodian takes responsibility for FPI trade and settles their trade. "China is an FATF-cleared country and in this category, and they do not come under any grey or black category. SEBI will not make any separate regulations for Chinese investment until the government of India takes any adverse stand for Chinese investment. SEBI and the government clearly made rules of FPI investment which permits Chinese to invest in listed space, "said Tejas Chitlangi, a lawyer who deals with FPI registration. A third source close to the market told Moneycontrol. " SEBI may use delay tactics for new FPI registration but not take any adverse action on investment of China and Hong Kong currently as regulations permit them to take a stake in stocks. SEBI may ask FPI who is buying whether they are buying for long term or short term. The surveillance department of SEBI may keep a watch for this type of investment. A fourth source from broking told Moneycontrol, "There is no significant investment by companies from China and Hong Kong during the downfall in the market in March. Chinese investments do not come only through China or Hong Kong, they use the Singapore and the Mauritius routes as well for their investments. Even identifying ultimate beneficiaries in this case is also difficult. On the other side, the government relaxed the Mauritius route and allowed investment in FPI Category 1. Alibabas investment in Paytm was by Alibaba Singapore Holdings pvt. Limited. These do not get recorded in Indias government data as Chinese investments". However, SEBI is analysing the data of another eleven countries including Mongolia, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Taiwan, North Korea, Yemen and Iran to find out if the Chinese investment used this route and took significant stake in the company. Another source who works in a Chinese broking firm in India told Moneycontrol, "Chinese investment is high in technology firms, as well as in the infrastructure and pharma space, and mainly in the un-listed space. India's trade with China is the second largest worth of $87 billion in 2018-19, which is aimed to increase to $100 billion. In this, $70 billion is for import and $16.4 billion for export from India. FPI restrictions on Chinese investment may trigger only from the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs - which is unlikely for existing investment since good diplomatic relations of both the countries. Unlisted investment does not come under the investigation part of SEBI which is dealt by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with consultation with the Ministry of Finance. As per Gateway House, the think-tank said in their report, "Chinas economic footprint in India seems negligible compared to its presence in other emerging markets, especially in South Asian countries such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Whereas investments in these countries are mostly in physical infrastructure, the Chinese funding to Indian tech start-ups is making an impact disproportionate to its value, given the deepening penetration of technology across sectors in India. TikTok, owned by ByteDance, is already one of the most popular apps in India, overtaking YouTube; Xiaomi handsets are bigger than Samsung smartphones; Huawei routers are widely used. It further said, "Over the course of one year, Gateway House has conducted a deep study of Chinese investments in India as part of a larger research project on Chinese investments in Indias neighbourhood. The findings are remarkable: 18 of the 30 Indian unicorns have a Chinese investor. This means that China is embedded in Indian society, the economy, and the technology ecosystem that influences it. Unlike a port or a railway line, these are invisible assets in small sizes rarely over $100 million and made by the private sector, which doesnt cause immediate alarm. All this adds up to just 1.5 percent of the total official Chinese (including Hong Kong) FDI into India. This doesnt cover investments made by funds based out of Singapore and elsewhere, where the ultimate owner is Chinese, so the actual investment in India will be higher, it added. A source close to the development told Moneycontrol, "India and China are part of BRICS bank. If India promptly restricts investments from any of these countries, it will raise concern of sustainability of this bank where they have heavily invested in these countries". Earlier also, we have seen India's approach towards China which is not similar to other countries in the past as well, especially in the Huawei case. In this case, most countries took a stand against Hauwei but India did not take any adverse view on this country. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese president Xi Jinping have great chemistry as of now. After the visit of Xi Jinping, the Public Bank of China (PBOC) has opened its first branch in India and two other largest broking firms opened offices in Mumbai. Currently, we are importing around 70 percent of the API of HCQ from China which we are exporting to other countries. The Indian government is in touch with China for test kits of coronavirus for a large number of orders. A source close to development told Moneycontrol that, At this point of time when we are more dependent on Chinese imports, it looks difficult to ban any of Chinese investment through FPI or FDI". A source in the market told Moneycontrol, " Despite that, we gave a clear signal by closing the automatic Foreign Direct Investment route from China that we do not want unrestricted money flow to India." Another market broker told Moneycontrol, " Mostly, countries like Australia or Italy are taking stands against the Chinese investment. There, there is a fear of takeover of companies, which is not the case in India as of now. Especially in the listed space, if owners have 26 percent holding, none of the investors can take over. In our country, the investment of FPI is limited to 9.99 percent." - The sanitisation booths have been installed at Kencom, Kibra and Buruburu - Kenyans passing through the booths will be screened for coronavirus using handheld thermometers - More booths are expected in the coming week to cover major city estates Nairobi governor Mike Sonko has launched special public sanitisation booths aimed at enhancing government efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19. The booths which were launched on Sunday, April 19, were stationed at Kencom, Kibra and Buruburu. READ ALSO: Nakuru: MCA wa Lake View Karanja Mburu afariki dunia Governor Mike sonko passing through the sanitisation booth at Kencom stage. Photo: Mike Sonko Source: UGC READ ALSO: John Corona: Meet Nyandarua man who was named corona in the 1980s According to Sonko, this was the first batch of the 50 booths that arrived on Saturday and will be installed in various public spaces across the city. "They will be stationed at key points within our estates and what's more important is that many people can now access sanitisation services at a go," Sonko said. The installation will be done across the city. The governor said more 150 others are expected before end of next week. County official using a handheld thermal thermometer to test temperature. Photo: Mike sonko Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Homa Bay family insists burial was real, says relatives bought coffin in Nairobi "These new machines come to boost our ongoing efforts to disinfect and fumigate the city using the chemicals that have been recommended by the World Health Organisation," Sonko added. The flamboyant governor also gave out free face masks and hand sanitisers to the public. "Besides this we are also using ultra-modern thermal thermometers to check the temperature of city residents before they walk through the booths," Sonko added. A Nairobian passing through the automatic sanitization booth. Photo: Mike Sonko Source: Facebook READ ALSO: US President Donald Trump says China might suffer consequences for coronavirus pandemic Notably, Mombasa county was the first to install the automatic sanitisation booths at the Likoni channel where ferry users have to be sanitized before they are allowed to cross. Currently, the country has 270 confirmed cases of COVID-19 which had claimed lives of over 14 people across Kenya as of April 20. Story by J Papanoo, TUKO correspondent. Do you have an inspirational story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Follow us on Telegram: Tuko news Source: TUKO.co.ke It has been estimated that in 2040 a quarter of the world's children will live in regions where clean and drinkable water is lacking. The desalination of seawater and the purification of wastewater are two possible methods to alleviate this, and researchers at Linkoping University have developed a cheap and eco-friendly steam generator to desalinate and purify water using sunlight. The results have been published in the journal Advanced Sustainable Systems. "The rate of steam production is 4-5 times higher than that of direct water evaporation, which means that we can purify more water", says Associated Professor Simone Fabiano, head of the Organic Nanoelectronics group in the Laboratory of Organic Electronics. The steam generator consists of an aerogel that contains a cellulose-based structure decorated with the organic conjugated polymer PEDOT:PSS. The polymer has the ability to absorb the energy in sunlight, not least in the infrared part of the spectrum where much of the sun's heat is transported. The aerogel has a porous nanostructure, which means that large quantities of water can be absorbed into its pores. "A 2 mm layer of this material can absorb 99% of the energy in the sun's spectrum", says Simone Fabiano. A porous and insulating floating foam is also located between the water and the aerogel, such that the steam generator is kept afloat. The heat from the sun vaporises the water, while salt and other materials remain behind. "The aerogel is durable and can be cleaned in, for example, salt water such that it can be used again immediately. This can be repeated many times. The water that passes through the system by evaporation becomes very high-quality drinking water", Tero-Petri Ruoko assures us. He is postdoc in the Laboratory of Organic Electronics and one of the authors of the article. "What's particularly nice about this system is that all the materials are eco-friendly - we use nanocellulose and a polymer that has a very low impact on the environmental and people. We also use very small amounts material: the aerogel is made up of 90% air. We hope and believe that our results can help the millions of people who don't have access to clean water", says Simone Fabiano. The aerogel was developed by Shaobo Han within the framework of his doctoral studies in the Laboratory of Organic Electronics, under Professor Xavier Crispins supervision. The result was presented in the journal Advanced Science in 2019, and is described at the link below. After taking his doctoral degree, Shaobo Han has returned to China to continue research in the field. ### The research has received funding principally from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, the Tail of the Sun project, the Swedish Research Council, and the strategic research area Advanced Functional Materials at Linkoping University. Cellulose-conducting polymer aerogels for efficient solar steam generation, Shaobo Han, Tero-Petri Ruoko, Johannes Gladisch, Johan Erlandsson, Lars Wa?gberg, Xavier Crispin and Simone Fabiano. Advanced Sustainable Systems 2020, DOI 10.1002/adsu.202000004 Contact Simone Fabiano, simone.fabiano@liu.se. +46 11 36 36 33 Link: New cellulose-based material gives three sensors in one https://liu.se/en/news-item/nytt-cellulosa-baserat-material-ger-tre-sensorer-i-en A man flying from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, to St. Louis Missouri, last week was the only passenger on his Southwest Airlines flight as the coronavirus has caused a significant decrease in air travel. Bob Pitts took video footage of his night-time flight Thursday on an empty aircraft and was given special attention by the flight crew. 'Hi Bob!' cried out the pilot from the cockpit door to Pitts seated in his aisle seat. Bob Pitts, flying from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, to St. Louis Missouri, last week was the only passenger on his Southwest Airlines flight as the coronavirus has caused a significant decrease in air travel Pitts took video footage of his night-time flight Thursday on an empty aircraft and was given special attention by the flight crew Empty seats are seen in the footage Pitt took of his Southwest flight Pitts was on his way to his mother's wake and said she did not die from the coronavirus, NBC reports. However, the deadly, flu-like virus also known as COVID-19, was to blame for his empty plane. The Transportation Security Administration last week reported there has been a 97 per cent drop in passenger volume across the US - a level not been seen since 1954. 'Before this global emergency, U.S. airlines were transporting a record 2.5 million passengers and 58,000 tons of cargo each day,' Airlines for America President and CEO Nicholas E. Calio said in a statement. So far, there have been 759,204 confirmed cases in the US of the coronavirus, which has been blamed for 40,276 deaths. Pitts served as narrator on some of the footage he took. 'We're going on our little flight from Ft. Lauderdale to St. Louis,' he says in one of several videos he took. 'It's about 8:30 and I'm the only person on the plane.' He called his solo flight 'a very, very, very unique experience.' While intrigued by his situation, Pitts still was taking the threat of exposure to the virus seriously and wore a gray bandanna as a face covering. A pilot emerges from the cockpit at the start of Pitt's flight 'Hi Bob!' the pilot cries out to Pitt in video footage he shot A flight attendant is seen giving the safety check over the public address system, advising Pitts to fasten his seatbelt properly and to put the seat back and tray tables in their most 'uncomfortable' position A flight attendant gave the safety check over the public address system, advised Pitts to fasten his seatbelt properly and to put the seat back and tray tables in their most 'uncomfortable' position. She also asked that he make sure 'all those carry-on items you brought on board are underneath the seat in front of you or in the overhead bin, leaving the area around your feet clear.' 'Thanks for coming along with us,' the flight attendant says. 'I want to make sure we show you some of this Southwest hospitality. So when you land, you're going to take out that flip phone your grandma bought you for Christmas,' the attendant explains jokingly. 'You're going to call her. You're going to tell her, 'This was my best flight ever,' the attendant says. 'Welcome aboard, Bob.' At the start of another video, Pitts says, 'I have a wake to attend this weekend that's very important to me.' A flight attendant later asks how he was doing. 'I'm doing fine. Thank you so much. Doing just perfect. I feel like I'm VIP,' Pitts says. The attendant asks whether he was speaking to someone on his phone, and Pitts explained he was shooting the footage. 'I'm just making a video. Talking to myself. There's nobody to talk to.' Al Jazeera examines the legal cases against some of the most memorable faces from the attack on the US Capitol. The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) on Monday issued notices to the AIIMS administration and the Delhi Police in connection with the alleged suicide attempt by a woman doctor at the premier healthcare institute here apparently over caste and gender based discrimination and harassment. The woman doctor attempted suicide on Friday, one of her colleagues at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here said. In the notice issued to Delhi Police, the DCW sought a copy of the FIR registered in the matter, status report on investigation and asked whether the accused have been arrested till now. The panel has sought details about proposed timeline for completion of investigation and has sought the police''s reply by April 25. In the notice issued to AIIMS, the panel asked for copies of all complaints received from the woman doctor till date and action taken report on each. It also asked whether the matter was dealt with by the Internal Complaints Committee and details of the action taken against the accused faculty member. The panel also asked for details of steps taken to assist the victim in seeking legal remedies in the matter and sought the reply by April 25. "It is critical that exemplary action is taken against the perpetrators of caste and gender based violence. The Commission has instituted an inquiry into the matter," the notice said. The National Commission for Women (NCW) had written to the Union Health Ministry asking it to conduct an immediate inquiry in the matter. The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS had written to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Sunday about the administration's "inaction" on the alleged harassment of the resident doctor on the basis of caste and gender by the faculty at the premier hospital. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Mamata Banerjee government, which has been drawing flak for its low rate of Covid-19 tests, has accused the ICMR-NICED [Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases] of providing it with defective Covid-19 test kits. The apparently defective test kits supplied by ICMR-NICED, Kolkata, are resulting in a high number of repeat / confirmatory tests and causing delays and other attendant problems at a time when we are battling a pandemic, the state health department tweeted on Sunday evening. Kolkatas ICMR-NICED is a research institute under the Union health ministry and the regional Virus Research Diagnostic Lab (VRDL) for eastern India. Earlier when kits were required in smaller quantities they were imported, standardised and then distributed by NIV, Pune. But when the demand started rising ICMR imported the kits and sent them directly to the 16 regional hubs, including NICED, in Kolkata. The kits were then distributed to state run medical colleges where they were required to be standardised. This standardisation is not being done because of lack of time and technical knowledge, said Shanta Dutta, NICED director. The state recorded its first Covid-19 positive case on March 17, but it was only last week that the administration started sealing some localities after identifying them as high-risk spots. Experts allege that Bengal may have woken up late. According to senior cardiologist Kunal Sarkar, identification of such micro-spots would be of no use, if the frequency of testing does not increase. ...sample testing in India is quite low. And in West Bengal, it is exceptionally low. We need to understand that it is not a competition of low numbers. If we suppress numbers in a state, then our hot spots would amount to nothing but fallacies..., said Sarkar. Over the past week, the state has been testing about 200 samples per day on an average. Shanta Dutta, director of National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED) ICMR, said that the state government was not sending enough samples for testing. NICED ICMR, Kolkata, is a laboratory under the Virus Research Diagnostic Laboratory network of the Union health ministry. A senior health official of the state government who requested to remain anonymous, however, said, NICED is not the only testing lab in West Bengal...we have six other laboratories. Samples are also being sent there. Supporting WHO means safeguarding multilateralism: Chinese FM Global Times Source:Xinhua Published: 2020/4/19 12:33:03 Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday that at the critical moment when the world is combating the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting the World Health Organization (WHO) and its director-general is to safeguard the philosophy and principle of multilateralism. He made the remarks when holding a phone conversation with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, noting that the support is also an act to secure the United Nations' status and role and maintain the international solidarity in the face of the disease. Wang said he made the phone call to show that the Chinese government and people firmly support the WHO, expressing confidence that fair-minded people will tell right from wrong, and that the international community and people across the world hold the same attitude. Noting that Tedros was elected as the WHO director-general with a large margin and has since won a high degree of trust of member states, Wang said that Tedros, as the first director-general from a developing country on the African continent in particular, also symbolizes the advancement and development of human civilization. Since taking office, the director-general has been actively committed to the cause of global public health and done a great amount of creative work, which has been highly commended by various parties, Wang said. Wang said the WHO is needed to continue to play its due and important role in the fight against the epidemic. The smears and attacks against the WHO have no factual basis, and pressure and coercion will not enjoy popular support, he said, adding no country with conscience will support them. Facing the epidemic, the WHO is needed by people of all countries, and is needed to save lives and eradicate the virus, said the Chinese foreign minister, expressing his belief that Tedros will lead the WHO to continue to coordinate the international community to jointly fight the epidemic in a professional and scientific manner. China always attaches great importance to the status and role of the WHO and is willing to increase its support for the organization through various channels based on the current cooperation, Wang said. Wang noted that Chinese President Xi Jinping has, on various occasions, made it clear to the world that the coronavirus is the common enemy of humanity, and that only with solidarity and coordination can the international community prevail over the epidemic. He said China stands ready to work together with all countries to strengthen anti-epidemic cooperation and overcome existing difficulties through thick and thin until a complete victory over the virus globally. For his part, Tedros thanked China for its continuous and firm support for the WHO. Echoing the opinion that supporting the WHO is to safeguard multilateralism, the WHO chief said that currently it is vital for the international community to enhance solidarity as the world is at a crucial moment of the COVID-19 pandemic and viruses respect no borders. Only by pulling together to fight the pandemic could the human race halt the spread of the virus, he noted, or the virus would exploit the vulnerability of a divided international community to accelerate its spread, with the pandemic prolonged and more human lives lost consequently. Despite the various attacks and smears on himself and the WHO, Tedros expressed confidence that history would do us justice with the truth eventually coming to light as long as we uphold the truth and do the right thing. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Assam government on Monday transferred a sum of Rs 2,000 each as financial relief to 86,000 people from the state stranded across the country due to the ongoing lockdown. We were able to reach 4.3 lakh people from the state stranded across India due to the lockdown. Today we extended a one-time ex gratia amount of Rs 2,000 to 86,000 of them. Another installment will be considered during the ongoing lockdown, Assam health and finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. The Assam government has already provided Rs 25,000 each to 647 patients from the states who went outside for treatment and are stranded now. A sum of 2,000 USD has also been given to those from Assam who went abroad for short stints and are stranded. In order to provide relief to those stranded in other states, Assam had started a helpline and those in need were asked to give a missed call. Those who called were sent a web link and asked to fill up a form giving their details and bank account information. Those details were then sent to the districts to where the applicants belong in order to verify their claims. A total of 4.3 lakh unique calls were received by the government of which 2.28 lakh filled the forms and out of that 1 lakh bank accounts were found to be eligible. The process also enabled the state government to get an idea of the number of people from the state who are outside the state for employment. Karnataka with 68,000 has the highest number of people from Assam followed by Tamil Nadu with 36,000 and Kerala with 34,000. This data along with details of their family members will be helpful when these people plan to return to Assam. We will be to monitor their movement and keep track of their health, Sarma said while addressing a press conference. The minister informed that the state has got 9,600 rapid test kits from the Centre. The Assam government is attempting to procure more of those kits from China. Earlier the state had procured 50,000 PPE kits from China. As of now we have to wait for 6 hours to get results of tests, but now we will be able to know about a persons status through the rapid tests within 15 minutes. From Wednesday we will conduct rapid tests in our government hospitals, Sarma said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Flash As COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread around the world, an urgent need to find vaccines has emerged. They are the key to winning the fight against the pandemic. Dr. Richard Hatchett, Chief Executive Officer of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), said the only way to ultimately defeat the pandemic will be to develop an effective vaccine. In addition, the vaccine must be administered globally, not only reducing the cost of human lives, but also restoring economic equilibrium and blunting the terrible impact of the virus on society. Addressing an online seminar organized by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on April 15,Hatchett emphasized the importance of a global response in vaccine development. "Pandemics by their nature are transnational. Individual countries cannot completely isolate themselves from the rest of the world, and it is only by working together collectively that we will be able to address this threat," he said. Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, echoed Hatchett's view, stating that a global response is absolutely critical. The best science, manufacturing, adjuvants, as well as the capabilities to fill and finish vaccines can come from anywhere in the world, Berkley said."If we want to be as efficient as possible, we need a global response." Hatchett stressed that global collaboration is needed to coordinate the procurement of supplies for vaccine development so that research institutions don't compete for glass vials or other essential materials. The same applies to access to available manufacturing capacity, he added, "because we're not going to be able to construct brand new manufacturing facilities. We're going to have to leverage existing facilities." Hatchett said CEPI's mission is to speed up the development of vaccines against emerging infectious diseases and enable access to populations that need them. He said that on Jan.23, CEPI was able to announce three new partnerships to develop vaccines against COVID-19. "Subsequently, we issued a call for proposals. Now we have announced eight partnerships, and an additional two are to be announced." In an analysis published in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, the CEPI team said that as of Apr.8, they had identified around 115 vaccine development programs globally. "I'm aware that at least 11 companies in China have developed vaccine candidates. That's about 10% of the global total," Hatchett said. On Apr. 14, an official from China's Ministry of Science and Technology said the country had approved three COVID-19 vaccine candidates for clinical trials. According to Berkley, the role of Gavi is to make sure vaccines are rolled out in the poorest countries. "We have introduced 433 new vaccines in the poorest 73 countries over the last 20 years, and vaccinated more than 760 million people," he said. During COVID-19 pandemic, Berkley said Gavi had provided funding to CEPI through innovative financing mechanisms, helped underdeveloped countries buy medical equipment, while at the same time keeping routine vaccines going. Berkley laid great stress on fair access to eventual COVID-19 vaccines, which requires global preplanning and agreements ahead of time. "Otherwise, there's a danger that all the vaccines, wherever theycome from, will be held for wealthy countries only. This will mean the epidemic will continue to spread around the world." Hatchett said CEPI had argued for the creation of a globally fair allocation system, particularly while the virus is still causing hugely disruptive pandemic waves through different countries and societies. "It will need to be funded and administered. It will need to have a global buy-in and allow for global cooperation," he said. In a signed article published on Apr. 12, Bill Gates called for world leaders, particularly those in the G20, to commit the necessary R&D funding to develop a vaccine. "CEPI is already developing at least eight potential vaccines for COVID-19, and researchers are confident they'll have at least one ready within 18 months," Gates said, "that would be the fastest humans have ever gone from seeing a brand-new pathogen to developing a vaccine against it." However, he pointed out that the timeline depends on funding. "Many nations have contributed to CEPI within the past two weeks, but the Coalition needs at least US$2 billion for its work." Gates said, "humanity, after all, isn't just bound together by common values and social ties. We're also connected biologically, by a microscopic network of germs that links the health of one person to the health of everyone else." "In this pandemic we are all connected. Our response must be, too," he added. On Apr. 15, the Gates Foundation rolled out a series of expanded measures including an additional US$150 million to combat COVID-19 globally. Trump Highlights Bipartisanship, Partnership With States to Ramp Up Testing At a White House briefing Sunday, President Donald Trump highlighted the bipartisan nature of COVID-19 response efforts and addressed calls by state governors for more federal help to expand testing. I just think its so good because its bipartisan. This is not about Democrats, Republicans, this is about a thing that hit our country, the likes of which has never happened to us before, Trump said of the broader effort to counteract the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, the novel coronavirus that causes the COVID-19 disease. The virus has spread aggressively across the world, with a Johns Hopkins tally on Monday showing more than 2.4 million infections globally and a death toll of 166,235. The number of infections in the United States has hit 760,570, according to Johns Hopkins, with the number of virus-related deaths standing at 40,690. This is being fought in this country, but its being fought in 184 countries all over the world. Its terrible, Trump said, likening the response to a wartime effort. President Donald Trump takes questions at the daily CCP virus briefing at the White House in Washington on April 19, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images) Trump said Vice President Mike Pence would lead a call with state governors on Monday to explore ways to enhance the all-government response to the virus and to develop locally tailored testing strategies. It comes in response to calls for a national testing strategy to help secure in-demand supplies like testing swabs and chemical reagents. Many governors are doing this incredible work and theyre working with us very closely on testing and working in their states. And again, it should be a local thing because [] its all these points within a state, Trump said, adding, were helping them a lot and we want to help them a lot. The president said he would be using the Defense Production Act with respect to one company to increase swab production for tests. Officials and health experts say the country needs to dramatically scale its testing infrastructure if it is going to safely roll back restrictions and reopen businesses without risking a major spike in infections. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations top infectious diseases expert, told ABCs Good Morning America Monday morning that the nation is currently running about 1.5 million to 2 million tests per week. But, we really need to get up to, at least, you know, maybe two times that, three times that. Administration officials have insisted that the United States currently has enough testing capacity to safely implement Phase One of an economic reopening plan released last week to begin a gradual return to normalcy. And they have argued that states could be running twice as many tests as they are now if only they were using all the equipment they already have access to. So we really gotta help them to get to it. And thats whats being done right now, to try to make the connectivity between whats unused capacity as well as tests within that capacity to help them, Fauci said. We gotta keep going. Its gotta be done together really in a partnership. Trump said that, so far, 4.18 million people have been tested for COVID-19 in America and called on governors to work together to enhance response efforts. Were encouraging them to share their successful strategies with other governors. Some of the governors are doing a better job than others. The robust capacity that weve brought online will empower governors to deploy sophisticated strategies so they can safely reopen their states, Trump said. The administration is engaged in a delicate balancing act between protecting people from the CCP virus and restarting economic activity so Americans have the means to keep a roof over their heads and get enough to eat. Spurred by growing lockdown fatigue, more people took to the streets over the weekend calling for a faster end to the lockdowns. The virus has spread aggressively across the world, with a Johns Hopkins tally on Monday showing more than 2.4 million infections globally and a death toll of 166,235. The number of infections in the United States has hit 760,570, according to Johns Hopkins, with the number of virus-related deaths standing at 40,690. The US Supreme Court has ruled that juries in state criminal trials have to reach a unanimous decision to convict a defendant. The 5-4 ruling on Monday smooths out a legal bump that allowed for divided juries in Louisiana and Oregon to convict defendants in criminal trials. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the opinion on the decision, and was joined partially by Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stepehen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Brett Kavanaugh. Justice Clarence Thomas concurred in the judgement and Justice Samuel Alito dissented, joined partially by Justice Elena Kagan and fully by Justice John Roberts. This court has repeatedly and over many years recognised that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimity, Mr Gorsuch wrote in the opinion. In his dissent, Mr Alito warned that the ruling would impose a potentially crushing burden on the courts and criminal justice systems in Louisiana and Oregon. According to the Associated Press, the Supreme Courts decision overturned a 1972 Supreme Court precedent and means 2016 murder conviction of Evangelisto Ramos, a man serving a life sentence in Louisiana for the killing of a woman. He was convicted after a jury voted 10 to 2 to convict him. Mr Ramos was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of Trinece Fedison. The womans body was found in a trash can in New Orleans. Recommended Supreme Court delays Google and Trump trials amid coronavirus chaos Louisiana overturned its law allowing for convictions by non-unanimous juries in 2019, but the ruling did not retroactively apply to Mr Ramoss case. We are heartened that the court has held, once and for all, that the promise of the Sixth Amendment fully applies in Louisiana, rejecting any concept of second-class justice, Mr Ramoss lawyer, Ben Cohen, told Reuters. The Supreme Courts precedent establishes the nationwide precedent that a jury must reach a unanimous decision to convict a defendant. People with criminal cases who are appealing their convictions will likely be affected by the ruling. Those whose criminal cases have been concluded and are not in the appeal process will likely remain unaffected unless further lawsuits establish that the new ruling applies retroactively. By ANI SHOPIAN: Shopian police along with 55 Rashtriya Rifles and CRPF 178 Battalion on Monday apprehended two terrorist associates of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfit who were planning to attack security forces deployed near Wachi, Shopian. Specific information was received by Shopian Police about the movement of the two terrorist associates of JeM. "A naka was immediately established near Wachi petrol pump. While observing naka, two suspects tried to flee from spot but deployed police, 55 RR and CRPF 178 overpowered both the suspects and detained (them)," read a statement. A pistol and two grenades were recovered from their possession. They were planning to attack Naka party deployed at Wachi, which remains deployed there for implementation of COVID-19 lockdown. FIR has been registered and further investigation is being done. Mr Sheehan also said he does not believe the latest support for care homes goes far enough to properly protect residents (PA) Care home residents who do not have Covid-19 should be moved to hotels to escape the deadly virus, a public service union has said. Unison has said all residents and staff working in care homes should be tested immediately to determine who has Covid-19, as it emerged the virus has now been detected in 53 residential facilities. Where there are confirmed cases of the coronavirus in care homes, healthy residents should be moved in a bid to save lives, Unison regional secretary Patricia McKeown said. "We should be testing everyone; it doesn't make sense that we aren't doing that given that people can be asymptomatic and infectious," she said. Expand Close Patricia McKeown of Unison / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Patricia McKeown of Unison "When we know the virus is in a home we should be taking steps to protect the residents and staff. All our hotels are empty; we could be moving residents into hotels to keep them safe, it would certainly save lives. "People who are testing negative should not be made to stay in homes where there is coronavirus." Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said this option is being examined by Health Minister Robin Swann. "We chatted briefly about this last week. [Robin Swann] is looking at whether it is possible to have Covid-free residents in nursing homes moved," she told the BBC. "That is a very challenging thing to do, but if it is necessary to protect people, then all options should be on the table." There are 484 care homes in Northern Ireland with a total of 16,000 beds. Serious concerns have been raised over the measures that have been put in place to keep care home residents safe in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Many people living in residential and nursing homes are considered in the high-risk category and families have been stopped from visiting their loved ones in a bid to slow the spread of the virus. At the same time, however, widespread testing of residents and staff has not been taking place and there have also been significant shortages of personal protective equipment for staff. Ms McKeown criticised the fact that care homes are being forced to accept residents who have been discharged from hospital without first being tested to show whether they have the virus. There have been reports that some care homes have been put under pressure by health trusts to accept new admissions, while the Western Trust has refused to say whether it has suspended admissions to a Londonderry care home hit by coronavirus, where at least 10 people have died. Ms McKeown said: "It is absolutely criminal if people are being admitted. "It is astounding that we are fining people for leaving their homes yet we seem to be putting our most vulnerable at risk by not taking very obvious precautions that could save lives." She also hit out at the ongoing confusion over the number of care home residents who are dying from coronavirus. Last week Health Minister Robin Swann said figures would be released which would provide more clarity on the issue. Expand Close Health Minister Robin Swann Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press E / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Health Minister Robin Swann Statistics were subsequently issued on Friday, with a breakdown of whether deaths occurred in hospital or in community settings including care homes, although the figures did not reveal what proportion of people dying in hospital contracted coronavirus in a care home. "The lack of transparency is very alarming," Ms McKeown said. "The only way we can establish whether there is a problem in particular care homes is by testing everyone. If we see that there is cluster, we need to be asking why that is happening, what is causing it. "We need to be supporting staff and helping care homes to do everything they can. The majority of these homes are in the private sector and they don't have the wherewithal to fight this on their own. "Even basic things such as isolation will be very difficult given the environment in many care homes and the staffing issues that they have, as well as whether residents are getting proper treatment. "When Covid-19 hit us older people were immediately identified as one of the groups in greatest danger and in need of special protection. Yet, remarkably, it appears that older people living in care homes and residential homes - and the Unison members providing care for them - have been left to the last. "We are demanding urgent answers as to why this has taken place." Alliance Party health spokeswoman Paula Bradshaw said she remains concerned about the measures in place to reduce the spread of coronavirus in local care homes. "The situation in care homes must be an urgent priority, and all options must be considered to ensure the safety of residents and staff," she said. "Swift testing is vital and with the extra capacity we have, we should be able to pursue it immediately." A vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella is safe and effective, according to a review looking at dozens of earlier studies involving millions of children. The review, completed by British policy institute Cochrane, involved examining 138 different studies into the vaccine and its side effects including whether there was any evidence it caused autism. The review was prompted by a rise in cases of measles and mumps in England and Wales, as the rate of immunisation for the diseases continues to fall. This has in part been blamed on a discredited study that falsely claimed a link between the MMR and autism - the review says there is no evidence of a link. They found that the recommended two doses of the MMR jab are 96 per cent effective at stopping infection from mumps, measles and rubella. It comes after the World Health Organization last week raised concerns that measles vaccination rates will plummet as millions of children are kept away from GPs during the coronavirus crisis. The review was completed by Cochrane, a British policy institute, and involved examining 138 different studies into the vaccine and its side effects. Stock image The authors found very little difference in the rate of autism between those who have and haven't been vaccinated. In fact, they found for every 100,000 unvaccinated children 451 had autism compared to 419 vaccinated children with autism. A Cochrane review is considered a gold-standard in research as it systematically looks at multiple studies on a subject over a long period of time. The authors said: 'The risks posed by these diseases far outweigh those of the vaccines administered to prevent them'. The MMR is first given to children aged 12 to 13 months, followed by a booster vaccine at three years and four months. According to the NHS, 94.5 per cent of five-year-olds were immunised with the first dose in 2018 - down from 94.9 per cent in 2017 and below the 95 per cent target. Researchers say that even if not everyone has been vaccinated, reaching an immunisation rate of 95 per cent creates a 'herd immunity'. There were 991 cases of measles in the UK in 2018, forcing the World Health Organisation to reverse a 2017 statement that the UK had eliminated the disease. A rise in anti-vaxxers online and the Wakefield scare from the 1990s are in part to blame for the fall in immunisation numbers. The Cochrane team looked at studies assessing the MMR vaccines and comparing them to placebo vaccines in healthy children up to 15 years old. Researchers looked back over 138 studies into the vaccine involving 23 million children including 51 studies of 10 million children looking at how effective it is. Another 87 studies of 13 million children looked at any unwanted side effects. Overall they found that the MMR vaccine did not cause autism - that's from two studies involved 1.19 million children. There was a very small risk of fits from high temperature or fever about two weeks after vaccination and of a condition where blood does not clot normally. 'Our review shows that MMR, MMRV and MMR+V vaccines are effective in preventing the infection of children by measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox,' they said. Now-discredited gastroenterologist, Andrew Wakefield, sparked controversy and concern over the MMR vaccine by mistakenly linking it to autism They say there is 'no evidence of an increased risk of autism or encephalitis and a small risk of febrile seizure' from the vaccine. They looked at autism rates among more than 1.1 million children as part of the research - looking at vaccinated and unvaccinated children with autism. They say that the evidence supports the use of MMR for mass immunisation. Additionally, they found no evidence supporting an association between MMR immunisation and a range of other conditions 'supposedly linked' to the drug. This includes cognitive delay, type 1 diabetes, asthma, dermatitis/eczema, hay fever, leukaemia, multiple sclerosis, gait disturbance and bacterial or viral infections. The Cochrane review isn't the first to analyse multiple studies to prove the effectiveness and safety of the MMR vaccine. Scientists from Italy's regional epidemiology unit analysed more than 100 studies. They found one dose was 95 per cent effective at preventing measles and among children who didn't get the first dose 7 per cent would be expected to catch measles compared to 0.5 per cent of immunised children. In terms of safety, we know from previous studies all around the world that the risks posed by these diseases far outweigh those of the vaccines administered to prevent them, said lead author Dr Di Pietrantonj. BMW Group President and CEO Rudratej Singh passed away on Monday morning due to a massive cardiac arrest, sources said. The German auto major had appointed Singh as head of India operations with effect from August 1, 2019. Rudy, as he was popularly called, was the first Indian to head the BMW India operations. Singh had more than 25 years of experience and held multiple leadership positions both in the automotive and non-automotive industry. In his last assignment, Singh was the Global President at Royal Enfield and before that he worked with Unilever in India and international markets for over 16 years. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Members of the Chinese Anti-Epidemic Medical Expert Team wave goodbye as they leave Manila for China at the Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Paranaque City, the Philippines, on April 19, 2020. The Philippines on Sunday thanked China anew for its help, saying the crucial medical supplies donated by the Chinese government and the ideas shared by the Chinese experts have "provided a lifeline" to the Philippines' efforts to step up the fight against the COVID-19. Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque made the remarks at the seeing-off ceremony held for the 12-member team of Chinese experts, which arrived in Manila on April 5 to share firsthand experiences and best practices with Philippine health officials on how to properly manage the COVID-19 epidemic. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali) An animal shelter has gone viral for the best reason: All the cages in its kennel are empty for the first time ever. The Friends of Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control shelter in Florida is celebrating after the organisation was able to get all the animals in its shelter adopted or fostered for the first time in its history. Staff at The Friends of Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control shelter in Florida. Photo: Facebook/ The Friends of Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control shelter Last week, the shelter posted a video to Facebook of its employees at kennel two (one of the three kennel buildings) wearing protective masks as they clapped victoriously at the dozens of empty cages. This amazing milestone was made possible by the help and support of our entire community! the post said in part. Thank you to the shelter staff and volunteers who work tirelessly to care for, find homes for, and advocate for the pets who come through these doors; thank you to our incredible foster parents who open their heart and homes to thousands of pets each year; thank you to everyone who has opted to adopt a shelter pet... As of Friday, the post had been shared thousands of times with many people expressing their excitement. I am so happy to hear that that made my day that made my whole month thank God there's people out there that loves animals like I do, one commenter wrote. What a wonderful day for the workers and animals, someone said. Makes me wanna cry!!!!! Happy tears of course, another person added. Elizabeth Harfmann, the community outreach manager at the shelter, tells Yahoo Life that she is very surprised by the response they have gotten. The Friends of West Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control is celebrating the fact that its kennel is empty for the first time ever. (Photo: Friends of West Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control) We expected it to garner some attention and build positivity in the community, but never in a million years did we imagine it would be so far reaching! she says. We've heard from people in Malaysia, Poland, the UK and Canada. Harfmann, who has worked at the shelter for 11 years, says that the viral video was the idea of behavior and enrichment coordinator, Stephani Moore, who thought it would be an exciting photo op for our staff. Not only that, but as a thank you to everyone who helped to make it happen. Without the support of our community, this would not have been possible, she says. Story continues According to Harfmann, the shelter can accommodate up to 300-plus animals at a time, with over 100 of them available for adoption or foster. And because its an open-admission shelter, the population can fluctuate at any time with varying breeds of cats and dogs. The pets most in need of placement help are our dogs 40 pounds and larger and adult cats, she notes. Harfmann says that there was initially a gradually growing trend of adoptions and fosters, but in mid-March, she noticed a significant increase. With the coronavirus pandemic in full swing and millions under quarantine, it was no surprise that many more animals were able to find homes. Shelters are desperately trying to get animals placed due to staff shortages because of the pandemic. People seem to want to help in whatever fashion they can due to the world being a changed placed. Pets provide a sense of comfort, companionship and are an added health benefit. With people being home now, many of them have the extra time needed to devote to a pet. Just this week Mark and Hollie Moffett, of Lake Worth, Florida became two of many adopters that helped the animal shelter to be able to be able to meet this goal. The pair adopted both a pitbull mix and springer spaniel mix (Skye and Hazel), who previously lived together before they were turned over to the shelter in January by their elderly owner. The Moffett family and their dogs, Skye and Hazel, that they adopted this week from the West Palm Beach shelter. (Photo courtesy of Friends of West Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control) We were planning to adopt for a while and with all the kids home from school, it felt like the right time to make the plunge, Mark tells Yahoo Life. In 2018, the Moffetts lost one of their older dogs and, just four months ago, lost their other elderly dog, and Mark admits that his kids were eager to adopt again. Now Skye and Hazel have found a loving home where their new owners say they have been doing a lot of exploring and getting comfortable. And with the shelter going viral, Mark says he is glad that they were able to do their part. I think its great. I know its hard because they cant have [it] open where families can come down all together to meet the dogs, so its hard...its a scary place for dogs right now so Im glad that were able to help a couple of dogs find homes, he says. Marcy Ebenstein of West Palm Beach fostered a cat from the shelter. [It] was wonderful for me to find a companion during this difficult and lonely time, she tell Yahoo Life. With so many animals able to find great homes during this uncertain time, Harfmann encourages others to get involved with their local shelter. This is the dream of every animal welfare workers everywhere, she admits. We always hoped for the day to come, but never could have believed it would take a pandemic to get us there. We are thrilled to see so many empty cages and hoping to keep the momentum going to empty the remaining ones...We also hope that it provides comfort and positivity to people in this time of uncertainty, stress and home quarantine. Words by Megan Sims Got a story tip or just want to get in touch? Email us at lifestyle.tips@verizonmedia.com. WASHINGTON Bay Area Reps. Barbara Lee and Ro Khanna endorsed Joe Biden for president Monday along with other progressive lawmakers, a sign that the former vice president is further consolidating Democratic support for his candidacy. The presumptive nominee has already been endorsed by his last remaining rival for the Democratic nomination, Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, but questions remain whether the moderate candidate can energize the left flank of the base enough to defeat President Trump in November. Lee, D-Oakland, and Khanna, D-Fremont, were joined by colleagues from across the country in pledging to support Biden and help excite progressive voters. As strong progressive Democrats who supported different candidates or did not support any candidate during the primary for the Democratic nomination, we recognize that the future of our democracy is at stake, the group wrote. We are not simply endorsing Vice President Joe Biden today. We are pledging to initiate a wave of progressive organizing on issues we care about so passionately. Together we must turn the country towards a fundamentally new direction of equality, prosperity and justice. Both Lee and Khanna had served in high-level positions on other Democratic candidates campaigns. Lee served as the California co-chair for the campaign of California Sen. Kamala Harris, and Khanna was a national co-chair for Sanders campaign. Harris suspended her campaign in December, and Sanders conceded the race was unwinnable for him this month. Democrats fear that progressive apathy or distaste about Biden could cost him the presidential race. Sanders appeared with Biden in a live stream to make his endorsement, after some criticized him for not doing enough to rally his supporters to Hillary Clintons side in the 2016 election. Biden has taken more moderate positions during the primary, including arguing against progressives rallying cry of Medicare For All. Biden also won the endorsement Monday of the Congressional Black Caucus PAC, the political arm of a group of African American lawmakers in Washington. His support among black voters helped him defeat his fellow Democrats in the primaries. In their statement on supporting Biden, the progressives made clear that any alternative would empower Trump to a second term. The threat of a second presidency of Donald Trump requires all of us to support Vice President Joe Biden, they wrote. Now more than ever we must fight to restore decency, inclusion and competency to the White House. Tal Kopan is The San Francisco Chronicles Washington correspondent. Email: tal.kopan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @talkopan Become a Poker Hero and Craft the Ultimate Strategic Deck of Soldiers to Take into Battle and Defend the Kingdom from Invasion With the formation of a cabinet in Madhya Pradesh still pending, Congress leaders Vivek Tankha and Kapil Sibal on Monday wrote to President Ram Nath Kovind seeking his intervention in the matter and, if necessary, imposition of Presidents rule in the state. Tankha on April 11, in another letter to Kovind, had made the same demand. BJP's Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who was sworn in as chief minister on March 23, on Monday completed 28 days in power without a council of ministers, the longest duration any chief minister has served in the country without a cabinet. Congress has been highly critical of the Shivraj government for not forming cabinet despite the state being in grip of covid19 outbreak. Both Tankha and Sibal in the missives sent to President of India complained of unconstitutional functioning of the MP government saying its not a government but a one man show. Indore today is the epicentre of the spread of the virus hosting 80% of COVID-19 infection. Bhopal earlier witnessed the collapse of the Health Department with the hierarchy of its officers infected and in the absence of a health minister, the infected officers continued to discharge their duties, said the letter. The two senior lawyers also referred to Article 163 of the constitution, which mandates the council of ministers and advice of Governor for the state government and Article 164A requiring the council of ministers should not be less than 12. The leaders said that when Chouhan was sworn in, there was no legal impediment hindering the formation of the cabinet. The two lawyers urged Kovind to either instruct the state to constitute a Council of Ministers, or consider and pass a vote on account by following settled constitutional procedures and to withdraw unconstitutional ordinances (MP Finance Ordinance, 2020 and MP Appropriation (Vote on Account) Ordinance, 2020. Union minister Narendra Singh Tomar earlier on Monday said the cabinet would soon be formed in the state. D efiant US healthcare workers have been praised after silently blocking cars during coronavirus anti-lockdown demonstrations in Colorado. Hundreds of people gathered in Denver as part of "Operation Gridlock" to demand an end to Governor Jared Polis's stay-at-home order, honking their horns and waving through sunroofs. But, as protesters clogged streets with cars, motorbikes and buses, a group of medics in scrubs and face masks stood on the crossing in the road in counter-protest. The healthcare workers were seen standing in front of the horn-honking motorists who had gathered to challenge the lockdown measures. Video footage shows a woman in an American flag T-shirt hanging out of her car window to shout at them. She says: Go to China if you want communism." Referring to the closure of non-essential businesses, she adds: You can go to work why cant I go to work? The medical workers do not appear to respond but remain standing silent in the road. Social media users praised their "peaceful" counter-protest, with some calling them "heroes". One said: "These two incredible nurses were peacefully counter protesting at red lights in Denver Colorado where folks protesting the stay at home orders were blocking traffic for ambulances and driving recklessly, shouting obscenities." Another said: "Not all heroes wear capes." Loading.... One wrote: "Colorado health care workers, who have been putting their lives on the line to save others, stand in the street in counter-protest. The selfishness and ignorance of todays protest is peak privilege. #ThisIsAmerica." Fellow medics also jumped to support the counter-protest group. One Twitter user said: "As a surgeon Im constantly reminded that nurses are the glue that really hold everything together." Another said: "So proud of Colorado nurses! Heroes, in more ways than one." More than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month amid the stay-at-home measures, which experts say are essential to curb the spread of the virus. Protesters rally against stay-at-home orders at Capitol Square in Richmond, Virginia / AFP via Getty Images Jim Fenimore, of Colorado Springs, told the Denver Post that he had attended the protest because he "believes the drastic response to the coronavirus pandemic has been ginned up as a political tool, one intended to make the economy crash and subsequently cause Trump to lose support and be ousted from office". Another protester told the newspaper: "Pot shops are open, abortion clinics are open and my church is closed. Death is a part of life and its time to start living again." A demonstrator holds a sign at a protest in Virginia's capital / Getty Images Demonstrations have previously erupted in Texas, Wisconsin and the capitols of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. New York's Coronavirus outbreak - In pictures 1 /34 New York's Coronavirus outbreak - In pictures The Supermoon rises behind the Empire State Building while it glows red in solidarity with those infected with coronavirus as the outbreak of the disease (COVID-19) continues in the Manhattan borough of New York City Reuters A nearly empty Times Square AFP via Getty Images Riders, some wearing masks and gloves as a protective measure over coronavirus concerns, enter a New York City subway train AP People try to keep a social distance while they enjoy a sunny day at Central Park Reuters Nadia, a 4-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, that the zoo said on April 5, 2020 has tested positive for coronavirus disease WCS/Handout via Reuters People wear face masks AFP via Getty Images A man crosses a nearly empty 5th Avenue in midtown Manhattan Reuters US President Donald Trump looks on during the daily briefing on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on March 31, 2020, in Washington, DC AFP via Getty Images Felix Hassebroek waves to his classmates, who he has not seen in 2 weeks through a livestream video meet up during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Brooklyn, New York Reuters Friends and neighbors, Sarah and Elizabeth, talk about their weekends from opposite sides of the road as they maintain social distance in a neighborhood in Syracuse, New York Reuters Light morning traffic seen on the FDR drive on March 24, 2020 in New York City AFP via Getty Images A subway customer uses a tissue to protect her hand while holding onto a pole AP Workers construct what is believed to be a makeshift morgue behind a hospital during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the Manhattan borough of New York City Reuters Beds separated by black fabric are set up as a temporary field hospital for Covid-19 patients in Queens, New York AFP via Getty Images New York's Hart Island where the department of corrections is dealing with more burials Reuters Medical workers wait for patients at a special coronavirus intake area in New York Getty Images Patients wear personal protective equipment while maintaining social distancing as they wait in line for a COVID-19 test at Elmhurst Hospital Center AP The One World Trade Center tower in Manhattan is seen illuminated in blue light Reuters Pictures drawn by children as part of the Quarantine Rainbow Project in Brooklyn, New York Reuters U.S. Army National Guard personnel load boxes of free food provided by multiple New York City agencies into a taxi for distribution to local residents in the Harlem neighbourhood of Manhattan during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID19) in New York Reuters Traders work during the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on March 17, 2020 at Wall Street in New York City AFP via Getty Images A man in a wheelchair crosses a nearly empty 7th Avenue in Times Square in Manhattan Reuters Getty Images Getty Images Getty Images REUTERS An estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol in Olympia to protest Democratic Governor Jay Insleea's stay-at-home order, defying a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. In New York, the epicentre of the pandemic in the US, which has more than 770,000 confirmed Covid-19 infections, hospitalisations continued decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. "Chubb is proud to support the American Forests American ReLeaf Program and further align with their mission to protect and restore threatened forest ecosystems," said Craig Richardson, Executive Vice President, Chubb Environmental. "Since 2008, Chubb has pledged to plant one tree for every environmental policy written, and in 13 years we have planted more than 200,000 trees through American Forests." In addition to this donation, Chubb, its employees and its charitable foundation continue to demonstrate their support for a wide range of environmental philanthropies and volunteer activities in local communities around the world. Chubb's charitable foundation grants have also helped preserve sensitive lands and habitats, finance green business entrepreneurs, and support educational programs that promote a healthy and sustainable environment, both domestically and globally. In addition, Chubb is committed to measuring and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from its own operations. From 2015 to 2018, Chubb and its predecessor companies reduced their absolute global Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 21%. From 2016 to 2019, Chubb reduced its absolute GHG emissions by 22%. By 2035, the impact of the company's continued focus on achieving its emissions targets will result in the emissions reduction of nearly 45,000 metric tons of CO equivalent per year. Chubb's contribution will support the following planting projects with American Forests in 2020: Kirtland's Warbler Habitat Restoration in Michigan: When human settlement and commercial timber harvest in the 1970s and 1980s altered natural forest cycles in northern Michigan, home to the endangered Kirtland's warbler, the bird's numbers plummeted. Conservation efforts over several decades have expanded the warbler's population from approximately 400 to more than 4,000 birds. Conservation success stories take a very long time to develop so this rare and exciting population rebound is exciting and something travelers should be very proud of helping make possible. Thanks to supporters like Chubb, a species was brought back from the brink of extinction and conversations have started around delisting it. Florida Longleaf Pine Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Habitat Restoration: The longleaf pine ecosystem is an incredibly diverse supporter of wildlife, featuring hundreds of unique plant and animal species. The gopher tortoise on its own provides habitat for more than 360 species by digging tunnels in the sandy loam distinctive to these forests. It and the red-cockaded woodpecker are two landmark species central to recovery efforts. The longleaf pine habitat that is crucial to the survival of the tortoise and the woodpecker once spanned across more than 90 million acres. Extensive logging and the abandonment of Native American wildfire management practices began to diminish longleaf pine forests. Today less than five percent of that ecosystem still exists and, as a result, many wildlife species are in danger of extinction. Reforestation is critical to the survival of the longleaf pine forests and the species that call it home. Sierra National Forest French Fire Restoration: After several years of sustained drought, Sierra National Forest was incredibly dry. An abandoned camp fire escaped and ultimately burned over 14,000 acres. It cost $12 million to suppress. This was called the French Fire. Trees have failed to regenerate in many of the most severely burned areas. The forest needs our help to come back. These areas are home to both the California Spotted Owl and Pacific Fisher, both threatened/endangered species. This project will accelerate the growth of mature forest habitat for these species and many others. It will also restore scenery along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway. Oregon Whitewater Fire: The Whitewater Fire devastated Willamette National Forest in Oregon in 2017, burning more than 11,000 acres and causing severe damage to the ecosystem. The area is near the North Santiam Watershed located along the north east boundary of the adjacent to the Northern Willamette Valley, home to approximately 750,000 people. This is a highly productive watershed that is important for people and natural resources. The area provides an abundance of recreation opportunities concentrated along the North Santiam River including hiking trails, camping facilities, and swimming opportunities. The watershed also provides habitat for a wide range of species including the endangered Spring Chinook Salmon and Northern Spotted Owl. For these reasons, support is critically needed to start the restoration process. Chubb is helping plant a variety of Douglas-fir, Noble fir, White Pine, Western Hemlock and Red Cedar trees which will help bring this critical area back to life. Chippewa Blowdown Restoration: Chippewa National Forest is a shared home to many diverse inhabitants. The protected lands of the native Ojibwe tribe and the juxtaposed recreational areas share more than 300 species of plants and animals, including the largest breeding population of bald eagles. The forest is now under threat from a number of different sources. Insects and disease are ravaging conifer thickets, climate change is affecting the resilience of old-growth stands, and increasingly powerful storms are levelling entire groves. The good news is that the soil is fertile and the native tree species are easily cultivated and the impact of this project will extend far beyond Chippewa. Not only will the forests work to purify the lakes and streams nearby, which include the headwaters of the Mississippi River, they will also be hard at work purifying the atmosphere. About American Forests Founded in 1875, American Forests protects and restores urban and rural forests and is the oldest national nonprofit conservation organization in the country, serving as a catalyst for many of the most important milestones in the conservation movement. American Forests has planted hundreds of millions of trees over the last century, and 60 million in the last 30 years alone. Now we are focused on building a movement to reforest America, from cities to large, rural landscapes. We all rely on forests in order to survive and thrive, given the power they have to filter our air and water, provide jobs, mitigate climate change and more. But our forests are being degraded and destroyed at a rapid pace and large scale. If we take care of our forests, they will take care of us. American Forests is working with a diverse group of partners to achieve the following goals by 2030: At least 4 billion trees are planted across 16 million acres of North America, using climate-smart practices to determine what trees to plant, where to plant them and how to manage them; in 100 of America's cities, every under-resourced neighborhood reaches a passing Tree Equity Scorean indicator that the neighborhood has enough trees in the right places so all people benefit from trees; and at least 100,000 people, particularly those from marginalized communities, have entered jobs in forestry. About Chubb Environmental Chubb Environmental is among the largest and most advanced global underwriters of environmental liabilities and pollution risk, and develops insurance products and risk management services that facilitate market-based solutions to current and pending environmental issues. About Chubb Chubb is the world's largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company. With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. The company is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. Parent company Chubb Limited is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index. Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs more than 30,000 people worldwide. Additional information can be found at: chubb.com . SOURCE Chubb Related Links https://www.chubb.com/us-en The government's chief scientific adviser has issued words of warning over the new coronavirus vaccine with human trials set to start later this week. Sir Patrick Vallance has cautioned that even if there is evidence that the new Covid-19 jab can protect against the virus it could take considerably longer to ensure that it is safe. It comes as the coronavirus death toll in the UK rose by another 596, taking the total number of fatalities to 16,060 - a figure that still does not include deaths in care homes or the community. Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance (pictured) has cautioned that even if there is evidence that the new Covid-19 jab can protect against the virus it could take considerably longer to ensure that it is safe Sir Patrick issued his warnings as researchers at Oxford University prepare to begin the latest round of trials within the coming days. It is hoped that they could have results on the vaccine's success rate as early as September. But speaking to the Guardian, Sir Patrick said: 'All new vaccines that come into development are long shots. Only some end up being successful. 'Coronavirus will be no different and presents new challenges for vaccine development. 'This will take time and we should be clear it is not a certainty.' Researchers at Oxford University are preparing to begin the latest round of trials within the coming days and it is hoped that they could have results on the vaccine's success rate as early as September It is thought that emergency legislation could allow high-risk groups, including frontline health-care workers, to receive the jab before it is fully licensed. But there is some concern that the vaccine may alter immune systems and could ultimately prove to be more dangerous. He added: 'A vaccine has to work but it also has to be safe. 'If a vaccine is to be given to billions of people, many of whom may be at a low risk from Covid-19, the vaccine must have a good safety profile. 'With Covid-19 we need to understand more about the immune response.' Sir Patrick's warnings echo sentiments made by several other senior figures in recent days. Professor Sarah Gilbert, who is one of the scientists leading efforts to make the breakthrough vaccine, told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: 'That's why we have to do trials to find out. The prospects are very good but it is clearly not completely certain.' Prof Gilbert said that her team has not immunised anyone yet but they hope to start clinical trials towards the end of next week. 'We are waiting for the final safety tests to be done on the vaccine and the final approvals to be given.' In the meantime, permission has been given to recruit volunteers, take blood tests, explain the process and check their health status, she said. 'By the time we have all the approvals for the vaccine ready, we should have a good pool of volunteers to draw from and we should be able to get going quite quickly.' Cabinet minister Michael Gove, who was speaking on the same programme, issued a similar warning and pointed out that vaccines had never been developed for a number of diseases. 'I don't think it's the case that anyone should automatically assume a vaccine is a dead cert to come soon,' he said. Public Health England are currently running animal trials on macaques and ferrets at the Porton Down research site in an attempt to asses the potential risks. Officials are currently drawing up a three-stage 'traffic light' plan which will steer the UK out of lockdown in waves. But within these proposed guidelines the elderly and vulnerable would remain 'shielded' until a vaccine is widely available which could be another 18 months from now. Facebook says it is shutting down event pages for anti-quarantine protests in states with stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus pandemic. A company spokesperson told Politico on Monday that it has removed protesters event pages and messages encouraging rallies in California, New Jersey, and Nebraska after state governments advised those events are currently prohibited by law. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing arent allowed on Facebook, the spokesperson said. A Facebook representative also told CNN that its in discussions with four other states New York, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Pennsylvania to determine if planned protests would violate those states stay-at-home orders. A small number of protesters gathered in Albany on Friday and in Watertown on Saturday, with more events reportedly being pushed in the state over the coming weeks. Protesters have already gathered in multiple states, including Colorado, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Utah, demanding governors open up non-essential businesses despite concerns about COVID-19. President Donald Trump also encouraged supporters to liberate Michigan, Virginia and Minnesota. Let us work! a crowd reportedly chanted in Austin, Texas. Our freedom has been taken away from us, people are locked in their homes, Nicole Brown told the Orange County Register at a protest in Huntington Beach, California. Photos and videos show most protesters ignoring social distancing orders, gridlocking state capitals, and marching in crowds without masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE). Some are also seen wearing pro-Trump clothing, waving Confederate flags or holding signs saying Dont tread on me and My body, my choice. According to The Washington Post, many of the events are being organized on Facebook by three right-wing, pro-gun activists against excessive quarantine," claiming their personal freedoms are being taken away due to the health crisis. A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows theyre in the minority: Nearly 60% of U.S. voters say theyre more concerned relaxing stay-at-home restrictions would lead to more deaths than they are that the restrictions will hurt the U.S. economy. Facebook said last week its actively trying to prevent dangerous misinformation, letting users know if they clicked on, reacted to or commented on posts featuring harmful or false claims. The site will instead users to a World Health Organization site that fact-checks various myths and rumors. At the same time, its important that people can debate policies, so theres a line on this, Facebook CEO Zuckerberg told ABC News of blocking event pages. But more than normal political discourse, I think a lot of the stuff that people are saying that is false around a health emergency like this can be classified as harmful misinformation. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Oneida County has highest percentage of coronavirus in Upstate NY, new Facebook data map says Coronavirus antibody testing taking place at 5 Wegmans locations, including in Syracuse Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Dr. Anthony Fauci: If states reopen too fast, its going to backfire How were you picked to head the effort? I flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with Earth Day founder Sen. Gaylord Nelson (D-Wis.), hoping he didn't have an organizer lined up for Harvard. A couple days later, his chief of staff asked me to drop out of school, move to D.C. and organize the entire U.S. What's the legacy of Earth Day? Legislation that was unthinkable in 1969 became unstoppable in the 1970s. A tsunami of legislation emerged. Between 1970 and 1976 the Clean Air Amendments of 1970, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, Safe Drinking Water Act and more were passed. Human health has improved dramatically. And the environment? Clearly, our air is much cleaner; our water is much cleaner. Things that used to be legal, like lead in your gasoline, are now no longer there. Wildlife is more protected. The hole in the ozone layer is starting to heal up. That said, we don't have very good ways to address things that are international in scope, like climate change. What's your view on climate change? The world is producing more carbon dioxide every year than the year before. Hurricanes, floods, droughts, forest fires, rising seas have become the new normal. After beating my head against the wall for 40 years, I cannot understand why this is not the number one political priority of every nation on earth. We already have in hand everything we need to build an ultraefficient society powered 100 percent with renewable-energy technologies. What can older adults who remember the first Earth Day 1970 do today? I'd love to see a gray-green alliance between the generations. Talk to your grandkids who are marching for environmental causes. Support them. Find an Earth Day 2020 event near you. We're hoping a billion people will get involved. What keeps you optimistic? You can't get people to do anything unless there is hope of success. We're on the way to developing technologies for a truly sustainable, resilient planet. Already, stunning things have happened, like long-range electric vehicles and sustainable buildings. As president of the Bullitt Foundation, a Seattle environmental philanthropy, you work in an ultragreen office building. How's that? Even on a cool, cloudy day, it's bright and warm inside. Solar panels produce electricity that fuels heat pumps, keeping the entire building comfortable. On a winter day, there's nothing more delightful than walking around with just socks on. Kanpur police on Monday announced a cash reward of Rs 10,000 for those who help authorities in tracing Tablighi Jamaat members "hiding despite repeated appeals to come forward" for COVID-19 testing, a top official said. Inspector General of Police (Kanpur range) Mohit Agarwal said there is a strong possibility that some people who attended the religious congregation in Delhi last month are still hiding and posing a risk to themselves, their families and the society at large. The officer said the number of positive cases in the city has increased exponentially in the last three days and most of the total 74 patients are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat event. "The Tablighi Jamaat members are still hiding. We have made repeated appeals to them to come forward for the sake of their own life and to help us from preventing the pandemic," he said. If they self report to authorities, no action will be takenagainst them, he said, adding that strict against will be taken if they fail to do so. He said those who will help police in tracing Tablighi Jamaat members will be rewarded Rs 10,000 and their identity will be kept secret. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - The Initiative of Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA), an anti-slavery organisation, said here Monday five of its militants were injured when the police dispersed demonstrators protesting the arrest a week ago of a blogger, Mariam Mint Cheikh Dieng, activist and member of the movement China on Monday asked India to revise what it described as a discriminatory change in foreign direct investment (FDI) regulations aimed at preventing opportunistic takeovers of Indian firms amid the Covid-19 crisis. The Indian government brought China under the ambit of regulations preventing such takeovers and acquisitions on Friday, with authorities saying any Chinese investments would now require the governments approval. The revision of the FDI policy came close on the heels of Chinas central bank buying a 1.01% stake in HDFC in the first quarter of 2020. We hope India would revise relevant discriminatory practices, treat investments from different countries equally, and foster an open, fair and equitable business environment, Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement that was Beijings first formal response to the tweak in Indias FDI regulations. Ji said the additional barriers set by India for investors from specific countries violate WTOs principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment. The Chinese side also contended the changes in Indias FDI rules do not conform to the consensus of G20 leaders and trade ministers to realise a free, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, predictable and stable trade and investment environment, and to keep our markets open. There was no immediate response to Jis remarks from Indian officials though people familiar with developments said the Indian government couldnt allow vulnerabilities created by the Covid-19 pandemic to be exploited by any country, including China. Also Watch | Chinese threat amid Covid impact: Why India changed FDI rules One of the people cited above, on condition of anonymity, said: A pre-emptive action was needed to protect Indian assets from hostile acquisitions and takeovers, particularly start-ups that have little money power. The necessity is not just felt by India, but many other countries, including powerful G20 nations, which have expressed serious concerns about Chinese designs. The person added: The actions of Chinese investors, with tacit backup from their government, are not fair business as usual. Hence there is a need to protect our domestic interests. The people said there was no bar on the entry of Chinese firms into India or investments by them, but all proposals will have to go through the government. This is not just targeted at China but all countries that share borders with India. It is surprising why China is so perturbed, if it believes in ethical business, the person cited above said. Earlier, only investments from Pakistan and Bangladesh required the Indian governments approval for security reasons. Without naming China, an order issued by the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) on April 17 said the scope of the policy had been widened to cover all neighbouring countries that share a border with India. Ji noted that Chinas cumulative investment in India exceeded $8 billion as of December 2019, far more than the total investments of Indias other border-sharing countries. She added, The impact of the policy on Chinese investors is clear. The revision of the foreign investment policy by the DPIIT will make it much difficult for companies from countries sharing land border with India, including China, to invest in the country, Ji said. Ji contended Chinese investments have driven the development of Indias industries, such as mobile phone, household electrical appliances, infrastructure and automobile, creating a large number of jobs in India, and promoting [mutually] beneficial and win-win cooperation. She also noted that Chinese enterprises were actively making donations to help India fight Covid-19 and sought to urge India to create a favourable investment environment that would help drive recovery after the pandemic. Where companies choose to invest and operate depends on the countrys economic fundamentals and business environment. Facing the economic downturn caused by Covid-19, countries should work together to create a favourable investment environment to speed up the resumption of companies production and operation, Ji said. The Indian governments tweak in FDI rules followed concerns that Chinese firms, including its mammoth state-run companies, could take over Indian companies at a time when their valuation has taken a massive hit because of the economic crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic that originated in Wuhan nearly four months ago. According to the DPIITs order, an entity of a country, which shares land border with India or where the beneficial owner of an investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country, can invest only under the Government route. The order also requires the governments approval for transferring ownership of an Indian company to any existing or future foreign investor belonging to the countries that share a border with India. Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar share borders with India, but there are some exemptions for Nepal and Bhutan-based entities. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had on April 12 cautioned the government against takeover threats. The massive economic slowdown has weakened many Indian corporates making them attractive targets for takeovers. The government must not allow foreign interests to take control of any Indian corporate at this time of national crisis, he had said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rezaul H Laskar Rezaul H Laskar is the Foreign Affairs Editor at Hindustan Times. His interests include movies and music. ...view detail For over ten days, I have tried to get a hold of anyone at B of A [Bank of America] and had no luck. My small business banker has not returned any of my calls or emails and my efforts to reach out to them on 1-800 numbers, Twitter, live chat, and FB have all been ignored. A British father is spending his first memorable moment of fatherhood on Zoom - after his girlfriend gave birth 1,750 miles away in Moldova amid the coronavirus lockdown. Mark Templeton, 47, is unable to hold his son Luke for the first time due to lockdown restrictions - and has to settle for virtual meetings via the internet video service to see his baby, who was born on April 14. His fiancee Valerie, 34, lives in the former Soviet republic of Moldova and went into labour when he was due to visit her for the birth of their child. The couple were due to get married in March - but that had to be postponed due to the country's strict lockdown. Mr Templeton, a housing organisation PR from Northfleet, Kent, said: 'My baby is stuck in Moldova and I really cannot wait to hold him for the very fist time. Mark Templeton with girlfriend Valerie, who lives in the former Soviet republic of Moldova and went into labour when he was due to visit her for the birth of their child 'I couldn't get in any way at all. We've had to do everything by video call!' said Mr Templeton, pictured seeing his newborn baby on video call 'Valerie lives over there. I met her when she was over here because she lived over here for two years and she moved back out there when here visa expired, but nine months ago we didn't even think we would be in a situation like this. 'I had a flight lined up and then all of a sudden the Moldovan government announced they were banning all international flights. 'I just couldn't get a flight in. That was in mid-March. 'I had a look at various options, whether I could get there on the train, whether I could get there by road even, which would have been a three or four day journey but I was quite willing to do that- but they shut all their borders. 'I couldn't get in any way at all. We've had to do everything by video call!' The father revealed that the child was delivered by his girlfriend on her own - and she could not even take her mother in to the hospital because of the lockdown. 'It was all fine, she was home within 24 hours and tested negative for coronavirus when she was at hospital. 'The baby hasn't got it either so we are grateful for that. 'It's absolutely horrible - thank god for video technology these days!' he said. Mr Templeton, a housing organisation PR from Northfleet, Kent, said: 'My baby is stuck in Moldova and I really cannot wait to hold him for the very fist time' The father revealed that the child was delivered by his girlfriend on her own - and she could not even take her mother in to the hospital because of the lockdown (pictured: Valerie and Luke) Mr Templeton said he misses holding the child - and being able to touch and see him properly - but he video calls his family up to seven times a day to talk. The father revealed he cannot get a flight there until at least the middle of May because Moldova has gone into a state of emergency, closing everything down after only a few cases. 'The fact I can't see him is awful for me but that's just a very personal thing,' he said. 'It's awful for both me and my girlfriend, because we were due to get married as well in March but that had to be cancelled as well. 'When I couldn't get the flight out that was it! 'We did all the stuff you had to do over here which was register it in a registry office and all that, we got all the paperwork ready, and she got it translated and then it was just a no go because I couldn't make it out there. 'It was just going to be a small wedding with immediate family. 'It's not like we've gone to great expense or anything it was just a case of paying for the public hall I think they're called over there. 'We'll do it as soon as possible I think. We'll definitely do it this year. 'We wanted to get it all tidied up before the little one came along but it's one of those things. It can't happen. 'But there's far worse- all those people that lost their lives you just feel so sorry for them. I just feel like my story is quite small in comparison. 'It's my second child we've both got previous children, they're both seven years old, they get on like a house on fire the two brothers! 'They chat on video call as well. 'My girlfriend was working over there but she has been on maternity leave, she's a translator for an American company.' President Nana Akufo-Addo has advised Ghanaians to wear masks to prevent the transmission of Coronavirus in the country. The President lifted the three-week restrictions on movement in some parts of the country but urged the citizenry to continue to adhere to the safety protocols regarding the virus infection. Giving his 7th update on the Coronavirus pandemic, the President asked Ghanaians to guard themselves against the virus by wearing masks as they go outside on their daily routine. ''Like the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recently advised, I want to encourage you to wear a mask wherever you go, as it will help you not to contract the virus, and keep it clean. If you own a business, or are providing a service, i.e. a barber, a hairdresser, a tailor, a taxi driver, a trotro driver and his mate, a shop keeper, a food seller, please do well to use a mask. The Ministry of Health will very soon issue guidelines on face masks for public use. I entreat religious, traditional, community and opinion leaders to partner with government in engaging, mobilising and enforcing adherence to social distancing and personal hygiene practices in their respective communities'', he admonished. President Akufo-Addo further advised the general public to keep in mind that ''our success in defeating the virus is largely within our control. That means each and every one of us must exercise, at all times, during this period without the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi, a strong sense of selflessness, self-control and self-discipline. It is important to stress strongly that coming out of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi does not mean we are out of the pandemic''. ''We will continue to monitor closely events in some hotspots in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area like Weija Gbawe, Ga East, and Ayawaso East Municipalities, and Tema Metropolis, and in the Eastern Region, like Asuoygaman and Lower Manya Krobo Districts. Whenever the situation so warrants, a community in which the virus is identified as becoming prevalent will be locked-down, until there is a clear understanding of the trajectory of the virus that will allow us to contain it. We must obey the measures still in place, including the new ones, because we know our survival depends on them, and, the harder we are on ourselves in obeying them, the quicker and more enduring will be the victory'', he added. 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. Featured Video VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / XPhyto Therapeutics Corp. (CSE:XPHY / FSE:4XT / OTC PINK:XPHYF) ("XPhyto" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive development, technology purchase and licence agreement (the "Agreement") with 3a-Diagnostics GmbH ("3a") for the development and commercialization of real-time, low-cost and easy-to-use oral dissolvable thin film ("ODF") screening tests for the rapid detection of infectious diseases. 3a is a research-based biotechnology company located approximately 50 kilometers Southeast of Stuttgart, Germany, specializing in the development, production and marketing of point-of-care test systems. 3a refers to their approach as "anywhere" (no power or additional equipment required), "anytime" (decentralized and rapidly deployable), and "anyone" (no specialized training required). "Rapid low-cost screening tools allow for unprecedented identification of symptomatic and asymptomatic patients from larger populations," said Dr. Heinrich Jehle, Managing Director of 3a. "Our partnership with XPhyto has the potential to add significant value to 3a's existing product portfolio, address a critical near-term need, COVID-19, and prepare 3a for the next pandemic threat through platform enhancement." The Agreement sets out the framework for multiple development and commercialization programs (the "Programs") to be carried out between XPhyto and 3a: 1) further development and commercialization of 3a's existing product pipeline (the "Products") which includes the use of XPhyto's ODF platform to administer 3a's biosensors; 2) development of a high-throughput biosensor screening platform for rapid identification of new biosensor targets; and 3) development of a dissolvable oral thin film COVID-19 screening test. In consideration for funding the Programs and for share and sales-based compensation, XPhyto will retain an exclusive global licence for commercialization of all new products developed by 3a or using their development platforms and a non-exclusive global licence for the current Products in development. Engineered using a proprietary biosensor development platform ("Platform 1.0"), 3a has developed a pipeline of peptide-based biosensor screening tests for bacterial and viral infectious diseases which include: stomatitis, periimplantitis, periodontitis, scarlet fever, and influenza. Positive detection of the causative pathogen results in enzymatic release of an extreme (but safe) bitter compound. The most advanced Product, for detection of stomatitis, is expected to be commercially available in Germany in late 2020. 3a has also designed a scalable next generation microbial-enzyme screening tool ("Platform 2.0") for high-throughput identification of biosensor targets to facilitate rapid development of new tests in response to pandemic outbreaks, such as COVID-19. The Programs will be carried out by 3a and Vektor Pharma TF GmbH ("Vektor"), a wholly owned subsidiary of XPhyto. Vektor is a German thin film drug delivery researcher and manufacturer located approximately 140 kilometers Southeast of Stuttgart, Germany. The company and its team specialize in the design, testing and manufacture of oral and transdermal thin film systems. Vektor also holds a number of licences issued by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM), including import and manufacturing permits, as well as EU GMP lab certification and thin film manufacturing equipment. "XPhyto and 3a-Diagnostics have recognized a natural synergy between our technologies. 3a owns a proprietary biosensor platform with multiple products in development and XPhyto's wholly owned subsidiary, Vektor, specializes in research, development and manufacture of oral dissolvable thin film medical products. By working together, we create the opportunity to quickly develop critical new products, adapt 3a's biosensor technology to Vektor's dissolvable oral delivery system and carry out EU GMP manufacturing as required," said Hugh Rogers, CEO of XPhyto. Pursuant to the Agreement and subject to certain development milestones with respect to Platform 2.0 activities and COVID-19 evaluation work, XPhyto has committed to fund 3a's research and development work up to 1,073,000 over an eleven-month period. XPhyto has committed to fund the adaption of 3a's biosensor Products to Vektor's ODF platform up to a total of 250,000 over approximately five months. Also pursuant to the Agreement, XPhyto will issue 50,000 common shares to 3a immediately and 200,000 common shares upon achieving certain COVID-19 development milestones. An additional 250,000 common shares will be issued to 3a upon achieving 25M in gross sales within 24 months. 3a will retain a 5% royalty on net sales of all products sold by XPhyto. Shares issued pursuant to the Agreement will be subject to a statutory four month hold period. About XPhyto Therapeutics Corp. XPhyto is a next-generation cannabis company focused on formulation, clinical validation, and European imports, distribution and sales. XPhyto's 100% owned subsidiary, Vektor Pharma TF GmbH, a German narcotics manufacturer, importer and researcher has expertise in the design, testing and manufacture of thin film drug delivery systems, particularly transdermal patches and sub-lingual (oral) strips. Vektor also holds a number of narcotics licences issued by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM), including import and manufacturing permits, as well as EU GMP lab certification. XPhyto's 100% owned German subsidiary, Bunker Pflanzenextrakte GmbH, has been granted a unique German cannabis cultivation and extraction licence for scientific purposes by BfArM. Bunker has two exclusive R&D collaboration agreements with the Technical University of Munich, chair of beverage and brewing technology and Faculty of Chemistry. XPhyto is pursuing additional opportunities in Europe including commercial cannabis cultivation, processing, manufacturing, import, and distribution. In Canada, two exclusive 5-year engagements with the Faculty of Pharmacy at a major Canadian university provide certified extraction, isolation, and formulation facilities, drug research and development expertise, as well as commercial analytical testing capability. XPhyto signed a supply, import and distribution agreement for cannabis oils and isolates with one of the largest, highest quality, and lowest cost cannabis cultivators in the world. For further information, please contact: [The stream is slated to start at 5:30 p.m. ET. Please refresh the page if you do not see a player above at that time.] Members of the coronavirus task force are expected to hold a press briefing Monday as retailers and small businesses struggle to stay afloat. The federal government has been doling out money to help with the financial strain brought on by the virus. Still, the retail industry is getting crushed as stores shutter and thousands of people lose their jobs amid shelter-in-place orders. Many mid-sized retailers do not qualify for government programs meant to save ailing companies and keep workers on payrolls. The $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program, which offers forgivable loans to small businesses, ran out of money on Thursday and lawmakers have been trying to replenish its coffers. Democrats and Republicans were nearing a deal on Sunday that could inject an additional $370 billion into the loan program and other areas of need. But Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Monday that the upper chamber will "regretfully" not be able to "pass more funding for Americans' paychecks today." He and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer agreed to another session Tuesday. The House could take up the funding bill on Wednesday. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he plans to use the Defense Production Act to increase the nation's swab production by at least 20 million per month for coronavirus tests. Several companies have already stepped up to manufacture much-needed goods. Task force members include Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Vice President Mike Pence; Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar; Dr. Deborah Birx, White House Coronavirus response coordinator; and Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among others. The outbreak has spread to dozens of countries globally, with more than 2.4 million confirmed cases worldwide and over 166,794 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There are at least 761,900 cases in the United States and at least 40,724 deaths, according to the latest tallies. Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube. Geneva Township is situated in the western part of Midland County, and is numbered 15 north and 2 west. Its northern boundary is Warren; its eastern Jerome; its southern Greendale Township, and its western Isabella County. Salt River flows northeast across Geneva Township, making fertile the whole of this section. This stream abounds in fish, thus offering to the settlers as well as to those who come to this part of the country every year, recreation and fine sport. The only village in Geneva is that of North Bradley, sometimes called "Buttonville," in honor of Wm. Button, a man who was intimately connected with the early advancement of the township and village. The favorable situation of North Bradley, on the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad, midway between the villages of Sanford and Coleman, and its proximity to the Salt River, attracts to it good business men who are fully alive to its interests and progress. A good hotel, several store buildings whose owners are carrying on a prosperous business and a post office are among the many conveniences which the residents and visitors of the village enjoy. Wm. Button, together with several other early settlers, desired that this territory be detached from Jasper, of which it was formerly apart, and erected as a township. Accordingly, a petition signed by these men was handed to the county Board of Supervisors, and on June 24, 1873 they organized the township of Geneva. The first election was held at the schoolhouse, on the first Monday in April, 1874, with Wm. Button,W.P. Button and Cyrus Carr inspectors of election. The supervisors who have so ably attended to the interests of Geneva have been gentlemen of worth and integrity, and we here append their names and the terms each has served. The supervisors: Cyrus T.Carr, 1874; W.H.H. Gee, 1875-6; L. Babcock, 1877-78; Wm. Babcock, 1879-80; L. Babcock,1881; Silas Harcourt, 1882; L. Babcock, 1884-84. EDITOR'S NOTE The Midland County Historical Society is partnering with the Midland Daily News for "A Window to Midland's Past," which will feature historical pieces in print and online at ourmidland.com. This particular piece was compiled by retired historical society director Gary Skory from the1884 Biographical Album. It was originally published on March 3, 1994. Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all. Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe 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. Available Monday, April 20 Reefer Madness / Drug Stories The Alamo Drafthouse's virtual cinema series celebrates 4/20 by making two drug-themed films available online. The classic 1936 propaganda film Reefer Madness is a histrionic laugher that shows how one toke can ruin lives. Drug Stories is a collection of classroom scare films, designed to keep kids away from drugs through bizarre re-enactments and anti-drug messaging. The film rental includes vintage commercials. COST: $4.20 per film; MORE INFO Monday, April 20; 6 - 8 p.m. 4/20 Edition of @ComedyQuarantine Teresa Lee and Barbara Gray host 20 comics performing for four minutes each on Instagram Live to raise money for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. Comics include Chris Charpentier, Christine Medrano, Jamie Lofton, Kat Toledo, Nick Rutherford and Nori Reed. COST: FREE, but donations accepted; MORE INFO The latest Hammer Forum breaks down and examines the government's $2 trillion relief package. (Courtesy of the Hammer Museum) Tuesday, April 21; 5 p.m. PDT Can $2 Trillion Prevent Another Great Depression? This online Hammer Forum examines the $2 trillion bipartisan relief bill designed to protect people and businesses from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moderated by Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson, the panel discusses what the bill is designed to do, whether it goes far enough and what else the government should do to stave off an economic depression. Panelists are: Amanda Fischer, polcy director, Washington Center for Equitable Growth; Cecilia Rouse, dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public & International Affairs; and Mike Konczal, director of Progressive Thought, Roosevelt Institute Cost: Free with RSVP; MORE INFO Wednesday, April 22 and ongoing Magic Hour The Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board launches a new virtual series that celebrates L.A. Check out interactive experiences with artists, musicians, chefs, mixologists, photographers and performers on Instagram, Facebook and Zoom. The first event, on Wednesday at 5 p.m., focuses on film location scouting via Google Earth with Tristan Daoussis. COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO Wednesday, April 22; 4 - 5 p.m. Unwind Live: Lulu Miller and Erica Williams Simon Listen to Invisibilia cofounder and NPR science reporter Lulu Miller and author/entrepreneur Erica Williams Simon (former head of Creator's Lab at Snapchat) discuss writing, public media and how they're keeping busy at home. COST: FREE; watch live on LAist! Steve Turner gallery opens the online exhibition Earth Day 2020, featuring work by Hannah Epstein, Kate Klingbeil and Camilo Restrepo. (Hannah Epstein. Cry Me a Glacier, 2019) Wednesday, April 22 - Friday, May 15 Earth Day 2020 Steve Turner gallery presents an online exhibition featuring the work of artists Hannah Epstein, Kate Klingbeil and Camilo Restrepo who have created powerful works that address the fragile state of our planet. The opening on April 22 marks 50 years since the first Earth Day. COST: FREE; MORE INFO Launches Wednesday, April 22 The Other Art Fair: Online Studios The curated fair, which allows art lovers to discover and buy art directly from emerging artists, is shifting to online studios for this year's edition. More than 100 international artists will show their works online for the L.A. show, including hometown artists Lorenzo Diggins Jr., Karlos Marquez and Mallory Morrison. COST: FREE; MORE INFO LACMA presents a virual multimedia presentation of Julia Christensen's project 'Upgrade Available,' just in time for Earth Day. (Courtesy of the artist and LACMA) Wednesday, April 22; 4 p.m. PDT Upgrade Available: Live and Illustrated On Earth Day, LACMA hosts a virtual presentation of artist Julia Christensen's latest project, Upgrade Available. She'll be in conversation with artist and curator Aria Dean and LACMA archivist Jessica Gambling. The event will be illustrated with images, videos and writings from the project and book of the same name, exploring how "upgrade culture" impacts our experience of time. COST: FREE, RSVP required; MORE INFO Wednesday, April 22; 5:30 p.m. PDT Making Art with John Baldessari The iconic artist passed away on Jan. 2 To honor his life and career, Artillery magazine and Mixografia present a virtual roundtable of friends, collaborators and peers. Ezrha Jean Black leads the discussion of Baldessari's impact as the father of conceptual art. COST: FREE; MORE INFO Wednesday, April 22; 5 p.m. PDT Whiskey Sour Happy Hour The Bluegrass Situation and its co-founder, actor Ed Helms (The Office), launch a new online variety show to benefit MusiCares' COVID-19 Relief Fund and Direct Relief. Helms hosts a mix of music, comedy and interviews each Wednesday until May 13. The inaugural edition features music from Lee Ann Womack, Aubrie Sellers, Billy Strings and Madison Cunningham along with surprise guests. Find the show on thebluegrasssituation.com, YouTube and Facebook. COST: FREE, but donations accepted; MORE INFO Wednesday, April 22 - Monday, April 27 EarthxFilm Festival To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, the film fest screens 36 features and shorts along with panels, music, dance and XR programming online. Film titles include Brett Falentine's Fire On The Hill: The Cowboys Of South Central L.A.; Alexander John Glustrom's Mossville: When Great Trees Fall; David Byars' Public Trust and Deia Schlosberg's The Story Of Plastic. COST: FREE with registration; MORE INFO RoxRite is a B-boy from Guadalajara, Mexico, now based in California, who'll teach a virtual dance class on breaking. (Dmitriy Tibekin / Red Bull Content Pool) Thursday, April 23; 6 p.m. PDT RoxRite & BBoy Factory's Virtual Breakdancing Class Dance your stresses away by taking part in the Zoom dance session led by L.A.'s legendary B-boy RoxRite. He's raising money to support Denver's BBoy Factory Studio. The breakdancing class will last 90 minutes and will be followed by a 20 minute Q&A. Email info@bboyfactory.com for Zoom link details. COST: $15 suggested donation; MORE INFO Thursday, April 23; 8 p.m. Vodka After Dark Virtual Cocktail Series Luke Barr, vodka master mixologist, has teamed up with a number of guests for a weekly Thursday livecast that raises funds for bartendersfund.com and restaurant industry pros who have been impacted by COVID-19 quarantine. The online events include cocktails and interactive conversations. Gofundme donations will be matched up to $10,000 weekly by Neft Vodka. COST: FREE; MORE INFO Mickey's Deli in Hermosa Beach is honoring first responders with free sandwiches and the community $5 regular Mickey's combos during quarantine. (Mickey's Deli ) Ongoing Mickey's Deli Specials Mickey's Deli -- 101 Hermosa Ave., Hermosa Beach The longtime Hermosa Beach deli offers free sandwiches to first responders and frontline medical professionals. To give back to the rest of the community, Mickey's is offering customers $5 regular size Mickey's Combos. The specials are valid throughout the quarantine. COST: Free - $5; MORE INFO Sofar Sounds The event brings people together in small, unexpected venues to listen to on-the-cusp artists moves to an online listening room. The virtual gatherings will support artists who are facing financial hardship during. This week's performers include Flyte (London), Brooke Annibale (Boston), Jordan Hawkins (L.A.) and Kathleen (L.A.). 100% of the money donated will be distributed to artists. COST: FREE, but donations accepted; MORE INFO French Nobel prize winning scientist Luc Montagnier has sparked a fresh controversy by claiming that the SARS-CoV-2 virus came from a lab, and is the result of an attempt to manufacture a vaccine against the AIDS virus. In an interview given to French CNews channel and during a podcast by Pourquoi Docteur, professor Montagnier who co-discovered HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) claimed the presence of elements of HIV in the genome of the coronavirus and even elements of the germ of malaria are highly suspect, according to a report in Asia Times. The Wuhan city laboratory has specialized in these coronaviruses since the early 2000s. They have expertise in this area, he was quoted as saying. The theory that Covid-19 virus originated in the lab is making rounds for quite some time. US President Donald Trump last week acknowledged Fox News report that the novel coronavirus may have been accidentally leaked by an intern working at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China. The Fox News, in an exclusive report, based on unnamed sources has claimed that though the virus is a naturally occurring strain among bats and not a bioweapon, but it was being studied in Wuhan laboratory. The initial transmission of the virus was bat-to-human, the news channel said, adding that the patient zero worked at the laboratory. The lab employee was accidentally infected before spreading the disease among the common people outside the lab in Wuhan city. Professor Montagnier was awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize in Medicine for the identification of AIDS virus, with his colleague professor Francoise Barre-Sinoussi. His fresh claim on coronavirus, however, received criticism from scientists, including his colleagues. Just in case you dont know. Dr Montagnier has been rolling downhill incredibly fast in the last few years. From baselessly defending homeopathy to becoming an antivaxxer. Whatever he says, just dont believe him, tweeted Juan Carlos Gabaldon. As per a recent Washington Post, two years ago, the US embassy officials in China raised concerns about the insufficient biosafety at the Chinese governments Wuhan Institute of Virology where deadly viruses and infectious diseases are studied. Though the institute, located quite close to the Wuhan wet market, is Chinas first biosafety level IV lab, the US state department had warned in 2018 about serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.) BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 Trend: On April 20, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan Rouhani made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. President Ilham Aliyev and President Hassan Rouhani congratulated each other on the occasion of the advent of the month of Ramadan. They asked each other to convey their best wishes to Azerbaijani and Iranian peoples. The heads of state hailed the successful development of bilateral friendly and brotherly relations and expressed their confidence that the ties between the two countries would continue strengthening. During the conversation, the presidents discussed the issues relating to the measures taken in Azerbaijan and Iran to combat the coronavirus pandemic and the work to be done in this regard. They also praised the cooperation between the two countries in transit and transport field, as well as the continuation of cargo transportation, including via the North-South International Transport Corridor during the pandemic, and exchanged views on prospects for cooperation in these areas. The immediate tariff elimination applies to certain fish and shrimp, honey, some kinds of fruit such as pineapple, avocado, guava and mango, cement, chromite, disinfectant and protective suits. Tariffs on sugar and unprocessed tobacco will be cut to 15% over the next four years while cigarettes and cigars will see tariffs reduced to 70%. Vietnam will also lower tariffs on Cubas alcoholic drinks to 20% over the next four years. The tariff cuts on Cuban imports are part of an agreement signed between the two countries in November 2018 to replace an earlier agreement inked in 1996. The new pact is expected to elevate Vietnamese-Cuban economic, trade and investment cooperation to a level commensurate with their fine bilateral relationship. Under the agreement, the two sides pledge to eliminate or reduce tariffs on almost all goods imported from the other country in five years./. " " Pianist Performs 'Elegy for Arctic' Over Ocean AP News As part of a campaign to raise awareness about Arctic ice melting, the environmentalist group Greenpeace took experimental Italian pianist and composer Ludovico Einaudi to the frosty northern reaches of Svalbard, Norway. There Einaudi performed his somber composition "Elegy for the Arctic" while floating atop the frigid water against the backdrop of the crumbling Wahlenbergbreen glacier. Einaudi and the Greenpeace team traveled there aboard the ship Arctic Sunrise, timing their visit with a meeting of the OSPAR Commission, the legislative body that regulates environmental protection in the region. Advertisement Greenpeace hopes to urge OSPAR to adopt new rules that could protect up to 10 percent of the Arctic Ocean, an area about the same size as the United Kingdom. Greenpeace says that regional countries and corporations have an interest in preventing the protection, primarily for access to its oil resources. "Arriving here is an incredible experience because you can feel the pureness and fragility of this area," Einaudi says in the video. While sea levels and Arctic ice have fluctuated over the millions of years the earth's oceans have existed, the Industrial Revolution has quickened the pace, with rates of global sea level change and Arctic melting over the past century. Arctic ice melting into seawater has a significant impact on the water temperatures around the world; while ice reflects 80 percent of sunlight back into the atmosphere, dark ocean water absorbs 90 percent of direct sunlight, then is carried around the globe by ocean currents. "What happens here in the Arctic is related to the rest of the world," says Einaudi. "There is a danger now because as the ice is melting the industries are taking advantage and they move in and exploit the territory, the area. We should stop this process and save this area." The video above features a brief interview with Einaudi and a few samples of "Elegy for the Arctic," but you can watch a longer version of the performance below: Now That's Interesting Though both the Arctic and Antarctic are subject to climate change, the Arctic is more fragile because it's a body of water, rather than land, and can experience more rapid temperature changes due to ocean currents and water temperatures. 20.04.2020 LISTEN I am aware that the National Climate Change Policy has been prepared with the active involvement and assistance of a wide range of stakeholders who have contributed immensely in ensuring the finalisation of the National Climate Change Policy. The stakeholders included the staff and management of Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) and the Environmental Protection Agency in particular, as well as other related public sector ministries, departments and agencies, civil society organizations and non-governmental organizations, the National House of Chiefs, the private sector and industry, research and academic institutions, the media and press, development partners and international and inter-governmental organizations in Ghana, the Parliament of Ghana and in particular the Parliamentary Select Committees on Environment, Science and Technology and on Lands and Forestry and the National Climate Change Committee (NCCC), under whose mandate the Policy was drafted. Ghana has demonstrated impressive economic development over the past decades, attaining the status of a middle-income country. However, future growth is still threatened by its high vulnerability to climate change as reflected in increasing temperatures across the various ecological zones where rainfall patterns are also becoming less predictable and thus exacerbate poverty amongst the poorest people, particularly women and children. Two days ago, I had a conversation with some farmers across the country, those in the northern regions tells me they anxiously waiting for the rains to start. We are in the middle of April and normally we should be having rains across the country especially Kumasi and Accra but that's not the case. What has changed? Will farmers be disappointed by the rains this year? smallholder farmers remember that climate change is a global challenge that requires a concerted effort by all nations and by all individuals. Africa is more vulnerable than any other region in the world's changing weather patterns. Smallholder farmers, please take note of the following: First, African society is very closely coupled with the climate system; hundreds of millions of people depend on rainfall to grow their food. Second, the African climate system is controlled by an extremely complex mix of large-scale weather systems, many from distant parts of the planet and, in comparison with almost all other inhabited regions, is vastly understudied. It is therefore capable of all sorts of surprises. Third, the degree of expected climate change is large. The two most extensive land-based end-of-century projected decreases in rainfall anywhere on the planet occur over Africa; one over North Africa and the other over southern Africa. Finally, the capacity for adaptation to climate change is low; poverty equates to reduced choice at the individual level. As countries particularly those on the African continent implement series of interventions to mitigate the adverse social and economic impact of the COVID19 pandemic, farmers, farmworkers and everyone else in the food supply chain should take climate change seriously because it is real and Ghana is vulnerable. Suggestions to Government for smallholder farmers in Ghana I, therefore, suggest the government takes into consideration the following as we all help fight this global Pandemic: First, promote capacity-building for farmers and fisherfolk and build awareness on climate change issues. Second, build capacity for community-level weather data collection, analysis, and dissemination for agricultural planning. Third, document and promote appropriate indigenous knowledge and best practices. Fourth, develop climate-resilient cropping and livestock systems as well as crop varieties and livestock breeds tolerant to flooding, drought, and salinity. Fifth, promote diversified land-use practices, including agroforestry, dry-land farming, urban/backyard vegetable production, to reduce risk and increase the capacity of farmers to cope with droughts and floods Lastly, improve productivity through improved farming technologies and practices, such as the integration of trees into farming systems, integrated nutrient management under various crops, green/organic farming, etc. Conclusion What happens to women, matters to Ghana's economy. Women produce 70% of the nation's subsistence crops, account for 52% of our labour force and contribute 46% of our total GDP. They tend to be responsible for household water supplies and energy for cooking, and for food security and are highly dependent on local natural resources for their livelihoods all of which make them disproportionately vulnerable to climate change. It is a matter of social justice that we succeed. Africa will be hardest hit by climate change but has contributed the least to causing that change. I am pleading with all farmers to adhere to all precautionary measures and stay safe, this is the time our beloved mother Ghana needs us most. God bless Ghana About the Author: Quainoo Reuben is an Agriculturist, Project Management Professional and a Journalist with cross-platform experience working with Radio, Newspaper and Online platforms and received 2019 Outstanding Journalists in Agriculture Reporting by Ghana Chamber of Agribusiness. A pause in debt payments for the worlds poorest countries to help them battle the coronavirus will be a hard sell for private creditors. The Group of 20 leading economies last week heeded calls from African finance ministers to grant a debt waiver of about $20 billion (U.S.) until the end of the year, and asked private creditors to step up. Groups representing commercial creditors, who snapped up bonds from low-income countries in recent years amid record-low yields in developed markets, said they would be willing to participate. But a deferral of sovereign bond payments will be far from easy. Debtor countries would have to convince a majority of investors, from hedge and pension funds to sovereign wealth funds, to use collective-action clauses to change the date of payments on each bond series. Sweetener Needed To get this majority saying yes, you have to offer a sweetener or have very friendly bondholders, said Lutz Roehmeyer, the chief investment officer of Capitulum, which manages 1 billion euros in assets. Its very unlikely that this will succeed, he said. The Institute of International Finance estimates that the worlds poorest nations most of whom are in Africa have some $140 billion in general government debt-service obligations due through the end of the year, including $10 billion in foreign currency. That calculation includes all kinds of debt: to private and public creditors, domestic and foreign, short term and long term. Even before the pandemic halved public revenues and forced governments to close borders in Africa, many countries on the continent were already struggling with high debt levels after issuing close to $60 billion in Eurobonds in the past two years. Depending on the contract, even a deal with the majority of bond holders runs the risk of being challenged in courts by minority creditors, as happened in the case of Argentina, said Mark Mobius, founding partner of Mobius Capital Partners. In 2016, Argentina ended 15 years of litigation by paying $9.3 billion to holdout creditors. Vulture Funds Vulture funds can see an opportunity to buy at a very good discount now, Mobius said. A revision of payment terms, even in agreement with investors, will be considered a debt default, leading to negative credit and rating implications for both creditors and issuers, according to Moodys Investors Service. Still, giving countries some financial room to recover from the pandemic and resume payments in the future is a much better deal for investors than outright default, said Hans Humes, the chief executive of distressed-debt investor Greylock Capital Management. Why sue for a 100 per cent and take ten years to collect and put yourself out there as being the jerk internationally in the middle of a health crisis, said Humes, who has participated in dozens of sovereign debt restructurings. He said countries could offer bond holders options on future commodity revenues to accelerate standstill agreements. The last time private creditors were asked to join a debt-relief initiative in the late 1990s it resulted in protracted negotiations with drawn-out litigation by disgruntled investors. An IMF-backed Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism had little traction with creditors and failed to take off in the early 2000s. Legislative Changes There seems to be willingness from the private sector, but there needs to be express legislative changes as well as a new conflict resolution body for this to work out, said Jaime Atienza, who leads Oxfams international debt policy. He said law amendments in the U.K. and New York, where most of the bond deals are inked, should prevent lenders from suing a country during the pandemic. Immediate funding to help poor countries should take precedence over lengthy negotiations for a debt waiver that should be tied to more debt transparency and anti-poverty reforms, said Andrew Roche, managing director at Paris-based financial consultancy Finexem. This idea of debt relief opens up a Pandoras box because there is no framework in order to have an organized debt restructuring with all creditor groups, said Roche, who has advised countries in several debt restructuring operations. We should look at this in a second phase when we are not in the middle of a crisis. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday said the state government will provide 5 kg rice to each member of a family who does not have ration card during the nationwide lockdown. Reviewing the preparedness of Kamrup district administration to deal with coronavirus pandemic at a meeting in Amingaon, the chief minister said the rice would be provided in a bid to provide succour to the poor and destitute people who does not have ration cards under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) inspite of being genuinely poor. Food Corporation of India officials at the meeting informed the chief minister that the present stock available at FCI godowns could fulfil food grain demand of people of the state for the next two and a half months. Sonowal visited godowns of FCI at Noonmati here and in neighbouring Kamrup district's Changsari as well as the railway yard there. The chief minister at a review meeting in Kamrup Deputy Commissioner's office asked the district administration and the public representatives to put up collective efforts to tide over the challenge posed by coronavirus outbreak. He directed the Agriculture and Veterinary department to work in close coordination with Food and Civil Supply department and to devise an innovative strategy to ensure smooth supply of essential commodities. He also asked the officials of F&CS department to regularly interact with wholesalers to check price rise of essential goods. Sonowal said the government would not tolerate any misappropriation of public fund and food grains meant for the poor. He told the police to take prompt action against all unscrupulous elements. Sonowal also directed the police to act swiftly against misuse of social media so that no one can spread rumour and incite violence disturbing peace and harmony in the society. Underlining the importance of strict adherence to social distancing in all walks of life to defeat coronavirus pandemic, Sonowal directed the officials of Agriculture department to see that farmers maintain this norm while carrying out farm activities. He also asked them to regularly interact with farmers and motivate them to take up farming in an expeditious manner. He also asked the Transport department to ensure proper hygiene of workers and provide them face masks engaged in loading and unloading of goods at FCI godowns. Sonowal also appreciated Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Minister of State for Health Pijush Hazarika, doctors, nurses, officials of health and other departments for their role in the fight against COVID-19. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) For Ilana Akstein, coronavirus has given her something even more elusive than toilet paper: serenity. I just feel free, like nobodys around, says Akstein of the daily runs shes been doing for the last three weeks, in order to get a break from the noise at home, where she now works alongside her husband and their children, Marina 13, and Maya, 5. Ilana Akstien waves goodbye to her husband, Jayme, and daughters, Marina and Maya, before her daily run. Credit:Rhett Wyman Akstein, a counsellor, last ran six years ago, after which point the chaos of daily life got in her way. And, to her surprise, she has now become fitter than ever. Oh, I feel much better, says Akstein, 49, of Matraville, in Sydney. Im very surprised, like, oh my gosh, its actually something good and fit that is coming out of this. Wamfie Rural Bank Limited in Dormaa East District of the Bono Region has donated an amount of six thousand Ghana Cedis (GH 6000) to the District Public Health Emergency Committee (PHEC) to support the fight against COVID-19. The Board Chairman of the Bank, Lawyer Solomon Oppong Twumasi who presented the cheque to the committee said the effort of the committee to contain the spread of the disease so that it does not reach the district, has been noticed by the management of the bank and they wish to give their little to support ongoing work. According to him, the gesture is also an opportunity to give back to society and especially thank their customers and ensure their safety in this threatening moment of the country. The lawyer also announced five thousand Ghana Cedis (GH 5000) for Dormaa Central Municipal in the same vein. Prior to this donation which took place at the premises of the bank, the Church of Pentecost, Wamfie District donated six veronica buckets, six kitchen towels and several bottles of hand sanitizers and Madaar liquid soap to the District Public Health Emergency Committee (PHEC) for onward distribution to fight the coronavirus. The Head Pastor of the Central Church, Pastor Redeemer Lotsu said it is their widow's mite contribution to fight the pandemic. He prayed for the nation, its leaders and against the pandemic. The District Chief Executive and Chairman of the PHEC Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Agyeman who took both donations on behalf of the President, the District and committee thanked the two donors for their support. He appreciated the leadership of the Church of Pentecost Ghana led by Chairman, Apostle Eric Nyamekye for their tremendous support to the nation since the inception of the fight against the disease in the country. Hon Agyeman mentioned that Dormaa East also benefited from the vans released by the church last month for public education on the disease. He promised to ensure the effective use of the resources toward the fight of the pandemic. He on behalf of the committee presented some hand towels, a gallon of sanitizers and bottles of liquid soap to the bank. Doug Ford announced on the weekend that Ontario would contribute $20 million toward coronavirus research, adding: theres no reason a vaccination cant be found right here in Ontario. If Ontario playing a starring role in solving a global health crisis sounds far-fetched, it shouldnt. It wouldnt be the first time. Although not widely known, scientists at Connaught Labs here in Toronto played an essential role in developing a vaccine against the scourge of polio. The crippling childhood disease which ranked second only to nuclear war as the publics biggest fear stopped terrorizing families after U.S. virologist Dr. Jonas Salk came up with a vaccine in 1955. Salks name deservedly lives on as one of the great medical pioneers of the 20th century. But his landmark achievement only happened after crucial breakthroughs from a largely uncelebrated team of scientists at Connaught Labs. Salk himself later described the Connaught efforts as Herculean, according to Toronto medical historian Christopher Rutty. Much like the COVID-19 crisis today, the polio virus terrified the public because there was no cure nor vaccination. Its prime victims were children, who could end up dead or physically disabled for life. In the late 1940s, scientists, including those at Connaught Labs, were scrambling to develop a polio vaccine. Connaught, a unique public institution affiliated with the University of Toronto, had already made some dazzling contributions to public health and medicine since it had been established by a Toronto doctor in 1913 with the goal of bringing often unaffordable medical treatments within reach of everyone. Salk, working at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, had made the initial discovery, finding a way to develop antibodies against the polio virus. But his vaccine, relying on animal serum, was too risky to test on children. Around the same time, a Connaught team of scientists headed by Dr. Andrew Rhodes developed a synthetic mixture known as Medium 199, which seemed promising. They contacted Salk. Using Medium 199 developed by Connaught as a base, Salk was able to develop a vaccine safe for testing on children. Initial tests proved encouraging. But earlier polio vaccine attempts developed by others had produced serious side-effects. A large-scale trial would be necessary, and it seemed impossible to produce the huge amounts of vaccine needed. Once again, Connaught scientists came up with the solution in this case, an innovation by senior Connaught scientist Dr. Leone Farrell, one of the few women at the time with a PhD in biochemistry. Farrell designed a process that involved gently rocking large bottles filled with Medium 199, mixed with live polio viruses inserted by glass tubes. Her ingenious procedure which became known as the Toronto method was key to enabling a polio vaccine trial involving 1.8 million children. The trial was carried out and proved effective to public jubilation. U.S. regulators quickly authorized production, and a number of U.S. vaccine producers hurried to meet the enormous demand in April 1955. In the rush, one of the producers, a California company that lacked sufficient expertise, produced a defective vaccine that infected 40,000 American children with polio, leaving dozens paralyzed. The U.S. vaccination program was immediately halted. In Canada, the Liberal government agonized over whether to continue with its vaccinations, which were being produced by Connaught. Canadian health minister Paul Martin Sr. himself a polio survivor, along with his son who later became prime minister decided to trust Connaught and continue with the Canadian trial. It turned out to be a huge success, and helped save the vaccination program. As Rutty notes: The Canadian success in manufacturing and freely distributing a safe polio vaccine contrasted sharply with the tragic events south of the border. It also highlighted the advantages of Connaught as a publicly owned lab exclusively focused on promoting public health without the motivation to cut corners in the interests of making profits. Connaughts indispensable role in developing the first polio vaccine reminds us of Canadas ability to perform brilliantly in a public health crisis. Tragically, however, we are faced with such a challenge today without the benefit of Connaught which, after being privatized in the 1980s, is now a mere division of a French pharmaceutical company. Advertisement Christians have given the world some of its most beautiful buildings. As new book Amazing Churches Of The World, by Michael Kerrigan, shows, with 190 images of jaw-dropping places of worships, some of them in landscapes that are heavenly in their own right. Leaf through its pages and you'll gaze upon churches that are ornate, immense, intimate and bizarre, from a 56ft glass-shoe church in Taiwan to an octagonal chapel inside an Italian cave. Michael writes: 'A powerful rulers monument, an assertion of communal identity, a colonialist vaunt... a church is never really just a church. Some Christians feel that it ought to be, that they should be able to gather in each others homes or hired rooms just as the Disciples did at Pentecost. To them, domes and spires, aisles and arched windows are so much frippery. They have a case, though where Christian leaders have preferred to take a more worldly role in wider society, the need for a more imposing public face was felt. 'Scripturally justified or not, their decision has given the world some of its most beautiful buildings, its most splendid interiors, its most atmospheric spaces an inspiration not just to Christians but also to humankind. And whatever vanities they may represent, churches cant help but be uplifting.' Scroll down to peruse MailOnline Travel's selection of pictures from the compendium, with caption information courtesy of the author. Sao Francisco de Assis, Ouro Preto, Brazil The Brazilian town of Ouro Preto's very name (the Portuguese for 'Black Gold'), and even more so its former title 'Villa Rica' ('Rich Town'), sum up the historical heritage of this sometime mining centre, the book says. Suffice to say, it's full of treasures, like this rococo church by local architect 'Aleijadinho' (Antonio Francisco Lisboa, 1730-1814) Virgin Mary and St Simon the Tanner Cathedral, Cairo, Egypt Simon the Tanner, a 10th-century Coptic saint, is best known for the story that he literally moved a mountain to demonstrate Gods power to a doubtful caliph. St Simon's Church has been carved out of Cairo's Mokattam Mountain, the exact feature that he is said to have moved, the book explains. There was a cave here before (discovered in 1974), but while it extended deep beneath the rock and stretched over a wide area, it was full to the roof with stones and had only a 3ft gap at its main entrance. Work began to open up and clear the cavern to create this cathedral in 1991 Cathedral of Brasilia, Brazil 'I was attracted by the curve the liberated, sensual curve suggested by the possibilities of new technology yet so often recalled in venerable old baroque churches,' said the architectural genius Oscar Niemeyer (19072012), who brought the whole city of Brasilia into being. Its appropriate that he should have been the one to design this house for the ultimate Creator, writes Michael Graha Maria Annai Velangkanni, Medan, Indonesia This is not a Buddhist temple or a Mughal mosque but a Catholic church a Marian shrine [a shrine to the Virgin Mary], writes Michael. In Velangkanni, Tamil Nadu, India, in the 17th century, 'Our Lady of Good Health' [the Virgin Mary] appeared to a shepherd boy, after which a number of miraculous cures were worked. Her statue, sent to Indonesia in 2002, has been associated with further healings here, at what has since become an important place of pilgrimage Portuguese church, Namibe Province, Angola Catholicism has endured in Angola since the Portuguese colonists were driven out in 1975. Even so, a great many churches stand abandoned, such as this one in the countrys south-eastern desert Agios Nikolaos church, Protaras, Cyprus Agios Nikolaos Church (St Nicholass) is almost literally dazzling in its whiteness, set off as it is by the sky blue of its dome and door as well as, of course, the blue of the sky itself and the azure Mediterranean in the background, says Michael. Whitewashing was introduced as a way of reflecting heat - here an otherwise ordinary little church is transfigured into something miraculously beautiful St Peter's Basilica, Rome The ultimate in churches, the ultimate emblem of the Catholic faith for better but also for worse, it has been suggested, writes Michael. Built on the site where the martyred St Peters bones had, tradition says, been laid, St Peter's Basilica, completed in 1626, brought together a star-studded cast of Italian Renaissance architects, including Donato Bramante, Michelangelo and a generation later Gian Lorenzo Bernini. His astonishing baldacchino (above) canopies the papal altar and St Peters bones Borgund stave church, Sogn og Fjordane, Norway Hundreds of 'stave churches' like this were built across Norway in the 12th and 13th centuries, reveals Michael. All-wooden in construction, they had timber frames, were walled with interlocking planks (or 'staves') and roofed with wooden shingles. Carved dragon-heads give the gables on this one a 'Viking' look. It's now part of the Lutheran Church of Norway High-Heel Wedding Church, Budai Township, Taiwan Taiwan, the Nationalist-ruled Republic of China, broke away from the Communist 'Peoples Republic' in 1949, writes Michael. Its existence has been an irritant to the Beijing authorities ever since. Highly urbanized, and strongly orientated to the West, it has never been abashed about its eager embrace of consumerism. This 17m (56ft) shoe in glass and concrete caters to young couples in Budai Township. It's apparently the biggest high-heel-shaped building in the world Catholic Church, Tonle Sap Lake, Cambodia Something like a million people live in the various floating villages scattered along the shores of Tonle Sap in the Mekong Basin, reveals Michael. They fish in the lake's waters and grow rice along its swampy margins. Otherwise, they lead normal lives albeit on the water. Not just their homes, but their schools and churches are built on rafts Ieud Hill Church, Maramures, Romania The Maramures area of northern Romania has almost a hundred traditional wood-built churches, writes Michael. They're made from logs, rather than from planking or from boards. Squat and often very small, this kind of building is marked out by its slim, shapely bell-tower and a roof that strikes the outsider as seeming too big for the church. Inside they tend to be decorated with (often rough and ready) wall paintings Hallgrimskirkja, Reykjavik, Iceland Michael writes: It could almost be a mountain or a rocky crag, its surface stepped by erosion or striated by glacial abrasure as it rises up out of the icy earth, its stone face blue with cold against a golden evening sky. Standing 74.5m (244ft) tall, Icelands leading Lutheran church, completed in 1986, towers over the countrys capital city St Benedict's Catholic Church or the Old Painted Church of Honaunau, Hawaii In the early 1900s, writes Michael, Father John Veighe, parish priest of Honaunau, took it upon himself to repaint the inside of his church. Not just a lick of magnolia, though, he created a spectacular neo-Gothic phantasmagoria, with trompe loeil arches, vaulting and beautifully painted frescos, making a soaring, spacious impression of a medieval cathedral out of his boxy, modern, wood-built church Noravank Monastery, Yeghegnadzor, Armenia Spectacularly situated in the mountains south of Lake Sevan, writes Michael, the Noravank complex dates back to the 14th century. It belongs to the Armenian Apostolic Church, a branch of Eastern Orthodoxy. Dedicated to Surb Ashvatsatsin, the Holy Mother of God, this church was built in 1339. Its designer, Momik, was distinguished as a sculptor as well as for his architecture and his creation here does look as if it's been carved out of the valley's virgin stone. Reliefs above the doors on the western side, with its converging steps, show the Virgin Mary flanked by the Archangels Michael and Gabriel and Christ, with Saints Peter and Paul Abandoned church, Bokor National Park, Cambodia Standing 1,048m (almost 3,500ft) above sea level, southern Cambodias Bokor Mountain summit offers some relief from the tropical heat, writes Michael. Hence its development by the French colonialists of the 19th century as a 'hill station' a place they could escape to from their sweaty, sultry city of Phnom Penh. This Catholic church offered a spiritual centre for what was, until the 1940s, a bustling resort Cathedral Of Christ The Light, Oakland, USA Christ The Light is the first cathedral built entirely in the 21st century, and replaced Oakland's Cathedral of Saint Francis de Sales, severely damaged in an earthquake in 1989. Architect Craig W. Harman said that he sought the effect of light filtering down 'through a canopy of redwood trees', explains Michael Temple Of Valadier, Genga, Italy Tucked in beneath the raking roof of a limestone cave in the Apennines, this octagonal chapel was constructed as a 'Refuge of Sinners', writes Michael. Built in 1828, it was commissioned by Pope (and local boy) Leo XII (17601829) and designed by the celebrated neoclassical architect Giuseppe Valadier (17621839) Chapel Of The Holy Cross, Arizona, USA A visit to New York in the 1930s inspired Marguerite Brunswig Staude twice over, writes Michael. As a Catholic, she was thrilled by the grandeur of St Patrick's Cathedral. As a sculptor, she revelled in the technological achievement of the Empire State Building. She came away with the hope of a design so sublime that it would almost compel reverence 'that God may come to life in the souls of all men and be a living reality'. It's hard to imagine a more stunning church in a more spectacular setting than this chapel, carved into one of the red rock bluffs of Staude's home state. Built between 1955 and 1956, it became a Catholic chapel, but has no services - its builder wanted it to be a place for general, non-denominational prayer and reflection Church Of St Mary and All Saints, Chesterfield, UK An unmistakable landmark, the crooked spire of the Church Of St Mary and All Saints in Chesterfield is believed to have been caused by the action of the summer sun on the warmer, southern side, which warped the roofs lead covering and pulled it out of true, reveals Michael. Theres believed to have been a church here since the end of the 9th century Church Of The Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem No shrine could be more sacred than this, writes Michael. The Holy Sepulchre encompasses not just the summit of Mount Calvary, where Christ was crucified, but also the tomb in which his tortured corpse was laid. His Resurrection on the third day was, of course, to be the founding miracle of the Christian faith, so the church is naturally a magnet for pilgrims. There's a whole complex of buildings here, including a beautifully decorated Coptic chapel (opposite) and, on the roof, the Deir es-Sultan monastery, plus the 12th-century Armenian Chapel of St Helena Green Party Senator Pippa Hackett is calling for more transparency and support for those living in dangerous domestic abuse situations. Speaking this week the Offaly Senator said, "with further extensions to the current lock-down, our thoughts must go to those who experience domestic violence in their own homes. Right now, many women and children, and indeed some men are trapped in frightening and dangerous circumstances, and many will find themselves alone with their abuser, with nowhere to go. It is very alarming that the numbers of calls to some domestic violence services have actually decreased at this time, and likely because victims are not getting a safe time, or the freedom necessary, to make these calls. Report from the UK indicate that death rates from domestic violence have increased from 3 to 5 per week during the Covid-19 crisis, and this is extremely concerning. Senator Hackett also pointed out that domestic abuse is not always physical in nature, it can be one where intimidation and threats are used, where emotional, verbal, or sexual abuse is used to maintain control. Such coercive control is now recognised in law, and the first conviction under this legislation was handed down earlier this year in a court in Co Donegal. "An Garda Siochana recently announced an initiative called Operation Faoisimh (meaning Relief), which is aimed at protecting families at increased risk of domestic violence during the Covid-19 health emergency. As part of this operation, Gardai will phone previous victims of domestic abuse to see if there are any current issues of concern and to ensure the protection of families. The service will be rolled out nationally," the Senator added/ However Senator Hackett said that she would also like to see the Government expand access to domestic abuse services in response to the crisis in particular an emergency warning system in pharmacies, which has been rolled out in other EU countries. This would mean that victims could go in to pharmacies and use a safe word that would alert pharmacies to the danger faced by a victim. A similar programme called 'Ask for Angela' was rolled out previously in pubs across the country. If there was ever a time to give people an extra method of contacting support services, it is now. "We need to also support the supporters, and services themselves need to be fully resourced to deal with the crisis in domestic violence, so in Laois that means the Laois Domestic Abuse Service who can be contacted on 057 867 1100, or via email to mary@ laoisdomesticabuseservice.ie, or find them on Facebook where there are further links and advice. I welcome the Department of Justices campaign called Still Here (www.stillhere.ie), and would urge everyone to check it out, as there may well be some advice on there that they could use to help someone at risk. The Department of Justice has also pledged 160,000 for domestic violence, but thats just 10% of what the sector has been calling for, so I would call on Minister Charlie Flanagan to review this as a matter of urgency, and provide the supports necessary for this vital sector. "Covid 19 brings new challenges for families, from financial pressures to living together closer than ever before. This means we need to step up our efforts to support women, men, and children who are increasingly vulnerable to domestic violence". The first batch of 42,000 rapid testing kits arrived in Delhi on Friday, which are to be deployed to evaluate 92 cured patients, being discharged from Lok Nayak hospital for plasma therapy trial, to treat the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), as well as containment zones and hotspot areas. Plasma therapy uses one of the blood components rich in the virus-fighting antibodies in people who have recovered from Covid-19 to help critical patients fight the virus better. The blood samples of 92 patients, who were being discharged from the hospital after recovering, are being collected. Based on the test report, they will be selected as donors, said Dr JC Passey, director, Lok Nayak hospital, which is conducting the trial in collaboration with the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS). The plasma derived from the two millilitre blood samples collected from the recovered patients will be diluted repeatedly and tested with the rapid antibody kits to measure the amount of antibodies present. The plasma is diluted 1:1, then 1:2, then 1:3, just to check till what level of dilution the sample comes out positive. The solutions that test positive at the highest level of dilution are the ones with high antibody levels. Ideally, a neutralising antibody test must be done where the antibody is added to a viral culture to check its effect, but that can only be done in BSL III laboratories. This is recommended as the best practice the world over in the absence of the other test, said Dr SK Sarin, director, ILBS. The Delhi government did not use rapid testing kits for community testing on Sunday, as the kits are yet to reach the Capitals district offices. The state health minister Satyendar Jain had on Saturday said that the technicians were undergoing training for the roll-out the next day. We do not yet know how the tests would be done and whether the kits are prick-based or blood has to be drawn. There was some state-level workshop yesterday, but none of the staff from the district offices have been trained yet, said an official from one of the district offices, requesting anonymity. An official from another district confirmed this, saying, Once the kits reach us, we will be able to figure out how to go about them. The drive will likely begin from Monday or Tuesday. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had revised its guidelines on Saturday to allow rapid testing in hotspots. Earlier, the tests were to be done only in areas with very few or no cases at all. A third state-level official confirmed that testing would be started from Monday, to be done by the Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) posted across government dispensaries in the city. They will go into the community to perform tests, said the third official. The testing will be started in all hotspots across the city at once. To scale up testing, the district administration has arranged mobile testing vans and makeshift camps outside containment zones, said an official from the chief ministers office. Meanwhile, Jain did not rule out the possibility of community transmission in Delhi, citing around 200 cases for which the sources could not be traced so far while some were asymptomatic, had no travel history, or came in contact with anyone with a travel history connected to a Covid-affected country. There is a chance (of community transmission). We will be in a better position to say anything after the 42,000 rapid antibody tests are conducted in a week, he said. Delhi stumbled into another crisis on Sunday with food distribution centres in the city having come under the radar of health teams, after a volunteer tested positive for the Sars-Cov-2. Following this, 700 workers spread across several food distribution centres had to be quarantined and the staff replaced immediately. The food centres in Delhi collectively provide meals twice a day to around a million people currently, most of whom are migrant workers, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said. Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said all those who visit the centres regularly, assuming the same set of people more or less depend on the same centres for food, and officials and volunteers deployed across over 1,500 food distribution centres in the city which includes shelter homes, school buildings and community halls will be among the first batches to be tested with the rapid antibody kits. Unlike real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) kits which detect the viruss genetic material (RNA) in swabs to diagnose a current Covid-19 infection, the rapid tests detect antibodies in the blood and indicate if a person has been infected in the past and has developed immunity to the virus. It can show results within 30 minutes. Once a person tests positive after the antibody test, an RT-PCR test is done to confirm the result. Collection of samples for the rapid antibody test is also much easier than for the RT-PCR test. Taking a throat swab generates aerosols that may contain the virus and infect the healthcare worker taking the sample. The healthcare workers have to be in proper PPE kits for collecting RT PCR samples, said another Delhi government health official. To encourage RT-PCR test in the community, the government set up 22 Covid-19 sample collection centres in hotels and dharmashalas and started giving 100 as incentive per sample to each team collecting the samples in the community. Concerns have been raised about the safety of shopkeepers and supermarket staff during the coronavirus pandemic after a spate of deaths among workers. The latest saw a member of staff at FreshGo in Gipsy Hill, south London, die following a spell in hospital. The staff member, known only as Kumar, is believed to have worked alongside others at the convenience store, which is still open. It is understood another staff member from the same store is also fighting the virus in a London hospital. Concerned locals said the store - which is tiny and has narrow aisles - had failed to observe a 'one in, one out' policy and staff were given little protection. A member of staff, known only as Kumar (above), who worked at FreshGo in Gipsy Hill, south London, has died from coronavirus. There are growing concerns about the safety of shop workers during the pandemic after a spate of deaths among those working in retail Kumar died following a spell in hospital. He is understood to have worked alongside others at the convenience store (above), which is still open. Concerned locals said the store, which is tiny and has narrow aisles, failed to observe a 'one in, one out' policy and staff were given little protection Above, a sign outside the FreshGo shop in Gipsy Hill offering support during coronavirus. It is understood another staff member from the same store is also fighting the virus in a London hospital A JustGiving site has already raised almost 2,000 for the man's family, with organiser Siobhann Carolan saying: 'Kumar worked tirelessly for years at FreshGo and was liked by all the customers. 'He was always helpful, cheerful and considerate at any time of the day or night. The funds raised will go directly to his family to help them through this truly difficult time.' But other store users said they were upset more had not been done to limit the spread of the virus in the shop. Jade Kyle said: 'That is so sad. They're all such good guys. I did wonder why they suddenly implemented social distancing in the shop only yesterday.' Georgia Mancio said: 'With this extra pressure on the smaller shops, I think they should all only allow one person in at a time.' Sandra Schmidt added: 'This is terrible. I'm actually in tears. My partner went in there four weeks ago and no one was wearing masks or gloves. There has been a glut of coronavirus deaths among shopkeepers and their staff. They include 51-year-old Raj Aggarwal - whose last Facebook post (above) showed him dropping off a carload of tea, coffee and biscuits to NHS workers at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester Just 13 days after his Facebook post, Mr Aggarwal (above, with his wife, Sunita), a father-of-two who ran two Spar shops and a coffee outlet with his brother Sanjiv, 50, lost his life 'My partner was the only one in there with mask and gloves and they all looked at him like he was deranged. Someone asked the man if they were intending to stay open and he said "We will always be open!". We laughed at it then. That was the last time any of us went there.' Kayleigh Louise Barnes replied: 'To be fair all the men that work there have been in contact with him so they should be isolating but they're still open which is a bit selfish considering they are serving the public.' Jen Batchelor added: 'They need to completely deep clean the shop and products and the other staff members should be self isolating.' It comes after a glut of other deaths among shopkeepers and their staff. They include Raj Aggarwal - whose last Facebook post showed him dropping off a carload of tea, coffee and biscuits to NHS workers at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester. But just 13 days later, the father-of-two, 51, who ran two Spar shops and a coffee outlet with his brother Sanjiv, 50, lost his life. On March 27 he posted on Facebook: 'Next stop Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, dropping off Tea, Coffee and Biscuits for our frontline NHS staff who are doing an amazing job #strongertogether.' Stuart Reddish, national president of the Federation of Independent Retailers (NFRN), told MailOnline today: 'We are deeply saddened to have lost four of our members from coronavirus and the Federation is doing everything it can to support their families at this time. 'Independent stores are at the heart of their communities and NFRN members, their family members and their staff are going above and beyond to provide their customers with the essentials that they need, whether this is from their shops or by offering delivery services to the elderly, vulnerable and housebound. 'In these most challenging of times, they are risking their own health and safety to provide communities and customers with a vital lifeline and I am tremendously proud of them.' The NFRN has also launched a fund to help shopkeepers suffering hardship if they feel they cannot stay open. The NFRN Covid-19 Hardship Fund has been created to alleviate some of the financial pressures that independent retailers may be facing. It will offer financial assistance in the form of a grant to members suffering cash flow and other financial challenges. Announcing its launch on April 6, Mr Reddish, who is a retailer in Sheffield, said: 'The impact of Covid-19 on the lives and businesses of some independent retailers has been unprecedented. 'We are acutely aware that some members are facing significant day-to-day financial challenges and that the help and support that we already provide to them needs to be boosted. 'We have, therefore, created a fund to alleviate the worries that independent retailers are experiencing as footfall in their shops drop and as their bills mount.' The NFRN has been contacted about deaths among shopkeepers. MailOnline has also contacted FreshGo in Gipsy Hill for comment. A 16-year-old boy accused of breaking into two homes in Antrim and stealing a car must remain in custody, a judge ruled on Monday. The youth, who cannot be identified, appeared at court on 12 charges linked to the house raids in the early hours of Sunday morning. Properties in the Millhouse area of the town were targeted, with a Fiat 500 car taken from one of them later recovered by police. The teenager faces counts of burglary with intent to steal, aggravated vehicle taking and dangerous driving. He is also accused of failing to stop at the scene of an accident where damage was caused to property. Although no further details were disclosed, an investigating detective told Belfast Magistrates' Court she could connect him to the charges. She claimed there was a risk of further offences if the boy was released. Refusing bail, District Judge Fiona Bagnall backed her assessment. Mrs Bagnall said: "I have grave concerns here. This lad, I think, is both a danger to himself and others." She remanded the youth in custody to appear in court again next month. The police department on Monday provided 45 more personal protection equipment (PPE) kits to the cops on curfew duty and those helping in distribution of food among the needy. The kits, donated by the Akhilesh Maingi Memorial Society, were handed over to additional deputy commissioner of police (ADCP, detective) Dayama Harish Kumar Omparkash. The ADCP is also the nodal officer for distributing grocery and food among the needy in the city. The ADCP, along with his team, has been in the field for the task. The district police have formed four emergency response teams comprising 20 personnel to ensure that the police follow the correct protocol while dealing with Covid-19 positive patients. The teams have been christened Covid commandos. An industrial unit had provided 35 PPE kits to the police department in March. The Khalsa Aid had also donated 200 kits to the police. The suits are made of a special fabric, which is fluid-resistant, anti-microbial and reusable. Shelter plans for Rochesters homeless community are being extended as Olmsted County also seeks to make sure numbers dont grow. "Our goal is to prevent people from experiencing homelessness," Olmsted Housing Director Dave Dunn said of efforts to address new challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Approximately 40 people facing homelessness have been seen each night at the warming center created in Mayo Civic Center, which is also housing a day center operated by the city. The Civic Center site offered Catholic Charities of Southern Minnesota a chance to expand its Rochester Community Warming Center, and Dunn said the county is working with the nonprofit to secure funding to keep the operation running through May. The effort is costing the county approximately $30,000 a month, Dunn told county commissioners earlier this month, noting the primary cost is for the Civic Center space. The county funds dont cover Catholic Charities expenses for staffing the facility on a nightly basis. ADVERTISEMENT In addition to the warming center operation, Dunn said the county is securing 23 to 26 hotel rooms on a nightly basis to help house families, older people facing homelessness and domestic violence victims. The monthly cost of the hotel rooms is estimated at $50,000. Dunn said both efforts to shelter local residents without housing offer a chance to connect with them and find ways to provide long-term help. "The idea is not just to provide a place to be," he said. "Ultimately, our goal is to move them into more stable housing positions," he added, citing six individuals who have found permanent housing through the local pandemic response. Now, a month after the county declared a public health emergency, Dunn said the county is shifting more attention to people who have lost their jobs and could end up struggling to pay their rent and mortgages. While the governors state emergency declaration put a moratorium on evictions, Dunn said programs must be developed for future concerns. "Eventually, evictions will start up again," he said. ADVERTISEMENT To help address the concerns, he said the county is looking for ways to address concerns before they emerge. "Were trying to piece-by-piece build a comprehensive approach to make sure as few people as possible lose housing because of this pandemic," Dunn said. A four-part trick got Aidan McCann to the next stage Young magician Aidan McCann used every trick in the book to sail into the next stage of Britain's Got Talent. Aidan (10) from Maynooth, Co Kildare, was left speechless after wowing the judges on the talent show, including notoriously hard-to-please Simon Cowell, by showcasing a special four-part trick he had never performed before. It helped him win the hearts of the audience and the judges, who each gave him a 'yes', for his skilled performance and loveable personality. Simon told him: "You're very likeable, you have a great talent, I think you could do really well." Ring Fellow judge Alesha Dixon was so impressed with his trick with a ring that she asked in amazement: "How did you do that?", while Amanda Holden got to her feet to applaud him. Expand Close Judge Simon Cowell / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Judge Simon Cowell On social media, viewers were full of praise for Aidan too, following his performance which was aired on Virgin Media on Saturday night. "I was so happy and just speechless," he told the Herald about making it through. Aidan enjoyed performing for Simon Cowell, saying "he's very nice". "I love doing magic because it makes people happy, and I love seeing people's reactions," he added. Expand Close Judge Alesha Dixon / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Judge Alesha Dixon "There was this festival that I used to go to every year and there were always magicians at it. "I started when I was five, and I started doing card magic when I was around seven and a half. "I've taught my mum how to do magic too." Aidan reached the semi-finals of Ireland's Got Talent last year, and has since gone on to impress US audiences on The Ellen De Generes Show. His mother Noella said: "Before going on Ireland's Got Talent, he started showing me how to do magic. "I think up until then, everything he learned, he learned himself from books or YouTube. "When he needed to start creating lots of different types of magic, then he got me involved. "He started showing me how to do things and show me things online so I have learned a huge amount of magic in the past year. "I'm not nearly as good as him at actually doing it, but we love trying to find tricks together and creating tricks." Tayto Meanwhile, Aidan said the highlight of his time in the spotlight so far has been meeting actor Colin Farrell and also taking a trip to Las Vegas. "I loved meeting Colin Farrell on the Ellen show and I also loved going to Vegas as a surprise Ellen gave me," he said. Noella McCann said the Dublin actor was "down to earth" with Aidan, who gave him a gift of a packet of Tayto crisps. "He's so down to earth, he was cool with Aidan. "He loves him. Colin came into the studio where Aidan was and [Aidan] did a couple of tricks for him and interviewed him and gave him a packet of Tayto at the end." 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 Over 1,000 Kashmiris, who had been stuck in Punjab's Pathankot due to the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown, were sent home on Monday, an official statement said. Nearly 1,200 migrants were stranded in Pathankot after the Jammu and Kashmir administration had refused them entry in the union territory, it said. The Kashmiri migrants had reached Pathankot from various states and on Monday the J-K government allowed them to return to the union territory, the Punjab government's statement said. It said the migrants were provided shelter, food and lodging during their stay in nine quarantine facilities of Pathankot. They were provided 24X7 support, with proper board and lodging, as well as food. Medical teams were deployed round-the-clock for regular health checkups and for providing them with regular supply of medicines, Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta said in the statement. The Kashmiri migrants acknowledged the support provided to them by the state government, specially the Punjab Police, it said. The Punjab Police has been a warm host for 20 days in these dark days, said a resident of Jammu and Kashmir's Ramban district. They also expressed gratitude to Radha Soami Dera Beas and other organisations who helped them during this critical time, the statement said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) NEWTOWN BOROUGH >> The Newtown Borough Council welcomes the new year with three new members of council and a new borough mayor. District Court Judge Mick Petrucci was on hand on January 3 to administer the oath of office to the towns new mayor, Republican John Burke, who replaces longtime mayor Charles Corky Swartz who decided not to run for... Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-19 15:55:15|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Chinese medical team members visit the Karaganda Medical University in Karaganda, Kazakhstan, April 16, 2020. A 10-member Chinese medical team is visiting Kazakhstan, and their advice on respiratory rehabilitation has been included in the country's diagnosis and treatment protocol of COVID-19. During their stay in Karaganda, the Chinese experts also visited a new lab at Karaganda Medical University, where polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing is conducted. Doctors of the two countries raised issues of funding and state support for researchers, in particular young scientists, as well as the possibility of scientific exchanges and internships. (Karaganda Medical University/Handout via Xinhua) NUR-SULTAN, April 19 (Xinhua) -- A 10-member Chinese medical team is visiting Kazakhstan, and their advice on respiratory rehabilitation has been included in the country's diagnosis and treatment protocol of COVID-19. In a seminar with Kazakh colleagues this week, the Chinese experts said that some patients, after being discharged from the hospital, have been suffering from breathing problems. Respiratory rehabilitation, which can be done either in a hospital or at home, can restore and improve their condition. It usually includes physical exercises for muscles of the shoulder girdle, the chest, and the diaphragm. The load gradually increases from light to moderate, the experts said. Qiu Guangfeng, a respiratory doctor from the People's Hospital of the Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, also presented some breathing exercises. "The respiratory rehabilitation program helps to maintain the patient's physical condition," Qiu said, adding that psychological and emotional wellbeing are also part of the program. After the seminar, Kazakh Vice Health Minister Lyazat Aktayeva instructed to add the recommendations of Chinese experts into the sixth edition of Kazakhstan's diagnosis and treatment protocol of COVID-19, an updated official document for the country's medical institutions adopted on April 16. During their stay in Karaganda, the Chinese experts also visited a new lab at Karaganda Medical University, where polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing is conducted. Doctors of the two countries raised issues of funding and state support for researchers, in particular young scientists, as well as the possibility of scientific exchanges and internships. "Chinese experience in taming the virus is worthy of great respect, as Chinese doctors managed to turn the coronavirus infection into a controlled process," said Bakhyt Kosherova, vice-rector for clinical work at Karaganda Medical University. Kosherova added that the principle of early detection, early reporting, early isolation and early treatment, as well as a concentration of doctors and hospitals, help China rationalize resources to cope with COVID-19. Chinese experts, while in Karaganda, also held online sessions with Kazakh doctors on the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Doctors from the two sides specifically addressed two cases with severe symptoms. The Chinese medical team arrived in Kazakhstan on April 9. They have wrapped up their visit in Nur-Sultan and Karaganda and will visit Almaty. Kazakhstan has registered 1,654 COVID-19 cases and 17 deaths as of Sunday. Enditem Willemstad/Philipsburg:--- Trust service providers, administrators, investment institutions, securities intermediaries, and asset managers that fall under the supervision of the Bank, have an obligation to submit their annual accounts, audited or reviewed by an external auditor, and a management letter to the Bank before April 30 of each year. These reporting obligations are pursuant to article 17 of the National Ordinance on the Supervision of Trust Service Providers, articles 8 and 17 of the National Ordinance on the Supervision of Investment Institutions and Administrators and article 42 of the National Ordinance on the Supervision of Securities Intermediaries and Asset Managers. The Bank is cognizant of the fact that the lock-down measures ordered by the governments of Curacao and Sint Maarten due to the COVID 19 pandemic, has caused some institutions not to be able to comply with this legal obligation. Therefore, the Bank has decided to grant trust service providers, administrators, investment institutions, securities intermediaries, and asset managers that fall under the supervision of the Bank an extension to submit their audited or reviewed annual accounts to the Bank by July 31, 2020. Please note that administrators and trust service providers are still required to submit the Reporting Form Number of Administered Investment Institutions and the Statistical Information Reporting Form Trust Service Providers respectively to the Bank by e-mail by April 30, 2020. For the institutions for which the supervisory fees are based on their total assets, the information last available to the Bank will be used for the calculation of the supervisory fees for the year 2020. Despite the exceptional situation, all supervised institutions are expected to continue to adhere to their legal obligations and comply with all laws and regulations applicable to them. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues its grip on our country, everyone has stepped up in relief efforts. Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) is no different and has been helping in their own little ways. Transportation has become an issue especially for those working the front lines. In cooperation with various LGUs, TMP has lent out company vehicles for health care workers use. This is in an effort to safely transport doctors, nurses, and other front liners to their places of work efficiently, quickly, and safely. Other Toyota units have also been lent to volunteer groups who may need them for the distribution of PPEs and workers to different hospitals. Other recipients are medical facilities that need support and families under TMP's corporate-social responsibility umbrella. Santa Rosa Community Hospital is one such facility after TMP donated PPEs such as isolation gowns, surgical gowns, and surgical gloves. More than 150 families have also been part of TMPs efforts. Sacks of rice and groceries were distributed to hard to reach areas and communities, including those in the Toyota Santa Rosa Gawad Kalinga village. M uslims across the world are gearing up for Ramadan, the staple celebration in the Islamic calendar. This years festival will be very different as the coronavirus pandemic continues to sweep the globe. But the 1.8bn-strong Islamic community is finding new ways to keep up tradition. Here, we take a look at what Ramadan is and how it will be affected this year. Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the three day festival marking the end Ramadan, in 2019 / AP What date is Ramadan 2020? Ramadan always lasts a period of 30 days, roughly four weeks. This year, Ramadan will begin on the evening of Thursday 23 April 2020, and will end on the evening of Saturday 23 May. The Islamic calendar is based on the cycle of the moon, meaning the date Ramadan falls on varies from year to year. What's the history of the religious festival? Ramadan is held during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is a time for spiritual reflection, acts of charity and spending time with loved ones. It is also a month when Muslims fast. This means they dont eat or drink between sunrise and sunset, which is important during Ramadan as it allows them to devote themselves further to their faith, ultimately becoming closer to Allah. Muslims believe that the tradition began in 610AD when angel Gabriel revealed the Quran, the Islamic holy book, to the Prophet Muhammad. The event, Laylat Al Qadar, or the Night of Power, is believed to have taken place during Ramadan and Muslims fast during that month as a way to remember it. Muslim worshippers perform Eid al-Fitr prayers in downtown Beirut in 2019 / AFP/Getty Images How do Muslims mark Ramadan? Muslims fast because this is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, the other pillars being faith, prayer, charity and making the pilgrimage to Mecca the Holy City. Before sunrise, they will have a meal (suhoor) and another meal (iftar) after sunset. The only people that do not have to fast during Ramadan are children, the elderly, pregnant women and those who are travelling or who are ill. How will coronavirus impact celebrations? The most obvious impact is that the vast majority of events to mark Eid al-Fitr, a festival and celebration at the end of Ramadan, are likely to take place at home this year. A vendor wearing a facemask packs vermicelli for customers at a shop ahead of the Ramadan in Pakistan / AFP via Getty Images But with social distancing measures and lockdowns in force across the 184 countries hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, and gatherings of more than two people banned in Britain, the fasting will also be a private affair. Usually Muslim households invite friends and family over at dusk for a meal and Tarawih, special nightly prayers that are held throughout the month, but this will not happen this year. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) has issued guidance for congregations to celebrate strictly at home, and for Imams to deliver mosque services online. Harun Khan, Secretary General of the MCB said: The message for this Ramadan is clear: fast and pray at home and share Ramadan digitally. This is the way to help save lives. Getty But Iraq, a majority-Muslim country, has eased some coronavirus restrictions for Ramadan. Shops and factories can reopen with reduced hours, the Government said - but mosques, schools and restaurants remain closed. Iraq has also said that people must wear face masks whenever they leave their homes. 83 people have died after contracting the disease, according to official figures and the Government told Kurdistan-24 this week that the outbreak will "end" in the country in the next few weeks. Residents of a small town in Nova Scotia, Canada woke up on Sunday to chaos as police hunted a mass shooter who had left a trail of bodies and burning buildings behind him. By the end of the ordeal, at least 10 people were killed, including one member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Though mass shootings are far more prevalent in Canada's neighbour to the south, the country has weathered its own share of tragic violence at the hands of gunmen. Reuters reported that the worst shootings in Canadian history took place just over three decades ago at Ecole Polytechnique, an engineering school in Montreal. A shooter marched the men in a classroom outside and killed the 14 women remaining in the class. Ten women and four men were injured in addition to those killed. A few years later, in 1992, an associate professor at Concordia University in Quebec killed four of his colleagues and injured one other individual. In 1996, a man travelled to the wedding of his estranged wife's sister in British Columbia and killed nine of her relatives before killing himself. Two others were wounded in the shooting. Recommended Veteran Mountie and mother of 2 among at least 10 killed in shooting In more recent incidents, a man in Edmonton, Alberta in 2014 killed his wife and eight others before killing himself. Two years later, a student in Saskatchewan killed his two brothers in his house before firing a gun at a high school in a remote community, where two more people died and seven others were wounded. A year later in Quebec, a man attacked a mosque during an evening prayer, killing six people and wounding five others. Another 12 had were injured during the attack and had to seek medical treatment. Then, in 2018, a man in Toronto walked down a busy street and began shooting randomly into restaurants, killing two people and wounding 13 before he killed himself. The mass shooting in Nova Scotia wasn't the first in which a member of the RCMP has lost their life. Recommended Gunman wearing police uniform kills at least 10 in Canada In 2005, a group of four RCMP officers went to the home of an Albertan man to execute a warrant to repossess his property. When they arrived, the man fired on them, killing all four. Nearly a decade later, a gunman in New Brunswick attacked a group of RCMP officers, killing three and wounding two others. Two years later, in 2018, two more police officers were killed at a shooting in New Brunswick. Two other people died during the same incident. United executives have warned layoffs could follow when the Sept. 30 deadline passes, but said the funding gives the airline some breathing space while the industry waits to see if demand recovers by fall. The company already asked employees to volunteer for unpaid leave and plans to offer more voluntary leave and separation programs over the next few weeks. For more coverage, visit our complete coronavirus section here. Jordyn LeMaster wont be marrying her fiance on April 25. Her private wedding was planned to be held two blocks away from Bellevue Square on a beautifully-designed, romantic rooftop of her parent's new condominium building. She and her fiance were going to stay Friday-Sunday at the Bellevue Hyatt in the Junior Suite and enjoy their special weekend. It was going to be the most magical weekend of their lives. And then Coronavirus came to Washington. Now, she looks at her calendar with all the crossed-out events leading up to their wedding--the bridal shower, the hair and makeup trials and the rehearsal dinner--and feels sadness. LeMaster has tentatively rescheduled the wedding for mid-July. I am truly sad we cant be married on April 25th, she said. Weve tentatively rescheduled the wedding for July 18, but at this point, who knows where Washington will be by then If Washington is still iffy in July, I may have to push my wedding out even further. LeMaster and her fiance are among thousands of couples who have postponed or canceled their weddings due to the pandemic. Bekka Bjorke postponed her wedding that was set for June 7 in Ariel, WA. She and her fiance will now be getting married next May. We knew the pandemic wasnt going to get better before our date, she said. We were able to get everything transferred over to next May. Bjorke said she went through stages of mourning after officially postponing her wedding date. I think Im finally accepting it. Its really the best for everyone, she said. Postponing was the right decision. Its not just the couples who are hurting from the effects of this pandemic. Vendors are also struggling. Madeline Wilson knows the challenges from both perspectives. Shes a bride and a wedding photographer. As a bride, she hasnt decided whether to postpone her July 11 wedding yet. Its very stressful and theres a lot of uncertainty, she said. Our plans are up in the air. Despite the stress, she said her fiance advised that they wait to make a final decision until late May or early June. Shes checked-in with all her vendors to confirm their policies for postponement or cancellation. Our vendors are still committed and all of them said they would transfer all of our deposits to the postponed date, she said. Like many other brides, Wilson is also going through a grieving process. Ive had to reschedule my bridal shower ... Its sad because Im supposed to feel only excitement. Now, it just feels like theres this dark cloud hanging over me, she said. Wilson feels the stress and the heartache as a wedding photographer too. While she doesnt rely on her wedding photography as her main source of income, she has had three couples either postpone or cancel their wedding. Its heartbreaking to watch couples deal with this, she said. You get to know them, you take their engagement photos and you feel for them when they ask you what your availability might look like six months from now. You feel for them. Its super emotional for everyone. She said she knows a lot of vendors who are struggling because of all the wedding cancelations. For many vendors, she said, weddings are their main source of income. Its just devastating for everyone, she said. This is hitting everyone hard. Chantel Jackson owns Thyme Well Spent Catering. Shes had six wedding cancelations so far. That means refunding those deposits. A few brides, she said, have changed their menus to better suit a smaller wedding. That means changing the catering plans and reordering food and supplies. Now thats just weddings. Jackson has also had several corporate events and parties cancel because of the pandemic. Though its been challenging, she said shes facing the storm. Ive been working on my social media and marketing as well as feeding the community. I went from 1,000 likes to 8,200 likes on Facebook in less than a month all organic no sales or ads. Ive been doing online cooking tutorials, in-home cooking classes, she said. When this is over, Im hitting the ground running and Ill have followers to support. She said her passion for cooking is more than just income, its her ministry too. I love to feed people. I do free meals for kids and communities with various chefs in Seattle. People need to eat who cant afford take-out so we have a soup kitchen but with gourmet chefs making fabulous meals, she said During this difficult and confusing time, Bjorke said it can be easy to just focus on the negatives. However, she hopes couples can try to remember the positives. If you dont get married now, its not going to hurt the love you have. You may not be able to have the wedding of your dreams but youll still be able to marry your love and thats the most important, she said. Its tough. Its tough on everyone, but well make it. RELATED CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Stow, MA A police chief in Stow, Massachusetts has been pulled from his job as the citys top cop after video by a self-declared pedophile hunter was posted online. The video allegedly shows the cop attempt to meet a boy who the chief knew was only 14 for sex. Instead of meeting the boy, however, the chief was confronted by Predator Poachers Massachusetts. Stow Police Chief Ralph Marino has been relieved of his duties after a meeting with state police over the weekend, according to authorities. As NBC10 Boston reports, Marino met with Massachusetts State Police representatives Saturday at the Stow police department, the town said. After the meeting he put himself on indefinite administrative leave and named Sgt. Darren Thraen as acting chief. In a statement, the town said it would cooperate fully in any investigation of Chief Marino or any other matters. There is no reason to believe that the activities being investigated involve or concern the operations of the Stow Police Department, the statement said. As the video shows, the Catch a Predator style format of the group found the chief waiting outside of a local establishment. The chief had allegedly been exchanging text messages with the undercover vigilantes in the Predator Poachers group, who he thought was a 14-year-old boy. The chiefs messages were gruesome in nature and illustrated his level of depravity. The chief knew that the person he was communicating with was a child. Despite the fact that he knew the person on the other end of the text was a child, the chief described his sexual desires to him, asked the child about the size of his genitals, and arranged to meet the child in a place out of the way. The video starts when the chief is waiting to meet the boy, somewhere out of the way. In the video, the man confronts Marino and attempts to identify him as Mark. Marino looks shocked and the man filming accuses the chief of trying to meet a 14-year-old boy for sex. Predator Poachers knew that Marino was their man, as he had asked the chief to send a picture of himself to the 14-year-old boy, and the chief complied. The chief appears to be frantically scrolling through his phone in an apparent attempt to delete the conversation with the pretend boy. However, as he reportedly attempts to delete the texts, the man filming tells him that he has them all in screen shots already. The chief then walks away and gets into what appears to be a police-issued vehicle before driving off in shame. The entire time, the man filming is calling him out in front of everyone. It is important to note that the folks at Predator Poachers didnt immediately identify the man in their video as the police chief. However, after the chief appeared on local news when a 2-year-old girl went missing, they pegged him. About 25 minutes before the chief went on the air to announce that a 2-year-old girl had gone missing, the chief was trying to lure a child for sex. As TB Daily News points out: The messages continue on April 13 at 10:05 AM, when the Chief attempts to bring the child into the woods, presumably for sex. This is significant because according to WCVB a two year old girl in Stow went missing at 10:30 AM, and was found at 12:30 PM. Below is the disturbing video of a police chief attempting to lure a child for sex. Had the boy been an actual real child, there is no telling what the chief might have done. Warning, the text messages in the video below are disturbing. These vigilantes out their catching alleged pedophiles provides an a much-needed service to humanity. There are groups like this all over the country and through their actions, they serve to deter pedophiles going online for fear of being outed. Sadly, however, despite the high chances of the person on the other end of the text message being a cop or predator hunter, these sickos are unable to control their urges and continue to get busted. This is overtly apparent in the alleged actions of this police chief. He is a cop. He knows what happens to pedophiles in jail, knows that there are stings all the time to take them down, yet he still actively sought out sex with a child online. Shameful indeed. Perhaps that is one of the reasons cops have arrested these pedophile hunters. The gifts that we're all buying each other at the moment. (Not On The High Street) Yahoo Lifestyle is committed to finding you the best products at the best prices. We may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change. Even though we cant see our loved ones at the moment, were thinking about them more than ever. And what better way to show someone you care than by sending them a thoughtful gift - through the post, obviously. Of course, were FaceTiming and Zoom calling our friends and family a lot (read: constantly) but theres something really special and uplifting about receiving a pressie through the post. It doesnt need to be expensive to have an impact, there are all sorts of sentimental, fun, thoughtful gifts out there that can all be delivered to your loved one in just a few days. One of the easiest websites to order a range of gifts from is Not On The High Street, who support small businesses and offer a diverse mix of options. From adorable mugs to lotions and potions to encourage relaxation, here are the top 10 gifts that Brits are buying on their site right now. Go on, get in on the action... 10 gifts Brits are buying loved ones this month (Not On The High Street) Give your loved-one the most precious gift of all: the gift of some me-time with this ultimate night-in spa treatment. All products handmade with the finest natural ingredients, in a wooden gift box complete with your own personalised message. (Not On The High Street) Slogan tees and sweatshirts are set to be in fashion for a long time to come and we particularly love the laid-back 70s vibes of this sweatshirt with its vintage rainbow print. Plus, with rainbows popping up in windows all over the UK to show support for the NHS, it seems like a pretty topical way to show support. (Not On The High Street) We cant physically hug our friends right now but his little love token can be removed from the card and kept in a wallet or pocket as a token of your love. Story continues (Not On The High Street) Whats a better pick-me-up for your plant-based pals than a whole host of vegan treats for them to tuck into. Each pack contains at least 10 - 12 items, from biscuits to gin liqueurs, so they wont need to venture out on a snack hunt for a while. (Not On The High Street) Long distance relationships can be hard, especially over special occasions, so let them know you miss them with this adorable original pen and ink illustration mug, reading I wished you lived next door. Its a piece of art they can drink from. (Not On The High Street) These earrings look good and do good, made with 925 sterling silver and dotted with bright and beautiful stones, 10% of the 'Rainbow Earrings' sale will go to NHS Charities Together COVID -19 Appeal. (Not On The High Street) You dont have to blow the budget to let someone know youre thinking of them, as this card proves. Send a great big kiss to someone you love with this simple thinking of you card for someone special, or just because... (Not On The High Street) Handmade from 100% beeswax, this lovely relaxation set includes 10 non-drip honey-scented meditation candles with brass stand and presentation box makes a thoughtful gift. (Not On The High Street) Our loved ones deserve to be spoiled, so do just that by giving them their own wonderfulIy indulgent personalised home spa experience. Each box includes five organic products lovingly wrapped in card and muslin packaging, all presented in a box that will fit through a standard letterbox. (Not On The High Street) Can you sense a theme in this roundup? But, tell us, who doesnt need a big hug at the end of the day? Perfect for anyone looking for something to do or who want something eye-catching and unique for their home. BATH TOWNSHIP, MI The Bath Township Police Department used 420 Day to put out a hilariously pun-filled social distancing reminder. April 20 is celebrated by many as an unofficial national day to smoke marijuana. 4/20 celebrations often include a gathering of friends who partake together, but Bath Township police are reminding everyone that Michigan is still under a stay home order and social distancing is still recommended as Michigan continues to fight the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The police Facebook page is known for its wit and comedy. The latest post features the hashtags #GetYourEssentialMunchiesCurbside, #NotToLongToGoAndWeCanEnjoyACoronaOnTheBeach and #HASHTag. It also includes at least 14 references to marijuana. See if you can spot them all: Weed not be doing our jobs if we didn't remind you all that social distancing is still important, the post says. It's a joint effort between all of us, from Herb to Mary Jane. Doobie cautious and avoid social gatherings such as pot lucks. If you're out blazing some fall leaves or chatting with neighbors make sure to stay on your side of the grass. Hash out issues with your family peacefully even if they're acting like a little roach. Today is 4/20 which means we're closer to being able to hang out with our buds again which will be pretty dope. So reefer to the guidelines until then and stay safe. And we're aware of the difficulties faced by everyone as they cannot get together today to celebrate Carmen Electra's birthday, the post concludes. Health officials recommend staying at least six feet away from other people to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. Passing a joint is not advisable. Weed not be doing our jobs if we didn't remind you all that social distancing is still important. It's a joint effort... Posted by Bath Township Police Department on Monday, April 20, 2020 In just five hours, the post garnered over 10,000 reactions, 11,000 shares and 800 comments. Michigan is under a stay home order through April 30. As of Sunday, April 19, the total COVID-19 cases in Michigan were 31,424, with 2,391 total deaths. 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: Fauci: If states reopen too fast, its going to backfire Monday, April 20: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan Michigan 5-year-old dies of coronavirus after complications Michigan is ramping up coronavirus testing. Thats easier said than done. New Michigan coronavirus cases of 633 is daily low for month of April Good Morning, Nigeria, Welcome To Naija News Roundup Of Top Newspaper Headlines In Nigeria For Today Monday, 20th April 2020 Bishop Francis Wale-Oke, on Sunday, condoled with President Muhammadu Buhari over the death of his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari. Recall that Kyari passed away on Friday in Lagos after battling with complications from Coronavirus The Lagos State Government has announced Coronavirus (COVID-19) test centres in its 20 Local Government Areas(LGAs). Naija News reports the Lagos State Government said in a tweet on its official handle on Sunday, April 19 that a visit to the Coronavirus centres is strictly by appointment, not emergency. The governor of Edo, southern Nigeria, Godwin Obaseki, says the state government has spent over N1billion to curtail the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Naija News reports that the Edo State Governor made the statement in Benin City during a live briefing on the virus by the State Response Team on Sunday, April 19. The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has vowed to abandon the agitation for the Republic of Biafra if President Muhammadu Buharis office in Aso Rock, is accessed after the death of Abba Kayri. Naija News had reported earlier that Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to the President died of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on Friday, April 17. The Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Garba Shehu, has confirmed that people that attended the burial of the late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, were advised to stay away from the Aso Rock. President Buharis spokesperson revealed this development on his Twitter account on Sunday. The Federal Government on Sunday has revealed an update on Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) to Nigerians. President Muhammadu Buhari administration in the statement noted that 428,941 beneficiaries that have received money, 130,455 are from Katsina State. Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has ordered the release of the 22 Staff of Exxon Mobil arrested for violating the State Executive Order restricting movement in the state. Their release was made known on Sunday morning by the Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice of the State, Professor Zaccheus Adangor. The Nigeria Center for Disease and Control (NCDC) has admitted error in confirming a new case of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Ekiti State. Naija News recalls that the NCDC had on Saturday night confirmed forty-nine new cases of novel Coronavirus. President Muhammadu Buhari has been called on by the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council to appoint an Igbo as his new Chief of Staff. OYC in a statement on Sunday, they described the death of Abba Kyari, as a colossal loss. Primate Elijah Babatunde Ayodele, the founder of Inri Evangelical Spiritual Church, has listed three things that must be done to curb the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). According to Daily Sun, the cleric warned that the COVID-19 pandemic might not go away until next year, adding that more prominent people will die after contracting the Coronavirus. Thats the top Nigerian newspaper headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naija News. See you again tomorrow. PHILADELPHIA, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Earlier today, The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida ordered Pennsylvania attorney Eric Rayz to pay a record $354,777 sanction to disabled Miami resident Yuri Lyubarsky and his legal team. See full court decision at www.LitigationAid.com/Decision-Lyubarsky-v-Rayz-2020.pdf. This landmark victory on behalf of Mr. Lyubarsky was achieved by close cooperation between seasoned bankruptcy litigator Gary Seitz from the Philadelphia office of law firm GSBB (Gellert Scali Busenkell & Brown) and litigation management expert Andrew Mogilyansky from LSS (Litigation Support Services) in Southampton, Pennsylvania. "We are happy the court issued such a thoughtful and fair ruling. This was the ultimate David vs. Goliath case. An elderly disabled man has turned the tables on an overly aggressive lawyer and held him liable for unrepentant aggression," said Gary Seitz, senior partner at GSBB and lead counsel in the case. "As the court found today, Eric Rayz unlawfully threatened Mr. Lyubarsky in an effort to obtain a $250,000 payment. After that failed, Rayz filed a falsely exaggerated claim for $400,000 that withheld a key document. When our team uncovered this, Rayz defended his misconduct with doctored pictures and sworn testimony that the court found 'convoluted' and 'unbelievable'." After Rayz' offshore-based client bought Lyubarsky's loan for $3,000 in 2008, Rayz began to relentlessly pursue Lyubarsky and his wife in multiple courts. Over the span of a decade, Rayz wrested over $200,000 from the disabled man, including $175,000 from the sale of Lyubarsky's family home. Not stopping there, Rayz continued to demand ever-increasing additional amounts which consisted mostly of Rayz' own legal fees. Rayz even tried to collect against Mr. Lyubarsky's disability benefits. When Mr. Lyubarsky filed for bankruptcy in 2018, Rayz made extortionate threats in an effort to collect another $250,000. "Eric Rayz threatened that if he did not get the $250,000 by the following Monday, he would release damaging information about Mr. Lyubarsky to the bankruptcy trustee and the authorities. When I wrote to him that his conduct was inappropriate, he responded that he did not care," said Leonid Nerdinsky, the Miami lawyer who helped Mr. Lyubarsky file for bankruptcy in 2018. In its ruling issued after a hotly contested trial, Chief Bankruptcy Judge Laurel M. Isicoff called Eric Rayz's conduct "sneaky", "egregious", "extreme and troubling", "without regard to appropriate and legally imposed boundaries" and "an affront to the bankruptcy system". The decision states that Rayz "deliberately exploited the Debtors' bankruptcy to try to extract money", that he submitted a "doctored photo" which was "taken in 2004 but edited to try to make the photo look recent" and "tried to hide a Pennsylvania state court order that made clear that Vertonix's claim was exaggerated." GSBB initially assisted Mr. Lyubarsky pro bono, preparing a sophisticated legal opinion that helped resolve Mr. Lyubarsky's bankruptcy and restore his disability benefits. It was then that Mr. Lyubarsky asked GSBB and LSS for help in holding Rayz accountable for his prior misdeeds. GSBB acknowledged the pivotal contribution to this case by LSS and its principal Andrew Mogilyansky. "Andrew was key to this case," said Gary Seitz. "He identified all factual gems and many legal theories that made this victory possible. He helped brainstorm and define legal strategy and suggested a brilliant move at trial. His talent, analytical skills and competence were key to our success. This is especially remarkable given his difficult personal history and the adversity he overcame before starting LSS." This opinion was echoed by Mr. Lyubarsky's Florida attorney. "Andrew Mogilyansky made incredibly valuable discoveries in court records and identified legal errors missed by a succession of prior lawyers. He uncovered documents Rayz withheld and pictures he tampered with. Andrew's involvement was a game-changer for our entire legal team," said local counsel Leonid Nerdinsky. "My life changed when Andrew Mogilyansky stepped in to help me," said Yuri Lyubarsky, the disabled man who will reap most of the court decision's benefits. "Andrew then persuaded Gary Seitz to do the same. Rayz made my life miserable for over a decade. He froze my disability benefits. I was a deer in the headlights, contemplating suicide. Gary Seitz and Andrew Mogilyansky saved my life and restored my faith in Justice." About GSBB: Gellert Scali Busenkell & Brown is a boutique commercial law firm with offices in Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For more information, visit www.gsbblaw.com. Contact: Gary Seitz, GSBB Senior Partner, 215-238-0011, [email protected]. About LSS: Litigation Support Services is a consultancy in Southampton, Pennsylvania that helps select clients manage important negotiations and litigation. For more information, visit www.LSS.LLC. Contact: Andrew Mogilyansky, LSS Managing Partner, 215-909-9000, [email protected]. Media Packet: An information packet containing records described in the court's decision (such as the doctored picture) is being made available at www.LitigationAid.com/Information-Packet-Lyubarsky-2020.pdf. SOURCE Gellert Scali Busenkell & Brown LLC Related Links https://www.gsbblaw.com/ Police in the eastern province of Shandong denied on that they were keeping Chinese rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang under surveillance following his release from a four-and-a-half year prison sentence. An officer who answered the phone at the Shengjing police station in Shandong's provincial capital, Jinan, said the local police station wasn't involved in his case. "The police station isn't managing him; he's not within our remit," the officer said. But he appeared to suggest that Wang is being "managed" by local neighborhood committee officials instead. "You should contact the neighborhood office," he said. Repeated calls to the cell phone listed for the head of the Shengjing neighborhood committee rang unanswered during office hours on . Fellow rights attorney Xie Yang said Wang is still not free, in spite of being "released" from Shandong's Linyi Prison. "The people surveilling him are [still working for the police]," Xie said. "Or rather, the police can mobilize and direct them. They have just changed the way they do it." "In a system like this, people just do as they're told; they don't overthink things," he said. 'I have aged a great deal' In a brief interview with RFA on , Wang said he hopes to be reunited with his family as soon as possible. "I have aged a great deal, but I'm still in quite good health," Wang told RFA. "I have no major health problems apart from occasional ear infections." "The neighborhood committee is imposing restrictions on me, but the police haven't ordered them to directly restrict my personal freedom," he said. Wang said he is in the process of applying for a national ID card. "I'm going down to the police station with Xie Yang to get an ID card," he said. "I can see the sky, the green grass and lovely flowers, so that's very real for me." Wang said international media attention may have helped his situation, and praised his wife, Li Wenzu, whose advocacy on his behalf he said had been "beyond what I could have imagined." "I am very grateful to my family, and I hope to be reunited with them as soon as possible," he said. "This is the main thing I am trying to make happen." But he says he has disordered and confused memories from the period following his arrest amid a nationwide operation targeting rights lawyers in . Wife wants him back in Beijing Li called for Wang to be allowed back to Beijing to rejoin his family. "They have said all along that Quanzhang would be at liberty after 14 days of quarantine, but it's 16 days now [since his release]," she said. "What I want more than anything is for Quanzhang to come to Beijing immediately, to come home to me and our child." Wang was released from Shandong's Linyi Prison at the end of a four-and-a-half year jail term handed down on Jan. 28, 2019 by the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People's Court, which found him guilty of "subversion of state power." The verdict and sentence followed repeated delays, resulting in Wang being held in pretrial detention for more than three years with no access to a lawyer or family visits, time which was later taken into account when calculating his release date. During that time, the authorities failed to provide a proper account of Wangs prolonged detention to the public, including Wangs family and family-appointed defense lawyers. A nationwide police operation under the administration of President Xi Jinping has targeted more than 300 lawyers, law firms, and related activists for questioning, detention, imprisonment, debarring, and travel bans since it launched in . Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Ng Yik-tung and Sing Man for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. President Donald Trump has approved a disaster declaration for Mississippi for strong storms that struck the state on Sunday, April 12, including several tornadoes. The storms swept through several states from Texas to Maryland on Sunday and Monday, killing at least 36 people. Mississippi has reported at least 14 deaths. Gov. Tate Reeves said Friday that the disaster declaration will allow individual assistance to people affected by the storms, including those whose homes were severely damaged or destroyed. Trump approved Mississippis declaration late Thursday. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said Thursday that at least 33 of the states 82 counties have reported damage from the storms. MEMA said at least 1,200 homes and 75 businesses were affected. The National Weather Service said more than 100 tornadoes struck the South during the two-day outbreak. It confirmed that 13 of those were in Mississippi. One that hit the Bassfield was 2.25 miles (3.62 kilometers) wide, making it the widest tornado on record in Mississippi and the third-widest tornado on record in the United States. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Windstorm Mississippi Supplier News 20 April 2020 AIKEN, S.C. - To do its part amidst the coronavirus pandemic, Riegel Linen is now manufacturing masks in addition to surgical towels, sheeting and mattress pads for existing and new customers. Known nationwide for its quality sheeting, terry, and table linen products for hotels and restaurants, the hospitality textile manufacturer is also helping the local community. As part of its new "Hospitality Strong" initiative, Riegel Linen CEO Bill Josey gifted 75 washable cloth face masks to international students at the University of South Carolina Aiken (part of the University of South Carolina System) who are unable to return home due to the quarantine. An additional 45 masks were donated to the UofSC Aiken Police Department serving the campus community. "On behalf of the University of South Carolina - Aiken, we are extremely grateful to Riegel Linen for thinking of us and for partnering with us in this very unique way," said Dr. Sandra Jordan, Chancellor, UofSC Aiken. "This is a troubling time, and this gift of masks made by Riegel Linen is being given to our students still living on the campus and to our police officers." "Masks are quite hard to come by in Aiken, so this gift is timely and needed to help keep members of our community safe and healthy during this unprecedented pandemic," she said. "This kind and important gift not only represents the compassionate community spirit of Riegel Linen but also echoes the spirit of the University of South Carolina Aiken and reminds us all how important it is to recognize that we are all in this together. Thank you, Riegel." The Economic Development Partnership of Aiken, Edgefield, McCormick, and Saluda counties was instrumental in bringing the UofSC Aiken and Riegel Linen together. "In mid-March, as COVID-19 restrictions began, our organization pivoted its focus," said Will Williams, President and CEO of the Economic Partnership. "That focus went to assisting the manufacturers in our four-county region with remaining open. We reached out to see if any could transition their manufacturing process to producing critically needed Personal Protective Equipment. Riegel Linen was the first to step forward and say they would shift to producing masks. Days later we learned that the UofSC Aiken Police Department needed that very item. While the campus was closed, a small number of international students remained in the dorms. These officers were having to periodically check on these students and doing it without proper PPE. We reached out to Riegel Linen and they graciously agreed to provide masks to not only the UofSC Aiken Police Department but also the remaining students." "We are extremely grateful to the leadership and employees of Riegel Linen for answering the call to provide these items," Williams said. "We appreciate the jobs they have in our region and that they call this part of South Carolina home." Healthcare products manufactured today by Riegel Linen in McCormick, S.C., include two-piece and four-piece washable cloth face masks (designed for barrier protection only), 100% cotton surgical towels, mattress pads, and sheeting for hospital beds. "Riegel Linen is proud to be assisting the local community and the healthcare industry with these critical personal protection supplies," said Wyatt "Tim" Shirley, Riegel Linen Director of Manufacturing. "Not only does this transition enable us to keep our valued employees working, but we are providing a great service to both hospitals and hotels. Today tens of thousands of hotels have offered their facilities to the medical community to house patients or host healthcare workers and their families. Riegel Linen is well positioned to equip anyone needing masks and other textile medical products with these items quickly and cost effectively. Only by working together will we remain #HospitalityStrong." To inquire about Riegel Linen masks or other healthcare supplies, email [email protected] or call (434) 579-3655. For media inquiries, email [email protected] or [email protected]. About Lion Equity Partners Lion Equity Partners is a Denver, CO based private equity firm focused on acquiring controlling interests in middle-market businesses across multiple industries. Lion Equity specializes in acquiring divisions of larger corporations and has significant experience in the divestiture process. Lion Equity's investment strategy is centered on creating value in its portfolio companies through a combination of organic growth and add-on acquisitions. Lion Equity supports its portfolio companies with strategic and financial resources, operational guidance, and M&A expertise. About Riegel Riegel Linen has been making Worry-Free Textiles since 1838. Riegel, through its market leading innovation and global distribution capabilities, has developed a rich heritage of delivering quality textile products to the hospitality, linen supply, retail, and healthcare sectors. Product collections include high-end cotton products in its DiRoNA collection, blended products in the Beauti-Damask collection as well as Permalux, RieNu by Riegel and the industry leading, Premier Spun Polyester by Riegel. Riegel is a market leader in product innovation, including technical breakthroughs in fiber formation and color retention, and enabling products to endure the heavy wear and tear of the commercial laundering environment. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 22:47:50|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HANGZHOU, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Naemorhedus griseus, also known as the Chinese goral, was spotted in a national park in east China's Zhejiang Province, according to the provincial forest resources monitoring center. The Chinese goral is under second-class state protection and has been rare to find for decades in eastern and southern China. Experts with the center believe that Xianju County, where the wild animal was spotted, is an important concentrated distribution area of the Chinese goral. Xianju National Park carried out biodiversity conservation and research with a number of universities and research institutes in 2014. The national park focuses on the combination of ecological protection and scientific research, said Zhu Hanbo, deputy director of the park's management committee. A number of wild animals under first-class and second-class state protection including silver pheasant have been found in the national park. Enditem Senior Producers, Larger-Cap Near-Term Production Royalty & Streaming Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Altius Minerals Corp ALS 1.8 C$7.88 42 $236 0.55 0.31 0.40 25.8 19.6 1.03 0.77 0.92 10.2 8.6 -- 1.6% Anglo Pacific Group PLC (UK) APF 1.6 GBP$1.35 181 $305 0.20 0.21 0.24 6.4 5.7 0.26 0.22 0.24 6.2 5.7 17.6 3.8% Franco-Nevada FNV 2.4 US$124.20 189 $23,524 1.82 2.21 2.34 56.2 53.1 3.29 3.78 4.07 32.9 30.5 48.0 1.0% Maverix Metals (CA) MMX 2.3 C$5.55 120 $472 0.09 0.11 0.18 50.5 31.3 0.25 0.31 0.36 17.7 15.5 -- 0.2% Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd OR 2.0 C$11.62 157 $1,310 0.28 0.31 0.43 37.0 27.3 0.61 0.71 0.89 16.3 13.1 49.1 1.6% Royal Gold Inc RGLD 3.0 US$107.81 66 $7,069 1.97 2.74 3.09 39.4 34.9 4.48 5.38 5.82 20.0 18.5 26.0 0.9% Sandstorm Gold Ltd (CA) SAND 2.2 US$6.44 174 $1,116 0.06 0.12 0.16 54.7 39.7 0.30 0.36 0.41 17.7 15.8 30.5 0.0% Wheaton Precious Metals WPM 1.9 US$34.32 448 $15,406 0.56 0.87 1.00 39.5 34.3 1.12 1.48 1.66 23.1 20.7 26.8 1.2% Average 38.7 30.7 18.0 16.1 33.0 Gold Large-Cap Gold Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd AEM 2.1 US$53.88 241 $12,924 0.96 1.28 2.01 42.1 26.8 3.70 4.19 5.37 12.9 10.0 16.4 0.9% Barrick Gold Corp ABX 2.1 US$24.57 1778 $43,695 0.51 0.75 0.87 32.9 28.3 1.61 2.32 2.46 10.6 10.0 14.2 1.1% Kirkland Lake Gold (CA) KL 1.8 US$34.61 287 $9,921 2.74 2.89 3.08 12.0 11.2 4.38 4.50 4.94 7.7 7.0 52.0 0.4% Newcrest Mining Ltd (AU) NCM 2.7 US$18.18 769 $13,906 0.80 0.93 0.99 19.5 18.3 1.76 1.77 1.90 10.3 9.5 11.4 1.1% Newmont Goldcorp NEM 2.1 US$59.23 808 $47,845 1.32 2.17 2.89 27.3 20.5 3.89 4.76 5.47 12.4 10.8 22.5 1.3% Polyus Gold International (UK) PGIL 1.8 RU$11,685.0 134 $21,246 769.61 1028.14 1092.20 11.4 10.7 1054.82 1244.95 1226.97 9.4 9.5 -- 2.3% Zijin Mining Group (HK) 2899 1.8 CNY$3.01 25377 $13,903 0.18 0.26 0.41 11.6 7.3 0.45 0.45 0.53 6.6 5.7 22.4 2.9% Average 22.4 17.6 10.0 9.0 23.1 Mid-Cap Gold Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Alamos Gold AGI 2.3 US$6.37 391 $2,490 0.21 0.28 0.46 22.6 13.9 0.66 0.72 1.02 8.9 6.2 15.2 0.7% AngloGold Ashanti Ltd AU 2.8 US$22.01 416 $9,098 0.91 2.08 2.44 10.6 9.0 2.50 3.59 3.92 6.1 5.6 7.0 0.5% B2Gold Corp BTG 1.6 US$4.38 1030 $4,486 0.23 0.41 0.35 10.8 12.5 0.49 0.70 0.64 6.3 6.8 14.3 0.2% Buenaventura (ADR) BVN 2.9 US$7.10 276 $2,224 (0.05) 0.32 0.57 22.5 12.5 0.20 0.62 0.87 11.5 8.2 8.7 0.6% Centamin PLC (CA) CEE 2.0 US$1.65 1156 $1,900 0.08 0.14 0.12 12.0 14.0 0.19 0.20 0.18 8.2 9.0 4.1 4.8% Centerra Gold (CA) CG 2.3 US$6.95 294 $2,030 0.62 1.00 1.19 6.9 5.9 1.14 2.08 2.24 3.3 3.1 6.0 0.0% Endeavour Mining Corp (CA) EDV 1.8 US$17.27 110 $1,887 0.67 1.34 1.87 12.9 9.2 2.75 3.68 4.43 4.7 3.9 10.8 0.0% Equinox Gold Corp (CA) EQX 2.1 US$7.33 216 $1,583 (0.16) 0.75 0.92 9.8 7.9 0.53 1.38 1.87 5.3 3.9 -- 0.0% Evolution Mining Ltd (AU) EVN 2.2 AUD$4.74 1704 $5,112 0.17 0.26 0.28 18.3 17.2 0.44 0.55 0.55 8.6 8.6 12.0 3.4% Gold Fields Ltd (ADR) GFI 2.8 US$6.35 883 $5,631 0.20 0.50 0.78 12.8 8.2 1.08 1.32 1.70 4.8 3.7 6.0 0.8% Harmony Gold Mining Ltd HAR 2.5 ZAR$53.80 543 $1,547 3.12 6.49 8.25 8.3 6.5 9.89 15.06 17.70 3.6 3.0 7.6 0.0% Kinross Gold Corp KGC 2.3 US$6.05 1257 $7,634 0.34 0.45 0.48 13.5 12.7 0.97 1.08 1.17 5.6 5.2 10.4 0.0% Lundin Gold Inc (CA) LUG 2.2 US$6.77 224 $1,511 (0.10) 0.34 0.60 19.7 11.3 (0.10) 0.57 0.97 11.9 7.0 -- 0.0% Northern Star Resources (AU) NST 2.6 AUD$12.67 740 $5,933 0.42 0.81 1.04 15.7 12.2 0.81 1.28 1.53 9.9 8.3 20.0 1.3% NovaGold Resources Inc NG 2.0 US$11.27 329 $3,719 (0.09) (0.08) -- -- -- -- -- (0.03) -- -- -- 0.0% Polymetal International PLC (UK) POLY 2.1 US$19.01 470 $8,911 1.25 1.72 1.84 11.1 10.3 1.46 2.07 2.00 9.2 9.5 13.8 3.9% Saracen Mineral Holdings (AU) SAR 2.0 AUD$4.18 1103 $2,917 0.18 0.32 0.36 13.2 11.6 0.33 0.48 0.56 8.7 7.5 51.5 0.0% Sibanye Gold Ltd (SA) SGL -- ZAR$44.33 2670 $7,646 -- (0.40) 9.55 -- 4.6 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- SSR Mining SSRM 2.0 US$15.07 123 $1,855 0.81 1.23 1.76 12.3 8.6 1.10 2.09 2.56 7.2 5.9 7.9 0.0% Yamana Gold Inc AUY 2.4 US$4.25 952 $4,042 0.35 0.16 0.21 26.2 20.7 0.55 0.63 0.73 6.7 5.8 8.0 0.8% Zhaojin Mining Industry Co Ltd (HK) 1818 1.9 CNY$7.71 3270 $3,565 0.15 0.29 0.33 26.5 23.1 0.78 0.68 0.82 11.3 9.4 20.3 -- Average 15.0 11.6 7.5 6.3 13.1 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Small-Cap Gold Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Alacer Gold Corp (CA) ASR 2.3 US$4.33 295 $1,269 0.37 0.48 0.47 9.1 9.2 0.86 0.95 0.94 4.5 4.6 46.4 0.0% DRDGold Ltd (ADR) DROOY 5.0 ZAR$15.54 865 $712 0.49 0.94 0.50 16.6 31.1 1.17 1.26 -- 12.3 -- 33.2 0.0% Dundee Precious Metals (CA) DPM 1.8 US$4.13 181 $745 0.19 0.51 0.55 8.2 7.5 0.55 0.97 1.20 4.3 3.4 10.1 0.0% Eldorado Gold Corp EGO 2.8 US$8.48 165 $1,382 0.04 0.76 0.48 11.1 17.8 0.93 2.03 1.50 4.2 5.7 11.1 0.0% Gold Resource Corp GORO 2.0 US$3.59 70 $251 0.09 0.42 0.16 8.7 22.4 -- -- -- -- 0.4% Gold Road Resources Ltd (AU) GOR 2.1 AUD$1.70 880 $946 0.01 0.10 0.10 16.6 16.8 0.04 0.16 0.15 11.0 11.1 -- 0.0% Golden Star Resources GSS 2.6 US$2.19 161 $245 0.16 0.22 0.38 9.8 5.8 0.21 0.73 0.82 3.0 2.7 6.2 0.0% Gran Colombia Gold Corp (CA) GCM 2.0 US$4.14 61 $251 0.73 1.20 1.04 3.4 4.0 1.24 1.42 1.47 2.9 2.8 -- 0.0% Great Bear Resources (CA) GBR 1.5 C$7.83 46 $256 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Hecla Mining Co HL 3.1 US$2.17 523 $1,135 (0.13) (0.01) 0.09 -- 23.0 0.25 0.29 0.39 7.5 5.6 6.6 0.3% Highland Gold Mining Ltd (UK) HGM 1.5 US$2.73 364 $989 0.45 0.33 0.33 8.4 8.3 0.38 0.50 0.47 5.5 5.8 8.1 6.2% Hochschild Mining PLC (UK) HOC 2.5 US$1.52 514 $776 0.09 0.12 0.15 12.4 9.8 0.55 0.41 0.49 3.7 3.1 2.8 0.9% Iamgold Corp IAG 2.6 US$3.10 470 $1,456 (0.04) 0.20 0.26 15.1 12.0 0.78 0.80 0.90 3.9 3.4 3.6 0.0% K92 Mining (CA) KNT 1.4 US$2.61 213 $552 0.12 0.23 0.33 11.5 7.8 0.13 0.30 0.41 8.7 6.4 -- 0.0% McEwen Mining Inc. MUX 2.0 US$0.96 400 $384 (0.17) (0.04) 0.06 -- 15.3 (0.11) (0.03) 0.01 -- NM -- 0.0% New Gold Inc NGD 2.7 US$0.71 676 $475 (0.08) (0.06) 0.01 -- 79.3 0.43 0.34 0.42 2.1 1.7 3.7 0.0% Oceanagold Corp (AU) OGC 2.1 US$1.32 622 $796 0.05 0.10 0.25 13.7 5.4 0.32 0.35 0.57 3.8 2.3 3.4 0.0% Orla Mining Ltd (CA) OLA 2.0 C$2.43 224 $386 (0.16) (0.09) 0.01 -- NM (0.14) (0.06) 0.01 -- NM -- 0.0% Osisko Mining Corp (CA) OSK 1.8 C$3.12 291 $649 (0.17) (0.05) (0.05) -- -- (0.01) (0.04) (0.04) -- -- -- 0.0% Pan African Resources (UK) PAF 1.0 US$0.15 1928 $288 0.02 0.04 0.05 3.6 3.1 0.03 0.04 -- 3.6 -- 10.8 1.0% Perseus Mining Ltd (AU) PRU 2.0 AUD$1.01 1168 $743 0.03 0.07 0.12 15.3 8.5 0.15 0.20 0.27 5.2 3.8 94.1 0.0% Petropavlovsk PLC (UK) POG 2.2 US$0.28 3310 $930 0.02 0.04 0.05 6.4 6.3 0.01 0.04 0.07 7.0 4.2 7.5 0.0% Premier Gold Mines Ltd (CA) PG 1.8 US$1.22 237 $288 (0.10) (0.03) 0.08 -- 15.2 0.11 0.03 0.23 47.9 5.2 5.8 0.0% Pretium Resources PVG 2.4 US$7.33 185 $1,351 0.55 0.53 0.62 13.9 11.8 1.21 1.19 1.28 6.2 5.7 -- 0.0% Regis Resources Ltd (AU) RRL 2.2 AUD$4.08 508 $1,312 0.38 0.47 0.52 8.7 7.9 0.59 0.67 0.71 6.1 5.7 8.0 3.7% Ramelius Resources Ltd (AU) RMS 1.8 AUD$1.16 767 $560 0.06 0.09 0.13 12.3 8.6 0.23 0.25 0.29 4.6 4.0 10.5 0.8% Resolute Mining Ltd (AU) RSG 1.9 AUD$0.95 1072 $641 0.02 0.16 0.19 6.1 4.9 0.15 0.31 0.31 3.1 3.0 -- 0.0% Roxgold Inc (CA) ROXG 2.0 US$0.76 372 $281 0.05 0.08 0.11 9.8 7.1 0.27 0.20 0.21 3.8 3.6 27.0 0.0% St Barbara Ltd (AU) SBM 2.1 AUD$2.46 703 $1,094 0.23 0.28 0.33 8.7 7.5 0.41 0.49 0.56 5.0 4.4 5.9 2.9% Sabina Gold & Silver Corp (CA) SBB 2.3 C$1.68 297 $356 (0.01) (0.01) 0.01 -- NM (0.01) (0.01) 0.03 -- 56.0 -- 0.0% Seabridge Gold SA 2.0 C$16.62 64 $751 (0.19) (0.14) (0.02) -- -- (0.17) (2.63) -- -- -- -- 0.0% Semafo (CA) SMF 2.0 US$2.41 334 $801 0.22 0.29 0.45 8.3 5.4 0.66 0.75 0.90 3.2 2.7 5.6 0.0% Silver Lake Resources (AU) SLR 2.4 AUD$1.80 880 $1,002 0.07 0.12 0.15 14.5 11.8 0.18 0.25 0.27 7.3 6.6 22.6 0.0% Silvercrest Metals Inc SILV 1.8 C$7.90 109 $613 (0.67) (0.12) (0.14) -- -- (0.62) (0.11) (0.10) -- -- -- 0.0% Teranga Gold Corp (CA) TGZ 1.6 US$6.89 168 $1,155 0.01 0.32 0.63 21.4 11.0 0.93 1.18 1.60 5.9 4.3 12.6 0.0% Torex Gold Resources (CA) TXG 2.4 US$10.81 85 $923 0.79 0.38 0.65 28.7 16.6 3.51 2.98 3.40 3.6 3.2 5.8 0.0% Victoria Gold Corp (CA) VIT 2.0 C$7.92 58 $328 -- -- -- -- -- -- (0.40) 0.18 -- 45.3 -- 0.0% Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd (CA) WDO 1.8 C$9.20 138 $905 0.29 0.39 0.78 23.8 11.9 0.51 0.64 0.99 14.4 9.3 73.2 0.0% West African Resources Ltd (CA) WAF -- AUD$0.26 871 $298 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.04 -- 7.1 -- -- Westgold Resources Ltd (AU) WGX 2.0 AUD$2.04 400 $516 0.07 0.25 0.43 8.2 4.8 0.32 0.55 0.72 3.7 2.9 -- 0.0% Average 11.9 13.0 6.9 7.6 17.7 Select (Gold >US$20MM Mkt Cap) Gold Springs Resource Corp (CA)* GRC 2.0 US$0.06 249 $14 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Lion One Metals Ltd (CA)* LIO 2.0 C$1.29 107 $98 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Minera Alamos Inc (CA) MAI 2.0 C$0.30 407 $85 (0.02) 0.01 0.03 29.5 9.8 0.03 0.03 -- 9.8 -- -- 0.0% Northern Vertex Mining Corp (CA)* NEE 2.0 US$0.16 251 $39 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Paramount Gold Nevada Corp* PZG 2.0 US$0.80 28 $25 (0.21) (0.17) -- -- -- (0.19) (0.16) -- -- -- 0.0% Average 29.5 9.8 9.8 *includes research coverage by Scarsdale Equities. Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Silver Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Alexco Resource Corp* AXU 2.5 C$1.98 125 $175 (0.08) -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Americas Gold & Silver Corp (CA) USA 1.8 US$2.04 95 $192 (0.46) 0.11 0.21 17.8 9.6 0.20 0.43 0.76 4.7 2.7 46.1 0.0% Coeur Mining Corp CDE 2.6 US$4.13 244 $1,006 (0.25) (0.02) 0.19 -- 21.5 0.42 0.66 0.98 6.3 4.2 5.8 0.0% Endeavour Silver Corp EXK 3.2 US$1.52 142 $215 (0.36) 0.02 0.02 93.6 95.1 (0.07) 0.21 0.21 7.3 7.3 6.0 0.0% First Majestic Silver Corp AG 2.8 US$6.97 210 $1,455 0.04 0.18 0.23 38.7 30.3 0.69 0.44 0.79 16.0 8.8 12.9 0.0% Fortuna Silver Mines FSM 2.4 US$2.37 160 $380 0.17 0.24 0.62 9.8 3.8 0.63 0.52 1.18 4.6 2.0 5.7 0.0% Fresnillo (UK) FRES 2.9 US$8.85 737 $6,519 0.23 0.25 0.39 35.8 23.0 0.59 0.87 0.93 10.2 9.5 7.0 1.7% MAG Silver Corp MAG 1.8 US$9.62 87 $827 (0.05) 0.08 0.36 NM 26.5 (0.04) 0.16 0.58 60.1 16.6 -- 0.0% New Pacific Metals Corp (CA) NUAG 2.7 C$4.46 148 $471 (0.02) (0.01) (0.00) -- -- (0.02) (0.02) (0.03) -- -- -- 0.0% Pan American Silver PAAS 2.2 US$19.09 210 $4,041 0.78 0.71 1.40 26.9 13.7 1.40 2.11 2.83 9.1 6.8 15.1 0.6% Silvercorp Metals Inc SVM 2.0 US$3.37 173 $585 0.21 0.20 0.19 16.9 18.0 0.43 0.39 0.36 8.7 9.2 -- 0.4% Average 34.2 26.8 14.1 7.5 14.1 *includes research coverage by Scarsdale Equities. Platinum Group Metals African Rainbow Minerals (SA) ARI 2.1 ZAR$131.70 223 $1,558 27.53 26.86 23.04 4.9 5.7 16.23 18.19 23.92 7.2 5.5 26.9 8.6% Anglo American Platinum Ltd (SA) AMS 2.9 ZAR$908.38 270 $12,984 70.61 98.77 106.69 9.2 8.5 107.94 74.81 166.17 12.1 5.5 24.5 2.2% Impala Platinum (SA) IMP 2.1 ZAR$108.00 799 $4,995 11.85 21.89 22.09 4.9 4.9 17.63 25.91 31.06 4.2 3.5 30.9 0.9% Northam Platinum Ltd (SA) NHM 1.7 ZAR$86.35 510 $2,333 5.77 14.13 14.74 6.1 5.9 12.63 21.91 28.72 3.9 3.0 63.8 0.0% Average 6.3 6.2 6.9 4.4 36.5 Base Metals & Diversified Large-Cap Base Metals Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Anglo American PLC (UK) AAL 2.3 US$17.78 1363 $24,233 2.70 1.95 2.51 9.1 7.1 5.97 4.58 5.69 3.9 3.1 5.8 3.8% Antofagasta PLC (UK) ANTO 2.9 US$9.78 986 $9,609 0.51 0.21 0.48 47.1 20.5 2.12 1.45 1.51 6.8 6.5 8.1 2.8% BHP Billiton Ltd BHP 2.3 US$19.91 5058 $92,923 1.85 1.80 1.70 11.1 11.7 3.28 3.09 3.03 6.5 6.6 6.7 5.5% China Molybdenum Co Ltd (HK) 3993 2.5 CNY$2.17 21599 $10,127 0.09 0.08 0.12 26.4 18.4 0.08 0.16 (0.10) 13.3 -- 43.4 1.4% Freeport McMoran C&G FCX 2.3 US$8.34 1451 $12,101 0.02 (0.25) 0.96 -- 8.7 1.02 0.91 2.53 9.2 3.3 6.0 1.5% Glencore International PLC (UK) GLEN 2.1 US$1.77 13324 $23,446 0.18 0.08 0.16 21.9 10.9 0.63 0.63 0.58 2.8 3.0 5.6 0.0% Grupo Mexico (MX) GMEXICOB 2.5 US$1.89 7785 $14,688 0.29 0.19 0.23 9.9 8.1 0.51 0.30 0.33 6.2 5.7 6.8 6.1% Hindustan Zinc (IN) HZ 2.1 INR$174.50 4225 $9,602 17.50 16.92 17.76 10.3 9.8 21.02 21.27 22.95 8.2 7.6 5.1 0.0% MMC Norilsk Nickel (RU) GMKN -- RU$5,429.84 158 $42,198 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 16.2 10.7% Rio Tinto PLC (UK) RIO 2.6 US$47.70 1618 $80,757 6.36 4.95 4.54 9.6 10.5 9.15 7.73 7.28 6.2 6.6 7.2 2.7% Southern Copper Corp SCCO 2.4 US$30.26 773 $23,393 1.92 1.70 2.05 17.8 14.7 2.47 2.76 3.08 11.0 9.8 12.8 3.8% Vale SA (ADR) VALE 2.0 BRL$43.78 5284 $44,405 5.01 7.10 7.46 6.2 5.9 10.56 10.07 10.15 4.3 4.3 7.9 2.6% Average 16.9 11.5 7.1 5.6 11.0 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Mid-Cap Base Metals Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Assore Ltd (SA) ASR 3.3 ZAR$314.10 140 $2,324 51.82 41.18 35.62 7.6 8.8 -- 18.27 27.33 17.2 11.5 12.1 7.7% Aurubis AG (GR) NDA 2.7 EUR$43.55 45 $2,121 3.14 3.50 4.14 12.5 10.5 5.58 5.86 6.66 7.4 6.5 5.6 2.3% Boliden AB (SW) BOL 2.4 SEK$202.40 274 $5,522 21.15 17.96 20.79 11.3 9.7 34.52 38.00 39.18 5.3 5.2 6.0 2.8% Exxaro Resources Ltd (SA) EXX 1.6 ZAR$114.10 359 $2,169 29.62 24.05 22.75 4.7 5.0 (9.28) 23.52 25.68 4.9 4.4 9.4 4.3% First Quantum Minerals (CA) FM 2.0 US$5.10 689 $3,516 0.36 (0.19) 0.19 -- 27.3 1.29 2.06 2.34 2.5 2.2 12.9 0.1% Iluka Resources Ltd (AU) ILU 2.3 AUD$7.58 423 $2,028 0.66 0.73 0.92 10.4 8.3 0.76 1.10 1.24 6.9 6.1 -- 1.4% Independence Group NL (AU) IGO 2.2 AUD$4.95 591 $1,851 0.22 0.32 0.35 15.3 14.1 0.73 0.83 0.80 6.0 6.2 17.4 2.2% Ivanhoe Mines Ltd (CA) IVP 2.1 US$1.91 1197 $2,271 0.02 (0.59) 0.59 -- 3.3 (0.01) (0.04) 0.21 -- 9.1 -- 0.0% Jiangxi Copper Co "H" (HK) 358 2.6 CNY$6.90 3463 $5,191 0.70 0.59 0.78 11.8 8.9 1.75 1.38 1.28 5.0 5.4 13.1 1.0% Kazakhmys PLC (UK) KAZ 2.3 US$4.97 472 $2,338 1.17 0.71 0.87 7.0 5.7 1.04 1.31 1.26 3.8 3.9 21.9 1.7% KGHM Polska Miedz (PO) KGH 3.5 PLN$72.44 200 $3,457 7.11 6.20 8.84 11.7 8.2 25.24 14.99 17.01 4.8 4.3 4.5 0.0% Lundin Mining Corp (CA) LUN 2.0 US$4.36 734 $3,202 0.22 0.25 0.54 17.3 8.1 0.77 0.88 1.24 4.9 3.5 6.3 0.0% Mineral Resources Ltd (AU) MIN 1.8 AUD$16.93 188 $2,019 1.36 1.61 1.42 10.5 11.9 1.40 1.95 2.09 8.7 8.1 7.9 3.3% Oz Minerals (AU) OZL 2.0 AUD$8.96 324 $1,838 0.51 0.28 0.73 31.8 12.3 1.58 1.08 1.67 8.3 5.4 7.9 2.2% Sesa Sterlite Ltd (ADR) SSLT 2.4 INR$84.10 3702 $4,055 15.20 12.49 14.86 6.7 5.7 52.20 45.04 48.54 1.9 1.7 3.4 3.8% South32 Ltd (AU) S32 2.1 US$1.31 4846 $6,317 0.12 0.08 0.13 15.7 9.9 0.30 0.26 0.29 5.1 4.5 3.4 2.2% Sumitomo Metal Mining (JP) 5713 2.0 JPY$2,472 291 $6,660 200.00 166.67 227.59 14.8 10.9 378.82 391.74 442.82 6.3 5.6 9.5 1.7% Teck Resources Ltd TCK 2.1 C$11.07 547 $4,351 2.75 1.30 2.23 8.5 5.0 6.16 4.23 5.97 2.6 1.9 3.4 0.9% Vale Indonesia Tbk PT (ID) INCO 2.1 US$0.16 9936 $1,592 0.01 0.01 0.01 26.7 16.1 0.01 0.02 0.02 8.1 6.8 9.7 0.0% Vedanta Resources PLC (UK) VED -- US$10.85 285 $3,089 -- 0.87 1.24 12.5 8.7 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Average 13.2 9.9 6.1 5.4 9.1 Small-Cap Base Metals Adriatic Metals PLC (AU) ADT 1.7 GBP$0.64 309 $243 (0.02) 0.01 0.30 59.5 2.2 (0.02) (0.01) -- -- -- 0.0% Atalaya Mining PLC (UK) ATYM 1.3 EUR$1.36 137 $202 0.27 0.11 0.45 12.7 3.0 0.27 0.12 0.30 11.8 4.6 12.8 0.0% Eramet (FR) ERA 2.0 EUR$28.49 27 $822 (6.93) (2.38) 4.42 -- 6.4 3.24 10.09 13.86 2.8 2.1 6.1 0.0% Ero Copper Corp (CA) ERO 2.2 US$9.77 86 $833 0.94 0.88 1.23 11.1 8.0 1.40 1.54 1.95 6.4 5.0 -- 0.0% Hudbay Minerals HBM 2.6 US$2.14 261 $558 (0.20) (0.41) 0.01 -- NM 1.19 0.89 1.27 2.4 1.7 2.6 0.4% Kenmare Resources (UK) KMR 1.8 US$2.29 110 $250 0.40 0.29 0.85 7.8 2.7 0.69 0.32 6.10 7.1 0.4 44.6 2.6% Mitsui Mining & Smelting (JP) 5706 2.6 JPY$1,908 57 $1,013 88.59 157.01 231.89 12.2 8.2 622.22 698.89 776.60 2.7 2.5 5.6 2.4% MMG Ltd (HK) 1208 2.7 US$0.18 8055 $1,465 (0.01) 0.00 0.01 NM 17.6 0.14 0.09 0.14 2.0 1.3 11.5 0.0% Nexa Resources NA NEXA 3.0 US$3.83 133 $511 (0.03) (0.83) (0.13) -- -- 0.93 2.08 2.79 1.8 1.4 -- 6.5% Outokumpu (FN) OUT1V 2.8 EUR$2.49 416 $1,122 (0.20) (0.08) 0.28 -- 8.8 0.90 0.54 0.71 4.6 3.5 6.6 3.6% PolyMet Mining Corp PLM -- US$0.24 1006 $236 (0.08) (0.01) 0.03 -- 7.9 -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Sandfire Resources NL (AU) SFR 2.3 AUD$4.27 178 $481 0.56 0.57 0.60 7.4 7.1 1.45 1.65 1.46 2.6 2.9 2.8 3.5% SolGold PLC (UK) SOLG 1.6 US$0.25 1923 $477 (0.01) (0.00) (0.01) -- -- (0.00) 0.00 0.00 -- -- -- 0.0% Trilogy Metals Inc TMQ 2.2 US$1.49 141 $210 (0.20) (0.09) -- -- -- (0.16) -- -- -- -- 0.0% Turquoise Hill Resources TRQ 3.0 US$0.46 2012 $943 0.23 (0.01) 0.12 -- 3.9 (0.01) (0.06) 0.18 -- 2.5 5.9 0.0% Volcan Cia Ninera VOLABC1 3.0 US$0.09 4077 $1,822 (0.02) 0.01 0.01 6.8 7.0 -- -- -- -- -- 9.1 0.0% Western Areas NL (AU) WSA 2.1 AUD$2.20 274 $381 0.12 0.22 0.22 10.2 10.0 0.43 0.49 0.46 4.5 4.8 6.8 1.0% Average 16.0 7.1 4.4 2.7 10.4 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Consensus Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Aluminum Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Alcoa Inc AA 2.6 US$7.59 186 $1,411 (0.99) (0.93) (0.54) -- -- 3.70 1.64 3.05 4.6 2.5 3.7 0.0% Alumina Ltd AWC 2.3 US$1.00 2880 $2,870 0.11 0.07 0.08 13.6 12.8 0.13 0.09 0.07 10.7 13.5 3.9 5.3% Aluminum Corp China Ltd (ADR) ACH 2.5 CNY$1.45 17023 $6,186 0.04 0.04 0.09 32.8 16.9 0.73 0.73 0.65 2.0 2.2 13.5 0.0% Century Aluminum CENX 2.8 US$4.04 89 $360 (1.35) (0.99) (0.57) -- -- 0.20 0.43 0.62 9.4 6.6 20.9 0.0% United Company Rusal Ltd (HK) 486 2.2 US$0.34 15193 $5,214 0.08 0.09 0.10 3.7 3.3 0.11 0.08 0.09 4.1 4.0 7.7 0.0% Average 16.7 11.0 6.2 5.8 9.9 Iron Ore Cliffs Natural Resources CLF 2.9 US$3.71 399 $1,479 1.05 (0.41) 0.38 -- 9.7 1.98 0.06 1.53 61.8 2.4 9.6 2.7% Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (AU) FMG 2.8 US$7.18 3079 $21,978 1.20 1.13 0.77 6.3 9.3 1.62 1.56 1.17 4.6 6.1 5.7 9.4% Kumba Iron Ore Ltd (SA) KIO 3.4 ZAR$343.45 322 $5,863 50.73 43.32 33.56 7.9 10.2 85.20 66.49 55.89 5.2 6.1 5.9 11.2% Labrador Iron Ore Royalty (CA) LIF 2.1 C$19.36 64 $880 3.21 2.46 2.33 7.9 8.3 3.51 2.37 2.30 8.2 8.4 12.9 5.1% Mount Gibson Iron Limited (AU) MGX 2.7 AUD$0.70 1158 $513 0.10 0.10 0.10 7.3 7.1 0.09 0.17 0.21 4.1 3.3 20.4 4.2% Average 7.3 8.9 16.8 5.3 10.9 Fertilizers CF Industries CF 2.5 US$28.29 214 $6,048 2.31 1.68 2.09 16.8 13.5 6.79 5.80 5.95 4.9 4.8 14.5 2.5% Compass Minerals CMP 2.2 US$41.30 34 $1,400 1.90 3.01 3.72 13.7 11.1 4.71 6.89 9.51 6.0 4.3 10.1 4.7% Incitec Pivot Ltd (AU) IPL 2.6 AUD$2.18 1613 $2,226 0.11 0.16 0.20 13.4 10.8 0.29 0.39 0.41 5.6 5.3 8.0 1.4% Intrepid Potash IPI 3.0 US$0.96 131 $126 0.10 0.03 0.06 29.6 16.7 0.38 0.30 0.32 3.2 3.0 -- 0.0% Israel Chemical (IS) ICL 2.4 US$3.05 1280 $3,887 0.37 0.32 0.40 9.4 7.6 0.77 0.45 0.55 6.8 5.6 6.1 3.9% K & S Aktiengesellschaft (GR) SDF 2.8 EUR$5.88 191 $1,219 0.46 (0.02) 0.56 -- 10.4 3.34 2.40 2.31 2.5 2.5 7.8 1.3% Mosaic Co MOS 2.4 US$11.45 379 $4,340 0.19 0.36 1.08 31.9 10.6 2.85 2.93 3.39 3.9 3.4 7.7 0.8% Nutrien Ltd NTR 2.0 US$35.81 573 $20,449 2.17 2.07 2.53 17.3 14.1 6.29 4.96 5.24 7.2 6.8 -- 3.7% Sociedad Quimica Minera (ADR) SQM 3.2 US$22.57 263 $5,898 1.06 1.14 1.42 19.8 15.8 1.62 1.83 2.00 12.4 11.3 8.8 4.6% Yara International ASA (NO) YAR 1.8 US$34.40 272 $9,371 3.09 3.17 3.75 10.8 9.2 7.00 6.23 6.37 5.5 5.4 7.9 4.1% Average 18.1 12.0 5.8 5.2 8.9 Coal Large - Mid Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Adaro Energy TBK (ID) ADRO 2.8 US$0.07 31986 $2,122 0.01 0.01 0.01 6.0 6.0 0.03 0.02 0.02 3.3 3.3 3.4 4.2% Banpu Public Co Ltd (TH) BANPU 3.1 US$0.17 5162 $885 0.01 0.02 0.03 7.1 6.3 0.08 0.05 0.06 3.2 2.8 14.3 5.0% China Coal Energy Co (HK) 1898 2.3 CNY$1.95 13259 $6,241 0.47 0.41 0.42 4.7 4.6 1.55 1.11 1.41 1.8 1.4 10.8 4.6% China Shenhua Energy Co (HK) 1088 2.2 CNY$12.99 19890 $43,593 2.10 1.91 1.93 6.8 6.7 3.17 3.09 3.44 4.2 3.8 4.7 8.7% Consol Energy CNX 2.1 US$10.63 187 $1,988 0.60 0.38 0.36 28.0 29.2 5.12 3.80 3.89 2.8 2.7 8.1 0.0% Whitehaven Coal Ltd (AU) WHC 2.3 AUD$1.80 1026 $1,165 0.33 0.14 0.21 12.4 8.5 0.61 0.37 0.46 4.8 3.9 5.4 5.5% Yancoal Australia Ltd YAL 3.0 AUD$2.38 1320 $1,788 0.69 0.29 0.33 8.2 7.2 -- -- -- -- -- -- 11.4% Yanzhou Coal Mining Co Ltd (HK) 1171 2.7 CNY$5.65 4912 $5,164 1.91 1.48 1.47 3.8 3.8 3.58 2.59 3.47 2.2 1.6 17.0 0.0% Average 9.6 9.0 3.2 2.8 9.1 Small Cap Alliance Resource Partners LP ARLP 2.3 US$3.61 127 $459 3.07 0.36 0.56 9.9 6.4 1.81 1.37 1.90 2.6 1.9 1.8 19.8% Arch Coal Inc ARCH 1.8 US$28.06 15 $425 12.58 4.63 10.75 6.1 2.6 24.26 9.84 20.28 2.9 1.4 -- 2.5% Fushan Int'l Energy Group (HK) 639 2.3 HK$1.51 5302 $1,033 0.22 0.22 0.22 6.8 6.8 0.37 0.38 0.42 4.0 3.6 5.6 10.2% Natural Resource Partners LP NRP 2.0 US$14.20 12 $174 6.40 6.25 6.45 2.3 2.2 10.69 10.58 5.28 1.3 2.7 3.0 9.0% New Hope Corp Ltd (AU) NHC 2.0 AUD$1.62 832 $853 0.25 0.16 0.16 10.0 9.9 0.35 0.32 0.29 5.0 5.6 11.3 8.0% PT Tambang Batubara Bukit (ID) PTBA 2.5 IDR$1,980 11521 $1,462 371.00 302.23 305.37 6.6 6.5 383.90 330.18 330.66 6.0 6.0 6.5 0.0% Average 6.9 5.7 3.6 3.5 5.6 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Uranium Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 17-Apr-20 (MM) (US$MM) 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2019 2020E 2021E 2020E 2021E 2020E % Cameco Corp CCJ 2.3 C$13.67 396 $3,865 0.10 (0.02) (0.02) -- -- 1.33 0.67 0.70 20.4 19.5 9.1 0.7% Denison Mines DNN 2.3 C$0.51 597 $216 (0.03) (0.02) (0.01) -- -- (0.03) (0.03) (0.01) -- -- -- 0.0% Energy Resources Australia (AU) ERA 4.0 AUD$0.16 3691 $362 0.01 0.00 0.00 -- -- (0.19) 0.02 0.00 7.8 -- 21.4 0.0% Nexgen Energy Ltd (CA) NXE 1.6 C$1.55 360 $399 (0.04) (0.08) (0.06) -- -- (0.04) (0.04) (0.03) -- -- -- 0.0% Uranium Participation Corp (CA) U 2.1 C$4.98 138 $488 0.01 0.15 0.08 32.5 59.2 (0.03) (0.05) (0.03) -- -- -- 0.0% Average 32.5 59.2 14.1 19.5 15.3 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Commodity Prices Cash Price (17-Apr-20) Silver ($15.19 / oz) Palladium ($2070 / oz) Platinum ($779 / oz) Aluminum ($0.67 / lb) Cobalt ($13.38 / lb) Copper ($2.35 / lb) Lead ($0.75 / lb) Molybdenum ($8.25 / lb) Nickel ($5.39 / lb) Tin ($6.90 / lb) Zinc ($0.88 / lb) Uranium ($29.50 / lb) Base metal prices are LME cash prices quoted in US$ per lb. Precious metal prices are London spot prices quoted in US$ per oz. Sources: LME, Kitco, Platts Bill Matlack is associated with Scarsdale Equities LLC, a registered broker/dealer and member FINRA, SIPC. Anthony Horgan and Christopher Jones, both homeless, appeared before a special sitting of Cork District Court yesterday. Judge John King heard that Mr Jones, aged 27, had spent 1,200 on crack cocaine in the 12 hours prior to his arrest. He suffers from heroin and cocaine addiction. Neither men made any reply when the charges were put to them under caution. Mr Horgan, aged 44, was charged with nine offences including involvement in six burglaries. He also faces one count of handling stolen property, possession of a knife, and a threat to cause criminal damage while being questioned at Togher Garda Station in Cork city. Mr Jones was charged with involvement in six burglaries and one count of handling stolen property. The property in both cases involved ATM cards which the men allegedly used at a convenience store in Cork. Objecting to bail for both men, Detective Garda Padraig Harrington said the charges were very serious. He alleged that the men were involved in a crime spree which started with a robbery on April 9. A number of robberies occurred on April 17 in occupied houses, including at High St, Frankfield Villas, and Tyrone Place in Cork city. In one house, a woman aged 83 was sleeping in her downstairs bedroom when she woke to the sight of two men who claimed to be members of An Garda Siochana. They said they were investigating a burglary and asked where her safe place was for cash. When she directed them to the area they fled with 2,700 cash and 80 sterling. It is understood five burglaries were carried out in Cork city on April 17, with gardai alleging Horgan and Jones were the culprits. Det Garda Harrington said that during questioning, Horgan picked up a metal bin and threatened to throw it through the window. There was strong evidence against both men, he said, including CCTV footage. Solicitor Eddie Burke, representing Mr Jones, said he was disappointed to see his client before the courts as he had been doing well. His support system had shut due to Covid-19 restrictions. His client requires methadone and sleeping tablets in prison. He asked that his medical needs be tended to while in custody. Mr Horgan took to the stand in a bid to obtain bail. He said gardai had shown him CCTV of a big man and a small man but he didnt know who they were. He hoped to receive bail in order to take care of his mother. Judge King remanded the pair in custody to appear by video link at Cork District Court on Wednesday. Activists sentence for rally order breaches reduced by 2.5 years RAPSI, Eugeny Varlamov 16:58 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) The Moscow City Court on Monday reduced a 4-year prison sentence passed on activist Konstantin Kotov for repeated violations of a rally holding order to 1.5 years. The ruling announcement was broadcasted on the courts website. The court included in the sentence the term Kotov spent in detention from August 13, 2019 to April 20, 2020. Moscows Tverskoy District Court convicted and sentenced Kotov to 4 years in jail in September. A month later, the Moscow City Court upheld the verdict. He filed a cassation appeal against the ruling. In early March, the Second Cassation Court of General Jurisdiction returned the case of Kotov to a lower court for reconsideration. Investigators claim, the man, who was repeatedly brought to administrative liability for breaking an order of public events in the last 180 days, recently took part in an unauthorized protest action ignoring police demands to stop illegal actions. Investigative authorities claimed that his actions had an intentional nature. Kotov pleaded not guilty. His defense insisted that there were no elements of a crime in his actions.Protest actions began in Moscow in mid-July after election commissions denied registration of certain opposition members as candidates for the Moscow City Duma elections reasoning that documents submitted by them contained numerous violations. The first unauthorized rally took place hear the Moscow City Election Commissions building on July 14 and looked like a provocation, according to law experts. Unauthorized rallies in support of candidates seeking to become lawmakers of the Moscow State Duma but refused registration by the Election Commission were also held on July 27 and August 3 in central Moscow. Over 1,000 people were arrested for various violations as a result. Following the 27 July rally, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case over mass riots. Investigators believe that the protest action was held with the use of force against representatives of authority. People wearing face masks walk on the Bir-Hakeim Bridge near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, on March 27, 2020, on the 11th day of a lockdown in France aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus). JOEL SAGET | AFP via Getty Images The coronavirus crisis will likely lead to the largest ever decline of global carbon emissions on record, according to research from Goldman Sachs, illuminating the potential for a long-term low carbon recovery. The Covid-19 outbreak has meant countries around the world have effectively had to shut down, with many governments imposing draconian restrictions on the daily lives of billions of people. To date, confinement measures have been implemented in 187 countries or territories in an effort to try to slow the spread of the pandemic. A side-effect of these measures, which vary in their application worldwide but broadly include school closures, bans on public gatherings and social distancing, has been a dramatic fall in the level of global carbon emissions. Analysts at Goldman Sachs said in a research note that they expect energy-related carbon emissions (which account for two-thirds of total greenhouse gas emissions) to fall by at least 5.4% this year alone. To be sure, that's roughly five times that of previous crises, with the potential for "much larger" declines depending on the length of disruption to the transportation sector and industrial activity. 'This time could be different' "Energy-related emissions have always rebounded post crisis," analysts at Goldman Sachs said, citing data which showed carbon intensity improvements in the year after every major crisis since the 1970s. "This time could be different as we have potentially already reached peak energy-related carbon," they added. A worker examines a sewage recycling pool in the coal liquefaction factory of CHN Energy in Ordos, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, April 11, 2019. Xinhua | via Getty Images Total global greenhouse gas emissions were estimated to peak around 2030, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's most aggressive current policy estimates. However, research from the IEA published in early February found global energy-related carbon emissions had already started to flatten, potentially leading to a peak in global greenhouse gas emissions a decade early. The IEA's Executive Director Fatih Birol has since argued that progress made in transitioning the energy production mix could mark 2019 through to 2020 as the definitive year for peak energy-related carbon emissions. "A signicant effort will be needed to ensure that global greenhouse gas emissions don't just peak but decline rapidly in order to meet climate ambitions," analysts at Goldman Sachs said. Why might China's response to this crisis be so critical? "This crisis has demonstrated our vulnerability as a world to global threats," Bob Ward, a director at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change at the London School of Economics, told CNBC via telephone. "Climate change is a massive global threat that will still be there after we have overcome this pandemic and we will need to be working very hard to avoid that becoming something that undermines lives and livelihoods," Ward continued. If China, the world's largest emitter of carbon emissions, chooses to recover from this crisis "by relying on coal and other fossil fuels then its emissions will go up next year and maybe for many subsequent years." "But, also, it will set an example to other developing countries that that's an acceptable way and that might be even more damaging," he added. I think the absolutely critical element here is governments must understand that if they rebuild in a high carbon way then all they are doing is locking in the risks of climate change in the future. Bob Ward Policy and Communications Director at London School of Economics Climate scientists have said it is important to recognize the climate emergency, much like the coronavirus pandemic, as a global health crisis. Stringent measures to curb the pandemic's spread has coincided with a significant improvement of air quality in many cities across the globe. In fact, in Europe, the effects are visible from space. The European Space Agency, citing data from the European Union Copernicus program, said Thursday that some cities in the region had recorded a massive decline in nitrogen dioxide concentration levels in recent weeks. From March 13 through to April 13, the ESA said that compared to the same period the previous year, Madrid, Milan and Rome had all reported decreases of nitrogen dioxide concentrations of around 45%. Paris, meanwhile, saw a "dramatic" drop of 54%. "I think we have been given a window, out of a very tragic situation, to look at a reset in a way that we did not think possible three months ago," Gail Whiteman, director of the Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business at Lancaster University, told CNBC via telephone. "Peak carbon isn't a dream. It is not a utopian vision. It can happen but there will be pushback, there is no question," she added. The Grand Canal is seen as the Italian government prepares to adopt new measures to contain the spread of coronavirus in Venice, Italy, March 8, 2020. Manuel Silvestri | Reuters MIAMI, FL While some people have been reluctant to handle their mail amid the coronavirus outbreak, it appears there is little science to back those fears up. "The CDC, WHO, as well as the Surgeon General have indicated there is currently no evidence that COVID-19 is being spread through mail and packages," explained Debra J. Fetterly of the U.S. Postal Service. She said mail and package deliveries have continued throughout the health crisis though the Postal Service has made some adjustments to comply with social distancing guidelines. "Customers shouldnt approach a carrier to take a delivery, instead allowing them to leave the mailbox area before collecting it," Fetterly said. "Most schools are not in session and children should also be encouraged to not approach a postal vehicle or carrier." Mail Processor Nicole Bond wears a mask and gloves at the Miami Processing and Distribution Center. Via USPS If a delivery requires a signature, carriers will knock on your door rather than ring the bell. "They will maintain a safe distance, and instead of asking for a signature on the mobile device, theyll ask for a name," Fetterly said. "The carrier will leave the mail or package in a safe place for retrieval." The Postal Service has more than 600,000 employees throughout the United States involved with processing, transporting and delivering mail and packages. Here are some additional measures the Postal Service has taken: Distributing millions of masks, gloves and sanitizing products to employees. Arranging shipments of sanitizing and cleaning products to more than 30,000 locations every day. Reinforcing workplace behaviors to make sure that contact among employees and customers reflects the best guidance regarding healthy interactions, social distancing and risk minimization. Posting signs, social distancing markers and cough/sneeze barriers at retail facilities and mail processing facilities. Making sure cleaning is performed in accordance with CDC guidance. The Postal Service has released the following videos on coronavirus measures that have been put in place at mail stores and among mail carriers: COVID-19 Help Us Serve You Retail COVID-19 Help Us Serve You Carriers This article originally appeared on the Miami Patch Baylor, TCU deny recognition to conservative student group Turning Point USA Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Christian higher education institutions Baylor University and Texas Christian University have both reportedly denied official campus recognition to chapters of the national conservative student organization Turning Point USA, which is active on hundreds of college campuses. Students at both Texas-based institutions spoke to Breitbart News recently about how their quests to get official recognition for chapters of the student organization founded by conservative activist Charlie Kirk have been unsuccessful. Lori Fogleman, assistant vice president for Media & Public Relations at Baylor, did not explain why the group was denied but told CP that the university "currently has three very active conservative student organizations on our campus: Baylor College Republicans, Baylor Young Americans for Freedom, and Baylor Young Conservatives of Texas." TCU did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Turning Point USA at Baylor Chapter President Oliver Mintz told Breitbart, a conservative online news outlet, that the denial "was biased, plain and simple. According to Mintz, he and others involved in Baylor Turning Point USA have worked unsuccessfully for months to obtain official campus recognition at the worlds largest Baptist university based in Waco. He said that the universitys student activities department has offered little communication with the group and hasn't explained its reasons for denying the club. Mintz said that school officials were unable to provide us with any reason for the denial at a formal meeting, during which the clubs recognition was officially denied. However, Mintz recalled school officials making a vague reference to Turning Point USAs methodology. They also brought up concerns about the leadership of the organization once our current leadership and founders graduate by saying that they were worried about a drop-off and decline with future leadership, he said. This could be said about any club on campus whether its the knitting club or a political organization. Breitbart notes that on Dec. 17, 2019, Mintz sent an email asking for a list of reasons why Turning Point USA was denied recognition at Baylor. After receiving no response, he reached out again in mid-February to request a list of reasons from the Director of Student Activities Matt Burchett. Mintz has yet to receive any list of reasons why the club was denied. We firmly understand that Baylor, as a private university, has the absolute right to deny us a charter, he admitted. However, by denying us, they are showing us their true colors that they are against free speech and against conservative values being presented on campus. At TCU, a 10,000-student institution affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) based in Fort Worth, Breitbart reported on Monday that three students who have tried to get an official Turning Point USA chapter recognized at TCU since last summer have been denied. TCU student Lauren McCoy told the news outlet that she is the last person to try to start a Turning Point USA club at TCU, beginning her application process in January. The approval process should take three or so weeks, she was quoted as saying. Instead, it took nearly all semester until April 15 for them to make their decision to deny my request. I did everything they asked me to in a diligent, respectful, and prompt manner. The students were reportedly told that the group was denied for sustainability concerns on grounds that the club might dissolve after senior members graduate. However, McCoy argues that the administrations excuse is not valid because she expects the club to grow. I made an executive board of students ranging from freshmen to juniors who are all active students on campus, McCoy explained. Of course, the entire point of a student organization is to have the ability to reach out to other students, letting the club be known, and gain members. Turning Point USA TCU Vice President Reagan Gates told the news outlet that it is important to give a space to like-minded students where we can all learn and grow together with our common values. That is something TCU promotes, yet has denied us, Gates argued, adding that the TCU is denying a home for the quiet conservatives on campus and hushing our voice. McCoy launched a Change.org petition, calling on TCU to formally recognize Turning Point USA. A similar petition was launched by Mintz, calling on Baylor to grant recognition to the group. TCU and Baylor are not the first institutions to deny official recognition to Turning Point USA chapters. Other schools that have in the past denied recognition to the group include Drake University in Iowa, the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, Northwestern University in Illinois. Other conservative student organizations like Young Americans for Freedom have also complained that they are often denied recognition on campuses. Turning Point USA seeks to identify educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government. The organization has received scrutiny from the Anti-Defamation League because it allegedly garnered support from so-called alt-lite activists. In 2017, African American commentator Candace Owens became the organization's communications director. Owens resigned from her role in May 2019 to start Blexit. The rapid spread of coronavirus COVID-19 has shocked the world, with more than 150,000 people dead and more than two million confirmed cases. The International Labour Organization estimates the global economy will lose more than 195 million jobs. It is expected that the pandemic will hit developing countries harder, with income losses exceeding US$220 billion and nearly half of all workers in Africa losing their jobs. An effective response must be driven by solidarity, science, and human rights, whilst focusing on the most vulnerable. For the United Nations, and for UNDP in particular, poverty, climate change, inequality, and conflict are relevant to the whole of humanity. For this reason, we have been listening to people and experts and working to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. The COVID-19 crisis will be felt in education, human rights and, in the most severe cases, basic food security and nutrition, especially for the estimated 55 percent of the people in the world with no social protection. It is important to keep in mind that total number of confirmed cases does not provide an accurate picture as, such as in Libya, there is a lack of testing capacity. The need to respond to the global health crisis only adds to the protracted security, political and economic crises. People in Libya live in permanent uncertainty and fear, as open conflict continues. This new challenge comes to under-resourced hospitals and a fragile health system, plus poor urban planning, the weak waste disposal services, and even traffic congestion, which slows down emergency vehicles and first responders. For years UNDP, and other UN agencies have been supporting public institutions, local governments, civil society and communities in Libya to achieve stabilization, resilience and recovery, and contributing to shaping the conditions for peace and social cohesion in the west, east and south of the country. In coordination with public institutions and the United Nations, we are responding to COVID-19 in three ways. The first is supporting national and local institutions to strengthen their health systems. With support from 13 international partners, our Stabilization Facility for Libya, and with funds from the European Union, our resilience programme continues supporting all three regions of Libya with health infrastructure, health waste management, and water and sanitation equipment. We are providing key strategic health infrastructure and medical equipment, upgrade capacities for local production of protection gear, help to the Ministry of Health to build isolation rooms in hospitals and clinics, as well as provide technical assistance to design medical oxygen plants and buy hospital beds, oxygen cylinders and coronavirus test kits. We are supporting Ministry of Justice to prevent and control COVID-19 in prisons. We are also working with the Libya Accelerator Lab, part of a UNDP global network, to apply innovative ways and tools to support the COVID-19 response. The second is bringing all local and national authorities, civil society and the private sector around the table. This will include strengthening institutions for governance and crisis management at national and local level and raising awareness on the exposure and precautions against the virus through a network of communication officers of municipalities in the south, west, and east of the country. UNDP works with the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, so it can move forward with the Berlin peace process and pave the way for a comprehensive political solution, despite the constraints determined by the threat of the virus. We are hosting online reconciliation forums and advocating for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world issued by the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, to fight the common enemy. We are supporting a group of 100 peace mediators from all corners of Libya spreading their word online with the hashtags #unitedagainstcorona #peacenowstopcorona. The third is addressing the socio-economic and human rights impacts of COVID-19 and safeguarding progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including addressing stigma and discrimination arising from its spread, and supporting marginalized people and vulnerable populations. In Libya we will assess capacities and planning for long term inclusive development with a special focus on most vulnerable groups. Well implement special measures for those whose livelihoods are most affected and conduct communication and advocacy campaigns engaging with civil society and community organizations to prevent discrimination. Within the UN systems coordinated response in Libya, we are working to ensure that no one is left behind, that we support preparation, management and recovery of this crisis and develop the capacity for longer term prevention, as we continue making progress towards the SDGs. New Delhi, April 20 : To support India in its efforts towards COVID-19 relief efforts, the social networking giant on Monday announced 'Facebook Fundraisers platform that will help people start a fundraiser towards coronavirus-related donations. With 'Facebook Fundraisers', anyone can set up a dedicated page for a cause, and rally others around a fundraising goal. Since 2015, people around the globe have raised over $3 billion dollars on Facebook to support causes they care about, the company informed in a statement. "Communities around the country need help. Today, with the launch of Facebook Fundraisers, we are making a particular push towards ensuring everyone can contribute to relief efforts," said Ajit Mohan, Vice President and Managing Director, Facebook India. People will have an option to donate to over 70 charities on Facebook, such as Goonj, The Akshayapatra Foundation and Helpage India. Facebook has partnered with GiveIndia, a trusted charitable giving platform, for the verification of these charities. Donations to registered charities in India will be facilitated by full-stack financial services company Razorpay. The company said that 100 per cent of what is raised in donations through Facebook will go to charities. It also announced a 'Social-For-Good Live-a-thon' initiative with over 150 creators, celebrities and publishers, to encourage people to donate to selected charities. The week-long charitable giving initiative, from April 24 to May 1 represents over 350 million followers cumulatively. These partners will entertain and engage their communities on Facebook Live and activate fundraisers, said the company. Artists will go Live from their individual Facebook accounts and promote their fundraisers using the in-video 'donate' action. She has landed the role of spokesperson for the new Dolce & Gabbana handbag campaign. And on Monday Sofia Vergara said she is proud to be a part of the campaign while acknowledging Italy which has been hit hard with the coronavirus with over 24,000 deaths. 'Im so honored to be a part of the @dolcegabbana family, and to be featured in such a meaningful campaign celebrating the gorgeous Devotion bag!' said the 47-year-old Modern Family actress. She loves Italy: She has landed the role of spokesperson for the new Dolce & Gabbana handbag campaign. And on Monday Sofia Vergara said she is proud to be a part of the campaign while acknowledging Italy which has been hit hard with the coronavirus with over 24,000 deaths She added, 'This is a brand I have loved for so long. Feeling grateful to have shot this in Italy where I have so many special memories. Sending love to all of Italia. IU D&G!!' The siren was in all black with red lips as she posed in what looked to be Capri with pink flowers in the background. The looker held on to the purse just so while she modeled black heels. Love for the boot: 'Im so honored to be a part of the @dolcegabbana family, and to be featured in such a meaningful campaign celebrating the gorgeous Devotion bag!' said the 47-year-old Modern Family actress Her note: She added, 'This is a brand I have loved for so long. Feeling grateful to have shot this in Italy where I have so many special memories. Sending love to all of Italia. IU D&G!!' A different look saw the star in a plunging floral gown while another black lace ensemble showcased Sofia's sensational curves. The Hollywood star was taking part in a new Devotion handbag campaign for the luxury Italian clothing brand. Sofia, who played the role of Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in the acclaimed series Modern Family, finally said goodbye to the part this month after more than a decade on US television. Designer: The Hollywood star was taking part in a new Devotion handbag campaign for the luxury Italian clothing brand Natural beauty: The American-Colombian actress, 47, wore a number of eye-catching designs for the shoot including a glamorous plunging floral dress The four-time Golden Globe nominee made an impressive $500,000 (399,000) per episode to play the lovable housewife. Sofia was named as the highest paid TV actress in 2019, racking in an impressive $44.1 million (35.2 million), according to Forbes. The star also secured the post in 2018 with an impressive $42.5 million (33.9 million). Luxury: A different look saw the star in a black lace ensemble which showcased her sensational curves Hear her roar: The TV star also wore a fun leopard print dress as she held a red purse As well as expressing her love for luxury brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, Sofia has also produced a range of clothing for Walmart. Meanwile, Sofia has been entertaining herself during the coronavirus lockdown by sharing throwback pictures from her youth. On Thursday, she posted an 80s swimsuit picture to Instagram with the caption '#tbt The 80s Colombia,' along with two heart emojis. And on Tuesday she shared a throwback of herself in a bikini, during her time hosting Univision's Spanish travel show Fuera De Serie from 1995-1998. Beauty in yellow! Meanwile, Sofia has been entertaining herself during the coronavirus lockdown by sharing throwback pictures from her youth Sofia seemed thrilled to reminisce on her days as a young journalist, as she shared a series of videos reporting live from the beach and on safari. In the clip, she passionately shared information about how the country is home to many of South America's best beaches, which stay warm enough to swim in all-year-long. The bikini clad star radiated confidence, as she walked toward the camera in the sand and sported significantly lighter tresses. It is basically over 6-12 months In another year or years It was never a real pandemic Vote View Results The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, says the decision to lift the partial lockdown of Accra, Kumasi, Tema and Kasoa, was taken after a careful consideration of a number of factors. According to President Akufo-Addo, the countrys current capacity to trace victims of this disease, being able to test, being able to isolate and quarantine those people so that we take them out of the population, and, of course, the treatment, are some of the factors that led to the decision to lift the partial lockdown. Again, the President added that we are also looking at the demography of the disease itself, in terms of the sick, in terms of death. What we will like to do, as decision makers, is to balance all these factors and to come to a conclusion and a set of solutions that will benefit our people and of course, protect the economy of our country. All of these have been the basket of issues that have led us to take this decision. President Akufo-Addo made this known on Monday, 20th April, 2020, when he invited the Executive Committee of the Ghana Medical Association to a meeting at Jubilee House to explain the rationale behind the lifting of the lockdown, and deliberate on how Government and the Association can continue to work together post the lifting of the lockdown. Whilst being hopeful of gaining the understanding and co-operation of Association, he expressed his satisfaction about the mode of testing and the results that have emanated from the tests. The common consensus has recognized that we have undertaken the most preemptive testing on the continent in relative terms. That has given us a very large pool of information as to how the disease is unfolding in our country. I think our capacity to be able to continue to do that is very critical for our ability to deal with this virus, President Akufo-Addo added. He noted that had Government not taken the decision to aggressively to go out and test infected people and their contacts, we would not have the figures that we are getting today and yet, we would have had those very same people within the population. The testing of nearly 70,000 contacts whose results have are known, the President stressed, continue to give us the demography, the infection rate, the death rate, and the numbers of people who are affected and are moderately ill. All of those things are remaining quite consistent in the data that we have received. It is that robust consistency in the data, he explained, that we have that is inspiring our decision. I called you here this morning for you to hear us and for you to also see the measures that we have. As President of the Republic, he indicated that I cannot ignore the impact that this lock down is having on several constituencies of our nation, especially the informal workers, a very important part of our economy, who need to have a day out in the market or otherwise in order to provide for their families, who were having a lot of difficulty. To members of the Association, the President expressed the appreciation of the nation for the important role all health workers are playing towards helping Government to combat the disease. You are the very centre of this battle doctors and the Association of Doctors in our country. You are very, very central to whatever steps we will take to take this country forward. I thought it was important to meet immediately after the decision that we took last night to ease the restrictions of movements in our two greatest cities-Accra and Kumasi, and to get a bit of a flavour of how we are looking to go about this, he added. On behalf of the Ghana Medical Association, Dr. Frank Ankobea, the President of the Association thanked the President for the invitation, adding that all we need to do is to pledge our support to Government that we will continue with you, and we will continue to fight until this virus is eliminated from Ghana. 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. Featured Video ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) has taken note of the coronavirus (covid19) and posted advice in their online newspaper al Naba on how followers should deal with this pandemic disease. The advice is simple; avoid sick people, wash your hands and dont travel in areas where covid19 is known to be present. If ISIL members do contract the virus and fall ill they must trust in Allah to decide their fate. While some Moslems believe that Moslems are immune to covid19, the majority see the virus as a major threat. Medical care for Islamic terrorists has always been a problem. In 2014, when the Islamic state was established in western Iraq and eastern Syria ISIL called for like-minded Moslems to come join them. ISIL specifically called for medical and technical personnel to help essential provide services. That appeal brought some medical personnel but there were never enough doctors and such answering the call. Medical professionals who were trapped in areas ISIL overran in 2014 were assured of good treatment if they continued using their healing skills for other residents of the Islamic State. If that didnt work family members were held as hostages to ensure cooperation. Wounded or ill ISIL fighters were given priority but there was no specialty care for the seriously ill, even senior leaders. Some of these might be covertly moved to Turkish hospitals where cash purchased discreet specialized care. In some cases, wounded ISIL men sought to disguise their true occupation and seek care in Israel. That was because Israel provided medical care for badly wounded civilians living near the Israeli border. This was unpopular in Israel because of that risk but the care continued as a good-will gesture to Syrians along the border who would often provide information on what was going on in Syria. Israel did ID and capture at least three ISIL members seeking care and others may have received care and returned to Syria a bit confused about just how evil the Israelis were. Israel also used access to advanced medical care for Palestinians in Gaza as a recruiting tool. Hamas, an admitted Islamic terrorist group that saw itself at war with Israel and ruled Gaza, often saw its border crossing with Israel closed because of Hamas rocket and mortar attacks on Israel. Those crossings were not closed permanently because they were also needed to move food and other essential supplies in. Some sick Palestinians were also allowed into Israel for advanced care but those allowed in were carefully scrutinized. Those Palestinians related to informants were always allowed to pass and were often permitted to remain in Israel for extended care. Hamas knew this was going on but could not do much to stop it because most of the Palestinians allowed into Israel for medical care were not related to informants and many were related to Hamas officials and staff. In Afghanistan, the Taliban could often obtain care at regional clinics via the use of bribes, threats or kidnapping kin of medical staff. Very serious cases could be moved to Pakistan, where the Taliban always had sanctuary and access to all manner of services. Senior Taliban leaders often received extended stays in Pakistani military hospitals for acute conditions. Such was the case with Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar, who had extended stays in these Pakistani hospitals. The exact location of the hospital where Mullah Omar was being treated was kept secret and this enabled the Taliban to keep his 2013 death in one of these hospitals secret for two years. When it became known that his death had remained a secret even to most Taliban members, it triggered a civil war within the Taliban. This conflict continues because Mullah Omars death was kept secret to provide Pakistan more time to find a suitable successor who would willingly do whatever Pakistan wanted. Mullah Omar had been cooperative and that rankled many Taliban members. It still does, more so than access to medical care. The latest novel coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Monday (this file is no longer being updated. Read the latest here). Web links to longer stories if available. This story is no longer updating. Click here to see Tuesdays daily news file 7 p.m.: Willowdale Welcome Centre confirms 74 COVID-19 cases among clients, according to figures from Toronto Public Health. Widespread testing was conducted at the North York facility over the weekend, and strikingly, a large number of those who tested positive showed few or no symptoms, according to Patricia Mueller, chief executive officer of Homes First, the agency that operates the 200-bed shelter. Mueller said she is hopeful it will not have the same impact on refugees at Willowdale, who on average are 40 years old or younger and are in generally good health. The shelter, which opened in the fall, has capacity for 120 women and 80 men on two floors. Mary-Anne Bedard, the head of the citys shelter support and housing administration, said the city is working with the province to conduct the mass testing, triaging clients as needed to send them to the appropriate programs which could mean sending them to a COVID-19 recovery centre or into isolation at a different facility. 6:55 p.m.: The coronavirus pandemic has forced one of Canadas major beef processing plants to shut down, with no estimated date of reopening, as cattle producers warn they could lose $500 million over the coming weeks. The Cargill meat processing plant in High River, Alta. temporarily closed Monday after the operation was linked to more than 350 cases of COVID-19 in the suburban community outside Calgary. About 2,100 people work at the plant, and the company is urging them all to get tested for the novel coronavirus, Cargills North America lead John Nash said in a statement. The company said it typically processes 4,500 cattle per day, which the Canadian Cattlemens Association says represents 36 per cent of the countrys beef production capacity. 6 p.m.: Alberta is reporting 105 new cases and four additional deaths related to COVID-19. That brings the total to 2,908 cases and 59 deaths in the province. So far, 1,230 people have recovered from the illness. Health Minister Tyler Shandro says cases in care homes remain a concern and the government will be releasing a plan this week to help the facilities and workers. 5 p.m.: Ontarios regional health units are reporting their largest single-day jump in COVID-19 cases since the since the pandemic began, according to the Stars count. As of 5 p.m. Monday, the Star is counting 12,534 confirmed or probable cases in the province, a record jump of 668 cases since the same time Sunday. Most of that increase came in the GTA as the regions five health units reported by far their largest single-day jump in cases, up 473 in 24 hours. The GTA regions also saw the majority of the 47 new deaths reported in the province since Sunday evening. In 24 hours, Peel Region reported nine more deaths; Toronto and Durham Region reported eight more fatal cases; Halton Region four more; and York Region one additional death. Provincewide, the pandemic has now claimed 657 lives. Meanwhile, as the daily case count continues to grow in the GTA, daily growth has stayed relatively flat in the rest of the province. 4:55 p.m.: Ryan Meili, the leader of Saskatchewans NDP, says to help fight COVID-19 the doctor-turned-politician has renewed his medial licence. He says it felt right to step up and help at a testing and assessment facility in Saskatoon. 2:42 p.m.: The Manitoba government is extending its emergency health orders for the COVID-19 pandemic until the end of May. Premier Brian Pallister says people must continue to follow the rules in order to keep the provinces numbers in check. That means the closure of non-essential businesses and the ban on public gatherings of more than 10 people will continue for another month. The order for interprovincial travellers to self-isolate for 14 days is also being extended. Provincial health officials are reporting one additional COVID-19 case, for a total of 254. Health officials are also reporting the death of a woman in her 80s from COVID-19, bringing the death toll in Manitoba to six. 2:20 p.m.: Federal spending on an emergency benefit to workers out of a job due to COVID-19 has almost reached $20 billion. Federal statistics posted today shows that $19.8 billion in payments has been paid out through the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. The Liberals had previously budgeted $24 billion for the program, which kicked in earlier this month. So far, there have been 6.73 million unique applicants for the program, a figure that includes some two million people who previously applied for employment insurance benefits in March. 2 p.m.: Transit service across Metro Vancouver will see deep cuts over the coming weeks as the company that manages bus, SeaBus, SkyTrain and commuter rail services copes with monthly losses of $75 million. A statement from TransLink says ridership is down 83 per cent due to COVID-19, forcing it to temporarily layoff 1,492 workers and suspend 18 bus routes this week and a further 47 by early May. SkyTrain, SeaBus and the West Coast Express commuter rail line will see service reductions of up to 40 per cent, depending on day and time. TransLink says the cost-saving measures come with a commitment from the province to ensure near-regular service can be restored by September. 1:50 p.m.: For the sixth time in 10 days, New Brunswick has reported no new cases of COVID-19. Chief medical officer Dr. Jennifer Russell said there have only been four new cases in the last week. Ninety-eight of the 118 total cases in the province have recovered, and there are only 20 active cases. Russell said she is encouraged by the trend of fewer cases and more people recovering, but reiterated that New Brunswickers still need to respect provincial restrictions by staying home. 2 p.m.: Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to give people hope, but stresses we cant jump ahead of things over a few weeks. Very, very concerned about flu season and the fall with a second wave of COVID-19. We can see a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel . . . because the vast majority of people cooperated, Ford says. But theres absolutely no way this fight is over. 1:45 p.m.: Quebec is delaying all non-urgent activities in hospitals for the next two weeks to allow more medical professionals to work full time in the provinces struggling long-term care homes. Premier Francois Legault says the province is short 2,000 people to work in the homes, where the majority of the provinces COVID-19 deaths have originated. The province reported 62 more deaths due to COVID-19 for a total of 939, and 962 more cases for a total of 19,319. Legault said 3,847 people have recovered from the illness. 1:41 p.m.: Ford will update reporters following the latest model projections in the province released by health officials. A livestream of the news conference will be available at thestar.com 12:58 p.m.: Nova Scotia is reporting no new deaths from COVID-19 after a weekend where five deaths occurred at a non-profit nursing home in Halifax. The province reported 46 new cases of the virus today for a provincial total of 721 confirmed cases. Nine people have died of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, a figure that includes the five weekend deaths at the Northwood long-term care facility. 12:50 p.m.: The wave of cases in long-term care homes will lead to wave of mortalities because of the age of the residents, officials say. 12:45 p.m.: The median age of COVID-19 deaths in Ontario is 85 years old. 12:45 p.m.: Newfoundland and Labrador says there are no new cases of COVID-19. Chief Medical Officer Janice Fitzgerald says the total number of cases remains at 257 for the province, with the majority coming from the Eastern health region. Despite there being no new cases, Premier Dwight Ball says the province still wont ease on any restrictions for the coronavirus. 12:41 p.m.: There are no new cases of COVID-19 in Prince Edward Island, leaving the countrys smallest province with just 26 cases. Twenty-three of those patients have recovered and there have been no deaths from the novel coronavirus in P.E.I. The provinces chief public health officer, Dr. Heather Morrison, says Canadians will need to learn to live with COVID-19. She says a balance must be found between keeping people safe and returning to normal life. 12:25 p.m.: Ontario Health CEO Matt Anderson says that our public health measures are working. Now looking at bringing elective procedures back on line. Thousands of surgeries were cancelled due to the pandemic. Updated provincial projections underscore that physical distancing and self-isolation are having a positive impact on containing the virus. 12:20 p.m.: Ontario modelling suggests the COVID-19 epidemic has peaked in broader community and is coming under control, but seems to be growing in long-term care and other congregate settings. The Stars Kate Allen and Jennifer Yang wrote about the two epidemics in the province. 12:15 p.m.: Ontario has hit its predicted COVID-19 peak early thanks to stay-at-home and physical distancing measures expected to keep the total number of cases far below grim scenarios presented two weeks ago, according to new computer modelling released by the province. These actions are making a difference and people need to stay the course and stay strong in order to save live, according to notes prepared for a briefing by health officials Monday. The peak was not expected until May and is an important milestone because a reduction in cases should follow. Its likely Ontario will come out of the first wave of the outbreak with fewer than 20,000 cases, much lower than the 80,000 predicted two weeks ago when 300,000 was floated as a worst-case scenario, officials added. 12 p.m.: Eight staff and 60 inmates at a Brampton jail have tested positive for COVID-19 in by far the largest outbreak reported so far in an Ontario provincial correctional institution, according to the Ministry of the Solicitor-General. Read the story from the Stars Alyshah Hasham. 11:45 a.m.: Ontario health officials will give an update to the model projections for the COVID-19 outbreak in the province. A livestream of the news conference will be available at thestar.com 11:45 a.m.: MPs are back in the House of Commons after the four main parties failed to reach consensus on keeping Parliament adjourned. Now, a motion put forward by the Liberal government to sit once a week in person, and virtually otherwise, is being debated. The Liberals have the support of the NDP and Bloc Quebecois for their proposal. But the Conservatives disagree, saying more in-person debate and discussion of the governments COVID-19 response is necessary. 11:35 a.m.: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says it is heartbreak on top of heartbreak when families whose loved ones were killed in Nova Scotia on Sunday cannot gather to mourn because of the COVID-19 physical distancing rules. Trudeau says it is the same heartbreak felt by thousands of other Canadians who have lost loved ones to the virus, or to cancer or other illnesses. He says there will be a virtual vigil on Friday night for all of Canada to support the community 11:30 a.m.: When asked about the negotiations on the return of Parliament, Trudeau said he doesnt want to get into arguments with anyone today and that discussions continue. 11:15 a.m. (updated): Trudeau sends condolences to the families of the victims in the mass shooting in Nova Scotia. Trudeau says the senseless violence in Nova Scotia has jolted a country already coping with a pandemic. Trudeau says 18 lives were lost. One of the victims was RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the national police force and a mother of two. Its a tragic reminder of the risks first responders take every day, Trudeau says. 11:05 a.m.: Trudeau to address reporters at 11:15 a.m. Livestream of the news conference will be available at thestar.com A big talking point will likely be the return of Parliament, which is set to reopen this morning with three of the four main parties expected to back a plan for a single weekly sitting, over the objections of the Opposition Conservatives who continue to say thats not enough. 11:02 a.m. (updated): Ontarios regional health units have reported another 647 cases of COVID-19 since this time Sunday in the provinces largest 24-hour growth in cases since the pandemic began, according to the Stars count. As of 11 a.m. Monday, the Star has counted a total of 12,150 confirmed or probable cases of the disease, including 634 deaths. Despite the jump in raw case numbers, the percentage increase of the epidemic over the last 24 hours 5.6 per cent is in line with a trend of slowed growth relative to recent weeks. The first seven days of April averaged 12.7 per cent daily growth; the second seven days 6.8 per cent. Cases have grown by an average of 5.5 per cent per day since, a rate that if sustained would double the provinces total about every 13 days. The province has also seen another 41 deaths reported since 11 a.m. Sunday. That growth includes a very large increase of nine new deaths in Peel Region, up to 46. More than half of the provinces COVID-19 cases and deaths have come in the GTA. The Star publishes two counts a day, at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. They are based on the public tallies and statements of the provinces regional health units, the local bodies that collect and publish this data often before reporting to the province through its central reporting system. As such, the Stars count is more current than the data the province publishes each morning. Earlier Monday, the province reported 802 patients are now hospitalized with COVID-19, including 247 in an intensive care unit, of whom 193 are on a ventilator totals that are all down slightly from recent days. A total of 5,515 people have recovered after testing positive for the virus, according to the provincial data. The province says its data is accurate to 4 p.m. the previous day. The province also cautions its latest count of deaths 584 may be incomplete or out of date due to delays in the reporting system, saying that in the event of a discrepancy, data reported by (the health units) should be considered the most up to date. The Stars count, includes some patients reported as probable COVID-19 cases, meaning they have symptoms and contacts or travel history that indicate they very likely have the disease, but have not yet received a positive lab test. 10:35 a.m.: The Salvation Army Meighen Health Centre reports that 18 residents have now died of COVID-19, an increase of eight from last Friday. The long-term-care home in midtown Toronto said 50 residents and 14 staff members have tested positive for the virus as of Monday. Our deepest sympathies, thoughts and prayers are with the family members who have lost their loved ones, said Salvation Army public relations Maj. Rob Kerr. The home on Millwood Road, near Yonge Street and Davisville Avenue, is the latest seniors facility in the city to report a serious outbreak of COVID-19. 10:17 a.m.: Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says Parliament will reopen this morning. He is blaming the NDP and Bloc Quebecois for siding with the Liberals in trying to limit debate and discussion around the governments COVID-19 response. All three parties have agreed to a single in-person sitting per week that can eventually be supplemented with virtual sittings. But Scheer says thats not enough, and it is possible for Parliament to safely meet more often. Without a unanimous agreement, Parliament simply resumes as normal though not all 338 MPs have to be present. 10:15 a.m.: A Japanese professor of infectious disease says he is very pessimistic the postponed Tokyo Olympics can open in 15 months. To be honest with you, I dont think the Olympics is likely to be held next year, Kentaro Iwata, a professor of infectious disease at Kobe University, said Monday speaking in English on a teleconference. Holding the Olympics needs two conditions; one, controlling COVID-19 in Japan, and controlling COVID-19 everywhere. 10:05 a.m.: They are fearful, concerned, admonishing at times, but also full of pride for the job they are doing on the front line of Canadas health-care response to the COVID-19 pandemic. From the trenches, and in their own words, nurses share their stories with the Toronto Star. 9:44 a.m.: NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he has not changed his position on a tentative deal struck with the Liberals and Bloc Quebecois about the conditions under which the House of Commons should resume sitting. The three parties reached an agreement that would see a reduced number of parliamentarians gather once per week, as well as two virtual committees of the whole per week. But Conservatives have insisted on more in-person sittings. Without a consensus by late Monday morning, the House of Commons is set to resume business as usual by default. 8:33 a.m.: Iran on Monday began opening intercity highways and major shopping centres to stimulate its sanctions-choked economy, gambling that it has brought under control its coronavirus outbreak one of the worst in the world even as some fear it could lead to a second wave of infections. 8:05 a.m. The cuts in the oilpatch are continuing as companies adjust to lower oil prices in the wake of the pandemic. Cathedral Energy Services Ltd. and McCoy Global Inc. both announced job cuts, reductions to executive pay and lower capital spending plans. Oil prices have plunged due to the drop in demand due the outbreak of COVID-19, even with an agreement by OPEC and other producers to cut output starting in May. 7:20 a.m. (updated): Ontario health officials are set to release updated COVID-19 modelling today at noon. The associate chief medical officer of health, Dr. Barbara Yaffe, has said the forecasts are generally looking better, but the province is not out of the woods yet. The last modelling was released April 3, when projections showed that 1,600 Ontarians could die and 80,000 could be infected under the current restrictions at the time. That same day, Premier Doug Ford ordered more businesses closed. The latest data from the province shows that there have been 10,578 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ontario, including 553 deaths. Previous modelling also showed that by today, under the best case scenario, more than 1,200 people confirmed to have COVID-19 would be in intensive care units, but currently that number is at 247. Ford is expected to address reporters at 1:30 p.m. 7 a.m.: Spanish authorities have gone into damage control mode after a high ranking police official said in an apparent gaffe that one of the goals of fighting misinformation was to rein in negative coverage of the governments handling of the coronavirus crisis. During a daily press conference Sunday, the chief of the Civil Guard police force Gen. Jose Manuel Santiago said that in addition to avoid the social stress created by false information related to the COVID-19 pandemic, law enforcement was also fighting to minimize that climate contrarian to the governments management of the crisis. The Civil Guard later issued a statement saying that battling disinformation was being conducted respecting the freedom to criticism. Late on Sunday, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska also told La Sexta television that the generals remarks were erroneous. Grande-Marlaska also accused the conservative leading opposition PP party and the far-right Vox of being disloyal to the government. The two parties, together with the centre-right Citizens party, want the interior minister to answer questions in Parliament regarding the governments handling of the state of emergency, now on its sixth week. On Monday, without referring to his previous statement, Gen. Santiago said that during four decades of career he had prioritized the well being of people and had not been at any time moved by ideology. 7 a.m.: A Dutch privacy watchdog says it cant evaluate if seven smartphone coronavirus apps the government tested over the weekend sufficiently protect users personal data. The Dutch Data Protection Agency said Monday that terms given to developers were so unclear that it is not possible to work out if apps under consideration will work while safeguarding users data. The announcement is a setback for the government, which wants to use a contact-tracking app to safeguard the public when coronavirus restrictions are gradually eased. Prime Minister Mark Rutte is set to announce Tuesday evening whether restrictions he calls an intelligent lockdown will be partially lifted. 6:07 a.m. The president of the German soccer federation says resuming league play will not mean taking resources away from health care workers amid the coronavirus pandemic. Fritz Keller writes in Kicker magazine we guarantee that resuming play . . . will not cause a burden for the health care system. He adds that there will be no use by sportspeople of testing capacity which would be missed elsewhere. No top league games have been played since March 11. The German league has been more bullish than other major European competitions about the chances of resuming in May or June with widespread coronavirus tests for players. That push is partly driven by fears that several clubs face financial collapse without TV and sponsorship money. 5:33 a.m.: Some shops are reopening in much of Germany as Europes biggest economy takes its first tentative step toward restarting public life after a four-week shutdown. Shops with a surface area of up to 800 square meters (8,600 square feet) are being allowed to reopen on Monday, along with auto showrooms, bike shops and bookshops of any size, under an agreement reached last week between the federal and state governments. Chancellor Angela Merkels chief of staff, Helge Braun, told n-tv television that big shops draw large numbers of people into the city centre, they have high customer numbers and that isnt possible in the first step. 5:20 a.m.: Singapores virus infections shot up to nearly 8,000 after a record 1,426 cases were reported Monday. The tiny city-state now has the highest number of cases in Southeast Asia at 7,984, a massive surge from just 200 on March 15. Authorities say most of the new cases were again linked to foreign workers, who account for over a million of Singapores workforce. 4 a.m.: The latest numbers of confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases in Canada as of 4 a.m. on April 20, 2020: There are 35,056 confirmed and presumptive cases in Canada. Quebec: 18,357 confirmed (including 877 deaths, 3,555 resolved) Ontario: 10,578 confirmed (including 553 deaths, 5,209 resolved) Alberta: 2,803 confirmed (including 55 deaths, 1,198 resolved) British Columbia: 1,647 confirmed (including 81 deaths, 987 resolved) Nova Scotia: 675 confirmed (including 9 deaths, 200 resolved) Saskatchewan: 314 confirmed (including 4 deaths, 234 resolved), 1 presumptive Newfoundland and Labrador: 257 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 191 resolved) Manitoba: 245 confirmed (including 5 deaths, 143 resolved), 8 presumptive New Brunswick: 118 confirmed (including 92 resolved) Prince Edward Island: 26 confirmed (including 23 resolved) Repatriated Canadians: 13 confirmed Yukon: 9 confirmed (including 8 resolved) Northwest Territories: 5 confirmed (including 3 resolved) Nunavut: No confirmed cases Total: 35,056 (9 presumptive, 35,047 confirmed including 1,587 deaths, 11,843 resolved) Sunday 10:05 p.m.: At least 40 staff members in Afghanistans presidential palace have tested positive for the coronavirus, Afghan officials said Sunday, forcing President Ashraf Ghani to isolate himself and manage the countrys response to the virus amid a raging war largely via video conference. 5:30 p.m.: As of Sunday at 5 p.m., Ontarios regional health units were reporting a total of 11,866 cases of COVID-19 and 610 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic. The epidemics growth has slowed overall in the province this week, a trend continued in the last 24 hours. Since 5 p.m. Saturday, total cases have grown by 561 patients, or five per cent, which is slower daily growth than in recent weeks. The first seven days of April averaged 12.7 per cent daily growth; the second seven days averaged 6.8 per cent. Among 37 new deaths reported were nine in Toronto, four each in York Region and Durham Region, and a single fatal case in Peel Region. Since April 1, the case count has continued to rise day over day in the Greater Toronto Area, while staying relatively flat in the rest of the province. The Stars count is based on the public tallies and statements of the provinces regional health units, the local bodies that collect and publish this data often before reporting to the province through its central reporting system. Therefore, the Stars count is more current than the data the province publishes each morning. Earlier Sunday, the province reported that testing labs had processed 9,643 samples in the largest single day of testing since Ontario quietly changed how it reports that data. - Click here for more news from Sunday. Read more about: Police have arrested a man suspected of homicide while patrolling a Florida beach to enforce social distancing measures, reports have said. Jacksonville Beach police arrested Mario Matthew Gatti on Jacksonville Beach on Sunday, only days after a number of the state's beaches were reopened by order of the mayor, according to WJAX-TV. According to the report, authorities were patrolling the area to make sure residents were practising social distancing guidelines. The CBS affiliate reported that Mr Gatti was issued an arrest warrant for suspected homicide after the fatal shooting of a 33-year-old man in Arnold, Pennsylvania in January. The police department posted a photo of the arrest on its Twitter account, with the comment: This morning while officers patrolled the beach proper they captured a Fugitive from Justice, wanted in Arnold, Pennsylvania for Homicide. Good job! According to the broadcaster, Mr Gatti was taken to the Duval County jail upon his arrest. CBS reported that jail records did not list a lawyer for the suspect. The arrest comes as a result of mayor Lenny Curry's announcement on Friday that beaches in the area would be partially reopened after being locked down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. As part of the new order, beaches will be open for nine hours during the day for exercise only, the citys website said. Residents will be allowed to swim and run, but sunbathing, gathering in large groups and setting up chairs will remain banned. The state's governor Ron Desantis was previously criticised for his initial reluctance to issue statewide stay-at-home orders and refusal to shut its beaches as the virus spread around the country. Florida currently has over 26,000 recorded cases of the novel coronavirus as of Monday with at least 770 recorded deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Shaheed Al-Hafed, 18 April 2020 (SPS) - The Permanent Office of the National Secretariat of the Polisario Front has warned about the situation in which Sahrawi citizens are living in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, owing to the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic. The Permanent Office, in its meeting chaired by the President of the Republic, Secretary-General of the Polisario Front, Mr. Brahim Ghali, warned against the dangerous situation in which the Sahrawi citizens are living in the occupied territory of Western Sahara and southern Morocco, especially the Sahrawi civilian prisoners in Moroccan prisons, with the spread of Coronavirus pandemic and lack of sanitary conditions, calling on the United Nations to intercede to protect them and follow up on their situation and release them immediately. The Permanent Office held the Moroccan occupation state fully responsible for all risks to their lives that might result from this situation. The Permanent Office, in view of the worsening of the Coronavirus pandemic in the world and the imminent danger it posed, appealed to the masses of the Sahrawi people, in all their locations, to enhance response to the efforts made at the national and global levels. (SPS) 062/SPS/T By Olga Yagova MOSCOW (Reuters) - Behind a Saudi-Russian truce to stabilise oil markets with a record output cut, market players are seeing the two production heavyweights still trading blows in the physical market. It is here, rather than in the world of futures prices, that a long-standing battle for market share carries on, particularly in Asia, shipping data analysed on Monday by Reuters shows. The rivals said last week they were ready to take measures if necessary to balance the market by cutting combined output with other OPEC+ members from May. "Beyond the cooperative statements the fight is still going on," a source at a trading firm told Reuters, adding that Saudi Arabia's official selling prices (OSPs) signalled that the kingdom was targeting the Asian market, where demand remains relatively resilient during a global slowdown. Russia has relied on Asian markets as a destination for its oil output since launching the 1.6 million barrel per day ESPO pipeline. This connects Russian fields to Asian markets through the port of Kozmino, the country's main eastern export outlet, and also via a pipeline spur with China, the biggest Asian consumer. Saudi Arabia's state oil company Saudi Aramco and Russia's Energy Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Russia's state oil giant Rosneft declined to comment. Aramco cut its OSPs to Asia in May by $3 to $5 across all its grades, marking a second month of drastic cuts. Meanwhile, the price reductions on Aramco cargoes to Europe were smaller, with a few increases on its heavier grades. Likewise, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait slashed May prices on crude destined for Asia. High supplies of May-loading Saudi crude oil to Asian markets, along with lower OSPs, have tipped differentials of Russian grades like Sokol and ESPO Blend in Asia into freefall. Both grades, which usually trade at high premiums to the Dubai benchmark, hit record discounts. Story continues SPECIAL OFFERS Saudi Arabia is also gaining ground in Europe, Russia's backyard for oil and gas exports. Saudi sales to Europe are poised to surpass 29 million barrels in April, slightly less than the record of August 2016, shipping data available in Refinitiv Eikon showed. Supplies of Aramco's Arab crude oil including Arab Light, the closest grade to Russian flagship in terms of quality, will rise to Italy, Turkey, Greece, France and Poland in April. All of these countries are regular buyers of Russian oil. Polish refineries will import a record 560,000 tonnes of Arab Light crude via Gdansk in April, the data shows. Poland will not import any sea-borne Russia's Urals crude this month, for the first time in a long period, while Arab Light oil supplies to Poland will be steady in May, traders said. "As demand is falling the competition gets even tougher. (The) Saudis don't mind going the extra mile for the buyer," a source at a European refiner told Reuters. "Maybe Russia also should think of special offers." In an effort to further entice buyers, Aramco has offered refiners in Asia and Europe the option to defer payments for crude cargo deliveries by up to 90 days, Reuters reported. Russia's main advantage in the physical market fight with Saudi Arabia is its sprawling pipeline network, helping it place oil at cheaper rates compared to its rival which has to find tankers and pay for transportation, traders said. "Russian oil fields (are) connected to refineries in Europe and Asia and oil companies have long-term contracts with them," a trader in the European oil market told Reuters. "Unlike Saudi Arabia it is not subject to freight rates and vessel availability." (Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal in DUBAI and Gleb Gorodyankin in MOSCOW; Editing by Julia Payne and Alexander Smith) President Trump accused governors of not understanding COVID-19 testing, as he deflected criticism coming from state leaders of both parties who said the country's testing ability was a 'quagmire' and not up to snuff. At the top of Monday's briefing, Trump said the governors had been on a call with Vice President Mike Pence and were given a list of labs where additional testing for the coronavirus could be done in each state. 'Some of the governors, as an example, the governor of Maryland, did not really understand the list,' Trump said, referencing Gov. Larry Hogan, the head of the National Governors Association, and a member of the president's own party. 'He did not understand too much about what was going on, so now I think he'll be able to do that.' President Trump said Monday at the White House press briefing that some of the nation's governors did not 'understand' their states' capacity for coronavirus testing At Monday's White House briefing, Trump suggested that Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (pictured), a Republican, didn't understand coronavirus testing New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed with President Trump that COVID-19 testing should be coordinated at the state level, thought he called the current supply chain issues a 'quagmire' because national manufacturers are suffering from a shortage of supplies Hogan made headlines Monday for importing COVID-19 tests for his state from South Korea, where his wife was born. A KoreanAir flight had arrived at the Baltimore-Washington International airport on Saturday, bringing 5,000 test kits. On Sunday, Hogan had told CNN's Jake Tapper that he had 'repeatedly' made the argument to leaders in Washington that the No. 1 problem had been the lack of testing. 'The administration, I think, is trying to ramp up testing and trying - they are doing some things with respect to private labs,' Hogan said. 'But to try to push this off to say that the governors have plenty of testing, and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren't doing our job - is just absolutely false,' Hogan added, aiming that comment at Trump. At the briefing Trump said labs across every state 'have tremendous capacity.' 'And we hope to be able to help him out. We will work with him and all the governors,' Trump continued. 'Some states have far more capacity than they actually understand. And it is a complex subject, but some of the governors did not understand.' Trump also called out the governor of Illinois, Democrat J. B. Pritzker, and said he 'did not understand his capacity.' Later Pence announced, 'We have enough testing capacity for every state in America to go to phase one.' Phase one of the White House's three-phase 'Opening Up America Again' allows for some Americans to return to work and some large venue businesses to reopen, but schools remain closed. Gyms can open, but bars remain closed. Elective surgeries can resume. During his opening remarks, the president also pointed to remarks made earlier Monday by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who Trump announced would be visiting him in the Oval Office on Tuesday. 'He said the president is right,' Trump said. 'And the governor is really getting, they are getting it together in New York. A lot of good things are happening in New York.' Cuomo had agreed with Trump that COVID-19 testing should be led by states, but he also pinpointed exactly where he needed federal help. At his press conference on Monday, Cuomo said that the national manufacturers of the tests are having supply chain issues and can't keep up with the demand needed to get tests to all 50 states and territories. 'This is a quagmire,' Cuomo said. 'Because it's not just funding,' he added, explaining he's told test manufacturers he would pay for the tests needed to help New Yorkers get back to work. Earlier Monday, Trump had tweeted that the 'Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats' had 'screamed' for 'Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilaors.' 'Now they scream "Testing, Testing, Testing," again playing a very dangerous political game,' Trump wrote. 'States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done. This is easy compared to the fast production of thousands of complex Ventilators!' Cuomo didn't take the bait and instead told reporters, 'The president is right.' 'Testing is up to the states, which will implement the tests and logistically coordinate the tests,' he added. He also used a colorful analogy. 'Federal government, you're painting a room with a roller. OK? You can't do corners with a roller, you can't do trim and molding with a roller. Somebody has to come behind you with a brush and do the details,' Cuomo explained. 'State government has [a] brush.' The New York governor said it should be his decision which of the 300 or so labs in New York are used to administer the tests, as they are regulated by the state. On Monday Trump angrily tweeted at the 'Do Nothing Democrats' and the 'Radical Left' for complaining about coronavirus testing But then he brought up the supply chain issues that have plagued New York getting the tests the state needs. 'The national manufacturers will say well it's not that easy. I can't get the chemicals, the chemicals come from China, I can't make the vials fast enough, I can't make the swabs fast enough,' Cuomo said. 'But that's where the federal government could help.' 'Should the states take the lead on the tests? Yes. That's exactly right,' Cuomo repeated. 'But we need the volume. And the volume is going to be determined by those national manufacturers who provide the kits to the 300 labs in New York,' he explained. Cuomo also explained the business of medical testing. 'It's nobody's fault. Nobody is to blame,' he began. 'The way the testing world worked was a national manufacturer made their machine. I sold my machine to private labs and hospitals. My machine only operates if you have an Andrew Cuomo testing kit, it doesn't work with a Howard Zucker testing kit,' he said, name-dropping the state's health commissioner. 'Even though you have the machine,' Cuomo said. 'I have such an increased demand I literally can't produce it in time.' 'And to unravel that supply chain issue, that manufacturing issue, I think that's the best way the federal government can help,' he, again, said. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said Sunday he, too, had an idea on how the federal government could boost testing in states. 'Our big problem today, I could probably double, maybe even triple testing in Ohio virtually overnight if the [Food and Drug Administration] would prioritize companies that are putting a slightly different formula together for the extraction reagent kit,' DeWine said on 'Meet the Press.' DeWine explained that there's a worldwide shortage on the current concoction that's been FDA approved. 'If anybody in the FDA is watching, this would really take our, take our capacity up, literally Chuck, overnight,' he told NBC News' Chuck Todd. 'And that's, that's what we need to get moving in Ohio.' John Sheahan, the last surviving member of The Dubliners, talks music, coronavirus and haikus with Joe Dermody. Sole survivor of The Dubliners, violinist John Sheahan is just as enthusiastic about music today as he was when he began his 50-year music career. It's hard to explain, but John speaks with equal immediacy of all of his collaborators, living and dead alike. He talks about founding bandmates Luke Kelly, Ronnie Drew, Ciaran Bourke and Barney McKenna like they're very much present in his thoughts. Here he recounts with great vigour a series of anecdotes about the band's encounters with Patrick Kavanagh, Brendan Behan and Sean O Faolain, tales of Phil Coulter and The Pogues, and his own hope and ambition to get back on stage post-Covid-19 with a new generation of musical friends. Something of a Renaissance man, as well as being a truly great composer and musician, John Sheahan is also a successful poet (check out his book 'Fiddle Dreams') and a talented woodcarver. Now he has just released his debut album 'Flirting Fiddles' to great critical acclaim. John wrote 15 of the 16 tracks on this remarkable CD. Ranging in styles from classical to jazz and baroque, these compositions were the core of a celebration in Vicar Street last December of John's 80th birthday, an event attended by President Michael D Higgins and aired on TG4 of at 9:30pm on St Patrick's Day. 'Flirting Fiddles' is a celebration of a life lived and enjoyed to the maximum, from the orchestral version of the iconic 'Marino Waltz' to the infectious jazz tune 'Diminished Swing' with Richie Bukley on saxophone. After the 19 studio albums by the Dubliners, with sales over 30 million, are you glad to finally release your own album? John: I contributed a number of my own pieces to The Dubliners over the years, and so I kept kind of procrastinating over releasing my own album. "Then, last September, I finally went into a studio near my home in Dublin. They're all my own compositions; well, 15 of the 16 tunes are my own. It's done now and not before its time for me at 80, my debut. You'd never know, I could become a star yet. Where does the Marino Waltz, your iconic tune inspired by the neo-classical Casino at Marino in Dublin, fit in the album? John: I wrote that around 35 years ago now. It was used in an advert for Bord na Mona's peat briquettes. People were just taken by the melody, I suppose. People started phoning into RTE to find out the name of the tune and asked where they could get the sheet music for it. So after that I got onto Waltons and asked them would they publish the sheet music. They were kind of a bit hesitant, but I persuaded them and after a couple of months they were amazed that it had sold over 20,000 copies of the sheet music for them. A few songwriters asked me if I'd like to put words to it, but I thought it was better on its own, whatever magic it has. There's an orchestral arrangement of that one on the album which I had done around 30 years ago. I had never used it and it just seemed like the right time now to use it. Then I got into the studio to do the rest of the album. I did recordings with great musicians like Colm Mac Con Iomaire, a great fiddle player from Glen Hansard's band The Frames; he and I've been friends with for nine or ten years. "I recorded The Winding River with piper Mick O'Brien. I did three or four tracks with Gavin Murphy, the classical pianist and conductor; we had a special rapport. I recorded the jazz tune 'Diminished Swing' with Richie Buckley, the great sax player, and some other jazz musicians. So I've been writing in different styles, so there are no two tracks that are really alike on the album. The album title, 'Flirting With Fiddles', refers to the fact that I have been flirting with different fiddle styles over the years: from baroque and classial, to swing and bluegrass. Of course, the music we played with The Dubliners also had a lot of different cultures and styles. Would you also say that the five Dubliners had very different characters? John: There was a great bond between us. We were more like brothers working together. As each one passed away, it was like losing a brother for me. Personality-wise, we were five very different individuals who somehow, when we made music together, were greater than the sum of our individual parts - there was a migical quality. "I remember once, Luke came in with a song called 'The Black Velvet Band' and said maybe we'll do it tonight. In those days, you'd be backstage, Luke would sing a bit of the song and then you'd go out on the stage and play it for the first time without even really working out an arrangement. John Sheahan and the rest of the Dubliners in the 1970's: "There was a great bond between us. We were more like brothers working together." We were kind of like buskers as much as anything else. Nowadays songs have intros and bridges in the middle and all that kind of thing, but we were a rough and ready group. "We just did our own thing and our attitude was 'You can take us or leave us'. Were you surprised when 'Seven Drunken Nights' reached No7 in the UK pop charts in 1967, and then again when 'The Irish Rover' reached No8 in 1987 (along with The Pogues), complete with a Top of The Pops appearance? John: Yes, it was a surprise. 'Seven Drunken Nights' was so different from any other song in the top ten at that time, or at any other time for that matter. We couldn't even believe it when our manager said it was to be our single. We said 'Are you mad, sure there's nothing special about that?' We saw it as just another album track. He saw the potential in it and it was played non-stop on Radio Caroline. "Then 20 years later exactly, when it came to recording our 25-year album, we rang up The Pogues, who we knew and had a great rapport with. It turned out they were in the studio in London recording their own album, so we just flew over and recorded 'The Irish Rover' in a couple of hours without any rehearsals or anything, in the same studio we were in in 1967. "A young assistant floor manager asked us if we'd like him to show us around the studios. Ronnie just said: 'I was here before you were born, son'. We didn't take anything too seriously. Could you recount how The Dubliners came to perform songs written by people like Patrick Kavanagh, Brendan Behan and Phil Coulter? John: There was a great vibe around us in the early years with the likes of Sean O Faolain and Brendan Behan meeting up with us in McDaid's Bar; you'd find Patrick Kavanagh quite frequently. "On one of those occasions, Patrick came over to Luke and said: 'Luke, you're the one to sing this song of mine 'Raglan Road' and he handed him the handwritten version of it on the back of a jotter, and said that 'Dawning of the Day' was the air to it. Phil Coulter came along much later in the early 1970s. Phil had done some work on Jesus Christ Superstar with Noel Pearson, our manager at the time. Noel suggested Phil to us, and he brought us quite a number of songs. "Musically, we were singing off the same hymn sheet. I'm still good friends with Phil after all these years. Do you remember playing Siamsa Cois Laoi in Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork in the 1970s and 1980s? John: We did a couple of gigs there. There was a great a great atmosphere. "I remember once we got Charlie Haughey up to sing The Monto with us. In 1987, we did two stadium gigs, the one in Cork and then we flew back to Dublin to play as a support act to U2 in Croke Park. That was fun, but I guess I prefer the more intimate 300-seater theatres around the country. After 'Seven Druken Nights' was a hit, of course, we were playing the likes of the Albert Hall in London. "I remember Barney couldn't remember the name of the Albert Hall; he eventually got into a taxi and they took him to Wembley. So he arrived late and he didn't realise the enormity of the place until he was annoncing his banjo solo and he looked up to the five or six tiers of balconies right up to the roof, and he was looking up and up and up and he just said: 'Oh my jaysus!' And the whole place started whispering and laughing. There were lots of old stories like that. Are you feeling trapped with the Covid-19 lockdown? John: It's not that new to me. Between Dubliners tours, I'd always do a bit of cocooning. I'm quite happy at home writing poetry. I also do woodcarving, which is quite relaxing. Flirting Fiddles will be John Sheahan's first solo album effort I wrote a haiku for the cocooning: 'Covid cocooning, love us by staying away, save hugs for later'. And another more serious one: 'Coronavirus, silent unseen predator, stalking unwashed hands'. They're powerful those haikus, you can get so much into a short, sharp space. I'd love to get out and do a few gigs when this is all over, maybe by August or September. Flirting Fiddles is out now. - Listen to an extended version of this interview below: John Sheehan on the wit of Barney McKenna Barney lived in a kind of a parallel universe to the rest of us. "Some of the things he'd come up with, the rest of us called them 'Barneyisms'. "He had a special way of expressing himself. He had a way of twisting words; it sounded strage at first, but there was some sort of a warped logic to it. He was in hospital once and I phoned him up to ask him if they'd done any special tests that day. He just said: 'Oh yeah, they done a brain scan. Found nothin'.' Another day he comes in and says to us: 'Just heard on the news there lads that the oldest women in the world is still alive'. If you can make sense of that. One time, we were doing a spot for a promoter in the National Concert Hall. We had done some charity work for this promoter before, but there was actually a fee for this gig. On the way walking out to the microphone, Barney asked: 'Hey, John, do you know is this another charity gig or is it feasible?' We were in Australia once and we were met in the airport by a friend of Barney's. Barney said it was awful warm. The friend said: 'Barney, this is nothing, it's going to be 100 degrees in the shade some days here'. Barney replied: 'Jaysus, I'm going to stay out of the shade so'. Another time I was sitting beside him on a turbulent flight to London, Barney was a nervous flyer at the best of times. "I tried to calm him and said to be philosophical about it and said: 'You're not going to go until your number is up. Barney said to me: 'That's grand, but what if the pilot is the one whose number is up?' When the breathlyser test came out first, he was stopped while driving. The Garda stopped him. He recognised him and he said: 'Barney, were you drinking tonight? You're weaving a fair bit there'. Barney said: 'Yeah, I was at a session there in town and I had nine or ten pints'. "The Garda was shocked by the admission and he says: 'Nine or ten pints! You'll have to blow into this bag'. And Barney says: 'Why? Do you not believe me?' Another night, on the way heading home from a gig in town, Barney spotted a squad car trailing him home from Fairview and into Clontarf. "Barney, rather than try to throw them off the scent, he pulled into Clontarf Garda Station and went into the Sergeant on duty, who knew him. "The Sergeant says: 'What can I do for you, Barney?' And Barney says: 'Sergeant, I had a couple of pints there, maybe one too many. Do you mind if I leave my keys here with you and get a taxi home? I'll call in for the keys tomorrow?' "The Gardai from the squad car came to find out what was going on. The Sergeant says: 'It's okay lads. It's Barney McKenna here, sensible man, he thinks he might have had one too many and he's leaving the car here. If ye are not too busy, maybe ye could give him a lift home'. "So he went home with the squad. Only Barney would get away with it. We were after coming back from playing Top of the Pops with The Pogues in 1987, we arrived into Dublin Airport and we got the red carpet treatment, with cameras rolling and microphones all over the place. "A reporter came up to Barney and he said: 'Well, Barney, what's it like to be a star?' And Barney said: 'I'm over the moon'. The utilization of the National COVID-19 Trust Fund will begin this week to pave the way for various activities aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19 to begin. Chairperson of the Fund, Madam Sophia Akuffo who disclosed this said the fund will serve the main purpose of assisting those in need. We will be very active to start distribution and so on and so forth. We know that each contribution we have received is going to help in combating the disease because we will be strengthening and supporting those involved in the combat activities as well as to help to alleviate the plight of the needy. Last month, President Nana Akufo-Addo established the COVID-19 Trust Fund to solicit support from Ghanaians as the country fights the Coronavirus pandemic. President Nana Akufo-Addo in his fifth national address to the nation disclosed that the COVID-19 National Trust Fund had so far received a total sum of GH8.75 million in the form of donations from the general public. He noted that the stated amount also includes US$600,000 and commended Ghanaians and institutions for heeding to the clarion call to support the initiative. What the Fund seeks to do The COVID-19 National Trust Fund has in a short while received many donations and contributions from businesses and individuals to complement the efforts of government in the fight against the disease. President Akufo-Addo donated his April, May and June salaries as seed money for the Fund. Vice-President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia continued in the President's 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 COVID-19 Fund. Parliament has contributed GH200,000 with the Speaker of the House, Prof. Aaron Mike Ocquaye donating half of his three months' salary to the Fund. Other groups and associations have also made different donations in cash and kind to various hospitals and health services in the country. The Trust which is chaired by former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo is aimed at being used to help improve the lives of the vulnerable who will be worst-hit by the pandemic. ---citinewsroom Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sulemana Sulley Jnr, the Accra Regional Operations Commander of Alpha Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) of the Ghana Police Service, has cautioned the public against issuing fake identification cards to security officers at checkpoints. He said such acts would not be countenanced adding that anyone caught with such fake identity cards would be made to face the full rigors of the law. DSP Sulley Jnr gave the advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) during an intensive enforcement operation of the lockdown directive in and around Korle-Bu on Sunday. The exercise saw many vehicles and passengers refused entry into the business district. Many passengers were also seen alighting from their taxi to trek to their various destinations. DSP Sulley Jnr said due to the exemptions made to some essential service providers as a result of the lockdown, many have devised new ways to outwit the security personnel at the various checkpoints, including providing officers with fake identity cards. This, he said, was not only affecting the effective enforcement of the lockdown directive but also hindering the exercise from achieving its intended purpose of containing the spread of the COVID-19. a lot of people have devised means to go through the numerous checkpoints that we have. We find people who will produce ID cards of varying professions at the checkpoints and when you interrogate them further you immediately realise that they are not telling the truth. We have arrested quiet a number of them and we have cross-checked the ID cards that they are producing and we found out that they are fake, he said. He said the security personnel were on high alert to immediately arrest anyone who would issue or attempt to outsmart the security by producing fake identity cards at any of the checkpoints. Touching on the operations on the enforcement of the lockdown, DSP Sulley Jnr said, he was baffled by the many who continue to disregard the directive and throng the city daily without any urgent need. He said the operations was therefore to ensure that only people with reasonable requests were allowed into the business district in order to avoid overcrowding and curtail the spread of the virus. My advice to them is that this COVID-19 is real and they should strictly adhere to the protocols. Where there is no need for you to go out, it is very necessary for you to stay home and stay safe, he said. Parts of the country including Greater Accra, Kumasi and Kasoa are currently under three weeks partial lockdown as the countrys COVID-19 cases continue to soar. Scores of people have so far been arrested and arraigned before the law courts by the police, for flouting various government and health directives, including holding social gatherings such as weddings, funerals and church services, failing to observe social distancing and disregarding the lockdown directive, among others. Ghana has so far recorded 834 cases of the disease with nine deaths and 99 recoveries. 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. Featured Video "Patient 188," a 44-year-old woman from the capital citys Chuong My District, is an employee of the Truong Sinh Company, which provides food and logistic services for several hospitals in Hanoi, including the Bach Mai Hospital, a major Covid-19 hotspot. Her samples were tested using the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) technique. Dr. Pham Ngoc Thach, director of the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases in Hanoi, where the patient is being quarantined and treated, said she was in stable health. She has no fever, coughs only a little and can breathe with her stable heart rate and blood pressure. She is being treated from the beginning under the protocol set by the Health Ministry, like a new infection case. The woman was confirmed positive on March 29, treated at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases and discharged on April 16 after testing negative for the novel coronavirus twice. On Saturday, two days after her discharge, she developed a cough and felt a tightness in her chest. A subsequent test carried out by Hanois Center for Disease Control (CDC) revealed that she was positive again for the Covid-19 virus. Testing capability suspected Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Truong Son said at a meeting Monday that after testing positive again for novel coronavirus Saturday, "Patient 188" was taken to the hospital and had her samples taken for testing again. The result came back negative. "These are two conflicting results in a very short time on a patient," Son said. Health experts have surmised that testing capability and other factors were being considered, as quarantine facilities were carrying out a large number of tests each day. "This case also raises the issue of cross-transmission between swab samples," Son said. This question currently has no answer. "Patient 188" is Vietnam's second case to test positive for the novel coronavirus after having been discharged from hospital. The other is "Patient 22," a 66-year-old British man who flew from the U.K. to Vietnam on March 2. He was confirmed Covid-19 positive on March 8 and treated at the Da Nang Hospital in the central city. He was discharged March 23 after testing negative three times. After finishing a post-discharge two-week quarantine at a local hotel, he flew from Da Nang to Saigon for a flight back to the U.K. on April 10. Another sample was taken at the time, and it tested positive for the novel coronavirus on April 11. He had already left Vietnam by then. He has since tested negative again, U.K. authorities have said. Cases of Covid-19 patients testing positive again after recovery are not uncommon. South Korea has reported more than 160 people relapsing. Vietnam has recorded no new cases of the novel coronavirus for the last four days. Of the 268 patients diagnosed in Vietnam so far, 61 are still active and the remaining 207 have been discharged. No deaths have been recorded to date. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with more than 165,000 deaths reported so far. Border soldiers in the central province of Quang Nam are living in difficult conditions while doing Covid-19 prevention work. It takes hours to walk through forest and mountains to reach the checkpoints Quang Nam Province has the Nam Giang Border Gate with Laos so more border soldiers have been mobilised recently for the Covid-19 prevention. According to lieutenant colonel Do Xuan Trinh, head of the Nam Giang Border Gate Station, they are monitoring the 31 kilometre-border with Laos. To carry out the Covid-19 prevention and control work, since mid-March, they have set up four checkpoints each of which are controlled by a group of between 5-9 soldiers. Lieutenant colonel Vu Cong Quynh who controls a checkpoint four kilometres from the border gate said that the distance took roughly an hour to walk due to difficult road. "Mine is the nearest checkpoint from the border gate station," he said. "To reach other further points, we have to walk a day through thick forest, mountains and valleys." Quynh said that they have eight soldiers in the furthest point who are divided into two groups. "The two groups with four members each will take turns to guard at the point and patrol along the border," he explained. Soldiers read letters sent from their relatives at the checkpoints Living in the forest, the soldiers have to struggle with tough conditions, especially various kinds of harmful insects. Lieutenant Commander Nguyen Duc Thuan said that although life is very hard, they have all tried to fulfil their task. "We have been staying here for a month without family visits," he said. "And we even prepared for the situation that the epidemic would last long. Due to difficult roads, we have grown vegetables, raised chickens and ducks in the forest for our daily meals. Soldiers growing vegetables near the checkpoint But the official said that they were compensated by the love and support of local residents and authorities for their meaningful work. Dtinews Border guards keep people safe from coronavirus Living without electricity in a remote area isn't easy, but it's part of the job for some soldiers. NBC has sold its stake in pan-European broadcaster Euronews, a source at the France-based pay-TV channel said on Monday. NBC, which acquired its 25-percent holding three years ago for 25 million euros (USD 27 million), has sold the shares to Euronews' majority owner, Egyptian telecom and media magnate Naguib Sawiris, the source told AFP. The transaction, completed on April 15, has increased the stake held by Sawiris' Media Globe Networks in Euronews to 88 percent. The move comes after the parent company of NBC News, Comcast, acquired British group Sky for 33 billion euros. According to the Financial Times, Comcast intends to transform the combined NBC Sky World venture into a pan-European channel that will compete directly with Euronews, which is based in the eastern French city of Lyon. The Euronews source insisted that Sawiris' purchase was a "vote of confidence" for the broadcaster by its existing majority shareholder. Euronews, which was set up in 1993 and now runs 12 national channels, will now focus on its digital content, where it hopes to expand content "beyond straightforward news" and seek partnerships with "external platforms", the company source said. According to Euronews, it doubled its digital audience in 2019, a trend that has continued into the current year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - Human rights advocate Amnesty International is asking authorities in sub-Saharan Africa to take urgent action to protect people in detention from COVID-19 (coronavirus), including releasing prisoners of conscience, reviewing cases of pre-trial detention, and guaranteeing access to healthcare and sanitation products in all facilities Over 1,700 immigrants have been detained in jungle camps by the Panama authorities while trying to illegally enter the United States. As per reports, the migrants were detained after COVID-19 infection was detected among them. The community has been held at La Penita, near the Colombian border, in facilities designed to detain about 200, international media reported. Furthermore, the Red Cross personnel had to reportedly vacate the site to be put under quarantine after a local police officer who succumbed to the deadly infection because of the exposure. Read: US Immigration Agency Extends Legal Stay Of Non-immigrants Workers An official, on condition of anonymity, told a leading US media outlet that at least 17 migrants tested positive for the novel coronavirus and had to be isolated within the camp. The Colombia and Panama border has served as the corridor for illegal immigration to the US for years. As per reports, at over three temporary border check posts, some of the migrants are provided with the basic amenities such as meals, pharmacy supplies, hygienic drinking water by the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as the UNICEF and the Red Cross. It was at La Penita that the authorities detected cluster infection. Read: Calif. To Give Cash To Immigrants Hurt By Virus Sweeping measures With over 4,273 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 120 fatalities, the government of Panama had earlier announced strict quarantine measures that reportedly allowed people to do essential movement for up to two hours at a time each day. In another revised guideline, it reportedly declared that men will be allowed to go out to the supermarket on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, whereas the women could go out on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Sundays, however, would be a total lockdown. Security Minister Juan Pino, while speaking at a press briefing, said that the guidelines were introduced to protect human lives and reduce casualties. A new $6 million Panama City hospital, which will solely serve coronavirus patients, was also inaugurated earlier this month by Panama President Laurentino Cortizo. Read: Rescued Migrants Transferred To Quarantine Vessel Read: Vermont Man Charged In Human Smuggling Case On Canada Border Billionaire Solomon Lew's Premier Investments may delay the reopening of its stores by as much as two-and-a-half weeks despite broad pushes from the Australian retail sector to open doors sooner rather than later. Premier, which owns brands like Smiggle, Just Jeans and Peter Alexander, shut its 900 Australian stores on March 26, standing down 9000 staff globally and sending its executive team home to work without pay. Premier Investments CEO Mark McInnes and chairman Solomon Lew are likely to delay the reopening of their stores. Credit:Paul Jeffers At the time, the retailer said it intended to reopen stores this Wednesday, April 22. However, retail industry sources told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald the date may have been pushed back two and a half weeks to May 11. This is the date the Victorian government has set for the end of its emergency powers provisions, indicating Australian merchants are keeping a close eye on government and public health advice when making decisions on when to restart trading. Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday spoke to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to enquire about the lynching of three people in the state's Palghar area, officials said. During the telephonic conversation, Thackeray apprised the home minister about the incidents and the steps taken to nab those involved in the incident, they said. On April 16 night, three Mumbai residents, who were on their way to Silvassa, were lynched by local residents in Gadakchinchale village of Palghar district on the suspicion that they were thieves. Reports said more than 100 people, including a few minors, were detained by police for their alleged involvement in the incident. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) About 24 Chinese doctors will go to Ethiopia and Burkina Faso. So far, the continent has had fewer deaths than more developed regions of the world; however, the healthcare systems in many African countries are woefully inadequate and could facilitate an outbreak. The continent has less than one hospital bed per thousand people. The European Union and the United States are providing aid. The economy is a source of concern. Hong Kong (AsiaNews) China has sent 24 doctors to Ethiopia and Burkina Faso to help local health authorities fight the novel coronavirus outbreak. Beijing is following the European Union and the United States are already helping African countries, where the pandemic has been hitherto less virulent than in economically more developed regions of the world. According to African Arguments, a pan-African news and information platform, some 18,500 confirmed cases have been reported in Africa with 968 deaths, based on data from the World Health Organisation and John Hopkins University. Egypt leads with 2,605 cases, followed by South Africa, Morocco and Algeria. African countries were among the first to close borders and ban gatherings of people. Tunisia, Rwanda and Mauritius were the first to impose a full lockdown. South Africa too has confined all its citizens. Cameroon is conducting nationwide testing to contain the outbreak. So far, it has reported 996 cases, 22 deaths, and 164 people hospitalised. About a thousand Chinese doctors and healthcare staff are already involved in Africa as a whole. Last week, a Chinese medical team arrived in to Algeria. Beijing has also provided US$ 1.5 million in aid to Nigeria. The European Union and the United States have their own aid plans to support the fight against COVID-19 in Africa. The EU is devoting some of its 20 billion (US$ 22 billion) pandemic fund to Africa. Washington instead is sending medical supplies and equipment worth US$ 27 million. Burkina Faso and Ethiopia have a weak healthcare system, which could favour the spread of the virus. Other African nations are in the same situation. In Zimbabwe the health system has collapsed. There is a shortage of medical drugs and supplies. The lack of running water in many parts of the country could speed up an outbreak. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the threat of COVID-19 comes on top of cholera, Ebola and measles outbreaks, as well as internal strife. The World Bank reports that on the continent has less than one hospital bed per thousand inhabitants. The European Union estimates that there is one doctor per 10,000 inhabitants, compared to 37 in the Union. Africas economy is also a source of concern. The International Monetary Fund estimates that the combined GDP of sub-Saharan Africa will drop by 1.6 per cent in 2020, down from a plus 3.1 per cent in 2019. South Africa and Nigeria, the continents main economies, are expected to contract by 5.8 and 3.4 per cent respectively. Queenslanders have had a much-needed win with zero new cases of coronavirus recorded in the state on Monday, but experts warn the result must be maintained before movement restrictions will be eased. Its the first time for over 40 days that Queensland has not recorded new cases, with the first week in March seeing the start of a steep jump, forcing the current lockdown measures. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said Mondays result was absolutely tremendous. If we can keep this up over the coming weeks, Im sure that thats going to mean that well be able to make some changes and ease some of those restrictions on the population, she said. When Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen told citizens they would be going into lockdown, the only other country in Europe to have done so was Italy a nation which had seen hundreds of coronavirus deaths and more than 12,000 infections. In Denmark, where no one had died, the number confirmed to have contracted the virus was closer to 500. A month on and that response, which saw the government in Copenhagen break away from advice of European partners and even its own health officials, appears to have paid off. On Monday, Denmark lifted more lockdown restrictions and allowed beauty salons and hairdressers to reopen, having opened schools a week earlier. We are in uncharted territory, she said in a televised press conference on 11 March, beamed to the homes of the countrys 5.6 million citizens, as she banned meetings of more than ten and shut down schools and businesses. This will have huge consequences, but the alternative would be far worse. Under normal circumstances, a government would not present such far-reaching measures without having all the solutions ready for the many Danes concerned, but we are in an extraordinary situation. When Ms Frederisken made her speech, Denmark had identified 514 cases compared to the UKs 456. In just over a month, Denmark suffered just 355 deaths and 7,711 cases, compared to the UK's 16,000 deaths and 120,000 cases. The UK did not enter lockdown until 23 March. Meanwhile, the countrys transmission rate has fallen to less than one new infection per case. Hospitals are yet to be inundated or overrun, and are beginning to reopen to non-critical patients suffering other ailments. The infection curve has been flattened and the state, it seems, has held firm in the face of a virus that has seen powerful nations around the world struggle. I think it was the intention of our government that they would rather act early and then if that was a mistake regret later than act too late, said Allan Randrup Thomsen, professor of virology at the University of Copenhagen. It seems from the numbers of people admitted to hospitals that we have already come beyond the peak that we will get, at least in this wave ... I dont like to brag but I think we have been quite efficient in containing the infection at this moment. The country is now among a small number that could guide the rest of the world on the most effective way to ease lockdown measures but while the eyes of the world are on them, the trailblazing response of the Danish government has so far been guided by looking outside its own borders. In the early days of the European outbreak that saw the continent become the viruss global epicentre, Copenhagens first concern had been the early growth of cases in northern Italy that saw the number of infected people jump from single to double figures implying fast community spread was not only possible but likely. If an epidemic had in fact been spotted on European soil, the potential for death and societal collapse represented a threat not just to the Danish people but to the fundamental idea of a state based on high taxation and an iron-clad social contract between the government and the public. The narrative of our welfare state is too strong to fail, said Lars Igum Rasmussen, health editor at Danish broadsheet Politiken who has followed the governments response throughout the pandemic. So we couldnt have a situation as in northern Italy, where the military had to remove body bags from Bergamo. That cannot happen in a welfare state because then the welfare state is not handling its responsibility. The second source of concern for the government came from Swedens Solna municipality, to the north of Stockholm home not to any particular outbreak, but to the European Centres for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). In early March, a number of potential cases from the Austrian ski resort of Ischgl had alarmed medical officials in Iceland, who quickly raised the alarm to governments on the continent. However, the independent EU-founded organisation maintained its advice not to test those who came from the region as standard protocol. Cases in Denmark with origins in Austria quickly overtook those which had entered the country from Italy. The Danish government realised that you couldnt rely on the information that we got from the European communities because that system is only as good as the information and the test results, Mr Rasmussen said. If you dont test in a country, then you dont have an epidemic on the table even though in reality you do. In response the government moved quickly, in just over a week mass gatherings were banned, then business and schools shut, and finally borders closed a measure that overruled their own health officials who had suggested it would be ineffective. By pushing through the cautious optimism of its own medical bodies who had assured the public everything was under control, the Danish government bought time to bolster hospitals and contain the spread of the virus as it tore through Europe. Now, after becoming one of the first to shut down, it is also among the first to lift its restrictions on daily life starting with schools. This will probably be a bit like walking the tightrope, the prime minister told reporters as she unveiled the measures. If we stand still along the way we could fall and if we go too fast it can go wrong. Therefore, we must take one cautious step at a time. Recommended Experiments in Europe could offer clues to the economic future The plan is to allow children aged 11 or younger to return to school, thereby freeing up their parents to work from home and offer some support for the economy. Classes will, for the most part, be taught outside, and are unlikely to be as educational as they normally would instead the measure is less about teaching, and more a matter of childcare. Our minister of education has clearly stated that parents should not expect teaching and education in the way we normally do, said Dorte Lange, vice president of the Danish Union of Teachers. It is more or less taking care of kids more than it is actually teaching. However while it offers respite for parents and begins the slow work of returning to daily life, some remain unconvinced. Parents have aired concerns that their children are being used in a state-sanctioned exercise in immunity, experts fear young children are too unreliable to bear the burden of relaunching society and that the PMs first step may see the nation fall from its tightrope. Im afraid about the capacity of small children to follow the social rules that we have right now with hand washing and distance, Professor Thomsen said. Its a pretty difficult group to control and I would, for that reason, rather have seen some of the older grades or some of the workforce returned to the streets because it was easier to tell them how to behave. He added: We have to do this in different phases, but if the first phase goes wrong it will postpone the whole process. Everybody in the population, including myself, is waiting for some lifting of the restrictions and then if it turns out that we have to go back somehow because the spread picks up too much speed, then it would really be a setback. We dont want to lose what we have accomplished over the last four weeks. New Delhi: Toll collection on National Highways across the country resumed on Monday in line with government directives, a move which is being opposed by transporters. The central government on March 25, had announced temporary suspension of toll collection following directives by the Ministry of Home Affairs in the wake of coronavirus pandemic. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as well as highway developers resumed collection at toll plazas. Highways developer IRB Infrastructure Developers said all its Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) "have resumed their toll collection from 00.00 hours today" in line with the NHAI directives. IRB Infra's projects SPVs collectively operate 50 toll plazas across India and all have now fully resumed their operations from Monday. In line with NHAI guidelines, all Project SPVs will be taking necessary precautions and care at toll plazas for highway users and employees manning the toll plazas. For this, the company has provided adequate masks, sanitizers, hand gloves, etc. to employees manning the toll plazas. However, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), protested against resumption of toll on national highways and said it will adversely affect rabi crop procurement, adding that over 85 per cent transporters are cash-starved small operators who will not able to sustain toll fee. AIMTC, the apex body for transporters that represents about 95 lakh truckers and transport entities, has sought suspension of toll till May 3. "As per inputs received from across the country, procurement of rabi crop will be disturbed, as more than 85 per cent, finance-starved small operators can't sustain toll burden starting April 20. Tolls must be suspended at least till May 3," AIMTC President Kultaran Singh Atwal has said seeking the Prime Minister's Office's intervention. Atwal has said that more than 85 per cent of the transport fraternity have one to five vehicles and about 65 per cent of them are self-employed owner-drivers. AIMTC Secretary General Naveen Gupta said: "Only 15 per cent of the transporters own big fleets but they are also helpless... some have vehicles transporting essential goods while others are facing shortages of drivers." AIMTC has sought a relief package from the government that includes Rs 15,000 per driver per month besides insurance cover to drivers and supporting staff. Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training (IFTRT) Coordinator S P Singh said in the past 21 days, the benefit of toll fee not being levied was hardly being passed on in the form of any reduction in truck rentals across the country. Earlier, the road transport and highways ministry advised the NHAI to follow the home ministry's guidelines about toll plaza operations following the lockdown. 90 Day Fiance: Self-Quarantined is taking fans inside the lives of several stars of the franchise amid the coronavirus pandemic. The five-episode spinoff will feature over 40 former cast members through a combination of self-shot footage and remote video interviews. In PEOPLE's exclusive sneak peek at Monday's season premiere, David and Annie (90 Day Fiance, Happily Ever After?, What Now?, Pillow Talk) film themselves on a trip to an Asian market, "Annie's favorite place," to stock up on groceries. "They don't even have any jasmine rice, which is amazing because normally this is stocked with jasmine rice all the way through," David remarks, panning the camera across an empty section of the store. But food shortages aside, David, who is from Kentucky, is concerned about his wife's wellbeing in light of heightened racist attacks against Asians across the globe amid the outbreak. RELATED: Why You Shouldn't Call Coronavirus the 'Chinese Virus' and Why Trump Faces Backlash for Doing It Anyway "One of the things, going out with Annie when we leave the condo, is because we have had threatening messages and very anti-Asian messages, I do worry for her," he says. "We live in a world right now where people are looking to express their anger towards others because they're not happy with what's going on. Who is happy? Nobody wanted to be in this situation. It is how we react to it that will define us as people." "Sometimes, going out with you right now, I don't feel safe," he admits to Annie, who is from Thailand, as they roam the aisles. "That's why I like Asian markets," Annie replies. "Because all the Asian people here, nobody looks down on each other." TLC RELATED: #WashTheHate Aims to Uplift the Asian Community and Combat Racism During Coronavirus Pandemic In a statement, Howard Lee, president and general manager of TLC, said the network was glad to be bringing so many familiar faces back to their audiences. "Over the past six years, TLC has traversed 34 countries around the globe to capture couples as they've battled distance and obstacles along their path to love, but like the rest of us, they've never endured a challenge quite like this," he said. "So many fans have been curious about how their favorite couples and individuals are holding up during the crisis, so we've asked them to self-film and share their lives in quarantine with all of us. Their stories hold a lens to the world, from anxiety and cabin fever to laughter and inspiration. We're humbled and pleased they've opened their hearts and homes to TLC audiences during this unprecedented time." 90 Day Fiance: Self-Quarantined premieres Monday at 9 p.m. ET on TLC. As Virgin Australia scrambles to stave off collapse, NSW and Queensland have entered a bidding war over which state will secure the airline's headquarters. Queensland has vowed to "stop at nothing" to keep Virgin's headquarters in Brisbane and has warned the NSW government to "back right off". Virgin Australia planes sit idle at Brisbane Airport during the pandemic. Credit:Darren England - AAP The NSW government has put forward a Virgin Australia rescue package - with the condition of relocating the airline's headquarters to Sydney. On Saturday, the Queensland government offered a $200 million rescue package for the country's second national carrier - as long as its headquarters remained in Bowen Hills in Brisbane. Veteran real estate broker John Daugherty Jr. and Douglas Elliman, the New York property firm that tried to buy Daugherty's brokerage earlier this year, have ended up in court over the failed acquisition, with each accusing the other of misrepresentations and false promises. Daugherty, founder of John Daugherty Realtors, claims Elliman committed fraud in its negotiations to buy his Houston company, which was ultimately left an empty shell and is now in bankruptcy, according to a petition filed in state district court on April 8. Elliman has denied the allegations and filed a countersuit, saying it was defrauded by Daugherty and that it had no choice but to terminate the transaction. The litigation is the latest step in a dispute between the two companies that led to Daugherty losing essentially all of his agents and property listings. The Houston firm, founded in 1967, has represented buyers and sellers of some of the city's most expensive homes and had approximately 125 agents as recently as late last year. In February, after the deal with Elliman collapsed, the Daugherty firm filed for bankruptcy protection. Elliman, a prominent East Coast firm with 120 offices serving the countrys high-end housing markets, opened an office in Houston last year after partnering with Houston-based Sudhoff Cos., which focused primarily on sales of newly built luxury condominiums. Sudhoff Cos. founder Jacob Sudhoff became CEO of Douglas Elliman Texas, which began to look to acquire a Houston firm that would give it a stronger resale agency presence here. REAL ESTATE AND COVID-19: Houstons housing market looks bleak as pending sales down 37 percent already Many Daugherty agents made the move to Douglas Elliman before the acquisition was set to close, and now, with the deal having fallen apart, all of its agents gone and the Daugherty firm in bankruptcy, the lawsuits paint a picture of betrayal on both sides of the failed acquisition. The parties began formalizing a deal to combine at the end of 2019. Daugherty said in the court filing that he agreed to promote and endorse the transaction to buy his company to his agents, employees and customers and that he would be provided a position and title with Elliman Houston where he could continue his career. It claims Elliman secretly planned to misappropriate Daughertys assets and pay nothing for them. According to Elliman's counterclaim, the companies began discussing a possible deal in 2017, however, it wasn't until late 2019, when a competitor began hiring away some of Daugherty's top agents that an agreement was made. Elliman claims in its filing that Daugherty said his brand and name were so valuable that any transaction would require a multimillion-dollar payment up front. Daugherty was also alleged to have made additional demands, including that Elliman pay for nine country club memberships, a valet to handle his dry cleaning and other personal perks. Before the closing, Elliman began signing Daugherty agents to its firm and launching a new Elliman-Daugherty brand, according to the countersuit. Elliman said in its filing that it terminated the deal after discovering that Daugherty was on the brink of bankruptcy and that he had provided misleading information to Elliman regarding the companys finances. The countersuit says Daugherty pushed for a quick closing and demanded a side agreement to divert commission funds to his own account rather than the account of John Daugherty Realtors. Both parties declined to comment on the litigation. In his filing, however, Daugherty claims Elliman fraudulently induced him into the purchase agreement and strung him along without paying him. His suit names Douglas Elliman Texas, Douglas Elliman Realty, Sudhoff Cos., Jacob Sudhoff and Kenneth Haber, executive vice president and general counsel of Elliman in New York and Catherine Lee, chief operating office of Douglas Elliman Texas. The Daugherty firms bankruptcy estate filed another lawsuit last week against the same Elliman parties. That suit is based on the same set of facts as the personal lawsuit but is asking for separate damages. Daughertys personal suit seeks to recover damages related to mental anguish and past and future loss of earnings, as well as exemplary damages. Also last week, Daughertys estate filed suit against Compass, the real estate company that hired away some of Daughertys agents. It alleges that the Daugherty firm transferred certain property listings in late 2019 to Compass, which agreed to pay Daugherty 25 percent of the gross commissions at the sale and funding of each property. The petition, filed April 13, said seven of the listings have been closed and funded, yet Compass has failed to pay the agreed upon fees, which amount to $112,028. Of those transactions, the most expensive was a $7.4 million sale on Willowick in River Oaks. Daugherty said his firm is owed $46,000 on that listing. Compass representatives could not be reached Monday. 10 apple varieties, believed to be extinct, have been rediscovered in the Pacific Northwest PORTLAND, Ore.A team of retirees that scours the remote ravines and windswept plains of the Pacific Northwest for long-forgotten pioneer orchards has rediscovered 10 apple varieties that were believed to be extinctthe largest number ever unearthed in a single season by the nonprofit Lost Apple Project. The Vietnam veteran and former FBI agent who make up the nonprofit recently learned of their tally from last falls apple sleuthing from expert botanists at the Temperate Orchard Conservancy in Oregon, where all the apples are sent for study and identification. The apples positively identified as previously lost were among hundreds of fruits collected in October and November from 140-year-old orchards tucked into small canyons or hidden in forests that have since grown up around them in rural Idaho and Washington state. It was just one heck of a season. It was almost unbelievable. If we had found one apple or two apples a year in the past, we thought we were doing good. But we were getting one after another after another, said EJ Brandt, who hunts for the apples along with fellow amateur botanist David Benscoter. I dont know how were going to keep up with that. Tracing Deep Roots Each fall, Brandt and Benscoter spend countless hours and log hundreds of miles searching for ancientand often dyingapple trees across the Pacific Northwest by truck, all-terrain vehicle, and on foot. They collect hundreds of apples from long-abandoned orchards that they find using old maps, county fair records, newspaper clippings, and nursery sales ledgers that can tell them which homesteader bought what apple tree and when the purchase happened. By matching names from those records with property maps, they can pinpoint where an orchard might have beenand they often find a few specimens still growing there. The pair carefully note the location of each tree using GPS and tag the tree with a plastic band, before bagging the apples in zip-close bags and shipping them to the Oregon experts for identification. When I find an apple thats lost, I want to know who homesteaded it, when they were there, who their children were, when they took their last drink of water, Brandt said. We cannot afford to lose the name of even one of these landowners. In the winter, they return to the treesoften on foot or on snowshoes in freezing temperatures and blinding snowto take wood cuttings that can be grafted onto root stock to propagate new trees of the varieties that come back as lost specimens. The task is huge. North America once had 17,000 named varieties of domesticated apples, but only about 4,500 are known to exist today. The Lost Apple Project believes settlers planted a few hundred varieties in their corner of the Pacific Northwest alone as they moved across the U.S. West to try their hands at the pioneer life. These newcomers planted orchards with enough variety to get them through the long winter, with apples that ripened from early spring until the first frosts. Many were brought with the settlers in buckets from their homes on the East Coast and in the Midwest. Then, as now, trees planted for eating apples were not raised from seeds; cuttings taken from existing trees were grafted onto a generic root stock and raised to maturity. These cloned trees remove the genetic variation that often makes wild apples inedible. With the 10 latest varieties identified, Brandt and Benscoter have rediscovered a total of 23 varieties. The latest finds include the Sary Sinap, an ancient apple from Turkey; the Streaked Pippin, which may have originated as early as 1744 in New York; and the Butter Sweet of Pennsylvania, a variety that was first noted in a trial orchard in Illinois in 1901. Botanists from the Temperate Orchard Society identified them by comparing the collected apples to watercolor illustrations created by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the 1800s and early 1900s and by poring over written descriptions in old botany textbooks and reference guides, some of them more than 150 years old. One apple, the Gold Ridge, was particularly hard to identify because the experts couldnt find any illustrations or descriptions of it anywhere. Finally, botanist Joanie Cooper went page by page through a reference book written by a botanist who died in 1912 until she found it. Its the luck of the draw, said Shaun Shepherd, another Temperate Orchard Conservancy botanist. And we learn more as we go along. Pressing Forward With spring underway, the Lost Apple Project will soon enter its busy season as apple trees everywhere blossom and prepare to fruit. As they wait, Brandt and Benscoter are busy grafting wood cuttings from the newly discovered lost apple trees onto root stocks and updating their records from the last season. Their nonprofit took a major hit when they had to cancel both an annual fair where they sell newly grafted lost apple trees and a class on how to graft wood to grow a new apple tree because of the new coronavirus. The two events fund much of their $10,000 annual budget that goes toward travel costs, apple shipping, and apple identification. Two months ago, I was thinking: This is going to be great. Weve got 10 varieties that have been rediscovered, but . right now, we couldnt pay our bills, Benscoter said. Still, the self-described apple detectives take comfort in their work as they navigate todays unprecedented times and find inspiration in imagining the lives of the pioneers who planted these trees. About 25 percent of homesteads didnt make it, Brandt said, and many settlers died or simply walked away to avoid starvation. It was a hard life. I cant even imagine what they went through, but they survived and they went on with their lives, he said. Its hard now, too, but its going to be O.K. Its all a part of life. By Gillian Flaccus New Jersey officials on Monday ordered the states largest nursing home to cease all new admissions, as they continue to investigate the deaths of 39 residents who died after COVID-19 swept through the sprawling facility. At the same time, they told administrators to retain outside consultants by the end of the day to assume several key roles at the facility: infection prevention specialist, director of nursing and administrative manager. Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center has been under mounting federal and state scrutiny after the discovery that the facility had stored at least 17 bodies in rooms set up as temporary morgues following, as the death toll mounted. Two staff members have also died of coronavirus. A spokesman for Andover said the facility has already retained a new registered nurse consultant and certified infection control practitioner, and is working to ensure that the facility has adequate professionals to deal with this unprecedented health emergency. The nursing facility said while it has a full complement of licensed and qualified staff, some of its front-line workers became ill while handling the pandemic and have unable to return to work. Officials did not challenge the halt on admissions. The temporary curtailment of new admissions to the facility will help the ease the burden on already challenged resources and help to protect resident safety, which is Andover Subacutes top priority, said the spokesman. Separately, state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said the nursing home and 20 other long-term care facilities across New Jersey have been inspected since last Thursday by teams looking specifically at infection controls, staffing, and the availability of masks, shields, gowns and other personal protection equipment. Those inspections are also examining response plans required of all nursing facilities in the state since the deaths more than a year ago of 11 children at a pediatric care home in Haskell. Additional surveys are to be done this week, the commissioner said at the states daily coronavirus press briefing in Trenton. Gov. Phil Murphy, meanwhile, indicated that major changes may be coming to the states nursing homes, declaring that the state will not accept the reality of the long-term care industry as it existed before the coronavirus crisis. There have been about 1,700 deaths at the states nursing facilities, or about 40% of the states total deaths from corona virus. There are profound, tragic, big and small lessons that we all have learned, Murphy said, calling out what he said were heroic employees in nursing homes, veterans homes, psychiatric facilities and homes for the developmentally disabled. In too many cases, theyre not compensated what they should be compensated, and they have been going in without the armor they have needed, the governor added. Thats something were looking at in a very comprehensive manner. Inspectors from the state and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services visited Andover on Friday and issued a number of citations over infection control deficiencies, according to Persichilli. CMS, in a statement on Monday, said it takes seriously all allegations of threats to patient safety in nursing homes, but would not provide further details. Our investigation at the Andover facility in New Jersey is ongoing, and CMS does not comment on pending investigations. CMS releases reports once they are completed and have been sent to the facility, officials said. Andover Subacute is licensed for 699 beds in two separate buildings. Federal records show that the larger of the two, Andover Subacute Unit 2, had staffing issues even before the virus struck. While the number of hours spent on care by nurse aides per resident was close to the New Jersey average of 2 hours and 3 minutes per resident per day, nursing care was far sparser. The records show registered nurses spent on average 16 minutes with individual patients each day. The statewide average is 49 minutes. Overall, it was ranked below average for staffing. It ranked much below average in its health inspection rating. The small Unit 1 facility ranked higher in both health inspections and staffing. The nursing home is owned by a Lakewood-based company called Alliance Heathcare Holdings, headed by Chaim Mutty Scheinbaum, who also has ownership stakes in nursing homes in Pennsauken and Cinnaminson in New Jersey, and two other nursing homes in Bloomsburg and Scranton in Pennsylvania. New Jersey after weeks of refusing to release a list of nursing homes where the patients have died or tested positive for coronavirus also released an accounting of facilities where COVID-19 has taken its toll among the elderly. The list included nearly every long-term care facility in the state. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Sign up for text message alerts from NJ.com on coronavirus in New Jersey: Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter. 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. Even though the coronavirus delayed his return home, one new father was right on time to witness the birth of his daughter. First-time parents Paige and Colby Boltz welcomed Stella Rosalee Boltz on April 8 at Hershey Medical Center in Pennsylvania. Colby, 26, is stationed in Southwest Asia as member of the U.S. Air National Guard. He was supposed to be home to welcome his new daughter, but his return was delayed 60 days because of the pandemic. Paige, 22, said the couple found out about the delayed homecoming only two weeks before the birth. PHOTO: Paige Boltz, 22, FaceTimed her husband, Colby Boltz, 26, during the birth of their first child, Stella Boltz in Jonestown, Pa. (Courtesy Paige Boltz) MORE: Mom meets her newborn son for 1st time after surviving COVID-19, emergency C-section "I felt pretty scared," she told "GMA." "I'm a nurse, too, so I wasn't really too concerned [but] they were saying that I might not be able to have anybody in the hospital room at all. Going into a room to deliver alone is scary." Paige said her sister was eventually allowed to join her in the delivery room, but she still wanted the support of her husband. With the help of the United Service Organizations, a nonprofit that offers support for U.S. military members and their families, Colby was there for Paige ... virtually. "Colby had contacted the USO to set up a special room so he could come talk to me [during the birth]," Paige said. "They set him up with good Wi-Fi, and we decided this is what we wanted to do." "Luckily, it worked, and we just FaceTimed," Paige said. "He didn't say much, but he cried when he heard [Stella]. I felt like that was it, that's my moment." "I'm incredibly thankful for the kindness and support from the USO staff during the birth of my daughter," Colby said in a statement. "Because of them, I was able to see her birth, hear her first cry, and be able to support my wife while making the distance seem not so far." Although it's the organization's first coronavirus-related request, the USO said that it's helped military families stay virtually connected in the past. Story continues PHOTO: Stella Rosalee Boltz was born on April 8, 2020 at Hershey Medical Center in Pennsylvania. (Courtesy Paige Boltz) April is also the dedicated "Month of the Military Child," according to the USO. Started in the mid-1980s, the month recognizes military children and families for their sacrifices and bravery. "Being a part of a military family is always a balancing act. Sometimes, 'the job' must come first, and other times family is the top priority," a representative from the USO wrote in a statement to "GMA." "But at the end of the day, when a service member joins the military, their family joins with them." MORE: Dad awaiting coronavirus test results witnesses birth of 1st child via FaceTime Paige is now home with baby Stella and keeps up with her husband through texts and calls. "We just really want to thank the USO for helping us out with everything," she said, adding it meant a lot to her that Colby could virtually be there for her and hopes he can come home to meet Stella in June. "I start to tear up a little bit when I talk about it." Delayed by COVID-19, this National Guardsman watched the birth of his 1st child on FaceTime originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed concerns for cyber cyber attacks that have targeted Czech hospitals involved in the fight against the Coronavirus. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed concerns for cyber cyber attacks that recently hit Czech hospitals involved in the fight against the Coronavirus . As the world battles the COVID-19 pandemic, malicious cyber activity that impairs the ability of hospitals and healthcare systems to deliver critical services could have deadly results. Anyone that engages in such an action should expect consequences. read the press release published by the U.S. State Department. We call upon the actor in question to refrain from carrying out disruptive malicious cyber activity against the Czech Republics healthcare system or similar infrastructure elsewhere. We also call upon all states not to turn a blind eye to criminal or other organizations carrying out such activity from their territory. Malicious cyber attacks pose a serious threat to society because that could impair the ability of hospitals and healthcare organizations during the Coronavirus crisis. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warns of severe consequences against operators behind these attacks. The United States has zero tolerance for malicious cyber activity designed to undermine U.S. and international partners efforts to protect, assist, and inform the public during this global pandemic. Such activity against critical civilian infrastructure is deeply irresponsible and dangerous. continues the press release. The United States promotes a framework of responsible state behavior in cyberspace, including nonbinding norms regarding states refraining from cyber activities that intentionally damage critical infrastructure and knowingly allowing their territory to be used for malicious cyber activities. At the end of March, several Czech hospitals were hit by cyber attacks, in the middle of March, hackers breached one of the major COVID-19 testing laboratories in Czech, the Brno University Hospital in the city of Brno. Recently several hospitals in the eastern Czech cities of Olomouc and Ostrava, as well as, several other infrastructures reported attack attempts. The situation is quiet now, we have seen individual incidents which have been prevented, Czech Health Minister Adam Vojtech said on Friday. However, we still have to be very cautious. The Czech National Cyber and Information Security Agency NUKIB on Thursday warned the international allies of cyber attacks which it expected in the next few days. The Czech Republic warned international allies on Thursday of a imminent wave of disruptive cyberattacks against the countrys hospitals and other parts of its critical infrastructure. reported the Reuters agency. The countrys NUKIB cybersecurity watchdog said the attacks, designed to damage or destroy victims computers, were expected in coming days. Two officials with knowledge of the matter said they could begin as soon as Friday. NUKIB representatives confirmed that a preparatory phase of the attacks was already underway, attackers launched spear-phishing attacks against operators of critical infrastructure in the healthcare industry. This is not spray-and-pray COVID malware stuff, the official said, referring to recent attempts by some cyber criminals to exploit the coronavirus outbreak. NUKIB did not disclose the possible identity of threat actors behind the attack. Pierluigi Paganini ( SecurityAffairs hacking, Coronavirus) [ adrotate banner=13] Share this... Linkedin Share this: Twitter Print LinkedIn Facebook More Tumblr Pocket Share On Albany, N.Y. Steep budget cuts are coming for schools, hospitals, cities and towns across New York without more help from the federal government, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today. If the federal government doesnt provide more aid, New Yorks financial plan this week will forecast 20% cuts to schools, local governments and hospitals, Cuomo said during a press briefing in Albany. He has been saying for weeks that previous federal legislation hasnt done enough to help states dealing with huge drops in tax revenue caused by coronavirus shutdown orders. He repeated his call for $500 billion in federal aid for states, a position advanced by the National Governors Association. New York passed its annual budget several weeks ago, but it is largely dependent on federal help, Cuomo said. The state is facing $10 to $15 billion in lost revenue due to the pandemic and this year's budget allows Cuomo to make adjustments to spending levels throughout the year if necessary. Federal lawmakers are at work on a new coronavirus stimulus bill now. Cuomo noted federal officials have told him not to worry help for the states is coming. "I'm worried because I've heard this over and over again," he said. "The federal government has not funded the states to date." Hazard pay Cuomo said he wants the federal government to fund hazard pay for all essential public workers. They should get a 50% bonus, he said. He noted many of those workers are minorities and low-income individuals. "Thanks is nice, but also recognition of their efforts and their sacrifice is also appropriate," he said. "They are the ones that are carrying us through this crisis and this crisis is not over." Help for New York City public housing residents The state is launching a new partnership with Ready Responders, an in-home medical care company, to provide new health care services and coronavirus testing to residents of public housing in New York City. A pilot program will start this week at public housing sites across the city, Cuomo said. The state is also sending 500,000 cloth masks, at least one for every resident, and 10,000 gallons of hand sanitizer to public housing sites. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay He has designated survivors. Ryan McMahon digs in for a long war against coronavirus Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598 CACI International Inc. CACI was recently chosen as a prime contractor in a $249-million, multiple-award, indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract, by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA). The contract requires CACI to deliver cost savings and other improvements in ship design, manufacturing and lifecycle support, leveraging its analyses, production models, and other programs and solutions. This will enhance the Navys ability to respond to emerging threats. Besides, CACI will help with the modernization of the Navys data management and acquisition forecasting system. CACI International, Inc. Revenue (TTM) CACI International, Inc. Revenue (TTM) CACI International, Inc. revenue-ttm | CACI International, Inc. Quote Contracts Keep Flowing for CACI CACI has been winning record level of awards, which reflects its disciplined business development actions, consistent operational excellence and high customer satisfaction. The companys reliability with contracts makes it a preferred choice among contractors. Notably, in the last reported quarter, CACI secured several notable contracts. These included a five-year, $1.1-billion task order to provide advanced and full-lifecycle information technology support to enterprise and mission technologies Contracts in the last reported quarter were worth $2.7 billion, up a whopping 108% year over year, of which approximately 60% came from new businesses. The companys wins as a prime contractor in most of its deals are a positive. In its last reported quarter, revenues generated as a prime contractor accounted for 90.9% of total revenues. Recently, the company won a single-award task, $83-million order for one base year and four option-years from the U.S. Navy to provide mission expertise, including planning maintenance and repair of submarines, to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. In March, CACI won a $249-million, six-year, single-award task order to support U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) with its advanced mission expertise. Moreover, in December last year, CACI won a $438-million, five-year, single-award task order to develop and support the Air Force Research Laboratorys Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) programs and other technologies. CACI has a large pipeline of new projects and continues to win deals at regular intervals. Notably, as of Dec 31, 2019, its total backlog was $20.3 billion. These back-to-back wins are the key catalysts driving success perennially for the company. Although competition from Science Applications SAIC, Jacobs Engineering Group J and KBR KBR in the federal marketplace remains steady, we believe that CACI is comfortably positioned in this space, given its favored relationship with the DoD. CACI currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report KBR, Inc. (KBR) : Free Stock Analysis Report CACI International, Inc. (CACI) : Free Stock Analysis Report Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) : Free Stock Analysis Report Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (J) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research RIYADH (Reuters) - Health ministers from the Group of 20 major economies discussed weaknesses in health systems that made the world vulnerable to the coronavirus outbreak and other pandemics, a statement said after a virtual meeting on Sunday. The Saudi G20 secretariat said that the ministers shared their national experiences, addressed necessary actions to improve preparedness and discussed systemic weaknesses exposed by the pandemic. "Health Ministers recognised that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted systemic weaknesses in health systems," the statement said. "It also has shown vulnerabilities in the global community's ability to prevent and respond to pandemic threats." The statement said the ministers adopted preventative measures to contain the pandemic, but did not elaborate. A planned virtual news conference was cancelled as Saudi Health Minister Tawfiq al-Rabiah had to attend "an urgent COVID-19 KSA (Saudi) taskforce meeting". Saudi Arabia is the current chair of the G20. In opening remarks provided via video to media, Rabiah said urgent actions included the need for collaboration and engagement of global organisations for coordinated responses to the novel coronavirus pandemic, with an emphasis on supporting countries in need, and investing in research and discovery to produce technology, tools, vaccines and therapies. He also referred to the creation of a global task force to respond to pandemics, an innovation hub for knowledge sharing to improve value in health and a patient safety leaders group to provide shared platforms aimed at reducing patient safety risks. Leaders from Spain, Singapore, Jordan and Switzerland were invited to attend Sunday's meeting as well as international and regional organisations including the World Health Organization and the World Bank, an earlier G20 statement said. (Reporting by Dahlia Nehme and Marwa Rashad; Writing by Ghaida Ghantous and Raya Jalabi; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Grant McCool) VENEZUELA: FARMERS RESIST ECONOMIC BLOCKADE BY INCREASING FOOD PRODUCTION Due to the illegal sanctions imposed on the country by the United States and its allies, the import of food, seeds, fertilisers, machinery, and other basic necessities has been restricted in Venezuela. As a result, food production registered a sixty per cent decrease at the national level, but small and medium-scale farmers in Venezuela are betting on growing food with the least use possible of commercial inputs, as a way to resist the economic blockade that has plagued the country since 2014. Young people and women are playing active leadership roles in the process. It is our historical responsibility as the youth to defend the [Bolivarian] revolution and continue with the task of building socialism as the popular forces of Venezuela. And we are doing it here by combining food production with political-ideological education, says Elisa Pena, a young woman involved with the El Maizal commune, in Lara and Portuguesa states in Western Venezuela. Inducing food shortages to increase hunger in sanctioned countries has been one of the USs favourite strategies to instigate popular revolts and force the ousting of the leadership from governments. In Venezuela, however, this does not seem to have produced the intended effect. The widespread patriotism that is perceived in the Venezuelan people is driving measures and actions aimed at defending national sovereignty at the same time as building food sovereignty. The Venezuelan Frente Nacional Campesino Ezequiel Zamora (National Peasant Front Ezequiel Zamora, FNCEZ) as part of the Corriente Revolucionaria Bolivar y Zamora (Bolivar and Zamora Revolutionary Current, CRBZ) has launched a National Productive Alliance (Alianza Nacional Productiva) together with several cooperatives and communes to revitalise food production at the national level, to meet the countrys food needs. According to Kevin Rangel, the national coordinator of the FNCEZ, the strongest attack on Venezuelas national sovereignty was the economic element and more specifically the food element. The [National Productive] alliance is, therefore, an instrument to empower small and medium-scale producers, conuqueros [peasant farmers], the communes and the landless peasants and urge them to take the task of producing and feeding the nation as a priority, he added. In the states of Lara, Portuguesa, Barinas, and Apure various farmers associations, cooperatives and communes are putting forward production alliances that scale up to include processing and distribution in their communities and beyond. These states are located in the western part of the country and concentrate on about seventy per cent of the whole peasantry and food producers in Venezuela. Most of the farmlands now in the possession of cooperatives and communes in the region were handed over to the peasantry after being expropriated from landed oligarchies which concentrated the bulk of the productive lands in Venezuela. In an all-out war against the latifundio, the land was recovered as a measure to resolve the then prevailing deep inequalities in land ownership and access. The process of land recovery was headed by the then president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez with the support of the army. According to Venezuelan vice-minister of International Communications, Willian Castillo, the rural sector and the peasantry has been the most affected social group by the violence deployed by the paramilitaries brought in from Colombia and other countries, in revenge for the policies of land recovery and nationalisation. Those are, he added, the monsters of the latifundia that still operate in our country, some of them still anchored in the State. PARADIGM SHIFTING IN FOOD SYSTEMS Historically, Venezuelas economy has depended excessively on the oil sector. One of the objectives of the Bolivarian revolution, with the arrival of Hugo Chavez in power, was to diversify the economy, for instance through boosting agricultural production across Venezuela. A significant number of people once settled in urban centres returned to the countryside to embrace farming activities in response to the governments call for rural revitalisation. However, agricultural production in Venezuela has largely been controlled by agribusiness and depended on imported industrial inputs. The ongoing economic attack on Venezuela, which for instance resulted in a blockade on the import of seeds, is nevertheless triggering a paradigm shift among small and medium-scale farmers, especially those working under the umbrella of Frente Nacional Campesino Ezequiel Zamora, to move away from agricultural systems dependent on external inputs. The economic blockade and the attack on Venezuela, as terrible as it is, is allowing us to find innovative ways to produce our food and secure our local food sovereignty, without depending on external industrial seeds and fertilisers, says Braulio Marquez, a spokesperson at Ali Primera productive commune, in Apure. The commune chose the name in honour of Ali Primera, the world-famous late Venezuelan musician, composer, poet, and political activist whose songs condemned exploitation and repression while celebrating peoples resistance. His most well-known song was Techos de Carton (cardboard shacks), about the hard life faced by slum dwellers. According to Amparo Leal, a woman leader and spokesperson of La Gran Union Simon y Bolivar Commune, farmers are determined to produce. The situation is difficult, but we have to confront the boycott, the blockade and the sabotage by intensifying production, diversify crops and supply the communes and the country. Amparo is also part of the self-government (auto-gobierno) of de Ciudad Comunal Productiva Simon Bolivar in Apure. THE COMMUNES AND THE PRODUCTION UNITS The productive communes (comunas productivas) are envisioned to be independent administrative and political spaces towards the building of self-governments in the territories. Communal cities and the communes, in general, seek to transcend the bureaucratic forms of territorial management and political organisation of a bourgeois state. We are putting forward a model, inspired by Chavez, to introduce a new geometry of power. From below in the territories we are generating an organisational process in which the decision-making process is held horizontally, explains Jose Luis Sifontes, member of the political committee of the Comuna El Maizal. The idea of communal organisation, as an alternative to the political organisation of the bourgeois state, goes back several decades in Venezuela. With the process of the Bolivarian revolution, however, this process has been pushed even further. The goal is to construct a new social fabric that would allow the people to truly exercise their power. As Willian Castillo explains, communal democracy this is, the power exercised by the people with widely decentralised mechanisms of management, production, distribution, and consumption without the interference of the State was the condition for building of socialism, as Hugo Chavez would define it. The first laws on communal power were enacted in the mid-2000s in Venezuela. The Gran Unipn Simon Bolivar Communal City in Apure, a collective of eight communes, was the first to elect self-government, in 2008, after a long organisational process driven by the Frente Nacional Campesino Ezequiel Zamora that started in the 90s. It consists of 116,000 hectares, 39 communal councils and 7,600 inhabitants. This Communal city collectively produces a great diversity of crops among cereals, legumes, oilseeds, meat, milk and fruits. In the case of Comuna Maizal, farmers are currently producing 60 tons of corn per month, a production that allows us to supply the demand we have in the territory and that leaves us with a surplus. It allows us to take production to other regions, says Jose Luis Sifontes. The FNCEZ is a member of the international peasant movement, La Via Campesina. FCEZ was born with the intention to contribute to the Bolivarian revolutionary process and to contribute in a concrete way to the process of transforming the agrarian model and revolutionise the countryside. Telesur Today A mix of clouds and sun during the morning will give way to cloudy skies this afternoon. High 72F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph. Tonight Partly cloudy skies. Low 48F. Winds light and variable. Tomorrow Some sun in the morning with increasing clouds during the afternoon. High near 75F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Natural Gas (NG) Breaking Weekly Chart Downchannel Resistance Tradable Patterns - 1 hour ago Natural Gas (NGG22) is gaining for a 2nd straight day, extending the upchannel (on the 4hr chart). Significantly, NG has halted its slide since October by breaking above downchannel resistance (on the... NGG22 : 4.392 (+3.37%) UGAZF : 6.1950 (+5.00%) Kazakhstan detains nearly 1,700 more after violent unrest AP - Wed Jan 12, 2:40AM CST MOSCOW (AP) Kazakh authorities said Wednesday they detained 1,678 more people in the past 24 hours over their alleged participation in the violent unrest that rocked the former Soviet nation last week,... $SPX : 4,713.07 (+0.92%) $DOWI : 36,252.02 (+0.51%) $IUXX : 15,844.12 (+1.47%) Sam Brownback, United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, at the Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom at the Department of State in Washington on July 16, 2019. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Prisoners of Conscience Imperiled by COVID-19, US Ambassador Says Prison and jail populations around the world are among those at the highest risk of infection by the CCP virus, and none are more unjustly at risk than political prisoners and those detained for their religious beliefs. Living, working, and dining in necessarily close and often cramped quarters, those who are imprisoned have little protection from the virus in the event of exposure. Ambassador Sam Brownback, U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, addressed that subject on April 15 by calling on countries around the world to release prisoners held for their religious beliefs and practices. The key point here Id like to make is that we are seeing some countries release religious prisoners because of the COVID-19 crisis, because of the public health concern, because its the right thing to do, because its the right thing for their country not to keep people, religious prisoners, in prison in the first place, Brownback said at a briefing at the State Department. Such prisoners shouldnt be subjected to the spread of the virus within a crowded prison, [an] unsanitary situation, he added. While some countries have indeed released prisoners, along with those who have been jailed for their religious beliefs, China isnt among them. Asked if he had reached out specifically to Chinese officials to try to get Uyghurs in Xinjiang released due to the COVID crisis, Brownback said that he had reached out through the press. I have not reached out directly to individuals. China also continues to imprison a number of Tibetan Buddhists, house church Christians, and Falun Gong members that have been arbitrarily detained, he said. Brownback isnt new to such battles; while serving as a U.S. senator from Kansas, Brownback worked on behalf of freedom of religion with countries around the world. He was a key sponsor of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, which created the ambassadorship that he now holds. Countries including Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Somaliland, Syria, and Tunisia all have some prisoner release programs taking place, and in a number of these cases having some religious prisoners that are being released amongst the entire group thats being released, Brownback said. Other nations, however, havent stepped up. We call on governments, including those in China, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Vietnam, Yemen, and others alike, to release those individuals who are in detention for their religious beliefs and practices, and who remain there, Brownback said. But Brownback, who heads the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), also highlighted a dilemma between the panels mandate and the realities presented by the pandemic. All the countries of the world are trying to cooperate to the degree they can to deal with this threat facing all of humanity on the planet. At the same time, were asking that these nations really step up and address this situation of religious prisoners in their own nation, he said. Chinas Religious Freedoms Worsen China is designated by the USCIRF as a Tier 1 country of particular concern, the highest level of criticism and condemnation that the commission can issue on the condition of religious freedoms in any country. The Tier 1 designation is defined by USCIRF as befitting a country that commits systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom. Despite decades of engagement and investment by companies from around the world, and hundreds of thousands of Chinese students receiving high school and university educations in the United States and other Western countries, Chinas religious rights record is worsening, and regulations are becoming more stringent. On Feb. 1, a new set of administrative measures governing religious groups came into force in China. These regulations not only further codify and strengthen the Beijing regimes already authoritarian supervision and control over religious practices, they officially require religious groups to publicize, teachand acceptthe principles of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The new regulations also require religious organizations to provide interpretations for doctrines and canons that meet the requirements of the development and progress of modern China, and in accordance with the glorious traditional Chinese culture. Targeting Sanctions The designation of a country as Tier 1 violator of religious freedoms is supposed to have, by law, consequences. The law requires the president to take one of several actions, including economic sanctions. However, too often those consequences have already been put into effect under a process called double-hatting, a December 2019 report by The Heritage Foundation points out. Double-hatting adds abuses of religious freedoms to sanctions that are already in place on a country for other reasons, such as arms embargoes, trade, and aid. In other words, no extra price is paid by offending nations, making the designation as an offender little more than an annoyance and potential embarrassment. Heritage suggests a fix. Sanctions should be targetednot broad-based or trade-basedand should focus on holding specific individuals and entities accountable, perhaps through application of Global Magnitsky sanctions, its report says. The Global Magnitsky Act allows for visa bans and targeted sanctions on individuals who are responsible for human rights violations or acts of significant corruption. The first use of the act in response to violations of religious rights occurred in January 2018, when the State Department, along with the Treasury, sanctioned a Burmese general for gross human rights violations that caused more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee their native country. New Kildare South TD Dr Cathal Berry has never been busier both as an Independent Dail deputy considering being part of the next government and as a medical doctor taking phone calls from con- stituents worried about the Covid-19 health emergency. Consultations Dr Berry is carrying out consultations over the telephone and via Skype and has also arranged Covid-19 testing for some patients. He has already hired five staff who will help run his constituency offices in Newbridge and Portarlington as well as his office in Leinster House. He said: Its only two months since the general election and Im learning on the job. Im solution-focused and my team and I are helping constituents with issues such as housing and transport. The Covid-19 health emergency is a massive challenge for all but Im pleased to see people being compliant with restrictions. Dr Berry praised the Government and public health officials and the general public for how they have embraced science and medicine in fighting the spread of Covid-19. He added: Its a fast-evolving global pandemic and the response wont be perfect but I think the measures have been good in Ireland. You wont get a perfect response. Nobody could have planned for any of this six months ago. Guidelines The public has to observe the personal hygiene guidelines and restrictions and the medical personnel have to treat each patient as best they can. Italy, Spain, New York are in a bad way but thankfully that hasnt happened in Ireland yet. However he said the Government and HSE needed to carry out more testing and ensure the quality of Personal Protection Equipment for healthcare staff. He has been heartened by the performance of the Government and the Department of Health and the HSE in the biggest every health crisis to hit the state. He said: Who would have thought that Minister for Health Simon Harris was due to lose a motion of no confidence in the Dail before the general election. He has impressed people with how he has managed the crisis so far and how he has communicated with the public. Respectful In the Dail, he has been very respectful and courteous to Opposition TDs like myself. Dr Berry said he is fully-focused on his job as an Independent TD in the 33rd Dail. He is part of a Technical Group of nine independents who share speaking time in the Dail chamber and can sit on Oireachtas committees. He explained: I could be a doctor among 14,000 doctors in the country or I could be a TD among 166 TDs. Its a very privileged position to be elected by the people of Kildare South and parts of Laois and Offaly. He also believes that there should be more technical expertise among Oireachtas members in the Dail and Seanad. He said: Its an important time to be a medical professional in the Dail. The Seanad was originally intended to be filled with experts in different fields who could scrutinise and inform legislation and table valuable amendments. But know that hasnt really happened. Expertise Therefore as a doctor and as a TD in the Dail, I will be aiming to bring my expertise to my role as a parliamentarian and a legislator. Dr Berry said he will consider being part of a new Government which is currently being negotiated between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail if he can realistically make a difference to his constituents, who he has divided up into military personnel and their families and the areas he represents in Kildare, Laois and Offaly. But he accepts that politics will never be as challenging in the history of the state due to the health and economic consequences from the Covid-19 global pandemic. In 1345, the Mongol general Jani Beg was mortified as a Bubonic Plague cut down thousands of his soldiers. Unable to overrun the citadel of Cafa (present day Feodosia), he extracted a terrible revenge before retreating. Bodies of his dead soldiers were loaded on catapults and lobbed into the city. This apocryphal story is frequently cited as evidence of the first bio-weapons attack in history. The plague was actually introduced into Europe by infected Genoese sailors but the siege of Cafa has become fodder for military thought. Seven centuries later, militaries still worry about their adversaries weaponising viruses. Militaries still worry about their adversaries weaponising viruses. (Photo: ANI) New theories blaming China for the outbreak have resurfaced in the US, the country hit hardest by the coronavirus. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, There was going to be a full investigation on how the virus got out into the world. There is considerable speculation denied by China that the virus in fact leaked out of the Wuhan Institute of Virology. If weaponised viruses are indeed at work, then Indias biological warfare fighting preparedness is sure to receive a boost. Indias frugal military germ-fighting capability currently centres around the DRDOs Gwalior-based DRDE. The laboratory is part of the DRDOs Life Sciences cluster which attracted flak for producing mosquito repellents, fruits and vegetables in recent years. The laboratory is now engaged in providing its testing expertise to health care providers including the Indian Army. The armed forces are learning live lessons in defensive bio-warfare capabilities as they assist civil authorities to fight the pandemic. The Army says it hasnt seen a let up in counter-terrorism operations or infil tration attempts along the Line of Control. In one of the bloodiest encounters in recent times, a five-man special forces team fought a pitched battle with a group of five infiltrators in the Keran sector in early April and died to the last man. Troops of the Northern Command have already been given detailed instructions forbidding them from handling bodies of terrorists without wearing personal protection equipment. A senior army commander believes Pakistan is pushing COVID-19 infected terrorists across the border. General Jani Begs strategy at work? (Courtesy of Mail Today) DailyOh! Mice in the way of India's vaccine hunt, to why calling Rangoli 'Chandal' is also hate SEATTLE - Boeing and at least one other U.S. heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed production and some states rolled out aggressive reopening plans Monday, despite nationwide concerns there is not enough testing yet to keep the coronavirus from rebounding. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. People ride escalators at the Kourosh Shopping Center in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 20, 2020. Iran on Monday began opening intercity highways and major shopping centers to stimulate its sanctions-choked economy, gambling that it has brought under control its coronavirus outbreak one of the worst in the world even as some fear it could lead to a second wave of infections. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) SEATTLE - Boeing and at least one other U.S. heavy-equipment manufacturer resumed production and some states rolled out aggressive reopening plans Monday, despite nationwide concerns there is not enough testing yet to keep the coronavirus from rebounding. In one of the most forceful moves yet, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced plans to restart the state's economy before the end of the week. Kemp said gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlours could reopen Friday, as long as owners followed strict social distancing and hygiene requirements. Boeing said it was putting about 27,000 people back to work this week building passenger jets at its Seattle-area plants, with virus-slowing precautions in place, including face masks and staggered shifts. Doosan Bobcat, a farm equipment maker and North Dakota's largest manufacturer, announced the return of about 2,200 workers at three factories around the state. Angel Landaverde, 4, is restrained by his aunt Vilma Landaverde, center left, and medical workers as a swab is placed in his nose during a coronavirus testing at a walk-up testing site, Monday, April 20, 2020, in Annapolis, Md. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) The reopenings came amid economic gloom, as oil futures plunged below zero on Monday and stocks and Treasury yields also dropped on Wall Street. The cost to have a barrel of U.S. crude delivered in May plummeted to negative $37.63. It was at roughly $60 at the start of the year. Elsewhere around the world, step-by-step reopenings were underway in Europe, where the crisis has begun to ebb in places such as Italy, Spain and Germany. Parts of the continent are perhaps weeks ahead of the U.S. on the infection curve of the virus, which has killed more than 170,300 people worldwide, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. Businesses that start operating again in the U.S. are likely to engender good will with the Trump administration at a time when it is doling out billions in relief to companies. But the reopenings being announced are a drop in the bucket compared with the more than 22 million Americans thrown out of work by the crisis. In a dispute that has turned nakedly political, President Donald Trump has been agitating to restart the economy, singling out Democratic-led states and egging on protesters who feel governors are moving too slowly. South African National Defense Forces patrol the Sjwetla informal settlement after pushing back residents into their homes, on the outskirts of the Alexandra township in Johannesburg, Monday, April 20, 2020. The residents were protesting the lack of food. Many have lost their income as South Africa is under a strict five-week lockdown in a effort to fight the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay) In several states most of them Republican-led governors said they had seen signs that the coronavirus curve was flattening, making it possible to start reopening businesses and public spaces. Kemp, a Republican, said a decline in emergency room visits by people with flu-like symptoms indicated that infections were going down. But he also acknowledged that Georgia had lagged in COVID-19 testing and announced new initiatives to ramp it up. Texas on Monday began a week of slow reopenings, starting off with state parks, while officials said that later in the week, stores would be allowed to offer curbside service. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced Monday that businesses across most of the state would begin reopening as early as next week, although the order did not cover counties with the largest cities, including Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville and Chattanooga. Both states are led by Republicans. Republican West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said Monday that he would allow hospitals to begin performing elective procedures if the facilities met an unspecified set of criteria, while Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said Monday that he would let his statewide stay-at-home order expire next week as long as strict social distancing and other individual protective measures continued. City workers wait for people to walk through a tunnel that sprays disinfectant, in an attempt to contain the spread of the new coronavirus, at the entrance to the community of Mallasa on the outskirts of La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, April 20, 2020. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) But governors from many other states said they lacked the testing supplies they need and warned they could get hit by a second wave of infections, given how people with no symptoms can still spread the disease. Who in this great state actually believes that they care more about jet skiing than saving the lives of the elderly or the vulnerable? Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer remarked, referring to restrictions in place in her state. This action isnt about our individual right to gather. Its about our parents right to live. Trump took to Twitter to complain that the radical left and Do Nothing Democrats are playing a very dangerous political game by complaining about a testing shortage. At the same time, Vice-President Mike Pence told governors that Washington is working around-the-clock to help them ramp up testing. The death toll in the U.S. stood at 42,300 the highest in the world with nearly 787,000 confirmed infections, by Johns Hopkins' count. The true figures are believed to be much higher, in part because of limited testing and difficulties in counting the dead. A masked worker departs a gate at a Boeing production plant Monday, April 20, 2020, in Renton, Wash. Boeing this week is restarting production of commercial airplanes in the Seattle area, putting about 27,000 people back to work after operations were halted because of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) In other developments: Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced his state will be able to test 500,000 more people for COVID-19 thanks to a shipment of tests from South Korea. His wife, Yumi Hogan, who is Korean-American, negotiated the shipment with Korean officials. Trump said at an afternoon briefing that governors like Hogan and Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois dont understand they already have the testing capacity they need to begin the first phase of reopening their states. Massachusetts has emerged as an alarming hot spot of contagion, with over 1,800 dead and officials hoping to bend the curve through aggressive contract tracing. New York, with the worst outbreak in the nation, reported that hospitalizations in the state have levelled off and the day's death toll, at 478, was the lowest in three weeks, down from a peak of nearly 800. Still, the city cancelled three of its biggest June events: the Puerto Rican Day parade, the Israel parade and the gay pride march. A costumer leaves a butchery at the Mataderos meat market in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, April 20, 2020. According to butchers, sales have dropped at least 50% since the lockdown to help contain the spread of the new coronavirus. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) A meatpacking plant in Minnesota was shut down after an outbreak there. But Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds refused to order the closing of any slaughterhouses in her state that are seeing alarming increases in COVID-19, saying: Without them, peoples lives and our food supply will be impacted. Mobilized by the far right, many Americans have taken to the streets in places such as Michigan, Ohio and Virginia, complaining that the shutdowns are destroying their livelihoods and trampling their rights. But Dr. Anthony Fauci, the governments top infectious-disease expert, warned on ABC: Unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen. Boeings shutdown went into effect March 25 after workers tested positive for the virus and an inspector for the company died. Washington was the first state to see a spike in COVID-19 cases and enacted strict shutdown orders that helped tamp the virus down. The crisis has exacerbated problems at Boeing, which is in dire financial trouble and under federal investigation over two crashes of its 737 MAX jetliner that killed 346 people. Union representatives spent the day walking through factories to see what safeguards had been put in place. At Doosan Bobcat, spokeswoman Stacey Breuer said the reopening came after two weeks spent putting in safety measures. 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. There is definitely still some concern and do we feel 100% safe? Obviously not," said William Wilkinson, a Bobcat welder and president of a United Steelworkers union local. He said workers there were wearing face masks and keeping their distance from one another. Even with the outbreak easing in places, the head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, cautioned, "The worst is yet ahead of us. He did not specify why he believed so. But there were signs the virus was swelling in Africa, where the health care system is in poor condition. ___ Long reported from Washington. Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. AP writers worldwide contributed to this report. ___ Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray has said stern action will be taken against those involved in the lynching of three men in Palghar district. The state government has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on April 16. "The Palghar incident has been acted upon. The police has arrested all those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and the police personnel, on the day of the crime itself," Thackeray tweeted late Sunday night. "Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible," he added. State home minister Anil Deshmukh said a high-level inquiry has been ordered into the incident. He warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. "Those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings are not from different religions. I have ordered Maharashtra police and @MahaCyber1 to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media," Deshmukh said in a tweet on Sunday. "Police have detained 101 people involved into the killing of three Surat bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered high level inquiry into this killings," he said. Deshmukh said police are keeping a close eye on those who wanted to use the incident to create a rift in society. He ended his post with the hashtag #LawAndOrderAboveAll. The incident took place on April 16 night when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). 80 per cent of COVID-19 cases either asymptomatic or show mild symptoms India pti-PTI New Delhi, Apr 20: The Union health ministry on Monday said 80 per cent of the COVID-19 patients are either asymptomatic or show mild symptoms and it is a major area of concern. The asymptomatic patients may pass on the infection to other people, it said, stressing on maintaining social distancing and infection prevention and control practices in hospital set ups. "On the basis of worldwide analysis, 80 per cent of the COVID-19 patients are asymptomatic or show mild symptoms. Around 15 per cent patients turn into severe cases and 5 per cent may become critical," Lav Agarwal, joint secretary in the health ministry, said at a daily press briefing. As of now, there is no plan to further widen the testing criteria, he said. Head of epidemiology and communicable diseases at Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Dr Raman R Gangakhedkar said 80 out of 100 infected people do not show any symptoms. As part its revised strategy to fight the spread of COVID-19, the government has started testing people with fever, cough and sore throat in hotspots or cluster areas and evacuees centres. Also, all hospitalised patients with severe acute respiratory illness, shortness of breath, fever and cough are being tested for COVID-19 infection. Direct and high-risk contacts of confirmed cases are also being tested once between day five and 14 of coming in his/her contact. Besides, all asymptomatic individuals who undertook international travel and developed symptoms, all symptomatic contacts of laboratory-confirmed cases and all symptomatic health care workers were being tested for the infection as per the guidelines. The apex body for biomedical research had recently revised its strategy to contain the spread of the virus more effectively and provide reliable diagnosis to all individuals meeting the inclusion criteria of COVID-19 testing. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 559 and the number of cases climbed to 17, 656 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. However, a PTI tally of the figures reported by various states as on Monday showed 17,744 cases and 584 deaths in the country. There has been a lag in the Union Health Ministry figures, compared to the number of deaths announced by different states, which officials attribute to procedural delays in assigning the cases to individual states. By Express News Service HYDERABAD: A man from Hyderabad, living in Saudi Arabia for the past few years, succumbed to COVID-19 on Saturday night after battling the disease for a few days. The man is a native of Bowenpally and was working as a technician in a maintenance company for a few years. Living in shared accommodation, he tested positive during a random check by officials. The Hyderabad resident was shifted to a hospital and he died on Saturday evening. The case was confirmed by the Indian embassy in Riyadh. In another case, a Nizamabad resident infected by COVID-19 passed away on Thursday and was buried in Mecca. The last rites were performed by an NGO activist since the family could not be present for the funeral. The Indian embassy also announced the death of two individuals from Kerala, one from Maharashtra and another from Uttar Pradesh. According to the Saudi Ministry of Health's daily report published on April 14, the number of coronavirus infected cases among workers of Saudi Binladin Group in various parts of the Kingdom stood at 117, and these included 70 cases in Mecca. The first two Indian fatalities were reported from Medina and Riyadh earlier this month with the death of Shebnaz Pala Kandiyil (29) and Safvan Nadamal (41), both from Kerala. (With PTI Inputs) The coronavirus outbreak has led to investors hitting pause due to an uncertain economic climate. When compared to the 2008-09 global financial crisis, the peak-to-trough for it occurred over a two-year period but this time the economic decline will likely be much sharper. Singapore-based Priyank Shah, Director Capital Markets, Asia-Pacific, JLL, tells Vandana Ramnani of Moneycontrol in an interview that like other markets, India will likely see a rebound in transactions in the second half of 2020 and the country remains high on investors radar globally. Edited excerpts: Q) If the economic impact of COVID-19 lasts for many months and social distancing measures are maintained, how will it affect institutional investment in the real estate sector globally as well as India? Commercial real estate investment in India, as in other regional and global markets, has been impacted by the COVID-19 spread and the closure of many parts of the economy. As a result, many global investors have paused activity due to the uncertain economic environment and hence, deal activity has been impacted. We see this reduced activity continuing into Q2, with trading volumes likely to bounce back more strongly in the second half of the year. 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 Transaction volumes in the first quarter of 2020 declined significantly, which was widely expected by the market. Real estate transaction volumes experienced a steep contraction in Asia-Pacific, a year-on-year drop over 30% for the Asia-Pacific region, ending the quarter at $29.5 billion. In terms of individual markets, mainland China, Hong Kong, and Singapore were the most adversely affected markets in Asia-Pacific, all declining by over 60% year-on-year. South Korea and Japan were the least impacted, where investment activity was similar or slightly higher year-on-year. India experienced a sharp moderation in the first quarter, although not as severe as mainland China, Hong Kong and Singapore, owing to activity in the first two months of 2020. JLL estimates that transaction volumes fell by around 50 percent in the first quarter of 2020 as the severity of the pandemic became more apparent. Like other markets, India will potentially see a rebound in transactions emerging in the second half of 2020 and remains high on the radar of investors globally.Different sectors were impacted to different degrees across Asia-Pacific but all were influenced in some way by the COVID-19 spread and containment measures introduced by governments. By sector, retail investment took the worst hit, in the wake of forced shutdowns and the ramping up of safe-distancing measures. Hotel transaction activity also moderated sharply, partially aided by a few large-scale deals finalised in the earlier part of the quarter in major markets in East Asia. Office assets continued to be most sought after by offshore and domestic investors, yet volumes fell as investors reassessed strategies and owners held back on sales due to perceived pricing dislocation. Encouragingly, the industrial and logistics investment market has weathered the storm, so far, and proven to be the regions most resilient asset class. As communities become more reliant on e-commerce and businesses look to shore up supply chains and warehousing space, the industrial and logistics space became a more essential part of the Asia-Pacific real estate market and we would expect its attractiveness to investors to only grow in 2020 and beyond. Some existing deals remain in play and others have been put on hold until more clarity around the economic impact of COVID-19 becomes available. Despite how the COVID-19 outbreak influences economic activity in major markets like the US and EU, the majority of the tenants will get likely impacted in some form and their expansion and growth plans will be delayed for the short-term. However, there are many well-capitalised investors waiting for opportunities, and we think the dislocation in the markets will create a strong deal flow across most sectors in the second half of the year.The global financial crisis peak-to-trough occurred though over a two-year period, so this time around its likely the economic decline will be much sharper. However, the prospects for a quicker recovery are high, due to lower leverage and early liquidity in the financial system. Real estate will rebound quickly.Our dialogue with the market has shown that new investor entrants are keen to play a bigger role in regional markets like India. Opportunistic capital, like private equity and family offices, will play a more significant role in the national and regional real estate sector when stabilisation becomes more apparent. In recent weeks, some early indications of what comes next are also emerging from an economic and investor standpoint. We are beginning to see some signs of market dislocation that is generating more frequent conversations with investors. Another factor that will potentially restart capital deployment is the fact that investors in Asia-Pacific sit on a record level of dry powder. Given that pension funds and insurers are also looking to buy cash- yielding assets like real estate, were optimistic that signs of a rebound will likely emerge in the second half of the year. Staying close to our clients and the market is the key. At this time of fluidity globally, the best indication and support we can give to this market is by staying close to it and listening to all views, understanding individual appetites and concerns, and most of all, helping. British billionaire Richard Branson said his airlines in the U.K. and Australia won't survive the coronavirus crisis without state support, and that his Virgin Group lacks the resources to see them through the pandemic. Branson said in a letter to staff Monday posted online that he's doing everything possible to keep Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. going. It needs a U.K.-backed commercial loan to ride out the crisis, while Virgin Australia is "fighting to survive," he said. The entrepreneur is struggling to convince governments to rescue his brands given his own highly visible wealth and long-time residency in the West Indies that's led him to be viewed as a tax exile. The companies pay taxes in the countries where they are based and operate, and more than 70,000 people work in Virgin operations across 35 countries, according to the letter. Britain has yet to decide on Virgin Atlantic's weeks-old application for hundreds of millions of pounds in support, while Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd. was told by the government in Canberra Monday that it will receive no further financial help, the Australian Financial Review reported. Branson said he left Britain not for tax reasons "but for our love of the beautiful British Virgin Islands," and that he has never taken significant profits out of Virgin Group. He's chosen instead to plow money into new businesses, such as his latest Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. space-tourism venture. "I've seen lots of comments about my net worth, but that is calculated on the value of Virgin businesses around the world before this crisis, not sitting as cash in a bank account ready to withdraw," he said. Branson has committed to injecting $250 million into his brands to save jobs, and he said in the letter that "a big part" is going to Virgin Atlantic." But with "no money coming in and lots going out," that in itself won't be enough, he said. Virgin Australia's situation is the most critical, with debts of more than A$5 billion ($3.2 billion) at the end of 2019. Branson now holds only a 10% stake in the Brisbane-based carrier, compared with 51% of Virgin Atlantic. Virgin Australia had asked the government for a A$1.4 billion loan, convertible into equity, to see it through the crisis. The is dominated by Qantas Airways Ltd. in essentially a two-player market, and hasn't made an annual profit for seven years. Researchers have discovered six new coronaviruses in bats while studying how diseases can pass from animals to humans. The scientists said the coronaviruses found in bats in Myanmar are not closely related to the coronavirus now affecting many parts of the world. The research was led by scientists from the Smithsonians Global Health Program in Washington, D.C. The findings were recently reported in a study in the publication PLOS ONE. The researchers said the six new coronaviruses have never been discovered anywhere in the world. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in people and many different species of animals. The CDC adds that it is rare for animal coronaviruses to infect people and then spread among the human population. However, there have been major disease outbreaks caused by coronaviruses in humans. Bats have been linked to some of them. The viruses responsible for diseases SARS and MERS were linked to bats. The CDC says the new coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, also came from bats. Health experts estimate that thousands of coronaviruses are present in bats, with many still undiscovered. The Smithsonian team worked with researchers in Myanmar on a project aimed at identifying new diseases that are zoonotic meaning they can spread from animals to humans. The project, called PREDICT, is supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Researchers working on the project say zoonotic diseases represent about 75 percent of new diseases affecting humans. One of their goals is to study how contact between humans and wildlife can lead to coronavirus infections in people. The team centered its research in areas where humans were most likely to come into close contact with local wildlife. Among the team members were representatives from Myanmar government agencies. The researchers collected 759 samples of saliva and waste from bats in the areas from May 2016 to August 2018. After examining the samples, they identified the six new kinds of coronavirus. The team also discovered a coronavirus found in other parts of Southeast Asia, but never before in Myanmar. Marc Valitutto is a former wildlife veterinarian with the Smithsonians Global Health Program. He was the lead writer of the study. He said in a statement that widespread disease outbreaks like COVID-19 should remind us how closely human health is connected to the health of wildlife and the environment. The goal is to prevent the virus from getting into humans in the first place, Valitutto told Smithsonian Magazine. He added that future research will seek to learn more about how coronaviruses behave in animals. For example, what permits the viruses to mutate and spread to other species. Such research can help reduce the possibility of future pandemics, Valitutto said. Suzan Murray is the director of the Smithsonians Global Health Program. She said many coronaviruses do not present risks to humans. However, she noted identifying them early on in animals can be an effective way to investigate possible disease threats. Vigilant surveillance, research and education are the best tools we have to prevent pandemics before they occur, Murray said. Im Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the Smithsonians Global Health Program, PLOS ONE and the CDC. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. Quiz - Six New Coronaviruses Found in Bats in Myanmar Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story species n. a set of plants or animals in which the members have similar characteristics to each other outbreak n. the sudden appearance of a contagious illness sample n. a small amount of a substance collected by a scientist or doctor veterinarian n. someone whose job is to give medical care to animals that are sick or hurt mutate v. biology : to cause (a gene) to change and create an unusual characteristic in a plant or animal pandemic n. the spread of an infectious disease over a large area in a short period of time vigilant adj. watching something carefully and always being ready to notice anything unusual or dangerous surveillance n. the activity of watching people carefully, often secretly, especially by an army or police force Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Xinhua) Mon, April 20, 2020 13:03 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fc6b5 2 News Beijing,China,tourism,travel,destination,coronavirus,COVID-19 Free Beijing has reopened 73 major tourist sites, or 30.7 percent of the total in the municipality, as the novel coronavirus epidemic wanes. All of them are outdoor landscape resorts as required by the Beijing municipal bureau of culture and tourism in a plan for the reopening of tourist sites. The reopening time of indoor sites is yet to be announced. The Great Wall sites of Mutianyu, Simatai and Badaling were among those that have reopened to visitors, the bureau said Sunday. Read also: Tourist attractions in Beijing share blacklists of 'uncivilized visitors' Gubei Water Town, leaning against the Simatai Great Wall in Miyun District, is expected to reopen on April 23. Jin Linsheng, vice president of the water town tourism company, said the resort will promote contactless services such as mobile payment, e-tickets and guide machines to avoid cross-infection. According to an official with the bureau, the tourist sites that resume operation should receive no more than 30 percent of the maximum real-time number of visitors, and no more than 30 percent of the daily visitor capacity. Editorial An Opposition To What? Earlier this month, the Greens attempted to pass some amendments to the Coronavirus Economic Response Package. The amendments included personal protection equipment to First Nations, an increase in the disability support pension, the eviction ban to be enshrined into law, among others. The amendments also looked to the future, proposing a permanent increase to Jobseeker, Youth allowance, AUSTUDY, and ABSTUDY payments. The amendments were aimed at societys most vulnerable but were ultimately knocked back when the ALP sided with the government to oppose them. This is head-scratching. Why would the Australian Labor Party, a party that boasts ties to the union movement, not work to deliver to our countrys most needy? Doubly head-scratching is that Anthony Albanese stated that the economy should work for the people not the other way around. If thats the case, then how does this amendment not get the ALPs support? An answer may be found in Albaneses own words: The scale of this expenditure that well consider today is without equal in our nations history. We are headed for a $1 trillion debt [...]. [...] It is a bill that will saddle a generation. With this comes a compelling need for scrutiny and forensic oversight [...]. Albanese isnt wrong in his assessment but does this warrant blocking the amendments by the Greens? Is the cost of a national debt higher than the cost of poverty of our nations working class? While this may be a bill that will saddle a generation, the cost of not supporting our most maligned is likely to seep intergenerationally, as those who are hurt now may never be able to get a fair go. Ultimately, it seems that the ALPs approach is based on the fear that it may eventually be stuck with the debt when election season rolls around. If this is indeed the case, it seems that the ALP is more concerned with how the mainstream media will portray them than by the people they would help by supporting these amendments. Theres no reason to think otherwise. However, following in the wake of the governments measures has not provided the ALP with any groundswell. Newspoll shows the LNP leading in every category, particularly when it comes to preferred PM (Morrison 53, Albanese 29). By being in lockstep with the Coalitions measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, the ALP have not separated themselves, attaching themselves to policy that is arriving only when absolutely necessary, usually a moment too late. This leads us to ask: How does the ALP provide an alternative? It was the ALP, the party of the trade unions, that introduced the Accord; it was the ALP that introduced mandatory detention; it was the ALP under Rudd, after the apology speech, that removal of indigenous children rose, not decreased. These may be digressions, but they highlight the severe and bourgeois nature of the ALP. This crisis provides the ALP with the perfect opportunity to contrast itself against the Coalition. However, instead of being aggressive, demanding more for the working-class, the ALP is exhibiting the traits of Khvostism (tailism). They are reactive, merely responding to the spontaneous nature of the crisis rather than leading it by being active. The working class needs and deserves more. The CPA campaigns for the interests and demands of the working class, that no one is left behind, and that injustice is exposed. It is time to break the two-party system and elect a progressive, democratic government of a new type. The huge General Motors auto factory is seen in Moraine, a suburb of Dayton, Ohio on Oct. 30, 2008. The sprawling GM plant used to build sport utility vehicles and employed 2,400 people when it was shuttered in December 2008. (Chris Hondros/Getty Images) Chinas American Factory Boss Says Supply Chain Reshoring is Happening News Analysis Chinese tycoon Cao Dewang, who purchased the U.S. glass plant chronicled in the award-winning documentary American Factory, warned China that Western reshoring of supply chains is happening amid the pandemic caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus. Cao Dewang, also known as Cho Tak Wong, committed $600 million to buy a closed GM glassmaking plant in Ohio with the promise to bring back 800 U.S. manufacturing jobs. Despite constant UAW (United Auto Workers) organizing efforts, his Fuyao Glass America invested over $1 billion to create 2,400 U.S. jobs by adding production facilities in Greenville, South Carolina and Detroit, Michigan. Fuyao was one of the first Chinese manufacturers to reshore manufacturing outsourced to China, back to America. Cao emphasized that his investments were strictly motivated by cost advantages associated with cheap U.S. land, reasonable energy prices and lower tax burdens. With glassmaking as one of the most energy-intensive basic industries, consuming 13,140 BTU per dollar of product, Fuyao benefited from the U.S. fracking boom. The South China Morning Post reported that 74-year-old Cao told The Beijing News that China must begin preparing for change after the CCP virus pandemic, because the global industrial chain will reduce its dependence on China. He warned that with the CCP virus revealing risks from over-reliance on China for manufacturing, coupled with the continuing Sino-U.S. trade war, momentum is building for shifting production home or to third-party countries. Cao believes it will be very difficult for European and American firms to move production back home after losing workers with the necessary production skills. He also agrees that the young entrepreneurs in the United States, Japan, and South Korea are more interested in the Internet and finance industries, than in manufacturing. But growing worldwide condemnation against the Chinese Communist Party leadership for denying the origin of the CCP virus outbreak, then hiding the scale of the epidemic for months, caused the worst pandemic in over a century. The Macdonald-Laurier Institute (MLI) organized over 100 Chinese establishment scholars that stated in an open letter that COVID-19 is the CCPs self-inflicted Chernobyl moment. The manifesto calls on all independent intellectuals to end the uncritical support for the ridiculous Red Culture of the CCP. The MLI letter voices solidarity for the rebellious cry by Chinese professor Xu Zhangrun, now under house arrest in Beijing, to rage against this injustice; let your lives burn with a flame of decency; break through the stultifying darkness and welcome the dawn. Political scientist Andrew Michta wrote in The American Interest this week that the role China has played in exacerbating the fallout from the coronavirus crisis ought to force Americans to fundamentally reconsider the relationship. With radical centralization of market networks exposed as a grave, near-delusional miscalculation, Mitcha called for a hard decoupling with China by extending social distancing to economic distancing. Japan became the first nation to enter the path of economic distancing from China by announcing $2.2 billion in reshoring incentives as a key piece of its stimulus package to respond to financial disruption caused by the CCP virus. The U.S. Congress led by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at ending Chinas domination of the global pharmaceutical supply chain and other critical goods. Rubio told the New York Times, I think thats now right before us. NAIROBI, Kenya, April 20, 2020 (Morning Star News) A young woman who told a Muslim about Christ and a pregnant, formerly Muslim woman beaten for her new faith suffered serious injuries in eastern Uganda, sources said. Radical Muslims assaulted Lydia Nabirye, the 23-year-old daughter of a Church of God evangelist, on April 7 at about 1 p.m. near Luwooko village, Buwunga Sub-County, Bugiri District, she said. Nabirye said she shared her faith with a young Muslim woman in early March who subsequently became a Christian. The former Muslim woman, unnamed for security reasons, received threats from her Muslim family due to her new faith, so Nabiryes family gave her refuge in their home, where six other former Muslims are staying due to threats, she said. Her mother knows that her daughter is with me, because we have been close friends with her for more than four years, Nabirye told Morning Star News by phone. The family knows about our relationship with her. On April 7 Nabiryes father, Paul Kaikiya, sent her to Bukolwa village to visit another former Muslim who was mourning the loss of a son who had died, and Muslims saw her entering their property, she said. On her way back, Nabirye was about six miles from the bereaved mothers home and close to the home of the woman she had recently led to faith in Christ when she was attacked by a group of radical Muslims, three of which she could identify, she said. They held me and started beating me up, Nabirye told Morning Star News. They slapped me, and others hit me with sticks, saying that they were out to kill me because I was changing Muslims to become Christians. An area source told Morning Star News that the Muslims ambushed, strangled and severely beat her. When she shouted and screamed, neighbors called police, and the assailants fled when officers arrived, he said. When I met her at her home on April 14, she was still in pain from multiple injuries head, right eye and left hand injuries, the source told Morning Star News. At the moment Nabiryes father is very fearful of a possible attack. The Muslims in Luwooko village have sworn to harm Kaikiya. The family needs prayers at this difficult moment, especially for the security and the safety of the Muslim-background believers. Expectant Mother Beaten In Pallisa District in the town of the same name, also in eastern Uganda, a pregnant woman in Odwarata village is recovering from injuries after her family beat her for becoming a Christian, sources said. Sylvia Shamimu Nabafa, 27, had attended church services secretly for five weeks after putting her faith in Christ in January, but as she was leaving church on the sixth week, a Muslim neighbor on Feb. 16 saw her and reported it to her father, Haji Juma Suleiman, Nabafa said. That evening, her father asked her if she was a Christian, said Nabafa, who at the time was five months pregnant. I did not respond. He began hitting me with kicks and blows, Nabafa told Morning Star News. He then took a blunt object and hit my right leg. I started bleeding, and the next thing I knew, I found myself in the hospital bed at Palissa Health Centre. She was discharged after six days at the hospital, on Feb. 22, she said. Still unable to undertake much activity, Nabafa has taken refuge with one of her churchs elders. The doctor said that the unborn child is well, the church elder, whose name is withheld for security reasons, told Morning Star News. At the moment she needs support and encouragements as she recalls the ordeal she has gone through after giving her life to Jesus Christ. At times I find her weeping. She needs food, clothes, medication and hospital check-ups. Nabafas journey to Christ began after she heard a series of radio sermons by a pastor in the region, she said. The pastor preached about Jesus as the only Way, the Truth and Life, which touched my heart, Nabafa said. That very night I had a dream of attending a church service, and the pastor was telling me that that the only way to escape from destruction was to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Immediately after the dream I became restless. Increasingly without peace, she began looking for the pastor, whose identity is withheld for security reasons. She met him and two elders at the church office on Jan. 11, she said, after getting past wary church staff members. It was quite difficult for me to meet the pastor, she said. After interrogation from the watchman and a search, I was allowed into the church. I was very fearful as I narrated to the pastor and his two elders about the dream that I had had, as well as the condition of my heart. The pastor prayed for me, and immediately I felt a great relief from my heart, and thereafter he prayed for me to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior of my life. After confessing with my mouth my sins and praying for the Lordship of Jesus in my heart, I was full of joy as I returned back home. The cases are the latest of many instances of persecution of Christians in Uganda that Morning Star News has documented. Ugandas constitution and other laws provide for religious freedom, including the right to propagate ones faith and convert from one faith to another. Muslims make up no more than 12 percent of Ugandas population, with high concentrations in eastern areas of the country. If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit http://morningstarnews.org/resources/aid-agencies/ for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved. If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at https://morningstarnews.org/donate/? Article originally published by Morning Star News. Used with permission. Photo courtesy: Pixabay Household rubbish dumped at a roadside in Killarney this weekend has sparked outrage in the community with calls to track and prosecute those responsible by combing the litter for clues. The refuse was spilling out into a scenic woodland area, on Mill Road, which is close to the Muckross Road. It appears that the waste material may originally have been disposed of there in black refuse sacks that could have been torn apart by wildlife, such as foxes. The eyesore stretches to the landmark old mill, from which the road takes its name. I am sure in all this mess of tonnes of household rubbish there must be something to link it to the people who littered such a lovely part of Killarney, said one local. Health and safety is of key concern, the resident said: The danger is now that the area will become infested with rats and other vermin which could travel to houses in the area. Mayor of Killarney councillor Michael Gleeson and fellow Killarney-based county councillor Donal Grady alerted Kerry County Council to the matter at the weekend. Describing the incident as vandalism, the mayor said: If a picture is worth a thousand words then this one tells very forcefully of thugs who have absolutely no respect for residents, the environment or Killarneys priceless tourist industry. Mr Gleeson said: It is only someone with a criminal mentality that could commit such a despicable act of vandalism. Those dreadful people, I presume, expect overworked council persons to come and perform the filthy job of cleaning the place. There are so many wonderful people involved in keeping Killarney and its environs looking superb for local and visitor, this gross act is an insult to them and to all decent people. Every effort must be made to identify the few with this terrible mentality and we must be brave enough to ensure that they are brought to justice. We who live in a place of such unrivalled beauty deserve to have our special place treated with respect. Mr Grady told the Irish Examiner: I will do my utmost to have this litter cleared and find out who is responsible. It is a disgrace, shame on them. The incident has come as local authorities have appealed to the public to dispose of domestic waste responsibly. Meanwhile, this newspaper has also reported in recent days how Cork County Council has had to appeal to the public to stop illegal dumping following a concerning increase in illegal dumping and littering since the outbreak of Covid-19. If you noticed anyone acting suspiciously in the Mill Road area of Killarney you can contact Kerry County Councils environmental office on 066 712 1111. VALPARAISO The number of known COVID-19 cases among inmates at the Porter County Jail has more than doubled to 33 since late last week, the sheriff's department confirmed Monday. "How the virus originated in our facility is still under investigation," according to the department. The outbreak at the jail has triggered legal action both in local courts and at the federal level from inmates seeking release. Several court hearings are scheduled this week. An Indiana State Department of Health strike team has been testing at the jail and came up with 20 additional positive test results last week out of 30 samples taken, the sheriff's department said. "They are all on quarantine status and are being monitored by medical staff," the department said of the impacted inmates. "All subjects that have tested positive are in stable condition. None of the subjects currently have a fever." Two jail officers have also tested positive, as compared to one last week, according to the department. Both officers are quarantined at home. Medics at one of the capital's busiest hospitals tell of services on the brink and becoming infected. Image copyright EPA Applause and cheering rings out every night in the huddled streets around 12 Octubre hospital in Madrid, hailing the 6,000 staff who work there as heroes. "We're not heroes; we're health workers," insists Hernando Trujillo, a doctor tackling the coronavirus emergency in the working-class south of the capital. The hospital has capacity for 1,300 beds and, at the height of the Covid-19 epidemic, close to 1,000 were being used to treat coronavirus patients. "There was almost no transition. It was really quiet and then suddenly a mad rush. The collapse came in a day," says Laura Andujar, a 37-year-old emergency nurse. Epicentre of Spain's pandemic Spain has seen more than 20,000 deaths and the Madrid region is at the heart of it: a capital city blighted by this virus. This city has seen 7,000 deaths, more than other European capitals. The contagion spread at a remarkable rate through the densely populated city and its cluster of suburbs. The real death toll could be considerably higher as Madrid's regional government has revealed only 800 of 4,260 care home residents suspected of dying from Covid-19 were tested. How health collapse came all at once The first local infection is believed to have been detected on 27 February. By 15 March, there were 3,544 confirmed cases. At the peak on 31 March, 3,419 new cases were reported here on a single day. "What followed was two weeks of madness," says Laura Andujar. 'I avoided Ebola but got this straight away' Another emergency department nurse, Eugenia Cuesta, is no stranger to epidemics. She has dealt with cholera in Haiti and Ebola in Sierra Leone as a Red Cross volunteer. "We collapsed. On a normal bad winter flu day you might get 100 people waiting. We had 220 from Covid-19, and people ended up sleeping in corridors," she remembers. Image caption After a long shift the marks left from Eugenia Cuesta's protective equipment are clear And in this outbreak they were not prepared for the onslaught. "Five days in, I got a cough and tested positive." "The protective equipment arrived late and is still insufficient. I avoided cholera and Ebola infection, and I got this straight away," she says. When she came back at the end of March she found "the same degree of disorganisation". Her colleagues had become used to chaos and were too exhausted to consider working in other ways, she believes. Doctors at the hospital admit they had a lot to learn, and fast. "At the start, just as the population is very nervous about coronavirus, so were we as doctors," admits Dr Trujillo, a 35-year-old Mexican kidney and intensive care specialist who accepts he is not an expert in contagious disease. "But as days go by and medical publications start coming out, we have learned a lot. The hospital committee meets every day to discuss different treatments and what to look out for in analysis," he adds. Did medics fall ill through poor protection? Health workers' unions have accused hospital authorities of failing to provide the best personal protective equipment (PPE) for doctors and nurses. This could be the main reason why Spain has one of the largest known levels of infection among health professionals in the world, with more than 27,500 catching Covid-19. 12 de Octubre hospital declined to comment on the issues raised in this article, but staff paint a mixed picture of the availability of PPE. Enrique Morales, a 52-year-old kidney specialist, says he had full use of plastic protective equipment when visiting Covid-19 patients, but for other work has only had a paper gown as protection. "The shortages we had anyway have been brutally exposed," he told the BBC. From the second week of the crisis, PPE became scarce, says Dr Trujillo. Respirator masks ran out so they had to use two surgical masks as an alternative. "We doctors can stand back from patients, so it's more important for nurses." Because there was not enough protective equipment, nurses said they had to overuse what they had, sometimes wearing it for an entire shift. Eugenia Cuesta says the risks are far too high. "The mortality rate is nothing like Ebola, say, so we end up accepting the lack of security," she says. Like her colleague, Laura Andujar also caught coronavirus. First came diarrhoea before the more typical fever, aching limbs and loss of taste and smell. She believes they should all have been screened to prevent contagion among the hospital team. Image caption A defiant Laura Andujar wears a visor with the mantra "Together we will win" Dr Morales needed hospital treatment after catching Covid-19 and agrees failure to test health workers whether they had symptoms or not has put the system under greater pressure. Hard choices in tough times Under Spain's lockdown laws hospital patients cannot have visitors, and for some patients that feeling of absolute solitude has aggravated the illness. "You're like a plague victim, with no visits allowed," says Dr Morales, "stuck between four walls and just the occasional health worker saluting you from afar." For all the health workers, the crisis has posed impossible dilemmas. Nurse Cuesta speaks of separating elderly couples when one tests positive and the other has to go home alone. For Dr Morales it is the decision of who gets the intensive care bed, and who does not. "If you have two 35-year-olds, and one has renal problems, you give the place to the one without renal problems," says Dr Morales. Some of his kidney patients would have had a good chance of survival but died, he believes. Laura Andujar leaves work crying every day at the thought of people dying alone. "There was an old lady, she was so frightened and struggling to breathe," says Laura Andujar. "I thought the most important thing I could do was to stay there and hold her hand for five minutes." "In my mask and goggles, she couldn't see my mouth but I smiled with my eyes. She actually got better." That, of course, is not always the case and informing relatives is made all the harder by a lack of physical proximity to the family. "When things are going badly with a patient, we would usually talk several times a day with a family," explains intensive care doctor Ruben Viejo. Trained at 12 de Octubre, he now works at another hospital. Image caption Medical staff have all faced difficult decisions about patients in the past few weeks Being there prepares both family and doctor for any negative news but now relatives miss that entirely. "They don't even know exactly where the patient is, whether they are dressed properly and if they are clean. And they cannot say goodbye. "It's unlike anything we've seen before. The immune system goes haywire and there is major swelling in the lungs, but also clots of blood appear in the lungs and in blood vessels elsewhere that can cause organ failure." A glimpse of hope Things have begun to improve at the hospital. Results are getting better as doctors learn about the illness and pressure on resources eases as the rate of new infections in Madrid drops to less than 2% a day. "In bad times, people help out," says Ms Andujar. "They are creating neighbourly networks and this is supplying things we need. Well done to so many people for staying at home; the infernal period is now over." "We hear the applause and head towards the windows. It recharges us with energy. We all have recordings of it on our phones," says Dr Viejo. But not everyone believes it will last. "Today we get applause at 8pm every evening, but I am not sure we will get the same support when we demonstrate for better conditions and support for public health," warns Eugenia Cuesta. "People forget quickly." BBC A baby sea turtle plods through the sand before incoming waves pull it out to sea. It's a scene happening in record numbers in Thailand right now as rare leatherback turtles hatch and wade their way into the water undisturbed. Tourists are hard to find in the country's usually popular beaches. It's an opportunity for mother leatherbacks, the world's largest variety of sea turtle, who are endangered in Thailand. They lay their eggs in dark areas without movement, which were hard to find back when tourists flooded the shore. Some of those visitors even steal the eggs to eat. But tourist numbers were down by half in February, and with people thinned out, the leatherback turtles are able to come ashore and safely lay their eggs. The director of the Phuket Marine Biological Center told Reuters that no nests had been found in Phuket in the past five years. He says baby turtles there are at high risk of being killed by humans or fishing gear. But this year, they have found 11 nests -- the largest number in two decades. AN online application form for 25,000 grants for businesses in hospitality, tourism and retail in Northern Ireland crashed less than half an hour after going live. The Stormont Executives grant is one of two crucial business support schemes to open on Monday, April 20, along with the UK governments job retention scheme, in which the UK government pays 80% of a firms wage bill. Businesses who pay rates on a property with a rateable value between 15,001 and 51,000 can apply for the 25K grants, with applications to take up to 15 working days to process. It closes for applications on May 20. But business owners and groups were exasperated by the crashing of the grant application form. Clicking on the link to the application form via the website nibusinessinfo.co.uk brought users to an error message, stating the service is unavailable. A spokesperson for Land & Property Services said the portal experienced technical difficulties which resulted in it being unavailable "for less than an hour". "As soon as this happened the necessary steps were taken to quickly resolve the issue," he said. "The web portal was tested prior to launch and the unavailability was not related to the volume of people trying to access the site. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. The downtime this morning will not delay the processing of any payments." Hospitality Ulster chief executive Colin Neill said: We were told system was being tested and hence delayed to April 20. There is no excuse for the 25k grant portal to fail as soon as it was switched on. Hospitality Ulster, which represents thousands of pubs and restaurant owners, also urged ineligible applicants not to use the portal, after reports that some were attempting to use the system despite being unlikely to quality. The Department for the Economy has been asked how soon the glitch will be fixed. Ahead of the opening of the scheme, Economy Minister Diane Dodds encouraged firms to apply as soon as possible. I am pleased to announce that the 25,000 grant scheme for businesses in the retail, hospitality, tourism and leisure sectors is now open for applications," she said. "The scheme will run over the next month and will deliver much needed funds to ease the cash flow problems of some of our hardest hit businesses. I assure businesses that as soon as applications have been verified, the grant will be paid we will not be waiting until the end of the application process before starting to process payments. I urge anyone who thinks they are eligible for support under this scheme to visit nibusinessinfo and start the process now. Meanwhile, the UK governments job retention scheme opened this morning on the website of HMRC. The system appeared to be operating smoothly this morning. Under the scheme, an employer can claim for for 80% of employees wages plus any employer National Insurance and pension contributions, if they have been temporarily laid off because of coronavirus. Ian Henry, the president of the NI Chamber of Commerce, said: The opening of the Job Retention scheme is an important milestone for businesses, providing many with the support they need to protect livelihoods as lockdown continues. The government deserves credit for the speed, scale and flexibility of its response to the challenges facing our business communities. The focus should now be on delivering this support to firms on the ground. Applause has become a unifying symbol of the coronavirus pandemic in Spain and other European countries. People go out onto their balconies in a sign of appreciation to the doctors, nurses and other hospital workers, as well as the police, military and other sectors who are in the front line of the crisis every evening at 8pm. At the same time, health workers who are able to take time out of their jobs stand outside hospitals to acknowledge and join in. In Malaga the first person to be admitted to intensive care at the Hospital Regional de Malaga with coronavirus left the unit on Monday to applause from the doctors and nurses who looked after her for over a month. The 55-year-old woman, who was admitted on 9 March, will continue her recovery in one of the hospital's wards until she is well enough to go home. Thanks from the fire brigade Fire officers joined in the show of appreciation on Saturday evening by driving past Malaga's Carlos Haya hospital with banners along the sides of fire engines which read, "Thank you for looking after us." It has become a common sight and sound in the province for police cars to stop outside hospitals at 8pm every evening to join in with the applause. Food delivery giants Uber Eats and Deliveroo are still waiting for an expected business boom from the coronavirus pandemic. However, the forecast spike might never arrive, as customers turn to home cooking and restaurants seek options that allow them to avoid the commissions charged by the apps, which can be as high as 35 per cent. Food delivery cyclists working during the coronavirus lockdown in Sydney. Credit:James Brickwood Food delivery platform Deliveroo said it has seen a "slight increase" in order volume over the past month, which contrasts with industry analyst Ibisworld's prediction of annualised growth of online food delivery revenue of 26.5 per cent this year. A spokesperson for Deliveroo said the small increase could be mostly attributed to a rise in lunch orders, which were up by about 12 per cent from four weeks ago. By PTI LONDON: Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a UK High Court appeal against his extradition, a major turning point that brings India closer to getting back the embattled liquor tycoon wanted in the alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to Rs 9,000 crores. The dismissal of the High Court appeal effectively clears the decks for Mallya's extradition to India to face the charges in the Indian courts, with 14 days for him to apply for permission to appeal to the UK Supreme Court. If he does apply, the UK Home Office would wait for the outcome of that appeal. But if he does not, under the India-UK Extradition Treaty, it would then be expected to formally certify the court order for the 64-year-old Mallya to be extradited to India within 28 days. "We have held there is a prima facie case both of misrepresentation and of conspiracy, and thus there is also a prima facie case of money laundering," the High Court concluded. This marks a major turning point for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) case against the businessman, who has been on bail in the UK since his arrest on an extradition warrant in April 2017. The former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the higher court against his extradition ordered by the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London in December 2018, and then signed off by then UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid in February last year, at a three-day hearing in February this year. ALSO READ: Vijay Mallya gets bankruptcy reprieve from UK High Court Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the appeal, dismissed it in a judgement handed down this week remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge Emma Arbuthnot] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India (CBI and ED), there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," the judges noted. They detail seven main points around which they based their decision to concur with Arbuthnot's extradition order. Based on the documents setting out the Indian government's case against Mallya, the judges said they found that the loans in question were disbursed as the result of a conspiracy between the named conspirators and that they were made despite Kingfisher Airline's weak financials, negative net worth and low credit rating. "The Appellant [Mallya] was party to false representations to induce the loans that funds would be inducted by way of unsecured loans, global depository receipts and equity," they note. "The Appellant was party to false representations about inward investment, an exaggerated brand value, misleading growth forecasts, inconsistent business plans. The Appellant's dishonest intention not to repay the loans is shown by his later conduct in trying to avoid the personal and corporate guarantees," they said. Mallya's legal team had sought to challenge the Indian government's case on multiple grounds, including whether their client would be safe at Barrack 12 in Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai where he is to be held on extradition. Most of the grounds had already been dismissed by the High Court, with permission granted to appeal only on one ground - challenging the Indian government's prima facie case against Mallya of fraudulent intentions in acquiring bank loans. "Mallya has 14 days to apply for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court. If he doesn't appeal removal within 28 days thereafter. If he does appeal, we wait for the outcome on that application," said a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which represented the Indian authorities in the UK courts. Representatives from the ED and the CBI had been present in court in February during the three-day hearing, at the end of which Mallya had once again reiterated his message for the Indian banks to take back 100 per cent of the principal amount owed to them. "I am saying, please banks take your money. The ED is saying no, we have a claim over these assets. So, the ED on the one side and the banks on the other are fighting over the same assets, What all they are doing to me for the last four years is totally unreasonable," he said at the time. Mallya, declared a fugitive by India, has been based in the UK since March 2016 and remains on bail on an extradition warrant executed three years ago by Scotland Yard on April 18, 2017. In her verdict in December 2018, Judge Arbuthnot had ruled that the "flashy" former Kingfisher Airlines boss had a "case to answer" in the Indian courts. She found there was "clear evidence of dispersal and misapplication of the loan funds". India and the UK have an Extradition Treaty signed in 1992 and in force since November 1993. Two major extraditions have taken place under this Treaty so far-Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was sent back to India in 2016 to face trial in connection with his involvement in the post-Godhra riots of 2002, and more recently alleged bookie Sanjeev Chawla, sent back in February this year to face match-fixing charges. As India falls under the Category 2 set of countries within the UK's Extradition Act 2003, any decision of the courts must be endorsed by the UK Home Secretary, who has the authority to order extradition. As Mallya's extradition has been signed off by the minister at the time, only a formal certification will now be required once all avenues of appeal have been exhausted in the UK. A kayaker spelled out 'HELP' in the sand using sticks and had to be airlifted to safety after taking 'social distancing to the next level,' NYPD said. New dramatic footage shows an unidentified man waving for assistance after he became stranded on a remote island in Jamaica Bay, in Queens, on April 17. The castaway became stuck for more than 12 hours after his kayak 'took on water and went under,' according to NBC News. NYPD's Special Operations Bureau tweeted Friday: 'A kayaker takes social distancing to the next level.' The mystery kayaker seen here with arms raised to the sky trying to get the helicopter's attention He paced up and down the beach waving his arms aloft hoping to be rescued after 12 hours A distant shot shows the man has spelled HELP out in the sand using sticks and built a fire In the footage released by NYPD's Special Operations Bureau, the man can be seen looking like a small black silhouette waving from the ground. As the aviation team circle his position the word 'HELP' can be seen written in the shore. Police said the kayaker used sticks to create the message in the sand. Hoping to be found, the man begins to jog along the shoreline pursuing the helicopter, trying to catch the attention of the crew. He continues waving, and as the camera zooms in and focuses on him he can be seen wearing a hooded coat, gloves and shorts. The man, who had been missing for 12 hours, also started a fire to create a signal, according to NYPD's Special Operations Bureau. When the helicopter has landed on the remote island in Jamaica Bay, the man can be seen jogging up to the aircraft and raising his fists to his chest as if celebrating his rescue. The helicopter lands on the shoreline of the remote island to rescue to lonely kayaker A kayaker takes social distancing to the next level. #NYPD Aviation found the uninjured male stranded on a remote island in Jamaica Bay, Queens. Missing for over 12 hours the male signaled for help by starting a fire & spelling out help using nearby sticks before being found. pic.twitter.com/cqYqz8tLFG NYPD Special Ops (@NYPDSpecialops) April 17, 2020 'A kayaker takes social distancing to the next level. #NYPD Aviation found the uninjured male stranded on a remote island in Jamaica Bay, Queens,' NYPD Special Operations tweeted. 'Missing for over 12 hours the male signaled for help by starting a fire & spelling out help using nearby sticks before being found.' Many took to Twitter after the incident praising the swift work of the NYPD. 'Great Job Done by the NYPD!' wrote one Twitter user. 'Wow! Insane! Like something out of a movie. Great job!' wrote another. 'Thanks god for our search teams. We love you guys,' wrote yet another. While another tweeted: 'So glad he was found, am sure his family is so relief and grateful.' Another person wrote: 'Is that @tomhanks?' [April 20, 2020] XM.com Collects Two Wins as Part of the 2020 World Finance Forex Awards News provided by World News Media LONDON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Forex broker XM.com has picked up two accolades as part of World Finance's 2020 Forex Awards, winning Best FX Broker, Europe, and Best FX Broker, Australasia. The award wins highlight the sterling work undertaken by the company during what has been a volatile period for the forex industry. Trade tensions, Brexit and global political developments have given forex brokers plenty to think about over the last twelve months. The World Finance Forex Awards celebrate the businesses that see volatility as an opportunity and use educational tools to steer their customers in the right direction. The forex market may give individuals the chance to make sizable profits, but it also comes with risk. The most trust-worthy brokers understand this and neverhesitate to inform their customers of the importance of taking a long-term view rather than adopting a get-rich-quick approach. One of the factors that led to XM.com picking up two World Finance Forex Awards was the importance that the firm places upon education. XM.com's Learning Centre contains live webinars, Q&A sessions, trading session analysis and much more. XM.com's corporate social responsibility initiatives also factored highly in the judges' decision making, with the firm regularly contributing to medical, environmental and social causes. The World Finance Forex Awards have been running since 2011, shining a light on the most forward-thinking and responsible brokers operating in the industry. Through its commitment to regulatory compliance, responsible trading and expert advice, XM.com continues to stand-out as one of the sector's leading lights. To read more about XM.com and the future of the forex market, pick up the latest copy of World Finance magazine, available in print, on tablet and online now. www.worldfinance.com World News Media, the parent company of World Finance, is a leading publisher of quality financial and business magazines, which enjoys a global distribution network that includes subscriber lists of prominent decision-makers around the world. Contact Information World News Media Barclay Ballard Editorial Department +44-(0)-20-7553-4177 [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Howrah: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee addresses during a meeting over COVID-19 pandemic at Nabanna in Howrah during the extended nationwide lockdown imposed to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, on Apr 17, 2020. (Photo: IANS) Image Source: IANS News Kolkata, April 20 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that the Inter Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) were sent to the state without prior intimation, causing 'breach of established protocol', besides dubbing the Union government's selection of districts with 'serious' Covid-19 situation as 'unilateral' and a 'figment of imagination'. Banerjee's missive came after two IMCT delegations landed in Kolkata and North Bengal's Jalpaiguri during the day. The Chief Minister pointed out that Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to her at 1 p.m. regarding the IMCTs, even though the teams had landed at the Kolkata airport much before the conversation, at about 10.10 a.m. She said the Union Home Ministry order dated April 19 addressed to the state Chief Secretary reached only 30 minutes before the teams arrived. "While I appreciate the proactiveness shown by the Central government in sending the teams to West Bengal, the same was done without prior intimation and hence is a breach of established protocol, " she said. The Home Ministry in a communication claimed that violation of lockdown measures were reported from some districts in the country, posing a serious health hazard and risk for spread of Covid-19. It said, "The situation is especially serious in Kolkata, Howrah, Medinipur East, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri districts in the state of West Bengal." Refuting the Centre's allegation, Banerjee said: "These observations are devoid of any fact and do not lend any credibility to the claim. "For example, out of the districts identified, Kalimpong reported the last infection on April 2. Similarly, the last incident of infection in Jalpiaguri was reported on April 4 and in Darjeeling on April 16," she said in the letter. Banerjee said the selection of the districts and the observations made "unilaterally" are "nothing but a figment of imagination and unfortunate". Banerjee said her state was pro-active in announcing lockdown even before the Central government declared it. Even before the extension to the lockdown on April 14, the state had extended it up to April 30, she said. Banerjee said the Centre's action was 'not desirable'. "I am sure that you will kindly agree that such unilateral action on the part of Central government is not desirable at all, especially in the backdrop when both the Central and the state governments are working relentlessly round the clock to contain the Covid-19 crisis," she said. Some residents told the Ghana News Agency that the community had been hit with water shortage, which had led to formation of long queues for several hours to fetch water from mechanized boreholes. According to them, they pay between 30 pesewas and 50 pesewas for water, depending on the container size. The residents also expressed concern about mechanized boreholes operators who usually alleviate their plight but with the high dependency rate and the dry season, the boreholes were virtually dysfunctional. At Nkate3 Burger area and its surroundings, some residents continue to form long queues with their buckets and gallons while they found shelter around without observing social distancing as they waited for their turn to fetch. Madam Gladys Afari, a resident at Nkate3 Burger, said the search for potable water sometimes resulted in fights among residents as to who should fetch first, with the physically strong bullying their way through. Mr Sampson Obese, another resident, said three days ago, he dialled the National Information Contact Centre number, 311, to put their grievances across but was directed to call the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL). He said after calling the GWCL he was informed by a gentlemen that the Company would be going there to supply water once it had picked up his details. He explained that as at Monday morning, the Company had placed a huge water tank at a spot but there was no water for the residents, adding; We are still waiting for the tank to be filled. ---GNA Prince William and Kate Middleton 'much prefer' video calls and virtual working to meeting people face-to-face, according to a BBC reporter who interviewed the couple last week.. The Duke, 37, and Duchess of Cambridge, 38, have been undertaking engagements virtually from their home at Anmer Hall in Norfolk since the start of the coronavirus lockdown. The couple have released footage online as they video called their patronages and charities to offer their support, as well as speaking with schoolchildren and teachers, about how they were coping in the crisis. Now Tina Daheley has revealed how Prince William and Kate told her they actually prefer the virtual way of working, telling the Coronavirus Newscast: 'You don't have to faff about with all the other stuff and only having a set amount of time and having to go somewhere and meet loads of people....They like that you can have an in-depth one-on-one conversation with people.' BBC reporter Tina Daheley told the Coronavirus Newscast that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge 'much prefer' video calling to meeting people face-to-face Tina said: 'They much prefer [it]. I'm not saying they don't want to meet people face-to-face but they've really enjoyed speaking to people on video calls and using zoom.' She explained that the couple felt the virtual way of working involved less 'faff', allowing them to spend more time connecting with individual people. Meanwhile she added that her interview with the royal couple had felt remarkably 'normal'. She said: 'I think the thing that people sometimes forget is that they're members of the royal family, they can perform if you like. But the thing that always strikes me is how normal they are. Prince William and Kate have been undertaking engagements virtually since their final public appearance on March 19 'It did feel like I was just having a chat with people.' She also revealed how Kate asked her how she was coping with the crisis, explaining: 'Unexpectedly, the Duchess asked me a question.' After Tina asked the Duke how he thought society might be changed by the coronavirus pandemic, the Duchess went on to ask the reporter her thoughts. Tina explained: 'She wanted to know, how society might change afterwards and the things we value. She was interested to know my feelings on that.' The reporter revealed how the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been 'really enjoying' virtual calls which avoid the 'faff' of royal face-to-face visits In the interview, which took place last Friday, Kate and Prince William spoke about home schooling Prince George, 6, Princess Charlotte, 4, and Prince Louis, 1, during the Easter holidays without telling them and told of their fears for Prince Charles over his coronavirus diagnosis. They said it had been 'challenging' to teach their three children - who they said had 'got such stamina', although it 'hasn't been all hardcore' - but also told how they have been staying in touch with other Royal Family members using online video calls. The Duchess talked about how the couple had kept a strict regime while home schooling their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis in the past month. The couple said it was also important to avoid scaring their children and making it 'too overwhelming', but added that home schooling was 'fun' and the children had been pitching tents, cooking and baking. The royal couple have undertaken a series of virtual phone calls and video chats while in lockdown (pictured, chairing a roundtable call for Public Health England's Every Mind Matters campaign) Prince William and Kate have been on the front lines of the royal family's response to the virus. They conducted their final face-to-face engagement on 19 March when they visited an NHS 111 call centre in London. The couple have been working from their home Anmer Hall ever since. Alongside the lengthy interview last week, the couple have shared clips online as they spoke with charities and organisations across the country via video link. The Duke and Duchess also shared a video of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis applauding the NHS workers to support healthcare workers amid the crisis. He and wife Ola Jordan welcomed their 'miracle' baby girl in February. And James Jordan proved he was loving fatherhood as he shared a sweet Instagram snap of himself cradling his baby daughter Ella on Sunday. The former Strictly Come Dancing star, 42, held his little 'munchkin' close as baby Ella stared curiously at the camera. 'Munchkin': James Jordan proved he was loving fatherhood as he shared a sweet Instagram snap of himself cradling his baby daughter Ella on Sunday James was clearly relishing his new father role as he appeared to be winding the tot in the snap, with a muslin cloth seen over his shoulder. The star donned a pale blue shirt for the snap, while little Ella looked adorable in her pink baby grow. The sweet post garnered several comments from fans complementing the picture, with several noting Ella looks just like mum Ola, 37. Meanwhile, Ola shared her own snap of baby Ella on Monday, with the cute image seeing the tot give 'morning smiles' for her mummy. How sweet: Meanwhile, Ola shared her own snap of baby Ella on Monday, with the cute image seeing the tot give 'morning smiles' for her mummy The couple also gave an insight into new parenthood as they shared a picture of Ella's 'first explosion' of poo. James and wife Ola announced the happy news of Ella's arrival on Instagram. The new mother shared a sweet snap holding her little one's hand, and gushed in the caption: 'She's here and she is perfect.' James also took to Instagram to share a snap of their baby girl, as he held onto her feet and said: 'I'm the happiest man in the world.' Uh oh! The couple also gave an insight into new parenthood as they shared a picture of Ella's 'first explosion' of poo The couple, who have been together for 20 years, announced they were expecting their first child in September 2019 after a painful three-year battle with infertility. Just days ago Ola Jordan proved things are going swimmingly as an extended family as she shared a touching snap of her husband and their daughter to mark his 42nd birthday. She added a caption on the sweet snap reading: 'Life is so precious and should be treasured. I treasure every moment with you. Happy Birthday baby. Thank you for all that you do for us. Baby Ella adores you so much'. Ola was clearly beaming with pride as she shared the snap with her 284,000 Instagram followers to help celebrate James' big day. That's my girl: Just days ago Ola Jordan proved things are going swimmingly as an extended family as she shared a touching snap of her husband and their daughter to mark his 42nd birthday The touching post says before James revealed his father had contracted coronavirus whilst in hospital recovering from a second stroke. The Dancing On Ice winner's dad Alan was admitted to hospital last month after suffering a stroke, mere weeks after James welcomed his first child with wife Ola. Whilst Alan was able to leave hospital for a brief period, he was readmitted this month with an infection in his arm, and has now tested positive for COVID-19. Taking to Twitter on Thursday, James penned: 'Just when you think things couldnt get any worse! After being in hospital for nearly 2 weeks after his stroke my dad has now tested positive to coronavirus. Sad news: James Jordan has revealed his father is battling coronavirus whilst in hospital recovering from a stroke Regular visits: The former Strictly star's dad Alan was admitted to hospital last month after suffering a stroke, mere weeks after James welcomed his first child with wife Ola Jordan 'He is also fighting an infection he recently got in his arm (Cellulitis) God, please give my dad a break #StayAtHome.' He added: 'My dad has always been my hero. When I spoke to him he was more worried about my mum, sister & family. He kept saying Dont worry about me, Ive got this. 'The sad thing is today he was supposed to be transferred to another hospital where he would have a TV. He was so excited'. Awful: Whilst Alan was able to leave hospital for a brief period, he was readmitted this month with an infection in his arm, and has now tested positive for COVID-19 Last month, James confessed he was struggling to cope during what had been the 'most stressful time of my life'. He tweeted: 'Trying to juggle a new born with wife who is still recovering, my dad in hospital and the coronavirus. 'I would like to think I'm a strong person but I'm going to admit it's the most stressful time of my life. I'm still thinking of all of you! We must all stay safe AND #BeKind'. Highs and lows: Last month, James was struggling to cope during the 'most stressful time of my life' as he discussed welcoming his first child and his father's hospitalisation Older drivers are increasingly giving up their driving licences following Prince Philip's car accident which led to him leaving the roads. Experts believe that his crash in January 2019, when his Land Rover Freelander collided with another vehicle in Sandringham, has helped influence older drivers to quit driving. The Duke was 97-years-old at the time of the crash and although he blamed the incident on dazzling from the sun, he chose to give up his licence just three weeks later. Prince Philip leaves hospital following his car crash in January 2019 Steve Wilkie, the executive chairman of Responsible Life, a retirement mortgage specialist, said in a Times report: 'Prince Philip's misfortunes seem to have jogged a great number of people into confronting this difficult decision head on'. Statistics published under the Freedom of Information Act for Responsible Life, showed that 8,014 drivers aged 90 and above gave up their licence in 2019, a 21.2 per cent increase from the previous year. Figures released by the DVLA in December showed that there were over 118,000 drivers aged 90 or over on Britain's roads. Another possible factor to the increase of over 90s drivers giving up their licences comes in the rise of elder UK drivers from 2018 to 2019. Prince Philip' collided with another vehicle while out driving in Sandringham in January 2019 Over 90s road users rose by 8,000 from 110,000 while there was a leap of 159,000 drivers in the age range of 70-79 to around 4,032,000. There was also a slight rise in figures for those in their 80s, with an increase of 64,000 to 1,374,000. Despite an increase in people willing to give up their licences, the government are still drawing up plans to test older drivers over their fitness behind the wheel. These include compulsory eye tests every three years for those over 70. At present, driving licences expire at 70-years-old and must be renewed every three years. Although they must ensure their eye sight meets legal standards and flag up other medical concerns, this is not currently a legal requirement. The officers of the Troops Service Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Armenia have conducted complex inspections at the garrisons in Yeghegnadzor, Armavir and Gyumri. As reported the Ministry of Defense of Armenia, they inspected the internal and guard security at the military units of the garrisons, organizing of service, maintenance of the checkpoint regime, the sanitation of areas and cafeterias and the implementation of measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The officers rated the overall situation at garrisons as good, and necessary indications were given to fix the shortcomings. Colombo, Apr 20 (PTI) Sri Lanka's Election Commission on Monday postponed the parliamentary elections for nearly two months in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed seven people and infected 295 others in the country. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule and called a snap election on April 25. A gazette notice signed by the three members of the National Election Commission announcing June 20 date of the election was issued on Monday. The EC has written to President Rajapaksa asking him to seek the highest court's opinion on a possible constitutional standoff arising from the postponement of the election. It said that the postponement meant that parliament would not be able to meet on June 2, which is three months from the dismissal of last parliament on March 2. However, Rajapaksa asserted that it was the election commission's job to fix the polls date and as such no need for the Supreme Court's intervention. Earlier, the election commission met with the government officials and reviewed the pandemic situation affecting the election machinery. On Monday, the government dropped its decision to relax the nationwide curfew and extended it to April 27 following a sudden spike of 41 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. On Sunday, the government announced to partially lift the curbs from Monday to boost economic activity. The island nation has been under a 24-hour curfew since March 20 to combat the deadly viral infection. All opposition parties and many civil society groups have urged the government to show caution in trying to rush through holding the election. Sri Lanka has so far reported 295 COVID-19 cases, including seven deaths, and 96 recoveries, since the first viral infection was reported in the country on March 11. The parliamentary polls were announced 6 months ahead of the schedule as Rajapaksa, who was elected as president in November, wanted a new Parliament to implement his mandate. Rajapaksa is also under pressure to re-summon the dissolved Parliament in order to approve finances for government business from May. The previous Parliament had approved funds till April 30. The 12 infected people have been taken to an isolation hospital in Kafr El-Zayat city in Gharbiya Egypt placed Kafr Gaafar village in Basyoun city, Gharbiya governorate under quarantine on Sunday after 12 coronavirus cases were detected among its residents, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported. The measure places 800 families comprising a total population of 13,000 villagers under quarantine, MP for Basyoun city Sameh Habib said in a statement on Sunday on his official Facebook page. The 12 infected people have been taken to an isolation hospital in Kafr El-Zayat city in Gharbiya. Undersecretary of the Ministry of Social Solidarity in Gharbiya Amany El-Nadry stated on Sunday that a convoy will distribute 1,100 cartons of food commodities and 350 bags of disinfectants to the people of the village. El-Nadry explained that the convoy is the first phase in an aid package provided to the village in cooperation with some NGOs in Basyoun city and Misr El-Kheir foundation. The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Egypt reached 3,144 on Sunday, and the death toll stands at 239. Search Keywords: Short link: The Dail and Seanad will have to sit in the Convention Centre at a cost of 50,000 per day because it would be unconstitutional to have virtual sittings during the coronavirus restrictions, TDs have been told. Taxpayers will foot the bill for TDs and Senators moving to the 8,000-seater event venue on Dublin's North Wall Quay. It comes after Oireachtas authorities were told virtual sittings, where some politicians would appear via videolink, would be unconstitutional as they would not be covered by parliamentary privilege. Several Dail sittings of 50 or fewer TDs have taken place in Leinster House in recent weeks., but all 160 TDs will have to be present for the vote to elect a new Taoiseach and for sittings on budget matters and possible other legislative changes in the coming months. Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail said it is now expected there will be a number of sittings in the Convention Centre, as long as social distancing is in place. The Seanad will also use the venue when up and running. A number of TDs have questioned the Dail business committee's decision to approve the plan in recent weeks. Mr O Fearghail acknowledged to the Herald that there is a "significant cost" involved. "It's a huge cost, but there is a cost involved in every sitting in Leinster House as well," he said. Once-off While the Oireachtas has said there is no cost for hiring the centre, there will be an initial 110,000 once-off cost to equip its auditorium with microphones as well as broadcasting costs. Each sitting day will then cost approximately 50,000, raising the prospect of a substantial bill if the Dail sits there several times this year. In an email to Fianna Fail TD James Lawless last Friday, the Ceann Comhairle ruled out virtual sittings, saying: "The advice is that the virtual sitting facilitated by the IT system would be radically different to the type of parliamentary assembly authorised by the Constitution." Mr O Fearghail said the legal advice was that politicians would not "benefit from immunities in respect of utterances" outside of Leinster House. "Mindful of the need for social distancing at present, the Business Committee has approved that the Dail will sit in the Convention Centre Dublin when there is a need for all 160 members to be present, such as for the nomination of Taoiseach and members of the Cabinet, estimates, legislation, etc," he said in his email. Mr Lawless said the Dail should be able to pass legislation or update standing orders to get around the constitutional issues. "I think a hybrid model, with some members present, and others participating online may cover all bases and it may allow us to save significant, unnecessary costs." 20.04.2020 LISTEN Your Excellencies, POSER is a South East region-wide network of people with shared ideals, values and committed to authentic Igbo renaissance, socio-economic, political and infrastructural development of the Igbo homeland. As an Igbocentric multi-stakeholder Coalition, addressing socio-economic and political issues confronting the Igbo nation, POSER has a strong membership strength across the South East states. Your Excellencies, following the global outbreak of the novel Corona Virus (Covid-19) Nigeria's leadership responded swiftly announcing drastic measures including territorial lock downs to curtail and combat the spread of the pandemic. State governments (including South East States) across the country responded with equal statewide measures aimed at combating community spread of the pandemic in their respective States. Part of the measures by states and the federal government is the restrictions on people's movement. These restrictions became necessary since it is believed that the virus is spread through droplets from infected persons which when it comes in contact with a person, such person becomes infected. Your Excellencies, it is on record that at this time, security agents have killed more people in South Eastern Nigeria than in any other region of the country with the pretentious excuse of enforcing the lockdown against the spread of the COVID-19 virus. To Your Excellencies, it is now obvious that overzealous security agents consistently brutalize and kill young Ndi Igbo at the flimsiest of excuses under the watch of Igbo leaders. For a long time Ndi Igbo have concentrated their animosity against external elements while ignoring leadership in Igbo land. We believe that it is misplaced aggression for Ndi Igbo to continue to fight external forces while our political and traditional leaders constitute a more dangerous danger to Ndi Igbo. As Governors of South Eastern states, the security and welfare of Ndi Igbo ought to and should be the topmost priority to Your Excellencies. In strong terms we decry Your Excellencies silence in the face of constant and consistent brutalization and killing of your people. Governors from other federating units of Nigeria will never condone this kind of regular killings of their citizens, and we ask, "why do Your Excellencies accept and condone this bloodletting in our homeland?". Why this conspiracy of silence against your own people? Your Excellencies, this open letter is to assure you that Ndi Igbo are no longer at ease. TAKE NOTE, Ndi Igbo are redirecting their animosities away from their perceived external detractors to its political leaders, who have showed signs of being more dangerous to the continued existence of our people. Our question is simple, why do Your Excellencies allow Ndi Igbo to bear the brunt of overzealous security agents? South West Governors do not allow their people to suffer such degrading and inhuman treatment from the Nigerian state. It is sad to note that even with the widespread activities of hoodlums, harassing and robbing people in Ogun and Lagos areas, we have not heard of trigger-happy security operatives shooting and killing people in the South West. We view this as a failure of leadership in the South East and must be addressed immediately. The new thinking is Igbocentric leadership. We can no longer stand aside and watch while leadership in Igbo land fails Ndi Igbo. By this open letter we strongly urge Your Excellencies: 1. To take proactive steps to arrest the decline in the security and safety of Ndi Igbo across South East States. 2. To take proactive steps to ward off the excessive use of maximum force and indiscriminate arrest of Igbo youths in our Homeland. 3. Take immediate steps in mobilizing South East resources to address infrastructural deficiencies across Igboland 4. To begin immediate mobilization of Ndi Igbo towards the actualization of the Igbo Homeland Project. While we pledge our continued support to the political leadership across Igboland, however we will not hesitate to withdraw such support if Your Excellencies fail, neglect or utterly refuse to protect our people. Signed: Amb. Obuesi Phillips - Global Leader, People Of South East Region (POSER) Nze Ugo-Akpe Onwuka (Oyi) - Intl Coordinator, Igbo Renaissance Forum (IRF) Hon. Samuel Obodo - National Chairman, People Of South East Region (POSER) Mr. Silas Uzoma - Chairman, South East Mandate Monitoring Group (SEMMG) Mr. Obi Kachi Nzedigwe - Coordinator, Anambra Grassr ACHIN, Afghanistan Nearly five years ago, Rahman Gul, a poor, middle-aged Afghan villager in the eastern province of Nangarhar, became a symbol of the atrocities the ultra-radical Islamic State militants (IS) had begun inflicting on Afghans. In a video released by the group then controlling large parts of Iraq and Syria, Gul and seven other bound and blindfolded Afghans were shown being humiliated by militants. They were forced to confess to crimes that locals in their Achin district said they had never committed. In one of the worst atrocities captured on camera during Afghanistans four-decade-long war, they were then forced to sit on bombs and were blown to pieces. In the propaganda video released in August 2015, IS claimed they were apostates. But Guls widow says her husband was a practicing Muslim, a good husband, and a loving father who worked hard to look after their three sons and two daughters. Although IS has been routed out of Nangarhar and controls little territory in the mountainous region, she is still traumatized and reluctant to give her name, fearing reprisals. I try to make ends meet by collecting dry straw from the mountains and then selling it, she told Radio Free Afghanistan. But sometimes, we dont have anything. Razmina, her 7-year-old daughter, still hopes her father will somehow return. I still look at the door of our house in the hopes that he will come back, she told Radio Free Afghanistan. It has been five years and still nothing, added Razmina, who goes by one name only. People have repeatedly told us that Daesh has even taped his killing [but I dont want to give up hope], she said while referring to IS by its Arabic-language acronym. "Why is Daesh so cruel?" asked Shalahuddin, who was 9 years old in 2015. His shopkeeper father, Younas, was killed alongside Gul in 2015. "My father was innocent. He was not associated with the Taliban or the government and was completely innocent," Shalahuddin told Radio Free Afghanistan in 2015. Despite government and Taliban claims of finishing off IS, the group continues to claim devastating attacks in Afghanistan. More than 20 members of Afghanistans minority Sikh community were killed in a March 25 attack on a gurdwara in the capital, Kabul. IS said its members carried out the attack. Earlier this month, Afghanistan refused to hand over captured IS leader Aslam Farooqi to Pakistan because the two countries do not have an extradition treaty. Afghan officials say Farooqi, a nom de guerre for Abdullah Orakzai, a Pakistani national, was arrested in the southern province of Nangarhar on April 4. Abubakar Siddique wrote this story based on reporting by Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Shahar Gul Amirzai from Achin, Afghanistan. A Cebu City-based writer and entrepreneur named Maria Victoria Beltran was arrested yesterday morning after being accused of spreading fake news by Mayor Edgar Labella. Beltran was taken into police custody after writing on her Facebook account that all residents of Sitio Zapatera in the village of Luz have been infected with the coronavirus. The area, the home of 9,000 people, has been put on lockdown late last week after 82 of its residents were confirmed to have COVID-19, ABS-CBN News reports. 9,000+ new cases (All from Zapatera) of COVID-19 in Cebu City in one day. We are now the epicenter in the whole Solar System, wrote Beltran in her post. Read: Student journo forced to publicly apologize after teacher threatened to sue him over anti-Duterte remarks This drew the ire of Mayor Labella, who shared her post on his own Facebook account. He described her statement as nothing but fake news and threatened the writer that she will be thrown in prison. Hours after Labellas public rebuke of the writer, Beltran took down her post, and said in a statement that she had no intention to spread confusion and fear by what she wrote. The statement added that Republic Act No. 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, prosecutes fake news purveyors only when they promote chaos, anarchy, fear, or confusion. We decry Mr. Mayors threat to involve the PNP Cybercrime Unit, and his reference to a warrantless arrest, which we believe is not proper under the circumstances. The characterization of the post as a criminal act does not make it a criminal act. There is no crime to speak of therefore, Beltrans statement said. The threat of the mayor of a warrantless arrest sends a chilling effect to everyone else on social media, including those who are not happy with the way he had handled this crisis on behalf of the people of Cebu City who had given him mandate to lead, it added. Story continues Despite taking down her post, however, Beltran was arrested hours later in the village of Lahug, also in Cebu City. Vincent Isles, Beltrans lawyer, told The Philippine Daily Inquirer that she will file criminal and administrative cases against those who were responsible for her arrest. In a statement he released yesterday, he also slammed the Cebu City government for having his client arrested. We reiterate our earlier statement that this is such a petty case, and there are other more pressing matters that should be prioritized by this administration. It is absurd how much resources of the State was expended in arresting Ms. Beltran, and how much more would be used up to drag her to inquest proceedings and to trial, should the public prosecution office, in its discretion, believe that she should be held for trial, Isles said. Meanwhile, non-profit organization Concerned Artists of the Philippines decried Beltrans arrest for what they said was just a satirical Facebook post. We condemn Mayor Edgardo Labellas specific targetting of Beltrans post as a criminal act and precluding the incident today with the threat of arrest by the PNP Cybercrime Unit. These instances of citizens voicing out opinions on social media should not be suppressed in any functioning democracy by the state, the group said. This article, Writer arrested for allegedly spreading fake news about COVID-19 cases in Cebu City, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company. Want more Coconuts? Sign up for our newsletters! Sweden recorded just 40 new coronavirus deaths and 392 new cases today as the country continues to resist going into lockdown. Like other countries, Sweden has typically seen a fall in reported cases on Sundays and Mondays followed by a surge when the weekend is fully accounted for. The jump of 392 new cases is the smallest since April 12 - a Sunday - and takes Sweden's total infection count from 14,385 to 14,777. The 40 new deaths bring the death toll from 1,540 to 1,580, meaning that 10.7 per cent of confirmed virus patients have died of the disease. This graph shows the daily number of coronavirus cases in Sweden, which fell to 392 today in a typical weekend drop This chart shows the daily number of new reported deaths, which has also been erratic because of delays in recording weekend fatalities The true figures from the weekend are likely to be higher because of delays in recording cases and deaths. Since the start of March, the average Sunday in Sweden has seen a drop of 41 new cases compared to Saturday, with a further fall of 38 on Monday. However, the figure has typically risen by 28 on Tuesday and 66 on Wednesday as the numbers are brought up to date. Similarly, the Easter weekend saw only 17 new cases reported on Saturday with 12 on Easter Sunday and 13 on Easter Monday, a total of 49. Revised figures from Sweden's public health agency now show that there were in fact at least 216 deaths over those three days. Sweden's light touch to the crisis has sparked criticism from some scientists and academics and also caused alarm from some of its European neighbours. Bars, restaurants and schools remain open while public gatherings of up to 50 people are still permissible in Sweden. Sweden has far more deaths than Denmark, Norway and Finland, a difference that is not adequately explained by the size of their populations. Finland has imposed checks on usually free-flowing border traffic at its frontier with Sweden, fearing the spread of the disease. People walk on a pedestrian street in Stockholm yesterday, in one of the few developed countries which has not closed bars and restaurants or eliminated public gatherings Nurses wearing masks and protective gear work in a ward at the Karolinska hospital in Solna yesterday, with Sweden planning to ramp up testing for the coronavirus The government insists that its strategy is right because people need to 'understand and accept' measures over the long term rather than be forced into obeying them. 'If everyone takes their responsibility, together we will overcome it,' says Prime Minister Stefan Lofven. Officials say that 'people in Sweden have a high level of trust in government agencies', meaning that advisory measures are widely followed. 'In the current situation, people in Sweden are on the whole acting responsibly to reduce the spread of infection by, for example, restricting their social contacts,' the government says. Still, ministers have promised a huge increase in testing so that people in key roles such as police and healthcare personnel can be screened for the virus. 'We are talking about testing and analysis capacity of 50,000, perhaps as many as 100,000, a week,' health minister Lena Hallengren said. So far almost 75,000 people have been tested in Sweden, Hallengren said. The public health agency says minority groups including people born in Somalia, Iran, Iraq and the former Yugoslavia are over-represented among hospital patients. People wait to buy an ice cream - with none of the spaced-out queuing which is now familiar in much of Europe - on a street in central Stockholm yesterday State epidemiologist Anders Tegnell admitted that authorities were not sure why these groups were over-represented. 'For us the main signal is really that we need to reach those groups better with different kinds of messages to help protect them,' he said. Stockholm accounts for more than 40 per cent of Sweden's total cases and some poorer neighbourhoods have far more cases per capita than wealthier ones. Those municipalities are home to several of Sweden's 'vulnerable areas,' a term originally assigned by Swedish police to disadvantaged areas with high crime levels. More than 550,000 people live in these 61 areas, according to a 2019 report commissioned by the local rights group the Global Village. On average 74 per cent of people in these areas had immigrant backgrounds, meaning they or both their parents were born abroad. The national average was 24.9 percent. Local authorities have therefore been stepping up information efforts in these areas, distributing material in 26 languages other than Swedish. These include Russian, Finnish, Arabic, Somali and Persian. Youll forgive me for always talking about the weather, but when youre a farmer its your everything, even in a pandemic. So life in lockdown for many farmers wont be feeling that different to normal, except perhaps it takes a little longer to get the groceries, and the kids seem to be on permanent school holidays. But self-isolating and social distancing yep, no problem, thats our old normal. In fact, for many of us, lockdown might well be feeling a lot more social than our old normal. Our off-farm working spouses or partners are now around all the time, so weve actually got someone to have lunch and a conversation with. Someone who has got more to contribute than our ever-faithful dogs. Even having the kids around more can be really useful for getting some of those farm chores shared around, so that you can get back into the house before dusk each day. Personally, Ive found lockdown a rather welcome change from my usual days on the farm. Having the two older teens back home from uni and college, plus their dad off work, has meant that in just three weeks weve already put a big dent in the autumn tasks that were dropping off the ever-expanding list prior to lockdown. Weve even got the veggie beds that had languished and become neglected in the never-ending drought, refurbished and growing food again. Those seeds that wed squirreled away in the potting shed came in very handy when all the seedlings disappeared off the shop shelves. The hot, dry weather that has been awful for our pastures was perfect for our fruit harvest this year, so the family spent several days bottling and preserving apples, pears and now feijoas, and weve had many lovely pies and crumbles embellished with a juicy crop of wild blackberries too. The wild harvest has also provided some intensely flavoured field mushrooms, which with meat from the farm means we have been eating rather well. Fortunately, with all the outdoors work in the ongoing Indian summer weather, plus now having the time and company to actually do some recreational exercise with an evening cycle ride around the district, has meant that girths have not been expanding. Our new evening ritual has become a wonderful way to explore our local country roads as they are now so quiet and peaceful, free from worry about being swept off our bikes by a passing motorist. Unfortunately, girths have not been expanding on our livestock either, despite my best efforts. The cattle have required supplementary feed for many weeks now as the drought has doubled down. Fortunately, I did have hayleage reserved for just such an eventuality, as summer drought feeding has become our new normal, despite dropping cattle numbers. The sheep will get through the tupping or mating season okay, but certainly not plump. All of us farmers will be looking to the late autumn rains, that are just showing promise of arriving, to restore our livestock to full reproductive vigour over the coming months, before the hard work of lambing and calving begins again. Apart from some of the practical difficulties of getting stock away for processing, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic affecting working procedures in our processing plants, as well as overseas market restrictions, it has been largely the drought which has been the main preoccupation on the farm. I, for one, am not too impatient for lockdown to end. Press Release 20 April 2020 The first edition of Hospitality Tomorrow on 7 April 2020 attracted 5,343 hospitality decision-makers from 128 countries around the world. A truly virtual event, we are back for Episode 2 of Hospitality Tomorrow, or what we like to call 'HT2', where we will follow the sun around the globe with a focus on China, India, the Middle East, Europe and ending with North America. Why are we doing this? Because one thousand of you responded to our survey and said: 'let's do it again' as we need to continue the conversation to assess the changes in our world and people - operationally, financially, and psychologically. Where, when and how signs of recovery can be anticipated and the role of Travel & Tourism in accelerating momentum for recovery. It is crucial that we rebuild confidence in the global community. Now is the time to continue the conversation - make those critical connections that you need to build the right understanding, relationships, unity and actionable ways to support one another now for a stronger response - as one industry, one community for one tomorrow. With this virtual conference, we will 'Follow The Sun' around the globe with a focus on China, India, the Middle East, Europe and ending with North America. FIRST 1000 TICKETS RELEASED Our first release tickets are available now for 10, limited to the first 1000 tickets only. We expect these to sell quite quickly, so do make sure you book today. A portion of all the money we are raising will contribute to a fund that supports those in the industry whose livelihoods have been affected the most due to the Covid-19 crisis. More details on this will be announced on HospitalityTomorrow.com shortly. We have a limited number of Virtual Booths available for Episode 2. To learn about sponsorship opportunities, simply reply to this email - or download the Hospitality Tomorrow prospectus US President Donald Trump called people protesting against their governors social distancing measures as great people. In a series of tweets on April 17, Trump had called for liberation of Minnesota, Michigan, and Virginia as the protesters continued to demand the reopening of businesses and end stay-at-home orders despite the threat of coronavirus. LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020 Hundreds of demonstrators have been protesting against their governors to end the lockdown and resume businesses. During the White House press briefing on April 19, the US President was asked whether his tweets would help in inciting violence as some governors reportedly received death threats. Ive seen the people. Ive seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump responded. Gradual reopening plan Meanwhile, 10 governors from the east and west coast have teamed up separately to restore the economy by gradually reopening the businesses in the region. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the formation of a multi-state council aimed at developing a fully integrated regional framework to gradually lift the stay-at-home orders while minimising the risk of coronavirus spread. Read: North Korea Denies Sending Letter To Donald Trump Recently: Report Governor Cuomo has teamed up with five counterparts in adjacent states of Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. The New York Governor said in a statement that the only path to sustainable economic recovery is through a strong healthcare recovery. He added that a coordinated, regional approach, informed by a multi-state council of experts, will help them avoid a major setback with potentially disastrous consequences. Read: Trump Explodes At China; Wants To Send Investigators To Wuhan To Find Covid 'plague' Truth On the West Coast, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Oregon Governor Kate Brown and Washington Governor Jay Inslee have agreed on a shared vision for reopening the economies and controlling the pandemic. In a joint statement, the governors said that the West Coast will flip the script on COVID-19 with states acting in close coordination. We are announcing that California, Oregon and Washington have agreed to work together on a shared approach for reopening our economies one that identifies clear indicators for communities to restart public life and business, said the governors. Read: As US Covid Deaths Cross 40,000, Here's Trump's Defence For Deciding To Open The Economy Read: Trump 'not Happy' With China Over Failure To Communicate About Coronavirus Outbreak: Pence (Image source: AP) THE organiser of the annual Eat! Food Festival in Henley says it will be more important than ever to support local traders this year. The second annual event was due to take place from June 13 to 27 but has been put back to August 1 to 22 in the hope that the coronavirus pandemic will be under control by then. Philippa Ratcliffe, a food events curator, says the loss of high-profile events, such as Henley Royal Regatta and the Henley Festival, will be a huge loss to the towns businesses so her event will be important to traders. She said: Our event is not just one day or a weekend. We have 20 things going on across the two weeks. When we come out the other side of this, it is going to be more important than ever to support our town, our high street and our local businesses. In the current climate, it is our local farmers and producers who we have turned to and I hope people wont forget about them when this is all over. They have supported the community and it is only right that we support them. She said it wasnt an easy decision to postpone the festival but added: We decided to move it on for everybodys benefit. This is about the health, safety and welfare of everyone taking part in the festival. Compared with other events, we were in a fortunate position where we were able to postpone it. The rescheduled festival will start with the Big Feast in Market Place in which more than 30 stalls are expected to take part. Like last year, visitors will be able to pick up a feast for a fiver at each stall. The climax of the festival will be the Riverside Fiesta on Mill Meadows with live music, street food, bars and a floating market to celebrate the end of the fortnight. A Some Like It Chilli Hot event will be held at Henley Rugby Club on August 7 and Brakspear will be brewing a special beer for the festival, as it did last year. Miss Ratcliffe, who lives in New Street, Henley, wants to make the festival as environmentally friendly as possible. None of the traders at the Big Feast will be selling drinks in plastic bottles and there will be educational talks about limiting food waste with help from South Oxfordshire District Council. She also hopes to put on an event called Taste of Slovenia to celebrate Henleys twinning with Bled. The town is also twinned with Falaise in France and Leichlingen in Germany and Miss Ratcliffe said: I want to involve our other twin towns because I think it is important to explore their culture and cuisine and hopefully we can also take a bit of Henley back to their countries as well. Food on Film is returning to the Regal Picturehouse, where food-related films will be shown. New to the festival will be Life on the Veg food fair in Market Place, which will focus on the vegetarian and vegan alternatives available in Henley. Miss Ratcliffe said she hoped people would see the festival as light at the end of the tunnel to help them through the lockdown. She added: We are trying our hardest to make sure something happens. We are going to be doing something unless there is a good reason why we cant and we are advised otherwise. We dont have the regatta and the festival and it is really going to hit the businesses hard in the town. We want to try to carry on in some small way to help Henley and to boost everyones coffers. We are all going to be ready for a bit of a party at the end of this and want to enjoy ourselves. This is about putting on a great event for Henley. People told us last year that it was one of the best local events they had been to and you cant get better testimonials than that. Supplier News 20 April 2020 San Francisco - How do furloughed employees stay in the know with what is going on at the hotel? How are hoteliers communicating unemployment insurance benefits? What will happen when things start to turn around and properties need to begin planning for reopening? On Thursday, Beekeeper, a mobile-first communication platform for frontline workers, will host the second event in its COVID-19 Webinar Series, this time talking about the challenges of communicating with furloughed employees. With millions of hotel workers on leave, managers need to find ways to communicate with and engage remote teams and keep them connected to the organization so that when things turn around, everyone is set up for success. To register for "Communicating with Furloughed Employees Getting it Right," held Thursday, April 23, at 11:30 a.m. ET, click here. Photo: Beekeeper David Sherwyn, Director of the Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations and the John and Melissa Ceriale Professor of Hospitality Human Resources will discuss best practices for communicating with furloughed employees using digital resources. Panelists include Sandy Gentles,Vice President, Talent Point by Marriott; Efrat Schulman, Labor & Employment Partner, JONES DAY; and Andrada Paraschiv, Beekeeper Head of Hospitality and former Executive Director of Communications and Strategy of FRHI Hotels & Resorts (Fairmont, Raffles and Swissotel). "Furloughed employees are trying desperately to navigate the current uncertainty," Paraschiv said. "They are hungry for any piece of information that brings direction and provides a support system to help them cope. As a result, some have started Facebook groups to keep in touch with co-workers. While messaging on these types of social channels is positive for the most part, it can also be risky for the property or brand." "As frustrating as this situation is for hourly employees, it's even more trying for management," she added. "Companies simply can't afford to have a communication gap at this time. Digital communication is the only scalable way for employers to connect with their remote workforce and get ready to ramp up once this crisis ends. We hope everyone will join us for this critical discussion to better understand the operational and legal implications if we fail to communicate and engage with our employees at this time." About Beekeeper Beekeeper's mission is to transform the way 2 billion frontline employees work with a mobile-first communication platform that reaches every shift, location, and language through real-time one-on-one and group messaging. Dedicated streams deliver important operational communications to your entire workforce or specific subgroups. Managers keep staff productive and turnover low by automating workflows and messaging to their teams, while leveraging an analytics dashboard to measure engagement. Quick to implement and even easier to use, Beekeeper integrates with the existing operational systems you rely on and makes them accessible to everyone in one central access point. Learn more at beekeeper.io. The company is based in Zurich and San Francisco and supports users in more than 130 countries. Clients include Heathrow Airport, Seaboard Foods, and Marriott. Salman Khan has been staying at his Panvel farmhouse with his nephew Nirvaan Khan and other family members ever since the lockdown was announced. The actor has now opened up about how he's spending his quarantine and keeping himself occupied at the farmhouse. I am still working, my mind is working and as soon as this lockdown is over, I know exactly what I want to do and how. Right now, this place feels like the Bigg Boss house. Its beautiful here with everyone around because no one is being eliminated, and so, no one is going after anyone. I am also making time to paint, and I am doing quite a bit of it. I might put it out at some point," the actor told Bombay Times. Salman is staying with his mother Salma Khan as well as his sister Arpita, brother-in-law Aayush Sharma and their kids Ahil and Ayat. Not having met his father since three weeks, Salman has been in constant touch with Salim Khan. Salman had recently shared a video where he said that he was missing his father, Salim Khan who is residing alone in their Mumbai apartment. In that video, Salman informed that he has not met his father since three weeks. Salman and Nirvaan cant come here, so they are in Panvel. When they can come, they will. There also, they are at home and we are in constant touch over video calls, Salim Khan told Mumbai Mirror. Meanwhile, Salman has sung a song, titled Pyaar Karona, aiming to cheer up people amid the coronavirus lockdown. Written by Salman and Hussain Dalal, Pyaar Karona will be released on Salman's YouTube channel on Monday. Sharing the news among his followers, Salman took to social media and wrote: "So I'm posting from my handle to let you know that tomorrow on my YouTube channel, mine kya? It's ours!A song out tomorrow on it, hope you can handle it." Jaipur, April 20 : Dungarpur, a tribal dominated district, is silently shooing away the dreadful coronavirus from its periphery by merging simple traditional methods with modern means to spread awareness about COVID-19, using puppet shows and pictorial stories, says District Collector Kanaram. So much so that the state health department now wants to replicate it elsewhere. Kanaram added that all five COVID-19 positive patients in this district have tested negative and are undergoing quarantine as advised by medical team since the last six days. There were five cases of COVID-19 in Dungarpur, four from a family and one other person. In March, a man and his son rode a motorbike from Indore and came to Dungarpur in Aspur village. On March 25, a day after the Lockdown1.0 came into in the country they reached their home. The two complained of breathlessness the next day. Their samples tested positive for Covid-19. The administration had to literally run on its toes to find their contacts. Curfew was clamped in one kilometre periphery and samples of their contacts were taken. Then the father of the man also tested positive a few days later eventually infecting three generations of the same family. The man's brother's son (11) also tested positive and there were questions raised if corona spread can be checked in this district where people stay close knit and if social distancing can be at all followed. The administration was also worried due to the high density of tribal population in this belt. Hence, we preferred adopting traditional methods which were merged with modern means to make each and every person aware of precautions to be taken during COVID-19 epidemic spread, said district collector adding that as the district lies on the Gujarat borders, challenges were multiplied because there were chances of people crossing the borders and going in and out of the district. The traditional methods of puppet shows and chitra katha were invoked to help out in the crisis. The package included a form of "puppet show and e-chitrakatha where the dialogues were recorded in the local Wagadi dialect. The aim was to spread the message to maximum local people. A complete video series was prepared keeping in mind the students who were staying back in home during lockdown. The writer of the series was Alok Sharma, working as a teacher in Jawahar Navodaya Vidhyalaya in Dungarpur. He wrote an interesting script to spread awareness on symptoms and prevention from the coronavirus. The series also presented the advisories to be followed during crop harvest in fields, at home and while going out about social distancing. This innovative model was praised all across and eventually, it was also released in Hindi language and shared on different social media handles. Also, the Information and Broadcasting ministry's regional outreach bureau shared it on its official Twitter handle. With these e-series, an attempt has been made to solve the curiosity and doubts of the common man in a simple and easy language with excellent dialogues, says Assistant Director Information and Public Relations Cherie Chaubisa. She says the Dungarpur system might be replicated by other districts. The series informs on the spread of the coronavirus infection, its symptoms, prevention and treatment precautions for pregnant women etc. It also attempts to address the innate curiosities arising in the minds of people residing in rural areas. These promotional materials are being widely publicised on social media especially WhatsApp, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. A special WhatsApp group 'Dungarpur Satark Hai' has also been created. These efforts are getting widely appreciation and the basic objective of making them seems to be meaningful, she told IANS. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) South Africa: President Ramaphosa bemoans alleged food parcel theft President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday expressed concern at the alleged theft of food parcels meant to assist distressed families and individuals during the COVID-19 nationwide lockdown. A number of provinces have received reports that callous individuals, some of them allegedly government officials, are hoarding or selling food parcels earmarked for the needy and destitute, or diverting them to their friends and families, said the President in his weekly newsletter. In the letter, the President vowed to deal with individuals harshly, should the allegations prove to be true. Like many other countries around the world, South Africa has imposed the lockdown with a hope to save lives from the life-threatening COVID-19 that has killed 54 people in the country. We have done the same in our country, but our lockdown has revealed a very sad fault line in our society that reveals how grinding poverty, inequality and unemployment is tearing the fabric of our communities apart, he said. The President has been moved by images of people desperate for food parcels at distribution centres and of community protests against food shortages. There can be no greater anguish than that of a parent whose children cry out to them for food, but they have none to give. There can be no greater injustice than a society where some live in comfort and plenty, while others struggle at the margins to survive with little or nothing at all. While he has attributed this to the residual effects of a fractured and unequal past, he also said they are also a symptom of a fundamental failure in post-apartheid society. The nationwide lockdown in response to the coronavirus has gravely exacerbated a long-standing problem. The President said that while National State of Disaster and the imposition of a nation-wide lockdown has been put in place, the support of vulnerable citizens has been slow. We had to act quickly to save lives. And we must acknowledge that in the days and weeks that have followed, the provision of support to our countrys most vulnerable citizens has been slower than required and that lapses have occurred, he said. Grants On the payment of social grants, President Ramaphosa said he was pleased to see that this proceeded relatively smoothly, and after a number of technical challenges, the food distribution system is being streamlined. And as the presentation by the Ministry of Health, last week indicated, enforcing a lockdown at the time we did has slowed down the rate of infection and, more importantly, bought us time to prepare for a probable surge in infections in the coming weeks and months, he said. Impact on the economy President Ramaphosa said they had to consider the impact on an already floundering economy in both the long and short term, and the impact of this substantial disruption on the livelihoods of millions of people. We had to consider what weeks of confinement to the home would mean for the employed not paid regular salaries, for the unemployed and those seeking work, for those in casual or seasonal employment, for those in the informal sector, for the indigent and for the vulnerable. He said the cabinet will finalise a set of measures to respond to the impact of the lockdown on livelihoods, preceded by a range of engagements with a number of stakeholders including business, labour, religious organisations, civil society and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council. The social partners have put forward a number of proposals on interventions that could address the immediate vulnerability of the poorest of the poor, most of whom rely on social assistance to survive. He said government will also scale up welfare provision during this period to help households living below the poverty line. He said even when the nation-wide lockdown is lifted, its effects will continue to be felt for some time to come. Those fortunate to have a steady income will be able to return to their jobs; but for millions of others this will be a lost month where they would otherwise have found temporary work, done business in the informal sector or saved money earned to meet their family responsibilities. While he concedes that food support is a short-term emergency measure, it needs to be matched by sustainable solutions that help vulnerable citizens weather the difficult times that are still to come. President Ramaphosa also thanked non-government organisations, religious groups and ordinary citizens who are donating money and volunteering to help feed the hungry and destitute. Alleviating hunger is not an act of charity. It is imperative for any society that is founded on respect for human rights, he said. - SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Except for one stunning month in 2017, when the Abbey was featured in a Mansion in May benefit, the place has been vacant for years. Restoration Hardware (RH), an upscale home furnishing chain, wants to transform the Abbey into a glamorous showroom, restaurant and wine bar. Monday's meeting was a "master plan consistency review." In 2018, the Township Committee designated the Abbey as a "non-condemned area in need of redevelopment." Planning Consultant Paul Phillips was authorized to prepare a redevelopment plan, which was submitted last month to the Committee. "At this stage, the primary if not sole issue before this Planning Board this evening is: Is this plan consistent or not inconsistent with the Master Plan, and that's Mr. Phillips' job," board Attorney Steven Warner said on Monday. Everyone participated from remote locations via a Zoom video conference, because public gatherings are prohibited during the coronavirus pandemic. Without naming RH as the redeveloper, Phillips described the plan under consideration as fulfilling two important criteria as set forth by the Master Plan: Preserving and enhancing historic sites, and improving commercial usage where appropriate. "The redevelopment plan itself has very detailed development standards," said Phillips, citing setbacks, building heights, coverage, parking, access, circulation, building and architectural design, landscaping and signage. "My recommendation to the Board based on the Master Plan documentation, is that the redevelopment plan is indeed substantially consistent with the Master Plan for the reasons stated," Phillips said. The board's approval followed a brief discussion and questions regarding the layout of the buildings, the dimensions of parking stalls, emergency vehicle access, and the realignment of Canfield and Punch Bowl roads to improve traffic flow. However, the project is not a done deal. "I want to make it clear to the public once this goes back to the Township Committee, if they were to approve it, the project would then come back again to the Planning Board for site approval, and so the Township Committee does not have the last say in this," said Deputy Mayor Jeff Grayzel, who also serves on the board. Additional steps include the official designation of RH as the redeveloper, followed by a site plan application. If modifications or variances are required, they would have to be granted by the Planning Board as part of the site plan approval. A public forum for concerns, opinions, and questions is scheduled for April 29, 2020, although Mayor Cathy Wilson acknowledged that dates can change because of the pandemic, and the technical demands it requires to maintain social distancing. About Tom Maoli: Mr. Maoli is the President and CEO of Celebrity Motor Cars, LLC a luxury dealership group based in New Jersey and New York. These dealerships include: Lexus of Route 10, Maserati of Morris County, Alfa Romeo of Morris County, BMW of Springfield, as well as Mercedes-Benz of Goldens Bridge. In addition to his growing automotive empire; Tom is the president and CEO of Real Estate Opportunity Investments, LLC, a residential and commercial real estate development and investment company, along with being founder and CEO of Joe Zone coffee company. Listeners may reach him via email him through his website at http://tommaoli.net. Media Contact: Melanie Borden (973)319-7900 [email protected] SOURCE Tom Maoli Related Links http://www.tommaoli.net Updates related to COVID-19 and its effects on Albuquerque and the rest of NM. PICTURES UPDATES 6:24 p.m. Lovelace tests more thank 1k during weekend Lovelace Medical Center tested more than 1,000 people for the coronavirus over the weekend. The hospital announced that it was testing people regardless of whether or not they were showing symptoms of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Those symptoms include fever, a dry cough and shortness of breath. The hospital was offering drive-through screening for the virus in a parking lot across from the hospital on the south side of Martin Luther King Jr. The site saw 730 patients on Saturday and 424 on Sunday, said Whitney Marquez, a spokeswoman for the hospital. Ryan Boetel 5:05 p.m. Native American Relief Fund to help states tribal communities The New Mexico Community Foundation has created the Native American Relief Fund to provide aid to the states tribal communities during the COVID-19 crisis. The fund will provide emergency grants for tribal governments and non-profits to purchase protective equipment, food, water and cleaning supplies for the Navajo, Apache and Pueblo communities of New Mexico. The fund was created in coordination with the Santa Fe Community Foundation and the New Mexico Department of Indian Affairs. JoAnn Melchor, President and CEO of the New Mexico Community Foundation, told the Journal that the project aims to raise $3 million to pay for emergency supplies and recovery efforts. Were looking at the most efficient way to get these funds to our tribal communities, Melchor said. We created an advisory committee to work out the logistics of when to start awarding the grants. Well post a grant application soon it wont be extensive, just for our record-keeping. Melchor said the Thornburg Foundation committed to a $50,000 contribution for the fund, the Water Foundation committed $25,000 and the LANL Foundation committed $5,000. Individual donations since the funds announcement total $3,000. In addition to purchasing emergency supplies amid the crisis, the fund will be used to help tribal communities recover from the pandemic. We are focused on hearing community voices, letting them tell us what they need, Melchor said. Were looking at what we can do now with this money to support communities in the future with things like infrastructure. The most recent data from the New Mexico Department of Health shows that Native Americans make up 38% of the states COVID-19 cases. Donations can be made at https://nmcf.org/programs/native/ or by calling (505) 356-4110. Other ways to help. Theresa Davis 4:32 p.m. NM announces 3 more virus deaths, 126 new cases Three more adults died in New Mexicos coronavirus outbreak, state officials said Monday, as testing confirmed about 126 more cases of the disease. It was the largest single-day jump in new cases so far, though state officials said Mondays results included some tests that would normally have been reported Sunday, when only partial results were available. Just 47 cases were reported Sunday because some laboratories hadnt finished tabulating their results. The state, in any case, now has 1,971 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus. More than 70 of 126 cases reported Monday were reported in McKinley and San Juan counties in northwestern New Mexico, where the Navajo Nation has been hit hard by the virus. Read more >> Dan McKay 3:19 p.m. Heinrich, Udall support work authorization extensions for DACA recipients, other immigrants New Mexico Sens. Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall are asking President Donald Trump to extend work authorizations for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, Temporary Protected Status recipients and other immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a news release sent out by the two Democrats, they made the request in a letter to the president along with 36 other senators. This simple measure, which is well within your executive authority, will save American lives and avoid further disruptions to our economy, the senators wrote. By contrast, going ahead with your Administrations efforts to deport more than a million DACA and TPS recipients would be needlessly cruel and greatly weaken our nations essential workforce. There are 1,900 DACA recipients in New Mexico working in health care, education, and food service jobs according to the Center for American Progress and 382 TPS recipients as of 2019 according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the release said. Scott Turner 2:25 p.m. Torres Small seeks rural COVID-19 task force New Mexico Congresswoman Xochitl Torres Small is among lawmakers asking the Trump administration to establish a rural COVID-19 task force. She and other members of Congress sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue urging that a task force be set up to identify challenges in rural areas caused by the pandemic and develop a strategy to confront those challenges. The task force could provide oversight on the distribution of funds, a news release by Torres Smalls office said. All of America is hurting right now, but many rural communities are hurting in silence, Torres Small said in the release. Since the start of this public health emergency, Ive fought for funding in rural areas, support for our nations farmers, and aid to our struggling rural health care facilities. However, much of this relief still hasnt reached rural residents or their communities. The letter to Perdue said challenges faced by rural areas require Congress and the Department of Agriculture to take action. That means first and foremost listening to rural leaders and citizens about the challenges they face, allowing them a forum to raise the issues that they have identified as being the most pressing, the lawmakers wrote. Second, it means providing administrative flexibilities and resources to address those challenges. And lastly, it means making certain that the resources provided are being distributed in an equitable way to meet rural needs. Scott Turner 11:10 a.m. Walmart opens COVID-19 testing site in ABQ A newly opened COVID-19 testing site is making screenings available to first responders and health care workers whether they have symptoms or not. The site, which is operating at the Walmart parking lot on Academy and Wyoming, is also making tests available to people ages 18 and up who do have symptoms, according to Jennifer Haddock, Walmarts market, health and wellness director. People seeking testing must register and set an appointment 24 hours in advance. Registration can be accessed by scanning a QR code or by visiting https://myquest.questdiagnostics.com/web/mycovid19test. The site will be open seven days per week, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the near future. Read more >> Gabrielle Porter 7:55 a.m. Town hall focuses on COVID-19 NM hotspots The coronavirus outbreak has exacerbated long-standing challenges in Indian Country lack of health care funding and broadband services, among them as the pandemic has torn into the Navajo Nation and other tribal communities, officials said Sunday in a virtual town hall. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said the pandemic has highlighted the under-funding of the Indian Health Service and the difficulty tribal communities have securing aid, even after its been approved. Funding is often passed through state or other government agencies, he said, rather than sent directly to tribal communities. This is a public health emergency, Nez said. We need to get those dollars straight to our governments. Read more >> Dan McKay 6:05 a.m. Idris Elba and wife recovering from coronavirus in NM Even though they only had mild symptoms, Idris Elba says he and his wife had their lives turned around after contracting the coronavirus, calling the experience definitely scary and unsettling and nervous. You know, everyones sort of feeling the way we have been feeling, but it has definitely been sort of just a complete upheaval, he told The Associated Press late last week. But the British actor feels that there are life lessons to be learned, and the pandemic serves as a reminder that the world doesnt tick on your time. I think that the world should take a week of quarantine every year just to remember this time. Remember each other. I really do, he said. The couple have been recovering in New Mexico, where the actor was filming when he became sick, but plan to return to London as soon as they can get a flight. Elba said he had to miss his 6-year-old sons birthday because of the lockdown but hes hoping to see him as soon as I can. Read more >> AP Four more persons tested positive for COVID-19 in Jharkhand on Monday, taking the number of cases to 45 in the state, a senior health department official said. Principal Secretary (Health) Nitin Madan Kulkarni said one person each from Ranchi, Bokaro and Hazaribag districts tested positive for COVID-19. Later in the evening, Deoghar District Deputy Commissioner Nancy Sahay said a man from Gamahria village in Sarvan block also contracted the deadly virus. "He is asymptomatic and his condition is stable," she said, adding, this is the first case of coronavirus reported from Deoghar district. A 50-year-old man tested positive in Bokaro district's Sadam village, Chief Medical Officer Ashok Kumar Pathak said in a report. He is a relative of a 70-year-old man who died of the disease on April 8. He is undergoing treatment at the isolation ward of Bokaro General Hospital, Pathak said. Jharkhand has reported two COVID-19 deaths so far. Of the total, Ranchi district accounts for the maximum number of cases at 25, followed by 10 in Bokaro. Meanwhile, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren expressed happiness at the recovery of four COVID-19 patients. "There is good from the health department. Four coronavirus patients have recovered fully. This is the signal of our victory," Soren tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vardan Hakobyan, who is in charge of ensuring live connection of the Prime Minister of Armenia and is the Creative Director at Armenian Public Television, has been fired, as reported presses, even though Armenian Public Television hasnt officially confirmed the information. His co-workers have filled his Facebook page with pictures with the words "Were REC and demanding that he is rehired. Actor and film director Tigran Nalchajyan wrote the following: I personally know Vardan Hakobyan. It was definitely not worth firing a dedicated, creative and positive person like him, who became the main producer of Armenian Public Television on his own at the age of 25. With this, I want to address the Prime Minister with the hope that he reconsiders the decision. Vardan Hakobyan hasnt posted any comment and has only added a photo with the words Were REC. The scenes of preparations ahead of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyans April 17 televised address have been disseminated on the Internet, showing the Prime Minister coughing, taking medicine and drinking water. LONDON - Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, may have left their royal lives behind, but this week they are continuing their battle with British tabloids, declaring they will have "zero engagement" with four newspapers and taking one to court. In a letter sent Sunday evening to the editors of the Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Daily Mirror, the couple's representatives wrote that Harry and Meghan will not "offer themselves up as currency for an economy of click bait and distortion." The couple's communications team will no longer take calls from those outlets, even to confirm whether reports are accurate. The letter adds that Harry and Meghan "have watched people they know - as well as complete strangers - have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue." Harry's anger at the tabloids goes back to the death of his mother, Diana, whose car crashed in a Paris tunnel while she was being chased by paparazzi. In a blistering statement last fall, Harry wrote: "I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces." He issued that statement at the same time Meghan filed a lawsuit against the Mail on Sunday and its parent company, Associated Newspapers, for printing excerpts from a private letter she wrote to her father, Thomas Markle, after her wedding on May 19, 2018. The case will be heard at London's High Court on Friday. Harry and Meghan say that the letter was published "unlawfully in an intentionally destructive manner" and that the tabloid omitted "select paragraphs, specific sentences, and even singular words to mask the lies they had perpetuated for over a year." In new court filings published Monday, and seen by ITV, Meghan's lawyers also say that Associated Newspapers in their defense documents do not accurately portray the communications between the couple and Thomas Markle in the days before the wedding. The lawyers say Harry and Meghan's attempts to reach out to her father largely went ignored. "Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. U do not need to apologize, we understand the circumstances but 'going public' will only make the situation worse," Harry wrote on May 14. The next day, Meghan texted her father to say: "I've been reaching out to you all weekend but you're not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts." A Mail on Sunday spokesman has said the publication "stands by the story it published and will be defending this case vigorously. Specifically, we categorically deny that the Duchess's letter was edited in any way that changed its meaning." The hearing will be conducted remotely, in accordance with Britain's guidelines on social distancing. Even though they have given up their responsibilities as working royals and now live in Los Angeles, Harry and Meghan are still regular fixtures in the tabloids - and their statement this week is unlikely to change that. David Yelland, a former editor of the Sun, told the BBC on Monday that Harry and Meghan may have endured stronger criticism in the press than most royals - including "an element of racism" in coverage of Meghan. But he questioned whether ending cooperation with the tabloids would change things for the better. "The reality is it will have no positive effect whatsoever," he said. He added: "The world is in the middle of an immense crisis . . . and yet, this all-about-me stuff from them." The tabloids, too, pushed the notion that this faceoff is poorly timed. The Daily Mail ran the headline: " 'We're not talking to you anymore': As thousands die and Britain fights for its economic life, LA-based Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announce they won't deal with the country's most popular newspapers." Andrew Neil, a prominent BBC presenter, wrote: "As the world grapples with Covid-19, do they really think people care what media they deal with? Their solipsism is amazing. Can't they just consign themselves to oblivion for a while?" Harry and Meghan are not deaf to the urgency of the coronavirus pandemic. Harry's father, Prince Charles, has overcome a case of covid-19. And in a statement last month about their upcoming work, they wrote: "covid-19 has presented the world with one of the greatest public health and socio-economic challenges of modern times. It has also forced one of the biggest human behavioural changes in generations." Harry is working with a nonprofit organization to promote "responsible tourism" and help communities recover after travel restrictions are lifted. In the letter sent to tabloid editors on Sunday, the couple's representatives said the "media have every right to report on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it can't be based on a lie. They also want to be very clear: this is not in any way a blanket policy for all media." A couple have been arrested after a woman was found locked in a room with face and chest injuries. Police were called to a home on Capper Street in Telarah, west of Newcastle, last Tuesday afternoon where they found a 28-year-old woman. She was locked in a room suffering injuries to her chest and face and was taken to John Hunter Hospital for treatment. A crime scene was established, with inquiries leading investigators to search a home in Rutherford on Friday. A woman was found locked in a room with face and chest injuries in a home on Capper Street (pictured) in Telarah, west of Newcastle last week Police met a 30-year-old Telarah man and 21-year-old Rutherford woman at the home, who were both arrested and taken to Maitland Police Station. The pair were both charged with aggravated sexual assault in company inflict actual bodily harm, along with a string of assault and drug charges. They were refused bail and appeared at Newcastle Local court on Saturday, where they were again refused bail. Both will appear in Newcastle Local Court via video link on Monday. In the early hours of Tuesday 14 April, the Turkish Parliament passed a law which will lead to the release of up to 90,000 prisoners. However, it excludes scores of journalists, human rights defenders, politicians, lawyers and others arbitrarily detained pending trial or serving sentences following unfair trials under Turkeys overly broad anti-terrorism laws which facilitate incarceration for exercise of free speech. While we welcome any measures taken to alleviate overcrowding in Turkeys prisons, the new measures unjustifiably exclude tens of thousands who are imprisoned for the peaceful exercise of their rights. ARTICLE 19, Punto24 and the 22 undersigned organisations call on the Turkish authorities to take immediate steps to fulfill their human rights obligations by releasing all those arbitrarily detained for exercising their right to freedom of expression and help mitigate the threat caused by the Covid-19 public health pandemic The adoption of the law, which is part of the governments judicial reform strategy announced in 2019, was fast-tracked in light of the Covid-19 pandemic and the need to alleviate overcrowding in Turkeys prisons. The new law comes into force as Turkeys Justice Ministry has announced the death of three prisoners from Covid-19 on 13 April. The new law does not apply to individuals in pre-trial detention and also excludes anyone convicted of terrorism-related crimes, espionage or crimes against the intelligence services - laws which are frequently used to prosecute journalists, human rights defenders and others. This means many thousands of individuals whose only crime is the exercise of their right to freedom of expression are effectively excluded from release and are at increased risk of contracting the disease in prison. Among them are Ahmet Altan, 70, who is awaiting appeal after being sentenced to 10.5 years in prison for aiding a terrorist organization without being its member, on the basis of his expression of political views, his previous role as editor of Taraf newspaper, and alleged contacts. It also includes businessman Osman Kavala, who has been in pre-trial detention for over two and a half years, currently on the charge of espionage and Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas, who has been in prison since November 2016 and whose release has been repeatedly blocked despite a European Court decision ordering it. Journalists Bars Terkoglu, Bars Pehlivan, Hulya Klnc, Murat Agrel, Ferhat Celik and Aydn Keser, were remanded in prison in March, on charges under the Law on National Intelligence Agency, in connection with their reporting on the death of an intelligence officer in Libya. Turkey is subject to the authority of both the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and the European Committee on the Prevention on Torture who respectively have issued calls to reduce prison populations and other detention populations, wherever possible and said concerted efforts by all relevant authorities to resort to alternatives to deprivation of liberty is imperative, in particular, in situations of overcrowding. We likewise urge the Turkish authorities to follow the advice of the World Health Organisation, which strongly recommends States give enhanced consideration to non-custodial measures at all stages of the administration of criminal justice, including at the pre-trial, trial and sentencing as well as post-sentencing stages. It also urges priority be given to conditional release, particularly for older persons, ill people, and others (including pregnant women) with specific risks related to Covid-19. The WHO has made it clear that without taking urgent measures in prisons to reduce the spread of the virus, efforts to control the spread of Covid-19 in the community are also likely to fail. The Turkish courts frequently justify pre-trial detention on the grounds of flight risk or tampering with evidence. Given the closure of borders due to the pandemic, it is difficult to see what justification there is for holding individuals in pre-trial detention for lengthy periods in what is now an extremely high risk situation. To protect the human rights of prisoners, including their right to life and health, and to protect the health of the public at large, the Turkish authorities should now enact immediate measures to release all those arbitrarily detained, whether in pre-trial detention or after conviction, particularly given many are vulnerable to Covid-19 due to their age or underlying health conditions. We urge the authorities to move now to prevent a humanitarian disaster. Failure to release those detained and imprisoned in unfair trials and on spurious charges, which would help reduce the spread of a deadly disease in detention, would show further alarming disregard for human rights by the Turkish government. Signatories ARTICLE 19 Punto24, Platform for Independent Journalism Articolo21 Association of European Journalists (AEJ) Cartoonists Rights Network International (CRNI) Danish PEN English PEN European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) German PEN Human Rights Watch IFoX / Initiative for Freedom of Expression Index on Censorship International Press Institute (IPI) International Federation of Journalists Norwegian PEN Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT) PEN America PEN International PEN Turkey Reporters Without Borders (RSF) South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) Swedish PEN Turkey Human Rights Litigation Support Project (TSLP) Wan-Ifra / World Association of News Publishers MIAMI, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The COVID 19 pandemic is creating a substantial paradigm shift in how we live and work, swiftly changing the business ecosystem. Paradoxically, this global "slowdown" has actually accelerated the reality of the new 21st century digital world. At SDSol Technologies we always look beyond the current state to what will most likely be our "new" normal. Businesses have been forced to review and adjust objectives, practices and processes, office interactions, workflows, and corporate culture. Ian Darrah VP of Business Development. SDSol pictures. COVID19 N95 Respirator Masks COVID 19 has mandated a quick and encompassing switch to working remotely. Will this be part of the new normal? Most likely. Yet, not all companies are well prepared to execute a seamless transition. This rapid change to a widespread more permanent remote workforce requires transformational leadership, new infrastructure, strategic planning, and significant changes in business practices and processes. Adopting the right technology, with proper testing, training and support will be critical. As a tech company, SDSol Technologies transition to remote work has been smooth and we remain fully operational with most of our team working remotely on ongoing and new projects. We understand the major responsibility of maintaining flawless services to support our client's mission critical IT infrastructure and platform integrity. Healthcare is one of the industries most impacted by this pandemic. For SDSol's healthcare clients, tech operational elements keeps them connected and working. It is a lifeline for their business and customers. SDSol is thrilled to help support healthcare related businesses with cost savings during times of crisis. Additionally, SDSol has taken steps to support the local community. With employees working remotely, SDSol's CEO, Azam Malik, decided to donate the company's N95 Niosh Respirator Masks to the City of Coral Gables Emergency Management Office in Miami, Florida, for the benefit of first responders and public works employees. Business as usual is no longer an option after the corona virus pandemic, and no business has gone untouched. Remote working is only one of many aspects of the new business normal. What has not changed is that the businesses that continue to thrive have decisive visionary leaders, sound strategic planning and financing that generate a smart creative work environment, recruit and maintain talent, and quickly adjust to provide added value and better customer service. Successful companies recognize that technology is not the end product. It is a means to provide holistic business solutions during and after this corona virus pandemic. For more information contact Clari Valenzuela Tel 305-971-0682 Email: [email protected] www.sdsol.com SOURCE SDSol Technologies Related Links http://www.sdsol.com In northern New Jersey, ambulance crews are almost a family business, with every one linked in some way to every other one in the region. The job pays $16.50 to $20 an hour (with an extra $10 an hour thrown in these days as hazard pay) for a 12-hour shift. Its not enough to make a living on its own, so many of those who work in North Bergen have two jobs, some three, with other EMT services in places such as Union City, Passaic, Paterson and Jersey City. Many have spouses, significant others, siblings, cousins, parents, and aunts and uncles who are also on the front lines on ambulances or at hospitals. Most are bilingual Spanish speakers who were born in the United States or who immigrated at a young age, reflecting the areas increasing diversity. An 18-year-old man who was arrested after allegedly breaching coronavirus public health orders on five separate occasions told officers he had coronavirus and threatened to cough on them. Jack Attwell, from Sunbury in Melbourne's north-west, allegedly breached stay-at-home directions five times in ten days. The first alleged incident was on April 7 when Attwell was passenger in a car with three other men in the suburb of Caroline Springs just after 4.30pm. When police pulled over the car and handed out fines to the group, Attwell allegedly told them he would 'cough on you as I have the virus anyway,' court documents state, according to The Age. Jack Attwell, from Sunbury in Melbourne's north-west. fronted Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday Since the strict lockdown measures came into place on March 21, Victoria Police have conducted a total of 24,102 spot checks A day later Attwell was fined after police allegedly found him in a car park in the suburb of Burnside with another group of men. Attwell was then spoken to by officers again on April 17 when he was allegedly found with a group of men in a Caroline Springs street. 'This virus is bulls***, there is no such virus,' he allegedly told officers during this incident. The fourth incident occurred on Saturday after police received a call about a group of men drinking in Caroline Springs. Officers say they witnessed Attwell leave a Coles supermarket and walk through the carpark of the Mercure Hotel with three other men - with the group running from police before they were caught. He was charged with seven offences within the Public Health and Wellbeing Act, including a charge of reckless conduct endangering life for the repeated breaches of the stage 3 restrictions. The arrest of Attwell is the first in Victoria for breaching public health orders and follows a 35-year-old man being jailed in Western Australia on Wednesday for breaching the lockdown restrictions. Attwell fronted Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday where his fines were aggregated to $2,500 and he was placed on bail for unrelated allegations. There is no jail sentence in Victoria for repeated breaches of the public health orders. Victoria Police Protective Services Officers speak to a man at St Kilda beach in Melbourne A teenager who was caught breaching strict self-isolation quarantine rules five times has been charged with endangering lives. Pictured are police officers talking to a man in St Kilda this week Over the weekend Victoria Police conducted 535 spot checks at homes, businesses and non-essential services across the state. In just 24 hours 65 people have been hit with fines for breaching self-isolation rules. Breaches that resulted in fines include six people who were found gathering at a private residence and three people committing an aggravated burglary. Since the strict measures came into place on March 21, Victoria Police have conducted a total of 24,102 spot checks. Premier Daniel Andrews says the Victorian government's hardline strategy will remain in place, despite the number of new cases in the state staying relatively low. A man in his 80s died in hospital on the weekend, taking the state's death toll to 15. Nine new cases have also been confirmed after 17 new cases were reported on Saturday. 'These numbers do jump around a little bit, but the increases are small ... the strategy's working,' Mr Andrews told Sky News Sunday Agenda. Victoria Police Protective Services Officers patrol St Kilda beach in Melbourne this week Despite the improving situation, he said there would be no easing of social distancing restrictions and the plea for people to stay at home. 'We need to stay the course. It's frustrating, but it's certainly less frustrating than if you look at what happened in northwest Tasmania last week,' he said, referring to a new cluster outbreak in the town of Burnie. 'This can get away from you very, very rapidly.' He reinforced that classrooms would remain closed for the majority of school children. Seven of the new cases are Greg Mortimer cruise ship passengers flown in recently on a flight from Uruguay. Since the state broadened the COVID-19 testing criteria, testing rates have risen, with thousands more being assessed in the last day or two. The state of emergency in Victoria is due to expire on May 11 and authorities will set about removing social distancing restrictions in a 'very thoughtful and careful way', Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said on Saturday. Mass gatherings including sporting events and concerts may not happen until next year. Anyone with symptoms of a new fever, chills or breathing problems - specifically a cough, sore throat or shortness of breath - can now be tested for COVID-19. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. Flexible foam insulation, a kind of foam insulation, has open-cell structure giving it flexibility and reducing its weight. The Spray is the most commonly used application technique for flexible foam insulation, which has major usage in the building sector. Acoustic and thermal insulation are key application areas that utilize the benefits of better properties offered by the flexible foam products. Flexible foam insulation is used as part of the advanced infrastructure solutions in building construction owing to their superior properties to insulate from noise and heat. Low weight of the foam also helps to reduce the overall weight of the structure. Flexible foam insulation has major application in the construction industry as a roof or wall insulation material to insulate from heat or noise. Transportation and consumer appliances are other key areas for the flexible foam to be used for insulation. Request for Report sample :https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/10300 Research Methodology The flexible foam insulation market has been analyzed by utilizing the optimum combination of secondary sources and in-house methodology along with an irreplaceable blend of primary insights. The real-time assessment of the market is an integral part of our market sizing and forecasting methodology, wherein our industry experts and panel of primary participants helped in compiling the best quality with realistic parametric estimations. Further, the participation share of different categories of primary participants is given below: Key Market Insights Currently, Asia Pacific is the global leader in the Flexible Foam Insulation Market. China and India have big manufacturing bases and thus they contribute the highest to the APAC market revenue. Europe is the second major consumer owing to extensive infrastructural developments. Countries in North America and Middle East & Africa will show a high growth rate during the forecast period due to increasing industrialization in these regions. Globally, the demand for flexible foam insulation is growing consistently, especially in the Asia Pacific and European markets. This growth is supported by the increased building and construction projects along with several automotive industries in these regions. Thermal insulation is the dominant application segment for flexible foam insulation products at the global level due to their better properties and higher adoption. Other than thermal insulation, the flexible foam insulation acquires a major market in hybrid and acoustic insulation segments. New upcoming technologies based on novel bio-based materials are giving a tough competition to the flexible foam insulation market. Request for Report Discount:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/discount/10300 The study of the global Flexible Foam Insulation Market provides the market size information and market trends along with the factors and parameters impacting it in both short and long-term. The study ensures a 360 view bringing out the complete key insights of the industry. These insights help the business decision-makers to make better business plans and informed decisions for the future business. In addition, the study helps venture capitalists in understanding the companies better and take informed decisions. According to Infoholic Research, the Global Flexible Foam Insulation Market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.0% during the forecast period to reach $6.84 billion by 2022. The Thermal Flexible Foam Insulation segment is expected to maintain a global dominance in the application segments driven by China and India. Asia Pacific is expected to contribute the highest growth toward the market growth. Some of the key players in the market include PolyOne Corporation, DoW Chemicals, Owens Corning, and K-Flex. Report Scope: Applications Acoustic insulation Thermal insulation Hybrid insulation End-user Building and Construction Transportation Consumer Appliances Regions Asia Pacific Europe North America Rest of the World Make an Inquiry before Buying@:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/checkout/10300/Single Gov. Kay Ivey is urging Congress to approve new funding for the depleted Paycheck Protection Program, part of the federal relief act intended to help businesses keep employees on the job during the coronavirus pandemic. The program ran out of money last week. In Alabama, small businesses are the backbone of our economy, Ivey said in a press release. COVID-19 has had unavoidable, devastating consequences on our small businesses, but what is also unavoidable is Congress duty to protect this important sector of our American economy. The governor said financial institutions have made about 28,000 Paycheck Protection Program loans in Alabama that total about $4.9 billion. I look forward to Congress taking action this week, Ivey said. Alabama small businesses, I stand with you. We will get through this together. The Associated Press reported that the Trump administration and Congress are seeking an agreement on a new coronavirus relief package that would include funding for the Paycheck Protection Program. Democrats, who control the U.S. House, are pushing for more money for hospitals, COVID-19 testing, and assistance for state and local governments facing a sharp decline in tax revenues, the AP reported. A survey released by the National Federation of Independent Business showed that about 80% of the businesses that have applied for Paycheck Protection Program loans nationally are still waiting to see if their requests are fully processed and if they will receive the money. Without this assistance, a lot of small businesses might not have the resources to reopen, NFIB Alabama Director Rosemary Elebash said in a press release. Related: Business owners tell Alabama Congressman they are ready to reopen Alabamas coronavirus peak: Clearly the state cant stay shut down, ADPHs Dr. Scott Harris says Police have arrested a man suspected of homicide while patrolling a Florida beach to enforce social distancing measures, officials have said. Jacksonville Beach police arrested Mario Matthew Gatti the beach on Sunday, only days after a number of the state's beaches were reopened in line with the governor's new regulations. According to WJAX-TV police were patrolling Jacksonville Beach to make sure residents were practising social distancing guidelines. The CBS affiliate reported that Mr Gatti was issued an arrest warrant in connection to the fatal shooting of a 33-year-old man in Arnold, Pennsylvania in January. The police department posted a photo of the arrest on its Twitter account, with the comment: This morning while officers patrolled the beach proper they captured a Fugitive from Justice, wanted in Arnold, Pennsylvania for Homicide. Good job! According to the broadcaster Mr Gatti was taken to the Duval County jail upon his arrest. The arrest comes as a result of Governor Ron DeSantis' announcement on Friday that beaches in the state would be partially reopened after being locked down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. The Republican governor had previously been criticised for his reluctance to issue statewide stay-at-home orders and initial refusal to shut its beaches as the virus was spreading around the country. As part of the new regulations, beaches will be open for nine hours during the day for exercise only, the citys website said. People will be allowed to swim and run, but sunbathing, gathering in large groups and setting up chairs will remain banned. Florida currently has over 26,000 recoded cases of the novel coronavirus as of Monday with at least 770 recorded deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. A question related to Salems biggest historical figure united Willamette students with the city to find the answer: What was the original location of the Jason Lee Mission House? Students this past semester conducted a geoarchaeological study around the pioneers 1841 home, one of the oldest frame homes still standing west of the Rocky Mountains. Located at the Willamette Heritage Center in Salem since 1965, the house had previously stood at the intersection of Broadway, Liberty and High streets, but the exact original location was never known. Current landowners are working with the city, The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the university to excavate the site ahead of building a mixed-use complex there. Its a historic part of not just Salem or Willamette, but the state of Oregon, said Scott Pike, professor of environmental science and archaeology who is leading the class. Students are working on all phases of the project including finding Jason Lees timber and grist mill, learning more about the missionaries and pre-contact Native Americans who occupied the area through excavation and analysis of soils and recovered artifacts. For undergraduates, the opportunity to do this level of work is rare, said Pike. Typically, students participate in an archaeology field school, but dont often gain practical experience working with professional archaeologists, city planners or tribal historic preservation officers. Old and new school approach Research for this project required tools both basic and advanced. Guided by a 1915 fire insurance map, students used ground penetrating radar a remote sensory device shaped like a giant orange lawn mower to detect the foundation of the Lee home basement and a round, three-story structure that may be a windmill. By dragging the radar over a carefully-plotted grid, students use software to generate a tomographic 3D image of the underground features, similar to a CAT scan but for beneath the surface, Pike said. Kenna Crowe 21, archaeology major, said the group was excited to see the basements wall and floor take shape on the radar screen, as well as a possible extension of the house. This project is really exciting because it captures the memory of what Salem used to be like years ago, she said. You always read about the past, but now were actually able to see the things that were there. Another student group created a dirt milkshake literally shaking up dirt and water to examine how much clay, silt and sand are present in the soil to see if it had been altered by the first occupants, said Mo Stein 20, archaeology major. The Lee house project is just one example of Willamettes partnership with Kimberli Fitzgerald, the citys cultural resource manager and archaeologist. Students have collaborated on geophysical surveys, including one of a 19th century Chinese shrine at Pioneer Cemetery that earned a city community service award, as well as geoarchaeological research at a police station facility that also earned an award. Pike said these projects are not only excellent opportunities for students to learn and apply analytical skills, but they also help preserve Salems past. One of the greatest benefits of our partnerships is that students get to experience and appreciate public archaeology, he said. These projects prove that archaeology belongs to everyone and should be shared by the local community, those with direct ancestral connection and the greater community as well. So far, 1,042 persons, representing 1.5 per cent in excess of 60,000 tested for COVID-19, have been confirmed positive, with 67,549 (89.5 per cent) testing negative, and 99 persons recovered and discharged. In a national televised address, President Akufo-Addo indicated that 930 persons who had been isolated were responding to treatment either in their homes or in treatment facilities, and that they would later undergo the mandatory two tests to determine their status. He attributed the reason for the increase in the number of confirmed cases over the last three weeks, to the decision taken by the government and the health authorities to aggressively trace and test all contacts of infected persons. This, he said, had enabled the authorities to identify and isolate infected persons, protect the population from further infections, and better contain the spread of the virus. Ghana has since its first two record cases of COVID-19 infections on its shores, traced a total of 86,000 contacts, and tested samples of 68,591, leaving a backlog of about 18,000 persons whose test results are yet to be received. The West African country's success rate also made her the only other country in Africa to have conducted more than 60,000 tests, and "we are ranked number one in Africa in administering of tests per million people. The President stated that the decision by the government to impose restrictions on movement was backed by the data at hand, and that it's next course of action, again, was backed by the statistics available as well as science. "Indeed all that the government is doing is intended to achieve five key objectives-limit and stop the importation of the virus; contain it's 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," he said. He however urged the public not to be complacent about the country's efforts and achievements so far in containing the community spread of the virus to a large extent. He said the numbers of confirmed cases of COVID-19 would still go up due to the effective contact tracing which was still actively on-going in all the other areas across the country. The President encouraged the public to continue to adhere to all the safety and hygiene protocols, especially maintaining social distancing of at least two meters, regular handwashing with soap under running water, or use of alcohol-based hand sanitiser, having good nutrition, exercising and avoiding stress. --GNA A Cork mother has gone to court in a bid to stop images of her toddler daughter in a Halloween costume being used on eBay. A High Court judge today granted an interim injunction to the toddler, who had applied to the court through her mother, restraining eBay from processing or using the girls image. The little girls mother, a nurse had posted pictures of her daughter on Instagram on October 30, 2018, was alerted by a friend almost a year later that the image had been used online by Amazon and eBay commercial websites that sell products online through auction or private sale. In an affidavit to the court, the nurse said she did not give permission to anyone to use, distribute, sell or copy these images. On October 13 last year she said she found out from a close friend the image of her daughter was being used on eBay commercial websites that sell products online and also on Amazon. She contacted both companies who she said reassured her they would investigate it and revert back to her. Amazon she said contacted her to reassure her they had taken the complaint seriously and they were actively investigating the matter. Amazon in January this year confirmed they had investigated the matter and had removed all images of the child found on product detail pages. It also said sellers had been identified by its investigations team and appropriate actions had been taken on those accounts. The childs counsel John Temple BL told the High Court Amazon had a very proactive approach but eBay had a very different approach which was that the onus was on the parents of the child to monitor for the image use and make an application to have images removed. Counsel said the mother phoned eBay on November 4, 2019 and was directed to file her complaint online. eBay, two days later asked to provide her email address to the person using her daughters image and she said she did not want this to happen. Counsel said the nurse then engaged a solicitor on the matter and eBay along with Amazon were asked on January 7, this year to immediately cease and desist controlling and further from processing any image of the little girl. eBay, Counsel said informed the nurse the listing on its website had been removed, and said it had passed on personal details to the user who had used the photos. At the end of January this year, eBay told the mothers solicitor it had already dealt with the issue of the image on the one identified page and it could only take action against a listing if it is identified on a notice of claimed infringement form. Earlier this month eBay was informed by the solicitor the little girls image was still being used by a number of sellers via its website and a request to remove the images was made. Mr Justice Robert Eager said he would grant an interim injunction against eBay otherwise known as eBay Europe Services Ltd from processing, reproducing or using the childs image. The interim injunction will be in place until the hearing of the action. The case will come back before the court on June 16 next. ALEXANDRIA, Va., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Research Innovations, Inc. (RII), a technology innovator with a focus in multi-domain Command and Control (MDC2) systems, advanced data analytics, and machine learning, announced its award of a 4-year contract to support the Canadian Joint Warfare Centre via the U.S. Army Geospatial Center's (AGC) GRIDS III Multi-Award Task Order Contract. RII will provide software prototypes to support the Canadian Armed Forces' (CAF) Joint Command and Control (JC2) integration. The integration will facilitate improved multilateral and coalition coordination, process automation, and intelligence systems. Ellen Minderman, RII's Vice President of Operations and Special Programs, says "We're excited to continue our close partnership with the CJWC and develop impactful prototypes that will promote enhanced coalition collaboration." This work builds upon over 10 years of RII's support to the CAF and allows for the continuation of training support and the development of Joint Targeting doctrine. RII's JC2 prototypes will be built using its Task Coordination Framework, which currently provides MDC2 solutions for a variety of requirements from strategic to tactical, with thousands of users across the U.S. joint forces. With offices in Alexandria, VA, San Antonio, TX, and Melbourne, FL as well as staff embedded with key customers globally, RII supports critical defense, intelligence, cyber, and law enforcement customers across the U.S. Government and with select international customers. RII rapidly delivers transformative technology to customers and end-users to achieve its core purpose of "Creating RIIdiculously AwesomeTM solutions that make the world safer." Visit www.researchinnovations.com for more information. SOURCE Research Innovations, Inc. Related Links http://www.researchinnovations.com For the past 25 days, six foreign nationals have been hiding in caves near the Ganges river in India after they ran out of money and had to check out of hotels when the country entered its coronavirus lockdown. All six tourists, who were found in a cavern near Rishikesh, a town in the northern state of Uttarakhand, have been quarantined after they were examined but are not showing symptoms of the disease. The group was made up of four men and two women from France, Turkey, Ukraine, Nepal and the United States. Police in the Laxmanjhula area found them after receiving information that several foreign nationals were living in caves in the Garun Chatti area. Rakendra Singh Kathait, a police spokesperson, told The Indian Express the group had been living in the cave since 24 March, until police found them on Sunday and moved them to an ashram to be quarantined. They had been buying food and supplies from nearby markets and cooked their meals using wooden planks for fire inside the caves. A state government order implemented on 20 March banned domestic and foreign tourists from entering the state of Uttarakhand as part of an effort to stop the spread of Covid-19. A nationwide lockdown was imposed on 24 March, which only allows essential services to continue operating. There are 17,615 coronavirus cases reported in India, with 559 deaths, according to data from John Hopkins University. The town of Rishikesh is a destination for Hindu pilgrims and is regarded as a holy place. It is also popular among foreign travellers and is known worldwide as the location of the ashram where The Beatles stayed in 1968 while writing the White Album. Last week, 10 tourists in Rishikesh were punished for flouting coronavirus lockdown rules after they were found relaxing on the banks of the river Ganges. The tourists were made to write I did not follow the lockdown. I am sorry 500 times. If they were found breaking the rules again, they would be barred from entering India again, said police. Indias lockdown was initially due to be lifted on 14 April, but prime minister Narendra Modi later extended them until 3 May. The number of coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia has risen quickly in recent weeks, with mounting worries among experts that the region could turn into a hot spot for the fast-spreading disease. The region as a whole has reported more than 28,000 cases as of Sunday, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. Collectively, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore account for 87.9% of total cases reported in Southeast Asia, the data showed. While the region's tally is still far off the hundreds of thousands seen in the U.S. and some European nations, several studies suggest that tens of thousands more infections could be undetected due to the low testing rate in countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines. Meanwhile in Singapore, cases have spiked dramatically in the last two weeks, with new clusters of infections found among migrant workers living in packed dormitories even as the government's handling of the outbreak was at one time hailed internationally as a model for others to follow. "The fact is ... cases have been ramping up here in Southeast Asia," Simon Tay, chairman of think tank Singapore Institute of International Affairs, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" last week. Tay said governments must act quickly to contain the outbreak. "We do need to act. The Philippine testing numbers, the Indonesian testing numbers are far too low," he added. Varying testing capacity Capacity to test for the coronavirus vary widely across Southeast Asia. Singapore is among the top globally with 16,203 tests per million people, while Myanmar is close to the bottom with just 85 tests per million people in the population, according to data compiled by statistics site Worldometer. But experts have mostly singled out Indonesia and the Philippines as countries that they're concerned about because of their large population. Indonesia, which has the world's fourth-largest population of over 270 million, has conducted around 42,000 tests in total, reported Worldometer. That's equivalent to 154 tests per million people one of lowest globally, according to the site. Indonesian authorities said they aim to conduct 10,000 tests per day and predicted that infections could reach 95,000 as tests are ramped up, Reuters reported. Over in the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte last week approved the procurement of 900,000 more test kits in addition to 100,000 already in use, reported Reuters. The government has implemented strict lockdown measures, but said its own modelling indicated that 75% of infections or around 15,000 people had not been detected, according to the report. Infections could surge in Indonesia Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, reported its first case of Covid-19 in early March a development that surprised many observers given the country's extensive air links with China and the city of Wuhan, where the virus first emerged. It seems that Jokowi has prioritised preserving the economy over preventing the spread of the virus because he fears his legitimacy and hold on power may be at risk. Bradley Wood Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at ANU In contrast, neighboring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia started identifying cases as early as January with several infected people developing symptoms after visiting Indonesia. In addition to its lag in testing, the government led by President Joko Widodo popularly known as Jokowi has come under criticism for not implementing a nationwide lockdown and banning domestic travel. However, the president has allowed local authorities in the capital city of Jakarta and other areas to implement lockdown measures. "It seems that Jokowi has prioritised preserving the economy over preventing the spread of the virus because he fears his legitimacy and hold on power may be at risk," Bradley Wood, a research officer at the Australian National University's Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, wrote in a report earlier this month. Millions of Indonesians typically travel across the country to return to their hometowns and villages at the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which concludes with large feasts and celebrations among relatives and friends. That could result in one million infections by July in Java, the country's most populous island and home to capital city Jakarta, reported Reuters, citing a new model done by University of Indonesia's public health faculty. Reuters reported last week that Doni Monardo, who heads Indonesia's Covid-19 task force, said only the unemployed would be allowed to travel and they would have to undergo a 14-day quarantine. He stressed that they had a higher chance of staying well outside cities, according to the report. Spike in Singapore cases In Singapore, daily new cases hit record levels several times over the past week despite the government's rigorous quarantine measures and screening process underscoring the challenges that authorities face in containing the coronavirus. The country was one of the first outside China to report cases of Covid-19 and had kept the number of infections relatively low, allowing schools and businesses to remain open until earlier this month. [April 20, 2020] IDEMIA's Contactless Biometric Terminals Provide Faster Access and Safety to Condominiums Residents in Sao Paulo, Brazil IDEMIA, the global leader in Augmented Identity, has announced that MorphoWaveTM Compact biometric terminals have been deployed at several new residential condominiums in the Barueri region, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Residents, service providers and visitors now enjoy frictionless access control, with more security and convenience. MorphoWaveTM Compact is a revolutionary and still unique biometric access control technology : the reader performs a 3D scan and verification of four fingerprints in less than one second, in an easy, fast and fully contactless "wave" hand gesture. This brings convenience and speed, but it is also more hygienic as fingers are never in contact with the sensor. This solution has already been deployed in important condominiums and clubs in the Sao Paulo region (such as Residencial Alphaville Zero, Residencial Alphaville 1, Tambore 1, Tambore 3 among others), and it has really revolutionized the way residents enter and leave their condominiums. MorphoWaveTM Compact is also of high value for system integrators. Its installation is fast and simple on existing gates and turnstiles that can be reused: it tok approximately 20 days to deploy this project in the Barueri region. Maintenance is also simplified as those devices are extremely reliable, with no pieces in movement and no friction due to the contactless user experience. According to Ricardo Miralha, regional sales manager for Brazil and Southern Cone at IDEMIA, MorphoWaveTM Compact offers increased security and convenience for employees, residents and visitors of the condominiums. "There is greater agility in the entry of residents, which leads to greater security. It only takes 30 seconds to register a new user. In addition, because there is no direct contact between the user and the reader, hygiene is another very important point". About IDEMIA IDEMIA, the global leader in Augmented Identity, provides a trusted environment enabling citizens and consumers alike to perform their daily critical activities (such as pay, connect and travel), in the physical as well as digital space. Securing our identity has become mission critical in the world we live in today. By standing for Augmented Identity, an identity that ensures privacy and trust and guarantees secure, authenticated and verifiable transactions, we reinvent the way we think, produce, use and protect one of our greatest assets - our identity - whether for individuals or for objects, whenever and wherever security matters. We provide Augmented Identity for international clients from Financial, Telecom, Identity, Public Security and IoT sectors. With 13,000 employees around the world, IDEMIA serves clients in 180 countries. For more information, visit www.idemia.com / Follow @IdemiaGroup on Twitter (News - Alert) View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005362/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] SAO PAULO - Four days after firing his health minister amid the coronavirus pandemic, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said Monday he wants social isolation policies to end nationwide this week despite commitments by many states to maintain such policies. Nearly all Brazilian states have stay-at-home measures in place, some slated to extend until the middle of May. The countrys top court has already ruled governors and mayors can decide on social isolation measures regardless of the federal governments position. Bolsonaro, meanwhile, wants a quick reopening to stop the deterioration of Brazils faltering economy. Everything done in excess ends up bringing problems. These measures did not reach their goal in some states, Bolsonaro told journalists in front of the presidential residence in Brasilia. I hope this is the last week of this quarantine, of this way of fighting the virus. The Brazilian president favours a less restrictive model in which only those in high-risk groups would be quarantined at home until the end of the outbreak. After Bolsonaro replaced critic Luiz Henrique Mandetta with Nelson Teich as health minister, several governors and mayors said they were considering even stricter isolation measures in an effort to curb the spread of the new coronavirus. Teich previously published an article defending quarantine policies, but he has not spoken to the press since a vague introduction speech on Friday and it is unclear what he will do on the job. On Monday evening, Brazils health ministry shared a video in which Teich says there will be a progressive, structured and planned exit from social isolation. He also promised to raise the countrys capacity of testing from promised 24 million in the next weeks to up to 46 million. Brazil confirmed 113 deaths of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, putting the countrys total at 2,575. More than 40,000 people have contracted the disease in the South American nation, the highest figure in Latin America. 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. Bolsonaros comments came one day after he met outdoors with dozens of supporters who want the closing of the countrys congress and supreme court. His presence in such demonstration is drawing widespread repudiation in a nation that endured a military dictatorship between 1964 and 1985. The Brazilian president denied he was attacking the countrys democracy at the protest, but said: I am actually the constitution. Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a UK high court appeal against his extradition, a major turning point that brings India closer to getting back the embattled liquor tycoon wanted in the alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to Rs 9,000 crores. The dismissal of the high court appeal effectively clears the decks for Mallya's extradition to India to face the charges in the Indian courts, with 14 days for him to apply for permission to appeal to the UK Supreme Court. If he does apply, the UK home office would wait for the outcome of that appeal. But if he does not, under the India-UK extradition treaty, it would then be expected to formally certify the court order for the 64-year-old Mallya to be extradited to India within 28 days. "We have held there is a prima facie case both of misrepresentation and of conspiracy, and thus there is also a prima facie case of money laundering," the high court concluded. This marks a major turning point in the Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorates case against the businessman, who has been on bail in the UK since his arrest on an extradition warrant in April 2017. The former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the higher court against his extradition ordered by the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London in December 2018, and then signed off by then UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid in February last year, at a three-day hearing in February this year. Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the appeal, dismissed it in a judgement handed down this week remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge Emma Arbuthnot] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India (CBI and ED), there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," the judges noted. They detail seven main points around which they based their decision to concur with Arbuthnot's extradition order. Based on the documents setting out the Indian government's case against Mallya, the judges said they found that the loans in question were disbursed as the result of a conspiracy between the named conspirators and that they were made despite Kingfisher Airline's weak financials, negative net worth and low credit rating. "The appellant [Mallya] was party to false representations to induce the loans that funds would be inducted by way of unsecured loans, global depository receipts and equity," they note. "The appellant was party to false representations about inward investment, an exaggerated brand value, misleading growth forecasts, inconsistent business plans. The appellant's dishonest intention not to repay the loans is shown by his later conduct in trying to avoid the personal and corporate guarantees," they said. Mallya's legal team had sought to challenge the Indian government's case on multiple grounds, including whether their client would be safe at Barrack 12 in Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai where he is to be held on extradition. Most of the grounds had already been dismissed by the high court, with permission granted to appeal only on one ground -- challenging the Indian government's prima facie case against Mallya of fraudulent intentions in acquiring bank loans. "Mallya has 14 days to apply for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court. If he doesn't appeal -- removal within 28 days thereafter. If he does appeal, we wait for the outcome on that application," said a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which represented the Indian authorities in the UK courts. Representatives from the ED and the CBI had been present in court in February during the three-day hearing, at the end of which Mallya had once again reiterated his message for the Indian banks to take back 100 per cent of the principal amount owed to them. "I am saying, please banks take your money. The ED is saying no, we have a claim over these assets. So, the ED on the one side and the banks on the other are fighting over the same assets. What all they are doing to me for the last four years is totally unreasonable," he said at the time. Mallya has been based in the UK since March 2016 and remains on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017. In her verdict at the end of a year-long extradition trial in December 2018, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had ruled that the "flashy" billionaire had a "case to answer" in the Indian courts. India and the UK have an extradition treaty signed in 1992 and in force since November 1993. So far, only one successful extradition has taken place from the UK to India under the treaty, that of Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was sent back to India in 2016 to face trial in connection with his involvement in the post-Godhra riots in 2002. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI. The Ministry of Finance of Russia proposed to include the jewelry industry in the list of sectors of the Russian economy that were most affected due to the deteriorating situation as a result of the spread of a new coronavirus infection. The corresponding proposal was sent to the Government of the Russian Federation. A week ago, the Russian Jewelers Guild addressed the Prime Minister with a request for measures to support the jewelry industry and with proposals that take into account the specifics of the jewelry market and its individual segments. Eduard Utkin, General Manager of the Russian Jewelers Guild Association answered the questions from Rough&Polished about what kind of measures these may be and what the industry expects in the near future. How difficult is the situation in the industry today? We are dealing with a global problem: the decline in jewelry sales began in the fall of 2019, before the pandemic and devaluation of the ruble, as closer to the new year, sales fell by 5-8%, January and February yielded minus 15-20% in sales and sales in early March were the worst in 20 years. I repeat, this was before the virus and before the war with OPEC. Consumer demand in the economy is squeezed as in a vice. But the horror of the situation in which small businesses found themselves after closure (without being employed in the public sector) has not yet been evaluated. Next up is a colossal drop in income and a collapse in consumer demand, then total unemployment, massive bankruptcies, property arrests and sales, poverty and need... The already kindled fire in the Russian economy could have been extinguished at an early stage by pouring money. If it is undesirable to spend gold and hard-currency reserves, then at worst it can be done by freshly printed rubles. But if the Government delays with financial support measures for business and people until the end of May, then by this time we will already pass the point of no return. The introduction of administrative restrictions on economic activity for millions of market entities should, of course, have been accompanied by measures to compensate for shortfalls in income (as the Ministry of Finance likes to say). But in the minds of our authorities, small business is some kind of a cross between crooks and scammers. This is an iceberg in which shadow revenues, offshore accounts, accumulated profits and surplus inventories are hidden under water. In the near future, business owners will save from complete loss what they consider the most valuable - capital. Everything will be subordinated to the solution of this task, and for the sake of this it will even be forgotten that it is people that create any capital. People are the most valuable potential in our industry - not machines, not equipment and not inventory, but competent, highly qualified personnel in the field of manual craftsmanship and decorative processing of metals and stones. Today we need to save this potential. Without their "golden hands" the industry will not rise. This task is impossible for employers. Both small and medium and large businesses are now knocked out and will not recover any soon. And no one will keep employees in production with a complete lack of sales. Well, what measures of assistance from the state can now be effective? For business - tax breaks until the end of 2020 (as well as a moratorium on the enforcement of measures to collect debts on taxes and fees. For people - to substantially increase unemployment benefits, two to three times as much (up to 24-36 thousand rubles). And the most important thing - in relation to the jewelry industry, it is necessary to recognize the fact that it is the most affected of all industries in terms of reduced sales, and therefore it is urgently necessary to add it to the appropriate list [of most affected sectors]. This is the most necessary minimum. Can it save the industry? Well, not to save, but lets say, to alleviate the fate and save at least part of the industry. If there are no support measures, then 75% of the industry will go under water. If support measures will be taken, then perhaps 30-40% of the industry will die. In any case, it will be impossible to avoid victims. Recently, our president said that the main thing in this crisis is to save people, and that the main thing is people. Do you think our industry employs robots? It employs living people, who are very highly qualified specialists, who are of a much higher class than those working in the automotive industry. I wouldnt dare drive a domestic Zhiguli car, but domestic jewelry is worn by all our women. Because we have highly qualified and well-educated staff. And if these people are left without work and livelihoods, they will simply die of starvation. I am afraid that if the jewelry industry is recognized as one of the most affected, it may not be considered the most important and vital for the population. And therefore, the industry cannot claim to support measures? I would understand, if we only had machines - why save iron machines? All you have to do is to turn them off and then turn them on again. But people cannot be turned off or mothballed or pickled. They need to live and hold out for some time - this requires support measures. We are talking about saving people - nothing more. There are still extractive industries that are more difficult to recover, unlike small industries... The mining industries have no problems: today gold is a very expensive and highly liquid commodity. It is no problem at all to extract it and sell. Diamond production can be stopped - this is not oil. Of course, in this case much depends on resilience margins, that is if ALROSA has the money to last two or three months. I believe that this company has these means - unlike jewelers, who definitely do not have them. There are the restaurant and tourism industries, which also employ people... I do not say that the jewelry industry is more important than tourism or catering, but I work in the jewelry industry. I agree that it is necessary to define industries that have suffered the greatest losses. Among them, yes, the jewelry industry is in the first row, we are down by 97%, followed by tourism and catering their business went down by 95%, and then some other industries. But, unfortunately, the tourism industry is currently included in the government list [of most affected industries], but the jewelry industry was forgotten. Tax deferrals, loan restructuring, rent reduction - all these measures apply today only to the list of the most affected sectors, in which we would like to include the jewelry industry. These measures involve a six-month tax deferral - this can really help a lot. Providing concessional loans for salary payments can also help. These measures suggest halving the insurance payments, and a number of other steps, including credit restructuring. And most importantly, we expect that in relation to this list of most affected sectors, the Government will take some further support measures in the near future. And although we consider these measures half-hearted, belated and incomplete - but nevertheless, they can help at least half of our industry. Therefore, we must fight for the right to receive them. Today we do not have the right to receive these measures of assistance, since the industry is not considered to be affected. Please tell me which companies are now in the most difficult situation in the jewelry industry - large enterprises such as Russkiye Samotsvety, Estet, or small ones? Small ones. Do you understand what the most important problem today is? Look, if you have no money to pay wages - well, you can always resort to retrenching employees, dismissing some of them, settling a bargain with others or explaining the situation to them, but in any case, you will have to make large-scale staff reductions and cut costs. If you have no money to pay taxes, then you have to bankrupt your company and establish another, without tax debts, and start from scratch, as they say. Yes, you can survive. But two problems will persist - if you have a loan and no money to service it, and if you have a rent. Regarding loans, someone has them and someone hasnt, but everyone has a small business rent. Be it a store or a workshop, everyone has a leased space. If you do not pay the rent for a couple of months, you are simply thrown out into the street with your equipment and furniture, like a cat out of the window. And that's the end of it: your equipment is rotting in the rain and gradually vandalized and you have even nowhere to take it this is what happens if you do not have money to pay the rent. Meanwhile, large companies have as a rule their own buildings. They have at least this pillow - this is the advantage of big business. Though they also have a joint in their armor, as it is more difficult for them to say goodbye to staff and to carry out staff reductions. To what extent is the state able to help? The state has the opportunity to earmark expenses in the countrys budget to support industries. Yes, this will cause a budget deficit, and probably it will be necessary to run into debts, borrow money - if you do not want to touch the accumulated foreign exchange funds. Putting it bluntly, the state has a printing press in its hands. Since people need money, just take it, print some amount of money and give it out in the form of subsidies to compensate for lost incomes: if there was a salary of fifty thousand rubles confirmed by an income tax certificate - well, give 75% of this amount in the form of a subsidy so that people can feed their families, so that they can pay loans, utilities. The state has this opportunity. Or one of the options that we offer is to double the unemployment benefit. Today the size of unemployment benefits is 12,130 rubles frankly, it is impossible to live on this. The minimum amount that is necessary in order to at least somehow exist is at least 24,000 rubles. And the state could take it upon itself - as people quit their jobs and are retrenched, they could use these benefits of 24,000 rubles for several months to survive this period, and when the situation will improve they will go to work. Meanwhile, our government offers entrepreneurs to pay this money to employees. And where can they take it from to pay if all their stores are closed and there are no cash flows? The state believes that small businesses have some rainy-day funds, but they ended back in 2014 during the last crisis. Therefore, they have nothing to pay people from. Which part of the industry is more likely to survive? First of all, in truth, we have social stratification, on the backdrop of general poverty there are people who can afford to buy something. Second, we must take into account the fact that the industry today has mainly switched to the production of silver jewelry, and so, the average paycheck here is 3,500 rubles. These products can be bought by state employees - after all, half of the economy in this country is state employees. And their wages are not reduced and do not get smaller. So, demand from their part will remain - therefore, I believe that half of the industry can survive even with minimal measures of support from the state. But if there will be no such support at all, then there will be left a trifle, 20-25 percent, no more. What about the diamond industry - diamonds and diamond jewelry? Let's start from the end of it, as they say. When we talk about diamond manufacturing, the only diamond cutting factory which we really have, and which provides some tangible amount of goods is Smolensk-based Kristall. You may ask about the amount of their supply to the domestic market. They will tell you it is probably one percent, or as much as two percent - everything else is exported. Therefore, any drop in consumer demand in the domestic market cannot in any way hurt their economics. They have a problem in the international market. I'm not an expert and cannot say how to help them with sales in the international market, this is something which needs research. We do not buy diamonds from domestic manufacturers - we buy them in India. Are you very worried about the fate of Indian diamond cutters? I am not. How India is going to solve the issue of compensating losses to its diamond manufacturers is a matter of India. Now about Yakutias diamonds: Yakutia has its own diamond manufacturing operations, but they are very small. Yakutia produces a very small amount of polished goods diamond jewelry sold by Yakutia contains by an order of magnitude more diamonds than what is produced by its diamond manufacturers. What are the steps taken by the Jewelers Guild? We have already written many letters - to the Federal Tax Service, Ministry of Economic Development, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Finance; we addressed our request to Prime Minister Mishustin, we asked for help from general industry organizations: the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, then from OPORA Russia, Business Russia... and they also appealed to the Government with a request to help the jewelry industry. That is, we have already submitted our requests to every authority possible. We have not yet addressed our plea only to our Lord God. We rely on Him: We are working on a plan to organize a religious procession of jewelers so that God helps us and advises the Government to include us in the list of most affected sectors. Are you kidding now or...? No, it is all serious: I'm writing a letter to the Patriarch. And if the church will not support us, then soon everyone will have to wear crosses made in China. Well, Eduard Yuryevich, can we wrap up our conversation on a slightly more optimistic note? As you know, now there is no reason for optimism, unfortunately. We are falling into the abyss, the Government does not control the situation, and unfortunately, as I understand it, they dont know how to control it. Well, summing it up: I really want to wish our Government to rouse themselves and roll up their sleeves. There is need to do something. Galina Semyonova for Rough&Polished Three weeks before France begins exiting its strict lockdown, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has offered insight into the government's strategy for getting the country up and moving again warning that our lives after confinement "will be nothing like they were before it". At a joint press conference Sunday alongside Health Minister Olivier Veran, public health authority boss Jerome Salomon and infectious disease specialist Professor Florence Ader, Philippe said that while France's situation was "slowly and surely improving", the health crisis was not at an end. "This virus is still killing people every day; people are losing parents and partners who they cannot bury with proper dignity in the manner in which they would like," Philippe said, adding that some 30,000 people were still in battling the virus in French hospitals a considerable figure he said was causing continued stress for frontline healthcare workers. Separately, Veran accounced that families will be able to visit loved ones in nursing homes or establishments for disabled people starting Monday. The visits, at the discretion of those in charge of the facilities, must not be made by more than two people while no physical contact will be allowed with the person being visited. Earlier this week, the Prime Minister set out 17 action plans in an internal letter sent to a number of ministries. Veran will be in charge of health and epidemic risk monitoring, and supporting the continued confinement of elderly and at-risk people. In tandem with Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, he will also oversee the implementation of new testing measures. Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer, meanwhile, will take charge of the gradual reopening of schools, with economy and labour ministers Bruno Le Maire and Muriel Penicaud to monitor the way in which companies manage the return to work of employees. Detailed plan 'by 22 April' Philippe has promised that a complete plan will soon respond to the countless questions surrounding precise measures to be taken concerning the reopening of schools and shops, the supply of masks and mass screening. A first draft of the action plan will be presented by 22 April. "We have to organise our lives for the month ahead," he said, warning the health crisis had triggered an economic crisis that "has only just begun", with France to experience "its deepest recession since 1945". In the absence of an effective treatment or cure for Covid-19, which had killed 19,718 people in France as of Sunday, authorities are putting their efforts into prevention plans that will limit its spread, and monitoring the 'deconfinement' measures being adopted in other countries. In his third address to the nation on 13 April, President Emmanuel Macron said that France would gradually emerge from lockdown from 11 May, with the incremental reopening of nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools - but he did not specify under which terms, saying a plan would be presented within a fortnight. Amid alarm stemming from a fixed date being given for the lockdown exit, Castaner on Tuesday clarified that 11 May was not a certainty, but an objective, adding that if this goal no longer became tenable, the strategy being developed by the government would still be applicable later on. LONDON (dpa-AFX) - UK's casino operator Rank Group Plc. (RNK.L) Monday said its third-quarter total net gaming revenue or NGR grew 5 percent, while like-for-like NGR was down 4 percent. Digital LFL NGR climbed 21 percent, while Grosvenor venues fell 5 percent, Mecca venues fell 17 percent and International venues declined 12 percent. Looking ahead, assuming that all venues remain closed for the rest of the financial year to June 30, the company now expects underlying operating profit for the year to be between 48 million pounds to 58 million pounds after IFRS 16 or 40 million pounds to 50 million pounds before IFRS 16. As a result, the company expects to meet all its bank covenants at June 30. The company previously expected underlying operating profit in the range of 113 million pounds to 123 million pounds, including the impact of IFRS 16. In its trading statement on the impact of COVID-19, the company said the pandemic is having a material impact on the Group. The company is preparing for difficult trading conditions when it reopens venues businesses. Across UK venues and support offices, about 7,000 colleagues, out of a UK workforce of 7,600, have been furloughed. The company said it has topped up the UK Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme so that all colleagues in furlough will receive 80 percent of their salary. Further, the executive and non-executive directors have volunteered a 20 percent reduction in salaries and fees with effect from April 1 for as long as colleagues are in furlough. The positive cash impact of the UK's CJRS, and similar schemes in Spain and Belgium, will be approximately 8 million pounds per month. Regarding dividend, the company said its Board does not intend to recommend a dividend unless all creditors, directly arising from Group actions to mitigate the economic impact of COVID-19, have been resolved and it has the necessary visibility on future cashflows following the reopening of venues. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de [April 20, 2020] Pre & Post COVID-19 Market Estimates-Cloud Migration Services Market 2020-2024 | Increasing Adoption of Cloud Computing to Boost Market Growth | Technavio The cloud migration services market is expected to grow by USD 7.1 billion during 2020-2024. The report also provides the market impact and new opportunities created due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact can be expected to be significant in the first quarter but gradually lessen in subsequent quarters - with a limited impact on the full-year economic growth, according to the latest market research report by Technavio. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005397/en/ Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Cloud Migration Services Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Request challenges and opportunities that influence COVID-19 pandemic - Request a free sample report of the cloud migration services market Low upfront costs, flexibility, and scalability are the key factors responsible for the rapid adoption of cloud computing solutions among enterprises. In addition, the growing investments in advanced IT solutions such as analytics, the Internet of things (IoT), enterprise systems, and other IT solutions have increased the deployment of cloud computing solutions. The growing adoption of cloud services is encouraging market vendors to offer a wide range of solutions and specifically target SMEs and other organizations to expand their customer base. These factors are crucial in driving the growth of the global cloud migration services market. 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=IRTNTR43094 As per Technavio, the rise in the adoption of hybrid cloud solutions will have a positive impact on the market and contribute to its growth significantly over the forecast period. This research report also analyzes other significant trends and market drivers that will influence market growth over 2020-2024. Cloud Migration Services Market: Rise in the Adoption of Hybrid Cloud Solutions Hybrid cloud systems help organizations in choosing a more flexible cloud deployment model for different workgroups. It ensures improved data management and enhanced IT management and flexibility. It also helps organizations to move heavy workloads between the in-house cloud and the public cloud without changing business functions or increasing the CAPEX. Moreover, it enables them to deliver better business solutions, which is crucial in gaining an edge over competitors. Many such benefits are increasing the adoption of hybrid cloud solutions, thereby boosting the growth of the global cloud migration services market. "Adoption of container-as-a-service solutions and the emergence of virtual technologies will further boost market growth during the forecast period", says a senior analyst at Technavio. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform Cloud Migration Services Market: Segmentation Analysis This market research report segments the cloud migration services market by deployment (public cloud, private cloud, and hybrid cloud) and geographic landscape (APAC, Europe, MEA, North America, and South America). The North American region led the cloud migration services market in 2019, followed by Europe, APAC, MEA, and South America respectively. During the forecast period, the North American region is expected to register the highest incremental growth due to ongoing digital transformation in countries such as the US, Canada, and Mexico. Technavio's sample reports are free of charge and contain multiple sections of the report, such as the market size and forecast, drivers, challenges, trends, and more. Request a free sample report Some of the key topics covered in the report include: Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors Competitive scenario About Technavio 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/20200420005397/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] A man killed by police Sunday in North Texas after leading them on a violent pursuit with a hijacked bus was wanted in a Brazoria County aggravated assault case, according to Garland police. Ramon Thomas Villagomez, 31, was facing a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon out of Brazoria County, as well as a murder charge in San Antonio, when he commandeered a Dallas Area Rapid Transit bus Sunday morning. His girlfriend was the victim in the murder case, while another relative was the victim in the assault, police said. It's unclear where exactly he took the bus, but police believe he held the driver at gunpoint. DART police attempted to stop the bus as Villagomez began firing at the officers, striking one in the leg. Garland police joined the pursuit around 11 a.m. Garland police said he led them through multiple cities, including Dallas, Richardson, Garland and eventually Rowlett. Villagomez fired multiple times at pursuing officers and struck multiple vehicles, police said. One round struck a Garland officer in the neck through a windshield, police said. Officers disabled the bus with spike strips. The bus slowly came to a stop on northbound George Bush Freeway between Liberty Grove and Highway 66. The gunman exited with his weapon and was shot by pursuing officers, police said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital. A Pennsylvania man wanted in connection with a fatal January shooting in a Pittsburgh suburb was arrested on Sunday while lounging on a Florida beach in violation of social distancing restrictions. Mario Matthew Gatti, 31, was photographed on Sunday afternoon as he was handcuffed and taken into custody by police in Jacksonville. 'This morning while officers patrolled the beach proper they captured a Fugitive from Justice, wanted in Arnold, Pennsylvania for Homicide,' according to a tweet posted by the Jacksonville Beach Police Department. 'Good job!' Jacksonville Beach Police officers are seen above taking Mario Matthew Gatti, 30, into custody on Sunday morning The police department said Gatti was seen lounging on the beach in violation of social distancing orders Gatti (left) is wanted for the fatal January 16 shooting of Brackenridge, Pennsylvania, resident Michael Coover Jr (right), 33 Gatti, a resident of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, was spotted lounging by sand dunes in the 500 block of Beach Proper South in Jacksonville at around 8:20am, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Local police allege that Gatti initially gave officers a fake name and was in possession of drugs. After his arrest, Jacksonville police ran his name through the computer system and discovered an outstanding warrant for his arrest in Pennsylvania. Gatti was one of thousands who descended on the beaches of Jacksonville after Duval County lifted restrictions that were put in place due to the coronavirus pandemic. Beachgoers are allowed onto the beach though only for exercise. Loitering is not permitted. 'We have some rules in place that it's open for active exercise: running, jogging, walking a dog,' police spokeswoman Sergeant Tonya Tator said. Coover was shot multiple times and killed while inside a home in Arnold, Pennsylvania, on January 16. He was pronounced dead at the scene The victim, Coover, is seen in the above undated file photo 'No blankets, beach chairs, sitting or lounging is allowed. '[Gatti] was found up closer toward our dunes lounging.' Gatti is the suspect in the shooting death of 33-year-old Michael Coover Jr or Brackenridge, Pennsylvania. On January 16, Coover was shot multiple times inside a home and pronounced dead at the scene in nearby Arnold, Pennsylvania, WTAE-TV reported. Authorities in Pennsylvania seek to charge Gatti with homicide, burglary, reckless endangerment, terroristic threats, and a firearms violation. Florida authorities charged Gatti with being a fugitive from justice. He was booked into Duval County Jail, according to Tator. Gatti was also charged with giving false information to law enforcement in a felony or missing person investigation as well as drug possession. Italians give plexiglass beach boxes the thumbs down. This summer Italy's beaches are expected to look a lot different, thanks to the social distancing required due to the coronavirus pandemic, but what exactly this new beach experience will entail is - for now - anybody's guess. However, once restrictions are lifted and Italy enters "Phase Two" of the coronavirus emergency, one thing is certain: Italy's beach establishments will have to reduce their numbers significantly. A recent proposal involving plexiglass boxes on the beach was rubbished by lifeguards in Rimini and went down like a lead balloon among Italian beachgoers. Read also: Now new "testing" is underway at beaches in the southern Puglia region where the goal is to "save summer" from an economic point of view as well as coming up with a solution that ensures the safety of holidaymakers. The Lido Bacino Grande in Porto Cesareo is proposing 10-sqm areas of sand, with a beach umbrella in the middle and demarcated with "security ropes" which allow a distance of at least one metre between each sun lounger. The extra space required by each unit would see a 40 per cent reduction in the number of umbrellas on beaches, the president of Cna Balneari Puglia, Giuseppe Mancarella, told Italian news agency ANSA. The idea of "anti-virus stewards" to patrol beaches ensuring that people are respecting social distancing has also been suggested by Paolo Prudente, the head of the town council in Vieste, a coastal resort in Puglia. With the summer holiday season fast approaching, owners of Italian beach establishments say they require clear indications from the government and regional authorities as soon as possible regarding regulations affecting their sector. Photo TGcom24 The move is part of a broader pan-African effort for debt relief due to the negative impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, President Akufo-Addo has said. In his seventh update to the nation on COVID-19, the President said last Friday, African Finance Ministers, led by Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, and his South African counterpart, achieved a nine-month debt standstill from the World Bank for all qualifying members of the International Development Association (IDA), starting from May 1, 2020. The total amount for the beneficiaries on the continent is $44 billion. "In the case of Ghana, this amounts to a freeze in principal and interest payments for the year, amounting to $500 million," he explained. "This will create greater fiscal space to help make the Ghanaian economy much more resilient." President Akufo-Addo lauded Ken Ofori-Atta, who is leading the continent's debt relief efforts for his hard work and outstanding leadership. He urged him to leave no stone unturned to achieve an even greater and comprehensive debt relief programme for Africa. The Government welcomed the three billion Ghana cedis credit and stimulus package from the commercial banks, under the auspices of the Ghana Association of Bankers, with support from the Bank of Ghana, to revitalise Ghanaian industries. The stimulus package is to offer financial relief to especially the pharmaceutical companies. Additionally, the President said, the one billion United States-dollar- Rapid Credit Facility, secured from the International Monetary Fund, without any pre-condition, and approved by Parliament, would be used to help close the financial gap created by the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the Government has allocated a GHc1.2 billion, under the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme, to support households and businesses. Out of that amount, GHc280 million would be used to provide food for the vulnerable and free water for all Ghanaians in April, May and June. A total of GHc323 million is being used to motivate frontline health workers leading the fight against COVID-19, while a GHc600 million assistance package is for micro, small and medium-scale businesses. Additionally, the Government is absorbing the full electricity bills of one million active lifeline customers and granting 50 per cent subsidy to the other categories of power consumers at a total cost of one billion Ghana cedis. The President lifted the ban on the three-week partial lockdown of COVID-19 hotspots areas, including Accra, Tema, Kasoa,Greater Kumasi and its contagious districts. He, however, maintained the other restrictions, including the ban on public gatherings, public funerals, indefinite closure of schools, closure of the border and urged the strict observance of social distancing. Ghana's case count for COVID-19 now stands at 1,042, with nine deaths and 99 persons fully recovered, after 68,591 sample test results were declared. ---GNA A distressing photo has sparked a warning for Australians in coronavirus lockdown to use their spare time to snake-proof their home and safeguard their pets. A family from Queensland's Sunshine Coast woke to find their pet guinea pig in its enclosure being devoured by a massive carpet python last Friday. The pet was unable to be saved by Stuart McKenzie from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers when he was called to the home by the distraught owners. He posted the shocking photo online as a warning to other pet owners. The owners came across their beloved pet guinea being eaten by a carpet snake (pictured) 'Being in isolation is the perfect opportunity to make sure your pets enclosures are snake proof,' Mr McKenzie wrote on Facebook. 'This includes puppy pens, cat runs, chicken coops, bird cages and guinea pig enclosures. Unfortunately this pet guinea pig was taken by a carpet python. Pythons will take advantage of poorly made pet enclosures especially chicken coops and bird cages. Its not the python's fault, they are just looking for a feed!' Mr McKenzie said the guinea pig was usually locked in its cage every afternoon but the owners made the fateful decision to leave it in the outdoor area of the enclosure 'playing a little later than usual'. Stuart McKenzie (pictured) from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 has since urged pet owners to snake-proof their animal enclosures 'Sometimes you can bring them (pets) back, but in this case they were unlucky,' Mr McKenzie told Yahoo News Australia. He urged pet owners to double check cages and animal enclosures for gaps and holes. A gap of more than 1-2 cm is enough for a python to squeeze through. Carpet pythons are non-venomous large snakes that grow up to four metres long and can be found throughout northern, eastern and southern Australia. The Sunshine Coast region is home to 20 snake species. It's the second carpet python Mr Mckenzie has retrieved within days after he was called to a local office last week. He found the snake (pictured) lurking in a pigeonhole Mr McKenzie is still be inundated with house calls. His latest jobs include a common tree snake hiding in a family's letterbox and a red -bellied black snake which had snuck into a car's brake system. Mr McKenzie was also called to an office in an industrial estate last week to pull a 1.5m-long carpet python out of a pigeonhole. Roman and Caitlin Albright with their 15-month-old son, Roman, at their home in Chester Springs. Read more At nine months pregnant, Caitlin Albright prepared a bag to take to the hospital, and filled it with essentials: toiletries, nursing pajamas, a floral onesie for her future baby. And, last but potentially most important, a three-page living will. This legal document, also known as an advance directive, makes sure Albrights wishes about possible heroic medical intervention are plainly stated. If the coronavirus left her sick beyond hope of recovery, she said, she wouldnt want to be kept alive on a ventilator or fed through tubes. Albright is terrified about giving birth in a hospital where people are sick with the coronavirus. She sees news stories daily about how otherwise healthy people died due to the virus and died alone. Their partners, parents, and siblings blocked from their bedsides. Those stories are driving hard conversations about end-of-life decisions that healthy people generally rarely consider. It is something I think about and I have anxiety about every day, said Albright, 34, of Chester Springs, who also has a 15-month-old son. Healthy people previously had faced no urgent need for a living will, said Scott D. Halpern, the director of the Palliative and Advanced Illness Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania. My tune on them has changed, Halpern said. With the limitation of patient and family presence that the crisis requires, having a written document might be much more useful now than ever. READ MORE: How to prepare a living will, choose a power of attorney, and talk about your medical wishes with your family in case you get sick As the coronavirus pandemic escalated in the region, Philadelphia-area trusts and estates lawyers said, business picked up. These lawyers help with estate planning, meaning setting up a will, which outlines a persons wishes upon death, and living wills, which specify end-of-life medical care. Clients who began the process months ago and dallied with their paperwork suddenly wanted it finished as soon as possible. New clients wondered how quickly they could get documents signed. Knowing that visitors are not allowed in hospitals during the pandemic has put an extra emphasis around living wills, said trusts and estates lawyer Douglas L. Kaune, of Unruh Turner Burke & Frees in Phoenixville. The spread of the coronavirus has made people think: What if it happens to me? And soon? Its more of a recognition of mortality thats different, Kaune said. When drafting a living will, people are asked to consider whether they want invasive treatments such as CPR, ventilator use, dialysis, chemotherapy, or water or food through a feeding tube, said Jocelin A. Price, a lawyer in Semanoff Ormsby Greenberg & Torchias trusts and estates department. If there is severe and irreversible brain damage, with no hope of a full recovery, would they want to be kept alive? Although Halpern agrees that people should be discussing end-of-life preferences, he advocates considering questions about quality of life, rather than specific medical interventions. Penn Medicine has an online resource to guide patients through this process and upload their wishes to medical files. The questions posed from Penn outline such scenarios as: I am confused all the time. I rely on a feeding tube to live. I cannot control my bladder or bowels. Then the patient answers them by checking off if the health state is worse, better, or neither worse nor better than dying comfortably. We should think about advance directives as clinical documents, not legal documents, Halpern said. Like anything people wish to write on a napkin and hand to their physician to express what they want done for them, that should inform what the clinician does. It is just like how any in-person conversation would be an opportunity for people to share what is important to them. Caroline McIntyre, 56, had already thought deeply about these directives. She has stage IV breast cancer with a life expectancy of two to 10 years. She was choosing to believe that she had a decade left, planning trips this year to Glacier National Park and the Canadian Rockies. She already had an advance directive, outlining that she does not want artificial nutrition such as a feeding tube. She doesnt want a breathing tube down her throat. She doesnt want someone pounding on her chest. In mid-March, with local coronavirus cases starting to climb, McIntyre thought back to these documents and decided to bring them along to a recent doctors appointment. If she were to get sick with coronavirus, she wants her wishes in her medical file. And she doesnt want her husband or kids, ages 23 and 26, worrying about how to make an end-of-life decision on her behalf. She is on medical leave from her job as a nurse at Fox Chase Cancer Center and her daughter decided to live with friends so she wouldnt risk getting her mother sick. McIntyres cancer treatments make her especially vulnerable to the coronavirus. The clock is ticking for me now, McIntyre said. It kind of brought it home that yeah, I can really die this year if I would catch this thing." Elizabeth Rager, of Wallingford, has long had creating a living will on her to-do list. Shes been thinking about it since a friend died in August. But the 50-year-old mother of two boys, ages 13 and 16, did not think she was at risk of becoming ill any time soon. Watching the news about coronavirus changed her attitude. It only took 45 minutes to talk through her end-of-life preferences with her lawyer and receive a draft of the documents. She decided to leave medical interventions up to the recommendations of the doctors. She didnt want her family to have to make any hard decisions on her behalf if she could not speak for herself. Its just incredibly sad that people are alone during the last moment of their lives," Rager said. "That is the only thing we have at the end of our lives: your family around you. You at least have the ability to look at the people who loved you and know you have been good in the world. Even as 700 odd units in the states financial capital, Ludhiana, continue to function amid a month-long curfew in Punjab, no other industrial unit in the city and other parts of the state could start operations on Monday. Revising its order on not allowing any relaxation in curfew in the state till May 3, except for wheat procurement, chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday asked the deputy commissioners to oversee opening of industrial units in non-containment areas in compliance with the governments April 18 instructions . Though some of Ludhianas over 95,000 units were expected to resume functioning, the district administration, in a late evening decision, rescinded an earlier order permitting relaxations. The U-turn by the administration followed chief minister Captain Amarinder Singhs orders to continue with the restrictions. About 99% of Ludhianas industry, known for manufacturing bicycles, bicycle parts, sewing machines and hosiery, will remain closed until at least May 3. TEXTILE INDUSTRY MAKING PPE KITS The silver lining in a grim situation, however, has been some enterprising innovations. A section of Ludhianas famed textile industry has diversified to making personal protective equipment (PPE) in bulk. Currently, 15 textile firms located in the city have been accorded approval by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to make personal protective equipment (PPEs). Permission had been accorded for manufacture of essential commodities, including bread, biscuits, packaging, pharmaceuticals and PPEs on a daily basis. There are currently 600 units for manufacturing essential commodities and around 100 units for some non-essential commodities that had been given permission earlier to function. Ludhiana is home to about 95,000 micro, small and medium industrial units (SMEs) and about 250 large-scale units. BICYCLE UNITS UNABLE TO RESUME WORK Ludhianas bicycle industry, which forms 80% of Indias bicycle manufacturing and home to giants such as Hero and Avon among others, remained closed as industrialists expressed their inability to start work because of the strict guidelines imposed by the administration. They also said sustaining would be difficult in the absence of demand in these times. Where are the shops (retailers) to sell bicycles? What will we do even if we start manufacturing cycles? asked SS Bhogal, managing partner of Bhogal Sales Corporation, a major bicycle manufacturer in the city. Bhogal also said strict safety guidelines imposed by the administration were not feasible. SK Rai, managing director of Hero Cycles, said there is no question of them re-opening their unit before May 3. There are strict restrictions on transport. Re-opening in these times is just not feasible, he said. The president of United Cycle and Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA), DS Chawla felt it was not possible to function with conditions such as quarantining of the labour imposed by the administration. Likewise, the president of the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU), Upkar Ahuja, said nothing could be gained by opening a certain sector or industry amid a lockdown until the complete chain was permitted to operate. The industry would need raw material and a functional market to sell products. However, Ludhiana DC Pradeep Kumar Agrawal said the decision to recall the order permitting relaxations was taken to keep the situation under control. The district has so far witnessed five Covid -19 deaths, including that of an assistant commissioner of police and a revenue department official. There are currently 14 Covid-19 cases in the district. No unit gets permission in Jalandhar, Amritsar Meanwhile, no industrial unit was given permission to resume operations in Amritsar and Jalandhar on Monday. Jalandhar industries department general manger Bhola Singh Brar said, We have received nearly 100 applications from different industrial units seeking and still looking into them. Deputy commissioner Varinder Sharma said permissions will be granted as per the state government guidelines. There are around 12,000 industrial units in the district that manufacture auto and spare parts, sports, rubber, food and others. In Amritsar, officials said they have got a few applications but they are scrutinising them to send them to higher authorities. 450 PLEAS REJECTED IN BATHINDA Meanwhile, the Bathinda administration has rejected 450 pleas from industrialists and traders seeking to resume their operation received so far. The district has about 150 room cooler manufacturing units. Deputy commissioner B Srinivasan said the top priority for the administration is to ensure that the district continues to remain free from Covid-19. In Gurdaspur, district magistrate (DM) Mohammad Ishfaq said banks will remain open from 10 am to 4pm for public and industries will be allowed to open as per the guidelines. (With inputs from Jalandhar, Amritsar, and Gurdaspur) Governors in US states hardest hit by the novel coronavirus sparred with President Donald Trump over his claims they have enough tests and should quickly reopen their economies as more protests are planned over the extension of stay-at-home orders. Reuters: Governors in US states hardest hit by the novel coronavirus sparred with President Donald Trump over his claims they have enough tests and should quickly reopen their economies as more protests are planned over the extension of stay-at-home orders. New York continued to see hospitalisations decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. There were 507 new deaths, down from a high of more than 700 a day. If the data holds and if this trend holds, we are past the high point and all indications at this point are that we are on a descent. Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do, Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a daily briefing. Cuomo, along with other governors, are clamoring for more testing. The administration I think is trying to ramp up testing, they are doing some things with respect to private labs, said Republican Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland during a CNN interview. But to try to push this off, to say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we arent doing our jobs, is just absolutely false. Democratic Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia told CNN that claims by Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that states have plenty of tests were just delusional. The region of Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. is still seeing increasing cases even as the epicenter of the US outbreak, New York, has started to see declines. Boston and Chicago are also emerging hot spots with recent surges in cases and deaths. Several states, including Ohio, Texas and Florida, have said they aim to reopen parts of their economies, perhaps by 1 May or even sooner, but appeared to be staying cautious. Trumps guidelines to reopen the economy recommend a state record 14 days of declining case numbers before gradually lifting restrictions. Yet the Republican president appeared to encourage protesters who want the measures removed sooner with a series of Twitter posts on Friday calling for them to LIBERATE Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, all run by Democratic governors. Governor Jay Inslee of Washington redoubled his attacks on Trumps call to liberate states, saying the president was encouraging people to violate state laws on self-isolating. These orders actually are the law of these states, he said. To have an American president encourage people to violate the law, I cant remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing. The United States has by far the worlds largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 730,000 infections and over 39,600 deaths. The governors of Michigan and Ohio on Sunday said they could double or triple their testing capacity if the federal government helped them acquire more swaps and reagents, chemicals needed as part of the testing process. Demonstrations to demand an end to stay-at-home measures that have pummelled the US economy have erupted in a few spots in Texas, Wisconsin and the capitols of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. More than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Trump had touted a thriving economy as the best case for his re-election in November. On Saturday, several dozen protesters gathered in the Texas capital of Austin chanting USA! USA! and Let us work! In Brookfield, Wisconsin, hundreds of demonstrators cheered as they lined a main road and waved American flags to protest at the extension of that states safer at home order. The demonstrators mostly flouted the social-distancing rules and did not wear the face masks recommended by public health officials. US lawmakers are very close to an agreement on approving extra money to help small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic and could seal a deal as early as Sunday, congressional and Trump administration officials said. An agreement would end a stalemate that has lasted more than a week over Trumps request to add $250 billion to a small-business loan program. Congress established the program last month as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus economic relief plan, but it has already run out of money. IRVING ExxonMobil is conducting field trials of eight emerging methane detection technologies, including satellite and aerial surveillance monitoring, at nearly 1,000 sites in Texas and New Mexico to further reduce methane emissions. The field tests are evaluating effectiveness and scalability of a range of next-generation detection technologies that in addition to satellites use drones, planes, helicopters, ground-based mobile and fixed-position sensors. All technologies and deployment methods will be used to detect leaks and identify potential solutions that can be shared with other oil and gas operators. By testing the most promising methane detection technologies in a field environment, we are providing viable solutions that can be adopted by other producers to detect and reduce methane emissions, said Staale Gjervik, senior vice president of unconventional at ExxonMobil. We are applying scientific rigor and taking aggressive steps to find commercially scalable and affordable solutions for all operators. The technologies are being validated by a combination of field observations, optical gas imaging cameras and portable methane detection instruments. ExxonMobil is also comparing measurements to downwind emissions observations using technology by Aerodyne Research that enables holistic measurement of site emissions. We are already seeing the benefits of some of these technologies, said Gjervik. Through the trials, we have discovered methane sources that would otherwise not have been detected as efficiently or quickly under the current methods prescribed by regulations. The company is committed to immediately investigating and fixing methane emissions that are detected during the trial. The field trials build upon ExxonMobils previously announced emission reduction initiatives. As of year-end 2019, the company has reduced emissions by nearly 20 percent in its U.S. unconventional operations compared to 2016 levels, and the company remains on track to meet its corporate-wide commitments to reduce methane emissions by 15 percent and reduce flaring by 25 percent by yearend 2020. ExxonMobils successful voluntary methane management program includes structured leak detection and repair protocols, prioritized replacement of high-bleed pneumatic devices, technology enhancements to infrastructure and substantial data gathering and research. In March, ExxonMobil introduced a model framework for industry-wide methane regulations and urged stakeholders, policymakers and governments to develop comprehensive, enhanced rules to reduce emissions in all phases of production. The company supports the Methane Guiding Principles, which were signed in 2017 and are being implemented in collaboration with multinational stakeholders. Since 2000, ExxonMobil has invested nearly $10 billion in projects to research, develop and deploy lower-emission energy solutions. The company also continues to expand collaborative efforts with more than 80 universities around the world to explore next-generation energy technologies. Following are technologies and technology providers involved in the testing. Aerial Surveillance Bridger Photonics -- Aerial light detection and ranging sensor (LiDAR) to pinpoint and measure leaks. Scientific Aviation Airplanes equipped with sensors, coupled with weather and atmospheric information to measure methane emissions. Kairos Aerospace Airplane-mounted methane detection spectrometer with simultaneous optical imagery and geolocation to quickly locate large leaks. Leak Surveys Inc. Helicopter-mounted, gas imaging surveys. SeekOps Drone-mounted gas sensors to detect and quantify methane emission rates. Satellite Surveillance GHGSat Satellite measures methane concentrations, to detect leaks and estimate emission rates. Truck Mounted Monitor mAIRsure Truck-mounted autonomous sensors measure methane emissions. Fixed-Position Monitor Troposphere -- Stationary methane and wind sensors continuously monitor for emissions. V906 Carinae (circled) shines near peak brightness in this image taken on March 23, 2018, three days after the nova was discovered. The beautiful cloud of gas and dust dominating the picture is part of the Carina Nebula. Credits: Copyright 2018 by A. Maury and J. Fabrega, used by NASA with permission Unprecedented observations of a nova outburst in 2018 by a trio of satellites, including two NASA missions, have captured the first direct evidence that most of the explosion's visible light arose from shock waves -- abrupt changes of pressure and temperature formed in the explosion debris. A nova is a sudden, short-lived brightening of an otherwise inconspicuous star. It occurs when a stream of hydrogen from a companion star flows onto the surface of a white dwarf, a compact stellar cinder not much larger than Earth. NASA's Fermi and NuSTAR space telescopes, together with the Canadian BRITE-Toronto satellite and several ground-based facilities, studied the nova. "Thanks to an especially bright nova and a lucky break, we were able to gather the best-ever visible and gamma-ray observations of a nova to date," said Elias Aydi, an astronomer at Michigan State University in East Lansing who led an international team from 40 institutions. "The exceptional quality of our data allowed us to distinguish simultaneous flares in both optical and gamma-ray light, which provides smoking-gun evidence that shock waves play a major role in powering some stellar explosions." The 2018 outburst originated from a star system later dubbed V906 Carinae, which lies about 13,000 light-years away in the constellation Carina. Over time -- perhaps tens of thousands of years for a so-called classical nova like V906 Carinae -- the white dwarf's deepening hydrogen layer reaches critical temperatures and pressures. It then erupts in a runaway reaction that blows off all of the accumulated material. Each nova explosion releases a total of 10,000 to 100,000 times the annual energy output of our Sun. Astronomers discover about 10 novae each year in our galaxy. Fermi detected its first nova in 2010 and has observed 14 to date. Although X-ray and radio studies had shown the presence of shock waves in nova debris in the weeks after the explosions reached peak brightness, the Fermi discovery came as a surprise. Gamma rays -- the highest-energy form of light -- require processes that accelerate subatomic particles to extreme energies. When these particles interact with each other and with other matter, they produce gamma rays. But astronomers hadn't expected novae to be powerful enough to produce the required degree of acceleration. NASA's Fermi and NuSTAR space telescopes, together with another satellite named BRITE-Toronto, are providing new insights into a nova explosion that erupted in 2018. Detailed measurements of bright flares in the explosion clearly show that shock waves power most of the nova's visible light. Credits: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Because the gamma rays appear at about the same time as the peak in visible light, astronomers concluded that shock waves play a more fundamental role in the explosion and its aftermath. In 2015, a paper led by Brian Metzger at Columbia University in New York showed how comparing Fermi gamma-ray data with optical observations would allow scientists to learn more about nova shock waves. In 2017, a study led by Kwon-Lok Li at Michigan State found that the overall gamma-ray and visible emissions rose and fell in step in a nova known as V5856 Sagittarii. This implied shock waves produced more of the eruption's light than the white dwarf itself. The new observations from V906 Carinae, presented in a paper led by Aydi and published on Monday, April 13, in Nature Astronomy, spectacularly confirm this conclusion. On March 20, 2018, the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae, a set of two dozen robotic telescopes distributed around the globe and operated by Ohio State University, discovered the nova. By month's end, V906 Carinae was dimly visible to the naked eye. Fortuitously, a satellite called BRITE-Toronto was already studying the nova's patch of sky. This miniature spacecraft is one of five 7.9-inch (20 centimeter) cubic nanosatellites comprising the Bright Target Explorer (BRITE) Constellation. Operated by a consortium of universities from Canada, Austria and Poland, the BRITE satellites study the structure and evolution of bright stars and observe how they interact with their environments. BRITE-Toronto was monitoring a red giant star called HD 92063, whose image overlapped the nova's location. The satellite observed the star for 16 minutes out of every 98-minute orbit, returning about 600 measurements each day and capturing the nova's changing brightness in unparalleled detail. "BRITE-Toronto revealed eight brief flares that fired up around the time the nova reached its peak, each one nearly doubling the nova's brightness," said Kirill Sokolovsky at Michigan State. "We've seen hints of this behavior in ground-based measurements, but never so clearly. Usually we monitor novae from the ground with many fewer observations and often with large gaps, which has the effect of hiding short-term changes." Fermi, on the other hand, almost missed the show. Normally its Large Area Telescope maps gamma rays across the entire sky every three hours. But when the nova appeared, the Fermi team was busy troubleshooting the spacecraft's first hardware problem in nearly 10 years of orbital operations -- a drive on one of its solar panels stopped moving in one direction. Fermi returned to work just in time to catch the nova's last three flares. In fact, V906 Carinae was at least twice as bright at billion-electron-volt, or GeV, energies as any other nova Fermi has observed. For comparison, the energy of visible light ranges from about 2 to 3 electron volts. "When we compare the Fermi and BRITE data, we see flares in both at about the same time, so they must share the same source -- shock waves in the fast-moving debris," said Koji Mukai, an astrophysicist at the University of Maryland Baltimore County and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "When we look more closely, there is an indication that the flares in gamma rays may lead the flares in the visible. The natural interpretation is that the gamma-ray flares drove the optical changes." The team also observed the eruption's final flare using NASA's NuSTAR space telescope, which is only the second time the spacecraft has detected X-rays during a nova's optical and gamma-ray emission. The nova's GeV gamma-ray output far exceeded the NuSTAR X-ray emission, likely because the nova ejecta absorbed most of the X-rays. High-energy light from the shock waves was repeatedly absorbed and reradiated at lower energies within the nova debris, ultimately only escaping at visible wavelengths. Putting all of the observations together, Aydi and his colleagues describe what they think happened when V906 Carinae erupted. During the outburst's first few days, the orbital motion of the stars swept a thick debris cloud made of multiple shells of gas into a doughnut shape that appeared roughly edge-on from our perspective. The cloud expanded outward at less than about 1.3 million mph (2.2 million kph), comparable to the average speed of the solar wind flowing out from the Sun. Next, an outflow moving about twice as fast slammed into denser structures within the doughnut, creating shock waves that emitted gamma rays and visible light, including the first four optical flares. Finally, about 20 days after the explosion, an even faster outflow crashed into all of the slower debris at around 5.6 million mph (9 million kph). This collision created new shock waves and another round of gamma-ray and optical flares. The nova outflows likely arose from residual nuclear fusion reactions on the white dwarf's surface. Astronomers have proposed shock waves as a way to explain the power radiated by various kinds of short-lived events, such as stellar mergers, supernovae -- the much bigger blasts associated with the destruction of stars -- and tidal disruption events, where black holes shred passing stars. The BRITE, Fermi and NuSTAR observations of V906 Carinae provide a dramatic record of such a process. Further studies of nearby novae will serve as laboratories for better understanding the roles shock waves play in other more powerful and more distant events. The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is an astrophysics and particle physics partnership managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. Fermi was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, with important contributions from academic institutions and partners in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Sweden and the United States. NuSTAR is a Small Explorer mission led by Caltech and managed by JPL for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. NuSTAR was developed in partnership with the Danish Technical University and the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The spacecraft was built by Orbital Sciences Corp. in Dulles, Virginia. NuSTAR's mission operations center is at the University of California Berkeley, and the official data archive is at NASA's High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center. ASI provides the mission's ground station and a mirror archive. Caltech manages JPL for NASA. Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook. JERUSALEM - Israel's rival political leaders broke the country's unprecedented political impasse Monday when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and challenger Benny Gantz announced a deal to join forces and form an emergency unity government. Under the terms of the agreement, Netanyahu would remain prime minister for the next 18 months with Gantz then succeeding him. The agreement, following weeks of tense negotiations and brinkmanship, comes as Israel confronts a burgeoning coronavirus outbreak. Gantz, who had spent a year battling to unseat the prime minister, cited the outbreak for his willingness to serve with Netanyahu, whom he had repeatedly called "unfit to lead." The deal represents a triumph for Netanyahu, who has pushed relentlessly to extend his record run at the top of Israeli politics. Critics have bemoaned and observers marveled that Israel's longest-serving prime minister has once again outrun the political obituaries written for him after his party and its allies failed to regain their majority in three straight national elections and he was indicted on corruption charges along the way. "King Bibi," as his unshakable base of supporters calls him, still faces trial on counts of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. His trial, initially scheduled for March, was put on hold when the coronavirus outbreak shut down most of Israel's courts. Netanyahu, who unsuccessfully sought parliamentary immunity this year, is widely expected to use his office to further delay prosecution or to seek some form of official protection. In any case, he will pursue these efforts with his once-sharpest public critic inside his government. Gantz's acquiescence, which crushed supporters and shattered the ad hoc political party he led through three national elections, was a turnabout for the taciturn former army of chief of staff, who had vowed repeatedly never to sit in government with Netanyahu. The terms of the agreement could change during the time it takes to enact the government. But details released in a joint statement describe a delicate power-sharing arrangement. Netanyahu will remain as prime minister for 18 months with Gantz serving as his deputy prime minister. The two would switch jobs in October 2021. The deal includes safeguards to prevent backsliding. If either party tried to dissolve the government early, the other would automatically become prime minister, the statement said. The terms are to be made legally binding by the Knesset, Israel's parliament. Netanyahu's faction will control the finance, health, public security, housing and construction, transport and education ministries. Gantz's side will have defense, foreign, justice, media, cultural and economic portfolios. Gantz reportedly will be the defense minister. The sides have agreed to delay a range of sticky policy disputes, such as control of the judicial appointments process and the recruitment of ultra-Orthodox Israelis into the military, by focusing on coronavirus issues for six months. Negotiating teams will try to hash out policy compromises at the end of that emergency period. "They are kicking the political footballs down the road until they see if this government can function," said Jason Pearlman, former adviser to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. Netanyahu has prevailed on the issue of Israeli annexation of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, as endorsed by the Trump peace plan. The two Israeli leaders agreed this would come before the Knesset for action in July. Gantz had resisted fast action on the plan. The two men reached their deal less than a week after the official clock ran out on Gantz's individual chance to form a government, and they signed the agreement hours before the country began a national day of Holocaust remembrance. "I promised the State of Israel a national emergency government that would work to save the lives and livelihoods of Israeli citizens," Netanyahu said in a tweet. The alliance between the former rivals cost both some of their longtime supporters. Current Defense Minister Neftali Bennett, part of Netanyahu's right-wing coalition, said he would not join the government unless he retained the post. Gantz's decision to join forces with the prime minister split apart the Blue and White party Gantz co-founded slightly more than a year ago. But the agreement marks a much-awaited end to months of political stalemate and averts a dreaded fourth election. Israel has been mired in a stalemate since the end of 2018, unable to enact or fund programs and exhausting voters with unceasing political rancor. It took a global pandemic, seemingly, to finally break the carousel dynamic of close elections followed by futile negotiations. Fittingly, the apparent end of the political limbo was torturous even after the two foes agreed, in principle, to team up. After the inconclusive March 2 election, the sides were grappling over control of the Knesset. Gantz, with support from left-wing, nationalist and Arab parties, had the votes to topple the speaker, a Netanyahu ally, and advance legislation that could block the prime minister's ability to stay in office while on trial. Speaker Yuli Edelstein refused to allow a vote for his replacement, abruptly resigning after Israel's Supreme Court ordered him to call the vote. But on March 26, Gantz shocked supporters by nominating himself as speaker and announcing that he was ready to negotiate a deal to serve with Netanyahu in the name of battling the coronavirus. Gantz's supporters were devastated. He had bowed to an opponent whose campaign allies had accused Gantz of being a terrorist sympathizer and suggested he had created sex tapes hacked by Iranian agents. Some said he had been hoodwinked, accusations that have intensified after negotiations that frequently seemed to leave Gantz baffled and frustrated. Others accused him of betraying their common cause of finally breaking Netanyahu's grip on power. Yair Lapid, one of Gantz's Blue and White co-founders, said his former partner was "crawling" into the government. "The coronavirus crisis doesn't permit us to give up our values," Lapid said. "This is rewarding criminality." Members of the Joint List, a coalition of Arab parties that had broken years of precedent by agreeing to support Gantz's bid for prime minister, condemned him as well. "He has now demonstrated that he is a clone of Netanyahu," said Yousef Jabareen, a Joint List Knesset member. Some critics said Gantz, who had never run for office before, was exhausted and outmaneuvered by Netanyahu, a wily political operative. Opponents say Netanyahu has clung to power in part to shield himself against his legal trouble. "Bibi will find loopholes in the deal and try to stay," said Haaretz columnist Anshel Pfeffer, author of a Netanyahu biography. Netanyahu has been the ubiquitous face of the massive government mobilization against the pandemic, and his approval level climbed as he appeared nearly nightly on television as a master of the smallest details. He insisted repeatedly that a unity government is crucial to fighting the outbreak, a message repeated by Rivlin. It was an appeal that had resonance amid a jittery public that sees Netanyahu as a capable manager. As the number of confirmed cases in Israel rises above 13,600, with 173 deaths, many credited Gantz, stuck in a no-win situation, with choosing stability over a still-elusive victory. "He is not a traitor," commentator Nahum Barnea said in the daily Yedioth Ahronoth after Gantz made clear that he would join his rival. "He is also no hero." Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 07:33:26|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief economist Gita Gopinath speaks at a virtual press briefing in Washington D.C., the United States, April 14, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said that this is not a time to restrict the trade of medical supplies and essential equipment around the world. WASHINGTON, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) have called on countries to keep trade open as the world battles the COVID-19 pandemic, warning that export controls on medical supplies and other essentials could backfire. At a virtual press conference during the just-concluded spring meetings of the two multilateral institutions, IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said that this is not a time to restrict the trade of medical supplies and essential equipment around the world. "It is very important that this does not become a future where we reverse all the gains that we've got from globalization," said Gopinath, in response to a question from Xinhua. Echoing her remarks, Kenneth Kang, deputy director of the Asia and Pacific Department at the IMF, told Xinhua in a recent written interview that countries should avoid trade restrictions on medical and health products to ensure that they go to where they are most needed. "Countries with limited health care capacity and resources will need international aid to prepare for and weather the pandemic," Kang said. "The health emergency is a powerful reminder of the need for policy coordination and solidarity in an interconnected world," he said. The IMF official said that countries should cooperate to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede cross-border trade and investment and to strengthen global supply chains as the recovery takes hold. Zhang Tao, deputy managing director of the IMF, told Xinhua that he hoped these supply chains would work as best as they can to maximize global production and supply, which makes global collaboration "essential." "Today more than ever, the global economy would benefit from a more open, stable, and transparent, rules-based international trade system," Zhang said. World Bank Group President David Malpass speaks at a virtual press conference, in Washington D.C., the United States, on April 17, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) World Bank President David Malpass, meanwhile, said at a virtual press conference Friday that big countries need to step forward and pledge not to use the crisis as a reason to close or block the markets. "We should allow markets to function, markets to clear and the supplies to go to those most in need," said Malpass, adding that China is exporting medical supplies to the rest of the world, which is "very welcome." The IMF and World Bank's advocacy for free trade came as protectionist sentiments are growing across the globe amid the pandemic. Some 46 export curbs on medical supplies have been introduced by 54 governments since the beginning of the year, according to a report published on March 23, by Global Trade Alert, a trade policy monitoring initiative. Thirty-three of those export curbs have been announced since the beginning of March, "an indication of just how quickly new trade limits are spreading across the globe," the report showed. Photo taken on April 17, 2020 shows the World Bank headquarters in Washington D.C., the United States. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua) Aaditya Mattoo, chief economist for East Asia and the Pacific Region at the World Bank, said it is a bit understandable for countries to impose export restrictions, but these actions are "almost always counterproductive." "If each country imposes restrictions, then the global price increases even more than it would have. And it can end up being a self-defeating policy," Mattoo said at a recent press call, in response to a question from Xinhua. The World Bank economist also noted that such measures would hit those countries who rely on these badly needed medical supplies, especially poor countries, which import a lot of drugs, ventilators and masks. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Headquarters is seen in Washington D.C., the United States, April 13, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie) Despite that, Jeffrey Sachs, a renowned economics professor at Columbia University, told Xinhua that he thinks there will be more protectionism in Western countries, both in the United States and the Europe. China will have to work hard to secure long-term supply chains and two-way trade, including with Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Africa and South America, said Sachs, also a senior United Nations advisor. "I believe that China, Japan, (South) Korea, and ASEAN should work hard for a swift recovery and open trade amongst themselves," said Sachs. "East Asia could be back in business because East Asia never lost control of the epidemic." As the global economy is on track to shrink "sharply" by 3 percent this year due to the pandemic, the IMF chief economist highlighted the importance of keeping trade open in global recovery. "The world needs a healthy recovery. It needs a strong recovery. And that will not come about if the world de-globalizes because that would severely reduce productivity in the world," Gopinath said. "And that's the last thing we want at this time." Both have shown themselves comfortable overturning precedent, and Kavanaugh wrote that Ramoss case was a good example of when past decisions should be reconsidered: Why stick by an erroneous precedent that is egregiously wrong as a matter of constitutional law, that allows convictions of some who would not be convicted under the proper constitutional rule, and that tolerates and reinforces a practice that is thoroughly racist in its origins and has continuing racially discriminatory effects? Textron Inc. TXT recently clinched a modification contract for building landing craft air cushion (LCAC) 100 Class Craft. The deal has been awarded by the Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C. Valued at $386.3 million, the contract is scheduled to be completed by January 2025. The majority of work related to this deal will be executed in New Orleans, LA. Significance of LCAC Textrons next generation LCAC vehicles offer enhanced performance, reliability and maintainability and meet the Marine Corps requirements for increased payload and availability. It is designed to function in extreme conditions, from Arctic cold to Sahara heat, on missions ranging from transporting cargo to minesweeping. The LCAC is part of the Ship-to-Shore Connector (SSC) program that deals with the functional replacement of the existing fleet of LCAC vehicles, which are nearing the end of their service life. This programs mission is to land surface assault elements in support of operational maneuver from the sea at over-the-horizon distances while operating from amphibious ships and mobile landing platforms. Our View Textrons Marine and Land Systems unit develops the U.S. Navys next generation LCAC as part of the SSC program. Interestingly, this also is Marine and Land Systems primary U.S. government program and LCAC is the cornerstone of the current U.S. amphibious capability. So, no doubt, this program enjoys strong demand in the U.S. defense space, which, in turn, is likely to boost Textrons top line. It is imperative to mention here that Marine and Land Systems unit has witnessed top line deceleration recently, owing to lower deliveries for armored vehicles. Now, the latest contract win should enable this unit to rebound and register revenue growth in the coming quarters. In February 2020, the U.S. Presidents budget submission for fiscal 2021 included a proposed investment of $207.1 billion in Navy. This investment is aimed at strengthening the Navy with its battle force set to grow from 293 currently to 306 by the end of fiscal 2021. Such solid investment plan is expected to usher in more contracts, like the latest one, for Textron, with its LCAC being one of the prominent amphibian assault vehicles. Story continues Price Movement In a years time, shares of Textron have lost 48.5% compared with the industrys 24.1% decline. Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider Textron currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). A few better-ranked stocks in the same sector are AeroVironment, Inc. AVAV, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. HII and Leidos Holdings,Inc. LDOS. While AeroVironment and Huntington Ingalls sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Leidos holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. AeroVironment came up with average positive earnings surprise of 5.72% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2020 earnings indicates year-over-year improvement of 1.7%. Huntington Ingalls pulled off positive earnings surprise of 2.83% in the last reported quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 earnings indicates annual improvement of 44.3%. Leidos pulled off average positive earnings surprise of 11.19% for the trailing four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 earnings indicates annual improvement of 6.2%. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Textron Inc. (TXT) : Free Stock Analysis Report Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII) : Free Stock Analysis Report AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) : Free Stock Analysis Report Leidos Holdings, Inc. (LDOS) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has written a letter to West Bengal Chief Secretary regarding lockdown violation and incidents of violence against healthcare workers in some districts of the state, including Howrah, Kolkata, Mednipur, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and others. The MHA said in its letter that it has constituted two Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCT) which will visit these districts to make an on the spot assessment of the situation. The IMCT will also issue necesaary directions to the state government for effective redressal of the situation. The IMCT will also submit a report to the MHA after the conclusion of the assessment of the situation in the above mentioned districts of West Bengal. In a related development, a notification has been issued by the West Bengal Health Department ordering all frontline medical personnel in government hospitals to stay in their headquarters and not commute daily to their residences. Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had ordered a seven-day shift system of the medical professionals so as to enable them to rest and recuperate for a week after discharging their duties for seven days. Meanwhile, the MHA has also taken strong onbjection to the Kerala government's decision to open restaurants, bus travel for shorter distances, allow private vehicles on an odd-even during the lockdown and has accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government of diluting the Centre's guidelines. The MHA has written a letter to the Kerala government, saying the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. Such additional activities allowed by the government of Kerala, include opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheeler and pillion riding on scooters, added the letter. London, April 20 : Actress Keira Knightley has opened up about her party trick. Knightley, who is currently adhering to self-quarantine guidelines as the world combats COVID-19, revealed it while taking part in World Health Day's Hope From Home livestream, reports dailymail.co.uk. Introducing herself on the event's social media livestream, she told viewers: "Hello, I'm Keira Knightley and I am here for Hope from Home on World Health Day. "I made a little sign, and I was trying to think of something entertaining to do and I couldn't think of anything so I'm going to play my teeth, which is my one and only party trick." The British star proceeded to tap out the melody to "Yesterday", a 1965 hit for The Beatles. Finishing her party trick, she added: "Thank you all for watching. Thank you to all the frontline workers and medical teams who are working so hard right now. If you want to donate, that would be great." She had previously shown off the skill while appearing on a show in 2019. Using her fingers to tap the melody to "Raindrops keep falling on my head" and Luis Fonsi's "Despacito", she had said: "There was a boy at school when I was about seven or eight and he went on a talent show on TV, so he was like the coolest person ever, and he played his teeth. "So, everybody at my school was like, that's cool, so everybody from that school can probably play their teeth." - The director of a maximum-security laboratory in Wuhan has rubbished claims that virus originated from the lab - He said that it was impossible and any reports that it had come form the lab were mere speculations - China came under fire in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic with some nations accusing it of lacking transparency in the way it was reporting the outbreak Yuan Zhiming, director of a maximum-security laboratory in Wuhan, the Chinese City which was ground zero - where the outbreak of the coronavirus started, has denied allegations that the virus originated from the lab. China was being pressurised to reveal more information about the pandemic and how it handled the outbreak, with many questioning the accuracy of their statistics. READ ALSO: Moral police celebrates after YouTube pulls down Ethic's 'immoral' video READ ALSO: Covid-19: Doctors in love say "I do" in special wedding ceremony at hospital TUKO.co.ke has learnt that a number of nations and individuals across the world have been accusing Chinese of manufacturing the virus in the maximum-security lab. It should be noted the lab is equipped to deal with dangerous viruses, hence rumours that the lab could have been used create the virus which then escaped to the outside world. Theres no way this virus came from us. The(sic) whole institute is carrying out research in different areas related to the coronavirus. Yuan told the English state broadcaster CGTN. As early as February 2020, the institute denied that the virus had originated from their lab. However, the United States of America insisted it was going to be launch investigations into how the virus got out into the world. READ ALSO: Harmonize denies sleeping with curvy video vixen after wife unfollowed him on Instagram The scientist strongly denied claims COVID-19 came from a Chinese laboratory. Photo: UGC Source: UGC READ ALSO: Wataalamu wanasema kuna hatari kubwa katika kulala sana, jihadhari hasa kipindi hiki cha coronavirus Pressed on whether it was possible that the virus came from the lab, Yuan said: I know its impossible. As people who carry out viral studies we clearly know what kind of research is going on at the institute and how the institute manages viruses and samples." He said the anonymous sources quoted by the Washington Post and Fox News saying the virus accidentally escaped the facility were "entirely based on speculations." Chinese authorities had initially tried to cover up news about the outbreak and inconsistencies in numbers being reported fueled speculations about the origin of the virus. TUKO.co.ke earlier reported that China had released a new death toll, 50% higher than before. Wuhans Epidemic Prevention and Control Center said on Friday, 17 April that 3,869 people had died from the disease in the city as of Thursday, 16 April. 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. Mulamwah and his girlfriend speak out for the first time after he quit comedy | Tuko TV Source: TUKO.co.ke The Lyrid meteor shower is expected to peak Tuesday night, April 21, 2020. Youll like your chances to see the meteors. Two sky factors will definitely be on our side in viewing the Lyrid peak Tuesday night. This is opposite of so many sky events missed in Michigan. Astronomer Mike Murray at the Delta College Planetarium, says, The Lyrids are one of the oldest meteor showers on record, dating back to China around 690 BCE. The light show occurs when our planet crosses the orbit of Comet Thatcher, causing its debris of ice and dust to burn up in the atmosphere. The Lyrid meteor shower doesnt usually have as many meteors per hour as the Perseid meteor shower. However, the Lyrids have been know to produce fireballs, which are meteors brighter than Venus right now. Venus is the very bright planet in the western evening sky right now. Murray states we could see up to 25 meteors per hour during the peak Tuesday night. Murray is excited about one sky condition for the Lyrids peak. Im excited about a second sky condition. There will be a new moon Tuesday night, April 21, 2020. A new moon means no moonlight to washout the darkness of the sky. Many times lately it seems weve been under a full moon when a sky event was occurring. The bright moonlight of a full moon really hurts the chances of seeing meteors. The moonlight wont be an issue Tuesday night. More importantly is the expected cloud cover Tuesday night, or should I say lack of cloud cover. Tuesday night skies should clear after sunset. This should generally be the case over all of Michigan. There will be lake-effect clouds Tuesday afternoon, but those should dissipate after sunset. Cloud cover percentage forecast for 11 p.m. Tuesday, April 21, 2020 Its not often Michigan has no moonlight and no clouds on a key sky-event night. Cloud forecast at 2 a.m. Wednesday, April 22, 2020 The two forecast images above show you its worth staying up late Tuesday night to see the Lyrids. Murray says the Lyrids start shooting across the sky from the northeast in late evening. By midnight to 2 a.m. Wednesday, look for the Lyrids nearly straight overhead at the peak time. Its best to lie on the ground and look straight up. I guess the only downside Tuesday night is you will want to be bundled up and have a blanket. There have been some surprise very active bursts from the Lyrids over the years. The experts dont have a way to predict when these outbursts may occur. We will just have to stay up and see if we get lucky. Several policemen and villagers were injured in a clash in the Salkumar Haat area of Bengals Alipurduar district on Sunday night when locals stopped the police from burying the body of a man, alleging that it was being done secretly as he had died of Covid-19. The officer-in-charge of Madarihat police station was injured in the clash. The villagers alleged that a local resident sustained a bullet injury but the authorities said police did not open fire. Local people said that 60-year-old Haidar Ali, a resident of Tin Chula tea estate in Kalchini community block, was admitted at the Aayush Hospital at Tapsikhatta in Alipurduar 1 community block. The hospital has been earmarked for treatment of Covid-19 patients. The hospital authorities, however, did not comment on the incident. Ali was admitted on Sunday morning and he died at night. Though his swab sample was sent for a test the report did not arrive till Monday night, said a police official who did not wish to be identified. Four people, including members of the dead mans family, have been quarantined as a precautionary measure, he added. When police took the body for burial to Salkumar Haat near the bank of Torsa River, local people gathered at the spot and protested. They attacked the men in uniform and ransacked many police vehicles. Two vehicles were also set on fire. Amitava Maiti, Superintendent of Police, Alipurduar district, said, We have filed cases against some local people. One police officer has been shifted to a private hospital in Siliguri. His condition is stable. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Photograph: Tim Krochak/Getty Images Justin Trudeau has called on Canadians to stand unified in the face senseless violence as the confirmed death toll from the countrys deadliest mass shooting rose to 19 people, including the gunman. No one mans action can build a wall between us and a better day, no matter how evil, how thoughtless or how destructive, the prime minister said on Monday morning. As families grieve the loss of a loved one, all Canadians are standing with them. Related: Nova Scotia shooting: shock and surprise at killings by denturist The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) revised the death toll of the weekend shooting upwards on Monday and said they anticipated finding more victims from the rampage, which lasted for at least 12 hours. I know this is a challenging time for Nova Scotians and that there are so many unanswered questions. I want to reassure you that we are working hard to find out as much information as possible in the days and weeks to come, said Chris Leather, the RCMP chief superintendent, adding that officers were currently examining 16 crime scenes. We will be in this for months to come. Police said Gabriel Wortman, a 51-year-old denturist, disguised himself as a police officer before his first attack in the coastal town of Portapique on Saturday evening. The victims included a teacher, nurse, police officer, social worker and three married couples. Wortman was shot dead by police following a standoff late Sunday morning. With Nova Scotia already in lockdown in order to contain the spread of the coronavirus, Trudeau acknowledged the grieving process would be especially difficult, announcing a virtual Facebook vigil on Friday at 7pm. We are a country that stands united in our effort to defeat a pandemic, save lives and to help each other make it to a better day, he said. But yesterday we were jolted from that common cause by the senseless violence and tragedy. The chaos began late Saturday evening, when police responded to emergency calls in Portapique. Residents told local media that Wortman set fire to numerous properties including his own and shot people fleeing for safety. Story continues Officers found several casualties inside and outside at a house in Portapique at 11.30pm, but couldnt locate a suspect. On Monday, police said they anticipated finding additional victims in the remains of buildings that were burned down. Authorities havent yet determined a motivation for the attacks, but the fact that Wortman had created a replica RCM vehicle and either a real uniform or a perfect facsimile suggested his early actions were deliberate, said Leather. His ability to move around the province undetected was surely greatly benefited by the fact that he had a vehicle that looked identical in every way to a marked police car, Leather said. One resident told the Globe and Mail that Wortman arrived at his house Sunday morning, dressed as a police officer and driving what appeared to be a police car. Brandishing a pistol and rifle, Wortman began pounding on the door. He came here to kill me, the man told the Globe and Mail. Theres no question about that. The man and his wife hid until Wortman left. He wasnt killing enemies, he was killing his friends, he said. He was trying to beat down our door. It was beyond terrifying. Wortman eventually swapped his police cruiser replica for a silver SUV on Sunday, leading police in a chase down a busy highway, culminating in a fatal shootout at a gas station in the town of Enfield. On Monday, police faced questions over why they didnt send out text alerts to warn residents of an active shooter in the region, instead relying on Twitter to keep the public updated. Many rural communities in the province lack access to high-speed internet. Constable Heidi Stevenson, one of the victims who had served on the force for 23 years. Photograph: Rcmp Halifax/EPA Police said the victims included a police officer who was shot after responding to reports of the shooting on Sunday morning. Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two, had served on the force for 23 years. We have lost one of our own while she was protecting others, said Leather. This is the definition of a true hero. As news of the shootings spread, family members and friends eulogized the victims on social media. Among the dead was Tom Bagley, who was killed as he rushed to help victims. This beautiful soul was taken from me so unnecessarily. I cant even comprehend it, his daughter Charlene wrote on Facebook. Heather OBrien, a nurse and grandmother from the town Truro in central Nova Scotia, was remembered for her kind spirit. Related: Nova Scotia shooting: friends and family pay tribute to beautiful souls lost in rampage The pain comes and goes in waves. I feel like Im outside of my own body, wrote her daughter Darcy Dobson, who described texting her mother minutes before she died and the monster that killed her. I want everyone to remember how kind she was Let those things define her. Not the horrible way she died. OBriens niece Megan Brown remembered her aunt as a healer and a bright light. Greg and Jamie Blair, a husband and wife, were also among those killed. I have absolutely no words for the heartache my family & many others are going through, wrote Jessica MacBurnie on Facebook. The couple, married in 2014, leave behind their two children. Lisa McCully, a teacher and mother of two, was also killed during the rampage, according to her sister and the Nova Scotia teachers union. She was somebody who taught from the heart, said the union president, Paul Wozney. She taught her kids not just the curriculum but teaching about virtues and personal qualities. On the Nova Scotia Kitchen Party Facebook group originally created for residents to connect and sing together during the coronavirus pandemic members posted tributes to the victims and sang songs, including Amazing Grace. The massacre in Nova Scotia is the worst of its kind in Canadian history, eclipsing the 1989 Ecole Polytechnique massacre, in which 15 women were killed in Montreal. A man driving a van deliberately ran over and killed 10 people in Toronto in April 2018 and a man shot dead six people at an Islamic cultural centre in Quebec City in 2017. In his remarks on Monday, Trudeau also addressed children living in Nova Scotia. I know the world can seem like a mean and ugly place right now, but theres a whole lot of good in the world too. Youll see it in your neighbours and in Canadians in the days and months ahead, he said. This is a difficult time and it can be a scary time too. But were here for you and were going to get through this together, I promise. Medical workers are seen as they take swab samples from people to be tested for the COVID-19 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China's central Hubei province on April 16, 2020. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images) Beijing Angry After German Newspaper Demands Regime to Pay $160 Billion for Causing Pandemic Europes most-read newspaper has joined calls for compensation from Beijing over its coverup of the CCP virus outbreak causing the pandemic that has devastated economies around the world. Bild, Germanys largest paper, in an article titled What China owes us published last week, said the regime ought to pay damages totaling nearly 150 billion euros ($163 billion) for loss to the country caused by the pandemic. The invoice included 24 billion euros ($26 billion) in lost tourism revenue in March and April, 1 million euros ($1 million) per hour in costs for flag carrier Lufthansa, and $50 billion euros ($54 billion) in lost profits for German small businesses. Growing calls for compensation come as Western governments increasingly demand more transparency from the regime about its handling of the outbreak. The article prompted an angry response from the Chinese embassy in Germany, which in an open letter to Bilds editor-in-chief Julian Reichelt denied that the regime had breached its obligations under international law, and accused the paper of xenophobia. Reichelt then responded with his own open letter to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, which said your Government and your scientists had to know long ago that corona[virus] is highly infectious, but you left the world in the dark about it. Your top experts didnt respond when Western researchers asked to know what was going on in Wuhan, he wrote. Earlier this month, a report by UK think tank Henry Jackson Society found that the regime could be sued for trillions of dollars for its initial coverup of the outbreak, which it said was a breach of international law. Several lawsuits have been launched in U.S. courts suing the regime for economic loss caused by the pandemic. Meanwhile, Western countries, including the United States, Britain, and Australia have stepped up calls for an investigation into the origins of the virus, while criticizing the regimes lack of transparency. The spat between the regime and Bild came not long after Frances foreign office summoned Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye to express clear disapproval over comments a Chinese diplomat made about nursing home staff in France who had abandoned their posts and left its residents to die. French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, in an interview with French outlet Le Monde published on April 20, said, I cant accept that anyone, including the Chinese embassy, slanders staff of our retirement homes. Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Butch Eley on Monday announced that Tennessee tax revenues exceeded budgeted estimates in March. Overall March revenues totaled $1.2 billion, which is $71.3 million more than the state received in March of 2019 and $62.1 million more than the budgeted estimate for the month. "Tennessee tax revenues exceeded estimates for the month of March, which will likely surprise some, given the current economy, Commissioner Eley said. This monthly report clearly illustrates the inherent lag between reported tax receipts and that of actual economic activity, or lack thereof, which many Tennesseans are facing today. For instance, sales tax collections for the month of March represent February consumer activity. "The eventual impacts of COVID-19 on tax revenues are unavoidable and will begin to appear in the coming months. We will closely monitor our tax receipts during this time and remain committed to balancing the states budget in a responsible manner during this extraordinary national economic downturn. General fund revenues were $56.5 million more than the budgeted estimate while the four other funds that share in state tax revenues were $5.6 million more than the estimates. Sales tax revenues were $5.9 million more than the estimate for March and were 2.28 percent more than March 2019. For eight months revenues are $243.6 million more than estimated. The year-to-date growth rate for eight months was 6.25 percent. Franchise and excise tax revenues combined were $35.4 million more than the budgeted estimate in March and the growth rate was 15.76 percent. For eight months, revenues are $237.4 million more than the estimate and the year-to-date growth rate is 17.06 percent. Gasoline and motor fuel revenues for March increased by 13.48 percent compared to March 2019 and were $5 million more than the budgeted estimate of $84.1 million. For eight months, revenues have exceeded estimates by $39 million. Motor vehicle registration revenues were $1.3 million less than the March estimate, and on a year-to-date basis they are $9.3 million more than estimates. Tobacco tax revenues were $5.4 million more than the March budgeted estimate of $19.4 million. For eight months, revenues are $4.5 million more than the year-to-date budgeted estimate. Privilege tax revenues were $7.1 million more than the March estimate. On a year-to-date basis, August through March, revenues are $41.6 million more than the estimate. Business tax revenues were $1.5 million more than the March estimate. For eight months, revenues are $9.4 million more than the budgeted estimate. Hall income tax revenues for the month were $1.9 million more than the budgeted estimate. For eight months, revenues are $6.5 million more than the budgeted estimate. All other taxes were less than budgeted estimates by a net of $1.2 million. Year-to-date revenues, August through March, are $605.7 million more than the budgeted estimate. The growth rate for eight months is 8.03 percent. General fund revenues are $486.7 million more than the budgeted estimate and the four other funds are $119 million more than estimated. The budgeted revenue estimates for 2019-2020 are based on the State Funding Boards consensus recommendation of Nov. 26, 2018, and adopted by the second session of the 111th General Assembly in April 2019. Also incorporated in the estimates are any changes in revenue enacted during the 2019 session of the General Assembly. These estimates are available on the states website at https://www.tn.gov/content/tn/finance/fa/fa-budget-information/fa-budget-rev.html. On Nov. 19, 2019, the State Funding Board met to hear updated revenue projections from various state economists. Following this meeting, on Nov. 26, 2019, the board decided to adopt revised revenue growth ranges for the current fiscal year. The recurring growth ranges adopted include a low of 3.10 percent to a high of 3.60 percent for total taxes and a recurring range low of 3.20 percent to a high of 3.75 percent for general fund taxes. On March 19, in the second session of the 111th General Assembly, the Legislature passed the 2019-2020 budget, which included the Funding Boards current year revised ranges and also the administrations amendment to the proposed budget. The administrations amendment, in an effort to recognize the economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, included a reduction of $153.8 million of previously projected revenue to acknowledge potential shortfalls. The governor signed the budget bill on April 2. With the passage of the appropriations act, Public Chapter 651, the General Assembly recognized in the current fiscal year an additional $396.1 million in total revenue and a corresponding increase in general fund revenue in the amount of $345.9 million. At the end of the year, many media outfits love to predict how the incoming new year will be like. The likes of the Economist, Time etc devote a substantial part of their reportage to give their teeming readers an insight into how the New Year would play out. These pundits and analysts completely missed out the lockdown that the entire world was plunged into no thanks to the dreaded corona virus. This virus which started from the little known Wuhan in China spread rapidly round the world faster than the speed of light and has badly disrupted economic activities around the globe. The pandemic which is no respecter of persons irrespective of social class has sent both the elites and the societal dregs back to their maker. Who could have believed that the United States would record over thirty thousand deaths with no burial spaces in New York the economic nerve centre of the world which is the most hit in Uncle Sam. The virus has come to stay in Nigeria which prides herself as the most populous nation in the African continent and the Giant of the black race. From one innocuous case of an Italian man, it has ballooned to over five hundred as at today with over fifteen deaths. When you factor in the fact that less than ten thousand people have been tested so far, it sends shivers down the spines of reasonable people. This illness is indeed a cruel leveler as the usual practice of the elite hopping on their private jets or chartered commercial flights to the West or Asia for their treatment is no longer possible as their favourite medical destinations cannot cope with the huge number of patients they have to see on a daily basis. Nigeria due to irresponsible leadership cannot deal effectively with the pandemic as we lack both the human and health capacity to defeat it. It is so bad that the Federal Government once asked popular American billionaire, Elon Musk to help out with some ventilators. The move by the beleaguered government to send for the assistance of Chinese Medical Doctors to help combat the ailment locally was met with stiff resistance both by the National Medical Association (NMA) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The NMA contended that it was ludicrous to invite the Chinese when the illness originated from their country. They went on further to say that successive governments had paid lip service to the sector and the health of Nigerians shouldnt be jeopardized in the hands of foreign medical practitioners. The health minister Dr. Osagie Enahire allayed the fears when he said: This is a global problem; you know that this is affecting the whole world in such a way that all countries must help each other and we must also be our brothers keeper. The PDP also sturdily backed the call by the NMA when they said in an official statement: The PDP charges Nigerians to hold President Buhari responsible should there be any upsurge in the rate of COVID-19 infection and death in our country following the importation of doctors from China, the epicenter of the scourge, by the Buhari-led Federal Government. The PDP is alarmed that President Buhari ignored the protests by Nigerians and professional bodies including the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and allowed the importation of the Chinese doctors despite warnings that bringing in doctors from the hotbed of the plague will expose our citizens to further risks. This is even as Nigerians across board have continued to question the status, identity and interest of the Chinese doctors as well as the safety of kits and equipment from China, particularly following scary reports of escalation of the scourge in certain countries reportedly after the arrival of Chinese medical personnel in those countries. In as much as I am no fan of any government in Nigeria whether this or the predecessors as they have monumentally failed to honour the social contract to the Nigerian people as espoused by John Locke, there is no big deal in the doctors coming into Nigeria to help fight against the rapid spread of the virus. The Chinese have proven that they have what it takes to effectively handle the spread of it. They ensured that the only province that had it was Wuhan and it didnt spread to the capital Beijing, Shanghai and other parts of the country. That feat is no fluke and it is imperative that we need their knowledge transfer to ensure that the pandemic is curtailed as soon as possible so that we can return back to our normal lives. The Chinese economy has picked up and the lockdown has ended there due to their deft management of the crisis. Their doctors have been exported to several countries around the world to help curtail the spread and they have been doing a yeomans job there. The NMA needs to stop being petty and face the harsh reality on ground. It is an open secret that there is an acute shortage of medical personnel in the country with many in the West, Asia and as far as the end of the world Australia. These health workers have long switched allegiance to their new countries and are rendering their services to them. It is justifiable for them to turn their backs on their so called motherland that merely tolerated them. The newly qualified doctors are writing all sorts of examinations to enable them check out like Andrew. Nigeria needs all the help she can get to effectively make the presence of the virus history. If advanced countries like the US with one of the best medical facilities in the globe can be so overwhelmed, how much more a third world nation like us with an acute shortage of health workers. I commend the Buhari led government for allowing the fifteen Chinese doctors berth in the country to join forces to battle the ailment. The NMA and the PDP should forget about their personal grudge with the government and give them maximum cooperation to ensure that it becomes history. This is not the time for infantile politicking as millions of lives are at stake here. Lets give our guests all the backing that they need in order to succeed. A word is enough for the wise! Tony Ademiluyi wrote from Lagos and edits www.africanbard.com Seven states and union territories, including Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, have commenced free distribution of one kg pulses per PDS household under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Anna Yojana (PMGAY), the Food Ministry said on Monday. Other states like Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi have received the partial stock and will commence the distribution to beneficiaries in a phased manner as per their plan, it said in a statement. "About 107,077.85 tonne of pulses have so far been issued to the States/UTs," according to the ministry. Under PMGKY, Andaman and Nicobar, Andhra Pradesh, Chandigarh, Chattisgarh, Daman & Diu, Goa, Gujarat have commenced the free distribution of pulses to the PDS (Public Distribution System) beneficiaries. To provide food security during the prevailing situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centre has decided to distribute for free pulses to eligible households under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PM-GKY) for three months. The distribution of pulses under PMGKY is to benefit around 19.50 crore households spread across 36 states and Union Territories. Besides free pulses, the government is also giving free five kg per person foodgrains to over 81 crore PDS beneficiaries in the country. This is over and above the quota given under the National Food Security Act. The Centre has disbursed Rs 17,793 crore to 8.89 crore beneficiary farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) Scheme during the lockdown period from March 24 till date. The government provides Rs 6,000 per annum cash directly into the bank account of registered farmers in three equal installments under the PM-KISAN in a move to provide income support to farmers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th April, 2020) The Russian Embassy in Benin and Togo is checking information about a possible capture of a vessel in the Gulf of Guinea, where Russian citizens could be, the diplomatic mission told Sputnik on Monday. "There was such information, the vessel was attacked by pirates in the territorial waters of Benin. According to some information, there allegedly could be Russian sailors, we are checking this information," the embassy's spokesperson said. He also added that at the moment there had been no appeals from compatriots in this regard. With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raising the limits of the Ways and Means Advances (WMA) to states by 60 per cent, the states can borrow an additional Rs 19,335 crore at a much lower rate. At a time with severe fund shortage, this should come as a respite for the states as they get access to funds at a much lower rate of 4.4 per cent compared to State Development Loans (SDLs) with much higher yields. The average yields on SDLs are around 8-9 per cent. Earlier this month, Kerala raised over Rs 6,000 crore through SDLs at 8.96 per cent even as repo rate has been reduced to 4.4 per cent. According to experts, despite RBI reducing the repo rate by 75 basis points, yields on government bonds have only inched up as the markets expect both state and the Centre governments to increase their market borrowings due to likely sharp fall in tax revenue owing to coronavirus outbreak. However, a higher WMA limit may for the time being temper the yields on SDLs. "The sizeable enhancement in the WMA limit for the state governments will ease the liquidity crunch that they are facing, following the reduction in their revenue receipts amid a higher spending requirement during the lockdown period," says Jayanta Roy, Senior Vice President & Group Head, Corporate Sector Ratings, ICRA Limited. He further says that the higher WMA limit is expected to temper the surge in SDL issuance by the states in the first half of 2020-21, and therefore contribute to some cooling of spreads compared to the alarmingly high levels seen over the last six weeks. However, he still feels that the spreads of 10-year SDL relative to the same tenure of G-sec may remain higher than the 60-70 bps recorded during most of April-December 2019. States have earlier raised concerns over such high yields on SDLs. Kerala Finance Minister had earlier said that with GDP in 2020-21 likely to contract, it will be unsustainable for states to pay 9 per cent interest on their borrowings. However, for the states to avail the new WMA limit, the government will have to revise the 14th Finance Commission recommendations for additional borrowings by the states. The 15th Finance Commission has not given any recommendations in this regard. According to the 14th Finance Commission, the fiscal deficit targets of the states will be anchored to an annual limit of 3 per cent of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). The states will be eligible for flexibility of 0.25 per cent over and above this for any given year for which the borrowing limits are to be fixed if their debt-GSDP ratio is less than or equal to 25 per cent in the preceding year. States will be further eligible for an additional borrowing limit of 0.25 per cent of GSDP in a given year for which the borrowing limits are to be fixed if the interest payments are less than or equal to 10 per cent of the revenue receipts in the preceding year. According to an SBI research report, based on 14th Finance Commission recommendations, only a handful of states such as Assam, Odisha (additional 0.5% of their GSDP), Goa, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Telengana, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand (0.25% of their respective GSDP) can avail the higher WMA limit. The ways and means advances are short-term loans given by the RBI to the Centre and the states to meet any revenue-expenditure mismatch. The loan has to be returned within 90 days. The rate of interest on WMA advances is the same as the repo rate. The higher WMA limit will be available until September 30, 2020. Also Read: Infosys FY20 net profit climbs 8% to Rs 16,639 crore; revenue up 10% Also Read: Vijay Mallya loses UK High Court appeal against extradition to India Also Read: Coronavirus impact: Steel demand to drop first time in 16 years in 2020; 7.7% dip expected One of the many impending crises in Mexico right now would be the rapid decline in its economy. A recent report stated that the IMF expects a 6.6 percent recession in the country's economy this year. In Mexico, where there are more than 6,200 verified coronavirus cases, a health emergency was proclaimed on March 30 to deter disease transmission, discourage people from going outside, and discontinue all non-essential businesses. For the following weeks, the country is expected to be mindful of the changes in the number of COVID-19 cases. Per the Ministry of Labor, more than 346,000 organized private-sector employments have been lost in Mexico throughout March 13 and April 6. International crude oil rates and Mexican employees' remittances overseas, which last year totaled an approximate of $36 billion, are declining. Moreover, Mexico's reliance on tourism as well as exports implies that decreased US consumption on everything from vehicles to beach vacations would only further pressure the second-biggest economy in Latin America. After signs of recession from World War II were emerging, an economic recession analyst warned that it would be worse than any recession, as the number of reported infections of coronavirus in Mexico increases. Alberto Ramos, the chief Latin American economist at Goldman Sachs, has this to say: "It's going to be a period of a severe recession and a lot of social pain." Check these out! A bruised tourist industry To make things worse, aside from manufactured exports, remittances, and oil sales, tourism is one of Mexico's most important sources of foreign exchange profits. Numerous hotel establishments have shut down. From March 13 to April 6, roughly 64,000 jobs have been lost in Quintana Roo. According to the Minister of State Tourism Vanegas, hotel occupation is already below 4 percent. The impact on the economy of the pandemic is as evident in a few areas as the vacation cities like Cancun and Tulum. Local closure initiatives and a sharp decline in visitors, mostly from the United States, have given tourism a heavy blow. The industry comprises 8.5 percent of Mexico's GDP. As the economic meltdown in the USA intensifies, the tourism industry in Mexico may experience an extended decline. More than 32 million US residents traveled to Mexico by land and air the year before, rendering it the top international holiday destination for people who reside in the United States. Auto sector grinds to a halt Multiple car manufacturers, like Toyota and Honda, have prolonged closures at factories throughout North American countries due to the global pandemic and subsequent rapid decline in demand. The automotive industry is felting the impact in Mexico, which typically profits from convergence with the US and Canadian distribution networks. Car manufacturing plummeted by 24.6 percent in March relative to the same month a year ago, whereas exports declined by 11.9 percent, as shown by INEGI, Mexico's national statistics institute. "The transmission or spillover to Mexico happens within days," Alberto Ramos stated. Most production firms work with small inventories in Mexico, the biggest trading partner in the US-based on the most recent data from the Census Board. Economists state that their comparatively low stock renders them particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in distribution networks in the US and elsewhere. Protesters gather outside the Capitol Complex. They are calling for Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen up the state's economy during the coronavirus outbreak. Read more Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and PennLive/Patriot-News. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter. HARRISBURG Standing shoulder to shoulder, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the state Capitol on Monday for a rally to reopen Pennsylvania, as others circled the area honking their vehicles horns and holding signs that read Trump 2020. Pennsylvania residents are under a stay-at-home order, which public health experts consider essential to slow the spread of the coronavirus and keep infections at a manageable level for hospitals. There are more than 33,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state, according to the Department of Health, and 1,200 confirmed deaths. Several Republican lawmakers attended Mondays rally, including State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R., Franklin), who livestreamed himself mingling with protesters before the rally began. We need to open up now, he told those assembled. Speaking on the steps of the Capitol, State Rep. Aaron Bernstine (R., Lawrence) led chants and asked protesters to tell Gov. Tom Wolf to sign a bill aimed at reopening some businesses closed amid the government-ordered shutdown. These leaders must not focus on just the lives at risk from the horrible virus, Bernstine said. Many lives like yours are in danger from a shuttered business, the hunger and homelessness. Wolf vetoed the legislation hours later, saying it was not an easy decision. Reopening tens of thousands of businesses too early will only increase the spread of the virus, place more lives at risk, increase the death tolls, and extend the length of the economic hardships created by the pandemic," Wolf said in his veto message. State Rep. Russ Diamond (R., Lebanon) told the crowd, I believe that every one of you is essential and that every one of your businesses and jobs is life-sustaining." He also criticized a Wolf administration waiver process that has allowed some businesses to reopen. To date, the administration has not released a list of which businesses were approved or denied. State Sen. Judy Ward (R., Blair) questioned government mandates, saying, Do we need the government to mandate that certain businesses close? No." The Department of General Services closed the Capitol complex on March 13, just a few days before Wolf ordered nonessential businesses to shut down physical operations. A spokesperson on Monday said Capitol police arrested one individual who did not adhere to warnings to stay out of a restricted area. The person was issued a citation for disorderly conduct. Jodie Zeiders of Reading said she attended Mondays rally because of her friends who are small business owners. She said she wants them to be able to reopen safely while practicing social distancing and offering workers protections. "People are hungry. We just need to open it up and use precautions, she said. Stan Casacio, a cohost of the WFYL-AM (1180) radio show Dont Back Down, said Wolf should create a committee with lawmakers and business owners to decide which businesses should reopen. Give us an opportunity. I think most people are here to demand transparency as to why some businesses are open, some are not open, Casacio said. Poverty kills also. While some of the hundreds in attendance were wearing masks, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, many were not. Unlike the flu, COVID-19 might be spread through the airborne route, meaning that tiny droplets remaining in the air could cause disease in others even after the ill person is no longer near, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Mondays demonstration was planned in part by Chris Dorr, an Ohio-based far-right activist who organized similar protests with his brothers in other states. Dorr also spearheaded the Pennsylvania Firearms Association, a registered 501(c)4, which claims there is a war against the Second Amendment. Law enforcement in Ohio is reviewing a Facebook video in which Dorr said there will be political bodies laying all over the ground" in the context of fund-raising for future elections, the Columbus Dispatch reported. Annamarie Scannapieco, who helped organize a back-to-work rally that was moved to Monday, is an ER nurse and a Republican running for a state House seat in Montgomery County. She said on Facebook she would no longer attend in person because she didnt want to risk the health of potential patients should I happen to come in contact with a COVID-19 infected person. With that said, I still 100% support the cause, as well as the peoples right to assemble peacefully to rally or protest, she wrote in a post, which later appeared to be deleted. There were a small number of counter-protests. Christie Stevenson, who protested against the rally from the stoop of her apartment building near the Capitol, said she has been social distancing to protect those who are more vulnerable. I have been sheltering in place to take care of my parents, their parents, everybodys parents, she said. I think the small business owners who are here today dont care enough about their employees. I yelled at a few of them that I would be ashamed of them if they were my boss. Nurses with the union SEIU also demonstrated, holding signs that urged people to go home. Wolf in March began putting counties hit hardest by the coronavirus under a stay-at-home order, eventually expanding it statewide April 1. The order calls on people to leave their homes only for essential items, such as food or medicine. There is widespread support for expanding a stay-at-home order, which many states have already instituted, nationwide. A recent Quinnipiac University poll found that 81% of voters would back such an effort. Wolf and Levine last week urged people to stay the course. Lets continue to make this good progress and keep people safe, and when the time is right, we will reopen and liberate every single Pennsylvanian, Wolf said. While public health experts say stay-at-home orders and business closures are necessary until theres enough testing and hospital capacity to safely reopen states, Pennsylvanias economy has taken a blow. As of Monday, 1.5 million Pennsylvanians had filed for unemployment, while state lawmakers are anticipating an up to $4 billion budget shortfall. As protesters gathered outside the Capitol, Wolf said Monday he is extending his stay-at-home order until May 8 but will allow some construction projects to reopen then. He said he had not seen firsthand the protesters who were gathered in Harrisburg, but said he respected their right to express themselves. Obviously this is a democracy, he said. Everyone has the right to express their opinions. Im just hoping that they, like every other Pennsylvanian, recognize that we want to keep each other safe. Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman (R., Centre) said the protest was a manifestation of frustration with Wolfs vague plan to reopen the state. Wolf is expected to provide more details this week. Sweeping generalities and policy positions on issues like raising the minimum wage provide no comfort when people are afraid they wont have a job to come back no matter what the wage," he said in a statement. Staff writers Anna Orso and Erin McCarthy contributed to this article. 100% ESSENTIAL: Spotlight PA provides its journalism at no cost to newsrooms across the state as a public good to keep our communities informed and thriving. If you value this service, please give a gift today at spotlightpa.org/donate. The NSW government has approved a plan to nearly double the capacity of the Port Kembla gas terminal, which could begin supplying imported liquified natural gas to NSW and Victoria by 2023. Though Australia is the worlds largest gas exporter, domestic prices have soared in recent years as producers in the nations north met long-term contracts with overseas customers. Last month the Australian Energy Market Operator warned that Australia could face winter shortages by 2024 as production from the southern gas fields in Bass Strait declined. The Australian Industrial Energy venture at Port Kembla, which is backed by Andrew Forrest, now has the capacity to provide gas security to both states, said the projects head, Peter Mitchley. The increased capacity could see the number of shipping movements at the terminal from 26 per year to 46, he said. Mr Mitchley said that, at capacity, the terminal could meet NSW peak demand alone. Last month Victoria announced it would abolish part of its onshore gas-drilling ban in a bid to increase supply, while Santos is progressing with a coal seam gas project at Narrabri, 500 kilometres north-west of Sydney. AGL Energy is facing protests over its plan to build a second import terminal at Crib Point in Victoria Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 09:13:20|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CHANGSHA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Paleontological fossils dating back 470 million years have been found in Zhangjiajie, a World Natural Heritage site, in central China's Hunan Province. The fossils, in shapes of spirals, arcs, cones and ripples, are visible on public buildings, slate roads or steps, with some of their shells and microstructures discernible. Similar fossils also appear on the tour path in the Zhangjiajie Huanglong Cave, the Tianzi Mountain and the Jinbian Stream, which are found and described by tourists online. "Some are like small shrimps, some snails. Big ones stretch across the whole stone step, while some are only thumb-sized," a netizen called Ami said in a travel blog at sina.com. Xing Lida, an associate professor from the Beijing-based China University of Geosciences, recognized the fossils mostly as Sinoceras fossils, which originated in the Ordovician limestone layer in south China. "These fossils can easily be found on roads, riverside paving stones in Zhangjiajie," Xing said. According to the official website of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Sinoceras fossils, also known as "Chinese hornstones," are common in nature. Either straight or coiled, the shells of Sinoceras are usually hard with ripple marks on the surface. As one of the most important and dominant cephalopods back then, Sinoceras lived in the Middle Ordovician age about 470 million years ago. "In accordance with relevant regulations for paleontological fossil protection, limestone with common fossils in it can be used to pave the road," said Hu Nengyong, former curator of the Geological Museum of Hunan. "It adds a kind of artistic beauty to the resort," Hu said. Enditem Three persons were attacked with sticks and stones in Gujarat's Panchmahal district by villagers on suspicion that they were thieves, police said on Monday. However, unlike the Palghar mob lynching incident in neighbouring Maharashtra wherein three persons were beaten to death last week, the trio in Gujarat survived the attack as the villagers allowed them to go. While the accused are yet to be nabbed, Godhra Taluka police have arrested the injured victims for violating the coronavirus lockdown norms, an official said. The incident occurred on Sunday night when a mob stopped a pick-up truck near Bhamaiya village in Godhra taluka of Panchmahal district, and attacked its occupants Bharatsinh Vakhala, Vikram Bariya and Lalabhai Salat on suspicion that they were thieves. "When the trio, who hailed from Dahod district, reached near Bhamaiya village in their pick up truck on Sunday night, villagers mistook them as thieves and attacked them," said police inspector Sanjay Gameti. In the FIR lodged with Godhra taluka police on Monday morning, Vakhala said he was a farmer and was headed to Sevalia village in Kheda district with two others to buy dry grass for cattle. "Some villagers stopped our vehicle and accused us of being thieves. Despite our pleading that we are not thieves, they thrashed us with sticks and stones. They damaged our pick-up truck also," stated the FIR. The trio sustained injuries on their heads. However, they were lucky to be alive as the villagers allowed them to go. Gameti said the accused are yet to be arrested. However, the three victims were arrested for violating the lockdown norms and booked under section 188 (Defying order promulgated by a public servant) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Baghdad: Iraq will allow the Reuters news agency to go back to work after its license was suspended earlier this month over a report that the government was underreporting coronavirus cases, the news agency said on Sunday. The agency's suspension came after an April 3 story cited multiple sources who said the government was misreporting coronavirus cases, and that the true number of infected nationwide was in the thousands. Iraq was reporting cases in the hundreds at the time. A street vendor pushes his cart an almost empty market during a curfew to help fight the spread of the coronavirus, in Baghdad, Iraq. Credit:AP The news agency was also fined 25 million Iraqi dinars, or about $33,000. In a news item, the agency said it was informed by the Iraqi Communications and Media Commission, the country's media regulator, that the suspension was being lifted "to allow transparent and impartial work by the media". Reach key decision makers with sales-ready leads that shorten your sales process. Move the needle by delivering funnel qualified leads to your sales team. Learn more Facebook and YouTube are cracking down on the pervasive conspiracy theories linking the spread of coronavirus to 5G wireless technology. Facebook on Monday announced it would begin to actively remove false claims that link COVID-19 to 5G and could lead to physical harm. Facebook-owned WhatsApp has reduced the number of accounts users can forward chats to from five to one. We are taking aggressive steps to stop misinformation and harmful content from spreading on our platforms, and connect people to accurate information about coronavirus, a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement provided to TechNewsWorld by company rep Andrea Vallone. Facebook will continue to work closely with governments and other tech companies to remove harmful misinformation, the spokesperson noted. The company has partnered with health authorities like the World Health Organization and the UK National Health Service to connect people to the latest official guidance. Meanwhile, Google-owned YouTube has banned all videos promoting 5G-coronavirus conspiracy theories. Conspiracy Theories Rampant One of the bogus theories circulating online ties the origin of the coronavirus in Wuhan to the rollout of 5G technology in the city. Another claims that Bill Gates invented the false threat of pandemic to cover up the harm caused by 5G. Five years ago, Gates warned about the danger of a pandemic, and his foundation has been funding research on a coronavirus vaccine. A number of celebrities have echoed the false claims, including actor Woody Harrelson. However, countries without 5G wireless, such as India, Iran, and African nations, also have been hit by the pandemic. A D V E R T I S E M E N T In the UK, conspiracy theory believers have threatened telecom engineers and burned cellular phone masts. The mayor of Liverpool became a threat target after he condemned the 5G-coronavirus conspiracy theory. UK lawmakers have suggested the rumors might be the work of organized disinformation campaigns. In the United States, theres speculation that Russia has been pushing the conspiracy theory through influencers. We know for a fact that Russian and Chinese agitators have been propagating this myth for some time, said Ray Wang, principal analyst at Constellation Research. Its wrong to conflate the push towards 5G with the spread of coronavirus, he told TechNewsWorld. A real scientific debate and clinical trial should be put in play to prove or disprove this conspiracy theory. Facebooks Push The first conspiracy theories about 5G and Wuhan appeared on Facebook in late February. Users were flagging anti-5G groups for spreading misinformation by early March. Memes making the false claims picked up speed this month when some celebrities latched onto the conspiracy theory, noted Liz Miller, principal analyst at Constellation Research. All the while Facebook kept saying that in order to protect free speech, the only thing that could possibly be done was to flag or mark the misinformation, she told TechNewsWorld. Facebook could have easily addressed these anti-5G posts in March, let alone when they first started cropping up in 2019, Miller noted, but chose to side with the misinformation over the truth to show its adherence to free speech principles. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Facebook has been playing martyr, she suggested, with its portrayal of Sisyphus and his never-ending quest to push the rock of ethics and freedom up different hills. Social media platforms can ban users for espousing different points of view from the mainstream, Wang maintained, because they are communities, and not considered media. If you want to be a part of the community, you follow their rules and thats not freedom of speech. By the time Facebook took decisive action, the false claim had spread widely, Miller said. This isnt just a case of misinformation, she argued. Its a case study in the industries that profit from that, and then must feign embarrassment and launch heroic policies to combat it. Facebook took action to limit advertising, Miller said, but the vast majority of this conspiracy is not passed along by advertising. YouTube Ramps Up Efforts YouTube on Monday began reducing how often its algorithm surfaced videos linking coronavirus to 5G technology in user recommendations. On Tuesday, YouTube banned all such conspiracy theories, following a livestream interview with noted conspiracy theorist David Icke. YouTube deleted the videos content after the BBC asked why it had not taken action earlier, despite knowing about the livestream. It will allow the interviews host to keep earnings generated through the Super Chats tool but will give its own share of the proceeds to charity. YouTube will review the channel involved in the controversial livestream. YouTube has pledged to take the following steps: Quickly remove flagged videos that violate its policies prohibiting the advocacy of medically unsubstantiated methods to prevent coronavirus in place of seeking medical treatment. These include any content that disputes the existence or transmission of COVID-19 as described by the WHO and local health authorities; Reduce recommendations for borderline content that could misinform users in harmful ways; Consider barring users who repeatedly break the rules from using YouTubes Live tool; Consider barring repeat offenders from earning money from their broadcasts; and Terminate offending channels as a last resort. Assessing the Social Media Clampdown Facebook has done a reasonable job, said Constellations Wang. They have huge teams responsible for policing and also have teams that prevent political riots off false information. It is not likely that social media platforms will be able to police everything, though, observed Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research. AI is going to help but its not perfect, he told TechNewsWorld. There should be a way where like on Craigslist users can flag objectionable speech and the platforms can then decide whether or not to take it down. At this time, when theres a pandemic, we have to do something. People can be hurt when bogus health claims go viral online, especially when endorsed by celebrities, Constellations Wang warned. Blinded by Lack of Science I had the driver of an Uber car I was in tell me hes concerned about millimeter waves, McGregor remarked.These waves cant even penetrate the leaves of a tree, which means youre safe. The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection in March released updated guidelines for implementing 5G technology. There have been longstanding concerns that overexposure to microwave and radio frequency radiation might impact peoples health. However, according to ICNIRP Chair Eric van Rongen, PhD., the organizations guidelines protect against all scientifically substantiated adverse health effects due to electromagnetic field export in the 100 kHz to 300 GHz range. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Rome, Italy Mon, April 20, 2020 16:05 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd30d7de 2 World Italy,psychological-test,coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-lockdown,COVID-19-quarantine Free Italian scientists want the government to conduct psychological tests on a sample of the population to determine how long people can stay confined to their homes, a report said Monday. The Corriere della Sera newspaper said scientists want to understand how long Italians "are able to endure a lockdown" in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte will announce a new set of social guidelines this week that could include the tests, the report said. Italy entered into a progressively more restrictive lockdown over the first half of March that has since been replicated by most European nations. The Mediterranean country's 60 million citizens have been barred from walking more than 200 meters from their homes without a significant reason. Reports of domestic abuse have surged and scientists worry about the impact of such isolation on the elderly and the more vulnerable. Conte's government is now debating how it can lift the stay-at-home order and reopen businesses while there is still no coronavirus cure or vaccine. The virus has officially killed 23,660 in Italy -- second only to the United States -- and probably many more because most care home deaths are not counted. Conte is expected to let people out of their homes for more reasons when the current lockdown rules expire on May 4. Paul Scholes has admitted that he 'miskicked' the ball when he scored his memorable goal for Manchester United against Barcelona in a Champions League semi-final in 2008. Scholes found the net from 25 yards out at Old Trafford, with United winning 1-0 in the first leg before progressing to the final after drawing 0-0 in the second leg. United went on to win the Champions League that season as they beat Chelsea on penalties in the final in Moscow, with Scholes' goal against Barcelona having played a pivotal part in getting Sir Alex Ferguson's side to that stage. Paul Scholes says that he 'mis-kicked' the ball when he scored versus Barcelona in 2008 The former midfielder has received much praise for his hugely important goal, but admitted that he 'sliced' his effort. Scholes told the Official Manchester United Podcast: 'I miskicked it, personally. I sliced it off my foot. In the final against Chelsea, Scholes started and played 87 minutes, with Ferguson making sure to select the midfielder given that he was suspended for United's success against Bayern Munich in the 1999 final. Scholes' goal helped United to reach the final of the Champions League in the 2007-08 season Current United striker Marcus Rashford, who was also a guest on the podcast, has scored some spectacular goals for the club. Scholes believes that Rashford's strike away to West Ham in the FA Cup in 2016 is the forward's best goal for United. Scholes believes Rashford's best goal for United was away to West Ham in the FA Cup in 2016 Rashford's strike against Liverpool in 2018, when he bamboozled Trent Alexander-Arnold, and his brilliant free-kick against Chelsea in the League Cup this season were also under consideration. Scholes said: 'Out of Marcus' goals I loved his West Ham goal, his Liverpool goal and his Chelsea goal. I just loved the West Ham goal, I know it's not the most important one but the bit of skill and to bend it in the top corner like that, I think it was brilliant.' Rashford himself believes that his strike against Chelsea is his best goal so far. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed some of Floridas most powerful political leaders and business executives Monday to a committee that will map out the states reopening from the coronavirus shutdown that has crippled much of the economy. DeSantis appointments to the Re-Open Florida Task Forces executive committee include Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, the current and incoming state Senate presidents and House speakers and the mayors of Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. From the private sector, he tapped executives from Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, AT&T, Florida Power & Light, Publix, Lockheed-Martin and elsewhere. DeSantis told the committee they will meet daily by phone through Friday, when he hopes they will have recommendations they can present. There will also be subcommittees that will report to the executive committee. The states largest economic sector, tourism, has crashed and most of its largest employers have shut down because of the crisis, including the theme parks and cruise lines. Restaurants have been limited to takeout and delivery and nightclubs have been closed. More than 650,000 workers have filed unemployment claims since March 15, according to the state. DeSantis told the committee the state will reopen in stages and not all at once. He said a key will be the ability to test workers for the disease and get quick, accurate results. If you have somebody in a business and they get tested and you get results in six days, thats not efficient and effective, he said. The Florida Democratic Party criticized DeSantis selections, saying it is the expected cadre of donors and DeSantis loyalists. It also blasted him for not appointing Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, the only Democrat elected statewide, while including the two Republican members of the cabinet, Attorney General Ashley Moody and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis. Fried oversees the second largest economic driver in the state and she should have a seat at the table, party chair Terrie Rizzo said in a statement. The state has had more than 27,000 confirmed coronavirus infections with at least 823 deaths. About 4,000 people are currently hospitalized. DeSantis criticized the media for citing experts who were predicting last month that Florida could see a much larger wave of deaths and hospitalizations than materialized, but those forecasts were based on his unwillingness at that point to issue a statewide shutdown. At his April 1 news conference where he announced the statewide stay-at-home order, DeSantis didnt dispute the projections. Asked about them at the time, he said, This thing is really nasty. Well, that hasnt happened, DeSantis said Monday. Not only are we not overwhelmed, we have a tremendous amount of (hospital) capacity. Meanwhile, patrol deputies in hard-hit Broward County overwhelmingly voted no-confidence in Sheriff Gregory Tony. The 1,400-member Broward Sheriffs Office Deputies Association announced Monday that its members voted 693-93 against Tony. He was appointed to the post by DeSantis in 2019 to replace Scott Israel, whom the governor fired from the elected post for his handling of the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre that left 14 students and three staff members dead. Tony earlier this month suspended the unions president, Jeff Bell, from the force after Bell penned a column in the Fort Lauderdale paper accusing the sheriff of not providing deputies with enough protective gear. The column came four days after Deputy Shannon Bennett died of COVID-19. The union is one of seven that represents the sheriffs offices 5,600 employees. We believe this response to the COVID-19 threat is inadequate and appalling, said Frank Voudy, the unions secretary-treasurer. Tony issued a statement saying he and his command staff have worked tirelessly to protect the deputies and other employees, but said to the unions members, I hear your concerns. Its time to unite and work together to continue providing the highest level of professional public safety services to our Broward County community, he said. Tony and Israel, both former Republicans, are seeking the Democratic nomination for the office in Augusts scheduled primary. Broward County is heavily Democratic. ___ Spencer reported from Fort Lauderdale. ___ Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak. Dr. Anthony Fauci has issued a caution to protestors who took to state capitals to condemn stay-home orders warning that without a carefully phased reopening the chance of a national economic recovery will be jeopardized. The nation's top infectious disease effort warned the nation not to 'jump the gun' after protesters pushed governors to back-down on their orders meant to protect the public, and President Trump saluted the actions by saying he saw lots of American flags present. Fauci laid down the marker when asked on ABC's 'Good Morning America' about his message to protesters. Government mitigation efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus can't work without cooperation from the public adn a web of national, state and local governments. Dr. Anthony Fauci was asked Monday about his message to protesters who want to lift stay-home orders 'I think the message is that clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics, from the standpoint of things that have nothing to do with the virus,' he told host George Stephanopoulos, who recently tested positive himself for the coronavirus. 'But unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen,' said Fauci, who has become among the nation's most trusted figures according to polls and who has been advising President Donald Trump. 'So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you're going to set yourself back,' he said. 'So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a re-opening, it's going to backfire. That's the problem.' Fauci spoke Monday morning, hours after President Trump gave a pass to protesters of state stay-at-home guidelines even as his own administration has guidelines that run through the end of the month urging Americans to avoid large groups and stay home. 'They've got cabin fever,' Trump said at his Sunday White House briefing. 'They want their lives back.' Fauci warned opening the country before containing the virus would 'backfire.' He spoke to George Stephanopoulos, who tested positive for the coronavirus After protesters had gathered in the state capitals of Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia last week, Trump seemingly egged them on Friday when he tweeted 'LIBERATE' and then included those three states. Since then, he's defended that messaging by saying that some states have taken their stay at home orders too far. By late Monday morning, after Fauci's cautioning, Trump took to Twitter to blast Democrats and other critics who have called out a crisis in ventilators, protective gear, and adequate testing. 'Last month all you heard from the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats was, Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilators. They screamed it loud & clear, & thought they had us cold, even though it was the States task. But everyone got their Vs, with many to spare,' Trump wrote. You shall not pass: A group of healthcare workers stood in the street to counter-protest the calls for re-opening, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards the Capitol, dressed in scrubs and facemasks 'Now they scream.... Testing, Testing, Testing, again playing a very dangerous political game. States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done. This is easy compared to the fast production of thousands of complex Ventilators!' A bipartisan group of House members is calling for 'rapid and ubiquitous testing' as among the health benchmarks that 'must' be achieved before reopening Healthcare workers clashed with anti lockdown protesters in Colorado on Sunday, defiantly standing in front of the cars of demonstrators who flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders. Protests against state lockdowns implemented to combat the novel coronavirus outbreak continued nationwide this afternoon, as a fervent disdain for the restrictions that have shut down much of the country's economy continues to slowly spread across the US. Titled 'Operation Gridlock', the day's largest demonstration took place in Denver, where hundreds of protesters ignored social distancing guidelines to huddle together on the lawn of the state Capitol, waving flags emblazoned with slogans such as 'Your "health" does not supersede my right', 'Freedom over fear', and 'I would rather risk coronavirus than socialism'. Mobilized by a number of groups on social media, the protesters called Gov. Polis a tyrant and insisted the ongoing economic cost of the shutdown was no longer worth the few lives it would save. But the protesters' efforts weren't met without resistance. A group of healthcare workers stood in the street, clad in their scrubs and facemasks, to counter-protest the calls for re-opening, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards the Capitol. Scroll down for video Photographs captured the nurses standing in front of a number of vehicles staring back at the drivers with their arms crossed, refusing to move under a cacophony of horns and heckles The nurse refuses to move despite the protester attempting to engage in a verbal altercation with him One incensed protester stepped out from his SUV to confront a male healthcare worker The driver was seen angrily approaching the nurse, ordering him to move out of the way, but the healthcare worker remained unmoved, opting simply to look in the other direction The immovable force: cars are forced to drive around the counter-protester who refused to move out of the road Demonstrators flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders Protesters walk the sidewalk in front of the State Capitol and wave placards during a protest against the stay-at-home order issued by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis Traffic backs up along Lincoln Avenue at 14th Street as protesters in cars augment the demonstration with a cacophony of honks and chants, from a distance Photographs captured the nurses standing in front of a number of vehicles, staring back at the drivers with their arms crossed, refusing to move under a cacophony of horns and heckles. PRESIDENT TRUMP PRAISES PROTESTERS President Trump appeared to praise the actions of the protesters during his Sunday White House briefing, despite the demonstrations defying state stay-at-home orders. 'I've seen the people. I've seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump said. 'They've got cabin fever. They want their lives back.' The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats. 'No, I am not. I've never seen so many American flags,' Trump said. 'These people love our country. They want to get back to work.' Advertisement One incensed protester stepped out from his SUV to confront a male healthcare worker. The driver was seen angrily approaching the nurse, ordering him to move out of the way, but the healthcare worker remained unmoved, opting simply to look in the other direction. 'No all heroes wear capes,' one Twitter user wrote in support of the healthcare workers. Another wrote: 'Colorado health care workers, who have been putting their lives on the line to save others, stand in the street in counter-protest. The selfishness and ignorance of todays protest is peak privilege. #ThisIsAmerica' For those who made it through the blockade, the vast majority of those outside the Capitol were not wearing masks or gloves, stood in large groups just inches apart, and some even brought their children along for the occasion. Many protesters wore hats and t-shirts in support of President Trump. One man even rode a horse up and down the street, with an American flag draped over his shoulder. 'Pot shops are open, abortion clinics are open and my church is closed,' protester Mary Conley told the Denver Post. Death is a part of life and its time to start living again.' Another protester, Jim Fenimore, told the outlet he decided to attend because he believes the drastic national response to the coronavirus has all been a political ruse to make the economy crash and cause Trump to lose support ahead of the impending election. One man even rode a horse up and down the street, with an American flag draped over his shoulder For those who made it through the blockade, the vast majority of those outside the Capitol were not wearing masks or gloves, stood in large groups just inches apart, and some even brought their children along for the occasion Many protesters wore hats and t-shirts in support of President Trump Free Colorado: passengers waves a placards and flags out of convertible cars during a car protest against the stay-at-home order Gov. Polis acknowledged last week that the current level of social distancing and other restrictions is not sustainable for the long term, but said any reopening would need to happen gradually, with some precautions in place for several months As of Sunday evening, Colorado has 9,433 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 411 recorded deaths Fenimore demanded Colorado lift its stay-at-home order 'before the scheduled 26 reopening'. Denver's order is actually set to lift on April 30. 'Every day that goes by is hurting the state,' he said. 'I dont want anyone to see anyone die, but there are far more deaths for other reasons.' As of Sunday evening, Colorado has 9,433 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 411 recorded deaths. The pandemic and stay-at-home orders have wreaked havoc on the state's economy with more than 232,000 people filing or unemployment in the last four weeks. Gov. Polis acknowledged last week that the current level of social distancing and other restrictions is not sustainable for the long term, but said any reopening would need to happen gradually, with some precautions in place for several months. A spokesperson from Polis office said the governor respects citizens right to protest but that 'those participating are only endangering themselves.' Other similar demonstrations were held in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State earlier today. Though the each of the protests were relatively small in size, they signify a growing sentiment among aggrieved workers across the US that the country must resume its economic activity sooner rather than later - albeit with measures in place to prevent a 'second wave' of coronavirus infections. President Trump appeared to praise the actions of the protesters during his Sunday White House briefing, despite the demonstrations defying state stay-at-home orders. 'I've seen the people. I've seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump said. 'They've got cabin fever. They want their lives back.' The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats. 'No, I am not. I've never seen so many American flags,' Trump said. 'These people love our country. They want to get back to work.' The reporter then pointed out that some protesters had waved Nazi flags. The president said he was, clearly, against that from happening. Other similar demonstrations were held in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State (above) earlier today Demonstrators crowd together at a protest opposing Washington state's stay-home order to slow the coronavirus outbreak Sunday Justin Bailey, of Tacoma, Wash., holds an assault rifle and a flag as he protests in Washington Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death: Though the each of the protests were relatively small in size, they signify a growing sentiment among aggrieved workers across the US that the country must resume its economic activity sooner rather than later Beranese Nel, left, disregards social distancing guidelines to have her photo taken with Justin Young, holding an assault rifle, at a protest in Olympia, Washington A man wearing a cutout mask gathered with hundreds of others at a 'Hazardous Liberty! Defend the Constitution!' rally in Olympia, WA Flatten the Fear: Waving flags and holding signs, Freedom Rally participants voice their opinions to passing traffic on the Market Street Bridge in Chattanooga, Tenn Heath experts and state governors across the country have continuously countered the cries for immediate reopenings, insisting that any premature return to normalcy would be disastrous, inevitably leading to soaring new numbers of infections and a subsequent sharp increase in deaths. President Donald Trump has signaled support for the protests though. After a public fall-out with several governors over his wrongful claims to have 'absolute power' to reopen the US economy earlier this week, Trump encouraged demonstrators in Michigan, Virginia, Minnesota, to 'liberate' their states, claiming their Second Amendment was 'under siege'. The US is the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis, with 759,204 recorded and 40,276 deaths. Despite the ominous statistics, President Trump cited 'positive signs' in the fight against the pandemic on Saturday, believing the worst is now over. 'We continue to see a lot of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak,' the President said, just days after the White House issued guidelines for the gradual reopening of the country. After a week in what Trump described as an indicator that the worst of the crisis is behind us, the president says he will now shift his focus to kickstarting an economic recovery after four-weeks of lockdowns. Trump said that Texas and Vermont will allow some business to re-open next week, with strict social distancing measures still being enforced. Residents in Florida and other states returned to the beach Saturday despite an increase in COVID-19 deaths and infections. Meanwhile, three Northeastern states reopened boatyards and marinas for personal use only. Give Me Liberty or Give Me COVID-19: The US is the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis, with 759,204 recorded and 40,276 deaths After a week in what Trump described as an indicator that the worst of the crisis is behind us, the president says he will now shift his focus to kickstarting an economic recovery after four-weeks of lockdowns. Protesters in Indianapolis called the coronavirus outbreak a 'Fake Crisis' and said 'Fauci was wrong' My Freedom Doesn't End Where Your Fears Begin: Kristen Holland holds a sign during a Freedom rally on the Market Street Bridge in Chattanooga, Tennessee Residents protest stay-at-home orders involving the closing of beaches and walking paths in Encinitas, California Other states are expected to gradually ease lockdown restrictions while other states, such as New York, have issued no indication that measures will be relaxed any time soon. Nationwide, food banks are reportedly struggling to meet increased demand from out-of-work Americans, while school systems are largely shuttered, with home schooling plans in place. The rollout of CARES Act stimulus checks has provided some temporary relief, but there are still reports of an unemployment system that is overwhelmed by new applications, resulting in workers being unable to register. JAY, Maine State and federal investigators began searching Thursday for the cause of a paper mill explosion that shook the ground and sent debris and a slurry of chemicals raining down on nearby cars and buildings. Elation over the stunning news that no one was hurt began to shift toward concern about how long the Androscoggin Mill would be idled. A long-term closure could send ripples through the rural economy. We are not in a position to estimate the exact timing of restarting any part of the mill, Roxie Lassetter, human resources manager, said Thursday. The investigation into the cause of the Wednesday blast was led by a team of investigators from the Maine Fire Marshals Office and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety. The investigators began interviewing workers and got their first look at the damage on Thursday, McCausland said. The blast happened in a massive, kettle-like digester where a slurry of wood chips, water and chemicals is transformed into pulp. Nearby vehicles were covered with a thick, brown substance that fell from the sky after the blast. But the massive paper machines that churn out different types of specialty paper escaped damage, and the company is exploring options to get them running as soon as possible, Lassetter said. In Jay, the Androscoggin Mill has been a survivor as other paper mills closed with the loss of thousands of jobs in Maine. Its economic impact stretches far beyond the 500 workers there, to a supply chain that includes loggers, truckers and foresters. The Androscoggin Mill and all paper mills have economic tentacles that reach deep in the rural communities of new England, said Eric Kingsley, a forest economist and partner at Innovative Natural Resource Solutions. Each day, 150 trucks dropped off about 30 tons apiece of trees, wood chips and sawdust to be transformed into a food-grade paper thats used in fast food packaging and in other products, he said. The mill, which was built in the mid-1960s, changed ownership in February when it was sold by Ohio-based Verso to a Pennsylvania company, Pixelle Specialty Solutions. Around Jay, the 5,000 residents whove become accustomed to ups and downs in the paper industry understand that viability of the mill depends on the extent of the damage. All of the options have entered everyones minds. Right now were trying to focus on the positive, said Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere. The positive includes the fact that none of the 200 workers at the mill at the time of the blast were hurt, LaFreniere said. Also, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection classified the slurry that rained down as a minor irritant that wasnt considered to be toxic, she said. Public works crews were sweeping the streets and picking up fallen debris on Thursday. Source: A massive explosion at the Androscoggin Mill in Jay, Maine, Wednesday April 15, 2020 ripped apart the plant owned by Pixelle Specialty Paper Solutions. The explosion shook the ground Wednesday and produced a plume of black smoke that was visible for miles around, but it appeared no one was injured. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal via AP) Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. By Gina Lee and Peter Nurse Investing.com The European Union may need to triple the amount of aid currently proposed to tackle the coronavirus crisis. The Peoples Bank of China cut its one-year rate to 3.85% and its five-year rate to 4.65%, its second cut in 2020. India banned flights indefinitely to combat Covid-19. Europe: EU Aid worth around 1.5 trillion euros ($1.63 trillion) could be needed to tackle the coronavirus crisis, the European Unions Economics Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told German magazine Der Spiegel. "The Eurogroup has now made proposals for aid worth more than 500 billion euros to finance healthcare and short-time work and to help small and medium-sized companies. That leaves at least one trillion euros. This is roughly the amount we need to be dealing with now, Gentiloni said. Spain extended its state of emergency until May 9 but plans to relax restrictions on children playing outside, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said. Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases rose by 1,775 to 141,672, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed on Monday, marking the second consecutive day that the number of new infections had fallen. The reported death toll rose by 110 to 4,404, the tally showed. Germany will this week begin relaxing some curbs on daily life, while leaving most of the measures designed to limit the spread of the disease in place into next month. Smaller shops can resume regular business, and schools will gradually reopen with some students taking exams allowed to return. France will unveil a plan within two weeks to begin lifting restrictions on travel and business, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday, without giving specifics. The lockdown, in place since March 17, could lead to a 10% contraction this year in Europes third-biggest economy, Philippe said. Italy reported 3,047 new cases Sunday, the lowest in four days, according to the civil protection agency. The country registered 433 deaths compared with 482 the day before, bringing the total number of fatalities to 23,660, the most in Europe. Story continues Denmark More than twice as many workers as expected--150,000 versus the initial estimate of 70,000--have applied for wage compensation under a government plan aimed at preventing businesses from firing staff due to the coronavirus lockdown. Asia: A S&P Global Ratings report warned that unemployment rates in Asia-Pacific could soar well over 3 percentage points as social distancing measures slash job creation. Surging unemployment in Asia-Pacific would mean a shallower recovery once the pandemic is contained and, in some economies, credit stress for leveraged households. Historical data show that jobs lost are not easily won back, Shaun Roache, S&P Global Ratings Asia-Pacific chief economist, said. Chinas central bank cut its one-year rate to 3.85% from 4.05%, and also cut its five-year rate to 4.65% from 4.75%. This is the second time the PBOC has cut its rate so far this year. China's fiscal first quarter revenue fell 14.3 percent from a year earlier to 4.598 trillion yuan ($649.75 billion), the country's finance ministry said on Monday, attributing the decline to the coronavirus outbreak and tax relief offered. Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe aims to pass a 117.1 trillion yen ($1.088 trillion) economic stimulus package. The package was boosted from JPY 108.2 trillion by expanding cash payouts. India has ordered airlines not to sell tickets unless they are notified otherwise. New Zealand will extend the lockdown measures in place to beat the coronavirus by a week, to April 27, after which it will move to a lower level of restrictions, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday. Americas: U.S. will allow some importers and manufacturers to defer payments on many imported goods for 90 days, a move aimed at freeing up cash for pandemic-hit businesses. The deferral doesnt apply to anti-dumping or countervailing duties. Vice President Mike Pence will discuss shortcomings in U.S. testing for coronavirus infections with governors on Monday, President Donald Trump said Sunday, adding his administration will share information with the governors ahead of the call about testing capacity in their states that might not yet be utilized. The White House and Democrats in Congress are near an agreement that would add cash to a program aimed at helping small businesses. President Trump said Sunday. Mexico registered a total of 8,261 confirmed coronavirus cases and 686 deaths on Sunday. That is up from 7,497 cases and 650 deaths as of Saturday. Related Articles UK will review how it handled COVID-19 when time is right, minister says Poland may retighten coronavirus restrictions if cases spike: minister Novartis, U.S. drug regulator agree to malaria drug trial against COVID-19 New Delhi, April 20 : India on Monday warned its citizens living in the UAE against discrimination after the Arab countries accused Indians of blaming Muslims for the spread of coronavirus pandemic. Since the Islamic missionary Tablighi Jamaat emerged as the super-spreader of coronavirus cases in the country, many users on social media have been posting communally provocative content, triggering outrage among Muslims in the Gulf countries. Taking note of the growing complaints, the ambassador to the UAE, Pavan Kapoor in a tweet said, "India and UAE share the value of non-discrimination on any grounds. Discrimination is against our moral fabric and the Rule of law. Indian nationals in the UAE should always remember this." He based his comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's earlier tweet, "Covid-19 does not see race, religion, colour, caste, creed, language or borders before striking. Our response and conduct thereafter should attach primacy to unity and brotherhood. We are in this together." The warning to Indian nationals in the Gulf came after Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the federation of 57 Muslim nations, on Sunday had condemned "the unrelenting vicious Islamophobic campaign in India maligning Muslims for spread of Covid-19 as well as their negative profiling in media subjecting them to discrimination and violence with impunity." In another tweet, IPHRC urged the Indian government to take "urgent steps to stop the growing tide of Islamophobia in India and protect the rights of its persecuted Muslim minority" as per its obligations under international human rights law. The tweets were liked and retweeted by hundreds of users. A member of UAE's royal family, Princess Hend Al Qassimi warned an Indian living in the UAE against his controversial tweets, saying, "Anyone that is openly racist and discriminatory in the UAE will be fined and made to leave." Over 14,000 people liked her tweet and thousands joined the Twitter conversation. "The ruling family is friends with Indians, but as a royal your rudeness is not welcome. All employees are paid to work, no one comes for free. You make your bread and butter from this land which you scorn and your ridicule will not go unnoticed," she further warned the Indian national. Several other Twitter users from other Arab countries alleged that while Hindus are treated well in the Gulf countries, Muslims in India are being mistreated. One Arab Twitter, accused parliamentarian Tejasvi Surya of racism and sexism for an old tweet in which he had quoted Canadian author Tarek Fatah on Arab women.A "India's relation with the Arab world has been that of mutual respect. Do you allow your parliamentarian to publicly humiliate our women? We expect your urgent punitive action against Tejasvi Surya for his disgraceful comment," the Arab tweeted. Its one of the worst mass killings in Canadian history, and as communities on the East Coast grieve, the search for answers continues. RCMP are investigating last weekends shootings in northern Nova Scotia that claimed the lives of at least 22 people, including one of the police forces constables, and ended with the death of the shooter in a confronation with police. Here is some of what we know so far as well as some of the key questions that remain unanswered. What happened and when At 10:36 p.m. on Saturday, RCMP responded to a firearms complaint in Portapique, N.S. There, officers found multiple casualties both inside and outside of the home but no shooter. They also discovered fires and more victims in the area. From midnight until around 8 a.m. on Sunday, the shooters whereabouts remain unclear. That part of the timeline has become a subject of much scrutiny as the public tries to understand how one person could have eluded police for so long and caused so much death and destruction. Between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. Sunday, RCMP said, they spoke to a witness that let them know Wortman was driving a near-exact replica of an RCMP. At 8 a.m. Sunday, RCMP described the investigation as an "active shooter situation," telling residents to stay in their homes. An hour later, the shooters description and picture were released to the public via Twitter. At 10:17 a.m., a picture of Wortmans RCMP look-alike car was tweeted out by the RCMP. Around 11:30 a.m., the gunman was killed in a confrontation with police at the Big Stop in Enfield, N.S. a big, province-famous gas station in Nova Scotia. The RCMP said Wednesday they could release a full timeline of events as early as Thursday. Did the shooter have an accomplice? On Wednesday, RCMP said in a news conference the shooter acted alone on Saturday night and Sunday morning. However, police say theyre investigating whether anyone helped the shooter with his actions in the lead-up to the crime. Did RCMP make the wrong decision on alerting residents? Controversy looms over the RCMPs decision to rely on Twitter rather than the provinces emergency alert system to warn the public that the gunman was still on the loose. On Wednesday, RCMP Chief Supt. Chris Leather told reporters that officials from Nova Scotias emergency management system told the RCMP at 10:15 a.m. on Sunday that they could issue an alert if necessary. The RCMP, said Leather, spent the next hour or so tracking down the relevant officials, and consulting on whether the alert was necesssary. While they were drafting the alert, the gunman was killed around 11:30 a.m. Sunday. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil told CTV Atlantic this week that more could have been done. I would say (with) the benefit of hindsight, the depth and breadth of this should have been communicated more widely with a number of our agencies, he said. But lets let that unfold. My main focus right now is to support those families. Who were the victims? RCMP confirmed Tuesday afternoon that 22 people, plus the gunman, are dead following the incident. Identified as victims so far are: RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the national police force and a mother of two; Debert Elementary school teacher Lisa McCully; Gina Goulet Denturist; Care assistant Kristen Beaton; Heather OBrien, a nurse from Truro; Peter and Joy Bond, a couple in Portapique with two sons; Couple Dawn Madsen and Frank Gulenchyn; Retired firefighter Tom Bagley; Parents Aaron Tuck, Jolene Oliver, and daughter Emily Tuck; Couple Greg and Jamie Blair; Sean McLeod and Alanna Jenkins Correctional officers; Lillian Hyslop; Corrie Ellison; Couple John Zahl and Elizabeth Joanne Thomas (presumed dead). Who was the shooter? Gabriel Wortman, 51, a denturist with an office in Dartmouth, N.S. Where did the shooter get his RCMP uniform and cruiser? Donald Walkers family hired the shooter in the 90s to work in their funeral home business before he switched careers to become a denturist. Walker told the Star Wortman acquired many items from a local auction house that sells Crown assets and used a local detail shop to apply the graphics and decals. He said Wortman told him last year that RCMP were aware of his replica vehicle and had advised him that if he planned to take it onto the highway he would need to transport it on a trailer. Police confirmed Tuesday that the shooter was wearing an authentic police uniform. The force did not indicate how he came to acquire the uniform and did not respond to the Stars inquiries about it. Retired RCMP deputy commissioner Peter German said its possible to purchase uniforms online through military surplus-style stores. While sites like eBay do not permit the sale of uniforms, they do allow the sale of items like police patches. It is also possible that it was a discarded uniform. When Mounties retire theyre expected to turn in their uniforms or destroy them, he said. Yet another possibility is that the uniform was acquired from a collector. The thing to keep in mind, German said, is that possession is not illegal; its the act of impersonating an officer that is illegal. Is there any explanation yet for the killers actions? Police have said the killings appeared to be, at least in part, very random in nature. However there have also been other signs, that might suggest premeditation, including Wortmans donning of the police attire and vehicle. RCMP said Tuesday that, Some of the victims were known to Gabriel Wortman and were targeted while others were not known to him. We will not be providing more information on how the victims may have been known to Gabriel Wortman. What has the response been? The community of Portapique and the province of Nova Scotia have seen an outpouring of online support in the wake of the unprecedented mass shooting, with social media users posting #NovaScotiaStrong messages Sunday and Monday. Community members have been posting tributes about the people who lost their lives. In the morning hours, several people lined up along the road near an RCMP station, practising social distancing at the same time, to show their support. Nova Scotians, and others across Canada, lit candles Monday evening in grieving. Nova Scotia flags have also been unfurled and flown from porches and flagpoles across the province in a show of solidarity. The N.S. RCMP also launched an online condolences platform for the family and friends of Const. Heidi Stevenson, which can be accessed here. What happens now? RCMP are continuing their investigation into what happened. There are 16 crime scenes scattered across the province relating to the shootings, according to the RCMP. The provinces police watchdog is also involved. The Serious Incident Response Team has taken over the investigation of the shooting of the suspect, in addition to another incident related to the manhunt, according to the RCMP. The province's independent Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT) will investigate the circumstances surrounding the discharge of firearms by two members of the RCMP. This is an additional referral from the RCMP, SiRT said in a news release Monday. The circumstances of this investigation have not been explained further by SiRT or the RCMP. That team is responsible for investigating all serious incidents involving police in Nova Scotia, whether or not there is an allegation of wrongdoing. A public report into the incident must be filed within three months, after it is finished. With files from Douglas Quan, Evelyn Kwong and Star Staff. In a poignant incident, an orthopaedic surgeon had to bury his associate, a neurosurgeon who died of COVID-19 in Chennai, in the middle of the night using his bare hands and a shovel at a crematorium with the help of just two hospital wardboys after the undertakers fled when a mob, protesting the interment, attacked them. Their opposition was due to a misconception that the contagion may spread in their neighbourhood if the virus victim's burial took place. The windscreens of the ambulance in which the body of the 55-year-old neurosurgeon was brought to the crematorium on Sunday night were smashed and even the casket was not spared. They attacked the undertakers and coroporation sanitation officials, among others, using bricks, stones, bottles and sticks and chased them away. Seven people, including two ambulance drivers were assaulted resulting in severe injuries, police said. The sources said 20 men have been arrested and were remanded to judicial custody. Recounting with grief the attack that unfolded, Dr K Pradeep Kumar, an orthopaedic and arthroscopy surgeon, said, "This must not happen to anyone be it a doctor or a layman. I have seen people dying but I have not buried anyone and doing it was scary amid a fear for our lives." Though the private hospital authorities handed over the body to the sanitation officials last night, the ambulance carrying the remains did not start from there. "When we enquired why, we were told that people were opposing and holding a protest near Kilpauk," Pradeep said. He drove to that locality in his car to assess the situation and found people had gathered in large numbers and were agitated. Later, civic body officials made arrangements for burial at another crematorium at nearby Velangadu, and the ambulance headed there. "It may have been about 15 minutes since the excavator started work to dig a pit, when about 60-70 people armed with stones, bricks and sticks gathered inside the creamatorium and began attacking us. The two ambulance drivers who were shifting the body from the vehicle to the ground sustained severe injuries," Pradeep said. Also, two sanitation officials who were in charge of the burial were injured severely and three others were also attacked, he said. To a question, the doctor said there were no police officials around and the wife of the deceased and his teenage son were also forced to leave the crematorium. "Though injured, the ambulance drivers Dhamu and Anand were brave enough to place the casket again in the vehicle and I asked them to leave the place and I followed them in my car," he said, adding he escaped from attack due to god's grace. The ambulance drivers somehow managed to reach the hospital of the deceased and left the vehicle there. Dr Pradeep said he picked up personal protective equipment, took two wardboys with him for help and drove the ambulance himself to the crematorium again after seeking police help. "Both the drivers suffered deep cuts on their scalp, requiring multiple sutures and had contusion too and I got them admitted to Kilpauk government hospital," he added. When he reached the crematorium again, the orthopaedic surgeon saw police deployment in the periphery though there were still people out milling around. "Only an eerie silence and there were none inside the burial ground. The wardboys and I hurriedly lowered the body into the pit as we were afraid that the violence may be repeated." Though they placed the body on the ground, they had no one to help them to fill the grave with sand. "There was just one shovel which I gave to one of the ward boys and two of us used our hands to fill the about 8-10 feet pit. It took over an hour for us to complete the task and by then it was about 1.30 am (Monday)," he said, adding a policeman lent a helping hand towards the end. "Even policemen were afraid of coming near us." Dr M Arunmozhirajan, a friend of the victim, who had to beat a hasty retreat from the crematorium, said "This is due to ignorance; people need to be educated that a body when buried poses no threat." An assistant professor at a government hospital, he wanted authorities to ensure that such instances do not get repeat. Local Administration Minister S P Velumani said it was inhuman to obstruct the burial of a doctor who worked for the people and assaulting people involved in the burial like corporation workers caused grief. He asserted that tough action will be taken against such elements and added that those involved in the attack have been arrested. Tamil Nadu Government Doctors Association president Dr K Senthil demanded slapping of the stringent Goondas Act on those who unleashed violence. Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said: "Saluatations to the doctor for his exemplary service in the fight against COVID-19. Let us stand by each and every healthcare worker, they are the real heroes." Dr J Amalorpavanathan, formerly convener, Cadaver Transplant Programme, Tamil Nadu government, said "A dead person cannot sneeze or cough or breathe. So all ways of infection spread stops the moment a person dies.Viral replication also stops. Skin may contain viral particles. So long as there is no touch , there is zero per cent chance of infection spread." Two Syrian ex-intelligence officers accused of crimes against humanity will appear before a German court this week, in the first such trial over state-sponsored torture in Syria. Here is a roundup of the other international investigations and actions that have been launched into alleged crimes by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Germany In March 2017 seven Syrian torture survivors, two lawyers and a human rights group filed a criminal complaint against secret service officials of Assads regime. In September the same year the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) said nearly 27,000 photos taken by a former Syrian military photographer who fled the country had been turned over to German courts. Two months later the ECCHR announced two new appeals for crimes against humanity and war crimes had been filed by 13 Syrians for acts of torture by 17 senior officials, including the defence minister and the military prosecutor for their alleged involvement in abuses at the infamous Saydnaya prison near Damascus. In June 2018 German prosecutors reportedly issued an international arrest warrant for top Syrian intelligence officer Jamil Hassan, accused of overseeing the torture and murder of hundreds of detainees. In February 2019, former Syrian intelligence officers Anwar Raslan and Eyad Al-Gharib were arrested in Germany as part of a French-German investigation. The trial of these two men opens Thursday in the western German city of Koblenz, and is expected to run at least until August. France A French court opened in 2016 an investigation into the disappearance of Mazen Dabbagh and his son Patrick, two French-Syrian nationals who had been arrested in Syria three years earlier. In connection with the probe, France issued in 2018 its first international arrest warrants for three senior Syrian intelligence officials for complicity in acts of torture, complicity in crimes against humanity and complicity in war crimes. The warrants were for National Security Bureau director Ali Mamluk, Jamil Hassan, and Abdel Salam Mahmoud, in charge of the Air Force Intelligence investigative branch at the Mezzeh military airport in Damascus. In February 2019 Abdulhamid C., a former Syrian soldier suspected of complicity in crimes against humanity, was arrested in France on the same day as Raslan and Gharib in Germany. A year later Abdulhamid C. was released under judicial supervision for lack of evidence. Spain In July 2017, a Spanish court rejected a complaint filed by a Spanish woman of Syrian origin against nine Syrian regime officials for the forced detention, torture and alleged execution of her brother in 2013. UNs international mechanism In 2016 the United Nations set up its International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism, which is also preparing war crimes charges against individuals over the Syrian conflict. Since April 2018, the UN body has been gathering evidence for use in possible future trials of those alleged responsible for crimes against humanity. It contains more than a million items, including documents, photographs, videos, satellite images, statements from victims and witnesses, and unclassified documents. Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen extraction have killed an Inspector with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corp (NSCDC) in Benue State. He is Inspector Joseph Ochogwu, an Idoma man from Benue South senatorial zone. The Commandant of Corps in the state, Mr. Isah Kamilu Ado, confirmed the killing during the handing over of over 460 cows belonging to Fulani herdsmen that were impounded by the Livestock Guards for violating the anti-grazing law of the state. Mr. Ado said Inspector Ochogwu was killed in Guma Local Government Area in his line of duty, a fortnight ago. The NSCDC chief stated that already, an investigation panel has been set up to unravel the dastardly murder of the gallantly officer whose corpse, he said, had been deposited in the mortuary awaiting burial on April 30. He disclosed that the North Central Zonal Chairman of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Alhaji Danladi Ciroma, was cooperating with the corps to apprehend the perpetrators for possible prosecution. Zonal Chairman of MACBAN, Alhaji Ciroma, who also confirmed the killing of the NSCDC officer, said Ochogwu was murdered while trying to ensure peace in the state. PV: 0 The Delhi Police received over 900 calls on its 24x7 helpline number from 2 pm on Sunday and the same time on Monday, seeking assistance on issues faced during the lockdown, officials said. A total of 25,680 calls were received by the police on its helpline (011-23469526) till Monday, they said. Police received 969 calls from Sunday 2 pm to Monday 2 pm. Out the of 969 calls, fifty-three calls were related to areas outside Delhi, which were referred to the respective state helpline numbers. Eight calls were related to no food or no money, which were forwarded to NGOs. A total of 781 calls were related to movement passes, police said. The helpline also received calls related to other issues. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. With having published myriads of reports for global clients, Future Market Insights exhibits its expertise in the market research field. Our dedicated crew of professionals rides the wave of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, and big data analytics, to project the adoption pattern and consumption trends regarding the market. A three-step quality check process - data collection, triangulation, and validation is paramount while assuring the authenticity of the information captured. Global DIY Haircut Kits Market Report The latest business intelligence study by FMI suggests that the global market size of DIY Haircut Kits reached US$ xx Mn/Bn in 2018(Base Year) and is anticipated to registerUS$ xx Mn/Bn by the end of 2029 with a CAGR of xx% from 2019 to 2029(Forecast period).The research study focuses on the drivers, restraints, opportunities and trends impacting the DIY Haircut Kits Market. All the relevant vendors running in the DIY Haircut Kits Market are examined based on market share and product footprint. Key players include Koninklijke Philips N.V., Wahl Clipper Corporation, Spectrum Brands, Inc., Remington), Procter & Gamble (Braun GmbH). The data associated with each market player includes: Company Profile Main Business Information SWOT Analysis Sales, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin Purchase reports by today to avail discount offer!!! Download Sample Copy@ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-11285 Product Type-wise Segmentation Assessment: Clipper & Trimmer Kit Scissors Set Price Range-wise Segmentation Assessment: High/Premium Mid-Range/ Economy End user-wise Segmentation Assessment: Salon/Professional Personal/Home-Care Sales Channel-wise Segmentation Assessment: Modern Trade Departmental Stores Specialty Stores Franchise Outlet Online Stores Other Request for covid19 Impact Analysis: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/covid19/rep-gb-11285 Regional Analysis North America Latin America Europe East Asia South Asia & Pacific Middle East & Africa (MEA) The DIY Haircut Kits Market research also takes into account the important countries that hold significant share in the respective regions, such as India, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand and Rest of South Asia & Pacific, among others. Get Full Access of the Report @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/diy-haircut-kits-market What does the DIY Haircut Kits Market research holds for the readers? Market segmentation assessment, including qualitative and quantitative research depicting the impact of economic and non-economic factors. Breakdown of each DIY Haircut Kits Market player as per mergers & acquisitions, R&D projects, and product launches. Leading regions holding significant share in the global DIY Haircut Kits Market along with the key countries. One to one company profile of prominent stakeholders. Critical study of each DIY Haircut Kits manufacturer, such as market share, regional footprint, and product innovations. The DIY Haircut Kits Market research clears away the following queries: Why region holds the largest share in the DIY Haircut Kits Market over the forecast period? Why are stakeholders shifting away from conventional methods for manufacturing DIY Haircut Kits? In which year, the global DIY Haircut Kits Market has the lowest Y-o-Y growth rate? At what rate has the global DIY Haircut Kits Market been growing throughout the historic period 2014-2018? By end use segment, which segment currently leads the global DIY Haircut Kits Market? And many more Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. With having published myriads of reports for global clients, Future Market Insights exhibits its expertise in the market research field. Our dedicated crew of professionals rides the wave of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, and big data analytics, to project the adoption pattern and consumption trends regarding the market. A three-step quality check process - data collection, triangulation, and validation is paramount while assuring the authenticity of the information captured. Global Plastic Caps & Closures Market Report The latest business intelligence study by FMI suggests that the global market size of Plastic Caps & Closures reached US$ xx Mn/Bn in 2018(Base Year) and is anticipated to registerUS$ xx Mn/Bn by the end of 2029 with a CAGR of xx% from 2019 to 2029(Forecast period).The research study focuses on the drivers, restraints, opportunities and trends impacting the Plastic Caps & Closures Market. All the relevant vendors running in the Plastic Caps & Closures Market are examined based on market share and product footprint. Key players include Berry Global Inc, Amcor Plc, Silgan Plastics, Aptar, Inc, and Closure Systems International, Inc. The data associated with each market player includes: Company Profile Main Business Information SWOT Analysis Sales, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin Download Sample Copy@ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-1205 Purchase reports by today to avail discount offer!!! Type-wise Segmentation Assessment: Screw Closures Snap Closures Push-Pull Closures Others Material-wise Segmentation Assessment: Thermoplastics PE LDPE/LLDPE HDPE PP Others(PS, PET, etc) Thermosets Ask an Analyst @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/ask-the-analyst/rep-gb-1205 End use-wise Segmentation Assessment: Beverage Non-Carbonated Drinks Alcoholic Beverages Bottled Water Fruit Beverages Ready-to-drink Beverages Sports Drinks Carbonated Drinks Food Pharmaceuticals Household Cosmetics & Personal Care Others (chemicals & Fertilizers, etc.) Regional Analysis North America Latin America Western Europe Eastern Europe Middle East & Africa Asia Pacific excluding Japan Japan The Plastic Caps & Closures Market research also takes into account the important countries that hold significant share in the respective regions, such as Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and the rest of Latin America, among others. Get Full Access of the Report @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/plastic-caps-and-closures-market What does the Plastic Caps & Closures Market research holds for the readers? Market segmentation assessment, including qualitative and quantitative research depicting the impact of economic and non-economic factors. Breakdown of each Plastic Caps & Closures Market player as per mergers & acquisitions, R&D projects, and product launches. Leading regions holding significant share in the global Plastic Caps & Closures Market alongwith the key countries. One to one company profile of prominent stakeholders. Critical study of each Plastic Caps & Closures manufacturer, such as market share, regional footprint, and product innovations. The Plastic Caps & Closures Market research clears away the following queries: Why region holds the largest share in the Plastic Caps & Closures Market over the forecast period? Why are stakeholders shifting away from conventional methods for manufacturing Plastic Caps & Closures? In which year, the global Plastic Caps & Closures Market has the lowest Y-o-Y growth rate? At what rate has the global Plastic Caps & Closures Market been growing throughout the historic period 2014-2018? By end use segment, which segment currently leads the global Plastic Caps & Closures Market? And many more New Delhi: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday (April 20) urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to know the rationale behind the formation of six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to assess the enforcement of lockdown norms in states due to outbreak of coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The Chief Minister sought to know the criteria for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". She took to social media to say, "We welcome all constructive support & suggestions, especially from the Central Govt in negating the #Covid19 crisis. However, the basis on which Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including few in WB under Disaster Mgmt Act 2005 is unclear." Banerjee further tweeted, "I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism." I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism. (2/2) Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 20, 2020 The Centre has constituted six IMCTs for on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal. A home ministry spokesperson said, "The IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures as per guidelines, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, safety of health professionals and conditions of relief camps for labourers and poor people." Recently, the central government had flagged the "gradual dilution" of the lockdown norms in West Bengal. In the past 24 hours, West Bengal has reported 54 fresh cases of COVID-19, taking the total number of active cases in the state to 245. A total of 330 people have tested positive for the deadly disease in the state so far, according to the state health department. Of them, 12 have succumbed to the disease, and 73 have been discharged after recovery, the department said. Earlier in the day, the Centre has said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures risks the spread of the novel coronavirus further. The Union Home Ministry also announced that six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) will visit these identified areas in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan within the next three days to make on-the-spot assessment and recommend remedial measures in a report to the Centre. CHICO, Calif. The coronavirus has our economy on life support. On Thursday, President Donald Trump gave governors a three-phase plan on 'Opening Up America Again.' Action News Now spoke to community members on what they think about reopening the economy. I think it's really important that we open the economy to some level because people do need to get back to their jobs and it's important to have businesses and support local business, but to do this I do believe that there need to be strict social distancing protocols, Tiana Lewis, a community member said. The state is still weeks away from determining a timeline for reopening the economy. "I'm just worried about what the repercussions for when we reopen and how it's going to look, are our jobs going to be there?" Sonia Perry, a community member said. On Thursday, President Trump announced, Governors will be empowered to tailor their approach to the situation near them. Governor Gavin Newsom is working with the governors of Oregon and Washington on a plan for reopening the West Coast. RELATED: Washington, Oregon, California announce coronavirus pact I'm kind of in the middle, its a good thing because people need to get back to work and I know people are kind of having a hard time right now a bad thing in a way we have to control this virus, kind of keep it where it's at, we are not caught up yet so I dont think we're out of the woods quiet, Steven Dalessio, a community member said. The World Health Organization and the CDC both said social distancing is the best way to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But is everyone following the guidelines? Community members told Action News Now they have seen some people practicing social distancing, while others are not. Well I think its a mixed bag, you look around and you see some people going the whole hog and then you see some people not doing it at all, and I think thats probably the way our country goes, people have their own ideas on what constitutes the appropriate way to comport yourself, Laurie Carr, a community member said. Newsom said opening the economy centers on science and data and puts public health ahead of political pressure to get the economy up again. RELATED: California governor gives outline for lifting virus closures "I think its a good idea, and I respect people's rights to protest, however, I also support what our governor is trying to do and that is to do it thoughtfully, and with science to back it up," Carr said. Newsom said the worst mistake he could make is to open the state prematurely. Yes, I believe it is being practiced by most responsible adults, I have a lot of concerns about the teenagers who think they are invisible and dont really care about anybody else, "Ann Rahlp, a community member said. "I have some concerns about adults, especially taking their children out into public without wearing a mask." Photo: The Canadian Press Canadian Armed Forces personnel arrive at the Villa Val des Arbes seniors residence, Monday, in Laval, Que. The latest news on the COVID-19 global pandemic (all times Eastern): 12:04 p.m. Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Canada has been testing more than 20,000 people a day for COVID-19 over the last few days. Tam said more than 555,000 people have now been tested, resulting in 36,216 confirmed cases as of this morning. 12 p.m. Nova Scotia is reporting 46 new cases of COVID-19 for a total of 721 confirmed cases. Health officials say there are nine licensed long-term care homes and unlicensed seniors' facilities with cases of the virus, involving 127 residents and 61 staff. There have been nine deaths in the province and the provincial health lab has registered 21,769 negative test results. The province says 12 people are currently in hospital, with four of those patients in intensive care, while 248 people have now recovered and their cases of COVID-19 are considered resolved. 11:45 MPs are back in the House of Commons after the four main parties failed to reach consensus on keeping Parliament adjourned. Now, a motion put forward by the Liberal government to sit once a week in person, and virtually otherwise, is being debated. The Liberals have the support of the NDP and Bloc Quebecois for their proposal. But the Conservatives disagree, saying more in-person debate and discussion of the government's COVID-19 response is necessary. 11:38 am. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says it is "heartbreak on top of heartbreak" when families whose loved ones were killed in Nova Scotia on Sunday cannot gather to mourn because of the COVID-19 physical distancing rules. Trudeau says it is the same heartbreak felt by thousands of other Canadians who have lost loved ones to the virus, or to cancer or other illnesses. He says there will be a virtual vigil on Friday night for all of Canada to support the community. 10:40 a.m. Ontario is reporting 606 new cases of COVID-19, the largest single-day increase, and 31 new deaths. Despite the large increase, the new total of 11,184 cases is just 5.7 per cent higher than the day before, continuing a relatively low growth trend. The total includes 584 deaths and 5,515 resolved cases. The number of people in hospital confirmed to have COVID-19 and those on a ventilator went down slightly, while the number of people in intensive care remained stable. 10:17 a.m. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says Parliament will reopen this morning. He is blaming the NDP and Bloc Quebecois for siding with the Liberals in trying to limit debate and discussion around the government's COVID-19 response. All three parties have agreed to a single in-person sitting per week that can eventually be supplemented with virtual sittings. But Scheer says that's not enough, and it is possible for Parliament to safely meet more often. Without a unanimous agreement, Parliament simply resumes as normal though not all 338 MPs have to be present. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 14:22:52|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Unidentified gunmen shot dead a policeman in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said on Monday. The policeman was attacked Sunday night at his residence in Hiller Shahabad village of Anantnag district, about 60 km south of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir. "Last night militants barged inside the house of a policeman at Hiller and fired upon him from a point-blank range. Though he was immediately rushed to the hospital, he succumbed there," a police official posted in Anantnag said. Reports said the gunmen escaped from the spot following the attack. Government forces cordoned off the area to launch massive searches for the assailants. The police blamed militants for the attack, while no militant outfit has claimed responsibility for the killing. Militants attacked a patrol party of India's Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in region's Sopore area on Saturday, killing three personnel and wounding two others. The attacks come at a time when the entire Indian-controlled Kashmir is under lockdown in wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. A guerrilla war is going on between militants and Indian troopers stationed in the region since 1989. However, of late Indian policemen too have been trained to fight them. Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir. Enditem Deutsche Borse (ETR:DB1) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has had a great month, posting a 38% gain, recovering from prior weakness. The full year gain of 18% is pretty reasonable, too. All else being equal, a sharp share price increase should make a stock less attractive to potential investors. 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 some would prefer to hold off buying when there is a lot of optimism towards a stock. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock 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. View our latest analysis for Deutsche Borse How Does Deutsche Borse's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers? We can tell from its P/E ratio of 25.50 that there is some investor optimism about Deutsche Borse. As you can see below, Deutsche Borse has a higher P/E than the average company (21.0) in the capital markets industry. XTRA:DB1 Price Estimation Relative to Market April 20th 2020 Its relatively high P/E ratio indicates that Deutsche Borse 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 delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling. How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios P/E ratios primarily reflect market expectations around earnings growth rates. When earnings grow, the 'E' increases, over time. That means unless the share price increases, the P/E will reduce in a few years. A lower P/E should indicate the stock is cheap relative to others -- and that may attract buyers. Most would be impressed by Deutsche Borse earnings growth of 23% in the last year. And earnings per share have improved by 5.7% annually, over the last five years. With that performance, you might expect an above average P/E ratio. Story continues 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. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. Hypothetically, a company could reduce its future P/E ratio by spending its cash (or taking on debt) to achieve higher earnings. 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). Is Debt Impacting Deutsche Borse's P/E? Deutsche Borse has net debt worth just 4.4% of its market capitalization. The market might award it a higher P/E ratio if it had net cash, but its unlikely this low level of net borrowing is having a big impact on the P/E multiple. The Verdict On Deutsche Borse's P/E Ratio Deutsche Borse's P/E is 25.5 which is above average (17.2) in its market. Its debt levels do not imperil its balance sheet and it is growing EPS strongly. So on this analysis it seems reasonable that its P/E ratio is above average. What we know for sure is that investors have become much more excited about Deutsche Borse recently, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 18.5 to 25.5 over the last month. For those who prefer to invest with the flow of momentum, that might mean it's time to put the stock on a watchlist, or research it. But the contrarian may see it as a missed opportunity. Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. People often underestimate remarkable growth -- so investors can make money when fast growth is not fully appreciated. So this free report on the analyst consensus forecasts could help you make a master move on this stock. You might be able to find a better buy than Deutsche Borse. 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. Toward the end of her life, my mother spent time in three different Albuquerque nursing homes. At two of them, I was impressed by the kindness and professionalism of the staff. As for the third well, lets just say that I arrived at a new appreciation of the corners that can be cut in pursuit of profits from Medicare reimbursements. Weve been hearing a lot recently about the trade-off between efficiency and resiliency in supply chains for everything from medical masks to toilet paper. Here in America, with our love of efficiency and just-in-time deliveries, weve built a distribution system thats second to none as long as trade wars and pandemics dont intervene. Nursing homes represent a related kind of business brittleness, being designed to provide essential services at a controlled cost in a predictable and safe way, provided no epidemic disease breaks out. Of course, everyone in the medical field knows what measures must be taken to prevent the spread of contagious disease in a confined space such as a nursing home. But those measures cost money. The urgent need to implement them drives a wedge between the two legitimate goals of management: patient care and cost containment. In late March, Maria Krier, a nurse at Life Care Center of Nashoba Valley, a nursing home outside Boston, went public with her concerns about the facilitys handling of the virus, according to The Boston Globe. When local health officials sought information from the Life Care Center, they were stonewalled, in the blunt wording of an official press release. (The name Life Care Center may ring a bell. The same Tennessee-based company also owns the Kirkland, Washington, nursing home that was ground zero for the virus in America.) Krier, the whistleblowing nurse, died of the novel coronavirus on April 10. On the same day, the Nashoba Valley facility announced the 10th coronavirus death among its residents. Nationwide, the number of nursing home residents who have died of the coronavirus is already in the thousands as I write this, and will doubtless be much higher by the time you read it. In response to the exigencies of the pandemic, the nursing home industry in Florida has marshaled its resources to seek legal immunity for its wrongful acts. USA Today reports that the Florida Health Care Association sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis this month requesting immunity from any liability, civil or criminal for acts committed during the pandemic. Seeking a pardon in advance for future crimes is an innovative business strategy. The Mafia should try it, too. Earlier this month, as the virus was spreading and nursing home administrators were finding ever more ingenious ways to respond badly, the New Mexico Supreme Court delivered an opinion dealing with claims against nursing homes. The case, Peavy v. Skilled Healthcare Group, involved a contract provision that forced a patients claims into arbitration while allowing the nursing home to use the courts to sue the patient for unpaid bills. Now, the only reason the nursing home would write a contract giving itself access to the courts, while denying equivalent access to patients and their families, is because it considered courts a more efficient method for extracting money. The nursing home wanted to be able to use government institutions to squeeze every last penny out of patients or their bereaved families, and to prevent patients and families from turning the tables. The state Supreme Court analyzed the contract in abstract terms, discussing the fuzzy concept of substantive unconscionability. I think it should have been outraged on behalf of New Mexicos trial judges, who were being asked to act as enforcers for a California corporation while closing their courtrooms to injured New Mexicans. The Peavy case is the third time the exact same contract provision has come before New Mexicos appellate courts in the past decade. In none of the cases did the courts enforce the provision, but in each they dithered about what should happen instead. The Peavy opinion continues the dithering tradition. In the recent movie of Little Women, theres a scene in which an editor takes a pencil to one of Jos stories, crossing out entire pages. If only we could hire that editor for the New Mexico Supreme Court! Three-quarters of the words in the Peavy opinion could be struck out without changing its meaning. Unfortunately, even in edited form its meaning would remain wishy-washy: the one-sided arbitration clause wasnt enforceable in this particular case, although maybe in another case it might be. In the meantime, nursing homes can continue using the contract language to bluff New Mexicans out of exercising their legal rights. Joel Jacobsen is an author who in 2015 retired from a 29-year legal career. If there are topics you would like to see covered in future columns, please write him at legal.column.tips@gmail.com. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday (April 20) said that the mob lynching of three men, including two sadhus, was an unfortunate incident, stressing that his government will ensure that those involved in this heinous crime get maximum punishment. CM Thackeray said that the men wanted to go to Surat in Gujarat from Maharashtra and they were stopped by police personnel at Dadra and Nagar Haveli and were asked to return to Maharashtra due to the nationwide lockdown. According to the Maharashtra CM, the three men then decided to take a route which passed through a village in order to enter the Gujarat border. CM Thackeray said that the men were lynched by villagers because of the rumours that they were thieves but the police have taken strict action and over 100 people have been arrested so far in connection with this case. The Maharashtra CM noted that the incident is not communal and no one should try to do politics over this matter. The Shiv Sena chief also said that he has talked to Union Home Minister Amit Shah over this incident and the latter has assured full cooperation to the state government for a fair probe in this case. Palghar Police said that 110 accused ( of local tribal community) have been arrested out of which 9 are juvenile. The probe is handed over to CID Crime and IG Konkan is directed to enquire into police action. Two police officers are suspended for dereliction of duty. In the case of mob lynching, till now 110 accused ( of local tribal community) have been arrested out of which 9 are juvenile. Investigation is handed over to CID Crime. IG Konkan is directed to enquire into police action. Two police officers are suspended. Palghar Police (@Palghar_Police) April 20, 2020 On Sunday (April 20), Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh had said that a high-level probe had been ordered into the Palghar mob lynching incident in which three people were killed by a rampaging mob armed with axe and stick on Thursday night. "Police have detained 101 people involved in the killing of three Surat-bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered a high level inquiry into these killings, Deshmukh tweeted. The Maharashtra Home Minister, however, warned the people against giving any communal colour to the incident and said that the police should keep an eye over those who will try to use this incident to create division in the society. The shocking incident occurred when these men were travelling from Mumbai's Kandivali towards Surat in Gujarat in a car to attend a funeral on Thursday night. Their vehicle was stopped by a mob and the trio were lynched on suspicion that they were thieves. The villagers also attacked the police personnel when they tried to stop the rampaging mob and some policemen also sustained injuries in the incident. Hollywood Filmmaker James Gunn has a reputation of constantly interacting with his fans on social media, even responding to Marvel fan theories and giving away details about his superhero franchise films like Guardians of The Galaxy and The Suicide Squad. Recently, Gunn has dropped a bomb on the fans of GOTG series as he confirmed a death" in the upcoming third installment. Gunn, however, did not confirm which superhero or character from the film series will see its end in GOTG 3. Gunn also confirmed that he has no plans of making a fourth GOTG film. During a recent Q&A session on Instagram, when asked by a fan, Will someone die in gogt 3? Gunn replied, Yes". About a fourth GOTG film, he said, Planned to do a trilogy from the beginning if the first one worked out. No plans to do a fourth." GOTG Vol 1 and 2 made household names of such characters as Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) and Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel). It will be heartbreaking to see any of these characters die in the third installment, but Gunn has confirmed this eventuality as of now. Follow @News18Movies for more Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here Cross River State has appealed for funding from the federal government to enable it to shut the borders with Nigerias neighbour, Cameroon, because of coronavirus. There has been no confirmed case of coronavirus in Cross River State. Meanwhile, Cameroon has over 1,000 confirmed cases. We are at the Pre-COVID-19 state and we dont have the same needs as other states. All state should not be treated same, Betta Edu, the head of the Cross River State COVID-19 Response Taskforce, stated this on Sunday in Calabar, while briefing reporters. Our need, for the time being, is not a 300 bed Isolation center or 100 ventilators, what we need now is funding to completely shut our borders to Cameroon with over 1,000 cases and (other Nigerian) states that have recorded many cases. Mrs Edu, a medical doctor, is also the commissioner of health in Cross River State. She said the Cross River State government is spending millions of naira daily at the borders paying security task force, vigilante, community youth and others to run shift daily to ensure people do not cross the borders into the state from Cameroon or other Nigerian states. She said the cost and the burden of securing the borders is becoming too huge for Cross River and, therefore, there is an urgent need for the federal government to give the state some financial support. She said Cross River is hiring 1,000 Health Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers to do active case search in communities. The logistics for them to go round, their daily allowances and all of that has a huge cost on government and so we urgently need financial help, she said. Mrs Edu refuted media reports that Cross River State has received financial support from the federal government. I, as the state commissioner for health and also chairman of the COVID-19 Response Taskforce can boldly say that the state is yet to receive any support from NCDC or federal government, she said. We are at a critical point, we are appealing to the federal government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently support Cross River state financially. Mrs Edu said not everybody that sneezes is COVID-19 infected. She spoke on the criteria for obtaining samples for COVID-19 testing. There are laid down criteria and rules by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Federal Ministry of Health on who to take samples from. She said a suspected case earlier taken to the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital has a history of respiratory distress and that she did not meet the criteria, but since health workers were worried they had to take the sample. READ ALSO: Mrs Edu commended the governor of Cross River, Ben Ayade, for the sustainable palliative measures against the economic hardship caused by the coronavirus, especially the plan to hire 8,000 youth into the state employ. Mrs Edu said 2,000 persons, out of the 8,000, would be employed in the health sector to assist in surveillance. We will be recruiting 400 doctors, 600 nurses and 1,000 disease surveillance control officers who are expected to help in tackling Covid-19 and prevent community transmission, she said. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Gogglebox star Ellie Warner celebrated her 30th birthday in lockdown on Sunday, after a viewer backlash when she and sister Izzi watched hours of TV together in the same room, despite not living together. The sisters, from Leeds, were the talk of social media during the programme as disgruntled viewers hit out at Channel 4 for not practicing social distancing measures. But Ellie shrugged off the drama as she toasted her milestone birthday with a glass of champagne in a picture captioned: 'Happy 30th to me. cheers everyone.' Big day: Gogglebox star Ellie Warner celebrated her 30th birthday in lockdown on Sunday, after a viewer backlash when she and sister Izzi watched hours of TV together in the same room, despite not living together The star looked glamorous with her candyfloss streaked blonde locks styled in a chic half updo. Her pretty features were enhanced with fluttery lashes and rose gloss, while the TV star looked stylish in a low-cut printed top. Her Gogglebox co-star Izzi, 26, penned a loving tribute in honour of her birthday, sharing a series of throwback snaps of the pair on nights out, at awards ceremonies and as children. She wrote: 'Massive happy 30th birthday to my gorgeous big sister @ellie__warner the kindest and most generous person I know! Lockdown: The sisters, from Leeds, were the talk of social media during the programme as disgruntled viewers hit out at Channel 4 for not practicing social distancing measures Tribute: Her Gogglebox co-star Izzi, 26, penned a loving tribute in honour of her birthday, sharing a series of throwback snaps of the pair on nights out, at awards ceremonies and as children 'Not the way we planned on celebrating the occasion but we will defo make up for it once this lock down is over and if you cant milk your 30th for a full year then. 'love you infinity hope you enjoy your day relaxing, eating and having a great time #sistersister #dirtythirty #thirtyflirtyandthriving.' The pair were apparently in separate homes once more for Ellie's birthday as Izzi shared a snap of the sisters and their friends having a virtual party and quiz on video chat. The snap comes two days after fans were left fuming over the sisters apparently flouting lockdown rules by watching TV together. Fans of the show were expecting to see Ellie joined by her boyfriend Nat who had previously taken Izzi's place during the coronavirus lockdown, but Izzi was back with her sister on the most recent episode. Separated: The pair were apparently in separate homes once more for Ellie's birthday as Izzi shared a snap of the sisters and their friends having a virtual party and quiz on video chat One viewer tweeted: '@C4Gogglebox I could be wrong...? But if we are 25 days of lockdown as mentioned at the start of the programme tonight... how are the sisters, Ellie and Izzi sitting in the living room together? #SocialDistancing'. Another said: 'Ellie's boyfriend was stepping in for Izzi. So how come she's now back and mixing households? God what I would give to see my family!' Another viewer echoed the same sentiments and wrote: 'How is ellie and her sister allowed to visit and the Siddiqui boys dont live together? 'It doesn't matter if she is a metre apart still breaking the rules I miss mine like crazy but were isolating in our own houses with NO VISTING #stayathome'. Before: The sisters have sat noticeably closer together in previous episodes of the show Another viewer said: 'Ellie and Izzi had the audacity to slate Boris Johnson talking about the strain on the NHS when they've clearly broke the government guidelines to film a television programme #gogglebox'. The pair spoke about coronavirus during the episode, with Ellie asking: 'What are we going to do when we have to go back to work?' Izzi jokingly replied: 'I'm not, I've decided. I'm going to have to have another baby and have more maternity leave because coronavirus has s**t all over this one.' Reaction: Many viewers were unimpressed to see Ellie and Izzi back together again despite them both living in different households A spokesperson for Gogglebox told The Sun Online: 'Most of the families live together but where they don't, they are complying with PHE [Public Health England] social distancing guidelines. 'Gogglebox will only film with families where it's safe to do so. The health and safety of our cast and crew is paramount.' Under current guidelines, Britons are told not to visit family members who live outside their homes in order to slow the spread of the virus. Official advice from Public Health England states: 'Avoid gatherings with friends and family. Keep in touch using remote technology such as phone, internet, and social media.' A purported video of Congress legislator Rajendra Singh Bidhuri from Begun constituency in Rajasthan's Chittorgarh district has gone viral on social media, in which he is asking a woman to choose between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot before handing out a ration kit. The video was reportedly shot during a ration kit distribution programme at Soniyana village, Begun tehsil, on April 17 and has now gone viral, drawing criticism from Opposition leaders. In the video, the legislator is asking a woman over a microphone, "Who is good, Modi or Ashok Gehlot?" When the woman from the crowd said Modi, the MLA said, "Woh diya waala Modi (The one asked to light up diyas)... batao kaun achha, aap ko keh raha hu .....kya keh rahe ho Modi, toh phir diya jalao ration chod jao (Tell me who is good. I am asking you. Are you saying Modi? Now light diya and leave the ration here," while pointing his finger at the woman in the crowd. The MLA remained unavailable for comment despite repeated calls. The video invited sharp reaction on social media. BJP state president Satish Poonia called the act an example of how the Congress was discriminating against those who did not subscribe to their ideology. "The MLA has proved that Congress is playing the politics of appeasement and punishing those who don't support them," said Poonia. Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat also took to social media to condemn the incident saying the reaction of the Congress MLA showed his hatred towards Modi. Could EQT Holdings Limited (ASX:EQT) be an attractive dividend share to own for the long haul? Investors are often drawn to strong companies with the idea of reinvesting the dividends. Unfortunately, it's common for investors to be enticed in by the seemingly attractive yield, and lose money when the company has to cut its dividend payments. With a four-year payment history and a 4.7% yield, many investors probably find EQT Holdings intriguing. We'd agree the yield does look enticing. Remember though, given the recent drop in its share price, EQT Holdings's yield will look higher, even though the market may now be expecting a decline in its long-term prospects. There are a few simple ways to reduce the risks of buying EQT Holdings for its dividend, and we'll go through these below. Click the interactive chart for our full dividend analysis ASX:EQT Historical Dividend Yield April 20th 2020 Payout ratios Dividends are usually paid out of company earnings. If a company is paying more than it earns, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Comparing dividend payments to a company's net profit after tax is a simple way of reality-checking whether a dividend is sustainable. EQT Holdings paid out 85% of its profit as dividends, over the trailing twelve month period. Paying out a majority of its earnings limits the amount that can be reinvested in the business. This may indicate a commitment to paying a dividend, or a dearth of investment opportunities. We update our data on EQT Holdings every 24 hours, so you can always get our latest analysis of its financial health, here. Dividend Volatility One of the major risks of relying on dividend income, is the potential for a company to struggle financially and cut its dividend. Not only is your income cut, but the value of your investment declines as well - nasty. EQT Holdings has been paying a dividend for the past four years. The dividend has not fluctuated much, but with a relatively short payment history, we can't be sure this is sustainable across a full market cycle. During the past four-year period, the first annual payment was AU$0.68 in 2016, compared to AU$0.94 last year. Dividends per share have grown at approximately 8.4% per year over this time. Story continues The dividend has been growing at a reasonable rate, which we like. We're conscious though that one of the best ways to detect a multi-decade consistent dividend-payer, is to watch a company pay dividends for 20 years - a distinction EQT Holdings has not achieved yet. Dividend Growth Potential Dividend payments have been consistent over the past few years, but we should always check if earnings per share (EPS) are growing, as this will help maintain the purchasing power of the dividend. EQT Holdings has grown its earnings per share at 4.3% per annum over the past five years. Earnings are not growing quickly at all, and the company is paying out most of its profit as dividends. That's fine as far as it goes, but we're less enthusiastic as this often signals that the dividend is likely to grow slower in the future. Conclusion To summarise, shareholders should always check that EQT Holdings's dividends are affordable, that its dividend payments are relatively stable, and that it has decent prospects for growing its earnings and dividend. First, we think EQT Holdings has an acceptable payout ratio. Second, earnings growth has been ordinary, and its history of dividend payments is shorter than we'd like. In summary, we're unenthused by EQT Holdings as a dividend stock. It's not that we think it is a bad company; it simply falls short of our criteria in some key areas. It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. To that end, EQT Holdings has 3 warning signs (and 1 which shouldn't be ignored) we think you should know about. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of dividend stocks yielding above 3%. 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 Bahk Eun-ji Employees of the state-run railway operator manipulated the results of a customer satisfaction survey by pretending to be independent train users to boost customer satisfaction ratings ensuring they would receive larger bonuses, according to a government audit Monday. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said 208 employees of the Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) were allegedly involved in the satisfaction survey manipulation. Son Byung-seok, CEO of the Korean Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) /Yonhap The customer satisfaction survey is conducted at least once a year for citizens receiving public services in accordance with the Act on Management of Public Institution. The results are reflected in public institution's management performance evaluation indicators, which are also used as a standard for incentives. Among the total 1,438 survey responses, 222, accounting for 15.4 percent of the total were answered by the employees of the railroad company. Some staff pretended to be customers to deceive survey conductors and participated in the on-site survey two to three times. In particular, the office in Seoul was found to have intervened in the entire survey process including organizing staff to monitor the location of surveys and send messages in a group chat room to inform coworkers of the locations where the surveys were being conducted. In the case of Seoul, the transport ministry said it has confirmed that among the 191 responses collected, 136, or 71.2 percent were given by employees of the Seoul office. KORAIL headquarters in Daejeon. /Courtesy of KORAIL By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Asserting that no community spread of coronavirus has taken place in Delhi, Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Sunday, however, warned it could be a possibility as there are cases in which the government is not aware of the source. Jain said only experts can tell better if the community transmission of the disease has started. While experts can tell better if community transfer has started, there are cases in which we are not aware of the source. While it is not being said, it is possible. We spoke to the Central government as well. As of now, no community spread has happened in Delhi... However, it may spread if people continue to be with the community, he said. Stage 3 or local transmission is community transmission when infections happen in public and the source for the virus cannot be traced. Cases reported on Saturday were asymptomatic. Even 31 people from an extended family were not showing symptoms, Jain said. He also warned that asymptomatic patients dont have symptoms but can infect others. On dropping the mention of the Nizamuddin Markaz cases from the Delhi Health Bulletin, he said there have been no new cases from the Markaz in the last four days. With agency inputs Bookshops in Rome emerge from coronavirus lockdown earlier than most other stores. Bookshops in Rome and throughout Lazio are permitted to reopen during the coronavirus lockdown on 20 April, a week later than bookshops in most other Italian regions, following an order by the Lazio Region. We look at what the city's English language bookstores are doing: The Anglo American Bookshop, near the Spanish Steps, issued this statement: "When we reopen, for now, we kindly ask that you come by with specific titles in mind, as access to the store will be limited and browsing is momentarily not allowed. You can also call us during the week or email us, to have books available in store set aside for you before picking them up, for questions and/or orders. Your health is important to us! We kindly ask, when visiting our store, that you wear gloves and masks, and to respect social distancing, which is 1 to 2 metres." Read also: The Almost Corner Bookshop in Trastevere, will also ask customers to bear in mind social distancing measures when visiting. The store will reopen on 20 April, with opening hours of 12.00-18.00, and has stated that only one customer can be in the shop at any one time. The Open Door Bookshop, also in Trastevere, reopens from 21 April, with the following opening hours for now: Tuesdays and Thursdays 12.00-18.00. Otherwise, near Piazza Navona, is back from 20 April and will be open for business Monday to Saturday, 10.00-17.00. Customers must wear masks and will be admitted one at a time. Gloves will be provided. The shop says it will continue its home deliveries - a service it began during lockdown; for more information contact otherwisebookshop@gmail.com. Otherwise adds that its "post-apocalyptic fiction section has been moved to current affairs." Photo: Idealphotographer / Shutterstock.com Canadian province devastated as it reels from the deadliest mass shooting in the countrys history. Residents of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia were searching for answers on Monday, a day after a gunman dressed as a policeman went on a rampage, killing at least 18 people in the deadliest mass shooting in the countrys history. The motives of suspected gunman 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who was killed in an apparent confrontation with police on Sunday in Enfield, Nova Scotia, on Canadas east coast, remain unknown. Nova Scotia Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said there is in excess of 19 victims. The RCMP commissioner later said there were at least 18 victims. It was unclear whether Leathers figures included the gunman. The victims were all adults, both men and women. It appears that some of the victims were known to the suspect, Leather said during a news conference on Monday afternoon. He said police were investigating at 16 separate crime scenes in Portapique, where the shooting began, and other communities. Questions around how families, friends and communities will be able to mourn the dead during the COVID-19 pandemic with social distancing rules in place have also compounded many peoples grief. Nova Scotia is devastated, Mike Savage, the mayor of the provinces largest city, Halifax, said on Twitter on Monday morning. As we wait for more details of this horrific crime there is an ominous silence that is unprecedented in my lifetime. This will not define us as a Province, but it has shaken us to our core. The shooting began around 11:30pm on Saturday night in Portapique, Nova Scotia, a small, rural community about 130km (80 miles) north of Halifax, and it continued for several hours on Sunday in various locations. Wortman was disguised as a police officer and was using a car that closely resembled those used by members of the federal police force, the RCMP, local media reported. The victims An RCMP officer, Heidi Stevenson, was killed in the shooting. Stevenson was a 23-year veteran of the force and a married mother of two children. Two children have lost their mother and a husband his wife. Parents lost their daughter and countless others lost an incredible friend and colleague, Nova Scotia RCMP said in a statement on Sunday. I brought flowers to honour her memory and let the Stevensons know theres people here standing with them, and were going to keep them in our thoughts, Jesse Casavechia, who knew the family, told CBC News on Monday. Were devastated by this loss and I cant even imagine what theyre feeling. RCMP lights brighten a memorial placed earlier in the day by Dave Brown at Portapique, Nova Scotia, Canada, after a mass shooting [John Morris/Reuters] Lisa McCully, an elementary school teacher, was also among those killed. McCully was known not only as a passionate teacher, but as a shining love in the lives of her friends, family members, colleagues and students, said the Nova Scotia Teachers Union, which confirmed her death. There are no words to capture the loss Nova Scotia has suffered today. This is a devastating time for all communities affected across our province, NSTU President Paul Wozney said in a statement on Sunday. McCullys sister, Jenny Kierstead, said the familys hearts are broken by their loss. Our condolences go out to the other family members who are affected by this tragedy. Thank you for your support, its a hard day. Two healthcare workers veteran nurse Heather OBrien and continuing care assistant Kristen Beaton were also killed in the shooting, the Victorian Order of Nurses Canada (VON Canada), a non-profit medical charity, confirmed on Monday. OBrien was a wife, mother and grandmother who shared her deep caring of others as a VON nurse for nearly 17 years, the group said in a statement, while Beaton, a wife and mother, was caring and compassionate. We mourn their loss, and we mourn for their families, said VON Canada President and CEO Jo-Anne Poirier. Deadliest in Canadas history The shooting is the deadliest in Canadian history, surpassing 1989s Ecole Polytechnique massacre in Montreal, Quebec, which left 14 women dead. RCMP officers stand on Portapique Beach Road after Gabriel Wortman, a suspected shooter, went on a rampage in Nova Scotia [John Morris/Reuters] In a news conference on Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that such a tragedy should never have occurred. Violence of any kind has no place in Canada. We stand with you and we grieve with you, and you can count on our governments full support during this incredibly painful time, he said. Trudeau added that while the COVID-19 pandemic will prevent people from mourning together in-person, an online vigil for the victims will take place on Friday evening. As we learn more about what happened yesterday, its important that we come together to support communities. [April 20, 2020] Spherix Global Insights Donates $50,000 To Support Healthcare Workers and Vulnerable Patient Populations Battling the COVID-19 Pandemic EXTON, Pa., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Spherix Global Insights, the leading independent market intelligence firm in specialty biopharma markets, is giving back to the community with a donation of $50,000 across local and national healthcare organizations. Recent research conducted by the firm documented the massive toll COVID-19 is taking on physician practices and the grave concerns they have about some of their more vulnerable patients. The firm will be donating $25,000 to Chester County Hospital, which is part of Penn Medicine and serves the community in which Spherix's headquarters is located. Chester County Hospital offers a full range of inpatient and leading-edge sub-specialty services as well as outpatient care through its many satellite locations. The hospital is dedicated to the health and well-being of the people in its community. The donation will expand and accelerate coronavirus testing, provide resources to the physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals on the frontline, and be used toward other initiatives to combat the COVID-19 crisis in our area. Pennsylvania now ranks 5th in the nation for the number of coronavirus cases. "All of us are so grateful for the tremendous support we have been receiving from our local industries and businesses," said Michael J. Duncan, President and CEO, Chester County Hospital. "The donations that we have been given have gone a long way in supporting not only our frontline staff, but employees throughout the hospital who have been impacted by COVD." The other $25,000 will be split among five leading non-profit organizations: The American Kidney Fund, Crohn's and Colitis Foundation, Lupus Foundation of America, the Greater Delaware Valley Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and the American Academy of Dermatology. Contributions will aid in research, advocacy, education, and direct financial support to patients who may be at increased risk in these uncertain times. "People with lupus face multiple challenges from COVID-19. Their compromised immune system places them at higher risk for infection and fighting the virus. At the same time, they are encountering difficulties refilling their prescriptions of hydroxychloroquine, which prevents disease flares and keeps their immune system in balance," said Stevan W. Gibson, President and CEO, Lupus Foundation of America. "We applaud Spherix Global Insights for bringing attention to these urgent issues and for their support during this pandemic." Spherix has built a unique business model which allows the firm to self-fund their independent market research while providing clients and partners a service that is tailored to their specific business needs. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Spherix has been conducting ongoing research, which will continue through May, to assess COVID-19's impact on specialty physicians and their practices. "COVID-19 has had a rapid and devastating impact on our frontline healthcare providers and the patients they care for," says Jennifer Robinson, President of Spherix. "Clinically, financially, and psychologically, this virus is upending our healthcare system as we know it. Our entire team at Spherix felt passionately that we should give back, and we know that the organizations we have chosen will make sure the funds go where they can have the most impact on fighting COVID-19." About Spherix Global Insights Spherix Global Insights is a hyper-focused market intelligence firm that leverages our own independent data and expertise to provide strategic guidance, so biopharma stakeholders make decisions with confidence. We specialize in select immunology, nephrology, and neurology markets. Spherix was recognized by Philadelphia Business Journal as a 2019 Soaring 76 recipient for the fastest growing companies in the Greater Philadelphia area and by The Philadelphia Inquirer as an Entrepreneurs' Forum 2019 Philadelphia 100 Winner for the fastest growing privately-held companies in the Greater Philadelphia area. For more information contact: Matt Rigney, Senior Marketing Manager Email: [email protected] www.spherixglobalinsights.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spherix-global-insights-donates-50-000-to-support-healthcare-workers-and-vulnerable-patient-populations-battling-the-covid-19-pandemic-301042966.html SOURCE Spherix Global Insights [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The coronavirus pandemic is being seized on by the ruling elite to implement long-cherished plans to further erode UK pensionsa foretaste of massive austerity to come. A new report by the Social Market Foundation (SMF) urges the Conservative government to abandon the triple-lock mechanism, which afforded pensioners a measure of income protection. The triple-lock guarantees that state pensions increase each year, either by 2.5 percent, the average growth in wages in Britain, or the percentage growth in prices measured by the consumer price increasewhichever is the highest. Following this measure, pensions rose 3.9 percent in April, shadowing the rise in wages. Anticipating a deep slump precipitated by global lockdowns, rising unemployment and collapsing wages, the SMF suggests the government replace the triple-lock with a double-lock, eliminating any guarantee of a 2.5 percent annual pension increase. The SMF is a top 12 UK think tank. Favoured by former Conservative Prime Minister John Major, it was closely associated with the Blair Labour governments privatisation of public services. Current board members and policy advisors include Labour MP Dame Margaret Hodge and Stephen Kinnock, along with Tory MPs Tom Tugendhat, Laura Farris and Liberal Democrat Baroness Susan Kramer. Titled Intergenerational Fairness in the Coronavirus Economy, the report by SMF Research Director Scott Corfe is an argument for intergenerational warfare. Those of working age, he writes, bore the brunt of the 2008 financial crisis and are now shouldering the cost of the coronavirus pandemicit is time for old people to share the sacrifice. The current economic lockdown, he complains, is aimed at saving the lives of those at greatest risk, a group that is largely (but not exclusively) made up of older people As we emerge from the crisis, older generations must uphold their part of the contract by bearing a fair proportion of future tax rises and welfare reforms. Unsurprisingly, there is no suggestion that the obscene wealth of the financial oligarchy should be taxed or confiscated to meet urgent social needs. Instead, Corfe forecasts that Austerity Round Two is looming to pay for the 370 billion financial bailout in the governments Emergency Coronavirus Billmoney overwhelmingly funnelled to the banks and financial markets. The SMF dismisses hopes for a V-shaped recovery in favour of the sober outlook of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that the global economy will potentially suffer for years to come. Corfe warns of years of tax rises and spending cuts as we emerge from the crisis. Echoing US President Donald Trumps arguments for a return to work and profit making, Corfe writes, Some are starting to question whether the cure for coronavirus might be worse than the disease. In fact, according to the Office for National Statistics, 93 percent of the population support lockdown measures to contain the pandemic. But governments around the world are hellbent on enforcing a return to work despite the complete absence of mass testing, contact tracing, quarantining or the resources demanded by public health workers to treat the sick and dying. Corfe writes, It is deemed crass to put a price on life (or at least to talk about it the reality is that health care is rationed all the time on the basis of cost and whether treatment is worth it in terms of the perceived value of the quality-adjusted life years it adds). The SMFs macabre proposals are combined with lying claims that We have come together as a nation to protect our elderly and vulnerable. The cynicism is breath-taking. The toll of the Johnson governments herd immunity policy is over 16,000 dead the majority aged 65 years and 39 percent in the over-85 age group. Meanwhile, care homes for the aged have become killing fields. In the midst of immense human suffering, the SMF argues that Austerity Round Two must be sharedstarting with ending the triple lock on pensions, saving the treasury 200 billion over five years. The UK state pension is the lowest of any OECD country. The full weekly rate of the UK basic state pension is 134.25 a week. Men born after April 1951 and women born after April 1953 get the new state pension, up to a maximum 175.20. The Pension Policy Institute estimates, however, that only 45 percent of pensioners will qualify for the full amount . Couples fare the worstthe value of their state pensions decreased 20 percent, from 1994/95 to 2017/18. The triple lock was introduced in 2010 by the Tory/Liberal Democrat coalition government to sugarcoat plans to attack pensions. The government was determined to roll back so-called gold-plated pensions in the public sector, provoking the biggest strikes in the UK for decades. In December 2011, over 2 million public sector workers, including civil servants, teachers and lecturers in 37 trade unions, launched a 24-hour strike against proposed attacks to pensions. The subsequent climbdown by public sector unions means that public sector workers now work longer and pay more for inferior pensions. Further inroads into state pensions have included lifting the retirement age. Between 2010 and 2018, the age that women can apply for the state pension was raised to 65 from 60, and in 2020 it was lifted for both men and women to 66, with plans to raise it to 68 by 2039. The Conservative Partys 2017 manifesto proposed replacing the pension triple lock with a double lock by 2020, but this was shelved in a deal with the Democratic Unionist Party, after opposition from the Tories substantial pension-aged base. Commenting on the SMFs proposals, pensions expert Ian Browne at wealth management firm Quilter plc said, [I]t is rightly being brought up again as something that needs to be changed to ensure intergenerational fairness. With the increased borrowing from the government to help pay for the coronavirus lockdown, there has arguably never been a better time politically to replace the triple lock, Browne commented. The International Monetary Fund has long pressed the UK to abandon the triple lock and introduce means testing of pensions. An ageing population is viewed under capitalism not as a success storya product of improved public health under the post war welfare statebut as a non-productive drain on societys resources away from profits. / -- The International Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM), one of the leading and finest Hospitality Institutions in the country, created history with the first phase of the E-Chat Home Online Exam, on 14th, 15th and 16th April. Thousands of candidates appeared for the Online E-Chat exam from the comfort of their homes. The online process was extremely successful as enthusiastic students went through the test and video interview. With 10 campuses spread across India and the world, IIHM conducted the exam through each centre, seamlessly. The E-Chat Home Online exam brought a sense of relief and satisfaction to several families. Parents and students profusely thanked IIHM for giving them the assurance that their wards would be stepping into a secured future. Yohan Chanda, a candidate, said, "I completed my admission process into IIHM Bangalore campus and it was really amazing and gave me a lot confidence." Yohan's mother, Savitri Chanda said, "We are really thankful that IIHM is conducting the online exam even in the time of lockdown. It's a relief to know that life is moving on and securing a future for our children." Shruti Singh, another candidate said," I feel honoured to be a part of IIHM, my gmail handle has IIHM in its User ID. I want to thank IIHM for giving me this wonderful opportunity." Studying at IIHM is a wonderful opportunity that no student, passionate about Hospitality Management, would want to miss. After three years, students of IIHM pass out armed with an international BA in Hospitality Management degree from the University of West London, UK. They also have the option of obtaining a degree from IGNOU. With such a bright future ahead, every candidate who appeared for the E-Chat Home Online Exam is hopeful to get admission into IIHM. Malvi Maniya, who appeared for admission into IIHM Jaipur said, "The Online exam was a great experience and I am looking forward to and praying that I get admission into IIHM." Dipto Bhattacharya, appearing for IIHM Kolkata said, "I am really grateful to IIHM for conducting this online exam even in this crucial time." His father was impressed by the way the exam was conducted, "I am truly impressed by the way IIHM is continuing its work even in this time of countrywide pandemic and lockdown." Meenal appearing for IIHM Delhi said, "IIHM is the best institute for Hotel Management training and this big step for admission is great." Vikas Kondal appeared for the online exam for IIHM Goa, "At this time of lockdown when all schools and colleges are closed, IIHM's online entrance exam has provided opportunity to me." Anjali, IIHM Pune aspirant said, "The questions were challenging and the interview made me feel as if I am siting right across the interviewer." The second phase of the E-Chat Home Online Exam will be conducted on 22nd and 23rd April and the third phase will take place on 15th, 16th and 17th May, 2020. A glimpse of what India has to say can be seen at https://www.facebook.com/iihmhotelschool/videos/2968143816610037/ and at https://www.facebook.com/iihmhotelschool/videos/912807742507785/About IIHMIIHM (International Institute of Hotel Management) is the largest chain of premier hospitality and hotel management schools across India that started its journey in 1994 at Kolkata. IIHM is a part of Indismart Group, the conglomerate that operates the Indismart Hotels. IIHM campuses are located across ten national and international cities with the associate institute IAM-IHM located in Kolkata, and Guwahati. Students passing out of IIHM are armed with an international degree from the University of West London and equipped with global hospitality skills that enable easy placements in any hospitality brand across the world. IIHM is dedicated to its pursuit of excellence in teaching and placements. Real time experience is the key to success in hospitality and that makes the institute popular. In recent years, IIHM has been instrumental in organizing the Young Chef Olympiad, a unique idea and initiative inviting young culinary talents across the world to participate in the biggest cookery reality shows of all times. The institute has bagged several prestigious awards in the past 24 years. The list includes the Best Brand Award from Economic Times consecutively in 2017, 2018 and 2019. It was also featured in Forbes Magazine as Great Indian Institute and Great Place to Study consecutively in the year 2018 and 2019. IIHM was also awarded as one among the World's Greatest Brands & Leaders 2015-16 by URS International (IMEA - Process Reviewer PriceWaterhouseCoopers PL) and also received the Best Institute in Hospitality 2017 Award by Assocham from Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Hon'ble Minister of State for HRD (Higher Education), Govt. of India. For more information, please visit: http://www.iihm.ac.in Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1157182/IIHM_E_Chat.jpg Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1084107/IIHM_Logo. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Severe weather hit Florida on Monday after storms and tornadoes lashed a wide area of the South on Sunday into the overnight hours. A suspected tornado overturned a mobile home in south Alabama late Sunday, killing one person. Jerry Oliver Williams, 61, of Henry County died when the storm struck a rural area around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, Coroner Derek Wright said. A suspected twister resulted in one death in Marion County, Mississippi, Coroner Jessie Graham said. Jerry Johnson, 70, died when his home took a direct hit from the storm in the Sandy Hook community, Graham said. In south Georgia, the Wilcox County Sheriffs Office said lightning struck a rural home during a storm early Monday, causing a fire that killed one person. News outlets identified the victim as an elderly woman. Monday, four tornadoes were reported in north-central Florida, along with several reports of wind damage, the Storm Prediction Center said. The prediction center received more than 250 reports of possible tornadoes, high winds, hail and storm damage from east Texas to south Georgia on Sunday afternoon and evening. Teams from the National Weather Service will assess tracks to determine where tornadoes struck. As of Monday afternoon, tens of thousands of customers remained without power across the South, according to poweroutage.us. Penny Temples, a teacher at Lumberton High School, assesses damage April 20, the morning after a tornado struck Baxterville, Miss. After a mostly quiet day Tuesday, another round of severe weather is forecast to roll across the South on Wednesday and Thursday, AccuWeather said. "Showers and thunderstorms are expected to form by early Wednesday morning across portions of northern Texas and Oklahoma, but the threat for severe weather will increase into the afternoon as the atmosphere destabilizes," AccuWeather said. More severe weather: One week after deadly barrage, South braces for another wave of severe thunderstorms, tornadoes By Thursday, much of the Southeast will be next in line for the threat of damaging wind gusts, flash flooding, hail and even a few tornadoes. Story continues Last week during Easter Sunday, a series of tornadoes swept through the South. In last weeks barrage, more than 100 reported tornadoes left at least 36 dead across Mississippi, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, Tennessee and North Carolina. Contributing: Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY; The Associated Press This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tornadoes and storms: Severe weather lashes the South Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - An agreement between major pharmaceutical companies, Sanofi and the GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to produce a vaccine for the coronavirus has given details on how a vaccine to deal with the virus could be arrived at before July 2020 On Sunday, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh took to Twitter to make an announcement: his state, which was the first from the Northeast to report a coronavirus disease (Covid-19) positive case, is free from the viral outbreak, albeit temporarily. I am glad to share that Manipur is now coronavirus free. Both patients have fully recovered and have tested negative. There are no fresh cases of the virus in the state. This has been possible because of the cooperation of the public and medical staff and the strict enforcement of lockdown restrictions, he tweeted. Manipur, as well as the regions first Covid-19 patient, was a 23-year-old girl, who had tested positive in March upon her return from the United Kingdom (UK). She was discharged from the hospital on April 12 after she recovered from the viral infection, the CM said. On Sunday, the second patient from Manipur, a 65-year-old man, who returned to the state after attending the Tablighi Jamaats international congregation held at Nizamuddin in Delhi between March 13 and 15, was also declared to have recovered. The regions other states, which have recorded fewer cases in comparison to most parts of the country, are also announcing the recovery of their patients. The seven states from the Northeast, excluding Sikkim, have reported 52 Covid-19 positive cases to date. Assam topped the list with 35 cases, followed by Meghalaya at 11. Currently, Assam has 15 active cases and has also reported one death, a Jamaat follower. The lone Covid-19 positive person of Arunachal Pradesh has now been declared virus-free, state CM Pema Khandu tweeted last Friday. The process of discharging patients would continue and by the end of April we hope to release all Covid-19 patients from our hospitals, Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Sunday. Around 82% of cases in Assam are asymptomatic, the minister said. Earlier, we were collecting only throat swabs for tests, but now on we will be taking both throat and nasal swabs to ensure that there is better monitoring, Sarma said. Assam is also planning to use rapid testing kits in government-run hospitals to ensure that there is faster detection of cases after the kits are made available. The state has tested over 4,800 samples and the rate of testing has been 120 people per million. Tripura had recorded two Covid-19 positive cases and last week one of them -- a 45-year-old woman with a travel history to Guwahati -- was discharged from hospital. The other patient, a Tripura State Rifles jawan, is recovering well and is likely to be discharged soon. Mizoram was the second state in the region to record a Covid-19 case when a 50-year-old pastor, who had travelled to the Netherlands, tested Covid-19 positive on March 24, a day after the first case from the region in Manipur was reported. There is good news, as there is considerable improvement in the patient. He has no fever and we hope that he will fully recover within a few days, Mizoram health minister R Lalthangliana told HT over the phone from the state capital Aizawl. Nagaland has a unique distinction of its lone patient getting transferred to Assams tally. The 33-year-old Dimapur-based businessman was first listed in Nagalands tally but later transferred to Assam, as he tested Covid-19 positive in Guwahati. Meghalaya was the last state in the region to record a Covid-19 positive case after a 69-year-old doctor from the state capital, Shillong, contracted SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease, on April 13. Though the doctor died later, 10 people, including his family members and assistants, have tested Covid-19 positive. These are the only Covid-19 active cases in Meghalaya. Most states in the Northeast had sealed their interstate borders and also with neighbouring Bangladesh and Myanmar prior to the Central governments move to initially implement a 21-day nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19 outbreak from March 25 and further extend it by another 19 days till May 3. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON ABOUT THE AUTHOR Utpal Parashar Utpal is an assistant editor based in Guwahati. He covers all eight states of North-East and was previously based in Kathmandu, Dehradun and Delhi with Hindustan Times . ...view detail With each state knowing that the HRST is a proven way to identify those most at risk for serious consequences from illnesses such as COVID-19 via the Journal of Nursing Measurement, theyre empowered with action steps to help mitigate that risk, Dr. Escude says The rampant spread of COVID-19 shows that calculating risk factors for vulnerable populations is a matter of life and death. Thats proven in a study conducted by researchers at UNSW showing people with an intellectual and development disability (IDD) are twice as likely to die from a preventable death.(1) High-risk groups, like those with IDD, lack the ability for caregivers to perform simple risk assessments that could save lives. Though that is changing, as the Health Risk Screening, Inc.s Health Risk Screening Tool (HRST) for identifying risk in people with IDD has been endorsed by the Journal of Nursing Measurement.(2) According to Dr. Craig Escude, the president of Health Risk Screening, Inc., its never been more critical in understanding the risks of COVID-19 for this more vulnerable group of individuals, and even more important is being able to take steps to mitigate such risks. Healthcare professionals and caregivers are at a huge disadvantage in providing care for those with IDD during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Escude says. This leaves them helpless in assessing mortality risk and providing care for their patients and loved ones. IDD Health Risk Screening and Advocacy The time-tested HRST is a web-based tool currently used in 26 states that determines the mortality risk level of people with IDD to ensure that the support staff for these individuals know precisely when and how to act. The efficacy endorsement from the peer reviewed Journal of Nursing Measurement shines an important light on the growing use of the HRST. As the leading nursing journal, Journal of Nursing Measurement focuses on addressing instrumentation, tools, and approaches in regard to nursing, research practice, and education. The efficacy of the HRST to predict mortality was validated by a study of 12,582 people with IDD residing in the state of Georgia. The study results showed that the HRST can predict mortality through health risk assessment. Therefore, it can serve as a basis for establishing healthcare needs and determining nursing care acuity for people with IDD. When it comes to easily transmittable viruseslike COVID-19that may even lead to death, societys most vulnerable have always been at a much greater risk. But the current pandemic is revealing an acute problem, in which cities and states are putting those with IDD at an even greater risk. This can be seen in the pushback by disability advocates that have lodged complaints with the HHS Office for Civil Rights. The groups target the coronavirus response plans of several states that they claim would jeopardize people with disabilities.(3) Risk and Mortality with IDD and COVID-19 People with comorbiditieswhich can be prevalent among those with IDD, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Preventionmay be more susceptible to severe illness and death from COVID-19.(4) According to Dr. Escude, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities encounter five common challenges that put them at a higher risk for illnesses like COVID-19: 1. A higher percentage of people with disabilities have comorbidities, such as diabetes and other conditions 2. Some may have restrictions in their ability to take deep breaths or even cough effectively due to musculoskeletal issues 3. Those with higher rates of aspiration may have scarring of their lungs 4. Some habitually place items in their mouth, which can increase the risk of contact with infectious materials 5. Those who require frequent emergency department or medical visits may have increased exposure to people with illnesses Other leading experts on the topics of aging and intellectual disabilities agree that people with IDD are particularly vulnerable to adverse outcomes associated with COVID-19 due to having:(5) Several health conditions Low levels of health literacy Reliance on others for their care Smaller networks and less social support than the general population Reduced comprehension regarding the need for visiting restrictions Performing a health risk screening on someone with IDD determines their level of risk as well as provides actionable steps to mitigate that risk from a number of different conditions. This data can be used to reroute scarce human and financial resources to where they will be most effective. This not only lowers the risk for people with IDD, but it also helps lower the spread of COVID-19 for the general population. Furthermore, for those who have relied on the HRST prior to COVID-19, many are already seeing the advantages of having the resource available throughout the crisis, such as with the nonprofit organization, CADES (Children and Adult Disability and Educational Services). We implemented HRST two years ago, and it has been our foundation through this pandemic, and for that we are so grateful. Keep leading us! says Julie Alleman, MSS, the CEO of CADES. Such testimonials show just how beneficial the HRST tool can be when it comes to reducing risks for those already faced with the challenges of IDD, especially during such critical and uncertain times. We are all in this fight against COVID-19 together, Dr. Escude says. With each state knowing that the HRST is a proven way to identify those most at risk for serious consequences from illnesses such as COVID-19 via the Journal of Nursing Measurement, theyre empowered with action steps to help mitigate that risk. About Health Risk Screening, Inc. Health Risk Screening, Inc.s roots began in 1992. Along with training courses, webinars, and materials, HRS is the sole developer, producer, and distributor of the web-based Health Risk Screening Tool (HRST). The HRST is the most widely used and validated health risk screening instrument for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. HRSs focus is on developing tools and training for the person-centered support of such vulnerable populations. Through the education of government agencies and service providers, HRS aims to improve lives. With unrelenting focus, HRS works to fulfill its mission of improving the health and quality of life for people faced with these types of vulnerabilities. To learn more, visit http://www.hrstonline.com. 1. Dan Wheelahan. People with intellectual disability are twice as likely to die a preventable death, UNSW Sydney Newsroom, February 8, 2017, newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/health/people-intellectual-disability-are-twice-likely-die-preventable-death 2. Roszkowski, Michael J., PhD, Thomas, Michael M., MS, Conroy, James W., PhD, Ivy, Catherine, MS, LCSW, Gravitt, Gwendell W.Jr., PhD. An Examination of the Validity of the Health Risk Screening Tool: Predicting Mortality in People With Intellectual Disabilities, Journal of Nursing Measurement, Springer Publishing Company Connect, March 16, 2020, connect.springerpub.com/content/sgrjnm/early/2020/03/16/jnm-d-18-00088 3. Shaun Heasley. Trump Administration Says Disability No Reason To Deny COVID-19 Care, Disability Scoop, March 30, 2020, disabilityscoop.com/2020/03/30/trump-administration-says-disability-no-reason-to-deny-covid-19-care/28065/ 4. Blythe Bernhard. Coronavirus Brings Added Worries For People With Disabilities Disability Scoop, March 17, 2020, disabilityscoop.com/2020/03/17/coronavirus-brings-added-worries-disabilities/27989/ 5. Deborah Condon. COVID-19 and intellectual disabilities Particularly vulnerable group, Irishhealth.com, Mar 23, 2020, irishhealth.com/article.html?id=27072 Kano State Government has revealed complete arrangements to evacuate all Almajiri to their states of origin. Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano disclosed this on Sunday when he received a situation report from Taskforce and COVID -19 fundraising committees at the Government House in Kano. According to the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Ganduje said that the state government had set up a high-powered Almajiri committee under the leadership of commissioner for local government, Alhaji Murtala Garo. We closed all schools in the state to curb the spread of the pandemic but we found out that the existence of Almajiri schools is constituting a stumbling block. We have complete records of all Almajiris and their schools in Kano. So far over 2,000 Almajiri had gone back to their states, he said. He said that the state government had designed a program where three categories of Almajiri would be taken care of. READ ALSO Ganduje Fires Commissioner For Unguarded Utterances About Kyari The governor said that the first category from neighbouring states of Bauchi, Katsina, Jigawa, Kaduna states, and Niger Republic would be evacuated to their states. He said that the second category of Almajiri who were indigenes would be enrolled into their neighbourhood conventional schools. He also warned that the state government would charge parents who resisted the initiative to court. For the third category who are sleeping on the street, markets and under the bridge, we will take them to our boarding schools where we provide them with uniform and feeding, he said. The political spotlight is shining on Joe Biden. With that attention, expect Biden and his family to appear in ads, attend big-ticket events, and stump for the Democratic party. While many people familiar with the Biden family may know about his wife, Jill, daughter Ashley, and his sons, Beau and Hunter, thanks to the family's time in the White House during the Obama administration, there's plenty more to learn about the family as they become more and more prominent as the election draws closer. Joe had three children with his first wife, Neila Hunter. His daughter, Naomi, passed away at one year old when she and Neila were involved in a car accident in 1972. The couple's other two children are sons Hunter and Beau. Hunter Biden Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images Biden's youngest son, Hunter, 49, is an attorney for a firm based in New York City. He's made headlines before due to personal struggles with drugs and alcohol, as well as his involvement in a hedge fund and lobbying firm. In 2009, he co-founded the consulting firm Rosemont Seneca Partners. Hunter was also involved in President Donald Trump's impeachment inquiry. When Trump allegedly pressured the Ukrainian government for information about Hunter and Joe, it was because the former reportedly had business dealings in Ukraine. Hunter has three children, Naomi, Finnegan, and Maisy, with his ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle. He has another child, whose name has not been released, with Lunden Alexis Roberts. The paternity of the child was the subject of court case that was resolved in 2018. He married Melissa Cohen, a South African filmmaker, in 2019. Beau Biden Mark Wilson/Getty Images Hunter's older brother, Beau, passed away in 2015, at the age of 46, after being diagnosed with brain cancer. In 2003, he enlisted in the Army National Guard as a major in the Judge Advocate General's Corps and later served as the 44th attorney general of Delaware from 2007 until 2015. The Hill reports that Joe believed Beau was fit to be president of the United States one day, saying, "I was pretty sure Beau could run for president someday, and, with his brother's help, he could win." Story continues Beau married his wife, Hallie Olivere, in 2002. Together, they had a daughter, Natalie, and a son, Robert Hunter Biden II. In 2008, Beau introduced his father at the Democratic National Convention and before his death, he announced that he intended to run for governor of Delaware in the 2016 election. Ashley Biden Ethan Miller/Getty Images Joe's only child with his second wife, Ashley was born in 1981. She worked at the Delaware Center for Justice for seven years as a social worker and activist before shifting focus to her charitable fashion line, Livelihood. "Working with DCJ has been one of the great honors of my life," she wrote on Facebook. "Together we have changed the landscape of justice reform, violence intervention, and victim services for the State of Delaware. I leave DCJ in capable hands, with a passionate and committed staff, a talented board and the infrastructure to continue to support DCJs vision. I am confident that the organization will continue to thrive and provide essential services to our community." She married her husband, Howard Krein, in 2012. Ashley told Elle that Livelihood is an "ethically produced, American-made clothing company" that works to "alleviate poverty through education, training, and job placement." The people of Nazareth may have forced Jesus out of town because of their intolerance to new ways of thinking and resistance to change, a new book suggests. This was driven by a staunch adherence to Jewish law and is also the reason the city wholly rejected Roman culture and influence. Nazareth is the biblical home of Jesus Christ and it is written in the Bible that he was expelled from the city due to his teachings. However, academics studying the area now believe this was not a personal vendetta, but rather the result of a deeply-ingrained way of thinking among the locals. Items found at the site of modern-day Nazareth indicate its ancient residents rejected all external culture, which included Roman objects, religion and language. However, the neighbouring town of Sepphoris was the polar opposite, wholly accepting Romans and even siding with them in times of conflict. Scroll down for video The people of Nazareth forced Jesus out of town because of their intolerance to new ways of thinking and were resistant to change, a new book suggests. This was driven by a staunch adherence to Jewish law. Pictured, a tomb at Nazareth Dr Ken Dark from the University of Reading conducted archaeological excavations at Nazareth and its surrounding areas - the first research of its kind. In an upcoming book, called 'Roman-period and Byzantine Nazareth and its Hinterland', he writes that Nazareth today is the same town mentioned in scripture. This assertion is based on a series of findings, including the fact the only surviving artefacts at Nazareth are ceramics and limestone vessels, likely made by local Jews. Dr Dark told MailOnline: 'A key point is that all artefacts those on the Nazareth side of the valley and in Nazareth itself were made, or almost certainly made, by Jews. 'Those nearer Sepphoris come from a wider range of manufacturers. This suggests that people living nearer to Nazareth than Sepphoris didn't want to participate in cosmopolitan Roman provincial culture, and probably had a stricter interpretation of Judaism than those living in Sepphoris. 'Sepphoris had a Jewish population also, but like any large Roman town was quite cosmopolitan in character, and its Jewish population were more willing to embrace Roman culture in general.' Sepphoris was a major city at the time, but Nazareth itself was an important hub for the production of olive oil and wine as well as being a site for quarrying. Sepphoris had strong links with far-flung corners of Eurasia and reflects a romanticised melting-pot city, Dr Dark found. Meanwhile, Nazareth stoutly refused such influences, driven by its strict adherence to traditional Jewish practices. Dr Dark says this 'clear-cut cultural barrier' is a unique example of the different approaches to Judaism in the region at the time of Christ. Archaeological remnants were found alongside tunnels and hiding places at Nazareth that date back to the first Jewish Revolt between 66 and 70AD. Dr Dark believes these were likely created decades after the crucifixion by Jews who feared reprisals by Romans due to their Jewish faith Sepphoris was a large city just four miles north of Nazareth which had strong links to far-flung corners of Eurasia and reflects a romanticised melting-pot city, which was rejected by the Nazareth natives, Dr Dark found The archaeological remnants were found alongside tunnels and hiding places at Nazareth that date back to the first Jewish Revolt between 66 and 70AD. Dr Dark believes these were likely built decades after Jesus' crucifixion by the Jews, who feared reprisals by Romans due to their Jewish faith, The Times reports. Sepphoris, however, which had clear signs of Roman influence, was known to have sided with the Romans during this tumultuous time. This strict adherence to Jewish law could explain why Jesus was forced to leave his hometown, Dr Dark writes. In the Gospel of Luke, it tells of Jesus speaking in a synagogue, before giving a speech to the locals. After riling up the crowd by stating he was the one mentioned by Isaiah, is added 'no prophet is accepted in his hometown'. The crowd inside the synagogue were angered by such bold proclamations. Luke 4:29 - 30 says: 'They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. '[30] But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.' Infosys on Monday said its few employees globally have tested positive for COVID-19, and it has undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, who interacted with them, in order to ensure they are appropriately quarantined. However, the Bengaluru-based company - which announced its Q4 and FY20 earnings on Monday - said it will get employees back on premises in a staggered manner while following all protocols to ensure safety of staff amid the coronavirus pandemic. "A few Infosys employees across the world have tested positive for COVID-19. The company is in touch with them and their families to provide active and continuous support to help them through the rest and recovery," Infosys said. The company added that it has undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who have interacted with them and ensuring that they are appropriately quarantined. With lockdowns effective in several parts of the world, Infosys said 93 per cent of its global workforce is now working from home and the company has a strong focus on ensuring security of client data. Infosys is approaching plans in the weeks ahead "with cautious optimism", while carefully monitoring advisories and adapting tactics to policies and injunctions in the cities, states and countries that it operates in. "Our plan is to come back in a gradual manner, we are not in hurry to come back aggressively. In phase one, less than 5 per cent of employees will come back to work for 3-4 weeks. In the next 4-8 weeks, maybe it will become 15-20 per cent in a gradual manner. We will follow very high standards of safety, temperature check and social distancing," Infosys COO Pravin Rao said. He added that the company - which has over 2.4 lakh employees globally - is also exploring if it can set up testing facility. Infosys said it will honour the job offers it has extended to the markets, in order to enhance the skill-sets it can bring to recovery-focused client environments. However, promotions and salary hikes have been put on hold. Rao asserted that the company is not looking at any COVID-19-related layoffs "at this stage". He also noted that Infosys will make 35,000 job offers in FY21. Infosys CFO Nilanjan Roy said in the near term, there will be a demand-supply mismatch "because we were geared for high volume in the first quarter". "We have to ensure that the utilisation rates go up," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nailapparel.net scored 43 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 This CoolSocial report was updated on 4 Jun 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the nailapparel homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if nailapparel has a Facebook fan page). This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the nailapparel homepage on Twitter + the total number of nailapparel followers (if nailapparel has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the nailapparel homepage on Delicious. The total number of people who shared the nailapparel homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. The total number of people who shared the nailapparel homepage on StumbleUpon. Basic Information PAGE TITLE NAIL APPAREL - Nail Art - Water-slide Nail Decals DESCRIPTION Premium Quality Water-slide nail decals. Here you will find unique water-slide decals to spice up your nails. If you have any requests please let me know. All of my decals are created at high resolution for high quality clear images. 400 plus designs KEYWORDS acrylic, decals, fake nails, gel nails, nail apparel, nail art, nail decals, nail decoration, nails OTHER KEYWORDS The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The title found in the head section of the homepage. Domain and Server DOCTYPE HTML 5.0 CHARSET AND LANGUAGE UTF-8 DETECTED LANGUAGE English English SERVER Apache OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Operative System running on the server. Type of server and offered services. The language of nailapparel.net as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Character set and language of the site. Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world. Referring domains for nailapparel.net by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines. Facebook link FACEBOOK PAGE LINK NOT FOUND The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file. The URL of the found Facebook page. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users. The total number of people who like website Facebook page. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. The type of Facebook page. Twitter account link TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro took part in a demonstration in the capital of Brasilia against the restrictive measures introduced because of the coronavirus joining 600 people, AFP reported. The protesters urged the army to intervene in the handling of the COVID-19 and demanded the closure of Congress. During his address, which was interspersed with fits of coughing, the president said: You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom. Earlier, Bolsonaro dismissed the country's health minister, Luiz Henrique Mandetta, who was one of the main supporters of social distancing in Brazil. Now Brazil ranks first among the countries of Latin America in the number of infected with coronavirus. Over 38 thousand people were infected in the country, about 2.5 thousand died. On April 17, Bolsonaro made a proposal to open borders with neighboring states. Singapore on Monday reported a record 1,426 new coronavirus cases, out of which 1,410 are foreign workers, including Indians residing in dormitories, health officials said. With the fresh cases, the total number of coronavirus cases in the city-state stands at 8,014, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said. "We are still working through the details of the cases, and further updates will be shared via the MOH press release that will be issued tonight," said the Ministry in a statement. A total of 18 foreign worker dormitories have been gazetted as isolation areas, as the number of COVID-19 cases continue to rise. As of Sunday, the cluster at S11 Dormitory at Punggol remained the biggest, with 1,508 confirmed cases. The next biggest cluster was at Sungei Tengah Lodge, with 521 confirmed cases. Though the dormitories are being disinfected and bedding accommodation re-arranged, most of these were overcrowded, leading to a large number of cases as foreign workers are now undergoing screening and testing. All foreign workers in the construction sector have been placed on mandatory stay-home notices until May 4 as a precautionary measure against the spread of COVID-19. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) noted that while the recent rise in the number of foreign workers infected with the coronavirus has mostly been concentrated in dormitories, there have been cases at construction worksites. Meanwhile, crime-fighting has continued during the COVID-19 outbreak, albeit with precautionary measures for inmates, suspects and accused persons, the Channel Asia reported on Monday. In the prisons, where no coronavirus case has been detected as of Apr 10, inmates have been issued with a reusable mask each. Newly admitted inmates are housed separately from the general population and monitored for 14 days, said the Singapore Prison Service (SPS). All inmates have their temperatures taken twice daily and safe distancing measures are in place to reduce the gathering of inmates, for example during yard time. Family members of inmates are not allowed to visit during the circuit breaker period from Apr 7 to May 4, as SPS has suspended all family visits. Instead, inmates can make local phone calls to their families or communicate via email and traditional mail. If the inmates need to be produced in court, video-conferencing is used when possible, otherwise SPS works closely with the courts to implement safe distancing for those who need escorting to court. A Singapore Police Force spokesperson told the Channel that police services are "largely unaffected", but frontline officers are issued with personal protective equipment including masks and gloves. Most court hearings originally scheduled during the circuit breaker period have been adjourned, the Chief Justice previously announced. However, cases that are urgent and essential continue to be heard, albeit with extra precautions, according to the Channel report. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Homeland The English Teacher Season 8 Episode 11 Editors Rating 4 stars * * * * Previous Next Photo: Erica Parise/SHOWTIME So its come to this. Eight seasons of Homeland has come down to Carrie Mathison having to decide whether to betray her closest and arguably only remaining ally, Saul Berenson. The English Teacher follows the parallel tracks of three women Carrie, Jenna, and the Russian asset who saved Sauls life and who has been his person on the inside of the Kremlin for four decades. Years after the latter defected and became an essential ally in world politics, she has no idea that her fate lies in the hands of Carrie Mathison, someone who now has to figure out a way to save the world from a nuclear war that doesnt include the death of her best friend. Lets start with the end, because the big question is how far Carrie will go to do what she thinks is right. Theres a fascinating sequence in the center of The English Teacher between Carrie and Jenna, who has been so groomed to be Carrie 2.0 that some fans have speculated that she could be spun off into a Homeland series of her own. Shes arguably been used by the writers one too many times as a tool for Carrie, but her key scene this week comes when she tells Carrie shes quitting, that she cant handle this anymore. It comes not long after Saul defends Carries thought process, telling Jenna, She never loses sight of whats important. The idea that Jenna could be Carrie 2.0 is wrong because Carrie is the Black Swan of the entire U.S. operation there is no one else quite like her. So does that mean Carrie will get Saul killed? Thats the proposition on the table as we go into the final episode of the series. After finally discovering that, yes, Saul does have a Russian asset one that he wont even admit to Carrie exists she takes what shes learned to Yevgeny, who basically tells her that they knew most of what she knows. They knew he has an asset and thought it might be related to an exfiltration that went bad in the 80s, but the records from the school where that took place have been destroyed. So the Russians hit a dead end. Saul found an asset in that operation that he left in the Russian system but they cant figure who, and neither can Carrie. Whats the answer to this problem? Yevgeny suggests that Saul would never leave his asset hanging if he died. And who does he trust more than Carrie? No one. Which means if Saul dies, Carrie likely gets handed the operation. Think about this proposition. Killing Saul to stop World War III would be bad enough, but it would also require Carrie to then destroy what hes built for decades, a system that helped the U.S. in numerous intelligence operations related to Russia. Of course, the death of her BFF is the macro issue here, but its worth considering what comes with that: betraying not only her friend, but everything hes worked to build for their country. She wont do it. Having no insider knowledge, its hard to imagine that Homeland ends with Carrie killing Saul. The writers may drag out the drama in a will she or wont she way, but it would be tough to make that not feel like a betrayal of the shows moral center. It feels more likely that Saul would learn about Yevgenys proposal and remember his latest red book message from his asset reveals that Yevgeny is in control now and then possibly sacrifice himself. Saul Berenson is the kind of man who would give up his life to stop a nuclear war, without question. But if that becomes the endgame of Homeland, how can Carrie then keep his asset safe as well? No, in all likelihood, Carrie is going to have to figure out a way to keep all three of them alive Carrie, Saul, and the double agent and still get that flight recorder. It doesnt help that the White House is full of warmongering morons right now. Watching John Zabel practically get off on the bombing of a Pakistani location at which they believe Jalal Haqqani is located was nauseating. And Hayes becomes more ineffective by the episode, a man literally controlled by others. Again, the mirrors of 2020 are something to behold. As it should be, Homeland is slowly pushing people like David Wellington, President Hayes, and John Zabel into the background, allowing Carrie Mathison and Saul Berenson to take center stage for the final episode. The bulk of this episode intercuts Sauls latest espionage operation with Carrie figuring out that those red books in his library werent just decorative. It turns out that Saul still likes old-fashioned John le Carre-esque espionage, communicating with his asset, who we learn is the U.N. Russian translator, via notes hidden in the spine of red books, including Joseph Conrads The Secret Agent. (Saul loves irony.) The sequence in which Carrie lays out how long this has been going on with major Russian events is not only expertly edited, but makes the importance of this part of Sauls life clear. This dynamic may have actually been the only one more impactful on the world stage than the one between Saul and Carrie themselves. Of course, it has to end with them. Saul and Carrie are the only ones who have been on this ride since it started, and they will decide if Homeland ends with continued war in the Middle East or the betrayal of lifelong allies or if they can find a way out of all this madness into a place where both they and the world can be safe. Final Notes How dare you cast Chris Bauer and then give him, like, two scenes? The veteran of The Wire is one of the most underrated character actors on TV, and it was great to see him in the opening credits and then serving as Carries lawyer, but hes given almost nothing to do. Maybe next week. Do you think Saul has eaten all of the little pieces of paper from the book spines to destroy them? I do. It seems unlikely that the writers of Homeland would try to put closure to the never-ending conflicts of the Middle East, so I dont expect this series to end with the suggestion that everything is going to be peaceful forever now. But it will be interesting to see how they can provide closure to a story thats been largely about the cyclical, never-ending nature of international conflict. So who walks out of this season alive? Both Carrie and Saul? Just one? Or maybe neither? Every Major Death on 'Homeland' Myanmar shipped hundreds of recently released Rohingya inmates back to the country's restive western borderlands on Monday, after fears that its overcrowded prisons could become hotbeds for runaway coronavirus outbreaks. Men, women and children belonging to the stateless and long-persecuted Muslim minority were among nearly 25,000 prisoners freed last week by a presidential pardon to mark the country's April New Year celebrations. A Navy vessel transported the group from Yangon to western Rakhine state, where most Rohingya live under tight movement restrictions and in conditions Amnesty International has condemned as "apartheid". More than 600 disembarked near state capital Sittwe, while another 200 were taken further north to townships on the border with Bangladesh, state immigration department chief Soe Lwin told AFP. "They will be quarantined," he added, without giving further details. Myanmar's biggest prisoner release in years came as coronavirus fears gripped the country, with calls for low-risk inmates to be released from what Human Rights Watch describes as Myanmar's "horribly overcrowded and unsanitary" jails. The World Health Organization has also warned that prison populations are particularly vulnerable to the spread of the disease. Myanmar has only 111 confirmed COVID-19 cases but experts fear the real number is many times higher because of the low numbers tested and the country's chronically underfunded healthcare system. Pressure is also on Myanmar to improve its treatment of the Rohingya, after a bloody military crackdown in 2017 sent around 750,000 civilians fleeing into Bangladesh and prompted genocide charges at the UN's top court. The country must report back to the International Court of Justice next month, to outline the efforts it was taking to protect the minority. Hundreds of Rohingya have been arrested and charged with immigration offences in recent years after trying to flee Rakhine state and seek refuge in other countries. But the Rohingya garner little sympathy within Myanmar, where they are widely viewed as illegal immigrants even though many trace their roots in the country back generations. Harvard prof. calls for ban on homeschooling, responses emerge Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A Harvard Law School professor is calling for a presumptive ban on homeschooling, arguing that it poses harmful risks to children. In an article titled "The Risks of Homeschooling" featured in the latest edition of Harvard magazine, Harvard Law School professor Elizabeth Bartholet stressed in an interview that children have a right to a "meaningful education" and that the state is obligated to intervene to protect them from abuse, which is sometimes interwoven within homeschool environments. Bartholet is also the faculty director of the Law Schools Child Advocacy Program. Bartholet cites as an example of this abuse the case of Tara Westover, whose story is captured in a memoir called Educated and recounts how she was raised by survivalists in Idaho and was never sent to a school and received no formal education, despite learning how to read. Westover spent her youth working in her father's scrap business where bodily injuries were common and her older brother abused her. Under the current legal regime in most of the United States, Bartholet says, this is what can happen. She does not believe Westover's case is an outlier. "The issue is, do we think that parents should have 24/7, essentially authoritarian control over their children from ages zero to 18?" the professor inquires. "I think thats dangerous. I think its always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless, and to give the powerful ones total authority. Requiring children to attend schools outside of the home for several hours each day, she maintains, does not significantly undermine parental influence on a childs views and ideas. The article notes that many Americans possibly as many as 90 percent by some estimates who opt for homeschool are driven by traditional Christian beliefs and a desire to remove their kids from mainstream culture. In an email to The Christian Post Monday, Katy Faust, founder of the children's rights organization Them Before Us, noted that the Bartholet interview poses a question not only about homeschool versus public school, but a much more fundamental question, specifically To whom do children belong? "By arguing parents should have to 'prove their case' if they want to 'opt out of schools,' Bartholets answer to that question is clearly, 'children don't belong to parents, they belong to the State,'" Faust explained. But the reverse is true, she continued, because it supports the child's fundamental right to be known and loved by the two people responsible for their existence. "Its also in a childs best interest to belong to the adults who are the most connected to and protective of them their own parents. In addition, unlike teachers and school administrators, parents are the most permanent adults in a childs life. They dont cease to be connected to children when striking over contracts, transferring districts, when they retire or when a child moves from fourth to fifth grade. The permanent nature of the parent-child relationship means parents are the adults most invested in childrens long-term success. Thats why parents, not the government, are the primary educators of their children," she said. "Thus, its the schools which must 'prove their case' to parents if they want to 'opt in' to educating our children. Children dont belong to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. They belong to us, their parents. "That out of touch elites fail to grasp these simple, self-evident truths should make us even more weary to trust them with control over our childrens education." Bartholet will be speaking at a summit in June featuring a slate of speakers, all of whom are reportedly steadfastly opposed to homeschooling, according to the Home School Legal Defense Association. The image featured alongside the recent article is a house that has prison bars over a window with a young girl trapped inside while other children play outside. The structure of the prison-like homeschool in the image is comprised of books, one of which is the Bible. Bartholet elaborates in the interview that some of these parents are "extreme religious ideologues" who question science and are in favor of white supremacy and female subservience. From the beginning of compulsory education in this country, we have thought of the government as having some right to educate children so that they become active, productive participants in the larger society, Bartholet said. But its also important that children grow up exposed to community values, social values, democratic values, ideas about nondiscrimination and tolerance of other peoples viewpoints. The Harvard magazine article comes amid the worldwide coronavirus pandemic where school systems have closed to prevent further spread of the disease. As a result of the shutdown, kids are being educated at home and some have speculated that homeschooling will increase after the pandemic ends. The article has inspired notable responses criticizing its underlying philosophy on forums like Medium and Facebook from accomplished Harvard graduates, who were themselves homeschooled and defended their upbringings. In a Monday episode of his broadcast called The Briefing, Al Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, commented on the Harvard magazine piece, noting the ideological aims of the Common School Movement in the United States, particularly under the influence of figures such as John Dewey in the early 20th century. That movement came as an effort to at least partly, Dewey argued, remove children from the religious and sectarian prejudices of their parents by putting them in a common school that would develop a common culture, Mohler explained. Dewey was one of the founders of the American Humanist Association. "The schools would become a socializing agent and of course there was an ideological component to this as well," he continued. "[T]hose who have been trying to bring about an absolute revolution in Western societies have found that it is the indomitable strength of the natural family that is the greatest obstacle. And if you're trying to reshape society, you have to aim yourself at the young. You want to gain as much time and influence amongst the young as possible and thus you can see why those who've been trying to push for a more, they would style it, progressivist agenda in the United States have seen the public schools as the great ally and you'll understand why they've been so successful in reshaping the public schools into incubators for this kind of ideological experiment." Mohler believes that the ideological aims of Bartholet and her like-minded compatriots to restrict and undermine homeschooling will eventually be extended to distinctly Christian schools in pursuit of an elite-defined secularist utopian vision. "We need to understand that in this context, the modern American context, it is going to take all of our conviction to keep Christian schools Christian, any of them," he said. (ANSA) - Rome, April 20 - A Chinese couple who were the first coronavirus patients in Italy on Monday thanked Italy after completing their rehabilitation at Rome's San Filippo Neri Hospital. The husband and wife from Wuhan, admitted to the capital's Spallanzani Hospital at the end of January, "are in excellent condition and have announced a thank you letter to the health facilities which saved them and treated them," said Lazio Health Councillor Alessio D'Amato. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:41:26|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close by Gretinah Machingura HARARE, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Soman Mudariki, the Head of Ambulance Services in the Harare City Council and member of a community testing team on COVID-19, is one of the medical doctors that are in the frontline in Zimbabwe's fight against the pandemic. Two weeks after the coronavirus pandemic broke out in Zimbabwe, Mudariki had tested four confirmed cases that had been recorded in the country. Zimbabwe recorded it's first case of COVID-19 on March 20 and it's first death on March 23. The country has so far recorded 25 cases of COVID-19, including three deaths and two recoveries. Speaking about his experiences in the fight against COVID-19, Mudariki said never before had his family been worried about his work than during this time of the COVID-19 pandemic. "My son and daughter are not at ease, they keep asking questions and want to understand how dangerous coronavirus really is and one of them will always be writing poems about coronavirus dedicating them to every healthcare worker working to contain the virus," he said. With the ruthless virus not sparing anyone in its path, Mudariki knows the importance for frontline healthcare workers to be properly kitted and equipped when attending to patients. Each day is planned ahead. "Our typical day starts with briefs and debriefs of the previous day, discussing gaps and strengths to the frontline workers," said Mudariki. The Harare City Council runs Wilkins Hospital in Harare, which has been designated as the country's main testing and treatment center for COVID-19. Mudariki remains alive to the dangers associated with his current job at Wilkins Hospital, which highly exposes him to the risk of contracting the virus. "It is a hot zone that we are working in and it requires a meticulous process, from donning, doffing to testing patients. The process needs to be thorough to make sure you do not carry the virus to other patients or workmates," said Mudariki. "While donning is simple, it is doffing that requires one to follow the proper process lest you carry the virus home," he said. He said his wife and children have remained his pillar of strength, offering him morale support and often reminding him to keep safe as he performs his duties. "She (wife) is always worried about the safety of the family and she is always quick to remind me to take my time, to be careful and not to be exposed to the deadly virus," said Mudariki. Apart from medical doctors, another category of healthcare workers that are involved in the fights against the pandemic in the country are nurses. Among them is Cynthia Shatei, leader of the Zimbabwe Young Nurses' Association. "We value the sanctity of human life, but at times we fear for our dear life because the monster (COVID-19) is real. We believe that nursing is a calling so we had to step in as nurses," she told the state-run Sunday Mail newspaper. She said her contribution to the fight against the pandemic was due to patriotism. She acknowledged that fears by healthcare workers were well-founded but added that the disease had to be confronted head on for the common good. Shatei and Mudariki are among Zimbabwe's healthcare workers that are putting their lives at risk by offering their services to help fight the pandemic. Shatei said they do not throw caution to the wind, but make sure that they are safe before they get home. As it grapples with the pandemic, Zimbabwe has extended its national lockdown by a further two weeks to May 3. Enditem ( The Valley, Anguilla) Under the Emergency Powers (COVID-19 Border Control) Regulations 2020 which came into effect on 9/4/20 issued by His Excellency The Governor, the following directions are given to the fishing community of Anguilla and persons should govern themselves accordingly. Licensed Fishers and Amnesty for unlicensed Fishers All fishers that have pots or other fishing apparatus at sea will be given a one-time opportunity as set out below for the recovery or safe stowage of those pots or other fishing apparatus. The grace period does NOT allow any fishing to take place and is confined to recovery and safe stowage only. Any fish recovered in this period are exempt and are not to be considered as caught in contravention of this directive. All fishers Island Harbour and Shoal Bay East will have from 6 am to 5pm on Tuesday 21/4/20 to carry out the recovery and safe stowage of pots or other fishing apparatus. East will have from 6 am to 5pm on Tuesday 21/4/20 to carry out the recovery and safe stowage of pots or other fishing apparatus. All fishers Sandy Ground, Crocus Bay, Meads Bay and West End Bay will have from 6am to 5pm on Wednesday 22/4/20 to carry out the recovery and safe stowage of pots or other fishing apparatus. will have from 6am to 5pm on Wednesday 22/4/20 to carry out the recovery and safe stowage of pots or other fishing apparatus. All fishers Blowing Point & Cove will have from 6am to 5pm on Thursday 23/4/20 to carry out the recovery and safe stowage of pots or other fishing apparatus. Paul Morrison OBE QPM, Commissioner, Royal Anguilla Police Force (RAPF). Tackling the pandemic requires data and information to ensure that policies, resources and technology are deployed in the right place and time to make the biggest possible impact, said Vera Songwe, ECA Executive Secretary. Addis Ababa, 20 April 2020 (joint press release)- The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data (GPSDD) have unveiled an initiative to strengthen Africas data ecosystems in the face of COVID-19. Tackling the pandemic requires data and information to ensure that policies, resources and technology are deployed in the right place and time to make the biggest possible impact, said Vera Songwe, ECA Executive Secretary. Ms. Songwe noted, however, that data systems for health and other areas of policy in Africa are often fragile and frequently inadequate. Critical gaps in coverage and timeliness can leave governments uncertain of where the risks of infection are highest and how to deploy resources in the most effective way, she added. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused untold suffering, disrupted billions of lives, and endangered the global economy. Wealthy countries have been worst affected thus far, but as the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Datas CEO, Claire Melamed, explains, the vulnerability of low-income countries is more alarming. The lack of adequate shelter, sanitation, and health systems in low and lower-middle-income countries puts us at the precipice of the worst humanitarian crisis in 100 years. Getting timely, accurate data to get the pandemic under control in Africa is critical for the success of global efforts, and will help build strong data systems for the long term, said Ms. Melamed. Over the past few years, development partners have helped to build the foundations of robust data ecosystems that can respond to crises like this. As a result, there are multitudes of tested, scalable solutions that can be deployed, and a range of institutions contributing to data-driven decision-making that can expedite the fight against COVID-19. Areas where better data can save lives during COVID-19 include: population - understanding who is most at risk, to allocate resources effectively; health infrastructure and staffing; virus monitoring; and tracking the economic impacts, including business closures, the impact on agricultural production, and on trade and public spending, to put in place the right support and avoid long-term devastation. The ECA-GPSDD partnership will receive capacity support from Data for Now, a coalition of partners that includes United Nations Statistics Division, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the World Bank along with GPSDD. The group will work in a coordinated and coherent manner with partners from the private sector, civil society, academia, donors, governments, the UN, and multilateral agencies, to: Put tested solutions to work, bringing together the right partners to understand what data and solutions are needed, make them available, and ensure they are used to save lives. Strengthen systems by ensuring new solutions are sustainable and can be maintained for the long-term by increasing interoperability between data sets and developing capacity among users to understand and work with data for policymaking. Increase the effective use of resources by targeting areas where data gaps are most acute and minimize duplication Share learning and information among partners and countries for quick adoption and replication of effective solutions. The initiative, which was officially announced in a virtual press briefing on 20 April 2020, is seeking more collaboration in the areas of access to relevant data, analytics and visualization, training and capacity development, technology and connectivity, and financial resources. NOTES TO EDITORS For more information visit the Africa UN Knowledge Hub for COVID-19: https://knowledge.uneca.org/covid19/ Emerging partnerships include the following more details available on Monday 20 April: ESRI is supporting its users and the community at large with location intelligence, geographic information system (GIS) and mapping software, services, and materials that people are using to help monitor, manage, and communicate the impact of the outbreak. Technology donations are available to all organizations to support the rapid deployment of COVID-19 solution platforms. Multiple data sources can be integrated into a single platform to give governments the information they need. Esri is already working in over 15 countries in Africa such as Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Kenya, with plans to expand across the region according to need. More info: https://www.esri.com/en-us/covid-19/overview https://www.africageoportal.com/pages/covid-19-response FLOWMINDER is providing telecommunications companies and other holders of mobile operator data with instructions, code, and support via covid19.flowminder.org, enabling them to produce analyses of population mobility in close to real time. Flowminder can offer support in up to 20 countries in the region, to ensure that governments can make data-informed decisions by monitoring mobility and effects of the crisis on population dynamics. FRAYM is using advanced machine learning models to combine satellite imagery with geo-tagged household survey data, producing local (down to 1km^2) population data for developing countries, even in remote areas. They have COVID-19 risk-factor data available, including health, behavior, and livelihood indicators, in seven African countries, with three more in the pipeline, and will consider other requests. More info: https://fraym.io/ UK Office of National Statistics and DFID data science hub will provide pro-bono COVID-19-specific technical support from a team of data scientists and software developers, with a blend of skills across epidemiology, NLP, GIS, Earth observation, mobile phone data, data engineering, and software development, with a strong focus on methods to track economic indicators in real time. They can conduct analysis, mentor staff, and provide advice on data sources and tools for automating routine manual data processing, and also provide training to ensure skills transfer. The focus will be on 17 countries where DFID support is concentrated. More info: https://datasciencecampus.ons.gov.uk/ GRID3 provides technical expertise in producing spatial data on population, settlements, boundaries, and health infrastructures, working with governments to create a comprehensive and up to date picture to inform decision-making. They are already working in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique, South Sudan, Zambia, and Burkina Faso, and plan to expand to 10 more countries in Africa to support COVID-19 response. More info: https://grid3.org/ Arizona State Universitys Thunderbird School Of Global Management, The College Of Health Solutions And The Edson College Of Nursing And Health Innovation are working with the Ministry of Health in Kenya and other partners to curate content for training health professionals in Kenya/Africa for frontline personnel in the health facilities as well as those in leadership positions during this crisis. The team is able to create content for use across multiple platforms including mobile phones as needed. https://thunderbird.asu.edu/ Dalberg will support the Covid-19 response with advice, co-ordination, networks, data, and geo-spatial analysis. Ongoing efforts range from developing strategies to mitigate the economic and social side-effects of the Covid-19 pandemic to hands-on support for cash-transfer programmes and the development of vulnerability maps. https://www.dalberg.com/ Digital Impact Alliance (Dial) will provide openly-licensed, editable resources to help governments and intermediary organizations use mobile data for pandemic response, with initial information coming next week that will be available on our website (http://www.digitalimpactalliance.org). DIAL and its technical partners will also provide technical expertise to over 10 African countries on the use of open source tools to analyze mobile data to support decision-making for combating Covid19. DIAL has released a resource document that outlines messaging platforms and an online catalog that provides more information on mobile aggregators in Sub-Saharan Africa to help governments get public health messages out to citizens in a quick and streamlined way. ABOUT THE GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT DATA The Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data is a global network including governments, businesses, and civil society organizations working around the world to harness the data revolution for sustainable development. Since it was created in 2015, the Global Partnership has elevated data issues at a political level, launched a multi-million-dollar Collaborative Data Innovations for Sustainable Development funding initiative, and supported the advancement of country-led Data Roadmaps for Sustainable Development. Learn more at http://www.data4sdgs.org ABOUT THE UN ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA Established by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations (UN) in 1958 as one of the UNs five regional commissions, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africas (ECAs) mandate is to promote the economic and social development of its member states, foster intraregional integration and promote international cooperation for Africas development. ECA is made up of 54 member states and plays a dual role as a regional arm of the UN and as a key component of the African institutional landscape. For more information, visit https://www.uneca.org/. Jointly issued by: The Economic Commission for Africa and the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data loading......... Malibu, CA, April 20, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - In this episode of The Ellis Martin Report, we speak with Tim Termuende of Eagle Plains Resources ( CVE:EPL ) ( OTCMKTS:EGPLF ) and Taiga Gold Corp (CSNX:TGC) ( OTCMKTS:TGGDF ) about metals projects in Western Canada.James Pettit of Aben Resources ( CVE:ABN ) ( OTCMKTS:ABNAF ) updates us on the Forrest Kerr Project in British Columbia's Golden Triangle.Jordan Trimble of SkyHarbour Resources ( CVE:SYH ) ( OTCMKTS:SYHBF ) provides analysis on the current uranium market boom.Ellis speaks with East Turkistan's Prime Minister in Exile Salih Hudayar about the plight of the subjugated Muslim Uyghur in China's Xinjiang.We also chat with WABC talk show host and founder of The Guardian Angels, Curtis Sliwa, who will oppose NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2021.To view the webcast, please visit:About Aben Resources Ltd Aben Resources (CVE:ABN) (OTCMKTS:ABNAF) (FRA:E2L2) is a Canadian gold exploration company developing gold-focused projects in British Columbia and the Yukon Territory. Aben is a well-funded junior exploration company with over $1.5 million in the Company's treasury. For further information on Aben Resources Ltd. (CVE:ABN), visit our Company's web site at www.abenresources.com. About Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. Based in Cranbrook, B.C., Eagle Plains continues to conduct research, acquire and explore mineral projects throughout western Canada. The Company is committed to steadily enhancing shareholder value by advancing our diverse portfolio of projects toward discovery through collaborative partnerships and development of a highly experienced technical team. Managements' current focus is to preserve its treasury while advancing its most promising exploration projects. In addition, Eagle Plains continues to seek out and secure high-quality, unencumbered projects through research, staking and strategic acquisitions. Since 2012, Eagle Plains has added to its portfolio a number of new projects exceeding 130,000 ha targeting mainly gold, uranium and base-metals in Saskatchewan, a highly-prospective mining jurisdiction which was recently recognized by the Fraser Institute as one of the top 3 jurisdictions in the world in terms of Investment Attractiveness. Throughout the exploration process, our mission is to help maintain prosperous communities by exploring for and discovering resource opportunities while building lasting relationships through honest and respectful business practices. About Taiga Gold Corp Taiga Gold Corp was created through a plan of arrangement with Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. and owns 5 projects targeting gold in the area near the Seabee Gold Operation, owned and operated by SSR Mining. Taiga's flagship "Fisher" property is currently being explored by SSR Mining under option from Taiga. Taiga's objective is to focus on the exploration and development of its gold projects located adjacent to the Seabee Gold Operation and along the Tabbernor Fault structure in eastern Saskatchewan, a highly-prospective mining jurisdiction which was recently recognized by the Fraser Institute as the second best place in the world in terms of Investment Attractiveness. Throughout the exploration and development process, our mission is to help maintain prosperous communities by exploring for and discovering resource opportunities while building lasting relationships through honest and respectful business practices. About The Ellis Martin Report The Ellis Martin Report (TEMR) is an internet based radio program showcasing potentially undervalued companies to an audience of potential retail investors and fund managers that comprise our listening audience. TEMR is broadcasted on the VoiceAmerica Business Channel and The Opportunity Radio Network. CEO and company interviews are paid for by those represented on the program. Four children, one as young as two-months-old old, have been filmed being raped before the videos were distributed to sick paedophiles all over the world. Sixteen people were charged with 728 sexual abuse and child exploitation offences after a two-year investigation by the Australian Federal Police in conjunction with the US Department of Homeland Security. The children were reportedly related to their abusers, who used the dark web and encryption technologies to send explicit images and videos around the world before they were finally rescued. AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said the coronavirus lockdown had created a surge in activity on the dark web, including grooming and live-streaming, and warned parents to be hyper aware of what their children are doing online at all times. 'It is very hard to explain to a society, to people who dont see the images,' he told The Australian. 'These involve images like youve never seen before.' Queensland police officers arresting one of the 16 people involved in the child sexual abuse and online paedophile ring Three of the rescued children were from New South Wales and one from Victoria, while the offenders include five people from Queensland, four from Western Australia, three from Victoria and NSW and one in South Australia. There were 632 charges related to those from Victoria and 70 to those in NSW, with all 16 charged with contact offending and producing and exchanging child sex material through the internet. Evidence from the arrests led detectives to believe child pornography was being produced in Australia for distribution around the world. Homeland Security officers in Phoenix, Arizona notified the Australian Federal Police and Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation of increased illegal online activity in the country in 2018, leading to Operation Walwa to investigate. The online paedophile networks were difficult for law enforcement to monitor due to the sophisticated encryption software used to shield their illegal activity. All of the 16 people who were arrested were charged with contact offending and producing and exchanging child sex material through the internet. Pictured: police arresting a man involved in Queensland Peter Dutton said tech companies who do not cooperate with police to grant encryption technologies to investigators could become subject to legislation Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said there had been an increase in people looking to access explicit online material during the coronavirus pandemic. 'We have had increasing reports of people seeking to exploit the increased amount of screen time children will be spending online during the current climate, to gain access to and abuse children,' he said. Mr Dutton hit out at tech companies who had refused to grant detectives access to encryption technologies to aid the investigation. He said they could become subject to legislation to force their assistance. AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said police will continue to analyse material in the hope of rescuing more child victims Australian police receive nearly 20,000 referrals related to online child sexual abuse every year. Detectives believe students undertaking online schooling from home will be increasingly targeted during the coronavirus period. Mr Kershaw said police will continue to analyse material to find more victims of the online child paedophile rings as the range of content continues to grow. 'We are seeing more videos, younger children, and more violence,' he said. 'We are seeing the rape and torture of our children. All for sexual gratification.' The 16 people charged will face court in the coming months. Syracuse, N.Y. A vehicle crashed through the front of an Advance Auto Parts store in Syracuse this afternoon. The crash happened around 12:50 p.m. at the auto parts store, located at 2016 Erie Blvd. E. The driver, identified by police as a man in his late 50s, accidently hit the gas instead of the brake in his 2009 Toyota RAV4, Syracuse police Sgt. Matthew Malinowski said. No injuries were reported and no tickets were issued, Malinowski said. The SUV took out two glass panels, as well as their metal frames. Employees swept piles of broken glass from the shattered windows as the vehicle was towed away from the scene around 2:15 p.m. Despite the crash, the store remained open for business. Gunmen shot dead two traditional leaders in volatile western Cameroon before being gunned down by soldiers, a local ruler said on Monday, adding that the assailants were believed to be anglophone separatists. The casualties were the president and secretary general of a traditional council, according to Afungchwi III, the king of Bambili, where the clash took place last Thursday. He said the two assailants were "probably" separatists angry over calls for disarmament by the traditional leadership and politicians. Bambili lies in the Northwest Region, one of two regions in western Cameroon that have been rocked by violence since late 2017. Anglophone militants have launched an armed campaign to break away from the rest of Cameroon, which is majority French-speaking. The conflict has killed more than 3,000 people and displaced nearly 700,000, according to humanitarian organisations. The Bambili king noted that the killings came after "peace had been gradually returning to the area with no serious incidents since December. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Early College and NUAMES students: Follow the first 3 steps below. Study abroad, continuing education or independent study students: You may already be paying reduced tuition rates and ineligible for these additional programs. If youre not sure of your status, go ahead and apply. Graduate Students: Because master's programs have different credit requirements than undergraduate programs, you are not eligible for summer discounts. High-profile human rights lawyer Amal Clooney is lobbying the Australian government to adopt new laws giving it the power it to seize the assets of human rights offenders and ban them from entering the country. The Lebanese-British barrister is leading an international panel of experts on press freedom calling on governments to use Magnitsky-style sanctions against human rights offenders regimes, including those that imprison, murder or intimidate journalists. Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has welcomed the Australian government's consideration of Magnitsky-style legislation. Credit:Bloomberg The Morrison government has initiated an inquiry into enacting legislation modelled on the US laws which allow the imposition of visa and property-related sanctions on foreign individuals who are responsible for human rights violations. Ms Clooney, the deputy chair of the High-Level of Legal Experts on Media Freedom, is set to appear via video link before Federal Parliament's joint standing committee on foreign affairs, defence and trade next month, following her submission to the inquiry. - Apart from the rent waiver, Munene went a step further to donate food to his tenants as they struggled with the COVID-19 pandemic - The angelic man recently waived rent for his tenants and even set aside a room for tenants' medical needs just in case one of them contracted the disease - The landlord set aside a food store for the tenants in case of a lockdown but he decided to donate it to avoid it going bad A landlord in Nyandarua who went viral after waiving his tenants' rent for three months has now rolled out a plan to feed them amid tough economic times following the COVID-19 crisis. Michael Munene opened a food store in his apartment where he stores food that he distributes to his tenants. READ ALSO: Homa Bay family insists burial was real, says relatives bought coffin in Nairobi Michael Munene giving a food package to one of his tenants. Photo: Samuel Lemiso Sato Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Mtu mmoja aaga dunia katika makabiliano ya risasi kati ya polisi na Samburu Moran In a viral photo on social media, Munene was seen handing over a food package wrapped in a polythene bag to one of his tenants. The food had been stocked specifically to help the tenants should there be a lockdown but now he has resorted to giving it to them to avoid it going bad. "We have stocked enough food in our store in preparation for a possible lockdown by the state. And if that food is finished, we have a boda boda rider whom we will send to the market to help us buy the commodity," said Munene on Saturday, March 21. Landlord Michael Munene during a past press briefing outside his apartment in Nyandarua. Photo: K24 Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Coronavirus in Brazil: President Jair Bolsonaro joins protest against lockdown orders The landlord also provided free face masks to his tenants in bid to fight spread of the dreaded coronavirus that has claimed 14 people in Kenya and left 270 others infected so far. Recently, Munene who is also a dentist set a room within his premises to admit patients just in case his tenants or visitors exhibited COVID-19 symptoms. Besides, he was among the first property owners in the country to waive rent for tenants after the country reported the first case of coronavirus disease. Many landlords have since followed suit with the Tenants and Landlords Association of Kenya appealing to tenants to stop paying rent until further notice. Do you have an inspirational story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Follow us on Telegram: Tuko news Source: TUKO.co.ke Australian Ministers Debate COVID-19 Tracing App Privacy Concerns Australian members of Parliament and government ministers have weighed in on a debate about privacy concerns over the federal governments new COVID-19 tracing app. Federal MP and former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce raised concerns in a post on Twitter about whether the new app will really be safe from hacking and cited a London study. On April 20, Joyce cited a study conducted by Imperial College about how 90 percent of individuals were able to be identified by four random data sets. I have to add some further information for Minister Robert to consider in regards the four pieces of information he refers to and anonymity. I am putting my faith in Imperial College London and the malevolence of those who hack and mine databases. pic.twitter.com/VRRb8gQ4zi Barnaby Joyce (@Barnaby_Joyce) April 19, 2020 On April 18, Independent New South Wales MP Zali Steggal added her concerns, writing, lack of trust and transparency in Govt will be biggest obstacle for Aus people to accept contact tracing app. Govt needs to establish National Anti Corruption Commission and independent oversight committee to establish good faith. Lack of trust and transparency in Govt will be biggest obstacle for Aus people to accept contact tracing app. Govt needs to establish National Anti Corruption Commission and independent oversight committee to establish good faith. #Covid_19 #auspol https://t.co/lVV5HpzcIP Zali Steggall MP (@zalisteggall) April 18, 2020 Other federal government ministers responded to Steggals and Joyces comments on Twitter. Senator Andrew Bragg, chair of the Select Senate Committee on FinTech, said the app would improve the ability to trace people who had come into contact with the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus. The app will definitely improve contact tracing for both accuracy & speed. The public health benefit is clear. Anyone who has been through the manual process will know that much. Senator Andrew Bragg (@ajamesbragg) April 19, 2020 Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said at a press conference that the government would never have access to any of the data stored on phones. Government Services Minister Stuart Robertwho spearheaded the appexplained in an interview with FiveAA on April 16, that the technology is not a surveillance tool and wont geo-locate or track users in any way. He said the government had worked with cyber intelligence-gathering agencies the Australian Cyber Security Centre and the Australian Signals Directorate to develop the app. Robert said it was a way to digitize current tracing procedures that are being utilized by the Department of Health to control the outbreak. Prime Minister Scott Morrison also wrote on Twitter to assure Australians that using the app would be voluntary, after previously hinting that optional use might only be Plan A. The App we are working on to help our health workers trace people who have been in contact with coronavirus will not be mandatory. Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) April 18, 2020 The new COVID-19 tracing app is based on a Singaporean app called TraceTogether. The Australian version of the app will utilize the same Bluetooth technology as Singapores, but would only download information after a user has been in contact with a confirmed case for 15 minutes or more. The phones will exchange mobile phone numbers in a highly encrypted format that hides the identity of both users, and will store the data for 21 days. The minister said data will not be able to be accessed by the government and will only be utilized if a person tests positive for COVID-19. Researchers at Macquarie University (pdf), published a short review of Singapores TraceTogether app and concluded that it has some privacy issues. They pointed out that the Singaporean app does little to really control the governments access to a users data, and has the potential to be used for mass surveillance, as the data is not destroyed after the 21 days. Borisov, a comet from another star system, was surrounded by a cloud of poisonous gas that formed in space in one of the coldest environments known. Researchers from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center found that it must have formed in the outer edges of its original star system - known as Kruger 60. This would have been in an area of space where temperatures fall to a staggering -420 degrees Fahrenheit - cold enough for carbon monoxide (CO) to freeze. NASA scientists say its 100,000-mile coma - a fuzzy outer layer of light surrounding the object - contains water and an unusually large amount of carbon monoxide. A team from Yale University captured this 'close-up' image of the comet on the November 24, using the Keck Observatory's low-resolution imaging spectrometer The cold temperatures of interstellar space would have preserved its chemicals for millions or even billions of years while it journeyed across the universe. When it got within around 190 million miles of our Sun the warmth eventually caused the ice to vaporise and the coma to shrink in size. It had up to 26 times as much CO than that of the average solar system comet. According to NASA researchers this means it was born where the volatile compound could be frozen into its nucleus. Dr Martin Cordiner, of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre in Maryland, said: 'This is the first time we've ever looked inside a comet from outside our solar system. 'It's is dramatically different from most other comets we've seen before.' On October 10, experts announced that they had found that Borisov had come from a twin star system dubbed 'Kruger 60', pictured in an artist's impression, that lies 13 light years away Comets spend most of their time at large distances from any star. Unlike planets their interior compositions change little over time due to the freezing temperatures. The findings, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, could shed fresh light on the evolution of star systems including our solar system. They are based on images of the trail of gas left by Borosov that were captured by the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) telescope in Chile. It detected normal quantities of HCN (hydrogen cyanide) - another molecule present in comets - but the CO readings came as a surprise to astronomers. Co-author Dr Stefanie Millam, said it must have formed from material 'very rich in CO ice' which is only present at the lowest temperatures found in space. The comet is more than half a mile wide and its tail nearly 100,000 miles long - meaning it would stretch round Earth 14 times. Previous research has indicated it came from a twin star system dubbed 'Kruger 60' that lies 13 light years away from Earth. It was probably ejected into interstellar space as a consequence of a near-collision with a planet in its original star system. Co-author Dr Anthony Remijan, of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Charlottesville, Virginia, said ALMA is changing our understanding of the nature of comets and what they're made of. 'It's only because of ALMA's unprecedented sensitivity at submillimeter wavelengths that we are able to characterise the gas coming out of such unique objects,' he said. Carbon monoxide is one of the most common molecules in space - and is found inside most comets but every comet varies in how much CO is found inside them. The comet's tail, shown in the new image, is nearly 100,000 miles long, which is 14 times the size of Earth. The tail is made up of an unusually high level of carbon monoxide It can be related to where in the solar system a comet was formed - or how often the orbit brings it closer to the Sun leading to the evaporation of more ice. 'If the gases we observed reflect the composition of Borisov's birthplace, then it shows it may have formed in a different way than our own solar system comets, in an extremely cold, outer region of a distant planetary system,' said Dr Cordiner. This region can be compared to the Kuiper Belt - a cold region of icy bodies beyond Neptune in the Solar System. The team can only speculate about the kind of star that hosted Borisov's planetary system as they haven't observed it directly. This composite image of Borisov was captured in September 2019. Astronomers don't know whether it's carbon monoxide heavy coma is usual for interstellar objects or whether Borisov is unique among the stars Dr Cordiner said: 'Most of the proto-planetary disks observed with ALMA are around younger versions of low-mass stars like the Sun. 'Many of these disks extend well beyond the region where our own comets are believed to have formed - and contain large amounts of extremely cold gas and dust. It's possible that Borisov came from one of these larger disks.' It reached 21 miles a second as it travelled through our solar system - suggesting it was 'kicked out' from its host system by a passing star or giant planet. It then spent millions or billions of years on a cold, lonely voyage through interstellar space before it was discovered by chance on August 30, 2019 by Crimean telescope maker Gennady Borisov. Borisov was discovered in 2019 and was only the second interstellar traveller to be spotted in the solar system - following the discovery of Oumuamua in 2017. Borisov is the second-known visitor from outside our solar system joining the cigar-shaped asteroid Oumuamua, which was detected on October 19, 2017 Oumuamua was already on its way out when it was spotted in 2017 - making it difficult to reveal details about whether it was a comet, asteroid or something else. The presence of an active gas and dust coma surrounding Borisov made it the first confirmed interstellar comet. Until others are observed its unusual composition cannot easily be explained - and raises more questions than answers, according to the NASA team. 'Borisov gave us the first glimpse into the chemistry that shaped another planetary system,' said Dr Milam. 'But only when we can compare the object to other interstellar comets, will we learn whether Borisov is a special case, or if every interstellar object has unusually high levels of CO.' A paper published by another team in the same journal based on observations from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) confirmed the comet has between 0.7 and 1.7 times as much CO as water - making it unique. As COVID-19 sweeps the world, Liam Hemsworth, 30, and his model girlfriend Gabriella Brooks, 23, are self-isolating in the lap of luxury. The couple are currently holed up in the actor's sleek beach pad on Phillip Island, just off the Australia's southern coast. The sprawling, bunker-inspired mansion sits on six acres of ocean-front land, and boasts spectacular coastal views. Lockdown love shack! Inside the bunker-inspired Phillip Island home (pictured) where Liam Hemsworth, 30, is self-isolating with girlfriend Gabriella Brooks, 23. It has an open-plan kitchen and living room, and features polished wooden floors and a domed ceiling. A terrace wraps around the exterior, offering the perfect place for the Hunger Games star to share a romantic moment with his stunning ladylove. Liam, who grew up on Phillip island with his famous brothers Chris and Luke, purchased the property in 2013 for $1.6 million. Isolating in luxury: The couple are currently holed up in the actor's sleek beach pad on Phillip Island, just off the Australia's southern coast. Pictured left: Liam Hemsworth, right: Gabriella Brooks Sleek: It has an open-plan kitchen and living room, and features polished wooden floors and a domed ceiling. A terrace (pictured) wraps around the exterior - providing the perfect vantage point for gazing at the ocean The home is also just a few hours flight from Byron Bay, where Chris and wife Elsa Pataky own a $20million mansion. During the coronavirus pandemic, outdoorsy Liam and Gabriella have spent plenty of time visiting Phillip Island's local beaches for surfing sessions. They have also been spotted picking up take-away coffees and meals from trendy eateries in the area. Back to nature: The sprawling, bunker-inspired mansion sits on six acres of ocean-front land, and boasts spectacular coastal views Seclusion: The unusual cylinder-inspired structure sits nestled in coastal bushland In 2013, Liam famously fled to his Phillip Island digs after splitting from Miley Cyrus. There, he spent time out of the spotlight to reconnect with friends and family, as well as heal his broken heart. The couple reunited in late 2015, before finally calling it quits in August 2019 after just seven months of marriage. Liam and Gabriella were first spotted together in mid-December 2019 during a lunch date with Liam's parents, Craig and Leonie, in Byron Bay. Bishop Talbert Swan II offered condolences and prayers for the families of the 16 killed during a 12-hour rampage by a shooter in Nova Scotia on Saturday night. Gabriel Wortman, 51, was identified as the suspect and confirmed dead by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The motive behind the shooting, one of the deadliest in recent Canadian history, is under investigation. Swan, an American prelate of the Church Of God In Christ, serves as bishop of the Nova Scotia Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction in Canada. He praised the work of first responders in preventing further bloodshed. Today, hearts across Nova Scotia and all of Canada are joined together in collective mourning for the victims of the horrific shootings that occurred on Saturday, April 18 at various locations across the Province. On behalf of the Nova Scotia Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction and the entire Church Of God In Christ, led by our Presiding Bishop, the Most Reverend Bishop Charles Edward Blake, Sr., we offer heartfelt condolences and pray for the families of those who lost their lives, the wounded, and the community as a whole, Swan said in a statement. We pray, too, for the first responders whose bravery apprehended the suspect and prevented further bloodshed. Swan added, We implore all people of goodwill, especially our elected and local leaders, to work together to find meaningful solutions to ensure heinous acts such as this do not occur in our society. Together we pray that the God of all Goodness and Mercy dispel the darkness of evil in our world and grant us His peace. May He provide light where there is darkness, love where there is hate, and kindness where there is contempt. Swan, a 54-year-old native of Springfield, is a senior adviser to Bishop Blake and also president of the Greater Springfield NAACP. Conference of Southern Graduate Schools Picks Coats as President-Elect Mon, 04/20/2020 - 09:21am | By: David Tisdale Dr. Karen Coats, dean of The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Graduate School, was recently chosen by members of the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools (CSGS) as its president-elect during the organizations recent annual meeting in Birmingham, Alabama. Dr. Coats was elected to the CSGS executive committee in 2019, and in that role served on the program planning committee and student awards committee. She will continue in the role of President-Elect through February 2021, when she assumes the role of CSGS president. Her primary responsibility as president-elect will be planning the program for the 2021 CSGS annual meeting, to be held at North Carolina State University in Raleigh next February. I was so honored to be elected to this position by my peers from across CSGS. I appreciate their confidence in me, and I am excited to have the opportunity to help shape the focus and initiatives of the organization over the next three years in the roles of president-elect, president, and then past-president, Dr. Coats said. Through my interactions with graduate students and leaders across the CSGS membership, I also hope to bring focus on graduate education at The University of Southern Mississippi by bragging on our students and faculty, and informing all about the opportunities our institution offers. The CSGS includes 85 colleges and universities from across the southern U.S., ranging from west Texas to Maryland. Its purpose is to serve as a resource for graduate school leaders, including administrators and staff, by examining topics of mutual concern in graduate education, and sharing ideas and solutions. Im very proud of the attention CSGS has paid to graduate student development over the last several years, said Dr. Coats, noting the organizations hosting of a Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, which features 3MT winners from member institutions in a competition prominently showcased during the annual meeting. The 2020 meeting included the inaugural graduate student program track, for which Dr. Coats served as a member of its organizing committee. The program included a full day of professional development activities for students. I was very proud of the quality and impact of the program, she said. The CSGS also promotes the professional development of deans, associate deans, directors, and staff through workshops and training opportunities addressing contemporary issues, as well as networking opportunities with colleagues across the southern region. The CSGS liaisons with the Council of Graduate Schools, the national-level organization of graduate school professionals. Dr. Coats was named dean of the USM Graduate School in 2014. She first became involved with the CSGS when she served as associate dean of the graduate school at Mississippi State University. I attended my first CSGS meeting in Jacksonville, Florida in spring of 2012, and I havent missed a conference since, she said. Those meetings have provided great opportunities for my professional growth, and have broadened my professional network. For information about the USM Graduate School and graduate education at the University, visit https://www.usm.edu/graduate-school/. The deal represents a triumph for Netanyahu, who has pushed relentlessly to extend his record run at the top of Israeli politics. Critics have bemoaned and observers marveled that Israels longest-serving prime minister has once again outrun the political obituaries written for him after his party and its allies failed to regain their majority in three straight national elections and he was indicted on corruption charges along the way. What you should know about fasting, prayer, charity, health and Eid amid global lockdowns and mosque closures. Muslims around the world will observe the holy month of Ramadan under lockdown and tight restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak that has paralysed entire countries. The first day of fasting for Ramadan, which is determined by the sighting of the new moon, is likely to be Friday, April 24 in most Arab nations. Ramadan is the holiest month for Muslims, in which they fast during daylight hours, congregate for prayers and share meals as a community. But with strict curfews and physical distancing directives enforced to limit the spread of the highly contagious COVID-19 disease, many of Ramadans rituals and traditions will be curtailed this year. I cant remember anything like this happening before, Mohd Faizal Musa, a research fellow at the National University of Malaysias Institute of the Malay World and Civilization (ATMA), told Al Jazeera. There was World War II or natural disasters, but from past literature, historical texts, and various archives, I found that Muslims still gathered during Ramadan, despite the war or disasters, and still observed their religious rituals together. However, we are facing a different enemy this time around. It can be merciless and invisible. How will fasting be different? During the holy month, Muslims wake up early to eat a pre-dawn meal called suhoor, and break their fast after sunset with a meal called iftar. Breaking of the fast is usually a communal affair. It is common for mosques to host large iftars, especially for the poor. Because of the pandemic, which has spread to 185 nations, many countries this year have advised citizens to avoid large gatherings and have suhoor and iftar individually or with family at home. In Egypt, all Ramadan activities, including group iftars and charity tables, are banned. Egypt has prohibited setting up iftar tables around mosques to feed the poor [File: Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters] The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised using virtual alternatives, where possible, for social and religious gatherings. Month-long Ramadan bazaars with stalls selling food, drinks and clothes, usually busy sites, are not allowed in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore. Rozana Isa, head of Malaysia-based group Sisters in Islam, said this will have a big economic impact on small businesses and single mothers, who rely heavily on this source of income. Meanwhile, as food consumption usually rises in Ramadan, there are concerns of panic buying and supplies running low amid the lockdowns. The physical distancing guidelines will also dampen the spirit of Ramadan, Rozana told Al Jazeera. [On] this occasion where we have to practise physical distancing, not to greet one another in the way that we usually greet by hugging our fellow Muslims or shaking their hands, this will definitely have an impact on the spirit, she said. Can people still pray together? Congregational prayers are banned in several countries, and many mosques have been temporarily closed. Jordan has suspended the special evening Tarawih prayers at mosques, urging citizens to offer them at home. In Iran, one of the regions hardest-hit nations, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also called on people to avoid collective prayers. Friday prayers outside the Omar Binu Katab mosque, while the spread of COVID-19 continues in Hodan district of Mogadishu, Somalia [File: Feisal Omar/Reuters] In the Malaysian state of Selangor, the sultan has suspended religious activities in mosques until at least May 31. The religious authorities are definitely encouraging people to do their daily five prayers at home, and I think it really is within the family then to inculcate that spirit of coming together and praying [as a group], Rozana said. In Saudi Arabia, King Salman has ordered the shortening of Tarawih prayers, which will be held without public attendance, at the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina. Meanwhile, Pakistan will allow congregational prayers at mosques during Ramadan, but worshippers must keep a distance of two metres (six feet) from each other and are encouraged to bring their own prayer mats. 200324193745287 At Jerusalems Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which will be closed to Muslim worshippers throughout Ramadan, the call to prayer will still take place five times a day, and religious workers allowed entry. Mosques in the United Kingdom and elsewhere will live-stream sermons, Quranic recitation and prayers. Muslims will also be able to attend religious lectures via video-conferencing app Zoom, Facebook and YouTube. For us, the connectivity whether it was through classes, the recitation of the Quran or through prayers at mosques we will now try to cope with in our homes, said Aiasha Amir, a Pakistani Islamic instructor and motivational speaker, who will be giving daily lectures live on Facebook during Ramadan. Pakistans government has decided to conditionally keep mosques open during Ramadan [Fareed Khan/AP] How can you provide charity to the poor? Giving charity and zakat, which is one of the five pillars of Islam, is encouraged during Ramadan. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where a nightly nationwide curfew has been in place since March 26, charities will deliver iftar meals to the poor instead of serving them in Ramadan tents or mosques. But in Saudi Arabia, the mosque of Prophet Muhammad in Medina will not provide iftar meals to needy people this year. Daily-wage workers receive free wheat donated by Afghan businessmen ahead of Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan [Rahmat Gul/AP] For safety reasons, religious and health experts have advised using online methods to donate to NGOs helping those affected by the outbreak. To avoid the crowded gathering associated with iftar banquets, consider using individual pre-packaged boxes/servings of food, the WHO said in its Ramadan guidelines. These can be organised by centralised entities and institutions, which should adhere to physical distancing throughout the whole cycle (collecting, packaging, storing and distribution). Can you fast with COVID-19 symptoms? In all cases, it is essential to seek medical advice from your doctor. According to the Quran, sick people are exempt from fasting and can make up for the missed fast within a year after Ramadan. The elderly, pregnant and nursing women are also allowed to skip fasting. Therefore, according to Rozana, if you are experiencing serious coronavirus symptoms, it is advisable not to fast. 190505051542870 In Islam, it is very clear about who should fast and who is exempted from fasting, particularly those who are experiencing a particular ailment and I think with the coronavirus symptoms it doesnt sound like its an ailment that is something light, Rozana said. Amir said if an individual is not under a doctors supervision and their cough and flu is not serious, then one may keep fasting. It depends upon the immunity of the person, if it is [symptoms are] mild and if it is bearable just like normal cough and flu in which there is no danger to your life carry on your fasts as long as its not affecting your physical health. How can Eid be celebrated in a pandemic? The Eid al-Fitr festival marks the end of Ramadan and is celebrated as an official holiday in Muslim-majority countries. With lockdown measures in place and large gatherings banned, this years festivities will be scaled down. The Indonesian Ulema Council recommends that people living and working in other cities should refrain from visiting their hometowns for the holiday. Malaysia has banned popular Ramadan bazaars where hawkers sell food and drinks in congested open-air markets or roadside stalls [File: Vincent Thian/AP] It remains unclear if nations will lift or ease lockdown measures for Eid. Saudia Arabias grand mufti has said that, if the outbreak continues, Eid prayers can be performed at home. Like it or not, Eid this year will be in a restricted manner, said Faizal at the National University of Malaysia. It will be different. A small, close Eid celebration between small unit members of the family will be organised. This will be less fun for kids, and they will remember this era or year to tell their children and future generations. What can Muslims learn from this experience? The faithful can learn a number of lessons from the restrictions this year as they are encouraged to observe Ramadan more modestly, Rozana said. That whole notion about the food wastage, the wastage of resources and how it can be better channelled towards those who need it, thats something for us as Muslims to think about as well, she said. Follow Saba Aziz on Twitter: @saba_aziz An Ethiopian Airlines cargo flight filled with medical supplies donated to Africa from the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation arrives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on March 22, 2020. Photo: Xinhua As China is aiding countries ravaged by the novel coronavirus pandemic with testing kits, protective outfits and other medical help critical for fighting the disease, some Western media outlets and observers have accused Beijing of exercising "coronavirus diplomacy" to expand influence and fill the leadership void left by the US. In China, voices are also calling on the country to scale down its coronavirus-related foreign assistance. Some Chinese people are questioning why China continues to do a thankless job facing groundless accusations and distorted interpretations of China's motives. However, if China really steps back, that would run counter to the spirit of humanitarianism, which is in no way what a responsible global power should do. China cannot sit by idly and show no sympathy to countries hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. When the epidemic was raging in China, many countries and regions offered timely and much-needed help to China, and the Chinese people took it as pure goodwill gestures. As of Sunday, the deadly coronavirus has infected over 2.3 million people worldwide, killing more than 160,000. As many epidemic-ravaged countries have been caught up in a dilemma of growing risks but inadequate medical supplies, China should expand its aid as much as possible. Any country having the ability to help at this critical juncture should act as China is acting. The coronavirus is a common enemy of all the people and no country can deal with it alone. Admittedly, offering humanitarian assistance will inevitably bring influence to the providers. It's normal that people will praise and remember those who help them in need. Through providing timely help to countries in difficulty, China's international influence could be enhanced. This is a spontaneous result. But this has touched a raw nerve of those who are stuck in a geopolitical mind-set. They worry that China is deliberately cozying up to recipients, drawing them over to China's camp. Viewing China as an ideological rival, they interpret whatever China does from the geopolitical perspective and deem it a threat to the Western camp. Humanitarianism must transcend geopolitics and politics. No matter how those Western politicians and observers throw mud at China's generous efforts, patients are innocent. The coronavirus pandemic is a serious humanitarian disaster. China was one of the first countries that have brought the epidemic under control and to save lives, Beijing has the responsibility to offer medical support to those countries ravaged by the coronavirus. Any responsible global power prioritizing people's lives would make the same choice as China. In the future, China should enhance its efforts to provide foreign aid. It should help developing countries with relatively weak healthcare systems, ensure that medical supplies are sent to those who need them most. Beijing should also give full play to non-governmental organizations and enterprises such as the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation. The two foundations have donated a considerable number of essential medical supplies to 150 countries, regions and international organizations so far. Not only the Chinese government but also Chinese NGOs and companies have offered help to virus-hit countries. China wins more understanding and support as long as it continues its efforts to help others. CLEVELAND, Ohio The Cuyahoga County Board of Health and the Ohio Health Department are investigating a cluster of coronavirus cases at the Salvation Armys Harbor Light complex in Cleveland, the board reported Monday. Five staff members and six residents have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Thomas Applin, divisional secretary of Salvation Army of Greater Cleveland Area Services. Clients and staff at the complex are being screened for illness and tested as part of the boards investigation. Residents who have tested positive are quarantined in a separate part of the building, Applin said. The residential complex is at 1710 Prospect Avenue in downtown Cleveland. It includes a homeless shelter, addiction services, and a community corrections program for people recently released from jail, or serving out the remainder of their sentence, according to a Salvation Army spokesman. The complex houses about 450 residents, and has about 150 staff members, Applin said. The Salvation Army contacted local health officials when they learned of the cluster, and are continuing to work with the board during its investigation, Applin said. Because Harbor Light is in the city, investigations would normally fall to the Cleveland Department of Public Health. The county Board of Health, which handles all suburbs, is conducting the Harbor Light investigation as part of its collaboration with the city, a board spokesman said, but did not elaborate. By Akbar Mammadov The volume of pharmaceutical products imported to Azerbaijan increased by 51.6 percent or by 1.8 times year-on-year in 2020, amounting to $85.6 million, the State Customs Committee (SCC) told local media. Thus, 4,949 tons of pharmaceutical products worth $85,6 million were imported to the country in the first quarter of 2020, versus 2,728 tons of pharmaceutical products worth $56.1 million in January-March 2019, were imported to Azerbaijan. As reported, in 2019, 16,526 tons of pharmaceutical products worth $296 million 531.79 thousand were imported to Azerbaijan. --- Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Chinese officials are denying allegations that people of color are facing discrimination and even eviction under coronavirus mitigation efforts, as they report that Africans are among the countrys newly confirmed cases. The Chinese state news agency, Xinhua, reported last week that 111 people from Africa living in the city of Guangzhou had tested positive for the coronavirus. This followed confirmation from U.S. and African officials and at least one business that people were being denied services, subjected to COVID-19 tests and forced into supervised quarantine. A group of African ambassadors in Beijing were the first to raise the issue, co-signing a letter saying Africans were being subjected to humiliation and harassment despite adhering to local policies designed to mitigate the spread of the virus. Africans from Togo, Nigeria and Benin had been evicted from hotels in the middle of the night, a group of African students was forced to take tests despite not having traveled recently, and others reported being threatened with having their visas and work permits revoked, said the letter, addressed to Chinas foreign ministry. The U.S. Consulate General then issued a warning on April 13 that people appearing to be of African origin or in contact with African nationals were being forced to take COVID-19 tests and undergo quarantine under supervision and at their own expense in some cases regardless of their recent travel history or whether they had already completed a required period of self-isolation. African Americans have also reported that some businesses and hotels refuse to do business with them, it said. At a McDonalds in Guangzhou, a video shared on Twitter showed workers carrying signs that say "black people are not allowed to enter the restaurant." McDonalds responded by saying the signs were removed immediately and the restaurant has been temporarily closed. This is not representative of our inclusive values, the company said in a statement to NBC News. We will take the opportunity to further educate managers and employees on our values, which includes serving all members of the communities in which we operate. Story continues Other videos showed African residents being escorted down a city street after allegedly being evicted from their homes. NBC News could not verify the videos authenticity. However, the Ugandan Embassy confirmed that some of their citizens in China had been evicted, but clarified that this was due in part to their legal status in the country. As a result of the greater scrutiny of residents and their travels under coronavirus mitigation measures, Ugandan workers who had overstayed their work permits were being caught, said Philip Kanyoonzi, Uganda's acting ambassador to China. "Their landlords were quickly pushing them out of their homes in order not to be caught on the wrong side of the law by Chinas government," Kanyoonzi said. "We have engaged China to say that, yes, we acknowledge that these people may be illegal migrants, and therefore on the wrong side of the law, but nevertheless they need to be treated humanely," he said. Kanyoonzi said Chinese officials had assured him the situation would be rectified but did not provide specifics. Temporary temperature checkpoint is seen behind the once bustling markets of Guangzhou's Sanyuanli area, as the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in the country (David Kirton / Reuters) Botswana's ambassador to China also met with government officials last week to address "reported incidents of mistreatment of Africans" and "find an immediate remedial action," the Botswana government said in a statement. It also encouraged Botswana nationals to adhere to China's measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus. In Nigeria, Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama said on Twitter that he had met with Chinese Ambassador Zhou Pingjian and called for immediate government intervention into how Nigerians were being treated. Download the NBC News app for latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak. The U.S. has advised African Americans or anyone who has been in contact with African citizens to avoid the Guangzhou metropolitan area and to carry their identity documents at all times. China has repeatedly denied discrimination in its handling of the virus. China "treats all foreign personnel in China as equals and opposes any differentiated practices targeting specific groups of people," Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at an April 13 news conference. Zhao also accused the United States of trying to fuel a dispute between China and Africa, saying the U.S. side is arrogant and provocative, which is neither moral nor responsible." In a tweet on Tuesday, Zhao said that Chinas friendship with Africa is unbreakable, and that smearing or wedge-driving would never succeed. Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak. For the 111 African cases identified in Guangzhou, some of whom were asymptomatic, Xinhua reported that they were required to undergo quarantine just as Chinese citizens would. "The Guangzhou authority provided the same hotel and staff for all patients without any racial or ethnic discrimination," said Chen Yongqiu, deputy director of public security for the city. China first reported cases of COVID-19 in the city of Wuhan on Dec. 31, according to the World Health Organization. Since then, the country's health officials say at least 82,249 people have been infected and 3,341 have died. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Having trouble finding a reason to get out of your pajamas these days? It almost seems silly to put on jeans, do your hair, or even put on makeup when the only place to go is the couch in the living room or your computer at the kitchen table. Many people are working from home or out of work and have little motivation to look like themselves especially when barber shops, nail salons, and gyms are shuttered, so many of us are not feeling like ourselves. Being on pause makes it easy for the days to blur into each other -- and our daily routines also take a pause -- but it could be having a negative impact on our moods. Several studies have shown that women who got dressed up and did their makeup actually performed better on simulated exams. According to a psychologist, keeping up with daily routines is beneficial to a persons morale. Dr. Stewart Shankman, chief of psychology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, told TIME that continuing routines helps people feel in control in otherwise uncontrollable situations. This COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented time of uncertainty and uncontrollability. So people are putting makeup on will give them a sense of control given whats going on outside is uncontrollable, Shankman told TIME. *** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK *** What people are doing when theyre putting on makeup or getting dressed is theyre doing something to improve their mood, and we know from research studies and interventions that when people can control their mood, it helps their sense of well-being, he explained. Charlotte Lescroart told TIME that the confidence she used to get from interacting with people in-person she now gets from the change in her beauty routine. However, its okay if you dont want to get dressed up every day. Rheeda Walker, a professor of psychology, said we should cut ourselves some slack if we dont feel up to our daily routines and opt to stay cosy. If folks arent up for dressing for the cyber world as they would in the office, that is completely understandable. We can cut ourselves some slack if, mentally, were just not up for the pomp and circumstance," Walker told TODAY. We are all going through an unprecedented and stressful time in history," she said. FOLLOW KRISTIN F. DALTON ON TWITTER. Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease was confirmed for 16 children and 43 medical workers in Ukraine over the past 24 hours, Health Minister of Ukraine Maksym Stepanov has said. "Some 261 people were diagnosed with the diseases in the past 24 hours, including 16 children and 43 medical workers. But the good news is that twelve patients, including three children and four medical workers, have recovered," he told a press briefing on Monday. The minister also said that a total of 5,710 COVID-19 cases, including 374 among children and 1,074 among medical workers, have been registered in Ukraine during the pandemic. KUALA LUMPUR, April 20 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures edged up on Monday due to expectations of an uptick in April exports, although gains were capped on weaker crude and rival oil prices. The benchmark palm oil contract for July delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 7 ringgit, or 0.31%, to 2,242 ringgit ($511.06) per tonne by 0251 GMT. Palm shed 3.3% last week. The market is expecting Malaysian palm oil exports during April 1-20 to increase by 6%-8%, traders said. The cargo surveyors data will be released during the midday break on Monday. FUNDAMENTALS * Crude oil futures fell on Monday, with U.S. futures touching levels not seen since 1999, extending weakness on the back of sliding demand and concerns that U.S. storage facilities will soon fill to the brim amid the coronavirus pandemic. * Weaker crude oil make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock. * Dalian's most-active soyoil contract fell 0.04%, while its palm oil contract gained 1.04%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.22%. * Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market. * Palm oil may retest a support at 2,198 ringgit per tonne, a break below could cause a fall to 2,165 ringgit, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. MARKET NEWS * Caution gripped Asian share markets on expectations a busy week of corporate earnings reports and economic data will drive home the damage done by the global virus lockdown, while a glut of supply sent U.S. crude spiralling to 20-year lows. DATA/EVENTS 0600 UK Claimant Count Unemployment Change March 0600 UK ILO Unemployment Rate Feb 0900 Germany ZEW Economic Sentiment April 0900 Germany ZEW Current Conditions April 1400 US Existing Home Sales March ($1 = 4.3870 ringgit) (Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; editing by Uttaresh.V) Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Summer is coming. In any other year, that would be music to the ears of holidaymakers. But this isn't any other year. It's 2020, and tens of thousands of Irish summer holiday bookings are next in line for Covid-19's scythe of chaos. Before coronavirus hit, this was looking like a bumper season, according to Pat Dawson, CEO of the Irish Travel Agents' Association (ITAA). "Agents were reporting a 15-20pc rise on forward summer bookings," he says. "It was looking to be a very, very decent summer, so there are all of those bookings to contend with." Now, there is a hot mess - planes grounded, cruise ships anchored, cashflow crises throughout the industry and widespread confusion over cancellation and refund policies. So should customers cancel their holiday, rebook or wait and see? When is travel likely to resume? That's the $64,000 question. Nobody knows the answer - not airlines, not tour operators, and least of all holidaymakers. The Irish Government is still advising against all non-essential travel. Many borders remain closed. "I'd say airplanes will be ready to go in July, but with countries not opening and quarantines and all sorts of things, with the wind at our back it's probably going to be August or September," Pat Dawson says. "I can't see it being any earlier." Ryanair, which has grounded "over 99pc" of its flights, is advertising a September sale with seats from 39.99. It is ready to return "when Covid-19 is defeated, which will hopefully be sooner rather than later," it says. However, even when airlines are cleared to take off, there will be unprecedented health, safety and consumer confidence issues to contend with. "The longer this goes on, the more consumers are becoming both more aware and wary of taking unknown risks," says Dermott Jewell of the Consumers' Association of Ireland (CAI). "They're not sure what to do. And I can understand why. Nobody is." Expand Close Heading on holidays. PA Photo/thinkstockphotos. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Heading on holidays. PA Photo/thinkstockphotos. I've booked and paid for a summer holiday. Will it go ahead? It's increasingly unlikely. TUI has cancelled all packages to mid-May, and the Irish government has said customers can cancel packages without a termination fee if they were set to start before May 29, but few in the industry really believe holidays in June and July can escape the impact of coronavirus. Whatever about your inclination to travel, holidaymakers have no control over when destinations like Spain, France, Italy or the US will re-open, for example. Until your holiday or flight is cancelled, however, it is presumed to be going ahead. If you cancel before that, you may take the financial hit. I'm anxious about travel. What happens if I cancel now? If (due to Covid-19) you wish to cancel a package holiday due to start before May 29, you have the right to do that and get a full refund (without paying a fee), the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) - the Irish enforcement body for Package Holidays legislation - confirms. Over 8,000 people have contacted the CCPC since February 1st, it says, and the most common reasons have been issues such as package holidays and cancelled flights and accommodation. Beyond May 29, the situation changes. "If you have a deposit down and you pull out, it's a problem to you as the consumer because you are breaking the contract," the CAI's Dermott Jewell explains. Cancelling a trip before a tour operator or airline does means you could lose your deposit, some or all of your payment, or pay a cancellation fee. If you sit tight and wait, however, you are likely to be in a stronger position if and when cancellations do kick in - for refunds, rebooking options and vouchers. I've paid a deposit on a holiday; now the balance is due. What should I do? If you fail to pay the balance, you break your contract and may lose the deposit and/or pay a cancellation fee. Worse, if the trip is cancelled in the future, you will have lost any refund or rebooking options. One option, if you can afford it, is to pay the balance to keep your package holiday 'live' for now. It will either go ahead, or you will have more rights in the event that it is cancelled. Another is to speak to your travel agent or tour operator about rescheduling - the ITAA estimates that some 80pc of holidaymakers with bookings in May and June have already changed trips for later in 2020 or 2021, and agents would much rather reschedule than lose a customer. Dermott Jewell advises asking direct questions. Clearly, nobody knows when travel will resume, but can you negotiate, reach an agreement, extend a date or have the deposit held as a credit note or voucher to use again? You can also check your travel insurance and credit card options (below). What's all the fuss about airline refunds? It's been described as the "wild west of aviation". Normally, EU Regulation 261/2004 stipulates that when an airline cancels a flight, it must offer passengers the choice between a full refund or a re-routing (see here for a full Q&A on flight cancellations and consumer rights). Expand Close Passengers travelling during the pandemic. Photo by Sergei Bobylev\TASS via Getty Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Passengers travelling during the pandemic. Photo by Sergei Bobylev\TASS via Getty Images But these are not normal times. Amidst the Covid-19 chaos, airlines have been accused by passengers and travel agents of withholding refunds and offering vouchers instead. We are also aware of readers left waiting several weeks to receive both refunds and vouchers. "The EU-261 [regulation] in seven to ten countries has been torn up," Pat Dawson says, though it's unclear if sanctions will follow, or how consumer protections may change post-Covid-19. There is some sympathy for airlines. "If they had to refund now, how many would be left alive?" as Dawson puts it. "The law is the law, but it was made in pre-war times, in a sense." One thing's for sure. If you cancel your flight, you must accept the airline's terms. If you wait for a cancellation, you are in a stronger position. If you are unhappy with the airline's handling of your rights, you can contact the Commission for Aviation Regulation here. What are Ryanair and Aer Lingus saying? Both are operating drastically reduced schedules, and are cancelling on a rolling, week-to-week basis. If your flight is for the chop, you can currently expect the airline to contact you a week or two ahead of the departure date. Where flights are cancelled, Aer Lingus says it will continue to offer refunds or rebookings in line with EU Regulation 261/2004. For passengers looking to rebook flights themselves, it has waived change fees to May 31 (fare differences may apply), or is offering vouchers for the full value, plus 10pc. It may take up to a month to receive refunds or vouchers, however, due to "an unprecedented level" of applications, it says. Ryanair has also waived change fees and has extended a limited flight schedule through April 23. Where flights are cancelled, it has corresponded with customers to offer "refund vouchers" or a place in a "cash refund queue". It declined to comment on whether this represents a change in its policy on refunds, rebookings or vouchers for cancelled flights. Why can't my travel agent just refund me? Travel agents are "the ham in the middle of the sandwich", as Pat Dawson puts it. "If airlines aren't refunding cash, travel agents can't refund. One follows the other... if every travel agent followed the Package Holiday Directive [and offered refunds], 100pc of them would be closed today." If the flight portion of your package is still scheduled, or is non-refundable, that makes recouping the cash all the more difficult. Wait... You mean I'm unlikely to get a cash refund at all? That's very possible. "The airline is the bigger portion of it, and the airlines are just giving vouchers," Dawson says. If you are having trouble getting a refund, the CCPC recommends referring the travel agent to Irish Government guidance on the issue, or pursuing the matter through the Small Claims Court (for traders based in Ireland and claims up to 2,000). If your travel agent is in the EU/EAA outside of Ireland, you can seek advice from ECC Ireland or the European small Claims procedure (for claims up to 5,000). You can also bring your case to the CCPC, which has a range of consumer protection responsibilities including those relating to package holidays, itself. What's the Government doing about this? Recognising the "exceptional times", Minister of Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross has been examining measures like refund vouchers or credit notes that "[do] not materially erode consumer rights". A co-ordinated European response would be the best solution, he believes. "We're having ongoing discussions with the Department," Dawson says. "They understand the position of travel agents; they can't close down because somebody else has most of their customers' money." "There will be a legislation change; we need that," he adds. "Like airlines, we feel it will go to vouchers. The difference is that travel agents' vouchers will be covered under insolvency legislation... [they] will be bonded.... consumers' money will be protected." "The sooner we have clarity from everybody's point of view, the better." If I reschedule my holiday, when should it be? Many who have already rescheduled summer holidays have looked to do that in August, September and October, Pat Dawson says. That may appear like a reasonable punt, but who knows what will happen with school holidays, airline schedules or congestion resulting from people rebooking to the same time? "It's definitely going to be a more expensive time of year," Dermott Jewell adds. "It's not going to be entirely possible to move everybody to the one period of time... This is the dilemma the industry is facing, they don't realistically know how to manage it. "At best they can probably push it into next year, but that's quite a challenge too." What if I booked my flights and accommodation separately? If your flights are cancelled, your airline should advise you on options for refunds or rebooking (see above). Similarly, if a hotel cancels, it should refund you according to the booking terms. On the other hand, if you cancel your hotel booking - and it remains open for business - the onus falls back on you. Your cancellation policy may allow you to recoup a deposit, or more, but it will depend on T&Cs. A strong travel insurance policy (see below) may also be of help. What if my flight is going ahead, but the government has advised against travel, or the destination is not open to visitors? Strictly speaking, the airline is within its rights not to refund you. If the flight is operating, its part of the contract can be fulfilled. In practise, however, you can avail of change fee waivers to reschedule (though bear in mind that you will be liable for any fare difference). Aer Lingus adds: "If a flight is proceeding as planned and there is a government-issued travel restriction or travel warning, guests should contact their travel insurer to seek a refund in accordance with the terms of their insurance policy." What will travel insurance cover? Your first recourse for refunds or re-bookings should be your airline or travel agent. From there, robust travel insurance policies can provide compensation for money lost on hotels or other bookings, but there needs to be a strong reason - such as a DFA warning against travel. Insurers won't provide cover if you simply don't want to travel. In taking out a policy, check that it includes government travel advice changes and 'Travel Disruption' cover (an optional extra) to help recoup from cancellations in events like this, as well as strikes and terror attacks etc. Also check what its exceptions are for Covid-19 or pandemics. "The insurance element is probably more key than it's ever been," Dermott Jewell says. "You've got to ensure that you are not only insured to be there and be safe, but that you're insured to get home." Can my credit card help? If you booked your flights or holiday using a credit card, you may be able to have pre-paid purchases reimbursed under Section 14 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act, but terms & conditions will apply. As a rule, credit cards tend to offer more protections than debit cards. Sign up for our free travel newsletter! Like what you're reading? Subscribe now to our free travel newsletter. 'Travel Insider' is written by our award-winning Travel Editor, Pol O Conghaile. (LONDON) In support of Moroccan donkey and mule charity Jarjeer Mules, a new 2021 calendar will be released in May 2020. The calendar will comprise of photos taken by UK Photographer Sara Bronfman of the donkeys in the sanctuary. All proceeds will go towards supporting the work of Jarjeer Mules, which is a retirement home for working donkeys and mules in Rue d'Amsis in Marrakesh, Morocco. In Morocco, donkeys are used Officials on Sunday shut down a 99-acre tulip farm after the South Jersey attraction opened for drive-thru visits amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the business. Dalton Farms, in Swedesboro, said it was ordered to close at 7 p.m. Sunday The farm had welcomed visitors in cars to take in the more than 252,000 tulips in peak bloom. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage For those who had purchased tickets for Monday-Wednesday we will be working to refund all of tickets, Dalton Farms said in a statement. We're heartbroken to get this news in the middle of the day and would like to thank all those who came out over the last few weeks. Holland Ridge Farms in Cream Ridge tried to host a similar drive-thru tulip tour earlier this month, but was told by state officials to close because of restrictions aimed at curbing the virus outbreak. While farms were designated as essential businesses in the state, social gatherings and events were banned. Farms can still sell flowers through orders and by pick-up. At Holland Ridge Farms, owner Casey Jansen told NJ Advance Media he spent at least $1 million on planting flowers months ago to prepare for the popular Monmouth County tulip festival. 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. Rajesh Asnani By Express News Service JAIPUR: As Rajasthan battles the corona crisis, government data reveals that a larger proportion of the corona-infected people are the youth of the state, quite in contrast to the global trend. Of the total positive cases found so far in Rajasthan, 62 percent of the patients are below 40. While the age-wise analysis of the patients in the state shows that the maximum percentage belong to the age group of 21-40 years, the global data suggests that most persons suffering from the deadly disease are in the above 60 category. Interestingly, the percentage of patients over 60 in Rajasthan is only 10.88 of the total. From this peculiar data, it seems that the elderly have been less infected in Rajasthan and its the youth in the state who are more vulnerable to the virus. There are a total of 1351 COVID-19 patients in the state. Of the total patients in the state, 826 patients are below 40. They constitute 62% of the total number. Under 10 years of age are 82 patients, 214 of 11 to 20 years, 288 of 21 to 30 years, 242 of 31 to 40 years, 170 of 41 to 50 years, 143 of 51 to 60 years, 61 to 107 of 70 years, 28 of 71 to 80 years and 12 of 81 to 90 years. Four children under 1 year are also infected. This shows that about 23 per cent of the patients are aged between 40 to 59 years. A maximum 22 per cent of patients are 20 to 30 years old. The Percentage of patients under 10 is 5.93 per cent. Similary it is 15.7 per cent for 10 to 20 years, 22.22 per cent for 20 to 30 years, 19.53 per cent for 30 to 40 years, 13.59 per cent for 40 to 50 years, 11.33 per cent for 50 to 60 years, 8.09 per cent for 60 to 70 year olds, 2.48 per cent or 70 to 80 years old and 1.08 per cent for 80 to 90years. This trend was significantly lower when compared to findings from other countries. However, compared to many western countries, Rajasthan also had a younger population directly affecting the proportion of COVID-19 cases. The bulk of cases in the age group below 40 years is 62 per cent in Rajasthan. Dr Rateesh Sareen Consultant Pathologist Assistant Medico-legal director SDMH Jaipur remarks that the data so far is although limited but still it gives interesting insight ."These trends are just opposite to western countries. It seems that staying home advice has been taken seriously by the elderly population. The government by its information campaign has been able to connect well with the elderly and the call of staying indoor has been well taken up. It is also pertinent to mention that the societal and family system in India largely based on joint families with parents living with children unlike in the West where the elderly live alone and have to manage their daily chores on their own. We would like to watch over again after a few weeks to see whether this trend remains the same or there is any reversal." In a shocking incident, three people who were travelling in a car were beaten to death by a group of villagers in Palghar district of Maharashtra. SCREENGRAB The incident that happened on Thursday night in the Gadchinchle village came to light only after the videos of the horrific, shot by some of the villagers began making rounds on social media. Read more Vijay Mallya All Set To Be Extradited To India After UK Court Rejects His Appeal Former liquor baron Vijay Mallya is all set to be extradited to India from the United Kingdom after he lost his appeal in the High Court. AFP The 64-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the High Court against his extradition to India at a hearing in February this year. Read more Ambulance Carrying Body Of Doctor Who died Of COVID-19 Attacked By Locals In an utterly despicable act, a group of locals attacked an ambulance carrying the body of a neurosurgeon, who had died on Sunday in a Chennai private hospital where he was undergoing treatment after he tested positive for COVID-19. AFP/ REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE The body was to be cremated at the Chennai Corporations burial ground near Kilpauk on Sunday night. Read more Donald Trump Wants His Team Of Experts To Go To China And Probe Coronavirus Outbreak USA wants to send an expert team China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak, said President Donald Trump. REUTERS This comes after he warned China of "consequences" if it was knowingly responsible for spreading coronavirus which taken the lives of over 165,000 people globally, of which more than 41,000 are from USA. Read more 16 'High Risk' Contacts Of COVID-19 Positive Delhi Pizza Delivery Boy Test Negative The high-risk contacts of a Delhi pizza delivery boy who tested positive for COVID-19 have been tested negative. The 19-year-old pizza delivery agent who was working at a local pizza outlet in South Delhi had tested positive for the virus on April 14. REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE The news had triggered a panic wave in Malviya Nagar and adjoining areas after it emerged that he had been showing symptoms of the infection for nearly 20 days. Read more Coronavirus Outbreak: Maharashtra Says No To Sanitization Domes And Tunnels Maharashtra has asked its health department to not use these sanitisation domes, tunnels or rooms that spray disinfectants on people as a measure to curb the spread of coronavirus outbreak as there is no scientific evidence to show that these are effective as said by the health officials on Sunday. BCCL The health department further said, Issuing a set of instructions, state health department director Dr Archana Patil asked all departments not to deploy such domes or tunnels after the same communication was received from the centre. Read more Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday that all 186 people who were diagnosed with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) the previous day had exhibited no symptoms of illness, reinforcing evidence from other states that asymptomatic silent spreaders are unknowingly infecting others. Asymptomatic infections are higher than symptomatic infections in several states, including Karnataka and Assam, according to state government officials familiar with the matter. At the INS Angre station in Mumbai, 66% of the Indian Navy personnel diagnosed with Covid-19 had no cough, fever or any other sign of the illness, according to Western Naval Command. Experts say that the expansion of testing from only symptomatic contacts of a confirmed Covid-19 patient to testing everyone who could have been exposed to the infection, irrespective of symptoms, is leading to more asymptomatic cases being detected n India. People with no symptoms are either asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic. Some develop symptoms some days or a week later, but they begin shedding the virus and infecting others even before they develop symptoms. Young, healthy people are more likely to have a milder disease than older people and those with chronic illnesses, said Dr N K Ganguly, former director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and lung problems, and diseases of the heart and kidney, among others, exacerbate illness and raise the risk of complications and death. According to a study published in Nature Medicine on April 15, around 44% people with Covid-19 got infected by people who had no symptoms, with coronavirus-positive people being the most infectious two or three days before the symptoms appear. Another study from Asia published in March had found that asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission accounted for 48% of the cases in Singapore and 62% in Tianjin, China. Asymptomatic transmission has made containment of this pandemic such a challenge. Unlike Sars-CoV, where disease transmission started after people developed symptoms, around 40% of Covid-19 infection is spread by people before their symptoms appear. Contact tracing and quarantining people will have to continue for several months to break transmission, said Dr Manoj Murhekar, director of the ICMR-National Institute of Epidemiology, Chennai. According to a study published in the journal Science on March 16, undetected cases of people with mild, limited or no symptoms were responsible for 79% of Covid-19 transmission before the lockdown in China, because infected and contagious people continued to congregate or travel. This is why contact tracing is so important, where every contact of a known case is traced and tested irrespective of symptoms. Social isolation will have to be sustained for another one to two years to reduce the multiplier effect. A recent study from Stanford University has found many people who have mild or no disease remain undiagnosed but continue to infect others, said Dr Ganguly. A modelling at Stanford University that tested 3,300 people in Santa Clara County in California for antibodies against Covid-19 to detect past infection found actual infections outnumbered confirmed cases by a factor of 50-85. These prevalence estimates represent a range between 48,000 and 81,000 people infected in Santa Clara County by early April, 50-85 times more than the number of confirmed cases, said researchers in the yet-to-be peer-reviewed study published on April 17 in the preprint server medRxiv. Younger people who are healthy are more likely to stay asymptomatic, found a study in Nanjing in the Jiangsu Province of China, which followed 24 people who tested positive but didnt show symptoms. In the one to three weeks after diagnosis, the seven who continued showing no symptoms had a median age of 14 years , according to the study published in Science China Life Sciences, which is the journal of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. As India widens rapid antibody testing for community surveillance and tests everyone in Covid-19 clusters and hot spots, the number of asymptomatic cases will grow, experts say. Now that states are increasing rapid antibody testing, those who have been infected without knowing it because they had mild disease or did not get tested will be diagnosed, which will help us better understand if there has been a sub-clinical spread of the disease, said a former health ministry official who asked not to be named. Along with rapid testing, we must ramp up polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests to detect active infection and do it at the local level to speed up results, so that there is no lag in the containment response, she said. Doctors say that until a treatment or vaccine is developed against Covid-19, the only protection against silent spreaders is wearing masks, social distancing and hand-washing. Anyone can be a pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic carrier without knowing, so personal protection and social distancing must become the new norm, said Dr Murhekar. Covid-19 transmission can be stopped only when cases are brought down to below one per million population, said Dr Ganguly. To detect community transmission, we need to scale up testing, continue testing all severe acute respiratory testing for surveillance, and trace, test and quarantine all contacts of laboratory-confirmed cases, irrespective of whether they develop symptoms or not, said Dr Ganguly. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The latest: President Trump says he will temporarily suspend immigration into US President Donald Trump said that he will sign an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States. The president made the announcement in a tweet on Monday. He said it is in response to the coronavirus outbreak and the need to protect jobs. "In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!" Trump said. Trump and Pelosi hint deal is close on bailout legislation President Donald Trump suggested today that there could be a Senate vote on a supplemental small business package Tuesday. Hopefully, tomorrow the Senates going to be able to vote. A lot of progress has been made on that, tremendous progress, great plan, Trump said. We hope to have a vote, maybe tomorrow, in the Senate, he reiterated. Trump said his administration is pushing for an additional $75 billion for hospitals and other health care providers in the deal. The Senate will try to pass a deal as soon as tomorrow afternoon, according to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Sources tell CNN House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats that a deal could be reached as soon as tonight and said if there's a deal tonight, the vote in the House will be Wednesday. If the deal comes together Tuesday, she said, the House vote will be Thursday. Protesters push for reopening It's the question on the minds of Americans everywhere: When will this all be over? As it stands in this coronavirus pandemic, the answer remains entirely unclear. Health experts have said the United States needs to rapidly increase its ability to test people for the virus in order to safely reopen without sparking a new wave of infections. Many governors have asked the federal government which has refused to take responsibility for shortages to help ramp up that testing capability. Still, some Americans, fed up with more than a month of lockdowns, restrictions and widespread unemployment, have begun pushing for an immediate reopening in protests around the country. The protesters have accused Republican and Democratic governors and public health officials of limiting their "liberty" and "freedom" with government restrictions intended to stop the rapidly spreading illness from moving through communities and overwhelming hospitals. In Denver, the protests led a small group of health care workers to stand in front of their cars as a form of counterprotest. The government's restrictions have so far slowed but not stopped the virus. For example, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that the state has passed the peak of its outbreak. Even so, 500 people died and more than 1,300 people were newly hospitalized with COVID-19 just on Sunday. "We can control the beast, yes, but the beast is still alive," he said. "We did not kill the beast. And the beast can rise up again." Brazil's Bolsonaro defends participating in anti-quarantine rally Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro defended his participation in a weekend rally, where protesters called for an end to quarantine measures and urged military intervention to shut down Congress and the Supreme Court. Bolsonaro told reporters Monday he personally did not call for shutting down any branch of the government, adding that Brazil is a democracy and referring to the Supreme Court and Congress as open and transparent. He also lashed out at the media, saying he will not accept provocations by the press. National and local governments in Brazil have issued mixed messages on how to behave during the pandemic. While Bolsonaro has been pushing against strict restrictions, state and local governments in some of the country's hardest-hit areas have closed schools and nonessential businesses, with firefighters and police in the streets urging people to stay indoors. Brazil has the most confirmed coronavirus cases in Latin America. As of Sunday, Brazil reported 38,654 cases and 2,462 deaths, according to health officials. Italy's coronavirus case count decreases for the first time The number of active COVID-19 cases in Italy has decreased for the first time since the beginning of the crisis, according to figures released by Italy's Civil Protection Agency. On Monday there were 108,237 active cases in Italy, down from 108,257 on Sunday. Dr. Fauci says reopening too quickly will backfire The top infectious-disease expert in the United States has a message for protesters who are ignoring their governors stay-at-home orders and calling for him to be fired over his guidelines. Dr. Anthony Fauci says the message is this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics, from the standpoint of things that have nothing to do with the virus. He added on ABCs Good Morning America that unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not gonna happen. So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, youre gonna set yourself back." Fauci says as painful as it is to follow guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopening its gonna backfire. Thats the problem. Video above: An exclusive interview with Dr. Fauci Some states may announce plans to lift restrictions this week As many governors across the U.S. say coronavirus testing is far from full capacity, a few states may lift restrictions this week. Announcements of lifting restrictions come as the United States' coronavirus death toll topped 40,000 on Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Several regional groups of states have discussed strategies to reopen with each other. On Monday, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to announce orders that will lift restrictions on beach, river and lakefront access as well as allow shoppers to return to retail site to purchase jewelry, clothing, and furniture, according to a report from The Post and Courier. Despite the expected reopening of some sectors of South Carolina, a coalition of coastal towns in the Charleston area said in a joint statement Sunday that they will continue to limit access to non residents and monitor travel within their jurisdictions. Other states are working on plans to reopen following the release of guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week. The guidance suggests that states expand their testing capacity but some say they need more supplies and staff to do so. States want testing capacities expanded Over the weekend, President Trump said governors across the country had the capacity to complete more testing but weren't utilizing their resources properly. "They don't want to use all of the capacity that we've created. We have tremendous capacity," Trump said during a briefing at the White House. "They know that. The governors know that. The Democrat governors know that. They're the ones that are complaining." Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam called the President's comments "delusional." Northam said he wants to see at least two weeks of tending numbers of coronavirus cases decreasing before businesses in his state reopen. "We want to make sure we're doing it responsibly and we're doing it safely," the democratic governor of Virginia told CNN's Jake Tapper on The State of the Union. "We've been fighting for testing, it's not a straightforward test. We don't even have enough swabs, believe it or not," Gov. Northam said. President Trump said during a briefing Sunday that he'll invoke the Defense Production Act to increase the manufacturing of swabs, according to the Associated Press. The swabs will be used to test for coronavirus. "Our testing is expanding very rapidly by millions and millions of people," Trump said during the briefing, according to CNN. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan also told CNN's Jake Tapper that Trump's claim that governors have plenty of tests and simply aren't doing their job "absolutely false." Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker gave similar remarks Sunday. He said he wants things to be reopen so residents can enjoy recreation this summer but said they need to listen to scientists and doctors investigating the virus before they can comfortably and safely reopen businesses to the public. In order to safely do so, the state needs more lab technicians, more reagent and more RNA extractors to analyze specimens taken, Pritzker said. Harvard researchers warned that if the country wants the economy to open back up and stay that way testing must go up to at least 500,000 people per day. Testing nationwide is currently at 150,000 per day, they said, adding that "If we can't be doing at least 500,000 tests a day by May 1, it is hard to see any way we can remain open." The Associated Press contributed to this report. With the coronavirus pandemic quickly spreading, U.S. health officials have changed their advice on face masks and now recommend people wear cloth masks in public areas where social distancing can be difficult, such as grocery stores. But can these masks be effective? President Donald Trump, in announcing the change in the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions guidance on April 3, stressed that the recommendation was voluntary and said he probably wouldnt follow it. Governors and mayors, however, have started encouraging the precautions to reduce the spread of the virus by people who might not know they are infected. Some cities have gone as far as setting fines for failing to wear a mask. In Laredo, Texas, anyone over the age of five who walks into a store or takes public transit without their mouth and nose covered by a mask or bandana could now be fined up to $1,000. These new measures are designed to flatten the curve, or slow the spread of the coronavirus responsible for COVID-19. 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 Theyre also a shift from the advice Americans have been hearing since the coronavirus pandemic began. The World Health Organization and the CDC have repeatedly said that most people do not need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. In February, the U.S. surgeon general even urged the public to stop buying medical masks, warning that it would not help against the spread of the coronavirus. Part of the reason was to reserve N95 respirators and masks for healthcare workers like myself who are on the front lines and exposed to people with COVID-19. Today, there is much more data and evidence on how COVID-19 is spread, and the prevalence of the disease itself is far more widespread than previously thought. Sick, but no symptoms As recently as early February, the World Health Organization stated that viral transmission from asymptomatic people was likely rare, based on information available at the time. But a growing body of data now suggests that a significant number of infected people who dont have symptoms can still transmit the virus to others. A CDC report issued March 23 on COVID-19 outbreaks on cruise ships offers a glimpse of the danger. It describes how the testing of passengers and crew on board the Diamond Princess found that nearly half 46.5% of the more than 700 people found to be infected with the new coronavirus had no symptoms at the time of testing. The CDC explained that a high proportion of asymptomatic infections could partially explain the high attack rate among cruise ship passengers and crew. Dr. Harvey Fineberg, former president of the National Academy of Medicine and head of a new federal committee on infectious diseases, told CNN on April 2 that he will start wearing a mask in public, especially at grocery stores, for this very reason. While the current specific research is limited, the results of available studies are consistent with aerosolization of virus from normal breathing, he said. It is these silent carriers people infected with the virus but without fever, cough, or muscle aches that proponents of universal mask wearing point to as proof that more could be done beyond social distancing to slow the viruss spread. While research on the effectiveness of universal mask wearing for reducing respiratory droplet transmission is still thin, there is evidence to support it. Research on SARS, another coronavirus, found that N95 masks were highly effective at blocking transmission of that virus. Even ill-fitting medical face masks have been found to interrupt airborne particles and viruses, keeping them from reaching as far when someone sneezes. Another study determined that, while masks made out of cotton T-shirts were far less effective than manufactured surgical masks in preventing wearers from expelling droplets, they did reduce droplets and were better than no protection at all. A challenge with cloth: washing The surgical masks that doctors and nurses typically wear are designed for one-time use, while cloth masks used by the general public would likely be washed, which raises another concern. A study from Nepal on cloth masks designed to protect wearers from larger particles, such as pollution or pollen, found that washing and drying practices deteriorated the masks efficiency because they damaged the cloth material. It is clear that urgent research is needed on the best material suitable for universal masks, their storage and care, or the creation of proper reusable masks for the public. A low-risk intervention As an obstetrician-gynecologist and researcher, I believe that some protection for the public is better than none. A recent article in the medical journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicine states a similar rationale. The universal use of mouth and nose covering with masks is a low-risk intervention that can only assist in reducing the spread of this terrible illness. If everyone wears a mask, individuals protect one another, reducing overall community transmission. It could even remind people not to touch their faces after touching potentially contaminated surfaces. As the research shows, masks arent shields. Its still important to help prevent transmission by practicing social distancing by staying at least 6 feet away from others in public, staying home as much as possible, and washing hands frequently and properly. Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 20, 2020) - Royal Road Minerals Limited (TSXV: RYR) ("Royal Road" or the "Company") announces that by way of Government Circular 4011 issued by the Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy on April the 17th, it has been notified that mineral exploration work may now continue in Colombia, subject to the Company complying with certain national health authority guidelines pertaining to the management and mitigation of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Company has filed operating protocols relating to these guidelines with national authorities in Colombia, has published them on the home page of its corporate web site and is currently supplementing them, where deemed fit, with additional obligations and guidance under the Company's commitment to IFC (World Bank Group) Performance Standards. "This is welcome news from the Colombian authorities but we recognize that it comes with caution and expectation," said Tim Coughlin, Royal Road's President and CEO. "We intend to meet and exceed national health authority guidelines and aim to ensure that local government and local communities are fully-informed and supportive of our plans to continue our exploration activities. We would like to take this opportunity to recognize and extend our gratitude to the Colombian Mining Chamber for their tireless work in facilitating meaningful engagement on this important issue." 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. Cautionary statement: This news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements") including statements relating to Government Circular 4011 and those describing the Company's future plans and the expectations of its management that a stated result or condition will occur. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company, or developments in the Company's business or in the mineral resources industry, or with respect to Government Circular 4011 and activities contemplated thereby, to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance, achievements or developments expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include all disclosure regarding possible events, conditions or results of operations that is based on assumptions about, among other things, future economic conditions and courses of action, and assumptions related to government approvals, community approvals and anticipated costs and expenditures. The words "plans", "prospective", "expect", "intend", "intends to" and similar expressions identify forward looking statements, which may also include, without limitation, any statement relating to future events, conditions or circumstances. Forward-looking statements of the Company contained in this news release, which may prove to be incorrect, include, but are not limited to, those related to Government Circular 4011, the Company and the Company's exploration plans. Story continues The Company cautions you not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. There is no guarantee that the anticipated benefits of Government Circular 4011 and the Company's business plans or operations will be achieved. The risks and uncertainties that may affect forward-looking statements include, among others: economic market conditions, anticipated costs and expenditures, government approvals, community approvals and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with Canadian provincial securities regulators or other applicable regulatory authorities. Forward-looking statements included herein are based on the current plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions of the Company management and, in part, on information provided to the Company by Colombian regulators and, except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements should assumptions related to these plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions change. For further information please contact: Dr. Timothy Coughlin President and Chief Executive Officer USA-Canada toll free 1800 6389205 +44 (0)1534 887166 +44 (0)7797 742800 info@royalroadminerals.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54625 Nguyen Hoai Nam is held at a police station in Vinh Town, Nghe An Province in central Vietnam for posting fake news on Covid-19 deaths, April 18, 2020. Photo courtesy of Nghe An Police. Police in the central province of Nghe An detained a man last Saturday for posting false claims on Facebook about Covid-19 deaths in Vietnam and a government cover-up. Nguyen Hoai Nam, 44, admitted to the police that he posted the false information and threatened local authorities to "attract attention on social media." He faces charges of "illegally posting or using information on computer networks and telecommunication networks," an offense that carries a maximum prison term of seven years. Investigators said he made the claim several times on his Facebook page between April 13 and 18 that Vietnam had seen its first deaths due to Covid-19. "Vietnam has recorded three Covid-19 deaths and the government is concealing this," he wrote. He also insulted local police and other authorities and threatened to stab them if they came to his house. Since the pandemic broke out in late January, authorities have slapped fines of up to 15 million ($427- 641) on hundreds of individuals for posting fake news. To tighten control over the propagation of fake news, authorities are slapping criminal charges on those posting false information about the pandemic with attendant jail terms of up to seven years. A man in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong is being investigated for posting false information on his Facebook page that Da Lat has recorded three infections, with one patient dying. Vietnam has recorded no new cases for the last four days. Of the 268 patients diagnosed so far, only 64 are still in hospital after the remaining 204 were discharged. No dealths have been recorded to date. The pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with more than 165,000 deaths recorded so far. A key Congress panel headed by former prime minister Manmohan Singh met on Monday and decided to suggest to the government measures for revival of MSME sector and smooth crop procurement, besides resolution of migrants' problems amid the nationwide lockdown to contain coronavirus. Formed by Congress President Sonia Gandhi, the consultative group, which also has Rahul Gandhi, met for the first time on Monday and demanded that the government immediately deposit a sum of Rs 7,500 in all Jan Dhan accounts, all pension accounts and all PM-Kisan accounts to help the poor and vulnerable tide over this crisis. The Congress will prepare a detailed plan for revival of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) together with steps to ensure smooth crop procurement and resolving migrants' issues, and will put it before the central government, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said. Ramesh, who is a member of the party's consultative group on COVID-19 headed by Singh, said the Congress has urged the government to submit Rs 7,500 through direct benefit transfers. He also said the former prime minister and Rahul Gandhi stressed that priority be given to the MSME sector due to its social and economic importance and because it is one of the largest job providers in the country after agriculture. "We have worked out a very concrete MSME revival package which we will submit to the central government in a day or two," he told reporters at a press conference through video conferencing. He said the two leaders also stressed on the need for making positive recommendations to the government to ensure smooth procurement of wheat, mustard and gram. The former union minister said the idea of this group is to make specific recommendations to the government in a spirit of constructive cooperation as has been emphasised by the former Congress president repeatedly and also how to make the transition out of the lockdown after May 3. It will suggest steps to smoothen the transition for different sections of the society, particularly the migrants, students and farmers, he said. Ramesh said both Singh and Gandhi also stressed on the need for making positive recommendations to the government to ensure smooth crop procurement and resolution of migrants' issues. "I am sure a compassionate, responsible government can find funds to provide for the vulnerable," he said when asked if the country had funds of this nature to spare. Ramesh alleged that the Centre was busy "destabilising" the Madhya Pradesh government and was "caught napping in preparation for managing COVID-19" due to which the action was delayed. "I think, it is a matter of priorities. Right now the most urgent thing in the country is cash transfer. People have to survive, people's livelihoods have been destroyed, lakhs and lakhs of families need immediate assistance. "I think, a compassionate government, a sensitive or a responsive government must and can find the resources for Rs 7,500 direct transfer to every Jan Dhan Account, to every pension account -- pension of old age, pension of widows and pension of disabled, and into every PM Kisan Account. It is not a question of whether we can find the funds. We must find the funds, and I believe that we can find the funds," he noted. Ramesh said he hoped the government would "come down from its pedestal" and constructively accept the suggestions put forth by the Congress. Asked on Congress MPs having divergent views on scrapping of MPLADs funds, he said the opinion expressed by him was his personal view and not the Congress's. Ramesh had gone against the party's stand and welcomed the government's move to scrap MPLADs. He also supported party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's demand on migrant labour, saying if one should be concerned about the students, one should also be concerned about migrant labour. "If we can provide logistics and transportation to the students, surely we can provide logistics and transportation facilities to migrant labourers as well," he said. The Congress leader said these are not Congress's demands, but people's requirements. "We are extending our hands of constructive cooperation, we hope that the government will come down from its pedestal" and accept these suggestions constrctively. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) LIVINGSTON COUNTY, MI - For five straight days, the increase in coronavirus cases in Livingston County has been in the single digits. The county saw nine additional people test positive for COVID-19, upping the total to 288 per the statewide update at 3 p.m. Monday, April 20. While the Livingston County Health Department noted the lower number in confirmed cases, officials said it is too early to tell if the curve is flattening. The death toll in the county remains at 11, according to the county health department database. Four people have died since Thursday, April 16, including three elderly women and one elderly man, all with underlying health conditions, said health department spokeswoman Natasha Radke. The remaining seven deceased patients were four women and three men, six of whom had underlying health conditions, Radke said. Livingston Countys confirmed coronavirus patients are dying at a rate of 3%, according to the county health database. The rate takes into account the COVID-19 deaths divided by the number of confirmed cases but keep in mind, the actual number of COVID-19 cases is likely much higher than the number that has been confirmed. 1 new coronavirus death reported in Livingston County, 3 new confirmed cases There are 58 county residents hospitalized with COVID-19. Women make up 56% of the countys cases and men make up about 44%. Patients age 50 to 59 account for about 23% of the countys cases. There are 32 cases in people under 29-years-old. There have been 102 recoveries from COVID-19, according to the health department. Recovered patients have to be fever-free for 72 hours, have improved respiratory symptoms and have at least a week since symptoms first appeared. Livingston County has activated its Emergency Operations Center to ensure community members are informed and provided resources daily, according to a news release. For more information, visit the county site at LCHD.org or the countys emergency management or health pages on Facebook. The statewide total hit 32,000 on the dot on Monday, with 576 additional cases. Michigan coronavirus deaths increased to 2,468 after 77 more were reported. For more updates from April 20, click here. Sorry, but your browser does not support frames. Sorry, but your browser does not support frames. Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus. Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus. The last week of coronavirus in Livingston County: 1 new coronavirus death reported in Livingston County, 5 more hospitalized 6 more coronavirus cases conirmed in Livingston County, no new deaths for first time this week 5th straight day with coronavirus death in Livingston County brings death toll to 9 7 coronavirus deaths in Livingston County, one each in the last 4 days Third new coronavirus death in 3 days in Livingston County Opinion Article 20 April 2020 Policymakers around the world have enforced an unprecedented shutdown of public life to slow down the spread of the coronavirus. As a consequence, entire sectors of the economy have seen their revenues collapse to zero. At the time of this publication, it appears that the shutdown will be a matter of months rather than just a few weeks. Yet, to date, no coherent political-economic strategy exists on how businesses may potentially survive a prolonged period without any revenues. Many hospitality and retail businesses are about to be sacrificed in the name of public health. Advertisements A wave of insolvencies would cause irreversible harm to the economy in the form of mass unemployment, unprecedented levels of business loan defaults and a substantial decline in real estate values. Politicians urgently need to put in place framework conditions that can temporarily relieve businesses of their financial obligations, in particular a suspension of payments for salaries, rents, and debt services. The short-term economic costs are minor compared to the long-term harm our economies face today if businesses do not survive. We have a chance for a v-shaped recovery if we act now. 1) Relieving businesses from salary payments now to save jobs long-term Kurzarbeit, or short-time work, has been called one of Germany's most successful exports during the last financial crisis. The short-time work system enables businesses to hit by a downturn to send their workers home or radically reduce their hours, and the state will replace a large part of their lost income. The system enables businesses to retain skilled workers and was one of the reasons why Germany recovered so quickly from the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. Meanwhile, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland have all followed Germany by introducing subsidies for workers that would otherwise be laid off. If short-time work is not an option, many business owners will have no other choice than to lay off staff in order to protect their companies from insolvency. Indeed, while laid-off staff is ideally reemployed as soon as the economy recovers, some workers may in the meantime have found other jobs, and some firms may not rehire all of the laid-off staff. Short-time work is a superior policy to address this crisis. It doesn`t burden social welfare systems more than unemployment claims. However, it represents a less bureaucratic option when it is needed the most, while also maximizing the number of jobs retained following the crisis. 2) Relieving businesses from rental payments to maintain real estate values in the long run Rental payments are the second major expense that threatens the survival of businesses during the corona shutdown. From a financial perspective, a suspension of rental payments would share the economic burden of the shutdown between the business operator and the real estate owner. In fact, such an effort of solidarity may be in the best interest of real estate owners, since the stability of hospitality and retail real estate values is tightly linked to the health of the underlying businesses. In the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, retail and hotel real estate assets in the U.S. lost between 40-50% of their values. In a normal recession, real estate owners can hope to replace insolvent businesses with the next tenant waiting in the line. A systemic wave of business failures, however, could lead to a structural decline in the demand for hospitality and retail space. The resulting increase in vacancy rates and drop in market rents may lead to an even sharper drop of real estate values in this crisis. Real estate owners effectively find themselves in a prisoner`s dilemma. In fact, they should unitedly strive to maximize the survival chances of all tenants. With vacancy rates stabilizing around pre-crisis levels and tenants resuming the payment of contract rents, real estate values were likely to remain stable in the long run. Unfortunately, individual real estate owners have an incentive to insist on rental payments as long as their tenant remains solvent. In aggregate, such short-termism may prove to be a Pyrrhic victory, since it would only lead to more insolvencies. To avoid such an outcome, associations of real estate owners may or may not successfully work towards a unified response. Government intervention would be a safer route to overcome the prisoner`s dilemma. In turn, affected real estate owners should be granted a temporary suspension of debt service payments for real estate loans. 3) Suspending debt-service payments now to avoid a banking crisis due to credit defaults Interest and loan repayments represent the third major barrier for business owners without any revenues to survive the corona shutdown. Many business owners would be forced into bankruptcy should banks insist on contractual debt service payments. As far as the loans are recoverable, banks would be tasked with the liquidation of assets such as restaurant and kitchen equipment - an unpromising endeavor in a post-coronavirus recession. As a result, banks were about to face drastic write-downs on outstanding loan balances. It is important to note that the vast majority of hospitality and retail businesses are not structurally distressed. They are ready to re-establish business operations as soon as the shutdown is resolved. An extraordinary suspension of debt service payments would thus be in the best interest of banks to maximize the chances of business survival. If debt obligations are merely fulfilled a little later, they would have only minor impacts on bank profits. In many cases, financiers will deliberately accept a suspension of debt service payments. However, too many banks may prefer a time-consuming case-by-case examination. Similar to the prisoner`s dilemma of real estate owners, all involved stakeholders would benefit from a government intervention that lets businesses directly impacted by the shutdown postpone debt payments. Conclusion In summary, the hospitality and the retail sectors are facing existential threats due to the coronavirus shutdown. The described first-order effects alone put enormous stress on the economy and social welfare systems. Moreover, we should expect significant second and third-order spillover effects on other parts of the economy. Politicians need to act fast to provide a framework that allows struggling businesses to cut costs quickly in order to ensure their survival. A government-backed halt on major financial obligations would give them the breathing room they need to survive. Moreover, it would drastically reduce the level of uncertainty among all involved stakeholders and provide them with a perspective on how to cope with even a multi-month shutdown, should this be necessary. We have one chance for a v-shaped recovery - by fighting the impact of the coronavirus on the economy as consequently as the virus itself. Industry body Nasscom has urged the government to expand the list of essential items to include products like laptops and routers to facilitate work from home amid the lockdown New Delhi: Industry body Nasscom has urged the government to expand the list of essential items to include products like laptops and routers to facilitate work from home amid the lockdown. Four days after allowing e-commerce firms to also deliver non-essential items such as electronic goods and readymade garments, the government on Sunday said non-essential items will continue to be prohibited during the lockdown period till 3 May. "With most of us working/learning from home, access to basic equipment is absolutely critical. Urge govt to consider basic requirements like office chairs, routers, laptops/desktops etc as essentials for #ecommerce deliveries," Nasscom said in a tweet. Nasscom had suggested IT companies that they bring back employees on work premises in a phased manner, starting with 15-20 percent of the workforce, even as the guidelines issued by the Home Ministry had allowed IT and IT-enabled services to operate with up to 50 percent strength. A significant number of people in IT-BPM companies have been working from home to ensure business continuity. Nasscom President Debjani Ghosh had also, on Sunday, tweeted that the decision could have been "better thought through". "This could have been better thought through... a lot of the eCommerce cos have invested in planning for the 20th. And most don't have deep pockets to handle these kinds of reversal in decisions. The focus, I feel, should have been on ensuring adequate safety protocols," she had said. Under the first phase of the nationwide lockdown between 24 March-14 April, the government had only allowed the delivery of essential goods through e-commerce platforms. On April 16, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued fresh guidelines for the current lockdown, allowing all e-commerce deliveries and movement of trucks, followed by some states such as Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan also issuing similar notifications. However, on Sunday, the home ministry issued an order saying the following clause -- "E-commerce companies. Vehicles used by e-commerce operators will be allowed to ply with necessary permissions" -- is excluded from the guidelines issued. The government's U-turn on home delivery of non-essential items will leave consumers disappointed, the world's largest online retailer Amazon had said, even as the decision was welcomed by local kirana store body CAIT that had called it the "most pragmatic". Stating that it will continue to follow the guidelines and deliver essential products, Amazin India had expressed hope that "this situation is rectified soon so that the urgent need of consumers is met and that there is a revival of economic activity". Players like Paytm Mall have also urged the government to expand the ambit of essential goods to include products like laptops and mobile phones to facilitate people working from home. "Safety of fellow Indians is of utmost importance to us and, therefore, we support the government"s decision in spirit to limiting e-commerce operations to essentials. However, we believe that the ambit of essential goods should be increased," Paytm Mall Senior Vice-President Srinivas Mothey had said. He had added that people in the country are mostly working from home at the moment but many are finding it difficult as they are running low on certain items necessary to effectively operate under the lockdown. "Laptops, mobile phones, and accessories, computer hardware, webcams, all these things should be allowed to be part of essential goods. If the lockdown continues, lack of proper technical support would hinder the efficiency of employees which in turn would affect a company's operations," he had said. Sanjay Sethi, CEO and co-founder of ShopClues, echoed similar sentiments. "It is imperative to expand the definition of "essential goods". In fact, not doing so could be counterproductive at this time," he had said. While the entire nation is forced indoors and working from home for an extended period, it is important that besides products like food, groceries and medicine, one also ensures the supply of other critical items like small kitchen appliances, personal hygiene items, work from home essentials like phones, laptops and accessories, Sethi said. Condemning the ruckus at Padrayanapure here on Sunday when officials had gone to shift secondary contacts of COVID-19 patients to quarantine facility, Karnataka Congress on Monday termed it as criminal act and not communal. "Those who don't respect the law have to be punished, we condemn the incident, we want the government to take appropriate action as per the law," State Congress president D K Shivakumar said. Speaking to reporters here after meeting with Muslim leaders of the party, he said Congress extends full support and cooperation to the government in the fight against COVID-19. "This is a criminal act and not a communal issue, Some friends from BJP are trying to raise this as a communal issue. We condemn it," he said Tension had prevailed at Padarayanapura late on Sunday as some secondary contacts of COVID-19 patients along with a few locals tried to remove barricades and argued with officials who had come to shift them to a quarantine facility. Health care and police personnel were allegedly attacked during the incident. According to police, 59 people have been arrested in connection with the incident. Responding to a question about such repeated incidents of attack on health care workers in localities dominated by a particular community, Shivakumar said, "if any one has done anything wrong, let law take its course....there should be no communal angle to such incidents, whoever has committed it- a crime is a crime." Leader of Opposition and CLP leader Siddaramaiah termed the incident as unfortunate and those responsible should be punished. "Last night's skirmish in Padarayanapura ward is an unfortunate one. All those who are responsible for this act should be punished & I urge @CMofKarnataka to ensure that such events doesn't recur," Siddaramaiah tweeted. "Police, doctors and health workers are working hard by putting public safety over their personal health. It is the duty of everyone to co-operate with them. I request everyone in the state not to fall prey to fake and propaganda," he said in another tweet. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisted on Monday that the UN agency had not hidden from the United States any information it had about the coronavirus pandemic. He said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the WHO headquarters in Geneva "means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one", adding: "There is no secret in WHO". INDIANAPOLIS -- Regenstrief Institute and partners have developed a data dashboard to support COVID-19 tracking and response in the state of Indiana. The dashboard augments the state's existing information by providing data on patients' course of care through healthcare systems in Indiana. Data on hospitalizations and intensive care unit stays gives state leaders a more comprehensive picture of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on Hoosiers and the healthcare system, as well as perspective to anticipate emerging hot spots and surges. Partners in this effort are the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH), Indiana Family Social Services Administration (FSSA), Indiana Management Performance Hub (MPH), Regenstrief Institute, Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE), Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health and Indiana University School of Medicine. The partnership makes possible access to data from the majority of Indiana's health systems and laboratories. Access to these data during this emergency, and to the experts who help with interpretation, allows public health professionals to identify significant patterns and predict how to best respond as COVID-19 cases spread across the state. "This data is a key component to helping state leaders make critical decisions at crucial times during this crisis. The expertise and resources of our partners brought this concept to fruition," said Connor Norwood, PhD, chief data officer for FSSA and data leader for the state's COVID-19 response team. "We appreciate the contributions of Regenstrief, IHIE, IU Fairbanks School of Public Health and IU School of Medicine as we work to keep Hoosiers healthy." Among the capabilities that the state has leveraged are those provided by Regenstrief Institute, an international leader in informatics and health information technology, and IHIE, which manages the Indiana Network for Patient Care, the nation's largest interorganizational clinical data repository. "These critical data visualizations and tools were developed thanks to the extensive data assets, connectivity, expertise and longstanding collaborations we have in Indiana," said Peter Embi, M.D., Regenstrief president and chief executive officer and professor and associate dean for informatics and health services research at IU School of Medicine. "Collaborative efforts like this across the public and private sectors are especially crucial in times of crisis, and we are proud of the dedication and tireless work of our teams to create and maintain this resource that will help our public health officials make critical data-driven decisions for the well-being of our residents." Teams of individuals across these organizations continue to develop, deploy and maintain data services to combat the crisis. Key contributors to this effort include: Shaun Grannis, M.D., M.S., of the IU School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute; Brian Dixon, PhD, and Nir Menachemi, PhD, MPH of the Fairbanks School of Public Health and Regenstrief; Shandy Dearth, MPH, Thomas Duszynski, MPH, and Paul Halverson, DrPH from the Fairbanks School of Public Health; and many other professionals across multiple teams. ### About The Regenstrief Institute Founded in 1969 in Indianapolis, the Regenstrief Institute is a local, national and global leader dedicated to a world where better information empowers people to end disease and realize true health. A key research partner to Indiana University, Regenstrief and its researchers are responsible for a growing number of major healthcare innovations and studies. Examples range from the development of global health information technology standards that enable the use and interoperability of electronic health records to improving patient-physician communications, to creating models of care that inform practice and improve the lives of patients around the globe. Regenstrief Institute is celebrating 50 years of healthcare innovation. Sam Regenstrief, a successful entrepreneur from Connersville, Indiana, founded the institute with the goal of making healthcare more efficient and accessible for everyone. His vision continues to guide the institute's research mission. About the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI Located on Indiana's premier research and health sciences campus, the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI is committed to advancing the public's health and well-being through education, innovation and leadership. The Fairbanks School of Public Health is known for its expertise in biostatistics, epidemiology, cancer research, community health, environmental public health, global health, health policy and health services administration. About Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE) IHIE was founded in 2004 as a non-profit health information exchange that enables hospitals, physicians, laboratories, payers, and other health service providers to avoid redundancy and deliver faster, more efficient, higher quality healthcare to patients in Indiana. Today, by making information available to approximately 50,000 healthcare providers in Indiana and neighboring states, IHIE delivers services that make a real difference in health and healthcare. About IU School of Medicine IU School of Medicine is the largest medical school in the U.S. and is annually ranked among the top medical schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. The school offers high-quality medical education, access to leading medical research and rich campus life in nine Indiana cities, including rural and urban locations consistently recognized for livability. About Peter Embi, M.D., M.S. In addition to serving as the president and CEO of Regenstrief Institute, Dr. Embi is the Leonard Betley Professor of Medicine and associate dean for informatics and health services research at IU School of Medicine, associate director of informatics with Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute and vice president for Learning Health Systems with Indiana University Health. A coronavirus outbreak at a northeastern North Dakota wind turbine plant has ballooned to 110 cases in early testing and one city official said he expects a prolonged battle to control the spread. An uptick in cases at the LM Wind Power facility in Grand Forks led to the drive-thru screening Thursday of 424 people, which included close contacts of infected workers, other household members and employees who have not shown symptoms, Gov. Doug Burgum said. All but 52 of those tests have been completed by the state lab. The good news is weve only had one hospitalization so far among LM Wind Power employees who have tested positive, Burgum said. Another mass testing will likely be held within a week, he said. There are nearly 900 employees at the facility and the governor said its safe to assume the outbreak was widespread within the plant. Grand Forks Mayor Michael R. Brown said the city has planned and prepared for a major outbreak, but added it will take a group effort so we dont overwhelm the healthcare system. We anticipate this to be a prolonged battle, Brown said. Burgum said he doesnt think the outbreak could have been prevented because its a highly contagious disease that is spread very easily and clusters have popped up in places that have taken extreme precautions, such as nursing homes. The governor added that LM Wind Power is considered a critical manufacturing business by the Department of Homeland Security and was not subject to any of his business closures, although he wouldnt have shut it down anyway. Were trying to get things back open. Were not trying to close more things down, Burgum said. The governor has ordered all bars, restaurants, barber shops, beauty salons, health clubs, movie theaters and other large-scale venues closed at least until the end of month. He has not issued a general stay-at-home order as have been imposed in other states. Burgum said LM Wind Powers parent company, GE, has committed to keep the plant closed for a minimum of 14 days and continue to pay its employees. State Health Officer Mylynn Tufte has issued a quarantine order for those employees. Grand Forks Director of Public Health Debbie Swanson said its important to emphasize why this news is so significant and why people need to follow guidelines to help stop the spread. Health officials on Saturday reported 22 other new confirmed cases in addition to the 68 in Grand Forks County, for a total of 90. There have been no additional hospitalizations. The state has tested about 13,000 people since the first test was confirmed in early March. Nine people have died from COVID-19 in North Dakota, with no new deaths reported Saturday. 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. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics COVID-19 North Dakota Pakistan has said that it has replaced the two domes of Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib which were damaged due to a thunderstorm and high-speed wind on Saturday evening. The domes were recently built and placed at the perimetre of the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara. Due to the strong wind, coupled with heavy rain showers in the Punjab province, at least two domes at Darbar Sahib Kartarpur fell off, officials said. Pictures of the fallen domes had been widely shared on social media. No injury was reported as a result of the domes falling off, officials added. Pakistans Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry tweeted that the domes had been replaced and repaired within hours of the incident. He added that the Religious Affairs Minister Noor-ul Haq Qadri has also started an inquiry into the quality of the work done at the Gurdwara. Also read | Rectify deficiencies: India to Pakistan on collapse of Kartarpur gurdwara domes The Pakistan Armys Frontier Works Organization (FWO) was the main contractor at the project and it was assigned the task for immediate replacement of the damaged domes. The Indian government had asked Pakistan on Sunday to urgently repair the domes. India has taken up the issue of the collapse of domes of Gurdwara Darbar Sahib with Pakistan. It has been highlighted that the damage to the structure of the holy gurdwara has caused great consternation to the members of the Sikh community, people familiar with the matter had said . The domes, which were decorative and made of fibreglass, were restored by a team of experts who worked throughout Saturday night. The restored domes are also made of fibreglass but Pakistani officials have said that there are plans to replace them with concrete domes in the second phase of the restoration work. Pilgrimage to the gurdwara through the Kartarpur Corridor, which started in November 2019, was suspended on March 15 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Good morning, Bay Area. Its Monday, April 20, and San Francisco is learning how hard it is to move a susceptible homeless population during a pandemic. Heres what you need to know to start your day. As the Bay Area emerges from the coronavirus shutdown, it will not only need more testing to contain the outbreak. It will require an aggressive army of people to track down infected people. Contact tracing, one of the oldest and most valuable tools in the public health armory for fighting contagious diseases, will require a large force of trained workers whose job is keep infectious people separated from others. In some cases, that will mean making sure people are well supported with food and a safe place to stay. If were going to move beyond shelter in place, we need to be able to identify every single case and then reach out to every high-risk contact of every case, and tell them you need to stay at home, said infectious disease expert Dr. Mike Reid. San Francisco is in full battle mode on contact tracing. Reporters Carolyn Said and Erin Allday explain how it will help the Bay Area emerge from coronavirus sheltering. Nobody has ever done this before Jessica Christian / The Chronicle For weeks, homeless people and their advocates have called for the city of San Francisco to lease enough hotel rooms to take in the vast majority of the citys 8,000-strong homeless population to check the spread of the coronavirus. But the people who make that happen say its dizzyingly more complicated than just booking rooms and writing checks. Since in mid-March, the city has lined up roughly 2,500 spots in 16 hotels. It has now thinned its 2,000-plus shelter beds by about half to widen the spaces around residents and moved about 900 homeless people into hotels. This is a hodgepodge of people trying to do the best they can, said Steve Good of Five Keys, one nonprofit helping manage the hotels. Kevin Fagan and John King explain how S.F.s coronavirus landscape made moving homeless people into hotels a logistical puzzle. Also: California makes progress in housing homeless during the pandemic. S.F.s troubled Tenderloin buckles under weight of coronavirus. It takes a village-size group ... Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle A Finnish venture capitalist in Bolinas and a Latina community organizer in S.F. have one common goal: to test as many people in their neighborhoods as possible for the coronavirus. Jyri Engestrom is helping raise hundred of thousands of dollars to test everyone in the Marin County enclave of Bolinas at least 1,000 people. In a four-by-four-block area of S.F.s Mission, Tracy Gallardo seeks at least 5,000 participants for similar mass testing. UCSF researchers will study the test results, which will reveal not only how many people in each village-size group are infected, but how many have recovered and may never have known they were infected with the coronavirus. Read the full story here. More: California lagged on testing. But thats changing quickly. Stanford study: Far more infections in Santa Clara County than reported. S.F.-based One Medical offers coronavirus tests to everyone without symptoms. Balancing work and home life Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle The Bay Area and its tech industry have long been more amenable to work-from-home allowances than other parts of the nation, but the pandemic has added a different type of stress to that equation with schools, day care and most workplaces being ordered shuttered. For some people, its dealing with a family stuck at home or interpreting new remote technology. For others, its creating boundaries in their work to maintain a personal life. Tony Bravo talked to residents who struggle to shut off work now that the coronavirus has made their home the office. More: In coronavirus pandemics limbo, the only thing certain is more uncertainty. During shutdown, parents turn to screen time for self-preservation. Full coronavirus coverage LiPo Ching / Special to The Chronicle Esalen Institute at a crossroad: The countercultural centers communal meals, shared lodging and group workshops are all designed to foster intimacy among guests and faculty. Now its an open question whether the pandemic will transform it. The state of the state shifts: As the coronavirus crisis plays havoc with the state budget, the governor faces tough and unexpected choices that may require him to temporarily abandon key policy goals and disappoint allies. Deal draws scrutiny: Gavin Newsoms administration is not releasing details on $1 billion contract for coronavirus masks. New face mask rules, and when you have to wear one: An updated look at what you need to know about protective coverings in the Bay Area. 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. Tracy tragedy: At one huge Safeway warehouse, 51 workers have coronavirus and one is dead. All systems shutting down: Stacy Allegro wants everyone to know that COVID-19 is not just a really bad flu. The Novato resident had a horrible fever for nine straight days before she was admitted to the hospital. Then the real physical punishment began. On the bright side: Free coffee handed to neighbors by a fake gorilla arm is making a difference in North Beach. Kathleen Pender: More answers to your questions about coronavirus stimulus payments. Around the Bay Multibillion-dollar decision: About 80,000 wildfire victims are weighing their futures and PG&Es. Caltrans project a go: Traffics down, so agency is rebuilding Alemany Boulevard overpass at Highway 101. Joe Bidens running mate? Kamala Harris says she would be honored to be the vice presidential pick, but that she is too focused on the pandemic right now. AB5s new language: Most musicians can keep performing under update to gig work law. Store killing: Man wielding bat in San Leandro Walmart shot dead by officers. Chronicle Food Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle It sounds too good to be true. A $50 Napa Cabernet, repackaged and sold for $10 a bottle. A $40 Anderson Valley Chardonnay priced starting at $1 a bottle. How, you might ask? Because its bulk wine. That Cabernet and Chardonnay are being sold, respectively, by two new brands: De Negoce and Becheur. Both promise a rare sort of bargain thats possible only when the bulk-wine market is as low as it is right now. Esther Mobley explains how they can manage to offer such deals and why its probably a bad sign for the wider wine industry. More: Masks? Temperature checks? Bay Area chefs discuss the future of restaurants after shelter in place. Two new cookbooks on beans perfect for coronavirus shelter-in-place cooking. Bay Briefing is written by Taylor Kate Brown and sent to readers email inboxes on weekday mornings. Sign up for the newsletter here, and contact Brown at taylor.brown@sfchronicle.com. The campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) says it wont appoint any shrinking violets to the joint task forces developing a compromise policy platform with presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. Sanders and Biden are creating six task forces on the economy, education, criminal justice, immigration, climate change and health care as a core part of Bidens outreach to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, Sanders announced when he endorsed the former vice president last week. The goal is to present a united platform before the convention, influence the kind of personnel who would fill a possible Biden administration and arm Biden with possible executive orders that he could enact quickly should he be elected president. HuffPost obtained a preliminary list of some of the people Sanders is considering. Everything is still in early stages, and the two campaigns have been negotiating who will be in these six policy groups and how big the groups will be. The list includes progressive policy experts who heavily influenced Sanders campaign platform over the last year, such as Darrick Hamilton, The Ohio State University economist who has become one of the leading academics on the racial wealth gap in the United States, and Stephanie Kelton, an economist at Stony Brook University who has championed Modern Monetary Theory the idea that governments can never run out of money, and that deficit spending on major domestic programs would lead to economic growth. Though not exhaustive, some other names on the Sanders campaigns early list include Heather Boushey, an inequality expert with the Washington Center for Equitable Growth; Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, two leading economists in the world of wealth inequality and progressive taxation; Jeffrey Sachs, who runs Columbia Universitys Center for Sustainable Development; Josh Bivens, an economist with progressive think tank Economic Policy Institute; Daniel Kammen, who runs the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Lab at University of California, Berkeley; Tara Raghuveer, an affordable housing activist who runs the Kansas City Tenants group; and Bonnie Castillo, the executive director with the National Nurses Union. Story continues Faiz Shakir, Sanders campaign manager who has been negotiating with the Biden campaign for weeks, would not confirm that the campaign was considering these individuals. These task forces are not yet finalized and could consist of a mix of campaign staff and outside experts. HuffPost reached out to every person on the preliminary list. Sachs and Kammen said they had not heard from either campaign. Boushey and Kelton declined to comment. The others did not respond. Shakir said the Sanders campaign will put forward people who are experts that are going to represent the ideologies of the respective candidates. There are no shrinking violets here, he said, adding that Bidens team has been very receptive to their suggestions. A Biden campaign aide echoed the sentiment, saying the task force will represent the diverse viewpoints of the Democratic Party. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Vice President Joe Biden are working together on joint task forces. (Photo: AP Photo/Matt Rourke) These people, if included on the task forces, would represent a significant shift in the kind of policy thinking surrounding Biden. The former vice presidents close-knit inner circle includes people such as Bruce Reed, who oversaw President Bill Clintons 1996 welfare reform push and, as The American Prospects Robert Kuttner said, epitomized the right wing of the Clinton and Obama administrations. Sanders campaign compiled its list internally with the intention of representing the voices of the progressive activist community, labor unions and progressive academics that their policy team often relied on during the campaign. (That said, Sanders was not the only candidate to turn to these experts throughout the campaign cycle; Hamilton, for example, consulted on Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warrens higher education plan and was behind New Jersey Sen. Cory Bookers proposal to give most Americans government-backed savings account at birth.) Sanders team published a momentously left-wing agenda that called for an aggressive wealth tax, as well as a suite of expansive social programs such as universal child care, family leave, tuition-free public school from pre-kindergarten to college and university, government-run health insurance, and student and medical debt cancellation. Biden, whose campaign primary did not emphasize policy in the last year, hasnt come close to adopting any of those ideas, though his platform remains far more progressive than that of Hillary Clintons in 2016. He has signaled an openness to making some adjustments, crediting Warren and Sanders two candidates often considered the progressive wing of the Democratic presidential field. In the last two months, Biden has backed making public colleges and universities tuition-free for those from families with incomes less than $125,000 a year, eliminating student debt for those making less than under $125,000 a year, and lowering the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 60. Sanders and his allies, however, have said those changes are not going far enough. Shakir said the Sanders team has not consulted with Warrens staff on the task forces, but did not rule out the possibility that Bidens staff has been reaching out to those that worked on other Democratic campaigns in the last year. Among those negotiating on Bidens side are veteran Democratic operatives and Obama administration veterans Ron Klain and Anita Dunn, who has come under scrutiny in the left for her work in the private sector at political communications firm SKDKnickerbocker and for her recent comments dismissing Sanders as a protester who often shows up at campaign events. Shakir and Sanders adviser Jeff Weaver have been representing Sanders side of negotiations. Outside progressive groups like Demand Progress, the Roosevelt Institute and the Revolving Door Project are also working to influence those staffing decisions. Biden told donors at a fundraiser that he is open to unveiling his picks for Cabinet appointments during the general election. We are starting the process of the platform conversation much earlier than certainly 2016, but earlier than ever before, Shakir said. Kevin Robillard, Daniel Marans and Amanda Terkel contributed reporting. Related... Most Democratic Voters Are Satisfied With Biden, But Fewer Say He Was The Best Option Elizabeth Warren Says She Would Be Joe Bidens Vice President Biden Campaign Slams Trump On China And Coronavirus In New Battleground Ad Also on HuffPost Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Jean-Luc Biamonti has been the CEO of Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco (EPA:BAIN) 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. See our latest analysis for Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco How Does Jean-Luc Biamonti's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies? At the time of writing, our data says that Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco has a market cap of 1.3b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of 990k for the year to March 2019. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at 670k. When we examined a selection of companies with market caps ranging from 919m to 2.9b, we found the median CEO total compensation was 1.2m. Now let's take a look at the pay mix on an industry and company level to gain a better understanding of where Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco stands. Speaking on an industry level, we can see that nearly 68% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 32% is other remuneration. Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco is largely mirroring the industry average when it comes to the share a salary enjoys in overall compensation That means Jean-Luc Biamonti receives fairly typical remuneration for the CEO of a company that size. While this data point isn't particularly informative alone, it gains more meaning when considered with business performance. The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco has changed from year to year. Story continues ENXTPA:BAIN CEO Compensation April 20th 2020 Is Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco Growing? Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco has seen earnings per share (EPS) move positively by an average of 109% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 14% over the last year. This shows that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Good news for shareholders. It's a real positive to see this sort of growth in a single year. That suggests a healthy and growing business. We don't have analyst forecasts, but shareholders might want to examine this detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow. Has Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco Been A Good Investment? I think that the total shareholder return of 71%, over three years, would leave most Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco shareholders smiling. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size. In Summary... Remuneration for Jean-Luc Biamonti is close enough to the median pay for a CEO of a similar sized company . Few would be critical of the leadership, since returns have been juicy and earnings per share are moving in the right direction. So one could argue the CEO compensation is quite modest, if you consider company performance! On another note, we've spotted 1 warning sign for Societe Anonyme des Bains de Mer et du Cercle des Etrangers a Monaco that investors should look into moving forward. Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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. YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. 48 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have been confirmed in Armenia, bringing the total number of infected people to 1,339, the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention said today. 2 more people have died, rising the death toll to 22. The number of people who recovered from the virus has increased by 35, and the total number of recoveries has reached 580. At the moment the active cases are 737. The healthcare ministry informs that the two patients who died were aged 62 and 90 and had accompanying chronic diseases. So far, 13,373 people passed coronavirus testing in Armenia. Reported by Lilit Demuryan Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan A five-year-old Michigan girl who complained to her parents a month ago of a headache has died after contracting the coronavirus. After spending two weeks on a ventilator, Skylar Herbert of Detroit died Sunday. She had tested positive for COVID-19 in March and later developed a rare form of meningitis and brain swelling. Her mother LaVondria, who is a police officer, said Skylar's improvement had stopped, and that doctors said she was possibly brain dead. Her father is a firefighter. Skylar Herbert, a five-year-old Detroit, Michigan girl who complained to her parents a month ago of a headache has died after contracting the coronavirus. After two weeks on a ventilator, Skylar died Sunday. She had tested positive for COVID-19 in March Skylar is pictured with her parents Ebbie and LaVondria Herbert. 'We basically just knew she wasn't coming back to us,' said LaVondria 'We basically just knew she wasn't coming back to us,' LaVondria told the Detroit News reports. Skylar is believed to be the first child infected with the coronavirus to die in Michigan. Her parents say they don't know how Skylar contracted the virus and that she had no other health issues. Before her, the youngest person to die from COVID-19 was 20, according to Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services. She later developed a rare form of meningitis and brain swelling. Her mother LaVondria said Skylar's improvement stopped. Mother and daughter are pictured from a Facebook post Skylar went into the hospital on April 3 and developed meningoencephalitis, a rare complication of the coronavirus, which caused swelling of brain tissue and a lesion on her frontal lobe, her parents said. A spokesman for Beaumont Health called Skylar's death a 'tragedy.' 'The loss of a child, at any time, under any circumstances, is a tragedy. We are heartbroken that COVID-19 has taken the life of a child. We extend our deepest sympathy to Skylar's family and all others who have lost a loved one to this virus,' the spokesman wrote in a statement. There have been 31,348 confirmed cases in Michigan of the coronavirus, which has been blamed for 2,389 deaths. Across the US there have been 759,204 confirmed cases and 40,276 deaths. Skylar's death follows another virus-related death that resulted in concerning complications. A 58-year-old woman with COVID-19 last month at Henry Ford Health System came down with acute necrotizing encephalitis. It was the first time the virus was associated with a central nervous system infection that usually afflicts kids. Skylar's first symptoms did not immediately signal she was infected with COVID-19. Her parents Ebbie and LaVondria Herbert brought Skylar to a doctor on March 23 for a nagging headache that wasn't alleviated by medication. When she tested positive for strep throat, the child was sent home with antibiotics. Skylar's first symptoms did not immediately signal she was infected with COVID-19 'She had been crying all night and saying the headache would not go away,' said LaVondria Herbert, 46. 'We called the doctor back, and they told us that it takes the medication 48 hours to kick in and to give it some time, but because she was crying so bad, I told my husband we needed to take her to emergency because I just didn't know.' Her parents took Skylar to Beaumont Royal Oak where she tested positive for the virus. The headache and a mild fever were considered side effects. Skylar was released a day later, but returned to the hospital within hours. 'We went back to emergency at the Beaumont Hospital's Farmington campus because I noticed my husband was coughing and having shortness of breath,' Herbert said. 'Me and Skylar waited in the car, but out of nowhere, Skylar began complaining about her head hurting again and then she just threw up.' The mother wrapped Skylar in blankets after her temperature was around 100 degrees and the child began shivering. Then she had a seizure. '(I told her) Skylar, look at your daddy, Skylar, look at your daddy,' her father Ebbie Herbert, 48, said he said to his daughter. 'She came out of the seizure and me and her mother ran back into the emergency room.' Skylar was admitted to a pediatric Intensive Care Unit where her family learned of the meningitis. 'I would whisper in her ear and say, 'Skylar, hold your leg up. Just think about it really hard and hold your leg up.' And with my assistance, she did,' LaVondria said of her only child. But Skylar never opened her eyes again. If you imagine being in a village where no one even knows the name of your village or your population, and that you live in a slum where there is one room and six of you live in it," he said. "Social distancing is almost laughable. U.S. President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed in a phone call to work together to counter the threat posed by the coronavirus outbreak, Turkeys presidency said. The two leaders "agreed to continue their close cooperation against the threats that the coronavirus pandemic poses to public health and our economies," Reuters cited the statement as saying. This would be a necessity of the spirit of solidarity required by being NATO allies, the message said. Erdogan and Trump also discussed bilateral relations and regional developments. USM Graduate School Announces 2020 Hall of Fame Class Mon, 04/20/2020 - 06:11am | By: David Tisdale Ten graduate students with records of exceptional academic performance, leadership and service to their fellow students and community were honored recently at The University of Southern Mississippi USM) with induction into its 2020 Graduate School Hall of Fame. Held in conjunction with Graduate Student Appreciate Week, the induction includes the placement of portraits of the inductees at McCain Library on the Hattiesburg, where the USM Graduate School is housed. I am so proud to recognize these 10 students as members of the 2020 Graduate Student Hall of Fame. They are among the best of the best at Southern Miss, representing all four academic colleges and the Graduate School, selected because of their outstanding academic performance, scholarship, accomplishments, and attitude, said Dr. Karen Coats, dean of the Graduate School. I am confident these students will finish strong, and represent Southern Miss well as alumni wherever their career paths lead them. The student inductees and their profiles include the following: Kendall King Degree Program: Speech and Hearing Sciences (Speech-Language Pathology) M.S. School: Speech and Hearing Sciences College: Nursing and Health Professions Hometown: Nettleton, Mississippi Mentors: Dr. Edward Goshorn and Dr. Steven Cloud Project: King served as a graduate assistant at the DuBard School for Children with Language Disorders. She completed practica at DuBard, USM's Speech-Language Pathology Clinic, Oak Grove Primary School, and North Mississippi Medical Center-Acute Care. These experiences helped prepare her for a career in speech-language pathology. Janice Taleff Scaggs Degree Program: Nursing D.N.P. School: Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice College: Nursing and Health Professions Hometown: Gulfport, Mississippi Mentor: Dr. Cathy Hughes Project: Intrapartum nurses beliefs influence nursing behavior and nursing interventions during labor and birth. Scaggs utilized the Intrapartum Nurses Beliefs Related to Birth Practices instrument to establish that 93% of nurses who participated in the survey have birth beliefs that more closely align with normal birth practices. The results of the survey illustrate that the nursing culture values normal birth and indicates education and training that builds knowledge and skills to support intended vaginal birth is likely to be successful. Lucas Somers Degree Program: History (United States) Ph.D. School: Humanities College: Arts and Sciences Hometown: Bowling Green, Kentucky Mentor: Dr. Susannah J. Ural Research: Somers dissertation, entitled Embattled Learning: Education and Emancipation in the Post-Civil War Upper South, looks at the establishment of schools for formerly enslaved children and adults in Kentucky and Tennessee following emancipation. Analyzing the roles of various groups of people to support or resist efforts by African Americans to educate their communities reveals the realities of emancipation. Building on existing scholarship, this study explains why freedom did not guarantee revolutionary change for freed people during and after Reconstruction. Joshua Tropp Degree program: Polymer Science and Engineering Ph.D. School: Polymer Science and Engineering College: Arts and Sciences Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Mentor: Dr. Jason D. Azoulay Research: Tropps research utilizes polymeric materials for the optical and electronic detection of environmental pollutants in complex aqueous environments such as seawater. His research interests include chemical sensing, polymer synthesis, and supramolecular chemistry Amy Moody Degree Program: Marine Science Ph.D. School: Ocean Science and Engineering College: Arts and Sciences Hometown: Davidsonville, Maryland Mentor: Dr. Alan Shiller Research: Groundwater input to the Sound is known to cause low oxygen, excess nutrients, and harmful algal blooms. Moodys research examines groundwater discharge into the Mississippi from coastal aquifer systems. Her goal is to determine if the groundwater in this region is causing low oxygen events, leading to fish kills. Hallie Ray Jordan Degree program: Psychology (Counseling) Ph.D. School: Psychology College: Education and Human Sciences Hometown: Birmingham, Alabama Mentor: Dr. Michael Madson Research: As a member of the Behavior and Addiction Research (BAR) Lab, Jordan developed a research program focused on the intersection of mental health factors (e.g., posttraumatic stress) with social, cognitive, and behavioral predictors (e.g., drinking motives, protective strategies) of alcohol and marijuana-related outcomes. She explores the ways drinking motives (e.g., drinking to cope) and alcohol protective strategies help explain the relationships between posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and alcohol outcomes like alcohol-related negative consequences. Raymond Jones Degree program: Kinesiology (Exercise Physiology) Ph.D. School: Kinesiology and Nutrition College: Education and Human Sciences Hometown: Patterson, Louisiana Mentor: Dr. Stephanie McCoy Research: Joness research focuses on sedentary behaviors and cerebrovascular blood flow, especially in minority populations. Using noninvasive techniques such as doppler ultrasound, he examines the blood flow response to prolonged sitting. Delores McNair Degree program: Master of Science, Child and Family Studies School: Child and Family Sciences College: Education and Human Sciences Hometown: Hattiesburg, Mississippi Mentor: Dr. Lindsey Wright Research: Statistics show the critical need to provide resources and programs to families to prepare children for school for academic development and achievement. Yet, many children who enter school do not meet the standards for school readiness. McNairs research evaluated the decline in kindergarten readiness in public school districts. Will Ford Degree Program: Master of Science in Economic Development School: Finance College: Business and Economic Development Hometown: Hattiesburg, Mississippi Mentor: Dr. Chad Miller Project: Ford has completed numerous economic development research projects for the Trent Lott National Center's clients. His work includes conducting economic impact analyses for new and existing jobs in various regions; creating comprehensive industry performance analyses based on job growth, sales, and regional impact; and secondary data analyses for economic development organizations. He has completed work for: The Area Development Partnership, the North Louisiana Economic Partnership, The Mississippi Forestry Commission, Entergy Mississippi, The City of Hernando, Mississippi, The Hattiesburg Concert Association (FestivalSouth), and the East Mississippi Business Development Corporation. Aaron Wesley Romero Broussard Degree: Master of Business Administration School: Management College: Business and Economic Development Hometown: Biloxi, Mississippi Mentors: Dr. Elizabeth K. LaFleur and Mr. Lance Hopkins Project: Broussards capstone project simulates running a business over an eight-year time period. It examines how to successfully manage a corporation by making decisions regarding research and development, marketing, sales forecasting, and human resources. An aim is to maintain and grow market share in order to achieve industry success. A working professional, Aaron is currently a sales supervisor at Coca-Cola Bottling United. For information about the USM Graduate School and graduate education at the university, visit https://www.usm.edu/graduate-school/. Virgin Australia's board made a last-minute plea for $100million from the Federal Government to pay its bills for the next fortnight, but the request was refused and the airline collapsed into administration. Major international shareholders agreed to put Australia's second-biggest airline into voluntary administration at a board meeting late on Monday after the request was rejected, The Australian reported. Virgin Australia is 90 per cent foreign-owned, with Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways and Chinese conglomerates HNA Group and Hanshan owning 80 per cent between them, while Richard Branson's Virgin Group still owns 10 per cent. Virgin Australia founder Richard Branson, who still owns 10 percent of the company, said he is borrowing against his private island to try to save jobs across the Virgin group. He was unable to stop Virgin Australia from being put into voluntary administration on Monday Virgin Australia employee Tony Smith (centre) speaks to reporters at Melbourne Airport on Monday as staff members publicly begged for help to keep the company afloat The development has extinguished the airline's foreign ownership and an administrator - expected to be Deloittes - will be appointed to determine the best path forward for the airline, its owners and its creditors. The airline is expected to make a formal announcement on Tuesday. Virgin Australia could be broken up or kept intact and sold with a possibility that the Federal Government or superannuation fund could buy an ownership stake. The underlying business can be salvaged with a debt restructure and industry expectations are that the airline will return in a scaled-down version when the coronavirus pandemic is over. The move has struck fear into the hearts of 16,000 direct and indirect employees of the airline who are worried they will lose their jobs. While the company can continue to trade in administration, most staff were stood down temporarily last month because of the coronavirus lockdown. A legal workaround is being sought so that all 16,000 staff can get their $750 per week JobKeeper payments while the company is in administration. Virgin Australia is majority owned by China, Abu Dhabi and Singapore. Now it is in voluntary administration the foreign ownership is effectively extinguished but the company can continue to trade while the administrators decide on the best path forward Staff members publicly begged for help for their airline on Friday, while the Transport Workers Union urged the Federal Government to work with any administrators to save their jobs. The low-cost domestic carrier had been grappling with a $5billion debt and it is understood the $100 million would only have kept it afloat for a week or two at the most. It is expected that Virgin Australia's existing management team will remain in place during the administration period during which the focus will be on debt restructure. Private equity firms including BGH Capital are known to be circling the stricken airline which had been asking the NSW and Queensland Government for help. The Queensland Government offered a $200 million bailout which fell far short of the a $1.4 billion loan the airline had sought from the Federal Government. Ratings agencies Moodies and Fitch both downgraded the airline's credit rating, making it harder for Virgin to borrow money. Moodies said on Monday creditors would likely suffer an economic loss relative to the value of the debt obligation, no matter what the outcome of the current situation. The company is understood to have minimal cash available to borrow under its credit facilities. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Monday that the company should first look to its shareholders for a bailout. 'The first point of call, for the company, must be its existing shareholders,' Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Monday. 'They have some very big shareholders with deep pockets' 'Namely China-related companies as well as Etihad and Singapore Airlines.' Who owns Virgin Australia? Abu Dhabi government - 21% Singapore government - 20% Nanshan Capital (China) - 20% HNA (China) - 20% Richard Branson - 10.4% Australian shareholders: 8.6% Source: Virgin Australia annual report via Reuters reporter Byron Kaye Advertisement Neither Singapore nor Abu Dhabi offered to bail out the carrier, and it is expected that the Federal Government would not allow China to own a majority stake in a strategic transport firm. Virgin Australia founder Richard Branson, who retains a 10 percent stake in the airline, said he was raising money against Necker Island, his home in the British Virgin Islands, to try to save as many jobs as possible around the Virgin Group worldwide - however with multiple businesses including Virgin Atlantic in trouble, it is not expected he would have enough to refinance Virgin Australia. The British entrepreneur wrote an open letter on Monday in which he praised the 'brilliant' staff who were 'fighting to survive' the coronavirus catastrophe. 'If Virgin Australia disappears, Qantas would effectively have a monopoly of the Australian skies. We all know what that would lead to,' he said on the Virgin website. Mr Branson was referring to the possibility that if Virgin Australia were to leave Australian skies then Qantas would have no competitor, leading to rising airfares from a lack of competition. Aviation consultant Neil Hansford told The Australian that airfares could increase up to 20 percent in such a monopoly, but were not likely to return to the expensive fares of the past when it could cost $700 to fly one way from Sydney to Melbourne. Domestic tourism operators are terrified that if Virgin Australia's fleet is removed from the skies that a Qantas monopoly would cause airfares to rise, killing their businesses 'I think (Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman) Rod Sims will be all over Qantas like a bad-fitting suit,' he said. The collapse of Virgin Australia sent shockwaves through the domestic tourism industry which fears rising airfares could destroy their businesses that are already in hibernation, earning little income under coronavirus lockdown. 'Flying to destinations will no longer be as affordable and this will be devastating,' said Destination Gold Coast chief executive Annaliese Battista. 'We are going to have to recalibrate our marketing efforts to drive traffic into a monopolised market,' she told the Gold Coast Bulletin. NSW Nationals MP David Gillespie said regional MPs would be disappointed. 'The market solution probably means administration and a sell-off, and this is when the vultures start circling and the sharks start picking away at the profitable bits and they jettison the less profitable routes,' he told The Australian. NSW engaged in a bidding war in an attempt to entice Virgin Australia south from Queensland even as it was reported the airline was heading into voluntary administration. Queensland earlier on Monday declared it would 'stop at nothing' to keep Virgin Australia headquartered in Brisbane. NSW has announced it could offer a financial lifeline if the airline moved its base to the new Western Sydney Airport. 'We're thinking about what we can do to keep as many jobs going now, but also how we can actually start recovering the economy,' NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters on Monday. 'If that means encouraging businesses to set up shop in NSW, if it means bringing jobs to our state, we will, of course, consider all those things.' Queensland state development minister Cameron Dick issued a stern rebuke. 'NSW might want to bring a pea-shooter to the fight. We will bring a bazooka and we're not afraid to use it,' he said. 'At a time when their jobs hang in the balance, the 1200 Queensland families who depend on those head office jobs should not have to face the threat of being forced to move to Sydney,' he said when urging a national response. Five jute mills in West Bengal got the approval of the state government to resume operations amid a huge pending order for packaging materials. The industry was disappointed with a handful of mills getting approval to operate despite repeated interventions from the Centre which fears that prolonged closure may lead to a shortage of packaging materials, especially foodgrains. The units have received permission to operate only with 50 workers, according to a mill owner. Around 60 units in West Bengal, most of which are located in North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Hooghly and Howrah districts, were awaiting the government's nod to resume operations from Monday and of them, only five got the approval, according to industry sources. India Jute Mills Association (IJMA) president Raghav Gupta said operations of jute mills with such a low workforce were not feasible and said they should be allowed to work in at least two shifts. Meanwhile, the Bengal Chatkal Mazdoor Union demanded that mill owners pay all the workers irrespective of the number of people permitted to work. The West Bengal government said it has permitted nearly 300 other enterprises to resume operations out of 1,500 applications received. The government has rejected applications of 375 industrial units that are located in the containment or hotspot zones, Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha said. "We are also not providing passes to the labourers and people from this containment areas to go out and work," he said. Some units in Falta Special Economic Zone in South 24 Parganas district received permission to start operations but with limited manpower, sources said. A few units in Bantala Leather Complex near Kolkata also got approval to start functioning, they said. Steel TMT bar makers in the state said they do not want to resume operations until construction activities commence as they are saddled with huge stock. Century Plyboards said they are trying to resume operations and conglomerate ITC said the company will continue to focus on manufacturing essential items. JSW Cement resumed operations at its Salboni plant, while Vikram Solar and Jaypee Engineering were also among those to restart activities. According to the guidelines issued by the Centre on April 15, industrial units operating in rural areas have been permitted to function from April 20 with strict social distancing norms. Manufacturing, industrial units with access control in SEZs, Export Oriented Units, industrial estates, industrial townships have been allowed. However, it will not apply in containment zones, as demarcated by States/ UTs/ district administrations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Express News Service RANCHI: After locals protested recently against the burial of a Corona victim, the Ranchi administration has identified a place for disposal of bodies in an exigency measure to deal with any situation arising out of an increase in toll. But locals of Nyle-gadha village in Bundu, about 30 km from Ranchi, are also up in arms on learning that the administration had zeroed in on the site. The administration, meanwhile, is also readying an electric crematorium, which was lying unused for the last few years in the city, for the purpose. On March 12, the people had taken to the streets and created a ruckus for several hours when they learnt that the body of a coronavirus patient was being brought to a graveyard at Ratu Road. Protests again broke out when the administration reached two other burial grounds. Finally, the body was laid to rest after a delay of over 12 hours. Learning its lessons from the episode, the Ranchi administration identified the place near Nyle-gadha village for disposing of the bodies in case the need arises. We have identified the place at Tymara Ghati in Bundu, said Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray. But, locals are opposing the move. They also met the Bundu SDO and handed over a letter addressing CM Hemant Soren saying they would not allow their area for such a risky plan. One of the many odd side effects of the coronavirus crisis has been the surge in support for governments across the world. Britain has been no exception to this rule, and has shown some remarkable approval ratings for the way the government has dealt with the pandemic (66 per cent), for the Conservative Party (54 per cent to 28 per cent for Labour) and for Boris Johnson personally (72 per cent). The media, by contrast, has been faring rather worse. Successive apparently well-sourced revelations about (alleged) government complacency and incompetence from Reuters, The Financial Times and The Sunday Times have been answered in a series of ill-tempered rebuttals from No 10. Yet the polls as yet show only modest slippage in the Conservatives standing. Apart from vocal keyboard warriors on the right and left seizing another opportunity to pour abuse on the mainstream media, more representative opinion polls show similar dissatisfaction, despite some excellent reportage. According to a survey by the Reuters Institute, some 60 per cent of the British public trusts the main news organisations for coronavirus news better than the dispiriting 52 per cent who do in the US, but in line with other countries. However, the British public are actually more inclined to trust scientists, the NHS, and government than the media. A poll by Kekst CNC had the media as the one institution that has seen a drop in public confidence, down by 21 per cent. Harrisburg police said Monday they have identified a woman accused of spitting on an employee at the Giant supermarket in the Kline Village shopping center last week. They are asking the public for help in finding 33-year-old Erica Everett. Police said a warrant has been issued for Everetts arrest for making terroristic threats for the April 14 incident that became something of a sensation on Facebook. The employee, Carmella Jones, told PennLive she ended up in quarantine. The girl was coming over to beat the crap out of me because I wouldnt let her in the store, Jones said. The incident occurred a day after Giant began limiting the number of customers in its stores at any one time to try to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Jones was on duty at the store entrance trying to control the flow of customers. Jones said the customer swore for several minutes and threatened to slap her after being stopped from going inside. Thats when Jones said she picked up a yellow cone. Then she stopped and coughed, and I said, Dont you dare spit on me. And she spit on me, Jones said, adding the majority of the spit sprayed on her face and chest. The altercation was filmed by security cameras. Police said Everett returned to the store later that same day and threatened to harm Jones. In addition to the terroristic threats charge, Everett faced counts of witness intimidation, reckless endangerment, simple assault and harassment. Anyone with information on Everetts whereabouts can call police at 717-558-6900. Signs showing closed lanes at the U.S.-Canada border crossing in Lacolle, Quebec, on March 18, 2020. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press via AP) US, Mexico, Canada Extend CCP Virus Travel Restrictions for Another Month The United States, Canada, and Mexico have extended CCP virus-related travel restrictions for another month, it was announced April 20. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in confirming the development, said an additional 30 days will be added to the restrictions, meaning that it will end around May 20. Officials didnt provide an exact end date. In close collaboration, the US, Mexico, and Canada have each agreed to extend restrictions on non-essential travel across their shared borders for 30 additional days, acting Secretary Chad Wolf said in a statement. As President Trump stated last week, border control, travel restrictions and other limitations remain critical to slowing the spread and allowing the phased opening of the country. In close collaboration, the US, Mexico, and Canada have each agreed to extend restrictions on non-essential travel across their shared borders for 30 additional days. Acting Secretary Chad Wolf (@DHS_Wolf) April 20, 2020 The United States and Canada announced on March 18 that nonessential traffic across the border would be blocked. The United States made a similar announcement about travel to Mexico two days later. At the time, officials said the restrictions would be reviewed after 30 days to decide whether an extension would be necessary. President Donald Trump said that southern border travel restrictions are designed to reduce the incentive for a mass global migration that would badly deplete health care resources in the country, during the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic. On April 20, Mexicos foreign relations secretariat confirmed on Twitter the agreement to extend the restrictions, saying it came after reviewing the development of COVID-19 propagation in Mexico and [the United States]. Hours after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the closing of the border with the United States to all tourists, a car stops at a Canadian customs booth in Niagara Falls, Canada, on March 18, 2020. (Geoff Robins/AFP via Getty Images) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated on April 18 the United States and Canada agreed to keep the border closed for another month, saying it would be likely much longer before the restriction is lifted. The agreement is the same terms. Its just extended for another 30 days. It will ensure we continue to get essential goods and services back and forth across the border, Trudeau told reporters. The prime minister added in French that the restrictions will remain in place for many, many weeks to come, according to a translation from The Associated Press. The United States has more than 775,000 confirmed cases, while Canada has more than 37,000 confirmed cases and Mexico has more than 8,200, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Boris Johnsons most senior aide is facing fresh allegations he flouted lockdown rules by taking a sightseeing trip on Easter Sunday. The prime minister is facing mounting calls to sack Dominic Cummings amid claims he made several trips to see his family in County Durham, while the country was being told to stay at home. Ministers vociferously defended Mr Cummings after it emerged he had made the 260-mile journey, insisting he had obeyed the rules by staying in one place while there. However, an eyewitness told The Observer and the Sunday Mirror he had seen Mr Cummings on 12 April, 30 miles from Durham in Barnard Castle. Another eyewitness said they saw the prime ministers most trusted aide in Durham on 19 April, days after he had been photographed returning to Downing Street. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA UK news in pictures 29 November 2021 Home Secretary Priti Patel is greeted by a police dog at a special memorial service for Met Police Sergeant Matiu Ratana Getty UK news in pictures 28 November 2021 Riyad Mahrez of Manchester City battles for possession with Aaron Cresswell of West Ham United during a match at the Etihad during snow Manchester City/Getty UK news in pictures 27 November 2021 Residents clear branches from a fallen tree in Birkenhead, north west England as Storm Arwen triggered a rare red weather warning AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 An aerial picture shows a worker using a quad bike and trailer to transport freshly harvested trees at Pimms Christmas Tree farm in Matfield, southeast England AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 26 November 2021 A shopper browses Christmas trees for sale at Pines and Needles in Dulwich, London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 November 2021 A murmuration of hundreds of thousands of starlings fly over a field at dusk in Cumbria, close to the Scottish border PA UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 24 November 2021 Migrants are helped ashore from a RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) lifeboat at a beach in Dungeness, on the south-east coast of England, on November 24, 2021, after being rescued while crossing the English Channel. AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 23 November 2021 The coffin of Sir David Amess is carried past politicians, including former Prime Ministers Sir John Major, David Cameron and Theresa May, Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Prime Minister Boris Johnson during the requiem mass for the MP at Westminster Cathedral, central London PA UK news in pictures 22 November 2021 The scene in Dragon Rise, Norton Fitzwarren, Somerset where police have launched a murder probe after two people were found dead Tom Wren/SWNS UK news in pictures 21 November 2021 London-based midwife Sarah Muggleton, 27, takes part in a 'March with Midwives' in central London to highlight the crisis in maternity services PA UK news in pictures 20 November 2021 Police officers monitor as climate change activists sit down and block traffic during a protest action in solidarity with activists from the Insulate Britain group who received prison terms for blocking roads, on Lambeth Bridge in central London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 19 November 2021 A giant installation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson made from recycled clothing goes on display at Manchester Central, as part of Manchester Art Fair, in a 'wake-up call for the Prime Minister to tackle textile waste' PA UK news in pictures 18 November 2021 The scene at a recycling centre in Stert, near Devizes in Wiltshire after a large blaze was brought under control. The fire broke out on Wednesday night the fire service has said and local residents were advised to keep windows and doors shut due to large amounts of smoke PA UK news in pictures 17 November 2021 The sun rises over South Shields Lighthouse, on the North East coast of England PA UK news in pictures 16 November 2021 ancer Maithili Vijayakumar at the launch of 2021 Diwali celebrations at St Andrew Square in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 15 November 2021 Forensic officers work outside Liverpool Women's Hospital, following a car blast, in Liverpool Reuters UK news in pictures 14 November 2021 Wreaths by the Cenotaph after the Remembrance Sunday service in Whitehall, London PA UK news in pictures 13 November 2021 Richard Ratcliffe, the husband of detainee Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, is ending his hunger strike in central London after almost three weeks. Ratcliffe has spent 21 days camped outside the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London without food. He began his demonstration on 24 October after his wife lost her latest appeal in Iran, saying his family was caught in a dispute between two states PA Earlier, Downing Street had described the first trip as essential, saying Mr Cummings needed his familys help to care for his young son because his wife was sick with coronavirus and he feared he was next. Cabinet ministers lined up to defend Mr Cummings, saying he had put his family first and accused critics of trying to politicise the issue. Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, used the daily Downing Street press conference to suggest that Mr Cummings had not broken lockdown rules because he had stayed put upon arrival in Durham. But Robin Lees, 70, a retired chemistry teacher, told the papers he had seen Mr Cummings in Barnard Castle on Easter Sunday. Mr Lees compared him to Catherine Calderwood, Scotlands former chief medical officer, who stood down after visiting her second home twice during lockdown. Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the SNP have written to Sir Mark Sedwill, the cabinet secretary, calling for an inquiry into Mr Cummingss decision to travel from London to Durham. They want the probe to include when the prime minister was made aware Mr Cummings had left the capital. Senior Tories also expressed concern that Mr Cummings's behaviour could encourage others to flout the rules, jeopardising the governments plans to gradually lift the lockdown. The Independent can reveal that senior MPs are set to question Mr Johnson over Mr Cummings later this week, as pressure grows on the prime minister to explain what he knew about the trip under lockdown. Parliament is in recess until June, meaning Mr Johnson will not have to face MPs at Prime Ministers Questions. But members of the Commons Liaison Committee, which is made up of the chairs of other select committees, said they expected Mr Johnson to be questioned about Mr Cummings when he makes his first appearance before them later this week. Pete Wishart, an SNP MP who sits on the committee and is a member of the "quad" which organises its business, said: If nothing has changed and Dominic Cummings is still in post by Wednesday, it would be very surprising if this was an issue that was not raised. Another member of the committee said: Im sure one of my colleagues will crowbar the Cummings question in. In a statement defending Mr Cummings, Downing Street said his trip had been essential to ensure his young son was properly cared for. After an offer of help from his sister and nieces, he travelled to a house near to but separate from his extended family. A spokesperson for No 10, said: "Yesterday [Friday] the Mirror and Guardian wrote inaccurate stories about Mr Cummings. Today [Saturday] they are writing more inaccurate stories including claims that Mr Cummings returned to Durham after returning to work in Downing Street on 14 April. We will not waste our time answering a stream of false allegations about Mr Cummings from campaigning newspapers." There was confusion about the involvement of police, however. No 10 also said that at no stage was Mr Cummings or his family spoken to by the police. On Saturday night Durham Police took the unusual step of confirming they had spoken to Mr Cummingss father. Steve White, the police and crime commissioner for Durham Police, a former head of the Police Federation in England and Wales, said it was "most unwise" for Mr Cummings to have travelled when "known to be infected". The SNP accused No 10 of a "cover up" after reports some in Downing Street knew Mr Cummings had made the 260-mile journey during lockdown. Former Tory cabinet minister David Lidington, Theresa Mays de facto deputy prime minister, told Newsnight: "There's clearly serious questions that No 10 are going to have to address, not least because the readiness of members of the public to follow government guidance more generally is going to be affected by this sort of story." Professor Neil Ferguson, the epidemiologist whose modelling prompted the lockdown, quit as a government adviser for flouting the rules when he was visited at this home by his lover. At the time Mr Hancock, the health secretary, said he was "speechless" and that he backed any police action against Mr Ferguson. Sir Ed Davey, acting leader of the Liberal Democrats, called for Mr Cummings to quit over the allegations, while a spokesperson for Labour said: "The British people do not expect there to be one rule for them and another rule for Dominic Cummings." Asked by reporters on Saturday if he had considered his position, Mr Cummings said "obviously not". BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Ilkin Seyfaddini Trend: In Uzbekistan, money supply in M2 definition declined by 0.89 percent in the first quarter of 2020, including a 2.22 percent increase in March 2020, Trend reports citing the Uzbek media. As of April 1, the total money supply amounted to almost 90.5 trillion soum ($9.47 billion), the report says. M2 money supply includes cash in circulation (outside the banking system), savings and term deposits in the national currency of other financial organizations, public non-financial organizations, private sector and individuals, the report says. Money supply in the national currency of Uzbekistan increased by 1.24 percent for the first three months of 2020, including the increase by 4.17 percent in March, and slightly exceeded 63.6 trillion soum ($6.65 billion). Meanwhile, the money supply in M1 definition decreased by 0.53 percent in the first quarter of 2020, and increased by six percent to 42.4 trillion soum in March 2020 ($4.44 billion). M1 indicator includes cash in circulation and transferable deposits in national currency. In particular, cash in circulation decreased by 1.63 percent during the first quarter, while growing by 1.07 percent in March to 23.8 trillion soum ($2.5 billion); transferable deposits in national currency increased by 0.91 percent and 4.36 percent respectively to 18.6 trillion soum ($1.95 billion), the report says. The volume of other deposits in national currency increased by 0.83 percent in the period from January through February 2020,and by 0.68 percent to 21.1 trillion soum ($2.21 billion) in March. At the same time, deposits in foreign currency have decreased by 5.59 percent since the January of 2020, including increase by 2.13 percent to 26.9 trillion soum ($2.81 billion) for March 2020. --- Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Atlas Ocean Voyages, the luxury, all-inclusive adventure and expedition company, today announced that it will unveil its inaugural winter 2021/22 Antarctica season in early-May 2020. The Luxe-AdventureSM travel brand will launch sales of its Antarctica season ahead of schedule to provide Travel Advisors more opportunities to take advantage of the most immediate and generous program called GET PAID NOW. GET PAID NOW immediately assists Travel Advisors with up to $750 per deposited booking, and their clients receive up to $2,000 savings and more on an exhilarating Luxe-Adventure journey aboard World Navigator. World Navigator, Atlas Ocean Voyages' first expedition ship launching in mid-2021, will embark on her maiden Antarctica LuxpeditionSM in November 2021 and bring adventurers and like-spirited travelers to the southernmost, most isolated continent for towering icebergs, waddling penguins, playful seals, breaching whales and more. "Travel Advisors have always been an indispensable partner for cruise lines and now, they need our support more than ever," said Alberto Aliberti, President of Atlas Ocean Voyages. "Atlas Ocean Voyages created GET PAID NOW to support our valued Travel Advisor community as we navigate these unprecedented times. And we're opening up our 2021/22 Antarctica season sales early, on May 4, so Travel Advisors can offer more destinations and more choices when discussing future travels with their clients. We will all travel again and small, safe, luxury expedition ships like World Navigator will help lead the cruise industry's recovery." "We know Travel Advisors are working extra hard these days planning future dream vacations and travel experiences for their clients," said Brandon Townsley, Vice President of Sales and Trade Partnerships for Atlas Ocean Voyages. "To support them and recognize their efforts, we want Travel Advisors to GET PAID NOW for selling a Luxe-Adventure journey to the end of the earth aboard one of World Navigator's 2021/2022 Antarctica voyages." Atlas Ocean Voyages' GET PAID NOW recognizes Travel Advisors for their critical role in fulfilling their clients' curiosities and dreams. GET PAID NOW is applicable for all Atlas Ocean Voyages' itineraries, including the inaugural 2021/22 Antarctica season, and is combinable with all current Atlas Ocean Voyages promotions. For every booking with deposit, Travel Advisors will receive: A $750 gift card per suite NOW gift card per suite NOW A $500 gift card per Horizon and Veranda stateroom NOW gift card per Horizon and Veranda stateroom NOW 15% commission Adventurers and like-spirited travelers enjoy: $1,000 savings plus FREE business-class air travel per suite guest savings plus FREE business-class air travel per suite guest $500 savings plus FREE economy-class air travel per Horizon- or Veranda-stateroom guest plus FREE economy-class air travel per Horizon- or Veranda-stateroom guest Free changes to any itinerary, departing before March 31, 2022 . Travel Advisors can visit www.AtlasOceanVoyages.com for more information, and call 1-844-44-ATLAS (1-844-442-8527) to book their clients on an unforgettable Luxe-Adventure journey. To register as an Atlas Ocean Voyages Advisor, please visit www.atlasoceanvoyages.com/contact-travel-advisors/. Atlas Ocean Voyages is a member of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), a member organization founded in 1991 to advocate and promote the practice of safe and environmentally responsible private-sector travel to the Antarctic. Safety is the basic building block of World Navigator and the ship is rated Polar Category C and Ice Class 1B and utilizes underwater forward-looking radar to confidently ply icy polar waters. Additionally, the ship's exclusive, alternate hydrojet propulsion system helps World Navigator quietly cruise into wildlife-rich Antarctic harbors and calderas without disturbing marine animals. Guests will be able to see Antarctic wildlife closer from World Navigator's Water's Edge Lookout, the lowest expedition ship's bow observation area in the industry and the only one with heated benches for extended marine-life spotting and admiring the pristine Antarctic scenery. Atlas Ocean Voyages' ships are also among the first to employ the latest conservation and sustainability technologies leaving nothing behind but footprints in the snow to help preserve the breathtaking locales and waters they ply for future generations to enjoy. Atlas Ocean Voyages is an all-inclusive, luxury travel brand that will be defined by simple elegance and will deliver authentic, thrilling, and once-in-a-lifetime Luxe-AdventureSM experiences in the world's most sought-after and remote destinations. Adventurers and like-spirited travelers will find community aboard Atlas Ocean Voyages' small, expedition ships and come together in welcoming and lively venues to share their day's exploits. Guests stay in one of 98 luxe suites and staterooms, all with an ocean view and most with a private balcony. All Atlas Ocean Voyages journeys include complimentary gratuities; alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages; L'Occitane bath amenities; Wi-Fi; a free shore excursion in select ports on every itinerary; coffee and tea service in every room; meals and snacks; and butler service in suites; as well as parkas for guests to take home and wet-landing boots for use aboard polar itineraries. For the latest about Luxe-Adventure journeys, follow @AtlasCruises on Facebook and Twitter, and @AtlasOceanVoyages on Instagram. SOURCE Atlas Ocean Voyages Related Links www.atlasoceanvoyages.com The Pound Sterling to Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate slumped by -0.5% this morning, leaving the pairing trading at around AU$1.9558. The Australian Dollar rose against the Pound on Monday as global growth fears sent traders flocking to the US Dollar and away from Sterling. Meanwhile, the Aussie received a boost after news the New Zealand government would begin to relax the strict coronavirus containment measures from next week. According to Ray Attrill, head of FX at National Australia Bank in Sydney: The market wasnt expecting quite such a short timeframe for the potential relaxation of restriction levels. However the risk sentiment today is not quite as positive as it was. There is still a degree of safe haven support and a level of demand for US Dollar that is going to transcend whether or not we are in risk-on or risk-off mode. While the relaxation of measures in New Zealand is only modest, with construction, forestry and manufacturing sectors being allowed to resume, Prime Minister Jacinda Arden noted that further easing measures would be considered next month. Although Aussie sentiment remained under pressure and against the US Dollar (USD), it was down -1.5% below the one-month high AUD/USD hit last week. Chris Weston, Pepperstones head of research noted: We are coming into the eye of the storm. And as the market starts to focus less on virus headlines, or at least will be less sensitive to better news, we will focus more on the lasting effects on the economy and solvency. Meanwhile, data released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) showed that the number of people leaving their homes fell by -83%. This followed earlier data from the RBC which showed retail sales spending had slumped by more than a quarter. This added with todays figures suggest that the decline in sales is going to be even sharper than expected. Commenting on the data, BRC chief executive, Helen Dickinson noted: Footfall dropped in early March, as many people chose to stay at home and reduce the risk of catching coronavirus. This downwards trajectory was accelerated by the governments decision to put the UK on lockdown. Added to this, property website, Rightmove noted it was unable to provide meaningful house price data thanks to the low levels of new houses being listed due to the pandemic. Petr Krpata, chief EMEA FX and IR strategist at ING said that markets should Expect to hear more on the size of the UK recession from Bank of England speakers this morning. Looking Ahead: RBA Minutes in Focus Looking ahead, the Australian Dollar (AUD) could suffer some losses against the Pound (GBP) following the release of Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) meeting minutes. If the RBAs minutes are overly dovish and focus on the economic impact of the coronavirus, and this is emphasised in Governor Philip Lowes speech, the Aussie will reverse todays gains. Meanwhile, the Pound could suffer some losses later in the day following the release of British unemployment statistics. If Marchs claimant count change increases more than expected in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Pound Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate will remain flat. Accra, 20th April 2020: The National Communications Authority (NCA) wishes to inform the general public about the illegal activities of some persons involved in the operations of Radio Tongu 92.1 MHz without a valid authorisation. The events leading to this state of affairs are as follows: It will be recalled that on 11th February 2020, the NCA suspended the Authorisation of Radio Tongu 92.1 MHz on grounds of national security and the public interest. The enforcement of the suspension resulted in the closing down of the Station in accordance with Section 13(1)(e) of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775). Since the closure of the station, the Authority has received an "Undertaking" from Mamaga Adokuwa Azaworgbe IV (Executive Chair) and Mabel Esinam Agbador (Executive Council Secretary) on behalf of the Tongu Community Multimedia Network (TCMN) promising to "with immediate effect suspend the education on Western Togoland's self-determination to independence indefinitely." A copy of the said Undertaking is attached in this release. The Authority has also received a number of correspondences from one Bestway Zottor (a Director of TCMN and a key architect in the Western Togoland secessionist agenda), whose illegal conducts informed the decision to suspend the Authorisation of the Station. In particular, the Authority has recently received a letter from Mr. Bestway Zottor dated 11th April, 2020 threatening mayhem in Sogakope and its environs. The said letter speaks to impending explosive demonstrations that cannot be contained, among others. In his 11th April letter to the NCA, Mr. Bestway Zottor states that, I am sure this pending demonstration against Radio Tongu closure could be more explosive than that resulting [sic] from the murder of Hon. Mawutor Adzahli, the Sogakope Assemblyman. For the pent-up anger in our listeners is loaded, and we will NOT be able to calm them down anymore. Further to the subtle threats in the said letter, Mr. Bestway Zottor and his assigns defied all odds and illegally re-opened the Station for mass communication in spite of the fact that the Authorisation of the Station is suspended. This unilateral re-opening of the Station has undermined ongoing discussions and consultations with the opinion leaders of the South Tongu Community, and with the District Security Council. It is in this regard that the National Security and the NCA have shut the station down. In addition to this, equipment used in the illegal operations have been seized and confiscated, and the persons involved in the illegal operations have been arrested for prosecution pursuant to the following: Section 73 of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) Regulation 87(1)(a) of the Electronic Communications Regulations, 2011 (L.I. 1991) As a community radio station, the NCA will continue to engage the leadership of the South Tongu Community/TCMN and the District Security Council to find a lasting solution to the impasse, while the law takes its course with regard to the individuals arrested. The NCA wishes to stress that the Authority will endeavour to execute its mandate as set out by law and calls on stakeholders to adhere to the tenets and regulations governing the communications industry. Issued by the National Communications Authority: About NCA The National Communications Authority, (NCA), was established by an Act of Parliament, Act 524 in December 1996, which has been repealed and replaced by the National Communications Authority Act, 2008 (Act 769). The Authority is the statutory body mandated to license and to regulate electronic communication activities and services in the country. US coronavirus death toll exceeds 40,000 According to the country's data, more than 67,000 people have recovered in the US. The death toll in the US from the novel coronavirus has surpassed the 40,000 mark, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University Sunday. NEW YORK IS THE WORST-HIT STATE IN THE COUNTRY The Maryland-based university's running tally counted 40,585 deaths and 742,442 cases. The US continues to lead worldwide deaths related to the virus after Italy reported 23,660, followed by Spain with 20,453. New York is the worst-hit state by the pandemic with 18,921 deaths and more than 242,500 cases, followed by New Jersey with 4,364 deaths and 85,464 cases. The bulk of new deaths came two days after President Donald Trump said the US could see up to 65,000 coronavirus deaths. "I think we will be substantially, hopefully, below the 100,000. I think, right now, we are heading at probably around 60,000, maybe 65,000," Trump told reporters at a White House coronavirus task force news conference on Friday. By IANS CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu police have rescued a cash strapped Russian couple who had climbed up the Annamalai hills in Tiruvannamalai. According to police, the Russian couple - Viktor Maksutov and Tatiana Simonaeva - had come on a spiritual trip and were staying in Tiruvannamalai and went broke. They were taking free food given by an ashram. Unable to pay the rent for their accommodation, the couple decided to climb up the hills and live in the cave till the lockdown is lifted. However, the locals spotted them climbing the hills and informed the authorities. The police with the use of drone located the Russian couple and brought them down on Sunday. Hearing their problem, the police then housed the couple in a place belonging to a non-governmental organisation (NGO) and assured them of grocery supplies. The Russian couple tested negative for Coronavirus. Sometime back, officials had brought down a Chinese national from a cave atop the Annamalai hills. He also tested negative for Coronavirus and has been accommodated in a hospital. Researchers claim that COVID-19 patients in a clinical trial are responding quickly to Remdesivir, a finding which they said is "promising," while also emphasising the need for more trials to test the effectiveness of the antiviral drug. According to the researchers from the Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, US, the trial's criteria allows for the treatment of patients early in their clinical course, and in some cases when they may have otherwise been intubated. "Early results are promising, and that is important right now. Much of what we are learning about COVID-19 management is centred around preventing quick deterioration," said Katherine K. Perez, an infectious diseases pharmacist from Houston Methodist Hospital in the US. "Timing is everything. I can't say for certain they would have been intubated otherwise, but it's encouraging," Perez said. Originally developed to treat Ebola more than a decade ago, Remdesivir is a broad-spectrum antiviral drug, according to a study, published in the journal Nature earlier this year. The Chinese study showed that Remdesivir could successfully block the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, from replicating in human cells. Another research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, chronicled the case of a COVID-19 positive man, who received Remdesivir at the recommendation of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and reportedly started improving within 24 hours. "One of the most challenging things with COVID-19 is the way this virus makes copies of itself once it finds its way into the body," the hospital said in a statement to the press. "This is how COVID-19 can ultimately take over and send someone into respiratory distress and in need of intubation if not stopped early enough. Remdesivir has demonstrated a potent ability to inhibit this viral replication in human cells and is now being tried in clinical trials of patients with the SARS-CoV-2 virus," it noted. The hospital was the fifth site in the US to join the clinical trials for the drug, and has been enrolling and treating patients since mid-March, the press statement said. Initially, five patients received early access to Remdesivir on a compassionate use basis, and since being activated as a clinical trial site, the hospital said more than 35 patients have been enrolled. The two human-stage clinical trials at Houston Methodist are randomised, multicenter studies where both the patients and the clinicians know which treatment is being prescribed. In both the trials, the clinicians said they are treating patients with moderate to severe symptoms to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Remdesivir in adults diagnosed with COVID-19. One study is for patients with moderate COVID-19 and tests either a 5-day or 10-day Remdesivir treatment, and the other is evaluating a 10-day course of Remdesivir for patients with severe COVID-19, including those on mechanical ventilation, the hospital noted. Perez said the early results have been promising, with courses being well tolerated by patients. "If given early enough, we're hoping that Remdesivir interferes with the virus and blocks its ability to replicate in patients' cells. The goal is that it staves off the deadly inflammatory cascade that leads to respiratory failure and the need to be intubated and put on a ventilator," said infectious diseases physician Kevin A. Grimes from Houston Methodist. Perez added that a number of them who have undergone treatment with Remdesivir are showing signs of recovery and have been released from the hospital to go home. However, she cautioned that it is too soon to tell whether the drug is an effective cure. According to the clinicians, additional data from several ongoing randomised, controlled clinical trials, including the ones at Houston Methodist, will provide more definitive, evidence-based conclusions regarding the safety and efficacy of Remdesivir for treating COVID-19. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Northern Ireland firm has developed an online learning platform to assist frontline NHS staff during the coronavirus pandemic. Synergy Learning, learning technology specialists, have created the learning programme in six days in partnership with University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) NHS Foundation Trust in response to the current pressure NHS trusts are facing. According to Synergy Learning it has been working with UHB since 2010, providing support with the delivery of its online, blended and face-to-face learning programmes. Due to the current situation, many staff may be concerned about their knowledge and skills in specific relation to the Covid-19 pandemic and a potential change from their normal role. The platform is designed to offer accessible courses to NHS staff so they can upskill and learn more about COVID-19. The programme contains over 50 courses with five different learning pathways, tailored for each user. We are so pleased that we could offer our services to help frontline workers, Roy Kerley from Synergy Learning said. Having worked with UHB for over 10 years, we have seen time and time again the amazing impact it has with people, especially when they need it most. We are fortunate to be in a position to lend our support to the NHS when we are relying on them more than ever. Tracey Starkey-Moore, deputy director of education from UHB, said: UHB is one of the largest teaching hospital trusts in England and we are at the forefront in the fight against Covid-19, along with our colleagues across the rest of the UK. We are very proud to be launching this platform in the West Midlands and hope it helps alleviate some of the worries I know many colleagues have. With a wide range of skills required at this time, it is important that all staff and volunteers are confident in their knowledge. The focus of the learning platform is to ensure that all staff and volunteers are equipped with the most recent information available to them and have the most up to date skills to enable them to be competent and confident in caring for their patients. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 01:56:54|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KAPENGURIA, Kenya, April 20 (Xinhua)--Two Kenyan police officers are among six people killed by landslides at the northwest's West Pokot-Elgeyo Marakwet border following heavy rains on Saturday night, officials said Monday. "One officer was found dead while a second one succumbed to injuries after he was airlifted for specialized treatment at Moi Referral and Teaching Hospital in Eldoret," Rift Valley regional commissioner George Natembeya told Xinhua. Four people were confirmed dead on Sunday, bringing the total number of those who have died from the mudslides to six. Floodwaters on Saturday evening swept away Chethe sogon market, two local schools and a police station. On Sunday, residents launched a rescue mission before police and rescue teams arrived to trace several people who went missing after the incident. West Pokot County Commissioner Apollo Okello with rescue teams are still combing the wet terrain to find survivors. "There are a number of people who cannot be accounted for. We are still looking for them. Rescue teams are tracing them along the river Chesogon," Okello told Xinhua. The official also said they are mobilizing local residents to move to safer ground to avert disaster as heavy rain continues to pound the area. "We have asked residents living in the affected to cooperate with the government agencies and move out from unsafe areas and if they fail to do so we may be forced to use force to prevent further loss of lives," Okello warned. Heavy rains have hit several parts of West Pokot, damaging heavily Chesogon market that was rebuilt last year on the border of the two counties to help foster peaceful interaction and coexistence of the warring communities. Humanitarian agencies led by Kenya Red Cross Society said the heavy rains occurred in the highlands, causing serious damage on the downwards. "The heavy rains poured in the highlands but the damage downwards was so traumatizing as the running waters cut across the villages sweeping away heavy boulders, tree stumps and houses," the Red Cross official said. Environmentalists raised concern over environmental depletion in the affected region and urged for the cultivation of trees which will reduce the impacts of floods. Enditem Fellow Ghanaians, good evening, Today, Sunday, 19th April, 2020, is exactly three (3) weeks since I came to you and announced the imposition of restrictions to movement in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and Kasoa, and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and its contiguous districts. I explained, at the time, that the decision was taken to give Government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and, if necessary, quarantine and isolate them for treatment, should they prove to be positive for the virus. This decision to restrict movement has occasioned a number of severe difficulties for all of us across the country, especially for the poor and vulnerable, and not only for those resident in the affected areas. Let me express my gratitude to all of you for bearing with Government, all health workers, and with members of our security services, throughout this period. I requested all of us to sacrifice for our collective good, and we have been doing just that. I thank all our healthcare workers, the men and women of our security services, and members of the media, for the work they are doing in helping to combat the spread of the virus. Let me also thank the individuals and organisations who have made contributions to the COVID-19 National Trust Fund. It is truly appreciated. Fellow Ghanaians, since the first two (2) cases of infections were recorded on our shores, we have, till date, traced some eighty-six thousand (86,000) contacts, out of which we have test results of sixty-eight thousand, five hundred and ninety-one (68,591) contacts. There is, thus, a backlog of some eighteen thousand (18,000) tests whose results are yet to be received. The overwhelming majority of these contacts have been established in the last three weeks of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi. Out of this number, one thousand and forty-two (1,042) persons, i.e. 1.5%, have been confirmed as positive, with sixty-seven thousand, five hundred and forty-nine (67,549), i.e. 98.5%, testing negative; ninety-nine (99) persons have recovered and have been discharged; and nine hundred and thirty (930) persons, who have been isolated, are responding to treatment either in their homes or in treatment facilities. These nine hundred and thirty (930) persons, after their treatment, will soon undergo the mandatory two (2) tests to determine if they have also recovered from the virus or otherwise. The main reason our country has seen an increase in the number of confirmed cases over the last three (3) weeks is because of the decision we took aggressively to trace and test contacts of infected persons. This has enabled us to identify and isolate infected persons, protect the population from further infections, and contain better the spread of the virus. Indeed, Ghana is the only other country in Africa to have conducted more than sixty thousand tests, and we are ranked number one (1) in Africa in administering of tests per million people. The decision to impose restrictions on movement was backed by the data at hand, and our next course of action, again, is backed by data and by science. Indeed, all that Government is doing is intended to achieve five (5) key objectives 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. It is important to state, at the very onset, that scientists at the University of Ghana have successfully sequenced genomes of the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, obtaining important information about the genetic composition of viral strains in fifteen (15) of the confirmed cases in Ghana. This is a significant milestone in Ghanas response to the pandemic, as it will strengthen surveillance for tracking mutations of the virus, and aid in the tracing of the sources of community infections in people with no known contact with confirmed cases. The Ghanaian scientific community is to be warmly applauded for this advance and contribution to global knowledge. Their work makes us proud to be Ghanaian, and, who knows, God may work through them to discover a vaccine. What a triumph that would be! Indeed, the recent genomic characterisation of African Coronaviruses by our own scientists illustrates the need to establish the enabling framework for sustainable vaccine manufacturing in Africa. We must advance African-led partnerships to drive scientific innovations for the control of viral diseases by vaccination. Ghana, recognising this critical public health tool, will support the African Vaccine Manufacturing Initiative, which is chaired by Noguchis Prof William Ampofo, to promote the agenda for vaccine development and manufacturing in Africa by Africans for the world. Government has also introduced the use of drones to expedite the transportation of samples to laboratory centres. On Friday, 17th April, for example, fifty-one (51) samples were delivered from the Omenako Drone Distribution Centre to Noguchi. Furthermore, we are introducing rapid results testing to augment our surveillance and enhanced contact tracing efforts, so that we can quickly isolate and treat confirmed cases. From the sixty-eight thousand, five hundred and ninety-one (68,591) samples tested, we have been able to understand better the dynamism of the virus, map out its geographic footprint, and establish current and potential hotspots. We have also been able to isolate and educate asymptomatic carriers, and, thereby, help minimise the spread of the virus. So far, it has been established that the virus was imported into our midst from foreign shores, and is being spread through person to person contact. The majority of persons infected in Ghana have mild to no symptoms at all, whilst a very small number have required hospital treatment, out of which nine (9) persons, with underlying ailments, have died. Towards treatment, we have expanded and added to our network of COVID-19 treatment centers, with the Ga East and Bank of Ghana Hospitals being one hundred percent (100%) dedicated to the fight. In addition, we have set aside separate COVID-19 treatment centres at the University of Ghana Medical School Hospital, the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi South Hospital, and in other designated Regional and District Hospitals. Last Friday, I was honoured to do the virtual sod-cutting ceremony for the construction of a 100-bed Infectious Disease and Isolation Facility at the Ga East Municipal Hospital, which is being funded through a public-private partnership, under the leadership of the Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund., and whose construction, with the assistance of the 48-Engineer Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces, will be completed in six (6) weeks. Members of the Private Sector Fund have, indeed, acted like citizens, and not spectators, in these testing times for our country, and their patriotism is to be loudly praised. We have also scaled up the domestic production of personal protective equipment, and our health care facilities, so far, have taken delivery of fourteen thousand, five hundred and fifty (14,550) scrubs, eleven thousand, nine hundred (11,900) gowns, nineteen thousand, nine hundred and eighty (19,980) head covers, two hundred and sixty three thousand, two hundred and eighty one (263,281) nose masks, thirteen thousand, and two (13,002) N-95 nose masks. Forty-one thousand, one hundred and seventeen (41,117) varying sizes of sanitizers have also been produced locally and delivered to our health facilities. The enhancement of our capacity to test has been made possible by the dedication of the expanded teams at Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research, and the National Public Health Reference Laboratory. Further, we are making significant investments in the laboratories at the Veterinary Laboratory, Accra, the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research Laboratory, Accra, the Police Hospital, the 37 Military Hospitals, the University of Health and Allied Sciences in Ho, the Veterinary Services Department in Sekondi-Takoradi, the Public Health Laboratory in Tamale, the War Memorial Hospital in Navrongo and the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, so they can also use PCR Technology. We are recalibrating one hundred (100) Regional and District Tuberculosis Gene Expert Laboratories across the country, to help ensure that we have a minimum situation of one testing centre per region. Fellow Ghanaians, in view of our ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing of infected persons, the enhancement of our capacity to test, the expansion in the numbers of our treatment and isolation centres, our better understanding of the dynamism of the virus, the ramping up of our domestic capacity to produce our own personal protective equipment, sanitisers and medicines, the modest successes chalked at containing the spread of the virus in Accra and Kumasi, and the severe impact on the poor and vulnerable, I have taken the decision to lift the three (3) week old restriction on movements in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and Kasoa, and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and its contiguous districts, with effect from 1am on Monday, 20th April. In effect, tomorrow will see the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi being lifted. I must make it clear, at the outset, that lifting these restrictions does not mean we are letting our guard down. All other measures are still firmly in place. For the avoidance of doubt, the earlier measures announced on Wednesday, 15th March, which have been extended, are still very much in force, and have not been relaxed. I am demanding even greater adherence to these measures. In here, I am referring to the suspension of all public gatherings, including conferences, workshops, funerals, parties, nightclubs, drinking spots, beaches, festivals, political rallies, religious activities and sporting events. All educational facilities, private and public, are to remain closed. Businesses and other workplaces can continue to operate, observing staff management and workplace protocols with the view to achieving social distancing and hygiene protocols. Operators of public transport, including our buses, trotros and taxis, are to continue to run with a minimum number of passengers, as they have been doing for the last three weeks in maintaining social distancing. They must also continue to ensure the maintenance of enhanced hygienic conditions in all vehicles and terminals, by providing, amongst others, hand sanitizers, running water and soap for washing of hands. Domestic airlines are required to adhere to the same protocols. The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, together with Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, will continue to implement measures to enhance conditions of hygiene in markets across the country, and expand the policy of alternate-days-for-alternative-products to improve social distancing in all markets. As has been established, the overwhelming majority of confirmed cases have come from travellers or from people who have come into contact with travellers. It is, therefore, incumbent on us to continue to be vigilant about travelers into our country until further notice, and to congratulate the men and women of the Immigration Service and the Marine Police Unit for their work in securing our borders. The arrest of ten (10) West African nationals in Tamale who all tested positive for the virus; the arrest of the six (6) Nigerian travellers who entered Ghana through unapproved routes along the Ghana-Togo border near Aflao, who also tested positive for the virus; and the recent arrest of ten (10) fishermen in the Western Region, who returned from Cote divoire and have been quarantined, testify to the determination of our security services to protect our borders. I have, thus, signed an Executive Instrument, to extend the closure of our borders for two (2) more weeks, beginning Monday, 20th April. Like the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recently advised, I want to encourage you to wear a mask wherever you go, as it will help you not to contract the virus, and keep it clean. If you own a business, or are providing a service, i.e. a barber, a hairdresser, a tailor, a taxi driver, a trotro driver and his mate, a shop keeper, a food seller, please do well to use a mask. The Ministry of Health will very soon issue guidelines on face masks for public use. I entreat religious, traditional, community and opinion leaders to partner with government in engaging, mobilising and enforcing adherence to social distancing and personal hygiene practices in their respective communities. As difficult as it may be, I encourage all bereaved persons to conduct private burials of their loved ones, but ensure that the twenty-five (25) person limit is not breached. Indeed, some are burying their loved ones now, in order to have the final funeral rites later. The morgues in the country are becoming full, and will, in themselves, soon pose a public health hazard. So, let us act quickly on this. As the days go by, and as we continue to sustain a grip on the rapid spread of the virus, the systematic easing of these restrictions will be undertaken to bring life back to normalcy. Definitely, we will continue to record new cases of infections, particularly with our policy of aggressive tracing and testing. However, I want to assure you that Government has put in place the appropriate measures to isolate and treat them. Should there be an unexpected outburst in infections within a community, I have put the health workers and the security services, including the Police Service and the Armed Forces, on standby, to co-ordinate a rapid response of human and logistical resources, if necessary, to cordon, impose a curfew, trace, test, and treat infected persons in the affected community. Indeed, the focus of Governments policy and action will be based on the implementation of the 3Ts, i.e. tracing, testing and treating. In any event, stay at home, unless it is absolutely essential. The movement of foodstuffs will continue from producing areas to the markets, and, with the intervention of the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, the markets would be better organised for the sale of foodstuffs. Fellow Ghanaians, as we fight to halt the spread of the virus, we are also engaged in fights on two other fronts fights we must equally win. Firstly, there continues to be the deliberate dissemination of fake news, disinformation and outright lies by some unpatriotic citizens about the spread of the virus since its outbreak in the country. These acts are being orchestrated by those who hope to benefit by seeking to sow the seeds of panic and confusion amongst the populace at this time of national crisis. I have an unequivocal message for those involved in these despicable acts put an immediate stop to it, or be held accountable for your actions. Secondly, as has been aptly stated by the Ghana Medical Association, being infected by the Coronavirus is not necessarily a death sentence. I have noticed, with great concern, the stories of some persons, who have recovered from the virus, now being confronted with another problem, i.e. stigmatization. This is not right, as it will rather drive people away from getting screened, tested and treated. The stigmatization of recovered persons must stop, because if the virus did not end their lives and livelihoods, the stigma from members of their communities should not. I know the effects of the measures to contain the virus have been difficult for many, and that is why I mandated the creation of the GH1.2 billion Coronavirus Alleviation Programme to support households and businesses. Out of this amount, two hundred and eighty million cedis (GH280 million) is being used to provide food for the vulnerable and free water for all Ghanaians for three (3) months, i.e. April, May and June, three hundred and twenty-three million cedis (GH323 million) is being used to motivate our health workers, and six hundred million cedis (GH600 million) of assistance is being provided to micro, small and medium-scale businesses. I expect disbursements of the six hundred million cedis to start in May. Further, Government is fully absorbing electricity bills for one million active lifeline customers, and is granting a fifty percent (50%) subsidy on electricity bills of all other customers, using their March 2020 bill as their benchmark, for the months of April, May and June. In total, the relief on electricity will amount to some one billion cedis (GH1.02 billion). Again, Government, through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture through the National Buffer Stock Company, in collaboration with the MMDCEs and the District Disaster Management Committees, has provided over 2.5 million cooked food packs to vulnerable persons in the affected districts of Accra and Kumasi. Dry food packs have also been distributed, in collaboration with the faith-based organisations, to four hundred and seventy thousand (470,000) families in the same areas, as against the original target of four hundred thousand (400,000). I express my profound gratitude to the private sector and faith-based organisations, and traditional authorities for their support in this endeavour. I also commend highly the many individuals and private organisations who, on their own, organised hot meals and fed a number of vulnerable people within the restricted areas. To these individuals, ayekoo for being good neighbours to your fellow Ghanaians. As we continue to battle this pandemic, it is imperative we plan to restore Ghana onto a sound economic footing, and create a path towards growth and transformation. The recent one billion United States dollar Rapid Credit Facility, secured from the IMF, without any precondition, and approved by Parliament, will be used to help close the financing gap that has been created by the pandemic through shortfalls in revenues and additional expenditures. I welcome the three billion cedi (GH3 billion) credit and stimulus package from the commercial banks, with the support of the Bank of Ghana, to revitalise industries, especially in the pharmaceutical, hospitality, services, and manufacturing sectors. The Minister for Finance, that hardworking, outstanding national treasurer, together with his counterpart in South Africa, as co-Chairs of the Committee of African Finance Ministers, have been leading a Pan-African effort to bring debt relief to the continent in these difficult times. Last Friday, they achieved a nine-month debt standstill from the World Bank for all qualifying members of the International Development Association (IDA), starting from 1st May, 2020, totalling some forty-four billion United States dollars ($44 billion) for the countries of Africa. In the case of Ghana, this amounts to a freeze in principal and interest payments for the year, amounting to some five hundred million United States dollars ($500 million). This will create greater fiscal space to help make the Ghanaian economy much more resilient. I have charged the Finance Minister to leave no stone unturned to achieve an even greater and comprehensive debt relief programme for Africa. Our success in defeating the virus is largely within our control. That means each and every one of us must exercise, at all times, during this period without the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi, a strong sense of selflessness, self-control and self-discipline. It is important to stress strongly that coming out of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi does not mean we are out of the pandemic. We will continue to monitor closely events in some hotspots in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area like Weija Gbawe, Ga East, and Ayawaso East Municipalities, and Tema Metropolis, and in the Eastern Region, like Asuoygaman and Lower Manya Krobo Districts. Whenever the situation so warrants, a community in which the virus is identified as becoming prevalent will be locked-down, until there is a clear understanding of the trajectory of the virus that will allow us to contain it. We must obey the measures still in place, including the new ones, because we know our survival depends on them, and, the harder we are on ourselves in obeying them, the quicker and more enduring will be the victory. To Ghanaians in all parts of the world, I urge you to remain steadfast in abiding by the rules and regulations that have been put in place by your host countries to combat the virus, and I extend the condolences of all your compatriots at home to all families abroad who have lost their loved ones to the virus. And, I take this opportunity to wish our High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Ireland, my good friend, Papa Owusu Ankomah, who has been affected by the virus, and other Ghanaians abroad who have been so-affected a speedy recovery. This disease is new, it is in plain evolution, and there is, therefore, as yet, no vaccine or cure. But we know enough to take action, and we shall be nimble and adapt as the situation changes. We will tailor our solutions to our unique social, economic and cultural conditions. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but I pledge to you that Government will do whatever is required, in our particular circumstances, to safeguard the lives of our people, and keep our economy going. Discipline, self-discipline, is that strong bridge that all of us, from the safety of our homes, in our workplaces, and in our communities, must build. We need to build a strong bridge of self-discipline in order for us to cross over from this difficult period of restrictions and the spread of the Coronavirus to the other side, where total freedom to go about our normal lives awaits us. To defeat the virus, and get there, we have to accept that we have to wash our hands, maintain good hygiene, refrain from shaking hands, wear our masks, and practice social distancing in all of our engagements. Fellow Ghanaians, we are confronting one of the greatest challenges of our generation. We have to win this battle. We have to defeat the virus. It is our behaviour and response that will determine that. I have every confidence that, collectively, we, Ghanaians, have it in us to rise to the occasion and become victorious. I am very grateful for the great support you have given my Government and I, as we steer our country out of this crisis. Continue in unity to provide that support. This, too, shall pass, for the Battle is the Lords. Me da moa se paa, mon k) so ntie mas3m, na y3n nyinaa ndi nkunim. Min da ny3 shi waa, ny3 yaa n) ni y3 boa nwiem) tu3, koni w) f33 w) ye nkuni. May God bless us all, and our homeland Ghana, and make her great and strong. I thank you for your attention, and have a good night. Source: 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. Featured Video The number of COVID-19 cases in San Antonio climbed past 1,000 and another resident of the Southeast Side nursing home that saw an outbreak of the disease has died, officials said Sunday. San Antonio now has 1,015 confirmed cases of COVID-19, Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at the daily city-county briefing. Nirenberg and County Judge Nelson Wolff reminded area residents that everyone 10 and older will be required to wear a mask covering nose and mouth when out in public starting today, with few exceptions. That covering can be a mask or some kind of cloth as long as it covers the nose and mouth. The rule primarily applies in situations where residents arent able to stay 6 feet away from each other. Residents who egregiously violate the requirement will be cited but whether every violator will get fined will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, City Attorney Andy Segovia said. Were not out to fine people, Segovia said. Were not out to increase the fear level at all. But, at the same time, we want people to take the order seriously. It has been more than a month since officials announced March 13 that the virus was present in the community, not just among evacuees brought to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. Thats also when city and county officials began to place limits on gatherings in an attempt to slow the spread of the disease. To Nirenberg and County Judge Nelson Wolff, those steps have worked. We didnt enjoy having to take these actions early or at all, Nirenberg said. But they are saving lives. Thats pretty clear. Still, a lack of proper testing protocol at the federal level caught the city and county off-guard early on, Wolff said. We were totally unprepared for what was coming at us, Wolff said. The person whose death was reported Sunday was a Hispanic man in his 70s who had multiple underlying health conditions, Nirenberg said. He was a resident of Southeast Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Eighteen residents of that facility who tested positive for novel coronavirus have died. The death total for Bexar County stood at 39 on Sunday. There was some good news in the figures released Sunday. Wolff pointed out that the number of people who have fully recovered from COVID-19 has been growing significantly, up by 100 since Friday to 296 Sunday. Most people with the disease who are showing symptoms are in self-isolation at home. As of Sunday, 81 are in the hospital 41 of whom are in intensive care. Of those, 24 are on ventilators to help them breathe. We know you're anxious, youre frustrated and its a stressful time being at home, Nirenberg said. But I do want to let you know and just encourage you: What youre doing is saving lives. We are keeping people healthy. And the social distancing that weve been practicing together is working. Officials encouraged those who are showing symptoms to seek testing, citing expanded testing capacity. Nearly 13,000 tests for COVID-19 have been administered in Bexar County. We do have tests available, said Jennifer Herriott, Metro Healths assistant director of community health. I know that was a challenge early on. Thats no longer a challenge. On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases As the city and county leaders talked about the new restrictions taking effect today, questions were asked about possible penalities for violations. The order calls for a fine of up to $1,000 and/or six months in jail. But Nirenberg and Wolff said the goal is for residents to follow the requirements for the safety of their families and their neighbors, not because theyre going to be punished if they dont follow the new restrictions. Residents who egregiously violate the requirement will be cited but whether every violator will get fined will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, City Attorney Andy Segovia said. Were not out to fine people, Segovia said. Were not out to increase the fear level at all. But, at the same time, we want people to take the order seriously. Many convenience and grocery stores, such as H-E-B, already are alerting customers about the new face-covering requirement. They will require all customers to wear face coverings to get into their stores. Nirenberg and Wolff also set a limit on the number of customers that can be inside a store at one time: no more than 25 percent of the maximum occupancy limit set by the fire marshal. For example, if the occupancy limit is 100, the maximum that can be in the store will be 25. In Guadalupe County, officials confirmed one more case of COVID-19, bringing the total case count there to 58. So far, 33 patients in Guadalupe County have recovered and one person has been hospitalized outside of the county. No resident of that county has died. 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 This article is part of the Free Speech Project , a collaboration between Future Tense and the Tech, Law, & Security Program at American University Washington College of Law that examines the ways technology is influencing how we think about speech. As COVID-19 spreads, the internet is center stage. It is the source of everything from rampant lies to crucial information, and it is the great connector that has allowed many people to work from their couches and stay in touch with loved ones while in isolation. Its not only individuals and businesses taking advantage of ubiquitous connection; many governments are turning to increased surveillance to monitor and contain the pandemics spread. Singapore has developed an opt-in app that uses Bluetooth to monitor close contact among users, while Russia is using facial recognition cameras to watch for quarantine violations. The United States government is in conversation with the private sector about tracking phone location data to better monitor and contain the viruss spread. The European Data Protection Supervisor even called for a pan-European model COVID-19 mobile application, coordinated at EU level, which would aggregate data in harmony with existing EU privacy laws. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement These countries and others are leaning on technology in potentially alarming ways. Others are at the opposite side of the spectrum, with the internet shut down to varying degrees by the government. These communications blackouts were initiated months or in some cases years ago, but their continuation amid the pandemic truly underscores the dangers of internet shutdowns. Communication and information access are a matter of life and death for many people, and that is especially true during a pandemic. Millions are without internet access in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas in northwest Pakistan, where the internet has been shut down for years. In Myanmars Rakhine state, the government has for months prevented citizens from getting online. The Indian government still imposes many restrictions on internet access in Kashmir, like prohibiting high-speed connections and blocking available websites. In all of these cases, the governments have cited violence and unrest as justifications for the blackouts. Advertisement Advertisement Ethiopia shut down the internet in Wollega province in January in response to unrest. Only two weeks ago, well into the spread of the coronavirus in the country, did the government (which just declared a state of emergency in response to the pandemic) lift its ban on the internet and mobile phone networks. The government said it no longer needed the shutdown for security reasons, but this reversal also came after the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights and other groups criticized the ongoing communications blackout. In total, millions of people worldwide are presently unable to get real-time news about the virus (or updates from friends and family) online. Advertisement Communications blackouts can occur in several different fashions. Sometimes governments will require internet service providers to heavily filter the web and block access to social media by inspecting Domain Name System, or DNS, queries.* Other times theyll order internet service providers to literally turn off the power or effectively shut down by substantially throttling internet speeds. Blackouts of mobile cellular services may occur in tandem. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Network shutdowns are bad even when there isnt an ongoing global crisis. They are a massive impediment to communications within a region, and they can also prevent the international community from gathering information on those regions and events on the ground. Their continuation during the pandemic, though, truly highlights the dangers associated with entirely cutting off digital connectivity. People turn to the web for crucial information in their day-to-day lives, and thats especially true in crisis. The fast-moving nature of COVID-19 news means an internet blackout seriously hinders citizens ability to get the most reliable details on everything like recent infection counts, social distancing measures imposed in their area, the latest medical advice, and corrections to circulating misinformation. In Kashmir, for example, residents have reported theyre unable to get reliable data about the pandemic. A blackout also hinders the publics ability to communicate with others and call wirelessly for medical assistance. Without online information access, tangible, physical harm can result. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Furthermore, even though mis- and disinformation has been rampant online about the coronaviruson Facebook and Twitter, on TikTok and WhatsApp, much of it causing serious harmand governments have cited stopping misinformation as their reason for blacking out the internet, as in India, research does not indicate that shutting down the web halts the spread of false information. Internet shutdowns under the guise of stopping fake news may be misguided attempts to stop misinformations spread, but many are merely using that pretense as cover for repression. The fact is repression works, and it hits vulnerable people the hardest. Shutdowns (as with many techniques of digital repression) have the worst effects on low-income and marginalized groups. Wealthier individuals may be able to circumvent internet access with mesh networks or virtual private networks, or use alternative means like satellite devices to get online. Advertisement Advertisement As Human Rights Watch recently pointed out, internet shutdowns also disproportionately harm those who are especially dependent on online servicesincluding women, LGBTQ individuals, transgender individuals, and individuals with disabilities, all of whom are most likely to rely on the internet to protect their physical safety, access sexual and reproductive health information and care, and participate in social, professional, and economic life. The surge in visits to domestic violence support websites during the pandemic highlights this fact with respect to this moment, when many people are locked inside with abusers. Internet shutdowns only exacerbate the disparate impacts of this kind of public health crisis. Advertisement While the human costs are great, internet shutdowns also hurt the economyand COVID-19 highlights this fact as more and more people work remotely amid the increasing economic downturn around the world. As in other areas, the disparate harms of blackouts may spare more privileged individuals working in the information economy, but the impacts are still widespread as citizens are unable to do even simple things like remotely order food from local businesses. Right now, despite the problems the internet is accelerating, it is allowing people to stay in touch with one another, to share their experiences, to coordinate grassroots efforts to make masks or support their communities in other ways. The pandemic should be a powerful reminder of the importance of free and open internet access in todays interconnected worldand a call for the international community to more strongly condemn these ongoing forms of digital repression. Correction, April 20, 2020: This post originally misstated that DNS stands for Domain Name Service. It stands for Domain Name System. Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society. Later that night, the victim called the Schererville Police Department to inform detectives he discovered a plastic bottle in his garbage cans with a gasoline-like odor to it, records state. The victim added that some time after the fire, he noticed his female neighbor driving a silver Cadillac SUV past his house who appeared to be "checking out his home, "the report states. The female neighbor is Sim's girlfriend, records state. The victim further explained that last summer, his wife was assaulted when she went to that woman's home to speak about her son bullying children at the local school, the report states. The victim said after filing a police report over the alleged assault, he said he hadn't seen the woman until recently when he had a traffic altercation with her just days prior to the fire. He said he was southbound on Burr Street and stopped a red light when he heard the woman in the same silver Cadillac shouting something about him tailgating her. A 4-year-old girl was rushed to the emergency room three times in one week for asthma attacks. An elderly man, who'd been holed up in a top-floor apartment with no air conditioning during a heat wave, showed up at a hospital with a temperature of 106 degrees. A 27-year-old man arrived in the ER with trouble breathing - and learned he had end-stage kidney disease, linked to his time as a sugar cane farmer in the sweltering fields of El Salvador. These patients, whose cases were recounted by doctors, all arrived at Boston-area hospitals in recent years. While the coronavirus pandemic is at the forefront of doctor-patient conversations these days, there's another factor continuing to shape patients health: climate change. Global warming is often associated with dramatic effects such as hurricanes, fires and floods, but patients' health issues represent the subtler ways that climate change is showing up in the exam room, according to the physicians who treated them. Dr. Renee Salas, an emergency physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, said she was working a night shift when the 4-year-old arrived the third time, struggling to breathe. The girls mother felt helpless that she couldnt protect her daughter, whose condition was so severe that she had to be admitted to the hospital, Salas recalled. She found time to talk with the patients mother about the larger factors at play: The girls asthma appeared to be triggered by a high pollen count that week. And pollen levels are rising in general because of higher levels of carbon dioxide, which she explained is linked to human-caused climate change. Salas, a national expert on climate change and health, is a driving force behind an initiative to spur clinicians and hospitals to take a more active role in responding to climate change. The effort launched in Boston in February, and organizers aim to spread it to seven U.S. cities and Australia over the next year and a half. Although there is scientific consensus on a mounting climate crisis, some people reject the idea that rising temperatures are linked to human activity. The controversy can make doctors hesitant to bring it up. Even at the climate change discussion in Boston, one panelist suggested the topic may be too political for the exam room. Dr. Nicholas Hill, head of the Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Division at Tufts Medical Center of Medicine, recalled treating a cute little old lady in her 80s who likes Fox News, a favorite of climate change doubters. With someone like her, talking about climate change may hurt the doctor-patient relationship, he suggested. How far do you go in advocating with patients? Doctors and nurses are well suited to influence public opinion because the public considers them trusted messengers, said Dr. Aaron Bernstein, who co-organized the Boston event and co-directs the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard's school of public health. People have confidence they will provide reliable information when they make highly personal and even life-or-death decisions. Bernstein and others are urging clinicians to exert their influence by contacting elected officials, serving as expert witnesses, attending public protests and reducing their hospital's carbon emissions. They're also encouraging them to raise the topic with patients. Dr. Mary Rice, a pulmonologist who researches air quality at Beth-Israel Deaconess Medical Center here, recognized that in a 20-minute clinic visit, doctors don't have much time to spare. But "I think we should be talking to our patients about this," she said. Just inserting that sentence, that one of the reasons your allergies are getting worse is that the allergy season is worse than it used to be, and that's because of climate change. Salas, who has been a doctor for seven years, said she had little awareness of the topic until she heard climate change described as the "greatest public health emergency of our time" during a 2013 conference. "I was dumbfounded about why I hadn't heard of this, climate change harming health," she said. "I clearly saw this is going to make my job harder" in emergency medicine. Now, Salas said, she sees ample evidence of climate change in the exam room. After Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, for instance, a woman seeking refuge in Boston showed up with a bag of empty pill bottles and thrust it at Salas, asking for refills, she recalled. The patient hadnt had her medications replenished for weeks because of the storm, whose destructive power was likely intensified by climate change, according to scientists. Climate change presents many threats across the country, Salas noted: Heat stress can exacerbate mental illness, prompt more aggression and violence, and hurt pregnancy outcomes. Air pollution worsens respiratory problems. High temperatures can weaken the effectiveness of medications such as albuterol inhalers and EpiPens. The delivery of health care is also being disrupted. Disasters like Hurricane Maria have caused shortages in basic medical supplies. Last November, nearly 250 California hospitals lost power in planned outages to prevent wildfires. Natural disasters can interrupt the treatment of cancer, leading to earlier death. Even a short heat wave can upend routine care: On a hot day last summer, for instance, power failed at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and firefighters had to move patients down from the top floor because it was too hot, Salas said. Other effects of climate change vary by region. Salas and others urged clinicians to look out for unexpected conditions, such as Lyme disease and West Nile virus, that are spreading to new territory as temperatures rise. In California, where wildfires have become a fact of life, researchers are scrambling to document the ways smoke inhalation is affecting patients health, including higher rates of acute bronchitis, pneumonia, heart attacks, strokes, irregular heartbeats and premature births. Researchers have shown that heavy exposure to wildfire smoke can change the DNA of immune cells, but theyre uncertain whether that will have a long-term impact, said Dr. Mary Prunicki, director of air pollution and health research at Stanford University's center for allergy and asthma research. It causes a lot of anxiety, Prunicki said. Everyone feels helpless because we simply don't know we're not able to give concrete facts back to the patient. In Denver, Dr. Jay Lemery, a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said hes seeing how people with chronic illnesses like diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease suffer more with extreme heat. Theres no medical code for "hottest day of the year," Lemery said, but we see it; it's real. Those people are struggling in a way that they wouldn't because of climbing temperatures, he said. Climate change right now is a threat multiplier it makes bad things worse. Lemery and Prunicki are among the doctors planning to organize events in their respective regions to educate peers about climate-related threats to patients health, through the Climate Crisis and Clinical Practice Initiative, the effort launched in Boston in February. There are so many really brilliant, smart clinicians who have no clue about the link between climate change and human health, said Lemery, who has also written a textbook and started a fellowship on the topic. Salas said she sometimes hears pushback that climate change is too political for the exam room. But despite misleading information from the fossil fuel industry, she said, the science is clear. Based on the evidence, 97% of climate scientists agree that humans are causing global warming. Salas said that, as she sat with the distraught mother of the 4-year-old girl with asthma in Boston, her decision to broach the topic was easy. "Of course I have to talk to her about climate change, Salas said, because it's impairing her ability to care for her daughter." IKEA store owner Ingka Group, the world's biggest furniture retailer, aims to start reopening shops in Europe in May after closures and sliding demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic slashed group sales by 60%, its chief executive said. Most of Ingka's stores in main market Europe and all in North America are closed since March while in Asia almost all are open. Ingka CEO Jesper Brodin estimates that the closure period for each store will be up to eight weeks. "This is the period we need to persevere and, so to speak, survive," he said. "The sales drop in the period we're in is about 60%." He said online sales during the COVID-19 crisis were twice as high as a year ago, cushioning the overall revenue dive and accounting currently for roughly half the group total. "Some countries are close to ten times the e-commerce they had before the outbreak. The most extreme is Denmark where sales have now recovered to levels seen before stores closed." The lockdowns and other measures that have resulted in many people staying at home have boosted overall sales of office furniture, laundry baskets, and kitchen and cooking equipment such as pots, pans and jars, he said. In home market Sweden, sales of entire kitchens are up. Ingka plans to increase stocks of its baby-related products, expecting a boom in demand in seven to eight months. "Crises back in time have resulted in baby booms," Brodin said. He said demand was up for items in the lower end of IKEA's price range. Expecting that trend to continue given the pandemic's blow to the global economy, the group will cut prices on several products in the coming year, and also work on growing that range. "Tendencies are similar to what we saw after (the financial crisis in) 2008 - that people have less money," he said. Given the acceleration in the online business, Brodin also wants to speed up Ingka's expansion in inner cities with showrooms and stores that are smaller than the iconic giant out-of-town IKEA stores, he said. At the start of Ingka's next fiscal year in September, Brodin reckons group sales will have recovered to around 90% of year-earlier levels, adding: "We expect next year to be tougher for us, without any doubt." In China, where Ingka reopened all but one store in March, sales are back to year-ago levels already, Brodin said. The store in Wuhan, where the new coronavirus first appeared, will reopen in a couple of weeks. Ingka, the main IKEA franchisee to brand owner Inter IKEA, operates 420 stores and showrooms globally. It has not yet set a timetable for the reopening of stores in North America. Its sales in the year through August 2019 totalled 36.7 billion euros. Online accounted for 11%. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie Liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been an important source of energy for countries worldwide. According to a recent Norwegian-based report, 42 countries are importing LNG to balance their local insufficiency of energy. Nguyen Thanh Ha, lawyer of Vietbid Consulting Co., Ltd. Despite having an advantage of environmental protection, LNG has been a luxurious energy solution because it depends much on high, fluctuating oil prices, sophisticated transport infrastructure, and ports and warehouses, as well as complicated re-gasification, thus requiring huge investment. However, with recent changes in the worlds energy picture and a downtrend in oil prices, the LNG price has seen many downward changes towards being more affordable, stable, and independent with oil prices. Many years ago, the Vietnamese government passed a masterplan for the countrys gas development until 2025 with a vision towards 2035 which requires government agencies to study and find potential markets, and strengthen infrastructure development for LNG imports with the volume of one to four billion cubic metres a year during 2021-2025, and from six to 10 billion cu.m during 2026-2035. The Politburos recently-enacted Resolution No.55-NQ/TW on the orientation of the National Energy Development Strategy of Vietnam to 2030, with a vision to 2045, which also placed a stress on LNG development strategy prioritising investment in technical infrastructure development for imports and consumption of LNG. Specifically, the resolution touches on developing infrastructure to be able to import 8 billion cu.m of LNG annually by 2030, and around 15 billion cu.m by 2045. In spite of having these plans for years, Vietnam has so far not developed any related projects. One of the reasons for this is that the country had no urgent demand for LNG import over past years, as the countrys energy sources of on local hydropower, and coal and natural gas were still sufficient. Now the countrys exploration and exploitation of sources of sizeable hydropower and coal apparently has reached off limits so that it is impossible to have new large capacity of hydropower and coal-fired power. In the meantime, the existing supply of natural gas has tended to decline significantly, while no new significant sources are discovered. Therefore, the countrys local supplies will hardly meet local demand in the coming time. Moreover, even if the country wants to import coal for coal-fired power generation, it will be increasingly infeasible because many countries in the world, especially developed nations from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, have policies to limit or even ban loans for development of related ventures. As a result, LNG import will be an inevitable solution for Vietnams energy in the future. In the last two or three years, there has been a wave of proposals for the development of gas-to-power projects from domestic and foreign investors. Among international financiers, such groups range from powerful LNG traders and leading equipment manufacturers to newly-founded companies. In particular, in the first group of LNG traders, many famous names included JERA of Japan and South Koreas Kogas. JERA, in particular, annually trades about 40 million tonnes of LNG, accounting for over 30 per cent of LNG trading volume globally. The second group are of the worlds leaders in LNG exploitation and supply, for example ExonMobil (US), Shell (UK), Gazprom (Russia), and Woodside (Australia). The third group includes leading manufacturers of equipment such as GE (US), Siemens (Germany), and construction and engineering companies like GS and Daewoo (South Korea). The fourth group are power companies, including Kepco of South Korea and B.Grimm of Thailand, among others. The fifth group includes organisations who represent investment funds such as Americans Gen X and VinaCapital. The final batch has involvement of newly-established smaller companies whose founders are experts, consultants, and entrepreneurs such as ECV and Singapores Delta Offshore Energy Pte., Ltd. (DOE), aiming to develop and obtain approval of the projects and then call for investment from other firms, including those in the aforementioned groups. In fact, this last group has some advantages such as their high flexibility in project development. Probably partly because of this advantage, the first LNG scheme licensed by the government the Bac Lieu LNG initiative is developed by one of the companies in this group. Worth approximately $4 billion, it is the biggest foreign direct investment scheme in the Mekong Delta region, invested by DOE. Thus far, these groups have submitted many LNG initiatives, with the location focusing in central coastal and southern regions such as Thi Vai, Long Son, Ca Na, Ke Ga, and Van Phong. According to initial statistics, total capacity of mixed gas turbine power plants using imported LNG being proposed in the central and southern regions reaches over 40,000MW, which will push annual demand for LNG imports to 30 million tonnes. This figure surpasses the targets set in the master plan and Resolution 55. Many experts said that the actual development of LNG may be much bigger than the countrys strategies and plans, which might happen in a similar fashion with solar power in recent years. However, solar power projects are generally small-scale with capacity of several dozens of MW and investment capital of less than several hundreds of million US dollars, and are invested by domestic companies, thus possibly accessing loans from local banks with easier lending conditions. Conversely, most LNG initiatives have a much bigger scale, capacity, and investment capital, and are likely to be financed largely by international banks with stricter requirements and conditions. Instead of developing specific mechanisms for each venture as it does at present for the Son My and Nhon Trach projects, the government needs to have general policies and regulations for all such schemes in the industry, especially in regard to the issues of the take or pay mechanism, the pass through of fuel prices, and others. On the other hand, the synchrony between gas sales agreements and power purchase agreements with Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) is a critical issue for developers in the context that gas sales contracts face much instability in the global market, while power sales to EVN is increasingly following the auction mechanism of the competitive power generation market. There remains hope that some LNG to power projects will be developed and constructed soon, making them a foundation to build and complete legal frameworks for the countrys new energy industry in the future. VIR Nguyen Thanh Ha Investors show growing appetite for LNG power projects A slew of sizeable liquefied natural gas-fired power projects have been in the development pipeline in the past year as a way to replenish national power sources as Vietnam turns on a greener growth path. Professor Jack Lambert, a consultant for infectious disease has said that widespread testing for Covid-19 in nursing homes and residential facilities is a good start but it needs to be linked to rapid treatment and contact tracing. There is a need for an action plan to provide additional care and treatment for residents and staff in these facilities, he told RTE radios Morning Ireland. Staff from acute hospitals also need to be re-deployed quickly to boost treatment plans. Patients in nursing homes and residential facilities are not currently getting all the medical care they need, he said. What are we going to do with the test results? (following widespread testing). Prof. Lambert said it is necessary to ensure the test results have a positive effect and that patients are not just left in nursing homes, which are understaffed. Boots on the ground are needed as many nursing homes are under-resourced with staff and expertise and clusters of the virus are continuing to emerge. It was possible to limit spread in a facility between patients and staff, he said, but this requires more staff to be brought into homes to support them in any way we can. Prof. Lambert pointed out that there are 120 nursing homes and 420 private nursing homes in the country and many need a lot of assistance in isolating staff and patients with coronavirus and in separating the healthy from the infected. He said he had heard of some nursing homes with no GP support and a lack of nurses. Latest figures show 610 people have now died from Covid-19, with 39 deaths announced yesterday. The number of confirmed cases of the virus in Ireland has reached 15,251 as another 493 new cases of the virus have been found in the Republic yesterday by Irish and German labs. Meanwhile, Health Minister Simon Harris has warned that allowing complacency to set in among the public in the fight against Covid-19 could be disastrous. In a video message on Twitter on Sunday night, the minister said the progress made by the Irish people risks being undone if people become complacent. Mr Harris warned progress made so far was fragile. He said: Theres an air of complacency creeping in in relation to Irelands battle against Covid-19 and we have to push back against it. Were at a very delicate moment and it would not take much for that to be reversed." Mr Harris will speak with his European counterparts by teleconference later on Monday to share updates on how efforts to tackle the virus are going across the European Union. - additional reporting from Press Association New Delhi, April 20 : After a 19-year-old pizza delivery boy in South Delhi district here tested positive for COVID-19, all his 16 'high risk contacts' have tested negative for the virus, the administration said on Monday. According to B.M. Mishra, District Magistrate (South) no person in the 72 houses within a five-kilometre radius of Malviya Nagar, where the boy delivered food, has developed any symptoms. "All high risk contacts (16 people) of the pizza delivery boy, including the owner of the eatery where he worked and other workers, have tested negative," the DM said. Last week, the delivery boy associated with a pizza chain was tested positive for coronavirus. After the boy tested positive on Tuesday, the authorities immediately decided to quarantine his 16 colleagues at the outlet. So far, Delhi has recorded more than 2,000 coronavirus cases with 45 deaths. The COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and violation of lockdown measures risk the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Centre said on Monday. In a communication to state governments, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 frontline healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. These should be stopped, it said. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. The situation is "especially serious" in Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, Jaipur in Rajasthan, and Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, the ministry said. There are 4,203 confirmed coronavirus cases in Maharashtra of which 223 people lost their lives, according to Union health ministry data. In Madhya Pradesh, out of the 1,407 cases, 70 people have succumbed to the disease. Rajasthan has reported 1,478 cases of which 14 people lost their lives. In West Bengal, there are 339 confirmed cases of which 12 people died due to the infection, according to health ministry data. "Violation of lockdown measures reported, posing a serious health hazard to public and risk for spread of COVID-19," it said. The central government has constituted six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to make on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal -- for redressal. The teams will submit their report to the central government in the larger interest of the general public, the ministry said. "The IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures as per guidelines, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, safety of health professionals and conditions of relief camps for labourers and poor people," a home ministry spokesperson said. There have been several incidents of attacks on healthcare workers and police by some people in different parts of the country, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, leading to injuries to doctors, paramedics and police personnel. The lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic. It was further extended till May 3. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Ucom founder Hayk Yesayan has issued a statement saying he is stepping down from Ucom with intentions to launch a new company. I am ceasing to deal with Ucom effectively immediately. My steps are conscious. I know the sequence of my actions and I am sure that the team who created Ucom will create a new Ucom as well, which will be a better one. And we will take this path. Its name wont be Ucom, it will be named Unet, like we had planned to name the company in the beginning, Yesayan said in the statement. Recently news reports claimed that hundreds of Ucom employees had resigned. On April 14, Ucom co-founders, brothers Hayk and Alexander Yesayan (holding 6% shares) announced that they have offered more than 34 billion drams to the remaining owners of the company for the rest of the shares, in order for them to have decisive voice in the decisions of the shareholders. On April 15 it was announced that the Board of Directors of the company has appointed a new CEO, Ara Khachatryan. However, the Ministry of Justice State Registry of Legal Persons announced that the official registration of the new CEO of Ucom is being delayed for 20 days. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 15:46:11 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 743 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 ALEXANDRIA, VA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Alexandria, VA Solei Systems, Inc (OTC:SOLI) wholly owned subsidiary CareClix, Inc issues clarifying statement on COVID-19 home testing in accordance with FDA guidance.According to Dr. John Korangy, CEO of CareClix, "On April 14th, 2020 the FDA released a COVID-19 update which included among other updates its current position on COVID-19 home testing." The update in part read as follows:"At this time, the FDA has not authorized any COVID-19 test for at-home testing, including self-collection of a specimen with or without the use of telemedicine."1 "The FDA is supportive of at-home testing for COVID-19, provided there is data and science to support consumer safety and test accuracy. We are actively working with developers toward the goal of authorizing EUAs for home use tests once appropriate validation has been completed."1 Dr. John Korangy, CEO of CareClix said ,"CareClix is fully compliant with this clear FDA directive regarding home testing, and will take the lead per the FDA guidelines to work closely with its selected testing labs to assure they also comply with all FDA guidelines. CareClix continues to expand its physician network across the country. We will continue to perform our clinical evaluation of patients and to refer patients to laboratories in accordance with FDA guidelines." President of CareClix, Josh Flood said, "Telemedicine, now more than ever, continues to be an ideal way for patients to interact with doctors especially for acute episodic maladies, which in turn can take significant pressure off our healthcare systems. CareClix is currently operating at full throttle, along with doctors, hospitals, and front-line health care heroes, as we serve our increasing numbers of customers during these extraordinary times for our country and the world." About CareClixCareClix is a leading virtual telehealth platform. The company provides software applications coupled with medical services enabling patients to receive care anytime at anyplace. CareClix's suite of services is transforming the way hospitals, doctors, and clinical care providers can interact with an increasing number of patients. Trusted by some of the best names in healthcare, CareClix has an established track record of success partnering with organizations and customers. More than 20 million individuals in the U.S. in over 60 countries are currently utilizing CareClix's services. CareClix Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Solei Systems Inc. (OTC: SOLI). Learn more about CareClix by visiting our website: www.careclix.com About SoleiSolei Systems, Inc. is a fully reporting, fully audited public holding company in the health and wellness field with its primary focus on telemedicine. Currently, Solei Systems, Inc is comprised of two wholly owned subsidiaries: CareClix, Inc. and Clinical & Herbal Innovations, Inc www.soleihealth.com Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking InformationThis press release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" relating to the business of Solei Systems Inc, and its wholly owned subsidiary CareClix, Inc. All statements, other than statements of historical fact included herein are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements are often identified using forward-looking terminology such as "believes," "expects" or similar expressions, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Although Solei Systems, Inc believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Even if a Name and Symbol Change is affected, some or all of the expected benefits discussed above may not be realized or maintained. The market price of our Common Stock will continue to be based, in part, on our performance and other factors unrelated to the Company s name and trading symbol. Solei Systems, Inc's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those discussed in the Solei's periodic reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on its website ( www.sec.gov) . All forward-looking statements attributable to Solei Systems or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these factors. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.Contact:Solei Systems, Inc206 N. Washington St. Suite 100Alexandria, VA 22314T: (703) 832-4473SOURCE: Solei Systems, Inc. The Centre plans to resume some activities related to the economy from April 20. However, as states have been allowed to take a call on what is allowed and what not, many major cities like Delhi and Mumbai are not going to give any relaxations as these cities fall under the red zone. Areas where coronavirus cases are increasing on a daily basis comes under the red zone. The places where coronavirus patients are found but numbers are not increasing come under the orange zone while places with no coronavirus patients come under the green zone. As coronavirus cases crossed 2,000 in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said, "Will not relax lockdown in Delhi and will review the situation on April 27. Coronavirus India News LIVE Updates The Karnataka government rolled out its decision to relax the lockdown. It said construction activities would be allowed, except in hotspots, with the condition that labourers will have to stay at the site with all facilities while maintaining social distancing norms. Inter-district travel continues to be banned till May 3. It withdrew an announcement allowing two-wheelers to move to non-COVID-19 hotspots and retracted permission for IT-BT companies to operate with one-third workforce. 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 Also read: Lockdown 2.0 | A complete list of activities that will resume from April 20 The Telangana government extended the lockdown till May 7, four days more from May 3 deadline by the Narendra Modi government. Air services will not be relaxed either till May 7 despite the aviation ministry contemplating the launch of services from May 4. Moreover, The chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao also banned food delivery apps functioning from April 20. The Andhra Pradesh government will allow some economic activities like construction, manufacturing, IT companies to operate. Tamil Nadu has said that it will allow some economic activities to function only after CM K Palaniswami receives the report of an expert committee. Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani asked factories to restart work from April 20 but only those functioning outside municipal limits. He also requested factory owners to arrange employees accommodations within the units. Mumbai and Pune which have seen the highest number of coronavirus cases will not get any relaxation. CM Uddhav Thackeray has said that economic activities will not resume in those cities which are the hotspots of coronavirus cases. In orange and green zones, industrial activities are allowed - that, too, with precautions. Vehicles with essential goods will only be allowed to move and not the passenger vehicles. Also read: Lockdown extended in Telangana till May 7 Rajasthan gave permission to factories to resume construction and other economic activities, including inter-district transit of migrant labour during the modified lockdown. The Uttar Pradesh government said that it would create local level jobs for half-million migrant labourers. The workers have been forced to return after lockdown started. "There is a proposal to defer the withdrawal of lockdown in districts that have more than 10 positive cases, an official said. For West Bengal, 90 percent of coronavirus cases are from Kolkata and Howrah. Hence, these areas have been declared red zones. With 25 percent of the workforce, West Bengal has allowed trade in bidis, tea, flower and other commodities. If labourers get accommodation, construction and irrigation works are also allowed. On a case to case basis, the factories will be allowed to resume from today onwards. Sikkim, so far, has not reported a single case of COVID-19. It, therefore, has decided to lift the lockdown partially. All agricultural and horticultural activities, fishing aquaculture industry, harvesting and processing have been allowed in Odisha. Factories located in green zones are allowed to restart. In Punjab, the relaxation is only for those related to harvest and procurement of grains. Madhya Pradesh said no economic activity would be allowed in red zones of Bhopal, Ujjain, and Indore. Uttarakhand and Haryana have divided the state into three zones, allowing economic activity in green and orange zones with precautions. Chhattisgarh has allowed all economic activity. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here In a bid to spread awareness about the coronavirus, Google will now tell its users about the nearest COVID testing centers. As per a report published in The Verge, if you search for stuff related to COVID-19 on Google, the site will display information about coronavirus testing centers near you. The feature has been implemented in the US and currently, it shows information for more than 2000 centers across 43 states in the US. Google will only show information to users in 43 states because the company is sharing data of test centers approved by public health authorities. They might bring the feature soon to India and other countries. Apart from this, Google has already joined hands with Apple for developing a contact tracing platform that would not help the users but also the health authorities in tracking the movement of a COVID-infected patient. For instance, when two people come in contact with each other their phones share a unique key through the API channel that Google and Apple is developing. So if one of them gets infected with COVID-19, he can let the app know, the app will then notify other users who have come in contact with that person. However, while doing so, the app will not reveal any information about the COVID-19 infect person. It will simply alert the users that they have come in contact with a COVID-19 infected person. India has an app called Aarogya Setu that helps in contact tracing. Google through its Google Maps has also listed down the food shelters and night shelters across cities in India. "We are working closely with the Central and state government authorities to indicate the locations of food and night shelters in many cities across India. We believe this can help daily wage laborers and migrant workers, whose livelihoods and regular access to food has been affected," Anal Ghosh, Senior Program Manager, Google was quoted by ET a saying. Google had also launched a mobility data trends tool that would help in providing insights to local governments and health authorities about how much people are traveling during coronavirus lockdown. Google extracts anonymized information from Google Maps users to keep track of their movements. Users can check the COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports website on Google, select their country and download a PDF that shows the increase and decrease of movement across many places such as the grocery stores, medicine shops, local parks, transit stations, workplaces, and residential areas. This would show how much people are following social distancing and how it will help in flattening the coronavirus curve. U.S. manufacturers shipped millions of dollars of face masks and other protective medical equipment to China in January and February with encouragement from the federal government, a Washington Post review of economic data and internal government documents has found. The move underscores the Trump administration's failure to recognize and prepare for the growing pandemic threat. In those two months, the value of protective masks and related items exported from the United States to China grew more than 1,000 percent compared with the same time last year - from $1.4 million to about $17.6 million, according to a Post analysis of customs categories which, according to research by Public Citizen, contain key PPE. Similarly, shipments of ventilators and protective garments jumped by triple digits. "Instead of taking steps to prepare, they ignored the advice of one expert after another," said Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas. "People right now, as we speak, are dying because there have been inadequate supplies of PPE." While the percentage increase of exports to China was steep, they represent a small fraction of the overall U.S. need. Throughout the country, the shortage has forced hospitals, nursing homes and first responders to ration masks and other protective gear as they treat infected and high-risk patients, creating a secondary health crisis among first line providers. In the early days of the covid-19's exponential march across the globe, when it was still mostly contained in China, there was no widespread sense of crisis in the White House. But by the end of January, briefings to White House national security staff made clear that the danger of a major pandemic was real. By then seven Americans had fallen ill, and experts said the need for an adequate supply of protective gear should have been apparent. Nonetheless, on Jan. 30, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Fox Business that the outbreak could "accelerate the return of jobs to North America" because companies would move factories away from impacted areas. On Feb. 26 - when total deaths had reached 2,770, nearly all in China - the Commerce Department published a flier titled "CS China COVID Procurement Service," guiding American firms on how to sell "critical medical products" to China and Hong Kong through Beijing's fast-tracked sales process. Doggett obtained the flier and other Commerce communications. On March 3, a commercial officer in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing notified colleagues about the "new service" Commerce was offering, according to an email. "The CS China healthcare team has been busy working with Chinese government procurement agents and U.S. companies to address local healthcare needs. We created the China and Hong Kong COVID Procurement Service - please find the flier attached. We welcome you to send this flier to relevant U.S. manufacturers and suppliers." A senior Commerce official, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said senior leaders at the department's International Trade Administration shut the program down on March 4, shortly after the flier was distributed. "Department of Commerce senior leadership is aware of this issue and is investigating," the official said, adding that the ITA has helped 100 groups and 47 states distribute protective equipment since the outbreak began and continues to work in 25 countries to identify sources of medical supplies. Still, Doggett was incredulous that masks desperately sought today by U.S. medical providers were provided to China by U.S. companies in large numbers through February. "This is one of multiple failures that have contributed to a significant loss of life in the United States," Doggett said. "At the very time that Trump is having his first press conference with his coronavirus team, his administration is hawking the vital medical supplies under the title, 'Covid-19 to China.' " Preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control show that 9,282 U.S. health-care workers have been diagnosed with the virus through April 2. Through April 9, at least 723 had been hospitalized, including 184 in the ICU. Twenty-seven had died from a covid-19 infection. A leading producer of masks - 3M, the St. Paul, Minnesota-based manufacturing giant - made a share of this equipment at factories in the United States as well as in plants located in China. "We were not aware of any discouragement from anyone during those very early days of the crisis, including from the U.S. government, to export from outside of China into China," said 3M spokeswoman Jennifer Ehrlich. On the contrary, through February some administration officials were calling attention to China's plight and encouraging assistance from the United States. Today, China's imports of masks and other PPE from around the world is seen by some White House officials as part of a deliberate attempt by China to corner the market as it concealed and downplayed the danger posed by the outbreak. "While China was silent on the seriousness of the crisis, they were quietly buying up a large portion of the world's global supply for masks and other PPE," said Peter Navarro, who directs trade policy at the White House. Navarro was among the U.S. officials who raised early alarms, writing memos early in the year that the outbreak could imperil millions of Americans and required increased supplies of protective equipment. Desperate officials in Illinois reported last week that N95 masks, which typically cost $1.75 apiece, are being sold for as much as $12 each as states frantically bid against one another. On April 2, the U.S. government reversed course completely when President Donald Trump announced his administration would invoke the Defense Production Act in a way that could have prevented 3M from selling masks to foreign customers, requiring the company to provide them to U.S. customers first. "We hit 3m hard today after seeing what they were doing with their masks," Trump tweeted, as he announced plans to invoke the Defense Production Act "against 3m." The president's push encountered immediate resistance from Canada, other U.S. allies, and 3M, whose CEO called Trump's complaint "absurd" and warned of "consequences on a humanitarian level" if the company did not fulfill orders to other countries. Upset that the president was antagonizing trading partners in a way that could hamper supplies of critical equipment coming to the United States, foreign leaders and U.S. companies used a White House back channel, appealing to members of a task force reporting to Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner. The backdoor approach was successful: Trump reversed course three days later and announced an "amicable" agreement: 3M could continue providing masks to foreign customers, while ramping up domestic production. Despite the president's caustic remarks about 3M, a senior White House official had praise for that company and another U.S. manufacturer of masks - Honeywell - for quickly agreeing to step up domestic mask production and distribution. N95 masks derive their name from the fact that they filter at least 95 percent of airborne particles. Known as respirators, the N95 masks used in hospital settings differ from those used at industrial sites, and are subject to different federal regulatory requirements. It took weeks for the administration to clear the use of the industrial masks for health care purposes, and then additional delay occurred when the industry demanded Congress approve legislation shielding it from liability lawsuits. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Robert Kadlec testified in February that the U.S. would need 3.5 billion N95s in a serious pandemic. Early in the outbreak response, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Strategic National Stockpile had approximately 13 million N95 respirators available to distribute to U.S. health care workers, and they have now given away 90 percent of them. Nicole Lurie, who served as Assistant Secretary of HHS for preparedness and response in the Obama administration, said the White House "could have acted much earlier to alleviate the mask shortage by completing work on a high-speed mask production line and placing orders early to manufacturers to surge production." Data from both the U.S. and China capture the scope of the influx of protective face masks to the world's most populous country during January and February. In those two months, China's trade data show imports of a category of goods which includes surgical and N95 masks jumped nearly 2,200 percent over a year earlier. China produces about half of the world's masks, but in those two months, the country transformed from a minor mask buyer to the world's single biggest importer. While it did not report separate January and February totals this year, other countries' data obtained via Trade Data Monitor shows they exported far more mask-related equipment to China in February, when deaths and cases in that country peaked. Among its biggest suppliers were South Korea, Japan and the United States. The Chinese government's customs arm estimates it cleared nearly 2.5 billion pieces of epidemic-related equipment between Jan. 24 and Feb. 29, including just over a billion masks and more than 25 million protective suits. On Feb. 24 alone, Chinese customs cleared nearly 43 million face masks. A separate analysis by Public Citizen, a left leaning, group, also found a spike in U.S. exports of protective gear to China. America now faces acute and deadly shortages of proper medical equipment. A recent survey found nearly 90 percent of American mayors say they do not have enough test kits or face masks, while 85 percent say they do not have enough ventilators. The Office of the Inspector General at HHS found "severe shortages" of testing kits and personal protective equipment. Numerous hospitals and states have reported that nurses and doctors are forced to resort to makeshift gear that increases the odds of exposure. Ehrlich, the 3M spokesperson, said her firm adjusted its supply chain earlier this year based on what it had learned from prior virus outbreaks. "Nearly all of the respirators 3M produces in China are for the China market. Given the severe humanitarian need there, however, and as a company with a global supply chain, we also directed some additional production into China," she said. Chinese officials undertook several measures to ensure that the protective equipment stayed within the country, Ehrlich added. The municipal government of Shanghai informed 3M in late January it "was requiring additional supervision and control of certain 3M facilities in China" to help control the spread of the coronavirus there, she said. "As a result of that action, the Municipal Government of Shanghai authorities assumed responsibility for order handling and product delivery of 3M respirators in Shanghai at this time," Ehrlich said. "This impacted 3M China's ability to respond to product orders in the normal course." Navarro said the major factor restraining the U.S. response was the fact that the Chinese government had not permitted American scientists into Wuhan, and the World Health Organization had delayed labeling the crisis a pandemic. "America and the world lost a full six weeks of preparation to the CCP's deadly silence, a time during which the Wuhan virus might well have been put quickly back into its lethal bottle," he said, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. In a March 31 media conference, China's director of the Foreign Ministry Information Department Hua Chunying rejected the idea that her country was hoarding protective equipment. "China's fight against covid-19 isn't over yet," she said. "We are under heavy pressure to guard against imported cases and a rebound in indigenous cases, and so there is a huge demand for medical supplies. It is the government's top priority to prevent and control the epidemic at home and safeguard people's health." Hua added that China has provided 120 countries and four international organizations with surgical masks and other forms of equipment. The Chinese Foreign Ministry declined to answer questions about its mask production and distribution, instead referring to its previous public remarks. With local governments and hospitals appealing to members of Congress for help securing protective equipment, Congress authorized a special commission last month that will review the international supply chain and its effect on domestic health security. "This is now on the top of our list of concerns," said Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) a nurse and public health expert, who co-sponsored the legislation. In an interview this week, she described fielding calls about a lack of protective equipments. "We cannot accept a situation that effectively makes our health professionals expendable," she said. "It is unacceptable." - - - The Washington Post's Liu Yang and Gerry Shih in Beijing contributed to this report. But Cuomo has also raised alarms about the lack of a national framework for virus testing, repeatedly calling for more federal assistance to ramp up testing. And he is far from the only governor to have raised similar concerns. Mike DeWine, the Republican governor of Ohio, said on Sunday that the federal government should be doing more to make tests available. But at Sundays briefing, Trump pushed back. They said the same thing with ventilators, and now we have so many that were going to be able to send them and help other countries that are in need, Trump said, dismissing demands for a more robust national testing system. Were doing great on testing. Polling suggests that Americans are not so sure. In a Fox News poll released this month, four in five voters nationwide said they were worried about their state running out of medical supplies, with more than half of those people describing themselves as very concerned. In poll after poll, when it comes to confronting the pandemic, Americans are more likely to give high marks to their state governments than to the White House. But they still think the buck stops with the president. By a factor of nearly two to one, Americans said in a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll that they ultimately considered the handling of the pandemic to be the federal governments responsibility. Fifty-four percent said in a recent Pew Research Center poll that Trump was not doing a good job of working with state governments. And 55 percent gave him low marks on responding to the needs of hospitals and medical professionals. KARNAL: Satbir Singh, 57, a Haryana Police inspector, opened fire on his family members in Kaithal on Sunday night, killing his 32-year-old son, Gagandeep Singh, and critically injuring another son, Pradeep Singh, 30. Kaithal superintendent of police Shashank Kumar said that the inspectors two daughters-in-law were also injured in the incident that was triggered by a family dispute. While one of the daughters-in-law jumped off the roof of the house in the Police Colony of Kaithal soon after the firing, the other was also hospitalised with head injuries. Pradeep was rushed to a local hospital from where he was referred to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Rohtak, as his condition was critical. The inspector was being questioned, while a forensic team was at the site to investigate the incident. Page Content Based on the latest available data, counts as of April 19, 1:00 PM: Self- Quarantine: 98 Self-Isolation: 87 Number hospitalized: Pending Number Tested: 225 o Number Positive: 67 Male: 47 Female: 20 o Number Negative: 138 o Number Pending: 19 o Inconclusive: 1 o Deceased: 10** (+1 Dutch resident who passed away in Guadeloupe) The gentleman was tested and treated on the French side, and flown out for critical care last week, however as he is a Dutch resident, he will be removed from the French count and added to ours. This will also happen vice versa if a French resident is treated or tested on St. Maarten. Recovered: 12 Active cases: 45 The restriction of persons' freedom of movement remains one of the most effective methods of containing further COVID-19 infections, taking into account the fact that infected persons may be asymptomatic but may infect others and the limited amount of test kits available. In accordance with the National Decree, I will also release the essential business shopping schedule per Sunday, April 19, 2020, allowing for essential services to be open to the public three days per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 8:00 AM 6:00 PM. These businesses are supermarkets, grocery stores, bakeries, pharmacies, pharmaceutical suppliers, banks, and gas stations, including wholesalers, distributors, and retailers of cooking gas. The first hour of shopping starting from 8:00 AM until 9:00 AM is reserved for the elderly, disabled and pregnant women. The public is only allowed to make use of the mentioned services in the designated zones in which they live. Zone A represents the East of Cole Bay hill (ex: Philipsburg, Cay Hill, etc.) and Zone B represents the West of Cole Bay Hill (ex: Cole Bay, Simpson Bay, etc.). Aside from the referenced opening hours, deliveries are allowed on the days mentioned above and for the remainder of the week excluding Sundays. All businesses are to remain closed with the exception of the following essential and emergency services: hotels, guesthouses, yachting agents and marinas which still have guests to tend to, security companies, agriculture (farmers) and fisheries (fishermen), media outlets, garbage collection, and sewage services and infrastructure management, funeral services, essential public utility services, Postal Services St. Maarten, medical practitioners, medical laboratory services, dental clinics, emergency and paramedic services, freight services, shipping, and cargo companies and government-owned entities. The following services must remain closed to the public, however, they must remain available in case of emergencies. These services are notaries/lawyers, insurance, veterinary clinics, hardware stores, (delivery only), baby and maternity supply stores (delivery only), and electronic stores (delivery only). All construction projects must stop, except for the COVID-19 related construction. The following companies must remain closed to the public but may provide services to essential or emergency services. These are restaurants, caterers, commercial laundry services, maintenance and repair services, gas stations, suppliers of cooking gas and water deliveries. The staff of the essential businesses mentioned in this list must be in the possession of a valid disaster pass or a waiver signed by the owner of the business. Persons already in possession of an existing waiver for essential services mentioned herein and signed by the Prime Minister, the Minister of Public Health, Labor and Social Affairs, and the Minister of Justice or the Chief of Police are automatically renewed. Persons required to utilize the public roads for medical emergencies and/or medical appointments should have proof of said appointment. Persons who live in Saint Martin and work in Sint Maarten or have urgent medical appointments are required to fill in the Travel Waiver (Form Certificate of Exception) which must be signed by the employer and the Prime Minister (pmtalks@sintmaartengov.org) or the Chief of Police (pr@policesxm.sx). This also counts for deliveries. Persons who live in Sint Maarten and work in Saint Martin or have urgent medical appointments should get the necessary waiver signed by their employer and the Prefet of St. Barths and Saint Martin via the online form (https://forms.gle/QugqNVS1nWrCnY9U9) or digital copies can be sent to (covid19pref@saint-barth-saint-martin.gouv.fr). This also counts for deliveries. Persons making use of the essential services such as supermarkets and grocery stores etc. on the designated days must adhere to the following regulations. Only one person per family is allowed to stand in line and shop, a maximum of 2 persons are allowed per vehicle to allow proper social distancing, wear face protective gear in public, and refrain from hugging, kissing and handshakes. Lastly, supermarkets, grocery stores and bakeries must adhere to the following conditions in order to serve the public. There must be clearly defined markings outside and inside the store, including at the cash register, enforcing a distance of 1.5 2 meters between clients. Clearly marked arrows indicating one-directional traffic in all aisles. Ensure proper social distancing by monitoring and enforcing the maximum amounts of persons for each business. Ensure that members of staff do not have flu-like symptoms and wear protective gear on the job. Provide sanitation spray or hand sanitizers for customers entering the establishment. Ensure proper crowd control and social distancing on the outside and inside of the store and encourage the continuation of an efficient grocery delivery system to ensure that most persons stay at home as much as possible. In closing, the Government of St. Maarten wants to know your status as a business; how is COVID-19 affecting the labour and business community. As such, the Labour Impact Assesment Survey is available on our website www.sintmaartengov.org/coronavirus, via the Forms, Laws and Protocols option. Fill in the form and submit, or email labourmarketimpact2020@sintmaartengov.org to request a copy of the form. The Division of Labor Affairs & Social Services will have persons available via phone to collect the information during the coming week as well. Businesses are encouraged to make use of the online form which gives direct access to the information and improves efficiency in handling any possible requests as a result including facilitating collaboration with the Ministries of Finance and TEATT in execution of our St. Maarten Stimulus Recovery Plan. I ask that you keep yourself informed by following our government radio station 107.9 FM. Visit www.sintmaartengov.org/coronavirus or visit our Facebook Page: Government of Sint Maarten for official information, statements, and news updates. People of St. Maarten, I want you to remember who you are and who we are as a people. We have proven time and time, how truly blessed we are. I think that is the perfect marketing tool, to use for the future, but we are using it every day. Because some of us have expressed fear, we have diminished our faith. Therefore, I will continue to say in every address and every opportunity I get to address you, that we have faith. Faith beats fear any day of the week. We have faith, that we will get out of this stronger than ever before, because we are resilient. We are St. Maarten strong! When we are done, we will be an example for the rest of the Caribbean and the world to know how to deal with a real tragedy and how to get stronger as a result. Together we can do this. Each and every one of us. These regulations are not put in place to test your faith or to push you to your limits. It is a matter of protecting your life and to get our livelihood safe, so that we can continue and return to proper economic development so that we can all thrive. Now, we are in survival mode, however, the Council of Ministers together with the Ministries are working on the recovery plan for St. Maarten, as soon as we can get COVID-19 contained. Help us to help you. Compliance will take us a long way. I must commend each and every one of you for doing an excellent job thus far, and every day we are doing better and better. On behalf of Government, I also extend condolences to the family, friends, loved ones and mentees of the honorable Louis Duzanson who passed away a few days ago. We were already flying our flags at half-mast due to COVID-19 related deaths, however, this half-mast is also to honor the memory of Mr. Louis Duzanson who has been a stalwart of information, an encyclopedia and a bible for St. Maarten. I am hoping that all who he has mentored, will carry on in his name, so that what he has thought, will not be lost. We are faithful, we are strong, we are resilient and we too shall overcome this. Be blessed St. Maarten! People of Sint Maarten here and abroad, I hereby address you as Prime Minister of St. Maarten and Chair of the EOC Silveria Jacobs. Today, the Government of Sint Maarten published a new National Decree extending the exception of April 18, 2020, no. 2020/0316 for the entire territory of St. Maarten today, April 19, 2020, after assessing the COVID-19 developments and containment measures during the two-week lockdown period. It was established that although the majority of the population had complied with the regulations set by Government, the COVID-19 virus still exists in the territory of St. Maarten, and we all still have the responsibility of mitigating the spread. The new national decree will be for a period of three weeks starting on April 19, 2020, with a possible extension if necessary. Voicing concern over one- third of states 74 COVID-19 cases having West Bengal link, Odisha government on Monday asked district collectors to remain alert on people's movement and trace out all who returned from the neighbouring state in last 28 days. The state government's direction in this regard came soon after the Health and Family Welfare department said that 10 the 13 of the fresh corona cases (5 each from Bhadrak and Jajpur districts) reported within 24 hours, have West Bengal link. "The state government has asked all the district collectors to remain alert on people returning from West Bengal. At least 24 of the state's 74 COVID-19 positive cases have West Bengal link," state government's COVID-19 Spokesperson Subroto Bagchi said during a media briefing here. He pointed out that 10 West Bengal returnees five each in Bhadrak and Jajpur district - have tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday. Detection of more COVID-19 positive cases is a good sign as it minimizes risk and prevents uncontrolled spread, Bagchi said: "At the same time, it is a matter of concern for the state that many people work in the West Bengal and they travel between the two states. One should be very alert," he said. Bagchi said, apart from the administration, the local panchayats and urban local bodies too have a major role to play to stop the spread of the disease. "Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday accorded the power of collector to sarpanch and executive officers of different urban local bodies. These people will actually ensure detection of the people who returned from West Bengal and keep them in quarantine," he said. Meanwhile, the Health and Family Welfare Department in its official twitter handle appealed to people who returned from West Bengal, to voluntarily come forward for corona test and keep themselves in home or hospital quarantine. " Ten persons of Bhadrak and Jajpur districts with travel history to West Bengal have tested positive for COVID- 19 during last 24 hours. All with travel history to WB during last 28 days are requested to inform the local sarpanch, BDO/Tahasildar and quarantine themselves at home," the Health and Family Welfare department said in its twitter post. Jajpur Collector Ranjan Kumar Das also appealed to people in his district to inform the administration about the persons returning from West Bengal in recent past. "We appeal, local panchayat, urban local body elected members, members of the public and all to help the administration in tracing more COVID-19 positive cases in the district," the collector said. Apart from the fresh 10 positive cases from Bhadrak and Jajpur districts, 14 other COVID-19 afflicted people have West Bengal link. As many as eight persons detected as COVID- 19 positive at Surya Nagar area in Bhubaneswar, had also Kolkata link. "One woman from Surya Nagar visited Kolkata and she transmitted to seven others including her elderly parents in Surya Nagar," an official said calling her a "super spreader" in Odisha. Similarly, a young girl from Kendrapara district also got infection from Kolkata where her father worked as a plumber. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It was to have been their dream wedding: A celebration with 900 guests from around the world at multiple venues in the GTA over several days in sunny June, followed by a three-week October honeymoon in Greece and Italy. Instead, coronavirus forced bride-to-be Navreet Bal and her fiance Sundeep Singh to push back their nuptials to tentative dates in November. Their travel plans have been grounded because its a cultural taboo to go on a honeymoon before marriage, explains Bal. The couples travel company refuses to refund their $2,800 deposit or give them a credit toward a trip later, she says. Everything is up in the air and its so unbelievably frustrating and upsetting, says Bal, 31. Amid the pandemic, wedding bells fall silent, trips and vacations are put on hold, and celebrations of milestone birthdays, anniversaries, retirements, bar and bat mitzvahs must be stalled. But what about the money? Industry experts say getting cash back for deposits and payments made pre-COVID-19 on special events and travel plans is unlikely but not impossible in some cases. With the Public Health Agency of Canadas advisory against non-essential travel outside the country until further notice, most Canadian carriers are offering 12- to 24-month vouchers or credits not refunds for rebookings. While vouchers are often the remedy, some travel agencies and tour operators registered with the Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) have offered refunds, according to CEO and registrar Richard Smart. He advises customers of TICO-registered companies to check the terms and conditions of their purchase, typically noted on the invoice. The regulator protects customers of registered travel agencies and tour operators but doesnt have jurisdiction over suppliers such as airlines, hotels or cruise lines. On the whole, Smart says, TICO travel companies have been overwhelmingly accommodating in the face of immense financial pressure. Its important to strike a balance between customers being out-of-pocket for previously booked travel and the need to sustain the economic viability of the travel industry, he points out. Smart encourages travellers to stay positive and to check TICOs website for updates. Insurance professional Anne Marie Thomas urges people to advocate for themselves or youll get what everyone else is getting. A spokesperson for InsuranceHotline.com, a rate-comparison site, Thomas notes theres no blanket scenario for insurance coverage because everyones situation is different, depending on timing, policy and insurer. Those without insurance are in a battle with whoever you booked with. Whether its an airline or tour operator, theyll probably only offer a credit, says Thomas. I feel for the Canadian who has paid a significant sum for a dream and now their money is locked up with an airline. Her advice: If you really want your money back, be a squeaky wheel. It might not work, but at least youll feel better for having tried. When you do rebook your trip, be sure to get new insurance that includes cancellation for the cost of the trip and medical coverage, Thomas emphasizes. Never anticipating a pandemic, Bal and Singh thought they were covered by their credit cards travel insurance. But they cant submit a claim until 14 days prior to their scheduled departure and only if travel advisories are still in place, says Bal. Their tour operator, on the other hand, said they cant request a full refund until October and then only if travel advisories are in place 72 hours before departure and if they pay the outstanding balance of $3,500 in August. If the couple cancels before then, they lose their deposit. Its heartbreaking, says Bal, whod like to help pay the bills for laid-off family members. Comforting clients has become Job 1 for event planner Roxy Zapala as plugs are pulled on big social occasions during the April-to-October busy season. Zapala, founder and creative director of Toronto-based Art of Celebrations and a 20-year industry veteran, says her clients are choosing to work it out rather than cancel. One even converted a 50th birthday bash with 100 guests to a Zoom party at home with family. Most contracts with caterers, photographers, florists and venues include a non-refundable deposit but vendors may agree to apply it to a future date, according to Zapala. She sympathizes with those who cant give back money they dont have after paying deposits or retainers on clients behalf. They need to stay afloat so their business is still around when the pandemic is over, she adds. Zapala advises people to decide soon whether to cancel or postpone events. The sooner you reschedule, the better to avoid the rebooking rush, she says, suggesting contacting all vendors to ensure theyre available before you commit to a new date. Desirable summer and fall wedding dates this year, as well as June 2021, are probably already taken, she notes. Zapala urges couples to consider having a smaller celebration or getting married on a Friday night, weekday or off-season when vendors may offer a discount. Hiring a planner for a few hours will take some of the stress off very emotionally invested brides and grooms, says Zapala. Additional resources Government of Canada travel info Ontario government COVID-19 info: https://www.ontario.ca/page/2019-novel-coronavirus CV Carola Vyhnak is a Cobourg-based writer covering home and real-estate stories. She is a contributor for the Star. Reach her at cvyhnak@gmail.com US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Sunday said that it will be months not years for the US economy, which has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic, to be back on track. The country's economy has been ravaged by the challenges posed by the coronavirus crisis. More than 22 million people have lost their jobs, as the heavy job-creating sectors like travel and tourism has come to a standstill. Over 95 per cent of the country's 330 million population are under a stay-at-home order. The deadly virus has killed more than 39,000 people and infected over 740,000 in the US, which has the highest number of COVID-19 casualties in the world. The Trump Administration has brought in a stimulus package worth USD 2 trillion to boost the economy. 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 However, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank say that the American economy is in a recession. Mnuchin exuded confidence that the economy would soon be back on track in a matter of months. I think it will be months. I definitely don't think it will be years, Mnuchin said on asked if it will be months or years before the economy is back to the strong position it was before the pandemic. Mnuchin made the remarks during his appearance at the CNN's State of the Union talk show. We are going to conquer this virus. We are going to have terrific breakthroughs, I know, both not just on the testing, but on the medical front. We begin to have vaccines. I think there's things that are being developed for vaccines, which will take a little bit longer, he said. But one of the things we heard is, people want testing. People also will react very positively that they know, if they get this disease, there will be medical treatments available as well, he said. US President Donald Trump this week unveiled a three-phase plan to reopen the world's largest economy that allows governors to gradually ease the crippling lockdown in their states. Asserting that a prolonged lockdown, combined with a forced economic depression, would inflict an immense and wide-ranging toll on public health, Trump said that his administration is issuing new federal guidelines that will allow governors to take a phased approach to reopening their individual states. Also read: Donald Trump would be willing to give coronavirus aid to Iran if asked Confrontation between the superpowers was already intensifying before the world had heard of COVID-19. By blaming each other for creating the crisis, Beijing and Washington are not addressing the public health problem. Of course, the US has truth on its side in pointing out that the pandemic is a made-in-China phenomenon. The Chinese Foreign Ministry's response to claim that the US Army started the infection in China is just pathetic. But each is using the accusations against the other to deflect blame for their own incompetence and betrayal at home. The virus itself is an exercise in the purest globalisation, recognising no borders. International cooperation against a universal enemy would be the responsible course. But the national responses of the US and China are the the exact opposite. They are intensifying their geopolitical contest and accelerating the trend to so-called "decoupling". With the advent of the corona contest "it is already irreversible that the two are decoupling in terms of economy and technology" says Wang Jisi, a well-regarded scholar at Peking University. He predicts "the most difficult phase since the establishment of US-China diplomatic relations in the 1970s". Illustration: Andrew Dyson Credit: The two superpowers are setting up their handling of the crisis as a contest between two forms of government China's authoritarianism versus American democracy. In truth, these two leaders have demonstrated that both forms can produce disastrous outcomes. Democracy's advantage is that the people, if they so choose, can bloodlessly remove a bad leader. China's people have no such option. And if you thought that Trump was the only one of the pair to dye his hair an implausible colour, do you really think that a 66-year-old Chinese man could have naturally jet-black locks? This isn't an irrelevance. It's a human detail to illustrate the point that they are both vain men, and it is political and personal vanity that is their shared weakness. The reason that Xi and Trump have so fallen so low in high office is that they have treated a public health crisis as a test of their personal and political status. Like most leaders who like to posture as "strong men" types, they are actually very fragile. This is not a crisis of autocracy nor a crisis of democracy. It is a crisis caused by overpoliticisation. Different types of politics, yes. But they have both bungled so badly because they refuse to set aside their political projects and personal vanities to deal with a medical and biological crisis. Australia is so far responding successfully to the problem because its state and federal leaders generally have set politics and personal rivalry aside to deal squarely with a common threat to the national interest. Xi and Trump saw a virus as a threat to their personal and political status. That's why they tried to hide it, diminish it, refuse to take responsibility for mishandling it. The virus is no respecter of vanity. But it's all these insecure little "strongmen" had to offer. Neither emerges with any honour. As the two superpowers intensify their rivalry, where does that leave Australia? It would be a fatal error to treat this is a matter of moral equivalence. So what if Xi and Trump are as bad as each other? Australia can't treat this as an interesting intellectual exercise. This is not about the relativities of morality but the absolute of the national interest. Which choices will best advance our security, sovereignty and wellbeing? For Australia, the defining difference between the conduct of the superpowers is that Beijing wants to control other countries, including ours. Washington wants us as its ally. They are both self-interested great powers. It happens that Australia's interests are better served by an alliance with one rather than yielding to the other. For all the many failings of the current US President, the Australian alliance with the US remains a national asset. We have only one alliance. It would be reckless to discard it. It would also be naive to put full trust in it. In a more intense effort than Australia has ever had to make, we need to build deeper and stronger relations with all the nations that share our interests. Including our interest in preserving our sovereignty from Beijing's relentless control impulses. Anyone who has driven across the state of Montana on Interstate Highways 90 and 94 knows just how big Montana is geographically. The population of the state is just over 1 million people, so they are nothing like most urban areas in the East. With those demographics and the size of the state, the governor of Montana has communicated the steps he plans to take to reopen Montana to business. Note the continued issue of test kit shortages, that he addresses in the piece below.When COVID-19 first came to Montana, we took quick and aggressive measures to slow the spread and keep Montanans home during this critical period.Weve bought time for our health care workers and first responders on the frontlines and kept hospitals, especially in our rural areas, from becoming overwhelmed. Weve worked to protect our vulnerable populations and remove as many people from the chain of transmission as possible to reduce infections and save lives.Because we acted early with input from public health and emergency response experts, Montana has a significantly lower rate of infection per capita than many of states that did not act as aggressively.Yesterday, President Trump convened a call with the nations governors and laid out guidelines on reopening the economy. On that call, the President told us that we governors will call the shots in our own states.First, I want to say thank you, Mr. President, for recognizing that every state is different. Here in Montana, weve been able to keep our relatively [few] cases low, because we know what is best for our state and because we care about our neighbors.Over this past month, Montanans have demonstrated their individual independence and strong sense of community once again. Montanans have protected their family and friends by communicating virtually. They have stayed home while finding ways to support local restaurants and other businesses providing take out or delivery services. Many business owners and entrepreneurs have shifted their efforts to producing 3D masks or producing hand sanitizer to help fight this virus.I know Montanans are hurting financially. We all want to get Montanans working again.So we are taking steps to get there. For over a week, I have been working with public health experts and business leaders to determine how we can open our state up, while keeping people safe and avoiding a new outbreak or becoming the next hotspot in our region.This week, I announced the creation of the Coronavirus Relief Fund Task Force to help sustain Montanans through the pandemic and to put the state on a path to economic recovery.Montana will receive $1.25 billion to respond to this crisis and support Montanans who need it most small businesses, workers, tribal communities, non-profits, and state and local governments.Over the next couple of weeks, the Task Force will examine sectors of the economy to understand the impacts of COVID-19 on Montanans, consider the unique needs of each region of the state, and provide guidance on how to best utilize these funds to address the immediate needs of Montanans and with an eye towards an immediate and long-term path to economic recovery.More than just how to spend money from the federal government, we have been working on how Montanans can be earning and spending their own money. Montanas Adjutant General Quinn is leading a process based on military strategic planning principles to look at when and how Montana can safely take steps to reopen. The process includes the expertise of public health, emergency response, local providers, and business and industry leaders.Our new normal is going to look different. This virus isnt going away and we are going to have to continue to adapt with how we live with it for the next while.By next week, we will have a deliberate plan for reopening, but that will also include thoughtful planning in the event we face any setbacks. This will be a phased reopening.Like the President said yesterday, this is going to be a process. There are several factors that we are taking into consideration. Some of these metrics President Trump laid out himself yesterday and some of them are unique to Montana., there must be a sustained reduction of new cases for at least 14 days. This is important because 14 days is the incubation period of the virus. We have been tracking our cases closely in Montana. Last week we saw a decline in new positives, and I am hopeful and confident we will see a decline this week as well., we need to make sure our hospitals are able to safely treat all patients both COVID-19 and with other conditions especially in our rural areas., we need to make sure we have the capacity to test all people with COVID-19 symptoms and the capacity for our state and local public health officials to conduct active monitoring of newly confirmed cases and their contacts.While our state lab has been able to sufficiently perform testing, we will need to ramp up our testing capacity further. We still, at times, have shortages with swabs and reagents, which impacts our capacity to test on the ground.We are working on it, but as every governor will tell you, we need the federal government to work with us, not compete with us.Yesterday, governors across the country both Democrat and Republican voiced concern about testing to the President and his administration. I brought up a specific need we have here in Montana as we wait on the test kits to actually be able to perform testing using the fast-testing Abbott machines we have in stock. The President assured me that he would get us the test kits that we need.I hope that he delivers, and I will be working my hardest to make sure of that. But lets be honest: weve heard a lot of promises from Washington that havent always completely materialized.Finally, we want to reopen in a way that works for our businesses, our public health community, and main streets. We want to do it in the way, so they have sufficient time to be plan for what reopening looks like and that they are prepared.Again, I want to open things up as much as any Montanan. Thats why we have already begun a process to do so. But we will do it responsibly and in phases in order to ensure we keep the curve flattened, so that we can mitigate the risk knowing the risk is still there.We will do it in a way that will protect Montanans lives and the recovery of our economy. And we will continue to do this the Montana way based on the data and science on the ground here, not based on politics.I know this crisis is hurting Montanans but I also know that if we get this wrong, it will hurt us even more.In times of crisis, Montanans have always pulled together. Thats how weve slowed the spread, protected our nurses and doctors, and saved lives.Thank you for your comments to my office and for sharing your thoughts on how we can begin to reopen our economy while continuing to protect the health of all Montanans.We need to keep working together, keep taking care of our neighbors, and keep doing whats best for Montana.Sincerely,STEVE BULLOCKGovernor Deserted streets are a familiar sight as the UK continues with a lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Joe Giddens/PA) The effects of a long term lockdown could do more damage than coronavirus itself, an Oxford professor has warned. Professor Carl Heneghan, director of the centre for evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, told Radio 4s Today programme: In fact, the damaging effect now of lockdown is going to outweigh the damaging effect of coronavirus. Heneghan argued that not enough testing has been done so the government cannot understand how many people have actually had COVID-19, and that lockdown was preventing people seeking help for potentially life-threatening issues. The key is no-one has really understood how many people actually have the infection, he said. You could do that really quickly with random sampling of a thousand people in London who thought they had the symptoms. Professor Carl Heneghan suggests Boris Johnson's government may have imposed lockdown after coronavirus peaked in Britain (AP) You could do that in the next couple of days and get a really key handle on that problem and wed be able to then understand coming out of lockdown much quicker. But the academic argued that the government had no plan for what happens next. You go into a lockdown - you should have a clear exit strategy, he said on Monday. You should understand the advantages and disadvantages of what youre doing. Heneghan suggested the coronavirus peak may actually have taken place the week before Boris Johnson imposed the lockdown. We have failed to look at the data and see when the lockdown actually occurred, he added. Professor Carl Heneghan of Oxford University says the effects of lockdown could do more damage thancoronavirus itself (Carl Heneghan/Oxford University) He later told Mail Online: The peak of deaths occurred on April 8, and if you understand that then you work backwards to find the peak of infections. That would be 21 days before then, right before the point of lockdown. This is based on the delay in the time it takes for an infected person to fall seriously ill and die - three weeks on average. Heneghan claims that if the Government accepts that deaths peaked on April 8, then it must mean that infections were at their highest around three weeks prior. He said: We should be reopening society. We need to get a plan in place rapidly, we cant wait three weeks then slowly open up. Story continues 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 6 charts and maps that explain how coronavirus is spreading As well as major economic issues, austerity will impact people's physical and mental health. The second issue of lockdown is that it's making the public scared to engage with healthcare. People are avoiding going to GPs and hospitals because they believe there is so much infection there that they might catch it [coronavirus]. Thats really damaging. Figures show that more than 80 extra deaths are occurring every day in London alone before paramedics reach the victims because patients are reluctant to phone for an ambulance in case they catch the virus in hospital. Professor Heneghan said the decision to abandon mass-testing and contact tracing had completely failed elderly people. The shielding has failed - 70 per cent of all the deaths are in the over-75s. Forty per cent of all the nursing homes have the infection. So whatever we have done it has completely failed in terms of shielding. HALIFAXThe largest non-profit nursing home in Nova Scotia is reporting two more deaths from COVID-19, bringing the total to five in two days, amidst what the premier described as a devastating day in the province. Premier Stephen McNeil made his comment after saying he was grieving for the small village of Portapique after an armed man rampaged through the community. Dr. Robert Strang, the chief medical officer of health, said the situation at Northwoods long-term care facility also made Sunday a very sad day in multiple ways. Strang said the two 20-bed special units to treat COVID-19 are now full, and some residents with the illness are in the same rooms as residents who havent shown symptoms. He said hes hopeful that more space will open up as residents whove recovered are sent to a local hotel, opening up space to isolate residents whove tested positive for the virus. The managers of the 485-person Halifax long-term care facility have long lobbied for residents to have private rooms, and have suggested having multiple residents in the same room has contributed to the virus spreading. McNeil said an emergency plan has been implemented to shift the recovered residents out of the residence and medical staff will care for them at the hotel. In addition, other nursing homes were donating special beds and protective equipment, and testing will continue to be conducted on site. The Halifax Infirmarys COVID-19 treatment unit is being redeployed from the hospital to the long-term care facility to treat with those who are seriously ill. There are over 40 health care workers who are being added to the staff. Strang described the spread of the illness through Northwood as a tragic situation. Thats five families who are grieving today who will not be able to see their loved one again, he said. In total, there are eight long-term care facilities with 93 instances of positive tests of residents and 54 staff whove tested positive. Strang said the majority of those cases are at the Northwood facilitys Halifax campus. There are now 675 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, with 11 in hospital and four in intensive care. Over 21,000 have tested negative for the virus. Read more about: By PTI CHENNAI: Companies including micro, small and medium enterprises in Tamil Nadu engaged in manufacture of medical equipment like masks, PPEshope the government would allow movement of their vehicles during the lockdown in place to combat spread of COVID-19, officials said. Several firms present in Tiruppur or Coimbatore or Ariyalur in the state have converted their companies to manufacture medical garments in order to tide over crisis since companies remain shut due to lock-down in view of the government's measures to control the spread of COVID19. However, according to a company official those engaged in manufacturing such medical garments face biggest challenges which is the last mile connectivity in transporting the goods to customers. A senior company official in Tiruppur who did not want to be named, said they are hoping for some kind of relaxation to be announced on Monday so as to ensure that the goods can be delivered to customers. "Besides delivering the goods we are also unable to meet the customers as some insist of testing a sample of the products we make. For shorter distances with my essential services pass, I drive but I beginning to receive enquiries from Karnataka, Maharashtra. But I am unable to serve them due to the lockdown", the official said. Similarly, another individual who manufactures personal protective equipment at his facility in Ariyalur, said they have started to produce the items based on the demand and were able to serve the customers on time. "I am collecting payment from customers as advance and invest in the project as I am unable to put my own capital to run the business. Sometimes, some firms do not pay on time if we did not deliver to them as per their requisition," Kumar who is manufacturing the kits in Ariyalur, said. He said after receiving the initial payment with the support of his workers manufacture the goods and he himself deliver them to customers. "I am delivering the goods on my own therefore, I do not face any difficulty," he said, adding this trend may not continue if the business picks up. To a query, he said some amount of payments received from customers go under Goods and Services Tax which can be relaxed considering the prevailing situation. Noted industrialist and Apparel Export Promotion Council Chairman A Sakthivel said the need of the hour was to foray into 'medical textiles' and they would encourage companies to set up such products. "From day one we always used to tell manufacturers about medical garments. It is good time to go in for medical textiles business," he said. He said the APEC has given ideas to manufacturers on how China was exportings its goods to other countries which need such medical garments. "We will advice manufacturers to go in for this product and also planning to arrange for a buyer-seller kind of thing once this gets over," he said. He expressed hope that the manufacturers would be able to transport the goods from Point A to Point B without any hassle from April 20 as government would give some kind of relaxations from that day. "After April 20 there will not be any problem on movement of transport. We can get special permission also," he hoped. On the challenges faced by the industry, he said to manufacture PPEs, manufacturers do need to use an machinery for which they need to import it from China. "Currently some are doing their best based on the available machinery. But if this machinery has been imported then we can penetrate deep into the domestic market. AEPC also has given the name of the some suppliers (Chinese firms) to companies about the machinery," he said. He said the AEPC would also request the government to provide GST benefit to companies once this medical textiles businesses picks up in the coming months. Bengaluru: Turns out a bumper crop is bad news for farmers in times of Covid-19. On April 18, vegetable farmer Kannaiyan Subramaniam uploaded a video of his cabbage field on social media platform, Twitter. Within hours, it went viral with several users commenting on the video, and tagging others to amplify the farmer received the help he sought. The 50-year-old vegetable farmer in Voddarahalli village in Karnatakas Chamarajanagara district, located on the border with Tamil Nadu, said that he had nearly 100 tonnes of cabbage that was ready for harvest. Faced with the prospect of fresh and healthy cabbages rotting in the 3.5-acre land that he farms on lease, Subramaniam who is also the general secretary of the South India Coordination Committee of Farmers Movements, a farmers rights lobby group, posted a 15-second video in Tamil asking people to help him find buyers. He offered his entire crop for Rs 3 lakh, a sum that he said, would barely cover his initial investment. Since then, the video has received more than 305,000 views, 25,000 retweets, and plenty of gratuitous advice. Subramaniam is yet to find a buyer. In the past 24 hours, others have taken to social media platforms to seek buyers for their produce, including a watermelon farmer from Bijapur, a tomato farmer from Sarjapur; a banana farmer from Tuticorin. With markets shut and people homebound due to the lockdown, demand for produce across the country has crashed. Unable to sell much, vegetable farmers are saddled with massive losses. This is the story of thousands of vegetable farmers across India today. According to an April 8 report by Credit Suisse, a financial research firm, despite a bumper harvest in the Rabi season, the arrival of fruits and vegetables in the countrys wholesale markets has fallen by a whopping 50-95%, as only a fraction of the 7,000 wholesale markets have been functioning after the lockdown was enforced. In 2019-20, Indian farmers sold 284 million tonnes of horticultural produce worth Rs 5 lakh crore. Even assuming only a 50% fall in market arrivals over a month of lockdown, vegetable farmers would have lost in excess of Rs 20,000 crore. Subramaniam sold his previous harvest of cabbages for Rs 11.50 a kilogramme. Im not looking for profit. I would be happy if I can recover my cost and the cabbages reach those who dont have enough to eat in these times, he told Hindustan Times, two days after posting the video. Subramaniams plight illustrates how the already bumpy road from farm-to-fork has caved in during the lockdown. A few days ago, local newspapers in Karnataka reported that nearly 70 farmers in Shivamogga district were stuck with 2,000 tonnes of ash gourd as regular buyers from Delhi and Agra failed to turn up. Petha, the popular north Indian sweet is made of candied ash gourd. Similarly, Panruti in Cuddalore district is the jackfruit capital of Tamil Nadu. With the onset of summer, the giant, spiky fruits are everywhere but the demand has dried up. Some local businessmen and charitable organisations in the region pooled in money and bought the jackfruit from farmers. The lot was handed over to the local municipal authorities that door delivered vegetables. Anyone who purchased a three-kilo vegetable pack sold by the government at Rs 100 was given a free jackfruit; ordinarily, the fruit costs close to Rs 150. Subramaniam rang up the agri war room helpline set up by the Karnataka government, which functions between 8am to 8pm to help farmers with transportation passes, farm equipment access and disease management. The officials told me they couldnt do anything about procurement directly but offered to connect me to traders who could only pay Rs 2 a kilo. The traders said even that price could not be guaranteed, he said. Usually, market agents from distant parts of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka would visit Subramaniams farm and harvest the required quantity of cabbage themselves. If Subramaniam wanted to sell his produce at big market centres of Erode or Chennai for a higher price, he would harvest, sort, package and transport the vegetables directly to traders there. Since the lockdown, agents havent been able to come to his farm. Hiring a mini-truck that can carry about 5-6 tonnes of cabbage to the market isnt viable. During the lockdown operators charge more than Rs 30,000 for one consignment from my village to the wholesale market in Chennai, Subramaniam said. One grocery retail chain sought to buy 3000 cabbages from him at Rs 5 apiece, but asked Subramaniam to deliver them at a collection center in Mandya 125 km away. He refused, because he felt that paying for transportation would have meant throwing good money after bad. No matter how you dice it, there is no way I can even break even, he said. When the lockdown is lifted, demand will inch up but the loss-ridden farmers will not have the financial means to invest in a new crop. With a fall in production consumer prices will skyrocket. Its a deadly spiral for both the farmer and consumer, said Subramaniam. Licious, Indias leading meat, meat-products & seafood brand, announced the addition of another stalwart to their growing leadership team. Meghna Apparao, a seasoned professional with almost 20 years of experience, joins Licious as the Chief Business Officer. She assumed office in March 2020. Prior to joining Licious, Meghna has been associated with some of the biggest names in India Inc, viz, Hindustan Unilever, Amazon & Godrej Consumer Products Limited. From strategizing for growth, to launching new categories, building business verticals, leading pioneering assignments across India and global markets to transforming consumer behaviour in the online space; Meghna has done it all. An able leader, she has led and mentored high-performing, multi-disciplinary teams throughout. In her new role at Licious, Meghna will be responsible for ushering in the next level of growth for the company while further strengthening the brands image, experience, and promise. We are at currently in the midst of a complete transformation as per as the business ecosystem & consumer behaviour is concerned, says Meghna Apparao, CBO, Licious, Consumption trends are evolving, and the world is learning to do business in newer ways. For a young, agile Indian meat & seafood brand, these times are of immense importance. I am thrilled to be a part of this company which is deeply consumer focused at such. And at this crucial juncture, I am truly excited by the possibilities the future holds to delight Indian consumers Commenting on the new appointment, Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta, Co-Founders, Licious said, We are delighted to welcome Meghna Apparao on-board. Licious has always believed in building a core team empowered by people who are high on intent, competency, and passion. As we move ahead, we realise that our success lies in our team whose wholehearted participation and brand ownership enriches the companys growth journey. We look forward to having Meghna lead the way along with other leaders, as we continue to building an everlasting, category transforming, iconic consumer brand. Licious, in their 5th year of operations, has set itself multiple ambitious targets which will call for strategic diversifications and expansions. The Company intends to induct top notch talent & elevate key management roles to aid this next phase of growth while empowering their employees by enabling newer growth prospects. Massachusetts residents who are ineligible for state unemployment benefits will now start to see relief funds from the federal coronavirus stimulus package, Gov. Charlie Baker announced Monday. Those who are not eligible to receive regular unemployment benefits from the commonwealth include self-employed individuals, contractors and gig economy workers. State benefits provide roughly half of a persons average weekly income up to a maximum of $823, according to Baker. The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, set up as part of the passage of the federal CARES Act in late March, now allows previously ineligible residents to receive the same benefits as those who are eligible for state benefits for up to 39 weeks, the governor said in a statement. The Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program already provides $600 per week to individuals who find themselves out of a job due to the COVID-19 public health crisis through July 25, according to the statement. The program covers non-traditional workers as well. With the implementation of this new federal benefit program, we can better support workers not normally covered by the unemployment system like those who are self-employed or work in the gig economy," the statement said. If youre having trouble viewing the embed to sign up on your mobile device click here. The outbreak of the viral respiratory infection has upended daily life and led to an economic downturn many have likened to a recession. Nationally, roughly 22 million Americans have applied for unemployment benefits in the past four weeks. At the state level, nearly 470,00 unemployment claims have been processed in Massachusetts since mid-March. The federal relief given to residents is based on a jobless persons previously reported wages. Weekly benefits will be retroactive to January 27 or the date when an individual became unemployed, according to Baker. To be eligible for the PUA program, claimants must prove they are able to work but are prevented from doing so because of issues relating to the pandemic, including their own sickness or their family members, Baker said. People who are able to be paid for telework and individuals receiving paid sick leave will not qualify for benefits, according to the governor. Individuals receiving paid sick leave or other paid leave benefits for less than their customary work week, however, may still be eligible for PUA, the governors statement said. Also, those working fewer hours, resulting in a loss of income due to COVID-19, who are not eligible for regular unemployment benefits may be eligible for PUA. Baker noted that the state will only be able to pay benefits retroactively to March 14. Eligible workers will be able to request benefits retroactively to January 27, though, if their dates of unemployment make them eligible. Related Content: DPP 'behind Taiwan ghostwriters' Global Times By Fan Lingzhi Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 22:53:41 Separatists spread anti-Chinese mainland sentiment online Since early April, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus suffered cyber violence on social media networks and his Twitter account is now still filled with sarcastic and abusive comments with a considerable number originating in Taiwan. Pro-Chinese mainland experts based in Taiwan said that the comments were left by Taiwan's "internet water army" sponsored by the separatist political party - Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is now ruling the island. The experts said they were familiar with individual incidents being used to hype anti-Chinese mainland sentiment and inciting conflicts between the Chinese mainland and other countries. They said the DPP stigmatized and smeared anti-separatist KMT candidates in the Taiwan regional election in January 2020. "Taiwan people rarely use Twitter. We like Facebook more," a Taiwan-based resident, who asked for anonymity, told the Global Times, adding that because of this, it was abnormal to see that many Taiwan accounts on Twitter. Many accounts were registered just in April. "Abuses, or racist comments, giving me names, black or Negro this attack came from Taiwan," Tedros told reporters in a press briefing from WHO's Geneva headquarters on April 8. The terms like "Negro" seldom show up on internet platforms like Twitter as it would cause international public outrage. But Chinese mainland analysts said such abuse was "quite common" on PTT, the largest terminal-based bulletin board system in the island of Taiwan, with its core theme hyping hatred against the Chinese mainland. But Chinese mainland analysts said such abuse was "quite common" on PTT, the largest terminal-based bulletin board system in the island of Taiwan, with its core theme hyping hatred against the Chinese mainland. A Taiwan political commentator with the pen name ROCky who requested anonymity told the Global Times that "so-called cyber warriors, or internet ghostwriters, of Taiwan's green camp [pro-separatist camp], have some favorite themes in their propaganda plan in the international public opinion field." They smeared the Chinese mainland as "undemocratic, uncivilized and nouveau riche," ROCky said. They stressed Taiwan's "sovereignty" and said the island was "suppressed" by the Chinese mainland, portraying it as "tragic" to seek support from anti-China forces from other countries including the US and Japan, ROCky said. These "cyber warriors" use fake identities and pretend to be parties concerned with news stories, ROCky believed. ROCky noted that in early 2019, the pro-green camp Taiwan People News, used a fake Facebook account to attack Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen in simplified Chinese, hoping to create an illusion that some Chinese mainlanders were interfering in the Taiwan regional election. But the Taiwan People News forgot to switch its account and its remarks were mixed with both simplified and traditional Chinese characters: a giveaway of its real identity as traditional Chinese characters are mainly used in the island of Taiwan. Wang Bing-chung, spokesperson of the New Party, a pro-reunification political party in Taiwan, told the Global Times that the DPP of Taiwan has two ways to manipulate the island's social media. The first was to raise requirements for officials in the name of preventing fake news and penetration by the Chinese mainland. "That's why many Facebook groups, which supports Han Kuo-yu, candidate of the KMT of this year's Taiwan regional leader election, were banned during the campaign," Wang said. ROCky said that on Taiwan social media, one would not be banned for writing the insulting word "shina,"(a racist word against Chinese people, like "Negro" for Africans) but could be banned for insulting pro-Japan or pro-independence figures. The second DPP method was financially supporting "cyber warriors," Wang said. Companies of DPP members paid low-income people to post anything they are told, he told the Global Times. Taiwan's future would be determined only by the cross-Straits relationship, Wang said. "Tsai is bluffing via making fake illusion that a majority of people in Taiwan are anti-China, but that's all false, with fundamental issues left unresolved," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Efforts to expand public transit in San Antonio and the fate of a plan to protect the citys cleanest source of drinking water have been waylaid by the spread of COVID-19. For months before the crisis, Mayor Ron Nirenberg and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff pushed to redirect $40 million from a one-eighth-cent sales tax that funds the Edwards Aquifer Protection Program and the construction of linear parks and creekways annually to pay for better bus service and other public transportation initiatives instead. They aimed to get that measure on the November ballot. Simultaneously, city leaders pinpointed a way for the aquifer protection program to continue without those sales tax dollars after months of uncertainty about its fate. The City Council was set to vote on that proposal this month. But COVID-19 has held up those plans and clouded the proposals future. No decision has been made about when the election will be held. Hope Andrade, tri-chair of the ConnectSA transportation plan and VIA Metropolitan Transit board chair, said shes still optimistic the vote will take place in November. We must not lose momentum, Andrade said. But were very respectful of whats going on right now. Henry Cisneros, another ConnectSA tri-chair and a former mayor, said Nirenberg has raised the possibility that the election could be postponed to May. He does not want to throw in the towel until we have a clearer sense toward the end of the summer as to where things are, Cisneros said. Nirenberg himself wont say much. We are in the middle of a pandemic response, Nirenberg said. Anticipating the timing of a transit election is premature, and thats an understatement. The coronavirus has already led city leaders to postpone one major election. The City Council initially placed the renewal of a sales tax for Pre-K 4 SA, the city-funded early childhood education program, on the May ballot rather than the November ballot believing that would boost the programs chances of getting an easy win. But as the outbreak worsened, council members opted to push it back to November. Further complicating matters is the citys dire financial situation. San Antonio faces a $180 million budget shortfall caused by economic fallout from the pandemic. Sales tax revenue collected by the city is slated to take a gargantuan hit. City budget officials had projected that they would collect $313 million in sales tax for the citys current $1.29 billion spending plan. With the spread of COVID-19 hammering the economy and crushing retail spending, the city is projected to lose up to $53 million in sales tax revenue. Its no question that the path for ConnectSA and its recommendations is more difficult because the sales tax is greatly impacted by this, Cisneros said. Its down substantially. Also on hold is a proposal for the city to continue the Edwards Aquifer Protection Program, albeit at about half its current funding. For months, the question of how the program popular with voters, who have renewed it four times since 2000 would go on without sales tax dollars was hotly debated. Those dollars pay for conservation easements to prevent development in sensitive areas that feed into the aquifer. Suzanne Scott, San Antonio River Authority general manager, proposed increasing that agencys property tax rate to help protect the Edwards Aquifer. But SARAs board rejected the move in November. Nirenberg sought a new home for the program at the city-owned San Antonio Water System. The utilitys CEO, Robert Puente, was open to the idea if the program was funded with considerably fewer dollars than it is now. And SAWS board members questioned how much more land they would have to pay to protect and when the program would end. In February, about three weeks before San Antonio reported its first case of COVID-19 outside of cruise ship evacuees brought to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, city officials seemed to settle the question. The city, officials proposed, could continue to operate the aquifer program with money the city already gets from SAWS to the tune of $109 million over 10 years, about half the current funding. That money would pay for the programs operations and for conservation easements to prevent development over sensitive areas that feed into the aquifer. The City Council was set to vote on the proposal this month. But that vote hasnt been scheduled. Right now, we have other urgent priorities, Nirenberg said. 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 Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte joined a chorus of Southern European nations calling for the issuance of as much as 1.5 trillion euros ($1.6 trillion U.S.) of joint bonds to aid economies crippled by the coronavirus, setting the stage for a clash at a European Union summit this week. Conte evoked the risk of market contagion if European leaders fail to act on pressure from Italy and Spain, according to a Sunday interview with Germanys Sueddeutsche Zeitung. His words echo a warning from French President Emmanuel Macron last week that its necessary for the EU to issue common debt with a common guarantee, and that failure to rise to the occasion would lead to the blocs collapse. As EU leaders prepare for the virtual summit on Thursday, Conte is under pressure to obtain relief for an economy stricken by a nationwide lockdown, while countering pressure from populists in and outside his government who are lambasting the EUs response. His approach is sure to be contentious as countries including the Netherlands and Germany categorically oppose any mutualization of debt. Our economic systems are connected with each other and interlinked, Conte said. When one country has problems, it triggers a domino effect and thats something we should absolutely avoid. Whats needed here is the European Unions full firepower namely through the joint issuance of bonds. Spanish proposal Spain proposed creating a European fund of as much as 1.5 trillion euros to tackle the recovery effort, according to a copy of the paper obtained by Bloomberg. The fund would be financed through perpetual EU bonds to keep national public debt levels in check. Grants would then be made to member states through the EU budget. Spains economy could contract this year by more than 12 per cent in a worst-case-scenario forecast by the countrys central bank. The economic shock could push the unemployment rate to as high as 21.7 per cent this year, undoing gains achieved in the aftermath of the 2008 global recession. At nearly 14 per cent, Spains unemployment rate is already one of the highest in the developed world. How coronabonds could save Europe, or tear it apart Deaths in Spain levelled off on Monday, with 4,266 new infections in the last 24 hours, pushing the total above 200,000, according to Health Ministry data. The number of fatalities rose by 399, compared to Sundays 410, to 20,852. European governments have already committed three trillion euros to cushion the blow from the pandemic, and a lot more will be needed, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said last week. The commission is working on a plan to expand the blocs budget to be the mothership of efforts to revive growth. The commission plan falls short of what the Italians and Spanish are proposing, instead it would see the EU borrow money in the financial markets, backed by funds in the EU budget, which would then be distributed as loans to member states, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Repayments would likely happen after 2027, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. Bad bank On another front, senior European Central Bank officials are advocating for a euro-area bad bank to take toxic debt off lenders balance sheets, the Financial Times reported Sunday. ECB officials have held talks about the idea with counterparts in Brussels, according to the report. Conte said the European Stability Mechanism rescue fund, Germanys preferred tool to address the economic impact, has a bad reputation in Italy. He added its not about pooling past or future debt but rather about an extraordinary effort to deal with the current situation, according to Sueddeutsche. Klaus Regling, the ESMs director-general, said concern that the funds lending will have two parts one to specifically deal with the outbreak, the other to reduce budget deficits was misplaced. I think that thats a misunderstanding, he told Italys Corriere Della Sera newspaper. The conditions agreed at first will not change during the period in which the line of credit is available. The Eurogroup will clarify it, saying that the only requirement for obtaining the loan is the way in which they spend the money. Italys anti-establishment Five Star Movement, the biggest force in Contes coalition, has long campaigned against ESM credit lines as carrying a stigma and requiring unacceptable loan conditions. Opposition leader Matteo Salvini of the anti-migrant League, who has criticized the EU for failing to step up for Italy, also has denounced the ESM. Im fundamentally skeptical toward the ESM as well, Conte told Sueddeutsche. Read more about: Amid nationwide lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak, Chhattisgarh excise minister Kawasi Lakhma claimed that he travelled to Raigarh district to meet a saint. The minister, along with his convoy, traveled from Raipur to Raigarh, a distance of 250 kms, on Saturday. In Raigarh, while speaking to reporters, the minister said, Ye to gopniya vala report ayaa mereko ..corona hai ..Isliye na mein koi karykarta ka meeting nahi liya hun sirf timepass karne ke liye ..mein raato raat ..ek dharmsthal hai ..baba se darshan karke nikal jaane ke liye aaya hun (It is a time of coronavirus outbreak hence I have not informed any leader or party office bearer about my visit Just for time pass...I came to Raigarh to meet a Baba). When contacted by HT on Sunday, the minister said that the media is misquoting him. He said he went for a surprise inspection. I am the excise minister of state and Raigarh district is the neighbouring district of Mahasamund where I am the minister in-charge. I got information that illegal sale of liquor is going on in Raigarh district, hence I went for a surprise visit. Since a mahatma was also staying in the same area I thought I would meet him but due to the outbreak of corona and lockdown, the mahatma also refused to meet me. Therefore I returned. Now, the media is misquoting me which is not correct, said Lakhma while speaking to HT. Lakhma further added that saving peoples lives is the priority of our government. We are not in a hurry to take any decision regarding the lockdown because this government is of common man. Presently, the lives of the people are important, said Lakhma answering a question. When asked about supplying liquor online after lockdown, Lakhma said, We are thinking on both online and shop distribution. We will see when the time comes. Meanwhile, on Sunday evening, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel said his government has been considering restarting a lot of economic activities in the state from Monday. The MNREGA work has been resumed in several villages. In his video address to people of the state, Baghel underlined that Chhattisgarh has set an example before the whole country for effectively controlling the coronavirus pandemic. Expressing gratitude to people for standing by the government in the period of crisis, the chief minister said, The discipline, strength and grit shown by the people, to tackle the Corona crisis, since last one month, is unique. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Delhi government has provided financial assistance of Rs 5,000 each to around 23,000 para-transit vehicle drivers, after it received 1.60 lakh applications for its one time assistance scheme launched amid the lockdown to control the spread of coronavirus, Transport minister Kailash Gehlot said on Monday. With a blanket ban on public transport during the lockdown, drivers of para-transit vehicles, including autos, taxis, e,-rickshaws have been rendered idle and exposed to financial difficulties. "We have received 1,60,000 applications. Till today, the Delhi government has given assistance to 23,000 auto, e-rickshaw, gramin seva drivers and the verification of 20,000 more forms are also being done. They will get the money soon," Gahlot said. The one time financial assistance is being provided to all eligible drivers after verification of their bank account details linked with the Aadhar card under the Driver Benefit Scheme, he said. Under the scheme announced by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal earlier this month, all para-transit vehicle drivers carrying valid public service vehicle badges and driving licence are eligible to get Rs 5,000 each. Several beneficiaries of the scheme lauded the government and the Chief Minister for the financial help at the time of the pandemic. "After the announcement of lockdown, work completely stopped and my family has no other income option. Arvind Kejriwal is the only chief minister in India who has stood beside the auto drivers," said Kamaluddin, an auto driver. Another auto driver, Sailesh Kumar, said Rs 5,000 came as a "great help" and he sent it to his family in Uttar Pradesh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) TORONTO (AP) A gunman killed 16 people in a rampage in Nova Scotia, according to RCMP spokesman Daniel Brien making it the deadliest such attack in Canadian history. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. APs earlier story follows below. A man disguised as a police officer went on a shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, killing 13 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country in 30 years. Officials said the suspected shooter was also dead. A police officer was among those killed. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapique, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) north of Halifax what police called the first scene. Bodies were also found at other locations. Overnight, police began advising residents of the town already on lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic to lock their doors and stay in their basements. Several homes in the area were set on fire as well. Police identified the man believed to be the shooter as Gabriel Wortman, 51, who was thought to live part-time in Portapique. Authorities said he wore a police uniform at one point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser. Authorities believe he may have targeted his first victims but then began attacking randomly. 12 At least 10 killed in shooting rampage in Canada Police first announced that they had arrested Wortman at a gas station in Enfield, outside Halifax, but later said he had died. It was not clear how, and they did not explain further. This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history, said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. RCMP spokesman Daniel Brien confirmed that 13 people had been killed in addition to the suspect. The dead officer was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and a 23-year veteran of the force. Another officer was also injured. Brien said he could not rule out that the death toll could still rise. Already, it is one of the worst shootings in Canadian history. Mass shootings are relatively rare in the country. Canada overhauled its gun-control laws after its worst mass shooting in 1989, when gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreals Ecole Polytechnique college. This weekend's shooting is the deadliest since then. It is now illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. The country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks to purchase a weapon. As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a written statement. While they believe the attack did not begin as random, police did not say what the initial motive was. RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said many of the victims did not know the shooter. That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, Leather said. He added that police believe he acted alone. Leather said they would investigate whether the attack had anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic but no link has been found thus far. At one point, there was an exchange of gunfire between the suspect and police, he said. Late Sunday morning, there were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of the gas station where the suspect died. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-colored SUV was being investigated. Cpl. Lisa Croteau, a spokeswoman with the provincial force, said police received a call about a person with firearms late Saturday night, and the investigation evolved into an active shooting investigation. Christine Mills, a resident of the area, said it had been a frightening night for the small town, with armed officers patrolling the streets. In the morning, helicopters flew overhead searching for the suspect. Its nerve-wracking because you dont know if somebody has lost their mind and is going to beat in your front door," she said. Tom Taggart, a lawmaker who represents the Portapique area in the Municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken. This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable, Taggart said by phone from his home in nearby Bass River. A Gabriel Wortman is listed as a denturist a person who makes dentures in the city of Dartmouth, near Halifax, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP appears to be of the same person seen in video footage being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014. Mills also said that Wortman was known locally as someone who divided his time between a residence in Halifax and a residence in Portapique. Taggart said he didnt know Wortman well, but spoke to him a few times when he telephoned about municipal issues. Taggart described knowing Wortmans lovely big home on Portapique Beach Road. Over the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused great uncertainty around the world. On April 4, the IMF reported that the World Pandemic Uncertainty Index (WPUI) hit a record high in the first quarter of 2020. Indeed, with the rising number of infections, the pandemic-induced uncertainties and consequences are affecting people's lives in all aspects: The global death toll has surpassed 140,000 and is showing limited signs of deceleration, and meanwhile, it is estimated that nearly 25 million jobs could be lost during this period of crisis. Education is no exception. According to UNESCO, 191 countries implemented country-wide school and other educational institution closures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. The massive closures have affected around 91% of students on an unprecedented scale. It is worth noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the traditional mode of teaching face-to-face interactions and has brought about a prospective model for educational systems around the world. As the first country to implement social distancing, China made an immediate and decisive move that resulted in educational disruptions. It is reported by the Ministry of Education that as of April 3, over 1,450 Chinese colleges and universities had started the spring semester online, and the number of home-schooled students reached 270 million. As the pandemic swept the world, more countries, such as South Korea, Italy, and the USA, all turned to online instruction to minimize the impact of the pandemic on education. In China, the primary reason that classes can resume at a rapid pace is the development of educational apps and online platforms in recent years. Teachers can choose either collaboration platforms that support live-video communication or shoot video classes in advance for students with no real-time access to the internet. Shortly after, live stream classes became the adopted norm by schools and universities on a national scale. The Ministry of Education stated that the use of e-learning is phenomenal not only in scale and scope but also in depth. For one thing, the impressive practice sets an excellent example for other countries, pioneering a global move; for another, it proves how modern technology alters the way students are educated and encourages further research and development of educational technology to innovate and recreate virtual communities between students and teachers. School closures and distance learning, at the same time, present challenges for both teachers and students. Despite many efforts to bridge the information gap, the educational disruptions uncover the digital divide and could make this problem even worse. For example, rural students with no access to the internet and television might be left behind under this new model. When e-learning becomes the sole solution to deliver knowledge, the existing divide could be widened, further deepening education inequality. Also, the quality of teaching becomes heavily dependent on uncertain factors, such as a stable connection to the internet, technical skills, and teachers might find it inconvenient to provide detailed instructions as much as before, let alone other learning opportunities. In fact, online instruction as an alternative teaching mode has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Many Chinese start-ups focus on AI applications in online courses, and various online educational platforms are launched to replicate the success of after-class tutorial agencies. Moreover, online education is fairly acceptable for tertiary education. The online education platform MOOC has attracted the world's top universities to upload and share resources with students around the world. A wide array of courses is available on MOOC, including literature, history, math, and engineering. Learners can even earn entire degrees without being physically enrolled in a university. Compared with formal instruction, online courses save abundant costs and create a flexible teaching mode homeschooling, especially during a crisis. However, face-to-face teaching is still unparalleled because it offers sufficient communication between students and teachers. The upside to this development is that although online teaching is just a temporary solution to make the transition, it gives us a chance to revisit and reconsider the current educational systems. As an educator commented, technology and the internet are necessary for learning in the 21st century. Indeed, a single teaching mode is not the case to cultivate more talents and fuel sustainable development, and again, teaching requires technology to let students learn out of campus. Technical difficulties or the imbalances brought by technologies are the main obstacles that need to be resolved: a high-level interactive and collaborative platform is required, and the digital divide should be eliminated at all costs. Admittedly, technology and the internet cannot wipe out educational inequalities, but more efforts should be made to strengthen scientific and technological innovations to provide favorable conditions for both students and teachers. Besides, schools should attempt to get students accustomed to diverse teaching methods, and more importantly, help them foster good study habits leastways, students can concentrate on what they learn without a "traditional" teacher standing beside them. It is still too early to predict how the future of the educational system would look like. Yet, the pandemic has undoubtedly affected the current teaching style in a sweeping manner and given educators around the world ample time and space to think about the alternative educational models. Mathew Wong is an assistant professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the Education University of Hong Kong. Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn. If you would like to contirbute, please contact us at opinion@china.org.cn. For this 28-year-old who lost his father to COVID-19, the trauma continued even after the tragedy as the family searched in vain for an ambulance to take the body to the local crematorium. The education sector professional, who was also tested positive later but was discharged after subsequent reports came negative, spoke to PTI about the family's ordeal. "My happy family lost our head all of a sudden earlier this month. Within 48 hours of his death, three of our family members also tested coronavirus positive," he said. "It was certainly a shock to us which led us to fear this deadly pandemic. We have recovered, but in the last fortnight, we saw this fear in the eyes of everyone who has met us," he said. After returning from Mumbai, his 58-year-old father, an employee of a leading public sector bank in the financial capital, had isolated himself in a room in the house despite not having any symptoms associated with coronavirus,, he said. "However, he was later admitted to a private hospital here to check higher sugar levels and related complications. The hospital advised us to move him to a COVID-19 designated hospital. He was then shifted to the Government Medical College Hospital," he said. He died days later, after reports of his swab test confirmed he was coronavirus positive. "After my father's swab was taken, he was worried as he could feel that there was no recovery and that would be my last conversation with him," the man said. "No ambulance was ready to carry my fathers body to the crematorium. We somehow managed it and when we reached the crematorium, we saw that the person on duty there hadn't made complete arrangements. He guided us in the last rites from a distance as he was too apprehensive," he said. The man said the family then received call from health officials to get tested at the hospital. "Our swabs were not taken that day and we were ignored the next day too. We then contacted Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope and all of a sudden the material to take our swabs was made available," he said. "The day before we gave our swabs made us realise how COVID-19 has terrified people. Neighbours closed their doors after seeing us and hesitated to talk to us. That day we did not have even wheat flour to eat or water to drink," he said. The man, his wife and his elder brother were tested coronavirus positive in a span of 24 hours. Subsequent reports came out negative, said the man, who along with his wife and brother, was discharged from the hospital on Monday after the mandatory 14-day quarantine. "People have a lot of misunderstanding about the treatment. I clear these misunderstandings as much as possible when speaking to others on phone," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shelley Davies waits for her delivery at Plants and Friends./Douglas Zimmerman/SFGate SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) The number of confirmed COVID-19 coronavirus cases as of Sunday at Laguna Honda Hospital stands at 19, up from 14 cases on April 5, San Francisco officials announced. Fifteen of the confirmed cases are staff members and four are residents. Of the 15 staff members, 11 have had patient care duties. "We expect more cases of COVID-19 in the Laguna Honda community, among staff and residents, because the virus is now spreading throughout the Bay Area," San Francisco officials said in an update. In response to a request from the city, the California Department of Public Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have sent skilled personnel to Laguna Honda, including infection control nurses, infectious disease physicians and epidemiologists. MORE : Experts question results of startling Santa Clara coronavirus antibody study The hospital is under a protective quarantine order issued by the city on March 25. 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. My attention has been drawn to an article, purported to have been written by the Communication Bureau of Mr. John Kumah, headlined "Sponsored smear campaign against John Kumah", which sought to link me with a criminal act. Ordinarily, I would not respond to the spurious claims and untruths contained in there, but no, I am not going to play dead. If the thinking of Mr Kumah and his team is that, they can frighten me, then they should have a rethink - they are making a big mistake. I have nothing against anybody, will not dig dirt and malign people just because the political views or position they take are inconsistent with mine. I want Mr Kumah and his team to get this straight, that I have not authored any fake document and would never ever do that. There was this forwarded message I received on my phone, containing a list of people, said to have benefitted from NEIP financial support and surprisingly, I found my name right in there. Naturally, it should be expected that I will ask questions, especially when I have not been given any such support from the Program, and I did just that. Mr. Kumah and his team are quick to accuse the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ejisu, for coming into my defence but conveniently refused to tell everybody that the complainant in the alleged "fake news publication case" is neither a member of the NEIP Management nor Board and does not work with the NEIP. He belongs to his election campaign team. The article said, I had been put before a court of competent jurisdiction. I want to find out from Mr Kumah and his team, which court was that, when did I make the appearance, who was the trial court judge and what happened. I am inclined to believe that the trial proceedings were held in the bedroom of Mr Kumah, where he acted as the judge, prosecutor and complainant. Telling untruths about other people you disagree with is simply wrong, ugly and not a noble thing to do by anybody. Signed Nana Osei Bonsu Former parliamentarian and Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Mohammad Salim on Monday said government documents revealed that the authorities collected the swab samples of a person who was cremated a day ago. Salim said the incident happened at the Malda Medical College and Hospital where a man, named Nepal Barman, who was suspected to be a patient of coronavirus, died on April 12 and was cremated the same day. However, documents showed his swab samples were collected on April 12. How can the government collect samples of a man who was cremated a day ago? How is that possible? Salim said. He further alleged that the West Bengal government, led by Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, was suppressing facts in terms of coronavirus cases and deaths. Salim, who uploading documents/medical reports on Twitter to substantiate his claim, said, India is already lagging behind in testing, but the deplorable TMC government is now hiding the #COVID19 cases. The crematorium report of a Maldah resident says he died on April 12, but his negative COVID-19 test report says his sample was collected on April 13. India is already lagging behind in testing but the deplorable TMC government is now hiding the #COVID19 cases. The crematorium report of a Maldah resident says he died on 12th April but his negative COVID19 test report says his sample was collected on 13th April. pic.twitter.com/2USV9JFove Md Salim (@salimdotcomrade) April 20, 2020 A section of BJP leaders in the state has also accused the Trinamool Congress-led government of suppressing the real crisis. Earlier in the day, the Centre said it has constituted six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to assess the enforcement of lockdown norms in the states of West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan. Soon after, Banerjee asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to share the criteria for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". Meanwhile, BJP leader Swapan Dasgupta thanked the PM and Union Home Minister for sending teams to investigate the alarming state of affairs in West Bengal with fudged data and secret cremation of bodies. Several BJP leaders have demanded that the government come out with regular bulletins like what is being done in other states. Recently, BJPs IT cell chief Amit Malviya said Banerjees government is trying to hide facts. What is Mamata Banerjee hiding? No medical bulletin from the Bengal government on 2nd, 3rd and 5th Apr. Curiously, number of COVID-19 related deaths missing in the bulletin released on 4th. Read this along with Mamata admins diktat on a Committee deciding reason for COVID deaths, he wrote on Twitter. Few days ago, the state police lodged an FIR against BJP MP Subhas Sarkar after he alleged that the government is trying to suppress the number of COVID-19 cases in West Bengal. This was after a controversy broke out over deaths of two patients who were admitted at Bankura Sammilani Medical College and Hospital on April 12. Sarkar said, the deceaseds swab samples were sent for examination, but before the tests results came, the local administration cremated the bodies without handing over the same to their family members. A people smuggler who doused his human cargo in bleach in a bid to avoid detection has been jailed. Three Albanian men wearing clothing stained with bleach were found hidden in a trailer by Border Force officers. They needed medical treatment before they could be handed over to authorities, the Home Office said on Monday. Photo issued by the Home Office of Romanian national Costel Nicuta with bleach on his arms A photo issued by the Home Office of people in a special compartment in a trailer Romanian national Costel Nicuta, 42, was arrested by Border Force officers at the Channel Tunnel entrance in Coquelles, France, on February 27. He was charged with assisting unlawful immigration into the UK and remanded in custody. On Thursday April 16 he appeared for a pre-trial hearing at Canterbury Crown Court by video link and pleaded guilty. He was immediately sentenced to three years and four months in prison, the Home Office announced on Monday. Border police found a strong smell of bleach and Nicuta also had some on his hoodie. Smugglers often try to disguise the smell of their illicit cargo in order to avoid detection from sniffer dogs. Chris Philp, minister for immigration compliance, said: 'We are working around the clock with law enforcement and international partners to make sure that people smugglers face the full force of the law. Romanian national Costel Nicuta who has been sentenced to three years and four months imprisonment after assisting unlawful immigration into the UK A trafficked person in a hide with bleach on their trousers. A people smuggler who doused his human cargo in bleach in a bid to avoid detection has been jailed 'This was a horrendous attempt to try and smuggle people into the UK illegally. 'I hope Nicuta's imprisonment sends a clear message - anyone who engages in this kind of criminality will be caught and brought before the courts.' The men were found inside a purpose-built compartment on the trailer's roof. A second ward for Covid-19 patients has been set up at Wexford General Hospital ahead of a predicted spike in cases of the virus. Inside the hospital, St Mary's Ward is now to become the second specialised ward, following on from St Bridget's Ward, to deal with coronavirus cases, while the former Medical Assessment Unit is in the process of being prepared to create additional intensive care unit spaces, which will become functional this week. Hospital management have said that the initial Covid-19 unit at St Bridget's Ward and the specialised Respiratory Assessment Unit (RAU) are working very well at the moment and staff are doing a great job when it comes to taking all necessary precautions. Last week, General Manager at the hospital, Lilly Byrnes expressed concerns that the number of people attending the Emergency Department were way down and pointed out that if people were in genuine need, they should still attend the hospital. The specially established Pod at the Emergency Department is 'successfully selecting referrals to the Emergency Department and to the RAU, and is proving a great help to completely separating patients for their assessment. In addition to St Bridget's and St Mary's wards being commandeered for Covid patients, work is currently ongoing to prepare additional beds in Ely House in Ardcavan. Similarly what are termed 'step-down facilities' are available in Gorey District Hospital for patients who have recovered from the virus but need additional care before they are discharged home. It's also been noted that after patients are discharged, there is a process in place to support them for the early days of recovering post-Covid. Issuing a rallying message to staff, hospital management noted that the number of cases diagnosed in Co Wexford remains quite low and is consistent with other counties outside of the major urban areas which are experiencing far higher numbers. Staff were praised for working together so effectively in the face of this major threat and for adapting so quickly to the new measures put in place to ensure the hospital is in the best possible position to respond. Over the past week, the hospital has welcomed several new employees, as well as retired colleagues who have returned to ensure that the hospital is well staffed in the event of a spike. Again, the people of Wexford are asked to do their part and adhere to all of the guidelines circulated by the government and the HSE - mainly, continuing to wash hands thoroughly and to avoid all unnecessary contact for the next few weeks. Wang Quanzhang's wife, Li Wenzu, and the wives of 3 other Chinese human rights lawyers criticize the police of Linyi city in front of the police station on Aug. 31, 2019. (Screenshot/Li Wenzus Twitter) US Calls on Beijing to Grant Freedom of Movement to Chinese Rights Lawyer WASHINGTONThe United States on April 20 called on the Chinese communist regime to allow freedom of movement to prominent rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang, who has been released after five years of unjust detention, the U.S. State Department said in a statement. We remain very concerned about reports of his declining physical and mental health, and of his mistreatment in prison, the State Department said, adding that it continued to call on Beijing for the release of all those unjustly detained and that Washington remained concerned by Chinas weak rule of law, arbitrary detentions, and torture in custody. A Chinese court in January 2019 had imprisoned the prominent rights lawyer for 4 1/2 years for subversion of state power, after he was tried a month before in a hearing that rights groups had called a sham. Wang Quanzhang was detained in 2015 and sentenced on Jan. 28, 2019. (Courtesy Wangs family) Wang, who had taken on cases deemed sensitive by Chinese authorities, such as accusations of police torture, had gone missing in August 2015 amid a sweeping crackdown on rights activists and lawyers. Tensions between Washington and Beijing have escalated over the past month over the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus outbreak, which originated in China late last year and has since infected more than 2.3 million people around the world. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has repeatedly accused the Chinese regime of attempting to cover up the spread of the outbreak in its early days and failing to share accurate data about the scale of the cases. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Bloomberg) Mon, April 20, 2020 17:40 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd3177d3 2 World Wuhan-coronavirus,wuhan,China,laboratory,bio-security,COVID-19,pandemic,global-crisis,health Free A top Wuhan laboratory official has denied any role in spreading the new coronavirus, in the most high profile response from a facility at the center of months of speculation about how the previously unknown animal disease made the leap to humans. Yuan Zhiming, director of the Wuhan National Biosafety Laboratory, hit back at those promoting theories that the virus had escaped from the facility and caused the outbreak in the central Chinese city. There is absolutely no way that the virus originated from our institute, Yuan said in an interview Saturday with the state-run China Global Television Network. Yuan rejected theories that the yet-to-be identified Patient Zero for Covid-19 had contact with the institute, saying none of its employees, retirees or student researchers were known to be infected. He said US Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, and Washington Post journalists were among those deliberately leading people to mistrust the facility and its P4 top-level-security pathogen lab. US President Donald Trump again fanned speculation about the origins of the virus at a Saturday news conference, in which he said China should face consequences if it was knowingly responsible for the outbreak. The US president has at times referred to the disease as a Chinese virus, a term he said he embraced after a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman tweeted an unsubstantiated theory about US Army athletes introducing the pathogen to Wuhan. What we know is that the ground zero for this virus was within a few miles of that lab, Peter Navarro, a Trump trade adviser, said Sunday on Fox News. If you simply do an Occams razor approach that the simplest explanation is probably the most likely, I think its incumbent on China to prove that it wasnt that lab. The US-China blame game has helped fuel scrutiny of the Wuhan lab, which was studying bat-borne coronaviruses like the one that causes Covid-19. US diplomats sent back warnings about safety procedures in the lab after visits two years ago, the Washington Post reported in an April 14 commentary, citing diplomatic cables. They dont have any evidence on this, what they rely on is only their guess, Yuan told CGTN on Saturday. I hope such a conspiracy theory will not affect cooperation among scientists around the world. Earlier accidents The P4 lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology began operations in January 2018 and was the first of its kind built in mainland China. It was designed with help from France as part of a joint research initiative focused on infectious diseases and equipped for the highest level of bio-containment, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. The first project undertaken at the lab was to research Xinjiang hemorrhagic fever, a tick-borne virus with a fatality rate of as much as 50% in humans, the report said. The facility has been the center of multiple conspiracy theories, including one thats circulated on Chinese social media since late January that the new coronavirus escaped from the lab. Multiple posts have cited previous blunders by Chinese scientists as evidence that similar research projects havent been executed properly. Among them was a 2017 report by the Wuhan Evening News that said Tian Junhua, a researcher at the Wuhan Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, had to quarantine himself for 14 days after accidentally coming into direct contact with bat urine during a 2012 research trip. Social-media users also cited a 2004 accident at a national lab in Beijing during experiments with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-related coronavirus that led to infections -- and one death. Five top officials at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention were punished at the time, according to China Daily. Some countries including Australia have urged an independent review of how the pandemic came to infect more than 2.4 million people and kill more than 166,000. The issues around the coronavirus are issues for independent review and I think that is important that we do that, in fact Australia will absolutely insist, Foreign Minister Marise Payne told ABC Australias Insiders program Sunday. While many Republicans have emphasized the Chinese origins of a virus that has killed more than 40,000 Americans, Cotton has been among the most vocal urging an investigation into the labs role. On Friday, he told Fox News that circumstantial evidence was stacking up pretty quickly that this virus may have originated in those labs in Wuhan. Although the first known cluster centered on a wet market in Wuhan, the ultimate origins of the virus remain a mystery and Chinese officials have raised the possibility that the virus didnt begin in the country at all. Meanwhile, General Mark Milley, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, has endorsed studies that have shown the virus evolved naturally, as opposed to being genetically engineered. Shi Zhengli -- a researcher at the institute known as Bat Woman for her expeditions in bat caves -- said in a February social media post that she would swear on my life that the virus had nothing to do with the lab. On Feb. 19, the Wuhan Institute of Virology issued a letter to staff, saying it received its first sample of the virus from Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital on Dec. 30, a day before Chinese authorities first disclosed the outbreak to the world. Researchers finished gene-sequencing in 72 hours and submitted its findings to the national virus database by Jan. 9, the institute said, adding we have a clear conscience looking back on what weve gone through. The Willoughby Hills Police Department was involved in a police chase that resulted in the suspects car crash and death of the passenger within the suspects vehicle on the night of April 18. A statement released from the Willoughby Hills Police Chief Christopher Collins detail that an officer initially spotted a silver Corvette on Interstate Route 90 heading eastbound, near the 187 mile marker, speeding in excess of 100 miles an hour. The officer gave chase as the suspect continued speeding, turning onto Interstate Route 271. The officer activated his emergency equipment and a short time later the violater moved right across the lanes and exited at Wilson Mills, The Willoughby Hills Police statement continued. The driver lost control of the car striking the large signal control box and burst into flames. The report states that the car then continued through the intersection before rolling to a rest along a wooded embankment along the side of the road. Upon approaching the car, a 59 year old passenger from East Cleveland was found within, alive but on fire. The responding officer pulled the person from the burning vehicle, receiving burns of his own in the process. The victim and responding officer were then transported to Hillcrest Hospital for treatment. The passenger who had been trapped within the burning car was transferred to Clevelands Metro Hospital via lifeflight but was later pronounced dead. His identity is being withheld pending notification of the family. An on-scene investigation was held which discovered that the driver, a 41 year old Richmond Heights resident, had fled from the crash on foot. He was found later after an unidentified associate dropped him off at Hillcrest Hospital hours later. As this is an ongoing investigation, the drivers name has not been released at this time. The news release states that the crash scene is being investigated by the Highland Heights Police Department and the SPAN Regional Crash Team. Mayfield Village and Richmond Heights Police Departments, Fire Departments from Highland Heights and Willoughby Hills and the Ohio State Highway Patrol provided mutual aid at the scene. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Monday decided to place herself under quarantine after some journalists with whom she had interacted recently tested positive for the coronavirus infection. At least 53 media persons from Mumbai have tested positive for coronavirus, a civic official said earlier in the day. In a video message, the mayor said that she had attended the special COVID-19 testing camp at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai last week but tested negative for the infection. "I and my driver tested negative (for COVID-19). However, the test reports of the journalists with whom I interacted in the past four-five days have came positive, and hence as a precautionary measure I have decided to quarantine myself at the official residence at Rani Baug," said Pednekar. Pednekar said that she would perform her duties while staying at home. She said all the staffers in her office will undergo COVID-19 test on the fifth and 14th day as per the new protocol. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) (Newser) Virgin chief Richard Branson is asking the British government for a bailoutand defending himself against critics who say a billionaire who doesn't pay British taxes shouldn't be asking for help. In an open letter to Virgin employees, Branson said he was asking for a government loan to save his airline, not a handout, the BBC reports. "It wouldnt be free money and the airline would pay it back," said Branson. He wrote the letter after his initial proposal for a $620 million loan was rejected by Britain's Treasury, which told him to explore other options first. Branson, believed to have a fortune of at least $6 billion, says he has already committed more than $250 million to saving jobs at Virgin businesses including airlines Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia. story continues below "I've seen lots of comments about my net worthbut that is calculated on the value of Virgin businesses around the world before this crisis, not sitting as cash in a bank account ready to withdraw," he wrote to employees. Branson also owns and resides on his own Caribbean island, Necker Island in the tax-free British Virgin Islands. "There have been comments about my home," he wrote. "Joan and I did not leave Britain for tax reasons but for our love of the beautiful British Virgin Islands." He said he would use the island as collateral against loans, but later clarified that he meant commercial loans, not government assistance, the Guardian reports. (Read more Richard Branson stories.) After five weeks without setting foot on land due to coronavirus restrictions, 168 passengers from a luxury Italian cruise ship disembarked in Barcelona on Monday, ending a highly unusual world trip. Since the luxury liner set sail on January 5 from the northern Italian city of Venice on a round-the-world tour, not a single case of coronavirus has been found on board. With some 1,800 passengers, the 12-deck Costa Deliziosa docked early Monday to allow Spanish passengers to disembark on its penultimate stop before heading back to Italy. The 300-metre ship entered port after receiving the green light from Madrid, just days after French officials refused to let it disembark some 460 passengers at the southern port of Marseille. "The boat has arrived. All the Spanish nationals have disembarked and are on their way home," said a spokesperson for vessel owner Costa Cruises. Those authorised to leave disembarked in small groups and were bussed to the city centre, said an AFP correspondent who witnessed the vessel's arrival. In a statement, the Spanish government representative in Barcelona said other European passengers had been offered the opportunity to leave with "other means of transport made available for them to reach their home countries". Among them was a French pensioner who said he had been advised to disembark in Barcelona. "They told us that the French government had suggested we disembark here and that they would transport us to (the southern French city of) Montpellier," Patrick Contini, 70, told AFP. "It's a relief. If we'd had to go to Genoa, it would have been a lot harder to get home," said Contini, who lives in an area close to the Spanish border. The Costa Deliziosa is now heading for the northern Italian port of Genoa where it will dock on April 22 and where all remaining passengers and the nearly 900 crew members will disembark, a Costa statement said. The cruise liner's world tour was thrown into disarray by the coronavirus crisis which has seen multiple nations shuttering ports and closing borders in a bid to slow the spread of the deadly virus. At the end of February, Costa cancelled all of the ship's planned stopovers in Asia. The last time anyone was allowed to disembark was on March 14 when the ship was in Australia, but since then no-one has set foot on land although the vessel has made a number of technical stops. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) CLEVELAND -- When you lose the popular vote in six out of seven presidential elections, its more than a coincidence. Its a trend. For Republicans, desperate times call for desperate measures -- especially given the near certainty that, no matter who wins the presidency Nov. 3, the nations voters will run that popular vote losing streak to seven of eight. Blessed with more creativity than conscience, some GOP leaders may be tempted by another way to defy the relentless change in the nations demographics and win again this year. At its heart this strategy -- glimmerings of which are already visible -- reflects an abandonment of any belief in the sanctity of free, fair and open elections. Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown knows a plot when he sees it. They will do everything they can to suppress the vote, Brown told me Monday. Clearly, somebody has told [President] Trump if everybody votes, Republicans lose. The GOPs first attempt to prevent poor and minority voters from participating in democracy was in Wisconsin, where Republicans used every dirty trick short of a poll tax to drive down turnout in the states early April primary election. With voters fearful of the deadly coronavirus, the entire Republican establishment, with an assist from the U.S. Supreme Court, conspired in opposing an extension of that states presidential primary, intentionally creating Election Day chaos on a day when many poll workers understandably stayed home. In Democrat-dominated Milwaukee, most polling places werent even open. The unstated purpose of this plot was to guarantee the re-election of a Trump-backed, conservative member of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, who was opposed by a liberal Democrat. Few gave the Democrat a chance except those voters who put their health at risk and spent hours waiting to vote. When they counted the votes April 13, the incumbent Republican got clobbered. Bad sign for the GOP, as Wisconsin is one of the Big Four at the top of the 2020 list of battleground states, along with Florida, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Even before the GOPs gigantic Wisconsin failure, President Donald Trump made baseless allegations about the dangers of mail voting, claiming that it increases fraud. Mail-in voting is horrible, Trump said April 7. Its corrupt. If President Trump says it, millions believe it. And it doesnt matter one bit if its unsupported by a single shred of evidence. There is no real vote fraud, countered Brown, Ohios secretary of state and chief election officer from 1983 through 1990. Nobodys going to try to vote multiple times. Its too risky. You could go to prison for it. After winning the presidency in 2016, but losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by more than three million votes, Trump repeatedly insisted he won both the Electoral College and the popular vote, attributing the discrepancy to the millions of people who voted illegally. Days after taking office, President Trump appointed a commission to weed out the massive vote fraud. In the summer of 2018, the commission was disbanded, finding precious little evidence of the widespread cheating Trump claimed existed. In February 2017, an investigation by Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted, a Republican who is now lieutenant governor, found 82 non-U.S. citizens who had illegally voted in one or more recent elections. Ohio has more than six million registered voters. If there is a Trump-led effort to restrict access to mail voting prior to the Nov. 3 election, it is unlikely Ohio will be a target of it, as Gov. Mike DeWine and Secretary of State Frank LaRose seem committed to protecting Ohios fairly generous access to absentee mail voting. Ohioans now have 28 days of in-person and no-fault absentee voting. Should coronavirus health risks exist as the Nov. 3 election nears, LaRose said his office is preparing for those types of contingencies with possible changes that would make it easier for Ohioans to vote without fear of losing their lives. Asked about vote fraud, LaRose deviated from the White House script with some ad-libbed honesty. Voting fraud is extremely rare in Ohio and we work hard to keep it rare, he said. We have significant safeguards in place with the way we do vote by mail in Ohio. If Team Trump leaves Ohio alone, most of its anti-democracy efforts are likely to focus on the four big battleground states mentioned above, plus North Carolina and Arizona. The sobering truth for Republicans of all stripes is that as long as their party continues to appeal primarily to white voters, it is an endangered species. The last Brookings Institute report on Census Bureau population projections, issued in 2018, concluded the country will become minority white in 2045. That gives the GOP a quarter century to either abandon its current strategy or slide into extinction. In his best-selling book, Why Were Polarized, journalist Ezra Klein writes, Republicans know that their coalition is endangered, buffeted by demographic headwinds and an aging base, and that has injected an almost manic urgency into their strategy. Long term, the GOPs prospects are incredibly bleak. Given the infatuation millions have for President Trump, the short-term is more promising. Just because Trump cant win a fair fight Nov. 3 doesnt mean he cant win. Brent Larkin was The Plain Dealers editorial director from 1991 until his retirement in 2009. To reach Brent Larkin: blarkin@cleveland.com Have something to say about this topic? * Send a letter to the editor, which will be considered for print publication. * Email general questions, comments or corrections regarding this opinion article to Elizabeth Sullivan, director of opinion, at esullivan@cleveland.com. PARIS, April 19 (Reuters) - The coronavirus situation in France is improving "slowly but surely", French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday, while warning that the health crisis was far from over. Philippe said there were signals that pressures on hospitals were easing, after the number of people in intensive care dropped for several days in a row. France, which has recorded close to 20,000 deaths as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, has been in virtual lockdown for nearly five weeks, but is due to start easing some confinement measures from May 11. Philippe said that an economic crisis was only just starting as a result of the outbreak, adding that it would be "brutal". (Reporting by Sarah White; Editing by Alexander Smith) Beverly Bev Breniser, 72, of Lititz, PA, and Avalon, NJ, passed away on April 19, 2020, at Luther Acres due to the effects of dementia. A quote about another admired woman clearly describes Breniser as well: Towards the end of her life, dementia robbed her of her ability to speak, but it never concealed the woman who abided within. She was the cherished wife of Darryl Breniser. Both were longtime members of the USTA and the Pennsylvania Harness Horsemens Association. Darryl serves on the PHHA board of directors and sits on the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission. They both have been involved in Standardbred racing for 25 years. They especially enjoyed travelling to the Pennsylvania tracks and fairs where their horses were racing. Her favourite was Billy Bathgate, who raced at Rosecroft Raceway in the mid-1990s. Breniser was a committed educator and began her career as a sixth-grade teacher before becoming a program supervisor for the gifted and talented students in both Lancaster and Lebanon counties. She then returned to Conestoga Valley where she began her career as a middle school principal. Upon her retirement, she accepted leadership of the Conestoga Valley Education Foundation where she served as executive director from 2004 until 2018. She was the primary organizer of all fundraising events over the years with the Derby Day Party being especially successful as a major foundation fundraiser. Outside of her dedication to education, Breniser was a faithful member of Allegheny Lutheran Church where she served on the church council and participated in the church choir and bell choir. A memorial service celebrating her life will be held at a later date due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Memorial contributions may be made to Harness Horse Youth Foundation Scholarship Fund, 2711 Friar Tuck Road, Anderson, IN 46013. Condolences may be sent to Darryl at 300 St. Mark Avenue, Apartment 1112, Lititz, PA 17543. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Bev Breniser. (USTA) With no let upin COVID-19 cases in some districts of Uttar Pradesh, the administration in Lucknow, Agra and Firozabad have decided against giving any kind of relaxation during the continued lockdown. Reports from other districts in the state on giving relaxation were awaited. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during a video conference with respective district magistrates on Sunday night, had authorised them to take a call on giving relaxation from Monday after assessing the prevailing conditions there. He directed authorities in 19 districts with 10 or more coronavirus cases to take extra precautions. District officials have been asked to work out the modalities regarding opening of specified industries, banks and other units in the remaining 56 districts that have reported less than 10 coronavirus cases. Lucknow District Magistrate Abhishek Prakash said since the state capital has a large number of hotspots and COVID-19 patients, it is required that more alertness is maintained. Therefore, COVID-19 protocol and lockdown will continue as before, he said. In view of the said orders, only emergency services are functioning as before, an official spokesman said, adding that state secretariat is functioning partially with some conditions In Firozabad, district authorities are strictly maintaining the lockdown and the hotspot areas are completely sealed off with no new activity being allowed anywhere from Monday. Similarly, there is also no relaxation in in Agra with police in large numbers patrolling the streets and lanes. The government has directed that eleven industries includingsteel, refineries, cement, chemicals, fertilizers, garments (excluding apparel), foundries, paper, tyre, common effluent treatment plants and sugar mills can start operations with certain conditions. However, only the manufacturing and industrial units havebeen permitted to function and not their headquarters or administrative offices. Chief Secretary R.K. Tiwari has issued a detailed advisory for these industries, asking them to take adequate precautions for thesafety of their staff. In case an industry or unit fails to adhere to the government's rules as may be updated from time to time, its license to operate can be cancelled, the advisory stated. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Coronation Street star Bill Roache claims that Coronation Street will NEVER go off air amid fears the show will run out of new episodes amid the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking to Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain alongside his daughter Verity on Monday, the 87-year-old soap stalwart said: 'I gather we have quite a while. 'It was going out six times a week and now rationed to three. I think we had about two months [already filmed]. So I think about four months of new stuff.' Scroll down for video Hope: Coronation Street star Bill Roache tokd GMB on Monday show will NEVER go off air even though ITV will run out of new episodes in FOUR MONTHS No worries: Bill, who plays Ken Barlow in the soap said the channel would revisit old episodes rather than let the show come off air entirely (programme still) Addressing fears that the show could come off the air if the cast and crew are unable to film more scenes, Bill said that classic episodes could be revisited. Speaking from his home in Wilmslow, he said: 'Weve got 60 years to draw on so I dont think well be going of air even when they run out. 'Plenty they could be showing and doing. I think probably three more months.' Iconic: Bill has appeared in the show since it began 60 years ago - pictured in 1983 Oh no: Bill appeared on the show alongside his daughter Verity and said he will celebrate his 88th birthday in lockdown on Saturday He said of the show: 'Weve got 60 years to draw on so I dont think well be going of air even 'when they run out. Bill has played street favourite Ken Barlow since the show began 60 years ago and will celebrate his 88th birthday in lockdown on Saturday. His words come after his co-star Beverley Callard claimed that soap bosses are 'panicking' about running out of episodes during quarantine. The ITV soap halted production last month just hours before Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the country in lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic. And the actress, 63, who plays Liz McDonald, says the soap's producers and writers are fearful that their reserved set of episodes could be used up before restrictions are lifted. 'Panic': His Corrie co-star Beverley Callard has revealed that soap bosses are 'panicking' about running out of episodes during COVID-19 lockdown Beverley and her co-star Jennie McAlpine who pays Fiz Brown opened up about the problem during an interview on BBC Radio 5 Live. Jennie, 36, said on the programme: 'I keep putting it on at half eight, but then I think, "Oh no, Corrie's not on". 'Theyve limited our Corrie output now, so theres only three on instead of six.' She added: 'I know people might be missing those three episodes but at least it means we've got a bit more time. 'I know our bosses are working really hard every day assessing the situation.' Beverley then gave her own opinion, chiming in: 'And theyre panicking like mad aren't they? But, of course, you can't not.' Suspended: The ITV soap halted production last month hours before Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the country in lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic Episode drama: Beverley and her co-star Jennie McAlpine who pays Fiz Brown opened up about the problem during an interview on BBC Radio 5 Live Thoughts: 'I know people might be missing those three episodes but at least it means we've got a bit more time. 'I know our bosses are working really hard every day assessing the situation' She continued: 'Even if it does come to an end and we run out of episodes, the writers will be going mad, they'll be excited to create new storylines and everything. 'Because we've got a massive team of writers, so theyll keep it going.' MailOnline have contacted representatives of Coronation Street for comment. Amid the suspension of filming, Coronation Street, as well as Emmerdale, have been cut down to just three episodes a week, airing just one episode on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Worried: Beverley then gave her own opinion, chiming in: 'And theyre panicking like mad aren't they? But, of course, you can't not' Filming for Coronation Street was halted last month just hours before the government placed the UK in lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, with an end date to restrictions yet to be confirmed. It comes after their fellow Corrie star Andy Whyment warned the soap could go 'off air' unless filming recommences by June. The actor, who plays Kirk Sutherland, admitted the soap potentially has until the beginning of July until they run out of episodes to broadcast. Off air? It comes after their fellow Corrie star Andy Whyment warned the soap could go 'off air' unless filming recommences by June Speaking on the United Podcast, the actor said: 'I think we've got until the beginning of July in the can. 'So we need to get back hopefully by the middle of June with a bit of luck, otherwise it's going to go off air. 'We've cut down from six episodes a week to three episodes a week, obviously to stay, but hopefully we'll get back.' No more scenes? The actor, who plays Kirk Sutherland, has admitted the soap potentially has until the beginning of July until they run out of episodes to broadcast He continued: 'A lot of the airlines have announced they're going to start flying again mid-June, so I'm presuming if that's going to happen then hopefully we should be able to get back to work with a bit of luck, so fingers crossed.' A Coronation Street representative told MailOnline: 'We have always stated that with the new scheduling pattern we have enough episodes to keep the show on air into the summer. It is too early speculate beyond that.' Coronation Street continues Monday at 7:30pm on ITV. As many as 60,000 patients and staff in 550 nursing homes are to be tested for Covid-19 in a bid to suppress the virus. HSE chief executive Paul Reid said that as of this weekend, there were 248 public and private nursing homes where there was either a confirmed or suspected case of Covid-19. A total of 4,000 tests were to carried out over the weekend, he said. So 60% do not have outbreaks, 40% do, according to Mr Reid. Some 247 of these locations have been supplied with PPE, he added. It was made clear that of the 248 nursing where Covid-19 has been detected, two thirds were private facilities and the remainder were public. There are a total of 27 labs doing testing for the Health Service Executive. Twenty-six are based in Ireland, including hospitals, the National Virus Reference Laboratory and Enfer. He also said that the backlog for Covid-19 testing had been eliminated. There is a zero backlog, he added. They are carrying out about 1,000 lab tests per day, Mr Reid said, with 60% of all tests processed in Ireland and the remainder done in Germany. At the briefing, Dr Colm Henry, HSE chief clinical officer, said he could not say the decision by the chief medical officer not to shut nursing homes at the commencement of the outbreak was a mistake. He did say the decisions are being taken in real-time with what is an unprecedented pandemic where assumptions are evolving constantly, he said. We know much more than we did even a few weeks ago, he said. The primary focus for testing is long-term residential care facilities, reporters were told. Between Saturday and today, 4,000 tests were completed for staff and residents in long-term facilities. In the region of 2,000 tests were carried out yesterday. Of long-term residential care facilities, 354 have no confirmed or suspect Covid-19 cases. In total, 575 registered nursing homes are registered with Hiqa; 455 are private facilities and 120 are public. The briefing heard that out of 70,000 registers of interest from retired health staff, the HSE has recruited and is in the process of offering or offered contracts to 1,500 applicants through the be on call for Ireland process. It comprises 345 nursing and midwives, 280 doctors, and about 280 healthcare assistants among a range of frontline care supports recruited. When pressed, it emerged that just 75 nursing staff have been fully screened and deemed eligible to work. Dr Colm Henry said there are seeing signs of stabilisation in terms of the numbers of new patients being admitted to acute hospitals. He added there is still capacity in ICU units. We are scaling up in anticipation of any surge, Dr Henry added. He said: Our greatest challenge is outbreaks in long-term or residential care settings. NOT since Richard Harris was nominated for an Academy Award in 1991, has another Limerick star touched Oscar glory. Irish-Ethiopian Ruth Negga has this Tuesday lunchtime been announced as one of five nominees for a best actress award at the Oscars. Her fellow nominees are Natalie Portman (Jackie), Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins), Emma Stone (La La Land), and Isabelle Huppert (Elle). Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Kieran O'Hanlon, said he will be writing to her on behalf of the citizens of Limerick to send his congratulations and every best wish for the upcoming ceremony itself. "I was absolutely delighted to hear the news at lunchtime, and all of Limerick is certainly rooting for her. It's great for Limerick - we're on the map now in the film industry, with Troy Studios to set to open in Castletroy, and now we have a second Oscar nominee," he told the Limerick Leader. "Win or lose, I would love to invite her and her family to a mayoral reception in City Hall, when her schedule allows for it," said the Fianna Fail mayor. There will no doubt be celebrations shortly in Dooradoyle in honour of the Loving star, who counts a wide extended family in the citys suburbs. Ger Malone, one of Neggas four uncles in Limerick, where she grew up in her early years, told the Leader today that the news is fantastic. He said that there will be a "quiet celebration" tonight and more to come at the weekend as more family converge back in Limerick. "It's great news for Limerick and it's great news for the family," he said. He said he doubts he'll be attending the Oscars himself on February 26, but theyll be eagerly watching from home, while she enjoys herself with a family representative. Mr Malone said all the family have been delighted to witness her success. Absolutely, were all very proud of her. Shes a hard worker, very committed and deserves every success. She was always a great little actress growing up. Among her cousins in Limerick is Peter Malone, another son of Ger, who has played rugby with Bruff, St Munchin's, Garryowen, Munster, and who is now Munster Rugby's elite player development manager. Her cousin Dave Malone has frequently been her companion of choice as she stepped out on successive red carpets at the Golden Globes, and previously in New York and Cannes. Ruths mother Nora now lives in London, after moving from Limerick, and there are four other aunts and uncles from the Dooradoyle Road, and even more cousins. Negga, an only child, was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where she lived until she was four. Her mother Nora was working in Ethiopia as a nurse when she met Negga's father. Ruths father was due to move to Limerick after them but died in a car accident, when she was just seven. She went to national school in Roxborough, and later spent part of her secondary school at the all-girls Scoil Carmel on OConnell Avenue, which has now closed its door. She moved to London and completing her drama studies at Trinity College Dublin. The former Love/Hate star, 35, who also played Shirley Bassey in an acclaimed BBC drama, is nominated for her role in Loving, which tells the true story of an illegal inter-racial marriage in 1950s Virginia. The couple battled before the Supreme Court in 1967 for their right to live together as husband and wife. Limerick's hellraiser Richard Harris was last nominated for an Oscar in 1991 for The Field, and was earlier nominated for his role in This Sporting Life in 1964. By PTI DHAKA: Bangladesh on Monday reported ten more deaths due to the novel coronavirus, taking the total number of the COVID-19 fatalities in the country to 101, as experts warned that the visible scenario could be the tip of an iceberg in view of the growing number of cases. "The toll now stands at 101 as ten more patients died in the past 24 hours," an official from the directorate general of health services (DHHS) said during a media briefing here on the novel coronavirus situation. DGHSs Additional Director General Professor Nasima Sultana said that 2,779 COVID-19 suspects were examined in the last 24 hours and 492 were tested positive, the highest so far in a single day since the first detection of three simultaneous coronavirus cases in the country on March 8. According to the DGHS tally, the total number of the COVID-19 cases in the country has surged to 2,948. "The situation could be the tip of an iceberg, in view of the number of patients detected compared to the number of cases examined," another senior health official told PTI, preferring anonymity. He suggested further extension of the nationwide shutdown which is due to expire on April 25. He said that with limited healthcare facilities and equipment including ventilators in hospitals Bangladesh could witness a severe situation if the pandemic spreads in a geometric pattern. The official said even some developed western countries were forced to take a tough decision that the elderly COVID-19 victims will not be given ventilators to keep the life saving machine for relatively younger people. "Unless the spread of the virus could be contained by any means, extending shutdowns and enforcing physical distancing, we will have to take identical decisions, the official said. DGHS director Prof.Nazmul Islam Munna said Bangladesh's existing 17 COVID-19 testing labs could examine at least 3,060 people everyday "but we are yet to ensure the optimum use of these facilities" though the number of cases examined was increasing every day. He said hectic efforts were underway as well to increase the number of such labs to 28 across Bangladesh by April end, but the social and religious leaders including public representatives at neighbourhood levels must encourage people to get them tested. "The people should voluntarily come forward for testing whenever someone feels the virus might have infected...both motivation and compulsion can be used as tools to expose them to testing, Munna said. The entire Bangladesh has been declared as a risky area of COVID-19 infection under the country's Infectious Disease (Prevention, Control and Elimination) Act, 2018, according to an order issued by the directorate general of health services (DGHS) on Thursday night. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina warned that the country may face a massive hike in COVID-19 cases in the coming days of April. Bangladesh has suspended prayers for the public at mosques across the country in a bid to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) The Purdue University Airport will get a share of more than $96 million going to assist Hoosier airports. The funding comes from the recently passed Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which was recently passed by Congress and signed by President Trump. More than 65 Indiana airports will get funds from the package. Purdue will get $69,000 in assistance. The airport is the second busiest in the state behind Indianapolis International. More than 117,000 aircraft fly out of Purdue annually. "While the majority of these flights are related to Purdue Polytechnics School of Aviation and Transportation Technology, thousands of other aircraft routinely use the airport to move passengers, cargo, and provide medical transportation services to the Greater Lafayette community," said Adam Baxmeyer, manager of airport operations. "We are thankful for the $69,000 CARES Act grant and are currently determining the best value for these funds to maintain the infrastructure of our important community asset." Airports in Frankfort, Monticello, Kentland, Logansport and Rensselaer also will get assistance. To view funding allocated for each airport, click here. The coronavirus outbreak has brought the travel industry to a near standstill," said U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.). "Federal assistance will keep our airports and aviation industry running, not just for travel, but for the ability to ship food, supplies, and other essential resources. I am proud to announce that the CARES Act has made $96,523,889 available to help Hoosier airports remain operational and maintain employees as we continue to navigate the coronavirus pandemic. [April 20, 2020] AJC Releases Arabic Video on the Holocaust Ahead of Yom HaShoah NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Jewish Committee (AJC) today, ahead of Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day, which takes place tomorrow), released an Arabic-language video about the Holocaust. The video presents the basic facts about the Holocaust, as well as the stories of Muslims and Arabs who played an active role during that dark period. While the video features Nazi collaborators like the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem Haj Amin al-Husseini, an ally of Adolf Hitler's, it also highlights the stories of Righteous Among the Nations, such as King Mohammed V of Morocco, who protected his Jewish subjects, and other Muslims who risked their lives to save Jews. The four-minute video is based entirely on documented facts, maps, photographs, and quotations from primary sources to ensure that its contents cannot be dismissed by those who seek to minimize or deny the Holocaust. It is also being released in English. The video's release follows the January 2020 historic visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau of the most senior delegation of Muslim leaders ever to tour a Nazi death camp, organized and led by AJC and the Muslim World League. "The Holocaust was a cataclysmic event in human history, a unique act of mechanized mass murder visited upon he Jewish people by the Nazis and their allies," said AJC CEO David Harris. "And yet, still today, far too manyincluding in the Arab worlddeny that the Holocaust ever happened or claim that its scope has been exaggerated. This video is meant to present the truth about the Holocaust to millions throughout the Arabic-speaking world in a Jewish voice, speaking their own language." "Only a few months ago, I was privileged to walk through the gates of Auschwitz with an international delegation of senior Muslim religious leaders to bear witness to the horrors of the Holocaust. We created this video in the same spirit of education and remembrance," said Harris. The new video is the third in AJC's highly successful Arabic-language video series, 'An al-Yahud ("About the Jews"), which has thus far reached tens of millions across the Arab world. Launched less than three months ago, the project's Arabic-language Facebook page has over 150,000 followers and its Twitter account has over 50,000. The top locations of the videos' viewers include Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. The previous two videos focused on the origins and beliefs of the Jewish people and the history of Muslim-Jewish relations. 'An al-Yahud is part of AJC's extensive and long-standing engagement with the Arab and Muslim worlds. For more than three decades, AJC leaders have regularly met with Arab and Muslim leaders across the Middle East and North Africa to exchange views on matters of mutual concern, among them the fight against extremism, Muslim-Jewish relations, and deepening ties between Israel and Arab states. In the United States, AJC co-convenes the Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council (MJAC) with the Islamic Society of North America, offering Muslim and Jewish leaders a platform for advocacy on combating hate crimes, religious discrimination, and other domestic issues of common concern. https://www.ajc.org/news/ajc-releases-arabic-video-on-the-holocaust-ahead-of-yom-hashoah View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ajc-releases-arabic-video-on-the-holocaust-ahead-of-yom-hashoah-301043698.html SOURCE American Jewish Committee [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The government is working to safeguard the rice industry, Photo: Le Toan Within four days, Pham Thai Binh, general director of Trung An Hi-tech Farming JSC, sent three proposal letters to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc about rice exports. In the latest one dated April 16, he asked the PM Phuc to allow 300,000 tonnes of rice congested at ports since March 24 to be exported among the quota for April of 400,000 tonnes. According to Binh, the lack of transparency in opening customs declarations on April 12 has ensured a huge loss for the domestic rice industry. Many enterprises successfully opened the declaration but have no rice at ports, while there have been 300,000 tonnes of rice congested at such locations since March 24. If the 300,000 tonnes of rice are kept waiting for export at the ports, Vietnamese rice will continue to lose about VND50 billion ($2.17 million) per day, he wrote. In an April 15 report, the Vietnam Food Association (VFA) recommended that the local authorities need to cancel the entire declaration of businesses if detecting a situation of no goods at ports or making a false declaration. Meanwhile, Nguyen Van Can, general director of the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC), said that it is necessary to consider exporting the available rice at ports that suddenly suffered halts in shipment since March 24 under a government order. According to Can, it is also necessary to study the allocation of rice export quotas on the basis of balancing food security in accordance with the direction of the government. Vu Tien Loc, chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, suggested the government should advance the rice quota for May to facilitate enterprises with goods at ports to export.Mentioning a document that the Ministry of Finance (MoF) sent to the Ministry of Industry and Trade on April 10, which showed that many firms winning the bid have sent refusal letters or not signed contracts for 160,300 out of 178,000 tonnes of rice serving for reservation, Loc said, In the long term, it is necessary to take into account the allocation of reasonable quotas, especially the method of auctioning for rice export quotas. Au Anh Tuan, director of the GDVCs Department of Customs Management Supervision said that among the businesses successfully opening the custom declaration for rice exporting on April 12, there are many winning the bid but not carrying out their commitments. However, there is no regulation that the winning bidders must sign the contract before exporting, he said. Binh from Trung An also suggested that the MoF should buy rice for national reserve at a price of VND10,000 (43 US cents) per kg instead of the current VND9,200 (40 US cents). This is still lower than the lowest price that consumers have paid over the years, he added. Stopping export of rice to reduce price and buying 190,000 tonnes for reservation at the price of 40 US cents per kg with the aim of benefiting the state budget is a method that makes the country poor, because we have exchanged millions of US dollars for farmers and businesses that win the bid but refuse to supply rice. The U.S. Air Force has ended its 16-year mission to keep strategic bombers in Guam to reassure allies and act as a deterrent against adversaries in the Pacific. Air Force Global Strike Command announced Friday that it is transitioning to a new model, ending the continuous bomber presence (CBP) mission in favor of forward-deploying bombers to the Indo-Pacific. "U.S. strategic bombers will continue to operate in the Indo-Pacific, to include Guam, at the timing and tempo of our choosing," the command said in a statement. The news was first reported by The Drive. Related: Air Force Planning Shorter, More Frequent Strategic Bomber Rotations "We will maximize all opportunities to train alongside our allies and partners to build interoperability and bolster our collective ability to support a free and open Indo-Pacific. We continually reassess our overseas posture and adjust to meet the requirements of the Joint Force and combatant commanders, as well as our treaty commitments," AFGSC officials said. The announcement comes days after a handful of B-52 Stratofortress bombers joined nine other aircraft at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam for a formation known as an "elephant walk." The long-range bombers joined six KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refuelers; an MH-60S Knighthawk helicopter; an Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk; and a Navy MQ-4C Triton for the display, meant to showcase force "readiness and ability to generate combat airpower at a moment's notice," Pacific Air Forces officials said. Aircraft spotters noted the B-52s -- with call signs SEEYA01-05 -- returned to the U.S. just days after the demonstration. The B-1B Lancer, B-52 and B-2 Spirit have rotated back and forth to Andersen for more than a decade. The B-1 and B-52 have each held the watch for months-long rotations, while the stealthy B-2 customarily joined its bomber cousins for short-term deployments. In 2018, the B-52 replaced the B-1B in the Pacific. The move marked a significant shift to bring back the B-52H -- which provided a continuous bomber presence in the region from 2006 to 2016 -- to put a nuclear-capable bomber in theater at a time when relations between the U.S. and North Korea were largely unpredictable. Between 2016 and 2018, the B-1 held the deterrence mission, marking the first time the aircraft had been housed at Andersen since 2006. For the last year, AFGSC officials have planned more and shorter strategic bomber rotations in order to test the Air Force's agility when deploying its heavy aircraft forces around the world. The concept, known as "dynamic force employment," mimics how the service often sends its bomber forces to Europe for weeks-long summer exercises. For example, the European theater has had a bomber rotation at least once a year as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve since Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. "I am focused a lot on a different operational mentality in the command, to think about great power competition," Gen. Timothy Ray, head of AFGSC, told reporters during a Defense Writers Group breakfast in Washington, D.C., last year. He said he is against stationing bomber forces permanently in any one region in order to pivot away from predictable movements, especially as the Defense Department continues to posture itself to counter China and Russia. "Why would I do that?" Ray said. "Why wouldn't I [instead] bring significant combat capability to the theater in a time and place of our choosing and bring regional stability [to allies and partners?]" Last fall, Ray told Military.com that the model will help keep airmen and maintenance crews ready and relevant for a future conflict. "[The deployments are] short, they're crisp; they're not long and enduring. [And] there's something that's really important for everybody to understand -- there are no ally bombers. This is one thing that we do better than anybody else," he said in September. Earlier this month, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein hinted that changes for the CBP mission were on the horizon. "We are continuing to adjust the continuous bomber presence to also incorporate dynamic force employment," he said during a Mitchell Institute "Aerospace Nation" video conference April 1. "We're on a path that the secretary of defense has laid out, which is to be strategically predictable, but operationally unpredictable." -- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214. Read more: Military Travel Ban Extended Until June 30; Some Restrictions Eased Samaritan's Purse is the Evangelical humanitarian aid organization behind the emergency pop-up coronavirus hospital that's set up shop in Central Park to help with overflow from other health facilities, specifically New York's Mount Sinai. In addition to the 14 tent, 68-bed field hospital in New York, the group also dispatched 60 disaster response specialists with 20 tons of medical equipment to help address the disaster response in Cremona, Italy. On the surface level, this is largely good; hospitals are crowded and medical workers are overwhelmed by the COVID-19 pandemic. But it gets complicated when you factor in the group's founder: Franklin Graham, son of the infamous Evangelical fire-and-brimstone preacher Billy Graham. And lest you were hoping that the Graham apple had fallen far from the tree, Franklin is in fact a bit of an Endtimes Obsessive, who of course has a history of saying terrible things about Islam (particularly as it relates to Barack Obama) as well as Hinduism. Unsurprisingly, he's a hardcore Trumper, too, as well as an advocate for the s0-called gay conversion therapy that is unquestionably a form a psychological abuse. He's even praised Putin's anti-LGBTQ authoritarianism. In Franklin Graham's own words from 2014: It's obvious that President Obama and his administration are pushing the gay-lesbian agenda in America today and have sold themselves completely to that which is contrary to God's teaching. [] Isn't it sad, though, that America's own morality has fallen so far that on this issueprotecting children from any homosexual agenda or propagandaRussia's standard is higher than our own? In my opinion, Putin is right on these issues. Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation's children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda. As such, it's perhaps unsurprising that Graham requires all the volunteers and employees at the Samaritan's Purse field hospitals to sign morality pledges in order to be deemed morally fit to help save lives. But this pledge is no Hippocratic Oath. As The New York Times reported (in the 21st paragraph of a larger article) that, "Its employees must endorse a Statement of Faith that opposes same-sex marriage." In response, Graham has of course claimed to be the victim of discrimination, and has insisted that, "We do not make distinctions about an individual's religion, race, sexual orientation, or economic status. We certainly do not discriminate, and we have a decades-long track record that confirms just that." But given the decades-long track record illustrated above, those words don't exactly inspire comfort. Treating Coronavirus in a Central Park 'Hot Zone' [Sheri Fink / The New York Times] Image: Public Domain via Sgt. James Harvey / US Indo-Pacific Command President Trump hinted that pardons for his associates Paul Manafort and Roger Stone could be on the table. 'You'll find out what I'm going to do,' Trump said at Sunday's press briefing when asked by DailyMail.com if he would free the two men amid coronavirus concerns. '. I'm not going to say what I'm going to do. But the whole thing turned out to be a scam.' On Friday night, Stone appeared on Fox News Channel and told host Tucker Carlson that serving time during the pandemic could kill him. President Trump hinted at Sunday's press briefings that pardons for Paul Manafort and Roger Stone could still be on the table Roger Stone (right) appeared on Friday night with Fox News Channel's Tucker Carlson (left) and said that going to jail during a pandemic was 'essentially a death sentence' Lawyers for Paul Manafort want him home from a Pennsylvania federal prison, citing health concerns due to the coronavirus pandemic 'So at this point, the judge has ordered me to surrender in two weeks and at 67 years old with some underlying health problems, including a history of asthma, I believe with the coronavirus it is essentially a death sentence,' Stone said. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled against Stone's legal team's argument that he should get a fresh trial due to bias against Stone from one of the jurors, a forewoman who was anti-Trump. 'The assumption underlying the motion - that one can infer from the juror's opinions about the president that she could not fairly consider the evidence against the defendant - is not supported by any facts or data and it is contrary to conrolling legal precedent,' Jackson wrote. 'The motion is a tower of indignation, but at the end of the day, there is little substand holding it up.' Stone is a longtime political adviser to Trump and worked on his 2016 presidential campaign for the first few weeks. He was sentenced to more than three years in prison for witness tampering and making false statements to investigators working on Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. Last week, lawyers for Manafort, who is serving a seven-year sentence at a federal facility in Loretto, Pennsylvania for bank fraud and tax evasion, asked the Bureau of Prisons director if he could serve his sentence at home 'for the duration of the on-going COVID-19 pandemic,' according to a letter obtained by CBS News. Manafort's lawyers Todd Blanche and Kevin Downing pointed out that their client is 71-years-old and suffers from 'high blood pressure, liver disease, and respiratory ailments.' Manafort was hospitalized for several days in December for a heart condition and again in February with influenza and bronchitis, the lawyers said. 'Even though there are no reported cases of COVID-19 at FCI Loretto at this time, given the growing number of cases in Pennsylvania and increasing challenges in testing inmates and staff potentially exposed to COVID-19, it is only a matter of time before the infection spreads to staff and inmates at FCI Loretto, at which time it may be too late to prevent high-risk inmates, such as Mr. Manafort, from contracting the potentially deadly virus,' the lawyers wrote. Scott Taylor, the spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, wouldn't comment on Manafort's case specifically, though pointed to guidance from Attorney General Bill Barr that asked federal prisons to prioritize home confinement due to the pandemic. Already, Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen, will be released from federal prison early and be confined at home instead. Same goes for Michael Avenatti, the ex-lawyer of adult film star Stormy Daniels, who Trump is accused of giving hush payments to so that she would not detail a sexual encounter she had with the then-2016 presidential candidate. Cohen was one of the brokers of that deal. At the briefing, Trump railed against how his associates were treated by the top-tier of the FBI, though didn't lash out at individuals, like former FBI Director James Comey, by name. 'These were crooked people, these are bad people, these are very dangerout people. You know what they are though, they're scum, they're human scum,' Trump said. He also said General Michael Flynn, his first national security adviser who had to resign over lying back contact he had with Russia amid the 2016 campaign, was treated terribly. 'And what they did to General Flynn and you know it and everybody knows it was a disgrace,' Trump said. In February, a judge indefinitely postponed Flynn's sentencing. Guest Column In Myanmar, Tatmadaw and Arakan Army Caught in Thucydides Trap The Myanmar Armed Forces Day Parade is held in Naypyitaw in 2018. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy When an established power feels threatened by a new rising power, war is almost inevitably the result. This phenomenon has been described as Thucydides Trap. The term was coined in 2012 by Harvard professor Graham Allison, who used it in reference to the Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens in ancient Greece, which was chronicled by historian Thucydides. Thucydides observed that the war was caused by the rise of Athenian power and the fear this caused in Sparta. He concluded that the rise of Athens and the fear that this instilled in Sparta made the war inevitable. The Tatmadaw (Myanmars military) and the Arakan Army (AA) are now falling into the same deadly trap. The reasons the conflict between the Tatmadaw and the AA can be seen as an example of Thucydides Trap are as follows: The Dominant Power: the Tatmadaw Not only has the Tatmadaw been the strongest institution among armed organizations in Myanmar, but it has also been the countrys dominant power since independence. It has fought against different armed insurgencies ranging from the countrys oldest ethnic armed organization, the Karen National Union, to its newest, the AA. Its legacy has been to demobilize, enter ceasefires with, wipe out and reintegrate several insurgencies ranging from the communist rebels to the Kachin Independence Organization/Army (KIO/A), Border Guard Forces (e.g., the New Democratic Army-Kachin) to militias (e.g., the Kawngkha-based Mahtu Naw-led militia group). The Tatmadaw has been the dominant force maintaining both external and internal sovereignty. Externally, it has long acted independently and autonomously on the world stage. In essence, the Tatmadaw has been the face of Myanmars national sovereignty for several decades. Internally, the Tatmadaw has controlled state sovereignty since General Ne Winthen the commander-in-chief of the Tatmadawtook power via a military coup in 1962. The 2008 Constitutiondrafted by the Tatmadaw itselfalso grants the military arbitrary power to get involved in politics. It remains the supreme authority within the state. It has the power to declare an organization as unlawful or a terrorist group. In the past, it has used this power against the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, which was classified as a terrorist group in August 2017, while the KIO was declared an unlawful organization in 2011. The Tatmadaw can likewise arrest and charge anyone under Article 17(a) of the Unlawful Association Act. Needless to say, no reforms involving economic liberalization, political transition or the peace process can be achieved unless the Tatmadaw wills it. The Tatmadawthe established powerwill not tolerate any threats that are likely to undermine, downplay, downgrade or threaten its dominance. If it feels its power is under threat, it will not hesitate to respond and retaliate by any and all means. The Rising Power: the Arakan Army The AA was born with the assistance of the KIO/A in Laiza at the KIAs headquarters on April 10, 2009. At its inception, the AA was founded with 26 young ethnic Rakhine led by Tun Myat Naing, who is now a major general and the organizations chief of staff. The AAs rise in personnel numbers and capability in just the last decade has been tremendous. Reportedly, the group has grown to number about 10,000 troops. Although the AA initially operated in the KIAs territories, it dispatched its troops to Rakhine State in 2015 to establish a foothold there. The AA annually recruits hundreds of military personnel. Until 2019, it sent a limited number of young and educated personnel to the KIAs Military Academy to study military affairs. Since last year, however, the AA has not needed to send its forces there, as it has created its own Academy, where many of the AAs forces are now trained. In early January 2018, a video clip popped up on social media in which AA chief Maj-Gen Tun Myat Naing introduced the Way of Rakhita (or the Arakan Dream 2020). The Way of the Rakhita does not have a single definition; rather it is a concept with self-determination at its core, evoking memories of the once-great Arakanese Kingdom. This flagship strategy has attracted many Arakan people, from poor rural youth to educated people and politicians alike. As the AAs power has grown, AA chief Tun Myat Naing has expressed the AAs desire to gain confederate status similar to the Wa enclave. The Tatmadaw immediately responded that the AA must give up its goal of confederation. At the same time, when the Tatmadaw and the AA engaged in tit-for-tat fighting in early 2019, over 100 Rakhine village administrators in Rakhine State resigned from their posts for fear of being wrongly accused of association with the AA. It was an unprecedented event that had not been witnessed in other ethnic areas before. Indeed, the AAs power rests in its ability, both militarily and politically, to threaten the dominant power, the Tatmadaw. Falling into the trap The AAs ascendancy and its attempt to challenge the dominant power have exceeded the Tatmadaws tolerance. The Tatmadaw once explicitly expressed that it was showing the utmost tolerance toward the United Wa State Army after the armed group showed off its military power at a parade to mark its 30th anniversary. On Oct. 15, 2018, Tatmadaw commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing reiterated on the third anniversary of the signing of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement that the Tatmadaw would bring eternal peace in 2020. However, when the Tatmadaw declared its unilateral ceasefire, it excluded its Western Command, which covers Rakhine State. The order only covered five of its regional commands: the Northern Command in Kachin State; the Northeastern, Eastern and Central Eastern commands; and the Triangle Command in Shan State. The AA accused the Tatmadaw of deploying the tactic so it could focus on its operations in Rakhine State. The AA thus conducted a series of coordinated attacks on four border outposts in the northern part of Rakhine States restive Buthidaung Township on Myanmars Independence Day on Jan. 4, 2019. In August 2019, the AA, along with two of its partners in the Northern Alliancethe Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA)conducted coordinated attacks on the Tatmadaws Defense Services Technological Academy (DSTA) in the militarys heartland, Pyin Oo Lwin in Mandalay Region. Last year, the government and the AA along with all three other Northern Alliance groupsthe KIA, TNLA and MNDAAmet three times for peace talks in Muse and Kyengtung, Shan State. But no tangible results emerged. Now, even as the world grapples with the outbreak of COVID-19, the war between the Tatmadaw and the AA continues to escalate. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world amid the pandemic, but the call was rejected by the Tatmadaw. The military now conducts its clearance operations against the AA through coordinated attacks using ground troops and air strikes. When the established power, Sparta, and the rising power, Athens, went to war, the costs of the war were felt all across Greece. Devastation was felt due to the destruction of vast cities and the poverty that followed. Likewise, the Rakhine war between Myanmars dominant power, the Tatmadaw, and a rising power, the AA, has already produced tens of thousands of displaced persons, taken many innocent peoples lives and devastated many villages. Being caught between the Tatmadaw and AA in Thucydides Trap is the tragic fate that has ultimately resulted in misery for the people of Rakhine and Chin states. Joe Kumbun is the pseudonym of an analyst based in Kachin State. You may also like these stories: In Myanmar, Its Time to Stop the Senseless War and Fight COVID-19 Will the Myanmar Govt Block Journalists from Reporting on Rakhine? Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ruma Paul (Reuters) Dhaka, Bangladesh Mon, April 20, 2020 14:59 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd3073c4 2 SE Asia Bangladesh,coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-lockdown,COVID-19-quarantine,Funeral,Gathering,pandemic,health Free Bangladesh has tightened a clampdown on seven villages after tens of thousands attended the funeral of a popular local cleric in spite of a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus, officials said on Monday. The massive gathering in Brahmanbaria district, about 60 km east of the capital Dhaka, has raised concerns about the potential for a spike in infections in a country of 160 million people with poor medical infrastructure. "We've strictly ordered all residents of the seven villages to stay at home at all times at least for the next 14 days so we can identify if anyone contracted the virus following Saturday's gathering," a local police officer told Reuters. Police had not expected such a large number of people to gather for the funeral, defying a weeks-long lockdown that forbids going out except for groceries and medicine. Local media said few of the mourners wore masks. The government has ordered the two most senior policemen in the district to be removed from duty for failing to prevent crowds gathering for the funeral prayers of Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari who died of cancer, the police said. Bangladesh has 2,456 confirmed coronavirus cases and 91 deaths. The government-imposed lockdown is in place until at least April 25 but many are starting to flout the rules including garment workers who took to the streets over the weekend demanding back pay. Powerful religious leaders are also continuing to allow small congregations at mosques despite the risk of contagion and warnings from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Many people are still attending Friday prayers and the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan later this week, when typically more worshippers will gather at mosques, will put additional pressure on authorities, officials said. A national minute's silence to commemorate healthcare and other key workers who have lost their lives to the coronavirus is looking increasingly likely to be held next week. Unison, the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives are urging politicians, employers, people at work and those on lockdown at home to join the tribute at 11am on April 28. Between them, the unions represent more than a million NHS and public sector workers, including porters, refuse collectors and care staff. The minutes silence, on International Workers Memorial Day, will allow everyone to pay their respects and show support for the families of those who have died, they said. Unison general secretary Dave Prentis described the move as "the ultimate tribute to remember workers whove lost their lives and put themselves in harms way to keep us safe and vital services running." Every year the sacrifice of workers around the world is recognised, but this year has a special significance because of the pandemic," he said. The Government has confirmed it is looking into having a one-minute silence. TODO: define component type apester Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden told the BBC: I think it is a very good idea. We are looking into it. Actually, as Culture Secretary, I have responsibility for ceremonials and things like minute-silences, and we are actively looking into that and think it is a good idea. Asked whether it could be an official Government-led event, he said: Yes, I think it could be but we will make an announcement on that at an appropriate time. Dozens of NHS workers are known to have died after contracting Covid-19. First two patients discharged from NHS Nightingale London The Government has come under intense pressure in recent weeks over shortages of critical Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline healthcare staff. Millions of people throughout the UK have meanwhile engaged in a nationwide Clap for our Carers campaign, taking to their doorsteps, balconies and windows to applaud NHS and key workers every Thursday at 8pm. Royal College of Nursing general secretary Donna Kinnair said: Weve become used to hearing a great roar on a Thursday night for key workers, but this respectful silence will be a poignant reminder of the risks they run to keep us safe. I hope the public gets behind this with the same affection they show when applauding our people. Coronavirus in numbers: UK hospital death toll rises to 16,060 Royal College of Midwives general secretary Gill Walton added: We had expected 2020 to be a celebration of the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife but, although we actively applaud their service, this is not what we had imagined. Instead, across the country, midwives and maternity support workers are seeing the impact of coronavirus not only on the women in their care, but on their colleagues as well. The call for a minutes silence was also backed by Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, who said key workers "represent the best of us". Our key workers are literally putting their lives on the line in the fight against the coronavirus," he said. BOSTON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- To recognize the strength, compassion, and resolve of all those on the front lines putting their health at risk during the coronavirus pandemic, as well as members of the Massachusetts community who are doing their part every day through acts of kindness, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts ("Blue Cross") has unveiled "We Are Mighty, Massachusetts," a campaign that celebrates our Commonwealth's resiliency and unity in the fight against COVID-19. #WeAreMightyMA launches today with a video that shares an inspiring message of collective action across Massachusetts and celebrates the innumerable ways individuals have shown resolve and solidarity since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Because actions big and small matter in this fight, Blue Cross also invites individuals to shine a spotlight on those making a difference across the Commonwealth by sharing "mighty" stories and unsung efforts using the hashtag #WeAreMightyMA across social media channels. "We created #WeAreMightyMA to illuminate the collective strength of our great state and salute all of Massachusetts' frontline fighters, leaders, champions and everyday people who are making a difference during this tumultuous period in our lives," said Kathy Klingler, chief consumer and marketing officer at Blue Cross. "As the largest not-for-profit health plan in Massachusetts, we're committed to continuing to provide support and access to care for those who need us, and to also help spread a message of perseverance as we all endure this battle together." In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Blue Cross has committed over $2 million to COVID-19 community relief efforts across the Commonwealth, with grants to organizations helping people stay healthy during the pandemic and reallocation of funds to nonprofits providing frontline aid. As part of this effort, Blue Cross has launched an online giving platform that enables employees to donate directly to any Massachusetts-based not-for-profit affected by COVID-19, matched dollar-for-dollar by the company. It has also introduced virtual volunteer initiatives for employees, including remote skills-based volunteering, college mentoring, and virtual storytelling. Additionally, Blue Cross has taken significant steps to expand access to care throughout the duration of the Massachusetts public health emergency, including removing copayments, co-insurance, and deductibles for all medically necessary COVID-19 testing, supportive care, and treatment, and covering all medically necessary medical, dental and behavioral health services via phone or video with in-network providers at no cost to members. The company also launched the Coronavirus Resource Center, a regularly updated website page that includes information on all it's doing to help members during this time, as well as other critical resources. In addition, Blue Cross' health news site, Coverage, produces timely, original news articles reporting what health consumers need to know about COVID-19. "Since this crisis began, we've witnessed extraordinary acts of kindness and innumerable displays of bravery, and we've been inspired by how our communities have come together," said Jeff Bellows, vice president of corporate citizenship and public affairs at Blue Cross. "As we continue to support our communities in great need, we are recognizing the mighty among us who are going the extra mile in the fight against COVID-19 and hope others will join us to amplify stories of hope, altruism and generosity." To learn more about #WeAreMightyMA, to view the inspirational video and to share "mighty" stories, please click here. About Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (www.bluecrossma.com) is a community-focused, tax-paying, not-for-profit health plan headquartered in Boston. We are committed to the relentless pursuit of quality, affordable health care with an unparalleled consumer experience. Consistent with our promise to always put our members first, we are rated among the nation's best health plans for member satisfaction and quality. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. SOURCE Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 03:21:26|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Support cuts across all age groups and education levels. UNITED NATIONS, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations has found overwhelming public support for international cooperation, with a significant increase since COVID-19 began spreading around the world, according to preliminary data collected worldwide through the United Nations' 75th anniversary (UN75) initiative. The data published on Monday on the UN75 website show that 95 percent of respondents agreed on the need for countries to work together to manage global trends, with a noticeable uptick from late February as COVID-19 began to rage around the world. Support cuts across all age groups and education levels. Ideas on strengthening international cooperation included more effective partnerships with civil society and the private sector, and greater involvement of women, youth, indigenous peoples and vulnerable groups in policy-making, according to the data from 186 countries collected through hundreds of dialogues and an online survey. Experts from the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University attend a video conference with medical staff in Cambodia to share experience in combating the COVID-19 pandemic in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, April 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Cui Bowen) Climate and environment topped the list of issues that will most affect humanity's future -- with more than double the responses of any other issue. Conflict and violence came second, and health risks third, having risen sharply since early March. The top five future priorities that emerged were: environmental protection, protection of human rights, less conflict, equal access to basic services, and zero discrimination, according to the data collected between Jan. 1 and March 24, 2020. UN75, which will run throughout 2020, is the largest exercise by the United Nations to gather public opinion and crowdsource solutions to global challenges. (Article by Xinhua Reporter Shang Xuqian; Video by Xinhua Reporter Xie E) A decision to hold meetings of the House of Lords in private when it returns from recess has been criticised by democracy campaigners. Lords authorities announced that virtual sittings of the second chamber, brought in to help with social distancing, would not initially be broadcast to the public, despite there being no technical limitations to doing so. On Tuesday both houses will return from an extended recess to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, but voters will only be able to see what is happening live in the Commons, while the Lords will publish written transcripts later. Darren Hughes, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society told The Independent: Voters across the world expect to see the legislators they are paying: its a core part of democratic transparency. This seems to be another sign of the Lords failing to meet the democratic standards voters expect. The Commons has shown that broadcasting the mostly-virtual hearings is possible from Day one. Its vital for democracy not to simply be done, but be seen to be done. Unfortunately, any kind of democracy is lacking in Britains out-dated second chamber. The Lords authorities must get to grips with this rapidly. It comes after news that some peers are lobbying the House of Lords to still pay them their 323 a day "attendance allowance" even if they only attend virtually. House authorities say only peers attending the palace in person will be able to claim. Mr Hughes of the ERS added: It is jarring to see Lords lobbying to receive their full 323-a-day expenses - without voters being able to see what theyre doing with it. This will strike most people as tone-deaf when millions of workers have had to make sacrifices during this crisis." Commenting on the announcement of the virtual sittings, Lord Fowler, the Lord Speaker, said the virtual Lords "will inevitably face some technical teething problems" perhaps explaining the decision not to broadcast the initial proceedings. The average age of peers in the unelected chamber is over 70. Under the plans for the virtual sittings, the Commons will sit Monday to Wednesday and Lords will sit Tuesday to Thursday, where both chambers will hold questions sessions and ministerial statements. The Lords is due to use Microsoft Teams and the Commons will use Zoom to allow them to conduct their business virtually. Both chambers were understood to have been given different briefs on what was required for parliamentarians, which led to different technology being applied in each House. The Commons was ordered to provide live broadcasts of proceedings by the government, hence the decision to use Zoom. The Lords authorities were understood to be told to provide a more limited function for completely virtual proceedings, rather than a hybrid model like the Commons where the Speaker, ministers and some MPs would be physically present and others dialling in remotely. High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Show all 18 1 /18 High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Najaf, Iraq A man holds a pocket watch at noon, at an almost empty market near the Imam Ali shrine Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Bangkok, Thailand Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (The Temple of the Emerald Buddha, part of The Grand Palace) Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Prague, Czech Republic An empty street leading to the historic Old Town Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Washington DC, US Lawn stretching towards the Capitol, home of Congress Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Jerusalem's Old City A watch showing the time in front of Damascus Gate Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world London, UK The Houses of Parliament seen from Westminster Bridge Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Wuhan, China Empty lanes in the city that saw the first outbreak of disease Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Havana, Cuba The Malecon road and esplanade winds along the city's seafront Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Cairo, Egypt A little busier than elsewhere: midday traffic in Tahrir Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Berlin, Germany The Brandenburg Gate, the only surviving city gate in the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Caracas, Venezuela Bolivar Avenue, opened in 1949 and the site of many demonstrations and rallies Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Moscow, Russia Spasskaya Tower (left) on the eastern wall of the Kremlin, and St Basil's Cathedral Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Istanbul,Turkey The harbourside Eminonu district is usually buzzing with activity Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New Delhi, India Rajpath, a ceremonial boulevard that runs through the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Amman, Jordan The Roman amphitheatre that dates back to the 2nd century AD Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New York City, US The main concourse of Grand Central station in Manhattan Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Kiev, Ukraine Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the site of many political protests since the end of the Soviet era Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Accra, Ghana The odd walker out in the midday sun on Ring Road Central Reuters The Lords will return in two phases, with the first stage seeing peers take part in virtual meetings and chamber business that operate separately and will not be broadcast live. Discussions are still ongoing about the next phase of the Lords return, which could see the upper chamber move to a similar model to the Commons from 5 May. Peers have been having training with staff after the last few days to make sure they are as up to speed as possible with technology. A House of Lords spokesperson said: The Electoral Reform Society are wrong to suggest Members will receive payment without voters being able to see what they are doing. Participation in the virtual sittings of the House does not qualify for claiming attendance allowance. It is expected that the Lords virtual proceedings will be broadcast from 5 May so there are likely to be only six days of Parliamentary business where the proceedings are not broadcast. On those days a Hansard transcript will be made available as soon as possible after the virtual business concludes, an audio recording will be published and journalists based in Parliament will be invited to view a livestream to inform their reporting. Legislative business will continue to take place in the Chamber and be broadcast in the normal way. CHAMPAIGN Colder weather entering Illinois has caused soil temperatures to fall, according to Jennie Atkins, Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring (WARM) program manager at the University of Illinois Illinois State Water Survey. Soil temperatures at four inches under bare soil averaged 46 degrees statewide on April 15, a drop of four degrees from April 1. Soils warmed the first week of the month, reaching temperatures from the mid-50s in the north to high 60s in the south. However, cooler weather led to falling soil temperatures with daily lows in the mid-30s to low 40s. Mid-month temperatures averaged two degrees below those of mid-April 2019. Soil moisture has also fallen. The moisture levels at two-inch depths have declined an average of 21 percent statewide between April 1 and 15. The southern and central regions have seen decreases of more than 20 percent, while northern Illinois had an average decline of eight percent. However, moisture levels were ample with an average of 0.33 water fraction by volume on April 15, slightly below field capacity for most of the soils monitored. Declines were also seen at depths from four to 20 inches. At 39 and 59 inches, soil moisture remained high with little change in April. The Illinois State Water Surveys WARM program collects hourly and daily weather and soil information at 19 stations across the state. Daily and monthly summaries can be found at the WARM website (http://www.isws.illinois.edu/warm/) and in the Illinois Water and Climate Summary (http://www.isws.illinois.edu/warm/climate.asp). Demonstrators protest an extended stay-at-home order at the Capitol building in Olympia, Wash., on April 19, 2020. (Reuters/Lindsey Wasson) Anti-Lockdown Protests Spread Across America Spurred by growing lockdown fatigue, more Americans took to the streets over the weekend as leaders try to ride the line between protecting people from the CCP virus and allowing them the means to still have a roof over their heads and enough to eat. Rallies in Arizona, Colorado, Montana, and Washington state took place on April 19, demanding that governors lift strict controls on public activity, according to multiple reports. It followed similar protests earlier in half a dozen states, with people demanding a lifting of restrictions that have plunged the once-booming economy into a historic tailspin. Even if the virus were 10 times as dangerous as it is, I still wouldnt stay inside my home. Id rather take the risk and be a free person, said protester Ian Freeman, one of a few hundred to rally on April 18 in New Hampshire, which has recorded around 1,400 cases of COVID-19 and 40 deaths. Worries about the length of lockdowns have a strong basis: the International Monetary Fund expects the global economy to contract 3 percent this year. Tens of millions of workers have lost their jobs already, and millions more fear theyll be next. According to The Columbus Dispatch, hundreds of people rallied outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on April 18 to protest a lockdown order that closes nonessential businesses until May 1. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said he supported peoples right to protest, as long as they observed social distancing guidelines. They were protesting against me yesterday, and thats just fine, DeWine said on NBCs Meet the Press. Were going to do what we think is right, what I think is right. And that is try to open this economy, but do it very, very carefully so we dont get a lot of people killed. People dressed in hospital scrubs and wearing masks stood on crosswalks in a counterprotest in Denver, Colorado, on April 19, blocking cars with anti-lockdown rallygoers, photos and video posted on Twitter show. Many protesters calling for an early end to the lockdown in Denver, set to expire on April 30, waved American flags and held signs that read End the Virus, Not the Economy and We need stability to stay healthy, The Denver Post reported. Death is a part of life, said protester Mary Conley of Jefferson County, The Post reported. And its time to start living again. An estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol in Olympia to protest Democratic Governor Jay Inslees stay-at-home order, defying a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. Shutting down businesses by picking winners and losers in which there are essential and nonessential are violations of the state and federal constitution, rally organizer Tyler Miller, 39, an engineer from Bremerton, Washington, told Reuters. On April 16, the White House issued guidelines for reopening the economy in stages. Heading into the weekend, the president encouraged people to protest stay-at-home orders in a handful of battleground states led by Democratic governors. Trump issued separate tweets calling to LIBERATE MINNESOTA, LIBERATE MICHIGAN and LIBERATE VIRGINIA, warning that Virginia was literally under siege over Second Amendment issues predating the lockdown. On April 18, Trump defended the demonstrations, saying, These people love our country. They want to go back to work. Protests happened in Republican-led states, too, including at the Texas Capitol and in front of the Indiana governors home. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott already said that restrictions will begin easing next week. Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, who signed an agreement with six other Midwestern states to coordinate reopening, said he would extend his stay-at-home order until May 1. Shutdowns have disrupted economic, social, cultural, and religious life and plunged the world into a deep economic slump unseen since the Great Depression. Several states, including Ohio, Texas, and Florida, have said they aim to reopen parts of their economies, perhaps by May 1 or even sooner. With the arc of infection being different in every nation and across U.S. states, proposals have differed for coping with the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, which has been attributed to nearly 50,000 deaths in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins tally. The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, in an April 20 interview on ABC, cautioned against lifting restrictions too early. What you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, youre gonna set yourself back. Its going to backfire. Thats the problem, Fauci said. Asked to send a message to protesters during a press conference on April 16, Trump said Americans have been going through it a long time, and its been a tough process for people. Theres death, and theres problems in staying at home, too. Its not just, Isnt it wonderful to stay at home,' Trump said. Theyre suffering. This country wasnt built on that principle; it was built on an exact opposite principle. The Associated Press contributed to this report. It's a simple idea, which is its great strength. At 6am on Saturday, stand at the front of your home with a candle or torch and observe a minute's silence, then share it on social media with the hashtag #standto. The Age encourages you to take to your driveway - there is much to reflect on. With all the usual events and gatherings cancelled, those wanting to participate in some form of remembrance will have to take a more creative and housebound approach. That is where veterans Bill Sowry and Terry James have stepped in to the breach, with their Driveway at Dawn movement gathering support around Australia. For many Victorians young and old, Anzac Day is steeped in tradition. Early morning wake-ups, candle-lit vigils, street parades, tales of battle and camaraderie. The sounds of the Last Post ringing out over bowed heads and silent crowds. But like all before it, COVID-19 has turned tradition on its head. While the challenges of today may seem all-pervading, the sacrifices of those who served in wars and conflicts past and present should be top of mind. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, during which more than 39,000 Australians died while serving. At a time when Australia's population was just over 7 million, it was a very heavy toll. For those active in operations today there are hundreds serving in the Middle East, the Pacific and patrolling Australia's northern borders it should be a moment to wish them well and a safe journey home. But the constraints in which we live today cannot be ignored, particularly for veterans in their later years. For many, Anzac Day was a time of great companionship, a time to renew friendships forged in battle. They are now among the most vulnerable to the coronavirus, and therefore most in need of our protection and support. It is a duty that can be shared by all. Everyone who plays their part in following the social distancing rules is helping to safeguard them and honour their service. It will be an Anzac Day like no other. It will be deserted at Anzac Cove, where Australian backpackers would sit in reverence as the sun rose, honouring the battles that forged a nation. It will be deserted at Villers-Bretonneux, where the horrific struggles on the Western Front that cost the lives of more than 10,000 Australians are remembered. It will be deserted in hundreds of small towns across Australia where locals would come together to lay wreaths and parade proudly down main streets, reflecting on the terrible toll war often had on small communities. Loading But for all that has been lost, let us ensure we fortify the memories that in years past brought us together. Let this Anzac Day be one to remember. Let it be a day when Australians coming together does not have to mean being together. Whether standing on your nature strip or driveway, leaning on your picket fence or letterbox, set the alarm clock for early this Saturday, before the sun has risen, light a candle or take out the torch and pay honour to those that have and are serving our country. We will remember them, no matter what circumstances we may find ourselves in. During visit to Syria, Zarif said US showed inhumane face to the world by refusing to lift sanctions during pandemic. Irans foreign minister has used a meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus to hit out at the Trump administrations refusal to lift sanctions imposed on both countries. During his first visit to Syria in a year, Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Monday that the United States had shown its inhumane face to the world by refusing to lift sanctions during the coronavirus pandemic. The US real agenda in not lifting its cruel sanctions on countries fighting this disease has now become clear, a statement from Tehran said. Irans efforts to contain COVID-19, the highly infectious respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, have been hampered by its inability to import vital medical equipment due to the sanctions. The country has seen the highest number of infections in the region with more than 83,500 confirmed cases and 5,200 deaths. A photo released by the Syrian presidency showed the visiting foreign minister and president sitting opposite each other, both in face masks. Zarif also wore light blue plastic gloves. Assad criticised the US for keeping economic sanctions in place on countries like Syria and Iran despite these exceptional humanitarian conditions, the Syrian presidency said in a statement. Assad also condemned ongoing encroachments by Turkey on the sovereignty and territory of Syria in the countrys north where Ankara has deployed troops, set up military posts and backed rebels battling the government. Earlier on Monday, Zarif met with his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem, according to the foreign ministry. They stressed the importance of continued coordination and the exchange of information and expertise between the two countries to enhance their ability to confront the pandemic and secure the necessary needs and requirements for prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Iran, along with Russia, is one of the Syrian governments main allies in a nine-year war that has killed more than 380,000 people and forced more than half of the countrys pre-war population from their homes. Libyan army advances near key rebel stronghold Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 7:59 AM Libyan government forces have advanced near a key stronghold of rebel militia under the command of renegade general Khalifa Haftar on the outskirts of the capital, Tripoli. Muhammad Gununu, a spokesman for government forces, said the Libyan troops launched an all-out military operation early on Saturday and advanced toward the strategic town of Tarhuna, about 65 kilometers southeast of Tripoli, seizing several towns and capturing dozens of rebels on the way. Gununu said the forces overran a rebel camp in al-Hawatim area near Tarhouna, killed over 12 rebels, and captured more than 100 others, also seizing armored vehicles, tanks, and mortar launchers. Residents said the Libyan army troops had yet to enter and take over Tarhuna but they had heard loud blasts and the sound of intensive clashes reverberating across an outlying area of the strategic town for hours. The forces have also been trying to capture the al-Watiya airbase, 125 kilometers west of Tripoli, which is another strategic rebel foothold. The Libyan army has in recent days retaken a string of strategic cities located west of Tripoli, including Sabratha, Surman, and al-Ajaylat. The advance on Tarhuna comes as fighting has over the past weeks intensified near the Libyan capital, which is the seat of the country's internationally-recognized government headed by Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj. Since April last year, rebel forces under the command of Haftar have been fighting in an all-out offensive to capture Tripoli and unseat the government but have remained bogged down on the city's outskirts. Fresh clashes around Tripoli escalated after the rebels breached a March 21 humanitarian truce aimed at facilitating efforts to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the war-torn country. The breach compelled the Libyan government to launch an operation on March 25 to push the rebels back. According to the United Nations (UN), hundreds of people have been killed and more than 200,000 have been displaced since Haftar launched his campaign to capture Tripoli. Libya slid into turmoil in 2011, when a popular uprising and a NATO intervention led to the ouster of long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Since 2014, two rival seats of power have emerged in the North African country the United Nations (UN)-recognized government of Sarraj in Tripoli, and another group based in the eastern city of Tobruk, supported militarily by Haftar's rebels. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Amit Shah takes stock as States ease relaxation norms India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: Exercise due caution and give only genuine exemptions and relaxations, Union Home Minister, Amit Shah said during a high-level meeting on COVID-19, with senior officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Shah said that permission should be given only to certain economic and industrial activities to be undertaken in areas that do not call within the hotspots, clusters and containment zones. District administrations in collaboration with the industries should make arrangements to transfer labourers to their place of work within the state. The Modi government believes that this would give a boost to economic activity and also provide employment to the labourers, a Home Ministry official said. Shah reviews lockdown situation, takes stock of supply of essential commodities Further the meeting also attended by ministers of state, G Kishan Reddy and Nityanand Rai decided that the states should give attention to big industrial units, industrial estates and industrial complexes, especially those where the labourers can be accommodated within the complex. The labourers should be provided gainful employment, the official also said. Shah suggested during the meeting that the District Magistrates should explore the possibility of providing labourers employment through agriculture as well as MNREGA activities. He also said that greater attention should be paid to those labourers who continue to stay at relief camps. This should include good quality of food, the Home Minister also said. Community based testing must be taken up by medical teams and states must ensure that special care to team especially in terms of security. Before undertaking such an exercise, the peace committees could be activated. Community leaders could be involved to ensure that peace is maintained, Shah also said. The High Court of Justice of the United Kingdom on Monday dismissed businessman Vijay Mallya's plea against his extradition to India. The Queen's Division Bench comprising Justices Irwin and Elisabeth Laing did not find merit in Mallya's appeal against the decision of Senior District Judge (SDJ) Arbuthnot of the Westminster Magistrates' Court to sending his case to the Home Secretary. In February 2019, the then Home Secretary Sajid Javid approved Mallya's extradition to India. Mallya faces serious charges of fraud and money laundering pertaining to the amount borrowed by Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) from several Indian banks. Mallya, who reached the UK in 2016 was out on bail since his initial arrest in April 2017. In 2019, he became the first person to be declared as a fugitive economic offender on a plea of the Enforcement Directorate. Read: Vijay Mallya Gets Temporary Bankruptcy Reprieve At UK High Court Amid 'extraordinary Plea' Liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya loses his High Court appeal in UK against his extradition order to India Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 20, 2020 Read: Vijay Mallya Backs India's Lockdown From UK Self-quarantine; Pleads To Govt Over Repayment The court verdict In the verdict, the bench rejected the submission that the SDJ was wrong to find a prima facie case of conspiracy to defraud. Moreover, it held that there is a prima facie case of misrepresentation, conspiracy and money laundering on the part of Vijay Mallya. Thereafter, the judges noted that there was a prima facie case in which 7 important aspects coincided with the allegations in India. As per paragraph 180 of the court judgment, these are as follows: a) The three loans were disbursed as the result of a conspiracy between the named conspirators. b) The loans were made despite KFAs weak financials, negative net worth and low credit rating. c) The loans were made despite the fact that KFA, as a new customer, did not meet the norms of IDBIs Corporate Loans Policy. d) The Appellant was party to false representations to induce the loans that funds would be inducted by way of unsecured loans, global depository receipts and equity. e) The Appellant was party to false representations about inward investment, an exaggerated brand value, misleading growth forecasts, inconsistent business plans (including the January 2009 business plan). f) The Appellant was party to the offer of symbolic and grossly inadequate security in the form of a negative lien on 12 hire purchase aircraft, despite knowing that KFA would not get title to them during the period of the loan. g) The Appellants dishonest intention not to repay the loans is shown by his later conduct in trying to avoid the personal and corporate guarantees. Read: STING: Rana Kapoor-Mallya Link Revealed; Caretakers Say Rana Tried To Sell Off Properties Read: Unimpressed Vijay Mallya Extends Desperation To RCB's Logo Change; Sends Them A Message Bir Lehlu (Liberated Territories), April 20, 2020 (SPS) - The Saharawi Head of State sent a congratulatory message this Sunday to his Namibian counterpart SE, Mr. Hage Gottfried Geingob on the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the founding of the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO). POLISARIOs SG, Brahim Gali congratulated the Namibian leader and the SWAPO party for 60th anniversary of its founding recalling that this political formation founded on April 19, 1960 was a movement that fought a long struggle lasted until 1990, concluded with the liberation of this African nation. The President praised the excellent relations that have historically united both the POLISARIO and SWAPO front and the two countries. He has laso thanked Namibia for the solidarity and support in the international stages of the Saharawi cause. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the constitution of the Swapo party, the Cuban newspaper Granma had the opportunity to dialogue with the founding father of Namibia, Sam Nujoma. Nujoma spoke of the ravages of colonial heritage and the importance of unity for the present and the future: "135 years after the infamous Berlin Conference and 56 years since the creation of the Organization for African Unity, the colonial legacy it still remains. "Culture and unity are important weapons that we must use to undo the heritage of centuries of colonialism in Africa," said Sam Nujoma.SPS 125/090/tra 'Tiger King' star Doc Antle has started sleeping with an AK-47 after receiving up to 50 death threats a day. The 60-year-old features in the Netflix documentary alongside private zookeeper Joe Exotic - who was jailed for 22 years in 2019 after being found guilty of paying a man to kill animal rights activist Carole Baskin - and Doc revealed he is worried activists will kill him. He also told The Mirror that he walks around with a 'pistol in his pocket and another in his glove box.' Terrified: Tiger King's Doc Antle revealed on Monday that he sleeps with an AK-47 gun following various death threats 'My life is threatened every day, one to 50 times,' he expressed. 'People say they want to kill me, they're going to get me. I don't know where the next crazy person is going to go.' The big cat trainer, who's real name is Mahamayavi Bhagavan Antle, went on to share that due to the threats he now walks around with a small gun in his pocket. Threatened: 'My life is threatened every day, one to 50 times,' he revealed over the weekend 'I have a pistol in my pocket, another in my glove box. I travel like that all the time.' Doc Antle also hit out at Carole Baskin, an animal rights activist and rescue zoo owner. 'The salacious insanity she's written, all of the stuff she said that I'm this evil dude. People think that there's something there.' Doc Antle stars on the popular Netflix series, Tiger King, which saw Joe Exotic sentenced to 22 years in jail for conspiring to hire a hitman to kill Carole. Protecting himself: 'I have a pistol in my pocket, another in my glove box. I travel like that all the time' Popular: Tiger King is one of the most popular Netflix documentaries of 2019 And as far as President Trump goes, he thinks Joe has a 50/50 chance of getting released from prison. 'It's kind of crazy land,' he said last month in a press conference to the New York Post. 'I think Joe could potentially get a new trial if he could get an appeal. That's probably a good thing that he would have an appeal come up, so that the facts can be presented more clearly.' 'If Joe had OJ Simpson's legal team, he would be walking around today, singing Eye of the Tiger. If I had to put money on it, I think it's 50/50 Joe could get out.' WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Monday that juries in state criminal trials must be unanimous to convict a defendant, settling a quirk of constitutional law that had allowed divided votes to result in convictions in Louisiana and Oregon. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the court that the practice is inconsistent with the Constitutions right to a jury trial and that it should be discarded as a vestige of Jim Crow laws in Louisiana and racial, ethnic and religious bigotry that led to its adoption in Oregon in the 1930s. In fact, no one before us contests any of this; courts in both Louisiana and Oregon have frankly acknowledged that race was a motivating factor in the adoption of their States respective nonunanimity rules, Gorsuch wrote. The justices 6-3 vote overturned the conviction of Evangelisto Ramos. He is serving a life sentence in Louisiana for killing a woman after a jury voted 10-2 to convict him in 2016. Oregon is the only other state that allows for non-unanimous convictions for some crimes. Louisiana voters changed the law for crimes committed beginning in 2019. Now the same rules will apply in all 50 states and in the federal system: Juries must vote unanimously for conviction. We are heartened that the Court has held, once and for all, that the promise of the Sixth Amendment fully applies in Louisiana, rejecting any concept of second-class justice, Ramos lawyer, Ben Cohen, said in a statement. In light of the COVID-19 crisis, it is essential that prisoners who are wrongfully incarcerated be given the chance for release as soon as possible. The Oregon District Attorneys Association said in a statement that a change to unanimous verdicts could make criminal convictions more difficult. However, it is a hallmark of our justice system that it should be difficult to take someones liberty. The outcome will affect defendants who are still appealing their convictions. But for defendants whose cases are final, it will take another round of lawsuits to figure out whether the high court ruling applies to them. The Supreme Court last took up the issue in 1972, when it ruled that nothing in the Constitution bars states from allowing some convictions by non-unanimous verdicts, even as it said that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimous verdicts in federal criminal cases. The case turned on the vote of Justice Lewis Powell. The 1972 decision left the jury trial right as one of the few rights guaranteed by the first 10 amendments to the Constitution that does not apply uniformly to the states as well as the federal government. Last year, the court held that the Constitutions ban on excessive fines applies to the states and the federal government alike. There can be no question either that the Sixth Amendments unanimity requirement applies to state and federal criminal trials equally, Gorsuch wrote Monday. The decision produced an unusual lineup of justices, with liberals Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor and conservatives Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas and Gorsuch supporting Ramos. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, two conservatives, were in dissent along with liberal Justice Elena Kagan. Thats because a key part of the case was whether to jettison the 1972 decision, and overturning precedent is a fraught issue on the current court, principally because the additions of Gorsuch and Kavanaugh have made the court more conservative and, perhaps, more likely to undermine landmark abortion rights rulings. Gorsuch, Sotomayor, Kavanaugh, Thomas and Alito addressed the issue of precedent in majority, dissenting and concurring opinions. Kavanaugh has said that prior decisions must be not just wrong but egregiously so. The 1972 decision, he wrote Monday, is egregiously wrong. Sotomayor said the old case was wrong both on the Sixth Amendment and in its ignorance of the bigoted roots of allowing non-unanimous verdicts. The case, she wrote, represents a universe of one an opinion uniquely irreconcilable with not just one, but two, strands of constitutional precedent well established both before and after the decision. Alito, however, noted that some justices in Mondays majority might find it more difficult to complain about abandoning other precedents. I assume that those in the majority will apply the same standard in future cases, he wrote. ___ Associated Press writer Andrew Selsky contributed to this report from Salem, Oregon. Democracy needs strong, sound opposition Internal strife is worsening in the main opposition United Future Party (UFP) following its significant defeat in the April 15 general election. In a ceremony to disband the party's campaign office, Friday, acting Chairman Rep. Shim Jae-chul said the only thing the party must do to regain trust among voters is to strive for full-scale reform. The question is who should and could lead this effort. Rival factions are united in the call for reform, but are divided over who should head the party during this post-election transition period. Since Hwang Kyo-ahn stepped down as UFP chairman to take responsibility for the election defeat, it had been widely speculated that Kim Chong-in, who joined the party just months ago to co-head the UFP's campaign office for the general election, would become an interim leader. But some party bigwigs and lawmakers-elect including Rep. Kim Tae-heum, who has been elected for a third term and their supporters have publicly raised objections to this, claiming the best option for the party is to hold an early national convention to choose its new leader and other decision-makers. They argue Kim is not qualified to lead the party, regardless of whether it is an interim position or not, because he shares responsibility for the disastrous election results as a co-campaign chief, and more importantly, he is not a "loyal" UFP member. It is pathetic to see the largest conservative party remain in disarray when the members need to unite and work together more than ever. What is urgent for the party is to overcome the election debacle, and draw up a post-election strategy aimed at holding the powerful ruling party in check. The ongoing internal power struggle cannot be worse because it is repeating past failures. In fact, the ruling bloc has secured a dominant position in the National Assembly by taking 180 of the 300 parliamentary seats up for grabs, while the UFP and its affiliated party garnered only 103 seats. This marked the conservative party's fourth consecutive defeat to the rival liberal party in national elections. In the first opinion survey conducted after the parliamentary polls, the UFP saw its approval rating plunge to 28.4 percent the lowest level since its founding. On the other hand, President Moon Jae-in's approval rating has reached its highest level in 18 months at 58.7 percent, and that of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) also surged to the highest level in 21 months at 46.8 percent. Speculation is already circulating that the DPK may attempt to revise the Constitution in the next National Assembly, scheduled to begin its four-year term on May 30. If the old saying that power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely is correct, the existence of a strong and sound opposition party is a necessity for a successful democracy. But the UFP is still living in the past, which is tragic for this country. It should change drastically, and this is for its own survival. Jill Stein, the Green Party's candidate in 2016, at a rally threatening legal action over Philly's voting machines last year. Read more Jerome Segal isnt your typical candidate for president, but as hell tell you, this isnt a typical election. Segal, founder and candidate of the newly created Bread and Roses Party, admits he has no vision of winning the presidency. A socialist, hes also vowing not to campaign in such swing states as Pennsylvania. Hes denouncing those third-party candidates who are. Its completely irresponsible for a progressive third party to compete in swing states, Segal, a philosopher and activist who lives in Maryland, said in an interview. Its quite likely that itll be close and in a winner-take-all system, even if you do terribly in that state, that tiny percentage of votes can actually make a difference. Our view would be if the Green Party is on the ballot in Pennsylvania, dont vote for them. Vote for Biden. Segals position is a provocative answer to one of the most common questions in presidential politics: Is a vote for a third-party candidate wasted? President Donald Trump won Pennsylvania for several reasons in 2016, and the number of potential Democratic voters who instead cast their ballots for Green Party candidate Jill Stein over Hillary Clinton was one in a whole playbook of things that went right for Trump and wrong for Democrats. Clinton could have won Pennsylvania if shed gotten all of Steins 49,960 votes in 2016, as well as her own. The likelihood of that having happened is slim. Still, Democrats, headed toward an election and their independent allies such as Segal determined to beat Trump, are zeroing in on everything that allowed him to win Pennsylvania by 44,000 votes. The Green Party disagrees with Segals framing. The party is already on the ballot in 20 states and petitioning to qualify in more, including Pennsylvania. Leaders have recently tried to pull in supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders, who suspended his campaign and shares some similar policy ideas. The Green Partys position is that Americans deserve as many choices as possible when were talking about the most powerful office in the country, said Michael ONeil, communications manager for the national party. The language that particular candidates or parties spoil elections is oppressive language from the corporate two-party cartel that is designed to perpetuate their stranglehold on our two-party system. The problem, Greens have long argued, is with the electoral system. They want to eliminate the Electoral College and use ranked-choice voting, as many countries have adopted. (Segal agrees with them there.) The Green Party opposes Trump but favors more sweeping changes than a traditional Democratic candidate such as Joe Biden is likely to achieve. It has pushed for a Green New Deal since 2012. Trump is a disaster, and I dont think anyone in the Green Party would tell you otherwise, said Hillary Kane, treasurer of both the Philadelphia and national Green Party. But she called lesser evilism" a garbage argument. Increasingly globalized economy, housing inequality, social determinants of health these things have existed for eons under successive Republican and Democratic administrations, she said. Kane challenges the notion that the Green Party spoiled the presidency for Democrats in 2016. She points to disenchanted Democrats in rural areas, a weak Clinton campaign strategy in key states, and voter suppression. Backlash from Democrats against third parties has grown since Trumps election, Kane said. Part of the danger of the two-party system is that when you have just a complete monster like Donald Trump in power, he and the Republicans make the Democrats look much better than they really are," ONeil said. The Green Party is in the process of choosing among three possible nominees: party cofounder Howie Hawkins; Dario Hunter, a member of the Board of Education in Youngstown, Ohio; and activist David Rolde. There is an added logistical issue this spring of gathering the signatures most states require to file to run for office. Pennsylvania recently loosened the signature requirements for third-party candidates, but the Greens still need 5,000 to get on the ballot, which is hard to do with social-distancing requirements. In a letter to the Pennsylvania secretary of state, the Pennsylvania Green Party, which has about 10,000 registered voters, asked that the signature requirement be waived for all independent candidates. The Constitution Party and the Libertarian Party are also fielding candidates for the presidency. In states such as Pennsylvania, to have a Green Party line on the ballot in nonpresidential years, the party must get at least 2% of the vote in the previous presidential election. That makes it harder to run local and state candidates under the Green Party banner, and also means the party must run a candidate for president in the state. Daniel Franklin, a professor emeritus at Georgia State University, studied the effect of third parties in the 2016 election and looked back to the late 1850s. He wanted to find out whether third parties bring out new voters or pull votes away from the major parties. The study found that the larger the vote for a third-party candidate, the lower the turnout overall. What we suspect is happening is that third-party candidates serve habitual voters who are unhappy with both their choices," Franklin said. The problem, he argues, is that in a two-party system, based on his research, voting for a third-party candidate effectively promotes your third choice over your second choice. Most of the voters who voted for Jill Stein at the end of the day would have preferred Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump, he said. For Segal, creating his own party was always about expanding the ideas surrounding how to govern, not winning. Its easier to get attention for ideas by running for president than, say, writing a book (which hes done). The Bread and Roses Party is named after a textile workers strike in Lawrence, Mass., in 1912. Immigrant women demanded more pay but also shorter workweeks to be able to enjoy the beauty in life, which they considered the roses part of their platform. Segals platform includes wanting every American to have more leisure time as well as two jobs the one they do to make money and a second in the creative or nonprofit sector that reflects their passions. He proposes a Beauty New Deal, emphasizing arts in education and beautifying the country. Segal has never been a traditionalist. He was an instructor in the philosophy department at the University of Pennsylvania from 1968 to 1972, where he got in some trouble for unconventional grading techniques. He didnt believe in them, so he first let students grade themselves. Then he tried giving everyone Cs, which upset students and administrators. He just missed Trump, who graduated from Penn in 1968. He likes to think he would have had an impact if hed had him as a student. Helping Trump win a second term, however, is definitely not the kind of impact hed like to have. Its ironic," Segal said, This is the one way in which tiny third parties can have a gigantic national impact. Before being with Meghan Markle, Prince Harry was already the center of British tabloid headlines because he used to be a troublemaker back in the day. Prince Charles may be disappointed in his son for all his bad choices and bad boy antics, but apparently, it wasn't the first time the heir to the throne was disappointed with the red-headed prince. While it's now hard to imagine a royal family with Prince Harry and Prince William, reports previously stated that Prince Charles was AT ONCE disappointed with the Duke of Sussex's birth. According to royal author Andrew Morton who wrote the book, "Diana: Her True Story," he was able to ask Princess Diana some juicy details about the royal life. He said that the interview was the closest we will ever come to her autobiography. In the book, which is reportedly according to the late Princess of Wales, Prince Charles had wished for a girl, after the birth of Prince William. In September 1984, the blonde beauty gave birth to Henry Charles Albert David Mountbatten-Windsor after nine hours of labor and zero drugs. Lady Di reportedly told the author, "I knew Harry was going to be a boy because I saw on the scan. Charles always wanted a girl. He wanted two children, and he wanted a girl. I knew Harry was a boy, and I didn't tell him." And as per Princess Diana, Prince Charles' first comment was full of dismay, saying, "' Oh God, it's a boy!' And his second comment was, 'And he's even got red hair.'" Though the latter comment was reported a joke, Prince Diana was reportedly hurt and offended. Her older sisters and younger brother, Earl, all have red hair, a trait that is common in the Spencer family. What's even worse, according to the royal author, was during Prince Harry's christening in December when Prince Charles told his mother-in-law, "We were so disappointed - we thought it would be a girl." Princess Diana's mom reportedly told the Prince of Wales, "' You should realize how lucky you are to have a child that's normal.'" Apparently, the incident prompted one of Princess Diana and Prince Charles' bigger disagreements. "Ever since that day, the shutters have come down, and that's what he does when he gets somebody answering back at him." According to the mother-of-two, when Prince Harry was born, their marriage just suddenly went "bang -- the whole thing went down the drain." She told her author friend that at that time, something inside her "closed off" after Prince Harry's birth, and especially since the Prince of Wales picked up his longtime affair with Camilla Parker Bowles. "By then, I knew Charles had gone back to his lady." However, Princess Diana later confirmed that their problem wasn't Prince Harry, but because of the father-of-two's affair. Prince Charles' Relationship with His Sons While there have been different reports with his complicated relationship with Prince William and Prince Harry growing up, after the death of Princess Diana, the trio was okay. However, when Meghan Markle entered the picture, the Duke of Sussex and Prince Charles' relationship isn't as good as they used to be. After all, Prince Harry left the UK and stepped down as a senior member of the royal family. It may have only strained their relationship even more. READ MORE: Royal Puppet? 4 Brutal Cases That Show Meghan Markle is Fully In Control of Prince Harry Roughly two-thirds of all Covid-19 cases in 10 major states comprise people who did not show any symptoms at the time of testing, according to state government data that reinforced growing evidence that silent spreaders were possibly unknowingly infecting others, and underlined the need for extensive testing to isolate such patients. An analysis by HT found that 65% of Maharashtras 3,648 cases and 75% of Uttar Pradeshs 974 cases did not show symptoms at the time of testing. In Assam, 82% of 34 cases were of people with no symptoms They didnt show any of the typical symptoms associated with the disease during treatment, health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday. In Delhi, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday that all 186 people diagnosed with Covid-19 the previous day had exhibited no symptoms of illness. Most of the Covid-19 positive cases in Haryana are asymptomatic, Dr Suraj Bhan Kamboj, nodal officer for Covid-19 in Haryana, said. To be sure, these numbers could include people who were both asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic, which means that a person was tested before they started showing symptoms. Doctors said exhibiting symptoms of Covid-19 depended on the virus load, age and immunity. If the load is not very high and virus is not virulent, the symptoms may not be there. But, it can be detected through test, Kamboj added. Dr C Nagaraja, director of the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases in Bengaluru, said younger people with good immunity may not show any signs of Covid-19 and that most asymptomatic patients were between 20 and 45. Even older persons taking certain medicines may not show any signs initially. Those with weak immunity and co-morbid conditions show Covid signs faster, he said. Globally, research has shown that people remain very infectious in the period before they show symptoms. In central Keralas Pathanamthitta district, a woman student who travelled with some members of the Tablighi Jamaat remained asymptomatic for 22 days while under observation but showed signs towards the end of the observation period, said district medical officer, Dr N Sheeja. Identifying such people is difficult unless extensive testing is done, say experts, and the numbers are expected to rise because rapid and pool testing mechanisms have been introduced by most states. In rapid test, a persons blood is tested for Covid-19 antibodies, whose presence indicates that the person was infected by the virus and is now immune. In pool testing, samples of up to 64 people are tested together. If the combined test is positive, then all persons are individually tested to identify Covid-19 patients. Internationally, countries such as South Korea and China, where the number of Covid-19 have declined, started identifying the asymptomatic carriers early. In China, reports say around 43,000 asymptomatic persons have been identified and isolated. Similarly, in South Korea, more than 30,000 such people were traced, local reports said. Dr. Karan Peepre, medical superintendent, AIIMS, Raipur, said the only way to deal with asymptomatic people is quick identification through massive testing and isolation. Uttar Pradesh health secretary Amit Mohan Prasad said identifying hot spots was crucial to prevent the spread by disease by symptom-free patients. Andhra Pradesh Covid nodal officer, D Arja Sreekanth, said the state is conducting door-to-door survey to identify such patients. We are also testing all those above 60 years having co-morbid issues like diabetes, hypertension, past history of tuberculosis etc, though they might not have Covid-19 symptoms, he said. Some experts, however, said asymptomatic patients are not a big threat if the chain of transmission is broken and the ongoing lockdown is an effective way to do that. Lockdown is effective in breaking the (transmission) chain, said Balram Bhargava, head of the Indian Council of Medical Research. (with inputs from state bureaus) SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Himrod, N.Y. One man was rescued, but the search continues for a second boater who was in a canoe that capsized Sunday on Seneca Lake. Yates County Sheriffs Marine Patrol, the Onondaga County Sheriffs Office Air 1 helicopter and other rescue crews were called to Seneca Lake around 9:14 p.m. Sunday. The two men had left a summer home in Himrod to paddle across the lake in a 14-foot canoe, the Yates County Sheriffs Office announced. At 11:59 p.m., crews spotted one of the men clinging to a partially-submerged canoe near the center of the lake. He was pulled from the lake and transported to a waiting ambulance. Suffering from hypothermia, he was later airlifted to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester. The water temperature was 40 degrees. At that temperature, a person can die in 1 to 3 hours, experts say. As of 10:30 a.m. Monday, the other man has not yet been found. The Yates County Sheriffs Office identified the rescued man as 27-year-old Keith M. Seymore. The other man, 27-year-old Daniel S. Manganaro, remains missing. Both men are Chemung County residents. Sheriffs marine patrols and drones from Yates and Seneca counties continued the search this morning with the assistance of the New York State Police and multiple area fire departments. The search is being operated from Severne Point. Wildfire: Firefighters work to control a blaze that destroyed 300 hectares in Co Wicklow last week. Photo: courtesy of Coillte A team of scientists is embarking on a two-year study to find out how much greenhouse gas is released by wildfires in Ireland. The project will involve attending bog and gorse fires as they happen to capture air samples and other data in real time. Slabs of peatland will also be sent to a special fire investigation chamber in Germany for burning and analysis. Dr Dean Venables, of University College Cork (UCC), one of the FLARES (Fire, Land and Atmospheric Remote Sensing of Emissions) team, said information on emissions from wildfires, in particular peat fires, in Ireland was sparse. "My expectation is that fire emissions would be significant," he said. "They would bring up the national emissions by a certain factor." That's bad news for Ireland which is struggling to contain rising emissions, never mind achieve the reductions required under EU commitments and the international Paris Agreement. It also adds to the urgency for tackling wildfires and illegal out-of-season agricultural burning which have already destroyed thousands of acres of wilderness this spring. Forest fires are easier to quantify. In 2017, 1,500 hectares of forest was lost with an estimated quarter of a million tonnes of carbon and other greenhouse gases emitted. But the amount of peatland lost is believed to have been anything from three to six times bigger and emissions could vary widely, depending on the precise nature of the vegetation and its condition. A fire that burned for several days in west Wicklow last week destroyed 300 hectares and was just one of dozens in a few weeks. Ireland in total emits 60 million tonnes of carbon and other greenhouse gases a year. FLARES is a multidisciplinary effort funded by the Environmental Protection Agency. Dr Fiona Cawkwell, also from UCC, will be leading the remote sensing element. Current satellite technology used to monitor fires is patchy. It often does not pick up on small fires, it has difficulty discerning land type, and clouds can obscure fires completely. Dr Cawkwell is working on solutions to that while Dr Venables is focusing on capturing and analysing samples at the heart of the combustion to get a better picture of what exactly is being released into the air. "One of the challenges with remote satellites is that you can get a measure of the total amount of pollutants through a column of air but what really matters for humans is the one to two metres above the ground, so we'll try to measure that," he said. He is concerned that while greenhouse gases are not being accurately measured, there is even less certainty about the longer term emissions that result from partially burnt particles hanging around in the air where they slowly oxidise and release gases. He will also measure nitrogen oxide and other air pollutants that contribute to 1,200 premature deaths here each year. "We are in a pandemic that is essentially a respiratory disease and anything that makes it harder to take a breath is problematic," he said. "As an atmospheric scientist, it strikes me that fire is wonderful and important but it has been the cause of so much of our environmental problems. "Whether it's the fire in your car, the fire in our power stations, the fire in our chimneys or the fire on the hill - all these fires are what's contributing to poor air conditions and the sorts of emissions that are driving climate change." STORY LINK Pound Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) Exchange Rate Falls as Aussie Buoyed by Europes Easing Covid-19 Cases GBP/AUD Exchange Rate Sinks as China Props Up Economic Activity Pound (GBP) Sinks on Covid-19 Second Peak Fears GBP/AUD Forecast: Could Weak UK Unemployment Figures Send Sterling Plunging? Like this piece? Please share with your friends and colleagues: The Pound to Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate fell by -0.5% today, with the pairing currently trading around AU$1.957.The Australian Dollar (AUD) edged higher today on rising hopes over coronavirus cases and fatalities easing off in Europe, particularly in heavily hit nations like Spain and Italy, while Germany and France are also taking cautious steps to easing their respective lockdown measures.Today also saw the Peoples Bank of China (PBoC) cut its benchmark lending rate to cut borrowing costs for companies to bolster the Chinese economy.Martin Rasmussen, an economist for China at Capital Economics, commented:It is easy to dismiss such a small fall in borrowing costs as insignificant for struggling firms. But the [Peoples Bank of China] has been easing monetary conditions through a range of other tools recently, too.The latest rate decline should be viewed as yet another sign that authorities have become serious about monetary easing. As employment conditions remain weak and external demand held back by lockdowns, we think the Peoples Bank will take further steps to prop up activity.With China being Australias largest trading partner, any signs of improvement in the Chinese economy boosts the risk-sensitive Australian Dollar.The Pound (GBP) fell today on rising fears over the UKs coronavirus crisis after Prime Minister Boris Johnson amplified concern over the lockdown by saying that we could see a second peak if current measures were to be lifted too soon.A spokesperson for Downing Street said:The big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy. If you move too quickly, then the virus could begin to spread exponentially again. The public will expect us to do everything we can to stop the spread of the virus and protect life.Today also saw HIS Markits Household Finance Index fall to its weakest since November 2011, with the figure plummeting to 34.9 in April.IHS Markit said in its release statement:With a large degree of uncertainty surrounding the time frame to which the emergency public health measures will be maintained, financial wellbeing expectations also fell sharply. Overall, the respective index signaled the strongest level of pessimism for almost eight-and-a-half years.The Pound (GBP) opened this week trading down against many of its peers as the UKs coronavirus crisis continues despite easing an easing number of cases in other key European countries.Australian Dollar (AUD) investors will be awaiting tomorrows speech from Philip Lowe, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). Any dovish comments about the Australian economy, however, could send the Aussie spiraling downwards.Tomorrow will see the release of the UK ILO Unemployment Rate report for February. If this rises above forecasts, we could see the Pound fall as this would paint an even darker picture for March and April, when the coronavirus more firmly gripped the British economy.The GBP/AUD exchange rate will remain sensitive to Britains Covid-19 developments this week, with any signs of an increasing number of cases further weakening Sterling. International Money Transfer? Ask our resident FX expert a money transfer question or try John's new, free, no-obligation personal service! ,where he helps every step of the way, ensuring you get the best exchange rates on your currency requirements. TAGS: Australian Dollar Forecasts Pound Australian Dollar Forecasts [April 20, 2020] NASA to Host Preview Briefings, Interviews for First Crew Launch with SpaceX WASHINGTON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With the first mission to return human spaceflight launches to American soil now targeted to lift off May 27, NASA will highlight the historic flight with a series of news conferences Friday, May 1, that will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website. In addition, NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, who will serve as crew for the mission, will be available for remote interviews. NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will host a trio of media briefings beginning at 11 a.m. EDT May 1, to preview NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission. The flight test with NASA astronauts aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft will lift off on a Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. All media participation in these news conferences and interviews will be remote; no media will be accommodated at any NASA site due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To participate in the briefings by phone or to request a remote interview with the crew members, reporters must email [email protected] no later than 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 28. The May 1 briefings and participants include (all times EDT): 11 a.m. Commercia Crew and International Space Station overview news conference with the following participants: NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine Kathy Lueders , program manager, Commercial Crew Program, NASA's Kennedy Space Center , program manager, Commercial Crew Program, NASA's Kirk Shireman , program manager, International Space Station Program, NASA's Johnson Space Center , program manager, International Space Station Program, NASA's Johnson Space Center Gwynne Shotwell , president and chief operating officer, SpaceX 12:30 p.m. Mission Overview news conference with the following participants: Steve Stich , deputy manager, Commercial Crew Program, NASA's Johnson Space Center , deputy manager, Commercial Crew Program, NASA's Johnson Space Center Zeb Scoville , NASA Demo-2 flight director, Flight Operations Directorate, NASA's Johnson Space Center , NASA Demo-2 flight director, Flight Operations Directorate, NASA's Johnson Space Center Benji Reed , director of crew mission management, SpaceX 2 p.m. Crew news conference with the following participants: Astronaut Robert Behnken , joint operations commander, NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission , joint operations commander, NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission Astronaut Douglas Hurley , spacecraft commander, NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission 3:30 p.m. Round-Robin interviews with the crew members: Behnken and Hurley will be available for a limited number of remote interviews Following a May 27 launch, Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to arrive at the space station May 28 to join Expedition 63 commander Chris Cassidy of NASA and flight engineers Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner of the Russian space agency Roscosmos. Behnken will be the joint operations commander for the Demo-2 mission, responsible for activities such as rendezvous, docking and undocking, as well as Demo-2 activities while the spacecraft is docked to the space station. Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2000, Behnken completed two space shuttle flights. He flew on STS-123 in March 2008 and STS-130 in February 2010 and conducted three spacewalks during each mission. Born in St. Anne, Missouri, he has bachelor's degrees in physics and mechanical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis and earned a master's and doctorate in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Before joining NASA, Behnken was a flight test engineer with the U.S. Air Force. Hurley will be the spacecraft commander for Demo-2, responsible for activities such as launch, landing and recovery. Selected as an astronaut in 2000, Hurley has completed two spaceflights. He served as pilot and lead robotics operator for both STS-127 in July 2009 and STS-135, the final space shuttle mission, in July 2011. The New York native was born in Endicott, but considers Apalachin his hometown. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Tulane University in Louisiana and graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, Maryland. Before joining NASA, he was a fighter pilot and test pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps. Follow Behnken on social media at: https://twitter.com/AstroBehnken Follow Hurley on social media at: https://twitter.com/Astro_Doug and https://www.instagram.com/astro.doug/ Learn more about NASA's Commercial Crew Program at: https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nasa-to-host-preview-briefings-interviews-for-first-crew-launch-with-spacex-301043780.html SOURCE NASA [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] 'What the northern Indian states lack is responsive politics based on the principles of development, social justice and equality.' 'A cut-and-paste job cannot make up for such lethal deficiency,' observes says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar. IMAGE: Medics at the real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction laboratory at the Kalamassery Medical College Hospital in Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo The Times of India featured a tantalising commentary last week titled 'Kerala shows the way: Decades of investment in public health is helping the state control COVID-19'. The title is self-explanatory. The commentary showered fulsome praise, rightly so, on Kerala's success in controlling the coronavirus outbreak. It attributed Kerala's success story to three factors: The excellent public healthcare system in the state, functioning grassroots bodies and the high level of literacy in the population. This is an accurate understanding. Unlike in most regions of India, the public healthcare system was a priority sector in the state's development agenda all through these decades and that foresight is paying dividends. Evidently, community outreach is crucial to fighting a pandemic involving rigorous contact tracing, mass quarantine, etc. And thirdly, of course, a literate people behave with a high degree of responsibility, which adds to the effectiveness of the government's efforts to flatten the infection curve. The Times of India ended its commentary by recommending that 'once the current crisis blows over, the Kerala model of healthcare should definitely be studied for replication elsewhere (in India.' Is it as simple as that -- 'replication'? There is a contradiction. The 'Kerala model of healthcare' forms part of a package and it cannot be copied in isolation without taking into account the alchemy of Kerala's success story -- namely, Left politics. The recent weeks have underscored the great relevance of Left politics to our country's development. Unless this kernel of truth is properly understood, we are reducing 'replication' to a mere cut-and-paste job. It won't fly. IMAGE: Doctors conduct a real-time mock COVID-19 drill in Cheranalloor, Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo Such great emphasis on the social sectors of development -- education, healthcare, housing, land reform, in particular -- is a legacy of Left politics in Kerala. It all began 63 years ago, in April 1957, when the first Communist government was elected to power in the state. Truly, it has been a long and challenging journey, often along treacherous roads, mostly alone -- in much of the early part, at least -- but as the journey progressed, it was found appealing even by detractors of the communists, as it had a sense of direction and a compelling raison d'etre steeped in humanism that had its roots in the great social reform movement in the southern region of our country in the decades before Independence. The rest is history. Nothing short of a cultural revolution will do in many regions of northern India if the three main components of the Kerala story -- a well-groomed healthcare system, grassroots participation in public programmes and high literacy -- that work in unison, mutually reinforcing, are to generate traction. Put differently, the odds are heavily loaded against the Kerala model if it were to be simply transplanted to the Gangetic plains. The public health infrastructure is weak or non-existent in the northern states, participatory democracy is notable for its absence and remains an alien quixotic idea, and large sections of the population are illiterate and remain steeped in ignorance. When such crisis situations as COVID-19 arise, a responsive government in Thiruvananthapuram can confidently expect grassroot participation, which, of course, will have a multiplier effect on the overall effectiveness of the official campaign and can prove to be a game changer. Clearly, there is a choice that the political elites in the northern Indian states will first have to make. Do they want to rule like medieval chieftains and feudal lords or as democratically elected leaders answerable to the people, especially the humble and the weak? IMAGE: Employees of the Health Tele Helpline centre in Kochi. The helpline handles COVID-19 patients in their initial stage. Photograph: PTI Photo Again, there are two sides to having a literate population. The Kerala experience is that a literate population can prove to be a big asset when mass awareness of the pandemic is necessary. Having said that, a literate population cannot be taken for granted. Now, dissent is a way of life in Kerala, as spontaneous as the air we breathe, but in north India, alas, it might get misunderstood as a pestilence to be eliminated ruthlessly. Suffice to say, Kerala's success story can be summed up as follows: When the well-managed public healthcare system in the state shifted gear into war footing under an enlightened political leadership to combat COVID-19, the community outreach that was vital to the government's campaign -- involving a lockdown, rigorous contact tracing, mass quarantine and so on -- got a big boost because of the large-scale public participation that was readily forthcoming, which, of course, was possible only because of the awareness on the part of the highly literate population that this pandemic is very dangerous and life-threatening. Fundamentally, the lubricant that makes this architecture work is public trust in the government and in the authenticity of the elected leadership. That provides the critical fourth element of Kerala's success story. Now, take away any one of the above four components and at once the architecture becomes unstable. The bottom line is, what the northern Indian states lack is responsive politics based on egalitarian principles of development, social justice and equality. A cut-and-paste job cannot make up for such lethal deficiency. Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar served the Indian Foreign Service for more than 29 years. He has served as India's ambassador to Turkey and Uzbekistan and has been a contributor to Rediff.com for well over a decade. Hyderabad, April 20 : T-Works, Telangana government's hardware incubator and prototyping lab, has developed an affordable mechanical ventilator for emergency use, in collaboration with different start-ups and corporations. The open-source Bag-Valve-Mask (BVM) ventilator, which costs Rs 65,000 to Rs 1 lakh, is expected to come handy if Covid-19 pandemic spreads and can be deployed for worldwide use. T-Works CEO Karampuri Sujai on Monday gave demonstration of the ventilator developed under the guidance of Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) - a plug and play device that operates similar to existing ventilators and is focused on Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) affected patients who are at higher risk. He said NIMS hospital tested the device and they plan to go for further certifications. He said T-Works was ready to partner with local manufacturers for bulk manufacturing. While it does not compete with the sophisticated ventilators used in hospital, it can come handy in an emergency. It can gauge the tidal volume, breaths per minute, oxygen concentration, minimum residual pressure and other health parameters. The low-cost ventilators can be used by primary health care centres in rural areas and in ambulances. The developers believe such ventilators will be useful at a time when there is world-wide shortage of conventional ventilators, which costs anywhere between Rs 5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh each. The project involved over 20 members of various startups and corporate, including talent deployed by Honeywell and Qualcomm. Apollo Hospitals, Sunshine Hospitals and Prathima Hospitals, IIT Hyderabad, Mouser and GE Healthcare, Specteochem Instruments and others were also part of the project. T-Works, which is working on multiple projects in collaboration with innovators from across India, earlier helped in development of aerosol boxes, protective equipment to aid the frontline healthcare providers involved in the treatment of Covid-19 patients. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Amelie Bottollier-Depois (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France Mon, April 20, 2020 07:04 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2e78c5 2 Health coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,health,immunity,immune-system Free Even as virologists zero in on the virus that causes COVID-19, a very basic question remains unanswered: do those who recover from the disease have immunity? There is no clear answer to this question, experts say, even if many have assumed that contracting the potentially deadly disease confers immunity, at least for a while. "Being immunized means that you have developed an immune response against a virus such that you can repulse it," explained Eric Vivier, a professor of immunology in the public hospital system in Marseilles. "Our immune systems remember, which normally prevents you from being infected by the same virus later on." For some viral diseases such a measles, overcoming the sickness confers immunity for life. But for RNA-based viruses such as Sars-Cov-2 -- the scientific name for the bug that causes the COVID-19 disease -- it takes about three weeks to build up a sufficient quantity of antibodies, and even then they may provide protection for only a few months, Vivier told AFP. At least that is the theory. In reality, the new coronavirus has thrown up one surprise after another, to the point where virologists and epidemiologists are sure of very little. "We do not have the answers to that -- it's an unknown," Michael Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization's Emergencies Programme said in a press conference this week when asked how long a recovered COVID-19 patient would have immunity. "We would expect that to be a reasonable period of protection, but it is very difficult to say with a new virus -- we can only extrapolate from other coronaviruses, and even that data is quite limited." For SARS, which killed about 800 people across the world in 2002 and 2003, recovered patients remained protected "for about three years, on average," Francois Balloux director of the Genetics Institute at University College London, told AFP. "One can certainly get reinfected, but after how much time? We'll only know retroactively." Read also: The immune system overreaction that can be fatal False negatives A recent study from China that has not gone through peer review reported on rhesus monkeys that recovered from Sars-Cov-2 and did not get reinfected when exposed once again to the virus. "But that doesn't really reveal anything," said Pasteur Institute researcher Frederic Tangy, noting that the experiment unfolded over only a month. Indeed,several cases from South Korea -- one of the first countries hit by the new coronavirus -- found that patients who recovered from COVID-19 later tested positive for the virus. But there are several ways to explain that outcome, scientists cautioned. While it is not impossible that these individuals became infected a second time, there is little evidence this is what happened. More likely, said Balloux, is that the virus never completely disappeared in the first place and remains -- dormant and asymptomatic -- as a "chronic infection", like herpes. As tests for live virus and antibodies have not yet been perfected, it is also possible that these patients at some point tested "false negative" when in fact they had not rid themselves of the pathogen. "That suggests that people remain infected for a long time -- several weeks," Balloux added. "That is not ideal." Another pre-publication study that looked at 175 recovered patients in Shanghai showed different concentrations of protective antibodies 10 to 15 days after the onset of symptoms. "But whether that antibody response actually means immunity is a separate question," commented Maria Van Kerhove, Technical Lead of the WHO Emergencies Programme. "That's something we really need to better understand -- what does that antibody response look like in terms of immunity." Indeed, a host of questions remain. "We are at the stage of asking whether someone who has overcome COVID-19 is really that protected," said Jean-Francois Delfraissy, president of France's official science advisory board. Read also: Why are some S. Koreans who recovered from the coronavirus testing positive again? Immunity passports For Tangy, an even grimmer reality cannot be excluded. "It is possible that the antibodies that someone develops against the virus could actually increase the risk of the disease becoming worse," he said, noting that the most serious symptoms come later, after the patient had formed antibodies. For the moment, it is also unclear whose antibodies are more potent in beating back the disease: someone who nearly died, or someone with only light symptoms or even no symptoms at all. And does age make a difference? Faced with all these uncertainties, some experts have doubts about the wisdom of pursuing a "herd immunity" strategy such that the virus -- unable to find new victims -- peters out by itself when a majority of the population is immune. "The only real solution for now is a vaccine," Archie Clements, a professor at Curtin University in Perth Australia, told AFP. At the same time, laboratories are developing a slew of antibody tests to see what proportion of the population in different countries and regions have been contaminated. Such an approach has been favored in Britain and Finland, while in Germany some experts have floated the idea of an "immunity passport" that would allow people to go back to work. "It's too premature at this point," said Saad Omer, a professor of infectious diseases at the Yale School of Medicine. "We should be able to get clearer data very quickly -- in a couple of months -- when there will be reliable antibody tests with sensitivity and specificity." One concern is "false positives" caused by the tests detecting antibodies unrelated to COVID-19. The idea of immunity passports or certificates also raises ethical questions, researchers say. "People who absolutely need to work -- to feed their families, for example -- could try to get infected," Balloux. Case over 2019 deadly plane fire at Moscow airport reaches court flickr.com/ Petyo Ivanov 14:56 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) A court in the Moscow Regions town of Khimki will consider a case against aircraft captain Denis Yevdokimov over the deadly fire on board a passenger aircraft Sukhoi Superjet-100 (SSJ-100) at Sheremetyevo airport that had killed over 40 people, the press service of the Prosecutor Generals Office reports Monday. Indictment against the defendant has been approved, the statement reads. Yevdokimov is charged with violation of air traffic safety rules and aircraft steering rules that entailed death of two and more people through negligence. According to the investigation, on May 5, 2019, the SSJ-100 airplane bound from Moscow to Murmansk burst into flames during the emergency landing at Sheremetyevo under the pilots control. There were 78 people on board including crew members, 40 passengers and 1 crew member died in the fire and 10 persons were injured. Flash Andreas Keller, a 45-year-old Swiss Life Science Service Manager, has encountered the COVID-19 outbreak twice first in China and then in Switzerland. Keller and his wife, Zhang Zhan, left Zurich, Switzerland, to Chongqing Municipality, China, where they had planned to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year with Zhang's family on Jan. 25. However, they didn't anticipate that the COVID-19 outbreak would deprive them of meeting their Chinese relatives. Keller recalled, at that time, when the city adopted a self-isolation approach as one of its anti-virus efforts, and he had to put on a face mask and stand at a distance when chatting with his aunts-and-uncles-in-law. "It was bizarre to celebrate the most important festival in China like this," he said. However, when Keller and Zhang went back to Switzerland, they encountered the outbreak a second time. According to Keller, this has been the grimmest challenge facing Switzerland since World War II. "I was not scared for myself, but I was more concerned about my mom and people with higher risks to get COVID-19 due to their age or any disease," he said. Keller and his mother do not live near each other. At this point, it had been difficult for them to visit each other since the government recommended home isolation as one of the important approaches to contain the virus. On April 11, 2020, the remaining number of confirmed cases in Switzerland declined to 11,971, 478 cases less than a day before. According to the Federal Office of Public Health, the growth curve of infections reached an inflection point, even though authorities assumed there were still additional weeks ahead until the epidemic can be put under control. Keller believed that the well-disciplined Swiss people have followed the government's advice to stay at home. "The government, doctors, nurses, caregivers, Swiss Armed Forces, and volunteers all do a great job. What is equally important is that the Swiss people are strictly following the rules from the government. People can still go out, but they need to follow social distancing rules," he explained. In the economic sector, the Swiss government and banks have introduced government-guaranteed loans as an interim measure for Swiss businesses and individuals, especially those on the brink of bankruptcy. According to the local press, Ueli Maurer, the Swiss Finance Minister, made 20 billion Swiss francs (US$20.68 billion) available for companies in need from a special fund last month. By March 20, the Swiss government had adopted a slew of financial measures worth 42 billion Swiss francs to mitigate the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, social order remains stable and the Swiss people remain kind to them, which means Keller's worry of xenophobia towards Chinese people proved unnecessary. "My wife is Chinese, and I feared that people would discriminate Chinese people when they did not know how this virus started," Keller expounded. He also stressed the importance of mutual learning to help fight the pandemic together. "We must all focus on public health, and that's why Chinese experts have achieved positive results," Keller said. Keller suggested that Swiss experts could make contributions to China since his country is at the forefront of life science research and technology. The Swiss man also hopes the post-pandemic situation will involve people being more caring towards others. "I hope that people will be more sensitive towards others instead of thinking about themselves all the time and being selfish," he said. "I hope our behavior toward old and weak people can change. Unlike the family structure in China, we don't live with our parents, but I still hope we could spend more quality time together," he added. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 02:44:08|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BISHKEK, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A group of Chinese medical workers arrived at Manas International Airport in Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek on Monday to assist in the fight against COVID-19. The 10-member team from west China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region includes six medical experts specializing in disease prevention and control, traditional Chinese medicine and respiratory medicine, among others. Chinese Ambassador Du Dewen, representatives of Kyrgyz government welcomed the medical team in the airport. Kyrgyz Deputy Health Minister Nurbolot Usenbaev said that Kyrgyzstan has been waiting for them for a long time. "I think you will help us overcome this disease," he said, wishing the Chinese experts a success in the fight against the epidemic. The team will provide assistance and share experiences with Kyrgyz specialists in the fight against coronavirus infection. In addition, they will share best practices and methods in treating patients. The team also brought medical supplies, which will be donated to Kyrygzstan and local Chinese communities. They will also provide health consultancy to the Chinese communities during their stay in the Central Asia's Republic. Enditem 12 arrested in Rassada as Phuket curfew breakers hit more than 600 PHUKET: Twelve people were arrested in Rassada overnight for breaking the nationwide night curfew from 10pm to 4am, according to a report by the Department of Local Administration, Phuket Office filed earlier today (Apr 20). COVID-19crimemilitarypolice By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 20 April 2020, 02:13PM Phuket officials have so far arrested more than 600 people for breaking the nationwide nightly curfew. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Phuket officials have so far arrested more than 600 people for breaking the nationwide nightly curfew. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Phuket officials have so far arrested more than 600 people for breaking the nationwide nightly curfew. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Phuket officials have so far arrested more than 600 people for breaking the nationwide nightly curfew. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Siripong Leeprasit of the Phuket Provincial Narcotics Control Management Center, a provincial-level anti-narcotics task force, told The Phuket News that the offenders were caught at a variety of locations, including on main roads such as Thepkrasattri Rd. People keep breaking the curfew rules. Most of them claim that they want to go meet a friend or want to top up their mobile phone credit, and they gave other reasons. This is not reasonable behaviour. They had breached Article 9 of the Emergency Decree. All 12 were taken to Phuket City Police Station for further legal proceedings, Mr Siripong said. Those arrested for breaking the curfew without essential reason were named as: Mr Banjert Tonnam, 45; Mr Aiwhok Jinda, 59; Mr Adisorn Thasuma, 34; Mr Noppon Wandao, 22; Miss Dennapha Tinkohyao, 23; Miss Bussaya Jitmak, 20; Mr Wutthichai Almat, 30; Miss Minla Sorlae, 36; Mr Thaweewat Seakho, 34; Mr Damrong Suksai, 26; Mr Thanit Liumsakul, 57; and Mr Atthapong Chuchuay, 32. Meanwhile, Phuket Provincial Police reported today (Apr 20) 39 new cases resulting in 44 people arrested for breaking the curfew. In an infographic posted online today, the Phuket Provincial Police marked that a total of 609 people had been arrested in 581 cases for breaking the curfew for the period Apr 3-20. However, the same infographic reported 610 people arrested in 582 cases in the breakdown by the number of cases reported by each police station on the island. (See post here.) The breakdown of curfew arrests as per each police station was reported as follows: Muang Phuket Police Station 198 (16 new cases) Patong Police Station 136 (2) Wichit Police Station 71 (12) Chalong Police Station 42 (zero) Karon Police Station 35 (2) Thalang Police Station 33 (2) Cherng Talay Police Station 26 (2) Kathu Police Station 19 (zero) Tha Chatchai Police Station 14 (1) Kamala Police Station 25 (1) Sakhu Police Station 11 (zero) The Phuket News was told that the report for today (Apr 20) does not include the 12 people arrested for breaking the curfew in Rassada last night. 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) - A U.S. federal district court judge in Alaska granted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys motion to dismiss a case brought by a collection of anti-Pebble activist groups. In granting the motion, U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason wrote that anti-Pebble activists had failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Northern Dynasty Minerals (NYSE:NAK) lauded the decision, stating that the Obama administration's pre-emptive veto was unfair. "We have long held that the preemptive veto against Pebble was poor public policy and that decisions about the merits of developing a mine at the Pebble Prospect should be made through the legal, statutory process defined by NEPA. The preemptive veto was brought against the project by the Obama era EPA before a single permit to develop had been filed with a regulatory agency," said Pebble Partnership CEO Tom Collier in a news release. In February, the EPA advanced Pebble by releasing a preliminary version of the Final Environmental Impact Statement writing that a future Pebble mine can co-exist with the fisheries and water resources of Bristol Bay. Massachusetts has become a hotspot of coronavirus infections, drawing the concern of federal officials and promises of aid from hard-hit New York. The state's death toll is expected to surpass 2,000 this week, doubling in less than a week. Officials are scrambling to boost hospital capacity and trace new infections to curb the spread of the disease. Vice President Mike Pence has said the White House is closely watching the Boston area. The coordinator of the federal coronavirus task force, Dr. Deborah Birx, said officials are very much focused on Massachusetts. There were 146 new deaths reported in Massachusetts on Sunday, bringing the state's death toll to more than 1,700. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Exasperating inequalities Students shouldn't stress if they can't get everything done Following up Fewer absences in suburbs Attendance methods vary (TNS) Minnesotas transition to distance learning has left out tens of thousands of K-12 students and threatens to expand the states already wide gaps in achievement, early attendance reports suggest.Despite the broad deployment of wireless Internet hotspots and district-owned iPads, one in every six students never logged on during the week of April 6 as St. Paul Public Schools instruction resumed from afar following a four-week break.In Minneapolis Public Schools, about one-third of students have been either absent or unable to complete schoolwork because they lacked a computing device or paper packet.Meanwhile, attendance data from large suburban districts suggests black and Latino students are missing much more instruction than their peers since Gov. Tim Walz closed the states public schools March 18 to slow the spread of the coronavirus.Cities across the country are telling similar stories as school closures have upended school-based support networks and left many students navigating schoolwork on their own amid distractions from siblings, unreliable technology and countless stressors related to stay-at-home orders.We know that COVID-19 is further revealing and exacerbating inequities that existed prior to COVID-19, said Hedy Chang, executive director and president of the national nonprofit Attendance Works.The St. Paul district figured to have an advantage in making the switch to distance learning. The district is several years into a 1:1 technology program that provides each student with a school-owned iPad.During a two-week planning period last month, the district began delivering iPads to students who hadnt already taken theirs home. All but around 600 kids out of some 34,000 had a tablet when distance learning began April 6. The district said it also handed out around 1,700 wireless hotspots to students and staff who lacked Internet service at home.I think were lucky that we at least have a plan in St. Paul that everyone has a device and everyone has Internet access, said Annaka Larson, a first-grade teacher at Wellstone Dual Immersion, where about half the class are native Spanish speakers and the rest are learning it as a second language.Larson said she sent several emails to families during the two-week planning period to make sure they were prepared and building a habit of going online for school. She had outdated contact information for some families, and those two weeks gave her time to track people down.Through Tuesday, she said, just one of her students had yet to log on since distance learning began.Some of the others have struggled through bad Internet connections, disappearing Seesaw projects and parents unavailable to help until late at night. On Tuesday, a mom called when her sons iPad locked him out for entering the wrong password too many times.Larson tells students not to stress out if they cant get everything done.I want to know that kids are getting their emotional needs met, their need for connection, their need to feel competent and feel challenged, but challenged in a way that feels positive and encouraging, she said.Districtwide during the first four days of distance learning, officials said, 17 percent of St. Paul students never logged on to their learning platform Schoology for older students and Seesaw for grades K-2.Those who dont interact are marked absent and get a robo-call from their school. After two consecutive absences, schools are expected to reach out personally.Fifth-grade teacher Jennifer Gruber works at Maxfield Elementary in the Rondo neighborhood, where 88 percent of students qualify for lunch subsidies. She said no more than half of her students were connecting and engaging in the work on a daily basis during the first week. At this point, she said, teachers can only guess as to why.For the past three years, Ramsey County has paid Lutheran Social Services to place a social worker at Maxfield to keep students from losing touch with the school.Soon, that person will get a new list of students whove been unreachable since the school closed March 10 for a teacher strike, then stayed closed for spring break and to prepare for distance learning.Those that we serve are vulnerable, and this (pandemic) has made them even more vulnerable, said Heather Kamia, a program director for the nonprofit.Maxfield also has a relationship with the Cultural Wellness Center, whose community elders will work to find students who arent engaging with distance learning.Principal Ryan Vernosh said students are struggling with technology issues and family illness, as well as the familiar challenges of finding food and housing. Eight percent of his students lacked permanent housing last fall, well before the coronavirus put the brakes on the economy.The pandemic hasnt necessarily stopped the impact of the inequities in the country, Vernosh said. The generations of unjust systems are amplified during the pandemic.The Pioneer Press asked the states five largest school districts for attendance data from their early days of distance learning.St. Paul said 83 percent of its students logged on at least once during the first week, but officials provided no detailed data.Minneapolis provided several categories of data but its attendance records were far from complete. For April 9, teachers still hadnt recorded the attendance status of 26 percent of their students.Of those who did have an attendance record that day, 21 percent of Minneapolis students were marked absent. Another 12 percent had contact with their teacher but lacked the materials they needed to do their work.The South Washington County school district is recording attendance weekly, not daily, during distance learning. Their data show 12 percent of all secondary students had no contact with their teachers during the first week of distance learning.In Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, which, like St. Paul, takes attendance daily through Schoology and Seesaw, just 5 percent of students were marked absent at the start of their second week of distance learning.Both of those suburban districts provided detailed data that showed black and Latino students were averaging nearly twice as many absences as white students.Anoka-Hennepin, the states largest district, doesnt know how many students are showing up for distance learning.Thats because the district is counting every child as present unless a parent reports the child is sick. The district tallied fewer than 200 absences the entire first week.Superintendent David Law said he expects each school is monitoring participation and following up with the parents of missing students.In normal times, Minnesota school districts are expected to record attendance daily and report it to the state at the end of the year. Students who miss 15 straight days must be un-enrolled, after which the state no longer provides the district with per-student funding for that child.The 15-day rule remains in effect during distance learning, but state officials have given districts wide latitude in how they record attendance.Asked about how Anoka-Hennepin and South Washington County were taking attendance, state officials expressed no concerns.Attendance is part of the states school accountability system, which determines which low-performing schools warrant state intervention. However, a coronavirus-related waiver from the federal government says the state wont have to use the data from this school year; standardized tests, too, have been canceled.Chang, of Attendance Works, said schools should be checking in on students every day and exploring why they arent participating.If a district assumes a child is present unless they hear otherwise, she said, Im not sure how that helps you support families. A study indicate that testicles make men more vulnerable to coronavirus, and it seems that the coronavirus play hide and seek when hunted by antibodies. This may explain why more men succumb to the virus. A bold claim says that testicles are a compromising organ when it comes to the coronavirus that seems to confound many researchers. Recently, it was found out the coronavirus had low shielding on the sugar coating of the spikes that causes it to be more of an opportunistic pathogen. This explains why the pathogen goes to the testicles as a refuge, which is quite a surprising reaction for the most part on the pathogen. Another thing about the COVID-19 is that it combines with other cells, expressing the ACE2 protein or angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 to bypass the cellular defences when infiltrating the host cell. ACE2 proteins are found in various places in the body, located in the heart, lungs, and intestines. One exception are males that have more ACE2 proteins in the testes of testicles, though women have smaller amounts in the ovary. Statistically, the coronavirus will affect men worse than it would women. Studies have pointed out that men in the UK will likely die two times more, compared to women, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). By the numbers, men had a death rate of 1,782.2 per 100,000, and women were 840.9 per 100,000. Subjects in the study show that the ages ranged from the youngest at 3 to 75 years old, but a median of 37 as the middle count. Also read: Coronavirus Weak Spot Discovered: Researchers Find Out That Virus is 'Low Shielding' The research was done by Dr Aditi Shastri, an oncologist at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, with the help of her mother Jayanthi Shastri, a microbiologist. It was not published when it appeared on the medical website MedRxiv, it was not peer viewed yet as to when it went online. According to Virology Professor Ian Jones at the University of Reading, the virus needs to transit the bloodstream to reach the testes. This assertion of the study has been criticized as unusual. It is problematic that the virus reproduced in the respiratory tract, also to infect other organs it needed to go into the bloodstream where the antibodies are. Any virus that travels the bloodstream to infect other areas is anomalous and something alien for the coronavirus to do. Males seem to get the brunt of infections that women would in immunity matters, it might be because of having one X chromosome, which according to the author is an imbalance. The author's work is not peer-viewed yet. A stark contrast exists when women in the research had four days before clearing the infection, men were at 50% more to get over the infection with 6 days to their four days. This study was participated in by three families, results were that men took a bit longer than women to get better from a coronavirus infection. Jonathan Ball, Professor of Molecular Virology at the University of Nottingham cited a study that found no coronavirus in the semen of positive infections, saying it was a wrong assumption it stored the pathogen. One study was not peer-viewed that several males had their semen tested for COVID-19, one sample had the virus but died, he added. Finally, none of the samples had the coronavirus, and the testes as are reservoir is not correct. Professor Derek Hill of the University College in London said that more data is needed to know if testicles make men more vulnerable to coronavirus. Relate article: Israeli COVID-19 Treatment Reports 100% Survival Rate @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Commuters wearing masks make their way on a street in Tokyo. Japan is increasingly struggling to deal with the coronavirus (Kyodo/AP) Hospitals in Japan are increasingly turning away sick people as the country struggles with surging coronavirus infections and its emergency medical system collapses. In one recent case, an ambulance carrying a man with a fever and difficulty breathing was rejected by 80 hospitals and forced to search for hours for a hospital in downtown Tokyo that would treat him. Another feverish man finally reached a hospital after paramedics unsuccessfully contacted 40 clinics. The Japanese Association for Acute Medicine and the Japanese Society for Emergency Medicine say many hospital emergency rooms are refusing to treat people including those suffering strokes, heart attacks and external injuries. Expand Close Tokyos reported number of cases leapt dramatically after the Olympic Games were postponed (Eugene Hoshiko/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Tokyos reported number of cases leapt dramatically after the Olympic Games were postponed (Eugene Hoshiko/AP) Japan initially seemed to have controlled the outbreak by going after clusters of infections in specific places, usually enclosed spaces such as clubs, gyms and meeting venues. But the spread of virus outpaced this approach and most new cases are untraceable. The outbreak has highlighted underlying weaknesses in medical care in Japan, which has long been praised for its high quality insurance system and reasonable costs. Apart from a general unwillingness to embrace social distancing, experts blame government incompetence and a widespread shortage of the protective gear and equipment medical workers need to perform their jobs. Japan lacks enough hospital beds, medical workers or equipment. Forcing anyone with the virus into hospital, even those with mild symptoms, has left hospitals overcrowded and understaffed. The collapse of emergency medicine has already happened, a precursor to the overall collapse of medicine, the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine and the Japanese Society for Emergency Medicine said in a joint statement. By turning away patients, hospitals are putting an excessive burden on the limited number of advanced and critical emergency centres, the groups said. We can no longer carry out normal emergency medicine, said Takeshi Shimazu, an Osaka University emergency doctor. There are no enough protective gowns, masks and face shields, raising risks of infection for medical workers and making treatment of COVID-19 patients increasingly difficult, said Yoshitake Yokokura, who heads the Japan Medical Association. In March, there were 931 cases of ambulances being rejected by more than five hospitals or driving around for 20 minutes or longer to reach an emergency room, up from 700 in March last year. In the first 11 days of April, that rose to 830, the Tokyo Fire Department said. Expand Close Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has come under pressure as his country grapples with the outbreak (Pool/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has come under pressure as his country grapples with the outbreak (Pool/AP) Infections in a number of hospitals have forced medical workers to self-isolate at home, worsening staff shortages. Tokyos new cases started to spike in late March, the day after the Tokyo Olympics was postponed for a year. They have been rising at an accelerating pace for a current total of 2,595. With some 10,000 cases and 170 deaths, Japans situation is not as dire as many other countries, but there are fears its outbreak could become much worse. A government virus task force has warned that, in a worst-case scenario where no preventive measures were taken, more than 400,000 could die due to shortages of ventilators and other intensive care equipment. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the government has secured 15,000 ventilators and is getting support of Sony and Toyota Motor Corp. to produce more. Japanese hospitals also lack ICUs, with only five per 100,000 people, compared to about 30 in Germany, 35 in the U.S. and 12 in Italy, said Osamu Nishida, head of the Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine. Italys 10% mortality rate, compared to Germanys 1pc, is partly due to the shortage of ICU facilities, Nishida said. Japan, with ICUs not even half of Italys, is expected to face a fatality overshoot very quickly, he said. Banks will increasingly tighten lending criteria over the next three months, approvals for credit cards and loans will fall and interest-free term lengths will shrink, banking giants and building societies predict. The Bank of England's latest credit conditions survey revealed lenders by a large margin believe the availability of unsecured credit for households will decrease between April and June, as the economy is battered by the coronavirus outbreak. While banks said that the availability of unsecured debt like credit cards and personal loans slightly increased in the first three months of this year, the survey suggests this will reverse due to the economic impact of the virus and lenders' reduced appetite for risk. Credit card and loan approvals will fall as banks tighten lending criteria, a Bank of England survey predicted Banks are increasingly unlikely to want to hand out unsecured debt to households when there are doubts as to whether they will be able to pay it back in the future. Lenders are also being required by the Financial Conduct Authority to offer payment holidays to credit card and loan customers and spend more time supporting existing customers who may be struggling. The survey results are weighted according to banks' responses and their share of the market and are delivered as net percentages between minus and positive 100. Positive balances suggest banks expect the availability and demand for credit to increase over a three-month period. A net balance of 26 per cent of lenders believe the availability of unsecured credit will decrease in the second quarter of 2020. This is the second bleakest prediction since the midst of the financial crisis in 2008, beaten only by the third quarter of 2017, and if the prediction came true would be the biggest reduction in availability since the first three months of 2018. Then, a net 38 per cent of lenders recorded a shrink in the availability of unsecured credit, a period which coincided with the beginning of an FCA crackdown on credit card debt and a Bank of England inquiry into how much Britons were borrowing. The last three months of 2017 also saw a rise in the Bank of England base rate from 0.25 per cent to 0.5 per cent, with suggestions it could rise further increasing the cost of debt, and economic uncertainty thanks to Brexit. This negative prediction also marks a big swing from the first three months of this year, when a net 5.5 per cent of lenders recorded an increase in the availability of unsecured credit. More pressingly for households, close to 33 per cent of banks and building societies expect to tighten lending criteria for credit cards and loans and more than 35 per cent expect approvals to drop. A net 26% of lenders believed the availability of household unsecured credit like credit cards and loans would decrease over the next three months Andrew Hagger, the founder of personal finance site Moneycomms, previously told This is Money: 'The appetite from lenders to take on fresh unsecured debt will wane as unemployment soars and the economy weakens. 'Restricting new 0 per cent lending by tightening lending criteria and/or reducing the competitiveness of products wouldn't surprise me.' Comparison site Compare the Market told This is Money they had seen examples of lenders already tightening eligibility criteria for new customers, meaning they were less likely to be accepted for applications. Meanwhile banks also expect interest-free terms for both balance transfers and purchases to shrink over the next few months. Banks also believe demand for new credit would shrink, likely as consumers cut down on spending Credit card providers including Barclaycard, Sainsbury's Bank and Tesco Bank have already shortened interest-free terms and pulled some zero-interest deals from sale. Tesco Bank said it had taken the decision to reduce some of its credit card offers in order to focus on existing customers and reduce the number of new customers. However, this is something of a continuation of a recent trend, as only once since the end of 2017 have banks predicted the length of interest-free terms to increase, while interest-free balance transfer terms have shrunk from 43 months to 30 over the last three years. The longest interest-free purchase deal has fallen two months since last April to 26 months, while the 64 available 0 per cent purchase deals is the lowest since 2006, according to Moneyfacts. There is no doubt these are worrying signs for households who may be looking to keep a lid on the cost of their debts over the next few months. But although some may expect more households to turn to credit cards, overdrafts, loans and other borrowing if their finances come under strain in the next few months, a net 7.2 per cent of lenders expect there to be less demand from households for unsecured debt. This is a reversal from the first three months of this year, with close to 31 per cent of banks finding more credit being taken out by households between January and March. This might be because consumer spending is expected to shrink, especially on things like travel and non-essential items. Recent figures from Barclaycard, which sees nearly half of the nation's credit and debit card transactions, found consumer spending fell 6 per cent year-on-year in March and spending on non-essentials fell 12.9 per cent. British households had 71.9billion outstanding on credit cards at the end of February and owed another 153.2billion in other loans, according to the latest figures from the Bank of England. Sri Lanka's Election Commission on Monday postponed the parliamentary elections for nearly two months in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed seven people and infected 295 others in the country. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule and called a snap election on April 25. A gazette notice signed by the three members of the National Election Commission announcing June 20 date of the election was issued on Monday. The EC has written to President Rajapaksa asking him to seek the highest court's opinion on a possible constitutional standoff arising from the postponement of the election. It said that the postponement meant that parliament would not be able to meet on June 2, which is three months from the dismissal of last parliament on March 2. However, Rajapaksa asserted that it was the election commission's job to fix the polls date and as such no need for the Supreme Court's intervention. Earlier, the election commission met with the government officials and reviewed the pandemic situation affecting the election machinery. On Monday, the government dropped its decision to relax the nationwide curfew and extended it to April 27 following a sudden spike of 41 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. On Sunday, the government announced to partially lift the curbs from Monday to boost economic activity. The island nation has been under a 24-hour curfew since March 20 to combat the deadly viral infection. All opposition parties and many civil society groups have urged the government to show caution in trying to rush through holding the election. Sri Lanka has so far reported 295 COVID-19 cases, including seven deaths, and 96 recoveries, since the first viral infection was reported in the country on March 11. The parliamentary polls were announced 6 months ahead of the schedule as Rajapaksa, who was elected as president in November, wanted a new Parliament to implement his mandate. Rajapaksa is also under pressure to re-summon the dissolved Parliament in order to approve finances for government business from May. The previous Parliament had approved funds till April 30. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The aftermarket world is both fascinating and mysterious. Its fascinating for all the reasons that make tuning programs appealing to a lot of car owners. Its also mysterious for all the reasons that we dont know exactly what happens when a specific tuning program is developed. Well, if you want a peek behind the proverbial aftermarket curtains, this 50-minute documentary featuring German tuner Brabus is a must-watch. From 900-horsepower sedans to massive SUVs that turn into Autobahn bullets, Brabus has built and developed some of the most impressive tuning programs for Mercedes and Mercedes-AMG models. Through this documentary, we finally get the chance to see the magic behind the madness. A fascinating 50-minute look into the world of one of the worlds most popular aftermarket companies Who is Brabus? Brabus is a German aftermarket company that specializes in building tuning programs for Mercedes-Benz models. Weve featured a lot of the tuners works over the years, and the central theme behind each program is a comprehensive engine upgrade program that puts serious power under the hood of these Mercedes models. The 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE 63 S Coupe is a good example. On its own, the high-powered SUV comes with a 5.5-liter turbocharged V-8 engine that produces 577 horsepower and 561 pound-feet of torque. Brabus prepared an engine upgrade program for the SUV, and the result was an 850-horsepower and 1,069-pound-feet of torque powerhouse. In so many words, Brabus doesnt mess around when it comes to building aftermarket programs for Mercedes and Mercedes-AMG models. What does the documentary show us? The Brabus documentary is 50 minutes long. Thats enough time to give us a never-before-seen look into the inner working of Brabus as a tuning company. A lot of what was shown in the documentary are things that we dont usually think about when were talking about these programs once theyre out in the market. We dont see the amount of scrutiny each Mercedes model goes through before theyre subjected to the tuning upgrades. We dont get to see the process behind each tuning build and the level of sophistication and attention-to-detail that goes into making sure that each program lives up to the standards of Brabus. The documentary gives us a look at the side of Brabus thats far removed from the glitzy and impressive products it rolls out. Its a fascinating watch, especially if youre a fan of the tuner, Mercedes, or the entire aftermarket subculture. How important is compliance? Its very important, particularly in Europe where tuners like Brabus have to abide by government regulations before they can offer their tuning programs to customers. The documentary spends a good amount of time talking about these regulations particularly TUV, which stands for the Technical Inspection Association. The government body holds a lot of influence on German tuners like Brabus, particularly when it comes to making sure that the products these tuners offer to customers meet government standards. All of these pieces work side-by-side in the creation of these tuning programs that we all love. Brabus programs for Mercedes models are no exception, and when it comes to seeing first-hand what happens inside the companys production facility, this documentary will give you everything you need to know, and then some. Source: YouTube The Australia government has said it will adopt a mandatory code to require tech giants such as Google and Facebook to pay local media for reusing their content. The requirement for them to share ad revenue with domestic publishers was reported earlier by Reuters. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg published an opinion article in The Australian Friday, writing that an earlier plan to create a voluntary code by November this year to govern the relationship between digital platforms and media businesses -- in order to "protect consumers, improve transparency and address the power imbalance between the parties" -- had failed owing to "insufficient progress." "On the fundamental issue of payment for content, which the code was seeking to resolve, there was no meaningful progress and, in the words of the ACCC [Australia's competition commission], 'no expectation of any even being made,' " he wrote. The ACCC has been tasked with devising the code, which Frydenberg said will include provisions related to value exchange and revenue sharing; transparency of ranking algorithms; access to user data; presentation of news content; and penalties and sanctions for non-compliance. "The intention is to have a draft code of conduct released for comment by the end of July and legislated shortly thereafter," he added. "It is only fair that the search engines and social media giants pay for the original news content that they use to drive traffic to their sites." As the technology of the digital platforms has evolved, so too has their market dominance. By creating a mandatory code, were seeking to be the first country in the world that successfully requires these social media giants to pay for original news content. pic.twitter.com/vhMaQab2E4 Josh Frydenberg (@JoshFrydenberg) April 19, 2020 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Story continues The debate around compensation for tech giants' reuse of (and indirect monetization of) others' editorial content -- by displaying snippets of news stories on their platforms and aggregation services -- is not a new one, though the coronavirus crisis has likely dialed up publisher pressure on policymakers as advertiser marketing budgets nose-dive globally and media companies stare down the barrel of a revenue crunch. Earlier this month France's competition watchdog ordered Google to negotiate in good faith with local media firms to pay for reusing their content. The move followed a national law last year to transpose a pan-EU copyright reform that's intended to extend rights to news snippets. However, instead of paying French publishers for reusing their content, Google stopped displaying content that's covered by the law in local search and Google News. France's competition watchdog said it believes the unilateral move constitutes an abuse of a dominant market position -- taking the step of applying an interim order to force Google to the negotiating table while it continues to investigate. Frydenberg's article references the French move, as well as pointing back to a 2014 attempt by Spain, which also created legislation seeking to make Google to pay for snippets of news reused in its News aggregator product. In the latter case Google simply pulled the plug on its News service in the market -- which it remains closed in Spain to this day... Google's message to desktop users in Spain if they try to navigate to its News product "We are under no illusions as to the difficulty and complexity of implementing a mandatory code to govern the relationship between the digital platforms and the news media businesses. However, there is a need to take this issue head-on," Frydenberg goes on. "We are not seeking to protect traditional media companies from the rigour of competition or technological disruption. "Rather, to create a level playing field where market power is not misused, companies get a fair go and there is appropriate compensation for the production of original news content." Reached for comment on the Australian government's plan, a Google spokesperson sent us this statement: We've worked for many years to be a collaborative partner to the news industry, helping them grow their businesses through ads and subscription services and increase audiences by driving valuable traffic. Since February, we have engaged with more than 25 Australian publishers to get their input on a voluntary code and worked to the timetable and process set out by the ACCC. We have sought to work constructively with industry, the ACCC and Government to develop a Code of Conduct, and we will continue to do so in the revised process set out by the Government today. Google continues to argue that it provides ample value to news publishers by directing traffic to their websites, where they can monetize it via ads and/or subscription conversions, saying that in 2018 alone it sent in excess of 2 billion clicks to Australian news publishers from Australian users. It also points out publishers can choose whether or not they wish their content to appear in Google search results. Though, in France, it's worth noting the competition watchdog took the view that Google declaring that it won't pay to display any news could put some publishers at a disadvantage versus others. The dominance of Google's search engine certainly looks to be a key component for such interventions, along with Facebook's grip on digital attention spans. On this, Frydenberg's articles cites a report by the country's competition commission which found more than 98% of online searches on mobile devices in Australia are with Google. While Facebook was found to have some 17 million local users who connected to its platform for at least half an hour a day. (Australia's total population is around 25 million.) "For every $100 spent by advertisers in Australia on online advertising, excluding classifieds, $47 goes to Google, $24 to Facebook and $29 to other participants," Frydenberg also wrote, noting that the local online ad market is worth around $9 billion per year -- growing more than 8x since 2005. Reached for comment on the government plan for a mandatory code for reuse of news content, Facebook sent us the following statement -- attributed to Will Easton, MD, Facebook Australia and New Zealand: Were disappointed by the Government's announcement, especially as weve worked hard to meet their agreed deadline. COVID-19 has impacted every business and industry across the country, including publishers, which is why we announced a new, global investment to support news organisations at a time when advertising revenue is declining. We believe that strong innovation and more transparency around the distribution of news content is critical to building a sustainable news ecosystem. Weve invested millions of dollars locally to support Australian publishers through content arrangements, partnerships and training for the industry and hope the code will protect the interests of millions of Australians and small businesses that use our services every day. If enough countries pursue a competition-flavored legislative fix against Google and Facebook to try to extract rents for media publishers it may be more difficult for them to dodge some form of payment for reusing news content. Though the adtech giants still hold other levers they could pull to increase their charges on publishers. Indeed, their dual role -- involved in both the distribution, discovery and monetization of online content and ads, controlling massive ad networks as well as applying algorithms to create content hierarchies to service ads alongside -- has attracted additional antitrust scrutiny in certain markets. After launching a market study of Google and Facebook's ad platforms last July, the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) raised concerns in an interim report in December -- kicking off a consultation on a range of potential inventions from breaking up the platform giants to limiting their ability to set self-serving defaults and enforcing data sharing and/or feature interoperability to help rivals compete. Per its initial findings, the CMA said there were reasonable grounds for suspecting serious impediments to competition in the online platforms and digital advertising market. However the regulator has so far favored making recommendations to government, to feed a planned comprehensive regulatory framework to govern the behavior of online platforms, rather than taking it upon itself to intervene directly. Nigeria on Monday confirmed its first coronavirus case in the insurgency-hit northeast of the country, a medic with Doctors Without Borders who died from COVID-19. The region has been ravaged by a decade-long insurgency by Boko Haram jihadists that has forced around 1.8 million people from their homes. Aid workers fear the virus could prove devastating if it spreads inside the crowded camps holding hundreds of thousands of displaced people. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said on Twitter that it had recorded one case of the disease in Borno state, the epicentre of the conflict. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said in a statement that one of its staff died on April 18 in the state capital Maiduguri "and post mortem test results indicated that they were positive for COVID-19". The international aid group said it was supporting Nigeria's health ministry "in contact tracing". MSF insisted it "will continue to operate, providing essential treatment for communities in Nigeria". "In all our projects and in order to protect our staff and patients, MSF teams have strengthened infection prevention measures, hygiene facilities, infection control and the establishment of isolation spaces," it said. The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said the deceased health worker "had no travel history outside of Borno State and made the ultimate sacrifice". Kallon said "humanitarian actors have adapted their way of working to prevent the spread of the virus" in the region. "A COVID-19 treatment facility and a testing laboratory have been established in Maiduguri and a second treatment facility is being developed," he said in statement. "Humanitarian actors are installing hand-washing stations and ensuring supply of clean water in IDP camps and vulnerable communities." Ten years of conflict in northeast Nigeria has left the region in no state to deal with a global pandemic. Only half of the roughly 700 health facilities in Borno state are still working and many have been damaged by the fighting. Humanitarian workers fear increased restrictions over the virus could hamper efforts to reach over 7 million people in desperate need of assistance. Nigeria has so far confirmed 627 infections from the novel coronavirus, with 21 deaths, across the country. The adjusted gross revenue story is back in the news in India as Vodafone Idea has asked the government for more time to pay its AGR-based dues for the January-March 2020 period. The telecommunications giant has highlighted the financial and operational pressures it is facing during the Covid-19 crisis as reasons for the delay. It also seems that the operator has not been able to submit adequate bank guarantees to cover its spectrum payments. These are now due to start in the financial year beginning April 2022 after a two-year moratorium was granted. Indian news reports suggest that Vodafone Idea wants to provide corporate guarantees for the shortfall instead of complete bank guarantees. This may not be acceptable to the government. Vodafone Idea had not paid its AGR dues by the March 25 deadline. It is not clear how much this quarter's dues are. Vodafone Idea's annual spectrum dues are roughly $1.7 billion, rising to $2 billion annually when interest is added, taking the delay into account. While the Indian government has been wary of doing anything that might push Vodafone Idea into financial difficulty this is an even worse time for the government to take tough measures against the operator. At the moment its 300-million-plus customers will be hoping for continuity of service during the lockdown. The quarterly dues which Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio have paid are apparently not part of the long-standing AGR case being fought in the Supreme Court between the government and various telecommunications companies. Most of that sum about $7 billion on the case of Vodafone Idea is still outstanding from some companies. However, the chances of the Supreme Court meeting to discuss proposals to extend the timeframe for payment seem limited during the present epidemic. The chaos of an $8 billion federal disbursement that could begin as soon as Tuesday with the completion date set for April 26 Indian Country Today The $8 billion tribal relief fund could be gone soon. More than 600 tribes, corporations, and even nonprofit organizations registered last week with the Treasury Department documenting whats needed to at least partly mitigate the impact of the coronavirus. And based on the leaking of sensitive information, its clear the pool will be far short of whats needed, likely less than 10 percent of documented impact from the pandemic. Yet on the Monday before a payout begins there is no clear indication from the Trump administration about the process. Will the funding awards be public? What formula will be used, employment, population, or land base, or all three? And will the formula be ever made a public document? These questions are punctuated by the chaos of an $8 billion disbursement that could begin as soon as Tuesday with a completion date of April 26. Tribes are concerned because the government's registration process seems structured toward land, not population, or even coronavirus-related costs. That would favor the 12 Alaska Native regional corporations and 200-plus village corporations that own some 44 million acres of fee patent land. The total of all tribal trust land is 56 million acres owned by more than 500 tribes. Another issue raised by tribes is about protecting employment. A study by Alaska Business found that only 27 percent of Alaska Native corporate employees were based in the state, while the rest worked worldwide. Nearly all tribal employees work in their communities. On Friday several tribes -- including those in Alaska -- sued the Treasury Department over the issue of including Alaska Native corporations in the fund. The Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation and the Tulalip Tribes in Washington state, the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians in Maine, and the Akiak Native Community, Asa'carsarmiut Tribe and Aleut Community of St. Paul Island in Alaska filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Treasury Department, named as the defendant, did not immediately return an email seeking comment. At 5:45am Eastern on April 20, 2020, six tribal governments -- including 3 in #Alaska -- filed a motion to direct the Trump administration to exclude #AlaskaNative corporations from receiving share of $8 billion #Coronavirus relief fund. #ANCs #CARESActhttps://t.co/uTT6ErjmlN indianz.com (@indianz) April 20, 2020 The lawsuit says COVID-19 is causing devastating harm in Indian country and that Congress recognized the unique hardships on tribal governments. These governments have needed to engage in robust public health activities and to provide enhanced health care and other public services in response to the pandemic. One of the plaintiffs is the Akiak Native Community. The tribe has 535 enrolled members and is only accessible by air. On March 26, the Akiak Council declared a public health emergency and shut down its business and recreational activities and closed access to the community. The nearest hospital is Bethel, 30 miles away by air. There is a community clinic but Akiak has gone for days at a time without any health care services due to the unavailability of the one trained health aide. The Interior Department maintains that Alaska Native corporations are eligible for the funding, pointing to a definition in the Indian Self Determination Act that includes the corporations as Indian tribes. Then this debate goes back before that law too. In 1971 when the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act became law many considered it a "termination bill" ending the idea of tribes and reservations in Alaska. Corporations were instead expected to manage 44 million acres of land and serve cultural and community interests while leaving governance issues to the state of Alaska. Yet corporations were considered an imperfect vehicle. As Rosita Worl wrote in Cultural Survival : During the late 1980s it was popular to say that corporations were alien institutions. The framers of ANCSA and public policy observers, on the other hand, described Native corporations as social engineers and mechanisms for economic assimilation into the larger society. The truth perhaps lies between these two positions, as Native corporations have become increasingly prominent in many Native communities and have been viewed by many as a measure to achieve self determination. Worl, Tlingit, is a scholar and president of the Sealaska Heritage Institute in Juneau. But Alaskas sovereignty movement was growing and more Alaska Native villages were organizing as tribes under the 1975 Indian Self-Determination Act (the very law cited in the CARES Act as a reason to award corporations funding). One idea was to return lands to tribes from the corporations, an idea quickly rejected by Congress and the corporations. Alaska Native corporations were among first in line for an $8 billion #Coronavirus relief fund, data obtained by https://t.co/0yYFAWzrcJ shows. They are outpacing tribes in lower 48 on key metrics, including land, employees & spending. #COVID19 #CARESAct https://t.co/o6GAFa7N0l indianz.com (@indianz) April 18, 2020 Worl wrote that during the 2002 Alaska Federation of Natives convention the congressional delegation warned that the 200 tribal governments in Alaska were not sustainable. While the delegation did not suggest that Alaska Natives seek the elimination of tribal governments, she wrote, they did advance the notion of the regionalization of tribes to support fiscally efficient delivery of services. One study in the 1990s found that tribal sovereignty was an economic opportunity that could bring $400 million a year into the state. By 2017 the state of Alaska was in agreement. Attorney General Jahna Lindemuth wrote an extensive memo on the powers of tribes and concluded: The law is clear. There are 229 Alaska Tribes and they are separate sovereigns with inherent sovereignty and subject matter jurisdiction over certain matters. Indian country is not a prerequisite for Alaska Tribes inherent sovereignty or subject matter jurisdiction, but it may impact the extent of that jurisdiction. Most of the tribes arguing against funding Alaska Native corporations from the CARES Act relief fund make that same case, that money should be used to to support governments with a political relationship with the United States. President Amos Philemonoff, Aleut Community of St. Paul Island: "The impacts on our tribe, tribal members, and tribal community will be in the tens of millions as we ... deal with the sudden and severe economic dislocations created from this pandemic." https://t.co/uTT6ErjmlN indianz.com (@indianz) April 20, 2020 The Aleut Community of St. Paul Island says there is a middle ground. It is very unfortunate the situation has become so volatile and harsh words have been passed between leaders of the tribal nations and the Federal Government, wrote Amos T. Philemonoff, Sr. in a letter to the Treasury Secretary. A very workable solution to controversy (is) the authorization by Alaskas federally recognized tribes for tribal organizations/consortia to receive funding on their behalf, if they so choose. Philemonoff makes the case to let the money flow up, not down. However in an op-ed published in Indian Country Today four leaders of Alaska Native corporations had their own take. The CARES Act is unambiguous: Alaska Native villages, Alaska Native regional corporations, and Alaska Native village corporations are tribes under the law, wrote Gail Schubert, president and CEO of Bering Straits Native Corporation, Sophie Minich, president and CEO of CIRI, Sheri Buretta, chairman of the board, Chugach Alaska Corporation and Shauna Hegna, president of Koniag. The law is clear. Our legal mandate as Alaska Native corporations is to support our Alaska Native communities and shareholders economically, culturally and socially, they wrote. The federal court, like the spending program itself, is on a tight deadline. Once the money begins to flow any legal challenge could be irreversible. Mark Trahant is the editor of Indian Country Today . He is a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes . Follow him on Twitter @TrahantReports Note: This story originally appeared on Indian Country Today on April 20, 2020. Join the Conversation China on Monday firmly rejected US President Donald Trump's demand to allow an American team into Wuhan to investigate the origins of the novel coronavirus, saying it was also a "victim and not a culprit" of the COVID-19. Describing the novel coronavirus as a plague, Trump on Sunday said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province. "We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want to see what's going on. And we weren't exactly invited, I can tell you that, Trump told reporters. The US has launched an investigation into whether the deadly virus "escaped" from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Reacting to Trump's comments, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a media briefing here that "the virus is the common enemy for all mankind. "It may appear at anytime anywhere in the world. Like any other country, China is attacked by this virus. China is a victim instead of the culprit. We are not co-worker for this virus," he said in a hard-hitting response to Trump's plan to send a US probe team. As the COVID-19 death toll in US crossed 41,000 and the total infections more than 764,000, highest in the world, Trump and several US politicians pressed for action against China for not sharing enough details of the virus early on, when it first emerged in Wuhan. The overall death toll in China as of Sunday stood at 4,632 after its recent revision of figures of fatalities in Wuhan by 50 per cent. Geng said, "since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has been acting in an open, transparent and responsible manner with the most thorough and strong measures to stop the spread of the COVID-19". He said China's efforts to contain the virus has provided valuable experience for the international community to deal with the outbreak in their own countries. "This is also part of our important contribution. The international community appreciated China for doing this," he said. Countering US politicians' assertions that China should be sued for so many deaths in the world, Geng said, "I don't remember there are any precedence for such a prosecution. Pointing to H1N1 influenza which was detected in US 2009 as well as HIV/AIDS and the 2008 financial crisis in America which turned into global economic crisis, Geng asked, "did anyone ask US accountability?" He also turned down Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne's call for an international inquiry into coronavirus including its origins in China. Payne said there should be a global inquiry without the involvement of the World Health Organisation (WHO) which has been accused by America of siding with China. Geng said, "the remarks by FM of Australia are totally groundless. We express grave concern and firmly reject that. He said China's performance in containing the virus is well recognised. Any doubt of transparency is not in line with the facts and also disrespects the arduous efforts and huge scarifies made by Chinese people. About allegations that the virus originated in Wuhan, Geng said origin of virus is a serious scientific issue, which requires an assessment from scientists. We hope Australia (will) look at the issue in objective and meticulous manner." On French Nobel prize winning scientist Luc Montagnier's remarks that the COVID-19 virus came from a lab, and is the result of an attempt to manufacture a vaccine against the HIV/AIDS, Geng said a number of scientists and the WHO said there is no evidence for such an allegation. Citing the interview of Yuan Zhiming, of the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), Geng said he denied that the COVID-19 has escaped from the lab. Yuan said such allegations are entirely based on speculation. Part of the purpose is to confuse people and interfere with our anti-epidemic and scientific activities." Geng also refuted Trump's economic advisor Peter Navarro's allegations that China is hoarding vital medical gear required in hospitals to treat coronavirus patients. "It is misleading to say China is hoarding PPEs (personal protection equipment)," he said. Geng said that from March 1 to April 17, China has provided 1.64 billion masks, 29.19 million surgical protective suits, 156 invasive ventilators and 4254 non-invasive ventilators. Navarro should stop slandering and focus more on containing the spread of COVID-19 in US, Geng said. The coronavirus, which emerged in China in December last year, has killed over 160,000 and infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A huge political row kicked up over the macabre murder of three persons including two Hindu Sadhus from Juna Akhada in Palghar in Maharashtra with Congress accusing the ruling of BJP of shameful attempt to politicise the incident while the latter alleging a direct NCP-CPI(M) nexus behind the incident. In Maharashtra, BJPs oldest ally Shiv Sena had parted ways from NDA and formed a government last year in alliance with Congress and NCP. The incident, which happened on last Thursday went viral on social media in last two days with many on social media voicing outrage over the killing of Hindu monks and some suggesting a Muslim angle to it initially. Later the Left- BJP blame game began. Noting that activities of the leftists have been going on in the Palghar area for quite some time, VHP said the lynching is part of Lefts own action and sought to remind people of the 2008 killing of Swami Lakshmanand in Odisha in which though the state pinned the blame on Maoists, many alleged Christian groups to be behind the attack. Akhil Bhartiya Sant Samiti was dismissive of Maharashtra government probe and alleged that the state government wants to lay the blame at the doors of innocent tribals in order to protect naxals, crypto Christians, illegal immigrants and Rohingya Muslims. Swami Jitendranand Saraswati of the Samiti also wrote a letter to Home Minister Amit Shah. Congress leader Sachin Sawant said, Amit Shah, Ajay Kumar Bisht (Yogi Adityanath) and the entire BJP wants to defame the Maharashtra government. The village where mob lynching took place is a BJP bastion. There has been a BJP sarpanch there for ten years. Most of those, who have been arrested belong to the BJP. BJP should be ashamed of doing communal politics. It is surprising that the Chief Minister of UP, which is the den of mob lynching calls up the office of CM Uddhav Thackeary, he said. Congress politician Salman Nizami, who tweeted So, Muslims are not involved in Palghar lynching - so the outrage has stopped. Well done Islamophobics! also got trolled on Twitter. At the AICC, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said all the arrested persons are local Aadivasis from Vikramgarh Taluka in District Palghar and there is no communal or Hindu-Muslim angle to the attack as is being sought to be projected by those, who see an opportunity in every such incident to inflame communal passion. These attempts to politicise are deeply shameful and must be rejected with the contempt they deserve, he said. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted a video clip of the incident in which a youth is seen wearing a white and yellow tea shirt, which was identified by BJP national secretary Sunil Deodhar as a leader from NCP. Very important revelations in the #PalgharMobLynching case clearly establishes a deep nexus! Why should politicians & leaders be present at the Lynching site ..what were they doing ..Instigating??, Patra said asking Deodhar to name the parties whose leaders were there. Deodhar identified one of them as NCP District Panchayat member and three as CPI-M members. All shoppers and workers at essential stores and restaurants still open in Pennsylvania will be required to wear face masks starting Monday. Gov. Tom Wolf announced the order last week, almost three weeks after he asked, but didnt require, everyone to be masked when theyre out in public. The order comes as part of an effort to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. While medical masks should be reserved for hospitals and first responders, there are plenty of alternatives available to cover your face when out in public. Here are some places you can find the materials available to make your own mask. Cloth face masks Amazon Kohls Dicks Sporting Goods Backcountry Bandanas Amazon Fanatics Target Urban Outfitters Scarves Amazon Fanatics (On sale) Kohls Target Several local business are selling, and even making, masks as well. You can find a full list here. 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. Indias Mahindra Group has temporarily repurposed its auto-plant in Auburn Hills, Michigan to make protective equipment for healthcare workers at the frontline of the fight against the coronavirus. It has been making aspiration boxes and face shields with polycarbonate material used for auto windshields, The Detroit News reported last week. Aspiration boxes protect healthcare professionals at the time hospitalized Covid-19 patients are being taken off tubes, when it can get messy. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave it a public shout-out Monday, in a post on Twitter, with a link to the news article: Thank you to the Mahindra Group for rising to the occasion and using your facilities to manufacture life-saving equipment. The Mahindra plants protective gear for doctors and nurses is part of a larger effort by the auto industry to repurpose their manufacturing facilities to help make up for the shortfall of critical medical supplies such as ventilators for hospitalized Covid-19 patients and protective equipment healthcare professionals, with a little push from the White House. Ford and General Motors, for instance, are making ventilators. Earlier this month, India had lifted restrictions on the export of antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine a the request of President Donald Trump, who has touted it as a game-changer in the treatment of Covid-19, which remains unproven. The Mahindra plant makes off-road utility vehicles called Roxor and it was closed in March because of the epidemic, which has hit Michigan state very hard, specially Detroit, home of the US auto industry. We had the material on hand to get started, said Rick Haas, CEO of Mahindra Automotive North America, told the Detroit News, referring to the windshield material already in the inventory. Were also making face masks, but were having challenges keeping supply and material in house. Everyone is trying to do that. The aspiration boxes, which were designed locally, have been much in demand here and and abroad reportedly and the company plans to ramp up its manufacturing. 04/20/2020 Photo (c) winhorse - Getty Images The last thing Delta Air Lines was expecting in its fight to survive during the COVID-19 pandemic was a class-action lawsuit. But, it looks like the airline will be lawyering up because of a proposed lawsuit seeking refunds for flights the airline canceled. Delta customer Elliot Daniels is listed as the plaintiff in the case. He claims that he purchased four round-trip tickets on February 20 for travel to occur starting on April 1 from Washington Dulles to Cairo, Egypt. However, he says that his flight was canceled twice. According to the suit, Daniels travel agent informed him that he had two options available to him: (1) rebook his trip with a new departure date of March 31, 2020 or (2) cancel his flight in its entirety and receive a refund. Daniels elected to rebook his flight, changing his departure from April 1, 2020 and rebooking the departure for one day earlier, March 31, 2020. However, he alleges that Delta also cancelled his rebooked flight. Monetary refunds vs. travel vouchers While the lawsuit shows some understanding of the unprecedented hardship the pandemic has caused, the beef Daniels has with Delta is that the airline is adding to the difficulties passengers already face. Delta refuses to issue monetary refunds to passengers with canceled flights, the suit claims, leaning on the Department of Transportations mandate that airlines must give monetary compensation and not travel vouchers. It does so even though all airline passengers are entitled to a refund if the airline cancels a flight, regardless of the reason the airline cancels the flight. Instead, Delta represents it will only rebook and/or provide travel vouchers, Daniels contends. The need for monetary refunds over travel vouchers is pressing now. Travel vouchers provide little security in this public crisis, particularly where many individual Americans need money now to pay for basics like food and rent, not restrictive, temporary credits towards future travel. A sticky situation From what ConsumerAffairs has seen, this refund vs. voucher situation is extremely sticky. Delta, for its part, has been criticized for how quickly it has responded to customers' needs, even admitting its delays on Facebook. One Delta passenger who wound up as a customer service calamity was Diane from Peabody, MA, who found herself stranded in Europe on the eve that President Trump closed the borders with the European Union. The gate agent and crew advised we would be stranded for 30 days, Diane wrote. At this point the U.K. was not affected. 2 days later Delta cancelled our return flight. We rebooked and paid more money because the new return was higher price even though it would only get us to NYC and wed need to rent a car to get to Boston. This one was also cancelled. We were advised to wait until 72 hrs prior to departure and they would get us out as soon as possible. The app never let us rebook and no one ever responded. We booked our own way out on another airline. We are still fighting for a refund for the flight they cancelled. I made it clear I would run out of my insulin and other medications and they could not care less. Profits over people Steve Barman, managing partner of Hagens Berman and attorney for consumers in the class action, stated that Deltas response to the pandemic has been utterly unacceptable. That Delta is offering time-limited vouchers during an unprecedented time of chaos and uncertainty in our nations history only underscores its primary focus of profits over people, and we intend to fight for their right to monetary relief. Americans are losing their sources of income at alarming rates. Vouchers just wont cut it. Its highly possible that other class-action lawsuits filed by disgruntled consumers will rear their ugly heads. The firm representing Daniels has already filed another class-action lawsuit similar to the Delta one -- this time against United Airlines. A separate, but similar, lawsuit has also been filed against Southwest Airlines. Update A Delta representative responded to a ConsumerAffairs request for comment. Their statement is presented below: The Indian benchmark indices traded in a tight range and settled almost flat amid mixed cues on April 20. The Sensex closed 59 points, or 0.19 percent up, at 31,648, and the Nifty finished five points lower, or down 0.05 percent, at 9,261.85. "We have mixed signals from the local front as of now. The steps, which are taken by the government for lifting the lockdown partially, Reserve Bank of Indias measures to stabilise the financial system and projection of a normal monsoon have provided a sentimental boost," said Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking. However, he added that a sharp increase in coronavirus cases is still the major cause of concern. "As the earnings season progresses, the stock-specific movement would remain high, hence we would advise participants to continue with a cautious approach and prefer hedged bets," Mishra said. We have collated 15 data points to help you spot profitable trades: Note: The OI and volume data of stocks given in this story are the aggregates of three-months data and not of the current month only. According to pivot charts, the key support level for Nifty is placed at 9,198.15, followed by 9,134.45. If the index starts moving up, key resistance levels to watch out for are 9,358.2 and 9,454.55.Nifty Bank closed 0.77 percent lower at 20,522.65. The important pivot level, which will act as crucial support for the index, is placed at 20,270.56, followed by 20,018.43. On the upside, key resistance levels are placed at 20,948.46 and 21,374.23.Maximum call open interest (OI) of 14.03 lakh contracts was seen at the 9,500 strike price. It will act as a crucial resistance level in the April series. This is followed by the 9,000, which holds 13.69 lakh contracts, and 9,800 strikes, which has accumulated 3.78 lakh contracts. Call writing was seen at the 9,400, which added 42,450 contracts, followed by 9,600 strikes that added 41,850 contracts. Call unwinding was witnessed at 9,000 strike, which shed 1.16 lakh contracts. Maximum put OI of 23.5 lakh contracts was seen at 9,000 strike, which will act as crucial support in the April series. This is followed by 9,500, which holds 9.05 lakh contracts, and 8,800 strikes, which has accumulated 4.64 lakh contracts. Put writing was seen at the 9,000, which added 2.65 lakh contracts, followed by 9,300 strikes, which added 90,000 contracts. Put unwinding was seen at 8,900 strike, which shed 225 contracts. A high delivery percentage suggests that investors are showing interest in these stocks. Based on open interest (OI) future percentage, here are the top 10 stocks in which long build-up was seen. Based on OI future percentage, here are the top 10 stocks in which long unwinding was seen. An increase in OI, along with a decrease in price, mostly indicates a build-up of short positions. Based on OI future percentage, here are the top 10 stocks in which short build-up was seen. A decrease in OI, along with an increase in price, mostly indicates a short-covering. Based on open interest (OI) future percentage, here are the top 10 stocks in which short-covering was seen. Bulk deals (For more bulk deals, click here) TCS: Amway partners with TCS for strategic IT operations transformation. NLC India: Company raised Rs 1,000 crore via issuance of commercial papers to SBI for standalone business operations. Infibeam Avenues: Company signed a binding agreement for the acquisition of US-based IT firm AI Fintech. Precision Wires: The company received permission to restart manufacturing operations at Silvassa plant. HeidelbergCement India: Company resumed partial operations in some manufacturing units. Excel Industries: Company's manufacturing operations have restarted and will be ramped up gradually. Fund flow Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 265.89 crore and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares of worth Rs 788.87 crore in the Indian equity market on April 20, provisional data available on the NSE showed.No security is under the F&O ban for April 21. Securities in the ban period under the F&O segment include companies in which the security has crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit. No fresh coronavirus case surfaced in Himachal Pradesh in the last three days, keeping the state tally at 40, even as 360 samples were sent for testing on Monday, a senior health official said. Of the samples sent for testing, 221 were found negative while reports of the rest were awaited, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said. The highest 157 samples were taken from Hamirpur, followed by Solan (55), Una and Mandi (27 each), Bilaspur (23), Shimla (21), Kangra (20), Kullu (15), Chamba (9) and Sirmaur (6), he added. These tests are being conducted at Tanda's Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (RPGMC); Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla; and Central Research Institute (CRI) in Solan. So far, 40 coronavirus cases have been reported in the state. The number of active cases being treated in various hospitals of the state rose from 22 to 23 as a cured patient retested positive for coronavirus on Saturday. While 11 of 40 confirmed cases have recovered, two died. The two deaths include that of a 70-year-old Delhi resident who had stayed at a factory's guest house in Solan's Baddi and died at the Chandigarh's PGIMER on April 2. Four patients were shifted to a private hospital outside Himachal Pradesh on their request. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A controversial scientific study claims there is a link between how much a young child watches screens and the likelihood of developing autism-like symptoms. It found that one-year-old children who spend large portions of time looking at screens were more likely to show autism-like symptoms at two years of age. Researchers from Drexel University in Philadelphia also found children that have less interactive playtime with caregivers are more likely to develop symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, other scientists reviewing the study are torn on the validity of the research and whether or not its findings can be trusted. Experts not involved with the study have slammed its methods and called its integrity into question. Scroll down for video A controversial scientific study claims that one-year-old children who spend large portions of time looking at screens were more likely to show autism-like symptoms at two years of age (stock photo) THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF AUTISM According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with autism have trouble with social, emotional and communication skills that usually develop before the age of three and last throughout a persons life. Specific signs of autism include: Reactions to smell, taste, look, feel or sound are unusual Difficulty adapting to changes in routine Unable to repeat or echo what is said to them Difficulty expressing desires using words or motions Unable to discuss their own feelings or other peoples Difficulty with acts of affection like hugging Prefer to be alone and avoid eye contact Difficulty relating to other people Unable to point at objects or look at objects when others point to them Advertisement Results showed time spent viewing screens aged 12 months was associated with four per cent greater ASD-like symptoms. And daily play time with a parent was linked to nine per cent less ASD-like symptoms, compared to less than daily play. The authors suggest these findings come at a critical time during the coronavirus pandemic when many children are at home all day. Parents are juggling working from home with schooling so look to screens for help and distraction, they say. Lead author Dr Karen Heffler from Drexel University in Philadelphia said: 'The literature is rich with studies showing the benefits of parent-infant interaction on later child development, as well as the association of greater screen viewing with developmental delays. 'Our study expands on this previous research by associating early social and screen media experiences with later ASD-like symptoms.' Senior author Dr David Bennett, also from Drexel University, said: 'These findings strengthen our understanding of the importance of play time between parents and children relative to screen time. 'There is a great opportunity for public health campaigns and pediatricians to educate and empower parents to possibly minimise their child's risk of ASD symptoms, which may include increasing social interaction and limiting screens at an early age.' The research has today been published in JAMA Pediatrics and took data from previous experiments that asked parents various questions. More than 2,000 children participated in the original investigation back in 2009. Parents and guardians were asked how often their baby is exposed to screens or books at their 12- and 18-month health check-ups. They were also asked how often they play with their child. Researchers examined how television or videos, as well as play time and reading together, were linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms at age two. Toddlers were screened with an autism test called the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) which asks 20 questions about the child's behaviour. This method for detection ASD-like symptoms is itself controversial and fraught with diagnostic problems. Dr James Cusack, Director of Science at Autistica, a charity dedicated to autism research, condemned the study and its findings. He said: 'It is absurd to claim, based on these results, that screen time has any association with autism or how autistic someone is. 'Families deserve better science than this particularly right now. Researchers from Drexel University in Philadelphia also found children that have less interactive playtime with caregivers are more likely to develop symptoms of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) 'First of all the effect of screen time observed in the study is small. Secondly, the tool used to observe the effect is not particularly effective at detecting autism. 'Thirdly, the measure is used at two years old, an age where children develop at different rates and where we know it is hard to accurately diagnose autism.' His denunciation of the study was echoed by Professor Andrew Przybylski, Associate Professor and Director of Research at the Oxford Internet Institute. In a scathing statement, he compares the research to jazz, in as much as it is the absent details which matter most. He adds: 'In this paper there are two key details missing. 'First, there was no registration of the authors analysis plan before the data was collected or analysed. 'The richness of datasets like these make them ideal candidates for cherry-picked results if not all of the relevant data are analysed. A second screen time question was asked: How often does child watch TV and/or DVDs? but this was not analysed. 'The authors did not report that that this was asked as a follow-up question to parents when their children were 12 months old. Its absence is worrying and I dont know why the authors have not reported on that. 'Second, there was no mechanism proposed or tested in the data linking screens to autism. 'If a scientist is going to make a bold sweeping claim that answering yes to the question Does your child watch TV/DVDs? at 12 months is associated with greater Autism-like symptoms 6 months later it should incumbent upon them to do the research required to explore before publishing. This was not done. 'Its difficult to understand how the publication of this paper is not an example a failed peer review process.' The authors themselves note their study found only an association with ASD-like symptoms, but not ASD itself. They are calling for future studies to investigate the relationship in more detail to find out more about the relationship. The Chandigarh High Court last week rejected the bail plea of a GST evader in light of the coronavirus outbreak. The petitioner, Rajinder Bassi, against whom there are allegations of GST evasion to the tune of Rs 20 crore under section 132 of GST Act 2017, had pleaded before the court that since a large number of inmates are confined in New District Jail and the threat of spread of COVID-19 still looms large, he should be released on bail. The petitioner argued that the Supreme Court through its March 23, 2020 order directed all the states/union territories to consider as to which of the prisoners may be released on interim bail or parole during the pandemic so as to decongest the jails and to prevent outbreak of coronavirus in prisons. The petitioner also argued that after the SC directive, a committee was constituted by the government of Punjab and certain guidelines were laid for release of certain categories of prisoners. However, the high court, denying the bail plea of the petitioner, said that any decision on release of prisoners should be based on the severity of the offence and other relevant factors; Supreme Court's directions are not to be interpreted as to mean that the prisoners have to be compulsorily released from prisons. The court further said that the primary objective of the directions issued by the Supreme Court is to protect the health of the prisoners and restrict transmission of coronavirus by decongestion of prisons. The move certainly cannot be treated as a windfall for all the prisoners even when there is no imminent threat or apprehension within the jail premises as on date with regard to the spread of pandemic. The State counsel has submitted to the court that there is no reported case of coronavirus within jail premises and that the fresh entrants, if any, are lodged separately. The court, however, directed the jail superintendent to ensure that all the required cautions and safeguards are duly adhered to whenever any new inmate is admitted to jail, get him/her medically examined and keep him/her segregated from other inmates at least for a period of 14 days. Also Read: Infosys FY20 net profit climbs 8% to Rs 16,639 crore; revenue up 10% Also Read: Vijay Mallya loses UK High Court appeal against extradition to India Also Read: Coronavirus impact: Steel demand to drop first time in 16 years in 2020; 7.7% dip expected Illegal presence of US terrorists source of insecurity in West Asia: IRGC Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 2:31 PM The Navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says the main source of mischief and insecurity in the region is the illegal presence of US terrorist forces, reiterating the call for the full withdrawal of all American forces from the Persian Gulf and West Asia. The IRGC Navy issued a statement on Sunday in response to recent claims by the US Navy that 11 Iranian ships repeatedly came close to American military vessels in "dangerous and harassing approaches" in the Persian Gulf. "As has been said time and again, it is emphasized [once more] that the illegal presence of US terrorist regime is the [main] source and origin of mischief and insecurity in the region and the sole way to establish sustainable security in this region is the withdrawal of Americans from West Asia," the statement read. The IRGC added that during recent weeks, the US terrorist naval forces have repeatedly behaved in an "unprofessional" manner in the Persian Gulf, which has threatened regional peace and given rise to new risks. "Therefore, in order to prevent the continuation of illegal, unprofessional, dangerous and even adventurist behavior of the American terrorists and also to ensure security for Iranian vessels and fight fuel smuggling, the IRGC Navy increased its marine patrols in the Persian Gulf and on Farvardin 27, 1399 [corresponding to April 15, 2019] ... dispatched a group of its vessels, comprised of 11 boats, to the region, where they came face to face with the American warships and military vessels," it emphasized. The statement added that although the American vessels at first ignored warnings from the IRGC boats and behaved in an unprofessional and provocative manner, they finally had to clear the way for the IRGC Navy's boats and leave the area. "At the same time, the US Fifth Fleet, which is stationed in the region, offered an incorrect and purposeful narrative of this incident in its official statement, which signifies the interest of Americans in presenting a Hollywood-style account of what happened," the IRGC said. "We advise the Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman and to refrain from any adventurism and false stories." "They must be sure that the IRGC Navy and the powerful Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran consider the high-risk behavior of foreigners in the region as a threat to their national security and a red line, and will give a decisive response to any miscalculation on their part," the IRGC statement said. In its statement on Wednesday, the US Naval central command alleged that the Iranian "vessels repeatedly crossed the bows and sterns of the US vessels at extremely close range and high speeds," and came within 10 yards of the US Coast Guard cutter Maui. Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami on Friday dismissed the reports of harassment by Iranian vessels as "baseless." Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also slammed the US presence, reminding Washington that its forces are "7,000 miles away from its borders." "US Navy can't seem to find its way around our waters... Or maybe it doesn't know what it's doing in our backyard, 7,000 miles from home," Zarif said in a tweet originally published in 2018 and reshared on Thursday. "Yearly reminder," Zarif commented under the original tweet. Iranian vessels, usually belonging to the IRGC, commonly patrol the Persian Gulf to ensure the security of the vital global energy hub. Tensions in the strategic waterway rose significantly last summer after a series of mysterious explosions targeted a number of oil tankers. The United States, quickly blaming Iran for the incidents without providing conclusive evidence along with other countries such as Saudi Arabia, has since deployed thousands of troops and military equipment to the region. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Women fleeing domestic violence are exempt from coronavirus regulations, a housing body has said. The Chartered Institute of Housing said the UK government's latest guidance allows victims to move home, with help from people outside their household if they need to. Justin Cartwright, the organisation's Northern Ireland director, said the organisation had been asked to clarify the regulations for a UK woman escaping a perpetrator. She had secured a new home to move into - but was afraid of getting pulled over by police for breaching coronavirus restrictions. Mr Cartwright, whose association represents UK housing professionals, said any person assisting would be considered to have a "reasonable excuse" for leaving their home. He added: "If I say to you someone is experiencing violence or domestic abuse, it's an emergency. "It's just making sure that people understand that and professionals have best practise, best guidelines to facilitate that." The government's latest guidance says: "The household isolation instruction as a result of coronavirus does not apply if you need to leave your home to escape domestic abuse." Mr Cartwright said the lockdown had brought home the need for everyone to have a safe place to live. He said: "I think with the current pandemic that is highlighting more than anything the importance of homes so we still want to maintain standards, particularly in an emergency context, whether that's facilitating the move in [the case of] domestic abuse or emergency repairs." Meanwhile, domestic violence services are looking to hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation for families to quarantine in so they can move into refuges. Women's Aid Federation NI currently has three "crash pads" in Northern Ireland, but it needs more self-contained units so new admissions can isolate before they go into communal homes. Sonya McMullan, regional services manager, said the organisation is working with partner agencies, including the Housing Executive, to get more accommodation. She continued: "In a lot of our refuge accommodation you'd be sharing a bathroom, you'd be sharing a kitchen. "We're looking at B&Bs, hotels all sorts of options - but the key is they have to link in with Women's Aid services." Ms McMullan said women fleeing domestic violence would have the same support as before the pandemic. She added: "There are pathways into emergency accommodation for those people who need it and women's refuge and accommodation is very much open - it just looks different." Ms McMullan added that domestic violence services were preparing for demand to triple after the lockdown, as it has in China and Italy. If you or someone you know are experiencing abuse, you can access support from national online and telephone services or connect with a local service via the website at www.womensaidni.org. In an emergency, call 999 Regions of the world which have higher air pollution tended to experience more deaths from Covid-19, a new study has found. Geoscientist Yaron Ogen, from Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, examined data from satellites which track nitrogen dioxide in the air, a known pollutant which causes respiratory problems. Dr Ogen then compared places which had been recorded as having high levels of nitrogen dioxide by a European Space Agency satellite in January and February with data on the numbers of people dying from the coronavirus. There was a clear correlation between the two, the researcher wrote in a article published in the journal Science of the Total Environment. Since the novel coronavirus also affects the respiratory tract, it is reasonable to assume that there might be a correlation between air pollution and the number of deaths from Covid-19," he said. Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Show all 12 1 /12 Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions NO2-concentrations-us-NEW-YORK-1.jpg Weighted mean NO2 concentrations in cities across US. They are weighted using quality information provided by the satellite data provider. Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions New York Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Denver Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Denver Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Chicago Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Chicago Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Detroit Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Detroit Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Houston Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Houston Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Los Angeles Descartes Labs Emission changes across US after Coronavirus restrictions Los Angeles Descartes Labs Rather than just examining regions with high nitrogen dioxide levels alone, Dr Ogen also highlighted areas which had low amounts of vertical air exchange, which can also be measured by satellites. Places where air is not being moved around tend to see more problems with air pollution, as pollutants remain closer to the ground and are breathed in more by locals. Regions which experienced high numbers of coronavirus deaths did tend to have significant levels of nitrogen dioxide and low vertical air movement, Dr Ogen concluded. When we look at Northern Italy, the area around Madrid, and Hubei Provence in China, for example, they all have something in common: they are surrounded by mountains. This makes it even more likely that the air in these regions is stable and pollution levels are higher," he said. Recommended Trump to gut Obama vehicle rule increasing emissions and air pollution The paper is just one of several studies which have linked coronavirus fatalities to air pollution. Researchers at Harvard University in the United States analysed air pollution and deaths from Covid-19 across 3,000 counties in America and concluded even a tiny increase in fine-particulate pollution in the years before the pandemic even started led to a 15 per cent increase in death rates. It is likely that Covid-19 will be a part of our lives for quite a long time, despite our hope for a vaccine or treatment, said Xiao Wu, one of the scientists behind the study. In light of this, we should consider additional measures to protect ourselves from pollution exposure to reduce the Covid-19 death toll. A separate study by the Universities of Siena in Italy and Aarhus in Denmark pointed to air pollution as a possible factor behind northern Italys coronavirus death rates. The regions of Lombardy and Emilia Romagna had saw about 12 per cent of Covid-19 infections end in death, compared to just 4.5 per cent in the rest of the country. Video shows how air pollution over Italy has fallen since country has been in lockdown Doctors and other experts say it is too early to draw firm conclusions about the effects of air pollution on the coronavirus pandemic, but some researchers are already using the growing evidence to warn countries with particularly polluted air to take additional precautions. Ironically, the lockdowns imposed by most governments around the world are already causing a fall in air pollution, including nitrogen dioxide and fine particulates associated with Covid-19 deaths. Since there is no lower threshold for harm for most air pollutants, any improvement in air quality brings real health benefits, observed Alastair Lewis, professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of York. In the midst of a respiratory health crisis such as this, better air quality can only have a small effect, but it will undoubtedly be positive, relative to business as usual levels of pollution. By Akbar Mammadov The Council of Europe has reiterated its support for Azerbaijans territorial integrity and rejected so-called "elections" held in Azerbaijan's Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region on April 14. The Council of Europe has, on numerous occasions, reiterated its full commitment to the respect of the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty of all its member states, including Azerbaijan, as outlined in relevant decisions and documents of the Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly, the Directorate of Communications of the Council of Europe told Azerbaijans Report news agency on April 20. It is the principled and well-known position of the Council of Europe that any elections held in contradiction or outside of the constitutional order of a member state have no legal effects and should not be recognized/considered as such. The same holds concerning the recent so-called elections held in Nagorno-Karabakh, the communications director said. Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's Spokeswoman Leyla Abdullayeva published the CoE officials statement on her Twitter account on April 20. It should be noted that the illegal elections held in Nagorno-Karabakh region in two rounds on March 31 and April 14 have condemned by a number of international organizations such as the European Union, NATO, OIC, GUAM, the OSCE Minsk Group that mediates the conflict as well as a number of countries, including the UK, Germany, Turkey, Italy, Georgia, Ukraine, Estonia, etc. Nagorno-Karabakh is Azerbaijan's 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 The Jharkhand High Court Advocates' Association has said lawyers are facing financial stress during the COVID-19 outbreak-triggered lockdown and it has reached out to its distressed members, providing assistance to them with both cash and kind. Twenty-four members of the Association, who sought financial help from it, were provided with Rs 5,000 each, while several others received essential commodities, said Dheeraj Kumar, the Treasurer of the Association. "The lockdown has been imposed to contain the coronavirus spread and advocates are also facing financial problems. The Association contacted senior lawyers and got donations, which were transferred to the accounts of 24 advocates, who approached the Association," Kumar said in a statement. Of the courts in Jharkhand, the high court is hearing only very urgent matters through video conference, while others are closed during the lockdown. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Grant PogosyanThe publication of an article on March 2 in the Korea Times by the Embassy of Azerbaijan titled "28 years on, international recognition underway for Khojaly genocide" is yet another expression of Azerbaijan's leadership to endemically voice their own interpretation of history in a way that easily resembles Goebbels' big lie: "if you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it."Since the waning years of the USSR, the people of the self-determined Nagorno-Karabakh have been fighting for the recognition of their status guaranteed by the international law.The lawful demands of the people of Artsakh to exercise their right to self-determination were met with anti-Armenian pogroms on February 27-29, in the Azerbaijani city of Sumgait 26 km away from the capital of Baku. Those events, carried out under the motto "Death to Armenians," were the embodiment of Azerbaijani leadership's policy of xenophobia, ethnic cleansing and deportation of Armenians.Those atrocities were the very reason Andrei Sakharov, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, wrote that "even if some doubted it before Sumgait, no one sees a moral opportunity to insist on territorial unity of NKAO and Azerbaijan after this tragedy happened."If Baku's response to the aspiration of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh to exercise their right to self-determination were pogroms and ethnic-cleansing of the Armenian population, the reaction to the implementation of that right in 1991, based on then existing USSR legislation and norms of international law was the large-scale war against the newly-independent Artsakh, accompanied by gross violations of international humanitarian law.Exactly 26 years ago Azerbaijani Armed Forces commenced the months-long shelling of the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh - Stepanakert, which at that time had become a shelter for the refugees fleeing the pogroms in Sumgait, Baku and other cities in Azerbaijan. On February 13, 1992, in violation of international conventions, Azerbaijan started using BM-21 "Grad" multi rocket launchers on the residential areas of Stepanakert. Khojaly was one of the seven fire bases used for the shelling of Stepanakert. Even back in Soviet time Khojaly had an important strategic importance, as it was situated on the crossroad connecting Stepanakert to other regions of Nagorno-Karabakh. Moreover, in 1970s the only airport of Nagorno-Karabakh was built next to Khojaly, which during the Artsakh's blockade was the single gateway to the outside world. Thus, by 1992 it became evident that the neutralization of Khojaly firepoint was an imperative for the physical preservation of the population of both Stepanakert and Nagorno-Karabakh as a whole. The operation to neutralize the Khojaly firepoint started on February 25, 1992.For months, the Nagorno-Karabakh self-defense forces had been informing the Azerbaijani side through all possible means about this operation, its objectives and the humanitarian corridor left for the evacuation from Khojaly.Azerbaijan continues to distort the facts surrounding the bloody events near the city of Agdam, which they call the "Khojaly tragedy". The mere facts of those events raise many questions, and the Azerbaijani leadershis, even after 28 years, still prefers to keep the answers behind seven locks.So why did Azerbaijan fail to organize the evacuation of the people of Khojaly?Here is a citation from Ramiz Fataliev, Chair of the Committee Investigating the Events of Khojaly: "Four days left until the events of Khojaly. On February 22, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Head of the KGB and others, a National Security Council session took place at which a decision was taken not to evacuate people from Khojaly." (Source: http://www.azadliq.org/content/article/1818751.html As mentioned, the Nagorno-Karabakh self-defense forces left a humanitarian corridor for the people of Khojaly, the majority of whom safely reached Agdam. The former mayor of Khojaly even reached Baku and is currently a deputy in Milli Mejlis. Unfortunately, a group of residents of Khojaly, who successfully crossed the territories under Armenian control, did not reach Agdam in the territories controlled by the Azerbaijani side.Here's an excerpt from the words of Azeri journalist Cingiz Mustafaev, a witness to the events: "On 29th [of February], when I was heading to Agdam from another side, from the village of Umudlu, in a military helicopter, I saw that in 10 kilometers from Khojaly and approximately in 700 meters from our military post, dead bodies of our people were scattered on the ground. What horrified me the most was when I was filming these corpses, there were around 10 people from our side, strolling around easily in military uniforms. I was told that there were no corpses, it was impossible to get there, there were Armenians and there was shooting. But when we eventually landed there on our helicopters, three helicopters unexpectedly and immediately flew to Agdam; those 10 people left, too. I still cannot understand why in 700 meters from our posts, where there were our soldiers roaming calmly, nobody was picking up these dead bodies?" (Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uLSIInPRXs Mr. Mustafaev also speaks of the main crime committed during the Agdam events the mutilation of bodies, discovered couple of days after the events. "Who has done all this? I was filming here just yesterday, there was nothing like that there." It's worth repeating that the territory where the bodies were discovered was under the Azerbaijani control.It comes as no surprise that there is zero tolerance in Azerbaijan towards the doubt, suspicion or investigative journalism on the official version of those events. Those who dare to openly speak about these events were either killed like Cingiz Mustafaev's, or imprisoned like journalist Eynulla Fatullayev, or exiled like the first President of Azerbaijan.Ayaz Mutalibov, President of Azerbaijan in 1990-1992: "The disappointing events happening around, you know clashes, death of people, arouse the feeling of bitterness and sorrow, as well as suspicions that someone is certainly unsatisfied with the process. You see, I am uncertain about the goals, but nonetheless I have this feeling that there are forces which are against [the process]; they want the situation to become worse, for these things to continue, because, you know, it is always convenient to take advantage of troubled waters. Many here seek these waters. Some people do not care whom to shoot at."Ayaz Mutalibov: "According to the surviving residents of Khojaly, all of this was organized to be used as an excuse for my resignation. Some forces were struggling to discredit the President."Ayaz Mutalibov: "We are just tired, tired of this confrontation. Common people are dying every day, while someone is building his ambitions on it and pushing forward his political goals.Let's not forget that more than 700 residents of Khojaly did not leave the village and were taken to Stepanakert, where they were provided with food and medical aid. Two days later they were transferred to the Azerbaijani side, without any preconditions."The Azerbaijani leadership has not answered yet to those questions raised by Azerbaijanis themselves. Meanwhile it has almost mastered the art of distorting the above-mentioned facts in order to blame others for their crimes and escape responsibility, while attempting to create a fictional counterbalance to the massacres that it has perpetrated against Armenians in Sumgait, Baku, Kirovabad and Maragha.The Sumgait events created a precedent of impunity and even of glorification for the killings of peaceful Armenian citizens, when we witness later massacres of Armenians elsewhere in Azerbaijan. The leadership of Azerbaijan continues to inject hatred against Armenians. It encourages such crimes as the brutal murder of Gurgen Margaryan, who in 2004 was axed in his sleep by Ramil Safarov when the two were enrolled in a NATO training course in Budapest. The killer was later proclaimed a national hero of Azerbaijan. Even recently, during the April 2016 aggression against Artsakh, the world witnessed the results of the state-run policy of Armenophobia in Azerbaijan. The ISIS-style beheading of Kyaram Sloyan and two other Nagorno-Karabakh serviceman, or the brutal murder and mutilation of elderly family in Talish village, as well as the decoration of the perpetrators of these war crimes by the President of Azerbaijan is abhorrent and should be condemned by the whole international community.Grant Pogosyan is the Armenian ambassador to Japan. The authorities are set to open 10 sample collection centres in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district to ramp up COVID-19 testing, a health official said on Monday. The proposed centres would be set up at Zonal Hospital Dharamshala, Tanda Medical College and civil hospitals in Nagrota Bagwan, Palampur, Baijnath, Dehra, Jwalamukhi, Shahpur, Nurpur and Kangra, said CMO Gurdarshan Gupta. These sample collection facilities would start functioning from Tuesday, the chief medical officer said. In addition to these centres, two mobile vans are already engaged in the district for collecting samples of people suffering from influenza like illness, Gupta said. Besides, 1,000 Rapid Diagnostic Testing (RDT) kits received from the state government would be used in the hotspot areas, he said. Around 450 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in Kangra so far, which include tests of patients suffering from acute breathing illness at Tanda Medical College, the CMO said. He said only five persons tested positive for coronavirus in the district. Two persons with COVID-19 symptoms were admitted in the Zonal Hospital and five others kept at a medical facility in Chheb, Gupta said. The CMO said though the state government has relaxed some conditions of curfew, people should strictly follow social distancing and regularly wash hands with soap. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Reach key decision makers with sales-ready leads that shorten your sales process. Move the needle by delivering funnel qualified leads to your sales team. Learn more The worldwide 3D printing communityis stepping up to alleviate the shortage of medical equipment needed to battle the coronavirus pandemic. Participants include entrepreneurs and hackers, companies in the 3D printing industry, automobile makers, aircraft manufacturers, universities, and even a shipbuilder. Some are offering free 3D printer files for download and use. Others are designing equipment. Still others are offering to produce medical equipment for the cost of the materials. Some are offering to connect medical and healthcare organizations to 3D printing facilities. The 3D printing industry has set up a Discord server for members to discuss or organize printing projects to deal with the pandemic. There will be a mixture of options, but, at this time, most are trying to assist any way they can, said Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research. Not everything will be free, but its good to see a mixture of options, he told TechNewsWorld. Life-or-Death Difference In the United States, GM, Ford and Tesla are planning to produce or assist in producing respirators or ventilators. Tesla CEO Elon Musk purchased more than 1,200 ventilators from China, which he is distributing to hospitals. In other parts of the world, Volkswagen, Nissan, Ferrari and BMW are planning to make medical products using 3D printing. Aircraft maker Airbus and Spanish state-owned shipbuilder Navantia also are going to 3D print ventilators. A public spreadsheet enables makers worldwide to crowdsource 3D printing services for components like the oxygen valves. Ive been watching this for several days now, and its amazing how these people are stepping up, said Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group. A D V E R T I S E M E N T The involvement of companies from outside industries, like auto and aircraft manufacturing, shows that these industries are willing to step up and address this critical problem themselves rather than sitting back, hoping someone else will, he told TechNewsWorld. This will make the difference between life and death to a massive number of people as this pandemic peaks in the United States, and the practices that result could massively reduce the pain of the next pandemic, particularly if the healthcare organizations buy 3D printers and gain the capability to print their supplies, Enderle added. Many Hands California-based Airwolf3D has volunteered to 3D print respirator valves and custom medical components for free. Its also offering remote technical support for medical personnel who want to learn about 3D printing. The company is charging only for materials at cost, a spokesperson said. With its large format printer, hotness and heated chambers, Airwolf3D said it can print large parts in engineering-grade materials. It also can manage complex geometries using water soluble support. The company extrudes its own filament and has an unlimited supply of ABS material, according to the spokesperson. ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) is a thermoplastic polymer used in injection molding applications. Airwolf3D said it can produce thousands of units. Airwolf3D is working with Scripps Health and the University of California at Irvine to fulfill emergency orders for medical equipment. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Smile Direct Club, a teledentistry company, is offering to turn out medical equipment on demand with its more than 60 HP 3D printers. Its devoting almost all of the capacity to this effort, said Dan Baker, global head, supply chain. The company can print, assemble and ship more than 7,500 face shields a day and will begin shipping them shortly, he told TechNewsWorld. Smile Direct Club also will produce test kit swabs and the replaceable Lowell Makes mask respirator, as soon as it is validated as an alternative to the N95 mask. It will print, assemble and ship the masks nationwide once validation is received. Barcelona, Spain-based BCN3D will use its 63 3D printers to undertake scientifically validated safe projects to combat the worldwide medical device shortage. People with ideas can contact it at covid19help@bcn3d.com. China-based architectural 3D printing company Winsun has dispatched 15 3D printed quarantine rooms to Xianning Central Hospital in Hubei Province, just outside Wuhan. Made from urban construction waste, the rooms have their own water and electricity. A consortium led by Spains Leitat Technology Center, which includes HP, Navantia, and Airbus, has developed a respirator with 3D printable parts. The device alreadyhas been tested in two hospitals using an artificial lung. Meanwhile, 3D printer manufacturer Stratasys is making 5,000 3D printed full-face shields for healthcare workers, and said the job will be completed Friday. Stratasys also is offering help in other areas to battle the pandemic. 3D printer manufacturer Roboze is printing 100 respirator valves for free, and has pledged to continue supporting requests for critical medical device components at no charge. iMakr, a 3D printing reseller, has donated its first run of 3D-printed face shields from its new printing farm in New York to St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx. Free PPE Face Shield Designs The Global Center for Medical Innovation on Tuesday published free design files for those who want to produce face shields for healthcare providers. They had been downloaded 45 times by Wednesday, by small private businesses, to large publicly traded companies, to large government sectors actively engaged in fighting COVID-19, said GCMI Medical Affairs Liaison Emily Blum, M.D. GCMI is collaborating with the Georgia Institute of Technology to make prototype face shields that are awaiting regulatory approval. Manufacturers have offered to make GCMI anywhere from 2,000 face shield units up to 100,000 per day, Blum told TechNewsWorld. The ultimate production goal is well over a million face shields a month, at which point GCMI can request special funding for full execution into the market. GCMI is looking at all options for distribution free and paid-for. More than ever, we need people and industries come together to deal with the situation at hand so that we can put it behind us quickly, Tirias McGregor said. I fear that without a nationwide plan, countries especially the U.S. are at risk. A name familiar to all Laredoans was named to Gov. Greg Abbott's newly announced Strike Force, which was organized Friday by the Governor as part of three new executive orders outlining the process of re-opening the state's economy. IBC Bank Chairman and CEO Dennis E. Nixon is among the number of experts who Abbott will rely on in order to get Texans back to work safely and efficiently. The Strike Force is a team of nationally recognized medical experts and private and public leaders that will advise on best practices to safely re-open the state. I am grateful to Governor Abbott for appointing me to this important effort, Nixon said in a press release. As a community bank, IBC Bank is committed to creating economic opportunity across Texas. In order to be effective for our customers, we must be engaged in the issues that affect them. Nixon has a multitude of experience with IBC, first joining the bank in 1975. Under his leadership, the bank has grown in notoriety. The IBC corporation has regularly been named on Forbes Magazine's list of 100 Best Banks in America, and has become one of the largest independent bank holding companies in Texas and Oklahoma. Getting the economy moving again will be more like merging onto a busy highway than turning on a light switch, Nixon said. Businesses will need time to open for business and the hiring process is sure to be affected. Because supply chains have been disrupted, processes and procedures have changed, and our daily routines have changed, we need to prepare a plan now to ensure our ramp-up is smooth and successful Nixon was also pivotal in the passage of the original North American Free Trade Agreement, and the resulting United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which was passed in NAFTA's place. A number of famous Texas leaders are also on the force, including Michael Dell, Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale, Nancy Kinder and Kendra Scott. "The Strike Force to Open Texas brings together nationally recognized medical experts with public and private sector leaders to achieve this mission," Abbott said in a statement. "By coming together, we can get Texans back to work, practice safe standards that will prevent the spread of COVID-19, and we can overcome this pandemic." See who's who on Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's Strike Force in the photos above... For the full list of members of the Strike Force, visit Abbott's website. LMT Web Producer Louis San Miguel contributed to this report. 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 Rio de Janeiro: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro came out in public to support a small protest that defended military intervention, prompting strong criticism across the political spectrum while also infringing his own ministry's recommendation to maintain social distancing. On April 19, the day Brazil celebrates its army, Bolsonaro made an appearance at the protest held in front of the army's headquarters in the capital city Brasilia. There, dozens of tightly packed protesters, many of whom were not wearing masks, were calling for the Supreme Court and Congress to be shut down. "I am here because I believe in you. You are here because you believe in Brazil," said Bolsonaro, a former army captain who waxes nostalgic for the country's 1964-1985 dictatorship. Demonstrators stand with a banner that reads in Portuguese, "We want the armed forces in power," at the Alvorada palace, after a protest demanding military intervention during the new coronavirus emergency in Brasilia. Credit:AP The Brasilia demonstration, similar to others taking place in several Brazilian cities, was organised by his more radical supporters some of whom demanded a military intervention in Congress and the Supreme Court, institutions that have mostly sided with the governors. Part Two. Reformist Theories And Harmful Practices Must Be Routed No Politics in the Union This slogan was put forward by the economists in Russia. The economists said that the tasks of the trade unions should be confined to the economic wages, conditions, hours. Lenin attacked and destroyed this trend, pointing out that no politics in the union really meant bourgeois politics in the unions; it meant that the workers were left at the mercy of bourgeois propaganda and ideology. We have seen that the objective must be to politically revolutionise the unions. Some comrades interpret this to mean that they should confine themselves to academic, abstract discourses on theory and political questions at union meetings. This is wrong. Communists must be the best trade unionists, i.e., giving a lead on all problems of the trade unions and lead the fight for the economic demands of the workers, in short, be the best fighters on the job and during strike periods. At the same time, politics must be introduced, linked with the unions problems, and on favourable occasions when political issues are raised in correspondence, etc., to educate the workers in socialist ideas. The union journals and other avenues must be fully utilised for such political education. The reformists here in Australia cling to the economists idea of no politics in the union, or only reformist politics in the union. The aim must be to kill this reactionary idea in the unions by showing that, without a correct political policy, without the theoretical education of the rank and file, this unions efforts are in the end doomed to futility. The question of the relationship between economics and politics was continuously before Marx and the First International. In a resolution drawn up by him for the 1871 Conference the following instructive passage occurs: In the presence of an unbridled reaction which violently crushes every effort at emancipation on the part of the working class, and pretends to maintain by brute force the distinction of classes and the political domination of the propertied classes resulting from it; considering that against this collective power of the propertied classes the working class cannot act, as a class, except by constituting itself into a political party, distinct from and opposed to, all old parties formed by the propertied classes; that this constitution of the working class into a political party is indispensable in order to ensure the triumph of the social revolution and its ultimate end the abolition of the classes; that the combination of forces which the working class has already effected by its economical struggles ought at the same time serve as a lever against the political power of the landlords and capitalists; the Conference recalls to the members of the International: That in the militant state of the working class, its economic movement and its political action are indissolubly united. Here is a clear expression by Marx of the idea that politics are the concentrated expression of economics, that the workers need a revolutionary political party to lead the struggle for socialism, and that the trade unions, far from adopting an attitude of neutrality, of non-partisanship, should adhere to such a party and play their part under its leadership in the struggle. BANKRUPTCY OF GRADUALIST THEORIES The reformist leaders in the trade union movement contend that the needs of the working class can be satisfied by a policy of reforms, by a gradual increase in wages, a shortening of hours and improvement of the job conditions. They tell the workers that if the unions keep on increasing wages soon there will be no exploitation, no margin of profit left for the employing classes. This is the trade union equivalent of the social-democratic theory of gradualism of peaceful evolution, or revolution without class struggle, bloodshed or dislocation of industry. It is true that the reformists can point to instances where the Arbitration Court has awarded increased wages, shortened hours, or eased conditions, of employment in the factories. Why, therefore, cannot we continue this peaceful, evolutionary process until we make the position of the bosses untenable in industry; why not undermine their control by these piecemeal processes? It will be found, however, that tremendous mass pressure (economic strikes, demonstrations and agitation in the press and on the platform) preceded all reforms by the arbitration courts or voluntary concessions to the workers. For example, the first Lang Government in NSW granted the 44-hour week in NSW, although previously Lang had opposed the 44-hour week as an extremist communist policy. But the building workers in Sydney absented themselves from work on Saturday mornings for a prolonged period. Other unionists struck or threatened to strike over the issue of the shorter week. The unions were in a good position because it was the period of temporary capitalist stabilisation, of relative boom. So finally, the Lang Government legislated the 44-hours and claimed all the credit, although it is quite clear that it was the economic situation and the mass pressure of the workers that was really responsible. Karl Marx and Frederick Engels answered the gradualist theory long, long ago, in the Manifesto of the Communist Party (1848), to be exact. These two great geniuses, the founders of Communism, wrote on this point: The various interests and conditions of life within the ranks of the proletariat are more and more equalised, in proportion as machinery obliterates all distinctions of labour, and nearly, everywhere reduces wages to the same low level. The growing competition among the bourgeois, and the resulting commercial crises, makes the wages of the workers ever more fluctuating. The unceasing improvement of machinery, ever more rapidly developing, makes their livelihood more and more precarious; the collisions between individual workmen and individual bourgeois take more and more the character of collisions between two classes. Let us apply this to our own Australian experiences. The last decades of the 19th century were a period of great trade union and class struggles in this country, for the raising of the general standards, which were very poor. After this, in line with the rapid growth and expansion of capitalism there was a more or less continuous improvement, side by side with the rapid growth of the ALP and the trade unions. This was the heyday, the golden age of reformism; it had one hundred per cent control of the unions and the reformist Labour governments were coming to office and initiating a number of reforms. This was the time when gradualism looked good to the workers. The outbreak of the imperialist world war, reflecting the general crisis of world capitalism, ended this period. By 1917 the unions were on strike, striving to retain something of their position, to save something from the chaos created by the prolonged reactionary war. The reformist Labor governments (Hughes, Holman, etc.) had broken asunder and collapsed under the strain of the crisis, and given way to anti working-class governments. When the war ended, there was vast unemployment and hardship, which neither the ALP nor the bourgeois parties could alleviate; to the contrary, they conducted an offensive against the workers. Commercial crises, competition had led to war, to intensified commercial crises which destroyed the gains the workers made in the preceding peaceful capitalist expansion period. This proves to the hilt Marxs statement, about the effects on the workers of the capitalist system and his proposition: Now and then the workers are victorious, but only for a time. The real fruit of their battle lies, not in the immediate result, but in the ever expanding union of the workers. (Authors emphasis.) And it is true that in this period of peaceful reform and the period of crises, the unions did grow in numbers, organisation and strength; the workers began to take a more critical attitude towards reformism as a result of this experience, which facilitated the foundation of the Communist Party of Australia. Commercial crises, promoted by the imperialist rivalry, by the chaotic nature of capitalism itself and its unstable, anarchistic, transitory character preclude an endless chain of reforms, i.e., gradualism. Subsequent history provided further proof. How well have Marxs words on the obliteration of distinctions among the workers been fulfilled. The conveyor belt and mass production undermines the skilled tradesman and replaces him with the semi-skilled and unskilled. Speed-up Bedeaux and Taylor and other systems, piece-work, and bonus systems extract the last ounce of energy from the workers, irrespective of shortening of hours. On the basis of the defeat of the revolution after the war, except in Russia, and an intensive offensive against the living standards of the workers on a world scale, capitalism was temporarily stabilised. A relative boom set in. Once more arbitration courts and reformist governments were able to make concessions to the workers. Again reformist illusions commenced to wax, and the reformists, headed by Lang, were able to commence a bitter struggle against the militants in the unions, against the communists. This reformist honeymoon was short-lived. The world economic crisis hit Australia with devastating force in 1929. The workers were shut out of the factories. Their basic wage became the dole! By means of the Premiers plan, initiated and operated by the Labor Government with the assistance of the reformist trade union leaders, who stifled the defensive actions and broke many of the strikes of the workers, the gains of the preceding period made by the trade unions were once more swept away. Before the war, there was a mass unemployed army in all capitalist countries including Australia, living, or rather existing, on the dole. This is in accordance also with what Marx and Engels wrote in the Manifesto: The serf, in the period of serfdom, raised himself to membership in the Commune, just as the petty-bourgeois, under the yoke of feudal absolutism, managed to develop into a bourgeois. The modern labourer, on the contrary, instead of rising with the progress of industry sinks deeper and deeper below the conditions of existence of his own class. He becomes a pauper and pauperism develops more rapidly than population and wealth. The mass armies of unemployed in Britain, USA, and the Nazi labour camps, before the war, all testified to the growth of pauperism, to the correctness of Marxs forecast. The revisers of Marx, especially Bernstein and the German trade union bureaucrats, the fathers of the revision of Marxism in favour of reformism were utterly opportunist as the subsequent history of trade unionism under capitalism amply proves. They based their theories on the expansion period of capitalism prior to the 1914-18 war, and they were chiefly responsible for the undermining of the revolutionary spirit of German social-democracy and the Second International, thereby defeating the German social revolution and giving us Hitler. Gradualism leads, not to continuous improvement and socialism, but to pauperism and fascism, and it cannot be otherwise whilst capitalism exists. This article originally appeared as part of a pamphlet entitled The Trade Union: Communist Theory and Practice of Trade Unionism in 1942. World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic on March 11, 2020. Followed by which a whooping 197 million people across the country tuned in to watch Prime Minister Narendra Modis address announcing a complete lockdown in the country to tackle the situation. In just sometime the marketplace has turned upside down. Businesses are struggling to adjust to a new reality of quarantines, lockdown, and closed borders. This pivot in fortunes has caught most companies flat-footed. The checklists adopted by different companies provide an actionable framework that brands use to benchmark their responses to the disruption caused by the spread of the Coronavirus. In conversation with Adgully, Abhishek Gupta, CMO, Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance, talks about how they as a brand are navigating through the ongoing crisis, as well as the survival roadmap for the insurance industry in the country. What are the long-term implications of COVID-19 for the insurance industry? COVID-19 is expected to bring about a structural change in the insurance industry, akin to the effect demonetisation had, on digital payments. This pandemic has put the digital transformation of our industry into an overdrive. We are seeing significant changes in the way insurers train their sales force, interact with customers and focus on improving customer experience. The pandemic has led to increased customer awareness, on the need for protection products. Given the current norms on social distancing, customers are now forced to seek digital assistance to meet their needs and are inadvertently contributing to a change in traditional buying behaviour. Consequently, the insurance advisory will also have to move to digital, wherein advisors will build customer interest, conduct need analysis and onboard customers, completely online. In the long term, this will result in a bigger change, moving to making this category more of a pull segment instead of a push one. This change is already underway with our online channels seeing 45% jump in March from February and 100% of our customer onboarding, is happening digitally, since the announced lockdown. Would Force Majeure clause apply in case of claims for COVID-19 victims? The Force Majeure clause will not be applicable on claims arising from COVID-19. In fact, the Life Insurance Council has recently clarified that this clause will not affect policyholders and life insurers will honour such claims. We are taking necessary efforts to communicate with customers, informing them of the same, so that there is no panic owing to lack of clarity or misinformation. What strategy has Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance put in place to navigate through the ongoing crisis? As you are aware, insurance is classified as an essential service as per Government directives and we had the requisite permissions to keep offices open across India. But, along with business continuity, protecting the dreams and aspirations of our key stakeholders employees, customers and distributors was equally critical. Hence, we were amongst the first insurers to implement 100% work from home. Our technology function worked round the clock to enable this transition for over 4,000 employees, in a short time span. The nation-wide lockdown was announced in March, which is also a business-critical month for life insurance players. We wanted to discourage our employees from putting themselves in risky situations and decided on moving to remote working, instead of keeping our branches open. As a brand, it was incumbent upon us to manage the wellbeing of our employees as they adapt to this new normal of working. So, we set up an information helpline which connects our employees to a doctor, thus creating a credible source of information and bust misconceptions, while helping employees cope with their anxieties (this was later made available to our customers as well). We conduct virtual meditation sessions every day and musical/ talent show sessions every week, to preserve sense of community in the absence of personal interaction. For customers, we are focusing our efforts to providing authentic information and crucial updates on current developments, curbing misconception and misinformation. With our branches closed, we have stayed in constant touch with our customers, especially on the ways in which they can interact with us digitally to have their concerns addressed. We have created requisite digital training and enablement tools to facilitate the transition of our offline advisory to online. We have built a solution, called Dial for Success, within a week, to help our offline sales force digitally interact with our customers. It is replete with a complete guide on how to help manage customer concerns during this unforeseen event and assist in activities like online transactions. Digital transformation has been a key focus area for us in recent years and that strategy has truly helped us navigate challenges brought on by this pandemic, effectively. Are you doing any sustenance advertising to keep your brand top of mind? If yes, what is your media mix? While we are supplementing efforts to support business in customer service and training, our flagship initiative Log-In Zindagi has helped us meaningfully engage with all our stakeholders. Log-In Zindagi provides light-hearted and informative interactions on how best to cope with this pandemic. These webinars are conducted on Facebook and we have been receiving a heartening response so far. What new normal do you see emerging in the post-COVID-19 world (i) for the overall economy; and (ii) for the insurance sector? I believe that from now on, we will view our lives as Before and After COVID-19. While I expect some short-term risks to economy, the full impact of this situation cannot be predicted as it is still evolving. Currently, the primary focus is on mitigating health risks and preserving financial stability. Economic performance has taken a backseat, and rightfully so. In the post-COVID-19 world, industries will start becoming more cognizant of new-age platforms and will look at building robust contingency plans for such intermittent shocks. Agility will have to become a way of life if we hope to effectively manage future risks. Fintech, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Blockchain technologies will gain prominence and their scope will increase from facilitating new-age companies to transforming legacy ones. As mentioned before, COVID-19 will certainly redefine the insurance landscape and digitisation will play an important role in the process. Digital penetration will move at a faster pace. Digitised advisories will now need to be more comprehensive and holistic, improving customer awareness and thereby, prompting customers to buy products relevant to their needs and goals. Also Read: We are converting Eros Now from a standalone service into a network: Ali Hussein Eros Now has appointed Ramakrishnan Laxman as Senior Vice-President, Marketing The Union Health Ministry said on Monday the rate at which the number of coronavirus cases in the country was becoming double in the last one week has improved to 7.5 days, as against 3.4 days before the nationwide lockdown was imposed. As per data on April 19, 18 states and UTs have shown an improvement than the national average doubling rate, Ministry of Health and Family Affairs Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said at a briefing. He said that the states and UTs where the doubling time is less than 20 days are Delhi where it is doubling in 8.5 days, Karnataka in 9.2 days, ... The Jammu and Kashmir BJP on Monday urged the central government to take immediate steps for the deportation of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis as they are "most vulnerable" to the spread of coronavirus. Senior BJP leader Kavinder Gupta said, "As Rohingyas and Bangladeshis are mainly associated with the Rehri and hawking business, there is every likelihood of their spreading the virus to the localities they visit to sell their products." "The central government should take immediate steps for the deportation of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis, who are illegally settled in Jammu, as they are most vulnerable to the spread of the deadly coronavirus," he added. Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the central government should forthwith work out for deporting illegally settled Rohingyas and Bangladeshis from Jammu and Kashmir "to save local residents", Gupta said. "The demographic and security threat posed by them has reached a boiling point as these people are most vulnerable to the spread of coronavirus, many of these Rohingyas are associated with the Rehri and hawking business," he asserted. Gupta alleged that there is a well-funded and politically-backed conspiracy to settle them across the province and trigger Hindu migration. "In November 2017, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees visited at least five Rohingya habitations in Jammu and asked them to leave, promising funds to settle elsewhere. They refused, saying they won't leave as they are used to Jammu and know everyone over here. "That, in a nutshell, sums up their comfort levels in Hindu-majority Jammu, as opposed to living with their co-religionists elsewhere," the BJP leader said. "Groups advocating accommodation of Rohingyas in India fail to consider the burden they are bound to put on the country's strained national resources, including the overall socio-economic indicators such as public health, employment, crime, rehabilitation of internally displaced. Jammu and Kashmir should learn lessons from illegal migration into Assam from Bangladesh," he said. He said that the influx of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants into Assam is posing a "serious security threat" to the Assamese identity. "It has adversely affected the social, economic and political environment of the state, creating law and order problems, particularly in areas where immigrants are present in large numbers," Gupta added. Keeping in mind the critical geography of the state and its sensitive communal environment, it is necessary that New Delhi treads carefully and explores all the alternatives before arriving at any long-term solution to the issue, Gupta added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Moon Jae-in speaks during a meeting with his senior aides, Aprill 20, at Cheong Wa Dae. Yonhap By Do Je-hae President Moon Jae-in stressed the importance of parliamentary cooperation in dealing with the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis during a meeting with senior presidential aides, Monday. This was the first time for the President to speak about the results of the April 15 general election, in which the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) clinched an astonishing victory over the main opposition United Future Party (UFP), snatching 180 out of 300 parliamentary seats in the 21st National Assembly to be inaugurated May 30. "The most important thing is to overcome the national difficulties. We can talk about a tomorrow only after protecting the people's lives and saving the economy. I believe that the meaning of this general election is the citizens telling us to work together to overcome the national crisis," Moon said at the start of the meeting, according to press pool reports. Riots have broken out in Paris amid anger over police 'heavy-handed' treatment of ethnic minorities during the coronavirus lockdown. Police used tear gas and baton charges in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, northern Paris, in the early hours this morning as fireworks exploded in the street. Armed police were seen moving through the area as groups of protesters congregated. It comes after a 30-year-old was critically injured in the neighbourhood in a collision with an unmarked police car. President Emmanuel Macron has extended France's social distancing measures until May 11. Its daily death toll from the virus fell to the lowest level in three weeks today as 395 deaths were recorded, bringing the total to 19,718, though deaths are typically under-reported over the weekend. Riots have broken out in the Parisian suburb of Villeneuve-la-Garenne following allegations of heavy handedness against ethnic minorities by police forces. (Pictured: An officer asks a journalist to step back in the suburb early on Monday morning) A firework explodes in the middle of the street in the French suburb early this morning Des unites de police repondent aux feux dartifices par des tirs de grenades lacrymogenes.#VilleneuveLaGarenne pic.twitter.com/A7CP6hRCjS Taha Bouhafs (@T_Bouhafs) April 19, 2020 Protesters fired fireworks at buildings and into police officers in early hours of this morning A car waits at a cross roads in the neighbourhood as fireworks explode overhead Fireworks dyed the sky red above the Parisian suburb early this morning, videos posted on social media show. Bins were also filmed blazing and filling the air with smoke as armed police moved into the area. Videos of the trouble posted by the French journalist Taha Bouhafs, who is from an Algerian background, includes one of him being manhandled by police leading to allegations of racism. Mr Bouhafs earlier images show tear gas canisters being fired by the police, who were hit my numerous fireworks. The early morning violence followed prosecutors opening an enquiry after a 30-year-old motorcyclist was critically injured following a collision with an unmarked police car in Villeneuve-la-Garenne. Friends of the victim, who have not been named, claimed the incident on Saturday night was an example of police heavy-handedness against ethnic minority communities during the lockdown. The very badly injured man comes from an Arab Muslim background, said a source close to the case. He is critical in hospital, and people in the area have reacted very badly to what has happened. A local police spokesman said: Police and their reinforcements have been the target of rioters, who have thrown stones and fireworks. The violence started in Villeneuve-la-Garenne and has spread to other towns and estates nearby. A firework pictured exploding over a street in the north Parisian suburb early this morning Protesters let off fireworks. The riots were triggered after a 30-year-old man was severely injured in a collision with an unmarked police car in the area Police threw tear gas and baton charges as they moved to disperse protesters in the area A police officer was seen carrying a large gun as they moved through the neighbourhood Last week prosecutors in Beziers, in the south of France, announced that officers were facing criminal charges after a father-of-three died while under arrest for breaching the Coronavirus lockdown. Three officers were videoed dragging Mohamed Gabsi, 33, along the ground during a curfew. They are suspected of intentional violence by a public official leading to manslaughter and non assistance of a person in danger. The offences come with a potential combined prison sentence of 15 years plus, said local prosecutors. The case is particularly sensitive because Mr Gabsi was a Muslim, and Beziers is run by a far-Right mayor who is supported by the National Rally party, which used to be called the National Front. Mr Gabsi had suffered a heart attack by the time he arrived at a local police station, and witnesses saw two of the officers sitting on top of him in their patrol car. Mr Gabsis suspicious death follows numerous complaints about police racism as forces across France enforce one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe. A spokesman for Frances Human Rights League described the death of Mr Gabsi, who was from an Arab background, as a scandal that shows how the poor are being killed by the lockdown. French journalist Taha Bouhafs, who is from an Algerian background, is manhandled by police Two officers hold the journalist's arms behind his back. He was reporting on the protests France on Tuesday reported a total of 19,718 deaths from coronavirus since the start of the health emergency. A total of 152,894 cases have also been detected in the country. Its stringent lockdown measures are 'working', Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told a press conference today. French authorities have said they will publish plans for ending the lockdown 'within two weeks', and begins to air their strategy 'in the coming days'. 'It is likely that we are not going to see an end to confinement that would happen in one move everywhere and for everyone,' Mr Philippe said, revealing details of the strategy. The French lockdown could lead to a 10 per cent contraction in the French economy this year. The country has been in lockdown from March 17, and this will continue until at least May 11. Press Release 20 April 2020 Maastricht, the Netherlands - As the hotel industry contends with the immediate challenges posed by the Coronavirus crisis, for some hoteliers this also represents an opportunity to take a longer-term view of their businesses. Hospitality Net, which launched the Hospitality Net World Panel last year to highlight the opinions of leading hoteliers on industry trends, is now launching another panel, this time on wellness, lifestyle and spas. Advertisements Leading the discussions as the panel's 'Champ' and contributing Expert will be Mia A. Mackman, Founder & Principal of Mackman|ES, a future-ready, wellness and spa consultancy and Managing Director of HVS Spa & Wellness Consulting. Ms. Mackman is also Founder & President of the Arizona Spa & Wellness Association and will be initiating questions to a panel of industry experts and academics on the topics of wellness, lifestyle and spas. Ms. Mackman, who is based in Sedona, Arizona, has extensive consulting experience and has been successfully identifying future value propositions in the market for over 16 years. She works with global investors, hotel and resort developers, hospitality organizations and contributes as an industry expert to international business reports, global think-tanks, and world news organizations. "This World Panel will work closely with visionaries, influencers and executives to magnify the narrative related to ways wellness impacts, adds value and enhances contemporary cornerstones in the hospitality industry. This represents an important opportunity to engage with, and help, hoteliers come to grips with rising new demands linked to well-being, spa assets and future guest experiences, as they begin to map out their post-crisis business strategies," said Ms. Mackman. "We are excited to expand the scope of the World Panel to include viewpoints on wellness, lifestyle and spas. This panel examines how Wellness, Lifestyle and Spa contribute to hospitality value proposition growth and impact the leisure, tourism and business economy. The objective of the panel is to provide high-level, experienced, and diverse industry viewpoints on topics ranging from investment and development to industry trends, strategic planning and operational performance." "Even though these are very trying times for businesses, we firmly believe that hoteliers who also plan for the future will be well-placed when economies begin to recover," said Hospitality Net founder Henri Roelings. Some 20 leading C-Suite executives of European and US-based hotel chains and hospitality groups have already been taking part in the World Panel initiative. These include: Heather McCrory, CEO, North and Central America, Accor; Michael Levie, COO and founding partner, CitizenM; and Federico J. Gonzalez Tejera, CEO of Radisson Hotels. The executives, who represent a broad cross-section of the industry in Europe and North America, have been outlining their viewpoints on topics ranging from asset management and sustainability, through to technology, human resources and branding/distribution. As wellness and lifestyle propositions continue to expand, this new panel focused on Wellness, Lifestyle and Spa is not only extremely relevant but will facilitate important topics for pertinent discussions. About the World Panel Hospitality Net has established a forum where the hotel industry's opinion leaders share their thoughts and insights on the important issues and events that are affecting the global hospitality business. Called the "", this virtual thought-leadership platform is a place where hospitality pros can go to read thought-provoking observations, discover opposing points of view, and support their own thinking with new perspectives. Leading each panel is a Champ, chosen by Hospitality Net. The Champ's role is to formulate an initial Viewpoint, which is the starting point for the Panel. This Viewpoint could be a statement, proposition or question - something to elicit spirited responses from panel contributors, who are called Experts. With the help of Hospitality Net, a Champ identifies potential Experts, invites them to participate, and formulates Viewpoints which are transmitted to participating experts using a dedicated online and easy to use platform. Spanning a period of time, a Champ will thus engage Views from 10 to perhaps 25 Experts, so that at the end of the month, an entire collection of Expert Views is published. Since the Views will be brief, the final World Panel posted will not be a long, heavy document that readers have to plow through, but a readable and even provocative overview of different opinions on the matters affecting us in the hospitality business. President Nana Akufo-Addo has indicated that the Government of Ghana will partner health Professionals in Africa to manufacture vaccines to curb viral diseases in Africa. According to the President, the COVID-19 epidemic has been a wake-up call for the entire African continent and therefore there is the need for the establishment of a framework to support African vaccine manufacturing initiative. President Akufo-Addo in his nation address on Sunday, April 19, 2020 provided an update on the COVID-19. He commended the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) and the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research and other research centers for doing a good job in testing and also providing adequate data on the virus mutations to help with vaccination. ''The enhancement of our capacity to test has been made possible by the dedication of the expanded teams at Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research and the National Public Health Reference Laboratory'', he said. The President noted the ''need to establish the enabling framework for sustainable vaccine manufacturing in Africa'', hence calling on African leaders to ''advance African-led partnerships to drive scientific innovations for the control of viral diseases by vaccination. Ghana, recognising this critical public health tool, will support the African Vaccine Manufacturing Initiative, which is chaired by Noguchis Prof William Ampofo, to promote the agenda for vaccine development and manufacturing in Africa by Africans for the world''. 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. Featured Video Kourtney Kardashian has an incredible bikini body thanks to daily workouts in her home gym with a personal trainer. And the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star proved this weekend she has always been in top shape. To celebrate her 41st birthday, the mother-of-three was seen in a flashback photo from 25 years ago when she posed in a black-and-white two piece. Teen Kourtney: Here Ms Kardashian is seen about 25 years ago; the image was shared as the Poosh founder celebrated her 41st birthday The petite wonder seemed to be at her hotel while on vacation in Hawaii. The college graduate had her dark hair worn short and partially pulled back. There was heavy eye makeup on for the portrait as well as frosty beige lipstick. Her arms were up on the balcony rail as she seemed to be impressed with her deep tan as she wore a black and white striped suit. But she looks even better nowadays: The siren, left, has abs in her 40s; seen with sister Kendall Jenner, a Vogue model The POOSH founder's body looks great, but she actually may look even better now. Also this weekend, her supermodel sister Kendall Jenner shared a recent shot from a bikini modeling session. Kourtney was in a black and beige leopard print suit with her hair in a turban - she was showing off a more muscular frame with abs and sculpted legs. Her little sister was in something similar as she squatted down. Later: And there was another image of Kourtney in a purple bikini shared by Kim; the era seemed to be about 10 years ago Drama: Kourtney was recently told she looked pregnant in this image. The star replied to fans that she liked her more womanly body And there was another image of Kourtney in a purple bikini shared by Kim; the era seemed to be about 10 years ago. Kim shared a gushing 41st birthday tribute to her sister Kourtney. The 39-year-old reality TV icon fired up her Instagram to post a string of throwback snaps of the pair of them together. 'Happy Birthday @kourtneykardashian I had to find some good throwbacks to celebrate you today! I remember these moments so vividly,' wrote Kim. Flashback: Kim Kardashian shared a gushing 41st birthday tribute to her sister Kourtney this Saturday 'I love your strong will to do whatever makes your soul happy, the love you have for you children and for being the best big sister,' she gushed. 'I couldn't be more thankful for our memories together. You pack a mean punch I love you so much and cant wait until this is all over so we can celebrate together.' Kim and Kourtney are the eldest two children of Kris Jenner and her first husband, the late O.J. Simpson lawyer Robert Kardashian. The throwback snaps Kim posted on Saturday included not just Kim and Kourtney, but in some cases their sister Khloe and their mother as well. Looking fab: The 39-year-old reality TV icon fired up her Instagram to post a string of throwback snaps of the pair of them together. Remember when: 'Happy Birthday @kourtneykardashian I had to find some good throwbacks to celebrate you today! I remember these moments so vividly,' wrote Kim A couple of sweet childhood pictures showed Kim and Kourtney together such as one where they were dressed up in matching striped shirts. One picture was a solo shot of Kourtney who showed off her bombshell beach body in a barely-there purple bikini. Meanwhile the two sisters were seen having a vicious physical brawl on an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians last month. The catalyst was when Kim belittled Kourtney's work ethic as well as that of their supermodel half-sister Kendall Jenner. The way they were: Kim and Kourtney are the eldest two children of Kris Jenner and her first husband, the late O.J. Simpson lawyer Robert Kardashian Babies: A couple of sweet childhood pictures showed Kim and Kourtney together such as one where they were dressed up in matching striped shirts Kim bragged that 'If I were on my deathbed, I would still show up' to work and included Khloe in her praise. However she sneered that Kendall would just 'get anxiety,' leading the model to insist: 'I work my f***ing a** off when I'm sick or not.' Kim then rounded on Kourtney who snapped: 'You act like I dont do s***. You have this narrative in your mindI will literally f*** you up if you mention it again.' Family business: The throwback snaps Kim posted on Saturday included not just Kim and Kourtney, but in some cases their sister Khloe and their mother as well The two stood up in a bottle-flinging slap-fight that was only broken up when Khloe physically planted herself in between them. 'We actually had to shut down production for a week after that, because everyone was just so shook,' Kim revealed on The View this week. 'And so it was so uncharacteristic of us to really act like that. My mom saw that clip and was crying, and was just - she couldn't believe that we were acting like that.' 'I will f*** you up': Meanwhile the two sisters were seen having a vicious physical brawl on an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians last month The lack of clarity around when the Leaving Certificate will take place is causing undue stress to young people, a student leader has said. The Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) has said there is not and there cannot be any guarantee that the rescheduled date for the exams will hold. The Government has decided to press ahead with holding the exam, saying it could be held in July or August instead of June, but has said it cannot confirm a date yet due to the Covid-19 emergency. Member of the Irish Secondary Schools Union executive, Luke Casserly, is in sixth year at St Mels College in Co Longford. Today I have taken a series of decisions in relation to schools and the state exams. There is no perfect solution. But I believe this is the fairest decision we could take. We are planning in the best interests of our students and their families.#coronavirus #COVID19 https://t.co/o0aeUWxvBG Joe McHugh (@McHughJoeTD) April 10, 2020 He told the PA news agency the speculation about whether the exams will be postponed or cancelled is making students stressed. Luke said: Theres been a lot of talk over the past couple of weeks about when well be returning to school. Suggestions have included going back for two weeks, or once a week once restrictions are lifted. Unfortunately, there is still absolutely no certainty surrounding this. All this does is add stress for students at an already stressful time. At this stage, we want definite answers, not possibilities and discussions. He said while the Government announced last month that the exam will be postponed, concerns among students remain. While the announcement on Good Friday gave many students a sense of relief initially, I think it became clear fairly soon after that it actually left us with more questions than answers. State Examinations 2020 - Frequently Asked Questions in the context of Covid-19 - https://t.co/WHMvPvwxxL pic.twitter.com/R8QwyurDdi Teachers' Union Ire. (@TUIunion) April 18, 2020 This is especially disappointing as we see that students in the UK, France, and other countries know exactly what faces them. For example, there is still no guarantee that the exams can actually take place in July or August as the go-ahead will have to be given by public health officials. Two weeks in school does not seem like enough time to catch up on all projects that need to be completed and unfinished coursework. Luke said the class of 2020 are already facing an unlevel playing field as they try to adjust to life during the pandemic. He said: One of the most concerning issues arising from this decision is how it will impact students mental health and wellbeing. I think we all know that the Leaving Cert is an extremely stressful, and even torturous year for most people. This is no surprise as we live in a society that constantly tells young people that these are the most important exams theyll ever sit. With this decision, students will now have to face continued stress and study through the summer months. Ive spoken to many students who are really struggling at the minute its incredibly difficult to find the motivation to keep studying, and for many, the task of studying for three or four months longer will be extremely challenging. We're worried about how this situation will affect our futures Luke Casserly For students who struggle with their mental health, this will be even more challenging. Were worried about how this situation will affect our futures. We know already that its highly unlikely well be starting college in September, and this raises many questions about how we will access accommodation among other things. Luke said the Irish Governments decision to press ahead with the exam shows the inflexibility of the education system. He said: While countries across the globe have adapted to this crisis by simply cancelling their summer exams and falling back on continuous assessment and other creative and innovative solutions, we remain deeply rooted in tradition. Does it really make sense that six years of learning and study should end with one set of standardised exams that will determine what our students go on to do? I really hope that this will motivate decision-makers and stakeholders to push for a more flexible senior cycle, one that puts educating students ahead of examining them and assigning them a number that will determine their future and how society views them. Property owners, renters and tenant advocates across the Capital Region are worried about what skyrocketing unemployment will do to New Yorkers living arrangements. At the United Tenants of Albany, the staff is hearing from renters who were already struggling to pay their rent and have now lost their jobs. Executive Director Laura Felts said she intervened in an illegal eviction when a landlord boarded up a tenants door to keep him out of his apartment after the eviction moratorium was put in place March 16. We are extremely concerned about the eviction landscape when courts reopen and warrants go live again, Felts said. The UTA has an emergency fund designed to give one-time grants to renters at risk of losing their housing. The state and federal government sets the rules about who is eligible for the money. There is now a waiting list for the grants, Felts said. Most of the calls to the UTA staff come from tenants whose landlords will not fix problems with the apartment, Felts said. Shes heard about sewage being backed up and mold growth both harder to live with during the stay-home order in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. Patricia Mccauslin, who lives along Clinton Avenue, Albany, said she has been served with an eviction order after repeatedly asking her landlord to fix plumbing problems in her apartment. Mccauslin, 64, said she signed a month-to-month lease with the property owner six months ago for the one-bedroom apartment. She was paying $600 a month, but when water from leaking pipes started penetrating the walls and ceilings, the landlord dropped the rent to $500. The last she heard from her landlord, Mccauslin said, he told her he can't afford to make repairs to the apartment. The landlord, Ronnie Xianrong, said he asked Mccauslin to hire a plumber herself and he will pay her back when he returns to Albany from Florida, or she can take the cost out of her rent. He said he has not tried to evict her. Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Full coronavirus coverage Mccauslin, a widow, said she is the caretaker for her roommate, who suffered a stroke. They are both on fixed incomes, she said. Mccauslin paid the rent in February, but withheld rent for March and April. Mccauslin is afraid to go out because she has upper respiratory problems, but she is looking for a new apartment. She is relying on Meals on Wheels and the food pantry for food, she said. The leadership of Under One Roof is also worried about a wave of evictions. The organization is a coalition founded by the New York Capital Region Apartment Association in response to the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019. Jaime Michelle Cain, a real estate lawyer who advises Under One Roof, said calls for rent strikes have left renters misinformed. Despite calls for rent suspension in New York, the terms of each renters lease are still in place. If you dont pay rent for the duration of the eviction moratorium put in place March 16 and scheduled to end in mid-June, your landlord will have the right to evict you, Cain said. This is not about landlords collecting rent to put in their pockets, Cain said. They need to pay taxes, which are not under a moratorium, pay their employees and utilities. When a rent strike is proposed it jeopardizes the whole structure. Deborah Pusatere, president of the apartment association and a leader of Under One Roof, said 40 percent of her tenants didnt pay their rent in April. Pusatere owns DeKita LLC and has 63 units, almost entirely in Albany, currently occupied by renters. Of the 25 who didnt pay, 13 still owed rent from March, she said. Of those, 10 refused to pay because they know I cant evict them, she said. Pusatere said she had an $18,000 tax bill due April 1. She had to borrow money to pay it. Landlords were not eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program, and insurance policies written for business disruption do not pay out when tenants can't pay their rent. The policies only cover physical damage to the property, said Jesse Holland, president and founder of Sunrise Management and Consulting, which has 1,500 residential tenants. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. In Troy, property owner Emily Menn vented on Facebook on March 29, after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-Bronx, put out a call to cancel rent. Ocasio-Cortez is one of several co-sponsors of legislation proposed Friday by Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) calling for rent and mortgage payments to be canceled nationwide amid the pandemic, as well as the creation of a relief fund for landlords and mortgage collectors. Im sick of being physically and financially threatened, Menn wrote on Facebook. Come April 1st, if you can afford to pay your rent, pay your rent. If you can't, you should have talked to your landlord by now. If you're posting rent strike propaganda, unfriend me [because] I'm about to unfriend you. Menn is the managing partner of Devil's Hole Ranch Properties, which owns 67 units in 10 buildings in Troy. Rent ranges from $750 for one-bedroom apartments to $1,600 for bigger units. In her post, Menn explained how she spends the money when her tenants pay rent 25 percent to mortgage, the rest to taxes, maintenance, insurance, staff and contractors - before she pays herself. The state-ordered moratorium on evictions - in place until mid-June - was absolutely appropriate, Menn wrote and she condemned landlords who evict tenants illegally. But she was seeing far too many posts on social media about guillotining landlords, Menn wrote, and its just not funny. Speaking by phone a day later, Menn said the post was too emotional, born of frustration and fear. When you run a small business you always worry about money, she said. Im also worried about the mental health of my tenants and about them losing their jobs. Im worried the physical safety of both myself and my maintenance crew and about my tenants getting COVID-19. Bigger landlords are in a similar position. Holland, of Sunrise Management and Consulting, said all of Sunrise's tenants are affected in some way, even if its just the stress of an unprecedented crisis. Where they are in the financial picture makes a difference. We know some people are having a much harder time than others, Holland said. The toughest time were having is with the people who wont talk to us. In this situation theres nothing to be embarrassed about and people will need help. Menn urged tenants who think they cant pay their rent to reach out to their landlords and make arrangements for payment plans or discuss exchanging work for rent. If someone has a set of skills I can put to use, Im always going to do it, Menn said. As many as 1,211 people who were quarantined in Punjab's Pathankot district for 21 days were sent home in different parts of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, a senior official said. The people were handed over to the Kathua administration at Lakhanpur, said Kathua District Magistrate O P Bhagat. He said the people were made to pass through a sanitisation tunnel and a team of doctors and paramedical staff recorded their temperature. The administration has arranged a fleet of buses to send these people to their homes. The official said 350 people belong to Kashmir while the rest to Jammu division. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) K risten Dennis is ready to display her latest masterpiece, a 10-inch, stone-shaped loaf cooked to golden perfection in her Chicago kitchen. She bakes both for taste-her sourdough a little sweeter, less tangy than others-and looks. For this second reason, she has ensured that the bread bears a large, fin-like ridge, a feature called an "ear" created by a special curved blade. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said there is a growing call to end a temporary truce with communist rebels, despite the group's own decision to extend its ceasefire with the government amid the COVID-19 crisis. "Ang alam ko, maraming nagre-recommend na huwag nang ituloy 'yan, pero hindi pa nagdedesisyon ang Presidente [What I know is there are several recommendations against continuing that ceasefire, but the President has not decided yet]," Roque said in a virtual media briefing Monday. READ: Duterte declares unilateral ceasefire with CPP-NPA to focus on COVID-19 fight President Rodrigo Duterte has not yet decided if he will reciprocate by also extending his ceasefire order. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) announced last week that they will "cease and desist" from launching attacks until April 30, the last day of the enhanced community quarantine. Duterte had asked the communist rebels for a ceasefire just before the Luzon lockdown took effect. The National Democratic Front of the Philippines recommended a unilateral ceasefire in late March, but it was supposedly in response to the United Nations' call for a global truce. Roque cited three incidents where the CPP and New People's Army did not honor their own pledge. Rebels reportedly seized relief goods meant for residents of Eastern Samar. He also reported an encounter in Rodriguez, Rizal and a hacking incident involving an indigenous tribe in Surigao. "Identified ang mga NPA na gumawa niyan. Parang wala pong good faith itong CPP-NPA at bagamat wala pang desisyon ang Presidente, ang tanong natin ay: Bakit kasi nagdedeklara ng unilateral ceasefire na hindi naman nila sinusunod mismo?" Roque asked. [Translation: Members of the NPA have been identified to be involved in those cases. It seems that the CPP-NPA is not acting on good faith. Even if the President has not made a decision yet, the question is: Why are they declaring a unilateral ceasefire when they can't follow it themselves?] Roque added that he will give an update on the President's decision on the ceasefire extension, which will also depend on the recommendations of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases. Duterte walked away from peace talks with communist rebels in 2017 as both sides accused each other of ceasefire violations. The two panels are considering returning to the negotiating table, but Duterte and CPP founding chairman Jose Maria Sison could not agree on contentious issues, including the venue for the meetings. DETROIT The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, announces that Lakes Michigan, Huron, St. Clair and Erie set new monthly mean water level records for March 2020, which were previously set in 1986. All of the lakes are now in their period of seasonal rise and will continue to rise toward their peaks, which are projected to occur in the late spring or summer. March was fairly wet in the Great Lakes region with precipitation near to above average across the region. During the spring, water levels on the Great Lakes are usually in a period of seasonal rise due to increased rainfall and runoff. Water levels are expected to rise toward their seasonal peaks over the coming months and will continue to be near or above record high water levels. Significant erosion continues in many locations as water levels remain extremely high. Strong storm systems and resulting large waves have led to substantial erosion along much of the Great Lakes coastline. "After a generally drier month of February, March brought a return to wetter conditions experienced across the Great Lakes basin," said John Allis, chief of the Great Lakes Hydraulics and Hydrology Office, Detroit District. "During this period of seasonal rise for the Great Lakes, near or above record high water levels will continue to cause impacts along the shoreline." The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers urges those impacted by the high water levels in 2019 to prepare for similar or higher levels in 2020. The most recent six-month forecast of Great Lakes water levels still forecasts that water levels could peak very near last year's record levels. The Detroit District monitors and forecasts Great Lakes' water levels and provides the data and analysis on their Website https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.lre.usace.army.mil__;!!Ivohdkk!x_xbAkvuYh_jpIZsO9G3BvZpSLRYx80lhnkkA7Nsv3Vpc-WIFHuzcxLCwxjROGJq9g$ . During response operations, Detroit District, Emergency Management Office conducts emergency operations to save lives and protect specific properties (public/ facilities or services), which includes providing technical support and direct support during flood operations. Assistance is supplemental to local and state efforts and normally at the request of the state's governor or local municipality. In addition, citizens of Indiana and Michigan may decide to work on personal construction projects to alleviate erosion or flooding, which could potentially impact the nation's rivers, streams, wetlands and other aquatic resources that may require a permit from the Corps of Engineers' Regulatory Office. To find more information about Great Lakes high water, emergency management and the permit process visit this link: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.lre.usace.army.mil/About/Great-Lakes-High-Water/__;!!Ivohdkk!x_xbAkvuYh_jpIZsO9G3BvZpSLRYx80lhnkkA7Nsv3Vpc-WIFHuzcxLCwxhNbDKFDw$ which includes information about how to protect property and investments along the coast and related Corps programs and authorities. Courtney Roulston is a hot favourite on MasterChef: Back to Win. And when she's not cooking up a storm on set in Melbourne, the 39-year-old chef and her fiancee, Sophie King, call Sydney home. The couple bought a beachside unit in Coogee for $1.5million in 2016, two years after getting engaged during a romantic trip to Byron Bay. Beachside living: MasterChef Australia star Courtney Roulston (left) lives in a $1.5million home in Coogee, Sydney, with her fiancee, Sophie King (right) Courtney and Sophie's apartment boasts two bedrooms and ocean views. It has an open plan living area, with Courtney's designer kitchen flowing into their dining room and a cosy lounge space. The lounge leads out to the balcony, which overlooks the beach. Cosy decor: Courtney and Sophie's apartment boasts two bedrooms and ocean views Beachy: The women have opted for a beachy interior design theme and wicker furniture Fit for a chef: Courtney's impressive kitchen includes a brightly coloured Smeg refrigerator, plenty of worktop surfaces and rustic furniture and crockery The women have opted for a beachy interior design theme and wicker furniture. Courtney's impressive kitchen includes a brightly coloured Smeg refrigerator, plenty of worktop surfaces and rustic furniture and crockery. The couple have been engaged for six years, and want a low-key wedding. Professional: Sophie recently shared this picture of Courtney cooking up a storm at home Comfortable: The couple have spent years building the perfect home together with their dogs Breathtaking: The lounge leads out to the balcony, which overlooks the beach Courtney, who rose to fame on season two of MasterChef in 2010 and is now team chef for the Sydney Swans, revealed she was dating a woman on Sunday's episode. She was praised by viewers on Twitter for announcing her sexual orientation in such a casual manner. While the judges were appraising her dish, she said: 'I've been tinkering with the idea of opening up a wine bar with my partner, Sophie.' Relaxing: Courtney likes to relax on the balcony while reading the newspaper Hollywood couple Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have launched their own quarantine wine, the proceeds of whose sale will be donated to various charities working towards coronavirus relief efforts. The actor duo on Sunday took to Twitter to announce that they had joined hands with Nocking Point Wines and Battle Creek Vineyards to launch 'Quarantine Wine'. "Hi guys, we are launching Quarantine Wine," Kutcher, 42, said in a video with Kunis. "100 per cent, that's right, 100 per cent of the profits will go to a handful of charities that we have vetted for you and are so proud of during this time. Anything from feeding families who have fallen on hard times" Kunis, 36, added. Kutcher said the money will be used to supply Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to frontline medical workers and to help in the recovery of small businesses and people who are in distress. According to the official Quarantine Wine website, the "beautiful Oregon Pinot Noir" will retail at USD 50 for two bottles and is decorated with an interactive front label that "is meant to be written on by YOU". Kunis and Kutcher asked their fans and followers to enjoy the wine while practising social distancing. "Crack open a bottle of this wine, enjoy a virtual happy hour with a friend or loved one, and write (or draw!) who you're toasting to from the comfort of your own home. "Snap a pic and post it using #QUARANTINEWINE, #PPE, and #SOCIALDISTANCING to spread the word about this awesome wine and fundraising cause. We hope that you enjoy this wine as much as we do and we can't thank you enough for your support!" they said. The four charities chosen by the couple are GiveDirectly, Direct Relief, The Frontline Responders Fund, and America's Food Fund. Kunis and Kutcher join a host of Hollywood celebrities such as Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, Rihanna, Angelina Jolie, Jay-Z and Meek Mills, Sean Penn, Madonna, Shawn Mendes, Michael Che, among others, who have contributed to COVID-19 relief efforts. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Read what is in the news today: Politics Vietnam strongly protests Chinas establishment of the so-called Sansha city and related acts in the East Vietnam Sea as they seriously violate Vietnams sovereignty, the Vietnamese foreign ministrys spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said on Sunday. Society Vietnam has gone four days without reporting a single new patient of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The countrys COVID-19 remains at 268, with 202 recoveries. The Vietnamese Embassy in Canada has warned Vietnamese citizens against engaging in financial transactions with organizations or individuals that pledge to arrange flights back to Vietnam that are not licensed by the Vietnamese government. Vietnamese Vice-State President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh has sent a letter to the inventor of the so-called rice ATM, which dispenses rice for free to those in need, to praise his creativity that has helped those in disadvantaged circumstances during the COVID-19 pandemic. Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh has requested an inspection into Ho Chi Minh Citys leasing of 82.5 hectares of land in Tan Phu District to real estate firm Gamuda Land for project development without collecting money from the company. Vietnams National Lung Hospital director Nguyen Viet Nhung has advised against administering the BCG tuberculosis vaccine, which is being trialed in several European countries and Australia against COVID-19, to adults under any circumstances as it could result in unwanted reactions. Business Vietnamese automaker Truong Hai Auto Corporation, or THACO, has said that it will export 69 semi-trailers to the United States in late May as a result of cooperation between THACO and PITTS Enterprises Company one of 15 major semi-trailers manufacturers in North America. Though the COVID-19 pandemic has cast a shadow over the global economy, the Ho Chi Minh City office space market has not been badly affected this year, according to property consultancy companies CBRE and Jones Lang LaSalle. Lifestyle A two-day online book fair, at book365.vn, kicked off on Sunday in celebration of the seventh Vietnam Book Day that falls on April 21 each year. This is the first time the annual book fair has been held online as the country continues to practice social distancing owing to COVID-19. World News Over 2.4 million people have caught COVID-19 while more than 165,000 have been killed by the disease globally as of Monday morning, according to statistics. About 625,000 have recovered. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 17:16:44|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CHONGQING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Sitting in front of his computer, Rustam Irgashev puts final touches on his designing plan for an office building to be constructed in Beijing. "I added the element of the Ding to give it a traditional vibe," said Rustam, 33, from Uzbekistan. The Ding he mentioned refers to a traditional Chinese cauldron, an ancient cooking vessel with two loop handles and three or four legs. It was a symbol of honor in traditional Chinese culture. Rustam is one of the foreign designers employed by one of the designing branches of Chongqing Engineering Co., ltd under China Coal Technology Engineering Group. The branch is based in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality. After graduating from Chongqing University in 2014, Rustam went to work in the Chinese state-owned company. The Ding design won high appreciation from Ma Fei, head of the branch. "What Rustam did was quite creative," Ma said. "By incorporating classic Chinese culture with modern features, he stood out among his competitors and won recognition from our client." The branch began to recruit foreign designers in 2012 for the first time, a rare move among Chinese state-owned designing companies. China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative the next year, and the branch has since maintained about five foreign designers each year, mostly from along the Belt and Road. "We are lucky to work together, thanks to the initiative," Ma said. Overseas designers are more sensitive to the differences between Chinese culture and foreign cultures, giving them an edge in design. "After coming to China, I got to know the amazing achievements that China has made in the past 40 years," Rustam said, adding that he has been to many places in China, including the autonomous regions of Xinjiang and Tibet. "I felt the deep Chinese culture, and it gave me inspirations for my designing work," he said. Rustam said he did not quite fit into the "spicy food culture" in Chongqing at first, but after years of life there, his connection with China is stronger than ever. "My wife is from Chongqing, and our daughter is nine months old," he said. "Now, I am in love with the spicy food here, they spice up my life!" Like Rustam, Caroline Echavoyen, 23, also chose to work in the branch. The French designer has worked in the company for half a year, but she already delivered some delighting designing works. When she was asked to design a factory building in Chongqing's Ba'nan District, she added the element of the horse in it, citing inspiration from the iconic Terracotta Warriors. "I thought the horse is an important part of the Chinese culture," she said. Caroline said she saw the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an in northwest China's Shaanxi Province and was fascinated by the soldiers and chariots. With the further advancement of the Belt and Road construction, the company has helped design many projects along the route, including those in Rustam's home country Uzbekistan. "As Rustam is from Uzbekistan, he played an important role in the projects," Ma Fei said. The foreign designers said they learned a lot doing the designing jobs in Chongqing. Natalia Pratashchyk, 32, is from Belarus. She said that she learned many things from transforming the old factory buildings in the city. "There are a group of foreign designers here with different academic and cultural backgrounds," she said. "We get to improve ourselves by sharing with each other." Natalia said she wants to bring what she learned in China back to Belarus, and become a college teacher to cultivate more talents for her home country. But Mohammed Rahmoun, 29, plans to work and study in China for another five years. "Many Chinese companies are in contact with my country, and I am willing to be a part of the cooperation," said Mohammed, from Syria. Enditem Sergey Nochovnyy, 38, said he hasnt lost his own business and that he signed up with a major delivery company because he wanted to look at life from another angle and get outdoors amid the restrictions imposed on movement. (Reuters) Sergey Nochovnyy, tired of being stuck at home roaming the internet due to the coronavirus lockdown, has temporarily switched to the low-paid but physically active job of delivering meals.(Reuters) Authorities in the Russian capital have ordered most Muscovites who dont work in vital industries to stay home in an effort to stymie the spread of the coronavirus. Only visits to nearby stores and pharmacies are allowed, and the lockdown has spurred demand for delivery services.(Reuters) Nochovnyy said he walks an average of 20 kilometers (12 miles) a day to deliver food. The businessman, who returned to Russia last year after spending 12 years in China, makes 1,000-1,500 rubles ($13-20) a day as a deliveryman. His consulting business was making about $2 million a year, Nochovnyy said.(Reuters) Nochovnyy said the new job offers him the physical activity that he was desperately missing amid the lockdown, and a break from endlessly roaming the internet. (Reuters) The Spanish government will propose to its EU partners that they create a 1.5 trillion euro ($1.63 trillion) recovery fund financed through perpetual debt to aid countries worst-hit by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus crisis, a discussion paper shows. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will outline the proposal to his European colleagues during a summit on April 23, in a bid to lead the negotiations looking for an acceptable solution after the Netherlands and Germany ruled out common debt issuance, a foreign ministry source told Reuters. The new fund proposed by Spain would be financed by perpetual debt backed by the EU budget, and countries would count it as transfers and not debt. It would be a different mutualization scheme than we had in mind but it is an option that can be agreed by all, the source said. The European Commission would act as the main borrower in the scheme that would use the EU budget as a last resort to leverage the new debt. The Spanish proposal is aligned with that presented by EU Budget Commissioner Johannes Hahn. According to the three-page Spanish discussion paper, seen by Reuters, the transfer of funds should be frontloaded to start on the first day of 2021 and be executed during the next two to three years. Spain wants the repayment of the interest to rely on a new set of European taxes, such as a border carbon tax and other green financing. Sanchez will ask the bloc to work towards a full tax harmonization. By Belen Carreno and Inti Landauro NTD staff contributed to this report. Technavio has been monitoring the automotive camera cleaning systems market and it is poised to grow by USD 891.82 mn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 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/20200420005522/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems 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. Continental AG, dlhBOWLES, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Panasonic Corp., and SEEVA Technologies 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 popularity of ADAS technologies has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market 2019-2023: Segmentation Automotive camera cleaning systems market is segmented as below: Application Passenger Cars Commercial Vehicles Geographic Landscape APAC Europe MEA North America South America 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=IRTNTR31253 Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems 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 camera cleaning systems market report covers the following areas: Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market Size Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market Trends Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market Industry Analysis This study identifies increasing demand for camera cleaning systems for mid and full-sized SUVs as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive camera cleaning systems market growth during the next few years. Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the automotive camera cleaning systems market, including some of the vendors such as Continental AG, dlhBOWLES, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Panasonic Corp., and SEEVA Technologies. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive camera cleaning systems 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 Automotive Camera Cleaning Systems Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023 Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive camera cleaning systems market growth during the next five years Estimation of the automotive camera cleaning systems market size and its contribution to the parent market Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior The growth of the automotive camera cleaning systems market Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive camera cleaning systems 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 Passenger cars Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Commercial vehicles Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Market opportunity by application PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation Geographic comparison North America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Europe Market size and forecast 2018-2023 APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023 South America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 MEA 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 Development for efficient camera cleaning systems Growing demand for camera cleaning systems for mid- and full-sized SUVs Growing popularity of camera cleaning systems in wide-angle automotive cameras PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview Landscape disruption Competitive scenario PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors Continental AG dlhBOWLES Ford Motor Co. General Motors Co. Panasonic Corp. SEEVA Technologies 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. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005522/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ Spain proposes 1.5 trillion EU fund with perpetual debt Says El Pais, citing a Sanchez government document (ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, APRIL 20 - The Spanish government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez plans to propose the creation of a 1.5-trillion-euro recovery fund at the EU summit on Thursday, said Spanish daily El Pais on Monday, citing an internal government document. The fund would be financed through perpetual debt backed by EU countries, and would be assigned through transfers, not as debt, among the countries hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis. El Pais said Germany might accept such a proposal. (ANSAmed). Her first stop after stepping down as a senior royal has seen Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, provide the voiceover for Elephants, a new Disney+ documentary. The new role comes just a matter of months after Prince Harry jokingly pitched his wife's voiceover skills to Disney's CEO at the UK premiere of The Lion King. And now, a never-before-seen interview with Meghan has been aired on Good Morning America. In the clip, the duchess appears to be wearing the Misha Nonoo shirt from her Smart Works collection, which currently is out of stock, although Misha Nonoo stocks a similar offering on her website, which sells for 175. Markle attending the launch of her Smart Works collection in September 2019 / PA 38-year-old Meghan accessorised the crisp, white shirt with two charm necklaces. The first is the "Vanessa" Coin necklace from Canadian label Suetables (91, shop it here), which has a Taurus charm on it - baby Archie's star sign - while the other was the "Shirley" Virgo pendant from the same brand (45, shop it here), which is Prince Harry's star sign. She last wore the necklaces in November during a visit to London's Broom Farm Community Centre. In the newly-released interview - which was recorded last summer - Meghan said she was 'grateful' to have been involved in the Disney+ documentary - and she hopes it will teach people how similar humans are to elephants and how 'connected' we are. Meghan and Prince Harry are currently staying in their new home in Los Angeles, though the couple have been seen volunteering for charity Project Angel Food to deliver meals to those in need. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) It is better for local officials to parade quarantine violators in the streets instead of sending them to jails, a key official of the Philippine National Police said Monday. PNP deputy chief for operations Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, who heads the Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield, noted that it cannot be guaranteed when violators can be released once formal charges are filed against them. "Mas [maayos] pa yan, sa totoo lang. Kung tutuusin, magsisisi pa sila kung sila ay ikukulong at fafile-an ng kaso dahil hindi natin alam kung kailan sila magpapiyansa," Eleazar told CNN Philippines' Balitaan on Monday. [Translation: Honestly, other methods are better. In fact, they will regret it if they will be charged and jailed because we cannot determine when they can be allowed to post bail.] Eleazar was referring to various localities imposing different methods of punishment to those who violate curfew and other social distancing protocols ordered by the government. In Caloocan City, a video circulated online showing violators of the enhanced community quarantine being ordered by authorities to walk along EDSA center island at around 10 p.m., while tugging a rope with them. In Barangay Bagong Nayon in Antipolo, Rizal, 39 violators were asked a week ago to stay inside a detention court for eight to ten hours without giving them food or drink. "Sa akin po, sinasabi ko yan hindi dahil sa SOP ng ating organisasyon, tingin ko ho mas maayos pa iyan kaysa makulong pa sila," said Eleazar. "While we are reviewing this and conducting investigation, sa lahat naman po sinisita natin sa mga bagay na sa tingin naman natin makakatulong. [Translation: I'm only saying this not because it's a standard operating procedure of our organization, but I think it's better instead of putting them in jail. While we are reviewing this and conducting investigation, we are reminding everyone to follow orders which we think would help them.] Eleazar was also asked for comment regarding an incident in March which showed five youths locked inside a dog cage after breaking curfew in Laguna. He said authorities are still conducting investigation on the matter. "Iyon pong ikinukulong, iyon ang iimbestigahan ng ating pamunuan at hindi naman po dapat iyon," he said. [Translation: These children who were jailed, that's what we will investigate because that is illegal.] International rights group Human Rights Watch issued a statement on March 26 addressing the incident, noting that reports of abuse against detainees "should be promptly investigated and those responsible should be appropriately disciplined or prosecuted." Police and local officials should respect the rights of those they arrest for violating curfew and other public health regulations, which can be done while still allowing the Philippines government to take appropriate measures to combat COVID-19, said Phil Robertson, HRW deputy Asia director. On April 8, the group also slammed the alleged discrimination on three members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community who violated curfew in Pandacaqui, Pampanga. It noted that a village official publicly humiliated the individuals by ordering them to kiss, dance, and do push-ups on live video, which also made the rounds on social media. It has been more than a month since Luzon was placed under the enhanced community quarantine to contain COVID-19 cases. President Rodrigo Duterte previously warned quarantine violators of imposing a "martial law-type" of discipline if they continue going against government orders. The Philippines currently has 6,259 COVID-19 cases with 409 fatalities. A total of 572 individuals have already recovered from the infection. 20.04.2020 LISTEN President Akufo-Addo has cautioned Ghanaians to desist from spreading fake news about the novel Coronavirus. Addressing the nation in a televised broadcast, the President described persons involved in the spreading of fake news as unpatriotic citizens who intend to benefit from the pandemic. He said such persons will be held accountable if they fail to put an end to their actions. Firstly, there continues to be the deliberate dissemination of fake news, disinformation and outright lies by some unpatriotic citizens about the spread of the virus since its outbreak in the country. These acts are being orchestrated by those who hope to benefit by seeking to sow the seeds of panic and confusion amongst the populace at this time of national crisis. I have an unequivocal message for those involved in these despicable acts put an immediate stop to it, or be held accountable for your actions, President Akufo-Addo said. The President also urged the general public to stop stigmatizing recovered persons as it will rather drive people away from getting screened, tested and treated. Secondly, as has been aptly stated by the Ghana Medical Association, being infected by the Coronavirus is not necessarily a death sentence. I have noticed, with great concern, the stories of some persons, who have recovered from the virus, now being confronted with another problem, i.e. stigmatization. This is not right, as it will rather drive people away from getting screened, tested and treated. The stigmatization of recovered persons must stop, because if the virus did not end their lives and livelihoods, the stigma from members of their communities should not, he added. ---citinewsroom EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to regulations set up by the Council for Educational Travel USA (CETUSA) last names of foreign exchange students can't be used in stories that appear in the newspaper. BENZIE COUNTY What started as an exciting year of forging relationships to last a lifetime and learning about new cultures, has largely come to an early and unceremonious end for Council for Educational Travel USA (CETUSA) foreign exchange students and their host families over the course of the past month. Ann Parker is entering her 11th year as the local CETUSA coordinator and placed 13 students within Benzie County Central Schools for the 2019-20 school year. Of those 13, now only three remain with their host families after school buildings closed their doors for the remainder of the school year and the majority of countries recalled their students from abroad. Parker called the past weeks a challenging and emotional time for all involved. Though it has broken her heart to send students home early, especially during a time when she could not even say goodbye to them in person, Parker said it was the best decision for the safety of all involved. Wed rather get them home, if at all possible, and get them home safely, Parker said. Our program is concerned about the health and safety of the students. Parker went on to point out a hypothetical situation. What if the host parent or parents get sick? Then who is going to care for them? Parker said. The timing of when students returned or will return home has varied by their situations. Some countries or families wanted their children home right away when the COVID-19 pandemic began and recalled their students as early as mid-March. In other cases, the family abroad and the host family agreed to stick to the original timeline until they were told otherwise by their government. The Kelly family went through this scenario with their exchange daughter Lisa. When schools initially closed and there began to be talk of exchange students returning home, Lisas parents in Sweden agreed with the Kelly family that she should stay in America as long as possible. Only a few days later, an order came down from Swedens government that Lisa and all other exchange students were to immediately return home. After that, it was a roller coaster of emotions. Everybody was devastated her, her parents, us, our girls. It was a tough 45-minute video chat. Everybody was in tears, said Traci Kelly, who, with her husband Asa and their two daughters, hosted Lisa. Upon returning home, Lisa had to live alone in quarantine for 10 days since her parents still had to go to their jobs and her younger brother still attended primary school (which was kept open in Sweden even though high schools and universities moved online). While it was shorter and lacked the ending they had hoped for, the Kelly family said they still enjoyed their experience with Lisa, the third exchange student they have hosted. It was a wonderful experience. She was a perfect fit for our family. We got to know her family really well. Uncannily enough, her parents are almost identical to Asa and I. We had this awesome relationship, Traci said. Traci added that she still speaks with Lisa every day and that Lisa misses her host family and Benzie County friends. The Kelly family also remains in regular contact with their past students. Weve been so blessed with three of them, and all of them have just been perfect fits for our family, all in different ways, Traci said. They were each unique in their own way, but they fit perfectly. I still talk to Emma and Julia three or four times a week. One student who has not yet returned to her home country is Ada, who comes from Turkey, a nation which has closed its borders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She and her family have been in contact with Turkey looking to secure a path for her to return home, but as of now, that has yet to be resolved. In the meantime, Ada said that she has enjoyed, and continues to enjoy, her exchange experience. It was pretty cool in the beginning. It was going so well. I met different people from different countries and here, and then this happened. Its kind of been ruined, but its been a pretty good experience, Ada said. Its actually not going that bad staying at home with them and spending more time with them. Its actually kind of cool. Ada has spent her year with the Straubel family, who is hosting their first full-year exchange student after having hosted a student for one semester four years ago. Lucy Straubel, a senior at Benzie Central called this experience a dream come true and one for which she campaigned hard. I always wanted to host an exchange student in high school, so this year I told my mom that I wanted to experience my senior year with someone else, since I dont have any siblings. We agreed that it would be a good idea, so I have someone to experience senior year with, Straubel said. A year ago, I didnt know she existed, and now we are basically sisters, Straubel continued. We tell each other everything and stuff. Its really cool to know someone so personally whom you just met a couple months ago. Honestly, within the first couple weeks, we really felt like family. Unfortunately, for Straubel and Ada, one experience they are unlikely to share will be graduation. Ada expects to return home in the next month, and how or when graduation will take place this year remains much in doubt. Even though Im not an actual senior, I really would have loved to experience graduation, Ada said. That sentiment is one shared by all. Usually, the last three months of the school year are the best three months. That is the same for exchange students, seniors, or anybody, said Asa Kelly. When you lose those last few months, that sucks. They are missing out on prom, on graduation, spring break trips, all the senior countdowns and spring sports. Thats the biggest challenge having to miss all those huge moments. While this years exchange students will miss out on special spring moments and saying their goodbyes in person, Parker said she is hopeful that next year will go better. As she works to help the last of her students find their way home, she is also busy placing students for the 2020-21 school year and is actively looking for host families. The start of the next school year may yet stand a long way off, but Parker said there are many advantages to placing students in the spring or early summer months. I love to place the earlier the better, Parker said. With all the social media that is out there, you can get to know them prior to coming. I had families this past year who had actually gone over to Europe and visited their students prior to them coming here. Families interested in learning more about hosting a student or students can contact Parker at (231) 690-0513 or bigmissy37@yahoo.com. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE: OUT) today announced that it, along with certain subsidiaries, entered into an amendment to the credit agreement governing its $500.0 million revolving credit facility due November 2024. The revolving credit portion of our senior credit facilities is subject to a maintenance covenant, which is a consolidated net secured leverage ratio of no greater than 4.5x. The amendment provides that for the period from April 15, 2020 through September 30, 2021, the consolidated net secured leverage ratio will be calculated by substituting our Consolidated EBITDA for each of the quarterly periods ended June 30, 2020 and September 30, 2020 included in any last twelve month compliance testing period, with our historical Consolidated EBITDA for each of the quarterly periods ended June 30, 2019 and September 30, 2019, respectively. Additionally, during the same time period, we agreed not to make any restricted payments under the credit agreement without the consent of the revolving credit lenders, subject to certain exceptions, including payments necessary to maintain our REIT status. About OUTFRONT Media Inc. OUTFRONT leverages the power of technology, location and creativity to connect brands with consumers outside of their homes through one of the largest and most diverse sets of billboard, transit, and mobile assets in North America. Through its technology platform, OUTFRONT will fundamentally change the ways advertisers engage audiences on-the-go. SOURCE OUTFRONT Media Inc. Related Links http://www.outfrontmedia.com With Hizbul gone, Pakistan looks to fill in the gap with TRF/JK Fighters-The Resistance Front India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: There has been enhanced activity by a newly formed terror group in Jammu and Kashmir. The first time that the agencies got to know about this group was in March 2020, when the police busted a module of The Resistance Front." The module was busted on April 23, 2020 at Sopore and it was found back then, it was linked to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba. While the module was busted, its activities on the social media and Telegram channel continues unabated. A senior security official tells OneIndia that this group is the Lashkar-e-Tayiba which is operating under a new name. It is an age old trick of these groups to change names so that there is an element of surprise for the security agencies. India issues demarche to Pak over killing of 3 Indians in ceasefire violations in J&K The group, however, indulges more in propaganda activity. On the groups, the members speak about the need to increase the resistance in Jammu and Kashmir, especially after the Centre on August 5, 2019, withdrew the special status. The group also known as the JK Fighters is very active on the social media. During the raid in Sopore, the police arrested Ahtisham Farooq Malik, Shafqat Ali Tagoo, Musaib Hassan Bhat and Nisar Ahmad Ganai. A police official who questioned the four said that they were reporting to their handler in Pakistan. He goes by the name Andrew Jones and on the group, he operates under the ID of Khan Bilal. The group is called as TRF/JK Fighters-The Resistance Front. Officials say that the group is used to recruit local youth for terror-related activities, especially in North Kashmir. There are messages on the group, which clearly instigate the locals into taking up arms and fighting the Indian forces. The busting of the module in Sopore came in the nick of time. The persons who were arrested had received a consignment of arms from one Kabeer Ahmed Lone. They had collected it and handed it over to Farooq Malik in Kupwara. They were also in the process of receiving a consignment of six AK-47 rifles. During the interrogation, the arrested terrorists said that the plan was on accumulating the arms. They had also drawn up a hit list of prominent personalities, including politicians and were planning targeted hits, investigations also revealed. Intelligence Bureau officials say that this group has cropped up for a variety of reasons. The Hizbul Mujahideen, the local outfit in J&K is on the verge of a shut down. With most of its top leaders killed by the security forces, the group has not been able to draw inspiration among the youth. Further the infiltrations have been successfully stopped to a large extent by the Indian Army, despite Pakistan violating the ceasefire several times in a bid to provide cover fire to these terrorists. There are nearly 300 terrorists of both the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad along the border waiting to infiltrate. The launch pads were activated by Pakistan in the last week of March, but these terrorists have not found much success. With the infiltrations getting tougher and the top terrorists in the Valley being cleaned up, The Resistance Front was launched. Sources say that the members of this front had not planned any attack immediately. They were in the process of securing arms and ammunition and stocking them first. They were also in the process of recruiting a large number of youth and radicalising them. The agencies are on high alert and are carefully scrutinising the activities of this group both on the ground as well as the social media, the source also added. This is the remote bush hideaway of one of the 16 Australians charged as part of an alleged paedophile ring which shared photos and videos of children as young as two-months-old being abused. The Australian Federal Police on Monday released footage of the moment detectives swooped on an accused man's squalid dwelling in Maryborough, near Gympie, Queensland. Video shows a shirtless man, 44, being arrested at his squalid bush home, which consists of a caravan, two converted shipping containers and piles of tyres. The man was later charged with three counts of possessing child exploitation material and using a carriage service to possess child porn. Police photographs give an insight into the man's living arrangements - with a case of cask wine plonked next to a filthy couch inside one converted shipping container and a rifle piled up among rusted electrical appliances outside. Accused paedophile's lair: The arrested man was living on a remote bush camp which consisted of a caravan and two shipping containers. Furniture, cask wine and a breakfast bar in one such container is seen above Search warrant: A police officer strolls past an overturned laundry basket to peek inside one of the two shipping containers located on the property A rifle butt, wetsuit material and couch cushions were among some of the loose ends police found piled up on the filthy bush camp A general view of the property: Video released on Monday showed Queensland Police swooped on the property near Gympie arresting the man A Queensland Police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia the man was also charged with unlawful possession of a firearm. The camp dweller was not accused of making child abuse material, unlike many others who were arrested. The investigation across most states and territories followed a tip-off from US authorities that sick videos and pictures of children being abused were being produced in Australia. They were then being distributed on an unnamed dark web marketplace. The operation led to police saving four local children from further harm, an AFP spokesman said. Three of the alleged victims were from New South Wales and one was from Victoria. One was just two-months-old. The 16 people arrested were charged with a total of 728 sexual abuse and child exploitation offences. Five people from Queensland were charged - each with possessing and producing child abuse material and using a carriage service to those ends. Two of them, a Darling Downs man, 65, and a South Burnett man, 57, were charged with making child abuse material. An additional four people were arrested from Western Australia, three each from Victoria and New South Wales, and one in South Australia. Footage showed the man putting his shirt on as gloved officers raided his remote bush camp All of the 16 people who were arrested were charged with contact offending and producing and exchanging child sex material through the internet Other raids targeting the child sex abuse ring focused on more upmarket dwellings, including a home office (above) in Leumeah, south-west of Sydney An Australian police officer carries away evidence bags with a US Homeland Security officer during a separate, related raid Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw has warned the coronavirus lockdown had created a surge in activity on the dark web, including grooming and live-streaming. 16 PEOPLE ARRESTED IN CHILD ABUSE RING Sixteen Australians were charged with 738 child exploitation offences as a result of a two-year investigation by Australian police and the US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit. US agents working out of Phoenix, Arizona, had tipped of Australian police to an illicit online marketplace where users paid for access to child abuse material. Under Operation Walwa - the details of which were released on Monday - Australian police revealed officers have charged: Five people in Queensland Four in Western Australia Three in Victoria Three in New South Wales One person in South Australia Advertisement He has urged parents to be hyper aware of what their children are doing online at all times. 'It is very hard to explain to a society, to people who don't see the images,' he told The Australian newspaper. 'These involve images like you've never seen before.' Homeland Security Australia attache Adam Parks said the arrests came at a critical time. 'More so than ever, children are increasingly online for their schooling, to socialize with their friends and family, and to play games,' Mr Parks said. 'Let this be a warning that law enforcement is undeterred by COVID-19 and remains on-duty to keep our children safe in Australia, the US, and online.' Homeland Security officers in Phoenix, Arizona first notified the Australian Federal Police and Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation of increased illegal online activity in the country in 2018, leading police to launch Operation Walwa. The online paedophile networks are difficult for law enforcement to monitor due to the sophisticated encryption software used to shield their illegal activity. Peter Dutton said tech companies who do not cooperate with police to grant encryption technologies to investigators could become subject to legislation Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton told The Australian there had been an increase in people looking to access explicit online material during the coronavirus pandemic. 'We have had increasing reports of people seeking to exploit the increased amount of screen time children will be spending online during the current climate, to gain access to and abuse children,' he told the newspaper. Mr Dutton hit out at tech companies who had refused to grant detectives access to encryption technologies to aid the investigation. He said they could become subject to legislation to force their assistance. Australian police receive nearly 20,000 referrals related to online child sexual abuse every year. The 16 people charged will face court over various charges in the coming months. Rubem Fonseca, one of Brazils leading literary figures whose flinty, obscenity-laden crime stories were seen as dark metaphors for the rot in Brazilian society, died on April 15 in Rio de Janeiro. He was 94. His death, at Samaritano Hospital, came after a heart attack, the hospital said. Over more than a half-century, Mr. Fonseca wrote terse short stories, novels and screenplays that titillated and shocked Brazilians with their seamy content. His first collection of stories, Os Prisoneiros (The Prisoners), published in 1963, was notable for its shift in setting, from the rural countryside that Brazilian fiction had tended to favor to an urban milieu, reflecting the countrys transformation from a largely agricultural economy to a heavily industrial one. Mr. Fonseca was a former police official who used his real-life experience as literary fodder. His narrators tended to be police inspectors, criminal lawyers or private detectives, and his stories unflinching depiction of crimes of passion and pettiness could be as lyrical as they were cruel. Turkey condemns deadly shooting in Canada The full death toll may not be known as police are still investigating possible crime scenes. The victims have not been identified. Turkey on Monday condemned the shooting rampage in Canada killing more than a dozen people over the weekend. "OUR THOUGHTS ARE WITH THE VICTIMS" Deeply saddened by the tragic attack occurred in #NovaScotia. Sharing the pain of our Canadian friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims. Condemn once again all sorts of violence, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Twitter, tagging his Canadian counterpart Francois-Philippe Champagne. The killings began just before midnight Saturday and continued into Sunday as the suspect, Gabriel Wortman, 51, dressed as a mountie and driving a car made to look like an RCMP vehicle, made his way across the province. The suspect was shot dead by police. The incident is going down as the bloodiest shooting in the country's history, as the number of victims surpassed the 1989 Polytechnique massacre in Montreal which left 14 people dead. Advertisement A former society journalist who rubbed shoulders with some of the worlds most famous people has become the latest victim of the coronavirus catastrophe sweeping through Britains care homes. Gulshan Ewing, 92 died last Saturday in isolation at a care home in Richmond, South West London but her devastated family only received confirmation that it was from coronavirus 24 hours later. Her death comes as Care England, the country's largest representative body for care homes, claims that 7,500 residents are now feared to have died from coronavirus. Only 217 care home deaths were officially recorded in England and Wales up to 3 April. There is a two-week delay on collecting data from care homes. Figures issued last Tuesday therefore only went up to 3 April. During an illustrious 30-year career, Mrs Ewing interviewed and socialised with Hollywood legends like Gregory Peck and Cary Grant, royalty, politicians and the great and the good from across the globe. Enjoying a glamorous existence in her native city of Mumbai, she mixed in celebrity circles and attended fashionable parties. Society journalist Gulshan Ewing who has died from coroavirus (pictured left) mixed with many famous people including Cary Grant (right) During an illustrious 30-year career, Mrs Ewing (right) interviewed numerous stars including Gregory Peck (left) Gulshan Ewing (pictured left) who died last Saturday at a care home in Richmond, South West London along with daughter Anjali Ewing (right) Her death underlines growing concerns over how authorities are handling the coronavirus pandemic facing Britains vulnerable care home residents with campaigners fuming that those with symptoms are not being properly treated while their deaths are not included in the daily tally of mortalities. After showing some symptoms of coronavirus for more than a week, Mrs Ewings daughter Anjali Ewing pleaded with health officials and even tweeted Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Prime Minister Boris Johnson for her to be tested immediately so that she could receive the necessary treatment. According to her daughter, Gulshan's favourite actor, that she interviewed ,was Danny Kaye (pictured left with Gulshan right) Despite her age, Mrs Ewing had no preexisting health conditions (pictured right with Roger Moore left) But it was not until last Wednesday that a swab was taken from her, as part of the governments pledge to increase testing in care homes. It was only collected for delivery to a laboratory two days later. Despite her age, Mrs Ewing had no preexisting health conditions. Anjali, 59, told MailOnline: For more than a week we had no confirmation that my mother had coronavirus, and this just added to our worry. And when we eventually got it, she had already passed away. It was a case of too little, too late. After showing some symptoms of coronavirus for more than a week, Mrs Ewings daughter Anjali Ewing pleaded with health officials (Gulshan Ewing pictured centre along with Prince Charles pictured right) Gulshan Ewing lived a very glamorous lifestyle (pictured left with Ava Gardner right) Tests in care homes are not being done quickly enough and not enough are taking place. The elderly need to be prioritised because they are the most vulnerable when it comes to coronavirus. I wanted a proper diagnosis for my mother because that way, at least we could have worked out what she needed. She added: If coronavirus gets into a care home it spreads very quickly. The focus seems to be on people in hospitals and the elderly are being forgotten. The way they are being dealt with in this current crisis is a disgrace. The daily number of UK-wide coronavirus deaths only includes people who died with the virus in hospital. Stanley Park Care Home in County Durham is one of the worst hit in the country and staff are 'deeply saddened' by the deaths. The home's 14th death was reported on Friday when a resident passed away after being transferred to hospital with the virus. Meanwhile 17 residents have died at the Castletroy Residential home in Luton. Five of those who died had tested positive for Covid-19. The Coronavirus crisis in UK care homes Care England claims that 7,500 residents have died from coronavirus. The daily number of coronavirus deaths announced by the government only includes people who died with the virus in hospital. There is a two-week delay on collecting data from care homes. Figures issued last Tuesday only went up to 3 April. Only 217 care home deaths were officially recorded in England and Wales up to 3 April. The Castletroy Residential home in Luton is one of the worst affected. 17 residents have died at the Luton home. Five of those who died had tested positive for Covid-19. Stanley Park Care Home in County Durham recorded its 14th death on Friday. Official figures have revealed a quarter of all coronavirus deaths in Scotland have been in care homes. Berelands Care Home, Prestwick, Scotland has had 20 of its residents die due to suspected coronavirus. Advertisement While official figures have revealed a quarter of all coronavirus deaths in Scotland have been in care homes. A total of 20 residents at a single care home in Scotland were reported to have died due to suspected coronavirus. Data from the National Records of Scotland showed 962 people diagnosed with, or suspected of having, COVID-19 had died. Of those, 237 (24.6 per cent) were in care homes, 586 in hospitals, 128 in homes and one in an undisclosed location. The figure was five times higher than the 5 per cent number given by the Office for National Statistics, which collates data in England and Wales. Berelands Care Home, Prestwick, Scotland has had 20 of its residents die due to suspected coronavirus Anjali Ewing revealed that she chose to publicise pictures of her mothers dazzling career and life because she wanted to remember her as more than just a victim of the coronavirus pandemic She added: So many elderly people have made a contribution to their country, families and professions but in this current climate its genuinely hard to honour their achievements because of restrictions on mourners at funerals and social distancing rules that have made it difficult to hold commemoration services. Anjali Ewing revealed that she chose to publicise pictures of her mothers dazzling career and life because she wanted to remember her as more than just a victim of the coronavirus pandemic (Guishan pictured left along with Lord Astor pictured right) Mrs Ewing was editor of two of Indias most influential publications; womens magazine, Eves Weekly and film magazine, Star & Style (pictured here with Kirk Douglas) Guishan Ewing had access to the rich and famous as she interviewed and partied with them (pictured with Alfred Hitchcock) I wanted to recognise my mothers life and all the wonderful, amazing experiences she had. Born in 1928 to a Parsi family in Mumbai, which was known as Bombay at the time, Mrs Ewing was editor of two of Indias most influential publications; womens magazine, Eves Weekly and film magazine, Star & Style. After being appointed in 1966, visiting celebrities saw it as a badge of honour to be featured in them, giving Mrs Ewing improbable access to the rich and famous as she interviewed and partied with them. She was also on first name terms with Indias own leading actors and politicians, making her one of the countrys most celebrated journalists. The stellar names she met and made it a point of being photographed with reads like a Whos Who, but Anjali revealed that there were three who particularly stood out for her mother throughout her life. Mrs Ewing was also on first name terms with Indias own leading actors and politicians, making her one of the countrys most celebrated journalists (pictured right with Roberto Rosselini left) Gulshan Ewing (pictured left) with Tony Randall (pictured right) Anjali recalled: Mum always talked about what a gentleman Gregory Peck was; she was very taken with him. And she used to love imitating Cary Grants accent. But her favourite was not somebody youd expect; Danny Kaye. When she interviewed him, he was really amazed at how she tied her sari and asked her to show him how it was done. He was very interested in learning about it and this really made her laugh. She thought he was very charming. Mrs Ewing met her husband Guy in 1954. He was born in Manchester but moved to India at the age of 18, where he followed in his fathers footsteps and worked as a journalist. Anjali reveals that he proposed on the first day he met her mother at a party in Mumbai but because he was tipsy, she told him to phone the following day and ask again when he was sober. He duly did this and the couple married in 1955 in the city during a small ceremony attended by friends and family. They also had a son, Roy, who currently lives in Miami and had one grandchild, Anjalis daughter Faby, 20. The couple left India in 1990, retiring in Richmond, where Mrs Ewing placed her rare photographs in a box under her bed. They were only discovered by Anjali last year after her mother moved into a nearby care home. Wedding day photos. Gulshan married husband Guy Ewing. She met him in 1954. He was born in Manchester but moved to India at the age of 18, where he followed in his fathers footsteps and worked as a journalist Guy Ewing (Gulshan Ewing's husband left) and Gulshan Ewing (right) Guy passed away two years ago from cancer aged 87, leaving Mrs Ewing so devastated that she never got over it. Theirs was a great love story and they were totally devoted to each other. Dad completely adored mum and when he died, she was completely bereft. She always said that she didnt want to be here anymore so at least theyre together now, said Anjali. Despite falling to coronavirus, there has been added comfort for Anjali in her mothers final moments as she now reflects on her life and attempts to give her as fitting a send-off as is possible, given the current situation. Wearing full personal protection equipment, she was allowed to sit with her ailing mother after being alerted by care home management that she did not have long to live. Anjali said: One second she was breathing, the next she was not. It happened right in front of my eyes and it was so peaceful. I was holding her hand and stroking her hair and talking to her. I would like to call it a good coronavirus death, if there is such a thing. But for me, death has to be followed by a celebration of life. Mum always told me what a great life she had and how lucky she was. This is what I will always remember. A: Thats a good question. When I left government I was 50. I had this private sector career, but I loved waking up everyday to go to work in government. There was an American flag in the office. I cant explain but it was stirring. Every morning I read emails from Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries who wrote with concerns. I loved the civil service side of the job. And the harder it got the more I enjoyed it. When you leave, youre asking, What do I want to do now? But its the wrong question. The right question is, What do I want to see different in 10 years? And what can I do to get us there? For me that was the health care system. The health of this country is joined to the health of democracy, because I dont think health care gets better if our democracy doesnt represent us better. The podcast is maybe a deep dive into that feeling the way feature writing goes deeper. When I was at Evanston Township High School I wanted to be a foreign war correspondent. I was editor of the school newspaper. I wanted to do something journalism-related then, but I wouldnt call myself a journalist now. Ranchi, April 20 : Even as the Jharkhand government is making efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus in the state, the Hindpidhi area in state capital Ranchi has emerged as a hotspot for the disease. Jharkhand has so far reported 41, out of which 24 were reported in Ranchi. Of these 24, as many as 23 were from Hindpidhi area. One of the two persons who died of COVID-19 in Jharkhand was from Hindpidhi. Last week, officials who went to sanitise the area had complained that local residents had spit on them. The area residents have also come face to face with the police in the past. The authorities have since sealed Hindpidhi area, banning entry and exit of persons. For the last three days, authorities have been supplying ration and other essentials to area people through volunteers. Authorities said they aimed to supply such material to 8,000 households in Hindpidhi. In March, police had detained 25 persons from a religious place in Hindpidhi, including 19 foreigners. One Malaysian woman had subsequently tested positive for coronavirus, the first such case from Jharkhand. A J-15 takes off from the Liaoning Photo: VCG The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy recently held training sessions for aircraft carrier-based fighter jets and helicopters in the Bohai Bay area, and experts said on Monday the training was crucial in boosting the combat capability of aircraft carriers, including China's second one, the recently commissioned Shandong. As the PLA makes routine and concrete steps in military development as planned, the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has broken out in the military of the island of Taiwan in addition to the US military in the Asia-Pacific region. J-15 aircraft carrier-based fighter jets recently conducted a buddy refueling exercise in the Bohai Bay, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Sunday. Buddy refueling means that a J-15 equipped with a refueling pod, instead of a dedicated aerial tanker that cannot operate on an aircraft carrier, feeds other J-15s, enabling them to extend endurance in the air and carry more weapons and less fuel when taking off from the carrier, which is an often-used method also by foreign navies. After finishing buddy refueling, the J-15s were split into two teams and conducted mock battles of dogfights, aerial interceptions, and sea attacks, CCTV reported, noting that the fighter jets then engaged in night sorties. Beijing-based naval expert Li Jie told the Global Times on Monday that fighter jets are the key weapons of an aircraft carrier, and their combat capabilities are crucial to the aircraft carrier task group, so it is important to enhance their training level. With the commissioning of the Shandong, China's second aircraft carrier, in December 2019, more carrier-based fighter jets need to be built and more pilots trained, and these training courses will generate and boost their combat capability, Li said. China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, has been in the South China Sea for exercises after it sailed through the Miyako Strait on April 10. This could suggest that the recent fighter jet training in the Bohai Bay was meant for the Shandong, Li said. Aircraft carriers are not the only Chinese naval units holding exercises. The PLA Eastern Theater Command recently conducted live-fire drills in the East China Sea featuring a group of landing ships, according to a statement the PLA East China Sea Fleet released on Sunday. The exercises came at a time when the COVID-19 reportedly hit four US aircraft carriers including two in the Asia-Pacific region and the military on the island of Taiwan. Media on the Taiwan island claimed the COVID-19 may give the PLA a good chance to reunify Taiwan by force. Chinese mainland analysts said that the PLA exercises are routine and are aimed at honing their own capabilities, and the PLA has no intention of taking advantage of the current COVID-19 pandemic. Taiwan secessionists should always fear the PLA, not just during the pandemic because the PLA is always determined and capable of safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity, analysts said. The five-year-old daugher of a police officer and a firefighter in Michigan has become the youngest known person in the state to have died of coronavirus, according to a report. Skylar Herbert was diagnosed with coronavirus in March, and later developed a rare complication of the disease and died on Sunday, her family told The Detroit News. We decided to take her off the ventilator today because her improvement had stopped, the doctors told us that it was possible she was brain-dead, her mother, LaVondria Herbert, told the paper. We basically just knew she wasnt coming back to us, said the 46-year-old, who has been a Detroit police officer for 25 years. The report said that Skylars symptoms started with a persistent headache, and after a trip to the doctor where she tested positive for strep throat, she was sent home with medication. However, as her condition worsened her mother insisted the family take her to the emergency room. We called the doctor back, and they told us that it takes the medication 48 hours to kick in and to give it some time, but because she was crying so bad, I told my husband we needed to take her to emergency because I just didnt know, her mother told the outlet. Skylar was then said to have been tested for the novel coronavirus at the hospital, which came back positive a day later, according to the report. The five-year-old was reportedly released a day later, but the family said they were forced to return to the emergency room when Skylars father, Detroit firefighter Ebbie Herbert, had started to show symptoms. Skylar had a seizure outside the hospital and after a series of tests it was revealed that she had contracted meningitis, according to The Detroit News. A spokesman for Beaumont Health confirmed Skylars death to the newspaper: The loss of a child, at any time, under any circumstances, is a tragedy. We are heartbroken that Covid-19 has taken the life of a child. We extend our deepest sympathy to Skylars family and all others who have lost a loved one to this virus. The family said they were unsure where their only child contracted the virus, stating that they had been in lockdown in their house for weeks. Her fathers test was said to have come back inconclusive. Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Show all 13 1 /13 Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester holds a sign comparing Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to a Nazi during a demonstration at the State Capitol in Lansing over coronavirus lockdown measures AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan An armed protester taking part in a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Vehicles sit in gridlock during a protest in Lansing, Michigan over lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People protest against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing, Michigan AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan An armed man stands outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan during a protest against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A 2020 Trump Unity sign is displayed during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester calls for the impeachment of Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer during a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A slogan on the back of a truck during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing, Michigan EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Drivers sit in gridlock as part of a protest against lockdown measures in Michigan outside the State Capitol in Lansing during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Protesters wave US flags outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, during a demonstration against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester holds up a banner directed at Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer during a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures near the State Capitol in Lansing AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People take part in a protest against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AFP via Getty Images Her death comes as thousands of conservative demonstrators poured into Michigans capital to protest against the governors stay-at-home coronavirus order. The protest, which was dubbed Operation Gridlock, organised by the Michigan Conservative Coalition, claims the governor has become too oppressive in her orders against the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. The Detroit News said that prior to Skylars death the youngest person on record to die with Covid-19 in the state was 20 years old, according to data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. She was the type of girl that would just run up to you and jump in your arms and hug you, Ms Herbert said of her daughter. It didnt matter what she was doing, she would stop what she was doing and tell me she loved me like 20 times a day. Vladimir Putin's plan was for Russians to give final approval this week to constitutional amendments letting him potentially remain president until 2036, with a May 9 military parade capping the image-making. Instead he faces a potential blow to his image from the growing COVID-19 crisis, with record new case numbers reported almost daily. Moscow correspondent Matthew Luxmoore joins host Steve Gutterman to discuss. One infecting 50 in Harbin raises concerns, but lockdown 'unnecessary' Global Times By Liu Caiyu Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 19:13:40 Contact tracing of a Chinese national with COVID-19 who returned from the US to Harbin, capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, shows at least 50 people have contracted the virus after contact with the patient. Public health experts played down the risks to the wider public, saying a citywide lockdown is unnecessary and Harbin will not become another Wuhan, as long as people do not drop their guard too soon and remain vigilant to the risks of catching the disease. The man, surnamed Han, flew from the US on March 19. Contact tracing revealed that 50 cases of COVID-19 were related to him, either directly or indirectly, including secondary infections at two hospitals. Harbin reported 36 active confirmed cases and 18 asymptomatic infections as of Saturday midnight, while the numbers were one and three on April 9 when Han's infection was confirmed. Some netizens and local residents are calling for a citywide lockdown, but public health experts said it is not necessary as there are no new cases beyond the infection chain, and all close contacts have been traced. Han first infected a neighbor who came into contact with a contaminated environment. The virus then spread to the neighbor's family members and friends after a dinner gathering. An 87-year-old patient surnamed Chen is another key link on the infection chain. Chen is a friend of the neighbor's family, who was admitted to Harbin Second Hospital on April 2 after suffering a stroke. He was transferred to the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, and this resulted in infections of at least 26 inpatients, family members and medical staff at the two hospitals. The infection chain also extended to a driver surnamed Gong, who was confirmed to be an asymptomatic carrier on April 17 after his parents came down with the virus at one of the two hospitals. The driver then came into frequent contact with the employees of two companies for whom he drove over a period of about 10 days. All employees of the two enterprises will undergo COVID-19 tests. The infection chain further extended to a student and a teacher who were related to cases at Harbin Second Hospital. A patient from Fushun, a city in neighboring Liaoning Province, was also confirmed on April 16 and found to be related to the cluster of infections in one of the two hospitals. Such a long infection chain shows that some people in the city may have loosened their vigilance too early and there are loopholes in hospital management, analysts said. On Friday, the Heilongjiang Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection announced 18 Party and government officials and hospital chiefs were held accountable for failing to conduct anti-epidemic work in Harbin, including deputy mayor Chen Yuanfei and director of Harbin Health Commission Ding Fengshu. A "city lockdown is unnecessary for now," said Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in response to questions over whether Harbin should impose a strict lockdown. Zeng said Wuhan imposed a city lockdown in January at the beginning of the Spring Festival holidays, when there are huge flows of people crisscrossing the country at a time when it was unclear how many people in Hubei Province were infected with the novel coronavirus. The situation in Harbin is clear and there has been a stringent epidemiological investigation in the city, Zeng said. A city lockdown is the last resort, and the epidemic in Harbin is under control, Zeng said. Zhou Zijun, a Beijing-based public health expert, told the Global Times that "only when the outbreak is out of control or has a risk of becoming so would the city consider a lockdown." As no further COVID-19 cases were reported beyond the infection chain, a lockdown would be an overreaction, Zhou said. With a population of more than 10 million, Harbin will not become another Wuhan as the threat of the virus has been recognized and understood, and the majority of the public are maintaining their vigilance, Zhou said, noting many control measures are still in place. Wang Peiyu, a deputy head of Peking University's school of public health, said that the neighborhood in Harbin is under strict closed-loop management, and agreed that a citywide lockdown is unnecessary. To prevent imported infections, Harbin customs requires drivers and inbound passengers to undergo nucleic acid tests regardless of their nationality. People who return to China, or have to travel between China and a foreign country, for example truck drivers, will undergo testing or COVID-19 tests every five days, Harbin customs said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. envoy blasts Moscow's 'secret' trial of ex-marine charged with spying FILE PHOTO: Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was detained and accused of espionage, is escorted inside a court building in Moscow By Tom Balmforth MOSCOW (Reuters) - The U.S. ambassador in Moscow accused Russian authorities on Monday of making a mockery of justice after he was turned away for a second time from what he called a "secret" trial behind closed doors of an ex-U.S. Marine charged with espionage. Russia last month began the trial of U.S. national Paul Whelan on charges of spying after his arrest by Russian security agents in a hotel room sting operation in December 2018. He denies the charge. The case, as well as that of Michael Calvey, a U.S. investor charged with embezzlement in Russia, has complicated already strained relations between Moscow and Washington. Whelan, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish citizenship, faces up to 20 years if found guilty. The Moscow court had said the trial would involve classified information and would therefore not be open to the public, but U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan said he had tried to attend the hearing in Moscow on Monday and had been turned away. "The fact that it is a closed hearing, that it is a secret trial Paul hasn't seen the evidence against him it makes a mockery of justice," Sullivan said in remarks carried on the U.S. Embassy's website. He urged Russia's authorities to ensure Whelan would receive a fair and impartial trial, to grant him a phone call to his family and to allow him medical treatment. "He hasn't been allowed to make a phone call, to speak to anyone in his family in 16 months," Sullivan said. Whelan, who turned 50 in custody last month, has used his appearances at hearings since his arrest to allege he has been ill-treated by prison guards and also denied medical attention. Russian authorities have dismissed his remarks and accused Whelan of faking health problems in custody to draw attention to his case. The trial's preliminary hearings began on March 23 even as many court hearings have been put on hold because of the coronavirus lockdown. Moscow says Whelan was caught red-handed with classified information, but his lawyer has said he was set up and thought he was receiving holiday photos from a Russian acquaintance. (Editing by Mark Heinrich) Hyderabad: Telangana chief minister K. Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday said the government has barred private educational institutions from hiking their fees for the 2020-21 academic year and for house owners not to collect rent for March, April and May from tenants. The chief minister announced that the Cabinet had resolved unanimously to pass an order under the Epidemic Disaster Management Act, 1879 directing private institutions not to enhance the fee. Private managements are not being allowed to enhance a single paisa. They are allowed to collect only the tuition fee, that too on a monthly basis. If they are found collecting any other fee they will be held liable and their registrations will be cancelled immediately, he said. He said the Cabinet also resolved unanimously to pass an order against lan-dlords collecting rent so as to give tenants some relief during the crisis. Addressing a press conference at Pragati Bhavan, the Chief Minister said houseowners that rent for the three months can be recovered at a later stage in instalments. He cautioned houseowners that if they charge any interest on rent for these three months, they will face penal action. The chief minister announced that the Cabinet had decided to allow the collection of property tax in municipalities and corporations till May 31 without any compounding fee. The Cabinet also decided to defer the fixed power charges to industries which were closed during the lockdown period. The tariff will be recovered at a later stage in instalments. The Cabinet also decided to give one per cent rebate on power charges to the pharma industry, rice, flour and dal mills, if they paid their power charges within the due date. The Chief Minister announced that the Cabinet had directed the authorities to use marriage function halls as temporary godowns for storage of fertilisers for the ensuing kharif season. He said that it was expected that agriculture operations would take place on 1.35 crore acres during the kharif season, for which 21.5 lakh metric tonnes of fertilisers is required. This huge quantity of fertilisers will be stored in marriage function halls. Mikaela Sakal, on being an ER nurse in an overwhelmed hospital and the decision she had to make - - - This was my first nursing job. How crazy is that? Nobody prepared us for this, because this didn't exist. These aren't the kind of scenarios you go over in training. Where do you put 26 critical patients when you only have 12 rooms? How many stretchers fit into a hallway? What are you supposed to tell your patients when you might not have time to take them to the bathroom, or clean them, or call their families, or make them comfortable, because you're the only nurse on that part of the floor, and you've got eight people on life support and a few who might be dying? Nothing went by the book. We did the best we could, and it was never close to enough. Every night, we had to come into work and rewrite the rules. The breaking point came last week. There were a lot of breaking points, but that was the last one. We got into work at 7, like always, and the first thing we do is get our assignment for the night and look at the patient loads. In school, what they teach you is it should be one nurse for every four patients in the ER. That's what you hope for. That's the ideal. Our charge nurse, Sal, came in, and you could see he was upset. He told us: "These numbers are terrible. I'm sorry. It's worse than ever. I don't even want to tell you." We had like seven or eight nurses staffing the entire ER. Some of us were going to have 15 patients by ourselves at some point in the night, and that's when we decided: "We can't do this again." It's not fair to us. It's not safe for the patients. We started calling and sending text messages to management: "We're not clocking in or reporting to the floor until you bring in more staff." Day shift kept working overtime to support us, which we knew was brutal for them, but it meant the patients were getting care. All of us went into the break room and listened to all the alarms going off. We sat in our scrubs and we waited. It was always a little crazy working at Sinai Grace, even before all this. That's one of the reasons I came to work here. They tell you: "This place will make you a great nurse." We get more ambulances than any other hospital in Detroit. It's sirens and resuscitations all night. I asked and I advocated for myself to work in the most critical area, because I wanted to learn. Nurses come here to get that hands-on experience, so it was almost a point of pride sometimes if we were a little short-staffed. Like, we can handle it. This is a tightknit group. We've been through a lot together. You think you've seen it all, but then a month ago, the ER was suddenly getting maxed out, and we had a bunch of staff leaving, or quarantined, or getting sick with this virus. Our patient loads started going way up. We'd have like 110 people in the ER and not nearly enough staff. Each night it was like: "It is bad? Or is it really, really bad?" It got scary bad. I wish I could forget how bad it got. Like the night it was just Joey and me assigned to 26 critical patients. He's one of our best nurses, and I'd like to think we make a good team. We were in the part of the emergency room called the TCU, or transitional care, where they put the sickest people before transferring them to the ICU. Usually, you might have 10 patients in there, with a few on ventilators who will transfer within a few hours. This night we had eight on vents and the rest on supplemental oxygen. Some of the patients were awake and some were sedated. A few patients had been in there for 90 hours. The ICU was full, and we didn't have anywhere else to put people. There were stretchers lined against the walls. We ran out of oxygen monitors. We had extension cords running everywhere. You need to be everywhere at once. That's how it feels. You don't go to the bathroom. You don't eat. You're lucky if you find time in a 12-hour shift to get water. You spend every minute moving from patient to patient, trying to keep them stable and alive. There's constant noise, and it's all so mechanical. There's really no talking. We're not allowing any visitors, and the patients are sedated or just trying to breathe. Most of them are too sick to ask for what they need. But call lights are going off and the tweeter is beeping every time we get another medical trauma, which happens like 15 or 20 times a night. The phones ring all the time, and it might be a family member asking for an update, but you look at the number and if it isn't a doctor, you honestly don't have time. Alarms are going off every minute. Pump alarms for the patients' life-sustaining medications. Monitor alarms. Oxygen alarms. Heart-rate alarms. Some beep, some chime, some ring. Every one could mean a crisis. I'd go home and hear alarms. All of us do. Sometimes, I think I'm hearing them in my sleep. And the thing is, you have to prioritize. You have to choose. You want to sit with these patients and build relationships and comfort them. That shouldn't be a luxury. That's part of basic care. Some of these patients are hanging on and continuing to suffer because they don't have family with them. They need someone to say, "It's OK. I'm here." They need someone to touch them. We had one nursing-home patient whose heart rate dropped really low, and he wasn't verbal at all, and you could see that he was scared and confused and working too hard to breathe. His family wishes were that he didn't want to be intubated. We gave him a low dose of morphine for comfort. We stood in the hallway with him and took his hand and kind of rubbed his head, and as soon as we did that, this guy started to let go. We were able to be there for him, and a lot of times now, we can't be. That's probably my best memory in all this. There are a lot of bad ones. I had a patient in a backroom, and her blood-pressure medication ran out. I was taking care of somebody else, because we're always taking care of someone else. We're changing an oxygen tank, or helping intubate someone, or refilling a crucial medication. We can't be everywhere. It's unrealistic and dangerous to keep this up. I heard the pump alarm in her room at the last minute. By the time I got there, her pressure had dropped to like 40 over 20. She was still alive, barely, but I don't know how she's doing now. There was another patient in bad shape a few rooms over. Joey had to leave the floor to transport someone to ICU, so now I was alone with 25 or 26. It was maybe 5 o'clock in the morning. I was responding to alarms and trying to keep an oxygen mask on one lady who was confused and kept wanting to take it off, even though her life depended on it, and meanwhile, this other patient was in a room pretty far out of sight because we didn't have any other space. His blood-pressure medication must have run out. I didn't know about it until Joey came back and started yelling to grab more medication and call the doctor, but it was too late. This patient had come from a nursing home and he was a lot older. He was incredibly sick. It's a lot to process. There's sadness and guilt and so much anger at the situation. But we had to keep moving. We had to do the after-life care, and there were other alarms going off. Joey and I talked when we got off in the morning. We wanted to put in our two weeks right then. The whole nursing staff was saying the same thing to management. "This isn't OK. We need more people. We need support." I realize this is a crazy situation for any hospital to deal with. It's a pandemic, and Detroit is one of the hardest hit, and our hospital gets the worst of it. We have a bunch of nursing homes nearby, and a huge number of our patients have underlying health issues. It's the perfect storm. They've tried to hire some nurses or bring some in from other areas and departments, but they don't always have the same training, and a lot don't want to stay. Who can blame them? The whole ER is this virus. We're wearing one disposable gown for our entire shift. We've had sit-ins here over staffing issues before, and the demands of this virus made it so much worse. We went from having 14 nurses on at night to sometimes having 10 or less. Eventually, all of us hit that point: "Enough is enough. We're not clocking in until you bring more support. Do something." So we sent the message, and then it felt like we were waiting in the break room for a long time. We all agreed it wasn't safe, but the nurses on day shift were a little better staffed than we were, so it was actually better care for patients with them staying on. They were FaceTiming us, saying they could handle the whole shift if they needed to. They were ready to stay 24 hours. Nobody could believe it had gotten to that point. We were a mess in the break room. It was a cry fest. Some people were frustrated and really angry, but honestly I was getting quieter and more and more sad. It didn't feel natural to sit there, knowing what was happening outside. We love this community, and we love these patients. A part of me was like: "We can't leave it to day shift. Should we just go deal with it?" But if we kept doing that, nothing was going to change. It wasn't going to get better, not for us or for the patients. Eventually, an administrator came in and asked: "So what do you want?" We said we wanted more staff, but he said nobody could come right away. We asked to talk to someone higher up, but he said the situation was what it was, and there was nobody to call. It went on like that. At one point it felt like we were being told to either report to work or leave the premises. We all kind of sat there, shocked, trying to make a decision. Do you accept a situation that's unsafe for you and your patients, or do you take a stand and walk away from them? Two versions of feeling guilty. It was impossible. It's still impossible. Joey and I made our decision about 9 o'clock. We said, "You can start calling somebody to address these staffing concerns, or we're leaving." It hurt to do it. The alarms were going off and ambulances were coming in. We handed over our badges and walked out the door. Television actor Nia Sharma took to her Instagram to share a stunning throwback picture of herself with a rib-tickling caption. Sharma is currently entertaining the audience with her gripping performance in Ekta Kapoor's super-fantasy series Naagin. Apart from her Naagin avatar, the actor is also active on social media as her posts time and again set the internet ablaze. Nia Sharma shares throwback picture Also Read | Bhumi Pednekar To Karisma Kapoor: B-town Actors Don Chef's Hat Amid Quarantine Amidst the COVID-19 lockdown, Nia Sharma took a stroll down her memory lane and shared one of her awesome-blossom pictures from her trip to Interlaken Swiss, Switzerland. The actor looks all stunning, donning a pink knitted sweatshirt and a pair of shorts. Not to miss her amusing caption that stole the show which read, "If someones taking a moment alone, theyre either reminiscing the past or silently farting!! ( I was only posing here I swear)". Check out Nia Sharma's post here. Also Read | Nia Sharma or Bhumi Pednekar, who styled the plain black saree better? This is not the first time when the Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behna Hai actor has shared something funny. Nia Sharma keeps posting hilarious memes and captions, showcasing her fun-side. Recently, Nia Sharma made a special request for celebrities who keep posting their mopping and cleaning videos on social media. She said, "Now that house chores videos are being over-done on Insta, can we please get a tutorial on how to clean the toilet with Harpic". The caption said, "We've seen cooking and mopping a lot! New things now please!" Also Read | Nia Sharma To Erica Fernandes: TV Celebs And Their Love For Teddy Bears Also Read | Hina Khan & Ekta Kapoor's Perfect Pout Game Over A Video Call Is Too Cute To Miss! Get the latest entertainment news from India & around the world. Now follow your favourite television celebs and telly updates. Republic World is your one-stop destination for trending Bollywood news. Tune in today to stay updated with all the latest news and headlines from the world of entertainment. Whether it is winter or not, your skin need moisture and vitamins. Fortunately, there are several body scrubs and exfoliators that guarantee to put an end to your battle against dry skin. No one wants to suffer from irritating dry skin, really. Unfortunately, there are a lot of factors that cause skin to dry -- such as medications and air pollution. The said possible causes cannot be controlled, and dehydrated skin can be your worst skincare enemy to beat. However, you can still put an end to your dry and stretchy skin by adding these Amazon products to your routine. Tree Hut Shea Sugar Scrub Tropical Mango This chemical-free, 100 percent shea sugar scrub from Tree Hut gently exfoliates, cleanses, and protects your skin after one use. With its other oil-based ingredients (oils from safflower seed, avocado seed, and macadamia seed), you can surely see how your dry, cracked skin can transform into a healthier one with a noticeable glow. If you are one of those people who are not into fruity scents, fret no more as this product produces a tropical mango scent that you will surely love. Alba Botanica Revitalizing Sea Salt Hawaiian Body Scrub Do you want to witness the power of cleansing, moisturizing, and exfoliating in one bottle? Good thing Alba Botanica made it possible for you! Alba Botanica Revitalizing Sea Salt Hawaiian Body Scrub will no longer let you drink gallons and gallons of water just to get rid of your rough skin. This product's sea salt can do the job for you, as it easily scrubs off your dead skin and leavesit smoother and with a younger-looking glow. It can also detoxify your body with its hydration-providing ingredients -- jojoba, avocado, and sweet almond oils. Dove Exfoliating Body Scrub Turn your home into a spa and treat yourself with a relaxing day with Dove Exfoliating Body Scrub. Formulated with 1/4 moisturizing cream, this body scrub can moisturized and bring a healthy glow to your skin in just a scoop. In addition, Dove makes your skin renewing process a little easier now with the help of its all-new nourishing power. Not to mention that it boasts top-notch fragrance, thanks to is macadamia and rice milk. Amire Dragon Fruit Jelly Exfoliating Body Scrub Polish Amire, the company behind this Dragonfruit Jelly Scrub, got inspired with pitaya and ended up making one of the best body scrubs in Amazon. This polish offers you a jelly-like texture that helps you regenerate your skin by keeping it hydrated throughout the day. Once you scrub it onto your body, you are guaranteed to get the glowing and brightened up skin that you always wish for. Amire Dragon Fruit Jelly is also made to help your skin defend itself from free radicals. Each bottle has enough antioxidant compound that removes your skin's risk of getting more damage. Frank Body Original Coffee Scrub Coffee is not always meant to be served in a cup since you can use it as a scrub, too! Frank Body formulated this 100 percent natural coffee scrub that aims to stimulate your blood flow while hydrating your skin. They also added Vitamin E to each bottle to help heal your scars in no time. This is an ideal product for those who are suffering from breakouts, thanks to its sea salt that aids in fighting against various skin problems. OTTAWA - The Conservatives' bid to have Parliament sit in person several times a week throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been thwarted by the combined forces of the governing Liberals and other opposition parties. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA - The Conservatives' bid to have Parliament sit in person several times a week throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been thwarted by the combined forces of the governing Liberals and other opposition parties. A government motion calling for the House of Commons to meet in person once a week to be supplemented by virtual sittings and more virtual committee meetings was passed Monday by a vote of 22-15. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh rises in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, as Parliament was recalled for the consideration of measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic, on Saturday, April 11, 2020. Singh says he has not changed his position on the tentative deal struck with the Liberals, and Bloc Quebecois about the conditions under which Parliament should resume. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang A Conservative amendment to hold three in-person sittings each week was defeated by the same margin, with the Liberals, Bloc Quebecois, New Democrat and Green MPs voting against it. The motion was proposed after the Conservatives refused during a week of negotiations to give unanimous consent to the government's proposal, triggering the return of the Commons with a small contingent of MPs on Monday. Absent unanimity, Parliament was sent back to its normal routine, as that's what MPs agreed would happen when they decided in mid-March to adjourn until April 20 as the country began locking down to stop the spread of the virus. MPs spent several hours Monday debating adjustments to that routine, with the Liberals turning the deal they'd reached last week with the Bloc Quebecois and NDP into a government motion that needed only majority support from the small quorum of MPs present. They also spent hours questioning the government about its response to the pandemic and devoted considerable time to expressing their condolences over the weekend massacre in Nova Scotia, which left 19 dead, including an RCMP officer. The government motion suspends all regular sittings of the House of Commons until May 25. Instead, there will be one in-person sitting with a small number of MPs each week. Starting next week, there will also be one virtual sitting, with a second weekly virtual sitting to be added in May once the House of Commons administration has time to work out the logistics and technical details. The in-person sitting will allow opposition MPs two hours and 15 minutes to question Trudeau and his ministers; the virtual sittings will allow 90 minutes for questions. Combined, one in-person and one virtual sitting each week will give opposition MPs the same amount of time they would normally get to question the government were the Commons sitting five days a week. The government has also agreed to strike a special COVID-19 committee that will meet virtually twice a week and has added the Indigenous affairs committee to the six other Commons committees that have already been meeting virtually for several weeks. Government House leader Pablo Rodriguez said having in-person sittings more than once a week would increase the risk of spreading the novel coronavirus, and argued that the government motion made sense for unprecedented times. "We have found the balance between allowing Parliament to play its fundamental role, which we cherish ... while respecting what we ourselves have been saying to the Canadian public, which is to isolate as much as possible," he said. At his daily morning briefing, Trudeau also defended the government's proposal. "It is really important for me that we continue to uphold our democracy, our democratic principles, the principles of accountability, the ability to move forward with new legislation to help Canadians. That really matters. But it really matters that we do so responsibly," he said. Not all ministers, however, seemed to be following chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam's advice that it's reasonable to wear a mask when keeping physical distance is not possible. Some ministers arriving Monday on Parliament Hill in their government cars were not wearing masks. Neither were their drivers. Alex Wellstead, a spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office, said all MPs have been reminded to take the precautions advised by public health experts, where possible. He said the fact that some ministers were not wearing masks demonstrates why it would be a bad idea to hold multiple in-person sittings of the Commons. Parliament has met twice, with reduced numbers, to pass emergency aid legislation since it was adjourned on March 13, and some MPs had argued that voting on any subsequent emergency bills would be the only reason for them to be physically present in the Commons. Indeed, Green MP Paul Manly asked Commons Speaker Anthony Rota to protect the rights and privileges of MPs by suspending sittings until further notice. Rota eventually ruled that it was not up to him to override agreements approved by MPs on how the House should function during the crisis. Prior to the vote, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer insisted that debate and discussion in the House of Commons are of urgent importance. The Liberals, he said, must answer questions on issues ranging from the state of the nation's medical-goods stockpile to accountability for the billions of dollars being spent in federal aid. "Right here on Parliament Hill, construction workers are continuing to renovate Centre Block, a project that is expected to take at least 10 years," he said. "If they can safely renovate the building that houses our Parliament than surely we can do our duty to uphold the bedrock of our democracy." Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. But Scheer's view was not supported by any of the other opposition parties. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said virtual sittings each week are preferable. They would not only minimize contact, but also make sure people in regions far from Ottawa would be able to take part in questioning the government, he said. "It's important to hear voices from parliamentarians across this country," Singh said. Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet accused the Conservatives of holding Parliament "hostage" for partisan reasons, and said he wants to get on with the business of serving Canadians and the people of Quebec. The Senate has adjourned until at least June 2, though several committees have plans to meet virtually and the full body can be recalled if legislation needs to be passed. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Mardika Parama (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 13:07 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fdfca 1 Business loan-growth,banking-industry,indef,COVID-19,bank-loan,OJK,Financial-Services-Authority,bank-indonesia Free Indonesias banking industry is expected to see a drop in loan growth to around 4 percent this year as the COVID-19 pandemic batters the economy, an economist has said. Senior economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), Aviliani, said Indonesian banks had become hesitant to provide loans to new debtors, as both the national and global economy had been disrupted by COVID-19. I think loan growth will be around 4 percent and new loan disbursement will begin to return to normal in March 2021. The banks are hesitant to channel loans as demand will remain low until December, she said during an online discussion on Friday. The countrys banking industry recorded 5.93 percent loan growth in February, the lowest expansion since November 2009, according to Financial Services Authority (OJK) data. The figure is lower than the 6.1 percent booked in January. The non-performing loan (NPL) rate jumped to nearly 2.8 percent, the highest since May last year. The OJK and Bank Indonesia (BI) previously set a loan growth target of around 11 percent this year. The central bank recently slashed its projection to between 6 and 8 percent. Despite the projected decline in Indonesias banking sector, Aviliani expressed optimism the countrys financial sector would remain resilient, unlike during the 1998 financial crisis. The banks, she added, should start making projections of their liquidity, as many businesses would ask for loans to be restructured amid the economic crisis. Lets say if 10 percent of their customers file for debt restructuring, what sort of cash flow is needed? The banks should be prepared, so they will not face liquidity problems if their customers withdraw their money, she said. The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has forced the government to call on citizens to stay home, causing disruption to businesses and harming peoples purchasing power. The government projects the countrys economy to grow 2.3 percent this year under a baseline scenario, which would be the lowest rate since 1999, or contract by 0.4 percent in a worst-case scenario. Besides calling on banks to anticipate liquidity issues, Aviliani also lauded the governments efforts in maintaining stability in the financial sector through the issuance of a regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) on the COVID-19 response, calling it a step in the right direction. This Perppu not only regulates the financial sector but also helps the real sector through incentive policies such as corporate tax relaxation, expediting tax returns and import fee waivers, she said. President Joko Jokowi Widodo issued the Perppu on March 31, which activated a crisis protocol, widened the state budget deficit limit beyond 3 percent, cut corporate income taxes and allowed BI to throw lifelines to the government through purchases of government bonds through auctions, among other measures. 20.04.2020 LISTEN The Peoples Democratic League (PDL) wants to thank all its members, supporters and sympathizers across Sierra Leone and the diaspora for yielding to the Partys call for observance of three days of prayer and fasting, which ended on Sunday 19th April, 2020. The purpose as said before was to complement governments efforts aimed at combating the Corona virus pandemic in Sierra Leone. We thank you all also for your kind words and thoughts for our country, Sierra Leone. Building a prayer circle seems to be an important weapon in the fight against the spread of the corona virus in Sierra Leone. Our patriotic zeal to join the fight against this evil pandemic through prayer and fasting will no doubt yield stated goal. We want to do more, even going house to house to sensitise family members how they can contribute to help prevent the spread of the pandemic in Sierra Leone, but this has been hampered by the brutal injustice and naked robbery by the Political Parties Registration Commission (PPRC), of our constitutional rights and democratic freedom to register and belong to a political party of our choice. We believe the government of Sierra Leone has limited resources and that it, alone cannot fight and defeat COVID-19. What is needed is the participation of all Sierra Leoneans, regardless region, religion, tribe or political party colour to join the fight and kick COVID-19 out of Sierra Leone. It is on this note that the Peoples Democratic League (PDL) is calling upon President Julius Maada Bio to declare a national/days of prayer and fasting to seek Gods mercy, guidance and protection in response to the corona virus pandemic, encouraging citizens to call on God to unchain Sierra Leone from the shackles of this evil called Corona virus pandemic, as soon as possible. The reality is that Sierra Leone is in a crisis following the spread of the corona pandemic that is affecting whole peoples, whole countries and whole regions of the world. It affects institutions everywhere on the globe. The Corona virus pandemic has not chosen which Sierra Leoneans to target but its targets on all Sierra Leoneans. We encourage the President to create a tradition of calling on God whenever we have national crisis. No to corona virus pandemic! Sender: Samuel Musa Kalokoh National Secretary for National Administration Peoples Democratic League PDL Kathmandu, April 20 As many as 110 Russian nationals stranded in Nepal due to the lockdown imposed here to control the coronavirus outbreak have been evacuated on Monday. The Russian government had sent a Royal Flight aircraft to evacuate them. The aircraft landed at 10:30 am at the Tribhuvan International Airport today and took off for Moscow at 12:40 pm. After the beginning of the lockdown on March 24, around 4,000 foreigners have been evacuated from Nepal by their governments so far, according to officials. South African Airways (SAA) is offering severance packages to its entire workforce of around 5,000 workers, a proposal by the airline's administrators showed after the government said it wouldn't provide more funds for rescue efforts. The proposal, which was put to trade unions this week and hasn't been agreed with them, is the latest sign that state-owned SAA is on the brink of collapse. Talks with unions will resume on Monday. SAA entered a form of bankruptcy protection in December, since when it has had to suspend all commercial passenger flights due to the global coronavirus pandemic. This week the government told administrators that it wouldn't provide more funds, lending guarantees or allow foreign financing of a business rescue plan. According to the proposal, seen by Reuters, employees would see their employment terminated by mutual agreement on April 30. They would be entitled to one week's pay for every year of service, one month's pay in lieu of notice pay and pay for outstanding annual leave. The proposal said it seemed "unlikely that the company will be successfully rescued as a result of the business rescue process". "In order to make payment of the severance packages ... the company is required to sell and dispose of its assets," it added. An SAA spokesman declined to comment. Two unions confirmed the proposal had been made and said they would discuss it with their members. The Department of Public Enterprises, which oversees the airline, said no agreements have been concluded about potential mass retrenchments as talks with creditors and unions continue. "There are discussion with the unions on alternatives to the current SAA business model, the success of the business rescue process and the best possible outcome for the airline's employees," the department said in a statement. SAA has not been profitable since 2011 and has received more than 20 billion rands ($1.1 billion) in bailouts in the past three years, providing a drain on public resources at a time of weak economic growth. The talks with unions were originally about job cuts, but one union involved said they had developed into a discussion about winding down the airline. Also Watch: And many of us certainly had no trouble believing her. To believe Reade, however, is to raise a difficult question at least for the political left: What do you do with that belief? What does it change? Very little, apparently. Bidens campaign has moved on from her accusations unscathed, picking up endorsements from Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. The people who told us to believe women when they allege sexual assault have been conspicuously quiet. A Nexis search Thursday for Reades name found that it had appeared in U.S. newspapers only 50 times in the previous week and 12 of those were in The Post and The Times. Yes, this lack of attention is surely due in part to the bigger story unfolding just now. But its hard not to suspect it also reflects a tacit decision to whistle past this particular graveyard. And it says something about these strange and fractured times that this may have been the smartest, and ultimately, even the most moral, choice. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 07:31:03 Nanterre (France), April 20, 2020 FIRST QUARTER 2020 SALES Q1 SALES IMPACTED BY COVID-19 DISRUPTION BUT OUTPERFORMING MARKET BY 390bps FOCUS ON EMPLOYEE HEALTH, LIQUIDITY & RESILIENCE AND SAFE RESTART in m Q1 2019 Q1 2020 Reported At constant scope & curr. Sales 4,325 3,739 -13.5% -19.7% By region Europe North America Asia South America Rest of the World 2,217 1,117 798 150 43 1,931 1,014 635 127 32 -12.9% -9.2% -20.4% -15.2% -26.2% -16.4% -18.3% -33.9% -2.1% -21.5% Q1 SALES IMPACTED BY COVID-19 DISRUPTION BUT OUTPERFORMING MARKET BY 390bps Reported sales down 13.5% including a positive scope effect of 268m (+6.2%) due to the consolidation of 3 months of Clarion and 2 months of SAS Sales at constant scope and currencies down 19.7% vs. worldwide automotive production down 23.6% (source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) => outperformance of 390bps STRONG MEASURES TAKEN TO FACE THE CRISIS WITH THREE PRIORITIES Priority No.1: Protect health and safety of all employees Priority No.2: Secure liquidity, recently enhanced through an 800m club deal loan Priority No.3: Be ready for a safe restart of production through the SAFER TOGETHER program SHAREHOLDERS MEETING POSTPONED TO JUNE 26 DUE TO COVID-19 Patrick KOLLER, CEO of Faurecia, declared: Our sales in the first quarter were strongly impacted by the global Covid-19 pandemic. This crisis impacted China throughout the quarter, with a peak in February, and then the rest of the world from March. While China has effectively and safely restarted, we expect the second quarter to be tougher in Europe and North America. The second half of the year should show sequential improvement. To face this unprecedented crisis, we have immediately put in place all the necessary action plans to get through this period. Our top priority is the protection of our employees and preparing for a safe restart of our activity. At the same time, we have secured additional liquidity and implemented measures to aggressively cut costs and protect cash. I am confident in our ability to get through this period, which I believe will lead to a new economic paradigm based on resilience and stronger collaboration and support across the whole supply chain. All Faurecia teams are acting in the most effective and responsible way to protect the company in the best interests of all stakeholders and I thank all of them for their efforts. The Board of Directors, under the chairmanship of Michel de ROSEN, met on April 17, 2020 and reviewed the present press release. Q1 SALES OF 3,739m, STRONGLY IMPACTED BY COVID-19 BUT OUTPERFORMING MARKET In Q1 2020, sales amounted to 3,739.3 million (vs. 4,324.6 million in Q1 2019), down 13.5% on a reported basis Currencies had a limited negative impact of 2.5 million, representing -0.1% of last years sales Positive scope effect of 268.0 million, representing +6.2% of last years sales (100.6 million from 2 months of consolidation of SAS and 167.4 million from 3 months of consolidation of Clarion) (100.6 million from 2 months of consolidation of SAS and 167.4 million from 3 months of consolidation of Clarion) At constant scope and currencies, sales were down 19.7%, representing an outperformance of 390bps compared to worldwide automotive production that dropped year-on-year by 23.6% (source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) SALES BY REGION Europe (52% of Group sales): Sales of 1,930.7 million (vs. 2,216.5 million in Q1 2019) Down 12.9% on a reported basis, including: A positive scope effect of 80.1 million (+3.6% of last years sales) A limited negative currency effect of 2.7 million (-0.1% of last years sales) including: Down 16.4% at constant scope and currencies, 410bps above regional automotive production (-20.5%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) In Europe, the Covid-19 crisis started to impact Faurecias activities in March, with sales down by close to 40% vs. March 2019, following customers plant shutdowns. North America (27% of Group sales): Sales of 1,014.0 million (vs. 1,116.7 million in Q1 2019) Down 9.2% on a reported basis, including: A positive scope effect of 74.2 million (+6.6% of last years sales) A positive currency effect of 27.5 million (+2.5% of last years sales) mainly due to the US dollar vs. the euro including: Down 18.3% at constant scope and currencies, 750bps below regional automotive production (-10.8%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020); this underperformance is mainly due to volumes with Nissan and Ford as well as the effect of the Daimler EoP for Seating (c. 35m). In North America, the Covid-19 crisis also started to impact Faurecias activities as from March, with sales down by close to 35% vs. March 2019. Asia (17% of Group sales): Sales of 635.1 million (vs. 797.8 million in Q1 2019) Down 20.4% on a reported basis, including: A positive scope effect of 110.6 million (+13.9% of last years sales) A limited negative currency effect of 2.6 million (-0.3% of last years sales) including: Down 33.9% at constant scope and currencies, 300bps below regional automotive production (-30.9%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020); this underperformance at the regional level is impacted by an unfavorable geographic mix with Faurecias sales in China in Q1 2020 representing 56% of its sales in the region vs. only one third of automotive production. In China, sales amounted to 357.3 million (vs. 603.7 million in Q1 2019), down 40.8% on a reported basis and down 42.1% at constant scope and currencies, 800bps above the Chinese automotive production (-50.1%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020). China was the first country in the world to face the crisis and close plants. Sales in the entire quarter were strongly impacted year-on-year with a peak impact in February and gradual recovery as from March. As of today, all plants have restarted production (including in the province of Hubei), with a loading rate of around 90% to rapidly reach 100%. This successful restart of activity in China, with no employee contaminated since the beginning of the crisis, will serve as an example for safe restart in other regions. South America (3% of Group sales): Sales of 127.5 million (vs. 150.2 million in Q1 2019) Down 15.2% on a reported basis, including: A limited positive scope effect of 3.0 million (+2.0% of last years sales) A significant negative currency effect of 22.7 million (-15.1% of last years sales) including: Down 2.1% at constant scope and currencies, well above regional automotive production (-16.9%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) South America was the latest region to be impacted by the crisis, only in late March. Sales in March were down by close to 20% vs. March 2019. SALES BY BUSINESS GROUP Seating (38% of Group sales): Sales of 1,401.9 million (vs. 1,841.5 million in Q1 2019) Down 23.9% on a reported basis, including: A slight negative currency effect of 0.3 million including: Down 23.9% at constant scope and currencies, broadly in line with worldwide automotive production (-23.6%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) Interiors (31% of Group sales): Sales of 1,164.9 million (vs. 1,293.0 million in Q1 2019) Down 9.9% on a reported basis, including: A positive scope effect of 100.6 million, representing +7.8% of last years sales (consolidation of SAS since February 1, 2020) A slight negative currency effect of 2.7 million (-0.2% of last years sales) including: Down 17.5% at constant scope and currencies, 610bps above worldwide automotive production (-23.6%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) Clean Mobility (26% of Group sales): Sales of 975.5 million (vs. 1,143.5 million in Q1 2019) Down 14.7% on a reported basis, including: A slight positive currency effect of 0.5 million including: Down 14.7% at constant scope and currencies, 890bps above worldwide automotive production (-23.6%, source: IHS Markit dated April 2020) Faurecia Clarion Electronics (5% of Group sales): Sales of 196.9 million (vs. 46.6 million in Q1 2019) Most of the change in sales was due to the scope effect from the consolidation of 3 months of Clarion for 167.4 million (Clarion has been consolidated since April 1, 2019) UPDATE ON MEASURES TAKEN TO FACE THE CRISIS AND PREPARE FOR RESTART No.1 PRIORITY: PROTECT HEALTH AND SAFETY OF ALL EMPLOYEES Since the very beginning of the crisis, Faurecia teams have deployed a strict crisis management process, whose number one priority is the protection of employees. Best health practices recommendations have been widely spread all over the Group, a travel ban has been introduced, home office has been applied when possible and IT capabilities have been strengthened to ensure increased needs for connectivity. A daily follow-up of the crisis has been set up to better evaluate the pandemics evolution, the production situation and the restart dates per customer, as well as the conditions for a safe restart of production. No.2 PRIORITY: SECURE LIQUIDITY, RECENTLY ENHANCED THROUGH AN 800M CLUB DEAL LOAN Faurecia has reacted quickly to the unprecedented situation to protect margin and cash, secure liquidity to overcome the crisis and maintain a sound financial structure. Faurecia has taken all the necessary measures to drastically reduce, in the short term, its operating and administrative costs, development expenses and investments, including temporary unemployment according to the reduction of the activity faced by the sites. As of today, c. 90% of operators are under temporary unemployment in Europe and North America, drastic cuts were made to SG&A, hiring has been frozen since the beginning of the year and all efforts are deployed to ensure the highest cost flexibility and demonstrate resilience throughout the crisis. To further protect cash generation, Faurecia targets to reduce capex by 30% (vs. 685 million spent in 2019) and will carefully manage R&D programs. Working capital will be tightly managed mostly through inventory adjustment, while securing the supply chain, and strict monitoring of receivables cash collection. As of March 31, Faurecias cash position amounted to c. 2.2 billion, including the 600 million recently drawn down from the syndicated credit line out of an initial amount of 1.2 billion (maturity June 2024), in order to anticipate a drop of factoring of receivables. In addition, Faurecia has 1.4 billion of available liquidity through the recently signed short-term loan and the remaining 50% undrawn part of the syndicated credit line: 800 million from a club deal loan signed on April 10, with an 18 months maturity and 100% drawn on April 17, 600 million from the undrawn syndicated credit line. This liquidity will allow Faurecia to overcome the cash consumption during the first half of the year, while the second half should resume cash generation. As regards its financial structure, Faurecia has a sound balance-sheet with no significant short-term repayment before 2022 and an average debt maturity profile above 5 years (excluding the club deal loan). The average cost of its long-term debt is below 2.5% and its covenant limit of 2.8x consolidated net debt vs. last 12 months EBITDA (including IFRS16 impact) offers significant headroom, even during the current crisis. No.3 PRIORITY: BE READY FOR A SAFE RESTART OF PRODUCTION THROUGH THE SAFER TOGETHER PROGRAM Based on recommendations from expert organizations, and governments and Faurecias experience in China, a SAFER TOGETHER program has been put in place that includes a comprehensive set of procedures and behaviors to be strictly followed at all plants and facilities. Three main categories have been defined: mandatory personal protective equipment, required personal protection practices and considerations regarding daily life. Full training and communications are organized and the procurement or in-house production of all necessary personal protective equipment, including masks, gloves, glasses and gel, is secured. Suppliers readiness and supply chain continuity are essential for a safe restart. Faurecia strongly encourages close collaboration with suppliers and openly shares all its internal practices, guidelines and procedures for their own use. They include the essentials of the SAFER TOGETHER program, regular updates of forecasted plant restart dates and supply chain restart check lists. Over 1,000 suppliers participated to webconferences held on April 9 to share the Groups priorities and underline this collaborative approach. This crisis highlights the necessity for the whole supply chain to work together, now and in the future, with transparency and mutual support. DECISION TO REDUCE SALARY FOR THE CHAIRMAN, THE CEO AND THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE In the light of the crisis, and as a personal contribution to the many gestures of solidarity of the Groups employees, Michel de ROSEN, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Patrick KOLLER, Chief Executive Officer, have decided to reduce their salary by 20% for at least the second quarter of 2020. In the same spirit of solidarity, the Executive Committee has unanimously joined this initiative. DECISION TO POSTPONE THE ANNUAL SHAREHOLDERS MEETING TO JUNE 26 At its meeting held by conference call on April 17, Faurecias Board of Directors decided, given the lack of visibility due to the Covid-19 pandemic, to postpone the Annual Shareholders Meeting, initially planned for Wednesday, May 29, to Friday, June 26. All details will be communicated in due course to shareholders. OUTLOOK As of today, it remains difficult to estimate production levels in coming months as they depend on many external parameters, such as government regulations and the pace of resolution of the pandemic in the various geographies, but also on customers effective restart of production as well as consumer demand. In this context, Faurecia considers it is not currently in position to present new financial objectives for 2020 and will do so when the situation is stabilized and offers more visibility to the Group. A conference call for financial analysts and media will be held today at 8:00 am (Paris time). Dial-in numbers: France: +33 (0)1 70 73 27 27 UK: +44 (0)203 009 5710 USA: +1 917-720-0178 No access code needed and a replay will be available as soon as possible. The financial presentation accompanying the conference call will be available at 7:30 am today (Paris time) on the Faurecia website: www.faurecia.com and may also be viewed at the following link: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/de9k6bjc Calendar June 26, 2020: Annual Shareholders Meeting (Nanterre) July 27, 2020: H1 2020 results announcement (before market hours) October 23, 2020: Q3 2020 sales announcement (before market hours) Contacts Presse Eric FOHLEN-WEILL Corporate communications Director Tel: +33 (0)1 72 36 72 58 eric.fohlen-weill@faurecia.com Analysts/Investors Marc MAILLET Head of Investor Relations Tel: +33 (0)1 72 36 75 70 marc.maillet@faurecia.com Anne-Sophie JUGEAN Deputy Head of Investor Relations Tel: +33 (0)1 72 36 71 31 annesophie.jugean@faurecia.com About Faurecia Founded in 1997, Faurecia has grown to become a major player in the global automotive industry. With 248 industrial sites, 37 R&D centers and 115,000 employees in 37 countries, Faurecia is a global leader in its four areas of business: Seating, Interiors, Clarion Electronics and Clean Mobility. Faurecia has focused its technology strategy on providing solutions for the Cockpit of the Future and Sustainable Mobility. In 2019, the Group posted sales of 17.8 billion. Faurecia is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange and is a component of the CAC Next 20 index. For more information, please visit www.faurecia.com APPENDICES Definitions of terms used in this document Sales growth Faurecias year-on-year sales evolution is made of three components: A Currency effect , calculated by applying average currency rates for the period to the sales of the prior year, , calculated by applying average currency rates for the period to the sales of the prior year, A Scope effect (acquisition/divestment) , , And Growth at constant currencies. As scope effect, Faurecia presents all acquisitions/divestments, whose sales on an annual basis amount to more than 250 million. Other acquisitions below this threshold are considered as bolt-on acquisitions and are included in Growth at constant currencies. Q1 2020 Sales by region Sales Reported Currency effect Growth ex-currencies Scope effect* Reported (in m) Q1 2019 value % value % value % Q1 2020 % Europe 2,217 -3 -0.1% -363 -16.4% 80 3.6% 1,931 -12.9% North America 1,117 28 2.5% -204 -18.3% 74 6.6% 1,014 -9.2% Asia 798 -3 -0.3% -271 -33.9% 111 13.9% 635 -20.4% of which China 604 -1 -0.2% -254 -42.1% 9 1.5% 357 -40.8% South America 150 -23 -15.1% -3 -2.1% 3 2.0% 127 -15.2% RoW 43 -2 -4.7% -9 -21.5% 32 -26.2% Group 4,325 -3 -0.1% -851 -19.7% 268 6.2% 3,739 -13.5% * Scope effect included 3 months of Clarion (consolidated as from April 1st, 2019) and 2 months of SAS (consolidated as from February 1st, 2020) Q1 2020 Sales by Business Group Sales Reported Currency effect Growth ex-currencies Scope effect* Reported (in m) Q1 2019 value % value % value % Q1 2020 % Seating 1,842 0 0.0% -439 -23.9% 1,402 -23.9% Interiors 1,293 -3 -0.2% -226 -17.5% 101 7.8% 1,165 -9.9% Clean Mobility 1,144 0 0.0% -168 -14.7% 976 -14.7% Faurecia Clarion Electronics 47 0 -0.1% -17 -36.6% 167 359.2% 197 322.5% Group 4,325 -3 -0.1% -851 -19.7% 268 6.2% 3,739 -13.5% * Scope effect included 3 months of Clarion (consolidated as from April 1st, 2019) and 2 months of SAS (consolidated as from February 1st, 2020) Attachment The RBI on Monday asked banks and NBFCs to carry out money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) risk assessment exercise periodically. The Reserve Bank said it has added a new section in the Master Directions on KYC. This requires its regulated entities (REs) to carry out ML and TF risk assessment exercise periodically to identify, assess and take effective measures to mitigate its money laundering and terrorist financing risk for clients, countries or geographic areas, products, services, and transactions or delivery channels. "While assessing the ML/TF risk, the REs are required to take cognizance of the overall sector-specific vulnerabilities, if any, that the regulator/supervisor may share with REs from time to time," the RBI said in a circular. Further, the internal risk assessment carried out by the regulated entity should be commensurate to its size, geographical presence, complexity of activities/structure, it added. Entities regulated by the RBI include, banks, All India Financial Institutions, NBFCs, and all payment system providers. "Also, the REs shall apply a Risk Based Approach (RBA) for mitigation and management of the identified risk and should have Board approved policies, controls and procedures in this regard," the RBI's circular added. The new KYC has come in force with immediate effect, the RBI added. ALSO READ: Union Bank of India merger with Andhra Bank, Corporation Bank: What happens to account numbers, IFSC codes, loans? ALSO READ: Coronavirus impact: RBI sharply hikes central govt's short-term borrowing limit to Rs 2 lakh crore A Norwood Park man has been charged with a hate crime after he jumped off his porch and yelled racial slurs as he chased a woman who works at a nearby hospital, according to police. Tom Diamond was also charged with misdemeanor assault after the incident Saturday evening. In a Cook County Bond Court hearing today, he was ordered held in lieu of $150,000 bail, said Cook County state's attorney's office spokeswoman Tandra Simonton. The woman said she had just finished a 12-hour shift at Presence Resurrection Medical Center and was walking to a Mexican restaurant nearby around 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The woman said she had planned on bringing her meal back to the hospital when she was confronted by Diamond outside his home in the 5800 block of North Oketo Avenue, she said. "Hey you stupid black n----- b----, how does it feel to walk in an all-white neighborhood?" Diamond, 45, yelled from his porch, according to a police report. The woman said she kept walking and Diamond yelled, "You hear me? You must be from Englewood," the police report states. The woman, who was wearing a nurse's uniform and had a stethoscope around her neck, told Diamond, "I'm not from around here" and said she worked at Resurrection Medical Center. Diamond, who is white, then got off the porch and ran after her, screaming, "If I see you in my neighborhood again, I'm going to rape you and hang you from a tree,'' the police report said. "He jumped off his porch and chased me down,'' the woman said. He tried to grab her but she was able to get away, she said. The woman said she ran toward Resurrection Medical Center in the 7400 block of West Talcott Avenue and called 911 as Diamond walked back to his home. Officers arrested Diamond at 8:10 p.m. at his home, police said. The woman said she lives in Carbondale, where she is a student at Southern Illinois University, studying to be a doctor's assistant. She travels to Chicago on weekend to work at the hospital. "I know that this is America and the world's not like the way it used to be years ago,'' she said. "It really didn't disgust me because on a day-to-day basis I help everyone. White people. Black people. Puerto Rican people. Gay people. "You don't think this can happen here. . .coming at you with all that hatred because of your skin color,'' she said. "But crime can happen anywhere.'' After Diamond was arrested, the woman said she stayed at the police station until 4 a.m. while officers processed the arrest but made it to her next her shift that started at 7:30 a.m. "I was exhausted. I was overwhelmed,'' she said. "I want people to know he didn't just target anyone. I am black. I am dark-skinned.'' rsobol@tribune.com Advertisement Twitter:@RosemarySobol1 Many residents have lost their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic with deep job losses among housekeepers, home health aides, hotel employees, restaurant servers and childcare workers. A lot of hardworking people have found themselves out of work and very quicky out of money as the outbreak deepens. Help-A-Neighbor, a new emergency drive, was created to help these residents who are cannot pay for rent, food and utilities. The Stamford Advocate and Greenwich Time are working with Family Centers, Person-to-Person, Domus and Building One Community, four nonprofit agencies that serve many of the most vulnerable members of the community in creating and administering this fund. In the weeks to come, we will publish stories about neighbors in crisis. Included with each story will be an estimated dollar amount to meet their needs. The agencies will channel 100 percent of donations to the clients. Family Centers provides human service programs to more than 20,000 residents in Stamford, Greenwich, New Canaan and Darien. Person-to-Person serves those communities as well as Norwalk, Wilton, Weston and Westport. Among other things, it provides food and clothing to families in need. Domus provides services for at-risk youth, and Building One Community delivers assistance to immigrants. Both are based in Stamford. To donate, go to helpaneighbor.isecuresites.com. Here are the stories of some of our neighbors in need: Case No. 61 70-year-old Eden lives off her Social Security check. To bring in extra income, she babysits for family and friends. With the coronavirus pandemic, the parents have decided to stop having Eden care for their children because she is vulnerable to the virus. Eden is grateful for their concerns, but she depends on that income to cover her household expenses. A gift of $300 is needed at this difficult time. Case No. 62 The mother of two children, Nancy works as a home health aide and earns a small check each week. Because of the social distancing policy in place, her hours with her sick elderly patients have been cut drastically. She now must cover all her living expenses with less income. A gift of $400 would be a huge help. Case No. 63 Penny is a single parent who is isolating with COVID-19 symptoms. She has two children and custody of her 13-year-old brother. She cannot work and is struggling with her employer to obtain paid sick leave. At the moment she is concerned about rent, food and baby supplies for her infant child. A gift of $500 would be a big help. Case No. 64 Abby is a single adult who lives in one room and was recently laid off from her housekeeping jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak. She is not eligible for unemployment benefits and is worried about rent and food. A gift of $500 would help see her through for a month. Case No. 65 This family has six members who live together in a small apartment. Since the pandemic, only two adults are working and each for just one day per week. They are concerned about paying for basic needs at this time. A gift of $500 would help with rent and to buy items that SNAP does not cover. Case No. 66 Fran and her husband have tried hard to maintain a stable life for their three children, but both have been laid off recently due to COVID-19. They work in assisted living facilities and cannot return to work right now. As a result, they are unable to pay their rent this month. A grant of $500 would allow them to stay in their home, while they search for more opportunities. Case No. 67 Maira was laid off from her full-time job at the Crown Plaza Hotel along with other employees until further notice due to the coronavirus. Maira is the only one in her family that brings in an income. Her husband suffers with deep depression and is unable to work. Her oldest, a college student, helps out with part-time babysitting, but she has not been able to collect a check. Maira is unable to collect unemployment. A grant of $500 would allow her to keep her house heated. Case No. 68 Tracy is married with three children. She was working at a restaurant and her husband was working at a hotel, until they were both laid off due to COVID-19. They are now struggling to pay their bills -- especially the upcoming rent -- and are worried about remaining in their home during this crisis. A grant of $1,000 would allow them to pay their rent and focus on staying healthy. Case No. 69 Linda has worked at a Stamford restaurant as a server for many years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing requirements, Linda is now out of work. She does not have any additional money coming in, and cannot file for unemployment. A grant of $500 would help her pay her rent during this difficult time. Case No. 70 Alice and her husband, who live in Stamford with their two sons, have both lost their jobs at different hotels due to COVID-19. They are worried about making ends meet. They were able to set up an arrangement with the landlord for rent, but they are concerned about their utility bill. A grant of $997.45 would help them pay this bill and allay some of their anxieties. A survey by industry body FICCI has "revealed sharpest moderation" in the confidence level of India Inc since the global financial crisis of 2008-09 as the coronavirus outbreak has adversely affected their businesses. The industry chamber said that as per its Business Confidence Survey, timely action by the government will enable quicker return to normalcy for the domestic economy. It also demanded a further 100 basis points reduction in the repo rate by the RBI. Global economic prospects have worsened conspicuously with the outbreak of coronavirus. Many countries, including India, have had to adopt strict social distancing norms and lockdowns to prevent the pandemic from spreading resulting in a near halt of economic activity. "The Overall Business Confidence Index stood at 42.9 in the current round vis--vis an index value of 59.0 reported in the last survey," FICCI said. The index value had slipped to a low of 37.8 in the second quarter of 2008-09 at time of the global financial crisis. Sharp moderation both in current conditions as well expectations about the future were responsible for pulling the overall index value down during the quarter, said the industry chamber. It also made a case for financial package for the entire industry (especially micro, small and medium enterprises) from the government in the form of subsidies, policy support, tax holidays, and special dispensation of funds to sustain employment levels before the COVID-19 pandemic. "Immediate measures need to be taken to instill confidence in decision makers of banks. Simultaneously, efforts must be made to make the entire lending process foolproof which will ultimately enable swifter decisions," it said. Labour market reforms is the need of the hour and must be taken up on priority. FICCI further suggested that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should undertake direct purchase of corporate bonds and reduce the key short-term lending rate (repo) by another 100 basis points. The Survey drew responses from about 190 companies with a turnover ranging from Rs 1 crore to Rs 98,800 crore and belonging to a wide array of sectors. The survey gauges expectations of the respondents for the April-September 2020 period. Multilateral institutions have revised down the growth and trade forecast for the year 2020 considerably. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its recent release has downgraded global growth forecast and placed it in the contractionary zone for the year 2020. WTO also projected global merchandise trade flows to plummet anywhere between 13-32 per cent during 2020. "India's economy is also facing a triple shock through the demand, supply, and financial channels," FICCI said. In fact, most of the companies participating in the Survey indicated that the spread of coronavirus has had an adverse impact on their businesses. Around 72 per cent of the respondents said their operations have been hit hard by the virus outbreak. "Only 5 per cent of the respondents were not impacted by the pandemic. In addition, 90 per cent of the respondents of the Survey said that their supply chains have been impacted," said the industry body. FICCI said participating companies were less optimistic about their forecasts for operational parameters over the April-September 2020 period. In the current survey round, a sharp increase was noticed in the proportion of respondents anticipating lower sales in the next six months, it said. About 53 per cent respondents expected lower sales over the next two quarters. Likewise, an increase was noted in the proportion of respondents citing decline in investments going ahead. With consumption demand plummeting amidst the nationwide lockdown, companies are seeing freeing up of their existing capacities and the present environment is not conducive for undertaking fresh investments, said the Survey. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) JERUSALEM A few people had already died alone of the coronavirus at Tel Avivs Sourasky Medical Center when the hospital spokesman put to his bosses a question that had been gnawing at him. Why had it been permissible for him to let a few journalists put on protective gear and come see the coronavirus ward, the spokesman, Avi Shushan, asked, but families of the patients were being kept out entirely, denied the chance to bid their loved ones a final farewell? No one had a good answer. Israeli hospitals were neither so overrun, nor their supplies of masks and gowns so depleted, that compassion had to be another casualty of the crisis, said Ronni Gamzu, the chief executive at Sourasky. And so on the spot, the hospitals management committee unanimously voted to change its policy. Across the globe, hospitals have been reflexively refusing relatives the opportunity to visit patients dying of Covid-19, fearful that family members could contract the virus at the hospital or that relatives might unwittingly carry the virus with them when saying their goodbyes, infecting hospital staff. A bar owner was charged Saturday with serving alcohol to customers at his Plainfield club, in the latest batch of New Jerseyans allegedly flouting the governors orders aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus, officials said. Police were alerted that the Tequila Club in Plainfield was open and found three customers at the bar drinking booze while a few others were sitting at tables, according to authorities. The bar owner, 62-year-old city resident Cristobal Sanchez, was charged with violating emergency orders put in place because of the pandemic, according to the state Attorney Generals Office. Sanchez was present and indicated that because the patrons were waiting for take-out orders, he thought he was allowed to serve them alcohol inside the premises, the Attorney Generals office said in a statement. The governor last month ordered bars and restaurants to close for all but take-out or delivery as part of sweeping statewide restrictions to stop the spreading virus. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage In a separate case, Robert Schaub, 35, of Lindenwold was arrested Saturday after he allegedly threatened to spit on a Somerdale Wawa store clerk, telling her he had the coronavirus and hoped she would get it and die, according to authorities. Schaub was already barred from the store from a previous incident. Police charged Schaub with second-degree terroristic threats during an emergency. The state Attorney Generals Office has been releasing daily blotters of people who allegedly breach Gov. Phil Murphys sweeping public health-related orders or are charged with crimes related to the outbreak. During an earlier press briefing, Murphy dubbed violators as "knuckleheads but noted the majority of the states residents have complied with the regulations. New Jersey officials on Sunday reported at least 85,301 people infected and 4,202 deaths from the continuing outbreak. Heres the latest enforcement actions related to #COVID19: https://t.co/4XVpfxoLaX Lets start this week off on the right foot by staying home. We cant stress enough how important social distancing is in our battle against the virus. Be well! AG Gurbir Grewal (@NewJerseyOAG) April 19, 2020 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. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. Taking strong objection to the Kerala government's decision to open restaurants, bus travel for shorter distances, allow private vehicles on an odd-even during the lockdown, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government of diluting the Centre's guidelines. The MHA has written a letter to the Kerala government, saying the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. Such additional activities allowed by the government of Kerala, include opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheeler and pillion riding on scooters, added the letter. According to MHA, this amounts to dilution of guidelines and violation of the order issued by the MHA on April 15 under the Disaster Management Act 2005. It is to be noted that Kerala government had released detailed guidelines to reopen the state in phases from Monday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan-led government in the state has divided the state into four zones Red, Orange A, Orange B and Green. Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Malappuram districts are in Red Zone and they will not have any relaxations. In Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam and Kollam, districts under Orange A zone, partial relaxation from the lockdown will start from April 24, while Orange B districts Alappuzha, Trivandrum, Palakkad, Wayanad and Thrissur will get partial relaxation from Monday. In Kerala, 401 coronavirus cases have been reported so far. It may be recalled that while announcing the extension of the nationwide lockdown Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said some relaxation of the lockdown could be given in non-containment zones from April 20. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Its important to understand that the Bible advises against continually evangelizing certain people. Jesus Himself warned about giving pearls to persons who not only destroy them, but then actually attack the giver with violence (Matt. 7:6). Christ also told His disciples to stop arguing with some of the Pharisees who were not interested in hearing the truth (Luke 15:14). A Biblical term given to these people is one not used much today scoffer. The Hebrew word means to scorn and mock, and an unwillingness to receive reproof.[1] In the New Testament, the Greek meaning is the same as the Hebrew, with the idea of despising the one giving advice also thrown in.[2] The warning about consistently engaging scoffers is seen throughout both the Old and New Testaments. A few examples include: He who corrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself, and he who reproves a wicked man gets insults for himself. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you, reprove a wise man and he will love you (Prov. 9:8). A scoffer does not love one who reproves him, he will not go to the wise (Prov. 15:12). And when they opposed and reviled him, he [Paul] shook out his garments and said to them, Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles (Acts 18:6). Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers [scoffers] will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts (2 Pet. 3:3). While the warning about such people is easy to understand, whats oftentimes difficult for the Christian is recognizing the scoffer and heeding the Bibles advice on dealing with them. To help with this, Id like to pass along one method thats worked fairly well for me. Lifting the Veil of the Scoffer Let me first say I dont have any beef with a person who is an honest skeptic, agnostic, or atheist. In fact, I find people who are thinking through matters of faith and non-faith very refreshing and some of my best and most thoughtful conversations have been with those who dont believe as I do. Further, in his book Not the Religious Type Confessions of a Turncoat Atheist, Dave Schmelzer discusses how those who have rationally wrestled through questions about God and see-sawed back and forth between skepticism and faith can eventually turn out to be the strongest Christians.[3] But make no mistake, there is a marked difference between an agnostic or even professing atheist and a hatetheist; between an intellectually honest skeptic and what Scripture terms a scoffer. So how do you distinguish between the two? Many years ago, Eric Metaxes gave us an excellent example of how its done in his wildly popular Wall Street Journal piece entitled, Science Increasingly Makes the Case for God. After presenting his case for how an intelligent Creator is the best reason for why the universe exists, he then asks this important question: At what point is it fair to admit that science suggests that we cannot be the result of random forces? Thats how you do it. To unmask any scoffers in his audience, Metaxes asks a whats it going to take for you to believe? question. These ultimatums can take many forms, but all end the same way. For example, to those who doubt Christ rose from the dead, a question can be asked along the lines of, Using the techniques and methods available to historians for validating events in the past, what would it take for you to believe in Christs resurrection? Up-leveling things even more, the question being asked of the non-Christian is really, What is it going to take for you to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? However its offered, the question will reveal who is in front of you. The honest agnostic, skeptic, atheist, etc., might be caught off guard and say they will need to think about it and get back to you. Or, they may have already thought through the matter and will provide some good reasons as to what it would take for them to become a Christian. Or they may simply say I dont know. The scoffer wont. A good example of this is the rebuttal piece atheist Lawrence Krauss wrote in The New Yorker against Metaxes article. In it, he attempted to refute various points made by Metaxes, which he is certainly free to do. But he never answered Metaxes key question. Thats because Krauss (at least today) seems to be a hardened skeptic who doesnt want God to exist a claim not hard to believe after you listen to his debates with William Lane Craig. Ask the whats it going to take question of someone you believe to be a scoffer, and the answer or non-answer will almost always instantly tell you whether you should continue to engage the person about Christ. No answer, joking responses about God skywriting their name in the clouds (or any show me miracle), or patently false statements such as there being no evidence for Gods existence will tell you what you need to know. What About Us? Of course, its very fair to turn such a question back around on Christians and ask: whats it going to take for you to drop your faith in Christ? My response has always been the same as the Apostle Pauls, which is, If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain (1 Cor. 15:1314). Find the body of that Jewish carpenter and its game over for Christianity. Every Bible needs to be discarded and every church put up for sale. Would that be hard for Christians to do? Sure. But if youre committed to following the truth no matter where it leads, then you have no other option if the body of Jesus ever turns up. The same is true for those committed to a belief that there is nothing beyond the natural world. Its scary for them to discard that worldview and admit there is something Someone outside nature responsible for the life that we know. If thats you, Id like to invite you to give some good hard thought on what it would take for you to believe in a Creator, and even take some steps beyond that to think about what would make you embrace Jesus as your Lord and Savior. The exercise could be quite revealing. [1] See Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament ( , 1113). [2] See A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed.; ). [3] Dave Schmelzer, Not the Religious Type (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale, 2008), pp. 17-27. The United States coronavirus death toll climbed by 1,629 in 24 hours to reach 41,186 on Sunday evening, latest statistics show. Confirmed cases of the highly infectious illness also soared to a total of 771,980, an increase of 25,596 from the day before. The ominous milestone came as Harvard researchers warned that if the country hopes to permanently open back up any time soon, then coronavirus testing efforts must increased nationwide by at least 500,000 people per day. Currently the nation is testing at a far less efficient rate of only 150,000 people per day. Only 3,865,864 Americans have been tested in total, little over one percent of the US total population. 'If we can't be doing at least 500,000 tests a day by May 1, it is hard to see any way we can remain open,' experts from the Harvard Global Health Institute warned. The United States coronavirus death toll climbed by 1,161 in 24 hours to reach 40,276 on Sunday evening, latest statistics show Contrary to the warnings, several states are looking to lift lockdown orders and return to normalcy as soon as possible. But for some, action is not being taken quickly enough. Hundreds-strong crowds gathered in Colorado, Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State on Sunday to protest state lockdown measures, as a fervent disdain for the restrictions that have shut down much of the country's economy continues to slowly spread across the US. Conducted by Dr. Ashish Jha, faculty director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, Dr. Thomas Tsai, and Benjamin Jacobson, the research on the testing shortfall also warned the number of positive tests must significantly decrease before lockdowns can be lifted. Currently in the US, 20 percent of those who are tested for coronavirus test positive. The World Health Organization has said that to reopen, that number should be between 3 percent to 12 percent. As part of its three-part guideline released last week, the White House instructed that states who have seen a continued decrease in cases over a two week period can commence the first phase of reopening. However, experts have long said that the major determining factor behind any governor's decision to reopen their economies should be testing. You shall not pass: A group of healthcare workers stood in the street to counter-protest the calls for re-opening in Denver, Colorado, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards the Capitol, dressed in scrubs and facemasks Photographs captured the nurses standing in front of a number of vehicles staring back at the drivers with their arms crossed, refusing to move under a cacophony of horns and heckles Demonstrators flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders President Trump and Mike Pence have repeatedly said that each state has ample means of testing to begin the first phase, however several governors have refuted those claims. Among them, is Maryland Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia, who called the president's assertions 'delusional', adding that his state doesn't even have enough swabs to conduct widespread testing. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have also voiced concerns. Speaking to NBC, DeWine said he could perhaps triple Ohio's testing capacity overnight if the US Food and Drug Administration would prioritize companies that use a different formula in producing their analysis kits. Meanwhile, Whitmer said she is ready to double or triple capacity but can't get enough swabs and the reagents used to analyze tests. 'I'm glad to see that the White House recommended opening in phases,' she said. 'We can't just turn back to what life was like before Covid-19. We have to be strategic. We have to be careful. We have to look at different sectors of our economy.' Trump blasted the governor's complaints on Sunday, retoring that testing is 'a local thing', and that governors 'can't have it both ways', because they wanted to have control over reopening their states - therefore testing isn't the federal government's responsibility. The President also referenced the protests Sunday, appearing to support the nationwide rallies despite their defiance of state stay-at-home orders. 'I've seen the people. I've seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump said. 'They've got cabin fever. They want their lives back.' The President also referenced the protests Sunday, appearing to support the nationwide rallies despite their defiance of state stay-at-home orders The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats. 'No, I am not. I've never seen so many American flags,' Trump said. 'These people love our country. They want to get back to work.' The reporter then pointed out that some protesters had waved Nazi flags. The president said he was, clearly, against that from happening. Trump also signaled support for similar demonstrations earlier in the week. After a public fall-out with several governors over his wrongful claims to have 'absolute power' to reopen the US economy earlier this week, Trump encouraged demonstrators in Michigan, Virginia, Minnesota, to 'liberate' their states, claiming their Second Amendment was 'under siege'. A day earlier, Trump cited 'positive signs' in the fight against the pandemic on Saturday, believing the worst is now over. 'We continue to see a lot of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak,' the President said, just days after the White House issued guidelines for the gradual reopening of the country. The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats After a week in what Trump described as an indicator that the worst of the crisis is behind us, the president says he will now shift his focus to kickstarting an economic recovery after four-weeks of lockdowns. Trump said that Texas and Vermont will allow some business to re-open next week, with strict social distancing measures still being enforced. Residents in Florida and other states returned to the beach Saturday despite an increase in COVID-19 deaths and infections. Meanwhile, three Northeastern states reopened boatyards and marinas for personal use only. Other states are expected to gradually ease lockdown restrictions while other states, such as New York, have issued no indication that measures will be relaxed any time soon. Nationwide, food banks are reportedly struggling to meet increased demand from out-of-work Americans, while school systems are largely shuttered, with home schooling plans in place. The rollout of CARES Act stimulus checks has provided some temporary relief, but there are still reports of an unemployment system that is overwhelmed by new applications, resulting in workers being unable to register. Amit Tiwari, chief operating officer at Xceedance, the Boston-based insurance consulting, managed services, and insurtech company, explains the challenges of enabling business continuity plans in the face of a global pandemic and moving an international workforce of well over a thousand people to work from home in just over two weeks while still addressing the daily needs of a global portfolio of clients. The rapid spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus took the business world by surprise. Like most companies, the Xceedance business continuity plan did not envision all personnel working from home for an extended period while still functioning and supporting clients at optimal productivity levels. But when we made the decision on March 4 to move our entire global organization to a work-from-home (WFH) environment, we gave ourselves two weeks to make the transition. With more than 1000 employees, Xceedance has offices in seven countries with significant teams in Boston and Marlborough, Mass., London, Krakow, Liechtenstein, Munich, and Sydney, while our largest contingent of personnel work in India in the cities of Gurgaon, Noida, and Bangalore. To execute a WFH plan quickly, the company identified several immediate challenges that needed to be addressed, including: Not every client contract allowed WFH conditions and connectivity for our service and support teams, so we needed client approvals and to make necessary changes in their network infrastructures. Some client networks did not support an additional load of devices connecting remotely over virtual private networks (VPN), which meant those capacities had to be increased in tandem. We needed to procure more than 1,000 laptops and faced fierce competition from many other businesses worldwide also looking to make contingency plans. Many of our people only use desktop computers, but due to processing power and dual screen configurations, some desktop users would likely become less productive as interim laptop users. Some users have specialized software installed on their desktops, and it would be a daunting task to reinstall their specialized applications on laptops in a matter of days. In mid-March, our IT team rapidly categorized our people into client-facing functions, and prioritized their criticality to arrange delivery of the right equipment to their homes so we could ensure seamless service and productivity. Each day, we made decisions on which technology components had to be prioritized for delivery the next day. We identified who needed a desktop at home and planned all the logistics for this remote set-up activity. As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, Xceedance learned that business continuity plans require continuous review, while potential points of disruption or failure in the supply chain must be identified. A case in point: When the company had to procure more than 1,000 laptops in a period of two weeks, it faced fierce competition from many other global businesses also looking to make contingency plans. Several mock connectivity tests were done for all business units, and client accounts and results were analyzed to understand the gaps and shortcomings. We stress-tested our network by coordinating the various test activities. At all stages, we communicated updates very clearly to our staff and clients, ensuring everyone was in the loop and minimizing surprises that could impede our services. In just three days over the weekend of March 20-22, we secured and configured several hundred laptops for our teams, enhanced our internet bandwidth, coordinated with clients to ensure their networks were ready for the extra load, secured their approvals for our business continuity activities to support their operations, and delivered laptops and desktops to our staff members. By March 22, we completed the delivery and installation of all vital equipment and enabled our staff to work from home just as the government of India announced a three-week lockdown. Our Poland and U.S.-based delivery centers were executing some of the same WFH and client connectivity activities, though the timelines were somewhat different based on local conditions and guidance from government and public health authorities. The following week of March 23 was also very demanding for our IT teams as they worked remotely and around the clock to troubleshoot a large and scattered workforce. We continued to inform our clients about business continuity developments at Xceedance and updated them on our productivity levels. By the second week of the lockdown in India (March 30), and ongoing shelter-in-place and emergency conditions in other countries, we were able to operate at full productivity levels with the entire company in a WFH environment. Meanwhile, our teams swiftly adapted to collaborate with colleagues for work as well as personal interactions. They are celebrating special occasions over video conferencing, and have set up time for virtual interactions over coffee or lunch breaks, or just for general chat. We continue to recruit talent in our various locations through online connections, and new team members are undergoing virtual induction and onboarding. The WFH transition is working well. While our teams are not physically together, they are working efficiently and continue to collaborate by video. WFH conditions have strengthened confidence across our enterprise and among our clients. The remote work arrangements have also encouraged even more ownership, teamwork and innovation throughout the company. And, fortunately, up to the time of this writing in the second week of April, no one at Xceedance is reported to be infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus. Here are five lessons Xceedance learned during the COVID-19 pandemic: Business continuity plans require continuous review and reevaluation. Its hard to anticipate and envision dealing with a worldwide pandemic, but the current crisis is a dramatic reminder for timely due diligence on business continuity planning. Its hard to anticipate and envision dealing with a worldwide pandemic, but the current crisis is a dramatic reminder for timely due diligence on business continuity planning. Reassess and reconsider supplier relationships. As part of business continuity procedures, potential points of disruption or failure in the supply chain must be identified. Critical resources in this case laptops, connectivity equipment, licensing, security tools, and more may be in short supply or unavailable if many organizations are seeking the same items at the same time. As part of business continuity procedures, potential points of disruption or failure in the supply chain must be identified. Critical resources in this case laptops, connectivity equipment, licensing, security tools, and more may be in short supply or unavailable if many organizations are seeking the same items at the same time. With the right tools and guidance, staff will rise to the challenge of working virtually and proficiently. Even big teams where people are used to working in close proximity and enjoy personal interactions and physical teamwork can work in a virtual setting quite seamlessly and without loss of productivity, as long as appropriate technology, supportive leadership, and sound guidance are provided. Even big teams where people are used to working in close proximity and enjoy personal interactions and physical teamwork can work in a virtual setting quite seamlessly and without loss of productivity, as long as appropriate technology, supportive leadership, and sound guidance are provided. Virtual business workflows and conditions can be productive. The industry now has compelling proof points that re/insurers and their partners can work remotely and be productive. For example, cloud-based systems can be used to securely store data, as a viable solution to continue business operations as seamlessly as possible. The experience raised confidence in the industry that we can all adapt to work virtually and efficiently with stakeholders anywhere in the world. The industry now has compelling proof points that re/insurers and their partners can work remotely and be productive. For example, cloud-based systems can be used to securely store data, as a viable solution to continue business operations as seamlessly as possible. The experience raised confidence in the industry that we can all adapt to work virtually and efficiently with stakeholders anywhere in the world. Open and frequent communication is critical. As soon as a business-interruption event unfolds, its essential to communicate transparently and often with staff, clients, partners, and suppliers. The key is to clearly articulate the significant challenges, change-management best-practices, and organizational requirements to continue business as seamlessly as possible. Topics COVID-19 Tech India Building it up by keeping it local Javier Bravo has a mission: to build bridges between Peterboroughs businesses and residents to keep the citys downtown core dynamic and prosperous. And he has a solution: GiveLo (short for Give Locally), his online platform where users can buy gift certificates from local independent restaurants and retailers, or donate to local charities. As its tagline suggests Give great gifts from your keyboard or tablet! his website makes it easy for people anywhere in the world to send gift certificates that can be used at Peterborough businesses. Likewise, the site makes it easy to donate to Peterborough non-profits. Purchasing a gift certificate online through GiveLo is a simple and convenient process for both those who are purchasing, as well as for the recipient, who receives their certificate via email, says Julie Austin, owner of Chasing the Cheese in Peterborough. As a small, independent business owner, GiveLo also helps me because I am unlike large companies who benefit from the economies of scale when dealing with the technical issues of online purchasing, Julie explains. GiveLo is straightforward, economical and locally run, and assists in promoting local businesses in Peterborough. Originally from Mexico City, Javier has been living in Peterborough, population 81,000, since 2000. Peterborough is my Canadian cradle, he says. Mexico Citys population is over 21 million, so he knows what a vibrant city looks like. GiveLo is amazing proof of how newcomers give back to their new communities. It is an original, creative idea that benefits our community on so many different levels. It helps local businesses and non-profits. It connects the dots. It is genius. Hajni Hos, Executive Director, New Canadians Centre in Peterborough Javier has always loved his not-so-new home, but couldnt help noticing early on that people in the south of the city didnt often shop or eat downtown. He wanted to find a way to give local businesses and charities in Peterborough a boost by motivating more people to try them out. Javier had his lightbulb moment while volunteering on the website committee for the New Canadians Centre in Peterborough. When the committee began exploring the use of PayPal to capture more donations, the idea of a Web platform to channel funds toward local Peterborough businesses and charities was born. Javier launched GiveLo in 2014 as a volunteer initiative. He doesnt derive any income from it. Javier, who eventually joined the New Canadians Centres board of directors, also teaches entrepreneurial skills at Fleming College and runs extracurricular programs focused on entrepreneurship. Launching an innovative platform to carry out his idea was natural for him. Hes particularly proud of the fact that GiveLo provides opportunities to donate to local charities. When you donate locally, you can see firsthand the impact it has, Javier says. Getting involved locally is the best way to give back to your community. The number of GiveLo users has grown every year since 2014. Javier doesnt advertise or track where users are from. But word gets around, and hes had inquiries from people as far away as Calgary and Vancouver who wonder how they can bring GiveLo, or something like it, to their own communities. Immigration profile: Peterborough, Ontario (Census Metropolitan Area) Quick facts: Immigrants in Peterborough represent over 8% of the population. The United Kingdom is the biggest source country of immigrants in Peterborough, followed by the United States and Germany. Nearly half (47%), of all immigrants who came to Peterborough between 1980 and 2016 were economic immigrants. More than a third (37%) were sponsored by family and 15% were refugee. Did you know? Other than English and French, the most common mother tongues in Peterborough are German, Dutch and Polish. State Nagaland COVID-19 preparedness: Appeals, orders, preventive measures DIMAPUR | Publish Date: 4/20/2020 9:02:09 AM IST As the nationwide COVID-19 pandemic lockdown continues across Nagaland, the state government and its agencies and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have been issuing directives, appeals and taking preventive measures to contain the spread of the deadly virus. District administrations of the eleven districts along with police are keeping vigil to enforce lockdown while at the same time ensuring that public gain access to essential commodities. Several initiatives have been taken up to create awareness on COVID-19 pandemic. Kohima District Inspection of markets at Kohima town; shoppers asked to maintain social distancing With a view to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection in Kohima district, a committee on social distancing and lockdown enforcement was constituted headed by district administrator with members from government departments and civil societies. According to DIPR report, the committee on April 19 began its task in monitoring the precautionary measures to be followed during the window period (7 a.m. to 2 p.m.) within Kohima town. The report informed that elected members under Kohima district led by the legislators in-charge for Kohima district, Minister Housing & Mechanical, Tongpang Ozukum; advisor Urban Development & Municipal Affairs, Dr. Neikiesalie Nicky Kire; advisor Veterinary & Animal Husbandery, R. Khing; advisor Youth Resource & Sports, Er. Zale Neikha; MLA Neikezhakuo Nakhro and MLA, Khriehu Liezietsu inspected the main shopping areas located at BOC, Razhu point and High School junction. The elected members observed that with the involvement and assistance of the civil societies, the implementation of social distancing at most of the shopping points have been tackled successful with the cooperation of the general public. Minister Tongpang opined that plans need to be formulated for the main shopping area at BOC in order to ensure that proper social distancing was maintained as many wholesalers and vegetable vendors are located in the area. Besides the district administration, KMC and Police, the committee members included AYO, ASU, KVYO, KCCI and AKMW for assisting in social distancing at various shopping areas and also to assist the stranded students. The legislators also urged the shoppers to maintain social distancing and also thanked the volunteers from various civil societies for their services and efforts in helping out the district administration and police towards the safety of the public. Relief camp inmates avail medical check-up Kohima district administration and district disaster management authority (DDMA) on April 19 conducted a basic health checkup for migrant labourers and others stationed at the Relief camp, Kohima Local ground. According to DIPR report, Dr. Ruyangulie Paphino from Chief Medical Office (CMO) Kohima conducted the basic medical check-up for the inmates at the relief camp. The report stated that inmates had come from different places within Kohima district and kept under one accommodation. Altogether 15 persons were checked for possible health ailments relating to coronavirus, fever, cold and tuberculosis. Directives on perishable goods With a view to encourage social distancing and minimise gathering of public in the market, Deputy Commissioner, Kohima has issued following directives and guidelines to be implemented with immediate effect till further orders. According to DIPR report, the directive is as follows: no street vending will be allowed: only the whole sale shops selling perishable goods will be allowed to open (no retail sale allowed) at the following locations - BOC, Super Market, High School, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays between 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. along with all other exempted categories; respective colonies to collect the perishable goods from the above location on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays between 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. from the above location for retailing in their respective colonies. Mokokchung District Red Cross & NY volunteers trained on COVID-19 Training for the Red Cross and National Youth volunteers on COVID-19 was held Monday at the Conference Hall of Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Mokokchung. A press release by district programme management unit, NRHM, Mokokchung, stated that the training was organised as per the directive of Governor and ex- officio president Indian Red Cross Society, Nagaland State Branch, R.N. Ravi and as per per the guidelines given by the Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (NYKS) headquarters New Delhi and directives from the deputy commissioner Mokokchung. The release stated that resource persons, Dr Aonungdok (epidemiologist) and Dr Tsipongchem (pathologist) trained the volunteers on the origin, transmission, prevention, control measures, medical care, supportive environment, safe practices like frequent hand washing, social distancing, use of mask, avoiding public places etc. The volunteers were also highlighted about the incubation period which may last up to 14 days before symptoms emerge while some patients may spread COVID-19 during the incubation period. A short video clip on seven steps of hand washing and bio medical waste management was shown and demonstration on hand washing, use of mask and gloves and disposal was also demonstrated. Another session of training among the NSS volunteer from Fazl Ali College Mokokchung was also held. Phek District Health workers create community awareness Egypts foreign ministry spokesperson Ahmed Hafez said Egypt is aware of the condition of Egyptians staying at accommodation camps in Kuwait, adding that Egypt will initiate communication with authorities in the Gulf country to gradually bring back home the stranded Egyptians. Last month Kuwait granted amnesty to foreign violators of the country's residency laws from 1 to 30 April, during which time residency violators and expatriates can leave the country without being fined, according to the decree issued by Kuwait's Home Ministry. According to non-official figures, around 5,000 Egyptians are among the 13,000 violators who are benefiting from the amnesty. Hafez said Egypt will prioritise the repatriation of 270 women and children staying in Kuwait's accommodation camps. He told the media that Egyptians stranded in Kuwait are being offered assistance and their needs are being met. Egypt has operated six flights to Kuwait to bring back stranded Egyptians in coordination with Kuwaiti authorities. "The Egyptian Embassy in Kuwait is making efforts around the clock and communicating with the Egyptians and Kuwaiti authorities to overcome the problem," he added. "Officials from the Egyptian consulate visited the accommodation camps to inspect the conditions of the Egyptian citizens," Hafez said, Last week, Egypts Minister of State for Information Osama Heikal said the number of Egyptians stranded abroad due to the coronavirus crisis has reached 3,378. According to Heikal, foreign minister Sameh Shoukry stated in the meeting that the 3,378 Egyptians are stranded in a number of Arab, African, European and Asian countries as well as in the United States, Canada, and Australia. Shoukry added that the government defined the stranded Egyptians as "those who were in foreign countries on temporary visits, including tourists, Egyptians on business trips, and students who could not return to Egypt due to the suspension of air flights. Since Egypt suspended air flights in mid-March, a number of Egyptians returned from the Gulf, the UK and the United States and Canada on board EgyptAir flights sent by the government. Upon their return, they were isolated in special hotels for a 14-day quarantine. The number of Egyptian workers in Kuwait is 40,897 in the governmental sector and 451,960 in the private sector, according to Kuwaiti figures in 2018. Egypt has so far registered 3,144 coronavirus cases and 239 fatalities since the first coronavirus case was discovered in mid-February. Over 1,000 cases were registered in the past week. Kuwait has registered 1,995 coronavirus infections until 20 April. Search Keywords: Short link: - After public uproar and increased concern over Kenyans being mistreated in China, the government said it was ready to evacuate them - However, it said all those who needed to come should submit their details and buy their travel tickets - William Kabogo said it was inappropriate to ask them to pay for air fare and said they should all be evacuated at a loan they would pay later Former Kiambu governor, William Kabogo, has blasted the government over its reluctance to evacuate Kenyans who are being mistreated in China over claims of spreading COVID-19. This was after the government said it was willing and ready to evacuate Kenyans in the Asian country but at their own cost saying it would be costly for taxpayers to evacuate them. READ ALSO: Mtu mmoja aaga dunia katika makabiliano ya risasi kati ya polisi na Samburu Moran William Kabogo wants government to evacuate Kenyans at a loan that they will pay later. Photo: Citizen Source: UGC READ ALSO: Nyandarua landlord who waived rent for 3 months supplies tenants with foodstuffs Taking to Twitter on Sunday, April 19, the former county boss said the government should instead consider evacuating them on loan which they will pay at a later date. "For heavens sake bring them home on loan. Save their lives and demand money later you idiots," said Kabogo. Officials at the Kenyan Embassy in Beijing issued a notice on Friday, April 17, asking anyone ready to buy a ticket out of China to send their information via an online platform to be helped out of the country. If you are ready to travel under these conditions, fill the above QR code so that the bio data reaches the Embassy immediately, said a notice sent out to the Kenyan community in China. Kenyan ambassador to China Sarah Serem sent a notice to Kenyans asking them to submit their names for evacuation. Photo: Sarah Serem Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Mike Sonko anawezana! Flashy governor posts hilarious duet with Azziad Nasenya One of the conditions issued said only Kenyans would be evacuated as long as they could pay their own ticket. In addition, they would have to prove they were free of COVID-19 disease, which means they would have to be certified by Chinese medical authorities. They would also be quarantined for 14 days at their own cost once they arrived in the country. There was public uproar after videos emerged on social media showing Africans being mistreated in China on suspicion that they were the main source of a second wave of coronavirus infections in the country. Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Kamau Macharia had dismissed claims of discrimination against African in China. Photo: Foreign Affairs Ministry Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Video of conductor 'caught' by police in traffic dancing to Utawezana goes viral Kenyans called on government to evacuate those stuck in the country to avoid further suffering and discrimination. Foreign Affairs PS Kamau Macharia dismissed claims of mistreatment and eviction of Kenyans from their rental houses saying the issue was misunderstood and that the Chinese authorities were only implementing social distancing directive. Later on, he admitted there was discrimination saying the authorities were implementing the social distancing. This situation has been extremely worrisome to all of us. The reality is that this has been a very unfortunate outcome, "Africans, Kenyans included, have been discriminated against in the process of [Guangdong provincial] governments response to mop up the situation that they are facing there, post-crisis, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau told media briefing on Tuesday. 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 Source: TUKO.co.ke Three more persons have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Bihar, taking the number of COVID-19 cases in the state to 96, an official said. They came in contact with COVID-19 patients, Health Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Kumar tweeted late on Sunday night. The three persons - aged 30, 36 and 52 years -- hail from Jamapur in Munger districts of the state, he said. The disease has claimed two lives in the state while 42 patients have recovered till now. There were 52 active cases in Bihar till Sunday night. The total number of samples tested in the state so far is 10,746. Of the total 96 COVID-19 cases in Bihar, Siwan district reported the highest number of 29 cases. It was followed by 20 in Munger, 11 in Nalanda, nine in Begusarai, seven in Patna, five in Gaya, four in Buxar, three each in Gopalganj and Nawada, and one each in Lakhisarai, Saran, Bhagalpur, Vaishali and Bhojpur, a state health bulletin said. Of the 38 districts in the state, 14 have so far reported COVID-19 cases. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prince Harry cannot do anything right in the eyes of the Brits these days. This time, after he actually praised British veterans for being resilient and selfless, he was slammed for not having enough qualifications to comment on the coronavirus crisis. According to medical experts, Prince Harry's comment on a recent podcast is outrageous, bordering on nonsensical. In the process of praising the volunteerism of British veterans, he had let out the phrase that "things are better than we are led to believe," which caused medical frontliners to lash out. How dare he? Professor Karol Sikora, who is a leading British oncologist, is at the forefront of this irate group. He lashed out a Prince Harry and his so-called pride for Britons. On his part, what Prince Harry said is that he is proud of the selfless behavior of many British veterans who joined the army of volunteers who are doing their best to contribute to the battle against the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking with Michael Coates, who is manning the Declassified Podcast, Prince Harry, who is currently in Los Angeles, said: "I think that what is happening especially in the UK is the very best of the human spirit." He then added, "It's also proving that I think things are better than we're led to believe through certain corners of the media." Prince Harry subtly throws shade at the media by claiming that it can be dangerous in general for people when they are only gathering information about the virus from specific news channels. However, he said that if people are only out and about and if they are "on the right platforms," they can actually be aware of the human spirit being emphasized and pushed forward by this pandemic. Understandably, doctors who can witness the harrowing consequences of the infection first-hand, are quick to shut this comment down. Professor Sikora slammed his comments as "outrageous." He then slammed Prince Harry for even commenting when he has no credibility over this matter, even hitting at the fact that he's in a whole country away in the middle of this crisis because of Megxit. He told the Sun, "What are his qualifications for making these comments - other than deserting his country in its hour of need?" The expert also wondered why Harry is so angry at the media when journalists are hard at work to deliver information to the public, which in turn can make use of this knowledge to hold the government responsible. "As for the media, I really don't understand what Harry's beef is," he remarked. "Journalists have been reporting the facts and have been doing great work in holding the Government to account," he added. The doctor could be or could not be right about his comment about Prince Harry not making sense over his coronavirus statement. After all, some would argue that the prince merely wants to praise the army for doing a truly remarkable job. However, what the expert is right about is that Prince Harry (and, of course, Meghan Markle) is pissed off with the UK tabloids. In fact, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle already wrote to the editors of various British tabloids that they would not be allowed to cover them from now on, or at least with their expressed consent. They will now practice "zero engagement policy." The two wrote that the media has become too influencial when they can publish distorted information and lies. READ MORE: Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Are NOT WRONG About Megxit -- Here's Why Upwards of 2,000 Australians chose to hunker down in Bali rather than return to Australia to weather the coronavirus storm. Some, who call the island nation home, simply believe there is no point uprooting their lives because of the deadly respiratory infection, while others were hoping to avoid the two-week mandatory quarantine on arrival. For Australian travel blogger Lauren Bullen, the decision wasn't so simple. The 26-year-old wanted to return home in accordance with government advice, but she wasn't prepared to leave her partner Jack Morris, 29, and their dog Oreo behind. Mr Morris, a British citizen, wouldn't have been able to come to Australia given the government had introduced restrictions on non-residents to slow the spread of COVID-19. Australian travel blogger Lauren Bullen wanted to return home in accordance with government advice, but she wasn't prepared to leave her partner Jack Morris, 29, and their dog Oreo behind The couple built an expansive three bedroom home in Bali and have decided to self isolate there rather than return to their home countries The couple instead decided to remain at their palatial three-storey mansion in Bali to ride out the pandemic. 'We have decided to stay in Bali during this time. It's hard being apart from family right now but our home and pets are here, so we must stay with our little family,' Ms Bullen shared on her popular Instagram page Gypsea Lust. 'It's a pretty surreal feeling knowing that even if we wanted to go to Australia, Jack not being a citizen means he wouldn't be able to come anyway. Mr Morris agreed. On his platform, Do You Travel, he told fans: 'Lauren and I are trying to stay inside our villa as much as possible and comply with social distancing. It sucks but if everyone does their part, the quicker this will be over.' Meanwhile another traveller, Daniel Wilkins, decided to stay put because the lifestyle in Indonesian self isolation would be better than back home. The government advice was issued on March 18 and urged overseas Aussies to return home or risk being stuck. 'We have decided to stay in Bali during this time. It's hard being apart from family right now but our home and pets are here, so we must stay with our little family,' Ms Bullen shared on her popular Instagram page Gypsea Lust As a chef, he knew he would have no work in Australia and would struggle to find a rental place as cheap as what he had in Bali. 'No one else is here,' he said, adding that the luxurious lifestyle was only putting him back $900 per month - cheaper than most rentals in Australian cities. He said there are few people around in town, and he, his partner and daughter are self isolating in a beachfront villa estate entirely to themselves. The family are getting daily deliveries and food and alcohol are both still cheap. 'They're advising everyone to stay inside unless buying food or working. Before we went into isolation, the supermarkets were full of stock,' he said. 'Now there are hotel and restaurant suppliers doing deliveries to homes even cheaper than what we'd pay at supermarkets,' he said. Mr Wilkins said he has no regrets about choosing to stay and self isolate in Bali, and his social media post attracted dozens of responses from Aussies saying they wished they'd decided to stay on in Indonesia rather than return home. In Indonesia, there are now 6,575 known cases of coronavirus. Two people have died of the disease in Bali, however both were foreigners. Pictured: The couple lounging by their pool 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 Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade urged travelling Australians to head home on March 18, as COVID-19 rapidly spread across the world. According to the Smarttraveller website, Australians were told to return home as soon as possible regardless of 'destination, age or health'. 'As more countries close their borders or introduce travel restrictions, overseas travel is becoming more complex and difficult,' the advice said. 'Consider whether you have access to healthcare and support systems if you get sick while overseas. If you decide to return to Australia, do so as soon as possible. Commercial options may become less available.' In Indonesia, there are now 6,575 known cases of coronavirus. Two people have died of the disease in Bali, however both were foreigners. 582 people have died in Indonesia in total. For Australians hoping to receive western-standard healthcare in Bali should they contract the disease, they will be vying for one of only eight beds in the Bali International Medical Centre. Two Singapore citizens, one foreigner to be charged for breaching their Stay-Home Notices The three individuals are liable for a fine of up to SGD 10,000, or up to six months imprisonment, or both. Photo courtesy: Facebook/State Courts Singapore Two Singapore citizens and one foreigner will be charged in court on April 21 for breaching their Stay-Home Notices (SHN). 48-year-old Chong Chun Wah, a Singapore citizen, will be charged for offences under Section 21A of the Infectious Diseases Act and the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. Chong arrived in Singapore from Indonesia on March 17 March and was served with an SHN from March 17-31. However, he left his place of residence at Bukit Batok on three occasions: on March 24, he took a bus to Jurong East to purchase food and spent approximately one to 1.5 hours outside; on March 28, he left his residence for about five minutes to check his mail at the ground floor of his block; and on March 29, he walked to a coffee shop in Bukit Batok to purchase food and spent approximately 30 to 45 minutes outside. 25-year-old Siti Wan Su'Aidah Binte Samsuri, also a Singapore citizen, will be charged for offences under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020 and the Infectious Diseases (Measures to Prevent Spread of COVID-19) Regulations 2020. She arrived in Singapore from Australia on March 25 and was served with an SHN from March 25 - April 8. On March 30, she left her place of residence at Woodlands and walked to Vista Point to purchase groceries and cigarettes. During this period, she also failed to respond to multiple calls made to her mobile phone by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) as part of enforcement checks. She spent approximately 15 to 20 minutes outside. The third person to be charged is a 44-year-old male US citizen, Brian Dugan Yeargan, who will be charged for an offence under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. Yeargan, a commercial pilot, arrived in Singapore from Australia on April 3 and was issued a short-term visit pass valid for 30 days. He was also served with an SHN from April 3-17. On April 5, he left his place of accommodation at Crowne Plaza Changi Airport, took a train from Changi Airport MRT station to City Hall MRT station, and walked to Chinatown Point to purchase personal items. He spent approximately three hours outside. After an investigation and in consultation with the Attorney-Generals Chambers, ICA has decided to charge the three individuals for their respective offences which could invite a fine of up to SGD 10,000, or up to six months imprisonment, or both. When Ghatkopar resident Kaushik Badani, 59, returned home on Sunday night, after recovering from Covid-19, other residents of his building welcomed him by clapping and clanging utensils. Badani, a businessman, had spent 19 days at Hinduja Hospital. Prior to Badani falling ill, four of his family members had also tested positive for Covid-19 and were admitted to Lilavati Hospital. When they were discharged around two weeks ago, they returned home to find a hamper with items like packets of milk, hand sanitiser, hand wash, groceries, vegetables and fruits. A lot of people called us and asked if they should prepare dinner for us, and wanted to help us out in any way possible. As our society was on a lockdown, everyone was facing problems. Despite that, most things were provided to us. In such a situation, the support of your relatives and neighbours is very important, said Kavita, Badanis wife. Badani said hed spent his 19 days in hospital resting in his designated room and ensuring distance from other patients. Once really needs to stay strong and positive when one is fighting Covid-19, because if you give up in your mind, you will lose this battle. It is all about immunity and will power, said Badani. Badanis building has decided to remain in lockdown, on the basis of protocol set up by the civic body, until May 3. In our house as well, we will maintain social distancing and quarantine measures for the next 10 days at least, which would mean the four of us will not come in contact with each other, said Badani. Similarly, residents of Tata Colony at Tardeo welcomed a senior citizen who had been hospitalised for Covid-19, by clapping for the recovered patient, from their balconies, on Saturday night. A community member said two other residents from the society had also tested positive previously, and they were also welcomed in the same way. COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, affects lungs, and smokers are being warned to consider their health before they inhale. Eating or ingesting cannabis, however, spares your lungs, and theres nothing in a classic pot poster or lava lamp that can make you feel bad. CORONAVIRUS IN OREGON: THE LATEST NEWS As an ode to April 20, the internationally celebrated day to advocate for cannabis use, we offer this list of marijuana-themed ideas to deliver a happy vibe (weed lovers matching hoodies) or conceal it (Cannabolish smoke odor eliminating candle). Movies Cannabis information resource Leafy released a list of 75 stoner movies to beat the self-isolation blues. Heres a sampling: The Big Lebowski (1998): The Coen brothers cult comedy-thriller starring Dude Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and Julianne Moore The Blues Brothers (1980): Jake and Elwood Blues (John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd) reunite with their R&B band. Reefer Madness (1936): Drug dealers lead teenagers to become addicted to marijuana in this campy classic. Up in Smoke (1978): An unemployed pot-smoking slacker and amateur drummer, Anthony Stoner (Tommy Chong), meets kindred spirit Pedro de Pacas (Cheech Marin). Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004): Nerdy accountant Harold (John Cho) and his friend, Kumar (Kal Penn), take a life-changing, mind-altering journey. Dependable 3D Marijuana Leaf Weed LED Light 7 Color Changing Table Light Night LightDependable Decor If youre looking to capture more of the culture at home, Goldleafs Oregon Cannabis Travel Art by Nicholas Moegly depicts a woodsy scene of cannabis plants thriving alongside a waterfall. Printed on archival paper with an ultra-high-quality press, the vintage-looking piece comes in two sizes: 18 inches by 24 inches or 24 inches by 36 inches. Goldleaf also publishes guided notebooks and other prints. Dependables marijuana leaf light with seven color changes produces a three dimensional illusion of a cannabis leaf that can decorate and illuminate a space from atop a table or be used as a nightlight. The MagicalButter machine is a countertop, self-cleaning, steel botanical extractor that can infuse the essence of herbs into butter, oil, grain alcohol or lotions.MagicalButter In the Kitchen For Oregonians who like to make their own edibles, sauces and other culinary creations, the MagicalButter machine is a countertop, self-cleaning, steel botanical extractor that can infuse the essence of herbs into butter, oil, grain alcohol or lotions. Marijuana Edibles: 40 Easy and Delicious Cannabis-Infused Desserts cookbook by Laurie Wolf and Mary Thigpen, owners of Laurie & MaryJane edibles company in Portland, explains the process of cooking with cannabis and other natural ingredients, and includes recipes for baked goods, candy confections and sweet-and-salty treats. Fitness Coffees Cannabissimo premium Italian blend coffee is roasted with hemp seeds and coffee beans (Arabica 90% Robusta 10%) with no gluten, sugar, GMO, additives, preservatives or artificial flavors. Books The Stoners Psychedelic Coloring Book for adults by artist Edwina Mc Namee, a self-described Irish illustrator with a sense of humor, has 103 pages to let you settle down and chillax ... and get lost in this trippy psychedelic dream. Silver Mountain Hemp is a boutique musical instrument company producing custom guitars, guitar cabinets, guitar straps, ukuleles, guitar picks and volume knobs, all using hemp.Backstage Flash Wellbeing Ganja Yoga: A Practical Guide to Conscious Relaxation, Soothing Pain Relief, and Enlightened Self-Discovery by Dee Dussault, who introduced cannabis-enhanced yoga classes, with Georgia Bardi, promises to show the way to profound relaxation. Silver Mountain Hemp is a boutique musical instrument company producing custom guitars, guitar cabinets, guitar straps, ukuleles, guitar picks and volume knobs, from hemp. Rescue Rub CBD Full-Spectrum Formula by scientist, researcher, herbalist and Portlands Peak Extracts CEO Katie Stem with her partner Kate Black uses terpenes, flavonoids, minor cannabinoids and antioxidants to create a silky-textured topical for massaging temples and other achy places. Peak Extracts was the first adult-use edibles producer licensed in Oregon and sells infused strain specific, gluten-free and vegan cannabis chocolate in more than 150 carefully selected retailers across Oregon. --Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072 jeastman@oregonian.com | @janeteastman Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories Chairman of the Tobinco Group of companies, Nana Amo Tobbin I, on Sunday visited some poor communities in the capital to distribute 2000 boxes of beautifully packaged food items to the needy and the vulnerable. The unprecedented donation was aimed at supporting slum dwellers who have been deprived of their daily bread following the three-week lockdown imposed by the government to contain the rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Another reason for the house-to-house food distribution method according to Nana AmoTobbin I, was to give the true meaning of social distancing. He explained that the overcrowding that characterised the distribution of food by some organizations was not the best as it poses a health risk to the beneficiaries and that he thought it wise to use a safer way to distribute food to the needy. This is the major donation by the Tobinco Group in the fight against the ravaging covid-19 pandemic. Tobinco first partnered the Church of Pentecost to donate medical supplies to nursing and midwife trainees followed by the donation of medical supplies worth over 250, 000 to the Ministry of Health to combat the pandemic in the country. Speaking to Atinka TV, Nana Amo Tobbin, noted that, this was the time to extend a helping hand to extremely poor people in the country as most of them have no food to eat in this lockdown period. According to him, the excitement and joy on the faces of some of the needy residents when they saw that some help was coming from Tobinco, was an indication that there are so many people who genuinely need help in this difficult times but they don't know where the help might come from. Atinka TV observed that many residents in the poor neighborhoods visited had spent some of the days without food and the arrival of the Tobinco trucks and vans with packaged food items meant that their prayers had been answered. Residents of Kofi Krom, a popular slum in the Avenor area were extremely happy with the kind gesture from Nana Amo Tobbin and they heaped massive praises on him, asking God to enlarge his business empire as well as protect his life and family. Nana Amo Tobbin commended individuals and corporate organizations assisting the government's efforts to feed the needy in these difficult times and further called for more of such support as the nation combats the pandemic. He suggested the use of mobile money as one of the methods to help the needy. He said organizations and individuals can identify needy people in society and send them some cash for their upkeep. Finally, he urged all Ghanaians, particularly the vulnerable to observe all the personal hygiene protocols outlined by the government and health institutions to combat the pandemic in the country. WORKERS WONT PAY TO RESCUE CAPITALISM: COVID DEBT BELONGS TO THE MONOPOLIES! The COVID-19 pandemic has overtaken our world, bringing with it catastrophic health and economic implications for the people of all nations. Sickness and loss of life is a human tragedy of monumental proportions. The failure of the worlds developed capitalist economies to urgently respond to the spread of the virus and protect their people has clearly exposed the fatal contradiction at the heart of the capitalist model. The rights of the few to private profit are in stark conflict with the rights of the many to safety and health. Communists worldwide, including in Australia, are standing together with workers and all exploited people to demand governments prioritise peoples needs before all else. The COVID-19 health crisis has exposed the vulnerability and the contradictions in the capitalist economies that have for decades pushed the privatisation of all sectors of the economy and shrunk government responsibility for services to people. The economic response in capitalist countries to the pandemic has clearly shown the interdependence of the private sector on the taxpayer via government subsidies and incentives and handouts. In the present crisis, the private sector has again put its hand up for even greater handouts as the threat of collapse rears its head. The banks, the airlines (Virgin and Qantas), the private health insurers, private childcare, and others are all being propped up by public funds to keep them in private hands. Instead, we should be nationalising them, which would reduce government debt and guarantee essential services in the future. The CPA stands with the Australian working class who are suffering now, and who will be disadvantaged in the future by the pro-business COVID debt. Conflicted by their true class allegiance, capitalist governments in Australia, the UK, and the US common response is characterised by confusion and delay which is evident in the mixed messages, indecision, denial and stuff-ups. The Australian government at the federal and state levels has displayed reluctance (to the point of criminal negligence), to shut down business and schools; a failure to prepare for mass testing and to stock adequate PPE supplies; a delay in stopping travel into Australia all of which resulted in a spike of cases and community panic. In Tasmania, they are asking where the testing kits and the PPE are after a serious threat of community spread emerged recently. The early focus has not been on stopping the pandemic and reducing the loss of life. It has been on putting in place fiscal policies to save the private sector, to save a crippled and dysfunctional system incapable of looking after people. The ideologically driven and unheard-of business rescue packages have placed the economic burden of saving the capitalist economy on the working people of Australia, now and into the future. The $130 billion JobKeeper package will be paid for by workers through a long-term debt burden that is avoidable but not preferred by capitalism. Tax avoided by monopoly and transnational companies for years and decades could be called in now to subsidise wages. Instead, we are hearing that plans are afoot to increase the GST to twenty per cent. The crippling debt will not be paid back by the monopolies or by big businesses. No guarantees are being demanded for businesses to keep people employed on full wages when the crisis is over. No levy is being flagged on super-profits of the monopolies. Yet, almost 2 million casual workers will be forced onto the JobSeeker Allowance (Newstart), and Australian workers are preparing for further insecure and part-time employment, extended wage freezes, increase regressive taxes (like the GST), and higher unemployment. Workers are encouraged to pay for the crisis by drawing down on their super, a long-term impoverishment strategy for the already vulnerable. This is how Team Australia will be positioning the working class in the recovery stage. Meanwhile, monopolies and finance capital are repositioning themselves to take advantage of the new opportunities to profiteer by absorbing smaller competitors, price gouging, and opportunistic speculation in depressed markets including the share market and parasitic finance sector. NO ACCORD MARK II The CPA, for many years, has exposed the lie of social contracts and Accord politics which deny classes exist in capitalist societies. They claim opportunistically during the COVID-19 pandemic that there are no classes and no conflicting interests. There will be no support for another social contract, this time called Team Australia. There must be no support for placing the burden of COVID-19 rescue package debt onto the working people. The CPA will not accept attempts to repay the COVID debt through the impoverishment of workers and other sectors and strata, including the rural poor. Recovery policies that further lower living standards and wages and/or impose long-term austerity policies on the Australian working class and other exploited strata are unacceptable. No worker should be placed in the position of choosing between their safety and their livelihood, including health workers and essential industry workers. The CPA has called on the Australian government to nationalise the health system now to ensure we have the capacity and resources needed to fight the war on COVID-19. This means no billion-dollar deals with private hospitals to lease their resources and staff to the public health system. Privatisation of our health system has proceeded at the expense of our public hospitals and Medicare and doesnt need to be paid $1.3 billion to lease back hospitals and resources. We have already paid for those resources. In Australia, where until now the death toll remains low, there has been a cynical delay by governments in implementing the necessary public health measures and providing economic back up for workers. Essential workers and teachers have been on the front-line, underprepared and more often unprotected. Everything has been left on the shoulders of individuals when a government response was necessary. Their casual colleagues treated as second class workers, dispensable both in and out of crisis. Gig economy and casual workers have had little choice but to keep working despite clear risks. This indecisiveness arose from a primary commitment to keep businesses open in the face of the rapidly emerging health threat. The Team Australia rhetoric rolled out alongside hundreds of billions of dollars of pro-business fiscal rescue packages hoped to blunt any opposition to what amounts to saving the system on the backs of the workers. NO MORE HANDOUTS TO THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY! It is time to shut down the free ride being given to private health insurance. The CPA is asking: Why are the people still paying private health insurance premiums during the COVID-19 crisis when they are not able to access elective surgery and ancillary health services covered by this insurance? At the same time, the Private Health Insurance industry (PHII) is getting a second get out of jail free card. The PHII receives a thirty per cent government subsidy on peoples health insurance premiums. The PHII rebate redirects taxpayers dollars into subsidising the unprofitable private health insurance funds which in turn prop up the private health system. This government handout to the private health insurance industry is a wasteful use of public funds for the benefit of the owners of private hospitals and profit-hungry medical professionals. Now is the opportune time to direct these funds back to the underfunded public health system and re-build a strong public health sector. In the next three to six months, the Australian government plans to keep paying the subsidy to the private funds at an estimated cost of $5 billion just over that period. The CPA is the only voice calling on the Australian government to stop the unjust subsidies to the PHI now. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the predatory and aggressive nature of capitalism more clearly. The CPA has pointed out that despite this national crisis, $39.5 billion per annum is going into a bloated and wasteful defence budget. It continues to agitate and demand this money be used for the COVID-19 emergency. It is money needed to build up the Australian peoples defences against COVID-19. It is money better spent on strengthening and building up the public health system and our economic defences through publically owned essential industries including, energy, banking, utilities, and transport sectors. It will also help to ensure the working people are not left with capitalisms debt. Our governments must meet the needs of the people. It can be no longer acceptable for governments to siphon off the wealth created by the working people and fill the pockets of a privileged and parasitic few by impoverishing the producers of that wealth. It is no longer acceptable to build submarines instead of ventilators or to waste billions of taxpayers dollars to fight imaginary enemies when we cant even supply our front line health workers with protective masks and PPE. TODAYS AGENDA IS SOCIALISM COVID-19 has made it abundantly clear to a growing section of the Australian people that socialism is not only a realistic alternative but the necessary alternative to capitalism. In the present crisis, they can see more clearly how capitalism prioritises the private sector and big business interests over the working people and the majority of Australians. They understand that talk of Team Australia is talk of maintaining a status quo, where the workers are left on their own. At the same time, the monopolies and governments are excused from responsibility for the economic and health needs of society. The working class must continue to recruit support for a socialist change in society, from all the exploited and oppressed sections of society, including the rural poor, the unemployed, women and young people, the dispossessed Indigenous people, and anti-imperialist peace and environmental groups. We must compete for and win political and economic power to defend and extend the interests of the vast majority of the Australian people. There is no other choice. Shake Shack is returning all $10 million it received from a federal loan program intended to help small businesses amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the popular burger chain announced in a statement late Sunday. "Our people would benefit from a $10 million [Paycheck Protection Program] loan but we're fortunate to now have access to capital that others do not," the company's executives, Danny Meyer and Randy Garutti, wrote in a letter shared on LinkedIn. "Until every restaurant that needs it has had the same opportunity to receive assistance, we're returning ours." REOPENING TEXAS: Governor Abbott names members of Strike Force to Reopen Texas The decision comes shortly after Shake Shack was identified in recent media reports as one of multiple large companies with revenue of more than $100 million that obtained loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, which maxed out last week and is no longer accepting claims. The $350 billion lending program, a central part of the massive $2.2 trillion stimulus passed last month, is meant to incentivize small businesses to keep people employed through loans that are forgivable if the workers are kept on payroll, according to the Small Business Administration. But as CNN reported over the weekend, scores of small businesses have had their loan applications rejected while larger companies including restaurant chains, hoteliers and other publicly traded corporations have received amounts in the millions. In Sunday's letter, Meyer, Shake Shack's founder, and Garutti, the CEO, explained that the chain initially applied for federal assistance because it qualified under a stipulation that loans could be paid out to any restaurant location with no more than 500 employees. Though Shake Shack has 189 locations, each individual restaurant only employs about roughly 45 people, the letter said. "The 'PPP' came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing," Meyer and Garutti wrote. "The best chance of keeping our teams working, off the unemployment line and hiring back our furloughed and laid off employees, would be to apply now and hope things would be clarified in time." The burger chain wasn't the only large restaurant business to benefit from the program, CNN reported. Potbelly Sandwich Shop, Ruth's Chris steak houses, and Kura Sushi USA Inc., one of the largest sushi chains in the country, among others, all received sizable loans, according to CNN. STIMULUS EXPANSION: New proposed $2K per month COVID-19 payment would include more Americans Meyer and Garutti said Sunday that they were not aware the federal program would be overwhelmed so quickly and acknowledged the outcry stemming from independent businesses that were not able to secure loans. The decision to return the $10 million loan was made immediately after Shake Shack secured separate funding last Friday "needed to ensure our long term stability," the letter said. The two executives went on to urge Congress to make sure that moving forward the program is adequately funded, writing, "It's inexcusable to leave restaurants out because no one told them to get in line by the time the funding dried up." "If this health crisis and the associated economic shock has taught us anything, it is that we are all in this together," Meyer and Garutti wrote. "Restaurants and their employees are craving the moment when we can safely be back in business and bring our guests back to the table. With adequate funding and some necessary tweaks, the PPP program can provide the economic spark the entire industry needs to get back in business." Salvation Army establishes hotline The Salvation Army has established a hotline for those affected by coronavirus to call for emotional and spiritual support. The Emotional and Spiritual Care Hotline will be manned 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (CDT) daily by Salvation Army officers and trained employees. The number is (844) 458-HOPE (4673). The goal of the hotline is to offer assistance to people overcome with worry or undue stress caused by the pandemic, according to a press release from the nonprofit. Anyone who would like to make a donation to the Salvation Army may mail a check to the Midland Salvation Army, 600 E. Wall St., Midland, Texas 70701; go to salvationarmytexas.org or call 800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769) For more information, call 683-3614. Restaurant fundraiser continues At least $5,000 has been raised to date for local restaurants impacted by coronavirus, according to an email from Visit Midland. VisitMidland has partnered with the Permian Basin Restaurant Association and The Shimmy Shack to raise funds through the sale of the HospitaliTEE, a T-shirt inspired by The Tall City. HospitaliTEE is $30 each. It can be purchased through May 10 at https://shoptheshimmyshack.com/collections/featured/products/hospitalitees-visit-midland. Delivery or porch pickup options are available to continue the practice of social distancing. Proceeds from the HositaliTEE fundraiser will be given to the Permian Basin Restaurant Association and distributed to restaurants and their employees. The PBRA is indebted to VisitMidland and the Shimmy Shack for organizing the HospitaliTEE campaign to help raise funds for local restaurants and their employees, said Jerry Morales, Permian Basin Restaurant Association president. MISD is serving meals Midland ISD Child Nutrition Services (CNS) will provide free breakfast and lunch to students who want them. Students do not have to be on free or reduced lunch to receive a meal. Meals are grab-and-go and may be picked up at any of the locations. More information is available at www.midlandisd.net/covid19. Meal pickup time has been changed beginning today to 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Students will receive lunch and breakfast for the following day. The locations remain the same: Elementary schools Bonham - East Parking/Drive Bowie - West Parking Bunche - East Bus Drive Burnet - East Parking/Drive Bush - North Bus/Parent Drive De Zavala - East Parent Drive Fannin - West Parent Drive Franks - East Service Loop Drive Greathouse - West Service Loop Drive Henderson - West Parent Drive Lamar - East Service Loop Drive Long - East Street Parking Milam - East Street Parking Parker - West Bus Drive Pease - West Parking Drive Rusk - East Bus Drive Santa Rita - West Drive Scharbauer - South Parking Drive South - North Street Curb Travis - South Parent Drive Yarbrough - North Bus Drive Secondary schools San Jacinto - East Bush Drive Goddard - East Staff Parking Midland High - "A Street Band Hall Service Loop Other sites South Interstate 20 Mobile Sites (Yellow MISD Bus) Cotton Flat Baptist Church - 6409 Hwy 349 Valley View Baptist Church - 5500 FM 1213 Twin Oaks Mobile Home Park - 5200 S. County Road 1200 Airline Mobile Home Park - 7100 W. Highway 80 Bates Field Estates - West County Road 171 & South County Road 1315 (pick up breakfast and lunch from 7:30-8:30 a.m.) Grocery store hours during coronavirus --Albertsons Market 7 a.m.-9 p.m. 1002 Andrews Highway For shoppers 60+ 7-9 a.m. Monday and Thursday 3317 N. Midland Drive For shoppers 60+ 7-9 a.m. Tuesday and Thursday --H-E-B 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Customers 60+ Orders can be called in 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at 833-397-0080. Groceries will be delivered by Favor Delivery. For more information, go to newsroom.heb.com --Market Street: 7 a.m.-9 p.m. For shoppers 60+ 7-9 a.m. Monday and Thursday --Walmart: 7 a.m.-8:30 p.m. 7-8 a.m. curbside delivery pickup for first responders and customers 60+, with disabilities or at-risk [April 20, 2020] Recce Pharmaceuticals Announces Positive Data on RECCE 327 Against Influenza A Respiratory Virus Infection in Animal Model Highlights: Dramatic reduction in viral load in the lungs of mice treated with RECCE 327 as compared to the approved antiviral drug treated and vehicle control untreated groups RECCE 327s unique mechanism of action reinforces efficacy against both bacterial cells and enveloped viruses SYDNEY, Australia, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Recce Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: RCE), the company developing a new class of broad-spectrum synthetic antibiotics, today announced positive efficacy data showing significant in vivo anti-viral activity against the Influenza A virus in mice treated with its lead compound RECCE 327. Data showed a significant dose-dependent decrease in the viral growth rate and viral load in lungs of mice infected with Influenza A following treatment with RECCE 327 compared to the vehicle control group, and group treated with an approved antiviral drug ribavirin, also known as tribavirin. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c988a256-3ccb-4275-926b-fa0f50f3ba31 Day Vehicle control Ribavirin 66 mg/kg i.p. RECCE 327 500 mg/kg iv bid RECCE 327 1000 mg/kg iv bid Mean SD N Mean SD N Mean SD N Mean SD N 1 4.38 0.1 3 4.29 0.06 3 4.39 0.09 3 4.39 0.1 3 2 4.66 0.1 3 4.31 0.08 3 4.35 0.03 3 4.37 0.1 3 4 5.37 0 3 4.38 0.18 3 4.27 0.03 3 BLOQ NA 3 6 5.32 NA 1 4.16 0.17 3 4.09 0.02 3 BLOQ NA 3 BLOQ Below Limit of Quantitation The study was conducted by an independent Contract Research Organization to assess the dose-dependent efficacy of RECCE 327 and in vivo anti-viral activity against Influenza A, a respiratory lung infection, in mice. RECCE 327 treatment groups were dosed twice-daily for five days and the ribavirin treatment group was dosed once daily for five days (optimized dosing for latter). Viral pathogenesis in the mice was evaluated by body weight loss, survival and viral load in lungs. The results demonstrated RECCE 327 showed a significant dose-dependent decrease in viral load in the lungs compared to the vehicle control and ribavirin a drug that decreases relapse rates by accelerating viral clearance early in the treatment course1. Four groups of 12 mice infected with Influenza A showed those treated with RECCE 327 fared better in almost all instances than those who received the ribavirin treatment, an approved antiviral drug, or vehicle control group. RECCE 327 continued to show efficacy at different dose levels with significant reduction in viral count in the lungs when compared with the vehicle control. As dosage increased from 500mg/kg to 1,000mg/kg, the viral count fell below the limit of quantitation (BLOQ) on days four and six post-infection. Influenza A viruses are enveloped viruses and causative agents of respiratory disease. The genome of the Influenza A viruses comprises single-stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecules similar to that of coronaviruses, where the genome also comprises single-stranded RNA. Michele Dilizia, Executive Director of Regulatory Affairs, said, These data reinforce RECCE 327s unique, universal mechanism of action, seen against bacterial cells and further now, viral particles. The universal mechanism of action shows continued potency against mutating bacterial cells and it is exciting to see the potential here as well, against viral particles, which are also notorious for their mutation. Dr John Prendergast, Non-Executive Chairman said, The increasing potential to be effective against not only a broad range of superbug bacteria, but viral pathogens as well, reinforces the companys expanding infectious disease capabilities and global positioning. 1 Drug Bank CA - https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB00811 This announcement has been approved for release by Recce Pharmaceuticals Executive Director James Graham About Recce Pharmaceuticals Ltd Recce Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: RCE) is pioneering the development and commercialization of a New Class of Synthetic Antibiotics with Broad Spectrum activity designed to address the urgent global health problem of antibiotic resistant superbugs. Recce antibiotics are unique their potency does not diminish even with repeated use, which is a common failure associated with existing antibiotic use and the resulting emergence of resistant superbugs. Patented lead candidate RECCE 327, wholly owned and manufactured in Australia, has been developed for the treatment of blood infections and sepsis derived from E. coli and S. aureus bacteria including their superbug forms. The FDA has awarded RECCE 327 Qualified Infectious Disease Product designation under the Generating Antibiotic Initiatives Now (GAIN) Act labelling it for Fast Track Designation, plus 10 years of market exclusivity post approval. Recce wholly owns its automated manufacturing, ready to support first-in-human clinical trials. Recces anti-infective pipeline seeks to exploit the unique capabilities of RECCE technologies targeting synergistic, unmet medical needs. Executive Director Media & Investor Relations (AU) Media & Investor Relations (USA) James Graham Andrew Geddes Meredith Sosulski, PhD Recce Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. CityPR LifeSci Communications +61 (02) 8075 4585 +61 (02) 9267 4511 +1 929 469 3851 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Luxembourg's finance sector surveillance commission CSSF has issued warnings about a group entitled "GoldenCFD Broker Firma." The company claims to offer financial services and is allegedly based in Luxembourg City (42-44 Avenue de la Gare, L-1610). The company does not hold an agreement with the financial watchdog to offer financial services. PHOENIX Hundreds of protesters descended on the Arizona Capitol on Monday to demand Gov. Doug Ducey lift restrictions on businesses meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Flouting the recommendations of health officials to remain at least 6 feet (2 meters) from others and wear masks in public, demonstrators said the government has vastly overreacted to the disease. The Bill of Rights has no exceptions for pandemics, said 35-year-old Jeremy Graham of Tempe. The demonstration echoes several others outside state Capitols and governors mansions around the U.S. In states such as Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia, small-government groups and supporters of right-wing causes have united behind a deep suspicion of efforts to shut down daily life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Frustrated demonstrators also have visibly ignored social distancing rules while holding signs and protesting together. President Donald Trump last week unveiled a framework for governors to follow to reopen their states. But he acknowledged they will have the final say. Health experts warn that lifting restrictions too quickly could result in a surge of new infections. Protesters in Phoenix crammed together in a park across from the Statehouse to hear from two state lawmakers and others before marching toward Duceys office. Some went inside the building that houses the Republicans offices. A handful of police stood watch but did not break up the protest and Duceys office did not say if there would be consequences to gathering in violation of his stay-at-home order. Ducey has been cautious in describing how and when he might ease the restrictions that he issued March 30 and is due to expire April 30. He said last week that there are signs the number of infections may be stabilizing, but he wants to see more data before starting to reopen the economy. He said he wants to see everyone get back to work and back with their lives when it is safe and healthy to do so. Ducey sounded a similar theme in response to Mondays demonstration. We appreciate the passion expressed by Arizonans today, and we share their desire to get back to normal as quickly as possible, Duceys spokesman, Patrick Ptak, said. Ptak said decisions will be guided by public health experts and the recommendations of the Trump administration. The restrictions have taken an economic toll. Arizona, and the rest of the U.S., has seen a massive increase in unemployment filings. The state reported it had more than 72,000 new claims last week, bringing the four-week total to more than 342,000. The average before the virus hit was about 3,500 claims a week. The state paid out more than $150 million last week, and $74 million more on Monday that includes the first payments of an extra $600 per week under a massive federal relief law. We need to open up the state, we need to open up the country, said Michael Apodaca, a 66-year-old retiree from Scottsdale who wore a hat supporting Trump at the protest. The people reject what theyve done, and they reject the notion of taking our rights. Duceys order allows engaging in constitutionally protected activities such as speech and religion as long as its conducted in a manner that provides appropriate physical distancing to the extent feasible. The demonstration was reminiscent of a Trump campaign rally. Many protesters carried American flags or Trump campaign flags. A massive bus was wrapped in signs supporting Trumps campaign. Some protesters raised signs urging Ducey to re-open Arizona. Another said: Cure is worse than virus. And a third: Give me liberty or give me death. People in cars and trucks drove in circles around the Capitol honking horns and waving flags. One pickup truck had a sign in the back urging people to ignore the stay-at-home order, saying tyranny only works if we comply. 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. Meanwhile, the White Mountain Apache Tribe in eastern Arizona reported that nine inmates and four employees in its corrections department had tested positive for the virus. None of the 13 people showed symptoms but were tested as a result of contact mapping. The inmates in question are in quarantine, while the officers are isolated at home, officials said. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 124 immovable properties worth more than Rs 175 crore of a West Bengal-based company in connection with a money laundering probe linked to an alleged bank fraud case, the agency said on Monday. It said a provisional order for attachment of the assets of Prakash Vanijya Private Limited has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), its director Mannoj Kumar Jain and others for allegedly cheating the CentralBank of India of Rs 234 crore loan amount. Of the 124 properties attached by the ED, 11 are in Chhattisgarh, 10 in West Bengal's capital Kolkata and three in Jalpaiguri. The total value of the properties is Rs 175.29 crore, the ED said in a statement. The federal agency said it launched a PMLA probe against the company and its officials after going through a CBI FIR and the properties were traced after "unfolding layered transactions". Probe found, the ED said, that Letter of Credit (LC) facility was obtained by accused Mannoj Kumar Jain and this was "misused" as LCs were issued without any underlying transactions by using fictitious and shell companies and without any real business or trade. "The LCs so opened were discounted by Jain through fictitious beneficiary companies and funds were received back by him by round-tripping through his shell companies," it alleged. "These released funds from bank were used for personal purpose and for settling other liabilities through kite flying operations," it said. The agency added that the accused, after availing credit facilities from bank, started acquiring immovable properties. "The purchase price of these properties were highly undervalued and balance amount were paid in cash. These cash amounts were illegally generated out of defrauded amount from the banks," it said. Some of these properties were then offered as "collateral securities" to bank for enhancing the credit limit, it said. Probe in the case is ongoing, the ED said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 11:59:47|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LAGOS, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian army confirmed on Sunday that 105 militants of the terror group Boko Haram were killed during a recent military operation in the northeastern state of Yobe. The success was a result of an intelligence report which revealed a plan by Boko Haram terrorists to attack Buni Yadi village, according to Lawrence Araba, the army commander in charge of Sector 2 of Operation Lafiya Dole. The commander said the troops swiftly intercepted and engaged the criminals in battles that led to the killing of 105 Boko Haram terrorists as well as the seizure of some equipment from the terrorists. Boko Haram has posed enormous security and humanitarian challenges in the Lake Chad basin, including Chad, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger, besides Nigeria, according to the United Nations. Enditem Anne Young arrived in India in late 1964 as the first Australian nurse to work at "Raphael", a home for those with disabilities, including leprosy, at Dehradun north of Delhi. "Raphael", named after the Angel of Healing, had been founded jointly by Group Captain Leonard Cheshire VC [later Lord Cheshire of Woodhall] and his wife Sue Ryder [later Baroness Ryder of Warsaw] following their marriage in Mumbai, India in 1959. Anne Boyd in Rome for the canonisation of Mother Teresa in September 2016. Although only intending to stay three years, which she did, this was the commencement for her of a love affair with the Ryder-Cheshire Foundation, both in India and Australia, which never abated. Anne's childhood, from her birth at Narrandera on January 17, 1939, and the death of her mother, Elvie, a teacher, shortly before her sixth birthday, was far from conventional. Her late mother was only discussed once with her father, Dudley, a motor mechanic. She attended many schools including boarding at Mittagong, where she was received into the Catholic Church shortly before her 10th birthday assisted by a Dominican nun. Anne completed her secondary education at the Mercy Convent Bundaberg, attaining the Queensland Junior Certificate. Owing to straitened circumstances she was obliged to leave school then and obtained employment with a local rose nursery. A 29,000 a year private school has announced that it will forgo summer holiday this year to run its lost Coronavirus term through the summer months. The Abbey College at Malvern, Worcester, plans to re-open its doors on the 5th July 2020 to replace the entire Third Term and ensure pupils don't miss out on a minute of classroom time. A spokesman for the school said: 'All teaching will be done exactly as if there was no pandemic - just 11 weeks later. The Abbey College at Malvern, Worcester, plans to re-open its doors on the 5th July 2020 to replace the entire Third Term lost to the pandemic 'The existing Parents and Students have shown tremendous enthusiasm for this initiative in beating the virus and making sure the Children's education is unaffected, and no additional fees payable.' Principal Malcom Wood said that online teaching cannot replace face to face The school has also offered 30 places, worth 500,000 in fees, free to children of parents who work in the NHS to attend while they work. Abbey College said: 'To assist NHS staff, The College is also offering up to 30 free place in its day school to NHS staff working in local NHS facilities so their Children can catch up with lost education (and Summer School fun and activities) and hard working Parents can get back to some normality without worrying about children at home during the Summer. 'The College is also offering a further 30 tuition free places to NHS staff wishing to have full-boarding places for the new term starting September 2020 (only boarding fees payable by parents taking up this extended offer).' Students at the school are said to be 'enthusiastic' about working through the summer (file photo) 'Whilst on-line Teaching is certainly better than no Teaching it can never replace face to face class room education,' said Principal Malcom Wood. 'The 'NHS Students' will also have a unique opportunity of mixing in their free time with our Summer School Students from all around the world who are booking places subject to there being flights and no Government restrictions by the 5th July 2020.' Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor urged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday to give a comprehensive customs and GST tax exemption on all diagnostic and protective equipment currently being employed by healthcare professionals in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter to Sitharaman, Tharoor said at present a number of tax rates are being charged, including on critical equipment such as Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), infrared thermometers, thermal cameras or scanners, rapid testing devices, protective masks and even sanitisers. "For instance, during my recent procurement of 250 infrared thermometers for my constituency of Thiruvananthapuram, using the MPLAD funds that were previously under my disposal, a considerable sum of Rs 5. 08 lakhs was levied in taxes (comprising of Customs Duty of Rs 1.64 lakhs, IGST of 3.27 lakhs and a social welfare cess of Rs 16, 415)," Tharoor said. He also pointed out that for procuring 3,000 RT-PCR test kits for his constituency, the consignment was charged with a 12 per cent GST rate. "It is also my understanding that the procurement of PPE kits, which are essential in offering a layer of protection to healthcare professionals and allied medical supports staff, will attract a GST of either 5 per cent or 12 per cent depending on the cost of individual components within these kits," he said. At a time when the nation is united in a common endeavour to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, and many stakeholders are scrambling to procure these essential items from all quarters including overseas manufacturers, the current tax slabs that have been fixed offer a financial obstacle that could be done away with, Tharoor said. Though Parliamentarians can unfortunately no longer procure critical equipment since the funds at their disposal have been appropriated by the central government, other civil society organisations and philanthropic bodies have been generously doing their bit to augment the availability of these items, he said. The current tax rates that they will have to cover appears to be an unwise financial burden that could disincentivise additional procurements, he said.. In order for such an exemption to be beneficial for the customer, it is also essential that the government looks into the loss of input tax credits that would hit manufacturers and explore options through which manufacturers can be reimbursed on the same basis as if GST had been paid, he suggested in his letter. The lost GST revenue would serve as a form of government contribution or subsidy for the fight against COVID-19, he said. "I believe that the current taxation rates that are being levied on life-saving equipment must strongly be reconsidered and a well-thought exemption must be announced at the earliest," Tharoor said. "While the government has rightly exempted some of the aforementioned equipment from basic customs duty, a comprehensive customs and GST related exemption on all such equipment would certainly be beneficial and worth considering," he said. If implemented retrospectively, it would also help Parliamentarians to obtain additional equipment for their respective constituencies by redirecting the sum allocated for taxes that they would have previously spent from the erstwhile MPLAD funds at their disposal, Tharoor added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BEIJING (Reuters) - A spillage of waste molybdenum ore in northeast China last month was the biggest tailings leak the country witnessed in almost 20 years and needed the toughest environmental emergency response, the environment ministry said on Monday. The incident on March 28 in Heilongjiang province sent 2.53 million cubic meters of water containing waste molybdenum ore - mined for the metal used in stainless steel and tools - into the local river system, reviving fears over the safety of ponds used for tailings. Tailings dams are commonly used by mining firms to store waste remnants of ore. The spill reached as far as 110 km (68.35 miles) southwest of the mining site, where the chemical oxygen demand reading (DOC) - a measure of water quality - was 5.7 times higher than standard levels. A high COD reading indicates a greater threat to aquatic life. There were no reported casualties in the Heilongjiang incident, which occurred at a pond belonging to Yichun Luming Mining, but the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said on Monday the incident required "the toughest emergency management" and "extremely complex rectifications." Meanwhile, Yichun Luming's production licence was temporarily suspended after the spill. The ministry also said it launched an investigation into the spill with the Ministry of Emergency Management and Heilongjiang province and would make the probe report public. Last week, both ministries announced a broader month-long probe into hidden risks at tailings dams across the country. Tailings dams have been under close scrutiny globally since the collapse of one in Brazil last year killed more than 250 people. In China, 276 people died when a tailings dam at an iron ore mine gave way in Shanxi Province in September 2008, around one month after a similar incident, also in Shanxi, killed at least 43 villagers. [https://tinyurl.com/y9zyku69] The environment ministry said the local Hulan river had now been "basically cleared" after weeks of on-site emergency treatment and that the key objective of not allowing excessive waste to enter the Songhua river, the fifth-longest in China, had been achieved. (Reporting by Tom Daly and Min Zhang, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips) Travis Scott is teaming up with Fortnite for an in-game experience and the premiere of a new song. Because we're all home anyway, right? The Houston rapper's "Astronomical" has its global debut Thursday inside Fortnite, the wildly popular, online video game. If you don't have it, you can download Fortnite free now. It's available on iOS, Android, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC and Mac. As the stay-at-home "quarantine" keeps being extended, people's loneliness turns to horninessand Alt Erotic has the cure for COVID-19 boredom! Starting Monday, April 20, a series of scenes by quarantined alt models will hit the internet. The series "Quarantined and Horny", created by Alt Erotic's Ivan and produced by Sascha Ink, is ready to be unleashed on the worldlike Leya's Falcon's squirtfest in her lonely bedroom on Quarantine Day #7. Every week, Alt Erotic will be posting another "Quarantined" self-shot solo scene. The first locked up beauty is the company's Brand Ambassador from Australia who's gone viral, the "Infamous Lunatic" Amber Luke. The series also includes Leya Falcon, Rocky Emerson, Vex Voltage, Hellcat Nat, and from across the world, Sabien DeMonia in the UK and Kate Utopia from the Ukraine. But fans of alt erotica shouldn't worry: if the quarantine extends, the company has plenty of alt models lined up to make fans' cold lonely nights a bit warmer. "This quarantine has helped me sit back and brainstorm ideas upon ideas," Ivan explained. "Why not be productive and with models who are talented as well as creative artists of their own? This is just another way of keeping us upbeat, motivated and for so many get our rocks off watching super-hot alt models in the privacy of their quarantined lives!" The series of scenes comes with a self-shot YouTube diary by the models about their tattoos called "QuarantINKED," which was developed by Ivan for the company's viral youtube channel TattooAddiction.com. "I can't believe how many models have reached out and how viral our Tattoo Addiction channel is getting," said Alt Erotic owner Sascha Ink. "This is an exciting time for our company; we are motivated whether it's under quarantine rules or creating within our own means." Every model involved will be receiving a limited edition "QuarantINKED 2020" shirt, so the company asks models, "Don't miss out on an opportunity to do a fun project, get creative, get paid and get some cool merchandise!" For more information or to sign up, email [email protected] or text Ivan at 323.397.5856. (Please include social media account info as well.) Pena Nieto, the former president in Mexico and members of his family, are now under investigation due to their accumulated wealth during his term according to a recently published article. President Pena Nieto Is Under Investigation Former President Pena Nieto has served Mexico from 2012 to 2018. Nieto and some members of the family are now under investigation due to their amassed wealth during Nieto's administration, according to a local news outlet. A letter requesting access to the bank transactions of the former president, his ex-wife Angelica Rivera, and his four children were sent by the Ministry of Public Administration to the National Banking and Securities Commission this month. Moreover, the letter sent was signed by the Minister of Public Administration Irma Sandoval and was received on April 14 by the National Banking and Securities Commission. Contents of the Letter Signed by the Minister of Public Administration It is stated in the letter that the Minister of Public Administration is currently investigating the amassed wealth of the former president and members of his family during his 6-year term as president. The letter includes seeking information to 50 banks where Nieto and his family are allegedly hiding their money and wealth. Some of these banks are the Citibanamex, Santander, HSBC, Azteca, BBVA, the Bank of China, Mexico, and the Bank of America, Mexico. Moreover, the Public Administration is also requesting the Commission to look into the other financial transactions of the family that includes currency exchange houses and credit unions. When the Commission was asked about the authenticity of the letter, they did not give any details. Instead, a spokesman said that information could not be provided regarding the investigation. Pena Nieto's Comment About the Alleged Corruption A local news outlet tried to contact Nieto regarding the issue. However, they failed to reach him. The former president has not been seen in public since September 2019, where he was seen eating in a restaurant in New York with his partner Tania Ruiz. As you may know, Nieto's administration was plagued with various corruption scandals. One of these was the diversion of billions of pesos in public money via shell companies and the "white house" affair. His ex-wife also purchased a mansion built by a favored government contractor. During his time, his corruption was known as a master fraud embezzlement scheme. Meanwhile, the financial transactions of former cabinet secretary Luis Miranda are also being investigated. He served in Nieto's administration. It was also found that the federal government's Financial Intelligence Unit has asked the commission to obtain information about the financial transactions of Luis Miranda and his wife over the past decade. Miranda has served 16 months as the minister of social development in Nieto's administration. In a separate interview with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, he denied any knowledge of the probe or investigation held against his predecessor. He said that just because an investigation is taking place, it does not mean that he is involved with it. Read a related article: Mexican Peso Reaches 3-Year Low: President Lopez Obrador Optimistic Mexico will Recover LOS ANGELES - The unofficial holiday celebrating all things cannabis arrives Monday as the nations emerging legal marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis, with many consumers reducing spending or going underground for deals. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 19/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. In this Thursday, April 16, 2020, photo, wearing a protective mask and gloves, a security guard offers bandanas for customers who don't have protection for pick up service at The Higher Path cannabis dispensary in the Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles. Monday is April 20, or 4/20. Thats the code for marijuanas high holiday, which is usually marked with outdoor festivals and communal smoking sessions. But this year, stay-at-home orders have moved the party online as the marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) LOS ANGELES - The unofficial holiday celebrating all things cannabis arrives Monday as the nations emerging legal marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis, with many consumers reducing spending or going underground for deals. It was supposed to be a long weekend of festivals and music culminating on April 20, or 4/20, the code for marijuanas high holiday. Instead, it has been reduced to an online replica because of stay-at-home orders to curb the pandemic. Virtual parties and video chats are replacing vast outdoor smoking sessions to mark the rise of legalization and celebrate cannabis culture. The origins of the annual celebration are believed tied to a group of Northern California high school friends, who used the code as slang for smoking pot in the early 1970s. Stay home, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, said bluntly. San Francisco Mayor London Breed threatened arrests: We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year." In this Thursday, April 16, 2020, photo, wearing a protective mask and gloves, budtenders prepare orders for customers to pick-up at The Higher Path cannabis dispensary in the Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles. Monday is April 20, or 4/20. Thats the code for marijuanas high holiday, which is usually marked with outdoor festivals and communal smoking sessions. But this year, stay-at-home orders have moved the party online as the marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) For businesses, 4/20 is usually their once-a-year Black Friday, when sales soar. Instead, they are reporting up-and-down buying and pondering an uncertain future. The pandemic means the world economy could face its worst year since the Great Depression in the 1930s. In a sign of whats to come, U.S. retail sales overall dropped nearly 9% in March a record. Millions are out of work. As for the holiday, theres a sombre feeling to this one, said Jordan Lams, CEO of Pure CA, which specializes in marijuana extracts and does business as Moxie brand products. Before the outbreak, it was going to be the biggest 4/20 in history, Lams said. Steve White, CEO of Arizona-based Harvest Health & Recreation, said hes watching to see if consumers treat marijuana more like beer or toilet paper when money runs short. When the economy tumbles, beer sales traditionally spike. With toilet paper, panic-buying might empty shelves but people do not use more of it. They just buy less later. In this Thursday, April 16, 2020 photo, wearing a protective mask and gloves, budtender Alexi Ezdrin attends to a customer with curbside service at The Higher Path cannabis dispensary in the Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles. Monday is April 20, or 4/20. That's the code for marijuanas high holiday, which is usually marked with outdoor festivals and communal smoking sessions. But this year, stay-at-home orders have moved the party online as the marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel) It will be a telling year, because no one in the relatively new industry knows if sales will plunge, stay flat or even rise. Do people buy less cannabis, or does it become more ingrained as part of their daily life? White said. The uncertainty in the market poses the latest challenge for an industry that's expanded in some form to all but a handful of states. The risks are spotlighted in California, where businesses contend with hefty taxes, an illicit market that still dwarfs the legal one and a tourism-reliant economy that's crippled by virus restrictions. Because cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, most banks dont want to do business with pot companies and they aren't included in the coronavirus rescue package that will help other businesses. FILE - In this Nov. 1, 2019, file photo, San Francisco Mayor London Breed waits to address the annual Women In Construction Expo in San Francisco. "Stay home," the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, said bluntly. San Francisco Mayor London Breed threatened arrests: "We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year." (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File) Before the virus, we were already teetering on ... an edge of a cannabis collapse, said Los Angeles dispensary owner Jerred Kiloh, who heads the United Cannabis Business Association. Its going to be very difficult for cannabis businesses to make it through this pandemic. That's despite the onset of stay-at-home orders in March that sent marijuana sales rocketing; some businesses reported single-day records as customers stocked up. New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles were among the cities that labeled dispensaries essential businesses that could remain open. But since then, business generally has flattened or tapered off, even with deliveries and curbside pickups growing to reduce health risks. Marijuana data trackers BDS Analytics documented sales surges through much of March, but then consumers pulled back in late March and early April, with sales mostly below average. In recent days, some sellers reported sales jumps as government assistance checks began reaching consumers. In Oregon, cannabis retailers saw a huge spike last month a 30% increase in average sales per retailer compared with March 2019. Sales increases mid-month were even larger. FILE - In this Dec. 14, 2017, file photo Jordan Lams, poses for a picture next to a precision extractor in Lynwood, Calif. As for the holiday, "there's a somber feeling to this one," said Lams, CEO of Pure CA, which specializes in marijuana extracts and does business as Moxie brand products. Before the outbreak, "it was going to be the biggest 4/20 in history," Lams said. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File) However, the peak has levelled off and customers are coming in less frequently but buying more, said David Alport, who owns two Bridge City Collective stores in Portland. Hes hired three more employees to handle home deliveries. In Illinois, marijuana businesses can keep operating under Gov. J.B. Pritzkers stay-at-home order. Companies made sweeping changes that included appointment-only sales and online ordering. The Mission dispensary on Chicagos South Side saw an initial spike in purchases before the lockdown took effect, but that's levelled off. Weve never faced an economic downturn when cannabis was legal, said Kris Krane, president of Mission dispensaries. This is completely unprecedented. Some customers could be especially vulnerable during an economic downturn. Among cannabis users in states where its legal, 32% have incomes below $35,000 and only 54% have full-time employment, according to BDS Analytics. Anyone on a tight budget might be more apt to avoid taxes that go with legal purchases and buy from illicit market dealers. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Steve DeAngelo, co-founder of Harbourside dispensaries in California, said its difficult to predict what's next, with no template for how cannabis consumers will react in a deep economic downturn. Still, he notes that the industry has endured for years through times good and bad, even when consumers had only one option illegal purchases. Consumers who see marijuana as part of their daily routine will keep coming back, he predicted. But, for businesses, there will be a sorting out, DeAngelo said. Companies with strong brands and cash reserves are likely to fare better in a poor economy; those saddled with heavy debt who made too-rosy promises to investors will face challenges. There is not going to be an extinction moment, DeAngelo said. Its going to prove more resilient than many, many other industries. ___ Associated Press writers Gillian Flaccus in Portland, Oregon, and Kathleen Foody in Chicago contributed. Blood, Flaccus and Foody are members of APs marijuana beat team. Find complete AP marijuana coverage here: https://apnews.com/Marijuana. Follow Blood on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MichaelRBloodAP. Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has said the lifting of the partial lockdown in the Greater Accra, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi areas was achieved because most of the preventive measures to curtail the spread of the disease has been welcomed and practised by citizens. According to him "the purpose of the lockdown through researches conducted by authorities involved shows that the fight has been achieved as massive increase in testing and tracing continues". "Main purpose of the partial lockdown was not to reduce the number of confirmed cases of the disease in the country but to trace contacts and as well note the geographical footprint of the virus actual positive rate in Ghana." The Ofoase-Ayirebi Constituency Member of Parliament (MP), speaking via Skype on UTV's "Adekye Nsroma", explained that all preventive measures introduced in the country due to COVID-19 outbreak still holds except the lifting of the partial lockdown. Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah indicated "massive testing is our priority as a nation to fight the disease in a reasonable manner." Source: Elizabeth Semiheva/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. Featured Video WASHINGTON - The Trump administration and congressional leaders are closing in on a $400 billion-plus deal that could pass the Senate as soon as Monday to renew funding for a small-business loan program that recently ran out of money, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and top Democratic leaders said Sunday. The deal would also boost spending for hospitals and testing. Mnuchin said on CNN that he hoped to see the agreement pass the Senate on Monday and the House on Tuesday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also expressed optimism that a deal was near, with Schumer saying he was "very hopeful we could come to an agreement tonight or early tomorrow morning." The deal would add about $300 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for small businesses that was swamped by demand in the three weeks since Congress passed it as part of a $2 trillion coronavirus rescue bill. It also would add $60 billion to a separate emergency loan program for small businesses that also is out of money, Schumer said. The agreement also would include $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for testing, which have been major Democratic demands. Some of the money in the small business program would be directed specifically to rural and minority businesses, according to people familiar with the plan who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe it. "We want to make sure that it's reaching all of America's small businesses," Pelosi said on ABC. "And we also want to make sure that it's operating in a community where our police and fire, our health-care workers, our doctors, nurses, our teachers, are being compensated for and not fired. And that's why we're asking for the additional funds in the package, as well as for hospitals so that we can do testing, testing, testing." "I think we're very close to agreement," Pelosi said. The lack of testing has been a major pressure point throughout the pandemic, with lawmakers and governors lashing out at the federal government for handling of the issue; President Donald Trump has increasingly blamed governors. Another major Democratic request - money for cities and states - appeared left out of the deal, though talks remained fluid, and Schumer said some items were still being discussed. Congressional aides cautioned that the deal was not final. Mnuchin said he'd been in contact with GOP congressional leaders and, "We're all on board with the same plan." "I'm hopeful that we can reach an agreement that the Senate can pass this tomorrow and that the House can take it up on Tuesday, and Wednesday we'd be back up and running," Mnuchin said. A $2 trillion economic stimulus law passed by Congress last month created the $349 billion PPP, which allowed banks to issue taxpayer-backed loans to small businesses to help them weather the coronavirus pandemic. On Thursday, the White House said that nearly all of the $349 billion had been committed and that the Small Business Administration stopped backing new loans. The White House said that the program allowed 1.6 million companies to receive the loans, and that most of the money must be spent on paying the wages of employees to minimize job losses during the pandemic. More than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past four weeks. Even with the 1.6 million loans, it appears a small portion of companies received the taxpayer assistance. There are 30 million small businesses, and many firms complained that they were blocked from accessing the money. On CNN, Mnuchin was asked whether Congress would need to appropriate more money on top of the $300 billion to help more companies. He said the $300 billion would be sufficient. If the changes are voted into law this week, Congress would have approved more than $700 billion in emergency assistance for small businesses in just a month. That would be more than the $700 billion in stimulus funds approved during the financial crisis of 2008-09. But the financial crisis money had strict requirements regarding public disclosure over who received the money. Under the current arrangement set up by Congress and the White House, it's unclear whether the public will ever learn the identity of who received the new money. The White House has said businesses, non-profits, churches, and affiliates of large companies can seek the money. Schumer said there would be changes sought by Democrats to the PPP to ensure greater participation by community banks that would ensure smaller businesses get more money. Schumer and Pelosi have been negotiating with Mnuchin throughout the weekend. The new money for hospitals in the bill would come on top of $100 billion in the original $2 trillion rescue bill. Hospitals have been begging for additional relief, with some overwhelmed by treating coronavirus patients and others losing nearly all revenue and laying people off because they are no longer doing elective procedures. Democrats had also been demanding an additional $150 billion for cities and states whose budgets have been devastated by the economic toll of the coronavirus. But Republicans have opposed that, insisting it was not the federal government's job to make up for state budget shortfalls. Mnuchin said Trump had heard governors' pleas and was willing to address them in subsequent funding bills. After passing this interim measure with more money for small businesses, hospitals and testing, Congress is expected to turn its attention to cobbling together another major rescue bill. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican who chairs the National Governors' Association, has joined other governors in asking the federal government to approve $500 billion in additional spending for them. But he said on CNN on Sunday that he didn't want to see funding for small businesses held up as lawmakers and the administration wrangle over asks from states. "We're just hopeful that we can get all these parties to agree and put aside the partisanship in the U.S. Senate, get the administration and the senators on both sides of the aisle to reach some kind of a deal to get it done, because we do need to get this money out for our small businesses, and certainly the hospitals need help as well," Hogan said. He said that he'd spoken with Mnuchin and Trump, and that they'd committed to working with governors on more money in upcoming spending bills. "I don't think the deal is finalized yet, but look, we don't want to hold up funding to small businesses," Hogan said. Congress is out of session so it can only pass legislation that's agreed upon in advance by all parties and can pass by "unanimous consent" at one of the periodic "pro forma" sessions that take place in both chambers. The Senate is scheduled to hold a pro forma session Monday, and the House has one set for Tuesday, creating opportunities for action. The House is also in the process of developing a system of proxy voting that would allow lawmakers to essentially vote remotely by authorizing colleagues to vote on their behalf. Many lawmakers are reluctant to return to Washington en masse given the health risks of the pandemic. - - - The Washington Post's Mike DeBonis contributed to this report. California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday announced that efforts are underway to get more students online amid coronavirus school closures, while acknowledging that the digital divide has hurt the distance learning of an estimated 1 in 5 low-income students. About 70,000 computers and internet hot spots will go to schools and students starting this week, Newsom said as private donors, foundations, and communications and tech companies have come forward with donations. "We continue to need to do much, much more," Newsom said. "We're not done. This is the beginning of a process." For the briefing on schools, Newsom brought forward First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who talked about research suggesting that 1 in 5 students lacked connectivity when campuses across the state began to shut down. She also noted recent surveys indicating that 50% of low-income families and 42% of families of color are worried about distance learning for their children because they don't have a device at home. "The fear these parents have that their children will fall behind without internet access and devices is very real," said Siebel Newsom. She added, "We have your back and will continue to fight for you." Also speaking at the governor's daily coronavirus briefing was state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, who has convened a task force to address the digital divide. "Our digital divide has gone on longer than this pandemic," Thurmond said. "It is something that has gone on for decades." The current situation presents an imperative to close that gap "once and for all," he said. One issue with the state's response has been the time lag in getting resources to isolated students as the end to the traditional academic year approaches. Even school systems that didn't wait for state help have confronted challenges. L.A. Unified immediately began distance learning, providing hot spots and computers. After two weeks, 15,000 high school students, about 12.5%, had not logged on, percentages that have improved. Story continues On Monday, the number had dropped to 3,000. But L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner said it is an additional challenge to provide a strong distance-learning program and to assess student engagement, which is about more than simply logging on. Even when it comes to logging on, there are concerns. About 7% of high school students are still not connecting electronically with their teachers every week. L.A. Unified authorized spending $100 million for computers and hot spots, but had to purchase higher priced devices because adequate less-expensive devices were not available. Hot spots were not immediately available to families either, despite the district's commitment to pay for them. Sacramento Unified is experimenting with turning school buses into mobile Wi-Fi hot spots, hoping literally to roll out the initiative by May 1, about seven weeks after campuses began to close. To bolster the state effort, a number of donors have come forward with computers and broadband service, including Google, Microsoft, Lenovo, HP, Sprint, T-Mobile, Zoom, Apple, along with individuals including internet entrepreneur Jack Dorsey and foundations including the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Portable Partitions products had always been made in Australia so the business was able to quickly adapt to manufacturing perspex screens. David Silverton, co owner of Portable Partitions Australia, at Balmoral Cellars where a screen has been installed to protect workers from coronavirus Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Co-owner David Silverton said Portable Partitions' core business, which previously turned over around $5 million a year, had dropped by 90 per cent as offices shut down. When Portable Partitions Australia completely changed its business last month from making partitions for offices to producing perspex screens to protect against coronavirus, the transformation wasn't held up by unnecessary regulation. Businesses fear cuts to red tape by the government and agencies in response to the coronavirus pandemic will only be temporary. "We were able to shift quickly," Mr Silverton said. "We are pretty lean, we have ten staff. The beauty of this is we have been able to hold on to all of our staff and hopefully employ a few more to meet the continued demand for the product." Red tape has been an ongoing issue for the government which had previously pledged to cut $1 billion of red and green tape each year and public servants and government agencies have scrambled to try to reduce the regulatory burden for businesses struggling to survive. Small business ombudsman Kate Carnell said it was now "significantly clearer" what a stand down looked like and how businesses could change hours and scope of work. Credit:Roger Stonehouse Small business ombudsman Kate Carnell said the government had worked quickly to reduce employment red tape off the back of the JobKeeper legislation which was introduced last week but she was worried the changes were short term and set to finish in September. "If anything has shown a system that is too bureaucratic and opaque it has been the lack of clarity on what employers can do during this period of time," she said. "Can you stand down staff? Can you not stand down staff? What do you need to do if you cannot reduce hours for staff?" Aston Martin Lagonda said it has completed its 536million rights issue while new boss Lawrence Stroll pledged to 'reset' the business as he formally took control of the car maker from today. The Canadian businessman and Formula 1 team owner, who has a 25 per cent stake in the company, said his priority was to restart the luxury car firm's manufacturing operations, particularly for its first SUV model, the DBX. 'We will do this in a way that ensures we will protect our people, wherever they work - their safety is our overwhelming concern,' Stroll said. In charge: Canadian businessman and Formula 1 team owner Lawrence Stroll Aston Martin's production facilities at Gaydon and St Athan have been closed since last month, and the car maker has taken advantage of the Government's furlough scheme. It comes as Stroll and a group of other investors struck a deal to save Aston earlier this year, which included pumping 75.5million into the company through a short-term loan. 'The rights issue and the investment that I, and my co-investors in the consortium, have made has underpinned the financial security of, and our confidence in, the business,' Stroll said today. 'We can now focus on the engineering and marketing programmes that will enable Aston Martin to become one of the preeminent luxury car brands in the world.' He said that during this first year they will 'reset' the business, returning to production, rebalancing supply to demand for the company's core car models, and investing in marketing. The company said its four-for-one rights issue has been accepted by 98 per cent of the company's shareholders. It also confirmed that Toto Wolff, Mercedes' Formula 1 team principal, has bought a stake in the business as part of its major rights issue. Aston Martin Lagonda floated on the London Stock Exchange at 19 in October 2018 valuing it at 4.3billion but profit warnings, huge losses and emergency fundraisings had hammered the company's share price by late 2019. Today shares in the company fell 4.5 per cent to 55.45p. The Metropolitan Police Service is facing a lawsuit over the death of PC Keith Palmer during the Westminster terror attack, it has been reported. Chief Coroner Mark Lucraft QC ruled in 2018 that PC Palmer could still be alive if armed officers were stationed with him at the Carriage Gates at the Palace of Westminster. During the attack in March 2017, they were positioned 80 yards away while terrorist Khalid Masood, 52, stabbed PC Palmer, 48, with two 12-inch knives. The Met, who is said to have refused to accept responsibility, confirmed to The Mirror it had received a 'letter of claim', which is used by lawyers to outline the legal basis for the action. PC Palmer's wife Michelle said after the inquest that her husband 'was left at a vulnerable location with no protection' - but her solicitor has refused to comment on the letter. The Metropolitan Police Service is facing a lawsuit over the death of PC Keith Palmer (pictured) during the Westminster terror attack, it has been reported Chief Coroner Mark Lucraft QC ruled in 2018 that PC Palmer (pictured with his wife) could still be alive if armed officers were stationed with him at the Carriage Gates at the Palace of Westminster The officer's family also said that following the inquest into his death, senior officers 'seem to have closed ranks'. Mrs Palmer added: 'They let Keith down by failing to protect him and let us down by failing to investigate his death properly. Now we have to live with the consequences of their failure.' A Met spokesman confirmed it had received a 'letter of claim' but Mrs Palmers solicitor refused to comment on it, the publication reported. PC Palmer, 48, was guarding the Carriage Gates at the Palace of Westminster in March 2017 when Masood embarked on his rampage. After mowing down and killing four pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, he rammed into the Houses of Parliament and burst out with a carving knife and a hunting knife. During the attack in March 2017, they were positioned 80 yards away while terrorist Khalid Masood, 52, stabbed PC Palmer (pictured), 48, with two 12-inch knives Armed only with a baton and CS spray, PC Palmer was held down by Masood and repeatedly stabbed in the face, neck and back after trying to intervene in his deadly assault. His body armour did not protect him and he died from his wounds just minutes later while witnesses tried to save him. Masood was finally shot by two close protection officers who only happened to be at Parliament because they were guarding then-defence secretary Sir Michael Fallon. The two armed officers on duty at Parliament on the day of the attack had not gone near the gate for almost an hour beforehand. They were 80 yards away when PC Palmer was stabbed and could not see the attack unfold. Following a four-week inquest, Mr Lucraft said that had the armed officers been stationed at the Carriage Gates, it is possible they may have been able to prevent PC Palmer suffering fatal injuries. He claimed: Due to shortcoming in security system the armed officers were not aware of a requirement to remain in close proximity to the gates. Had they been stationed there, it is possible that they may have been able to prevent PC Palmer suffering fatal injuries. Since PC Palmers death, Scotland Yard has been accused of unfairly blaming the junior officers to hide systematic security failings. The marksmen insist they were simply following orders by focusing their attentions on another entrance at Parliament that was commonly used by MPs and ministers. In light of the threat of the coronavirus, a group of women in Idleb have started to produce face masks, for distribution among people living in refugee camps reports Brocar Press. A group of displaced women from the southern Idleb city of Kafr Nubl have launched a volunteer campaign providing masks to people living in the camps of rural Idleb to fight against COVID-19 in northwestern Syria, where global health reports warn that the virus risks exploding at any moment. Five women from Kafr Nubl who previously worked as seamstresses in the Mazaya Centera part of the opposition-run Union of Revolutionary Bureauslaunched their initiative in April from the Kafr Nubl Hospital. Once located within Kafr Nubl, the hospital now operates in Armanaz, a town in northwestern Idleb. The women are making masks for the residents of displacement camps surrounding the northwestern town. Narmeen al-Sweid, the teams planning officer, told Brocar Press that the idea for the campaign was born from a lack of sufficient information among displaced people about the virus, and the danger of it spreading in areas that are difficult for aid organizations to reach. After we conducted a number of tests on the quality of the masks, we reached a good standard, Sweid said, adding that the women have produced around 500 masks that have been distributed to three camps in the town of Salqin, as well as nearby informal camps. Not only has our team produced masks, but we have also begun to make hand sanitizer after consulting with specialists and accessing the materials we need to make it, she added. The sanitizer will soon be distributed alongside the virus awareness campaigns, as these camps are a ripe environment for the large-scale spread of the virus. A number of volunteer groups have been working on sterilization and awareness campaigns in various areas of Idleb, including the camps, since the start of the virus global outbreak. The initiatives are part of broader measures to prevent and guard against COVID-19 as local health organizations have yet to record any infections [in northwestern Syria], after conducting lab tests for more than 200 potential 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. WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has bounced 38% in the last month alone, although it is still down 56% over the last quarter. However, that doesn't change the fact that longer term shareholders might have been mercilessly wrecked by the 56% share price decline throughout the year. All else being equal, a sharp share price increase should make a stock less attractive to potential investors. 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 some would prefer to hold off buying when there is a lot of optimism towards a stock. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock 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. Check out our latest analysis for WESCO International Does WESCO International Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry? We can tell from its P/E ratio of 4.70 that sentiment around WESCO International isn't particularly high. We can see in the image below that the average P/E (11.9) for companies in the trade distributors industry is higher than WESCO International's P/E. NYSE:WCC Price Estimation Relative to Market April 20th 2020 WESCO International's P/E tells us that market participants think it will not fare as well as its peers in the same industry. Many investors like to buy stocks when the market is pessimistic about their prospects. You should delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling. How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios Earnings growth rates have a big influence on P/E ratios. If earnings are growing quickly, then the 'E' in the equation will increase faster than it would otherwise. That means unless the share price increases, the P/E will reduce in a few years. A lower P/E should indicate the stock is cheap relative to others -- and that may attract buyers. Story continues WESCO International's earnings per share grew by 6.5% in the last twelve months. And it has improved its earnings per share by 31% per year over the last three years. But earnings per share are down 3.5% per year over the last five 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. Thus, the metric does not reflect cash or debt held by the company. 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). 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. So What Does WESCO International's Balance Sheet Tell Us? Net debt totals a substantial 113% of WESCO International's 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 WESCO International's P/E Ratio WESCO International trades on a P/E ratio of 4.7, which is below the US market average of 13.6. It's good to see EPS growth in the last 12 months, but the debt on the balance sheet might be muting expectations. What we know for sure is that investors are becoming less uncomfortable about WESCO International's prospects, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 3.4 to 4.7 over the last month. If you like to buy stocks that could be turnaround opportunities, then this one might be a candidate; but if you're more sensitive to price, then you may feel the opportunity has passed. Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. If it is underestimating a company, investors can make money by buying and holding the shares until the market corrects itself. So this free visualization of the analyst consensus on future earnings could help you make the right decision about whether to buy, sell, or hold. But note: WESCO International 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. Yesterday morning we awoke to the usual fusillade of disturbing news in what is the worst crisis this country has experienced since the end of the Second World War. The shortage of personal protection equipment for our courageous medical staff is worsening. The testing fiasco continues, and the Government seems unlikely to meet its self-imposed target of 100,000 tests a day by the end of the month. Death and suffering are all around. The economy is crashing. Jobs and livelihoods are at risk. Many are frightened, and some people are having to confront their fears alone, separated from those they love. Amid this almost unbearable gloom, there erupted a very different story which seemed so discordant and bizarre that I could not for a moment believe what I was hearing. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex delivered a pronouncement from distant Los Angeles, where they are residing in a rented house said to be worth 8million, almost certainly subsidised by Prince Charles. Their message was that they no longer intend to have dealings with British tabloid newspapers, including the Mail. Can you imagine a more frivolous and sententious intervention during a pandemic that threatens our way of life? When humans are worrying about the future of the world, Harry and Meghan climb into their habitual pulpit to reiterate their hatred for newspapers that account for some 80 per cent of the Press. Pictured: Prince Harry is seen hand-in-hand with wife Meghan at their last official engagement as royals in London on March 9 Their pompous statement, signed by a lackey, contained the familiar and unsubstantiated allegation that newspapers have knowingly published stories about them which are 'distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason'. Examples would have been welcome, but as usual none were forthcoming. What astonished me was the apparent naivety of their statement. The two of them put themselves about in the hope of attracting publicity. They have their own website with 11million followers. Harry often sounds off. Only yesterday, Meghan gave a television interview on Good Morning America, promoting a forthcoming Disney documentary about elephants which she has narrated. Both the Duke and Duchess are mega celebrities trading on their royal status. They are hungry for coverage on their own terms, naturally which in the fullness of time will serve to fill their coffers with hundreds of millions of dollars. The truth is that it doesn't matter a row of beans if they never engage with the British tabloids ever again. These publications don't need official permission to write about the couple's public antics. I grant it would be difficult if they took themselves off to a desert island, but they've absolutely no intention of doing that. For all practical purposes, their self-centred statement was therefore utterly meaningless. Its only possible rationale was to enable them to let off steam against the Press, for which they have conceived such an unreasoning loathing. My suspicion is that they realise perfectly well that not engaging with the tabloids won't make a blind bit of difference. If they can't grasp as much, they are either being advised by halfwits or are themselves implausibly dim or both. Here are my questions. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (pictured in London in March) delivered a pronouncement from distant Los Angeles, where they are residing in a rented house said to be worth 8million, almost certainly subsidised by Prince Charles, writes STEPHEN GLOVER Are relations between the couple and the British Press so damaged that any reconciliation is inconceivable? Will Meghan and Harry be the first members of the Royal Family to be in a state of permanent war with the media? It's hard to be optimistic but I shan't give up hoping. One reason is that Harry is a fine young man, who has done many good things, such as launching the Invictus Games, which have given wounded service personnel and veterans the opportunity to compete in sports. As for Meghan, I may not be her greatest fan, but she is obviously intelligent, resourceful and talented. She has taken against the tabloids, though they have given her a great deal of sympathetic coverage in the past as recently as her and Harry's visit to South Africa only last year. The trouble is that when relations sour, ill-will tends to ratchet up on both sides. She should take a lesson from the Duchess of Cornwall. Although Camilla was desperately unpopular after the death of her former rival, Diana, Princess of Wales, she good-humouredly and without rancour mended her fences with the Press. As for Meghan (pictured during publicity for her new Disney film 'Elephant', I may not be her greatest fan, but she is obviously intelligent, resourceful and talented, writes STEPHEN GLOVER Why couldn't Meghan do the same? I can see that Harry's not entirely wrong-headed conviction that the paparazzi drove his mother Diana to her death creates an obstacle. If only he could see that the newspapers he excoriates have their virtues. Only two days ago, he took a swipe at his old enemy when he said that the situation in this country is 'better than we're led to believe through certain corners of the media'. Note that as usual Harry didn't name the publications he accuses of exaggeration. It is a generalised slur. But haven't newspapers of every hue done a sterling job during this pandemic of holding the Government to account, and keeping people informed of the progress of the dreadful contagion? Professor Karol Sikora, a distinguished doctor who has been an adviser in No 10 in the past, got it about right when he said in response to Harry's ill-judged criticisms from 6,000 miles away: 'I think that these remarks are outrageous.' Alas, Harry is so bitterly and blindly at odds with the Press that he can't appreciate its merits or understand its role in a democracy. Nor does he appreciate that in denouncing the tabloids he implicitly writes off the many millions of people who read them. Harry (pictured during a zoom call with parents of disabled British children) is so bitterly and blindly at odds with the Press that he can't appreciate its merits or understand its role in a democracy, writes STEPHEN GLOVER Perhaps some of the couple's youthful Instagram followers will unthinkingly lap up his strictures about newspapers they probably don't look at. People who do read them may not relish his wholesale condemnations. Incidentally, he was unwise last week to urge ministers to do more to help families with seriously and terminally ill children during the coronavirus pandemic. A splendid cause, no doubt, but members of the Royal Family aren't supposed to lecture the Government in public. Here, in one relatively insignificant incident, is the danger writ large. Harry and Meghan remain members of the Royal Family. If they make injudicious interventions from afar, they risk damaging the institution from which they have rashly, I think separated themselves, but of which they remain part. There is a peril in pontificating from a great distance about a country you have voluntarily deserted. If such effusions persist, people may ask what right the detached couple have to treat us to their advice, however well-meaning it may be. How telling that, while Harry and Meghan are holed up abroad, members of the Royal Family in this country should be doing so much to lift morale. Yesterday, 98-year-old Prince Philip came out of retirement to offer encouraging words for medics, scientists and researchers. Can anyone at this late stage get through to Harry? His father? Brother? The tabloids can easily cope without any personal exchanges with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. As I say, they'll continue to write about them as major public figures. But I fear for Harry. For he and his wife to put themselves centre-stage in the middle of a pandemic is not just misplaced egotism. Harry is cut off, ill-advised, chasing the wrong demons and tragically adrift from the country he loves and the institution he has served. Latest coronavirus video news, views and expert advice at mailplus.co.uk/coronavirus Opinion Article 20 April 2020 The current coronavirus situation is profoundly impacting all types of businesses. With temporary cessation of some businesses and activities slowing down for many, the consequences of the pandemic are even worse for the global economy than the ones following the Great Financial Crisis in 2007-2008. Advertisements The first country to suffer from the impact of Covid-19 is China, the second largest economy worldwide. The drastic lockdown, which required a number of significant manufacturing companies and retail businesses to close or reduce their activities, has dreadfully slowed down the Chinese economy. According to the report by the China Enterprise Confederation (CEC) on March 6th, over 95 percent of the 299 large manufacturers surveyed have seen a revenue drop. In terms of consumption, compared to 2019, retail sales in January and February went down 20.5 per cent. Even though the consumption started to be impacted by the pandemic in January, all retail sales apart from necessities were frozen as of February for almost the full month. Fortunately, as China has been able to stop the spread of the virus, Chinese manufacturers have returned to full capacity. However, with the rest of the world going through a similar form of lockdown, the country's economy is undergoing a second hit with overseas market shutting down. Based on a paper from IMF economists, China will suffer from the cutback in global demand which accounts for 20 percent of the Chinese's economy. According to Fan Gang, one of China's top economists, we can expect a progressive recovery for China. Indeed, based on a study from Cefuture, a Chinese logistics and transportation consulting firm, 41 percent of citizens aim to reduce their spending as a precautionary measure for future unexpected events whereas only 8 per cent plan on shopping more after the outbreak. Although this could be worrying for businesses, the recovery of China still brings hope and optimism to the rest of the world where the situation is rapidly evolving, especially in Europe and the United States. In the United States for instance, with the quarantine measures continuously reducing economic activities, the economists of Morgan Stanley have predicted a drop of 30 per cent in consumption and a level of unemployment reaching approximately 12.8 per cent in the second quarter. Indeed, the impact of the pandemic cannot be taken lightly as it affects everyone. The travel industry is among the sectors suffering the hardest risks due to the travel restrictions implemented by governments worldwide. With the uncertainty lying behind COVID-19, we can expect the global market to be quite volatile with no global growth this year. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2020 can see an estimated 2.4 per cent decline for the global economy before a growth of 3.3 per cent next year. Tom Rafferty, main economist for China at The Economist Intelligence Unit, suggests that, by next year, the global demand and supply should be back to normality. Indeed, to achieve this result, policymakers have been obliged to review policies in order to mitigate the severity of the impact, but the virus remains the last factor which will decide when each country can get back to its ordinariness. The pandemic will continue to disturb the global market therefore it is essential that we all work together to successfully get through this challenging time. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sumitomo Corporation ("SC"), through Sumitomo Corporation of Americas ("SCOA"), announced today its stake in OneSky Systems, Inc. ("OneSky" or "the company"), the leading developer of Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) and Urban Air Mobility (UAM) platforms, designed to enhance mission planning with advanced safety-of-flight analysis. This investment aligns with our focus on air mobility in establishing innovative new transport services and will support OneSky's software development and scale their marketing capabilities. OneSky Systems, Inc. is an affiliate of Analytical Graphics, Inc. ("AGI"). OneSky develops unmanned aerial traffic management systems and analytics, which establish safe flight paths to prevent collisions between unmanned aerial vehicles. This kind of traffic management requires more advanced technical capabilities than traditional aircraft control systems. Through their intellectual property agreement, OneSky has exclusive access to AGI's core technology of precise object position determination. This has allowed them to apply that technology and put powerful predictive capabilities into the hands of pilots, operators and systems integrators. "We are very pleased to become part-owner of OneSky Systems," said Kevin Hyuga, General Manager of Construction & Transportation Systems at Sumitomo Corporation of Americas. "Sumitomo has a longstanding history in transportation, including the aerospace market. We see significant potential in growing and scaling OneSky's capabilities so that it can support the air mobility needs of the future." Air mobility is regarded as the next frontier in transportation, utilizing networks of AI-driven, unmanned vehicles. This transformation in mobility is expected to reduce transport times in urban areas and help improve access to remote locations like islands and mountainous areas. It could also be crucial during emergency response situations including the current situation of the COVID-19 virus - with the use of drone technology. The technology developed by companies like OneSky will be imperative to the success and safety of these future mobility systems. This isn't Sumitomo's first foray into the air mobility space. In January of 2020, the company concluded an air mobility business partnership with Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., a major U.S. helicopter manufacturer, and Japan Airlines. Following this project, Sumitomo is now considering the provision of services employing unmanned logistics drones and air taxis developed by Bell with an eye towards commercialization by the mid-2020's. About Sumitomo Corporation of Americas Established in 1952 and headquartered in New York City, Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA) has 8 offices in major U.S. cities. SCOA is the largest subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation, one of the world's leading traders of goods and services. As an integrated business enterprise, Sumitomo Corporation has emerged as a major organizer of multinational projects, an expediter of ideas, an important international investor and financier, and a powerful force for distribution of products and global communications through a network of offices worldwide. The company's core business groups include Metal Products, Transportation & Construction Systems, Infrastructure, Media & Digital, Living Related and Real Estate, and Mineral Resources, Energy, Chemical & Electronics. For more information visit www.sumitomocorp.com About OneSky Systems, Inc. OneSky provides industry-leading analytics for aerospace systems, particularly within the commercial unmanned aerial systems (UAS) market. Designed to enhance mission planning with advanced safety-of-flight analysis, OneSky leverages 28+ years of software modeling and simulation to put powerful predictive capabilities into the hands of pilots, operators, and systems integrators. For more information visit https://onesky.xyz/ SOURCE Sumitomo Corporation of Americas Related Links https://www.sumitomocorp.com The remote Bay Area town of Bolinas is among the first communities in the world to attempt to test all of its residents for the novel coronavirus. Bolinas, population 1,600, will offer free tests Monday through Thursday to residents 4 years and older, according to a statement from UC San Francisco, whose staffers will administer the tests. The community-wide testing effort was spearheaded by two locals, venture capitalist Jyri Engestrom and pharmaceutical company executive Cyrus Harmon. Nearly the entire town was registered for testing as of Friday, according to the Mercury News. The drive-through test will entail a mouth and throat swab to check for active infection and a finger prick to detect antibodies, a crucial step in determining who has already had the virus. A second round of testing will follow two weeks later if enough money is raised. The project is expensive, costing upward of $400,000 and entirely funded by private donations, the Mercury News reported. Few communities globally have attempted to implement comprehensive testing. And those that have tend to be small, tight-knit and progressive-leaning, such as Bolinas and Telluride, Colo. Bolinas organizers were inspired by the Italian town of Vo, outside Venice, which was able to gain control of the virus spread through two rounds of community-wide testing. A team of infectious disease doctors at UC San Francisco will analyze the collected samples to gauge the prevalence of infection in Bolinas. The study will also help researchers trace the spread of the virus in California, the university said. Effective testing is considered essential before state and local governments can lift stay-at-home orders, reopen schools and businesses, and allow the nations faltering economy to recover. Diane Havlir, head of UC San Franciscos HIV/AIDS division, said in a statement that testing sets the foundation for every other component of the pandemic response. In order for us to respond effectively, she said, we need more local community epidemiology like this study to get a sense of where we stand, and where active infection may still be occurring, so as public health officials begin to release constraints on movements we can avoid resurgence of the disease. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. By PTI KARACHI: Four suspected Al-Qaeda terrorists were arrested for allegedly planning major attacks in Karachi, police said here on Monday. The militants were produced before an anti-terrorism court, which send them to a 10-day police remand. According to Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) in-charge Raja Umar, the four terrorists, arrested on Sunday, were planning attacks on the Karachi Stock Exchange, the police training centre and the city court. They had recently returned from Afghanistan after getting training there and explosives, detonators, hand grenades, weapons, videos, maps and communication devices were recovered from their possession, he said. "Today they were presented in the ATC, which has given us their 10-day remand," Umar said. "They had carried out reconnaissance of the Karachi Stock Exchange, the city court and the police training centre," he said. Umar said the militants -- Umar, Bilal, Aamir and Waseem -- during questioning have revealed that they were led by a high profile terrorist, Muhammad Hanif alias Zarrar, who was operating from Afghanistan. "The four had established a safe house in Karachi and were apparently waiting for the right time to carry out their terror attacks," he said. Spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang (Photo: VNA) On April 18th, China announced the establishment of the so-called Xisha district at Vietnams Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, and Nansha district at Vietnams Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, in the so-called Sansha city. Vietnam has strongly affirmed many times that it has sufficient historical evidence and legal foundation to assert its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos, spokesperson Thu Hang said. She stressed that those moves of China are invalid and unrecognized, and they are not favourable for the friendship among nations and further complicate the situation in the East Sea, the region and the world. Vietnam demands that China respect Vietnams sovereignty, abolish its wrongful decisions related to the moves and not to commit similar acts in the future, the spokesperson asserted./. The High Court has confirmed the appointment of a liquidator to a construction and plant hire business. Mr Justice Max Barrett today said he was satisfied to appoint Chartered Accountant Mr Anthony Fitzpatrick as official liquidation to Brandon Plant Hire Ltd, which is insolvent to the tune of 934,000. Mr Fitzpatrick was appointed in a provisional capacity to the firm, that employed 30 people, by the court last month. There were no objections to the application. The company had been involved in both the plant hire business as well as the provision of substructures and groundworks on building sites. The company's members petitioned the court for the provisional liquidator's appointment, so that its assets will be secured and their proceeds properly distributed to the Trim Co Meath-based firm's creditors. It had been working three projects when it sought the winding up order. It had worked on several major contracts in the past and its main customer was Cairn Homes, the court heard. Seeking the order confirming the liquidator's apppointment Ronnie Hudson Bl, instructed by solicitor John Kieran, for the company said the firm had been profitable for many years since it was founded in 1997, and was involved in several major house building projects. Counsel said that the company had been experiencing cash flow difficulties. It had hoped that an investor would come on board to help it continue to trade. Counsel said that because of covid-19 the investor was no longer interested in putting money into the firm rendering the firm insolvent and unable to trade. Mr Justice Barrett said he was satisfied to appoint Mr Fitzpatrick as liquidator, and ordered that the firm's director file a statement of affairs. World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Sunday that lifting lockdown restrictions for coronavirus is not the end of the epidemic, it's just the beginning of the next phase. Speaking at the Group of 20 (G20) Health Ministers virtual meeting from Geneva, the WHO chief said it's vital in this next phase that countries educate, engage and empower their people to prevent and respond rapidly to any resurgence, Xinhua reported. "We are encouraged that several G20 countries are now starting to plan how to ease social restrictions. It is critical that these measures are a phased process," he said. Tedros told the health ministers that the WHO is deeply concerned that the virus now appears to be gathering pace in countries that lack the capacity of many G20 countries to respond to it. "Urgent support is needed, not only to support countries to respond to COVID-19, but to ensure other essential health services continue," he said. Tedros also took the opportunity to thank Saudi Arabia for its support to the global fight against the virus. Saudi Arabia announced Thursday a $500 million donation to relevant international organizations to support global efforts in combating the coronavirus. "The coronavirus pandemic has reminded us of a simple truth: we are one humanity. We share the same planet. We share the same hopes and dreams. We share the same destiny," the WHO chief said. April 20 : Its time to enjoy some totally drool-worthy cover picture photos this month. After the lovely Aditi Rao Hydari posed in for the Femina cover girl shoot, then cute Janhvi turned up in her cuddly photo with her panda. The shot was taken by her sister! Today, we have Bollywood actress Yami Gautam pose for the Brunch magazine cover girl shot with her sister. The pictures were shared on Yamis Instagram page. These will speak a million words about soul sisters, fringe hairstyles and those undeniably cute dimpled smiles. Take a look! We couldnt help but skip a beat at this unflawed beauty of these girls! Both looked so much at ease, confident and perfectly poised for this chic cover shot for the Brunch magazine. Be it lockdown or not, they spread positive vibes. In this edition, they speak a lot about they do to keep themselves busy and productive while staying at home. This was one of the easy, cool laughs that these sisters shared for a click. We loved the way they kept their choppy hairstyle. Yami Gautams fringe is the most adorable thing in vision, while her sister Surilie's closed eye snap was adorable. Yami wore a light blue outfit, while the younger one stuck to a darker shade of blue. Thats one more shot in yet another attire! This too was all about summer freshness. Here Yamis choice was good for womens formals, while Surilie looked date night perfect in this one. Both had a glow on their face and stuck to dewy hues of makeup for the final look. The last one in this series was truly something that every sister could connect too. Girls have a fine connection with beauty, makeup, fashion. Yami, who is known for her love for elegant fashion looked stunning in this all-black attire. Her younger sister went in for a one-shoulder short dress, left her hair looked, and pretty cool. West Australians will no longer face takeaway alcohol restrictions after the state government revoked purchasing limits introduced in March. The controversial restrictions were put in place three weeks ago as the state government grappled with an expected surge of COVID-19 patients. WA's booze restrictions have been lifted. Credit:Jay Cronan In order to stop panic-buying and keep alcohol-related medical issues out of WA hospitals, booze sales were restricted to either one carton, three bottles of wine, 1 litre of spirits, or a combination of any two, per customer once a day. As soon as the restrictions came into place, eastern states online sellers not covered by the regulations began advertising in WA. Chief Superintendent Chris Leather, criminal operations officer for Nova Scotia RCMP, said Monday that at least some of the victims were known to the suspect, but others were not. Leather said Wortman wore what appeared to be part of an RCMP uniform, or a facsimile of one, and at one point drove a car made to resemble an RCMP cruiser. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is known as "the disease with a thousand faces" because symptoms and progression can vary dramatically from patient to patient. But every MS patient has one thing in common: Cells of their body's own immune system migrate to the brain, where they destroy the myelin sheath - the protective outer layer of the nerve fibers. As a result, an electrical short circuit occurs, which prevents the nerve signals from being transmitted properly. For the transcriptome analysis Alexander Mildner controls sorted monocytes under the microscope. Image Credit: Alexander Mildner / MDC Many MS medications impair immune memory Researchers don't yet know exactly which immune cells are involved in stripping away the myelin sheath. Autoreactive T and B cells, which wrongly identify the myelin sheath as a foreign body, travel to the brain and initiate the disease. "Up until now, MS drugs have essentially targeted these T and B cells, both of which are part of the acquired immune system," says Dr. Alexander Mildner, a scientist at the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC) and the senior author of the paper now published in Nature Immunology. Mildner is currently conducting externally funded research as a DFG Heisenberg fellow in Professor Achim Leutz's lab at the MDC, which focuses on cell differentiation and tumorigenesis. "But by attacking the acquired immune system, the MS drugs adversely affect the body's immune memory, thus making patients more susceptible to infections in the long run," the scientist says. MS symptoms improved in mice by reducing monocytes As a result, Mildner has been pursuing a different strategy for a couple of years now. He wants to find out what role immune cells - particularly those that are part of innate immunity - play in the development of MS and whether they represent a promising target structure for therapy of MS patients. "In an earlier study with a mouse model of MS, we were able to show that disease symptoms in the mice declined significantly within a few days after their monocytes were selectively destroyed by antibodies," the researcher reports. This result came as a big surprise to him and to many of his colleagues. "Apparently, it is not only T and B cells that are involved in causing tissue damage in MS," Mildner says. The monocytes he studied are a special type of white blood cells that shortly circulate in the blood before migrating into tissue. Once there, they transform themselves into effector cells (phagocytes) and destroy foreign tissue in the central nervous system (CNS) - or which, during MS, they wrongly identify as such. "This process," Mildner says, "leads to inflammation and tissue damage in the brain." The team discovered unknown types of monocytes In the current study published in Nature Immunology, which he conducted in collaboration with an Israeli team led by Professor Ido Amit from the Department of Immunology at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Mildner and his team also focused on monocytes. "During the last recent years we realized that several types of these immune cells exits, which might carry out different functions," the researcher says. "We therefore wanted to examine in our mouse model of MS the monocytes in greater detail using single-cell sequencing and to find out, which monocyte subsets are present in the brain in MS and are responsible for tissue damage." He and his colleagues identified six different monocyte subtypes, four of which were previously unknown. As in his earlier study, Mildner injected the mice with antibodies against a specific monocyte surface protein. As expected, the cells died and the MS symptoms in the mice decreased within a short period of time. "But what surprised us was that the antibodies did not destroy all monocyte subsets in the brain that have this surface protein," Mildner says. Not all monocytes destroy the protective myelin sheath "Only a certain type of monocyte, the Cxcl10+ cells, was destroyed by the antibody treatment," Mildner says. "These are apparently the cells that are primarily responsible for causing MS tissue damage in the brain." With the help of single-cell sequencing, he and his team also discovered that this cell type differs from other monocytes in two essential ways: First, Cxcl10+ cells have a particularly large number of receptors for a signal protein secreted by T cells that induces tissue damaging properties in monocytes. Second, these cells produce large amounts of interleukin-1-beta, a substance that opens the blood-brain barrier, enabling immune cells to more easily pass from the blood to the brain and exacerbate the symptoms. "Our research suggests that T cells, as disease initiators, travel to the CNS in order to lure there the monocytes that are responsible for the primary tissue damage," Mildner explains. The other monocyte subsets that were identified, he speculates, are perhaps even involved in repair processes in which the body tries to rebuild the damaged myelin. In light of the study's findings, he thinks it is also possible that the T and B cells are not even directly involved in stripping away the myelin sheath, but only indirectly in that they prompt the Cxcl10+ monocytes to attack the protective layer of the axons. Many side effects may be preventable "If that is the case, in the future most forms of MS could be treated by specifically deactivating the Cxcl10+ monocytes instead of targeting the T or B cells of the immune system," Mildner says. "This would protect the body's immune memory and prevent many side effects of current MS therapies." The researcher and his team next plan to investigate whether the Cxcl10+ monocytes are also present outside the CNS. Uniteds $2 Billion Quarterly Loss Might Be Its Brightest News of the Year United Airlines on Monday reported a $2.1 billion pre-tax loss between January and March, the first U.S. carrier to place a dollar amount on first quarter carnage, a period in which demand went from strong to nearly non-existent within weeks because of a once-in-a-century global pandemic. First quarter generally is weakest for U.S airlines, but United has in recent years been making money, reporting $367 million in profit in the first three months of last year. As recently as January, executives expected another strong quarter, reporting reasonable demand in most markets, including China. Then it all came crashing down. First the Chinese market cratered, then Asia more broadly. Next, European demand fell, led by Italy, and then by mid-March, Americans essentially stopped traveling, even domestically. This month, United executives have said demand has fallen to nearly zero, with the airline racing to cut flights while still satisfying U.S. government demands that it pull out of as few cities as possible. No one knows when conditions will improve. Get the Latest on Coronavirus and the Travel Industry on Skifts Liveblog In its filing Monday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the airline said revenue had decreased $100 million, each day, during the last two weeks of March, measured on a year-over-year basis. Despite Uniteds big loss and late quarter revenue drop, indications suggest the worst is still to come. From January through March, United announced total revenue of $8 billion, a 17 percent drop, year-over-year. Thats a significant but not massive revenue decrease drop, and was likely so modest because the Covid-19 pandemic did not seriously hit the United States until March. Uniteds second quarter revenue is likely to drop much more substantially. Preparing for the Worst The airline is preparing for what could be the worst quarter in aviation history, it said in its filing. United has cut 80 percent of capacity this month, and will slash 90 percent in May. Schedules for later this year have seen fewer changes, but in its filing, United said those will be evaluated soon. The Company plans to proactively evaluate and cancel flights on a rolling 60-day basis until it sees signs of a recovery in demand, it said. Story continues United has been looking to increase cash, with the airline reporting Monday that it had $6.3 billion in cash and cash equivalents on April 16. It said it is taking about $5 billion from the U.S. government to help cover payroll expenses through Sept. 30, with $3.5 billion as a grant and the remainder a low-interest loan. United said it expects to issue warrants to the U.S. Treasury Department allowing it to buy up to 4.6 million shares of United stock at $31.50, its April 9 closing price. United also said Monday it is applying for a $4.5 billion loan from the Treasury Department for up to five years. Terms would be similar to the paycheck protection arrangement, the airline said. Collateral has not been determined, United said. Losses Abroad Not all of Uniteds big losses come directly from its operation. Some are tied to investments or business deals abroad. On Monday, United said it took a $293 million loss connected tie to a decrease in value of its investment in Azul, a Brazilian airline controlled by David Neeleman, the JetBlue Airways founder. In 2018, United said it had increased its stake to 8 percent. United also said it was taking a $697 million non-operating credit loss from a loan to BRW Aviation Holding LLC and BRW Aviation LLC, Aviancas majority owner. United recorded the allowance based on Uniteds assessment of Avianca Holdings S.A.s financial uncertainty due to its high level of leverage and the fact that the airline has currently ceased operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it said in the filing. Meanwhile, in Asia, United took a $50 million impairment charge on the value of its routes to China. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent suspension of flights to China, the Company determined that the value of its China routes had been impaired, it said. In 1985, United announced it would pay $750 million for Pan Ams Pacific division, giving it landing rights in China and other Asian cities, making it the first of the three surviving U.S. legacy airlines (American and Delta are the others) to fly to China. What United Wants Investors to Focus On Adjusting for all special charges, investments and non-operating losses, United said its first quarter loss was about $1 billion. United believes that adjusting for special charges and for non-operating credit losses is useful to investors because these items are not indicative of Uniteds ongoing performance, it said. Subscribe to Skift newsletters for essential news about the business of travel. Over 150 Australian economists warned the government against easing social distancing rules aimed at stopping the spread of the new coronavirus, even though infection rates have slowed to a minimum, Reuters reported. Although these measures have slowed the growth of new infections to less than 40 new cases per day, the restrictions are expected to increase unemployment to a 16-year high of about 10%. Amid growing calls to ease restrictions, leading Australian economists published an open letter calling on the government to prioritize the spread of coronavirus. We cannot have a functioning economy unless we first comprehensively address the public health crisis, wrote the group of 157 economists from Australian universities. The government and central bank of Australia said they would invest $ 203 billion in the country's economy to try to soften the economic blow. PM Scott Morrison said last week that he would not relax restrictions for at least four weeks, and several state prime ministers called on the public to adhere to social distance rules on Monday. Weve all made massive sacrifices, given a lot. We cant give back all the gains made because of sense of frustration gets the better of us, said Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp unveiled plans Monday to allow some businesses shuttered amid the coronavirus pandemic to reopen their doors by the end of the week, as the state sets its sights on easing lockdown restrictions and re-opening the local economy. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced on Monday that businesses across the majority of the state will begin reopening as early as next week. And South Carolina's governor is rolling out details of a program that his office says will allow the state's economy to 'recover more quickly than any other state's in the country' from the new coronavirus outbreak. The moves are the latest indications that some states are forging ahead with plans to re-start economic activity despite the ongoing pandemic. Texas became the first state to commit to partially reopening from April 20, starting with public parks and retailers on a 'to-go' basis. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp unveiled plans Monday to allow some businesses shuttered amid the coronavirus pandemic to reopen their doors by the end of the week, as the state sets its sights on easing lockdown restrictions and re-opening the local economy GEORGIA, SOUTH CAROLINA & TENNESSEE'S DATES: Georgia: Gyms, bowling alleys, salons, barbershops and other indoor facilities to reopen April 24. Restaurants that have been banned from in-person dining will be allowed to reopen April 27. Bars and nightclubs will remain closed. South Carolina: Department stores and some other retail businesses to open April 20. Public beaches will also reopen on April 21. Tennessee: State will not extend its stay-at-home order past April 30 meaning businesses will be allowed to reopen on May 1. Some businesses will be allowed to reopen as early as April 27, but it's unclear exactly which ones will be granted such clearance. Most state parks will reopen on April 24. Advertisement Under Kemp's orders, gyms, bowling alleys, salons, barbershops and a number of other indoor facilities that have been closed across the state since April 2 will be permitted to reopen this Friday. Kemp warned, however, it 'would not be business as usual' as companies will only be able operate if they adhere to social distancing requirements, sanitation mandates, and meet other safety standards. Restaurants, which have been banned from in-person dining since the shelter in place order was issued, will be allowed to reopen on April 27 along with movie theaters if they comply with guidelines Kemp's office is set to release later this week. Bars and nightclubs will remain closed, though. 'I don't give a damn about politics now,' Kemp said, announcing the plans outside the State Capitol Monday. Kemp went on to say that his primary concern at the moment is Georgians 'going broke worried about whether they can feed their children and make the mortgage payment.' The motion, Kemp said, came after the state edged closer to meeting the first phase of the White House's three-phase plan for reopening the US, citing adequate testing, hospital capacity, and contact tracing of the virus. Under the measures, businesses must meet 20 separate guidelines to reopen, including regularly screening employees for signs of illness, requiring more hand washing and prohibiting large gatherings of workers. Georgia currently has nearly 19,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 773 recorded deaths. The shelter in place order, set to last through April 30, remains in effect, though Kemp urged the 'medically fragile' to remain at home through May 13. Restaurants, which have been banned from in-person dining since the shelter in place order was issued, will be allowed to reopen in Georgia on April 27. Pictured above is a struggling business in Atlanta Gyms, bowling alleys, salons, barbershops and a number of other indoor facilities that have been closed across the state since April 2 will be permitted to reopen this Friday, April 24 Kemp said that in order for the state to keep open and avoid any future shutdowns testing efforts must increase exponentially. In order to do so, the state is partnering with the Georgia Health System to 'double down' on testing capacity. 'Testing defines the battlefield and aids our long term strategy,' Kemp said, adding that the Georgia National Guard will dispatch 10 new strike teams to help administer testing.' With the latest coronavirus cases, Kemp said the state was a place on the curve that hospitals could resume elective surgeries which were deemed essential. 'By taking this measured action, we will get Georgians back to work safety, without undermining the progress we all have made in this battle against COVID-19,' Kemp said. 'Today's announcement is a small step forward and should be treated as such. 'I am confident that together we will emerge victorious from this war we have been fighting.' The governor also urged religious institutions to continue to do their part in helping with social distancing protocol. Kemp urged religious leaders to listen to the advice of the CDC by continuing drive-in and online services for the time being. Kemp conceded the reopenings are likely to cause a rise in COVID-19 cases, however he said the state will be able for any sudden surge thanks to increased hospital capacity. State officials will also be keeping tabs on any possible emerging hotspots for the virus. The state's announcement comes two days after the Trump administrations hosted a call with Kemp and the governors of Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Mississippi and Florida over the weekend, which involved discussed approaches for reopening their state's economies. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (left) and South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster (right) have also announced steps to gradually reopen their economies Lee, the Republican governor of Tennessee, says his mandatory safer-at-home order will expire on April 30, which will pave the way for 89 out of the state's 95 counties to begin opening businesses. However, Lee's announcement does not apply to the state's counties with the largest cities, including Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Madison, Shelby and Sullivan counties areas that are not overseen by Tennessee's Department of Health but have their own public health districts. 'While I am not extending the safer at home order past the end of April, we are working directly with our major metropolitan areas to ensure they are in a position to reopen as soon and safely as possible,' Lee said. Some businesses will be allowed to reopen as early as April 27, but it's unclear exactly which ones will be granted such clearance. Lee said such details would be finalized by his economy recovery team later this week. Most state parks will reopen on Friday. 'It will be phased, it will be smart and it will be strategic,' Lee said, stressing that the state's economy cannot survive being locked down long-term. Tennessee has seen nearly 324,000 claims for unemployment in the past weeks as a result of the virus forcing the closure of hundreds of business across the state. Over the weekend, a handful of protesters gathered in Nashville and Chattanooga to urge officials to reopen the economy. As of Monday, state officials said Tennessee had more than 7,200 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and at least 152 deaths. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster on Monday announced the details of 'Accelerate South Carolina,' which includes several key leaders in the state including mayors, presidents of institutions of higher learning, business owners and health care professionals. The group is headed up by James Burns, an attorney and former Defense Department deputy legal counsel who also served as chief of staff to former Governor Nikki Haley. Its first meeting is scheduled for Thursday, with plans to hold multiple sessions over the next 30 days. McMaster has repeatedly stressed his desire for a swift, yet safe, reopening of the state's economy, noting the severe toll the outbreak has had on individual workers and businesses. Establishments including restaurants, bars, manufacturers, dentist offices and a number of others have closed for a variety of reasons, including mandatory orders from McMaster issued in an effort to stem the outbreak. 'To do so too quickly would be reckless,' the governor said last week, of resuming normal activity levels, noting several times he felt sure the economy would be 'humming' by the end of June. During a media briefing, McMaster acknowledged that, even though the virus continues to spread, he saw it as crucial to both manage the outbreak and shore up the economy in hopes of avoiding disastrous, long-lasting effects. 'We are still in a very serious situation,' McMaster said. 'People want to work, they need to work ... and we're going to do all that we can do to see that they can do that, and continue with their lives, as much as possible.' Thus far, South Carolina public health officials have reported a total of more than 4,400 COVID-19 cases, which have resulted in 124 deaths statewide. For most people, the coronavirus that caused this year's pandemic causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, it can cause severe illness such as pneumonia, or even death. Last week, nearly 88,000 people filed for unemployment, bringing the statewide total of those who live or work in South Carolina saying they lost their jobs because of the outbreak to more than 268,000 - more than 10 per cent of the state's total labor force of nearly 2.4 million. On Monday, McMaster also began loosening those economic restrictions, allowing businesses previously deemed nonessential - department stores, flea markets, florists, bookstores and music shops - to reopen their doors. The governor's official stay-at-home order remains in place, although that mandate already allowed the patronage of essential businesses such as grocery stores, pharmacies, home improvement stores and medical facilities, as well as thousands The US states planning to reopen: Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina join Texas in restarting their economies by easing stay-at-home restrictionsof other that received waivers from state officials. The US states planning to reopen: Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina join Texas in restarting their economies by easing stay-at-home restrictions Georgia Georgia's governor says gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors can reopen on April 24 as long as owners follow strict social-distancing and hygiene requirements. Elective medical procedures can also resume. By April 27, movie theaters may resume selling tickets and restaurants limited to takeout orders can return to limited dine-in service. The state's shelter-in-place order remains in effect until April 30 but at-risk people are urged to remain home until May 13. Bars, live performance venues and amusement parks will remain closed. Religious institutions are still urged to hold drive-thru or online services for now. South Carolina Department stores, sporting goods stores and flea markets are among the businesses allowed to reopen in parts of the state from April 21. Other stores selling furniture, books, music, flowers, clothing and accessories can also reopen. The businesses are allowed to open at 20 percent capacity, or five people per 1,000 square feet. Beaches were also allowed to reopen at noon on Tuesday. Bars and restaurants are limited to take-out only and nonessential businesses are limited to minimum operations or remote work. The state's order closing all nonessential businesses expires April 27. Tennessee Stay-at-home order will not be extended past April 30 and a phased reopening will begin next week. There is currently a 10 person limit on gatherings. Nonessential businesses are limited to minimum operations or remote work. Bars and restaurants are currently limited to take-out only. Texas State parks reopened on April 20 but people must wear face coverings and masks and adhere to social distancing. People also cannot visit in groups of five or more. Hospitals can start resuming surgeries on April 22 that had been postponed by coronavirus but only if they do not take away from the hospital's capacity to treat COVID-19 and if the hospital reserves 25 percent of its beds for COVID-19 patients. From April 24, retailers can reopen but only if they can deliver their goods or services to people at home or in their cars to minimize contact. Schools and universities will remain closed for the rest of the year. State's stay-at-home order still exists through April 30 and there is a 10 person limit on gatherings. Air travelers flying to Texas from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, Louisiana or Washington - or Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Miami - must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants are currently still limited to take-out only. Alabama Stay-at-home order through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Non-essential businesses closed to the public Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only Alaska Indefinite stay-at-home order. 10 person limit on gatherings. Nonessential businesses are limited to minimum operations or remote work. Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only. Travelers from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days. Arizona Stay-at-home order through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses are limited to minimum operations or remote work Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only Arkansas No state-wide stay-at-home order 10 person limit on gatherings - doesn't apply to unenclosed outdoor spaces or places of worship Gym and entertainment venues closed, hotels and vacation rentals restricted to authorized guests Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only California Indefinite stay-at-home order Gatherings in a single room or place prohibited Nonessential businesses are limited to minimum operations or remote work Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only Colorado Stay-at-home order through April 26 Public and private gatherings of any number prohibited with limited exceptions Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Restaurants and bars limited to takeout only Connecticut Stay-at-home order through May 20 Five person limit on social gatherings, 50-person limit for religious services Non-essential businesses must suspend all in-person operations Out-of-state visitors strongly urged to self-quarantine Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Delaware Stay-at-home order through May 15 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state who arent just passing through must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Florida Florida Governor Ron DeSantis gave the all-clear for some beaches and parks to reopen from April 17 if it could be done safely Stay-at-home order through April 30 No social gatherings public spaces - with religious exemptions Nonessential services closed to the public - but gun stores remain open Visitors from COVID-19 hot spots such as New York must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Hawaii Stay-at-home order at least through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Idaho Stay-at-home order through April 30 Non-essential gatherings prohibited Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Illinois Stay-at-home order through at least April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Indiana Stay-at-home order through April 20, but likely to be extended 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Iowa No stay-at-home order Nonessential businesses ordered to close until April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Kansas Stay-at-home order until May 3 10 person limit on gatherings - exempting funerals and religious services with social distancing Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Residents who traveled to California, Florida, New York or Washington state after March 14, or visited Illinois or New Jersey after March 22, must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Kentucky No stay-at-home order Mass gatherings prohibited, smaller gatherings allowed with social distancing Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Louisiana Stay-at-home order through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Maine 'Stay healthy at home' executive order through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Maryland Indefinite stay-at-home order 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Massachusetts Non-essential businesses closed through May 4 10 person limit on gatherings Visitors from out of state advised to self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Michigan Stay-at-home order through April 30 Public gatherings prohibited - with religious exemptions Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Minnesota Stay-at-home order through May 3 Entertainment and performance venues closed Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Mississippi Stay at home order through April 20 Schools closed through the end of the semester 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Missouri Stay Home Missouri' order through April 24 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses must enforce social distancing Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Montana Stay-at-home order through April 24 Nonessential social and recreational gatherings prohibited Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Nebraska No stay-at-home order Hair salons, tattoo parlors and strip clubs closed through May 31 10 person limit on gatherings Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Nevada Stay-at-home order through April 30. 10 person limit on gatherings Recreational, entertainment and personal-care businesses closed, including casinos Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only New Hampshire Stay-at-home order through May 4 Nine person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only New Jersey Indefinite stay-at-home order 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential retail businesses must close bricks-and-mortar premises. Recreational and entertainment businesses also closed Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only New Mexico Stay-at-home order through April 30 Five person limit on gatherings in a single room Nonessential businesses must suspend all in-person operations Arriving air travelers must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only New York Stay-at-home order through May 15 Nonessential gatherings prohibited Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Masks must be worn in situations where social distancing is not possible North Carolina Stay-at-home order through April 29 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only North Dakota No stay-at-home order Schools, restaurants, fitness centers, movie theaters and salons closed No state-wide directive on gatherings Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Ohio Stay-at-home order through May 1 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Oklahoma 'Safer at Home' order until April 30 for people over the age of 65 and other vulnerable residents 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses must suspend services Visitors arriving from New York, California, Louisiana and Washington must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Oregon Indefinite stay-at-home order 25 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Pennsylvania Stay-at-home order through April 30 Gatherings prohibited Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Rhode Island Stay-at-home order through May 8 Five person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only South Dakota No stay-at-home order Unnecessary gatherings of 10 or more prohibited Utah No stay-at-home order 10 person limit on gatherings Businesses must minimize face-to-face contact with high-risk employees Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Vermont Stay-at-home order through May 15 10 person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Virginia Stay-at-home order through June 10 Recreation and entertainment businesses closed through May 8 10 person limit on gatherings Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Washington Stay-at-home order through May 4 All gatherings for social, spiritual and recreational purposes are prohibited Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only West Virginia Indefinite stay-at-home order Five-person limit on gatherings Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Visitors from coronavirus hotspots must self-quarantine for 14 days Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Wisconsin 'Safer at Home' order prohibits all nonessential travel until May 26 All public and private gatherings are prohibited with limited exceptions. Nonessential businesses limited to minimum operations or remote work Self-quarantine recommended for out-of-state visitors Bars and restaurants limited to take-out only Wyoming No stay-at-home order - but social distancing restrictions through April 30 10 person limit on gatherings in a confined space Restaurants and bars limited to take-out only Anyone entering the state except for essential work must quarantine for 14 days A STON Martins new chief Lawrence Stroll pledged to lead the ailing car maker out of the quagmire on Monday after unveiling an early blueprint to revive the firm. Stroll, a Canadian Formula 1 mogul, has led a consortium taking a 22% stake in the James Bond British car marque in a rescue share placing which closed on Monday. Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix chief Toto Wolff has also taken a tiny stake. In a call to arms, Stroll said restarting production was his primary aim after Aston Martin suspended factories in late March until April 27 due to coronavirus. Restarting factories is vital to the success of the flagship SUV called the DBX, which is a crucial part of Aston Martins planned turnaround. Stroll also said focusing on mid-level cars and electric vehicles would also be a priority. Shares rose 10% to 64p but then reversed course and fell to 57p. They have fallen more than 60% since January 1. Our ambition for the company is significant, clear and only matched by our determination to succeed, said Stroll. Stroll and his consortium, known as Yew Tree, have ploughed 262 million into the car maker as part of the 500 million rescue rights issue. The company's brief tenure so far on the stock market, much heralded when it listed with a glitzy opening on London Stock Exchange in October 2018, is widely seen as a disaster. Shares were priced at 19 when they listed and are now worth 57p. The company's valuation has dropped from 4.3 billion to 880 million, destroying around 3.4 billion of value for shareholders. IRGC Warns Iran Will Respond 'Decisively' to Any US Provocation - Reports Sputnik News 10:59 GMT 19.04.2020(updated 12:03 GMT 19.04.2020) Earlier this week, the US said that 11 vessels from the IRGC Navy had been spotted at a dangerously close distance to US ships in the Gulf. Iran will give a 'decisive' response to any US provocation in the Gulf, the country's Revolutionary Guards Corps Navy said, as quoted by Reuters. "We advise the Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and to refrain from any adventurism and false and fake stories," the statement from the Guards navy said, as cited by the agency. "They should be assured that the Revolutionary Guards navy and the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran sees the dangerous actions of foreigners in the region as a threat to national security and its red line and any error in calculation on their part will receive a decisive response," the statement reportedly added. The IRGC Navy added that it has increased patrols in the Gulf. It also confirmed that it was involved in a confrontation with the US Navy in the region last week. On Wednesday, the US said that 11 vessels of the Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy had come too close to US Navy and Coast Guard ships in the Gulf. Washington referred to the move as "dangerous and provocative". Tensions between Iran and the US intensified in January following the killing of Iran's top military commander Qasem Soleimani by a US drone strike at the Baghdad international airport. Shia militia commander Abu Mahdi Muhandis was also killed in the attack. Washington alleged that the two commanders had been involved in the attack on the US Embassy in Baghdad in December 2019. Tehran responded to Soleimani's killing by carrying out airstrikes against two US military bases in Iraq. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The high court of England and Wales is due to deliver its judgement on Monday on controversial businessman Vijay Mallyas appeal against his extradition to India to face charges financial offences worth around Rs 9000 crores. The judgement by Justice Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing will be handed down at 10.30 am UK time by email. The ruling marks an advanced stage in the extradition case that began with Mallyas arrest in 2017 and hearings in the magistrates court and the high court. Mallyas appeal was heard over three days in February, when lawyers on both sides sparred over details of the case. The Crown Prosecution Service representing India accused his Kingfisher Airlines of absolute and outrageous lies while seeking bank loans, and Mallyas lawyer alleging a series of errors in Indias case. According to Mark Summers of CPS, Mallya and Kingfisher Airlines submitted absolute and outrageous lies about projections of profitability and loss while applying to IDBI and SBI for loans in 2009, a proposition disputed by Mallyas lawyer Claire Montgomery. Summers quoted from emails, witness statements, brand valuations, business case projections and thousands of other documents to reiterate to the judges the government of Indias primary charges of conspiracy and substantive fraud against Mallya. He insisted that chief judge Emma Arbuthnot of the Westminster Magistrates Court was correct in her ruling that there is a prima facie case against Mallya, for which he needs to be extradited to India to face trial. Profitability of the company was knowingly fudged (in loan applications), wildly untrue and patently dishonest claims were made on projections of the companys profits and loss. Promises of equity to be infused were liberally made that never came. A honest person would have presented accurate picture to banks, Summers said. Indias case rests on what has been mentioned as three chapters of dishonesty by Mallyamisrepresentations to various banks to acquire loans, the misuse of the loans and his conduct after the banks recalled the loans. Summers cited in this regard issues related to the Kingfisher villa in Goa, the claimed Rs 3000 crore brand value of Kingfisher when a consultancy that had valued it at half that figure was not submitted to banks, an aircraft bought allegedly for Mallyas personal use, and the siphoning off of funds to trusts reportedly controlled by his children. There is at least a case to answer, he told the judges, insisting that a reasonable jury at trial could conclude that Mallya and his company indulged in conspiracy, fraud, and used loans for unintended purposes, including part of the loans going to his motor racing team. Summers noted that in extradition cases, British courts are solely required to establish whether the person requested has a prima facie case to answer, not to establish the truth and arrive at a conviction. Montgomery, on the other hand, has insisted that Mallyas inability to repay bank loans was due to a genuine business failure and the result of wider challenges facing the aviation industry at the time. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON 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 Hanwha Life Insurance employees smile after taking part in a mask donation campaign for leukemia patients, Monday. The Seoul-based life insurer held the campaign that donated 3,208 masks to the Korean Association for Children with Leukemia and Cancer. Courtesy of Hanwha Life Insurance : "Kerala is more safe" were the parting words of an Italian tourist who tested positive for COVID-19 and was discharged on Monday from a hospital here after after making a full recovery. Roberto Tonizzo, in his forties, tested positive on March 13 while on a visit to nearby Varkala. The results came out negative on March 26 and was under quarantine at the General Hospital here. "I am so happy. I thank everybody, all doctors and other staff. Once everything is over, I would like to come back. Kerala is like my home. It's more safe here. Now I have to go back to my country, but I will come back," Tonizzo told media. The state government arranged a vehicle for him to go to Bangalurufrom where he will travel to Italy with other Italian nationals later. Earlier, on April 9, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had said that seven nationals fromthe United Kingdom and an Italian national hadrecovered and cured of COVID-19. The seven people, admitted in the Ernakulam medical college, were part of the group which had on March 15 tried to leave the country without permission while being under observation at Munnar, a hill station in the state. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has said that government would henceforth isolate for the mandatory 14 days any residents of the state returning from either Lagos or Kano states. Sule said this while addressing traditional rulers and some religious leaders on Monday at a meeting held at the Government House, Lafia. Also Read: Nasarawa Governor Buys 24 Vehicles For Lawmakers He said the measure became necessary because of the alarming increase in the spread of the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic and the need to protect the residents. He expressed concern that the virus was spreading fast instead of subsiding, with Katsina and Kano states also under total lockdown The governor said that his major source of concern for the state was the increasing number of persons that tested positive for the virus in Abuja. He appealed to traditional rulers at the meeting to ensure that travellers from the two states are isolated. UTICA, N.Y. The Utica Food Pantrys virtual food drive began Monday, allowing people to purchase food donations online from the comfort of their own homes while many are in self-isolation. Anyone interested in donating can choose items to purchase at: yougivegoods.com. The food will then be delivered directly to the pantry, where they can distribute it to those in need. "It allows an individual to actually purchase food that will be distibuted to those in need during thie pandemic. You can go right to the website, click, from the comfort of their home and purchase food. Things we need at the pantry," said Armand Mastraccio, consultant at the Utica Food Pantry. Food pantries across New York have seen significant upticks in need throughout their communities as the coronavirus pandemic continues. Uticas virtual food drive, held in conjunction with Berkshire Bank, will continue through May 8. For more information, visit the Utica Food Pantrys Facebook page. Earlier this year, I wrote about a possible shift in regional politics, considering the number of general elections that were due to be held this year. But that was before the COVID-19 pandemic, and the crippling economic and social effects that followed, as many nations took drastic measures to protect their citizens and flatten the curve of infections and COVID-19 related deaths. Indeed, people in more than 190 countries have allowed their civil liberties to be significantly curtailed for the sake of the greater good. As governments scampered to control the rapid and inevitable spread of a once-in-a-century infection, citizens acquiesced, and stopped gathering in groups indeed, in some countries, once can only venture out alone. Shopping, pharmaceuticals and life-essential goods and services are being rationed by surname and times to reduce panic-buying and mob-shopping, but incurring the hours-long wait to gather a precious few items to be paid for with increasingly scarce currency. The enjoyment of life and liberty is now largely limited to 6:00 pm, and in some places, only to the boundary of your private property. Shrewd advisors know that one cant simply implement a full State of Emergency on carefree and liberal Caribbean populations, so leaders across CARICOM (and the wider world) have chipped away at civil liberties to arrive at a de facto State of Emergency. Dont get me wrong I understand and appreciate the global measures being taken in response to the Novel Coronavirus threat, but it is now emerging that as authorities gain a greater understanding of pandemic control measures, they are also unwittingly gaining knowledge of political advantage. You see, the measures to control the viral pandemic is also providing a brand new avenue for political leaders and power-brokers to extend and expand their grip on power, while subduing the organization and influence of dissent. Many leaders most notably our own Dr Timothy Harris have declared the health crisis as a war, to justify many of the measures taken. This can only be interpreted as a political lifeline to prevent a sitting government from asking a Parliament for extraordinary Legislative actions to mitigate the situation. Also, it is a historical fact that governments that implement States of Emergency and similar population-control measures tend to lose at the polls, as populations respond to having their liberties curtailed. The definition of war is a last-gasp straw for rogue leaders to extend their reign in office. Professor of Politics at Cambridge University, David Runciman, writes in The Guardian, It is the stripping away of one layer of political life to reveal something more raw underneath. In a democracy, we tend to think of politics as a contest between different parties for our support. We focus on the who and the what of political life: who is after our votes, what they are offering us, who stands to benefit. We see elections as the way to settle these arguments. But the bigger questions in any democracy are always about how: how will governments exercise the extraordinary powers we give them? And how will we respond when they do? These questions about coercive power are being answered as we speak: - In Hungary, a recent bill allows Prime Minister Viktor Orban the power to rule by decree - indefinitely. It gives him the authority to punish journalists for inaccurate accurate; and hit citizens with heavy penalties for violating lockdown rules. The bill also prevents any elections or referendums from taking place while the measures are in effect. - In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte - a man who arrests his critics and has boasted about personally killing suspected criminals during his time as mayor of Davao City - has secured emergency powers, giving him greater control of public services. - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the electronic tracking of patients, using technology that had previously only been used in the fight against terrorism. - In Russia, Vladimir Putin has the police and military using facial recognition technology and over 170,000 cameras to crack down on hundreds of people violating quarantine and self-isolation. Its being called the cyber-gulag. In the region, the obfuscation of the Guyana general election continues to fester amid the crisis, with the Granger government seemingly quite content to power through each extra day of power, in the knowledge that any adverse word coming out of the PPP camp can be easily seen as politically disruptive, uncaring and unpatriotic. No one aspiring for the top job wants to be branded as such, so Opposition parties the world over are being cleverly muzzled. Professor of Democracy at the University of Birmingham, Nic Cheeseman, is wary of strongman leaders creating a new normal for their respective societies. "The worrying thing during a crisis is that leaders with authoritarian instincts can claim to only be doing what some established democracies are doing," says Cheeseman. But while robust democracies are expected to eventually roll back such measures, citizens in weak democracies might get saddled with them at the behest of the leader. The mighty United States isn't immune to this paradigm, postures Professor Brian Klaas of the University College, London. "If a 'rally round the flag' mentality kicks in around the world, leaders could find ways to exploit it," says Klaas. "If you accept 9/11 made people happy to give up certain liberties, consider this: The Imperial study says there will be 2.2 million deaths in the US if there's no extreme and sustained government intervention. That's the equivalent of 9/11 happening nearly every day for over two years." US President Donald Trump repeatedly back peddles on his own pronouncements on the pandemic issue, but his apparent fumbling and bumbling seem to have had a rather fortuitous consequence throwing the Democratic Presidential machinery into disarray and confusion. At this writing, 15 states have delayed their presidential primaries, with a lot of discussion as to what happens on November 10, the constitutionally-set date this year for the US Presidential election. Its tough for Trump to even think about toying with the sanctity of the constitution, especially without the support of Democrats. So, no matter what he does, unless he wins an election, by midday on January 20 next year, he will simply no longer be President. The clinical nature of US law does not readily translate the same way for Commonwealth nations. Prime Minister Harris predictably proclaimed an extension of restrictions for our nation for another five months. This is after the Team Unity government ostensibly, publicly leaked a document seeking lockdown measures for another year. There was no riot but wait rioting would be a breach of the restrictions. So damned if you do, and damned if you dont. The oppositions got to keep their mouths shut and their tails inside their house. The situation is an uncanny reminder of a society under Nazi rule pogroms et al where free speech and community meetings were effectively outlawed; where views opposing the State were branded as rebel and traitorous; and where fear and cultist policies were the main ingredients of government and authority. What has actually happened in St Kitts and Nevis, is that Harris, a man who was thrust into power by quite a spectacular accident, now simply does not seem to know how to run a country. A synopsis of the past five years has shown scant few positives, such as roadworks and minor infrastructure projects; but most people regardless of party colour will remember this administration as one that paid killers to keep quiet, ignored the education system, and then cut vocational programme funding for the increased number of high-school dropouts. But most poignantly, it the obvious absence of the Minister of Health and the skittishness and insecurity of his Junior Minister that has really deflated Kittitians and Nevisians alike. It certainly looks like just another yellow or orange herring thats being tossed our way; let the people focus on grocery days and wonder where Eugene Hamilton and Wendy Phipps are, while the Harris family extends and cements their reign on power and the public purse. -- Joel B. Liburd Communications Consultant Basseterre/Quebec The United States has been one of the worst hit countries in the world by the coronavirus pandemic, and tensions are boiling over. Protesters are hitting the street some armed with assault weapons to protest lockdown measures aimed at stopping the spread of the virus. A growing backlash against stay-at-home orders, egged on by conservative media pundits on Fox News and even US president Donald Trump, has led to extraordinary scenes on the streets of America including a defiant healthcare worker who blocked a line of protesters in their cars. A nurse seen defying protesters in Denver on Sudnay, local time. Source: Twitter/Marc Zenn Footage circulating online shows a hospital worker standing in the middle of a pedestrian crossing, blocking the street in downtown Denver, Colorado, on Sunday local time, as a line of protesters in their trucks and cars tried to slowly drive through. A woman in a truck being blocked by the healthcare workers can be seen hanging out the window yelling: Its a free country! Land of the free! Go to China if you want communism, she yells at the nurse, who is dressed in scrubs and a face mask. The numerous trucks backed up behind her many flying American flags can be heard honking, while some onlookers cheer on the hospital workers. Photographer Alyson McClaran captured the moment, showing the male healthcare worker and a female colleague blocking the protesting motorists and being heckled by some. The nurses were cheered on by some onlookers. Source: Facebook/Alyson McClaran Health care workers stand in the street in counter-protest to hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted, she posted alongside the photos which have been shared more than 20,000 times on Facebook since being posted this morning. These photographs are amazing: powerful, moving, and defining, commented one Facebook user. When you mix privilege, ignorance and stupidity, you create a cocktail that's more dangerous to the public than the coronavirus, said another. A growing wave of anti-lockdown protesters are taking to the streets in the US. Source: Facebook/Alyson McClaran Conservative groups fuelling protests The scenes in Colorado come after anti-lockdown protests in the US states of Michigan, Virginia and Minnesota in recent days. Story continues On Friday, local time, Fox News aired a segment on the protests in those three states and minutes later Donald Trump tweeted to his 77.4 million followers, urging people in those states to liberate themselves. According to The Guardian, the bubbling uprising is being backed by a number of wealthy conservative and far right groups, including one funded by the family of Trumps education secretary, Betsy DeVos. A so-called operation gridlock rally held in Michigan last week, which kicked off the wave of protests, had ties to the Republican party and the Trump administration, the publication revealed. The Michigan Freedom Fund was a stated co-host of the rally and reportedly purchased Facebook ads to promote the event. It has previously received more than US$500,000 from the DeVos family, who are regular donors to rightwing groups. Protesters carry rifles near the steps of the Michigan State Capitol last week. Source: AP The other purported host of events was the Michigan Conservative Coalition, a group founded by Matt Maddock who is now a Republican member of the state house of representatives. According to a Pew Research Centre poll published as protests began, a majority of Americans support the lockdowns, with 66 per cent of respondents saying they are concerned state governments will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly. Hundreds protest in Washington state in defiance of ban In one of the latest rounds of protests which coincided with the events in Colorado, an estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol to protest Democratic Governor Jay Inslee's stay-at-home order, defying a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. Despite pleas from rally organisers to wear face coverings or masks, many did not. Police estimated the crowd at 2,500, making it one of the largest protests in US states against lockdowns over the past week. Hundreds of protesters gather around the Capitol in Olympia, Washington. Source: Getty In Olympia, hundreds gathered in close quarters on the steps of the capitol building and around a fountain, contravening state and federal health guidelines during the novel coronavirus pandemic. "Shutting down businesses by picking winners and losers in which there are essential and non-essential are violations of the state and federal constitution," rally organiser Tyler Miller, 39, told Reuters. Protesters drove vehicles to the state capitol, honking horns and clogging streets. Protesters in America during Washington state protests, Sunday local time. Source: Getty "There is no question whatsoever the defence of liberty means risking all hazards," Mr Miller said, paraphrasing a John Adams quote. "The American Revolution was fought at the height of the smallpox epidemic. Our founders were very aware of these sorts of risks." Despite the fact that crowds lingered after the event finished, police reportedly didnt issue any fines. The United States has by far the most confirmed coronavirus cases in the world with more than 760,000 cases recorded so far. with Reuters Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play. While some Ghanaians were relieved to get back to work Monday, others were left fretting after the country became the first in Africa to lift a coronavirus lockdown. The streets of Accra buzzed with life following President Nana Akufo-Addo's announcement of the end to a three-week restriction on movement around the capital and second region Kumasi. Akufo-Addo told the nation in a televised address that increased testing, aggressive contact tracing and expanded isolation centres allowed him to halt measures that hit the country's poor hard. "This decision to restrict movement has occasioned a number of severe difficulties for all of us across the country, especially for the poor and vulnerable," the president said. Jemima Adwoa Anim was overjoyed to be back out hawking her wares as pedestrians and cars returned to Accra's Central Business District. "It is a huge reprieve. We have a listening government," she told AFP. "It was like a war situation; we had no money and at the same time couldn't step out to work to earn some cash. God bless our president." But around the capital there was plenty of criticsm for the decision to ease restrictions after the West African country saw confirmed infections rise to 1,042. "This is totally ridiculous. How is it possible?" asked 20-year-old student Francis Collison. "We just recorded over 1,000 positive cases of COVID-19 and suddenly the president decided to lift the partial lockdown." Shopkeeper Rita Baido insisted she was not happy with the decision but had "no option" but to open her store and try to make money in the suburb of Mallam. "It has not been easy indoors, but I think it was the best solution to keep us safe," she said. Balancing act Ghana's decision to lift the lockdown on the two key regions will be watched closely across Africa. Authorities on the continent are grappling with a difficult balancing act: how to curb the spread of the virus while allowing millions living in poverty to earn money and feed themselves. Some have warned that Ghana is risking any progress on the virus by lifting the lockdown. By Nipah Dennis (AFP) The Ghanaian government insists that a decision to quarantine arrivals from abroad and bolster testing to more than 68,000 samples gives it a strong hand in controlling the pandemic. The country's borders remain closed and measures shuttering schools and limiting public gatherings are still in force. But some working in the health sector said Ghana -- widely seen as a model of political stability in a volatile region -- was risking any progress by lifting the lockdown. "The president has been on top of issues since coronavirus entered Ghana but last night's decision to lift the restriction on movement eroded all the gains we're making," said nurse Abigail Sosu. "I'm scared. We don't have the resources should a second phase of the virus emerge in the country." 'Political gamble' Akufo-Addo insisted in his speech that his decision to end the shutdown was "backed by data and by science". He said the authorities had achieved their aim of stopping the importation of the virus, containing its spread, bolstering healthcare, and limiting damage to the economy. But, despite the president's claims, there were widespread accusations that the move had far more to do with politics. The incumbent is facing a tough fight for reelection in December against former leader John Mahama and will not want to lose support from the masses of urban poor. Ghana President Nana Akufo-Addo has announced the end to a three-week restriction on movement. By Kola SULAIMON (AFP/File) "The president's decision is very unfortunate -- it may be born out of economic considerations and elections," neurologist Hadi Abdallah told AFP. "It has nothing to do with science." Up until now, Akufo-Addo's opponents have largely swung behind him to support his strategy for tackling the pandemic. But that spirit has now evaporated and his call to end the lockdown has been thrust squarely to the centre of the tug-of-war for votes. "President Akufo-Addo's decision to lift the lockdown at this crucial time is a reckless political gamble that portends great danger for this nation," Mahama's National Democratic Congress said in a statement. "Ghanaians must never forgive him if this unimaginable decision exacerbates our COVID-19 situation." A pregnant woman, whose baby died inside the womb, was saved by police who rushed her to a clinic in southeast Delhi's Zakir Nagar area, officials said on Monday. Nirmala was seven months pregnant and was having extreme pain since past few days. Three days ago, she got an ultrasound done at Badarpur, following which a doctor informed them that the baby has died inside the womb and advised them to get her operated soon, they said. When they were unable able to find a clinic for her operation, she remembered about a doctor named Nahida Fatima, where she had visited two years ago for pregnancy-related treatment and told her husband to take her there, said R P Meena, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast). She along with her husband reached Zakir Nagar area on Sunday to see the doctor. Nirmala fell unconscious when she reached Gali No 13 in the area, he said. Some policemen noticed them and learnt about her critical condition, following which the staff of the Jamia Nagar police station contacted the doctor, who agreed to open her clinic. She was rushed to the clinic by police in their private vehicle, the DCP added. On checking, Fatima found that the baby in the womb was dead and the life of patient was in danger so she informed ACP, New Friends Colony, Jagdish Yadav about the condition of the woman and proceeded with an emergency operation, he said. "The woman is doing fine and has been discharged from the clinic," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Angels by your side The nationwide shutdown is almost a catastrophe for much of Thailands labour force, which has no financial guarantees. Phuket is especially dependent on tourism. Those who work as cleaning workers, tuk-tuk drivers, street vendors and scavengers, support themselves and the whole family on a meagre and unstable daily earnings every day. CommunityCOVID-19Coronaviruseconomicshealthcharity By Jill N Wells Monday 20 April 2020, 05:08PM Most of them have no pension or any kind of insurance and live on thin margins. Without bank cards and savings, their cash on hand is all their property. These people fear that hunger may kill them before coronavirus. About 70,000 of these labourers are guest workers and have no fixed residence. Since the closure of the island and different subdistricts, they could not return to their hometown nor to their country. Once the source of the finance is interrupted, theyre trapped in hunger in days. On receiving a recent and generous donation of B25,000 from Misean Cara Funding Mission Support From Ireland, Sister Euphrasia (Daruna Mesomklin), President of The Good Shepherd Home Foundation, decided to establish two new projects of the Good Shepherd Home Foundation and We are Banya to support the migrant children, their families and all the people in need. Unfortunately, Sr. Euphrasia is in Bangkok cannot return to Phuket until the restrictions are lifted. She asked her onsite staff, Khun Mint (Puttachad Bussabong), Khun Sam (Somsuk Saelim) and Khun Tom (Jarun Zukzrejaruen) to make urgent Survival Kits, which including five days worth of rice, soup, cooking oil and sauces, milk, instant noodles, and so on. With compassion and devotion, they made 100 Survival Kits and started to deliver them on April 17. This included different work camps where migrant labourers, Banya students and their families, some Thai families who cant go to work or worse still, lost their jobs. On seeing Khun Mints car arriving, they thought thats the national relief from the government. Men, women all rushed back to their houses to get their ID cards to identify themselves. Yet, Khun Mints supply was far less than adequate for everyone. Though its difficult to leave alone their own Thai fellow citizens, Khun Mint and her little team had their target group. Khun Mint and her co-workers hope the government relief could be distributed urgently and effectively. Thai and Mynmar people have been living very frugally during this health crisis and shutdown. They really dont ask much, just a little to feed themselves and their family. Of course the charity workers are scared of the virus. They didnt want to get sick in the first place. Then, if they really got infected without any symptom, they didnt want to pass it onto other people as they simply went out to send help and love. Before the delivery, they learned more about this virus from government websites and hospital websites. Then they were less scared and knew how to equip themselves and how to disinfect themselves once one trip is done. While delivering, Khun Mint and her co-workers met people in need and trouble. They listened to their questions. They handed out the Survival Kits. They comforted their fear. They cheered them up. Luckily, all the children were in good mental health, theyre not scared and they kept asking Khun Mint, When does the school reopen please? We miss school Without internet, sometimes even without power, they cant do any online study. Khun Mint and her co-workers believe that day wont be long away, but we need to solve all the problems one-by-one. And most importantly, we have to change our lifestyle. With more good-hearted peoples help, one little boy even received an urgent blood transfusion and related medical care. Khun Mint and her co-workers are very modest. They didnt want to say much as it was not their money. But they were extremely happy and delighted to deliver and comfort those people in need. Theyre like the guardian angels who are taking care of people in trouble. This crisis is turning into a mirror, it reflects the hardship of life as well as the beautiful souls of many people who are among you and me. It is a real and local people-helping-people project. In this disasters situation, may everyone have compression, generosity and sympathy with each other. And everyone could help yourself as much as you can. Dont only wait for help from others, as if you wait you might be a full disaster victim, said Khun Mint. In the meanwhile, lets hope government agencies will help the soonest. There are several projects under The Good Shepherd Home Foundation which help migrant children, local women and newborns. Since the shutdown of all schools nationalwide, Sr. Euphrasia is very concerned about the Myanmar migrant children who attend St. Euphrasia Banya Literacy and Learning Center in Cherng Talay and Patong Vocational Center and all their families. There are also a few new mums and babies at Home For Hope, Toplands near the bypass road. Sr. Euphrasia sent her blessings and prayers to all of you from Bangkok. She wants to extend her love and appreciation to all who have been so kind and supportive of her charity projects over many years. Kindly please continue help us to help people who are struggling to survive. She and her team wish everyone could stay home, stay safe, and they believe that together we can make it. To donate to, know more about or to contact the foundation, kindly visit the websites: GoodShepherdPhuket.com and WeAreBanya.com The SJM, which has been critical of FDI, welcomed the amendment in its norms to make it mandatory that investments from China will now require a clearance from the Centre. New Delhi: RSS-affiliated Swadeshi Jagran Manch on Monday welcomed the Centre''s decision to allow e-commerce players to supply only essential items during lockdown and not non-essential items, saying it would have given them an unfair advantage. "SJM firmly believes that this exemption would have led to a non-level playing field for offline retailers. This would not only have been unfair to the local retailers, but would have given unfair advantage to the giant e-commerce players," the Sangh's economic wing said in a statement. At the same time, the SJM said grocery stores or local kirana traders did exemplary work by ensuring the supplies of essential items, but also shown maturity in maintaining social distancing and hygiene. The SJM, which has been critical of FDI, welcomed the amendment in its norms to make it mandatory that investments from China will now require a clearance from the Centre. It also demanded that similar provisions must be added to the Chinese investments coming from other shores like Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore etc. SJM also welcomed the "crackdown" on Zoom and said it wanted a similar action against other China-based apps such as TikTok. The home ministry's Cyber Coordination Centre has issued an advisory saying that Zoom is not a safe platform. On Monday, three-time Oscar nominee Johnny Depp shared his first-ever throwback Instagram snap of himself playing the famous 'Greeny' 1959 Les Paul Gibson guitar at his home recording studio. The 56-year-old actor-rocker - who's amassed 3.4M followers since joining the social media app last Thursday - wrote: 'I was and remain, somewhat, in shock! An incredible experience!' Fleetwood Mac co-founder Peter Green originally bought the instrument for an alleged $300 back in 1966. 'I was and remain, somewhat, in shock! An incredible experience!' On Monday, three-time Oscar nominee Johnny Depp shared his first-ever throwback Instagram snap of himself playing the famous 'Greeny' 1959 Les Paul Gibson guitar at his home recording studio Northern Ireland rocker Gary Moore inherited Greeny and years later it was auctioned to Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett, who reportedly paid $2M for it. Johnny also referenced his painting of his dearly departed dog Mooh, 'who sadly passed away back when I was away on location filming, Public Enemies. He was a very gentle boy and I still miss him greatly!' Depp and British guitarist Jeff Beck released their prescient cover of John Lennon's 1970 song Isolation on Friday, which they recorded last year way before the COVID-19 quarantine. 'The song's about isolation, fear and the existential risk to our world, so we wanted to give the song to you,' the Kentucky-born rhythm guitarist explained Friday. Distinctive sound: Fleetwood Mac co-founder Peter Green originally bought the instrument for an alleged $300 back in 1966 (pictured 1968) 'The Green Malishis!' Northern Ireland rocker Gary Moore inherited Greeny and years later it was auctioned to Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett (R, pictured January 7 with Peter Green), who reportedly paid $2M for it RIP: The 56-year-old actor-rocker also referenced his painting of his dearly departed dog Mooh, 'who sadly passed away back when I was away on location filming, Public Enemies. He was a very gentle boy and I still miss him greatly!' 'We wanted to give the song to you': Johnny and British guitarist Jeff Beck released their prescient cover of John Lennon's 1970 song Isolation on Friday, which they recorded last year way before the COVID-19 quarantine 'We truly both hope in our own little way, it helps you get through these unusual times that we're experiencing, even if it just helps to pass the time as we endure isolation together.' When Johnny thanked his fans for all of their 'kindness' and 'unwavering support over these years' many assumed he was referring to his ongoing $50M civil defamation trial against estranged ex-wife Amber Heard. Depp and the 33-year-old Aquaman action star were only married for 15 months before their acrimonious $7M divorce in 2017 amid back-and-forth abuse allegations. The Fantastic Beasts baddie has two children - daughter Lily-Rose, turning 21 next month; and son John III, 18 - from his 14-year relationship with French babymama Vanessa Paradis, which ended in 2012. Instagram bunker: When Depp thanked his fans for all of their 'kindness' and 'unwavering support over these years' many assumed he was referring to his ongoing $50M civil defamation trial against estranged ex-wife Amber Heard (pictured Thursday) Basma bint Saud, 56, is one of the daughters of King Saud, who fathered more than 100 children. For months she has been held in the Al-Ha'ir prison. In her appeal, she tells King Salman and MbS that she is being held arbitrarily and without charges. In the past, she fought for freedom and rights, and criticised the war in Yemen. Riyadh (AsiaNews/Agencies) After nine months of silence on social media and mystery surrounding her fate, Saudi princess Basma bint Saud suddenly resurfaced with a message on Twitter that found its way in mainstream media in the past 48 hours. "As you may be aware (?) I am currently being arbitrarily held at Al-Ha'ir prison without criminal, or otherwise any charges against my person," read one of the tweets posted on her account late on Wednesday. The latter goes on to say: "My health is deteriorating. The tweets are addressed to the kingdoms rulers, King Salman as well as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), who is the architect of the recent crackdown against his rivals and opponents. In her plea, in Arabic and English, she asks them to "review my case, and to release me as I have done no wrong. Located some 40 kilometres south of the capital, Al-Ha'ir is the country's largest maximum security prison. The Saudi women rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul has been held in the facility since February 2019. Princess Basma, 56, is the youngest of King Sauds one hundred and more children. Saud ruled the kingdom from 1953 to 1964. Over the years she has distinguished herself advocating rights and the countrys (at least partial) modernisation, like overhauling the countrys laws and institutions, from the constitution and the status of women (like male guardianship) to education and social services. In 2018 she strongly criticised the war in Yemen, whose architect and greatest supporter is none other than Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In a series of articles published last year, Deutsche Welle reported on her arrest, and that of her daughter, on charges of planning to leave Saudi Arabia without authorisation. In her twitter messages, deemed genuine, she complains that she has not received medical treatment and that recent her letters to members of the royal family have not received any reply. I was abducted without an explanation together with one my daughters, and thrown into prison, reads one of her tweets. For some observers, her advocacy for human rights is not the only reason for her arrest. It would appear that land property in Ta'if and two billion euros (US$ 2.2 billion) in Swiss bank accounts that belonged to her father are also involved. Saudi Arabia is a Sunni kingdom ruled in accordance with a rigid Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. The reforms introduced by the crown prince in recent years have touched the social sphere and some rights, like womens right to drive and attend stadiums (in reserved areas). However, the arrests of senior government officials and business people, the repression of activists and critical voices, like journalist Jamal Khashoggi, have cast a long shadow on the countrys process of change. Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey and her runoff challenger, former San Francisco Dist. Atty. George Gascon. (Los Angeles Times) Jails and prisons are the perfect breeding ground for disease, with inmates packed so tightly they cannot possibly observe the social-distancing rules meant to stem the spread of the coronavirus, the contagion that has already sickened more than 300,000 people in the United States. The nations largest single source of infections more than any cruise ship or nursing home was Chicagos Cook County Jail until it was overtaken this week by Ohios Marion Correctional Institution. Other jails and prisons threaten to surge even further ahead. The nation's largest jail, though, is in Los Angeles County, where the sheriff took early action to reduce by about 600 the astoundingly large inmate population of more than 17,000. The Board of Supervisors called for quick studies and efforts to get the number down even further. Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey has been, at best, along for the ride, finally agreeing last week not to jail people accused of low-level crimes who could be safely released on their own recognizance, just before zero-bail became the Judicial Councils statewide mandate in all California counties. The L.A. County jail population currently hovers around 13,000 still large, still crowded and still susceptible to an outbreak on the order of Cook Countys. At present, the L.A. jails have nearly 400 staff and inmates quarantined or isolated for possible exposure. Sheriffs run the jails and officially manage inmate populations, but to a large extent the jailhouse gate is operated by district attorneys. D.A.s are the ones who decide whether a defendant should be freed before trial or sent before a judge to seek release on bail. D.A.s decide what crimes to charge, what sentences to seek and what plea bargains to accept. More than sheriffs, judges and defense lawyers, district attorneys determine the size and composition of the jail and prison population. As the virus began hitting the U.S. hard, dozens of district attorneys in other jurisdictions began reducing their jail and prison populations to permit safer conditions for staff and for inmates who remained behind. D.A.s asserted their leadership, taking responsibility for the lives of inmates and the welfare of their families and communities and, by extension, all of us who are affected not only by crime but by a contagion that respects no boundaries between the incarcerated and the free. Story continues COVID-19 was only just becoming a concern for voters who cast ballots for Los Angeles County district attorney in the days leading up to and including the March 3 primary. In early returns, Lacey was collecting slightly more than the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff for a third term. But by the end of the month, as L.A. County residents were sheltering in place and as the primary results were certified, Lacey's share of the vote in the three-person race had slipped, and it had become clear that challenger George Gascon would face her in November. A runoff is welcome. In her two terms Lacey has been a workmanlike district attorney but not a leader. During the coronavirus crisis, when time is of the essence, she has moved too slowly, mirroring her work on other matters in the years before the pandemic. She has failed, for example, to adequately meet the early promise of her initiative to divert defendants with mental health problems out of the criminal justice system and into treatment. Old tough-on-crime presumptions and practices have been left behind by D.A. offices in Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, San Francisco and numerous other jurisdictions, but not so in Los Angeles. Thats ironic, because L.A. County the nations largest criminal justice jurisdiction is on the cusp of replacing many gratuitously punitive measures with a public health and mental health approach to justice. The effort was spurred by community activists and criminal justice reformers and embraced by the Board of Supervisors. The D.A. has been involved, but she has not led. The Los Angeles district attorneys office largely persists in policies that result in clogged jails and prisons and, not incidentally, high recidivism, broken families, unequal justice and unhealthy communities. More voters cast their March ballots for former San Francisco D.A. Gascon and former federal deputy public defender Rachel Rossi than for Lacey, but that by no means ensures Gascon a path to victory in November. Its a different world today than it was during the primary election and will be far different still in seven months when the final round of voting by mail begins. He must earn the trust of Rossi supporters, many of whom sought an even greater overhaul of the justice system. For Gascon to become the leader L.A. County needs, he must lead now. He must articulate, in a clearer and more comprehensive way than he has done so far, his vision for a modern criminal justice system, and how it will promote greater fairness, justice, public health and let us never forget safety for all of us. Petrol prices in Australia's big cities are expected to dive by 20 per cent to less than 75 cents a litre within the next two months - to levels unseen since the 1990s. Fuel is already selling at the lowest level in 15 years because of coronavirus, with prices of less than $1 a litre in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth on Monday. Perth now has Australia's cheapest fuel, with average unleaded prices of just 89.4 cents a litre, a CommSec analysis of MotorMouth figures showed. Brisbane prices have fallen to just 93.5 cents a litre, the lowest since late 2004, as global crude oil prices plummeted to the lowest levels since 1999. Petrol prices in Australia's big cities are expected to dive by 20 per cent to less than 75 cents a litre within the next two months. Fuel is already selling at the lowest level in 15 years because of coronavirus, with prices of less than $1 a litre in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth on Monday. Pictured is the Metro service station at Croydon in Sydney's inner west Sydney's average unleaded prices have plunged to a four-year low of 97.2 cents a litre as Melbourne's equivalent price fell to 99.2 cents a litre. Dirt cheap petrol around Australia SYDNEY: 97.2 cents a litre MELBOURNE: 99.2 cents a litre BRISBANE: 93.5 cents a litre PERTH: 89.4 cents a litre Source: A CommSec analysis of MotorMouth data Advertisement Westpac senior economist Justin Smirk calculated petrol prices had dived by 7.3 per cent during the March quarter. He expected capital city pump prices to slide by another 20 per cent by the end of June, which would see Brisbane petrol prices fall below 75 cents a litre. Average petrol prices in Sydney and Melbourne haven't been at this level since 1999. 'Because of the coronavirus, petrol prices collapsed because crude oil prices fell - we're looking at a much bigger fall of probably closer towards 20 per cent in the June quarter,' Mr Smirk told Daily Mail Australia. Westpac senior economist Justin Smirk predicted petrol prices would slide by another 20 per cent by the end of June, to levels below 75 cents a litre. Pictured is the Sydney Harbour Bridge with very little traffic 'The prices didn't fall until right at the end of the March quarter and they start the June quarter off much lower and then through April we saw below a $1 a litre.' 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 Crude oil prices have continued to dive with the benchmark American Nymex plunging overnight by 20.8 per cent to just $US14.47 a barrel - the lowest price since March 1999. Nonetheless, Australian petrol prices are linked more to the Singapore Tapis index, which rose from a 21-year low of $US18.45 a barrel on April 13 to $US21.70 a barrel. In Australian dollar terms, that translated into an increase of $4.41 or 14.9 per cent to $34.12 a barrel or 21.46 cents a litre, a CommSec calculation showed. CommSec senior economist Ryan Felsman said COVID-19 was delivering relief for motorists, who are unable to travel because of coronavirus restrictions. 'The world is awash with crude oil and volatility in global oil prices isn't helping,' he said. 'Global oil demand has collapsed with households and businesses consuming less fuel due to COVID-19 restrictions.' Fact-checking was devised to be a trusted way to separate fact from fiction. In reality, many journalists use the label "fact-checking" as a cover for promoting their own biases. A case in point is an Associated Press (AP) piece headlined "AP FACT-CHECK: Trump's inaccurate boasts on China travel ban," which was published on March 26, 2020 and carried by many news outlets. Let us check this fact-checker. The lead of the AP article reads as follows: Defending early missteps in the U.S. response to the coronavirus, President Donald Trump has repeatedly boasted of travel restrictions on China that he suggests he decided on his own over the objections of health experts and saved "thousands" of lives. The verdict of the AP piece: "His claims aren't substantiated." To support its verdict, the AP piece presents several arguments, all of which begin with the words "THE FACTS" (in all caps). Let us address these arguments. For the sake of clarity, THE FACTS presented by the AP piece are italicized. My responses begin with the words "THE REBUTTAL." THE FACTS: His [President Trump's] decision was far from solo nor was it made over opposition from health experts, as the White House coronavirus task force makes clear. His decision followed a consensus by his public health advisers that the restrictions should take place. THE REBUTTAL: As head of the Executive Branch, President Trump may seek advice from any expert, inside or outside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. As the example below shows, there was no consensus among the experts. In the end, the president makes a decision, and he and only he is responsible for it. Curiously, Trump is usually criticized for not listening to experts. This AP piece denies him credit because he presumably followed experts' advice. Among the experts who opposed Trump's decision was Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), a United Nations agency responsible for international public health. In other words, Dr. Adhanom is supposed to be an expert of the highest caliber in the field of fighting pandemics. His reaction to President Trump's decision was harsh: "[w]e reiterate our call to all countries not to impose restrictions that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade. Such restrictions can have the effect of increasing fear and stigma, with little public health benefit." Many news outlets and politicians immediately condemned the travel restrictions as racist and xenophobic. Thus, the New York Times published an op-ed on Feb. 5 with the headline "Who Says It's Not Safe to Travel to China?" and the subhead "The coronavirus travel ban is unjust and doesn't work anyway." Joe Biden accused Trump of xenophobia in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic on Jan. 31, on the day when the ban was announced. But later, per CNN, Biden totally flipped on this issue. Realizing that the public opinion supported the travel ban, on April 3, his campaign clarified that Biden supports President Donald Trump's ban. THE FACTS: The impact [of the travel ban] hasn't been quantified. While Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health has praised the travel restrictions on China for slowing the virus, it's not known how big an impact they had or if "thousands and thousands" of lives were saved. There were plenty of gaps in containment. Trump's order did not fully "close" the U.S. off to China, as he asserts. It temporarily barred entry by foreign nationals who had traveled in China within the previous 14 days, with exceptions for the immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents. THE REBUTTAL: Not only was the impact of the travel ban not quantified, but it also wasn't tabulated or plotted. We are in the middle of a war. Future historians can quantify and analyze each battle, but first we have to win this war. The argument about "not fully closing" the travel between the U.S. and China is interesting. Anti-Trump authors blame him for the ban that was both "xenophobic" and simultaneously "not draconian enough." I am not even sure that banning U.S. citizens from returning to their country would be constitutional. My verdict on this AP fact-checking piece: Baseless. Image credit: Library of Congress, public domain. Iranian Instagram star Sahar Tabar, who was jailed last year, is currently on a ventilator after contracting the coronavirus in custody. According to a human rights organization in Iran, they had asked for her to be released amid the COVID-19 outbreak in the country but a judge refused to grant bail. The U.S.-based Center for Human Rights in Iran stated that they find it unacceptable that the woman has now caught the coronavirus in these circumstances while the detention order has been extended during all this time in jail. Fatemeh Khishvand, the Instagram celebrity's real name, is known for her transformation into a "zombie Angelina Jolie." The 22-year-old was arrested in October 2019 amid a nationwide crackdown on Instagram celebrities. She faces numerous charges including blasphemy, inciting violence and encouraging the corruption of young people for expressing herself on her Instagram account. Instagram is the only social media app available in Iran because Twitter and Facebook are banned. Zombie Angelina Jolie Khishvand became famous in 2017 after she claimed that she had 50 surgeries to look like her favorite Hollywood actress, Angelina Jolie. She then started posting selfies showing her inflated lips, hollow cheeks, and cartoonish upturned nose. The shocking look was created with the help of digital editing and makeup. In 2019, she shared pictures with her thousands of followers showing what she actually looks like. The Instagram star's human rights lawyer, Payam Derafshan, said that they find it unacceptable that the woman now caught the coronavirus in these circumstances while her detention order has been extended during all this time in jail. Judge Mohammad Moghiseh declined to release her on bail repeatedly, even as the coronavirus has rapidly spread in the country. According to the human rights lawyer, the judge is nowhere to be found. Also Read: Actor Ezra Miller Caught on Video Choking A Woman in Iceland The jail officials in Tehran denied that the Khishvand had caught the coronavirus, but the lawyer does not believe them. Derafshan told CHRI that it has become a habit for the authorities to deny everything and that the prison director should acknowledge the infection and admit that the Instagram star has been hospitalized. The lawyer has called on authorities to release Khishvand and other inmates who are detained on non-violent charges amid the coronavirus outbreak. There have been more than 77,000 reported cases of the virus in Iran with more than 5,000 deaths. Cases against Sahar Tabar The Iranian Instagram star Sahar Tabar is facing trial and can be sentenced for up to 2 years in jail after she was accused of obtaining money through illegitimate means. According to an Iranian cybersecurity expert, the Instagram star also published inappropriate and vulgar photos. According to Iranian news agency Tasnim, Tabar was also accused of blasphemy, inciting violence, an offense against the hijab and corrupting the youth. Before her arrest, Tabar had a following of 26,800 on her Instagram page. Her page was immediately deleted after her arrest, but some fan pages were able to preserve photos and videos of her. Also known as the Iranian Corpse Bride, the Instagram star stated that she wanted to become famous since she was young, she either wanted to be an actress or a performer. There is still no news about her release and the human rights lawyer is still working on getting her out of the detention center. Related Article: Magic Johnson Compares HIV and COVID-19's Effect on Black Communities in America @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The cremators at Green-Wood Cemetery start their day at 6 a.m. They pull on gloves, masks and other protective gear, spray down caskets with bleach and ignite the cremation chamber, known as a retort. They hope for cardboard caskets fancy lacquered wooden ones take longer to burn. By the end of their 12-hour shift, they will slide 25 caskets through the cemetery's five retorts more than twice the normal volume and let the flames and 1,600-degree heat do their work. The shift is repeated seven days a week, nonstop, as the coronavirus delivers a steady stream of bodies to Green-Wood and other crematoriums around the country. "It seemed like it went from zero to 60 in two seconds," Eric Barna, vice president of operations at Green-Wood, a historic cemetery in New York City's Brooklyn borough. "The numbers just skyrocketed." Crematories across the nation are working long hours and double shifts to keep up with the increased death count from the coronavirus. As of early Monday, COVID-19 had killed more than 40,600 Americans, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Thursday saw the highest single-day spike yet, with 4,591 deaths reported. The U.S. has more confirmed COVID-19 deaths than any other country in the world. Pat Marmo, owner of Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home, walks through his body holding facility Thursday, April 2, 2020, 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 on a recent morning. Hospitals, coroner's offices and funeral homes have struggled with bodies overflowing their storage areas a problem that often falls to crematoriums to ease. New York City, which has recorded nearly 9,000 COVID-19 deaths, has faced the biggest struggle partly because of the high numbers but also because of a state law that requires crematories be located only in cemeteries, said Barbara Kemmis, executive director of the Cremation Association of North America. Because of the law, only four crematoriums serve New York City, a city of 8.3 million people that accounts for one-third of the nation's coronavirus deaths. To help meet demand, the state of New York recently loosened its regulations to allow crematoriums to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Kemmis said. New Jersey passed a similar law this week. Story continues But many of the older retorts can't run for 24 hours a day and need cool-down periods, she said. Meanwhile, many families are opting for cremations in the hopes of holding memorials for loved ones later when restrictions on funeral gatherings are lifted, she said. "More people are choosing cremation because they can't have a funeral," Kemmis said. Stephen Kemp, owner of Kemp Funeral Home & Cremation Services in the Detroit suburb of Southfield, Michigan, had to rent a 32-foot-long refrigerated trailer to store bodies awaiting cremation. The crematorium he usually contracts with is backed up with bodies, even though they've been working nonstop, he said. A casket is placed into a hearse outside a funeral home in the heavily Orthodox Borough Park neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City, which has seen a large number of deaths from the coronavirus. "We have to make appointments for cremations," Kemp said. The crematorium "has a cooler (for bodies), but they're overflowing." Before the outbreak, Professional Funeral Services in New Orleans' Treme neighborhood did mostly cemetery burials, including horse-and-buggy and traditional jazz funerals, even though it has a crematorium on site. Since COVID-19 began sweeping through the city last month, restricting gatherings, requests for cremations have surged, owner Malcolm Gibson said. The number of cremations they perform using their one retort has soared from about 60 to 130 a month, the majority of them COVID-19 victims, he said. The funeral home has had to store more than 60 bodies at its two locations. The home's seven licensed cremation operators are working 12- to 14-hour shifts to keep pace with demand, he said. "Its carnage," Gibson said, "to have this level of tragedy in such a short period of time." Staying Apart, Together: Sign up for our newsletter about how to cope with the coronavirus pandemic The outbreak has taken a personal toll on the funeral home: The office manager lost her dad to COVID-19, and one of the drivers lost his mom. Gibson buried his uncle last week, another victim of the outbreak. "You take a minute, you cry, you reflect," he said. "But you know you cant stay there. You have a high obligation to the families you're serving." Workers at Green-Wood in Brooklyn would normally perform 60 to 70 cremations a week, with a refrigerated storage room able to hold about 25 bodies, Barna said. As the coronavirus ramped up in New York, their cremations crept up to 74 by the second week of March. During the last week of March, they cremated 126 bodies, he said. Bodies overflowed the storage room. At one point, there were 60 bodies in caskets scattered throughout the crematorium, he said. "We had so many bodies back there we couldn't take anymore," Barna said. With the death toll on a steady climb, executives at Green-Wood had to put a cap on cremations at 25 a day. As of this week, the cemetery was booked for cremations through mid-May, Barna said. In a squat gray building in a corner of Green-Wood's idyllic 478-acre cemetery, two operators work from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., cremating the bodies. Founded in 1838, the cemetery is a National Historic Landmark and site of a key Revolutionary War battle, where Civil War generals and luminaries such as composer Leonard Bernstein and artist Jean-Michel Basquiat are buried. Amid the outbreak, the cemetery has one again found itself in the midst of American history. Caskets arrive through the loading dock and are sprayed down with a water-bleach solution before they are wheeled toward the retorts. "We treat every interment or cremation like it's a potential COVID-19 case," Barna said. Most cremations these days are what's known as "direct cremations," where the casket goes straight from the hearse to the retort without ceremony, he said. The retort is heated to between 1,400 and 1,800 degrees, and cremations could take two to four hours to complete, depending on the size and material of the casket. Cardboard caskets are preferred to wooden caskets, which take much longer to burn, Barna said. "We have gently asked (funeral directors) to try to reduce the number of wood caskets they bring us," he said. Once the body and casket are burned, the remains are transferred to a processing machine that pulverizes them into dust that is poured into a plastic bag and placed into a temporary box or urn. In this file photo taken on April 10, 2020, the skyline of lower Manhattan with One World Trade Center is seen from a Green-Wood Cemetery in New York City. Brooklyn's Green-Wood cemetery has seen cremations more than double and five times more burials than usual, as coronavirus claims the lives of New Yorkers by the thousands. The city's largest cemetery -- beloved for its meandering hills, glacial ponds and vibrant flora -- began preparing for an influx years ago, during the 2013-2016 Ebola epidemic that ultimately left the United States largely unscathed. If a retort burns hotter than normal, such as to burn a large wooden casket, it needs more time to cool down afterward, slowing the process, Barna said. "We're doing our best to keep up with it," he said. "Hopefully, there's a light at the end of the tunnel at some point." Outside New York City, workers at Ferncliff Cemetery in Westchester County, about 20 miles north of Manhattan, have been seeing a similar spike in cremations: from a normal average of around 65 a week to about 140 a week. On one day Tuesday, March 24 they received 250 cremations requests before noon, forcing them to shut down requests and begin scheduling cremations, said Kevin Boyd, the cemetery's president. It was the first time in the cemetery's 118-year history that they had to do that, he said. Many of their cremation requests are coming from New York City funeral directors trying to find a quicker turnaround time than the city crematories, he said. Ferncliff has closed a chapel adjacent to its crematorium to store bodies there waiting for cremation. The Ferncliff staff has been haunted by the increase in bodies and cremations, Boyd said. Most troubling: knowing that many of these bodies were people who died alone in hospitals of COVID-19 and will be cremated alone, too, he said. "This has proven to be, for most victims, a fairly lonely experience," Boyd said. Follow Jervis on Twitter at: @MrRJervis. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: As coronavirus deaths soar, crematories struggle to meet demand North Korea Denies Sending 'Nice Note' to Trump By VOA News April 19, 2020 Pyongyang has refuted a claim by Washington that Kim Jong Un sent a "nice note" to his American counterpart Donald Trump. A statement from North Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs released Sunday called Trump's claims "ungrounded" and accused Washington of exploiting the two leaders' relationship. "The relations between the top leaders of [North Korea] and the U.S. are not an issue to be taken up just for diversion nor it should be misused for meeting selfish purposes," the statement said. The statement followed remarks from Trump at Saturday's coronavirus briefing, in response to a question about North Korea's recent testing of short-range missiles. "I received a nice note from him recently. It was a nice note. I think we're doing fine," Trump said. Trump and Kim have corresponded multiple times and met in person three times in the past year and a half but talks broke down last year after the U.S. refused to relax sanctions and provide other concessions. A recent letter from Trump to Kim last month offered American help to North Korea in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. A response from Kim's sister and senior official, Kim Yo Jong, acknowledged the special relationship between the two leaders but cautioned against being optimistic about bilateral relations. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Police are hunting a masked gang who stole $600,000 worth of jewellery in a 'carefully planned' raid on a Sydney store before fleeing in a Mercedes. CCTV footage showed one man get out of the Mercedes and smash the front door of Germani Jewellery on the George Street, Sydney CBD, store with a sledgehammer at 3.20am on March 19. Moments later three men rushed in and began smashing glass cases - making off with diamond bracelets, earrings and necklaces. CCTV footage showed one man get out of the Mercedes and smash the front door on the George Street, Sydney CBD, store with a sledgehammer at 3.20am on March 19 One opened up a bag so they can stash their haul in before quickly fleeing the crime scene in a black Mercedes GLE63. The car is believed to have driven towards the Anzac Bridge. Police have released the footage in the hopes someone with information about the robbery will come forward. One of the men wore grey tracksuit pants, a black jacket and black sneakers with a white sole. Another is wearing a dark jumper, black sneakers and a pair of tracksuit pants while the third wore a blue hooded jumped, white sneakers and black tracksuit pants. Detective Acting Superintendent Grant Taylor, from the Robbery and Serious Crime Squad Commander, urged anyone with information to come forward. Moments later three men rushed in and began smashing glass cases - making off with diamond bracelets, earrings and necklaces Detective Acting Superintendent Grant Taylor, from the Robbery and Serious Crime Squad Commander, urged anyone with information to come forward 'As our inquiries continue, it is apparent that this robbery was carefully planned by those involved,' Det A/Supt Taylor said. 'These men stole nearly $600,000 worth of jewellery, which has had a significant impact on the livelihood of these business owners and at a time when the community is already vulnerable.' He also asked anyone who may have dash cam footage from the night. 'We believe these men were travelling in a black Mercedes GLE63 with the registration CLB 86H. Anyone who may have seen this vehicle is crucial to our investigation,' he said. 'We are asking the community to please look carefully at this footage the information you have might just help us ensure we put those responsible before the courts'. He said the left has had a significant impact on the livelihood of the store's owner BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 Trend: Turkmenistan has planned to hold talks with a number of international institutions by the end of the April, Trend reports with reference to Business Turkmenistan informational portal. The negotiations will be held in the videoconference format, the report said. The first talk is scheduled for April 22 to establish the One Window network in all Turkmenistans customs points through the ASYCUDA World system. This network is being implemented in collaboration with the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), as well as countrys relevant agencies. The next conference is scheduled with the International Road Transport Union (IRU) for April 23. This videoconference is aimed at introduction of electronic documents for the registration of vehicles and goods both imported into Turkmenistan and going as transit. A meeting of the Turkmen-Uzbek joint group on international automobile communications is also planned to be held this month. In order to implement the priority projects, it is planned to hold video talks between the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation and Turkmenistans State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs. One way or another, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is going to leave his mark on the state education system. His effort to shake up decades worth of funding practices did not happen in the recently completed state budget process, but the coronavirus pandemic has placed the future of public school funding firmly in the hands of the governor. Governors across the country want $500 billion in direct aid from the federal government, and Cuomo and state lawmakers are hoping that would mean billions for New York that would help stave off huge cuts to public education. Whatever we get from the federal government will determine our state budget, Cuomo said Monday morning, adding that there could be 20% cuts to schools, local governments and hospitals unless federal aid comes through. Im worried. Cuomo has repeatedly pressed U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey to get it done, but it remains to be seen whether Congress will approve billions in unrestricted aid for New York. If such aid does not materialize in the coming weeks, then the likely cuts to education could run so deep that public schools would be deeply changed for years to come. I think it would be largely catastrophic, said Rick Timbs, executive director of the Statewide School Finance Consortium. I dont know how a system could recover. Staff would be cut. Vendors would lose business. Schools would no longer be reimbursed for expenses. Substantial pushback would be expected from unions, activists and local officials. Cuomo has clashed with teachers unions before, and additional federal aid could prove critical to avoiding additional clashes in the upcoming months. Direct federal aid for schools is critical, but so too is the state seeking new revenues through taxes on the ultrawealthy to help fund essential public services like education, said Andrew Pallotta, president of New York State United Teachers. Now is the time to invest in our schools, not deny them the resources they need to provide for communities statewide. Local school districts could negotiate with teacher and staff unions to freeze pay, as they did a decade ago during the Great Recession, according to David Albert of the New York State School Boards Association. But school districts are already turning to their rainy day funds, and districts are already coming to terms with the idea that their funding could be reduced in the near future. Schools are being conservative and theyre not banking on money coming in, he said on New York Now. The recently passed state budget includes a provision that allows the governor to make rolling budget cuts if tax revenues fall below current projections. Billions in federal aid could keep state funding for public schools in line with the recently passed state budget, which allocated the same amount as last year. It unimaginable, state Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Shelley Mayer said Monday morning of education cuts that the governor said Sunday could reach 50% without federal aid. Thats why the governor is so right that the next stimulus bill should include funding for the states. While Mayer said that she has reached out to unspecified members of the states congressional delegation, other lawmakers said they have not. I believe our entire congressional delegation knows the depth of the problem and is advocating for the entire state, said Assembly Education Committee Chairman Michael Benedetto. They know their job. Cuomo said Sunday that he opposes raising taxes even if the federal aid does not materialize, but state lawmakers say it is an option worth exploring in order to avoid a scenario where districts big and small would lose millions in aid. To suggest were going to cut school funding in half is too much fearmongering, said state Sen. John Liu. Even in the worst-case scenario, there are still revenues to tap. Lawmakers could pass legislation to override any budget cuts from the governor, but it remains an open question whether they will even meet again this year, especially given the political dynamics surrounding making budget decisions during a reelection year. That could mean that the governor has a relatively free hand in deciding how the state would manage a multibillion-dollar funding shortfall, in the absence of federal aid. Lets reimagine how society could be, he told reporters on Monday morning. While the governor would have a chance to streamline school funding in ways he has always wanted to implement, the present circumstances are hardly enviable, according to Timbs. Budget cuts to schools could create more pressure to rethink his cherished property tax cap in order to help local communities cope with the loss of state aid. The bottom line is that there are no good answers at this point to figuring out what to do with public education if the federal aid doesnt come through. Whether there is funding or not, the state has to educate its students and that costs money. The overall political uncertainty will not make it any easier for Cuomo to figure out a path ahead on public school funding no matter what happens in the coming weeks in regard to a fourth federal stimulus bill. I think we got a real mess on our hands, Timbs said. I wouldnt want to be the governor. The Phoenix Hill Sports Park in the capital of Southwest Chinas Sichuan province hosted the 2021 Chinese FA Cup final as its inaugural event Sunday. Covering an area of 128,000 square meters, the park consists of two world-class sports venues, a retail and hotel complex, and a public plaza. It will be one of the venues of the 31st Summer World University Games Jan 12, 2022 05:45 PM 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, 2020 in New York. Amazon warehouse workers are planning a "mass call out" this week to call attention to what they call a lack of protections for employees who continue to come to work amid the coronavirus outbreak. More than 300 Amazon workers across at least 50 facilities have signed up to take part in the protest, according to United for Respect, a worker rights group. To participate in the protest, workers will call out of work "en masse across the country" starting tomorrow and throughout the week. The protest is taking place across several days because workers are scheduled to report to their shifts on different days and at various times. The workers are calling for Amazon to "immediately close down" any facilities that report positive cases and to provide testing and two weeks of pay for workers during that time. They're also calling for Amazon to provide paid sick leave, guarantee healthcare for all Amazon associates, eliminate rate-based quotas "that make hand-washing and sanitizing impossible" and commit not to retaliate against associates who speak out, among other demands. The protest marks the first nationwide effort by warehouse workers to demand coronavirus safety protections, after workers staged walkouts at Amazon facilities in Staten Island, New York; Detroit and Illinois in recent weeks. Their calls have also sparked action from some of Amazon's corporate employees, who are hosting a "virtual sick out" on April 24 to demand that the company reinstate fired workers and to protest its treatment of warehouse workers. The company's labor practices drew further criticism after Amazon fired a Staten Island warehouse worker who organized a strike to demand greater protections for employees amid the coronavirus outbreak. Chris Smalls, a management assistant at the facility, said he was fired for organizing the strike, but Amazon said it fired Smalls because he violated social distancing rules while he was supposed to be under quarantine after being exposed to a coworker who tested positive for the coronavirus. Amazon declined to comment on the walkout plans for this week. But in the past, the company has downplayed the walkouts, saying only a small percentage of workers at the facilities participated in the protests and there was no disruption to operations. A spokesperson from Amazon previously highlighted the number of steps the company has taken to protect warehouse workers during the pandemic. Amazon increased the frequency and intensity of cleaning at all of its sites and requires that employees sanitize and clean their work stations at the start and end of shifts. It has also started taking employees' temperatures when they report to work and has supplied them with face masks. Despite this, warehouse workers say Amazon isn't doing enough to protect them from catching the virus while they're on the job. Monica Moody, a packer at an Amazon facility in Charlotte, North Carolina, said it's one of the reasons why she plans to participate in the "mass call out" tomorrow. "I just want better treatment," said Moody, who is also a member of United for Respect. "I would feel a whole lot safer if they would just close down facilities for two weeks and clean them. I would go back to work, no problem." So much of our time is spent in the workplace, and employers have spent countless hours fostering an environment that positively affects employees. However, faced with the current crisis due to COVID-19, companies across the world were forced to completely change the way they operate in a matter of days. Insurance Business is looking to uncover New Zealands best employers for its second annual Top Insurance Workplaces report. This is a great opportunity for employers to offer insights into how they have performed over the past 12 months, not only during normal day-to-day operations, but especially when faced with a crisis. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More IT major Infosys, which on April 20 reported the results for the March quarter, missed its FY20 revenue guidance as full-year revenue growth in constant currency was 9.8 percent and 8.3 percent in dollar terms due to lockdown in major parts of the world to limit the spread of novel coronavirus. The company had estimated full-year revenue growth in constant currency in the range of 10-10.5 percent over FY19. The company said it is making every effort to tackle the turbulence caused by the coronavirus outbreak. "Infosys continues to make every effort to deliver the certainty of its services even in these times of uncertainty. Businesses, from various parts of the globe, have acknowledged these efforts and expressed their appreciation for the services and support they are receiving from Infosys," the company said. Here are eight takeaways from the company's Q4FY20 scorecard: The numbers: Infosys reported a profit of Rs 4,321 crore for the quarter ended March 2020, 3.1 percent less compared to December quarter 2019, impacted by lower other income (down 25.8 percent) and tax benefits in the previous quarter. Profitability was ahead of the CNBC-TV18's analysts' poll which was pegged at Rs 4,230 crore due to lower tax cost (down 16.1 percent QoQ). Final dividend: The company announced the final dividend of Rs 9.50 per share and said it is a testimony of a strong free cash flow performance for FY20. Revenues by offering: As per the press release, the company's digital revenues stood at 41.9 percent of total revenues for the March quarter. Its digital segment's revenue rose 29.6 percent YoY, coming at $1,341 million in the March quarter of FY20 against $1,035 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year. In CC terms, it was 31.7 percent YoY. On the other hand, core revenue declined to $1,856 million in Q4FY20 against $2,025 million in Q4FY19. Core revenue declined 8.3 percent YoY. In CC terms, it was down 6.6 percent YoY. Revenues by business segments: Life sciences segment grew 11.7 percent YoY, while hi-tech and manufacturing segments grew 7.3 percent YoY and 5.8 percent YoY, respectively, in Q4FY20. Communication segment (down 0.1 percent YoY) remained almost flat during the said quarter India lead growth among geographies: As per the release, revenue from the Indian market grew 19.5 percent YoY during the quarter, while that of Europe and North America grew 6.4 percent and 5.1 percent YoY, respectively. In the rest of the geographies, the company's revenues declined by 4.8 percent YoY. Headcount: The company had 2,42,371 employees in March quarter of FY20 against 2,43,454 employees in the December quarter of FY20 and 2,28,123 employees of the March quarter of FY19. Annualised consolidated attrition rate was 20.7 percent in Q4FY20 against 19.6 percent in Q3FY20 and 20.4 percent in Q4FY19. Management commentary: The management underscored the challenges but showed confidence that it will endure the headwinds and come out stronger. We had an exceptional year in the financial year 2020 with a growth of 9.8 percent and an operating margin of 21.3 percent. While the immediate short-term will be challenging, looking ahead, we can see that there is a strong interest to consolidate with partners with high-quality and agile service delivery and strong financial resilience. I am confident we will emerge from this stronger, CEO and MD Salil Parekh said. We completed a satisfying year on multiple countsgrowth in all verticals and geographies, a significant increase in large deal wins, good client mining and operational discipline, COO Pravin Rao said. The company remained focused on execution excellence in a period of high uncertainty, CFO Nilanjan Roy said. "Our relentless focus on liquidity will be supported by our strong balance sheet of $3.6 billion cash, backed by accelerated cost take-outs and operational rigor," he said. The company said DN Prahlad, independent director, has resigned. It announced the appointment of Uri Levine as an independent director, effective April 20, 2020, based on the recommendations of the board's nomination and remuneration committee. The appointment is for a period of three years and is subject to the approval of shareholders. Anti-vaxxers have been targeting Sydneysiders by dropping leaflets in letterboxes that claim the novel coronavirus is a hoax and by spreading conspiracy theories online. Some residents of Ryde received a 12-page printed document in their letterboxes calling the pandemic the "plannedemic" and advising people not to follow advice to get a seasonal flu shot and challenge the government over physical distancing rules. Nursing staff from St Vincents Hospital see local residents and backpackers at a COVID-19 testing clinic in the Bondi Pavilion. Credit:AAP The document, seen by the Herald, said COVID-19 was just a mild seasonal cold and was being exaggerated as part of a conspiracy to remove social freedoms and introduce forced vaccinations. The document alleges that a cast of villains, including Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch, Lucy Turnbull, the World Health Organisation, the World Bank and Big Pharma, had a secret agenda that would culminate in hiding identifying nanoparticles in the vaccine to exert global domination. Ethnic fighting over ownership of a fishing lake leaves 19 dead in northwest Nigeria At least 19 people were killed in fighting between ethnic groups in northwest Nigeria's Taraba state over ownership of a fishing lake, police said on Wednesday. The fighting erupted on Monday between the Shomo and Jole ethnic groups in the district of Lau. Nineteen people were confirmed dead, state police spokesperson David Misal said. Around 100 houses were burned and several people were also injured. Misal said long-standing animosity between the neighbouring communities over the lake's ownership had already cost dozens of lives. Unsuccessful attempts at reconciliation by state authorities and the police had prompted the government to ban fishing there, he said. However some miscreants flouted the ban... leading to the clashes, Misal said. President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the clashes in a statement late Tuesday, expressing sadness at the resort to violence over disagreements that could be resolved through dialogue. Communal clashes over land and water rights are common in parts of Nigeria, especially between nomadic herders and farmers in the centre of the country. 2020 Arena Holdings (Pty) Ltd. All rights reserved. Theme(s): Communities and Organisations. GREENBELT, Md., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA has awarded a sole source contract to the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder for the Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor-2 (TSIS-2). The new sensor provides continuity to data delivered by TSIS-1, which launched in December 2017. This is a cost-no-fee contract in the amount of $18,044,280 with a period of performance ending with on-orbit acceptance by the government. This action definitizes a letter contract that was issued on August 6, 2019. Under this contract, the LASP will provide two instruments the Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) and the Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM). LASP will also provide all necessary support to integrate and test these instruments with the spacecraft, including all post-launch activities leading to commissioning. LASP will also be responsible for the establishment of the TSIS-2 Science Operations Center (TSOC). These instruments are nearly identical to those currently in operation on the predecessor TSIS-1 mission. The TIM will continue to provide a 40-year uninterrupted measurement record of the Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) which is the Earth's predominant energy source. The SIM will continue to measure the Solar Spectral Irradiance (SSI) and identify the regions in Earth's atmosphere and surface that are affected by solar variability. This is a directed mission to address the 2017 Decadal Survey recommendation for sustained multidecadal global measurements of solar irradiance and will continue the collection of high-quality data for the long-term climate record. These measurements are indispensable to the scientific community for understanding solar influences on the Earth's climate. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov SOURCE NASA Related Links http://www.nasa.gov If you're interested in Eastwood Bio-Medical Canada Inc. (CVE:EBM), then you might want to consider its beta (a measure of share price volatility) in order to understand how the stock could impact your portfolio. Modern finance theory considers volatility to be a measure of risk, and there are two main types of price volatility. First, we have company specific volatility, which is the price gyrations of an individual stock. Holding at least 8 stocks can reduce this kind of risk across a portfolio. The second type is the broader market volatility, which you cannot diversify away, since it arises from macroeconomic factors which directly affects all the stocks on the market. Some stocks mimic the volatility of the market quite closely, while others demonstrate muted, exagerrated or uncorrelated price movements. Some investors use beta as a measure of how much a certain stock is impacted by market risk (volatility). While we should keep in mind that Warren Buffett has cautioned that 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk', beta is still a useful factor to consider. To make good use of it you must first know that the beta of the overall market is one. A stock with a beta below one is either less volatile than the market, or more volatile but not corellated with the overall market. In comparison a stock with a beta of over one tends to be move in a similar direction to the market in the long term, but with greater changes in price. See our latest analysis for Eastwood Bio-Medical Canada What we can learn from EBM's beta value Using history as a guide, we might surmise that the share price is likely to be influenced by market volatility going forward but it probably won't be particularly sensitive to it. Many would argue that beta is useful in position sizing, but fundamental metrics such as revenue and earnings are more important overall. You can see Eastwood Bio-Medical Canada's revenue and earnings in the image below. Story continues TSXV:EBM Income Statement April 20th 2020 Does EBM's size influence the expected beta? Eastwood Bio-Medical Canada is a rather small company. It has a market capitalisation of CA$92m, which means it is probably under the radar of most investors. It doesn't take much money to really move the share price of a company as small as this one. That makes it somewhat unusual that it has a beta value so close to the overall market. What this means for you: Eastwood Bio-Medical Canada has a beta value quite close to that of the overall market. That doesn't tell us much on its own, so it is probably worth considering whether the company is growing, if you're looking for stocks that will go up more than the overall market. In order to fully understand whether EBM is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Eastwood Bio-Medical Canadas financial health and performance track record. I highly recommend you dive deeper by considering the following: Past Track Record: Has EBM been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of EBM's historicals for more clarity. 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. 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 the pandemic grinds on and confinement in our homes becomes bleak at times, Winnipegs abundant green spaces offer a therapeutic escape. Its unfortunate motorized vehicles are allowed to intrude. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion As the pandemic grinds on and confinement in our homes becomes bleak at times, Winnipegs abundant green spaces offer a therapeutic escape. Its unfortunate motorized vehicles are allowed to intrude. A temporary ban on cars, trucks and motorcycles from city parks would go a long way toward helping pedestrians enjoy outings while still keeping the required physical distance. Pedestrians in parks could use the full width of the the roadways to keep a safe space from each other. Vancouver did it with Stanley Park on April 8, banning vehicles from its world-class park so pedestrians can walk on roads and enjoy the tonic of the natural world while remaining distanced from other people. Minneapolis-St. Paul has banned vehicle traffic from three of its parkways. Portland, Ore., has closed 10 of its parks to cars and trucks. Similar sensible measures are underway in U.S. cities including Cleveland, Philadelphia and Denver. Like all urban centres struggling to contain COVID-19, these cities banned vehicles from green spaces because of two pragmatic realities: 1) its physically and mentally healthy for people to enjoy the rejuvenating effects of nature as a break from being cooped up under stressful circumstances; and 2) city parks can accommodate a lot of people safely, with everyone heeding physical distancing guidelines, as long as vehicles are removed so pedestrians have room to spread out. Personally, the need to bar vehicles from Winnipeg parks was clear last weekend when my wife and I, in dire need of fresh air and exercise, walked the two-kilometre loop around Kildonan Park, the green-space jewel in north Winnipeg. The main walking path is a rind of the roadways edge, only one metre wide, so walkers are separated from traffic only by lines painted on asphalt. The vehicle traffic is often bumper-to-bumper, so close that walkers could literally touch moving vehicles. With pedestrians at Kildonan Park squeezed into such narrow paths, we couldnt adhere to the physical distancing guidelines as we met and passed other pedestrians. The vehicles also marred our walk in other ways. The constant din of vehicle engines erased the soothing sounds of birds and the wind blowing through branches. The smell of exhaust fumes overpowered the delicate scents of grass and tree foliage springing into new life. Im told some pedestrians who use Assiniboine Park feel the same way. If vehicles were barred, people in search of a pandemic panacea would be better able to appreciate the sights, sounds and smells of the natural world. Some of our areas most precious green spaces have been closed or changed by COVID-19 restrictions. The showcase gathering at Birds Hill Provincial Park, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, was cancelled on Tuesday, but the park itself remains open for people who want trees to massage their minds (although washroom facilities at Birds Hill remain closed). Unfortunately, Fort Whyte Alive is completely closed (perhaps the geese are wondering when the humans will flock back). Winnipeg is fortunate to have more than 1,200 neighbourhood, community and regional parks, and this pandemic crisis is a time when they are needed more than ever. Banning vehicles from parks to allow pedestrians room to roam is the natural next step after the city decided earlier this month to designate four streets in Winnipeg as bicycle/active transportation routes. Sections of Lyndale Drive, Scotia Street, Wellington Crescent and Wolseley Avenue have been largely freed from vehicles, so the space is free and clear for pedestrians, joggers and cyclists. Winnipegs green spaces have long been urban treasures that greatly enhance the quality of life by providing mini-oases amid the buildings, concrete roads and parking lots. That said, the trees that tower over Winnipegs green spaces have had a tough time in recent years, battered by the triple assault of Dutch elm disease, the emerald ash borer and a freak ice story in October that damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of trees. 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. The mayor had planned a planting spree called the Million Tree Challenge to restore the giant sentinels, but now the roles can be reversed. Trees can restore us. Plenty of evidence shows connecting with nature can refresh our brains, relieve tension and brighten grim moods. These healing properties are particularly appealing to the many Winnipeggers whose lives have been disrupted by pandemic measures and might make one feel a bit stir-crazy after weeks of sitting at home and watching the walls. Winter-weary Manitobans traditionally have a zealous appreciation for spring and summer, but our usual methods of enjoying the warmer weather cottages, camping, restaurant patios, picnics and festivals have been cancelled, prohibited or declared inadvisable. City green spaces remain open, however, and if vehicles are banned from entry, our parks offer the breathing space we need to recuperate before returning to our residences to resume our submission to the necessary discipline of confinement. carl.degurse@freepress.mb.ca Carl DeGurse is a member of the Free Press editorial board. A team of Chinese medical experts arrive in Phnom Penh to help fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in Cambodia, March 23, 2020. /Xinhua By Duan Fengyuan No country can detach itself from such a severe pandemic. Confirmed COVID-19 cases have exceeded 2.4 million globally, with the death toll surpassing 160,000, according to the latest data by Johns Hopkins University. To win the human challenge as soon as possible, China and the international community have been working closely since the start of the outbreak. Their cooperation can be characterized by several idioms and proverbs. Friendship in the blazing fire of a global outbreak "A friend in need is a friend indeed." The old saying popular among the Chinese people has been demonstrated many times when China was at the most difficult time of its epidemic fight, as countries around the world extended helping hands. Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen paid a special visit to Beijing in February, which, as Chinese President Xi Jinping put it, demonstrated the unbreakable friendship and mutual trust between the two countries and showcased the essence of building a community of shared future. A Japanese girl wearing a red Chinese cheongsam bows deeply to passers-by with a donation box in hands to raise money to help those in China affected by the virus on the Chinese Lantern Festival in Tokyo, Japan, February 8, 2020. /Xinhua Heads of more than 160 countries and international organizations have shown their support through phone calls, messages or letters. For instance, the two heads of state of China and France have held three phone calls to express condolences and support to each other, and there have been many moving moments of cooperation against the virus between the two sides. Pakistan, South Korea, Russia and many other countries have donated much-needed medical supplies a total of 62 countries and seven international organizations had pledged epidemic prevention and control supplies to China as of March 2. "Toss a peach, get back a plum," which means to return a favor. The Chinese government as well as Chinese enterprises and institutions have made every effort within their capability to help those in need overseas as the pandemic spreads globally. There are four main channels through which China helps other affected countries, namely government-to-government assistance, cooperation on health technology, assistance at regional levels and non-governmental assistance. A Chinese support team arrives in Belgrade, Serbia to help the country stem the spread of COVID-19, March 21, 2020. /CCTV China's cooperation with the world in various forms: - Providing medical supplies to over 140 countries and international organizations - Donating 20 million U.S. dollars to the World Health Organization - Sending 20 medical teams to 18 countries as of April 18 - Holding 83 video conferences with experts from 153 countries as of April 12 - Compiling and sharing latest plans and technical documents with over 180 countries and more than 10 international and regional organizations - Exporting anti-epidemic supplies of gross export value reaching 10.2 billion yuan (about 1.44 billion U.S. dollars) from March 1 to April 4: Masks: 3.86 billion Protective gears: 37.52 million Infrared thermometers: 2.41 million Ventilators: 16,000 Testing kits: 2.84 million Protective goggles: 8.41 million "China's anti-virus external assistance is the most intensive and wide-ranging emergency humanitarian operation since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949," said Deng Boqing, deputy head of China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA). Moreover, China has participated actively in several global meetings to provide the international community with solutions and experience, such as the G20 virtual summit on COVID-19, the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), China, Japan and South Korea (ASEAN Plus Three or APT) on COVID-19, and a special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers' meeting on the outbreak. 'Trust needed' in cooperation Though saving lives is the most urgent and important thing right now for the world, some politicians and media outlets have tried to politicize China's sincere and substantial assistance, alleging "politics of generosity," "mask diplomacy" and "propaganda." "Never gauge the heart of a gentleman with one's own standard." Another proverb needs to be stressed in the battle against the virus. The fact is, as the CIDCA said, that China mainly takes the following factors into consideration when determining the anti-epidemic assistance program: the severity of the local outbreak, specific needs for assistance from relevant countries and the capabilities of the Chinese government itself. "What has happened to the world and how should we respond?" That was the question posed to the world by President Xi at the UN Office at Geneva in 2017. Right now, the world is giving the answer in handling this serious public health crisis. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Cider market worldwide is projected to grow by US$5.5 Billion, driven by a compounded growth of 5.7%. Apple Flavored, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 5.5%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market. Poised to reach over US$10.4 Billion by the year 2025, Apple Flavored will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05151480/?utm_source=PRN - Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 4.4% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$189.3 Million to the region's size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$158.3 Million worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Apple Flavored will reach a market size of US$554.6 Million by the close of the analysis period. As the world's second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 9.1% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$1.6 Billion in terms of addressable opportunity for the picking by aspiring businesses and their astute leaders. Presented in visually rich graphics are these and many more need-to-know quantitative data important in ensuring quality of strategy decisions, be it entry into new markets or allocation of resources within a portfolio. Several macroeconomic factors and internal market forces will shape growth and development of demand patterns in emerging countries in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. All research viewpoints presented are based on validated engagements from influencers in the market, whose opinions supersede all other research methodologies. - Competitors identified in this market include, among others, Aston Manor Brewery C&C Group plc Carlsberg A/S Distell Group Halewood International Holdings PLC Heineken N.V. The Boston Beer Company, Inc. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05151480/?utm_source=PRN I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. MARKET OVERVIEW Market Outlook Recent Market Activity Cider Capitalizes on Changing Consumer Behavior Sizing the Market Regional Focus Trends in Cider Market Place Key Market Trends/Drivers - Past, Present & Future Filling the Gap Growing Market for Premium Cider Products Cider Manufacturers Move Towards Lightweight Bottles New Pockets of Growth in Male-Oriented Cider Market White Cider - A Low-Cost Substitute to Apple Juice Too Many Flavor Innovations Erode Identity of Cider Competitive Landscape Major Cider Brands of Select Leading Companies Heineken Revels in Cider Business while C&C Languishes Global Competitor Market Shares Cider Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2020 & 2029 2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS Aston Manor Brewery (UK) C&C Group plc (Ireland) Carlsberg A/S (Denmark) Distell Group (South Africa) Halewood International Holdings PLC (UK) Heineken N.V. (Netherlands) The Boston Beer Company, Inc. (USA) 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE Table 1: Cider Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 2: Cider Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 3: Cider Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 4: Apple Flavored (Product) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 5: Apple Flavored (Product) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 6: Apple Flavored (Product) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 7: Fruit Flavored (Product) Potential Growth Markets Worldwide in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 8: Fruit Flavored (Product) Historic Market Perspective by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 9: Fruit Flavored (Product) Market Sales Breakdown by Region/Country in Percentage: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 10: Perry (Product) Geographic Market Spread Worldwide in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 11: Perry (Product) Region Wise Breakdown of Global Historic Demand in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 12: Perry (Product) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 13: Draught (Packaging) World Market Estimates and Forecasts by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 14: Draught (Packaging) Market Historic Review by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 15: Draught (Packaging) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 16: Cans (Packaging) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 17: Cans (Packaging) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 18: Cans (Packaging) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 19: Glass Bottles (Packaging) World Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018 to 2025 Table 20: Glass Bottles (Packaging) Market Worldwide Historic Review by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 21: Glass Bottles (Packaging) Market Percentage Share Distribution by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 22: Plastic Bottles (Packaging) Market Opportunity Analysis Worldwide in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018 to 2025 Table 23: Plastic Bottles (Packaging) Global Historic Demand in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009 to 2017 Table 24: Plastic Bottles (Packaging) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 25: Other Packaging (Packaging) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 26: Other Packaging (Packaging) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 27: Other Packaging (Packaging) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 III. MARKET ANALYSIS GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US Cider Market Share (in %) by Company: 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 28: United States Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 29: Cider Market in the United States by Product: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 30: United States Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 31: United States Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 32: Cider Market in the United States by Packaging: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 33: United States Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CANADA Table 34: Canadian Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 35: Canadian Cider Historic Market Review by Product in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 36: Cider Market in Canada: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Product for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 37: Canadian Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 38: Canadian Cider Historic Market Review by Packaging in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 39: Cider Market in Canada: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Packaging for 2009, 2019, and 2025 JAPAN Table 40: Japanese Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 41: Cider Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2009-2017 Table 42: Japanese Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 43: Japanese Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 44: Cider Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2009-2017 Table 45: Japanese Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CHINA Table 46: Chinese Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 47: Cider Historic Market Analysis in China in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 48: Chinese Cider Market by Product: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 49: Chinese Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 50: Cider Historic Market Analysis in China in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 51: Chinese Cider Market by Packaging: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European Cider Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 52: European Cider Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 53: Cider Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 54: European Cider Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 55: European Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018-2025 Table 56: Cider Market in Europe in US$ Million by Product: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 57: European Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 58: European Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018-2025 Table 59: Cider Market in Europe in US$ Million by Packaging: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 60: European Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 FRANCE Table 61: Cider Market in France by Product: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 62: French Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 63: French Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 64: Cider Market in France by Packaging: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 65: French Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 66: French Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 GERMANY Table 67: Cider Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 68: German Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 69: German Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 70: Cider Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 71: German Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 72: German Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ITALY Table 73: Italian Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 74: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Italy in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 75: Italian Cider Market by Product: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 76: Italian Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 77: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Italy in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 78: Italian Cider Market by Packaging: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 UNITED KINGDOM Table 79: United Kingdom Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 80: Cider Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2009-2017 Table 81: United Kingdom Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 82: United Kingdom Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 83: Cider Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2009-2017 Table 84: United Kingdom Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SPAIN Table 85: Spanish Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 86: Spanish Cider Historic Market Review by Product in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 87: Cider Market in Spain: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Product for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 88: Spanish Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 89: Spanish Cider Historic Market Review by Packaging in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 90: Cider Market in Spain: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Packaging for 2009, 2019, and 2025 RUSSIA Table 91: Russian Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 92: Cider Market in Russia by Product: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 93: Russian Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 94: Russian Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 95: Cider Market in Russia by Packaging: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 96: Russian Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF EUROPE Table 97: Rest of Europe Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018-2025 Table 98: Cider Market in Rest of Europe in US$ Million by Product: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 99: Rest of Europe Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 100: Rest of Europe Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018-2025 Table 101: Cider Market in Rest of Europe in US$ Million by Packaging: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 102: Rest of Europe Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 103: Asia-Pacific Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 104: Cider Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 105: Asia-Pacific Cider Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 106: Cider Market in Asia-Pacific by Product: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 107: Asia-Pacific Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 108: Asia-Pacific Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 109: Cider Market in Asia-Pacific by Packaging: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 110: Asia-Pacific Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 111: Asia-Pacific Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AUSTRALIA Table 112: Cider Market in Australia: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 113: Australian Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 114: Australian Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 115: Cider Market in Australia: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 116: Australian Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 117: Australian Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 INDIA Table 118: Indian Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 119: Indian Cider Historic Market Review by Product in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 120: Cider Market in India: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Product for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 121: Indian Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 122: Indian Cider Historic Market Review by Packaging in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 123: Cider Market in India: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Packaging for 2009, 2019, and 2025 SOUTH KOREA Table 124: Cider Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 125: South Korean Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 126: Cider Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 127: Cider Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 128: South Korean Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 129: Cider Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 130: Rest of Asia-Pacific Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 131: Cider Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2009-2017 Table 132: Rest of Asia-Pacific Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 133: Rest of Asia-Pacific Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 134: Cider Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2009-2017 Table 135: Rest of Asia-Pacific Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 LATIN AMERICA Table 136: Latin American Cider Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 137: Cider Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2009-2017 Table 138: Latin American Cider Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 139: Latin American Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 140: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Latin America in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 141: Latin American Cider Market by Product: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 142: Latin American Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 143: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Latin America in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 144: Latin American Cider Market by Packaging: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 ARGENTINA Table 145: Argentinean Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018-2025 Table 146: Cider Market in Argentina in US$ Million by Product: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 147: Argentinean Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 148: Argentinean Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018-2025 Table 149: Cider Market in Argentina in US$ Million by Packaging: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 150: Argentinean Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 BRAZIL Table 151: Cider Market in Brazil by Product: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 152: Brazilian Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 153: Brazilian Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 154: Cider Market in Brazil by Packaging: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 155: Brazilian Cider Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 156: Brazilian Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 MEXICO Table 157: Cider Market in Mexico: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 158: Mexican Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 159: Mexican Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 160: Cider Market in Mexico: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 161: Mexican Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 162: Mexican Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 163: Rest of Latin America Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 164: Cider Market in Rest of Latin America by Product: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 165: Rest of Latin America Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 166: Rest of Latin America Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 167: Cider Market in Rest of Latin America by Packaging: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 168: Rest of Latin America Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 MIDDLE EAST Table 169: The Middle East Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 170: Cider Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 171: The Middle East Cider Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 172: The Middle East Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 173: The Middle East Cider Historic Market by Product in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 174: Cider Market in the Middle East: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Product for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 175: The Middle East Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 176: The Middle East Cider Historic Market by Packaging in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 177: Cider Market in the Middle East: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Packaging for 2009, 2019, and 2025 IRAN Table 178: Iranian Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 179: Cider Market in Iran: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2009-2017 Table 180: Iranian Cider Market Share Analysis by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 181: Iranian Market for Cider: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 182: Cider Market in Iran: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2009-2017 Table 183: Iranian Cider Market Share Analysis by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ISRAEL Table 184: Israeli Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Product: 2018-2025 Table 185: Cider Market in Israel in US$ Million by Product: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 186: Israeli Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 187: Israeli Cider Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018-2025 Table 188: Cider Market in Israel in US$ Million by Packaging: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 189: Israeli Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SAUDI ARABIA Table 190: Saudi Arabian Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 191: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 192: Saudi Arabian Cider Market by Product: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 193: Saudi Arabian Cider Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 194: Cider Historic Market Analysis in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 195: Saudi Arabian Cider Market by Packaging: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 196: Cider Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 197: United Arab Emirates Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 198: Cider Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 199: Cider Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 200: United Arab Emirates Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 201: Cider Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 202: Cider Market in Rest of Middle East: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Product for the Period 2018-2025 Table 203: Rest of Middle East Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Product: 2009-2017 Table 204: Rest of Middle East Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 205: Cider Market in Rest of Middle East: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging for the Period 2018-2025 Table 206: Rest of Middle East Cider Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Packaging: 2009-2017 Table 207: Rest of Middle East Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AFRICA Table 208: African Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Product: 2018 to 2025 Table 209: Cider Market in Africa by Product: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 210: African Cider Market Share Breakdown by Product: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 211: African Cider Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Packaging: 2018 to 2025 Table 212: Cider Market in Africa by Packaging: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 213: African Cider Market Share Breakdown by Packaging: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 IV. COMPETITION Total Companies Profiled: 148 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05151480/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has hired APCO Worldwide to advocate on behalf of the "Fairness for All Act" introduced by Utah Republican Congressman Chris Stewart. He views the bill as a measure that harmonizes religious freedom and LGBTQ rights. If passed, it would amend the Civil Rights Act to protect religious freedom in the workplace and the rights of LGBT people while preserving First Amendment rights, according to the Congressman. The Mormon Church supports the Act because it endorses a "balanced approach that promotes greater fairness for all" by supporting religious freedom and protecting LGBT people from discrimination. The ACLU takes a different point of view. "The bill facilitates the Trump's administration's ongoing efforts to give a green light to those who would turn LGBTQ people away from jobs, healthcare, housing, even taxpayer-funded programs, simply because of who they are," Ian Thompson of the ACLU's DC office, said in a statement. By singling out LGBTQ people for lesser protection under the Civil Rights Act, it signals they are less worthy of protection, according to Thompson. "It does this by providing religious organizations and services providers with the ability to discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity where they are explicitly prohibited under current federal law from discriminating based on other protected characteristics," he said. APCO has former Congressmen Don Bonker (D-WA) and Cliff Stearns (R-FL) working the bill. The account is a return engagement for APCO, which worked for the LDS Church a decade ago. The renowned Swiss tourist resort of Zermatt has decided to send messages of hope to the countries suffering from the coronavirus crisis across the world. Friday night, Zermatt dedicated the projection on the iconic Matterhorn mountain to the people of Oman and the many expats living in the Sultanate, sending a strong message of hope. The flag of more than 1,000 metres in size was shining for all people in Oman with the aim to give them the courage and the strength to overcome the coronavirus crisis. Responsible for this illumination is the Swiss light artist Gerry Hofstetter. He and his small team have been living for the last month in a tent on the foot of the Matterhorn mountain on 2,800-m altitude in order to test and to make perfect projections every night. - TradeArabia News Service Several inmates who have the virus have petitioned the court to be released from jail. A Porter Superior Court judge has already denied one of those requests. Prosecutor Gary Germann has said that while they will be considered on a case-by-case basis, the inmates are receiving appropriate care at the jail and he is reluctant to release them because he cant trust them to self-quarantine, potentially creating a larger problem for the community. An investor group backed by Global Infrastructure Partners and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. is seeking a loan of about $8 billion to finance the potential purchase of a stake in Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.s natural gas pipelines, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The consortium which also includes Italian infrastructure operator Snam SpA, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan and Singapore sovereign fund GIC Pte has reached out to banks to gauge their interest in participating, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. No final agreements have been reached, and details of the financing could change, the people said. Representatives for Ontario Teachers, Snam, Brookfield and GIC declined to comment. A representative for GIP didnt immediately respond to requests for comment. The group is the only remaining bidder for a 49 per cent stake in Adnocs $15 billion pipeline business after other parties including Australian fund manager IFM Investors Pty dropped out, people with knowledge of the matter said earlier this month. The financing deal could be one of the largest for an infrastructure asset this year. Despite the coronavirus crisis which has crippled dealmaking globally infrastructure investors have been defying the downturn to deploy capital. KKR & Co.s infrastructure arm last month said it will buy the waste-management arm of U.K. utility owner Pennon Group Plc for $5 billion, one of the biggest deals since the pandemic hit. The United Arab Emirates, of which Abu Dhabi is the capital, is among Persian Gulf oil producers using their energy assets to draw fresh capital to the region. In Saudi Arabia, Aramco, the worlds largest oil producer, is weighing the sale of a stake in its pipeline unit to raise money amid a slump in crude prices, according to people familiar with the matter. KKR and BlackRock agreed last year to invest $4 billion in Adnocs oil pipeline network, securing two decades of guaranteed returns. GIC bought a stake in the business later. Adnoc has also listed its fuel retail unit and sold a stake in its $11 billion drilling business to Baker Hughes Co. Open source On April 20, authorities of five EU countries lifted part of the quarantine restrictions imposed in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic, as Deutsche Welle reported. Germany allows opening commercial areas of less than 800 square meters, as well as car dealerships, bicycle shops, and books. The Czech Republic is launching a five-stage plan for the resumption of public life. Markets would resume their work. Citizens can now also conduct open-air seminars, travel abroad on business or to visit relatives. Upon return, everyone must be quarantined for 14 days. France will allow the resumption of visits to nursing homes. Physical contact is still prohibited. Only two relatives can visit an elderly person at a time. It is worth noting that coronavirus was recorded in 45% of French nursing homes. Kindergartens, as well as some health professionals, will resume work in Norway. High schools, universities, hairdressers, massage, and beauty salons are planned to open in a week. In Poland, on Sunday the largest spike in new cases of infection with coronavirus was recorded - 545 people. Despite this, the country's authorities are reopening parks and forests. The number of people who are simultaneously allowed to enter stores is increasing. As we reported before, as of Monday morning, April 20, Ukraine recorded 5,710 cases of coronavirus Covid-19. APRIL 20, 2020 With the goal to begin critical conversation on San Antonios recovery from the impact of COVID-19, UTSA will host a virtual interactive community conversation with leading faculty experts. The live broadcast will stream on April 22 from noon to 1 p.m. The event, titled The Pandemics Economic Impact on San Antonio, is free and open to the public and will provide attendees with an opportunity to have a dialogue with panelists through chat. UTSA researchers with diverse areas of expertise will discuss how the pandemic may affect San Antonio in the short and long-term and what the implications reveal for the citys economic future in a postpandemic world. Panelists are Tom Tunstall, senior director of research for the Institute for Economic Development; Richard Sifuentes, director of the Small Business Development Center; Pamela Smith, associate dean of administration and faculty and a professor of accounting; and Mike Villarreal, director of the Urban Education Institute. Topics slated for discussion during the hour: Short and long-term effects on Texas revenue sources, Implications and challenges for small business owners, Building San Antonios workforce for a new era, Intersections of economic and public policy concerns, and Potential impact on health care, tax policies and education. Watch the livestreamed broadcast or learn more about the event. As an urban serving institution, UTSA desires to share our faculty expertise and research with the community in a format where the audience can participate and interact with these renowned experts, said Mary Larson Diaz, vice president for university relations. We have some of UTSAs brightest minds tackling this crisis to help our city, state and nation find solutions and accelerate recovery. The event is the first of several expert-led community conversations planned by the university on topics related to the pandemic. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said he has urged his Maharashtra counterpart to take strict action against the culprits involved in the lynching of three men in Palghar district. "Spoke to Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray yesterday evening regarding murder of saints of Juna Akhara Swami Kalpvrikshgiri, Swami Sushilgiri and their driver Neelesh Telgarhe. I have urged him to take strict action against the culprits," he said in a tweet in Hindi. In another tweet, Adityanath said, "The Chief Minister of Maharashtra said that some persons have been arrested, and strict action will be initiated against rest of the accused persons after identifying them." On Sunday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had said the culprits involved in the lynching of three men in Palghar district will be brought to justice. "The Palghar incident has been acted upon. The police has arrested all those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and the police personnel, on the day of the crime itself. "Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible," the CM said in late night tweets posted on his official Twitter handle. Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh has already announced a high-level inquiry into the incident, that occurred on the night of April 16 when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were headed towards Surat in a car to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar district. The trio was dragged out of the car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Though the Competition Act, 2002 prohibits conduct that may cause appreciable adverse effect on competition, but in order to cope with significant changes in supply and demand patterns arising out of Covid-19 pandemic, businesses may need to coordinate in certain activities, according to a release by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). Businesses may need to share data on stock levels, timings of operation, sharing of distribution network and infrastructure, transport logistics,research and development to ensure continued supply and fair distribution of products. "The presumption on competition is not applicable to joint ventures, if such agreements increase efficiency in production, supply, distribution, storage, acquisition or control of goods or provision of services." the release said. While conducting competition assessment,Section 19(3) of the Act enables the Commission to have due regard to the accrual of benefits to consumers - improvement in production or distribution of goods or provision of services, and promotion of technical, scientific and economic development by means of production or distribution of goods or provision of services. The Act has in-built safeguards to protect businesses from sanctions for certain coordinated conduct,provided such arrangements result in increasing efficiencies. 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 "These provisions will inform the decisions of the Commission. However, only such conduct of businesses which is necessary and proportionate to address concerns arising from Covid-19 will be considered. Businesses are, however, cautioned not to take advantage of Covid-19 to contravene any of the provisions of the Act," the release said. The CCIs advisory is similar to the framework issued by other competition authorities across the world, including the UK Competition & Markets Authority, the US Federal Trade Commission, the European Commission. "Companies across the globe are facing exceptional challenges due to the Covid-19 outbreak and the CCIs advisory plays an important first step in recognizing the need for pro-competitive collaboration to meet public health objectives. Businesses can take some comfort in the advisorys acknowledgment of the need for relaxation of competition rules in times of the Covid-19 crisis," said Ram Kumar PoornachandranPartner, Talwar Thakore and Associates. Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images From Harper's BAZAAR The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they will never again deal with the tabloid newspapers. The couple sent letters to editors at The Sun, Daily Mail, Mirror and Express telling them that their PR team would no longer answer their inquiries, outlining that going forward there will be "no corroboration and zero engagement". Harry and Meghan said that they refuse to offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion and accused the titles listed above of running stories that are distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. "There is a real human cost to this way of doing business and it affects every corner of society," the letter said, according to the BBC. "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know - as well as complete strangers - have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue." The couple have recently moved to California after stepping back from their royal duties. The decision, announced in January, came in part due to relentless tabloid bullying of Meghan. She is soon to take on the Mail on Sunday after the paper published a personal letter she sent to her estranged father, omitting parts of it to portray the former actress in a negative light. An initial hearing will take place virtual on Friday. The Duke and Duchess said that they weren't opposed to criticism, but, if criticism is necessary, then it needed to be based on fact. They will continue to work with reputable titles and grassroots organisations "to spotlight issues and causes that so desperately need acknowledging". "Its not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting," the letter read. "Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it cant be based on a lie. Story continues In need of some at-home inspiration? Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for skincare and self-care, the latest cultural hits to read and download, and the little luxuries that make staying in so much more satisfying. SIGN UP You Might Also Like Malak Al Tawouk Restaurant, one of the most popular Lebanese fast-food chains, is now the first restaurant in the UAE to be certified with the Anti-Corona shield by GWR Consulting - a leader in quality control and training in Lebanon, GCC, North Africa and the Levant region. Approved by Dubai Municipality, GWR Consulting is a leading auditing, training and consultancy company specialising in food safety, health and safety, infection prevention and customer experience. It boasts a decade of cumulative market experience and known to extend its expertise to some of the best-known brands in the region. The programme featured staff training, individual certification, regular audits, mystery shopper audits and internal online checklists monitored by a qualified team of GWR experts to ensure compliance. Commenting on the certification, Mahmoud Harb, managing director of Malak Al Tawouk, said: "The safety of our customers and employees has always been our topmost priority, and this certification by a reputed organisation like GWR further confirms our dedication and commitment towards maintaining the highest safety standards. This certification will assure our customers of safe and secure service of high-quality food. Further to this, we have taken all necessary safety precautions and step in line with the guidelines of the World Health Organization and local health authorities." Harb added: All the employees and staff of Malak Al Tawouk have successfully completed the training programme designed by GWR and MBRU to enhance the health, hygiene and safety standards, specific to the food chain outlets and restaurants, considering the current situation. We have also launched a mobile App to ensure easier and safer food delivery by well-trained drivers. Sharing her views on the current situation, Alexandra Tetushkina, country manager of GWR Consultancy, said: We are happy to assist and share our expertise to quality-conscious restaurants like Malak Al Tawouk during these times when safety and hygiene precede everything else." Malak Al Tawouk is a famous Lebanese fast-food chain serving the best Tawouk sandwiches, and various choices of burgers and platters. Founded in 1996, it has now over 40 branches in Lebanon and three in Dubai - on Hessa Street, Motor City and Business Bay. - TradeArabia News Service Facebook says it will consult with state governments on their lockdown orders and will shut down pages planning anti-quarantine protests if the tech giant determines the gatherings violate those rules. 'Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy governments guidance on social distancing arent allowed on Facebook,' a spokesperson said on the social network's policy in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Facebook officials said they reached out to states individually to understand their lockdown orders then removed posts that violated those rules. 'We reached out to state officials to understand the scope of their orders, not about removing specific protests on Facebook. We remove the posts when gatherings do not follow the health parameters established by the government and are therefore unlawful,' a company spokesperson said to DailyMail.com. The tech firm says it will allow protests that abide by social distancing guidelines to go forth, but will shut down the ones that defy those health orders. The social network said it has already removed protest messages in California, New Jersey and Nebraska. The move has led to outrage from Donald Trump Jr and Republican figures like Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who claim Facebook is violating Americans' First Amendment rights. Facebook is shutting down pages planning in-person protests if the tech firm determines that the gathering violates state lockdown rules However, protests are still being organized on Facebook. A massive protest took place in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Monday afternoon that was organized on the Facebook group 'Pennsylvanians against Excessive Quarantine Orders' A representative from Pennsylvanias Department of General Services said the state has not heard from Facebook in regards to shutting down Facebook-organized protests. Demonstrators pictured ignoring social distancing rules as they defy Gov. Tom Wolf's lockdown on the steps of the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania state capitol building Monday Monday's Pennsylvania protest was organized in the Facebook Group 'Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine' led by Ohio gun activist Christopher Dorr, meaning Facebook did not shut the group or page down. That page has over 65,000 members Donald Trump Jr let the criticism against Facebook for its new policy, calling it a violation of First Amendment rights Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley said in response to Facebook's move: 'Because free speech is now illegal America?' However, many Facebook pages still exist and are planning protests. On Monday protesters swarmed the state capitol building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in a rally that was organized on Facebook group 'Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine', as the state claims it never heard from Facebook in regards to its new policy. How Facebook is shutting down anti-quarantine protests Facebook announced Monday it is cracking down on 'harmful' information shared on its website, including plans for in-person anti-lockdown protests that defy health orders to social distance. Facebook has reached out to state governments to understand their specific lockdown rules. The tech firm will then determine which Facebook pages or groups on their website violate those orders and shut them down if they do. Facebook said it will allow protest groups to organize on its website as long as they abide by social distancing guidelines. 'We reached out to state officials to understand the scope of their orders, not about removing specific protests on Facebook. We remove the posts when gatherings do not follow the health parameters established by the government and are therefore unlawful,' a company spokesperson said to DailyMail.com. Advertisement Facebook said it's currently attempting to get information from New York, Wisconsin, Ohio and Pennsylvania on their social distancing guidelines, according to the National Review. A representative from Pennsylvanias Department of General Services said to Fox Business that the state has not heard from Facebook in regards to protests. However, Facebook's decision to take down protest event posts has been met with severe backlash, with many saying it violates their rights to free speech and expression. 'Why is @Facebook colluding with state governments to quash peoples free speech? Regardless of what you think about the lockdowns or the protests against them, this is a chilling & disturbing government directed shutdown of peoples First Amendment rights. Very dangerous!' Donald Trump Jr tweeted Monday. Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley said in response to Facebook's move: 'Because free speech is now illegal America?' Monday's Pennsylvania protest was organized online by Ohio gun activist Christopher Dorr and his anti-lockdown Facebook group boasts over 65,000 members. He along with his far-right, gun activist brothers Ben and Aaron Dorr run at least four state anti-lockdown pages, it was revealed Sunday. In those pages, they rally for the public to protest against state stay-at-home orders. 'Its going insane, quite frankly,' Dorr said from Pennsylvania's statehouse Monday afternoon to the Philadelphia Inquirer , as protesters swarmed the state capitol building waving Trump 2020 flags and signs that said 'Give me liberty or give me death'. All the Facebook anti-lockdown pages run by the Dorr's had similar description pages saying: 'Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms.' A slew of Facebook pages rallying against lockdowns and planning protests are still live This Facebook page entitled 'Americans Against Excessive Quarantine Orders' has over 200 members and is designed for members to 'take a stand' and let 'local, state and federal government know they 'work for US' This page entitled Michiganders For Liberty has over 365,000 members of locals who stand against lockdown orders One of their pages entitled 'Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine' was created on Wednesday and has over 99,000 members, and seeks to host a drive-in rally at the capital next Friday with hundreds of group members pledging to participate. Such a gathering would defy Wisconsin's stay-at-home orders which Gov. Tony Evers extended last week through May 26 and is still live online. This week a slew of states have taken to the streets and gathered in state capitals to resist orders to close nonessential businesses and for constituents to practice social distancing and stay at home. Raucous protests were seen in Wisconsin, Colorado, Nevada, Indiana, New Hampshire, Maryland, Utah, Minnesota, Idaho, Kentucky, Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, California Michigan, Arizona, Washington and Texas. Last week President Donald Trump fueled the fury over the lockdown orders by tweeting a rally call to 'liberate' Michigan, Virginia and Minnesota. Other social media users commended Facebook for its decision to censor protests that would violate lockdown orders New Jerseys governors office said it did consult with Facebook on the issue but preferred posts not be removed. 'The Governor's Office did not ask Facebook to remove pages or posts for events promoting lifting the provisions of the Governor's stay-at-home order. Please contact Facebook for more information on why they made the decision to remove these posts,' their office said. A spokesperson for the Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts said Facebook did not ask to shut down any protest event pages. 'The Governor's Office is not aware of any Facebook events regarding COVID-19 protests, and has not requested Facebook to pull any events down,' a spokesperson said. 'Facebook reached out last week to learn more about Nebraska's social distancing restrictions, and the Governor's staff provided already publicly available information about Nebraska's 10-person limit and Directed Health Measures.' Ohios governor Mike DeWine said the state will not make any moves to stop protests. 'The Governor values the First Amendment and asks that protesters practice social distancing by standing at least 6 feet apart,' as spokesman for DeWine's office said. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Monday new measures to take down tackle 'harmful' information shared on the website in light of the coronavirus pandemic. 'We do classify that as harmful misinformation and we take that down,' Zuckerberg said in an ABC interview. 'At the same time, its important that people can debate policies so theres a line on this, you know, more than normal political discourse. I think a lot of the stuff that people are saying that is false around a health emergency like this can be classified as harmful misinformation.' Despite Zuckerberg's new Facebook plan - social media users were quick to accuse him of abusing his power and taking away citizens' rights. 'Anti-quarantine protest groups are being removed from Facebook because they violate state orders. Does @Facebook realize that disallowing citizens the right to peaceful assembly is in violation of the First Amendment of our Constitution?' conservative pundit Candace Owens said. 'More suits coming, as Governors order Facebook to censor speech & suppress protests,' one wary Twitter user warned. 'So once again Facebook decides to censor. While I understand the protesters, I do not necessarily agree with all the protests. Some states seem to have gone too far in restrictions, IMO, but can only compare that to my local area situation. Regardless, censorship is wrong,' another added. One Twitter user criticized Facebook for censoring some posts now, but allowing white supremacist groups to have pages on their website. 'While they still allow white supremacist groups to use that same platform...Cant make this up,' the Twitter user said. But some defended the social network, saying it was doing the greater good in light of the pandemic. 'GOOD FOR FACEBOOK! This is an extremely smart step to limit the ignorant from endangering those at risk with their completely selfish protests. There is absolutely ZERO evidence suggesting that it is safe for social distancing laws to be relaxed,' one Twitter user wrote. Revealed: The three pro-gun activist brothers behind Facebook groups in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York organizing anti-quarantine protests claiming 'politicians are forcing us to hand over our freedoms' Three far-right, pro-gun brothers are behind a slew of anti-quarantine Facebook groups galvanizing protests and urging tens of thousands of followers to decry state lockdowns. Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights and siblings Christopher Dorr, the director of Ohio Gun Owners, and Aaron Dorr, the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners are behind at least four state anti-quarantine Facebook groups with a combined following of over 200,000 members. The three have created Facebook groups calling for protests in Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. While at first glance the demonstrations cropping up across the nation appear to be organic, the coordination of these brothers on Facebook means theyre actually being engineered by a network of conservative directors. Their activism echoes President Donald Trump's tweets for the governors to 'liberate' states on coronavirus lockdowns, claiming states like Virginia have their Second Amendment rights 'under siege'. Three conservative, pro-gun brothers Ben Dorr (above), Christopher Dorr, and Aaron Dorr are running at least four massive state anti-quarantine Facebook groups urging the public to protest. Ben is the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights Christopher Dorr (left) is the director of Ohio Gun Owners and Aaron Dorr (right) is the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners The Dorr brothers appear to manage a series of pro-gun groups that range across different states from Iowa, Minnesota to New York. All seek to discredit organizations like the National Rifle Association for being too restrictive on gun safety. Ben Dorr created a Facebook group entitled Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine on Wednesday, which now has over 99,000 members. Its description says: 'It's time to OPEN OUR STATE and STOP Gov Evers' Excessive Quarantine! Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!' Dorr and group members created an event for a drive-in rally at the state capital of Madison next Friday according to a Washington Post report, that has already seen hundreds of members pledge to participate. The page also guides visitors to a website called 'Wisconsin Firearms Coalition' where people are encouraged to join for a fee. Another page asking users to join a Minnesota group of the Firearms Coalition offered several rates for membership, from $35 to $1,000. Chris Dorr created the Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine page, which has more than 14,000 members Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. In the description page he wrote: While seizing power at a breathtaking pace, Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral! This is madness. We are fighting back, with action steps fro New Yorkers who want to make their voices heard' Chris Dorr created Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine that has over 65,000 members and Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine, which has more than 14,000 members. He is listed as the director for the board of Ohio Gun Owners, according to his social media. 'Chris first got involved in the fight to defend and advance our 2nd Amendment rights back in 2009 in his home state of Iowa where he helped Iowa Gun Owners get Shall-Issue law passed in 2010,' his biography on the Ohio Gun Owners website says. Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. The descriptions on all of their pages are practically identical, accusing local governors of abusing power and controlling the lives of constituents. Similar Facebook groups have since cropped up in Michigan, Illinois, Texas and Delaware. In these Facebook groups some people peddle right-wing conspiracy theories. In the Wisconsin page, members posed the theory that Governor Tony Evers imposed a lockdown to appease pharmaceutical giants. The groups also call for 'drive-in' protests that practice social distancing but still express dissent towards officials. However, these brothers are known to local politicians. 'The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel,' Republican Clel Baudler, a former Iowa state legislator, said to the Post. The Dorr brothers have bypassed certain laws that require them to register as lobbyists, which makes these Facebook groups appear as if they're operated by grassroots activism. President of the ECOWAS Commission, Jean-Claude Brou, has sympathised with President Muhammadu Buhari over the death of his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari. Mr Brou in a condolence letter in Abuja, described the death of Mr Kyari as a loss to Nigeria and the ECOWAS sub-region. I received the sad news of the demise of Alhaji Abba Kyari, your Chief of Staff, due to complications caused by the Coronavirus. We at ECOWAS feel your pain as Alhaji Kyari was a loyal friend and compatriot of yours for the last 42 years. His death is very shocking and it is a painful loss to his family, his country and to us at ECOWAS. I remember that after the audience your Excellency granted me on Friday, March 20, Alhaji Kyari and I spoke at length about various issues regarding our region. Since my appointment as President of ECOWAS Commission, I have greatly benefitted from his experience and in-depth knowledge of regional issues. May God give your family, friends and associates the fortitude to bear the irreplaceable loss. Please accept your Excellency, our sincere condolences, Mr Brou stated. (NAN) WOOD RIVER The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 1,197 new coronavirus cases and 33 additional deaths in Illinois on Sunday. Locally, the Madison County Health Department reported a total of 180 cases of COVID-19, up 11 from Saturday. Also reported was one new death, identified as a man in his 50s; bringing the county-wide total to eight, although the Illinois Department of Public Health website is only listing six as of Sunday. Statewide, the total is now 30,357 cases and 1,290 deaths as of Sunday, according to Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. During the state briefing on Sunday, Ezike talked briefly about the emotional needs of children during the pandemic, and the need to empower and encourage them. We all need unprecedented support in this moment in history, she said. We can never go back to how we were, and well never get our loved ones back. The Madison County figures include 58 people hospitalized and 67 recovered, meaning they have completed isolation. A total of 100 people testing positive are female. More Information COVID-19 by the numbers Illinois - 30,357 (1,290 deaths) Madison County - 180 (8 deaths) Jersey County - 8 Macoupin County -21 Greene County -1 Calhoun County -1 Montgomery County - 14 (1 death) St. Clair County - 271 (18 deaths) Clinton County - 45 Bond County-4 (1 death) Monroe County-53 (7 deaths) Washington County - 7 Cases by zip code 62002 (Alton) - 30 62035 (Godfrey) -8 62052 (Jerseyville) -6 62095 (Wood River) -8 62024 (East Alton) -7 62025 (Edwardsville) - 30 62034 (Glen Carbon) - 9 62294 (Troy) -10 62040 (Granite City/Pontoon Beach) - 32 62234 (Collinsville) -19 62060 (Madison) -7 62249 (Highland) 8 62069 (Mt. Olive) - 6 Sources: Illinois Department of Public Health and Madison County Health Department See More Collapse Information by zip code shows additional cases in Alton, Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Granite City/Pontoon Beach and Collinsville. Mt. Olive (62069) was listed for the first time with six cases. The IDPH is releasing case numbers by zip code for areas with more than five cases. Numbers are not released in zip codes with fewer cases to protect the privacy of patients. The information is available on the IDPH website www.dph.illinois.gov. Click on the coronavirus banner, then COVID-19 statistics in the drop-down menu on the left side. Additional cases have also been reported in Montgomery, St. Clair, Clinton, Clinton and Washington and Monroe counties in the Metro East, according to the IDPH website. St. Clair County also reported an additional death. Gov. JB Pritzker spoke very briefly about the Illinois National Guard and Air National Guard. He said that the 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment has returned from deployment in Afghanistan, and Guard members and units are helping provide a number of services during the pandemic. He added that the Air National Guard will be flying in a shipment of personal protective equipment Monday. Pritzker said it is highly unusual for a Guard unit to bring in supplies from foreign countries, but that is the landscape states are facing because of competition for those supplies from the federal, state and local governments. For the latest information on COVID-19 or coronavirus resources, visit the Madison County Health Department online at www.madisonchd.org or on Facebook @MadisonCHD. Also visit www.co.madison.il.us for more news and a daily update or on Facebook @MadisonCountyIL. Highest religious authority against gatherings to stem the pandemic of new coronavirus. For the holy month, the invitation is to ward off "the spread of the infection". Preserving people's lives "brings God closer". In Saudi Arabia, 9400 cases and 97 victims so far, the highest figure among the Gulf nations. Riyadh (AsiaNews / Agencies) - To combat the pandemic of new coronavirus, the most important Saudi religious body appeals to Muslims all over the world a few days after the beginning of Ramadan inviting the faithful not to gather in a group to pray. The holy month of fasting and prayer, an opportunity to meet and socialize especially on the occasion of the iftar, the meal that breaks the fast, will have to change and people are invited to pray in their homes. In a note released yesterday, the Ulema Council stressed that Muslims should "avoid gatherings, because they are the main cause of the spread of the infection". The authorities have for days imposed a curfew and closed the main places of worship, including the great mosque of Mecca in the context of the containment measures implemented for the Covid-19 emergency. The ulema also recall that "preserving people's lives" is a "great gesture" that "brings God closer". In recent days, the great mufti of the Saudi kingdom Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh had also intervened, proposing the same recommendations as the ulema. Prayers during Ramadan and the feast of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the fast, "should be carried out in one's own homes" in the event that "the coronavirus pandemic continues". Saudi Arabia has so far recorded around 9400 cases of Covid-19, the victims are 97. These are the highest indices among the six nations of the Arab Gulf, where the total reaches 25 thousand infections and over 160 official victims. Prince Philip praised those 'who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues' - Getty Images Europe The Duke of Edinburgh has issued his first public statement since his retirement, thanking scientists, postmen and refuse collectors for keeping the country safe and at home. The Duke, who is currently with the Queen at Windsor Castle, issued his first message to the nation since 2017, saying he wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic. Thought to be the first solo written message of its kind from him in around a decade, with his sentiments usually being shared via speeches before he retired, it gave thanks to key workers including those involved in food production and distribution, refuse collection, and postal and delivery services. It is understood that the Duke, who has had a lifelong interest in science and engineering, felt it appropriate to share a personal message at a time of great uncertainty for Britain, following two major broadcasts from his wife the Queen. The couple will celebrate the Queens 94th birthday in isolation at Windsor on Tuesday. In a letter on headed paper and signed Philip, the Duke said: "As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from Covid-19. "On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected." The Duke of Edinburgh's message The duke is affiliated to more than 750 organisations, including the scientific, technological research, healthcare and infrastructure sectors which have been responding to the outbreak. Today, the Prince of Wales also praised those who are making ultimate sacrifice in caring for others as he opened a temporary field hospital at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff via videolink. Story continues He said: "It has now been weeks since our lives were changed in so many far-reaching ways by this pernicious virus. We have seen streets become empty and workplaces fall silent. "We hope and trust that the measures which have been taken, and the hardship that so many are enduring, will help hasten the day when the shadow of this disease will finally be lifted. The Duchess of Cambridge has written to her patronages, telling the Evelina London Childrens Hospital staff they are truly inspirational and reminding them: Please look after yourselves and each other and know that the whole country is behind you. In a barbaric case of human sacrifice, a 30-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly killing his two-year-old daughter on the advice of a friend in Kakrauli police station area of Muzaffarnagar on Sunday night, police said. After filing an FIR, both the accused have been arrested. The body of the victim was also recovered, buried in a nearby field and has been sent for a postmortem examination, police said. Ram Mohan Sharma, circle officer Bhopa, said, On Sunday, at around 10 pm, accused, Wajid strangulated his two-year-old daughter Tarannum to death while other family members were sleeping. He then slit her throat with a sharp object and buried the body in a nearby field. At around 11 pm, victims mother, Rehana, filed a complaint at Kakrauli police station. Police soon arrested Wajid from his residence and recovered the body. However, the (other) accused managed to flee. He was later arrested, police said. The main accused and father of the girl, Wajid, was working as a labourer at a brick kiln in Khaikheda in Kakrauli police station area and was residing in a nearby area along with his wife Rehana and five children--- three daughters and two sons. According to the police, during interrogation Wajid said that there were disputes going on in his family for many months. When he discussed it with Irfaan, another labourer at the brick kiln who was allegedly interested in witchcraft, he advised him to sacrifice his daughter to maintain peace among the family members. Police also said that Wajid is continuously changing his statements and there is a possibility that he had murdered his daughter out of frustration. Wajid also said he murdered his two-year-old daughter as she reminded him of his past girlfriend, the police said. Police said that FIR was registered against Wajid and Irfaan under the charges of murder. FPAC President Forewarns Members of Parliament of Vital Role Sawmills Play in Canada's Supply Chain "Our sawmills are our industry's heartbeat. We need to find a way now to keep our sawmills operating so chips can continue to feed our pulp and paper mills. If we don't have chips flowing, our industry's biggest artery is cut off." Derek Nighbor, President and CEO, FPAC. April 20, 2020 - Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) President and CEO, Derek Nighbor, appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance to share with MPs how Canada's forest sector and workers are managing through the current COVID-19 crisis. He also presented to the Committee ideas on how the industry and government can work together to get through the difficult months ahead, and quickly turn to recovery and growth again in 2021. During his testimony, Nighbor noted how the sector has embraced its role as an essential provider of health, household, and industrial products and thanked all workers along the value chain. "Our workers and partners along the supply chain have been incredible. We can't say 'thank you' enough to our mill workers, further manufacturers, truck drivers, railroaders, and retailers I could go on," he said. Nighbor went on to speak to the power of our shared natural resource Canada's forests. "Given the moments of protectionism we have seen in recent weeks, I am proud that we have this sustainable and valuable natural resource right here at home so we can provide for Canadians," he added. The interconnectedness of Canada's forest sector was central to Nighbor's remarks to MPs. While lumber markets have struggled, experiencing a near 40% price drop in recent weeks, many sawmills have made the tough decision to temporarily shut down. Those closures have not only put thousands out of work, but the impacts are now being felt downstream by pulp mill workers and their communities. "We are a highly integrated sector. Our sawmills are our industry's heartbeat. We need to find a way now to keep our sawmills operating so chips can continue to feed our pulp and paper mills. If we don't have chips flowing, our industry's biggest artery is cut off - and thousands more will be out of work," Nighbor said. The forest sector's inability to tap into the federal government's wage subsidy program in a significant way has been a source of frustration for FPAC and its members. The program's construct simply does not fit with forest sector business models. The forest sector's inability to tap into the federal government's wage subsidy program in a significant way has been a source of frustration for FPAC and its members. The program's construct simply does not fit with forest sector business models. Nighbor recommended adjustments like government considering individual mills or segments, which would allow more operations to qualify for support, and keep more Canadian forestry workers working. He also suggested that government consider a sliding scale, so that if revenues are down by 10 or 15 percent, a company could qualify for wage supports at perhaps 50 percent, instead of 75 percent. He also stressed the need for easily accessible supports for the months ahead to help companies manage cash flow challenges. The industry is confident about the future, but needs an immediate boost to get through the next few months. "On the lumber side, our markets took a massive hit in late 2018. We have been in recovery mode since and just as we were starting to turn the corner, COVID-19 hit. We need liquidity supports now," said Nighbor. "Measures that move with speed and ease in the face of markets that are falling for the short-term. Measures that are not going to force companies to provide more security as many of our companies just do not have the flexibility to do that right now. Measures that are responsive to the realities of this crisis and have lenders who are prepared to be more risk tolerant than our main street banks," Nighbor added. While the main discussion with MPs was about the here and now, Nighbor was clear about his optimism for the future. "Our industry is not looking for a bailout, but rather bolstered cash flow supports to keep our businesses operating through these difficult next two to three quarters. As we look to 2021 and beyond, Canada's forest products sector has the opportunity to be one of the bright lights in the Canadian recovery especially for northern and rural communities," he concluded. Forest Products Association of Canada FPAC provides a voice for Canadas wood, pulp, and paper producers nationally and internationally in government, trade, and environmental affairs. For further information, visit: www.fpac.ca . SOURCE: Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) New Delhi: The Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University), or IIT (BHU), on Monday joined seven other premier IITs and announced it will also boycott the prestigious Times Higher Education World University Rankings. The seven announced their boycott last week saying they are not satisfied with the transparency of the process. There are questions over the rankings criteria. This issue has been discussed for a long time. We have also decided to not participate like some of the other IITs, IIT (BHU) director Pramod Kumar Jain said. IIT Mandi director Timothy Gonsalves said his institute has not been participating in the rankings and will continue doing so. IIT Ropar, which along with Bengalurus Indian Institute of Science (IISc) was placed in the 301 to 350 bracket in the last rankings, will continue taking part in the exercise. We are participating in the ranking exercise, said Prof S K Das, IIT Ropar head. The rankings agency said its World University Rankings were well established as the global gold standard international benchmark for world-class research universities. First published in 2004, our 2020 edition published last September included voluntary submissions from almost 1,400 institutions from 92 countries and regions, it added in a statement. If leading universities in a nation with such a proud heritage of scholarly excellence, and with such huge opportunities for economic growth decline to take part in the gold standard rankings, we believe it would be detrimental to those institutions, and to India as a whole. It said transparency was at the heart of everything it did. Our chief data officer visited Delhi in November 2019 to specifically engage with the IITs on our methodology, and in January 2020, our chief knowledge officer held a full one-day forum in Delhi for hundreds of guests, where the rankings data and methodology was front and centre. Felix Germann was not expecting anyone when his doorbell rang last week. Outside was a doctor who looked like she had just stepped out of an operating theater, green scrubs, face mask and all and a policeman. I didnt do it! Germann said, throwing up his hands, and everybody laughed. The unusual visitors had come with an unusual proposal: Would he allow them to test his blood for COVID-19 antibodies? Every month? For a year? Starting next week? He would be helping to further the science that would ultimately allow for a controlled lifting of social and economic restrictions and save lives. Of course I said yes, said Germann, a 41-year-old project manager at a media company. I want to help. This is a collective crisis. The government is doing what it can. Everyone needs to do their bit. 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 With that, Germann and his girlfriend joined 3,000 households chosen at random in Munich for an ambitious study whose central aim is to understand how many people even those with no symptoms have already had the virus, a key variable to make decisions about public life in a pandemic. The study is part of an aggressive approach to combat the virus in a comprehensive way that has made Germany a leader among Western nations figuring out how to control the contagion while returning to something resembling normal life. Other nations, including the United States, are still struggling to test for infections. But Germany is doing that and more. It is aiming to sample the entire population for antibodies in coming months, hoping to gain valuable insight into how deeply the virus has penetrated the society at large, how deadly it really is, and whether immunity might be developing. The government hopes to use the findings to unravel a riddle that will allow Germany to move securely into the next phase of the pandemic: Which of the far-reaching social and economic restrictions that have slowed the virus are most effective and which can be safely lifted? The same questions are being asked around the world. Other countries like Iceland and South Korea have tested broadly for infections, or combined testing with digital tracking to undercut the spread of the virus. In hard-hit Italy, antibody tests and the potential of immunity licenses have lingered over a national debate over how and when to reopen the country. Regional presidents have turned to serological tests as a way to better chart infections but also to get a sense of which workers might have the desired antibodies to possibly provide protection and return to work. But even the best laid plans can go awry; Singapore attempted to reopen only to have the virus reemerge. In the United States, President Donald Trump is in a hurry to restart the economy in an election year, but experts warn that much wider testing is needed to open societies safely. Both Britain and the United States, where some of the first tests were flawed, virtually forfeited the notion of widespread testing early in their outbreaks and have since had to ration tests in places as they scramble to catch up. In Italy, one of the worst hit countries in the world, the central government and regional leaders sparred over how widely to test. Germany, which produces most of its own high-quality test kits, is already testing on a greater scale than most 120,000 a day and growing in a nation of 83 million. Chancellor Angela Merkel, a trained scientist, said this week that the aim was nothing less than tracing every infection chain. That high level of testing has helped her country slow the spread of the virus and keep the number of deaths relatively low. More people in Germany now recover from the virus every day than are infected by it. Every 10 people infected with the virus now pass it to seven others a sharp decline in the infection rate for a virus that has spread exponentially. Even so, Merkel, too, has had her stumbles in dealing with the virus. Germany has been criticized for failing to offer forceful leadership to the European Union at a moment of profound crisis. The generosity and solidarity on such striking display inside of Europes largest and richest economy have been missing in Germanys response to poorer European nations in the south, which were hit hardest by the virus. At home, however, the chancellors mixture of calm reassurance and clear-eyed realism as well as her ability to understand the science and explain it to citizens has been widely praised and encouraged Germans to follow social distancing rules. Her approval ratings are now higher than 80%. That broad confidence in government has given Germany a tremendous advantage. It is much of the reason a knock on the door by a police officer and strangers dressed like aliens asking for blood can engender goodwill rather than alarm, even in a country where past authoritarian governments have left citizens protective of their privacy. The Munich antibody study, run by the Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine at Munich University Hospital, and cofinanced by the government of the state of Bavaria, is the biggest of several regional studies being rolled out in various corners of Germany. Still, scientists caution that there is no proof yet that the detection of antibodies signals effective immunity and even if it does, it is not known how long that immunity might last. Nationally, the Robert Koch Institute, the governments central scientific institution in the field of biomedicine, is testing 5,000 samples from blood banks across the country every two weeks and 2,000 people in four hot spots who are further along in the cycle of the disease. Its most ambitious project, aiming to test a nationwide random sample of 15,000 people across the country, is scheduled to begin next month. In the free world, Germany is the first country looking into the future, said professor Michael Hoelscher, who heads up the Munich study, noting that a number of countries had already asked him for the protocol to be able to replicate it. We are leading the thinking of what to do next. Hoelscher was co-author of what has become a widely influential research paper about how the virus can be transmitted before someone develops symptoms. Theres no doubt after reading this paper that asymptomatic transmission is occurring, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the U.S., told CNN on Feb. 1, three days after the paper was published. This study lays the question to rest. Asymptomatic transmission is what has made containment so difficult because a large number of infections are not detected. Measuring the number of hidden infections and getting a sense of the true scale of the disease is key to fine-tuning the gradual loosening of restrictions and minimizing income loss and social isolation, scientists say. We will have a better idea of the number of undetected infections once we have done these representative studies, said Lothar Wieler, president of the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases, which is conducting a number of the antibody tests. A lot is being done to measure well. Some interim results have already come out. In Gangelt, a small town of about 12,000 in northwest Germany, tests of a first group of 500 residents found that 14% had antibodies to the virus. Another 2% tested positive for the coronavirus, raising hopes that about 15% of the local population may already have some degree of immunity. The process toward reaching herd immunity has begun, professor Hendrik Streeck, director of the Institute of Virology at the University Hospital Bonn, who is leading the study, said in an interim report. And even if 15% of Gangelt has some degree of immunity, levels of immunity are almost certain to be lower elsewhere in the country. Gangelt was hit early and exceptionally hard by the virus after a carnival event in mid-February that acted as a super spreader. But it may hold valuable insights for places that lag behind as the pandemic runs its course. The mortality rate in the town, for example, turned out to be 0.37%, much lower than the national rate of 3%, which is calculated based only on detected infections. The Munich study is expected to be more nuanced in its findings because it follows participants like Germann for a whole year. In addition to regular blood tests, there will be questions about everything from mental health to income loss. We are at a crossroads, said Hoelscher, the professor. Are we going the route of loosening more and increasing immunity in the summer to slow the spread of this in the winter and gain more freedom to live public life? Or are we going to try to minimize transmissions until we have a vaccine? he asked. This is a question for politicians, not for scientists, he added. But politicians need the data to make an informed risk assessment. Hoelscher got the idea for the antibody study in the shower. It was March 19, the day before the state of Bavaria announced its lockdown. I thought to myself, If were going into lockdown, we need to start working on an exit strategy now, he said. The next day, he said he wrote a short pitch to the Bavarian government. Six hours later, he had the green light. It took another three weeks until the test kits had arrived, a new lab was opened and teams of medics started fanning out across the city. Six days after they first rang his doorbell, a doctor and two medical students came back to Germanns apartment, household number 420 out of 3,000. They put on disposable protection suits, gloves and goggles and one of them sat down on a plastic stool they had brought along to take a small vial of his blood. Then they removed and bagged their suits, disinfected the stool and any surface they had touched and left. It took all of 10 minutes. I was like, wow, it was a perfect choreography, Germann said. Its impressive to think they have teams doing this all across the city. And were only like one month into this. An interim result of the study could be released as early as June. Germann will get his first results already next week. He is curious. You kind of wonder, was that last cold I had corona? c.2020 The New York Times Company Stranger Things star Joe Keerys Twitter account appears to have been hacked early Monday morning, putting out bizarre messages that included a (false) accusation that Keery was molested on the set of Stranger Things. Keerys compromised account was also documented to have posted several racist epithets. Fans first noticed the hack early this morning and many called for the hateful language to be removed. The actor did not comment on the ongoing issue, but a check of his account confirmed that all the offending tweets have since been deleted. Some of the tweets also took aim at Keerys younger co-stars, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, and Finn Wolfhard, making disparaging remarks about them as well. Also Read: Hollywood Gets a Rewrite in Trailer for Ryan Murphy's New Netflix Series (Video) Keery, a Massachusetts native, joined the cast of Stranger Things in 2016 as Steve Harrington, the gangly, charmingly disheveled boyfriend of Nancy Wheeler. The fourth season of Stranger Things is planned to come out in Summer 2021, though Netflix has said the ongoing pandemic may impact the filming and launch plans. Metro U.K. first reported the news of Keerys hack and pointed out that Keerys fans were quick to notice the unusual surge in activity on the account Keery is known to use the social media platform sparingly. Someone hacked Joe Keery and is posting the most horrible things. I hope they are working on this now and that hes okay. This is a bad hack guys, a fan wrote on Twitter Monday before the posts were taken down. TheWrap has reached out to Keerys rep for comment. Read original story Joe Keerys Twitter Appears to Be Hacked, Racial Slurs Posted At TheWrap We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form GORDON CONDOLES WITH FAMILIES OF FILIPINO SOLDIERS KILLED IN CLASHES WITH ABU SAYYAF Senator Richard J. Gordon extended condolences to the bereaved families of 11 Filipino soldiers who were killed during a clash with the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) on Friday, April 17, in Patikul, Sulu. In a statement, Gordon recognized the soldiers' important role in the nation's fight against terrorism and expressed dismay over the incident. "The fallen are heroes in the continued fight versus terrorism. It is disheartening that during this time of national and global health crisis when many lives are lost to an invisible and treacherous enemy, there are those who continue to resort to the gun which results only in senseless deaths for both sides and leaves many widowed and orphaned," he said. The one-hour long encounter of the Philippine Army's troops from 21st Infantry Battalion with the Abu Sayyaf armed fighters also left 14 other soldiers wounded. They were promptly given medical treatment, according to Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Westmincom. "As we try to do our part in securing peace, our prayers remain steadfast for our heroes and their families," Gordon added. (Bloomberg) -- Spain is extending a nationwide lockdown to stem the spread of the coronavirus, signaling that Europes worst-affected countries remain in the pandemics grip. Spain became the second European country after Italy to report more than 20,000 deaths linked to the virus after authorities reported another 565 victims on Saturday. While officials say the outbreak is cresting, cumulative cases rose by 4,499 to 191,726. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he would ask lawmakers to extend the lockdown until May 9 rather than lift it on April 25. Spain has contained the brutal attack of the pandemic, Sanchez said in a nationally televised speech. The gains arent enough yet, and they are fragile. Italys daily death toll declined to 482, the lowest since April 12. Europes hardest-hit country last week extended its lockdown until May 3, even though there are signs that new cases are peaking. In Germany, which plans to ease some restrictions on commercial life on Monday after a four-week shutdown, new cases increased the most in a week. France reported 642 new deaths, the smallest increase in five days, while the number of hospitalized patients, including those in intensive care, declined further. The decline in the need for equipment and staffing for intensive care is confirmed, but were still at an exceptional level, far above the usual maximum in France, the French Health Ministry said in a statement Saturday. Fallout from the coronavirus is likely to trigger the worst recession in the European Unions history and member nations have been struggling to come up with a coordinated response to the crisis. The lack of leadership has been compounded by President Donald Trumps suspicion of international cooperation. This week he suspended U.S. funding for the World Health Organization, saying it had botched the response to the pandemic. A group of 13 countries including Germany, France and the U.K. issued a joint statement Saturday noting the critical role of the WHO in tackling the virus outbreak. In an apparent rebuke to Trump, the so-called Ministerial Coordination Group on Covid-19, said a strong and coordinated global health response is needed. Story continues Next week promises to be crucial for European investors as they try to gauge the economic impact of the outbreak. On Thursday, global data will start to quantify the damage, while on the same day the EU is due to hold a summit to agree on its rescue package and the U.K. is set to revise its borrowing plans. U.K. Plan Deaths in the U.K. rose by 888 from Friday, increasing the death toll to more than 15,000. Only Spain, Italy and France have suffered more deaths in Europe. The British Medical Association warned that the country risks running out of protective gear for hospital staff. At the same time, senior U.K. government ministers have drawn up a three-phase plan that would allow schools to reopen as early as May 11, the Sunday Times reported. The proposal, to be presented to Prime Minister Boris Johnson when he returns to work, also envisages the reopening of clothing stores and garden centers, and the resumption of full bus and rail services. A second phase, beginning in late May or early June would let more businesses reopen, while pubs and stadium events wouldnt be allowed to until at least July. 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. TOWN OF BURKE Many of the Reindahls are buried here. Their farmland is now covered by East Towne Mall and Reindahl Park along East Washington Avenue. One of them, Knute Reindahl, who in 1867 immigrated to this rural pocket of Dane County from Norway, went on to become a famed violin maker before dying in 1936. Some of the earliest graves in the Burke Lutheran Cemetery are Bosbens. They began attending church on this ridge in the 1870s and continue to worship on this 39-acre tract hidden from the sprawling American Center Business Park juxtaposed just over the hill to the east but with sweeping western views. My parents and grandparents and great-grandparents all were married, and baptized and (had funerals) here, said Bruce Bosben, 54, whose great-grandfather was baptized on the site. My mom was married in there in 1959 and she still complains about there not being a center aisle. But Mary Ann Bosben is getting her wish. A $1.7 million upgrade to the church, constructed in 1899 with dead center seating and off-setting aisles, will include a reconfiguration of the sanctuary, adding a center aisle and relocating the pipes for the organ. The biggest and most costly part of the project, however, involves moving the church building about 300 yards out of the center of the cemetery. The move, expected to take place in early May by Heritage Movers, will place the church building onto a new foundation adjacent to a recently constructed facility that is already home to offices, classrooms, meeting space and a kitchen. If all goes as planned, and the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has flattened and allows for group gatherings, the first service could take place there sometime in August. Two Sunday services and two Wednesday Lenten services were held in the new fellowship hall after the church building was closed to prepare it for the move but since mid -March, services, including Easter, have been online affairs for Pastor Robert Neubert and his 250 members. Its frustrating when you cant have personal contact with your congregants, said Neubert, who has been leading the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America congregation for the past five years. Being a smaller church, were big on community. When Neubert arrived at the church, there were two services each Sunday and a membership that was in conflict. Some wanted a more than $5 million project that would have built an all-new facility and done away with the historic church. Others favored preservation. So, about four years ago, the church went to one service in an effort to bring the congregation closer together. The service is followed by a full-on breakfast, not just coffee and donuts. In the last three years, 40 new families have joined the church and there was buy-in to preserve the sanctuary building but add modern amenities. It went from the congregation being completely split about what to do to everybody being united, Neubert said. Weve had really loyal support since we lost (in-person) worship (services). A lot of people are still doing their regular giving but we dont know whats going to happen. Norwegian roots Burke Lutheran Church traces its roots to 1851 with a Norwegian communion service followed a month later with organization of the Sun Prairie Lutheran Church of Burke. The land for the first church building was purchased in 1869, and 18 months later the congregation approved a plan to build a facility of red brick patterned after Bethel Lutheran Church in Madison. The two churches formed a dual parish but severed the relationship in 1905, just over five years after dedicating the church building in Burke. Thats when the price of a cemetery plot was $1.25 and the new alter cost $105. Services were conducted in English and Norwegian beginning in 1925, and the churchs stained-glass windows were added in 1937 and 1938 as a gift from the Reindahl family in memory of Knute Reindahl. The pipe organ was dedicated in 1941 and a parish hall added in 1964. The latest project, which makes the church ADA-compliant, is an historical moment for the church being funded by the proceeds from garage and craft sales, an annual lefse sale and donations from the congregation. The pandemic has resulted in the postponement of a talent show and chili cook-off and likely the summer garage sale in June. However, about $600,000 came from the estates of longtime members Erling and Rachel Christianson and Arnold and Pearl Kvalheim. A GoFundMe page was launched last week. Size-wise were probably not gaining a whole lot of space but were making the space more efficient and with easier access, said Mary TeWinkel, 65, who was baptized in the church. Its been a very positive thing. People are excited about keeping the sanctuary. It has a lot of memories. One of those memories being preserved is part of a massive maple tree planted in 1878 in the cemetery. About three years ago, the tree was toppled in a storm but a small sliver was used to make the mantel above the fireplace in the main conference room of the new office and fellowship hall building. TeWinkel spent 30 years in Iowa, where she was a 4H youth program director, but returned to the Madison area after retiring. Her sister, Linda Hughes, is president of the church, but it was Bosben who suggested that the church be moved to a new spot on the property. Linda was the one who listened to me and kind of tried the idea out to everybody, said Bosben, owner of a Madison property management company, who has moved buildings in the past. I came up with it, but she ran with it. Hughes, 71, said the idea to move the building almost became a necessity after the initial plan to build a pricey new facility fell on flat ears. Although she admits shell be a bit nervous once the move begins. When you start out with a plan to build a new building and nobody donates any money, its a real sign, Hughes said. When we came up with the plan to move the building, everyone got excited. And they all donated. It was the right thing to do. Were in too deep now not to let it happen. Barry Adams covers regional news for the Wisconsin State Journal. Send him ideas for On Wisconsin at 608-252-6148 or by email at badams@madison.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 As talk turns towards a possible lifting of movement restrictions due to coronavirus, one group of researchers has been looking at alternatives to controversial tracking apps. The app suggested by the federal government would enable very rapid contact tracing, but has also raised understandable privacy concerns. Researchers say public transport card data could provide a rapid way of contact tracing once coronavirus restrictions are lifted. Credit:Luis Ascui However, being able to accurately contact trace new coronavirus cases is a key part of any eventual lifting of movement restrictions. Researchers from QUT, CSIRO, University of New South Wales and John Hopkins University in the US have been investigating other methods of tracking people without a dedicated app. Bengaluru: Karnataka cabinet on Monday decided to continue the COVID-19 lockdown measures currently in force in the state till May 3 without any relaxation, Law and Parliamentary Affairs minister J C Madhuswamy said. However, leaving a window open, it authorised chief minister B S Yediyurappa and the COVID-19 Task Force to meet in three or four days to review and take further decision about any relaxation, he told reporters. "Today cabinet has decided it (the norms) will be extended up to May 3... there will be no relaxation and the situation that that exists as of today will continue," he said. Pending the cabinet decision, chief secretary T M Vijay Bhaskar had on Sunday issued fresh orders directing the continuation of the stringent lockdown measures issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs till the midnight of April 21. Meanwhile, five new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Karnataka, taking the total number of infections in the state to 395, the Health department said on Monday. "Five new positive cases have been reported from last evening to this noon... Till date 395 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed. This includes 16 deaths and 111 discharges," the department said in its mid-day situation update. All the five fresh cases are from Kalaburagi and contacts of patients who have already tested positive. Four of them are men of age 17, 13, 50 and 19, and one woman aged 30. One year ago, two Australian hackers found themselves on an eight-hour flight to Singapore to attend a live hacking competition sponsored by Dropbox. At 30,000 feet, with nothing but a slow internet connection, they decided to get a head start by hacking Zoom, a videoconferencing service that they knew was used by many Dropbox employees. The hackers soon uncovered a major security vulnerability in Zooms software that could have allowed attackers to covertly control certain users Mac computers. It was precisely the type of bug that security engineers at Dropbox had come to dread from Zoom, according to three former Dropbox engineers. Now Zooms videoconferencing service has become the preferred communications platform for hundreds of millions of people sheltering at home, and reports of its privacy and security troubles have proliferated. Zooms defenders, including big-name Silicon Valley venture capitalists, say the onslaught of criticism is unfair. They argue that Zoom, originally designed for businesses, could not have anticipated a pandemic that would send legions of consumers flocking to its service in the span of a few weeks and using it for purposes like elementary school classes and family celebrations for which it was never intended. Schools To Stay Closed, Other Restrictions Eased In a noon press conference Friday, April 17, Governor Greg Abbott announced that Texas schools will be closed for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year. He also outlined the first phase of a plan to begin a slow process of reopening the Texas economy. The governor said that doctors have advised the state that reopening schools at this point in the COVID-19 pandemic would be unsafe. The closure impacts all public and private schools and higher education institutions, the governor said. Abbott said that guidance would be provided to schools for holding graduation, and teachers will still be allowed on campus to conduct video instruction, perform administrative duties and clean out classrooms. Following the announcement, Hillsboro Independent School District Superintendent Vicki Adams said, "We are disappointed that we cannot serve our students in person but will continue with remote learning for the remainder of the school year." Adams said that graduation may have to be delayed until sometime in June. "Hopefully we will be able to hold summer school in June, but that again will depend on the governor's orders," she added. The governor is planning a slow process to reopen the Texas economy, including opening Texas retail establishments to curbside and "retail-to-go" Friday, April 24. Abbott said that Texas retailers are an important part of the economy. In addition to providing items Texans need, he said that they also create many jobs. He added that safe practices would need to be ensured to reduce possible exposure to the coronavirus. State parks will reopen Monday, April 20, the governor said, but visitors must wear face masks, stay six feet away from those who do not live in the same household and avoid gathering in groups of more than five. The governor will also lift some restrictions on elective medical procedures Wednesday, April 22. Abbott said that Texas has plenty of hospital capacity and a solid supply chain of personal protective equipment. He pointed out that many doctors and nurses are not working due to the ban on elective procedures, and many patients need medical treatment. "It is time to allow our doctors and nurses to return to work," Abbott said. But he added that the process must be done in ways that will ensure that the needs of all COVID-19 patients are met. Abbott said the state will release more details Monday, April 27, about when and how establishments could reopen in the state after receiving further input from advisors and medical staff and determining how well contained the illness is in the state. He said that even more openings would be announced in May when it is determined that the infection rate continues to decline and the state's testing capacity and available hospital beds are adequate to meet the demand. "In opening Texas, we must be guided by doctors and data," Abbott said. "We must put health and safety first. We must prioritize protecting our most vulnerable populations." He reiterated that Texas has the second highest number of COVID-19 recoveries in the country and said that the number of deaths in the state will not come close to the early dire predictions. The governor also announced the creation of a "statewide strike force" to begin the process of opening the economy and said that over the next 10 days, a plan that includes phases to reopen Texas safely will be prepared. Philippine troops patrol a remote village on the southern island of Jolo, where Abu Sayyaf militants operate, in this undated file photo. The Philippine government vowed Monday to pursue Abu Sayyaf militants relentlessly after the military said it killed a suspected senior member of the group in the wake of a Friday clash that left 11 soldiers dead in southern Sulu province. Presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo said military operations against the Abu Sayyaf Group would continue without letup after last weeks gunfight on Sulus Jolo Island in which 14 other army members were wounded. The perpetrators of these crimes should be relentlessly and mercilessly pursued to wherever until the guillotine of law falls down hard on them for their lawless and barbaric acts of violence, Panelo, a former spokesman for President Rodrigo Duterte, told reporters. The military said its forces gunned down a suspected Abu Sayyaf militant identified as Vikram, as he tried to evade troops on Saturday near Talipao town on Sulu island. A second suspect escaped, officials said. It was not clear whether Vikram was involved in the hourlong clash with Abu Sayyaf militants a day earlier. Maj. Gen. Corleto Vinluan Jr., chief of the Armys 11th Infantry Division, described Vikram as an explosives expert who was linked to recent bombings in the region, including twin blasts that killed 23 people at a church on Jolo in January 2019. On Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed condolences for the Philippine militarys loss, during a phone conversation with his counterpart, Rodrigo Duterte, according to a White House statement. The two leaders also discussed how the United States and the Philippines can continue building upon the strong and enduring economic, cultural and security ties binding the two nations, the statement said. Military authorities have identified Vikram as a grandson of Abu Sayyaf leader Radullan Sahiron, one of the original leaders of the group. Officials believe Sahiron works side by side with Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan, the overall Abu Sayyaf commander who has been identified as the new leader of the Philippine affiliate of Islamic State after Isnilon Hapilon was killed at the end of the battle of Marawi in 2017. Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, regional military commander, said no soldier was harmed during the operation that led to Vikrams killing. He said the firefight took place after security forces received information from village residents about the presence of militants in the area. [T]his successful operation proves that the direct involvement of the communities would put up pressure on the Abu Sayyaf and constrict their movements as well, Sobejana told reporters. Earlier this month, Philippine security forces killed three suspected Abu Sayyaf members in a Jolo jungle. Soldiers also killed two suspected militants in a firefight elsewhere in Sulu province in February, officials said. Fridays firefight, the deadliest in months, occurred as troops were tracking down ASG fighters led by Sawadjaan. Three years ago, Isnilon Hapilon and his men seized the southern city of Marawi in a campaign to convert it into an Islamic caliphate in the region, officials said. Air force jets pounded Marawi with bombs during five months of fighting that killed about 1,200 people, most of them militants. After taking the regional IS reins, Sawadjaan masterminded bomb attacks, including last years twin blasts perpetrated by an Indonesian couple at the Jolo church, officials said. Jeoffrey Maitem and Mark Navales in Cotabato City, Philippines, contributed to this report. Ever since the Coronavirus lockdown has been imposed in the country, many daily wage workers faced a lot of problem in their life. Thus, many actors from Tollywood came in support of them and donated money towards Corona Crisis Charity fund. Amidst all, Brahmaji took a dig at Tollywood actresses for not donating money for the cause. After his comment, Lavanya Tripathi came out and donated Rs 1 lakh to CCC fund. Notably, Lavanya became the first Tollywood actress to donate money for the Corona Crisis Charity. Reacting to the same, Lavanya, in an interview with Telugu Cinema, said, "Well, I just felt a sense of responsibility. I am what I am because of this industry and this is the least I could do by paying a certain amount to the people I have been working with. I can't compare with the actresses but I just did it what I thought was right." Lavanya Tripathi feels that she has learned a lot of things due to this crisis."I have learned that every moment, everything is so important. We should not waste even a second of our lives. Freedom is everything. Now we have come to understand how animals feel locking them down in a zoo. I am completely against zoos. We should not lock any animal," said the Arjun Suravaram actress. Speaking about activities in the quarantine period, Lavanya said, "I indulge in cooking, a lot. I have a habit of munch on something while watching a movie or series. I can't tell you whether I am a good cook or not but I have got good reviews for my food preparations (laughs). I love cooking Chinese food." Also Read : Lavanya Tripathi Was Pregnant Thrice, Says Sunisith; Actress Files Complaint In Hyderabad Cyber Cell On a related note, Lavanya Tripathi will next be seen in A1 Express opposite Sundeep Kishan. Directed by Dennis Jeevan Kanukolanu, the film is a remake of the 2019 Tamil film Natpe Thunai. 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 Women with health insurance were 15 percentage points more likely to have facility-based childbirth. Free maternal healthcare policy and a health insurance scheme have increased the proportion of expectant mothers whose childbirth occurred in healthcare facilities in Ghana, thus helping the country to move towards ensuring health and well-being for all, a study says. Ghana introduced a National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in 2005 and a free maternal healthcare policy in 2008 as part of efforts to improve the use of healthcare services, which is critical to saving the lives of many women who die due to pregnancy and childbirth complications annually. Access to maternal healthcare services remains a major development challenge globally and in Africa, according to a 2019 study. In Sub-Saharan Africa financial constraints tend to erect barriers to access healthcare for the less privileged, especially women. Out of over 300, 000 women who died in 2015 globally as a result of pregnancy related causes, 64 per cent of these deaths occurred in Africa. Using data from the Ghana's 2008 and 2014 demographic and health surveys, the study evaluated the extent to which the NHIS and the free maternal healthcare policy influenced healthcare facility-based delivery among 1,081 expectant mothers. According to the findings of the study published in the March issue of the African Development Review, policies that seek to reduce or eliminate financial costs of maternal healthcare improve access to medical care to pregnant women and are necessary. The wealthy person who is more likely to be educated has greater chance of subscribing to health insurance compared with her poor counterpart because the poor does not have full understanding of the policies in question. The National Health Insurance Authority should provide registration desks for expectant mothers at health facilities. This will enable almost all expectant mothers to enrol in the scheme and thereby have access to the free maternal health policy." Richard Agbanyo, the study's author and a lecturer at the University of Professional Studies, Accra, Ghana Nii Ankonu Annorbah-Sarpei, programmes director for Ghana-based Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights, says that the study provides interesting findings. "Women groups and civil society organization can use the key findings of the study to engage health providers and decision-makers at the sub-national levels to intensify education of pregnant women on the benefits of the NHIS," Annorbah-Sarpei adds. Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday he cant begin reopening New Jersey until the state has enough tests on hand for the coronavirus and pushed back on with President Donald Trumps administration claims that there are plenty of tests available. The president has said its a local thing but the reality is its a joint venture, Murphy said Monday at his daily coronavirus briefing in Trenton. You cant do all this by yourself. Right from the beginning we havent had the federal testing supplies that we need. Murphy also said disagreed with Vice President Mike Pence, who said Sunday that there is a sufficient capacity of testing across the country today. I would just say with the greatest respect, we dont see it that way as it relates to testing, Murphy said. There is not, as far as we can tell, plenty to go around. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage At his daily coronavirus briefing at the White House later Monday, Trump said there has been a huge increase in testing capacity nationwide. At a teleconference meeting with Murphy and other governors earlier on Monday, Pence provided names, addresses and phone numbers of laboratories in their states that could help with testing, Trump said. Hundreds and hundreds of labs are ready, willing and able, Trump said. We have tremendous capacity out there already. We explained that to the governors today. Still, U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. said the Trump administration should develop a nationwide testing plan before trying to restart the economy. As President Trump continues to push for relaxing social distancing guidelines and quickly reopening society, I am increasingly concerned about the lack of widespread testing in the United States, and what the ramifications will be if social distancing efforts are prematurely eased without robust testing in place to detect the spread of COVID-19, said Pallone, D-6th Dist., in a letter to Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the federal coronavirus task force. The new stimulus package now being negotiated includes $25 billion for testing, along with $300 billion to replenish the paycheck protection program for small businesses. Under guidelines proposed by Trump last week, states can start reopening their economies after a 14-day period during which cases of COVID-19-like cases decline, the number of confirmed infections or positive tests drop, and hospitals are prepared to handle the virus and to test at-risk health care workers. That plan depends heavily on testing, and Murphy said the state doesnt have the sites or equipment needed to reopen the state by a long shot," both to test individuals and to be able to track where theyve been if they test positive, known as contact tracing. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will deploy 10 to 12 people in New Jersey to help with the contact tracing, Murphy said. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. After the substandard construction of the holy Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara was exposed when two of the domes of the newly constructed shrine collapsed due to 'strong winds', Pakistan Minister of Science & Technology Fawad Chaudhry has once again reiterated that the collapse of the shine had 'nothing' to do with its construction or the quality of materials used. The Pakistan Minister has stated that the dome couldn't stand the 'brunt of the winds'. As per accounts, the domes were allegedly not even constructed with cement and iron but with either plaster-of-paris material or were simply made of fibre, some synthetic material. Read: 'Not Applicable': Pak Cleric Says Religious Places Will Remain Open; Cites Imran Khan Read: Domes At Holy Kartarpur Gurudwara In Pakistan Crumble; India's Sikh Community Offers Help Nothing to do with construction fibre Dome couldnt take brunt of wind and fell, fixed within hours https://t.co/9j2WBpjUZW Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) April 19, 2020 Kartarpur domes collapse in thunderstorm Earlier on Saturday, at least 2 domes of the recently constructed Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in the Punjab province situated in the outside perimeter of the shrine fell off in a thunderstorm. Visuals show that while the domes have not broken, the domes are seen to be hollow from the inside. Local reports state that the domes were constructed using fiber instead of cement and iron. Reports state that the Pakistan government in order to meet the deadline and save on expenditure got the prefabricated domes and assembled them on the Kartarpur Gurudwara structure. Pakistan has also levied an entry fee of USD 20 per person from the Indian side for the maintenance of the Gurdwara. After the embarrassing incident, the Sikh community has expressed disappointment with the way construction was done in Pakistan. Pakistan has closed the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor amid the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. India has taken up the matter with Pakistan, while the Sikh Community in India has offered to assist with rebuilding the holy shrine if Pakistan can't do it by itself. Read: India Urges Pakistan To 'rectify Deficiencies' Which Led To Collapse Of Kartarpur Domes Read: Child Sex Abuse In Pakistan's Religious Schools Is Endemic Myanmar & COVID-19 Thousands of Myanmar Migrant Workers Return from China into Quarantine Myanmar migrants workers waiting on the China side of the Lwe Je border checkpoint in Kachin State on April 16. / Wai Aye / Voice of Malikha News Agency MANDALAYNearly 4,000 Myanmar migrant workers who were working in China have flooded into border checkpoints in Kachin State since last Thursday, where they were transferred to government facilities across the state for 21-day quarantines. Local officials were told to expect as many as 18,000 migrant workers to return in the coming weeks. According to local government officials in Kachin, nearly 4,000 workers crossed into Myanmar through the border checkpoints at Kanpiketi and Lwe Je after their employers in China shut down. The Chinese government sent the workers back from the factories in Yunnan Province which were shut down due to COVID-19, said U Nay Win, the local parliamentarian of Momauk constituency and a member of the team supervising the entry of migrant workers at Lwe Je border checkpoint. Most of the workers who arrived in these days were from Bhamo, Momauk and Shwegu townships and they were sent back to their hometowns after a medical check and after their travel histories were recorded. Over 3,000 migrant workers from Bhamo, Momauk and Shwegu townships were already sent back to their hometowns and are spending 21 days in quarantine at their village schools or at quarantine centers in their towns. They are reportedly in good health. Migrant workers from Sagaing Division were also sent home through arrangements between the Kachin and Sagaing governments, where they will be quarantined for 21 days at local facilities. At the makeshift quarantine center near Lwe Je border checkpoint, there are about 100 workers now under quarantine for 21 days. They are the locals of Lwe Je and those who are from far away, such as from Rakhine State, Shan State and Magwe division. They will have to stay here to complete the 21-day quarantine and we will arrange transportation for them after that, U Nay Win explained. The migrant workers at the makeshift quarantine centers near the border have been provided with mats, pillows, mosquito nets and soap. Food has been provided with the help of the families of the local residents under quarantine. There will be more workers coming back and we will need more help to provide food for the quarantined people. We were told that there will be total of 18,000 migrant workers returning, said U Nay Win. There have been complaints about the accommodations at the makeshift quarantine centers near the border, including that there are not enough beds and people have had to sleep on the floor. Some people have voiced complaints about the poor hygiene situation and say they have had to cook their own meals and have difficulties buying food, as they are in quarantine. As the makeshift quarantine centers are at the border, there will be some needs. For example, we could not provide beds, only the mats, pillows, mosquito nets and blankets. For the food and good hygiene as well, we are trying our best to make [the returned workers] safe and healthy, explained U Khin Maung Myint, ethnic affairs minister in the Kachin State government. We are preparing to welcome more workers. We are boosting up the number of health workers at the quarantine centers at the border checkpoints. Many locals and local volunteers are also helping us to give the best support for the quarantine people and health workers, he added. According to a Kachin State government official, the government is preparing about 351 quarantine centers across the state, though 252 of the centers are already in use, accommodating migrant workers, people being monitored for COVID-19 and those who have been in contact with patients who tested positive for the disease. You may also like these stories: Myanmar Has Run Over 1,000 COVID-19 Tests; 20 Turned Out Positive Myanmar Govt to Provide Free Basic Food for Poor During COVID-19 Shutdown (Photo : Dibyendu Joardar from Pixabay) Two people who disobeyed the orders are now quarantined in a haunted house. Almost the entire world is on lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, encouraging everyone to stay indoors and to stop the further spread of COVID-19, but unfortunately, many are still not taking the pandemic seriously and have been disobeying self-isolation orders. Nevertheless, two Indonesians who disobeyed their local quarantine orders are now in for the biggest scare of their lives--and no, it's not because they caught coronavirus. Trying to Stop COVID-19 from Spreading In a report by Coconuts Jakarta, two residents of the Plupuh village are quarantined in an abandoned haunted house after they disobeyed the stay-at-home and self-isolation orders of the head of the Sragen regency in Central Java. According to the report, many Sragen citizens were forced to return to their villages from the cities in fear of being locked down. However, anyone who went home to their villages should follow the strict coronavirus self-isolation that is now in place, requiring them to stay indoors and avoid contact with anyone, even their families, for 14 days. This is even more important for people that are on the watchlist of the regency's health authorities for possible COVID-19 infections. The head of the Sragen regency, Kusdinar Untung Yuni Sukowati, has issued a warning to these groups in the event they don't follow the orders. "If they disobey self-isolation [orders], several villages have asked for my permission to quarantine them in an abandoned elementary school or abandoned houses," the regent said last week. Kusdinar gave her permission to the villages and even said that if need be, anyone caught disobeying "should be locked inside--in a haunted house if necessary." Nevertheless, she promised that they would be monitored and fed. Read Also: Here's the 'Safest Place' in America Right Now Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic What Disobeying Isolation Orders Mean in Sragen However, it seems like two Indonesians did not heed the warning and possibly thought that they won't be caught or that the regent was joking, but they had to learn the hard way that she was not. "Two Plupuh residents agreed to self-isolate, but they violated the order. So they were locked inside an abandoned haunted house. Had they obeyed their order, they wouldn't have been locked in there," Kusdinar said in an Indonesian news outlet. The regent added that the abandoned house is in the middle of a rice paddy, meaning there are no nearby houses and neighbors that could contract the dreadful COVID-19, in the event both residents acquired it. Unfortunately, it also meant that they had to face the horrors of isolation on their own, in a property that was locally popular as haunted. Sragen regent Kusdinar did not say how long they will be isolated in the haunted house, but since there are no quarantine facilities in the region, it seems like they'll have to stay the full length of their self-isolation in these abandoned properties and schools. In the region, there are currently five confirmed coronavirus cases, including one death. Indonesian Zombies Will Keep You Safe This was not the first time Indonesian authorities used the supernatural to spook their constituents to stay at home. Previously, men dressed as "pocong," or Indonesian zombies, were stationed at the village's main entrance to scare the locals into going out, and to encourage them to obey the curfew and the isolation orders. Read Also: Coronavirus Reportedly Damages Kidney, Heart, and Liver; Dialysis Equipment Now in Shortage 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The UK-wide lockdown has put an end to all social events for the foreseeable. Yet Maya Jama didn't let that stop her from showing off her finest party wear as she shared a throwback clip in a striking orange mini dress. The DJ, 25, highlighted her incredible figure in the scanty ensemble as she danced around and showed off her gown for the camera. Stunning: Maya Jama didn't let lockdown stop her from showing off her finest party wear as she shared a throwback clip in a striking orange mini dress The low-cut neckline offered a look at her ample cleavage, whilst the thigh-grazing hemline put her toned pins on display. Maya's glossy raven locks were worn in loose waves that framed her pretty features, whilst she accessorised with oversized hooped earrings. She captioned the video: 'This dress is coming back out this summer cause I still ain't got a pic in it'. Striking: The DJ, 25, highlighted her incredible figure in the scanty ensemble as she danced around and showed off her gown for the camera Despite not being able to attend any glitzy events in person, Maya made a virtual appearance for PrettyLittleThing's online awards show for influencers earlier this month. Maya scooped up the Personality of The Year Award, but did not receive it until Tuesday after it failed to be delivered on time, and therefore missed the livestream show. American actor Terrence J, 37, hosted the awards live on PrettyLittleThing's Instagram from his own living room, dishing out gongs to celebrate those in the celebrity and influencer industry. Taking the plunge: The low-cut neckline offered a look at her ample cleavage, whilst the thigh-grazing hemline put her toned pins on display Due to the pandemic, Maya and the other winners were forced to record their acceptance speeches via video link after the glitzy ceremony was cancelled amid government guidelines. The presenter took to her own Instagram Story after unpacking the pink unicorn shaped award and thanked her fans for voting. Whilst trying to contain her laughter, Maya said: 'Good news! Thanks guys! Thanks to my mum and my dad for raising me, all my aunties, my friends.' She continued: 'It's you lot really, thanks for voting for me. It's really cute you laugh at my jokes. Personality of the year 2020!' Other winners on at the night's awards included Jesy Nelson, Caitlyn Jenner, Paris Hilton and Amber Gill. The Telangana state cabinet on Sunday decided to extend the lockdown period in the state till May 7 and not to give any relaxations to any sector from Monday, as against the Centres proposal to provide certain relaxations to various sectors. The nationwide lockdown period is set to end on May 3. Briefing the reporters after the six-hour long cabinet meeting held at his camp office Pragati Bhavan, chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said as per the Epidemic Diseases Act, the states too have a right on par with the Centre to decide on the steps to be taken for containing the epidemic diseases like Covid-19. The Covid-19 situation all over the world is a matter of concern. In many countries, the spread of the virus subsided but is getting repeated. As many as 42 countries, which lifted lockdown, were forced to reimpose again. We have to learn from their experiences, KCR said. Though the Central government had extended lockdown up to May 3, it had given relaxations to certain sectors from Monday. The cabinet thoroughly discussed the central guidelines and the situation in the state and decided that no relaxations be given to any sector and the lockdown be extended with the existing guidelines till May 7, he said. The officials told the cabinet that the situation would ease to some extent by May 1, as all the patients undergoing treatment in the hospitals would recover by then and those in quarantine would be completing their 28-day isolation. Though some new cases might surface in the next few days, they might also come down gradually. Till such time, we have to be extremely careful and hence the decision to extend lockdown till May 7. We shall be tough in implementing the lockdown. The cabinet will meet again on May 5 to take stock of the situation and take appropriate decisions on easing the lockdown then, KCR said. The cabinet directed that the police take stringent measures to contain the spread of the diseases in the containment zones. While online suppliers of essential commodities will be allowed, the cabinet decided to ban online food delivery platforms like Swiggy and Zomato from Monday, since there is a possibility of virus spreading through them, he said. The chief minister appealed to foreign travellers and also domestic travellers not to come to Telangana. Even if the flight services are resumed, we shall not allow the travellers to enter Hyderabad city, he said. The cabinet also banned all religious congregations in the state till May 7. It also asked 10,000-odd private schools not to hike tuition fees for the coming academic year 2020-21 and also collect any other fees other than monthly tuition fees.The cabinet decided to waive fixed power charges for all industrial units that were shut down during lockdown period. It also decided to make salary cuts ranging from 10 per cent to 75 per cent for all the government employees and pensioners and also elected public representatives. KCR appealed to the Centre to relax FRBM limits to help states raise required funds owing to loss of revenues to states during Covid-19 lockdown . SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON FAU scientists receive $1.7 million NIH grant for novel neuroinflammation study Anxiety, depression and cognitive decline are prominent psychopathologies that together affect more than 40 million people in the United States. These symptoms may manifest as co-morbidities of acute brain injury, chronic neurodegenerative diseases, central nervous system (CNS) autoimmune diseases, or as consequence of chronic stress, CNS infection, aging, or drug treatments with inflammatory molecules. The common thread among all these conditions is the presence of neuroinflammation. Although neuroinflammation has recently been implicated as an important cause of these psychopathologies and a new target for the treatment of these conditions, the mechanisms underlying neuroinflammation-induced dysfunction of relevant neurocircuits remain poorly understood. Neuroscientists from Florida Atlantic University's Schmidt College of Medicine and Brain Institute (I-BRAIN) have received a five-year, $1.7 million R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a project titled, "Neuroinflammation, Neuronal IL-1R1, and Behavior." This novel project is the first to investigate how the inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1 (IL-1) influences neurotransmission through a direct action on neurons and how this action triggers behavioral changes. "Many studies have suggested that elevated expression of IL-1 is one of the most critical links between neuroinflammation and psychopathology. Increased IL-1 expression, especially in the brain, has been observed in human patients with anxiety, depression, autism and/or cognitive deficits," said Ning Quan, Ph.D., principal investigator, a professor of biomedical science in FAU's Schmidt College of Medicine, and a member of FAU's I-BRAIN. "Evidence strongly suggests that IL-1 could be a mediator of anxiety, depression and learning/ memory deficits. However, we lack a good understanding of the precise neuronal circuits through which IL-1 affects neurons and how the receptor signals to induce these psychopathologies." Quan and co-investigator Randy Blakely, Ph.D., executive director of FAU's I-BRAIN and a professor of biomedical science, FAU's Schmidt College of Medicine, will establish nIL-1R1 as a crucial link that could convert neuroinflammation to neural dysfunction, providing a new pathogenic mechanism for anxiety, depression, and cognitive dysfunction. For the study, they will focus on the specific sets of neurons that express IL-1R1, identifying them as the vulnerable targets to this pathogenic mechanism. Results from their research could suggest new targets for the treatment of psychopathology. "Very few studies have attempted to investigate how IL-1 directly modulates neuronal activity and little is known about the function of neuronal IL-1 receptor in the central nervous system," said Quan. "This missing gap can be attributed to the inability to identify IL-1mediated responses. In addition, because nIL-1R1 is expressed at low levels, detection by traditional immunohistochemical methods is difficult." To overcome these technical limitations, Quan and Blakely recently generated a mouse system to both visualize and express IL-1R1 in specific cell types in the brain or to eliminate its expression in these cells to understand how IL-1R1 loss influences behavior. For the project, the researchers will pursue three specific aims: map and characterize IL-1R1 expressing neurons in the brain to provide the first brain map of nIL-1R1 distribution; determine the role of neuronal IL-1R1 in the induction of behavioral deficits and neuropathology caused by neuroinflammation; and elucidate the cellular and molecular pathways by which neuronal IL-1R1 causes psycho- and neuro-pathology. The research team recently reported in the journal Immunity that IL-1R1 is expressed at high levels by a limited set of neurons in the brain and have recently observed that sub-inflammatory levels of brain IL-1 appear to selectively activate nIL-1R1 on these cells whereas higher levels of IL-1 are required to activate non-neuronal cells. "Florida Atlantic University neuroscientists are on the cutting-edge of developing genetic tools and techniques to help researchers pinpoint mechanisms that contribute to some of the most debilitating neurodegenerative diseases that affect us globally," said Blakely. "With this latest grant from the National Institutes of Health, we hope to elucidate the key signaling pathways of a key neuroinflammatory pathway linked to behavioral deficits and neuropathology following neuroinflammation - a pathological feature of a wide range of central nervous system diseases." ### About the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine: FAU's Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine is one of approximately 152 accredited medical schools in the U.S. The college was launched in 2010, when the Florida Board of Governors made a landmark decision authorizing FAU to award the M.D. degree. After receiving approval from the Florida legislature and the governor, it became the 134th allopathic medical school in North America. With more than 70 full and part-time faculty and more than 1,300 affiliate faculty, the college matriculates 64 medical students each year and has been nationally recognized for its innovative curriculum. To further FAU's commitment to increase much needed medical residency positions in Palm Beach County and to ensure that the region will continue to have an adequate and well-trained physician workforce, the FAU Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine Consortium for Graduate Medical Education (GME) was formed in fall 2011 with five leading hospitals in Palm Beach County. The Consortium currently has five Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited residencies including internal medicine, surgery, emergency medicine, psychiatry, and neurology. About the FAU Brain Institute: Inaugurated in 2016 on the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, Fla., the FAU Brain Institute, supports research, education and community outreach among more than 100 faculty level researchers at FAU and its affiliate research centers. One of FAU's four pillars that guide the University's goals and strategic actions, the Institute seeks to unlock the secrets of brain development, function and plasticity and how the mechanisms uncovered can be compromised to drive devastating brain disorders. From the study of neuronal development and signaling to investigations of brain diseases including addiction, autism, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, researchers from FAU's Brain Institute seek to generate knowledge that benefits society. For more information about the Institute and its members, visit http://www. ibrain. fau. edu . About Florida Atlantic University: Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six-county service region in southeast Florida. FAU's world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of three signature themes - marine and coastal issues, biotechnology and contemporary societal challenges - which provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU's existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit http://www. fau. edu . This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. YouTube Screenshot MIDDLETOWN The MEWS+ Entrepreneurial Community, sponsor of the Collision Pitch Competition that brings together Connecticut startups to compete for attention, traction and prize money, has moved the competition online, hosting a virtual competition for three entrepreneurs. Each startup created a five-minute video pitch featured on the Collision website, according to a press release from the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce. Visitors are encouraged to watch each pitch, and then evaluate the pitches based on four criteria. On Tuesday, visitors vote for the pitch that best embodies entrepreneurial excellence. Chandigarh, April 20 : India may soon see a shortage of medicines as nearly 55 crucial pharmaceutical facilities that are part of Asia's largest pharmaceutical hub Baddi in Himachal Pradesh have closed their operations for nine days to contain the spread of coronavirus, trade insiders said on Monday. Earlier, these units were operating at 25-30 per cent of capacity with in-house employees. After the declaration of containment zone, all manufacturing facilities, including pharmaceuticals, that fall in Jharmajri and Nalagarh areas, just 40 km from Chandigarh, have to shut operations till door-to-door screening for Covid-19 symptoms and sanitization of the area is not over. Officials said six positive cases have been reported recently in the zone that comprises big units like Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. "Our production is almost at a standstill for nine days now. There is a huge, huge backlog of orders. The big question for all of us is how quickly we can return to normal," Torque Pharmaceuticals Private Ltd's Managing Director P.S. Chhatwat told IANS here. He said since the March 24 countrywide lockdown there has been a huge shortage of raw material. "We depend largely on Mumbai for the raw material. Now the government allows the transportation of goods. It will take at least 10-15 days for the supply chain of raw material to get normal,a he said. Allying fears of shortage of medicines, Chhatwal said if the timeframe of the containment zone declaration continues at least for a week more, a certain crisis lies ahead. According to him, no company holds raw material in sufficient quantities when its prices are fluctuating. Trade insiders fear 25-30 per cent rise in costs of certain drugs with price of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) that India imports from China have increased since January with closure of Chinese facilities. Nimesulide, which was available for Rs 450 a kg on January 14, is costing Rs 1,400 a kg on April 14, a rise of 185 per cent. Likewise, the raw material of azithromycin that cost Rs 7,650 a kg is now available for Rs 15,000 kg, a rise of 96 per cent. So are ornidazole (73 per cent hike) and fever and pain reducer paracetamol (62 per cent). The availability of these salts in the country rank avery critical', says an importer. In a letter to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, Himachal Drug Manufacturers Association President Rajesh Gupta on April 15 said 50 per cent of the units are functioning and many MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) players are facing raw material problems from bulk manufacturers and importers. Gupta told IANS the state should come up with a roadmap till September as Covid-19 pandemic is likely to persist for the two-three months. In the letter, he said the red zone areas in Dera Bassi in Punjab, Panchkula in Haryana and Chandigarh have facilitated inter-city movement on the lines of the National Capital Region (NCR). "Allow five people from each pharma units from outside the state till the lookdown," he said, adding "motivate the whole production set up as the lockdown has brought the entire pharmaceutical industry on wheel-chair". "If the administration will not allow it, the entire pharma companies will be on ventilators," said the letter. The Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh industrial belt has nearly 550 pharmaceutical units with 500 of them are MSMEs. Signaling a silver lining amid the crisis, Deputy Drug Controller Manish Kapoor told IANS that the Jharmajri and Nalagarh areas would be brought out of the containment zone likely this week. "Active case finding is going on vigorously. In the last nine days, no new coronavirus case has been reported from the area and we are confident that in four-five days relaxation would be granted to all industrial units to operationalise as per national protocol," he added. (Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in) As we are all only too well aware, we find ourselves living in chaotic times at the moment. There's a lot of fear and negativity out there and it can be hard to find a few moments of calm to soothe a restless mind. Enter Don Conroy. A man with many strings to his bow - environmentalist, artist, broadcaster, author - he brings a palpable positivity and calm to everything he does. As calls regarding Covid-19 and it's frightening impact on our lives stack up on a daily basis, even hearing the dulcet tones of 'Uncle Don' on the other end of the phone has a calming effect. 'It's really great to talk to you,' he beams. 'It's amazing how this whole thing has taken off.' He is referring of course to his newly launched YouTube channel, sparking a return for 'Draw With Don' - a segment which was a staple of RTE's 'The Den' and was a real favourite for kids across the country in the '90s as they tuned in and attempted to copy Don's drawing of some magnificent animal or other. Of course a lot of the children who tuned in with their pieces of paper and pencils at the ready in those halcyon days now have children of their own and Don's return is spreading a little bit of joy to a new generation, as well as a healthy dose of nostalgia for his fans from the past. While it's been a busy year for Don, you get the impression that he's a man who doesn't stress. Life moves at it's own pace and we all must adapt accordingly. Having lived in Monart, just outside Enniscorthy, for many years, earning honorary Wexfordian status in the process, he spent a few months living in Greece recently before moving into his new home in Wicklow town. 'We're not that long living here actually,' he explains. 'Recently I spent a couple of months away in Greece. We have friends there and decided to spend some time there. It was wonderful. We were in a very remote area near this little fishing village. It was like walking into one of those wonderful impressionist paintings in spring time with all the lovely wild-flowers blooming. So I spent a bit of time there doing some painting and drawing and it was lovely.' Although a fond one, that's now very much a distant memory for Don as the Ireland he has returned to is now one battling a crisis the likes of which we've never seen. Characteristically though, Don is upbeat. 'It's like everything, you have to turn a disadvantage into an advantage,' he said. 'It's a good time to be reflective and value each other and maybe be a bit creative. I'm trying to help with that a little with the YouTube channel.' 'I've been on, what I'd call, a creative journey since I was four years old. I would love to see more people looking at the world with creative eyes. When you start to look and understand the shapes and forms of things, it gives you a different perspective. You look at the world in a different way with fresh eyes.' For Don, there isn't likely to be any boredom arising from spending more time at home. 'Well I'm busy making these shows and then I've been doing a lot of interviews about it like this one,' he laughs. 'I really am surprised by the amazing reaction it's received. People are really lovely. Over the years I've had people come up to me and say that I was the reason they passed their Leaving Cert art exams or what happened quite a bit was that I had young mothers coming up and asking me why I wasn't drawing on TV any more. A lot of them wanted their children to have the same experience that they had when they were children.' It was here that the seeds for Don's new YouTube channel were sown. With more than a gentle prod from his daughter Justine, he had been seeking to make some videos anyway and with more people stuck at home and looking for something to do, the timing was perfect. 'This wasn't planned at all,' he says. 'I'm delighted people are taking a bit of pleasure from it at a difficult time. People are worrying about life. I would say to them, take in the information, because it's important. But don't overwhelm yourself with fear because eventually you'll implode. Try to stay positive about the situation. Read the book you've been meaning to read. Write some poetry or maybe do some drawing.' With Don's first video 'Let's Draw a Clown' rocketing to nearly 45,000 views in just a couple of days, it's fair to say that the appetite is certainly out there among the general public, kids and adults alike. A second video was added inviting young and old to join in and draw a Barn Owl - giving all the nostalgic feels for rainy afternoons sat in front of 'The Den'. 'The painter Juan Miro said that we should all try to draw like children again,' Don says, reflecting on the enjoyment the kids get from his videos. 'I always liked that. The reason is that when children draw, they are telling a story. It's the joy of drawing. Miro believed that the joy was not in the result, but in the action.' Don has some big ideas for the YouTube channel too. He hopes to add new videos every couple of days and he also hopes to add storytelling for the children, as well as workshops for adults too. When he's not doing that, he's putting the finishing touches to paintings and portraits that had been left to one side - heeding his own advice and turning disadvantage to advantage and taking stock. Within a couple of days, the Don Conroy YouTube channel had over 8,000 subscribers and one would suspect that this will increase even further in the coming days as homes across the country welcome a familiar favourite back into their sitting rooms. There has been a massive increase in UK Google searches for 'home workouts', 'fish and chips deliveries' and 'baking recipes' during the coronavirus lockdown. However, the use of search terms like 'get a divorce', 'condoms', 'botox' and 'prom dress' have all fallen radically since people began staying at home. The findings highlight how lockdown and social distancing measures are having a marked effect on the way we live our lives in the time of COVID-19. Scroll down for video There has been a massive increase in UK Google searches for 'home workouts', 'fish and chips deliveries' and 'baking recipes' during the coronavirus lockdown. However, the use of search terms like 'get a divorce', 'condoms', 'botox' and 'prom dress' have all fallen radically The findings highlight how lockdown and social distancing measures are having a marked effect on the way we live our lives in the time of COVID-19 The study which examined search terms used between January 18 and April 15, 2020 was conducting by the Reboot Online Marketing Agency. The investigators used the search engine marketing tools Google Trends and SEMrush to determine what UK internet users have been looking up in lockdown. They report that, showing the largest lockdown boost, there has been a staggering 3600 per cent increase in people looking online to 'rent gym equipment' as people look to be able to recreate their normal workout routines at home. Perhaps to replace all those burnt calories, however, the next four search terms that have seen the largest hike in recent weeks are all noticeably food-centric. These include 'pubs delivering food near me' (up 3,100 per cent), 'fish and chips near me' (up 2,900 per cent), 'baking recipes' (up 2,500) and 'things to make without plain flour (up 2,250 per cent). The use of search terms like 'get a divorce', 'condoms', 'botox' and 'prom dress' have all fallen radically since people began staying at home According to Reboot, in the UK there has been a staggering 3600 per cent increase in people looking online to 'rent gym equipment' since the lockdown began. Pictured, the same search term has seen a boost worldwide over the last 90 days. (Note that these figures are relative 100 represents peak interest in the term over the three-month period, 50 half that, etc.) In the UK, the search term 'baking recipes' is up 2,900 per cent sine the lockdown began, according to Reboot. Pictured, the same search term has seen a boost worldwide since mid-February. (Note that these figures are relative 100 represents peak interest in the term over the three-month period, 50 half that, etc.) In the UK, the search term 'fish and chips near me' is up 2,500 per cent sine the lockdown began, according to Reboot. Pictured, across the globe, however, the same search term has been relatively consistent over the last 90 days, increasing in popularity on Sundays except for a spike on April 10, Good Friday. (Note that these figures are relative 100 represents peak interest in the term over the three-month period, 50 half that, etc.) Other terms that have grown in popularity since the lockdown began include 'grow plants', 'yoga online classes', online games and very specifically 'banana cake'. Unsurprisingly, there has also been a 1,700 per cent rise in people looking up information on a 'coronavirus cure'. Last month, the UK-based charity the Center for Countering Digital Hate launched a campaign to warn people to be wary of the health-related misinformation that has begun circulating in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic including fake cures. With people unable to leave their homes during lockdown, the team found a corresponding decrease in search terms related to travel and outside activities. These included such terms as 'city breaks' (which has fallen by 99 per cent since the lockdown began), 'travel insurance' (-98 per cent), 'taxi to airport' (-97 per cent), camping sites (-87 per cent) and flights (-86 per cent). 'Other topics of interest include comic con in seventh place (down 93%), prom dress in 16th place (down 85%), and dog shows in 19th place (down 82%),' the researchers said. This, they added, hints at 'Britain's interests before Coronavirus took hold.' The full findings of the study can be read on the Reboot Online website. They report that, showing the largest lockdown boost, there has been a staggering 3600 per cent increase in people looking online to 'rent gym equipment' as people look to be able to recreate their normal workout routines at home Perhaps to replace all those burnt calories, however, the next four search terms that have seen the largest hike in recent weeks are all food-centric. These include 'pubs delivering food near me' (up 3,100 per cent), 'fish and chips near me' (up 2,900 per cent), 'baking recipes' (up 2,500) and 'things to make without plain flour (up 2,250 per cent) A new study makes the case that entrepreneurship isnt just for the young, or for men. From Steve Jobs to Mark Zuckerberg, the stories of prosperous, young innovators drive the American economic narrative. However, the truth is that older business entrepreneurs may be just as well suited to success. Also, older women are far more successful at launching a business than their younger counterparts. Those are among the findings reached by Hao Zhao, an associate professor of management at the Lally School of Management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, in research recently published online in the Journal of Business Venturing. Correcting peoples negative stereotypes about older entrepreneurs, and encouraging people at later life stages to engage in entrepreneurship, is important, Zhao said. The United States has an increasing population of older adults that have skills and knowledge valuable to society. This study helps to illustrate their strengths. Zhao and his co-authors conducted a meta-analysis based on 102 independent samples and determined that the rate of success for people who launch a business in their 20s is the same as for those who become entrepreneurs in their 50s. According to Zhao, this suggests that, while younger entrepreneurs are generally more adapt at inventing new technology and making bold moves, their older counterparts have more wisdom, financial capital and business connections. Zhao found that older entrepreneurs have slightly higher satisfaction levels and greater financial success than younger entrepreneurs. Their only disadvantage is slightly lower growth rates, an artifact of their companies tending to be larger in size. Additionally, the study showed that age has a positive and significant effect on the success of female entrepreneurs. Our findings suggest women should not give up too readily because their chance of success increases as they move to later life stages, and their perseverance ultimately tends to pay off, Zhao said. For those in their 30s and 40s, the prospects arent quite as good. Zhao concluded that midlife is a challenging time to start a business. Child care and elder care obligations also require valuable time and financial resources, and entrepreneurs do not have parental leave or day care benefits. Although it is generally commendable to pursue ones entrepreneurial aspiration, Zhao said, we suggest that early mid-life individuals carefully evaluate all of the resources at hand and take a realistic view of this career path before taking the leap. With many resources available to young entrepreneurs, Zhao suggests his research supports the idea that government agencies and business incubators should identify channels to foster entrepreneurship for older adults as well. The paper was co-authored with Gina OConnor, Babson College; Jihong Wu, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China; and G.T. Lumpkin, University of Oklahoma. Coronavirus Outbreak Updates: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued an order to include additional agricultural and forestry items, shops of educational books for students, shops of electric fans and movement of Indian seafarers in to the list of permitted activities during the lockdown, which will continue till 3 May. Auto refresh feeds In the daily COVID-19 press briefing, health ministry Joint Secretary Law Agarwal said as many as 59 districts across 23 states and Union Territories have not reported a single case in the last 14 days and also asserted that the rate of the number of cases doubling has improved to 7.5 days, from 3.4 days before the lockdown. Last Friday, he had put the rate of doubling of cases at 6.2 days. According to the Union health ministry, the number of coronavirus positive cases saw a sharp increase of 1,553 between Sunday and Monday, while there has been a recovery rate of about 15 percent. Demand for oil has collapsed so much due to the coronavirus pandemic that facilities for storing crude are nearly full. Much of the drop into negative territory was chalked up to technical reasons the May delivery contract is close to expiring so it was seeing less trading volume, which can exacerbate swings. But prices for deliveries even further into the future, which were seeing larger trading volumes, also plunged. Stocks were also slipping on Wall Street in afternoon trading, with the S&P 500 down 0.9 percent but the market's most dramatic action was by far in oil, where benchmark US crude for May delivery plummeted to negative 3.70 per barrel, as of 2:15 pm. Eastern time. Oil prices plunged below zero on Monday as demand for energy collapses amid the coronavirus pandemic and traders don't want to get stuck owning crude with nowhere to store it. The health minister did not provide further details, but his response gave an impression about the possibility of allowing liquor shops to function with social distancing measures in place. Tope was replying to a question on the state government not clarifying, in its April 17 notification, whether liquor shops will be allowed to remain open after it permitted the resumption of industrial and business activities in non-coronavirus hotspots. Liquor shops are closed in the state since late month when the coronavirus-enforced lockdown was implemented. "If social distancing is properly maintained, there should not be any ban on liquor shops," he said. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said there should not be any ban on liquor shops in the state if social distancing measures, in place to curb the COVID-19 spread, are strictly followed. The May contract expires on Tuesday, while the June contract, which is more actively traded, was up 51 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $20.94 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for May delivery was up $21.96 at -$15.67 a barrel by 2214 GMT after settling down at a discount of $37.63 a barrel in the previous session. US crude oil jumped more than $20 per barrel on Tuesday but still traded below $0 after plunging into negative territory for the first time in history, dragged down by a supply glut and sagging demand for crude due to the coronavirus pandemic. Three police vehicles were also torched by the mob. The policemen could only leave the area by a road that passes through the Jaldapara forest, officials said. As the clash continued, the policemen opened fire, injuring a youth, while leaving the spot, the locals alleged. Locals alleged that a police team arrived in the area with an earthmover after midnight to secretly dump the body of a person who died of COVID-19. As locals got wind of the alleged plans, the officials met with resistance, they claimed. The incident happened on the banks of the Teesta river in Salkumarhat area in the early hours of Monday, police said. At least 20 police personnel were injured in a clash with a mob which alleged that the authorities were secretly disposing of the body of a person who died due to COVID-19 in West Bengal's Alipurduar district. Around 60 units in West Bengal, most of which are located in North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Hooghly and Howrah districts, were awaiting the government's nod to resume operations from Monday and of them, only five got the approval, according to industry sources. The industry was disappointed with a handful of mills getting approval to operate despite repeated interventions from the Centre which fears that prolonged closure may lead to a shortage of packaging materials, especially foodgrains. The units have received permission to operate only with 50 workers, according to a mill owner. Five jute mills in West Bengal got the approval of the state government to resume operations amid a huge pending order for packaging materials. By Sunday night, the number of cases of the deadly virus in the city stood at 2,003, including 45 deaths. Of the total fatalities reported to date, 25 victims were aged 60 and above, they said. Twelve of them were in the age group of 50-59 and 10 were aged less than 50 years, officials said. A committee has been constituted for a daily audit of every fatality due to COVID-19, they said. The death toll from COVID-19 in the national capital stands at 47. The total number of coronavirus cases in the national capital rose to 2081 on Monday, with 78 fresh cases and two deaths being reported in a day, according to Delhi government authorities. According to TimesNow News sources, the person, who has been tested positive for coronavirus is a relative of a sanitation worker. Although, an official statement from the Rashtrapati Bhavan is awaited. One coronavirus positive case found in Rashtrapati Bhavan, 125 families sent on home quarantine, reports ANI. 125 families advised to remain in self-isolation as mandated by the Health Ministrys guidelines as a precautionary measure. In a message issued late in the evening, Tope stated that out of the total 76,000 tests for coronavirus conducted in the state so far, Mumbai city alone accounts for more than 50,000. Tope said some health experts are predicting a spurt in coronavirus cases in the state between 30 April and 15 May. "However, this will happen only if people violate lockdown norms," the minister said. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said the rate of doubling of COVID-19 cases in the state has slowed down further to seven days from five days earlier. Later in the evening, Deoghar District Deputy Commissioner Nancy Sahay said a man from Gamahria village in Sarvan block also contracted the deadly virus. "He is asymptomatic and his condition is stable," she said, adding, this is the first case of coronavirus reported from Deoghar district. Principal Secretary (Health) Nitin Madan Kulkarni said one person each from Ranchi, Bokaro and Hazaribag districts tested positive for COVID-19. Four more persons tested positive for COVID-19 in Jharkhand on Monday, taking the number of cases to 45 in the state, a senior health department official said. Migrants now make up about 10 percent of the state's 193 coronavirus cases, causing anger in Tamaulipas. The Tamaulipas state government said a migrant deported from Houston, Texas had entered the same shelter without knowing that he had coronavirus. Fourteen of the infected migrants from Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, Cuba, and Cameroon were staying at a migrant shelter in the city of Nuevo Laredo, across the border from Laredo, Texas. They are in isolation. Sixteen migrants from several countries have tested positive for coronavirus in Mexico's northern border state of Tamaulipas, the state government said on Monday. He said the number of people in intensive care had fallen for the 12th consecutive day, to 5,683 - the lowest since March 31 - suggesting the national lockdown is having positive effects in containing the disease. The epidemic is very deadly and is far from over, Frances public health chief Jerome Salomon told a news briefing, adding that the death toll was now higher than that of the heat wave in the summer of 2003. France on Monday officially registered more than 20,000 deaths from the coronavirus, becoming the fourth country to pass that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States, and the pace of increase in fatalities and infections sped up again after several days of slowing. "In doing so, the panchayats saved their respective villages from the menace of COVID-19 entering their habitations and also exhibited how the panchayats in Odisha are playing a leading role in combating COVID-19," the release said. "Most people related to these cases having origin from West Bengal were clandestinely trying to sneak into the villages. They are held by and identified by the panchayats in Odisha, who did not allow them to enter into the villages. The panchayats in turn then informed the district administration and ensured that these people were placed in quarantine," it added. "One-third of all positive COVID-19 cases are those that have returned from West Bengal which is worrying for the Odisha government," a press release said. The Odisha government on Monday said that one-third of COVID-19 positive cases in the state is due to those who have returned from West Bengal.To date, there are 74 positive COVID-19 cases in the state, out of which 24 are those who have come from West Bengal. According to Navarro, Europe, India, Brazil and others don't have adequate PPE because China "is hoarding it". "I have evidence directly from the Chinese government customs duty union that shows that, in the months of January and February, they bought 18 times more amount of masks," he said. "It was over two billion masks alone. They increased their expenditures of both goggles and gloves." "China vacuumed up all of the personal protective equipment around the world while it was hiding the virus," Navarro told Fox Business News in an interview. Peter Navarro, White House Director of Trade and Manufacturing, alleged on Monday that several countries, including India and Brazil, were not having enough PPE because Beijing was hoarding them. The United States has "evidence" that in January and February, China bought 18 times more amount of masks and personal protective equipment, which they are now selling at high rates, a top White House official has claimed. Details of the Trump's executive order were not immediately known. He also did not indicate when he will sign such an order. The number of people killed in the US due to COVID-19 has reached 42,094, according to Johns Hopkins University, and more than 750,000 cases have been confirmed. President Donald Trump has said that he will sign an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into America, amid the coronavirus outbreak that has killed more than 40,000 people in the US, the country with the most fatalities in the pandemic. US President Donald Trump said on Monday he will be signing an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States. Police had not expected such a large number of people to gather for the funeral, defying a weeks-long lockdown that forbids going out except for groceries and medicine. Local media said few of the mourners wore masks. Weve strictly ordered all residents of the seven villages to stay at home at all times at least for the next 14 days so we can identify if anyone contracted the virus following Saturdays gathering, a local police officer told Reuters . The massive gathering in Brahmanbaria district, about 60 km east of the capital Dhaka, has raised concerns about the potential for a spike in infections in a country of 160 million people with poor medical infrastructure. Bangladesh has tightened a clampdown on seven villages after tens of thousands attended the funeral of a popular local cleric in spite of a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus, officials said on Monday. Speculation about Kim's health was raised after he missed the celebration of his late grandfather and state founder Kim Il Sung on 15 April. The Unification Ministry, which deals with inter-Korean affairs, said it couldn't confirm another report by Daily NK, which cited anonymous sources to report that Kim was recovering from heart surgery in the capital Pyongyang and that his condition was improving. Officials from South Korea's Unification Ministry and National Intelligence Service said they couldn't immediately confirm the report. CNN cited an anonymous US official who said Kim was in grave danger after an unspecified surgery. The South Korean government on Tuesday was looking into US media reports saying North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was in fragile condition after surgery. 15 more positive cases reported in Moradabad, out of whom one died at TMU medical college, said Moradabad chief medical officer (CMO) Dr MC Garg on Tuesday. The total number of COVID-19 infections in the state has crossed the 400-mark, according to last evening's bulletin by the Karnataka health department "The person had developed fever on Sunday and was admitted to the hospital. The patient passed away yesterday at 9 am. Last night at 9pm the death report came, which confirmed that the person was COVID-19 positive," Sudhakar tweeted. The elderly person was suffering from Parkinson's disease for the last three years and died at a hospital on Monday, the minister said in a tweet. An 80-year-old COVID-19 patient dies in Karnataka's Kalaburagi district on Tuesday, reported PTI. The toll in the state is now at 17, said Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar. There are now 18,601 total cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in India. Active cases stand at 14,759 and recoveries at 3,251 and deaths at 590, according to the latest data by the health ministry. Five more positive cases have been reported from Rajpura in Patiala on Tuesday. All five positive cases are from the same source and all are asymptotic cases. Line of contact tracing is underway said KBS Sidhu, Special Chief Secretary, Punjab There are now 72 active trials underway across the United States researching dozens of therapies and treatments and another 211 are in the planning stages. They are literally mobilising on therapeutics and also on vaccines, and tremendous progress is being made on vaccines and I must say on therapeutics, Trump told reporters at his daily White House news conference on the coronavirus on Monday. According to the President, there are therapies designed to attack the virus as well as others that would hinder its replication, reduce the rate of infection, control the immune response or transfer life savings antibodies from the blood of recovered patients. US President Donald Trump has said there are 72 active trials underway across the country researching dozens of therapies and treatments for the coronavirus and tremendous progress is being made on vaccines. The number of active cases in the state now stands at 53 while 25 persons have been cured of the disease. "Contact-tracing of all the new cases are going on and follow-up action is also being taken," the official said. Two COVID-19 cases including a two-year-old child were also reported from Balasore district on Monday. All the fresh cases have been reported from Balasore district neighbouring West Bengal, he said. The state health and family welfare department have not provided details of the new patients. Five more persons tested positive for novel coronavirus in Odisha on Tuesday, taking the total number of such cases to 79 in the state, a health department official said. Confirmed cases in Tamil Nadu now stand at 1,520, including 457 recoveries. As many as 17 people have died due to COVID-19 in the state. The total number confirmed COVID-19 cases continue to rise steadily in Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, according to data from the Union Health Ministry. Rajasthan has so far reported 1,628 cases. Of these, 205 patients have recovered. The toll in the state stands at 25. The CPCB has also written to the state pollution control boards and pollution control committees to consider operation of common bio-medical waste treatment and disposal facility and its associated staff as essential service part of health infrastructure. The apex pollution monitoring body said specific guidelines are required to be followed by all, including isolation wards, quarantine centres, sample collection centres, laboratories, ULBs and common biomedical waste treatment and disposal facilities, in addition to existing practices under BMW Management Rules, 2016. Using double layered bags, mandatory labelling and colour coded bins for the management of waste generated during the diagnostics and treatment of suspected and confirmed COVID-19 patients are part of the guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Out of the 754 samples tested on Monday for COVID-19, results of eight are positive, said King George's Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, reports ANI. So far, Uttar Pradesh has reported 1184 COVID-19 positive cases, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. According to worldometer , about 1,70,456 people across the globe have died so far from the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak as of 21 April. "I am sure our experienced and able civil servants will assist the nation in winning the battle," the vice president said. "Our civil servants along with doctors and medical professionals have been leading India's fight against COVID-19 ... We are grateful to all such warriors who have been risking their lives at the face of the infection to protect all of us," he said.. The duration of the fight against coronavirus is still uncertain, he pointed out. Their high professional standards have stood us well in times of peace as well as times of crisis like the current one, Naidu said. "On Civil Services Day, I compliment all the civil servants of our country for effectively and efficiently translating policies into programmes," the Vice President tweeted. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday extended greetings on Civil Services Day, saying like health professionals, the civil servants have also been leading the fight against coronavirus. It said that the postponement meant that parliament would not be able to meet on 2 June which is three months from the dismissal of last parliament on 2 March. The EC has written to President Rajapaksa asking him to seek the highest court's opinion on a possible constitutional standoff arising from the postponement of the election. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 2 March dissolved the Parliament, six months ahead of schedule and called a snap election on 25 April. A gazette notice signed by the three members of the National Election Commission announcing 20 June date of the election was issued on Monday. Sri Lanka's Election Commission has postponed the parliamentary elections for nearly two months in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed seven people and infected 295 others in the country. Arunachal Pradesh continued to maintain its 'coronavirus-free state' status as of 20 April, as the total samples collected in Arunachal Pradesh are 439 of which 405 tested negative, 0 tested positive and results of 34 are awaited, said Chief Minister Pema Khandu Forex traders said the rupee opened on a weak note as the US Dollar edged higher past the 100 level mark. The rupee opened weak at 76.79 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 76.83, down 30 paise over its last close. The rupee had settled at 76.53 against the US dollar on Monday. The Indian rupee depreciated by 30 paise to 76.83 against the US dollar in opening trade on Tuesday, tracking weak domestic equities and strengthening of the US dollar overseas. They hail from Udaipur town and rushed back home in the midst of the ongoing lockdown as their daughter's marriage is scheduled on 8 May. Chanchal Majumder along with his wife Ashima, who had gone to the southern metropolis for treatment in a private hospital there, reached home on Sunday evening, and they were sent in a quarantine centre, an official said. A family from Gomati district of Tripura, stranded in Chennai due to the ongoing lockdown, has travelled 3,213 km in an ambulance to return home amid the restrictions imposed to contain the coronavirus outbreak. The COVID-19 pandemic is a "time for thinking long-term. It will be a pity to let the crisis go to waste. The current crisis will only last till a vaccine becomes available. We must think beyond that," Panagariya told PTI. Panagariya, Professor of Economics at Columbia University and Director, Raj Center at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs, emphasised that the one thing the current crisis has revealed is the vulnerability of Indian workers to a shock that forces a near end of economic activity. Eminent economist Arvind Panagariya has said that India must now think long-term to create better paying formal sector jobs by seizing the opportunity presented by multinationals possibly moving out of China to diversify their operations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. No death was reported on Monday. Altogether 4,632 people have died of the disease, it said. The other seven new cases were domestically transmitted, the NHC said in a daily report, noting that six cases were reported in Heilongjiang Province bordering Russia and one in Guangdong Province. The overall confirmed cases in China have reached 82,758 by Monday. China's National Health Commission (NHC) on Tuesday said that 11 new confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported on Monday, of which four were imported. China plans to inject Chinese medics with coronavirus vaccines by year-end to protect them to deal with any emergency situation, while 11 new confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported in the country with no deaths due to the virus, health officials said. 472 more COVID-19 cases reported in Maharashtra till 10 am on Tuesday, taking total positive cases in the state to 4676, reports ANI. Nine more deaths have been reported, taking the total toll in the state to 232, said Public Health of Department, Government of Maharashtra. It reaffirms the fundamental role of the United Nations system in coordinating the global response to control and contain the spread of COVID-19 and in supporting the 193 UN member states, "and in this regard acknowledges the crucial leading role played by the World Health Organization." The Mexican-drafted resolution requests UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to work with the World Health Organization and recommend options to ensure timely and equitable access to testing, medical supplies, drugs and future coronavirus vaccines for all in need, especially in developing countries. The UN General Assembly has approved a resolution calling for global action to rapidly scale up development, manufacturing, and access to medicine, vaccines and medical equipment to confront the new coronavirus pandemic. As per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India's total number of coronavirus cases has spiked to 18,601, of which 14,759 patients are active cases and 3,252 cases have been recovered/ migrated and 590 deaths have been reported till now. 7 more COVID-19 cases have been reported from Nagpur district, said the district officials on Tuesday. "With 7 more people confirmed of coronavirus in Nagpur district today, the total number of cases here has reached 88," said District officials. Long queues of vehicles were seen at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border on Tuesday morning. The said order is being issued under the National Disaster Act 2005, he added. Traffic movement between Delhi-Ghaziabad is completely prohibited, only those rendering essential services and people holding valid passes are being allowed. The border between Delhi and Ghaziabad has been sealed as a measure to contain the spread of coronavirus. The decision was taken after six people who had come from Delhi tested positive for coronavirus, said Ajay Shankar Pandey, Ghaziabad District Magistrate (DM), in an order issued on 20 April. Delhi has reported a total of 2081 positive cases, out of these 78 cases were found on Monday. These 78 positive cases were found out of the 1397 samples tested yesterday. Out of all the patients admitted at hospitals, 26 are in ICU and 5 on the ventilator, said Satyendar Jain, Delhi Health Minister. He made this announcement during a video conference with the District Collectors and Muslim religious leaders on the measures being taken to contain COVID-19. He thanked the religious leaders for accepting his request to urge the community to offer prayers at homes during the holy month of Ramadan. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday announced that all mosques, temples, and churches in the state would be given Rs 5,000 assistance. Samples of both the victims came out positive for coronavirus after their death, she said. Survivors of the 1984 toxic gas tragedy are more vulnerable to the coronavirus infection and need special care, she said. A 70-year-old gas mishap survivor died on April 17 while another 60-year-old tragedy victim died on 14 April, Rachna Dhingra, of the NGO Bhopal Group for Information and Actionwhich is working for the gas mishap victims, told PTI. Two more Bhopal gas tragedy victims succumbed to coronavirus, taking the total number of such deaths in the Madhya Pradesh capital to seven, an official said on Tuesday. 35 new COVID-19 positive cases were reported in Andhra Pradesh sofar today. Three of these cases were reported in Ananthpur and Krishna each, nine in Guntur, six in Kadapa, 10 in Kurnool and four in West Godavari districts. The total positive cases in the state now is 757, including 22 deaths. He also said that Haryana was fast moving towards normalcy. With 56.7 percent recovery rate against 16.38 percent of all India rate of coronavirus cases Haryana is moving fast towards normalcy, he said. The Union Health Ministry had on Monday said that the rate at which the number of coronavirus cases in the country was doubling in the last one week has slowed to 7.5 days, as against 3.4 days before the nationwide lockdown was imposed. The rate at which the number of coronavirus cases in Haryana was doubling is 13.15 days as against 7.5 days of the national average, Health Minister Anil Vij said on Tuesday. The patient had breathing problems and was on ventilator support for 48 hours before he died, Aurobindo Hospital's Dr Vinod Bhandari said. The victim is survived by wife, who is a tehsildar (revenue officer) in neighbouring Dhar district, and two daughters. "After his health condition turned grim, he was rushed to the Indore-based private Aurobindo hospital 10 days ago. Despite all efforts by doctors, he could not be saved," Ujjain's Additional Superintendent of Police Rupesh Kumar Dwivedi said. In the latest case, the inspector, who was posted at a police station in Ujjain and also suffered from high blood pressure, was initially treated at a hospital there for four days after he contracted the disease. A police inspector died due to coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh's Indore district on Tuesday, an official said. Last week also, a police officer died in Indore after suffering from the disease. However, after the death of the sanitation worker's mother, initially, around 25 families were under self-isolation. Now there are around 100 odd families who are observing self-isolation as a preventive measure, the official said. "The mother used to live outside the President's Estate. After she was tested positive, all her relatives were quarantined and their test was done. The test report came negative," an official said. The relative of the sanitation worker, who is a resident of the estate that houses Rashtrapati Bhavan, has been admitted to a hospital here for treatment, they said. The move comes after the sanitation worker's mother died of COVID-19 infection a few days back at the BL Kapoor hospital in Delhi, the officials said. Over 100 families residing at the President's Estate are under self-isolation as a preventive measure after a sanitation worker's relative tested positive for coronavirus, officials said Tuesday. With the fresh case reported from the state capital, the total number of people afflicted with the dreaded virus in the state now stands at 12, he said. A 42-year-old woman, who is a family friend of the first COVID-19 patient in Meghalaya, has tested positive for novel coronavirus, raising the number of active cases to 11 in the state, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said. it is a question of national security as militancy still poses a serious threat in Jammu and Kashmir and cited a recent incident where hundreds of people gathered in the valley for a funeral of a militant killed by security forces. The top court was told that due to non-availability of 4G services, several aspects are affected including medical facilities and education services. The Centre opposed the plea by telling the apex court that The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked Centre and Jammu and Kashmir administration to file their responses by 27 April on a plea seeking restoration of 4G internet services in the Union territory in view of prevailing COVID-19 pandemic. Rajasthan on Tuesday stopped using rapid test kits for coronavirus after receiving invalid and incorrect results for a large number of samples. Health Minister Raghu Sharma said the kits were giving mere five percent correct or valid results and a report has been forwarded to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in this regard. According to Chief Development Officer Abhishek Goyal, the district reported 33 fresh cases in the last 24 hours. All the patients are admitted to Kripalu Institute in Munshiganj, he added. Till Monday, the district had only two coronavirus patients, both had attended the religious congregation in Delhi last month. The area where they lived was turned into a containment zone and people in their neighbourhood were quarantined, the officials said. The number of coronavirus cases in this district jumped from two to 35 with several people testing positive after coming in contact with participants at a Tablighi Jamaat congregation, officials said on Tuesday. While Bhadrak and Balasore have reported eight cases each, seven COVID-19 cases were detected in Jajpur. The total number of novel coronavirus cases from the three districts was just five two days ago, an official pointed out. The move comes after Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur districts reported a spurt in COVID-19 cases. Of the 79 COVID-19 cases detected in the state so far, these three districts have together reported 23 cases. As many as 17 new cases were reported in the last 48 hours, a senior official said. With three densely populated northern districts fast emerging as novel coronavirus hotspots, the Odisha government on Tuesday rushed Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) and experts to contain the spread of the highly contagious disease, officials said. The minister emphasized that "secularism and harmony" is not "political fashion" but it is "perfect passion". He cautioned the people about "bogus bashing brigades" involved in peddling fake news. The minister's remark came after Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) urged India to take "urgent steps" to protect the rights of its minority Muslim community and stop the incidents of "Islamophobia" in the country. "We are doing our work. Modi ji talks about the interest and well being of 130 crore people of India. Those who can't see this, it is their problem. All sections of the country including minorities are happy. Those who are trying to vitiate the atmosphere cannot be friends of Indian Muslims," he said. "India is heaven for minorities and Muslims. Their social, religious and economic rights are secured in India than any other country. If someone is saying this out of a prejudiced mindset then they must look at the ground reality of this country and accept it... Secularism and harmony is not political fashion but a passion," Naqvi said at a press conference here. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Tuesday said that India is heaven for minorities and Muslims and asserted that their social, religious and economic rights are secured in the country. Areas under the gram panchayats of Rashidpur, Rajbhalhat I, Rabhalhat II of Jangipara block have been also been declared containment zones, the order stated. The gram panchayats of Raghunathpur in Srerampore Uttarpara block, Kumirmora, Bhagwatipur, Haripur of Chanditala I block and Garalgacha, Barijhati of Chanditala II, Mundalika, Kotalpur and Dilakhas under the Hooghly (Rural) Police District have also been identified as containment areas, an order issued by the office of the district magistrate said. All wards of the municipalities of Uttarpara Kotrang, Dankuni, Srerampore, Rishra, Konnagar, Baidyabati, Champadani, Chandannagar, Bhadreshwar have been identified as COVID-19 containment zones, he said. Most parts of the Hooghly district in West Bengal were declared as COVID-19 containment zones by the state government, a senior official said on Tuesday. "This is the character of the Congress... What a strategy Rahul Ji," Patra tweeted, taking a dig at the former Congress president. The BJP has claimed that they are associated with the youth Congress. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said while lakhs of his party workers are busy bringing food to the needy during the nationwide lockdown, the "national office-bearers of the Congress are smuggling expensive liquor" in the national capital. According to the Delhi Police, Shravan Rao (34) and Manish (24) were arrested on Sunday night from near the Delhi-Gurgaon border with illicit liquor. The Indian Youth Congress president Srinivas BV dubbed the arrest a "conspiracy" which, he claimed, was aimed at defaming his organisation's relief work to help the poor during the ongoing lockdown. The BJP on Tuesday took a dig at the Congress after its youth wing functionaries were caught allegedly smuggling liquor, saying this has exposed the opposition party's "character". Asked in which hospital, they were being admitted, he said "a direction has been given to admit them at Omadurar (Government Medical College, Multi Super Specialty Hospital at Government Estate). To a question, the official said the test results of those associated with the television channel were being collated and indicated that the tally of total positives could be '27.' "Not less than 25 people have tested positive...(of the)...90 plus samples (for confirmatory RT-PCR test) taken," the official told PTI. The development comes days after two journalists, including one who worked with the TV channel, tested positive for the contagion in the city. At least 25 people, including journalists, working for a Tamil news television channel tested positive for coronavirus here on Tuesday, a health department official said. The bench, which heard the matter through video-conferencing, observed that government hospitals across the country are giving free treatment to coronavirus infected patients. "We think this case should close," it said. "Do not create public interest litigation," the bench, also comprising Justices SK Kaul and BR Gavai, said. "Government has to decide on who to give free treatment. We do not have any funds with us," a bench headed by Justice NV Ramana said. The Supreme Court Tuesday dismissed a plea seeking direction to the Centre, all states and Union territories to provide free of cost treatment for coronavirus infection till COVID-19 pandemic is contained, saying it is for the government to take a call on it. "He soon developed pneumonia with Type I respiratory failure and had to be put on ventilator support on 8 April," the hospital said in a statement on Monday. His condition deteriorated during the next few days and he soon required external oxygen to maintain saturation, hospital authorities said. The 49-year-old had tested positive for coronavirus on 4 April and the same day he was admitted to the dedicated COVID-19 facility in East Block of Max Hospital, Saket, with moderate symptoms and a history of fever and respiratory issues. A critical COVID-19 patient admitted to a private hospital here has shown signs of improvement and taken off ventilator support after he was administered plasma therapy, officials said on Tuesday. He said cities like Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivli, and Pune were mainly hit by the COVID-19 disease and called for observing "stricter" discipline amidst the lockdown. Maharashtra has reported 4666 COVID-19 cases, the highest in the country, till 20 April. Noting that Maharashtra has reported 223 deaths (out of 590 in the country) till Monday, the former Union minister said the number (relating to the state) is "shocking" and that people must think about containing the spread. Pawar also said though the coronavirus situation in Maharashtra is better when compared with Western countries, it is "worrying" vis-a-vis the rest of India. Coronavirus infection spreads when social distancing is not observed properly, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said on Tuesday following reports that relative of a sanitation worker, who is a resident of the President's Estate that houses Rashtrapati Bhavan, tested positive for the infection. Total COVID-19 cases (including those of 14 Italian nationals) stand at 252. Of these, 142 have been discharged in Haryana. The state has reported two deaths so far, reports ANI. Some of those measures, which the Singapore leader calls a circuit breaker, involve shutting schools and most workplaces temporarily. Those measures, which were implemented two weeks ago, were initially supposed to end on 4 May. Singapores Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Tuesday that partial lockdown measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus in the country will be extended by four weeks to 1 June, reports CNBC. "With Chief Minister Pema Khandu approving sorties by helicopters of Skyone and IAF to airlift rice given by the Centre under National Food Security Act, five kg free rice have been provided to each ration card holder besides other essential commodities, including medical equipment from Miao to Vijoynagar," Mossang told PTI over the telephone from Miao. IAF choppers are airlifting essential commodities and medical equipment to Vijoynagar circle, Arunachal Pradesh Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs minister Kamlung Mossang said on Monday. Vijoynagar, a remote circle in Changlang district without road connectivity is strategically located along the India-China-Myanmar tri-junction. It comprises of 16 villages and has a population of 4,438. The nearest town is Miao which is 157 km away and takes about six-days to reach by foot. The total number of people discharged from administrative quarantine so far is now 1,906. The Jammu and Kashmir government said that 40 more people have been discharged after completing their two-week quarantine in Srinagar. Karnataka minister Dr K Sudhakar said, "Plasma therapy holds great promise in treating COVID-19 patients and I am happy to inform that ICMR agreed to our request and has given permission for plasma treatment to Dr Vishal Rao, HCG Bangalore Institute of Oncology." An oncologist in Bengaluru has been given permission by the ICMR to use plasma therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in the state, the government said. The Rajasthan health department on Tuesday said that 83 new COVID-19 cases have been reported in the state, taking total number of positive cases in the state to 1,659 now. 25 deaths have been reported till date. "Till now, there are 1,294 positive cases of COVID-19 in the state including 1,134 active cases and 140 discharged," said Uttar Pradesh principal secretary (Medical and Health) Amit Mohan Prasad. The Maharashtra Police said that a total of 60,005 cases have been registered under Section 188 of IPC, since 22 March till 4 am on Tuesday, for violations of coronavirus lockdown norms. 411 accused have been arrested in cases of assault on policemen, the statement said. "A lot of variations, kits will be tested and validated by on-ground teams and we will give advisory in the next two days," he added. ICMR's R Gangakhedkhar on Tuesday said that states are advised not to use rapid testing kits for two days. Health ministry joint secretary Lav Aggarwal said, "We have issued detailed guidelines to all states that while we focus on COVID-19, all other services need to be provided, be it for dialysis, HIV/cancer treatments etc. At the same time required infection management prevention should be in place." Reports on Tuesday said that the West Bengal government is likely to allow central government teams to visit Kolkata to conduct review on alleged lockdown violations in the city, adding that the MHA wrote to the state government saying that the local administration is "not allowing the inter ministerial COVID-19 team to work". The Union health ministry said that the total number of COVID-19 positive cases rose to 18,985 in India. This includes 15,122 active cases, 3,260 cured/discharged/migrated people and 603 deaths. ICMR's R Gangakhedkhar on Tuesday said that 4,49,810 samples have been tested so far. 35,852 samples were tested on Monday, of which 29,776 samples were tested in 201 Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) network labs and remaining 6,076 samples were tested in 86 private labs, he said. The Karnataka health department said that 10 new coronavirus cases were reported in the state in the last 24 hours. The total number of cases are at 418, including 17 deaths and 129 recoveries "Rapid testing has begun in the state. Today 220 rapid tests conducted in Howrah and Kolkata. The results have been sent to the health department," said West Bengal chief secretary Rajiva Sinha The West Begal chief secretary said that 29 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the state in the last 24 hours. The total toll in the state is at 15. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that 19 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the state on Tuesday. Of these, 10 were reported in Kannur, four in Palakkad, three in Kasargod, one each in Malappuram and Kollam. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that 2,081 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the National Capital till Monday night. Of these, 431 have recovered and 47 have lost their lives due to the virus. Currently, there are 1,603 active cases. The Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday said that 92 areas have been identified and designated as red zones in the union territory, of which 14 are in Jammu and 78 are in Kashmir. These red zones will be under stricter restrictions on movement, surveillance and will have enhanced testing, the statement said. One death was also reported on Tuesday, taking the total toll in the state to 18. The Tamil Nadu government said that 76 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the state on Tuesday, taking total number of positive cases in the state to 1,596. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said, "In Pathanamthitta, a woman belonging to the first cluster of COVID-19 cases is still positive after 36 days. How the coronavirus behaves cannot be predicted. Even after repeat tests every alternative day, the patient is positive. Her condition is stable." The Mumbai fire brigade said that a level-II fire broken out at the Rippon Hotel in Mumbai's Nagpada area on Tuesday. The fire fighting operation on. The fire has been confined in the hotel's lodging room, which was being used as a quarantine centre for COVID-19 patients. Most of the patients rescued, search operation is on, the statement said. The West Bengal government said that as of Tuesday, there are 274 active COVID-19 cases and 15 deaths due to coronavirus in the state. With 150 patients discharged from hospitals on Tuesday, the number of cured patients stands at 722. The Maharashtra government said that 552 new COVID-19 cases and 19 deaths were reported in the state on Tuesday, taking total number of cases to 5,218 and toll to 251 in the state. The number of COVID-19 'containment zones' in Delhi were raised to 87 by the Delhi government on Tuesday. The Delhi health department said that 75 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the National Capital on Tuesday, taking the total number of positive cases to 2,156. No new COVID-19 case were reported in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, the state government said, adding that the total number of positive cases in the state stands at 46. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) was quoted by ANI as saying, "It is clarified that specific services/activities-caregivers of senior citizens residing with them, prepaid mobile recharge utilities, food processing units in urban areas have already been exempted from lockdown measures to fight COVID-19." The Embassy of India in Sourth Korea on Tuesday said that SD Biosensor (a South Korea-based company) started production from its Manesar, Haryana facility with a capacity of 5,00,000 rapid test kits per week. This will be further enhanced in the coming weeks to meet growing demand, the statement said. The Uttar Pradesh government said that with 137 new cases reported on Tuesday, the tally of COVID-19 cases in the state rose to 1,337. The toll stands at 21 in the state. India Today reported that no new case of COVID-19 was reported in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad on Tuesday. The Varsha bungalow in south Mumbai is currently unoccupied as Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray lives in his family residence in suburban Bandra. A woman police constable posted at `Varsha', the official residence of Maharashtra Chief Minister, tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday, PTI quotes a senior official as saying. Also, a male constable at the official residence of Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Devendra Fadnavis has tested positive, according to a civic official. The second COVID-19 patient in Manipur was discharged from the Regional Institute of Medical Science (RIMS) on Tuesday as he tested negative in consecutive tests, PTI quotes RIMS director Prof Ahanthem Santa Singh as saying. The patient was advised home quarantine, according to protocol, the RIMS director said . The secretary also announced that the government had pledged more than 40m to two British projects searching for a vaccine - the one by Oxford and the other led by the Imperial College. UK health secretary Matt Hancock announced that Oxford University researchers will begin human trials of a potential vaccine against the coronavirus on Thursday, reported BBC . According to the report, the vaccine uses a small section of the genetic code packaged into a harmless virus. Scientists hope that delivering this into the body will teach the immune system how to fight off the real disease, without ever needing to become infected with coronavirus.The plan is to test it on around 500 volunteers by mid-May and if that work proves successful, give it to thousands more volunteers, said the report. A total of 17,337 people in hospital with coronavirus have died in Britain, show new health ministry figures, an increase of 828 from the previous day, reports News18. The case count in Maharashtra's Nashik district rose to 108 on Tuesday. 10 cases were reported in Nashik city, four in Nashik rural and 94 in Malegaon. Indian Medical Association (IMA) & 7 other medical organizations have collectively written to West Bengal CM. Letter states, "Real-time, transparent data of #COVID19 in our state, including daily medical bulletins of all healthcare workers under treatment is highly solicited". pic.twitter.com/hTeRNmFz2U The Indian Medical Association (IMA) and seven other medical organisations have collectively written to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, stating that the state's real-time and transparent data of Covid-19, including daily medical bulletins of all healthcare workers under treatment is highly solicited. The Varsha bungalow in south Mumbai is currently unoccupied as Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray lives in his family residence in suburban Bandra. A woman police constable posted at `Varsha', the official residence of Maharashtra Chief Minister, tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday, PTI quotes a senior official as saying. Also, a male constable at the official residence of Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Devendra Fadnavis has tested positive, according to a civic official. A dozen more coronavirus cases surfaced in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, taking the total in the Union territory to 380, PTI quotes an official bulletin as saying.. Eleven of the fresh cases were reported in Kashmir and one in Jammu's Kathua, it said. The UT has recorded five fatalities due to the disease so far, four in Kashmir and one in Udhampur district of Jammu, while 81 patients have recovered, the bulletin stated. It added that 10 COVID-19 patients were discharged during the day. Tablighi Jamaat Chief Mohammad Saad appeals to Jamaat's workers and all Muslims who have been cured of COVID19 to donate blood plasma for those still infected and under treatment. pic.twitter.com/ztuvcNGbOY Tablighi Jamaat chief Mohammad Saad has written a letter to Jamaat workers and all Muslims who have been cured of COVID19, appealing to them to donate blood plasma for those still infected and under treatment. According to the 9pm update issued by ICMR, a total of 4,62,621 samples from 4,47,812 have been tested till date, while 26, 943 samples were reported on Tuesday. However, the number of individuals who have tested posted was not mentioned in the update. Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan will take the coronavirus test as a philanthropist he met last week tested positive for the disease, reported the Times of India. Faisal Edih, chairman of the Karachi-based Edhi Foundation and son of the the late Abdul Sattar Edhi, met the prime minister last week to donate to the PM's Relief Fund. He tested positive on Tuesday. Faisal Sultan, the prime minister's personal physician and COVID-19 advisor, told media that would the leader to be tested. "We will follow all protocols in place and make recommendations accordingly," reports quote him as saying. Coronavirus Outbreak Updates: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued an order to include additional agricultural and forestry items, shops of educational books for students, shops of electric fans and movement of Indian seafarers in to the list of permitted activities during the lockdown, which will continue till 3 May. UK health secretary Matt Hancock announced that Oxford University researchers will begin human trials of a potential vaccine against the coronavirus on Thursday, reported BBC. 56 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Telangana on Tuesday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 928. This includes 711 active cases, 194 who were cured/discharged and 23 deaths, according to the latest update provided by the state health department. The Maharashtra government on Tuesday revoked lockdown relaxations and exemptions in Mumbai and Pune regions because '"people are not behaving responsibly", the CMO was quoted as saying. "Rest of the parts of the state to continue to have partial exemptions," the statement added. The Maharashtra government said that 552 new COVID-19 cases and 19 deaths were reported in the state on Tuesday, taking total number of cases to 5,218 and toll to 251 in the state. With 150 patients discharged from hospitals on Tuesday, the number of cured patients stands at 722. The Mumbai fire brigade said that a level-II fire broken out at the Rippon Hotel in Mumbai's Nagpada area on Tuesday. The fire fighting operation on. The fire has been confined in the hotel's lodging room, which was being used as a quarantine centre for COVID-19 patients. Most of the patients rescued, search operation is on, the statement said. The Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday said that 92 areas have been identified and designated as red zones in the union territory, of which 14 are in Jammu and 78 are in Kashmir. These red zones will be under stricter restrictions on movement, surveillance and will have enhanced testing, the statement said. The Union health ministry said that the total number of COVID-19 positive cases rose to 18,985 in India. This includes 15,122 active cases, 3,260 cured/discharged/migrated people and 603 deaths. The Maharashtra Police said that a total of 60,005 cases have been registered under Section 188 of IPC, since 22 March till 4 am on Tuesday, for violations of coronavirus lockdown norms. 411 accused have been arrested in cases of assault on policemen, the statement said. An oncologist in Bengaluru has been given permission by the ICMR to use plasma therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in the state, the government said. Karnataka minister Dr K Sudhakar said, "Plasma therapy holds great promise in treating COVID-19 patients and I am happy to inform that ICMR agreed to our request and has given permission for plasma treatment to Dr Vishal Rao, HCG Bangalore Institute of Oncology." At least 25 people, including journalists, working for a Tamil news television channel tested positive for coronavirus here on Tuesday, a health department official said. To a question, the official said the test results of those associated with the television channel were being collated and indicated that the tally of total positives could be '27.' The number of coronavirus cases in Rae Bareli district jumped from two to 35 with several people testing positive after coming in contact with participants at a Tablighi Jamaat congregation, officials said on Tuesday. Rajasthan on Tuesday stopped using rapid test kits for coronavirus after receiving invalid and incorrect results for a large number of samples. Health Minister Raghu Sharma said the kits were giving mere five percent correct or valid results and a report has been forwarded to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in this regard. Over 100 families residing at the President's Estate are under self-isolation as a preventive measure after a sanitation worker's relative tested positive for coronavirus, officials said Tuesday. The relative of the sanitation worker, who is a resident of the estate that houses Rashtrapati Bhavan, has been admitted to a hospital here for treatment, they said. Trinamool Congress MP Derek OBrien asked why the Centre did not send IMCT teams to states like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh despite the high number of cases and hotspots there. The toll due to coronavirus rose to 77 in Gujarat as six more people succumbed to the disease, a health official said on Tuesday. About 127 new COVID-19 cases have been reported in the state, taking the tally to 2,066. This figure includes 131 recoveries and deaths so far. Delhi has reported a total of 2081 positive cases, out of these 78 cases were found on Monday. The border between Delhi and Ghaziabad has been sealed as a measure to contain the spread of coronavirus. 472 more COVID-19 cases reported in Maharashtra till 10 am on Tuesday, taking total positive cases in the state to 4,676, reports ANI. Nine more deaths have been reported, taking the total toll in the state to 232, said Public Health of Department, Government of Maharashtra. Three cops test positive for COVID-19 at Nabi Karim area in Paharganj, New Delhi. A total of 11 cops are COVID positive now in the central district. Nabi Karim area is one of the 84 containment zones in the National Capital. 25 hospital staff including 19 nurses tested positive for COVID-19 in Ruby Hall Clinic in Pune, said Bomi Bhote, Chief Executive Officer of Ruby Hall Clinic, reports ANI. Meanwhile, according to worldometer, about 1,70,456 people across the globe have died so far from the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak as of 21 April. The total number confirmed COVID-19 cases continue to rise steadily in Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, according to data from the Union Health Ministry. Rajasthan has so far reported 1,628 cases. Of these, 205 patients have recovered. The toll in the state stands at 25. Five more persons tested positive for novel coronavirus in Odisha on Tuesday, taking the total number of such cases to 79 in the state, a health department official said. There are now 18,601 total cases of the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in India. Active cases stand at 14,759 and recoveries at 3,251 and deaths at 590. US President Donald Trump said on Monday he will be signing an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said the rate of doubling of COVID-19 cases in the state has slowed down further to seven days from five days earlier. One coronavirus positive case found in Rashtrapati Bhavan, 125 families sent on home quarantine, reports ANI. 125 families advised to remain in self-isolation as mandated by the Health Ministrys guidelines as a precautionary measure. US crude oil jumped more than $20 per barrel on Tuesday but still traded below $0 after plunging into negative territory for the first time in history, dragged down by a supply glut and sagging demand for crude due to the coronavirus pandemic. The confirmed cases in India rose to 17,656 and the toll from the coronavirus outbreak rose to 559, while several states sought to contain the ballooning economic cost of the pandemic by easing some lockdown curbs. However, some states preferred to maintain strict restrictions, with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka joining Delhi in deciding against any relaxation till 3 May. Punjab, which had earlier ruled out any relaxation till 3 May, said some industrial activity may resume in areas other than those identified as high-risk 'containment zones'. No new cases in 59 districts in fortnight, says health ministry According to the Union health ministry, the number of coronavirus positive cases saw a sharp increase of 1,553 between Sunday and Monday, while there has been a recovery rate of about 15 percent. In the daily COVID-19 press briefing, health ministry Joint Secretary Law Agarwal said as many as 59 districts across 23 states and Union Territories have not reported a single case in the last 14 days and also asserted that the rate of the number of cases doubling has improved to 7.5 days, from 3.4 days before the lockdown. Last Friday, he had put the rate of doubling of cases at 6.2 days. Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Health Ministry officials said 80 percent patients were either asymptomatic or had only mild symptoms but were found to be positive after testing. They also said around 15 percent patients turn into severe cases, while 5 percent turn critical. Later, in its 5 pm update, the ministry said the COVID-19 death toll has risen to 559 and the number of cases has risen to 17,656 across the country. Across the country, 2,851 people have been discharged, it said. According to data published on its website, the highest number of cases have been reported in Maharashtra (4,203), followed by Delhi (2,003), Gujarat (1,851), Uttar Pradesh (1,176) and Madhya Pradesh (1,485). However, a PTI tally of figures reported by various states and Union Territories, as on 9.15 pm, showed 18,322 confirmed cases, 2,969 recoveries and 590 deaths. Maharashtra total reaches 4,666, 53 journalists test positive in Mumbai Based on reports coming from state governments, Maharashtra alone has reported 4,666 cases, while Delhi has also crossed 2,000. Gujarat has 1,939 cases, while Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan are above 1,500 each, closely followed by Madhya Pradesh with 1,414 cases. Fresh cases reported from various parts of the country included those of police personnel in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, of health workers at various places, journalists in Mumbai and even of prisoners in Madhya Pradesh's Indore. In Mumbai, where 3,032 cases have been recorded so far, 53 journalists have contracted the disease, reported Huffpost. Shiv Sena leader and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations health committee member Amey Ghole told the publication that samples of 167 Mumbai journalists had been collected for the test and 53 of these had tested positive. Significantly, most journalists who tested positive did not display any symptoms, according to ANI. Gujarat reported 201 new coronavirus positive cases, taking the number of the affected people in the state to 1939, a health official told PTI, adding that most cases were being reported from virus hotspots. The Tamil Nadu government said that 43 new coronavirus cases were reported in the state on Monday, taking the total number of cases to 1,520 in the state. Meanwhile, 46 COVID-19 patients were discharged on Monday. Some states ease restrictions, Centre rebukes Kerala, West Bengal Even as several states reported a rising number of cases, the first set of relaxations from the nationwide lockdown, which came into effect on 25 March, kicked in at select places across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Goa among other states. But despite the relaxations announced by state authorities, which are mostly limited to non-urban areas, industry executives said most companies have decided to wait for a complete exit from the lockdown as continuing restrictions on goods and people's movement make it difficult to resume stalled economic activities, which are estimated to have suffered a loss of Rs 7-8 lakh crores already. While attendance at government establishments also increased marginally, there have been no relaxations as such for the public road transport, railway passenger services and flights. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said restrictions on domestic and international flights will be lifted when the government is confident that spread of coronavirus has been controlled, and poses no danger to Indians. Goa eased some lockdown restrictions, in line with the central government's guidelines, as there are currently no active cases i the state after the recovery of its last patient on Sunday. However, leaders there warned against any hurry in declaring the state a 'green zone' one or free of the virus. Manipur chief minister Biren Singh said that the state has become COVID-19-free. "We have decided to relax coronavirus lockdown in rural areas but the lockdown will continue in Imphal till further orders. Shops of essential goods will open between 8 am and 2 pm in urban areas," he said. Manipur chief minister Biren Singh said the state has become COVID-19-free and announced that restrictions will be relaxed in rural areas of the state. "We have decided to relax coronavirus lockdown in rural areas but it will continue in Imphal till further orders. Shops of essential goods will open between 8 am and 2 pm in urban areas," he said. Kerala, where the doubling rate of cases is among the best in the country at 72.2 days, also announced a number of relaxations, but had to rescind some after facing the flak from the Centre. In a letter to the state government, the Union Home Ministry said Kerala's decision to open restaurants, allow bus travel in cities and open MSME industries in urban areas amounted to dilution of the lockdown guidelines and also a Supreme Court observation. Later in the day, the state government decided not to allow plying of buses in cities, opening of restaurants and pillion riding on two-wheelers. At the daily press briefing, Home Ministry Joint Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava said states have been told that some of them were issuing certain guidelines that amounted to "diluting" the lockdown leading to "severe repercussions to health" of the citizens. She said states and UTs can take stricter action than what is mentioned in the guidelines issued by the central government to enforce the nationwide lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but cannot dilute or weaken them. Separately, the home ministry also said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures risks the spread of the novel coronavirus further. The ministry said six inter-ministerial central teams will visit these identified areas in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan within the next three days to make on-the-spot assessment and recommend remedial measures in a report to the Centre. In identical orders issued to the four states on Sunday, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 front-line healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. The Centre also dispatched a team to asses the seriousness of the COVID-19 situation in West Bengal, which saw its highest ever spike of 54 cases. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Mod where she voiced her displeasure at the state government having been kept in dark about the visit , which she said violated established protocol. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka extend lockdown till 3 May Amid rising number of cases, Tamil Nadu government said prohibitory orders and other COVID-19 lockdown curbs will continue till May 3 without any relaxation, while the Karnataka Cabinet decided to promulgate an ordinance, giving it special powers to control the spread of COVID-19. These include provision for protection to front line health workers and making non-cooperation with the government a punishable offence. Karnataka has also decided to continue the COVID-19 lockdown measures till 3 May without any relaxation, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister JC Madhuswamy said. However, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and the COVID-19 Task Force have been authorised to meet in three or four days to review and take further decisions about any relaxation. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said some relaxation for economic activities has been given from Monday but it is limited, as he asked people not to violate lockdown norms and avoid going out of their homes. In Uttar Pradesh, no relaxation would be given in Lucknow, Agra and Firozabad. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said limited industrial activities have been allowed in certain areas of the state to restart the wheels of the economy, but this should not be seen as indication that the threat of coronavirus has receded in any way. There has been a rise of 835 cases of COVID-19 in Maharashtra in the last 36 hours, but we are relaxing the stringent norms of lockdown to restart the wheels of economy, he said. Assam's Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state "will not be able" to pay salaries of its employees for May if it does not get financial support from outside. Global toll crosses 1.66 lakh According to the the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource centre, 1,66,794 people have died due to the viral disease across the world. Italy has reported the highest number of deaths (23,660) while Spain recorded 20,852. However, the USA now has the most number of infections (7,61,991) while the global count has reached 2,432,092. However, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the worst is yet ahead of us, while alluding to the Spanish flu of 1918. Trust us. The worst is yet ahead of us, he said. Lets prevent this tragedy. Its a virus that many people still dont understand, news agency AP quoted him as saying. With inputs from agencies New Delhi, Apr 20 (UNI) India, on Monday, assured Maldives of continued support for minimising the health and economic impact arising due to COVID-19. In a telephonic conversation with Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Prime Minister Narendra Modi acknowledged the special challenges" that the pandemic poses for a tourism-dependent economy like the Maldives, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. 'Mr Modi assured the Maldivian President of continued Indian support for minimising the health and economic impact of covid-19,' it said, adding that both leaders 'agreed that their officials would remain in touch on issues arising out of the present health crisis, as well as other aspects of bilateral cooperation.' Suncor Energy (TSE:SU) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has bounced 33% in the last month alone, although it is still down 51% over the last quarter. But that will do little to salve the savage burn caused by the 53% share price decline, over the last year. Assuming no other changes, a sharply higher share price makes a stock less 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 deep value investors might steer clear when expectations of a company are too high. 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 ratio means that investors have a high expectation about future growth, while a low P/E ratio means they have low expectations about future growth. Check out our latest analysis for Suncor Energy Does Suncor Energy Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry? We can tell from its P/E ratio of 11.49 that there is some investor optimism about Suncor Energy. The image below shows that Suncor Energy has a higher P/E than the average (6.7) P/E for companies in the oil and gas industry. TSX:SU Price Estimation Relative to Market April 20th 2020 Its relatively high P/E ratio indicates that Suncor Energy 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 delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling. How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios Earnings growth rates have a big influence on P/E ratios. If earnings are growing quickly, then the 'E' in the equation will increase faster than it would otherwise. Therefore, even if you pay a high multiple of earnings now, that multiple will become lower in the future. And as that P/E ratio drops, the company will look cheap, unless its share price increases. Story continues Suncor Energy saw earnings per share decrease by 8.4% last year. But over the longer term (3 years), earnings per share have increased by 90%. A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank Don't forget that the P/E ratio considers market capitalization. In other words, it does not consider any debt or cash that the company may have on the balance sheet. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth. 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 Suncor Energy's Balance Sheet Tell Us? Suncor Energy's net debt equates to 40% of its market capitalization. While it's worth keeping this in mind, it isn't a worry. The Verdict On Suncor Energy's P/E Ratio Suncor Energy trades on a P/E ratio of 11.5, which is fairly close to the CA market average of 11.7. Given it has some debt, but didn't grow last year, the P/E indicates the market is expecting higher profits ahead for the business. What is very clear is that the market has become more optimistic about Suncor Energy over the last month, with the P/E ratio rising from 8.6 back then to 11.5 today. For those who prefer to invest with the flow of momentum, that might mean it's time to put the stock on a watchlist, or research it. But the contrarian may see it as a missed opportunity. 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. So this free visualization of the analyst consensus on future earnings could help you make the right decision about whether to buy, sell, or hold. But note: Suncor Energy 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 Express News Service BERHAMPUR: Microbiologists, who collect samples for testing, have been playing a significant role in the fight against COVID-19. One such health professional Pallabi Pati, posted at the district headquarters hospital (DHH) has been leading from the front. She has collected a whopping 693 samples till date. Pallabi, who resides alone in the city, reaches her workplace at 8 am, wears her personal protective equipment (PPE) and collects samples till 9 pm. The 30-year-old, after completing her Post Graduation in Microbiology, joined the DHH four years back. She has been working tirelessly and is all praise for the district administration for its preparedness to handle natural calamities and medical emergencies. I am inspired to serve the society under the guidance of experienced professionals. The pandemic has brought out the best in health care professionals. I am trained to do the work and I ensure it is done perfectly she said. Pallabi has also trained 16 laboratory technicians. Earlier all samples collected at the DHH were sent to Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar. But now they are being sent to the Microbiology department of MKCG Medical College and Hospital where COVID-19 tests were started on April 14. Pallabi recalls a day when she had to stay back at the DHH till 1 am to collect the sample of a man who had returned from Nizamuddin in New Delhi. She said initially, people were reluctant to give their swab samples for testing. But now the task has become easier as people have realised it is necessary to stay safe and contain the spread of the virus. As a health professional, it is a matter of relief that nobody from Ganjam district has yet tested positive for the virus, said Pallabi. ALBANY Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo doubled down Monday on a statewide reopening plan, even as upstate lawmakers and advocacy groups have ramped up pressure to ease restrictions on a regional basis. Cuomo has repeatedly rejected calls to start slowly reopening the economy upstate before easing restrictions in New York City and other hard-hit downstate areas. He has asserted that any decisions must be made for New York as a whole and in partnership with other nearby states, as enacting different rules across the state could encourage people to travel to reopened areas and congregate before they are safely able to do so. "It affects everyone else," Cuomo said. "That is the reality. Everything is closed unless we say otherwise." The same thought process applies to New York's partnership with six other northeast states, Cuomo said, offering examples of New Yorkers traveling to an open beach in Connecticut or a concert in New Jersey. Those events could be "magnets for people," he said. State Sen. George Amedore, R-Rotterdam, on Sunday joined a growing group of legislators urging a piecemeal approach, arguing that the threat of the coronavirus upstate where fewer cases have been confirmed and areas are not as dense is not as severe as it is in New York City and surrounding suburbs. Recent models from a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researcher have estimated that different regions of upstate New York will hit their coronavirus apex at different times, with the Capital Region peaking between May 9 and mid-June, depending on compliance with social distancing guidelines. Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Full coronavirus coverage Amedore said the upstate economy could slowly begin reopening as early as May 1, though Cuomo's "on PAUSE" executive order lasts at least through May 15. A small group of New Yorkers, frustrated with the stay-at-home order, plan to protest at the Capitol on Wednesday. Late last week, state Sen. George Borrello and Assemblyman Andy Goodell, both Republicans of Chautauqua County, put forth a plan to reopen businesses in different regions depending on several factors, including population density, infection rate, health care capacity and industry risk. The fiscally conservative group Unshackle Upstate also called on state leaders Monday to begin reopening the economy north of New York City. "While we understand the challenges of implementing a regional economic reboot, it is important for state officials to recognize the realities on the ground," Executive Director Michael Kracker said in a release. "State and local leaders have taken strong steps to stop the spread of the virus reducing the health impact. The economic impact, however, has taken an extraordinary toll on an already struggling upstate economy." Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. But Cuomo said the business and social restrictions will remain in place on a statewide basis as he and other governors discuss reopening strategies. The only exception, for now, could be allowing upstate hospitals to perform elective surgeries; the Cuomo administration will announce a plan on that issue Tuesday that will consider COVID-19 infections, hospital vacancy rates and future projections, the governor said. Government officials say New York is heading down the other side of the coronavirus "curve," as COVID-19 hospitalizations and intubations continued to decline on Sunday. About 16,000 New Yorkers were hospitalized with the disease each day this weekend, Cuomo said. Deaths also continued to decline, falling below 500 in a 24-hour period for the first time in several weeks. A total of 478 New Yorkers died from the virus on Sunday, including 455 in hospitals in 23 in nursing homes, bringing the state's cumulative death toll to 14,347. Cuomo said any reopening strategies will "set the bar higher" and include plans to update public programs, such as transportation, safety and housing initiatives. Downstate, officials will form a "Reimagine New York" task force including New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio and county executives from the surrounding areas. "When we reopen, we'll be better than we were before," Cuomo said. The state is also launching a pilot program in New York City to aid public housing residents. Through a partnership with the New York City Housing Authority, the state will bring health care services including COVID-19 diagnostic testing to individuals living in public housing, along with 500,000 cloth masks and 10,000 gallons of hand sanitizer. The governor also reiterated calls for funding from the federal government, saying the state could see 20 percent cuts to schools, local governments and hospitals if Congress does not approve additional money for states. He also called on the federal government to offer a 50 percent hazard pay bonus for those on the front lines of the pandemic, including health care workers, first responders and others. CLEVELAND, Ohio - Expect breezy conditions throughout the day as rain moves back into the area. The National Weather Service forecast for Tuesday calls for highs in the low 40s with winds of 15-20 mph in some areas. Morning showers will give way to cloudy skies and lows in the 20s overnight Extended forecast for Northeast Ohio Wednesday will see some sun during the day, followed by showers after 8 p.m. and highs of 50 during the day. Cleveland sunrise - 6:37 a.m. Cleveland sunset = 8:14 p.m. Lake Erie water temp: 43 degrees Ohio regional radar With the coronavirus disrupting campaigns across the state, plenty of candidates have decided to spend some extra time doing good instead of doing politics. The statewide stay-at-home order has put a stop to most traditional knock-on-doors campaigning, but volunteers can still be pointed toward campaign-led community service. Were all trying to figure out creative ways to connect with voters, who understandably arent too interested in hearing about politics right now, said Tim Rosales, a strategist for Republican Ted Howzes Central Valley congressional campaign. So were finding different ways to be relevant. For Howze, a Turlock veterinarian, thats meant putting together Operation Compassion, an effort to provide food and other supplies to seniors and disabled veterans. Rep. Josh Harder of Turlock (Stanislaus County), his Democratic opponent in the November election, is also involved in charity work, both as the districts congressman and as a candidate. In a tweet this month, Harder talked about doing a shift with the Salvation Army to deliver food to home-bound residents. This a scary time and we have lots of folks in our community with real needs, he tweeted. If youre healthy and able, consider volunteering. In Orange County, Republican Brian Maryott is another politician who found his campaign upended by the virus. While some of his staff is still working the phones and doing the other duties as part of his challenge to Rep. Mike Levin, D-San Juan Capistrano, Maryott gathered his volunteers and supporters to team up with a local charity to assemble care packages for 50 homeless families. It was a huge success, said Patrick Snow, Maryotts campaign manager. People want to help, and we want to be a leader for the district and set an example. We set aside some of our normal campaign schedule and replaced it with something important. Similar examples abound, with candidates and officeholders alike replacing some of their normal fundraising mailings with information about how to deal with the coronavirus, suggestions about where to get help and admonitions to stay safe. In an April 1 mailing, Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Democrat running for an open San Diego congressional seat, announced that he was temporarily suspending all campaign activities and re-purposing his effort to meet the urgent needs of our community as it battles the coronavirus. For Ammar and other politicians, working for the community during a time of crisis can be a higher level of campaigning. Campaigns are about showing how well lead, he said in an interview. We dont wait to provide leadership sometime down the road, but need to show it now. John Wildermuth is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jfwildermuth Good Morning, welcome to Information Nigerias Newspaper headlines for today, 20th April 2020. Here are the major headlines. Guest At Kyaris Burial Asked To Stay Away From Aso Rock Garba Garba Shehu, senior special assistant on media and publicity to the President Muhammadu Buhari, says there is nothing extraordinary about asking people who attended the burial of Abba Kyari to stay away from Aso Rock. Lockdown Killings In S/East, Call Your Men To Order Abaribe Tells IGP Enyinnaya Abaribe, Senate Minority Leader, has decried the alleged extrajudicial killings of innocent Nigerians in the South East by policemen enforcing the COVID-19 lockdown. Governor Umahi Imposes Dusk Till Dawn Curfew On Ebonyi State Governor of Ebonyi State David Umahi has imposed a curfew in the state between 7:00 am and 7:00 pm. The governor made this known during a state broadcast at the new government house, Abakaliki. Presidency Clarifies Late Abba Kyaris Age The presidency has come out to clarify the age of late Abba Kyari, the former chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, which has sparked public debate since his death. Osun State Under Total Lockdown The Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oyetola has reiterated that the 14 days stay at home order is a total lockdown in the State to avoid the outbreak or spread of the deadly COVID-19 in the state. Air Peace Donates Food Items To Indigent Families In Lagos Popular Nigerian airline, Air Peace has distributed food items to several indigent families in different areas in Lagos as palliatives for Nigerians in some parts of Lagos. Lockdown Extension: Create Feeding Centers MURIC Tells FG The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) says the Federal, state and local government authorities should immediately create feeding centres so as to cushion the effect of the extension of COVID-19 lockdown. Presidency Bans Public From Paying Condolence Visit To Abba Kyari The presidency has released a statement banning the general public from going to the resident of late Abba Kyari, the former chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, to pay the family a condolence visit. We Must Not Allow Kyaris Death To Be In Vain Tinubu A national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, says the country must not allow the death of Abba Kyari, President Muhammadu Buharis Chief of Staff be in vain. Abba Kyari: Aisha Buhari Breaks Silence Nigerian first lady, Aisha Buhari has finally reacted to the passing on of Abba Kyari, the former chief of staff(COS) to President Muhammadu Buhari. China is dismissing the possibility that the coronavirus pandemic originated in biosecurity laboratory and not from animal-to-human transmission in Wuhan as commonly believed. Yuan Zhiming, director of Wuhan National Biosafety Laboratory, told the English-language state broadcaster CGTN on Saturday, "There's no way" the virus spread from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, specifically its P4 laboratory, which handles dangerous viruses. He said suggestions that the coronavirus originated in the lab, popularized by conservative supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump, are "conspiracy theory." Dr. Deborah Birx, the response coordinator for the White House coronavirus task force, told CBS's "Face the Nation" show on Sunday, "I think we're still a long way" from figuring out the origins of the coronavirus outbreak. "It's going to take us a while to really map and trace this particular virus to get the scientific evidence of where this virus originated," she said. "We know it originated in China. We just don't know how and where." But she added, "I dont have an evidence that it was a laboratory accident. I also don't know precisely where it originated." "Right now, the general consensus is animal-to-human" transmission, she said. Campus News Seven UB students win NSF Graduate Research Fellowships By CHARLOTTE HSU Fellowships like the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship recognize our students achievements and will help them succeed in their education and beyond. Graham Hammill,, vice provost for academic affairs and dean of the Graduate School Seven UB students have been awarded the National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship. The highly sought-after award provides a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 and a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees paid to students institution. The fellowship provides recipients with the freedom to conduct the research of their choice, a valuable incentive that has helped make the program one of the most competitive and prestigious for U.S. students in the sciences. Inspired by life experiences that range from laboratory research to volunteering abroad, this years UB fellowship winners plan to pursue research in areas that range from designing low-cost water desalination systems to developing technologies for plasma propulsion engines in space vehicles. It is deeply gratifying to see so many students from UB win this prestigious award. It confirms what we already know about our students immense potential and talent, says Graham Hammill, vice provost for academic affairs and dean of the Graduate School. Fellowships like the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship recognize our students achievements and will help them succeed in their education and beyond. UB students are applying for these programs at higher rates and winning at higher rates, says Elizabeth Colucci, director of UBs Office of Fellowships and Scholarships. We had 35 students apply this fall, and we mentor many of those students. Even the ones who dont win find the experience rewarding. They learn how to write about themselves and to write about science things they will be doing for the rest of their careers. Chris Gnam, a first-year PhD student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, is among NSF fellowship winners who benefited from an applicants workshop run by Coluccis office. He says Colucci, faculty mentors and others helped him develop a higher-quality application, working with him through multiple revisions. Gnam grew up in a rural area of upstate New York, where wide-open night skies inspired his ambition to study aerospace engineering. You look out my back window, and you can see for 30 miles, he says. Because the sky is so clear out there, you dont have any lights. You can see the Milky Way and satellites and all of that extremely easily. Of this years seven awardees, Gnam and two others are members of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences' Nanosatellite Laboratory (Nanosat Lab), in which students work with the Air Force Research Laboratory, NASA and Moog Inc. to build satellites from concept to launch with guidance from John Crassidis, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Samuel P. Capen Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. The UB Nanosat students are all volunteers who put in a tremendous amount of effort to build, test and deliver real satellites, Crassidis says. The students typify the best-of-the-best in the country, as evidenced by three of them being given this highly prestigious award. Congratulations to our Nanosat team members, and to all the UB students who have earned the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship this year through their impressive achievements. UBs seven NSF Graduate Research Fellowship winners: Nicholas Bartelo, from Williamsville, New York, is a senior in the Department of Physics. He will pursue an MS in computational biology from Cornell University. His research interests involve using machine learning to make more reliable predictions about whether a drug will cause harmful side effects in patients. An Honors College student in mathematical physics, Bartelo is a two-time recipient of the UB physics departments Dr. Stanley T. Sekula Memorial Scholarship. He is a member of Sigma Pi Sigma, the national physics honor society. He has conducted research at UB and at Cambridge University on topics that connect data science with medicine and health. He has engaged in teaching activities that include tutoring university athletes in mathematics, and volunteering at an afterschool program for K-12 children in Buffalo. Jonathan Bessette, from Johnson City, New York, is a senior in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He will pursue a PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Bessettes research interests involve designing low-cost desalination systems that aid in the mitigation of global water shortages. Bessette, a UB Honors College student, was a recipient of the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Scholarship, which enabled him to spend a summer in Scotland studying art and technology. Separately, he traveled to India to study architecture, including water distribution systems, and led a trip to the Dominican Republic to teach English. He has conducted research in settings that include the Design of Open Engineering Systems Lab at UB, Corning Inc. and Stanford Geophysics. Bessettes diverse research and service experiences in Buffalo, the U.S. and abroad have inspired his interest in developing affordable technologies for underserved communities. Ian DesJardin, from Williamsville, New York, a senior in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, will pursue a PhD in aerospace engineering at the University of Maryland College Park. DesJardins research interests involve developing control and system identification schemes for plasma propulsion systems, which could be used to produce engines for space vehicles. DesJardin has conducted research in the UB Center for Computational Research, the Control and Automation Laboratory, and the Nanosat Lab, where he managed teams that designed, built and tested components of student-made satellites. He took part in an NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program at Texas A&M University, and later spent a summer working on the Orion space capsule as a contractor at NASAs Johnson Space Center. DesJardin has volunteered as a mentor to middle and high school students through a number of science programs, including the Science Olympiad and summer camps tied to the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Chris Gnam, from the Town of Penfield in Monroe County, New York, is a PhD student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Gnams research interests involve developing new techniques for spacecraft optical navigation. He earned a BS in aerospace engineering and a BA in mathematics from UB, where he conducted engineering research in labs including the Nanosat Lab, where he has also served as a mentor to undergraduate leaders. He was a Daniel Acker Scholar, a member of the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) and a Presidential Fellowship recipient at UB. Outside the university, Gnam served as a student trainee at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and interned for NASAs Goddard Spaceflight Center and Johnson Space Center. In addition, Gnam worked as an instructor in the University of Rochesters Science and Technology Entry Program and in UBs Educational Opportunity Program, both of which help students including many from disadvantaged or underrepresented groups advance their educational goals. In the personal essay he sent to the NSF as part of his fellowship application, Gnam wrote that, As a Hispanic male, I was able to connect with many of (the EOP students) on a personal level, allowing me to provide more individual guidance. Especially for a country like the United States that has such a diverse population, adequately reflecting that population in academia is important, Gnam says. Joshua Hazelnis, from Fallsburg, New York, is a senior in the Department of Chemistry and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. He will pursue a PhD in chemistry at the University of Michigan. Hazelnis research interests involve understanding molecular interactions that could improve the performance of redox flow batteries, a promising technology for storing energy produced by renewable sources such as wind and solar. Hazelnis, a Provost Scholarship recipient at UB, conducted research in UB chemistry and chemical engineering labs, with a focus on optimizing the performance of redox flow batteries. His presentation on this technology won first place in the 2019 Transforming Our Tomorrow competition at UB. Hazelnis chose to attend UB as an undergraduate in part because he wanted to be in a diverse environment. He hopes to pursue a career as a research professor, and has shared his passion for science with other young people by volunteering at a UB sustainability camp for middle school students, developing demos for science classrooms, and mentoring fellow UB undergraduates, including students he tutored while serving as a resident adviser. Grant Iraci, from Phelps, New York, is a PhD student in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. His research interests involve improving the design of programming languages used in embedded computers, found in technologies that range from coffee makers to medical devices. Iraci graduated summa cum laude with a BS in computer science and a BA in mathematics from UB, where he conducted engineering research in the Nanosat Lab and did hands-on work with students in Buffalo Public Schools science classes through the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Partnership led by UB. Iraci was a Presidential Fellowship and Presidential Scholarship recipient and Honors College student at UB. He spent a summer at the Institute for Software Research at Carnegie Mellon University, where he took part in an NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program. Iraci has also volunteered in STEM outreach programs through local libraries in the rural area where he grew up. Complaints continue to pour in from workers who are still waiting to get their unemployment benefits. They says calls to the states Labor Department go unanswered even though they repeatedly try to get through. The states Labor Department said Monday morning it has processed benefits for about half-a-million people, but as of last week, had more than 718,000 claims filed in the past month in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. We asked the agency to explain why its taking so long for some applicants to receive benefits, knowing that every case is different and some may be anything but simple. It said there are many reasons a worker who has applied for unemployment may not have received benefits yet. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Why is it taking so long? Volume is part of the challenge. Everyones claim cannot be processed at once, said Angela Delli-Santi, a spokeswoman for the department. We have received more than 150,000 claims per week for each of the past four weeks, when under 10,000 claims is `normal. The agency said last week it has upgraded its technology, gotten laptops delivered so more employees can process applications from home and expanded its call center capacity to manage the high demand. How long should it take? Claims that contain all required information and have no complications, such as multiple employers or conflicting start/end dates, are being processed in three weeks, same as before the pandemic, Delli-Santi said. Others are taking longer, she said. Workers should check their claims carefully before hitting submit, she said, noting that inverted Social Security numbers and work history errors will delay payment. Some workers are under the mistaken impression that once they file, they should receive money immediately, she said. We must follow federal and state law when issuing benefits. The process from application to benefits takes about three weeks if there are no errors or flags. Some who apply are ineligible because they dont meet the work or income requirements, she added. Why are some benefits taking longer? Independent contractors, freelancers, self-employed have not contributed to the unemployment system. Normally they would be ineligible for benefits. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, they may be eligible for federal benefits. These are separate and different from regular unemployment benefits and are funded by the federal government. Delli-Santi said no one in New Jersey has received the expanded federal benefits yet. The states are working with the federal government to set the parameters for the program. That should happen soon, she said. She said these workers should start by applying for unemployment. The claim will most likely be deemed ineligible, but thats okay. The denial for traditional benefits is a prerequisite for the special pandemic benefits. The amount they receive will be based on their income, she said. What about the extra $600 benefit? Everyone who is now receiving unemployment benefits in New Jersey is also receiving the $600 supplemental federal benefit as of last week, Delli-Santi said. Gig workers and freelancers and others who will be eligible for the expanded federal benefits will also receive the $600 weekly supplement through July. Those people will get the full $600 no matter their income level, she said. And, of course, we are working hard to serve all our customers as quickly as possible, she said. We continue to improve our systems and backdate claims so no one loses any benefits they are entitled to. 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. Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter. Police in Jacksonville, Florida, arrested Mario Matthew Gatti in connection with a Pennsylvania homicide. Jacksonville Beach Police On Sunday, police on Florida's Jacksonville Beach arrested a man wanted in connection with a murder in Pennsylvania. The beach was reopened to visitors on Saturday. According to a warrant, Mario Matthew Gatti was charged with shooting and killing Michael Coover Jr. in Arnold, Pennsylvania, on January 16. Some officials have criticized reopening beaches days after Florida hit its highest number of one-day deaths from COVID-19. "I'm concerned that if we're not careful that we could see another flare-up," Miami Mayor Francis Suarez told MSNBC. Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. One day after a Florida beach was reopened following a statewide coronavirus lockdown, police there arrested a fugitive wanted in conjunction with a homicide in Pennsylvania. Authorities say they discovered Mario Matthew Gatti, 30, loitering on the dunes at Jacksonville Beach on Sunday around 8:30 a.m. and learned of an arrest warrant charging him with criminal homicide. "This morning while officers patrolled the beach proper they captured a Fugitive from Justice, wanted in Arnold, Pennsylvania for Homicide. Good job!" the Jacksonville Beach Police Department tweeted Sunday shortly after noon. In an accompanying photo, Gatti is seen handcuffed wearing a sleeveless hoodie, T-shirt, and American flag shorts. 'On the run and considered to be armed and dangerous' Mario Matthew Gatti. Jacksonville Beach Police Department via AP According to the warrant, Gatti is accused of shooting and killing Michael Coover Jr. in Arnold, Pennsylvania, more than 850 miles from Jacksonville. Coover, 33, was found dead of multiple gunshot wounds in an apartment on January 16. At the time, Arnold Police Chief Eric Doutt described Gatti as "on the run and considered to be armed and dangerous," the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported. After Sunday's arrest, Gatti was charged with several additional criminal counts, including drug possession and giving false information to a law enforcement officer, ABC News reported. Story continues He was booked into the Duval County Jail in Jacksonville, according to First Coast News. The controversial decision to reopen Florida beaches Duval County is among a number of areas in the state that reopened over the weekend for activities like jogging, surfing, and fishing. Sunbathing, loitering, and large gatherings are still prohibited, police spokeswoman Sergeant Tonya Tator said, and police have been dispatched to ensure social distancing guidelines are being followed. "This can be the beginning of a pathway back to normal life," Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said in a statement on Saturday. "But please respect and follow the limitations For now, we need to stay the course and continue taking precautions." Visitors to Jacksonville Beach on April 19, 2020. Sam Greenwood/Getty Images Some experts have criticized the decision to reopen parks and beaches just days after the state experienced its highest number of COVID-19 deaths: On Tuesday, the Florida Department of Health reported 72 fatalities in 24 hours. "I think we're prematurely opening up the beaches," infectious disease specialist Mohammed Reza told WJXT in Jacksonville. "The way I can describe it is, I prescribe you a prescription for 10 days for a bacterial infection. You take that for two or three days and you're feeling better, 'Oh, I don't need to take it anymore.' That's exactly what we're doing at this point." "This is scary because that infection will get a lot worse and come back with a vengeance," Reza added. "We know this from other countries." Reza told the station that nearly 15% of Duval County residents have reported symptoms of COVID-19 from April 9 through April 16. "That's close to over 40,000 people who have started developing symptoms," he said. As of Monday, there were a total of 774 COVID-19 deaths in the state, and more than 26,000 confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University. "I'm concerned that if we're not careful that we could see another flare-up," Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who tested positive for the novel coronavirus, said on MSNBC on Saturday. "When they talk about the curve flattening and the curve descending, we still have not seen a major descension. What we're seeing is more of a plateau in the state of Florida," Suarez said. Beaches in Miami remain closed. Read the original article on Insider Batelco, a top telecom provider in Bahrain, has contributed BD3.5 million ($8.2 million) for There is Good in Us campaign launched by the Royal Humanitarian Foundation Batelco, a top telecom provider in Bahrain, has contributed BD3.5 million ($8.2 million) for There is Good in Us campaign launched by the Royal Humanitarian Foundation to support the national efforts under the leadership of HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister. The move also comes in response to the directives of HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, His Majestys Humanitarian Works and Youth Affairs representative, National Security Advisor and Royal Humanitarian Foundation (RHF) Board of Trustees Chairman. Batelco chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said: Im delighted to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister for their care of the people of Bahrain in these exceptional times and the directives of all authorities, which led to Bahrain being highly ranked for its early preparations by implementing precautionary and preventative measures and taking the necessary care to efficiently reduce the spread of the Coronavirus, Batelco is proud to continuously support the National Campaign against Coronavirus initiatives, and since Batelco is an integral part of the society, supporting the government and the Bahrain community is a priority and a national duty, especially during these extraordinary times. And therefore, we on the Board of Directors decided to support the There is Good in Us campaign with BD3.5 million to contribute to the efforts of the National Campaign to combat Coronavirus and to play our role in Team Bahrain, he added. As a national company, were committed to supporting the tremendous efforts of the National Campaign and give something back to the Kingdom of Bahrain, which gave us a lot over the years, he added. I would also like to pay tribute to the heroes of the country and commend the active role of all front-line staff in medical, security, educational and administration roles, plus employees in all state institutions, both from their place of work and from home and additionally, to all members of Bahrains society including fathers, mothers and children. he concluded. TradeArabia News Service (Natural News) Over 2,000 years ago, when Jewish religious leaders asked Jesus whether it was lawful to pay head tax to the Roman Caesar, at a time when the Jewish people felt especially weighed down by the Roman yoke, his reply astounded them. His response, as recorded at Mark 12:17, was to say, Pay back Caesars things to Caesar, but Gods things to God. (New World Translation.) His point? When the instructions of authorities do not conflict with those of God, they should be obeyed. Apparently, there are modern-day church leaders who are not following this direction, even though it comes from the one whom they claim as their ultimate leader. While many church and other religious leaders have been quick to comply with lockdown directives across the globe, there are some who have placed themselves and their followers outside of the law by refusing to stop meeting together for services. In fact, there are some churchgoers who have insisted that they would rather die from the COVID-19 virus than skip services during lockdown. But, is it necessary to place the lives of all these people in danger when many other religious groups have successfully harnessed technologies like Zoom to ensure that their congregants can continue to meet together safely? (Related: DC priest who shook 500 hands at communion has coronavirus.) If everybodys going to get it lets get on with life In an exclusive interview with TMZ, Louisiana pastor Tony Spell, leader of the Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, indicated that if members of his flock were to die from COVID-19, that would be acceptable, because they would have done so in the name of God and freedom. The U.S. Sun reported: When asked about the possibility of one of his parishioners dying from coronavirus, he told TMZ: The Bible teaches us to be absent from our bodies and be present with the lord. So like any pure religious persondeath looks to them like a welcome friend. True Christians do not mind dying, they fear living in fear. In fact, he went so far as to say that people who prefer tyranny over freedom do not deserve to have such freedom. He believes that Christians who die as a consequence of continuing to attend church services during the epidemic will have died as free people fighting for their convictions. He also feels that since medical experts have warned that everybodys going to get it, that people should just get on with life. (Related: Doomsday cult member exposes thousands of other end of days worshippers to coronavirus.) God dont like stupid After sending representatives to attend a Tuesday evening service, CBS reported: CBS Baton Rouge affiliate WAFB-TV reported the service was jammed with hundreds of parishioners. The station said there were also dozens of cars on hand to see if anyone stopped Spell from holding the service. Afterward, people began leaving the church, some chatting outside the front doors, and many appearing to not be adhering to social distancing recommendations to remain at least six feet apart. Hugs and handshakes were shared freely as people said their goodbyes and departed. And Pastor Spell feels that while utilizing a platform like Zoom might be safer for his congregants, in his opinion it does not work. If virtual meetings could be successful, he adds, then why does America spend billions and billions of dollars on churches? Perhaps it is this statement more than any other that gets to the real heart of the problem: Perhaps more than anything else, Pastor Spell fears that people will stop donating money to his church if they arent there in person to put money in the contribution box? Irrespective of his reasons, one protester summed it up best when he said, God dont like stupid. Stay informed, stay alive. Bookmark Pandemic.news. Sources for this article include: The-Sun.com CBSNews.com TMZ.com Burger chain Shake Shack which received $10 million in federal loans that was meant to help small businesses is to return all of the money back to the government so that it can be redistributed. The New York-based burger company had a revenue of $459 million last year and is even on the New York Stock Exchange - and about as far from a small business as one could imagine, which was whom the stimulus money was aimed at. The money was granted as part of the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP. Shake Shack to return $10million in loans it secured as part of stimulus package Randy Garutti, chief executive officer of Shake Shack, left, and Danny Meyer, its founder said that applying for the federal stimulus money was 'extremely confusing' The loan program set aside $349 billion in a stimulus law called the CARES Act and was designed to help small businesses keep their workers on the payroll but it appears more than 25% of the total pot went to fewer than 2% of the firms that got relief. They include a number of publicly traded companies such as Shake Shack, with thousands of employees and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual sales. The program has already run out of money but on Sunday night Shake Shack's founder, Danny Meyer said the company only applied for the loan because the law stipulated it was open to any restaurant location with no more than 500 employees. Globally, there are thought to be around 6,000 workers at Shake Shack's 189 U.S. restaurants. Shake Shack is not exactly a small business with 6,000 employees across 170 locations The company made more than $20million in profits in 2018 but have been hit by coronavirus 'The 'PPP' came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing,' the company wrote in a statement. The program offered to forgive the loans if furloughed and laid-off workers were rehired by June. The company said the loan was the 'best chance of keeping our teams working, off the unemployment line and hiring back our furloughed and laid off employees, would be to apply now and hope things would be clarified in time.' However, the company say that they have now been able to secure additional funding and have 'decided to immediately return the entire $10 million' so restaurants that 'need it most can get it now.' Potbelly has 474 and employed 6,000 people at the end of 2019. 'Every penny will be used to financially support the employees in our shops,' said Potbellys Chief People Officer Matt Revord 'We now know that the first phase of the PPP was underfunded, and many who need it most, haven't gotten any assistance,' Meyer wrote while urging Congress to ensure that 'all restaurants no matter their size have equal ability to get back on their feet and hire back their teams.' 'Our people would benefit from a $10 million PPP loan, but we're fortunate to now have access to capital that others do not,' he wrote. 'Until every restaurant that needs it has had the same opportunity to receive assistance, we're returning ours.' Ruth's Chris steakhouse which has around 5,000 employees in more than 100 locations and Potbelly Sandwich Shop which employs 6,000 workers across around 500 locations both received $10million handouts. Neither company has so far announced any intention of returning the cash. Taco Cabana, a fast food restaurant chain with more than 160 stores specializing in Mexican cuisine, with locations in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, has also not said whether they will forgo the handout. The loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration - totaling $342.3 billion - went to companies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories, and were spread across all 20 of the main industry sectors. Ruth's Chris have yet to comment on whether they will return the money meant for struggling businesses Congress directed the SBA to award $349 billion to struggling businesses with 500 or fewer workers as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus aid package that President Donald Trump signed into law on March 27. The Payroll Protection Program (PPP) was crafted to keep Americans off unemployment benefits, by giving small and mid-sized companies forgivable loans for keeping employees on the books. The SBA does not make the loans directly but instead backs loans made by participating financial firms. The three biggest state economies - California, Texas and New York - accounted for 23% of the loans, more than $82 billion. Meanwhile, businesses in a number of small, rural states that have avoided the brunt of the outbreak took home a disproportionate share of the pie. The business sector receiving the most money was construction, with 13% of the total. Taco Cabana which operate restaurants in Texas, New Mexica and Oklahoma run more than 160 locations. It has also not stipulated whether any of the bailout money will be returned Companies on the front line of the virus - in the accommodation and food services sector - received about 9% of the pot. At least 60 publicly traded firms have claimed a share of the total, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings. There is no prohibition in the CARES Act against money going to publicly listed firms. Some - including the holding companies for well known restaurant chains Shake Shack and Ruth's Chris Steak House - appear to have taken advantage of a provision in the CARES act that allows companies with more than 500 workers overall to get loans. The exemption allows for businesses in the accommodation and food services industry to participate so long as they do not exceed 500 employees per physical location. Shake Shack, Ruth's Chris, Potbelly Sandwiches and Texas Taco Cabana all borrowed $10 million under the program through JP Morgan Chase & Co, SEC filings show. Shake Shack has closed 63 of its 120 locations worldwide, and furloughed or laid off more than 1,000 employees after sales fell 28.5% in March, it said in a filing April 17. It was unclear how many of its 100 U.S. stores remain open, but filings showed that it employed 7,600 at the end of 2019. The company, which generated $595 million in sales and a $20 million net profit in 2019, said it will continue to pay all general managers and cover all employees' health insurance. Texas Taco Cabana operates 164 outlets from Houston to Albuquerque. Fiesta, which also runs a chain of chicken restaurants in Florida and posted $661 million in sales last year and a net loss of $84.4 million, employed 10,480 at the end of 2019. It did not immediately respond to an inquiry about the number of employees that would be covered under the loan. Potbelly had 474 shops in 32 states, including 48 franchisees, and employed 6,000 people at the end of 2019, filings showed. Sales last year totaled $410 million, though it posted a net loss of $24 million. 'Every penny will be used to financially support the employees in our shops,' said Potbellys Chief People Officer Matt Revord. Shares of airline companies tumbled up to 6 per cent on Monday after the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) barred the airlines to book tickets until further notice from the government. Weighed down by the development, shares of Interglobe Aviation, the parent of IndiGo, and SpiceJet fell over 6 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The directives came after some airlines, including IndiGo, SpiceJet, GoAir as well as state-owned Air India, opened bookings on select domestic routes from May 4. Reacting to the news, stock of Interglobe Aviation cracked 6.56 per cent to hit an intra-day low of Rs 999 against previous closing price of Rs 1069.15 on the BSE. The stock closed trade at Rs 1004.50 apiece, down 6.05 per cent, on the BSE. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), Interglobe Aviation share ended 5.93 per cent lower at Rs 1,004.95 apiece. In a similar trend, shares of low-cost carrier SpiceJet settled at Rs 47.70, down 1.85 per cent, on the BSE against previous day closing level of Rs 48.60. Earlier today, the stock opened higher at Rs 49.40 but slipped into negative terrain to hit an intra-day low of Rs 47.25. On the NSE, the stock ended at Rs 47.85, down 1.44 per cent. The DGCA on Sunday issued an order asking airlines to not book tickets beyond May 3, 2020, after civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri told them to do so only after the government takes a decision on restarting flight services. Also Read: Coronavirus lockdown: DGCA orders airlines to stop bookings till further notice "The Ministry of Civil Aviation clarifies that so far no decision has been taken to open domestic or international operations... Airlines are advised to open their bookings only after a decision in this regard has been taken by the government," Puri tweeted on Saturday. On Sunday, the DGCA issued a circular that said, "It has been brought to notice of all concerned that no decision to commence the operation of domestic/international flights from May 4 has been taken yet. In view of this, all airlines are hereby directed to refrain from booking tickets as described... The airlines may note that they shall be given sufficient notice and time for restarting of operations." The 21-day lockdown imposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring social distancing was extended until May 3 last week. The first phase of the lockdown was from March 25 to April 14. The second phase began on April 15 and would end on May 3. Also Read: HDFC Bank share gains most on Sensex, Nifty post Q4 earnings Sometimes people ask me what it takes to be a writer. The only things you have to do, I tell them, are read constantly; write for thousands of hours; and have the masochistic ability to absorb a great deal of rejection and isolation. As it turns out, these qualities have prepared me well to deal with life in the time of the coronavirus. The fact that I am almost enjoying this period of isolation except for bouts of paranoia about imminent death and rage at the incompetence of our nations leadership makes me sharply aware of my privilege. It is only through my social media feeds that I can see the devastation wreaked on people who have lost their jobs and are worried about paying the rent. Horror stories are surfacing from doctors and nurses, people afflicted with Covid-19, and those who have lost loved ones to the disease. Many of us are getting a glimpse of dystopia. Others are living it. If anything good emerges out of this period, it might be an awakening to the pre-existing conditions of our body politic. We were not as healthy as we thought we were. The biological virus afflicting individuals is also a social virus. Its symptoms inequality, callousness, selfishness and a profit motive that undervalues human life and overvalues commodities were for too long masked by the hearty good cheer of American exceptionalism, the ruddiness of someone a few steps away from a heart attack. Even if America as we know it survives the coronavirus, it can hardly emerge unscathed. If the illusion of invincibility is shredded for any patient who survives a near-fatal experience, then what might die after Covid-19 is the myth that we are the best country on earth, a belief common even among the poor, the marginal, the precariat, who must believe in their own Americanness if in nothing else. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke to Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, President of the Republic of Maldives, over the prevailing coronavirus situation in the island nation. In a telephonic conversation, the leaders talked about the health and economic challenges the coronavirus pandemic poses for the Maldives. The Prime Minister tweeted about his conversation with President Solih and said that India will stand by the Maldives in this challenging time. Spoke on phone with H.E. President @ibusolih about the COVID-19 pandemic, and the health and economic challenges it poses for the Maldives. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 20, 2020 The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together. India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time, the Prime Minister tweeted out. This comes a day after President of Kazakhstan, Qasym-Jomart Toqayev, thanked India and PM Modi for the donation of medical supplies to Kazakhstan to contain the coronavirus. Sincerely thank the Government of India and personally Prime Minister @NarendraModi for the donation of medical supplies to Kazakhstan to contain the coronavirus. This high mark of friendship & solidarity is made even at a time when India banned export of drugs abroad. @MEAIndia, Toqayev tweeted out. PM Modi replied in a tweet, India and Kazakhstan are strategic partners and cooperation and demonstration of solidarity during such challenging times further strengthens the bond of friendship between the two countries. India has reported 1553 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, the Union health ministry said on Monday morning. The ministry updated the coronavirus tally in the country to 17,265. The figure includes 14,175 active cases, 2547 people who have been cured or discharged and 543 fatalities. SALEM, Ore. Republicans in the Oregon Senate are pressuring Governor Kate Brown to lift coronavirus restrictions on rural Oregon counties, exemplified in a statement issued by Senate Republican Leader Herman Baertschiger, R-Grants Pass, on Monday. I have been in daily conversations with the Governor advocating for her to lift economic and lifestyle restrictions in rural Oregon and those areas of the state that havent been as impacted by COVID-19," Sen. Baertschiger. "The rural districts my caucus and I represent should be able to return to a new normal and get back to work. Photo courtesy Lisa McNee / Bureau of Land Management Photo courtesy Lisa McNee / Bureau of Land Management In early March, Republicans signaled support for the sort of measures that Governor Brown had implemented to slow the spread of COVID-19, with Sen. Baertschiger saying that leaders "are and should be taking measures that have never been taken before." Since then, and with the virus' spread demonstrably slowed by those measures, the pressure from businesses and workers struggling under the restrictions has been building. In Sen. Baertschiger's seat of Josephine County, a new positive case of COVID-19 has not been detected in more than a week. In particularly rural areas like Lake and Harney counties, there has yet to be a confirmed case though access to testing has also been limited. Last week Governor Brown introduced her "framework" for loosening coronavirus measures, which largely touched on state benchmarks that needed to be reached before any such steps would be taken. Though Brown said that she would be taking input from local leaders and workers from impacted industries, the plan did not touch on a county-by-county rollback of restrictions. Republican lawmakers have particularly taken umbrage with Brown's announcement of the Western States Pact, an agreement to work with leaders in California and Washington state to make decisions in consultation with one another. Especially in the counties along the Oregon and Washington border, cases have often straddled state lines. "Lets do this the Oregon way," said House Republican Leader Christine Drazan, R-Canby, in a statement last week. "We cannot give authority to other states, what works in Los Angeles will not work in Enterprise. As we see predictions of the worst recession since the Great Depression, it is essential that we prioritize the unique aspects of this state and our communities." "My caucus and I are having a difficult time understanding why communities in Oregon that have not been impacted by COVID-19 cant return to business sooner than others in the state," said Sen. Baertschiger. "Oregon should be addressing conditions on a local level before worrying about what other states are doing. In an interview with NewsWatch 12 on Monday, Baertschiger said that he would like to see restrictions lifted on most counties east of the Cascades, and possibly those in southern Oregon. "I'm really proud of Oregonians because what they have done has really bent the curve on this virus," said Baertschiger. "And I think washing your hands, keeping your distance, if you're sick you stay home all of those things all add up, and I think that's just how we're going to start living going forward. Does that mean we're going to walk around with masks? Probably not. But I think just being aware of how this disease is spread and doing things to mitigate that will go a long way." MOSCOWNearly as big as California but served by only a handful of mostly decrepit Soviet-era hospitals, the remote northern Russian region of Komi is a coronavirus petri dish for the horrors lying in wait for the worlds largest country. Amid growing evidence that the pathogen had already breached Komis feeble defences, local authorities moved vigorously last week to contain the crisis: Police summoned critics of the regional government to ask how they knew about an outbreak in a hospital at a time when officials in Komi were insisting nobody had been infected. Among those called in for questioning was Pavel Andreev, director of 7x7 Komi, an independent online journal that revealed last month how a surgeon in a Komi state hospital sick with COVID-19 had infected patients. Andreev said the police officer who led the interrogation mainly wanted to know about a comment the media director had posted online that said, It is impossible to trust the state, even in hospitals. Andreev, who has not been charged or even asked to take down his post, said the encounter was not so much menacing as baffling: The cat is already out of the bag, so why waste time and energy on this? he asked. The police intervention was carried out at the behest of Komis health minister, who was fired last week for his mishandling of the pandemic. It highlights one of Russias biggest obstacles as it struggles to control the spread of the virus in its vast and often ramshackle hinterland: a lumbering bureaucratic machine geared first and foremost toward protecting officials even after they lose their jobs, not safeguarding the public or its health. Unlike China which routinely arrests government critics or simply makes them disappear while scrubbing the internet of comments about the coronavirus that authorities do not like Russia is not a ruthlessly efficient police state but more a haphazard confederation of bureaucrats. Russias president, Vladimir Putin, well aware of his countrys dysfunctions, has spent much of the past week haranguing officials in far-flung regions, ordering them to get a grip. But faced with a pandemic that does not respond to the Kremlins go-to tools of propaganda and repression, Putin has mostly delegated handling of the coronavirus to these same regional leaders. In doing so, the Kremlin has only empowered instincts, deeply entrenched in many local governments, to try to cover up bad news. Putin, in an address to the nation to mark Orthodox Easter on Sunday, assured Russians, The situation is under total control. Shortly after he spoke from his country retreat, however, health authorities reported more than 6,000 new infections across Russia, by far the biggest one-day rise yet, bringing the total to nearly 43,000. More worrying, more than two-thirds of these new cases were outside Moscow, which had previously accounted for the bulk of new infections. Russias official death toll, clouded by faulty reporting but still doubling over the past week, stood Sunday at just 361, compared with more than 36,000 in the United States. After three days of claiming there had been no new coronavirus cases, Komi, with a population of under 1 million, on Tuesday reported 97 new infections. That made it Russias third most infected area after Moscow and St. Petersburg large cities with far more people and much better hospitals. Komi has since been overtaken by the Nizhny Novgorod region but has the highest per capita rate of infection after Moscow. Komis admission of a new surge of infections followed an angry warning Monday to regional leaders from Putin, who fired Komis governor last month after an earlier spike there in coronavirus cases. In what was widely interpreted as an oblique reference to Komi, Putin thundered against criminal negligence in the regions. I know what this is about, and this, in my view, is just the result of sloppiness, Putin said. In Komi, it is also the result of chronic official chicanery, a phenomenon that Putin has encouraged since he came to power 20 years ago by steadily muzzling independent voices and by turning state-controlled television and many other news outlets into echo chambers for loyal bureaucrats. Thanks to the work of independent news outlets like 7x7 and social media posts, it has been common knowledge in Komi for weeks that a hospital in Ezhva, an industrial area just outside the regional capital, became a hot zone in March after a surgeon there, Dr. Andrei Kern, kept working despite having symptoms of the virus. The doctor, a close relative of a senior law enforcement official, and his wife are thought to have contracted the virus from their daughter, who returned to Komi in early March after a trip in Europe. With scant access to tests, hospital staff members in Ezhva were asked to monitor their breathing for signs of illness and given X-rays, an inefficient but inexpensive way to detect COVID-19 in the lungs. Karina Tatarenko, an economist in Syktyvkar, the regional capital, said her 83-year-old grandmother, a diabetic, had been admitted to the Ezhva hospital in December for a leg amputation. Operated on successfully by the infected surgeon, the woman, Lidiya Tirtichi, survived the surgery and, recovering well, was eager to go home, Tatarenko said. But her ward was then suddenly sealed off without explanation, and she had to stay put. Tatarenko, barred from entering the hospital, tried in vain for more than a week to reach her grandmother and the surgeon by telephone to ask what was going on. In early April, she received a phone call from the hospital: Her grandmother was dead. The death certificate gave the cause of death as atherosclerosis in the limbs, a hardening of the arteries often associated with diabetes, and systemic inflammation of a non-infectious origin. When the granddaughter went to the morgue to collect the body, however, she was told that the real cause of death was pulmonary failure because of the coronavirus. It is impossible to know how many death certificates have been falsified across the country to hide the number of COVID-19 deaths. But there have been a number of confirmed cases of coronavirus fatalities being wrongly and apparently deliberately misclassified. Choking back tears as she spoke by telephone from Komi, Tatarenko said she planned to file a complaint for criminal negligence against the surgeon who had operated on and apparently infected her grandmother. The state-run hospital, she said, refused to tell me anything for days and then lied about why she died. Russian doctors, under immense pressure to keep working, have become a common vector for the spread of the coronavirus. Outbreaks in the southern city of Stavropol; the town of Ivanova, west of Moscow; and the Urals region city of Ufa have all been linked to infected doctors. A clinic in the Moscow district of Mitino shut down last week after the head doctor infected several patients. The head of Rospotrebnadzor, a health and consumer protection agency at the forefront of Russias fight against the pandemic, said Monday that medical institutions accounted for more than half of 74 infection hot spots so far identified across the country. Regional health officials in Komi belatedly acknowledged the outbreak in Ezhva. But instead of isolating the hospital, they began moving patients who showed no symptoms of COVID-19 to a bigger and better equipped hospital in the capital, Syktyvkar, and then on to other facilities, where they spread the disease. Within days, Komi suddenly had hundreds of coronavirus infections, nearly as many as St. Petersburg. Unable to hide the numbers, Komi officials finally owned up to having a serious problem and were promptly punished by the Kremlin. Putin replaced the regional governor. Komis health minister then quickly lost his job, too. The reshuffle vindicated local journalists and activists who had been struggling to sound the alarm. The new governor, an epidemiologist by training, has been more transparent, but the bureaucracy he inherited still leans toward obfuscation. A television channel controlled by regional authorities interviewed two Syktyvkar doctors who, despite looking exhausted and frightened, insisted they had everything they needed to keep the virus under control and keep doing the work we love. With his region called out publicly by Russias health minister Friday as one of several that had stumbled badly, Komis newly appointed governor, Vladimir Uyba, assured Putin during a teleconference that the rate of infection in his territory had slowed even as testing had increased. But he acknowledged that even with three local laboratories now handling tests, meaning that samples no longer had to be sent to Novosibirsk in Siberia for analysis, less than 1% of residents had so far been tested. The governor pleaded with the president for help in establishing a modern infectious diseases centre. Mathematical models prepared by two Russian institutes predict that the outbreak will reach its peak in Komi early in May, leaving as many as 50,000 people infected, a 100-fold increase over the current number of confirmed cases. Ernest Mazek, a Komi legal activist who has investigated the fiasco in Ezhva, said in a telephone interview that he did not think local officials were under any orders from Moscow to lie but simply feared telling the truth in a system that gives little incentive for honesty. Putin is not sitting in a bunker telling everyone to hide the truth, Mazek said. Local officials lie because this is what they have always done. It is a habit. Contacted by telephone, a doctor at Syktyvkars biggest hospital, who insisted he not be named because he feared losing his job, described the situation in Komi as a horror show because without widespread, reliable testing, nobody really knows how many people have been infected and where they are. Some patients who had contact with the infected doctor in Ezhva, he said, were simply released from the hospital and allowed to return to their homes around Komi. Others who still needed treatment for various ailments unrelated to the coronavirus were mostly moved to Syktyvkar without being tested for the virus. Andreev, the director of 7x7, said that even the police officer who questioned him seemed to accept that there was nothing to investigate. Once the machine starts moving, it is very hard to stop, Andreev said. Our bureaucracy has its own strange internal logic. Read more about: Airbus on Monday said it has signed a contract with French space agency CNES to develop and manufacture a thermal infrared instrument for the Trishna satellite, which will be used for monitoring climate. Trishna, which stands for thermal infrared imaging satellite for high resolution natural resource assessment, will be the latest in the joint Franco-Indian satellite fleet dedicated to climate monitoring and operational applications, said a press statement by Airbus. "The CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales) and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) are partnering on the development of an infrared observation system with high thermal resolution and high revisit capability including a satellite and associated ground segment," it noted. In the international partnership workshare, ISRO will provide the platform, the visible and short wave infrared instrument and will be the prime contractor for the satellite, while the CNES is co-responsible for the mission and will provide the thermal infrared instrument, to be developed by Airbus. Trishna's observations will enhance our understanding of the water cycle and improve management of the planet's water resources to better define the impacts of climate change, especially at local levels, the aircraft manufacturer said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Photo: Anthony G. Reyes/Flickr Missed the most recent top news in Denver? Read on for everything you need to know. How CU Denver plans to honor and celebrate graduating students Students will also be mailed their caps and gowns for photos with their families, as well as graduation programs and diploma covers to hold onto. Read the full story on 9NEWS. With days left of stay-at-home order, governor to lay out plan to reopen Gov. Jared Polis is expected to lay out a plan to reopen Colorado's economy today. Read the full story on CBS Denver. Denver artists create offbeat videos to capture this historic time Black Cube gallery hosted a pop-up video challenge where Denver artists submitted pieces capturing our new coronavirus reality. Read the full story on The Know . Man shot after argument at gathering in northeast Denver No arrest has been made in the incident, in which the victim suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, Denver police said. Read the full story on 9NEWS. Hundreds in Denver protest business closures over virus Several hundred people staged a peaceful protest outside Colorado's Capitol on Sunday against the state's stay-at-home order and its closures of thousands of non-essential businesses as ways to fight the spread of the coronavirus. Read the full story on Houston Chronicle. 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. YOKNEAM, Israel, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Saguna, the developer of advanced multi-access edge cloud (MEC) computing solution that transforms communication networks into powerful edge cloud computing platforms, announced today that Ido Gur has been appointed as the company's CEO. Ido, a skilled entrepreneur and angel investor with numerous successful exits over the years, has more than 20 years of extensive senior management experience in a range of industries, including telecommunications, mobile communications, marketing platforms, augmented reality and more. He has previously served as CEO of GASNGO, CEO and President of VocalTec, and EVP Global Sales & Marketing of ECI Telecom. Ido's appointment is well-timed, as Saguna is currently expanding its business to meet the significant increase in the global demand for edge computing. "I am delighted to join the Saguna team," said Ido. "Its highly dedicated employees and its committed share-holders made outstanding progress over the years building state-of-the art products. Saguna is uniquely positioned to address the opportunities in the growing edge cloud market." "Ido's experience and capabilities are best suited to take Saguna to the next level," said Lior Fite, Saguna founder and the outgoing CEO. "Ido's track record, depth of international experience, and commitment to our business success makes him the ideal leader." Lior will be working closely with Ido as VP of Marketing and Business Development to advance the company's business. About Saguna Saguna, the Multi-Access Edge Cloud Computing pioneer, helps communication companies monetize, optimize & accelerate their networks. Saguna's award winning Edge Cloud solutions accelerate the development, deployment, management and automation of edge-cloud platforms and edge applications. Fully compliant with the ETSI MEC standard and 3GPP 5G specifications, our MEC solutions provide ultra-reliable, low-latency communication (URLLC), setting the stage for 5G roll-out. Contact Lior Fite Communications, Saguna [email protected] SOURCE Saguna Related Links https://www.saguna.net/ Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers prepare to take a suspect into custody at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia, on April 19, 2020. (Tim Krochak/The Canadian Press via AP) Death Toll From Canadas Worst Mass Shooting Rises to 19 PORTAPIQUE, Nova ScotiaThe death toll from the worst mass shooting in Canadian history rose to 19, including a police officer and the shooter, Canadian police said on Monday, adding that they expect fatalities from the weekend killings to rise further. The gunman, who at one point masqueraded as a policeman and also painstakingly disguised his car to look like a police cruiser, shattered the peace of a rural community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia during a 12-hour rampage that started late on Saturday, authorities said on Sunday. A gunman claimed the lives of at least 18 people, among them a woman in uniform whose job it is to protect lives even if it endangers her own, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Monday. He was referring to veteran Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Constable Heidi Stevenson, who was killed in the shooting spree on Sunday. A memorial is set up across the street from the Debert School, where Lisa McCully, one of the victims of a mass shooting by Gabriel Wortman, taught grades 3 and 4, in Debert, Nova Scotia, Canada, on April 20, 2020. (John Morris/Reuters) It happened in small towns: Portapique, Truro, Milford and Enfield, places where people have deep roots, places where people know their neighbors and look out for one another, Trudeau said. Now these communities are in mourning and Canada is in mourning with them. The RCMP identified the gunman as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who worked as a denturist. Police are still searching for his motivation for the deadly rampage. A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) SUV pulls up to the end of Portapique Beach Road while an officer speaks with a man after the police finished their search for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, in Portapique, Nova Scotia, Canada on April 19, 2020. (John Morris/Reuters) In addition to the 19 victims, one RCMP officer was wounded and is now recovering at home, the police union said. The police said their investigations of the shootings would be ongoing for months. Were relatively confident weve identified all the crime scenes, Nova Scotia RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told reporters on Monday, but he added that fires set at some of those sites, mostly residences, makes the search for other victims difficult. We believe there may be victims still within the remains of those homes which burnt to the ground, Leather said. Wortman shot people in several locations in Nova Scotia, the RCMP told a briefing on Sunday. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp on Sunday there was no indication at that time that the killings were terrorism-related. Police also said there was no apparent link between Wortman and at least some of his victims. Social distancing to slow the CCP virus outbreak and the lack of community memorials adds heartbreak on top of other heartbreaks, Trudeau acknowledged. I know that everyone will be looking for ways to demonstrate their solidarity without putting further at risk communities, first responders, our health professionals and our seniors, he said. By John Morris Ten Indonesian nationals, who were caught hiding in a mosque here on return from Delhi's Tablighi Jamaat congregation last month, have been sent to jail after they completed the mandatory 14 days of quarantine Dhanbad: Ten Indonesian nationals, who were caught hiding in a mosque here on return from Delhi's Tablighi Jamaat congregation last month, have been sent to jail after they completed the mandatory 14 days of quarantine, the police said on Sunday. The police produced them in the court after they ended the isolation period and tested negative for COVID-19. They were charged with violation of the Foreign Visa Act and Disaster Management Act, 2005, said Surendra Singh, officer-in-charge Govindpur Police Station, Dhanbad. These Indonesians were caught hiding in a mosque on return from the national capital in Dhanbad's mosque in Govindpur. A total of 12 people were hiding in the mosque. While 10 of them are from Indonesia, the remaining two belong to Maharashtra. After registering an FIR against them, the police sent them to the quarantine center. In the same case, 11 foreign Muslims have been sent to jail from Jamshedpur on Saturday. Along with this, action has been taken on 21 foreigners who had come to give religious teachings. Delhi's Jamaat meet has emerged as a major hotspot in spreading the virus in different parts of the country. Detained immigrants have begun hunger strikes in recent weeks amid fears that the virus could sweep through packed detention facilities, and several courts have ordered the release of individual detainees. Cases surge in an Ohio prison, making it a top U.S. hot spot. A state prison in Ohio is now the largest reported source of virus infections in the United States, according to a New York Times database, continuing a trend of fast-moving outbreaks behind bars. Ohio officials said Sunday that at least 1,828 inmates almost three-quarters of the prison population had tested positive at the Marion Correctional Institution, a minimum- and medium-security prison about an hours drive north of Columbus. Thats more than the number of known cases at a meatpacking plant in South Dakota and an aircraft carrier docked in Guam. About one out of five confirmed virus cases in Ohio is now connected with the states prison system, according to statewide figures. The Department of Rehabilitation and Correction said that as of Sunday, at least 2,400 inmates in the system had tested positive, and seven had died of either confirmed or suspected Covid-19 infections. No deaths have been reported among the prisoners in Marion, but one staff member at the facility has died, and 103 employees have tested positive. The prison announced its first positive case, of an employee, on March 29. Despite warnings from health officials and attempts to release some inmates to avoid outbreaks, jails, prisons and detention centers have emerged as major coronavirus spreaders. As of Monday, four of the 10 largest-known sources of infection in the United States were correctional facilities, according to Times tracking data. And even those numbers are most likely a vast undercount, because some state and local agencies have not released information about cases behind bars, and others, including the federal Bureau of Prisons, are not testing everyone who falls ill. In contrast, the Ohio corrections department said it was testing aggressively inside prisons where the virus has been confirmed, extending tests even to prisoners who were not showing symptoms. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 14:35:55|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SUVA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Fiji reported its 18th confirmed case of COVID-19 after a 51-year-old woman tested positive for the virus on Monday. Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said in a televised announcement on Monday that the woman, who is from Ba, one of the provinces in the western side of Fiji's main island of Viti Levu, arrived in Fiji from the United States on March 22. She was cleared after a 14-day self quarantine on April 4, but later developed signs of COVID-19 and was subsequently tested again. Contact tracing continued for her since she had been in Fiji for a month. The 18th patient was a low risk transmitter who lived with three others and they had all tested negative but were under quarantine. Three patients, including a 27-year-old Fiji Airways flight attendant, had tested negative already for COVID-19, but they were still under isolation. The remaining patients were in a stable condition. The prime minister said that it was good news there were no deaths in the country so far and he hoped good hygiene practices would continue among Fijians. Bainimarama said the virus was out there and Fijians needed to be careful at all times even though not socializing with family and friends was hard. The nationwide curfew remains as nightclubs, gyms, cinemas and swimming pools stay closed. Public gatherings are not permitted. Physical distancing of two meters should be maintained at all times, he said, adding that schools in the island nation will not open until June 15. Fiji had reported its first confirmed case of the virus on March 19. The Fiji Airways flight attendant had overseas travel history to the United States and New Zealand. Enditem The Union Bank of India has informed the bank account holders of Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank that there has been no change in their account numbers, IFSC codes, MICR, bank branches after the merger. In an email addressed to account holders of these two banks, Union Bank of India also said that cash withdrawal from the ATMs of any of the three banks would not attract additional charges. All the terms and conditions with respect to the loans would continue to remain intact till the term of the given loan, it added. Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank were merged into Union Bank of India on April 1 as a part of consolidation exercise in the country's banking space. The government in August 2019 had announced the merger of 10 public sector lenders into four bigger and stronger banks. "Businesses and industry will benefit through increased lending capacity, with the regulatory ceiling for lending individual borrowers increasing by over Rs 1,500 crores to Rs 3,000 crores," the government had said. The ten public sector undertaking (PSU) banks were amalgamated into four banks from April 1. After merger, the number of public sector banks in India has currently come down to 12 from 27 in 2017. However, complete merger may take a little longer as the bank staff is working with limited strength amid the ongoing lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic. The new 12 public sector banks include six merged banks and six independent banks. State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, Indian Bank will be the six merged banks. And, Indian Overseas Bank, UCO Bank, Bank of Maharashtra and Punjab and Sind Bank, which have a strong regional focus, will remain independent entities. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown India Live Update: COVID-19 cases rise to 17,656; death toll reaches 559 Also read: Coronavirus lockdown: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs The indiatimes.com privacy policy has been updated to align with the new data regulations in European Union. Please review and accept these changes below to continue using the website. We use cookies to ensure the best experience for you on our website. The polarised debate over whether or not the federal government should bail out Virgin Australia is a fragment of a larger debate about the nature of capitalism that started in 2008 and has been given even sharper focus by the response of governments and central banks to the coronavirus pandemic. Before the global financial crisis, it was generally only major banks that, because of their central roles in financial systems, were deemed too big to be allowed to fail. The absence of risk-pricing enabled companies like Virgin to become highly-leveraged despite losing about $2 billion in less than a decade. Credit:AAP Even as global banking regulators significantly toughened capital and liquidity standards in the aftermath of the crisis, the key central banks have pursued policies that appear to have been designed to avoid broader corporate failures. The enormous floods of liquidity with which the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and Bank of Japan have swamped financial systems and markets since 2008 have kept afloat non-banks that should have sunk. Institutional investments in Indian real estate dropped 58 per cent in the January-March period to USD 712 million (around Rs Rs 5,454 crore) as inflows were negligible last month because of nationwide lockdown to control coronavirus disease, according to JLL India. The fund inflow stood at USD 1,704 million (around Rs 13,055 crore) in the year-ago period. The investment in March was USD 28 million. &nbp; Investments during FY 2019-20 dipped by 13 per cent to USD 4,261 million, a four-year low, from USD 4,870 million in the previous fiscal, mainly due to less inflow in the last quarter. Institutional investors include family offices, foreign banks' real estate investment desks, pension funds, private equity firms, real estate investors- cum-developers, sovereign wealth funds and foreign firms. "Restriction on movement of people due to complete lockdown and lack of clarity on impact of the pandemic on the economy resulted in the investment process grinding to a halt. As a result, March 2020 saw abysmally low investment levels of just USD 28 million," JLL said in the report. "The impact of COVID -19 virus has been unthinkable in its scope. Investors are expected to remain in a wait-and-watch mode, with caution and risk aversion is expected to drive the dominant behavior of institutional real estate investors over next few quarters," said Ramesh Nair, CEO and Country Head, JLL India. The year 2020 will be one of redemption, as the world recovers from one of its most challenging periods in recent history, he added. "The currently situation is extremely fluid and it is still too early to provide a detailed, quantitative assessment of the COVID-19 impact on economic activity, industries and the real estate market. However, office space, followed by warehousing, could witness return of investments, while the residential sector is likely to revive with government support and concessions," said Samantak Das, Executive Director and Head of Research, JLL India. Institutional investments in Indian real estate during January to March 2020 typically act as a curtain raiser for the year to follow and, hence, assume great significance, the report said. The consultant said that "events, both financial and otherwise, have rattled the investment momentum in India". The supersession of the Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL) board by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in November 2019, followed by Yes Bank in March 2020, created uncertainty among the investment community, it said. "Add to it the black swan event of the COVID-19 pandemic with its varied and unexpected side effects on economic growth, has left everybody scurrying for safety," the report said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A: Yes, but usually you must do this well before the tax bill comes due. Most communities send property owners assessments months before bills are issued and set a deadline for appeals. If it is too late to appeal the assessment used to calculate your current tax bill, you can plan to challenge the assessment for next year. Senior year has not gone as planned for high schoolers. And students across the state told Hearst Connecticut, in their own words, how coronavirus has affected their senior year. >> Click through the slideshow for heartfelt messages from Connecticut's high school seniors about missing friends, lost opportunities to excel in sports and the fear of not being able to walk down the aisle at graduation. It's the question that has baffled Married At First Sight fans for months: Why does Michael Goonan speak like a south London taxi driver despite being from Adelaide? Well, it turns out Michael isn't actually Australian - at least not by birth - hence why he occasionally slips into a foreign accent. He was instead born in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he spent much of his childhood. Mystery solved! Married At First Sight's Michael Goonan speaks with a slightly British accent because he spent the first eight years of his life in Edinburgh, Scotland The Goonan family migrated from Britain to Australia in the year 2000, when Michael was eight years old. He would have had a Scottish accent at the time, and it likely took several years for him to acquire an Aussie twang. His father, Michael Goonan Sr., used to manage nursing homes in the UK but started an online grocery store once he arrived in Australia. Expat: The Goonan family migrated from Britain to Australia in the year 2000, when Michael was eight years old. He would have had a Scottish accent at the time, and it likely took several years for him to acquire an Aussie twang. Pictured with his girlfriend, KC Osborne 'Me trying to figure out where Michael's south London accent suddenly came from': Michael's slightly 'cockney' accent was often ridiculed by Married At First Sight viewers on Twitter That's not very nice! Several fans said he sounded 'like a convict' or an English backpacker who had picked up the accent on a working holiday But this enterprise failed in the dot-com bubble and Michael Sr. later moved into the commercial ice business. He founded Adelaide Ice, which went on to become South Australia's largest ice manufacturing and packaging business. Michael Jr. is now the managing director of the company, which has offices in Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Patriarch: Michael's father, Michael Goonan Sr. (pictured), used to manage nursing homes in the UK, but started an online grocery store once he arrived in Australia. But this enterprise failed in the dot-com bubble and Michael Sr. later moved into the commercial ice business Family business: Michael Jr. is now the managing director of Adelaide Ice, South Australia's largest ice manufacturing and packaging business, which has offices in Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Pictured with his sister and late grandmother Michael's slightly 'cockney' accent was often ridiculed by Married At First Sight viewers on Twitter. One person tweeted during the series: 'Me trying to figure out where Michael's south London taxi driver accent suddenly came from.' Others said he sounded 'like a convict' or an English backpacker who had picked up the accent on a working holiday. A nude man was arrested by Beverly police Monday morning after he allegedly jumped on a womans car before assaulting her. Police received a phone call reporting a man with a gun in the area of Washington and Lovett streets in Beverly, Beverly police reported in a press release Monday afternoon. Upon arrival, the police found a male completely nude. A male witness informed the responding officers that the nude male had jumped on the hood of a womans car before assaulting her. The male witness drew his firearm on him and ordered him to stop assaulting the woman, police said. According to police, the nude male took off on foot as more police officers arrived. He then launched himself onto the windshield of a responding officers parked police vehicle. The male was then tased in order to be placed into custody. He was transported to Beverly Hospital where he is under evaluation. According to police, he will face numerous charges upon being discharged from the hospital. Related Content: 20.04.2020 LISTEN I'm beginning to believe what Melinda Gates said a couple of days ago that Africa should be expecting more dead bodies in the subsequent days. I think here we're today with that prophecy manifesting. This is when I begin to believe the real difference between a politician and a true leader. Politicians are so much concerned about winning the next general elections than saving lives of precious souls of the nation. Was our president not the same man who said " we know how to bring the economy back to life. What we don't know is how to bring the people back to life "? Now has he prioritised the economy over the people? Most of us have been crippled mentally by politics that we keep on giving them the yes after they've even taken us for granted. The news didn't come as a surprise to me because even at this critical moment we spent almost 1.4 million cedis on a rubbish virtual concert. To our leaders who are the manager's of the nation's coffers, where is the 655 million dollars that got missing at GNPC last year? A country with less than 30 million populace with more than 150 ministers, yet these heads can't provide us with any better solution, all they know is borrowing and spending it among themselves. To those whose work is to advise the President and in critical moments, including this Novel Covid-19, have done a great disservice to the state. With this, I can say the President of the Republic has been misled. Premature emission has set in. Things have fallen and will continue to fall apart if this is not redirected. The President got it right, back in the days, but not this time around. The hammer missed the nail, the lense was off....not a short on target. Now, the interest has geared towards the economy, and some political fortunes, leaving behind the lives they promised to protect and defend. Mother Ghana is not in a good position. They have signed the death warrants of the people they claimed to be protecting. You giving us some freebies doesn't mean we are now immune to the deadly disease. Some WHO protocols have been breached, and truly, principles and measures have been ignored. And I ask, is it because of the General Election...? Or to pave way for some political "apparatchiks", who don't have the nation at heart. To National Identification Authority and the Electoral commission, you better get things clear and stop that unproductive compilation. These books, can't bring back lives that the state will lose in the near future. We should be interested in how we can fight this deadly disease, than even the economy. The Economy, will one day survive...and what about the thousands of people who will lose their lives...? It's better for us to think now!! or forget it. None of us is safe in this time of extreme crisis. Remember your life is in your hands now, you can choose to go out or stay indoors. Remember, you're an asset to humanity. let's stay home and maintain a healthy lifestyle. # *Remember Covid 19 is real and it kills.* # *STAY SAFE* Adjei Boakye Benjamin. Powered by: Josh Script. Captains Connekt. Federal judge says Kansas churches can hold gatherings despite state order Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A federal judge has ruled that two churches in Kansas can hold worship services, temporarily blocking an executive order barring religious gatherings of more than 10 people. Pastor Stephen Ormord of First Baptist Church of Dodge City and Pastor Aaron Harris of Calvary Baptist Church of Junction City filed a complaint last week seeking an exemption from the order. U.S. District Court Judge John W. Broomes of the District of Kansas issued an order on Saturday in favor of the two churches, granting them temporary relief from the order. In his order, Broomes argued that the temporary restraining order was justified in part because the churches were likely to prevail on the claim that the shutdown of their services violated their religious freedom. while these executive orders begin with a broad prohibition against mass gatherings, they proceed to carve out broad exemptions for a host of secular activities, many of which bear similarities to the sort of personal contact that will occur during in-person religious services, wrote Broomes. Plaintiffs have made a substantial showing that development of the current restriction on religious activities shows religious activities were specifically targeted for more onerous restrictions than comparable secular activities. With the temporary restraining order in place, a later hearing will be held on the churches request for an injunction on Thursday morning. The week before Easter Sunday, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly issued an executive order expanding an earlier order banning gatherings of over 10 people to include religious services. In a statement defending the measure, Kelly explained that it was a difficult decision to reach, but considered it necessary to curb the spread of coronavirus. As Holy Week gets underway and with Kansas rapidly approaching its projected peak infection rate in the coming weeks the risk for a spike in COVID-19 cases through church gatherings is especially dangerous, said Kelly. Ive said repeatedly during this crisis that we will adjust to circumstances as they develop to make sure we do everything we can to protect Kansans. In response to the order, the state Legislative Coordinating Council overturned the measure, arguing that the expanded order raised First Amendment concerns. However, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled against the LCC action in a per curiam decision released the day before Easter, saying that the legislature lacked the authority to overturn the order. The LCC purported to revoke one executive order. We are asked to determine whether it acted within its lawful authority. We hold that it did not, ruled the court. As ultimately acknowledged by all counsel during oral arguments today, even if we accept House Concurrent Resolution 5025 as an otherwise valid exercise of legislative authority, its plain text did not authorize the LCC to revoke Executive Order 20-18. That acknowledgment ends this controversy. The state supreme court nevertheless explained in their ruling that the decision was not meant to address the religious liberty dimensions of this dispute. 4 reasons the coronavirus could convince you to start a 401(k) Starting a 401(k) in the middle of the coronavirus may seem counterintuitive or at least far down on the list of tasks to accomplish while youre sheltering in place. Thinking about retirement account funding is one of the smartest things a millennial or a member of Generation Z could do right now. Even if you are a latecomer to putting together a retirement fund, like Generation X members, its seldom too late. There is one notable exception. If you think youre going to lose your job because of the coronavirus' economic impact, or if youre struggling to pay your rent and living paycheck to paycheck, you may want to hold off contributing to your retirement savings until your situation improves. The smart play right now, if you feel like your earning power is on shaky ground, is to save your money and wait until times are a little more stable. A good rule of thumb is never to invest money that you may need in a few weeks. Projections suggest that millions of jobs will be lost by the summertime, which means that a lot of people could be struggling to pay their bills due to lost wages. Additionally, the stock market has taken a recent hit, which means that 401(k)s have lost money as of late. If you have a pretty good sense that your job will still be here once the coronavirus takes its leave, here are four compelling reasons to invest in a 401(k) right now. Reason 1: This isn't the end of Wall Street a man drinks a cup of coffee while looking at the stock market on his computer tablet There is a good reason many people are concerned about their retirement accounts right now. It is sobering to see numbers in a retirement account with a negative mark in front of them, especially if you have accumulated some wealth over a lifetime of work. The more money you have, the more money you stand to lose. As the threat of the pandemic eases, the economy will likely recover, and economists have predicted a faster recovery than the last recession. Thats because the economy going into the coronavirus crisis was more robust than it was going into the recession of 2008. During those days, the economy was weaker, with housing bubbles and subprime loans adding to the problem. Today, the economy is generally only sick because people are getting sick. Story continues As Robert Gauvreau, a certified public accountant and founder of Gauvreau & Associates, points out, Whenever there is a downturn in the economy, there presents a great opportunity for investment and to ride the economic wave back to the norm. In the history of the global stock markets, there has always been a recovery from a downturn. Chris Hughen agrees. He is an associate professor of finance at the University of Denver, Daniels College of Business. He says, After our last big bear market during the great recession, so many younger investors were highly risk-averse after they saw what happened to the stock market, which bottomed out back in March of 2009. People were so burned, and so many young investors didnt invest, and they missed out on one of the greatest bull markets ever in the stock market. A bear market is bad, signalled by declining stock market values. A bull market is good (which is why people say theyre bullish on a stock), in that stock market values are going up. Reason 2: There are deals to be found Two men in the kitchen talk about the stock market and investing in their 401(k) accounts While the current dip in the stock market may be worrisome for people who've been investing in their 401(k) for years, it could be an ideal time to start investing. Dont wait to invest until the stock market goes up again. Because the values of stocks are low right now, youre going to be able to buy more stocks with the money you apply every month into your 401(k). If the stock market was near its all-time high, your money would not go as far, because the stocks would be valued higher, so you would be able to buy less. Your money is going to go a lot further right now than it would if the market was high. While some people who invested when the stock market was high will be too stressed out to look at their 401(k) statements until the market improves, if you start when the market is low, you'll have an opportunity to watch your account balance go up. In the long run, the stock market has always recovered if you have had time to wait. Reason 3: Employer-matched money a couple discuss their financial future while sitting at a computer with serious expressions on their faces Not all employers will match contributions, but if you do work for a company that offers matching contributions and you dont invest in a 401(k), youre missing out on getting free money from your employer. Its important to save and invest. How you save and invest often isnt as important as the fact that youre doing it. If you work for an employer who matches the funds you put into a 401(k), you're doubling what you can put away for retirement. You may be able to go over the annual 401(k) maximum contribution limits that the Internal Revenue Service has set up. The most you can contribute to your 401(k) in 2020 is $19,500 (or if you're 50 or older, $26,000). But, again, employer matches legally take you well over those limits. A traditional IRA (where the tax benefits are upfront) or a Roth IRA (tax benefits come later) are also worth investing in now because, again, they're connected to the stock market. However, your holdings may also include other investments like corporate bonds or money market funds. And if you're putting money into a 401(k) or an IRA or mutual funds right now, your retirement fund will be purchasing far more shares than it would if the market was up. Reason 4: More time to research and sign up for a 401(k) a may who is exercising outside and practicing social distancing is making a phone call to his employer to ask about his 401k options If you're working in the health care field or another sector deemed as "essential" during the coronavirus outbreak, it's understood that you're moving at breakneck speed and don't have time for a decent night's sleep, let alone pondering your retirement. But if you're social distancing, sheltering in place, quarantining or self-isolating, and if you've meant to start a retirement account, this is one of those tasks for which your future self will thank you. If your employer has an online portal that has information on topics such as benefits and 401(k) contributions, start there. You should be able to find information on how to sign up for your 401(k). If youre directed to your companys human resource department, try to contact someone there. Even though your office may be closed, if employees from your company are working from home, you may be able to talk to your HR representative and find out how to get started with your retirement account. If you're a job-secure freelancer, visit the websites of financial services companies such as Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, Fidelity Investments, Blooom and other companies handling personal retirement accounts to learn more about retirement accounts for self-employed workers. You should be able to set up a retirement account online, without having to meet in-person with a financial advisor. Considerations for opening your 401(k) a woman who is staying home because of the coronavirus does yoga and is content because she signed up for her 401k Now that youre ready to start up your 401(k), there are a few things to consider and know about before you do. You may need to wait If you haven't been on the job for a full year, you may have to wait until your first anniversary with the company to sign up. You may have to wait for your company's open enrollment period, which generally takes place for a month or two at the end of the year. However, the company you work for may allow you to open a 401(k) or change your contributions right now, depending on their policies. If you're self-employed, you can open your retirement account anytime. There are fees involved There are fees associated with all 401(k)s. It's still worth opening one, but you'll want to pay attention to these fees and make sure you understand how they are applied. They are usually fair and are used to administer your account, so fees aren't a bad thing in most cases. Decide how much money you're comfortable investing While some experts may say to aim to put 10% to 20% of your paycheck in your 401(k), most people dont start out that high. You may want to aim for 5% or even less. If your employer will match your contributions, it's usually a good idea to save at least the minimum amount that they will match. Start with an amount thats manageable to you. You can always increase the amount after a few months once your budget adjusts to having that amount taken out of your paycheck before you ever see it. Put your 401(k) on autopilot Once you understand how 401(k)s work, starting yours should be straightforward. Designate the amount of money you want to put into it, and set it up so that it comes out of your paycheck (or bank account, if youre self-employed), automatically. Money should go into the account via automatic withdrawal so the money routinely goes into your retirement account without you having to think about it. Putting your 401(k) on autopilot and forgetting about it is very important, says Ryan Decker, an assistant professor of economics at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. One should not attempt to time the market and instead commit to contributing a certain amount every month, or every week, Decker says. No one knows whats going to happen today, or tomorrow, in the market, so why time it? Just continually invest. Time in the market is more important than timing the market. Take charge of your finances during a time of uncertainty "The best time to invest for the long-term is yesterday," Decker says. Starting your 401(k), IRA or another retirement account as early as possible, even during these uncertain times, is a meaningful, concrete action you can do for yourself and your family. If you have a secure job and available funds, planning and taking action for your retirement during the coronavirus can help give you a sense of control, continuity and hope for the future. Geoff Williams has been a freelance journalist since the 1990s, mostly specializing in personal finance and small business issues. He writes for MoneyGeek and other publications. Value investors Tanvi Mehta, Ramaswamy Ranganathan and Sudarshan Rajan attempt to distill the huge impact of audience coagulation, leading to significant competitive advantages for Facebook. What is Facebook? A social media platform to connect, a media company, an advertising company. To answer the above, FB is a combination, majority of its revenues are from advertising, so there is importance of reach with its no of users globally. Advertisers seek reach and FB delivers that with great effect. FB is somewhat a media company, which generates its revenue from advertising by providing a huge platform to advertisers, but it also differs from traditional media companies, as all the content on FB is user based, and most important, free. This is why John Malone once said that Facebook has the best business model ever created. Let us try to distill the huge impact of audience coagulation, leading to significant competitive advantages for the firm. The concept of competitive advantage lies at the core of business strategy; hence we would start the basic discussion on how has FB grown on its revenues and what are the margins it is generating. Margins and Market share or either one is great indicator of competitive advantages being present depending on the structure of the industry. This kind of users globally is a dream for any firm, this is huge moat and with network effects. The firm derives 95-98% of its revenue from advertising and the sheer size of the network acts like a magnet to get people and businesses to join, and from there on law of gravity takes over and coagulates the consumer to stay. This becomes extremely hard to drop the place, especially where you have your friends and family as part of it, psychologically it becomes a task to leave. Juxtapose that for a business, the same reason, it is impossible for a business to leave where you have 2.89 billion consumers. The strength of the network compounds exponentially as it grows and with such a huge base. FB has been growing its user base consistently since 2015, as compounding now even of a small percentage would strengthen the MOAT to a fortress. The critical thing to measure is what this has done to the firm. The vital check points are Profitability and Market share. The market share part is a no-brainer; no media platform has grown itself into a such a strong consumer captivity machine. The next source is to figure out the Profitability aspect to be consistent with the audience agglomeration. The Margins of FB have been stellar, to say the least. Gross margins of 80% on an average are a significant indicator of MOAT. The Sales of FB itself has compounded magically from 17.9 billion to 70 billion in 2019. The Net Margins and Operating Margins have been spectacular, to say the least. The drop in Net income for 2019 is largely due to the $5 billion fine imposed on FB. FB has been increasing its R&D spends significantly. Just to give you a factual data, R&D spends in 2017 was $7.7 billion, the same figure in 2019 was $13.6 billion. When analysis of Market share and profitability are consistent with one another as is the case with FB, the case of competitive advantage is robust. It is a criminal understatement to make that FB has been profitable. Facebook has been delivering a robust free cash flow in regards to its PAT and its return on equity has been robust to say the least. The Free cash flow has consistently been above PAT over a period of 5 years barring 2018. Cumulatively if we match PAT and Free Cash Flow, Free cash flow has been 2 Billion above PAT. FB has been debt free and most of its capital represents equity. The company has huge potential from Instagram (the growth engine has just started) WhatsApp, which has close to 1 billion consumers, is yet to be monetized. Over a 100 billion messages are sent across the companys services and this remains main tool for communication in many countries. We strongly believe that with such a huge market for digital advertising, migration which is happening and the way consumer behaviour is changing, FB compounds more cash than it can use; ($54 billion) is the cash on its books for 2019 ending. We strongly estimate that with huge opportunity for digital, operating leverage and free cash generation, FB is a Moat Machine. As the holy month of Ramadan this year falls between late April and late May amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged people to keep maintaining physical distancing. Practice physical distancing by strictly maintaining a distance of at least 1 metre (3 feet) between people at all times, the WHO said in its interim guidance titled Safe Ramadan practices in the context of the Covid-19. Use culturally and religiously sanctioned greetings that avoid physical contact, such as waving, nodding, or placing the hand over the heart, said the document. The transmission of Covid-19 is facilitated by close contact between people, as the virus is spread through respiratory droplets and contact with contaminated surfaces. To mitigate the public health impact, several countries have implemented physical distancing measures aimed at interrupting transmission of the virus by reducing interaction between people. These measures are fundamental control mechanisms to control the spread of infectious diseases, particularly respiratory infections, associated with large gatherings of people, said WHO. Physical distancing measures, including the closing of mosques, monitoring of public gatherings and other restrictions on movement, will have direct implications for the social and religious gatherings central to Ramadan, said the document that highlights public health advice for social and religious practices and gatherings during Ramadan that can be applied across different national contexts. Saying that cancelling social and religious gatherings should be seriously considered, WHO recommended that any decision to restrict, modify, postpone, cancel, or proceed with holding a mass gathering should be based on a standardised risk assessment exercise. While cancelling social and religious gatherings, where possible, virtual alternatives using platforms such as television, radio, digital and social media can be used instead, the WHO said. If Ramadan gatherings are allowed to proceed, measures to mitigate the risk of Covid-19 transmission should be implemented, it added. National health authorities should be considered the primary source of information and advice regarding physical distancing and other measures related to Covid-19 in the context of Ramadan. Compliance with these established measures should be assured, said the guidance document. In India, Islamic scholars from all schools of thought on Thursday appealed to Muslims to offer prayers during the holy month of Ramadan at their homes in view of the nationwide lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus. Ulemas and Muftis, in their joint appeal, urged the community to offer Taraveeh prayers at their homes. They also advised members of the community to eat Sahr (pre-dawn meals for fast) and Iftar (breaking the fast) at their homes. They were urged not to go to the mosques for Iftar. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. ) Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter ALMATY, April 20 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan's biggest oil producer, Tengizchevroil (TCO), said on Monday its production operations "continue as normal" after a fresh case of the novel coronavirus was confirmed among the workers of one of its partner companies. TCO said last week it was temporarily reducing work on its $45 billion expansion project and suspending construction activities related to its base business to protect employees after the first coronavirus cases were confirmed among workers of its contractors. On Sunday, TCO said in a statement, another person employed by its partner company tested positive, prompting further tests among their contacts and the disinfection of impacted facilities. According to the government of the Atyrau province where TCO operates, some 500 people employed by TCO's contractors refused to go to work on Monday for fear of getting infected after the fresh case was confirmed. However, the government said, the workers then agreed to return to work by Wednesday after the authorities promised to test them all for the disease. TCO, owned by Chevron, ExxonMobil, Russia's LUKOIL and Kazakhstan's KazMunayGaz, operates the giant Tengiz field in western Kazakhstan and accounts for a third of the country's total crude output. The Central Asian nation has confirmed 1,757 coronavirus cases and reported 17 deaths. The Kazakh government has locked down all provinces and major cities until the end of April. (Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; editing by Barbara Lewis) A n NHS dentist is spending her time away from the frontline co-ordinating food donation packages for fellow heathcare staff during the coronavirus pandemic. Dr Harshini Pindiola, 28, works at Guys and St Thomass Hospital in central London, where she undertakes oral surgery and works on acute emergencies. However, instead of relaxing in front of the TV after a hard day at work, she transports dinners and snacks to other doctors, nurses, paramedics and staff working at hospitals to make life a little easier. Many NHS staff have been struggling to buy their food shopping, due to the limited hours they're able to access stores, depleted food supplies or simply feeling to wiped out by the day's work. Speaking to Metro.co.uk, Dr Harshini said : "People have been working heavy night shifts and it seemed like they couldnt really get access to food or go to the supermarket. "It all started with me taking fresh fruit and meals to the hospital for them to have." As soon as friends and family became aware of Dr Harshini's efforts, the initiative grew and food donations are now supplied to five hospitals. The NHS dentist even managed to distribute easter eggs to key workers / Dr Harshini Pindiola She said: "We try and get there when the day and night teams switch so the day teams can have it for dinner and the night teams can have it for breakfast. "I feel weve had a really positive impact both in my hospital and others." It all began a month ago when she drove to hospitals after work with food others had donated and left at her home. She's been collaborating with Compassion London, the Felix Project, the Covid-19 Response Kitchen and her local Kingsbury Temple to get the donations. So far there's been a wide range of food, from crisps, sandwiches and water for packed lunches, to hot food such as curry, salmon with salad and pasta bake. Donated packed lunches / Dr Harshini Pindiola Hot dinners for heathcare workers / Dr Harshini Pindiola During the Easter bank holiday weekend, Dr Harshini also dropped off more than 150 Easter eggs to rouse spirits. One beneficiary, Dr Gejen Kamalatharan, 29, an A&E doctor at Northwick Park Hospital, from Harrow, expressed his appreciation. Heathcare hospital workers say thank you for the food donations / Dr Harshini Pindiola He said: "A lot of us have gone onto a Covid rota so our shift patterns have changed. There are more unsociable hours now so its quite difficult to get to the shops to get what you need. Some people are having to isolate and stay by themselves whereas they would usually be with family. - A controversial audio clip is now circulating and making a lot of noise in the online world - A woman on social media warned the public about the possible imposition of martial law anytime soon - Many netizens, meanwhile, claimed that Jessica Soho was the woman speaking in the said recording - GMA-7 issued an official statement regarding the speculation on social media PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed The Kapuso network has issued a statement regarding a controversial audio clip that is circulating now and making noise on social media. KAMI learned that the said voice recording warned the public about the imposition of martial law or a total lockdown amid the novel coronavirus crisis in the Philippines. The woman heard in the clip told the public to buy groceries and other supplies because President Rodrigo Duterte may announce the said actions on April 20 or 21. Everybody, please listen. Just in case lang, if you have time tomorrow to go out, mag stock kayo ng food In case, mag-announce si Duterte ng martial law o total lockdown kundi Monday, Tuesday the woman stated. Pag mag-announce na siya, it will last hanggang atrenta. Meaning, as in totally, hindi na talaga tayo puwedeng lumabas, wala na talagang puwedeng makalabas, she added. PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! Many social media users claimed that Jessica Soho was behind the controversial audio clip, but GMA-7 was quick to clarify the rumors in the online world. The said network pointed out that the award-winning broadcast-journalist did not record any pronouncement regarding the COVID-19 situation in the country. It also urged the public to refrain from sharing the said recording because it can mislead people from the truth. An audio clip purportedly from Jessica Soho is making the rounds on chat groups and social media. The woman in the audio clip warns of upcoming developments to COVID-19 quarantine, GMA-7 said. GMA News and Public Affairs clarifies that Ms. Soho is not the woman speaking in the audio clip. Ms. Soho has not made any pronouncements to such effect it added. In a previous article by , Boy Abunda admitted that he wants to interview Jessica and 2 other Kapuso celebrities on his show. Jessica Soho, or Maria Jessica Aspiras Soho in real life, is a Filipina journalist who has won numerous awards for journalism. She already bagged an award at the prestigious New York Film Festival. POPULAR: Read more news about Jessica Soho! Please like and share our Facebook posts to support KAMI team! Dont hesitate to comment and share your opinion about our stories either. We love reading about your thoughts! A Filipino found his own way to help frontliners amid pandemic. They had to walk an hour, an hour and a half to get to work. I mean, coming from an 8-hour shift sa hospital, tapos palalakarin mo pa yung nurse o kahit security guard. Parang hindi makatarungan, diba? on HumanMeter! Source: KAMI.com.gh Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 16:43:55|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China will step up epidemic prevention and control measures in major cities and at key ports, resolutely guarding against the cross-border spread of coronavirus, a health official said Monday. Noting that the number of imported COVID-19 cases has continued to decline in the past week, Mi Feng, spokesman for the National Health Commission, said the risk of virus transmission through land borders is still on the rise. He pointed out that there had been clustered infections caused by local infections resulting from imported cases. Mi said testing capabilities will be enhanced and medical treatment will be strengthened at major cities and key ports, with loopholes in epidemic control fixed. He also called on the public to strengthen personal protection to prevent the spread of the virus. Enditem Metlifecare Limited (NZX: MET , ASX: MEQ) is pleased to provide a further market update on current trading conditions and the Scheme Implementation Agreement (SIA) entered with Asia Pacific Village Group Limited (APVG) following Metlifecares announcement on 8 April 2020 that it had received notice of APVGs intention to terminate the SIA. APVG is an entity owned by EQT Infrastructure IV fund and managed by EQT Fund Management S.a.r.l. Key points The Metlifecare Board has received legal advice and reiterates its belief that there is no lawful basis for APVG to terminate the SIA and that the assertions made by APVG are without substance Specifically, the Board does not believe the triggers under the Material Adverse Change (MAC) clause in the SIA have been, or are reasonably likely to be, triggered Further, the Board has legal advice that the MAC clause does not apply, for reasons including: - Any impact on Metlifecare has been as a direct result of the change in general economic conditions caused by the New Zealand Governments mandated Level 4 lockdown (the lockdown) restrictions put in place on 25 March 2020; - Restrictions that have affected the operations of Metlifecare constitute a change in lawi; and - Any impact has not had a disproportionate effect on Metlifecare. The Board is in the process of appointing a QC to assist Metlifecare Metlifecare remains strongly committed to the successful completion of the SIA in the interests of all shareholders and remains on track to dispatch the scheme materials in late April. Current trading Metlifecare is currently operating under the New Zealand Governments stringent Level 4 lockdown restrictions. These restrictions came into effect at 11.59pm on Wednesday 25 March 2020. At the time of this market update, the lockdown is to remain in place until 11.59pm on Tuesday 22 April 2020, with the NZ Government later today expected to announce the timing of a move to the recently announced Level 3 lockdown restrictions. As an operator of retirement villages and aged care homes, Metlifecare, like its sector peers, is an essential services provider, which means it is able to continue operating its villages and care homes across the North Island providing core services to residents. Metlifecare notes that current village and care home occupancy levels are both at 97 per cent. Metlifecare is continuing to talk with prospective residents, however, under the lockdown Metlifecare, like its sector peers, is restricted from showing prospective residents around its villages. As noted in previous releases, several Occupation Right Agreement settlements were brought forward at the request of incoming residents to allow them to move into their new homes ahead of the lockdown being enacted. As expected, as a result of the current government-mandated restrictions, settlements are temporarily delayed. In line with New Zealand Governments lockdown requirements, Metlifecare and its development partners have also temporarily paused all development activity. Metlifecare reaffirms that it has the lowest gearing and leverage levels among the NZX50-listed retirement sector with significant debt headroom. As such, Metlifecare is in a strong financial position and does not intend to raise equity capital. Scheme Update The Board of Metlifecare is preparing a response to APVGs intention to terminate the SIA, to be provided to APVG and EQT later this week. The Board has taken legal advice and believes there is no lawful basis on which APVG can terminate the SIA, and further considers the assertions made by APVG are without substance. As such, the Board remains focused on acting in the best interests of the Company, taking into account the interest of all shareholders and stakeholders. The Board is strongly committed to seeing the SIA continue through to completion. The Board expects APVG to honour its obligations under the SIA, which it willingly entered into. Metlifecare remains on track to send the scheme materials to shareholders in late April, for a meeting to be held in May 2020, subject to New Zealand Government lockdown restrictions and requirements under the SIA. Among other matters, the Board of Metlifecare notes the following: Since 29 December 2019, it has kept under review the performance and standing of the business against the triggers in the Material Adverse Change (MAC) clause, as defined on page 55 of the SIA. As at the date of this market update, Metlifecare does not consider the consolidated net tangible asset (NTA) or the consolidated underlying net profit metrics have been triggered or are reasonably likely to be triggered for FY20 or future periods if the New Zealand Governments lockdown restrictions had not been in place. Metlifecare notes that under its continuous disclosure obligations, if a breach of these triggers had occurred, or is reasonably likely to occur, Metlifecare would need to update the market accordingly. Based on recent scenario analysis, Metlifecares current consolidated underlying profit projection for FY20 is $83 million to $90 million. Metlifecares consolidated NTA at 31 December 2019 was $1.49 billion. Metlifecares NTA will next be reassessed as part of its 30 June 2020 annual result in August-September, taking account of any updates to the external valuations and retained earnings generated since 1 January 2020. The external valuations are based on forecast village cash flows over a long-term, 20-year period that mitigate the impact of short-term unit price movements. Metlifecare provided valuation sensitivity analysis in its 2019 annual report, available at www.metlifecare.co.nz/investor-centre. However, regardless of whether the MAC metrics are triggered, the Board of Metlifecare considers that the MAC clause does not apply for reasons including: - The impact has clearly been as a direct result of changes in general economic conditions' occurring due to the lockdown restrictions put in place by the New Zealand Government, including the likely recession in New Zealand; - Government-mandated restrictions placed on the operations of Metlifecare and other businesses, including forced closures of operations and restrictions of movement, constitute changes in law; and - The impacts have not had a materially disproportionate effect on Metlifecare, compared to sector peers and the general economy, based on analysis of NZX50-listed peer performance, shareholder returns, balance sheet strength and recent research analysts earnings revisions. Rather on an objective assessment Metlifecare has performed well, including because it is an essential business and has placed the interests of its residents as a paramount operational consideration. APVG Assertions Metlifecare has, at all times, provided the information where reasonably requested by APVG under the SIA. Information also continues to be provided in response to reasonable requests as required under the SIA. While some changes have occurred to the Metlifecare business recently, these have been as a result of directives from the New Zealand Government as a result of the lockdown restrictions either on Metlifecare itself or its suppliers and partners, or in the ordinary course of business. Metlifecare has sought in good faith feedback from APVG on its response to the lockdown restrictions. No decisions in relation to its response to the lockdown restrictions are considered material to Metlifecare and its subsidiaries taken as a whole. Metlifecare Chair Kim Ellis said: The Board of Metlifecare remains fully committed to seeing the SIA continue through to completion on behalf of all shareholders. Based on our advice, we can see no legal or other impediment to APVG and EQT honouring the SIA APVG entered into with Metlifecare in December 2019. However, in the interests of prudence, we are in the process of appointing a QC to assist us as we continue to implement the SIA. Metlifecare shareholders do not need to take any action at this time. Source: Metlifecare Limited Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Pictor's completes successful US clinical trials for unique COVID antibody testing 12th January 2022 Morning Report 11th January 2022 Morning Report Greenfern Industries Limited (NZX: GFI) Announces Cannvalate Transaction 10th January 2022 Morning Report 7th January 2022 Morning Report 6th January 2022 Morning Report 5th January 2022 Morning Report Harmoney Corp Limited (NZX: HMY) HMY Signs A$20m Corporate Debt Facility 24th December 2021 Morning Report Flashing a COVID-19 testing cotton swab for the cameras and pulling a Q-tip from his suit jacket for comparison, President Donald Trump on Sunday said the federal government continues to procure millions of swabs to expand testing for the disease thats sparked supply shortages in several states while claiming the lives of more than 40,000 Americans in just seven weeks. One is a swab, ones a Q-tip, the president said. Weve ordered a lot of (swabs). This is a big deal. The president said he would use the Defense Production Act so that at least one company produced more swabs in the coming weeks. The move comes as Democratic lawmakers and several state leaders of both parties have pressed the federal government for a national testing strategy at a time when Trump and some Americans are itching to get the economy revived. Trump has repeatedly said that testing should be managed at the state level and on Sunday he reiterated that it should be a local thing. But were helping them a lot ... more than a lot, he said, describing swabs as easy to produce and procure compared to ventilators. He added, without providing details, that many swabs have been shipped to states and the states dont know where they are. Asked why he waited until this week to take advantage of the DPA for swabs in particular, Trump noted that millions have already been ordered. He also noted that nobody is close to us on testing, touting more than 4 million tests on Americans, which he claimed was more than France, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Australia, Sweden and Canada combined. While total tests exceed that of any other country, the U.S. still lags behind several nations, including Spain, Italy, Germany and others, in tests per million residents. Trump added that many governors are still relying on state labs, but meanwhile Quest Diagnostics and Lab Corp were only at testing at 30% and could handle more traffic. University labs and large lab machines underused by states can also handle greater capacity, he said, noting Vice President Mike Pence would discuss testing efforts with governors in a phone call on Monday. Were going to continue to scale that testing, and work with governors to scale that testing in a manner that will most support their states," Pence said. The focus, he added, is on people who have symptoms and building resources to deploy to vulnerable communities that need greater COVID-19 monitoring. Trump implied the U.S. was even better prepared when it came to a crucial piece of medical equipment that many state leaders feared would be in short order when the virus peaked. We are now the king of ventilators, Trump said. We have so many ventilators. Nobody that needed a ventilator has been turned down. The president noted that New York, where Gov. Andrew Cuomo had requested thousands of ventilators from the federal government, was now in a position to ship 400 ventilators to Massachusetts, another hotspot for the disease. Trump took the opportunity to slam globalism, noting that the virus had made clear the need to boost manufacturing and establish stronger supply chains in the U.S. As of Sunday, more than 750,000 Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 and more than 40,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University. At least 70,000 have recovered. Related Content: The world's seas are simmering, with record high temperatures spurring worry among forecasters that the global warming effect may generate a chaotic year of extreme weather ahead. Parts of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans all hit the record books for warmth last month, according to the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Information. The high temperatures could offer clues on the ferocity of the Atlantic hurricane season, the eruption of wildfires from the Amazon region to Australia, and whether the record heat and severe thunderstorms raking the southern U.S. will continue. In the Gulf of Mexico, where offshore drilling accounts for about 17% of U.S. oil output, water temperatures were 76.3 degrees Fahrenheit (24.6 Celsius), 1.7 degrees above the long-term average, said Phil Klotzbach at Colorado State University. If Gulf waters stay warm, it could be the fuel that intensifies any storm that comes that way, Klotzbach said. "The entire tropical ocean is above average," said Michelle L'Heureux, a forecaster at the U.S. Climate Prediction Center. "And there is a global warming component to that. It is really amazing when you look at all the tropical oceans and see how warm they are." The record warm water in the Gulf of Mexico spilled over into every coastal community along the shoreline with all-time high temperatures on land, said Deke Arndt, chief of the monitoring section at the National Centers for Environmental Information in Asheville, North Carolina. Florida recorded its warmest March on record, and Miami reached 93 degrees Wednesday, a record for the date and 10 degrees above normal, according to the National Weather Service. While coronavirus has the nation's attenton right now, global warming continues to be a threat. Sea water "remembers and holds onto heat" better than the atmosphere, Arndt said. Overall, the five warmest years in the world's seas, as measured by modern instruments, have occurred over just the last half-dozen or so years. It's "definitely climate-change related," said Jennifer Francis, a senior scientist at the Woods Hole Research Center in Massachusetts. "Oceans are absorbing about 90% of the heat trapped by extra greenhouse gases." Worldwide, sea temperatures were 1.49 degrees Fahrenheit above average in March. That's the second highest level recorded since 1880 for the month of March, according to U.S. data. In 2016, temperatures were 1.55 degrees above average. The first of Colorado State's 2020 storm reports, led by Klotzbach, forecast this year that eight hurricanes could spin out of the Atlantic with an above-average chance at least one will make landfall in the U.S. during the six-month season starting June 1. The U.S. is set to issue its hurricane forecast next month. The searing global temperatures this year can also be traced back to intense climate systems around the Arctic that bottled up much of that region's cold, preventing it from spilling south into temperate regions. Combined with global warming, this was a one-two punch for sea temperatures that's brought them to historic highs. One of the best-known examples of how oceans drive global weather patterns is the development of the climate system known as El Nino. It occurs when unusually warm waters in the equatorial Pacific interact with the atmosphere to alter weather patterns worldwide. In the Atlantic, for instance, El Ninos can cause severe wind shear that can break up developing storms with the potential to become dangerous hurricanes. This year, the chance of an El Nino developing is small, and scientists are theorizing one reason could be that climate change is warming all the world's oceans. El Nino "depends on contrasts, as well as absolute values of sea-surface temperatures," according to Kevin Trenberth, a scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Meanwhile, if the Atlantic stays warm through the six-month storm season that starts June 1, the tropical systems can use it as fuel to strengthen their fury. In 2017, a small storm called Harvey actually fell apart as it crossed Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula into the Gulf, but once it got there it reformed and grew into a Category 4 monster that went on to flood Texas, killing at least 68 people, and caused about $125 billion in damage. If the Gulf stays record warm "then it raises the risk of another Harvey type storm perhaps," Trenberth said.The oceans also play a role in setting the stage for wildfires. In the case of Australia and the Amazon, really warm areas of the ocean can pull rain away from the land, causing drier conditions and, in extreme cases, drought. Last year, for instance, the Indian Ocean was really warm off Africa, so that is where all the storms went. Australia was left high and dry. Back in the Atlantic, research by Katia Fernandes, a geosciences professor at the University of Arkansas, has also shown a correlation between sea surface temperatures in the northern tropical Atlantic and drought and wildfires in the Amazon. The warmer the water, the further north rainfall is pulled across South America.According to the Fernandes model, even Atlantic temperatures in March can serve to predict if the Amazon will be dry and susceptible to fires. For California, the outlook isn't as clear. Wildfires there depend as much on how well vegetation grows, providing fuel for the flames, as it does on the weather conditions coming off the Pacific."Tricky question," said Mike Anderson, California state climatologist. "Our weather outcomes are influenced by sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific, but it depends on where and when the warm waters appear and how long they persist. In the end we have a highly variable climate that doesn't map in a statistically convenient way to patterns of sea-surface temperatures." Why are people of color at higher risk of contracting and dying from COVID-19? It's certainly not because we're doing shots of tequila at 9:30 a.m. It's because blacks and Hispanics tend to work low-wage jobs at "essential" businesses -- like grocery stores, restaurants and delivery services -- that bring them in contact with lots of people. And black and brown people are likely to be underinsured and have little to no budget for self-care. It was well-intentioned, yet ultimately condescending, for Adams, a black man, to use code words such as (BEG ITAL)abuela(END ITAL) and "pop pop" in a message that was meant for everybody. When asked why he singled out people of color, Adams replied that "we need everyone -- black, brown, white, whatever color you are -- to follow the president's guidelines." There's no amount of hand washing that's going to fix the inequality in incomes, education levels and access to health care that causes COVID-19 to pose a higher threat to people of color than to those who are able to work from home and afford to have groceries and other essentials delivered to their doorstep. We believe this (business loss) is all going to end, Schiller said. And yes, weve been trying to keep our doors open, but this is going to pass. And we feel, as a sense of community, to make sure these (healthcare) teams are being taken care of. These people on the front line are really doing the best job they can possibly do. Some worms are genetically predisposed to die before reaching old age, which appears to benefit the colony by reducing food demand, finds a new UCL-led study. The modelling study, published in Aging Cell, provides the first evidence of programmed, adaptive death in an animal that has evolved due to the benefits to the community. Lead author Professor David Gems (UCL Institute of Healthy Ageing) said: "According to evolution theory, altruistic death to leave more food to your relatives normally can't evolve. This is because other individuals who live longer would consume resources left behind by altruistic comrades and outcompete them, in what's called a tragedy of the commons. "But it was recently discovered that wild C. elegans roundworms live in colonies of identical worms, which would prevent long-living worms with different genes from taking over." The researchers explain that evolutionary theorists originally believed that ageing evolved to reduce the population in order to increase food availability for the young, but scientists have since shown this cannot be true for most animal species as longer-lived non-altruists would usually be favoured by natural selection. However, certain organisms possess what appear to be self-destruct programmes, preventing them from living beyond a certain age. For example, in the tiny roundworm C. elegans, mutations to particular genes can massively increase their lifespan, presumably by switching off the life-shortening programme. advertisement In the current study, UCL researchers investigated the specifics of the C. elegans life cycle to understand why programmed death may work for them, by devising computer models of a C. elegans colony growing on a limited food supply. They tested whether a shorter lifespan would increase the reproductive capacity of colonies, by generating the equivalent of colony seeds (a dispersal form of worm called a dauer). They found that shorter lifespan, as well as shorter reproductive span and reduced adult feeding rate, increased the reproductive success of the colony. First author Dr Evgeniy Galimov (UCL Institute of Healthy Ageing) said: "It's been known for years that programmed cell death benefits living organisms, but we're now realising there is programmed organismal death as well, that can benefit animal colonies." The findings have major implications for studies of the biology of ageing, much of which is conducted using C. elegans. Other animals have genes similar to the lifespan-shortening worm genes that promote late-life disease, so a greater understanding of the genes' function could contribute to medical research. But the researchers caution that their latest findings are specific to worms whose life cycles are suited to such an adaptive mechanism. advertisement Professor Gems said: "Our findings are consistent with the old theory that ageing is beneficial in one way, as they show how increasing food availability for your relatives by dying early can be a winning strategy, which we call consumer sacrifice. But adaptive death can only evolve under certain special conditions where populations of closely related individuals don't mix with non-relatives. So this is not predicted to apply to humans, but it seems to happen a lot in colonial microorganisms." Dr Galimov continued: "It appears possible that adaptive death could happen in some types of salmon, which spawn and die in huge numbers in the upper reaches of rivers. It's been shown that the rotting, dead salmon nourish the salmon fry. We call this form of adaptive death biomass sacrifice." The work illustrates how reducing evolutionary fitness of individuals can increase the fitness of communities in organisms that live in colonies. The authors say the next stage in their work is to study actual C. elegans colonies to test for behaviours predicted by the model, and then use that knowledge to build more realistic models to understand adaptive death. This work was funded by Wellcome, with support from the BBSRC. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Facebook is continuing to hire for its Ireland operation and plans to fill 50 roles for its financial subsidiary service Calibra by the end of 2020. In addition to Calibra, Facebook wants to fill hundreds of roles in Ireland across different sections including financial, legal and engineering teams. Head of Facebook Ireland, Gareth Lambe said: Ireland is critically important to Facebook and plays a central role in our global operations. "We have around 60 teams including engineers, safety and security experts, policy experts, marketing and salespeople with a number of global and regional teams run from Ireland." Speaking about the announcement, Laura Morgan Walsh, Head of Operations for Calibra said: During this time of global uncertainty, were continuing to invest in our team located in Dublin. "Were actively hiring experts in fraud, compliance, workforce management, and customer care to expand our operations team supporting the Calibra Wallet. "We believe financial inclusion is a problem that can be solved and we are looking for more dedicated professionals to join us. "Were still early in our journey and building the team now with a long-term view towards future projects. The American social media giant did say the rate of hiring for Calibra is dependent on the regulatory environment. Roles in the compliance team will focus on working with external regulators and the Ireland operation will also be part of building and maintaining the fraud protection program in Calibra. Calibra is developing the digital wallet for Libra, a digital currency powered by blockchain technology backed by Facebook that faced significant regulatory scrutiny last year when first announced. Originally the cryptocurrency was planned to be a new element in the global financial system backed by a wide mixture of currencies and government debt. In a bid to secure regulatory approval Facebook scaled back these plans and said instead the digital currency will be linked to individual national currencies and will be overseen by global regulators. Libras governing body, the Libra Association, said it will now offer stablecoins backed by single national currencies. We have initiated the formal payment system licensing process with @FINMA_media and updated our white paper to reflect key design changes to the Libra payment system. https://t.co/jiGnufzOtj#FinancialInclusion #TechforGood pic.twitter.com/1zdwoalG8I Diem Association (@DiemAssociation) April 16, 2020 The body said it has worked closely with regulators, central bankers, elected officials, and various stakeholders to shape the currency. One World: Together At Home was able to raise $127.9 million; $55.1 million of the earnings will be given to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, while $72.8 million will be surrendered to local and regional responders. A Historic Worldwide Broadcasting Event After the historic worldwide broadcasting event One World: Together At Home, Global Citizen with Lady Gaga pledged $127 million to provide aid to health care workers fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations that Helped and the Beneficiaries Corporate organizations, leaders of the world, and philanthropists pledged their support for the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for WHO, in partnership with the UN Foundation, during the event. The donations fund will provide financial assistance to UNICEF and the vaccine development alliance Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, or CEPI. Additionally, the Together At Home campaign will be assisting more than 100 local and regional charitable organizations, including Education, Cannot Wait, United Way, Feeding America, and Direct Care. Investors, foundation leaders, and change-makers are cooperating to immediately provide support efforts such as the investigation of the development of a vaccine and strengthening the health care system. Check these out: The Content The worldwide broadcast was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, and Jimmy Fallon. The hosts were joined by some friends from Sesame Street to help inspire and unite the people from different parts of the world. It featured various communities devastated by the COVID-19. It included conversations and tributes to different people who are helping to fight against COVID-19. Some of these people include political leaders, health care workers, scientists, and other essential service workers serving in the frontlines. Response to the Global COVID-19 Pandemic In March, the Global Citizen started an urgent program to provide support to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund as a response to the worsening global COVID-19 pandemic. It was kicked off by Coldplay member and Global Citizen Festival Curator Chris Martin through the #TogetherAtHome Instagram live show. The program requested people to do an act about the current global crisis. It also urged leaders of the world and corporate organizations with excess resources to provide support to the response. Citizens from more than 150 nations have made thousands of actions to provide support to the response fund. The Fund The COVID-19 Solidarity Response fund helps with the tracking and containment of the further spread of COVID-19. It ensures that patients of the deadly illness and frontline staff are provided the resources they require. Also, the fund aims to provide support to the development of treatments, tests, and vaccines for COVID-19. The help given by a considerable number of sponsors to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund will support the WHO, CEPI, UNICEF, and other partners fast-track their efforts to save the world from the pandemic. The historic broadcasting campaign as able to raise pledges amounting to $55.1 million for the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund. Artificial intelligence-driven recruitment platform FifthEdge has launched its Coronavirus Recovery Initiative (CRI) to aid the recovery of employers and employees in the construction and engineering sectors impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. FifthEdges cloud-based platform, which commenced operations in 2020, has seen a number of high profile construction and engineering companies subscribe to the service, seeking to increase recruitment capacity and reduce cost-to-hire. The platform has also attracted in excess of 35,000 candidates, both active and passive, looking to connect with companies for their next roles. Coronavirus has impacted the construction and engineering sector at a global level. Despite efforts of the UAE Government and authorities, projects in the region have been impacted along with oil prices, tourism and capital markets. As the country continues to implement social distancing measures to flatten the curve of the spread of Coronavirus, an increase in remote working has impacted administrative procedures essential to site works. Additionally, procurement and supply chain have been affected due to the closure of manufacturing facilities in exporting countries. To assist both companies sourcing talent and candidates who have recently been made redundant or face uncertainty in their current roles, FifthEdge has launched its CRI. Employers and candidates can access the platform free of charge, connecting people who need jobs with employers looking to fill roles live and constantly updated. Marcus Taylor, founder and CEO at FifthEdge, explained the decision to open the platform up: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive effect on most industries around the world. We are seeing more redundancies in the construction and engineering sectors, but we are also still hearing from employers who need to fill roles as quickly as possible. We wanted to help. We want to get people who need jobs into roles, without all the red tape and expense. We have set up a portal for anyone who is currently looking for a role in the construction and engineering sectors. Candidates can create an account, upload their CV and set their profile to immediately available. They will then be added to an always-live talent pool. FifthEdges AI system will contact candidates every 15 days to ensure their details are still up to date and find out if their status has changed. Were giving companies free access to this talent pool, so they can see who is available right now. They will be able to review CVs and choose candidates who match their requirements, confident the information they are viewing is up to date. While FifthEdge would usually carry out an AI-driven, industry-specific, in-depth assessment of profiles and match candidates to employers, the CRI will see all candidates and companies added to the same portal. Therefore, companies will be able to view and connect with thousands of candidates. Taylor said: Were all in this together, so we really just wanted to do our part to assist the regions construction sector. We created a solution that connects people in the simplest way possible. If we can help people who have lost their jobs find roles with some of the companies working on projects in the region, well be very happy with that. Candidates can sign up and create a free profile on FifthEdges website. Companies can also contact FifthEdge via the website to be given a free log-in to access the platforms CRI portal. LOS ANGELES, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On Tuesday, April 21, 2020, the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) will announce the winners of its Annual Hart Vision Awards and Susan Steelman Bragato Scholarships, in recognition of the exceptional work and achievements of charter public schools, leaders, teachers and students. In addition to the Hart Vision Awards and Bragato Scholarships, CCSA is presenting the first Rachel Willis-Henry Volunteer of the Year Award, in honor of the organization's late parent organizer and advocate, Rachel Willis-Henry. CCSA also announced today that it will be launching several policy and educational webinars and handouts that were planned for the Annual California Charter Schools Conference. The Conference was to be held in Long Beach on March 16-19, but was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Conference participants will have access to seminars, panel discussions and presentations, with taped sessions made available on-demand. Attendees can choose the virtual offerings by filtering "Webinars and Handouts" on the Programming section of the Conference website. "Though we are living in unprecedented times, CCSA has always been prepared to adapt and meet these moments of great uncertainty," said Myrna Castrejon, CCSA President and CEO. "The flexibility and innovation that has defined our movement is on full display as we pivot towards virtual learning. And there is perhaps no better time to highlight the student trailblazers and the teachers and leaders who are fearlessly leading the way before, during and after this crisis. This is a moment to recognize the giants in our charter community." The Hart Vision Awards have been presented annually since 1995 to individuals and organizations with outstanding records of leadership and excellence in public education. The awards are named in honor of Gary K. Hart, a retired California State Senator, former California Secretary of Education and the author of California's landmark charter public school legislation. The ten $2,000 scholarships also being awarded to charter high school graduates are named in honor of Susan Steelman Bragato, the co-founder of the first charter school in California and founder of California Network of Education Charters (CNEC). CNEC went on to become the California Charter Schools Association in 2003. Awarded historically as the Hart Vision Volunteer of the Year Award, this year's presentation marks the rededication of the award as the Rachel Willis-Henry Volunteer of the Year Award. Named in honor of CCSA's late staff member, Rachel Willis-Henry, the award's new name pays tribute to the countless hours Rachel put into her work with charter public schoolsat first as a volunteer, then later as a parent organizer with CCSA. Videos of the honorees will be presented on Tuesday, April 21, 2020, at the times below on CCSA's Facebook channel, as well as the California Charter Schools Conference channel: 10:00 am Hart Awards Kickoff & Presentation of Bragato Scholarship winners 10:30 am Rachel Willis-Henry Volunteer of the Year AwardSuzanne Cherry 11:00 am Teacher of the YearMarissa Espinoza 11:30 am School Leader of the Year (North)Frances Teso 12:00 pm School Leader of the Year (South)Alison Diaz 12:30 pm School of the Year (South)Alliance College Ready Public Schools 1:00 pm School of the Year (North)AIMS 1:30 pm Public Officials of the Year State Senator Shannon Grove, 16th state district Wendy Carrillo, State Assembly member, 51st state district Nick Melvoin, LAUSD Board Member, 4th district About the Honorees: **Susan Steelman Bragato Scholarship Winners: Jose Aguirre , Merced Scholarship Charter School, Merced, CA , Merced Scholarship Charter School, Matthew Byrd , River Valley Charter High School , Lakeside, CA , , Destiny Cathcart , Public Safety Academy, San Bernardino, CA , Public Safety Academy, Suzanne Choi , Clayton Valley Charter High School , Concord, CA , , Caleb Edwards , Magnolia Science Academy 3, Carson, CA , Magnolia Science Academy 3, Norma Garcia , Bright Star Secondary Charter Academy, Los Angeles, CA , Bright Star Secondary Charter Academy, Rigoberto Garcia , Community Charter Early College High School, Lakeview Terrace, CA , Community Charter Early College High School, Lakeview Terrace, CA Keyara Piri , University High School, Los Angeles, CA , University High School, Juan Salinas , San Jacinto Valley Academy, San Jacinto, CA , San Jacinto Valley Academy, Sarah Tran , Granada Hills Charter High School, Los Angeles , CA **Rachel Willis-Henry Volunteer of the Year Award: Ms. Suzanne Cherry Suzanne Cherry, the recipient of this year's award, is a volunteer who puts her all into everything she does. She is a wife, a mother and has a full-time job as a retail-store manager. She's also a board member and an advocate for Encore High School. Suzanne's actions show that you don't have to be a full-time volunteer to make a big impact in the charter community. The award is named in honor of former CCSA colleague, Ms. Rachel Wills-Henry. In 2019, CCSA didn't just lose a team member, but a part of the charter family. Rachel Willis-Henry was a passionate advocate for parent choice and a force to be reckoned with when she fought for her family and for all the families in her community of Oakland. In honor of Rachel, the Volunteer of the Year award will be known as the "Rachel Willis-Henry Volunteer of the Year Award." Rachel's legacy lives on through all who knew her. **Teacher of the Year: Ms. Marissa Espinosa Marissa Espinosa believes in every single one of her students, and that there is no limit to what they can do, guiding them towards the North Star of success. She's a tough cookie, but that's why she's a favorite in the classroom. She is also an inspiration and mentor to her fellow teachers. **Leader of the Year Northern California: Ms. Frances Teso Frances Teso does not back down from any challenge no matter how big or how small. She leads battles charter schools face fearlessly. Even as she fights for charter school students, her dual-immersion schools continue to be high-performing and sought in the community. **Leader of the Year Southern California: Alison Diaz Alison Diaz's name is synonymous with innovation and tenacity. She raises her students' collective consciousness about the environment and giving students the tools and knowledge they need to be active, committed and passionate participants in their communities. She is a true innovator. **School of the Year Southern California: Alliance College Ready Public Schools This southern school of the year, Alliance College Ready Public Schools, is not just one schoolit's a whole network. These schools are committed to student success even outside the walls of their schools with programs to ensure just college admission but college completion. Alliance College Ready Public Schools is going above and beyond for student success. **School of the Year Northern California: American Indian Model AIMS Our northern school of the year, American Indian Model (AIMS), in Northern California is a diverse and consistently high performing school. Their high standards have allowed them to maintain an amazing high graduation rate. AIMS is an example of a school that rose from the roots of the community to serve the people. **Public Officials of the Year: Honored for their courage and advocacy of public charter schools. California State Senator Shannon Grove , 16 th State District , 16 State District State Assembly member Wendy Carrillo , 51 st State District , 51 State District Los Angeles Unified School District Board Member Nick Melvoin, 4th District Contact: [email protected] SOURCE California Charter Schools Association Related Links http://www.ccsa.org Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Reuters) Paris, France Mon, April 20, 2020 10:07 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2f10e6 2 Art & Culture Paris,France,lockdown,pandemic,COVID-19,coronavirus,arts Free From a bunch of radishes to a sleeping cat, Parisian Agnes Goyet has turned to her life indoors for inspiration as France's coronavirus lockdown frees her up to pursue her hobby: art. Goyet, who normally works as a real estate manager, is among many amateur artists finding new forms of expression as governments order confinements to contain the outbreak. Professional musicians, chefs, actors and athletes around the world are also taking to social media to reach out to the public from inside their homes. After nearly five weeks in her apartment, Goyet said that updating her watercolor journal had become a daily necessity, as an outlet to escape the pressures of quarantine. "My journal of drawings is my door, my small opening to the world," she said, showing off sketches depicting everything from her television set as it beamed French President Emmanuel Macron's latest speech to her indoor plants. Read also: 'Balconies, life, art': Berlin's shut-in artists show their work "I think the lockdown has fostered a lot of creativity," she said. "We find beauty in everything. Even a simple bunch of radish becomes pretty." Goyet, who has been posting her watercolors on Instagram, lives in a 94-square-meter apartment with her two adult children. Since the lockdown began on March 17, she has only stepped out to shop for groceries and once to go jogging. She said she normally kept journals of her travels, and her usual subjects included nature, architecture and street life. Despite finding joy during confinement, Goyet added that she had one date in mind: May 11, when the French government has said it will start easing some lockdown measures. "I wait for only one thing, which is to go back to a bistro, take a seat the terrace and to be able to draw outdoors," Goyet said. First he was the self-described wartime president. Then he trumpeted the total authority of the federal government. But in the past few days, President Trump has nurtured protests against state-issued stay-at-home orders aimed at curtailing the spread of the coronavirus. Hurtling from one position to another is consistent with Mr. Trumps approach to the presidency over the past three years. Even when external pressures and stresses appear to change the dynamics that the country is facing, Mr. Trump remains unbowed, altering his approach for a day or two, only to return to nursing grievances. Not even the presidents re-election campaign can harness him: His team is often reactive to his moods and whims, trying but not always succeeding in steering him in a particular direction. Now, with Mr. Trumps poll numbers falling after a rally-around-the-leader bump, he is road-testing a new turn on a familiar theme veering into messages aimed at appealing to Americans whose lives have been disrupted by the legally enforceable stay-at-home orders. Whether his latest theme will be effective for him is an open question: In an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released on Sunday, just 36 percent of voters said they generally trusted what Mr. Trump says about the coronavirus. Chau Tran Vinh, deputy head of the Department of Water Resources Management under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, talks about water security challenges and measures to tackle them. Could you give us an overview of water shortage issues in Vietnam this year? This year, all regions of Vietnam the northern part, the central region, the Central Highlands, to the Mekong Delta will suffer from various degrees of drought and water scarcity. The Krong H'Nang River in Central Highlands province Dak Lak dried up in a photo taken on April 15, 2020. The river supplies water to tens of thousands of hectares of crops in the Ea Kar District. VNA/VNS Photo Anh Dung Rainfall and the flow of rivers and streams across the country has been and likely will be lower than many years average, continuing the disappointing water level in 2019 when we witnessed shortages even during the peak of the rainy, stormy season. In many reservoirs especially key ones in each of the countrys geological areas the water level they have managed to store at the beginning of the dry season is only 40-75 per cent of their designed capacity. Worse, I have received a report of one reservoir running on 20 per cent its capacity. The average level stored at medium and small hydropower reservoirs is 70-80 per cent at maximum, with many at 40-50 per cent of their capacity. The Hoa Binh hydropower plant in the north, the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia with a volume of more than six billion cu.m, this year has reported a record low water level during its 30-year history. For the northern delta region, right after the rainy season ended in September, foreseeing the inevitable dire shortage of water and subsequent impacts on energy security in the entire country especially in the summer months of May and June, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment held a number of meetings with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Vietnam Electricity and owners of reservoirs to discuss and come up with agreements on adjusting reservoir operation plans for different phases the end of the flooding season, beginning of the dry season, or before each water release. The priority was to save water and mitigate issues resulting from water shortages. Thats why in the irrigation period for the winter-spring crop, the water supply was ensured for the fields in the north and the water remaining in large reservoirs like Hoa Binh, Son La, Thac Ba and Tuyen Quang could basically cover the needs of the delta for the remainder of the dry season. For the Mekong Delta, despite the severity of drought and salinity intrusion rivalling that of the record-breaking 2016, thanks to early forecasting of the ministry, timely instructions from the Government and proactive prevention and mitigation efforts from southern localities, the loss caused to rice and other crops in the region was minimised. Its estimated that 60 per cent of the winter-spring rice in the delta has been harvested. This is a win for people in the Mekong Delta, however, we still urge provinces like Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Ben Tre and Tien Giang to be constantly watching for the developments of drought and salt intrusion in their jurisdiction and put in place stronger measures. Could you elaborate on the release of water from reservoirs in recent times? The environment ministry has instructed competent authorities especially the General Department of Hydro-Meteorology and the Department of Water Resources Management, to step up forecasting to issue timely warnings for important river basins across the country. Our water resources department has been in close contact with major reservoirs in these regions to schedule the release of water especially concerning important basins such as Ma River, Ca River, Huong River, Se San River or Dong Nai River to balance both the goal of fulfilling the water demands downstream and the goal of retaining enough water to be used for the rest of the dry season, ahead of the spike in electricity use. Although the lack of rainfall and flooding happened to all 11 river basins in these regions since the end of the flood season and the beginning of the dry season, so far, only a few basins run an elevated risk of water scarcity, and if properly regulated, there will be sufficient water to supply for downstream use for the remainder of the dry season. The water resources department is asking the environment ministry to allow for a lower volume of water discharged downstream for certain struggling reservoirs, including Cua Dai Lake (Ma River in Lao Cai Province), Binh Dien (Huong River in Thua Thien-Hue Province), A Vuong (Vu Gia-Thu Bon River in Quang Nam Province), Ka Nak (Ba River in Gia Lai Province), Se San 4 (Se San River in Gia Lai Province) and Dai Ninh (Dong Nai River in Dong Nai Province). What steps is the ministry planning to deal with likely complex developments of drought and water scarcity in the coming months? In the short-term, we are trying to raise the accuracy of our forecasts especially concerning extreme events, and continue to closely monitor the use and exploitation of water resources, supervise the operation of reservoirs and step up the search for underground water to help alleviate water difficulties for areas where water from reservoirs can't reach. The environment ministry, in addition, will accelerate the progress on the National Water Resources Planning, inter-provincial river basin and water resources planning, and complete the database on water resources, exploitation, use and conservation from local to central levels. VNS Water issues to be severe in many localities: experts Along with Mekong Delta, the central region will suffer prolonged drought and saline intrusion during the rest of this years dry season, experts warned. Vietnam foresees water issues in 2020 Rivers across Vietnam are facing severe water shortages in the coming dry season. COLONIE A Miami man was arrested for allegedly raping a local minor, Colonie police said. Carlos Robles, 26, allegedly established a relationship with a 16-year-old girl in the Capital Region online. Robles traveled to meet her multiple times and had sex with her at motels in Colonie and Albany, despite knowing she was under the age of consent, police said. The victim's parents found messages exchanged between Robles and their daughter and notified police, who found Robles at the Red Roof Inn on Wolf Road. The investigation so far has revealed that Robles also has potential victims in Florida and Texas, police said. Police said the FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is also investigating Robles for potential federal charges. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Robles was charged with rape and endangering the welfare of a child. He was arraigned in Colonie and sent to Albany County Jail on $25,000 cash bail or $35,000 bond. I n a pandemic emergency, every preventive measure counts and time is of the essence. Lack of supply of medical masks for health workers need not be at the expense of public health. The Government should ask UK industry to make face masks as they have for ventilators and ask the public, meanwhile, to make cloth masks. The primary aim of public mask use is to prevent infectious persons who may not be showing symptoms from spewing droplets and aerosol. While washing hands and social distancing are essential, wearing masks is equally important in enclosed spaces such as public transport and shops. We urge the Government to start a campaign to teach the public to make and use cloth masks. Dr Beng Goh, Emeritus consultant physician, Royal London Hospital Editor's reply Dear Beng I dont agree that the public will be confused if the Government gives more official information about how we might exit lockdown. The alternative is a vacuum filled by the speculation seen recently about everything from schools to face masks. These stories cant be simply dismissed by ministers not least because the source of many of them are private briefings by ministers, their aides and No 10. Londons Mayor and devolved administrations are pitching in; as are scientific experts. Then there are the examples of other governments who have arguably handled the crisis better. Weve heard the slogans and stayed home; now we need to hear the complex issues facing the UK as it works out how to go back to work. George Osborne, Editor School closures Like many people, I discovered after graduating in 2009 from West Chester University with a liberal arts degree that it didnt buy as much on the job market as Id anticipated. But rather than impose further on my parents or the taxpayers, I turned what had been a part-time job in retail while I was a student into a full-time position. Im now 35 years old, and Ive worked in a variety of retail settings which was difficult enough before the Coronavirus outbreak. While my employer was deemed essential by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, my employer had to lay off a large percentage of its employees, making things look even more bleak. Make no mistake: Ill persevere. We all will, and I firmly expect an economic boom later this year that will erase many of the bad memories. In the meantime, however, it seems the least the governor might do is spread the pain around equally. If virtually all the small, private-sector businesses that fuel the states economy can be asked make that told to close their doors for the duration of the pandemic, why cant more taxpayer-paid public employees make the same sacrifice. Last week Gov. Wolf laid off 10 percent of the states government employees, but 90 percent managed to keep their jobs. Were told those still on the job are essential, but to whom?Perhaps to the governors powerful friends running the wealthy public-sector unions to which most state employees belong? Government employee unions are among the most powerful special interests in the country, and thats especially true in Pennsylvania, where unions like SEIU, AFSCME and the teachers unions have donated generously to the campaigns of Wolf and other Democrats. And when you wield that kind of influence, why should a little thing like a global quarantine keep you from continuing to confiscate up to $100 every month from tens of thousands of government employees paying you dues? What makes these unions more essential than businesses that actually generate revenue for the economy? If Pennsylvanias government employee unions simply agreed to stop collecting dues for the next three months, it would leave an estimated $63 million in the pockets of those who had actually earned it. In turn, theyd use the money to help stimulate the economy rather than grease the palms of union leaders and the greedy politicians they buy and sell with other peoples dues dollars. No ones asking Gov. Wolf to jeopardize anyones physical safety. Im just saying it might be nice if he worried a little less about his own political safety and a little more about the economic well-being of hardworking Pennsylvanians like you and me. Geoffrey Cope Exton Yeah, this idea is so critical right now when we can easily get in the mode of, woe is me, everything is terrible. Research shows that we really can benefit from counting our blessings even when it feels like there arent that many blessings to be counted. The simple act of scribbling down three things youre grateful for can significantly bump your mood, in some studies as quickly as within a couple of weeks. Its completely free. It takes five to 10 minutes a day. At the end of your day, just scribble down a few things that youre grateful for right now. Opposition councillors in the Ludhiana municipal corporation house accused the ruling Congress of indulging in unfair ration distribution and threatened to launch a stir. A delegation led by Lok Insaaf party (LIP) leader Harvinder Singh Kaler met mayor Balkar Sandhu and accused the Congress-led MC of treating the wards represented by councillors of other parties unfairly. Kaler said that the Congress was even withholding the ration sent by the Centre for distribution among the poor amid the lockdown. Leader of opposition and SAD councillor Harbhajan Singh Dang also condemned the distribution system, stating, While ration is being distributed smoothly in wards led by Congress councillor, the same cannot be said about wards of opposition councillors. We have told the mayor that if the distribution will not be streamlined within three days, opposition councillors will stage a protest. On the other hand, mayor Balkar Singh Sandhu downplayed the matter and said, There is no bias and ration is being distributed equally. There were some grievances pertaining to the monitoring of government officials who were keeping a check on the distribution process. However, all the grievances have been addressed. In 2008, in the midst of the financial crisis, we learned that some banks were considered too big to fail. The phrase was used to justify the controversial Troubled Asset Relief Program, which funneled money to the giant Wall Street firms to keep them solvent. Today, were bracing for the Coronavirus Recession if it hasnt arrived already. But times are different, and now were likely to find out that some trends are too transformational to derail not even the coronavirus pandemic will stop them. The switchover to 5G is one of these. The technology has been available since 2017, and the networks started going online in 2019. 5G promises faster wireless internet access, with greater bandwidth and less latency, and is seen by some tech sector experts as the future of communications. T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon have all rolled out 5G networks in the US, and 5G capable smartphones hit the markets last year (Samsung offers three such devices in the Galaxy line). The COVID-19 epidemic has slowed the advance of the new tech, mainly by shutting down the infrastructure work required to support the new network and by forcing delays in the launch of the latest 5G smartphones (for example, Apple normally announced new smartphone models in September, but there are reports that the iPhone 12 will be pushed back two months). With 5G still on the horizon, even if that horizon is slightly more distant than anticipated, the tech sector is going to attract investors. Semiconductor chip makers, providing the microchips essential to all aspects of the 5G networks from the transmitters to the towers to the handsets and more will be on the front lines of the gains. Investment research firm Craig-Hallum has tapped three such stocks as primed for big gains in 2H20; weve used the TipRanks database to pull the details. Qorvo, Inc. (QRVO) Qorvo is a well-known chip maker in the wireless niche. The company is best known for integrated circuits for communications apps the chips that let your PCs, tablets, and smartphones connect to wifi networks. The companys chips are used in cordless phones, industrial radio, remote meter readings, and wireless security. Story continues Qorvos position as a chip supplier for 5G devices, however, supported the companys fiscal Q3 2020 results. The company showed solid sales in wifi and 5G components, while the popularity of Qorvo chips in the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean markets all of which are moving steadily into 5G helped quarterly revenue rise 4.4% year-over-year. The companys Mobile Products division was both deeply connected to 5G and a main driver of QRVOs gains. 5-star analyst Anthony Stoss, reviewing QRVO for Craig-Hallum, sees the current COVID-19 containment measures presenting a possible long-term gain for Qorvo stock. He writes, With the world currently moving online, networks are being constrained. Countries/governments as well as businesses are now aggressively pushing to roll out 5G We think QRVO will benefit from a faster 5G rollout as they should see higher content in 5G phones as well as 5G base stations. Stoss gives QRVO shares a $100 price target and a Buy rating. His target suggests an upside potential this year of 16%. (To watch Stoss track record, click here) The Street largely seems to echo Stoss positive sentiment, considering TipRanks analytics showcase QRVO as a Buy. Out of 18 analysts tracked by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 11 are bullish on Qorvo stock, while 7 remain sidelined. With a potential upside of 30%, the stocks consensus target price stands at $112.27. (See Qorvo stock analysis on TipRanks) Skyworks Solutions (SWKS) Next on our list is Skyworks, a mid-cap semiconductor maker that is a major supplier to Apples iPhone line. Skyworks is a well-regarded company with quality products, but it does provide a lesson in the dangers of over-specialization: it brought in 51% of its total 2019 revenue from Apple. Skyworks had trouble gaining traction through much of 2019, until Apple started gaining solidly in final third of the year. That weakness can also be a source of strength. As a major chip supplier for the iPhone line, Skyworks shares the 900-million strong and very loyal Apple customer base. And with Apple preparing to release 5G capable iPhones later this year, even if they arrive late, Skyworks is looking at strong demand for its own products in 2H20. Skyworks has at least one other latent advantage, as well. Its manufacturing facilities are US-based. When COVID-19 epidemic restrictions are lifted, that domestic supply chain will have an easier recovery than competitor companies with greater international exposure. In his review of SWKS, Craig-Hallum's Anthony Stoss sees Skyworks Apple exposure as a possible risk, but one that is outweighed by the companys overall strong outlook in 5G and Wifi 6 products. He writes of the company, We think SWKS will benefit from a faster 5G rollout as they should see higher content in 5G phones as well as 5G base stations. Additionally, with people moving to work from home and students moving to online learning, we see rising demand for better Wi-Fi connectivity as well. SWKS should benefit as Wi-Fi 6 adoption ramps up. Stoss backs his Buy rating on SWKS with a $110 price target, indicative of a 15% upside potential over the next 12 months. (To watch Stoss track record, click here) All in all, Wall Street sizes up Skyworks as a Moderate Buy stock, as the bulls edge out the cautious on the chip maker. In the last 3 months, SWKS has received 15 bullish Buy ratings versus 6 Holds. The consensus price target of $116.44 hints there could be 22% upside for investors, with the stock fetching $95. (See Skyworks stock analysis on TipRanks) Marvell Technology (MRVL) Last on our list is Marvell, a smaller name in the semiconductor chip market. This Silicon Valley company brought in $2.86 billion in revenues last year, realizing $179 million in profits. Marvell operates in 14 countries around the world and even after recent share losses boasts a market cap of $16.1 billion. More importantly, Marvell boasts a strong industry position, bolstered by recent partnership agreements with major handset makers Samsung and Nokia. Marvell will provide the chips needed to power the new 5G devices by both companies. The Finnish device maker is getting ready to release a line of 5G products, and has said that Marvells role will be to solve its 5G chip problems. And by locking in a 5G agreement with Samsung, one of the worlds largest smartphone makers, Marvell has secured its position against competitors. Market watchers describe Marvells Samsung and Nokia agreements as major wins. Guaranteeing major customers just ahead of their 5G device rollouts puts Marvell in a solid position in the semiconductor field. The news comes after the company beat its Q4 revenue and EPS forecasts; the combination of good news helps explain why, in the same time that the overall markets have dropped 17%, shares in MRVL has only slipped a net of 3.4%. 5-star Craig-Hallum analyst Christian Schwab points out that MRVLs forward guidance has already taken COVID-19 disruptions into account, and is rosy otherwise. He writes, The companys Q1 revenue guidance is ~5% lower than it would have been without any impact from the virus. Schwab also points out that the partnerships with Samsung and Nokia will propel Marvell for the long term: The company highlighted it has begun the ramp of Samsungs first generation 5G processor, won their next generation 5G baseband processor, and announced a deeper collaboration with the customer. Nokia also announced earlier yesterday a broadening relationship for the development of multiple generations of 5G infrastructure processors. 5G business with Nokia is expected to ramp largely in 2021. Schwabs $30 price target implies a 16% upside for the stock and backs up his Buy rating. (To watch Schwabs track record, click here) All in all MRVL shares have a Strong Buy from the analyst consensus, based on no fewer than 12 Buy ratings overbalancing 2 Holds and 1 Sell. Meanwhile, the $28.79 average price target suggests that there is room here for a 11% upside potential. (See Marvell stock analysis on TipRanks) To find good ideas for 5G stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights. Several aircraft tracking sites said the incident occurred in the eastern Mediterranean, not far from the Syrian coast. U.S. military officials have complained that a Russian fighter jet came dangerously close to a U.S. surveillance plane in the Mediterranean Sea, the second such encounter in four days in the region. In its statement on April 19, the U.S. Navy did not say where exactly the encounter occurred, only that it happened over international waters, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported. Several aircraft tracking sites said the incident occurred in the eastern Mediterranean, not far from the Syrian coast. Read alsoRussia committed war crimes in Syria UN report The Russian Su-35 fighter jet approached the P-8A plane twice on April 19, and during the second time, it came within 8 meters of the U.S. plane, the Navy said. "The second intercept was determined to be unsafe and unprofessional," it said. A similar encounter occurred in same vicinity on April 15, the Navy said. There was no immediate comment from the Russian Defense Ministry to the U.S. statement. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says New Zealand will begin to ease some lockdown measures next week, with some businesses and schools able to reopen, as well as local travel restrictions being relaxed. She insisted that the country keep restrictions for another week but maintained the country had stopped a wave of devastation. There have been 1,440 cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand and just 12 fatalities in total as of Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Ms Ardern said she is still able to receive a call concerning each death from the virus, with the country experiencing one of the lowest mortality rates in the world from the epidemic. The country appears to have been rewarded for its premature move towards lockdown on 25 March after just 150 cases and no fatalities. We have done what very few countries have been able to do. We have stopped a wave of devastation, the leader of the Labour Party said from the Beehive in Wellington. Our transmission rate, the number of cases each person with the virus passes it onto, is now 0.48, less than half a person each. Overseas the average is 2.5 people. We have amongst the lowest number of confirmed cases per 100,000 people in the world. Recommended Jacinda Ardern is showing world how to lead a country through a crisis All fatalities have been from elderly people with pre-existing health conditions, though there were nine new cases on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health. Nearly every case identified since April 1 is as a result of overseas travel or contact with someone with the virus, often in existing clusters, Ms Ardern added. Our testing has scaled up and we have now tested over 85,000 New Zealanders, one of the highest testing rates per capita in the world. Despite gaining progress in their elimination strategy, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, director-general of health, has urged the government to be extra safe and maintain a level four lockdown. But a downgrade to level three from next Monday is designed to appease others who are concerned by the economic ramifications of extending lockdown for too long. Next week's move will mean some businesses can to reopen but workers will not be able to physically interact with customers. Despite greater freedom to businesses, most will not experience a change to their daily social lives. The public will continue to be advised to remain at home apart from leaving to exercise or to acquire essential supplies. Though weddings, funerals and tangihanga [Maori funeral rites] will be able to take place at level three with no more than 10 people. A move to level two is on the horizon too, with the government set to put the decision to a vote on 11 May. Communities in New York, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco Receive Donations BOISE, Idaho, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Snake River Farms, a brand owned by Agri Beef Co, a family owned company headquartered in Boise, Idaho for over fifty years, has donated steaks in value of $8 million to medical workers on the front-line of COVID-19, displaced restaurant workers and affected communities. The donations are taking place in cities hard-hit by novel coronavirus including New York City, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco with approximately 200,000 steaks being distributed to recipients in these cities. At Snake River Farms we are a family business. From our ranchers to our distributor partners, we are all in this together, said Jay Theiler, Executive Director of Marketing at Snake River Farms. We are firm believers that in times of crisis, food can bring comfort and healing. We care deeply and are grateful to everyone on the front lines that are risking their own health for the sake of all of us, restaurant workers who have been displaced and our community members who are in need. The premium, American Wagyu steaks, known for their extensive marbling from cattle raised on family farms and ranches throughout the Pacific Northwest, have been expertly cut by skilled butchers and individually packed by Snake River Farms Food Service distributor partners, Prime Food Distributor Inc in New York City, Pacific Seafood in Seattle and Newport Meat, a Sysco Company in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. In New York, the Snake River Farms American Wagyu steaks are being delivered to Northwell Healths 23 hospitals to thank the front-line medical responders who have been leading the fight 24/7 in the battle against the novel coronavirus. The Emergency Medicine Service Line is grateful for the generous donation from Prime Food and Snake River Farms. Our teams are working hard in the emergency departments every day and every night because we believe in caring for our communities. To see that caring reciprocated is outstanding," said Dr. John DAngelo, Senior Vice President and Executive Director, Emergency Medicine Services at Northwell Health. Story continues In Seattle and in the California cities, Snake River Farms American Wagyu steaks are being delivered to benefit restaurant employees in both the front and the back of the house who have been particularly hard hit by the double impact of Covid-19 and the shuttering of restaurant establishments to protect from transmission. The steaks will be made available to this affected community through the generous support of local food banks and the collaboration of local labor organizations; Unite HERE Local 11 in LA, UNITE HERE Local 8 in Seattle, as well as the support of the Golden Gate Restaurant Association and its members in the Bay Area. Theres only one way well get through this crisis together, said Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles. Hospitality workers are making extraordinary sacrifices right now, and were grateful for the spirit of caring and community that Snake River Farms and Newport Meat are showing with this generous donation. About Snake River Farms / Agri Beef Co. Snake River Farms is a premium brand produced by Agri Beef Co., a family-owned business headquartered in Boise, ID for over fifty years. Their livestock are raised on ranches throughout the Northwest and their proprietary herd of American Wagyu cattle is highly regarded as one of the finest in the world. Snake River Farms is involved in every aspect of beef production with a focus on delivering the finest quality eating experience from ranch to table. Snake River Farms is featured on the menus of the finest restaurants and specialty retailers around the world and is also available to order on-line for home-delivery at www.snakeriverfarms.com. #snakeriverfarms, #thesrfexperience Melissa Delgadillo Snake River Farms 208.338.2625 Melissa.delgadillo@agribeef.com The weekend of March 21 and 22, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the Treasure State with force, and a rush of Montanans newly out of work started filing unemployment claims. To do so, they landed on montanaworks.gov. George Parisot, chief information officer with the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, described the crush of activity from Montanans on the website as certainly an unprecedented number of folks. More than 14,000 people applied for unemployment benefits that week in March, up 1,700% from the previous week and 1,917% more than the same week last year, according to the Associated Press. Initially, many ran into snags, slowdowns and unsuccessful attempts to sign up for benefits. For technology crews with both the Department of Labor and the State Information Technology Services Division, the weekend required all hands on deck. It meant scaling up the system to handle the increase in volume while transitioning staff to remote work at the same time. For those state employees on the job, the tasks at hand were directly connected to the well-being of Montana workers and their families relying on checks. Parisot said roughly 45 people work in the Technology Services Division in the Department of Labor, and 20 of them worked directly on the project to ramp up montanaworks.gov. It is a big responsibility, said Parisot, who has worked for the state of Montana for roughly 22 years. I couldnt tell you when the feeling this is really huge happened, but I think all of our staff realized that this is really important to the people of Montana to get these benefits out there as quickly as possible. Tim Bottenfield, chief information officer and division administrator for the State Information Technology Services Division, said the state was prepared to increase its capabilities in part because of the foresight of the Montana Legislature years ago, along with the vision of his predecessors and colleagues, such as Chief Technology Officer Matt Van Syckle. Lawmakers funded two data centers that came online roughly a decade ago, one in Helena and one in Miles City, he said, and state IT professionals kept them up to date so they could best support state agencies. Those data centers, even today 10 years later, are very state-of-the-art, Bottenfield said. *** Parisot, of Great Falls, said his experience as a veteran of the Army National Guard helped him approach the colossal project of bolstering Montanaworks.gov. You just work to solve one problem at a time and plan for the next problem coming down the road, and you work as a team. He said the team included people within his technology division along with leadership of the Department of Labor, Department of Administration and the Governors Office. That weekend in March, the web designers, software developers, tech architects, and other crew worked to figure out where capacity was at and how to quickly increase it to support what we saw was a large influx of claims. So we had to do a lot of analysis and understand what the impact is and what the volume is and really come up with a plan to ensure that things were stable, Parisot said. And we did have some issues that weekend just with the numbers of claimants. Out of the gate, they took steps to make changes to the system and rebuilt a portion of the website to ensure its stability, Parisot said. They identified specific features that were compromising the system and stripped the application down to really bare bones to make sure it would keep up with the large volume we were seeing. That weekend, many of the staff worked 24 or 36 hours straight to keep the application up and running and continually improve it, Parisot said. Were working even now to support and expand the capabilities of that system. Since that first weekend, the agency quadrupled the capacity of its web and application servers, he said. Theyre working to not only support the load but to ensure theres redundancy in the system. Thats critical when you build your infrastructure like that, Parisot said. Bottenfield said the data centers were able to support the increased need of both the Department of Labor and the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, the state agencies that required the most augmented capacity in responding to the pandemic. *** The work to modify Montanaworks.gov to accommodate the onslaught of new users took place under the constraints of social distancing, so the war room was a virtual one. We are obviously maintaining social distance and trying to figure out how to balance conference calls with being at home with home internet and having kids and dogs and cats on the call with you too, Parisot said. Bottenfields team helped people from all state departments transition to working out of the office. He said he was pleased at the agility of the division and its ability to be quickly responsive. We were pretty well prepared to support a quick transition to a remote workforce, Bottenfield said. We had several options for agencies to choose from in getting their staff connected to the tools that they would need to work from home. Ill emphasize here that we are fairly nimble and agile and have the ability to scale our service up or down rather quickly, so that was a big advantage for us. I think the biggest challenge for agencies was to determine which connectivity services were the best for their employees and making sure that they had the proper equipment to send them home with. In some cases, agencies did need to procure devices for employees to use at home. At this point, Bottenfield said employees seem to be getting comfortable working from home. At least for now, we have gotten to the point that this is our new normal, and were realizing that we can work this way and still provide great service and support to the citizens of Montana. From March 23 through April 1, the Department of Labor announced it had deposited 35,000 unemployment payments to Montanans; the following week, the agency deposited 24,000 checks. The department estimated it had processed a total of $7.8 million in just one week. Bottenfield said hes on conference calls with CIOs from other states, and many havent been able to act as quickly. He said its helpful to be a state with fewer employees who need to adjust, but also ones who are willing to work together. If we ran into a stumbling block with this piece of technology, there were so many great brains working on it together, Bottenfield said, and a solution would emerge. It was really cool to see that. But work remains to smooth out the website. In particular, Parisot and Bottenfield both said the phones have been overloaded, and state employees are trying to tweak the website so as many callers as possible can get their questions answered online. They also want the application process to be less arduous, especially for people who have never filed a claim before. Its not an easy process, and there needs to be some help there, Bottenfield said. And the support has real impacts on peoples lives, Parisot said. Its a little emotional, too, if you think about all the folks who are affected youre here to support, Parisot said. When we bring in contractors and other folks, we explain to them the criticality. We all understand. Its our neighbors, its our friends and family that might be affected. "Its important. This story appears in Vol. 1 Issue 2 of Missoula Business, a publication that reports on emerging trends and goes beyond the numbers to look at the insights and drive of the people leading Missoula forward. Find the second issue inserted in the Sunday print Missoulian and soon in the e-edition, and read the stories on Missoulian.com. Please sign up on Missoulian.com to subscribe to Under the M, the weekly email about the University of Montana and higher education news in Montana. 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. Allen N. Schwartz I am honored to receive these distinguished awards for my work in personal injury law. I consider it a privilege to represent those victims who have suffered due to the negligence of others. Schwartz commented. Super Lawyers recognizes attorneys across the United States who exhibit excellence in the field of law. This rating service acknowledges outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Best Lawyers highlights one lawyer in a specific location and practice area who received the highest number of votes from his or her peers in a given year. Allen began his legal career as an associate at William D. Maddux & Associates. Attorney Maddux became a Cook County Circuit Court Judge and Allen became an owner of Kralovec, Jambois & Schwartz, the successor firm to William D. Maddux & Associates. With a deep commitment to advocating for the rights of his clients, Allen has secured multi-million-dollar settlements in personal injury cases addressing medical negligence, automobile/truck litigation, workplace injury, and general negligence. His verdicts in DeKalb County (1993) and McHenry County (2001) set records for the largest verdicts ever obtained in those counties. I am honored to receive these distinguished awards for my work in personal injury law. I consider it a privilege to represent those victims who have suffered due to the negligence of others. Our firm strives to seek justice on their behalf and fight for their rights to compensation, Schwartz commented. Active in the legal community, Allen is a member of the American Bar Association (ABA), the Chicago Bar Association (CBA), the Illinois Bar Association (ISBA), the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA), and the American Association for Justice. In addition, he is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, a select fellowship for which attorneys must be privately nominated, vetted, and voted on before membership is approved. Allen earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois. He received his Juris Doctorate degree with Honors from Chicago-Kent College of Law. Allen has received many awards and accolades from his peers in the field of law, including the top-rated medical malpractice attorney by Super Lawyers; the top 5 percent of Illinois lawyers by Leading Lawyers; one of the Top Attorneys in Illinois by Chicago magazine, and one of the Leading Personal Injury Lawyers by Crains Chicago Business. About Schwartz Injury Law, a Division of Kralovec, Jambois & Schwartz The accomplished attorneys at Schwartz Injury Law, a division of Kralovec, Jambois & Schwartz, have aggressively represented injury victims and their families for more than 20 years, with over $2.5 billion in verdicts and settlements in the last five years alone. Their experienced staff of legal professionals exemplifies the skills needed for the different areas of personal injury law, including car accidents, product and premises liability, wrongful death, and nursing home abuse and neglect. They are dedicated to treating every client with the utmost integrity and respect while seeking justice on their behalf. To learn more about Schwartz Injury Law, a division of Kralovec, Jambois & Schwartz, visit https://www.schwartzinjurylaw.com/ or call 708-316-9640 to schedule a free consultation. Co Kerry is celebrating a 9.7m Lotto jackpot win - but Dubliners have a reason to check their tickets too. Three players, in Carlow, Dublin and Galway, will each win a share of 109,359 after falling one number short of the jackpot. A National Lottery spokesman said he expected the name of the winning store in the Kingdom to be revealed in a couple of days. "With a jackpot win of this amount, it's important we take some time to inform the winning retailer - and of course give the winning ticket holder the time and space they need to let this amazing win sink in," he said. "We encourage all Lotto players who purchased a ticket for Saturday's Lotto to check their tickets carefully. "If you're one of the lucky winners of any of Saturday night's big prizes, sign the back of the ticket and contact our claims team." Check Saturday night's winning Lotto numbers were 04, 09, 15, 27, 29, 34, with the bonus 17. Separately, residents of Walkinstown in South Dublin were urged to check their EuroMillions tickets after a Dubliner won Friday night's EuroMillions Plus top prize of 500,000. The winning ticket was sold on Friday at the SuperValu store in Walkinstown, Dublin 12. The winning EuroMillions Plus numbers, which are worth half a million euro to one lucky player, were 05, 08, 24, 30 and 35. While the 67m EuroMillions jackpot was won in the UK, there were two winners of the Match 5 prize of 16,606 in Tullyallen, Co Louth, and Tallaght. Malcolm Turnbull has claimed his bitter rival Tony Abbott's controversial chief-of-staff Peta Credlin 'owned' her former boss and ran Australia. The former prime minister has savaged his Liberal predecessor in a new tell-all book, and offered a series of character assessments on his allies. Mr Turnbull has suggested Ms Credlin dominated Mr Abbott during his two years as PM until September 2015, when he himself overthrew him in a leadership coup. 'You were really dealing with Peta and Peta was running the country and that was obvious, and dominating Abbott,' he told the ABC's 7.30 program. 'It was as though she felt, 'I've created you, you're my creation' and she felt she owned him. It was a truly bizarre relationship. 'Credlin and Abbott destroyed their own government due to their own follies and then set out to destroy mine.' Scroll down for video Malcolm Turnbull has claimed his bitter rival Tony Abbott's controversial chief-of-staff Peta Credlin (pictured in November 2019) 'owned' her former boss Ms Credlin, who served as an adviser to Mr Turnbull during his brief stint as Liberal Opposition Leader in 2008 and 2009, has described her other former boss as a 'reprehensible human being'. 'He has no moral compass,' she told Sydney radio 2GB broadcaster Ben Fordham last week. 'I've never met a more reprehensible human being.' In his new book, A Bigger Picture, Mr Turnbull said he had 'never known a leader more dominated by another than Abbott by Credlin'. 'The relationship was completely asymmetric, he worshipped and feared her and she on the other hand treated him with disdain,' he wrote. With Ms Credin now a Sky News and News Corp commentator, Mr Turnbull has sensationally claimed media moguls had conspired to dump him as PM in August 2018. The cabal included News Corp's 89-year-old executive chairman and founder Rupert Murdoch, whose titles include The Australian, Sydney's The Daily Telegraph and Melbourne's Herald Sun. He also included Sydney 2GB breakfast radio king Alan Jones, a former Liberal candidate whose views on national security, immigration and multiculturalism are aligned with the conservative side of the party. Had he remained as PM in 2018, Mr Turnbull alleged they would have conspired with right-wing Liberals in an attempt to deliberately lose the 2019 election - so Tony Abbott could lead the Coalition to victory in 2022 from Opposition. 'Now, just describing that sounds unhinged, doesn't it?' Mr Turnbull told 7.30. Mr Turnbull has suggested Ms Credlin dominated Mr Abbott during his two years as PM until September 2015 (when they are pictured), until he himself overthrew him in a leadership coup 'But that was Abbott's agenda and as Rupert acknowledged to me, it had the support of one of his most senior and most influential editorial executives and I think it went a lot further than that. 'So it was crazed and it was part of Alan Jones's agenda. I mean, they tried to foment a coup at the end of 2017.' Mr Turnbull overthrew Mr Abbott as a first-term PM in September 2015. He also claimed Murdoch shopped the plan out to Seven Network majority owner Kerry Stokes to have Mr Abbott replace him again as leader after he narrowly won the 2016 election with a reduced majority. 'Look at what Rupert Murdoch said to Kerry Stokes. ''We've got to get rid of Malcolm ...Three years of Labor wouldn't be so bad'',' Mr Turnbull said. 'The one thing those plutocrats knew, the billionaire proprietors knew, was that I did not belong to them ... They wanted to have, again, a prime minister who they felt they had some control over, they had an ownership of, and they wanted to feel as they had done with Abbott - that they were in charge.' Tony Abbott (left) talking to Malcolm Turnbull in 2009 when they were in opposition together. Mr Abbott was ousted from the Prime Ministership by Mr Turnbull in 2015. Mr Turnbull in turn lost the Prime Ministership in 2018 and immediately resigned his seat In the Coalition, Mr Turnbull blamed right-wing power broker Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, who launched two failed leadership bids in August 2018 within the same week. He also blamed Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, who he had regarded as a confidante until he backed Mr Dutton's leadership tilt. As prime minister, Mr Turnbull backed same-sex marriage and policies to tackle climate change, to the chagrin of conservatives within his party. He is suggested right-wing Liberals and conservative media would have preferred former Labor leader Bill Shorten to have won the 2019 election instead of him. 'They would have preferred Bill Shorten to be prime minister than me,' he said. 'A Liberal Party that they could not control was not a Liberal Party they wanted to have. It was - it is all about raw power, I'm afraid.' Malcolm Turnbull (left) in August 2018 when he was still prime minister, with then treasurer Scott Morrison (right) He told 7.30 that although he knew the party had become very factionalised and 'tribal', that he had tried to work with everyone despite being warned to trust no-one. With everybody telling him not to trust everybody else, the former prime minister said it would have been easy to become lost in a sea of paranoia. 'I was determined to look past that,' he said. The former investment banker and journalist said when the 'coup' occurred it was not because he was so unpopular as a leader that the Coalition thought they would lose the election. Nonetheless, Mr Turnbull had lost 30 Newspolls in a row by the time he quit in August 2018, failing a test he had set Mr Abbott three years earlier when he challenged him. 'They overthrew my government and overthrew my prime ministership not because they thought I'd lose an election but because they thought I would win it,' he said. Mr Turnbull said his political enemies hatched a plot to remove him from power, let the Coalition lose the 2019 election and suffer in Opposition so Tony Abbott could be returned to power in 2022 as Prime Minister once again 'Murdoch acknowledges that one of his senior executives was part of the Abbott plan to bring down the government with the goal of sending us into opposition so that Abbott could come back as leader after the election and bring the party back to victory in 2022.' Mr Turnbull, a Liberal moderate, resigned as PM in 2018 and was replaced by his preferred successor Scott Morrison, a socially-conservative Pentecostal Christian who was backed into the leadership by the party's moderate and centre-right factions. Government MPs had hoped Mr Morrison, who was treasurer under Mr Turnbull, would be able to end deep Liberal Party divisions sparked by Mr Abbott's overthrow in 2015 and Mr Turnbull's earlier downfall in 2009 over emissions trading policies. An embittered Mr Turnbull resigned from his Sydney eastern suburbs seat of Wentworth after losing the top job. This destroyed the Coalition's one-seat majority and left his colleagues in minority government until the May 2019 election returned them to power for a third, consecutive term with a narrow, three-seat majority. OnePlus finally revealed the India pricing of the OnePlus 8 Series and it's good news for every OnePlus fan in India right now. Last week, we speculated that the company would be launching their smartphones in India at a cheaper price by taking cues from its China pricing. However, OnePlus has managed to launch the two smartphones at even cheaper prices in India, showing the companys commitment to the Indian smartphone market. While this move was highly unanticipated, it far exceeded our expectations and probably every OnePlus fan's as well. OnePlus Normally, the Indian pricing of any smartphone is a bit higher than its price in China, however, lately weve been seeing companies pricing their products lower than their Chinese counterparts. This is partly because companies have been assembling their phones in India, allowing them to offer an attractive price for their customers. Youtube_Karl Conrad The OnePlus 8 starts in India at Rs 41,999 while the starting price of the smartphone in China is around Rs 43,160. Similarly, the OnePlus 8 Pro in India starts at Rs 54,999 while it costs considerably more in China for the same model. This couldnt have been possible without OnePlus localising the production of the smartphone in India and the fact that India is the companys most important market when it comes to revenues. India accounts for over 33% of OnePlus global sales and it only seems to be growing with each launch every year. BCCL Both the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro are powered by Qualcomms Snapdragon 865 chipset while the Pro variant comes with new features such as wireless charging and an IP rating. Both smartphones have support for HDR10/10+ content and have multiple camera setups with slight differences. Every single specification and feature of the two smartphones can be found here. Both smartphones are expected to be available for purchase in India soon, however the availability depends on the CVOID-19 lockdown situation. Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday interacted with principals of over 300 private schools through video-conference and discussed teaching strategies to be adopted during online classes. "Considering the unusual times we all are going through, students should not suffer. We need to take utmost care while dealing with this issue. So let the students attend the online classes even if their parents are unable to pay their fees," Sisodia said. During the discussion that went on for over an hour, the principals shared their strategies of supporting studies using online devices. "Our focus has been not only to help the kids cope with this current situation, but also to support parents to engage with their children. We have send a daily exercise or activity through SMS and IVR to parents' phones for students of classes Nursery to 8," said Shailendra Sharma, the advisor to the director. "These activities guide parents to get involved with their kids and support the learning like a teacher. To build on this, and to bring the family closer in this tumultuous situation where all of us are confined to our homes, we launched Happiness Classes to be conducted by our trained teachers which is streamed online everyday at 4 pm. The idea behind all this effort is to help every home become a school, and every parent taking on the role of a teacher," he added. According to Tagore International School Principal Nikita Mann, "We are concerned about the EWS students and we are delighted to inform you that we are able to bring 100 per cent of the EWS students on board for online classes. Focus for primary classes is on taking numeracy and literacy instead of homework". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) To say this pandemic poses a threat of serious losses to the Petroleum Industry worldwide might not adequately capture the sheer numeric magnitude of the shortfall for this particular industry. We are talking about an industry where small change is spoken about in the billions so youd have to imagine what happens when the price per barrel of crude oil keeps plummeting past 20%. And thats about all I can speculate with this because the signs are daunting in this respect and I had to put in some 2 cents on this column this time through Peter Yamborigya, Director of Acquisitions & Partnerships at Maxwell Investments Group. He is also the Country Manager for the Africa Centre for Energy Research & Economic Intelligence (ACEREI) and an Adjunct Lecturer at the British College for Technology and Commerce (BCTC). SHELL has declared force majeure on its exportation of crude oil from Nigerias Forcados terminal. After weeks of writing on the novel coronavirus and how it relates to Force Majeure and Commercial Impracticability, Peter and I started talking, as we have during this lockdown period. Conversations with Peter during this lockdown period have centred around petroleum and power projects, energy policy implementations, development economics and its applications. Enjoy the read! The Coronavirus also known as COVID-19 has brought about untold difficulties to individuals, governments and private organizations across the globe. In the wake of this pandemic, there has been stricter travel restrictions affecting many businesses and operations. The global oil and gas industry is among the hardest hit amidst the growing uneasiness the world currently finds itself. On top of all this is the impact on the prices of crude oil which has seen a historic downward trajectory never before experienced. Price volatility has always been a challenging element of the oil and gas market but has rarely been more extreme than it is today. COVID19-led disruptions to demand, combined with its dramatic impact on financial markets worldwide, have led to rampant price swings. Social distancing, combined with partial to full lockdowns, have also impacted the lives of workers requiring some dramatic adjustments. Safe work systems also have changed quickly in response to the pandemic, requiring companies to find new ways to safeguard their staff and families. Many participants in the oil and gas industry have seen sales and revenue projections crash, this time due to the upset of demand associated with COVID-19 and the ever-geopolitical war in prices between Russia and Saudi Arabia. As to what path lies ahead for the industry in the coming months and years, it would be up to the individual organizations resilience and government support systems within their respective jurisdictions. In this article, a cursory look is dipped deeper into the various sections within the industry to understand what is happening currently and thought on how they could get out of it. As Maxwell Ampong is very fond of saying, these are all facts and this is an opinion piece. OPERATIONAL DISRUPTION AND SUPPLY CHAIN RISK The crux of the oil and gas industry is largely the effectiveness of its supply chain network which connects the dots from production to the final consumer. As much as oil and gas activities are generally considered essential activities by governments and have been mostly exempt from the lockdown measures, it is not completely isolated from the consequences of these restrictions. Continued operations will likely become increasingly difficult due to workforce shortages as employees are infected by the coronavirus and the practical difficulties in many cases of social distancing and movement restrictions. Companies therefore are preparing to or already are operating with skeleton crews to continue operations. This is currently offsetting and disrupting planned maintenance, inspection, repair and replacement of equipment and drilling activities. For this period, companies would also have to look at third-party contractors who work on-site and structure an alignment of operational activities with COVID-19 policies. One has to even stomach the prospect of sealing off oil wells as a result of the reduced number of personnel on drilling rigs falling below the level required by health and safety regulations and the reasonable and prudent operator standards. Speaking of supply chain disruptions, thought beyond the initial supplier in the supply chain will be required to identify who in the chain has which level of the supply chain risks at play here, as disruption among second-tier and third-tier suppliers could ultimately affect both service companies and operators. UNEMPLOYMENT DUE TO ACTIVATION OF FORCE MAJEURE CLAUSES The Covid-19 currently shows no end in sight, but there is definitely an end to all this. Still, as the situation deteriorates, many industry participants are reaching for the force majeure (FM) provisions in their key contracts to excuse failure to perform or to exit. Whilst these are typically designed to cover a situation where contractual performance is impossible, difficult or onerous to perform as a result of exceptional events outside either party's control (for example a global pandemic), relying on an FM clause is very heavily dependent on the factual circumstances and the drafting of the specific clause. The choice of the contract's governing law will also influence the availability of FM and similar reliefs including possible change of law relief. Depending on the situation, there are also likely to be several steps that a party seeking to claim FM should take in order to maximize its chances of success, for example: identify the specific measures (as opposed to coronavirus in general) and evidence the actual impact these measures have had on it; mitigate the impact of such measures; and submit the contractually required notices on time. The end game however is that some workers are going to made redundant or dismissed for no activity. This could ultimately balloon the unemployment basket. As instability and uncertainty increase, so will the number and types of disputes due to businesses becoming unable (or unwilling) to perform existing contractual obligations. COUNTERPARTY CREDIT MEASURE OUTLOOK As the pandemic season continues, the industry must brace itself for a renewed focus on credit risk associated with counterparties as financial stress flows through the sector. This suggests that an extension of payment terms and innovative financing structures, which leverage on stronger balance sheets and help sustain weak counterparties while mitigating creditors' risk, may again become prominent. GOVERNMENT INTERVENTIONS AND SUPPORT MEASURES For the fact that some sections of society cannot function without the energy from oil and gas it solely relies on, it has become necessary for governments to intervene in order to ensure continued supply. As energy supply is generally considered a matter of national interest, measures are increasingly being implemented at a national level to provide some relief to the local oil and gas industry from the adverse impact of COVID-19. Some countries have already activated measures taken to date to ameliorate the impact of the pandemic. Example of producing countries already implementing one measure or the other include Angola, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Indonesia, Mexico, Mozambique, Norway, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and the US. The COVID-19 pandemic is shattering long-held assumptions about the global economic and political order, with a clear shift towards increased direct government involvement in local economies and an increased risk of nationalization worldwide. BORROWING BASE FINANCING FACILITIES The fall in the oil price will put many upstream producers into default under their borrowing base facilities at the next borrowing base redetermination. Producers may be sheltered from the risk of payment default for as long as any commodity price hedges remain in place and are in the money. This implies lenders will have to decide whether to either: (1) waive the default (typically as part of a debt restructuring on the basis of "amend and extend"); or (2) enforce their security rights. In light of the 2014/15 price slump, given the practical difficulties and risks associated with enforcement, it is expected that lenders would opt for the former in most circumstances. Banks worldwide have strengthened their balance sheets significantly since the 2008 financial crisis and our Banking Sector here in Ghana recently went through a thorough overhaul that saw to them recapitalizing. All these gives the Banks more scope and ability to support borrowers through this period. Conversely, those banks looking to reduce their exposure to the resources sector, in response to the emergency and the energy transition, may look hard for an exit from distressed loans. DISTRESSED MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS Consolidation through the acquisition of distressed assets is a textbook response to slumps in the industry; and some did it successfully following the 2014/15 price fall. Given the speed, scale and volatility of the crisis, it is premature to gauge the buy side interest. In many countries, governments have tightened their oversight of foreign investment rules to protect vulnerable domestic companies laid low by the crisis. Foreign acquirers will need to navigate these new rules. Likewise, acquirers should consider whether any government support received by the target comes with conditions that impede any planned post-merger restructuring and integration. As always, understanding the existing debt package and anticipating/negotiating the lender reaction to a new (solvent) buyer will be important, and the absence of contractual protections under the acquisition agreement will need to be borne in mind. Finally, given the practical difficulties of due diligence in the coming months, we wonder whether any buyers will prefer assets they already know and in any countries which they assess as being at lower risk of any unforeseen second wave of COVID-19. IMPACT ON ENERGY TRANSITION It is hard to measure the effect this oil price crash and COVID-19 has and will have on the delivery of governments' decarbonization agendas. The International Energy Agency, EU leaders and various asset managers have all reaffirmed their commitments in different ways to the energy transition. News is also expected from the European Commission over the coming days. This would help clear the way forward to how the industry will look like in the coming months, if not years. Hit me up on social media and lets keep the conversation going! I read all the feedback you send me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Go to bit.ly/maxwrites to read all my previous articles. Also, feel free to send me your articles on relevant topics for publication on the Macroeconomic Bulletin. Id give you full credit, an intro, and an outro. Kindly make it about 1000 words. Have a lovely week! Maxwell Ampong is the CEO of Maxwell Investments Group, a Trading and Business Solutions provider. He is also the Business Advisor for the General Agricultural Workers Union of TUC (Gh). He writes about trending and relevant economic topics, and general perspective pieces. LinkedIn:/in/thisisthemax Instagram:@thisisthemax Twitter:@thisisthemax Facebook:@thisisthemax Website: www.maxwellinvestmentsgroup.com Email: [email protected] Mobile: 0249993319 Parts of the Houston area were hit hard by hailstorms over the weekend, and that can leave lasting damage for roofs and homes. Luisa Aparicio is a real estate agent who lives in Katy and had hail damage in 2016. When her house received quarter-sized hail on Saturday, April 18, she quickly went into action and called a roofer. There was damage, and now things will go through her homeowners insurance to agree on what needs to be fixed and covered. Aparicio said thats why the insurance is there, and getting things checked out is best for peoples homes if they have seen hail. Prime Property: Get Houston real estate news sent directly to your inbox I strongly suggest you get your roofs inspected. It could cost you in the long run, said Aparicio in a Facebook post. If you had hail on your property, consider reaching out to a reputable roofer to inspect for damage, Carlos Hinojosa, project manager with Logans Roofing & Exteriors, said. So, what our company does is we provide free roof inspections, and then we assist the homeowner through navigating through the insurance claim process, said Hinojosa. The next steps would be calling the insurance company to tell them there was property loss, the date it happened and then to schedule an appointment with an adjuster. Hinojosa and the adjuster would then get on the roof to assess the damage together. He said they would also check around the property for other property losses, like on gutters, windows, fencing and swing sets. While all of those affected items are typically covered, Hinojosa said it depends on the language of each policy. Breaking News: Get email alerts from Chron.com sent directly to your inbox He explained that making sure a roof has no damage after a hailstorm is critical and that for many people, a roof is an afterthought. You know, you come inside your house, and everything is where its supposed to be, right? And everything looks good, and you take it for granted, he said. Well, the most important structure that you have in your house that is protecting not only you and your family, but your possessions, is your roof. He said as hail hits shingles, it can impact the aggregate (rocky material). Then, the asphalt-type material, can begin to deteriorate, which exposes the layers below. The Texas heat bakes the roof and begins to degrade the shingles, Hinojosa said. They start small, right? But you know how Texas is: we get this crazy weather. Water will find a way in your roof. And then youll have a drip. Youll probably never see it, he said and added it can slowly impact insulation, rafters and then Sheetrock, parts that are not inexpensive to repair. Morning Report: Get the top stories on HoustonChronicle.com sent directly to your inbox Like many roofers, Logans offers free inspections, where someone will come to a home, get up on the roof and check things out. If there is damage, they can help to file a claim. To submit the claim, there will be a contract where the homeowner agrees to use them for all repairs. Logans is based in Missouri City, where it has been operating for nine years. It serves the Katy and Fort Bend County areas. For more information, visit www.logansroofing.com or call 832-440-0278. tracy.maness@hcnonline.com The Bombay High Court on Monday refused to grant any interim relief in a plea filed by a BJP worker challenging the decision of the Maharashtra cabinet recommending Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's name for nomination to the state Legislative Assembly. Justice S J Kathawalla was hearing a petition filed by BJP worker Ramkrishna Pillay challenging the April 9 decision, claiming the cabinet meeting was illegally and unauthorisedly convened. Pillay sought that the recommendation be quashed and set aside. Thackeray, who is not an MLA or MLC, was sworn in as chief minister on November 28 last year, and must become a member of the State Legislature before May 28. The Maharashtra cabinet had, on April 9, recommended Thackeray's name for one of the Governor nominee seats in the Legislative Council. The recommendation was made as all polls had been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak and the resultant lockdown. Justice Kathawalla, however, noted the petition was premature and that the governor had the power to take a decision on the recommendation. The court refused to grant any relief and posted the petition for further hearing in May. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address last week, states across the country will partially lift curbs on coronavirus lockdown from today. However, some states like Delhi, Punjab, Telangana and Karnataka have decided not to ease the lockdown restrictions until May 3. On Sunday, Telangana became the first state to extend the lockdown till May 7. With partial ease in lockdown restrictions across the country, are eateries operational in certain areas? In its revised guidelines on activities and operations exempted during the lockdown period from April 20, the Ministry of Home Affairs had said that dhabas (eating joints) along the highways will be allowed to operate from April 20 with a stipulated minimum distance. The MHA said that bars and restaurants across the country will remain shut until the lockdown ends on May 3. The Kerala government, however, announced that hotels and eateries will be operational in 10 of its 14 districts from Monday - a move the Centre has objected to. The government has eased restrictions for districts falling in orange and green zones. The easing of curbs will not apply to four districts that fall in the red zone - Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode and Malappuram. Restaurants in Keralas orange and zone will remain functional till 7pm with social distancing norms in observance. People will have to keep it in mind it is a temporary arrangement so we expect responsible behaviour. We advise people to come out if it is necessary only, said state director general of police Loknath Behra. E-commerce platforms across the country are allowed to sell essential commodities such as food, pharmaceutical and medical devices during the lockdown, the MHA said last week. Food delivery options will be available in non coronavirus affected areas during the lockdown. Telangana, however, has announced that food delivery mobile applications will not be allowed to operate in the state from today. Korea's car exports are expected to drop by up to half this month as the world economy is being ravaged by the coronavirus epidemic. The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association questioned five domestic carmakers on Sunday and found that they expect to export only 126,589 cars in April, down 43 percent from 222,337 cars a year ago. Hyundai has shut down all its dealerships in five major European markets including Germany and Italy, in India and in Mexico. New Delhi: The newly formed Congress consultative committee, headed by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, met for the first time on Monday and discussed the revival of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, smooth crop procurement and the issue of stranded migrant labourers due to the nationwide lockdown to contain the deadly coronavirus. After the meeting, the opposition party reiterated its demand for immediate direct cash transfer of Rs 7500 in all Jan Dhan, pension and the PM-Kisan scheme accounts to enable the poor and the needy to sustain themselves during the lockdown period. Giving details of the meeting, former union minister Jairam Ramesh said the Congress panel will prepare a detailed plan for revival of MSME together with steps to ensure smooth crop procurement of wheat, mustard and gram besides resolving the pressing issue of stranded migrant workers and submit it to the central government in a day or two. Congress president Sonia Gandhi had on Saturday formed the consultative committee under the chairmanship of the former Prime Minister to deliberate on current matters, including those related to the Covid-19 outbreak, and formulate the partys views on various issues. The 11-member group also comprises former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, partys chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala, general secretary in-charge organisation KC Venugopal and former union ministers P Chidambaram, Manish Tewari and Jairam Ramesh. The other members of the group are technology and data cell chairman Praveen Chakravarty, spokespersons Gaurav Vallabh and Supriya Shrinate, apart from social media department head Rohan Gupta. Ramesh said the panel will meet every other day to discuss the important issues faced by the country due to the pandemic. We have worked out a very concrete MSME revival package which we will submit to the central government in a day or two, Ramesh said, addressing a news conference through video conferencing. He said both the former Prime Minister and Rahul Gandhi insisted that absolute priority be given to the MSME sector, which has social and economic importance and is the second largest employer after agriculture. Ramesh said the Congress will also make positive recommendations to the government to ensure smooth crop procurement and resolution of the problems of the stranded migrant workers. He said the party once again urged the government to submit through direct benefit transfers Rs 7500 in all Jan Dhan accounts, all pension accounts of the elderly, differently abled and widows, and also those under the PM-Kisan scheme. I am sure a compassionate and a responsible government can find funds to provide for the vulnerable, he said when asked if the country had funds of this nature to spare. It is the matter of priorities. It is absolutely essential for the survival of tens and thousands of people who need immediate assistance to tide over the crisis, added Ramesh. He said the Congress will keep giving constructive suggestions to the government and hope it will take those positively. Rahul Gandhi too had also advocated constructive support to the government in his press conference last week. We need to work with the government in these difficult times with a positive mindset. We are extending our hand for constructive cooperation and hope the government will come down from its pedestal and accept our positive suggestions. We are giving these suggestions on behalf of the people of India, Ramesh said. The panel in its next meeting will discuss the lockdown exit strategy after May 3 and steps beneficial for the migrants, students and farmers. Ramesh also alleged that the Centre was busy destabilising the Madhya Pradesh government and was caught napping in preparation for managing the Covid-19 pandemic as a result of which the action got delayed. The government did not act on time while dealing with the crisis and was busy in toppling the government in Madhya Pradesh. The government only woke up on March 23 but this is no time to play politics, he said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON COVID-19 makes life harder for hundreds of thousands of Africas persecuted Christians Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment As the COVID-19 outbreak begins in sub-Saharan Africa, hundreds of thousands of Christian believers, who are already persecuted for their faith, are now also bearing the brunt of the restrictions being imposed in the region to fight the pandemic, according to Open Doors USA. Persecuted for their decision to follow Jesus, believers in four of the five most virus-vulnerable countries in the region are now doubly vulnerable to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, says Open Doors in a report. The Christian ministrys World Watch Research data indicates a direct correlation between the countries in sub-Saharan Africa that are most vulnerable to the virus and the countries where Christians face the most pressure for following Jesus, referring to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Sudan and Cameroon. The pandemic gives way to even more ways believers can be discriminated against, exploited and attacked for their faith, it explains. Citing one example, the report says that after a 22-year-old believer, Yohannes (not his real name) from Ethiopias Tigray region put his faith in Christ, he was abandoned by his Muslim family, as they saw his decision as a betrayal to their family and tribe, as well as by the community. Yohannes found refuge with other believers. Now under government-imposed coronavirus restrictions, life has changed once again for Yohannes. His struggle to live has become that much more difficult. Because his own family has turned their backs on him and the Christians he knows are now living hand-to-mouth due to not being able to work, Yohannes is struggling to find enough food to eat, the ministry shares. The situation is similar in northern Nigeria. We are facing persecution because of our faith and we are also facing a global pandemic, a local Christian minister, the Rev. John Joseph Hayab, is quoted as saying. We run away from our persecution or we run away from the global sickness that we are facing. We have a double problem. Open Doors director for West Africa, identified only as Suleiman, said hes receiving constant requests for food and other vital support from overcrowded camps for internally displaced persons those displaced by attacks from Islamic radical groups like Boko Haram, ISIS, Fulani militants and the Allied Democratic Forces across the region. In some Shariah-governed areas, the government is discriminating against Christians, the report reveals. Believers from towns in northern Nigerias Kaduna State, including Ungwan Boro, Sabon Tasha, Barnawa and Naraye, report they get six times smaller rations from the state than Muslim families, Open Doors notes. In the midst of this coronavirus challenges and situation, the attacks on Christians have not stopped, Suleiman said. In Somalia, Uganda and Niger, extremists are exploiting the opportunity to blame Christians for causing the pandemic, according to the report. However, persecuted and vulnerable believers continue to hold on to their faith. As Rev. Hayab said, But in all this, we still come back to remember the Word of Jesus: Be ye of good cheers, for I have overcome the world. But He didnt start with that; He says: In this world, you will have many troubles. This is another additional trouble we are facing. MANILA, Philippines The Philippine National Police (PNP) expressed grief over the loss of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in an encounter between the military and elements of the Abu Sayyaf Group on Friday (April 17). The Officers, men and women of the Philippine National Police, under the command of PGen. Archie Francisco F. Gamboa, join the Filipino nation in mourning over the loss of 11 of our brothers in arms in the Armed Forces of the Philippines who offered the ultimate sacrifice in an encounter with terrorists in Sulu yesterday, says a statement it released on Saturday through its spokesperson, PBGen. Bernard M Banac. The countrys police force believes that the soldiers did not die in vain -the cause they are fighting for is the lifelong commitment of all men and women in uniform who derive inspiration from the heroism of our fallen brothers to bring on the fight against the enemies of the state, Banac said. The official added that the PNP is extending every possible support and assistance that it can give to comfort the families of the fallen soldiers and to provide care for the wounded. Even as the entire government is preoccupied with response operations to address the health crisis, state security forces will continue to perform the duty to keep the country safe from terrorism and lawlessness, Banac concluded. mbmf The post PNP mourns over AFPs loss in Sulu encounter appeared first on UNTV News. After announcing their exit as senior working members of the British royal family, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry stunned the world by settling in Los Angeles, California. Much of the Sussexes desire to leave the royal family was due to their lack of privacy. The pair felt that they were living in a fishbowl under the spotlight of the public and press. In Los Angeles, the duchess hometown, the pair are seeking to launch their new Archewell foundation while finding new projects with their powerhouse Hollywood team. The pair have hired Nick Collins of the Gersh Agency. Collins is responsible for taking care of film, TV, and charity offers. The Sussexes have also hired, Andrew Meyer, who runs Freemark Financial for their business plan and lawyer Rick Genow. PR agency Sunshine Sachs will be handling the couples PR. Despite the access, Hollywood is a world away from the U.K. and even from the couples favorite holiday location, Vancouver Island in Canada. In fact, sources are now saying, it took some time for the duchess to convince her husband to make the move to LA. Moving to Los Angeles has been challenging for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Though the Sussexes had landed on LA shortly after their final royal engagement in early March 2020, no one could have anticipated the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As a result, the couple along with the 11-month old son, Archie Harrison, had to flee Canada in a hurry to move to LA. Due to self-quarantining and isolation, the duchess hasnt even able to see her mother, Doria Ragland even though she doesnt live far from them now. For the dukes part, being away from his family during this challenging time has also been mentally straining. Harry absolutely loved life in Canada and has made no secret of how much he misses life there, a royal insider told Express. The time that he spent there with Meghan and Archie is probably the happiest he has ever been. Harry misses the pace of life there and the fact they were living in a really secluded place where they could be themselves, relax and enjoy life. The biggest issue really has been the timing. Moving at the moment is incredibly difficult. Harry and Meghan have uprooted their life and have been unable to properly immerse themselves into LA life and get settled. Harry is hoping that once the lockdown is lifted things will be a lot easier and they will fall into step with the pace of life there. Hopefully, with the ban lifts, the pair can begin truly forming their new life. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have a plan to combat the paparazzi and tabloids Obviously, the paparazzi are a huge issue in LA, especially for celebrities as high-profile as the Sussexes. However, the pair are already proving that they wont be adapting the stiff upper lip policy of the royal family in their new life. The couple recently issued an intense letter to four British tabloids, The Sun, Daily Mail, Mirror, and Express. They have said that they will receive zero engagement from the Sussexes unless it through their lawyers. It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print even when they know it will be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason, the Sussexes letter read in part. When power is enjoyed without responsibility, the trust we all place in this much-needed industry is degraded. Additionally, the Sussexes current rented LA mansion is paparazzi proof. The $10 million mansion located in a gated community. They have tried to make life as comfortable as possible in their rented house, and have found a wonderful complex away from prying eyes, an insider told The Sun. It is accessible through two guarded checkpoints, and prides itself on being paparazzi-proof. Meghan Markle had to convince Prince Harry to move to Los Angeles Though Prince Harry has said he ultimately made the final choice to leave the royal family, it was the duchess who reportedly convinced him to move to LA. TMZ is reporting that Meghan was the driving force. In addition to their forthcoming Archewell foundation, the couple is reportedly working with Oprah Winfrey on a docuseries. For now, the pair have focused on COVID-19 efforts including volunteering with Project Angel Food in LA and donating 90,000 ($112,000) to Feeding Britain. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. Editors Note: In the current issue of National Review, Jay Nordlinger reviews Lord of All the Dead: A Nonfiction Novel, by Javier Cercas, in a translation by Anne McLean. Below is an expanded version of the review. This is one of the strangest books Ive ever read. And its strange that I picked it up in the first place. In my business, publicists send you books, and, a few months ago, a publicist sent me two by Javier Cercas. I had never heard of him. Come to find out, he is a big figure in his country, Spain, and prominent in the rest of the Spanish-speaking world, too. Cercas is a novelist, journalist, and professor of literature. (Born in 1962.) He has taught not only in Spain, but also at St Annes College, Oxford. One of the books sent to me by the publicist was Soldiers of Salamis, a novel published in 2001. (Huge seller.) The second was the one Im now writing about, Lord of All the Dead, published in 2017. It is newly available in an English translation by Anne McLean translator of the Spanish stars of our time. Both of these books deal with the Spanish Civil War. And there was my problem. I have nothing against the Spanish Civil War (so to speak). But I had read and heard enough about it. I have even written a little about it, in books and articles. In 2015, I reviewed the big Franco biography by Stanley G. Payne (that outstanding American historian of Spain) and Jesus Palacios. There is a chapter about Franco and his daughter, Carmen, in my book about the sons and daughters of dictators. There is so much to learn about or even to be faintly acquainted with in this crowded world. Again, no offense, but my feeling on glancing at the Cercas books was, If I never hear another word about Republicans, Nationalists, Franco, the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, Cara al sol, and all that, it will be too soon. Amen. And yet, the blurbs. Even accounting for the hyperbole of blurbs, the ones for Cercas were . . . shocking. Praise gushed from the lips of Mario Vargas Llosa. I have not heard praise gush too often from the lips of that particular genius. So, in corona-isolation, I picked up Lord of All the Dead, thinking I would read a page or two. Story continues I couldnt put the book down. What the hell is this book? The author calls it in his very subtitle a nonfiction novel. I think this is maybe the only thing he gets wrong. I dont see it. From what I can tell, the book is a biography, an autobiography, a history even a journal, to a degree. I think its one mans wrestlings with his family, himself, and his country. But the word wrestlings sounds boring. All we need, another writer, self-absorbed, working out his issues on the page. Lord of All the Dead is anything but boring. It is also unlike anything else: strangely original. The authors family has a hero: his mothers uncle, Manuel Mena, who died in the war at age 19. This Manuel was a golden boy, and then cut down. Cercas grew up hearing about Manuel Mena, especially from his mother. But for Cercas and some other family members, there was a wrinkle: Manuel had died on the Nationalist side. Cercas is a man of the Left (though not the illiberal Left). One day, he was talking to his friend David Trueba, a writer and filmmaker. In fact, Trueba made a movie out of that Cercas novel, Soldiers of Salamis. On this day, they were talking about Manuel Mena, the subject that clung to Cercas. Trueba said to him, I now understand that in Soldiers of Salamis you invented a Republican hero to hide the fact that your familys hero was a Francoist. Cercas answered, a touch defensively, More like a Falangist. Cercas did not want to write a Manuel Mena book. He was as reluctant to write it as I was to read it. Frankly, I think he was sick of the Spanish Civil War, too (with greater reason than I had). Also, how could he face his mother, Manuel Menas loving niece? What if, in researching his book, he discovered things that were not very nice? And if he wrote them? His mother very much wanted him to write the Manuel Mena book. She couldnt understand why he hadnt already. He said to her, And what if you dont like what you read? She answered, with a twinkle in her eye, Youre now trying to say that you write books so that Ill like them? Talk about shutting the barn door after the horses have fled! One of the beauties of this book is the authors relationship with his mother. You need some of that, for relief from the hell of war, for example. Reading about Javi and his mom, I thought of Jeb Bush, who once said something charming and completely relatable. To the press, his famous, and famously blunt, mother said something embarrassing to Jeb who shrugged, Everyone has a mother. When you write about the Spanish Civil War, you walk through a minefield, especially if youre Spanish. David Trueba said to his friend Cercas, Are you really going to write another novel about the Civil War? Are you really such a d***head? . . . Whatever you write, some will attack you for idealizing the Republicans, for not denouncing their crimes, and others will accuse you of revisionism or of massaging Francoism to present Francoists as normal, everyday people and not as monsters. Thats how it is: Nobody is interested in the truth. Havent you realized that? For my money and I dont pretend to be an expert Cercas is a little soft on the Left on the Republicans in Lord of All the Dead. I am a Payne guy. But I can tell you, for sure, that Cercas is more a man of letters than he is a man of the Left. More words from David Trueba, directed to his friend: If you start worrying about your literary career, what suits or doesnt suit your literary career, what critics are going to say and stuff like that, youre dead, man. Worry about writing and forget the rest. Lord of All the Dead is about many things, including being a writer. It takes a certain courage to be a writer a real writer. Anyone can be a less than real one, trimming his sails, tacking and jibing, pleasing the crowd (or his colleagues), making sure to be where he needs to be. Cercas begins his book with an epigraph, a chestnut from Horace: Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori How sweet and honorable it is to die for ones country. I can almost hear Patton say, No: It is sweet and honorable to make the other poor bastard die for his country. Wilfred Owen, 1,900 years after Horace, referred to Dulce et decorum, etc., as the old Lie. And yet, if no one dies for his country sweetly and honorably or not you may not have a country. Seeing as weve brought up antiquity, why does Cercas title his book as he does? Achilles, remember, was the ultimate golden boy, cut down in battle. He is to the world to history and myth what Manuel Mena is to his family. In The Odyssey, we meet Achilles in the underworld, or rather, Odysseus does. And Achilles delivers himself of these stunning words: Illustrious Odysseus, dont try to console me for my death, for I would rather toil as the slave of a penniless, landless laborer than reign here as lord of all the dead. Cercas dedicates himself to finding out everything about Manuel Mena he can. This is not easy, because, in about 1946, there was a sizable bonfire in the village of Ibahernando, in the province of Caceres, in western Spain: Manuels mother, with her sisters around her, was burning all of the heros effects: letters, notebooks, photos, clothes, everything. These mementoes were simply too painful to have around. Trying to trap the past, says Cercas, can be like trying to trap water in your hands. He is a meticulous researcher, with a maniacal urge for veracity, as he says. Yet he does indulge in speculation informed speculation. He is apt to write something like this: I am not a fantasist or a literato. (He is definitely a literato.) But if I were, I would say and then he goes ahead and says it. He then says, But I am not a fantasist or a literato. Naturally, hes having his cake and eating it, too. But he is not being hypocritical. He knows what he is doing, and he knows we know. We, too, can imagine how Manuel Mena might have been captured by Fascist rhetoric. Thousands of young men were. Jose Antonio, the founder of the Falange Espanola, was a master of Romantic nationalism. When he thundered against the capitalists and the Marxists, and thundered for the People and the Nation, hearts swelled and feet marched. The other side had its own, and similar, seductions. It was a clash of ugly illiberalisms, the Spanish Civil War. Hardly a true democrat in sight. Like Spain at large, little Ibahernando, Manuels village, was split right down the middle. There was a bar for the right-wing people and another bar for the left-wing people, writes Cercas; one dance for the right-wing people and another dance for the left-wing people. And people switched sides, seamlessly. I am reminded of Hungarians (among others) who slipped off their Fascist uniform and slipped on their Communist one without breaking a sweat. Was it all politics, or ideology, in places such as Ibahernando? Oh, not on your life. I love a phrase that Cercas uses: In revenge for that revenge . . . Someone would do something, someone would exact revenge for that something, someone else would then exact revenge for that revenge . . . In Ibahernando, Cercas talks to an old man whose father was killed at the beginning of the war. The old man has never spoken of this before. He can barely speak of it now. He says, Back then, people got killed over any little thing. Over arguments. Out of envy. Because someone exchanged four words with someone. For anything. Thats how the war was. Lord of All the Dead is, among other things, a feat of organization. Cercas not only writes the book, he writes about writing the book. He goes from past to present, and present to past, always logically, even unnoticeably. (This confirms the logic.) Sometimes he refers to himself in the third person. As Ive said, a strange book. And marvelously written. There are many observations such as the following: . . . watching us with the brazen curiosity that village people reserve for strangers . . . One sentence goes on for a page and a third. This is a stunt, maybe, but its very effective, reflecting as it does the tumbling heat of the writers thought. Throughout the book, you get nuggets such as this: As usual when Im asked to appear on television I remembered for an instant what a friend of Umberto Ecos told him on one occasion (Umberto, every time I dont see you on television you seem more intelligent) . . . People in my business can relate to that, smilingly. And may I say that, in reading about riven Spain, I thought about riven America? I mean, America at present? We are not to the point of civil war we had one of those, a while back but I nonetheless felt a tremor or two. War is hell, and this is so obvious, it can be offensive to hear. Its a cliche that we perhaps dont need. But Cercas manages to find new ways to make the point, or illustrate it. War is more Goya than Velazquez, he says: the least pretty thing ever. In the summer of 1937, Manuel Mena was a cadet at the Granada Military Academy. There was a saying: The first months salary is for the uniform; the second months, for the shroud. Manuel, like thousands of others, became a provisional second lieutenant. There was a name for such officers: corpses-in-waiting. The rotten truth, says Cercas, is that Manuel Mena died for nothing. But he does not disparage his great-uncle, the family hero. Far from it. He knows that good and golden people can die in bad causes. (Was Achilles cause so hot?) Also, he is no longer ashamed of his familys past. On the contrary, he is ashamed of his prior shame. This book is what critics call searingly honest. (See how I have cheated, by pinning the cliche on others, while using it?) When he was at last able to tell Manuel Menas story and, by extension, his own Javier Cercas felt a sense of euphoria. So did I, on merely reading the book. I can only imagine what it was like to write it. A major achievement, in historical, literary, and moral terms. More from National Review The New York Times has published an egregious attack against Fox News. Ginia Bellafante argues that a New York bar-owner died from the Wuhan virus because Fox News and Sean Hannity said it isn't a risk. Aside from that accusation being untrue, Bellafante's argument ignores the fact that Hannity made his statements after the bar-owner made his fatal choice. Only by rewinding time and playing it backward can Bellafante's article make even a little sense. Bellafante openly blames the victim for his own death because he was a conservative: A Beloved Bar Owner Was Skeptical About the Virus. Then He Took a Cruise. Joe Joyce oversaw JJ Bubbles, a welcoming tavern in a conservative corner of Brooklyn, for 43 years until he died of Covid-19. The article begins by talking about what a great guy Joe was and he certainly does sound like a good man. He was a gregarious person who overcame a tough childhood to open a bar that became a popular Bay Ridge hangout for 43 years and to raise a successful family. All was good "until the cruelest interventions of the pandemic, last month." According to Bellafante, the Wuhan virus was only the last link in the chain that killed Joe. The first link was that "Joe Joyce was a Trump supporter who chose selectively from the menu of current Republican ideologies, freely rejecting what didn't suit him." Joe's fatal decision-making, says Bellafante, resulted because he failed to respect the real media: Last year, Vice Media went to JJ Bubbles and other bars in Bay Ridge to talk to supporters of the current president and landed on some of these ambiguities, discovering for instance the guy who admired Pete Buttigieg as much as he loved Donald Trump. Where these kinds of voters align is not in the right's hatred of the marginalized but in its distrust of the news. If the "liberal" media was telling us that a plague was coming and that it would be devastating, why should anyone believe it? Joe Joyce had his skepticism. If only Joe had listened to the "liberal" media, Bellafante implies, he'd be alive! She leaves it to one of Joe's children to draw the correct conclusion: On March 1, Joe Joyce and his wife, Jane, set sail for Spain on a cruise, flying first to Florida. His adult children Kevin, Eddie and Kristen Mider suggested that the impending doom of the coronavirus made this a bad idea. Joe Joyce was 74, a nonsmoker, healthy; four years after he opened his bar he stopped drinking completely. He didn't see the problem. "He watched Fox, and believed it was under control," Kristen told me. Early in March Sean Hannity went on air proclaiming that he didn't like the way that the American people were getting scared "unnecessarily.'' He saw it all, he said, "as like, let's bludgeon Trump with this new hoax." So many lies. First, Bellafante repeats the "Trump said coronavirus is a hoax" lie. Trump said the media's latest hoax was to blame him for the coronavirus, just as they'd falsely blamed him for colluding with Russia and Ukraine. Second, Bellafante lies when she smoothly says Sean Hannity spoke "[e]arly in March," implying that, but for Hannity's words on March 1, the day Joe boarded the plane, Joe would have stayed safely at home. (Bellafante only later acknowledges that New York is the city with America's highest Wuhan virus death rate.) Bellafante leaves something out of her report: on February 27, when Joe would have been making decisions, Bellafante was tweeting about how harmless the Wuhan virus was: I fundamentally don't understand the panic: incidence of the disease is declining in China. Virus is not deadly in vast majority of cases. Production and so on will slow down and will obviously rebound. cc: @opinion_joe Ginia Bellafante (@GiniaNYT) February 27, 2020 And what about Sean Hannity? Was he urging Joe to make a dangerous trip on March 1, the very day Joe boarded the ship? No, he wasn't. Bellafante, when quoting Sean Hannity, is quoting from a March 9 show, long after Joe had left for his cruise. Moreover, Hannity is using the word "hoax" in the same way Trump did that is, he's not calling the virus a hoax; he's calling the attacks on Trump a hoax: HANNITY, March 9: "This scaring the living hell out of people -- I see it, again, as like, let's bludgeon Trump with this new hoax." HANNITY, March 18: "By the way, this program has always taken the coronavirus seriously. We've never called the virus a hoax." pic.twitter.com/yLKpojA7BI Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 19, 2020 Weve come to expect dishonesty from the New York Times, but this takes the cake. First, Bellafante ignored her own culpability for playing down the Wuhan virus's death. (At that time Trump and his task force took it very seriously.) Second, and worse, Bellafante warped the space-time continuum so she could blame Fox News for someone's death. After all, Joe's fatal decision-making occurred long before Fox News's allegedly wrongful conduct. By messing with time, the Times managed to boldly go where no newspaper has gone before and that's a bad thing. Hat tip: Instapundit. Courtney Moves into New Student Success Role at UW Nycole Courtney Nycole Courtney, the University of Wyomings associate dean of students, will transition into the role of associate vice president/dean of student success and graduation. The University of Wyoming has been committed to providing great support for our students throughout their UW careers but, now, more than ever, we need to engage with our students in new and dynamic ways, Acting Vice President for Student Affairs Kim Chestnut says. From Cowboy Connect, the first few days a new student has on campus, through to commencement, Dr. Courtney will collaborate with and lead partners across campus in bookending students experience and supporting their further success with each year. Courtney brings to this role a breadth of experience, professionally and personally. She is a first-generation student and three-time UW alumna. She served for 12 years as an educator and administrator with Laramie County Community College, working closely on student support centered on counseling, advising and student programming. She then was recruited to work at UW to lead various high-contact areas in student affairs, including student welfare, sexual misconduct, disability support services, student conduct and the dean of students team. Her combination of experiences within academic and student affairs aligns perfectly for the extensive work that will be required to improve retention and graduation, reduce debt and time to degree, and eliminate equity gaps for students, Chestnut says. Courtney will begin serving in this capacity immediately. I am so excited to advance the work of UW and the incredible support we can provide students, from day one until graduation, she says. I look forward to working with old and new partners across campus as we advance our efforts in retention, support and completion. (Bloomberg) -- Google and Facebook Inc. will be forced to pay media companies in Australia for publishing their news under what the government says is a world-first mandatory code of conduct. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said Monday that negotiations between the tech giants and traditional media platforms had made limited progress toward reaching a voluntary arrangement and the competition watchdog would unveil a draft code by the end of July. Australias government has pledged to tackle the power imbalance between the digital giants and traditional media, adding to a barrage of global action against Google and Facebook. Regulators worldwide have been trying to loosen the tech giants grip on everything from advertising and search engines to news, data and elections. Google, Facebook Market Power Gets More Scrutiny in Australia Frydenberg said the government was very conscious of the challenges of forcing the companies to pay for news content, after efforts in France and Spain had failed. The payment model could be based on the cost of preparing journalistic content, or the value added to the digital platform by using it, he said. Facebook said it was disappointed by the announcement, as it had been working to reach a voluntary agreement and had already announced investments to support news organizations struggling with declining advertising revenue. We believe that strong innovation and more transparency around the distribution of news content is critical to building a sustainable news ecosystem, Will Easton, Facebooks managing director for Australia and New Zealand, said in a statement. Weve invested millions of dollars locally to support Australian publishers through content arrangements, partnerships and training for the industry and hope the code will protect the interests of millions of Australians and small businesses that use our services every day. Google said that search results are most valuable to consumers when they are determined by relevance, rather than commercial arrangements. Story continues Since February, we have engaged with more than 25 Australian publishers to get their input on a voluntary code and worked to the timetable and process set out by the ACCC, a spokesperson for the company said, referring to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. We have sought to work constructively with industry, the ACCC and government to develop a code of conduct, and we will continue to do so in the revised process set out by the Government today. The announcement is the governments latest response to a sweeping report by the ACCC that raised concerns about the use and storage of personal data and the erosion of the mainstream media. In December, Australia said it would set up a special unit within the competition watchdog to monitor digital platforms. The code of conduct will cover the sharing of data, ranking and display of news content and the monetization and the sharing of revenue generated from news, the government said. It will also establish appropriate penalties and a binding dispute-resolution process. (Updates with Facebook comment) 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. In the past few weeks, Doordarshan has emerged as the most-watched channel after bringing back a number of classic shows like Ramayan. However, viewers have now alleged that Doordarshan may be cutting some scenes from the show. Twitter users, who are clearly agitated by the decision of the channel to cut out some scenes from everyone's favourite show, have been tagging Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar in tweets asking him about the same. One Twitter user, Swapnil Arora asked Shekhar why the scene consisting of Ravan's brother Aharivan was missing. To this, Shekhar replied that no cuts had been made and such scenes weren't part of the original production. There have been no cuts, they were not part of the original production. Shashi Shekhar (@shashidigital) April 18, 2020 Another Twitter user also listed what he thought had been cut out from the show: Scene cuts 1. Ravan ka sita ji ke sayember mai na aana 2. Ahiravan ka na aana 3. Ravan ka laxman ko vidya dena 4 urmila and laxman milaap And so on Sumit (@sumitsumit698) April 19, 2020 Shekhar also added another tweet where he wrote, "The beauty of our epics are the many stories, side-stories and interpretations. Not every nuance can possibly make it into a single television script but perhaps leaves the door open for future productions." The beauty of our epics are the many stories, side-stories and interpretations. Not every nuance can possibly make it into a single television script but perhaps leaves the door open for future productions https://t.co/od8HaoBANs Shashi Shekhar (@shashidigital) April 18, 2020 However, some aren't entirely convinced by Shekhar's justification: No there are many cuts in last sections, like Bharat kaikeyi milan, ahiravan vadh, preparation of crown ceremony, welcoming of Ram's freinds by residents of Ayodhya...these all are cuts by DD and these are actually belongs to Ramanand sagar Ramayan. Rajesh kumar (@rajesh_rksingh) April 19, 2020 On being further questioned, Shekhar said that the show was brought back amid the coronavirus pandemic without any previews and despite numerous constraints which included restrictions due to the lockdown. He also said that these avenues can be better explored in the future. Two prisoners who escaped from a maximum-security prison in Wisconsin were recaptured Friday more than 24 hours later in northern Illinois, after the founder of a local homeless shelter recognized them and called the cops. James Newman, 37, and Thomas Deering, 46, were taken into custody in Rockford, about 90 miles south of the Columbia Correctional Institution in Portage, Wisconsin, that they fled with the help of a female kitchen worker on Thursday. The men arrived at Miss Carly's homeless shelter on Friday morning, Rockford police said. Scroll down for video Caught: The founder of a homeless shelter in Rockford, Illinois, on Friday helped police recapture these two escaped inmates, whom she photographed Thomas E Deering, 45, (left) and James Robert Newman, 36, (right) had escaped from CCI at 4.25am on Thursday and made it over the fences by 4.35am, according to authorities Carly Rice, the founder of the community center on 5th Avenue in Rockford, wrote in a Facebook post that she instantly recognized Deering and Newman from their 'wanted' posters. 'This morning two men showed up at our door shivering, frozen, wearing prison issue sweats and thermal shirts,' Rice explained in a status update on Friday. 'They had emergency blankets stuffed under their clothing. They looked just like the kind of people we want to help....but they weren't.' According to Rice, the men arrived on her doorstep wearing surgical masks as protection against the spread of the coronavirus, but then they lowered the face coverings to talk to her. Holly Marie Zimdahl, 46, was charged with party to the crime of escape, according to a release from the Columbia Country Sheriff's Office 'I recognized them right away,' she wrote. 'They had escaped from prison in Wisconsin.' She surreptitiously snapped a photo of the duo standing outside in hoodies and masks, which she later shared on Facebook. Rice explained that the escapees' faces stuck in her memory after she saw their photos and learned of their charges, which included kidnapping and sexual assault, because she said that in 2003, her mother was kidnapped, raped and murdered while living with her daughter living on Los Angeles' notorious Skid Row, and the shelter founder herself is a rape survivor. The men were wearing thin thermal underwear, which Rice, who has a long criminal record of her own, recognized as prison-issued. They asked her for bagged lunches and coats. Rice recounted how she offered the two men coffee and cigarettes to stall their departure, and used that opportunity to call 911 and summon police. Speaking to NBC News, the shelter operator revealed that she threw a donated fur coat over herself so that Deering and Newman would not see her trembling hands. She stood outside with the two convicts smoking cigarettes when police arrived minutes later and recaptured the escapees without incident at 8.37am. Rice told Channel3000 the men were unaware of the police gathering at the corner because they were busy at the time digging through a bin of donated clothes. 'I was so relieved when our officers showed up,' she later wrote on Facebook. 'They are off the streets now. I have a huge heart for the unloveable and the lost, but I will always fight to keep our city safe.' Zimbahl, from Pardeeville, was a civilian kitchen worker Columbia Correctional Institution (pictured) Columbia County Sheriff Roger Brandner thanked Rice 'for being brave' and helping recapture the escaped inmates. 'These two individuals were very dangerous suspects and we are thankful nobody was hurt during their escape and arrest,' the sheriff added. Rockford Police Chief Dan O'Shea said one of the men tried to convince responding officers that he was not one of the prisoners, although photographs and descriptions of his tattoos positively identified him. 'It's a picture, and by gosh we can all look at a picture and say that, "You sure that's not you, because it sure looks like you?"' he said. O'Shea also praised Rice for displaying courage in the face of danger. 'That's what we want every citizen to do,' he said. 'I'm not saying every citizen would do that, but we applaud her and her staff.' Deering and Newman arrived on Friday morning at Miss Carly's, a community center in Rockford, Illinois, located some 90 miles away from the Wisconsin prison Authorities said Deering and Newman escaped by climbing over two security fences around 4.30am on Thursday. The escapees then went to a hotel and were taken by a cab to the Piggly Wiggly supermarket in Poynette, Wisconsin Columbia County Sheriff Brandner said in a news release Friday afternoon that a vehicle picked the pair up at the store just before 6am Thursday and drove them south. Investigators say the two already had left the Portage area before authorities were notified of their escape. Investigators also arrested 46-year-old Holly Zimdhal, who worked in the prison kitchen, and charged her with party to the crime of escape. Brandner said during a news conference that detectives found evidence in Zimdhal's house and car that she assisted in the prisoners escape. He said he believes she didnt know them before they were imprisoned. He said he didnt know why Zimdhal might have helped them or who picked them up at the supermarket and why. Carly Rice (pictured) recognized the men at once, offered them coffee to stall them and called the police Online records show Deering was convicted of numerous charges in Milwaukee County including kidnapping, sexual assault and burglary. He was also convicted of battery by a prisoner in 2015 and an escape charge in 2002. Newman has convictions for kidnapping, escape, theft and discharging a firearm. Brandner said the prisoners covered the barbed wire on the prison fences with clothing but still hurt themselves going over them. One of them sought medical attention under a false name in Illinois, he said. Checkout No resources available in your cart Before the advent of Ramadan on Friday, the secretariat of the Arab League is expecting to have received comments from member states on two reports it had compiled on the possible socio-economic outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic on Arab societies. We took a thourough look at the situation to assess the immediate impact of this pandemic on Arab societies; the impact on health systems and also on the wider socio-economic scale, said Chief-of-Staff and Assistant to the Arab League Secretary-General Hossam Zaki. The reports, Zaki told Ahram Online in a telephone interview, are not just detailing the impact of the pandemic but are also proposing a set of measures that should be taken on the collective level to help Arab states recover from the consequences. These measures should help support and improve Arab health capacities and aid in the recovery from the socio-economic impacts that are likely to go on for a while, Zaki said. The council of Arab health ministers had met at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo in February before the pandemic had spread aggressively throughout the region and has not met since. Several Arab countries, including Egypt, had presented the UN General Assembly with a number of proposals to step up international cooperation to help developing countries, including Arab states, to withstand the socio-economic challenges imposed by the pandemic. According to Zaki, these reports are one part of the work the secretariat has been doing with regards to the impact of the coronavirus on Arab countries. We have been carefully observing the regional political impacts too and we do have some serious worries, Zaki said. A possible Israeli move to annex Palestinian territories or to expand the construction of illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian land is a top concern for the pan-Arab organisation, he said. Last week, Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboulgheit shared his concerns on the matter with UN and other world officials. Aboulgheits messages to the international officials, Zaki said, stressed the need for the international community to act promptly to keep Israel from moving towards any annexation moves. Some in Israel likely think that the world is too preoccupied with the coronavirus situation and that this might be the best time to move towards annexation of occupied Palestinian territories, he said. The pan-Arab organisation, he added, will continue to bring world attention to this issue because if Israel makes the wrong move things could really get out of hand. In the absence of a viable political process that could lead to a settlement of the Palestinian question, Zaki said, the last thing the Palestinians need is to be faced with further Israeli provocations. Meanwhile, Zaki said, there seems to be no new avenues for the possible resumption of peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis yet. Our position on the offer that was made by [US] President Donald Trump for a final settlement to [the Palestinian-Israeli struggle] remains the same, and clearly the US and the rest of the world are currently too preoccupied now with the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. The secretariat of the Arab League had issued an apprehensive response to an offer that was put forward by Trump a few months back which was seen as totally unacceptable by both the Palestinian Authority and its opposition in the resistance Islamic camp Hamas and the Islamic Jihad. Since then, Israel has been weighing to annex the Palestinian territories that were assigned to it by virtue of the Trump plan but was cautioned against the move by the US, which said that these territories should go to Israel upon the final settlement. Meanwhile, Zaki said that the Arab League is also very worried about the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian refugee camps in view of the threat of the coronavirus to societies with limited health capacities and challenged capacities of UNRWA. The Palestinian Authority has so far registered over 320 cases of infection in the Palestinian territories and 115 cases in East Jerusalem. The Authority has been warning about a possible devastating impact on its frail health system, which cannot stand up to the challenge of containing the spread of the infection. Zaki said that the pan-Arab organisation has been calling on relevant international organisations to reach out to the Palestinian Authority on this matter. Of course, we dont talk to Israel, but we have been talking to all parties and organisations and we have been urging them. We are aware that there are serious economic concerns now for many donors, but we are asking for some essential help to be extended, he said. Yemen, Zaki said, is another Arab country of equal concern to the Arab organisation, given the countrys lack of capabilities to manage the epidemic. So far, Yemen has recorded only one case of COVID-19, but international health sources say this is due to the Yemeni health systems inability to conduct tests. Both Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboulgheit and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has been repeatedly calling for a total ceasefire in the countrys five-year-long war between the Saudi-led coalition and the Iran-backed Houthis. In response, the Saudi-led coalition announced its consent to observe a ceasefire, and the UN, several Arab countries and the Arab League have praised the move. We think that this is a very important move, for a variety of reasons notably the current health situation in Yemen, Zaki said. We hope that the [Houthis] respond by engaging in the ceasefire in order to allow the country to put its broken pieces together to face up to the pandemic. Zaki added that the Arab League has been warning of the possible devastating impact of COVID-19 on Arab societies that are facing civil wars and instability, as in Yemen, Libya and Syria. Zaki said that there has to be a more effective effort to pursue a ceasefire in all spots of turmoil, and argued that the UN missions on Libya and Syria should be more engaged in promoting ceasefire in both places. This said, Zaki denied that the pan-Arab organisation was involved in blocking the nomination of prominent Algerian diplomat Ramtane Lamamra as chief of the UN mission to Libya (UNSMIL). Totally untrue.. Mr. Lamamra is a superb diplomat with great experience.. But the Arab League was never formally informed that his name was up for nomination to be the envoy of the UN secretary-general to Libya, Zaki said. Last month, Ghassan Salame, a prominent Lebanese diplomat and intellectual, resigned from his two-year-held post of the UN Envoy to Libya. The job is currently held by Salames trusted assistant, American Stephanie Williams, pending an agreement between the influential countries and Libyan parties on a possible new envoy. Some Arab and European diplomatic sources had suggested a preference on the side of Guterres to nominate an African diplomat for the job. We are aware that the issue is being examined despite the fact the world is very consumed now with the battle against the pandemic and our simple and basic position is that the new envoy should be an Arab, Zaki said. Libya is a very complicated story, and going through the minute details of the conflict and managing to build confidence with the parties is not something that could be done without a native speakers command of the Arabic language, Zaki argued. Nobody should want to compound the difficulties of managing this very layered issue by throwing in translation issues that could often be a make-or-break factor. Zaki said that the developments in Palestine, Yemen and Libya will be on the agenda of the Arab summit for 2020 when it convenes. The summit regularly meets at the end of March every year. It is hosted by the member states of the Arab organisation in alphabetical rotation. Algeria is the due host of the 2020 summit. However, in February, it requested a few months delay. Most informed Arab diplomats have said that Algerias wish for a delay is related to the internal political situation in the country, which has been going through a very tense and slow change of regime. However, some have argued that Algeria had also wished to use the extra time to allow for the return of Syria to the meetings of the Arab organisation. At the end of 2011, the Arab League foreign ministers decided to suspend the participation of Syria in the meetings of the Arab organisation to protest a very brutal response by the Syrian regime to pro-democracy peaceful protests. Over the past nine years so much has changed, and the peaceful protests were militarised and evolved into a terrifying civil war that has prompted one of the worst refugee crises in the world for a century. During the past couple of years, several Arab capitals have taken a number of unilateral decisions to re-engage Syria. Algeria has traditional close relations with Syria and had been arguing, before the regime change it went through in 2019, for the need to bring Syria back into the meetings of the Arab League. According to Zaki, however, this issue is not at all an easy matter, due to many considerations. So many developments have taken place since 2011, this is true; but it is also true that the Syrian regime is now involved in very intense and complicated relations with Iran, which is perceived as a threat to several Arab countries, Zaki said. Iranian officials have been openly bragging about their direct, on-the-ground influence in several Arab states, including Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon. Now there are serious questions that the Syrian regime needs to address before we could seriously speak about its re-integration in the Arab League; its relationship with Iran is certainly one of these questions, Zaki said. He added that another concern is the willingness of the Syrian regime to engage in constructive political talks with the non-militant opposition that could lead to a political breakthrough to allow for the beginning of an end to the huge humanitarian crisis of Syrian refugees. Obviously, Zaki said that it would be a stretch to argue today that the participation of Syria, or lack thereof, in the Arab summit is a determining factor to decide the date of the next top Arab congregation. The readiness of the host state and a lull in the aggressive attack of the pandemic, Zaki said, are the crucial issues now. Could the Arab summit end up being held online like other world meetings? I would not wish to prejudge things; we are currently following the developments of the pandemic. Algeria and the rest of the Arab world are acting to contain the infection rate, Zaki said. However, he added, depending on how things go in the next weeks, or maybe few months, the matter will be subject to consultations between the Arab League secretariat and Algeria as well as among other member States. Search Keywords: Short link: Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 22:04:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TOKYO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten Inc. said on Monday it has started selling COVID-19 testing kits to businesses in Tokyo and four surrounding prefectures. Rakuten said the testing kits are being sold as a "risk assessment option to those who show no specific symptoms but are concerned about the spread of the virus." The self-assessment kits have been developed by Genesis Healthcare Co., a leading genetic testing and research company in Tokyo in which Rakuten owns an undisclosed stake. Rakuten said the kits will be available to companies and organizations in Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa and Ibaraki prefectures. The testing kits, Rakuten said, are supposed to be used to determine whether an employee, for example, should self-isolate so as not to potentially spread the pneumonia-carrying virus. The online retail behemoth said the testing kits are not designed for official medical diagnosis, but by taking a nasal swab, the sample can be assessed at a laboratory in about three days to see if the sample contains the genetic sequences specific to the respiratory disease, COVID-19, caused by the coronavirus. The kits will will cost 14,900 yen (138 U.S. dollars) per person and the minimum order has been set at 100 kits. Rakuten plans to offer them in other parts of Japan from May with the move coming amid concerns that the Japanese government has not been conducting as many coronavirus tests as other countries, focusing instead on tracking group infections. Healthcare officials here have voiced concern that this could mean that asymptomatic patients or those displaying only very mild symptoms of the virus could be unknowingly passing on the deadly virus, while not being included in the health ministry's official figures for those infected with the virus. Japan is currently struggling with enough personnel, resources and facilities to carry out the vital coronavirus tests, despite the government saying it is expanding its testing capacity. Some hospitals in Japan, meanwhile, have also been refusing to grant access to those suspected of carrying the virus as they do not have the capacity or resources to treat them while preventing the virus from spreading to other patients. Enditem With St. Francois County not having a new confirmed case of COVID-19 in more than a week, Health Center Director Amber Elliott said they are starting to work on a plan for recovery. We still need to follow those guidelines set forth by the State at Home Missouri order, Elliott said on Monday. And hopefully at some point, we head back to normal life. "We are working on a plan for recovery right now. We are looking at the national guidelines. Ive looked at a couple of other public health departments recovery plans. So I think itll be somewhere in the middle. Elliott said they are also waiting to hear what the states plan will be. We just want to be careful as we move forward, Elliott added. We dont want to see a surge of cases. I think weve heard a lot about that on the national level. We dont want to pull back those restrictions too fast or too much, all at one time, and end up back in the same boat where we have to do these stay-at-home orders again. St. Francois County has 22 confirmed cases of COVID-19, 20 of those cases have recovered and been released from isolation. The last positive case was reported on April 11. At least 313 residents have been tested, according to the health center. The Washington County Health Department announced two more confirmed cases on Monday to bring its total to six. The number of local residents showing up to the emergency room with COVID-like symptoms has also drastically reduced over the past week, Elliott said. Im hopeful and, again, optimistic about where we are at in this moment, Elliott said. But I just dont foresee us going back to normal life again at a rapid pace. I think its a going to be a progression, and thats really what the national guidelines point to as well. She also cautioned that we arent two weeks out from the Easter holiday yet, which is the incubation period for the virus. Were not quite out of the woods from that holiday yet, Elliott added. Elliott said she likes the criteria set forth in the White Houses national guidelines for recovery, which can be seen at https://www.whitehouse.gov/openingamerica/#criteria. There are three phases for reopening the country. These phases rely heavily on surveillance, which is kind of the data that we give you about how many cases and what ER data looks like with people presenting with COVID-like symptoms, Elliott said, and then the capacity of the healthcare system and testing capacity. Its a slow progression, Elliott added, that requires reassessing every two weeks based on that incubation period. Missouris plans for reopening have not been released yet. But social distancing is going to continue to play a big part in the progression, according to Elliott. Were not going to go back to normal just all of a sudden, Elliott said. Its not going to look quite the same because we dont have a vaccine. "We dont even have a treatment yet. So the only thing we really have is social distancing to be able to keep this at a normal level or to keep it at a manageable level to where we are not having this huge surge in healthcare need. Nikki Overfelt is a reporter for the Daily Journal. She can be reached at noverfelt@dailyjournalonline.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. Elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air may be associated with a high number of deaths from Covid-19. A new study by Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) provides concrete data that back this assumption for the first time. The paper combines satellite data on air pollution and air currents with confirmed deaths related to Covid-19 and reveals that regions with permanently high levels of pollution have significantly more deaths than other regions. The results were published in the journal Science of the Total Environment. Nitrogen dioxide is an air pollutant that damages the human respiratory tract. For many years it has been known to cause many types of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in humans. "Since the novel coronavirus also affects the respiratory tract, it is reasonable to assume that there might be a correlation between air pollution and the number of deaths from Covid-19," says Dr Yaron Ogen from the Institute of Geosciences and Geography at MLU. Until now, however, there has been an absence of reliable data to further investigate this. In his latest study, the geoscientist combined three sets of data. This included the levels of regional nitrogen dioxide pollution measured by the European Space Agency's (ESA) Sentinel 5P satellite, which continuously monitors air pollution on earth. Based on this data, he produced a global overview for regions with high and prolonged amounts of nitrogen dioxide pollution. "I looked at the values for January and February of this year, before the corona outbreaks in Europe began," explains Ogen. He combined this data with data from the US weather agency NOAA on vertical air flows. His premise: If air is in motion, the pollutants near the ground are also more disseminated. However, if the air tends to stay near the ground, this will also apply to the pollutants in the air, which are then more likely be inhaled by humans in greater amounts and thus lead to health problems. Using this data, the researcher was able to identify hotspots around the world with high levels of air pollution and simultaneously low levels of air movement. He then compared these with the data on deaths related to Covid-19, specifically analysing the data from Italy, France, Spain and Germany. It turned out that the regions with a high number of deaths also had particularly high levels of nitrogen dioxide and a particularly low amount of vertical air exchange. "When we look at Northern Italy, the area around Madrid, and Hubei Provence in China, for example, they all have something in common: they are surrounded by mountains. This makes it even more likely that the air in these regions is stable and pollution levels are higher," Ogen continues. The advantage of his analysis is that it is based on individual regions and does not only compare countries. "Even though we can obtain a country's average value for air pollution, this figure could vary greatly from region to region and therefore not be a reliable indicator", says Ogen. The geoscientist suspects that this persistent air pollution in the affected regions could have led to overall poorer health in the people living there, making them particularly susceptible to the virus. "However, my research on the topic is only an initial indication that there might be a correlation between the level of air pollution, air movement and the severity of the course of the corona outbreaks," says Ogen. This correlation should now be examined for other regions and put into a broader context. ### About the study: Ogen, Yaron. Assessing nitrogen dioxide (NO?) levels as a contributing factor to the coronavirus (COVID-19) fatality. Science of the Total Environment (2020). Doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138605 UW Offers Negotiated Gas Rate to Employees and Retirees The University of Wyoming is offering employees and retirees an opportunity to choose the negotiated natural gas rate under the Choice Gas program. Employees who have not selected a supplier and rate have until 5 p.m. Thursday, April 23, to sign up for the special UW rate. UW negotiated the special natural gas rate with Wyoming Community Gas, one of eight suppliers selling gas under the Choice Gas program. The residential rate is being offered to employees in Source Gas Casper Division, which includes Laramie and Casper, but not Cheyenne and Torrington. The negotiated UW employee rate is a fixed two-year rate, which is at $0.223/therm for the term from June 1, 2020, through May 31, 2022. Therefore, you will not have to nominate again until April 2022, says Frosty Selmer, deputy director at UW Operations in charge of utilities. This price does not include the distribution charges added to all options, usually $0.20-$0.23 per therm. Employees should keep in mind that the UW option might not be the most economical. For current UW employees and retirees who want to sign up for the negotiated market index rate, enroll in the universitys negotiated rate using one of these three options: -- Make your enrollment online by going to www.wyomingcommunitygas.org. Once youre there, scroll down and enter your account number, and then enter the promo code COWBOY1 (in all CAPS). Next, click See All Plans and follow the steps to complete your Choice Gas enrollment. You will receive a confirmation email once your selection is processed. -- E-mail the Wyoming Community Gas administrator directly at WyomingCommunityGas@constellation.com. Be sure to mention you are with UW, and provide your account number and corresponding control number. -- Call the Wyoming Community Gas administrator at (785) 338-4717, and be sure to mention you are with UW. To register, you will need to have your account number and control number. Choice Gas forms will not be accepted at the UW Service Building. Chief of Wuhan's P4 Lab D.ebunks US Claims About Coronavirus's 'Artificial' Origins Sputnik News 13:32 GMT 19.04.2020(updated 13:45 GMT 19.04.2020) This week, sources told Fox News that the Trump administration had begun a full-scale investigation into whether COVID-19 is a man-made virus that escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China. The news comes in the wake of a coordinated US media campaign to accuse Chinese authorities of kicking off the coronavirus pandemic and then trying to "cover it up". Dr. Yuan Zhiming, the veteran director of the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the P4 biolab that's at the centre of the back and forth accusations between China and the US regarding the origins of the novel coronavirus, has debunked Western media claims suggesting that the virus may have escaped from his laboratory. "As people who carry out virus studies, we clearly know what kind of virus research is going on in the institute and how the institute manages viruses and samples. As we said early on, there's no way this virus came out from us. We have a strict regulatory regime, we have a code of conduct for research, so we are confident of that," Yuan insisted, speaking to China's CGTN on Saturday. Saying the rumours about his institute's possible involvement were not unexpected, given its location in Wuhan, the epicentre of the pandemic, Yuan said it's unfortunate that some institutions have attempted to turn these rumours into a weapon to deliberately misinform people. "It's bad when some are deliberately trying to mislead people. US Senator Tom Cotton said earlier that the virus came from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The Washington Post and several other reporters wrote about the virus coming from the Wuhan lab. They have no evidence, or knowledge, this is entirely based on speculation," Yuan stressed. The veteran scientist believes that while part of the US campaign of accusations may be aimed at confusing people or even interfering with China's anti-pandemic response, another part of it may be based on a desire to interfere with the institute's scientific activities as a whole. Unfortunately, he says, "as long as the pandemic continues, especially in other countries, such doubts and disharmony will not go away". On Saturday, Fox News reported that the Trump administration has begun a 'full-scale investigation' into reports that the Wuhan biolab was responsible for the COVID-19 outbreak, with Washington said to be turning to intelligence agencies and analysts to create "an accurate picture of what happened" Fox's sources apparently also discounted earlier media claims that the virus is man-made, saying genome mapping has shown that the bug was "not genetically altered". Yuan confirmed that he too believes that the idea of the virus being manmade is out of the question. "From my understanding of virology, there is no evidence to prove that the virus has artificial or synthetic traces. Besides, some scientists believe that to synthesize a virus requires extraordinary intelligence and workload. So I have never believed that we humans would have the capability at this time to synthesize such a virus," he said. Lab at the Epicentre of Global Scandal Last week, US media outlets including the Washington Post and Fox News reported, citing sources, that the P4 lab in Wuhan may be the point of origin of the new coronavirus. President Trump confirmed that the US was "looking into" the claims. China's Foreign Ministry blasted the allegations, saying that the attempts to blame China were meant to "confuse the public, divert attention and shirk responsibility" in Washington's own uninspiring response to the pandemic. In its story, Fox News alleged that the virus was accidentally released by Chinese scientists attempting to prove their capability to identify and combat deadly viruses just as well as their US counterparts. The Washington Post, for its part, reported that the lab had lax safety standards going back to at least early 2019. The Wuhan lab has also been the focus of controversy in Washington, amid reports that the National Institutes of Health, a US government agency, had transferred $3.7 million in grant money to the lab to conduct experiments on bats for the purposes of examining how coronaviruses are transmitted. The attempts by the world's economic superpowers to blame one another for the COVID-19 pandemic are only logical, given that the virus has now been blamed for over 161,000 deaths and 2.3 million infections worldwide, not to mention the trillions of dollars in damage it has done to the global economy. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Britain will be a 'more volatile and agitated' society when it comes out of lockdown, a senior police officer has warned. With the UK lockdown in place until at least May 7, concerns have been raised about the effects of mass unemployment, abuse inside homes and mental health issues on society when the measures are eventually lifted. Police Superintendents Association (PSA) President Chief Superintendent Paul Griffiths told The Independent senior officers fear a rise in crime and disorder post-lockdown - and urged leaders to engage with communities to quell this. Police Superintendents Association (PSA) President Chief Superintendent Paul Griffiths (pictured September 2019) warns Britain will be a 'more volatile 'society after lockdown He said: 'My worry is that there will be a whole load of societal impacts from what we have gone through over those months. Those consequences could be a more volatile and agitated society.' Griffiths said the 'need for release' coupled with the lifting of restrictions had sparked fears among officers of a surge in police incidents as people head to pubs bars and restaurants en-masse to celebrate. Chief Superintendent Griffiths also warned that escalating unemployment could potentially cause an increase in theft incidents. As the NHS is stretched to breaking point amid the pandemic, mental health services have been affected, with concerns raised that isolation will spark a rise in the number of cases and severity of mental illness. Senior officers fear a rise in crime and disorder post-lockdown as people seek 'release' following the restrictions (pictured - police crash house party in Stockton in April 2020) The NHS, charities and rehabilitation providers have also seen their work with those battling substance abuse issues come to a grinding halt amid social distancing. Urging leaders to think of the consequences and 'unintended consequences' Griffiths said: 'The suppression at the moment is clearly done for the right reasons to stop the spread of the disease, but there may be impacts for individual mental health and what then will that mean?' While figures from the The National Police Chiefs Council revealed crime had dropped 28 per cent in England and Wales in the past month, Griffiths expressed concern that domestic incidents committed during lockdown are not being reported. He added that victims may choose to wait until lockdown is over to report crimes, amid other reports that people are neglecting to call the emergency services to avoid piling pressure onto health services. The UK has suffered 120,067 cases and 16,060 deaths, meaning 182 people per 100,000 catch the virus and 24 per 100,000 die from it. On Sunday, another 596 patients died of the virus, the lowest toll in a fortnight. Samantha Armytage made her highly-anticipated return to Sunrise on Monday, after taking six weeks off for 'health reasons'. And the 43-year-old journalist was spotted looking happy and healthy as she ran errands in Surry Hills, Sydney, later that day. Covering up in a long cardigan, Samantha was spotted delivering a stack of papers to the home of celebrity publicist, Nick Fordham. Look who's back! Samantha Armytage, 43, covered up in a long cardigan as she ran errands in Sydney on Monday - following her return to Sunrise Nick, who is CEO of The Fordham Company, popped his head out the front door to greet Samantha as she approached the building. Attempting to fly under the radar, Samantha dressed down in a grey T-shirt, black leggings, sunglasses and black and white Nike sneakers. Samantha allowed her blonde mane to fall loosely by her shoulders in a sleek side-parted bob. Low-key look: Attempting to fly under the radar, Samantha dressed down in a grey T-shirt, black leggings, sunglasses and black and white Nike sneakers Delivering something important? The Channel Seven presenter was spotted delivering a stack of papers to the home of celebrity publicist, Nick Fordham (left) She also appeared to go makeup free, showcasing her age-defying complexion. After the brief visit, Samantha strolled back to her parked Range Rover and drove away. Samantha returned to Sunrise after taking six weeks off to recover from a 'respiratory infection' at her $2.2million estate in Bowral, NSW. Happy to be back! The blonde couldn't wipe the smile from her face as she pulled her cardigan across her body Sleek: Samantha allowed her blonde mane to fall loosely by her shoulders in a sleek side-parted bob Samantha spent her time off shacked up with her boyfriend Richard Lavender, 60, who also lives in the Southern Highlands. She had told her Instagram followers on Sunday that she would be back on air the following morning as she left her country estate and returned to the city. 'Thank you all you lovely people for your (thousands of) lovely messages asking when I was coming back to work... I'm back tomorrow,' she wrote. Hitting the road: After the brief visit, Samantha strolled back to her parked Range Rover and drove away Back to work! Samantha returned to Sunrise after taking six weeks off to recover from a 'respiratory infection' at her $2.2million estate in Bowral, NSW Samantha's last appearance on the show was on March 13. She had previously taken a leave of absence on February 26, citing an ongoing 'respiratory illness', before returning for a brief stint on March 3. The breakfast TV star announced she would be taking more leave on March 17. Big return: Samantha had told her Instagram followers on Sunday that she would be back on air the following morning as she left her country estate and returned to the city Long time no see! Samantha's last appearance on the show was on March 13 'Hi all... I'm taking a few weeks off work as I've had a respiratory infection (for three months) since the bushfires and it just won't heal,' she wrote on Instagram at the time. 'I don't have coronavirus, but I'm worried I'll get it if I don't get better. Thought it was a good time to lay low,' she added. Earlier this month Samantha told Daily Mail Australia she 'hoped to be back on air soon'. The Australian government announced new legislation to force digital news aggregators, Facebook and Google to compensate media organisations for their content. The International Federation of Journalist (IFJ) and its affiliate the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) welcome the development and will continue monitoring the drafting of the legislation. Treasurer, Josh Frydenberg said the government would introduce legislation for a mandatory code on digital platforms requiring digital aggregators to negotiate with news outlets for the use of their content. According to MEAA, since 2017, the union has made repeated calls to the Australian government to reform the legislation to ensure Google and Facebook and not profiting off media organisations without compensating organisations. A report in 2019 by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission found Google, Facebook and similar businesses posed a threat to public interest journalism and recommended companies come to a voluntary agreement to start paying for content. Despite the recommendation, the Australian government states there was no meaningful progress towards an agreement. Marcus Storm, MEAA Medias federal president said, The government has realised that voluntary codes dont work when there is a bargaining power imbalance. Google and Facebook have in part grown off the back of news content. MEAA said: MEAA supports the development of a mandatory code and we will scrutinise the draft legislation carefully. IFJ said: The anticipated legislation to regulate the relationships between Facebook, Google and media content creators is long overdue. It is clear that these platforms have helped decimate the traditional structure of journalism which now must be forged with proactive approaches to sustaining media into the future. The IFJ welcome the development and call on the government to work with the journalists union on all future strategies to ensure a strong continuation of the media sector in Australia by supporting journalists. Key equity benchmarks extended gains and hit fresh high in mid-afternoon trade. The sentiment was boosted by media reports that India will soon announce fresh relief measures and economic stimulus. At 14:27 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 228.14 points or 0.72% at 31,816.86. The Nifty 50 index was up 39.60 points or 0.43% at 9,306.35. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday (19 April) said industries in green zones and orange coronavirus zones will get permission to resume operations in a restricted manner. The green zones are those which have not reported any coronavirus case, while orange zones are the ones where only a few cases have been reported. In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.63% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 1.20%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex. The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1516 shares rose and 897 shares fell. A total of 169 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, the breadth was negative with 21 stocks advancing and 29 stocks declining. Numbers to Track: In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged lower to 76.53 compared with its previous closing of 76.39. The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.215% as compared with 6.347% in the previous trading session. MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2020 settlement fell 0.53% to Rs 45493. In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2020 settlement was down $1.03 to $27.05 a barrel. The contract rose 28 cents or 0.93% to settle at $28.08 a barrel in the previous trading session. Buzzing Index: The Nifty Auto index slipped 0.68% to 5,630.50, amid profit booking. The index added 6.29% in two sessions. Eicher Motors (down 3.14%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 2.58%), Hero MotoCorp (down 1.73%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 1.67%), Ashok Leyland (down 0.82%) and Bajaj Auto (down 0.04%) edged lower. Tata Motors was up 6.12%. The auto major on Saturday (18 April 2020) said that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) retail sales fell 12.1% to 508,659 vehicles in the fiscal year 2019-20 (FY20) over FY19. TVS Motor Company was up 2.57%. The two-wheeler maker after market hours on Friday announced the acquisition of Britain's most iconic sporting motorcycle, Norton in an all-cash deal for a consideration of 16 million pounds. Stocks in Spotlight: Adani Power (up 13.11%), Bank Of India (up 10.56%), Canara Bank (up 7.20%), Bharat Electronics (up 6.87%) and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise (up 6.41%) were the top mid-cap gainers. KEC International (up 7.40%), Century Plyboards (India) (up 6.60%), IRB Infrastructure Developers (up 5.79%), Arvind Fashions (up 5.87%) and Equitas Holdings (up 5.30%) were the top small-cap gainers. Strides Pharma Science shed 0.96% to Rs 341.25. The company announced that its step-down wholly-owned subsidiary, Strides Pharma Global, Singapore, has received approval for Flucytosine capsules USP, 250 mg and 500 mg from the US drug regulator. Flucytosine Capsule is indicated only in the treatment of serious infections caused by susceptible strains of Candida (septicemia, endocarditis and urinary system infections) and/or Cryptococcus (meningitis and pulmonary infections). According to IOVIA MAT data, the US market for Flucytosine capsules USP, 250 mg and 500 mg is approximately $45 million. The product will be manufactured at the company's flagship facility at Bangalore and will be marketed by Strides Pharma Inc. in the US market. Alembic Pharmaceuticals gained 0.32% to Rs 620. The company said that it has received tentative approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) Alcaftadine Ophthalmic Solution, 0.25%. Alcaftadine Ophthalmic Solution is an H1 histamine receptor antagonist indicated for the prevention of itching associated with allergic conjunctivitis. The solution has an estimated market size of $7 million for twelve months ending December 2019 according to IQVIA. ABB Power Products and Systems gained 1.07% to Rs 807 after the company announced that it has been awarded a project worth Rs 165 crore by state-owned refiner Indian Oil Corporation. The scope of the project is to ensure reliable grid connection at its Barauni refinery in Bihar. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered that all government officials, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha; the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj-Gen. Babagana Monguno; ministers as well as journalists covering the State House who were at the burial of his late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, on Saturday to embark on 14 days self-isolation. Kyari, who died from complications from the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on Friday, was buried in Gudu Cemetery in Abuja on Saturday. The President ordered the self-isolation of the officials and journalists in order to prevent the spread of the virus. It was learnt that the President, who monitored the burial rites on the television, saw that the officials flagrantly violated the protocol and directives of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Federal Ministry of Health on social distancing and wearing of face masks in crowded places. The NCDC standard rule, however, is that whoever is suspected to have contacted the Coronavirus disease must self-isolate for 14 days. Some of those officials at Kyaris burial on Saturday who attempted to enter into the Presidential Villa were turned back on the order of the President. Those denied access to the seat of power on Saturday after Kyaris burial were State House Chief Protocol Officer, Ambassador Lawal Kazaure; Special Assistant to the President, Yusuf Sabiu; a nephew to the President, Musa Haro Daura, and Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu. Others were Director-General of National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Mr. Ahmad Rufai, and Personal Assistant on New Media to President Buhari, Bashir Ahmed, among several more persons. Ministers seen at Kyaris funeral prayers and burial include the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami and the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, amongst others. It was learnt that the security agencies in the Presidential Villa have been mandated to compile the list of officials, including the ministers, at the burial with a view to preventing them from having access to the State House until they are certified okay by the NCDC after their mandatory 14 days isolation. Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, confirmed the ban on their entry into the Villa yesterday as he wrote on his Twitter handle: There is nothing extraordinary about those of us who attended Abba Kyaris funeral being advised to distance ourselves from the Villa. This is in line with the standard rules put in place by the National Centre for Disease Control @NCDCgov and the Federal Ministry of Health. You do these things to stop the spread of #Coronavirus. For the most part, the Villa has operated digitally in the last few weeks. So, there is really nothing new to this. The advisory issued to State House Correspondents and media officers who attended the burial by Attah Esa, a Deputy Director in the Presidency was more explicit on the ban. He wrote: As a precautionary measure, all State House Correspondents and Media Office Staff who covered/attended the funeral prayer/burial ceremony of the late Chief of Staff, at Defence House and Gudu Cemetery Abuja, respectively, are strongly advised to work from home for the next 14 days. Please be careful to observe the recommended measures to prevent the coronavirus transmission, including maintaining physical distancing and good personal hygiene going forward. The instruction on social distancing and wearing of face masks at crowded place was jettisoned at the burial rites for the late Chief of Staff. The crowd that attended the burial rites was equally uncontrolled, fueling the fears that many of them may have been unknowingly infected. The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) said it has taken steps to ensure that all future burials of victims of COVID-19 are conducted in line with protocols established by the NCDC. Health Minister Robin Swann has not been able to say when Northern Ireland will receive a delivery of medical gowns to replace 250,000 sent to protect frontline medical staff in England. The UUP MLA has said the gowns sent to England over the last fortnight will be "immediately reimbursed once their own stocks arrive". However, he stopped short of providing an expected date of delivery. He has also revealed that the Public Health Agency (PHA) is planning to issue guidance on the reuse of suitable visors and goggles in Northern Ireland. Concerns have been raised over Northern Ireland's stock of personal protective equipment (PPE), with frontline staff working in the community in particular complaining of shortages. Work has been done to address issues in the supply chain, but there are now fresh concerns about the safety of healthcare workers in light of the challenges facing NHS staff in England. It emerged on Friday evening that a shortage of gowns in England was becoming so critical that health officials had drawn up guidance on how to reuse the PPE in the safest possible way. At the time, former NI Health Minister Jim Wells raised concerns that the challenges facing the NHS in England may mean there will be a delay in replacing the 250,000 gowns provided by Northern Ireland. And there were fresh concerns on Sunday after it emerged an expected delivery of gowns and other vital PPE to England from Turkey had been delayed. Expand Close An 84-tonne shipment of PPE that was due to arrive to the UK from Turkey on Sunday has been delayed (Peter Byrne/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp An 84-tonne shipment of PPE that was due to arrive to the UK from Turkey on Sunday has been delayed (Peter Byrne/PA) Speaking on Sunday night, Mr Swann said: "The 250,000 gowns sent to England over the last two weeks will be immediately reimbursed once their own stocks arrive. "But equally, when I recently reported a shortage of specific eye protective equipment, England and Wales acted quickly to help us. "Northern Ireland benefits greatly from being part of the NHS family. This includes access to NHS supply chains and buying power for PPE, ventilators and other vital equipment. "Northern Ireland would never be in a position to be self-sufficient in these crucial areas. Playing our part in mutual NHS arrangements is the right thing to do. "We currently have sufficient stock of gowns and will be receiving circa 30,000 additional gowns in the coming weeks." Read More Mr Swann continued: "Guidance was issued on Friday by Public Health England with regard to reusing PPE. "This guidance on the reuse of PPE is not implemented in Northern Ireland at this point, and if or when it might be required the Department will consider this, taking account of the national and scientific evidence, and will provide further advice at the appropriate time. "Such consideration will be undertaken if required, and only following full engagement and in consultation with professional bodies and trade union representative organisations. "The Department fully understand that staff on the frontline need reassurance. "We believe updated guidance from April 2 and securing greater quantities of PPE for Northern Ireland will play a part in allaying concerns." Mr Swann said concerns about PPE can be reported by emailing Covid-19PPE.queries@health-ni.gov.uk. Himachal Pradesh has borne a loss of Rs 410 crore in the last 30 days due to the lockdown clamped to contain the spread of COVID-19, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said on Monday. Talking to mediapersons here, the chief minister accompanied by chief secretary Anil Khachi and director general of police Sita Ram Mardi said the loss in revenue will be compensated and the state government's topmost priority was to save lives. The state earned a mere Rs 40 crore in the last 30 days against the average monthly earnings of Rs 450 crore. So, the state exchequer had to bear a loss of Rs 410 crore, he said. The state's private sector including the tourism industry also suffered a huge loss due to the lockdown but our topmost priority is to save the lives of the people of Himachal Pradesh, he said. Thakur said the state government had to take some unpleasant decisions like closing educational institutions, temples during navratras and banning entry of tourists as there was no other option to check the spread of coronavirus in the state. These harsh steps have yielded positive results, however, the state's COVID-19 tally witnessed a spike due to Nizamuddin Markaz returnees, he said. As many as 25 of total 39 cases tested positive in the state are of either either those who attended the Tablighi Jamat congregation in Delhi or their contacts, he added. After the state government issued a stern warning to the Jamatis, several of them and their contacts came forward for testing, he said further. Meanwhile, Khachi said 77 per cent of the total cases in the hill-state are asymptomatic. Out of 39 COVID-19 positive cases, 36 are males and 3 females, while the average age of the patients is 38, he said. The chief secretary said that the state has a stock of 4,500 personal protection equipment (PPE), 15,000 N 95 masks and 64 ventilators. Efforts are on to procure more PPEs to increase the stock upto 50,000 PPEs, he added. "We have got 5,000 rapid testing kits from Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) so far against our demand of 30,000 kits," he said. Besides, the state has a 855 hospital beds including 53 in the intensive care units (ICUs) for confirmed COVID-19 patients, he said, adding that 9000 beds for institutional quarantine were available as well. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) KAZAN, Russia -- Gabdrakhman Naumov, a noted Islamic scholar in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, has been arrested on suspicion of creating and running a branch of a banned Islamic group. Naumov's lawyer, Ruslan Nagiyev, told RFE/RL that his client was apprehended about a month ago on suspicion of being the leader of the Nurcular Islamic group. Naumov is well-known in Tatarstan as a teacher at the Russian Islamic University and as the former imam of a mosque in Tatarstans capital, Kazan. "His arrest has been a shock for many in Tatarstan. Many religious and civil rights figures support Naumov. Nobody believes that he may be a leader of some sort of an extremist group," Nagiyev said, adding that his client has rejected the charge. Nagiyev also said that law enforcement authorities in Tatarstan have already added Naumov to a list of extremists, although his trial is still pending. Since 2013, several alleged members of Nurcular have been arrested across Russia. Nurcular was founded in Turkey by Islamic scholar Said Nursi, who died in 1960. It has been banned in Russia since 2008. The Nurcular movement, which has millions of followers around the globe, especially in Turkey, has been banned in Russia since 2008. Russian authorities have said the group promotes the creation of an Islamic state that encompasses all Turkic-speaking areas and countries in the Middle East, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Russia's Turkic-speaking regions in the North Caucasus and Volga region. To ensure adequate precaution against the novel coronavirus, the West Bengal government has decided to close all educational institutes in the state till 10 June. To ensure adequate precaution against the novel coronavirus, the West Bengal government has decided to close all educational institutes in the state till 10 June. The order was issued by the Department of Higher Education, Government of West Bengal, and has been sent to vice-chancellors of all universities. The order said administrative departments of colleges and universities, including the office of the vice chancellor, registrar, finance/examination department, head of the institute and emergency services may remain open if required and must abide by protocols. Hostels will also remain closed till 10 June. All necessary arrangements as per the medical protocol should be made by institutes for foreign students who are not being able to leave the campus, the notice said. West Bengal has so far reported 12 COVID-19 deaths and more than 330 people have been infected with the virus. The central government has extended the nationwide lockdown till 3 May. Several educational institutes across the country have started online classes to ensure that learning process continues during the time of the coronavirus lockdown. Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill aimed at giving taxpayers a bit of relief and reducing some hassles in local government during the pandemic. Wolf signed a bill that would allow local governments and school boards to waive late fees for property tax bills. The legislation, Senate Bill 841, would allow taxing districts to waive late fees and penalties for property taxes paid by December 31, 2020. The measure also allows the remote notarization of documents. While it sounds arcane, its a critical step in allowing some online auto sales to resume. Earlier today, Wolf said he was going to allow online auto sales and some construction activity to take place starting May 8. This bipartisan legislation gives local governments and businesses additional options to help property taxpayers and address various needs, Wolf said in a statement. COVID-19 remains a very real threat and each of us needs to continue doing our part to cut back on physical interactions. This new law is a measured and safe way to provide relief as we continue to monitor the spread of the virus. In addition, the legislation allows local governments to conduct remote public meetings, which is prompted by social distancing measures during the pandemic. Some government watchdogs have stressed that local governments and school boards must do what they can to promote transparency and allow the public to watch meetings online if possible or make records available. The measure also allows school districts to renegotiate contracts with service providers to ensure payment of personnel and fixed costs during the school closure. Wolf has ordered the closure of schools for the rest of the academic year. The legislation also reauthorizes the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council. And the council is directed to study the impact of COVID-19 on hospitals and health systems. Earlier today, Wolf extended Pennsylvanias stay-at-home order to May 8 but he also announced plans to ease restrictions on some businesses. Protesters gathered outside the Capitol Complex today, urging the governor to lift the states stay-at-home order and allow businesses to open their doors. More from PennLive Gov. Tom Wolf vetoes bill that could allow more Pa. businesses to reopen Pa. sets May 8 as the target date for regional reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic; heres what it means Pa. coronavirus death toll tops 1,200; more than 33,000 cases reported statewide A man has appeared in court accused of the murder of John Paul McDonagh in Enniskillen (PA) John Paul McDonagh, the teen who died after a street altercation in Enniskillen Police have arrested a 15-year-old boy and a man (24) in connection with the murder of John Paul McDonagh in Enniskillen. Mr McDonagh (18) died in hospital on Monday, April 13, after being stabbed in the area of Coolcullen Meadow the Saturday before. Police are interviewing the pair on suspicion of affray, wounding with intent and other violent offences in connection with that confrontation. Last week a man appeared in court charged with the murder. Joseph Joyce, 29, of Coolcullen Meadow in Enniskillen, is facing three charges in connection with the death of the 18-year-old. Joyce has been charged with murder, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm. Strabane Magistrates' Court heard that Joyce deeply regretted that Mr McDonagh had died, and that he had said he did not intend to kill him but that he had been attacked by three men. By Gina Lee Investing.com The U.S. dollar was up on Monday morning in Asia as investors braced for a tough quarter ahead. The U.S. Dollar Index that tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies gained 0.14% to 99.975 by 11:31 PM ET (4:31 AM GMT). Hurdles facing optimists are very substantial, warned Sean Callow, Westpac FX analyst, in a CNBC interview. Were three weeks into a quarter that globally looks as though its going to be the worst in many decades. For us, while the momentum may be with risk appetite for a little bit longer, we think it is very fragile and has to pull back very soon. The USD/JPY pair gained 0.28% to 107.81. The USD/CNY pair rose 0.08% to 7.0769 as Chinas central bank announced a 20-point cut in its one-year rate to 3.85%. The risk-sensitive Antipodean currencies reported losses as investors risk appetite soured. The AUD/USD pair lost 0.22% to 0.6343 and the NZD/USD pair lost % to 0.6023. New Zealand will announce whether it will lift or extend its COVID-19 lockdown later in the day. The GBP/USD pair dropped 0.18% to 1.2477 as a senior British minister said that Britain is not considering lifting its lockdown the day before. But some investors are cautiously hopeful that the worst of the pandemic could be loosening its grip on the global economy. We are coming into the eye of the storm, Chris Weston, head of research at brokerage Pepperstone, told CNBC. And as the market starts to focus less on virus headlines, or at least will be less sensitive to better news, we will focus more on the lasting effects on the economy and solvency. Related Articles Dollar firm as caution on economic re-start returns The Future of Monetary Policy Is Asian USD/CAD Falls, but Set to End Week Higher as Oil, Weak Data Hurt Loonie By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 20, 2020 | 01:31 PM | PADUCAH Paducah officials are asking residents to participate in the census. Officials are issuing a challenge to Paducah residents, to become the number one city in Kentucky when it comes to the 2020 census. Kentucky as a whole is 17th in the nation, while McCracken County is 15th in the state, and Paducah is 159th out of the 415 cities in the Commonwealth. City officials are reminding the public that an accurate census count is important for ensuring the city gets the appropriate funding and resources it needs. For more information on the 2020 census, visit the links below. On the Net: The Spanish government is clear that the major post-coronavirus game will be played out in Europe. The chances for economies that have been so badly affected by the pandemic to get back on track, such as those of Spain and Italy, will depend on there being a kind of Marshall Plan in the EU over the next few years, they say from La Moncloa prime ministerial palace. As such, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has opted to play hard at the upcoming European Union summit on Thursday, and will adopt an ambitious position, which is summed up in a non-paper, and proposes a recovery fund of around 1.5 trillion financed through perpetual EU debt, and that will be allocated via grants and not debt among the countries most affected by the crisis. Spains plan would avoid the massive indebtedness of the southern countries and would help their economies recover Spain is opting to seek greater protagonism at the next summit, with a very clear position in line with that being defended by other southern European countries, such as France and Italy, both of which have been greatly affected by the crisis. These latter two countries, however, are suggesting different solutions and above all are thinking along the lines of an intermediary solution that could be negotiated with Germany. German chancellor Angela Merkel has already insisted that she will not accept any kind of coronabonds, a suggestion that has been pushed in the past by southern EU countries, including Spain, in order to share the debt burden of economic reconstruction once the pandemic is under control. As a result, Spain has come up with this latest plan, by suggesting a recovery fund linked to the EU budget, an idea that is similar to that of France and that Germany may accept because it would not imply legal modifications that involve complex voting in the German parliament and possible appeals at the latter countrys Constitutional Court. Spains proposal which is already circulating in Brussels is not focused on the immediate crisis, which each country is dealing with using its own resources, and are taking on debt for now at reasonable costs thanks to the European Central Bank (ECB). But instead, it is suggesting a recovery fund that, at 1.5 trillion, is practically the size of the Italian economy, and would inject money directly into the most-affected economies. German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Getty Images Spains plan would avoid the massive indebtedness of the southern countries and would help their economies recover. It would not be a scheme to lend money to the affected countries, as happened with the bailouts during the Great Recession, but rather would make direct grants to member states based on a national allocation key related to the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on the basis of clear and transparent indicators, such as percentage of population affected, drop of GDP, increase in unemployment levels, etc., the document explains. Until now, all of the measures planned by the Eurogroup have been based on loans that would have to be repaid by the member states. These include 500 million of bailout funds from the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), guarantees from the European Investment Bank and funds for temporary suspension of employment schemes. The aim of such measures is to provide liquidity in the early stages of the crisis, but without any real impact on economic recovery, something that is considered to be essential. The recovery fund proposed by Spain is a completely different concept. Spain is the country that so far has most clearly set out the numbers in a non-paper. The government believes that the level of ambition needs to be raised or the European response will not have a real effect on the economy. The financial firepower that will be made available is fundamental to this: the minimum size of the fund, the paper states, should be robust in order to have a macroeconomic impact and offset the negative impact of the current crisis. Most experts estimate it at 1% of EU GDP (1 to 1.5 trillion). The financing should be ready by January 1, the document continues. And Spain also suggests that operational work for the full implementation of the three instruments that constitute the triple safety net of around 500 billion for states, companies and workers should be completed by June 1, 2020. The proposal seeks to mend the gulf between countries such as France and Italy, which are pushing for a joint budgetary response, and the reticence of northern countries such as Germany and the Netherlands The recovery fund should be financed through perpetual EU debt, backed by existing legal mechanisms to fund the EU budget, the document states, in one of its more ambitious objectives. Perpetual debt implies that only interest would be paid, and that it would be taken on in solidarity. This debt would be backed by existing legal mechanisms to fund the EU Budget underpinning the triple A rating of the EU institutions, the paper states. The ECB should continue to play a key role to ensure financial stability through liquidity and other measures, the document continues. The non-paper, which runs to barely three pages, seeks an understanding ahead of a European summit that will try to mend the huge gulf between the demands of countries such as France and Italy, which are pushing for a joint budgetary response, and the reticence of northern countries such as Germany and the Netherlands to commit to a joint budgetary response. The new fund, the document suggests, could be anchored within the umbrella of the Multiannual Financial Framework, below the own resources ceiling but above the expenditure ceiling, a deliberately open formula. This link with the EU budgetary framework for 2021-2027 seeks to build bridges with the government of Angela Merkel, which has already made clear that the response to the Covid-19 crisis should depend on the budget in the medium term and the ESM for more urgent liquidity. Spain also warns against the risk of the current national responses: the relaxation of the rules approved by the European Commission to respond to the Covid-19 crisis favors countries with a greater fiscal margin, such as Germany and the Netherlands. Finally, whereas increased flexibility for national responses is needed and welcome, it is key to avoid that this leads to a more unequal EU and a weakening of the internal market, the document reads. With this position, Spain is playing its European trump card. The first responses will arrive on Thursday. But this battle has only just begun. English version by Simon Hunter. Lucknow, April 20 : The Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama, a well-known Islamic seminary in Lucknow has issued an advisory to maintain social distancing during the holy month of Ramzan. The Deoband seminary has also issued a similar advisory for the month of Ramzan. Maulana Saeed-ur-Rahman, principal of the Nadwatul seminary, has advised Muslims not to hold congregational 'iftars' at mosques, but asked them to break their fast at home. The 10-point advisory also asks Muslims not to offer 'taraweeh' (elaborate namaz offered by Sunni Muslims) at mosques, but at home. Muslims should also maintain social distancing at mosques and not more than five people should be present at a time, the advisory said. Also, people have been asked not hold Iftar parties, but instead give money in charity. Special prayers should be held for the end of coronavirus pandemic, both during 'sehri' and 'iftar'. Faizan Nagrami, public relations officer, Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama, also said since those studying at madrasas have been unable to go home because of the lockdown, people can provide aid through online or cheque transaction. A similar advisory was earlier issued by the Islamic Centre of India, which asked Muslims to stay indoors and maintain social distancing during Ramzan. Meanwhile, the Darul Uloom Deoband, the well-known Islamic seminary, has also issued guidelines for observing the holy month. Maulana Qari Ishaq Gora of Deoband has said that the holy month of Ramzan is likely to begin from April 25. "In this case, it is advised that people observe roza (fast) and do iftar (meal to break the fast) in the evenings at their homes. There should be no congregational prayers in the mosque but only at homes. Only those who stay or are staying at a mosque should pray there and that too while maintaining adequate social distance," said the Maulana. The cleric has asked people to fast as is mandatory in Islam and to pray for the end of the pandemic, during the month of worship. The advisory says that those who used to arrange for iftar for the poor and needy persons at the mosque, should continue to do so this year as well but the food should be distributed to the needy. "Those who conducted Iftar parties in Ramzan should give the money kept for it in charity. Not more than five people should be present at any time at a mosque," the cleric added. The cleric said that the advisory for the Eid prayers would be issued later. Earlier, both, Shia and Sunni clerics have appealed to the people to stay indoors and pray during Ramzan and ensure full compliance of the lockdown during this period. HALIFAX - For those grieving the victims of a gunman who left a trail of burned homes and at least 19 dead in Nova Scotia, anguished questions emerged Monday on what led to such horror. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The Atlantic Denture Clinic is guarded by police in Dartmouth, N.S. on Monday, April 20, 2020. The business is owned by alleged killer Gabriel Wortman. Police say 17 people are dead, including RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, after a man went on a murder spree in several Nova Scotia communities. Wortman, 51, was shot and killed by police. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan HALIFAX - For those grieving the victims of a gunman who left a trail of burned homes and at least 19 dead in Nova Scotia, anguished questions emerged Monday on what led to such horror. "Why? It's just why?" said Kelly Blair, 48, who'd lost her younger brother Greg Blair, 45, and his wife Jamie. "I honestly don't really know what happened. They were both shot. That's all we know, we don't know why. We don't know," she said by telephone from her Truro, N.S., home. The murder and arson rampage that tore through 16 crime scenes on the weekend left tragedies that rippled throughout the province. The Blairs had two small children who've now moved in with another family; a school teacher husband of an RCMP officer is widowed; and in a province struggling to overcome the COVID-19 crisis frontline nurses have been gunned down at a time their skills are desperately needed. Some families didn't even know as of Monday evening if their loved ones were among the dead, as the police forensic identification unit struggled to keep up with the pace of identifying those who were burned in their homes. Long-time Portapique resident Lucille Adams said she knows a couple who live in the area and haven't been heard from since Saturday night. "Their two sons are here right now at Portapique Beach Road and they were asked to give (RCMP) photos to identify their parents," Adams said in an interview outside her home. "They are there, and they are hoping to get answers .... My heart goes out to those boys." In the village, some people who knew 51-year-old denturist Gabriel Wortman, identified by police as the killer, said there were signs of problems in the life of a man who outwardly seemed an affable, house-proud owner of a sprawling log home. Neighbour Nancy Hudson said she met him about 18 years ago when he bought the property on Portapique Beach Road, which is just a short walk from her home on Highway 2. "He was very jovial," she said in an interview just outside her house. "But there is another side to Gabe. He had some issues, especially with his girlfriend." Hudson said she and her husband used to socialize with the assailant and detected "some underlying issues that I think he had with his relationship. It was a red flag .... (What happened on the weekend) wasn't a surprise to some degree, but not to this extreme." She said he was obsessed with his girlfriend. "Just being jealous about things with her. I think that's where things got in the way .... She was a beautiful girl." RCMP Chief Supt. Chris Leather told a news briefing the public will need to wait to learn of possible motives and a detailed timeline, adding there is no suspect alive to provide answers. Wortman was shot dead by RCMP officers on Sunday next to the gas pumps at a service station in Enfield, N.S. Leather said the shooter managed his almost 100-kilometre rampage before the final "takedown" by using a mock police cruiser and wearing an RCMP uniform almost identical to the real thing. He said the crime scenes include five burned buildings where it is feared additional bodies will be found inside. That "speaks to why we don't have a final total, because we expect that to rise in the coming days," he said, adding that some victims knew the killer while others did not. The victims of the weekend rampage also include a teacher and two correctional officers killed in their home over 50 kilometres away from Portapique. Meanwhile, after an excruciating day unable to contact her sister, niece and brother-in-law, Tammy Oliver-McCurdie learned Sunday evening that the family, neighbours of the killer, had been found dead in their Portapique home. Jolene Oliver, who was turning 40 this year, her husband Aaron Tuck, 45, and their 17-year-old daughter had moved to the community after Tuck's father died a few years ago. An emotional Oliver-McCurdie said it's a small comfort to know that the close trio died together. "No matter how much they went through in life, they always stayed together, and there were times that they had nothing," Oliver-McCurdie said from Alberta. Justin Zahl finally heard from police on Monday after a day of frantic calls for information and seeing images of his parent's home on Portapique Beach Road burned to the ground, with their cars in the driveway. John Zahl, in his late 60s, and Elizabeth Joanne Thomas, in her late 50s, raised their family in Albuquerque, N.M., but retired to their dream home in Nova Scotia three years after falling in love with the place on a visit, their son said in an interview from Halifax. Police told Zahl Monday that the two-story log house had burned down but could not confirm whether his parents were inside. "The police said there are most likely bodies in there, but they have not been confirmed to be my parents," he said. Portapique is home to about 100 residents. But while the first victims were discovered by RCMP there, the killer's rampage continued across a swath of northern Nova Scotia. Jody MacBurnie, a neighbour and close friend of Alanna Jenkins and Sean McLeod, correctional officers who were killed at their home on Hunter Road, in Wentworth, N.S., described a frightening morning on Sunday for residents of a rural road in the small town. He said he saw RCMP cruisers rushing up the road, "then we came to find out their house was on fire." Teacher Lisa McCully was identified as one of the dead. She taught at Debert Elementary School, about a 20-minute drive northeast of Portapique. Paul Wozney, president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Unions, her colleagues and students knew McCully "not only as a passionate teacher but as a shining love in their lives." The Victorian Order of Nurses noted the deaths of nurses Heather O'Brien and Kristen Beaton. "All of our frontline care providers are heroes. Yesterday, two of those heroes, Heather O'Brien and Kristen Beaton, were taken from their families, and from VON," wrote Jo-Anne Poirier, president and chief executive of the agency. Gina Goulet, a 54-year-old in Shubenacadie, N.S., battled cancer twice before her life was taken from her Sunday, her daughter Amelia Butler said. Goulet worked as a denturist for 27 years, but Butler couldn't say whether she had encountered the shooter, who worked in the same field. RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and mother of two, has been identified as the officer killed. Leather said a male officer who was shot has returned home after being released from hospital. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid tribute to Stevenson and the other victims Monday in the House of Commons. "She was great police, she was a great mom. She embodied the values that built this country. Values like integrity, honesty, compassion," he said. "For her community, she paid the ultimate price and her service will never be forgotten." He noted that like Stevenson, many other victims were serving their community. "A teacher, a nurse, a child's grandparent, a parent's child. Who has the words to ease our sorrow?" he asked. Later Monday, the White House released a statement with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump sending their condolences to Canada. "The United States and Canada share a special, enduring bond," the statement said. "As friends and neighbours, we will always stand with one another through our most trying times and greatest challenges." Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Governor General Julie Payette released a video message Monday night. "A tragedy of this scale is so rare in our country that is almost beyond our comprehension," she said. "It calls for more than simple words. It calls for tears. And for solidarity. "We do not choose when hardship comes, but we can choose how we respond to it. "More than ever, let us stay united in these hard times to reach out, be kind to one another and to care for those who need it." This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020. With files from Keith Doucette, Holly McKenzie-Sutter and Adina Bresge. A Virgin Atlantic plan arrives in Seattle following a flight from London. (Ted S Warren/AP) Virgin tycoon Richard Branson warned on Monday 20 April that Virgin Atlantic could collapse under the weight of the coronavirus crisis if it did not receive a government loan. The tycoon even suggested that his Caribbean island could be offered as collateral for the loan, noting that his team will raise as much money against the island as possible to save as many jobs as possible around the group. The airline is seeking a 500m ($624m) rescue package involving commercial loans and guarantees, even as the UK government has warned aviation firms to first seek funding from other sources. In an open letter to Virgins 70,000 employees, Branson said that while the company would do everything to keep the airline going, it will need government support to achieve that. Branson pointed to the severe uncertainty surrounding travel, and said the airline did not know how long its aircraft would be grounded. This would be in the form of a commercial loan it wouldnt be free money and the airline would pay it back, Branson wrote, pointing to the 600m package granted to EasyJet (EZJ.L). READ MORE: Disney stops paying 100,000 workers during crisis Last month, chancellor Rishi Sunak warned that airlines would only receive bespoke support from the government if they could not secure the required assistance from lenders and shareholders. Virgin Atlantic was last week told to resubmit its bailout proposal to the government to demonstrate the extent to which it had sought funding from other sources, according to the Financial Times. Airlines are confronting an extraordinary crisis in coronavirus, and analysts have warned that many will collapse due to a complete fall-off in demand from travelers. The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it, said Branson. READ MORE: UK startups get 1.25bn in coronavirus support from government Without it there wont be any competition left and hundreds of thousands more jobs will be lost, along with critical connectivity and huge economic value. Story continues Virgin Atlantic, which is 51% owned by Bransons Virgin Group, last month initiated a recruitment freeze across the company and said that its chief executive and senior leaders would take significant short-term pay cuts. Branson also warned on Monday that Virgin Australia was fighting to survive and said it would need support to get through the crisis. We are hopeful that Virgin Australia can emerge stronger than ever, as a more sustainable, financially viable airline, he said. Watch the latest videos from Yahoo UK With a large number of migrant youths returning to their villages following the lockdown, the Uttarakhand Migration Commission has begun an exercise to explore the possibility of involving them in local economic activities and help them settle in their own villages. The commission conducted a survey of such youths asking them if they would like to take up an occupation in their respective villages, an official here said. "We have received a 26-point format from the Migration Commission which has to be filled out by block level offices by asking the migrant youths some questions," Pithoragarh District Development Officer Gopal Giri Goswami said. Over 5,500 migrant youths have returned to their villages in the district following the countrywide lockdown, he said. "We have sent the format received from the commission to all the eight blocks that will distribute them among the migrant youths to have their answers to the questions asked, the DDO said. There is good scope in food processing, animal husbandry, poultry, seed production, horticulture and minor engineering industries if the youths want to settle in their respective villages, the official said. "The government is willing to give them facilities of self employment if they make up their mind about settling in their respective villages even after the coronavirus crisis blows over," the DDO said. Continued migration of youths from the remote hilly areas of Uttarakhand in search of livelihood has been a major problem for successive state governments. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 40 days, nights: AMC commander's battle staff directs round-the-clock support in COVID-19 fight By 2nd Lt. Emma Quirk, Air Mobility Command Public Affairs / Published April 19, 2020 SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) -- Forty days after Air Mobility Command commander Gen. Maryanne Miller activated the commander's battle staff, a small but dedicated group of experts continue to work tirelessly around-the-clock at Scott Air Force Base, overseeing AMC's contribution to the Defense Department's operations in the COVID-19 pandemic fight and arming Airmen with clear guidance on how to execute operations safely and effectively. "We've been sprinting since Gen. Miller activated our CBS on March 4," said Maj. Gen. Samuel Mahaney, AMC chief of staff. "With clear instruction to provide a single, 24/7 cell of experts who can ensure uninterrupted rapid global mobility amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, these experts have produced more than 40 battle-staff directives that offer guidance to our Airmen on everything from aircraft decontamination to patient movement to timely reporting of COVID-19 cases on our installations. With masks donned, these unsung heroes inside the CBS have toiled around-the-clock to ensure we continue to help those in need during these difficult times." Under Mahaney's direction and led by a colonel director, the CBS is comprised of civilian and military experts from across the headquarters staff, representing an array of specialties such as medical, logistics, operations, public affairs, security and liaisons from AMC's 618th Air Operations Center, to name a few. This collaborative team has provided expertise, networking, and unique perspectives to solving problems, answering urgent tasks and disseminating time-critical information. Early on, the CBS anticipated a shift toward virtual operations. When the governor of Illinois announced a state-wide shelter-in-place, March 20, the team was already postured for the shift. "Once Scott (AFB) followed suit by implementing reduced-manning operations, the CBS adjusted accordingly to protect the mission-essential personnel who continue to maintain a physical presence in work centers," said Col. John Platte, one of the first CBS directors to lead daily operations. "To remain connected while abiding by social-distancing procedures, we've done whatever necessary to maintain robust communications across the battle staff and headquarters while keeping our people safe, to include staggered shifts and utilizing teleconference calls, collaboration platforms and other technology." As the CBS manages operations and responds to a steady flow of requests for information, several operational planning teams and working groups have labored away in adjacent rooms to develop in-depth plans and options for some of the more complex mobility issues AMC has faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. "The CBS has been, and continues to be, critical to providing operational planning teams and working groups with information," said Col. Russel Frantz, who provided subject matter expertise to an OPT focused on aeromedical evacuation. "This data was used to plan for and execute AMC's first Transport Isolation System patient movement, work contracts for the next-generation airborne isolation system known as the Portable Bio-Containment Module, and help leadership understand COVID-19 impacts to training and readiness." Among its more pressing tasks, the CBS was directed early on to develop guidance on how to continue conducting cargo and passenger movement and AE missions in and through high-risk areas, while remaining mindful of the growing risk that contagious passengers or patients might be aboard these missions. "Our 24/7 OPTs have provided solutions on a variety of issues, including aircraft decontamination and the movement of contagious patients onboard pressurized, military aircraft," Frantz said. "We've developed similar guidance and procedures before on a limited basis during contingencies like the 2014 Ebola outbreak, but never of this scale and scope. Our detailed plans and directives have allowed AMC to continue to conduct airlift and AE missions across the globe in support of the joint force, our partners and allies." Under the direction of Brig. Gen. Joel Jackson, AMC deputy director for Operations, and Operational Planning Group director, Col. Scott Minton, the CBS and its supporting OPTs helped plan and establish a TIS operation staged out of Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Additionally, within hours of the CBS publishing an OPT effort to develop AMC's Patient Movement Plan, a C-17 Globemaster III aircrew and medical support specialists stepped to their aircraft at Ramstein AB in the dark of night with PMP in hand to execute the first-ever operational employment of the TIS, and the first-ever movement of COVID-19 positive patients aboard a pressurized, military aircraft. The April 10 AE mission validated the efforts of the AMC planners who designed TIS operations and the PMP by safely transporting three infected U.S. contractors from Afghanistan to Ramstein AB where they are now receiving care at nearby Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. "I'm immensely proud of what these Airmen have done through around-the-clock operations," Mahaney said. "Working long hours with a sense of urgency, their efforts providing guidance and resources to keep our AMC Airmen safe as they carry out the mobility mission across the globe, from passenger terminal specialists checking those seeking to fly aboard our gray tails, to security-forces Airmen checking identification at the gate." As guidance is provided by the CBS, AMC units often provide formal and real-time feedback to the CBS director so they can revise to better meet the needs of the force. "The men and women out executing the guidance we provide are our eyes and ears," said Col. Patrick Winstead, who pulled ten shifts as CBS director. "We depend on their feedback to make sure what we are providing is conducive to mission success." He added that overall, feedback has been constructive and positive. Though the duty hours may have changed for some, a constant state of readiness is nothing new to mobility Airmen. AMC routinely responds to emerging requirements for airlift across the globe so the command is poised to support the whole-of-government effort to combat the COVID-19 outbreak. "It is crucial we keep everything moving across the globe," Mahaney added. "Mobility Airmen continue to safely execute rapid global mobility, and headquarters AMC is no exception. We're doing everything possible to ensure our Airmen on the ground and in the skies are able to still conduct mobility operations in light of the elevated risk COVID-19 presents to our Airmen and operations." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Federal Government on Monday announced the extension of the closure of airports in the country by two weeks. Minister of Aviatio... The Federal Government on Monday announced the extension of the closure of airports in the country by two weeks. Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, who disclosed this on Monday, said the decision was due to the coronavirus pandemic. He tweeted, COVID-19. As a result of the extension on lockdown by Mr. President it is no longer possible for us to open our airspace and airports for normal operations by the 23rd April, 2020. They will remain closed for a further two weeks. This subject to review as appropriate. Meanwhile, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, on Sunday confirmed 86 new COVID-19 cases in the country, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 627. April 20 (Reuters) - Robinsons Land Corp: * IN REFERENCE TO PROJECT OF CO IN CHENGDU, CHINA, RECENTLY SECURED SALES PERMIT FOR ADDITIONAL COMPONENTS OF PHASES 1 AND 2 * FOR ITS HOSPITALITY BUSINESS IN PHILIPPINES, ABOUT HALF OF ITS HOTEL PROPERTIES ARE OPEN WITH LIMITED OPERATIONS * FOR PHILIPPINE OPERATIONS, CONTINUE TO OPERATE OFFICE BUILDINGS, INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES; 52 MALLS CLOSED EXCEPT OPERATIONS OF ESSENTIAL RETAIL SHOPS * SOLD 76% OF CONDOMINIUM UNITS & 73% OF DUPLEX VILLAS OPENED FOR SALE IN CHENGDU AFTER RELEASE OF SALES PERMIT Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: A Belfast publican has been forced to suspend his service of pulling pints on peoples doorsteps after the PSNI said it breached licensing legislation. Hatfield House has been operating a Guinness-on-wheels service which it said was proving hugely popular. Mobile bar staff had been pouring drinks out of refitted vans into plastic glasses while wearing latex gloves. Beers are then left on the doorstep with no contact with customers. However, the owners of the pub have said the PSNI have attempted to shut down their pint delivery service. Pints on Pause Folks we are devastated but for the minute we have been forced to suspend the delivery of our Guinness... Posted by The Hatfield House on Sunday, April 19, 2020 In a Facebook post, a spokesman for the pub said police had stopped their vehicles over recent days, accusing the drivers of breaching legislation. The spokesman added: Folks we are devastated but for the minute we have been forced to suspend the delivery of our Guinness pints. Before commencing this service we carried out a detailed risk assessment of our operations to ensure the safety of our staff, their families and ultimately you, the customer and to ensure that the home delivery service we are providing is in total compliance with all relevant health and safety and licensing legislation. Our lawyers have advised us that we are in strict compliance with all relevant current legislation. Expand Close Barman Harry McKeaveney from the Hatfield House delivery service (Niall Carson/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Barman Harry McKeaveney from the Hatfield House delivery service (Niall Carson/PA) We launched this service to try to bring a smile to peoples faces and keep a few more of our amazing staff in jobs amidst these most trying and dire times. However, despite all of this, the PSNI have sought to wrongly shut down the Guinness pint delivery service. We have asked the PSNI on numerous occasions to outline which relevant piece of legislation we are alleged to have breached but to date they havent been able to do this. Yesterday four of our staff were followed by two unmarked PSNI cars for over 45 minutes the health and wellbeing of our staff is too important to us and at a time when our staff are stressed and worried about a number of issues we cannot allow the PSNI to add to this. So, for the minute the Guinness delivery service is on pause until we can guarantee to our staff that they will not be subjected to harassment and perceived intimidation such what they were put through yesterday. We launched this service to try to bring a smile to peoples faces and keep a few more of our amazing staff in jobs amidst these most trying and dire times Hatfield House There are four delivery drivers today that are not required as our Guinness pint delivery service has been suspended. Their jobs have now been placed at risk but we wont be letting anyone go as this venture was never about money, it was about jobs for our staff and smiles for our customers. We want to give all the Guinness drinkers in Belfast a massive thank you. We have loved serving you and loved seeing your happy faces when we arrive with your pints of Guinness. If we have to take this matter to the courts for determination we will because we firmly believe we are on the right side of the law. We are continuing to deliver food and drink so pick up the phone and give us a shout. Stay home, stay safe and let us bring the pub to you. Belfast District Commander Chief Superintendent Jonathan Roberts said: PSNI is aware of employees from licensed premises dispensing alcohol at various locations in Belfast from an adapted vehicle. Yesterday officers on patrol in south Belfast spoke with a number of individuals and files are now being prepared for submission to the Public Prosecution Service in relation to potential breaches of the Licensing (NI) Order 1996. During recent weeks, officers have discussed with various licensees what constitutes a breach of the licensing legislation and have advised them that where necessary we will take enforcement action. Theres a certain time in a lot of our lives when we fantasize about being in bands, and those fantasies usually go something like this. You and a small group of friends love nothing more than hanging out and being creative, and somewhere along the line you pick up instruments. Thanks to a combination of talent, ambition, and hard work, the fruit of your labors starts to resonate with people outside of your immediate social circle. As music moves from your passion to your profession, the love that drew you all to it never diminishes, nor does the affection for one another that pulled you together in the first place. Rather than growing up and getting real jobs, you and your friends find lasting fortune and fame by doing that same thing you were up to at the beginning: hanging out and being creative. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Of course, as anyone whos ever actually been in a band can tell you, it never really works that way. Bands almost never get big, and among the tiny fraction that do, that initial romance of creative fellowship quickly runs into the reality of individual egos, divergent ambitions, and various financial entanglements. Take the most famous example, the Beatles, which, after all, is pretty much where this fantasy stems from. Why did the Beatles break up? is a question thats likely been asked by billions of people since April of 1970, and most explanations tend to ignore the most obvious answer: The Beatles broke up because they were a band, and breaking up is what bands do. There are many reasons that the Beastie Boys meant so much to so many people: They were cool, they were funny, and they were brilliantly creative. But one of the biggest was that they seemed to so joyously embody that particular fantasy, perhaps more than any act of their era. Here were three childhood friends whod started a band, gotten huge, and through it all managed to maintain an unconditional love for music along with a self-evident and intensely inspiring love for one another. They were that band that youd always wanted to be in, one of the many qualities that made the death of Adam Yauch (aka MCA) in 2012, at age 47, so devastating for so many people. It wasnt supposed to end this way. Not for the Beastie Boys. It wasnt ever supposed to end. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I found myself thinking about all of this while watching Beastie Boys Story, a new film directed by Spike Jonze that was originally supposed to open in IMAX on April 3 but will now debut exclusively on Apple TV+ on April 24. The format of Beastie Boys Story is fairly unusual. The film was shot at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn and is essentially a live, two-man show between the two surviving Beastie Boys, Michael Diamond (aka Mike D) and Adam Horovitz (aka the King Ad-Rock). (Other, thoroughly unexpected guests do show up, but not until very late in the film.) In typical Jonze fashion, the film is loose and anarchic yet deceptively well-controlled, its fourth wall always in varying states of permeability. The two men narrate their own careers, with a generous amount of archival footage of the band that goes back to its very beginnings. There are no talking heads weighing in on the bands significance, no corny montages, and there is no Behind the Musicstyle canned drama. The result is a warm and intimate film, and one that I frequently found myself wishing I could experience in the IMAX format, which I can only imagine was intended to re-create the original live theatrical experience. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In typical Spike Jonze fashion, the film is loose and anarchic yet deceptively well-controlled, its fourth wall always in varying states of permeability. Beastie Boys Story doesnt contain any bombshell revelations. Certainly anyone whos read 2018s Beastie Boys Book (and if you havent, for the love of God, go read Beastie Boys Book) wont really find much here to change their basic idea of who and what the Beastie Boys were. But thats not the point of a film like this, which is equal parts memorial, reflection, and celebration. Theres a ton of cool footage, particularly of the bands earlier years. We see grainy video of the band performing at the Kitchen in New York, reading their rhymes off of torn notebook pages. Theres a clip of a local television show featuring Afrika Bambaataa, and a young Ad-Rock sneaks into the studio audience to request that Bam play Cooky Puss, the Beastie Boys first single. (Bam blesses the record as tough.) And make sure to stay for the massive grab bag of footage that unfolds during the films end credit sequence, which lasts longer than some sitcoms and is worth every second. Advertisement Advertisement Jonze and his two subjects have made an honest and open film, firmly in character for a band that always seemed exceptionally comfortable in its own skin. Diamond and Horovitz speak with regret and humility about the bands treatment of founding drummer Kate Schellenbach, who was unkindly jettisoned when the group transitioned from hardcore quartet to white-rap provocateurs. (Schellenbach went on to co-found the band Luscious Jackson, and she and her former co-Beasties have long since reconciled.) They speak unusually extensively about the mammoth success of Licensed to Ill, an album whose legacy the group spent much of its career aggressively attempting to distance itself from. They reflect on the commercial failure of their 1989 masterpiece Pauls Boutique, and how Capitols bungling of the albums promotion led the group to a fierce self-reliance that resulted in the one-two punch of Check Your Head and the multiplatinum Ill Communication. They look back on their long and immensely productive relationship with Swiss New Wave filmmaker Nathanial Hornblower, who had all the ideas for Star Wars. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At one point, Horovitz, choking back tears, has to turn things over to Diamond for a spell, and the two men basically help each other through the remainder of the film. Around three-quarters of the way through Beastie Boys Story, I began to feel a bit like I was ready for the movie to end. Id enjoyed it immensely, but it had started to feel shaggy, like it had run out of places to go. I found myself wondering if maybe the two-man show format had been a mistake: After all, these guys are well known for being friends with some of the worlds most interesting people, and it might have been cool to hear from some of them, too. It was right around this moment, though, that the film suddenly and beautifully changed shape, as Horovitz and Diamond fully turn their attention to the yawning absence at the center of all this, the late Yauch. A gorgeous and almost impossibly moving remembrance unfolds. At one point, Horovitz, choking back tears, has to turn things over to Diamond for a spell, and the two men basically help each other through the remainder of the film. Its a raw and exquisitely emotional turn, a miraculously graceful tonal shift that somehow reconfigures everything youve just watched. Advertisement At one point late in the film, Diamond recounts a story about Horovitz being asked by an interviewer if Song for the Man, a track calling out street harassment from Hello Nasty, was just a bit hypocritical coming from the guys who did Licensed to Ill. Id rather be a hypocrite, responds Horovitz, in Diamonds paraphrase, than be the same person forever. Its an anecdote Id come across in various forms and places over the years, but this time it hit me with new force. A simple but too rare act of generosity is to afford others the capacity to change, and in some ways this feels like the moral at the heart of the Beastie Boys story (unitalicized), the gift theyd most want paid forward. That fantasy so many of us have harbored about bands is a fantasy of the young, and in many ways its a fantasy of eternal youth. The Beastie Boys werent that. They were the opposite, and thats so much better. To learn how jazz composer Miho Hazama creates new pieces, listen to the latest Working. LANSING, MI -- A Michigan conservation coalition numbering 40,000 members is suing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to overturn her ban on motorized boating during the coronavirus pandemic. The Michigan United Conservation Clubs, in a lawsuit filed Sunday, April 19, in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids, argued through their attorneys that Whitmers ban on motorized boating is unconstitutional, vague and too broad. The coalition is asking a judge to declare motorboat use an allowed outdoor physical activity under Whitmers revised stay-at-home order, which is intended to limit nonessential trips outside the home to slow the spread of COVID-19. The order, revised on April 9, runs through April 30. Under the order, acceptable physical outdoor activities using watercraft includes kayaking, canoeing and sailing. Using a motorboat, a personal watercraft or other similar watercraft is not, according to the order. Lawyers for the coalition argue that a motorboat ban limits fishing, which is a source of food and income and a way to maintain mental health. "Many MUCC members rely on this fishing not only as a locally sourced, high-quality protein for their family and friends, but also as an activity important to their mental health during the stresses of this pandemic, lawyers for the coalition wrote. For some members, fishing and boating activities are their only source of income." Related: Despite criticism, Gov. Whitmer defends revised stay-at-home order The coalition joins three Holland-area men who, last week, also sued the governor over the ban on using motorized boats. Ambiguities in the executive order, outlined by the coalition, include that canoes, sailboats and rowboats allowed under the order may also have a motor attached. Further, the coalition argues, these allowed boaters can and will congregate at boat launches, which the Department of Natural Resources before the ban said it received numerous reports of. The coalition said it has been supportive of the governors efforts to promote social distancing to slow the spread of coronavirus but that banning motorboats doesnt further that. MUCC has been supportive of the administration's legal closure of areas like Tippy Dam, where anglers continually were asked to social distance and conservation and law enforcement officers were met with resistance, MUCC Executive Director Amy Trotter said in a statement. The organization, if given a chance, will partner with the governors office to continue communicating and helping in any way possible to ensure anglers are recreating responsibly. Trotter said the lawsuit is not a partisan move. This litigation would not be brought forward if it did not include a sound policy argument, Trotter said. Attempts to cast this as emotionally- or politically-driven are baseless. The group names Daniel Eichinger, director of the DNR, as a co-defendant to Whitmer The suit comes after tensions in Lansing last week when thousands took part in Operation Gridlock outside the Capitol Building to protest Whitmers stay-at-home order. Whitmer contends the restrictions are necessary and are saving lives. State health officials on Sunday reported 83 new deaths and 633 new COVID-19 cases statewide, bringing Michigans cumulative totals to 31,424 confirmed cases and 2,391 deaths. The number of new cases of COVID-19 is the lowest daily total reported in Michigan during the month of April. Related: Gov. Whitmer hints at how Michigan will start reopening, come May 1 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: Changes need to be made soon before its too late, Michigan House Speaker tells Gov. Whitmer Michigan lawmakers express concern at lack of federal help for states small businesses Whitmer anxious to re-engage economy but wants to avoid second wave of coronavirus Michigan prisoner dies from coronavirus weeks away from parole after being locked up 44 years A Coles bakery manager was proposed to by her boyfriend over the microphone while she was working, prompting a round of applause from customers. Sam Sargaison confessed his love for girlfriend Tegan Mangan while she was working at Coles Beenleigh, south of Brisbane, over the store's speaker system. Ms Mangan was called to the checkout where her now-fiance was waiting to get down on one knee. Sam Sargaison confessed his love for girlfriend Tegan Mangan while she was working at Coles Beenleigh, south of Brisbane, over the store's speaker system Mr Sargaison had the help of Nova 106.9's breakfast team Ash, Kip, Luttsy and Susie O'Neill, who were wanting to help someone propose during lockdown. When he explained his plans to propose at his girlfriend's workplace, the breakfast team were excited to help Mr Sargaison lock down his love. Video shows Ms Mangan walking to the front of the store looking confused before seeing her boyfriend standing at the checkout. 'I've spent the last four years of my life with you during which I have learnt how amazing, caring and driven you are. I realised you were someone I never wanted to lose. I really could not ask for a better partner,' he said over the microphone. Mr Sargaison then gets down on one knee and opens a box with an engagement ring worth $6,500 from Robert White Jewellers. 'Your ability to take the good with the bad, and see the best in people, always considering others often before yourself, I am truly inspired by your love for life and I would be out of my mind if I did not ask you to spend the rest of your life with me, so Tegan, absolute love of my life, will you marry me?' Ms Mangan was called to the checkout where her now-fiance was waiting to get down on one knee The proposal earned a reaction from customers doing their grocery shopping in store, with many cheering the couple on and clapping. Video of the proposal was posted to the breakfast team's Facebook page with the caption: 'Stuck in lockdown with someone you realise you want to lock down...for good?' 'So beautiful to watch, made me cry. Congratulations to you both,' one viewer commented. 'Yay! We need more happy stories like this right now,' another wrote. Panic-induced grocery shoppers were seen in the background of the store, which has had to implement social distancing rules to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Coles and Woolworths have placed a limit on the number of customers in-store to help combat the spread of coronavirus after products like toilet paper and hand sanitiser flew off shelves. This shocking pictured showed an elderly man staring at an empty bread shelf after it was cleaned out by coronavirus panic buyers in March (pictured) This heartbreaking picture was taken in the canned food aisle of a Port Melbourne Coles store on February 27, as vulnerable customers struggled to find food Coles now allows a maximum of 110 shoppers at its smallest store, and 275 at its largest. Supermarkets in Australia have become a battle ground amid the coronavirus pandemic. Staff have been even assaulted by people desperate to get their hands on sought after items such as toilet paper, pasta and rice. One alleged incident in Brunswick, in Melbourne's inner-city, involved a Coles worker allegedly being hit with a stick by a disgruntled shopper. Brawls have also broken out in Woolworths, with two women being investigated by police after a fight broke out in the aisles over a pack of toilet paper. Coles now has two dedicated shopping hours per week for emergency service and healthcare workers as of March 26. They are the first hour of trade on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while Monday, Wednesday and Friday remain for seniors to help reduce risks to them. There are still strict limits imposed on how many of each item you can buy, it is usually two of anything but for toilet paper it is still just one packet in most stores. Columbia-led research in rats uncovers unexpected interplay between the two drugs; sheds new light on the neurobiology of drug use in adolescence NEW YORK -- Cannabis use makes young brains more sensitive to the first exposure to cocaine, according to a new study on rodents led by scientists at Columbia University and the University of Cagliari in Italy. By monitoring the brains of both adolescent and adult rats after giving them synthetic psychoactive cannabinoids followed by cocaine, the research team identified key molecular and epigenetic changes that occurred in the brains of adolescents -- but not adults. This discovery reveals a new interplay between the two drugs that had never previously been directly observed in biological detail. These findings, reported this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, provide new understanding of how the abuse of cannabis during teenage years may enhance the first experience with cocaine and lead to continued use among vulnerable individuals. "We know from human epidemiological studies that individuals who abuse cocaine have a history of early cannabis use, and that a person's initial response to a drug can have a large impact on whether they continue to use it. But many questions remain on how early cannabis exposure affects the brain," said epidemiologist Denise Kandel, PhD, who is a professor of Sociomedical Sciences in Psychiatry at Columbia's Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and co-senior author of today's paper. "Our study in rats is the first to map the detailed molecular and epigenetic mechanisms by which cocaine interacts with brains already exposed to cannabinoids, providing much-needed clarity to the biological mechanisms that may increase the risk for drug abuse and addiction," added co-author and Nobel laureate Eric Kandel, MD, codirector of Columbia's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute and Senior Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Previous research had revealed key differences in how cannabis and cocaine affect brain chemistry. "Studies on the addictive properties of cocaine have traditionally focused on the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway, a brain system that underlies our motivation to pursue pleasurable experiences," said Philippe Melas, PhD, who was an associate research scientist in Eric Kandel's lab at Columbia's Zuckerman Institute and is the paper's co-senior author. "While cannabis enhances mesolimbic dopaminergic activity similarly to cocaine, it also affects an entirely different neurochemical system that is widespread in the brain called the endocannabinoid system. This system is essential for brain development -- a process that is still ongoing in adolescence." Besides the dopaminergic system, both cannabis and cocaine appear to share some additional features. Recent studies have suggested that the development of cocaine craving is dependent on the brain's glutamatergic system. This system uses glutamate, a brain molecule that acts as a synaptic transmitter in the brain, enhancing the transmission of signals between the brain's neurons. According to previous research, as well as findings presented in today's new study, using cannabis during adolescence may also affect this glutamatergic signaling process. To delve deeper into a potential link between the two drugs, Dr. Melas and the husband-and-wife team of Drs. Eric and Denise Kandel partnered with Paola Fadda, PhD, Maria Scherma, PhD, and Walter Fratta, PhD, researchers in the Department of Biomedical Sciences, at the University of Cagliari in Italy. The group examined the behavioral, molecular and epigenetic changes that occur when both adolescent and adult rats are first exposed to WIN, a synthetic cannabinoid with psychoactive properties similar to those of THC found in cannabis, and then are subsequently exposed to cocaine. "We found that adolescent rats that had been pre-exposed to WIN had an enhanced reaction to their initial exposure to cocaine. Notably, we observed this effect in adolescent but not in adult rats," said Dr. Melas, who is now a junior researcher in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. Upon further examination, the team found that, when preceded by a history of psychoactive cannabinoid use in adolescence, exposure to cocaine sets off a battery of unique molecular reactions in the rat brain. These reactions included not only changes in the aforementioned glutamate receptors but also key epigenetic modifications. Epigenetic modifications are distinct, in that they affect the way genes are switched on or off but do not affect the sequence of the genes themselves. The Columbia team had previously found similar epigenetic mechanisms in adult animals in response to nicotine and alcohol in the brain's reward center, known as the nucleus accumbens. In the present study, however, the epigenetic effects of cannabinoids were found to be specific to adolescents and to target the brain's prefrontal cortex. The prefrontal cortex, which plays a role in various executive functions, including long-term planning and self-control, is one of the last regions of the brain to reach maturity, a fact that has long been linked to adolescents' propensity for risky behavior. Moreover, aberrant prefrontal cortex activity is often observed in patients suffering from addiction. Efforts to enhance the function of the prefrontal cortex are currently being evaluated in the treatment of addiction through the use of brain stimulation and other methodologies. "Our findings suggest that exposure to psychoactive cannabinoids during adolescence primes the animals' prefrontal cortex, so that it responds differently to cocaine compared to animals who had been given cocaine without having previously experienced cannabis," said Dr. Melas. These results in rats offer important clues to the biological mechanisms that may underlie the way that different classes of drugs can reinforce each other in humans. The results also support the notion that cannabis abuse during adolescence can enhance a person's initial positive experience with a different drug, such as cocaine, which in turn can have an effect on whether that person chooses to continue, or expand, their initial use of cocaine. "This study suggests that teenagers who use cannabis may have a favorable initial reaction to cocaine, which will increase their likelihood of engaging in its repeated use so that they eventually become addicted, especially if they carry additional environmental or genetic vulnerabilities," said Dr. Denise Kandel. Most research involving rodents and addiction has traditionally focused on adult animals. It has also largely been limited to studying one substance of abuse at a time, without taking into consideration a history of drug exposure in adolescence. "These and other experiments are key to understanding the molecular changes to the brain that occur during drug use," said Dr. Eric Kandel, who is also University Professor and Kavli Professor of Brain Science at Columbia. "This knowledge will be crucial for developing effective treatments that curb addiction by targeting the disease's underlying mechanisms." ### This paper is titled "Cannabinoid exposure in rat adolescence reprograms the initial behavioral, molecular and epigenetic response to cocaine." Additional contributors include Johanna S. Qvist, Arun Asok, PhD, Shao-shan C. Huang, PhD, Paolo Masia, PhD, Matteo Deidda, PhD, Ya B. Wei, PhD and Rajesh K. Soni, PhD. This research was supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Cohen Veterans Bioscience, the Swedish Research Council (Dnr 350-2012-6535), the Royal Physiographic Society in Lund (Sweden), the Sweden-America Foundation, the National Institute of Mental Health (F32MH114306) and the Department of Biomedical Sciences Project in Italy (RICDIP_2012_Fratta_01). The authors declare no conflict of interest. Columbia University's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute brings together a group of world-class scientists and scholars to pursue the most urgent and exciting challenge of our time: understanding the brain and mind. A deeper understanding of the brain promises to transform human health and society. From effective treatments for disorders like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, depression and autism to advances in fields as fundamental as computer science, economics, law, the arts and social policy, the potential for humanity is staggering. To learn more, visit: zuckermaninstitute.columbia.edu. Three days after a huge mob of villagers lynched three persons near a village in Palghar during lockdown, the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party demanded a high-level probe into the incident. Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis said that after viewing the visuals that have come out, "the Palghar inident of mob lynching is shocking and inhuman". "It is more disturbing especially when we are going through such tough times," he said, referring to the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The victims included two sadhus of the Juna Akhada who were killed besides their vehicle driver, while at least two police vans were damaged and some policemen were injured. The incident happened late on Thursday, but came to light early Friday morning after the driver alerted the police which rushed there. "I urged the Maharashtra government to immediately set up a high-level enquiry and ensure that people who are responsible for this are brought to justice at the earliest," Fadnavis said today. Mumbai BJP general secretary Amarjeet Mishra alleged that while the attacks were on, the police remained mute spectators and urged the government to take immediate action. "The government should get to the root of the incident... The insensitive policemen must be dismissed", Mishra said. An aggressive mob of around 200 villagers flouting all lockdown norms, had accosted a vehicle in which the two sadhus were travelling from Nashik to Surat with some relief materials late on Thursday night. Suspecting them to be thieves, the crowd started questioning them, abused and then assaulted them brutally with sticks, rods and stones. When the police team reached the spot and took them to their van, the crowds swooped on the police van and continued to assault them till they succumbed. The victims were later identified as Sushilgiri Maharaj, 30, Chikne Maharaj Kalpavriksha Giri, 70 and their driver Nilesh Telwade, 30. The Kasa police station lodged a case late on Friday and arrested over 100 persons who are remanded in police custody. Further investigations are underway. A semi-industrialised centre with mostly tribal population, Palghar is located around 60 km from northwest Mumbai border. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu Trend: The number of Turkish citizens looking for job in Ukraine significantly increased from January 2020 through March 2020, Turkish Employment Agency (ISKUR) told Trend on April 20. According to the agency, the number of Turkish citizens visiting Ukraine to find work through ISKUR increased by 29.8 percent in the first quarter of 2020, compared to same period of 2019. In particular, 61 Turkish citizens visited Ukraine via ISKUR during the reporting period. In 1Q2020, 4,077 Turkish citizens went abroad through ISKUR, which is 23.9 percent less compared to the same period of 2019. In March 2020, 74,331 citizens were provided with jobs through this agency in Turkey. Some 32.1 percent of the total number of employed citizens accounted for women and 67.9 percent for men. In March 2020, 96.6 percent of the total number of citizens provided with jobs accounted for the private sector. The number of unemployed in Turkey in the reporting month amounted to over 3.6 million people, 48.9 percent of which are women, and 51.1 percent are men. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Pence, Pelosi Spar on Coronavirus Testing By Ken Bredemeier April 19, 2020 U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sparred Sunday on the shortfall in testing people for coronavirus in the United States, but said they were close to a deal on more funding for small businesses shut by the pandemic to pay their workers and eventually reopen. Pence, the leader of the White House coronavirus task force, told "Fox News Sunday" he believes there are a "sufficient" number of test kits available throughout the country "for any state" to move into the first phase of new government guidelines to slowly return the country to work and a sense of normalcy. The U.S. is currently performing 150,000 coronavirus tests a day, but some experts say that 500,000 are needed. Pence said he thinks the government can reach 300,000 a day, which he said was a big enough number to give Americans "the confidence and tools to go back to work." However, Pelosi, the leader of the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, attacked President Donald Trump's performance in handling the coronavirus crisis in the U.S. and the government's slow response in testing. "We're already very late" on testing in the U.S, she told Fox News. "We're way late on that. The president gets an F." Two governors also assailed the national government's lax testing, including Republican Gov. Larry Hogan in the eastern state of Maryland, who is also chair of the National Governors Association. "The administration I think is trying to ramp up testing, they are doing some things with respect to private labs," Hogan told CNN. "But to try to push this off, to say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren't doing our jobs, is absolutely false." Democratic Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia told CNN that claims by Trump and Pence that states have plenty of tests were "just delusional." Trump later said on Twitter, "Governors must be able to step up and get the job done. We will be with you ALL THE WAY!" Trump also assailed Pelosi, saying, "Nervous Nancy is an inherently 'dumb' person" and predicted that either Democrats would oust her as House speaker or Republicans would retake control of the House. Both Pence and Pelosi said the White House and Democratic lawmakers are close to a deal to add another $300 billion to the fund to help thousands of small businesses in the U.S. that have been forced to close their operations in the face of stay-at-home orders issued by 43 of the 50 U.S. state governors to curb the spread of the virus. Trump and Congress initially approved a $350 billion small business fund, but with thousands of businesses applying for the money, the fund ran out of money last week and the government stopped taking more applications for the cash. If businesses spend the money on paying workers over the next eight weeks, the government says it will foot the bill for the payments and the businesses will not have to repay it. Otherwise, if the money is not spent on salaries for workers in the next two months, it turns in to a loan and must be repaid. "We're very close," Pence said of a new deal on small business aid. Pelosi told ABC's "This Week, "We're close, we have common ground," with billions more added to the small business aid to assist hospitals that have been inundated with coronavirus patients. "The businesses will have the money in a timely fashion," she said. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer told CNN, "I'm very hopeful we could come to an agreement (Sunday night) or early tomorrow morning." The new funding will also add another $100 billion for hospitals and coronavirus testing, along with $60 billion for a separate small business loan program, officials said. Republicans had initially sought new aid only for small businesses, defined as those with 500 or fewer employees, while Democrats insisted on also adding hospital aid. Democrats also sought new money for financially hard-pressed local governments, but the new deal will likely exclude that funding. Pelosi defined the Democrats' sentiment in the negotiations as: "Let's get as much as we can for those who are helping to fight this fight so we can soon open our economy." Some workers in several states have taken to the streets to protest their governors' stay-at-home edicts, which were extensions of Trump's national guidelines to Americans to maintain social distancing of two meters or more through the end of April. But Trump, after last week issuing a three-phase plan for governors to follow to reopen their state economies, called on protesters to "liberate" the states of Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia, all states led by Democratic governors who had imposed stay-at-home orders. Protesters, defying social distancing recommendations, have also taken to the streets in states led by Republican governors to protest their restrictions, but Trump did not single them out. In Texas, the protesters chanted "Fire Fauci," attacking Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease expert on the White House task force who has cautioned against reopening the country's economy too quickly for fear of a renewed surge of the pandemic. "I think some of the governors have gotten carried away," Trump said at one of his daily coronavirus news briefings in critiquing their orders. Pence declined to criticize the street protests, saying the demonstrators wanted their governors to adopt the White House's "phased framework" for reopening workplaces as quickly as possible. A total of 22 million workers more than an eighth of the country's labor force have been laid off because of the pandemic. The U.S. death toll now totals more than 39,000, with more than 740,000 confirmed coronavirus cases. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast / Getty For Dawn Morton, keeping her small business eight employees on payroll isnt the only challenge presented by the coronavirus economic lockdowntheres the spoiled milk to contend with, too. Morton is the owner of Aurora Coffee in Wellsville, Kansas, a small town of 2,000 just outside Kansas City. Like many small business owners around the country, shes had to close up shop because of the COVID-19 outbreakand with her business on the line, she has turned to the federal government for any kind of lifeline to weather the storm. In the CARES Act passed last month, Congress appropriated $350 million to establish the Paycheck Protection Program, an initiative to inject businesses with cash so they keep their employees on payroll. The desperately-needed funds ran out last Thursdayafter the program was running for less than two weeksand Congress and the Trump administration are currently working out a deal to replenish its funds. For Morton and her eight employees, the PPP was welcome relief. But its not going to save her cafe, she explained to The Daily Beast, because its the other bills coming due that could prove most crushingthings like rent, mortgage, utilities. And if the shop is eventually able to reopen, says Morton, we need money to basically restart our kitchens, our coffee bars. All of the food has to be replaced, all the dairy and alternative milks, and a shitload of coffee beans, in my case. Its all rotten now, along with our heavy cream, half and half, lactose free milk. Thats where another program comes inor is supposed to, at least. The Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, or EIDL, has long existed to help businesses cope with the aftermath of natural disasters like hurricanes or tornadoes. With every U.S. state and territory in a declared state of emergency, EIDL has been available for business owners to apply for low-interest loans to cover things like rent and lost inventory because of the coronavirus outbreak. Story continues But the CARES Act appropriated $10 billion for the EIDL programless than three percent of what was appropriated to start the PPP. Its also out of money, too, after facing an avalanche of applications: lawmakers have been told that there have been over five million applicants for the EIDL program. By contrast, just over 1.6 million applicants have been approved for PPP funds, though its unclear how many more applicants have tried and failed to get them. Despite the widespread demand, however, the EIDL program has attracted hardly any attention from Washington. In his regular remarks from the White House podium, Trump hasnt mentioned the program, and congressional leaders havent much, either. As of Sunday night, it was even unclear if more funds for the program would be included in the next round of coronavirus relief funding, which is expected to be approved sometime this week. Thats leaving business owners like Mortonwho applied for EIDL loans but said shes seen fuck all from the Small Business Administration on itfrustrated. What business owners need is more than paychecks for their employees, she said. Washington needs to make small businesses a priority instead of an afterthought. That a program of such significance for thousands of business owners has become, at best, a footnote in Washingtons response to the coronavirus speaks to the unprecedented magnitude of the crisis. Congress and the White House have had to develop responses to the virus that touch seemingly every aspect of the U.S. government, health care system, and economy, tossing some $4 trillion and counting at the crisis so far. Even so, small business owners, lawmakers, and policy experts are scratching their heads as to how such a potentially valuable lifeline seemed to be cut adrift. EIDL has been left behind, said Jared Bernstein, a fellow at the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities think tank and a former top economic adviser in the Barack Obama White House. The problem with the PPP is its overly focused on payrolls, whereas a lot of businesses are facing shutdown due to fixed costs such as rent, outstanding loans, and restocking inventory on the other side of the crisis. Theres nothing at all wrong with promoting payrolls, continued Bernstein, but if you dont have a business, theres nowhere for the payroll to come to the worker. The PPP was conceived of as the battleship initiative for Washington to counter the COVID-19 induced economic crisis, as Bernstein put it; indeed, its been the focus of fighting between Democrats and Republicans in the last week. Before the PPP funding ran out, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) pushed for Congress to approve more money to reopen the program; Democrats declined to go along in hopes of striking a deal to include more funding for struggling hospitals and state governments alongside it. As the White House and Congress work out a deal, a contingent of lawmakers has attempted to raise the alarm about EIDL. On Thursday, more than 100 House members sent a letter to Jovita Carranza, the chief of the Small Business Administration, expressing their concern over severe oversubscription of EIDL loans. We recognize the EIDL system was never designed to process a disaster of this magnitude, wrote the lawmakers, however, we are concerned that many small businesses cannot wait much longer to receive EIDL funds from the federal government. And many are waiting. Several small business owners who spoke to The Daily Beast described poor or non-existent communication from the government after submitting their applications for EIDL relief. Morton, for example, said she applied a second time for EIDL funds because she had no status update on her first application. Whats been especially frustrating for those struggling is that money from the EIDL program is specifically meant to be issued quickly. EIDL has been a massive disappointment, said Greg Hunnicut, who owns a small remodeling business in Houston. He applied for an EIDL a week and a half ago and hasnt heard anything back. I knew PPP would be a cluster, that seemed obvious to me. The EIDL, I thought, was going to be a quick bit of help. Overwhelming demand for the program also forced the SBA to limit loan amounts. Now, its metered by number of employees, with businesses able to get as much as $10,000 with $1,000 per employee. For self-proprietors like Alyssa Marsh, who runs an event photo booth business with her husband in Pennsylvania, thats cold comfort. Whats $1,000 going to do? she asked. Thats nothing. Its help, everyone appreciates the help but to have $10,000, that goes a long way for someone like me. Marsh lives in State College, home of Penn State University, and she says the long-term closure of the campus has scuttled basically all of her business through at least the fall. She says shes not eligible for unemployment, and with her EIDL relief limited, her familys outlook is bleak. It feels hopeless, Marsh said in an interview. Compounding that despair, she said, is seeing the reports that major companies and chains have accessed relief funds pitched as Main Street relief. Theres real people on the other side of these laws, and theyre just playing political games, she said of Washington. Its disgusting. The next day, Marsh messaged The Daily Beast, with a small sign of hope: the government had checked her credit score, the very first step of vetting for her loan. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more. In an act straight out of George Orwell's 1984, the HK Govt's news agency has been caught modifying and backdating a press release to comply with the Central People's Government's Liaison Office view that it is not a CPG department and not subject to Article 22 of the Basic Law. It actually makes no difference: if the CPG itself interferes in matters which are within HK's autonomy under the Basic Law, then it undermines "Two Systems". CPG interference: HK's Ministry of Truth on Article 22 There was political drama in HK this weekend, not just the mass arrest of 15 pro-democracy leaders, but also over whether the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR (LOCPG) is bound by Article 22 of the Basic Law, which requires in its first two paragraphs: "No department of the Central People's Government and no province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own in accordance with this Law. If there is a need for departments of the Central Government, or for provinces, autonomous regions, or municipalities directly under the Central Government to set up offices in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, they must obtain the consent of the government of the Region and the approval of the Central People's Government." The HKSAR Government (HKSARG) issued an English press release with timestamp 21:05 on 18-Apr-2020 stating: "The LOCPG is one of the three organisations set up in the HKSAR by the Central Government in accordance with Article 22(2) of the Basic Law" Now you might think that a Government web site titled News Archives: Press Release would have a copy of this press release in its archive. You'd be wrong. To find the original press release, we have to go to the Google cache and store a copy in archive.is, so that you can see it when the cache fades. Instead, in place of the original, there is a revised press release, backdated to the same timestamp of 21:05, in which the references to Article 22 have been removed. The Information Services Department (ISD) of the HKSARG should be renamed the "Ministry of Truth" in honour of George Orwell's 1984, for its ability to change its own archive by overwriting and backdating press releases. The revised version was issued at 23:47 that night, nearly 3 hours later. Three hours may not seem like much in the arc of history - but there's a principle at stake - what if the Government goes back and modifies public press releases it made last week, last month or last year, altering or just deleting embarrassing older press releases to fit its latest views on important issues? We only know the time of the second version thanks to a screenshot shown on TVB's evening news yesterday, which gives you a behind-the-curtain glimpse of the Government News & Media Information System (GNMIS), which is available only to journalists approved by ISD with a password. Yes - it's one ISD, two news archives. Not only that, but at 01:22 on Sunday morning, while most of us were asleep, the ISD rushed out another press release, clarifying that the LOCPG is not, in fact (or rather, in Orwellian Newspeak) a CPG department as referred to in Article 22(2) of the Basic Law. That leaves us with the obvious question: if there is no interference in the HKSARG's running of HK affairs, then why would the HKSARG need to rewrite history to conform with the latest view of the LOCPG that it is not bound by Article 22? Department or not, this is really a distinction without a difference - if the Basic Law allows the CPG itself, but not any of its departments, to interfere in matters which the HKSARG "administers on its own", then that undermines the "high degree of autonomy" promised by the Basic Law and the Sino-British Joint Declaration. The HKSARG's latest position goes against its earlier advice to the Legislative Council, submitted in January 2007. The advice "provides information on the offices set up in the [HKSAR] by the [CPG] under Article 22 of the Basic Law" and names three, including LOCPG. Incidentally, in their wisdom, the drafters of the Basic Law didn't put section or paragraph numbers in its Articles, so you have to count the paragraphs to find Article 22(2). Webb-site.com, 2020 Organisations in this story Topics in this story Sign up for our free newsletter Recommend Webb-site to a friend Copyright & disclaimer, Privacy policy Back to top (Photo : REUTERS/Charles Platiau/File Photo) FILE PHOTO: Visitors pass by the logo of Google at the high profile startups and high tech leaders gathering, Viva Tech,in Paris, France May 16, 2019. Google has been blockading about 18 million rip-off emails associated with coronavirus per day, the tech giant said in a weblog post. The tech giant, which is working in partnership with Apple to make contract-tracing apps, claims it blocks at least 100 million phishing emails a day. Over the last week, almost one-fifth of those were scams associated with COVID-19. ALSO READ: COVID-19: Coronavirus Contract Tracing Apps Raise Concerns on Effectiveness, Legality Worldwide The report follows more than one story on the growing cybersecurity threats posed by the pandemic. The FBI has seen a spike in company email schemes focused on the procurement of private protective equipment against COVID-19 and an increase in hijacking attempts of Zoom and different videoconferencing platforms. COVID-19: Biggest phishing topic? The coronavirus - which caused the public health crisis and an economic disaster rolled into one - might also now be the biggest phishing topic ever, Silicon Valley says. Security researcher Scott Helme told BBC News phishing attacks always share a trait of causing the public to act quickly or think less about our actions at the moment. "The coronavirus pandemic is a highly emotional topic right now, and cyber-criminals clearly know this," Helme explained. He added the crooks are hoping that the typical person might be more inclined to click through links or follow wrong instructions if they use this lure. According to HealthSecurity.com, Google has been able to block more than 99.9 percent of spam, malware, and phishing attempts from reaching the email inbox through the machine learning models. However, hackers are preying on fear and financial incentives to entice users to respond. "No matter the size of your business, IT teams are facing increased pressure to navigate the challenges of COVID-19," Google wrote. The tech giant assured the users that security is at the top of the priority list. It explained that phishing is still among the most effective methods that attackers use to compromise accounts and gain access to company data and resources. Google's Gmail service is used by 1.5 billion people worldwide. Some people are receiving emails that spoof established companies like the World Health Organization or other actual officials entities. Screenshots of COVID-19 rip-off emails were published on Google's blog to steer users in downloading malicious software programs or donate to a faux cause. ALSO READ: COVID-19 Warnings! Fake WHO and CDC Accounts Send Emails With Phishing Scams Exploitation Researchers have also determined malicious websites and smartphone applications based on authentic coronavirus resources. One malicious Android app claims to help track the unfold of the virus. Instead, it infects the cellphone with ransomware and demands payment to restore the device. Last week, the National Cyber Security Center and America Department of Homeland Security issued a joint advisory. They said that they had seen "increasingly malicious cyber-actors" that were "exploiting the current COVID-19 pandemic for their own objectives." Hackers are also targeting the remote surroundings, given the bulk of the country's staff is now working from home, alongside imitating government establishments to phish small businesses. Microsoft recently noted that Trickbot is the most prolific malware operation leveraging COVID-19 lures. The latest campaign was spotted in the wild by using hundreds of "unique macro-laced record attachments" in messages providing loose COVID-19 tests. A JAMA research showed phishing education can drastically reduce the threat to the healthcare environment. At the same time, several security researchers have furnished actionable steps and vital equipment for securing the remote environment and telehealth platforms at some stage in the COVID-19 pandemic. Most recently, the American Medical Association and the American Hospital Association released joint telework privacy and safety guidance for hospitals and providers. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A day after Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri advised airlines to open bookings only after the government takes a decision on resuming passenger flight services, Vistara and AirAsia India said on Sunday they have not received any notice from the aviation ministry on this matter New Delhi: A day after Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri advised airlines to open bookings only after the government takes a decision on resuming passenger flight services, Vistara and AirAsia India said on Sunday they have not received any notice from the aviation ministry on this matter. All private Indian airlines, including Vistara and AirAsia India, are currently taking bookings on select flights from 4 May, but national carrier Air India has stopped taking bookings on all flights a day after Civil Aviation Minister Puri's "advise". "We shall await the ministry's notice in this regard. We have suspended operations and sales until 3 May, following the last circular," Vistara spokesperson said. "Once there is clarity on steps to be taken beyond that date, we will comply accordingly," the spokesperson added. AirAsia India spokesperson told PTI that the lockdown issued by the government is till 3 May and hence flights are available for bookings 4 May onwards. Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak Flight bookings have been made available as passengers need to make travel and associated purchase decisions in advance. This also helps them get cheaper fares, the Air Asia India spokesperson clarified. "We have not received any formal notification from MoCA (Ministry of Civil Aviation)/ DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) specifying any future period beyond 3 May for which airlines need to stop accepting bookings," the spokesperson stated. Click here to follow LIVE news and updates on stock markets The spokesperson also noted that as there is uncertainty following the coronavirus pandemic, travellers are cognizant of the possibility of the lockdown getting extended in which case they can always reschedule their flights for free. On Saturday night, Civil Aviation Minister Puri said on Twitter the government has not taken any decision to open domestic or international flight operations so far. "Airlines are advised to open their bookings only after a decision in this regard has been taken by the government," he said. Several passengers have complained on social media that Indian airlines are not giving refunds for flights cancelled due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown and instead issuing credit vouchers for future travel. On April 16, the Ministry of Civil Aviation stated that travellers can ask airlines for full refunds if the bookings were done during the first phase of the lockdown for travel up to 3 May. The first phase of the lockdown imposed in the country in view of the coronavirus outbreak was from 25 March5 to 14 April. The second phase started on April 15 and will end on 3 May. All domestic and international commercial passenger flight operations have been suspended during the lockdown period. However, cargo flights and special flights authorised by aviation regulator DGCA have been permitted during this period. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 507 and the number of cases to 15,712 in the country on Sunday, according to the Union Health Ministry. Tomorrow is Holocaust Remembrance Day. Throughout the world, communities gather, albeit virtually in most cases, to remember the victims including well over one million children; hear from survivors; and in general reflect on the liquidation of the entire Jewish culture of Europe. The complete name of this commemoration is Yom HaShoah V' Hagvurah. Loosely translated, it is Holocaust Martyrs and Heroes Day. While the number of victims is almost incomprehensible, there were many heroes as well, brave souls who stood up for themselves and others. There were camp uprisings like those at Sobibor, Treblinka, and even Auschwitz-Birkenau, and numerous ghettos had uprisings. Still photograph from the Soviet film of the liberation of Auschwitz. Hannah Szenes, a native of Hungary, was already in Palestine when the war broke out. Only twenty-two, she volunteered to return behind enemy lines. She was captured, tortured, and finally executed, but she refused to disclose any information. In captivity, she wrote poetry and today is considered a national hero in Israel. Then there were the fearless journalists and other writers of the Warsaw Ghetto. From 1940 on, under the direction of historian Emanuel Ringelblum, they recorded the events of the ghetto down to minute details, even as the population was being starved to death before finally being destroyed, hiding the archive they created. Much of it was recovered after the war. These were people who refused to accept what was being done to the Jewish people without a fight. In most cases, death was certain. Today, faced with rising anti-Semitism, many would deny that it even exists as a separate phenomenon, preferring to lump it in with all manner of "hate." Congress's mild, cowardly criticism of Ilhan Omar is but one obvious example. The inability or unwillingness to block an obviously dangerous Iran deal is another. Jewish politicians seem mostly afraid to acknowledge their fellow Jews except when they are being shielded or fawned over by the like-minded. They will criticize President Trump, even when he is the only one who openly takes a stand against the ill treatment of Jews, cowering before people who they know, deep down, are not their friends. After all, it's politics, you know. The fascists of yesteryear thought that, too. In 1920, the German Workers Party, before it appended National Socialist to its name, issued a proclamation. Number four: "Only those who are our fellow countrymen can become citizens. Only those who have German blood, regardless of creed, can be our countrymen. Hence, no Jew can be a countryman." It was essentially an early campaign plank. They were small in number, so nobody paid too much attention. And it was a different time, of course. But how many people today, Jews of a particular political persuasion included, would have viewed with favor other key proposals from the Nazis, like "a generous increase in old age pensions" and "creation and maintenance of a sound middle class," also calling for the state to "raise the standard of national health by providing maternity welfare centers" and to "abolish juvenile labor"? Back to the present. These are dangerous times for all of us in America. How many of our civil rights will survive the post-virus world? Freedom of assembly? Second Amendment? Open worship? Maybe we'll get lucky and hang on to all of them intact. The cynic in me or maybe it's the realist thinks that once this crisis has passed, some on the left will try to blame the Jews for what has transpired. We must stand strong against everything that implies. Jeremy B. Kay is the executive director of the Library of the Holocaust Foundation (HolocaustLibrary.org). West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday sought to know the rationale behind the formation of six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to assess the enforcement of lockdown norms in states. She urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to share criteria for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". "We welcome all constructive support & suggestions, especially from the Central Govt in negating the #Covid19 crisis. However, the basis on which Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including few in WB under Disaster Mgmt Act 2005 is unclear, Banerjee tweeted. "I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," she added. The Centre has constituted six IMCTs for on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal. "The IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures as per guidelines, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, safety of health professionals and conditions of relief camps for labourers and poor people," a home ministry spokesperson said. The Centre had recently flagged the "gradual dilution" of the lockdown norms in West Bengal. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mumbai/New Delhi: Facing criticism for the lynching of three men including two Hindu sadhus in Palghar district, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray announced a set of measures to bring the guilty to book, while warning against giving the incident a communal flavour. In a video message on Monday, Thackeray announced the setting up of a high-level police probe into the incident; the suspension of two police officials for dereliction of duty; outlined the nature of the incident and the action taken so far, including the arrest of over 100 accused; and summarised his conversations with home minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath about the incident. On Thursday, a mob of villagers attacked and lynched three men Kalpavruksha Giri, Sushil Giri and Neelesh Telgade in Gadhchinchale village, 110km from Palghar on April 16. The first two were Hindu ascetics affiliated with a religious akhara in Varanasi; the third was their driver. They were reportedly headed to Gujarat to attend the last rites of their religious guru. But the crowd suspected them of being child-lifters, dragged them out of the car, and beat them with sticks. The police said they were outnumbered. A video of the incident became public on Sunday, sparking accusations from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that the state government failed to ensure law and order. BJP supporters on social media also launched an attack on the Maharashtra government for what they alleged was negligence since the case involved Hindu religious figures. Thackeray said that the two sadhus had reached the Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli but were not allowed by local authorities to enter the area, and hence were returning through internal roads. The police have already arrested more than 100 suspects including five key accused responsible for the incident. The key accused have been given police custody till April 30. We have suspended two policemen holding them responsible for the incident. Nobody involved in this heinous crime will be spared. He also announced a high level probe by additional director general (CID) Atulchandra Kulkarni into lynching case. The Maharashtra CM issued a strict warning not to use the incident to inflame communal passions, and said he had apprised home minister Amit Shah about the case. Even Amit Shahji knows that the incident had no religious connection as the village in which the incident took place has no such background. I have requested him to taken strict action against the people trying to spread communal tension using social media. We too are taking action against the bid to arouse religious sentiments using the incident. State home minister Anil Deshmukh said that those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings were not from different religions, and underlined that he had asked the Maharashtra police and the cyber cell to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media. The CM also spoke to UP CM Yogi Adityanath, who had tweeted urging his Maharashtra counterpart to take strict action against the culprits involved in the lynching of the three men. While condemning the incident, the Congress which is a part of the Maharashtra government accused the BJP of communalising it. We unequivocally condemn it. There is no place for violence in our civilised society and the strictest possible action must be taken against the accused, Congresss chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said in a statement. But he added that there was no communal or Hindu-Muslim angle to the attack as was being sought to be projected; and the accused belonged to the tribal community. Tragically, BJP and its echo system as also a section of media are attempting to project the incident with communal overtones. The BJP rejected the allegation. Sunil Deodhar, a national secretary of the party, said the allegations that tribal people attacked the trio suspecting them to be thieves is fabricated. No adivasi attacks those in saffron robes, unless they have been brainwashed for years. I am familiar with the area and its a stronghold of the communists who hate those in saffron, he said. On Thackerays statement, Deodhar said that the CM was beating around the bush, instead of addressing the issue. Hijrah TV, an international television network headquartered in Ghana joined hands with the UK chapter of the Kumasi Zongo Youth to donate food items to 500 vulnerable persons in Kumasi. They distributed 5-kilogram sacks of rice and cooking oil to persons in some communities in Kumasi such as Asawase, Aboabo numbers 1 and 2, Moshie Zongo, Dagomba line, and old Tafo Zongo. A member of the Zongo Youth Organization, Mr. Kamil Abdul Rahman, who also led the donation, emphasized the need for COVID-19 to be seen as a common enemy and a threat to the world. He noted, As the government puts in measures including the restriction of movements, many of our relatives, friends, loved ones, need our services and support such as food and protective items. Mr. Kamil Abdul Rahman also called upon all those who can assist to support the needy and vulnerable in their various communities. On his part, the Chief Editor of Hijrah TV, Hamza Adams recounted how some national COVID 19 response measures which included a partial lockdown of Tema, Accra, Kasoa, and Kumasi; affected persons in the low socio-economic bracket. People were not expecting the lockdown, some of us didn't prepare. For that matter, most of us are facing financial difficulties. As such Hijrah TV and Kumasi Zongo Youth in the UK collaborated to support the vulnerable, he observed. He added that the team has not yet achieved its targets and was mobilizing more food for the less privileged ones by the close of the week, Meanwhile few hours after the donations the president of the republic Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo Addo announced a lifting of the partial lockdown in the Greater Accra, Tema, Kasoa, and Greater Kumasi areas and its contiguous towns. The televised address, however, held constant the border restrictions as well as the hold on all public gatherings while advising businesses and offices to take the right containment measures to prevent any break out of the COVID-19. While delighting Lizzie McGuire fans with an update on the show's reboot, Hilary Duff also reflected on one character who likely won't be returning. The 32-year-old Younger star, who first broke her silence in January about the creative differences that put the upcoming Disney+ series on hold, revealed the beloved series is still actively working on a comeback. 'I'm still talking to [the team] weekly, I don't know. They were shooting and then everything was put on hold,' she told Cosmopolitan. She was also asked if her former on-screen BFF Miranda Sanchez (Lalaine) or Paolo (Yani Gellman) would appear on the spin-off. Optimistic: When giving an update on the Lizzie McGuire reboot, Hilary Duff revealed Paolo would be unlikely to return, as her character would still be 'pretty mad to see him' Paolo: She was also asked if her former on-screen BFF Miranda Sanchez (Lalaine) or Paolo (Yani Gellman) would appear on the spin-off 'I dont know about Paolo. I think she'd probably be pretty mad to see him,' Duff told the magazine of the fictional Italian pop star, who was the antagonist of Disney's 2003 film The Lizzie McGuire Movie. The pair first met when the hunky Italian pop star mistook her for his singing partner, Isabella, at the Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy, and she falls for him quickly. Paolo tells Lizzie that his ex use to lip sing and begs Lizzie to pose as her at the Italian Music Awards, in a secret attempt to ruin Isabella's career and embarrass Lizzie. Lizzie and Paolo: Paolo tells Lizzie that his ex use to lip sing and begs Lizzie to pose as her at the Italian Music Awards, in a secret attempt to ruin Isabella's career and embarrass Lizzie During the performance, Gordo successfully exposes Paolo for being the one to lip sing, before Lizzie and Isabella perform the hit What Dreams Are Made Of together. Her comment comes in the wake of a recent video chat with the show's writers and the series creator and showrunner, Terri Minsky, who had stepped down from her role earlier this year. 'Theres still conversations going on in hopes that we can find a way to meet in the middle and both bend a little bit,' she told People. Whirlwind trip: During the performance, Gordo successfully exposed Paolo for being the one to lip sing, before Lizzie and Isabella perform the hit What Dreams Are Made Of together She added: 'I understand that they have to protect their brand and theres pretty strict guidelines on what that looks like.' According to The Hollywood Reporter, upon reading a leaked script, one episode focused on 'the existence of sex with cheating as a central plot point.' 'I just have to make sure its the right move for me and that I feel like Im honoring her and the character, and that it will be relatable to the people who grew up with her because those are the people I really want to speak to,' she told People. For the fans: At the end of February, Hilary took to Instagram with a passionate plea for Disney to move the show to Hulu so that viewers could see how her character evolved from a teenager to a young adult living in the city At the end of February, Hilary took to Instagram with a passionate plea for Disney to move the show to the streaming platform so that viewers could see how her character evolved from a teenager to a young adult living in the city. 'Was incredibly excited to launch 'Lizzie' on D+ and my passion remains!' she wrote. 'However, I feel a huge responsibility to honor the fans' relationship with LIZZIE who, like me, grew up seeing themselves in her.' 'It would be a dream if Disney would let us move the show to Hulu, if they were interested, and I could bring this beloved character to life again,' she added. A mother who was forced to choose between amputating her baby daughter's leg or her little girl having to endure multiple surgeries throughout her life has shared how she made the decision and has no regrets after 11 years. Kylie Pratt, 36, from Newcastle in New South Wales, said she spent years worrying about whether her daughter Emilee, now 11, would 'hate her' for amputating her leg when she a baby - but she now thinks her disability has made Emilee succeed in other areas of her life. 'I was prepared for something to be wrong with Emilee when she was born as I was told by doctors at my 20-week scan that they had picked up something,' Kylie told Daily Mail Australia. 'But I had no idea she would be diagnosed with with tibial hemimelia - or underdeveloped bones that cause deformity in one leg.' A mother who was forced to choose between amputating her baby daughter's leg or her little girl having to endure multiple surgeries throughout her life has shared how she made the decision (Kylie Pratt pictured with her partner and Emilee when she was a baby) Kylie Pratt, 36, from Newcastle in New South Wales, said she spent years worrying about whether her daughter Emilee, now 11, would 'hate her' for amputating her leg when she a baby (Emilee pictured after her leg was amputated) Emilee's leg was amputated when she was nine months old, and since then she has been fitted with multiple prosthetic legs (pictured with her first prosthetic leg) When Emilee was born in Newcastle, she was swiftly transferred to Westmead Children's Hospital in Sydney, where Kylie and her husband were told they had a choice of whether they wanted to amputate their daughter's leg or face surgeries throughout Emilee's life. 'My husband dealt with finding all this out a lot better than me at first,' Kylie said. 'I wanted to explore any other option, get a second opinion and be convinced. Losing your leg is so final, there is no coming back. 'I thought she would hate me and think that I did this to her. I also wondered whether it would be possible for her to have a normal life. 'Would she be able to drive a car? Would she get a boyfriend? I worried about all these things.' Emilee (pictured doing long jump) is very sporty and has dreams of competing in the 2024 Paralympics for swimming While Kylie said she was worried her daughter (pictured before amputation) might hate her for amputating her leg, she said this couldn't be further from the truth But when no other options presented themselves, the parents agreed that their only real choice was to amputate Emilee's right leg. 'Emilee had her leg amputated at nine months old,' mum-of-four Kylie said. 'It wasn't supposed to happen until she was 12 months, but because she was already trying to crawl, we needed to get on with it.' She was fitted with her first prosthetic leg before her first birthday, and was walking a couple of weeks later. Emilee (pictured with her dad) is very determined, and while it takes her longer to do some things than other people, she always manages to succeed What is tibial hemimelia? * Tibial hemimelia is a spectrum of deformity characterised by a shortened or absent tibia and relatively unaffected fibula; duplication of the great toe may be the only clinical finding in subtle deformity. * Tibial hemimelia is usually associated with lower extremity deformities and other organ system malformations, most commonly of the foot. * Decision to amputate versus reconstruct depends on, amongst other things, the ability to completely extend the knee joint with active quadriceps function. * Most patients will require some form of amputation, almost all patients will require surgical intervention, and all patients will require orthotic treatment at some point in their lives. Source: POSNA Advertisement While Kylie said she thought that Emilee might ask questions when she was old enough to understand what had happened, she 'never asked' too much. 'When older people asked, we would help her to answer at first, but we soon realised that while Emilee didn't mind talking to other kids about it, she didn't like it when adults asked questions.' Over the years, Kylie said Emilee has learned to do things at her own rate and speed. 'She is still learning to ride a bike, we have to strap her leg to the bike,' Kylie said. 'But she absolutely adores swimming and wants to compete in the 2024 Paralympics in Paris - she already competes at a state level and that's her next goal.' In many ways, Kylie said that she thinks Emilee's situation has made her more determined in life: 'Because things take her longer to do, she is more determined,' she said. 'She has a high pain tolerance, she tries for hours to manage to do things that other people do in minutes and she always succeeds. 'I think I've heard Emilee be upset about what has happened to her and say she wishes she had two legs just twice in her entire life,' Kylie said (Emilee pictured after her leg was amputated) Kylie added: 'I've heard Emilee be upset about what has happened to her and say she wishes she had two legs just twice in her entire life. 'But she's so positive and she knows this is not the end of the world. 'At the time, I thought it might be. But she wouldn't the personality she has today without everything that has happened to her.' Kylie and Emilee Pratt are raising awareness about tibial hemimelia and groups online where parents and people can find more information including Amputee X and Limbs for Life. You can hear more about Kylie and Emilee's story on SBS Insight on Tuesday 21 April at 8.30pm. It has been with dismay, anger, embarrassment and even more anger as I have watched some loathsome Democrats hold up a desperately needed $250 billion loan program for Americas small businesses. When the posh Neiman Marcus chain just announced bankruptcy, we take notice but the mom-and-pop businesses that are the foundation of our nation are falling like flies and the far-left Dems are so blinded by their hate for Trump they assure each other such strategy is okay. The Nancy Pelosi-led crowd of bandits has stalled the bill to fill it with more pork on a Christmas list of party demands that would otherwise never get through Congress. Its not a reach to believe the party could even replace its donkey mascot with a herd of hogs. President Trump and the Republicans pushed the small business relief bill as fast as they could, with all of Congress aware the Paycheck Protection Program was out of cash, but the Democrats instantly proved they dont give a rats tail hoot about the country, only the Party. They havent the slightest worry of a night with no sleep, stone deaf to the cries from every state that has been ravaged by the coronavirus. Karen Mills, the former head of the Small Business Administration under President Barack Obama, urged Democrats to just give the money because "we don't have time for delay" during the coronavirus outbreak, but Chuck Schumer, the Senate Minority leader, laughed it off, saying his party's tactics were worth it because they worked! "I actually say the very things we Democrats have been fighting for are now going into the bill," Schumer told CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday in response to Mills' statement. "So, we Democrats said yes, we want to put the more money in, but let's set aside some money to make sure it goes to the rural areas, the minority areas, to the unbanked. And the $60 billion for the disaster loan was our proposal, and now the administration is going along with that." On Sunday Steve Levy, the CEO of Common Sense Strategies, wrote on the Fox website: There are thousands of small business owners in our nation wondering if they will be going out of business over the next few days. Yet Congressional Democratic leaders are playing cynical games to leverage more money for their favored sectors, including businesses owned by women and minorities. Its hard to think of a more despicable, cold-hearted action ever perpetrated by our elected representatives. The only thing more astonishing than the callous actions of the Democratic leaders is the fact that they feel they can get away with it, knowing their allies in the mainstream media will never call them out on it. Levy added, Pelosi and her minions continue to use hard-working Americans as pawns in their efforts to redirect national priorities. As Rep James Clyburn, D-S.C., stated in the first Paycheck Protection Program round, Democrats see this as a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision." When the $2 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Package was passed in late March, Americans were aghast to find the Democrats had brazenly loaded what was meant to be relief for ALL of the American people with questionable items that had nothing to do with the virus, its economic destruction, or what was best for ALL the people. Over the weekend a copyrighted story written by a retired Navy captain and former FBI employee, Joseph R. John, appeared on the website: https://www.CombatVeteransForCongress.org and it immediately went viral. Read it and youll see why: * * * WHAT ELSE IS IN THE STIMULUS FUND By Capt. Joseph R. John, April 14, 2020 (NOTE: This opinion article appeared on the Combat Veterans for Congress website on April 14, 2020, as Op Ed #467. The personal opinions are those of Capt. John) The below listed expenditures, reveals how Pelosi, and her Radical Progressives House Caucus hijacked the Stimulus Bill, and obtained billions of dollars in pork for the Socialist Democrat Party, as a condition of passing the Stimulus Bill in the House. The Socialist Democrats demanded the funding of line items that had nothing to do with protecting Americans lives or protecting the US economy from the effects of Coronavirus. American Taxpayers are unaware of the travesty that occurred in the House, because the left of center liberal media establishment, which has become an arm of the Socialist Democrat Party, continues to coverup the below listed funding of unrelated items. Instead of doing what investigative journalists were given a special status by the Founding Fathers to do, and that responsible news organizations once did to protect Americans taxpayers, the failed leftist press, once again refused to honestly report how the American taxpayers were taken advantage of. The Congress should have entitled The Stimulus Bill, The Pelosi Unrelated Priority Bill. Pelosis Radical Progressive House Caucus could not get many of the below listed line item pet projects funding over the last three years, in any other way, but by Pelosi holding a gun to the head of the Republican-led Senate, threatening not to pass the Stimulus Bill unless her non-essential projects, that were unrelated to the Corona Virus, were funded. Now Pelosi and her Radical Progressive House Caucus continue to hold a gun to the head of the Republican led Senate, with the strong support of Senator Schumer. They are refusing to provide additional funding for small business, that is needed to protect the viability of millions of small businesses throughout the nation, so they can retain millions of their employees by paying their salaries, and to protect the Free Enterprise System, unless Pelosis non-essential priority pork barrel projects, unrelated to the Coronavirus, are funded. In 2020, Americans must elect members of Congress, who will support a vote for Congressional term limits, in order to put a stop to Pelosis pork barrel politics, and force members of Pelosis Radical Progressive House Caucus to seek employment in the private sector. Members of the Democrat and Republican Parties approved the below listed expenditures; many of those items shouldnt have been funded as part of the Stimulus Bill. The below list of funded items within the Stimulus Bill was forwarded to us by Dick Anderson of http://anderson4theconstitution.com/. We were able to confirm 80% of the items listed in government reports. With a population of 330,483,530 Americans, and an expenditure of $2,000,000,000,0000 to fund the Stimulus Bill, the cost for every American, regardless of age, to fund the Stimulus Bill was $6,051.74. Where some of your tax dollars went, that the left of center liberal media establishment refused to report: * * * WHAT WAS ALSO INCLUDED IN PELOSI UNRELATED STIMULUS BILL * -- $350,000,000 for Migrant and Refugee Assistance pg 147 * -- $43,700,000 per person for student loan bailout * -- $11,000,000 Drug Access. * -- $5,000,000,000 Community Development Programs Block Grants * -- $75,000,000 to the Endowment for the Arts (because Pelosi demanded it) * -- $300,000,000 for the Endowment for the Humanities * -- $400,000,000 for Election Assistance, including expanding voting by mail * -- $25,700,000,000 for the Department of Education stabilization fund (for Teachers Union) * -- $5,300,000,000 Child Care Centers * -- $100,000,000 Legal Services Corporation * -- $300,000,000 to Public Broadcasting (NPR has nothing to do with the Coronavirus) * -- $12,000,0000,000 Aid for Dependent Housing * -- $25,000,000,000 Food Stamps * -- $8,800,000,000 Child Nutrition * -- $5,300,000,000 Family Programs * -- $25,000,000 for Cleaning Supplies for the Capitol Building on page 136 * -- $35,000,000 to the JFK Center for performing Arts (Pelosi -- She will get millions of it somehow.) * -- $25,000,000 for additional salaries for House of Representatives * -- $324,000,000 for State Department Diplomatic Programs (What programs? How is this does affect the coronavirus) * -- $95,000,000 for the Agency of International Development (Is this for the Corona Virus abatement in Foreign countries?) * -- $258,000,000 for International Disaster Assistance * -- $88,000,000 for the Peace Corp pg 148 * -- $13,000,000 to Howard University pg 121 (Howard University is a private, federally chartered historically black university in Washington, D.C) * -- $25,000,000,000 Passenger Airlines * -- $5,000,000,000 Cargo Airlines * -- $32,000,000,000 Airline Wages * -- $450,000,000 Emergency Food Assistance * -- $25,000,000 to the FAA for administrative costs pg 165 * -- $492,000,000 to National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) pg 167 * -- $25,000,000,000 for Transit Infrastructure pg 169 * -- $3,000,000 Maritime Administration pg 172 * -- $5,000,000 Salaries and Expenses for the Office of the Inspector General pg 172 * -- $2,500,000 Public and Indian Housing pg 175 * -- $100,000,000 Food Distribution to American Indians * -- $200,000,000 Food Distribution to Puerto Rico * -- $5,000,000 Community Planning and Development pg 175 * * * NOTE FROM CAPT. JOHN: The above listed expenditures should be shared with every American taxpayer, so they would be able to understand what items Pelosi required that the Senate fund, in order to pass the Stimulus Bill in the House. Unfortunately, the left of center liberal media establishment will continue to cover up the above listed expenditures. (Copyright by Capt Joseph R. John. All Rights Reserved. The material can only be posted on another Web site or distributed on the Internet by giving full credit to the author. It may not be published, broadcast, or rewritten without the permission from the author. * * * CLARIFICATIONS, OR BACK-PEDALING? This week I made two blunders, both which made me wince because they were the result of poor choices of words on my part. Whether it is for clarification, back-pedaling, walking a story back, or becoming obese from eating crow matters not to me; I want to straighten my thoughts out: ABOUT TEACHERS I wrote a story that I felt a teachers advocacy group Hamilton County United was extremely wrong for viciously targeting school board member Rhonda Thurman when she demurred on the mention of a 1 percent teachers raise in a three-year budget plan. It was a terribly misguided ploy and ample proof this upstart group of teachers is creating far more harm than help for the 3,000 teachers in Hamilton County. But I erred when I wrote the teachers are not working because, in fact, many are using telecommunications to bolster their students during the coronavirus pandemic. What I had wanted to show they were not working in the classroom, which has caused several school districts nationwide to furlough their teachers, placing them among 22 million who now must live on unemployment benefits. I have been, and will always be, staunchly committed to our teachers but detest the small but loud Hamilton County United group that, candidly, has given all our teachers a black eye in the view of the taxpayers. ABOUT THE MILITARY VS. COVID-19 Scott Davis of Signal Mountain wrote a wonderful letter after I used our nations military casualties to show how devastating the coronavirus has been to our country. In no way do I ever want to cheapen what thousands have sacrificed for our freedom. No way. But a comparison of 622,860 cases in the United States with 35,851 new since Friday to the estimated 600,000 who were killed in our nations greatest tragedy, the Civil War, is a mind-boggling illustration. Scott was also right on point is his view of when do we return to individual freedom versus common sense. Is it too early? Yes and no. I pointed out in the counties surrounding Hamilton, at the time the story was written, there were 162 cases among 395,000 people. With face masks, social distancing, and using protective methods, our rural areas should not be compared to our urban areas. Rhea County (Dayton) just had its first case, this is an area that has just under 33,000 people. With mortgages, car payments, mouths to feed, the needs of 32,999 are enormous. That why I believe in the next several weeks we should let the people of Rhea County decide what is best. That said, America had 35,851 new cases on Friday. The nation also had 3,621 more deaths in just one day. And that why I believe as stated it is the toughest decision our governors will ever make. * * * A REAL PUZZLER Here's a cute trick you can play with your kids as you are quarantined this is a famous Magic Coffin that has left over millions in disbelief. It is fabulous and its easy to set up. But dont let the stooges see the second half of this video. After you are mystified, wait just a second and youll see why making the play out of cardboard is important. Its a great move! CLICK HERE. royexum@aol.com A survey by industry body FICCI has 'revealed sharpest moderation' in the confidence level of India Inc since the global financial crisis of 2008-09 as the coronavirus outbreak has adversely affected their businesses New Delhi: A survey by industry body FICCI has "revealed sharpest moderation" in the confidence level of India Inc since the global financial crisis of 2008-09 as the coronavirus outbreak has adversely affected their businesses. The industry chamber said that as per its Business Confidence Survey, timely action by the government will enable a quicker return to normalcy for the domestic economy. It also demanded a further 100 basis points reduction in the repo rate by the RBI. Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak Global economic prospects have worsened conspicuously with the outbreak of coronavirus. Many countries, including India, have had to adopt strict social distancing norms and lockdowns to prevent the pandemic from spreading resulting in a near halt of economic activity. "The Overall Business Confidence Index stood at 42.9 in the current round vis-a-vis an index value of 59.0 reported in the last survey," FICCI said. The index value had slipped to a low of 37.8 in the second quarter of 2008-09 at the time of the global financial crisis. Click here to follow LIVE news and updates on stock markets Sharp moderation both in current conditions as well expectations about the future were responsible for pulling the overall index value down during the quarter, said the industry chamber. It also made a case for a financial package for the entire industry (especially micro, small and medium enterprises) from the government in the form of subsidies, policy support, tax holidays, and special dispensation of funds to sustain employment levels before the COVID-19 pandemic. "Immediate measures need to be taken to instill confidence in decision makers of banks. Simultaneously, efforts must be made to make the entire lending process foolproof which will ultimately enable swifter decisions," it said. Labour market reforms are the need of the hour and must be taken up on priority. FICCI further suggested that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should undertake the direct purchase of corporate bonds and reduce the key short-term lending rate (repo) by another 100 basis points. The Survey drew responses from about 190 companies with a turnover ranging from Rs 1 crore to Rs 98,800 crore and belonging to a wide array of sectors. The survey gauges expectations of the respondents for the April-September 2020 period. Multilateral institutions have revised down the growth and trade forecast for the year 2020 considerably. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its recent release has downgraded global growth forecast and placed it in the contractionary zone for the year 2020. WTO also projected global merchandise trade flows to plummet anywhere between 13-32 percent during 2020. "India''s economy is also facing a triple shock through the demand, supply, and financial channels," FICCI said. In fact, most of the companies participating in the Survey indicated that the spread of coronavirus has had an adverse impact on their businesses. Around 72 percent of the respondents said their operations have been hit hard by the virus outbreak. "Only 5 percent of the respondents were not impacted by the pandemic. In addition, 90 percent of the respondents of the Survey said that their supply chains have been impacted," said the industry body. FICCI said participating companies were less optimistic about their forecasts for operational parameters over the April-September 2020 period. In the current survey round, a sharp increase was noticed in the proportion of respondents anticipating lower sales in the next six months, it said. About 53 percent respondents expected lower sales over the next two quarters. Likewise, an increase was noted in the proportion of respondents citing a decline in investments going ahead. With consumption demand plummeting amidst the nationwide lockdown, companies are seeing freeing up of their existing capacities and the present environment is not conducive for undertaking fresh investments, said the Survey. Police in Kenya implementing coronavirus restrictions have arrested four people who disguised themselves as mourners taking a body for burial. They had left the capital, Nairobi, and travelled 370km (about 230 miles) west with an empty coffin in the vehicle before being intercepted, the health minister said on Saturday. Nearly two weeks ago, travel in and out of Nairobi was restricted, along with another three regions considered to be coronavirus hot spots. The group of fake mourners had managed to pass through several checkpoints before suspicious officers in Homa Bay County opened the coffin, Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe said. The driver later tested positive for Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus. His three passengers have now been put into quarantine. The minister said officials were investigating various schemes allegedly being used to circumvent the travel ban, including reports that people had been bribing police at roadblocks. The East African nation has recorded 262 cases of Covid-19, including 12 deaths. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates The following events are planned for the upcoming week throughout the region: Jurassic Quest, featuring more than 100 life-like dinosaurs, dinosaur themed rides, live dinosaur shows and more, opens Saturday and runs through Jan. 23 at the Pennsylvania Convention... Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rizki Fachriansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 11:28 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2f66ef 1 National PCR-test,COVID-19,coronavirus,virus-korona-indonesia Free As many as 50,000 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits arrived in the country on Sunday, which will help provide more accurate data on the rate of COVID-19 infection by increasing the scale of testing. Doni Monardo, the head of the National COVID-19 rapid response task force, said he was grateful for the prompt arrival of the test kits, expressing hope they would help the government detect more cases across the country. We are grateful that in less than 24 hours we were able to secure 50,000 PCR test kits, Doni said in a statement on Sunday. He said President Joko Jokowi Widodo had previously ordered the task force to conduct 10,000 PCR tests per day to expedite the detection of infected individuals and help curb the rapid spread of the deadly virus. Read also: COVID-19: Indonesia on hunt for PCR testing kits Experts consider PCR tests to be the gold standard of COVID-19 testing, compared to the less accurate rapid testing, which is faster and more affordable and is used to detect antibodies in blood samples. PCR testing is also more complicated than rapid testing, according to Doni. Unlike rapid tests, PCR tests require two unique reagents, one of which is derived from RNA extraction. He said the reagents, which are produced by China and South Korea, were difficult to obtain, as Indonesia had to compete with other countries amid surging global demand. We need to quickly make a decision because other countries have also scrambled to secure the chemicals used for PCR tests, Doni said, adding that an embassy official in South Korea had been tasked with escorting the chemicals to Indonesia. He said he expected the country to secure 495,000 PCR test kits within the week. [With 495,000 test kits,] Indonesia will be able to map out the scale of contagion more accurately, Doni said. Indonesia has recorded at least 6,575 COVID-19 cases with 582 deaths linked to the disease as of Sunday. A western Minnesota man admitted that he killed a teenage girl, dismembered her in his garage and disposed of the body parts in dumpsters outside his apartment, prosecutors said. Ethan Broad, 27, allegedly said he killed Dystynee Avery, 19, cut up her body with a saw, put the remains into garbage bags and dumped them near his apartment in south Moorhead, on the border with North Dakota, according to a criminal complaint filed on Monday. Broad initially told investigators that someone else had hit Avery over the head with a lead pipe and cut her throat, but later admitted that he killed and dismembered the young woman. He reportedly called it an act of self-defense. Ethan Broad, 27, of Moorehead, Minnesota, admitted that he killed a teenage girl and detailed how he dismembered her in his garage and disposed of the body parts in dumpsters outside his apartment, prosecutors said. Broad allegedly said he killed Dystynee Avery (pictured), 19, cut up her body with a saw, put the remains into garbage bags and dumped them near his apartment in south Moorhead, on the border with North Dakota, according to a criminal complaint filed on Monday Two additional witnesses who were interviewed both told officers that Broad had admitted he was responsible for killing and dismembering Avery, KVLY reports. The relationship between the two was not clear. Broad says Avery had moved in with him for a short while, but that she had left with her belongings before she disappeared, according to authorities. He was charged in Clay County court with second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony after being arrested on Friday. Bail was set at $1 million, without conditions. A public defender said his office was to represent Broad and declined comment. The complaint does not say when the killing took place. Avery was last seen in Moorhead on April 3 and friends reported her missing April 5. Avery's worried mother reached out to police April 9 to say she hadn't heard from her daughter. The complaint provides gruesome details of what authorities found in their investigation: Police discovered a bloodied saw with what appeared to be human tissue inside Broad's garage. A blue bin in the garage had 'a large amount of blood inside,' says the complaint, and surveillance video showed Broad dragging a blue tote from the apartment building to the garage area, police said. The complaint provides gruesome details of what authorities found in their investigation. Police are seen searching Broad's garage Police say they discovered a bloodied saw with what appeared to be human tissue inside the garage A blue bin in the garage had 'a large amount of blood inside,' says the complaint, and surveillance video showed Broad dragging a blue tote from the apartment building to the garage area, police said. Officers are seen removing a container that fits the description Several spots in Broad's apartment appeared to be cleaned-up blood, the complaint said. Broad said he cleaned the apartment with bleach but that several bloodstains turned pink on the carpet. Broad is due back in court May 14. A conviction would carry a sentence of up to 40 years in prison. Professor Paddy Mallon, an expert in infectious diseases, has warned against complacency about Covid-19 and has called on the public to comply with restrictions for the next two weeks. He was responding to a similar warning by the Minister for Health Simon Harris who said on Sunday that complacency could be disastrous and potentially fatal. In a video message on Twitter, the minister said the progress made by the Irish people could be undone. Prof. Mallon told Newstalk Breakfast that huge strides forward had been made to get Ireland to the ideal position to fight the pandemic. But the key is going to be what happens in the next two weeks, he said. Any slippage would mean we lose ground. We need to hold position. The consultant in infectious diseases said that in the next two weeks the situation in nursing homes along with further and faster testing are really vital. If we lose any ground in the next two weeks it will set us back and this situation will last even longer, he warned. Testing with 24 hour results will help provide real time data to tell us where we are, he said. The rate of transmission needs to be below one and the best way to track that is through large scale testing with a quick turn around. Prof. Mallon said there is enough capacity and trained staff to carry out large scale testing. A lot of the pieces are in place, we need to put the processes in place to deliver what we need. It is eminently doable. We have the machinery in place to test ourselves out of this. There had been a lot of assumptions about waves and herd immunity, he added. Im not a fan of assumptions. We need to focus on the struggle to suppress. We cant lose a single inch of ground. 'Were at a very delicate moment' in fight against coronavirus - Harris By DigitalDesk staff The Covid-19 death toll in Ireland is now 610 after Read More: 493 more people have tested positive, including older 48 swabs in the last of the backlog sent to Germany. It means over fifteen thousand people are known to have been infected with the coronavirus in the Republic. Health Minister Simon Harris says the evidence suggests the disease's growth is stalling in here. But he says fight could still be lost. The progress is fragile. Were at a very delicate moment, Mr Harris said. And it would not take much for that to be reversed. Im just hearing stories - and thats all they are - but stories of people beginning to somewhat relax their interpretation of the phrase stay at home. And I really, really need to appeal to you not to do that. I cant have a situation where all the amazing work youve done is ongoing. Meanwhile, a census of all nursing home deaths took place over the weekend to help better understand the scale of Covid-19 within the facilities. The research looking at people who have died in nursing homes since the start of the year related to coronavirus, and those not linked to the disease. The HSE's Dr Colm Henry says it may highlight some cases that are going "under the radar. Governors are sticking by their decisions to keep their states' economies shut down, despite protests from frustrated citizens, some of whom received a little encouragement from President Trump, amid the novel COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has been subject to some of the harsher criticism from Trump and the protesters, and she acknowledged her stay-at-home order is one of the most "conservative" in the country. But she told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday's edition of State of the Union that it's working, which she says is more important than whether people can purchase seeds or fill up their boats at the gas station. Michigan, she said, has been disproportionately affected by the virus, so she believes her measures are justified. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: "You know my stay-home order is one of the nation's more conservative, but the fact of the matter is, it's working. We are seeing the curve start to flatten. And that means we're saving lives" #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/LzadRV4259 State of the Union (@CNNSotu) April 19, 2020 Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), meanwhile, was restrained, but clear in his message about the protests, telling Tapper that while he understands the frustrations, he doesn't think it's helpful for Trump to encourage demonstrations, especially considering the president's own plan says the economy can't reopen until the infection rate declines for 14 consecutive days. I dont think its helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the Presidents own policy, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan says about Trump defending protesters who are not socially distancing. #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/gAHSxJCqA5 State of the Union (@CNNSotu) April 19, 2020 More stories from theweek.com What do animals think? A parade that killed thousands? California governor says 'politics and frustration' aren't enough to have him modify stay-at-home order Manufacturing resumed early Monday at Daimler Trucks factory on Swan Island, nearly four weeks after it closed during the early days of Oregons coronavirus outbreak. The closure put 600 Portland employees on unpaid furlough. Daimler initially blamed a parts shortage for the closure, but unions representing the plants employees said their members concerns about worker safety were also a factor. They heard from the unions, loud and clear, that the membership was very nervous, said Dwain Panian of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, one of four unions representing Daimler employees in Portland. Daimler spent the past few weeks redesigning its manufacturing process to give workers more space. Among other changes, the company split its workforce into two shifts to give employees more room on the factory floor. Theyre listening to us, and were listening to them, and were all working together to have a safe environment, Panian said. Geoffrey Jansen, plant manager at the companys Portland factory, said Daimler went through 500 separate processes to ensure each can give workers at least 6 feet of separation from one another to prevent the virus from spreading. He said Daimler made a number of other changes to ensure the workplace was safe. Engineers are creating new tools, new equipment, Jansen said. Were physically moving where people do their jobs to further space them out. Many Oregon manufacturers have continued operating during the outbreak, including Intel, ON Semiconductor and Boeing. But some, including Gunderson, Evraz and Precision Castparts, have closed portions of their operations or significantly reduced their workforce due to declining demand for their products. Lam Research briefly shuttered its Tualatin semiconductor equipment factory last month amid employee and supervisor concerns about workplace conditions. Lam reopened soon after conversations with Oregon health officials and a thorough cleaning. Manufacturing workers account for nearly 15,000 of the 300,000 new jobless claims submitted since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, according to the Oregon Employment Department. -- Mike Rogoway | mrogoway@oregonian.com | twitter: @rogoway | Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Our Divisions Copyright 2021-22 DB Corp ltd., All Rights Reserved This website follows the DNPA Code of Ethics. Meghan Markle has opened up about her Disneynature documentary Elephant on Good Morning America, talking about the impact she hoped the film would have. The Duchess of Sussex narrates the Disney+ exclusive about elephants in the wild and she said she hoped it would help people realise how connected we all are. Good Morning America shared a pre-recorded interview clip of Meghan, in which she praised elephants amazing memories and the protectiveness of their young. The outlet revealed it was filmed last year, while Meghan was working on the project. The Duchess said she was "really grateful" to be involved with the project in a longer version of the interview shared to Disney+'s social media accounts. She explained, "I've been very lucky to have hands-on experience with elephants in their natural habitat. When you spend time connecting to them and other wildlife you really understand that we have a role to play in their preservation and their safety." Megan and Prince Harry have in the past worked with Elephants Without Borders and shared pictures from a 2017 trip to Botswana on their Instagram, in which they were seen working with the charity and helping to place a tracking collar on an elephant. Meghan added in the pre-recorded interview, I think theyre a lot more like us than they are different. I hope that when people see this film they realise how connected we all are, she said, And if we had more of an awareness about the obstacles were facing, I think wed take care of each other, this planet and animals in a very different way. It was initially believed the interview would be live in Good Morning America promos according to Deadline, however it was instead a pre-recorded asset from the Elephants film. A longer version of the featurette was also shared to Disney+'s social media accounts. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Meghan and Prince Harry are currently staying in their new home in Los Angeles, though the couple has been seen volunteering for the charity Project Angel Food to deliver meals to those in need. LaShanda Korley's lab at the University of Delaware has an unofficial motto: The Korley Lab -- where unicorns are real. The fanciful motto represents an undeniable truth. By creating new materials inspired by nature for applications in healthcare, sensing, soft robotics and more, Korley is pushing the boundaries of what materials scientists and engineers previously thought possible. For outstanding contributions to bio-inspired materials design and manufacturing, Korley, Distinguished Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Delaware, has been named to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE). Election to the AIMBE College of Fellows is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to a medical and biological engineer. The College of Fellows consists of the top two percent of medical and biological engineers. Korley is one of 156 new Fellows being inducted in 2020. "I am extremely honored to be elected to the 2020 Class of AIMBE Fellows," said Korley. "The recognition by such an esteemed engineering community is particularly important to me, as it highlights the impact and relevance of my research lab's focus on bio-inspired strategies to develop mechanically-robust and responsive soft material systems with applications from tissue engineering scaffolds to gradient coatings. It also reinforces how blessed I am to have such a talented team of researchers - past and present -- in my lab." Korley leads a laboratory that focuses on the study of soft matter, polymers and bio-inspired materials -- materials with properties like those found in nature. For example, she is designing materials inspired by strong spider silk and by the flexible jaws of sea worms. She is the principal investigator of PIRE: Bio-Inspired Materials and Systems, a five-year, $5.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation. She is associate director of the new Center for Research in Soft Matter and Polymers (CRISP) at UD and associate editor of the Journal of Applied Physics. She has published 55 peer-reviewed publications, which have garnered 1,342 citations, according to Google Scholar. Korley is well recognized as a leader in her field and received the 2019 Lloyd N. Ferguson Young Scientist Award for Excellence in Research from the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE). Darrin Pochan, Chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, said: "Professor LaShanda Korley's deep expertise and prolific research in biomimetic, composite materials for a variety of sustainability and biomedical applications make her a well-deserved candidate for Fellowship in the AIMBE. She is an international leader in the development, processing, and understanding of new polymer materials and soft matter that will have an impact on a wide variety of technology in the future. The Departments of Materials Science and Engineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, College of Engineering, and UD are proud to call Professor Korley a colleague with all looking forward to many future successes in research, mentorship, and more." Eric Furst, Chair of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, said: "LaShanda is a tremendous colleague. I admire her scholarship in soft materials that she pursues with her students, often inspired by nature and natural systems, but I also deeply appreciate her dedication and contributions to the service missions of the college and her departments. Her leadership in activities like Future Faculty Workshop and large center initiatives enrich our community and college research neighborhoods." Korley joined UD in 2018 from Case Western Reserve University, where she was the Climo Associate Professor in the Department of Macromolecular Science and Engineering. Korley holds a doctoral degree in chemical engineering, with a focus in polymer science and technology, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She received a bachelor's degree in both chemistry and engineering from Clark Atlanta University as well as a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. UD has a strong tradition of biological engineering. Other UD faculty members who belong to AIMBE's College of Fellows include: Thomas Buchanan, Prasad Dhurjati, Dawn Elliott, Jill Higginson, Kristi Kiick, Kelvin Lee, Abraham Lenhoff, David Martin, Terry Papoutsakis and Millie Sullivan. ### Burkina Fasos security forces allegedly killed 31 unarmed detainees in the northern town of Djibo, Human Rights Watch said on Monday, calling for an immediate investigation. The men, all from the Fulani ethnic group, were allegedly killed hours after being arrested on April 9 during a government counterterrorism operation, the New York-based group said. The incident, which took place in Djibo, about 200 kilometres (120 miles) north of the capital Ouagadougou, made a brutal mockery of a counterterrorism operation that may amount to a war crime and could fuel further atrocities, said HRWs Corinne Dufka. The defence ministry said in a statement it was aware of the claims and had asked its military justice department to open an investigation. HRW interviewed 17 people over the killings, including 12 witnesses to the arrests and later burial of the victims, the statement said. The rights group noted that armed Islamist groups have largely recruited from the Fulani community, and have attacked security forces as well as civilians, notably in the north of Burkina Faso. It said it had documented the killing of several hundred men by government security forces for their alleged support of these groups since 2017. Local people speculated that the army had targeted the Fulani because of the recent presence of some armed Islamists around Djibo. They said scores of security force personnel were involved in the operation, which lasted several hours, HRW said. The victims were taken away in a convoy of about 10 military vehicles including pickup trucks, an armoured car and motorcycles, it said. After hearing gunfire, local people found the bodies of 31 men, last seen in the custody of the security forces, said HRW. Several had had their eyes or hands bound. None of the witnesses saw any of the arrested men with a firearm. Burkina Faso, one of the worlds poorest countries, has battled a jihadist insurgency since 2015. The conflict has provoked attacks on Fulani herders whom other communities accuse of supporting militants. The Borno State committee on the prevention and control of COVID-19 on Monday said the first index case of the new coronavirus who died at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital was only tested for the disease after he passed on. The deputy governor of the state, Umar Kadafur, who briefed journalists Monday in his office, said the patient, a 56 years old nurse working for Medicine Sans Frontier (MSF), was brought in from Pulka, a town in Gwoza local government, with severe respiratory disease. The Nigeria disease control body, NCDC, and WHO has listed such respiratory ailment as one of the symptoms of the new coronavirus disease. Despite his critical condition, the patient was admitted to the general male medical ward of the teaching hospital where medical personnel battled to save his life. No test for COVID-19 was carried out on him while he was alive. The management of the teaching hospital has not explained why the deceased nurse, who was brought to the hospital with symptoms associated with the COVID-19 disease did not have his blood sample taken for testing as required. According to the deputy governor, the deceased was only tested for COVID-19 after he had passed on. I hereby wish to announce to the general public that a case of COVID-19 disease was confirmed in Maiduguri on Sunday 19 April 2020 by NCDC, he said. He was a 56 years old citizen of Borno who was brought in from Pulka with features of severe respiratory disease. He was managed in the UMTH but unfortunately, he succumbed to the disease. However nasal swab specimen was collected from the body, which was tested positive for neo-corona virus disease at the COVID- 19 reference laboratories in the UMTH and validated by the NCDC. The remains of the deceased have been buried according to the standard and protocols for disposals of infectious disease. PREMIUM TIMES is in possession of a viral video showing how the deceased COVID-19 patient was being processed for burial by officials wearing body protection equipment, many hours before NCDC confirmed he died of the coronavirus. 97 possible contacts being traced The deputy governor also revealed that so far, a total of 97 persons, who have had contact with the deceased, are being traced for testing and isolation. All contacts of the deceased are being traced, and necessary measures to prevent further spread would be put in place, the deputy governor said. READ ALSO: To this point, about 97 persons of interest have been traced and strategic testing instituted. Thirty-five (35) in Pulka and 64 in Maiduguri. Furthermore, the organization he works for in Pulka has been directed to provide line list, profile and quarantine all his contacts and submit the same to the committee for action. He said a team of surveillance and case management personnel have been deployed to Pulka for further investigation and sample collection. He called on the people of Borno State to acknowledge the fact that COVID-19 is real. No nation or people are immune. It is indeed a trial from Allah and He alone could avert this trial from us. However, as a people, we need to demonstrate strict adherence to all preventive measures and advice to reduce the spread of this disease. People are advised to wash their hands with soap and water regularly, avoid overcrowding and use hand sanitisers. He added that the public health emergency centre for COVID-19 will be activated in line with procedures. UMTH yet to speak The University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) is yet to explain or issue a statement on how it managed the patient who was brought into its facility with symptoms of the COVID-19 before he died days later, while still on admission. Head of Information at the UMTH, Justina Anaso, who was contacted by our reporter for clarifications on how the deceased COVID-19 patient was managed at the hospital before he died, promised to revert as soon as she clears with the hospital management on the matter. She is yet to do so. A federal judge on Saturday blocked Kansas governor Laura Kellys executive order banning religious gatherings of over ten people, allowing churches and other institutions to congregate as long as worshippers maintain social distancing. U.S. District Judge John Broomes in Wichita criticized Kellys executive order as unfairly targeting religious institutions. Churches and religious activities appear to have been singled out among essential functions for stricter treatment, Broomes wrote in his ruling. Kelly, a Democrat who has drawn criticism from Kansass Republican-held state legislature, defended the executive order. This is not about religion. This is about a public-health crisis, Kelly said in reaction to Broomess ruling. Public safety is important, but so is following the Constitution, commented Tyson Langhofer, senior counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom, which helped bring the case to court. We can prioritize the health of safety of ourselves and our neighbors without harming churches and people of faith. Republican state lawmakers had attempted to revoke Kellys order earlier in April, but the governor then contested the decision before Kansass Supreme Court. The Court let Kellys order stand on technical grounds, without ruling on whether it violated religious freedom. More from National Review CALGARY - A meat-packing plant in southern Alberta where a worker died because of COVID-19 is temporarily shutting down as the result of an outbreak at the facility. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. CALGARY - A meat-packing plant in southern Alberta where a worker died because of COVID-19 is temporarily shutting down as the result of an outbreak at the facility. Cargill's High River plant, which employs about 2,000 workers, has 360 cases of the novel coronavirus. Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical health officer, said the impact of the illness has grown worse. "There has also been spread in the community beyond these workers, with 484 cases linked to that outbreak," Hinshaw said. "Not all of these cases are people that work at that plant. Many of these cases live in surrounding communities such as Calgary. Many of the cases identified in the Calgary zone over the weekend were linked to this broader outbreak." Hinshaw announced the Cargill death at a provincial news conference on Monday. She said control measures have also been put in place at the JBS Foods meat-packing plant in Brooks, Alta., where 67 cases have been confirmed. A spokesman for Cargill called the shutdown a difficult decision, as the plant is considered an essential service. "Considering the community-wide impacts of the virus, we encourage all employees to get tested for the COVID-19 virus as now advised by Alberta Health Services as soon as possible," Jon Nash said in a statement. Production is to stop once meat already in the plant is processed to avoid any food waste. "We will process approximately three million meals currently in our facility as quickly as possible. We greatly appreciate our employees who are working to complete this effort," he added. It's not clear how long the plant will be shut down, but the company did say workers would be paid according to their collective agreement. The plant, just north of the town of High River, processes about 4,500 head of cattle per day more than one-third of Canada's beef-processing capacity. Cargill had earlier announced a shut down of a second shift of workers and the implementation of a number of new safety protocols, including temperature testing, enhanced cleaning and sanitizing, use of face coverings, screens between employee stations and prohibiting visitors. The president of the United Food and Commercial Workers union 401, which represents the Cargill employees, said the shutdown is better late than never. But he still has many questions. "We still have grave concerns about their transparency. What are they saying to their workers ... what does the future look like?" said Thomas Hesse. "It isn't just about pausing the plant ... creating economic anxiety among these vulnerable workers is another problem." The union had been calling on Cargill to shut the plant down for two weeks to allow workers to self-isolate and to give the plant a thorough cleaning. Hesse said three-quarters of members expressed concern about their safety during a union conference call Sunday. He added that he wants an independent third party to look at the plant and give an assessment. An official with the Canadian Union of Public Employees in Alberta said the shutdown is overdue, since cases at Cargill were causing a cross-contamination of another essential service in the town of 12,000 people. Lou Arab said five employees at Seasons Retirement Communities in High River have tested positive for COVID-19. Three of them are married to meat-packing workers. "The plant needs to be shut down until they figure out what's going on and until they know it has been made safe," Arab said. "It's going beyond the plant and it's going into the community." This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020 Follow @BillGraveland on Twitter Senior officers of the Odisha government joined their offices on Monday, nearly a month after restrictions were imposed in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, an official said. While all Class-I officers resumed work from their offices, including state secretariat Lok Seva Bhavan, other subordinate staff started working on a roster basis, he said. As per the roster system, 33 per cent of the junior staff of different departments will be working on a rotational basis. The offices, barring those of some crucial departments, remained closed due to the lockdown imposed on March 22 in the wake of the outbreak. The state government had classified 11 departments in the emergency category, senior officers of which continued to attend offices, while the junior staff was asked to stay at home. The state government relaxed the lockdown norms in some parts of the state, but there was no such breather for the residents of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and other areas that reported COVID-19 cases as strict restrictions continued, the official said. COVID-19 cases have been reported from 10 of the states 30 districts. The affected districts are Khurda (46), Bhadrak (8), Balasore (3), Kendrapara, Jajpur, Kalahandi and Sundergarh (two each) and one each from Cuttack, Dhenkanal and Puri. Chief Secretary A K Tripathy on Sunday said while the agriculture sector is being cautiously opened up, there will be not much change in Bhubaneshwar and Cuttack and the twin cities will continue to be under lockdown restrictions. The state government has relaxed certain restrictions in agriculture, construction and allied sectors from Monday as per the Centre's guidelines and the situation will be reviewed from time to time, he said. Bhubaneswar-Cuttack's Commissioner of Police S Sarangi also reiterated that there won't be any relaxations in the twin cities. "The situation is under review. We request citizens for their continued co-operation, he added. Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has also issued a notification informing people that the lockdown restrictions will continue in its jurisdiction. Sarangi said the employees of IT & ITES companies in Bhubaneswar will continue with the work from home arrangement and function with a maximum of 25 per cent staff in their offices. They will be allowed movement on showing company identity card and email that says they are part of the 25 per cent workforce asked to attend office. For the central government employees in Bhubaneswar, officers above the rank of deputy secretary resumed attending offices. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government is recommending a ballot every five years on the future of the AHDB, giving levy-paying farmers a greater say over its future direction. A series of recommendations have been outlined today (20 April) to reform the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) following three-month request for views across all of its sectors. The AHDB was established in 2008 to help farmers improve their performance and drive growth, for instance through knowledge exchanges, improving market access and marketing activities. Following a review into its role and function, Defra has set out recommendations so the levy board can be a 'modern and dynamic' organisation that 'keeps pace with the needs of industry'. A ballot every five years on the future of AHDB and the strategy in each sector would ensure that the levies paid continue to provide good value for money for farmers post-Brexit, the government said. The review also showed strong support for structuring AHDB around two central priorities: market development and improving farm performance. This would allow an increased focus on business resilience, skills, environment, reputation and market development at home and overseas, Defra explained. Maintaining the statutory levy has been recommended, as the majority of respondents felt this should continue to support collective endeavours, such as market access, research and development and technical advice. The option of exploring a new governance structure has also been urged, to facilitate cross-sector working and break down communication barriers between different parts of the organisation. Responding to the government's recommendations, Jane King, AHDB CEO, said she welcomes the report amid an 'extraordinary period of change'. Under the guidance of our new chairman Nicholas Saphir, we will refocus our efforts in identifying the risks and opportunities that face British farming and growing," she said. "We will drive market development and support farmers in improving performance. We are committed to being responsive to the needs of our levy-payers by adding real value where it matters and helping make an impact on farm. "We want to engage farmers, growers and the whole supply chain in designing and shaping our technical programmes going forward. "We will be making recommendations for changes to our governance structure to ensure that we are leaner and fitter as we face the future." The Tenant Farmers Association (TFA), however, criticised the AHDB for being 'massively inhibited by poor governance'. TFA National Chairman, Mark Coulman, said: "Now, more than ever, we need AHDB to be an effective driver of the development of our domestic food and farming industry. The group advocates that the number one priority for AHDB should be market development, as it needs to be 'the champion of UK agriculture both at home and abroad'. Much of its work is wrongly targeted on knowledge exchange and standardised business information to the farming industry," Mr Coulman said. "Instead it should be driving the industry forward in seeking out new markets and improving farm returns from the markets which exist already." As medical professionals work to save lives amid the coronavirus health crisis, community development financial institutions, or CDFIs, such as Albuquerque-based DreamSpring, are galvanized to rescue livelihoods from the parallel economic shutdown. CDFIs are mission-driven financial institutions, often nonprofit organizations, that deliver responsible, affordable credit to provide underserved populations access to economic opportunity. DreamSpring, formerly known as Accion and serving Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas, has been supporting microenterprises with rapid and affordable loans for more than 25 years. Today, we and our CDFI partners stand at the front lines of the economic devastation, tending to those businesses most impacted and least likely to receive an immediate hand up elsewhere. DreamSprings clients are low-to moderate-income, minority, women and veteran entrepreneurs starting or growing a business. They are the backbone of our economy. They are your neighbors. They create the vibrant spaces and provide the goods and services that make our community feel like home flower boutiques, auto repair shops, bookstores, food trucks, family farms, cafes, hair salons, artisan booths and taquerias. These businesses often operate with cash flows that, if interrupted, can only sustain the business for a few days. These are the businesses now at greatest risk of permanent closure without robust support. CDFIs are uniquely prepared and practiced to respond to this crisis because it is what we do. We are often able to get loans into their hands within 24 hours. While we are working even harder to help small businesses conquer todays unprecedented challenges, the scale of COVID-19s impact requires us all to take action to support them if we want to flatten a precipitous economic curve. More than 32,000 New Mexico residents applied for unemployment benefits March 19-26, up from 870 just weeks previously. This trajectory will only reverse if as a community we make the livelihood of our entrepreneurs a collective priority. Certainly, the recently enacted federal CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) Act will triage some of the economic fallout. The historic $2.2 trillion emergency relief package includes more than $370 billion to help small businesses. The city of Albuquerque recently provided qualifying small businesses with fewer than five employees a grant of up to $5,000 to support day-to-day operating expenses. The state of New Mexico is adjusting its business loan guarantee programs to make capital more available to business owners whose operations are severely impacted by the COVID-19 health emergency. Many private entities and nonprofits, too, are generously stepping up to defer loan payments, provide grants and assist entrepreneurs in meaningful ways. DreamSpring is helping entrepreneurs navigate all of these resources, offering personalized support services tailored to these catastrophic circumstances. Still, businesses that include mom-and-pop shops, rural enterprises and those owned by low- to moderate-income households remain at profound risk of never reopening. There are many more long weeks ahead for countless business owners as they try to survive the immediate crisis day by day, until slow, sustainable recovery can start. Without rapid, targeted action the amount of money destined for our most vulnerable small businesses and communities will not come fast enough and will fall critically short. Together, we must ensure New Mexicos everyday entrepreneurs have expanded access to immediate support to avoid economic devastation requiring years of recovery. By supporting CDFIs, everybody the public sector, private sector and individuals can sustain the livelihood of entrepreneurs and their families. In so doing, our community will curb unemployment, bolster the economy and ensure when its safe to come together again we all have places to gather and celebrate. DreamSpring is a nonprofit microlender based in Albuquerque. The executives desk is a guest column providing advice or information about resources available to the business community in New Mexico. THE EXECUTIVES DESK Go to any pharmacy and theres one product I can guarantee youll be able to buy ibuprofen. Packets of the painkiller and anti-inflammatory drug line the shelves, while paracetamol is difficult, if not impossible, to find. And its been like that for weeks to be precise, since March 14, when French health minister Olivier Veran said ibuprofen could aggravate the coronavirus infection. His comments appear to be based on four Covid-19 patients in France, who have no underlying health problems and who reportedly developed serious symptoms after taking ibuprofen. The theory, published in a letter in The Lancet, is that the virus binds to a receptor in the body called ACE2, and ibuprofen may increase the production of this receptor. So taking the drug might raise the risk of getting the virus or make the infection worse. There has recently been a U-turn on advice not to take ibuprofen following fears the drug could worsen coronavirus symptoms in sufferers (stock) Despite no studies proving this theory, three days later, the NHS advised patients to avoid taking ibuprofen to treat their symptoms, and to use paracetamol instead. But the Governments Commission on Human Medicines (CHM), which advises on the safety, efficacy and quality of drugs, carried out a review and has now concluded that ibuprofen and paracetamol can be safely taken for Covid-19. The review considered the available data, including that from studies in animals, clinical trials, evidence from observational studies (where patient outcomes are measured, but no treatment is given) and 16 studies which considered whether ibuprofen might increase the risk of an infection worsening. There is currently insufficient evidence that ibuprofen can worsen the symptoms of Covid-19, says Dr Sarah Branch, director of vigilance and risk management of medicines at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. You can take paracetamol or ibuprofen to alleviate fever and headaches from Covid-19, if you follow the instructions that come with the medicine. Patients who have been prescribed ibuprofen or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) as a treatment for a long-term condition, such as arthritis, should keep taking these medicines as normal, the CHM said last week. The change has been welcomed by many who feared people had stopped taking prescriptions The U-turn has been welcomed by experts who were concerned that the warning and subsequent shunning of ibuprofen had gone too far. The advice was based, at best, on speculation and extrapolation from studies in other conditions, says Emma Baker, a professor of clinical pharmacology at St Georges, University of London and clinical vice president of the British Pharmacological Society. The unfounded comments about avoiding ibuprofen went too far and led to nationwide shortages of paracetamol as people stockpiled the drug, which was unnecessary. There are also concerns that people who take ibuprofen regularly for chronic arthritis, for example, may have stopped, and this could result in worsening symptoms, which could be painful and reduce mobility. A separate review of 13 studies by Kings College London recently also found no evidence that ibuprofen could be harmful for people who have the coronavirus. Paracetamol and ibuprofen are both widely used to treat pain and fever. Ibuprofen is also an anti-inflammatory, so tends to be better for joint pain or inflammatory conditions such as arthritis. Whenever you take a medicine of any sort, there is a risk and a benefit, says Professor Baker. As long as paracetamol is taken at the recommended dose, it is safe for most people. Ibuprofen can irritate the stomach, and if you take it a lot you can develop stomach ulcers and kidney problems. If its a straight choice between the two, paracetamol is better. Indeed, the NHS website recommends patients with symptoms of the coronavirus try paracetamol first as it has fewer side-effects than ibuprofen. Previous studies have shown that people who take NSAIDs for coughs, colds and sore throats may be more likely to suffer severe illness or have a slower recovery than those who take paracetamol. RACINE COUNTY Rachel McNutt, a Sturtevant resident with a 6-year-old daughter, has spent the first few hours of her day on the phone, not talking to anyone, almost every day for the last four weeks. She spends most of the time on hold or having calls get dropped. Shes out of work, but still has work to do. Shes been trying to get her unemployment checks after being furloughed from her bartending job in Kenosha last month. But theres still no money coming in, largely because of technical and personnel restrictions at the state level. Its frustrating, McNutt said. Theres a lot of people that this just sucks for. Ive got some savings so Ill probably be OK. But theres a lot of people who wont be OK. Emma, who lives in Downtown Racine and asked her last name not be used in this story, is in an almost identical situation: Shes been furloughed, applied for unemployment, but cant get through to anyone at the Department of Workforce Development to clarify the issues with her application. I have worked my entire life, she said. Ive always had a job since I was 16 years old. Ive never had to file unemployment. She was furloughed from the restaurant she worked at in mid-March and applied for unemployment on March 16 at dwd.wisconsin.gov. A notice arrived in the mail a couple days later saying her application was approved. But on March 23, when she filled out her first required weekly claim confirming she was out of work, an error with her application appeared on the Department of Workforce Developments website. The website instructed her to call 414-435-7069 or 844-910-3661 to correct whatever the undefined error is. So, almost every day for the past three weeks, shes spent hours repeatedly calling the number. On Friday, she started using two phones to double her chances. She said she has yet to anyone on the other line. Mostly what happens is the call just immediately disconnects. It wont even ring, she said. It appears to be a widespread problem in Wisconsin. Media reports from around the state have told of people who are inexplicably unable to receive unemployment checks after being laid off or furloughed because of COVID-19. Scale of problem unknown Although a record of nearly 400,000 people in Wisconsin have filed for unemployment benefits in the past four weeks, its still unclear how many are in Emmas situation and unable to collect. Nationwide, 22 million people have filed for unemployment since mid-March. Gov. Tony Evers acknowledged, but downplayed, the Department of Workforce Developments technical problems during a press briefing Thursday. Weve expanded the workforce and moved people around within the department, Evers said. We had a couple technology glitches at the beginning. But weve been receiving (applications) and some people are getting their checks. I know theres thousands of people in Wisconsin who are getting their unemployment insurance checks. We are working as hard as we can We keep making do with the folks we have. I dont think anybody is doing a bad job or is deliberately doing a bad job. Were certainly doing the best job we can under the circumstances. Left on hold On the other hand, McNutt knows why her unemployment checks havent been sent. Her accounts error says that some information is inputted incorrectly by a former employer. The only way she can fix it is by calling the overburdened hotline, according to DWD. But she cant fix whatever the error is if she cant get through on the phones. She also has spent hours on hold over the past few weeks. She said she mills about the house while waiting and redialing fruitlessly on the phone, passing the time by cleaning or cooking or watching TV. If youre lucky, you get through to an automated system. That automated system asks the caller to type in information like your name and Social Security number. After that, callers get placed on hold again. Then the call, every single time so far for Mcnutt, disconnects. Sometimes you cant even get put on hold, McNutt said. Every time I would get through, an automated voice would say We have reached the maximum call volume. We are ending your call, and then hang up, added Lisa Nelson, another woman in the same situation. One of the few times McNutt remembers getting put on hold, an automated voice told her she was the 57th caller in the queue. She waited while an automated voice telling her things like All of our lines are busy and All of our representatives are currently on the phone with a caller right now and We have reached the max capacity for all the phone lines. She waited for more than an hour until she was fourth in the queue. Then the call dropped. Again. Other options? Even if she could get another job, that would mean putting her 6-year-old daughter in day care and offsetting much of the money she might be making. The savings McNutt does have need to go to rent and other home needs, especially if technology failures continue to prevent her from getting the unemployment checks she deserves. Nelson has asthma. Going outside to get another job is particularly dangerous for her because COVID-19 is potentially deadly for people with pre-existing respiratory problems. Redialing, waiting One of the few phone call success stories comes from Nelson. A 27-year-old, she grew up in Wisconsin, lives in Milwaukee and owns the LeJe Nail Salon in Brookfield, which was forced to close by state order on March 20 and wont have a chance of being able to legally reopen until May 26 by order of the governor. Like many others, Nelsons application was hit with errors. Nelsons errors were the result of what she said were confusingly written questions (which have since been clarified on the online application), delays with adjudication investigations that need to be conducted by DWD and the application not having clear options for people who are self-employed. On Thursday, Nelson got two cellphones and spent hours dialing and redialing. Her phones records show she called the hotline more than 300 times between 7:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. After taking a break, she was finally put on hold at around 12:15. After 3 p.m., someone actually answered the call. Lisa Nelson April 16 Facebook post Lisa Nelson cheers on Facebook after someone from the Department of Workforce Development answered Nelson's call regarding her unemployment cl But only one of Nelsons errors was able to be clarified. The woman on the other end told her that investigations are supposed to be concluded in 21 days, but because theyre so backlogged, theyre not going to be able to do the 21 days, Nelson was told. So now, almost a month into unemployment, she still has no income. While many are expecting to get back pay dating to when they first filed, but there isnt anything to help them right now. You feel hopeless and frustrated, Nelson said. As the weeks go on, you start to worry about how youre going to take care of yourself. You feel hopeless and frustrated ... as the weeks go on, you start to worry about how youre going to take care of yourself. Lisa Nelson, small-business owner still waiting to receive unemployment benefits 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. A contractor enters a Neiman Marcus Group Ltd. store at the Hudson Yards development in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, March 5, 2019. Demetrius Freeman | Bloomberg | Getty Images Neiman Marcus is preparing to seek bankruptcy protection as soon as this week, becoming the first major U.S. department store operator to succumb to the economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, people familiar with the matter said. The debt-laden Dallas-based company has been left with few options after the pandemic forced it to temporarily shut all 43 of its Neiman Marcus locations, roughly two dozen Last Call stores and its two Bergdorf Goodman stores in New York. Neiman Marcus is in the final stages of negotiating a loan with its creditors totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, which would sustain some of its operations during bankruptcy proceedings, according to the sources. It has also furloughed many of its roughly 14,000 employees. The bankruptcy filing could come within days, though the timing could slip, the sources said. Neiman Marcus skipped millions of dollars in debt payments last week, including one that only gave the company a few days to avoid a default. Neiman Marcus' borrowings total about $4.8 billion, according to credit ratings firm Standard & Poor's. Some of this debt is the legacy of its $6 billion leveraged buyout in 2013 by its owners, private equity firm Ares Management Corp and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB). The sources requested anonymity because the bankruptcy preparations are confidential. Neiman Marcus and Ares declined to comment, while CPPIB representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Other department store operators that have also had to close their stores are battling to avoid Neiman Marcus' fate. Macy's Inc and Nordstrom Inc have been rushing to secure new financing, such as by borrowing against some of their real estate. J.C. Penney Co Inc is contemplating a bankruptcy filing as a way to rework its unsustainable finances and save money on looming debt payments, Reuters reported last week. A bankruptcy filing would be a grim milestone that Neiman Marcus has spent the last few years trying to avoid. It pushed out due dates on its financial obligations last year in a restructuring deal with some creditors, though the transactions added to Neiman Marcus' interest expenses. A trustee for some of the company's bondholders sued Neiman Marcus last year, claiming the firm and its owners robbed investors of the value of its luxury e-commerce site MyTheresa by moving the business beyond the reach of creditors in a corporate reshuffling. Neiman maintains its actions were proper. "In light of the significant headwinds stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and our expectation for a U.S. recession this year, we believe the company's prospects for a turnaround are increasingly low," Standard & Poor's analysts wrote in a note last week. "We continue to view its capital structure as unsustainable," the analysts added, lowering their credit rating on Neiman Marcus deep into "junk" territory. They said the move reflected the "elevated potential" of a debt restructuring. Once it files for bankruptcy, Neiman Marcus could attract interest from potential suitors seeking to pick up the company or some of its assets on the cheap, the sources said. Saks Fifth Avenue owner Hudson's Bay Co explored a bid for Neiman Marcus in 2017 but did not pursue it, people familiar with the matter said at the time. The Canadian company was taken private earlier this year by a group of shareholders led by its chief executive Richard Baker, and it is unclear if it remains interested or would be in a position to pursue a new bid. A Hudson's Bay representative did not immediately return a request for comment. From fashion fixture to brink of bankruptcy Paula Gehring-Kevish is a mother of two and grandmother of three with a masters degree in school counseling who resides in Las Vegas, Nevada with her husband, Steve. She has published her first book The Big Adventures of Little Lucky: Book 1: a delightful addition to any childrens library. Follow the story of Lucky, a rescue dog, who gets a second chance for a happy life. Luckys tail is always wagging until one day it stops, and Lucky will have to work hard to get it wagging again. Published by Page Publishing, Paula Gehring-Kevishs enchanting book is a sweet rescue story for animal lovers of all ages. Readers who wish to experience this engaging work can purchase The Big Adventures of Little Lucky: Book 1 at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble. For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708. About Page Publishing: Page Publishing is a traditional, full-service publishing house that handles all the intricacies involved in publishing its authors books, including distribution in the worlds largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create - not mired in logistics like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes, and so on. Pages accomplished writers and publishing professionals allow authors to leave behind these complex and time-consuming issues to focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at http://www.pagepublishing.com. The following is a listing of news and events related to impacts of the coronavirus pandemic: Montgomery accord Montgomery County's emergency management director received a message from a family in Montgomery, Alabama, looking to donate gloves to assist health care workers in New York. They selected Montgomery County because of the connection to where they live, according to officials in the local county. "We thought it was a great example of the mantra we have been using Stronger Together ... it doesn't matter which Montgomery County you happen to live in," according to the county executive's office. Blood drive The American Red Cross will host a blood drive at the Guilderland Public Library from 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 5. Donors must preregister in advance on redcross.org; no walk-ins will be accepted. Protocols will be followed by the Red Cross to ensure the safety of everyone involved, including: temperature screening for donors, staff and volunteers; systematic disinfecting; social distancing; and employing fresh gloves for each donor. The library remains closed to the general public; only donors, staff and volunteers will be permitted entrance. To make an appointment, go to rcblood.org/appt, enter the library zip code (12084) and search for Guilderland Public Library, May 5. Survey of physicians A survey of Medical Society of the State of New York members released Thursday found 83 percent of respondents have had a reduction of more than 50 percent in the volume of patients visiting their practices. Also, 80 percent have suffered a loss of revenue of more than 50 percent since the outbreak of COVID-19. More than a quarter have had to layoff, or furlough, more than 50 percent of their staff. "Very disturbing reports were also received from physician respondents that despite having applied for help as soon as the funds became available, they have received no assistance to date," the society reported. Escape to the stars The Mid Hudson Astronomical Association meets online using Zoom at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Astrophotographer and club member Greg Salyer will describe and explain how he operates his securely mounted backyard telescope from the comfort of his home. Later in the week on Friday, weather permitting, he'll conduct a remote star party from his backyard using Zoom. The projected time will be 8:30 and the meeting number will be posted beforehand. Attendees must go to the MHAA website at midhudsonastro.com and select "attend" through MeetUp. The Zoom meeting number for Tuesday is 958 0261 7571. The password for the meeting will be sent to those who mark "attend" on Monday evening. Schenectady meter payments suspended Mayor Gary McCarthy issued a new emergency order on Friday to suspend all metered parking payments in Schenectady. Schenectady County Metroplex Development Authority has also waived all parking fees at 13 parking lots and the downtown parking garage. WMHT program WMHT has started a regional initiative called Extraordinary Neighbors to highlight the good people are doing during the pandemic. People can nominate some of their friends, colleagues, and neighbors. Learn more at https://www.wmht.org/ExtraordinaryNeighbors Mask deliveries Americares, working with GE Foundaton, is delivering more than 1.4 million protective masks for health workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The masks will help to alleviate shortages at hospitals and primary care facilities in 11 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Poster contest Saratoga County Sheriff Michael Zurlo announced a COVID-19 poster contest for students in grades K-12 in the county. The theme is 'What Saratoga County First Responders Mean To Me.' Posters must be received by May 18. Those who wish to enter the contest can mail their completed poster (on any size paper) to the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office, 6010 County Farm Road, Ballston Spa, New York 12020 or e-mail submissions to sheriff@saratogacountyny.gov. Food drive The South End Children's Cafe will host a food drive from 5 to 6 p.m. Monday at 25 Warren St., Albany. The cafe is entering week six of feeding over 400 children and families dinners along with groceries. On Monday it is collecting taco kits, small sour creams, small bags of shredded cheddar, microwaveable rice or rice in the bag, hamburger patties, hamburger rolls, loaves of bread, canned corn (not creamed), fresh fruits and fresh vegetables, any kind of chicken (fresh or frozen), eggs, butter and grocery store gift cards. Press Release 20 April 2020 IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world's leading hotel companies, has today announced global partnerships to support food banks and other food provision charities in assisting those most in need during the COVID-19 crisis. Advertisements With hotels in thousands of communities around the world, together with our colleagues, owners and partners, we are working to be part of the relief effort. Today, we are extending our programme for communities and charitable giving, True Hospitality for Good, by committing funding and support to be there for our local communities where they are most vulnerable. Helping to protect and enhance food bank infrastructure and services in more than 70 countries, IHG's partners include 'No Kid Hungry' in the US, 'Trussell Trust' in the UK, the 'Global Foodbanking Network' (GFN) and the 'European Food Banks Federation' (FEBA). Together, this support will ensure that food banks and food distribution sites have access to the funds, training and resources they need, as more and more people rely on their help during the current crisis. This vital work will add to the hospitality shown by many of our colleagues who are volunteering to support food banks in the hearts of their own communities. Keith Barr, CEO, IHG, commented: "We can all see the impact that coronavirus continues to have around the world on communities, businesses and our lives. Taking care of others is the very essence of who we all are in hospitality and working with our colleagues, owners and charity partners to offer food, supplies and safe accommodation is a natural way for us to be there for our local communities in these difficult times." "At IHG, our own sense of community has allowed us to pull together and I'm proud that our long-standing values have shone through in doing what is right for those around us, and delivering True Hospitality to those who need it most." Lisa Moon, CEO, Global Foodbanking Network, commented: "We've been working hard to support our network of foodbanks responding to increased demand resulting from COVID-19, and partnership from our donors is more essential than ever. The support from IHG helps to ensure food can continue to be distributed to assist charitable organisations, and feed society's most vulnerable.." IHG's move to support food bank and food provision groups is an important element of our broader community response to the COVID-19 outbreak: Recognising the huge difference being made by humanitarian aid organisations, IHG is supporting its long-standing True Hospitality for Good charitable partners, including the British Red Cross through its Disaster Relief Alliance membership, CARE International to provide personal, protective equipment (PPE) in developing markets, and a donation to the China Red Cross . In Atlanta, Georgia, US - home to IHG's Americas headquarters - IHG has supported the Salvation Army to distribute hygiene kits to frontline workers and the homeless. through its membership, to provide personal, protective equipment (PPE) in developing markets, and a donation to the . In Atlanta, Georgia, US - home to IHG's Americas headquarters - IHG has supported the to distribute hygiene kits to frontline workers and the homeless. IHG Rewards Club loyalty members are able to donate loyalty points, converted into cash, to our True Hospitality for Good community partners, such as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). In just a few weeks, IFRC has received 4 million points from IHG's loyalty members. We're there for key workers and the vulnerable IHG this week announced our partnership with #FirstRespondersFirst to provide free accommodation to frontline first responders across the US. A donation of 50 million IHG Rewards Club points provides first responders with access to thousands of room nights in IHG-branded hotels across the country. to provide free accommodation to frontline first responders across the US. A donation of 50 million IHG Rewards Club points provides first responders with access to thousands of room nights in IHG-branded hotels across the country. IHG has worked with local governments to provide accommodation to frontline workers, military services and vulnerable groups in a number of markets. The power of our people The ABC has posted a lengthy response to claims it led a witch hunt in its coverage of Cardinal George Pell, citing examples of Pell supporters in ABC broadcasts. Media Watch also assessed ABC coverage and while it concluded the coverage could have demonstrated more balance, it also dismissed claims of a with hunt. You can see that report here. Last week Pell told The Bolt Report, I believe in free speech, I acknowledge the right of those who differ from me to state their views. But, in a national broadcaster to have an overwhelming presentation of one view and only one view, I think thats a betrayal of the national interest. ABCs full statement in response is here. The ABC has always acted in the public interest in reporting on the police investigation into Cardinal George Pell and in investigating other allegations made against him. The ABC firmly rejects claims that it pursued a witch hunt against Cardinal Pell, that it engaged in vigilante journalism or that its coverage was one-sided or unfair, ABC said in its statement. At every stage of this story the ABC has presented a wide range of opinions on the case. At every stage of the court process the ABC has reported the legal proceedings objectively, accurately and impartially. In discussions and analysis it has always sought a full range of perspectives on related issues. ABC stated it always sought responses from Cardinal Pell, his supporters and independent experts. It was Melbournes Herald Sun in 2016 that revealed that a police investigation had begun, and 7:30 subsequently covered the story. ABC claimed an exhaustive review by senior ABC management and legal counsel were followed, including for major investigations by Four Corners and the recent Revelation series. ABC maintains 80 different voices/interviews/reactions were used across RN Breakfast, RN Drive, the Religion & Ethics Report website, 7.30, AM, The World Today, PM, The Drum, ABC Melbourne Mornings, ABC Melbourne Drive and in the analysis/opinion section in ABC News Digital. A rough breakdown reveals the following broad categories: 26 of those interviewed could reasonably be categorised as independent, impartial reporters and observers either here in Australia or overseas (notably including Vatican watchers) 14 were sexual abuse survivors or their family members 13 were unofficial voices from within the Catholic Church priests or parishioners 10 were lawyers or legal experts providing dispassionate analysis 8 were experts in the field of child sexual abuse generally 7 were lawyers representing the accusers 5 were official church or Vatican spokesmen ABC also claimed Archbishop Comensoli and Archbishop of Brisbane Mark Coleridge both declined invitations to appear on 7:30 and added that Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher, former Prime Minister John Howard and Father Bob Maguire all declined invitations or were unavailable. You can read more here. Thousands of Israelis demonstrated Sunday in Tel Aviv to warn against what they said was a threat to democracy from ongoing coalition talks between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former rival Benny Gantz. Some 2,000 protesters, according to media estimates, followed a call launched on Facebook by the "Black Flag" movement which condemns Netanyahu's continuing rule. Israel's parliament was tasked with forming a government on Thursday after speaker Gantz and Netanyahu missed a deadline to seal an alliance, but negotiations between the sides were ongoing. Israel's deeply divided 120-member parliament has no clear path towards a stable governing coalition, so the move risks prolonging the country's worst-ever political crisis. Gantz and Netanyahu could still agree on an emergency unity government to help Israel confront the COVID-19 pandemic, prospect the protesters spoke out against. Wearing protection masks and mostly dressed in black, the protesters observed social distancing rules in force to fight the coronavirus. "Let democracy win", said one placard, while some protesters had written "Minister of Crime" on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahu's upcoming trial for corruption. Many waved black flags as a symbol for threats against Israel's democracy. "You don't fight corruption from within," said Yair Lapid, the new opposition leader, of his former ally Gantz. "If you're inside, you're part of it." Democracies in 21st Century died because "good people are silent and weak people surrender", Lapid said. While Texas State Parks will reopen on Monday as part of Gov. Gregg Abbott's plan to jump start the state's economy, visitors will only be allowed in during the day. Those hoping to utilize one of the state parks will have to make advance reservations and pay online, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said. Korea Fair Trade Commission Chairperson Joh Sung-wook speaks during the confirmation hearing prior to her appointment in the current position at the National Assembly in this 2019 file photo. / Korea Times photo by Oh Dae-keun By Kim Jae-heun The result of the Korea Fair Trade Commission's (KFTC) review of Delivery Hero's $4 billion deal to acquire Woowa Brothers could take as long as a year. "We have 120 days to review the merger and if we think we have not looked through enough data, we can request more time. I think we will need more time for this deal. It will take longer," a KFTC official said. Delivery Hero applied for a merger review from the antitrust regulator on Dec. 31, last year. Considering the 120-day deadline the KFTC's decision was expected on April 28. Previously, the government took a little over four months to review and approve the merger of eBay Korea and G-Market. However, the KFTC official said Delivery Hero and Woowa Brother's M&A deal needs a more comprehensive review as it could potentially limit healthy competition in the online food delivery service market. Currently, Woowa Brothers' food delivery application Baedal Minjok (Baemin) takes up 55.7 percent of the market share. If Delivery Hero takes over Baemin, it will own almost 100 percent of the market share as it already owns No.2 player Yogiyo and No.3 player Baedaltong that comprise 33.5 percent and 10.8 percent, respectively. "It usually doesn't take over a year. But when a merger can result in one company's dominance in the market, it takes longer than usual," a KFTC official said. The government is concerned about the German firm preventing newcomers from entering the market. The KFTC said it will soon launch a task force team specializing in the information and communication technology field to check if Delivery Hero can possibly utilize big data to eliminate their potential rivals in the market. The antitrust regulator will also consider the invasion of privacy issue as Delivery Hero could share its user's personal information with other subsidiaries including Yogiyo and Baedaltong. An industry source said Delivery Hero paid a high price for the big data collected by Baemi, which has 25 million annual subscribers. The KFTC Vice Chairman Ji Chul-ho also expressed concerns about Delivery Hero's takeover of Baemin users' information and monopolizing it. As it is the first time that the KFTC is dealing with a big data issue in a corporate M&A, it is expected the regulator will need more time to analyze the deal. Meanwhile, 86 percent of online food delivery application users opposed the German firm's acquisition of the country's No.1 player. Many are concerned that when the KFTC approves the deal, Delivery Hero could monopolize the market and raise commission fees while allowing the service quality to deteriorate. The government said it cannot intervene in the market to fix the commission price but the KFTC said it will do its best to make sure users of the service will not suffer any damage brought about by an unfair merger. Delivery Hero declined to comment on the issue. New Zealand will start re-opening schools and businesses next Monday, prime minister Jacinda Ardern said today as she hailed the country's success in stopping an 'uncontrolled explosion' of coronavirus. Ardern said that New Zealand has 'done what very few countries have been able to do... we have stopped a wave of devastation.' The maximum Alert Level 4 will be lifted from April 27, dropping to Level 3 which means some schools can re-open and gatherings of up to 10 people will be allowed for event such as weddings and funerals. The new rules mean people can expand their 'immediate household bubble' to 'reconnect with close family' or support isolated people. Businesses in the construction, manufacturing and forestry industries can return to work, while shops and restaurants will remain shut but takeaways can resume. While announcing the decision, Ms Ardern paid tribute to Kiwis who have maintained physical distancing and made sacrifices during the clampdown New Zealand imposed a Level 4 lockdown on March 26, when the country still had fewer than 100 cases. The country had already shut its borders on March 19. As a result, the country has seen only 1,105 confirmed cases and 12 deaths in total, with only a handful of new infections recorded in recent days. Ardern said the transmission rate (R) - the average number of people that each sick person infects - was now just 0.48. The average elsewhere is 2.5, she said. 'Nearly every case identified since April 1 is as a result of overseas travel or contact with someone with the virus, often in existing clusters,' the PM said. 'The number of individual cases that dont have an obvious connection in that period stands now at only eight.' The Level 4 restrictions have seen Kiwis stuck in their homes for the past four weeks. They have only been allowed to leave to do food shopping, to seek medical care or for exercise. Supermarkets remained open but all other food stores, such as cafes and restaurants were forced to close. Ms Ardern said they considered ending level four restrictions earlier but wanted to give themselves 'some additional certainty'. 'We considered that the longer we are in lockdown, the less likely it is we will need to go back,' she said. 'The sacrifice made to date has been huge. And Cabinet wanted to make sure we lock in our gains, and give ourselves some additional certainty. 'Ultimately, we have taken a balanced approach, and one that the Director General of Health not only supported, but also recommended.' This diagram shows the daily number of new infections in New Zealand (in yellow), which has fallen to only a handful per day, and the daily rate of increase (in red) Jacinda Ardern has announced New Zealand will loosen its tough lockdown rules next week She said level three allowed more economic activity like construction, manufacturing and forestry, but it does not allow more social activity. 'If we want to make sure that we are a health success story, and ensure our economy can start to operate again without the virus taking off, we need to get the next phase right. 'The worst thing we can do for our country is to yo-yo between levels, with all of the uncertainty that this would bring.' While announcing the decision, Ms Ardern paid tribute to Kiwis who have maintained physical distancing and made sacrifices during the clampdown. 'The effort of our team of five million has broken the chain of transmission,' she said. 'All of you have stopped the uncontrolled explosion of COVID-19 in New Zealand and I couldn't be prouder.' Medical staff test a shopper who volunteered at a pop-up community COVID-19 testing station at a supermarket carpark in Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, April 17 New Zealand began testing for the virus as long ago as January 22, although it did not confirm a positive case until February 26. As early as March 14, all new arrivals into New Zealand were ordered into self-isolation, while cruise ships were banned. New Zealand had only 32 confirmed cases on March 18, when Ardern announced that all non-residents and non-citizens were banned from entering the country. Ardern announced a total Level 4 lockdown from March 26, at which point there were 363 confirmed cases. Current figures show there are 1,105 confirmed cases of which only seven were added to the tally in the last 24 hours. There are another 335 'probable' cases including two new ones. Only 14 people are currently in hospital, down by four since yesterday. A total of 86,305 people have been tested in a country of 5million, the equivalent of one in every 57 people. Britain's rate is one in every 138 people. By Hyonhee Shin SEOUL, April 17 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's absence from an important anniversary event this week rekindled speculation over his potential health problems, analysts said on Friday. North Korea on Wednesday marked the anniversary of the birthday of its national founder and Kim's grandfather, Kim Il Sung, as a national holiday known as the Day of the Sun. Senior officials paid tribute to the embalmed body of Kim Il Sung enshrined in the Kumsusan Palace of Sun, state media KCNA said on Thursday. But did not mention Kim as part of the delegation, unlike the past. He was also absent from photos released by party mouthpiece Rodong Sinmun. His purported absence triggered speculation among experts that Kim, who is aged 36 and overweight, might be having health problems. A spokeswoman at Seoul's Unification Ministry, which handles North Korea affairs, said on Thursday it was aware that state media has not reported on Kim's visit but declined to provide any analysis. Cheong Seong-chang, a senior fellow at South Korea's Sejong Institute, said it was the first time in decades Kim's visit to the palace on that holiday was not reported state media since he took power in late December. "He has been going there on the birthdays of his grandfather and father to flaunt his royalty to them and sacred bloodline," Cheong said. "It is possible that there was a problem with his health or safety even if temporary, though it is difficult to assess how the situation might be." Pyongyang fired multiple short-range missiles on Tuesday which Seoul officials said was part of the celebration. Such military events would usually be observed by Kim, but there was no KCNA report on the test at all. Kim was last publicly seen presiding over a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party's politburo last Saturday. (Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Editing by Angus MacSwan) Reno Omokri, Oby Ezekwesili Reno Omokri, on his Medium channel, has written on how the APC used Oby Ezekwesili, rubbished her then dumped her like a used pad. According to him Oby was used by the APC to attack Jonathans administration but didnt get what she wanted from the party after their election into office. This he said was what prompted her to run for presidency in 2019. Do not be fooled. Oby Ezekwesili, for all her religious pretensions, is a self-righteous hypocrite. I know this because I have incontrovertible proof that lays her hypocrisy bare. Oby is a woman that loves to criticise others, but cannot stand to be criticised. While I was one of President Jonathans spokesmen, I watched her criticise my boss using polite and impolite language. Then one day, I saw her respond to criticism by another person against her, and all hell broke lose. She attacked me like a mother hen whose chickens were under threat and promised to report me to my boss. You can imagine! Reporting me to the very same authority she had been undermining. How rich! Typical Oby. And then I wrote a parable tweet directed at someone who is now serving in Buharis government and called that person a wicked stepmother. The narcissism of Oby then came to fore. She insisted that she was the one I was referring to (she was not!) and then she savaged me again. Throughout the time that Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was President of Nigeria and after his tenure, this woman verbally assaulted him, sometimes using the most savage and impolite terms. I later got informed that her grouse was not really with President Jonathan, but instead with Dr. Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who she felt had left her behind. That is a tale for another day. Oby cannot deny that she was used by the All Progressives Congress to undermine the Jonathan administration and rise to power. She and her co-travellers in her Bring Back Our Girls movement were celebrated by the APC itself as our members. On October 15, 2014, a major chieftain of the APC, who later became Minister of Agriculture under the party had said at the Presidential declaration of General Muhammadu Buhari as follows: We commend the #BringBackOurGirls movement led by members of this party. Moreover, on March 6, 2014, Oby Ezekwesili was the keynote speaker at the first-ever All Progressive Congress Economic Summit, an event at which she did not lose the opportunity to savage the person and administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. At that time, she had some considerable credibility, which she then used to further the campaign and candidacy of then-candidate Muhammadu Buhari. Oby cannot deny that her public and private utterances and behaviour convinced many of her followers to support the APC in 2015. And then the APC won the 2015 Presidential election, after which General Buhari was sworn in on May 29, 2015. A year later, he appointed Hadiza Bala Usman, co-founder of Oby Ezekwesilis Bring Back Our Girls movement as the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority, in keeping with Ogbehs proclamation that the BBOG was led by members of this party. I am a researcher and a keen watcher of the APC and its government, and I can tell you that it was not until it became clear to Oby Ezekwesili that she was not going to get any appointment from the administration of General Muhammadu Buhari, that she turned on him and began to criticise his administration. Oby cannot claim altruism. She wanted a job badly. We know she is over-ambitious. When it was clear she would not get a job, she opted to run for the Presidency in 2019 against her previous benefactor, General Buhari. She refused to step down for a more electable candidate. Her then running mate, Gani Galadima, said that Oby was never serious about her Presidential run and that Dr. Obiageli Oby Ezekwesili only wanted to use the platform of the ACPN to negotiate to be Nigerias finance minister. His words, not mine. Now, I urge Nigerians to situate her criticism of the Jonathan administration against these facts and in retrospect, you begin to see Oby for what she truly is. And this has now been further corroborated by the allegation made against her by Bello El-Rufai, the son of the Kaduna state Governor, who accused her of being a beggar while stating that he has dates and receipts for her beggary. The younger El-Rufais words were as follows Ill attach receipts later and begging days. Even sadder still was the fact that this young man who used to call Oby Ezekwesili as Aunty Oby reverently, simply addressed her as Oby! Look how low she has fallen in the esteem of those who used and dumped her. She celebrated the young man when he disrespectfully called the sitting President of Nigeria Ebele, now she is aghast when he turns on her. Oby should be aware that a slave who laughs when the man fighting for his emancipation is killed and buried in a shallow grave should expect no sympathy when the same or worse is done to him. What has Bello El-Rufai said to Oby that is not as bad as what he said against former President Jonathan, which Oby Ezekwesili herself tolerated and even celebrated? I have tweets made by Oby, where she insulted former President Jonathan. She has now deleted some of those tweets. If Oby felt that those tweets were Godly and justified, why did she delete them? (I still have them). Her deletion is evidence that she knew she was out of line. She does not have the moral authority to call Bello El-Rufai out. I have taken great pains to chart Obys celebration by the All Progressives Congress, and her denigration by the same party, so that my readers will see clearly that Oby is not a victim. She is an enabler. A scorned woman. And anything she says going forward about either former President Jonathan, or the incumbent General Muhammadu Buhari, should be seen in that light. Bellos mum, Hadiza El-Rufai, is indeed right. Oby almost literally sowed the wind. She is now reaping the whirlwind. No one should intervene. Let Oby reap what she has sown. It will teach other Quislings a lesson. A saboteur is deserving of the treatment she gets from those in whose interest she sabotaged the people. According to Transparency International (of which Oby Ezekwesili is one of the co-founders), Nigeria is now much more corrupt as a nation than we ever were in 2015 (think Babachir, think Buhari raising up Gandujes hands, think of the $25 billion worth of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation contract awarded without due process, think of Aisha Buharis ADC). Ask yourself this question: If an organisation, co-founded by Oby, has come out with this fact, why is Oby not savaging Muhammadu Buhari in the same way she attacked former President Jonathan? She may be uttering some token noises, but her tone, volume and angst is nothing compared to how she savaged then President Jonathan. Oby weaponised Chibok against the Jonathan administration. Why did she not do the same with the multiple abductions that have occurred under this administration? I have toured the whole world for the #FreeLeahSharibu campaign, and people have wondered about the lack of interest by Oby in this unfortunate incident. According to the World Poverty Clock and the World Economic Forum, Nigeria is now the world headquarters for extreme poverty. You can imagine if this occurred under Jonathan. Oby would have screamed out her favourite catchphrase: O-K-O-K-O-B-I-O-K-O! Instead, she is subdued. Oby reminds me of what Ezeulu said about Nnabenyi in Chinua Achebes seminal novel, Arrow of God. Ezeulu described people like Nnabenyi as rats gnawing away at the sole of a sleepers foot, biting and then blowing air on the wound to soothe it, and lull the victim back to sleep. Oby gnawed away at then President Jonathan, and when her false criticism has done the damage she expected, she began to use her words to whitewash the Buhari administration, and its kitchen cabinet members, like Malam Nasir El-Rufai, until it became clear to her that they were not willing to trust a snake like her, who used its venom on an innocent man. Meanwhile, the Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that she was so jealous of continues to soar and soar, while the likes of Oby have been exposed as beggars, of whom their receipts have been kept for such a time as this. Can you just imagine! Former Special Adviser to the President. Former Minister of Solid Minerals. Former Minister of Education. Former World Bank Vice President. Former co-founder of #BringBackOurGirls, reduced to beggar with receipt by those for whom she savaged former President Jonathan and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala! By a boy young enough to be her last born. I just hope others will learn from Oby and not allow excessive ambition to be their undoing. Look at how she has been reduced. If I had said that about Oby, she would have taken me to town. But she is unusually silent over the beggar accusation. I wonder why? Finally, let me add that 5 days ago, Oby Ezekwesili gave a Twitter live video in which she claimed that she was offered a ministerial appointment by former President Jonathan, but she turned it down. I spoke to former President Jonathan and asked him about this and this is his response That is not true! Who spoke with her? Definitely not me. Oby Ezekwesili is, not surprisingly, a liar! Renos Nuggets Everything shines when it is its time, whether the sun, the moon, the stars or a comet. Take yourself for example. You dont put on your house lights in the day time, because it is not the right time. You too will shine. Your time is coming soon! Therefore, go where life takes you, but dont break when life shakes you. Dead leaves fall when the wind blows the tree. You are not a DEAD leaf. You are a DEAR leaf. You add life to the tree. You have value. You are an asset, not a liability. Be encouraged! National Public Radio, the purveyor of Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Planet Money, is cutting executives pay to combat the effects of the economic collapse brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The radio and podcasting giant does not run traditional advertisements, but nearly one-third of its revenue has come from corporate sponsors like Angies List, General Motors, State Farm and Trader Joes. In an email to the staff on Friday, John Lansing, who joined the nonprofit as chief executive in September, projected that NPR would fall $12 million to $15 million short of the amount it had expected to receive from sponsors this year. He described the pay cuts as a way for NPR to avoid layoffs. We do not have any position eliminations on the table now, Mr. Lansing said in the email, which was reviewed by The New York Times, and it is our goal to avoid them as much as is reasonably possible. [April 20, 2020] OwnBackup Ranks No. 25 on the 2020 FT The Americas' Fastest Growing Companies; Provides Support to Healthcare Organizations in Time of Need ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Financial Times (FT) recently announced that OwnBackup is No. 25 on its first annual FT The Americas Fastest Growing Companies , a ranking and special report of the fastest growing companies in North, Central and South America. The list represents innovative and fast-growing companies who are the driving force of the international economy, generating jobs, and sustaining market competitiveness. The recognition comes just days after OwnBackup launched the OwnBackup Gratitude program , created to provide complimentary data backup and recovery services to healthcare organizations during the global health crisis. Inspired by Salesforces commitment to provide free Health Cloud access for emergency response teams, care management teams, and health systems, OwnBackup Gratitude enables new and existing Salesforce Health Cloud users to quickly safeguard and restore any patient health information that may have been deleted or compromised. Were honored to be recognized by the Financial Times as one of the fastest growing companies in the Americas. Thanks to OwnBackups dedicated customers, motivated employees, and innovative products, what began as a data recovery start up just a few years ago has grown into a global leader in SaaS business continuity and data protection solutions, says OwnBacup CEO Sam Gutmann. More importantly, our success has put us in a position to help organizations in need during difficult times, specifically those in the healthcare industry who are faced with a massive influx of new, highly sensitive patient information. As the importance of business continuity and data protection continues to grow, so has OwnBackup. Recently named the second fastest growing tech company in New Jersey as part of Incs fastest-growing private companies list, OwnBackup is currently hiring for roles in sales, marketing, customer support, product, technical support, and administration. For more information about career opportunities with OwnBackup, please visit https://www.ownbackup.com/careers . About OwnBackup OwnBackup, the leading cloud-to-cloud backup and restore vendor, provides secure, automated, daily backups of SaaS and PaaS data, as well as sophisticated data compare and restore tools for disaster recovery. Helping more than 2,000 businesses worldwide protect critical cloud data, OwnBackup covers data loss and corruption caused by human errors, malicious intent, integration errors and rogue applications. Built for security and privacy, OwnBackup exceeds the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements for backed-up data. Co-founded by seasoned data-recovery, data-protection and information-security experts, OwnBackup is a top-ranked backup and restore ISV on Salesforce AppExchange and was awarded the Salesforce Appy Award in 2018. Headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., with R&D, support and other functions in Tel Aviv and London, OwnBackup is the vendor of choice for some of the worlds largest users of SaaS applications. For more information, visit ownbackup.com . FT The Americas Methodology In order to be included in the ranking, companies must have a revenue of at least $100,000 generated in 2015, revenue of at least $1.5m generated in 2018, be independent (no subsidiary or branch office of any kind), and be headquartered in one of 20 countries in the Americas listed here. The rating is the result of a joint project by the Financial Times and Statista. The results were achieved by conducting months of research, public calls, intensive database research and directly contacting tens of thousands of companies. Media Contact Julia Salem OwnBackup (646) 503-5100 [email protected] A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/328f95a2-c094-4140-af10-444ebc955bc1 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] 20.04.2020 LISTEN Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), according to Health Safety Executive (HSE), UK can simply be defined as any equipment that will protect the user from health and safety risks at work. PPE is the last in the hierarchy of controls when it comes to health and safety. First is Elimination, Substitution, Engineering Controls, Administrative Controls, and lastly PPE. Thus, efforts must be made to follow the afore-mentioned steps before resorting to PPE. The simple reason being that, the hierarchy of controls starts with the most effective control to the least effective control. If we look at the guidelines issued by the World Health Organization (WHO), The Centre for Disease Control, and the Health and Safety Executive on COVID 19, it follows the hierarchy of controls listed below. ELIMINATION: Stay at home or working from home/remotely. SUBSTITUTION / REDUCTION: Social or Physical Distancing (2m rule) and use of hand sanitizers. Rotation of breaks when at work, plan works to Incorporate distancing etc. ENGINEERING CONTROLS: Use of Veronica Buckets or similar handwashing equipment and frequent washing of hands. ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS: Following government/employers guidelines & procedures Ghana Health Service new guidelines; RPE Use of face masks / Respirators. Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) are a category of Personal Protective Equipment designed to protect the individual / user from contamination through inhalation of hazardous substances whilst performing various activities. RPEs should only be used where other adequate control measures cannot protect the individual. In addition, they must be used with the other hierarchy of control measures. There are different types of RPEs for different purposes. For this article we will focus on the COVID 19 and Respirators: Air purifying Unpowered Disposable filtering respirators and face masks. The COVID 19 pandemic has suddenly seen an upsurge in the demand for us to have some form of RPE protection as we go about our daily activities. Respiratory viruses spread from person to person in close proximity to each other. The face mask essentially a mask worn covering the nose and mouth of the user making it impossible for droplets including respiratory particles to contaminate the immediate environment when the user coughs or sneezes or exhales. Depending on the particular type of mask being used, it may not adequately filter out very small particles from the air we inhale. Secondly, they may not provide a tight seal around the nose and mouth of the user. However, with the COVID 19 pandemic, the face mask when used in combination with the other hierarchy of controls such as frequent and effective handwashing with soap, frequent use of alcohol based sanitizers, social and physical distancing, staying at home unless it is necessary to go out during the lock down, and keeping our hands away from touching our face that is, mouth, ears, and nose, will serve as an effective tool in minimizing the spread of COVID 19. In fact, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the United States has recommended the use of the basic face masks as a means of a barrier of protection during these times of COVID 19 and beyond. Unpowered Face Filtering respirator is a type of RPE, that protects the user from breathing in substances likely to cause harm to the user from hazardous chemicals and infectious particles such aqueous fog, respirable dust and smoke. They must be CE Marked or comply with OSHA 1910.134, to make sure they conform to set international standards. In the case of an employer, selecting the right and appropriate respirator will involve a risk assessment to clearly identify what constitutes the respiratory hazard to be eliminated. This must be undertaken by a competent health and safety professional. However, suppliers and manufacturers must offer support and advise to members of the public on the appropriate type, its use and maintenance. Furthermore, international best practice and statutory regulations mandate that, any user of an RPE must undergo an annual face fit test to determine the exact fit of a face filtering piece or respirator the user may require and need. This can be achieved through a Qualitative or Quantitative method depending on the type of mask. Furthermore, users must not have any facial hair or trimmed facial hair to be able to get a sealed fit around the nose and mouth for the respirator. There are various types of these non-powered respirators being used in Ghana in wake of the COVID 19 Pandemic, some being used inappropriately. There are three classes of non-powered face filtering piece / respirators meant to protect us against smoke, dust and aerosols but do not offer any barrier against vapours or gases. These face filtering pieces are designed to cover and provide a tight seal over the nose and mouth thereby preventing us inadvertently from inhaling contaminated respirable dust, smoke and aerosols. There essentially are made of fabric and designed to purify the air we inhale or the impurities listed above among others. FFP1: FFP 1 Respirators are designed to offer the user protection from impurities of concentration levels up to 4 times the Occupational Exposure Limit. They will normally filter about 75 -80% of particles with a leakage of about 25% of particles. FFP 2: FFP 2 Respirators are designed to offer the user protection from impurities of concentration levels up to 12 times the Occupational Exposure Limit. These will filter about 95% of the particles and maximum leakage of 10 % of particles. FFP 3: FFP 3 Respirators are designed to offer the user protection from impurities of concentration levels up to 50 times the Occupational Exposure Limit. This offers protection against both liquid and solid aerosols. They filter close to 99% of particles and maximum leakage will not exceed 5% of particles. They also filter toxic, carcinogenic and radioactive particles. FFP 2 and FFP 3 respirators are usually referred to as N95 respirators in the United States of America. These respirators come in various types, such as folded, molded, valved and non-valved with their peculiar characteristics and functions which must be considered when deciding which face filtering piece / respirator is to be used based on the earlier risk assessment, which must be undertaken. For instance, it is not all persons who can use non-valved respirator as barrier of protection. People who have certain conditions such as, asthma may not be able to breathe easily through a non-valved respirator, thus they may require a valved respirator, as indicated earlier based on risk assessment undertaken. Furthermore, also health care professionals who in addition to respirator have face protection equipment such as face shields may find valved respirators suitable for certain work processes and non-valved respirators for other work processes depending on risk assessment undertaken for the particular work process or activity. Health Care Professionals (HCP) who use medicated glasses may have to consider this fact when choosing a suitable respirator. It is pertinent to note that, Section 9 (a) and (c) of the Labour Act 2003 (Act 651) and the International Labour Organization standards for the protection of workers, mandates employers to provide all employees with requisite PPE based on risk assessment of work processes. In addition, the employee, must have had the, requisite training in the use of that PPE / RPE as required by law, when and why he must use the PPE / RPE, what type of PPE / RPE must be used for each process, how to properly use the PPE / RPE, knowledge of the limitations of that PPE / RPE, and requisite training in the care and maintenance of that PPE / RPE. From the foregoing, it is evident that, what pertains here in Ghana and to some extent globally, is not in conformity to statute and international best practice, healthcare professionals do not have access to the appropriate RPE whereas, ordinary people have access to the RPEs needed most in the health care sector which are in short supply globally. We have also seen the improper use of RPEs by the public with RPE not strapped as directed around the head and nose thereby defeating the purpose of the RPE which is to provide a total and leak proof seal around the nose and mouth. Removal of RPE whilst conducting interviews or whilst in use due to the challenges with breathing easily as indicated earlier ,thereby contaminating the RPE and rendering its function void, and most importantly how to properly care and maintain these RPEs in this time of global short supply. We have seen the Centre for Disease Control in the United States of America recently issue guidelines on face masks and other respirators concerning their use and maintenance in these not so ordinary times around the world. Furthermore, we have to contend with wearing face masks in certain public places like hospitals, pharmacy shops, shopping malls among others for the foreseeable future. Credit: www.hse.gov.uk www.cdc.gov www.ilo.org Labour Act 2003 (Act 651). Public Health Act 2012 (Act 851). Writers: Mawusi Kpakpah, Jacob Aggrey-Odoom, Max Maddy, - Health & Safety Advocates (Taymac), Ekua Eguakun Legal Practioner. London: Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have severed ties with some of Britain's biggest tabloids, vowing in a letter that they will never work with them again. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who gave up their jobs as working royals at the end of last month, sent a letter to The Sun, Daily Mail, Daily Express and Daily Mirror sent out on Sunday night, London time, detailing their new "zero engagement" policy, according to extracts published in the Financial Times, the Guardian and ITV News. The letter outlines the new media relations policy for the couple now that they no longer receive any publicly funded support - there will be no corroboration and zero engagement with the UKs biggest tabloids. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have vowed to never work with the British tabloids again. Credit:Getty Images "This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting," the couple's representatives were quoted as saying. Additional 100M business support released as Economic Resilience Fund sees unprecedented rate of applications This article is old - Published: Monday, Apr 20th, 2020 The latest phase of the Welsh Governments Economic Resilience Fund has benefited from the release of a further 100million from ministers within 72 hours of launch, with the Government saying is is due to a massive demand. More than 6,000 grant applications from small and medium sized businesses and social enterprises were received within 24 hours of the launch on Friday an unprecedented response, revealing the scale of the challenges facing Welsh businesses. The Fund aims to complement and fill the gaps left by UK Government schemes such as the Job Retention Scheme, with grants of up to 10,000 for micro-enterprises and up to 100,000 for SMEs and a light touch appraisal system designed to get money to businesses with the minimum of delay as well as a new loan fund administered by the Development Bank of Wales. Less than three weeks since the First Minister announced the intention to create the Fund, the Welsh Government has released a further 100 million, taking the grant fund to 300 million. This will supplement this latest phase of support, providing non-repayable grants to microbusinesses, SMEs and those large businesses of critical, social or economic importance to Wales. The Fund has been warmly received by trade union and business organisations, with the Institute of Directors calling it very welcome news for business owners and managers who are desperate for all the help they can get at this difficult time. The South and Mid Wales Chambers of Commerce has called the rapid response to date of the Welsh Government in supporting the economy of Wales impressive. The Wales TUC welcomed additional funding to address the gaps. Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales Ken Skates said: We knew that even with the help offered by initiative such as the Job Retention Scheme, there was a massive need for quick access to grant funding if Welsh businesses were to survive this unprecedented economic shock. Whilst in order to make the scheme quick and simple we needed to take tough decisions over eligibility like requiring businesses to be registered for VAT as a way of having to check on their trading history it is clear from the level of response received that the Economic Resilience Fund is plugging a gap in UK Government support and providing much needed financial reassurance to many businesses at this challenging time. We will continue to review support and consider how we can develop it over the coming days. The rate of applications has been massive and unprecedented. This is the second time in a matter of weeks that access to Welsh Government funds aimed at easing cash flow pressures for Welsh business have quickly reached capacity, and we have responded with pace to release a further 100m into this phase of the fund. In these difficult and demanding economic times we have worked hard to free up resources to create such a large Fund despite the huge demands on our budget, and to strike a balance between supporting as many enterprises as possible and making a meaningful contribution to each ones survival, as well as asking each recipient to sign up to the principles of the economic contract. Though we applaud much of what the UK Government has done, there is an urgent need to see more of the promised lending guaranteed by the UK Government getting to the front line. The UK Government must continue to support and press the high street banks to be much more responsive to the needs of our businesses at this difficult time. Finance Minister Rebecca Evans said: The Economic Resilience Fund is part of more than 2bn of support that we have made available to help businesses and charities during these incredibly difficult times. We know that support for business is crucially important but whilst we are doing everything we can in Wales to plug any gaps and provide the best possible financial support to businesses, it is clear there are further steps that the UK Government needs to urgently take. The Economic Resilience offers financial support to help businesses, charities and social enterprises deal with the coronavirus crisis and will be vital in helping organisations manage cash flow pressures. It is a unique additional funding stream for Wales and was designed to address gaps not currently met by schemes already announced by the UK Government, Welsh Government and Development Bank of Wales. The first stage of the Fund saw the 100 million Development Bank of Wales loan scheme fully subscribed in little more than a week. Applications are currently being processed and some businesses have already received funding. It is anticipated that the Development Bank will have processed all applications received within the month. To ensure that money reaches businesses as quickly as possible more than 120 additional Welsh Government and Business Wales staff have been diverted onto processing applications and supporting businesses and organisations in this latest stage of the Fund. You can find out more and check eligibility here. Amid the congestion of vehicles carrying agricultural exports at border gates in the northern province of Lang Son, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said that the three ministries have actively worked with Chinese authorities to discuss measures to address the problem. He noted that more routes will be opened at border gates to increase the inspection and clearance of goods and the Tan Thanh border gate is likely to increase its clearance time by two hours per day. In addition, the two sides will make efforts to enhance loading and unloading capacities in order to increase vehicle flow. Cuong also asked provinces in South Vietnam to temporarily avoid transporting agricultural products to the Lang Son border gates to avoid congestion and losses. More than 2,000 trucks carrying agricultural products with nearly 6,000 drivers and workers are waiting at the border gates in Lang Son province, a backlog which will take approximately 15 days to address. The Chinese side has suggested that Vietnam should not concentrate vehicles on a single border gate and take advantage of the large capacity and low cost railway connecting Vietnams Dong Dang station with Chinas Bang Tuong (Pingxiang) station. Lang Son province also proposed that the Ministry of Industry and Trade resume customs activities at the remaining sub-border gates on the Lang Son-Guangxi border line on the basis of strict compliance with all regulations regarding Coronavirus prevention. Copyright 2020 Albuquerque Journal Theres an old adage that familiarity breeds contempt. Thats what many people describe when talking about the self-isolation imposed to stay safe from the COVID-19 coronavirus. Theyre sheltering in place and getting on each others nerves because theyre not used to being together so much, said Cathy Schueler, executive director of Bosque Mental Health. Those who can work from home seem to be having an easier time of it than those who lost their jobs and are now feeling the financial pinch. So theyre getting unemployment compensation, but its anxiety-producing and the longer this goes on, the more anxious people get, she said. On the other hand, despite the self-isolation and social distancing, some are finding it a binding time to be with their families, said Schueler, a licensed clinical social worker. Fear of the virus is foremost on the minds of some patients receiving therapy from Samuel Roll, a psychologist and University of New Mexico professor emeritus of psychology. When they come for therapy they dont have time to work on their own issues because theyre consumed by this overwhelming threat, he said. For these patients, its difficult to get down to the therapy because they need time to discharge their anxiety and talk about the coronavirus. Some of his patients see the pandemic as a vindictive act of God to punish human beings; others see it as Mother Earth punishing the human race for not taking care of her, Roll said. Whatever condition or dysfunction many of his patients sought therapy for in the first place, the COVID-19 crisis magnifies and confirms it in their own minds. So what advice are people receiving in therapy to deal with the virus crisis? A lot of what we do is try to normalize this situation for people, letting them know you are not alone, we are all in this together, Schueler said. Theres a little bit of comfort in that as there is in reminding them that this wont last forever, so just hang in there. One of the strategies used with clients is mindfulness, being aware of your immediate environment, and knowing that all of this (self-isolation, social distancing and other safety measures) is happening for a reason. Another strategy is to slow down, take slow, deep breaths and move yourself away from whatever it is thats going on mentally, emotionally, and physically as much as you can. Roll also said he reminds patients that they are not alone in dealing with the crisis. He recommends that people get some exercise and stay physically engaged. For people who have children in the home, his advice is provide structure, which reduces anxiety. Usually our time is arranged by work or school, so structure something for your children, he said. It doesnt have to be school-related. It can be as simple as how many minutes everybody devotes to cleaning the house before you all sit down to watch television. Another issue is how mental health therapy is delivered, given the COVID-19 restrictions about social distancing. Neal Bowen, director of the Behavioral Health Services Division of the New Mexico Human Services Department, said mental health services are essential services and that therapists whether they are psychologists, social workers or professional counselors can individually determine how to provide those services. If they are seeing clients in person, they must abide by the social distancing guidelines announced by the governor, he said. The recommendation, however, is that they go to remote alternatives, such as telephone or audio-video conferencing, where possible. We also allow group remote therapy, and were hearing back that its very useful because people who are isolated in their homes get support from the other group members as well as the therapists, Bowen said. Schueler said Bosque Mental Health shut its doors to the public on March 11 and the 15 therapists working there are mostly using audio-video conferencing. We have telehealth embedded in our business software so that all of our therapists are able to do that from their homes. Initially, she said, there was some resistance from clients who said theyd rather wait until they could do face-to-face, in-person sessions again. Eventually, these people opted to try it and we hand-walked them, so to speak, through the process before their session was to begin to make sure they knew how to set it up. Telehealth has been very successful and clients are finding they often prefer it because they dont have to leave home and dont have to find a baby sitter, and they still get that one-on-one face-time, Schueler said. Roll provides some therapy over the telephone, but most of his patients are getting in-person service. Of seven people providing therapy in his office, he is the only one who sees patients in the office daily. Most patients prefer it, but for some it is essential because they had a lot of early depravation, he said. They have such a tenuous hold on the patient-therapist relationship, or any relationship, that they need the visual in-person contact for it to be nutritious. Roll does take precautions. Only one patient is allowed in at a time. He meets the patient at the door, which is immediately locked, and rather than sit in a waiting area, the patient goes straight to the room for the therapy session. Roll sits at least six feet apart from his patients, some of whom wear a face mask if they have concerns or anxiety that they may have been exposed to the virus. Finally, the office is sanitized daily. US crude on Monday fell more than eight percent to below $17 a barrel, hitting fresh multi-year lows despite a major deal to cut output as the coronavirus pandemic throttles demand. West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark, was down 8.16 percent to $16.78 a barrel in early Asian trade. International benchmark Brent was 0.14 percent lower at $28.04 a barrel. Oil markets have plunged to near two-decade lows in recent weeks as lockdowns and travel restrictions around the globe batter demand for the commodity. The crisis was compounded after Saudi Arabia, kingpin of exporting group OPEC, launched a price war with non-OPEC member Russia. They drew a line under their dispute earlier this month when they and other countries agreed to cut output by almost 10 million barrels a day to boost virus-hit markets. But prices have continued to fall heavily, with analysts saying the cuts will not be enough to make up for massive falls in demand caused by the pandemic. "Crude oil prices remained under pressure, as projections of weaker demand weigh on sentiment," ANZ Bank said in a note. "Despite the OPEC+ alliance agreeing to an unprecedented cut in output, the physical market is awash with oil," it said referring to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and non-OPEC partners. "Concern continues to mount that storage facilities in the US will run out of capacity," the bank added. The US Energy Information Administration said crude inventories in the world's biggest economy rose by 19.25 million barrels last week, adding to the woes of the oversupplied world market, where demand has been hammered by the coronavirus pandemic. It has been a tense time for the family as James Jordan's father battles COVID-19. Yet Ola Jordan, 42, and her husband, 37, were able to make the most of things on Monday as they headed out on a relaxing family stroll on Monday. Taking advantage of the sunny weather, the couple used their daily exercise allowance to take newborn daughter Ella around the neighbourhood. Sweet: Ola Jordan, 42, and her husband James, 37, were able to make the most of things on Monday as they headed out on a relaxing family stroll on Monday Ola shared a snap of herself gearing up to take their little one out, as she revealed she had been following government guidelines and staying home as much as possible. The former Strictly professional looked radiant in the snap, keeping her outfit casual in black jogging bottoms and an oversized denim jacket. She penned: 'Havent been out much at all in the last 7 weeks. So nice to take Ella out for a walk today'. 'Munchkin': James Jordan proved he was loving fatherhood as he shared a sweet Instagram snap of himself cradling his baby daughter Ella on Sunday Earlier in the day, the couple shared pictures enjoying family time in lockdown. James was clearly relishing his new father role as he was snapped winding his 'munchkin' Ella with a muslin cloth seen over his shoulder. The star donned a pale blue shirt for the snap, while little Ella looked adorable in her pink baby grow. The sweet post garnered several comments from fans complementing the picture, with several noting Ella looks just like mum Ola. How sweet: Meanwhile, Ola shared her own snap of baby Ella with the cute image seeing the tot give 'morning smiles' for her mummy Ola also shared a series of snaps, with a cute image seeing the tot give 'morning smiles' for her mummy. The couple also gave an insight into new parenthood as they shared a picture of Ella's 'first explosion' of poo. James and wife Ola announced the happy news of Ella's arrival on Instagram. The new mother shared a sweet snap holding her little one's hand, and gushed in the caption: 'She's here and she is perfect.' James also took to Instagram to share a snap of their baby girl, as he held onto her feet and said: 'I'm the happiest man in the world.' Uh oh! The couple also gave an insight into new parenthood as they shared a picture of Ella's 'first explosion' of poo The couple, who have been together for 20 years, announced they were expecting their first child in September 2019 after a painful three-year battle with infertility. Just days ago Ola Jordan proved things are going swimmingly as an extended family as she shared a touching snap of her husband and their daughter to mark his 42nd birthday. She added a caption on the sweet snap reading: 'Life is so precious and should be treasured. I treasure every moment with you. Happy Birthday baby. Thank you for all that you do for us. Baby Ella adores you so much'. Ola was clearly beaming with pride as she shared the snap with her 284,000 Instagram followers to help celebrate James' big day. That's my girl: Just days ago Ola Jordan proved things are going swimmingly as an extended family as she shared a touching snap of her husband and their daughter to mark his 42nd birthday The touching post comes after James revealed his father had contracted coronavirus whilst in hospital recovering from a second stroke. The Dancing On Ice winner's dad Alan was admitted to hospital last month after suffering a stroke, mere weeks after James welcomed his first child with wife Ola. Whilst Alan was able to leave hospital for a brief period, he was readmitted this month with an infection in his arm, and has now tested positive for COVID-19. Taking to Twitter on Thursday, James penned: 'Just when you think things couldnt get any worse! After being in hospital for nearly 2 weeks after his stroke my dad has now tested positive to coronavirus. Sad news: The touching post comes after James revealed his father had contracted coronavirus whilst in hospital recovering from a second stroke Regular visits: The former Strictly star's dad Alan was admitted to hospital last month after suffering a stroke, mere weeks after James welcomed his first child with wife Ola Jordan 'He is also fighting an infection he recently got in his arm (Cellulitis) God, please give my dad a break #StayAtHome.' He added: 'My dad has always been my hero. When I spoke to him he was more worried about my mum, sister & family. He kept saying Dont worry about me, Ive got this. 'The sad thing is today he was supposed to be transferred to another hospital where he would have a TV. He was so excited'. Awful: Whilst Alan was able to leave hospital for a brief period, he was readmitted this month with an infection in his arm, and has now tested positive for COVID-19 Last month, James confessed he was struggling to cope during what had been the 'most stressful time of my life'. He tweeted: 'Trying to juggle a new born with wife who is still recovering, my dad in hospital and the coronavirus. 'I would like to think I'm a strong person but I'm going to admit it's the most stressful time of my life. I'm still thinking of all of you! We must all stay safe AND #BeKind'. Highs and lows: Last month, James was struggling to cope during the 'most stressful time of my life' as he discussed welcoming his first child and his father's hospitalisation Residents living in cities near the US-Mexico border face daily challenges such as drugs, gang wars, and violence due to the presence of various cartels in the area. In Juarez, the Sinaloa Cartel, famously led by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman before his capture, and the Juarez Cartel often engage in bloody fights over territory, putting the lives of the ordinary people in danger. Many decide to flee to the United States in hopes of peaceful days and better opportunities. While others get the chance to rebuild their lives, some are subjected to extreme conditions. Chemical Assault In March 2020, a 41-year-old asylum seeker named Elizabeth approached U.S. border agents after she was kidnapped by unknown men in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez. The perpetrators reportedly tortured her for 12 days, burning her legs with acid and sexually assaulting her in front of her 10-year-old daughter. Doctors in Ciudad Juarez were unable to give her the proper medical care she needed, putting her at high risk of developing infections and scarring, both of which could affect her ability to walk. Elizabeth originally lived in Guatemala. She was in an abusive relationship and would often receive beatings from her partner. The local police allegedly refused to help her despite filing a complaint. She left with her daughter in fear that, one day, her partner would kill her. She and her daughter arrived in Ciudad Juarez in late July. The pair got into a car they mistook for an Uber after getting off a bus. The driver took them out of the streets and into a desert. The pair were kept inside a dirty home that "smelled of death" for 12 days. Elizabeth was repeatedly subjected to sexual assault in front of her daughter. According to court documents, the men never raped her. Still, they had used their fingers and various objects to penetrate her. The men threatened to rape her and her daughter if they did not provide them with a number to call for ransom. After days of not receiving the ransom money, the men poured a chemical solution on her legs, which resulted in second-degree burns. The pair escaped when the perpetrators accidentally left the door open. She woke up in the hospital with her left ankle still bleeding and the bone exposed. Nicolas Palazzo, an attorney in El Paso, Texas, said Elizabeth's case happens to hundred of individuals waiting at the border. While not all victims suffer being chemically burned, most still face equally horrific acts of violence. Search for A Better Life Human Rights First, a nonprofit organization, published a report on January detailing harrowing stories of crime in the cities along the border, including a seven-year-old girl who was a victim of sexual assault, and a Cuban migrant who was abducted while buying food in town. More than 57,000 asylum seekers live in notoriously dangerous border towns while awaiting court proceedings on their asylum claims. Human Rights First reports 816 incidents of violence on asylum seekers. With a recent decrease in drug sales, cartels are turning to kidnap for ransom, with some families reportedly asked to give up to $20,000 for the release of their loved one-some whose relatives are unable to pay the full amount never see freedom again. A U.S. media site recently interviewed a cartel member allegedly responsible for watching over several kidnap victims. Watch the video below: Check out the latest news: Roberts said landowners had exaggerated what cooperation with the EPA would entail, and that it did not mean, as their lawyer had argued, that they would need permission from EPA in Washington if they want to dig out part of their backyard to put in a sandbox for their grandchildren. The versatile actress Kaniha, who is best known for her roles in the Malayalam movie, Bhagyadevatha, and Kerala Varma Pazhassi is gaining all attention these days. Be it for her fitness regime or DIY videos on Instagram, the actress never fails to impress the netizens. Well now, the actress has come up with a big revelation from her film career spanning 18 years. Not many know that the actress also dubs for the leading ladies of the film industry and has dubbed in big movies like Sivaji, Sachein, and Anniyan. She took to her social media account a collage video of Genelia, Shriya, and Sadaa who she had dubbed for and wrote, "How many of y'all know that it's my voice and that I dubbed for the 3 movies: Sivaji,sachin and Anniyan for these Gorgeous women @geneliad@shriya_saran1109 @sadaa17...Dubing is an art.To give life to the characters through voice ain't easy at all. I never say no to new opportunities. unless and until we try how would we know if it's our calling? Never shy away from oppurtunities. Never fear to try. But remember to give your 100% in whatever that you do."(sic) Kaniha, who kicked off her journey in 2002 with Tamil movie Five Star gradually ventured into Malayalam cinema. The Madurai beauty didn't take much time to garner the attention of the Malayalee audience with her acting. Talking about her work, she was last seen in Mamangam. Kaniha is making a comeback in Kollywood after a long break with Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir with Vijay Sethupathi in the lead. Ajith-Vijay Fan War Turns Ugly Again: Kasthuri Shankar Says Curses Won't Do Any Harm To The Actors But like the virus, which spread from China to the rest of the world, so too will the economic disruptions, which are likely to intensify in months to come. For companies and consumers who have come to rely on being able to ship goods rapidly and seamlessly around the world, the disruptions could come as a shock. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 13:52:37|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- For those who often feel anxious and stressed during long sea voyages, probiotics may provide a solution. Chinese researchers have found that probiotics can ease sailors' pressure and anxiety by improving their intestinal health, according to a recent research article published in the journal Gut Microbes. Sailors' immunity can decline when they remain in an environment marked by high salinity and strong ultraviolet radiation, said professor Zhang Heping from the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University. Thus their physiological and psychological health will likely be threatened. The microbial community of the human gut is the foundation for a normal immune system. The researchers from the university studied the effects of probiotics on the regulation of sailors' intestinal flora and disclosed the possible mechanism of making them more adaptive to the offshore environment. Compared with the placebo control group, the probiotic group showed a balanced intestinal microbiome, according to the research article. The research is expected to provide a feasible approach for protecting gut health during long sea voyages. Enditem The Public Relations Officer of Ghana Prisons Service in the Central Region, DSP Ziniel, has called on the public to support the prisons with gloves, sanitizers, soap among others as we battle against COVID-19. He said, although the prison services are doing its best to provide some basic items for the inmates to use to protect themselves from the menace, congestion in the prisons and daily activities of wardens make the current provisions inadequate. Speaking on Hard Truth on Ahomka FM and Ocean 1TV, DSP Ziniel emphasized that the current situations in our prisons amid the COVID-19 pandemic poses a great danger to the inmates, prison officers and their families and as such the urgent need for basic protective equipment cannot be overemphasized. DSP Ziniel further indicated that education on Covid-19 has been enhanced in the various prisons amid other restrictive measures designed to limit visitation by families and friends of inmates. Although practicing social distances seems to be a major challenge in our prisons, DSP Zineil said the recent amnesty given by the President; His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo has released some pressure from the prisons. He encouraged churches, philanthropists, and individuals to continue to extend their support to the prisons. Addressing issues related to unauthorized sanitizers and other products on the markets, a senior regulatory officer at the Food and drugs authority in the Central Regional, Mr. J.C Okyere admonished persons who might have produced local sanitizers in their homes and wish to donate to other institutions, agencies or organizations to first and foremost bring samples for approval from the Food and Drugs Authority. He said, once the product is going to be used by others, there is a need for regulators to ensure the safety and quality of the product before its use. Pennsylvania officials release daily updates on the number of confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths related to COVID-19 in the state. The data is the focus of media reports, including here on PennLive, but it often leads to a different question: Wheres the good news? Researchers at John Hopkins University have a massive coronavirus dashboard with tons of information, including recovery figures for the U.S. and worldwide. Its not exactly clear how they come up with those numbers, however, though we can assume that hospital discharge figures are a major chunk of the tally. As for why Pa. and other states do not provide that information, the answer is a simple one: They just dont have it. We are not able to track the recovery of the 30,000 patients or more with COVID-19 in Pennsylvania, Health Department Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said Saturday. "No state is able to do that, and so we will want to track the recovery from patients in the hospital, and were working with an organization called PAC4 to get that data, the hospital discharge data, but were not going to be able to track recovery of, again, over 30,000 patients." Will that change in the future? Levine said again Sunday that they hope to soon be able to release hospital discharge information, but dont expect to be able to gather full recovery information. When these antibody tests are available the serology tests are readily available, then it will be useful to see who has antibodies to COVID-19, but theres still a lot to learn about these antibody tests, and the significance of having antibodies, how powerful those antibodies are against the virus, and how long they last, Levine said. As of 12:01 a.m. Sunday, Pa. has 32,284 confirmed cases that have resulted in 1,112 deaths. There have been 126,570 patients who have tested negative to date. More coronavirus coverage: Arunachal Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Monday inaugurated a revamped "strategic bridge" over Subansiri river in Upper Subansiri district, which will help supply of essential items to people of remote villages and army personnel deployed along the India-China border, amid the ongoing lockdown. The reconstruction of the bridge was completed by the Border Roads Organisation in good time despite several challenges faced by it during the lockdown imposed to contain the coronavirus outbreak, an official from the Chief Minister's Office said. "Now this strategic 430-feet-bridge has been completed. Hassle-free communication has been restored to Daporijo, the district headquarters, and around 451 villages as well as all the forward locations along the line of actual control where our security forces are deployed," Khandu said in a video conference after inaugurating it. The bridge has been named after martyr Hangpan Dada, who laid down his life fighting terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir and was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra. The structure was in a dilapidated condition and movement of vehicles over the bridge was restricted as it could collapse any time. The state government had taken up the issue of its reconstruction with the Centre. The work was subsequently entrusted to the BRO under the Project Arunank, the official said, adding that the implementing agency had commenced construction activities on March 17. The bridge also connects the Siang belt with Upper Subansiri district. BRO sources said construction of the bridge was taken amid COVID-19 scare to ensure that essential supply including ration, medical stuff and other basic necessities reach the villages and army men along the international border. The loading capacity of the bridge has also been strengthened, they added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Days after being flagged as unsafe, Zoom said that it's in talks with the Indian government on the concerns related to security. The video conferencing software, which picked up demand globally amid coronavirus lockdown, also said that it's working on adding actual end-to-end encryption to further secure video calls, news agency PTI reported citing Zoom Video Communications, India Head, Sameer Raje. "Zoom is in communications with the Ministry of Home Affairs and is focused on providing the information they need to make informed decisions about their policies," Sameer Raje said. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in its recent advisory via Cyber Coordination Centre (CyCord) had red-flagged the video conferencing facility as unsafe, days after India's Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) had raised concerns over potential cyber attacks through Zoom. "Many organisations have allowed their staff to work from home to stop the spread of coronavirus disease. Online communication platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Teams for Education, Slack, Cisco WebEx etc are being used for remote meetings and webinars," the MHA advisory said. "Insecure usage of the platform may allow cyber criminals to access sensitive information such as meeting details and conversations," it added. According to another report, experts at US cyber security firm Cyble said that they have detected over 5 lakh Zoom account credentials available for sale online on the Dark Web. Hackers were selling usernames and passwords linked to more than 5 lakh Zoom accounts on the Dark Web and other hacker forums for less than a penny each and, in some cases, given away for free, the firm claimed. Zoom video app provides software, including a mobile app, for videotelephony, online chat, and business telephone systems. Use of the platform is free for video conferences of up to 100 participants, with a 40-minute time limit. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: No curfew relief in Delhi; review meet on April 27; tally-2,003 Also read: Coronavirus lockdown: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs Today A mix of clouds and sun. Not as harsh by the afternoon. Tonight Partly cloudy. Tomorrow Mostly cloudy and not as cold. There might be a passing rain or snow shower, mainly north or west. Snoop Dogg will stream a DJ set to celebrate Dr. Dres The Chronic hitting streaming services. Photo: Scott Legato/Getty Images A 4/20 during the month of 4/2020 shouldve been a 4/20 to be remembered. Now that were all stuck inside, its going to be different. The concerts and events might be canceled, but luckily, you can still get stoned in the comfort of your own home. Even more luckily, your favorite musicians have planned some treats to keep the day from totally burning out, from livestreams to music releases. Here are the best celebrations of the day. (And if you were just planning to get high and listen to Fiona Apple instead, we wont blame you.) The Chronic, Dr. Dre Nearly three decades after its initial release, Dr. Dres culture-changing first solo album hits streaming today just in time for some festivities. A document of the 90s G-funk sound, The Chronic was added to the Library of Congress National Recording Registry in March. Named after a high-end strain of kush, with songs like Nuthin but a G Thang and Deeez Nuuuts, and featuring Snoop Dogg on 13 of its 16 tracks, its also the perfect stoner album. Snoop Doggs Smoke-In To commemorate The Chronic becoming available to stream, Snoop Dogg is hosting a DJ set and smoke-in with media company Merry Jane on Instagram. Take a small piece of that funky stuff and tune in at 4:20 p.m. PT (7:20 p.m. ET) to enjoy DJ Snoopadelics offerings. Come and Toke It If you get high in search of a rainbow connection, theres something here for you, too. Willie Nelson is also coming through today with Come and Toke It, an event put on by his Luck Reunion anti-festival. Featuring musicians like Kacey Musgraves, Billy Ray Cyrus, Angel Olsen, and Ziggy Marley, along with other guests such as Matthew McConaughey, Jeff Bridges, and Beto ORourke, the festival happens on Twitch at 4:20 p.m. CT (5:20 p.m. ET) and takes place over four hours and 20 minutes. You can toke for a good cause, too, with the event raising money for the Last Prisoner Project, a cannabis justice group. The Saga of Wiz Khalifa, Wiz Khalifa Pair The Chronic with a new outing by one of the rappers carrying the mantle for Dre and Snoop. Wiz Khalifas EP The Saga of Wiz Khalifa is his second release of 2020 (and not his first 4/20 release either) and features Megan Thee Stallion, Ty Dolla $ign, Tyga, Quavo, Logic, and others. And dont forget the holidays true hero: Wizs mom, for keeping up with him on the 10 Puff Challenge. Happy 420, here's @wizkhalifa and his mom doing the 10 puff challenge pic.twitter.com/CpPQlf4c51 Complex Music (@ComplexMusic) April 20, 2020 Killer Mikes Marijuana Nights Killer Mikes birthday alone would be a reason to roll a joint. The Run the Jewels rapper and cannabis advocate turns 45 this year, and theres no more stoned way to celebrate than with a Talladega Nightsthemed livestream. Shake and bake with Mike and his friends on Instagram at 9:30 p.m. (no time zone specified). Higher Together: Sessions From Home Wiz Khalifa, Erykah Badu, Billy Ray Cyrus, Stephen Marley, and others will celebrate with a livestream on Weedmaps, the dispensary directory. The event begins at noon PT, so viewers in all four continental time zones can commemorate when the clock strikes 4:20 p.m. Cypress Hills Smoke Out Stoner rap group Cypress Hill is putting on an international cannabis celebration, in place of what wouldve been the middle of their Wanna Get High tour. The members will broadcast a performance from their homes in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Antonio, and Amsterdam, fittingly enough, on LiveXLive. Whoever scheduled it may have been a little insane in the brain, since the event happens at 4:10 p.m. PT (7:10 p.m. ET). Soon after he repurposed his 60-bed cardiac unit to accommodate covid-19 patients, Mount Sinai cardiovascular surgeon John Puskas was stumped: With nearly all the beds now occupied by victims of the novel coronavirus, where had all the heart patients gone?Even those left almost speechless by crushing chest pain weren't coming through the ER. Variations on that question have puzzled clinicians not only in New York, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, but across the country and in Spain, the United Kingdom and China. Five weeks into a nationwide coronavirus lockdown, many doctors believe the pandemic has produced a silent sub-epidemic of people who need care at hospitals but dare not come in. They include people with inflamed appendixes, infected gall bladders and bowel obstructions, and more ominously, chest pains and stroke symptoms, according to these physicians and early research. "Everybody is frightened to come to the ER," Puskas said. Some doctors worry that illness and mortality from unaddressed health issues may rival the carnage produced by the virus in regions less affected by covid-19, the disease the novel coronavirus causes. And some expect they will soon see patients who have dangerously delayed seeking care as ongoing symptoms force them to overcome their fear. Evert Eriksson, trauma medical director at the Medical University of South Carolina, described a man in his 20s who tried to ignore the growing pain in his belly, toughing it out at home with the aid of over-the-counter painkillers. By the time he showed up at the hospital, perhaps 10 days after he should have, he had developed a large abscess, one that was gnawing through the muscle in his abdominal wall. A fairly routine surgery and a night in the hospital had become a lengthy and difficult inpatient stay, with doctors operating and using antibiotics to control the widespread infection, according to Eriksson. Only after they succeed in vanquishing the infection can they address the appendix itself. "That's going to be a real wound-care challenge for him moving forward," said Eriksson, who is treating the patient. "He said to me he could [imagine] the virus crawling on the hospital. He was just scared to come." At MUSC, Eriksson's general surgery floor, which has 20 beds, housed as few as three people for two to three weeks, he said. Now the count is back over 20. "What we're seeing is late presentation," he said. "I would say 70% of the appendicitis on my service right now are late presentations. What happens when you present late with appendicitis is we can't operate on you safely." Yet the 700-bed hospital in Charleston is about 60% full, because like most facilities, MUSC discharged everyone it could to make room for the expected coronavirus surge. So far that hasn't materialized. The hospital has not had more than 10 covid-19 patients admitted at any time, he said. "We have five covid patients in the hospital right now, and we have five appendicitis cases" with complications from waiting too long to come in for care, Eriksson said. Much of the reporting about missing patients is anecdotal - in medical chat rooms and on doctors' social media accounts. Doctors say it's unlikely there has been a decline in most of these conditions, which suggests that at least a few people may be dying at home, although there is no data yet to corroborate that. In the case of severe heart attacks, the evidence is mounting that a large percentage of patients with symptoms that typically prompt urgent interventions are simply not showing up. A report to be published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology on nine high-volume cardiac catheterization labs across the country from Jan. 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020 found a 38% drop in patients being treated for a life-threatening event known as a STEMI - the blockage of one of the major arteries that supplies oxygen-rich blood to the heart. Those results - from hospitals across the country - are counterintuitive, physicians say. The stress caused by the pandemic would lead them to anticipate an increase in heart attacks. Covid-19 is also an inflammatory disease that can damage the heart muscle. "We should have higher incidences of these events, but we are seeing dramatically fewer in the hospital system," Puskas said. "That has to mean they are at home or in the morgue." A Gallup online poll taken March 28 to April 2 asked people with different conditions how concerned they would be about exposure to coronavirus if they needed "medical treatment right now" at a hospital or doctor's office. Eighty-six percent of people with heart disease said they would be either "very concerned" or "moderately concerned." Among people with high blood pressure, the figure was 83%. With elective surgeries on hold, many hospitals, such as Brigham and Women's in Boston, have found themselves trading treatment of traditional heart attacks for the complex assaults the novel coronavirus is making on the organ and the body's ability to clot blood. "People with smaller heart attacks, they may say, 'Well I hope this is just indigestion,' " said Gregory Piazza, one of the hospital's cardiovascular specialists. At MUSC, another doctor worried that mild stroke patients are enduring symptoms such as numbness, loss of sensation or weakness on one side of their body at home. Symptoms of small strokes can be transient, but they also can be warnings of larger strokes to come. MUSC, a major stroke center, averaged 550 calls per month over the past four months about possible stroke patients from the 45 to 50 emergency rooms that refer patients. But it has seen 100 in the first half of April, said Alex Spiotta, director of neurovascular surgery. Phone calls from patients to MUSC's telestroke program dropped from as many as 20 daily to about nine in mid-April. "That's literally patients and their families who fear that it's dangerous" to go to the hospital, he said. "We are worried that there might be a higher death toll from neglect of other diseases" than from covid-19. At the University of Miami-Jackson Memorial Comprehensive Stroke Center, the March census of stroke patients is down almost 30% from February's, said Ralph Sacco, chairman of neurology and former president of the American Academy of Neurology. "What we would surmise is that more mild to moderate cases are not calling 911, or are afraid to come into the hospitals," Sacco said. The hospitals are beginning to reach out to the public through social media and public service announcements to ease fears about hospital safety. "We've changed what we do," to keep patients safe from the virus, Sacco said. "But we're still able to care for people." The possibility that patients may be suffering - and even dying - at home rather than going to the hospital led the American College of Cardiology to launch a "Cardiosmart" campaign last week, attempting to reassure a wary population and encourage those with symptoms to call 911 for urgent care and to continue routine appointments, when practical through telemedicine: "Hospitals have safety measures to protect you from infection," it reads. "The emphasis here is safety," said Harlan Krumholz, a cardiologist and health-care researcher at Yale University and Yale New Haven Hospital, who advised on the campaign. "We want to make sure preventable deaths aren't happening." There is no pill, no action, no behavior, he said, that could account for the almost 40% drop in STEMI patients. "We don't have a means to cut your risk in half," he said. "Not even primary angioplasty or stopping smoking." Still the shift has many doctors looking for other explanations, including the massive behavioral overhaul caused by the lockdown. MUSC has seen a steep drop in trauma from car accidents, for example, because fewer people are driving, but no reduction in domestic violence or assaults among people who don't live together, Eriksson said. Many people who suffer from exertional angina are now sitting at home rather than climbing the subway stairs every day, and the threshold of discomfort that would drive them to seek care is likely far higher. Joseph Puma, an interventional cardiologist at Mount Sinai in New York, believes multiple changes created by the lockdown may be playing a role, including a decrease in air pollution and fewer high-fat restaurant meals after work. "The plaques in arteries have not gone away," he said. "You can argue that forced behavioral modifications may have taken away the triggers" that release them into the bloodstream. And these days, some people who suffer major heart attacks never make it to the hospital in New York, where EMTs no longer perform CPR on people who have arrested - a procedure that has a low success rate and carries great risk of infecting first responders if the victim is coronavirus-positive. Puskas, the Mount Sinai cardiovascular surgeon, whose unit is now occupied entirely by covid-19 patients, suspects a few of the heart patients may not be missing but right there among the most seriously ill people in his new unit. The virus strikes most harshly among people suffering from diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure - the same conditions that predispose people to strokes and heart attacks and that are most prevalent among blacks and Hispanics. "Some of them may be under our noses," he said. The role those factors may be playing will emerge over time from studies and shoe-leather epidemiology. But for now, Krumholz said, the key is to make sure people with symptoms overcome their fears and get prompt treatment that may save their lives or avoid long-term complications. "Don't delay," he said. - - - The Washington Post's Scott Clement and Emily Guskin contributed to this report. The suspects are Iddi Ibrahim, 34, staff of the Northern Regional Coordinating Council, and Abubakari Yusif Dauda, 33, a businessman who have been arrested. Superintendent Otuo Acheampong, Crime Officer of the Northern Regional Police Command, who announced the arrest to journalists in Tamale, said the suspects were assisting the Police with investigations. Superintendent Acheampong said on April 19, at about 1300 hours, information was received that a wedding ceremony was underway at Kukuo, a suburb of Tamale. He said "Two patrol teams responded and arrested two suspects, who were part of the gathering in blatant disregard to Executive Instruments against public gatherings and social distancing." He said the groom and the bride had been invited to report at the Regional Criminal Investigations Department for interrogation. It will be recalled that the President, under the Imposition of Restrictions Act, has banned public gatherings of more than 25 people and that social distancing should be observed for such gatherings of not more than 25 people. ---GNA [April 20, 2020] BCM One Acquires nexVortex NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BCM One, a leading managed technology solutions provider, announced today that it has acquired nexVortex, a Herndon, Virginia-based provider of managed network SIP Trunking services. This marks the third acquisition for BCM One. This acquisition expands BCM One's geographic footprint to include nexVortex offices in Herndon, Virginia, and Grand Rapids, Michigan. These offices will be led respectively by Lita Miller and Mike Nowak, current employees of nexVortex. "The nexVortex team and products are an important addition to the strategic expansion of our voice offerings," stated Geoff Bloss, Chief Executive Officer of BCM One. "In particular, the nexVortex mSIP managed SIP platform positions us to service customers nationwide of all sizes, from SMB up to enterprise." "We're excited to bring our 6,000 customers into the BCM One family," said Wes Rogers, Founder & Chief Operating Officer at nexVortex. "There's great alignment across the solution set, and our drive to deliver 'Uncommon Service' is right in line with BCM One's mission to 'Provide a World-Class Experience with Every Human Interaction.'" nexVortex, including its mSIP network, channel sales team, and support teams, will become part of the BCM One Group Holdings Inc. Company. For more information about BCM One, visit www.bcmone.com. ABOUT BCM ONE Founded in 1992, BCM One is a leading managed solutions provider offering businesses a one-stop-shop for integrated technology needs. Serving over 17,000 customers worldwide, BCM One offers a variety of solutions to support critical network infrastructures for businesses including: technology expense optimization, UCaaS, SD-WAN, cloud, security and connectivity solutions. BCM One prides itself on its long-standing client relationships, backed by their mission statement, "Providing a World-Class Experience with Every Human Interaction." To learn more about BCM One, visit www.bcmone.com. ABOUT NEXVORTEX nexVortex has been delivering business cloud communication services for more than 14 years and is an industry leader in delivering SIP Trunking services. We provide the consultative services, interoperable technology, and support services that allow multi-site customers to reap the benefits of SIP Trunking. Our award-winning Managed SIP (mSIP) raises the bar to provide confident voice delivery, improved operational control, multisite E911 delivery, disaster recovery, and historically a cost savings for our customers. Visit www.nexVortex.com and learn how we can help you meet your business needs. For Media Inquiries: Paula Como Kauth Office: 212.906.7255 | [email protected] Related Images image1.jpg Related Links https://cdn.nexvortex.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/nexVortex_Managed_SIP_Q3_2019_web.pdf View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bcm-one-acquires-nexvortex-301043187.html SOURCE BCM One Public Relations [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Several hundred people gathered on the sidewalks around the Montana Capitol building Sunday afternoon to protest what they believe to be overreaching restrictions aimed at mitigating the spread of COVID-19. Iran has blamed US forces for a tense encounter that recently took place in the Persian Gulf. "It was the American forces that hindered the legal and normal patrolling by our forces in the region. And this pushed our forces react and give them a necessary warning," said Abbas Mousavi, spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Council acknowledged on Sunday it had a tense encounter with US warships in the Persian Gulf last week. But it offered no evidence that American forces sparked the incident. The incident last Wednesday saw the US Navy release video of small Iranian speed boats coming close to American warships as they operated with US Army Apache helicopters in the northern Persian Gulf near Kuwait. The IRGC claimed that its forces faced "the unprofessional and provocative actions of the United States and their indifference to warnings." It said the Americans later withdrew. The incident came amid still-heightened tensions between Iran and the US, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. MSNBCs Joe Scarborough kept up his criticism of st President Donald Trumps coronavirus response Monday morning, suggesting Trump end his nightly briefings, if not for public safety, then for his own political future. Donald Trump needs to stop doing these nightly press conferences not only for the safety and the health of the American people but also for his own political fortunes because every night he goes out and damages himself, Scarborough said. You see him get angry if anyone brings up facts that get in the way of him looking good, agreed Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, who noted Trump behaves like a child and its not good for him to show that to the American people. Also Read: MSNBC's Joe Scarborough Calls Out Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil for 'Stupidity' of Coronavirus Comments (Video) Hes doing something else, too: Its like a guy that is being told by his lawyer, Dont talk. Whatever you say is going to be used against you whether its a civil or a criminal case so just dont talk. Make sure you measure every word. Because what happens is, Donald Trump goes out and he rambles, he says stupid things, he says things that are lies and all he does is, he gives Joe Bidens campaign he gives Democrats just two and a half hours of material every night to fact-check against all the things they already have on tape from January and February, explained Scarborough. Earlier in the program, the former GOP representative compared Trumps response to the pandemic with Chinas, saying both Trump and the Chinese government are seeking to blame anyone but themselves: The Chinese are doing just what Donald Trump is doing. Donald Trump is doing just like the communist Chinese are doing. They both screwed up monumentally. Both of them, in their own ways, are going to be blamed by historians for most of what has happened since December. Read original story Joe Scarboroughs Tells Trump to Stop Holding Press Conferences: Every Night He Goes Out and Damages Himself (Video) At TheWrap STOCKHOLM, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Wasder, a smart multi-social platform for gamers, today announced that the company is working with Razer Chroma RGB, the world's largest lighting ecosystem for gaming devices. By working with Razer Chroma RGB, Wasder introduces the world's first live synced lighting experience between streamers and gamers, made possible by a Twitch extension called "Wasder Chroma RGB Scheduler." Owners of Chroma RGB devices can share experiences through lighting effects provided by Razer Chroma RGB, such as when the streamer goes live, when follows and subscriptions occur and much more. These shared experiences enable streamers to engage and immerse gaming fans during broadcasting in new and exciting ways that weren't possible before. The first version will enable users to use premade presets with effects to reflect and strengthen their brand, and the next update will enable users to make their own effects. Wasder's Chroma RGB Scheduler also provides an intuitive scheduling and automated go live-messaging extension. Through this partnership, Razer Chroma RGB and Wasder will be bringing to market an invaluable tool for a streamer's toolbox. "We are thrilled about our collaboration with Razer Chroma RGB. Our new extension not only solves key problems streamers and fans have been facing for years, it also makes for a much more engaging and interactive stream experience for everyone involved. We believe that this is the beginning of a new way of seeing streamers building their personal brand and their interactions with their fans - and we really look forward to being part of that journey," says Thomas Gronnevik, CEO of Wasder. "We're excited to have a partner like Wasder join the Razer Chroma connect program. The ability to have a synchronized lighting experience between the streamer and gamer would add another level of immersion that Razer Chroma RGB represents," says Kushal Tandon, Director, Marketing and Business Development at Razer Chroma RGB. The Twitch extension will be available on Twitch April 20th. Wasder is the home for gamers - a smart, multi-social platform dedicated to the gaming community combined with tools that make gaming life simpler for streamers, esporters, fans or social gamers alike. One great example of such a tool is Wasder's scheduling & automation integrations with Twitch for streamers. The Wasder brand stands with the 2 billion gamers who share the passion for gaming. Razer is the world's leading lifestyle brand for gamers. The triple-headed snake trademark of Razer is one of the most recognized logos in the global gaming and esports communities. With a fan base that spans every continent, the company has designed and built the world's largest gamer-focused ecosystem of hardware, software and services. Razer's award-winning hardware includes high-performance gaming peripherals and Blade gaming laptops. Razer's software platform, with over 80 million users, includes Razer Synapse (an Internet of Things platform), Razer Chroma (a proprietary RGB lighting technology system), and Razer Cortex (a game optimizer and launcher). In services, Razer Gold is one of the world's largest virtual credit services for gamers, and Razer Fintech is one of the largest offline-to-online digital payment networks in SE Asia. Founded in 2005 and dual-headquartered in Irvine and Singapore, Razer has 16 offices worldwide and is recognized as the leading brand for gamers in the USA, Europe and China. SOURCE Wasder Current Print Subscribers will be prompted to either login to their current site user account or to create a new one. A confirmation email will be sent when a new user account is created, which must be confirmed within three days in order to provide uninterrupted online access through your Print Subscription. Once the email address is confirmed please provide your Account Number to activate your Print Subscription Service. President Erdogan holds phone call with Trump over coronavirus Meanwhile, the US on Sunday reported 2,009 additional coronavirus-related deaths over the past 24 hours, surpassing the 39,000 mark. The presidents of Turkey and the US agreed on Sunday to cooperate against the global coronavirus pandemic and its effects. "THE SPIRIT OF SOLIDARITY OF NATO ALLIANCE" The statement said that Erdogan and Trump agreed to continue close cooperation against the threat posed by the novel coronavirus outbreak on public health and the economies of both countries as a requirement of the "spirit of solidarity" of the NATO Alliance. In a phone call, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his US counterpart Donald Trump discussed bilateral relations and regional developments, according to a statement released by Turkey's Communications Directorate. The coronavirus death toll in Turkey reached 2,017 as of Sunday, with 86,306 cases to date, according to the country's Health Ministry. - At least 76% of Kenyans expressed concern that they will not be able to make ends meet should the COVID-19 pandemic persist - Fifty five percent of the respondents appreciated what President Uhuru Kenyatta's government was doing but wanted more - Eighty two percent of Kenyans were anxious and stressed about what was happening with 65% feeling confused about COVID-19 At least 78% of Kenyans are worried there could be more COVID-19 cases among Kenyans but who are not aware that they have been infected. This was revealed in a recent research conducted by Infotrak Research and Consulting firm between March 30 and April 2, involving 831 respondents. READ ALSO: Homa Bay family insists burial was real, says relatives bought coffin in Nairobi The psychological well-being of Kenyans has been greatly affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Photo: Screenshot from Infotrack Source: UGC READ ALSO: Magazeti ya Jumatatu, Aprili 20: Kambi ya DP Ruto yataka Jubilee kuandaa uchaguzi Another 76% of Kenyans expressed concern that they will not be able to make ends meet should the pandemic persist and 73% said Kenya had no enough hospital beds to cope with the pandemic. The psychological well-being of most Kenyans had been affected greatly by COVID-19 with 82% feeling anxious and stressed about what was happening. At least 65% of Kenyans felt confused about what was happening, 60% felt confined and trapped, 55% felt lonely, 46% felt helpless, and 38% were having hard time sleeping. Most Kenyans, 55%, appreciated what President Uhuru Kenyatta's government was doing but wanted more with 50% asking for stipend for vulnerable Kenyans. 78% of Kenyans worry there are more Kenyans with coronavirus but are not aware. Photo: Screenshot from Infotrak Source: UGC READ ALSO: Kenyan newspapers review for April 20: Nigeria to rely on DCI findings during probe into death of Ruth Matete's husband At least 39% of Kenyans wanted affordable healthcare for all, 32% rent exemption, 23% job protection and 15% complete tax relief. On performance rating of key stakeholders, President Uhuru Kenyatta, Ministry of Health, health workers and media were doing an excellent job. Religious leaders, county governments, Interior Ministry and private sector were rated as having done an average job in the fight against COVID-19. 75% of Kenyans are worried about the level of preparedness in the fight against COVID-19. Photo: Screenshot from Infotrak Source: UGC READ ALSO: Coronavirus update: 8 more people test positive, national tally stands at 270 On the other hand, the Senate, National Assembly, Judiciary and the police were rated as doing a poor job in as far as the fight against COVID-19 is concerned. Majority of Kenyans, 85%, trust the head of state, CS Mutahi Kagwe, the media, county governments and administrative opinion leaders. Family members, friends and social media were rated as the least trusted when it comes to news on COVID-19. Do you have an inspirational story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Follow us on Telegram: Tuko news Source: TUKO.co.ke The U.S. Air Force has chosen Raytheon Co. as the sole-source manufacturer to proceed with the service's new nuclear cruise missile, which is intended to be launched from aircraft such as the B-52 Stratofortress. The service on Friday selected Raytheon's design for the Long Range Stand Off weapon, known as LRSO -- which is currently in the technology-maturation and risk-reduction phase -- over Lockheed Martin Corp. The decision to choose a single company will allow the LRSO office to begin exploring how it can "redirect funding to critical areas and potentially move some activities into the TMRR phase currently scheduled for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, including flight tests" at a faster pace, according to a service news release. Related: Head of Global Strike Command Wants to Make Air Force Bombers Even More Lethal While officials didn't call the latest decision a down-select between the two companies -- a move that wasn't expected until fiscal 2022 -- the service said it came to the choice after an "extensive evaluation of [both companies'] contractor programmatic and technical approach." "This is not a down-select per se," said Elizabeth Thorn, the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center's LRSO system program manager, in the release. "Instead, we are reframing our relationship with Lockheed Martin to focus on specific technology maturation we believe either has future applicability for the final LRSO design or will reduce overall program risk." In 2017, the service awarded contracts to Lockheed and Raytheon to begin preliminary work on LRSO. The agreements were valued at $900 million each and were to last almost five years "to mature design concepts and prove developmental technologies," the Air Force said at the time. The LRSO program will replace the 1980s-era AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile, known as ALCM, providing an air-launched capability as part of the nuclear triad. "This early off-ramp of a contractor is completely in line with the existing LRSO acquisition strategy, which included periodic reviews to assess contractor designs," said Maj. Gen. Shaun Morris, Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center commander and program executive officer for strategic systems. "Lockheed Martin has been an excellent contractor and partner throughout the TMRR effort, and this pivot to Raytheon does not represent a lack of effort or commitment on their part. Lockheed Martin has supported the nuclear enterprise for decades, and we continue to value their expertise in sensors and nuclear certification and surety," he said. Lockheed said in a statement that it is working with the program office and the Air Force to close out its work in the TMRR phase, though it will still be involved to support the LRSO mission, as Thorn explained. "We've supported our nation's nuclear triad for more than 60 years and look forward to working with the [Air Force] to support the LRSO mission, specifically leveraging our sensor technology and nuclear certification and surety expertise," the company said. Despite the announcement, a formal contract award for the next phase won't occur until fiscal 2022, as previously planned, Raytheon added. The LRSO is planned for the B-52, as well as the B-2 Spirit and the future B-21 Long-Range Strike Bomber. Earlier this month, Gen. Timothy Ray, head of Air Force Global Strike Command, told Air Force Magazine that a conventional version of the LRSO is also a plausible fit for the B-1B Lancer, though the aircraft is not slated to receive the weapon because it is no longer a nuclear-capable bomber. While there's no requirement to create a conventional version of LRSO, Ray said it's the range he's interested in. "I think that's going to be a very, very good missile," he told the magazine. -- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214. Read More: These Are the Travel Exemptions in the Pentagon's New Stop-Movement Order Meyer Burger: Agenda and Proposals ordinary Shareholders\-\- Meeting 2020 Posted by Publisher Internet Meyer Burger Technology AG (SIX Swiss Exchange: MBTN) published today the invitationen to this year\-\-s ordinary Shareholders\-\- Meeting on 13 May 2020. In accordance with the measures taken by the Swiss Federal Council to combat the coronavirus, this ordinary Shareholders Meeting will be held without physical presence of the shareholders at the company\-\-s headquarters in Thun. Accordingly, shareholders may only be represented by the independent proxy. The Board of Directors of Meyer Burger Technology AG will present the management report, the annual financial statements and the consolidated financial statements 2019 for approval. The Board of Directors will propose the re-election of the current Board members Andreas R. Herzog and Franz Richter. Hans-Michael Hauser has decided to resign from the Board of Directors with immediate effect. Franz Richter is also proposed for election as Chairman of the Board of Directors. He succeeds Remo Lutolf, who will not stand for re-election. In order to integrate investors voices, the election of Mark Kerekes of Sentis Capital PPC and Urs Fahndrich of Elysium Capital AG as shareholder representatives to the Board of Directors will be proposed. The Shareholders Meeting will also vote on the appropriation of the accumulated loss, the discharge of the members of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, and the election of the Compensation Committee, the auditors and the independent proxy. The remuneration report for the 2019 financial year will be submitted to the Shareholders Meeting for consultative approval. In application of the Ordinance against Excessive Compensation in Listed Companies (OAEC), the remuneration of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee will be submitted to the Shareholders Meeting for prospective approval. In addition, the authorized capital, which expires in May 2020, is to be renewed. Finally, the Board of Directors proposes amendments to the Articles of Association to make it easier for shareholders to attend future Shareholders\-\- Meetings of the Company and to enable the Shareholders\-\- Meeting to be held more quickly after publication of the annual financial statements, without limiting the improvements introduced in 2019. Focus on implementation of strategic realignment As already announced with the annual results 2019, Meyer Burger has delivered the proof of concept of its leading technology by the successful production ramp-up of REC?s ALPHA solar module. The new modules manufactured with Meyer Burger\-\-s equipmement and technology set new standards in terms of efficiency and production costs. The adapted business strategy with increased vertical integration shall enable Meyer Burger to benefit more from the value creation of the heterojunction/SmartWire technology in the future. The focus lies on setting up an own cell and module production facility in Europe (particularly Germany) in order to exploit the full potential of Meyer Burger?s leading heterojunction/SmartWire technology, to maintain the technological lead and to protect intellectual property against abuse. The Company is working at full speed to implement the strategic shift to set up its own production capabilities, including the corresponding financing alternatives. At the same time, the partnership-based cooperation with important customers (such as REC) is being further pursued. The Board of Directors and the Executive Committee are convinced that this change of course will create significant value for the shareholders. The Board of Directors will again address the shareholders when resolutions relating to these strategies need to be passed by the Shareholders? Meeting. This is aspired for the coming weeks. In connection with the adapted business strategy and in particular the setting up of an own cell and module production facility, Meyer Burger has additionally engaged ACXIT Capital, while Credit Suisse continues to act as financial advisor with regard to other strategic options. Link to the invitation to the annual shareholders meeting, the CV?s of the newly nominated candidates for the Board of Directors as well as the annual report 2019: www.meyerburger.com/en/investors/annual-general-meeting/ The voting results will be published shortly after the Shareholders? Meeting on the Company?s website under?www.meyerburger.com/en/investors/annual-general-meeting/ This press release may contain ?forward-looking statements?, such as guidance, expectations, plans, intentions, or strategies regarding the future. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. The reader is cautioned that actual future results may differ from those expressed in or implied by the statements, which constitute projections of possible developments. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are based on data available to Meyer Burger Technology Ltd as of the date that this press release is published. The company 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. Meyer Burger is a leading technology company with a global presence, specializing in innovative systems and production equipment for the photovoltaic (solar) industry. As an internationally renowned premium brand, Meyer Burger offers its customers in the PV industry dependable precision products and innovative solutions for the manufacture of high-efficiency solar cells and solar modules. The comprehensive product range is complemented by a worldwide service network with spare and wearing parts, consumables, process know-how, maintenance and after-sales service, training courses and additional services. Meyer Burger is represented in the respective key markets in Europe and Asia and has subsidiaries and its own service centers in China, Germany Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Switzerland, Singapore, Taiwan and the USA. The registered shares in Meyer Burger Technology AG are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (ticker: MBTN). Kim Kardashian West rose to fame in 2007 as a star on her familys reality show, Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Over the years, she has also made a name for herself as a businesswoman with her makeup brand, KKW Beauty, as well as her shapewear line, SKIMS. However, fans of Kardashian West are probably also aware that she has another focus in her life these days: prison reform. Kardashian West has been working on helping to change the prison system in the United States. This can be a rather polarizing issue in politics, but Kardashian West believes that it should not be so controversial. In fact, she has shared that prison reform should be a topic that anyone can get behind. Kim Kardashian started working in prison reform in 2017 Kim Kardashian | Evans Vestal Ward/Getty Images Kardashian Wests foray into prison reform began in the fall of 2017. She recalled that she was on Twitter one night when she came across the story of Alice Marie Johnson, a grandmother who was in prison for nonviolent drug charges. Kardashian West felt a desire to help Johnson, so she began working with a legal team to help get Johnsons sentence some clemency. In May 2018, Kardashian West met with President Donald Trump to urge him to help Johnson. A month later, Trump officially commuted Johnson and she was released from prison. A few months after, Kardashian West also worked with Trump to pass the First Step Act, which would help other nonviolent criminals receive leniency. Kim Kardashian is studying law to further contribute to prison reform Although Kardashian West has been quite successful as a celebrity advocate for prison reform, the 39-year-old has revealed that she would actually like to do more than just bring attention to peoples stories. In 2019, the reality star and entrepreneur announced that she had decided to study law in hopes of passing the bar exam in a few years. Im sitting in the Roosevelt Room with, like, a judge who had sentenced criminals and a lot of really powerful people and I just sat there, like, Oh, sh*t. I need to know more, she explained. I just felt like the system could be so different, and I wanted to fight to fix it, and if I knew more, I could do more. Since then, Kardashian West has been balancing her business career, reality TV appearances, and family life with her law studies. She started an apprenticeship at a law firm and is focusing seriously on learning important concepts for the bar exam. Kardashian West is very serious about having a law career that she even said she would like to give up fame in the future to become an attorney. Kim Kardashian thinks prison reform should be about humanizing people I cant wait for you guys to see this! A special sneak peek of my new documentary Kim Kardashian West: The Justice Project will be revealed tomorrow on @Oxygens IG. #KKWTheJusticeProject pic.twitter.com/L3P1t7pfMl Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) January 18, 2020 While a lot of Americans look at prison reform as a series of statistics and number, Kardashian West believes that it should be about bringing awareness to the fact that the folks behind bars are still human beings. Speaking about Alice Marie Johnson, Kardashian told Time: I think when people saw Alices face and heard her speak, they felt safe, feeling [of her release] that, Oh, this is going to be OK. Our society is going to be safe; she deserves a second chance. I dont look at prison reform as very political The key is humanizing these [people] and taking on these individual stories, to let everyone know that people on the inside are just like us. However, Kardashian made it clear that she still believes that prison is a fair punishment for certain crimes. I really do believe that, if people do a crime, they need to do the time, she said. But its a matter of, what is that fair [amount of] time? T he sharp fall in the number of London patients in hospital with coronavirus has been hailed as a success. The capitals hospitals were caring for 3,445 Covid-19 patients on Saturday down almost 1,000 in a week after six successive daily reductions. The total is down 1,368 on the 4,813 peak number of patients recorded on April 8. The figures came as the first patients were discharged from the Nightingale field hospital in Docklands and as experts said London was four days ahead of the rest of the country in seeing its daily death toll decline. Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer, told yesterdays Downing Street briefing that it was not yet possible to say if coronavirus had peaked but said there were encouraging signs of a plateau. She said: For London particularly, it demonstrates not only the very significant amount of work that our hospitals have been doing, particularly in the first and second weeks of April, but the success that is occurring now in the number of cases that is coming down. The number of deaths in London hospitals rose yesterday by 82 to 3,825, the fewest deaths recorded in the capital in a 24-hour period since March 30. The number of newly diagnosed cases in the capital also continues to fall. It peaked at 979 cases on April 2. Yesterday only three were recorded by Public Health England, bringing the total in the capital to 21,357. Experts at Oxford university said hospital deaths peaked in London on April 4, and in the rest of the country on April 8. They have calculated this by assigning the Governments daily declaration of deaths which often includes deaths that have occurred up to a fortnight before to the day of death rather than the day the death was declared by NHS England. Professor Carl Heneghan and Dr Jason Oke, of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine and Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, said the transmission of Covid-19 in the community was low and not at epidemic levels. They said data from the Royal College of GPs showed that initial distancing measures introduced on March 16, such as requiring people with Loading.... symptoms to self-isolate, and the end of winter had reduced transmission of upper respiratory tract infections by 44 per cent. Imposing lockdown the following week reduced respiratory tract infections by a further 29 per cent. NHS England said critical care capacity in London was holding up well after every hospital opened extra beds. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agustinus Hari (The Jakarta Post) Manado, North Sulawesi Mon, April 20, 2020 13:27 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd300fad 1 National COVID-19-in-Indonesia,manado,North-Sulawesi,LGBT,donation,food-parcel,paket-sembako,sumbangan Free The members of an LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community in Manado, North Sulawesi, have joined hands to raise funds and distribute relief aid to those affected by the local COVID-19 outbreak. "A friend told us about the condition of residents who had been hit hard by the epidemic. Some residents even asked us to buy some food for them," LGBT activist Rajawali Coco told The Jakarta Post on Sunday in Manado. So the community decided to start a fund-raiser on Facebook to buy basic goods for distributing to people in need. The initiative has received positive responses, especially from friends, families and colleagues. Coco said that the community raised Rp 7 million (US$451) in cash transfers as soon as they started the fund-raiser. On the first day of distribution shortly after receiving the donated funds, it delivered 10 packages of staple foods containing rice, cooking oil, canned fish, instant noodles and fresh eggs to 10 affected families. "We are not [rich], in fact, we are also in need. However, we would like to share with those who have been affected by this difficult situation," said Coco. He recalled how the story of an elderly woman who lived alone in a shack in Pineleng, Minahasa, went viral after members of the LGBT community visited to deliver some food to her. The viral post eventually caught the eye of the North Sulawesi Social Agency, which then visited the women to deliver aid. As the community continued to receive donations from people of all walks of life, they drew up a list of people in need, especially the elderly and people who had not received any aid, said Coco. "We have distributed the [donated funds] in the form of 50 packages of basic goods so far," he said. The last 58 packages will be distributed on April 25," Coco said, adding that the fund-raiser was inclusive and nondiscriminatory, regardless of the donor's social or economical background. (trn) [April 20, 2020] Omniscience Launches First Life Insurance Underwriting Automation Suite Designed for Today's Highly Complex Business Environment Omniscience today announced a new software suite that will, for the first time, automate life insurance underwriting decision-making by taking into account the many layers of complexity, breadth of data, and need for immediacy that modern providers face. Specifically, by using new underlying technology from Omniscience, this suite can accelerate life insurance decisions 1000 times or more and integrate requirements impacting the whole company in every result. The issues facing life insurance underwriting have grown exponentially over the past few years. These result from the constantly updated availability of data from diverse sources, the evolving regulatory environment in each country, and market growth. Simultaneous to this, the number of experienced underwriters has not grown at the same rate. The Covid-19 pandemic has multiplied the factors companies need to account for in their current environment. "Our customers, many of whom are in Asia, are reporting that they are experiencing a dramatic increase in their workloads," said Sunil Rawat, Co-founder and CEO of Omniscience. "There are both many more claims due to the pandemic and more applications for life insurance than in the past." This change in demand has put unexpected pressure on carriers. Moreover, according to The Wall Street Journal on March 11, 2020, the pandemic has created new, unanticipated and sudden pressures: "US life insurers have taken it on the chin during the novel coronavirus epidemic. But . . . the unprecedented collapse in bond yields is the financial risk that investors and analysts are fretting over. . ." This means life insurers are impacted by investment losses, policy losses, and other business pressures in addition to the systemic pressures that have been emerging over the past few years. "In reality," explained Tom Niermann, Omniscience Vice President of Product. "The level of complexity facing life insurers has grown in many dimensions over the past few years. These pressures, combined with the dramatic stresses from Covid-19, just makes this environment even more challenging." About the Omniscience Life Insurance Underwriting Automation Suite imply put, Omniscience Life Insurance Underwriting Automation Suite can handle both the breadth of data from many sources and the new, multifaceted demands of today's life insurance providers. Until now, life Insurance software has only handled some of the data and very few of the many layers of business issues provider face. This new underwriting suite was designed to accomplish the following: Replicate the judgement and decision skill of senior underwriters; Dramatically speed (1000 times or more) accurate new customer underwriting, review, and acceptance - even where broad arrays of complex medical or alternate (i.e. fluidless) data is used; 90% cost reduction per decision; Continuous improvement of risk selection and explainability; Continuous identification of new, previously unseen opportunities for product development. This summary of capabilities is differentiated from existing life insurance underwriting software. Up until now other software options, including rules engines and expert systems, have not been able to handle high dimensions of complexity or provide continuous business improvements. (See Chart.) The Omniscience Risk engine is at the heart of the entire suite. It ingests data from many possible sources, including health records and APS. Among the components of the suite are digitization of all available data, a fully customizable third-party data collection and integration tool, and underwriter decision support and audit tools. Unique Omniscale Technology Foundation Makes this New Computational Insurance Suite Possible Several years ago, Omniscience saw that many decisions in modern and future businesses cannot be based solely on the facts of a discrete transaction and its impact on a specific business unit or line of business. Many decisions must integrate the complexities of both the individual transaction and the needs of the entire business both in the near term and long term. But up until now the broadly available technology used by insurers (as well as most mid-sized and large businesses) has been unable to handle these systemic changes: there are simply too many datasets that need to be analyzed immediately and on an ongoing basis for current software and services. Omniscience's core Omniscale Technology is designed to handle the new, vast amounts of data across many datasets and can accommodate the complexities of Computational Insurance. Explained Rawat, "We hope that our many years of work on this new product suite can be combined to be helpful to customers facing the unanticipated complexities of today's pandemic as well as their long-term business demands." About Omniscience Omniscience (www.omniscience.com) is the first company to handle and decipher complex, hyperdimensional data sets without any approximations. This enables customers to make accurate business decisions, and find new, well-timed opportunities. The Omniscale computing model combines mathematical transformations, advanced AI and unique distributed computing to help insurance and financial services companies grow market share, save on costs, boost return on equity, and increase regulatory compliance. Over time many additional markets will also be able to use Omniscience to decipher the chaos in their environments. Based in Palo Alto (News - Alert), CA, investors in Omniscience include Reinsurance Group of America, Guardian Life, TD Bank, Translink Capital, and others. All trademarks and registered trademarks are those of their respective companies. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005206/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The Mattoon Chamber of Commerce wants to help where we can during this pandemic. Many resources are available to help the business community and the general public during these challenging times: Consolidated Communications is offering two months of free internet access to students and their families who have to work from home during the pandemic. The offer includes free installation and no equipment fees for two months. Students and their families do not have to sign a long term contract to receive the offer. Consolidated Communications will not cap the amount of data that can be used during this free offer. To take advantage of the offer you can call Consolidated Communications at 855-399-3084 and mention offer code "Two Months Free". County Market stores are offering special shopping hours for seniors and those at risk from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. seven days a week. Walmart stores are going to make a similar offer available starting Tuesday the 24th. They will allow seniors and those at risk to shop from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. Sarah Bush Lincoln is offering a 24/7 COVID-19 question and answer hotline staffed by nurses. The phone number is 217-258-7474. As of last Friday the Sarah Bush Mattoon Walk-In Clinic at 200 Dettro Drive has been converted to a respiratory clinic addressing issues for people with respiratory symptoms only. The clinic will maintain the same hours, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The Mattoon and Charleston Chamber of Commerce have created a spreadsheet of over 100 restaurants and establishments offering delivery, drive-thru, carryout, and curbside pickup. These businesses need your support through this time and we made it easy for you to choose options for obtaining food choices. You can access the list on our Facebook page or at www.mattoonchamber.com. All local organizations and businesses need your continued support during the pandemic. The State of Illinois has created a website that links all available resources to Illinois citizens: coronavirus.illinois.gov. You can also view every daily COVID-19 update from Governor Pritzker on this site. The Small Business Administration has received authorization for helping small businesses adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic economic assistance through low interest loans. To access benefits for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program you can call 1-800-659-2955 or visit their website, www.sba.gov. The Illinois Department of Employment Security has information regarding unemployment benefits for individuals who have been laid off or displaced during the pandemic. They have adopted emergency procedures to try to make unemployment assistance available to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. They can be reached at www.ides.illinois.gov or at 800-244-5631. If you have any questions about these programs and services you can give us a call at 217-235-5661. We have a great community and we will get through this pandemic together. Ed Dowd is the Executive Director of the Mattoon Chamber of Commerce 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. Over the past few days, an increasing number of New Mexicans have insisted on the development of a clear path forward in terms of getting our economy running again. That is not in any way dismissive of the very real public health crisis we are facing, both here and across the world. The guidelines for social distancing and stay-at-home instructions are still essential for beating COVID-19. But a growing number of small-business owners and elected officials have become increasingly vocal with expressing their very legitimate concern that the current lines dividing essential and nonessential businesses are not logical and are especially unfair to small businesses and the thousands of people who rely on them for their livelihood. Additionally, as these closure instructions continue to be extended for a longer period of time, there is growing fear that no amount of federal assistance programs will ever come close to getting our citizens back on their feet economically. We do not want to survive this crisis with nothing left of our society. These executive health orders were put in place by our governor. Municipalities such as the city of Carlsbad are in the same predicament in terms of compliance with these orders as everyone else. How do we respectfully address economic concerns while maintaining the highest level of health protection? Even most of our states health care providers will soon have to lay off employees because nonessential operations have ceased. Many of these nonessential procedures, such as mammograms and colonoscopies, are preventive measures that save lives. Last week, Farmington Mayor Nate Duckett issued a declaration calling on the governor to consider modifying the public health orders to permit all businesses to immediately reopen at 20% of maximum capacity, while also adhering to social distancing guidelines. An Eddy County business owner has established an online petition making a similar request that has received several thousand signatures. Carla Sonntag, president and founder of the New Mexico Business Coalition (NMBC), has presented a path forward that we believe contains many excellent ideas. NMBC suggests we continue with social distancing guidelines and that vulnerable citizens with significant health issues continue to remain sheltered. Masks are recommended for customers and employees in public shopping areas. As Duckett stated, the NMBC is recommending all businesses that can operate under the same guidelines currently in effect of a 20% occupancy be allowed to do so and open back up immediately. Outdoor recreational facilities should also be allowed to open back up at a limited capacity, as well. In early May, NMBC recommends these businesses and outdoor recreational facilities be allowed to operate at 50% capacity. They recommend incremental increases to this capacity throughout the month. NMBC also recommends opening indoor recreational facilities to a limited capacity by late May. You can read NMBCs entire plan at nmbizcoalition.org/. Lets again make this clear we are not dismissing the very real health concerns presented by COVID-19. Our community has been fortunate so far to have a small number of cases due to social distancing taking place and our rural environment. My sincere thanks go out to everyone who has worked so hard to keep the spread of COVID-19 to a minimum in our area. However, it is well past time that we begin to have a serious discussion on healthy ways to reopen New Mexico. We spoke directly with the Governors Office about this issue on Thursday. We have been assured the economic well-being of our small businesses and our residents remains an extremely vital facet of this health crisis. We appreciate the governor for reaching out to us directly and hope we can continue to discuss safe ways to get New Mexico back on its feet. We endorse the New Mexico Business Coalitions call for the state to immediately allow all businesses to reopen at a limited and reasonable capacity. We encourage Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to work closely with leaders across New Mexico in developing the path forward. The tourism department of Torremolinos town hall has launched a new online initiative to highlight the typical gastronomy of the town's restaurants, beach bars, pastry shops and bakeries. The scheme (#CocinamosEnCasaCon) is designed to promote local businesses that are suffering because of the current lockdown, while helping to relieve the boredom of confinement. Chefs from some of the town's most popular establishments are publishing easy to follow recipes online for people to make at home. These include Los Pescadores Playa, Los Valles and Panaderia San Francisco. The initiative also invites individuals to offer recipes for dishes typical of Torremolinos. These can be posted on the Turismo Torremolinos Facebook page, or on Twitter and Instagram. Turns out a bumper crop is bad news for farmers in times of Covid-19. On April 18, vegetable farmer Kannaiyan Subramaniam uploaded a video of his cabbage field on social media platform, Twitter. Within hours, it went viral with several users commenting on the video, and tagging others to amplify his message. The 50-year-old vegetable farmer in Voddarahalli village in Karnatakas Chamarajanagara district, located on the border with Tamil Nadu, said that he had nearly 100 tonnes of cabbage that was ready for harvest. Faced with the prospect of fresh and healthy cabbages rotting in the 3.5-acre land that he farms on lease, Subramaniam who is also the general secretary of the South India Coordination Committee of Farmers Movements, a farmers rights lobby group, posted a 15-second video in Tamil asking people to help him find buyers. He offered his entire crop for Rs 3 lakh, a sum that he said, would barely cover his initial investment. Since then, the video has received more than 305,000 views, 25,000 retweets, and plenty of gratuitous advice. Subramaniam is yet to find a buyer. He said that while he was in talks with parliamentarian Tejasvi Suryas team, who has offered to buy 15 tonnes, nothing was finalised as yet. In the past 24 hours, others have taken to social media platforms to seek buyers for their produce, including a watermelon farmer from Bijapur, a tomato farmer from Sarjapur and a banana farmer from Tutocorin. With markets shut and people homebound due to the lockdown, demand for produce across the country has crashed. Unable to sell much, vegetable farmers are saddled with massive losses. This is the story of thousands of vegetable farmers across India today. According to an April 8 report by Credit Suisse, a financial research firm, despite a bumper harvest in the Rabi season, the arrival of fruit and vegetables in the countrys wholesale markets has fallen by a whopping 50-95%, as only a fraction of the 7,000 wholesale markets have been functioning after the lockdown was enforced. In 2019-20, Indian farmers sold 284 million tonnes of horticultural produce worth Rs 5 lakh crore. Even assuming only a 50% fall in market arrivals over a month of lockdown, vegetable farmers would have lost in excess of Rs 20,000 crore. Subramaniam sold his previous harvest of cabbages for Rs 11.50 a kilogramme. Im not looking for profit. I would be happy if I can recover my cost and the cabbages reach those who dont have enough to eat in these times, he told Hindustan Times, two days after posting the video. Subramaniams plight illustrates how the already bumpy road from farm-to-fork has caved in during the lockdown. A few days ago, local newspapers in Karnataka reported that nearly 70 farmers in Shivamogga district were stuck with 2,000 tonnes of ash gourd as regular buyers from Delhi and Agra failed to turn up. Petha, the popular north Indian sweet is made of candied ash gourd. Similarly, Panruti in Cuddalore district is the jackfruit capital of Tamil Nadu. With the onset of summer, the giant, spiky fruits are everywhere but the demand has dried up. Some local businessmen and charitable organisations in the region pooled in money and bought the jackfruit from farmers. The lot was handed over to the local municipal authorities that door delivered vegetables. Anyone who purchased a 3 kg vegetable pack sold by the government at Rs 100 was given a free jackfruit; ordinarily, the fruit costs close to Rs 150. Subramaniam rang up the agri war room helpline set up by the Karnataka government, which functions between 8am to 8pm to help farmers with transportation passes, farm equipment access and disease management. The officials told me they couldnt do anything about procurement directly but offered to connect me to traders who could only pay Rs 2 a kilo. The traders said even that price could not be guaranteed, he said. Usually, market agents from distant parts of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka would visit Subramaniams farm and harvest the required quantity of cabbage themselves. If Subramaniam wanted to sell his produce at big market centres of Erode or Chennai for a higher price, he would harvest, sort, package and transport the vegetables directly to traders there. Since the lockdown, agents havent been able to come to his farm. Hiring a mini-truck that can carry about 5-6 tonnes of cabbage to the market isnt viable. During the lockdown operators charge more than Rs 30,000 for one consignment from my village to the wholesale market in Chennai, Subramaniam said. One grocery retail chain sought to buy 3000 cabbages from him at Rs 5 apiece, but asked Subramaniam to deliver them at a collection centre in Mandya 125 km away. He refused, because he felt that paying for transportation would have meant throwing good money after bad. No matter how you dice it, there is no way I can even break even, he said. When the lockdown is lifted, demand will inch up but the loss-ridden farmers will not have the financial means to invest in a new crop. With a fall in production consumer prices will skyrocket. Its a deadly spiral for both the farmer and consumer, said Subramaniam. Passenger traffic at Vinci airports - which manages a diversified international network of 45 airports - dropped 20.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 as the effects of Covid-19 have caused a global shutdown. After a robust performance in January 2020, with 2.1 per cent growth, in line with the trend of the end of the previous year, passenger numbers fell by 5 per cent in February due to reduced demand in Asia. The traffic was then heavily impacted in March (down 55.7 per cent) by the introduction of travel restrictions introduced in many countries (quarantine measures, social distancing, border closures) in order to limit the spread of the pandemic. The decline was particularly sharp at the end of March, with very low passenger numbers at certain Vinci Airports network facilities. The same trend is seen at the beginning of April. Nicolas Notebaert, chairman of Vinci Airports and chief executive officer of Vinci Concessions, said: Our industry is going through a crisis that is unprecedented in its intensity and scope. In this very difficult climate, each of our airports can draw on unfailing support from our entire network to be stronger and more proactive facing the crisis and to better prepare, with all air sector stakeholders, the recovery when it comes." Regional breakdown Asia In Japan, there was a sharp downturn in traffic with China in January, and then of South Korean traffic in February. Across the entire first quarter, passenger numbers at the three airports in the Kansai region declined by 31 per cent. Passenger numbers held up better at Osaka-Itami (down 18.2 per cent) and Kobe (down 9 per cent) airports due to domestic demand. In Cambodia, passenger numbers at the three Vinci Airports facilities posted a 41.5 per cent decline over the first quarter. The impact on Siem Reap and Sihanoukville airports, where passenger numbers depend more heavily on Chinese demand, was stronger than on Phnom Penh. Europe Following 6.9 per cent growth in January and 10.1 per cent in February, there was a sharp downturn in passenger numbers at the 10 airports in Portugal from March 15, with a 15.3 per cent decline recorded over the first quarter as a whole. Due to the diversity of its traffic, passenger numbers at Lisbon were firmer than at Faro, which was impacted by the decline in the tourism market. In the UK, London Gatwick Airport saw a 22.5 per cent decline in passenger numbers in the first quarter of 2020. Following the impact on passenger numbers in February of Storms Ciara (over 400 flights cancelled on February 9), Dennis and Jorge, the first effects of the public health crisis hit that same month with the suspension of links with northern Italy. Belfast International Airport saw a similar fall in passenger numbers. In France, traffic at the facilities managed by Vinci Airports declined by 18.9 per cent over the first quarter of 2020, due mainly to the introduction of widespread containment measures on 17 March. In this difficult context, the decline at Nantes was limited to 10 per cent thanks to the strong growth recorded at the beginning of the year, driven by the opening of an easyJet base in 2019 and Voloteas momentum. The Lyon airports posted a 20.7 per cent decline in passenger numbers. In Serbia, Belgrade airport started the year with 16.1 per cent growth in passenger numbers in January and 13.0 per cent in February, boosted by the momentum of Air Serbia in international markets. The downturn in passenger numbers in March and the total closure of the airport to commercial flights decided by the government on March 26 explain the 10.8 per cent decline over the entire first quarter. Americas In the Dominican Republic, despite a good start to the year when passenger numbers rose 12.4 per cent in January and 10.2 per cent in February, there was a 6.5 per cent decline over the first quarter as a whole. This fall was due to the closure of the countrys borders on March 19. In Brazil, the start of 2020 confirmed the good recovery of passenger numbers at Salvador following the loss of traffic due to airline Avianca Brazil going into administration in May 2019. The spread of Covid-19 during the month of March nevertheless caused a 9.4 per cent decline in passenger numbers in the first quarter of 2020. In Chile, passenger numbers fell by 12.5 per cent in the first quarter due both to the continued deterioration of the social climate that started at the end of 2019 and the spread, in March, of Covid-19, which resulted in the closure of the countrys borders on March 18. - TradeArabia News Service As Meghan Markle and Prince Harry begin their independent life together, the couple is under a lot of pressure to make things work. The Duke of Sussex, however, is under even more stress from his wife who said he always has to "look good." An Incurable Condition Hollywood has always been a picture of perfection, and Meghan Markle knows this for a fact. While the royal couple might be under intense scrutiny since they stepped down as senior members of the royal family, Prince Harry is dealing with a different kind of pressure from Meghan: keeping his own physical appearance. Spencer Stevenson of SpexHair.com said that Meghan remains to be glamorous and attractive even after her marriage to the royal prince. With that said, Prince Harry will have to work on keeping his look at par with his wife. "I can only imagine that's put additional pressure on Harry to keep up appearances with his own physical appearance, definitely," Stevenson shared. During his interview with Express, Stevenson also highlighted Harry's incurable condition. "His hair loss is one hundred percent genetic and not stress-related at all," Stevenson emphasized, which could be a problem for Harry in their move to Hollywood. Harry has obviously been suffering from hair loss, but the expert believes it is not due to the immense stress he has to deal with. Rather, his hair condition is hereditary -- making it an incurable one. Harry, who has always looked attractive with his red hair, has been dealing with male pattern baldness. His hair on top is obviously thinning, making him look a lot like his brother Prince William. While this may sound like good news to Harry's stress levels, it also means that his hair loss problem may be something more permanent. Stevenson then gave a stern warning to Prince Harry concerning his hair loss. "If Harry doesn't intervene with proven hair loss treatments, then in my experienced opinion he could well be completely bald like William within the next three to five years. This is why Harry is believed to be taking action now," Stevenon explained. According to reports, Harry underwent a hair thickening treatment towards the end of 2019. The Prince reportedly visited the Philip Kingsley Trichological Clinic in London to combat his bald patch. A source said that his visit to the clinic reportedly caused a stir as it is one of the most prestigious in the world. "The richest, most famous and well-connected use it. The meeting with Harry went well. It would be very expensive. It's the place to go in London and it's right in the heart of Mayfair," the source added. Rushed To Marriage While Prince Harry may be at the right age to get married, Stevenson said that the prince, at the time of his wedding, might be rushing due to anxiety. "I think young men may rush into marriages because they feel as though no one will be interested in them once their receding hairline worsens. Prince Harry's own receding crown of hair could very well have played into these same anxieties," Stevenson added. Stevenson also acknowledged that Prince Harry was still human after all. "His anxiety and insecurity could very well have influenced him to make a snap decision on marriage." Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:30:36|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close - Ma Xiaowei, minister in charge of China's National Health Commission, calls on all parties to continue supporting the WHO's leading role in coordinating international cooperation against COVID-19. - "Today, the exchange of national practices to overcome all the negative consequences of COVID-19 is very important. And in this situation, the leading role of the WHO is important," Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said. - Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu expressed her hope that under the leadership of the WHO, countries can form joint efforts to unleash power that no single country can achieve alone. by Xinhua writers He Fei, Sui Lixi BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Health Ministers of Group of 20 (G20) have highlighted the need to further coordinate efforts and to support the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) in combatting COVID-19. A virtual meeting on Sunday, hosted by Saudi Arabia, convened health leaders of G20 members and other invited countries, as well as officials from international and regional organizations including the WHO and the World Bank Group. Photo taken on Apirl 19, 2020 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia shows Group of 20 (G20) health ministers attending a virtual meeting. (G20 Saudi Arabia/Handout via Xinhua) SUPPORT FOR WHO During the meeting, G20 health ministers voiced their support for the WHO in playing a leading role in coordinating global efforts against the novel coronavirus. Ma Xiaowei, minister in charge of China's National Health Commission, said China is willing to implement the consensus reached at the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit in late March, and calls on all parties to continue supporting the WHO's leading role in coordinating international cooperation against COVID-19. He also called for international cooperation in carrying out joint prevention and control in the fight against the pandemic. "Today, the exchange of national practices to overcome all the negative consequences of COVID-19 is very important. And in this situation, the leading role of the WHO is important," Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said. Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu also expressed her hope that under the leadership of the WHO, countries can form joint efforts to unleash power that no single country can achieve alone, adding that they need to make sure that no nation falls behind. World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus speaks at the Group of 20 (G20) health ministers virtual meeting, April 19, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Yuguo) Speaking at the virtual meeting from Geneva, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the health ministers that the WHO "has sounded the alarm bell loud and clear" since the beginning. His remarks came after the United States announced Tuesday a decision to halt the nation's funding to the WHO, which President Donald Trump accused of "severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus." On the pandemic battle, Tedros said, "We are encouraged that several G20 countries are now starting to plan how to ease social restrictions. It is critical that these measures are a phased process." Currently, the pandemic is showing more encouraging signs of abating on the European continent, with a continuous drop in the daily numbers of new deaths and new infections. In the United States, a debate is ongoing about whether it is time for governors to lift stay-at-home orders, as Trump has unveiled guidelines for a phased reopening of the U.S. economy. Lifting lockdown restrictions is not the end of the pandemic, but just the beginning of its next phase, Tedros told the health ministers, adding it is vital in this next phase that countries educate, engage and empower their people to prevent and respond rapidly to any resurgence. The WHO is committed to leading the work requested by the G20 leaders, in cooperation with its partners, to assess gaps in global preparedness, and lay the foundations for a healthier, safer, fairer world, Tedros said. "The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us of a simple truth: We are one humanity. We share the same planet. We share the same hopes and dreams. We share the same destiny," the WHO chief said. Head of China's National Health Commission Ma Xiaowei attends the Group of 20 (G20) health ministers' virtual meeting in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, April 19, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Yuguo) IMPROVE HEALTH SYSTEMS The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed systemic weaknesses in health systems, and has shown vulnerabilities in the global community's ability to prevent and respond to pandemic threats, the health ministers noted during the virtual meeting. They addressed the need to improve the effectiveness of global health systems by sharing knowledge and closing the gap in response capabilities and readiness, according to the meeting's news release. The G20 health ministers also shared their respective countries' experiences and preventative measures in containing the pandemic. China's medical supplies for 18 African countries arrive at the Kotota International Airport in Accra, capital of Ghana, April 6, 2020. (Xinhua/Xu Zheng) Ma, briefing his colleagues, said that after three months of hard work, the domestic transmission in China has basically been curbed, with more people resuming normal life and returning to work. "We have been continually improving our prevention, control and treatment work and sharing our experience with the world," he said. His view was shared by Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza, who stressed the need to establish a joint prevention and control method, to make the world prepared for any possible future incidents. Speranza also suggested promoting cooperation in clinical trials, research, medical treatment and other areas. Murashko singled out the global issue of access to and provision of medical products, including regulatory mechanisms and quality control procedures, stressing the need to improve global response mechanisms. Japanese Health Minister Katsunobu Kato, meanwhile, highlighted the importance of making coordination a priority. The meeting also addressed the importance of utilizing digital solutions in pandemics, and the emphasis on patient safety, among other issues. Workers transfer medical supplies from China in Cairo International Airport, Egypt, April 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Wu Huiwo) NO ONE LEFT BEHIND The ministers echoed G20 leaders' concerns over the risks posed by the pandemic to developing and less-developed countries, where health systems and economies may be less able to cope with such challenges. The WHO is deeply concerned that the virus now appears to be gathering pace in countries that lack the capacity of many G20 countries to respond to it, Tedros told the health ministers. "Urgent support is needed, not only to support countries to respond to COVID-19, but to ensure other essential health services continue," he said. In his address to the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit in late March, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed that a G20 health ministers' meeting be convened as soon as possible to improve information sharing, strengthen cooperation on drugs, vaccines and epidemic control, and cut off cross-border infections. Xi also proposed a G20 COVID-19 assistance initiative for better information sharing and policy and action coordination with the support of the WHO. Guided by the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China has been more than ready to share its good practices and provide assistance in its capacity to countries hit by the pandemic, Xi said. So far, the Chinese government has provided or is providing supplies to 127 countries and four international organizations and has sent expert teams to 15 countries, according to Ma, who also urged the health ministers to boost joint efforts to provide help to countries with vulnerable health systems. Wang Anming, a member of Chinese medical experts team, installs CT equipment in Baghdad, Iraq, April 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Miao) Saudi Arabia, which holds the presidency of the G20 this year, announced Thursday a 500-million-U.S. dollar donation to relevant international organizations to support global efforts in combating COVID-19. On Wednesday, G20 finance ministers and central bank governors agreed to suspend debt service payments for the world's poorest countries from May 1 until the end of the year. With international coordination and mutual assistance gathering momentum, the international community is fostering greater synergy so that humanity as one, as Xi said, may win the battle against COVID-19. Enditem (Xinhua reporters Tu Yifan, Nie Xiaoyang, Yuan Xinfang contributed to the story.) (Video reporters: Sui Lixi, Wang Yu, Wang Yuguo, Tu Yifan; Video editor: Chen Sihong) Oil prices in the United States crashed on Monday to a record low amid a collapse in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. oil futures went below $0 a barrel, the worst level since NYMEX opened oil futures trading in 1983. The development came against the backdrop of an 18-year low drop in prices amid storage challenges. Analysts said that record output cuts agreed by OPEC and its allies, OPEC+, are not enough to offset the loss in demand occasioned by the global downturn. As factories and machines across the world grind to a halt, demand for oil as nosedived amid falling prices. According to Bjornar Tonhaugen, head of oil markets at Rystad Energy, the May futures contract for West Texas International is about to expire, and frantic last minute trading is compounding concerns about how much oil the United States will be able to store as demand dries up. This is leading to large price swings, he explained. Negative swing The development implies that oil producers are paying buyers to take the commodity off their hands over fears that storage capacity could run out in May. As a result, oil firms have resorted to renting tankers to store the surplus supply and that has forced the price of U.S. oil into negative. Analysts attributed the severe drop on Monday to the technicality of the global oil market. Oil is traded on its future price and May futures contracts are due to expire Tuesday. Due to the uncertainty, traders were keen to offload those holdings to avoid having to take delivery of the oil and incur storage costs. On Monday, the slump affected future prospect as June prices for WTI were also down, but trading at above $20 per barrel. Meanwhile, Brent Crude,the benchmark used by Europe and the rest of the world, was also weaker, down more than 7% at about $26 a barrel. Earlier in the month, OPEC members and its allies agreed a record deal to slash global output by about 10 percent, said to be the largest cut in oil production ever to have been agreed. But analysts expressed doubts over the deal, saying it will not be enough to balance oil markets. Unsold Cargoes, no storage Last week, PREMIUM TIMES reported how Nigerias benchmark crude oil grade, Bonny Light, slumped significantly in the market. The Nigeria crude traded at $12 and $13 per barrel between Monday and Friday. The report came after traders gave account of how 10 million barrels of crude made available for sale in April were still unsold with another 60 million expected to hit the market in May. The vast majority of unsold supplies are Nigerian, traders said, and the glut is made worse because of the drop in demand from traditional European buyers. Market analysts said it is not just West African oil markets that are struggling in the Atlantic Basin. Principally due to so much European demand halted by the virus, grades in the North Sea and the Mediterranean are also affected. There are concerns that the development may pose challenges to Nigerian fiscal policymakers, as the nation struggles to address economic uncertainties. This is because the prevailing prices are well below the nations fiscal breakeven, assessed by Fitch Ratings at about $133 a barrel. As prices crash amid falling demand, capacity is filling fast on land and at sea. As that process continues, its likely to bear down further on prices. On Monday, market insiders said that it will take a recovery in demand to really turn the market round and that will depend on how the Coronavirus crisis unfolds across the globe. Auto DR LLC looking for assistance Auto DR LLC in Ira Township is asking for assistance in 3D printing surgical mask ear guards. The auto repair shop has partnered with Brian Lutt at B Spoke Inc. to increase production of the free ear guards for medical professionals and first responders. Demand continues to increase, and we are desperately looking for any business that has a 3D printer that is willing to help us make these ear guards, owner Dustin Rutkowski said in a news release. As of April 13, Auto DR LLC had distributed ear guards to staff at Ascension Macomb, Ascension Oakland, Beaumont Troy, Detroit Medical Center, McLaren Macomb, Ira Township Fire Department, Medstar Ambulance and several skilled care facilities and was working on orders for additional hospital staff and the Wayne County Sheriffs Office. Those who would like to help with printing or would like to request ear guards can call 586-684-3368. ECSD Kindergarten/Young Fives Roundup postponed East China School District has postponed its Kindergarten/Young Fives Roundup indefinitely due to the mandatory school closure. With the recent passage of Bond 2020, we have many new and exciting opportunities awaiting all current and incoming students, a post on the districts Facebook states. The post said the roundup will be rescheduled if and when the district is able. Those interested in having their child attend either kindergarten or young fives in the ECSD for the 2020-2021 school year are asked to complete an interest form at forms.gle/rFWkiu6MSZ2mpbZt6. MSU Extension offers Adulting 101 classes Michigan State University Extension is offering 11th- and 12th-graders free online classes called Adulting 101. Learn some quick tips that will help you navigate life and college, a flyer for the classes state. Classes on budget and credit and rent were offered April 9 and 16, respectively. Cooking 101 will take place at 2 p.m. April 23 and Household Tasks will take place at 2 p.m. April 30. To participate, students can download the Zoom app and use the meeting link msu.zoom.us/j/257448955. For more information, contact Michelle Neff at 989-429-2359 or hydemich@msu.edu. Holy Cross PTO hosts flower fundraiser The Holy Cross Catholic School Parent Teacher Organization is hosting a flower fundraiser. Members will email those interested an order form, which people should print, fill out and send with a check made out to Our Lady on the River to Kari Steinmetz, 618 S. Water St., Marine City, MI 48039. PTO Flower Sale should be included on the memo line of the check. Those who do not have printer access can email Jodi Farrand at mom0153@yahoo.com with an order. Orders are due by May 4 and will be available for pickup or delivery May 8. The PTO will be at Vandenbossche Farms, located at 5225 Mesiner Road in China Township, from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. May 8. Those who would like the flowers to be delivered should make sure to include the address for delivery on their order form. Items will be dropped off on porches or in mailboxes for gift certificates. We thank you for your patience as we navigate a new method of selling, organizers said on the Holy Cross Catholic School Facebook page. For more information, email Farrand at mom0153@yahoo.com. Emily Pauling, MediaNews Group Jackie 'O' Henderson has set the record straight on tabloid rumours she is 'secretly dating' Dr Chris Brown during the coronavirus pandemic. The KIIS 106.5 radio presenter, 45, told listeners on Monday that she wasn't in a relationship with the 41-year-old veterinarian. She was responding to a New Idea article that claimed the pair had been 'privately' meeting up in Sydney's Bondi Beach, where they both live. Fake news! Jackie 'O' Henderson (left) has set the record straight on tabloid rumours she is 'secretly dating' Dr Chris Brown (right) during the coronavirus pandemic Jackie's co-host, Kyle Sandilands, addressed the rumours live on air. 'I read in the paper the other day you were in lockdown with Dr Chris Brown, [that] you've been having a secret quarantine relationship. Is that true?' he asked. 'Yeah, I read that too. No, that's not true, Kyle,' Jackie replied. 'No secret relationship with Chris Brown.' Kyle, 48, then asked if Jackie and Chris had spoken on the phone and 'laughed' about the magazine article. 'That's not true': She was responding to a New Idea article that claimed the pair had been 'privately' meeting up in Sydney's Bondi Beach, where they both live 'No, I don't even have his number,' said the divorced mother-of-one. 'I don't really know Chris Brown that well. I don't know why [magazines] keep saying that. This isn't the first time they've said that.' But Kyle wasn't finished, and proceeded to joke that Chris and Jackie had been using the handsome vet's stethoscope in a sexual manner. Naughty! Jackie's co-host, Kyle Sandilands (pictured), addressed the rumours on air and joked that Chris and Jackie had been using the handsome vet's stethoscope in a sexual manner Love in lockdown? It comes after New Idea falsely claimed Jackie and Chris had been spotted 'hanging out in Bondi' during the coronavirus pandemic It comes after New Idea falsely claimed Jackie and Chris had been spotted 'hanging out in Bondi' during the coronavirus pandemic. '[Lockdowns] have actually been perfect timing for them, because they have months to explore things in private without the added stress of being busted out in public together,' the publication quoted a source as saying. The insider claimed COVID-19 had been a 'blessing in disguise' for the pair because it had allowed their romance to develop under the radar. Meanwhile, Woman's Day reported on Monday that Chris was dating 29-year-old model Brooke Meredith. That's not Jackie! Meanwhile, Woman's Day reported on Monday that Chris was dating 29-year-old model Brooke Meredith. Pictured on February 19, 2020 in Melbourne It's not the first time the media personalities have been the subject of romance rumours. In February last year, Kyle asked Jackie point blank if she was dating the I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! presenter. Jackie struggled to find an answer before Chris interrupted to say: 'Lost for words! I get that a lot in love, it's a sure sign of love.' However, they both denied being anything more than friends. Gossip: It's not the first time the media personalities have been the subject of romance rumours. In February last year, Kyle asked Jackie point blank if she was dating the I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! presenter Earlier this month, Jackie revealed she had been inundated with flirty messages after she announced her split from ex-husband Lee Henderson in October 2018. 'When I was single, straight away my DMs lit up like crazy,' said Jackie, who shares a nine-year-old daughter, Kitty, with Lee. Jackie admitted that one famous man in her social circle had contacted her 'literally within two hours' of announcing her marriage split. She refused to name the mystery celebrity, but said he 'actually has a profile'. Students would initially go to school for one day a week under a plan to gradually stage their return to the classroom as premier Gladys Berejiklian pushes for a return to face-to-face teaching. Under the proposal, attendance would be ramped up in stages if transmission of coronavirus within the community remains low. Ms Berejiklian is due to announce details of her return-to-school plan on Tuesday morning. Students to attend class one day a week under proposal for a gradual return to school. Credit:Janie Barrett The model is unlikely to be backed by the NSW Teachers Federation, which has been pushing for year 12 and kindergarten to return first. But it has the support of influential education researcher John Hattie, who says any school is better than none. Ms Berejiklian has flagged May 11 as the deadline for students to begin returning to schools under a roster system, although remote learning will continue to remain a feature of NSW schooling until normal operations resume. As billions of people around the world are stuck adhering to strict lockdowns and physical distancing measures due to the coronavirus pandemic, shocking images from one country have made headlines around the world. As many as 100,000 people turned out at a funeral in Bangladesh over the weekend, sparking alarm that the event could lead to a huge outbreak of the deadly disease. No one appeared to be wearing masks, gloves, or any protective gear. Coronavirus live blog: Latest news and updates about the crisis in Australia Thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims gather to attend the funeral of a popular Islamic preacher. Source: AP Bangladesh officials are reportedly investigating how the huge crowd was allowed to attend the funeral of a popular Islamic preacher on Saturday, even as authorities battle a surge in virus cases. Police had agreed with the family of Jubayer Ahmad Ansari, that only 50 people would attend the funeral in the eastern town of Sarail because of the risk of spreading the disease. But local police chief Shahadat Hossain said officers were helpless to stop the crowds who came to honour the 55-year-old popular preacher and seminary head, who died on Friday. People came in waves, he told AFP. Bangladesh, a nation of 160 million people, is clearly struggling to enforce ban on large gatherings. Source: AP Organisers said some 100,000 attended the funeral. Aide to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Shah Ali Farhad, also said more than 100,000 were present. According to the latest figures as of Monday morning, AEST, the country has recorded more than 2,400 coronavirus cases and 91 deaths. Bangladesh imposed a nationwide lockdown on March 26 as coronavirus spread across the country of 168 million people. The health department said the number of cases had risen by more than 300 on Saturday, the day of the funeral. Authorities have conducted few tests and experts say the number of cases is higher than officially recognised. Despite the scenes over the weekend, the government has been trying to prevent large gatherings and has brought in new rules that ban more than five people taking part in prayers in the country's 300,000 mosques. The prime minister has called on Bangladeshis to pray at home when the Ramadan festival starts this month. But a group of influential clerics has called on Muslims to turn out in their masses for daily prayers. Story continues Muslim devotees attend the funeral, with none appearing to wear protective gear. Source: Getty Global textile industries hit by pandemic The funeral was held just a day after hundreds of Bangladeshi workers who produce garments for global brands are demanding their unpaid wages during a nationwide lockdown that has forced most factories to suspend operations. A leader of the factory owners' association blamed global brands for abruptly cancelling orders from many factories. Protests were reported in several parts of Dhaka, including in Kamlapur and Mirpur, while hundreds of workers blocked a highway outside the capital, disrupting vehicles carrying produce. Bangladesh's textile industry accounts for nearly 85 per cent of the nation's $40 billion in annual exports and employs nearly four million workers, mostly women from rural areas. It is facing serious trouble after global brands including Wal-Mart, H&M and Marks & Spencer cancelled orders because of the coronavirus pandemic. The global tally of confirmed coronavirus cases has surged passed 2.4 million, according to a rolling tally by John Hopkins University. There have been more than 165,000 cases recorded COVID-19 deaths so far. with AFP, AP Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play. Ive been around a long time and remember vividly this very question being asked in preparation for Y2K. The answer then was No, its not essential if the world ends when the clock strikes midnight on 12/31/99. At the time, I was VP of Marketing for First Tech Credit Union, so you can imagine how delighted I was when virtually NOTHING happened. Now were in an unthinkable situation. A global pandemic that has literally shut down our economy over night. We did not have months to prepare as was the case with Y2K. There was no dress rehearsal, nothing in the business plan that said In case of a global pandemic. and so we are punting for the most part. So whats a marketer to do? There is an amazing opportunity here to literally question everything we do. Ive been watching four credit unions in the Portland, Oregon market. I used to work at two of them and had an account at another, so I know a bit about their culture, leadership, etc. In case you havent noticed, its NOT business as usual. Your website should reflect that, almost honor it in a way. If youre still pushing the same products and services that all your competitors do, dig deep and figure out a way to stand out. Tip #1: If you are involved in your community, put that front and center, not buried in the ABOUT US section. Most credit unions are great at getting involved in their community when there is NOT a crisis. Brag about that. Tip #2: What is the overall tone of your website. Look at your stock art. Does it reflect your membership? Your community? Your values or mission? Or, did you just do what practically every other credit union on the planet did and grab the shiniest, happiest, prettiest people smiling at all the stages of their imaginary lives? Now is the time to tell YOUR story and embrace YOUR roots in the community. Reread the copy, does it reflect the new way of doing business? Or merely suggest members try out our mobile options? Tip #3: DO NOT take this opportunity to steal members from other financial institutions. One of the Portland CUs Ive been monitoring is offering $200 to switch financial institutions. The fine print says they have to open a checking account, the kind where you have to make 12 debit card transactions per month, sign up for e-statements and access online banking at least once per month. In addition, you also have to qualify for a credit card and you have to have a job. The worst part about this campaign is the VIDEO on the page that shows a young man and woman on the beach embracing while he spins her around (in slow motion). Seriously? The landing page is a young beautiful black woman jumping up in the air while 100 dollar bills float around her. This is offensive. Tip #4: DO NOT be dishonest. Let me explain. A credit union marketer called me and told me she wasnt quite sure how to word a campaign she was asked to launch. Its a refinance auto loan promotion. BUT, she admitted that the underwriting is not going to change and they are very conservative, so how does she say Um, you arent going to qualify if you dont have a job or have reduced income Tip #5: Make yourself essential. Forget the rules. Offer to go through an accelerated teller training class and take shifts on the front line. Find the other pain points in the organization and offer to cross train and pitch in. Tip #6: Marketers could take on a new role and be the center for daily communication with remote employees. Kind of like a daily newsletter and we know how to have fun, so please have some fun too. Its not about marketing its about being aware, getting creative, paying attention and being compassionate. Just because a business does not make any money, does not mean that the stock will go down. For example, although software-as-a-service business Salesforce.com lost money for years while it grew recurring revenue, if you held shares since 2005, you'd have done very well indeed. But while the successes are well known, investors should not ignore the very many unprofitable companies that simply burn through all their cash and collapse. So, the natural question for International Tower Hill Mines (TSE:ITH) shareholders is whether they should be concerned by its rate of cash burn. In this article, we define cash burn as its annual (negative) free cash flow, which is the amount of money a company spends each year to fund its growth. The first step is to compare its cash burn with its cash reserves, to give us its 'cash runway'. View our latest analysis for International Tower Hill Mines When Might International Tower Hill Mines Run Out Of Money? A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. As at December 2019, International Tower Hill Mines had cash of US$6.9m and no debt. In the last year, its cash burn was US$3.8m. That means it had a cash runway of around 22 months as of December 2019. While that cash runway isn't too concerning, sensible holders would be peering into the distance, and considering what happens if the company runs out of cash. Depicted below, you can see how its cash holdings have changed over time. TSX:ITH Historical Debt April 20th 2020 How Is International Tower Hill Mines's Cash Burn Changing Over Time? International Tower Hill Mines didn't record any revenue over the last year, indicating that it's an early stage company still developing its business. So while we can't look to sales to understand growth, we can look at how the cash burn is changing to understand how expenditure is trending over time. Over the last year its cash burn actually increased by 5.6%, which suggests that management are increasing investment in future growth, but not too quickly. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but investors should be mindful of the fact that will shorten the cash runway. International Tower Hill Mines makes us a little nervous due to its lack of substantial operating revenue. We prefer most of the stocks on this list of stocks that analysts expect to grow. Story continues How Easily Can International Tower Hill Mines Raise Cash? While its cash burn is only increasing slightly, International Tower Hill Mines shareholders should still consider the potential need for further cash, down the track. Companies can raise capital through either debt or equity. Commonly, a business will sell new shares in itself to raise cash to drive growth. By comparing a company's annual cash burn to its total market capitalisation, we can estimate roughly how many shares it would have to issue in order to run the company for another year (at the same burn rate). Since it has a market capitalisation of US$79m, International Tower Hill Mines's US$3.8m in cash burn equates to about 4.8% of its market value. Given that is a rather small percentage, it would probably be really easy for the company to fund another year's growth by issuing some new shares to investors, or even by taking out a loan. How Risky Is International Tower Hill Mines's Cash Burn Situation? On this analysis of International Tower Hill Mines's cash burn, we think its cash burn relative to its market cap was reassuring, while its increasing cash burn has us a bit worried. Considering all the factors discussed in this article, we're not overly concerned about the company's cash burn, although we do think shareholders should keep an eye on how it develops. An in-depth examination of risks revealed 3 warning signs for International Tower Hill Mines that readers should think about before committing capital to this stock. If you would prefer to check out another company with better fundamentals, then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt or this list of stocks which are all forecast to grow. 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. Government will no longer continue sharing free food to the vulnerable following the lifting of the partial lockdown in some selected areas in the country. It may be recalled that government started the distribution of free meals to over 400,000 Ghanaians in locked-down areas amidst the COVID-19 outbreak in Ghana. The distribution of food packages and hot meals was to lessen the burden on poor households for the three-week lockdown period. In his 7th address to the nation on Sunday, April 20, President Nana Akufo-Addo lifted the restrictions on movement and urged that other measures to curb the spread of the virus be adhered to. Highlighting on various aspects of the President's address in an interview with Kwami Sefa Kayi on PeaceFM's "Kokrokoo", Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah pointed out that "since the partial lockdown has been lifted, there will no longer be free food. " . . but the free water and electricity which the President assured Ghanaians in his previous address is still in force for three months," he said. President Nana Akufo-Addo has lifted the three-week partial lockdown imposed in the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi districts with effect from 1 am Monday, 20th April 2020. This is in spite of the country's Coronavirus case count having increased to 1,042. Total samples tested so far stands at 68,591 with 1.5 % testing positive. Although the lifting of the restrictions may come as a relief to the many whose livelihoods may have been hit hard following the imposition, access to some major sectors remains restricted.The countrys borders remain closed.Further to these, all other measures including social distancing are also to be adhered to.Additionally, suspension of public gathering including religious meetings, still stands; likewise the closure of all educational facilities. Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/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. Featured Video French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe and Health Minister Olivier Veran addressed a press conference last night, outlining the governments plans to end prematurely the nationwide quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic. The press conference, which lasted more than two hours, consisted of a series of lies, evasions and self-congratulations in regard to the French governments own disastrous and criminally negligent policies. Yesterday, another 395 COVID-19 deaths were reported across the country, bringing the total number of French dead to 19,718. Of these, 7,469 deaths have been reported in aged care homes, where the real rate of mortality is likely far higher. At least 45 percent of aged care homes have reported one or more infection among residents. More than 5,900 people remain in hospital emergency beds, in excess of the 5,000 emergency beds that were officially available prior to the outbreak. Neither Philippe nor Veran provided any rational scientific or medical basis, during their press gathering, for the reopening of the economy on May 11 announced last Monday by President Emmanuel Macron. Having already provided hundreds of billions of euros to the corporate and financial elite to ensure that their fortunes are protected from the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic, the government is pushinglike its counterparts internationallyfor a rapid return-to-work under unsafe conditions. Philippe declared that the population would have to learn to live with this virus. What this means in practice is that thousands of workers will continue to die, and that this must come to be seen as a normal part of life, so that the corporations can continue to extract profits from the working class. A large portion of Philippes remarks were devoted to defending the governments own reaction to the virus. The latest CEVIPOF poll for the month of April released on Saturday showed that only 39 percent of the population believed the government had managed this crisis well. The website Gala cited an unnamed ministry adviser on Friday stating that there will be a degagiste [demanding the downfall of the government] movement after the crisis. Its the end of all of us. The term degager [resign] was a main slogan of the Tunisian revolution of 2011. In one characteristic lie, for example, Philippe stated that the government had maintained 107 million protective masks in stock prior to the pandemic, and that this would be sufficient to supply the health system for 20 weeks under normal conditions. He did not specify that these were virtually all lower-grade masks not designed for use by medical personnel, but only suitable for the general population to prevent the spread of an illness. In 2009, the government had maintained in stock over 460 million higher-grade FFP2 masks, designed for use by medical professionals, which the government had calculated would suffice for 90 days in the midst of an epidemic. In 2011, the Sarkozy government cancelled the programme of maintaining FFP2 mask stocks completely, as part of the drive by the political establishment to slash health care spending. By the time the first coronavirus cases were detected in France, the government had no centralized stock of FFP2 masks. The government has provided few details about how it intends to end the quarantine, and Philippe stated that the details were still being worked out and would only be revealed some time in the next two weeks. Health Minister Veran announced that beginning today, limited visits of no more than two people at a time, will be permitted in aged care homes and facilities for the disabled and without any physical contact. Beginning on May 11, schools will reopen, though possibly not all at once. Philippe raised the possibility that they will be reopened progressively by region, or that half the students will attend classes in one week, and half the other. The reopening of schools has been widely opposed by health care professionals and by teachers on social media. Philip Klein, a French doctor preparing to return from Wuhan, where he has worked through the pandemic, told Europe 1, In the case of an end to quarantine the last thing you should do is reopen schools. Klein stated that children are often asymptomatic carriers and are therefore transporters of the epidemic, and reopening schools too quickly would be an enormous risk. From the standpoint of the ruling class, however, the reopening of schools is a necessity in order to allow employees to return to work. Philippe reported that the reproduction rate of the infection had been reduced to 0.65 during the quarantine, meaning that every 100 people with the disease infect, on average, another 65 people. The aim of the measures put in place after the quarantine would be to maintain this rate at or below one. However, the government has not provided any scientific basis for the claim that an end to confinement will not lead to an immediate and catastrophic resurgence of the pandemics spread. The total number of cases across France remains unknown. Official policy remains testing only those most at risk. GP clinics are unable to carry out tests, and people who present COVID-19 symptoms, unless they have already developed respiratory difficulties, are told to go home. Veran claimed the government would seek to increase the total number of tests from 125,000 per week to 500,000 by May 11. Despite the full support of the media, the end to quarantine remains opposed by the majority of the French population, which does not wish to be forced back to work in order to allow the spread of the disease to kill themselves and their family members. The most recent Yougov poll for the Huffington Post showed that 51 percent of the population still supported total confinement, with over 80 percent believing the government should have imposed confinement earlier. The Macron government is seeking to utilize the economic pressure on the working class caused by its own refusal to provide adequate support throughout the pandemic as a cudgel to drive people back to workthis despite the fact that the conditions of the pandemic have only deepened the conditions of social inequality and poverty. On Wednesday, hundreds of people waited in a line for a free food distribution run by a private charity in the Saint-Denis suburbs north of Parissome arriving at 8:00 a.m., three hours before the beginning of the distribution, to secure their place. The charity had run three food distributions in the previous eight days; the first was attended by 190 people, the second by 490 and the third by 750. Several workers spoke to Le Monde, including a 42-year-old nurses assistant and single mother with three children, who could not afford to provide food for her children during the confinement. A restaurant worker and father of seven children receiving state unemployment benefits, said his payments did not cover the cost of food for his children, who normally eat at the school canteen under state-subsidized programmes for 1 per day: My children are hungry the whole day and what I receive is not enough. The alternative presented by the government, however, between a prolonged continuation of quarantine in deepening poverty, and a return to work in unsafe conditions, is a false one. The real alternative is a massive mobilization of public resources and organization of production to provide vital medical equipment and safe conditions for health workers and employees involved in essential production, and maintain quarantine for the rest of the population, with decent living conditions. Such a policy could only be carried out through the mass mobilization of the working class to expropriate the ill-gotten wealth of the financial oligarchy and rationally allocate the wealth of society in the fight against the pandemic. by Shafique Khokhar The government approves a 20-point strategy to fight COVID-19 during Ramadan. However, some religious leaders have criticised its restrictions. For Pakistani President Arif Alvi, those who do not respect the rules commit sin". Children, people over 50 and sick people must pray at home. Islamabad (AsiaNews) Many Muslims in Pakistan are refusing to stay home to pray and insist on going to mosques, thus going against the indications on how to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The government has adopted a 20-point plan to fight the disease during Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting and prayer. The strategy, which imposes restrictions on prayers in public, comes as the COVID-19 virus continues to affect more people with 8,000 reported cases and 159 deaths. The authorities want to avoid the mistakes made at the beginning of the pandemic, when some Shia pilgrims returning from Iran were not effectively isolated, favouring the spread of the virus. The same happened with the members of Tablighi Jamaat, a Sunni group, who were allowed to celebrate mass prayers in Punjab. On 14 April, Prime Minister Imran Khan extended the existing quarantine until the end of the month. For his part, President Arif Alvi said that anyone violating the new anti-COVID 19 restrictions were committing a sin". The measures were taken with the agreement of the countrys main religious leaders. They require, among other things, respect for social distancing and strict standards of hygiene. Going to mosques is possible on condition of avoiding any contact and wearing a mask. But this does not apply to children, people over 50 and sick people, who are required to pray at home. Ablutions must be done at home as well. It is forbidden to pray in the street, a customary practice in Pakistan given overcrowding in mosques. For some Islamic leaders however, daily prayers and Friday sermons in mosques must resume without restrictions. According to them, places of prayer cannot be closed in a Muslim country. In reality, many Muslim countries have done just that, closing mosques and banning mass gatherings. Saudi Arabia has even shut down the Kaaba in Mecca, the most important holy site in Islam. But in many ways, religion is more important than anything else in Pakistan, even more important than the pandemic. "The mosque is a safe place, the owner of an Islamabad kiosk told AsiaNews. I am not afraid of the coronavirus, he added. Many people share his view and are ready to take risks just to pray in one. Around 700 soldiers who arrived in Jammu in a special train from Bengaluru on Monday are set make their way to the frontier with Pakistan, signalling the armys determination to make no compromise on security amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The men in olive green observed all precautions related to social distancing and personal hygiene during their journey from Karnataka, which began on April 17. The train and the equipment and belongings of the troops were thoroughly disinfected and every soldier screened at Jammu railway station. The special train run by Indian Railways for the movement of military personnel from Bengaluru to Jammu arrived at 5am, said an army officer who declined to be named. The men are being sent to the frontiers, the officer said. Pakistan has resorted to unprovoked and intense shelling of army posts and villages located near the border for almost a month. In the prevailing security scenario along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, it has been a necessity to boost the strength of security personnel required for enhancing operational readiness of units deployed in operational areas in North India, the defence ministry said in a statement. The train transported soldiers from different parts of south India, including Bengaluru, Belgaum and Secunderabad, who were resuming their duties in Jammu after completing courses at army training establishments, the officer said. The train was received at Jammu by station director Chetan Taneja and military personnel. The station itself was completely sanitised before the trains arrival. Adequate arrangements were made at the station by the army and railway authorities to ensure that all the norms of social distancing were observed, said Taneja. Each soldier had to undergo thermal scanning to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. All personnel and their luggage were sanitised. Further, the railway station was again sanitised soon after the soldiers left, he added. The train driver, guard and railway staff too were screened by the assistant divisional medical officer of the railways. The railways is operating freight trains and parcel cargo express trains for supplying essential commodities across the country. We have also converted six bogies of a train into an isolation care facility at Jammu railway station, said Taneja. A defence spokesman said the army ensured that the 700 soldiers who made the journey from Bengaluru had undergone the mandated quarantine period and adhered to social distancing throughout the journey. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The suspect in the kidnapping and murder of Aniah Blanchard is facing new charges for reportedly biting a corrections officer. Ibraheem Yazeed, 30, is now charged with second-degree assault in connection with the March 23 incident at the Lee County Detention Center. According to court records, three corrections officers Carl Key, Christopher Carroll and Steven Barner -were trying to Yazeed back into his cell after he took a shower. Yazeed refused to enter his cell even after being given several verbal commands to do so. He became very hostile after being given verbal commands, according to charging documents. Carroll pulled out his Taser stun gun and deployed the device, but Yazeed continued to resist and became combative. Ibraheem started swinging at and kicking, the officer. He was tased several more times with the stun gun but was not deterred. Officers then struck Yazeed with their batons. More officers - Johnnie Wilson and Dalton Dunlap responded to help. While attempting to gain control of Yazeed, the prisoner bit Dunlap in the leg. Ultimately, they were able to get Yazeed back into his cell. He is charged with second-degree felony assault in that attack on Dunlap. Yazeed is charged with capital murder in Blanchards death. The 19-year-old Southern Union College student from Homewood was officially reported missing Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019. She last communicated with a friend late on the night of Oct. 23. Police said her vehicle was seen in the early-morning hours of Oct. 24 along South College Street. Police recovered the teens black 2017 Honda CRV from an apartment complex on the 6100 block of Boardwalk Boulevard in Montgomery around 6:15 p.m. the following evening, which was Friday. A citizen reported the vehicle to police. Blood evidence was discovered in the passengers compartment of the vehicle and was indicative of someone suffering a life-threatening injury. The evidence was submitted to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences and confirmed to be that of Blanchard. Her remains were found Monday, Nov. 25, during a search in the 38000 block of County Road 2 in Shorter. A witness told police he saw Yazeed force Blanchard into her car against her will. That witness told investigators he didnt call police because his female companion who police said was either his wife or a girlfriend told him not to get involved. At the time of his arrest in the Blanchard case, Yazeed was out on bond on charges of murder and kidnapping in connection with a January 2019 crime. According to court records, two male victims one of them 77-years-old - were held against their will in a hotel room in January 2019 on the 1200 block of Eastern Boulevard. The older man was beaten until unconscious, unresponsive, severely injured and near death and robbed of a Rolex, rifle, handguns, wallet, bank card, clothing and unknown amount of currency. The other man was also beaten and robbed of at least $40. In July 2017, Yazeed was arrested by Cass County sheriffs deputies in Missouri on an arrest warrant for aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer. Yazeed also previously pleaded guilty to felony drug possession in 2015 and received a 13-month suspended sentence. In 2012, he was charged with attempted murder after authorities said he rammed his car into a Montgomery police vehicle. A grand jury declined to indict him on those charges as well. Yazeeds next court date in the Blanchard case is set for early June. As of 19th April 2020, there are nearly 2.4 million cases of the novel coronavirus and over 164,000 deaths. Earlier during the spread of the virus, most of the cases were reported from Wuhan, in Hubei province. However, the most significant number of cases of the virus rapidly came to be reported from outside China in Italy, Spain, France, the UK, Korea, and now the United States. The symptoms of the virus are similar to that of influenza and viral pneumonia they include coughing, sneezing, a sore throat, and a feeling of tiredness (called myalgia). The cases have been classified in China in two main categories: the first is severe, those which exhibit more than 30 or more breaths per minute (tachypnoea), and oxygen saturation of 93% or less at rest. The second category is critical, those who require mechanical ventilation or develop septic shock and multi-organ failure. According to the World Health Organization, 80% of the coronavirus cases in China up to 20th February 2020 displayed mild-to-moderate symptoms, about 14% had severe disease, and 6% progressed to a critical stage, requiring mechanical ventilation. Those at the highest risk of severe disease were those above 60, along with those who had underlying conditions like hypertension, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Study: Estimates of the severity of COVID-19 disease . Image Credit: shutter_o / Shutterstock How is the severity of COVID-19 assessed? All potentially lethal diseases have a property called the case fatality ratio. This is, simply put, the ratio of people who die from the disease to the number of people who contract the disease. While many infectious diseases like yellow fever, influenza, and the Ebola virus have a reasonably accurate case fatality ratio (or CFR), the proposed ratios for SARS-CoV-2 vary too substantially to be reliable. There are many reasons why its hard to obtain a reliable CFR estimate for SARS-CoV-2. Firstly, 2-3 weeks may elapse between a case developing symptoms and the clinical conclusion of the case (death or recovery). In a spreading epidemic like COVID-19, says the team, the clinical conclusion for many reported cases is unknown. Therefore, merely dividing the cumulative number of deaths by the number of reported cases will not be accurate: many deaths are unreported, and the calculated case fatality ratio will be too low in the early part. This effect was noticed in past epidemics of respiratory diseases, including SARS and H1N1 influenza. Another factor that makes it difficult is the fact that during the period of exponential spread of a virus, the length of the period between symptoms and outcome (recovery or death) is often censored. Estimates of this period are often biased. Moreover, during the early stages of an epidemic, surveillance is usually aimed towards the more severe cases, especially when diagnostic capacity is limited (as is the case with COVID-19). Since the measured set consists of the very ill, the fraction of fatalities is higher than it would have been with a more evenly dispersed dataset. This makes the CFR higher. Data from Wuhan has been primarily from hospitals, where the severest cases are most coronavirus patients recover quietly at home. Now for the denominator of this fraction: the sum of all those who have contracted the virus, including those with mild symptoms and the asymptomatic. Finding this number with any degree of accuracy requires a robust population survey of infection prevalence. The most reliable way to do this, says the team, is with serological assays: however, very few of these assays are available. To acquire their required dataset, therefore, the team used the data from polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests done on international residents of Wuhan who were repatriated to China. PCR tests are quite sensitive and thus suitable for this study. With both of these in mind, a team of researchers from Imperial College London has conducted a study aimed at calculating a reasonably accurate case fatality ratio and infection fatality ratio, which is based on Chinese data as well as international reports. The research is published on the pre-print server MedRxiv. What did the researchers find? The team concluded that the average time from onset to death in a SARS-CoV-2 case is 18.8 days, which could vary by about half a day. Given the later decline in the epidemic in China, they later revised this to a mean of about 18 days. On another dataset of cases outside China, they calculated the onset-to-recovery period to be 22.6 days. They also found that the highest CFR was in the elderly (those aged above 80): the CFR for this group is about 13.4, in contrast to the 1% in the group aged 50-59 years. In the cases outside China, they estimated a CFR of 2.7%. Putting all the data together, they estimate a current CFR of 1.4% in China. Underdiagnosis of cases due to varying case definitions, surveillance methods, and health system priorities is a repeated motif both in China and outside. If this is adjusted for, the infection fatality rate is estimated at 0.66%, but this is again different in various age groups. It rises sharply from the age of 50 years and even higher in the age group above 80 years. What does this mean for public health? The researchers point out that while their estimated CFR is lower than that of other coronaviruses like SARS or MERS, it is much higher than that of the H1N1 influenza strain in 2009. It is also lower than the crude CFR calculated in China and other countries, primarily because it excludes mild and asymptomatic cases. It will also vary with the average age of the patient population and the frequency of underlying conditions. This, in turn, is likely to vary with the geographical region and the income levels, since the risk of co-morbidities is very different in these different socioeconomic groups. The age-related increase in CFR is evident, but the very low rates in the below-20 group could be due to intrinsic resistance to infection, or greater resilience, or both. Serologic testing in this population is the only way to understand the true prevalence of infection in this group and its contribution to the spread of the virus. The researchers suggest the strong probability of large epidemics of COVID-19 within many communities. They conclude: Our estimates of the underlying IFR of this infection will inform assessments of health impacts likely to be experienced in different countries and thus decisions around appropriate mitigation policies to be adopted. Important Notice medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. The ex-president of Ukraine received money from several sources owned by his closest associate, Igor Kononenko 5 channel The new allegations of corruption have been voiced against former president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko. He allegedly received a gigantic sum of $ 200 million for closing a case against Burisma (Hunter Biden, the son of former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is known to have worked in this company). Former employee of the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States Andriy Telizhenko reported that on April 20. The respective video appeared on the Svobodnyi Youtube channel, Strana reports. According to the diplomat, Poroshenko received money from several sources owned by his closest associate, Igor Kononenko. "The final amount that Mr. Poroshenko received was $ 200 million for Burisma, for closing the case," Telizhenko said. Related: Poroshenko who returned from Spain to Kyiv was not sent to quarantine, - media Earlier, Prosecutor General Iryna Venedyktova registered a criminal case against former President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko on the unlawful appointment of Supreme Court justices. This was reported by the press service of the Office of the Prosecutor General. "The Prosecutor General, on the basis of the appeal of the Supreme Court's employees, has entered data into the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations on possible unlawful actions of the President of Ukraine, whose powers have been terminated, and others in issuing Presidential Decrees of November 10, 2017 No. 357/2017 and of May 2019 No. 195/2019 "On the appointment of judges of Supreme Court, the message reads. According to the appeal of the Supreme Court's employees, the grounds for issuing the decrees of the former president and appointing judges do not comply with the provisions of the Constitution and the Law "On the judiciary and status of judges". These actions are qualified as abuse of authority or office (Part 2 of Article 364 of Ukraine's Criminal Code), interference with the activities of judicial authorities (Part 2 of Article 376), failure to comply with a judgment (Part 4 of Article 382), and actions aimed at forceful change or overthrow of the constitutional order or take-over of government (Part 1, 2, Art. 109). As we reported earlier, on February 28, 2020, Ukraine's fifth President Petro Poroshenko came to the State Bureau of Investigation for questioning about the appointment of judges of the Supreme Court. SK Energy CEO Cho Kyong-mok speaks during an online meeting with employees in this photo provided by SK Innovation on Sunday. Courtesy of SK Innovation By Nam Hyun-woo SK Energy is striving to digitize its overall operation process, as a solution to overcome daunting difficulties clouding the refining industry, according to the company. During an online meeting with employees, SK Energy CEO Cho Kyong-mok announced a digital transformation strategy that will involve the overall processes of the company's business. "The unprecedented crisis we are facing now is difficult to overcome with routine changes, and seriously threatens the company's long-term survival and growth," Cho said. "An overhaul through digital transformation will be a tool that will enable us to fundamentally overcome the current crisis across the refining industry and become a new growth driver." In its three-pronged strategy, Cho demanded the company embrace digital technologies in its facility operation, environmental efforts and customer experiences. As part of the plan, the company will apply artificial intelligence and big data technologies across all processes at its plant in Ulsan, following a partial application in 2017. SK Energy said the technologies will improve the efficiency of plant operation, facility reliability and cost structure, as well as enhancing its contingency readiness. The company also plans to digitize its waste processing and eco-friendly product development. As part of the strategy, SK Energy is considering setting up an AI-based wastewater processing system and "Bio-Aviation Platform," which will be used for developing more eco-friendly jet fuel. Jet fuel will be under emissions duties from 2027. For customers, SK Energy said it will expand its digital platforms at fuel stations by providing various car-related services on a single platform. For this, the company said it will digitize 3,000 SK Energy fuel stations across the country so they can provide seamless services for fueling, car washing, parking, EV charging and even used-car trading. In 2018, SK Energy launched a peer-to-peer parcel delivery service, dubbed Home Pick, providing its gas stations as small hubs for parcel collection and delivery. "Based on digitization, we will overcome the conventional limits of the petroleum industry and provide new value to customers," Cho said, demanding executives come up with action plans for the initiatives. "SK Energy's efforts toward digital transformation will be a model case of a petrochemical company creating new economic and social value through advanced digital technologies," an SK Innovation official said. SK Energy is a subsidiary of SK Innovation. Along with efforts for digitization, the refiner is making strides in producing products with a smaller carbon footprint. Last month, SK Energy finished a test run of its vacuum residue desulfurization facility at its Ulsan plant. The company installed the 1 trillion won desulfurization facility to meet the expected rise in low-sulfur oil demand following the International Maritime Organization's regulations on vessel fuel. Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 20, 2020) - This press release is being disseminated as required by National Instrument 62-103 - The Early Warning System and Related Take Over Bids and Insider Reporting Issues in connection with the issuance of securities of 3 Sixty Risk Solutions Ltd. (the "Issuer") (CSE: SAFE) to INKAS Security Services Ltd. ("ISSL"). On April 17, 2020, ISSL received 29,300,198 common shares of the Issuer ("Common Shares") that were issued from the treasury of the Issuer (the "Additional Common Shares") pursuant to a settlement agreement and related settlement of debt between the Issuer and ISSL. The Additional Common Shares represent approximately 15.95% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of the Issuer following such issuance. Prior to the issuance of the Additional Common Shares, ISSL owned or had control or direction over 7,400,000 Common Shares (the "Existing Common Shares"), representing approximately 4.79% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of the Issuer. Combined, the Additional Common Shares (29,300,198 Common Shares) and Existing Common Shares (7,400,000 Common Shares) represent approximately 19.98% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of the Issuer following the issuance of the Additional Common Shares. ISSL received the Additional Common Shares from the treasury of the Issuer pursuant to a settlement agreement and related settlement of a $1,465,009.90 debt between the Issuer and ISSL. The Additional Common Shares were valued at CAD$0.05/Common Share in connection with the settlement of such debt between ISSL and the Issuer. ISSL intends to hold the Additional Common Shares (and the Existing Common Shares) for investment purposes. Subject to the rules of the Canadian Securities Exchange and applicable securities laws, ISSL may, depending on market and other conditions, increase, decrease or change its beneficial ownership over the Common Shares or other securities of the Issuer through market transactions, private agreements, treasury issuances or otherwise. A copy of the early warning report will be filed by ISSL in connection with the foregoing and will be available on SEDAR under the Issuer's profile. For further information or a copy of the press release or the corresponding early warning report: INKAS Security Services Ltd. c/o David Khazanski, 3605 Weston Rd, North York, ON M9L 1V7, (416) 744 3322. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54655 The new iPhone SE was announced last week, and the phone went on pre-order on Friday in more than 40 countries. While Brazil is not in the first list of markets where the smartphone is being launched, it is being reported that Apple could be planning to assemble the iPhone SE in the country. ANATEL, Brazils certification authority similar to FCC, released documentation related to the iPhone SE 2020 earlier today. As you can see in the image above, the phone has seems to have Industria Brasileira (or Brazilian Industry) engraving on its back. Such engravings are only made on devices that are assembled or manufactured in the country. Apple managed to remove the image from ANATELs website after it was revealed, but publicly available documents on ANATELs website show that the iPhone SE 2020 was indeed manufactured in Brazi. The newly unveiled low-cost iPhone was reportedly assembled in one of Apples facilities in Jundiai, Sao Paulo. This hints towards the companys plans to sell locally assembled iPhone SE units in the country sometime in the future. This is not the first time Apple has manufactured an iPhone outside of China, though. The iPhone XR, for example, is also assembled in Brazil by Foxconn so that Apple could offer the smartphone at lower prices in the local market. The iPhone maker also assembles the iPhone XR in India, and as a result, the device now costs much less in India as opposed to earlier when it was sold after importing from China. Our Take In Brazil, the iPhone XR is officially priced at R$3,699 (around $699), but people often get to buy the device at even lower prices from other retailers. If the device were imported from China and sold in Brazil, it wouldve cost much higher as the country imposes heavy duties on imported devices. Naturally, Apple must be planning to assemble the new iPhone SE locally and sell those units in Brazil to keep the phones pricing low. This way, the company could compete with Android OEMs by pricing the iPhone SE 2020 competitively. [Source: iHelpBR India has agreed to send hydroxychloroquine tablets to the UAE to be used for treating Covid-19 patients, the Gulf Arab state's embassy in New Delhi said. India fast-tracked procedures to supply hydroxychloroquine, a drug considered to be efficient in fighting the coronavirus, to the UAE after a request from the country's government, reported PTI citing the Indian envoy. The first shipment of medicine, currently on its way to the UAE, includes 5.5 million pills for treatment of patients with COVID-19, the embassy tweeted late on Saturday. India's Ambassador to the UAE Pavan Kapoor said there is a huge demand for the anti-malarial drug from many countries and India is considering it on a case to case basis. "As the drug is on the restricted list, we are obviously giving exception to the UAE, given the friendly relations between the two countries," stated Kapoor. The Indian government is exporting the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine to 55 countries. 13 countries have already received the vaccine. The drug is being supplied via commercial channels and as grants in aid as well. The Indian envoy said that the Indian mission in UAE is trying to support the 3.4 million strong Indian diaspora at multiple levels. The Indian embassy is raising cases of citizens suffering due to COVID-19 with the UAE authorities. We have setup 24X7 helplines for Indian nationals and we are sending food and food provision kits to Indian nationals as well," said the envoy. The Indian embassy is also providing psychological counselling to Indian citizens and has requested Indian schools to reduce fees for the period of the pandemic, he added.-TradeArabia News Service Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:23:12|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. - - - - MADRID -- The cumulative number of coronavirus infection cases in Spain surpassed the 200,000 mark, while the daily number of new deaths dropped to 399, the health ministry said on Monday. Spain's COVID-19 cases rose from 195,944 cases on Sunday to 200,210 on Monday, the ministry said. - - - - ISLAMABAD -- Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday urged the nation to practice self-discipline and adopt precautionary measures as the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country has risen to 8,418. "The more people show self-discipline, the easier it will be for us to manage the COVID-19 plus ease the lockdown gradually," Khan said on Twitter, urging people to stay at home as much as possible during this pandemic. - - - - BERLIN -- Germany reported 1,775 new cases of COVID-19 infection in the past 24 hours, raising the country's cumulative number of infection to 141,672, fresh figures showed on Monday. A further 110 patients had died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 4,404, according to figures released by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the German government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. - - - - BISSAU -- Guinea-Bissau on Monday received a second donation of medical supplies from the Chinese foundations of Jack Ma and Alibaba, the country's Secretary of State for Hospital Management Cornelia Aleluia Lopes Man announced. "This batch of equipment includes respirators, screening kits, thermometers, protective suits and other laboratory equipment," Ms. Man told Xinhua. - - - - DHAKA -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh reached 2,948, including 492 new cases confirmed in the last 24 hours, the biggest daily jump since March 18, a senior health ministry official told a press conference broadcast on television on Monday. Meanwhile, the death toll of COVID-19 in Bangladesh has reached 101. - - - - BEIJING -- China has strengthened border control measures for the containment of imported novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) risk, an official said Monday. Liu Haitao, with the National Immigration Administration (NIA), made the remarks at a press conference on China's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Noting that the NIA has paid close attention to the epidemic situations in neighboring countries, Liu said the administration has established a working scheme to analyze related information and evaluate cross-border transmission risks. Enditem Prince Harry, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, have written to the editors of several British tabloids saying they will no longer deal with those publications. The strongly-worded letter sent by Harry and Meghan to the editors of The Sun, the Daily Mirror, the Daily Mail and the Daily Express on Sunday night, states that there will be "zero engagement" with their publications. "It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. When power is enjoyed without responsibility, the trust we all place in this much-needed industry is degraded," the couple's representatives wrote in the letter. The duke and duchess have previously been outspoken in their criticism of the tabloids, with Meghan suing the Mail on Sunday over the publication of a letter she sent to her father, who she is estranged from. In the suit, Harry accused the paper of editing in an "intentionally destructive manner." A virtual court hearing is due to take place on Friday. The letter accused the tabloids of sensationalism, stating: "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they knowas well as complete strangershave their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue." TRENTON, MI - Murder charges have been reinstated against two brothers from the Detroit area who were initially accused of letting their mother, who was disabled, die a slow death, according to the Associated Press. Vickie Balogh, 52, of Trenton, weighed just 79 pounds when she died in 2016. A year later, District Court Judge Jennifer Coleman Hesson dismissed murder and abuse charges that had been brought against Baloghs two sons and caregivers, Grant and Gabriel Balogh, the AP said. Hessons decision to dismiss the charges was affirmed by a Wayne County judge. But last week, a 2-1 decision by the Michigan appeals court reinstated murder charges against the two Balogh brothers, saying there was sufficient evidence to allow a jury to decide if they were responsible for their mothers death. Vickie Balogh had SCA-I, a genetic terminal wasting disease. A doctor at the Wayne County medical examiners office has said her death was linked to her body deteriorating from malnutrition. But a defense expert has said her death could be attributed to pneumonia and complications from her illness. Bringing last weeks dissent on the appeals court, Judge Kathleen Jansen said the brothers had to watch their mother suffer and die from this horrible disease, and now the majority seeks to have them stand trial for her murder. READ MORE Man hospitalized with hypothermia after falling down 10-foot embankment into pond Two men admit to vandalizing more than 30 gravesites in U.P. cemetery Michigan 5-year-old dies of coronavirus after complications A solicitor acting on behalf of his friends of 20 years has been struck off after he stole nearly 100,000 from them, while helping them sell their company for 2million, David Grant was slammed by a tribunal for 'monumentally' abusing the trust of his long-term friends for his own gain. Grant even persuaded them into 'misleading' a Solicitors Regulation Authority [SRA] investigator to try to cover his tracks and also laundered 6,000 which was stolen from a late grandmother's estate. A Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal heard Grant - who had nearly 50 years experience - had debts of more than 110,000 and unpaid bank loans totalling 380,000. In December last year Grant, of East Stoke, Nottinghamshire, was jailed for two years after he was convicted of money laundering and theft at Leicester Crown Court (pictured) The 70-year-old, who was the sole partner at Tracey Barlow Furniss & Co in Worksop, Notts, carefully planned his offending so he could 'help alleviate his financial difficulties'. In December 2013 Grant acted on behalf of his long-time friends when selling their company, referred to as 'S Limited', for 2 million. However, over the next nine months he stole 95,740 from the clients, referred to only as 'C S-B' and 'J S-B'. A tribunal report said: 'He had known his clients for many years, and they regarded him as a friend. 'His breach of trust was monumental. 'Grant persuaded his clients to mislead an SRA investigator by telling her they had agreed to loan monies to him, when in fact that was not true. 'Due to their longstanding friendship, his clients told the SRA investigator they had loaned monies to Grant. 'However, after Grant failed to return their money, the clients informed the SRA of the correct position.' Grant also laundered 6,000 he knew was stolen from a client's dead grandmother's estate and used it for his own personal gain. The report added: 'Not only had he stolen huge sums of client monies but he had also deprived a deceased's estate of the sum of 6,000 as a result of the money laundering arrangement.' Striking Grant off the register, the tribunal concluded: 'His actions had been planned and his motivation in taking client funds was to use those monies to meet his own financial liabilities. 'He had acted in breach of the trust placed in him by clients who quite properly expected their monies could be safely entrusted to a solicitor.' In December last year Grant, of East Stoke, Nottinghamshire, was jailed for two years after he was convicted of money laundering and theft at Leicester Crown Court. Two days before the end of the Vietnam War, Le Xuan Khoa boarded a plane with his family to start a new life in the United States. He'd had a comfortable life in South Vietnam. He was the vice president of the University of Saigon and had served as the country's deputy minister of culture and education. But as the North Vietnamese came closer to claiming victory, he knew he had to leave. Given his high-ranking positions, he was certain that if he stayed, he would have been sent to a re-education camp where he would have been subject to grueling hours of labor, poor health care and insufficient food. Many people died in these camps, including some of his former colleagues, he said. Khoa was 47 when he stepped foot in Washington, D.C., where he settled with his wife and four children. He landed his first job in America as a cashier at a 7-Eleven, a far cry from his positions in Vietnam. Before coming to the U.S., I told my children, Dont be surprised if I have to start with menial jobs in the West because we need to adjust to a new life in the U.S., and we have to start very low in order to come up later,' he told NBC Asian America. Khoa was one of 123,000 Vietnamese refugees who came to the United States after the fall of Saigon in 1975. The year marked the beginning of the mass migration of Southeast Asian refugees following the end of conflicts the U.S. had been involved in in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The Southeast Asian American refugee community this year is observing its 45th anniversary in the United States, where they remain the largest group the country has resettled since then. Image: Cambodian refugees in one of the border encampments established in 1979 on the Thai-Cambodian border. (Berta Romero-Fonte) Unwelcomed refugees When Southeast Asians began arriving in the United States, they were met with hostility and racism. The general sentiment of Americans was that they didnt want Vietnamese refugees in the U.S. because of this very long and unpopular war, said Sam Vong, curator of Asian Pacific American History at the Smithsonian Institute and former assistant professor of Asian American history at the University of Texas, Austin. Story continues According to the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC), a civil rights group, refugees were viewed as voluntary migrants,and were expected to quickly become economically self-sufficient and independent. Many were resettled in impoverished neighborhoods and were surrounded by gang violence, racial tension and poor schools. This experience was common for many refugees, but it wasn't the case for everyone, Vong said. Khoa described adjusting to his new life with no complaints. He and his family were assigned a sponsor who gave them a place to live for a year, and his stint at 7-Eleven only lasted for a couple of months. He eventually began working at SEARAC in 1979 which was called the Indochina Refugee Action Center at the time as a consultant before becoming its first Southeast Asian director. The organization, established by American professionals, aimed to help the U.S. government design refugee policies and programs because it had limited experience in resettling Southeast Asians, according to SEARAC. Creating a unified refugee resettlement program When Southeast Asian refugees began arriving in the U.S. in 1975, the country's resettlement process was conducted ad hoc by the State Department and voluntary organizations. And without an understanding of their problems and needs, many were considered a burden to American society, Khoa said. So he focused on shifting the narrative around Southeast Asians from hostility to support by redefining the community as political refugees rather than economic migrants. He worked with Congress and the media to educate the public about why they fled their countries and why the U.S. should receive them, according to SEARAC. Eric Tang, author of "Unsettled: Cambodian Refugees in the NYC Hyperghetto," noted that refugees suffered trauma from war and from the experience of living in refugee camps. Cambodian refugees, the majority of whom began arriving in the U.S. in the early 1980s, had come out of a genocide that claimed some 2 million victims, Vong said. He added that many Cambodian and Laotian refugees had also been displaced multiple times from their home countries. You cant just expect refugees to just pick up their lives and start rebuilding their communities right after three months, he said. It takes some time to find a job, to get adjusted to their new environment, to relocate family members. And that requires both social support, financial assistance, and any other kind of community resources to help people get back on their feet. A historic moment came in 1980 with the passage of the Refugee Act, a bipartisan bill that the Indochina Refugee Action Center's founders helped draft, Khoa said, that formalized the country's resettlement procedures. It established a goal of helping refugees achieve economic self sufficiency within three years, Vong said. The act also raised the ceiling for annual refugee admissions from 17,400 to 50,000 from 1980 to 1982. SEARAC in March commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Refugee Act and credited it for the resettlement of more than 1.1 million Southeast Asian Americans in the United States. Le Xuan Khoas legacy Image: Le Xuan Khoa receives an award at the organization's Quyen Dinh, executive director of SEARAC and the daughter of Vietnamese refugees who arrived in 1980, credited Khoa for the America she and more than 1 million other Southeast Asian refugees have experienced, where refugees see their families grow by having children and sponsoring other family members through family reunification. It was his leadership that led to the formation of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, streamlining the resettlement of not just Southeast Asians but all refugees since the 1980s, she said in an email. Khoa retired as SEARAC's president in 1996, but remained an adviser to the organization. Decades later, his legacy lives on in our organization's mission to build and mobilize this, and the next, generations of advocates so that those most impacted by inequity in our communities are the ones calling for change, Dinh said. CORRECTION (May 18, 2020, 11:00 a.m.ET): An earlier version of this article misstated Le Xuan Khoa's contribution to U.S. legislation dealing with refugees in the 1980s. He did not help draft the 1980 Refugee Act, but he was involved with the Refugee Assistance and Protection Act of 1987. Follow NBC Asian America on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. A call from North Africa: sovereignty over our land, food and destiny April 20,2020 | Source: North African Food Sovereignty Network A statement by the regional secretariat of the North African Food Sovereignty Network: The Coronavirus pandemic is threatening to truly become a humanitarian disaster at a global scale. It coincides with and exacerbates a multifaceted global crisis: political, economic, social, environmental and climatic. In other words, we are currently experiencing a crisis of a patriarchal, racist capitalist system, which will have grave and disproportionate impacts on the vulnerable and marginalized groups, especially societies in countries of the Global South, including North Africa. This health crisis exposes the crimes of a capitalist economic system, manifested in the destruction of our environments, sustainable agriculture and the associated cultural and social systems in order to impose globalised destructive structures that are inappropriate for protecting our health as individuals and as societies. And if we do not mobilise and demand a just response to address this pandemic, this economic system will have serious consequences on the poorest and most vulnerable. We must learn lessons from past experiences to defeat this virus and find real solutions to the multiple crises we are going through, including the climate crisis as well as end inequality and injustice in order to build a new, just and sustainable world order. Capitalism in crisis The multifaceted crisis that has gripped the world over the past few years is worsening, as financial markets have managed to weaken even the strongest economies in industrialised countries. We are also witnessing an escalation of disastrous capitalist economic policies, lived in parallel with the growing hostility and racism towards refugees and migrants, not to mention the disturbing rise of the extreme right forces in the world. This crisis exposed the catastrophic extent of centralised urban policies, which prioritize industrial, real estate and commodity investment over agricultural production processes, as well as public services such as health and education that are destined to the vast majority of rural people, who are the main producers of our food, the most essential need for the survival of humanity. The seizure/grabbing of agricultural land for financial speculation and the production of agro-fuels to ensure the food security for some select countries, exacerbate the rise in food prices, which will lead us to a new food crisis. Extractivism and pillaging of natural resources have intensified using ever more costly, dangerous and environmentally destructive technologies. However, these practices are necessary in order to maintain a certain lifestyle hegemonic in western countries, a lifestyle based on perpetual growth and consumerism currently imposed on all humankind. The consequences of this capitalist-imperialist onslaught are being felt above all in the peripheral regions of the world: global South. It is there that small peasants get stripped of their lands, plunging them directly into extreme poverty. And it is there that the increase in prices of basic foodstuffs automatically translates into hunger and famines. Moreover, we have millions of workers being laid off as a result of decades of neoliberal policies that enshrine pauperisation and exclusion. Add to this the effects of global warming, which result in thousands of deaths due to drought, desertification, floods and hurricanes. Parallel to the explosion of the debt crisis in the early eighties of the last century, countries of our region (and the global South in general), were subjected to violent interventions by the international financial institutions; the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, in order to direct and shape their public policies as well as to balance the budget by reducing public spending. The purpose of these interventions was to provide sufficient liquidity to pay off debts and buy western commodities. Since then, indebtedness has remained a system to subjugate the peoples of our region and prevent them from building their economies beyond the absolute subordination to imperialist states. Despite the formal cessation of structural adjustment policies, these institutions have continued to interfere through their guiding reports to our submissive governments. Decades of neoliberal policies and the mad rush for private profit led to the privatisation of public hospitals and the imposition of large austerity in the budgets for public services, including health. This constitutes a crime and millions of innocent people will pay dearly, especially in our subjugated countries. All of this combined with the spread of the coronavirus pandemic may result in a serious humanitarian catastrophe. Our hope is that the rise in temperatures of spring and summer may weaken its ferocity and a swift discovery of a drug/vaccine would avoid or at least mitigate this terrible fate. The global health crisis - the Coronavirus pandemic The current health crisis must be analysed and understood in this global context. This crisis, which will have severe social and economic consequences and that will exacerbate other crises, is not a natural catastrophe, as promoted by some. COVID-19 is not a Chinese virus, as some say (US President Donald Trump, for example), expressing racist attitudes; but is a virus resulting from the intensification of a destructive capitalist agricultural/farming system that creates an imbalance in our environment through land grabbing and water-exhausting mono crop cultures, the increase in industrial animal husbandry for the commercial production of meat and dairy products, as well as the widespread deforestation and habitat loss. The capitalist mode of production brutally penetrates the remotest corners of our earth and invades the extreme limits of the planet, undermining the metabolic equilibrium that enables society to live sustainably and in harmony with its surroundings. This growing rift between the accumulation of capital and nature is even threatening our planet as a place of habitation for humanity and other species. It is becoming clear that various crises and disasters are intersecting in an immiserating, murderous and violent way within the capitalist system. And we do not doubt that the potential treatment of this pandemic will be subjected to the logic of the merchants of war and death, that is, how much profits can be made by corporations! This global health crisis and its repercussions are only one facet of the capitalist exploitation and the imperialist domination over peoples and nature. In our North African region, the virus has begun to penetrate and is already taking lives, albeit slowly for now, and there is no doubt that it will rise, and the measures announced are only a warning that precedes the disaster. Millions of small farmers, agricultural workers, fisherfolks and other small-scale food producers (the majority of which are women) who bear the burden of providing daily food to everyone else are forced to work during this pandemic. In order to ensure that food production continues, millions of them will be at risk of contracting the virus. It goes without saying that closing borders with Europe and the reduction of access to markets will have major social consequences (redundancies, unemployment, bankruptcy, indebtedness, etc). It is evident that the risk of infection lurks on poor agricultural workers and peasants, especially without taking the right measures to protect them and other workers who are driven to toil in intolerable conditions. Moreover, the majority of these working poor do not have the purchasing power to ward off the risk of the virus by purchasing the necessary medicines and food that they need. What is happening in the world and in our region is pushing us more urgently to struggle for popular sovereignty over the wealth, resources and food, because the agro-industrial complex (agribusiness) will force people to work, without compensation and without strict protection measures, as this will affect their balance-sheets and reduce their profits. The harsh reality that our societies are currently experiencing has demonstrated, yet again, the importance of defending public services because they constitute a social safety-net that cannot be compromised or subordinated to the directives of international financial institutions seeking to control and dispossess us. On this basis, we in the regional secretariat of the North African Food Sovereignty Network demand/call on: - Small farmers, agricultural workers, and fisherfolks to continue to organize and fight in order to obtain all their rights under the current exceptional circumstances, by considering methods of collective struggle that ensure their protection from infection and disease. - Reconsidering development policies in the Global South and North Africa and learning from this crisis by re-prioritising productive activities such as inward-looking sustainable agriculture and fishing and providing health and educational services to citizens as the basic processes for sound and sustainable development that serves our peoples. - Our governments in North Africa to assume their full responsibilities in preserving and ensuring the safety of all workers, including agricultural workers, small peasants, and fisherfolks, by applying safety measures in agricultural areas and fishing areas. - Paying compensation to all workers (formal or informal) affected by the current crisis, and allocating specific funds for them. - Providing all hospitals with the necessary equipment to avoid an escalation of the health crisis, to be paid for by progressive taxation. And if necessary, put private hospitals and clinics at the service of patients free of charge to deal with this crisis. - Providing the necessary food supply and confronting head on all corporations/companies that will seek to raise the prices of some produce and materials, given the high demand for them. - Putting an end to all neoliberal policies as well as the cancellation of public debts and free trade agreements that do not serve the interests of the poor and marginalised in our countries. We also express our solidarity with all the peoples of the world, especially those that are suffering under the crushing weight of economic sanctions such as the Iranian, Cuban and Venezuelan people or are living through deadly wars and occupations in countries like Libya, Syria, Yemen and Palestine. Nor can we forget the fate of migrants and refugees who are being turned away by fortress Europe. At the same time, we demand our governments to support and show solidarity with other African countries in their efforts to confront this global epidemic. We, at the regional secretariat of the North African Network for Food Sovereignty, refuse that our people (especially the marginalised classes) pay the price of our rulers neoliberal policies, by pledging our resources and wealth to external and internal capital, which will make us much more vulnerable in confronting this crisis if the current situation continues for a long time. Finally, we must not let this crisis normalise the escalating use of surveillance, militarism and other authoritarian measures that undermine our freedoms and democracy. Some of these measures may be appropriate as a short-term response to public health emergencies, but they should not be allowed to become the new standard for the post-Coronavirus world. Every crisis is an opportunity, and the capitalist-imperialist system - together with our despotic and comprador elites - will seek to renew itself by other means through dispossessing people of their wealth. We must not allow this. We urgently need to search for sustainable and equitable alternatives to the current world order. The only solution before us is unity and solidarity in order to build a new world in which peoples sovereignty, democracy and social justice prevail. Sovereignty over our land and food ... sovereignty over our destiny! openDemocracy 2020 Theme(s): Communities and Organisations. Living without a permanent home can be a difficult experience in any country, both mentally and physically, and with the cold winters in Canada, it can be downright harsh. Many people do it, however. According to the State of Homelessness in Canada 2016 report, it was estimated that at least 235,000 Canadians experience homelessness in any given year. Some sources estimate that number to be even higher. Data from an Ipsos Reid poll done in March 2013 showed that as many as 1.3 million Canadians had experienced extreme housing insecurity or homelessness at some point during the previous five years. There are many factors that can cause a person to become homeless, and the solutions to the problem can be complex. Here is a look at the issue in more detail. Causes What does it mean to be without a home? Homelessness is defined in Canada as an individual, family or community that does not have stable, safe, permanent, appropriate housing, or the immediate prospect, means and ability of acquiring it, according to HomelessHub.ca. Some of the top reasons people end up being homeless in Canada include suffering from domestic abuse, experiencing job loss or mental illness, going through a divorce, experiencing a health crisis, and having a death in the family. Each of these contributors can increase a persons chances of becoming homeless, especially when combined. Cost Of Living Homeless man with his five dogs on a street side in Montreal, Quebec, on May 24, 2013. Image credit: IVY PHOTOS/Shutterstock.com Living in Canada can be costly. In the countrys most populated city, Toronto, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment can often be well over $1200 per month, and utilities may be added to that. Once city-dwellers add in the costs of phone bills, transportation, groceries and other daily needs, such as clothing and toiletries it is clear that a single person living in Toronto needs to earn more than $38,000 per year, just to get by, according to Homelesshub.org. In order to earn this money, a person needs to work for a salary of $18.27 per hour, which is above minimum wage, for forty hours per week, all year round. Because of this, even those who are employed and working full-time may be at risk of being homeless if they earn minimum wage or less. Solutions A homeless camp at Oppenheimer park in Vancouver BC Canada. Image credit: Haseg77/Shutterstock.com Because homelessness is caused by multiple factors and is a multifaceted issue, the answers to it can be complicated. Organizations in Canada such as RaisingtheRoof.org focus on prevention, system response and early intervention in order to stem the tide of homelessness in the country. It is suggested that by mediating with landlords and family, organizations can help to address the early stages of homelessness, which can help people stay housed. In addition to this, primary prevention aims to target groups of people who are at risk of becoming homeless, in order to minimize their chances of entering into homelessness through awareness campaigns and support. Other methods offer ongoing support to vulnerable individuals once they obtain housing, in order to ensure they stay housed in a safe way. According to the Guardian.com, Finland is a country in which homelessness has all but been eradicated. This has been done by offering homeless people permanent housing in an independent rental flat with its own contract, as soon as they are on the street. This is a national strategy that provides people in need with homes and individually tailored support, in place of temporary accomodation and shelter, with the aim of keeping vulnerable people safe and out of harms way, when it comes to finding a place to live. Over 16,000 people are now part of Finland's housing program, helping to prevent a housing crisis in the country. By AFP PARIS: The worldwide death toll from the novel coronavirus pandemic rose to 165,216 on Monday, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP. More than 2,403,410 declared cases have been registered in 193 countries and territories since the epidemic first emerged in China in December. Of these cases, at least 537,700 are now considered recovered. The tallies, using data collected by AFP from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), probably reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections. Many countries are testing only the most serious cases. ALSO READ | Sri Lanka backs off from curfew relaxations after sudden spike in coronavirus cases In the United States, now the worst-hit country, the death toll stood at 40,683 with 759,786 infections. At least 70,980 patients have recovered. Italy is the next most affected country with 23,660 deaths and 178,972 confirmed infections. ALSO READ | Italy mulls psychological tests to tackle coronavirus lockdown impact It is followed by Spain with 20,852 fatalities and 200,210 confirmed infections, France with 19,718 deaths and 152,894 infections and Britain with 16,060 deaths and 120,067 cases. China -- excluding Hong Kong and Macau -- has to date declared 4,632 deaths and 82,747 cases. Europe has listed 1,183,307 cases and 104,028 deaths to date, the US and Canada together have 793,169 cases with 42,212 deaths, Asia 166,453 cases with 7,030 deaths, the Middle East 126,793 cases with 5,664 deaths, Latin America and the Caribbean 103,857 cases with 5,068 deaths, Africa 21,957 cases with 1,124 deaths and Oceania 7,879 cases with 90 deaths. Logo is seen at a building of Swiss drugmaker Novartis in Rotkreuz By John Miller and Michael Erman ZURICH/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG said on Monday it will test the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine in a randomized trial to see if the much talked about medicine is actually effective against COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The company hopes to have data on its efficacy by June, a lead researcher for the trial told Reuters. The decades-old generic medicine has been touted by U.S. President Donald Trump and others as a "game changer" treatment for the highly contagious respiratory illness, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized it use in COVID-19 on an emergency basis. But there is not yet scientific proof that it works. There are currently no approved medicines or vaccines specifically for COVID-19. "Right now, we're in a sea of anecdotes, and a lot of non-professional, poorly-informed people are making recommendations that are swaying how the public and patients view this (drug)," Dr. Richard Chaisson, the Johns Hopkins University professor leading the trial, said in an interview. Novartis said it got the go-ahead from the FDA for the trial and it hopes to start recruiting 440 patients within weeks at more than a dozen U.S. sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. Use of the drug, which is also approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has soared since Trump started promoting it. But critics have expressed concern that the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine has short-circuited the FDA's oversight process. "We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease, said John Tsai, Novartis's top drug developer. "We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study." Companies such as Novartis, Roche and Gilead Sciences Inc are testing older medicines developed to treat other diseases for signs they could be repurposed to tackle the coronavirus epidemic. Gilead just expanded a trial of its antiviral drug remdesivir, which previously failed as a treatment for Ebola. Story continues Still, some fear the championing of hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 has overshadowed potentially dangerous side effects like vision loss and heart problems. Novartis Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan has also said the medicine is one of his biggest hopes against the pandemic. Chaisson said many of the clinical trials to research the drug are "either small or uncontrolled or overly ambitious." He said the Novartis trial is designed to test the drug's effectiveness quickly, and could yield results in June. There are several additional studies of hydroxychloroquine underway, including at the University of Washington and University of Minnesota, as well as work by the National Institutes of Health in the United States. Novartis' Sandoz generics unit has pledged to donate 130 million doses of the medicine. Sanofi has also said it will donate 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to 50 countries. (Reporting by John Miller, editing by John Revill and Bill Berkrot) Damien Hirst has created his own rainbow art to pay tribute to the NHS staff across Great Britain. Children across the UK have been making pictures of rainbows as a symbol of hope to stick to their windows since schools closed. Now Hirst, 54, has made his own featuring images of coloured butterfly wings, one of the controversial artist's best-known motifs. Butterfly Rainbow can be downloaded from the artist's website and displayed in windows. Damien Hirst has created his own rainbow art featuring images of coloured butterfly wings, one of the controversial artist's best-known motifs to pay tribute to NHS staff Contemporary artist Hirst has made the art free for everyone to download from his website Hirst said: 'I wanted to do something to pay tribute to the wonderful work NHS staff are doing in hospitals around the country. 'The rainbow is a sign of hope and I think it is brilliant that parents and children are creating their own version and putting them up in the windows of their homes.' A limited edition of Hirst's work is also being produced which will be sold with all profits donated to the NHS. Sir Quentin Blake, famous for illustrating Roald Dahl books, has also created a series of new, free rainbow e-cards for people to send to loved ones who they cannot see due to the lockdown. Sir Quentin Blake (pictured), famous for illustrating Roald Dahl books, has also created a series of new, free rainbow e-cards for people to send to loved ones Blake created the e-cards for people to send to loved ones who they cannot see in lockdown How butterflies gave Damien Hirst's artwork wings - while triggering outrage among vegans and animal rights campaigners Damien Hirst was the target of controversy in 2012 when he used thousand of live butterflies during his In and Out of Love exhibition. The 23-week exhibition saw more than 9,000 of the insects die around 400 a week. A spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said at the time: 'Hirsts quest to be edgy is as boring as it is callous.' The artwork, shown at the Tate Modern gallery in London between April and September 2012, attracted almost half a million visitors. Hirst defended his work, saying: A butterfly expert was employed at considerable cost. Perfect living conditions were replicated and this resulted in many butterflies enjoying longer lifespans due to the high quality of the environment and food provided. Advertisement Hirst's work over the years has included butterfly collages and spin paintings as well as controversial creations, such as a pickled shark. However, the Bristol-born artist who is reportedly one of the UK richest living artists sparked outrage among animal rights activists in 2012 after he used thousands of live butterflies during his In and Out of Love exhibition. The 23-week exhibition saw more than 9,000 of the insects die around 400 a week. A spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said at the time: 'Hirsts quest to be edgy is as boring as it is callous.' The artwork, shown at the Tate Modern gallery in London between April and September, was part of a retrospective of Hirsts work, which attracted almost half a million visitors. Hirst defended his work, saying: A butterfly expert was employed at considerable cost. Perfect living conditions were replicated and this resulted in many butterflies enjoying longer lifespans due to the high quality of the environment and food provided. A spokesman for Tate Modern also defended the work in 2012, claiming: The butterflies used in this work were all selected from varieties known to thrive in the conditions created. The butterflies lived out the final stage of their natural life cycle inside this room. Around 400 butterflies were introduced to the exhibition over the course of each week. The Butterfly Rainbow can be downloaded from the artist's website here: www.damienhirst.com Tel Aviv: On one hand, the havoc of Corona, which is increasing throughout the world, is no longer taking the name of the end, today the outbreak of this virus has increased so much that it is becoming an enemy of people's lives. Every day thousands of people are dying due to the virus, so there has been more than 1 lakh 65 thousand deaths worldwide due to this virus. An Israeli scientist has made an important discovery in the world due to the outbreak of Covid-19. A sample of the vaccine to protect the coronavirus has been prepared at Tel Aviv University. The United States has approved the patent for this vaccine sample. Corona wreaks havoc worldwide, countries suffering from lack of ventilator The vaccine sample has been prepared by the team of Professor Jonathan Garshoni at the University's School of Molecular Cell Biology and Biotechnology. This vaccine neutralizes the coronavirus by direct injury to its structure. This proposed vaccine will have to wait for several months long process to go for clinical trial. Garshoni has stated that research has shown that the virus first establishes a relationship with the protein of the cell of the human body and then penetrates the outer layer of the cell and enters it. After this, he starts infecting the cell. This happens in millions of cells of the body. As a result, a person under the influence of the virus becomes ill and the number of infected cells increases. Garshoni has been working on the Corona family of viruses for the past 15 years. He has also worked on SARS and Mars viruses. America's people suffering from hunger, food banks are not mobilized The WHO has feared that there is no possibility of developing an effective vaccine to treat the deadly coronavirus in the recent past. David Nabero, the special envoy of the global organization, cautioned, "There is no guarantee that a vaccine to kill the deadly virus can be successfully developed in the coming months." Famous infectious disease experts believe that people have to get used to living with the risk of the virus. Prevention measures have to be a part of our daily routine. South Korea: Physical distance rules will continue till this day As small groups of demonstrators gathered in cities nationwide to protest the ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns, one set of images in particular have been widely shared online. Taken by Colorado-based photographer Alyson McClaran in Denver on April 19, they show what she believes to be healthcare workers blocking the path of the demonstrators, who want the state and country reopened despite public health officials warnings that doing so would invite more cases and more death. TIME reached out to McClaran to learn more about the photographs and her experience at the Denver protest. Her answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity. TIME: How did your day start out, were you on assignment? McClaran: Because of the coronavirus, I hadnt picked up my camera in over a month, which is unheard of for me. Im typically shooting five to six days a week. Yesterday I decided to go out and document the protest. I wasnt on assignment for anyone. What precautions did you take? I started out at the state Capitol in downtown Denver. It was very crowded. I had my mask on and did my best to social distance from people, but didnt feel safe, so I decided to leave and walk around the neighborhood. I saw two nurses in the middle of the street. I took off running towards them and started firing away my camera, because they were blocking the road at a green light and everyone was screaming and honking at them, and those are the images that you see. I was at the right place at the right time. One thing I remember is the lady in the truck was yelling at the health worker to go back to China. A health care worker blocks the street to counter-protest the hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colorado, on April 19, 2020. | Alyson McClaranReuters How do you weigh the risk of covering a gathering in a time like this? My gut was telling me this is history, and I wanted to document what is happening in my city right now and show what was going on. I had tears in my eyes half the day because I was in shock at how many people were out, and how much anger there was, so I had to protect myself by leaving. I didnt feel safe health-wise, and thats when I stumbled upon the nurses. Story continues Are we sure the people in your photographs are health care workers, or could they have been counter-protesters dressed as healthcare workers? I dont have any information on that unfortunately, but I never got the feeling that they werent. I believe they were health care workers. A man yells at a health care worker counter-protesting the hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colorado, on April 19, 2020. | Alyson McClaranReuters Whats it like for your work to spread far and wide online, often without credit? What do you want people to know before sharing your work online without credit? I appreciate how many people have given me photo credit. For those who have not, what happened yesterday took years of experience and I have worked my way to this moment, I was able to get everything I needed quickly, it wasnt just me grabbing a camera and shooting. It would be nice as a photographer and artist that people acknowledge that. How was this different from other protests youve covered? I understand people are stressed, and they want to get back to work, but it just showed how much anger there was. Unlike other protests Id covered, like gun violence, Black Lives Matter, this is a global issue. Everywhere is experiencing this right now at the same time, thats why it felt different. A health care worker stands in the street in counter-protest to hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colorado, on April 19, 2020. | Alyson McClaranReuters Is there anything youd like to add? I hope that everyone can come together. I understand that people are stressed and scared and sad and angry. But I just hope we can all come together and get through this so we can get back to normal. Alyson McClaran is a freelance photojournalist based in Denver, CO. [newsletter-time-talks] COVID-19: HYPOCRISY AND PROPAGANDA AGAINST CHINA ENSUES Several Australian politicians, including Liberal Party and One Nation figures, have made calls for China to be held responsible for the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic. Supposedly, this is on the basis that the virus arose in China and the Chinese governments alleged failure to respond effectively. This is utterly childish reasoning. That is, if it is to be considered reasoning at all, and not what it really is: an opportunistic justification for these politicians preexisting hostility towards China, and a further attempt to fan anti-Chinese sentiment. The falseness of their claims might have been less glaring had they made them months ago when the statistics had not yet shown conclusively how much more successful China has been at tackling the crisis than almost all other countries. However, at the time, the same Australian reactionary figures were cruelly rejoicing at the tragedy suffered by the Chinese people and denying that it would have much consequence for Australia. In January, the same nonsense was being spoken about how the Chinese government had acted too slowly. Incredibly, this is still said as we watch with our own eyes the far slower response of Western governments, despite having had a head start of months thanks to Chinas prompt reporting of valuable facts to the international community and effective management of the initial outbreak. Western governments were given the greatest opportunity to respond swiftly and effectively, but they have squandered it in unison. This difference in approaches and outcomes shows us that it is a blessing to the world that the virus happened to arise in China first. Unfortunately, reactionary politicians have also taken it as a blessing to continue their unreasonable attacks on China. None of the same politicians have expressed the same indignation at the unambiguously, intentional, deadly acts of the US regime, which continues to pursue its criminal policy of sanctions against Cuba, Venezuela, DPR Korea, Syria, Iran and others, consciously seeking to deprive these peoples of access to vital medical supplies even in this crisis. When will they call for the US to pay for the hardships suffered by these peoples, directly due to US policy? Instead, these hypocrites slavishly follow the US line and betray the independence and dignity of all the peoples of the world along with the Australian people they claim to represent. The idea that the fact of the virus having arisen in China is in any way related to moral or legal responsibility by the Chinese government is entirely fallacious, and only demonstrates other governments hypocrisy: by making this claim, they ignore the fact that new viruses can and will develop anywhere in the world. All governments need to prepare for this fact. This will only become more relevant as the accelerating impact of climate change causes widespread disturbances to ecosystems around the world. Another issue is the interminable gossip in the Western media about the case of Dr Li Wenliang, who has sadly passed away due to the virus. We hear nothing but claims of a cover-up by the Chinese government, and Dr Li has been made out to be an anti-establishment figure. The real facts have been completely ignored. Dr Li, who as it happens was a loyal member of the Communist Party of China, himself apologised for improper conduct. Any well-functioning and well-governed health system does not allow unauthorised publicity of half-formed facts in the early stage of a new and unknown development, which can only create panic without adequate knowledge to derive public benefit. At the same time, the central government has since assessed the relevant Hubei provincial authorities handling of the incident and determined that Dr Lis dismissal was excessive and a product of incorrect bureaucratic tendencies by several officials involved, who have now been dismissed themselves. The completely fictional caricature of Dr Li pushed by Western media and governments to suit their own interests is a disgusting insult to his memory. No reasonable person could expect that any government can carry out any action entirely perfectly. To seize on isolated imperfections without further analysis could only have meaning if there were such a thing as perfection in the realm of national and international politics. However, in the case of China, the meaningless fact of any particular action being performed any less than perfect is overblown to the extent that China is portrayed as the devil. This serves to obscure the concrete fact that their achievements in this struggle, as in many others, have been markedly superior to those of Western countries, and so too has been their handling of mistakes made which is the real test of a government. Here is my advice to these Australian politicians, which, if they have any integrity and commitment to their own claimed principles, is in terms they should understand: first cast out the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brothers eye. MEMPHIS, Tenn. The U.S. Postal Service is unlikely to shut down because of COVID-19, but changes in its volumes or operations could ripple to FedEx, experts say. Memphis-based FedEx remains closely tied with the ailing Postal Service as both a major customer and provider. Alterations to the USPS may translate to risk for FedEx, the company warned in 2019. Disruptions or modifications in service by the USPS as a result of financial difficulties or changes in its business, including any structural changes to its operations, network, service offerings or pricing, could adversely affect our operations, negatively impacting our revenue, results of operations and financial condition, FedEx said in its annual report. The Postal Service is FedEx Express largest customer, FedEx noted in its report: FedEx Express provides domestic air transportation for USPS first-class and priority mail. It also offers transportation and delivery for the USPS internationally. In 2017, FedEx Express estimated its air transportation contract with the U.S. Postal Service would generate about $1.5 billion a year. They extended their contract at the time through September 2024. FedEx superhub at the Memphis International Airport on Tuesday, November 20, 2018. Small business loans: Chase Bank, Wells Fargo face lawsuits over Paycheck Protection Program Coronavirus testing: Rite Aid is adding more sites across multiple states That extension was well before the COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating effect on our business and sent mail volume into free fall, Postmaster General Megan Brennan said April 10. She called on Congress and President Donald Trumps administration to act on shoring up the Postal Services finances. The pandemic's effects have been mixed on Postal Service mail that flies FedEx, said Michael Plunkett, president and CEO of the Association for Postal Commerce, an industry advocacy group that has FedEx and UPS as members. Plunkett said the Postal Service has seen an uptick in package volume in the last few weeks, which could benefit FedEx in the short term with many of those packages traveling on its planes. But first-class mail, which FedEx also flies for the Postal Service, has been down considerably, he added. Story continues Even if Postal Service volume falls, a lack of air cargo capacity could drive more Postal Service business to FedEx. The Postal Service relies on FedEx and other airlines to deliver urgent mail on time. If passenger planes continue to be grounded, some Postal Service mail will need to shift from those passenger flights to dedicated FedEx and UPS cargo planes, said postal industry consultant Robert Fisher. FedEx did not respond to a request for comment on the matter Thursday. Pandemic accelerates USPS cash drain While FedEx has faced its own struggles in the past several quarters, they dont compare to what the Postal Service is experiencing. Revenues were already going downhill for the Postal Service before COVID-19 hastened a gloomy financial situation. FedEx CEO Fred Smith told Southeastern Asset Management in 2019 that the companys best projections on when the Postal Service will run out of money point to 2022. FedEx and Amazon keeping more of their own deliveries in-house has led to less business for the Postal Service, he said. COVID-19 accelerated that timeline. Officials with the Postal Service warned that the pandemics effects "could shutter the Postal Services doors as early as June," U.S. Reps. Carolyn B. Maloney and Gerry Connolly wrote in March. We now estimate that the COVID-19 pandemic will increase the Postal Services net operating loss by more than $22 billion dollars over the next eighteen months, and by over $54 billion dollars over the longer term, threatening our ability to operate, Brennan said in the April 10 statement. Congress recently approved $10 billion for the Postal Service to borrow. Postal Service officials estimate this will allow it to keep operating until April 2021, when further relief will be needed, Plunkett said. If no relief comes to the Postal Service by then, he said the agency could reach the point where it cant pay its biggest expenses: employee salaries and benefits. There will be some pressure on all sides to not be perceived as the reason the Postal Service goes under, Plunkett said. Its going to get messy, and perhaps ugly, in the next few weeks. Were hopeful something gets done. FedEx uses Postal Service for some deliveries On the ground, the Postal Service provides a cost-effective service with 100% delivery coverage for FedEx through FedEx SmartPost, in which a Postal Service courier makes the final-mile delivery. If the Postal Service had to cut back on its operations, large customers like FedEx and UPS would take a financial hit, Plunkett said. The two companies often hand off inefficient deliveries destined for rural, faraway locations to the Postal Service. They go to every residence in the U.S., no matter what the population density is, Plunkett said of the Postal Service. If FedEx and UPS were in a situation where they had to make deliveries to those locations, their costs would go up. FedEx already began distancing itself from the Postal Service in 2019, when it announced it would insource into FedEx Ground nearly 2 million daily packages that were destined for SmartPost. Kevin Sterling, managing director and analyst at The Benchmark Company, said the move made sense for FedEx, since it helps shield the company from future Postal Service shakeups, like reducing operating days or the number of addresses it serves. What I think FedEx is doing is smart, to bring what they can into their own network so if things do get cut (from the Postal Service), it wont shock the system too bad, Sterling said. FedEx is roughly halfway there in moving that Postal Service volume in its own network, COO Raj Subramaniam said in a March earnings call. He summed up the move as purely an economic decision, providing FedEx Ground drivers with more packages per route and boosting delivery efficiency. The current SmartPost product will be rebranded in the future, Chief Marketing Officer Brie Carere said on the call, with FedEx giving sub-pound volume to the post office when needed. Max Garland covers FedEx, logistics and health care for The Commercial Appeal. Reach him at max.garland@commercialappeal.com or 901-529-2651 and on Twitter @MaxGarlandTypes. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: FedEx: How do US Postal Service troubles affect delivery giant? Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor in an official photo at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Nov. 30, 2018. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images) Citing Racist Origins, Supreme Court Strikes Down Nonunanimous Jury Rules in Louisiana and Oregon Convicting an accused person of a serious offense with a less-than-unanimous jury verdict, as two states had allowed, runs afoul of the U.S. Constitutions guarantee of a right to a jury trial, the Supreme Court has determined. The 63 ruling concerning split jury verdicts came April 20 in a case cited as Ramos v. Louisiana. The decision also overturns Apodaca v. Oregon, a 1972 Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of nonunanimous criminal convictions in serious felony cases tried in state courts. In 48 states and federal court, a single jurors vote to acquit is enough to prevent a conviction, according to a court summary. But Louisiana and Oregon have long punished people as a result of 10-to-2 verdicts. In the case at hand, petitioner Evangelisto Ramos was convicted of murder in a Louisiana court by a 10-to-2 jury verdict. Instead of the mistrial he would have received almost anywhere else, Ramos received a sentence of life without parole. After that conviction, Louisiana changed the law, banning nonunanimous convictions for offenses committed, beginning in 2019. The change didnt benefit the already-convicted Ramos, so he took his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. It was unclear at press time how many criminal convictions have been put in jeopardy by this ruling, but it could reportedly run into the thousands. Lawsuits over how the ruling applies to individual cases are a certainty. Writing for the court, Justice Neil Gorsuch stated that the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trialas incorporated against the States by way of the Fourteenth Amendmentrequires a unanimous verdict to convict a defendant of a serious offense. Gorsuch wrote that the practice of allowing nonunanimous convictions was rooted in past racial animus. Courts in both Louisiana and Oregon have frankly acknowledged that race was a motivating factor in the adoption of their States respective nonunanimity rules. Louisiana first endorsed nonunanimous verdicts for serious crimes at a constitutional convention in 1898, Gorsuch wrote. According to one committee chairman, the avowed purpose of that convention was to establish the supremacy of the white race, and the resulting document included many of the trappings of the Jim Crow era: a poll tax, a combined literacy and property ownership test, and a grandfather clause that in practice exempted white residents from the most onerous of these requirements. Convention delegates crafted a facially race-neutral rule, allowing 102 verdicts to make sure service by blacks on juries would be meaningless, he wrote, citing a previous Louisiana court ruling. Adopted in the 1930s, Oregons rule allowing nonunanimous verdicts can be similarly traced to the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and efforts to dilute the influence of racial, ethnic, and religious minorities on Oregon juries, Gorsuch wrote citing a previous Oregon court ruling. The justice noted that at the birth of the 6th Amendment, drafted by James Madison and ratified by the states in 1791, unanimous verdicts had been required for about 400 years. If the term trial by an impartial jury carried any meaning at all, it surely included a requirement as long and widely accepted as unanimity. Justice Samuel Alito wrote a dissenting opinion, which was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and partly joined by Justice Elena Kagan. The courts majority opinion unnecessarily uproots a longstanding practice, Alito suggested. The doctrine of stare decisis gets rough treatment in todays decision. Lowering the bar for overruling our precedents, a badly fractured majority casts aside an important and long-established decision with little regard for the enormous reliance the decision has engendered. If the majoritys approach is not just a way to dispose of this one case, the decision marks an important turn. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Brett Kavanaugh wrote separately to explain why the Apodaca ruling should be set aside. Sotomayor noted that the nonunanimous jury rule has racially biased origins. Overruling precedent here is not only warranted, but compelled, Sotomayor wrote. Every family that has said yes to us had said yes because what they are witnessing is such grief, such a surreal situation, Irving said. We are surrounded by death and dying every day on the news, and this is one opportunity to save a life. They are saying, Thank you for still doing this; in all this we can save a life. Im hearing that from physicians, making referrals, too: Thank you for saving lives when all were doing is losing them. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 15:30:14 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 939 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / The COVID19 virus, also known as the coronavirus, is an epidemic that is causing many deaths and spreading rapidly across Asia, including China, Korea, Japan, and the United States, Europe, and Africa.China and South Korea are the regions that quickly started the war against the coronavirus.The two countries once faced a massive increase in the number of infections and uncontrollable situations. However, high virus screening rates and a decreased number of confirmed cases show that they are effectively responding to the virus.In the case of Korea, the government prevented social anxiety and systematically managed the spread of the infectious disease through systematic communication and leadership between the public officials of the Central and Local Governments, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the police, and doctors, nurses, and volunteers. This includes drive-through inspections and the development of test kits exclusive for coronavirus. Furthermore, they were able to effectively reduce the virus infection by delivering preventive measures and post-infection measures to the people.And in April, Korea has become a country that receives official requests from various countries for help in dealing with the coronavirus. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), which is in a fierce battle with the coronavirus, has disclosed details on how the Korean government responded to coronavirus and what information was delivered to educational institutions, administrative agencies, hospitals, police, public institutions, business people, and the public.However, these materials are currently in Korean, making it difficult to verify in various countries.Blockchain expert Xsodion's representative Hoyeol Shin, Director Kwangpyo Ko, and 15 other volunteers joined forces to translate the data released by KCDC into English and Portuguese. They also made it into a website, mobile web, and android application for easy access to information on how the Korean government responded to corona. In addition to this, the service also introduces WHO's response to the coronavirus.The volunteer team operates under the name Xby45. It is currently building a system to disclose information in diverse languages on viruses that threaten people, record them in a blockchain, and provide accurate information to organizations that want them. Moreover, the team is composed of active professionals in various sectors, including IT developers, doctors, nurses, businessmen, and celebrities, and is from diverse countries, including Korea, the USA, Brazil, Thailand, and China.The Xby45 team's projects can be found on the WHOREPORT APP and www.whoreport.com WHOREPORT consists of national situations, local information, preventive measures, post-infection measures, and Korean government manuals. The language is primarily in English, and currently, English, Korean, and Portuguese manuals are available. We would like to support various languages but lack competent personnel. If there are any volunteers by country, please apply via email.Prevention is important for coronavirus, but post-infection response is much more vital. Although post-infection policies vary by country, the one thing to remember is to call the coronavirus center before going to the hospital, notify the symptoms, and follow the directions of the center to protect the medical institution, surroundings, and yourself. If you go to the hospital directly, all doctors and nurses who accessed the medical center will be exposed to the infection of the coronavirus. This has been highlighted as the most critical problem in Korea and China, which experienced early coronavirus.Both the nation and citizens need to pay attention and work together to fight the virus in the long run.The coronavirus is causing many deaths in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. "Now is the time for all nations and people to join forces to fight the virus and overcome it. Please request if there is a need for any information from us. We will cooperate for whatever it might be to save one life." said the Xby45 team.If you look into the data from KCDC, documents such as event management guidelines, collective facility and multi-use facility response guidelines, standards for Business Continuity Plan (BCP), recommendations and precautions for minimizing travel, guidelines for collective event disinfection management, disinfection of multi-use facilities, and workplace response guidelines are provided. Other guidelines for neonatal intensive care unit management and medical-related preventive management will be added. If there are any other necessary documents, you can apply for them through separate inquiry. The Xby45 will forward the inquiry to KCDC to request for cooperation.Furthermore, the representative of Xsodion, Hoyeol Shin said coronavirus has caused much racial discrimination in several countries. He hoped we recognized once again that Asia is only the place where the virus appeared, and Asians are not the cause of the disease. He also wished that everyone could wisely overcome the virus situation with a caring mind, not racism.The Xby45 team's project is the first global team to respond to the coronavirus, which is causing much death. As the interview says, now is the time for everyone in the world to join forces to win the virus, and no anger should be expressed against any person or country in particular.Xby45 Volunteer ListDirector: Hoyeol Shin(xsodion), Kwangpyo Ko(xsodion)Planning: Kwangpyo Ko, Sungbok Han(xsodion)Development: Jincheol Lee(Netmarble), Kiho Ko(Samsung)Medical Advice: Evellyn Lorena(mario ribeiro hospital), Clara Lee(north shore university hospital), Dain Kim (Busan Paik Hospital)Translation: Cindy Leann(xsodion), Chanhyeok Myeong(Handong University), Evellyn Lorena(mario ribeiro hospital)Gathering and consulting information: Malik Yusef(universal Music Group), Moley CHUNG(innosonian), Hanji Kim(xsodion), Junhee Jo(Chung-Ang University), Jeongeun Shin(bcnanumhouse), Yumin Myeong(Grace International School)Participant Companies: XSODION, COLT8, INNOSONIANMedia contactName: Hoyeol ShinTelephone : + 82-10-8742-2522Email: xsodion.mrshin@gmail.c A judge declared the suspect who allegedly killed a man and slashed four others with a machete during a Hanukkah celebration was mentally unfit for trial and ordered him to undergo mental health treatment to assess his competency. U.S. District Court Judge Cathy Seibel ordered that Grafton Thomas be treated at a suitable facility to determine if he "will attain the capacity to permit criminal proceedings to go forward against him," according to the court order issued Monday. The treatment would not exceed four months and the Federal Bureau of Prisons will provide a report on any updates to the court within the first 30 days, the order said. MORE: Hanukkah stabbing victim may never walk, talk again; daughter begs to 'stop the hatred' Thomas, 37, allegedly forced his way into the Monsey, New York, home of Rabbi Chaim Rottenberg while he hosted the celebration with other Hasidic Jews on Dec. 28 and attacked the group, police said. He was arrested a short time later. PHOTO: A member of Rabbi Chaim Rottenberg's community, right, hugs a well wisher in front of the rabbi's house on Dec. 29, 2019, in Monsey, N.Y. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images, FILE) Josef Neumann, 72, one of the victims, succumbed to his injuries and died March 29. Federal and state prosecutors, who have indicted Thomas on several charges including hate crimes, murder and attempted murder, contend he targeted the house and the guests because they were Jewish. Thomas allegedly had handwritten journals containing anti-Semitic comments and had researched Adolf Hitler's hatred of Jews online, according to prosecutors. PHOTO: Thomas Grafton, the suspect in Hanukkah celebration stabbings in Monsey, leaves the Ramapo Town Hall in Airmont, New York after being arrested on Dec. 29, 2019. (Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images, FILE) Thomas' attorney Michael Sussman, has argued that Thomas suffers from "severe psychiatric issues" and has had psychiatric hospitalizations in the past. MORE: Hanukkah stabbing suspect pleads not guilty to federal hate crime charges "I have stated from the very outset that, based upon my investigation, this was not an act of domestic terrorism," Sussman told ABC News in a statement following the ruling. "While others were making that claim and inflaming the public, I stated that Mr. Thomas had a long well-documented history of mental illness and that, tragically, this motivated his conduct in late December." "The medical reports received by the courts being to explicate this history ... his actions on the night in question all bespeak to his very serious mental illness," Sussman continued. "In this situation, long-term treatment and hospitalization appear to be appropriate." Hanukkah stabbing suspect deemed mentally unfit for trial, ordered to undergo treatment, judge rules originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Oregonians who own small businesses in rural eastern Oregon towns like Burns are working to avoid a collapse they wont come back from. Several counties, some untouched by the pandemic, sent letters to Gov. Kate Brown that requested a reprieve from sweeping business closures and asked to reopen businesses in a way that allows for social distancing. Brown has pledged to begin work on such a plan. Many rural business owners have only a matter of weeks before they will be forced to close, county officials say. Rural leaders are eyeing May 1 as a tentative target to start reopening. Heres what else to know on Monday: HUNGER ON RISE: Coronavirus has made a free meal harder than ever to come by, even as more Oregonians than ever are in need. The Blanchet House of Hospitality is now distributing thousands of bagged meals a day and absorbing new costs. UNEMPLOYMENT CLAIMS: An error in Oregons jobless claims system that confounded scores of workers last week returned on Sunday morning, despite the states insistence that the problem has been fixed. SENIOR CARE: Oregons senior care industry is well-known in state politics for its deep pockets and willingness to financially back candidates at every level of government. As the extent of COVID-19 cases and deaths at nursing homes receives more attention, the industrys political largesse is also attracting scrutiny. WORKPLACE COMPLAINTS: The healthcare sector has drawn the largest share of more than 2,700 Oregon complaints about working conditions during the coronavirus outbreak, with medical professionals concerned about their own potential exposure. MAY REOPENING? Oregon could consider relaxing social distancing measures by May 25, a week later than other West Coast states, according to first-of-their-kind projections from University of Washington researchers. The researchers projection assumes that by then Oregon will have implemented a strategy to test, track and isolate coronavirus carriers and that a tiny number of active cases will remain 1 in every 1 million residents. STATE AID: Oregon lawmakers are looking to convene a special remote hearing to approve tens of millions of dollars of aid to those affected by the coronavirus outbreak, including hospitals, rentals and workers. GROUP HOMES: The coronavirus has so far infected 10 people who live or work in state-funded homes for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. The disease has struck one person each in 10 separate homes throughout Oregon: a foster home for children, three foster homes for adults and six adult group homes, according to data state officials provided to The Oregonian/OregonLive. VETERANS HOME: Two more residents of the Edward C. Allworth Veterans Home have died, bringing the total number of deaths at the Lebanon nursing home to six, according to the state Department of Veterans Affairs. HIGH SCHOOLS: Oregon high school students wont receive letter grades for classes they took in the latter half of this academic year but will instead be marked as passing their courses or earn an incomplete for the term. EVICTION MORATORIUM: Multnomah County commissioners on Thursday voted to ditch their own eviction moratorium and instead adopt Gov. Kate Browns statewide order, which extends protections to commercial renters and doesnt require residential tenants to provide a reason or meet a specific notification deadline if they cant pay rent. The Oregonian/OregonLive Subscribe to our Oregon coronavirus newsletter: Kansas records 100th coronavirus death MANHATTAN, Kan. (KSNT) - The City of Manhattan is funding emergency loans for businesses as federal programs are running out of money. The Manhattan City Commission approved $500,000 for the Manhattan Business Emergency Relief program on April 1. The program has given loans to nearly 50 businesses in the Manhattan area. A tragic milestone that only inspires more debate among so many locals who want the lockdown lifted. Read more: Non-profit body The Akshaya Patra Foundation on Monday said it has already served over 2 crore meals to vulnerable communities like migrant workers and homeless people affected due to the lockdown imposed to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. As on April 17, the Foundation has cumulatively served 2,19,44,385 meals which include 93,57,839 freshly cooked meals and 3,02,541 food relief kits (1,25,86,546 meal servings) to people in need in various locations across India, an official statement said. The relief feeding endeavour has been initiated in Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Delhi and NCR, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. "We have been able to serve over 2 crore meals to people in need during these difficult times due to the collaborative efforts of everyone involved," The Akshaya Patra Foundation Chairman Madhu Pandi Dasa said and thanked everyone for the donation. "I sincerely hope that the situation will improve soon and people will be able to get back to their day-to-day life. Until then, we will continue our efforts to serve as many people as possible," he added. The Foundation said it is using its kitchen network to prepare the meals and deliver them to the centres assigned by the authorities. Simultaneously, packaging centres have been set up in various locations across the country where food relief kits are packed with essential groceries based on the local palate. The kits to be distributed in Bangalore, for instance, contain rice, tur dal, oil, spices, sambar and rasam powder, and vegetables which are known to have a long shelf-life, such as potatoes and pumpkins. Each kit has groceries sufficient for either 42 or 28 meals, it said. In this endeavour, the Foundation said it has been supported by proactive corporate partners and individual donors. For instance, Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy and his family contributed Rs 10 crore from their personal funds toward Akshaya Patra's COVID-19 relief work. Their generous donation has enabled the Foundation to distribute 1.33 lakh food relief kits, which are equivalent to 55,86,000 meals, it said. Several corporate houses, such as the Biocon Foundation, Capgemini, CISCO, CocaCola, CLP, Deutsche Bank, DLF Foundation, Goldman Sachs, Gland Pharmaceuticals, HT Parekh Foundation, Hero Moto Corp, Infosys Foundation, LG Electronics, Morgan Stanley, Nestle India, PepsiCo Foundation, Sarojini Trust, Texas Instruments, Vedanta, Vivo, Walmart and many others, have come forward to contribute to the relief feeding endeavour. The Foundation further said it has also received in-kind support for the endeavour with General Mills (Mumbai) donating cookies and cakes for distribution in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Noida, Britannia donating around 20,000 packs of 'Good Day' biscuits to be distributed in Bangalore, and Epigamia donating 17,000 premium yoghurt cups for distribution in Bangalore and Ahmedabad. Similarly, Bollywood personalities, such as Hrithik Roshan and Raveena Tandon, have also donated to the Foundation's efforts. Also supporting the Foundation are motivated volunteers who have selflessly come forward at this hour of need. These include volunteering groups, such as Inspiring Indians and Corona Warriors, as well as corporate volunteers from organisations such as the Infosys Foundation and Biocon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Slate's Who Counts? series is made possible by the support of Slate Plus members and readers like you. One district looks like a broken-winged pterodactyl, as a federal judge put it. Another is commonly called the snake by the lake. After the 2010 census, state legislators carved up states into these sometimes bizarrely shaped slivers, a process known as gerrymandering, in order to entrench their electoral power. The U.S. Supreme Court has long held that these districts must contain roughly equal populations. But in 2019, it ruled that federal courts have no power to stop legislators from drawing districts along partisan lines and thus diluting votes for their opponents. Advertisement Next year, state lawmakers will redraw the maps again based on the 2020 census, a process mandated by the Constitution. In anticipation of this new redistricting cycle, Slate is revamping our gerrymander puzzle game from 2013 as part of our Who Counts? initiative. Well be releasing new puzzles over the upcoming weeks, highlighting the worst and weirdest gerrymanders in the country. Find out how quickly you can put these states back together and learn everything thats at stake in the next round of redistricting. Please enable Javascript in your browser to view Slate interactives. Wisconsin The Wisconsin election on April 7 was just the latest battle in a yearslong war between state Republican and Democrat officials. Even when Wisconsin Republicans receive fewer votes than Democrats, theyve maintained their grasp on most levers of state government through gerrymandering. Advertisement Advertisement Wisconsin was the test tube baby of project REDMAP, a lavishly funded GOP initiative to win state legislatures in 2010 and then gerrymander Democrats into oblivion. Republican legislatorsrelying on the work of operatives like Thomas Hofellerengaged in a process called packing and cracking, cramming Democrats into blue districts, then distributing the rest throughout red districts. As a result, in 2012, Republicans won less than half the states votes for Congress but claimed five out of eight congressional seats. They still have a lock on all five seats, as only one districtthe 7th, which leans Democraticis actually competitive. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The redistricting process in 2021 will look very different. Theres little doubt Republicans will hold onto the Legislature, which they also gerrymandered. But in 2018, Wisconsinites elected a Democratic governor, Tony Evers. In March, Evers created an independent redistricting commission to draw the next round of maps. The Legislature will likely ignore the commissions recommendations and draw up its own partisan plansbut Evers can veto them. Expect extensive wrangling, and likely litigation, over the future of the states district lines. Advertisement Please enable Javascript in your browser to view Slate interactives. Maryland Republicans arent the only ones who know how to gerrymander. Democrats controlled Marylands redistricting process in 2011, and their chief goal was to flip the 6th Congressional District in the rural western part of the state, which Republicans had held for almost two decades. To do so, mapmakers shuffled Republicans voters out of the district and moved Democratic voters in. They combined the liberal suburbs of D.C. with the conservative Maryland panhandle, diluting Republican votes. The states 3rd Congressional District is another sprawling monstrosity that combines part of very liberal Baltimore, moderately liberal Annapolis, and conservative rural regions, baking in a Democratic advantage. There is just one Republican in the states congressional delegation, and analysts have found that Democrats can probably gerrymander him out of his seat in this next round of redistricting. Advertisement Advertisement Please enable Javascript in your browser to view Slate interactives. West Virginia What does a fair map look like? Take a look at West Virginia, which provides a good example of a reasonable but imperfect congressional redistricting plan. Although it favors Republicans today, it was drawn by Democrats and reflects the states current political lean. It contains minor population variations, which the Supreme Court approved, and three districts that sprawl from the Ohio state line all the way to West Virginias eastern border. Legislators sought to avoid splitting counties, which partly accounts for the districts spiky contours. Although states can also strive to create compact and contiguous districts, its important to remember that aesthetically pleasing districts are not always fairer districts. County lines and natural borders like rivers or mountain ranges sometimes create borders that look like classic gerrymanders even when they arent. Fake Mourners Apprehended While Traveling With Empty Coffin During Coronavirus Travel Ban A group of eight Kenyans who disguised themselves as mourners taking a body for burial during the Coronavirus travel ban in Nairobi have all been arrested. Over the weekend, the countrys health minister Mutahi Kagwe in a statement said that the group had left the capital, Nairobi, and travelled 370km (about 230 miles) west with an empty coffin in the vehicle before being intercepted. According to him, the mourners had a fake burial permit from Mama Lucy Hospital in Nairobi. Mr. Kagwe said that the group of fake mourners had managed to pass through several checkpoints before suspicious officers in Homa Bay County opened the coffin. The Health Minister also disclosed that the driver who drove the group has tested positive for Coronavirus, while the rest have been quarantined. The arrest comes nearly two weeks after travel in and out of Nairobi was restricted, along with another three regions considered to be Coronavirus hot spots in the country. Kenya has recorded over 200 cases of Coronavirus, including 12 deaths. Written by ACM *Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- Most Medias curiously Skiped the Arguments against a Natural, but for an Artificial set up of the Virus by a Lab, that Nobel Prize Biology+Virology Professor Luc Montagnier (the co-Discoverer of HIV) just used at his 2 First Interviews in France, (one Short, in a Radio, and anOther Long, in a TV), as well as his Concluding Appeal for Respect of Bio-Ethical Rules World-wide, in order to Prevent Other such Deadly Pandemics etc. in the Future, (See infra). A very Interesting point is that Professor Montagnier already REPLIED, with several Concrete Arguments, to the Fast-Track, mostly Superficial Criticism and Dismissal of his Findings, by Many Commentators from the Establishment, which immediately Attacked him even Personally, obviously Pushing Most Medias to Drop any really Full Presentation of his Sayings "on the Facts", thus Depriving the People from a Real Chance to clearly Judge where the Truth might be... This appears so more Scandalously Anti-Deontological for the Press, and Anti-Democratic in general, as Montagnier clearly Distinguished between "the FACTS", (which concern the Artificial Fabrication of the Virus by a Lab, and the Need to respect Bio-Ethical Rules), and his "THOUGHTS", "Beliefs" or Hypothesis, (related to "Who and Why" made that Virus, What might happen in the foreseable Future, and what "Solution" could be given to try to Prevent so many Deaths), as we shall see Infra. Moreover, he Denounced that some in the Establishment attempt to Hide the Truth. ---------------------- (1) AN ARTIFICIAL FABRICATION BY A LAB and PRESSURE TO MUZZLE THE TRUTH It's by working Together with his Collegue, Bio-Mathematician Jean-Claude Perez, and Following a relevant Publication also by an Indian Group of Researchers (See Infra), that Professor Montagnier, a Biologist and Virologist himself, claims to have Found the following Facts, about an Artificial Fabrication of COVID-19 Virus by a Lab : - "My Work is just to State the Facts, that's all" : - That Virus' Genome includes "a Sequence of HIV, but also of Malaria", etc. - In fact, "Over a Classic Virus' genome, has been Added a Part with a series, a Sequence of HIV". - This is "Not Natural", but "the Job of a Molecular Biologist. A Professional Work. Very Delicate. Like Watch-Craft", he stressed. - "It's Not a Natural Mutation, because, in order to be made, it Needs Molecular Tools, a Lab", he warned + "That HIV Part is Not just Anything : F.ex., it includes a Key Part", (which might act like a Vaccine against anOther Virus, etc). => "Conclusion : A (Genetic) Manipulation was at the Origin of that Virus". - It canNot be Natural, because "there is a Concentration : Accross a Long Ruban of 30.OOO Bases, all that (Addition) is Concentrated in just Less than 1.000 Basis" : "A Part made by HIV", that "you can Find with a Mathematical Tool". => - "But it's Enough in order to Modify what is called an "Anti-Gene Site" : I.e. Modify that Virus' Protein, in order to make the Immunity System recognize (perceive) it as a HIV". - To those who claim that these Sequences would be "Too Short, so that they could be Natural", "there is a Reply : - But, those Sequences bear a certain Genetic Information, (i.e. with a Functional Logic : Comp. Supra), and are Not Random, Contrary to those who Claim that it would be due to Pure Chance"... - In fact, "It's a Sequence of Nucleotides", and "there are 4.000 Different Nucleotides... So that it canNot be just by Chance !", he smiled. - And, "Put a Natural Object, Inside anOther Natural Object", is Not so "Natural", he clearly implied... - All "these are Facts. They canNot be Denied", he stressed. - Obviously, "this is a CoronaVirus, transmitted by Aerian way". - However, "if one works on (i.e. Manipulates) the ... Surface of a Virus, he can Modify its Tropism, so that it could Attack anOther kind of Cells than before", Professor Montagnier observed. - Because, (in Labos) "Everything is Possible Nowadays. In Molecular Biology, they can Make Any Virus they Like !", he Warned. => So that, f.ex., Professor Montagnier agreed with a Question on whether "it's Possible that this Virus' High Contagion capacity might be Linked to its Artificial Fabrication" : - Very Probably, he Replied : "Because the Virus' Transmission is related to a Link between its Protein and a Receptor in Cells, so that, More that Virus Finds Receptors, More it will Stick and Penetrate, Transmitting (Genetic) Information inside" those cells. + And to another Question, whether "this Virus does Exploit a Weakening of our Immunity System", he also Replied Positively : - "Indeed, I Believe that we are living in an Environment very much Different from that of our Ancestors, f.ex. by Augmenting (Electro-Magnetic) Waves, more and more : That's an Issue which should be Explored". F.ex., we saw that Wuhan's Region was advanced in "G5" Networks, with 10.000 Antennas there ! This might have contributed in Spreading such a Malign Virus"... ------------------------------ + But, it seems that "there is a Will to Hide the Truth !", about this Artificial Fabrication of the Virus in a Lab, Professor Montagnier Denounced. => F.ex., an "Indian Group" of Researchers, who had Recently Published a relevant Article in a Sientific Review, suprizingly, afterwards, "were Obliged to Withdraw" their publication... + And, "in China, someone Must put a Signature before Any such Publication" on the Virus. However, "My Role is Not to Evaluate China", and, at any case, "China canNot Control All the World"... - But "there is a Will to Muzzle", as "they Forced the Indian Research Group to Retract", after "Pressure by the Editors", etc., just "Weeks ago". => Thus, indeed, "there can be Pressure from All International and National" (+other) "Organisations which have an Interest to Hide the Truth", Professor Montagnier warned. - In general, "there is a Huge Pressure to make a Black-Out on this Virus' Origin". - "I do Not Know" for "which Interests", But "these are Facts", and "they canNot be Denied". - But, on the Contrary, "I Can work Freely", because, inter alia, "I am a Nobel Prize" winner, and "there is No Pressure able to Influence me ... Nothing can Pressure me !", Professor Montagnier boasted, proudly and bravely, (already Known for Daring to Support also various Other Controversial or Risky positions in "Hot" Scientific Debates in the Past). Nevertheless, in the Past, Montagnier has been even Personally Attacked himself by several other Establishment's top Technocrats, as he claims, Because he "had Defended another Scientist, on a Controversial Issue, that many seeked to Cover-up, Hindering (Scientific) Research", and even "Ill-Treating him", he Replied to a Critical Question, meanwhile. ----------------------------- (2) UNKNOWN CREATOR + AIM - However, "I do NOT Know WHO Created that, and WHY", he clearly pointed out. - "The Aim is Not Clear", Professor Montagnier Carefuly stressed from the outset. - "Only those who Made that (Virus), could, One Day, tell the Truth (about their real Aim)". - But, "a Possibility is, perhaps, that Someone might have attempted to create a Vaccine against anOther Virus", etc, he Speculated, apparently Downplaying the issue... - However, "I doN't know the Aim", and "I doN"t Blame Anyone". - But, eventually, "a Vaccine is initialy Tested on Animals". And "there Might be a Leakage by Someone who Manipulates that, and doesn't take Precautions", he speculated. - Thus, it's not excluded that "this Virus was Created by the Chinese Labo of Wuhan, or anOther Labo", Elsewhere. Interestingly, at his 2nd and Longest INTW, Professor Montagnier made it Crystal-Clear that his "Fact"-Based Analysis (Comp. Supra), a priori, was Not Necessarily Limited Only at China's Lab in Wuhan, But concerned, rather, Simply the Virus' Fabrication "By A Lab", whatever. - At any case, even if it might have been made at Wuhan, "It's Not Only China" who could be Responsible, because "there was also Important Funding and, may be, even Scientists from the USA, in these Researches". - USA have Financed a part of what was being done inside Wuhan Labo. So, this is Not Only a Chinese affair !"... [ He apparently evoked at least a 3,7 Millions $ Grant by USA's NIH to Wuhan's Bio Lab, during Former POTUS Barack Hussein Obama, on 2015, recently Reminded at a 2020 Press Conference of Trump at the White House on the Virus. Might be Added also the Recent Arrest (1/2020) of a Harvard's Dean on Chemistry/Biology for Hidding big Payments by China in order, inter alia, to help Select and Recruit Scientists for Projects of Wuhan's Bio-Lab. +Moreover, Wuhan's Lab has been Build by a French Company, and a Similar Lab ("Level 4")exists at France's Lyon City, located Between Strasbourg and NW Italy, while Relations exist also with the Head of INSERM, the National Organisation for Medical Research. ++ And a Big Corporation, Headquartered in Australia, has also Invested heavily in Plasma Fabricators at Wuhan, since 2015, while Plasma's AntiCorps became, Nowadays, a Leading Hypothesis for a possible Medical Treatment of the Virus, both in China and Elsewhere in the World, (including, particularly, the USA, etc). +++ Last, but not least, the existence of very Close Links between some Chinese Researchers and strong USA Networks in Bio-Tech. Issues concerning particulaly Genetic Manipulations, was Recently revealed, inter alia, Also by the Scandal, on Automn 2019, of a Young Chinese Doctor who secretly practiced controversial Genetic Manipulations of Human Embryos, and even 3 Artificial Births of Babies bearing Genetic Mutations Heritable by Future Generations, (i.e. Abusing of an outlawed Technology Dangerous for all Humankind), while being Educated, Funded, Publicized, closely Linked and Otherwise Backed by some Rich and Powerful Bio-Tech and Socio-Political Lobbies of the USA, related to Former POTUS Barack Hussein Obama ("Socialist"/Liberal : See, among others, f.ex., also : ..., etc, as well as Infra)]. => At any case, "China is also a Victim of that" Virus, Professor Montagnier reminded. ----------------------------------- (3) Possible FUTURE + SOLUTION => AnOther Striking Point is that, precisely, the Artificial Origin of that Virus, (Comp. Supra), Might, perhaps, give some "Hope" that it could "Disappear" progressively, by Natural means, Professor Montagnier, optimisticaly speculated : + Indeed, "My Collegue Perez (a Bio-Mathematician) Believes that there is a kind of Harmonisation : If you make an abnatural fabrication, it has few chances to survive. I.e. Nature likes Harmony, and Not a Virus made by anOther Virus, etc", he said. - "So, what is happening Nowadays, f.ex. in some USA's areas, seems to be that Virus' Mutations are Deleting a part of those Nucleotides inside its Genome, and, what is ExtraOrdinary, is that this Part of HIV Sequence is currently Mutating much More and Faster than Anyone Other".... - So that, "mainly in USA's Eastern Coast, at Seattle, that Sequence has almost been Demolished !". => In Consequence, "one may think that it would Disappear"... >>> So, "there is a Glimpse of a HOPE", (and "this is My 2nd Message") ! - In Practice, "we must Follow the Genetic Mutations of the Virus", (which are, usually, frequent, amidst Transmissions), in order to verify the "Prediction" that it would become "more and more Mutated, Deleted", so that "its Hardest Consequences would Fade away..." - Thus, "what is More Important, Nowadays, for All of us, is not just How this Virus appeared, (Comp. Supra), but What will Happen Now ? And, there, I give you a Glimpse of Hope that this Virus might Disappear... " "Seattle" Lake's flat Rainbow, USA, April 2020 - "a Glimpse of Hope" ?... (Cessna Kutz Photo/NE/Eurofora screenshot) ----------------------------------------------- But thus might happen too Late for several Victims of the virus... - Even in case of an eventual, Gradual Weakening and/or "Disappearance" of that Virus (Comp. Supra), Meanwhile, too "Many People are Dying", Every Day. - So that we obviously have to search "a Solution" for Nowadays, asap, went-on to Add Professor Montagnier. => - "For a Solution, a Pioneer Approach that I have, is that Electro-Magnetic Waves may Transform the Frequences of that (Artificial Genetic) Sequence, as an Alien Body, (Comp. Supra), and, may be, we could Distinguish it from the Rest of that Virus, and Destroy it with Electric Pulses", he imagined. - But, "for the Time being, this is just a <> story, because I must have the (material) Means to make that. Otherwise..." (NDLR: Professor Montagnier is also Famous for a Controversial Theory concerning Electro-Magnetic Waves and Human Genome, in general). ------------------------------------------------- (4) NEED for BIO-ETHICal RULES respect >>> At any case, in order to Prevent Other such Pandemics in the Future, "we Must, absolutely Exclude that something like this might be Repeated, in one way or another. That's Obvious !" - "Certainly, there are Rules" (to observe, for Bio-Technocrats), "But it's Not Probable that they might be Observed by Everybody accross the World", he Warned... => "So, I think that Everybody Must Respect the ETHICAL Rules for (Bio-Tech) Researchers", NOBEL Prize winner, Professor Montagnier stressed in Conclusion. - "As there are also Ethical Rules for Medical Doctors, to Never Kill by any Medical Treatment : That's Really Fundamental !" + *** By a striking Coincidence, China was announced as Hit by Deadly CoronaVirus (on December 31, 2019), just 1 Day After having Published (on December 30, 2019) a Strong Punishment and Denonciation for the UnEthical and Dangerous for Humankind, Heritable Genetic Manipulation of 3 Babies born Artificially, secretely arranged by a Young Chinese Doctor Educated, Funded, Backed and Influenced mainly by some USA Bio-Tech Lobbies linked to Former POTUS Barack Hussein Obama (of the "Socialist"/Liberal Party : See Facts at http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/chinacondemnsheritablegeneediting.html + http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/heritablegenemaniptrumpxihumanity.html, etc). Meanwhile, in Addition, inter alia, even a Harvard University's Dean on Chemistry and Biology was Recently Arrested and Persecuted by New USA President Don Trump's Administration, just a Few Months Ago, officially for curiously Hidding the Fact that he was Paid by some Foreign, Chinese Authorities, inter alia, also to help Find and Recruit Scientists, from all over the World, needed for certain undisclosed Projects at the Bio-Lab of Wuhan... (even if there is Not yet any official Explicit link to CoronoVirus made in Public until now). Both Chinese and USA Presidents Xi and Trump, as well as European EU/CoE Leaders, (where CoE's ''Oviedo" Convention on Bio-Ethics Prohibits Genetic Manipulations Heritable by Next Generations), were Expected - just at the Eve of Deadly CoronoVirus' outbreak- to take part, in one way or another, on that "Hot" New Issue Dangerously Affecting all Humankind, (See, f.ex., inter alia, also : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/heritablegenemaniptrumpxihumanity.html + http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/euchinaspaceandbioethics.html + http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/eppvpresidentandmepsongermlinemanipban.html, http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/newcoesgonbioethics.html , etc). But, Instead, all out of Sudden, All of them, were notoriously accaparated by that Unforseen, Deadly Virus' Pandemic, which has successively hit Hard, Particularly China, Europe and the USA... ---------------- => Meanwhile, an International Investigation, by the WHO/UNO to Find Who may have Fabricated that Deadly Virus and Why, as well as How it Spread so easily around the World, was asked, among Various Others, also by Former Twice-Elected President of Iran (which has been also Hardly hit), Ahmadinejad (See: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/ahmadinejadonlabomadevirus1.html + http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/ahmadinejadonlabomadevirus2.html), and Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne, etc., while even US President Trump partly Discussed that, and French President Macron denounced such "Gray Zones" (etc)... >>> World Leaders had just Missed a Timely Chance to deal with Elementary Bio-Ethical Principles' respect at their Latest "G7" Summit on August 2019, at Biarritz (See: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/flopsatbiarritzg7summit.html). Will they Now Rectify that Error, at least during the present "G7" of 2020, chaired by USA, after such a Deadly Pandemic, probably Lab-Made ? But, if they do, this time, it should be, naturally, done by Video-Conference, and Include Russia (as Back on the "G8" Era) as well as China (may be a "G9", expected since the 2011 Deauville Summmit ? Comp: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/sarkozymedvedevdealslavrovmargelov.html, etc), if not a UN Security Council special meeting,(as Presidents Macron and Putin recently discussed), etc... (../..) ("Draft-News", with Fast Translation from the Original in French). Stories with LGBT+ themes, Harry potter and A Handmaids Tale were among the most complained about books at schools in the US last year. On Monday, the American Library Association revealed the books that had the most objections and complaints in 2019. The two most complained about books were cited for transgender content and were Alex Ginos George and Susan Kuklins Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out. The third most complained about book was the gay parody of Mike Pences wife and daughters book, A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo. The parody of Karen Pence and Charlotte Bond Pences book, titled, Last Week Tonight With John Oliver Presents a Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, was created by the team behind the popular HBO show. Recommended Suspended police chief claimed deputy died from virus for being gay The blurb for the book states: With its message of tolerance and advocacy, this charming childrens book explores issues of same sex marriage and democracy. Deborah Caldwell Stone, the head of the library associations Office for Intellectual Freedom, told the Associated Press that the list was unsurprising. The list shows a continued trend of attacks weve seen in recent years, said Ms Stone. She added that complaints were filed by both groups and individuals, including the Florida Citizens Alliance, who compiled a list called, porn in Florida Public Schools. Recommended Daisy Ridley reads Star Wars book to thank coronavirus key workers Their list included Cory Silverbergs Sex Is a Funny Word and Toni Morrisons The Bluest Eye, among others. Harry Potter books were once again included, for the theme of sorcery and A Handmaids Tale was complained about for vulgarity and sexual overtones. Margaret Atwood, the author of A Handmaids Tale, told AP that if youre a writer and everybody likes you, a) Youre doing something wrong, or b) You dont exist. She added: I am happy to be in the company of the Bible, Shakespeare, John Bunyan, Lord Byron, Emily Bronte, Flaubert, James Joyce, Nawal el Sadawi, Angela Carter, Anonymous of A Woman in Berlin, and so many others. Lucky me, I live in a democracy, so at least Im not in jail or being tossed out of a plane. Recommended Jacqueline Wilson publicly comes out as gay The library associations Office for Intellectual Freedom recorded 377 challenges in 2019, a rise from 347 in 2018, according to AP. A challenge is defined as a formal, written complaint filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness. Ms Stone added that despite the rise in complaints for 2019, she thinks they will start to fall in coming years. I dont think youll have as many incidents of a parent encountering a book and raising objections, she said. But we dont think challenges will come to a halt. After five trials and two appeals over an 11-year period, the Court of Appeal has upheld a gangs convictions for the tiger kidnapping of a Dublin family as part of a 2.08m cash-in-transit robbery. In a judgement released electronically this morning as part of measures put in place to reduce the risks presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, the appellate court found it was not persuaded of the merit of any of the grounds of appeal advanced by the gang. President Donald Trump at the White House daily coronavirus briefing on Sunday. Tasos Katopodis/Getty President Donald Trump is shifting blame for the US coronavirus response to governors in a bid to win reelection in November, senior administration officials and Trump advisers told Politico on Monday. One Trump adviser told the outlet: "Blame and credit will shift to the governors, considering they are the ones making the calls." Trump has also sought to evade blame for the country's high number of coronavirus cases and deaths by calling out China and the World Health Organization. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. As the 2020 election kicks into high gear, President Donald Trump won't just be going toe-to-toe with the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden. Senior administration officials and Trump advisers told Politico that the president is purposefully starting feuds with some of the nation's governors over their coronavirus response in a bid to win his reelection. By critiquing how governors handle the crisis, Trump will be able to distract from his own shortcomings in responding to the outbreak, which many found too slow. The sources who spoke to Politico said to expect Trump's feuds to escalate in the coming days, as he pushes for the US economy to be reopened something that the governors have said they alone will decide. "People's initial reaction is always to look to the president, but as time goes on and it becomes clear other states are doing other things, that blame and credit will shift to the governors, considering they are the ones making the calls," one Trump political adviser said. At Sunday's coronavirus press briefing, Trump played a clip of Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York praising the federal government's coronavirus response, with a portion edited out in which Cuomo was critical of the president. Tasos Katopodis/Getty It also appears that the White House is setting governors up for failure when it comes to their individual coronavirus responses. For example, in the White House's reopening guidelines, states are allowed to conduct testing on anyone who shows coronavirus symptoms. But some governors say they've struggled to get their hands on these tests, which could turn their citizens against them if they start to question why more testing isn't being done in their state. Story continues Starting public feuds is something Trump used to his advantage in his first presidential campaign, first by singling out his main competitors in the Republican field like "low-energy Jeb" Bush and "Lyin' Ted" Cruz, then lobbing attack after attack on "Crooked Hillary" Clinton on Twitter. Indeed, it's a tactic he's deployed for much of his career, as one Trump expert pointed out to Politico. "This idea that you grab credit for everything and push responsibility off on others is something long-standing with him," Michael D'Antonio, author of the biography "The Truth About Trump," said. "When he went through his big bankruptcies in the early 1990s, he basically blamed his lenders and said they were responsible because they made the loans. He was not responsible because he failed to pay them back." Governors aren't the only ones Trump is blaming when it comes to the US' high coronavirus cases. Trump has also criticized China's failure to contain the outbreak at its onset, and has repeatedly labeled it the "Chinese virus." The president has also blamed the World Health Organization of mismanaging the global response, and announced plans to cut off funding to the health agency last week. Read the original article on Business Insider Hundreds of thousands have lost their livelihoods and loved ones to COVID-19. The virus has now killed more Americans than the Pearl Harbor assault, the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the Iraq and Afghanistan wars - combined. All of these lives have meaning. Every single person was special to someone. The Lucky Ones (TLO), a life-affirming social, video platform and online community, recently launched a new campaign to celebrate the lives of those fallen from the Coronavirus. Behind every statistic of lives lost is an individual, and that person deserves to be remembered and honored. Established by film producer Joseph Alvaro and Pulitzer Prize finalist film critic Matt Zoller-Seitz, The Lucky Ones is a short-form video series and social platform which explores the relationships with those we have loved and lost. Drawn from the diversity of our society, people from around the globe are encouraged to tell their stories about that special someone who impacted their lives. It is a testament to our common humanity. "This devastating pandemic has taken the lives of so many," said Alvaro. "No one should be defined by their death but rather their life and the goodness they gave to others. So rather than think about how sad we are because someone special has died, we should celebrate their life and all the love they gave us and others around them." The Lucky Ones is encouraging anyone that has lost someone to the pandemic, or knows someone who has, to share their story and what made that person so special. They have the technology that allows their producers to interview people remotely. They can direct and shoot interviews in HD using participants' iPhone, iPad or computer webcam. The 1-minute videos will be edited and hosted on their streaming platform, as well as shared via their social media channels. If you, or someone you know, would like to schedule a remote interview, please email: [email protected] Across the globe, COVID-19 has put a spotlight on the fault lines of our healthcare systems, leaving many people to slip through these cracks. Unfortunately, Alabama has long struggled with inadequate healthcare, in part due to lack of insurance. The vast majority of Alabamians with private health insurance receive it through their employer; however, COVID-19 has brought about a staggering wave of job losses, with 264,000 new unemployment claims filed in just the last month. More than ever before, it is time for a new approach. Alabama must join the growing majority of states that have expanded Medicaid. Today, there are 4,500 cases of COVID-19 with 154 reported deaths in Alabama, and the number steadily rises every day. While testing and treatment options are being quickly mobilized to meet this need, they are only accessible to those who can afford them. The U.S. Census Bureaus 2018 data reports that 10% of the state population has no health insurance at all. What good are Alabamas ramped-up screening measures if everyone who tests positive cant afford care? Though the entire state is grappling with the healthcare crisis presented by this pandemic, those who will be hit hardest are rural communities and people of color. Alabamas rural communities are already in a health crisis of their own. Since 2011, seventeen rural hospitals have closed, contributing to the dangerously low number of hospital beds per person in these areas. Per the Alabama State Health Planning Development Agency (ASPDA), over half of the states counties have less than 100 hospital beds. Even as more severe cases fill intensive care units across the nation, 22 counties in Alabama are left vulnerable with no ICU bedsperiod. Medicaid expansion could provide remaining rural hospitals with the funds to stay open during this crisis. Black populations have already been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, making up over half of all fatal cases while comprising only a quarter of the state population. These Alabamians are also more likely to lack insurance. Medicaid expansion is the first step towards narrowing the racial disparity in health outcomes, both during this pandemic and long after it has passed. COVID-19 has widened the already devastating gaps in care many Alabamians face. The time to act is now. Expanding Medicare will address many of the challenges presented by COVID-19, from access to testing to receiving quality care. Professor David Becker from the University of Alabama at Birmingham estimated that 223,000 Alabamians would be newly insured if Medicaid was expanded, which would go a long way towards ensuring that those infected can receive timely care. Furthermore, the recently enacted Families First Coronavirus Response Act provides 100% federal financing of COVID-19 testing for those covered by Medicaid. This pandemic has already sparked conversation on this long-awaited reform. Cover Alabama is a coalition of over sixty healthcare and advocacy organizations that are calling for Governor Ivey to expand Medicaid in light of COVID-19. Legislation to expand coverage is currently pending in the state house, most notably HB 447. Why is there still resistance? Governor Ivey has long cited the cost as a major concern. It is estimated that the state would spend $250 million annually for this program, although 90% of the actual cost would be paid by the federal government. In actuality, studies report that Medicaid expansion would save the state of Alabama between $58.9 and $87.6 million per year from 2020 to 2023. Savings are expected from both replacing state funding of other health programs with Medicaid-matched funds and by having the federal government cover more of the costs for state residents who already qualify for Medicaid. These projected savings leave little merit to cost-related arguments against coverage expansion, and shed a light on political motivations for delaying expansion. COVID-19 has exposed the cracks in our health infrastructure, but we have a unique opportunity to change the story. Expanding Medicaid will not only provide lasting benefits to our states economy, but more importantly will save lives now and give more Alabamians a chance at a healthier life long after this pandemic has ended. Mugdha Mokashi (@mugdhatweets) is an Alabama native and second-year medical student at Harvard Medical School. Howard P. Forman (@thehowie) is a Professor of Public Health, Management, Economics, and Radiology at Yale University. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is set Monday to issue executive orders allowing access to beaches, rivers, and lakes as well as reopening some stores. The orders will allow people to shop at an array of stores, Trey Walker, McMasters chief of staff, told the Post and Courier, including clothing, jewelry, music, and book shops. The reopening orders will be effective Tuesday. Walker said the infection rates for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from mainland China last year, have dropped enough to loosen some of the restrictions ordered earlier in April to try to slow the spread of the illness. The CCP virus causes COVID-19, a disease that kills a small percentage of patients, primarily among the infirm. While beaches and stores will be reopened, authorities will continue enforcing social distancing measures. No groups larger than three people will be allowed on beaches and stores will have to have to limit the number of customers inside. The plan will begin with our retail shops and beaches and move into gear from there. Social distancing measures will continue to be required, state Rep. Josiah Magnuson, a Republican who said he was briefed by the governors office, said in a social media statement. Details will be announced at a press conference on Monday, Magnuson said. Republican state Rep. Stewart Jones said he was also called by McMasters office regarding the plans. Retail will open Monday. I hope that EVERY small business is up and going again in South Carolina by the end of next week, he wrote on Facebook. McMaster ordered all beaches closed on March 30, along with public boat ramps and landings. Last week he issued an executive order reopening boat ramps, effective April 17. McMaster is also considering lifting the mandated closures of personal care businesses such as salons and gyms, according to Walker. South Carolina is under a stay-at-home order. Residents were ordered to not leave their home unless they were taking a so-called essential trip. Evidence is increasing about the high rates of infection in people who do not have symptoms and dont know they are infectious. This places everyone at risk of getting the virus or unknowingly transmitting it to someone else. South Carolinians are encouraged to stay home and minimize contact with people outside their households to prevent the spread of the disease, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control says on its website. People should monitor themselves for symptoms, which are similar to the flu, wear a mask while out in public, and regularly wash their hands, according to authorities. The department reported 136 new CCP virus cases on April 19, taking the states total to 4,377. Daily growth has slowed over the past week and nearly half of the hospital beds are available. South Carolina reported one new death, with 120 individuals having died so far from COVID-19 in the state. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in recent days issued an order allowing local governments to reopen beaches, and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday announced a reopening plan that will see all retail stores being able to operate, though no customers will be allowed inside buildings for the time being. From The Epoch Times Bandits killed 47 people in coordinated attacks against several farming villages in Katsina State, northern Nigeria, the president's office and local police said on Sunday. Men on motorbikes carried out "organised and simultaneous attacks", on the villages, Katsina state police spokesman Gambo Isah said in a statement. The predawn raids on Saturday targeted villages in the Dutsenma, Danmusa and Safana districts, he added. A spokesman for President Muhammadu Buhari, confirmed the attack in a statement condemning the gunmen as "bandits". Isah said members of the security forces, including soldiers and policemen, had deployed to the area on Sunday. This follows a viral video circulating on social media suggesting that the possession of a Ghana card by a Chinese was unlawful. In a statement issued and signed by Mr Francis Palmdeti, the Head of Corporate Affairs, and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Accra, the Authority said issuance of Ghana Card to resident foreigners in Ghana was backed by law. It said a Chinese or other foreign nationals may lawfully possess a Ghana card as contained in Section 2 (2) of NIA Act 2006, Act 707, and Section 7 of National Identity Register Act 2008, Act 750. "By virtue of these legal provisions NIA is mandated to register and issue Ghana cards not only to Ghanaians living in Ghana and abroad but also to foreigners legally resident in Ghana. "The NIA has since 2012 been issuing Ghana cards to qualified foreigners who have lived in the country for a cumulative period of 90 days and above as per the National Identity Register Regulations LI 2111 (2012)," it stated. Touching on some key features, the statement said the cards issued to Ghanaians had both ECOWAS Identity boldly printed with ECOWAS and the Ghana flag at the top left and right corners respectively. But the card issued to foreigners had boldly printed on its face in red NON CITIZEN and it was marked same in the National Identity Register (database). Although the law prescribes that the National Identity Card issued by NIA should be known as the Ghana card, it said this name was, however, not printed on the face of the cards issued to either Ghanaians or to foreigners. Thus, a Ghanaian or a foreigner may lawfully possess the Ghana card as long as he or she had complied with the respective registration requirements. It further stated that unlike the Ghana Card issued to Ghanaians which was valid for 10 years, the NON CITIZEN Ghana Card issued to foreigners was, however, valid for one year, renewable annually. Eligible foreigners paid a fee of 120 dollars to register and acquire the Ghana card and 60 dollars for renewal. ---GNA It's the penultimate episode of Homeland! The penultimate hour I will spend with Carrie Mathison, Saul Berenson, and all these other straight-up crazies that I've known longer than some (most?) of my friends have known their spouses. If this was a Hollywood marriage, we'd be long-divorced by now but instead, here I am, coming back to this show week after week. I regret nothing, if I'm being honest. As the episode opens on the CIA HQ Subbasement a terrifying moniker we learn that Carrie's plane did in fact make it back to the States. She's rescued from a holding cell by someone that Saul sent over and will be staying at Saul's house while she awaits trial, so clearly the FBI didn't relax their stance on her actions during the long flight. As she walks through Langley, a TV plays the news of the bombing that the rest of us knew took place while she was in the air; it seems that while most everyone died, Jenna Bragg is still alive and seemingly available to serve as a witness against Carrie. The White House gang (led by Hot Evil Hugh Dancy) is looking to use the bombing to really go after Pakistan, which Saul is of course against given it was Jalal Haqqani's terrorist network and not the Pakistani government. It feels so satisfying to see Saul dropping F-bombs at Hot Evil Hugh Dancy and his smug beard. Carrie's unpacking at Saul's house have we been inside Saul's house since Mira was gone for good (again)? and she offers to share the intel she heard on the flight recorder with the White House, which is only feasible if they find the actual black/orange box. She uses the opportunity to circuitously ask about that secret Russian asset Yevgeny mentioned, which Saul vehemently denies. I wonder whether to believe him while also simultaneously marveling about how enviable his house is. In Washington, D.C. he's gotta be sitting on millions of dollars worth of property, right? The wall-to-wall bookcase alone...hold up we're getting a flashback to Saul in 1986. Story continues It's 1986 Berlin, of all places, and I'm enraptured immediately. Saul sees a bookstore that was clearly a secret meeting location, and a book that he clearly still owns. If Mandy Patinkin Irishmans himself for this flashback I'll consider this season worth its weight in gold. But before we're treated to digitally-de-aged Saul, the memory is over and we're back in the present, with Carrie trying to get Jenna on her side about this whole flight recorder-slash-secret asset search even though Jenna's still pissed about the safe house and is threatening to out Carrie's plan to everyone (including Saul). I really don't think I believe her, but I also won't pretend like I'm not biased against Jenna. Now, under normal circumstances, I would delete that last sentence the second the next scene begins the scene in which Jenna shows up at Saul's office in the White House and tells him that Carrie ambushed her in the parking lot saying "a lot of crazy stuff." But this is my penultimate recap and I don't want to pretend anymore, damnit! Sometimes my hunches are wrong. In my defense, Jenna is still kind of a...shall we say, dumb dumb...because she totally misread the relationship between Saul and Carrie, and instead of vengeance what she gets is a lecture from Saul. "When you're dealing with Carrie you have to do what she does," he explains. "You have to decide for yourself what matters. You have to decide what kind of person you are." [This is the point at which I wonder to myself whether Jenna is capable of the above her avoidance of giving testimony to the FBI seems to suggest she might be]. Erica Parise/SHOWTIME Back with Carrie, she's in the courtroom to hear her charges and they are really something. The FBI is pinning basically every crime that we've seen during season 8 on our girl murder, assassination, you name it. She's in the bathroom puking out her stress when she gets a visit by a "friend of Yevgeny's" who offers up certain "resources" and "whatever help she needs." That's spy-talk for: Carrie can defect over to Russia if she wants to escape all those charges. ' When Carrie gets back to Saul's house she's greeted by an emboldened Jenna, who grew a spine after she ran out on the FBI and investigated Saul's time in Berlin after all. She runs Carrie through her findings (in Saul's own dining room!): Saul brought an asset back from Berlin in the late 80s and never declared an Eastern asset, yet continued to bring in major intelligence. In fact, during this scene Homeland credited Saul with practically every major Eastern intelligence coup Gorbachev doing a deal with the West, discovering the cover-up in Chernobyl which explains the portions of Saul's rise to power that I always believed wholeheartedly but never had any historical facts to back up. I'm not sure if the CIA doles out bonuses, but if they do then Chernobyl is probably what paid for his wall-to-wall bookcases. If Carrie follows up this lead it would be yet another betrayal of the man who's sacrificed a lot for her, but it might also get the flight recorder back. Naturally, Carrie follows up the lead. She goes to find Saul's asset at his Witness Protection house with a highly effective disguise (glasses and a ponytail!). Saul's asset is surprisingly (shockingly?) open with Carrie, explaining how he managed to escape and how Saul carried him across the border, through sniper fire, after he lost his leg to a landmine. I'm currently imagining a Saul virile enough to carry a man across the border to safety, and I don't hate it. Alex also shows Carrie a class photo from his KBG training program there's a mysterious (and unnamed) woman in the photo. Only the back of her head is visible, and the camera pans from the photo to a translator at the United Nations, on the panel convened to discuss the situation in Pakistan. This seems like Homeland's way of hinting at something especially since the mysterious woman lingers on a conversation among the Russian delegation about Yevgeny's operation. We follow her she looks strikingly similar to Helen Mirren from the front, no? to a bookstore and suddenly there's another flashback. The woman, much younger, pointing a gun at young-Saul's face and demanding to work as a double-agent. He turns her down in the flashback, but back at his house in present-day Carrie is searching through Saul's bookcase, seemingly on to something. She tracks all of his rare books (the dates he inscribed inside the covers) to match major intelligence events the aforementioned Gorbachev talks and Chernobyl, but also the far more recent Crimea annexation. In New York, Saul receives a package from the shop that the mysterious woman visited (I think I'm going to start calling her Fraulein) and extracts a message from within the binding: "The price has already been asked. It's Yevgeny Bromov's play." And now we're back to 1980s Berlin and Saul's newsboy cap. (And, sadly, it's a different actor apparently Showtime doesn't have the same de-aging budget as Netflix). Young Saul is being hunted by the Germans, but is saved by Fraulein it's clearly how she won her way into his good graces, proving her use as a Russian double agent, which proves the validity of Yevgeny's claims to Carrie. Carrie calls the woman from the bathroom puking assistant to help her get in touch with Yevgeny wearing a leather jacket that I'm a big fan of. They video chat (OMG are they Zoom-ing?) and after a predictably tense back-and-forth Yevgeny makes it clear that the only way Carrie's going to get the black box back from Moscow (and stave off this pending mini world war) is to eliminate Saul and become the asset's runner. Yevgeny bet on the fact that Saul's contingency plan would involve passing along his greatest intelligence source to his protege; in fact, it's clear his plan from the literal beginning was to back Carrie into a corner in which her only option was killing Saul. And I don't use literal lightly here. I'm guessing this goes back all the way to Carrie's capture at the end of season 7. What this does is set up a potential tete-a-tete (I'm sorry for all the French here, but I don't know any Russian colloquialisms) to close out the show, and I have to wonder whether Homeland will even let us know the result. The writers have always preferred a cliffhanger ending, and I can't think of anything bigger than a fade-to-black in the middle of a Carrie and Saul standoff. Now, what I hope will happen is that they'll band together to take down the Russians in a final show of unity, but that's a little kumbaya for this group. Also, I hate to nitpick a plot hole during a time like this but now that Carrie's back in D.C., is she going to see her family? Or are we all just pretending that Franny doesn't exist, like when they swapped out the eldest sister on Roseanne halfway through the show? Related content: A former FDA commissioner says the US won't have full coronavirus testing capabilities until September but that the economy needed to be open before then - even though it was a risk. Dr Scott Gottlieb told NBC's Today on Monday that the US should be aiming to test about 1 percent of the population on a weekly basis in order to safely reopen the country and track COVID-19 cases. 'If we wait until we have sort of the optimal framework for testing, we'll be waiting until the fall, and that's just not going to be possible from an economic, social or public health standpoint,' he said. 'It's a risk. We won't have the testing we want until September.' He said an optimal testing framework included both testing and contact tracing - but neither of those would be in place immediately. Dr Scott Gottlieb told NBC's Today on Monday that the US should be aiming to test about 1 percent of the population on a weekly basis to safely reopen the country and track cases 'I think a good rule of thumb would be (to test) about 1% of the population on a weekly basis so the ability to test about three million people,' he said. 'We're not going to be there in May or June Hopefully, we'll be there by September. Gottlieb said he thought some of the less hard-hit states were ready to start reopening their economics in early May, while states that have the majority of cases will likely begin to reopen some parts of the state by late May. 'I think some states are ready to start slowly re-opening their economies in early May,' he said. 'This is not going to be a light switch. They're going to reopen gradually over the course of May and June. 'In terms of being ready, the things we're not going to have in place is the testing and also the contact tracing. We're not going to have all those resources in place that we want to have. 'We've made a lot of progress in ramping up testing in this country after having a slow start. We're testing probably a million people per week.' It comes as a new NBC News/WSJ poll showed nearly 60 percent of voters feared the US would move too quickly to lift stay-at-home restrictions, which would lead to another surge in cases and deaths. Protests flared in various states on Sunday over stay-at-home orders while governors disputed President Donald Trump's claims they have enough tests for the coronavirus and should quickly reopen their economies. An estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol in Olympia to protest Democratic Governor Jay Inslee's stay-at-home order, defying a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. Despite pleas from rally organizers to wear face coverings or masks as public health authorities recommend, many did not. In Denver, hundreds of people gathered at the state capitol to demand the end to Colorado's shutdown. As protesters clogged streets with cars, healthcare workers in scrubs and face masks stood at intersections in counterprotest. Stay-at-home measures, which experts say are essential to slow the spread of the virus, have battered the US economy and more than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Demonstrations to demand an end have previously erupted in a few spots in Texas, Wisconsin and the capitols of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. 'These people love our country,' Trump, who has touted a thriving economy as the best case for his re-election in November, told a briefing in Washington on Sunday. 'They want to get back to work.' In New York, the US epicenter of the pandemic, hospitalizations continued decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. There were 507 new deaths from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus, down from a high of more than 700 a day. 'If the data holds and if this trend holds, we are past the high point and all indications at this point are that we are on a descent,' Governor Andrew Cuomo said, while urging residents to continue social distancing. To get a baseline of how many people were infected with the coronavirus, Cuomo said the state would do the most aggressive anti-body testing in the nation in the next week using a random sample. Demonstrators flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders Other similar demonstrations were held in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State (above) earlier today On a usual weekday at Super Kids Jr. Academy in south Bismarck, groups of kids can be seen running around the playground. But last Monday morning, about six kids were scooping snow around the areas swings and slides. Theyre excited to come outside, owner Tammy Anderson said as she watched them. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the day care center would have about 90 children attending the day care. But attendance has dropped by about half as families choose to keep children home. The COVID-19 outbreak in North Dakota has caused many day cares to shut down. Day cares choosing to remain open have experienced a large decrease in attendance, but North Dakota is working to keep the programs afloat through a grant program. As of April 6, there were 1,572 licensed child care programs in North Dakota, according to the state Department of Human Services. About 11% have reported they closed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the state. In Burleigh County, there are about 175 licensed child care programs, according to the department. As of last Monday, 13 self-reported to Human Services that they had closed. Many of the open child care programs are conducting health screenings and are limiting group sizes to nine children per staff member to comply with an executive order Gov. Doug Burgum signed on April 10. In return for following the practices, along with agreeing to prioritize serving children of first responders, health care professionals and other "lifeline" workers, and allowing families not attending day cares to hold a spot for up to $50 per month, programs became eligible for the departments childcare emergency operating grant, which has been providing funds based on the size of a facility and licensed capacity. In a conference call with hundreds of child care providers last month, Burgum touted the child care grants as one of the most proactive in the country in supporting its child care institutions. Granny Annies Childcare received the grant earlier this month. The child care center used the funds to keep our doors open and building operational, said Tom Bry, a business manager with the day care. The grant has helped Granny Annies Childcare financially as it limits its fees for children absent from the day care. Typically, if a parent decides not to bring their child for whatever reason, that family is still obligated to pay for their spot, and until (the Department of Human Services practices) were announced on the 27th, that was kind of our plan in April to keep our doors open, Bry said. Child care centers dont have a very large profit margin to begin with. Basically, what you bring in is what you pay out. Its not really a business where people are sitting on lots of money and savings. Granny Annies Childcare closed after Burgum ordered the shutdown of schools. The day care reopened a week later when the governor extended the school shutdown. If we had to shut down completely and to not take any children, there would have been no way that we couldve opened our doors back up, Bry said. To follow the Department of Human Services requirements, Granny Annies Childcare is checking kids' temperatures more regularly than we normally would, including if a child has a runny nose. Before allowing kids into the facility, day care staff ask parents Human Services-mandated screening questions, which include whether they or their children have exhibited coronavirus symptoms, been in contact with someone who has tested positive for the virus or traveled outside of the country. New Song Kids Care also closed after Burgum's executive order shutting down schools but then reopened two weeks later. The day care used to average about 50 children a day in the facility, but average attendance numbers have dropped about 70%. In order to follow the state's requirements, the day care has had to segregate classrooms, with each group assigned a different bathroom. "I think a few of them are enjoying the one-on-one spoiling that's going on," said Sara Johnson, a supervisor at New Song Kids Care. Like at Granny Annies Childcare, parents who bring their children to New Song Kids Care are asked not to enter the building. Children are told by staff to wash their hands before entering classrooms. Some New Song Kids Care staff have volunteered to stay home without pay due to the day care's drop in attendance, Johnson said, while others have self-quarantined. For now, though, a lot of parents with kids enrolled at New Song Kids Care have opted to keep their children home until COVID-19 subsides. "The ones that we do have are essential workers, and so we are here to provide a safe and healthy environment for those families and that's our goal," Johnson said. Super Kids Jr. Academy has remained open throughout the outbreak in North Dakota. Parents are allowed in its facility, but not until they are asked the Human Services screening questions. Previously, the day care staff sent children home if they had a temperature of 101 degrees. The day care now sends children to their families if they show a temperature of 100.4 degrees. The grant Super Kids Jr. Academy received has enabled the day care not to lay off any of its staff, Anderson said. Staff are working different schedules, which was encouraged under Burgums executive order. I know that at some point were going to get back to, even if its a new normal, we will get back to some type of normal, and our kids will be coming back, and we will move forward from there, Anderson said. But right at this point, we are just plugging along and trying to do business as usual. Last Monday, Beckham Wetsch, 6, could be seen shoveling snow next to a tire swing on the Super Kids Jr. Academy play area. "It sticks really good," he said about the snow. Wetsch said he doesn't miss going to school. He sends his friends video messages to keep in touch, though. "I'm going to show them my dance moves," he said. Reach Andy Tsubasa Field at 701-250-8264 or andy.field@bismarcktribune.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. Motilal Oswal Real Estate (MORE) has raised Rs 1,150 crore for its fourth realty fund from HNIs to invest in housing and commercial projects across six major cities, and has committed of around Rs 550 crore in nine projects from this fund, a senior company official said New Delhi: Motilal Oswal Real Estate (MORE) has raised Rs 1,150 crore for its fourth realty fund from HNIs to invest in housing and commercial projects across six major cities, and has committed of around Rs 550 crore in nine projects from this fund, a senior company official said. The fund raising exercise for its India Realty Excellence Fund IV (IREF IV) started in September 2018, and now the final closure has been achieved with a commitment of Rs 1,150 crore. "We have raised Rs 1,150 crore for our fourth fund during a very challenging period," MORE Director and CEO Sharad Mittal told PTI. The company has already made an investment commitment of around Rs 550 crore in nine projects from this fourth fund, he added. "Our average investment size is around Rs 75 crore. Around 80 percent of our portfolio is residential projects and 20 percent commercial," Mittal said adding the company targets upwards of 20 percent return on its investment. Click here to follow LIVE news and updates on stock markets He said the company would be cautious in making further investments from its fourth fund and would wait and watch for at least the next 4-5 months to understand the impact of the global economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus outbreak. "We will focus on managing assets under our portfolio," Mittal said. The money has been raised primarily from high net worth individuals (HNIs) and family offices. "Existing investors from our previous funds have provided commitments to this fund notwithstanding the NBFC crisis during which we have raised this IREF IV fund," Mittal said. MORE had earlier raised around Rs 1,700 crore for three real estate funds. MORE is part of Motilal Oswal Private Equity (MOPE), which is the alternative investments platform of Motilal Oswal Group. At present, the cumulative AUM (asset under management) under MORE stands at more than Rs 3,600 crore. Vishal Tulsyan, MD & CEO, MOPE said, In our private equity business, we manage an AUM of more than Rs 7,000 crore, of which 50 percent is growth capital and 50 percent is real estate. Over the last few years, we have raised 4 funds and have established a successful track record as a domestic fund manager." "Investing in real estate is one of the groups core strategies and while we continue to focus on residential real estate, we will also evaluate investing in other asset classes as the sector transforms in the coming years," he said. Mittal said the company has made an investment in projects of Casagrand Group (Chennai), Shriram Properties (Bangalore), Phoenix Group (Hyderabad), Kolte Patil Developers (Pune), ATS Group (Delhi NCR), SD Corp (Mumbai). "The impact of the recent COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented wherein trade and businesses worldwide have come to a halt. It has impacted all sectors, including real estate. In India, since the announcement of the nation-wide lockdown, construction and sales activity across the entire real estate sector has been on a pause," Mittal said. He said the company is regularly reviewing the situation with developer partners to ensure proper cash flow management. The editor of the eminent medical journal The Lancet has accused the government of rewriting history after Downing Street issued a furious and detailed rebuttal of a newspaper article accusing Boris Johnson and his administration of dragging their feet in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. The explosive article by the Sunday Times Insight team dominated debate on the virus crisis over the weekend with a claim that the Johnson administration just watched as the death toll mounted in China in January and February and missed the boat on securing sufficient supplies of tests and personal protective equipment (PPE). But in a 2,127-word blogpost, No 10 accused the paper of falsehoods and errors and claimed that its article actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak. The governments pugnacious response came just hours after the Cabinet Office published a detailed denial of what it said were multiple inaccurate and misleading claims in a Financial Times article about problems with the procurement of ventilators. The move suggests deep concern at the centre of government over the danger of losing control of the narrative about its handling of the crisis. The government statement quoted a tweet from Lancet editor Richard Horton on 23 January urging caution on suggestions that a killer virus was coming as proof that there was no scientific consensus at that point that coronavirus was a threat. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou But Mr Horton accused the government of deliberately rewriting history in its ongoing Covid-19 disinformation campaign. He said his message related to the need for caution in media reporting and was followed by a series of tweets drawing attention to the dangers of this new disease. Mr Horton said he had drawn attention to Lancet publications on the severity and pandemic potential of Covid-19, the danger of human-to-human transmission and the need for intensive care treatment, and the next day had asked why there was no discussion underway of the urgent clinical challenge of responding. By 26 January, he said he was tweeting that the needle is moving towards the affirmative on the need for declaring an international public health emergency. The fact is that ministers and scientific advisers failed to understand what was happening in China, despite evidence, said Mr Horton. Entitled Coronavirus: 38 days when Britain sleepwalked into disaster, the Sunday Times article said the prime minister had skipped five meetings of the governments Cobra emergency committee to discuss the outbreak, instead concentrating on Brexit and the cabinet reshuffle and spending a fortnight with fiancee Carrie Symonds at countryside retreat Chevening. And it claimed that No 10 played down the looming threat from coronavirus and displayed an almost nonchalant attitude for more than a month. An unnamed senior adviser to Downing Street was quoted as singling out Mr Johnson for criticism, saying: Theres no way youre at war if your PM isnt there. And what you learn about Boris was he didnt chair any meetings. He liked his country breaks. He didnt work weekends... There was a real sense that he didnt do urgent crisis planning. It was exactly like people feared he would be. The government rebuttal, credited to an unnamed spokesman, insisted that Mr Johnson had been at the helm of the response to this, providing leadership during this hugely challenging period for the whole nation. The tone of the statement was much more aggressive than that used by the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove in TV appearances on Sunday, when he described the article as off beam. It said: The government has been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect our NHS and save lives. Our response has ensured that the NHS has been given all the support it needs to ensure everyone requiring treatment has received it, as well as providing protection to businesses and reassurance to workers. The government statement was shared widely on social media by Conservative MPs including health secretary Matt Hancock, who said: Weve been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect our NHS and save lives. Former Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson tweeted: I dont think I can remember such a detailed, point by point rebuttal from HMG on a news story, ever. The statement insisted it was entirely normal and proper for meetings of the Cobra committee to be chaired by a secretary of state rather than the prime minister. It said the Sunday Times was wrong to suggest the threat was brushed aside at the committees first meeting on the outbreak in January, insisting Mr Hancock had already raised the issue with the PM and instituted daily coronavirus meetings by this point. The official risk level was set at low in January in line with medical advice, said the statement. And it added: The World Health Organisation did not formally declare that coronavirus was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) until 30 January, and only characterised it as a global pandemic more than a month later, on 11 March. The UK was taking action and working to improve its preparedness from early January. In reference to the report that the UK sent 279,000 items of protective equipment to China earlier this year, the government spokesman said: The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between 2 April and 15 April we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China. Rejecting the suggestion that Downing Street had taken a nonchalant approach in February, it said that extensive and detailed work was going on in government at this time. It insisted that the government had been extremely proactive in implementing lessons learnt from a 2016 planning exercise, codenamed Cygnus, which highlighted the need for stockpiles of PPE and intensive care ventilators. Speaking ahead of the governments rebuttal, shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said there were serious questions for the prime minister to answer. We know that serious mistakes have been made, we know that our frontline NHS staff dont have the PPE, that theyve been told this weekend that they wont necessarily have the gowns which are vital to keep them safe, said Mr Ashworth. We know that our testing capacity is not at the level that is needed. We know that the ventilators that many hospitals have received are the wrong types of ventilators and there are big questions as to whether we went into this lockdown too slowly, and now we hear the prime minister missed five meetings at the start of this outbreak. It suggests that early on he was missing in action. Libyas internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) has launched a military offensive in the countrys west capturing a number of strategic cities from renegade commander Khalifa Haftar in the past one week. On Sunday, a soldier was killed and two others were wounded in a missile attack carried out by forces loyal to Haftar, who has been trying to seize the capital, Tripoli since last April. The GNA launched Operation Peace Storm on March 26 to counter attacks on the capital in which more than 1,000 people have been killed since last year. After capturing at least seven cities and towns west of the capital, the GNA forces launched a military operation on Saturday to recapture Tarhuna, a town of strategic value for Haftar and his last stronghold in the area surrounding Tripoli. Since the overthrow of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, two seats of power have emerged in Libya: Haftar in eastern Libya, supported by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, and the GNA in the capital, Tripoli. This new offering is one way we can help support the resilience of employers and employees coping with coronavirus impacts, said Kathleen Savio, CEO of Zurich North America. We want to enable employers to provide financial assistance, beyond medical benefits they may provide, to eligible employees hospitalized for COVID-19. The cash benefit can help employees cope with the financial stresses of an extended hospitalization, including costs that may not be covered by primary health insurance. Benefits are provided for hospitalizations exceeding five consecutive days, and include an amount per day (subject to a maximum number of days) plus an additional lump-sum amount upon discharge from the hospital. In total, individual employees may be eligible for up to $4,000 in benefits. The employer, who is the policyholder, pays cash benefits to the eligible employees and then submits claims to Zurich for reimbursement. Seeing the unfolding impact of coronavirus, we developed this product swiftly with input from our brokers and customers, the global Zurich organization and our accident and health team, said Paul Horgan, head of Zurichs US commercial insurance business unit. Its a powerful example of speed and collaboration designed to support employers and employees in this time of COVID-19. Congresswoman Karen Bass Answers the $1200 question, Wheres My Check? In a letter to her district and to all of America. The California Congresswoman and Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus the Honorable Karen Bass issued this statement: This week, about 60 million Americans received a $1,200 bank deposit as mandated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that Congress passed at the end of last month. People who received this first round of payments generally filed 2018 or 2019 taxes, and provided their banking information to the IRS for their refund. If you are one of those households, I hope that the additional funds will help you in this very stressful time. Furthermore, the congresswoman stated that as of Monday April 20th another 80 million households who havent received the payment are wondering where there payments are and when will they be arriving? ADVERTISEMENT In order to track the status of your check the congresswoman said the U.S. Treasury Department and the IRS have launched two online tools to try and answer that question. You can access them here: https://bass.house.gov/wheres-my-check She also encouraged residents to Please remember to stay healthy by following guidelines put out by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. She said she will also be posting regular updates on her website as well as on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. House speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday defended encouraging visitors to tour San Franciscos Chinatown in February even as fears grew about the spread of the coronavirus. Pelosi walked around San Franciscos Chinatown during the last week of February, visiting businesses owned by Asian Americans. Thats what were trying to do today is to say everything is fine here, Pelosi said at the time. Come because precautions have been taken. The city is on top of the situation. During an appearance Sunday on Fox News, host Chris Wallace asked the speaker whether she had underplayed the threat in the early days as she has accused President Trump of doing. No! Pelosi responded. What we were trying to do is end the discrimination, the stigma that was going out against the Asian-American community and in fact, if you will look, the record will show that our Chinatown has been a model of containing and preventing the virus, and Im confident in our folks there and thought it was necessary to offset some of the things that the president and others were saying about Asian-Americans and making them a target. A target of violence across the country. Wallace pressed her, asking whether she contributed to perception that there wasnt such a threat generally by walking around the city without any masks. I was saying that you should not discriminate against discriminate against Chinese-Americans, as some in our administration were doing, by the way, they were labeling the flu and that, Pelosi said. President Trump briefly referred to the coronavirus as the Chinese virus, defending his use of the term by saying it comes from China, but later backed away from the phrase after reports of an uptick in violence against Asian Americans. In a February 24 video, Pelosi urged people to be vigilant about threats in other places, but we do want to say to people Come to Chinatown. Here we are, careful, safe and come join us. Two days after Pelosis video message, a resident of Solano County, northeast of San Francisco, was reported to have tested positive for the coronavirus, the first documented case that was unrelated to travel abroad or another known case. Story continues Pelosis message during the early days of the coronavirus threat encouraging people not to avoid Asian American communities echoed New York mayor Bill de Blasios message to New Yorkers less than two weeks earlier that they visit an Asian-American owned small business in their neighborhood. New York Citys Chinatowns are open for business! de Blasio said on February 13, saying Asian American businesses are suffering due to fears about the coronavirus, but those fears are not based on facts and science. The risk of infection to New Yorkers is low. There is no need to avoid public spaces. The first individual in New York who tested positive for the coronavirus was a woman who had visited Iran, which became a hotspot for the virus after the first outbreak in Wuhan spread beyond Chinas borders. More from National Review 12 Jan 2022 | 3:13 PM New Delhi, Jan 12 (UNI) Delhi Police on Wednesday arrested Rakesh Tajpuriya, wanted for the shooting of Jitender alias Gogi in the Rohini court here last year, after an exchange of gunfire. The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) of Ghana has sampled some COVID-19 donations received from the Chinese Government for laboratory tests to ascertain whether or not it is safe for use in the country. The donations, which arrived at the Kotoka International Airport on Saturday, April 19, would not be used until the laboratory test results were released by the FDA. The donations included cover-ups, protective clothing, gloves, nose masks and positive airway pressure equipment. In a telephone interview with Mr Eric Karikari Boateng, the Head of Laboratory at the FDA, he said the donations were received and the FDA sampled some to be tested at the laboratory. He said the FDA would test the samples to ensure that they were free from pathogens, noting that the results from the test would be made available in a weeks time. The FDA Ghana is mandated by the law to regulate and ensure the safety of products such as food, allopathic medicines, cosmetic and household chemicals, tobacco and substances of abuse, herbal, biologics and medical devices. It also has the mandate to regulate the premises where the production of the regulated products are carried out. The Authority has, since the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ghana, taken lots of drastic measures to reduce its spread including the fast-tracking of the registration process of hand sanitizers to ensure the availability of quality, safe and effective hand sanitizers on the market to protect the public. Currently, there are 327 FDA Ghana-registered hand sanitizers available for use. 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. Featured Video Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Mardika Parama (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 12:53 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fae7f 1 Business Indonesia,telecom-service,telecommunications-ministry,Internet,broadband-indrastructure,COVID-19,social-distancing,business Free Like other business sectors, telecommunications companies are also asking for a relief program from the government to cope with a sharp decline in revenues as a result of the governments distancing policy, which among others, requires people to work from home. Telecommunications providers are asking the Communications and Information Ministry to defer the payment of their non-tax obligation as internet usage from the corporate sector dwindles due to the governments social distancing policy imposed since mid-March to halt the spread of COVID-19. The Telecommunications Network Providers Association (Apjatel) has sent a letter to Communications and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate to officially request for financial relief to help members stay afloat. In the application letter, the association asked for a deferral in the payment for telecommunication services fees (BHP) and universal service obligation (USO), the associations chairman Arif Angg said in Jakarta on Thursday. We usually pay the BHP and USO fees in April. However, we are facing declining revenues from the corporate sector, while we also have to pay corporate income taxes [PPh badan] and Idul Fitri bonuses [THR] to our employees, Arif told The Jakarta Post on a phone interview. He said the corporate market, which represents a huge chunk of telecommunications companies revenues, had declined by 30 to 35 percent by mid-April. Its broadband traffic also declined by 60 percent compared to normal conditions, according to Apjatel's data. The demand from retail market customers has increased 10 to 15 percent, but it cannot cover our losses from the corporate market. The corporate sector is our bread and butter, Arif said. Internet service provider Biznet echoed Apjakis statement, saying that its revenue had been affected by office and industry closures, as the corporate market makes up 80 percent of the companys source of revenue. We started to see a decline in early March. Thats when the hotels, industries and offices started to shut down their operation and their internet usage, Biznets president director Adi Kusma said in a phone interview without disclosing the decline. Besides the loss of revenues, internet providers also claimed that they are suffering from the weakening rupiah, as companies must import equipment to maintain their network bandwidth. The demand from retail users increases, but we have to increase our spending to purchase bandwidth expansion for new customers. The rise in the US dollar has put us in a difficult position, Arif said. According to Bloomberg data, the local currency is currently trading at 15,640 per US dollar. It has depreciated by about 12 percent since the beginning of the year. Seeing providers revenue decline, Apjatel filed a request to the ministry for a 12-month USO and BHP payment deferral and waiver for late payment fees. According to the letter obtained by the Post, Apjatel bases its request on Article 62 of Law No.9/2018 regarding the collection of non-tax revenue (PNBP), which stipulates companies are allowed to ask for payment deferrals if they suffer business problems due to certain conditions. In this difficult time, we hope that businesses and the government can work together to dampen the economic downturn. If the business sector goes well, companies can hire more people, while the government could raise taxes in the future, Adi said. Telecommunications network providers in the country recorded a surge in internet traffic and data communication after the government instructed people to work, study and pray from home. Cellular operator Telkomsel, recorded a 5 percent surge in data services after March 15. The company also saw a 10.4 percent increase in traffic for cloud computing services, 7.5 percent increase in digital advertising, 7.3 percent increase in streaming services and 5.2 percent in browser services. Other telecommunications operators like PT XL Axiata also recorded a 15 percent traffic increase from March 16 to 20. Pro-democracy protesters from HK Alliance hold placards of detained rights activists outside the Chinese liaison office in Hong Kong on February 19, 2020. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images) Australian Law Council President Demands Release of Arrested Hong Kong Activists Australian lawyers are demanding the immediate release of pro-democracy activists who are jailed in Hong Kong. At least 14 veteran activists were arrested on the weekend and charged for their roles in massive anti-government protests in Hong Kong last year. Among those arrested were 81-year-old former lawmaker Martin Lee and human rights barrister Margaret Ng. Law Council of Australia president Pauline Wright says the arrests violate the right to peaceful protest. The Law Council, together with the international legal community, will continue to defend the rights to peaceful protest and freedom of speech in Hong Kong, she said on April 20. We further urge the Hong Kong government to engage in constructive dialogue with leaders of the pro-democracy movement in order to foster a climate in which their legitimate concerns over democracy and human rights can be addressed, she said. Wright said the arrests are the biggest detention of pro-democracy leaders since the movement began, originally sparked by the introduction of an extradition bill. Foreign Minister Marise Paynewho condemned months of violent clashesis concerned the arrests have happened in the middle of a global pandemic. Actions that undermine stability are never acceptable, but to do so during a crisis of this magnitude erodes goodwill and trust, she said. The rights to freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are enshrined in the Basic Law for all people of Hong Kong. By Rebecca Gredley Author: Asadullah, Center Manager NIIT Accra 20.04.2020 LISTEN The times have dictated school closings and the rapid expansion of online education. Can online lessons replace in-school time? Clearly online time cannot provide many of the informal social interactions students have at school, but how will online courses do in terms of moving student learning forward? Research to date gives us some clues and also points us to what we could be doing to support students who are most likely to struggle in the online setting. Most online courses have a format much more similar to in-person courses. The teacher helps to run virtual discussion among the students, assigns homework, and follows up with individual students. Most times these courses are synchronous (teachers and students all meet at the same time) and sometimes they are asynchronous (non-concurrent). In both cases, the teacher is supposed to provide opportunities for students to engage thoughtfully with subject matter, and students, in most cases, are required to interact with each other virtually. Online teaching also makes use of digital tools and software to allow teachers and students to connect remotely, continuing the classroom experience in a virtual space. Using recorded lectures, discussion forums, and other tech solutions, you are now able to gain degrees and qualifications all at your own comfort and convenience also at less cost. The popularity of online learning is growing rapidly. Nearly three million students are currently enrolled in online programs and six million are taking at least one online course as part of their degree. There are many advantages to taking online classes, from added ease and flexibility to greater engagement with teachers. But on the other hand online courses are generally not as effective as in-person classes, but they are certainly better than no classes. A research shows that students with fewer resources at home, learn less when they are not in school. Right now, virtual courses are allowing students to access lessons and exercises and interact with teachers in ways that would have been impossible if an epidemic had closed schools even a decade or two earlier. So we may be skeptical of online learning, but it is also time to embrace and improve it. But as at now in current epidemic situation online is the way to go. Writer: Asadullah Center Manager NIIT Accra THREE generations from a well known Cappamore family travelled to Athenry for the Irish Limousin Cattle Societys annual bull sale and they certainly didnt come home empty handed. Paddy Ryan Luke, his son Sean and grandson, eight-year-old James set off with Sliabh Felim Kenny in tow. The September 2015 son of the renowned Fieldson Alfy was crowned reserve senior champion at Athenry Mart. Ann Curtin, PRO of the south west Limousin club, said Sliabh Felim Kennys dam the homebred Sliabh Felim Delia is a daughter of Sliabh Felim Ursula who has the distinction of representing Ireland at the prestigious Paris Limousin International Cattle show in France back in 2005. Ursula was selected to travel based on her show record in Ireland. In 2004 she enjoyed immense success with an unbeaten record in her inaugural show season during which she was crowned All Ireland Calf Champion. She topped all her previous successes with an unprecedented first prize in her class in Paris. This truly remarkable heifer was a daughter of Nenuphar and the imported dam F056 Ostie. This was a remarkable achievement by winning as the show featured pedigree Limousin cattle from 10 European countries - France, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Holland, Poland, Luxembourg and Ireland, explained Ann. Born in September 2015, Sliabh Felim Kenny boasts five star ratings in terminal index, docility, carcass weight and carcass conformation. After a flurry of bids, Kilrush dairy farmer John Gibsons final bid of 4,700 secured this outstanding bull. The Sliabh Felim herd commenced breeding pedigree Limousin cattle in 2001. The herd, initially ran in conjunction with Ryans highly regarded dairy herd, was established upon the birth of Sliabh Felim Susie (a Festin daughter) from the foundation female Cave Court Nancy. In 2006 the dairy herd was disbanded, whereupon the suckler herd began to grow to its current size of 10 pedigree cows and 20 commercial cows, said Ann. Sliabh Felim Limousin genetics are much sought after and regularly top the show and sales rings both commercially and in the pedigree arena. John Gibson has run Limousin bulls with his dairy cows for the past number of years and saw Kenny as an ideal fit for his herd. Along with their farming enterprise, Sean Ryan also works for Dairygold, both Paddy and Sean are tireless advocates for their local Cappamore Show. Paddy has served as secretary to the show since 1960. He is by far the countrys longest-serving honorary show secretary. Cappamore Show, which is one of the foremost in the Munster region, will be held this year on Saturday, August 19. In 2014, Paddy was honoured with the prestigious Paddy Fitzgerald Memorial Award for a lifetime of service to rural life. Three years on he shows no sign of stopping! He believes the voluntary work being done by thousands of farmers and others in communities across rural Ireland is an extension of their families. In any local organisation it is not just a one man show. It is a community effort, said Paddy, who his a lifelong member of the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association. He is married to Peggy and they have three grown up children Gerard, Helen and Sean. Dr Gerard Ryan is highly regarded in cattle breeding circles. Along with breeding his own cattle, he is the general manager of Dovea Genetics. Sean and his wife Aoife are parents to Megan, James and Grace, all of whom take an interest in both the farm and Cappamore show. It is great to see Limerick breeders producing Limousin bulls that are among the best in the country, said Ann, on behalf of the south west Limousin club. An interdisciplinary inspection team led by the Ministry of Industry and Trade has been established to work with agencies to determine how much rice is stuck at ports so that the ministry can come up with an appropriate rice export plan. Rice loaded for export The inspection team is led by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh, and the teams deputy head is Director of the Import and Export Department Phan Van Chinh. The team includes leaders of the Agricultural Products Processing and Market Development Department and Department of Crop Production (Ministry of Agricultural and Rural development), General Department of Customs (Ministry of Finance), Department of Economic Security (Ministry of Public Security), and the Vietnam Food Association. The mission of the team is to work with customs authorities and a number of agencies to determine the actual amount of rice volume at ports. The team will then write a report on the rice export situation in April and recommend measures to regulate rice exports in May. This will be submitted to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. The teams working time is expected to be from April 20 to April 24 and will dissolve upon completion of the task. The establishment of the inspection team arose after chaotic developments occurred when the General Department of Customs began accepting online customs declarations from rice exporters on April 12 after the Government approved the resumption of rice exports but capped them at around 400,000 tonnes for April. Many rice exporters were left disappointed since the quota of 400,000 tonnes was reached within only three hours. And many firms with rice consignments stuck at ports were unable to submit declarations. In recent days, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has received many documents from rice exporters saying that the opening of the e-customs declaration software system has not been transparent since many firms have not received prior notice. Some said that they could not access the system due to system error. In addition, some companies said that they had successfully submitted declaration forms, but the forms then disappeared on the e-customs system./. Vietnamese rice exporters surprised with the quick end of export quota Many rice exporters were left surprised because the export quota of 400,000 tonnes of rice in April ended quickly in just three hours. Toll collection on National Highways across the country resumed on Monday in line with government directives, a move which is being opposed by transporters. The central government on March 25, had announced temporary suspension of toll collection following directives by the Ministry of Home Affairs in the wake of coronavirus pandemic. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as well as highway developers resumed collection at toll plazas. Highways developer IRB Infrastructure Developers said all its Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) have resumed their toll collection from 00.00 hours today in line with the NHAI directives. Also read: Centre objects to Kerala govt diluting lockdown restrictions A spokesperson of IRB Infrastructure Developers said, we are pleased to have the directives from nodal agencies to resume toll operations. This seems to be a positive sign for the sector, with an indication leaning towards restoration of normalcy in phased manners for the nation. IRB Infras projects SPVs collectively operate 50 toll plazas across India and all have now fully resumed their operations from Monday. In line with NHAI guidelines, all Project SPVs will be taking necessary precautions and care at toll plazas for highway users and employees manning the toll plazas. For this, the company has provided adequate masks, sanitizers, hand gloves, etc. to employees manning the toll plazas. However, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), protested against resumption of toll on national highways and said it will adversely affect rabi crop procurement, adding that over 85 per cent transporters are cash-starved small operators who will not able to sustain toll fee. Also read| Covid-19: These are new lockdown relaxation rules in your state AIMTC, the apex body for transporters that represents about 95 lakh truckers and transport entities, has sought suspension of toll till May 3. As per inputs received from across the country, procurement of rabi crop will be disturbed, as more than 85 per cent, finance-starved small operators cant sustain toll burden starting April 20. Tolls must be suspended at least till May 3, AIMTC President Kultaran Singh Atwal has said seeking the Prime Ministers Offices intervention. Atwal has said that more than 85 per cent of the transport fraternity have one to five vehicles and about 65 per cent of them are self-employed owner-drivers. AIMTC Secretary General Naveen Gupta said: Only 15 per cent of the transporters own big fleets but they are also helpless... some have vehicles transporting essential goods while others are facing shortages of drivers. He said the transport fraternity is financially broken and does not have finance for operations and bringing back drivers, which is a big challenge. AIMTC has sought a relief package from the government that includes 15,000 per driver per month besides insurance cover to drivers and supporting staff. Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training (IFTRT) Coordinator S P Singh said in the past 21 days, the benefit of toll fee not being levied was hardly being passed on in the form of any reduction in truck rentals across the country. On March, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had announced: In view of COVID-19, it has been ordered to temporarily suspend the collection of toll at all toll plazas across India. This will not only reduce inconvenience to emergency services but also save critical time, he had said. The minister had also said that maintenance of roads and availability of emergency resources at toll plazas will continue as usual. Earlier, the road transport and highways ministry advised the NHAI to follow the home ministrys guidelines about toll plaza operations following the lockdown. The prevailing condition may be treated as Force Majeure for concession or contract agreement in terms of the finance ministry, it had said. The NHAI had rolled out the electronic toll collection programme across India in December on its over 500 toll plazas while doubling toll charges from the vehicles entering FASTag lanes without the tag. PTI NAM DRR Armed garda detectives and the air support unit were involved in an arrest operation this evening which led to the detention of a 40-year-old man who is wanted by the UK authorities. Essex police want to charge Ronan Hughes with multiple counts of manslaughter after 39 Vietnamese nationals were found dead in a lorry in Essex last October. The 40-year-old was arrested shortly after 5pm at his Co Monaghan home this evening on foot of the European Arrest Warrant which was endorsed by the High Court. Mr Hughes ,who is a haulier, was brought to Monaghan Garda Station for processing by members of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NBCI). He is due to appear before the High Court at an extradition hearing tomorrow morning. In November, Essex police Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten travelled to Belfast to make an appeal to the brothers in their investigation which is being assisted by the PSNI. He revealed he had spoken to Ronan Hughes by phone. Essex police have also been looking to question Ronans younger brother Christopher (33) but he was not the subject of today's major arrest operation. Both Ronan and Christopher Hughes are subject to a major Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) probe here into the finances of haulage companies along the border. Thirty-nine Vietnamese people, including eight women and 31 males - including two boys aged 15 - were found in a refrigerated trailer in an industrial estate in Essex on October 23. Some sent harrowing text messages to loved ones telling of their fears they may die. Last month it emerged that a northern Irish man alleged to have delivered the trailer in which the 39 migrants, will launch a legal challenge to his pending extradition in May. Eamon Harrison (22) from Mayobridge, Co Down, is wanted to face 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and conspiracy to commit human trafficking under the UKs Modern Slavery Act. It is alleged that Mr Harrison delivered the trailer, in which the bodies of eight females and 31 males were found in an industrial park in Grays, Esssex on October 23 last, to a Belgian port before its onward journey to Britain. The cargo was recorded as biscuits. The High Court in Dublin has heard that the sealed refrigeration unit was not turned on and that the people inside died from oxygen starvation. Temperatures inside the unit rose to 38.5 degrees before it steadily reduced, and police discovered bloody hand prints inside. Maurice Robinson (25), from Craigavon, Co Armagh, was arrested by Essex police at the scene and has admitted conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and acquiring criminal property - namely cash before also pleading guilty to the 39 manslaughter charges. This article was based on public announcements and appeals made by Essex Police at the relevant time. Christopher Hughes denies any involvement in these offences and Essex Police has since confirmed no further action will be taken against him. This story was amended on October 15, 2021. The gifts include 10,000 face masks, 50 sets of protective clothing, 1,000 pairs of medical gloves, disinfection machines, two tonnes of rice and 200 boxes of instant noodles, with a combined value of VND200 million (US$8,570). On this occasion, agencies and organisations in the central province also donated 1,300 bottles of hand santinizer, 1,000 face masks, 100 boxes of instant noodles amongst other items to the Security Departments of Laos. The gifts are expected to help Lao officers, soldiers and the people in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and tighten relations between the Thua Thien-Hue Public Security Department and the Security Departments of Salavan and Sekong. Thua Thien-Hue shares a 84-kilometre border line with the two Lao provinces. Dr. Larry Di Fabrizio and nurse Camille Davis of Mt. Sinai in their personal protection equipment (PPE). (Dr. Charles Powell/For The Times) A machine that could decontaminate tens of thousands of N95 masks each day has arrived in California potentially alleviating some of the shortages of personal protective equipment for medical workers. Battelle, an Ohio-based scientific research and development company, confirmed Monday morning that its cleaning unit has arrived at the Burbank airport, where it will remain. It could decontaminate up to 20,000 N95 masks a day, said Battelle spokeswoman Katy Delaney in an email. "The team is setting it up now and expects it to become operational in about a week," said Delaney. Delaney said Battelle is working with hospitals to set up protocols for receiving and returning the masks, but was not immediately able to say which hospitals would have access to the service. Officials with the California Department of Emergency Services declined to give details about the machine Friday. Gov. Gavin Newsom first announced the decontamination system in March, but details have been scant since. On April 13, the Pentagon announced a $415-million contract with Battelle for 60 of the machines, indicating the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Health and Human Services would decide where the machines are located, with Battelle staff running them. Delaney said the machines are up in running on Long Island, New York City, Tacoma, Wash., and Chicago. Others are being set up in Connecticut, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. The decontamination process uses hydrogen peroxide gas to kill viruses and bacteria, a method that has received emergency authorization by the federal government but which has not been tested in large-scale capacity. Hydrogen peroxide decontamination has been successfully used by other facilities, including Duke University. Under the federal guidelines, the masks can be decontaminated up to 20 times each, and will be labeled with bar codes so they can returned to their original user. Earlier tests have shown that the elastic straps on the masks may deteriorate after multiple cleanings, though. Some facilities are decontaminating fewer times as a precautionary measure. Story continues The unknowns about the process have sparked anxiety among some medical professionals. "I understand the process, but would I feel safe putting on a mask that someone else had worn for four days? Probably not," said Sydnie Boylan, a Los Angeles nurse. But faced with ongoing shortages of protective gear, experts said the cleaned masks are a better alternative that the methods some medical professionals are trying on their own such as heating them or spraying them with Lysol. One group of volunteer clinicians and scientists spent weeks examining decontamination methods before determining that hydrogen peroxide gas was likely the best available alternative. "We should not be decontaminating masks. We should only be using new masks but this is an emergency situation," said David Rempel, a member of the volunteer group N95decon.org and a retired research physician at UCSF. "We have nurses and doctors who are taking them home in the evening and putting them in ovens." Jill Crittenden, an MIT researcher who is also part of the volunteer group, agreed that "there are risks to everything." Crittenden said that while testing done on the system showed it to be effective, she has concerns about the intensity of how masks are being used and reused in the current crisis, and how that will factor into the decontamination. She points out that medical staff are wearing masks for hours, and in some cases days. "So it was filled with eight hours of respiration and all that," Crittenden said. "The doctors get bloody ... the masks are getting wet." For those who argue the likelihood of an afterlife, consider the USS Massachusetts. The rusting hulk of the first battleship named for the Bay State lies at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, yet lives on as a veritable kindergarten for schools of fish, a destination for divers and a watery warehouse of history. Diver Eilene Beards features becomes animated as she speaks of the Massachusetts, calling it a haven for aquatic life. The wreck, Beard said, is a breeding ground for fish; just teeming with sea life. Within a year of the ship being scuttled, the hulk had been taken over by aquatic creatures, she said. Beard, 71, helped found Friends of the Massachusetts and was instrumental in arranging the groups non-profit status. Objective was to purchase and place a monument at the bow of the ship. The Massachusetts was designated an underwater archaeological site in June 1993. The friends group had done its job and was disbanded. We are very fortunate, Beard said, to have so much incredible sea life and so many dive sites so close to Pensacola. Its been good for business, too. Pensacola native Beard and business partner Gene Ferguson, 81, opened the Scuba Shack on April Fools Day, 1973, Beard said with a grin. That ought to tell you something. Both divers themselves, Beard and Ferguson sell scuba equipment, offer diving lessons and specialty charters in the Gulf of Mexico. Ferguson is captain of the shops 50-foot dive boat, Wet Dream, delivering divers and spear-fishing enthusiasts to sites off Pensacola. Ferguson fairly lights up as he shows his photographs of Goliath groupers, which he estimates would weigh in at 300 pounds each, swimming near the hull of the Massachusetts. Ferguson has lived in the Pensacola area since the 1950s when his father, a sailor, was stationed here. It was Ferguson who edged the dive boat close to the hulk to position the historic marker at the bow of the Massachusetts. Ferguson said he and Beard arrange, schedule and direct 20 to 30 dives a year at the Massachusetts. He said he is eager to dive there again this year when the water gets warmer. In early March, the seawater temperature at Pensacola was in the mid-60s. By mid-summer, the water temperature is expected be about 20 degrees warmer. The Massachusetts is but one of about 20 sites to which Ferguson will take clients, But there are thousands of dive spots off Pensacola, he said. Diving conditions near the Massachusetts have to be just right, Beard said, citing such circumstances as a high slack-tide, no wind, wave action or crosscurrents. The USS Massachusetts (BB-2) was built at Philadelphia and launched June 10, 1893. The Indiana-class battleship was 351 feet long, had a beam of more than 69 feet, drew 24 feet of water and weighed 10,288 tons. She was armed with two 13-inch gun batteries, at the time the largest guns ever put to sea. She also sported four eight-inch gun batteries and four torpedo tubes. It was propelled by steam engines generating more than 9,000 horsepower and was manned by 473 crewmen. Top speed is said to have been 15 knots. USS Massachusetts (BB-2) sits in drydock at the New York Navy Yard sometime between 1896 and 1901. Design flaws led to the ship being dubbed the worst battleship ever made. (Edward H. Hart photo)Third Party submitted Following a shakedown cruise in August 1896, the ship conducted trials and maneuvers along the mid-Atlantic coast, then put in to dry dock at the New York Navy Yard for overhaul. By late February 1897, the battleship was on its way to Boston where it was welcomed May 28 by dignitaries and presented a copy of the Massachusetts coat of arms. But the ship had major design flaws, most notably the weight of its big guns. When both turrets were turned to the same side of the ship, the weight of the gun barrels caused the Massachusetts to list to that side, so much so that other guns and the deck would be submerged. Combined weight of the four 13-inch guns was 544,000 pounds; each projectile weighed 1,130 pounds. The Massachusetts was among United States vessels deployed in the blockade of Cuba during the Spanish-American War, exchanging fire with the Spanish cruiser Cristobal Colon on May 1, 1898. The Spanish ship retired and sought refuge in the port of Santiago. The Massachusetts is also credited with forcing the grounding of the Reina Mercedes, another Spanish cruiser. After the war, the Massachusetts was assigned to the North Atlantic Squadron, taking part in gunnery practice and training maneuvers. Nine sailors were killed in a powder explosion in a gun turret Jan. 16, 1903. She twice ran aground, requiring several months of repair, and was decommissioned in 1906. The Massachusetts design flaws led to its being dubbed by historians and journalists as the worst battleship ever made. It was retired, twice, and used as a cruise ship for sailors before being stripped of her guns and furnishings and towed to Pensacola for use as a target for experimental artillery. She was sent to the bottom on Jan. 6, 1921 in water so shallow that the main gun turrets sometimes break the surface. The site is a mile and a half south-southwest of Pensacola Pass in what is designated the Fort Pickens State Aquatic Preserve, which is administered by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. After a century at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, the Massachusetts is teeming with life as a full-fledged artificial reef, one of a dozen underwater archaeological sites in Florida. The hulk is protected by Florida laws that forbid the unauthorized disturbance, excavation or removal of artifacts. Divers are advised to Take only photos; leave only bubbles. The USS Massachusetts (BB-2) predates the USS Massachusetts (BB-59), the World War II-era battleship that lives on as a museum ship at Battleship Cove, the nonprofit maritime museum and war memorial in Fall River. Norm Roy, a retired copy editor for The Republican, lives and travels in a motorhome. He is eager to hear from readers about their own travel adventures. His e-mail address is: lollygaggeratlarge@gmail.com Power vacuum left by U.S. in region could tempt China: analyst ROC Central News Agency 04/19/2020 08:42 PM Taipei, April 19 (CNA) China might take advantage of the power vacuum in the region following the halt of overseas movements by the United States military, but a military offensive against Taiwan is unlikely, according to a Taiwanese defense analyst. "The U.S. military deployed in the western Pacific has been a force that secures the safety of the region. Whether China sees the halt of U.S. military movement as an opportunity to take, is a national security issue worth watching," said Chang Jung-Ming (), a National Defense and Security Research researcher. According to foreign media reports, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper ordered in March a ban on troop movements overseas for 60 days, in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus in the military. Currently, four U.S. aircraft carriers assigned in the Indo-Pacific region are all quarantined at different ports, and war games such as Balikatan 2020 held by the U.S. and the Philippines and the Large Scale Exercise 2020 were also postponed. Writing in the latest issue of Defense Security Weekly on April 10, Chang pointed to the possibility of China taking actions in the region to test the U.S.'s reaction or establish "facts on the ground" as future bargaining chips. He cited two incidents, one on March 30, in which a Chinese fishing boat collided with the Japanese destroyer Shimakaze in the East China Sea, and another on April 2, in which a Chinese Coast Guard ship collided with and sank a Vietnamese fishing boat in the South China Sea, as examples of such actions. However, U.S. air assets continue to operate near Taiwan even after the stop movement order, Chang said, with American war planes appearing in the region at least five times between March 25 to April 8. "On March 31, U.S. war planes flew over the South China Sea, the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea in the same day," he said, concluding that the stop movement order would only minimally affect Taiwan. On the possibility of an armed attack by China against Taiwan, Chang said the current environment did not favor such a move, especially with the international community unhappy with China's lack of transparency in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak. Other factors precluding such an attack would be its lack of legitimacy because Taiwan has not broken the status quo across the Taiwan Strait, Chang argued, and he also felt the fear of a defeat that would undermine the authority of China's leadership was at play. At the same time, conquering Taiwan is not the top priority of the Xi Jinping () administration, which is focused on getting people back to work and preparing for a possible second-wave virus outbreak. (By Emerson Lim) Enditem/ls NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address FILE PHOTO: Officer wearing protective gear checks temperature of Indonesian migrant worker to prevent COVID-19 spread at Soewondo air base in Medan JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia's death toll from the new coronavirus has likely reached 1,000, nearly double the official figure of 535, Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) chairman Daeng Faqih was quoted saying on Saturday. There is a discrepancy between official figures and IDI's estimate, as official data did not include deaths of patients suspected to have coronavirus but still awaiting tests. "Those who were yet to be confirmed with COVID-19 were also reported by hospitals as death by coronavirus," Daeng told local media. Indonesia's health ministry was not immediately available for comment. Even with the official figure, Indonesia has reported more coronavirus deaths than any Asian country except China. Indonesia's health ministry on Saturday reported 325 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of infections in the world's fourth most populous country to 6,248. University of Indonesias public health faculty has warned that there could be more than 140,000 deaths and 1.5 million cases across Indonesia by May unless the government takes tougher action. Indonesia on Friday surpassed the Philippines to become the country with the highest number of infections in Southeast Asia. (Reporting by Tabita Diela and Fathin Ungku; Editing by Matthew Tostevin and William Maclean) By Belen Carreno and Inti Landauro MADRID/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Spanish government will propose to its European Union partners that they create a 1.5 trillion euro ($1.63 trillion) recovery fund financed through perpetual debt to aid countries worst-hit by the coronavirus crisis, a discussion paper shows. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will outline the proposal to his EU colleagues during a videoconference summit on Thursday, a foreign ministry source told to Reuters. The 27 EU countries are sparring with over how to finance recovery after an economic hit of the coronavirus, after the Netherlands and Germany ruled out common debt issuance. Most are now looking to the bloc's next joint budget for 2021-27, known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). Worth around a trillion euros, it has not yet been approved by EU leaders and the discussion is whether to use it as a redistribution vehicle, with wealthier EU countries covering handouts for their worse-off peers, or create a complex financial vehicle to raise debt. Under the Spanish proposal, the new fund would be financed by perpetual debt backed by the EU budget, and countries would count it as transfers and not debt. "It would be a different mutualisation scheme than we had in mind...but it is an option that can be agreed by all," the source said. The European Commission would act as the main borrower in the scheme that would use the EU budget as a last resort to leverage the new debt. DEVIL IN THE DETAIL According to the three-page Spanish discussion paper, seen by Reuters, the transfer of funds should be frontloaded to start on the first day of 2021 and be executed during the next two to three years. But the devil is in the detail, with EU member states now discussing if and how much joint debt could be raised by the MFF, what exactly would be the member states' liability, how to spend any money raised that way and what maturities to go for. "Perpetual debt is one for the dreamers," said an EU official involved in preparing the leaders' discussion later in the week. "It would be too big a leap, the EU works more step-by-step." Story continues Another question under discussion is whether any such EU cash would be loans to be repaid, or grants that are then forfeited. Perpetual debt has no maturity date, with creditors receiving interest payments but the principal never repaid. Spain wants the repayment of the interest to rely on a new set of European taxes, such as a border carbon tax and other green financing. Sanchez will ask the bloc to work towards a "full tax harmonization". The bloc has, however, so far mostly struggled to present a unified front in the face of the pandemic, squabbling over medical equipment and support for those worst-hit, or tightening border checks within what normally is Europe's free travel zone. It has relaxed state aid rules and limits on government spending to help the bloc cushion the blow of the coronavirus lockdowns, which have been introduced to slow the spread of the disease but also hit business activities hard. The EU has agreed on a half-a-trillion euros rescue plan, but is still sparring over how to kickstart economic growth on the continent. (Reporting by Belen Carreno and Inti Landauro, Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, Editing by Andrei Khalip, Angus MacSwan and Alex Richardson) Moroccan police arrested on Sunday in the Northern city of Tangier a French-Guinean fugitive on an international warrant issued by the French judicial authorities for attempted murder with a firearm. The 27-year-old man, who was previously convicted for fraud offenses, was arrested in a tangier hotel, says a statement released by the Moroccan police. The nabbed fugitive was listed in the Interpols Red Notice for his involvement in an attempted homicide with a firearm along with some criminal gang members in the French city of Nantes. The French authorities have been informed of his arrest, pending completion of his extradition procedure. After three inconclusive elections held within the span of a year, Israeli political rivals Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz broke a persistent political deadlock and announced Monday they had reached an agreement to form a unity government that will keep Netanyahu in office until October 2021. "At this time, an agreement was signed for the establishment of a national emergency government between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Chairman, Maj. Gen. (res.) MK Benny Gantz," Netanyahu's Likud party said in a tweet. Netanyahu will serve first as prime minister, with Gantz taking over the reins in October 2021, Likud and the Blue and White party announced in a joint statement on Monday. In the meantime, Gantz will serve as deputy prime minister. The agreement will cement Netanyahu's reputation as a political magician who once again has managed to cling to power in spite of adverse circumstances. In November, Netanyahu was indicted on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. He denies any wrongdoing. "I promised the State of Israel a national emergency government that would work to save the lives and livelihoods of Israeli citizens," he tweeted after the announcement of the agreement on Monday. "I will continue to do everything for you citizens of Israel." Image: Benny Gantz (Ahmad Gharabli / AFP - Getty Images) Once formed, the government will be defined as a national emergency government for a period of six months and no legislation unrelated to the battle against the coronavirus will be brought in parliament, "without consent," according to the joint statement. From July the prime minister would be able to bring parts of President Donald Trump's Mideast peace plan regarding the annexation of parts of the West Bank, to parliament, the statement added. In January, Trump released a long-promised Middle East peace plan that, if implemented, would create a conditional path to statehood for Palestinians while recognizing Israeli sovereignty over a significant portion of the occupied West Bank. Trump said the longshot plan, which lacks Palestinian support, would require both sides to make concessions. Story continues Extending sovereignty to parts of the West Bank became a key priority of Netanyahu as he struggled to maintain his grip on power. The finance, health and interior ministries will be among those held by Likud and their partners, while Blue and White and their partners will control the defense, foreign affairs and justice ministries, the statement added. Yousef Jabareen, a lawmaker and member of the Joint List coalition of Arab parties in Israel's parliament, said it was clear Netanyahu remains in control of the unity government and guides its vision. "It will deepen Israels military rule over Palestinians in the occupied territories and likely begin the process of annexing Israels illegal settlements built on stolen Palestinian land," he said. The announcement comes after Gantz was voted in as the speaker of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, on March 26. "These are unusual times and they call for unusual decisions," Gantz, who nominated himself for the role as speaker, said after the vote last month which paved the way for an agreement between the two camps to be reached. However, the move has also cost him the unity of his centrist Blue and White alliance, an umbrella group compromised of three smaller parties, that has battled to take power from Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party in the last three elections. The latest nation-wide vote held on March 2 saw neither Likud nor Blue and White capturing enough seats to form a majority government even with the backing of smaller parties. Blue and Whites co-leaders Yair Lapid and Moshe Yaalon filed a request to split from the rest of the alliance in the Knesset moments before the vote on Gantzs nomination as speaker last month. Benny Gantz decided today to break apart Blue and White in order to crawl into Netanyahus government. Its a disappointing decision," Lapid said. Blue and White had intended to nominate another lawmaker as speaker, who was part of a different faction of the alliance, and to use the position to push for legislation that would prevent an indicted lawmaker from becoming prime minister. But Likud hit back saying if Blue and White pursued this approach it would put an end to any discussions to form a unity government between the two camps a move that could have seen Israel dragged into an unpopular fourth election. It was announced Monday that under the agreement the role of speaker would go to Likud. The political crisis in Israel has persisted even as the country tackles the outbreak of the contagious coronavirus that is afflicting much of the world. As of Monday, Israel had recorded more than 13,600 cases of the virus as well as 174 deaths. The stakes are particularly high for Netanyahu who was meant to go on trial for his corruption charges last month but managed to postpone his court date due to the outbreak. Netanyahu, who is Israels longest serving prime minister, faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of bribery and a maximum 3-year term for fraud and breach of trust, according to legal experts. He has denied any wrongdoing and said he is the victim of a "witch hunt." Oslo, Norway, 20 April 2020 Vistin Pharma ASA will release its first quarter 2020 results on Thursday 23 April 2020. Vistin Pharma will host a conference call for all shareholders and interested parties on Thursday 23 April at 08:30 CET. There will be a Q&A session following the management discussion. The conference call will be held in Norwegian. The first quarter conference call will be available via web and audio through the following access points: Telephone conference: Confirmation Code:........ 5385809 International Dial-In:........ +44 (0) 2071 928000 Norway, Oslo:................ +47 23960264 United States, New York: +16315107495 Webcast: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/za9hkqym ***** For further information, please contact: Alexander Karlsen CFO +47 97053621 alexander.karlsen@vistin.com About Vistin Pharma | www.vistin.com Vistin Pharma is a Norwegian pharmaceutical company producing Metformin Hydrochloride (API). The Metformin is also available as Direct Compressible lubricated granules. As a solely dedicated European Metformin producer, Vistin Pharma is a well-positioned supplier to leading pharmaceutical companies. Vistin Pharma is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, and has highly qualified employees and a dedicated manufacturing facility in Krager. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed with President Trump that COVID-19 testing should be led by the states - but he pinpointed where he could use federal help. At his press conference on Monday, Cuomo said that the national manufacturers of the tests are having supply chain issues and can't keep up with the demand needed to get tests to all 50 states and territories. 'This is a quagmire,' Cuomo said. 'Because it's not just funding,' he added, explaining he's told test manufacturers he would pay for the tests needed to help New Yorkers get back to work. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed with President Trump that COVID-19 testing should be coordinated at the state level, thought he called the current supply chain issues a 'quagmire' because national manufacturers are suffering from a shortage of supplies President Trump has said again and again that he wants testing for the coronavirus to be handled by the nation's governors On Monday Trump angrily tweeted at the 'Do Nothing Democrats' and the 'Radical Left' for complaining about coronavirus testing Earlier Monday, Trump had tweeted that the 'Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats' had 'screamed' for 'Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilaors.' 'Now they scream "Testing, Testing, Testing," again playing a very dangerous political game,' Trump wrote. 'States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done. This is easy compared to the fast production of thousands of complex Ventilators!' Cuomo didn't take the bait and instead told reporters, 'The president is right.' 'Testing is up to the states, which will implement the tests and logistically coordinate the tests,' he added. He also used a colorful analogy. 'Federal government, you're painting a room with a roller. OK? You can't do corners with a roller, you can't do trim and molding with a roller. Somebody has to come behind you with a brush and do the details,' Cuomo explained. 'State government has [a] brush.' The New York governor said it should be his decision which of the 300 or so labs in New York are used to administer the tests, as they are regulated by the state. But then he brought up the supply chain issues that have plagued New York getting the tests the state needs. 'The national manufacturers will say well it's not that easy. I can't get the chemicals, the chemicals come from China, I can't make the vials fast enough, I can't make the swabs fast enough,' Cuomo said. 'But that's where the federal government could help.' 'Should the states take the lead on the tests? Yes. That's exactly right,' Cuomo repeated. 'But we need the volume. And the volume is going to be determined by those national manufacturers who provide the kits to the 300 labs in New York,' he explained. Cuomo also explained the business of medical testing. 'It's nobody's fault. Nobody is to blame,' he began. 'The way the testing world worked was a national manufacturer made their machine. I sold my machine to private labs and hospitals. My machine only operates if you have an Andrew Cuomo testing kit, it doesn't work with a Howard Zucker testing kit,' he said, name-dropping the state's health commissioner. 'Even though you have the machine,' Cuomo said. 'I have such an increased demand I literally can't produce it in time.' 'And to unravel that supply chain issue, that manufacturing issue, I think that's the best way the federal government can help,' he, again, said. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said Sunday he, too, had an idea on how the federal government could boost testing in states. 'Our big problem today, I could probably double, maybe even triple testing in Ohio virtually overnight if the [Food and Drug Administration] would prioritize companies that are putting a slightly different formula together for the extraction reagent kit,' DeWine said on 'Meet the Press.' DeWine explained that there's a worldwide shortage on the current concoction that's been FDA approved. 'If anybody in the FDA is watching, this would really take our, take our capacity up, literally Chuck, overnight,' he told NBC News' Chuck Todd. 'And that's, that's what we need to get moving in Ohio.' Advertisement Canadian authorities are still investigating what led Gabriel Wortman (pictured), 51, to shoot dead at least 19 people during a shooting spree in Nova Scotia Canadian authorities are still piecing together the moments leading up to the most deadly shooting in the country's history and reveal a timeline of the gunman's movements during his 12-hour rampage that left at least 19 people dead. Gunman Gabriel Wortman, a 51-year-old denturist, was shot dead by police Sunday morning after killing multiple people across roughly 55 miles of the eastern province of Nova Scotia. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said they are investigating 16 separate crime scenes in connection to the mass shooting, which coincided with the anniversaries of the 1995 Oklahoma bombing and the 1993 Waco Siege in Texas. The death toll started at 10, but by Monday afternoon it had risen to 19. 'We're relatively confident we've identified all the crime scenes,' Nova Scotia RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said Monday, but said that fires set at some of those sites, mostly residences, made the search for other victims difficult. 'We believe there may be victims still within the remains of those homes which burnt to the ground,' Leather said. He said some of the victims knew Wortman and some didn't. Authorities said the violence began on Saturday night in Portapique, where officers were alerted to shots fired around 11.32pm. Wortman managed to evade police throughout the night and into Sunday morning. Police first revealed that they had an 'active shooter' situation around 8am in Portapique. While authorities still have not pinned down a motive for the shooting spree, police sources told the Toronto Sun that the first two victims were the gunman's ex-wife and her new boyfriend. It's unclear if he killed the couple Saturday night or Sunday morning. The sources said: 'He's been planning this for a while. He had the uniform and two decommissioned police cars.' Scroll down for video Authorities said the violence began on Saturday night in Portapique, where officers were alerted to shots fired around 11.32pm. Wortman managed to evade police throughout the night and into Sunday morning. Police first revealed that they had an 'active shooter' situation around 8am in Portapique. The violence ended on Sunday in Enfield Police also responded to multiple fires, including one in Wentworth where volunteer firefighters were seen dousing hotspots near destroyed vehicles linked to Sunday's deadly shooting rampage Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) monitor Portapique Beach Road, as a fire truck travels along it during the search for Gabriel Wortman on Sunday Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers speak with a man, as two RCMP vehicles travel on Portapique Beach Road, after the police finished their search for Gabriel Wortman Police warned residents that Wortman may be driving what 'appears to be an RCMP vehicle, releasing this image, and said he may be wearing an RCMP uniform But the rest of the victims appeared to be slaughtered at random. Several bodies were found inside and outside one house on Portapique Beach Road, the street where the suspect lived, authorities said. By 8.54am, police shared with the public that there were 'multiple victims'. Just after 10am, police warned residents to avoid Highway 4 near Hidden Hilltop Campground in Glenholme, which is about 11 miles from Portapique, because Wortman had been spotted in there area. Timeline: Gabriel Wortman kills at least 19 people in 12 hours over a 55-mile stretch of Nova Scotia, Canada Authorities said Wortman began his reign of violence on Saturday night when police responded to a firearms complaint in Portapique. His rampage last for at least 12 hours until he was apprehended by officers just before noon on Sunday. While police are still piecing together the details, a timeline reveals some of Wortman's movements: Saturday, April 18, 2020: 11.32pm: Portapique Officers shard on Twitter that they were responding to an incident near Portapique Beach Road, Bay Shore Road and Five Houses Road . People were told to avoid the area and stay in their homes with the doors locked. That night, three house fires were also reported. Sunday, April 19, 2020 8am: Portapique Police reveal on Twitter that the scene has become an 'active shooter situation' and warn residents to stay inside. 8.54am: Portapique Authorities identify the gunman as Gabriel Wortman and say there are 'multiple victims' in the area. 10.04am: Glenholme Police warn residents to avoid Highway 4 near Hidden Hilltop Campground in Glenholme, which is about 11 miles from Portapique, because Wortman had been spotted in there area. Authorities also warned that Wortman is disguised as an RCMP officer and driving a fake cop car. 10.21am: Central Onslow and Debert Police share on Twitter that Wortman has been spotted in the Central Onslow and Debert area. They warn locals to stay inside and avoid the area. 11am: Brookfield Authorities said Wortman was seen traveling near the Brookfield area. 11.24am Milford By this time, Wortman changed cars and was spotted in a Chevy Tracker in Milford. 11.40am: Enfield Officers tweet that Wortman is in custody. A short time later, it was revealed that Wortman had died. Police did not confirm how he died Advertisement Police had also revealed that Wortman had disguised himself as a police officer and was driving around in a fake cop car. Between 10.20am and 11.24am, Wortman had been spotted in the areas of Debert and Central Onslow, near Brookfield and Milford. Authorities said at some point, Wortman was forced to abandon his car and then carjacked other vehicles to continue to 'circulate around the province steps ahead of our investigators'. At 11.40am, authorities shared that they had arrived to the Irving Big Stop in Enfield, nearly 60 miles from Portapique. Police initially said Wortman had been arrested, but later said he had died. It was not clear how, and they did not provide further details, although one police official said that there was an exchange of gunfire between the suspect and police at one point. An independent agency, the Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT), which probes certain incidents involving the province's police, said in a statement that a confrontation had occurred in Enfield, which is near the Halifax airport, 'resulting in officers discharging their firearms'. 'The suspect was found to be deceased at the scene,' the statement read. Police confirmed the death of constable Heidi Stevenson who was 'executed point blank' when she rammed his vehicle in an attempt to apprehend him. Stevenson, a mother-of-two, was shot dead after Wortman dragged her out of her patrol car. At a press conference on Sunday, RCMP Assistant Commissioner Lee Bergerman confirmed Stevenson's death, saying: 'Heidi answered the call of duty and lost her life while protecting those she served. Earlier this afternoon I met with Heidi's family and there are no words to describe their pain. 'Two children have lost their mother. And a husband has lost his wife. Parents have lost their daughter and countless others lost an incredible friend and colleague.' Lisa McCully was informally identified by her sister in a heartbreaking Facebook post Sunday night. Jenny Kierstead wrote: 'This is so hard to write but many of you will want to know. 'Our hearts are broken today as we attempt to accept the loss of my sister, Lisa McCully, who was one of the victims of the mass shooting in Portapique last night. 'Our condolences go out to the other family members who are affected by this tragedy. Thank you for your support, it's a hard day.' McCully taught at Debert Elementary where she was a 'passionate teacher' and a 'shining love' in the lives of her family and friends, the teachers union said in a tribute. Nurse Heather OBrien was also identified by her daughter in a Facebook post shared Sunday that read: 'A monster murdered my mother today.' O'Brien was killed along with Kristen Beaton. Both women worked for Von Canada, the long term health care company revealed. Several others were injured and are being treated at a local hospital, including a male RCMP officer. Family members also paid tribute to Corrie Ellison on Sunday afternoon, with his cousin Juliene Henderson writing: 'Tragic and surreal..RIP to my cousin Corrie and to the several others killed. 'Just texted him this AM to see if his Dad was ok (his Dad lived in portique) ..not knowing he was out there and already killed. ' Leather said during a press conference that the 'initial search for the suspect led to multiple sites in the area, including structures that were on fire'. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told CBC there was no indication 'at this point' of a terrorist intent. 'What I would say is that it appears to be at least in part, very random in nature. We are in the early stages of an incredibly detailed and complex investigation that has forever changed countless lives.' Yet police sources told the Toronto Sun it was a calculated attack which Wortman had been plotting for a while. 'That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act,' Leather said. He added that police believe he acted alone. Leather said they would investigate whether the attack had anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic but no link has been found thus far. Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia Sunday. Police first announced that they had arrested Wortman at the gas station but later said he had died Workers with the medical examiner's office remove a body from a gas bar in Enfield, Nova Scotia on Sunday. Late Sunday morning, there were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of the gas station where the suspect died. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-colored SUV was being investigated. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said during a press conference on Monday: 'The vast majority of Nova Scotians will have a direct link with one or more of the victims. The entire province and country is grieving right now as we come to grips with something that is unimaginable.' 'The pandemic will prevent us from mourning together in person, but a vigil will be held virtually to celebrate the lives of the victims,' Trudeau added, saying it would take place Friday night through a Facebook group. Trudeau asked the media to avoid mentioning the name of the assailant or showing his picture. 'Do not give this person the gift of infamy,' he said. 'As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time,' Trudeau said. Trudeau said his government would introduce further gun control legislation prohibiting military-style assault weapons, a measure that had already been planned before the coronavirus pandemic interrupted the current parliamentary session. Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and a mother-of-two, was shot dead Stevenson (left) was killed by Wortman while trying to apprehend him. Lisa McCully (right), a mother-of-two, was informally identified as a victim of the shooting spree Wortman, who owned a denture practice in in the city of Dartmouth, near Halifax, lived part time in Portapique, according to residents. He is listed as a denturist - a person who makes dentures - in the city of Dartmouth, near Halifax, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. Atlantic Denture Clinic, the practice Wortman owned, had been closed for the past month because of the coronavirus pandemic. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP matches video footage of a man being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014. According to his high school yearbook, Wortman had a fascination with the Mounties. 'Gabe's future may including being an RCMP officer,' his yearbook profile said. The Globe and Mail reported that neighbors told authorities that Wortman, who struggled with alcohol, drove around to local homes in the town of Portapique or pulled drivers over before killing them. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada. The country overhauled its gun-control laws after gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique college in 1989. Before this weekend's rampage, that had been the country's worst. A Gabriel Wortman is listed as a denturist in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP matches video footage of a man being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014 The Atlantic Denture Clinic, owned by Wortman, was guarded by police in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, on Monday It is illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. The country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks to purchase a weapon. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil called the shootings 'one of the most senseless acts of violence' in the province's history. He added: 'To the families of the victims and those that are feeling afraid, my heart goes out to you.' Wortman's neighbor, Nancy Hudson, said she met him about 18 years ago when he bought the property on Portapique Beach Road, which is a short walk from her home, and she and her husband used to socialize with him. 'There is another side to Gabe. He had some issues, especially with his girlfriend,' Hudson said, adding that he was obsessed and jealous. 'It was a red flag.' Local resident Dave Brown was seen putting up a memorial for the community after the incident, near the road where the shootings occurred. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapique Tom Taggart, a lawmaker in the municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken. 'This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable,' Taggart said by phone from his home in Bass River, near the lockdown area. 'People live here because of the peace and quiet and it's just an absolute tragedy,' he said. Taggart said he didn't know Wortman well, but spoke to him a few times when he telephoned about municipal issues. Taggart described knowing Wortman's 'lovely big home' on Portapique Beach Road. He said Wortman owned a few other properties in the community and was believed to divide his time between Portapique and his business in Dartmouth. He described Portapique as 'cottage country,' with about 100 year-round residents and 250 in the summer. 'You just don't even dream that this is going to happen,' he said. 'I can't fathom it.' Washington: Gene Deitch, an American Oscar-winning illustrator, animator, illustrator, film director and producer passed away in Prague. According to some media reports, he had noted intestinal problems. He was 95. Deitch is known for his work on the highly admired animated series 'Tom & Jerry' and 'Popeye the Sailor', as well as for being the creator of cartoons such as Munro, Tom Terrific, and Nudnik. His movie 'Munro' won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1960. He was also nominated for the same award twice in 1964 for 'Here's Nudnik' and 'How to Avoid Friendship'. Born in 1924, Deitch had initially trained as a pilot but went to work as an illustrator for magazines before eventually turning towards animation. In his starting years, he was associated with studios such as United Productions of America (UPA) and Terrytoons and created cartoon characters such as Sidney the Elephant, Gaston Le Crayon, and Clint Clobber. In 1958, he started his own studio 'Gene Deitch Associates, Inc' in New York, that focussed on television commercials. Two years later in 1960, on his 10-day visit to Czechoslovakia, he fell in love with Zdenka, with whom he walked the aisle, in 1964. Between 1969 and 2008, he worked for Weston Woods Studios, where he adapted 37 films, including Drummer Hoff, Voyagem and Bunny Planet. In 2003, he was awarded the Winsor McCay Award in recognition of his lifetime contributions in animation. He is survived by his wife and three sons - Kim, Simon, and Seth Deitch from his first marriage, who are artists and writers for underground comix and alternative comics. Research using the latest scientific tools has solved an ancient mystery about who or what killed a massive wombat that roamed the grasslands of Australia thousands of years ago. When humans first arrived in Australia about 65,000 years ago, they found a land teeming with megafauna, such as huge kangaroos, enormous land-dwelling lizards bigger than modern crocodiles, and Diprotodon, a wombat the size of a rhino. Dr Michelle Langley from Griffith University has discovered the true culprit who made marks on a Diprotodon tooth over 20,000 years ago. Credit:Diprotodon illustration by Peter Trusler Such large animals, even herbivores, would still have been dangerous to hunt. It has long been debated whether the early inhabitants of Australia actually hunted Diprotodon for food. Key to the debate has been a Diprotodon tooth, discovered in 1984 in regional Victoria, which has distinctive cut marks on the side. New York: Proposals by the United Nations for a global ceasefire during the COVID-19 pandemic are being reportedly blocked by the US and Russia. Antonio Guterres, the Secretary-General, has urged warring countries to declare a temporary truce and focus all their attention on fighting the virus. In this file picture from the sidelines of June 2019 G20 summit, US President Donald Trump (centre left) talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin (centre right) as Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (right) and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (left) look on. Credit:AP "The fury of the virus illustrates the folly of war," he said on March 23. He urged warring factions to "pull back from hostilities: silence the guns, stop the artillery, end the air strikes". Armed gunmen attacked three villages in Nigerias northwestern Katsina state early Saturday morning, killing 47 people, according to state police. There was reports of organised and simultaneous attacks in villages in Danmusa, Dutsenma and Safana by groups of armed bandits, according to a Katsina police statement, adding that some of the attackers had AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifles. Detachments of Police, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Airforce, Civil Defence and DSS (Department of State Services) have been drafted to the area, the statement said. While attacks like this in the northern regions of Nigeria used to regularly be blamed on the Boko Haram separatist group, the numbers of criminal gangs armed with high-powered rifles are on the rise. Hundreds of people, primarily civilians, have been the target of armed robberies and kidnappings in the northwestern part of the country. Nigerias president Muhammadu Buhari issued a statement on the killings, saying that his administration was committed to crush the criminals who are taking advantage of the current lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19. In line with my commitment to the security of the people, these attacks will be met with decisive force, he said in the statement. Nigeria is on partial lockdown, primarily in large cities, in order to prevent the spread of the highly contagious Covid-19. This, coupled with Islamist insurgencies, communal violence between herders and farmers in the centre of the country, has added to the security issues throughout the country. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) talks to reporters after attending a session on the Senate floor in the Capitol on Monday. (Caroline Brehman / CQ-Roll Call Inc.) Congressional leaders and the White House were close to a deal Monday over an emergency coronavirus package to replenish a small-business assistance program that ran out of funds last week, even as critics said misuse of the popular loan program by large companies had squeezed out smaller businesses. The now-depleted Paycheck Protection Program was designed to provide forgivable loans to small businesses if they kept workers on the payroll during the economic shutdown caused by the pandemic. It would receive an additional $310 billion under the spending deal being negotiated, with a portion set aside to be lent by smaller banks in an effort to help smaller businesses that may have been shut out of the initial $349-billion disbursement. The package would add $60 billion to a separate emergency loan program for small businesses that also is out of money, $75 billion for hospitals, and $25 billion to increase COVID-19 testing. Senate and House leaders and Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin were optimistic a deal was close Sunday, and it appears that the basic outline has been agreed to by all sides. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) told CNN Monday night the final language was being negotiated and a deal was expected so the Senate could vote Tuesday and the House on Wednesday. Among the final points of contention is a proposal to also provide $150 billion in aid to states and municipalities struggling with a sharp drop in tax revenue. Democrats say Congress needs to act quickly to shore up those entities' budgets, but Republicans and the White House want to wait. "We're going to be saving that for ... a later date," Trump said Sunday, adding that he supports the idea. "That will probably be in our next negotiation." Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Monday that the Senate would convene for a previously unscheduled session Tuesday afternoon in hopes that a deal will have been reached by then. Story continues "Republicans have been trying to secure more funding for this critical program for a week and a half," McConnell said on the Senate floor. "At this hour, our Democratic colleagues are still prolonging their discussions with the administration, so the Senate wont be able to pass more funding for Americans paychecks today." Democrats blamed Republicans for resisting their efforts to provide additional money to hospitals and local governments, and to ensure that smaller businesses that don't have strong banking relationships will be included in the next phase of forgivable loans. With most lawmakers out of Washington due to the coronavirus, any deal would need unanimous bipartisan support to pass by voice vote. A single senator or representative in Washington could object, which would delay passage and require hundreds of members of Congress to return to the Capitol to vote. The Paycheck Protection Program burned through its original $349 billion just three weeks after Congress passed a nearly $2-trillion economic relief package. Some lawmakers and small businesses are complaining that too much of that money went to large, nationwide restaurant chains, like Potbelly Sandwich Shop and Ruths Chris Steak House, both of which reportedly received multimillion-dollar loans. Though the program was targeted at businesses with fewer than 500 workers, a provision allowed subsidiaries and individual locations to apply separately for money, even if they were part of a larger company or chain that would have been too large to qualify. After social media backlash, New York-based hamburger chain Shake Shack said on Monday it would return the $10-million loan it had received. Shake Shack CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said in a statement that the program rules were unclear and that they didn't realize how quickly it would run out of money. "The 'PPP' came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing," the executives said in the statement. After arranging for additional capital, Shake Shack decided "to immediately return the entire $10 million PPP loan we received last week to the SBA so that those restaurants who need it most can get it now." Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), one of the first lawmakers to express frustration with the Paycheck Protection Program, says businesses should have to prove they have taken a financial hit from the coronavirus to get the money. You ought to have a big downturn in your business before you get this money any of this money. Not just PPP, he said in an interview. We shouldnt be just going out there and wasting money. Scott said hed spoken to McConnell about adding new requirements to the fund but that it was unclear whether he could get it added to an interim package or later legislation. Hes also spoken to the Small Business Administration about revising its rules but believes Congress would have to enact new language. I think we have a shot at getting this fixed. Im optimistic. This is pretty basic, he said. The law should help the people who should be helped. Our job is not to bail out the rich and people who are doing well. John Bamberger, 69, of Westlake Village, said he finished his application for $285,000 five minutes after the application process opened in March and he still didn't have a response. His company imports specialty foods from Britain and Australia, and with grocery stores focusing on staples and some specialty stores that he supplies shut down entirely, he'll have to furlough workers and cut costs because he hasn't gotten the loan, he said. He said Congress should have paid more attention to where the money was going and how it was going to be distributed. It pisses me off," Bamberger said. You read that Ruth's Chris got whatever they got. Shake Shack wants all of a sudden to give their loan back. I dont know why they applied in the first place. But certainly the money is not going to the people who need it. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who chairs the Senate small business committee, said his panel would "conduct aggressive oversight into the use of PPP" this fall, and into what he described as "multiple reports of companies abusing the program." Any business, regardless of size, must certify it has been harmed by the coronavirus crisis and that PPP is necessary to maintain operations, Rubio said in a statement. California Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris also demanded Monday that Mnuchin explain why California received the fewest number of loans in relation to the total number of small businesses of any state. Citing a Wall Street Journal comparison, the senators argued that Californias businesses have been closed longer than those in other states and it is difficult to understand why Californias small businesses would qualify for so much less aid than others. To letter writer Herb Hupfer (Hindsight during crisis is 20/20, April 17) and others who might feel President Donald Trump would have been laughed at had he acted sooner on the virus: Maybe if he had started in on the mask-wearing and the social distancing, yes. But what about making sure we did have masks to wear, and ventilators to use and especially tests to take? What about supporting the World Health Organization? What about not minimizing the Wuhan outbreak? North Korea has denied that its leader Kim Jong Un sent a nice note to Donald Trump, after the US president claimed he had recently received one. Mr Trump mentioned the letter on Saturday during a coronavirus press conference, adding that his relationship with the North Korean leader seemed to be fine. "I received a nice note from him recently. It was a nice note. I think we're doing fine," said Mr Trump, defending the now-stalled nuclear diplomacy with the North Korean leader. However, North Koreas foreign ministry said in a statement that no such letter existed and that it would look into why the US president released the ungrounded story. The statement added that the relations between the countries are not an issue to be taken up just for diversion nor it should be misused for meeting selfish purposes." Mr Trump claimed that without his diplomacy efforts the US would be at war with North Korea. He has met Mr Kim on three occasions since 2018, when they began talks on North Koreas nuclear programme. This nuclear diplomacy stalled in 2019 after the breakdown of their second summit in Vietnam, when the US president refused to offer sanctions relief in return for partial denuclearisation. The pair have previously exchanged letters. In March, the White House confirmed that Mr Trump had sent a letter to the North Korean leader but refused to comment on the specifics. Kim Yo Jong, Mr Kims sister, said at the time: I would like to extend sincere gratitude to the US president for sending his invariable faith to the chairman. Although she added that the letter was a good judgement and proper action, she cautioned that a good relationship between the two leaders was not enough to strengthen the countries ties. In the letter, Mr Trump is thought to have offered North Korea help in tackling the coronavirus pandemic. Additional reporting from AP COVID-19: 'Phased process' for lifting restrictions is key, WHO chief urges G20 19 April 2020 - The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) told a virtual meeting of the G20 leading global economies on Sunday that although it was encouraging for some countries to be planning to ease lockdowns against COVID-19, "it is critical that these measures are a phased process". Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reiterated the UN's appreciation committing to further strengthen WHO's mandate in coordinating the international fight, noting that "all of your countries have been affected, and you are all at different stages of the response." With some countries such as Austria, Germany and Italy, beginning to announce an easing of restrictions in line with encouraging data such as falling caseloads and hospital deaths, Tedros said it was key to see lifting so-called lockdown restrictions as "not the end of the epidemic in any country; it's just the beginning of the next phase. "It's vital in this next phase that countries educate, engage and empower their people to prevent and respond rapidly to any resurgence", he said adding that it was essential to ensure they have capacity to "detect, test, isolate and care for every case, and trace every contact, and to ensure their health systems have the capacity to absorb any increase in cases." He welcomed a pledge from G20 chair, Saudi Arabia of $500 million to support global efforts against the pandemic, including concrete action with the G20 Global Innovation Hub for Improving Value in Health, the Digital Health Task Force and the Global Patient Safety Leaders Group. The WHO chief said he was deeply concerned that the virus now appears to be "gathering pace in countries that lack the capacity of many G20 countries to respond to it. Urgent support is needed, not only to support countries to respond to COVID-19, but to ensure other essential health services continue." WHO sounded the alarm 'loud and clear' He added, in response to criticism from the US and other sceptics over WHO's handling of the early stage of the international health emergency in China, that "since the beginning", the agency had "sounded the alarm bell loud and clear." "And we continue to fulfil our mandate to coordinate the global response, working with partners to save lives. We've engaged thousands of scientists and experts all over the world to develop detailed technical guidance for countries. We've shipped supplies of lab diagnostics and personal protective equipment to many countries, and expanded testing capacity." Tedros noted that WHO had provided training for more than 1.5 million health workers, launched the Solidarity Trial, to generate robust safety and efficacy data about the four drugs which could lead to a breakthrough in treatment to lower the fatality rate. The international community has rallied in support of the global response, he told the G20, with more than $900 million has pledged for the agency's Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan. Through the UN Supply Chain Task Force, he said WHO was working with the World Food Programme (WFP) and other partners to distribute personal protective equipment to countries all over the world. Three asks Tedros concluded by making three requests of the most powerful economies on the planet: "First, we urge each of your countries to continue to fight the pandemic with determination, guided by science and evidence. Second, we are looking to the G20 countries to continue to support the global response to COVID-19. We will soon publish a second Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, with an estimate of the resources needed for the next phase of the response. And finally, he called on all G20 countries to work together to increase the "production and equitable distribution" of essential supplies, and to remove trade barriers that put health workers and their patients at risk. "The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded us of a simple truth: we are one humanity. We share the same planet. We share the same hopes and dreams. We share the same destiny", he concluded. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 1. Yes. The downtown area needs a good draw. Some quality taverns would be a plus. 2. Yes. Too many storefronts are vacant. Bars could help to bring in needed revenue. 3. No. Putting a number of bars downtown is just asking for trouble. Dont change things. 4.No. Several churches have located downtown. Putting bars close by would be a bad fit. 5. Unsure. It would depend on how the law is written and what standards are enacted. Vote View Results Gavin Lee Casdorph, 21, of Alaska, pleaded guilty Monday to making a fake bomb threat at Lafayette College in 2018. Read more An Alaska man who threatened to detonate bombs at Lafayette College in 2018, causing the Easton, Pa., school to move its graduation ceremony, pleaded guilty on Monday, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced. Gavin Lee Casdorph, 21, of Anchorage, pleaded guilty to one count of willfully making false threats before U.S. District Judge Edward G. Smith, who presided over the hearing in Easton via video teleconference. Casdorph, who was charged in January 2019 and was scheduled to go on trial this week, posed as a radicalized Lafayette student on May 5, 2018, using the handle BdanJafarSaleem to post on Twitter that he planned to bomb multiple locations on campus, McSwains office said in a statement. He attached a letter to his tweets, falsely claiming that his grandfather had died, his girlfriend had broken up with him, and that he had found faith and healing in Allah, the statement said. The posts also pledged allegiance to ISIS and included an image of the ISIS flag and a photograph of several firearms, with the caption: Allah has graced us with these weapons of destruction to carry out his needs, according to the statement. Casdorph also sent a mass email to members of the colleges admissions staff containing similar threats and imagery. The e-mails subject line said: ISIS Will Prevail: Allah Is the True God. Casdorph claimed that his name was Brendan, that he was an economics student at the college, and that he was retaliating for being mocked for his religious beliefs. He warned that when word spread of his plan and students attempted to evacuate, Theyll be playing right into my plan. I have set up several pipe bombs, pressure cookers and nail bombs around the campus and I plan to inflict the most damage possible, according to the U.S. attorneys statement. Law enforcement officials quickly determined that the bomb threats were a hoax, but the incident caused fear on campus, and the college moved its graduation ceremony as a precaution. An FBI investigation that spanned three states led to Casdorph, who was arrested in December 2018 and later admitted what he did, officials said. Casdorph used the dark web browser Tor Project to set up his fake Twitter account after getting into an argument with an online gamer, McSwains office said. He further tried to hide his identity by giving Twitter a phone number he purchased from a Florida company that sells numbers to individuals who want to set up social media accounts without providing their real contact information, the office said. Gavin Casdorph is a dangerous man whose internet threats have real-life consequences, McSwain said in a statement. He thought he could cover his tracks by using phony information to register his Twitter account and an anonymous web browser. He was wrong. The local and federal law enforcement agencies tirelessly working this case did not stop until the trail of evidence led them to Casdorphs door. Making false threats online isnt some harmless goof. Its selfish, shortsighted and a crime, Michael J. Driscoll, special agent in charge of the FBIs Philadelphia Division, said in a statement. A sentencing hearing date for Casdorph had not been set as of Monday afternoon. Mayank Singh By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Indian Army has started functioning of its important offices and formations at the partial level on Monday and for movement of troops it has given the priority to those posted in sensitive Northern Command. Also, the exercise to regulate the movement and quarantine will continue further. As the lockdown period was extended by the government from April 15 to May 3, the Army has prioritised troop movement for sensitive frontiers. Priority I are all ranks of Northern Command and all Army Medical Corps, Army Dental Corps and Military Nursing Services personnel and Priority II are all ranks of Eastern Command plus officers & key appointments of other Commands as decided by respective Commands, said Army. The sensitive borders with Pakistan and China are looked after by the Armys Northern and Eastern Commands. As part of revised instructions issued on Monday Army decided to allow movement for personnel who have Unit/ Duty Station within 500 km by private transport. They will rejoin only on receipt of specific instructions from units/formations/establishment that has granted leave/ Temporary Duty. The army had informed on April 16 that from 19 April to 03 May, offices in Army HQ, Command HQ and formation HQ may start functioning at 50 per cent strength. READ| This is how Indian Army is going to handle personnel rejoining from leave Army has clarified that all personnel from Nepal presently on leave to remain at their home stations till such time the situation in Nepal stabilises/ the Government opens the border for the movement of personnel. Requisite move instructions will accordingly be passed to such personnel from their parent units/ Headquarters/ Establishments. At any given point of time almost 4 to 4.5 lakh troops are either on leave or are on move for temporary duties, training or courses. Army has planned the broad Modalities/ Guidelines for rejoining in a phased manner considering the numbers of individuals rejoining keeping the requirement for smooth reporting, quarantine and onward dispersal to units. Any individual whose leave station is within 500 kms of unit/duty station is allowed to directly report to the unit using private transport only. Individuals who does not fall within the 500 kms criteria will report to nearest unit/station headquarter in the private vehicle only. After their joining, all personnel in the Army will be classified as Green (who have completed 14 days Quarantine period), Yellow (who need to undergo 14 days Quarantine period) and Red (Symptomatic requiring isolation and further treatment in COVID hospital). Army informed, In case of personnel do not move under supervision of military authorities, they will be considered Yellow and undergo 14 days quarantine again. However, these orders for reporting will not apply to in Hotspots/ Containment Zones. Individuals in Hotspots/ Containment zones will follow strictly 'No Movement' till the areas are de-notified as Containment zones. System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482d9b140)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482d9e648)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482d9b140)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482d9e648)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482d9ea80)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482d9e648)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482d9e648)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482272318)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482dacee0)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482dacee0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 Concern about when Pennsylvania might end its shutdown order is leading some to protest in Harrisburg, despite warnings that they may infect each other and confound Gov. Tom Wolfs broad plan for reopening the state. Also, researchers are working to figure out why the coronavirus can be so much worse for some patients, and they might be finding some clues. Josh Rosenblat (@joshrosenblat, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com) The more exposure a person has to a virus, the higher chance of infection and worse symptoms. Thats true up to a point. With the coronavirus, though, the dose is just a small part of the story, according to researchers. In many patients with severe symptoms, the immune system has somehow gone haywire. That overwhelms the lungs with inflammation, making the bodys response worse than the virus itself. But there might be some other combinations of factors at work, which might help explain why some people suffer only mild symptoms or no symptoms at all. An Ohio gun activist created a Facebook group last week called Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine. By Friday afternoon, it had more than 46,000 members. He also organized a rally at the Pennsylvania statehouse planned for today. Similar protests have popped up in some other states around the country, and Pennsylvania officials have warned protestors about the danger of gathering in groups. The tension centers on when Pennsylvania will reopen. As for businesses, some in Philly say theyll stay shuttered until people feel safe leaving their houses. And, Gov. Wolf outlined last week a broad plan for reopening the state. But one thing that might keep parts of the state from reopening is coronavirus testing capacity. Dozens of other residents and staffers have tested positive for the coronavirus or exhibited symptoms, according to the Chester County coroner and an internal report obtained by my colleagues. The scope of the outbreak inside the 238-bed nursing home still isnt entirely clear, but the National Guard sent about 30 of its members to assist with nursing, housekeeping, and other activities. The Pennsylvania National Guard has also deployed nurses to a Delaware County nursing home to help handle an apparent uptick in coronavirus cases. Across the state, nursing homes have been left to largely police themselves, even as coronavirus deaths keep climbing. Pennsylvania has one of the oldest populations in the country. What you need to know today Through your eyes | #OurPhilly Visiting the Please Touch Museum when you literally arent supposed to touch anything. I love the irony. Thanks for sharing, @mr_sceve. Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and well pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out! Thats interesting Opinions Crying while confined. Scavenging for scarce smiles in closed quarters. Hoping that when you turn a corner, a picture in a room doesnt make you fall apart after you already fell apart, as you always do the minute you wake up that morning. writes columnist Maria Panaritis about a family who is grieving in isolation after losing a 7-year-old son before the coronavirus lockdown. Whats more deadly than the coronavirus? Partisanship, writes The Inquirer Editorial Board. Enjoy our political cartoons each morning? Here are 10 more that illustrate the latest phase of the coronavirus pandemic. What were reading Your Daily Dose of | Pizza Groundhog Were calling him Pizza Groundhog. And hes one of our own. Last week, Kristin Chalela Bagnell sent a video to 6ABC of the furry creature methodically munching on a cold slice of pizza while staring into her Philadelphia home. Her two dogs stare back through a sliding glass door. And the groundhog continued to chew, completely unfazed. 20.04.2020 LISTEN #Comrades, There is a common understanding globally that Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus according to the Bible. This is taught from infancy to old age. But have Christians ever paused to analyse the whole scene? Was Judas Iscariot truly a traitor as portrayed by Christians? The Bible like any other book written by the Illuminates is full of allegories. Jesus was always in the temple with the scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, etc. Did Christians mean to say these people didn't know Jesus upon all his controversial teachings and miracles? Judas was said to have taken 30 pieces of silver to betray Jesus with a kiss. If you have a friend who can turn water into wine, and even see people who are about 2 Km away (remote viewing of Nathanael), will you be afraid to bet on him? John 8:59 Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. If someone could perform this miracle, what shows that he can't disappear when I take my 30 pieces to solve my personal problems? Jesus could have just disappeared when they came to arrest him but he betrayed Judas Iscariot!* Judas knew his friend was powerful and could escape arrest but his friend wanted to die to make Judas Iscariot seem a traitor. Even Peter wanted to protect him but Jesus again made Peter looked like a traitor. When Judas realised his friend Jesus had betrayed him, he just went and hanged himself out of pain! Christians, henceforth, don't say Judas betrayed Jesus. It was Jesus who betrayed his friend, Judas. If you have any questions, ask me? Regards, Boadu. www.epistlesofboadu.com Facebook - Epistles of Boadu Lithuanian English AB Amber Grid (legal entity code 303090867, office address Savanoriu pr. 28, LT-03116 Vilnius, Republic of Lithuania). The Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders of AB Amber Grid (hereinafter the Company) held on 20 April 2020 adopted the following resolutions: 1) Consolidated Annual Report of AB Amber Grid for 2019. Taken note of. (Annex 1) 2) Independent auditors report on AB Amber Grids complete set of consolidated and company financial statements and consolidated annual report for 2019 Taken note of.(Annex 1) 3) Approval of AB Amber Grids complete set of consolidated and company financial statements for 2019 Decision taken: To approve AB Amber Grid complete set of consolidated and company financial statements for 2019 (added). (Annex 1) 4) Approval of AB Amber Grid Profit (Loss) Allocation for 2019 Decision taken: To approve of AB Amber Grid Profit (Loss) Allocation for 2019 (added). (Annex 2) 5) Approval of the remuneration policy for the CEO and members of the management board at AB Amber Grid Decision taken: 1. Approve the remuneration policy for the CEO and members of the management board at AB Amber Grid (Annex 3). 2. Authorise and obligate the Companys CEO to make the approved policy public, as well as the results and the date of this annual general meeting of shareholders as provided by the Republic of Lithuania Law on Companies. (The remuneration policy for the CEO and members of the management board at AB Amber Grid- Annex 3) 6) Election of the Board of AB Amber Grid Decision taken: 1. Revoke in corpore the Board elected for a four-year term by the AB Amber Grid general meeting of shareholders on 28 April 2016 as of 20 April 2020. 2. Elect the candidates who received the most votes at the meeting of Company shareholders to the AB Amber Grid Board for a four-year term starting on 20 April 2020. Following the recommendation of the EPSO-G Appointment and Remuneration Committee, the following candidates are proposed: 2.1. Elect Renata Damanskyte-Rekasiene as a member of the Board of AB Amber Grid nominated by the parent company, UAB EPSO-G. 2.2. Elect Algirdas Juozaponis as a member of the Board of AB Amber Grid nominated by the parent company, UAB EPSO-G; 2.3. Elect Rimvydas Stilinis as a member of the Board of AB Amber Grid nominated by the parent company, UAB EPSO-G; 2.4. Elect Ignas Degutis as an independent member of Board of the AB Amber Grid. 2.5. Elect Sigitas Zutautas as an independent member of the Board of AB Amber Grid. 3. The Board and its members shall begin their activities upon completion of the AB Amber Grid annual general meeting of shareholders electing the management board convened on 20 April 2020. (EPSO-G UAB Remuneration and Allocation Committee recommendation Annex 4) 7) Establishment of terms for the activities of the new Board Decision taken: 1. Establish that the members of the Board delegated by the parent company, UAB EPSO-G, shall not receive remuneration. 2. Pay the independent Board members the remuneration established by the AB Amber Grid extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on 6 December 2019. 3. Authorise the CEO of AB Amber Grid to sign contracts on behalf of AB Amber Grid with the newly elected members of the Board within five (5) working days of the day this decision is adopted regarding their activities on the AB Amber Grid Board, in accordance with the standard terms of contract with members of the Board and independent members of the Board regarding their activities on the AB Amber Grid Board approved by the AB Amber Grid general meeting of shareholders. Annexes: 1. AB Amber Grids complete set of consolidated and company financial statements and consolidated annual report for 2019 together with Independent auditors report 2. AB Amber Grid Profit Allocation for 2019. 3. The remuneration policy for the CEO and members of the Board of AB Amber Grid. 4. Confirmation of Responsible Persons. 5. AB Amber Grid Social Responsibility Report More information: Laura Sebekiene, Head of Communications of Amber Grid, ph. +370 699 61 246, e-mail: l.sebekiene@ambergrid.lt Attachments Activists say women are now at greater risk across a region already suffering from high rates of gender-based violence. Medellin, Colombia As Arussi Unda watched videos of empty Mexico City metro cars and shuttered businesses just one month ago, it felt as if Mexican women had made history. Unda, a leader of the feminist organisation Brujas del Mar, was one of the organisers of the countrys National Womens Strike on March 9, when 6.6 million women did not leave the house to show the Latin American country what society would look like without women. It seemed like a movie. Honestly, I couldnt believe it, the 32-year-old activist said. I dont remember anything like this ever happening before. We saw women with very different ideologies, socioeconomic statuses, living in very different realities, united under one call: Stop killing up, stop raping us.' But those empty streets have now taken on a much uglier meaning for leaders like Unda as coronavirus lockdowns trigger a new wave of gender-based violence and femicide in Latin America. Cases of domestic violence have surged in the face of stay-at-home orders and economic turmoil worldwide as countries attempt to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus. But in Latin America, where countries already suffer from high rates of femicide and violence against women, leaders like Unda fear that the pandemic will tip existing crises into tragedy as it begins to hit the region at full force. Were scared because we dont know how long this is going to last, she said. Its bad everywhere, but Mexico is at the top of the list, and its because we live in a country where we have 98 percent impunity we have killers and rapists walking all around us. A woman holds a placard reading, Impunity + silence + indifference = femicide as she takes part in a march to mark International Womens Day in Ecatepec de Morelos, on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico [File: Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters] While Mexico has lagged behind others in the region in imposing strict lockdown orders, countries such as Colombia have already seen what can happen with lockdown curbs. On the first days of the South American countrys nationwide lockdown on March 24, one man allegedly shot his wife, her sister and mother dead inside their home in the Colombian coastal city of Cartagena. The bloody triple femicide the murder of a woman because of her gender was just a sign of what was to come. In the capital of Bogota, the citys mayor said in the first weeks of the lockdown all crime statistics were down, except for one. Calls to polices 24/7 hotline to report violence against women had surged 225 percent. Colombia is not alone. Argentina has seen similar reports of femicide and Peru has seen a rise in sexual abuse of girls. Both countries put in place similar measures as Colombia. Mexico, too, has seen a jump in domestic violence calls. Surge in hotline calls, texts The surge in calls for help was almost instantaneous, said Tara Cookson, director of the feminist research organisation, Ladysmith, which runs a hotline for women on the Venezuelan border city of Cucuta, Colombia. The region at the centre of the Venezuelan migration crisis already suffered what Cookson called a hidden epidemic of gender-based violence as female Venezuelan migrants have been increasingly forced into vulnerable situations, including sex work. But when lockdown took hold, their WhatsApp hotline for migrant women exploded. The quarantine hit and all the sudden we started having more women text message us, the researcher said. And more women texting saying things like My husband is beating me up, but Im not allowed to leave.' But when she and other researchers went to direct them to migrant shelters, she found that most aid organisations had closed their doors, leaving women closed in with their abusers with nowhere to go. People leaning out of building windows are seen amid the COVID-19 outbreak in Bogota, Colombia [Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters] While governments have increasingly been trying to respond to the violence, human rights defenders say states imposed well-intentioned lockdown orders without systems or shelters in place to respond to the backlash. Many regions already lacked basic services like hotlines and effective prosecution of domestic violence. In the emerging crisis, they have only fallen more behind. If a woman can't go to her trusted neighbour, or escape to her mother's house, she's that much more isolated and that much more at risk. Tara Cookson, Ladysmith Despite orders from Colombian President Ivan Duque for local governments to provide resources to women and children faced with domestic violence, one report found that 590 police forces in Colombia lack basic infrastructure like the internet to take domestic violence calls. Instead, it has fallen to aid organisations to fill that gap, developing new digital tools to address the new territory they have been thrust into. Our entire lives have gone digital now, so if you dont have physical access to support, virtual access becomes so much more important, Cookson said. If a woman cant go to her trusted neighbour, or escape to her mothers house, shes that much more isolated and that much more at risk. Focus on aggressors In Mexico, Undas organisation Brujas del Mar has pulled upon its countrywide social media network to bolster existing digital aid for victims and develop new ones. For working women in sectors that are still operating during the lockdown, the group offers digital accompaniment and tracking services for women who have to walk alone in empty streets. Like many across the region, the womens group has funnelled all its energy into responding to the rise in violence. Others, like Mauro Vargass Mexico City-based initiative Gendes, have completely pivoted their services. The initiative became well-known for offering anti-machismo therapy for men. Since they have had to shut down in-person therapy sessions, Vargas launched a new hotline three weeks ago to talk down men at risk of becoming violent. The goal, he said, was to complement work by other organisations scrambling to take on the aftermath of the violence. Its constant. Every single day someone calls and tells us Im calling because I dont want to hit her,' Vargas said. At first, it was two calls like this, and they were more like prevention Now, at least six or eight calls a day have to do with extreme and physical violence we are trying to stop from happening. A list of names, written in lipstick, of murdered women and the Spanish words translating to Femicide state, cover a door at the prosecutors office where police sit behind, left behind by demonstrators protesting against gender violence in Tijuana, Mexico [File: Emilio Espejel/AP Photo] While the hotline asks men to describe their feelings and do breathing exercises to calm themselves, they also try to give men tools so they do not become violent as financial stress deepens and isolation drags on. Crises no longer hidden Despite the unprecedented levels of violence, some human rights defenders see this moment as a turning point. Cookson, the head of the Venezuela border hotline, said Latin America can learn from what has played out in other parts of the world like Asia and Europe that have been combatting coronavirus since January. They have the opportunity to take steps now, she said. I think Colombia and other Latin American countries, theyre at that moment right now where its like, OK we know whats coming.' Marta Restrepo is a leader of Colombias Femicide Observatory, an initiative tracking the killings of women like the one that happened on the first day of the countrys lockdown. Each day, two women are killed in the South American country. As those numbers have risen year-to-year, Restrepo and other researchers felt as if they were shouting into the void. But during the lockdown, she said they felt a shift, a new alertness to what has been happening. Police patrol a neighbourhood during a curfew ordered by the city mayor to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, in Soacha, Colombia [File: Fernando Vergara/AP Photo] Neighbours began reporting cases of violence like never before and they began to see posts with hashtags #FeminicidioEsPandemia, or #FemicideIsAPandemic, #ViolenciaDeGenero or #GenderBasedViolence on social media. This has never happened. I just hope that this never goes back to being hidden, that violence against women becomes a public issue because of this surge, she said. This is a tragedy. Whats happening right now is a tragedy. So I hope we dont return to normality. This alertness, this understanding, this effort that exists, helps. ISTANBUL For weeks President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has presented Turkeys performance in handling the coronavirus as one of the worlds most successful, as he maintained strict control over information about the outbreak. The presidential palace rolled out a carefully orchestrated propaganda campaign, ensuring reports from hospitals, grave sites and mourning relatives remained virtually absent. Doctors who spoke out on social media were reprimanded, and 410 people were detained in March for provocative and abusive posts. But data compiled by The New York Times from records of deaths in Istanbul indicate that Turkey is grappling with a far bigger calamity from the coronavirus than official figures and statements would suggest. The city recorded about 2,100 more deaths than expected from March 9 to April 12, based on weekly averages from the last two years, far more than officials reported for the whole of Turkey during that time. While not all those deaths are necessarily directly attributable to the coronavirus, the numbers indicate a striking jump in fatalities that has coincided with the onset of the outbreak, a preliminary indicator that is being used by researchers to cut through the fog of the pandemic and assess its full toll in real time. The minister called on the public to share information about arsonists with the police. The National Guard of Ukraine has launched an operation to address wildfire subversive activity. "During an evening monitoring flight in the Chornobyl zone yesterday [April 19], we found four such phenomena on an area of about 100 meters," he said on Facebook on April 20, sharing a photo of needle litter burning around a tree. Read alsoPolice considering two versions of wildfire occurrence in Zhytomyr region "The abnormally dry winter the water level in the ecosystem has gone down by 1.5-2 meters ... Fallen leaves, especially needle litter, are easily prone to burning. Peatlands have dried up, and this is a big problem. And all this, of course, is an opportunity for villains and provocateurs. Someone wants to make life in the country unbearable, someone wants to hide their dirty deeds in arson," Avakov said. The minister called on the public to share information about arsonists who set the forest on fire with the police. "Of course, the police are already probing such and other incidents. An ad hoc group was set up at the Interior Ministry; the National Guard launched an anti-sabotage operation in the forest ... thousands of our people do not sleep [putting out] the fire all day and night, breathing in dust and radiation," he said. Those who will be caught "won't get off with a fine alone," the minister added. A five-year-old girl miraculously survived a blaze at her family home by hiding inside a toy trunk - and was further saved by police who contained the fire to one room by closing the door during a search. Snohomish County Fire District 7 praised the quick thinking of Monroe police officers who stopped the spread of a fire at a family home where a little girl was trapped inside. Monroe police arrived before firefighters after a call was put out relating to a house fire at 154th Street southeast in Monroe, Washington state, soon after 11am, on Sunday. Police searched the family home after learning a five-year-old girl was still inside - however, being unsuccessful in locating her, still remembered to close the door of the bedroom where the fire started, preventing it from spreading. The little girl was later discovered hiding inside a toy trunk in the adjacent room. The toy trunk where the five-year-old girl hid during the Monroe blaze, a pirate symbol and treasure map on the side The fire ripped through this bedroom, destroying the bed, ceiling and much of the furniture A neighbor called 911 shortly after 11am on Sunday after seeing smoke rising from a house on 154th Street southeast in Monroe, according to The Seattle Times. The man living at the address managed to escape with his eldest child and family dog, said Heather Chadwick, the fire district's public information officer. His younger child however, the five-year-old girl, was still trapped on the upper level. Being first on the scene, Monroe police conducted a brief search of the property but could not locate the child. But before leaving they closed the door to a bedroom where the blaze started, slowing the spread to the rest of the house. Soon after, Medic 31 ambulance service helped with the search and a male team member found the unnamed five-year-old girl in an adjacent bedroom hiding in the toy chest. 'She wasn't making sounds,' Chadwick told The Seattle Times. 'He opened it up and saw her. She was laying in the toy chest just balled up.' He rushed her out of the building and she did not need to go to a hospital. No first responders were injured in the fire, according to King 5 News, and the blaze was 'quickly knocked down'. 'Due to the quick thinking of the police officers by closing the bedroom door, firefighters were able to contain the fire to the bedroom and extinguish the flames,' said Snohomish County Fire District 7. Snohomish County fire service used the incident to remind people of the importance of closing doors during a fire, and sleeping with bedroom doors shut at night, potentially saving lives. A manda Holden and her daughter Lexi joined forces for an unusual - and hilarious - make-up tutorial. Holden, 49, shared the beauty video on Instagram, captioning it: Ive learned from the best make up tutorial with a twist. Hands care of lexi. [sic] The Britains Got Talent star kicked off the clip normally enough by noting that shed picked up plenty of tips over the years from her go-to make-up artists. However, things quickly took a strange turn as the presenter didnt seem to be fully in control of the hands applying make-up to her face in an increasingly erratic fashion - as Lexi, her oldest child, was in fact using her own hands. Amanda Holden's Make-up Tutorial with her daughter Lexi 1 /6 Amanda Holden's Make-up Tutorial with her daughter Lexi @noholdenback @noholdenback @noholdenback @noholdenback @noholdenback Ever the professional, though, Holden kept up a running commentary throughout to accompany her daughters weird and wonderful techniques. She joked that she liked to apply lots of thick foundation to make her forehead look smaller and that brushing bronzer into her roots would hide grey hairs. Lexi, 14, then chose to brush purple eyeshadow above her mums eyebrows, which Holden suggested was how we achieve some of the looks on Britains Got Talent, adding: It looks a little bit like bruising but when the lights shine down it gives an amazing appearance. @noholdenback Lexi brushed bronzer through her mum's hair (@noholdenback) For a final flourish, Lexi covered her mums mouth - and face - in red lipstick and lip gloss, prompting Holden to quip: Im a massive fan of Picasso the artist and I like the abstract touch, I think it adds something. At the end of the video, Lexi emerged from from behind her mothers shoulder as the pair finally burst into laughter. Holden has been finding plenty of unusual ways to keep herself and her family occupied during the lockdown. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast The Botswana government has denied social media reports that it was forcefully repatriating Zimbabwean nationals in that country as a precautionary measure against the spread of Covid-19. In a statement, Gaborone said it had noted with deep concern the misinformation and distorted reports on social media platforms regarding alleged forceful repatriation of Zimbabweans. Instead, Botswana said on 16th April 2020, 255 Zimbabwean nationals were voluntarily repatriated from Botswana by road and received by Zimbabwean authorities at the Ramokgwebana Border Post. Their repatriation request was in view of the nation-wide lockdown imposed by the Botswana government. The repatriated nationals were put in mandatory quarantine for 21 days upon returning to Zimbabwe. The assertion being made is completely inaccurate, the Botswana government said. United Airlines expects to record a $2.1 billion loss in the first quarter as the global spread of the coronavirus essentially halted air travel, leading sales to plummet. The pretax loss, a $1 billion adjusted loss, came as revenue dropped 17% from a year earlier to $8 billion, the carrier said Monday in a regulatory filing. The results are preliminary and subject to change. Tom Hanks Opens up on Fighting Off COVID-19 Symptoms Actor Tom Hanks described his experience fighting off COVID-19, coming days after recovering from the CCP virus. Rita went through a tougher time than I did, said Hanks, 63, during an episode of the National Defense Radio Show on April 16. He was referring to his wife, Rita Wilson, who also tested positive for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes the disease COVID-19. She had a much higher fever. She had lost her sense of taste and sense of smell, he said. She was so nauseous, she had to crawl on the floor from the bed to the facilities. It lasted a while, the Forrest Gump actor said on the program. Hanks said that he suffered some bad body aches and was very fatigued, and thats how the COVID-19 went through us. Whoever it was, doctor, nurse, would come into our air pressurized room, our isolation rooms. She said, How are you feeling? and I said, I just had the weirdest thing. I just tried to do basic stretches and exercises on the floor and I couldnt even get halfway through, he said, adding that he was wiped after 12 minutes of exercising. And she looked at me through her glasses like she was talking to the dumbest human being, he said. And she said, You have COVID-19. Hanks and Wilson tested positive for the CCP virus while filming in Australia last month, becoming at the time perhaps the highest-profile celebrities to contract the illness. It was relatively early in Australias response to the coronavirus, and they wanted us to not give it to anyone else, said Hanks. Thats why we were in lockdown. Wilson told CBS News last week that her symptoms were chills like Ive never had before, adding that she suffered from a 102 F fever at one point. Looking back, I also realized that I was losing my sense of taste and smell, which I didnt realize at the time, Wilson said. Both she and Hanks may have been exposed to the CCP virus at the same time, she added. Well, thats what they told us and thats what the belief is. We recently have been part of a study where weve donated our blood, and were waiting to hear back if our antibodies will be helpful in developing a vaccine. But also, if we are able to donate plasma that can be used as donation to other people who are suffering from the virus because we are immune. - A newspaper outlet in Germany sent an invoice to China for alleged COVID-19 damages - The outlet said that Beijing owes Berlin for the effects of the pandemic, especially economically - The editor-in-chief of the company claimed that China failed to inform the other countries earlier about the pandemic - On the other hand, US President Donald Trump said that China could also face consequences if proven that they were knowingly responsible for the coronavirus PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed A major newspaper outlet in Germany sent an invoice to China, claiming that Beijing owes Berlin for the COVID-19 crisis. KAMI learned that other countries like France, the United Kingdom, and the United States are looking at China over the COVID-19 because the first case was reported in Wuhan. As reported by the Daily Express (authored by Oli Smith), a PHP8.2 trillion invoice was sent by company called Bild to China after the country supposedly failed to inform other countries about the coronavirus. We were trying to point out that there is of course, something like a responsibility for global health incident, to global health catastrophe like this if the authorities, like they did in China, failed to inform the rest of the world about the magnitude of this outbreak, Julian Reichelt said, Editor-in-Chief of Bild. And that is clearly what happened and that has caused severe effects to countries all over the world, he added. In a report by GMA News Online, Germany is slowly going back to normal after authorities announced that the coronavirus in the country is now under control. It has also been reported that as of now, Germany has 145,742 cases of COVID-19. Meanwhile, in a press briefing, US President Donald Trump said that China could face consequences if proven that it was knowingly responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. "If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, yeah, I mean, then sure there should be consequences," Trump said. PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! The coronavirus disease or COVID-19 was first reported in Wuhan, China. As of posting time, there are more than 2.4 million confirmed cases of coronavirus across the globe. Please like and share our Facebook posts to support KAMI team! Dont hesitate to comment and share your opinion about our stories either. We love reading about your thoughts! Kuya Andrew, a Grab Food rider, received a lot of blessings after he was given food by Cha Calubaquib who shared the story in her viral post! Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel! Source: KAMI.com.gh South Korea's first line of defence against COVID-19 now is at the Seoul airport, and it's an impressive sight. Thousands of passengers in orderly lineups, almost all masked, wait patiently to have their temperatures scanned. They pass before many infrared cameras, and then electronic thermometers are held up to their ears. If they show any symptoms, they are immediately ushered to adjacent testing facilities. All inbound passengers have to download a cellphone app that allows the government to monitor them for a 14-day quarantine period, during which they are not allowed to leave their homes or hotels. Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters "They will be communicating with those people twice a day, morning and night, while they are doing self-reporting through the app," says Lee Hoon-sang, a professor of global health security at Yonsei University. He says the government is now especially worried about the potential for a second wave of the virus that could arrive with passengers from the United States, Europe or China. South Korea has an enviable record of handling the outbreak. It has recorded five deaths per million of population, compared to 42 in Canada, 122 in the United States and 437 in Spain. On Sunday, there were just eight new cases reported in South Korea. Suh Myoung-geon/Yonhap via AP Lessons from the past How did South Korea perform so well? It is a combination of intensive testing and elaborate contact-tracing, Lee says. In some ways the country experienced a full dress rehearsal for this pandemic back in 2015, when it fought an outbreak of MERS, Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome. A South Korean businessman returned then from a trip to Bahrain and quickly developed a cough and fever. He made his way to several medical clinics in search of a diagnosis. Finally his condition was correctly assessed at the Samsung Medical Centre in Seoul, but by that time he had infected many other patients in waiting rooms and others he encountered along his path. A slow response from the Korean Centre for Disease Control (KCDC) meant there were eventually 186 infections and 36 deaths, and was heavily criticized at the time. Story continues "After 2015, there was a massive revamping of the Korean CDC," says Lee. "A new testing method was prepared out of that experience, which was very helpful when COVID-19 came to Korea." The Korean government partnered with many private bio-medical labs on medical testing, and that public-private partnership quickly generated millions of test-kits shortly after China publicized the new virus's genome in January. Reuters Over 500 testing facilities were established across the country, starting in February. Many of them are drive-thru, so that Koreans with families can be checked for the virus without having to hire babysitters or bring their children to a hospital. Perhaps more astonishing is the system of contact-tracing. Infected people are asked to recall everyone they have encountered in recent days. Then their memories are checked with credit card information and cellphone location-tracking data. An acceptable trade-off Privacy laws were changed after the MERS outbreak to allow this intrusion only in the case of a national medical emergency. "They can use big data and AI [Artificial Intelligence]," says Lee, "So in 10 minutes all that information can be gathered automatically and the contact-tracing time has been drastically reduced." Koreans now receive multiple notifications every day on their cellphones advising them that they may have crossed paths with an infected person at a particular store or restaurant. They are encouraged to seek testing if they experience any symptoms. While citizens in many in Western countries would see this as an outrageous infringement of privacy, Yeong-seon Kim, a journalist with the Korean public broadcaster KBS, says the public has accepted it. Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters "First, the government keeps the balance between protecting public safety and protecting private information. The information made public does not include any private information that allows people to identify whose information they are receiving. You know it only says male or female and their age, that's all. So you cannot tell who he or she is. "Second, the people understand extraordinary measures are necessary during an extraordinary time. I feel like that too, and I think the government is doing the right thing, right now." On March 2, schools were closed and work from home protocols went into place. People were told to stop seeing relatives and friends and to avoid large gatherings. Kim Ju-sung/Yonhap via AP Masks are not mandated, but they are recommended and people are often shamed if they appear in public without wearing them. While the Korean public has been largely compliant with all the new health policies, there was one glaring exception. In mid-February, a 61-year-old woman belonging to a religious sect called the Shincheonji Church of Jesus resisted advice to self-isolate after she developed symptoms of COVID-19. She attended a wedding, a funeral and other large religious services in the southern city of Daegu. By the time she was tested and diagnosed, she had passed the disease to over 5,000 people. Then the church refused to co-operate with medical investigations of the "super-spreader." "This church keeps their followers' identity secret," says Kim. "Initially they were reluctant to hand over the list of their followers to the authorities. That's why the Korean people were so mad at this church, because they were not willing to share this list of their followers." Faced with a wave of public rage and widespread demands to have the church disbanded, church leader Lee Man-hee quickly reversed course. He passed over the membership list, apologized profusely and even prostrated himself before TV cameras at a press conference on March 2. Heo Ran/Reuters Korea has been so successful in containing coronavirus that the country never had to close bars and restaurants, and a few days ago the government even proceeded with a national election. There were elaborate sterilization precautions and every voter was issued a pair of disposable plastic gloves. There were even separate polling stations for infected persons. Before the outbreak, the scandal-ridden government of Moon Jae-in was expected to do badly in the elections. As it turned out, the public was apparently pleased with his party's handling of the pandemic. Koreans turned out in record numbers and gave Moon's party an increased majority. Waterford has shot to the top of the table when it comes to divorce applications, according to the latest figures from the Courts Service. The Deise county has leapfrogged Carlow and Dublin, which make up the rest of the top three based on divorce applications per head of population. Newly released details of divorce and judicial separation for 2018 show that there were 3,864 applications to the circuit court for divorce that year. Another 1,238 couples looked for a judicial separation, which can allow husbands or wives to part company in a more straightforward way. In terms of divorce applications, the rate per 100,000 of population nationally was just over 81. Ten counties exceeded that figure, with the rate in Waterford highest of all, at 102 divorces per 100,000 of population. Second on the list was Carlow (97), followed by Dublin (92), with the next highest Westmeath (89). At the far end of the scale, the lowest rate of divorce was in Co Cavan where there were 54 divorce applications for every 100,000 people. It was followed by Roscommon (56) and Meath (57 per 100,000). In terms of the numbers, Dublin had by far the highest number of applications for divorce, with a total of 1,233 couples looking to split. Wives Next was Cork, with 463, while at the other end of the table, the country's least populated county, Leitrim, had just 25. Women were considerably more likely than men to apply for divorce. The figures show that 55.8pc of applications - or 2,155 in total - came from wives. Judicial separation remained an option for many couples with 861 women and 377 men applying for such a split in 2018, a gender ratio of 70:30. Rates of application for judicial separation compared to divorce can differ dramatically among counties as well. In Westmeath, for example, there were almost five times as many applications for divorce as there were for a judicial separation. However, in Cork - there were just under two and a half divorce applications for every one for judicial separation. The outcome of divorce settlements were most likely to include "extinguishing succession rights" which was a feature of 3,174 cases decided last year. The next most likely outcome of a divorce was a pension adjustment order (1,869), custody or access orders (1,365), or a periodic payment to a child (1,208). A small number of applications were also made for "nullity" with 20 such cases recorded according to the data. Among the reasons allowed for a "nullity" declaration are mental incapacity, lack of consent, or that one or other of the couple are "incapable of sexual intercourse". Of the nullity applications, 60pc were made in Dublin, Cork, Galway, and Limerick. Even if you believe every optimistic scenario about how the coming months could unfold, America is still looking at a hole in our finances and society that could take generations to dig out of. Why it matters: President Trump and his top officials keep telling viewers that the economy will come roaring back within months of getting the virus under control. But the long-term price of the pandemic is just barely beginning to emerge. Consider these projections, just three months into the crisis with untold months of twists and pain ahead: Between Congress and the Federal Reserve, the U.S. government has already committed more than $6 trillion "to try to stop an economic calamity with just limited success," the Washington Post reports. and the Federal Reserve, the U.S. government has already committed more than $6 trillion "to try to stop an economic calamity with just limited success," the Washington Post reports. And that total is already rising: The White House and Congress are close to agreeing on an aid package of as much as $500 billion. is already rising: The White House and Congress are close to agreeing on an aid package of as much as $500 billion. Even before the virus crisis, the U.S. was on track for a once-unthinkable $1 trillion budget deficit. Now, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs both estimate that could be $4 trillion the most, relative to the size of the economy, since World War II. Business borrowing also is setting records: Companies including ExxonMobil and Walgreens, "which binged on debt over the past decade, now are exhausting their credit lines and tapping bondholders for even more cash," the WashPost points out. Wall Street banks warn the pandemic could cost the global economy more than $5 trillion of growth over the next two years, which is "like losing Japan," as Bloomberg put it. warn the pandemic could cost the global economy more than $5 trillion of growth over the next two years, which is "like losing Japan," as Bloomberg put it. States and cities are losing tax money, producing an additional, closer-to-home disaster, as Axios' Stef Kight and Dan Primack reported. On top of all that is the human cost: Goldman Sachs said in a new forecast last week that the unemployment rate is expected to approach 15% this summer a sign that the administration's "months not years" formulation for a recovery could be a pipe dream. said in a new forecast last week that the unemployment rate is expected to approach 15% this summer a sign that the administration's "months not years" formulation for a recovery could be a pipe dream. Columbia University researchers say that under the dire but not unthinkable forecast of 30% unemployment, the U.S. poverty rate would increase from 12% to 19%, the worst in at least 53 years. researchers say that under the dire but not unthinkable forecast of 30% unemployment, the U.S. poverty rate would increase from 12% to 19%, the worst in at least 53 years. And you can add in the opportunity cost of businesses that weren't started, or didn't grow, or didn't get additional funding, during this season when so much of American business was on hold. The bottom line: When the health crisis ends, the effort to rebuild America will just be beginning. An Indian businessman was jailed in Hong Kong on Monday for violating the quarantine order for the containment of the coronavirus and trying to leave the city, the first such breach by a non-resident, according to a media report. Deepak Kumar, 31, was sentenced to four weeks behind bars on Monday after he pleaded guilty to one count of leaving the place of quarantine without the permission given by an authorised officer, South China Morning Post reported. Kwun Tong Court heard the Indian businessman arrived in Hong Kong from Turkey on March 21, and was placed under a written quarantine order to stay in isolation at Mojo Nomad Aberdeen Harbour Hotel in Aberdeen, for 14 days, the paper said. But immigration officers found him trying to leave Hong Kong via Shenzhen Bay Control Point without permission the following morning and intercepted him, it said. He was subsequently sent to a quarantine centre and brought to court on April 4 after the isolation period had ended. He is the first non-resident to be jailed for leaving their quarantine site, the newspaper said. His defence lawyer said the offence was committed out of misunderstanding, as he claimed to have received general information on how to go to China from the Home Affairs Department and mistook it as permission to leave Hong Kong. "He pleaded guilty to indicate his remorse, the lawyer said in mitigation. He's sorry for the trouble he made. Acting principal magistrate Ivy Chui Yee-mei first sentenced him to six weeks, and reduced it by one-third to credit Kumar's guilty plea and clear record, the paper said. The case was the first breach of the Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation, which since March 19 has required all arrivals from outside China to undergo 14 days of compulsory quarantine. Offenders face six months in prison and a maximum fine of 25,000 Hong Kong dollars. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Fabrice COFFRINI/Getty Images Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said Monday that "the worst is yet ahead of us" concerning the global impact of the coronavirus pandemic. "Trust us. The worst is yet ahead of us," he said during a press briefing. Ghebreyesus compared the virus to the 1918 flu that killed 675,000 people in the US and tens of millions around the world. But he argued that the world now has the technology to prevent "that kind of crisis." Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Related Video: What Could Be the Fastest Way to End the Coronavirus Crisis? Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said Monday that "the worst is yet ahead of us" concerning the global impact of the coronavirus pandemic. "Trust us. The worst is yet ahead of us," he said during a press briefing. Ghebreyesus compared the virus to the 1918 flu that killed 675,000 people in the US and tens of millions around the world. But he argued that the world now has the technology to prevent "that kind of crisis." "Let's prevent this tragedy," he said. "It's a virus that many people still don't understand." This comes as countries around the world are beginning to reopen as they've seen decreasing infection rates. Some of these places, including Singapore, are already seeing their cases spike again. President Donald Trump has begun urging governors to reopen their states despite experts' warnings that doing so too soon would provoke a devastating resurgence of the virus. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's leading infectious disease expert, says the development of a vaccine is at least one year to 18 months away. Ghebreyesus didn't explain exactly how he expects the virus' toll to intensify. As of Monday, the virus has infected almost 2.5 million people in more than 200 countries and territories and killed at least 166,000 people, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University. Read the original article on Business Insider Former NASA astronaut Jose Hernandez knows something about living in tight quarters and being pretty isolated something he learned long before the coronavirus pandemic forced so many around the globe to do just that. Hernandez, 57, did in 2009 what many dream of doing: He went to space as a mission specialist on the STS-128 Discovery shuttle that flew to the International Space Station. He says his training for that mission keeps him sane and focused these days, and it can help others, as well. "The life of the astronaut is isolating even for a short mission of two weeks in space. We were in medical isolation for weeks prior, because you don't want to go home and then get sick and risk the mission," Hernandez told NBC News. "So we're well over a month in isolation, and even before that, you go do a lot of exercises in small groups with your team." Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak Getting ready to go to space included survival training, such as how to live in the mountains in the middle of winter. In a forest in Maine, the astronauts-in-training were given no food or water and had to figure it out. "We had to see what the forest would give us, so you do fishing, you go find water. It was a way to bring cohesiveness to the group and work together," he says. Another training exercise involved living in a module 60 feet underwater to mirror what it was like being in space. All that helped him cope and develop a strategy for being by himself and keeping a positive attitude. "You have to look at the glass half-full, not half-empty," he says. Hernandez recalls the time he complained about something during a training session and his commander said "hey, you're one of 500 people" who ended up with the privilege of going up in space. That, Hernandez says, put it in perspective. Not that the coronavirus isn't scary, Hernandez says, but you try to make the best of even a bad situation. Story continues Communicate, keep a schedule "The positive here is we are with our families, we are with our loved ones," Hernandez says. "You're spending more time with those you wouldn't ordinarily be with all the time, so make the best of it." In a confined, crowded environment, as it can be for many who are quarantining with their families, good communication is key, particularly when tension runs high and patience runs low. He recommends a technique NASA used as a safety procedure: Say something more than once, and get confirmation. "What I have found is that it's probably good to repeat when you communicate with others, because it allows you to hear what you have told the other person, and when that other person repeats it to you, you hear what you said, and it filters out unreasonable requests, for example," Hernandez says. "That way you can defuse situations that could escalate." He uses another NASA technique creating a schedule and sticking to it. "Even for those who are not working right now, having a schedule down to the hour helps quantify your day and allows you to have a little bit of fulfillment and that you accomplished something," he says. "You can claim small victories." Download the NBC News app for full coverage and alerts about the coronavirus outbreak Hernandez recognizes that not everyone can be with their families and that some are by themselves during the pandemic. Making a concerted effort to be connected, as he did during his time at NASA, helps stem the pangs of loneliness and isolation. "It's hard to train to be away from your loved ones. But technology helps," he says, recalling his many chats with his family via video. "I'd entertain my kids by floating M&Ms and eating them, and nowadays I still use technology a lot." Although Hernandez's parents live only 10 minutes away, they're communicating via phone and computer video. "Because of their age, I don't want to risk them getting sick, so we 'see' them and talk with them on video. Just because you're isolated doesn't mean you can't communicate with your loved ones." Jose Hernandez with sister Leticia and brother Gil (Courtesy Jose Hernandez) Hernandez, an engineer who left NASA in 2011, is the son of migrant farmworkers from Mexico. Now a consultant and an author, he has gone back to his farming roots and started a small vineyard in his hometown, Stockton, California. When he was growing up, Hernandez helped his family pick crops. He has a deep appreciation for agricultural workers out in the fields during the pandemic. "Thanks to them I'm able to feed my family during this scary situation," Hernandez says. U.S. farmworkers are considered "essential workers," but workers and advocates worry that they're not being sufficiently protected at this time. These images from the immigrant farmworker appreciation caravan in California make my heart sing. pic.twitter.com/zVzbTgqN1o Daniel Altschuler (@altochulo) April 20, 2020 In Washington state, two unions representing agricultural workers, the United Farm Workers of America and Familias Unidas Por La Justicia AFL-CIO, sued the state (specifically the Health Department) seeking safer working conditions during the crisis. "We should make sure that our farmworkers day in and day out have the proper personal protection equipment given the conditions they're asked to work in," Hernandez says. Follow NBC Latino on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482a4d178)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04828f3100)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482a4d178)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04828f3100)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482a2d340)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04828f3100)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04828f3100)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f04828c6828)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482a16d18)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482a16d18)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:42:37|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Chinese medical aid supplies are unloaded from the plane at Baghdad International Airport in Baghdad, Iraq, April 20, 2020. The third batch of Chinese medical aid arrived on Monday in Baghdad as part of China's assistance to boost Iraq's capability to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. (Xinhua) BAGHDAD, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The third batch of Chinese medical aid arrived on Monday in Baghdad as part of China's assistance to boost Iraq's capability to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. "The new batch of medical supplies are provided by the China International Development Cooperation Agency, which mainly include masks, protective clothing, goggles and nucleic acid testing kits," Chinese Ambassador to Iraq Zhang Tao told Xinhua at Baghdad International Airport. "The medical facilities in Iraq are relatively weak under years of war and conflicts, and the Chinese government attaches great importance to cooperation with Iraq to contain the outbreak," Zhang said. He said a team of Chinese medical experts has carried out in-depth work in Iraq, held 27 training sessions for Iraqi medical personnel and trained more than 1,000 medical personnel in the past two months. Saif al-Badr, spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Health, expressed high appreciation for the efforts made by China in supporting Iraq to confront the coronavirus, praising the Chinese team of experts and their great efforts. He told Xinhua that the previous batches of Chinese aid have contributed to increasing Iraq's capacity to diagnose the coronavirus. On March 7, China sent the first batch of medical aid to Iraq, with a medical team of seven Chinese experts to work with their Iraqi counterparts to fight the coronavirus, while the second batch of aid arrived on April 8. As of April 20, Iraqi Health Ministry confirmed a total of 1,539 COVID-19 cases and 82 deaths across the country. Enditem As reports about the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) began to make their way into news cycles in February, malicious posters began appearing at bus stops and railway stations in Hyderabad that blamed transgender people for the spread of the virus. While no one knew who printed these posters, their content was disturbing. The posters said HIV-positive transgender people were spreading the virus, and that they ought to be stoned. Transgender activist Vyjayanti Vasantha Mogli said the posters created fear among many people of the community. The only added to the troubles that transgender people already face, she said. As the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown continues, several members of the community said the livelihoods of hundreds of transgender people remain disrupted, with many struggling for their daily needs. Many are worried they will be thrown out by landlords if they are unable to pay rent. And transgender people who are HIV-positive are complaining about difficulty in accessing critical medicines. Cuttack-based transwoman Meghna said food was running out for many members of the community in the state. Around 70% of the community in Odisha is dependent on begging or sex work, and it is rare that a transperson has savings to fall back on, she said. Non-governmental organisations and community networks are providing support but that, she said, isnt enough. The government needs to provide for us, she said. R Subrahmanyam, secretary of the ministry of social justice and welfare, said that before the lockdown, the ministry asked 25-odd organisations working for the welfare of the transgender community to identify people with financial constraints. He said 5,000 people were given Rs 1,500 as assistance. We have also said that, in case, there is anyone looking for more assistance, they need to get in touch with these organisations, who will [work] with us for help, said Subrahmanyam. Problems have been exacerbated for those who are HIV-positive and need monthly doses of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) medicines. Mogli said while some dont have access to medicines, others are facing the problem of having to come out as HIV-positive to caregivers. In addition to that, HIV treatment is only provided by the government to those who are registered with authorities. For those without a valid medical record, said Hyderabad-based Harshini Mekala, a simple HIV test can help. The test takes about three hours to show if a person is HIV-positive, said Mekala. Grace Bano, who lives in Tuticorin, said that most transgender people benefiting from social schemes are based in urban areas. Several transgender people, including those who are HIV-positive, are suffering in villages. We had to run a campaign to reach out to 250 people in Tamil Nadu alone, she said. An HIV-positive transwoman living in Mumbai, who is a volunteer with the government and has arranged doses for a few months from the ART centre for those registered with the government, said on condition of anonymity: For those from states who had to stay back in other states they were visiting, there is no availability of medicines. Amit Kumar of the All India Sex Workers Network, a collective representing more than 500,000 sex workers, said transgender sex workers are more vulnerable. Access to social schemes is more limited for them, he said, adding some people in the network rely on the monthly grant of Rs 500 in their Jan Dhan accounts. The network had written to the National AIDS Control Organisation for assistance, especially for those from the trans-community. The HIV-positive transwoman in Mumbai said that in her area, only 70 out of the 500-odd transgender people have managed to get funds from the social justice ministry, and some are relying on Jan Dhan accounts for sustenance. Mogli said in several states, different schemes help transgender people in different ways. But several schemes require proof of identity. Several people have papers prior to their coming out, and these papers are in a different name and of a different sex, she said. She said among the steps the government needs to take is a rent moratorium for a few months for the community so that they arent thrown out of rented accommodation. The government should also provide rations and cash for those in the community who are starving, she added. Ayushman Bharat too must provide cover for Covid-19, especially for transgender people, she said. For states such as Telangana, which do not implement the Central scheme, state welfare measures should provide cover, she added. The airlines are high-risk stocks here with passenger traffic down over 95% and American Airlines (AAL) is one of the riskiest in the sector. The ability of the airline sector to obtain government aid to cover payroll costs is a huge positive for the sector. The move eliminates the direst outcomes for the sector making American Airlines a risky way to play a rebound in air travel demand. Big Government Grant On April 14, the airline sector and the U.S. Treasury Department agreed to a deal on the Payroll Support Program part of the CARES act providing $25 billion worth of aid to the passenger air transport sector. With the largest employee base, American Airlines obtained the largest deal at $5.8 billion. The airline had pre-virus monthly payroll expenses of $1.2 billion. As shareholders, the deal was disappointing in that 30% of the grant was via a $1.7 billion low-interest loan. Only $4.1 billion of the grant is free money, if the airline doesnt lay off employees prior to October 1 along with agreeing to restrictions on executive compensation and the elimination of capital returns. The deal wasnt the best outcome for shareholders, but the move eliminates the dire outcomes. The airline is now able to remain ready for an eventual rebound in air travel with only a 3% hit to equity via the warrants issued to the Treasury. Besides, Delta Air Lines (DAL) announced over 35,000 employees out of a base of 90,000 employees have already accepted unpaid leave options. The airlines have the potential to reduce costs closer to the levels of the grants making the loan portion of the grant usable for covering operating losses. Deep Value Sprinkled With Risk Last year, American Airlines generated over $3.7 billion of operating profits while taking a large hit from having to ground 737 Max planes. The stock has a market value down to only $4.7 billion leaving a major question of when or if the airline can ever return to previous profit levels. Story continues The Treasury grant gives the sector about six months to recover before having to make any drastic changes to the business model or cut employees. The reduced jet fuel costs will help in a recovery as those prices should remain far below prior virus levels for years with reduced energy demand. If American Airlines can just return to half of the previous operating profit levels, the stock trades at only 2x profit targets. Of course, the risk is that travel never returns to previous levels. The airline is asking for another $4.75 billion in loans from the government at a cost of another 38 million warrants. If granted, the U.S. Treasury will own over 10% of the airline, but American Airlines will survive to fly another day and allowed to profit when passenger traffic returns to pre-virus levels. Takeaway The key investor takeaway is that American Airlines remains in a risky position until bookings start rebounding to levels above 50% of previous capacity levels. Anybody thinking passenger traffic returns to 75% of 2019 levels should load up on all airlines, especially American Airlines with the stock down over 60% from the February highs. When looking at Wall Streets stance, AALs current average price target implies double-digit upside, but based on all the ratings received over the past three months, AAL is actually a Moderate Sell consensus. While 3 analysts are on the Buy side, 5 say Hold and 7 advise investors to jump out of the airplane. The latter camp includes J.P. Morgan's Garrett Nelson, who recently downgraded the stock from Buy to Sell, while withdrawing his price target. (See American Airlines 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. The Pakistan government has granted permission for the resumption of Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) activities through the Gwadar Port amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a media report. According to a notification of the Ministry of Commerce, the bulk cargo arriving at the Gwadar Port would be sent to Afghanistan in line with the international standards, The Express Tribune reported. The trucks leaving the Gwadar Port for Afghanistan under the ATT Agreement, would be completely sealed, the notification reads. The trucks would be allowed to ferry wheat, sugar and manure as well as have a tracking system installed in them. The permission was granted on the requests of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other institutions concerned, the report said. The port was opened for transit trade in the beginning of October 2019 and the first ship arrived on October 8. With the first cargo in January this year, the Gwadar Port had started handling transit cargo to and from Afghanistan. In January, Gwadar Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Mir Naveed Kalmati had urged the federal government to divert the ATT cargo handling to Gwadar Port on a permanent basis. This development will provide jobs to the youth and create economic activity, which in turn would counter insurgency in Balochistan, he had said. The AfghanistanPakistan Transit Trade Agreement is a bilateral trade agreement signed in 2010 that calls for greater facilitation in the movement of goods amongst the two countries. Pakistan handles around 48 per cent of total Afghan exports and approximately 60 per cent of Afghan transit trade goes through the Torkham border. The strategic Gwadar Port in Balochistan province on the Arabian Sea is being built by China under the multi-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The New York City subway system rebounded from the 1970s, when the city teetered on the edge of bankruptcy, crumbling cars routinely broke down and rampant crime scared riders away. It survived the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and Hurricane Sandy in 2012, which led to years of costly rebuilding and service disruptions. And it turned a corner after a spate of meltdowns and accidents in 2017 including a derailment injuring dozens of riders that prompted Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to declare a state of emergency. But now, the subway faces its worst financial crisis yet one that threatens to hobble the system and have a lasting impact on the city and region. As the coronavirus pandemic has shut down New York, over 90 percent of the citys subway ridership has disappeared along with critical fare revenue leaving behind escalating expenses and an uncertain timeline of when and how the citys transit lifeline will recover. On behalf of Oregon medical providers, thank you for your incredible outpouring of support and concern for our well-being. Together, we can spread that sentiment to all essential workers in our communities, including those in non-medical environments. Even when we are feeling well, we may already be infected and can protect others by covering our faces. In a best-case scenario, all Oregonians would don a facial covering before entering spaces where physical distancing is challenging. Until that happens, we recommend that the state engage in a direct, coordinated effort to ensure that personal protective supplies are acquired and distributed with all essential workers in mind, and that no essential workers, medical or non-medical, bear the burden of providing their own equipment. While more advanced personal protective wear should be reserved for health care workers in particularly high-risk transmission settings, masks that approximate the permeability of a surgical mask should be procured in a coordinated effort for all other essential workers. Emerging data show that communities of color are disproportionately represented among those infected and dying from COVID-19. These communities are disproportionately represented in essential service roles. Oregons curve may be flattening, but even one essential workers death due to Oregonians lack of awareness of their own roles as infectious vectors will be one death too many. Oregon must demonstrate solidarity with communities in which uncertainty and the potential for lost lives is tangibly growing. Christina Milano, M.D., Portland On April 10, the tech corporations Apple and Google announced a collaborative effort to introduce COVID-19 contact tracing capabilities into their mobile technologies. In a joint statement, the Silicon Valley tech giants wrote that they intended to enable the use of Bluetooth technology to help governments and health agencies reduce the spread of the virus, with user privacy and security central to the design. The statement elaborated further, Apple and Google will be launching a comprehensive solution that includes application programming interfaces (APIs) and operating system-level technology to assist in enabling contact tracing. Given the urgent need, the plan is to implement this solution in two steps while maintaining strong protections around user privacy. Step one of the accelerated development plan will allow official apps from public health authorities to interoperate between the Android and iOS mobile operating systems. In step two, the companies will enable Bluetooth-based contact tracing in their underlying platform as part of the core capability of smartphones. Apple and Google announced on April 10 the joint implementation of contact tracing technology into the Adroid and iOS operating system [Photo credit: Apple/Google Infographic] The second phase of the project, according to the joint statement, is a more robust solution than an API and would allow more individuals to participate, if they choose to opt in, as well as enable interaction with a broader ecosystem of apps and government health authorities. The short press statement then repeats again for a third time, Privacy, transparency, and consent are of utmost importance in this effort, and we look forward to building this functionality in consultation with interested stakeholders. Contact tracing is a primary scientific method for responding to and combatting a pandemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), contact tracing is the process of locating everyone who comes into direct contact with someone who has been infected and then taking certain specified actions to contain the virus from spreading further. The CDC calls for monitoring contacts of infected people after notifying them of their exposure and then ensure the safe, sustainable and effective quarantine of contacts to prevent additional transmission. Most people who get COVID-19 are infected by their friends, neighbors, family or work colleagues, so these relationships are the ones that contact tracing is concentrated on. In countries and regions that have combined contact tracing with widespread testingsuch as South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kongdeath rates have been relatively low compared to countries, like the US, that are testing only those who show symptoms of COVID-19. Traditionally, contact tracing requires the creation of large teams of trained professionals who trace relatives, neighbors and friends to find anyone who has come into contact with a sick person or someone who has died. The contact tracers stay in touch with those testing negative and ask questions, look for symptoms and recommend courses of action. With the development of mobile and cloud-based computer technologies, advanced contact tracing systems have already been developed and used internationally. According to a report in the Atlantic, the governments of South Korea and Singapore used a combination of smartphone location data, video surveillance and credit card records to monitor citizen activity during the pandemic. The Atlantic report went on, When somebody tests positive, local governments can send out an alert, a bit like a flood warning, that reportedly includes the individuals last name, sex, age, district of residence, and credit-card history, with a minute-to-minute record of their comings and goings from various local businesses. According to a report in Nature, in some districts of South Korea, the contact tracing information shared with the public includes which rooms of a building the person was in, when they visited a toilet and whether or not they wore a mask. The South Korean government argues that the public is more likely to trust it if it releases transparent and accurate information about the virus. Many of the laws allowing the information to be made public were passed since the countrys outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2015. In Singapore, residents downloaded an app called TraceTogether, which uses Bluetooth technology to keep a log of those with mobile devices who are nearby. When someone gets sick, they upload the relevant data to the Ministry of Health, which then contacts the owners of all the devices logged by the infected persons phone. A fast-track discussion has been underway since the middle of March about the development of mobile technology-based contact tracing in the US led by the Silicon Valley tech giants. Papers have been published by leading academic and health policy research institutions and proposals have been advanced regarding guidelines for the use of location data and the collection of other information related to the pandemic. On April 8, the American Civil Liberties Union published a document, The Limits of Location Tracking in an Epidemic, which is directed at US lawmakers and raises questions about the effectiveness of cell phone contact tracing capabilities. The ACLU statement says, location data contains an enormously invasive and personal set of information about each of us, with the potential to reveal such things as peoples social, sexual, religious, and political associations. The potential for invasions of privacy, abuse, and stigmatization is enormous. Apple and Google are both well aware that any proposal containing the phrases to help governments and strong protections around user privacy will be viewed by the public as oxymoronic. This is why they are working to convince the public that their coronavirus initiative is only for the purpose of containing the pandemic and not a government surveillance operation. A huge amount of data will be collected by contact tracing smartphones, such as geolocation and the device details of all those who come into contact with each person. For governments to gain access to this dataespecially if it is stored in a national or international databaserepresents a trove of information on the entire population far beyond anything currently available. In the case of Israel, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moved rapidly on March 17 to pass legislation that authorized contact tracing of the public by the Shin Bet security service with previously secret technology that had been used for so-called anti-terrorism surveillance. Meanwhile, there is no doubt that the aggressive collaborative effort by the Apple and Googlecoming one month after a special meeting between the White House and the tech companies on March 11 to discuss the pandemicis part of an effort make sure that any global implementation of pandemic track and trace technologies is dominated by US corporations. With the potential for every smartphone owner on the planetapproximately 3.5 billion peopleto install the contact tracing software on their devices, investors on Wall Street see a massive business opportunity. Smartphone technology has the enormous potential to play a critical role in isolating and halting the spread of the coronavirus. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic intensifying national conflicts and the ruling elite exploiting the crisis to both intensify state surveillance and increase their wealth, the only way that this potential can be realized in a progressive manner is under the democratic control of the working class through the struggle for socialism on a world scale. More behind the cutConfederate flag racists and Nazi lovers are protesting for their right to die [Ok natural selection, do your thing]. Give Me Liberty Then Give Me Death. Panel talks about how selfish and ignorant these people are. Everyone is sympathetic about the economic toll that its taking but ignoring isolation and social distancing will prolong the guidelines being in place. Talks about Sweden backfiring, who tried herd effect without actually saying it was herd effect strategy, unlike their Nordic neighbors Denmark, Norway, and Finland. Add to the dilemma that T45 is inciting violence, and asking swing state MAGA lovers to ignore the same guidance his daily briefings suggest. Every state who has had these protests are seeing increase in diagnosed cases, plus many stories of people who thought it was a hoax or defied orders, now dead from the virus. Protestors wearing masks and gloves = height of hypocrisy lol.T45 said in his Sunday televised propaganda rally that its up to states to sort out testing. Plays clip. After previously saying several times that there were tests and millions of tests and everything was perfect about tests. Everyone at state level including Republicans are calling out that b.s. The whole point of our taxes and FEMA is for the federal government to oversee these nationally needed items and the supply chain. T45 wants the blame on Governors for keeping orders in place because hes a terrible horrible very bad non-leader. WHO offered a test, it was denied. CDC tried to make their own test, it failed due to contamination. T45 tried to bribe Germany to make a test only for USA, Germany said f-off. Nobody is going to give their business to places where they dont feel safe. The whole panel has their own rant about it, mostly in agreement that this is crazypants and only getting worse.Segment from Bill Maher show. Plays clip. The media drumbeat of dread and depression turns in to panic porn. Calls out media to do better. Meghan agrees. Americans are scared. Will our lives every be normal again. Media should show hope when they can. Dr Birx and Dr Fauci are the best to speak, plus Cuomo, etc, who are being honest and forthright. Whereas T45 is making it an ego fest for re-election purposes, while the media is doing the most with sensationalizing every little detail without context. Joy calls out NYT for using Apocalypse. It takes 5 positive thoughts to counteract a negative thought, so the media should take notice. Stop airing T45 lie-fests. Sunny is fine with optimism but can handle facts. Says the WH traffics in lies and blame. Reads off tweets. Yes we know T45 has lied about this like hes lied about everything else. Stop broadcasting these briefings live. The media should do a better job handling it.NY Rep Max Rose is a combat veteran (Afghanistan, Purple Heart, Bronze Star) and is supporting first responders by working with the National Guard to build emergency covid hospital on Staten Island. Talks about all the great people hes seen and has been working with to work through this pandemic. Feels the issue is an operational role. There are things that belong with states vs federal, and the federal is failing us miserably, lists items. Explains how this is more analogous with WWII than our more recent wars, eg DPA and solidarity. Says this shouldnt be a politicized situation, we need xyz from the WH regardless who or what party is in office. But were not seeing that.Believes its dangerous for T45 to call on swing states to LIBERATE themselves to a coffin. It should be up to Governors, it should not be encouraged for citizens to break the law and endanger others. More talk about China government suppressing information or downplaying details. Gives example about sanctions against China for Fentanyl prior to pandemic, but cant let criticisms of government policy bleed into xenophobia or violence against Chinese people.Source links are below each video or section WASHINGTON - The partisan cracks in America's collective effort to combat COVID-19 are growing wider by the day growing, some say, not due to grassroots sentiment but by political forces both within and outside the United States. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Protesters demonstrate at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., Monday, April 20, 2020, demanding that Gov. Tom Wolf reopen Pennsylvania's economy even as new social-distancing mandates took effect at stores and other commercial buildings. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) WASHINGTON - The partisan cracks in America's collective effort to combat COVID-19 are growing wider by the day growing, some say, not due to grassroots sentiment but by political forces both within and outside the United States. Hundreds of protesters, many without face masks, packed together Monday outside Pennsylvania's capitol building in the city of Harrisburg to demand that the state's shelter-in-place order be rescinded and businesses reopened at the end of the month. The demonstration, like recent predecessors in Michigan, Maryland, Virginia and Washington state, bore all the ubiquitous hallmarks of a Donald Trump rally: the coiled rattlesnake of yellow Gadsden flags, crimson "Make America Great Again" hats and countless hand-lettered proclamations of devotion to God and the U.S. constitution. From state to state, even the slogans "No New Normal," "Our Rights Trump Your Fear" and "My Body, My Choice," a cheeky riff on an abortion rights sentiment more commonly heard from the other side of America's ideological divide have a familiar echo. Experts have taken to calling them "Astroturf" protests, the artificial product of an organized bid for straight-faced media coverage that ultimately undermines what polls suggest is in fact broad public support, regardless of political affiliation, for state-level stay-at-home orders currently in effect from coast to coast. "This is what's frustrating about both the protests and the coverage that they're getting," said Brett Bruen, a former U.S. diplomat in the Obama White House who now heads up an international foreign-policy consulting firm. "That's the story that many Americans are seeing about the views that their fellow citizens have on the order, an effort being made by governors to protect them." The Washington Post reported Monday that some of the recent protests were organized on Facebook by a trio of right-wing pro-gun activists, while others have clear ties to prominent conservative donors and supporters of Trump, who has tweeted his support for the protests even as he insists it will be up to the states to decide when to sound the all-clear. Facebook, for its part, refused to say Monday whether it is investigating the site's role in drumming up dissent. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook," a spokesperson said. "For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook." A new online poll by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies, released Monday, suggests the vast majority of respondents on either side of the Canada-U.S. border would prefer to see restrictions remain in place until the virus is under control. Of U.S. residents surveyed, 27 per cent wanted to wait for a vaccine, compared to 20 per cent in Canada, while 23 per cent of Americans said they would prefer to see no new cases for at least two weeks, compared with 28 per cent of their Canadian counterparts. Comparable shares in each country want to see the pressure on the health care system eased and only moderate or sporadic numbers of new cases. Only 12 per cent of U.S. respondents said they want to see the restrictions lifted immediately significantly more than the seven per cent of Canadians surveyed, but still only a sliver of the total responses to the poll, which was conducted April 17-19 and surveyed 1,504 Canadian and 1,001 American members of Leger's online panel. Internet-based surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error, because online polls are not considered representative of the population at large. Bruen, meanwhile, is confident that disinformation campaigns in Russia and also China have entered the fray and are actively working to amplify the sense of growing public discord. China, he said, is pushing back against U.S. anger over how it handled the earliest stages of the outbreak, which originated in the city of Wuhan back in December. The country has been accused of playing down the potential severity of the virus until it was too late. Claims from China that the virus actually originated in the U.S. continue to persist, he added. "There is an effort ... to create both a level of responsibility that lies in the origination of the virus, as well as with respect to how the U.S. is managing this, trying to suggest that Trump's mismanagement of the crisis is somehow absolving them of their culpability both in the genesis of this, as well as in the lack of transparency." Bob Pickard, a Toronto-based public relations expert and executive communications consultant, said the pandemic has only served to re-emphasize the deep rifts that exist in the United States, aided and abetted by the divisive nature of social media platforms. "Nothing has stopped the social media algorithms from doing their polarizing and toxic work," Pickard said in an interview earlier this month. "It was broken before, it was polarized before, and the dysfunction and chaos is even more glaring as a result of this." This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020. Follow James McCarten on Twitter @CdnPressStyle A MAN is expected to appear in court later this week after he was charged in connection with a significant drugs seizure on the outskirts of the city. A large quantity of cannabis herb and hundreds of counterfeit notes were located by gardai when they searched a house at Old Cratloe Road on Friday evening. Shortly before 4pm gardai from the divisional drugs unit executed a search warrant at a residence at Old Cratloe Road. During the course of the search, gardai seized 25,000 of suspected cannabis herb and 5,000 in suspected counterfeit cash of various denominations, said a garda spokesperson. A small quantity of fireworks were also located at the house during the search and these were seized by gardai. A man, aged in his 20s, was arrested at the scene and taken to Henry Street garda station where he was detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996. The man was questioned by detectives over the weekend and has now been charged in connection with the seizure. Having been charged, he was granted station bail and released, a garda spokesperson confirmed He is due to appear before Limerick District Court in the coming days. The suspected drugs have been sent for analysis and a file is to be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions. Fridays drugs seizure was the latest to be made in Limerick since public health restrictions were introduced last month to combat the spread of Covid-19. There have also been a number of cash seizures in recent weeks. Weren't there protests in California? I think we should let go of the idea of Leftist, Capitalist Free Hippie State Cali. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Yup, in Huntington Beach. There are morons everywhere. Reply Parent Thread Link If they were anywhere, they likely would have been here in Bakersfield (repped by Kevin McCarthy). We drove by a plant nursery yesterday just to see if they were open and the place was packed with idiotic white folks. People here really don't seem to get it. Reply Parent Thread Link Yeah, but that was in Orange County. Everyone knows Orange County is full of racists and assholes. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I've seen footage in San Diego and Encinitas Reply Parent Thread Expand Link there was a protest at huntington beach the previous weekend there was a protest in Olympia, WA this past weekend Reply Parent Thread Link They're everywhere in this country. It's more city vs. rural areas rather than coasts. Reply Parent Thread Link no one in silicone valley is normal. also seeing all the nazi rallys in portland also makes this not true. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link hmm, this doesn't account for Florida my personal feeling is that things are normalish around the fall lines, but once the land gets too flat or too rocky, people lose their fucking minds Reply Parent Thread Link nah, there were protests in my city in MD on the east coast. There are racists and religious zealots everywhere in this country This person seems to think the coasts = LA and NYC. And the mountains???? Which mountains? Because I know they're not talking about Appalachia. Edited at 2020-04-20 04:36 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Expand Link this tweet seems v classist Reply Parent Thread Link clearly they've never been on nextdoor for my city, in the bay area. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Did a non-American write this tweet? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Why are you posting this bullshit honey? Reply Parent Thread Link Love how 'murdery' is normal for Americans apparently. Reply Parent Thread Link My assessment of America is that idiocy runs rampant there Reply Parent Thread Link there were protests in NH this weekend. organized by Free State Project but it attracted plenty of Trumpettes. Reply Parent Thread Link not true, because Florida Reply Parent Thread Link Lol at all the replies to this comment. I think we as a species need to let go of the belief that anyone raised in a specific place or community is somehow "better" than anyone else. And I say this as a die-hard West Coast person Reply Parent Thread Link florida is on the coast... Reply Parent Thread Link Lol Florida tho Reply Parent Thread Link Uh, I'm from literally the middle of the country, and I would suggest this person learn a little more about the United States. I realize it's a tweet and hyperbole, but I still don't like it. Reply Parent Thread Link that's not true, there are plenty of nutjobs on both coasts Reply Parent Thread Link And wow - what action! OMG MARK, SAVIOUR! Gimme a barf bucket and come find me when he donated 10% of his wealth to hospitals nation-wide, or some such. Reply Thread Link Mark is not a human with emotions, so I doubt it Reply Parent Thread Link People are protesting in my capital too. History will not look on these idiots well. Reply Thread Link Oh what I would give to be Zeus (or Thor) and just electrocute these fucking psychos. Reply Thread Link I would be a very active and vengeful goddess. Reply Parent Thread Link this is fucking insane, my mind is literally breaking at the sheer selfishness and stupidity of these protesters Reply Thread Link those healthcare workers looked like a bunch of BOSSES. so incredible. Edited at 2020-04-20 04:21 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link I wish the media would stop reporting on these assholes. Like there's maybe a couple hundred people protesting in each state, but the media is reporting on them like it's some kind of mass movement. Reply Thread Link That's how the Republican party and their billionaire sociopath donors have shaped the media narrative since Bush V Gore. Reply Parent Thread Link This is absolutely correct. The Tea Party never really had that many people, either. Reply Parent Thread Link Exactly. This is like those pro choice marches in DC that barely have 100 people that they report. Theyre usually school trips so of course theres 100 people in a school to waste time to brainwash children. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link it's the tea party protests all over again, while completely ignoring massive Occupy protests Reply Parent Thread Link This. There were maybe 100 people at rhe one in Brookfield, WI. There were... less than 50 at one in Madison on Sunday. These are a small percentage of idiots who dont need their "voices" helped. But modern journalism is fucking weird and terrible so... Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I thought about this too, and I have no proof but I think these protesters are being paid by the wealthy to try and start a movement. They popped up out of nowhere and in several states all at once. Very suspicious Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Its times like this I wish the Rona did discriminate and targeted these people and ONLY these people who want to behave so brazenly and selfishly o/t but there was some headass discourse on twitter about why black Americans claim their blackness before being American and its like LOOK NO FURTHER AT THESE PATRIOTIC IDIOTS???? Edited at 2020-04-20 04:25 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link and imagine if one of those protesters were hurt and the obligation that worker would have to assist them. unbelievable. Reply Parent Thread Link gross, this was my thought. they'd whine like a stuck pig if they weren't taken care of :( Reply Parent Thread Link Even though this was in Denver, it was organized by people from Colorado Springs. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I don't know how people can do this. I had to go out to my office today (to get post and check emails I don't have remote access too) and I was terrified and paranoid the entire time. Then people like this have no concern and are being dicks to healthcare workers, risking their lives to try and save people. It's horrendous. Edited at 2020-04-20 04:26 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link These are probably the same people who think that kneeling during the national anthem is disrespectful to the troops. But actually disrespecting medical staff who are on the front lines of this is okay. Makes me so angry. I hope you all are staying safe if you're in a area with protests like these <3 Reply Thread Link if anything it's probably a good thing that the virus is purging this fucking dumbasses from the world. jesus christ, so you have to stay inside. big fucking deal. you could be dead. i don't think there are any other countries in the world this stupid (protesting stay at home measures) at least not to this extent. then again you consider that america has assholes like westboro baptist church, redneck brainless fuckwits and donald fucking trump and his fanbase and it's hardly surprising that this shit is happening. it must be embarrassing for all the other americans who are doing the right thing. i'm australian. our leader is a bit of an idiot but he acted early and as much as aussies can be bogans, we're not protesting shit. we're all in the mind that the whole thing sucks but it's for the best and it won't be forever. Reply Thread Link the administration exacerbates this issue but this is a direct consequence from telling americans that this country is a free country, the best country, the most powerful country. the majority of americans truly drink that kool-aid. the privileged are SO incredibly entitled. always have been, always will be. i really laugh when people say it's embarrassing that other countries have handled this better. as if we're better. the delusion. Reply Parent Thread Link There are a few memes I've seen around that is an individual poking the USA flag with a stick saying "Go on, save the world, like in the movies". Reply Parent Thread Link Sadly, the US has such a blinding thought that we should never be forced to do anything since were allegedly a free country. Reply Parent Thread Link naw. this is killing the most vulnerable. Black ppl are dying at astronomical rates. we're the ones suffering, not them. Unfortunately :( Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Evil doesn't die easily; if it did, Trump and two-thirds of republicans would have dropped dead by now. Reply Parent Thread Link Hidden Brain had a really cool podcast recently about rule breaking v. rule following: I think it's worth a listen. It delineates between countries who are following the rules closely, and those who aren't, and posits some interesting reasons why. I do think a lot of it boils down to how individualistic America is and how prone they are to say "I matter above others." Not necessarily because they are bad people, but they have been indoctrinated to that kind of thinking.Hidden Brain had a really cool podcast recently about rule breaking v. rule following: https://www.npr.org/2020/04/06/828257385/playing-tight-and-loose-how-rules-shape-our-lives I think it's worth a listen. It delineates between countries who are following the rules closely, and those who aren't, and posits some interesting reasons why. Reply Parent Thread Link "i don't think there are any other countries in the world this stupid (protesting stay at home measures) at least not to this extent." there are brazilians protesting, including the president. so... Reply Parent Thread Expand Link i'm australian. say no more Reply Parent Thread Link Yeah, it's because we've been told for years and years that we're the freest country in the world. So now that we're being told to do something by our government we're all freaking the fuck out. Reply Parent Thread Link All lives matter Reply Thread Link Until they don't Reply Parent Thread Link not when my roots are showing! Reply Parent Thread Expand Link The sad and most infuriating thing is that you cannot reason with people like this. They are incapable of processing anything that requires critical thought, introspection, and compassion. And Zuckerberg can go fuck himself right along with the rest of them. Reply Thread Link And the complete lack of self awareness leads them to believe they are the "free thinkers" and everyone else are the sheep, it's 100% insane. Reply Parent Thread Link This is why I dont even try to argue certain topics. I feel like if youre already dumb enough to think this way, theres no coming back. Reply Parent Thread Link Yup. There's a ton of people out there that do not want to self reflect or reach an understanding. What's infuriating is typically it's the people who are super intolerant, racist, xenophobic, etc that are accepted and if you're intolerant of their lack of humanity for others you're labeled as bad not them. Reply Parent Thread Link They truly are the worst but you have to play them at their own game. My coworker was complaining that she was better off getting unemployment right now than working. I made her shut up real quick if shed rather be unemployed with no health insurance during a pandemic or be an essential with health insurance? People really think people are unemployed to take advantage of the system when they literally cant go to work right now because everything is closed. Reply Parent Thread Link MTE. The unemployment pay isn't forever, either, and it's not like jobs are going to be plentiful in the near future. Reply Parent Thread Link tbh I get why people would be frustrated having to work and bring in less than what some people are getting with the boosted unemployment, BUT a lot of people who are getting unemployment won't have jobs to go back to when this is over, the extra money is for a limited time, and they're going to need the reserves to get through god knows how long in a completely wrecked job market Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Peter Navarro is, like many of Donald Trump's advisers, not from conventional government fields. But he may be the only one found by Jared Kushner when the-then candidate's son-in-law was browsing Amazon. Navarro had a long-time career as a minor Californian academic at U.C. Davis with a string of books to his name, many attacking China's role in the world economy. He was a notably liberal Democrat, running five times for offices including mayor of San Diego, and losing each time. At the same time he became increasingly hawkish on China, in first academic papers, then in books. But in 2011 his Death by China book was made into a movie voiced by Martin Sheen, and it changed his political positioning, moving him into the Tea Party sphere of anti-free traders who were then on the very fringes of Republican thought. Perhaps he did not mention his previous support for wind energy, low-energy lightbulbs and carbon taxes. But five years later his new position in the fringe-conservative world was to prove an advantage. Man in the middle: Trade adviser Peter Navarro, who Jared Kushner found on Amazon, has confronted Dr. Tony Fauci, the nation's leading epidemiologist, on the use of a drug pushed by Donald Trump to 'cure' coronavirus California lifestyle: Peter Navarro ditched his ultra-liberal beliefs, but brings a touch of sunshine to Washington D.C. by regularly cycling to work in the White House As the Trump campaign looked to find people who backed the president's 'America First' agenda, Kushner was browsing Amazon when he stumbled across the book Death by China. In its author Kushner found a man happy to back the Trump agenda, and talk it up in aggressive terms on television. Navarro had espoused isolationism, framing trade as a national security issue and simply leaving NAFTA for some years, although it was a re-framing of his academic career (which also included courses on person finances); the PhD he boasted about in the wake of his row with Dr. Tony Fauci was in fact about energy regulation. He went into battle for Trump, whom he is not known to have met in any form before the campaign, writing an 'economic analysis' with Wilbur Ross - now the commerce secretary and a long-time Wall Street investor with bogus claims to be a billionaire - in favor of Trump's agenda in the weeks before the 2016 election. He accused opponents who called it 'an immediate an unmitigated disaster' and 'phony numbers' of simply being opposed to Trump. Entering government as a trade advisor - a position not subject to Senate confirmation - he has proven a reliable, if thin-skinned, warrior for Trump on television. In particular he has spoken up for tariffs, denying repeatedly that they are bad for the U.S. economy, and trying to offer cover to the president's claim that they are not paid by U.S. purchasers but by foreign importers, which is derided as untrue by economists. Affable on air if difficult to pin down and prone to filibustering, there have been whispers of clashes off-air over questions he dislikes. But his high profile earned him the sort of scrutiny his books - hardly bestsellers - had not gained before. Curiously, an Australian academic discovered, five of them included a character who was reliably anti-Chinese: Ron Vara. 'You've got to be nuts to eat Chinese food,' said 'Ron,' in one of his appearances, setting a broadly anti-Chinese tone. 'Ron' was a Gulf War veteran turned businessman in China. Strangely, there was no real 'Ron Vara'; in fact it was an anagram of Peter Navarro's surname. The views were same, but the military service was not: Navarro, now 70, was not drafted and appears to have benefited from college deferrals; after graduating he joined the Peace Corps and was a member when the draft for Vietnam was abolished. Navarro tried to laugh off his fake character as a 'literary device' and a 'joke' despite his books not being fiction, and compared himself to Alfred Hitchcock making cameos in his own movies. Death in China's publisher had to add a note to future editions that it included a fake character; a co-author of one book said he had no idea that Navarro had used such a device. Amazingly, 'Ron' made a re-appearance in a memo sent round Washington from his 'own' email address late last year, raising questions over whether his 'thoughts' were subject to records acts and freedom of information laws. Navarro has recently gained a greater spotlight through a slightly uncertain role co-ordinating supplies of vital medical equipment - a role he appears to share with Kushner and possibly a three-star Navy admiral - at the same time as pushing for legislation to force manufacturing of such equipment in the U.S. Never shy to praise his boss, he has substituted 'Trump time' for the plain English of 'quickly,' and repeatedly blamed the Obama administration for the lack of equipment, even though the Trump administration has been in power three years. He has used a string of TV appearances to boast of 'successes' in tackling the pandemic, but is not in fact a member of the coronavirus task force, although he has increasingly appeared at their meetings - which was where he tried to confront Dr. Fauci over hydroxychloroquine. That culminated in his boast about his PhD which apparently qualified him to 'look at statistics' on medicine, and to claim 'doctors disagree all the time.' Three youths have been busted for allegedly hanging out on a building rooftop - only to be caught by a police helicopter using night vision technology. Footage released by police shows the trio, age 19, 20 and 21, drinking alcoholic beverages on top of the bulding in Jefferson Lane in Palm Beach, on the Gold Coast, at 11.20pm on Saturday. The trio allegedly appeared relaxed until a man from the helicopter began shouting through a megaphone at them. 'This is the police - to the three people on the building roof top. Yes, we can see you to the person in the hoodie in the middle with your cold drinks,' an officer could be heard saying in the PolAir footage. Footage allegedly showed the trio drinking cold beverages on top of the bulding in Jefferson Lane in Palm Beach, on the Gold Coast, at 11.20pm on Saturday 'The building is surrounded by police. You need to make your way to the ground floor immediately, please.' The youths appeared to immediately jump up and obey police instruction. To test they were listening the officer asked them to raise their right hand - and one cooperated with the instruction. Police will allege the trio - aged 19, 20 and 21 - were trespassing and in breach of social distancing laws 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 trio were met by two officers and a police dog at the bottom of the building. One appeared to try and grab his bike but was instructed by the officer not to leave it. Police will allege the trio - aged 19, 20 and 21 - were trespassing and in breach of social distancing laws. The fine for breaking social distancing in Queensland is $1,334. The cost of the fine varies from state to state - for instance in NSW it is $1,000. Two men, 19 and 20, were also charged with possessing drugs, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. The pair will appear in Coolangatta Magistrates Court on July 27. APRIL 20, 2020 UTSA is responding to the COVID-19 outbreak with a commitment to supporting the safety of the university community while enabling the academic progress of students. Here is your digest of university news and tips. VIRTUAL EVENTS ITS AWARDS WEEK: Get ready to honor faculty, staff and students who are being recognized for contributions to other Roadrunners and the university community. University Excellence Awards: A celebration of achievements and dedication of university employees. Tuesday, April 21, 45 p.m. Whos Who Awards: Celebrate and honor the 2020 Whos Who at UTSA winners. Two hundred freshmen through doctoral students will be recognized at the 17th annual ceremony. Wednesday, April 22, 45 p.m. University Life Awards: UTSAs oldest tradition recognizes efforts of students, organizations, faculty and staff for contributions to the quality of student life. Coordinated by Student Government Association and Council of Student Organizations. Hosted by Mr. & Ms. UTSA Cambriege Wesley and Karla Madrigal. Thursday, April 23, 45 p.m. MAKE SUMMER A SUCCESS: Academic Innovations series of webinars for instructors continues this week with resources and best practices for quality online teaching. Each webinar is open to anyone who supports student learning, including teaching assistants, graduate assistants and academic support staff. If you miss a live broadcast, theyre saved for later viewing. You can also explore the Remote Teaching Resources page for additional guidance. IN THE KNOW: Stay on top of Training, Webinars and Town Halls and watch previous broadcasts by UTSA experts. This weeks virtual town hall meeting takes a look at prospects for financial recovery of our region. The Pandemics Economic Impact on San Antonio: Part of the Community Conversations Series, this event will give particular focus to San Antonios recovery and implications for our citys future. Q&A session with panel experts will be included. Wednesday, April 22, noon1 p.m.. HEALTH CAN Campus Recs virtual group exercise classes let you join your favorite instructors on Zoom as they deliver the workout directly to your living room. No equipment required. Arrive promptly to reserve your spot. For a full list of classes and Zoom meeting codes, visit Stay Well with Campus Rec. A Derry charity will hold a 24-hour fast this week to raise money to help communities in Africa fight the coronavirus. Children in Crossfire, which was set up in and is managed from Derry, supports a wide range of projects in impoverished areas of the world. With coronavirus expected to have a devastating impact on poorer regions in Africa, the charity wants to raise as much money as possible to support communities there. As a result, it is holding a 24-hour fundraising fast on Friday, April 24, to raise funds for vulnerable people and communities in Ethiopia and Tanzania likely to be deeply affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Chiildren in Crossfire's founder and Executive Director Richard Moore appealed to people to sign up for the challenge. COVID-19 is having a profound impact on all our lives and will clearly do so for some time to come, he said. The challenges we have been facing here are beginning to take hold across Africa, including Ethiopia and Tanzania where Children in Crossfire work. Added to the extreme poverty that already exists in those countries and a plague of locusts currently sweeping across east Africa destroying crops, it is clear that the coronavirus pandemic will have a devastating impact. Children in Crossfire support many thousands of children and families and COVID-19 puts a great many of their lives at serious risk. We are doing all we can to help as many of them as possible stay safe and healthy through this crisis. However, Mr Moore said they need the publics support to enable them to do more. We need to provide additional medical resources and equipment for St Lukes Hospital in Ethiopia, to help the team there treat patients with COVID-19. We will also be delivering emergency feeding programmes in communities suffering food shortages and huge price rises, an inevitable consequence as people who rely on market trading for income have to stay at home. In Tanzania we are using our well-established networks to ensure vital information on prevention is communicated to people in the most rural, remote parts of the country. The key measures we are taking here washing our hands, keeping our distance, staying at home are every bit as important there. By taking part in our 24 hour fast you will be helping us and our partners in Ethiopia and Tanzania to save peoples lives through these terrible times. To register for the fast, join the charity's Facebook group by searching for Children in Crossfire 24 Hour Fast. You can also sign up up contacting Shauna O'Neill on 02871278947 or 07597747940 or by emailing shaun.oneill@childrenin crossfire.org. In his appearance on CNN, Hogan was shown footage of a long line winding around a supermarket in a Maryland suburb of Washington where free food was being handed out. The video was an unsettling avatar of the economic damage wrought by the virus. He said he shared in the frustration over the economy, but he also noted that his state had not yet reached its peak in cases. The federal government on Monday donated 6,000 bags of rice to Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states as palliatives against the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the people. The Area Controller of Oyo and Osun Command, Helen Ngozi, delivered the 6,000 bags of rice on behalf of the Nigeria Customs Service, to the representatives of the four states at the services zonal headquarters in Ibadan. Mrs Ngozi said the gesture was in fulfilment of the promise by the management of the customs to send palliatives to states to cushion the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the people. Each of the four states with the exception of Ondo will receive 1,800 bags of parboiled rice, while Ondo will get 600 bags. She said Ondo state would get the remaining shortfall of 1,200 bags from Lagos office of the customs. She said all the 6,000 bags of rice were good for consumption, saying the customs would never mix expired rice with good ones. The state coordinator, Oyo State Operation Coordinating Unit (SOCU), Olaide Lasisi, received the bags of rice for onward handing over to representatives of the four states. SOCU is the coordinating arm of the World Bank assisted Youth Employment and Social Support Operation (YESSO). READ MORE: Lasisi said the rice donation by the federal government was to assist the beneficiary states in their respective efforts to give palliatives to Nigerians in view of the COVID 19 pandemic. Speaking on behalf of the four states, Debo Akande, the Executive Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Agribusiness, and the Commissioner for Agriculture in Oyo, Jacob Ojekunle, said the donation was a laudable idea from the Federal Government. Akande said the rice donated would go a long way in cushioning the negative effect of the stay-at-home order necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic in the states. He gave assurance that the items would be equitably distributed, stressing that those who should benefit from the gesture would get it. Mr Ojekunle called on private organisations and individuals to emulate the gesture of the Federal Government by making donations to assist the less privileged in the society. Representatives of Osun state government, Dr Bode Olaonipeku, the Commissioner for Commerce in Osun and Kolawole Kayode, the Special Adviser on Development Partnerships to Ekiti state governor were also present. However, the Ondo State Government was not represented during the handing over of the bags of rice. (NAN) New York New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is pleading with President Donald Trump to offer federal aid to his hometown. New York remains the epicenter of the coronavirus, with 242,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 nearly 20% of all U.S. cases and close to 14,000 deaths. De Blasio asked Trump, a native New Yorker who spent most of his life in NYC, to push Congress for financial support to state and local governments. Literally with the snap of his fingers, Donald Trump could fix that, de Blasio said Sunday. If he would just say the word, the Senate would jump. According to the New York Daily News, the mayor also referenced a famous 1975 headline from the newspaper when President Gerald Ford declined to help New York City facing bankruptcy. FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD, the front page of the Daily News said. Mr. President, are you going to save New York City or are you telling New York City to drop dead? de Blasio said. You have to speak up now or the Senate will not act and we will not get the help we need. Its as simple as that." De Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have both said the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, passed last month, did not provide enough help for Trumps home state. De Blasio said Sunday the stimulus package contained just $1.4 billion in indirect aid to New York City, which expects to lose $7.5 billion in tax revenue alone during the pandemic. De Blasio appeared on MSNBC Monday to compare Trumps handling of the coronavirus to former presidents Ford and Herbert Hoover, who oversaw the 1929 stock market crash that sparked the Great Depression. Right now, here is the nations largest city. One of the great engines of the American economy. Im asking for help to get back on our feet," de Blasio told Morning Joe on MSNBC. Right now, Donald Trump is not doing anything to help my city... how will I have a restart of my economy if my city is going broke?" I know it is happening all over the country. Youre hearing mayors, Republican and Democrat, Ive talked to them, saying Were not going to be able to make it if we dont get help from the federal government. President Trump has not publicly responded to de Blasios comments. Trump said Sunday that his administration is very close to a deal with Congress on another coronavirus relief package of up to $450 billion to help with small business loans, funding for hospitals and COVID-19 testing. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Democrats are asking for $150 billion to help cash-strapped states and local governments, but Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly pushed back, saying the president is willing to consider that in the next bill. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY may be past the high point, even as another 507 die NY school funding could drop by half without coronavirus money from feds, Cuomo says New York spent $686 million for coronavirus supplies it may never need Coronavirus antibody testing begins in NY, may be key to reopening country Coronavirus: Global crisis pits economic against health concerns Lucknow, April 20 : Eleven industries will restart operations in Uttar Pradesh from Monday, subject to conditions. These include steel, refineries, cement, chemicals, fertilizers, garments (excluding apparel), foundries, paper, tyre, common effluent treatment plants and sugar mills. However, only the manufacturing and industrial units will be permitted to function and not their headquarters or administrative offices. Chief Secretary R.K. Tiwari has issued a detailed advisory for these industries, asking them to take adequate precautions to ensure that their staff is kept safe. In case an industry or unit fails to adhere to the government's rules as may be updated from time to time, its license to operate can be cancelled. According to the directions, "In the first phase, the units should work with a minimum number of staff and in no case, can there be more than 50 per cent of the total staff. The permission to operate is being granted only to the units and not to their administrative offices. The permission will also not be applicable to units located within hotpots." During the preparation for commencement of operations, owners will have to ensure that there are sufficient masks, sanitizers, soap and water available for the entire staff. Once the staff reports for duty, the owner or manager will have to carry out a random test of a minimum of five and a maximum of 10 workers. All workers will need to be screened thermally while infrared thermometers should also be available on site. Social distancing has to be practiced strictly. The chief secretary said that the implementation of the rules will be ensured by the district administration and health department. "In case, there is a suspected case of COVID-19 within the premises, he or she will have to be reported to the district administration," the chief secretary said. Under the rules, no passes will be required by workers and officials if they are living within the premises of the factory with the objective of working there. In fact, owners are being encouraged to make arrangements for workers to stay within the premises itself. However, if that is not possible, the workers will be issued passes to travel between their residence and place of work. The factory owners have also been asked to ensure that workers are picked up and brought to the factory while following strict social distancing norms. No vehicle can be filled to more than 50 per cent of its capacity. The government has offered the use of UPSRTC buses to industrialists at a cost to bring their staff to the work place. The regulator last week reached out to custodians for beneficial ownership information of investors coming from China, Hong Kong, and 11 other countries. IMAGE: Sebi chief Ajay Tyagi. Photograph: Vijay Bate / ANI Photo. Investment hubs such as the Cayman Islands, Singapore, Ireland, and Luxembourg may come under greater scrutiny of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) because a significant portion of investments coming from China and Hong Kong into India may be routed through these jurisdictions, said people in the know. The regulator last week reached out to custodians for beneficial ownership information of investors coming from China, Hong Kong, and 11 other countries. Over the years, several Chinese funds that manage $1 billion or more have set up operations in Hong Kong, which serves as a launch pad for mainland managers seeking access to overseas markets. The bulk of the investments from Hong Kong, in turn, are routed through the Cayman Islands, which have historically been an attractive jurisdiction for Asia-focused funds. Companies from the Cayman Islands have also been listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE) since the mid-1990s, according to reports. By some estimates, these companies accounted for nearly 50 per cent of all listed ones on the HKSEs main board at the end of 2017. More than 90 per cent of the funds from Hong Kong dont come to India directly. They set up structures in Cayman and then invest in other markets, including India, said a person familiar with the matter. This is how it works. Funds set up in Hong Kong typically raise money from Hong Kong or Chinese nationals. The majority of the investments in many such funds are from Chinese investors, making them the ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs), said experts. Each of the HK funds then feeds the money into another vehicle in the Cayman Islands, and that acts as a master fund and invests in other markets. Singapore is another jurisdiction that could have strong China links, given that ethnic Chinese make up an estimated three-fourths of its citizen population. While most of the promoters and fund managers of funds registered in the country are Singapore citizens, they may have Chinese roots. This could make it harder to determine if the beneficiaries of these funds are actually Chinese, said the person quoted above. Ireland and Luxembourg, by way of being popular offshore fund jurisdictions, also attract sizeable Chinese money, said market watchers. At present, there are 16 foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) from China registered in India. Of those 15 hold Category-I licence. In comparison, there are 323 FPIs from the Cayman Islands, 428 from Singapore, 611 from Ireland, and 1,155 from Luxembourg. Singapore, Ireland, and Luxembourg feature among the top 10 FPIs that invest in India. These jurisdictions (except China) have a well-established fund industry ecosystem with intermediaries such as fund administrators, accountants, and lawyers, and are used by most funds to route their investments globally, and not just India. Another person who deals with FPIs said it was much harder for the Chinese to invest in India until a few years ago. This is because until 2014, all licences granted to FPIs were reviewed by Sebi. After the amendment of FPI regulations in 2014, however, the process of receipt and review, including the generation of the registration certificate, shifted from the regulator to the designated depository participants, leading to differences in levels of scrutiny. Last week Sebi sent an email to all DDPs, saying all fresh FPI applications coming from bordering countries be referred to the regulator for approval. It shot off another email later, keeping the diktat under abeyance. According to current norms, holding by an FPI or an investor group should not exceed 10 per cent of the paid-up capital of the listed entity. It is not yet clear if Sebi will lower this ceiling for funds that have Chinese beneficial owners. While new FDI investments would be restricted due to the recent Press Note 3, an FPI licence is valid for three years and allows a fund to freely invest additional money up to 10 per cent of the Indian companys capital. Special rules would be needed if FPI investments in certain sectors or from certain countries are to be controlled, said Rajesh Gandhi, partner, Deloitte India. Viraj Kulkarni, founder and CEO, Pivot Management Consulting, said: There is nothing wrong with the steps taken by the regulator and the government. India cannot afford to have FPIs which enter and exit its markets, driven by factors other than market conditions. He said instead of focusing on Chinese FPI flows, the Indian government should redouble its efforts to woo investments through countries such as Mauritius, the US, the UK, Japan, South Korea, Cyprus, Singapore (with proper UBOs), France, and Germany, which have over decades been steadfast in their inflows into India and have been the big inflow centres. Description "Did the Nazis make soap from the corpses of murdered Jews? Fifty years after the end of World War II, impassioned Holocaust survivor Milton Saltzman battles Holocaust historians to include the atrocity of soap in their Holocaust memorials and museums. THE SOAP MYTH wrestles with the conflict between survivor memory and historical proof, as well as with the scourge of anti-Semitism masquerading as Holocaust denial. The play poses such provocative questions as: Who has the right to write history? Who determines the truth? How does a survivor survive surviving? We invite you to watch PBSs recording of Jeff Cohens gut-wrenching play, starring Ed Asner and Tovah Feldshuh, on your own and then to join us for a virtual discussion on essential questions about the shaping of history and the convenient hatred of anti-Semitism, with: Ed Asner & Tovah Feldshuh, The plays stars Jeff Cohen, Playwright Dr. Michael Berenbaum, Holocaust scholar Ira N. Forman, President Obamas Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating anti-Semitism All who register will receive an email the night prior to the event with links both for the April 20th webinar as well as a link to watch the play. This program is proudly presented by the Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center, the National Jewish Theater Foundation and the=Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center Special introductions by Rabbi Joshua M. Davidson and Arnold Mittelman. Questions will be taken via chat room and moderated by Rick Salomon,Vice President and Member of the Executive Committee of the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center" Guild Hall Monday is 4/20, the informal marijuana holiday, but the coronavirus means that that cannabis users should not get together this year to celebrate, advocates said. States have required their residents to stay at home and shut down most businesses in order to stop the spread of COVID-19. Americans health and welfare must be a priority during these uncertain times, said Erik Altieri, executive director of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. In the best interest of public health and safety, NORML encourages cannabis consumers not to congregate either outdoors or indoors in groups this 4/20. Rather than get together, supporters of legalizing marijuana should join one of numerous online celebrations, NORML said. The group said users should plan in advance to obtain the needed cannabis, especially as dispensaries could be more crowded on 4/20, making it harder to maintain social distancing. A marijuana-related website, 420.com, has been around for more than two decades, but recently shifted its focus to cannabis stocks and investments. This could be the last 4/20 when the use of marijuana for recreation is illegal in New Jersey. A referendum to make the drug legal for personal use will be on the November ballot. Opponents of the proposal used April 20 last year to hold a press conference in Washington. And a year earlier, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer chose that day to present his first proposal for removing the federal ban on marijuana. Are you interested in the cannabis industry? Subscribe here for exclusive insider information from NJ Cannabis Insider. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. Hyundai Motor India on Monday said it has donated Rs 7 crore to the PM CARES Fund to fight the Covid-19 crisis New Delhi: Hyundai Motor India on Monday said it has donated Rs 7 crore to the PM CARES Fund to fight the Covid-19 crisis. "Our contribution to the PM CARES Fund stands testament to solidarity we hold with the people of India, amidst this crisis," Hyundai Motor India MD and CEO SS Kim said in a statement. In challenging times such as these, the company will continue giving back to help India defeat this adversity, he added. Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak The South Korean automaker had earlier pledged Rs 5 crore to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Relief Fund. It has also donated imported diagnostic kits worth Rs 4 crore which can cater to testing requirements of over 25,000 individuals. Click here to follow LIVE news and updates on stock markets The company said it is distributing personal protective equipments, masks and other safety kits in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Haryana. Besides, it is also giving dry rations in Delhi and Tamil Nadu to adversely impacted sections of society, the company added. Nigeria and fifty-three other African countries would receive 500,000 coronavirus test kits and 300 ventilators donated by Ali Baba Found... Our 3rd donation to Africa will immediately be made to @_africanunion and @AfricaCDC . This includes 4.6m masks, 500k swabs & test kits, 300 ventilators, 200k clothing sets, 200k face shields, 2k thermal guns, 100 body temp. scanners and 500k pairs of gloves. #OneWorldOneFight April 20, 2020 Also donated to fight the pandemic in Africa were 4.6m masks, 200,000 clothing sets, 200,000 face shields, 2,000 thermal guns, 100 body temperature scanners and 500,000 pairs of gloves.Interestingly, while South Africa had conducted 114,711 COVID-19 tests, Ghana 60,916 tests, Egypt 55,000 tests, Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, had only conducted 7,153 tests.The Founder of Ali Baba Group, Jack Ma, who made this revelation on Monday, said the donation was the third batch to Africa and it would be dispatched immediately to the African Centres for Disease Control for further distribution to AU Member States.Africa has recorded over 20,000 coronavirus cases and over 1000 attendant deaths.On March 16, the philanthropist had donated his first batch of medical supplies comprising 20,000 test kits, 100,000 masks, 1,000 medical protective suits and face shields to each of the 54 AU Member States.Also, on April 6, Jack Ma dispatched his second donation to Africa which included 500 ventilators, 200,000 suits and face shields, 2,000 thermometers, one million swabs, and extraction kits as well as 500,000 gloves.The supplies were distributed by Ethiopian Airlines and Nigerias share was delivered at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.But Jack Ma tweeted that the third batch of medical equipment is on the way.See tweet; Dowling recovering at home after long hospital stay State Rep. Matthew Dowling has returned home after suffering a one-vehicle crash in October. Dowling represents parts of Somerset County. (Photo : BRIAN SNYDER on Reuters) COVID-19: Experts Discourage Customers Going to Grocery Stores; Online Deliveries, Best Options? (Photo : STRINGER on Reuters ) COVID-19: Experts Discourage Customers Going to Grocery Stores; Online Deliveries, Best Options? If you're the person that does the grocery routine for your home during Coronavirus quarantine, experts now want you to stop doing it. According to the report, professionals from different groups ask authorities to let grocery stores do alternatives in delivering goods, aside from opening their stores to the public. This was after a union study shows 85% of people inside stores do not practice proper social distancing, experts suggest alternatives like a drive-through, pick-up, or online shopping. 85% of people don't follow distancing in grocery stores; Here's what experts want now According to a CNN report, worker experts, union leaders, and small grocery owners think that grocery stores should now consider other alternatives in delivering goods to the public. They believe that opening grocery stores every day is a dangerous thing to do for the public. Worse, union groups found out that only 15 percent of store-goers follow proper social distancing every time they are inside the stores-- causing higher chances of transmitting the virus. "Anything that reduces the need for interaction with the public and allows for greater physical distancing will ultimately better protect grocery workers," said John Logan, professor and director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University. Marc Perrone, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers' union, even called 'careless customers' as 'probably the biggest threat' during this lockdown period. Most small grocery owners already have their businesses closed to protect their staff from the virus. One example was Mike Houston, general manager of Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op in Takoma Park, Maryland. "It was clearer that there was no real way to protect my staff and the public, especially as we served 960 people a day on average in a 4,200-square-foot store," Houston said. "I'm unwilling to put grocery store employees, essential though we are, in a position to risk what can be a fatal infection." Though it is a safe move, not every supermarket can do this, according to Seth Harris, former deputy secretary of labor during the Obama administration. If grocery stores aren't safe, where will we buy food? Experts already suggested that grocery businesses should allow pick-up, drive-through, or online shopping if the public wants to stay away from the crowd. However, these suggestions were criticized by other experts claiming that Americans are not yet ready with this swift change if applied. "We have no choice. They have to stay open. [America's grocery] delivery system has not matured to the point where we can switch to an entirely remote system," said Harris of Obama Administration. Charlane Obernauer, executive director of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health, also contradicts these suggestions. "Workers would still have exposure if they are delivering goods or if they are in the supermarket," explains her. However, if you can do online shopping, this could be the best alternative if you don't want the virus to reach you outside homes. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Some hospitals in communities less affected by coronavirus moved cautiously Monday toward resuming non-emergency surgeries and procedures - a hopeful sign for patients awaiting that care and a medical system badly in need of the revenue those services provide. Acting on guidance released Sunday night by federal officials, medical centers with relatively few covid-19 patients readied some cancer, heart and other care that has been postponed by a nationwide call to halt such procedures. The federal government issued those voluntary guidelines March 18 to address the critical shortage of protective gear for front-line health care workers and ensure that hospitals had enough beds for the anticipated surge in covid-19 patients. A month later, some hospitals are confident they can handle a resumption of some non-emergency work. "Now we're in a very different place," said Donald Yealy, chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "We have come to realize that we have plenty of those assets." Across the 5,500 beds in the 40-hospital UPMC system Monday, there were just 116 people admitted for covid-19 disease, the illness caused by the virus.Those patients occupied just 7% of intensive care beds and used 6% of ventilators, Yealy said. Yet the volume of surgeries performed by the system has declined 70% from its pre-pandemic level. "We think we're able to serve what's really a pent-up demand," Yealy said. "There's a lot of necessary care that can be scheduled. There's even some urgent care that has been put off." Hospitals depend on scheduled work such as cancer surgeries, knee replacements and non-urgent heart procedures to bring in money and balance the costly care they must provide to walk-ins and emergency patients. With much of the scheduled work canceled, they have been losing billions of dollars. "There is no question it is the apocalypse," said Charles "Chip" Kahn III, president of the Federation of American Hospitals, the trade group that represents for-profit hospitals and health systems. Now medical centers must figure out how to provide these services in a safe environment and reassure patients who have been watching nonstop media coverage of hospitals overrun by the virus. Some people have become so fearful of contracting covid-19 at emergency rooms that they have stayed home even with chest pain, stroke symptoms and serious infections, according to doctors and early research. "This is a phased process," Seema Verma, administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said Monday about the guidance on reinstating elective surgeries. She noted the recommendations are intended for communities where the incidence of covid-19 is low, new cases are relatively sparse, and hospitals have adequate capacity in case of a surge. She emphasized the decision whether to resume elective work rests with state or local officials. Considerations about whether a hospital is ready to resume elective surgery include its ability "to address screening and testing for health care providers, as well as for patients," she said. Kahn acknowledged that "my members really want to get reopened, but it's going to be complicated." At UPMC, patients preparing to come in will be tested for the virus with nasal swabs two days before arrival, Yealy said, and separated from covid-19 patients by the greatest distance allowed in each facility. Similar steps will be taken at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, which is preparing to offer diagnostic procedures such as nerve and muscle conduction tests, endoscopies to diagnose and treat upper gastrointestinal problems and some colonoscopies. "We are taking every precaution to ensure the safety of our patients, staff and communities, while ensuring the proper resources are available to care for all patients, including staff, personal protective equipment, space and supplies," a spokeswoman said in an email. At Lee Health in Fort Myers, Florida, planning is underway for "a potential phased release of our restrictions on surgeries and procedures," said Richard Chazal, director of the health system's Heart and Vascular Institute. A spokesperson for Cleveland Clinic said that a task force is looking at how to resume surgical cases. "It will be thoughtful, responsible and take place in phases. The safety of patients and caregivers remains our top priority." Several medical professional organizations have been working on their own guidelines, focusing on a continuum of risk and benefit rather than an abrupt shift or a strict division between elective and nonelective surgeries. Thomas Maddox, chair of the American College of Cardiology's Science and Quality Committee and executive director of the Healthcare Innovation Lab at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, likened the process to the analysis a doctor would undertake before deciding on surgery for an individual patient. "I think what we are trying to do is lay out the risk scales, then look at patients, decide where they fit on those risk scales and line them up." High-risk patients, he said, should be brought in quickly, even in areas where the prevalence of covid-19 remains high. Other decisions, he said, will vary by location. In St. Louis, for example, the virus is less prevalent in the suburbs than downtown, so it makes sense for a medium-risk patient to go to a suburban hospital. Underlying the success of that process is enhanced testing. "It's important that you can test everybody," said James Howe, a professor of surgery at University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and president of the Society of Surgical Oncology. In updated guidelines, the American Dental Association noted that "FDA-approved tests for covid-19 are not available to dentists in the U.S. Therefore, dentists should be aware that asymptomatic, healthy-appearing patients cannot be assumed to be covid-19 free." Many doctors noted the transformative nature of telemedicine during the pandemic, which they hope will continue as the threat of covid 19-recedes. Providers have been able to see many of their patients online, greatly reducing the number of people who must come in to offices and hospitals. "We're hoping there will be a long tail," Maddox said. Kahn called the CMS guidelines "a step in the right direction to send a signal we need to plan our way out of this." "The trouble is," he added, "there is nothing revolutionary here because there is no vaccine. We live in this reality of coronavirus that we can't deny . . . So when you go back in, you are going to have to be taking all kinds of precautions for hospital workers and for patients." The chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, has described the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, as a true Nigerian patriot and said he was the first to sell President Muhammadu Buharis candidacy to him. I recall he was the one that first approached me in 2002 as the National President of Nigeria Labour Congress to sell Buharis candidacy to the labour movement. He invested his personal resources, energy and wide contacts in the business world in the project, Mr Oshiomhole said. Mr Kyari had on March 23 tested positive to the novel coronavirus and died on Friday while on treatment at a medical facility in Lagos.. In a statement on Monday, Mr Oshiomhole joined other leaders and Nigerians in paying tribute to the late Mr Kyari. Recalling his interactions with the late presidential aide, Mr Oshiomhole, who has not spoken to the media since the federal government issued the lockdown directive, said his relationship with President Buharis right hand man did not start with APC emergence as the ruling party but earlier during his time as a labour leader. Way back in 1973, we had found ourselves in opposing sides of the isle at Zamfara Textile in Kaduna: I was the leader of the workers union while he represented the management as Admin Officer. But in the many brushes the union had with the management, Abba Kyari showed a true character as a conscientious man, a true Nigerian patriot, by never failing to side with workers on the core issues of human dignity and fairness. Following our protest, he was the lone voice at the management meeting who spoke against the operation of two classes of canteen by the company. He was not afraid to state that having a uniform canteen for both management staff and junior workers was the only way to convince the junior workers that their meal was not inferior. Similarly, even though he was supposed to be on the side of the oppressor, Abba Kyari persuaded the management to incur extra costs by issuing all factory workers two pairs of personal protective uniform and safety boots. READ ALSO: The amazing thing was that, in pushing our case with management every time, Abba Kyari never sought to be seen or worshipped as a hero. For him, advocating for social justice was not a favour, but a duty, Mr Oshiomhole said. Abba Kyari was not only loyal to President Buhari, he was also faithful to friends through thick and thin. His sense of humour was phenomenal. I recall that whenever we met and I complained that the stress of running the office of National Chairman was such that I had little time to socialise with old friends like him, he would tease by saying, If a young man like you is complaining of stress as ordinary National Chairman of a party, I wonder what you expect someone like President Buhari who is running the entire country at his age and with all he has been through since the 60s and is still making sacrifices today, to say, he added. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 02:02:18|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close GENEVA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday called the "One World, Together at Home" concert broadcast and live-streamed on Saturday an enormous success and thanked the many musicians, comedians and humanitarians who have made it happen. "So humbled, and the whole WHO community is very grateful for the support that poured over 8 hours," he said at the beginning of a virtual press conference from Geneva. "WHO is proud to have co-organized this event with Global Citizen and Lady Gaga, and I also want to thank my colleague Paul Garwood who came up with the idea and has worked incredibly hard for several weeks to make it happen," he noted. Tedros said that the event raised more than 127 million U.S. dollars to support several organizations responding to COVID-19, including 55 million dollars for WHO's Solidarity Response Fund. So far, according to the WHO chief, the Solidarity Response Fund has raised more than 194 million U.S. dollars from over 270,000 individuals, corporations and foundations. Enditem By Ruma Paul DHAKA, April 20 (Reuters) - Bangladesh has tightened a clampdown on seven villages after tens of thousands attended the funeral of a popular local cleric in spite of a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of the coronavirus, officials said on Monday. The massive gathering in Brahmanbaria district, about 60 km east of the capital Dhaka, has raised concerns about the potential for a spike in infections in a country of 160 million people with poor medical infrastructure. "We've strictly ordered all residents of the seven villages to stay at home at all times at least for the next 14 days so we can identify if anyone contracted the virus following Saturday's gathering," a local police officer told Reuters. Police had not expected such a large number of people to gather for the funeral, defying a weeks-long lockdown that forbids going out except for groceries and medicine. Local media said few of the mourners wore masks. The government has ordered the two most senior policemen in the district to be removed from duty for failing to prevent crowds gathering for the funeral prayers of Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari who died of cancer, the police said. Bangladesh has 2,456 confirmed coronavirus cases and 91 deaths. The government-imposed lockdown is in place until at least April 25 but many are starting to flout the rules including garment workers who took to the streets over the weekend demanding back pay. Powerful religious leaders are also continuing to allow small congregations at mosques despite the risk of contagion and warnings from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Many people are still attending Friday prayers and the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan later this week, when typically more worshippers will gather at mosques, will put additional pressure on authorities, officials said. (Reporting by Ruma Paul, Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Edwina Gibbs) Firozabad : , April 20 (IANS) A bicycle expedition of 15 migrant workers, on their way to Bihar, has ended in a quarantined shelter in Firozabad district of Uttar Pradesh. The migrant workers had started their journey from Gurugram and were travelling to their homes in Bihar when they were intercepted by the police in Firozabad on Sunday. According to Narkhi police, the 15 workers cycled to Firozabad while seven others walked and took ride from Bharatpur in order to reach home. All the 22 have been booked under IPC section 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) for violating the lockdown. Vinod Kumar, station house officer (SHO) of Narkhi, said, "The 22 men violated CrPc 144. Riding bicycle or walking towards home from one state to another is not an act of bravery but stupidity. All the state governments and district administrations are providing food, shelter to those who are in need. These migrant workers should have contacted the local authorities for food and shelter instead of undertaking the journey." "We have quarantined everyone in Firozabad and will provide them food and all the necessary help. A medical test too has been conducted on all of them," he added. Meanwhile, one of the workers Jageshwar Yadav of Bihar, told local reporters before they were quarantined that, "Since we had no money or food during our stay in Gurugram, we decided to leave for our village in Bihar on bicycle. There was no one to help us there." (Sharecast News) - London stocks were little changed in early trade on Monday, unable to hold on to opening gains despite some optimism about the loosening of coronavirus restrictions in certain European countries. At 0840 BST the FTSE 100 was down 0.1% at 5,781.02. Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell pointed to uncertainties about the week's impending data, falling oil prices and "Donald Trump's dangerous handling of the Covid-19 pandemic". "With the Dow Jones futures pointing to a 0.7% decline, it's not surprising that the European indices may already feeling a bit anxious," he said. "That drop would still keep the Dow above 24,050, however, leaving a good chunk of last Friday's bounce intact. "It is likely going to be a week of rough data, arguably starting with the ZEW economic sentiment readings and the UK's first coronavirus-relevant jobless claims number on Tuesday, eurozone consumer confidence on Wednesday, and, most importantly, a wave of flash manufacturing and services PMIs on Thursday, alongside the usual shock of the US unemployment claims figures." Traders said reports the UK was reluctant to lift lockdown measures anytime soon for fear of a second wave were also weighing on sentiment. Oil prices were in focus as futures plunged to a low not seen since the last century as concerns mounted that storage facilities could be overwhelmed due to plunging demand from the pandemic. West Texas Intermediate dropped by as much as 21% to $14.47 a barrel on Monday - the lowest since 1999. The heavy fall suggested producers may need to reduce output still further. Opec and other large producers agreed on 12 April to cuts that would reduce global supply by about 10% but some analysts expect demand to fall by far more than that. In equity markets, housebuilders Taylor Wimpey, Barratt Developments and Persimmon were under the cosh as Rightmove said in its latest survey that the coronavirus lockdown meant statistics on the number of properties coming to market, new seller asking prices, and new sales agreed were "not meaningful". Rightmove said the average asking price of the "daily dwindling number of properties coming to market" in the period from 8 March to 11 April slipped 0.2% to ?311,950, with the annual rate of increase from last April being 2.1%. Rightmove said new sales were now "almost impossible". "You do not have a functioning market when buyers can't buy and sellers can't sell, and so the focus needs to be on what is required to help the market recover once the lockdown can safely be eased," it said. Elsewhere, Centrica lost ground after a downgrade to 'reduce' at HSBC, while shares of online trading platform Plus500 slid after it said Asaf Elimelech has decided to step down from his role as chief executive officer. On the upside, Aston Martin shares rallied after a successful rights issue and as Mercedes F1 team boss Toto Wolff bought a near-5% stake in the luxury car maker. The rally also coincided with Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll's first day as executive chairman, after he completed the purchase of a 25% stake. Pub group Marston's was higher after saying it had secured a waiver against any breach of its loan agreements that might arise as a result of the government coronavirus lockdown that has closed bars and restaurants. Market Movers FTSE 100 (UKX) 5,781.02 -0.10% FTSE 250 (MCX) 15,884.96 0.16% techMARK (TASX) 3,516.54 0.25% FTSE 100 - Risers Ocado Group (OCDO) 1,601.50p 2.07% Next (NXT) 4,518.00p 1.87% Unilever (ULVR) 4,189.00p 1.80% Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,793.50p 1.50% Carnival (CCL) 923.80p 1.29% British American Tobacco (BATS) 2,979.50p 1.22% Vodafone Group (VOD) 110.18p 1.19% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 288.60p 1.09% easyJet (EZJ) 645.60p 1.06% Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,355.80p 0.94% FTSE 100 - Fallers Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 132.10p -3.12% Barratt Developments (BDEV) 471.80p -2.86% Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,726.00p -2.37% 3i Group (III) 752.80p -2.21% Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,252.00p -2.00% Persimmon (PSN) 1,958.50p -1.98% BHP Group (BHP) 1,291.60p -1.84% SEGRO (SGRO) 808.60p -1.61% Diageo (DGE) 2,667.50p -1.60% Centrica (CNA) 31.30p -1.60% FTSE 250 - Risers Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 66.50p 14.46% Capita (CPI) 39.20p 8.74% Senior (SNR) 67.30p 5.16% Cineworld Group (CINE) 65.60p 4.76% Rank Group (RNK) 174.60p 4.55% McCarthy & Stone (MCS) 78.50p 4.25% Elementis (ELM) 65.80p 3.95% Marston's (MARS) 41.76p 3.73% Ninety One (N91) 164.10p 3.66% 4Imprint Group (FOUR) 1,900.00p 3.37% FTSE 250 - Fallers Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 1,083.50p -4.54% PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,200.00p -4.00% Bellway (BWY) 2,343.00p -3.90% Wood Group (John) (WG.) 183.50p -3.78% Energean Oil & Gas (ENOG) 698.00p -3.72% IWG (IWG) 207.40p -3.71% Redrow (RDW) 394.40p -3.48% G4S (GFS) 93.14p -2.94% Spectris (SXS) 2,505.00p -2.53% Weir Group (WEIR) 795.80p -2.52% New research shows that the novel coronavirus is undergoing mutations that could make it challenging to develop a vaccine against. There are a few vaccine candidates that are in the making to prevent COVID-19. With a potential for mutation, the vaccines that are being developed now may not work against the emergent mutated strains worry Taiwanese and Australian researchers. The study is titled, Analysis of the mutation dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 reveals the spread history and emergence of 2 RBD mutant with lower ACE2 binding affinity. The study has not yet been peer-reviewed yet; however, the results look promising. The research is published on the preprint website bioRxiv. What was the study about? Officially over 2.4 million people across the world are infected with the novel coronavirus or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19 disease. This newly classified disease has killed tens of thousands of individuals from different countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that the development of the vaccine could be the only way this pandemic will be brought under control. In this research, the scientists isolated samples of the virus from India and showed that this new virus had mutated from, and its spikes were different from the original samples. The team wrote that it is critical to note the mutational changes in the SARS-CoV-2 virus in order to develop effective strategies to control it. Low mutation rates For this study, the team looked at 106 SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences and 39 SARS genome sequences. Their data reveals that this new virus has a much lower mutation rate compared to the original SARS virus. The observation of this study raised the alarm that SARS-CoV-2 mutation with varied epitope [something an antibody attaches itself to] profile could arise at any time, the researchers wrote. [This] means current vaccine development against SARS-CoV-2 is at great risk of becoming futile. The team used Minimum Evolution Phylogeny Analysis and speculated on the origins of the coronavirus and its possible spread. They noted that there are different phylogenetic expressions of the spike protein. Notably, this spike protein on the surface of the virus is the vital part that acts as hooks and attaches to the host human cells. They noted that this spike protein-coding genome of the virus samples remained mostly unchanged throughout the advent of the virus and its course. SARS-CoV-2 virus binding to ACE2 receptors on a human cell, the initial stage of COVID-19 infection, 3D illustration credit: Kateryna Kon / Shutterstock Indian virus sample different The team looked at the mutation in samples recovered from India. They found a mutation that led to a weaker receptor binding capacity of the virus. This sample was collected from India on 27th January 2020. The sample was from the state of Kerala and was analyzed only in March 2020. It was taken from a medical student who had returned from Wuhan China, where the disease had initially started. The researchers say that the genetic make-up of this virus, however, is different from the original samples found in Wuhan. The team wrote, This represents the first report of a significant SARS-CoV-2 mutant, and raises the alarm that the ongoing vaccine development may become futile in future epidemic if more mutations were identified. They noted that with this mutation, the Indian strain had a removal of a hydrogen bond from the spike protein. This made the virus less adherent to the ACE2 receptors on the host cells of the body. Notably, the virus binds to the ACE2 receptors on the host cells that can allow it to enter into the lung cells and other cells. Implications This study shows that unlike SARS in 2002 and 2003, the new SARS CoV-2 has a much lower rate of mutation and genetic diversity. This study reveals that the gene that codes for the spike protein on the SARS-CoV-2 is one of the more conserved protein-coding genes. This means that the spike proteins do not change much even after mutations. This could be a good indication for the ongoing antiviral drug and vaccine development. The researchers also confirmed that the changes in the spike protein arrangement of the SARS CoV-2 and said that this rearrangement should have been seen among human SARS-CoV-2 and bat strain of SARS CoV-2 before the virus was transmitted from bats to humans. The team of researchers concluded, We provided the first evidence that a mutated SARS-COV-2 with reduced human ACE2 receptor binding affinity have emerged in India based on a sample collected on 27th January 2020. At present, there are 70 vaccine candidates that are in several stages of trials. It is expected that one of the leading vaccines would be available for human use by mid next year. Meanwhile, if the virus undergoes more severe mutations, it could mean that the whole efforts of vaccine development could be derailed, and researchers may need to start work again. Since the risk of genetic mutations is lower, there could be hope for the vaccines in the pipeline, say researchers. Important Notice bioRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. Facing a huge financial hit from COVID-19-related restrictions, the city of Toronto is offering thousands of employees a choice move to jobs deemed essential or go on unpaid leave. City manager Chris Murray outlined the choice in an email to 2,000 staff Monday, noting that if they go on emergency leave they will stop receiving a city salary, but will be eligible for federal income supports and wont lose their city benefits. The ultimatum crafted in consultation with city unions was issued days after Mayor John Tory warned of an uprecedented hit to the city of Torontos annual budget. Anti-pandemic measures are crippling revenue sources, including the TTC. This is one of the greatest financial challenges this city has ever faced, Tory said Friday while unveiling a best-case projection of $1.5 billion in lost revenue and extra costs this year, while a prolonged lockdown could cost the city $2.7 billion. The city employs 34,120 people, including unionized and management staff. In the email to affected staff Murray said they have 48 hours to complete a survey so managers know how to best redeploy them. About 500 staff and managers have already moved to essential units including public health and homeless shelters. While I do hope you will opt-in, I cannot decide this for you and we are leaving the choice in your hands to do what is right for you and your family, Murray wrote. Any staff who opt-out of redeployment will be assumed to be requesting placement on Emergency Leave (EL) until further notice. This means you will no longer receive a salary from the City of Toronto. The Emergency Leave will provide eligible staff with the opportunity to access Federal income supports (such as Employment Insurance and the Canada Emergency Response Benefit). Health and other benefits will continue if they go on unpaid leave, as will pension contributions by both employer and employee. Union officials expect more non-essential staff to get such emails in coming days. CUPE Local 79 president Dave Mitchell, representing more than 20,000 city inside workers, noted Monday in an email to them that provincial emergency measures allow the city to override collective agreements with staff. Redeployments, Mitchell wrote, follow recreation workers and other part-time workers being put on emergency leave last month. Tory declared an emergency March 23, shutting down much of the city government. Mitchell said theyll soon get a copy of an emergency framework agreement that establishes some guidelines on the reassignment of staff and temporary leave procedures that protect your job and wages. CUPE Local 416, with about 5,000 outside workers, reached its own redeployment agreement on emergency leave conditions with the city on Monday. David Rider is the Stars City Hall bureau chief and a reporter covering city hall and municipal politics. Follow him on Twitter: @dmrider Read more about: DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I am 72 and take a drug for rheumatoid arthritis that suppresses my immune system. I'm scheduled to receive a vaccine later this year. Is it safe for me to receive this vaccine? ANSWER: Appropriate and timely vaccines are important for anyone with a suppressed immune system. That's because a suppressed immune system increases your vulnerability to infections, including those that vaccines can prevent. However, vaccine selection for a person with immune suppression is a nuanced topic. It's important to have a detailed discussion with your health care provider, as the choices are individualized based on your circumstances. Many diseases and disease treatments can suppress the immune system. These include cancer and chemotherapy; drugs for autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis or inflammatory bowel disease; drugs given after organ transplant; and corticosteroids, which are used for various problems. It's possible that vaccines with live viral or bacterial elements could cause an infection in people with suppressed immune systems. Therefore, these vaccines are avoided for people with severe immune suppression. However, select live vaccines sometimes can be safely used in people with milder immune suppression. Thankfully, several vaccines that are important for older adults, such as the annual flu vaccine and the pneumococcal vaccine, aren't live vaccines and have no risk beyond what occurs in those with healthy immune systems. Depending on the severity of your immune suppression, your immune system might not fully respond to the vaccine, providing only partial or limited protection against infection. However, partial protection likely will be considered better than none. Also, some vaccines have the option of a stronger dose to boost effectiveness. In addition, there may be periods of time when your immune function is less suppressed. Vaccine administration can be scheduled for these times for increased effectiveness. Talk with your health care provider about your concerns. He or she likely will consider the safety, effectiveness and appropriate timing of the vaccinations before making a recommendation for your situation. (Adapted from Mayo Clinic Health Letter) Priya Sampathkumar, M.D., Infectious Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota (Mayo Clinic Q & A is an educational resource and doesn't replace regular medical care. E-mail a question to MayoClinicQ&A@mayo.edu. For more information, visit www.mayoclinic.org.) Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has outlined plans to allow some businesses closed as a response to the coronavirus pandemic to reopen as soon as Friday, 24 April. He will sign an order that will allow the state's gyms, bowling alleys, barbers and salons to resume operations as long as they adhere to social distancing requirements. Restaurants, theatres and private social clubs will be allowed to reopen on Monday, 27 April, if they also meet those standards. Bars, nightclubs, amusement parks and performance venues will remain shuttered. On Twitter, the governor said: "Due to favourable data & more testing, gyms, fitness centres, bowling alleys, body art studios, barbers, cosmetologists, hair designers, nail care artists, aestheticians, their respective schools & massage therapists can reopen Friday, April 24 with Minimum Basic Operations." He added: "Minimum Basic Operations includes, but is not limited to, screening workers for fever and respiratory illness, enhancing workplace sanitation, wearing masks & gloves if appropriate, separating workspaces by six feet, teleworking if possible & implementing staggered shifts." The shelter in place order remains active until 11:59pm on 30 April for most Georgians. It was only at the beginning of April that Governor Kemp said that he realised that asymptomatic spread of the coronavirus could occur. A fact that had been public knowledge since the end of January. He said at the time: "Finding out that this virus is now transmitting before people see signs, so what we've been telling people from directives from the [Centres 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... This is a game-changer for us." While some states have begun to ease up restrictions on public parks, beaches, construction, online car sales, and curb-side pick ups of goods, Georgia is the first state to announce the reopening of whole business sectors. Earlier on Monday, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced that his state's stay-at-home order will expire on 30 April, and the vast majority of businesses will be allowed to re-open on 1 May. Mr Lee said that the state's Economic Recovery Group was working around the clock to establish guidelines under which businesses could reopen safely. There are 18,391 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Georgia and 687 recorded deaths. Tennessee has 6,762 confirmed cases and 145 recorded deaths. UNDER normal circumstances, we are entering the time of the year when most of the Philippines's private corporations will be conducting their annual shareholders' meetings (ASM). However, with the Covid-19 pandemic causing typical operations to slow down or stop, so do opportunities to push towards sustainability. For many shareholders, they would lose their usual chance to voice their concerns about the corporations, such as inquiring about their activities or challenging the direction they are headed. Without a platform for these individuals and institutions, there is a loss of a checks-and-balances mechanism for the investments and other ventures of corporations, especially those that are detrimental to the environment. Despite the global trend, phasing out coal and the growth of renewable energy have yielded mixed results in the Philippines. On one hand, no new coal plant has been built in the Philippines since 2018, leading to the delay or cancellation of up to 4054 MW of coal power. President Rodrigo Duterte has also publicly issued a directive for accelerating the development of renewable energy resources in his last State of the Nation Address. On the other hand, the share of coal in the country's power generation in 2018 has more than tripled since 2008, the year the Renewable Energy Act was passed. Furthermore, the share of renewables has decreased from 33.9 percent to 23.4 percent during the same period. This is partly influenced by the financial support provided by Philippine banks. From 2017 to 2019, around P320 billion were given to developers of coal power projects by 13 banks; BPI and BDO accounted for more than half of the funding. The uncertainty caused by the pandemic would push governments and businesses to increase the resilience and security of their systems to avoid losses from future similar threats. However, this should not be used as an excuse to increase the Philippines's reliance on coal. Story continues Investors must not be fooled by the low price of coal. Not when it worsens the impacts of climate change, which would incur long-term losses for corporations and externalities that are felt by communities and ecosystems. Not when coal assets are becoming stranded assets and rendering them financially unviable. Not when renewable energy, especially wind and solar, becomes more cost-competitive and achieves technological improvements. The pandemic has shown the implications of neglecting the environment on global and national economies. Yet per the projections of experts, the worst is still yet to come. While the world is struggling to address Covid-19, climate change and environmental degradation continue to be looming threats whose impacts would be on a similar or greater magnitude than the current crisis. Without drastic shifts in the strategies of banks and other corporations, the same impacts will emerge in future occurrences: productivity decreases, profits and income decrease, and jobs are lost. In the case of coal, investing further in dirty power plants, mining operations, and other activities would result in more losses than gains for banks, shareholders and depositors alike. With almost all business activities affected, vast resources would be used to revitalize the economy during and after dealing with Covid-19. This provides an opportunity for shareholders to reflect on and reevaluate their priorities, especially regarding their investments. The notion that a business's bottomline should only be maximizing its profit no longer applies in a world that would likely be more motivated to genuinely enact reforms towards sustainability. Given the environment of the energy sector, the climate imperative, and increased public awareness and pressure for the welfare of the people and the planet, now is the time to divest from coal and other environmentally-destructive activities and invest in renewable energy development and other sustainable practices. Investors must ask themselves: is this investment what is best for the future of my family? Will this truly be the least-costly measure in the long run for all parties involved? Will this prevent similar crises from happening in the future? Even without the platform provided by the ASM, both shareholders and depositors can still influence the investment policies of their banks. With the current pandemic highlighting the need for us to redefine our relationship with the environment, many areas for eco-friendlier investments such as renewables would likely be opened. As individuals or institutions, they can initiate the necessary shifts in their portfolios and relevant endeavors not only to survive, but thrive moving forward. They can also demand that the banks and other corporations establish specific targets and timelines to implement a just transition from coal to renewables, aligned with the Paris Agreement and existing national laws. In many ways, our perception of "business-as-usual" has been changed by Covid-19. Yet it still needs a stronger paradigm shift on our collective priorities and values, and that also applies to corporations. Never has there been a more appropriate time to invest in our sustainable future. *** John Leo is the program manager of Living Laudato Si Philippines and Climate Action for Sustainability Initiative (Kasali). He has been a citizen journalist and feature writer since 2016. He earned his MS Atmospheric Science degree from the Ateneo de Manila University in 2018. GREATER separation of Church and State is needed, but members of the Catholic clergy still deserve to be respected in spite of a series of religious scandals, a Limerick priest has urged. Fr Seamus Enright, rector of the Redemptorists at Mount St Alphonsus in the city, said he feels the level of abuse directed at the Sisters of Charity over their ownership of the proposed 300 million new national maternity hospital was unwarranted, even given the context of a wider dark background of the Churchs role in other State institutions. The abuse that was directed at the Sisters of Charity and the demonising of them, Im not sure that you could do it to any other group in Irish society and get away with it, he told the Limerick Leader. I dont think the Sisters of Charity merited the abuse that was directed at them. I thought it was ageist and sexist, and for all the weaknesses there have been and the difficulties there have been, and what has gone on in Magdalene homes and orphanages, which we wouldnt want to stand over, you have to balance that with the good which has been achieved by the Sisters of Charity, and others like them. Construction of the new NMH, which is to be located on the campus of St Vincents Hospital, will be paid for by the State, but according to terms of the current agreement will be gifted to the St Vincents Healthcare Group, owned by the Sisters of Charity because it owns the land. Fr Enright said he does not have a view on whether the hospital should be owned by the order given the very complex issues at stake, but can appreciate the arguments for why it should be State owned. There is no doubt that there is an argument to be had over its ownership, but what disappointed me was that we couldnt seem able to have a rational debate about the ownership without descending into vitriolic abuse being directed at the Sisters. I would have thought they merited more respect than they were given. Its the same with the prayer in the Dail and the blasphemy law, Im not sure that were able to have respectful conversations without becoming abusive of each other. Fr Enright said that while Catholics are not entitled to special treatment or special legal protection, in terms of the controversial blasphemy law, which he feels should be abolished, we are entitled to respect and courtesy. The quality of political discourse in Ireland today seems to be quite negative and abusive. In a society that it as complex as ours is I think we need to discover a polite, respectful way of engaging in conversations from different perspectives. The real challenge in Irish society today is finding common ground, and we wont find it if we abuse each other. Fr Enright added that he has mixed views about prayer in the Dail. It wouldnt bother me if they didnt pray in the Dail really. In a society which has changed as much as Irish society has changed, I would wonder is it appropriate, when austerity legislation is passed which has had an extraordinary impact upon the poor, and Id wonder about those incompatibilities. I can understand why in the 1930s when the Constitution was adopted we lived in a much more homogenous society, but now there are other people in the Dail who are not comfortable with these prayers, so why should they be put in that position. He is also in favour of the abolition of the blasphemy law, echoing the view of the Bishop of Elfin, Kevin Doran, that God is well able to look after himself. When I look at a country like Pakistan and see how blasphemy laws are badly used there to persecute minorities, you wouldnt like to think that Ireland was keeping company with that type of a country. When I think of blasphemy laws I think of very repressive countries, like Indonesia, and I dont think thats where Ireland belongs as a society. I wouldnt like to think that were remotely in the same league as those backward countries. Obviously you have to have freedom of speech, but there should be some sensitivity for peoples feelings as well, and sensitivity for the feelings of religious believers. He said the remarks made during The Late Late Show by Blindboy Boatclub of the Rubberbandits, who referred to Communion as haunted bread, was not blasphemous, but it was extraordinarily disrespectful. Fianna Fail deputy Willie ODea agrees that the outdated blasphemy law should be removed. I dont think the Lord needs protection from the law, and the gardai are busy trying to fight enough crimes as it is, he said. Blindboy Boatclub of the Rubberbandits described Irelands blasphemy law as an embarrassment, following a garda investigation under the law into comments made about God and faith made by the British actor Stephen Fry. Gardai decided not to proceed with the investigation into comments made by Fry during a television interview with Gay Byrne in February 2015, on the grounds that not enough people had been offended by the remarks. Countries such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have very strict blasphemy laws, where people go to jail and get stoned. They can say Well, Ireland has a blasphemy law in its Constitution, and theyre supposed to be the civilised West. We have to stand up to that, Blindboy said in an interview with the Oonagh and Aidan show on iRadio. Blindboy, who has been accused of making blasphemous remarks in relation to the Eucharist, said that as long as he wears a plastic bag on his head hes engaged in a continual act of artistic performance, so I can say what I like. Its art. At the end of the day, youd have to be seriously offended by a man who thinks its right to wear a plastic bag on his head. Everybody has a right to be offended, thats a healthy part of free speech. But peoples feelings of hurt doesnt mean that they are right, and thats where it becomes tricky. Its legitimate if your feelings are hurt but that doesnt give you a right to silence another person. The last time there was a prosecution for blasphemy was in 1855 and there had been none under the 2009 Act. Your browser does not support the audio element. Middle and high school students in the Mekong Delta province of Ca Mau and the northern province of Thai Binh have become the first among their peers in Vietnam to return to school after an over-three-month break owing to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Both Ca Mau and Thai Binh are categorized as 'low-risk' localities by the National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control. As such, social distancing rules in these provinces can be relaxed after April 15 while 28 other provinces and cities in Vietnam have been asked to uphold the measures until at least April 22. The two provinces have recorded zero COVID-19 infections to date. Students in Vietnam have been told to stay home since the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in early February as a precaution against COVID-19. After the over-three-month break, middle and high schools in Ca Mau reopened on Monday morning with their ninth and 12th graders resuming study. Ninth-grade students sit two meters apart on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre A teacher and ninth-grade students are pictured on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break at Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Middle School in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre The students were all instructed to practice a number of disease prevention measures such as wearing face masks and washing hands before entering the classroom. As per an instruction by the provincial Department of Education and Training, the number of people in each classroom was reduced to make sure students are seated at least two meters apart from one another to avoid close interaction. The number of teachers increased proportionally. All classrooms had been disinfected before the students returned. Safety precautions such as rearranged parking space are in place to make sure best practices are upheld when parents drop off their students at school or pick them up after school. Meanwhile, students of other school levels are asked to remain home until further notice. Ninth-grade students are pictured on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break at Phan Boi Chau Middle School in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre In Thai Binh, all students from ninth to 12th grades also came back to school on Monday morning, the online news site VnExpress reported. Classes are divided into half-day sessions, with ninth, 11th, and 12th graders studying in the morning while tenth graders attend school in the afternoon in combination with remote learning at home. Students are required to have their body temperature checked before entering classrooms and restricted from making contact with students from other classes or taking part in physical and sporting activities. Schools in Thai Binh had also been cleaned and fumigated as per instructions by the Ministry of Health before students returned. For other school levels, students are requested to stay home until further notice. High school students on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Thai Binh Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Vietnam News Agency Many other provinces and cities in Vietnam are also in preparation for their students to return to school this month following the long break caused by COVID-19. The north-central province of Thanh Hoa plans to reopen schools on Tuesday, while the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long is poised to bring students back to school on Monday next week. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City has decided to keep all schools and universities closed until the end of May 3. Hanoi is set for another delay of its back-to-school date by telling all students to stay home through April 22. The central city of Da Nang has asked local students to stay home until further notice. A high school student has his body temperature checked on his first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Thai Binh Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Vietnam News Agency Vietnam completed 15 days of nationwide increased social distancing on April 15, after which 28 'high-risk' cities and provinces were asked to continue taking social distancing measures for another week until April 22, with a possibility of extending through April 30. The remaining 35 provinces and cities are deemed 'low-risk.' The country has so far confirmed 268 cases of COVID-19, a tally that has stayed unchanged for four days since Thursday. Only 61 patients remained in treatment on Monday morning, including 60 Vietnamese and one foreigner. No death related to the respiratory disease has been reported in Vietnam. High school students on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre High school students wash their hands before entering the classroom on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre High school students on their first day at school after a three-month COVID-19 break in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam, April 20, 2020. Photo: Nguyen Hung / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Oregons decades-long practice of allowing split verdicts to convict felony defendants came to an end Monday when the U.S. Supreme Court found such jury systems to be unconstitutional in a ruling that could invalidate hundreds of criminal convictions in the state. The 6-3 vote overturns an earlier decision by the nations high court nearly 50 years ago that allowed two states, Oregon and Louisiana, to continue the practice, which critics say had its roots in racial, ethnic and religious bigotry. The case centered on a Louisiana man, Evangelisto Ramos, who was convicted by a 10-2 jury in 2016 of killing a woman in New Orleans. Louisiana later amended its constitution to prohibit split jury convictions, but only in cases prosecuted after 2018. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in the majority opinion for Ramos v. Louisiana that nonunanimous juries are inconsistent with the constitutional right to a jury trial. Wherever we might look to determine what the term trial by an impartial jury trial meant at the time of the Sixth Amendments adoption whether its the common law, state practices in the founding era, or opinions and treatises written soon afterward the answer is unmistakable, Gorsuch wrote. A jury must reach an unanimous verdict in order to convict. Five justices from across the courts ideological spectrum Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Brett Kavanaugh joined the ruling, which also said the split jury laws were based in discrimination. "Courts in both Louisiana and Oregon have frankly acknowledged that race was a motivating factor in the adoption of their states respective non-unanimity rules, wrote Gorsuch. In a dissent, Justice Samuel Alito warned that the decision could trigger a potential tsunami of litigation on the jury unanimity issue. At a minimum, all defendants whose cases are still on direct appeal will presumably be entitled to a new trial if they were convicted by a less-than-unanimous verdict and preserved the issue in the trial court. And at least in Oregon, even if no objection was voiced at trial, defendants may be able to challenge their convictions based on plain error, Alito argued. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Elena Kagan also dissented from the majority opinion. Oregons Department of Justice last fall had sounded a similar note of caution in a brief filed with the Supreme Court, claiming the states court and criminal justice systems would be overwhelmed by a staggering number of claims to revisit nonunanimous verdicts and potential retrials. Ellen Rosenblum, the states attorney general, at the time said defense lawyers had already hundreds of cases pending appeal. On Monday, the attorney general said her office had been expecting the justices ruling in striking down nonunanimous juries. Were well-prepared to address its significant consequences for Oregons justice system," Rosenblum said in a statement. "We have been working closely for months with our appellate courts and with the leadership of the criminal defense bar to plan our case review and the judicial process that will ensue. Rosenblums statement didnt provide any details for those case review plans. Todd Sprague, a spokesman with the Oregon Judicial Department, said the agency is working with the Oregon Department of Justice and Office of Public Defense Services to identify which convictions on appeal could be reversed quickly and returned to trial court. Other cases could take weeks or months to determine whether a reversal is warranted. Sprague said the Oregon Supreme Court is currently holding 74 petitions for review in criminal appeal cases that might be affected by the high courts ruling. Its less clear how many of the 2,900 criminal cases before the state Court of Appeals could be affected, according to Sprague. Others also have been awaiting the decision. For instance, lawyers for Michael Sperou, a 69-year-old Portland pastor twice convicted of sexually abusing a former member as a young child, told the court in January they expected to be seeking another trial because the jury had returned an 11-1 verdict. Oregon was the only state in the country that allowed juries in most felony cases aside from murder to convict defendants with a 10-2 or 11-1 vote. Federal courts and all other states require a unanimous verdict for crimes such as manslaughter, rape and arson. In 2018, voters in Louisiana rejected their system of split-verdict convictions. The state also had allowed split verdicts in murder cases. A relic of the Jim Crow era, the law had been adopted during Louisianas 1898 constitutional convention to diminish the influence of black jurors upon verdicts, scholars say. Oregon voters in 1934 approved a constitutional amendment creating the states own nonunanimous jury system. Legal scholars and reform advocates have argued Oregons law at the time aimed to silence immigrants and religious minorities who served on juries. The Supreme Court upheld Oregon and Louisianas jury laws in 1972, ruling in Apodca v. Oregon that jury verdicts in federal felony trials must be unanimous, but leaving the door open to states having a different standard. It declined to hear cases challenging Oregons split jury verdicts as recently as 2009. A movement to end nonunanimous verdicts in Oregon began to build in 2017 after Aliza Kaplan, a Lewis & Clark College law professor, published an influential article in the Oregon Law Review. According to Kaplan, it was a sensational, highly publicized murder trial involving a Jewish suspect and a lone jurors refusal to convict him that prompted Oregon voters to amend the states constitution. The article also argued in detail how nonunanimous juries have undermined the states criminal justice system and continued to serve as a vestige of Oregons less-tolerant past. Kaplans analysis quickly captured the attention of criminal justice reformers, state lawmakers and even some judges. But efforts to overturn nonunanimous juries fizzled. Oregons powerful district attorneys association said in early 2018 it would lead a ballot initiative fight to repeal the states split verdict jury system. It then abandoned its plans only weeks later. The Oregon Legislature last year also came up short. After House lawmakers unanimously approved a bill that would ask voters to overturn the states jury system, the measure was left to languish in the Senate. After 85 years, the U.S. Supreme Courts ruling in Ramos v. Louisiana today has finally ended an unjust rule with a shameful past in Oregon," Kaplan said. Now Oregon will be able to join the rest of the country. -- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632 Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories Jerry Emmanson It has been gathered that troops of Sector 2 command of Operation Lafiya Dole have killed over 100 Boko Haram terrorists in Buni Gari, Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State. According to a top military source, the operation was carried out using the new operational strategy introduced by the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General T.Y Buratai, who is now in charge of the activities of Theatre Command of Operation Lafiya Dole. The new operational policy of the Chief of Army Staff is yielding the desired results as the Boko Haram group have been enduring a hard time recently. We had credible Intel that a part of the group felt they needed to take their destinies into their hands, embarking on a headless journey outside the Timbuktu Triangle. Unfortunately, however, they met their waterloo, our source said. I can tell you that the revised operational code of conduct has an emphasis on credible Intel and this is responsible for the feat recorded in Buni Gari. Our troops engaged the terrorist squarely and amid the battle, reinforcements were sent in on the orders of the Chief of Army Staff, who monitored the operations himself. It was also gathered that the move by the Boko Haram group was a decoy by Abubakar Shekau to take the attention away from himself and some of his top commanders that have been trapped in their hideouts for weeks. We got the Intel that there was a mass movement of terrorists along the Gombi-Baromari axis. But the movement didnt align with the numbers trapped. What we did was to reinforce the Sector 2 command in Damaturu while the focus was still on the Timbuktu triangle. And this yielded positive results. We initially thought the number of casualties was not much. However, after a follow up exploitation operation, we realized the number of fatalities was over 100 and with several gun trucks destroyed and a large cache of arms and ammunition recovered Many locals and villagers who spoke to this medium were full of praises for the gallantry of the troops. According to a resident of Buni Gari, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, they noticed movements into their communities late in the night of Saturday. He stated that they knew it wasnt soldiers because the movement was uncoordinated, and the whole community subsequently took cover. We have been in this crisis for long, and we, to a large extent, know the movement of soldiers because they are always coordinated. But on Saturday night, we sensed an unusual movement of vehicles coming towards our community. At some point, it halted. Not long after, we started hearing gunshots from the other flank and I can tell you that it was a very tough battle. The source further added that the gunshots lasted well into the early hours of the morning before it subsided. We came out from our hiding in the morning to see corpses of Boko Haram terrorist littered everywhere. Not long after, we saw soldiers who came to clear the place. We saw lots of weapons everywhere. We are grateful to the soldiers. Another resident of Buni Gari also stated that, but for the intervention of the soldiers, Buni Gari would have been consumed by the Boko Haram terrorist just like they did in Buni Yadi in 2014. The event of 2014 in Buni Yadi is still fresh in our minds. But we are very grateful to the Nigerian Army for saving us from the evil of Boko Haram. The soldiers displayed gallantry that led to the death of these Boko Haram terrorists. This medium was able to gather that the Chief of Army Staff was pleased with the operation in Buni Gari that he ordered a 24-hour surveillance around Yobe State to track fleeing Boko Haram terrorist that might have been fortunate to escape the Buni Gari onslaught. A top source in the theatre command stated that The Chief has instructed that surveillance operations are carried out within that sector to ensure that all feeling terrorists are tracked. As we speak, troops from Sector 3 are currently combing the area for remnants of Boko Haram terrorists that might have escaped and I can tell you that they would be apprehended. He added: The clearance operation is structured in such a way that these terrorist are boxed to a corner using a triangular format where the only option would be to surrender because it is no longer business as usual and no commander wants to incur the wrath of the Chief of Army Staff. The Buni Gari experience tells a lot of the reinvigoration of the operations of the Nigerian Army in North-East Nigeria led by the Chief of Army Staff. The new operational code is yielding the desired results, and we cant but thank the Chief of Army Staff for his ingenuity in the prosecution of the Boko Haram war. It would be recalled that the Chief of Army Staff recently relocated to Borno State to coordinate the operations of the Theatre Command in a new offensive against the Boko Haram terrorist group. "I think it was more raising awareness that it is happening," he said. "People who don't experience it personally may not see it happen, but for every case that is reported through the media or authorities, there are probably 10 others who remain silent." " /] His friends with Asian backgrounds have copped abuse while working in their front yards or while picking up vegetables in the supermarket. " /] "This COVID-19 pandemic has given people with an inherent bias the ability to express themselves," he said. Dr Chang's experience is one of many racist attacks across Australia targeting people of Asian appearance since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. A Swastika symbol and two Chinese flags with COVID-19 written in black on them have been flown on a phone tower north of Melbourne. Credit:Picture: Nine News. Among them was an incident on April 12 when a swastika and two Chinese flags branded with the words "COVID-19" were strung up on a phone tower in Kyabram in central Victoria. Last week, two ethnically Chinese international students were bashed in Melbourne's CBD and told to "get out of our country". Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said there was "simply no place for that sort of behaviour in our state". Premier, Daniel Andrews, said there was no place for racism in Victoria. Credit:Justin McManus "We are all in this together," he said. "We are more effective, we are better and stronger if we all look out for each other." Mr Andrews personally called a bus driver who copped racially motivated abuse, saying it was "simply wrong" that people were attacking each other. "There's just no place for that, whether it's racially motivated or not," he said. "I know people are frustrated, but there's simply no place for people to be behaving like that." Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner Kristen Hilton said the racist behaviour being reported was not just against the state's shared values, but against the law. "Reports of racism have been on the rise as the COVID-19 pandemic has progressed and I'm aware that other state and federal human rights bodies have observed similar increased, in both reports and formal complaints," she said. "The seriousness of the racist incidents being reported is real cause for concern from offensive comments and verbal abuse through to threats of physical violence. No Victorian should have to endure racism because of who they are or where they come from." A week feels like a month these days. As the COVID-19 news keeps rolling in like a never-ending set of killer waves, its hard to get a fix on when and how all the changes in our lives took place. One example: a mere five weeks have passed since the ban on gatherings of more than 500 people came into force. Given everything thats happened since, that measure seems quaint. It will be remembered that when this restriction was announced, it was forward-dated, allowing crowds to attend the upcoming NRL round and Scott Morrison declared that he would be there, cheering on the Sharks. Thousands flocked to Bondi Beach on Friday, March 20, ignoring social distancing edicts. Credit:AAP The Prime Minister, like all of us, is multi-faceted but he has two main public personae: on the one hand, assertive, a good communicator, unacquainted with self-doubt and, on the other, ingratiating and occasionally a bit needy. The stance on going to the football was the latter Morrison, a tossed-off piece of political marketing that in the circumstances made him look less prime ministerial than he should have. Hours later, he changed his mind. It was the low point of his leadership during the coronavirus crisis, recalling his sustained mishandling of the summer bushfires. But what a difference a couple of weeks and some announcements can make. Since then, according to quite a few commentators, hes become the man for the times cometh the hour, cometh the man and all that. Immediately after the partial lockdown was lifted by President Akufo-Addo, commuters in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region have begun long-distance travels to different parts of the country. During Citi News' visit to some bus terminals, passengers, a number of whom were in face masks, were seen boarding buses to Accra, Takoradi, Tarkwa, Koforidia, Wa and other areas. At the VIP bus terminal in Kumasi, in particular, authorities disclosed to Citi News that they have put measures in place to ensure that all passengers and drivers put on nose masks and observe all necessary precautionary measures. Some passengers who were travelling from Kumasi to Accra spoke to Citi News lauding drivers who have put in place measures to ensure better hygiene like running water, soap and sanitisers. If other drivers are not doing this, I think it wont help but the VIP station is doing this which is going to help us very well, one man said. After a welcome period of inactivity, another passenger said the lifting of the partial lockdown had come at the right time. The lockdown has helped me to relax a bit. I had been working all day and all night all along so personally, it has helped me. But enough is enough, we have to get on and get things going or else we all collapse, he said. Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Kasoa, had been under a partial lockdown for the three weeks. In this period, Ghana's coronavirus cases rose to 1,042. ---citinewsroom The Western Trust has confirmed that 200 staff members remain absent from work due to the coronavirus. Those workers are based in the Northern sector which takes in Derry, Strabane and Limavady. It comes after the Derry News revealed earlier this month that 808 workers were off across the Trust area because of COVID-19 - the illness that can affect your lungs and airways which is caused by coronavirus. Of those employees, 300 worked at Altnagelvin Hospital. There was a relatively even split between the numbers self-isolating due to symptoms of their own and those isolating because family members had symptoms. Testing has been ramped up in different parts of NI, including Derry where a facility has just opened at City of Derry Rugby Club, to ensure that health and social care staff are kept safe. It is also hoped that testing will allow staff who are following government guidelines by isolating - but are not actually sick - to return to work so they can assist during the first wave of coronavirus cases. However, according to the latest figures available 200 staff members are still absent. In a statement to the Derry News on Friday, a spokesperson for the Western Trust confirmed: Whilst a number of staff have returned to work following a period of absence some staff have commenced new episodes of absence related to coronavirus. The total number of staff absent as at 15th April is 200. Since the introduction of testing on 28th March 2020 and up to 15th April 2020 a total of 501 Northern Sector staff have been tested this covers both hospital and community staff. Approximately 1,000 people responded to a workforce appeal by the Trust to allow it to cope with an increased demand on services in light of the coronavirus pandemic. That included retired doctors and student nurses who have joined the frontline. A quarter of those applicants have commenced work in a range of roles. A spokesperson explained. The Trust recently launched a workforce appeal for staff and have appointed 242 staff to date. The recruitment team is continuing to process a large number of applications. Northern Ireland is nearing the end of what was described as the first wave of cases which was expected to peak between April 6-20. 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 latest Public Health Agency (PHA) bulletin, as of April 19, reports 194 deaths. It is believed that this peak may be less severe than first anticipated but last Thursday saw the highest daily rise with 18 COVID related deaths in NI hospitals. That total was matched on Friday and a further 137 people tested positive, a development Health Minister Robin Swann described was a wake up call as he warned against complacency. On Saturday a further 17 deaths were registered and one more person was added to the overall death toll on Sunday. TESTING Almost 16,500 people have been tested for COVID-19 in Northern Ireland - over 4,000 of them health care workers. The current target is set at over 1,000 tests per day with a view to scaling up over time and expanding priority groups. The test centre at City of Derry Rugby Club will assist with that upscaling. Criticism has been levelled at the government for limited testing in the community and contact tracing as that will be crucial when it comes to estimating population immunity and designing an exit strategy to move out of the current lockdown. Speaking last week Minister of Health Robin Swann said: Testing of health care workers has been a key priority of mine and I am glad that in recent weeks we have tested over 4,000 of our frontline staff. Thats important for them, and its also important for the people they support such as the residents in our care homes. He continued: An expert working group has also been established to lead on the expansion of testing across all our laboratory services, both within Health and Social Care facilities, and also to consider options for the utilisation of other testing facilities including within the commercial sector. There is a NI Testing Strategy that has already been shared with the Executive and the Health Committee. In that I have made it clear that the overall testing policy will be adjusted over time as testing capacity increases, and priority groups for testing are expanded. Similarly the strategy also includes a pledge that testing will soon move towards surveillance of COVID-19 in the population to inform planning of services including surge capacity, and to estimate population immunity. Liz Sewell carries a box of her belongings from her apartment at Fifth and South Streets to a rental Jeep before her drive to California for a new job. Sewell, unlike millions of Americans, got a dream job in her parks and recreation field, just as the the coronavirus (COVID-19) was crashing down. Read more On a recent Saturday morning, Liz Sewell packed up the contents of her Philly apartment on South Street and loaded everything into a rented Jeep Cherokee. Her destination: a new job and a new life in sunny San Jose, Calif. Im ready, said Sewell, 39. A parks and recreation development planner, she was leaving a position she loved with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy for an even better job more responsibility, more money, more opportunity with the city of San Jose. Her new job is park manager for the citys Department of Parks, Recreation, and Neighborhood Services. Sure, she would miss her adopted city and her Philly friends, but they could visit. And Sewell has family and friends out West. For a hardworking, bright, young professional like Sewell, a career move like this made perfect sense. In any other time, it would even be mundane. You would not be reading about it in a newspaper. But in the past month, the status quo has all but vanished, and the strange has become the familiar. Aspirations, rituals, even physical touch has been put on hold. What had been normal is now remarkable. Hope is news. * * * As Sewell turned her rental car westward, she was gunning her engine in the face of COVID-19s grim economic impacts. In the three weeks before, a shocking 16.8 million people had filed for U.S. unemployment benefits as much of the country shut down in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus. According to some estimates, one in 10 Americans were out of work. Truth be told, the COVID-19 poison dart almost took Sewells employment, too. She lucked out at the last minute. Five years ago, Sewell, a Michigan native, came to Philly to work for Rails-to-Trails, the nonprofit that transforms former rail beds into recreational paths. Her life had taken some twists and turns including a stint with the Peace Corps in Thailand before she found her passion. I honestly never saw myself leaving Rails-to-Trails, said Sewell, who worked as the organizations trails development manager. I thought I would retire from there. And she had come came to love Philly, too. Her apartment was a few doors down from Tattooed Mom, that iconic South Street hangout, and across the street from Ishkabibble, which has arguably the best cheese fries in town. But last fall, a parks listserv she was on mentioned an opening for a tempting position in San Jose. One of Rails-to-Trails founders piped up to listserv members, This is the best job in the country. That made Sewell want to apply even more, although she didnt think she had a chance. It was too good to be true, she said. It aligned completely with my qualifications, but I was competing with people in California. She applied anyway. To her surprise, almost two months later, in January, San Jose brought her out for interview. San Jose was lovely, and spending time with her relatives was pretty nice. I was like, this could be my life," said Sewell. On March 2, lo and behold, San Jose made her a conditional job offer, contingent on federal security clearance. Coronavirus concerns were growing in the U.S., but Sewell was not yet unduly worried. A week later, she gave her notice to Rails-to-Trails. But then the scary news started moving fast with shutdowns or layoffs around the country, including northern California. People here and elsewhere were being told to work from home. Funding sources drying up seemingly overnight. If San Jose had to rescind the job offer, Sewell would be out of work. I was terrified, she said. She was having nightmares about what else? losing jobs. But all she really could do was wait, and hope. Somehow, though, her fingerprints got there weeks early from her new jobs required background check. Around March 24, she got the final job offer from San Jose. Her new boss told her she would be starting May 4, but would have to work remotely for the time being from her new San Jose apartment. But whew she had the job. The last couple weeks were a whirlwind of packing and saying goodbye to the many friends she had made in the Philly area. What will she miss? Plenty. I will miss the amazing restaurants, the vibrant downtown. I love the density here and the small, adorable historical streets, Sewell said. Ive loved the diversity of the people and the food and the culture. Ive loved living here and getting to experience it all. As she prepared to leave, it was with gratitude as well as concern. Shes grateful for her trail-building work experiences in the Philadelphia area, which led to her new job. She is aware of her good fortune and has been making a point to pay it forward, patronizing local businesses, leaving generous tips. Her friends have been weighing on her mind, too. My friends havent lost their jobs, but some of them have undergone salary reductions, she said. A lot of them work for nonprofits. *** By noon that Saturday, the rental car was packed. Despite some dubious looks on her friends faces, just about everything managed to get crammed into the SUV. And in a forgivable lapse of social distancing, Sewell and her buddies broke the rule with one last goodbye hug. Her wish, as it is for all of us, is for a quick end to this pandemic and that life goes back to normal and we can treat each other with the same kindness and compassion Ive seen in the past few weeks. Because I have seen a lot of kindness. That, among other things, has Sewell feeling something vaguely familiar. Could it be hope? I feel like the universe has my back, you know? California, here she comes. By Eoin English and Noel Baker The Department of Housing has given the green light for the resumption of building work on 1,000 social housing units on sites around the country. The decision will allow builders to finish a raft of near-completed housing projects on 35 schemes in 14 local authority areas where construction work was shut down following the Covid-19 outbreak. It is understood that the department asked local authorities in recent weeks to identify a number of schemes which were near completion, or substantially complete, with minor snagging or other works to be completed. A number were put forward for consideration and a process has now been agreed with the department to designate 35 specific housing projects as essential projects within the meaning of the COVID-19 health regulations. A spokesperson for the department said this housing is necessary to alleviate homelessness, overcrowding, numbers in emergency or temporary accommodation in order to prevent, limit, minimise or slow the spread of Covid-19. And all contractors will have to adhere to the strict public health guidelines, he said. "Local authorities are working exceptionally hard in these challenging circumstances to ensure that they have sufficient accommodation available to meet the needs of families and individuals who are currently in emergency accommodation and to households at risk of homelessness during the current public health emergency," he said. "In order to ensure sufficient accommodation is available, local authorities identified a number of social housing projects." Combined, they will deliver 1,000 finished units within a matter of weeks. Work will resume within days on three schemes in Cork city - a 25-unit project on White Street, a scheme on Blarney St, and a key phase of the Knocknaheeny regeneration scheme which includes 32 houses and 15 apartments. Combined, these projects will deliver almost 100 units to the city's stock of social housing units. Fianna Fail Cllr Tony Fitzgerald welcomed the resumption of work. "This will be a huge boost to addressing the housing crisis and will also support companies providing construction materials to complete the projects under Covid-19 construction guidelines," he said. Meanwhile, the Department of Education has confirmed that remediation works planned for some schools where fire safety breaches and structural defects were discovered have been put on hold due to the coronavirus outbreak. Some of the schools constructed by Western Building Systems were due to undergo continuing works but a department spokesperson said: "The Departments current construction programme of work has temporarily halted as a result of COVID-19, in line with public health advice. "When more is known about the timing for the resumption of construction sites, the department will liaise directly with the relevant school principals and patron bodies. This is an evolving situation and any decision to recommence work will be on foot of public health advice." By last November the state had already spent some 40m on a number of schools that needed remediation works. The Department said it also continues to liaise with the Chief State Solicitors Office and the Attorney Generals Office on the on-going legal process. Separately, ICTU-affiliated trades councils have welcomed the department of housing's decision to provide mortgage breaks for those repaying local authority home loans. The Trades Council Network said while banks had agreed to provide a three-month break for mortgage holders hit by the Covid-19 crisis, there was no such deal for those with Rebuilding Ireland home loans. TCN national coordinator, Fiona Dunne, said they have now learned that the Department of Housing has put in place a scheme which provides for a temporary break in repayments. "In a time of such uncertainty and worry for many workers and their families, this will help allay some of those fears and ensure that workers can survive this crisis whilst keeping a roof over their heads," she said. She urged any worker experiencing financial difficulties due to the Covid-19 crisis and which hits their mortgage repayments to contact their local authority. By Lukas van der Merwe, Specialist Sales Executive: Security, T-Systems South Africa As countries around the world struggle to contain the spread of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, cybercriminals are wasting no time trying to exploit potential vulnerabilities resulting from the lockdown that has confined most people to working remotely, with relatively less secure devices. Cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab reported a major spike in network attacks in South Africa between 15 and 21 March, with hackers attacking up to 310,000 devices during that one-week period an alarming increase over the normal weekly average of 20,000 to 30,000. In a digital world, with billions of people and even more devices connected to the Internet via private, public and corporate networks, cybersecurity has become a priority concern. T-Systems estimates that the world will see 50 billion connected IOT-devices by this year. In addition, to flatten the pandemic curve, governments globally continue to implement lockdown and social distancing, forcing much larger percentages of the workforce to connect remotely. Lockdown will leave a lasting impact on how we work and requires a complete revision of how corporations view and address cyber risks. Even before the outbreak, South Africa was on the brink of a major transformative phase in cybersecurity. The imminent introduction of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) and cybercrime legislation, as well as a continued digitisation drive from business and the availability of cognitive technologies are paving the way for corporations to emerge victorious from the chrysalis. There will be greater focus on effective detection and response, while maintaining sophisticated protection in their cybersecurity DNA. However, the outbreak greatly accelerated the digital workplace and the lockdown forced companies to enable employees to work remotely. The risk is that many organisations may be left behind in a caterpillar like approach, while others may remain in the pupal state, overwhelmed by the complexity of this challenge. Those who emerge from the Chrysalis and are able to adapt and leverage next-generation technology underpinning Advanced Cyber Defences, will be much better prepared to grow sustainably in a digital post pandemic world. Keep in mind that technology and the security controls it enables do not inherently offer protection cyber resilience requires a holistic and proactive approach, owned at the highest levels of an organisation. With data classified and risks assessed relative to the specific business, T-Systems can advise appropriate controls and supporting technology to be deployed. Lead from the top For security to be effective, the leadership team must support and sponsor all initiatives, demonstrating to the organisation the importance of strong cybersecurity practices. A board member should be accountable for ensuring the security of the organisation this could be a Chief Information Risk Officer (CIRO), or Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). Employee cyber education is imperative, and should be engrained into standard operating policy and training throughout the year. Understand the risks Fundamentally, we need to know what we are trying to protect our corporate IP (for example, for an oil company this would be geological data, refinement processes, etc). We can then determine the risk to this IP, whether from external attack, or insider threat, in all its guises. This helps to determine a defensive value, or the consequence of a loss of this IP and we can determine the size of the security budget. Assess the present defences What is the maturity of our current cybersecurity defence? Do the pieces interact without issue, or do we have a number of different vendor solutions operating in isolation? What is the perceived effectiveness of current defences unless you regularly test the defences, this is probably an unknown. If you are operating discrete vendor solutions, chances are the effectiveness is low. This analysis shows a clear picture of the current security defence landscape, and where the gaps are. Devise a holistic strategy With the current landscape understood, we can build a risk assessment to determine where investment is needed. This allows the construction of a holistic and cohesive security strategy with all elements interacting to provide true threat intelligence and response. This all starts with a simple journey to understand whether the current organisational defences are effective. Cyber resilience is much more than a defensive strategy and requires earlier detection and rapid response in the event of a breach. In a data-driven digital economy, with cyberthreats increasing both in frequency and sophistication, South Africa is no exception and definitely not immune. The lockdown resulted in more employees working remotely using less secure devices and networks, exacerbating the already significant threat. This is likely to become the new normal and while the initial focus was on access and productivity, we have to address long term sustainability and security aspects. Next-generation technology like Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and advanced threat hunting can greatly assist, but less than 15% of corporations in South Africa has this deployed T-Systems has operated a Security Operation Centre in South Africa since 2010, offering Advanced Cyber Defence services, using the latest technology that integrates AI, Orchestration, Automation and Threat Hunting capability. The Centre forms part of our Managed Cyber Defence Services that consists of: SOC/SIEM,Testing and Vulnerability Scanning Services Network Security Application and Cloud Security Endpoint Security & Identity and Access Management IOT and Industrial Control Systems Security Get in contact with T-Systems: Police officers and firemen have been slammed on social media for breaking social distancing rules outside an Essex hospital last week. The large crowd of emergency workers and members of the public crammed together outside Southend Hospital last Thursday to applaud the NHS at 8pm. Officers were in touching distance of each other, ignoring the government's advice on preventing the spread of coronavirus. Police officers line up shoulder-to-shoulder in clear breach of the government's social distancing advice as they applaud the NHS at Southend Hospital last Thursday The event was meant to send a positive message to NHS workers but has been slammed on social media for creating more work for medics and hospital staff Police officers line up side-by-side as they applaud the NHS workers battling coronavirus inside the hospital. They turn the blue lights on their cars to celebrate the emergency workers inside and woops can be heard in the crowd. A nurse walks out the hospital to talk to some of the officers closest to the camera as she leaves the circle carrying a coffee cup. The crowds made a circle as they applauded frontline staff, with many taking videos and pictures of the occasion Critics have slammed the gathering of police officers, with many pointing out the hypocrisy of enforcing social distancing rules without actually abiding by them Wesley Fitzgerald said on Twitter: 'How can you seriously be praising this behaviour. 'My family and I are locked up, self isolating, my daughter missing exams and school, my son is missing school, my wife is furloughed. 'Why is my family doing this while these plums meet up for a happy clap in a massive group?' Another Twitter user wrote: 'Brilliant!! These people currently spend most of their days telling people to observe 'social distancing' and where necessary breaking up groups and gatherings and then arrange a mass gathering of their own? Really?' The video was posted online by health worker Julie Levere who said it was great to come out and have such a warm welcome. Staff at Southend Hospital in Essex (pictured) claim to be 'petrified' about the rationing of personal protective equipment (PPE) She said she was not allowed to comment on the situation inside the hospital with the treatment of patients, but added it was a 'surprise to see so many NHS support there after my shift'. She posted the short video online with the message: 'How lovely to come out of work to this Your Southend #NHS.' Last week Southend Hospital reported a total of 106 deaths from coronavirus since the outbreak began. Family GP Dr Habib Zaidi, 76, became the first British doctor to die of the coronavirus after sacrificing himself to care for others. He died in intensive care at Southend Hospital on March 25 after self isolating at home. GP Dr Habib Zaidi, 76, became the first British doctor to die of the coronavirus in Southend Hospital on March 25 Medics at the hospital warned they may need to limit services to a 'bare minimum' amid concerns over a shortage of protective equipment for staff earlier this month. Staff claimed to be 'petrified' about the rationing of personal protective equipment (PPE) in a letter to management. In a statement, Southend Hospital said: 'We are fully complying with the Public Health England guidance on the use of personal protective equipment which has been developed by expert clinicians and is being followed by the whole of the NHS. 'There are no issues whatsoever with the cost of equipment. It has been made clear that cost is not an issue in keeping our staff protected. 'What is important is that the supplies of PPE equipment across the NHS are used responsibly so there is enough to go round.' A guidance document issued to police forces in England last week said not sticking to social distancing advice is not against the law. It reads: 'Government guidance, like going outside once a day for a walk, run, cycle OR staying two metres away from people you dont live with, is not legally enforceable, but it is best practice and can be used to help to encourage people to change their behaviour.' The news comes after police officers in England were advised that people who sit on park benches for too long are likely to be breaking coronavirus lockdown rules. A document sent to forces cites advice from the Crown Prosecution Service on what might constitute a reasonable excuse to leave home under sweeping laws which give officers the power to enforce restrictions on movement and issue fines. It also indicated people should not be working from nearby parks rather than their home but suggested those who needed a cooling-off period after rows at home can move between households if they leave for several days. The document said stopping to rest or have a picnic lunch while on a long walk would be considered a reasonable excuse. Some 3,203 fines were handed out by police in England between March 27 and April 13 to those considered to be flouting the rules. Essex Polices say the 'officers involved have been reminded of the importance of social distancing' Essex Police said: 'We understand that trying to maintain social distancing can be tough. 'Trying to avoid friends, family, colleagues and other members of the community is not something we are used to doing. 'We even have to remind our own officers and staff to maintain social distancing when they can. 'They too can get carried away with doing everything they can to protect the people of Essex, or in this case in wanting to show colleagues in the NHS just how much they appreciate everything they are doing to save lives. 'Following this event in Southend, officers involved have been reminded of the importance of social distancing. 'It is really important we follow the government guidance and stay at least two metres away from those who do not live within our households. This applies to everyone, including police officers. 'By doing this we can reduce the risk of spreading infection, help protect the NHS, and save lives.' Spotlight: political scrutiny in the time of coronavirus As problems with the governments handling of coronavirus become more apparent, the need for political scrutiny gets more pressing If the nations of the UK had introduced lockdown measures and a comprehensive testing regime sooner, how many deaths could have been prevented? That is the key question hanging over ministers north and south of the border as public and political reaction to coronavirus passes from a state of shock and adjustment, to one of deep concern at how the situation in the UK has become far worse than in some other European countries. There have been 17 deaths per 100,000 in the UK compared to under five in Germany and Austria, according to Johns Hopkins Universitys Coronavirus Resource Centre. The Prime Minister being discharged from hospital after a spell in intensive care was met with warm good wishes, but the purdah on criticising Boris Johnson and his lieutenants, self-imposed by most politicians and the media for the duration of his illness, is fraying as the shortcomings of the UKs response compared to other countries becomes apparent. In South Korea, which has a population broadly similar in size to the UKs and registered its first cases 11 days earlier,the trace, test and treat strategy has had a major flattening effect on the famous coronavirus curve. Tests were quickly developed and manufactured, widely administered to the population and labs mobilised to handle them. In tandem with lockdown measures, this has enabled South Korea to keep deaths to under 250 so far. The South Korean economy is also coping better. People with the virus and those theyve been in contact with have been put in strict quarantine while schools, shops and cafes stay open. Closer to home in Germany, testing has been at a much higher level than in the UK, with over 100,000 diagnostic tests being done per day by the beginning of April (the UK health secretary has set a similar target for testing in England by the end of April). All this has thrown a harsher spotlight on the response of the four nations of the UK, which have operated largely in tandem in their response to COVID-19. Another key question is whether the initial advice of UK public health professionals back in March was mistaken and if so, whether pursuing a wrong-headed strategy wasted valuable time when the country should have been imposing stricter social distancing and pursuing a vigorous testing regime. Cracks are starting to show within government: Englands chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance criticised Public Health England last week for failing to scale up testing early enough. In Scotland, there was initially a target of 3,500 tests to be carried out per day by the end of April. A 100,000 target for the UK was then announced by Matt Hancock, prompting Nicola Sturgeon to confirm she would aim for 10,000 a day by the end of the month. Ministers in Scotland and at Westminster have urged caution in assessing the strategies of overseas governments, warning that no two countries are analogous and further increases in deaths could still occur in countries that appear to have the virus under control. Even so, they cannot escape tough questions around testing, especially as nearly every model for exiting the lockdown depends heavily upon it. The other urgent problem is the shortage of protective personal equipment (PPE) for healthcare professionals and care workers around the UK, which remains a cause of enormous anxiety to staff as we go to print. Masks, full sleeve gowns and gloves are essential gear but there have been jaw-dropping pictures of nurses having to make do with bin bags in place of protective wear. A UK-wide survey published on 13 April by the Doctors Association found that only half of doctors carrying out the highest risk procedures had access to full sleeve gowns. As deaths from coronavirus among healthcare professionals creep upwards, anger about the shortages was made worse by revelations in The Guardian that the UK government missed three chances to take part in an EU bulk buy scheme for the equipment; this after missing out on the mass procurement by the EU of ventilators. Its not just the amount of equipment thats at issue, but its quality. In Scotland, as the fourth week of lockdown began, an open letter was signed by more than 100 medical professionals calling for the Scottish Government to ensure staff had proper PPE instead of the thin plastic aprons, flimsy eye covers and low quality surgical masks some were being expected to wear. Separately, care workers have accused the Scottish government of gross negligence over provision of PPE. Unease has been heightened by concerns that deaths in care homes and in the community are being underreported. Around half of Scottish care homes have suspected cases of coronavirus. Sturgeon has pledged to produce robust and reliable data on this, but concerns about the level of testing in care homes has shaken confidence in the governments ability to provide accurate data or to protect vulnerable care home residents. The picture, then, is mixed, but the need for proper scrutiny of government decision-making is acute" But there have also been hefty achievements, principally the slowing of infection rates and the spare capacity in intensive care. In Scotland, the numbers in intensive care with COVID-19 rose just six per cent, from 199 to 211 cases, between April 6 and April 13, a huge slowdown on the previous week. As ministers keep stressing, a coronavirus peak is not Everest-like with a high apex and a precipitous descent on the other side, but more of a squat archway, so this does not mean the crisis is behind us. Complacency is coronaviruss greatest friend. But at least we are moving away from the nightmare scenario Italian doctors faced, where there werent enough intensive care beds to go around. The huge effort of mobilisation by the NHS and the selflessness of retired doctors and nurses in returning to work has been awe-inspiring. The other great success has been in public messaging. A feared flouting of social distancing rules during Easter weekend never happened and instead the governments of Holyrood and Westminster now find themselves faced with the unexpected question of how to persuade the population, when the time comes, to relax their behaviour, though that will not happen imminently. The picture, then, is mixed, but the need for proper scrutiny of government decision-making is acute. The Welsh Assembly got a virtual Senedd up and running on April 1 and there are proposals for parliamentary scrutiny to resume at Westminster on April 21, initially in the form of Prime Ministers Questions, urgent questions and statements, and progressing later to full online debates. At Holyrood, 19 MSPs drawn from across the chamber can now grill ministers about their handling of COVID-19, in addition to virtual First Ministers Questions, though at time of writing there was no confirmed plan for a virtual plenary session. Into this surreal world comes a new Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, and a new shadow Scottish secretary, Ian Murray, the tenacious Edinburgh South MP who kept his seat when all about him were losing theirs. Sir Keir has stood by his pledge to engage constructively with ministers over coronavirus but is trying to combine this with tough questions over the scaling up of testing, the provision of PPE and the need for honesty over how and when the lockdown might end. It remains to be seen how long he can perform this difficult balancing act. As for Sturgeon, the resignation of chief medical officer Catherine Calderwood following revelations that she visited her second home twice during lockdown, has left no lasting scars. There have been shades of difference between Westminster and Holyrood over their handling of COVID-19, with Sturgeon moving more quickly than Johnson at the beginning of the crisis to ban large gatherings and signaling more quickly that schools would be closed; the Scottish Government was also firmer in dousing speculation about any imminent relaxation of the lockdown measures. Even so, the reputation of her administration and that of the UK Government are intertwined. With fears mounting about the economy (the Office for Budget Responsibility warns of a possible 35 per cent contraction UK-wide by June) and other adverse impacts, she faces increasingly tricky questions. Criticism is mounting from opposition party health spokespeople. The Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw has even ventured into the constitutional debate, claiming it would look ridiculous for the SNP to return to campaigning for independence at next years Holyrood election, provoking an angry response from the SNP. What this signals, bit by bit, is a fragmenting of the consensus. Politics, it seems, is coming back. Thank you for tuning in to episode 69 of The CUInsight Experience podcast with your host, Randy Smith, co-founder of CUInsight.com. This episode is brought to you by our friends at PSCU. As the nations premier payments CUSO, PSCU proudly supports the success of more than 1,500 credit unions. On this weeks episode, Im exploring relevancy and strategic planning with my colleague and long-time friend, Bo McDonald. As President and CEO of Your Marketing Co, Bo has a ton of experience and knowledge helping credit unions, both large and small, refocus their marketing and member service efforts in order to stand out in the crowded financial landscape. Throughout the episode, Bo and I discuss what hes learned about remaining relevant and creating lasting, meaningful relationships since founding Your Marketing Co over 12 years ago. Bo shares how he has been able to translate those powerful lessons into helping credit unions, as well as his own business, find their why, define their ideal member/client, and develop a culture of service and empathy. Additionally, Bo and I discuss how his leadership style has been influenced and changed by those around him, starting with his time as a radio DJ up to now, and how the many mistakes hes made along the way have helped him become a better leader and teacher for his employees. We also talk about making difficult decisions, common myths about leadership, and taking a risk. Recalling his favorite piece of advice, he reminds us that cant, never did a thing. We finish up with the rapid-fire questions, where Bo shares what he wanted to be when he grew up, what has become more and less important in his life, and what credit union leader he thinks of when he hears the word success. I hope you enjoy this great episode and maybe even get a few chuckles from our conversation. Subscribe on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher Books mentioned on The CUInsight Experience podcast: Book List How to find Bo: Bo Mcdonald, President and CEO of Your Marketing Co bo@yourmarketingco.com www.yourmarketing.co Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn Show notes from this episode: A big thank you to our friends at PSCU, an amazing sponsor of The CUInsight Experience podcast. Thank you! Check out all the great work Bo and his team at Your Marketing Co are doing for credit unions here Shout-out: Greenville, South Carolina Shout-out: David Miller Shout-out: Lauren Culp Shout-out: Rhonda Hotard Shout-out: Jill Nowacki Shout-out: Leo Ardine Learn more about your personality with the DiSC assessment Shout-out: Bos father Shout-out: Mike Bartoo Shout-out: Jeff Olson Shout-out: Credit Union Association of the Dakotas Shout-out: Mills42 Federal Credit Union Shout-out: Maple Federal Credit Union Shout-out: HopeSouth Credit Union Shout-out: Bos friend in Nashville Shout-out: CUES Shout-out: Bos elementary school art teacher Shout-out: Todd Clark Shout-out: Bos former boss at the radio station Shout-out: Geoff Wasserman Shout-out: Scott Butterfield Shout-out: CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference Shout-out: Bos father Shout-out: Lois Kitsch Shout-out: Jim Morrell Shout-out: George Ombado Learn more about DE, the National Credit Union Foundations signature program Album mentioned: Greatest Hits by Elton John Album mentioned: Ultimate Collection: The Complete Hits by Captain and Tenille Book mentioned: Ego is The Enemy by Ryan Holiday Book mentioned: David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell Previous guests mentioned in this episode: Lauren Culp, Rhonda Hotard, Jill Nowacki (episodes 4, 18, 37 & 64), Leo Ardine, Jeff Olson, Todd Clark, Lois Kitsch, Jim Morrell, George Ombado, You can find all past episodes of The CUInsight Experience here. In This Episode: [01:51] Bo, welcome to the show! [03:02] Bo shares that relevance, and not knowing who we serve is the biggest issue he sees credit unions facing today. [04:08] How does your company help credit unions? [04:53] Bo speaks about what he thinks credit unions need to change to stay relevant. [06:09] When you are working with credit unions, do you help them define who their ideal member is? [09:27] Bo speaks about being able to spend more time in the office leading people and working directly with credit unions. [10:55] A year from now, what will you be the proudest of that you and your team have accomplished? [12:29] Bo shares that he has tried to temper his impatience and a short fuse, he tries to have more empathy. [14:26] Bo discusses what the inspiration was to start YMC twelve years ago. [16:00] How has the inspiration changed with time in the company? [17:13] Bo believes his leadership style is a teacher and what that means to him. [19:53] Bo shares what his team at YMC has heard him say so often they can finish the sentence. [21:46] Bo speaks about how he has cultivated the ability to make hard decisions. [22:50] What mistake do you see young leaders make today? [24:09] Bo shares some advice he was given growing up that he still uses today. [25:32] Bo chats about a mentor he had at the radio station. [28:07] Did you ever have a time in your business when you felt lost? What did you do to change it? [29:37] Bo describes what a typical workday looks like, and what he would call a perfect day. [31:45] Bo talks about what he does to unwind and recharge when he has a day off. [33:37] Bo shares that he was a geek in high school, and the first time he got into trouble. [34:01] Bo says he wanted to be a bus driver when he grew up and a radio DJ, the latter of which he worked as for ten years. [35:05] What is your favorite album of all time? [35:39] What book do you think everyone should read? [37:40] Bo shares that time has become more important, and money has become less important. [38:52] When you hear the word success, who comes to mind? [40:30] Bos final thought is, evaluate your leadership. Be a better leader today than you were ten years ago. [41:38] -Thank you again, Bo, for being on the show today. A senior NHS nurse has claimed that healthcare professionals from Black Asian and Ethnic Minority groups (BAME) are having to work on coronavirus wards more than their white colleagues. Carol Cooper, who is the head of equality, diversity and human rights at Birmingham Community Hospital said her staff were 'terrified' because of the current pandemic. She said: 'BAME staff feel that they are being put on Covid wards and exposed to patients with Covid over and above their colleagues. 'Some are saying they are being taken from the wards that they usually work on and put on the Covid wards and they feel that there is a bias - the same bias that existed before they are feeling is now influencing their being appointed and they are terrified, everybody is terrified'. Carol Cooper (pictured above), who is the head of equality, diversity and human rights at Birmingham Community Hospital has claimed that workers from BAME backgrounds are being moved onto Covid-19 wards She highlighted that she understood everyone across the NHS was frightened but added that 'a focus on equality needed to be maintained'. Informal information on deaths suggest those from BAME backgrounds were overrepresented, noting that the first 10 doctors to have died after testing positive were from BAME backgrounds. The government last week announced that it will be launching a formal review into the impact of the coronavirus on people from BAME backgrounds, including staff, although the timescale of the inquiry is not clear. This is while a report by Professor Richard Webber, from Newcastle University, and writer and former Labour Party politician, Trevor Phillips stated that areas with large ethnic minority populations make up more than three quarters of England's coronavirus hotspots. Research shows that the majority (13 out of 17) areas of England with higher-than-average levels of COVID-19 also have large ethnic minority populations. The England average for ethnic minority is 14 per cent, according to 2011 Census data Trevor Phillips asks whether lack of Muslims in England's coronavirus hotspots may be down to their rigorous hand-washing practice five times a day By Sam Blanchard for MailOnline Areas with large ethnic minority populations make up more than three quarters of England's coronavirus hotspots, a report has revealed. But numbers coming from Muslim communities in areas which could be expected to be hard-hit are low, and cultural habits may be protecting England's Muslims from the fast-spreading disease. That's according to a report by Professor Richard Webber, from Newcastle University, and writer and former Labour Party politician, Trevor Phillips. Trevor Phillips wrote in an editorial accompanying the report: 'Maybe there is a revelation to be had here; if one key to stopping transmission of the virus is hand washing, might a faith community many of whose members ritually wash before five-times-a-day prayers have something to teach the rest of us?' The report points out that while areas with high proportions of non-white people make up most of the UK's coronavirus hotspots, Asian Muslim areas, largely, do not. Blackburn, Bradford, Luton, Rochdale and Rotherham, Mr Philips said, are 'conspicuous by their absence' on the list of worst-hit places by the coronavirus as both non-white and poor areas. He suggests that regular hand-washing before prayer, a young average age and fewer than one in three Muslim women being in work may offer the population ongoing protection from COVID-19. The report comes as Public Health England launches an inquiry into why non-white people appear to be worse affected by the disease - intensive care reports show that 34.5 per cent of critically ill patients come from ethnic minority groups, despite only making up around 14 per cent of the population. Scientists say black and Asian people may be at greater risk of catching the disease because they're more likely to live in densely-populated cities and work in people-facing jobs such as public transport or the NHS. Advertisement It also revealed that numbers coming from Muslim communities in areas which could be expected to be hard-hit are low, and cultural habits may be protecting England's Muslims from the fast-spreading disease. The report points out that while areas with high proportions of non-white people make up most of the UK's coronavirus hotspots, Asian Muslim areas, largely, do not. Blackburn, Bradford, Luton, Rochdale and Rotherham, Mr Philips said, are 'conspicuous by their absence' on the list of worst-hit places by the coronavirus as both non-white and poor areas. He suggests that regular hand-washing before prayer, a young average age and fewer than one in three Muslim women being in work may offer the population ongoing protection from COVID-19. The report comes as Public Health England launches an inquiry into why non-white people appear to be worse affected by the disease - intensive care reports show that 34.5 per cent of critically ill patients come from ethnic minority groups, despite only making up around 14 per cent of the population. Ms Cooper added: 'People are dying, I personally get calls every single day about people that I know who have died and so for me this is such an important issue'. Scientists have also said that people from BAME backgrounds are at a 'greater risk' from coronavirus because these communities were more likely to have 'a number of comorbidities' such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, sickle cell, thalassaemia and lupus. And greater numbers of non-white people working in public-facing jobs may increase their risk. 44 per cent of NHS medical workers, for example, are racial minorities, and the Webber Phillips report suggests 'black transport and security workers'. The most recent report by ICNARC (Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre) showed just 65.5 per cent of patients were white. Nationally, 86 per cent of the population is white, according to Census data from 2011. Asians made up 14.9 per cent of the 4,873 patients in the intensive care report, but 7.5 per cent of the population, and black people 11.2 per cent (3.3 per cent population). A total of 8.4 per cent of the patients were mixed race or 'other'. Death data from NHS England is slightly less damning - of the 13,918 people deaths recorded by Sunday, April 19, 17 per cent were among minorities (2,349). This is closer to the 14 per cent of the population ethnic minorities made up in 2011, but still disproportionate, and 10 per cent of the deaths were still uncategorised. Ms Cooper also warned that the pandemic is 'shining a light on the inequalities which are part of the system in which we exist'. 'Many of us knew that BAME people would be overrepresented - given their proportion of the population - in the mortality and morbidity figures because of the comorbidities that exist in our communities. Sweden has managed to keep its daily infection rate at around 60 per million people a day for the last week. In the UK it has been 70 per million and in Spain it has been around 90 per million INQUIRY LAUNCHED INTO 'DISPROPORTIONATE' EFFECT ON NON-WHITE PEOPLE Public Health England and the NHS have launched an inquiry into why ethnic minority citizens have been 'disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 epidemic. At least 17 per cent of people who have died of the coronavirus in NHS hospitals have been non-white, along with 34.5 per cent of intensive care patients. However, minorities only make up around 14 per cent of the population of England. The first 10 doctors to die in the UK from COVID-19 were all from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds - with ancestry from regions including Asia, the Middle East and Africa, a figure Labour described as 'deeply disturbing'. BAME staff make up 44 per cent of medical personnel and Labour and the British Medical Association were among those calling for an inquiry. Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said last week: It is absolutely critical that we find out which groups are most at risk so we can help to protect them.' He said that while it was clear age, male gender and having other health problems were clear risk factors, the evidence for ethnicity was 'less clear'. 'I have had discussions with scientists about this in terms of trying to tease this apart today - also looking very specifically at healthcare workers with leaders of the NHS and across the medical and nursing professions,' he told a daily news conference. 'This is something we are very keen to get extremely clear. We have asked PHE to look at this in some detail and then what we really want is if we see any signal at all we want to then next know what we can do about it to minimise risk.' Advertisement 'This is because of the location of our communities in terms of the workforce being on the frontline and because of the amount of people that are caught in the poverty trap and live in households that have higher occupancy,' she added. 'There is all sorts of multiple deprivations that people are subject to now and I think Covid is throwing a light on the cracks in society and I think we're going to have to rethink how we exist as a society, how we care for one another, how we care for the most vulnerable people in our society.' Ms Cooper is now calling for a 'centre for ethnic health' to research into the 'disparities and variations'. 'This moment in time cannot be passed without something happening because people are dying. 'I'm saying this to the highest level of government. I'm saying this to the minister of health. I am saying this to the prime minister. I am saying this country needs a centre for ethnic health to begin to take seriously the health of our population and respond to it. 'Not just to talk, not just to churn out data, but to begin to commission real research into the disparities and variations in our communities and begin to take preventative action to support the health of the BAME population. We can't go past this point without that.' Ms Cooper said that a campaign to name one of the new temporary hospitals in England after British-Jamaican nursing pioneer Mary Seacole had hit a 'brick wall'. Under current plans, all emergency Covid-19 hospitals in England are due to be named after Florence Nightingale. Both Mary Seacole and Florence Nightingale earned fame for their work nursing sick and wounded soldiers during the Crimean War. Yvonne Coghill, director of the Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) implementation team at NHS England and deputy president of the Royal College of Nursing, is among those calling for a hospital to take Mary Seacole's name as a simple way to acknowledge the contribution of BAME staff working on the frontline during the pandemic. 'They don't want to recognise our contribution over a matter of centuries, and still our contribution is not being recognised, but people are literally giving their lives, but we are of less value and that needs to change', Ms Cooper added. MailOnline has contacted Public Health England and NHS England. States and union territories (UTs) can take stricter action than what is mentioned in the guidelines issued by the central government to enforce the nationwide lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but cannot dilute or weaken them, the Union home ministry said on Monday. Joint secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Punya Salila Srivastava, said home secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote fresh communication to the states as some of them were issuing certain guidelines that amounted to "diluting" the lockdown leading to "severe repercussions to health" of the citizens. "MHA is regularly monitoring the lockdown situation in the country. Wherever lockdown is being violated we (MHA) are taking adequate action in coordinationwith state governments," she said while briefing reporters about the updates on lockdown measures being implemented across the country. "Yesterday, MHA again wrote letterto states and UTs that guidelines issued by it under the disaster management Act are to be followed strictly," she said. "They (states and UTs) can undertake stricter steps as per their local conditions but not dilute or weaken them," she added. Writing this letter became important, she said, as in some states facilities were being allowed which were not permitted under the MHA guidelines. The ministry also wrote to the Kerala government about the directives issued by the state and expressedits concerns over it, she said. The ministry, through a letter written by Bhalla to Kerala chief secretary Tom Jose, came down heavily on the state government for its decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in urban areas, saying it amounts to dilution of lockdown guidelines and also a Supreme Court observation. Srivastava said that some things, mentioned in the Kerala-issued order, violated MHA guildelines issued under the disaster management Act and was tantamount to "diluting the lockdown." They were requested that national guidelines should be followed, she said. Also, attention was drawn towards the Supreme Court observation of March 31 where it said that all state governments and people should follow the central government's directives with honesty and dedication and in letter and spirit. The MHA officer said it was found that some districts in other states were also violating the lockdown and that can have "severe repercussions for health." In some districts, she said, the COVID-19 situation is grave or is inching towards that. Srivastava identified these districts as Jaipur in Rajasthan, Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, Kolkata, Howrah, North 24 Parganas, Medinipur East, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Kalimpong in West Bengal. She said six inter-ministerial teams have been formed by the MHA for visiting the above mentioned four states and they have now reached their respective locations. These teams are led by an additional secretary-rank officer of the central government and each of them have six members comprising a senior public health specialist and an official from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), she said. The MHA's effort is to ensure that all available expertise, as far as possible, should be shared with the states in the interest of the people. These teams will assess the hotspot areas, health and medical infrastructure management, issues related to disaster management and will "cooperate" with the states. They will give a report on the lockdown rules and supply of essential goods, social distancing norms, health services and security of health workers and also check the status of relief camps being run for poor and labourers in these states. "The purpose of the inter-ministerial teams is to provide support and assistanceto the states in their endeavour to combat COVID-19," she said. "The teams have been very carefully constituted so that support can be provided from health, administrative and disaster management aspects and I am sure states will benefit from it," she added. We hope that with these steps, we will be successful in the mission against coronavirus, the officer said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Not every day does a rank outsider make it big in Bollywood! Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh are some of the few superstars who have made a huge mark in the industry despite having no industry connections. And now, in just eight years, Ayushmann Khurrana too, is a legitimate and a bonafide star; thanks to his unconventional roles. Ayushmann's brand equity stands for backing the best quirky content that is being made by the industry. The actor is known for picking up taboo topics that no leading hero has ever taken up to do a movie on. Be it be sperm donation in Vicky Donor, someone with erectile dysfunction in Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, India's fragmented and very sensitive caste politics in Article 15, a gay hero in Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhaan, body shaming in Dum Laga Ke Haisha, he has always stepped out of his comfort zone and succeeded. On his eighth anniversary in Bollywood, Ayushmann opened up about his rise and rise as a breakaway star. While fondly looking back at his incredible journey, the actor said, "It has been a gratifying, humbling and thrilling eight years and I would not want to change anything about it. I only have gratitude to the universe for enabling me to chase my dreams. It wasn't easy, it had its share of tears and lack of self-confidence but it sure has been super exciting." The star said that he has several things to be grateful for in his journey to stardom. "I'm grateful to the industry for welcoming an outsider like me with open arms, I'm thankful to all the visionary film-makers who made me a part of their stories because whatever I'm today is because of them.I'm also supremely thankful to the audiences for loving my work and constantly validating my film choices with so much affection. They have told me when I have been correct in choosing the best content films and I have learnt from them when I have faltered," said the Dream Girl actor. Ayushmann is clear that he wants to back the best cinema that is being made by the industry. The actor was quoted as saying, "For me, the past eight years has only been about growth and my journey in cinema has just started. I wish to back the best films that will be made in the Hindi film industry and be a part of the phenomenal visions of the leading story-tellers of my generation. I can't wait to know what my future holds for me." For him, the responsibility to deliver great cinema to audiences drives him tremendously. "I realize the responsibility I have today to deliver good cinema because audiences expect my films to be differential and clutter-breaking but I'm relishing this expectation. This only shows that people want to see my films in theatres and in today's day and age that's the best compliment for any actor to get," said the actor. Speaking about films, Ayushmann will next be seen in Shoojit Sircar's Gulabo Sitabo. The film also stars Amitabh Bachchan. Ayushmann Khurrana Condemns Heinous Attacks On Cops Amid Coronavirus Lockdown Ayushmann Khurrana Plays Bella Ciao On A Piano; Says He Wants To Play The Professor From Money Heist ...there is a clear need for supportive, problem-based resources for these important courses. Walch Education, the leader in providing tailored curriculum resources to districts and the developer of the ground-breaking Curriculum Engine, announces the availability of two TEKS-aligned high school mathematics courses for the 2020/2021 school year, Math Models and Applications (MMA) and Advanced Quantitative Reasoning (AQR). Texas school districts told us of the need for authentic TEKS-aligned MMA and AQR resources, said Al Noyes, and the Curriculum Engine, which seamlessly supports teacher- directed personalized learning in the classroom and beyond, is the right platform at the right time. Walch works closely with school districts across the United States where the one-size-fits-all digital and print resources offered by traditional publishers fall short of meeting the needs of their teachers and students. Curriculum leaders and teachers spend too much of their limited time searching the web or otherwise trying to fill gaps in existing resources. By offering them authentic, aligned resources on the turnkey Curriculum Engine platform, and providing print resources as well, Walch helps free up time and energy so that it can be spent with students. Joanne Whitley, Walchs Senior Director of Product Development noted that there is a clear need for supportive, problem-based resources for these important courses. The only alternatives Texas schools have today are dated, and limited in terms of the instructional options they provide. We are grateful to be working with Texas school districts to develop these courses for next school year. About Walch Education Walch is a leading developer and publisher of tailored high school math curriculum. Adapted to fit the needs of each state and district partner, Walchs proven solutions give teachers everything they need to extend and enhance student learning. The companys Curriculum Engine is leading the way in the new category of Curriculum as a Service offerings, helping teachers teach more effectively so that students can succeed. The Curriculum Engine is a uniquely turnkey solution, enabling school districts to rapidly support a seamless transition from classwork to remote work, and back again. For more information, please visit http://www.curriculumengine.com or call 207-772-2846. Even as oil prices are battered down to 18-year lows, one energy fund thinks $100 a barrel is achievable. But first, prices need to fall even further. Westbeck Capital Managements Energy Opportunity Fund climbed 20.2 percent in March after declines in the first two months of the year, according to an investor letter. That puts the commodities-focused fund up 3.7 percent in the first quarter after U.S. oil futures cratered 66 percent -- their worst quarter ever. The fund, which gained 40 percent last year shorting U.S. shale companies, has turned its attention to oil tanks filling up at various points around the world, particularly at the biggest U.S. hub in Cushing, Oklahoma. With too much oil and not enough places to put it, Cushing may reach storage limits by mid-May, a market dislocation that could portend the next leg of a price rout. Whats happening now is extremely bullish for oil further out, London-based Westbeck Chief Executive Officer Jean-Louis Le Mee said in an interview. When we are on the other side of the pandemic, we think oil demand will normalize very quickly. And next year, we could even see unprecedented inventory draws and the world quickly running out of spare capacity. That rout will mean more U.S. shale producers will have to throttle back output, some of which could be permanent, he said. The shut-ins, coupled with a recent deal by OPEC and allied members to curb production, could set the stage for a price rebound in coming years. Le Mee, who previously co-founded energy fund BlueGold Capital Management, said that West Texas Intermediate crude could trade around $16 to $17 in the next four to five weeks with storage filling up. Further out, inventories could start drawing down in the second half of the year provided that the spread of the coronavirus eases. U.S. energy company shares rallied Friday on speculation parts of the country would soon begin to emerge from the coronavirus lockdown, which has crushed fuel demand. The S&P 500 Energy Index climbed 7.7 percent, with EOG Resources Inc. up 12percent. With U.S. production not returning completely given natural declines from shale and older wells, and unprecedented capital expenditure cuts for long-term projects, a return to normal could mean spare capacity -- the volume of production that can be brought on quickly -- could run out. If all that pans out, there will be a buying opportunity in oil equities. If you look back at the highs of 2014, a lot of the oil equities are down 90 percent to 95 percent. So, if were right in projecting much higher oil prices at the end of 2021 and 2022, theres a huge opportunity there, he said, adding that he favors certain names like Parex Resources Inc., MEG Energy Corp. and Whitecap Resources Inc. While the fund has benefited from the move lower in oil prices, its had to delay plans to gear up the launch of its new Volta fund focused on batteries and renewables due to the spread of coronavirus. Rise of Retail Some of the volatility in recent weeks has been caused by the large amount of money thats flowed into the oil exchange-traded products space, with a surge of interest from retail investors looking to find a bottom. Investors have added more than $1 billion over the past week to the United States Oil Fund. As of April 16, the USO accounted for more than one-quarter of the open interest in the June WTI contract. Weve been surprised by the amount of money thats gone into long ETFs lately, Le Mee said. However, when Cushing hits tank tops and prices collapse, retail investors could suddenly start liquidating, accelerating any selloff, he said. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Nearly 16% of students on average in New York City public schools are not interacting in remote learning during the coronavirus (COVID0-19) outbreak, according to attendance data released by education officials. The city Department of Education (DOE) reported 84.3% of students in grades pre-K through high school are engaging in schoolwork, according to data collected from April 6-14. As a comparison, during the 2018-2019 school year, the average daily attendance rate was 91.5%, according to DOE records. This cannot be considered attendance in the traditional sense, but helps us understand who is and isnt interacting daily, and is data were using to support students and prevent learning loss, said Miranda Barbot, spokeswoman for the DOE, in a statement. This allows us to push for the best learning experience possible and prioritize meaningful engagement, frequent learning opportunities, and continued support from staff. Schools are expected to indicate which students havent interacted in a given day, similar to marking students absent or present during in-person attendance procedures. Students in third to fifth grades had the highest average daily interaction at 87.9%, followed by pre-K to second grade at 85.9%, and middle school grades at 85.7%, the data shows. Students in high school had the lowest attendance -- at 77.1% on average, according to the data. Since remote learning began on March 23, schools have been responsible for developing student engagement policies and procedures that are designed to ensure regular attendance-related objectives and responsibilities. That includes maintaining accurate records of student engagement, monitoring patterns of student absences, and using effective intervention strategies to improve student engagement and interaction. Schools began to report attendance to the DOE through the Student Interaction Tracker on STARS Classroom on April 6, which is an online system that schools use during normal operation. It is typically used for grade entry to generate reports, such as class rosters, course enrollment and report cards. *** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK *** Each school has defined interaction in a different way during remote learning. It can include if a student submits an assignment or completes an assessment or participates in an online forum, chat log, or discussion thread. Some attendance doesnt involve school work but can be a student/family phone call, email or response to teacher email, or other digital communication with a family member that confirms student interaction or engagement. Other evidence of participation is determined by school principals. Moving 1.1 million students to remote learning was an unprecedented effort, and while we knew nothing could replace in-person instruction and support, we immediately shifted to develop a structure that made sense for schools and kept students involved," said Barbot in a statement. The data only reflects 81% of the student population on average in New York City public schools, as schools continue to learn and adjust to uploading student interaction data, the DOE said. As of April 14, data was uploaded to represent 90% of the student population. The agency is working closely with schools to upload the remaining student interaction data. TRACKING ATTENDANCE During remote learning, principals identified a designee to collect daily schoolwide interaction and attendance. Schools are expected to complete and upload their student interaction and attendance data by 3 p.m. of the following day. For example, interaction and attendance for April 20 should be entered by 3 p.m. on April 21. Aligned with normal intervention procedures, effective attendance tracking and intervention practices for students who remain absent must be implemented after standard follow-up and outreach measures. Schools should be able to identify the reason a student remains absent, take appropriate follow-up action, and re-engage the student. The DOE is asking schools to conduct an additional focused round of outreach to students who arent consistently engaging to identify barriers and help students and families overcome the barriers. Schools should develop a plan to reach out via phone, email, or remote learning application to ensure students have devices, language access, and any academic or social-emotional support needed. According to the DOE, students cannot fail their courses because of absence. Moving forward, schools wont include attendance in any grade calculations for the rest of the school year. Promotion decisions will be based on academic progress and not attendance. Families should expect schools to make promotion decisions in June as they normally would. 38 Life on lockdown: Coronavirus in NYC FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. Three uniformed women helping a wounded male GI cast in bronze as the Vietnam Womens Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. A larger-than-life bronze statue of President Ronald Reagan at the Reagan Presidential Library in California and the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City. And bronze sculptures all around New Mexico from the Sidewalk Society pedestrians and skateboarder on Albuquerques Civic Plaza, to the Park Place man and dog at the Albuquerque Museum, to the mother and child Crossing the Prairie at Christus St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe. These are but a few of the well-loved works of renown artist and longtime Santa Fe resident Glenna Goodacre, who died April 13 of natural causes at the age of 80. But Goodacre didnt just create large-scale works of art. You likely have one of her most well-known pieces tucked away in a drawer. Because anyone who has a Sacagawea dollar coin, depicting the young Shoshone woman who guided the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1804, has a work by Glenna Goodacre. Her works are in collections in more than 40 countries. Not bad for someone who got a D in sculpting at Colorado College. Goodacre titled her 1994 commencement address to the colleges graduates Success is the Greatest Revenge. Success is an understatement. New Mexico and the world is more beautiful because of Goodacre and the talent she shared. 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. New Jersey would cut the hours and pay of 100,000 public workers under a plan unveiled Monday by state Senate President Stephen Sweeney. But public employees would be able to collect payments that would exceed their regular wages because of the recent expansion in unemployment benefits, he said. The proposal, which would have to be passed by the state Legislature and signed into law by the governor, would allow the state and local governments to save hundreds of millions of dollars by making workers take unemployment for several days a week over three months while also keeping their health benefits. Sweeney, D-Gloucester, said his plan could stave off the drastic public-sector layoffs that the governor and local officials warn loom if tax revenues continue to plummet in response to the coronavirus crisis. I would much rather furlough workers and keep them whole on their benefits and income than lay them off, he said Monday. We dont want to add any more problems to an already troubled economy. The proposal capitalizes on federal aid for unemployed workers that increases weekly unemployment benefits by $600 under the massive stimulus bill, called the CARES Act, passed by Congress and signed by President Trump last month. With that additional unemployment compensation, many low- and middle-income New Jersey workers will collect more on unemployment than while working, Sweeney said. Hetty Rosenstein, state director of the Communications Workers of America, which represents many state and local government employees, said on Monday the union is always looking for creative solutions and will review the proposal carefully. A spokeswoman for Gov. Phil Murphy, Alyana Alfaro, declined to comment on the proposal specifically, but said Murphy "remains committed to ensuring that as many New Jerseyans as possible remain gainfully employed as we combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Some state and local employees work hours and wages would be reduced to 40% essentially, working two days out of five while unemployment insurance and the federal $600 add-on would make up for the other 60% of lost wages, according to Sweeney. The $600 add-on expires the end of July. In some cases, employees could make more than their regular salary, Sweeney said. An employee making $30,000 would actually collect an extra $5,100 over three months while furloughed, while an employee making $50,000 would come out $3,300 ahead and someone with $70,000 in income would make an extra $1,008, according to Sweeney. A worker earning $76,500 would break even, according to Sweeneys office, which said the proposal would not affect employees pension or health benefits. The states unemployment trust fund would not have to pick up the tab for these workers unemployment benefits, because of a lesser-known provision of the federal CARES Act that says the federal government will finance unemployment benefits if public- and private-sector employers furlough workers rather than outright lay them off, Sweeneys office said. Were not hurting anybody, but were increasing revenue from the federal pot, Sweeney said. The Senate Majority Office estimated the state and local government employers would save $750 million over three months by furloughing a quarter of the states 400,000 public-sector workforce. Three-quarters of the states public workers make less than $76,500, and are non-uniformed state, county, school and municipal government employees, according to Sweeneys office. While some state and local agencies have seen demand for their services wane, not every government worker could be furloughed, as the workers in public safety, teaching, health and social services offices are badly needed on the job, the Senate president said. Both the New Jersey League of Municipalities and the Association of Counties said the proposal has promise as a way to temporarily reduce spending. The challenge is to make sure that vital services continue seamlessly and that other operations are maintained, said Michael Cerra, league deputy director. Were generally supportive of it, said John Donnadio, executive director of the counties association. I think this is a creative way to look at a certain revenue problem in the state and one that really doesnt pose any potential harm to public employees. Murphy on Saturday warned New Jersey was in store for historic layoffs of public workers if the federal government doesnt come through with billions of dollars more in aid or if state lawmakers dont back his plan to borrow up to $9 billion from the Federal Reserve. The governor has said state tax revenues are falling off a cliff as businesses are closed and residents stay home to stop the spread of the coronavirus. School districts, counties and municipalities could face huge budget shortfalls if state funding ebbs and homeowners struggle to pay their property tax bills. Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. As federal lawmakers continue to discuss stimulus packages to help the country cope with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has urged President Donald Trump to include emergency aid for cities warning that a failure to do so could force municipal governments to cut vital services and lay off scores of employees. In a letter sent to the White House on Friday, Kenney said that cities were incurring extraordinary expenditures to respond to the health crisis while also experiencing a sharp decline in tax revenues, with most businesses closed and consumers slowing their spending. The mayor did not offer specifics about the citys financial situation, but did say that the consequences would be dire if the federal government did not offer financial help. Without this assistance, cities like Philadelphia will be forced to take drastic steps to balance their budgets, including massive layoffs and drastic cuts to vital services, which will deprive residents of the services they need, exacerbate the damage being done to local economies, and lessen the possibility of a speedy economic recovery," Kenney wrote. The letter was another proclamation from the mayor about a potentially crushing economic blow to the city. Earlier this month, Kenney announced that he was scrapping his $5.2 billion budget proposal due to a severe drop-off in tax revenues. He did not specify what changes would be made to a new spending proposal, saying simply: Its not going to be easy, and its not going to be pleasant. But at the end of it, we need a balanced budget. Kenney also sent a plea for assistance to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this month, saying that cities had experienced massive and unprecedented declines in revenue as a result of the economic downturn. Mike Dunn, a city spokesperson, said Kenney was unavailable for an interview Sunday. In an email, Dunn said: "We would anticipate that without help from Washington, every city service, including those affecting the citys most vulnerable residents, would be impacted in some way. And though Dunn declined to quantify potential levels of layoffs for city employees, he said that labor costs were the citys biggest operating expense, and that it would be difficult to reduce spending without impacting employment levels in some way. Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority (PICA) estimated that the city could lose $310 million to $400 million in revenue in the current quarter, which runs from April through June, in addition to losses from March and any months later this year in which a stay-at-home order continues. The city has about $439 million in its reserve fund, which officials have warned would cover just 30 days of the citys operating expenses. And one of the citys significant revenue sources, the wage tax, is certain to take a hit with businesses closed and some employees eligible to stop paying it if they work from outside the city. Philadelphia is hardly alone in worrying about its financial health during the pandemic. Last month, Gov. Tom Wolfs administration laid off about 2,500 part-time and seasonal employees amid a decline in state tax revenues. Kenney, a Democrat who has frequently criticized Trump, a Republican even over the coronavirus outbreak did not reference their differences in asking the president for the governments assistance. The health of our people and our economies are dependent on your actions in the coming days and weeks, Kenney wrote. I ask that you act decisively and expeditiously during this unprecedented time for our nation. So, what's everyone up to this week? Jk, jk. Some of you are able to work from home, but many aren't. So here's how to keep occupied while we continue to shelter in place this week: Chat live with Josey Baker, attend Cal Academy's online Big Bang Gala, catch a virtual drag show, become a master mixologist, and more. Have a good one! Have a burning baking question? Ask Josey Baker. // instagram.com Bid on rare bottles of wine at auction to support the Restaurant Workers Community Foundation. // 86lostwages.org On Tuesday, dine in to support the work of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. // doflsf.org Test your trivia skills for a chance to win a free meal and drink delivered from Tempest. // instagram.com Party with OMCA on Friday night. // museumca.org Celebrate Earth Day with a virtual floral workshop on Wednesday. // market.macarthurplace.com Check out ice dyeing, sound baths, DJ sets, cooking demos, and more at Renegade Craft's first virtual fair on Friday and Saturday. // renegadecraft.com Register in advance for Cal Academy's free Big Bang Gala, live online, 7pm to 8:30pm Thursday. // calacademy.zoom.us Catch a drag show, Saturdays 6:30pm to 9pm. // twitch.tv/dragalive Dance your ass off during Public Works SF's 4/20 concert, Clouds in the Distance, 3pm to 5pm Monday. // cloudsinthedistance.com Become a mixologist. // thecocktailcamp.com Take a virtual tour of Levi Strauss: A History of American Style, the Contemporary Jewish Museum's latest exhibition. // thecjm.org Download Ken Fulk's coloring book. // kenfulk.com Cook with chef Martin Yan during a livestream technique demo, Tuesday at 6pm. // kqed.org Catch an art thief in the Escape Game digital. // store.theescapegame.com Watch Saving the Bay: The Story of San Francisco Bay. // savingthebay.org Book a styling appointment with Everlane. // app.waitwhile.com Prince Philip has thanked scientists working to find a vaccine for COVID-19 as he makes a rare statement despite his retirement. The Duke of Edinburgh, who is 98, recognised the urgent work being carried out by medical teams and scientists ahead of World Immunisation Week. The message reads: As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from COVID-19. On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected. The duke retired from public life in 2017, carrying out his final engagement in August of that year. However he still retains many of his patronages, and is still affiliated to about 750 organisations. Read more: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle cut ties with four UK tabloids over 'invasive' stories Prince Philip has sent a message to mark the work of scientists during coronavirus. (Getty Images) This includes London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine where experts are working in a global response, and Cambridge University, where more than 1,200 scientists have volunteered to support research efforts. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how coronavirus is spreading He is currently in Windsor with his wife, the Queen, where they are keeping isolated to avoid catching coronavirus. They arrived in Windsor a week earlier than originally planned for Easter Court and a date for his return to Sandringham and hers to London is understood to not be set. Story continues Read more: Coronavirus: Queen cancels birthday gun salutes for first time amid COVID-19 pandemic Prince Philip at the Royal Windsor Horse Show 2019 in May. (Getty Images) Philip attended the wedding of Lady Gabriella Windsor with family. (Getty Images) A statement from the Queen in March included her husbands name as she said they know that many individuals and families across the United Kingdom, and around the world, are entering a period of great concern and uncertainty. Since then, she has made a rare televised broadcast to address the nation and the Commonwealth as well as delivered her first ever Easter message. The duke does not make public appearances any more but does still attend some family events, including weddings. He gave up his driving licence after a car crash in Sandringham, where he collided with a car after being dazzled by the sun. He was 97 at the time. Read more: Coronavirus: Queen says 'better days will return' as she addresses nation and Commonwealth The Duke of Edinburgh leaves King Edward VII Hospital in London, in December 2019. (Getty Images) The duke, who turns 99 in June, spent time in hospital around Christmas, but was being treated for a pre-existing condition. The Royal Family has been involved in several aspects of the coronavirus response with Prince Charles, Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall and Prince William all helping to open field hospitals across the country. Prince William and his wife the Duchess of Cambridge have carried out many engagements virtually as they cannot attend in person. Coronavirus: what happened today Asymptomatic Covid-19 infections are higher than symptomatic infections in several Indian states, including Karnataka and Assam, according to state officials. The trend reinforces evidence that asymptomatic silent spreaders are unknowingly infecting others. Meanwhile, as limited and conditional relaxations come into place in certain areas today, Delhi has said it will not immediately ease curbs that have been imposed to contain the coronavirus disease. Covid-19: Infections with no symptoms raise concerns across states Roughly two-thirds of all Covid-19 cases in 10 major states comprise people who did not show any symptoms at the time of testing, according to state government data that reinforced growing evidence that silent spreaders were possibly unknowingly infecting others, and underlined the need for extensive testing to isolate such patients. Read more Silent spreaders make Covid a bigger challenge: Experts Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday that all 186 people who were diagnosed with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) the previous day had exhibited no symptoms of illness, reinforcing evidence from other states that asymptomatic silent spreaders are unknowingly infecting others. Read more Covid curbs relaxation: Factories to run at limited capacity State governments are expecting 10 to 25% of industries to restart operations on Monday in the first easing of lockdown measures for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) as part of a staggered reopening of the economy, multiple officials said on Sunday. Read more Modi calls for unity, says virus doesnt see religion The coronavirus disease does not distinguish between race, religion, caste, colour and borders and humanitys response to this common challenge should be based on unity and brotherhood, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday, calling on Indians top to innovate a new work culture for the world. Read more Coronavirus update: In Madhya Pradesh, Assam, chartered planes ferrying samples A Beechcraft B 200 aircraft, which was otherwise used as official transport by the chief minister and governor of Madhya Pradesh, has become a key element to the states fight against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), according to people familiar with the matter. Read more No more tours, conferences: Lok Sabha secretariat draws austerity plan Tours by members of Parliament, canteens, conferences and many such expenses may come to a halt as the Lok Sabha secretariat, which runs the lions share of the Parliament establishment, has told its staff to not spend more than 20% of its budget in the first quarter (April-June). Read more Covid-19 outbreak: Curbs in Delhi wont be eased from today Delhi will not immediately ease any restrictions clamped under the national lockdown because coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases are on the rise in the national capital, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday, even as several other states announced relaxing some norms beginning Monday to jump-start the virus-hit economy. Read more Non-essential deliveries by e-tailers remain prohibited E-commerce companies such as Amazon and Filpkart are not allowed to sell products unless they are in the essential items list, the Union home ministry said in an order on Sunday, clarifying an earlier announcement that did not specify if these companies could start delivering products such as laptops, mobile phones and appliances from April 20. Read more Tourism that generates jobs and revenue in the state worst-hit: Jai Ram Thakur Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur spoke to Smriti Kak Ramachandran about steps to fight the coronavirus disease, its impact on the state economy - particularly tourism and horticulture, and a possible bailout package for some sectors. Read more Donald Trump warns China of dire consequences US President Donald Trump on Saturday said China should face consequences if it was found to have been knowingly responsible for the coronavirus outbreak. It could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasnt, and the whole world is suffering because of it, Trump said at a briefing. Read more Virus and the village: A Covid chronicle Most people arent leaving their homes in Abu Sayeed Ahmeds Khairabari village in Assams Barpeta district. They are following the official guidelines washing their hands, sanitising their homes, sewing their masks, said the 20-year-old. Read more How Covid-19 is affecting dialysis patients Kanchan Devi, 45, died last week after at least four hospitals were forced to refuse life-saving dialysis in the city. She had been on maintenance dialysis a procedure to filter blood the way a healthy kidney does twice a week for two-and-a-half years after she was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. Read more Covid-19 outbreak: Govt sets up national vaccine task force The central government on Sunday constituted another national task force on vaccine development and drug testing having representatives from the ministry of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) among others as members. Read more Covid-19: 60,000 imported PPE kits fail quality tests At least 60,000 of the nearly 200,000 personal protection equipment (PPE) kits donated by industry and philanthropic organisations have failed quality test over the past one month, officials familiar with the matter said on Sunday. Read more DGCA tells airlines not to resume bookings The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Sunday directed airlines to refrain from resuming online ticket bookings a day after civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri told them to restart the process only after a decision is taken to end the bar on domestic and international flight operations. Read more GREENWICH Members of the Board of Estimate and Taxation worked out the final details for the public to take part in the online public hearing set for Tuesday night on the proposed 2020-21 municipal budget. The hearing will take place digitally over the Zoom video conferencing app due to the coronavirus. The full agenda and a link to the hearing can be found at www.greenwichct.gov/virtualBET. Members of the public who wish to speak can log in and take part just like during a regular public hearing. Speakers must fill out the information at the link before Tuesdays meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. If you dont sign up in advance, you can still speak at the hearing. But you must fill out the form with a complete first and last name so your identity is known before you are recognized to speak. Additionally, the BET reported that it received nearly 150 written submissions that will become part of the official record of the meeting. Speakers on Tuesday will have the same three-minute limit on remarks as at a regular meeting. Jenny Larkin, who is assisting the towns IT Department in Zoom meetings, suggested that residents set the timer on their phones. The BET will be holding its budget vote also via Zoom on April 27. The full BET held its first Zoom meeting Monday, successfully handling a full agenda that included delaying consideration of a request for an appropriation by the Board of Education to cover budget overruns. The school board had requested $1.2 million as an interim appropriation, which included $1.12 million to fund out-of-district tuition costs for special education students as well as overtime costs to deep clean school buildings in response to the coronavirus outbreak. It also included $40,000 for the continued shoring up of the bleachers at Cardinal Stadium. The decision to defer the vote until May was made with the Board of Education. Last week, Superintendent of Schools Toni Jones and Sean OKeefe, the districts chief operating officer, told the BET Budget Committee that there may be enough money in the budget to cover those costs. District schools have been closed since March due to the coronavirus outbreak, which has resulted in lower spending in several areas, most notably transportation. The request will be discussed again in May when the school board said it would know more about the budget. The BET voted unanimously to defer the discussion until May. The money would only cover special education service cost overruns for the current budget year, and the issue is expected to recur again in 2020-21. The issue is likely to be a major topic during Tuesdays public hearing on the budget plan and on the April 27 decision vote. kborsuk@greenwichtime.com [April 20, 2020] Diginex Partners With Itiviti to Provide NYFIX Connectivity for Digital Asset Customers HONG KONG and LONDON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Itiviti, a leading technology and service provider to financial institutions worldwide, today announced a partnership with Diginex, a digital asset financial services and advisory company. This partnership has been fueled by demand from institutional investors, who wish to include digital assets in their portfolios, while utilizing resilient and scalable connectivity based on FIX; the widely recognized industry messaging standard. Diginex and its client base will benefit from using Itiviti's global NYFIX connectivity platform which provides clients with a FIX-based order routing network that connects 1,600+ buy-side, sell-side and trading venues across all asset classes, combining state-of-the-art technology and network infrastructure to deliver continuous service and performance. "NYFIX was the natural first choice for us as connectivity partner" said Richard Byworth, CEO at Diginex. "Diginex's mission is to provide improved access and regulated infrastructure to institutions and sophisticated investors looking to participate in this new emerging asset class. NYFIX enables this with connectivity to a broad cross-section of institutional asset managers and allocators of capital." "Diginex is leading the charge on the institutionalization of digital assets, so they make an ideal partner", said Rob Mackay, CEO, Itiviti. "NYFIX is quickly becoming the de-facto network to provide access to digital asset venues and we are delighted to welcome Diginex onboard." Diginex joins a growing number of digital asset exchanges across the globe that are utilizing the NYFIX order routing network. NYFIX is a broker independent, vendor agnostic FIX community, which connects buy-side, sell-side and trading venues in the industry's most stable and flexible order routing network - delivered as a managed service. About Itiviti Itiviti enables financial institutions worldwide to transform their trading and capture tomorrow. With innovative technology, deep expertise and a dedication to service, we help customers seize market opportunities and guide them through regulatory change. Top-tier banks, brokers, trading firms and institutional investors rely on Itiviti's solutions to service their clients, connect to markets, trade smarter in all asset classes by consolidating trading platforms and leverage automation to move faster. A global technology and service provider, we offer the most innovative, consistent and reliable connectivity and trading solutions available. With presence in all major financial centers and serving around 2,000 clients in over 50 countries, Itiviti delivers on a global scale. For more information, please visit www.itiviti.com. Itiviti is owned by Nordic Capital. Follow Itiviti on social media on Twitter @Itiviti_AB, on Facebook @ItivitiAB, and on LinkedIn About Diginex Diginex is a blockchain financial services and technology company. Diginex partners with institutional investors, corporations and governments to make digital assets more accessible, business processes more efficient and secure. Diginex believes its collaborative approach and pursuit of global cooperation is optimal to drive institutional adoption of blockchain technologies and the regulated use of digital assets. For more information on Diginex, please visit www.diginex.com. For further information, please contact: Itiviti Amal Ahmed, Head of Content Marketing, PR & Communications Tel: +44-20-7942-0986 [email protected] Diginex Heather Dale, Chief Marketing Officer Tel: +852-9274-3312 [email protected] This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/itiviti-group-ab/r/diginex-partners-with-itiviti-to-provide-nyfix-connectivity-for-digital-asset-customers,c3091162 The following files are available for download: https://mb.cision.com/Main/13830/3091162/1231389.pdf Press release in PDF format View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/diginex-partners-with-itiviti-to-provide-nyfix-connectivity-for-digital-asset-customers-301043316.html SOURCE Itiviti Group AB [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Oregon State University and Benton County Health Department have joined forces to provide door-to-door COVID-19 testing in the Corvallis community. Team-based Rapid Assessment of Community-Level Coronavirus Epidemics (TRACE-COVID-19) began its pilot day of testing. For public health providers this is like fighting a forest fire without seeing the fire, Vice President of Oregon State University Relations Steve Clark said. The plan is to test 960 people over the next four weeks. That adds up to just under 4,000 residents in Corvallis alone. What thatll do is give us a statistically accurate representation of Corvallis residents that have the virus," Clark said. Subjects who give consent will complete the nasal swab test themselves as well as answer health-related questions. The tests are a newly approved method that won't affect the number of tests for health care workers. Those who test positive will be notified as well as the Benton County Health Department. All personal information will remain private as part of the study. According to TRACE principal investigator Ben Dalziel the results could come rather quickly. Were aiming for seven to ten days," Dalziel said. "However, the lab test is much quicker than that. So its just a question of the volume were doing. The team went approximately 20 to 30 houses for the pilot test day. This is a novel virus and nobody has an idea really on how it moves or spreads," Corvallis resident Gabe Gurule said. "If we can set a good model here hopefully we can replicate that throughout the country. Total cases of the coronavirus in New Jersey increased on Sunday to 85,301 while deaths climbed to 4,202, according to state officials. The numbers reflect 132 new fatalities and 3,915 new positive tests. Officials released the data on the state Department of Health coronavirus dashboard. Sadly, weve lost another 132 New Jerseyans, Gov. Phil Murphy said in an afternoon tweet. Weve now lost a total of 4,202 souls to #COVID19. Long-term care facilities in the state have been hard hit by the virus, with 420 facilities with at least one coronavirus case. Fatalities tied to the centers increased on Sunday to 1,730. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Heres the latest coronavirus news: N.J. firefighter, 47, dies after long and tough battle with coronavirus: An Ocean County family and community are in mourning after the coronavirus-related death of a local firefighter. Dave Clark, 47, who served with the Bay Head Fire Company No. 1, died Saturday morning following a long and tough battle with the COVID-19 virus, according to the fire company. Sick N.J. corrections officer had to get coronavirus test on his own. Why arent prisons testing more? A growing number of people connected to the states prison system say many are being denied testing for COVID-19, despite hundreds of employees and dozens of inmates that have already tested positive. N.J. coronavirus deaths increase to 4,202. Total cases hit 85,301 with 3,915 new positive tests confirmed: Deaths from the coronavirus New Jersey climbed to 4,202 on Sunday, while total cases rose to 85,301, as state officials confirmed 132 new fatalities and 3,915 new positive tests. N.J, N.Y. and Connecticut re-open marinas and boatyards that were ordered closed due to coronavirus: Marinas and boatyards in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut that were ordered closed last month as the coronavirus pandemic worsened are allowed to re-open, officials said. These 13 N.J. towns have at least 1,000 coronavirus cases: See a list of town-by-town information on the outbreak. Special needs students donate face shields made from their schools 3D printers: Students and staff at a Bergen County school donated boxes of face shield to Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, a town at the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. Next coronavirus bill wont include more money for the states, treasury secretary says: The bill would include $300 billion to replenish the paycheck protection program, which offers low-interest forgivable loans to small businesses who keep paying their employees despite being closed, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Sunday on CNNs State of the Union. Coronavirus cases in the United States: There were 755,533 cases reported in the country as of Sunday afternoon, according to information from the the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. f 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. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. NJ Advance Media staff writers Matt Arco, Brent Johnson, Jeff Goldman, Jonathan D. Salant, Blake Nelson and Matt Gray contributed to this report. Sewing factories are producing protection masks for local and international markets including Europe amid the coronavirus pandemic, Middle East Monitor (MEMO) reports. One of the factories administrator, Abdullah Shehadeh from Hasco sewing factory, reportedly said 40 workers have at work to meet demands. They are doing this to help people in Europe and support their efforts to tackle the virus, Shehadeh noted adding that human life is above all political differences. The European Union (EU) as well as U.S and Israel consider Hamas, ruler of the Strip as terrorist organization. The territory described as an open prison has been under Israeli blockade since 2006 when Hamas won elections. Hamas s health ministry Sunday confirmed 15 cases after two new cases were diagnosed. The movement has accused Israel for not allowing more medical equipment into the territory. Israel will be the one that bears responsibility for an outbreak of the virus in the Gaza Strip; and therefore it must make it easier for shipments of aid to arrive and it is the one who needs to send these medical means, said Khalil al-Hayya, the deputy Hamas leader in Gaza, according to the Ynet news site. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 22:05:50 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 751 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Ashley Gordon, With Over A Decade In The Solar Industry, Will Join The Board Of Directors And As VP Will Oversee The Company's Expanding Footprint On The West CoastMALIBU, CA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Green Stream Holdings Inc. (OTC PINK:GSFI), a holding company of Green Stream Finance, Inc., a company that focuses on currently unmet markets in the solar energy space through its innovative proprietary solar product offerings, financed for customers via its public and private partnerships, today announced that it has made additions to its Board of Directors and its management team, hiring Ashley Gordon as its Vice President for West Coast Solar Development. Mr. Gordon brings over a decade of experience in the solar industryMr. Rodgers, duties will mainly be to help develop solar energy projects within the commercial & industrial spaces, maintain through meticulously cultivated business relationships with client executives, investors, Company department heads, business and property owners. In addition, he will responsible for company presentations, contract negotiation, property scoping, system design, ESS integration, hiring subcontractors, equipment procurement, permit filing, timeline management, sales cycle management, field team management, hosting meetings, reporting, selecting finance options (C-PACE, PPA's, operating leases, capital leases), and securing utility interconnection agreements. He will also be prospecting for new clients through professional networking and other means.Madeline Cammarata, the company's President said: "We at Green Stream are very happy to officially welcome Mr. Rodgers to our Board and our Executive team. He is joining us at a critical time where we are preparing to begin the execution of our expansion plans. His focus on the West Coast will really help to accelerate the speed of these projects, designed to create revenues and bring value to our shareholders." On another note, please visit Green Stream Holdings Inc.'s newest website regarding the Company's solar construction projects at: www.greenrainsolar.com Please direct any investor or press inquiries regarding any of our current and planned solar projects throughout the nation to info@ greenstreamfinance.com The Company also announced that they have changed their securities counsel. The new securities counsel is Jonathan D. Leinwand, P.A., based in Adventura, FL.About Green Stream Finance, Inc.Green Stream Finance, Inc., a Wyoming-based corporation with satellite offices in Malibu, CA and New York, NY, is focused on exploiting currently unmet markets in the solar energy space, and is currently licensed in California, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Colorado, Hawaii, and Canada. The Company's next-generation solar greenhouses, constructed and managed by Green Rain Solar, LLC, a Nevada-based division, utilize proprietary greenhouse technology and trademarked design developed by world-renowned architect Mr. Antony Morali. The Company is currently targeting high-growth solar market segments for its advanced solar greenhouse and advanced solar battery products. The Company has a growing footprint in the significantly underserved solar market in New York City where it is targeting 50,000 to 100,000 square feet of rooftop space for the installation of its solar panels. Green Stream is looking to forge key partnership with major investment groups in order to capitalize on a variety of unique investment opportunities in the commercial solar energy markets. The Company is dedicated to becoming a major player in this critical space. Through its innovative solar product offerings and industry partnerships, the Company is well-positioned to become a significant player in the solar space.Forward-Looking Statements:This press release contains forward-looking information 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. That includes the possibility that the business outlined in this press release cannot be concluded for some reason. That could be as a result of technical, installation, permitting or other problems that were not anticipated. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Green Stream Finance, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein. Except for any obligation under the U.S. federal securities laws, Green Stream Finance, Inc. undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.Company Contact/AddressGreen Stream Finance Inc. & Green Rain Solar, LLC16620 Marquez AvenuePacific Palisades, CA 90272Phone: 310-230-0240For All Inquiries Contact:info@ greenstreamfinance.com SOURCE: Green Stream Finance, Inc. Many children look forward each year to a birthday party, and having such an anticipated event canceled, even to try to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, can be heartbreaking. A lot of things we normally take for granted have had to be put on the back-burner, said Sandoval County Sheriffs Lt. John Castaneda. The sheriffs office and Rio Rancho Police Department are doing their part to help some of the youngest kids adjust to life in the pandemic. One of their solutions? Birthday parades. The sheriffs office and RRPD Facebook pages have shown videos and photos of law enforcement vehicles sounding sirens as they line a street. After coming to a stop at a home, all the deputies or officers sing Happy Birthday to a child who, due to social-distancing measures, had to cancel a birthday party. For the sheriffs office, the idea was conceived by Deputy John Colvin. The boys mother reached out to Colvin and told him about the partys cancellation. Upon receiving that information, Colvin turned to his colleagues with the idea. Soon, the day shift crew members made their way to the home with gifts and a song. It was heartfelt on both sides, Castaneda said. The deputies were just so proud of doing this thing for that little guy. And the family was just glad that we were able to do that for anyone else in the community. RRPDs Facebook page said the opportunity to visit a 6-year-old boy on his birthday came unexpectedly. When a break in calls came, they visited him and formed their own choir to sing Happy Birthday. RRPD Lt. Ray Alderete said the department greatly values its community and really enjoys our positive interactions. Although calls for service and current social-distancing guidelines influence our ability to participate in these types of events, we really enjoy breaking away from the normal and doing what we can to support our community, he continued. Fortunately on this day, we were able to celebrate this young mans sixth birthday. We hope it helped brighten his day and brought him joy. I know it was a pleasant experience for us. The sheriffs office and RRPD said such visits will not likely happen on a daily basis as both agencies still need to perform their regular duties. However, if the chance to send their birthday wishes to more young children comes, they will consider doing it again. Were still trying to be a part of the community while social-distancing. We definitely want to show our support to whoever we can and when we can, Castaneda said. With some of these smaller kids, this might have an impactThese special moments and events are when families and communities come together. We want to be able to brighten (the kids) spirits and do this. Alderete said Rio Rancho police appreciate the incredible support from the community. We know social distancing measures have changed our lives a bit, but we will continue giving back to our community in the safest way possible under the current circumstances, he said. FILE PHOTO: A pint of beer is poured into a glass in a bar in London By Stephanie Kelly and Lisa Baertlein NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Dwindling supplies of carbon dioxide from ethanol plants are sparking concern about shortages of beer, soda and seltzer water - essentials for many quarantined Americans. Brewers and soft-drink makers use carbon dioxide, or CO2, for carbonation, which gives beer and soda fizz. Ethanol producers are a key provider of CO2 to the food industry, as they capture that gas as a byproduct of ethanol production and sell it in large quantities. But ethanol, which is blended into the nation's gasoline supply, has seen production fall sharply due to the drop in gasoline demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gasoline demand is down by more than 30% in the United States. The lack of ethanol output is disrupting this highly specialized corner of the food industry, as 34 of the 45 U.S. ethanol plants that sell CO2 have idled or cut production, said Renewable Fuels Association Chief Executive Geoff Cooper. CO2 suppliers to beer brewers have increased prices by about 25% due to reduced supply, said Bob Pease, chief executive officer of the Brewers Association. The trade group represents small and independent U.S. craft brewers, who get about 45% of their CO2 from ethanol producers. "The problem is accelerating. Every day we're hearing from more of our members about this," said Pease, who expects some brewers to start cutting production in two to three weeks. In an April 7 letter to Vice President Mike Pence, the Compressed Gas Association (CGA) said production of CO2 had fallen about 20% and could be down by 50% by mid-April without relief, CGA CEO Rich Gottwald said in the letter. Meat producers are also feeling the pinch, as they use CO2 in processing, packaging, preservation and shipment. Orion Melehan, CEO of Santa Cruz, California-based LifeAID, a specialty beverage company, said two of his production partners are looking for alternative CO2 sources. Story continues "It does have us up at night figuring out what our options are," Melehan said. "It highlights the laws of unintended consequences." A spokeswoman for National Beverage Corp, whose products include LaCroix, said the company sources from a number of national CO2 suppliers and does not anticipate a supply issue. Coca-Cola Co, SodaStream owner PepsiCo Inc , wine and beer seller Constellation Brands Inc and several bottling companies did not respond to requests for comment Walker Modic, environmental and social sustainability manager for Bell's Brewery, said the Comstock, Michigan-based brewing company had "not experienced any curtailments or changes in the source of our CO2." Denmark-based Carlsberg Group said that the company is "almost self-sufficient." "We, in line with our sustainability program, create our own CO2 and capture it during the brewing process," spokesman Kasper Elbjorn. (Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York, Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles and Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) Councillor Paul Funnell from the City of Wagga Wagga, NSW, Australia (Courtesy of Paul Funnell) (L) Wagga Wagga Historic Council Chambers on May 5, 2019. (Jenny Evans/Getty Images) (R) Despite Backlash Over Move to End China Sister City Status, Australian City Councillor Gets Overwhelming Support The Chinese Consulate General wants Wagga Wagga councillor's words and deeds restrained The embattled Australian city councillor who moved to end Wagga Waggas sister city relationship with China has faced accusations of being racist, but also received encouragement from councillors of other regions, and from Chinese Australians. Councillor Paul Funnell also received threats after he spearheaded the motion (pdf) on April 14 that sought to terminate a sister-city relationship with Kunming in Yunnan province, China. While copping vitriol and slurs like racist pig, he said he took no offence to fiery disagreement, which he described as a typical cop-out. But ask me what I said because theres no mention of race in my debate or document that I sent together with the report, he told The Epoch Times on April 18. Funnel said he has received amazing support from the city councillors of other regions and even from Chinese Australians. Paul Funnell, City of Wagga Wagga councillor speaking from his home near Wagga Wagga, NSW, via Skype on April 19, 2020. (Henry Jom/The Epoch Times) The Motion On April 14, a motion was passed by the city of Wagga Wagga to terminate its 32-year-old sister city relationship with Kunming, in Chinas Yunnan province. It also included two other friendship cities; Tieling, in Liaoning province; and Rugao, in Jiangsu province. In the motion, Funnell said, We must take a stance, there is no right way to do the wrong thing. Council must do the right thing and take a stance to demonstrate its rejection of the corrupt Chinese government that has caused such death, destruction, and turmoil across the World. If we dont sever ties with the aforementioned anti-democratic organisations, we are giving tacit approval to the PRC [Peoples Republic of China] regime that what they are doing is alright, just by our ongoing relationship. The motion was passed by a deciding vote after three councillors voted each way. Councillors Paul Funnell, Yvonne Braid, and Tim Koschel voted for the motion, while Rod Kendall, Dan Hayes, and Vanessa Keenan voted against. Koschel used his deciding vote to pass the motion. Of the three who were not present, two declared a conflict of interest, and Mayor Greg Conkey was ill. When asked what conflict of interest the two councillors had declared Funnell said, Councillor Tout always leaves the chamber whenever something comes up about the sister city committee because his wife is a community member on the sister city committee. Councillor Pascoe, a former Mayor of Wagga, left the chamber because he said hes travelled to Kunming as Mayor, and when he got there everything was paid for by the governing body of Kunming, Funnell said, adding that he felt that was a pecuniary interest and therefore left the chamber and didnt vote. Council Pressured and Backflip The next day Koschelthe councillor who cast the deciding votebackflipped on his decision and apologised to Kunming municipality for passing the motion. Mayor Greg Conkey issued a statement saying that he immediately put forward a rescission motion to be considered at the next council meeting, which is scheduled for April 22. Deputy Prime Minister and Member for Riverina, Michael McCormack, and the Chinese Consulate General in Sydney have also called for the decision to be reversed. McCormack said that China is the regions largest trading partner and that the sister city relationship should continue, reported the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Funnel said he respected concerns that there might be fallout from the decision, including a potential loss of trade. My simple answer to that: what about the fallout, and the deaths, and the mayhem, the destruction, that has come about through the world? he said. In fact, Australia is currently suffering its highest unemployment rate in 26 years as a result of the economic downturn caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronaviruswhich the Chinese regime covered up. It is expected that 1.7 million jobs will be lost in the June quarter. More than 800,000 businesses have already registered for the federal governments Jobkeeper program to help them stay afloat until the crisis is over. Chinese Consulate Interference In response to the motion, the Chinese Consulate-General in Sydney published a letter on April 16 urging Wagga Wagga City Council to effectively restrain the words and deeds of individual city councillors so as not to cause further negative impact on the overall cooperation between the two sides. Funnell said the Chinese regimes pressure to silence him proves that Australia has a problem. We should be able to have in our democracy without fear nor favour, freedom of speech, and opinion, and thought. But this week proves that youre not allowed, he said. Support and Threats According to emails viewed by The Epoch Times, comments ranging from support to abuseand the threat of legal actionhave been directed to Funnell. It is typical of people who dont either want to face reality or have nothing to offer, to actually engage or to debate the issue, he said. However, Funnell has also received overwhelming support and thanks from the community and from 10 councillors from other cities and regions. They have said that this is great, it gives them inspiration to think about doing a similar thing, he said. Some of his supporters wanted to remain anonymous out of fear that they too would cop vitriol and abuse. Funnel described this as normal for many Australians. Theyre asking me to remain strong, which is really encouraging, he said. We need to able to have this discussion because I think the majority of Australians, I think the majority of people around the world, are concerned about the [CCP] infiltration. When asked what motivated him to put forward this motion, Funnell said that people tolerate things up to a point when theyve had enough. It was the coronavirus that finally triggered that point, he said. Chinese Regime Cover Up In the motion, Funnell said that the Chinese regime lied about the outbreak of the CCP virusuntil it was too late. The CCP virus subsequently brought death and destruction across the world. According to internal documents obtained by The Epoch Times, Chinese officials worked to cover-up the true nature of the CCP virus for months before it spread around the world, becoming a pandemic. In fact, the CCP virus broke out in the central Chinese city of Wuhan around November 2019, before spreading across China and the world. The World Health Organisation has said that Chinese authorities first informed it about the outbreak on Dec. 31, 2019. At that stage, the spread could have been contained, but the WHO did not convey any of its information to the world that day. Now, there are some 2 million confirmed cases of people with the COVID-19 disease, and almost 130,000 deaths have since been attributed to it worldwide. In Australia, there are over 6,600 confirmed cases with more than half having recovered, and 70 deaths (as of April 20). I dont want to be in a relationshipformal relationshipwith a country that covered up, allowed, and I would say [intentionally] allowed this pandemic, said Funnel. Were in a relationship with the extension of the communist regime, said Funnel. And I just felt enoughs enough. Update: On April 22, the council of nine voted to overturn the decision 6-1. Two councillors did not vote citing a conflict of interest. Huawei recently announced a photogrqaphy competition wherein the promo video showed off a number of images that the company claims were shot on its smartphones. Only, they were not Huawei, it seems, just cant find itself in some positive news cycles lately. The latest news from Chinas biggest technology company happens to be a clear case of not learning from your mistakes. Huawei had recently announced a photography competition for which they put out a promo video. This video contained a slideshow of images, with a taken with Huawei smartphones label running throughout the presentation, the only problem is, some of those images werent shot with a Huawei smartphone! Originally caught by Jami Hua, aka Huapeng Zhao, Hua noted that one of the images that plays in the video was not actually shot on any smartphone at all. Stating that the image looked familiar, he poured over images from popular image hosting site 500px, and sure enough, discovered that his hunch had been right. The image titled Like a Diamond was shot on a Nikon D850 and uploaded to 500px by user Su Tie. The video featured another one of Su Ties DSLR shot photos. Huawei has issued an apology on Weibo, stating that an oversight on the part of the editor led to the images being erroneously used and marked as shot on Huawei smartphone. Since then, the company has also updated the original video, leaving the images in question right where they were, but has instead removed the text label claiming that the images in the video were shot on a Huawei smartphone. Huawei has also clarified that their content allows contestants to submit photographs shot on any device. This, unfortunately, is not the first time Huawei has been caught faking a camera shot using a DSLR. Last year, just before the launch of the Huawei P30 Pro, one of the promos that went out used imagery created using DSLRs, but the copy insinuated that they were shot on the P30 Pro. At the time, Huawei brushed the issue aside by saying that nowhere did they claim that the images had been shot on a P30 Pro, and that their intent was to only establish what users could expect from the upcoming device. Prior to that, Huawei was also caught faking the selfie camera capabilities of the Nova 3i, when the model herself posted a behind the scenes photo showing all the professional equipment used to actually create the promo image. Again, at no point did Huawei actually claim that the selfie shown in the promos was taken using their smartphone, but the implied nature of the creative campaign left very little room for interpretation. Huaweis smartphones tend to sport some of the best camera stacks in the industry, so for them to continuously rely on DSLR-shot imagery in the promotions of their devices just makes no sense. Thankfully, we witnessed the recent launch of the Huawei P40 Pro( 75899 at amazon) without any controversy regarding the use of DSLR images in promotions. FORT WORTH, Texas, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimbell Royalty Partners, LP (NYSE: KRP) ("Kimbell") today announced that it has closed the previously announced purchase of the mineral and royalty interests held by Dallas-based Springbok Energy Partners, LLC ("SEP I") and Springbok Energy Partners II, LLC ("SEP II" and, together with SEP I, "Springbok") for a purchase price of approximately $123.1 million (the "Acquisition") funded by a combination of approximately $95 million in cash and approximately 2.2 million common units of Kimbell and approximately 2.5 million common units of Kimbell Royalty Operating, LLC. Kimbell is entitled to the cash flow from production attributable to the Acquisition beginning on and after October 1, 2019. Revenues and certain other operating statistics under generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") will be recorded for the Acquisition beginning on the closing date of April 17, 2020. As of March 31, 2020, the acreage acquired in the Acquisition had over 90 operators on 2,160 net royalty acres across core areas of the Delaware Basin, DJ Basin, Haynesville, STACK, Eagle Ford and other leading basins. In addition, for Q1 2020, Kimbell estimates that the Springbok assets produced 2,586 Boe/d (56% natural gas, 34% oil and 10% natural gas liquids) (6:1), an organic production growth increase of 2% from October 1, 2019. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to those affected by the COVID-19 crisis. We will continue to do what we can to support the recovery of our community from this crisis. We are especially grateful for all of the hard work being performed by first responders and healthcare workers. They are truly an inspiration to us all," commented Robert Ravnaas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Kimbell's general partner. "The company entered this crisis in a strong position with significant momentum and we believe that this is an excellent strategic acquisition with highly complementary acreage that we expect will add significant cash flow and the opportunity for growth. These assets complement our broad and diversified mineral and royalty portfolio and we are excited to significantly increase our position in the Delaware Basin, which has one of the lowest break-even costs across any basin in the U.S. Specifically, in the Delaware Basin, we believe we have acquired the right balance of existing producing wells and future drilling locations as well as high quality operators. We believe that Kimbell offers a unique investment opportunity with growth opportunities and a robust distribution yield, which we expect to be substantially tax-free through 2023 and instead to be considered a return of capital to the extent of a unitholder's basis in its common units. We remain focused on executing our business plan and creating long-term value for our unitholders," concluded Robert Ravnaas. Forward-Looking Statements This news release includes forward-looking statements, in particular statements relating to the benefits of the Acquisition, Kimbell's future operating and production results and prospects for growth, the tax treatment of Kimbell's distributions and the recent COVID-19 outbreak. These and other forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including risks that the anticipated benefits of the Acquisition are not realized, risks relating to Kimbell's integration of the Acquisition assets and uncertainties relating to Kimbell's business, prospects for growth and acquisitions and the securities markets generally, as well as risks inherent in oil and natural gas drilling and production activities, including risks with respect to low or declining prices for oil and natural gas that could result in downward revisions to the value of proved reserves or otherwise cause operators to delay or suspend planned drilling and completion operations or reduce production levels, which would adversely impact cash flow, risks related to the impact of COVID-19 on the global economy and Kimbell's business, risks relating to the impairment of oil and natural gas properties, risks relating to the availability of capital to fund drilling operations that can be adversely affected by adverse drilling results, production declines and declines in oil and natural gas prices, risks relating to Kimbell's ability to meet financial covenants under its credit agreement or its ability to obtain amendments or waivers to effect such compliance, risks relating to Kimbell's hedging activities, risks of fire, explosion, blowouts, pipe failure, casing collapse, unusual or unexpected formation pressures, environmental hazards, and other operating and production risks, which may temporarily or permanently reduce production or cause initial production or test results to not be indicative of future well performance or delay the timing of sales or completion of drilling operations, risks relating to delays in receipt of drilling permits, risks relating to unexpected adverse developments in the status of properties, risks relating to borrowing base redeterminations by Kimbell's lenders, risks relating to the absence or delay in receipt of government approvals or third-party consents, risks relating to acquisitions, dispositions and drop downs of assets, risks relating to Kimbell's ability to realize the anticipated benefits from and to integrate acquired assets, including the assets acquired in the Acquisition, risks relating to tax matters, and other risks described in Kimbell's Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), available at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, Kimbell undertakes no obligation and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after this news release. When considering these forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements in Kimbell's filings with the SEC. About Kimbell Royalty Partners Kimbell (NYSE: KRP) is a leading oil and gas mineral and royalty company based in Fort Worth, Texas. Kimbell owns mineral and royalty interests in over 13 million gross acres in 28 states and in every major onshore basin in the continental United States, including ownership in more than 96,000 gross producing wells with over 40,000 wells in the Permian Basin. To learn more, visit kimbellrp.com. Contact: Rick Black Dennard Lascar Investor Relations [email protected] (713) 529-6600 SOURCE Kimbell Royalty Partners, LP Related Links https://kimbellrp.com As the number of COVID-19 cases rise around the country, AdventHealth is proactively taking steps to ensure team members have adequate protective equipment to keep them safe while caring for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Like other hospitals and healthcare systems across the U.S., AdventHealth is sourcing masks and other protective equipment from all over the world, and found an innovative solution with Agora Edge in St. Petersburg, Florida, to produce 10,000 face shields and medical grade masks for team members. The face shields add an extra layer of protection to the masks team members use during their shifts. Agora Edge is using surgical material readily available in all AdventHealth hospitals to create the masks which have N95 barrier properties. We are working aggressively to ensure that our facilities can continue to deliver the high quality care we are nationally recognized for, and this includes a diligent focus on supplies to keep our team members and patients safe, said Mike Schultz, President and CEO of AdventHealth West Florida Division. We provide personal protective equipment to all of our team members and will continue to work with our partners, manufacturers, vendors and agencies to ensure the continuity of our supply chain. The partnership with Agora Edge is just one way AdventHealth is sourcing additional protective equipment. Were thinking creatively and working with a number of smaller companies like Agora who can hand produce goods with high quality and consistency that meet specifications to protect our team members, said Bryan Shova, Executive Director of Strategic Design for AdventHealth. AdventHealth is working also working with additional small manufacturers to produce a total of 90,000 face shields to protect team members across the country. About AdventHealth West Florida Division The West Florida Division of AdventHealth has some of the nations brightest medical minds making lifesaving breakthroughs with surgical pioneers, scientists and researchers using leading edge technology and innovation to deliver our brand of whole-person care. Our network of care includes AdventHealth Carrollwood, AdventHealth Connerton, AdventHealth Dade City, AdventHealth Lake Placid, AdventHealth North Pinellas, AdventHealth Ocala, AdventHealth Sebring, AdventHealth Tampa, AdventHealth Wauchula, AdventHealth Wesley Chapel and AdventHealth Zephyrhills, as well as five freestanding offsite Emergency Rooms including AdventHealth Brandon ER, AdventHealth Central Pasco ER, AdventHealth Palm Harbor ER, AdventHealth TimberRidge ER, and AdventHealth Westchase ER. We are more than hospitals, as we have a robust system of care including specialty acute care, over 200 primary care and specialty employed physicians, Express Care at Walgreens clinics, urgent care centers, wound care, physical therapy, home care, mobile mammography and more. AdventHealth is a faith-based not-for-profit health care system with a mission of Extending the Healing Ministry of Christ. AdventHealth has hundreds of care sites and nearly 50 hospitals across the United States. For more information about AdventHealth, visit AdventHealth.com, or Facebook.com/AdventHealth. Users of third-party Android app store Aptoide may want to change their login credentials, following reports that hackers have breached as many as 39 million users credentials. The credentials, which include login emails and hashed passwords for as many as 20 million users, have been published online. Thats according to a hacker who shared the details with one of the many online hacker forums. Aside from emails and passwords used for login stored as unsalted SHA-1 hashes the hacker also reportedly shared IP addresses associated with the emails and passwords. Browser user agent details are among the data leaked out as well. The details of the breach have been summarized at the popular account-checking site, Have I Been Pwned as of April 19. There, the breach is claimed to have occurred on April 13. Advertisement What is Aptoide and is this an example of why users should stick to the Google Play Store? Aptoide is just one of many third-party app markets available worldwide, setting aside markets provided by Chinese OEMs such as Huawei. Its also one of the most popular. Aptoide boasts as many as 150 million users globally and as many as a million applications. The platform also claims that its the safest of the Android app markets. It claims that studies back that up and that every app is checked for viruses. Thats in addition to extra security tests to ensure your Android device is always safe. That doesnt necessarily mean that it is the safest. Advertisement In fact, security experts typically advise against using secondary sources for apps. Instead, they suggest only using the Google Play Store. And theres plenty of good reasons for that quite aside from the fact that the Play Store has well over 3 million apps for download. The Google Play Store, while not without its own problems, is operated by Google as its branding implies. That means that its managed by the same company responsible for the underlying code running on Android phones. But it also means that users are protected by a wide assortment of protections among other Google Play Store-specific benefits. Google has also made a habit of bolstering its policies surrounding the Play Store on a regular basis. When apps are discovered that violate those policies or present a risk, theyre promptly removed. So Android users are arguably always going to be safest when they only download their apps from there. Subsequent updates should be downloaded from the Play Store as well. Advertisement Check your credentials and secure your account Aptoide users will likely want to start by resetting or changing their login passwords for Aptoide. It would also be advisable to reset or change login passwords wherever the same password and/or email has been used elsewhere online. It isnt immediately clear what action Aptoide is taking in response to the breached credentials either. Whether or not the company is aware of precisely which users are impacted is also unclear. And reports dont indicate whether the company is notifying those users either. So users will also want to navigate to Have I Been Pwned at the https://haveibeenpwned.com URL. There, they can enter their associated email to see whether it has been detected in any known breaches. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was called to Rochester on Friday to provide another set of eyes in the apartment where a 41-year-old Rochester man was found dead. Rochester Police Capt. Casey Moilanen said police asked for the BCA to investigate the apartment to make sure "we are all seeing the same things." Rochester police does have its own forensics unit, which also processed the crime scene. The mans death was ruled a homicide. Robert Elridge Volgmann was found dead Thursday inside his apartment at 2319 28 Ave. NW. Police were called to the residence by the building's landlord, who had stopped by to drop off food and noticed an open window, according to Moilanen. Volgmann lived in the apartment with a roommate. Police said Thursday night that when officers arrived, Volgmann was "obviously deceased and it appeared he suffered physical trauma that may have led to his death." Police believe Volgmann was dead for at least 24 hours before his body was discovered. No arrests had been made as of Monday morning. "Nothing is more important to me than our kids, as essentially they are our future," says Francis Ford Coppola, six-time Academy Award winning director, screenwriter and entrepreneur. "They need good nourishing food in order to learn, and they must learn or there'll be no future." The Family Coppola team promise is being supported in a variety of ways including a Francis Ford Coppola Winery online donation page that allows people to contribute to this important cause. Gia Coppola Wine, created by Francis's granddaughter who is a third-generation filmmaker, photographer, and artist, will donate $5 to No Kid Hungry with every bottle sold online now through the end of May. One of the newest wine brands in the Francis Ford Coppola Winery portfolio, it includes a red wine, white wine, and rose, each reflective of Gia's creative personality and feature her photography on the labels. Fans can easily buy a bottle and help give back online. Francis Coppola Diamond Collection Wine, the largest wine brand in the family portfolio, will feature No Kid Hungry messaging on point-of-sale materials, working hard all year long in select major grocery and restaurants to drive awareness of the new philanthropic initiative. Additionally, from April 20 through May 31, 2020, when Coppola Crush on You Rewards program members choose to donate 1,000 reward points, Francis Ford Coppola Winery will make a $10 donation to No Kid Hungry. More ecommerce promotions and support on select Francis Ford Coppola-owned properties will be announced online here in the coming months. "There's definitely a need for more positivity, and safe and effective support for those in need, and it's so nice to see our employees rally as a team to spread social good and positivity in each respective community," says Corey Beck, The Family Coppola CEO. "We've donated N95 masks to healthcare teams, we've had staff safely bring food to thank some of the tireless workers on the frontline amid this current crisis, and it makes me proud that our promise through No Kid Hungry will impact some of the hardest-hit communities." The Family Coppola company consists of wineries, restaurants, resorts and more, and its employees, inspired by this new collaboration, launched an internal effort called Coppola Cares. To see all of the Francis Ford Coppola Winery #CoppolaCares posts, join the online conversation by following @Coppolawine on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and visit CoppolaWinery.com to get involved. Check out the Francis Ford Coppola Winery Product Locator to find The Family Coppola products near you. About The Family Coppola The Family Coppola encompasses all of the things Francis loves mostcinema, wine, food, resorts and adventureand embraces quality, authenticity and pleasure as a backbone to each of these vibrant business endeavors. Anchored in Sonoma County, Francis Ford Coppola Winery, known for its superior level of quality and integrity, is, as Francis puts it, "a wine wonderland, a park of pleasure where people of all ages can enjoy all the best things in life: food, wine, music, dancing, games, swimming and performances of all types. A place to celebrate the love of life." Coppola's second foray into Sonoma County came in 2015 with the launch of Virginia Dare Winery, American wines since 1835, ushering in a new era of elevated quality and vineyard-specific wines. Domaine de Broglie is the newest high-end wine brand and vineyard in esteemed Willamette Valley honoring science, history, discovery and premium Oregon wines. The Family Coppola are lovers not only of wine, but spirits as well. Great Women Spiritssmall-batch, house-crafted, classically styled spiritsare a collection of spirits as unique and remarkable as the women they honor. The Family Coppola Hideaways are a collection of unique properties where adventure meets serenity. Drawing upon inspiration from his film career and travels around the globe to the far-reaching corners of the world, Francis created each resort, embracing off the beaten path locations and making each locale an ideal destination for exploring the natural wonders of the area while relaxing in tranquil surroundings. Additionally, The Family Coppola operates the award-winning literary and art magazine, Zoetrope: All-Story; Cafe Zoetrope in San Francisco's iconic Sentinel Building in North Beach; and Mammarella Foods, an authentic line of premium organic pastas and sauces. Earn and redeem points through Coppola Rewards membership at CoppolaRewards.com or visit www.TheFamilyCoppola.com to learn more. No Kid Hungry No child should go hungry in America. But 1 in 7 kids lives with hunger. 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. Media Contact Kristin Thwaites Director of Communications, The Family Coppola [email protected] SOURCE The Family Coppola Related Links https://www.thefamilycoppola.com A prominent agricultural college has donated a massive 1.4 tonne of chicken to charities that deal with vulnerable members of society. Food banks, school breakfast clubs and homeless shelters have benefited from the donation of chicken from Scotlands Rural College. The meat, which included 600kg of whole chicken, 250kg of chicken legs and 615kg of chicken breasts, was donated from its carcass evaluation unit on the Auchincruive Estate in South Ayrshire. The chicken was donated to FareShare a charity which aims to relieve food poverty and reduce food waste in the UK by redistributing nutritious, in-date and safe to eat food. Every week it donates food to 11,000 frontline charities and community groups across the UK enough food to create almost a million meals for vulnerable people. The donation went to more than 100 charity and community groups across Glasgow and the West of Scotland including hostels, day centres, lunch clubs and addiction agencies. Colin MacEwan, director of commercialisation at SRUC, said the college is helping the local community via accommodation, labs, skills and products. We were put in touch with FareShare through the Trussell Trust which manages foodbanks, and have donated 1.4 tonnes of chicken to frontline charities at this crucial time when the supply of safe, nutritious food to vulnerable people is at risk. Teresa McGoldrick, food officer at FareShare, said the charity is 'enormously grateful' for the donation of 'high-quality chicken' from the college. This food will be welcomed by the hundreds of community organisations we serve supporting the elderly and vulnerable at home during this very difficult time. This generous donation means vulnerable people will be able to cook healthy and nourishing meals at home and not worry about the prospect of having no food and no means to get any. "That is the amazing difference this donation and others make to the lives of people in our communities, Ms McGoldrick said. SRUC is also working to support those in need by providing emergency accommodation within student halls; using labs for additional testing; putting staff forward for volunteering roles; and identifying personal protective equipment (PPE) that can be returned for use in the community. A Lakewood event space is being used to hold socially distant wedding ceremonies amid the coronavirus outbreak, the mayor and religious officials said Monday, though state and county officials say the venue was not approved to re-open. Lakewood Rabbi Moshe Zev Weisberg said the arrangement to have small ceremonies at Ateres Reva, a catering hall attached to a school on Summer Avenue, was made in consultation with municipal officials and police. The Lakewood police department conferred with the Ocean County Prosecutors Office to make sure there were no problems with this, Lakewood Mayor Raymond Coles said. He said he was not involved in the discussions, but spoke with police officials Monday The purpose is to make sure any events that happen are done in accordance with all of the governors guidelines. However, Lakewood police did not respond to requests for comment. The county prosecutor said his office didnt sanction any specific venue to re-open against Gov. Phil Murphys executive orders, but said socially distant wedding ceremonies are acceptable. Wedding venues are non-essential. So to be clear, no wedding venues have been authorized by my office, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in an email. A marriage ceremony itself is not an issue, as long as it comports with the requirements of all of the (executive orders) and (administrative orders). Less than 10 people total, social distancing and wearing masks. Coles said thats how the ceremonies will be held. Only the officiant, bride and groom, parents and a photographer will be allowed inside, and police will supervise the event to enforce those rules, he said. Each person must wear gloves and a mask, except for the bride and groom. Afterward, the room will be disinfected for the next ceremony, Coles said. Allowing some immediate family to come together to celebrate could be a good thing providing its well-maintained, its overseen and we make sure all of the guidelines to keep people safe are kept in place, Coles said. He said the precautions are similar to funeral attendance limits meant to prevent the spread of COVID-19. During the Orthodox period of Omer, a 50-day period of mourning that begins on the second day of Passover, there are only a handful of days in which weddings are allowed. So religious leaders in Lakewood began discussing with local law enforcement ways to allow ceremonies on select days to deal with a backlog of postponed weddings, Weisberg said. The ceremonies will be two hours long, Weisberg said, shorter than the usual six-hour weddings. Afterward, people can drive in through the parking lot and give congratulations to the bride and groom as they stand feet away stand in the doorway of the building. The dangers (of COVID-19) are very, very real and they loom very, very heavily, so we were struggling with our own leadership groups and the authorities... to try to do what we can to try to balance these. Wed like to err on the side of caution, said Weisbeg. Everything that came out of this was very measured and thought through. At least five rabbis have died after contracting the coronavirus. The pandemic has disrupted the daily life of Lakewoods Orthodox community, where ceremonies and rituals play a big part in religion. Two-thirds of the townships 100,000 residents are Orthodox. And while all yeshivas and synagogues, at which people gather to pray three times a day, are closed, halting weddings has been more challenging. In the Orthodox religion, delaying marriages is frowned upon, community leaders have said. Police have broken up multiple events in Lakewood and charged more than two dozen people for defying Murphys ban on large gatherings over the past month. Lakewood Committeeman Meir Lichtenstein said the new plan is a good compromise, allowing residents to celebrate while also practicing social distancing and abiding by the governors executive orders. "If the religious ceremony can take place and follow all the proper guidelines I think it is a good thing as it allows people to safely (and) legally practice their beliefs, Lichtenstein said. New Jersey Attorney Generals spokesman Leland Moore said the state has not reviewed or approved "any plans with respect to weddings at catering halls or elsewhere in New Jersey. The Governors Executive Orders and related Administrative Orders concerning gatherings and social distancing remain in full effect and are the most effective tools we have to protect the health of New Jerseyans during this pandemic. As Attorney General Grewal and Colonel Callahan make clear every day in their daily enforcement updates, New Jersey law enforcement will hold those who flout these orders accountable, Moore said. A secretary for Ateres Reva who answered the phone Monday said the catering hall is being used as a space for small ceremonies, but the company is not involved in the organizing of ceremonies and is not charging couples. As of Monday, there were 4,648 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Ocean County and 217 deaths, according to state officials. 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. Avalon Zoppo may be reached at azoppo2@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AvalonZoppo. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. Congress MLA Rajendra Bhiduri in Rajasthan stoked controversy when a video of him went viral on social media in which he was seen discriminating while distributing ration by asking the people who were better PM Modi or CM Ashok Gehlot. The MLA denied giving ration to a woman when she said PM Modi was better than CM Gehlot. "Leave the ration here and go and light earthen lamps at home, " he said. Follow state-wise updates of coronavirus cases in India BJP accused Gehlot government of indulging in politics and practising discrimination while distributing ration in areas affected by Covid-19. Meanwhile, BJP President J P Nadda, who held a video conference with state chiefs of Karnataka, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Maharashtra, accused Mamata Banerjee of doing politics even during the time pandemic by harassing BJP workers and obstructing their corona relief work. Follow live updates on coronavirus Nadda asked party workers to keep up their good work despite obstructions created by West Bengal and Rajasthan governments. He later held a video conference with state chiefs of Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand. Nadda praised the work done by BJP workers in the party-ruled Karnataka. Discussed and reviewed the efforts been put in by MPs and office bearers of Karnataka BJP to feed and help those in need in these difficult times of Covid-19. Glad to know how our teams are leaving no stone unturned in offering selfless service, he said. Trinamool Congress leader Derek OBrien tweeted a video to allege that one actor was forced to portray himself as starving. How low can politics go during a health emergency! To malign Bengal govt, jatra actor made to enact #FakeNews Im an actor. I get all my rations. Some youth told me to act as if Im starving in #Lockdown. They posted the video without my knowledge. On the BJP page! Bravo @WBPolice, he tweeted. Using COVID-19 Themed Lures as Decoy Making Registry Modifications to Gain Persistence A new malware campaign has been found using coronavirus-themed lures to strike government and energy sectors in Azerbaijan with remote access trojans (RAT) capable of exfiltrating sensitive documents, keystrokes, passwords, and even images from the webcam.The targeted attacks employ Microsoft Word documents as droppers to deploy a previously unknown Python-based RAT dubbed "PoetRAT" due to various references to sonnets by English playwright William Shakespeare."The RAT has all the standard features of this kind of malware, providing full control of the compromised system to the operation," said Cisco Talos in an analysis published last week.According to the researchers, the malware specifically targets supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems in the energy industry, such as wind turbine systems, whose identities are currently not known.The development is the latest in a surge in cyberattacks exploiting the ongoing coronavirus pandemic fears as bait to install malware, steal information, and make a profit.The campaign works by appending PoetRAT to a Word document, which, when opened, executes a macro that extracts the malware and runs it.The exact distribution mechanism of the Word document remains unclear, but given that the documents are available for download from a simple URL, the researchers suspect that victims are being tricked into downloading the RAT via malicious URLs or phishing emails.Talos said it discovered that attack in three waves starting in February, some of which used decoy documents claiming to be from Azerbaijan government agencies and India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO), or alluding to COVID-19 in their file names ("C19.docx") without any actual content.Regardless of the attack vector, the Visual Basic Script macro in the document writes the malware to the disk as an archive file named "smile.zip," which consists of a Python interpreter and the RAT itself.The Python script also checks the environment where the document is being opened to make sure it's not in a sandbox based on the assumption that sandboxes have hard drives smaller than 62GB. If it detects a sandboxed environment, it deletes itself from the system.As for the RAT, it comes with two scripts: a "frown.py" that's responsible for communicating with a remote command-and-control (C2) server with a unique device identifier, and a "smile.py" that handles the execution of C2 commands on the compromised machine.The commands make it possible for an attacker to upload sensitive files, capture screenshots, terminate system processes, log keystrokes ("Klog.exe"), and steal passwords stored in browsers ("Browdec.exe").Besides this, the adversary behind the campaign also deployed additional exploitation tools, including "dog.exe," a .NET-based malware that monitors hard drive paths, and automatically transmits the information via an email account or an FTP. Another tool called "Bewmac" enables the attacker to seize control of the victim's webcam.The malware gains persistence by creating registry keys to execute the Python script and can even make registry modifications to bypass the aforementioned sandbox evasion check, possibly to avoid re-checking the same environment again."The actor monitored specific directories, signaling they wanted to exfiltrate certain information on the victims," Talos researchers concluded."The attacker wanted not only specific information obtained from the victims but also a full cache of information relating to their victim. By using Python and other Python-based tools during their campaign, the actor may have avoided detection by traditional tools that have whitelisted Python and Python execution techniques." The executives of major German corporations are raking in millions from the coronavirus crisis. This emerges from an article in the economic section of the Suddeutsche Zeitung April 15. The newspaper report is based on figures related to so-called directors dealingsthe buying and selling of shares in a company by its own managers. Such trades are not the same as share buybacks, i.e., the buyback of shares by the company itself. In the latter case, executive members also benefit if they own shares in their own companythe buyback reduces the number of total shares and thus increases the value of the shares remaining. Directors dealings should be prohibited as a form of insider trading because top managers invariably have inside information relevant to the future development of the company and their decisions directly influence the share value of the company. Nevertheless, such trading is allowedmanagers merely have to follow certain rules and report transactions. The article in the Suddeutsche Zeitung reports that many executives from Germanys leading firms registered on stock indexes (e.g., Dax, M-Dax and S-Dax) bought up shares of their own companies after share prices plummeted because of the coronavirus crisis. The article mentions in particular Carsten Spohr (CEO, Lufthansa), Stephan Sturm (Fresenius), Martin Brudermuller and Saori Dubourg (BASF), Rudolf Staudigl (Wacker Chemie) and almost the entire board of Lanxess. When they bought the shares, the chief executives suspected or knew that the federal government was planning a 600 billion package to support major German corporations and that their share prices would rise again soon. The companies were in close contact with the government at the time. And it worked. After the Dax tumbled below 8,500 points on March 18 it has since risen steeply and is currently stable above 10,000 points. On April 14, it even reached 10,700 pointsan increase of 25 percent within four weeks. This means that leading executives have made a killing while most workers have been forced on to short-time work allowances of 60 percent of salary and must fear for their jobs. The managers had made use of the same strategy during the 2008 financial crisis, the Suddeutsche reports, citing Olaf Stotz from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, who has studied the subject for years. Prior to the bankruptcy of the US investment bank Lehman Brothers in mid-September 2008, members of boards of directors, of supervisory boards and persons close to them sold off shares on a large scale, the article states. In 2009 they then used the low prices to buy shares in their own companies. The almost 200 share purchases by insiders within just two weeks represented a record high at the time. The Suddeutsche article does not reveal how many so-called worker representatives sitting on German company supervisory boards also cashed in on these trades. To recall, at the height of the financial crisis of 20082009 the Dax had plunged to a record low of 3,666 points. In February this year it reached a historic high of 13,580 points. Those buying and selling at the right moment could almost quadruple their assets in just 11 years. Following the 2008 crisis the German government intervened with hundreds of billions of euros to save banks and companies. Since then these funds have been recovered through a policy of zero indebtedness and massive cuts in social spendingone reason for the devastating effects of COVID-19, which hit at a time when the German health system was cut to the bone. It is noteworthy that one of the beneficiaries of this orgy of enrichment is Fresenius CEO Sturm. On March 16, Sturm bought shares in his own company for 57,000. Fresenius is an international health care company and one of the largest private hospital operators in Germany with a market value of $30 billion. Sturm bought shares when it was reported that the Spanish government intended to nationalise the countrys hospitals, a measure which would have hit Fresenius hard. Two days later, Fresenius announced that speculation about any such nationalisation lacked any basis and the company share price soared by 14 percent. Compared to BASF CEO Brudermuller, however, Sturm is a small fish. On March 9, Brudermuller bought up shares in his own company to the tune of nearly half a million euros. Two weeks later, the Bundestag passed its 600 billion injection for large corporations. Were Brudermuller or other company executives involved in drawing up the deal? Suddeutsche asks. The response by BASF was evasive: Management is always in regular exchange with many levels of federal and state politics, especially of course in times of crisis. The board of directors of the chemical company Lanxess also intervened heavily in the markets. Its members bought 784,000 worth of shares on March 11, shortly after the company announced a share buyback program. The enrichment of the Dax bosses is just one example of how the coronavirus crisis is massively exacerbating class conflict in capitalist society. While millions of workers in hospitals, shops and factories risk their lives for starvation wages, lose their jobs, are plunged into debt, or die of COVID-19, the wealthiest social layer is exploiting the crisis to enrich itself even more. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said the humanitarian health worker that died in Borno State after contracting coronavirus, paid the ultimate price. A French based not-for-profit mission in Nigeria, Medicins Sans Frontieres, (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, on Sunday, confirmed the death of one of its workers, Babangida Buba, an anaesthetic nurse, after testing positive for COVID-19. The Borno State government has since placed a movement restriction on all the entry points to the state, but there are no restrictions in the metropolis for now. In reaction to the incident, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, expressed condolences to the deceaseds family, friends and colleagues who are all deeply affected by the loss. He said the nurse had no travel history outside of Borno State and made the ultimate sacrifice. I am very saddened to confirm the death of a health worker on 18 April who had contracted the new coronavirus disease COVID-19. Our sincerest condolences go to his family, friends and colleagues who are all deeply affected by the loss, Mr Kallon said. Despite the risks, this Nigerian health worker was devoting his life to treating vulnerable internally displaced persons who have lost everything during the conflict raging in the north-east. The death of the aid worker still remains the only confirmed fatality case of coronavirus in Northeast Nigeria; while Bauchi State leads the region with seven confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to data from NCDC on April 19. Measures to Stop the Spread Mr Kallon also disclosed that it would be partnering with the federal government and state government to trace persons who had come in contact with the deceased nurse, to bolster measures to prevent the spread of the virus and protect IDPs and communities in Borno State. The global agency had also expressed concerns over the state of congested camps, saying the camps are at higher risk of a massive spread if the virus strikes any of its IDPs in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. According to him, nearly 8 million people are in need of urgent humanitarian aid in the conflict-affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, with many depending on assistance to survive. Aid organisations, under the lead of the World Health Organisation (WHO), are working closely with the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC), Borno State Government, the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, to trace anyone whom the nurse may have been in contact with in Borno State, and to bolster measures to prevent the spread of the virus and protect IDPs and communities in Borno State. The humanitarian community reaffirms it is working closely with Nigerian authorities. Together, all actors are doing their utmost to reinforce protection and prevention measures against COVID-19. READ ALSO: Mr Kallon also said quarantine facilities are being set up by aid workers at all points of entry from neighbouring countries. Aid workers are following NCDC guidance and all staff that arrived from abroad before the airport shut down have gone into self-isolation. Humanitarian actors have adapted their way of working to prevent the spread of the virus. Quarantine facilities are being set up across the state by aid workers, in support of Borno State authorities, and particularly at all points of entry from neighbouring countries. A COVID-19 treatment facility and a testing laboratory have been established in Maiduguri and a second treatment facility is being developed. Humanitarian actors are installing hand-washing stations and ensuring supply of clean water in IDP camps and vulnerable communities, as well as distributing soap and chlorinated solution where water is not readily available. Functional health facilities, especially in remote locations in Borno State, are scarce and over 3 million people urgently need food assistance. With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting many areas in Nigeria, it is essential for the most vulnerable to continue receiving humanitarian aid, including water and soap or substitute solutions. Out of respect and consideration for the family and the IDPs, the humanitarian community in Nigeria is asking the general public, including the media, to refrain from sharing any COVID-19 related information that is not confirmed by the NCDC, the Ministry of Health or WHO. The spread of misinformation may put the vulnerable people and aid workers at risk. The region has, over the years, been roped with a series of ongoing crises by an extremist Islamic group, Boko Haram, which has claimed the lives of over 35,000 persons and displaced nearly 2.4 million people in the Lake Chad Basin, since the beginning of the conflict in 2009, according to the UN. The Road to 270 is a weekly column leading up to the presidential election. Each installment is dedicated to understanding one states political landscape and how that might influence which party will win its electoral votes in 2020. Well do these roughly in order of expected competitiveness, moving toward the most intensely contested battlegrounds as election day nears. The Road to 270 will be published every Monday. The column is written by Seth Moskowitz, a 270toWin elections and politics contributor. Contact Seth at s.k.moskowitz@gmail.com or on Twitter @skmoskowitz. Illinois Illinois was once Americas political bellwether. From 1896 to 1996 the state regularly swung between the parties and voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election except for two. But since 1992, it has voted Democratic in every presidential election. Why is the state that is most demographically similar to the nation overall no longer a swing state? In short, Democrats traded voters in shrinking rural Illinois for voters in Chicago and the suburbs. The longer story starts before Illinois was a state. Statehood, Growth, and Abraham Lincoln The territory we now know as Illinois was first discovered by French explorers in 1673 and settled about 50 years later, in 1720. It was passed into British hands in 1763 when France lost the French and Indian War. Finally in 1778, amid the Revolutionary War, the United States took over the region. Current-day Illinois was first claimed as a part of Virginia, then as a part of the Northwest Territory until 1809, when the Territory of Illinois was created. Through all this, the Illinois Territory wasnt attracting many settlers. Inhabited mostly by Native Americans, European fur trappers, and some migrants from the southern United States, it had a population of just 60,000. Even with this abnormally small populace, Congress agreed to admit Illinois as the 21st state in 1818, expanding the territory to include the ports of Chicago as it did so. Chicago was founded in 1833, an act that would change the character of the state. On the southwest corner of Lake Michigan, Chicago was destined to become a transport hub, connecting the northeast and midwest through the Erie Canal, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and the Mississippi River basin. Canals and railroads came quickly and by the mid 1850s Chicago dominated Illinois commerce. Even though 3,000 Mormons left the Illinois town of Nauvoo after leader Joseph Smith Jr. was murdered, Illinois grew at a rapid clip. In 1848, the same year of the Mormon exodus, the population had reached nearly a million and the state was celebrating the opening of the Illinois and Michigan Canals. By that time, the states most celebrated politician, Abraham Lincoln, had already been seated as a U.S. Representative. Over the next ten years, Lincolns political presence would only grow as he proposed abolishing slavery in Washington, DC, ran and lost an election for U.S. Senate, was considered for the Republican Vice Presidential nomination, and fought against the Kansas-Nebraska Act and Dred Scott Supreme Court Decision. In 1858, Lincoln again makes a run for the Senate against incumbent Stephen Douglas, the two of whom battled it out in the historic Lincoln-Douglas debates. Again, Lincoln loses. The loss launches Lincoln into the national spotlight as a leading voice against slavery and three years later, in 1861, he is inaugurated as the president of the United States. Lincolns home state, though, wasnt entirely supportive of his presidency nor the Union cause in the Civil War. In the 1860 election, Lincoln only beat Douglas, a fellow Illinoisan, 51% to 47%. Much of southern Illinois supported the Confederacy even as 250,000 Illinois soldiers fought in the Union Army. During and after the war, the rebellious southern parts of the state would be overrun by anti-slavery, pro-union, Republican dominated northern communities. Growth and Wars During the Civil War, Illinois had been a primary supplier of grain, meat, and weapons to the Union army. These industries only continued to grow after the war and needed workers. In 1871, a fire killed 300, left 100,000 homeless, and destroyed over 15,000 buildings in Chicago. The city bounced back to become the preeminent midwestern city for commerce and culture. Transplants including many newly freed slaves came to Illinois and Chicago to work in the stockyards, on the railroads, in manufacturing, in mines, and to produce grain. Just nine years after the Chicago fire, Illinois was the fourth most populous state. Chicago would continue to grow and diversify as western Europeans, Jews, Poles, Italians, Czechs, and black southerners all continued to build communities in Illinois. The two World Wars, the Great Depression, and their aftermath brought change to Illinois. In both wars, thousands of Illinois men were sent to fight in Europe. The states manufacturing, mining, and farming industries pumped out goods to provide for the war efforts. While growth stagnated during the 1930s and the Great Depression Era, the economic growth spurred by both wars led to population increases of around one million in each decade of the 1920s, 1940s, and 1950s. As with most of the nation, Illinois supported Franklin Roosevelts New Deal and voted Democratic from 1932 to 1948. As the Chicago suburbs grew following World War II and became Republican strongholds, Illinois became a swing state. This suburban growth was offset by minority populations blacks from the south, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans and the tight grip of Democratic machine politics in Chicago. Notorious for corruption and patronage, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley consolidated Democratic support among the citys urbanites. The machine united union workers, minorities, immigrants, and Jews to help Democrats dominate Chicago and keep the party competitive in state and federal elections. Daley served from 1955 through 1976, by which time Chicago was facing deindustrialization and closing factories and stockyards. The citys population shrunk from 3.6 million in 1970 to 2.8 million in 1990 as jobs left the city, unemployment grew and crime rose. During all this change, Illinois swung between the parties. It voted for the moderate Republican, Dwight Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956 over native Illinoisan Adlai Stevenson, Democrats John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson in 1960 and 1964, and Republican candidates from 1968 through 1988. Along with this latter string of Republican presidential successes, Republicans would also dominant the Illinois governorship. Beginning in 1977 through 2003, Republican governors would lead the state. These Republicans, according to todays standards for the party, were progressive. They advocated a more robust social safety net, increases in public pensions, pay-as-you-go pension funding, and infrastructure spending. This poor fiscal stewardship, along with continued corruption and struggles by successive governors, led to the fiscal crisis and near-junk credit rating Illinois now faces. Even through these struggles, Chicago remains one of the nation's largest cities, propped up by financial, business, technology, and education sectors. The citys successful transition to these new-era industries helped stanch the population bleeding of the 1970s and 1980s. Still, Illinois continues to grow more slowly than the rest of the country. This has significantly reduced the state's clout on the electoral map. In the 1920s and 1930s Illinois had 29 Electoral College votes. By 2012 that number was 20 and is likely to drop to 19 following the 2020 Census. A Bit of Geography Before looking at the states recent electoral history, a bit of geography will be useful. I divide the state into seven pieces. 1) Cook County and Chicago. Chicago is the third largest city in the United States and more diverse than the nation as a whole, with just 33% of residents identifying as non-Hispanic white. 2) Chicagos suburban collar counties. These counties are highly educated and whiter than Cook County and Chicago. 3) Chicagos exurban counties. As you move further outside of Chicago, the communities get less educated, less wealthy, and more white. The states rural character blends with commuter suburbs and industrial towns of the Fox River Valley. 4) Sangamon County and Springfield. Located in the center of the state, Springfield is the state capital and biggest city outside of the Chicago area. 5) St. Louis Metro. Just across the Mississippi river from St. Louis, Missouri, is East St. Louis and the St. Louis suburbs. 6) Rural Northern and Central Illinois. This region is dominated by agriculture and manufacturing, far less dense and much whiter than the state overall. With Chicago nearby, this region also has industrial towns and some small cities. 7) Rural Southern Illinois. This region relies on agriculture and farming like up north but has more coal and petroleum extraction. Culturally, it has a evangelical conservatism reminiscent of the southern United States. This region is whiter and more religious than the state overall. Recent Elections Starting in 1992, Illinois, once a bellwether, would be reliably Democratic. Bill Clintons 1992 and 1996 victories were powered by the traditional Democratic voters in Chicago and southern Illinois and new Democratic voters in the states rural regions. Many of these agrarian and manufacturing counties had not voted Democratic since Lyndon Johnsons 1964 landslide. Meanwhile, Republicans continued to sweep the Chicago suburbs. In 2000, Clintons gains in the rural regions began to evaporate. That year, Al Gore still won Illinois, but lost many of the rural counties and votes that Clinton had carried. The outspoken liberalism and environmentalism of the emerging Democratic party didnt play well in the states conservative south. Four years later, in 2004, we see the trend that would dominate Illinois through the 2016 election: urban and suburban counties shifting Democratic and rural ones becoming more Republican. Comparing one urban, one suburban, and one rural countys 2000 to 2016 results clarify the point. In 2000, Democrat Al Gore carried Cook County (Chicago) by a 40% margin and Franklin, a rural southern county by 9%. Meanwhile, Republican George W. Bush won the biggest suburban county, DuPage, by 13%. Fast forward 16 years and Clinton expanded the margin in Cook County to 53% and flipped DuPage county, winning it by 14%. Meanwhile, Trump carried downstate Franklin County by 45%. Democrats exchanged shrinking rural regions of the state in favor of growing urban and suburban ones. This trade has kept the state in Democratic hands from Bill Clintons victories in the 1990s through Hillary Clintons in 2016. It has also balanced Illinois voters, keeping the state remarkably consistent in overall margin from 1992 to 2016. Outside of Barack Obamas particularly strong showing in 2008, Illinois has voted for Democrats by 10% to 18% in the past seven elections. Over the past two decades, the states voters may have reshuffled, but its overall lean has only tilted a few points in Democrats favor. Given that the states urban and suburban regions are growing while its rural ones shrink, Illinois will not become a battleground anytime soon. Illinois is likely to vote Democratic by an even larger margin than it did in 2016, perhaps pushing 20%. While it may once have been a bellwether, Illinois is safely Democratic this November. Next Week: Connecticut New Delhi, April : The Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday warned of retaliation if cremations are obstructed by the people. The IMA said in a press statement that it has taken serious note of the incidents n Chennai where the cremation of doctors was obstructed, exposing the helplessness of the state government. "It is a matter of great concern that these doctors who had died in their line of duty be treated shabbily and in such an uncivilised manner," the IMA stated. The association also slammed the state governments, saying "if the governments do not have power to stop such incidents, they lose their moral right to govern." Speaking about the atrocities faced by the healthcare workers amid the coronavirus pandemic, IMA President Rajan Sharma said, "IMA has shown much restraint in spite of extreme provocations. That doesn't mean our patience is endless. Abuse, violence, spitting, pelting of stones, denial of entry to societies and residential accommodations have been tolerated so far, since we expected the governments to do their normal duty. "When they are unable to discharge their constitutional obligations, perhaps these are not normal times. Denial of dignity in death is the ultimate sacrilege." Sharma also blamed the government for not giving proper attention to the issues faced by the doctors amid the pandemic situation. "The doctors are rendering services at extreme risk to themselves. No nation sends its army to war without weapons. Doctors, nurses and healthcare workers of this country have been sent to fight against Covid-19 without PPE kits and they are dying young defending their people. If the value of such services are not realised, the easiest thing for the doctor community will be to sit at home. The bigger sufferers will be the community." IMA Secretary General R.V. Asokan said, "While all other interventions have already been withdrawn, it is very unfortunate if more services are going to be withheld for non-medical reasons. The state governments concerned are better warned to perform their constitutional duties as expected. Failing which IMA has no option but to resort to drastic steps to protect the rights of the medical professionals. Appropriate retaliatory measures will be decided if the constitutional machinery breaks down." A 55-year-old doctor had died on Sunday at a private hospital in Chennai and his body was taken to a crematorium . However, the locals there held a protest against the funeral fearing the spread of the virus. They also attacked the ambulance and healthcare officials. The Tamil Nadu police, on Monday, have arrested 20 persons in this connection. This was the second such incident in the city. Some days back, a doctor from Nellore had died of Covid-19 at a private hospital and when his body was taken to a crematorium, the locals staged a protest. Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-800 aircraft with registration LN-DYE as seen with passengers boarding on the airplane for departure at Alesund Airport, Vigra AES ENAL in Mre og Romsdal county, Norway. Norwegian Air on Monday reported that four Swedish and Danish subsidiaries had filed for bankruptcy and that it had ended staffing contracts in Europe and the United States, putting some 4,700 jobs at risk. The airline is seeking to convert debt to equity, money from shareholders and Norwegian state guarantees in a bid to survive the coronavirus crisis. Earlier on Monday Virgin Atlantic said it would only survive the pandemic if it got financial support from the British government, while Virgin Australia is set to enter voluntary administration, according to sources close to the matter. Norwegian Air said the four subsidiaries in Sweden and Denmark were companies that employed pilots and cabin crew. The cancelled agreements involve firms which provide crews based in Spain, Britain, Finland, Sweden and the United States. Combined, it said some 4,700 pilots and cabin crew members would be affected while about 700 pilots and 1,300 cabin crew based in Norway, France and Italy remained unaffected. "We have done everything we can to avoid making this last-resort decision and we have asked for access to government support in both Sweden and Denmark," CEO Jacob Schram said in a statement. "We are working around the clock to get through this crisis and to return as a stronger Norwegian with the goal of bringing as many colleagues back in the air as possible," he added. The company's shares fell on the news and were down 3.6% at 12:30 GMT. The stock has shed 86% of its value year to date. Norwegian has grown rapidly in the last decade to become Europe's third-largest low-cost airline and the biggest foreign carrier serving New York and other major U.S. cities but it also accumulated debt and liabilities of close to $8 billion. Last month it announced it would halt 85% of it flights and planned to furlough 90% of the staff to preserve its dwindling cash reserves, but it faced obstacles in carrying out the cuts. "Despite the measures that the company has already taken, coupled with the lack of significant financial support from the Swedish and Danish governments, we are left with no choice," it said. "In Norway, there are efficient furlough opportunities which means that the government pays for all salary-related costs throughout the duration of the furlough period. "Unfortunately, there is not the equivalent coverage in Sweden or Denmark schemes," the company said. The Upper West Regional Directorate of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), has marshalled a contingent of civic educators to sensitise residents against the COVID-19 pandemic. Mrs Patience Sally Kumah, the NCCE Regional Director, explained that the contingent, known as civic education foot-soldiers, is exploiting its relative advantage in community advocacy to persuade people to adhere to the safety protocols. She said the Commission, in view of the rampaging coronavirus pandemic, had launched the NCCE Anti-COVID-19 Public Education Campaign, to dissuade residents that COVID-19 was not a myth but a reality. The team seeks to focus on symptoms of the disease, mode of transmission and the need to observe safety protocols outlined by the World Health Organization and the Ghana Health Service. The NCCE is undertaking the campaign in collaboration with the Church of Pentecost, which has provided mobile cinema van for the campaign. In a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Monday, Mrs Kumah said the four-week campaign was being carried out in all districts, mainly at community lorry stations, market squares, radio stations and information centres. She said the public, especially those at the countryside, needed to understand that COVID-19 had no cure and that the virus was spread from one person to the other through body contact of fluids like saliva, running nose and breath of infected persons. We must continue to hammer on the symptoms of COVID-19 that is coughing, sneezing, fever, difficulty in breathing, tiredness, and sore throat among others to the lowest understanding of every Ghanaian. Mrs Kumah said people still found it difficult to adhere to the health protocols such as washing of hands regularly with soap and under running water and covering the mouth when sneezing or coughing with a tissue paper and disposing off it immediately. We must also avoid handshake, even though it is not a normal traditional norm, now for the sake of our life, we must stop any form of body contact especially handshake, when COVID-19 is over we can go back to our normal way of life. Mrs Kumah commended the Church of Pentecost for collaborating with the Commission, as their efforts reinforces the Commissions aver position that civic education was a shared responsibility. She appealed to other philanthropic organisations and individuals to support the Commission with Personal Protective Equipment to enhance their work and protect team members from any infection. 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. Featured Video Outside the gates at Crossroads Correctional Center, a for-profit private prison in Toole County, the coronavirus outbreak has been especially pronounced, accounting for half of the state's nine COVID-19-related deaths. The prison, operated by CoreCivic, has not seen a positive case yet, according to a company spokesman. It is one of the largest employers in the region, with more than 170 employees from the town of Shelby and the adjacent counties, a region known as the Golden Triangle for its strong wheat production. Until recently, CoreCivic required inmates to sign a waiver in order to receive a face mask, which held the company harmless of any claims related to the masks. Ryan Gustin, a spokesperson for CoreCivic, said this week the company did away with the waiver on April 10. "It was not the intent of the previous form to require inmates and detainees to relinquish all rights related to COVID-19," Gustin said in an email. "The use of the original form has been discontinued since Friday afternoon (April 10). Inmates and detainees are only required to initial documentation evidencing they were issued a mask." Gustin was not able to cite the exact number of face masks available on Friday, but said all employees and inmates will receive masks, and added the prison has the resources to replenish supplies as necessary. The prison's bed capacity is 664. The Montana Department of Corrections said Friday its inmate workers have been producing masks for inmates, who total about 1,800 between the Montana State Prison and State Women's Prison. As soon as we received the patterns for masks, gowns and other utility PPE, and got the proper fabric in stock, our inmate workers were able to shift gears from sewing prison clothing to sewing and assembling PPE, said Montana Correctional Enterprises Administrator Gayle Butler in a press release. Over the past couple of weeks, they have produced about 5,300 cloth masks, 1,400 face shields, 350 shoe covers, 350 head covers, 400 gowns, 300 mask covers, and more. Additionally, Butler said a 3-D printer acquired by the DOC in March was put to work last week to produce N95 masks, with 35 produced by Friday. Providing masks to inmates goes beyond what was instructed of correctional facilities in Gov. Steve Bullock's April 1 directive to prevent prisons from becoming incubation pods. The directive limited inmate movement among facilities and expedited the parole board process for those at high risk for the illness. Department of Corrections Director Reginald Michael said in Friday's press release no inmates or staff have tested positive for the coronavirus. The DOC and CoreCivic had implemented federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines ahead of the governor's directive to prevent internal spread. Visitation at these facilities was suspended weeks earlier, about the time Montana saw its first positive coronavirus case. Twenty-nine COVID-19 cases and four related deaths have struck Toole County, a Hi-Line jurisdiction of about 4,800 people. Compare that to Missoula County, population 119,000, where 34 people have tested positive for the virus and one has died. The Toole County cluster has been largely attributed to the Marias Medical Center and its assisted living center. The Crossroads Correctional Center employs roughly 175 people, according to a 2015 report to the state Legislature by CoreCivic, then called Corrections Corporation of America. A survey of former inmates of the Shelby prison found that health care was one of the four biggest concerns, according to the 2016 performance audit by the Legislative Audit Committee. Additionally, the 2015 CoreCivic report noted approximately $160,500 was spent annually for health care services at Marias Medical Center, now the epicenter of the local COVID-19 outbreak. Asked this week if CoreCivic will have to provide more health services to its inmates in light of the outbreak at Shelby's hospital, Gustin said CoreCivic has beefed up its hiring for many positions, including nurses, at all 73 locations across the United States. Indeed.com on Friday listed eight open nursing positions at the Shelby prison, although Gustin said there are fewer vacant nursing positions than the recruitment site reflects. Doreen Mckelvey, executive director of the Shelby Chamber of Commerce, said Friday the prison remains one of the largest employers in Shelby and the region. Mckelvey said local officials have so far trusted the prison to take the necessary precautions to prevent someone from tracking the virus in or taking it to the next county over. "I know they're taking precautions," Mckelvey said in a phone interview. "It is an isolated population. The only concern would be the people who work up there." In town, Mckelvey said there are "two schools of thought" about what to do at this point when people she knew at the assisted living center have died, but the rhetoric to reopen the economy has been steadily growing. "Some people are ready to get things going, but other people are just still extremely cautious," she said. "I know the businesses are suffering. It is a sad time but we're all in this together and hopefully things will be OK." Love 2 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 BERLIN - Several countries moved ahead with plans for the gradual reopening of their economies this week, signaling cautious optimism among their governments that measures to combat the coronavirus are working. Germany and South Korea - role models in handling the outbreak in their regions - are slowly reversing some of the restrictions put in place weeks ago, embarking on a careful and long path back to normality that could serve as a template for other nations. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, however, extended a lockdown on Monday but did so amid mounting hopes that her country can eliminate the coronavirus by tracing transmissions and preventing new infections. Her move underscores the uncertainty over the best path forward as countries emerge from lockdown. In Germany, some scientists have argued that the country should ramp up restrictions until new infections reach a rate that makes tracking and contact tracing more easy, a strategy they say will allow for a greater degree of freedom in the long run. But political pressure has been mounting for a return to normality, with some German states pushing for greater freedoms as shops under 8,600 square feet began to open Monday. Chancellor Angela Merkel urged vigilance. "It would be a terrible shame if we were to go straight into a relapse," she said at a news conference. "We must not become careless, we must not lull ourselves into a false sense of security." Merkel stressed, "We have not reached the peak." The number of coronavirus deaths in Europe surpassed 100,000 this weekend. Many European nations, including Britain and France, remain under tight lockdowns and are expected to stay under heavy restrictions for weeks. But leaders must weigh the economic impact. Unemployment could almost double, as tens of millions of jobs on the continent are at risk, according to the McKinsey consulting firm. With a relatively low debt burden after years of economic growth, Germany is better positioned to endure a prolonged lockdown compared with many other European Union countries. But a relatively low coronavirus death toll has encouraged German officials to agree to a cautious easing of restrictions. Many nonessential businesses reopened Monday, including car dealers, book stores, zoos and electronics retailers. Restaurants, bars and most larger stores will remain closed. At least 4,642 people have died of the coronavirus in Germany. By comparison, France has only a slightly higher number of confirmed infections but more than four times the number of deaths - a difference that health analysts have partially explained by pointing to more extensive testing and other mitigation efforts introduced early on in Germany. But Merkel said any relapse could mean a snapback in restrictions. In a meeting earlier Monday with her party leaders, she raised concerns about a "discussion orgy" on opening the country, German media reported. Explaining her comments at the news conference, she said she feared that discussions were moving at a pace that assumed a level of security that is "not there." State leaders and the federal government last week agreed to keep social distancing measures in place until May 3. To lift them, Germany must be able to better track infection chains, she said, with a team of at least five contact tracers for every 20,000 people. "We need to uncover every infection chain," she said. "To be honest, we can't do that right now." Last week, Spain allowed some workers to resume operations, even though it extended the restrictions that have kept people locked inside their homes for weeks. And while Austria reopened many shops, it tightened rules on the use of face masks in public settings. On Monday, Denmark and the Czech Republic followed suit and similarly reopened some smaller stores. Norway is allowing children back into kindergartens, and Poland has made parks and forests accessible again. In South Korea, the government went further, opting to lift closure advisories related to high-risk venues such as churches, bars and sporting facilities. South Korea's death toll from the coronavirus stands at 236, making its fatality rate one of the lowest among countries with major outbreaks. The number of new infections in South Korea was below 100 for the 19th day in a row on Monday. Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun announced Sunday that while the social distancing policy will be extended for 16 more days, guidelines will be eased. "Now that online classes and work-from-home have become a new normal, we have the room to consider balancing infection control and economic activities," Chung said at a governmental meeting Monday. Schools remain shut as classes have gone online, while employees at many businesses still work remotely. Although daily infection numbers have dwindled, risks from small outbreaks remain, Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said at a briefing Sunday, citing major public activities recently such as an election last Wednesday. The same fear of new outbreaks compelled the government of New Zealand on Monday to extend its strict lockdown - which was to end at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday - for five days, despite good results in its drive to eliminate the coronavirus. New Zealand followed a "go hard, go early" strategy that involved shutting borders and locking down the country while the number of cases remained low. As a result, its transmission rate - the number of new infections that each person with the virus causes - is 0.48, compared with an international average of 2.5, Ardern said. The Health Ministry reported Monday that nine new cases have been found, taking the nationwide total to 1,440. More than two-thirds of those infected have recovered. Twelve people have died, all in their 70s or older. From Tuesday next week, workplaces in New Zealand that can maintain physical distance between workers and customers will be allowed to reopen, but for most people this will mean they have to continue to work and study at home and limit outside contacts. Ardern said Monday that she does not want to undo the efforts of "our team of 5 million" people to break the chain of transmission and risk having to "yo-yo" between levels of restrictions. "I couldn't feel prouder of the start we have made together," she said in a televised news conference. "But I also feel a huge responsibility to ensure that we do not lose any of the gains we have made, either," she added, underscoring the difficult choices that governments worldwide face. - - - The Washington Post's Anna Fifield in Havelock North, New Zealand, Min Joo Kim in Seoul and William Glucroft in Berlin contributed to this report. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. Five Purdue Foundry-affiliated startups are among the businesses from around Indiana to win funding by Elevate Ventures to spur growth. The startups are among 16 chosen from 58 finalists that competed Feb. 25-27 in the second regional Elevate Nexus Pitch Competitions. Elevate Ventures awarded a total of $680,000 in preseed and seed funding. The Purdue-affiliated startup winners are: * Rabbit Tractors autonomous farming equipment sized to better match the needs of modern agriculture. * Gen3Bio extract fats, sugars and proteins to produce specialty chemicals from microalgae. * BestQuote virtual sales technology for home improvement contractors. * Spirrow help for patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome survive by restoring lung function with a nanopolymer surfactant that can be administered through the trachea as a fast-acting liquid or preemptive aerosol. * Endless Eyewear a designer eyewear subscription program. The Purdue-affiliated startups are clients of the Purdue Foundry, an entrepreneurship and commercialization hub housed in the Convergence Center for Innovation and Collaboration in Purdues Discovery Park District, adjacent to the Purdue campus. The $1 billion-plus Discovery Park District is a Purdue Research Foundation entity and is a transformational center of innovation. The Purdue Foundry has been involved with creating more than 250 companies. The Purdue Foundry last year received a university initiative grant from Elevate Ventures to support its work with Indiana startups. These five startups demonstrate our core mission at the Purdue Foundry: to turn ideas into impact, said Bill Arnold, managing director. Through programs like Firestarter and the Double Down Experiment, we have the privilege of providing support to help entrepreneurs and startups make a difference across many industries. Jacob Schpok, executive director of university initiatives at Elevate, supports Purdue innovators through mentoring and other opportunities. The Purdue Foundry is recognized globally as a best practice in how higher education institutions can support student, faculty and community entrepreneurs, Schpok said. They have strong and innovation-driven startups coming out of their program and we at Elevate invest in Purdue-affiliated startups knowing they have the additional resources and support necessary to be successful. The competition was established to invest in early-stage Indiana startups with an emphasis on those taking advantage of support resources from higher education institutions in the state. In addition to receiving funding, each company is considered an Elevate Ventures portfolio business and gains access to Elevates network of advisors and resources. Each company also earns the opportunity to pitch during the statewide competition, where an additional $320,000 will be awarded. The statewide competition will be held virtually on May 19. About Elevate Ventures Elevate Ventures is a private venture development organization that nurtures and develops emerging and existing high-growth businesses into high-performing, Indiana-based companies. Elevate Ventures accomplishes this by providing access to capital, rigorous business analysis and robust advisory services that connect companies with the right mix of resources businesses need to succeed long term. To learn more about Elevate Ventures, visit elevateventures.com. About Purdue Foundry The Purdue Foundry is an entrepreneurship and commercialization hub whose professionals help Purdue innovators create startups. The Purdue Foundry is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2019 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Place from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. Contact the Purdue Foundry at foundry@prf.org. Writer: Chris Adam, 765-588-3341, cladam@prf.org Sources: Bill Arnold, WAArnold@prf.org Jacob Schpok, jschpok@elevateventures.com Some say there are two states of Idaho. Its true that the Gem State divides by mountains, desert and a time zone; its also true that its split by radically different political temperaments. On the one hand theres the spirit of cooperation and belief that government can help, on the other theres outright contempt for anything governmental. And though other Western states also exhibit this mostly urban-rural split, Idahos extremes can seem extreme indeed. In the state capitol of Boise, population 225,000, where I live, signs of a positive response to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic are everywhere, with American flags flying on some streets to show this is a time for patriotism. After Gov. Brad Little stepped up on March 25 to close non-essential businesses and order Idahoans to stay at home as best you can, helping-out initiatives have been so numerous in Boise that our two local newspapers (yes, we have two!) cant document them all. Consider just one: Residents began sewing protective masks well before the recent recommendation by the Center for Disease Control. Boises mask-making campaign enlisted 1,300 participants in 13 days, and one woman alone cuts out 800 cloth masks a day for others to add strings. The initiative expects to provide 10,000 masks to clinics, hospitals and retirement homes. In Idaho Falls, population 62,000, a group called the Sewing Sisters is filling a request for 4,000 masks from nursing homes and other care centers. The 200-person Idaho Falls Chinese Community raised $9,500 to buy masks from around the world for hospitals. Under Littles order, construction continues full-tilt in this fast-growing state. The hospitality industry has slowed to a crawl, though we still can buy takeout cocktails at local bars. Yet enough of us are working from home that it appears the governors order has been mostly followed, at least in southern Idaho. In more rural, northern Idaho, where about a quarter of Idahoans live, its a different world. Mary Sousa, a state legislator from Coeur dAlene, told the Idaho Statesman that not a single constituent has spoken to her in support of the governors order. Tim Remington, another Coeur dAlene legislator and a pastor, defied the governors order by holding in-person church services. In nearby Bonner County, Sheriff Daryl Wheeler not only supports mass church services, but, in a letter to the governor declared it was also unconstitutional for him to prohibit healthy people from going to work. Not surprisingly, Ammon Bundy, the rancher who organized the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge four years ago, defied the governor by holding a rally in Emmett on Easter Sunday for about 100 people. He said people needed to challenge government orders that infringed on constitutional rights: We want to be with each other, We thrive on that. Its part of our life. Its part of liberty, reported the New York Times. Moreover, Northern Idaho is the center of whats called the Redoubt Movement. This movement of well-armed survivalists imagines a future in which adherents from eastern Washington and eastern Oregon, along with partisans from western Montana and western Wyoming, will join with Idaho in self-defense when society inevitably disintegrates. During this pandemic, Redoubt advocates have purchased ever more arms and ammo, saying they need to be prepared to fight outsiders coming for their food and land. Meanwhile, this years session of the Idaho Legislature appropriated $2 million for virus testing but otherwise paid little attention to the pandemic. It did, however, prevent transgender persons from changing their sex on a birth certificate, authorize concealed carry of weapons for non-residents, and came close to defunding public television. At issue was the childrens cartoon Clifford the Dog, which apparently offended because the dog visited a lesbian couple. North Idahos extremists have many friends in the state Legislature. Yet here in Boise there is a schools out quality to these radiant spring days, though hard times lie ahead: This is a state that ranks near the bottom in most categories of education and social wellbeing, and where about a third are renters living paycheck to paycheck and now without paychecks. Recovery will be largely dependent on the federal government, and that will be a bitter pill to swallow for the disaffected government-haters of this state. Like it or not, we are all in this together, and most of us want to help each other, not run away or stockpile more guns. Jerry Brady is a contributor to Writers on the Range.org, a nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. He published the Idaho Falls Post Register for 25 years. Love 3 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 A cancer hospital in India is under investigation after declaring it would only admit Muslim for treatment if they can prove they do not have coronavirus. The Valentis Hospital in Meerut, a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh, issued an advert saying Muslim patients and their carers were required to provide test results showing they are negative for Covid-19. The advert stated: For hospital staff and patients security, the hospital administration requests all new Muslim patients that they, and one designated caregiver, get tested for coronavirus and visit the hospital only if their reports are negative. Police have served the hospitals owner with preliminary charges, which allows them to formally start an investigation, according The Indian Express newspaper. Ajay Sahni, the citys senior police superintendent, said: The police learnt that a hospital in the area, through advertisements, was making objectionable comments about a minority community which could lead to unrest. The owner/proprietor has been booked and the matter is being investigated. In response to the allegations, the hospitals proprietor said: The hospital does not discriminate against a particular community. Seventy per cent of our patients are Muslims. Due to typing errors or misprints, it appears that a wrong message was sent, for which we issued an apology. There have been numerous reports of discrimination against Muslims in India as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, pregnant Muslim woman reportedly lost her baby after a doctor refused her entry to a government hospital in Rajasthan on the grounds of her religion. The baby died after it was delivered in an ambulance. The US Committee on International Religious Freedom expressed its concern on Wednesday following reports of a hospital in the state of Gujarat segregating its patients into different wards on the basis of religion. The committee, which is appointed by Congress, said: Such actions only help to further increase ongoing stigmatisation of Muslims in India and exacerbate false rumours of Muslims spreading Covid-19. The media and Hindu nationalist politicians have been accused of unfairly blaming Muslims for spreading Covid-19 after cases emerged among a gathering of Muslim missionaries in New Delhi last month. Last year, Narendra Modi's government prompted widespread protests by introducing a controversial law which banned Muslim migrants from claiming Indian citizenship. Samsung, SK, LG, Hyundai, POSCO taking great leadeship roles in efforts to aid regions heavily impacted by the pandemic By Kim Hyun-bin Conglomerates are stepping up as leaders in aiding regions heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with both monetary support and the provision of much needed supplies to better prepare for and meet post-coronavirus challenges. Samsung Group Vice President Lee Jae-yong Under the leadership of Vice President Lee Jae-yong, Samsung Group has donated 30 billion won ($24.6 mil.) to help fight the pandemic and opened up its Samsung Training Institute to treat confirmed coronavirus patients, as well as sending medical staff from the company run hospitals to hard hit regions. Samsung and its affiliates have raised1.6 trillion won that went towards purchasing key supplies for victims and medical staff nationwide. Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Euisun Hyundai and Kia Motors Group has donated 5 billion won in COVID-19 recovery funding, while Hyundai opened 22 and Kia 18 service centers nationwide in addition to 1,374 Hyundai Bluehands and 800 Kia AutoQ maintenance shops, which provided free sterilization of vehicles for customers throughout March. The group also raised 1 trillion won in emergency funding to help small and mid-size vehicle component suppliers to better recover from significant losses. The group opened up two of its training facilities to accommodate suspected virus patients and continues to operate a blood drive campaign. SK Group has donated 5 billion won and 400 million won worth of supplies to help prevent the spread of the virus. The group provided daily necessities to vulnerable social groups in orphanages and nursing homes, as well as medical and quarantine personnel and medical supplies including 100,000 masks and 25,000 hand sanitizers to Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, the regions hit hardest by the virus here. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won Lotte World Tower in Seoul has been beaming a message towards the night sky that reads "Fight on Korea" and "We support medical staff!" which is turned on each evening between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. with a Korean flag in the background. The company hopes to give a sense of encouragement to the public in order to better cope through these tough times. Hanwha Group opened its Hanwha Life training institute "Life Park" as a treatment center, to assist as health services have struggled with a lack of sickbeds. The facility is equipped with 200 rooms as well as TV, WiFi, bathrooms and showers, and is in close proximity to large hospitals in Seoul and Suwon. A key affiliate, Hanwha Solution also donated 150,000 masks to North Gyeongsang Province that were provided to low-income families. Shinsegae Group supplied 3,000 hygiene kits, which includes masks and daily necessities to the medical staff and volunteers in the Daegu region as well as creating a fund worth 900 billion won for small-and-mid-sized companies that have faced difficulties due to the prolonged COVID-19 crisis. Since January, LG has provided 3,100 air purifiers and AI speakers to child welfare facilities free of charge. As well as providing 10,100 air purifiers to 433 elementary to high schools around the nation. Filters and maintenance for the products will be provided for three years at an estimated cost of 22 billion won. LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo LG Chem is providing financial support worth 100 billion won to its affiliates, Monday 62.9 billion won as emergency loans, while the remaining 43.2 billion won will be allocated under the "innovation growth fund" which aims to aid in research and development costs for struggling partner companies. The aid is scheduled to be distributed within the first half of this year. LG Chem in collaboration with LG Electronics initiated the "LG social campus" which provides 200 million won to help establish an eco-friendly social enterprise. While 2,000 vulnerable adolescents will be supplied with 300 million won worth of headsets and gear needed for distance learning as elementary to high schools have been conducting classes online due to the virus. SK Telecom, KT and LG U+ provided both monetary aid and urgently needed supplies to its distribution network and business partners that have been suffering ever mounting losses. SKT, the country's leading telecom company, has spent 110 billion won ($92.7 million) on 750 SKT authorized dealers nationwide, who are lacking liquidity due to a huge decline in sales attributed to the virus scare. They have also received part of their March incentive in advance, worth 35 billion won. In addition, the company contributed an extra 4 billion won to help cover the businesses' operational expenses. Part of the funds will be used to better prevent the spread of the virus providing employees and stores with masks and containers of hand sanitizer as well as supporting quarantine measures. POSCO Chairman Choi Jeong-woo She lost her baby daughter Consy last January, just one month after giving birth to her seven weeks prematurely. And, Malin Andersson, 26, has penned heartbreaking message of support to women experiencing postnatal depression after losing a baby. The former Love Island star took to Instagram on Monday where she shared the incredibly emotional note alongside a throwback snap from her gender reveal. Heartbreaking: Malin Andersson, 26, has penned heartbreaking message women experiencing postnatal depression after losing a baby, shared alongside a gender reveal throwback Malin began by describing how she felt on the day of her gender reveal, writing: '*TRIGGER* (This has made me emotional digging this photo up..) ..... 'It's a girl, they said. You're going to be so happy, they said. It's going to be everything you dreamt of and more.. they said. It doesn't always end up like that. 'This world is full of surprises. Cruel ones that want to teach us a lesson. The happiness I felt on this day, it was my gender reveal. 'Knowing I was having a little girl & naming her after my mum just felt perfect and complete. Having my own family. Then she got taken from me me and I could never understand why. Devastating: Malin lost her baby daughter Consy last January, just one month after giving birth to her seven weeks prematurely (Pictured earlier this month) Emotional: The former Love Island star took to Instagram on Monday where she shared the incredibly emotional note alongside the photograph 'My thoughts weren't clear, my mind was hazed. This was a very surreal part of my life. 'This post is for those that have lost a child or baby, and are experiencing post natal depression and after effects of giving birth.' The reality star then detailed the difficult things she's experienced since giving birth and losing her baby, which she hadn't been warned about. She continued: 'Nobody warned me about losing hair post pregnancy. Nobody warned me about milk coming out of my breasts for months. 'No-one warned me of the hormonal emotions which would last a while. Nobody warned me of those intrusive deep thoughts I had. 'I want this post to raise awareness on the post-natal depression that occurs even when you lose a child. We think it ends there when they pass, it doesn't. Baby girl: Malin began by describing how she felt on the day of her gender reveal (Pictured baby Consy aged one week) Our minds carry heart ache! The reality star detailed the difficult things she's experienced since giving birth and losing her daughter, which she hadn't been warned about 'Our bodies have changed, our minds carry heart ache, and it takes a long time if ever to try and go back to normal.' Malin finished off with a message of support for other women, urging them to reach out for help and reassuring them that what they're going through is normal. She wrote: 'If you're confused and feeling anxious, not understanding your thoughts and emotions.. understand that this is normal. Please reach out and find help. Even during isolation, you can STILL get help. 'You will be that person you once were, but stronger this time. You will be that person you once were, but with so much courage this time. 'You will be beautifully, unapologetically you.. with so much more heart and wisdom. Keep going... @sandscharity.' Her message came shortly after Malin - who has returned to her previous job as a carer for the elderly and terminally ill, amid the COVID-19 pandemic - 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 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. Helping hand: Malin recently returned to her previous job as a carer for the elderly and terminally ill, amid the COVID-19 pandemic (pictured in a recent holiday post) Recalling the holiday she took shortly after losing her baby daughter Consy, 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 didn't want to. Pause. This isn't spoken enough. It's only spoken about when it happens. Listen. '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 wasn't. I tried. I was suppressed. I wasn't feeling my pain. I was ignoring the fact I wasn't 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. As reported earlier, Grigor Hovhannisyan has been dismissed from the position of deputy minister of foreign affairs of Armenia. As reported Zhoghovurd Daily, Hovhannisyan touched upon his dismissal a while ago and wrote the following: After years of work in diplomacy and international relations, I have set a goal to invest my potential in the private sector and try to be helpful in the economic sector, particularly foreign economy. Until then, I am taking advantage of this last opportunity to express my deep gratitude to my colleagues of the National Assembly and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for our collaborations and the great honor I have deserved over these years. Grigor Hovhannisyan was a professional public servant with years of experience in the United Nations and had written a letter for resignation from the position of first deputy minister of foreign affairs in November 2019. According to ArmLur.am, he left the state apparatus to have a higher paying job, but in foreign economy. According to our information, Hovhannisyan has been invited to work for one of Armenias largest banks, taking into consideration his experience in working with international organizations. (Natural News) Were all eager to get back to our normal lives. Whether or not you actually miss heading to the office in person might be debatable, but its safe to say most of us are concerned about the economic effects of a long shutdown and the potential for social unrest if it goes on too long. Yet going back to the way things were too soon could be even worse, as one MIT model shows. Using public data from hard-hit places like Wuhan, South Korea and Italy, the researchers created a model that showed the spread of COVID-19. According to their calculations, relaxing the quarantine measures in places like the US and UK immediately or even relatively soon would cause an exponential explosion of cases. Just how much can we trust this dire prediction? Its worth noting that their model proved accurate when they tested it against real data from the end of January to the beginning of March, correctly anticipating the rate of the diseases spread up to April. And while most models look at the people who have been exposed, infected and recovered along with those who are susceptible to make their predictions, this one is different because it also takes into account the number of people who are infected but still quarantined and theoretically unable to infect other people. This is what can show the potential impact of ending a lockdown early. Their models do show a plateau in infections in Italy and the US in the coming week, but they warn this shouldnt give us a false sense of security and lead us to conclude that it is time to relax the measures. New York is taking the potential of this disease very seriously, with Governor Andrew Cuomo recently extending the coronavirus lockdown in his state by two weeks to May 15. He said that although hospitalizations are declining in New York, its still not clear just how many people are infected by the virus. When those people who are silent carriers of the disease return to work, they could then potentially infect countless other people and effectively cancel out the progress that has been made there so far. UK officials agree, with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab saying that although lockdown measures are working, its too early to end them and infections arent as low as theyd like. In fact, he added that ending such measures could lead to a second peak of coronavirus infections and raise the death toll significantly, just as the MIT model predicts. Quarantines are inconvenient, but they work The truth is that the current measures are working. The MIT model shows that in places where government intervention has been swift and quarantine measures have been strong, such as South Korea, the viruss spread plateaued a lot faster than places with a slower response, like Italy and the US. Theres also the fact that Singapore, which has already relaxed quarantine measures, is currently experiencing a second wave of infection. Although that country wasnt studied in the research for the model, its a clear example to the world of what can happen if measures are relaxed too soon. In fact, Professor George Barbastathis said that if the US went down the same path, it could fare even worse. If the US were to follow the same policy of relaxing quarantine measures too soon, we have predicted that the consequences would be far more catastrophic, he stated. The MIT team will share its model with other researchers with the aim of helping to better inform quarantine strategies that could be effective in slowing infection rates. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk News.MIT.edu Chron.com is compiling the latest headlines on the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the Houston area. 4:3o p.m. There are now 40 new COVID-19 cases, along with one additional death, according to Harris County Public Health. Officials say that the victim was a man between 30 and 40 years old with underlying health conditions. The total case tally for Harris County stands at 4,823, including cases in Houston. 75 Harris County residents have died. Read indepth reports from Houston Chronicles live blog. 2:oo p.m. The Texas Department of State Health reported that the coronavirus cases in Texas has climbed to 19,000 Sunday with a death toll of at least 477, according to an Associated Press report. The department also reported at least 1,471 hospitalized due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. State health officials reported at least 18,923 cases of the virus, an increase from more than 18,200 cases on Saturday. 1:45 p.m. The Trump administration and Congress are close to reaching a deal on the $450 coronavirus aid package on Sunday. The package includes relief for small businesses, funds for hospitals and COVID-19 testing. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he was hopeful of a deal that could pass Congress quickly and get the Small Business Administration program back up by midweek. I think were very close to a deal today. Im hopeful that we can get that done, he said. 9:45 a.m. Severe weather rolling into the Houston area have closed testing sites for Harris County. Harris County Public Health officials said appointments for both sites, Stallworth Stadium in Baytown and Katy's Legacy Stadium will be closed until Monday. Both county sites were shut down due to rain on Saturday. 8:30 a.m. There are now 2,347,875 million confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide as of Sunday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University In the U.S., there are 735,287 confirmed cases, with a death toll of 39,090. The number of recoveries in the U.S. stand at 66,819. 8:00 a.m. A reminder to all those who are missing the outdoor activities in state parks: Texas state parks will reopen tomorrow, according to Texas Governor Greg Abbott's timeline for reopening Texas. Abbott said that all park visitors must maintain social distancing practices and wear protective masks. In his announcement on Friday, Abbott added, "Your physical and mental health are important especially at times like these." 7:30 a.m. Today marks a solemn, tragic anniversary for our neighbors in Oklahoma--the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. Twenty-five years ago, former Army soldier Timothy McVeigh and his co-conspirator planted a truck bomb that ripped through a federal building in downtown Oklahoma City, killing 168 people. The 25th anniversary ceremony has been canceled due to the coronavirus restrictions. Instead, the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum will offer a pre-recorded video that will air online and on TV and will include the reading of the names of everyone killed followed by 168 seconds of silence. With US$40 million in funding from IFAD, the multi-donor COVID-19 Rural Poor Stimulus Facility aims to raise an additional $200 million from governments, foundations and the private sector to help farmers and lessen the impact of COVID-19 on rural communities. It is hoped that these measures will help avert a larger hunger crisis one that would have particularly harsh effects on vulnerable people in developing countries. The Elbas, appointed today as UN Goodwill Ambassadors for IFAD, visited IFAD-supported projects in rural Sierra Leone in December. During their visit, they heard from rural communities who had received support from IFAD during the Ebola epidemic. At that time, IFAD-supported banks helped the rural economy rebound so that farmers could access finance and continue to feed their families and communities. Speaking about their trip, Sabrina Dhowre Elba said: "This crisis has shown us we are only as safe as our most vulnerable people. It is in all our interests to keep local food systems going, protect rural communities and mitigate a health crisis as people who lose their jobs in the city head back to rural areas. The IFAD-run projects we saw in Sierra Leone give us hope that, with the right assistance, vulnerable rural people worldwide will be able to get through this difficult time." Idris Elba said: "The world's advanced economies are in the midst of this pandemic right now and, of course, they must do everything they can to help their own people. Every death is one death too many at a time like this. But the fact is, global action is also a matter of self-interest. As long as the pandemic is still raging anywhere, it will pose a threat everywhere. IFAD needs more assistance to carry on the work that is desperately needed to keep food systems operating in rural areas if we are to come out of this crisis together and avoid needless hunger and suffering." Notes to Editors Photos here. Credit IFAD/Rodney Quarcoo. B-roll video footage here. Contacts: Simona Siad +39-3601024288 [email protected] SOURCE International Fund for Agricultural Development Related Links www.ifad.org People wait in queues to enter APMC fruit market during ongoing COVID-19 lockdown imposed to contain the spread of novel coronavirus, in Navi Mumbai. PTI photo Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take action against those giving communal colour to the lynching of three men by a mob in Palghar district. The state government has already ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on April 16. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh earlier warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. In a video message, Thackeray said he received a call on Monday from Amit Shah who himself said there is no communal angle to the Palghar mob lynching incident. "I have urged him to initiate action against those who are giving a communal twist to the Palghar mob lynching, which is factually incorrect. I also informed him that my government is definitely going to take action against the perpetrators," Thackeray said. Inspector General of Police (CID) Atulchandra Kulkarni will head the probe into the lynching incident, he said. Thackeray said the three men lynched by the mob seemed to be victims of some rumour and there is no communal background to the incident. "As per my information, the seers were on their way to Surat in Gujarat during the lockdown. They were stopped by Dadra and Nagar Haveli police and sent back to Maharashtra, he said. As they took a internal route passing through Gadchindhali village, which is 110 km away from Palghar district, they were stopped by locals who suspected them to be a gang of thieves stealing children, the chief minister said, adding that police vehicles were also attacked by the mob. The village where the attack took place is barely a few kilometres from the border of the Dadra and Nagar Haveli Union Territory, he pointed out. "Over 110 people are arrested so far from Palghar, including five main accused. Two police officials have been suspended for dereliction of duty, he said. Out of the total accused, nine are juvenile and they have been sent to a remand home, Thackeray said. "I have informed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who had called seeking details about the incident, he said. The chief minister on Sunday said stern action will be taken against those involved in the lynching of the three men. He said those behind this heinous crime and shameful act will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible. Deshmukh earlier said those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings are not from different religions. "I have ordered Maharashtra police and @MahaCyber1 to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media," he said in a tweet on Sunday. Deshmukh said police are keeping an eye on those who wanted to use the incident to create a rift in society. An assistant police inspector and a sub-inspector from Palghar were suspended on Monday for alleged dereliction of duty in the wake of the incident that took place on April 16 night when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). The West Bengal government has alleged that the Covid-19 testing kits supplied by the NICED, ICMR's nodal agency in the state, a fortnight ago, are "apparently defective" as they show "inconclusive results" leading to repeated confirmatory tests and delaying diagnosis of the disease. The ICMR-NICED authorities said it could be possibly because the kits "have not been standardized" and it is considering the matter "very seriously". West Bengal has reported 12 deaths and 276 cases of COVID-19 affliction. "The apparently defective test kits supplied by ICMR-NICED, Kolkata, have started to throw up a large number of inconclusive results, necessitating a repeat/confirmatory test run, thereby causing a delay in the generation of the final test report," the West Bengal department of health and family welfare has tweeted. The "high number of repeat/ confirmatory tests are causing delays and other attendant problems at a time when we are battling a pandemic," it said, adding the Incian Council of Medical Research needs to look into it immediately. The department claimed that the problem of defective kits has been faced not just by government labs in the state but other testing labs in the country. The state health department had faced no such problem when the testing kits were supplied directly by the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, it said. Recently, the supplies to government laboratories in West Bengal have been routed through ICMR-NICED, Kolkata, the department tweeted. When contacted, NICED Director Shanta Dutta said,"It is unfortunate that test kits have not been standardised to yield appropriate results. It is difficult for each medical college to standardise them, because of which there were different and inconclusive results." She said the matter was "very seriously considered" by the ICMR. "Initial NIV kit was an assembled one where the NIV had procured the primer and probes from the US, standardised the kit in their laboratory with other reagents and controls, and distributed it directly to other VRDLs (Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory). "When demand for the kit icreased, it was difficult for the NIV to cope up with it. Then ICMR started procuring readymade kits and supplied to VRDLs through 16 depots across the country," she said. West Bengal on Sunday received 10,000 rapid antibody testing kits from ICMR and is expected to start using them soon in areas with a high number of COVID-19 patients. The rapid tests will be conducted at the hotspots, clusters, containment zones or as a surveillance tool for epidemiological purposes in areas which have not reported any case so far. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) (Repeats Friday's story with no changes to text) By Caroline Pailliez and Matthias Galante PARIS, April 17 (Reuters) - When managers at La Riviera nursing home on France's Cote D'Azur found out a resident had the COVID-19 virus, they put into action a standard playbook they believed would contain the spread. It did not. "We kept on seeing new cases and we could not understand why," said Antoine Ruplinger, an executive with the company that runs the home. Since then 36 residents at the home have died of coronavirus-related conditions, according to the local mayor's office, which registers the deaths. There were 109 residents before the coronavirus crisis broke. Death rates from COVID-19 in old people's homes around the world have been high, in part because the disease hits the elderly disproportionately and because testing at care homes has been patchy. What happened at La Riviera underlines the potential value of blanket testing at an early stage, some French officials said. "Maybe if we had been able to test from the beginning, everything would have been different," said Florence Arnaiz-Maume, an official with the National Union of Private Homes and Facilities for the Elderly (SYNERPA). The response by staff at La Riviera was centred around checking who was showing symptoms of infection and isolating them from the rest of the home. That was in line with national guidelines at the time, which were for only the first three suspected cases to be tested. But for over two weeks after the first case, residents in the home were not tested for COVID-19. That meant people who had the virus yet showed no symptoms were still part of the general population in the home and potentially transmitting infection. "No one had been tested, so we did not know who was infected and who wasn't," said Richard Galy, a medical doctor and mayor of the town of Mougins where the home is located. France last week changed its policy, so that all nursing home residents and staff are tested at those homes where a COVID-19 case has been detected, whether or not they are showing symptoms. Twenty days after the first case, systematic testing of residents for COVID-19 began at La Riviera on April 4. Thirty-three residents were found to be carrying the virus, as well as 14 staff, who were sent home. Story continues NOONE TO CARRY OUT TESTS The testing allowed the home to put in place a new virus containment plan, guided by an infectious disease specialist from a nearby hospital. Those who tested positive have been put on the first and second floors of the complex. They are cared for by staff who do not mix with other patients, and who use their own dedicated elevator, changing rooms and break rooms. Engineers have visited to make sure there is negative pressure inside rooms with coronavirus patients, so when a door is opened, air does not stream out, spreading the infection. By the time it became clear that the virus was spreading after the first case of COVID-19 at the home was identified in mid-March, Galy had been in touch for days with staff at the home, public health officials, and regional officials. Galy said he knew about the deaths, and was urging immediate testing. But tests were not available. The company that usually does testing for the Riviera, laboratoire de L'Esperance, only had enough kits to do 80 tests per day and priority was given to hospitals, healthcare workers, and people with symptoms, said the head of the laboratory, Dr Francoise Duhalde-Guignard. "So at the time, we couldn't test," she told Reuters. FIRST CASE The regional public health authority said it has launched an investigation into why so many people died at the home. The authority has said the home's managers waited too long to seek help. The home's operator, Korian SA, said its staff acted in line with official guidance, and sought help when it was necessary. The mayor and four families of La Riviera residents have joined a legal case brought by some of the families against unidentified individuals alleging involuntary homicide, endangerment of life, and failure to assist a person in danger. The mayor said he was joining because he wanted to understand better what happened and where the responsibility for what happened lay. Korian and the public health authority both declined to comment on the legal case. The first case at the home was identified on March 15, when a local hospital treating a resident informed the home that the person had tested positive for COVID-19. Ruplinger, the executive with the home's operator, received a call about the case just before midnight. The next morning, he arrived at La Riviera. He ordered that staff were to wear protective gear at all times, cleaning was to be stepped up and residents were to be confined to their rooms. Residents suspected of having the virus were moved to an 11-bed unit on a separate floor. Within three days of opening, the segregation unit had run out of beds. Several residents had already died, according to Magali Lamoureux, who runs a local funeral home and was called by the home to collect some of the bodies. She said death certificates listed COVID-19 as the cause of death. By the time testing did happen, it was too late for patients like Odette Noyer, who arrived there around 18 months ago from the town of Romans-sur-Iseres, about 400 km (250 miles) north. On March 24, she marked her 94th birthday and her family, who lived nearby, spoke to her by telephone to congratulate her. Six days later, her grandson rang the home at 5 pm to ask after her, according to a legal complaint filed by the family of Noyer and several other residents, which was seen by Reuters. A member of staff said she was being administered oxygen, but was fine. At 10 pm the same night, she died. (Additional reporting by Eric Gaillard and Johanna Decorse; Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Mike Collett-White) The Haryana government on Monday said it has received the first lot of 25,000 rapid test kits from SD Biosensor, a South Korean bio-diagnostic company. "For fast detection of COVID-19 positive cases, SD Biosensor, a South Korea-based company which also has a presence in Industrial Model Township at Manesar, Gurugram, has developed a rapid test kit priced at Rs 380 per kit, which is Rs 400 cheaper than the rapid test kit imported from China. "This kit will benefit Haryana as well as other states," a Haryana government statement issued on Monday evening said. It said the approval for the production of rapid test kits (RTKs) in the state has been fast-tracked and granted to the company in a short period of 15 days. The statement said that usually the approval takes more than five months as it needs validation from institutions like the National Institute of Virology, Pune following which it is sent to the Indian Council of Medical Research and then to the Drug Controller General for an approval for production. "Today the company has handed over the first lot of 25,000 kits to the Haryana Government, it said. "SD Biosensor aims to produce around 10 million rapid test kits in a month and is now ramping up their production to manufacture approximately 1 to 1.5 million rapid test kits in the next few days, to cater to the huge demand for rapid testing kits due to the intensity of the situation," it said. Earlier, Health Minister Anil Vij had said 19,663 teams have been constituted to visit every household in the state to conduct door-to-door screening of people. "If anyone shows COVID-19 symptoms like fever, cough, cold, then their samples will be taken," he said. The availability of RTKs is likely to help the efforts of the state government to screen large segment of the population. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prince Charles has opened another field hospital, this time in Cardiff, as the UK continues to fight the coronavirus pandemic. Charles, 71, dusted off some of his Welsh language skills in a special message sent to open the hospital inside Cardiffs Principality Stadium. While those in England have been called NHS Nightingale Hospitals, over the border, they are being called Ysbyty Calon Y Ddraig - Dragons Heart hospital. In a message he said: In a facility named, so evocatively and so appropriately, Calon y Ddraig, what can I say except diolch o galon, and express the warmest possible thanks for what you have done, and all that you will do in this hospital, and all those other field hospitals, across Wales, where buildings have been transformed as part of the immense effort to combat the dreadful threat we face. Llongyfarchiadau ichi i gyd. Diolch o galon means heartfelt thanks while llongyfarchiadau ichi i gyd means congratulations to you all. Read more: Coronavirus: Prince Philip thanks scientists working on COVID-19 vaccine The prince learnt some Welsh as a student, when he spent a term at the University of Wales in Aberystwyth. He gave his speech at his investiture as the Prince of Wales in Welsh. The message, which was recorded in his home in Birkhall, Scotland, continued: It has now been weeks since our lives were changed in so many far-reaching ways by this pernicious virus. We have seen streets become empty and workplaces fall silent. But we have also seen individuals and communities meeting these strange new circumstances with the age-old values of generosity and courage that the people of Wales have always understood so well. The ceremony at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff also included a pre-recorded performance by Official Harpist to The Prince of Wales, Alis Huws. A general view as workers prepare the Dragon's Heart hospital in Cardiff. (Getty Images) Read more: Coronavirus: Queen cancels birthday gun salutes for first time amid COVID-19 pandemic Charles added: We mark one of the most remarkable transformations that have been achieved namely turning Waless national stadium one might almost say its national shrine into this giant temporary field hospital. This, and all the other field hospitals across Wales, are an achievement of which we are all immensely proud. Through your extraordinary efforts, this stadium, so long a place of who-wyl, has now become a place of healing. Story continues Who-wyl refers to a good spirit or atmosphere. The field hospital is the largest in Wales and the second largest in the UK, with capacity of up to 2,000 beds. It will treat those with coronavirus who are too sick to be at home but do not require intensive care. The British Army help move medical supplies at the Principality Stadium, Cardiff. (Getty Images) Several similar hospitals have been set up around the United Kingdom, with many of them opened by Prince Charles or other royals. Charles opened the NHS Nightingale hospital in the ExCel centre via videolink from his home in Scotland shortly after he recovered from COVID-19 himself. William opened the Nightingale hospital in Birmingham, and Camilla sent a video message for the field hospital in Manchester. Read more: Coronavirus: Queen says 'better days will return' as she addresses nation and Commonwealth Over Easter, there were just 19 patients in the Nightingale hospital in East London. The field hospital has a capacity of up to 4,000. In addition to the Cardiff stadium capacity, more beds are being added in areas including Swansea Bay, Llanelli and Llandudno. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how coronavirus is spreading Prince Charless message comes on the same day as his father, Prince Philip, sent his own rare message ahead of World Immunisation Week. Despite being retired, Philip sent a message acknowledging the hard of work of scientists and medical teams who are working to find a COVID-19 vaccine. DETROIT The man who raised Keith Gambrell, who loved him like a son and married his mother, died in a blue recliner of novel coronavirus in his Michigan home. Gary Fowler, 56, went to the emergency rooms of three metro Detroit hospitals in the weeks leading up to his death, begging for a coronavirus test, begging for help because he was having difficulty breathing, but he was repeatedly turned away, Gambrell said. "My dad passed at home, and no one tried to help him," Gambrell, 33, said through tears. "He asked for help, and they sent him away. They turned him away." In the hours before his death, breathing was so difficult, Fowler slept sitting up in the bedroom chair, while his wife, Cheryl, dozed in the bed by his side. When she woke, her husband of nearly 24 years was gone. Before he took his last breaths, Fowler scrawled on a piece of paper, "Heart beat irregular ... oxygen level low." "My little brother called me, screaming, 'Daddy won't wake up!' " Gambrell said. Keith Gambrell of Detroit is under quarantine with COVID-19 symptoms on April 10. Gambrell's grandfather and stepfather died of COVID-19 symptoms. Gambrell, his mother and brother tested positive. By the time Gambrell got across town to their house on the morning of April 7, police and emergency medical workers had arrived. His dad was still in the recliner. A bluish tinge had settled on his lips and fingers. "I went up and talked to him," Gambrell said, his voice breaking. "I told him I love him and that I'll see him again one day and that I'm sorry we couldn't even have a funeral for him. "I just felt so bad because he was begging for his life, and medical professionals did nothing for him." Gary Fowler got sick in late March 2020 and went to several hospitals when he started to have shortness of breath. According to his stepson Keith Gambrell, hospital personnel told him he had bronchitis and refused to test him for coronavirus. Fowler died at his Michigan home April 7. The virus has brought renewed attention to health disparities for people of color. "About 33% of the cases of COVID-19 in this entire state of Michigan are in African Americans, and about 40% ... of the deaths," Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the chief medical executive for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, said during a Facebook Live interview Thursday with Detroit's Civil Rights, Inclusion and Equal Opportunity Department. "And that's incredibly concerning. We know that African Americans are only about 14% of the entire population." Story continues Racial disparities: Black people are dying from coronavirus at higher rates in cities across the USA Gambrell lives in Detroit's 48235 ZIP code, a coronavirus hot zone with the highest infection rate per capita 162 cases per 10,000 residents and the highest number of confirmed cases of the virus at 724, according to data released Friday by the city. Detroit released data on the number of coronavirus cases by ZIP code on Friday, April 17, 2020. Denise Fair, Detroit's chief public health officer, said coronavirus testing remains a barrier for many in the community, as does access to care. "It's estimated that there are upwards of 10 people with undetected infections for every confirmed case, and in some communities, the estimates are even higher," she said. Health disparities turn deadly Dozens of factors feed the health disparities for people of color, said Khaldun, who formerly worked as the director and health officer for the Detroit Department of Health. "It's a contagious disease," she said. "That's the bottom line. And people who have chronic conditions, asthma, diabetes are more likely to get the disease and then have more severe illness." In Detroit the biggest majority-black big city in America rates of many of those chronic conditions are higher than the rest of the state, making Detroiters especially vulnerable. Add poverty to the mix, Khaldun said, and it's the perfect recipe for rapid-fire spread. For many of the city's poor, it's impossible to practice social distancing and stay home because they are more likely to hold low-wage jobs in grocery stores, gas stations and other work in services that are considered essential and still operating through the crisis. "People who are more likely to be underprivileged and people of color, living in poverty, are more likely to get sick from this disease," Khaldun said. "I think it's quite simple, actually. And I think we'll see that once we get more data and start doing the analysis." When people in poverty get the disease, Khaldun said, isolating from others in a household might not be possible, increasing the chances that the virus will spread through entire families. A bus full of bags of food, fruit and milk for the needy and homeless pulls up to the Pope Francis Center in Detroit on April 9. Beyond the economic drivers that make the black community more vulnerable in this pandemic, there's bias within the medical community, Khaldun said. That bias might play a role in who gets a COVID-19 test, who gets hospitalized and whose symptoms are taken seriously. "I'm a doctor, and my own doctor did not listen to my concerns about a headache after I had my first child," she said. "And I ended up in an ICU (intensive care unit) with a head full of blood. ... My own doctors did not listen to me. We know there's often delays in diagnosis for all kinds of medical conditions in the black community and people of color. So are there delays in testing? Are there delays in treatment? Are we sending people home when they really should be admitted to the hospital because they're so at risk for deteriorating quickly? So those are the types of things that we're going to have to look at." Pedestrians board a Detroit Department of Transportation bus April 20. COVID-19 devastates the Fowlers Hours before Gary Fowler died in his rocking chair, his father, David, also slipped away. COVID-19 came for David a grandfather of 11 and great-grandfather of two while he lay alone in a hospital bed about a dozen miles from his son, who was "his best friend," Gambrell said. He was 76. David, a retired tool and dye maker who loved camping and the outdoors, became ill in mid-March. On the morning of March 22, Gambrell went to visit his grandfather to check on him. Gambrell's mom and dad went, too. Gary Fowler, right, and his father, David Fowler, both died the week of April 6, 2020, of COVID-19. The younger Fowler got sick in late March and went to several hospitals when he started to have shortness of breath. His stepson Keith Gambrell said the hospitals didn't test Gary Fowler for coronavirus. "We just thought he had the flu," Gambrell said. But that afternoon, it was clear to them all that David's illness was serious he'd passed out in the bathroom. They called 911, and an ambulance took David to Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, where he was admitted. He tested positive for the virus and was put on a ventilator. "The following week, my father started developing a cough," Gambrell said, "and the cough was getting worse and worse by the hour." In the last week in March, Gary Fowler spiked a fever, too, and his breathing became labored. He went to Beaumont Hospital in Grosse Pointe for help, Gambrell said. "He tells them, 'My father has the coronavirus. I would like to get a test because I am showing symptoms. I am coughing,' " Gambrell said. "He had a fever of 101. He had shortness of breath. He was showing all the signs. "They tell him, 'Sir, more than likely the fever is from bronchitis.' And they tell him to go home. But they also give my dad a piece of paper saying to act like you have the virus." Gary Fowler was not tested for COVID-19. He followed the instructions and went back home. The same scenario played out at several other hospitals in the days that followed as Fowler continued to seek medical care, knowing his body was starting to fail. After going to Detroit Receiving Hospital, Fowler was told he'd get better care at Henry Ford. When he arrived at Henry Ford, Gambrell said his father explained, " 'My chest hurts. I can't breathe. I have a fever that has not broke. I've been taking Tylenol, I've been drinking stuff, and it is not breaking. I think I have the virus because my father tested positive for it, and I saw him ... the day he went to the hospital.' "But it was the same thing. They tell him, 'You're fine. You have bronchitis. Go home. Drink water. Act like you have the virus.' " Gary Fowler was never tested. He was never admitted to any hospital or given any treatment, his son said, perplexed by the way each hospital turned away his father in his moment of need. "If I have to act like I have a virus, does that mean I have a virus, and you guys are sending me home until I'm on my deathbed?" Gambrell asked. "And then, when I come back to the hospital, it's too late? "I honestly think that's why the death rate for blacks is so high. It's because we're being pushed to the back and told to go home, but come back if you can make it before you die. "That shouldn't be the medical procedure for anything." Beaumont issued a statement after questions about how Gary Fowler was treated: "COVID-19 is hitting southeastern Michigan particularly hard. As patients come to Beaumont for care during this extraordinary time, we are doing all we can to evaluate, triage and care for patients based on the information we know at the time. When making care decisions, we do not discriminate against anyone based upon their gender, race or any other factor. We grieve the loss of any patient to COVID-19 or any other illness." Henry Ford Health System said Saturday that no one who comes to the hospital is denied care. "All patients who come to our emergency departments receive care and assessment," said Brenda Craig, vice president of integrated communication at Henry Ford Health System. "Some patients will meet criteria for admission at the time, while others may not. In the case of COVID-19, we have a multistep triage process. As patients arrive to our emergency department, all are screened for COVID-19 symptoms. Those with mild or moderate symptoms who do not meet admission criteria at the time they present may be sent home with strict instructions to return immediately if symptoms worsen. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the Fowlers and all families devastated by the effects of COVID-19. Were not able to share details due to patient privacy, but we dont take lightly any concerns of biased care, given our dedication to putting patients first. Throughout this pandemic, we have followed CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines related to testing and clinical care protocols. Henry Ford has also been a leader in addressing health disparities and driving true health equity as part of our core mission and values, and that work will continue." Craig acknowledged that testing for coronavirus remains limited. "Given the U.S. currently does not have the ability to widely expand testing to everyone, the CDC has issued guidelines to health systems to prioritize testing," she said. "Weve followed these guidelines closely, whereby patients who are currently admitted and health care workers experiencing symptoms are among those receiving top priority for testing." Even though his father never had a COVID-19 test, Gambrell said his dad's death certificate says he died of the virus. "There's no question," he said. A son fights to save his mother Despite the fresh grief of losing both of the family patriarchs within hours of one another, the coronavirus still wasn't done with the Fowler family. The day her husband died, Cheryl, 57, got sick. "She started coughing and had a fever of 102" degrees, said Gambrell, who was terrified about waiting too long to get help for her. The day Gary Fowler died from coronavirus complications, his wife, Cheryl, became sick. She was hospitalized and put on a ventilator. Cheryl's cousin, state Rep. Karen Whitsett, who also had COVID-19, heard about the deaths of Gary and David Fowler and called the family. When she learned that no one else had been able to get tested and that Gary had been unable to get hospital care, Whitsett gave them a number for the doctor who treated her for COVID-19. Even Whitsett said she'd had trouble getting tested. "The part that bothers me the most through this whole entire process is that ... if I hadn't used my name, if it wasn't for my name and my job title, I don't think I would have gotten anywhere, either" with testing and treatment, said Whitsett, a Detroit Democrat. Whitsett praised President Donald Trump this month, crediting him with saving her life because he'd touted the anti-malaria drug hydroxycholoroquine as a potential treatment for coronavirus. Last week, she went to the White House to meet him. Karen Whitsett, right, says President Donald Trump helped save her from COVID-19. The American Hospital Association sent a letter last week to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar about the racial disparities in the federal COVID-19 response, highlighting a lack of available tests for African Americans, unequal medical treatment for those who have the disease and lack of public health information about coronavirus for communities of color. Latino community: Latinos disproportionately dying, losing jobs because of the coronavirus Friday, the CDC released its first national report on race and coronavirus. It suggests 30% of COVID-19 patients in the outbreak are black, though the U.S. population is only about 12% black. The federal agency acknowledged that race data was missing from 75% of the cases it examined. The doctor who prescribed hydroxychloroquine for Whitsett wrote prescriptions for Cheryl Fowler, Gambrell, his brothers, sister and niece to get coronavirus tests, Gambrell said. The Gambrell-Fowler family was devastated by the coronavirus. From left: Keith Gambrell, Gary Fowler, Cheryl Fowler, Troy Fowler and Paris Fowler. Before any of them could get in for testing, Cheryl's condition worsened. Her fever was rising, and she was having trouble breathing. Gambrell drove her to Beaumont Hospital the night of April 7 hours after her husband's body was taken to the funeral home. "Before they even looked at my mother, there was a young Caucasian lady complaining about sushi she got from GrubHub that upset her stomach, and they swooped her in the back like she had coronavirus," Keith said. "But my mom, she had all the symptoms, and they tell her just go home. That makes no sense. ... They helped a girl who ate bad seafood over someone with all the signs of needing medical need help. "I felt like they sent my mother home to die." Underlying issues: Health issues for blacks, Latinos and Native Americans may cause coronavirus to ravage communities Next, he took Cheryl to Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. He said he kissed her forehead before she entered the doors of the emergency room alone during the pandemic, most hospitals don't allow adults to have support people with them inside to avoid further risk of infection. Gambrell wondered whether it would be the last time he'd see her alive. The grief was still raw from the death of his father. He prayed he wouldn't lose his mother, too. Cheryl Fowler lost her husband, Gary, to the coronavirus. There was relief when he got a call about an hour after he dropped off Cheryl at Henry Ford. She was being admitted. "She tested positive for the virus as well," he said. "It was a blessing they kept my mom. I think the only reason they kept my mom was because she had prescriptions to get tested for the virus." Hearts broken but on the mend Cheryl Fowler soon needed a ventilator to help her breathe. Gambrell got daily updates from the hospital, and his sister frequently checked on her by calling the nurse's station. Gambrell said he began to feel a little off as well. He had a tickle in the back of his throat, felt hot and cold flashes and had lost his sense of taste and smell. His youngest brother, Ross, was sick, too. 'Tuskegee always looms in our minds': Some fear black Americans, hardest hit by coronavirus, may not get vaccine On April 8, while their mother struggled for air at Henry Ford Hospital, the rest of the family went to get coronavirus tests. Keith and Ross, 19, and their brother Troy, 21, sister, Paris, 28, and her daughter, Logan, 7, all got tested at an urgent care clinic. They were told it would be at least five days before they got results. They all went home to wait and to pray. A day later, Ross was getting sicker. Gambrell took him to Henry Ford, too. Ross complained of chest pain and had a fever and a cough. In the same hospital, their mother was starting to show signs of improvement. Gary and Cheryl Fowler's youngest son, Ross, tested positive for the coronavirus. "He said every time he inhales, it hurts. It hurts very bad," Gambrell said the evening of April 9. "They did a chest X-ray and were like, 'Oh, you have pneumonia. So here's a piece of paper. Go home, and act like you have the virus.' I am so tired of hearing that. If I have it, I have it. Please let me know that I have it, so I can save my life. If my dad could have gotten tested the first time he went to the hospital, he would be here today." Cheryl came off the ventilator April 10, Gambrell said. Two days after that, she had recovered enough to be discharged home. She'll be on supplemental oxygen for at least two weeks, he said, but she's slowly healing through her grief. Gambrell and his brother Ross tested positive for COVID-19, but both feel much better. Everyone else in the family who was tested got negative results. Gambrell is shaken, he said, by all the family has endured in this crisis and what it revealed about inequities in this country. "Why isn't there enough testing in the areas that are mostly impacted, which are black areas?" he asked. "This coronavirus is gonna cause so much PTSD for people. It's sad," he said. "There's going to be a major fallout after this. It's not right at all. ... I don't try to put color on things and say, 'Oh this is black or this is white.' I don't do that with anything in my life, but when you see it, you have to call it how it is." Contributing: Kristi Tanner Follow Kristen Jordan Shamus on Twitter: @KristenShamus This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Coronavirus: A family ravaged by COVID-19 struggled to get tests, care Electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi has launched a massive sale on kitchen gadgets - including coffee machines, blenders and coffee machines. Shoppers can expect huge savings across its store and website as Australians increasingly stay in doors during the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest sale, which ends on Wednesday, April 22, features popular brands such as DeLonghi, NutriBullet, Sunbeam, Tefal, Philips, Breville, SodaStream and more. Electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi has launched a massive sale on kitchen gadgets - including coffee machines, air fryers, and blenders Be your own barista at home with a DeLonghi Nespresso machine for just $119 and shoppers will also be offered a $40 coffee credit to spend on capsules. If you're after a fancier version, you can get the Breville 'The Barista Express' for $698, which 'grind, dose and extract all in one' in less than a minute. For home cooks, you can get a Sunbeam air fryer for just $159 to create crispy, delicious food using 99.4 per cent less oil than standard deep frying. If you're looking to take your dishes to the next level, the $179 Philips all-in-one multicooker can slow cook, bake, steam, pressure cook and multi cook to create savoury dishes or desserts all in one machine with ease. To make quick and easy snacks, you can get a Sunbean toastie maker for just $69, or create delicious smoothies or purees in the NutriBullet 900W mega pack for $99. Other items on sale include the SodaStream sparkling water machine for $119, which is available in three colours - white, black and red. Shoppers can expect huge savings across its store and website as Australians increasingly stay in doors during the coronavirus pandemic (file image) In light of COVID-19, the retailer is taking extra precautions to ensure team members and customers are safe during their shopping experience. 'We want to do our best during this challenging period to allow our customers to access service, advice and product when they need it,' it said on its website. 'We have expanded our cleaning routines across our stores, including increased cleaning throughout the day. 'Our teams have had additional training on maintaining good hygiene practices. To support this, stores may be operating a little differently than usual.' All stores will allow a maximum of 100 people into each store at any given time - meaning larger stores will fall well within and smaller stores will meet the federal government's recommendations on social distancing. The stores will no longer be accepting cash payments and customers are advised debit, credit or approved finance cards and JB gift cards will be the only way to make a payment. Most stores are open but trading hours have changed so shoppers are advised to check the website for their local store. The CBD stores including Sydney's Pitt Street, Westfield Sydney, The Galeries and World Square, Melbourne's South Wharf and Elizabeth St Camera Store and Brisbane's Central have closed temporarily. 'Our CBD stores aren't as busy as they usually are, so it will temporarily close,' it said. In a story that has become all too familiar, gospel artist Eko Dydda has joined hundreds of Kenyans put in mandatory quarantine at government institutions. Police officers have been accused of abusing the curfew and social distancing orders. There have been numerous reported cases where Kenyans had to part with thousands of shillings so as not to be prosecuted or forwarded to a quarantine facility. Boniface Mwangi has today posted how Eko Dydda found himself on the wrong side of the law, and now has to spend a minimum of 14 days at KMTC, at his own cost. A bitter wife to the artist wrote Boniface a lengthy message, detailing how her husband found himself in that predicament. She says that Eko is being punished because she would not part with Sh5,000 without a receipt. She also adds that the fact that she recorded the police officers on her phone infuriated them and they are out to teach her a lesson. Read her story below. ********************************************** FORCED QUARANTINE BEING USED AS PUNISHMENT BY POLICE My name is Sylvia Dydda. I have been unwell since January. I have high blood pressure and a high heart pulse that has led to facial palsy and other complications that have affected my mobility. I am not able to walk properly. I am taking BP meds and neuro care for the nerves. On Saturday, my medicines ran out and my husband, Eko Dydda, father to our two amazing kids decided to go buy them. He went to a pharmacy near our neighborhood, in the late afternoon, but he couldnt find the medication. He then decided to drive to Nairobi CBD where he found and bought the medication. On his way home, he got a puncture at around 6:30pm and by the time he had fixed it, it was about 6:50pm. He continued with the journey home and on reaching Ngong Road, near Coptic Hospital, he found a police road block at around 7:10pm. He was stopped and arrested. The police had commissioned a breakdown truck and every car that violated the curfew was being towed to Kilimani Police Station. The car owner was then put in a police vehicle and driven to the Police Station. On reaching the Police Station, Eko was booked in the cells. My medicine was left inside the car. Early Sunday morning, my neighbor took me to the Police Station because I could not walk properly. On arrival, the officer manning the Occurrence Book asked if l had money to pay bail for my husband, following which he would be required to appear at Milimani Court on Monday. I think I asked too many questions, as l pleaded his case, because they eventually told me to get out of the Police Station and only return when I had the money. I went outside for a bit and then went back in to ask if I could pay via m-pesa. The officer replied, toka hapa, enda leta cash (Get out and go come with cash). I was secretly recording our conversation. I left again to go and withdraw Ksh10,000, then returned and gave the officer the requested bail of Ksh5,000. I wasnt aware that he had noticed I had recorded him, so he told me, Leta pesa ndio nikuandikie receipt (Give me the money so I can give you a receipt). I gave him the Ksh5,000 cash and he started opening drawers, so I thought he was looking for a receipt book. He took out a brown envelope, put the money inside and told me, Enda nje (Go outside), then he chased me out of his office. After waiting for an hour, he brought Eko out from the cells, handed him the receipt and told him to go pay the towing charges to the breakdown vehicle operators, since it was they who had his car keys. We found the breakdown vehicle people behind the toilets. I found that weird. I told them l would only pay them if l got a receipt. They referred me to a female police officer who came, picked the Ksh5,000 cash and then took me to a shop inside the police station and gave me a receipt, after I requested it. I asked her for the car keys and she told me that they were with the officer to whom l had paid the cash bail and who had lied to me that the breakdown vehicle guys had them. Eko went to get the keys and as I was waiting for him, I heard one of the officers saying, Hii mama imetu record hajui tuna weza poteza hii mutu yake. (This woman recorded us and she doesnt know we can make her man disappear.) We got into our car and drove off. On our way home, Eko received two phone calls asking us to go back and collect the car. Eko told the caller hed already picked the car. Then they asked him about the receipt for the bail and Eko told them he had collected the receipt as well. That was around 9:30am. The callers phone number was 0721254408 and his name, according to m-pesa, is James Samira. We arrived home and Eko showered and slept. The police, however, kept calling. We ignored their calls. Eko received calls from four different numbers calling from Kilimani, one of them from a female officer. She told Eko that someone who was in the cells with him had died and he should go back to record a statement. They gave him a number (0756479296) to call when he arrived. While on the call, we overheard someone say, Hii mtu pekee ndio umepea receipt, hii ni shida. (You issued a receipt to one person, this is problematic). We arrived back at the station at around 12:30pm. Eko was re-arrested and they took back the receipts they had given us but, luckily, l had taken pictures. The officer who had issued us with the bail told us to take back our money because the bail had been cancelled by the boss. Out of all the people who had been arrested that evening, we were the only ones who had insisted on being issued with a receipt. Eko had left me outside the Police Station and when l went inside to follow up on what was going on, l was told that since I had recorded them, they were going to teach my husband a lesson. This is Eko Dydda, the President gave artists Ksh100 million, he will vomit this money, one officer told me. The OCS came and ordered his officers to take Eko to that place. I didnt know where that place was but, later in the day, Eko called and informed me that he had been taken to the quarantine center at KMTC. He told me there were about 200 people there. He was given a blanket and a bed. Up until now, no tests have been taken and he was told the tests would be done on the day they were supposed to get discharged. l went to KMTC Mbagathi, where l met the officers who had taken Eko there. They told me, Eko paid us Ksh10,000 and insisted on a receipt. Now he will pay the government Ksh28,000. They went on to say, Where do you think our money will come from? It comes from the citizens. I will teach him a lesson. The police officer in Kilimani stopped about 50 motorists on Saturday night but only your husband is giving us problems. If you share the video, we will come, arrest you with your children and take you to quarantine. Bonifaces Note: I have spoken to Eko. Here is his story whats happening at KMTC Mbagathi. When we arrived, we were told this is prison, its not quarantine and we are prisoners. We werent tested during arrest and we shared the cell in Kilimani Police Station with other people. At the quarantine centre, people arrested all over are in the same place. The only time you get out of the room is to go pick food but people here arent observing rules. Theyre bitter, because no tests were taken and they feel they might get infected with Coronavirus. The quarantine is like a dormitory but with individual cubicles, we are sharing toilets and bathrooms. We have been told we shall be tested after 14 days, and if one or two people are found to be positive, all of us shall be held in quarantine for another 14 days. Most of the people here, are from the ghetto, those who couldnt afford to bribe police, and l dont think they will afford to pay the quarantine charges. It seems the government is trying to justify spending the Coronavirus budget on forced quarantines. FYI: Police arent only targeting motorists. Police are doing swoops in low-income areas and arresting people for simply walking around. My friend was extorted out of Ksh10,000 at Buru Buru Police Station, to get his younger brother and his friend released. The police arrested them while they were standing outside their house chilling. They were given an option to pay the bribe, or be taken to quarantine at their own cost. Kenya isnt yet on lockdown but #KenyaPoliceForce and their bosses at Police Headquarters have found a way to make quick money. The threat of quarantine is forcing people to bribe. What will happen to those who cant afford to pay quarantine fees, will they be sent to prison? At least two women have been hospitalized among seven new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Montgomery County. The countys total number of confirmed cases reported by the Montgomery County Public Health District has climbed to 377 cases, up seven cases from Friday and nearly 120 cases since last Saturday. Montgomery County Public Health District, in conjunction with Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, can confirm there are now 377 total positive cases of COVID-19, up 7 cases from yesterday, the districts release stated. The hospitalized New Caney woman, who is in her 80s, and The Woodlands woman, who is in her 50s, are also among 239 cases where the virus has been reportedly transmitted through community spread, which makes up about 63.4 percent of the countys total cases. Montgomery County now has 270 active cases, 50 hospitalized, 100 recovered and 220 in self-isolation with seven deaths. Montgomery County health officials confirmed the seventh death from COVID-19 on Friday. The woman, who was in her 80s, was a resident of The Conservatory at Alden Bridge. Five deaths in Montgomery County have been residents of the independent senior living community. The updated number of cases by ZIP code is as follows: Conroe 107, The Woodlands 65, Spring 76, Montgomery 36, Porter 31, Magnolia 24, New Caney 13, Willis 14, Splendora two, Kingwood seven, Hockley one and Pinehurst one. Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough said Friday the county has not seen the rapid spread of the virus that health officials expected. He said local hospitals continue to have adequate beds for those needing care, according to a previous Courier article. Anyone wanting to be tested can contact the MCPHD/MCHD COVID-19 Hotline at 936-523-5040. Call takers have a list of testing sites to share with those who are interested. Details on Montgomery County cases can be found at https://mcphd-tx.org/coronavirus-covid-19/confirmed-cases/. Australian miner South32 has announced deep cuts to shore up its position amid the spreading coronavirus pandemic by suspending a share buyback, cutting its spending by $160 million and scaling back exploratory drilling activity. The $9 billion company on Monday reported a fall in the output of most of its bigest commodities during the March quarter, and slashed expenditure on sustaining its operations to $US500 million ($784 million) in an effort to conserve cash. South32's Worsley Alumina in Western Australia. "We have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by introducing a number of measures aligned to our priorities of keeping our people safe and well, maintaining reliable operations and supporting our communities," South32 chief executive Graham Kerr said. "We have acted to protect our strong financial position, reducing capital and exploration expenditure, suspending our on-market share buy-back and commencing a group-wide review aimed at delivering a reduction in controllable costs." It is a significant achievement for continuing the war against economic fugitives, an elated CBI said on Monday's verdict of a UK High Court rejecting the appeal of embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya who had sought an order against his extradition to India. Mallya had escaped from the country after allegations of bank fraud were levelled against him for causing losses up to nearly Rs 9,000 crore to banks. "It is a significant achievement in continuing war against economic fugitives who have been managing to stay away from the judicial process in the country," CBI spokesperson RK Gaur said. He said it also validates the "painstaking and meticulous" investigation done by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Mallya on Monday lost a UK High Court appeal against his extradition. The dismissal of the appeal by the High Court came as a major achievement for the agency which has been tirelessly pursuing his extradition from the UK. The then Head of Special Investigation Team of the CBI Rakesh Asthana has been regularly attending the London hearings. The ruling by the High Court gives 64-year-old Mallya, who is on bail, 14-days to approach the UK Supreme Court. If he does not file an appeal before the UK's apex court, he would be sent to India in accordance with provisions of the India-UK Extradition Treaty. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) FRESNO, Calif., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Bitwise Industries ( www.bitwiseindustries.com ) and the Kapor Center , launched the online resource for Americans impacted by COVID-19, OnwardUS . Following the launch of OnwardCA in California, Colorado has launched the Onward platforms in its state, with at least 25 additional states expected to launch in the coming weeks. As states continue to look for ways to give displaced workers a single, easy to use resource for connecting with valuable resources, the Onward platform represents a turnkey solution. "As we work to ensure the health and safety of Coloradans during these unprecedented times, it's critical that we also help the economy recover. OnwardCO is a key tool in that effort," said Colorado Governor, Jared Polis. "Colorado is proud to be part of the OnwardUS coalition, an example of the power of public private partnership." The new platform, powered by Shift3 Technologies , Salesforce, and Mastercard is a one-stop resource providing support to Americans impacted by job loss in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Displaced workers looking for help can: Get connected to emergency resources, like food, shelter, childcare, and money Get connected to training programs to upskill for a new career Get matched to jobs "After the incredible response to OnwardCA.org , we realized this resource was desperately needed in many other communities," remarked Freada Kapor Klein, Co Chair, Kapor Center. "This website was created out of necessity, by software developers from communities most impacted by this crisis, who are often overlooked by the technology industry and it is now serving our country in its time of need. Innovation that addresses real problems is exactly what will move our country forward together." The website brings together all of the resources, organizations and direction needed to navigate life during the COVID-19 state of emergency. The coalition of public and private sector organizations that came together to make OnwardUS possible include: Zoma Foundation, Schmidt Futures, Twilio, Google, Indeed, Facebook and LinkedIn. "When you consider how many governors, mayors, cities, non-profits, CEOs and developers have come together to create something at the scale of OnwardUS, it's awe-inspiring to see what can be accomplished," said Jake Soberal, CEO and Co-Founder, Bitwise Industries. "I'd especially like to acknowledge the technologists that built the Onward platform at Shift3. They rose to the occasion and worked tirelessly to create something to support every American worker in need of resources during this crisis." "As the nation faces staggering challenges, the private sector has a vital role to play in helping Americans achieve financial security by bringing its technology to the table through partnerships like OnwardUS," commented Michael Froman, Vice Chairman and President of Strategic Growth, Mastercard. "Through OnwardUS, we look forward to creating more resilient societies and helping people make the transition back to work." If your organization is interested in contributing funding, technology, reach, or if you'd like to bring Onward to your state, please email [email protected] or visit www.onwardus.org. About the Kapor Center The Kapor (pronounced KAY-por) Center actively works to make the technology ecosystem and entrepreneurship more diverse and inclusive. Specifically, we are focused on positive social impacts for communities that have historically been on the periphery of access to opportunity, participation and influence in the United States. www.kaporcenter.org About Bitwise Industries Bitwise Industries is using an ecosystem solution to fix the way the world sources tech talent. Its ecosystem operates in three parts: (1) Workforce, (2) Industry and (3) Infrastructure. Workforce is branded as Geekwise Academy , a coding bootcamp that removes the hurdles that block individuals living in poverty from entering the technology industry (i.e., transportation, childcare, counseling, food security, mental health services, etc.). , a coding bootcamp that removes the hurdles that block individuals living in poverty from entering the technology industry (i.e., transportation, childcare, counseling, food security, mental health services, etc.). Industry is branded as Shift3 Technologies , an enterprise software consulting firm composed almost exclusively of Geekwise Academy graduates. Shift3 serves as proof positive that you can build world-class tech teams of non-traditional talent. , an enterprise software consulting firm composed almost exclusively of Geekwise Academy graduates. Shift3 serves as proof positive that you can build world-class tech teams of non-traditional talent. Infrastructure takes the form of a real estate business in which Bitwise partners with real estate developers to change blighted locations into technology hubs. This ecosystem combines to lift cities while opening new, and deep tech talent pipelines to the world. Bitwise was founded in Fresno, CA, in 2013 and has since expanded to Bakersfield, CA, and Merced, CA. www.bitwiseindustries.com SOURCE Bitwise Industries Related Links http://bitwiseindustries.com/ DUBLIN, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Taiwan Telecoms Report - 2020-2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. This report provides analyses of revenue and market forecasts as well as statistics of the Taiwan telecoms industry including market sizing, 5-year forecasts, market insights, key telecom trends, and 5G. It also features the following: Overall Telecommunications Market by Major Operators Telco Operators Profile, Revenue and EBITDA Mix Mobile Subscribers & Revenue Market Overview and Forecasts Spectrum Holdings IoT Market Overview Broadband Subscribers & Revenue Market Overview and Forecasts National Broadband Network Detailed Market Overview and Forecasts Thematics / Opportunities relating to 5G, M&A and e-Commerce Telecoms Infrastructure Review Telco M&A Transaction Database Globally, the telecommunications sector is proving to be a core and essential infrastructure service to national economies, with data infrastructure becoming critical in a connected world and will likely increasingly attract a new class of investors such as large infrastructure funds. The report expects the Taiwanese telecommunications industry to remain steady thanks to the defensiveness nature of the industry, amid the political uncertainties and an uncertain economic outlook due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With already a saturated mobile phone penetration and fixed broadband take-up among households, future growth is likely to remain subdued with a declining working population and an aging population over the long term. The report forecasts that mobile subscriptions will continue to grow in the 2019-25 period and fixed broadband subscribers will also continue to grow but lower its household penetration over the same period due to fixed-wireless substitution. The ratio of the telecommunications sector revenue to GDP is declining from a peak in 2015, sliding down every year since then. Following the market contraction over the last 5 years, Ithe publisher forecasts flat revenue growth to 2025, as long as data pricing stays rational amid the diminishing impact of declining legacy voice and SMS revenue. Mobile subscriptions ares growing faster than mobile service revenue leading to ARPU decline after 3 years of intense competition with the market transitioned completely transitioned to 4G after shutting down 2G and 3G networks in 2017 and 2019 respectively. This research anticipates that the overall telecoms market is to remain flat through to 2025, after a marked decline from 2016 due to mobile service revenue pressure partially offset by fixed broadband and enterprise data growth. Capex Investments The Capex to GDP ratio peaked in 2014 and has been sliding since, to its lowest in 2019. Capex investments will increase again from 2020 through to 2025, as mobile operators invest in 5G, bolster their 4G coverage and increase capacity to fulfil strong data demand, increasing again Capex to Sales Ratio. Operator Profiles Most operators maintained EBITDA margins at the expense of revenue growth with Chunghwa losing the most share while Far EasTone and Taiwan Mobile also losing mobile service revenue share in the 2014-2019 period at the expense of Asia Pacific Telecom and Taiwan Star. Mobile Subscribers and Revenue As the rate of growth of net additions in mobile subscriptions slows, telecommunications providers are channelling their efforts into reducing their cost base and stabilising ARPU through new value-added services using mobile data and bundling fixed and mobile services. The proportion of postpaid subscriptions remained stable at about 80% between 2014 and 2019 while the postpaid segment is growing in popularity with SIM-only offerings and reducing the number of people holding multiples SIMs. According to our benchmark study of mobile data pricing, India has the lowest rate per GB at just a few cents per GB, while Australia and China had the biggest cost reduction per GB mostly due to increased data allowance in plans while Singapore remains expensive. Taiwan mobile users pay for competitively priced data as mobile users recorded the largest monthly download in the Asia Pacific region. Broadband Subscribers - FTTH Push and Fixed Wireless The fixed broadband market is experiencing a subdued growth with Chunghwa Telecom losing share to HFC cable operators such as KBro, Taiwan Mobile, TBC and CNS. Chunghwa Telecom invested early in the 2010s in FTTx technologies while migrating its DSL subscribers to its HiNet network. Competing cable operators also invested in upgrading their cable networks bundling mobile, IPTV and e-Commerce services but falling short of upgrading to full-fibre networks limiting opportunities for gigabit speeds. Fixed broadband penetration is forecasted to decline as fixed-wireless substitution is increasing supporting a rising number of lone-occupancy households. Thematics - Telecoms Infrastructure / 5G / M&A / Infrastructure Infrastructure funds, pension funds and government funds are assigning high valuation multiples to telecommunications infrastructure assets such as mobile towers, data centres, submarine cable and fibre infrastructure. Investment funds are assigning high valuation multiples to telecommunications infrastructure assets such as mobile towers, data centres, submarine cable and fibre infrastructure. This report outlines some real market examples of how investors view and value these investments with real industry examples and EV/EBITDA comparatives and benchmarks. However, in the medium term, the telco sector is likely to experience some corporate activity. Subdued growth due to ARPU pressure compounded by low population growth is pushing telcos to look for outside opportunities to increase scale. The publisher expects a wave of consolidation in Taiwan in both the mobile and fixed broadband market, after some failed merger of cable operators. The arrival of 4G moved the Internet off our desktops into our palms and pockets, 5G could transform the network from something we carry around to something taking us around either virtually (augmented reality or virtual reality) or in reality (autonomous vehicles), the 5G outcome and benefits beyond fast connectivity remain largely unknown in terms of business models, investments required and timeline. Key Topics Covered 1 Key Statistics 1.1 Taiwan Population 1.2 Taiwan Households 1.3 Taiwan's GDP 2 Overall Telecommunications Market, 2014-2025 2.1 Market Overview 2.2 Historical Telecommunications Market Revenue, 2014-2019 2.3 Overall Telecommunications Market Forecast, 2018-2025 2.4 Telecommunications Market Capital Expenditure, 2014-2025 2.4.1 Historical Telecommunications Capex Spend, 2014-2019 2.4.2 Capex to Revenue Country Benchmark 2.4.3 Capex to GDP Benchmark 2.4.4 Telecommunications Capex Spend Forecast, 2018-2025 3 Telecommunications Operators Profile 3.1 Chunghwa Telecom Profile 3.1.1 Chunghwa Telecom Revenue and EBITDA Mix 3.2 Far EasTone Profile 3.2.1 Far EasTone Revenue and EBITDA Mix 3.1 Taiwan Mobile Profile 3.1.1 Taiwan Mobile Revenue and EBITDA Mix 3.2 Asia Pacific Telecom Profile 3.2.1 Asia Pacific Telecom Revenue and EBITDA Mix 3.3 Other Operators Profile 3.3.1 Taiwan Star 3.3.2 KBro 3.3.3 China Network Systems (CNS) 3.3.4 Taiwan Broadband Communications (TBC) 4 Mobile Market 4.1 Mobile Subscribers Historical and Forecast, 2014-2025 4.1.1 Mobile Subscribers Historical, 2014-2019 4.1.2 Mobile Subscribers Market Share, 2014-2019 4.1.3 Taiwan Smartphone Share, 2019 4.1.4 Taiwan Mobile Subscribers Forecast, 2019-2025 4.2 Mobile Revenue Historical and Forecast, 2014-2025 4.2.1 Historical Taiwan Mobile Service Revenue, 2014-2019 4.2.2 Mobile Service Revenue Forecast, 2018-2025 4.2.3 Mobile Subscribers ARPU, 2014-2019 4.3 Spectrum Holdings 4.3.1 Existing Spectrum Holdings 4.3.2 5G Trials and 5G Auctions Results 4.3.3 Mobile Frequencies Portfolios Analysis 4.3.1 Spectrum Depth Benchmark by Country 4.4 Mobile Download Data and Pricing Trends 4.5 Mobile Speed Tests 4.5.1 Ookla Mobile Speed Tests 4.6 Internet of Things (IoT) 5 Broadband Market 5.1 Fixed Broadband Subscribers Historical, 2014-2019 5.2 Fixed Broadband Subscribers Forecast, 2018-2025 6 Telecommunications Infrastructure Investments 6.1 Fixed Infrastructure 6.1.1 Government Plans and Policies 6.1.2 Submarine Cables 6.2 Mobile Tower Infrastructure Landscape 6.2.1 Getting Ready for 5G 6.3 Telco Infrastructure Comparative 7 Thematics / Opportunities 7.1 Going for Scale 7.2 Going for Scope 7.2.1 e-Commerce 7.2.2 Digital Payments 7.3 New Telecoms Operating Model 7.3.1 The Attraction of Infrastructure Multiples 7.4 5G versus Fixed 7.4.1 5G Overview 7.4.2 5G: Relative Capex Investments and Frequency Range 7.4.3 Fixed Broadband Networks Doing the Heavy Lifting Long Term 8 Telco M&A Transaction Database For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/x184cp Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] 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 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 SOURCE Research and Markets Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com If one asymptomatic person at one protest has the coronavirus and spreads it to two more, then those two return to their hometowns and each spreads it to two more, you have the potential for another outbreak. And how will any state respond to a surge of new infections? By shutting down. Over 16,500 patients have died in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK, the department for health has confirmed - an increase of 449 in the last 24 hours. In the latest update provided by the government 4,676 people were confirmed to have contracted the virus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases since the beginning of the outbreak to 124,473. The number of newly reported deaths, while often a reduced figure after a weekend, is the lowest seen by the UK since 9 April - and follows a cautious optimism among scientific and medical officials over the trajectory of the virus in the country. Professor James Naismith, director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute, and University of Oxford, said: Although we have clearly passed the peak of the announced hospital deaths in this first wave, 449 deaths can never be thought of as any other than very sad news. "The UK has been one of the hardest hit countries in this first wave and we still have to add in deaths from care homes and wider community. It is urgent that we learn what can be applied here so we do better". And Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter, chair of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication, at the University of Cambridge said that evidence from NHS England suggested "We are in a steadily, but rather slowly, improving position since the peak of deaths 12 days ago on 8 April", adding, "But, judging from the experience in Italy, this could be a lengthy process." On Sunday Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer said at the dailt Downing Street press briefing that It is fair to say that we do know from the hospital data that we are now starting to plateau, However she fell short of agreeing with the view of Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of medical research charity Wellcome Trust and an adviser to the government, who said the country may be past the peak of the outbreak. Instead Dr Harries urged observers to be extremely guarded about viewing the peak as finished - while reiterating the need for social distancing measures to be maintained. Send Ghana, a think tank group into policy research and civil society advocacy has called on government to halt any further demolition exercise at Old Fadama in Accra, until collective efforts at stemming the Coronavirus pandemic received positive outcomes. It urged government to urgently arrange for temporary abode to relocate those affected by the demolition exercise to guarantee their safety and protect their human dignity. This was contained in a release signed by Mr George Osei-Akoto Bimpeh, Country Director of Send Ghana (SG) and copied to the Ghana News Agency. It said SG was aware of the perennial flooding that usually plagued the area and other parts of Accra, resulting from illegal structures and appreciated government's efforts in working proactively to avert calamity or disaster. It, however, criticized the timing of the demolition exercise, which it believed was undertaken without human face as scores of people were displaced in an era of lockdown occasioned by a global pandemic, COVID-19. It said SG was worried about how the people could abide by the protocols outlined by government to contain the spread of the disease. The release asked how government through the action of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) expected the displaced people to stay at home in compliance with the lockdown directives. Again, it wondered how such distraught people would observe basic hygiene rules required to avoid infection by the disease. "Is it not clear defiance of logic that the very vulnerable citizens that government is protecting in this moment of the crisis are the same people whose rights have been violated and dignity severely injured," it stated. The release said AMA's action constituted an infringement on the affected citizen's right to housing, and in particular, non-compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), especially, Article 11 of the Convention, which stated in part that "State parties to the present Covenant recognise the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for him/herself and his/her family including adequate food, clothing and housing." It noted that Ghana as a state party had refused to take appropriate steps to ensure the realisation of the right to the affected people. Human rights advocates and other groupings including Ghana's chapter of Amnesty International jointly slammed the action of the AMA of April 15, which led to the demolition exercise at Old Fadama, estimated to house about a 1,000 slum-dwellers, who were rendered homeless, when wooden structures that sheltered them were pulled down to pave way for the annual dredging of the Korle Lagoon. 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. Featured Video One Ukrainian serviceman has been wounded as a result of a new enemy attack in Donetsk region on Monday. "The wounded serviceman was quickly taken to a healthcare facility by an evacuation vehicle and received proper medical assistance. The injured man is in satisfactory condition," the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters said on its Facebook page. Such actions of the enemy did not remain unpunished, "JFO servicemen neutralized the enemy's activity by fire," it said. Information about casualties on the enemy side were not specified in the message. [April 20, 2020] The European Equity Fund, Inc. Announces Annual Meeting of Stockholders The European Equity Fund, Inc. (NYSE: EEA) (the "Fund") announced today that the Annual Meeting of Stockholders for the Fund will be held at 10:30 a.m., Eastern time on June 25, 2020 at the offices of DWS Investment Management Americas, Inc., 875 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10022. Holders of shares of common stock of record of the Fund at the close of business on May 1, 2020 are entitled to vote at the meeting and any postponements or adjournments thereof. At the meeting, stockholders of the Fund will consider the election of Directors and approval of auditors. In addition, stockholders of the Fund will be asked to consider a stockholder proposal if it is properly presented at the meeting. Details of the proposals will be set forth in a proxy statement expected to be mailed to stockholders in May. As part of precautions regarding the coronavirus or COVID-19, the Fund is planning for the possibility that its annual meeting may be held solely by means of remote communication. If this step is taken, the Fund will announce the decision to do so in advance, together with details on how to participate. For more information on the Fund, including its most recent month-end performance, visit dws.com or call (800) 349-4281. Important Information Investing in foreign securities, particularly those of emerging markets, presents certain risks, such as currency fluctuations, political and economic changes, and market risks. Any fund that concentrates in a particular segment of the market will generally be more volatile than a fund that invests more broadly. The shares of most closed-end funds, including the Fund, are not continuously offered. Once issued, shares of closed-end funds are bought and sold in the open market through a stock exchange. Shares of closed-end funds frequently trade at a discount to net asset value. The price of a fund's shares is determined by a number of factors, several of which are beyond the control of the fund. Therefore, a fund cannot predict whether its shares will trade at, below, or above net asset value. Investments in funds involve risk. Additional risks of the Fund are associated with international investing, such as currency fluctuations, political and economic changes, market risks, government regulations and differences in liquidity, which may increase the volatility of your investment. Foreign security markets generally exhibit greater price volatility and are less liquid than the US market. Additionally, the Fund focuses its investments in certain geographical regions, thereby increasing its vulnerability to developments in that region and potentially subjecting the Fund's shares to greater price volatility. Some funds have more risk than others. These include funds, such as the Fund, that allow exposure to or otherwise concentrate investments in certain sectors, geographic regions, security types, market capitalization, or foreign securities (e.g., political or economic instability, which can be accentuated in emerging market countries). The European Union, the United States and other countries have imposed sanctions on Russia in response to Russian military and other actions in recent years. These sanctions have adversely affected Russian individuals, issuers and the Russian economy. Russia, in turn, has imposed sanctions targeting Western individuals, businesses and products. The various sanctions have adversely affected, and may continue to adversely affect, not only the Russian economy, but also the economies of many countries in Europe, including countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The continuation of current sanctions or the imposition of additional sanctions may materially adversely affect the value of the Fund's portfolio. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the laws of such state or jurisdiction. NOT FDIC/ NCUA INSURED MAY LOSE VALUE NO BANK GUARANTEE NOT A DEPOSIT NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY The brand DWS represents DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA and any of its subsidiaries such as DWS Distributors, Inc. which offers investment products or DWS Investment Management Americas, Inc. and RREEF America L.L.C. which offer advisory services. (R-075208-1) (04/20) View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005475/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] A new study has found that young people are leaving it too late to seek help for eating disorders, citing fear of losing control over their eating or weight, denial, and failure to perceive the severity of the illness as reasons not to get professional advice. The recent online survey of almost 300 Australian young adults aged 18-25 years found a majority had eating, weight or body shape concerns, and even those with anorexia or bulimia reportedly found reasons to delay getting treatment or expert interventions. Not wanting others to worry about their problems was the highest endorsed barrier - it reflects the wish for autonomy and also the fear of being a burden to others in this group of young adults, said Kathina Ali, Research Associate in Psychology at Flinders University. Feeling embarrassed about their problems or fearing that other people do not believe eating disorders are real illnesses even prevented young adults experiencing symptoms of anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa from seeking help, said fellow psychology researcher Dr Dan Fassnacht. Concerningly, only a minority of people with eating disorder symptoms had sought professional help and few believed they needed help despite the problems they were experiencing, says Dr Fassnacht, Flinders University Psychology Lecturer, co-author of a new paper just published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders. In the research article, titled What prevents young adults from seeking help? Barriers toward help? seeking for eating disorder symptomatology, the Australian and German researchers recommended clinicians (counsellors, health workers, and others) and the public be made aware of these barriers. More information and education about the severity and the impact of eating disorders - and how symptoms can get worse without interventions or treatment - should be available to young adults, including the importance of seeking help, and self-management strategies. Helpful and free evidence-based online resources are available at websites such as Australias Butterfly Foundation and the National Eating Disorders Collaboration. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. ) Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON An expert in immunology has said there needs to be a Minister for Testing during the Covid-19 pandemic. Dr Thomas Ryan, associate professor at the school of biochemistry and immunology at Trinity College, Dublin told Newstalks Pat Kenny that there needs to be a new government ministry on testing with direct access to the Taoiseach to speed up efficiency. This is an absolutely extraordinary situation and we need an extraordinary way of implementing it. The best roadmap for a country like ours on how to implement this kind of framework was put forward by the Tony Blair Institute for International Governance. I'm not a particularly big fan of Tony Blair in any respect, but he has a large degree of experience on how to deal with this - because when he was the Prime Minister of the UK he led the response to the Foot and Mouth situation. Which obviously was not as big an issue as this, but it had large economic implications. He has been very clear that in Britain, and I think this applies to Ireland also, you need a Minister for Testing. The only way we're going to get this done, effectively, is if we have a minister at senior Cabinet level with direct access to the Taoiseach on a daily basis who has an executive taskforce who is empowered and autonomous to deliver this kind of testing regime. Dr Ryan added that such a ministry needs to be part of the new Governments plans. As Texas continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic, parts of the state that had been closed will reopen and some restrictions will be eased, according to a new order issued Friday by Gov. Greg Abbott. A team of nationally recognized experts, business and community leaders called Strike Force will lead the efforts to reopen the state. Some of the high-profile Houstonians on the team include Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale, billionaire restaurateur Tilman Fertitta and philanthropist Nancy Kinder. Here are the crucial dates for the reopening of Texas: April 20, 2020: Texas state parks reopen. Abbott added that visitors will not be allowed to gather in groups larger than five people and must maintain social distancing. Park visitors will be required to wear protective masks. "Your physical and mental health are important especially in times like these. Going to parks is an effective way to address those needs, so state parks will be reopened beginning this coming Monday," Abbott said. >>> View all the significant dates for the reopening of Texas in the above gallery... STRIKE FORCE: See who's who on Texas Governor Greg Abbott's Strike Force April 22, 2020 Current restrictions on medical procedures will be loosened. "Adequate supplies of hospital beds and PPE must be maintained to ensure that all COVID-19 needs are met," Abbott said. Currently, hospitals and other medical specialists are not allowed to perform non-essential procedures such as diagnostics testing for cancer. This new change will allow doctors to treat patients without having to request state approval, Abbott said. April 24, 2020 Retailers will now be allowed to offer "to-go" options for customers. "Retailers create so many jobs," Abbott said. "This temporary plan allows customers to access more retailers while minimizing contact with others." April 27, 2020 Additional openings and restrictions are slated to be loosened. "We will introduce a phased-in strategy to open Texas in a safe way. It will require comprehensive testing and assurances of hospital readiness for COVID-19 patients," Abbott said. "It will focus on containing the risk of the surge of COVID-19 and protecting our most vulnerable residents." DISASTER EXPERT: Dealing with Houston's fear of COVID-19 and a possible rebellion Abbott added that revised plans will be announced on April 27. "We will consider the possibility of opening more businesses, like restaurants, movie theaters. We will also consider expanding elective surgeries." April 30, 2020 The state's stay-at-home order is scheduled to expire. Closure order for remainder of 2019-2020 school year Abbott has extended the closure order for all Texas schools and colleges for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year. "It would be unsafe for students to gather in schools for the foreseeable future," he said. alison.medley@chron.com We all know that decisions are based on best guesses about future events. We don't get to make prospective decisions with the benefit of hindsight. Some decisions when made are manifestly stupid (no smart decision ever began with the phrase "hold my beer"), and even some thoughtful ones reflect bad reasoning ("I have returned from Germany with peace for our time"). However, when dealing in real time with an unknown disease playing out in countries with different population demographics, different health care systems, and different record-keeping (and, in China's case, lots of lies), it's unlikely that there will ever be a perfect response. Nevertheless, the newest Democrat position is that, because Trump's response failed to block the Wuhan flu from landing on our shores, he is a blundering, blustering incompetent who is ready for another impeachment. When someone comes flying at you with that kind of broad accusation, one grounded in emotion and historical rewrites, it's hard to marshal the appropriate facts and make a sensible argument. Or maybe it's hard only if you're not a former Navy SEAL like Dan Crenshaw, a House representative from Texas. While most of us have been tested solely in the crucible of mean words and dirty arguments, he was tested under fire, and, as his debonair eye patch shows, he paid a high price during that test. On the same show during which Bill Maher earned deserved kudos for attacking mainstream media's execrable, emotion-laden, dishonest coverage of the Wuhan virus, he made the mistake of trying to debate Rep. Dan Crenshaw about whether Trump's response to the Wuhan virus was timely. If we could all learn to debate as Crenshaw does, the world would be a better, more logical, well ordered, and well run place. As Maher hurls out a word soup of alleged facts, all of which are belied by the record, Crenshaw never loses his calm friendliness. Instead, he keeps setting the record straight, always focusing on accuracy rather than partisanship or the "gotcha" game. It's a beautiful lesson in how to handle someone who is being factually dishonest. Certainly, Crenshaw's performance has resonated with people. As Benny Johnson points out in his tweet about the debate, Maher's show has an audience of 1.5 million people. Meanwhile, as of this writing, Crenshaw's devastatingly polite performance, one that leaves Maher intellectually and factually disarmed, has already garnered 2.4 million views on Twitter. Bill Mahers HBO show has an audience of 1.5 million This clip of him being humiliated repeatedly by @DanCrenshawTX has 2 million This is the power of social platforms over establishment The power of a real audience over canned studio laughter/applausepic.twitter.com/KsYXH2h8I0 Benny (@bennyjohnson) April 19, 2020 On Maher's own YouTube channel, more than 700,000 have watched the video. Tim Pool, a popular YouTuber, analyzed Maher getting "annihilated" in an "embarrassing video." Pool's video has garnered another 234,000 views. Although people are tired of angry partisanship, they are hungry for the truth. Crenshaw, with grace and calm, is giving them that truth. This is a video well worth sharing. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 01:17:35|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close XI'AN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Monday inspected the work of ecological conservation in the Qinling Mountains in northwest China's Shaanxi Province. As a natural boundary between the country's north and south, the Qinling Mountains are home to a huge variety of plants and rare wildlife such as giant pandas, golden monkeys and crested ibis. Great efforts have been made in recent years to protect the Qinling Mountains, considered by many as a window into China's progress in ecological conservation. For more than two decades, Xiao Jianjun, head of the Dongtai New Village in Chang'an District of Xi'an, capital of the province, has stuck to planting trees in the Qinling Mountains. Xiao decided to plant trees in the mountains in 1999 when the Chinese government launched a campaign of returning unproductive farmland to forest and grassland. Last weekend, Xiao and his villagers planted seven osmanthus trees, two honey locust trees and four red maples to help restore the local environment. Chang'an District is in the core area of the northern slope of the Qinling Mountains. About 876 square km out of the over 1,000 square km of the district are in the Qinling Nature Reserve. The area had suffered from multiple environmental problems such as illegal construction of villas, quarrying and pollution of water sources in the past. Dongtai New Village was no exception. According to Xiao, the village faced financial difficulties in 2003. It rented out part of its barren slope to villa builders to help villagers have access to tap water with the rent. As China has vowed to push for coordination between economic and social development and ecological civilization, the central authorities attached great importance to the illegal construction of villas in the Qinling Mountains and ordered local government to tackle the problem in 2014. A total of 1,185 illegal villas at the northern foot of Qinling range were demolished in 2018. "After these illegal buildings had been demolished, we planted more than 1,200 pines on the land," said Xiao. "From then on, planting trees and protecting trees have become our resolute belief." Thanks to the government's policies on protecting the environment of the Qinling Mountains and local villagers' persistence on planting trees, the Dongtai New Village is now home to more than 10,000 trees. In the wake of the campaign against illegal construction in the Qinling Mountains, about 178 hectares of green space has been restored in the northern slope of the Qinling Mountains, with 22 quarries closed and 57 sewage treatment plants built. Wang Qingfeng, Party chief of Chang'an District, said 151 villages in the district have been renovated to meet the standard of having a greening rate of over 40 percent. The other 52 villages under renovation are expected to meet the standard at the end of July. The district also plans to build nearly 100 parks in its urban area and outskirts. To better protect the environment of the Qinling Mountains, especially to deal with the problems of tourists management and wildfire prevention, Chang'an District has set up an intelligent management and control system over the eight main valley mouths leading to the mountains to monitor persons and vehicles entering the mountains. "Through the system, we can scientifically define the ecological carrying capacity so as to manage the number of tourists and the vehicles entering the mountains," said Xue Yazhou, director of Qinling environment protection and comprehensive law enforcement bureau in Chang'an District. The local government has mobilized more than 26,000 volunteers to help clean the environment, plant trees and promote environmental protection awareness. "By guarding the valley mouths, the environment of the Qinling Mountains will be well conserved. Our goal is to turn its eight valley mouths into nature parks, " Wang said. Enditem Posted on Friday, April 17, 2020 KINGSVILLE (April 17, 2020) Students from the College of Business Administration at Texas A&M University-Kingsville have extended their income tax preparation through Friday, July 15, the new due date for federal income taxes. They offer free income tax preparation through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. VITA provides free basic income tax preparation for taxpayers with incomes below $56,000. Because of the social distancing restriction, income tax prep is all strictly drop off at both locations. The days and times remain the same with a 48-hour turnaround on all returns. This year volunteers will be at two different locations. Monday and Tuesday, taxpayers may visit room 107 of the College of Business Administration building from 4 to 8 p.m. Free parking is available in the lot north of the building. The second location is at the Texas Community Federal Credit Union, 605 E. Caesar Ave. in Kingsville. Volunteers will be at the credit union from 1 to 8 p.m. Thursdays and from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays. Citizens should bring their tax information, photo identification, and Social Security card. For more information, call 361-593-3787. -TAMUK- Kentucky experienced its biggest daily increase in positive coronavirus cases, just two days after anti-lockdown protests. Protestors demonstrated last week over social distancing measures put in place by governor Andy Beshear, which closed all bars, restaurants and schools. The protestors called for the end of lockdown restrictions and disrupted the governors press conference on Friday, to demand businesses reopen, with unemployment levels in the state rising. Mr Beshear announced on Monday that there were 293 new positive coronavirus cases in Kentucky on Sunday, bringing the states total to 2,960. This was the highest single day total in the state, according to WCPO and Mr Beshear warned that we are still in the midst of this fight against a deadly and highly contagious virus. He added: Lets make sure, as much as were looking at those benchmarks and were looking at the future, that we are acting in the present and we are doing the things that it takes to protect one another. The governor confirmed that he would not be lifting lockdown restrictions for the state yet, adding that he was following government guidance. Were not in the 14 days of decreasing under the White House guidelines to do certain things, he said. During his daily coronavirus briefing on Sunday, president Donald Trump, defended anti-lockdown protestors in states, including Kentucky, Ohio and Michigan. If people feel that way, youre allowed to protest. Some governors have gone too far, some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate. Mr Beshear announced on Monday that Kentucky has upwards of 2,960 confirmed cases and at least 148 deaths. According to a tracking project hosted by Johns Hopkins University, nationally there are upwards of 776,513 people who have tested positive for coronavirus. The death toll has reached at least 41,313. Since Massachusetts health officials reported the states first COVID-19 death on March 20, a months time has drastically changed the way we navigate our new socially-distanced reality. At that point, residents were living in a limited world, urged to avoid crowds and reminded to wash their hands frequently. Parents were grappling with how best to work from home with children in the background, no longer behind desks at school. Just one month later, major aspects of our lives now look dramatically different than they did four weeks ago. Massachusetts has now seen more than 1,700 deaths, half of which have occurred in nursing homes or long-term care facilities. When an 87-year-old Winthrop man succumbed to illness related to COVID-19, becoming the first state resident to die from the virus, some gyms were still open to patrons seeking the normalcy of a workout. Gov. Charlie Baker just days before announced a number of sweeping changes, ordering that schools close and that restaurants and bars no longer serve patrons on-site. The governor had not yet ordered the closure of all non-essential businesses -- that came four days later, and the measure was subsequently extended. As medical professionals spoke about flattening the curve, residents wondered when Massachusetts would see its peak, and what that would mean for hospitals. By today, April 20, residents have been asked to wear face masks when they leave home. And those trips out of the house are supposed to be just for the essentials, trips for groceries or medicine. People ache for a chance to someday soon sit down for a meal at a restaurant or enjoy a drink at a bar. Parents sit with uncertainty, wondering whether their children will return to school to complete the academic year. While at least 27 states in the U.S. have closed schools for the rest of the academic year, the governor remains hopeful that students will return to class before the summer break. Across the state, and country, people are without work. Unemployment claims have climbed to more than a half-million in Massachusetts and 22 million across the country. Marking one month since the states first coronavirus-related death, Massachusetts hospitals now appear to be in the throes of the states coronavirus surge. The state correctly predicted a mid-April spike in cases and deaths, and the state has seen five consecutive days with fatalities in the triple digits. Although new patients are admitted to the states hospitals daily and intensive care units are filling up, those hospitals appear to be holding up amid the crisis. Health care workers are trying every method they can to save the sickest of the sick as they search for more ventilators and protective equipment. They thumb through medical journals, looking for answers to an insidious virus that has not yet met its match in a vaccine. Amid the heartache of seeing lives lost every day, a beacon of hope has been illuminated atop Mount Tom in Easthampton. The 15-foot star usually lit up for the holidays is glowing now, offering a message of hope through the anguish of the pandemic. The public waits for answers as the pandemic stretches into the warm, spring months. Everyone wants to know: When will this end? States death toll now nearing 2,000 Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito joined the Massachusetts National Guard and Michael Lauf, president and CEO of Cape Cod Healthcare as they toured a field medical station in a gymnasium at Joint Base Cape Cod. The facility will handle certain coronavirus patients if needed. Photo by John Tlumacki/Globe Staff(metro) At the time of Massachusetts first coronavirus death, the state had just 328 cases and had tested 3,132 residents. It took less than one full month for the states death toll to eclipse 1,000 residents. Following that first death on March 20, the state Department of Public Health has reported a steady increase of fatalities. Deaths passed 1,000 on April 15, and as of Sunday, 1,706 residents have succumbed to the illness. At least 38,077 residents have tested positive for coronavirus as of Sunday. The virus has claimed the lives of Boston Police Officer Jose Fontanez, well-known local faces like Bernie Rubin of the Bernie & Phyls furniture chain, grocery store employees and a nurse who drew attention to issues with the coronavirus response at a Littleton nursing home. In the time since Massachusetts saw its first death, the U.S. has amassed more coronavirus cases than any other country across the globe. Coronavirus-related deaths across the entire United States topped 1,000 on March 26. As of Sunday, the U.S. has seen more than 40,000 people die from the respiratory illness. Field hospitals have been set up in Boston and Worcester, with additional sites on Cape Cod and in Springfield identified as surge treatment sites, officials working quickly to ensure there will be enough beds if hospitals reach capacity. As the death toll climbed each day, medical professionals and state officials began to prepare for a surge of patients, searching for enough mechanical respirators to match the influx of sick people entering hospital doors. This past week, that surge arrived. On April 14, the governor warned of "difficult days ahead. There have been moments of positivity. Baystate Medical Center has marked its successes with a celebration, blasting the Rocky theme song as a patient who recovered from coronavirus was wheeled out of the hospital. Nursing homes, long-term care facilities see fatal outbreaks This May 2018 file photo shows an aerial view of the Holyoke Soldiers' Home in Holyoke, Mass. The superintendent of the veteran's home was removed from his duties Monday, March 30, 2020 after several residents died, including some who had tested positive for COVID-19 and others whose results are pending. 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.Patrick Johnson / The Republican file In the last month, the virus has snaked its way through nursing homes and long-term care centers. The result has been devastating. Roughly half of the deaths in Massachusetts have been residents of long-term care facilities. At the Holyoke Soldiers Home, more than 50 residents have died as of April 19 and a total of 90 veterans at the home, which had about 210 residents when the pandemic began, have tested positive for the coronavirus. The state attorney generals office has launched an independent investigation to review the rapid spread of the virus and the management and organizational oversight inside the facility. A federal investigation by the office of U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling was also announced, involving prosecutors from Lellings office and the Department of Justices Civil Rights Division. The governor has also appointed an independent investigator to look into the home. A Hampden Superior Court hearing to delay discussions about presumably firing Holyoke Soldiers Home Superintendent Bennett Walsh is scheduled for April 30. Walsh has been placed on leave. When the virus enters care facilities, the case count increases rapidly. At the Jewish Healthcare Center in Worcester, 13 residents have died. Other nursing facilities in New Englands second-largest city have seen dozens of cases, the virus infecting both residents and staff. As of Sunday, at least 254 long-term care facilities in the state have reported at least one case of coronavirus, according to DPH. There have been at least 6,121 residents or employees of those facilities who have tested positive for the virus, and at least 884 deaths. Last week, Massachusetts Senior Care Association President Tara M. Gregorio said the forecast for nursing homes is dire without an investment of $130 million more per month and more safety equipment. State, CDC now recommends face masks in public Lt. Ian Deluca has been serving in the National Guard for a year. (Douglas Hook / MassLive) As the crisis unfolded, members of the public, officials and health experts debated whether face masks were needed for protection. Weeks after standing by its position that only sick people should wear a face mask, the White House on April 3 announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would reverse its recommendation, advising Americans to wear face coverings in public. In March, just some people were wearing face masks while out. Now, its common to see most faces covered while at a grocery store. On April 10, the state announced it was issuing an advisory, asking people to wear a mask or face-covering in public when social distancing is not possible. Towns and cities have made their own recommendations, with multiple cities across the state ordering residents to cover their noses and mouths when out for essential trips. Meanwhile, hospitals have struggled to maintain enough protective equipment for employees and have faced price-gouging. Testing ramps up A satellite shelter is opening at North High School to provide safety for Worcester's homeless population during the COVID-19 pandemic. Between state and commercial laboratories, at least 162,241 coronavirus tests have been conducted in Massachusetts through the crisis. The governor said Friday that the previous day had been the largest single day of testing since the outbreak began, with 8,750 residents were tested for the virus. As the state struggled to administer enough tests last month, Baker set a goal of 3,500 tests per day. Large testing sites were opened in Foxborough, Lowell and West Springfield. Labs have run enough tests to easily surpass that goal in the weeks since. On the day of Massachusetts first coronavirus-related death, the National Guard had just been activated to help respond to the crisis the day prior. Since then, members have been deployed to nursing homes across the state, administering tests that have identified new outbreaks of the virus. Massachusetts as of Saturday morning ranks fourth in the nation in testing -- behind New York, Rhode Island and Louisiana -- and has the third-highest number of known infections per capita in the nation according to the Boston Globe, which said it calculated per capita rates by tracking coronavirus tests, infections and deaths from all 50 states. As the amount of testing increases, identifying new cases, the states hospitals have been able to so far manage capacity through this unprecedented pandemic. Thanks to everything we are all doing to stay home, practice good hygiene and the incredible work of our medical community, capacity is manageable right now," Baker said last week. "But what were seeing in the models predicts a big increase in cases in the weeks ahead. And that means our health care system will be stretched like never before. Unemployment numbers climb into the millions 4/8/2020 -South Hadley- Morgan Mongeon of South Hadley checks the state website for the status of her unemployment claim. A personal trainer, the gym she works at has closed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. (Don Treeger / The Republican) The pandemic has forced businesses to shutter and has wreaked havoc on global markets. On March 20, Americans were still waiting for a stimulus package to pass. President Donald Trump signed the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act, on March 27. By now, millions of Americans have already received deposits of $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for couples and an additional $500 for each dependent. The federal stimulus package also provided funding for people on unemployment to receive an additional $600 a week on top of their unemployment benefit. But many Massachusetts residents told MassLive they received only the first $600 payment and no subsequent deposits. When Massachusetts counted its first coronavirus death, many businesses were still open and running. In a months time, unemployment claims have skyrocketed. More than a half-million new unemployment claims have been filed in Massachusetts, with 103,040 claims filed in the week that ended April 11. For the week ending March 21 -- which marked the first weekly report showing the impact of COVID-19 shutdowns -- there were 148,452 claims. The state has processed 572,562 unemployment claims since mid-March. As of April 4, a total of 310,211 people in Massachusetts are receiving unemployment benefits, representing 8.7% of all eligible employees in the state. Overall, 22 million Americans, or 13.5% of the workforce, have applied for unemployment benefits in the past four weeks. Job losses in the past month marks the fastest rate reported since 1948, when the nation began tracking unemployment. Furloughs and layoffs have struck all kinds of industries. Even nurses have been threatened with cuts. Residents get creative to spread cheer, good news Sarah (green hat) and her son Ryan and daughter Audrey Hurley see the Easter Bunny at the St. Joan of Arc School in Chicopee. (Douglas Hook / MassLive) Without the ability to gather in groups or go out to socialize, people have had to find new ways to connect. For many, one silver lining of needing to stay at home has been more time with family. Technology has become an even more vital resource. Teachers are connecting with students through video platforms like Zoom. Virtual happy hour has become the new normal on a Friday or Saturday evening. Actor and Massachusetts native John Krasinski has launched Some Good News, a YouTube series to highlight some of the heartwarming stories that have emerged during the pandemic. Massachusetts residents are still able to go out for a walk and have been encouraged to explore local trails and hikes while maintaining a distance from others. Just a touch of creativity has helped some find a way to bring back a sense of normalcy. When one Western Massachusetts resident thought about how to celebrate her birthday, she decided to spread Easter cheer, knowing the pandemic was completely disrupting the holiday. Chrissy Bernardi dressed up as the Easter bunny, her husband driving her around Chicopee to greet children. Bernardi donned the costume, she said, to try and bring some happiness in a time where its hard to be found. Related Content: Siva Sekaran By Express News Service CHENNAI: A special bench of the Madras High Court on Monday took suo-motu cognizance of the violent incidents that took place when the body of a doctor, who had served the humanity in treating coronavirus patients, was taken for burial at Velangadu on Sunday. The bench has issued notices to the authorities concerned. The bench of Justices M Sathyanarayanan and M Nirmal Kumar, which took cognizance of the incident, suo-motu issued notices to the State Chief Secretary, secretaries of Home and Health departments, the DGP and the Commissioners of Greater Chennai Police and Corporation, returnable by April 28. "In the considered opinion of this court, the scope and ambit of Article 21 of the Constitution include right to have a decent burial. It prima facie appears that as a consequence of the alleged acts, a person who practiced the noble profession of doctor and breathed his last, has been deprived of his right to have a burial in a cemetry earmarked for that purpose and that apart, on account of the law and order and public order problem created, the officials who have performed their duties appear to have sustained grievous injuries," the bench noted. "This court can also take judicial notice of the fact that the information relating to the guidelines to be followed in respect of COVID-19 cases are available in public domain at the instance of the State and central governments as well as through social media and the people are expected to be aware of the guidelines issued from time to time. Citizens are not expected to take law and order into their hands and if it is so, the same would definitely lead to anarchy and there would be a likelihood of similar kind of incidents to occur in future also. Therefore, this court in public interest issues notices," the bench said. In the third such incident in Tamil Nadu, corporation officials were forced to give up their plans to bury a 55-year-old doctor, who died of COVID 19 on Sunday, in the Kilpauk cemetery. Late in the night, they took the body to the Velangadu burial ground that is about three kilometres away. But even as a JCB machine was involved in digging, an angry mob from the neighbourhood objected to burying the body in the crematorium and went on to vandalise the ambulance in which the doctor's body was kept. A few officials and staff even suffered bleeding injuries in the assault. Only after the police provided protection could the body be buried, that too hurriedly and without using the JCB machine. NEW HAVEN The city was allocated $3,535,146 from the federal government in the first round of funding through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. In three letters sent to Mayor Justin Elicker on April 2, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developments Acting Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development John Gibbs announced three awards totalling more than $3.5 million to be used by the city to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 came late to Russia but it is definitely here now. The case numbers have spiked sharply, quadrupling over the past 10 days to propel Russia into the top 10 most infected countries worldwide with cases in every Russian region, though the epicentre is still in Moscow. The death rate is low. As of Monday, the regulator Rospotrebnadzor had recorded more than 47,000 cases with just 405 deaths. Russia closed its border with China at the end of January and watched as the virus worked its way around the globe, seemingly with scant interest in the largest country on earth. That should have given the Kremlin time to absorb lessons learnt the hard way elsewhere. Now comes the reckoning. Will Russia go the way of Germany , with mass testing and a low mortality rate, or will it fare less well? Russian healthcare is not on a par with Germany's, but if "test, test, test" is the key to fighting this virus, then Russia has worked hard to scale up capacity. The regulator says it has carried out a massive two million tests, over 100,000 a day now across a network of state and private laboratories. The UK is aiming to reach that figure by the end of April at the earliest. There is a wealth of testing offerings. Online retailer Ozon is selling home tests to Moscow residents for 4.9 thousand roubles, just over 50. Technology giant Yandex, which has a ubiquitous taxi and delivery arm, has announced a special service to ferry laboratory staff to the homes of over-65 year olds to test them for COVID-19 . A number of private laboratories offer drop-in tests for anyone not showing symptoms and who is not considered at-risk. Those who are should call the COVID hotline and deal directly with the state healthcare system. "Mainly people come to us to make sure they do not pose any threat to friends, families or colleagues," says Ivan Kolobov, who runs one of private clinic Hemotest's 31 Moscow branches. He says around 80 people are coming into his clinic for testing each day, mostly sent by their employers to make sure they are still fit for work. Story continues An all clear on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test is a very temporary result. It does not preclude people from picking up the virus the moment they leave the clinic. There is also a propensity for false negative results if the infection is still at an early stage and the viral load is too low to be identified. The PCR system Hemotest uses is an early version developed by the Vector State Research Laboratory based in Novosibirsk, Siberia, and there have been questions over its sensitivity. "It's not the best, but it's not the worst either. We are more or less in the frame of foreign tests," said Rimma Boyko, a project manager at Hemotest. She said Vector's new version is more sensitive but it hasn't filtered down to them yet. Russian biotech is scrambling to come up with improvements. Generium pharmaceutical has developed a 40-minute express test based on isothermal amplification which was registered earlier this month. "It's either one or two orders of magnitude higher than the current PCR tests, or it's more or less the same as the most advanced PCR," said Dimitri Poteryaev, Generium's chief science officer. "Right now I think there are nine or 10 tests, two isothermal amplification, and the eight commercial PCR tests which are registered in Russia but only very few companies can scale up the production as much as we need. "Hopefully we can scale it up to four million tests per month." Faster results will also ease the backlog in laboratories and allow for more widespread testing. "The diagnostic labs are literally choking right now," Mr Poteryaev said. Rospotrebnadzor has also registered an antibody test developed by Vector and began testing last week but there has been little fanfare around it. That may have to do with the realisation the World Health Organisation gave voice to that there may be no immunity against COVID-19, so a test to tell whether someone has had the disease will not help. :: Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts , Google Podcasts , Spotify , Spreaker Like in the UK, the call now is for recovered coronavirus patients to donate blood plasma to see whether plasma transfusions and the antibodies they contain can help the very sick. And for the very sick, Moscow clinics are using CT scans to look for signs of coronavirus in the lungs, an expensive but fast form of identification. The message from officials leading Russia's fight against the virus is that these measures are paying off. Moscow's mayor Sergei Sobyanin, who heads up the national coronavirus taskforce, told Russia's president on Monday that the number of acutely ill patients in Moscow has stabilised and that hospitals are able to operate at normal capacity again. There is always a time lag between a spike in cases and a rise in the number of deaths. Peak morbidity, as President Putin put it, is still ahead. Those numbers will be the true mark of whether Russia used the time it took for the virus to reach them to best effect. 2020 was a year marked by hardships and challenges, but the Fauquier community has proven resilient. The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you for your continued support, wed like to offer all our subscribers -- new or returning -- 4 WEEKS FREE DIGITAL AND PRINT ACCESS. We understand the importance of working to keep our community strong and connected. As we move forward together into 2021, it will take commitment, communication, creativity, and a strong connection with those who are most affected by the stories we cover. We are dedicated to providing the reliable, local journalism you have come to expect. We are committed to serving you with renewed energy and growing resources. Let the Fauquier Times be your community companion throughout 2021, and for many years to come. Cass County health officials are reporting the second confirmed COVID-19 infection involving a county resident. A man in his 50s is isolated and hospitalized, Cass County Health Department public health coordinator Andrew C. English said Monday. The countys first confirmed infection was reported Sunday and involves a woman in her 20s. The health department on Friday acknowledged a positive COVID-19 infection was confirmed in an employee at a Beardstown company, but that person lives elsewhere so the infection was not counted in Cass Countys numbers. Morgan County reported no new infections Monday, with total confirmed infections in the county at 13. Ten tests are pending and 156 have been returned as negative, according to a daily joint communication from the Morgan County Department of Public Health, Jacksonville/Morgan County Emergency Management, Memorial Health System, Morgan County commissioners and the city of Jacksonville. Brown and Scott counties are the only in west-central Illinois that have no COVID-19 infection as of Monday. In the region, one infection each has been confirmed in Pike, Greene and Schuyler counties. There are eight confirmed infections in Jersey County, 20 in Macoupin County, and 64 in Sangamon County. The Illinois Department of Public Health on Monday announced 1,151 new confirmed COVID-19 infections in Illinois and 59 additional deaths. There are 31,508 confirmed infections, and there have been 1,349 deaths, in 95 counties in Illinois, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. David C.L. Bauer Prince Philip today delivered a heartfelt thank you to key workers who are helping to make sure 'the infrastructure of our life continues' in the coronavirus pandemic. The Duke of Edinburgh, 98, said he wanted to recognise the 'vital and urgent' medical and scientific work taking place to battle the deadly virus. It is a rare public statement from the Royal - who has not been seen since he was hospitalised in December - as he approaches his 99th birthday in June. His warm remarks were in stark contract to the media blaze created by his grandson Prince Harry and Meghan Markle who last night said they will 'no longer engage' with the nation's most popular newspaper titles. Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said the country will have been inspired by Philip's words, but Harry's decision was 'strange'. Piers Morgan added the country was 'so well rid of the ghastly Sussexes & so lucky to have our senior royals'. The LA-based couple were blasted by other commentators for their timing of the letter to four newspaper groups detailing how their self-imposed ban is a refusal to 'offer themselves up'. The Society of Editors branded the move censorship, adding it was 'a clear attempt to undermine certain sections of the UK media'. The Queen's former press spokesmen Dickie Arbiter claimed the couple was 'wrong' and that Harry 'was not the brightest bunny on the planet'. Prince Charles's biographer Tom Bower said the Sussexes 'have become their own worst enemies' and was baffled they can only think of themselves 'in the midst of a horrendous global crisis'. Prince Philip, 98, has thanked medics, scientists and researchers who are tackling the ongoing coronavirus pandemic The Duke of Edinburgh said: 'On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected' It came after the Duke's grandson Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle (pictured in LA last week) said they will 'no longer engage' with the nation's most popular newspaper titles Philip, who retired from public duties in 2017, thanked key workers involved in food production and distribution, rubbish collection and the post services. In his tribute, published on the royal family's social media channels, he said: 'As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from Covid-19. 'On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected.' The duke, who is staying with the Queen at Windsor Castle with a reduced household for their safety, is affiliated to more than 750 organisations. These include the scientific, technological research, healthcare and infrastructure sectors, which have been responding to the outbreak. Philip, in his tribute published on the royal family's social media channels, said: 'As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic' The Duke's rare message came the morning after Prince Harry and Meghan's bombshell letter to some of the British press. The note was sent from an official Sussex Royal email, despite the Queen banning them from using the title and them saying they plan to use Archewell. They emailed the editors of the nations most popular publications: the Daily Mail, the Daily Mirror, the Sun and the Daily Express. Prince Harry had earlier on Sunday caused outrage by suggesting the coronavirus crisis sweeping Britain was 'better than we are led to believe through certain corners of the media'. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have said they will no longer respond to enquiries from journalists at some British papers. Pictured with son Archie Mountbatten-Windsor during a royal tour of South Africa, September 25, 2019 Their letter was widely criticised by royal and media commentators, especially in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, while Philip's words were met with praise. Fitzwilliams told MailOnline: 'The country will have been inspired by the Duke of Edinburghs message to those fighting coronavirus in the front line and to other key workers. 'Harrys ill-judged comment that the situation regarding the deadly pathogen in Britain is ''better than we are led to believe through certain corners of the media'' is strange and not only because of its timing, as the Sussexes cut all links with the British tabloids.' The Society of Editors brands the Sussex's letter censorship Executive Director Ian Murray said: 'Although the Duke and Duchess say they support a free press and all it stands for there is no escaping their actions here amount to censorship and they are setting an unfortunate example. 'Although the couple may no longer style themselves as working royals, they continue to be high-profile public figures and indeed have made plain their intention to continue to do so. By appearing to dictate which media they will work with and which they will ignore they, no doubt unintentionally, give succour to the rich and powerful everywhere to use their example as an excuse to attack the media when it suits them. 'The truth is that Harry and Meghan have enjoyed and continue to enjoy a huge amount of positive coverage for themselves and their causes, much of it carried in the very titles they are now targeting. They may have been stung by some of the coverage they have not liked, they may disagree strongly with some elements of that coverage and can of course take action to answer any criticism they consider unfair or inaccurate through several channels. But the answer should never be to attempt to shun individual titles and their millions of readers.' Advertisement Executive director of the Society of Editors Ian Murray said the statement was 'sadly a clear attempt to undermine certain sections of the UK media who often ask uncomfortable questions'. Mr Arbiter said: 'I really want to know who is advising them because they are wrong... unless they are doing it themselves. 'Not only this, Harry was wrong over the weekend. because 2.4million deaths is bad, 16,000 in the UK is bad. 'So how he can even suggest it isn't as bad as what is being said about it is wrong. But then again, he is not the brightest bunny on the planet.' Mr Bower added: 'The Sussexes have become their own worst enemies. They clearly cannot stand being irrelevant and ignored. 'In the midst of a horrendous global crisis causing so much misery all they can think about is themselves. 'Constantly they push their obsession about their image and their financial income into the spotlight, and then outrageously harangue the public with their problems. Meghan, just understand: No one cares!' The Sussexes completed their last royal duty on March 31, before stepping away from the monarchy - dropping their HRH styles - for a life mostly in LA. President Donald Trump said the US will not pay for the couple's estimated 4million security costs, which had been picked up by the Metropolitan Police. Earlier this month the Mail revealed Harry and Meghan had agreed to pay for the cost of their security, which will reportedly consist of former SAS soldiers at a cost of 400 per operative per day. Harry, 35, and 38-year-old Meghan's letter was sent to the editors of the news groups involved last night. They wrote: 'Please note that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. There will be no corroboration and zero engagement.' The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's letter to four UK news companies Sent to editors of British newspapers including The Daily Mail, Mirror, The Sun or Express: 'As the Duke and Duchess of Sussex now settle into the next chapter of their lives and no longer receive any publicly funded support, we are writing to set a new media relations policy, specifically as it pertains to your organisation. Like you, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex believe that a free press is a cornerstone to any democracy - particularly in moments of crisis. At its best, this free press shines light on dark places, telling stories that would otherwise go untold, standing up for what's right, challenging power, and holding those who abuse the system to account. It has been said that journalism's first obligation is to the truth. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex agree wholeheartedly. It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print - even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. When power is enjoyed without responsibility, the trust we all place in this much needed industry is degraded. There is a real human cost to this way of doing business and it affects every corner of society. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know - as well as complete strangers - have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue. With that said, please note that The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. There will be no corroboration and zero engagement. This is also a policy being instated for their communications team, in order to protect that team from the side of the industry that readers never see. This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. Media have every right to report on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it can't be based on a lie. They also want to be very clear: this is not in any way a blanket policy for all media. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are looking forward to working with journalists and media organisations all over the world, engaging with grassroots media, regional and local media, and young, and up-and-coming journalists, to spotlight issues and causes that so desperately need acknowledging. And they look forward to doing whatever they can to help further opportunities for more diverse and underrepresented voices, who are needed now more than ever. What they won't do is offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion. We are encouraged that this new approach will be heard and respected.' Advertisement Accepting the media has 'every right' to report on the high-profile ex-royals, they said: 'This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. 'Media have every right to report on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it can't be based on a lie. UK PUBLICATIONS THE BAN WILL COVER Daily Express express.co.uk Sunday Express Daily Mail Mail on Sunday MailOnline, including US site DailyMail.com Daily Mirror mirror.co.uk Sunday Mirror Sunday People The Sun The Sun on Sunday thesun.co.uk Advertisement 'They also want to be very clear: this is not in any way a blanket policy for all media.' The strongly worded piece suggests the papers involved have been responsible for publishing 'salacious gossip' which they know to be 'distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason'. But they faced a furious backlash, with Mr Morgan saying: 'As Meghan & Harry berate the media, claim #coronavirus crisis is exaggerated & leak texts to her father......Prince Philip sends a simple heartfelt message of support to those on the frontline. 'Britain is so well rid of the ghastly Sussexes & so lucky to have our senior royals.' The BBC's Mr Neil added: 'As the world grapples with Covid-19, do they really think people care what media they deal with? 'Their solipsism is amazing. Can't they just consign themselves to oblivion for a while? Or at least hire someone who can write a press release in clear, decent English.' Piers Morgan and Andrew Neil were among a host of commentators today to criticise the move The couple say they accept the media has 'every right' to report on the high-profile ex-royals. But they claim in the letters: 'This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. 'Like you, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex believe that a free press is a cornerstone to any democracy - particularly in moments of crisis. 'At its best, this free press shines light on dark places, telling stories that would otherwise go untold, standing up for what's right, challenging power, and holding those who abuse the system to account. 'It has been said that journalism's first obligation is to the truth. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex agree wholeheartedly.' Prince Harry and Meghan started married life at Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor estate and have agreed to pay back the 2.4million of taxpayer money spent on its refurbishment. Harry and Meghan had lived in Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor estate (pictured) and have agreed to pay back the 2.4million of taxpayer money spent on its refurbishment They moved to Vancouver Island in Canada late last year, where they spent Christmas with their son Archie. The Sussexes are currently believed to be living in rented accommodation in LA near their friend Sir Elton John. Prince Charles will continue to pay for the upkeep of his son and daughter-in-law for the first 12 months of their new life in the US. This will come from his private funds, not the Duchy of Cornwall, but it is understood it will not be used for their protection. In the letter the pair praise the work of the media as a 'cornerstone to any democracy' that 'shines light on dark places, telling stories that would otherwise go untold, standing up for what's right, challenging power, and holding those who abuse the system to account'. The ex-Royals are pictured on March 9 as they arrive to attend the annual Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in London But they said they have found the actions of an 'influential slice of the media' gravely concerning, adding they believe there is a 'human cost'. Both Prince Harry and Meghan said they have 'watched people they know have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason' by the media. The ex-royals state: 'Please note that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. 'There will be no corroboration and zero engagement. This is also a policy being instated for their communications team, in order to protect that team from the side of the industry that readers never see.' Representatives for the Sussex's added the 'zero engagement policy' would extend to both the Sunday paper and online editions of each newspaper. In a final statement the letter concludes: 'We are encouraged that this new approach will be heard and respected.' Communications for the couple will now be handled by Sunshine Sachs, a New York based PR firm, with only one UK-based representative. The hard-nosed Manhattan PR company is known for specialising in 'crisis communications' for celebrities. It has previously worked for Hollywood royalty including Leonardo DiCaprio, Natalie Portman, Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand, Jennifer Lopez and Michael Jackson's family. It is not yet known which media outlets will continue to have contact with the Sussexes. But the letter details how the pair 'look forward' to engaging with 'grassroots, regional and local press' to further causes that 'desperately need acknowledging'. Meghan is due to face The Mail on Sunday in court, in a virtual hearing on Friday over the publishing of a letter she wrote to her estranged father Thomas Markle. Prince Harry has launched separate legal claims against the Sun and the Mirror for alleged historic phone hacking. Julie Bishop, Kat Stewart, Cameron Daddo, Denise Scott and Lisa Curry will feature in the next SBS season of Who Do You Think You Are? They join previously announced Lisa Wilkinson, Bert Newton, and Troy Cassar-Daley for the series which resumes in mid-May. SBS Head of Commercial and Production, Chris Irvine, said: The enduring appeal of Who Do You Think You Are? is set to continue as SBS broadcasts a host of names in season 11, which are guaranteed to move and entertain audiences. This season spans centuries of history and crosses continents to unearth extraordinary genealogical revelations for some of the countrys most beloved Australians. These stories demonstrate how Australians have come to be the people we are today. This experience makes me feel more settled, makes me see more clearly who I am. Im so glad I got to know my ancestors. For those that did it really tough. I look at their lives and think I dont think I would have coped. Ive also realised how lucky I am, I found my place when it comes to family and I feel incredibly grateful for that because not everybody finds that. Lisa Wilkinson Two beautiful love stories. One six generations ago and another back through further generations, yet love is the through line. I feel incredibly grateful that I have that to look back on. I come from love stories. Brings up such such deep emotion. Cameron Daddo I feel even closer to my dad now because I know so much more about him. I realise now how lucky I am to have the family I have. Family is the one thing Im totally sure of. Bert Newton This season, viewers can expect tears, laughter, shocking discoveries, emotional revelations and some intriguing surprises. One of the cast discovers the father they never knew was a true patriot who devoted his life to his country, while another traces lost German roots. One learns about heroic wartime adventures and another gets insights into their Indigenous history. as these renowned Australians travel around the world to explore their family trees and delve back centuries into their ancestry. Through these journeys, a rare insight into their lives behind the cameras emerge. The emotional and personal stories in Who Do You Think You Are? reveal a bigger picture of Australias diverse national identity. Who Do You Think You Are? is produced by Warner Bros. International Television Production Australia for SBS. The series airs at 7.30pm Tuesdays on SBS, starting 19 May. Broadcast schedule: Episode 1 Tuesday 19 May Lisa Wilkinson Episode 2 Tuesday 26 May Bert Newton Episode 3 Tuesday 2 June Cameron Daddo Episode 4 Tuesday 9 June Lisa Curry Episode 5 Tuesday 16 June Denise Scott Episode 6 Tuesday 23 June Kat Stewart Episode 7 Tuesday 30 June Julie Bishop Episode 8 Tuesday 7 July Troy Cassar-Daley She will be celebrating her 40th birthday later this week while in self-isolation. And ahead of the big day, Jordana Brewster appeared in high spirits during an outing in Los Angeles on Sunday. The 39-year-old was spotted soaking up the sun with her husband Andrew Form and their kids Julian, six, and Rowan, three. Happy gal: Jordana Brewster enjoyed a social isolation break with her family around Los Angeles on Sunday Jordana opted for a bold green Easter inspired sweater perhaps in honor of the Orthodox holiday. The movie star teamed the look with a pair of jeans and accessorized with some shades. The Fast And The Furious actress styled her brunette hair out and appeared to be wearing little to no makeup for the outing. Sunday Funday! Jordana was joined by her husband Andrew Form and their kids Easter bunny! The looker opted for a bold green Easter inspired sweater perhaps in honor of the Orthodox holiday Jordana was seen carrying around a soft drink while her husband Andrew led the way on their family walk. The beauty also took to social media to document much of her family day out. One adorable shot saw her son Rowan walking their dog while wearing a pair of firefighter trousers. 'Practicing...,' she captioned. Future firefighter: One adorable shot saw her son Rowan walking their dog while wearing a pair of firefighter trousers Walking: The family enjoyed a walk around their neighborhood with their pup Jordana also ensured fans knew she was taking the COVID-19 pandemic seriously when out. The All My Children star shared a selfie from the car with a mask over her face. She later took to the social media to showcase her multitasking abilities. 'I'm an [octypus]: studying, placating my babies and working on my back.' It is not known what the Yale graduate is currently studying. Masking up: Jordana also ensured fans knew she was taking the COVID-19 pandemic seriously when out and about Kids, work, health: She later took to the social media to showcase her multitasking abilities Jordana's appearance comes after it was revealed last month that her upcoming F9 movie, as part of The Fast and the Furious franchise, had been pushed back from its 2020 release to April 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. She currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband, Andrew Form. The pair met on the set of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning in 2006 and they announced their engagement in November of that year. Jordana and Andrew married in a private Bahamas ceremony in May 2007 before welcoming son Julian in 2013 and Rowan in 2016 via gestational surrogate. Its no surprise to me Barnaby Joyce is one of a number of politicians who will refuse to use the official COVID-19 contact tracing app. I mean, the guy ran two lives and kept an affair from his family. He made a name for himself attempting to be stealthy, so a government-sanctioned electronic fingerprint wouldnt really be his thing, would it? However, and it pains me to say it, on this one occasion, Joyce is right. Australians, in general, arent too worried about privacy. Thats not some sweeping generalisation, thats the conclusion of Deborah Lupton, professor in the Centre for Social Research in Health at the University of NSW, whos been researching Australian attitudes to health privacy for years. Basically, we are chilled. For example, we know about Cambridge Analytica yet we will use Facebook. We dont really worry about targeted advertising. We know about #censusfail yet will still fill in the forms. Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen There is one problem, though, for a government attempting to roll out a new application that isnt tested in the market. Australians dont trust governments to manage technology. We dont fear conspiracy but we do think our leaders will cock it up. Australians dont think that the government is going to do anything creepy [but] we dont trust the government to know where the on switch is on a computer, says Lupton, quoting one of her research participants. There is a health app tension between our various rights. We want the right to be free, to be private, but we also want the right to stay healthy. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday insisted the UN agency had not hidden from the United States any information it had about the coronavirus pandemic. He said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the WHO headquarters in Geneva "means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one", adding: "There is no secret in WHO." The agency further said it had been warning from the very start about the dangers of the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 1,64,000 people globally. "We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight," Ghebreyesus told a virtual briefing in Geneva, after facing scathing criticism from Washington which has accused the agency of initially downplaying the pandemic. [April 20, 2020] Redline Communications Selected to Provide Connectivity for World-Leading Oil Company Redline, Al-Rushaid Technologies to Connect Oilfields in Saudi Arabia TORONTO, April 20, 2020 /CNW/ - Redline Communications Group Inc. ("Redline Communications") (TSX:RDL), a leading-edge provider of industrial wireless broadband network connectivity solutions for mission-critical applications, announces today that Redline, along with its premier certified partner Al-Rushaid Technologies , has been selected by one of the world's largest oil companies to provide seamless connectivity in their vast offshore and onshore oilfields in the Saudi Arabia. Al-Rushaid Technologies (www.artco.co) is the ICT and Telecom powerhouse of Al-Rushaid Group and one of the fastest-growing technology solutions providers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The first phase of this multi-year contract is valued at over $1M USD. This new Redline terrestrial network will complement the existing satellite-based networks and enable industrial-grade, ultra-reliable, low latency, broadband connectivity to a diverse array of critical assets in the customer's area of operations. This cutting-edge network will deliver significant efficiencies through digital transformation across the entire value chain and facilitate enhanced collaborative, security and safety applications. Redline's new Virtual Fiber family of products was formally selected after an extensive, highly competitive proof-of-concept evaluation. The Redline and Al-Rushaid partnership was successful in demonstrating an unprecedented ability to deliver mission-critical networks in harsh industrial environments while providing military-grade security and long-range, broadband connectivity to both fixed and mobile remote assets. On the occasion, Rasheed Al-Rushaid, Vice Chairman of Al-Rushaid Group and President of Al-Rushaid Technologies said, "We are happy to partner with Redline and see this association as a catalyst for growth and new business opportunities, not only in Oil & Gas but in all business segments across Saudi Arabia." "We are excited to expand our business into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and in the Gulf Region, building upon our continuing success in the region. We look forward to our continued partnership with Al-Rushaid Technologies, a highly respected partner," states Stephen J. Sorocky , CEO of Redline Communications. Redline, an ISNetworldTM member company, and partner Al-Rushaid Technologies, one of the largest Oil & Gas conglomerates in Saudi Arabia, provide unmatched value to the energy sector by coupling best-in-breed industrial-grade, purpose-built telecommunications technology with operational excellence with unequalled knowledge and expertise in the Oil & Gas field area communication networks. To learn more about Redline, please visit www.rdlcom.com . # # # About Redline Communications Redline Communications (TSX:RDL) designs and manufactures powerful wide-area wireless networks for mission-critical applications in challenging locations. Redline networks are used by Oil & Gas companies onshore and offshore, Mining companies on surface and underground operations, Distribution Utilities for last mile broadband, Municipalities to remotely monitor infrastructure, and by specialized telecom service providers to deliver premium services. Hundreds of businesses worldwide rely on Redline to engineer, plan and deliver ruggedized, secure and reliable networks for their IoT, voice, data, and video communications needs. For more information visit www.rdlcom.com . SOURCE Redline Communications Group Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Terri Irwin appears to be ignoring huge backlash from fans who were left furious when Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell's Australia Zoo nuptials were aired in the US over the weekend. Local supporters of the family slammed the clam on Sunday for airing the TV special only in America and making Australians wait for months. On Monday, 55-year-old Terri was spruiking signed copies of Bindi and Chandler's special edition wedding magazine on Twitter. No drama here! Terri Irwin has ignored fan backlash over Bindi and Chandler Powell's televised nuptials by selling signed copies of their special edition wedding magazine on Twitter Ignoring the upset, Terri shared a picture of the family's pug Stella on top of several boxes in a warehouse on Monday, promoting their quarterly Crikey! Magazine. 'Stella is working hard to make sure everyone gets their new edition of Crikey! Magazine as quickly as possible,' began Terri to her 332,000 followers. 'When you subscribe before the end of April, you'll receive your special edition signed by Bindi and Chandler. We ship worldwide. Love wins!' According to Australia Zoo, all profits from the publication goes to 'directly to funding conservation initiatives' - with an annual subscription available for $25.95. In March, the family sold commemorative candles of the wedding for $49.95, leading to a very mixed response from the general public. 'Special edition': Terri shared a picture of the family's pug Stella on top of several boxes in a warehouse on Monday, promoting their quarterly Crikey! Magazine. 'Stella is working hard to make sure everyone gets their new edition of Crikey! Magazine as quickly as possible,' began Terri to her 332,000 followers Merchandise: In March, the family sold commemorative candles of the wedding for $49.95, leading to a very mixed response from the general public Bindi and Chandler haven't had the best start to married life. As their Crikey! It's the Irwins TV wedding special finally premiered on Saturday night, the newlyweds endured a backlash from fans in Australia. Despite the ceremony happening at Australia Zoo on March 25, the episode aired exclusively in America, and won't be available Down Under until July 18. In another bizarre twist, the episode will already have aired in every other country by July 18, making Australians the last people in the world able to watch it. 'So weird': Bindi and Chandler suffered a backlash from fans in Australia after their Crikey! It's the Irwins TV wedding special aired exclusively in America on Saturday It will air in the UK on May 3, Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, Hong Kong and other countries on May 18, Taiwan on May 23 and South Korea on July 3. Only then will it broadcast on Animal Planet on Australia in mid-July. 'I'm so confused why Aussies have to wait the longest when you got married 40mins down the road from me? #rippedoff,' one Queenslander tweeted on Sunday. 'Omg it was in Australia and Australians don't even get to see it until July like if you're mad,' another person tweeted at Chandler as he revealed the airdates. 'Aren't they Australian?' Despite the intimate ceremony happening at Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast on March 25, the episode will not air Down Under until July 18 Bottom of the list: In another bizarre twist, the episode will already have aired in every other country by then, making Australians the last people in the world able to watch it 'I find it weird how the wedding took place in Australia and they're the LAST ones to see it,' mused a third fan of the famous family. As many Aussies voiced their confusion and anger, Chandler responded on Twitter. He tweeted: 'Programming is out of our control as Animal Planet decides when to air the show. We will keep you posted as we find out more air dates!' Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, about the CCP virus, as President Donald Trump listens, in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, in Washington, on April 17, 2020. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo) Fauci Sends Message to Protesters: Its Going to Backfire A top public health official claimed on Monday that protests against harsh quarantine measures are going to backfire. Americans across the United States have been gathering in recent days to protest what they say are draconian measures implemented by governors during the COVID-19 pandemic that violate constitutional rights. Asked to send a message to protesters, Dr. Anthony Fauci said: The message is: clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics and the standpoint of things that have nothing to do with the virus, but unless we get the virus under control, the real recoveryeconomicallyis not going to happen. Tens of millions of Americans have lost their jobs as a result of the lockdowns, which are aimed at curbing the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from mainland China last year, but have proven increasingly controversial as some orders close beaches, prevent people from buying seeds, and restrict travel. Fauci acknowledged that living under the orders is painful but urged people not to jump the gun. Gubernatorial candidate and anti-tax activist, Tim Eyman, speaks during a Hazardous Liberty! Defend the Constitution! rally to protest the stay-at-home order, at the Capitol building in Olympia, Washington on April 19, 2020. (Karen Ducey/Getty Images) What you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, youre gonna set yourself back, he said. So as painful as it is to go by the careful guidelines of gradually phasing into a reopeningIts going to backfire. Thats the problem. Fauci, the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was speaking during an appearance on ABCs Good Morning America. ABC anchor George Stephanopoulus, who served with Fauci during the Bill Clinton administration, asked the doctor to send a message to protesters. Large protests cropped up in Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia last week, while groups also gathered in a slew of other states into the weekend. More protests are planned before the end of the month. Many governors have resisted loosening lockdowns even as the number of new cases and hospitalizations stabilize or drop off. Most have extended stay at home orders into May. Others have outlined plans for reopening, including Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster. Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced the US Army Corps of Engineers and the state are putting up a 250-bed field hospital at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in downtown Dallas during a press conference at the Texas State Capitol in Austin, on March 29, 2020. (Tom Fox-Pool/Getty Images) Fauci said Monday morning that America is testing 1.5 to 2 million tests per week, which is enough for states to move into the phase one outlined in President Donald Trumps reopening plan. The tests are enough to do the kind of testing that would allow identification, isolation, and contact tracing, he said. The strategy means finding people infected with the CCP virus, isolating them, and identifying people who recently came into contact with them. It was deployed earlier this year but put aside after the number of cases exploded in the United States. The goal is to ramp testing up two or three times the current number, forming a partnership with states, Fauci added. Phase one includes setting up screening and testing sites for people showing symptoms and being able to trace contacts of patients who test positive for COVID-19. Trump told reporters Sunday that his administration is working with governors to ramp up testing capacity, including involving private companies. Former President John Dramani Mahama on Sunday, April 19, 2020, visited Koluedor and Borteiman, both in the Greater Accra Region to personally hand over food items to some 200 households in the two communities. According to the former President, the move is part of his presentation of relief items to 20,000 households in Accra, Kumasi, Tema and Kasoa areas. As part of my feed 20,000 households relief effort, I selected 200 households in two communities in the Greater Accra Region where I joined a team of volunteers to share some food items. The focus of my intervention was to support our brothers and sisters facing severe challenges as a result of the lockdown and the advice to stay home to help halt the spread of COVID-19. Speaking on the sidelines of the presentation, Mr Mahama indicated that to ensure adequate social distancing and respect of the World Health Organization (WHO) protocols, I visited the homes and handed over the items to them, instead of a crowded distribution option. He also advised community members to adhere to safety precautions as indicated by the government to ensure that the coronavirus pandemic ends soon. As the authorities have said, we should continue to observe social distancing, we should wash our hands frequently with running water and we should also avoid mass gatherings and so where you see plenty people gathered, dont go into the crowd so that you prevent yourself from getting the coronavirus. Also, people should stay at home as much as possible, I mean if you have nothing important to do, dont come out, just stay at home so that we can slow down the spread of the virus. We have come and distributed some food to a few houses, there are some more to do so we have our volunteers who are going to go to the other houses and distribute them. This is just our widows mite, the little contribution we have to support people through these moments, so we are praying that coronavirus will disappear from our country very soon so that we can get back to normal as fast as possible. Let us all collaborate with the government and the health authorities so that they can protect us from this coronavirus, he added. Meanwhile, the former President has also been donating some Personal Protective Equipment to various health facilities across the country in the fight against COVID-19. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Sunday lifted the lockdown imposed on Kasoa, Greater Kumasi and Greater Accra Metropolitan areas whilst maintaining restrictions on public gatherings. He also announced that the countrys case count of the coronavirus had shot up to 1,042. Mahama suggests extension of lockdown Prior to the lifting of the lockdown, Mr. Mahama urged the government to extend the three-week lockdown imposed on the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Areas. Recent developments have made it clear, the extent of the spread of the virus. The last report put the number of confirmed cases at 834. Many health experts continue to suggest the necessity and appropriateness of an extension of the restrictions on movement, the former President tweeted. citinewsroom ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- Rights defenders in Kazakhstan say the government is using restrictions imposed to slow the coronavirus outbreak to crack down on dissent. Several leading civil and human rights activists in the Central Asian nation were arrested over the weekend on charges of distributing fake news about the pandemic. Almaty-based human rights activist Marzhan Aspandiyarova told RFE/RL on April 20 that the activists were arrested on what she called politically motivated charges. "The authorities are using the state of emergency to arrest, persecute, and muzzle prominent and well-known activists. This is what real repression looks like, nothing else," Aspandiyarova said. Activists known for their criticism of the government, Alnur Ilyashev, Arman Shuraev, and Ulan Shamshet, were arrested over the weekend and charged with violating coronavirus restrictions and spreading fake news about COVID-19. Ilyashev was sentenced to two months in jail on April 18, after a court in Almaty found him guilty of the charges. Shuraev, Shamshet, and several other activists detained days earlier on the same charges are still awaiting trial. The director of Kazakhstan's Bureau for Human Rights, Yevgeny Zhovtis, told RFE/RL on April 20 that all those arrested were very active in social networks and by arresting them, the authorities are trying to remove them from social-media platforms. "The authorities are simply eager to isolate potential leaders. What we have in our country is an authoritarian system and the authoritarian regime by such measures tries to preserve control and minimize any challenges they may face," Zhovtis said. The Adil Soz (A Just Word) group in Almaty that defends the rights of journalists and bloggers has expressed concerns over the arrests. In an open letter addressed to Prosecutor-General Ghizat Nurdauletov, the group demanded the immediate release of all those arrested. COLONIE For the past several weeks, Paul Martterer has spent eight hours per day, every day, on the phone with lending agents and banks, trying to get a slice of the $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program loans meant to alleviate the suffering of businesses and their employees during the coronavirus pandemic. Though working the phone is now a full-time job for Martterer, who owns the Morningside art gallery in Latham, he has not yet seen relief. Martterer was approved for a loan, but glitches in the process have prevented Martterer from receiving the documents he's required to sign to receive his aid. "This is the perfect cap to a process that's been horrific," he said Monday. Sales at his art gallery were already low before New York's stay-at-home order was enacted March 22. Since then, he hasn't seen a penny in revenue, and has spent about $6,000 in his own money on his business utilities and to honor his relationship with vendors. Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Looking for ways to help? Join our Facebook group Full coronavirus coverage Still, Martterer said, he's one of the lucky ones. His loan was approved, while other businesses have been left in limbo. The well of PPP money was tapped dry last week, and businesses that weren't approved now have to wait. The New York Times reported Sunday that the White House and congressional Democrats are closing in on a deal to replenish the emergency fund with an additional $300 billion. "Obviously, that disappointed a lot of folks because there were a lot of funds allocated that weren't available," said Mark N. Eagan, president and CEO of the Capital Region Chamber. "A lot of the businesses have already gone through the work of preparing the application, but it's been on hold until the funds are approved. I'm confident at the end of the day that Washington will come through and realize the importance of small businesses." After hearing news that huge restaurant chains like Shake Shack and Ruth's Chris received millions of dollars in PPP loans, Martterer said he's not confident that the aid will be distributed to the small businesses who need it the most. (Shake Shack said it would return its $10 million loan following an outcry.) "For me to hear that I was in a pool to fight for money to support my 37-year-old mom-and-pop business with Shake Shack and Potbelly and other large franchises just infuriates me, and it adds to that level of desperation," Martterer said. He said he wants small, non-essential businesses to be the first in line to receive aid, not restaurants and other essential businesses that have been able to remain open, albeit at limited capacity, during the crisis. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Peter Ryby, a Saratoga Springs resident who owns a bookstore in New Jersey, echoed those concerns. His application is still under review. About 80 percent of PPP and EIDL loan applicants are still waiting for their funds, according to the NFIB Research Center. "It's extremely disappointing to find out how much of these funds were given to large companies, large entities that, in some cases, perhaps are deserving but very little of it," he said. "What I'm crying out for is transparency. We can't even find out where we stand in the queue for the next round." But it's not all bad news for local businesses. Todd Shimkus, president of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber's partner organizations got together last Friday to thank 13 local banks across the county, bringing Death Wish coffee and Oboys from Esperanto to each branch. "What we're hearing from our local businesses and nonprofits is that they got approved, many of them have the money already and they want to thank their local banks,:" Shimkus said. "I believe the employees at the banks worked night and day over the course of the last 13 days to get as much money to local businesses as possible." Shimkus sent an email to the chamber's 8,000 members announcing the thank-a-bank event. He said he only heard from two who weren't approved. "That doesn't mean there weren't others," Shimkus said. "But certainly if you were angry with your local bank for not getting your loan, they might have called me." Still, he said, there are imperfections with how the PPP funds were allocated. Businesses are required to spend that money on payroll immediately upon receipt, which does not allow businesses the flexibility to use the money when it would be most helpful. Michael.Williams@timesunion.com A 17-year-old Dorchester girl was identified Monday as the victim of a fatal shooting in Boston last week, authorities said. Officers responded around 3:35 p.m. on April 15 to a report of a person shot near Topliff and Speedwell streets in Dorchester, the Boston Police Department said in a statement. A teenage girl, now identified as Alissa King, was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. She died at the scene, according to the statement. Anthony Kelley, an 18-year-old Dorchester resident, was arrested last week on charges of murder, discharging a gun within 500 feet of a dwelling and unlawful possession of a gun and ammunition in connection with the killing, police said. The incident was one of three separate shootings of a child or teenager in Boston in the past week. A 16-year-old boy was shot in Jamaica Plain on Saturday, and a 10-year-old girl was struck by a stray bullet in Roxbury the same day. Both individuals shot over the weekend were expected to survive their injuries, according to police. To anyone who fires a gun right now, youre a coward, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said during a press conference Monday. You put everyone around you in danger. You bring trauma and suffering on your community, and you will face justice. The Boston Police Department has urged anyone with information about the shooting of King to call homicide detectives at (617) 343-4470. Those who need emotional support can contact the Boston Neighborhood Trauma Team at (617) 431-0125 or visit the groups website. Related Content: 18-year-old Anthony Kelley of Boston accused of fatally shooting teenage girl, police say Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) More government savings can now be tapped for the countrys COVID-19 response, President Rodrigo Duterte revealed in his fourth weekly report to Congress on his special powers to address the ongoing pandemic. From just 189.82 billion, pooled savings from discontinued programs, activities and projects and abandoned special purpose funds have now increased to 246.28 billion. Of this amount, Duterte said 148.93 billion has been released to different national government agencies for their COVID-19 response. Dutertes report, however, did not include a breakdown of this release. But Duterte did mention in his previous report that 100 billion was released to the Social Welfare Department, while 30.8 billion was given to fund the so-called Bayanihan Grant for municipalities and cities, and 1.5 billion went to the Labor Department. Duterte said in his latest report that 5.69 billion of additional allotments and 7.79 billion in cash allocations have been released which can be charged against the existing programs, activities and projects of national government agencies including the Health, Social Welfare, Interior, Science and Technology, Labor, Defense and Justice Departments. The Education Department, meanwhile, has identified 2.82 billion from its budget for COVID-19 response, while the Trade Departments Small Business Corporation has reallocated 500 million for this purpose. The Energy Department has also transferred a total of 159.3 million to provide funding for local governments responses to COVID-19. Various government agencies and corporations have also remitted a total of around 21.41 billion from their respective budgets for COVID-19 response measures. Likewise, Duterte said the Land Bank of the Philippines has remitted to the Bureau of Treasury cash balances from various government agencies amounting to 8.8 billion. The President also mentioned that the Bureau of Treasury has certified 100.22 billion from excess revenues from dividends of government corporations to fund the governments COVID-19 response. Duterte also said that the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation has submitted its inventory of real properties which may be considered for COVID-19 projects, programs and activities. It is the second government arm to do so, following the Philippine Guarantee Corporation. Under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, Duterte is allowed to realign savings from the executive branch to fund the governments COVID-19 response. The same law also requires him to submit to Congress a weekly report on how he has utilized his special powers to address the crisis. WEST SPRINGFIELD As Ramadan, the holiest month of the year for Muslims, approaches Thursday evening, there has been speculation there could be a difference in enforcement of social distancing guidelines at mosques compared to churches. The speculation came after President Donald Trump retweeted a post last week from conservative commentator Paul Sperry Lets see if authorities enforce the social-distancing orders for mosques during Ramadan (April 23-May 23) like they did churches during Easter. Asked by a reporter about his retweet, Trump said on Saturday that his belief was not that mosques would fail to observe social distancing guidelines around COVID-19, but that politicians go after Christian churches, but they dont tend to go after mosques. And I dont want them to go after mosques." Dr. M. Saleem Bajwa, a Holyoke physician and member of the Islamic Society of Western Massachusetts, said there should be no cause for concern over how Muslims will observe Ramadan where public health emergency rules banning large gatherings have closed houses of worship across the country this month during which Christianity, Judaism and Islam all traditionally celebrate holy days with community services. President Trump does not have to worry, Bajwa said. We are maintaining social distancing very strictly and will continue to do so throughout Ramadan. All the Islamic organizations and Islamic centers in North America have advised their congregations to observe iftars (evening meal breaking the daily fast) and do prayers at home." While the Islamic Society is unable to hold its annual interfaith iftar this year, it launched an online-drive earlier this month to raise money to feed the hungry and held a drive-by donation component on Saturday at the center as a way to continue charitable works associated with Ramadan. The event was a big success, Bajwa said. We had a busy two hours. Lots of people Muslims and non-Muslims drove by and donated cash as well as brought bags of dry food. We were able to raise $5,000, which was twice the amount of our set goal. Our slogan, Fight the COVID-19 Tragedy With Charitable Giving and Helping the Needy worked well." Beneficiaries include the Parish Cupboard whose services include an emergency food program as well as hot lunch program for needy families and individuals in West Springfield and Agawam. In place of Islamic Society daily iftars during Ramadan, Bajwa said, the Islamic Society will sponsor takeout food packs from the West Springfield restaurant Taste of Lebanon. Needy Muslim families will be able to register and pick up food for iftar daily or when they want. The Islamic Society also has a care team of volunteers who will deliver dry food and other home necessities to the homes of community members Muslims and non-Muslims who cannot go out for shopping. The packages will be made up per the need, Bajwa said. We plan to run this service during the month of Ramadan and may continue after that as well if COVID-19-related isolation continues, he said. Ramadan is the holiest month for Muslims who represent many different cultures and countries, and the practice of fasting to be closer to God is one of the five pillars of the faith. Acts of charity, along with prayer and reading of the Quran, whose first revelations were believed to have been given to Mohammed during the month of Ramadan, are encouraged during the month as well as gathering with friends and family to break the fast at days end and extending hospitality to others to participate in iftar as well. Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has appealed to Muslims to adhere to all the guidelines of the lockdown and perform all religious rituals during Ramzan, starting later this week, staying inside their homes. Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind general secretary Mahmood Madani also appealed to the community to help the poor and ensure 'sehri' (meal before start of fasting) and 'iftar' (meal at breaking of fast) is made available for the needy. "It is an appeal to the Muslims in India that they adhere to the lockdown guidelines completely. They should not leave their homes without reason," the Jamiat appeal said. It also asked Muslims to perform prayers and other religious rituals inside their homes and adhere to the lockdown guidelines during Ramzan which is to start from April 24 or 25. The nationwide lockdown, which was from March 25 till April 14, has been extended to May 3 by the government to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Thursday had directed state waqf boards to ensure strict implementation of the lockdown and social distancing guidelines during the holy month of Ramzan. "We should cooperate with health workers, security forces, administrative officers, sanitation workers. They are working for our safety and well-being even putting their own lives at risk in this coronavirus pandemic," Naqvi had said "We should also demolish rumours and misinformation being spread about quarantine and isolation centres by creating awareness among people that such centres are only meant to protect people, their families and the society from the pandemic," the minister had said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court's decision Monday overturns the conviction and life prison term of Evangelisto Ramos, who was convicted by a 10-2 jury of murdering a prostitute in New Orleans. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) The Supreme Court declared Monday that the Constitution requires that juries come to a unanimous verdict to convict Americans of serious crimes, overturning a state law in Louisiana that critics say has been used to find black defendants guilty even when one or two black jurors disagree. The court's opinion by Justice Neil M. Gorsuch provides a striking example of how "originalism" a doctrine favored by conservatives can sometimes yield rulings that produce liberal results. Gorsuch said that when the 6th Amendment, including the right to a jury trial, was added to the Constitution in 1791, it was understood to mean that jurors had to reach a unanimous jury verdict. Yet the Supreme Court until now had refused to enforce that requirement on the states. Although juries in federal cases must be unanimous, a divided court in 1972 did not impose the rule on the states. Gorsuch said that was a mistake. "When the American people chose to enshrine that right in the Constitution, they werent suggesting fruitful topics for future cost-benefit analyses. They were seeking to ensure that their childrens children would enjoy the same hard-won liberty they enjoyed," he wrote in Ramos vs. Louisiana. "As judges, it is not our role to reassess whether the right to a unanimous jury is 'important enough' to retain," Gorsuch continued, quoting from the court's 1972 decision, which is now overturned. "With humility, we must accept that this right may serve purposes evading our current notice. We are entrusted to preserve and protect that liberty, not balance it away aided by no more than social statistics." The court's decision overturns the conviction and life prison term of Evangelisto Ramos, who was convicted by a 10-2 jury of murdering a prostitute whose body was discovered in New Orleans. As Gorsuch noted, Louisiana had adopted the rule of non-unanimous juries in 1898 at a state convention established to maintain "the supremacy of the white race." In the Reconstruction era, Southern states were told they could not exclude all blacks from juries, but the Louisiana rule allowed for convicting black defendants even if one or two blacks refused to go along. Story continues Besides Louisiana, only Oregon has allowed juries to convict defendants without a unanimous verdict. Gorsuch said Oregon's rule was adopted in the 1930s and could "similarly be traced to the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and efforts to dilute the 'influence of racial, ethnic and religious minorities on Oregon juries.'" Monday's rulings is expected to give several dozen prisoners in the two states the right to a new trial. Gorsuch's opinion was joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Brett M. Kavanaugh, while Justice Clarence Thomas concurred in the result. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said in dissent that the court should not overturn the 1972 precedent that allowed for non-unanimous juries, and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Elena Kagan agreed. The leaders of civil rights groups welcomed the ruling. "Racism infects virtually every stage of our criminal justice system, and non-unanimous jury verdict schemes opened the door for disproportionately high rates of convictions of African Americans, particularly in Louisiana," said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. "The court's decision rightfully recognized and condemns the discriminatory motive underlying Louisiana and Oregon's long history of permitting non-unanimous jury verdicts, which stood as relics from the Jim Crow era." Elizabeth Wydra, president of the progressive Constitutional Accountability Center, called the ruling a "long overdue ... victory for our Constitution's text, history and values. At long last, the 6th Amendment's guarantee that convictions by juries in major criminal cases require unanimous verdicts now applies in state courts, not just federal courts." It's not the first time Gorsuch has joined liberals in a criminal justice case. Last year, Gorsuch argued for overturning an old doctrine that allowed for a defendant to be tried twice for the same crime, once by the state and once by the federal government. "A free society does not allow its government to try the same individual for the same crime until its happy with the result," Gorsuch wrote in dissent with Justice Ginsburg, when the court upheld what he called a "colossal exception to this ancient rule against double jeopardy." In that case, Gamble vs. U.S., most of the justices decided the federal government sometimes had valid reasons for pursuing a separate prosecution for the same offense. In the case decided Monday, all the justices appeared to agree that the 6th Amendment called for unanimous jury verdicts. But the court, in a splintered 5-4 ruling in the 1972 case of Apodaca vs. Oregon, had refused to impose the federal rule on the states. Some current justices objected to reversing that ruling. "Understandably thinking that [the 1972 decision in Apodaca vs. Oregon] was good law," Alito wrote in dissent, "the state courts in Louisiana and Oregon have tried thousands of cases under rules that permit such verdicts. But today, the court does away with Apodaca and, in so doing, imposes a potentially crushing burden on the courts and criminal justice systems of those states." In the past year, Kagan, an Obama appointee, has repeatedly refused to join opinions that reject precedents, even when doing so would yield a ruling that would be applauded by liberals. Because of the looming battle over abortion and the fate of the Roe vs. Wade ruling, the justices on the left and right have been focused on the issue of overturning precedent. Kavanaugh wrote an 18-page separate opinion to explain his view on why the 1972 precedent regarding jury verdicts deserved to be overruled. He said it was "egregiously wrong" because it was based on racism and conflicted with the understood meaning of the Constitution. And, he added, only two states adhere to it. NUA healthcare have announced plans to recruit as many as 200 new personnel today. The company is Ireland's largest provider of residential services for people with intellectual disabilities and mental health issues. The healthcare provider already employs about 1,600 people in 53 centres across Ireland. NUA healthcare said it has seen a spike in demand recently but that it is not directly related to Covid-19. NUA's recruitment manager, Michelle Kirwan, said: Our services are very intensive, but our work is hugely rewarding, and we offer excellent career development opportunities. "We have grown employee numbers by 300 over the past 2 years and we expect a similar level of growth in the coming years. We offer an attractive package for the right employees to join us. Ms Kirwan said she is seeking to recruit nurses, social care workers with level 7 or 8 qualifications and assistant support workers with FETAC level 5 qualifications. Nuas quality and safety manager, Eric Behan said that the company is prepared in the event of a resident testing positive for Covid-19. He said: I cant speak highly enough of our team and the work they are doing in the context of Covid-19. CHICAGO The upper Mississippi River, from its headwaters in Minnesota to the southern tip of Illinois, has been named the most endangered river in the United States, according to an annual list released by American Rivers, a national advocacy group. Citing record-breaking flooding in 2019, which left cities, towns, farm fields and marshlands along the river waterlogged for months, the group urged federal, state and regional leaders to work toward solutions that allow the landscape to hold more water and give the river room to flood safely. American Rivers says development, crop drainage systems, levees, disparate flood plain management and climate change in general have made the Mississippi River less stable and more prone to flooding. The situation not only puts people at risk, the group argues, but harms fish habitats and essential ecosystems along the river. People are starting to understand that the flooding control systems you put in place upstream can have a profound effect downstream, said Chris Williams, senior vice president for conservation at American Rivers. Williams said the group debated whether to postpone the release of its annual Top 10 most endangered list during the coronavirus pandemic, but decided to move forward because climate change, flooding and the issues affecting rivers and ecosystems do not stop during a health crisis. If anything, Williams said, coronavirus may provide additional challenges for river communities if spring flooding begins to occur and stay-at-home and social distancing guidelines remain in place. Flooding on the Mississippi River and its tributaries throughout Illinois and the Midwest caused an estimated $6.2 billion in damage across 13 states in 2019, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The floods, which overwhelmed towns, farms, roads, bridges, levees and dams, contributed to the deaths of four people. The 2019 Midwest flooding was the 51st costliest climate disaster in the U.S. since NOAA began tracking the cost of floods, hurricanes, severe storms, droughts, wildfires and winter storms in 1980. Williams said state and federal agencies should work to develop a coordinated watershed management system that ensures that vulnerable communities are involved in decision-making that accounts for climate change and gives the river room to flood safely. Many farmers, residents and leaders of towns on the banks of the river and those in the shipping industry argue the network of levees that lines the Mississippi protect valuable agricultural land and homes and businesses while allowing for the safe transportation of goods along the river. But groups such as American Rivers, along with many scientists, say the levees restrict the natural flow of the river, constricting its path and exacerbating flooding downstream, especially as the Midwest has experienced more frequent downpours in recent years. As floodwaters funnel southward, counties in Illinois and Missouri have been particularly deluged when the Mississippi spills over its banks. Two other Midwestern rivers made the Top 10 list this year, including the lower Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi north of St. Louis, and the Menominee River, which forms the border between Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. American Rivers selects its yearly list based on a rivers significance to human and natural communities, the magnitude of threats and whether there is a major public decision or policy action that will affect the waterway during the coming year. This is not a list of rivers that are gone, Williams said. Its a list of rivers that are still with us that we have a chance to help. The Covid-19 situation is especially serious in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and violation of lockdown measures risk the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Centre said on Monday. In a communication to state governments, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against Covid-19 frontline healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. These should be stopped, it said. The Centres note case as the death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday. Meanwhile, Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to enquire about the lynching of three people in the states Palghar area, according to news agency PTI. During the telephonic conversation, Thackeray apprised the home minister about the incidents and the steps taken to nab those involved in the incident, PTI quoted officials as saying. The Maharashtra government has ordered a high-level investigation into the Palghar mob lynching incident in which three people were killed on Thursday night. Police have detained 101 people involved in the killing of three Surat-bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered a high level inquiry into these killings, Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said on Twitter. Deshmukh also warned officials against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were allegedly seers. There are 4,203 confirmed coronavirus cases in Maharashtra of which 223 people lost their lives, according to Union health ministry data. In Madhya Pradesh, out of the 1,407 cases, 70 people have succumbed to the disease. The central government has constituted six inter-ministerial central teams to make on-spot assessment of the Covid-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states - Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal - for redressal. Places that seemed to European explorers like Eden will now become uninhabitable, and everywhere, the attempt to master nature will leave us more subject to it. We pride ourselves on cleverness and we sought to remake the world with our knowledge. We looked to the future for consolation and to posterity for vindication. But unless we make a great turn, it seems safe to assume we will go down as the greatest fools who ever lived. Yet, in a technocratic age, we still think in terms of plans and blueprints to be implemented. International institutions, even more than governments, are obsessed with targets and indicators. All this despite the evidence: The United Nations statistician Howard Friedman has found, for example, that, except for debt relief, none of the organizations Millennium Development Goals had a discernible effect. It is time, then, to consider a new kind of declaration. A declaration of responsibility, acknowledging what we have done and recognizing we were mistaken: a simple expression of collective responsibility for what is wrong. There is a paradox of intention. The less such a declaration is designed to serve any purpose and the more sincerely it is made for its own sake, the greater purpose it would serve and the more transformative it would be. Eventually it could be adopted at the United Nations. It could borrow the opening words of the Charter, We the peoples, but should be the opposite of a U.N. resolution. It should be brief, memorable and vernacular: something all can turn over in their mind and adopt as their own if they choose. It should arise spontaneously, and not be appropriated by any organization. And there is no need for that dispiriting word environment; nature" will do. This declaration may sound negative, but the greatest challenge is to dispel the illusions that led us into such danger. Negation would be the greater part of creation, opening space for the germane wisdom of Western and every other culture. This no would also be a great affirmation, largely implicit, of higher values and a new disposition to the world. It would provide the rallying point that so many have lacked, countering a sense of impotence before impersonal forces. It would trade some vigor for decadence, help remedy the febrile triviality of public life, encourage the standing back our culture finds so hard and leave many quarrels behind. It would undercut more than one kind of hubris: for example, the postmodern view of nature as a social construct. It may be our best hope of breaking the terrible inertia: not the inertia of rest but of restless travel in the same direction. Of course, there will be objections. For instance: Anything even remotely resembling repentance must be an oppressive relic of Christianity and so should be disqualified. This would be a momentous argument. First, it would prevent us from ever being truly sorry about anything. Second, it would disqualify many of the main tenets of secular Western society, which are clearly borrowed or repurposed from Christianity. The idea of a universal, linear movement toward salvation is uniquely Judeo-Christian. Now we seek to remake a supposedly inhospitable world with knowledge. We glorify work, the sweat of the brow, and our fortunate faults, such as avarice, in the ancient belief that they enable our redemption. What is this? The attempt to remake Eden by the means of the fall? Chandigarh, April 20 : 1,200 Kashmiri migrants from various states, who were stranded in Punjab's Pathankot town for the past 20 days, entered J&K on Monday, according to officials, here on Monday. The Punjab government and the police were providing them food and lodging during the 20-day stay and isolation, said an official. They were on their way to J&K but the UT administration refused to allow them entry due to lockdown. On this, the Punjab government set up nine quarantine centres for them. Medical teams were deployed for regular health checkups and providing medicines, said Punjab Director General of Police Dinkar Gupta. As the migrants finally got the J&K administration's nod, they hailed the support provided by the host state, especially the Punjab Police. They also acknowledged the support provided by Radha Soami Dera Beas and other organisations in this critical time. "The Punjab Police have been a warm host for 20 days in these dark days," said a resident of district Ramban. According to the migrants, the police provided them food, other essentials, shelter, medical facilities, and proper sanitation, and kept them protected and safe over the past 20 days. Gov. Gavin Newsom gives his coronavirus update at the Governor's Office of Emergency Services in Rancho Cordova earlier this month. (Associated Press) Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday acknowledged that pressure from Californians and local governments is building to modify the statewide stay-at-home order carried out to stem to spread of the coronavirus, but he said restrictions will remain in place until the threat to public health subsides and adequate testing and other safeguards are implemented. A bipartisan group of elected officials from San Luis Obispo County on Monday asked Newsom to grant them the "authority to implement a phased reopening of our local economy," a request that comes just days after Ventura County officials modified a stay-at-home order to permit some businesses to reopen and some gatherings to take place. Officials in San Luis Obispo County argued that their COVID-19 infection rate has been declining because residents have been diligent in adhering to stay-at-home orders and maintaining social distancing practices, but with businesses shut down and so many people out of work, the county faces a perilous financial outlook. As a result, officials requested approval to "begin a science-based, thoughtfully phased reopening of our economy." "We have asked our residents to take these desperate measures because of the unique risks posed to the broader community by this virus so that we can flatten the curve and allow our healthcare capacity to catch up," they said in a letter to the governor. "Now we need to move to the next phase, which is economic recovery." Newsom said that while areas across the state have been affected differently by the pandemic, the "virus knows no jurisdiction, knows no boundaries" and could easily spread into neighboring counties if restrictions are eased prematurely. It's critical to the collective well-being of all Californians to have a statewide, health-based strategy to return to some sense of normalcy, he said. "None of these local health directives can go further or, rather, go farther backward than the state guidance," Newsom said during his daily COVID-19 briefing on Monday. Story continues Newsom said he expects many more requests similar to the one from San Luis Obispo County. He promised that his administration will discuss each with local officials "to make sure it's a health-based decision. Not any other type of decision-making. Health first, science and data. Everything else follows from that." Meanwhile, dozens of protesters gathered Monday outside the Capitol demanding that the state lift restrictions and allow people to return to work, one of a number of demonstrations that have cropped up throughout the state in recent days. Demonstrators also have descended on Huntington Beach, San Clemente and San Diego County. Newsom said he understood the frustrations and anxieties being expressed by the protesters. But he cautioned that parts of the world that have relaxed coronavirus restrictions prematurely, including Singapore, have been quickly hit with a second wave of the virus. "If we're ultimately going to come back economically, the worst mistake we can make is making a precipitous decision based on politics and frustration that puts people's lives at risk and ultimately sets back the cause of economic growth and economic recovery," Newsom said. The Newsom administration last week announced the six key indicators for altering the governor's stay-home mandate, including the ability to closely monitor and track potential cases, prevent infection of high-risk people, increase surge capacity at hospitals, develop therapeutics and ensure physical distance at schools, businesses and child care facilities. Newsom said he will provide an update on Wednesday as to where the state stands in each of those key areas, including the progress California is making in widespread testing. Karen Finkbiner, president of the Pennsylvania State Button Society, talks about shoe button covers in her button collection at her Spring City, Chester County home. Finkbiner has been collecting buttons for decades. Read more People dont often notice buttons until they fall off, or when they loosen and droop on a favorite winter coat, or burst from their waistband after a big bowl of pasta. Some go into a junk drawer with paper clips and old batteries, others to the trash can. Karen Finkbiner notices every button. Someone said buttons hold things together, and thats the way I like to think of them," Finkbiner, 64, said on a recent morning outside her home in Spring City, Chester County. The Pennsylvania State Button Society, of which Finkbiner is president, is feeling a bit frayed these days, what with the cancellation of its spring show in Berks County due to the coronavirus not to mention an alleged theft of as much as $13,000 in club funds by one of its longtime members. The biannual shows, with a dozen or so vendors and as many as 100 attendees who buy, sell, and trade, basically pay for themselves, Finkbiner said. We dont really make any money." The National Button Society, founded in 1938, is still planning to hold its national convention in Springfield, Ill., in August. The Pennsylvania State Button Society is hoping to have its fall show in October at a Pittsburgh hotel. The membership of the Pennsylvania group, which goes back to 1947, has dropped over the years, from as many as 300 a few decades ago to 115 today. Dues are about $15 a year. Under the State Button Society umbrella are seven smaller clubs, including Finkbiners local the Pennsylvania Dutch Button Club. Philadelphias branch, the Betsy Ross Button Club, folded. Most button club members are women, and anyone under 50 is a youngster. Finkbiner said the 20 or so male members are drawn in by military buttons, and many search Pennsylvania battlefields and other historical areas for the holy grail, George Washington inaugural buttons, which can sell for thousands of dollars. Younger members said buttons hold their families together. I was really going to meetings and events before I was born, said Erin Shevock, 32, a Pittsburgh resident. We have always been a part of it. My mother and her mother and her mothers mother. My mother used to take me along to the shows as a child, but now its a way for me to spend time with her and my grandmother. Finkbiner, who has held many titles in the Pennsylvania State Button Society, became president in last falls election. After the books were handed over from the previous treasurer to a new one, many discrepancies were found. All told, Finkbiner said, as much as $13,000 could be missing from their account. The Inquirer is not identifying the clubs previous treasurer because she has not been charged with a crime, but police in North Cornwall Township, Lebanon County, where she lives, are aware of the issue and are gathering information, a spokesperson said. The woman, Finkbiner said, is elderly and in poor health. Its all just very, very sad, she said. In light of the losses, a GoFundMe account was created to help the Pennsylvania State Button Society stay afloat. So far, it has raised $1,930, many of the donations coming from other button clubs across the country. The Pa. State Button Society has been around for 73 years, and we intend on keeping it around for another 73 more," the clubs GoFundMe effort states. As a child, Finkbiner was introduced to buttons by a grandmother, and now, she said, she has millions of them, stored in an entire button room in her home. She finds them at shows and antique shops, but she also scours Walmart. Many are ornamental, never to be sewn onto a shirt, and others were made specifically for shoe straps a century ago. To be a true button, it must have either a shank" protruding from the back or holes, for sewing. Buttons with pins on the back, such as old political buttons, are called pinbacks, Finkbiner said. Theyre not considered true buttons and she doesnt collect them, or buckles. Please, this is crazy enough, she said. That would require a whole extra room. Finkbiner turns her buttons into displays, called trays, that are presented for awards at the societys shows. One tray featured lighthouses, another pears. That won second place in a competition. "Not only do I have pears, but I have pairs of pears, she said, pointing to one button. "I have trays of cats, trays of dogs, trays of horses. " One tray of kaleidoscope buttons Finkbiner designed has 42 kaleidoscope buttons glassy and multicolored, like jewels in a diamond pattern. Shes been itching to replace one of them with a rarer button, to make the tray better. Im missing the golden button, she said. Its oval, like an egg. She found one for $500 and balked, but shes been contemplating another she saw for about $200. I almost bought it," she added. Finkbiner has two sons and two grandsons not ideal for passing down the button heritage but she said theyve dabbled. They all have button trays, she said. They know buttons. When Meredith Alvarez first went into business for herself 15 years ago founding a stationary design company, she had no idea her fledgling entrepreneurial instincts would eventually lead to a hot new flower arrangement subscription delivery service based out of Alamo Heights. Alvarez, who was an acting major at Northwestern University in college, has always had what shed call a creative bug. Her first job as a stationer was designing her own wedding invitations. Today, her flourishing local stationary company, Bell Papel, does it all: weddings, branding, logo design, personal stationery, birthday parties and nonprofit gala invitations. I like to make strong choices, Alvarez said. That creative side of my brain that drove my passion for theater is why my company is so successful. I look at something till it excites the brain and you really create something unique. And, she said, she enjoys entrepreneurship and finds it fulfilling. Entrepreneurship gives me the ability to be there for my family, said Alvarez. I love being able to say I work for myself. Just about 10 months ago, Alvarez decided to branch out and try something new. It started when she was asked to do a small floral arrangement for a stationery client. There are a lot of similarities between stationery and floral arrangement, she said. I worked for a florist when I was younger, and had a bit of floral experience from being in the event industry. But theres the same focus on the importance of color composition and textures. Her impromptu arrangement was so well liked that word spread and she was soon asked to do flower arrangements for Mothers Day last year. Slowly, the idea of a subscription delivery of floral arrangements began percolating in her mind, and a few months later, she would begin planning what would eventually become Bell Flor, based out of Alamo Heights. While Alvarez doesnt have a storefront, her office is in the Alamo Heights area and she serves the entire city of San Antonio, and hopes to expand the company in future. Our goal is fresh farm to market flowers, she said. So our model is scalable based on our schedule and the availability of the flowers. She noted that Bell Flor tries to form relationships with farmers and wholesalers who can get flowers straight from the farm, so that clients can enjoy the freshness of the flowers for the longest time possible. All Bell Flor deliveries, then, will be beautiful arrangements of whatever is fresh, in season and available from farms locally. Subscribers can choose to receive Bell Flors exquisite, one-of-a-kind floral arrangements monthly, twice a month or weekly, with four sizing options -- $35, $55, $75 and $95. And the company has a focus on sustainability: all vases used are recyclable, and subscribers put their old vase out and Bell Flor will collect and reuse it. That enables us to take that beautiful vase and give it to another client, and that way the environment likes us better, said Alvarez. Her goal for her subscription floral delivery service was ultimately for clients to enjoy effortlessly beautiful flowers, she added. Clients have an appreciation for nature and want a bit of that beauty, whether its for their own enjoyment or in a workplace their clients enjoyment, Alvarez said. And, said Alvarez, its easy to get excited about working with flowers. Flowers are so beautiful, she said. I dont know anybody who doesnt like flowers. When you look at peoples faces when flowers are being delivered, theyre perfectly happy it causes this brief moment of joy. Alvarez said she also enjoys the creative aspects of the floral arrangement delivery business, of figuring out whats in season and what shes getting from growers to determine the best possible floral arrangement for her clients. I love spreading a little bit of beauty and creativity, she said. And, she noted, shes gained a greater appreciation for the work farmers do. Nobody can do a fresh business without coming to appreciate the expertise of the farmer and the work that they put into it, she said. Being able to work directly with the people who cultivate flowers and love flowers theres a warm and fuzzy feeling about it. Ultimately, Alvarez aspires to also make Bell Flor a shipping operation all over the country with an online subscription base. Having Bell Flor deliver all over the United States is definitely a long-term future dream. She said. For more information on Bell Flor in the Alamo Heights area and how you can enjoy fresh flower deliveries, visit www.bell-flor.com or email meredith@bell-flor.com. Or follow the company on Facebook or Instagram at bell.flor.sa. BLUE BELL, Pa., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Unisys Corporation (NYSE: UIS) said today that it will release its first-quarter 2020 financial results on Tuesday, April 28, 2020 after the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Following the release, Unisys will host a conference call with the financial community from 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss the results. The company will offer a live, listen-only Webcast of the conference call on the Unisys Investor Website at www.unisys.com/investor. A replay of the Webcast will be available on the Unisys Investor Website shortly following the conference call. Introduction to Unisys Online Presentation Given the current circumstances, the company has decided to postpone its previously-scheduled Investor Day, originally planned for April 29, until it is appropriate to host an in-person event. In the interim, the company has prepared an "Introduction to Unisys" online presentation for investors, intended to provide a high-level overview of the company and its solutions. The discussion features commentary from the following senior leaders: Peter Altabef , Chairman and CEO , Chairman and CEO Eric Hutto , President and COO , President and COO Vishal Gupta , SVP, Products and Platforms and Chief Technology Officer , SVP, Products and Platforms and Chief Technology Officer Ann Ruckstuhl , SVP and Chief Marketing Officer , SVP and Chief Marketing Officer Introductory and concluding comments from Mike Thomson , SVP and Chief Financial Officer and Courtney Holben , Vice President, Investor Relations The company has posted this presentation to its Investor Relations website, and it can be accessed via the following link: https://services.choruscall.com/links/uis200420.html. About Unisys Unisys is a global information technology company that builds high-performance, security-centric solutions for the most demanding businesses and governments. Unisys offerings include security software and services; digital transformation and workplace services; industry applications and services; and innovative software operating environments for high-intensity enterprise computing. For more information on how Unisys builds better outcomes securely for its clients across the government, financial services and commercial markets, visit www.unisys.com. Follow Unisys on Twitter and LinkedIn. RELEASE NO.: 0420/9763 Unisys and other Unisys products and services mentioned herein, as well as their respective logos, are trademarks or registered trademarks of Unisys Corporation. Any other brand or product referenced herein is acknowledged to be a trademark or registered trademark of its respective holder. UIS-Q SOURCE Unisys Corporation Gov. Ned Lamonts response to the coronavirus pandemic has won high praise in the state and across the nation, and his poll numbers and national media appearances reflect that. At the same time, he has committed a handful of gaffes. Theyre mostly the result of jumping out ahead of the facts such as his declaration on April 1 that a 6-week-old baby died of coronavirus, which may or may not be true; or his announcement that nonessential businesses must close, more than two days before the list was ready. By most accounts, the miscues have not significantly marred a performance by Lamont thats been steady since long before Connecticuts first confirmed case. He was one of the first governors in the country to shut down nursing homes visits, to discuss closing schools and to demand more testing capacity from the federal government. In daily briefings and interviews, his trademark conversational tone remains patient and calm, if occasionally stern, or somber. He tends to think out loud, and to share his opinion along with the facts. Its not exactly what I was in training for, Lamont said Friday in a phone interview with Hearst Connecticut Media, in which he reflected on the past six weeks. Few people anywhere have the background in crisis management that governors now need. And few leaders have had to step up in a sustained way as much as governors of stricken states - such as Connecticut - are called on to do in this crisis. And so Lamonts gaffes, almost entirely in how he has communicated his opinions and decisions, bear scrutiny including a couple that were not about overshooting the moment. One was an error, on March 16, when he said on MSNBC that 200 Danbury nurses were quarantined; that number was for the 7-hospital chain that includes Danbury. One was an omission that raised criticism this past week when the governor seated members of the task force on how and when to reopen the state. He named the eminent University of Pennsylvania bioethicist Ezekiel Emanuel, but didnt mention that Emanuel is a business partner of his wife, Annie Lamont, at a venture capital firm she co-founded. Critics, chiefly Republicans, have viewed the gaffes as a significant failing, while others including Lamont himself, in the interview Friday say theyre the result of a personality that isnt focused on minutiae, at a time when the state needs a big-picture voice of leadership. In short, those same traits that have made him so strong in a time of crisis his openness and accessibility, his willingness to listen occasionally work as an Achilles heel. If this was a cybersecurity hack, I come out of IT and telecom, and that probably would have been something Im a little more versed in, Lamont said, referring to his career running a cable TV and digital access business. The gaffes, all combined, have hardly come to dominate the crisis in Connecticut as Lamont directs state agencies in a very aggressive response. Few have occupied more than one news cycle. I suppose in this era where everybody is aware of every comment and things bang around on the social media, you can say, Boy you better be really careful and calibrated with everything you say, but thats sort of not my style, Lamont said. I do tend to tell you how I think about things, not just what Ive decided. Schools out for summer Ken Lachlan, a professor and department head for the Department of Communication at the University of Connecticut, mostly praised Lamonts response to coronavirus. He called Lamonts communication style a double-edged sword. Lachlan, an expert in crisis and risk communications, said Lamonts team has taken the right approach in stepping up the governors accessibility in the crisis. Governor Lamonts communication style is very conversational and he comes across as being very approachable, Lachlan said. One of the double-edged parts of being very conversational and very approachable, is sometimes when youre very casual, sometimes people can interpret what youre saying as being a matter of fact or policy when in fact youre really just trying to establish rapport, and a sense of were trying to figure things out, and I wonder if on a few occasions that hasnt led to those sorts of missteps. That may have been what happened on March 24 when Lamont responded to a question on a New York City-based radio broadcast: Will Connecticut schools be closed until the fall? I really think thats the likelihood, Lamont said. It was the first time Lamont had made such a statement. There was no follow-up question in the 3 minute appearance on WCBS AM 880, so the unexplained details lingered. Did he mean schools would definitely be closed for the rest of the year? What does likely mean? Should parents start making arrangements now? Lamonts assertion wasnt necessarily inaccurate nor was it a particular shock but it did lack clarity. And he made a similar remark more recently, after the schools reopening was pushed back to May 20 at soonest. In reflecting on the issue Friday, Lamont said he understood the confusion but that he wouldnt handle it differently given the opportunity. Ive got to admit, I probably voiced that early, Lamont said. Obviously Pennsylvania and California and Illinois, theyve all shut down the school year, but theyre very clear. They shut it down when they shut it down, and Im still not clear. Im saying May 20th were going to have a lot more information, Ill give you some direction then. Gauging the gaffes A recent poll by Sacred Heart University and the Hartford Courant showed strong support for Lamont. Sixty-seven percent of respondents said they approved of the way the governor is handling communication to the public and 65 percent were equally confident about his overall response and handling of the coronavirus crisis. Lamont is quick to credit the people around him, on and off the state payroll starting with Annie Lamont. Ive got the best people in the world advising me, he said. I know what I know and I know what I dont know, something I say with some frequency... Im coming into a medical situation where maybe having an open mind and not a lot of preconceived notions is not all bad, because most preconceived notions when it comes to COVID are probably wrong. One of his sharpest critics, Republican State Chairman J.R. Romano, sees strong negative effects from Lamonts missteps. His lack of preparedness has caused panic and confusion among the people of the state of Connecticut, said Romano, who cited the nearly three-day lag between Lamonts announcement that most businesses would be closed and issuing the actual guidance on how that order would be applied. Softening that position, Romano added, I appreciate that hes not gone as far as some governors around the country, and I dont think he has higher ambitions. Hes focused on being the governor of the state. Its true, said Rich Hanley, an associate professor of journalism at Quinnipiac University, that missteps can matter a lot. A single blunder can be enough to erode the publics confidence during a crisis, and stoke fear and confusion, he said. Clear and consistent communication is now more critical than ever as governors across the country are being called on to take the lead in responding to the crisis. But Hanley, a close watcher of the Connecticut political and media scene, joined UConns Lachlan in giving high marks to Lamont. Lamonts performance inevitably comes up against comparisons with his friend and crisis partner, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Many decisions theyve made have happened together. But Cuomo, who grew up in the governors mansion as a son of the late Gov. Mario Cuomo, and whose audience is, well, New Yorkers, has at times appeared stronger than Lamont, whose foray into public life is still in its infancy. Cuomo is really the model, Hanley said. They have two distinct approaches in terms of personality, and one plays better on television than the other that sort of look that he conveys of confidence and urgency plays well to an audience on television ... Governor Lamont is not unsteady by any stretch, but Cuomo is a a natural orator and that helps immensely in crisis like these. The infant with COVID Perhaps the most prominent example of the downside to Lamonts communication style came on April 1, as the death toll from the virus began to rise. Lamont grew solemn as he often does when hes about to disclose the death toll from the previous 24 hours. But this time was different. He took a deep breath and a wave of emotion washed over his face. Probably the youngest person ever to die of COVID has died here in Connecticut, Lamont said in announcing the death of a six-week old infant that had died at a Hartford hospital. Within an hour, the state medical examiner told reporters that, yes, the baby tested positive for COVID-19 after she died, but the cause of death remained unknown as is still the case three weeks later. That left Lamont open to intense criticism as some accused him of speaking too soon to exaggerate the severity of the crisis. The announcement infuriated people, especially mothers and new parents, who now feared for the lives of their young children. Some conservative pundits compared the announcement to shouting fire! in a crowded movie theater. Lamont, reflecting on the incident, said he wouldnt do anything differently. Heres what happens. Nobody dies of COVID, nobody dies of AIDS, people die of complications related to AIDS or COVID. So nobody is playing games. Thats the way it works, he said. Ive said people die of complications related to COVID and I think thats true. I dont think I would say it any differently. Overly eager to help? More than 350,000 people have filed for unemployment in Connecticut since Friday, March 13, prompting Lamont to assure temporarily jobless workers they will be taken care of. Early on, he said state and federal unemployment benefits would cover self-employed and freelancers, who have not been eligible until this crisis. A frequently-asked-questions page set up by the administration encouraged encouraged independent contractors and self-employed workers to apply. But the Department of Labor wasnt prepared for this. Its own COVID-19 unemployment FAQ on its website through which those thousands of people would apply said self-employed workers and independent contractors were unlikely to qualify for unemployment benefits. The federal bailout packages do allow for self-employed people to seek benefits, but that wont be ready until the end of April. And so, Lamonts promise early on may prove correct but at the time he made it, the state was wholly unprepared to deliver. The first crisis is the virus, and thats creating the second crisis, Hanley said, referring to the economic meltdown. In order for clarity, the governor needs to create distance between the two. Similarly, Lamont announced earlier this month that certain nursing homes would serve as hubs where residents with COVID-19 would transfer. That was a dramatic step reflecting intense negotiations behind the scenes but Lamont made it before the nursing homes agreed. It would be a full week before the nursing homes came on board, after significant financial sweetening by the state. Overall, considering Lamonts performance in the crisis, observers have given him strong marks. He may not have the oratorical skills of a Cuomo or of an Elizabeth Warren but hes still providing meaningful information and deferring to experts as required, Hanley said. The fact that he is visible is in and of itself a meaningful communication skill. Governors nationally will be remembered for how they responded to this. kkrasselt@hearstmediact.com; 203-842-2563; @kaitlynkrasselt A patient infected with Ebola has escaped from a clinic in eastern Congo, which could set efforts to contain a flare up of the disease back significantly, said the World Health Organisation (WHO). A new cluster of the disease was discovered on 10 April, just two days before the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was due to declare an end to the worlds second-largest Ebola epidemic. Before the new chain emerged, the DRC had gone more than seven weeks without a new case. Health authorities sought to contain any renewed spread of the infections, which were confirmed in six people since last week. But a 28-year-old motorbike taxi driver who tested positive for Ebola ran away from a treatment centre in the town of Beni, where the new cases surfaced. The DRC had hoped to funnel resources collected to deal with Ebola into the Covid-19 outbreak, which has confirmed 327 confirmed cases of the virus, which 25 deaths. But a resurgence of Ebola could completely overwhelm the countrys already-strained health system. Boubacar Diaollo, deputy incident manager for the WHOs Ebola response operation, said: We are using all the options to get him out of the community. We are expecting secondary cases from him. We do not have any details yet. All have been working with the authorities, youths and civil society to find him, Mr Diallo told Reuters via WhatsApp. Search is ongoing. Ebola has killed over 2,200 people since August 2018, but research shows that many communities in the Congo are sceptical that the disease is real. The lack of trust in the authorities resulted from decades of conflict and poor governance. Health workers are scrambling to track, quarantine and vaccinate anyone who came into contact with the new Ebola cases to contain it. Benis deputy mayor Muhindo Bakwanamaha said local authorities have not yet been able to track down the patient who escaped. He said the patient will die without treatment and create a lot of contacts around him. A civil society group in Beni also called for the public to cooperate with emergency response teams working to contain the virus, and urged them not to attack medical workers. According to African news site Election Net, the group also appealed to those who had been in contact with the people who tested positive for Ebola to inform the response teams. At the height of the Ebola outbreak last year numerous medical workers were attacked or even killed, particularly in areas heavily guarded by militia groups. In April 2019, a Cameroonian doctor, Richard Mouzoko, was shot dead at a hospital in Butembo, where he was treating patients with Ebola. The attacks have prevented health workers from reaching some areas hit by the virus despite the availability of two new vaccines. In a statement made last week, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: Flare-ups are expected at the tail-end of Ebola outbreaks. Our teams in Benin are experienced in responding to new cases, and acted quickly to engage with affected communities, investigate alerts, identify and vaccinate contacts, decontaminate affected homes and health facilities, and send samples for sequencing. The Committee noted that armed groups are active in the area where these cases were identified, a lack of funding is constraining the response, and the Covid-19 pandemic is adding more challenges to an already complex operation. We have to anticipate and be prepared for additional small outbreaks. We need the full force of all partners to bring these outbreaks under control and to meet the needs of the people affected, he added. The Covid-19 pandemic has massively hit the economically weaker sections of the society. The daily wage earners, the homeless and the migrant labourers are still facing difficulty in procuring even a meal a day. In such times, its the NGOs that have come forward to extend help. The Satsang Seva Mission is one such initiative by The Satsang Foundation (TSF), which is enabling distribution of cooked food and other essentials to those in need. READ | This is how good Samaritans are helping Delhi survive in lockdown During the initial days when the lockdown was announced, a number of migrant construction workers appeared before a gated colony in Noida, saying they hadnt eaten for a number of days. A member of TSF, who resides in that colony, cooked and fed a cluster of about 15 of their families. Upon informing TSF about this situation, dry rations were organised for the labourers living in this location. Sri M, TSFs founder and social reformer, says, While the government under the leadership of the Prime Minister is working round the clock to deal with the situation, solutions to such serious situations can only be found through public cooperation and active participation. Sri M, founder of the The Satsang Foundation, is encouraging people to help those in need amid lockdown. (PHOTO: Prabhas Roy/HT) While the government under the leadership of the Prime Minister is working round the clock to deal with the situation, solutions to such serious situations can only be found through public cooperation and active participation. Sri M, social reformer Joining the fight against Covid-19 crisis, the foundation distributed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), masks and sanitizers to health care providers. And the volunteers of the foundation in Delhi got some cloth masks made from requisitioned tailors who are currently out of work after sourcing some surplus cloth from exporters. About 400 regular three ply masks were also provided to cancer patients at the night shelters outside All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Besides, the NGO has carried out several activities, for the larger cause of humanity. Bela Mahendru, executive secretary of TSFs Delhi Kendra, adds, We distributed 470 ration bags for four weeks, in Noida and Gurugram, and also provided AIIMS, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital and the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital with a number of N95 and 3 ply masks. Dry ration was also provided to feeding about 8,000 people in a shelter for the homeless at Yamuna Pushta. Currently, we are distributing 10,000 cloth masks to the families of daily wagers, slum dwellers and the homeless throughout the city. We have also received a request to provide dry ration to 500 homeless rickshaw pullers. READ | The power of social media: Strangers across India connect to help the needy But this pandemic cant be fought alone. Thats why Sri M encourages everyone to help each other brace the present situation where lockdown is essential to stop the spread of coronavirus. It will be a good idea to help the lesser privileged understand how to protect themselves and assure them that this shall also pass. You may add to these activities by joining hands in any way, including funding the projects [for relief] to the best of your ability. This is our nation, and its our duty to guard it and contribute to its well-being. Follow @htlifeandstyle for more M ore than 140,000 firms have applied to the Governments employee furlough scheme, with grants to help cover the wages of more than one million people, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said. Mr Sunak said the scheme has received 17,500 applications an hour since it was launched at 8am on Monday morning. The scheme guarantees 80 per cent of wages up to 2,500 a month per employee. It had initially seen employers claim for 67,000 jobs in the first 30 minutes, according to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). Early indications from businesses trying to access the scheme are that the online portal continues to hold up well with officials saying the newly-built systems can hold up to 450,000 applications an hour. They have until Wednesday to apply, with Mr Sunak revealing payments will be made within six working days from applications being received. 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 Speaking at Monday's Downing Street press briefing, he said: "Over 140,000 firms have applied and the grants theyll receive will help pay the wages of more than a million people who, if they hadnt been furloughed, would have been at risk of losing their job. Firms applying today should receive their cash in six working days and HMRC will continue to provide updates on the number of people furloughed. It comes as: The launch of the furlough scheme comes as the Government was warned of the economic cost for many companies of any delay in its implementation. Mr Sunak added: Our unprecedented job retention scheme will protect millions of jobs across the country and is now up and running. Its vital that our economy gets up and running again as soon as its safe and this scheme will allow that to happen. Coronavirus in numbers: UK hospital death toll rises to 16,509 Approximately 5,000 HMRC staff are operating the scheme, intended to assist thousands of UK firms, a statement from the Treasury said. Phone lines and web-chat services will be available to help answer applicants questions, with the scheme launching 10 days ahead of schedule, it added. The Chancellor earlier announced the scheme will be extended for a further month until the end of June, in light of the ongoing countrywide Covid-19 lockdown. Coronavirus: World's most affected countries Adam Marshall, director general at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: Our research indicates that two-thirds of firms have furloughed some portion of their workforce. With Aprils payday approaching, it is essential that the application process is smooth and that payments are made as soon as possible. Any delay would exacerbate the cash crisis many companies are facing and could threaten jobs and businesses. Jim Harra, chief executive of HMRC, said he was very confident the system would work after it had been tested at volume. 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 Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: Of course, there is a limit to the capacity of the system, so if every employer tries to use it at 8 oclock this morning some will be asked to queue or come back later, that doesnt mean the system has crashed, it simply means that its full. But employers can claim any time over the few days, between now and Wednesday, and we will have the money in their bank account by April 30. Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. Last week, the federal governments major bailout for ailing small businesses ran out of fundingbut not before dozens of public companies, including some large restaurant chains like Potbelly and steakhouse operator Ruths Hospitality Group, managed to tap it for millions of dollars in loans. Unsurprisingly, this has been a swelling source of outrage, especially among the many small-business owners who have found themselves shut out of the relief effort either because they didnt apply swiftly enough or their bank was slow processing paperwork. Now, one big name has decided to give the money back. On Sunday, Shake Shackwhich is still open and serving takeout and delivery across the countryannounced that it would return the $10 million it received through the Paycheck Protection Program so that those restaurants who need it most can get it now. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Republican reaction to this decision has been a bit odd. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin tweeted that he was glad the company was returning its loan. Meanwhile, Florida Sen. Rick Scott said he was concerned that many businesses with thousands of employees have found loopholes to qualify for these loans meant for small businesses. Based on these responses, you might think that chains like Shake Shack had somehow unfairly gamed the system when, in fact, the Paycheck Protection Program was written specifically to help them avoid laying off staff. The actual problem is that Congress simply didnt put enough money into the rescue effort, so help for big chains has so far come at the expense of mom and pop shops. Advertisement The Paycheck Protection Program has usually been described as a small businesses rescue because most companies are only eligible if they have fewer than 500 employees, or if they qualify as a small business under the established industry-by-industry size standards used for other federal programs (which in sectors like mining and manufacturing, can include firms with up to 1,500 workers).1 But Congress added one big exception: Restaurants and hotel chains can apply as long as they have fewer than 500 employees per location. This was an intentional carve-out, not a drafting error. The law is written to help most of the hospitality industry, including the Shake Shacks of the world, except for behemoths with large corporate offices such as McDonalds. Its essentially a small-business rescue and quiet bailout of the restaurant industry grafted together. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This made some sense, at least in theory. Restaurants and hotels have been battered by the coronavirus crisis. Since the whole point of the Paycheck Protection Program is to keep people employedit offers businesses forgivable loans to cover operating expenses in return for continuing to pay their staffit was reasonable to target larger businesses in an industry suffering mass layoffs. Advertisement Advertisement But lawmakers whiffed on execution. Most crucially, they only appropriated $349 billion for the programs initial round, which meant that every dollar going to a midsize chain was a dollar diverted from your favorite diner thats now on the verge of going bust. (By the time $250 billion of loans had been approved, only about 19 percent of eligible hospitality businesses had received one, according to Evercore ISI economist Ernie Tedeschi). It didnt help that the banks in charge of actually making the loans were more likely to prioritize big clients, like Shake Shack, than actual small firms. Advertisement Advertisement In the end, the Paycheck Protection Program did not exhaust its first round of funding because giant restaurant and hotel chains gobbled it up. Forbes staffer Nathan Vardi found 71 publicly traded companies that received loans through the PPP; together they netted $300 million, or 0.09 percent of the programs total appropriation. But the fact that Shake Shack and Potbelly got help while millions of actual small businesses didnt is a symptom of how the program fundamentally wasnt that well thought out. Advertisement Advertisement Democrats and the White House are currently negotiating over a deal that would add an additional $300 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program, which would ease its short-term cash crunch. But that wont change the fact that its still a first-come, first-served program, nor will it quell outrage at the fact that some larger businesses have benefited from it at the expense of smaller ones. A better solution might just be to uncap the PPPs funding entirely so that any businesses that need a loan can get one. An even more sweeping possibility would be for the government to subsidize pay for every business that can show it has been seriously hurt by the coronavirus crisis, as a group of Senate Democrats, including Bernie Sanders, has proposed. Advertisement Advertisement Another, narrower option would be to create a separate rescue program for the hospitality sector, one that aids large and small businesses alike. That might be useful anyway at this point; the Paycheck Protection Programs forgiveness formula makes it a bad fit for restaurants that have been totally shut down, because it requires them to spend 75 percent of their loan proceeds on payroll, leaving relatively little over for fixed expenses like rent. It would also clarify some of the public confusion; instead of a small-business bailout that channels money to big restaurant chains, wed have a restaurant bailout that big companies like Shake Shack wouldnt have to take a PR beating for using. If an entire industry is hurting now, the right move is to give the entire industry help. 1 Update, April 21, 10:54 AM: This post has been updated to note that businesses with more than 500 employees can qualify for the Paycheck Protection Program if they met the governments pre-existing definition of a small business used for other federal programs. For more on the impact of COVID-19, listen to Mondays What Next. Several BJP leaders from Indore, including Lok Sabha MP Shankar Lalwani, prayed on Monday morning on the request of senior colleague and former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan in order to contain and curb the novel coronavirus outbreak. A day earlier, Mahajan had asked people to "recite Rudra at 10:30 am on April 20 (Monday), chant Mahamrityunjaya Mantra" or "the names of your favourite Gods for half an hour with remembrance of Ahilya Mata, in order to free ourselves from the wrath of coronavirus". BJP leaders in the city, among the worst hit in the country by the coronavirus outbreak, claimed several people recited prayers, including priests of 11 prominent Shiva temples here. The Congress had on Sunday said it would have been better if Mahajan questioned the dismal role of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in containing the outbreak. Lalwani, on Monday, hit back claiming prayers had lots of power but "it is unfortunate the Congress is politicising the issue". "The Congress should clarify if all its leaders are atheists," Lalwani told PTI. Indore has 897 COVID-19 cases, and 52 people have died of the infection. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Amid the coronavirus lockdown, a group of activists has taken the initiative of providing food to monkeys starving along the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway here in Maharashtra. On normal days, the primates in the Manor-Palghar hilly and forested belt here used to survive on food left by the travellers passing by the busy highway. But since the lockdown, there are hardly any travellers on the route, leaving the monkeys deprived of food and water. After coming to know about the plight of the apes, activists of a local organisation went to the highway on Monday carrying dozens of bananas and tomatoes and fed the animals. On seeing the fruits, a large number of monkeys gathered at the spot in no time and relished the feast, a member of the NGO said. He said the organisation would try to ensure that the stray animals in rural areas are not deprived of food during these unprecedented times. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With cases of the novel coronavirus confirmed in Syria, Libya and Yemen in recent weeks, there are rising fears of potential mass outbreaks in war zones in the Arab world. Rights groups and experts have predicted that a mass COVID-19 outbreak in Middle Eastern countries mired in conflict could have devastating humanitarian consequences, as years of war have left healthcare systems decimated. Last week the ICRC warned that millions of people in conflict-affected countries already lack access to food, water, medical services and electricity. Yet despite calls from the UN for a global ceasefire to allow countries to focus on containing the pandemic, there have been few signs that the warring parties across the region are willing to implement a truce. Al Jazeera spoke to three experts to explore how the coronavirus pandemic has affected developments in the wars in Libya, Syria and Yemen. No U-turn in Libya Jalel Harchaoui is a research fellow at the Clingendael Institute in The Hague. His work focuses on Libyan politics and security. There are two main camps in Libya: the Turkish-backed coalition led by the Government of National Accord (GNA) and the UAE-backed coalition led by military commander Khalifa Haftar. Before the pandemic was in the news, both camps were engaged in an escalation process. By early January 2020, both camps were already deeply committed to ramping up their military intervention in Libyas internationalised civil war. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had in December announced a bold military intervention. From that moment, we knew that Turkey was going to carry out a very aggressive military buildup and the UAE wasnt going to stand by. It is going to respond in kind. Berlin tried on January 19 [to de-escalate the situation], Moscow had had a go a week earlier, the UN also tried and then special envoy Ghassan Salame resigned. When Western states become completely distracted by the pandemic, then that basically translates into an acceleration of the existing escalation because it encourages both parties to pursue the escalation they were seeking to carry out, in any case. Libyas UN-recognised GNA forces have confronted Khalifa Haftars forces since 2014 [File: Hazem Turkia/Anadolu Agency] Turkey is implementing a very specific military strategy. It is being very methodical and very precise. For Ankara, this is a war against a military enemy. It is not there to kill civilians and not because it is particularly virtuous, but rather because it has no time. Haftar and the UAE, however, were caught off guard by Turkeys self-assurance which means they do not yet have a clear strategy. What they tend to do in response to Turkeys operations is usually go after civilian infrastructure and civilian-inhabited areas. They continued to do that even more than before, knowing that theres a pandemic. For the next four to six weeks, I suspect that the dynamic that we are seeing is going to continue. It always takes time for states to shrink their foreign policy. If the attitude before the war is that you really want to win the war by all means, then when the pandemic hits, you cannot suddenly do a U-turn. It is not like domestic policy where you can institute a lockdown, austerity measures, etc. In Libya, the pandemic has not fully hit home yet. If a month from now, you end up having 15 or 20 percent of the foreign mercenaries not able to fight or a lot of them dying, that will surely affect the behaviour of the states that sponsor the war. Somewhat of a de-escalation may ensure. But international observers must not bet on this. The other scenario an unabated continuation of the ongoing escalation remains a distinct possibility, irrespective of the damage COVID-19 will inflict on Libya. Further fragmentation in Yemen Holly Topham is an editor at the Sanaa Center for Strategic Studies where she edits and co-authors the monthly publication The Yemen Review. In terms of fighting, we have not really seen a de-escalation since the Saudis announced a unilateral ceasefire last week, at least not on the major front lines. Over the past few months, there has been a huge escalation east of the Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, which has seen Houthi forces advance on Marib the last government stronghold in the north and a major oil and gas hub. That front line has been incredibly active, with huge troop movements, perhaps the biggest we have seen in years. And the Houthis have made massive gains in this area. The internationally recognised government has faced intense criticism for perceived military failures on this front. With the Saudi announcement of a unilateral ceasefire, we are seeing somewhat of a sidelining of Yemens internationally recognised government. The Houthis response was similarly directed only at the coalition. So we are potentially seeing further fragmentation of the conflict that between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis (where Riyadh is primarily focused on the security of Saudi territory), and the fighting between Houthi and government forces within Yemen, which has shown no signs of abating. Given that Saudi Arabia is dealing with its own coronavirus outbreak amid plummeting oil prices, supporting the Yemeni government on Yemeni soil is now very far down the kingdoms list of priorities especially if it can strike a deal with the Houthis. Tribesmen loyal to the Houthis hold their weapons at a gathering in Sanaa aimed at mobilising more fighters [Hani Mohammed/AP] If we think of the Houthis as a group that is looking to assert its legitimacy over a segment of the population, then part of that legitimacy is going to depend on its ability to deal with a threat like the coronavirus pandemic. If you look at the response the Houthis are publicising on their social media and official outlets, there seems to be a real push to give the impression that they are taking action and are responding the way a government would. However, there are also concerns that the group may use measures introduced under the pretext of the pandemic to further their political goals. It remains to be seen whether they are able to respond to the health crisis but regardless of the outcome, they will likely allude to the coalition blockade in response to any criticism of their handling of the pandemic for example, blaming the coalition for holding up the entry of medical supplies or essential goods. We have seen this tactic elsewhere. If we look at food insecurity in areas under Houthi control, the blockade is always held up as the only reason. Of course, the blockade plays an instrumental role, but there is also evidence of systematic aid diversion and obstruction by the Houthi authorities. So the picture of accountability is often obscured and often the blockade is used as a cover for the Houthis contribution to the plight of the Yemeni people. This is something to keep in mind in assessing the response. At the moment, we are seeing that the countries most impacted by the coronavirus are high-income, G20 countries. Among these are some of the countries that have been pushing most strongly for peace in Yemen and providing financial and humanitarian support. It is not going to be a politically sound time for any of these countries to be focusing their eyes elsewhere and that is possibly one of the biggest risks for Yemen at this point. Coupled with a possibly devastating outbreak of coronavirus in Yemen, this is why the push to end the war now is more urgent than ever. We do not know what the direct impact of the coronavirus on Yemen will be. The decimation of the countrys healthcare infrastructure from five years of war means that it would struggle to respond to a severe outbreak. Even if it did avoid this scenario though, it is very vulnerable to the expected knock-on effects. Yemen relies on imports for more than 80 percent of its staple food needs and we are already seeing indications of global supply chain disruptions and increases in commodity prices. This would lead to a further decline in the purchasing power of the Yemeni population the key driver of food insecurity in Yemen during the conflict. Russia to relaunch Idlib offensive? Firas Maksad is an adjunct professor at George Washington Universitys Elliott School for International Affairs. Chemical agents and the deliberate targeting of medical facilities have been used as tools of warfare by the Syrian government against its adversaries. The arrival of the coronavirus is unlikely to give Damascus or its allies much pause. If anything, should the virus spread through opposition-held Idlib province, there is growing concern that Syria and Russia may use the pandemic for added leverage over Turkey and Europe. Thousands of infected refugees from Idlib could cross the border into these countries should Damascus and Moscow relaunch their military offensive in the province. With only a few dozen cases officially confirmed, the Syrian government seems more interested in covering up any news of the coronavirus, rather than prioritising it over the war effort. Reports from Damascus suggest that those who have contracted the virus have been warned to stay home and not to talk to media. This is a classic authoritarian response that will ultimately backfire. A decision to relaunch hostilities in Idlib province is not one which local belligerents can take without the approval of their regional and international backers. At the moment, it appears that Russia has decided against pressing Turkey further on the Syrian battlefield. This may be subject to change, with a potential mass outbreak in northeast Syria having a more detrimental impact on adjacent Turkey. Syrian Civil Defence sanitising a tent at the Bab al-Nour internally displaced persons camp in Azaz, Syria [Khalil Ashawi/Reuters] Humanitarian considerations aside, it is an imperative for governments in the West to recognise that a second or third wave of the coronavirus may reach their shores carried by Syrian refugees. Rather than closing their borders and ignoring reality, they must apply all pressure possible to make sure that the guns in Syria remain silent. Only then can much needed medical assistance to the internally displaced help mitigate the spread. WASHINGTON - The federal government gave national hotel and restaurant chains millions of dollars in grants before the $349 billion program ran out of money Thursday, leading to a backlash that prompted one company to give the money back and a Republican senator to say that "millions of dollars are being wasted." Thousands of traditional small businesses were unable to get funding from the program before it ran dry. As Congress and the White House near a deal to add an additional $310 billion to the program, some are calling for additional oversight and rule changes to prevent bigger chains from accepting any more money. Ruth's Chris Steak House, a chain that has 150 locations and is valued at $250 million, reported receiving $20 million in funding from the small business portion of the economic stimulus legislation called the Paycheck Protection Program. The Potbelly chain of sandwich shops, which has more than 400 locations and a value of $89 million, reported receiving $10 million last week. Shake Shack, a $1.6 billion burger-and-fries chain based in New York City, received $10 million. After complaints from small business advocates when the fund went dry, company founder Danny Meyer and chief executive Randy Garutti announced Sunday evening that they would return the money. They said they had no idea that the program would run out of money so quickly and that they understood the uproar. "Late last week, when it was announced that funding for the PPP had been exhausted, businesses across the country were understandably up in arms," the two wrote in a letter posted online. "If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding?" "We now know that the first phase of the PPP was underfunded, and many who need it most, haven't gotten any assistance." Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who has tried to defend the program in recent days, wrote on Twitter that he was "glad to see" Shake Shack return the money. In all, more than 70 publicly traded companies have reported receiving money from the program, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., criticized the program, saying that "companies that are not being harmed at all by the coronavirus crisis have the ability to receive taxpayer-funded loans that can be forgiven." "I am concerned that many businesses with thousands of employees have found loopholes to qualify for these loans meant for small businesses," Scott said. "Unfortunately, when it comes to the PPP, millions of dollars are being wasted." Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., chairman of the committee overseeing small businesses, addressed the criticism Monday morning on CNBC, saying that hotels and restaurants are some of the first and hardest-hit companies and that many of their locations are owned by true small businesses or individuals. But he said that there have been "some people approved, some companies, that I believe should not have been, even under the intent of the law, and that comes down to the certification process and how they were certified into the system." Some of the companies receiving money are clients of JPMorgan Chase, adding fuel to criticism that Wall Street banks had helped their clients obtain large amounts. The bank put out a statement Sunday saying that it is "proud to have secured more funding for small businesses than anyone else in the industry" and that 80% of its PPP loans have been for businesses with less than $5 million in revenue. More for you Analysis finds 48% obesity in sample of COVID-19 patients JPMorgan explained that larger companies may have been served more quickly because its commercial banking unit, which serves larger clients, was able to complete "most of the applications it received" while many more applications poured in from traditional small businesses. The PPP program was intended to benefit workers at businesses and nonprofit employers with fewer than 500 employees that are unable to obtain credit elsewhere, according to the Small Business Act, which formed the basis for the program. But after intensive lobbying by the restaurant and hotel industries during the weeks leading to the passage of the $2 trillion Cares Act economic stimulus package, Congress allowed separate subsidiaries and locations to apply as businesses, even if they were part of a national or international chain. Thus multiple Ruth's Chris locations could apply under separate entities even though the parent company employed about 5,740 people at the end of last year, according to public filings. Other industries and advocates lobbied against affiliation rules as well, including the private equity industry. Hotels, with three-quarters of their rooms empty and nearly 4 million people out of work, have been taking advantage of the program. Philadelphia's Hersha Hospitality Trust and Condor Hospitality Trust, a Maryland-based owner of 15 hotels in eight states, reported last week that they had applied for loans. Mnuchin has called the PPP a success, saying in a statement Friday that the program provided funding to more than 1.6 million small businesses in all 50 states. "The vast majority of these loans - 74% of them - were for under $150,000, demonstrating the accessibility of this program to even the smallest of small businesses," Mnuchin said. He told CNN on Sunday that an additional $300 billion "should be sufficient to reach almost everybody." Executives at some chains have defended the PPP the way it is written, saying that the size of the parent company matters little because most of the money is required to go to workers, as a minimum of three-quarters of each loan must go to payroll in order for the government to forgive the debt. "Employees don't care if we're big or we're a small business. They just want their job back," said Jon Bortz, founder and chief executive of Bethesda, Maryland-based Pebblebrook Hotel Trust and board chairman for the American Hotel & Lodging Association, the industry's top lobbying group. The AHLA has also argued that hotel owners should not have to spend three-quarters of stimulus funding on payroll. Ruth's Chris, a steakhouse chain based in Florida, sought the stimulus money so that the company would be "well positioned to emerge from this situation a strong and viable entity," it said in a statement to the Wall Street Journal. As the program ran out of money, however, leaving thousands of small businesses without money to pay their workers, criticism mounted about some of the money going to national brands. The initial PPP "was flawed from top to bottom," said Florida small business owners Duncan and Rita MacDonald-Korth. "The program has done very little to help genuine small businesses and instead has benefited large companies who have used subsidiary entities to benefit disproportionately and unfairly." The couple created a petition asking that the program be limited to companies with fewer than 250 employees and that half of it be reserved for those with 50 employees or fewer. Some critics point out that executives at larger chains often receive multimillion-dollar annual compensation packages. Other chains, such as Marriott and Hilton, have been criticized for inflating the value of their shares in recent years with share buybacks and dividend payments that left less cash on hand to pay workers once the pandemic hit. Some chains, including those big hoteliers, have since cut executive pay and paused buybacks and dividends. Hilton said it is not seeking support from the Treasury Department. In their letter, the Shake Shack executives said they were trying to do the best they could for their employees under the rules created by the government, but they acknowledged that other businesses could use the money more than they could. "Our people would benefit from a $10 million PPP loan but we're fortunate to now have access to capital that others do not. Until every restaurant that needs it has had the same opportunity to receive assistance, we're returning ours," they wrote. Transparency of the small business spending has also become a paramount issue, as the legislation does not require the Small Business Administration to disclose the recipients, even though the agency typically discloses the name, address and executives for loans received. Leading congressional Democrats are pressing the Trump administration to provide more data about how the money is being distributed. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., along with Sens. Ben Cardin, D-Md.; Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., wrote to Mnuchin and Small Business Administration Administrator Jovita Carranza on Friday asking that PPP be replenished. President Donald Trump said at his daily coronavirus briefing Sunday that he hoped to reach an agreement for additional funding on Monday. "I think we are getting close to a deal," he said. - - - The Washington Post's Erica Werner contributed to this report. The United States has carried out more tests for the novel coronavirus pandemic than 10 other countries, including India, taken together, President Donald Trump has said. Trump asserted on Sunday that the US continued to make steady progress in its war against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the country had tested 4.18-million people. "That's a record anywhere in the world," he said. "We have done more testing than all of these countries combined -- France, United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, India, Austria, Australia, Sweden and Canada," Trump told reporters at a news conference in the White House. The number of COVID-19 deaths in the US crossed 40,000 and the total infections were more than 764,000 so far. COVID-19 pandemic LIVE updates 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 New York, the epicentre of the deadly COVID-19 in the US, has 2,42,000 cases and over 17,600 fatalities so far. It has registered a 50-per cent decline in new cases over an eight-day period. "That's a fantastic climb," Trump said. "That's a beautiful thing to see after going through the opposite." According to Trump, countries like Italy and Spain, which initially were reluctant in closing their country, had to pay a huge price. "We would've had millions of people die if we didn't do this, he said, referring to the earlier projections of massive deaths if there were no social-distancing measures and the country was not closed. More than 95 percent of America's 330 population are under stay-at-home order. Instead, it looks like we'll be at about a 60,000-mark, which is 40,000 less than the lowest number (1,00,000) thought of," he said. "It's similar to a flu." The president listed out the steps being taken by his administration on a war footing to address the challenge posed by the pandemic. "We are doing a great job," he said. Trump highlighted that the situation continued to improve with the declining trajectory of cases in Seattle, Detroit, New Orleans, Indianapolis and Houston Metro areas "More evidence that our aggressive strategy is working and I thank the American people for their selfless devotion," he said. "The American people have done a hell of a job. We're saving countless lives." Trump assured the people that the country was going to be safe. "We have to be safe. We don't want to close anything. We're not going to be closing, but we're going to be doing it beautifully, systematically," the president said. Trump pointed out that the administration was working very well with most of the governors "A couple of them, no matter what you do, you'll never satisfy them. You could find the cure tomorrow and they wouldn't be satisfied. They'd find a reason to complain; wise guys," he added. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here. : flylian (flylian), : Faculty : The University of Arizona : BBS (Mon Apr 20 09:30:53 2020, ) http://view.comms.arizona.edu/?qs=130f3d0c3ef56bf3525592bb58741aa2751d944b832f056216ebee2929a425f3d49cfbc442bd796145c0ca097920ea6e07eb502d08814cd6557b8d213f9031786d74b027a0e50ea9881daaed07beaee5 Dear Colleagues, The past month has presented immense challenges. Thank you again for your amazing efforts to protect our students and to provide them with a safe and productive remote learning environment, all while continuing to serve our state in so many other ways. Together, we helped lead the effort to protect the health and safety of our local community and many communities across the state. In partnership with Governor Ducey and the Arizona Department of Health, we are on a path to provide the antibody test kits that will help get us back to work and our students back to campus. Together, we will ensure the University of Arizona survives this crisis, and that we come out of it better prepared to thrive in ways we could not have imagined just two months ago. The task ahead is not easy, and it depends largely on the resolution of our public health crisis. Along with our entire leadership team, I am grateful for the tremendous sacrifices you already have made, especially as more will be required of all of us at the University. We are not alone. Everyone is adjusting to this new reality of sacrifice and uncertainty. According to the latest reporting, more than 22 million Americans have filed unemployment claims over the past four weeks, the highest number of claims since the Great Depression. At least one estimate shows 20% of the labor force, 1 in 5, are out of work, and many more are facing reductions in hours and pay. Individuals and families everywhere are feeling the significant impact of this crisis, with many struggling or unable to pay rent, facing shortages and long waits for basic necessities, and experiencing increasing stress and uncertainty. I know this situation is incredibly hard, and it makes it even more difficult to focus on our health and well-being during the pandemic. This will affect the University just as it is affecting other universities and colleges across the nation. Our financial losses already have been great . We anticipate losing more than $66 million by the end of this fiscal year, ending June 30. Because we are only a month into this crisis, we cannot know the full extent of its effects, but our most credible shortfall projections exceed $250 million. To put that in perspective, recall that our budget reallocations this year, 1.5% for academic units and 3.5% for administrative units, as well as RCM and administrative service charge tax increases totaled $30 million. While these changes caused incredible concern throughout our campus, even requiring layoff plans in some administrative areas, we are now predicting losses more than eight times that amount next year. Several teams, including senior administrators, financial sustainability working groups, faculty and staff representatives, Regents Professors and Distinguished Professors, and a multitude of others, are working quickly to address this shortfall. Every idea is being considered. As we collect more information over the next several months, the University of Arizona will adapt through new business models, reorganize and restructure for the most sustainable use of resources, and apply the long-term reductions that may be necessary to address the financial aftermath of COVID-19. Strategic restructuring, competitive sourcing and traditional layoffs may be necessary in the future to ensure the long-term financial stability of the University, but a comprehensive layoff is not the right approach for our immediate response. Instead, we have focused on eliminating expenses that do not affect employment and that have limited impact on employee time or salaries while we address immediate cash flow needs of around $40 million per pay period throughout an extended period with modest revenue. We have put a halt to approved building projects for savings of $7 million. We have halted FY20 strategic plan funding for savings of $22 million. We have instituted a hiring pause and delayed plans for merit increases to save another $26 million. In March, senior vice presidents and I implemented immediate pay cuts for ourselves in recognition that at least that much would be required. While significant, those savings are not enough, and an appropriate furlough (unpaid time away from work) and pay reduction program is required. With all this in mind, I have proposed to the Arizona Board of Regents a comprehensive program that includes staff and faculty in a graduated scale through FY 2020 & 2021: For those within the salary bands up to $44,449 a year, a furlough of 13 days to be taken over time For those within the salary bands of $44,500 to $75,000 a year, a furlough of 26 days to be taken over time For those within the salary bands of $75,001 to $150,000 a year, a furlough of 39 days to be taken over time For those within the salary bands of $150,001 to $199,999 a year, a straight salary reduction of 17% For those within the salary bands of $200,000 or more a year, a salary reduction of 20% With this plan, employees will retain their employment and health care benefits. We all will share in this as a team and we all will sacrifice as a team, but in a manner that respects your work, your contributions and your compensation and benefits, to the highest extent possible. We will implement this furlough and pay reduction plan from May 11, 2020 through June 30, 2021. It is projected that this program will generate approximately $93 million in savings to the institution. We will adapt if conditions change dramatically or we realize significant unexpected new sources of revenue, restructuring savings or expense reductions. As significant as this plan is, it will cover less than 40% of our projected shortfall through June 30, 2021, even though salaries and benefits comprise more than 60% of our spending. I know you must have many questions about how this will affect you and your immediate colleagues, and I truly regret that this will add to an already stressful situation. The University has a complex structure with many different employment conditions to address, so I ask for your patience as we develop the implementation plans. More details will be shared as soon as possible, including a comprehensive FAQ online resource. Please visit the FY 2020 & 2021 Furlough & Pay Reduction Program website for the most up-to- date information. There is much more for us to do, and we will all be working together to guide our University out of this crisis. I am confident we will weather this storm, and I am truly grateful for all of you and your dedication to our students and one another. Please stay safe, and, as always, Bear Down. Robert C. Robbins, M.D. President The University of Arizona -- :WWW mitbbs.com [FROM: 71.] RedHill is pursuing both RHB-107 and opaganib as potential treatments for COVID-19 TEL-AVIV, Israel and RALEIGH, N.C., April 20, 2020) ("RedHill" or the "Company"), a specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to provide its investigational drug, RHB-107 (upamostat, WX-671)1, for testing in non-clinical studies for activity against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease (COVID-19). RHB-107, an investigational new chemical entity, has been studied in more than 300 people across 10 clinical studies, including two completed Phase 2 studies in oncology patients and several Phase 1 studies in healthy volunteers and oncology patients. These studies helped establish the safety and tolerability of RHB-107 in humans. RHB-107 is a serine protease inhibitor active against a number of human trypsins and several other related serine proteases. Inhibition of serine proteases, including trypsins, may inhibit viral attachment and replication and decrease lung damage from viral pneumonia2. RHB-107 was selected by NIAID for in vitro testing, following evaluation by NIAID of data on the drug's possible mechanism of action and potential activity against SARS-CoV-2. "RHB-107 is the second investigational drug that RedHill is evaluating for COVID-19, underscoring our commitment to the global efforts to develop a treatment for patients with this disease," said Terry F. Plasse MD, Medical Director at RedHill. "This new agreement will facilitate pre-clinical evaluation of RHB-107 as a potential COVID-19 treatment." In parallel with the RHB-107 program, RedHill is evaluating another novel investigational drug, opaganib (Yeliva, ABC294640), as a potential treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infection. A compassionate use program of opaganib is underway in Israel, with several patients treated to date, with preliminary positive outcomes. In order to facilitate access to opaganib, various programs are currently under discussions in other countries and an Investigational New Drug (IND) application was submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to evaluate opaganib in a clinical study in adults diagnosed with COVID-19 and pneumonia. To find out more about RedHill Biopharma's Expanded Access policy, please visit: www.redhillbio.com/expandedaccess . About RHB-107 (upamostat) RHB-107 is a proprietary, first-in-class, orally-administered potent inhibitor of several serine proteases targeting cancer, inflammatory lung diseases and gastrointestinal diseases. RHB-107 has undergone several Phase 1 studies and two Phase 2 proof-of-concept studies demonstrating its clinical safety profile in over 300 patients. RedHill acquired the exclusive worldwide rights to RHB-107, excluding China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao, from Germany's Heidelberg Pharmaceuticals (formerly WILEX AG) for all indications. About RedHill Biopharma RedHill Biopharma Ltd.) is a specialty biopharmaceutical company primarily focused on gastrointestinal diseases. RedHill promotes the gastrointestinal drugs Movantik for opioid-induced constipation in adults3, Taliciafor the treatment of Helicobacter pylori . This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may be preceded by the words "intends," "may," "will," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "projects," "predicts," "estimates," "aims," "believes," "hopes," "potential" or similar words, including forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control and cannot be predicted or quantified, and consequently, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, the risk that pre-clinical or clinical trials of RHB-107 for the treatment of COV-19, if conducted, will not show any improvement in patients, the development risks of early-stage discovery efforts for a disease that is still little understood, including difficulty in assessing the efficacy of opaganib or RHB-107 for the treatment of COVID-19, if at all; intense competition from other companies developing potential treatments and vaccines for COVID-19; the risk that compassionate use programs of opaganib will not show positive outcomes and the effect of a potential occurrence of patients suffering serious adverse events using opaganib under the compassionate use programs as well as risks and uncertainties associated with (i) the initiation, timing, progress and results of the Company's research, manufacturing, pre-clinical studies, clinical trials, and other therapeutic candidate development efforts, and the timing of the commercial launch of its commercial products and ones it may acquire or develop in the future; (ii) the Company's ability to advance its therapeutic candidates into clinical trials or to successfully complete its pre-clinical studies or clinical trials or the development of a commercial companion diagnostic for the detection of MAP; (iii) the extent and number and type of additional studies that the Company may be required to conduct and the Company's receipt of regulatory approvals for its therapeutic candidates, and the timing of other regulatory filings, approvals and feedback; (iv) the manufacturing, clinical development, commercialization, and market acceptance of the Company's therapeutic candidates and Talicia; (v) the Company's ability to successfully commercialize and promote Talicia, and Aemcolo and Movantik; (vi) the Company's ability to establish and maintain corporate collaborations; (vii) the Company's ability to acquire products approved for marketing in the U.S. that achieve commercial success and build its own marketing and commercialization capabilities; (viii) the interpretation of the properties and characteristics of the Company's therapeutic candidates and the results obtained with its therapeutic candidates in research, pre-clinical studies or clinical trials; (ix) the implementation of the Company's business model, strategic plans for its business and therapeutic candidates; (x) the scope of protection the Company is able to establish and maintain for intellectual property rights covering its therapeutic candidates and its ability to operate its business without infringing the intellectual property rights of others; (xi) parties from whom the Company licenses its intellectual property defaulting in their obligations to the Company; (xii) estimates of the Company's expenses, future revenues, capital requirements and needs for additional financing; (xiii) the effect of patients suffering adverse experiences using investigative drugs under the Company's Expanded Access Program; (xiv) competition from other companies and technologies within the Company's industry; and (xv) the hiring and employment commencement date of executive managers. More detailed information about the Company and the risk factors that may affect the realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on March 4, 2020. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release. The Company assumes no obligation to update any written or oral forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law. Company contact: Adi Frish Senior VP Business Development & Licensing RedHill Biopharma +972-54-6543-112 adi@redhillbio.com (mailto:adi@redhillbio.com) IR contact (U.S.): Timothy McCarthy, CFA, MBA Managing Director, Relationship Manager LifeSci Advisors, LLC +1-212-915-2564 tim@lifesciadvisors.com (mailto:tim@lifesciadvisors.com) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 17:50 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd319731 1 Health HaloDoc,COVID-19,coronavirus,#COVID19,COVID-19-test,health Free Healthcare platform Halodoc is collaborating with more than 20 hospitals in Greater Jakarta and Karawang, West Java, to allow the public to book COVID-19 testing through its mobile application starting on Monday. Users can choose "Test COVID-19" from the menu of the Halodoc app and pick the package they want and the location of the hospital to schedule an appointment. They will be asked to upload their identity card prior to making a payment. Users will then receive a booking receipt by SMS and a notification on their app to be used when they register at the selected hospital. The company provides both rapid tests, which use blood samples, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, also known as swab tests, which are conducted by swabbing the patient's nose and throat. If the results from both the rapid and PCR tests are positive, the doctor will evaluate the patients symptoms to determine the next steps, said Irwan Heriyanto, Halodoc's chief of medicine, in a statement. "If the rapid test result is negative but the patient has travel history to countries affected by COVID-19 or contact history with an infected person, they are recommended to undergo another rapid test seven to 10 days later." The use of telemedicine is increasing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Halodoc has been introducing new features and initiatives to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. In early April it collaborated with ride-hailing app Gojek to offer free drive-through rapid COVID-19 testing to some Jakartans. (wir/kes) A mother-of-two has described how her driving instructor sexually assaulted her over a nine month period, whilst teaching her to drive. Chenine Woods, now 33, was just 17-years-old when her driving instructor Frank Barham subjected her to a series of degrading attacks, including a serious sexual assault and taking her to his home and attacking her while his wife was downstairs. Barham, 69, a decorated Sergeant Major from the British Army, was jailed in November for eight years and branded a 'predator' by a judge. At Chester Crown Court, Judge Patrick Thompson told the 'remorseless' former soldier, who served for 22 years in the forces: 'Underlying your public persona was a cunning sexual predator who hid a dark secret from those who knew him best.' Waiving her right to anonymity to speak publicly for the first time, Chenine told Femail how she's rebuilt her life, following a suicide attempt after her reports of the abuse were not believed. 'The shame and the disgust are all his now. Everyone can see him for what he is, and I can hold my head up high and carry on with my life,' she said. Chenine Woods, now 33 (pictured), was just 17 years old when her driving instructor Frank Barham subjected her to a series of degrading attacks, including a serious sexual assault Chenine (pictured right, at the time where the abuse was going on) recounted feeling like 'nobody was on [her] side' The court heard that the driving instructor had targeted several women throughout his career, but that the assaults on Chenine were the most serious and that Barham had treated her as his sexual plaything. Mother-of-two Chenine says: 'Every time I had a lesson, he would grope me and make sexual comments. He would even do it whilst I was driving, and I just kept my hands on the wheel. I didnt know what to do. 'Once he took me to his home, introduced me to his wife, then touched me inappropriately upstairs. 'The worst was a serious assault down a country lane, and I was terrified. I had my seat belt on, and I just stared out of the window and prayed for it to stop. At Chester Crown Court, Judge Patrick Thompson told the 'remorseless' former soldier, who served for 22 years in the forces: 'Underlying your public persona was a cunning sexual predator who hid a dark secret from those who knew him best' (pictured: a mugshot of Frank Barham) 'He destroyed my teenage years and I have suffered terribly as a result of the abuse. But I am determined he will not ruin another moment. 'I reported the abuse twice and if I had been taken seriously, that first time, so much heartache and suffering could have been avoided.' As a little girl, Chenine had been removed from her natural parents and was adopted at the age of five. She had a happy childhood and was studying for her A levels when her adoptive parents bought her driving lessons for her 17th birthday in September 2003. The mother-of-two revealed she gained six stone and faced issues with intimacy due to the trauma left by the repeated abused (pictured, after she put on weight) She says: 'Frank Barham was highly recommended by my mums friend. 'But on my very first lesson, he asked me what piercings I had, and he put his hand up my top to check my stomach piercing. 'I was absolutely shocked, but I said nothing because he was an adult, in his mid 50s, and I didnt want to get into trouble. 'He was really friendly and asked me what music I liked. By the next lesson, he had made me some CDs. 'I was going through a very bad time at home and Frank was very sympathetic. Looking back, he could see I was vulnerable, and he was grooming me. But I thought he genuinely wanted to help.' Chenine (pictured recently) said she reported Barham twice and was told 'it was his word against' hers, which made her feel like she did not matter. The mother-of-two (pictured now) said she was 'absolutely petrified' as Barham repeatedly touched her inappropriately during their driving lessons But over six months of weekly lessons, Barham began a string of increasingly serious sexual assaults. He even took her to his family home and touched her inappropriately her whilst his wife was downstairs. Chenine says: 'It started with him asking me to wear a leather skirt and high boots for my lessons, which I didnt. 'Then he told me I should look down at my gears more so he could look down my top. 'He put his hand inside my bra and made vulgar comments. And one day, he picked me up straight from school for a lesson and put his hands in my knickers as I was driving. 'I had my hands on the wheel and I was absolutely petrified. I didnt know what to do.' Barham arranged with Chenines parents for him to tutor her at his home, in preparation for the driving theory exam. She says: 'I thought Id be safe there, I knew he was married with a child, but he took me upstairs to his study and he put his hand under my top and rubbed my back whilst his wife was downstairs. 'He didnt take me home until 10pm that night and my parents were furious. They actually asked me if he was being inappropriate and I said no. I just didnt want to talk to anyone about it. I was upset and confused. I had enough trouble going on at home and I didnt feel I could confide in them. Barham was convicted of three counts of sexual assault and all nine counts of indecent assault. Recovering from her ordeal, Chenine urged victims of sexual abuse to come forward, and said it was not their fault, and never too late to get justice 'It felt like I had nobody on my side.' The abuse ended only after a horrific assault during which Barham ordered Chenine to drive to a deserted spot and he penetrated her digitally. She says: 'I had my seat belt on, and I had my hands on the wheel. I was terrified. There was nobody around. I asked him if I could go home and he said no.' Chenine refused to have any more lessons. But the damage was done, and she went off the rails, skipping school and falling in with the wrong crowd. She suffered with mental health problems and began to self-harm. She says: 'I went through several years of feeling really bad about myself. I couldnt be intimate with a man unless I was drunk. 'I put on over six stones in weight. I made a suicide attempt too. I felt worthless. 'I confided in my sister who told my adoptive parents, but they refused to believe me. By now, our relationship had completely broken down.' Chenine reported the abuse to police in 2006 and in 2012 but there was not enough evidence to charge Barnham. She says: 'I was told it was his word against mine. It just made me feel even more than I didnt matter.' Chenine went on to have two young sons, now aged eight and three, and says they were reason she turned her life around. She settled down into motherhood, held down a job, lost weight and got her own home. But the abuse always played on her mind. In 2017, out of the blue, the police contacted her to say there had been a number of complaints against Barham and asked Chenine if she would testify. In court, it was heard that the abuse against her was the most serious by far. Other women claimed that he had hugged them and slapped their bottoms. He had put his hand down the bra of one victim. Another victim complained how Barham suggested she wear lacy red knickers as a lucky charm on the day of her test. The former 22nd Cheshire Regiment serviceman denied all offences against him, claiming physical contact was part of his teaching style. But a jury didn't believe him, rejecting his plea that a series of taps and prods were merely a way he taught his students how to drive. Barham, whose wife is believed to be standing by him, was convicted of three counts of sexual assault and all nine counts of indecent assault. He was jailed for eight years. Chenine says: 'I would urge all other abuse victims to speak out. Its not your fault and its never too late to get justice.' 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. Whether you think tie-dye is totally rad or totally not your style, the psychedelic print from the '60s is back in a major way. It's become a hot quarantine fashion trend that doesn't seem to be going anywhere. Tie-dye loungewear sets, in particular, are having a moment. Everyone from celebrities and YouTubers to at-home crafters are giving the colorful, cozy look their seal of approval. So, why is tie-dye suddenly trending? And how has the print evolved over time? TODAY Style spoke to fashion experts and tie-dye lovers alike find out. Celebrity Sightings In Los Angeles - October 25, 2019 (Getty Images) Why social distancing has inspired us to wear tie-dye Over the past several weeks, people have had a lot of extra time on their hands while social distancing and staying home to slow the spread of coronavirus. Some have been tackling reading lists, others have honed their cooking skills and many others are trying their hand at craft projects, including tie-dyeing. "There's been a resurgence in craftsmanship and handmade goods over the last several years, popularizing '70s hobbies (macrame, weaving, tie-dyeing), but in a modern way," Stitch Fix color expert Ryen Anderson said. "As our country continues to practice social distancing, it makes sense to me that people would connect with these handmade objects for comfort, to feel connected to humans and to nature." Pinterest's experience researcher and in-house stylist, Larkin Brown, says searches for "tie-dye at home" are up 462% in the past few weeks on the site. "Since this is not the time to run out and shop, tie-dye is the style trend you can adapt into a DIY activity right at home," Brown said. Searches for "how to crumple tie-dye," a popular technique, are up 376% on Pinterest. "While this process is relatively simple, it takes multiple steps and washes; just the kind of time extender were all looking for these days," Brown said. Activities that spark joy are more important than ever during these stressful times, and the art of tie-dyeing can help get your creative juices flowing. "Aside from being comfortable and looking good, tie-dye is fun and brings the kid out in us. Ive had customers tell me my products make them feel happier," Dalton England, CEO of The Tie Dye Company, said. Story continues And if you're looking for a distraction right about now, activities like puzzles and crafts can help. "The tie-dye process is therapeutic for me. I find it very soothing and it gives me the perfect outlet to create unique art while totally zoning out. Life can get really loud sometimes and its so important to me to be able to have that escape and that time to myself," said Jackie Pepper Green, who runs a tie-dye company based in Philadelphia called Dye it Pepper. In addition to selling tie-dyed products, Pepper Green offers a "sacs by Jac" service to customers where she dyes a bag full of white items for a flat price and at-home tie-dye kits with 10% of the proceeds going to No Kid Hungry. Tie-dye has been making a comeback for a while Tie-dye sweatpants and sweatshirts might be the quarantine look du jour, but the pattern itself has been working its way back into fashion for several years. The Japanese art of Shibori, a precursor to modern tie-dye, surged in popularity a few years ago and tie-dye showed up on both the 2019 and 2020 spring runways. The latest season of "Project Runway" even dedicated an entire episode to the groovy print earlier this year. "There has been a tie-dye trend for quite a while now. I almost think of it like leopard print a new neutral that is actually not so neutral. In some ways it serves to dress up or make otherwise boring clothing like sweatpants and T-shirts more exciting and interesting," Lucy Collins Payne, assistant professor of philosophy at the Fashion Institute of Technology, told TODAY Style. Celebrity Sightings In New York City - March 30, 2019 (Gotham / GC Images) Today's tie-dye admittedly looks a lot different than the flashy print that made a major mark in the 1960s. "Trends in fashion are cyclical, but the trend has definitely modernized to fit the current culture. Tie-dye that is trending today is simpler and more minimal than versions of the pattern we saw in the late '60s and early '70s, which packed more color into one garment than we typically do today. In contrast, modern tie-dye features cotton candy-hued pastel and white color schemes with subtle or geometric patterns," Anderson said. Tie-dye has a colorful history Matching tie-dye sweatsuits may be a hot new trend, but the pattern actually dates back hundreds of years. "Tie-dye really is a universal method of decorating textiles, practiced the world over for more than 600 years. We see versions of it in almost every culture, ranging from Africa to Asia to the Americas," Collins Payne said. In the United States, immigrants from countries like India, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines introduced tie-dye techniques to their new country over time. "Dyeing techniques also have deep roots in Africa, and many immigrants from a variety of African countries brought their skills to the U.S., even as far back at the late 1700s and 1800s," Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, said. Tie-dye surged in popularity in the U.S. when the hippie movement adopted the colorful look. "In the United States, tie-dye was definitely a DIY/countercultural statement during that era. This was around the time of the introduction and widespread availability of ready-to-wear and mass-produced fashion. Certainly the hippie movement was responding to the homogenized clothing styles of the era in the effort to embrace a certain sort of freedom and individuality," Collins Payne said. Tie-dye, 1970 (Getty Images stock) Since then, tie-dye has been in and out of fashion, often as part of larger hippie fashion revivals. "The early '90s also saw a resurgence of interest in tie-dye and re-dye as the interest for natural and organic dyes over synthetic came to the forefront and yielded quite beautiful results," Eiseman said. "Historically, tie-dye has appealed to people with more time than money, which describes a lot of us right now," said Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell, fashion historian and author of "Worn on This Day: The Clothes That Made History," Tie-dye is an easy trend to try Tie-dye is suddenly all over Instagram feeds and YouTube channels, and it could because it's such an accessible trend, according to Eiseman. "Its easy to do and involves a few rubber bands or string tied to certain portions of the garment and then dyeing it on the stove top or in the washing machine. It's simple and not very labor-intensive," she said. YouTuber Alexandra Thomas, who runs the channel Learning to be Fearless, recently tried her hand at the craft when she had a hard time finding a plus-size tie-dye loungewear set. "Its funny because I wasnt really into tie-dye much before now! Ive noticed its been super trendy over the last few months, and I love following trends ... so I thought why not make my own?" she said. After ordering a white sweatsuit and a tie-dye kit, Thomas got to work and was thrilled with the end result. "There are a lot of methods for tie-dyeing depending how you want it to come out. I did the swirl method where you twist the fabric in a swirl motion from the center to create a cinnamon bun-like shape," she said. After separating the fabric with rubber bands, she applied the tie-dye mixture to each section of the sweatshirt, stored it in a plastic bag and let it set for about an hour before throwing it in the washing machine with soap and hot water, then drying. "You can leave the product on longer if you want the colors to be more vibrant, I left mine on less for a more pastel, soft look" she said. Part of the fun of tie-dyeing is the fact that no two prints look entirely alike. And if you mess up, you can still create something stunning. "Tie-dye is all about trial and error and having no expectations. I find that my favorite designs are the 'mistake' pieces that I accidentally spilled something on or had a random outcome with," England said. Comfy printed sweatsuits are exploding in popularity, but Pepper Green said tie-dye can also dress up any number of items. "Dont limit yourself to tees and sweats. Some of my most favorite pieces Ive made have been chunky knit sweaters, velvet pillows and bedding," she said. Mrs Keepa - Runway - FFWD October Edition 2019 (Stuart C. Wilson / Getty Images) Will the tie-dye trend last? As soon as we all get back to normal life, will the tie-dye trend fade out as quickly as it jumped into all of our lives? That depends on who you ask. Chrisman-Campbell said that only time will tell. "I think this is a temporary surge, like making sourdough bread or fluffy coffee, but it may be something that people are trying out for the first time and will continue to do occasionally post-quarantine, especially with T-shirt weather ahead of us." It could also depend on what the economy looks like in the months to come. "If consumers are still being mindful about how and where they spend their money, and what their priorities are, they will continue doing tie-dying or re-dying as it is so inexpensive and really can be fun you never truly know the exact outcome until is all done," Eiseman said. "Tie-dye is just one of the many ways we use style to boost our mood, and I'm willing to bet that fall and winter trends will have joy all over them," Anderson added. "People will want to show, through their clothing, the excitement they feel once were able to be back out in the world." Baked by Melissa founder Melissa Ben-Ishay, whose cupcake brand recently released a tie-dye clothing collection, said there will always be an audience for the colorful pattern. "Tie-dye is colorful, happy and bright. It's a way to inspire little bits of joy during uncertain times," she said. "For me, tie-dye is not a trend. It's classic and it's a lifestyle, and it's not going anywhere!" Turkey pays salaries of employees amid coronavirus As part of the allowance, the government will pay 60 percent of the staff salaries for a period of three months. Turkey has paid the salaries of 3 million employees to bail out firms amid the coronavirus lockdown, the countrys labor minister said Monday. "WE SUPPORT OUR EMPLOYEES" More than 268,000 firms applied for the short-term employment allowance, which the government announced earlier this month to cushion the fallout of the pandemic, Zehra Zumrut Selcuk tweeted. We support our employees and employers by mobilizing all our resources, she said. She went on to say that 40 percent of the applications came from the manufacturing sector, 15 percent from retailers and wholesalers, 12 percent from hotels and food companies, 6 percent from the educational sector, and 27 percent from miscellaneous firms. Any firm forced out of business due to a Force Majeure, such as the pandemic, can approach the government. The government will also pay a daily allowance of 39.24 liras ($5.7) for a period of three months to workers forced to take unpaid leave. Fugitive liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a High Court appeal in the UK against his extradition order to India. In February 2019, the 64-year old businessman had appealed to the UK High Court against his extradition. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," news agency PTI reported the judges' ruling. A bankruptcy order was sought against Vijay Mallya by a consortium of the Indian public sector banks led by State Bank of India (SBI). The consortium seeks to recover nearly Rs 9,000 crore of unpaid loans from the embattled liquor baron. Vijay Mallya was chairman of United Breweries (UB) Group which has diverse interests in brewing, distilling, real estate, biotechnology and information technology. He fled India in March 2016 and has been living in the UK since then. In March, the Supreme Court adjourned a plea filed by Mallya, requesting a stay on proceedings initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to declare him as a fugitive economic offender and confiscate his assets amounting to Rs 9,000 crore. Vijay Mallya last month tweeted that he had made repeated offers to pay 100 per cent of the amount Kingfisher Airlines had borrowed from the banks. He said, "Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks." Vijay Mallya also wished that the Finance Minister would listen to him in times of this crisis. "Indian Government has done what was unthinkable in locking down the entire Country. We respect that. All my Companies have effectively ceased operations. All manufacturing is closed as well. Yet we are not sending employees home and paying the idle cost. The has to help," he also tweeted. What happens next After this verdict, Vijay Mallya has two routes to appeal to the Supreme Court by inviting the High Court justices within 14 days from today to certify that there is a point of general public importance involved in the case, India Today reported citing a lawyer. In case certification is granted, the matter will proceed to the Supreme Court on an appeal, it added. Otherwise, Vijay Mallya has 28 days from now to appeal to the Supreme Court seeking permission to appeal against the decision of the High Court. Any permission to appeal may take up to 2 to 3 months or so to be decided by the Supreme court, it said. The actual appeal proceedings may take anything from 6 to 18 months to conclude in case of permission being granted, it further said. Also Read: Bring 'implementable' ideas to make India manufacturing hub: FinMin to industry Also Read: 'Life in the era of COVID-19': PM Modi's key motivational message for working professionals in lockdown Protesters wave flags outside of the Ohio State House in Columbus, Ohio on April 18, 2020, to protest the stay home order that is in effect until May 1. MEGAN JELINGER/AFP via Getty Images Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said he supported the state's citizens right to protest his social distancing orders, so long as they practice social distancing while demonstrating. Several hundred people protested DeWine's stay-at-home order outside the Ohio Statehouse on Saturday, according to The Columbus Dispatch. President Trump has seemingly encouraged such protests, says some state governors have "have gotten carried away." Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said protests in his state against his stay-at-home order are permissible as long as the protestors adhere to the social distancing guidelines put in place by the order they are protesting. "The only thing that I've asked our protestors to do is to observe social distancing," DeWine told NBC's Chuck Todd during an interview on Sunday's "Meet the Press" when Todd asked if he believed the president was "wise to politicize social distancing." "We are big believers in the First Amendment," DeWine said. "They were protesting against me yesterday, and that's just fine, they have every right to do that. We are doing what we think is right, what I think is right. That is trying to open this economy, but doing it very very carefully, so we don't get a lot of people killed." According to The Columbus Dispatch, hundreds of protestors showed up outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on Saturday to protest DeWine's stay-at-home order, which closes non-essential businesses until May 1. The day prior, dozens of people showed up to the state capital to protest, according to the report. Photos show protestors in large groups, closer than six feet apart, waving US flags and holding signs in protest of DeWine's order, which was put in place on March 22. Most protestors were seen without face masks, which the Centers for Disease Control now recommends to limit transmission of COVID-19. Story continues Protesters rally at the Ohio State House in Columbus, Ohio on April 18, 2020, to protest the stay home order that is in effect until May 1st. MEGAN JELINGER/AFP via Getty Images Hundreds of people in states across the US have similarly protested stay-at-home orders, calling for states to allow businesses to re-open and criticizing state governors' mandates as too restrictive. More than 200 people turned out to protest social distancing measures in California on Friday. Health experts have continued to warn that re-opening portions of the US too soon could lead to a second wave of coronavirus cases, as places like New York have begun to report success in using social distancing measures to flatten the curve in new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. President Donald Trump seemed to offer support for protestors who have fought state orders "I mean I noticed there are a lot of protests out there, and I just think that some of the governors have gotten carried away," Trump said yesterday. On Thursday, the president had sent tweets about three states where protests had occurred Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia calling on them to "liberate." "He has chosen to focus on protest, and this is not the time for protest," Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said Sunday during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union." He added: "This is time for leadership that will stand up and provide empathy, that will understand what is going on in this country of ours with this pandemic. It's the time for truth and its the time to bring people together." DeWine told Todd Ohio's plan to begin reopening shuttered portions of the state beginning May 1 was "very very consistent" with what the Ohio governor called a "very thoughtful plan" put forth by Trump. The White House on Thursday announced a three-part plan to begin re-opening portions of the US. Read the original article on Business Insider This unknown enemy that we fight is real, he said at his first news conference after leaving his sick bed. None of us have had to deal with anything like this. Officers patrolling the streets and investigating crimes said the virus had ratcheted up stress and disrupted all the standard rhythms of police work. Instead of roll call, officers get temperature checks and an envelope with the days orders. They give arrested people masks and wipe down patrol cars after every encounter. I have to come into work concerned about whether Im going to be the next victim or not, said Officer Marc Perez, fresh out of the police academy, after a patrol shift through Northwest Detroit. Theres only so much an officer can do to prevent himself from coming into contact with that actual virus. Every day is stressful for me. Detectives who are used to sitting across a table from suspects are now doing interviews on the phone, unable to read clues like body language, mannerisms and facial expressions, said Lt. Rebecca McKay, an investigator with the major crimes unit. Even in-person interviews at the jail now have to be distant, behind glass. Its hard to build a rapport or any kind of relationship with an offender, she said, when you have a glass between you, and you have to yell back and forth to get a statement. At the best of times, Detroit wrestles with its crime rate. The city and its police force have improved markedly since Detroit declared bankruptcy in 2013. At the time, the police took so long to respond to 911 calls that some people didnt bother phoning. Members of the medical team from South China's Hainan Province pose at the Wuhan Tianhe International Airport before leaving on Tuesday. Photo: Cui Meng/GT By Li Jiaming A few years ago, the Chinese movie Unexpectedness brought us a lot of joy. But when I thought of the name of the movie this spring, it's because of the continual stigmatizing of China in the context of global COVID-19 pandemic by some Western politicians and media outlets. From passing the buck to China to demanding China pay compensation over the coronavirus outbreak, their clumsy performances have shamelessly intensified. As a person working in the Chinese media, I want to say a few words to Western readers who read this article. First, I want to introduce you to a traditional story that is well-known in China. A wolf was shot by a hunter, and it met a kindhearted person when it was fleeing. The person saved the wolf as it wished. After the hunter left, the wolf said to the kindhearted person: "You have saved me. Now I am hungry. Since you've come this far helping me, just let me eat you." The wolf didn't succeed in the end, and it was killed by another good person who came along. The story has been passed from generation to generation since the 13th century, and we Chinese compare people with bad qualities to this wolf. We call them "the Wolf of Zhongshan." The story was also quoted in China's great classical novel Dream of the Red Chamber, and there is a famous quote: "You are the Wolf of Zhongshan, a villain holding sway." Second, I want to explain the title of this article. We are in a world of information, and everybody's words and deeds can spread to all corners of the world. When some Western politicians and media try to insult China, we know about it instantly. Why does every move to stigmatize China evoke our historical memory? This is because in the Chinese calendar cycle, the year 2020 is the "Year of the Gengzi," which occurs every 60 years. What happened to China during the "Year of the Gengzi" in 1900? The Eight Nation Alliance - you can check which eight countries, if your history book is reliable - invaded China and they were caught burning and looting in Beijing. They used machine guns to slaughter ordinary people, ransacked the royal palace, and destroyed cultural relics. As if that was not enough, the very next year they had the temerity to demand huge compensation from China. Now, 120 years later, in this "Year of the Gengzi," when the descendants of some of the Eight Nation Alliance shamelessly demand compensation, they evoke our historical memory of humiliation. Many Chinese netizens have responded strongly: "They want compensation? If they want to get even with China, let us start from the damage China suffered since the first Opium War in 1840!" Finally, I would like to suggest that in addition to publish the changing epidemic situation every day, Chinese media should also publish another data table, which record the words and deeds of foreign politicians and media who stigmatize China every day. The data table should be recorded, published and updated daily. You may ask why. The answer is simple: First, we should analyze these words and deeds just like analyzing viruses to see where the root cause is. Second, we should expose these dirty mental viruses to human conscience. And finally, we should remember them. Memory brings thinking, thinking boosts strength, and strength creates history. The strength of China today comes from its history of about 5,000 years. With such a long history, China has not only strength, but also incomparable patience. The author is a host on China Central Television. #LockdownLessons: Argility embraces Industry 4.0 tech #LockdownLessons explores the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on businesses, how they prepared for lockdown and it's impact on operations and employees, as well as lessons learned that we can take into the post-Covid-19 era. The company provides end-to-end solutions inclusive of: managed services; service desk and industry 4.0 technologies. The latter is inclusive of data science, predictive modelling & advanced analytics; the internet of things; location technologies and cloud computing and gateway control platforms (GCP). Tanya Long shares with us how the coronavirus has impacted The Argility Technology Group... Tanya Long, COO at The Argility Technology Group How has Covid-19 impacted your business? From an operational perspective, the only impact has been that we havent physically been at the office. Otherwise, work continues as normal as we have been able to leverage off of our technology platforms to collaborate and work remotely. Sadly, the hard lockdown had impacted on our customer base as they are primarily in the non-essential retail sector. We have been working with our customers to assist them wherever possible to ensure that all parties come out of this lockdown and are able to get back on track. This has been an ideal opportunity to focus on digital transformation research and development, which will be vital for many retailers post Covid-19. In essence, this scenario has gifted us with an opportunity to do some really innovative development projects, which we are excited to showcase. How did you prepare for the lockdown? We were well-prepared from a Health and Safety (H&S) plus operational perspective and just needed to ramp up existing practices. At-risk employees were promptly identified and sent home to mitigate their exposure. As an organisation, we had invested a few years ago in ensuring that we utilised cloud infrastructure for all of our operations and that our employees were able to work remotely. All external meetings were changed to virtual meetings. We also ensured that there was a stream of useful and reassuring information around the current situation, to both staff and clients. The latter is ongoing, with email, telephonic and social media communication. What's the biggest challenge you are facing during this pandemic? The only real challenge has been, in some instances, connectivity. Where staff experience challenges in this regard, e.g. a temporary interruption of internet services, we defer work until such issues are resolved, which is typically within an hour or two. Any time lost is made up thereafter. Our ICT team are also on standby to assist where required. Luckily, these challenges have been few and far between. What has become extremely important is intentional communication with our teams and something that we will continue post-Covid-19. Not only for task management and collaboration but also to maintain morale and promote unity. What sort of assistance will you need going forward? The biggest challenge will be to get everyone back into the normal 8-5 workday and traffic. It is likely that most people will probably be so happy to be around their colleagues and back at the office, that this may not in fact be a challenge at all. We acknowledge that there will be a knock-on impact from an economic perspective, so we will be carefully monitoring and mitigating costs whilst continuing to honour our obligations. A further challenge due to the economic knock-on would be monitoring payments coming in, as so many businesses have been negatively impacted. Q&A: Marko Salic on digitally transforming retail and supply chain solutions If you are able to operate, what steps are you taking to continue operating? The lockdown has actually highlighted ATGs competencies and capabilities in terms of being able to work remotely without impacting our service levels; and has in fact underscored our core competencies. The ATG Management Committee meets on a weekly basis for a situational review and we keep in touch with various teams on an ongoing basis, and with our clients. We will be ready and able to hit the ground running once the all-clear sounds. What measures have you put in place for your employees? We have ensured that everyone has the capability to work remotely as explained, via virtual meetings and check-ins etc. Continual reassurance from a management perspective, checking on employees wellbeing, and emphasising that managers and execs are on call should they wish to chat, be it on a work-related or a personal basis. Highlight access to our Employee Wellness Program should that be required. And, of course, post-lockdown, the essential H&S measures will continue, as before, in addition to the aforementioned measures Are you communicating with your customers? If so, how? Yes, we are on an ongoing basis. Account managers and execs are in constant communication with various stakeholders. Due to the strong existing relationships we have with our customers, it has been relatively easy to keep in touch. This validates the importance ATG has always placed upon our client affiliations. It is the essence of our approach to business we partner with our customers. How are you offering assistance to your customers who rely on your services? As per the point above, we are constantly in touch, and our service levels have not been impacted. In fact, we have received several accolades during the lockdown period, around the efficiencies and support we have been able to provide to our customers during this challenging time. What do you predict the next 6 months will be like? The next six months will be demanding, due to the economic conditions which will prevail, however, with careful governance, we anticipate that ATG will emerge from this time stronger and even more dedicated to providing exceptional service. We will have learned new skills and reinforced our knowledge pool. We believe that the ATG DNA of Dialogue, Navigation and focus on Aspirations is what will help us ride this wave. From a human perspective, we will be even more grateful for our people and our relationships, and we will continue to support these valuable resources. Now is the time to innovate and experiment. What is ATG doing? ATG prides itself on being at the forefront of innovation. 4IR technologies have been our focus for some time now and during this time, we have had the opportunity to fast-track development on our IoT, Data Science Artificial Intelligence (AI), delivery tracking solutions. What has been your biggest lesson from all this? The biggest lesson for all of us, worldwide, has probably been the changed perception of what is truly valuable. ATG has been inspired by the continued dedication and commitment of our amazing teams; we have seen how everyone has pulled together under these strange circumstances, reaffirming our faith and trust in our people. We will continue to value and support our relationships with staff and customers, and we look forward to nurturing them even further as we go forward. The Argility Technology Group (ATG) is a South African enterprise software development and services organisation predominantly focused on the retail and supply chain arenas.The company provides end-to-end solutions inclusive of: managed services; service desk and industry 4.0 technologies. The latter is inclusive of data science, predictive modelling & advanced analytics; the internet of things; location technologies and cloud computing and gateway control platforms (GCP).Tanya Long shares with us how the coronavirus has impacted The Argility Technology Group...From an operational perspective, the only impact has been that we havent physically been at the office. Otherwise, work continues as normal as we have been able to leverage off of our technology platforms to collaborate and work remotely.Sadly, the hard lockdown had impacted on our customer base as they are primarily in the non-essential retail sector. We have been working with our customers to assist them wherever possible to ensure that all parties come out of this lockdown and are able to get back on track.We were well-prepared from a Health and Safety (H&S) plus operational perspective and just needed to ramp up existing practices.At-risk employees were promptly identified and sent home to mitigate their exposure. As an organisation, we had invested a few years ago in ensuring that we utilised cloud infrastructure for all of our operations and that our employees were able to work remotely. All external meetings were changed to virtual meetings.We also ensured that there was a stream of useful and reassuring information around the current situation, to both staff and clients. The latter is ongoing, with email, telephonic and social media communication.The only real challenge has been, in some instances, connectivity. Where staff experience challenges in this regard, e.g. a temporary interruption of internet services, we defer work until such issues are resolved, which is typically within an hour or two. Any time lost is made up thereafter. Our ICT team are also on standby to assist where required. Luckily, these challenges have been few and far between.The biggest challenge will be to get everyone back into the normal 8-5 workday and traffic. It is likely that most people will probably be so happy to be around their colleagues and back at the office, that this may not in fact be a challenge at all.We acknowledge that there will be a knock-on impact from an economic perspective, so we will be carefully monitoring and mitigating costs whilst continuing to honour our obligations. A further challenge due to the economic knock-on would be monitoring payments coming in, as so many businesses have been negatively impacted.The lockdown has actually highlighted ATGs competencies and capabilities in terms of being able to work remotely without impacting our service levels; and has in fact underscored our core competencies.The ATG Management Committee meets on a weekly basis for a situational review and we keep in touch with various teams on an ongoing basis, and with our clients. We will be ready and able to hit the ground running once the all-clear sounds.We have ensured that everyone has the capability to work remotely as explained, via virtual meetings and check-ins etc. Continual reassurance from a management perspective, checking on employees wellbeing, and emphasising that managers and execs are on call should they wish to chat, be it on a work-related or a personal basis. Highlight access to our Employee Wellness Program should that be required. And, of course, post-lockdown, the essential H&S measures will continue, as before, in addition to the aforementioned measuresYes, we are on an ongoing basis. Account managers and execs are in constant communication with various stakeholders. Due to the strong existing relationships we have with our customers, it has been relatively easy to keep in touch. This validates the importance ATG has always placed upon our client affiliations. It is the essence of our approach to business we partner with our customers.As per the point above, we are constantly in touch, and our service levels have not been impacted. In fact, we have received several accolades during the lockdown period, around the efficiencies and support we have been able to provide to our customers during this challenging time.The next six months will be demanding, due to the economic conditions which will prevail, however, with careful governance, we anticipate that ATG will emerge from this time stronger and even more dedicated to providing exceptional service. We will have learned new skills and reinforced our knowledge pool. We believe that the ATG DNA of Dialogue, Navigation and focus on Aspirations is what will help us ride this wave. From a human perspective, we will be even more grateful for our people and our relationships, and we will continue to support these valuable resources.ATG prides itself on being at the forefront of innovation. 4IR technologies have been our focus for some time now and during this time, we have had the opportunity to fast-track development on our IoT, Data Science Artificial Intelligence (AI), delivery tracking solutions.The biggest lesson for all of us, worldwide, has probably been the changed perception of what is truly valuable.We will continue to value and support our relationships with staff and customers, and we look forward to nurturing them even further as we go forward. Evan-Lee Courie's articles About Evan-Lee Courie Editor: Marketing & Media; Head of Content for Entrepreneurship Editor: Marketing & Media; Head of Content for Entrepreneurship President Donald Trump, with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Purdue, announced that an amount of $19 billion would be allocated for the relief of farmers and ranchers who are negatively impacted by COVID-19. The Role of Farmers in the United States Amid COVID-19 Farmers play a vital role in the United States in sustaining the food supply in the country amid COVID-19. While most of the Americans are in their homes following the stay-at-home policy to control the spread of the virus, many farmers are on the field making sure that there is enough food supply. In California alone, there are more than 400,000 Latino and Hispanic farmers, and this does not include American farmers. These farmworkers are at high risk because they do not have adequate personal protective equipment like masks and gloves; most of all, their wages are considerably low. Famers also contribute to a significant amount of income every year. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, the net farm income is expected to increase to $3.1 billion--that's a 3.3 percent increase from last year. $19 Billion Worth of Relief Aid to Farmers President Donald Trump recognized the efforts of farmers who work night and day in the field without complaining. The $19 billion relief aid to the farmers will be divided into two programs, which will benefit farmers, ranchers, and consumers as well. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said that an amount of $3 billion would be used to purchase agricultural products suck as dairy, meat products, and other agricultural products. They will be distributed to the people in need. The remaining $16 billion will be paid directly to the farmers and ranchers to boost their income as they continue to sustain the food chain in the country and make sure that there is enough food for every family in the country. Trump said: "This will help our farmers and our ranchers, and it's money well deserved," Meanwhile, Perdue also recounted during his speech that Trump wrote in one of his posts that he will always stand with the farmers, which was much appreciated. US Recognizes the Significant Contributions of Migrant Farm Workers in the Country The $19 billion relief aid is just the first part of Trump's plan for the agriculture sector because he also said that another $14 billion is set to be released in July. The demand for dairy has fallen by 15 percent since the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, according to the Dairy Farmers of America. Half of the demands are coming from the grocery stores, and the other half is from the food services industry like restaurants, hotels, and airlines, which are temporarily shutting down its operation. This simply means that there is a high demand for food and agricultural products in the grocery stores by 20 percent, but it is an irony of the demand that has fallen to 40 percent in restaurants and other food chains in the country. A few weeks ago, the CARES Act passed by Congress initially tried to address some disparity by putting aside $48.4 billion for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Read related articles: The Reserve Bank of India on Monday announced the calendar of the meetings of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for the current financial year, and decision of the first meet will be announced on June 5. The RBI governor-headed committee will meet for five times during the financial year 2020-21. The previous MPC meeting was advanced in view of the COVID-19 outbreak to March 24, 26 and 27 from originally scheduled for March 31, April 1 and 3. The MPC in the previous meeting decided to sharply cut the repo rate by 75 basis points as the coronavirus outbreak led to the lockdown in the country adversely affecting economic activities. The six-member MPC has met for 22 times. The first meeting was held in October 2016. As per the schedule announced by the RBI, the next Monetary Policy Committee meeting will take place during June 3 to 5. The MPC decision is announced on the last day of the meeting. The other meetings will take place on August 4 to 6, 2020; September 29-30 and October 1, 2020; December 2 to 4, 2020; and February 3 to 5, 2021. According to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the central bank is required to organise at least four meetings of the MPC in a year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chairman of the Tobinco Group of companies, Nana Amo Tobbin I, on Sunday, visited some poor communities in the capital to distribute 2000 boxes of beautifully packaged food items to the needy and the vulnerable. The unprecedented donation was aimed at supporting slum dwellers who have been deprived of their daily bread following the three-week lockdown imposed by the government to contain the rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Another reason for the house-to-house food distribution method according to Nana Amo Tobbin I, was to give the true meaning of social distancing. He explained that the overcrowding that characterised the distribution of food by some organizations was not the best as it poses health risks to the beneficiaries and that he thought it wise to use a safer way to distribute food to the needy. This is the major donation by the Tobinco Group in the fight against the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic. Tobinco first partnered the Church of Pentecost to donate medical supplies to Nursing and Midwife Trainees, followed by the donation of medical supplies worth over 250, 000 to the Ministry of Health to combat the pandemic in the country. Speaking to Atinka TV, Nana Amo Tobbin, noted that this was the time to extend a helping hand to extremely poor people in the country as most of them have no food to eat in this lockdown period. According to him, the excitement and joy on the faces of some of the needy residents when they saw that some help was coming from Tobinco, was an indication that there are so many people who genuinely need help in this difficult times but they dont know where the help might come from. Atinka TV observed that many residents in the poor neighborhoods visited had spent some of the days without food and the arrival of the Tobinco trucks and vans with packaged food items meant that their prayers had been answered. Residents of Kofi Krom, a popular slum in the Avenor area were extremely happy with the kind gesture from Nana Amo Tobbin and they heaped massive praises on him, asking God to enlarge his business empire as well as protect his life and family. Nana Amo Tobbin commended individuals and corporate organizations assisting governments efforts to feed the needy in these difficult times and further called for more of such support as the nation combats the pandemic. He suggested the use of mobile money as one of the methods to help the needy. He said organisations and individuals can identify needy people in society and send them some cash for their upkeep. Finally, he urged all Ghanaians, particularly the vulnerable to observe all the personal hygiene protocols outlined by the government and health institutions to combat the pandemic 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. Featured Video By PTI COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan government on Monday dropped its decision to relax the nationwide curfew and extended it to April 27 following a sudden spike of 41 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. The island nation has been under a curfew since March 20 to combat the deadly viral infection. On Sunday, the government announced to partially lift the curbs from Monday to boost economic activity. Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi had said the government was able to tackle the community spread of the deadly virus and was, therefore, looking at the need to revive the economic activity, stalled due to the lockdown since mid-March. However, following the 41 COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office said the planned easing of the curfew won't happen in the backdrop of the sudden spike in the numbers and it has been extended till April 27. Following the curfew extension, a meeting of the Election Commission scheduled for Monday afternoon to decide on the date of the parliamentary election has also been postponed. The election, which was originally scheduled for April 25, was indefinitely postponed in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. Sri Lanka has so far reported 295 COVID-19 cases, including seven deaths, and 96 recoveries, since the first viral infection was reported in the country on March 11. Over 3,500 people, including foreigners, remain quarantined in more than 40 centres across the country following the coronavirus outbreak. Flour mills are working "around the clock" to meet demand as a rise in housebound Australians taking up baking has seen flour and other baking supplies fly off supermarket shelves. Craig Neale and the team at Wholegrain Milling in Gunnedah, NSW, have seen wholesale demand increase four times. The artisan mill, which specialises in organic and sustainable flours and distributes across Australia and internationally, had "three weeks to react, basically". Craig Neale of Wholegrain Milling in Gunnedah, NSW. Credit:Dominic Loneragan "I don't have an answer to why it's happened," says Mr Neale, who is overseeing 21 production hours a day. "I've been in the industry for 45 years and I've never seen anything like this." His wife owns a bakery; she recently sold 54 bags of wholesale flour in one day. FULTON, Md., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Rob Posner, founder and CEO of NewDay USA, a national VA mortgage lender, announced the company is on track to serve a record number of veterans and servicemembers during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020. He added the company plans to lend veteran families more than $2 billion during the second quarter alone, helping them save money by refinancing to a lower rate or purchase a home. For 2020, NewDay expects to loan over $7 billion to servicemembers and veteran families, Posner said, adding NewDay USA's goal is to become the nation's top mortgage lenders for servicemembers and veterans. "I'm proud and honored that NewDay has become the trusted partner that veterans and servicemembers turn to during this national health crisis," Posner said. "It's NewDay's mission to help every veteran realize the American dream of homeownership or refinance and save money by accessing their hard-earned VA benefits." NewDay USA serves active duty servicemembers and veteran families by providing VA purchase, refinance, and home-equity loans. Last year the company launched "Operation Home," a national campaign to help veteran borrowers purchase a home with no down payment and not one dollar out of their pocket. Ads for the campaign can currently be seen throughout the day on FOX News, CNN and History. The company plans to help 1 million military families take advantage of their VA benefits by 2025. "My purpose in becoming executive chairman of NewDay USA was to make sure my fellow veterans and their families use their VA benefits to attain their dreams of homeownership and financial security," said Rear Admiral Tom Lynch (USN, Ret.). "It brings me great joy to serve so many veterans, especially during these challenging times." About NewDay USA NewDay USA is a nationwide VA mortgage lender focused on helping active military personnel, veterans, and their families achieve their financial and housing goals. NewDay, which was named a Best Military Lender by National Mortgage Professional, is also a Ginnie Mae (GNMA) approved issuer/servicer. The company employs best practices in mortgage lending and career growth for mortgage professionals. Consistent with its mission, NewDay is a philanthropic partner of numerous organizations focused on assisting military veterans and their families in need. The NewDay USA Foundation provides four-year scholarships to the children of fallen and severely disabled military veterans to attend JROTC military high schools across the nation. The company is also a major philanthropic partner of the Medal of Honor Foundation, the USO, Boulder Crest Retreat for Military and Veteran Wellness, and is a major sponsor of the Military Bowl. Community service and giving back in the form of volunteerism also play a significant role among the NewDay USA workforce. NewDay USA is a registered trade name of New Day Financial, LLC (NMLS # 1043), which is a key holding of Chrysalis Holdings, LLC, a premier private investment company focused on the financial services industry. For more information about NewDay USA, visit www.newdayusa.com. Press Contact: Sam Garcia Strategic Vantage [email protected] 214.762.4457 SOURCE NewDay USA Related Links http://www.newdayusa.com In what can only be seen as a win-win situation, the United Way of Central New Mexico has created a fund to help feed needy families while also helping area restaurants. The Feeding Families Fund: United We Eat will provide money to a number of agencies in central New Mexico that already serve food to insecure families and families in crisis. Those agencies will purchase meals for those families from local eateries in their areas, thereby creating work and generating revenue for restaurants and their employees. This fund provides a safety net for many families struggling to provide meals for their families, agencies that are providing care for families receiving their services, and restaurants that are hard-pressed to keep people on the payroll, Rodney Prunty, President and CEO of United Way of Central New Mexico said in a news release this week. Seed money for the effort came from a $15,000 gift from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico, and was part of a larger contribution of $250,000 the company made to United Way to help various organizations statewide that are responding to the coronavirus pandemic. The idea for the Feeding Families fund came from major United Way donor families, Billy and Rachel Gupton and Lynn and Craig Trojahn. We knew there had to be a way to create a resource in our community that would make sure families arent going hungry, especially families who are also addressing other health or emergent needs, said Billy Gupton. We also know how hard it is for restaurants to operate at levels that keep staff employed. Agencies receiving money in the program include All Faiths, Casa Esperanza, CLN Kids, Endorphin Power Company, Haven House in Sandoval County, Ronald McDonald House and St. Terese of Calcutta Soup Kitchen in Valencia County. To donate to the Feeding Families Fund: United We Eat, go to uwcnm.org/feeding-families-fund. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The Indian Medical Association the largest body representing private doctors in India on Monday warned of retaliation amidst reports that the last rites of medical professionals who died after contracting COVID-19 were being obstructed by members of the public. Denial of dignity in death is the ultimate sacrilege, said the association. On Sunday, people carrying the body of a 52-year-old neurosurgeon in Chennai who had succumbed to coronavirus which he apparently contracted from a patient were brutally attacked by 50 people who did not want the body to be buried in a cemetery. A similar incident was also reported from Shillong, Meghalaya, a few days ago when relatives of a popular doctor who died of the infection had run from pillar to post to bury his body. It is a matter of great concern that these doctors who had died in the line of duty are treated shabbily and in such an uncivilised manner, said the IMA in a strong worded statement. Even more shocking is the utter helplessness of the state governments in preventing such incidents. If the governments do not have power to stop such incidents, they lose their moral right to govern. The statement said that while the association has shown much restraint in spite of extreme provocations such as abuse, violence, spitting, pelting of stones, denial of entry to societies. It warned that if the governments fail to perform their duties, it will decide on appropriate retaliatory measures. It also demanded enactment of a central law on violence against doctors that was proposed by the Union health ministry but later stalled by the home ministry. The association has now asked doctors and healthcare workers across the country to light a candle at 9 pm on 22 April as a protest against the violence and abuse. The IMA termed it a "white alert" to the nation. It said that doctors across the country will work with black badges on April 23 and declare it a "black day" if the government fails to expedite the legislation. There have been several incidents of attacks on healthcare workers and cops by people in different parts of the country, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, leading to injuries to doctors, paramedics and police personnel. IOWA CITY, Iowa - Governors in the Midwest are working to keep large meatpacking plants operating despite coronavirus outbreaks that have sickened hundreds of workers and threaten to disrupt the nations supply of pork and beef. In Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly sent personal protective equipment and testing supplies to counties with meat processing plants. Gov. Kristi Noem said she didnt think it would be difficult to fulfil federal requirements to reopen a shuttered facility in South Dakota. And Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds warned of the dire cost of closing plants, even as she acknowledged the certainty of more clusters of infection at the facilities. JBS USA said Monday it was suspending operations at a large pork processing plant in southwestern Minnesota because of an outbreak of COVID-19 among workers the latest facility to be closed in the public health crisis. Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said 33 JBS employees and six close relatives had tested positive as of Saturday. Meat processing workers are particularly susceptible to the virus because they typically stand shoulder-to-shoulder on the line and congregate in crowded locker rooms and cafeterias. The JBS plant in Worthington employs more than 2,000 people and normally slaughters 20,000 hogs per day. We dont make this decision lightly, Bob Krebs, president of Colorado-based JBS USA Pork, said in a statement. We recognize JBS Worthington is critical to local hog producers, the U.S. food supply and the many businesses that support the facility. Iowas governor has also warned of the threat to food supply if authorities clamp down too hard on facilities with outbreaks, and has refused to shutter a sprawling Tyson Foods pork processing facility in Waterloo where dozens of workers are infected. Reynolds said the state is working with meat companies to test workers and prevent outbreaks from growing too large, even as she acknowledged that more clusters of positive cases are certain. These are also essential businesses and an essential workforce, she said. Without them, peoples lives and our food supply will be impacted. So we must do our part to keep them open in a safe and responsible way. Reynolds noted that Iowa produces about one-third of the nations pork. If hogs cant be processed, farmers will have to euthanize them, the governor warned. Were not that far from it and it will be devastating, not only for the food supply but for the cost of food moving forward, she said. Advocates for workers said Reynolds has little regard for a vulnerable workforce that includes many refugees and immigrants. Its sickening, said Democratic state Sen. Bill Dotzler of Waterloo, who has called for a temporary closure and stronger worker protections. Hospitals and medical clinics in his city reported a surge in patients Monday, and many of them were Tyson employees. A National Beef plant in Tama, Iowa, that had been closed for two weeks resumed production on Monday as scheduled. A day earlier, Reynolds announced that 177 workers out of more than 500 tested were positive for the coronavirus. The Kansas City, Missouri-based company didnt return messages. Cargill and National Beef have reported infections among employees at plants in southwest Kansas, prompting Gov. Kelly to direct an influx of federal tests and safety equipment to counties in that region. Tyson also has plants there but has not confirmed infections. Controlling those outbreaks is crucial: Plants in southwest Kansas account for 25 to 30% of beef processing in the U.S. It would be a disaster if we had to shut down, so were trying to do everything that we can to keep those plants online, Kelly told The Associated Press. South Dakotas governor said the temporary closure of a Smithfield Foods pork plant that produces about 5% of the U.S. pork supply has already been devastating for regional producers. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations for safely reopening the Sioux Falls plant will be made public soon, Noem said. Its report will call for improved social distancing, expanded use of face shields and other protective equipment, and better communication between the company and workers. Theres nothing in this report that I think will be difficult to accomplish, said Noem. She declined to say how soon it might reopen. Smithfield Foods has said the indefinite closure disrupted its supply chain, forcing the closure of a facility in Martin City, Missouri. Smithfield also shuttered a plant in Cudahy, Wisconsin, after employees tested positive for the virus. Also in Wisconsin, a surge of infections has been linked to the JBS Packerland plant in Green Bay. Health officials said they didnt have an exact number of infections connected to the plant, but infections spiked by more than 100 in the surrounding county over the weekend. The plant remains open. In western Michigan, a JBS meat packing plant that was closed over the weekend reopened Monday. Sixty people there have tested positive for the coronavirus, Allegan County health spokeswoman Lindsay Maunz told WOOD-TV. ___ Associated Press reporters Steve Karnowski in Minneapolis; Stephen Groves in Sioux Falls; and Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, contributed to this story. The iaedp Symposium remains one of the best ways for health care professionals to earn CEs in our field of eating disorders treatment, said Bonnie Harken, Managing Director at iaedp. The iaedp Foundation is announcing the 2020 Virtual Symposium, a safe, convenient and accessible way to experience the educational and networking benefits of the groups annual conference. The 2020 Virtual Symposium will run from May 15 to July 31, 2020. Attendees who registered for the 2020 iaedp Symposium originally slated for March 26-29 in Orlando automatically will be enrolled in the upcoming virtual Symposium and do not need to register for the 2020 Virtual Symposium. If an individual was not registered for the original 2020 iaedp Symposium (in Orlando) and would like to register for the 2020 Virtual Symposium, details can be found at iaedp.com. Unlike the original 2020 iaedp Symposium, the 2020 Virtual Symposium offers all those who participate a robust and dynamic opportunity to view all sessions and workshops as well as the experience of the interactive Exhibit Hall. There is no daily schedule since all sessions are available and accessible online. For a full listing of all available sessions, in English and Spanish, and speakers, including keynote speakers, visit iaedp.com. From body image and exercise therapies to innovative research and family issues, most all of the sessions scheduled for the original 2020 iaedp Symposium will be fully accessible to all participants of the iaedp 2020 Virtual Symposium. We couldnt be more pleased with the offering of the first virtual Symposium from iaedp, said Bonnie Harken, Managing Director of the iaedp Foundation. It is a truly safe and fully accessible experience. The iaedp Symposium remains one of the best ways for health care professionals to earn CEs in our field of eating disorders treatment, said Harken. For more information about the 2020 iaedp Virtual Symposium schedule and registration, and to register online, visit iaedp.com. About the iaedp Foundation: Since 1985, the International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals has provided education and training standards to an international and multidisciplinary group of various healthcare treatment providers and helping professions. MemberSHARE.iaedp.com is an iaedp business journal and online member resource to learn about noteworthy member achievements, continuing education webinars and U.S. and international chapter activity and events; for more information, visit MemberSHARE. The Presidents Council provides iaedp support and includes: Center for Change; Center for Hope of the Sierras; Center for Discovery; Eating Recovery Center; Willow Place; Laureate Eating Disorders Program; The Meadows Ranch; Rogers Behavioral Health; Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders; Selah House; The Renfrew Center; Timberline Knolls; Veritas Collaborative; Alsana Eating Disorder Treatment & Recovery Centers; Silver Hill Hospital, Walden Behavioral Care and KIPU. The 2020 iaedp Symposium is proud to announce Bronze Sponsors: Eating Disorder Recovery Specialists, Simple Practice and Transcend ED. On Friday, he sacked his health minister, who supported the restrictions that Bolsonaro says are damaging the economy Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro appears at a protest asking for military intervention in front the army's headquarters during the new coronavirus pandemic, in Brasilia, Brazil, Sunday. AP Photo Sao Paulo: Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro on Sunday joined hundreds of demonstrators outside army headquarters in the capital Brasilia protesting stay-at-home orders issued by state governors. The crowd of around 600 called on the army to intervene in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and demanded the closure of Congress. Some held up posters declaring "Military intervention with Bolsonaro". "I am here because I believe in you and you are here because you believe in Brazil," the president told the crowd from the back of a pick-up truck. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, has constantly criticized partial quarantine measures adopted by governors, including those in charge of the country's most populous states, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, to halt the spread of the coronavirus. On Friday, he sacked his health minister, who supported the restrictions that Bolsonaro says are damaging the economy. Brazil, with a population of more than 200 million, has the most COVID-19 cases in Latin America -- more than 38,000 as of Sunday, with more than 2,400 deaths. During his address, which was interspersed with fits of coughing, the president made no response to the crowd's call for military intervention nor the demand to close Congress. "You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro said. The most populous states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro on Friday extended partial quarantine measures. A majority of Brazilians approve the government's confinement regulations despite its impact on the economy, according to a poll published Saturday. T he Government's chief scientific adviser has warned that coronavirus vaccines are "long shots" after human trials are set to begin within the next seven days. Sir Patrick Vallance cautioned that the public should not rely on swift development and expectations need to be tempered. A group of Oxford University researchers will start clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine by the end of this week. It comes as the Covid-19 death toll rose by 596 in the UK on Sunday, taking the total number of fatalities more than 16,000. This figure does not include deaths at care homes or in the community. Writing in The Guardian, Sir Patrick wrote: All new vaccines that come into development are long shots; only some end up being successful, and the whole process requires experimentation. He added: Coronavirus will be no different and presents new challenges for vaccine development. This will take time, and we should be clear it is not a certainty. His warning came as Sarah Gilbert, Professor of Vaccinology at Oxford University, said her team hopes to begin clinical trials towards the end of next week. Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said people should not rely on the swift development of a Covid-19 vaccine / 10 Downing Street/AFP via Getty She acknowledged nobody can be completely certain that it is possible to find a vaccine for Covid-19, but the prospects are very good. She added that alongside these trials, preparations need to be made to manufacture the vaccine in large amounts. Prof Gilbert told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that trials need to be done to see if it is possible to find a workable vaccine. Prof Gilbert said her team is currently waiting for final safety tests and final approvals for clinical trials to start. Testing on a Covid-19 vaccine should begin by the end of the week / Getty Images In the meantime, permission has been given to recruit volunteers, take blood tests, explain the process and check their health status. Prof Gilbert said: By the time we have all the approvals for the vaccine ready, we should have a good pool of volunteers to draw from and we should be able to get going quite quickly. It is difficult to know when a vaccine might be ready, Prof Gilbert explained, as there are many complex stages in vaccine development. These start with immunising healthy 18 to 55-year-olds, before moving into older age groups, looking at the safety and immune response to the vaccine. Loading.... Half of all the trial volunteers will get the new coronavirus vaccine and the other half will get a vaccine licensed to protect against meningitis. Volunteers will not know what they are given, she said. Scientists need to be able to demonstrate the vaccine works, and that is affected by how much virus transmission there is at the time testing is happening. Prof Gilbert also said her team has gone through stages of vaccine development that usually take five years in just four months. Coronavirus infecting a cell - In pictures 1 /9 Coronavirus infecting a cell - In pictures Coronavirus infecting a cell EPA An image captured and color-enhanced at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland, USA and made available by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows a colorized scanning electron micrograph of an apoptotic cell (red) heavily infected with SARS-COV-2 virus particles (yellow) EPA The SARS-COV-2 virus begin the infection process of cytoplasm of the cell, inside which is the nucleus, responsible for storing the genetic material of the cell EPA Tthe SARS-COV-2 virus particles after infection and viral replication inside the cell (white circle in the left corner) EPA A series of dark spots, which are viral particles of the SARS-COV-2 virus, trying to infect the cytoplasm of the cell, inside which is the nucleus, responsible for storing the genetic material of the cell EPA An arrow pointing to a novel coronavirus particle attached to cell membranes, displaying its typical glycoprotein spike 'corona' on the viral surface (issued 02 April 2020), seen in an electron microscope image, the first black and white portrait of the SARS-CoV2 virus, which causes the COVID-19 disease EPA An image captured and color-enhanced at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland, USA and made available by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows a colorized scanning electron micrograph of an apoptotic cell (purple) heavily infected with SARS-COV-2 virus particles (yellow) EPA Sir Jeremy Farrar, a member of the Governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), previously said he was optimistic about finding a vaccine but that finding a safe and effective treatment for the latest strain was not a given. He told Sky Newss Sophy Ridge On Sunday: I hope we would have a vaccine towards the end of this year but thats a vaccine in a vial, its a vaccine that we believe to be safe, a vaccine we think might be effective. I think its crucial to realise having a vaccine in itself, in say a million doses, which you know to be safe and you believe to be effective. That is not the end game. The end game is making sure that it is truly effective. Its effective in the elderly, effective in young children, effective right across the age group in all populations. And then you have to manufacture that in billions of doses to administer them to the world. Meanwhile, Sir Patrick has been put in charge of a Government taskforce which will support efforts to rapidly develop a vaccine as soon as possible. About a week ago, after a few inmates in Bexar County Jail tested positive for the coronavirus, Josh Perusquia sat down in his barren 4-by-8-foot cell and wrote a letter to his longtime girlfriend, Patricia. I really need you right now, my love, he wrote. I dont really get scared of anything but COVID-19 being in the building where I am trapped is starting to freak me out more and more. I dont want to get sick in here, he continued, his neat handwriting filling the yellow legal notepad. All we can do is wait and hope to hear something good. By Sunday, the number of inmates infected with the virus had grown to 20, including three being treated at a hospital. In addition, 21 deputies and five staffers who work at the jail have tested positive. Fourteen of the deputies were in the same cadet class, fresh from the training academy. In response to the outbreak, Sheriff Javier Salazar said he enacted a handful of changes at the jail, including the distribution of masks to all 3,000 inmates, twice-daily temperature checks and frequent cleanings of common areas, including the recreation room. More Information Help guide our reporting Do you work at the Bexar County Jail, or do you know individuals who are incarcerated there? Share your experience about the COVID-19 jail outbreak with reporter Emilie Eaton at eeaton@express-news.net or 210-650-2779. Your identity can remain confidential. See More Collapse He said several units are locked down confining nearly 1,000 inmates to their cells for 23 hours a day and that the jails inmate worker program has been suspended after an inmate working in the kitchen was possibly exposed to the virus. But some say those changes didnt happen soon enough and are not as they were outlined. In interviews with nearly a dozen inmates, their families and lawyers, they described a facility where 60 inmates are housed in a space with bunk beds barely 3 feet apart, not nearly the 6-foot separation needed for safe social distancing, cleanings are infrequent and not thorough, disinfectant is watered down, and temperature checks occur less than twice a day. The inmates said the staff provide minimal information about the outbreak in the jail, feeding false rumors about the virus. They talked about feeling scared and dealing with their fear by making morbid jokes about death. Lately, meals have been irregular and meager. One morning, it was a plate of vegetables and an uncooked potato, they said. Another day, after breakfast wasnt served at 2 a.m. as scheduled, inmates pounded on their cell doors. It was hard last night, Perusquia said during an interview Friday with the San Antonio Express-News. I could hear everyone banging on the doors asking for food. I could hear it from two floors away. It kept me up all night. On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases Five inmates said cleaning of the common areas was not happening twice daily, as the sheriff says. Inmates, who do the cleanings, said the yellow solution used could be described as warm water or warm water with a tiny bit of disinfectant. They said theyre not able to get more of it. Leilani Minjarez said her husband, who is in jail on a family violence charge, was tasked with cleaning the common areas a few weeks ago. Its not even a cleaning solution, she said. Its 20 times diluted. He says he feels like hes cleaning with dirty water. All the inmates said they werent given masks until a week ago after the first inmate tested positive. By some estimates, it took even longer. They said the masks are flimsy and look like theyre meant to be disposed of daily. Some are falling apart. The guards have refused to give them new ones, they said. The inmates are each provided with one small, motel-size bar of soap a week, and when that is gone, they said, they either do without, find scraps that other inmates have left behind or have to buy more from the jail commissary. Inmates who dont have money to spend on food in the commissary go hungry. One man told his lawyer that everyone is starving. Meal portions are much smaller, the inmates said, and the quality is worse than normal. Lunch on Sunday oatmeal and a sausage patty was served two hours late. On Saturday, breakfast was a concoction with potatoes that was unrecognizable and tasted like cat food, one man said. Were extremely scared in here right now, said Thomas Hanna, who was arrested in January on two nonviolent drug charges while on parole. Theyre not doing anything. Salazar, in an interview Friday night, said the jail is being cleaned regularly. Inmates might not see all the cleaning, and the disinfectant used may not smell strong like the odor of bleach but proper disinfecting measures are in place, he said. In an ideal world, the inmates would be separated into smaller units throughout the jail, he said, but administrators have to take inmates criminal history, possible gang affiliation and criminal charge into account when placing them. Salazar acknowledged that some inmates werent given breakfast Friday morning but said it was done to ensure they werent exposed to contaminated food. He said the Sheriffs Office is working with Aramark, a company that provides food and other services to institutions, to have inmates meals prepared offsite and improve the process. The jail has about 9,000 masks earmarked for inmates, Salazar said. Anytime a persons mask is soiled or no longer functional, jailers have been instructed to provide inmates with new ones. Another shipment of masks is expected soon, he said. Each inmate is also given a small bar of soap once or twice a week, and once used, they can ask for a new one, Salazar said, without having to buy one from the commissary. We wouldnt take that chance, he said. Thats not something we would want to hoard or keep from inmates. We have upped our efforts, and we will continue to work diligently to make sure all deputies and inmates are safe. Life on the inside Before the pandemic, life on the inside was considerably easier. Perusquia, 27, spent as many as eight hours a day exercising in the recreation yard, watching TV, playing cards or making phone calls to family including his four children who are staying with their mother and the two children hes raising with his longtime girlfriend. Perusquia, whom his girlfriend described as a hardworking truck driver, was arrested in 2018 and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a felony. He said he was defending himself. As part of a deal offered by prosecutors, Perusquia pleaded no contest and was sentenced to five years probation, court records show. On Dec. 31, after he was charged with two counts of drug possession under 1 gram, prosecutors moved to revoke his probation and offered him eight years in prison or six to nine months in a rehabilitation program. He chose the latter. On Jan. 29, Judge Jefferson Moore finalized the agreement and ordered Perusquia to complete treatment at the Substance Abuse Treatment Facility off Applewhite Road on the South Side. Perusquia has been waiting to be transferred since. On April 9, a detention deputy told Perusquia to pack his belongings, that he was catching chain the process of being shackled and sent to a new facility. But when Perusquia arrived at the transfer area, he was told the move was canceled at the last minute because the Texas Department of Criminal Justice was no longer accepting transfers even though he was being moved to the rehab facility, not TDCJ. Its tough, not knowing when anything is going to happen, he said. I talk to my kids every day. They ask when Im coming home. They ask if Im going to get sick. Patricia Newby, Perusquias longtime girlfriend, makes no excuses for her partners behavior, and shes hopeful that drug treatment will help him. Hes not a bad person, Newby said. I wouldnt be advocating for him if he was. He made a mistake, but he doesnt deserve to get sick and die in there. If the rehab facility has temporarily stopped accepting inmates because of the coronavirus pandemic, she wonders why Perusquia cant stay at home on GPS monitoring until his treatment can start. Perusquia said he has been told that any time spent in jail will not go toward the six to nine months hes required to spend at rehab. Last week, Perusquia was being housed in a block with about 60 other men, two inmates per cell. But over the weekend, the group was transferred to South Tower, where the inmates are housed in one large, open area, separated by 6-foot-tall metal partitions. Jason Shader, who was arrested in November on two felony charges drug possession and felon in possession of a firearm said the new area didnt look like it had been cleaned before they arrived. There were spots all over the surfaces. When the inmates asked for disinfectant to clean, they were denied, he said. Some guys had to steal cleaner, which is ironic, because we are supposed to be in here to be reformed, Shader said. And we had to clean everything ourselves. He said the new living area has four bunk beds in each section. The beds are all within an arms distance. When lying down, he can easily reach out to touch the guy next to him. And inmates arent required to wear their masks while in their living quarters. Social distancing is nonexistent, Shader said. They dont enforce it. Even if the guards are only allowing 20 men in the day room, we are still clustered together in our living quarters for 23 hours a day. Shader said hes asked for a new mask for two days. Both times, he says, he was denied. Im real angry, he said. Im frustrated. And Im super scared. Scared is probably an understatement. I feel like they are recklessly endangering our lives. Public at risk, too Controlling an outbreak at the jail is crucial, experts say, in part because the jails population is largely transient. Hundreds of people are being booked and released every day. A large outbreak at the jail could accelerate the virus spread, endangering not only staff and inmates, but the public at large. A jail has the capability of incubating an illness and amplifying it, Salazar said Friday. You have 100 people who are walking out that door on a daily basis. Thats scary. The last thing I want to do is be responsible for an outbreak in the community because of someone leaving the jail. Valerie Hedlund, a San Antonio attorney, has four clients in jail and is worried about their health and the repercussions their confinement could have. One client, she said, was arrested April 10 after police say he swapped price tags for a $138 purchase while shopping with his wife at Walmart. On ExpressNews.com: Procedures for S.A. law enforcement evolve amid coronavirus outbreak Police officers, she said, could have arrested her client on any number of charges such as shoplifting, which is eligible under state law for cite and release and treated like a traffic ticket. Or the officers could have issued him a warning and led him off the property. Instead, they arrested him on a charge of fraudulent destruction, removal or concealment of writing, a misdemeanor. A judge set his bail at $400. There was no violence, Hedlund said. It was a matter of finances. I dont think he should be languishing in jail for something like that. Previously, Hedlunds client could still have been eligible for a personal recognizance bond meaning he would not need any cash to be released. But a recent order by Gov. Greg Abbott that banned the release of inmates with violent criminal histories unless they post bail has complicated that process, taking discretion away from judges. Hedlunds client has a past domestic violence charge that she said was dismissed. On Wednesday, after her client had spent several days in jail, Hedlund sought the PR bond. Instead, the judge lowered the mans bail to $100, Hedlund said. The last time she checked, her client still hadnt been released. Im happy the judge lowered his bond. That is all well and good, she said. But unfortunately, it took over a week to get to that point time in which he could have been exposed to the virus. Now, when hes released, his family and the community could be at risk. Emilie Eaton is a criminal justice reporter in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Emilie, become a subscriber. eeaton@express-news.net | Twitter: @emilieeaton President Akufo-Addo has been explaining that the lifting of the partial lockdown in Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Kasoa, does not mean letting guard down on public gatherings. He insists that all other measures are still firmly in place, and have not been relaxed. In here, I am referring to the suspension of all public gatherings, including conferences, workshops, funerals, parties, nightclubs, drinking spots, beaches, festivals, political rallies, religious activities and sporting events. All educational facilities, private and public, are to remain closed. Businesses and other workplaces can continue to operate, observing staff management and workplace protocols with the view to achieving social distancing and hygiene protocols, he added. To operators of public transport, including buses, trotros and taxis, the President stressed that they are to continue to run with a minimum number of passengers, as they have been doing for the last three weeks in maintaining social distancing. They must also continue to ensure the maintenance of enhanced hygienic conditions in all vehicles and terminals, by providing, amongst others, hand sanitizers, running water and soap for washing of hands. Domestic airlines are required to adhere to the same protocols, he indicated. According to the President, the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, together with Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, he added, will continue to implement measures to enhance conditions of hygiene in markets across the country, and expand the policy of alternate-days-for-alternative-products to improve social distancing in all markets. ---Daily Guide The current Covid-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the landscape of advertising and PR. In a world used to planning advertising and doing PR on a quarterly or annual basis, the rules have potentially been altered forever. For example there are ads on television for toilet paper yet, at least at the moment, there is no benefit to placing them, as virtually every roll in every grocery store will be purchased, regardless of brand. Someone forgot to pull their budget. Likewise, all ads promoting retail sales restaurants, sporting events, etc., had to be quickly pulled as well. Google and Facebook have seen dramatic declines in their ad business as a result and newspapers are even worse off. How though, should a companys communications change these days? To learn more, we asked an expert. Michael Emerton is a founding partner of BridgeView Marketing (BVM). His company was formed in the midst of the 2006 2009 recession where he applied these techniques to help technology companies overcome that crisiss adversities. Prior to BVM, in 2002, he held the position of communications secretary and spokesperson for Voice of the Faithful, a lay organization founded in the wake of the Catholic Churchs sexual abuse crisis. In this position, he used his crisis communication skills to help craft and elevate the organizations message to top-tier broadcast and print media, often being quoted in WSJ, USA Today, Time Magazine, New York Times and the Boston Globe. Michael is also the co-author of Luke 17:2, chronicling his crisis communications process as the Churchs cover-up was exposed to the world. How should companies adjust their communications as a result of COVID-19? The tone and texture of the messages must change dramatically. Self-serving publicity at the expense of those impacted by a crisis will do considerable harm to an organizations image. The 80/20 or even a 90/10 rule applies while in the beginning or middle of a crisis, where 80% or 90% of the messages convey sympathy, compassion, and hope and 20% to 10% convey trust and plausible path towards a common-ground solution. How should communications transition once we start getting back to normal? The state of normality is relative to the aftermath of any crisis. A crisis is often the catalyst that produces an alternate state of societya tangent to the path once followed. A keen understanding of The New Normal must be embraced and applied to shift the 80/20 or 90/10 rule more in favor of the common-ground solution. The exact percentage of the message shift must occur in small amounts and gradually increase in favor of the brand. This will happen as the target audience moves from fear, doubt, and uncertainty towards acceptance and drive for protective measures to ensure future protection. Coronavirus pandemic? What should they avoid? Avoid the overused terms such as in these unprecedented times, or these challenging times. Beginning your message with one of these phrases introduces an instant malaise across the intended audience. The use of these terms immediately lumps any value-added communication into a, I know Ive heard it all before, mindset that causes individuals to zone out at the beginning. A clear example of this was the use of paradigm shift, in the late 1990s to describe the benefits of a SmartSwitch or a hot-swappable chassis blade. What messaging should they focus on? Agencies need to help their clients find the hero factor or the life convenience aspects within their offerings, to portray how they are assisting companies and how society is adapting to the new normal. Understanding and compassion tied to a believable solution will buttress branding via positive press reinforcement. GE, a company that has received less than positive press over the past few years, has recently received a positive image boost by doubling its production capacity for ventilators and expanding its Madison, Wisconsin, production line to 24-hour operation. Understanding and action is a time-tested message that GE has adopted since they ran ads during WWII advertising their factories were ceasing to manufacture refrigerators and started producing tanks and planes. How are you helping clients get through this crisis? During a crisis, most organizations live on a steady diet of, bad news for breakfast. This bad news often comes in the form of strained financial projections. Anyone that has experienced the 2000 dot-com bubble burst knows all too well how a crisis can quickly alter positive employee outlook and cripple productivity. Companies must identify which products or services are beneficial in the crisis, such as homeworker support, e.g. Zoom, Microsoft Teams, VPNs, remote desktop support, and various cloud-based security solutions. Apply the 80/20 or 90/10 rule to communicate the solutions abilities to adapt and ease transitions. Employee, stockholders, board members and partner communications cannot be overlooked. As with government officials, constant briefings must be conducted; these can take the form of digital (online broadcast, email, blog, and social media) or in-person if the situation allows. / -- The world is witnessing an unprecedented situation with the COVID-19 pandemic. It has brought a shroud of uncertainty in the way people live, work and even interact with each other. While its real impact on the economy is yet to be seen, most organizations are operating remotely and trying to maintain productivity levels. At such a time PeopleStrong,Asia's leading Work and HR Technology provider announced that while work-from-home now seems to be the norm - distance and security should not impact productivity and deliverables. In their endeavor to support the business community in these times, PeopleStrong has made its highly acclaimed collaborative work management platform- 'Zippi' free to use for any organization that would like to use it to manage its collaboration and productivity needs. Zippi by PeopleStrong is a secure and intelligent collaborative work management platform that helps in executing plans faster. A game-changer in transforming how people plan, execute and accelerate their revenue growth agendas, Zippi is a mobile-first application and is accessible through the web as well. Serving over 250,000+ users across customers such as Hyundai Motors, Amara Raja, Cars24, FSS, Cholamandalam Finance and Investments, Coromandel International, Chola MS, VMart, Aeon Credit Services and many more, Zippi is more than just a collaboration tool. Speaking on the occasion, Sandeep Chaudhary(President & Board Member, PeopleStrong) said, "During this time, we are counting our currency with the number of organizations we are able to help. It is gratifying for us because we believe People Care is Good Business. Zippi has helped us immensely during the transformation of our 1300+ strong team going completely work-from-home in less than a week. We hope other organizations can also benefit from it." Zippi is also home to its AI-based chatbot, Jinie who intelligently nudges its users about important things throughout the day. From reminding people to wash their hands regularly, to providing accurate information about the COVID-19 updates, physical and mental wellness tips, or reminders to complete allocated tasks on time, Jinie is a know-all personal assistant who even helps in sending out official emails. Zippi by PeopleStrong is currently available free of cost for a period of 3 months. The initiative is powered by AWS and is in partnership with Thrive Global India that is sharing wellness-related 'microsteps' through Jinie. Organizations can sign-up directly on the website and can go live under 48 hours. https://bit.ly/Zippi-PR About Zippi by PeopleStrongZippi by PeopleStrong is an intelligent collaborative work management platform that helps organizations in executing plans faster. It does so by bringing the power to plan and execute goals and tasks collaboratively, supported by AI chatbot Jinie, which nudges at the right time to get the work done. Zippi is used by over 250,000 users across the globe and helping businesses drive revenue growth. Zippi's customer base includes leading brands across industries like - Hyundai Motors Amara Raja, Cars24, FSS, Cholamandalam Finance and Investments, Coromandel International, Chola MS, VMart, Aeon Credit Services and many more. About PeopleStrong PeopleStrong is a leading Enterprise Work and HR Technology company from Asia, that is enriching experience at work for over 350 customers and a million employees globally. On its journey to writing the #NewCodeofWork, PeopleStrong product suite includes next-gen applications in the space of HR Technology (Talent Acquisition, Human Capital Management, Talent Management), Collaboration, Intelligence, and Analytics and platform. Known for its penchant to innovate, PeopleStrong has many firsts to its name, the recent one being the application of Machine Learning in Recruitment (through Match Making) and Employee Experience (through India's first HR Chatbot Jinie). PeopleStrong is the first company in the space to be successfully assessed on SSAE18 and recently won the prestigious CIO's Choice Award for Talent Management on Cloud & HR Vendor of the Year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Covering up for Covid: Staff at the assessment hub at Shannon Heath Centre are ready for patients. Photo: John Kelly Twenty general practitioners will man a new community assessment hub in Shannon on a rota basis where the highest safety standards and infection control measures will be stringently applied for local Covid-19 patients. The unit, which is located near the Co Clare town's Garda station, will provide a service Monday to Sunday by appointment only from 8am to 8pm. The normal staffing ratio is two doctors, two nurses and one physiotherapist and it is expected the roster will operate on a four days on, three days off basis. The new hub, which is the only one of its kind in the county, will be run by two co-ordinating nurses under the direction of regional clinical operational lead Margaret Costelloe. On arrival in the hub, the patient is received at the reception area and the registration procedure completed. They are then brought to a sterile room for nurse/healthcare professional observation, medical history/ blood pressure etc. Expand Close Covering up for Covid: Staff at the assessment hub at Shannon Heath Centre are ready for patients. Photo: John Kelly / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Covering up for Covid: Staff at the assessment hub at Shannon Heath Centre are ready for patients. Photo: John Kelly A nurse or healthcare professional briefs a GP, who then undertakes the physical examination and clinical assessment. The doctor advises regarding the course of action and referral. Dr Paraic Meaney said any patient who will be treated by the new service has nothing to fear as it is purposely designed to minimise patient contact with others. "This service is for patients who have a presumed or a positive test for Covid-19, whose condition is worsening, and who requires an urgent face-to-face consultation following a referral by their own GP," Dr Meaney said. "All other patients will continue to be managed by their own GP. "About 80pc of Covid-19 patients will have mild symptoms. "For patients whose condition is deteriorating this can happen from day five to day 13. "This deterioration sometimes can happen quickly and these patients will be seen in the hub. "The aim of the hub is to help slow the spread of the virus," added the doctor, who is based at the Burren Medical Centre, Corofin. Symptoms He told the 'Clare Champion' any patient with mild symptoms needs to self-isolate and continue to liaise with their GP over the phone if they require assistance or advice. Dr Meaney repeated the need for people to continue employing social distancing by keeping two metres apart from others, regular hand washing and coughing or sneezing into a tissue that is correctly disposed of to keep as many Covid-19 cases out of hospital as possible. One of the nurse co-ordinators, who didn't wish to be named, stressed it is a very safe place for patients and staff. She said once patients receive a GP referral they will receive all the required information about what they need to bring for their appointment. The nurse also confirmed that patients will be required to wear masks as part of infection control procedures. Staff will be wearing full personal protective equipment including face and eye protection, full body suit and gloves. It is understood there is a plan to provide some isolation facilities in the county. The administration process in the hub will arrange for the referral of the patient to their home, hospital or alternative location as appropriate for them. The outcome of clinical assessment and referral will then be sent back to referring GP. The centre contains five clinical single rooms with washing facilities where patients will be seen one at a time, a GP/multi-disciplinary training room, staff quarters, kitchen, changing area and toilets. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 14:31:08 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 446 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Silver Range Resources Ltd. (TSXV:SNG) ("Silver Range" or the "Company") announces that, in the interest of preserving its working capital in these uncertain times, it has amended its "Shares for Services Agreement" with Paladin Geoscience Corp. ("Paladin"), a private company controlled by Michael A. Power, Silver Range's President and Chief Executive Officer. Pursuant to the amending agreement, Paladin, which provides geological and other consulting services to Silver Range, will now receive a minimum of 50% and, at Paladin's sole discretion, up to a maximum of 100% of its monthly consulting fee by the issuance of Silver Range common shares.All shares will be issued at a deemed price per share equal to the market price of Silver Range's shares as traded on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") calculated at the end of each month in which such services are provided minus 50% of the discount permitted under applicable Exchange policies. The shares will be issued semi-annually and will be subject to a four month and one day hold period commencing upon the date of issuance. Any consulting fees not paid for by the issuance of Silver Range shares will be paid in cash. The amending agreement is subject to Exchange acceptance.Mr. Power recently sat down with Proactive Vancouver to discuss the Company's high grade focus while highlighting two drill ready targets in Nevada, Skylight and Coldsprings. The interview is available here and on the Company's Youtube channel along with a growing number of project specific presentations.About Silver Range Resources Ltd.Silver Range is a precious metals prospect generator working in Nunavut, Nevada and the Northwest Territories. It has assembled a portfolio of 45 properties, 8 of which are currently under option to others. Silver Range is actively seeking other joint venture partners to explore the high grade precious metals targets in its portfolio.ON BEHALF OF SILVER RANGE RESOURCES LTD."Ian Talbot"Chief Operating OfficerFor further information concerning Silver Range or its exploration projects please contact:Investor InquiriesRichard DrechslerVice-President, CommunicationsTel: (604) 687-2522NA Toll-Free: (888) 688-2522rdrechsler@ silverrangeresources.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.This news release may contain forward looking statements based on assumptions and judgments of management regarding future events or results that may prove to be inaccurate as a result of exploration and other risk factors beyond its control, and actual results may differ materially from the expected results.SOURCE: Silver Range Resources Ltd. As France grapples with how it will end lockdown measures next month, the overseas territory of New Calendonia, will from Monday begin lifting confinement measures, put in place to curb the spread of coronavirus. The archipelago reported 18 cases, all imported, but no new cases in the last 12 days. The lockdown measures for 270,000 inhabitants came in to effect on the 24 March, a week after mainland France, some 18,000 kilometres away. A newlywed couple from Sydney, Australia who came for their honeymoon were the first two cases in New Caledonia, according to local government officials. Out of 3,000 tests carried out since then, 18 confirmed cases of the covid-19 virus have been reported, according to French media, but no new cases in the last 12 days, and no deaths. "Each day that goes by allows us to think that the virus is not spreading among the caledonian population," said Thierry Santa, the president of the New Caledonia government. He added that the situation would be re-evaluated in 15 days time, on 3 May. Bars, cinemas to stay closed "You can go to the beach again, go hunting, fishing, go to school and work. The shops will be open," he said. "All indicators suggest that we can relaunch our economic activities, while strictly respecting protective measures and social distancing." Hotels and restaurants are allowed to open, but the "freedom to come and go" does not extend to bars, cinemas, nightclubs or 'nakamals', places where one can buy traditional Kava drink. No tourism for time being The only flights and shipping allowed access to New Caledonia for the time being are for provisions, emergencies, or repatriating the some 2,000 residents who have been stuck overseas. Anyone who arrives on the archipelago will need to stay in quarantine for 14 days, in a hotel in Noumea, under the observation of health and social services. "This measure is not limited in time," says Laurant Prevost, high commissioner for the Republic, suggesting that this procedure "could stay in place until a vaccine or treatment is found." Back in mainland France, the government has just announced its plans for re-opening the country on 11 May. BERLIN, GERMANY - April 09: Federal Minister of Finance Olaf Scholz, SPD, makes a press statement before a video conference of the Euro Group on April 09, 2020 in Berlin, Germany. Germany is spending much more than countries like the United States, on a relative basis, to mitigate the economic impact from the coronavirus, a data study has shown. The largest European economy has pledged a package which is worth more than half of its gross domestic product last year, and includes immediate fiscal stimulus, deferrals and other liquidity measures. In comparison, the fiscal plan in the United States is, so far, less than 15% of its GDP from 2019. Germany is going to need "as much support as possible" and it has "the fiscal space" to do it, Zsolt Darvas, a senior fellow at the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel and one of the authors of the data study, told CNBC Friday. The think tank has combined all the fiscal pledges made by 11 countries so far. They include Germany, France, Italy, the U.K., Denmark, the U.S., Spain, Greece, the Netherlands, Hungary and Belgium. The data corresponds to all government announcements made until April 18. By Express News Service BENGALURU: In an effort to show gratitude to the frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mysuru resident Suthan Dileep has come up with a movie titled Corona Warrior, which is currently streaming on YouTube. Apart from directing the movie, Dileep has also acted in it. The film, which is about four minutes long, showcases the sacrifices and struggle of the workers who are still on duty while the whole country is under lockdown. Dileep, who works as a COVID-19 digital volunteer for Mysuru district administration, said the film also sends a message to people about the importance of following the rules of lockdown. At least we are safe inside our homes with our family and most of us have sufficient food to survive during this phase. But doctors, police personnel and other people who are still working are putting themselves and their families lives at risk to protect all of us. I want to request people to please respect the lockdown, he added. The movie was shot in three hours with limited available sources. Apart from Dileep, all the other actors in the movie hail from Bengaluru. Meena Shanthala, one of the members of the cast, says, COVID-19 has brought life to a standstill but we have all played the role of COVID-19 warriors in some way. The movie is our way of showing gratitude to all the frontline workers. Shanthala, along with her family, had come to Mysuru to visit her parents but had to continue their stay after restrictions on movement were imposed. Suthan is my neighbour in Mysuru, and we thought of creating awareness by making a short movie. My husband, Pradeep, and daughter, Disha, have also acted in the movie, which is a memorable experience for me. A man has been shot dead after allegedly threatening officers with a meat tenderiser and a hammer at Rockdale in Sydney's south. Police say they were called on Sunday night when a 51-year-old man made a threatening phone call to someone from his Brighton-Le-Sands home. On arriving at the man's home, officers could not locate him and began a search. Police eventually tracked the man via his phone to Bay Street in Rockdale just before midnight, where they began a search for him in nearby bush land. Police say when the man was located, he lunged at officers, who then attempted to Taser him. Police then fired a single shot into the man's chest. The acquisition of these containers is part of our continued commitment to provide the best equipment in the right quantities all strategically positioned to meet customers needs during peak season and throughout the rest of the year. Crowley Logistics has added 222 new refrigerated (reefer) cargo containers to its industry-leading equipment fleet to ensure equipment availability at origin for perishables moving through the cold chain. These units are in addition to 300 new reefers received in January of this year. The new units, which are all 40-foot-long high cubes, are built to Crowleys exacting standards and further demonstrate the companys focus on offering customers the most reliable and efficient equipment in the Central America and Caribbean markets. These units have wireless asset monitoring (WAM) technology, which provides continuous monitoring as the reefers transit from origin to destination, both at sea and over land, to ensure the cold chain is maintained the entire time goods are moving. The acquisition of these containers is part of our continued commitment to provide the best equipment in the right quantities all strategically positioned to meet customers needs during peak season and throughout the rest of the year, said Steve Collar, senior vice president and general manager, Crowley Logistics. Crowleys industry-leading equipment, combined with grower and farm services such as load planning and equipment sanitization, make Crowley a trusted partner for perishables shippers. In addition to providing in-transit services such as location and temperature monitoring, the company offers customs clearance, fumigation options, refrigerated storage and last-mile delivery to ensure quality through single-source accountability. The containers arrived in Santo Tomas, Guatemala, this month and are already being used in support of Central Americas continuing heavy northbound reefer season. The new containers are equipped with environmentally friendly Star Cool refrigeration units, incorporating several changes to further boost efficiency and reliability. Since 2014, Crowley has invested roughly $160 million in new cargo equipment for its fleet. Today, the company operates over 50,000 pieces of owned and leased intermodal equipment. The equipments diverse sizes and strategic locations throughout the U.S, Central America and the Caribbean provide customers a variety of solutions to meet demands. Jacksonville-based Crowley Holdings Inc., a holding company of the 128-year-old Crowley Maritime Corporation, is a privately held family- and employee-owned company that provides marine solutions, energy and logistics services in domestic and international markets. Crowley operates under four business units: Crowley Logistics, a logistics supply chain division that includes ocean liner services; Crowley Shipping, which encompasses ownership, operations and management of conventional and dual fuel (LNG) vessels, including tankers, container ships, multipurpose, tugboats and barges; engineering; project management; and naval architecture through its subsidiary Jensen Maritime; Crowley Fuels, a fuel transportation, distribution and sales division that also provides liquefied natural gas (LNG) and related services; and Crowley Solutions, which focuses on global government services and program management, government ship management, expeditionary logistics and government-oriented freight transportation services. Additional information about Crowley, its subsidiaries and business units may be found at http://www.crowley.com. Hospitalizations related to COVID-19 fell for the second day in Connecticut, prompting cautious optimisim from Governor Ned Lamont even as the state recorded more than 400 new cases, and deaths climbed to over 1,100. For the second straight day, the number of people hospitalized in Connecticut due to complications caused by COVID-19 has slightly decreased, another step in the right direction and another sign that the efforts weve been taking as a community are having an impact on slowing the outbreak, the governor said in his daily press release. The Government of Ghana is to provide support for Ghanaian scientists to develop vaccines to curb the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo subtly indicated this in his seventh nation address to update the Ghanaian citizenry on the COVID-19. Speaking on Sunday, April 19, 2020, the President applauded scientists at the University of Ghana (UG) for successfully sequencing genomes of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the global COVID-19 pandemic and obtaining important information about the genetic composition of viral strains. The scientists, who work at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), under the College of Health Sciences, and the West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP), College of Basic and Applied Sciences analyzed samples from selected cases and using advanced Next-Generation Sequencing methods were able to track and compare viral mutations. The President expressed delight over the work of the scientists and hoped they come up with a vaccine. ''It is important to state, at the very onset, that scientists at the University of Ghana have successfully sequenced genomes of the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, obtaining important information about the genetic composition of viral strains in fifteen (15) of the confirmed cases in Ghana. This is a significant milestone in Ghanas response to the pandemic, as it will strengthen surveillance for tracking mutations of the virus, and aid in the tracing of the sources of community infections in people with no known contact with confirmed cases. The Ghanaian scientific community is to be warmly applauded for this advance and contribution to global knowledge. Their work makes us proud to be Ghanaian, and, who knows, God may work through them to discover a vaccine. What a triumph that would be!'' COVID-19 Case Count Ghana's COVID-19 case count has reached 1042 out of 68,591 samples tested. 99 persons have so far fully recovered and a majority of the people whose samples were collected tested negative. ''Since the first two (2) cases of infections were recorded on our shores, we have till date traced some 86000 contacts. Out of which, we have test results of 68,591 contacts. The overwhelming majority of these contacts have been established in the last weeks of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi. Out of this number, 1042 persons, ie. 1.5% have been confirmed as positive with 67,549 ie. 98% testing negative. 99 persons have recovered and have been discharged and 930 persons who have been isolated are responding to treatment either in their homes or in treatment facilities'', President Akufo-Addo indicated. 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. Featured Video Alan, a Paris, France-based digital health insurance provider, raised 50m in Series C funding. The round, which brought the total amount raised since founding to 125m, was led by Temasek, with participation from existing investor Index Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to launch additional health services and expand internationally across Europe. Founded in 2016 by Jean-Charles Samuelian and Charles Gorintin, Alan is an independent digital health insurance provider which gives to its members access to medical professionals, through in-person appointments or by video. Clients are provided with access to information and care support through the companys app, which includes tools to anticipate health journeys which may involve many different health professionals and clinics. Offerings include: Alan Map which enables users to source medical help and handle all reimbursements, and the Doctor Address Book which allows members to keep all their doctor information in one platform. In response to COVID-19, Alan has also introduced Coup de pouce, which gives free access to the latest available information on the pandemic, personalized symptom checker, free telemedicine service, and helps improve mental well-being of users through mediation and yoga. The company distributes its own health insurance plans directly to companies and individuals. Alan today covers more than 76,000 members, representing 58m of revenue +165% in 2019). It has a team of 200 people. FinSMEs 20/04/2020 Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:15:25|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JUBA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- On a clear evening last week at Sirikat, a busy suburb east of South Sudan's capital Juba, Mabior Ajoung Akol put on his face mask, jumped on a waiting bicycle and immediately hit the dusty streets. Akol was not going for a leisurely bike ride, he was instead on a mission to raise awareness on the Coronavirus pandemic in his community. "I'm trying to dispatch information about Coronavirus and how people in my community can protect themselves from the lethal pathogen," said Akol. Armed with a bicycle and a car battery-powered loudspeaker, Akol traverses his neighborhood to convey pre-recorded messages about COVID-19 and how it can be prevented. "The community is happy with us," 32-year-old Akol told Xinhua on Sunday. "When they meet us on the streets, they stop to ask questions about coronavirus." As countries globally race to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of youth in South Sudan have devised a unique way to tackle it -- using bicycles to raise awareness and counter rumors and myths surrounding the disease. Using their trademark Blue Messenger Bicycles, volunteers ride in markets, busy streets and residential areas to communicate preventive measures against the coronavirus. "To me, information is like food which everyone needs daily, " said Akol. The ministry of health on April 5 confirmed its first case of COVID-19 in a United Nations (UN) staffer who arrived in the country on February 28 from the Netherlands via Ethiopia. The number of cases has since risen to four, prompting authorities to take drastic preventive measures including; imposing night-time curfew, closure of schools, businesses, religious institutions and borders, and halting international and domestic flights. The government in Juba also issued a 14-day ban on interstate or intercity movement. Daniel Atem, Programs Director of Voice Post, a local Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) that initiated the Blue Messenger Bicycles project, said they came up with the idea to bridge the information gap between remote communities and authorities tackling the coronavirus. "Radio is the main source of information in South Sudan but with the current health crisis, not everyone can afford and listen to the radio consistently. That is why we are using this simple way to pass information," Atem said. He said the project began with two bicycles, but many volunteers have come on board to donate additional two-wheeled machines. The most recent one being the ministry of health which provided 15 bicycles to the youth group. Atem chose to use bicycles because they are cheap to operate and can also access hard-to-reach areas given South Sudan's poor transport infrastructure. "Information is power, so I'm looking at health perspective and also looking at how to expand it to other behavior change communication strategies like conflict, peace, and reconciliation messaging," Atem said. He said the initiative also seeks to fight rumors, misinformation and online incitement that emerged after the country confirmed its first COVID-19 case. "Misinformation can cause deaths and that's why I was inspired to act whenever a need arises. I believe rumor can be addressed through the rightful information," Atem said. "We need to engage our communities to change their behavior towards positive thinking and lifestyles," he added. There have been growing cases of rumors, misinformation and anti-foreigner rhetoric in South Sudan since the first COVID-19 case was reported in the country, with some social media users claiming the UN imported the disease into the world's youngest republic. Emmanuel Lobijo, executive director of Junub Open Space, a local organization that is part of the Blue Messenger Bikes project attributed the rise in hate crime to the absence of reliable sources of information in the country. Lobijo said his organization is helping to track and verify information shared online and report to social media sites those deemed to be carrying hate speech or xenophobic messages. "We verified more than 100 Facebook posts carrying hate speeches on the first day the coronavirus was confirmed, most of them were incitement against foreigners. We reported them to Facebook and most of those posts were brought down by Facebook," Lobijo said He said that his organization has also launched an online and mobile-based campaign dubbed Hagiga Wahid (meaning one truth), which allows the public to share information by either texting or calling the digits 228 and get it verified instantly. "The fight towards ensuring our community is COVID-19 free needs a lot of efforts from all corners and as of now a lot of hate speech misinformation and fake news have taken over, but our fight is hate-free South Sudan," said Lobijo. Enditem The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked Kerala not to dilute restrictions during the nationwide lockdown, as some economic activities and services resume from April 20 in areas designated as non-hotspots. The Kerala government had announced further easing of restrictions such as the movement of private vehicles on an odd-even basis. In the letter, the Centre said that the decision to open restaurants and bookshops was a clear violation of the lockdown measures. Follow LIVE updates on the COVID-19 pandemic here The Centre on April 14 extended the nationwide lockdown to May 3 to check the spread of coronavirus as infections inch up. 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 a letter to the Kerala government, the home ministry said the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. Kerala Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran denied there was dilution of the lockdown guidelines. "We have given relaxations in accordance with the Centre's guidelines. I think there is some misunderstanding, based on which the Centre has sought an explanation. Once we give an explanation, it will all be sorted out," Surendran said, as quoted by PTI. (With inputs from PTI) Follow our full coverage here Chevron's CVX 50%-owned Tengiz field expansion project in Kazakhstan will conduct only critical work due to the novel coronavirus outbreak. The critical work includes building of pipelines in Kazakhstan or construction of equipment in South Korea, which will be used in the project. The venture has suspended all construction work related to basic production. The venture is run by Kazakhstans biggest oil producer Tengizchevroil (TCO) which is 50% owned by Chevron, while 25%, 20% and 5% is held by Exxon Mobil Corporation XOM, Kazakhstan's state energy firm KazMunayGas and Russia's Lukoil, respectively. Kazakhstan has confirmed more than 1000 coronavirus cases, including a small outbreak at a workers' camp close to the Tengiz field. With an aim to ensure safety and curtail the impact of COVID-19 on its operations and construction activities, TCO will reduce activities and personnel, and continue only essential activities critical to the project. However, the duration of the work stoppage or its impact on the projects production is unknown. In the meantime, Chevron has reiterated its commitment toward the expansion of the $45-billion project. In 1993, Chevron was awarded the rights to develop Tengiz. According to the company, the Tengiz oil field's reservoir is located 12,000 feet below ground level, which makes it the world's deepest operating super-giant oil field. About the Company San Ramon, CA-based Chevron is one of the largest publicly-traded oil and gas companies in the world in terms of proved reserves. It is engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, refining and marketing of petroleum products, manufacturing of chemicals, and other energy-related businesses. The company currently carries Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Some better-ranked players in the energy sector are Murphy USA Inc. MUSA and BP Midstream Partners LP BPMP. Both stocks sport a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Story continues (We are reissuing this article to correct a mistake. The original article, issued on Apr 16, 2020, should no longer be relied upon.) Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Murphy USA Inc. (MUSA) : Free Stock Analysis Report BP Midstream Partners LP (BPMP) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research The wife of missing camper Russell Hill knew he wasn't coming home when the airwaves went dark. Robyn Hill told Daily Mail Australia her husband would routinely broadcast on amateur radio at the same time every night while he was away - but this time there was sudden silence. Mr Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, went camping in the remote Wonnangatta Valley in Victoria's Gippsland region on March 19 and have not been heard from since. As detectives prepare to take another look at the Toyota 4WD Mr Hill left abandoned at the scene, Mrs Hill said she has begun the grim task of packing up her husband's belongings. 'I don't think that he will still be alive,' she said on Monday. Mr Hill (above) had recently retired and was an experienced outdoorsman who reportedly knew the remote Alpine region of the Gippsland well Mr Hill's car has been returned to his home where specialist detectives hope to examine it again for further clues The pair went missing in the Wonnangatta Valley, more than 200km north east of Melbourne Mr Hill had been a keen amateur radio enthusiast and made his last broadcast from the bush in the days before his disappearance. 'That was our communication because the phones don't work out there in Wonnangatta. Normally radios would get out because that's what they would use when they were logging up there,' Mrs Hill said. In those days, Mr Hill would communicate to his work home base in Heyfield via radio. 'And not hearing him on the radio here - because I can't talk on it because I'm not licensed - I was starting to get a bit worried,' Mrs Hill said. The 71-year old said her husband had never gone missing before this trip. 'He's always been on the radio. He didn't call for quite a few days and then I started to get worried and thought "I've got to do something now".' Mrs Hill said her husband would routinely broadcast at the same time every night when his other radio chums were on the air. 'They all get on at the same time and once I heard Russell I knew, on the Friday, that he was fine. But then I didn't hear him again,' she said. With little to do but ponder the great unknown, Mrs Hill has started to sort through her husband's possessions. 'I'm just cleaning up now. It's just all the radio stuff - the antennas,' she said. Detectives planned to take a closer look at her husband's vehicle on Monday, which was found partially damaged from fire where the pair went missing. Their campsite was discovered burned out, but arson investigations suggest the fire was not deliberately lit. Police released images of the couple's burnt out campsite with Mr Hill's car parked beside it (pictured) in a remote area of bushland in Victoria's Wonnangatta Valley Specialist missing persons investigators are now probing the mysterious disappearance of the two elderly campers. 'They're going to come pick it (the car) up today,' Mrs Hill said. Mr Hill's Toyota four-wheel-drive sustained damage in the fire, but was still able to be driven away from the scene. Police had found it at the burnt out camp site with possessions belonging to the couple still inside the vehicle. While police believe the blaze may have been started by a mobile phone charger that overheated inside a tent, Mrs Hill said she had her doubts. 'I don't know about that. I hear so many different stories. There are too many different stories and I'm not saying anything about it,' she said. 'I'm letting the police do their investigation because they're trying really hard. They just haven't stopped.' Mrs Hill said she feared her husband was dead. 'I don't think that he will still be alive,' she said on Monday. 'Well, it's been a month since he's been away and he was only going away for a week - or a bit more. 'They're both lost. So let's hope they find them. They've got to find them. One way or the other.' Officers in the Wellington Shire Crime Investigations Unit have been baffled by the mysterious circumstances surrounding the case. Two major search operations involving drones, helicopters, mounted police, search dogs and ground crews have come up with nothing. The case shares eerie similarities to the disappearance of David Prideaux almost nine years ago. Mr Prideaux was the head of Victoria's maximum security Barwon Prison when he vanished. Barwon Prison boss David Prideaux went missing on Mount Stirling while on a hunting trip in 2011. His body has never been found Tomahawk Hut on Mount Stirling. Mr Prideaux signed the guest book there before heading out to hunt deer. He never returned Like Mr Hill, the 50 year old was an experienced bushman who went on a trip with his brother-in-law in Victoria's rugged Alpine National Park on Mount Stirling and simply vanished. Mrs Hill said she was aware of Mr Prideaux and others who had appeared to have simply dropped-off the face of the earth. One theory was that Mr Prideaux's body was never found in the thick bush off the Buckland Spur Track because it had been consumed by wild animals. 'There are so many that have gone missing,' Mrs Hill said. 'If he fell, and got injured, well there may be nothing left to find.' Mrs Hill told Daily Mail Australia her husband was familiar with the terrain where he was believed to have gone missing. 'He knows the area,' she said. 'He used to work out there. But it was a long time ago and he was a lot younger.' Mr Hill had been a professional logger back in the day where he worked in some of the country's toughest bush. 'It's unbelievable actually,' Mrs Hill said of his disappearance. Police are also examining the possibility the pair disappeared of their own free will, while the scenario they met with foul play has not been ruled out. Ms Clay (above) was Victorian President of the Country Women's Association and known for beautiful, elegant clothing Expert hikers (pictured) as well as helicopters and drones had been deployed to look for the pair in Victoria's Wonnangatta Valley, but the search has proved fruitless A search for the pair in Victoria's Wonnangatta Valley (pictured) has been called off, with the pair presumed dead Mrs Hill reportedly had no idea her husband was with another woman when he went missing. She said her husband had been friendly with Ms Clay for decades but was unaware they were travelling together. While specialist detectives move to rule out foul play, Mrs Hill said she was coping as best as she could while being kept in isolation due to the COVID-19 crisis. 'Some days are better than others,' she said. '(Family) have been coming up a little bit, but the virus is keeping people away. I'm a bit of a loner so it's not to bad.' Acting Sergeant Scott Wilkinson who was part of the team looking for the pair, said the search was substantial, but ultimately fruitless. 'We were searching every bit of bush and terrain in the immediate area,' he told Nine News. 'The subsequent search has got nothing in the way of evidence, no signs at all of the missing people. 'We are disappointed, we would like to get some result, particularly for the families of the missing people.' Your browser does not support the audio element. Blue supermen is the endearing nickname given to the medical workers and staff who run Vietnams centralized quarantine camps for novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), thanks to their full-body blue protective suits. Nguyen Phu Trung works as a nurse at a military facility in Hanoi that has been turned into a COVID-19 isolation area. Every morning, at 8:00 am sharp, Trung slips into his protective gear and log in to a quick video chat with his wife and kids his only chance to squeeze in some 'quality time' before taking his place on the front line of Vietnams fight against the COVID-19 epidemic. Trungs coworkers often joke that the call is his 'daily mission report' to his wife, and Trung laughs along. He knows the few minutes with his wife and kids is all it takes to turn a stressful job into an optimistic duty. Nguyen Phu Trung puts on protective gear while talking to his wife and children on a video chat at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Doing their best I call my family every morning. Seeing each other over the phone helps ease my worries, Trung said. The situation is rough on the family. Su, his eldest daughter, usually cries during the chat. It takes Trung all he has to hold back tears himself. Dont be mad, OK? When I finish my job, Ill come back home to you, Trung told his daughter, having only enough time to remind his wife to take good care of herself and their two children before heading off to begin the days work. Twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, Trung covers himself from head to toe with protective gear before visiting each room in the isolation facility to take each guests temperature, ask if they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, and hand out face masks. Vietnam has been very quick to mass-quarantine suspected or exposed cases to stem the viral transmission since the outbreak started to escalate in March. Everything is free inside these collective isolation zones. Nguyen Phu Trung goes door to door to measure the body temperature of people isolated at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre My roommates call them blue supermen because they put themselves at risk of infection to visit us each day, said Truong Thi Lien, 38, a guest in isolation at the facility. That nickname, 'blue supermen,' seems to have spread throughout the facility. As Tung and his colleagues approach a room, the facilitys corridors fill with the sound of children alerting their parents, The blue supermen are coming! Military personnel in protective gear dispose of garbage at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Returning home from an epidemic-hit region on February 27, Lien and 157 other Vietnamese citizens, including five Vietnamese-Korean children, were transferred to the isolation facility and assigned to 12 rooms equipped with bunk beds and Wi-Fi to wait out their 14-day mandatory quarantine. Doctors visit us regularly, and the soldiers ensure we get enough food and sleep, said Nguyen Thi Lanh, 24. They bring anything we need to our rooms at our request, even if its just toilet paper, she said, adding that sometimes the soldiers offer to spend their own money buying milk for children staying at the facility. In turn, the isolated help the soldiers whenerver they can by reminding one another to conserve electricity, clean their rooms, and keep public areas clean. Military personnel in protective gear dispose of garbage at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Supermen in blue Between February 25 and March 7, the military facility received and isolated 752 Vietnamese citizens returning from epidemic-hit areas, primarily South Korea. The youngest so far was just six months old. The facility itself has established three layers of restriction. The outermost layer is accessible to family members of those in isolation who come to drop off goods for their loved ones. The middle layer is for the logistics team, comprised of 20 staff members who prepare food and take care of administrative tasks. The innermost and most strictly guarded layer is the quarantine area. A three-floor building used to isolate people returning from South Korea at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Inside this area, apart from those in quarantine, are five medical workers and more than 30 soldiers tasked with directly serving and caring for the facility's guests. Lieutenant Vuong Thanh Nam is one of those soldiers. Rain or shine, Nam wakes up early, puts on his protective gear, and begins work. According to Nam, he and several of his colleagues suffer side effects from near-constant contact with disinfectant, such as dried and peeling skin. Vuong Thanh Nam in his blue protective gear is seen in this photo taken at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre A soldier in protective gear disinfects a three-floor building used to isolate people returning from South Korea at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre On hot and sunny days, wearing this suit makes it feels much hotter and going up and down the stairs becomes a challenge, Nam said. But for everyones safety, we have to wear [the suit] until the end of the day and can only take it off when theres no more work to do. The 25-year-old lieutenant was recently married, but because of the pandemic, he has not seen his wife for weeks. We dont mind the difficulties because it is worth sacrificing for the people, he said. The hardship and fatigue of this job are no match for the love and support we receive from everyone. A soldier in protective gear fumigates a three-floor building used to isolate people returning from South Korea at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre The clicking sound under Cu Chi Districts extreme sun Cu Chi, an outlying district of Ho Chi Minh City, is infamous for its dryness and extreme heat under the March sun. The weather during this time of the year is hot and muggy, making being outdoors a daunting task in itself. However, soldiers from a local military regiment stationed at a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 treatment are constantly on the move in the extreme heat making sure meals arrive on time to those in isolation. Military personnel prepare meals for people in isolation at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre The patients in treatment at the facility have grown accustomed to the clicking sound coming from the soldiers four-wheeled food carts. Under the burning sun, the sound never seems to rest as the soldiers work around the clock to keep the temporary residents fed and happy. When the noise finally stops, it usually means the soldiers are taking one of the few breaks they are afforded to enjoy a meal of their own. People in isolation play in the courtyard of a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Mission first, marriage later Le Thanh Cong of Gia Dinh Regiment in Ho Chi Minh City has received wholehearted support for his work, not only from his family but from his fiancee as well. The couple had initially planned to tie the knot once he finished his military draft at the beginning of 2021. The COVID-19 epidemic is unpredictable, but as long as its still there I will continue to be a part of this fight. My wedding can wait, Cong said. It has been over two months since the 300-bed COVID-19 makeshift hospital in Cu Chi District opened on February 10. At night, military personnel get out of their blue protective gear and brave cold weather to take turns to guard a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Cong is among the two dozen soldiers of Gia Dinh Regiment who have been seconded there to take care of catering for the patients in treatment. They have divided themselves into two groups of 12, taking turns to work 24-hour shifts. The hospital has six isolation areas separated into two clusters of buildings about 300-400 meters apart from one another. A soldier hands prepared meals to a person in isolation at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre To provide food and supplies for the people staying here, the soldiers must rely on rolling food carts and bikes to make getting around easier and quicker. We were a bit afraid when we first heard about the epidemic. In my family, I am the only child, so everyone was greatly concerned and constantly reminded me to be more careful when making contact with the people in isolation, Lieutenant Bach Trong Dai said. It took a lot of reassurance, but Ive managed to calm them down. Military personnel in protective gear dispose of garbage at a COVID-19 quarantine facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Nam Tran / Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The All-China Women's Federation and the Ministry of Civil Affairs Monday announced 10 female vanguards in community epidemic prevention and control nationwide. The 10 female community workers have led community Party members on the front lines, mobilized residents to help with efforts, collected first-hand information by checking buildings, enterprises and stores in the neighborhoods and provided daily necessities to residents in need, according to a statement released by the two departments. They have been working around the clock, fully committed to local epidemic prevention and control work against all odds. One of them even died in the line of duty, the statement said. They are the outstanding representatives of the more than 1.5 million female community workers in urban and rural areas, almost one-third of the total frontline community workers across the country. They have made important contributions to containing the spread of the virus, it said. The two departments called on all women and community workers to follow the lead of the vanguards and fully implement epidemic control measures in communities to strive for victory over the epidemic. It said that the private consumption is likely to contract due to large-scale loss of income in the face of worsening domestic outbreak of Covid-19. "Over the past week, we have continued to adjust down our country-specific real GDP growth forecasts on the back of persistent low oil prices and the widening spread of Covid-19. Our forecasts remain fluid and, even despite the recent downward revisions, we believe that the risks remain skewed to the downside," the ... 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. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor The White House pledged over two weeks ago to cover coronavirus treatment for uninsured Americans but the administration still doesn't have a plan for how to do it. Trump officials are still grappling with key questions about how exactly to implement the treatment fund, including how to determine if a patient qualifies for the new federal dollars, an administration source said. Adding to the challenge, theyre still figuring out how to divvy up funding that hospitals and physicians say is desperately needed. The delay in setting up the fund indicates the difficulty building a massive entitlement on the fly amid an unprecedented crisis. And there was little time to fully vet the plan before President Donald Trump announced it earlier this month. Trumps decision to cover the uninsured through a new hospital bailout fund came days after he ruled out reopening Obamacares marketplaces during the pandemic. That refusal, which surprised some of his own health officials, sparked a scramble to reassure tens of millions of uninsured Americans they wouldnt have to fear financial devastation if they got sick with the disease. The administration also still hasnt explained how the federal government will pay out a separate funding pot covering diagnostic testing for uninsured Americans. That funding was approved a month ago by Congress, about two weeks before the administration also promised to cover treatment for the uninsured. Nervous patients are increasingly questioning whether theyll be on the hook for potentially massive costs, according to the legions of advocates who help patients navigate Americas byzantine health care system. They say they dont yet have answers. Some hospitals said theyre holding off on sending bills to uninsured patients and others are offering financial assistance, even as they face new financial strain from the health crisis. Some uninsured Covid-19 patients have already seen sky high bills from testing and hospital costs. Story continues The thing that is totally missing is any explanation for patients, said Sara Rosenbaum, a health law professor at George Washington University. If you dont have to worry about getting care because the hospital is supposed to care for you, and the hospital bills you, what then? There has been absolutely no communication to the public. A federal official involved in designing the uninsured treatment pool said the administration recognizes there ultimately needs to be a robust messaging campaign to let uninsured people know they can get free care. We have an eye to actual individuals, and dont want them to be afraid to seek care, said the official, who requested anonymity. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar speaks during a coronavirus task force meeting at the Department of Health and Human Services, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) But that work cant begin until the administration finalizes plans for the uninsured treatment pool. A Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson said the administration is finalizing plans for covering the uninsured but didnt specify a timeline other than in "the very near future." An administration source said, of the $100 billion hospital bailout, that officials are "working as hard as we can to get the money out as fast as possible." The internal discussions are dragging on as hospitals, doctors and health clinics urge health officials to rush out the remaining emergency dollars from the same bailout fund Trump said hell use to cover the uninsured. Some clinics have temporarily shuttered and hospitals have furloughed workers after halting lucrative elective procedures during the crisis to preserve resources and minimize infection risk. Scott Christensen, administrator of the Delta Regional Medical Center in Mississippi, said his safety net hospital hasnt billed anyone for coronavirus testing or treatment while it awaits further guidance from the Trump administration. These are especially challenging times for the hospital revenues are down 50 to 60 percent, he said, and it spent heavily to set up drive-through testing and a new respiratory intensive care unit. But he said hospital officials are sensitive to patients cost concerns. I dont want our community to avoid care during a time like this if they are afraid of getting a big bill, Christensen said. When the administration announced its plan for the uninsured, HHS Secretary Alex Azar insisted it would be better than Obamacare, because it would fully cover costs without co-pays or deductibles that insured patients may face. But Obamacare advocates said the move did little to address the uninsured populations broader health needs, including follow-up treatment that can be intense for recovered coronavirus patients. Nearly 30 million people lacked health insurance before the last month of economic devastation, and millions more have since joined their ranks. The cost of coronavirus treatment for this group could be staggering the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation earlier this month estimated the bill could total between nearly $14 billion and $42 billion. That could eat significantly into the $100 billion fund Congress approved to help doctors, health clinics and hospitals cover the cost of protective gear for workers and life-saving medical equipment like ventilators and fill in lost revenue from the cancellation of elective procedures. Last months $2.2 trillion CARES Act, which included the industry bailout fund, gave the Trump administration wide latitude to distribute those dollars. Hospital lobbyists were caught off-guard by Trumps decision to use the fund for the uninsured, and they have demanded that lawmakers replenish the fund. Some health care analysts have argued, however, that targeting the fund to cover the uninsured in hard-hit hospitals would be a more efficient way to spend the money where it's most needed. HHS sent out an initial $30 billion tranche of funds to health care providers over a week ago. Hospitals and Democratic lawmakers have pushed the administration to distribute additional funds quickly. However, Azar told House appropriators Wednesday that the next funding round wont go out until later this week, according to a letter from the subcommittee's health appropriations chairwoman, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.). At least one Medicaid expansion holdout state, Tennessee, has meanwhile sought additional Medicaid funds to directly cover coronavirus treatment costs for uninsured patients. However, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, said CMS Administrator Seema Verma indicated his request would likely be denied, citing the massive stimulus bill already approved by Congress. CMS didnt respond to a request for comment. Meanwhile, health care providers said theyre still looking for clarity on promises to cover diagnostic testing costs for uninsured patients. An emergency coronavirus package approved by Congress a month ago, before passage of the CARES Act, included a $1 billion fund the Trump administration could use to reimburse providers for those tests. Hospitals said they havent gotten details on how they could get paid from that fund. HHS did not respond to questions about that fund. Separately, that rescue package also allowed states to expand their Medicaid programs just to cover diagnostic testing for the uninsured. Those waivers could be especially helpful in the 14 states that have refused Obamacares expansion of the program to poor adults. However, just a handful of states asked the Trump administration to cover testing through Medicaid, and only a few have received permission. Some states are providing free testing through their health departments. In Alabama, community health centers, who serve predominantly poor and uninsured patients, have also been using targeted grand funding to cover testing costs. But resources are running low and nearly 35 sites have temporarily been closed because of economic stress, said Lauren Gordon of the Alabama Primary Health Care Association representing community health centers. Some states have also gotten approval from the Trump administration to make it easier for uninsured people to sign up for Medicaid. For instance, Kentucky, which expanded the program under the Affordable Care Act, is allowing people to temporarily enroll without going through normal eligibility checks if they likely qualify for the program. That means more Kentuckians could get testing for free, but advocates worry it's just a stopgap measure. "Right now were just cobbling together these small changes that are really just short-term," said Emily Beauregard, executive director of Kentucky Voices for Health. A controversial tycoon, nicknamed the 'King of the Good Times', has lost a High Court challenge against his extradition to India to face fraud allegations. Drinks tycoon Vijay Mallya is wanted in his native country over allegations of fraud relating to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines. The 64-year-old, who is chairman of the Indian conglomerate United Breweries (UB) Group, makers of Kingsfisher Beer, is accused of fraudulently funnelling government loans given to the airline, which was wound-up in 2012, to 'vanity projects'. These include co-founding now defunct Formula One racing team Sahara Force India. Mr Mallya, who denies any wrongdoing, was made the subject of an extradition request from the Indian government to the UK government in 2017. Drinks tycoon Vijay Mallya is wanted in his native country over allegations of fraud relating to now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines, which he denies. Pictured: Mr Maylla outside court in 2018. The 64-year-old, who is chairman of the Indian conglomerate United Breweries (UB) Group, makers of Kingsfisher Beer, has been embroiled in financial scandals since the airliner was wound up in 2012. Pictured: Mr Mallya outside court in 2018 An extradition order was signed by then Home Secretary Sajid Javid in February after a senior judge ruled that Mr Mallya had a case to answer during a hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court in December 2018. Mr Mallya challenged that decision at the High Court, with his lawyers arguing Judge Arbuthnot was wrong to conclude there was a case against him to answer. But, in a ruling at the High Court on Monday, Lord Justice Irwin and Mrs Justice Elisabeth Laing rejected his appeal. They said: 'It is clear beyond any doubt that the senior district judge directed herself properly. 'It is clear she had the criminal burden and standard in mind when she considered whether there was a prima facie case.' Mr Mallya, once hailed as India's version of British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson, was in court throughout the hearing in February. Senior District Judge Arbuthnot found Mr Mallya had misrepresented how loans received from banks would be used. She said that bankers had been 'charmed' by a 'glamorous, flashy, famous, bejewelled, bodyguarded, ostensibly billionaire playboy' into losing their common sense. Mr Mallya co-founded now defunct Formula One racing team Sahara Force India. Pictured: Mr Mallya at the Monza Grand Prix in 2009 Mr Mallya has the right to pursue and appeal against the ruling. As previously reported by MailOnline, a group of Indian banks are seeking to recover more than 1bn in loans granted to the defunct airliner - which became India's second largest domestic carrier after launching in 2005. India's fraud office later probed claims Mr Mallya funnelled loans to the struggling airliner via other firms and hid personal assets. During a court hearing in December 2018, District Judge Emma Arbuthnot said the former Indian politician should be extradited. Arguing he had cases to answer over conspiracy to defraud the Indian state-owned bank IDBI, Judge Arbuthnot said at the hearing in 2018: 'I'm ordering an extradition, or rather I should say, I'm referring this matter to the Secretary of State. 'There's a misrepresentation that Kingfishers Airlines (KFA) was confident of meeting the short term challenges. Judging by the emails in 2009 KFA was not confident at all. 'If the background checks were applied the loans should not have been granted. I find a Prima Facie [at first glance] case to answer for a conspiracy to defraud which involves not just the KFA executives but also the named bankers in IDBI. 'I find there was misrepresentation about what the loans would be used for. 'These payments included what some might say were vanity projects.' She said there was evidence loan payments were 'used to clear bills' and for 'sponsor payments' to his motor racing team in 2010. 'Essentially it appears that KFA was funding Dr Mallya's team,' she said. 'In 2011 they voluntarily refunded the KFA. An extradition order against the tycoon was signed by then Home Secretary Sajid Javid in February after a senior judge ruled that Mr Mallya had a case to answer in December 2018. Pictured: Mr Mallya at the Silverstone Grand Prix in 2017 'It's either the case that the various continuing failures were by design and with a motive... or it is a case of a bank who were enthralled with a glamorous, body-guarded, flamboyant man who charmed and cajoled bankers to lose their common sense'. During that hearing, Mr Mallya, denied allegations of money laundering and fraud and branded them a 'witch-hunt'. Speaking after the hearing in 2018, he said: 'I know the truth - that will come out in what we have to say. 'She talked about Formula One team sponsorship - what she missed was when 15m was sent back to the KPA when they needed it, when they were in difficulty.' For the second consecutive year, a Michigan Tech student has been awarded one of the nation's most prestigious undergraduate research scholarships. Kaylee Meyers, a third-year student at Michigan Technological University, has received one of the nations highest accolades for college undergraduates. The biomedical engineering major from Essexville, Michigan is the 12th Michigan Tech student to receive the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. Established in 1989 by Congress to honor the late Arizona senator and administered by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, Goldwater scholarships are awarded to college sophomores and juniors. The awards are based on academic merit, research experience and intent to pursue a career in science, engineering or mathematics. As part of the selection process, colleges nominate up to four students who intend to pursue a career in research and have at least a 3.0 GPA. As one of 396 recipients selected from approximately 5,000 nominees, Meyers will receive a financial award to be used on expenses like tuition, books, and room and board for her senior year. Helping to Heal Meyers developed a passion for engineering while involved with FIRST Robotics in high school. But I also really wanted to work in the medical field, so biomedical engineering was the perfect combination of the two, she said. Meyers research focuses on engineered biomaterials. More specifically, injectable biomaterials that could be used to accelerate wound healing in injured tendons, she said. Kaylees work has led to novel data regarding how injectable biomaterials can be used to control cell and molecular mechanisms involved in tendon repair, said Meyer's research advisor, Rupak Rajachar, a principal lecturer in biomedical engineering at Michigan Tech. These findings are the basis for one of two first-author manuscripts she is currently writing. Meyers second manuscript contains the results of her creative efforts to help build a table-top ultrasound system for use in targeted drug delivery from biomaterials. Meyers and Rajachars research was recently awarded a second grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to work on incorporating focused ultrasound into the research through a collaborative project with Michigan Tech alumnus Eli Vlaisavljevich, a past Goldwater Scholarship recipient, member of the Engineered Biomaterials Lab community and current faculty at Virginia Tech. In addition to the NIH grant and Goldwater Scholarship, Meyers research has received support from the Portage Health Foundation and the Charles Steger Global Internship Award from the Focused Ultrasound Foundation. She said such funding for undergraduate research is vital. I think outside funding is essential for the undergraduate research we do in the lab, as it enables us to work on solving really interesting engineering problems, she said. An Early Start Meyers Michigan Tech journey began at the Universitys Summer Youth Program (SYP). When she first set foot on campus in 2016, she couldnt foresee the path she would take, but she knew from the start she was at a special place. The summer after my junior year of high school, I attended MTUs Women in Engineering Program, Meyers said. I learned a lot about engineering and had a chance to explore the campus and surrounding area. A self-described avid outdoorswoman who loves to hike, bike, ski, trail run and kayak, she knew that Tech's academics and location would be a good fit. A few months later, she discovered that the good fit extended to the classroom and lab as well. As a senior, I attended MTU Preview Day, where I met my research advisor, Dr. Rajachar, and his Engineered Biomaterials Lab group, she said. Through them, I learned about the close campus community and what undergraduate research was like at Tech. It reinforced my decision to come here. Continuing a Proud Tradition Meyers is Michigan Techs fourth Goldwater Scholarship recipient in the past five years and the second consecutive MTU student to be so honored. Third-year biological sciences major Tessa Steenwinkel won the scholarship last year. Meyers long-term goals are to earn her PhD in biomedical engineering and eventually run a research lab of her own as a principal investigator and university professor. "I believe Tech is very good at promoting students from all backgrounds in STEM fields, especially through youth outreach and our supportive campus community." Kaylee Meyers Rajachar said it is exciting to see the potential broader impact Meyers can have both as a graduate student and future mentor to the next generation of students in STEM fields. She recognizes that the greatest gift any scientific mentor can provide is their time and an environment that empowers young students to believe in hard work and their own ability to solve problems, he said. Meyers is in impressive company as the fifth Michigan Tech biomedical engineering major to receive a Goldwater Scholarship, more than any other discipline at the University, and the third to be mentored by Rajachar. Vlaisavljevich, who won the scholarship in 2009, is an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Virginia Tech and has established a laboratory developing therapeutic ultrasound tools. 2012 scholarship recipient Hal Holmes is a lead engineer at Conservation X Labs, developing cutting-edge genetic testing technology for conservation. Rajachar is confident Meyers will live up to the high standard set by her predecessors. I truly believe that Kaylee can meet or exceed the success of any previous student from my lab, he said. I highlight their achievements thus far as scientists not only to convey the significance of the Goldwater and the strength of my belief in Kaylee, but more importantly to recognize that each of them also serves as a mentor to Kaylee, helping her as she works diligently toward meeting what I believe is her great promise as a scientist and engineer. When the time comes for Meyers to mentor students of her own, shell reflect on her personal role model. I want to thank my research advisor, Dr. Rajachar, for providing me and many other students the opportunity to get involved in undergraduate research in an encouraging and intellectually stimulating environment, she said. I am very fortunate to have him as a mentor. 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. Starting today, construction activities at private and public projects, courier services, opening of farsan and sweet shops will be allowed in the city. E-commerce websites, too, can begin deliveries, but only of essential commodities. However, these activities will not be allowed in containment zones. Also, those operating need to get a permission pass issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The state had issued a circular dated April 17, giving permission to operate several non-essential activities in order to boost the economy. The BMC then on Sunday issued a circular listing the relaxation that will be granted in non-containment zones, such as allowing delivery of electrical appliances, subject to a pass from local ward offices of the BMC. The passes will be issued at ward offices between 7am and 9pm daily. However, after the Centre banned the delivery of non-essential items, the BMC said it will also follow suit. Praveen Pardeshi, municipal commissioner, BMC, said, We shall be revising the same [earlier order] as informed by the state govt. The BMC, meanwhile, has allowed carrying out commercial activities such as those related to fisheries, home delivery by restaurants and cable services. The civic body has urged that not more than two people should be in the lift at a time. The circular allows construction activities for public projects, construction, resurfacing, repairs of water supply, sewer and storm-water drain lines, construction repairs and pre-monsoon desilting. In case of private projects, the BMC will grant permission if workers are available at the site and all precautions are taken, states the circular. Agricultural product related trades, those involved in medical or health care and essential services will have to get passes from the ward office. The civic body has not allowed any industrial activity, considering the city is in the red zone. As per directions, industries/industrial establishments will not be allowed to operate in Mumbai limits. No worker from a containment zone will be permitted to go to a workplace in industries/industrial establishments, permitted outside Mumbai, stated the circular. Meanwhile, on Sunday, seven medical staff members of Bombay Hospital tested positive, taking the case count to 19. The Bombay Hospital has so far tested around 440 medical staff members. Dr Gautam Bhansali, consulting physician, Bombay Hospital, said, All are in stable condition. We are going to ensure that our OPD for non-Covid patients starts in the coming few days. The BMC has also made 810 community toilets free for public use. The citys Covid-19 hotspot, Dharavi, saw 20 new cases on Sunday, bringing the count to 138 with 11 deaths, according to the BMC. Of the 20 new cases, the highest (6) cases were recorded in Fatima Chawl, followed by three cases from Kalyanwadi. Kiran Dighavkar, assistant commissioner of the G-North ward, said, Most of the cases were detected in fever clinics.A team of 17 doctors and 50 nurses has screened more than 40,000 people in the fever clinics and 223 have been identified and sent for laboratory tests, said a BMC official. Job Archive July 2021 (524) June 2021 (681) May 2021 (698) April 2021 (659) March 2021 (688) February 2021 (615) January 2021 (700) December 2020 (714) November 2020 (671) October 2020 (631) September 2020 (690) August 2020 (713) July 2020 (713) June 2020 (690) May 2020 (713) April 2020 (690) March 2020 (713) February 2020 (667) January 2020 (713) December 2019 (713) November 2019 (687) October 2019 (711) September 2019 (689) August 2019 (711) July 2019 (707) June 2019 (688) May 2019 (2002) April 2019 (1979) March 2019 (2039) February 2019 (1689) January 2019 (2259) December 2018 (2111) November 2018 (1935) October 2018 (1993) September 2018 (1918) August 2018 (39) July 2018 (72) June 2018 (44) May 2018 (76) April 2018 (65) March 2018 (16) February 2018 (32) January 2018 (201) December 2017 (352) November 2017 (381) October 2017 (600) September 2017 (1211) August 2017 (1655) July 2017 (1590) June 2017 (1506) May 2017 (1903) April 2017 (1965) March 2017 (1417) February 2017 (1808) January 2017 (1807) December 2016 (1593) November 2016 (1377) October 2016 (1408) September 2016 (1317) August 2016 (1499) July 2016 (1505) June 2016 (1421) May 2016 (1392) April 2016 (1340) March 2016 (1476) February 2016 (1396) January 2016 (1474) December 2015 (1409) November 2015 (1367) October 2015 (1478) September 2015 (1443) August 2015 (1468) July 2015 (1465) June 2015 (1410) May 2015 (1058) April 2015 (1269) March 2015 (1133) February 2015 (1155) January 2015 (1154) December 2014 (1156) November 2014 (1268) October 2014 (81) 'It's Easy To Ruin Someone's Life': Kaliningrad Case Revives Discussion Of Russia's Fake Drug Prosecutions By Yulia Paramonova, Robert Coalson April 19, 2020 KALININGRAD, Russia -- Prosecutors in this western Russian city have opened a criminal investigation into an unspecified number of police officers on suspicion of fabricating a drug-possession case in order to inflate their job performance. The case has once again cast the spotlight on what rights activists say is a widespread practice among Russian law enforcement of planting drugs on people and compelling confessions from them for a variety of reasons, such as the desire to meet case quotas, to settle business disputes or personal scores, to quell political dissent, or to silence inconvenient journalists. "Planting drugs is often used for political pressure or simply to improve one's performance statistics," said Kaliningrad defense lawyer Maria Bontsler. "'If there aren't enough cases, now let's make one.' But these cases are truly terrifying. It is very easy to ruin a person's life. A few grams [of drugs] and a person can go to prison for many years." The officers suspected in the Kaliningrad case are attached to the narcotics department of a special Interior Ministry section covering the transportation sector. Only one of them Senior Lieutenant Ruslan Yakovenko has been identified, according to lawyer Vladislav Filatov, who is defending the 22-year-old local man who is the alleged victim in the case. His name is also being withheld. "According to the case materials, officers of the narcotics departmentwith the assistance of an informant, found a person on whom the drugs could be planted in order to improve their service performance record," Filatov told RFE/RL. After the young man was arrested in January, police said they found 1.2 grams of amphetamine in his backpack. The alleged victim, a student who completed his military service in the National Guard, was threatened with a prison term of three to 10 years if he were charged with being part of a "criminal group." As a result, he signed a statement he said was written by the officers saying that he had purchased the drugs as a result of a random opportunity and that he was alone. After he signed the statement, Filatov said, the young man was released on his own recognizance pending trial. The officers involved allegedly fabricated documentation indicating that they had been investigating and surveilling the young man prior to his arrest. "I was sure the drugs had been planted and I appealed to the Federal Security Service (FSB)," Filatov said. As a result, a criminal case was opened on March 13 against the officers and the civilian informant who was allegedly working with them. "You can't just call this abuse of power," Filatov said. "It is actually a monstrous provocation with the falsification of evidence. Any law-abiding citizen could have ended up in my client's position. This is the first case I've ever had where we have managed not only to establish that the case was a provocation but also that the drugs were planted." Critics believe such cases are quite common in Russia. Every year, more than 100,000 people are convicted under Article 228 of the Criminal Code, which outlaws the production, possession, or sale of narcotics and prescribes prison terms from three to 10 years. The phenomenon made national and international headlines in June 2019 when investigative journalist Ivan Golunov was arrested in Moscow and charged under Article 228. In the wake of ardent protests -- including by prominent journalists and cultural figures -- prompted by strong indications the evidence in the case had been fabricated, officials dropped the charges and dismissed several police officers and Interior Ministry officials involved in the case. Five former police officers are currently facing trial in connection with the case. But activists point to many other dubious cases. In December 2019, a young man in the Siberian city of Omsk named Dmitry Fyodorov was arrested on drugs charges. After he was released on his own recognizance, he released a social-media video in which he described how the drugs had been planted on him and how he'd been held by police incommunicado for almost 24 hours. A few days later, his decapitated body was found near a local railway. Police said the death was either an accident or a suicide, but supporters and relatives believe he was murdered. In November 2019, Karelia regional activist Yekaterina Muranova, who was accused of "extremism" and "justifying terrorism" for her public comments about an explosion at the Arkhangelsk FSB office in October 2018, described how police allegedly fabricated a drugs case against her in order to intimidate her. Police held her in isolation for 16 hours before she was fined 4,000 rubles ($54) for possession of marijuana. "Now I'm afraid to leave my house," she told RFE/RL at the time. "They might come up and say that I killed or robbed someone. They want so badly to put me in prison, to ruin my life somehow." In March 2018, Kaliningrad resident Aleksandr Zakamsky, who was facing amphetamine-possession charges that he denied, died in a pretrial detention jail. Before he was found hanged with a bedsheet, he'd complained of brutal torture by jail guards. The 25-year-old's widow is convinced he was murdered. Defense lawyer Bontsler believes there are many such cases and advises citizens to be vigilant when approached by police. "I always tell people that the most important thing is that they have no fingerprints," she told RFE/RL. "When they ask you, 'What is in your pockets,' do not under any circumstances reach in there. If they find something, say, 'It isn't mine,' and do not touch it." Written by RFE/RL senior correspondent Robert Coalson based on reporting from Kaliningrad by correspondent Yulia Paramonova of the North Desk of RFE/RL's Russian Service Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/kaliningrad-case -revives-discussion-of-russia-s-fake- drug-prosecutions/30564040.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The controversial Louisiana pastor who has come under fire for his reckless actions amid the coronavirus pandemic, has now defended his decision to ask parishioners to give up their unemployment checks. Life Tabernacle Pastor Tony Spell has already been criticized for ignoring social distancing guidelines and encouraging people to gather for service in-person, despite the large shift to online steaming around world. Even after one member of his congregation died from COVID-19 a diagnosis Spell has denied - the religious leader went ahead Sunday with service as usual and announced day one of the #PastorSpellStimulusChallenge. Over 300,000 have watched him online urging them to claim their $1,200 payouts and give it to a missionary. Sunday, CNN anchor Victor Blackwell (left) told Past Tony Spell (right): 'Non-profits and faith-based programs can apply for the Paycheck Protection Program'. But Spell said: 'We do not want SBA loans. We don't want the government to give us a dime. We are happy to provide for ourselves' 'Rule no.2,' he says, 'Donate your stimulus money. Rule no.3 donate it to evangelists, north American evangelists who haven't had an offering in a month. Missionaries who haven't had an offering in a month. Music ministers who haven't had an offering in a month.' Spell says he, his wife and his son are donating their own. The pastors adds that if viewers don't belong to a church they can donate via his website. The clip posted on YouTube garnered thousands of comments, with some asking whether Spell's church should be using regular donations to help missionaries. He defended his reactions in an interview with CNN saying the church is giving to those who are most needy. 'Non-profits and faith-based programs can apply for the Paycheck Protection Program,' CNN's Victor Blackwell told Spell. Spell personally drove a bus load of parishioners to the church on Sunday to attend the Easter service. He is facing misdemeanour charges for holding services despite a ban on gatherings But Spell replied: 'We don't want to.' Blackwell hit back: 'But that is your choice.' The anchor pointed out that many members of Spell's congregation have trouble getting transport to his church, just outside Baton Rouge and have to be picked up to attend services. He added: 'Why not give that money to them and why isn't this a time for the church to give to those who do not have?' 'This is a challenge,' Spell said. 'We are challenging you, if you can, (to) give your stimulus package to evangelists and missionaries who do not get the stimulus package. They don't file taxes the way you and I do.' Spell explained: 'We do not want SBA loans. We don't want the government to give us a dime. We are happy to provide for ourselves.' On Sunday he gave away $20,000 at his church and shared the video online. Spell has come under fire for repeatedly holding services at his Life Tabernacle Church near Baton Rouge despite Louisiana's stay-at-home order to stop the spread of coronavirus. Churchgoers are pictured above after a sermon on March 29 Spell ignored orders yet again despite coronavirus cases in Louisiana passing 22,000 and death 1,156. A parishioner and 'right hand man' of the controversial pastor recently died from COVID-19. Harold Orillion, 78, passed away on Wednesday, according to The East Baton Rouge Parish coroner. The man's cause of death was listed as 'acute respiratory distress syndrome' due to the coronavirus. Pastor Spell disputed the man's cause of death, saying he died of a broken heart after recently losing his son. The pastor has previously said his parishioners are true Christians who wouldn't mind dying from the virus because they'd be doing so in the name of God and freedom. It's unclear when the man last attended a service at Spell's church. Spell confirmed to television stations WAFB and WVLA that Mr Orillion was a parishioner in good standing, but said the cause of death was a 'lie', despite the coroner's determination. On March 29 he held an Easter service that 1,300 people attended. Police arrested Spell on March 31 and charged him with six misdemeanors for violating the governor's executive order that limits gatherings to less than 10 people. Spell is now facing misdemeanor charges for letting usual services go ahead despite a ban on gatherings. Bus loads of congregants arrived at Spell's Life Tabernacle Church before an Easter church service on Sunday He has previously preached that people had 'nothing to fear' and that 'true Christians do not mind dying'. In an interview earlier this month, Spell was unapologetic when asked if he thought he would have blood on his hands if one of his congregants became infected and died. 'Like any revolutionary, or like any zealot, or like any pure religious person, death looks to them like a welcome friend,' he said. 'True Christians do not mind dying. They fear living in fear.' One of his lawyers who is representing him following his misdemeanor charges was hospitalized on Tuesday with coronavirus. Jeff Wittenbrink attended a news conference at the church on April 2 and a service on April 5, the Advocate reported. Wittenbrink, who is in hospital on oxygen after experiencing worsening conditions, including a fever and cough, says he doesn't know how he got the virus. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) Messages of condolences poured in for the family of former Senator Heherson Sonny Alvarez as he succumbed after a battle with COVID-19. He was 80. Alvarez and his wife, Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, founder of Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), both contracted the viral disease and were intubated because of it. Guidote-Alvarez was later extubated. The former senator and Isabela representative underwent an experimental plasma therapy used to treat COVID-19 patients struggling to combat the infection, according to his daughter Xilca Alvarez-Protacio. READ: FAST FACTS: Donating blood plasma for COVID-19 patients Im deeply saddened by the death of one of the original environmentalist advocates of the Philippine Senate, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Migz Zubiri said. The Senate has lost another pillar of its rich history. Senator Sherwin Win Gatchalian said that Alvarezs contributions to the country will never be forgotten. Ruling party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino Lakas ng Bayan also mourned the passing of Alvarez. Alvarez was a two-term senator who started serving in the upper chamber in 1987 after the ouster of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos. While in the Senate, he championed environmental laws, including the Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Air Act. He also authored the law which created the Department of Energy. Prior to serving as senator, Alvarez was among the youngest delegates to the 1971 Constitutional Convention, which produced a charter which he ultimately rejected for being Marcos-dictated. Alvarez went on exile to the United States during the Marcos regime and founded the opposition group Ninoy Aquino Movement. After the fall of Marcos, Alvarez served in the Cabinet of then-President Corazon Aquino as secretary of the Department of Agrarian Reform from 1986 to 1987. From 2001 to 2002, he again served in the Cabinet as then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyos Environment Secretary. He later served as presidential adviser on overseas Filipino communities in 2003, on agrarian reform from 2005 to 2007, and on global warming and climate change from 2009 to 2010. He was also the chairman and chief executive officer of the Philippine Mining Development Corporation in 2008 and was a Climate Change commissioner from 2010 to 2011. He is survived by his wife and their children, Hexilon and Xilca. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Traffic Information Services market worldwide is projected to grow by US$8.8 Billion, driven by a compounded growth of 15.1%. Traffic Information Services, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 15.1%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market. Poised to reach over US$14 Billion by the year 2025, Traffic Information Services will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04951662/?utm_source=PRN - Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 13.4% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$342 Million to the region's size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$284.6 Million worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Traffic Information Services will reach a market size of US$752.6 Million by the close of the analysis period. As the world's second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 19.3% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$2.2 Billion in terms of addressable opportunity for the picking by aspiring businesses and their astute leaders. Presented in visually rich graphics are these and many more need-to-know quantitative data important in ensuring quality of strategy decisions, be it entry into new markets or allocation of resources within a portfolio. Several macroeconomic factors and internal market forces will shape growth and development of demand patterns in emerging countries in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. All research viewpoints presented are based on validated engagements from influencers in the market, whose opinions supersede all other research methodologies. - Competitors identified in this market include, among others, Airsage Inc. Alibaba Group Holding Limited Apple Inc. Beijing Lingtu Software Technology Co. Ltd. Cellint Cubic Corporation Garmin International Inc. Global Traffic Network Inc. Google Inc. HERE Global B.V. Infoblu S.p.A. INRIX Inc. Kapsch TrafficCom AG LG CNS NavInfo Co. Ltd. Q-Free ASA Sirius XM Holdings Inc. TomTom International B.V. TrafficCast International Inc. Waze Mobile Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04951662/?utm_source=PRN I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. MARKET OVERVIEW Traffic Information Services (TIS): An Introductory Prelude Recent Market Activity Alarming Increase in Traffic Congestion Levels Creates Fertile Environment for TIS Key Benefits Offered Augment Market Prospects Improved Traffic Flow Reduced Travel Time & Superior Fuel Mileage Decreased Vehicular Pollution Enhanced Road Safety Developed Regions - The Key Markets Developing Regions to Turbo Charge Future Growth Positive Economic Scenario to Extend Growth Opportunities Global Market Outlook Global Competitor Market Shares Traffic Information Services Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2020 & 2029 2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS Airsage, Inc. Alibaba Group Holding Limited Apple Inc. Beijing Lingtu Software Technology Co., Ltd. Cellint Cubic Corporation Garmin International, Inc. Google Inc. Waze Mobile Global Traffic Network Inc. HERE Global B.V. Infoblu S.p.A. INRIX, Inc. Kapsch TrafficCom AG LG CNS NavInfo Co. Ltd. Q-Free ASA Sirius XM Holdings Inc. TomTom International B.V. TrafficCast International, Inc. 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS RDS-TMC Broadcasting: The Conventional TIS Platform GPS Navigation Spawns Incredible Demand for TIS Ubiquity of Internet Builds Momentum for Massive Growth Smartphone Enhances Addressable Market for TIS 4G Networks Boost Smartphone?s Role in TIS Big Data Seeks Role in TIS Domain Emphasis on Connected Car Widens Audience Base for TIS Traffic Updates Become Core Feature in On-Board Navigation Systems Uptrend in Automotive Sales Bodes Well TIS Gains Immense Popularity Among Urban Motorists Road Carriers Leverage TIS for Improved Trucking Operations Expanding Role of Telematics in Fleet Management Augurs Well TIS: A Handy Tool for Cab Operators ?Smart City? Extends Robust Opportunities Potential Opportunities in New & Upcoming Road Infrastructure Programs Diverse Functionality Improves Proficiency of TIS Expanding Role of Location-Based Intelligence Augments Market Prospects Effectiveness of Data Collection Enhances Accuracy & Appeal of TIS Intrusive Technologies Extend Proficiency in Traffic Measurement Non-Intrusive Methods Gain Wider Traction in Traffic Data Collection Crowd Sourcing Emerges as Viable Tool Growing Importance of Intelligent Transport Systems to Drive Growth 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE Table 1: Traffic Information Services Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 2: Traffic Information Services Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 3: Traffic Information Services Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 III. MARKET ANALYSIS GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures Table 4: United States Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 5: Traffic Information Services Market in the United States: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 CANADA Table 6: Canadian Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 7: Canadian Traffic Information Services Historic Market Review in US$ Million: 2009-2017 JAPAN Table 8: Japanese Market for Traffic Information Services: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 9: Traffic Information Services Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2009-2017 CHINA Table 10: Chinese Traffic Information Services Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 11: Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in China in US$ Million: 2009-2017 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures Table 12: European Traffic Information Services Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 13: Traffic Information Services Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 14: European Traffic Information Services Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 FRANCE Table 15: Traffic Information Services Market in France: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 16: French Traffic Information Services Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million: 2009-2017 GERMANY Table 17: Traffic Information Services Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 18: German Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 ITALY Table 19: Italian Traffic Information Services Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 20: Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in Italy in US$ Million: 2009-2017 UNITED KINGDOM Table 21: United Kingdom Market for Traffic Information Services: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 22: Traffic Information Services Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2009-2017 SPAIN Table 23: Spanish Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 24: Spanish Traffic Information Services Historic Market Review in US$ Million: 2009-2017 RUSSIA Table 25: Russian Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 26: Traffic Information Services Market in Russia: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 REST OF EUROPE Table 27: Rest of Europe Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 28: Traffic Information Services Market in Rest of Europe in US$ Million: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 29: Asia-Pacific Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 30: Traffic Information Services Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 31: Asia-Pacific Traffic Information Services Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AUSTRALIA Table 32: Traffic Information Services Market in Australia: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 33: Australian Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 INDIA Table 34: Indian Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 35: Indian Traffic Information Services Historic Market Review in US$ Million: 2009-2017 SOUTH KOREA Table 36: Traffic Information Services Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 37: South Korean Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 38: Rest of Asia-Pacific Market for Traffic Information Services: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 39: Traffic Information Services Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2009-2017 LATIN AMERICA Table 40: Latin American Traffic Information Services Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 41: Traffic Information Services Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2009-2017 Table 42: Latin American Traffic Information Services Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 ARGENTINA Table 43: Argentinean Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 44: Traffic Information Services Market in Argentina in US$ Million: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 BRAZIL Table 45: Traffic Information Services Market in Brazil: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 46: Brazilian Traffic Information Services Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million: 2009-2017 MEXICO Table 47: Traffic Information Services Market in Mexico: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 48: Mexican Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 49: Rest of Latin America Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 50: Traffic Information Services Market in Rest of Latin America: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 MIDDLE EAST Table 51: The Middle East Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 52: Traffic Information Services Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 53: The Middle East Traffic Information Services Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 IRAN Table 54: Iranian Market for Traffic Information Services: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 55: Traffic Information Services Market in Iran: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2009-2017 ISRAEL Table 56: Israeli Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 57: Traffic Information Services Market in Israel in US$ Million: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 SAUDI ARABIA Table 58: Saudi Arabian Traffic Information Services Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 59: Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million: 2009-2017 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 60: Traffic Information Services Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 61: United Arab Emirates Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 62: Traffic Information Services Market in Rest of Middle East: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 63: Rest of Middle East Traffic Information Services Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million: 2009-2017 AFRICA Table 64: African Traffic Information Services Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 65: Traffic Information Services Market in Africa: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 IV. COMPETITION Total Companies Profiled: 54 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04951662/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com It's official: Murray State becomes member of Missouri Valley Conference PORTLAND, Oregon, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research recently published a report, titled, "Patch Cable Market by Product Type (Copper Cable and Fiber Optic), Cable Category (CAT3, CAT5, CAT5E, CAT6, CAT6A, CAT7, Multimode Optical Fiber, RG6, and Others), Application (Networking and Non-Networking), and End Use (Industrial, Enterprise, IT & Network Security, and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 20192026." According to the report, the global patch cable industry was pegged at $2.78 billion in 2019, and is projected to reach $5.76 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 10.2% from 2019 to 2026. Chief Driving Factors of the Market Increase in demand for high-speed connectivity devices and systems and improved cable applications have boosted the growth of the global patch cable market. However, negative impact of Internet of Things hampers the market. On the contrary, surge in development of data centers and advent of 5G revolution are expected to create lucrative opportunities in the near future. Download Sample Report @ https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/6432 Copper Cable Segment Dominated the Market The copper cable segment held the largest share in 2019, accounting for more than half of the total global patch cable market. Copper is the third most conductive element after gold and silver, which makes it suitable for transmission and therefore, dominates the market. However, the fiber optic segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 13.0% during the forecast period, due to growing demand for fiber optic in data centers and data communication. Networking Segment to Manifest Highest CAGR Through 2027 The networking segment is anticipated to portray the highest CAGR of 11.2% during the study period, as patch cable is required for connecting various nodes for efficient data transfer. Moreover, the same segment held the largest share in 2019, accounting for more than two-thirds of the global patch cable market. North America Held the Lion's Share The market across North America held the largest share in 2019, contributing to nearly two-fifth of the market, due to the advancements in technologies, innovations, and investments in the respective industry. However, the global patch cable market across Asia-Pacific is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 13.2% during the forecast period, owing to increasing penetration of optical fiber technologies in developing economies. To Explore More, Make Purchase Enquiry @ https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/6432 Major Market Players Black Box Corning CommScope General Cable CP Technologies Major Custom Cable Inc. Legrand North America LLC Quabbin Wire & Cable Corporation Panduit Corp Schneider Electric Access AVENUE- A Subscription-Based Library (Premium on-demand, subscription-based pricing model) at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/library-access Avenue is a user-based library of global market report database, provides comprehensive reports pertaining to the world's largest emerging markets. It further offers e-access to all the available industry reports just in a jiffy. By offering core business insights on the varied industries, economies, and end users worldwide, Avenue ensures that the registered members get an easy as well as single gateway to their all-inclusive requirements. Avenue Library Subscription | Request for 14 days free trial of before buying: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/avenue/trial/starter Similar Reports: HDMI Cable Market Expected to Reach $3.87 Billion By 2026 Premise Cable Market Projected to Hit $9.3 Billion By 2026 Consumer Active Optical Cable Market Anticipated to Grow $383.0 Million By 2026 Ethernet Cable Market Expected to Garner $21.36 Billion By 2026 Cables and Connector Market Projected to Grow $125.3 Billion By 2022 Cable Management Market Anticipated to Garner $25.1 Billion By 2022 Pre-Book Now with 10% Discount: Power Cable Market: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast 2019-2026 Control Cable Market: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast 2019-2026 About Us: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions." AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact: David Correa 5933 NE Win Sivers Drive #205, Portland, OR 97220 United States USA/Canada (Toll Free): 1-800-792-5285, 1-503-894-6022, 1-503-446-1141 UK: +44-845-528-1300 Hong Kong: +852-301-84916 India (Pune): +91-20-66346060 Fax: +1(855)550-5975 [email protected]com Web: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com Follow Us on LinkedIn and Twitter SOURCE Allied Market Research Web Toolbar by Wibiya Are you an author who is seeking to create you own blog online? Are you also seeking to self-publish your own book? Take advantage of our special cheap website hosting offers HERE Then email: agorakanata@gmail.com to confirm your internet hosting with our sponsoring partner. AgoraPublishing.com will then provide you with free advisement on what you need to do manage a successful blog. If your manuscript is ready for review, AgoraPublishing.com will also advise you on its readiness. Agora's book self-publishing and marketing services incorporates the following twenty critical steps / options designed to support your success as an author: Indias kerosene subsidy bill in March was zero because of low oil prices, compared to about 100 crore in the previous month and 339 crore in the same month a year ago, two officials familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity. Oil prices continue to remain weak in the face of falling demand as the Covid-19 pandemic takes its toll on economies. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected a 3% contraction in the global economy this year and estimated a muted, but positive growth for the Indian economy at 1.9%. States purchase kerosene for public distribution at market prices from refiners in line with their allocated quota; a part of that price is subsidised by the Centre from the Union budget. Because of low international oil prices, the cost price for states fell considerably, eliminating the requirement for the Centre to pay any subsidy. In February, the Centre paid a subsidy of 4.39 per litre for kerosene. The fall in international oil prices has helped India, which imports about 80% of its oil requirements, save about 21% on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) subsidy. Its expenditure on subsidised LPG or cooking gas in March came down to 2,482 crore compared to 3,169 crore in February 2020, the two officials said. The subsidy amount, thus saved, will be used to fund the governments commitment to give three LPG cylinders for free to over 80 million poor households under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, one of the officials said. The three cylinders scheme is expected to cost around 12,000, he said. We hope to bear the cost of additional LPG refills within the approved budget for 2020-21, if international oil prices do not spike. Budget 2020-21, announced on February 1, estimated the countrys total petroleum subsidy at 40,915 crore in the current financial year. The government on March 26 launched a 1.7 lakh crore relief package for the poor that included free supply of three 14.2 kg cooking gas cylinders to existing beneficiaries between April and June. So far, state-run oil marketing companies have distributed 15.1 million free cooking gas refills, the first official said. It is too early to quantify total savings on petroleum subsidy because global oil prices are extremely volatile and huge price fluctuations were witnessed in 2008-09, the second official said. International crude oil prices crashed to $40 in December 2008 only to surge to all-time high at $147 per barrel in July 2008. According to the International Monetary Funds (IMF) World Economic Outlook, released on April 14, the average petroleum spot price per barrel is expected to be $35.60 in 2020 and $37.90 in 2021. The second official said oil prices are expected to remain low at least this year because of low demand due to the global economic downturn, which will be in favour of India. The free fall of global oil prices has continued despite major crude producers deciding to cut output earlier this month, he said. The oil producers cartel, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries-plus (OPEC+), which also includes Russia, on April 12 announced a 9.7 million barrel per day cut in oil output from 1 May. Despite the announcement, global oil prices have remained subdued. Benchmark Brent crude, which was around $32 per barrel on April 12, plunged to $28.08 on Friday. On Monday, it was hovering around $27 a barrel, about 3.77% down from the previous close. GoI [Government of India] has announced free LPG for 3 months to the poor, and allocations around this announcement will add to the subsidy BE. Therefore, [overall] fuel subsidy is not likely to reduce. The 29-year-old patient diagnosed with the COVID-19 in Ekiti State, who had been in a coma, has regained consciousness, the state government has said. The woman, whose status was established on Friday, had arrived the state from Lagos pregnant and was delivered via cesarean section. She subsequently became unconscious. While speaking on the development on Saturday, the governor, Kayode Fayemi, said the woman, who is a public health worker in Lagos, had sneaked into Ekiti despite the lockdown. After making her first call at Comprehensive Primary Health Care, she was referred to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, but she went to a private hospital where she was operated upon before she was eventually transferred to the teaching hospital. Her samples were taken and on Friday she tested positive to the virus. However, the Commissioner for Health, Mojisola Yahaya-Kolade, told journalists in Ado Ekiti that the patient was gradually coming out of coma. The news of the third case was broken by Mr Governor on Saturday. She went into coma before being referred to a teaching hospital, Mrs Yayaha-Kolade said. I want to tell you that she is improving. As of now, she is stabilising and responding to treatment. The state has three cases of the virus. One has successfully been treated and discharged. Isolation Mrs Yaya-Kolade also said about 73 people that had contacts with the patient had been identified through aggressive contact tracing that was done by the government. Out of the 73, we have traced 70 of them and they are currently being monitored, she said. We have advised them to be in self-isolation (quarantine) for 14 days while the secondary contacts are being traced with the aid of our district surveillance officers. Some of the suspects who didnt have homes to perform the self-isolation are being provided with accommodation by government. Mrs Yayaha-Kolade noted that 42 blood samples had been taken to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and 39 had been done with no confirmed result as of now. Meanwhile, the special adviser to the governor on security, Ebenezer Ogundana, said in view of the identified gaps in security, the state government had closed all entry points into the state. Mr Ogundana, a retired brigadier-general, said traditional rulers and youths of the border towns were being involved to check unauthorised movements into Ekiti State. A case in which it is alleged a Government plan aimed at tackling climate change is flawed and inadequate has become the first to involve a virtual court hearing. The Supreme Court today held a case management hearing in an appeal by the Friends of the Irish Environment in which none of the parties involved were in court. Instead video conferencing technology was used to conduct the hearing in a virtual courtroom. The environmental group is challenging the High Courts rejection of its challenge to the last governments National Mitigation Plan. The move to hold virtual hearings was sparked by the Covid-19 crisis, which has severely limited the level of work that can be conducted by the courts. In a statement this morning, Chief Justice Frank Clarke said he suspected there would be many such hearings in the coming weeks and months. But Mr Justice Clarke said that while such hearings are likely to prove suitable for most if not all cases in the Supreme Court and many in the Court of Appeal, different considerations would apply in trial courts. Remote hearings will be suitable for some types of proceedings in the High Court and a limited number of cases in the District and Circuit Courts, he added. In the statement, the Chief Justice spoke of new procedures which it is hoped will streamline hearings, given the limitations of videoconferencing. It is unlikely that remote hearings would be suited to some of the forms of debate between the court and counsel which have been common in the past, he said. A new practice direction allows for the possible circulation by the Supreme Court, in advance of an oral hearing, of either or both of a statement of case and a clarification request. The statement of case will set out the courts understanding of the facts, the relevant findings of the courts which have dealt with the case, the issues which arise on the appeal and the positions of the parties on those issues, said Mr Justice Clarke. Where the court is unclear on any of those matters clarification will be sought. It is hoped that this procedure will bring greater clarity to the issues in advance and reduce the need for interventions from the court for purely clarification purposes. The Chief Justice paid tribute to the Courts Service for putting the videoconferencing facility in place. While other jurisdictions have started or announced the commencement of remote hearings, in many cases they were coming from a significantly higher technology base than us, he said. The PEXIP video streaming app will be used for hearings, with parties able to join a virtual courtroom via other video streaming services such as Skype, Zoom, Cisco Webex and Microsoft Teams without the requirement that all parties use either the same app or a managed integration tool to connect. The case management hearing today was screened in a courtroom where it could be viewed by members of the press. However, journalists will soon be able to observe proceedings remotely under a protocol being draw up. Todays hearing took place following a mock appeal last Friday. While it was inevitable that some difficulties were encountered I consider that the experiment was sufficiently successful to allow us to move to real hearings, said Mr Justice Clarke. Despite the advent of remote hearings, the Chief Justice said the various court presidents were exploring ways in which to increase the number of cases which can be dealt with in physical hearings. He said it had to be acknowledged that many urgent cases throughout the country were still being handled by judges and staff often working in difficult conditions. The District Court in particular has, because of its caseload of often urgent criminal and family hearings, had to bear a particular load, he said. Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all. Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now. There are approximately 3.7 million small businesses in California, and only 3% of them received help from the Paycheck Protection Program. The federal coronavirus-related stimulus fund ran out of money last Wednesday. According to the federal Small Business Administration, 112,967 small businesses in California were approved for the loans, which are part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, & Economic Security Act, and can be forgiven if used to keep employees on the payroll. Danny Kronfli is one of the lucky few. He and his brother own the Bacari restaurants in greater L.A. He applied for a PPP loan on April 3, the day the program opened. By April 8, he had received his money and was able to hire back more than 20 employees -- which is exactly what the program is designed to do. "We just got really lucky that we didn't bank with one of the major banks, we didn't really have a line we had to wait in," Kronfli said. Kronfli uses a bank called Commerce West, which has just one location, in Irvine. icon DON'T MISS ANY L.A. CORONAVIRUS NEWS Get our daily newsletters for the latest on COVID-19 and other top local headlines. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Meanwhile, business owners who use Chase, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Bank of America and other large banks complained on Twitter that they were unable to apply before the $349 billion in PPP funding ran out. Maribel Cabrera, who owns Las Delicias Taqueria in Santa Clarita, was finally able to submit an application to Wells Fargo last Wednesday. But then on Thursday, she received an email saying the PPP had run out of money. She was unclear whether her application had been processed or not. "Do I get some? Or am I in limbo?" she wondered. As of Monday morning, Congress was working to finalize a deal that would add an additional $300 million to the PPP. BETTER BET WITH SMALL BANKS? Anecdotally, small banks appeared to be able to process loans faster and earlier, said Pat Nye, who runs the L.A. Regional Small Business Development Center. Pacific Enterprise Bank, a small, Irvine-based bank, was even able to help non-clients apply for the federal loans, which is almost unheard of among larger banks. "We started getting inundated by other banks trying to dump all their submissions on us because they couldn't process them themselves," said Brian Halle, president Pacific Enterprise Bank. Halle's staff took care of all their clients' PPP applications by filing them with the Small Business Administration in the middle of the night, when the server was less likely to be overwhelmed. "When the world was sleeping, at 2 a.m., they could pull applications very quickly," Halle said. Joe Biden indicated on Monday he will incorporate more of the Green New Deal into his policy platform after he scored a key environmental endorsement and continues his outreach to the left wing of the Democratic Party. The former vice president already has made overtures to progressives since Bernie Sanders dropped out of the Democratic primary contest, expanding his health care and student debt policies to appeal to the supporters of the Vermont senator. He added environmental concerns to that list on Monday, when he accepted the endorsement of the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Action Fund and vowed to expand the environmental plan he released last summer. I outlined a bold plan to lead a clean energy revolution and fight for environmental justice. But the best policy work is continuous, creative, and keeps reaching for greater ambition and impact. In the months ahead, expanding this plan will be one of my key objectives, Biden said in a statement. Joe Biden indicated he will incorporate more of the Green New Deal into his policy platform on the environment Bernie Sanders tried to push Joe Biden to the left on many issues before he exited the race I know this is an issue that resonates with many, including young people and those who have seen floods, fires, and drought destroy lives and livelihoods, Biden said. The LCV endorsement could prompt other green groups to follow suit and endorse Biden particularly now that the former vice president has said he is opening to expanding his stance on the issue. After Sanders exited the primary, several green groups called on Biden to adopt more aggressive environmental friendly policies. The groups all hope to prevent President Donald Trump who has denied the existence of global warming and took the United States out of the Paris Climate Accord from winning a second term. Younger Democrats a group Biden has struggled with have listed the environment as one of their top issues. When Sanders endorsed Biden last week, the two men announced plans to form joint policy task forces with the environment being one of the topics. Before he exited the race, Sanders tried to push Biden to the left on key issues important to the progressive wing of the party. The two men said they would form task forces on climate, health care, criminal justice, immigration, the economy and education. Bidens original 22-page climate plan, released last June, called for U.S. to achieve net-zero emissions by at least 2050, along with the creation of 10 million jobs and helping fossil fuel workers transition to a clean-energy economy. Sanders favored the Green New Deal, most prominently pushed by liberal star Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The Green New Deal calls on the federal government to wean the U.S. off fossil fuels and curb greenhouse gas emissions. It also aims to guarantee new high-paying jobs in clean energy industries. Ocasio-Cortez said she is talking to Bidens campaign about an endorsement but nothing has been set in stone. Well see. We're having conversations with Biden's team and trying to figure out what some of these policy conversations are looking like, she told Politico last week. 'I think it's incredibly important that we support the Democratic nominee in November,' she said. When Bernie Sanders endorsed Joe Biden last week, the two men announced plans to form joint policy task forces with the environment being one of the topics. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a prominent supporter of Green New Deal and has said Joe Biden's climate change plan does not go far enough She also urged Biden to pick a progressive as his running mate. 'I think it would be encouraging if Biden also picked someone who was a little bit more progressive that he knows may push him.' Biden has already pledged to select a woman running mate. And she also said his current climate change plan does not go far enough. 'The vice president does not have a climate change policy that is sufficient right now,' Ocasio-Cortez said. A respiratory nurse on Craigavon Area Hospital's Covid-19 ward has told how ringing bereaved families is the hardest thing she has faced. Kerry Gordon (30) has worked in the hospital since qualifying as a nurse eight years ago and said the coronavirus pandemic is something she and her colleagues never imagined they would have to go through. Her working life has changed dramatically from her former routine in the 2 North ward. Kerry, from Richhill in Co Armagh, has to put on layer upon layer of personal protective equipment (PPE) when she arrives for her 13-hour shift. As she works in a red zone within the hospital, she must wear a full-body gown, a face mask, a mouth guard and gloves. She supports new nurses beginning their careers and has to deal with the increased number of patients. Expand Close Kerry Gordon / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Kerry Gordon Kerry's personal life has also been affected as she has not been able to see her parents or her boyfriend for the past four weeks. Her respiratory care work on the Covid-19 ward is "quite similar" to that on 2 North, but with social distancing in place Kerry said it was heartbreaking that patients cannot have their loved ones at their bedsides. That vital role has been left to nurses and doctors, and Kerry said she and her colleagues are determined to do everything possible to fulfil family requests. "From a pressure point of view, patients are coming in and requiring so much more ventilatory support," she explained. "Patients are scared and all they really want is their families and we just try and support them the best we can. We try and be there for them. "A lot of our staff would have quite a few new-starts so we're trying our best to support them, as the staff are frightened as well. "It's one of those things we never thought we would have to go through. "It's learning for us all, really, but my role is to try and support and encourage them to do the best that they can. "The hardest part is making the phone call to the relatives. We just have to try and be their families for them and do whatever the families want us to do for the patient. "It's very hard to make that call, and if we can, and we have, we have been able to allow a relative in to see the patient, but it's so dangerous because they're so high risk. "We just have to reinforce that. At the end of the day they could end up catching the virus and being very unwell themselves. A lot of the time they don't come to the ward. The families understand and they have been very, very good." Expand Close Craigavon Area Hospital / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Craigavon Area Hospital Since the coronavirus outbreak healthcare staff in the Covid-19 ward have been trying to keep their day-to-day routine as normal as possible. Upon arrival at Craigavon Area Hospital Kerry, who usually does day shifts but is now working 13-hour shift patterns, puts on the first layer of PPE in the main corridor as trained staff check their colleagues to make sure the equipment is safely in place. Throughout their shifts the nurses and doctors try their best to take breaks as frequently as possible, as PPE has a lifespan of four hours. Kerry added that it was important that staff take their breaks, not only for some fresh air, but to keep hydrated - something she said was very hard to do. Despite ongoing concerns around the availability of PPE here, Kerry said there is plenty of equipment available to staff in Craigavon. The hospital's Covid-19 ward can hold 35 patients and is currently more than half-full, but Kerry does not know if a surge of patients will come. For now she and her colleagues are just coping as best as they can. "We are busy because the patients need a lot more attention, but we do have space for more," added Kerry. "We're just trying to keep the routine the same through personal care and ensuring that the patients are getting adequate meals and things like that. "We're just trying to keep everything as normal as we can, but it just can get very hard because they are sicker. "We have had quite a few patients that have needed to go to intensive care, while other patients are going down the palliative route. It's just heartbreaking because they can't have their families with them." Outside of work Kerry has been trying to do all she can for her parents and vice versa, but her mother suffers from asthma, putting her into the vulnerable category. Many of her colleagues are in a similar situation and Kerry said staff are scared as they fear they could pass the virus on to at-risk and elderly relatives. However, she has taken great pride in seeing her neighbours stand on their doorsteps every Thursday evening to applaud NHS staff. "I do love my job and it just makes it so much more worthwhile when you hear people thanking you," she added. "The neighbours have been fantastic and left flowers and bottles of wine at my doorstep. It's just been so lovely." The Katsina State Police Command says bandits have killed 47 people in early morning attacks on communities in three local government areas of the state. The commands Spokesman, SP Gambo Isah, made this known in a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday in Katsina. He said that the bandits carried out the attacks in Dutsinma, Danmusa and Safana local government areas about 12:30am on April 18. The command spokesman did not give further details but said that police, army, Air Force, civil defence and DSS personnel had been deployed to restore normalcy in the affected communities. (NAN) Post Views: 36 SPRINGFIELD Citing the coronavirus pandemic, City Councilor Adam Gomez is proposing that the city consider options such as mail-in voting for the September and November elections. Gomez, the Ward 1 councilor, is pitching a council resolution to explore election preparations that would protect voter participation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Normally, well end up seeing voters and poll workers at voting places for hours," Gomez. "This is dangerous and goes against social distancing and all the measures were undertaking to prevent the spread of coronavirus." Resolutions are non-binding. The state has previously approved some voting reform measures such as early voting for some elections, but does not currently allow for blanket absentee voting, Gomez said. For the sake of the health and safety of our residents, and for the protection of our elections, that needs to change, Gomez said. The resolution will also call for discussion of options such as increased absentee ballot requests, increased polling places, and the potential of drive-up ballot drop-off stations. Gomez said some states including Oregon, Washington and Colorado conduct elections completely by mail. In Wisconsin, presidential primary voting was done in person this month in the midst of COVID-19, despite a shelter in place order in that state, Gomez said. With a shortage of poll workers, the National Guard deployed more than 2,000 troops to assist polling stations, Gomez said. Milwaukee opened only five of their 180 polling locations, hurting turnout, and increasing the average wait time to between 90 minutes and two hours, he said. The situation in Wisconsin was, quite honestly, ridiculous, Gomez said. The health and safety of voters, not to mention poll workers and even our troops, was not made a priority. That cannot be allowed to happen here. We already have the means of implementing a safe and reliable voting system; we just need the willpower and resources to make it a reality. Related Content: Thanks to sheltering in place during the coronavirus crisis, many animal shelters are empty these days. The pet adoption boom we are currently seeing is heartwarming, and a silver lining to the more anxiety-producing aspects of COVID-19. However, as families expand by welcoming a new furry friend, they need to do more planning than just figuring out how to manage vet visits and provide animal socialization in a world that requires social distancing. Pup nups can help when animal owners relationships end up on the rocks. Having this protection for your pet could be more important now than ever, considering the trends in divorce rates during these stressful times. China is reporting a record-high number of divorce requests in recent weeks, with some districts even maxing out the number of appointments available at local government offices. This trend is expected to reach the United States when the economy and divorce courts reopen. Fighting for Pet Custody in Court Divorce is not pretty. Weve all heard the heart-wrenching stories of custody battles over children, but less commonly talked about are the fights over who will keep the family pet. More and more couples are ending up in court, battling over their pets. According to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, 27% of the lawyers they surveyed noticed an uptick in the numbers of couples fighting over pet custody in the previous five years. Dogs seemed to ignite the most conflict, as 88% of the court cases involved pups. Cats trailed far behind at 5%; horses were involved in 1% of the cases; and the other category, including snakes and more, made up 6%. There are many laws that safeguard our children and ensure they get the best care and support in custody decisions. However, protections for pets are non-existent. In divorce agreements, pets are considered to be personal property or a possession, like fine china or a couch, and, typically, the pet ownership would go to the spouse who initially paid for their animal companion. Recently, Alaska, California and Illinois passed legislation to ensure that pets are treated differently than property, and that their well-being gets taken into consideration during the custody battle. Four pets each week end up in shelters in the United Kingdom as a result of a relationship breakdown, according to the animal charity Blue Cross. In some instances, the couple cant agree on who gets the pet, or, in a more disturbing scenario, one partner takes the dog or cat to a shelter as revenge on the other partner. Scheming spouses may also use the pet as a bargaining chip with the hopes that their partner will waiver on other important issues, such as finances. Taking Proactive Measures for Pets Sake In an effort to prevent sad ramifications of the Wild West nature of this area of the law, some pet-adoption organizations have started to ask up front, when a couple is first adopting a pet, who will keep this new member of the family if the couple splits. And now, in addition to a regular prenuptial agreement, an engaged couple can also sign a prenuptial agreement for their pet. Such a pup nup is meant to protect more pets in the event of marital breakups and save couples thousands of dollars in legal fees in the event of a split. According to Jaime Weiss, a seasoned matrimonial attorney who has seen many divorce cases involving beloved family pets, Many clients are also keenly focused on the cost of pet care going forward: veterinarian expenses, doggie day care, boarding, grooming, toys, nutrition and dog walkers, to name a few. This has become big business and requires attention and allocation. Fortunately, a pup nup agreement would protect the couples pet and ensure that it will receive ongoing support and care in a way that is agreed upon by both partners, in the event of a separation or divorce. Many couples have used pup nups to lay out split custody agreements and schedules, and in many cases, financial support for the pet, similar to child support. The Pup Nup Thought Process Families going through divorce can set up their pets visitation schedule to sync with the custody schedule of their child. This can help a child navigate the divorce more easily, and not add to the trauma of being away from a comforting furry friend during an already stressful time. Although many parts of these agreements are not enforceable by the court, the beauty of the pup nup is that it lays out a game plan for the pet that was thought through in a calmer, less contentious moment, when the parties were probably only thinking of their pets welfare, and not clouded by emotion. This important document is meant to keep the stress of decision-making about the beloved family pet out of the cold courtroom and gives the family some guiding principles to follow in an area where guidelines for now at least are sorely lacking. Drawing Up Your Own Pup Nup In order to obtain a pup nup, couples can contact a matrimonial attorney. Although this is a relatively new type of legal document, an experienced lawyer should be able to help you put this planning in place. While there are websites that boast easy-to fill-out pup nup agreements, these documents can do more damage than good. The money that you save with a one-size-fits-all online form could end up costing you down the line in the form of expensive litigation and court fees. The fill-in-the-blank online forms do not always say what you think they say, and boilerplate forms cannot be tailored to your specific situation and your pets needs. Unfortunately, some states may not be able to uphold pet custody agreements yet. If this is the case for where you live, the two members of the separating couple must decide how to move forward and whether they choose to honor the agreement they originally put in place. Like every other member of the family, pets are not excluded from the consequences of divorce. We must do what we can to protect their well-being for their entire lives. Trump warns China of 'consequences' over coronavirus outbreak Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 6:10 PM US president Donald Trump has warned China that it should face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the coronavirus pandemic. "It could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasn't, and the whole world is suffering because of it," Trump said in his daily White House briefing on Sunday, as he ratcheted up criticism of Beijing over its handling of the outbreak. "If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, yeah, I mean, then sure there should be consequences," he added. The US president further said the question now is whether what happened with the coronavirus was "a mistake that got out of control, or was it done deliberately?" "There's a big difference between those two," he said. The new coronavirus, which causes a respiratory disease known as COVID-19, first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, incrementally affecting the rest of the world. The virus has so far infected over 2,386,478 people worldwide, and over 164,049 have died, according to a running count by worldometers.info. Trump has repeatedly tried to link the virus to China, calling it the "China Virus" or the "Wuhan Virus." The US president and his aides have accused Beijing of a lack of transparency about the viral outbreak. Trump has also suspended aid to the World Health Organization (WHO), accusing it of being "China-centric." Analysts say Trump, who is seeking re-election in November, is trying to single out Beijing to help deflect from the shortcomings of his own response to the pandemic. The president is under fire for his handling of the crisis, as the US has become the worst-hit nation in the world with 748,209 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 39,856 deaths. Meanwhile, Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force questioned China's data, saying the country's death rate per 100,000 people was far below major European countries and the US. She also called China's numbers "unrealistic" and said it had a "moral obligation" to provide credible information. On Sunday, China reported just 16 new confirmed coronavirus cases, its lowest number since March 17 and down from 27 a day earlier. No new deaths were reported. Birx further praised European countries for alerting the US to the seriousness of the virus, including its significant impact on people with underlying health symptoms. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Chennai, April 20 : Drone company Garuda Aerospace continues to fly high by bagging three more drone based anti-coronavirus sanitisation contracts, including one from Bhopal Smart City Development Corporation, said a top company official. "We have now secured three more contracts for drone based anti-coronavirus sanitisation operations. The contracts are from Bhopal Smart City Development Corporation in Madhya Pradesh, Kurnool Municipal Corporation and Nuzvid Municipality both in Andhra Pradesh," Agnishwar Jayaprakash, Managing Director of city-based Garuda Aerospace, told IANS on Monday. According to him, the drone team currently in Andhra Pradesh will be moved to Bhopal to execute the project. New teams will reach Andhra Pradesh. Garuda Aerospace has already bagged anti-coronavirus drone based sanitisation orders from smart cities like Varanasi, Raipur, Chennai and Hyderabad. Varanasi is a star Parliamentary constituency that has sent Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Lok Sabha. The sanitisation operations in Varanasi began on Sunday. Last week, Bruce Jenks of Maple Valley Ice Cream Company in Hadley, Massachusetts, reached out to Andrew Brow of HighBrow Wood Fired Kitchen + Bar in Northampton hoping they could team up and help out the local community during the coronavirus pandemic. I was like, Of course, absolutely, said Brow. I would definitely be interested in doing that. That lead to 400 slices of pizza being donated to the staff Cooley Dickinson Hospital. [Its] just to give these people our support, Brow said. Theyre on the front lines, theyre in danger. It just uplifts their spirits really. A sincere thank you to Bruce Jenks of Maple Valley Ice Cream Company for generously purchasing and donating 200 portions... Posted by HighBrow Wood Fired Kitchen + Bar on Thursday, April 16, 2020 But it didnt end there. Brow is now teaming up with TommyCar Auto Group, Health New England and Peter Pan Bus to help deliver more meals this week. Because of these partnerships, staff at Baystate Medical Center, Cooley Dickinson Hospital and the Northampton police and fire departments will all be getting meals this week. And hes hoping for more. If any local business want to donate food to be delivered to our first responders, please reach out to us. We are now... Posted by HighBrow Wood Fired Kitchen + Bar on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 Between the partnership and the fact that his own business is staying afloat due to takeout orders, hes able to keep helping. Were just plugging away trying to help people out, he said. Just helping feed the fight. Related Content: Bhubaneswar, April 20 : The Odisha government, here on Monday, asked all people with travel history to West Bengal in the past 28 days to inform the local authorities and quarantine themselves at home. The Health Department asked the West Bengal returnees to inform the local Sarpanch, Block Development Officer/Tahasildar and isolate themselves at home. The decision has come after 10 people of the Bhadrak and Jajpur districts with recent travel history to West Bengal tested Covid-19 positive. With 13 more people testing Covid-19 positive on Monday, the coronavirus tally in Odisha has reached 74. Of the 13 new cases, five each are from Bhadrak and Jajpur, two from Balasore and one from Sundergarh district. With this, the total active cases reached 49. While 24 have been cured and discharged, one from Bhubaneswar died due to the disease. IANS cd/pcj Britain's Indian-origin Home Secretary Priti Patel is facing legal action after a former top civil servant in her department lodged an employment tribunal claim on Monday for unfair (constructive) dismissal against the government. Philip Rutnam, Permanent Secretary in the department led by Patel, had claimed a vicious and orchestrated campaign against him and pointed the finger of blame at her before stepping down. On 29 February 2020, Sir Philip Rutnam resigned as Permanent Secretary of the Home Office, indicating that he intended to pursue a claim of constructive dismissal, said Dave Penman, General Secretary of the FDA civil servants' union. This morning [Monday], Sir Philip, with the support of his legal team and the FDA, submitted a claim to the employment tribunal for unfair (constructive) dismissal and whistleblowing against the Home Secretary. Sir Philip will not be making any further comment at this time, he said. The FDA said it has instructed Gavin Mansfield of Littleton Chambers and employment law specialist as barrister, supported by Clive Howard, Senior Principal Lawyer, Employment and Partnership, at Slater and Gordon. This would mark the first case of its kind under the UK's whistleblowing laws, brought against a UK Home Secretary and the minister and her aides may have to be called in as witnesses. "We do not comment on ongoing legal proceedings," a UK government spokesperson said. While Patel has not publicly commented on Rutnam's allegations in his resignation statement, in an email to Home Office staff in the aftermath of the row the minister said she regretted Rutnam's exit. She said she "deeply cared" about the "wellbeing" of her civil servants and valued their professionalism, adding that it was time for the Home Office to come together as one team". In his statement at the time, Rutnam had alleged that he had received complaints against Patel's conduct, which included shouting and swearing, belittling people, making unreasonable and repeated demands, behaviour that created fear and needed some bravery to call out. The career bureaucrat also claimed Patel had made no effort to engage with him to discuss a flurry of claims and counter-claims emerging from the Home Office in the days leading up to his dramatic resignation. A UK Cabinet Office investigation was launched last month over whether Patel had breached the ministerial code, amid several allegations of bullying against the minister. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had offered Patel his full support at the time. I think she's a fantastic Home Secretary. Anybody who's been Home Secretary will testify that is one of the toughest jobs in government, he said at the time. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Muhammadu Buhari has reacted to the death of his friend and former Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, who died on Friday April 17 from COVID-19. In a statement released on Saturday April 18th, President Buhari described Kyari as a true patriot and loyal friend, who never sought elective office for himself. The President said he met Kyari when he was in his twenties, adding that they were friends for 42 years. Read the Presidents full statement on Abba Kyari; TO MY FRIEND, MALLAM ABBA KYARI Mallam Abba Kyari, who died on 17th April, 2020, at the age of 67 from complications caused by the Coronavirus, was a true Nigerian patriot. My loyal friend and compatriot for the last 42 years and latterly my Chief-of-Staff he never wavered in his commitment to the betterment of every one of us. He was only in his twenties when we first met. A diligent student, soon after he was blessed with the opportunity to study abroad first at Warwick and then law at the University of Cambridge. But there was never any question Abba would bring his first-rate skills and newly acquired world-class knowledge back to Nigeria which he did immediately upon graduation. Whilst possessing the sharpest legal and organisational mind, Abbas true focus was always the development of infrastructure and the assurance of security for the people of this nation he served so faithfully. For he knew that without both in tandem there can never be the development of the respectful society and vibrant economy that all Nigerian citizens deserve. In political life, Abba never sought elective office for himself. Rather, he set himself against the view and conduct of two generations of Nigerias political establishment who saw corruption as an entitlement and its practice a byproduct of possessing political office. Becoming my Chief of Staff in 2015, he strove quietly and without any interest in publicity or personal gain to implement my agenda. There are those who said of him that he must be secretive because he did not have a high public profile. But Abba was the opposite: he simply had no need, nor did he seek, the cheap gratification of the crowd; for him, there was nothing to be found in popular adulation. He secured instead satisfaction and his reward solely and only from the improvement of the governance of this great country. Working, without fail, seven days each and every week, he acted forcefully as a crucial gatekeeper to the presidency, ensuring no one whether minister or governor had access beyond another and that all those representing and serving our country were treated equally. He made clear in his person and his practice, always, that every Nigerian regardless of faith, family, fortune or frailty was heard and treated respectfully and the same. Mallam Abba Kyari was the very best of us. He was made of the stuff that makes Nigeria great. Rest In Peace, my dearest friend. To his loving wife and doting family who survive him, I extend my heartfelt sorrow at your loss. Muhammadu Buhari President, Federal Republic of Nigeria April 18, 2020. The Kurdish-led autonomous administration in northeast Syria has formally confirmed the areas first death from the coronavirus while also taking aim at the cynical nature of the United Nations modus operandi, which prioritizes relations with national governments sometimes at the expense of human lives. In an April 17 statement, the health authority of the autonomous administration said a 53-year-old man had died in Qamishli National Hospital of COVID-19. But the fact that he had perished as a result of the global pandemic was news to the administration. A sample collected from the man was sent to Damascus on March 29. But it wasnt until April 16 that local authorities in the northeast learned that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Not by the World Health Organization, not by the Syrian government. We were [rather] informed of this by a [nongovernmental organization (NGO)] that operates in our region, an official from the autonomous administration, speaking not for attribution, told Al-Monitor. Can you imagine? added the official. The health authority did not mince words: We at the Health Directorate see [the World Health Organization (WHO)] as responsible for the presence and spread of the coronavirus in our areas. It has concealed the existence of a suspected case and did not inform the autonomous administration, which is responsible for the governance of these areas. The coronavirus disaster has thrust into sharp relief the challenges faced by non-state entities in getting assistance from the international community in times of crisis in this case, from the United Nations health arm, the WHO. The latter has avoided direct dealings with the Kurdish-led entity for fear of antagonizing the Syrian government and demands that it send all samples to Damascus for testing. The approach mirrors its handling of the internationally isolated Republic of China or Taiwan. The WHO has been slammed for pandering to China and for failing to independently verify its claims about the disease, effectively leading to its spread, many claim. In a March 27 interview conducted via video link by Hong Kongs RHTK, a senior WHO adviser dodged questions when pressed about Taiwans response to the global pandemic, claiming he could not hear them. Bruce Aylward, former assistant director-general at the outfit, then went on to say, Well weve already talked about China. And when you look across all the different areas of China, theyve actually done quite a good job. China regards Taiwan as part of its territory. In a March 25 interview, the WHOs representative in Syria, Nima Saeed, sounded similarly cavalier. He told the Rojava Information Center, a research center in northeast Syria that facilitates contacts between local authorities and foreign media, that he believed the Syrian government was taking the virus very seriously. Syria confirmed its first case on March 23 after claiming for weeks that it had zero cases. The actual number of those infected is believed to be far higher. The same day Syria confirmed its first case, the Kurdish-led administration announced a series of lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the virus with its limited resources. According to a briefing prepared by NGO staff in northern and eastern Syria and seen by Al-Monitor, The risk of COVID-19 in northeast Syria is very high. Of 279 recorded public health centers, only 26 are fully functioning. No district meets the emergency threshold of at least 10 beds per 10,000 people, and just one district is home to sufficient doctors, nurses and midwives to meet emergency thresholds of at least 22 health care workers per 10,000 people. Even compared to other areas of Syria, health care capacity in northeast Syria is considered particularly low. The risks are compounded by the presence of more than 250,000 internally displaced people and refugees as well as Islamic State fighters and their families, crammed in squalid and insalubrious prisons and camps. On a positive note, Kurdish Red Crescent co-director Sherwan Bery said a new 120-bed hospital dedicated solely to coronavirus patients had been set up near the town of Hasakah. The hospital is just to focus on the COVID-19 infection cases and keep them all in the same place instead of across different hospitals, Bery told Agence France Presse. Meanwhile, some outside help arrived on April 11 from Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani. He donated two testing labs along with 1,500 testing kits following appeals from his Syrian Kurdish brethren. The administration has additionally purchased two more labs, the official briefing Al-Monitor said. The official added that the WHO had finally initiated direct contact with the administration and pledged assistance. But he said the belated outreach was well below what is anticipated and due. According to the Syria in Context newsletter, Damascus sent seven ventilators to northeast Syria on April 9. The total number of formally declared deaths related to COVID-19 in Syria is three, with 39 people testing positive. Saleh Muslim, the deputy co-chair of the Democratic Unity Party, which is part of the government in northeast Syria, acknowledged that its misleading to blame the UN per se for the dysfunction. Rather, its the countries that form it that are the problem. It should have been called The United Governments because they all promote their own agendas, not the common good, Muslim told Al-Monitor in a telephone interview. He added, In the Syrian case, we are talking about a dictatorship. What does the WHO want us to do, for us to go and lick the boots of [Syrian President] Bashar al-Assad for help? Muslim pointed to what he called a further double standard. In a March 26 statement, the WHO acknowledged that testing for suspected COVID-19 cases in northwest Syria started two days ago after a shipment of 300 tests reached a WHO partner. It went on, Some 600 additional tests will reach the laboratory in Idlib today. In other words, the WHO works in the rebel-held province of Idlib via Turkey and the Syrian government while shunning the northeast. The former al-Qaeda affiliate, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, continues to hold sway over the province despite repeated government offensives to claw it back. The Kurds sense of injustice is sharpened by the preeminent role played by their widely acclaimed men and women fighters in crushing the Islamic States so-called caliphate in Syria. To make matters worse, since January the UN has been unable to directly supply medical aid to the northeast. This is because Russia and China used their veto power in December at the UN Security Council to prevent the renewal of permission for humanitarian relief to northeast Syria from neighboring Iraq. No such veto has been applied for UN aid coming through Turkey. The Russian and Chinese moves targeting the northeast are likely calculated to pressure the Syrian Kurds into abandoning their alliance with the Americans and reaching a deal with Damascus, that would be mostly on the latter's terms. The Syrian Kurdish leadership is also being pressured by Ankara. While Turkey allows aid to be delivered via its borders to rebel-controlled areas, it denies passage to the Kurdish-controlled territory on the grounds that they are terrorists with links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the Kurdish militia that has been at war with the Turkish army since 1984. Turkey has justified its military incursions against the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeast Syria on these grounds. Its occupation of the towns of Ras al-Ain and Tell Abyad and the territory lying between them after a massive assault Ankara called Operation Peace Spring has left at least 70,000 people homeless, at the latest count. The Fish Khabur border crossing with Iraqi Kurdistan is the Syrian Kurds' sole channel for incoming aid from international donors operating outside the UN system. The SDF and its diplomatic arm, known as the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), which operate in tandem with the autonomous administration, have not convinced the international community that it is not linked to the PKK anymore, observed Charles Thepaut, a visiting fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The Syrian Kurdish group's alleged links with the PKK did not seem to bother Ankara when it was holding peace talks with Ocalan. Muslim, a chemical engineer who was educated in Istanbul, would frequently meet senior Turkish officials in Turkey while the talks were still ongoing. They collapsed in mid-2015 along with a two and a half yearlong cease-fire with the PKK. Turkey has since expanded its operations against the PKK to include the SDF. Muslim is now on Turkeys most-wanted list of terrorists. Tensions with Ankara have not been mitigated despite US and European attempts, Thepaut told Al-Monitor in emailed comments. In addition, the Self Administration has not cut ties with Damascus and is therefore not recognized as part of the opposition within the UN framework. The Turkish offensive in northeast Syria in October 2019 pushed the SDF and the SDC even further to negotiate with the Syrian regime, but Damascus always tries to further isolate northeast Syria and has been blocking the humanitarian support northeast Syria could get from the UN for years. Editor's note: April 20, 2020. This article has been updated since its initial publication. Advertisement Prof La Vecchia said: "Poland started with the lowest death rate from prostate cancer between 1970 to 1974, but then rates increased up to the year 2000, stabilized for a while and then rose again up to 2020. So Polish prostate cancer death rates are now the highest predicted. This is difficult to explain. It is possible that the recent relatively high rates are due to delayed adoption of modern diagnosis and treatment."Across the EU as a whole, the key message from these prostate cancer death rates is to adopt up-to-date surgery and radiotherapy techniques, together with newer androgen deprivation therapy. This may have a relevant impact on prostate cancer mortality even in the absence of a cure, since a proportion of elderly men may survive long enough to die from other causes. The prostate-specific antigen test, PSA, may also play a role, but it is difficult to quantify this at present. It has a major impact on incidence, but an unquantified impact on death rates."Although prostate cancer death rates are declining, the actual numbers of men dying from the disease are predicted to increase due to the EU's aging populations. In 2015 74,998 died from the disease, compared to 78,800 predicted to die in 2020.This pattern is seen in the predicted death rates, and actual numbers of deaths for all cancers in the EU and for the ten major cancers analyzed in more detail. The researchers predict that death rates from all cancers will decline by 5% in men and 4% in women between 2015 and 2020, giving death rates of 130 per 100,000 and 82 per 100,000 respectively; but the predicted numbers of deaths will increase by 5%, reaching 1,428,000 by the end of this year: 798,700 in men and 630,100 in women.The researchers looked at cancer death rates in the EU 28 Member States [3] as a whole and also in the six largest countries - France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and the UK - for all cancers, and, individually, for stomach, intestines, pancreas, lung, breast, uterus (including the cervix), ovary, prostate, bladder, and leukemias for men and women [4]. This is the tenth consecutive year the researchers have published these predictions. Prof La Vecchia and his colleagues collected data on deaths from the World Health Organization from 1970 to 2016.Prof La Vecchia said: "Overall cancer death rates in Poland are predicted to be 28% higher than the EU average for men and 21% for women. This gap between central-eastern and western Europe is due to patterns in tobacco consumption, but also to slower adoption of up-to-date prevention, disease management and treatment."In the EU as a whole, cancer death rates for men are falling. More than half of this is due to declines in death rates from tobacco-related cancers. These include not only lung cancer, which accounts for over a third of the decline but also cancers such as head and neck and bladder cancers. In other words, it is due to fewer European men smoking, which started a few decades ago."However, death rates are rising in women for cancers of the lung and pancreas; there is a predicted increase of 6% in death rates for lung cancer between 2015 and 2020 (15.1 deaths per 100,000 and about 100,000 deaths) and an increase of 1.2% in pancreatic cancer (5.6 deaths per 100,000 and 46,200 deaths). Death rates from lung cancer among women overtook those from breast cancer in 2016, and this trend is continuing. The researchers predict the death rate from breast cancer this year will be 13.5 per 100,000 (95,900 deaths), down 7.3% from 2015.Prof La Vecchia said: "Death rates from lung cancer in women have been increasing persistently in the EU over the past decade, although the rate of increase is now slowing. Between 2010 and 2020, female lung cancer rates in the EU increased from about 13 to over 15 per 100,000. In the absence of effective intervention on tobacco smoking in women, the overall rate will probably reach 16 or 17 per 100,000 in 2030 and only level off in the subsequent decade."Co-author, Dr. Eva Negri, a senior researcher at the University of Milan, said: "There are some differences between countries in female lung cancer death rates. For instance, French and Spanish rates are rising more than British or Italian ones. This again reflects smoking habits in different generations of women in various countries and underlines the importance of convincing women to give up smoking, not only in Poland or the UK, which now have the highest rates but also in France or Spain, which still have relatively low overall rates. This will help to control the persistent epidemic of lung and other tobacco-related cancers in women."Tobacco remains the main cause of cancer mortality in Europe, accounting for around 20% of total predicted cancer deaths; the marked decline in the deaths in men compared to women reflects the differences in past smoking habits between the two sexes."The researchers predict that compared to a peak rate of cancer deaths in 1988, over 5.7 million cancer deaths will be avoided in the EU in the 32-year period up to 2020. In 2020 alone, a total of 406,000 deaths from cancer are predicted to be averted (282,000 in men and 124,000 in women). For prostate cancer, 462,000 deaths will have been prevented over the 32-year period and 40,000 in 2020 alone.Co-author, Fabio Levi (MD), Emeritus Professor at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne (Switzerland), said: "Pancreatic cancer trends remain unfavorable across Europe. Control of tobacco and action on overweight, obesity, and diabetes could improve such trends. No relevant advances have been observed in the diagnosis and treatment of this cancer, which has a particularly poor prognosis. Therefore, greater investment in research is required."Source: Eurekalert Ghana's aggressive and successful tracing and testing capacity and other control mechanisms have informed the lifting of the partial lock down on Accra, Kumasi and Tema. So far, 1,042 persons, representing 1.5 per cent in excess of 60,000 tested for COVID-19, have been confirmed positive, with 67,549 (89.5 per cent), testing negative, with 99 persons recovered and discharged. In a national televised address, President Akufo-Addo indicated that 930 persons who had been isolated were responding to treatment either in their homes or in treatment facilities, and that they would later undergo the mandatory two tests to determine their status. He attributed the reason for the increase in the number of confirmed cases over the last three weeks, to the decision taken by the government and the health authorities to aggressively trace and test all contacts of infected persons. This, he said, had enabled the authorities to identify and isolate infected persons, protect the population from further infections, and better contain the spread of the virus. Ghana has since its first two record cases of COVID-19 infections on its shores, traced a total of 86,000 contacts, and tested samples of 68,591, leaving a backlog of about 18,000 persons whose test results are yet to be received. The West African country's success rate also made her the only other country in Africa to have conducted more than 60,000 tests, and "we are ranked number one in Africa in administering of tests per million people. The President stated that the decision by the government to impose restrictions on movement was backed by the data at hand, and that it's next course of action, again, was backed by the statistics available as well as science. "Indeed all that the government is doing is intended to achieve five key objectives-limit and stop the importation of the virus; contain it's 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," he said. He however urged the public not to be complacent about the country's efforts and achievements so far in containing the community spread of the virus to a large extent. He said the numbers of confirmed cases of COVID-19 would still go up due to the effective contact tracing which was still actively on-going in all the other areas across the country. The President encouraged the public to continue to adhere to all the safety and hygiene protocols, especially maintaining social distancing of at least two meters, regular handwashing with soap under running water, or use of alcohol-based hand sanitiser, having good nutrition, exercising and avoiding stress. 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. Featured Video DALLAS, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Supporting the next generation of talented forecasters and supply chain talents is part of John Galt Solution's mission to help solve the world's greatest planning challenges. The $10,000 scholarship is offered bi-annually and will be awarded to a student who demonstrates a deep commitment to their career in these fields. Eligible applicants are not required to be from the USA but should be currently enrolled full-time at an accredited USA institution for the current academic year, in supply chain management, business forecasting, or similar programs. John Galt Solutions Inc. John Galt Solutions seeks out students who not only have a passion for supply chain but also have financial need and dedication to personal growth. Great grades and scholastic accolades are commended, but a deeper emphasis is placed on those who are committed to bettering themselves and the world around them. We thoroughly enjoy learning about applicants' leadership, community, volunteer, academic and personal achievements to hear their story and learn what makes them extraordinary. Applications should also be prepared to detail the inspiration behind their pursuit of a supply chain career, and why business forecasting and supply chain are their passion. Students with a major in any field are welcome to apply, but they must demonstrate their potential as a future supply chain leader and their commitment to the supply chain world. "Reviewing and selecting our scholarship winners is one of my favorite activities of the year! It's very special to see the difference this scholarship has made in the lives of our first three recipients," said Anne Omrod, president and CEO of John Galt. "We want to continue to make a positive and much-needed transformation in someone's life and goals by supporting their passion and talent to make a meaningful difference." John Galt looks forward to receiving applications from upcoming leaders in the field and helping them to fulfill their professional goals within the supply chain solution and business forecasting industry. The application deadline is July 31, 2020, and the recipient will be announced in August. For more information and to fill in an application form, go to: https://johngalt.com/scholarship About John Galt Solutions: More than ever, companies must be able to sense and respond to the dynamics of a complex supply chain. John Galt's Atlas Planning Suite provides a comprehensive end-to-end supply chain planning solution that helps you increase forecast accuracy, optimize inventory levels and maximize supply chain performance. Since its founding in 1996, John Galt Solutions has built a proven track record of providing affordable, automated forecasting and inventory management services for consumer-driven supply chains. We have an unmatched ability to configure tailored solutions for customers, regardless of size or business challenge, that save both time and money by compressing implementation periods and delivering intelligent information that positively impacts your bottom line. Website: www.johngalt.com Contact: [email protected] Related Images image1.jpg Related Links About John Galt Solutions John Galt Solutions Resources SOURCE John Galt Solutions Inc. Related Links http://www.johngalt.com African American residents in Marion County are three times as likely as whites to have a confirmed case of COVID-19, 2 1/2 times as likely to be hospitalized and almost twice as likely to die. The Marion County Public Health Department released the data April 20 after weeks of pleading from the public for the county and state to show how the novel coronavirus has been impacting African Americans. The Indiana State Health Department released initial race data April 10, and the numbers are updated daily on the departments COVID-19 online dashboard. RELATED: E-learning transition is especially difficult for urban school districts Dr. Virginia Caine, director of the county health department, said last week during a virtual town hall co-hosted by the Recorder that African Americans made up 42% of COVID-19 deaths in Marion County, but that was the only data released at the time. The county health department also released data about age and gender. It did not include raw numbers, only rates based on population size. For example, 20 African Americans have died per 100,000 African American residents, a slight uptick from when Caine released initial data. Thats compared to 11 whites per 100,000 white residents. African Americans make up 29% of the population in Marion County, and whites make up 64% of the population, according to census data. Caine said in a statement African Americans have an increased risk of being hospitalized and dying because of the prevalence of heart disease, asthma, hypertension and other chronic conditions. We must understand this risk and use this information to help prevent infections, she said. There is also the matter of bias in the health care field often referred to as medical racism which Caine addressed in last weeks town hall. She suggested doctors need ongoing training to address those biases. In Detroit, for example, an African American man died on his chair at home from complications with COVID-19 after three hospitals turned him away when he complained about breathing difficulties and requested a test. CHART: Tracking COVID-19 in Indiana The data for Marion County is part of a nationwide trend showing COVID-19 is disproportionately harming African Americans. In Marion County, African Americans are hospitalized at a rate of 106 per 100,000, compared to 43 per 100,000 for whites. The rate of confirmed cases for African Americans is 290 per 100,000, compared to 97 per 100,000 for whites. Information about race was not available for 37% of confirmed cases and 17% of deaths included in the data. A release from the county health department said the missing data is not significant enough to reverse the disparity. Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick. African Americans are nearly twice as likely to die from COVID-19 than whites, according to data from the Marion County Public Health Department. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkey's export of electrical goods to Uzbekistan dropped by 37 percent and made up $11.5 million from January through March 2020, Turkeys Trade Ministry told Trend on April 20. In March 2020, export of electrical goods from Turkey to Uzbekistan decreased by 54 percent compared to March 2019, making up $3.3 million, the ministry noted. The export of electrical goods from Turkey to world markets from January through March 2020 amounted to $2.5 billion, which is 5.9 percent less compared to the country's total export. Turkey's export of electrical goods amounted to 5.9 percent of the countrys total export in the first quarter of 2020. In March 2020, Turkeys export of electrical goods to world markets reached $832.8 million, which is 16.1 percent less compared to the same month of 2019. The export of electrical goods from Turkey in March 2020 amounted to 6.2 percent of the country's total export. In the last 12 months (from March 2019 through March 2020), Turkeys export of electrical goods amounted to $11 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu By IANS PANAJI: As Goa notched a zero COVID-19 record on Sunday, after the last of the seven active cases tested negative, Edwin Gomes, nodal officer for the state's designated facility for coronavirus treatment, has emerged as the face of the state's fightback. The 58-year-old Head of the Medicine department at the state's only medical college, the Goa Medical College, Gomes' efforts at co-ordinating the front-lines of the COVID-19 fight and the successful treatment of all seven patients yet, has earned him a pat on the back from Health Minister Vishwajit Rane himself. "My deepest gratitude to our warriors, the excellent team of doctors headed by Dr. Edwin Gomes at Employee State (Insurance) Hospital for working tirelessly to counter the menace of the deadly virus," Rane said. FOLLOW COVID-19 LIVE UPDATES HERE Oscar Rebelo, a renowned city physician who worked with Gomes at the medical college in the past, said that the latter should get a 100 out of 100 for the sheer effort he has put in getting COVID-19 positive patients back on track, especially at the age of 58 years, when the risk of contracting the virus is relatively higher. "As doctors, all of us may or may not be exposed to the virus, by virtue of examining our patients. But with Edwin and his team, they were 100 per cent exposed to the virus at the COVID hospital," Dr. Rebelo said. "He was one year junior to me (at the medical college). He is a sincere fellow devoted to his work. It needs guts to work in the COVID hospital, where you are surrounded with the virus all the time," Shekhar Salkar, former president of the Goa unit of the Indian Medical Association also said. Gomes, as the nodal official in-charge of the desinated COVID-19 hospital, led three teams of medical professionals, including junior consultant doctors, nurses and support staff, who worked in shifts. The state's first active case of COVID-19 to be cured, Edgar Remedios has said, that it was not just the medicine, but the manner in which Gomes puts you at ease, which is also a part of his healing potion. "Dr. Gomes is the one who resurrected me. To put me at ease, he himself would take an anxiety tablet with me, because he was also under stress. He just calmed my nerves. I have great gratitude for me," Remedios said. American actor Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson were the first celebrities to reveal that they tested positive for the coronavirus last month. In a recent radio show, Hanks detailed on how different the symptoms were for the couple and said his wife went through a tougher time than he did. The 63-year-old actor spoke with The National Defense Radio Show on Thursday about his and Wilson's experiences. "Rita went through a tougher time than I did, she had a much higher fever. She had lost her sense of taste and sense of smell. She got absolutely no joy from food for a better part of three weeks," Variety quoted Hanks as saying. He said that he had some "bad body aches and was very fatigued." Later he added that Wilson "was so nauseous, she had to crawl on the floor from the bed to the facilities." The pair reportedly spent five days in a Queensland, Australia, hospital before remaining in isolation for weeks. Following their recovery, the duo was spotted for the first time at their Los Angeles home in late March. As cited by Variety, the Academy Award winner also mentioned that he would try to do basic exercises while undergoing treatment in the hospital, but "I was wiped" after only 12 minutes into a 30-minute set. Also read: Tom Hanks wife, Rita Wilson opens up about extreme Chloroquine side effects, coronavirus symptoms Earlier, Wilson confirmed that while she and Hanks still do not know for sure where or from whom they contracted the virus, they've learned they were both exposed to it "at the same time." Wilson and Hanks were in Australia when their tests for the novel virus came back positive. Hanks had been in the land down under filming an upcoming Elvis biopic before director Baz Luhrmann suspended filming. Follow @htshowbiz for more United Airlines reported a $2.1billion pre-tax loss on Monday for the first quarter and says it will seek another $4.5billion in government aid after the coronavirus pandemic nearly halted air travel completely. Chicago-based United said first quarter revenues are seen at $8billion, down 17 per cent from a year earlier, with the bulk of the declines in the last two weeks of March as coronavirus outbreaks accelerated globally, causing an average daily revenue loss of $100million. The results are preliminary and final first-quarter numbers may change, it said, without disclosing a date for publication. Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines are to report first-quarter results this week. Scroll down for video United Airlines reported a $2.1billion pre-tax loss on Monday for the first quarter and says it will seek another $4.5billion in government aid after the coronavirus pandemic nearly halted air travel completely Shares in United were down about 2.2 per cent at $28.42 during afternoon trading With few people flying, United said it plans to operate only about 10 per cent of its normal schedule in May and June. United will be receiving about $5billion from the US government to cover payroll through September 30. While United has not furloughed any of its employees, company officials said they may have to downsize in October if demand does not show signs of recovering. 'The government funding we expect to receive soon is helpful in the near-term because we can protect our employees in the US from involuntary furloughs and pay rate cuts through the end of September,' United CEO Oscar Munoz said in a letter to employees. 'But the challenging economic outlook means we have some tough decisions ahead as we plan for our airline, and our overall workforce, to be smaller than it is today, starting as early as October 1,' Munoz added. In addition to $5billion, United said it also expects to borrow up to about $4.5billion from the US Treasury Department for up to five years. Once the terms are finalized, it will have until the end of September to decide whether to draw the money. If it borrows the full amount, United would issue warrants for the Treasury to buy 14.2 million shares at its April 9 closing price of $31.50 per share. While United has not furloughed any of its employees, company officials said they may have to downsize in October if demand does not show signs of recovering Shares in United were down about 2.2 per cent at $28.42 during afternoon trading. The estimated first-quarter loss includes just over $1billion in special charges, mainly reflecting a reserve on a loan United made in connection with an investment in Colombia's Avianca Holdings as part of its plans for a larger tie-up in Latin America. The loan was backed by a controlling interest in Avianca, which has not flown any passenger flights since March 24 as its main Colombia and El Salvador hubs shut down their air spaces. Avianca has furloughed half of its staff with no pay and has not publicly disclosed when it expects to fly again as governments in Latin America repeatedly extend quarantines. United also wrote down the value of its investments in Brazilian carrier Azul Linhas Aereas Brasileiras and took a $50million impairment charge for its routes in China, where the coronavirus first started to affect travel in January. Multiple US airlines will be receiving funding from the government under the CARES Act. The nation's biggest airlines have tentatively agreed to terms for $25 billion in government aid to pay workers and avoid massive layoffs in an industry that has been slammed by the coronavirus pandemic. The assistance will include a mix of cash and loans, with the government getting warrants that can be converted into small ownership stakes in the leading airlines. Multiple US airlines, including Delta (parked planes pictured in Kansas City, Missouri), American and Southwest, will be receiving funding from the government under the CARES Act Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (left) said Tuesday that the department would work to finalize the deals and hand over the money as quickly as possible Ten airlines including Delta, American, United and Southwest fell in line after objecting to some of the Treasury Department's demands. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday that the department would work to finalize the deals and hand over the money as quickly as possible. He said talks were continuing with other carriers. The airlines entered 2020 riding a decade-long hot streak in which together they earned tens of billions of dollars due to strong travel demand. They bought new planes, enriched shareholders, and hired thousands more workers. That streak came to a crashing end in just a few weeks, as governments restricted travel to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, and people feared contracting the illness on a plane. Air travel ground to a near complete halt. Airlines cut thousands of flights, and those that remain often carry just a few passengers. With the payroll grants, airlines and their workers got special treatment in last month's $2.2trillion measure designed to help businesses and workers get through the pandemic, which has hit every sector of the economy. President Donald Trump perhaps mindful of criticism that the government was bailing out a previously profitable industry said the deals will support airline workers and protect taxpayers. 'Our airlines are now in good shape, and they will get over a very tough period of time that was not caused by them,' Trump said. The rapid spread of the coronavirus has nearly halted all air travel as millions of Americans became fearful of contracting the virus on planes. There are more than 779,000 cases in the US The payroll aid is roughly based on each airline's spending on wages and benefits from April through September 2019. American Airlines said Treasury approved $5.8billion for the airline a $4.1billion grant and a $1.7billion low-interest loan. CEO Doug Parker called it 'fantastic news,' and 'we now believe we have the financial resources necessary to help us withstand this crisis'. Delta Air Lines said it reached agreement with Treasury for $5.4billion a $3.8billion grant and a $1.6billion loan. CEO Ed Bastian said that the aid, along with cutting 80 per cent of its schedule and having 35,000 employees agree to voluntary leave, will let Delta operate a minimal schedule for people who must travel. Southwest Airlines said it expects to get $3.2billion, including more than $2.3billion in cash and the balance in an unsecured loan. NASA is relying on the skills and experience of an active-duty Air Force colonel and a retired Marine colonel to put the U.S. back in the business of manned space launches after a nine-year hiatus. NASA "will once again launch American astronauts on American rockets from American soil," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a tweet Friday. For the first time since the space shuttles were retired in 2011, a manned space vehicle will go on a mission to the International Space Station, tentatively set for liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 27, NASA announced Friday. Related: $90 Million Per Seat? Boeing's Space Capsule Draws Criticism Air Force Col. Bob Behnken, 49, of Creve Coeur, Missouri, and retired Marine Col. Doug Hurley, 53, of Endicott, New York, both test pilots and veterans of space shuttle flights, are to be at the controls of the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft owned and operated by SpaceX, the firm founded by technology entrepreneur Elon Musk. Behnken flew twice aboard space shuttle Endeavour in 2008 and 2010, accumulating more than 37 hours in space walks. Hurley flew aboard space shuttle Endeavour in 2009 and was the pilot for the last shuttle mission aboard space shuttle Atlantis in July 2011. Behnken will be the joint operations commander for the mission, and as such will be responsible for activities such as rendezvous and docking and undocking with the space station, NASA said. Hurley will be the spacecraft commander, responsible for launch and landing. Currently, there are three astronauts aboard the International Space Station: Russians Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner, and NASA astronaut Christopher Cassidy. Since the shuttles were retired, NASA has relied on Russian rockets and spacecraft to get American astronauts to and from the space station, at a cost of about $80 million per astronaut. The scheduled May 27 launch would be a historic milestone for NASA, marking the first time that U.S. astronauts are carried into orbit on a spacecraft owned and operated by a private entity, rather than a federal agency. Boeing is also under contract with NASA to develop a vehicle for manned space flight, but its Starliner spacecraft program suffered a series of setbacks in testing. -- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com Read More: Military Travel Ban Extended Until June 30; Some Restrictions Eased Proposals for a "virtual parliament" during the coronavirus outbreak will cost nearly 370,000 a month to implement, according to the Commons authorities. MPs are expected to approve a motion to allow digital Commons sittings when they return to Westminster on Tuesday amid concern over lack of parliamentary scrutiny of the government's handling of the Covid-19 outbreak. Under a so-called hybrid model, up to 120 of the 650 MPs will be able to tune in to question sessions and statements using video-conferencing, while some 50 MPs will be allowed to sit in the Commons chamber. Screens will be set up inside the chamber to allow ministers to see MPs taking part in the debate, and Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle will call parliamentarians to speak from a list - meaning no heckling or interventions will be allowed. Commons clerk Dr John Benger revealed the running costs could hit nearly 370,000 per month but said it was difficult to estimate the final total without knowing the length of the coronavirus outbreak. In a memo on the project, he said: "Some of this expenditure had been planned for inclusion in future estimates, but this timeframe has been accelerated to meet the demands of implementing the hybrid model. "The initial cost of development has already been endorsed by the House of Commons Commission costing 148,793. The running costs for maintaining this system are estimated at 369,267 per month. "The actual expenditure by the House of Commons will depend on the length of time the model is required, and any additional changes which may be made to it. This makes the estimation of the total financial consequences difficult to calculate at this point." Parliament rose a week early for the Easter recess following concerns about the spread of coronavirus, with a number of MPs and staff affected. Under the new plans, the Commons and the Lords will only sit for three days a week, with question sessions in the lower chamber limited to two hours. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou It comes as campaigners criticised the decision by Lords authorities to hold meetings privately for the first two weeks of the new system, compared to the Commons which will be broadcast live. Darren Hughes, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society told The Independent: Voters across the world expect to see the legislators they are paying: its a core part of democratic transparency. "This seems to be another sign of the Lords failing to meet the democratic standards voters expect." Both chambers are understood to have been given different briefs on what was required for parliamentarians, which has led to the temporary discrepancy between the Commons and the Lords. Select committees will continue to operate virtually, with up to 20 hearings expected per week. If the plans are approved, the new system will kick off on Wednesday with Welsh questions, followed by prime minister's questions. Discussions are also understood to be ongoing behind the scenes on proposals for remote voting, to prevent MPs being forced to walk through crowded voting lobbies. Burma After Deadly Shelling, Villagers Arrested in Myanmar's Rakhine State Victims of an artillery strike are seen in Kyauk Seik Village in Rakhine States Ponnagyun Township on April 13, 2020. / Facebook The Myanmar military arrested 39 residents of Kyauk Seik Village in Rakhine States Ponnagyun Township on Sunday, less than a week after eight civilians were killed by artillery strikes on the village near the state capital, Sittwe, on April 13. Military spokesman Brigadier General Zaw Min Tun told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the Tatmadaw (as the military is known) arrested 38 villagers and an administrator on suspicion of affiliation with the AA [Arakan Army]. We will interrogate them and if we find any wrongdoing, we will take action in accordance with the laws, he added. A 9-year-old boy was among the eight people who were killed on April 13 when three artillery shells, reportedly fired by a Myanmar military battalion, struck the village. The village is on the Yangon-Sittwe Highway, just a 40-minute drive from Sittwe. According to both local residents and the Myanmar military spokesman, the main clash between Tatmadaw and AA troops occurred at Pauk Taw Pyin and Painnae Taw villages, some 3 miles (nearly 5 kilometers) from Kyauk Seik. Brig-Gen Zaw Min Tun told The Irrawaddy on April 13 that there was no fighting near Kyauk Seik Village on that day. Rather, he said, a clash occurred in Pauk Taw Pyin Village two days earlier. He also denied that any villages were struck by artillery shells on April 13. Citing reports from local villagers, U Khin Maung Latt, an Upper House lawmaker representing Ponnagyun Township, said a military unit arrived at Kyauk Seik Village at around 7 a.m. on Sunday morning and asked the village administrator to assemble all the residents. But as many villagers had fled their homes following the incidents, in which three artillery strikes killed eight people and injured 13 on April 13, only a few people remained in the village. There were 39 men in total, including the administrator. They were tied up and taken away, he told The Irrawaddy. U Ba Shwe, a Kyauk Seik villager whose sons Ko Ye Thet Naing, 22, and Ko Ye Htoo Naing, 18, were among the 39 detainees, told The Irrawaddy that the men were taken at 1 p.m. in the afternoon from administrator U Aye Tuns home. U Ba Shwe told The Irrawaddy on Monday that, Ye Thet Naing is an employee of the [governments] Cooperative Department, who returned home for the Thingyan holidays. My other son, Ye Htoo Naing, is a high school student. A colonel who took them told me that he would just hold them temporarily and they would be released later. But they are not guilty of anything. I want them to be released quickly. Lawmaker U Khin Maung Latt said the villagers could tell the artillery shells were fired by the Myanmar militarys Light Infantry Battalion No. 550 based in Ponnagyun, as the shelling caused vibrations and shook nearby communities. He said, It should not happen. This is mass killing and mass detention. These are crimes and the government needs to investigate, as it has a responsibility to protect the livelihoods of the people. Fighting between the military and the AAwhich the government declared a terrorist group on March 23in conflict-torn Rakhine State and adjacent Chin State has caused more than 160,000 people to flee their homes, according to the Rakhine Ethnic Congress. Hundreds of people have been killed, injured or detained by both armies (the Myanmar military and the AA) since November 2018. In Myanmar, the government has been focusing its efforts on fighting the spread of the coronavirus since the countrys first case of COVID-19 was reported on March 23. As of Monday, 111 people had been infected with the virus, with five fatalities. In contrast, in a little over a month from March 13 to April 17, by The Irrawaddys count 43 people died and nearly 60 were injured in Rakhine States Ponnagyun, Minbya, Ann and Kyauktaw townships and Chin States Paletwa Township in artillery and military air strikes. Daw Ma Phyu, 66, from Nan Chaung Wa Village in Paletwa Township, which borders Rakhine State, was still in Mandalay Hospital receiving treatment on her left arm, which was broken when she was struck by shrapnel during a military air strike on April 8. Seven Nan Chaung Wa villagers died and seven others, including Daw Ma Phyu, were injured on that day when fighting erupted near their village at 8 a.m., followed by air strikes, according to local residents. We are still waiting for her to have an operation, said U Htaung Ko, a nephew of Daw Ma Phyu. Other people who sustained minor injuries are still at Paletwa Hospital, where all of the villages other residents are now taking shelter. In Paletwa, 3,657 people from nearby villages, including Nan Chaung Wa, are taking shelter. Relief supplies of rice only reached them on Sunday after being delayed for a few days for security reasons. We delivered 830 bags of rice, but it will only last about a week to 10 days, said Mai Nang Wai, who raises funds for the Relief and Rehabilitation Committee for Chin IDPs (RRCCI). Since the fighting intensified, some 9,000 villagers have become internally displaced persons in downtown Paletwa and nearby Samee Township, according to the RRCCI. Samee, some 65 km from Paletwa, hosts some 2,900 IDPs, who fled their homes in Meiksa Wa, Wetma and Pyaing Tain villages in mid-March. A total of 21 villagers were killed and about two dozen were injured when Myanmar military fighter jets opened fire on those villages between March 13 and 15. Ko Sanay, a Meiksa Wa villager who is currently taking shelter in Samee, said many of the 26 people who were injured in the March air strikes are recovering, but a few are still being treated in Mindat and Mandalay hospitals. They are not able to return to Samee, as a lockdown and travel restrictions are in place due to COVID-19, he told The Irrawaddy on Monday. We still hear the sound of gunfire everyday. We want the fighting to stop as soon as possible, so that we can return home, he added. Htet Naing Zaw and Min Aung Khine contributed to this report. You may also like these stories: Myanmar President Orders Officials to Preserve Evidence of Rakhine Atrocities Myanmar Presidential Pardon Condemned for Exclusion of Political Prisoners Dallas, Texas, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RealManage is pleased to announce the promotion of Rolando Coronado to Division President. He will oversee operations for North and Central Texas. Mr. Coronado joined RealManage in 2019 as a Senior Vice President over its Dallas-Fort Worth community management operations. Due to his incredible success in a leadership role for the North Texas market, his promotion now to takes on the Central Texas operations, where he will help them to reach their next level of success and expansion as well. Sandra Vela Mora, Executive Vice President of Operations, states, Rolando is a tremendous asset to not only branches under his guidance but for the future success of our company as a whole. His business experience, industry knowledge, communication skills, and grit ensure we will achieve the levels of success RealManage always strives for. Rolando is a professional who has been specializing in the community association industry for numerous years. Under his leadership, Rolando has successfully lead his region into becoming true customer care advocates for the client communities they serve. I am excited about the new challenge and grateful to be working with great leadership and fantastic team members in the North & Central Texas markets, states Rolando. Together, we will continue to build on the values of our company and always work to exceed our clients expectations in the communities we serve. About RealManage RealManage is a community management company that specializes in HOA and condominium management. The company manages over fifteen hundred community associations throughout California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, Texas, and Washington. Management services provided to homeowner associations (HOAs), condominium associations, cooperatives, municipal utility districts, luxury high-rises, and large master-planned communities. Learn more about RealManage at realmanage.com. Story continues Connect with Us: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Subscribe to RealManage Insights Blog Amanda Causey RealManage info@realmanage.com Nearly every aspect of daily life has moved online as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but voting via the internet is still largely a non-starter. The big picture: Officials grappling with making elections compatible with social distancing are focusing on tried-and-true methods like mail-in ballots rather than online voting platforms, which have a limited track record and raise major election security concerns. Details: Before the pandemic, states including Utah, Washington and Oregon had been experimenting with online voting on a limited basis. West Virginia let overseas residents and troops vote via mobile devices in the 2018 federal election, and is expanding that option to people with physical disabilities for its June primary. However, West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner told Axios he doesn't envision the pandemic moving the state to expand mobile voting further. Instead, West Virginia has mailed absentee ballot applications for the primary to all registered voters. Between the lines: The technology just isn't there yet to build a wide-scale online voting system that supports both a secret ballot and auditable elections, said Dan Guido, co-founder and CEO of cybersecurity firm Trail of Bits. Guido's team uncovered problems with Voatz, a mobile voting platform that's been used in West Virginia and other states. (West Virginia plans to use a different provider Democracy Live for Junes primary, and Voatz says its working to fix the issues that Trail of Bits found.) More broadly, Guido said online voting is still in its "infancy." "It's not something where we're going to hackathon our way to a solution," he told Axios. "The kinds of technical advances required are something that require smart people to make progress over inches over time." What they're saying: Voatz and Democracy Live agree that it's not time yet for online voting at scale. But, as the pandemic drags on, they're drawing more interest from states in trialling their tech on a targeted basis. "We disagree if somebody is saying that we are not ready for pilots and we're not ready for maybe one state," said Voatz chief of staff Hilary Braseth. "We think that this is the time to do that. And especially in the landscape of a pandemic, it would be a disservice to our critical infrastructure to not be testing." Democracy Live President Bryan Finney said his firm doesn't offer fully online voting, as it generates a paper copy to be printed by voters or vote counters. Tusk Philanthropies, which funds mobile voting pilot programs, expects at least three jurisdictions to announce they're expanding online voting for some voters this month, president Sheila Nix said. "We've got to be trying to do everything we can to make it easier for people to vote, and the pandemic situation just shows the urgency of getting it done right," said Nix, who noted that people already use their phones for banking, boarding planes and other high-security transactions. Yes, but: States are already facing budget crunches and can't spend big on cybersecurity, as banks do all while still accepting a risk of fraud that states likewise can't afford. "It is OK for 1% of all [the banks'] transactions to be mistakes. It is not OK for 1% of all your votes to be mistakes," Guido said. Where it stands: Federal lawmakers concerned about the coronavirus are looking to conventional alternatives to flooding the polling places on Election Day. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside A healthcare worker of the Medical Emergency Services of Madrid (SUMMA 112) UVI-6 unit, wearing a protective suit, visits a suspected COVID-19 patient at her home in Madrid. AFP Photo Berlin: Parts of Europe hit hard by the deadly coronavirus pandemic took tentative steps towards resuming normal lives on Monday, with Germany allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarting nurseries. There were encouraging signs over the weekend in Europe with daily death tolls dropping in Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open on Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Adding another flicker of hope in Europe, Norway allowed children to go back to nurseries on Monday, although some parents expressed reservations over the decision. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month, and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". Authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. In the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the outbreak was "on the descent". Cuomo cautioned that it was "no time to get cocky", although the warmer weather lured New Yorkers out of their homes and into parks over the weekend. "I feel a little guilty being here, at the same time for my own mental sanity this is probably what I need," said real estate agent Taylor Henderson at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Across the other side of the world, New Zealand announced Monday that it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." Iran, which has the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, also allowed some "low-risk" businesses to reopen Saturday. Internal migrant workers across India are confronting increasingly harsh conditions, including lack of food and starvation, and unhygienic, overcrowded accommodation, as a result of the governments coronavirus lockdown. Prime Minister Modis 21-day lockdown was announced on March 24 without any prior warning or any substantial plan to provide the basic needs of working people and the rural toilers. This has brought immense hardship to millions of workers who are employed as daily low-wage workers in the textile, leather, retail, tourism, construction and other sectors. When their workplaces closed, these workers had no money to buy food or pay rent and wanted to return to their home villages. Last Tuesday, the governments callous attitude toward these workers was displayed when police in Mumbai violently attacked protesting internal migrants. A group of workers who have been trapped in Mumbai without their wages gathered to demand transport facilities to get back to their villages hundreds of kilometres away. They were attacked by the police who arrested 11 people, including a television journalist. The incident is part of the growing wave of protests, walkouts and strikes by workers around the world against the appalling conditions they face amid the pandemic. While the financial elites are using the crisis to enrich themselves, as indicated by rising stock market values, the masses are trapped in ever-worsening and life-threatening social conditions. With all public transport halted, up to 600,000 migrant workers were confronted with having to walk hundreds of kilometres to reach their villages. Those who failed to do so were herded into temporary shelters arranged by state governments. The shelters are unhygienic and without adequate amenities, including food and water. In most cases, the only meals are provided by charities and NGOs rather than state government authorities. The rising anger of daily wage earners exploded on April 14 when Modi announced that the lockdown would be extended until May 3. At around 4 p.m., a few hours after Modis announcement, jobless migrant workers in Mumbai, including many from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, gathered at a railway station in Mumbai demanding transport back to their villages. Their numbers quickly swelled to around 1,500. West Bengal worker Asadullah Sheikh told the Week magazine: We have already spent our savings during the first phase of the lockdown. We have nothing to eat now. Police responded by declaring the protest an unlawful assembly and accusing the participants of rioting and disobedience. Later that night, they arrested Vinay Dubey and several others. Dubey posted a video on a Facebook page in which he declared: We are stuck at home. We are dying. So we might as well die fighting. The posting has gone viral. The Hindu reported on April 15, a day after the protest, that the posting was liked by 16,000 people and shared by 15,000. Television journalist Rahul Kukarni was among those arrested. Police claim that he had reported that train services would be resuming. This outside agitation allegedly prompted the protest. According to the Scroll.in web site, Kulkarni had reported an internal note by South Central Railway authorities that suggested a decision to run special trains for stranded people. The police attack on the demonstration is a desperate attempt to divert political attention from the governments failure to provide any real assistance to these low-paid workers. The Mumbai protest was not unique to that city. That night in Surat, in the neighbouring state of Gujarat, hundreds of migrant workers held a sit-down protest on a road in the Varachha area on Tuesday evening demanding to be sent home. Surat is a busy seaport and a commercial and economic centre. Eighty migrant workers were arrested four days earlier, on April 10, for staging a protest and demanding they be sent back to their home villages. Migrant workers demonstrations have been held in other states, including Haryana, New Delhi, Telangana and Kerala. Participants voiced their anger to the News.18 site last Wednesday. News.18 reported that most of the workers were attempting to survive on just one meal per day and were entirely dependent on donations from charities. It cited a comment from Manohar Kumar, a construction worker stuck in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad, who said he was living on rice and starch, which was doubling up both as dinner and lunch. Kumar added: Some of my co-workers are planning to go to the nearest police station and demand transport to return home. He explained that he was so desperate to escape the appalling conditions created by the lockdown that he had even considered walking the 350 kilometres to his home. There are currently over one million people unable to return to their home cities and villages, trapped in so-called relief camp accommodation. Government authorities are currently running over 22,500 of these camps, accommodating about 630,000 people. The remaining 400,000 people are in 3,909 NGO-run facilities. These facilities are dangerously cramped and unhygienic. While the World Health Organisation and other medical experts insist that social distancing must be practised, this is impossible for those stranded in these camps. According to a recent survey by Jan Sahas, an NGO, 90 percent of migrant workers have lost their only source of income since the lockdown began and four out of 10 lack enough resources for one days rations. The extension of lockdown until May 3 will worsen the situation they face. The Indian ruling elites, like their capitalist counterparts around the world, refuse to provide the most minimal requirements to sustain the lives of millions of the poorest and most exploited sections of the working class. Cookie Preferences Cookie List Cookie List A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website when visited by a user asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes: Strictly Necessary Cookies We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more. Functional Cookies We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more. Performance Cookies We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more. Sale of Personal Data We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website. Social Media Cookies We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website. Targeting Cookies We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website. Reach key decision makers with sales-ready leads that shorten your sales process. Move the needle by delivering funnel qualified leads to your sales team. Learn more E-commerce account takeovers increased 347 percent and shipping fraud jumped 391 percent from 2018 to 2019, a fraud and identity solutions company reported Tuesday. Fraudsters are gaining access to accounts using credential stuffing, romance scams, social engineering, phishing or hacking, noted TransUnion, formerly Iovation, in its Global E-Commerce in 2020 report. The three-digit rise in account takeovers is connected to the rash of data breaches over the last decade, according to Angie White, a senior manager at TransUnion. Weve gotten to a critical mass, she told the E-Commerce Times. Fraudsters are seeing that stolen personal information can be used for account takeovers. Theyre also realizing that taking over an account gives them more than just access to an e-commerce website. Customer accounts are loaded with valuable personal information, the report notes. They are a prime target for criminals, who use sophisticated tactics to break in, steal credit cards and make fraudulent purchases from these accounts. Fastest-Growing Segment E-commerce has become the fastest-growing segment for account takeovers, White pointed out. Its above online banking, gambling and insurance, she said. Part of the reason for that is that e-commerce merchants have been so reluctant to drive up friction and cart abandonment that fewer controls have been put in place to stop account takeover. Problems arising from the COVID-19 pandemic could compound the problem. Moving large numbers of employees to work from home can create the kind of distraction fraudsters thrive on, observed Chris Clements, vice president of solutions architecture at Cerberus Sentinel, a managed services and consulting company in Scottsdale, Arizona. As workforces transition to working from home, they can lose the protections of centralized security technologies their companies have implemented on their office networks, he told the E-Commerce Times. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Security staff that are normally tasked with detecting fraud can miss attacks due to distraction or from drastic changes in business that their monitoring is unprepared for, he explained. Shipping Fraud Scarcity created by the virus also could contribute to account takeover. There are extreme shortages and purchasing restrictions on many common household and business items from obvious and widely reported goods such as toilet paper and hand sanitizer, to remote work tools such as laptops and tablets, noted Josh Bohls, CEO of Inkscreen, a maker of enterprise mobility security solutions in Austin, Texas. This leads buyers to look for alternative sources of product, and it opens them to buying brands they would have otherwise ignored, clearing the way for fraudulent websites to promote fake or nonexistent inventory and harvest credit card data, he told the E-Commerce Times. Even Amazon is having trouble validating new sellers and products, Bohls added. Shipping fraud is another attack vector attracting Web predators. The growth in e-commerce has led to a dramatic increase in shipping fraud, with more fraud rings accessing customer accounts and email accounts to track and redirect in-transit shipments before delivery, the report notes. It makes a lot sense that you would see corresponding increases in both account takeovers and shipping fraud, TransUnions White said. The two are pretty closely linked. All About Mobile The mobile sphere is now of prime importance to e-commerce. E-commerce today is all about mobile and declining brand loyalty, as consumers want to be able to shop from anywhere, from any retailer of their choosing, globally, the report explains. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Research shows that 78 percent of e-commerce transactions come from mobile devices, and global e-commerce is climbing rapidly in 2019, it was projected to increase by 20.7 percent to $3.5 trillion, it notes. However, the brick-and-mortar infrastructure remains critically important to retailers, as the majority of consumers prefer to make purchases in-store, and e-commerce only represents 14 percent of total global retail sales, according to the report. Meanwhile, all that mobile e-commerce transaction activity has caught the eye of fraudsters. Risky transactions from mobile devices increased year-over-year by 118 percent, the report points out. Small Screen, Big Attack Vector While shopping with a mobile phone may be convenient for some consumers, it does pose risks that usually are avoided on a desktop computer. Shopping on a mobile device is often faster and easier, but the limited screen real estate leads to less scrutiny of websites, apps and products, Inkscreens Bohls said. I have not seen the research on this, but I feel that mobile shoppers are more prone to tap to buy without the same level of due diligence they might have on a computer, he remarked. Its harder for shoppers to determine if theyre on a legitimate website with a mobile phone, said Chris Hazelton, director of security solutions at Lookout, a provider of mobile phishing solutions in San Francisco. Ad networks can point mobile users to legitimate retailers websites, but malicious adware can just as easily send buyers to a scam site, he told the E-Commerce Times. The right now economy has trained buyers that they can satisfy a need with a couple of clicks, he continued. Paired with this immediacy that is often part of mobile commerce, users often overlook key indicators of phishing and malicious websites. Keeping Pace With Fraudsters An organization is only as strong as its weakest link, and the same can be said for fraud in retail, observed Jack Mannino, CEO of nVisium, a Herndon, Virginia-based application security provider. As brick-and-mortar shopping became more secure with the adoption of credit cards with the EMV chip, fraudsters began to migrate online, he told the E-Commerce Times. That resulted in a rise in card-not-present fraud, but over time retailers implemented more and more robust fraud detection measures in the desktop online shopping experience, Mannino noted. However, mobile devices and mobile shopping have not been afforded the same measures, he pointed out. Some of that has to do with the technology mobile IP addresses are constantly changing and some due to the fact that retailers dont recognize these protections for mobile shopping exist, Mannino said. As we see companies start to implement more biometric authentication, we will hopefully see a reduction in mobile e-commerce fraud. Chinas latest activities in the South China Sea have triggered a strong protest from rival claimant Vietnam, which said the move seriously violated its sovereignty. The complaint came after China announced on Sunday that it had set up two new administrative districts on the Paracel and Spratly Islands. The two districts which China referred to as Xisha and Nansha will be under the control of Sansha, a city the Chinese government created in 2012 to assert its claims over the South China Sea. Vietnams foreign ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang issued a statement of protest on Sunday, and said the move would further complicate the situation in the South China Sea. These acts are not conducive to the development of the friendly relations between countries and further complicate the situation in the East Sea [Vietnams name for the South China Sea], the region and the world, she said. Vietnam demands that China respect Vietnams sovereignty and annul its wrongful decisions and not repeat similar activities in the future. Under the new plan, the new district of Xisha will be in charge of Paracel Islands, which are also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan. The Nansha district will manage the Spratly Islands, where there are also multiple competing claims. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday that the establishment of the new districts was in line with Chinas normal administrative rules. China has been resolutely opposing Vietnams words and deeds that undermine Chinas sovereignty and rights and interests in the South China Sea, and will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard Chinas sovereignty and rights and interests. he said in a press conference Vietnam is the only claimant which has publicly protested about the move so far. But Zhang Mingliang, an specialist in Southeast Asian politics with Jinan University, said it was likely to have alarmed other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). Story continues Setting up such districts will not have much use or actual benefit, and it will cause opposition among the Asean states, many of which have long been suspicious of Chinas intentions over the South China Sea, said Zhang. The coronavirus outbreak has already caused some grievances among them towards China, even though they have not been as vocal as the Western countries, he said. Richard Heydarian, an academic and former Philippine government adviser, described the move as China taking advantage of a strategic vacuum created by the Covid-19 crisis. On the one hand its engaging in face mask diplomacy [providing medical supplies to other countries] but on the other hand its on the offensive, he said. All of them should be seen as part of one package in which China seizes the strategic opportunity of not only its neighbouring countries scrambling to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, but also the US Navys suspension of overseas appointments. China has recently become involved in a series of stand-off with other claimants in the contested waters. A Chinese government survey ship reportedly tagged an exploration vessel operated by Malaysia's state oil company Petronas in the area, and remained off the Malaysian coastline as of late Sunday. Earlier this month, Vietnam lodged an official protest with China after a Vietnamese fishing boat sunk after a collision in the Paracel Islands. 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. More from South China Morning Post: This article Vietnam accuses Beijing of seriously violating sovereignty in South China Sea first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020. ACCRA, GHANA Monday, April 20, 2020Today, Zipline, the world's only national scale on-demand drone delivery service, announced that it has begun delivering COVID-19 test samples. Zipline drones now fly test samples collected from patients in more than 1,000 health facilities located in difficult to reach rural areas of Ghana to Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research laboratories in Accra, the nation's capital, and Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research (KCCR) in Kumasi, the country's second-largest city. The revolutionary new service improves the Government of Ghana's ability to monitor the spread of COVID-19 more quickly. It is one of several ways Zipline is helping the country respond to the pandemic. "Zipline is dedicated to helping Ghana in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic," said Zipline CEO Keller Rinaudo. "Using contactless drone delivery to transport COVID-19 test samples will allow the government to respond to the pandemic and help save lives more quickly." Thanks to the partnership with the Ministry of Health and with the help of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Zipline is now able to further strengthen Ghana's response to the pandemic, said Daniel Marfo, General Manager of Zipline in Ghana. The service began on Friday, April 17, when 51 COVID-19 test samples collected from patients at rural health facilities were transported to Zipline's distribution center in Omenako, Ghana. Over the course of four separate flights, each more than 70 miles/116km's round tip, Zipline delivered the 51 samples to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra for testing and analysis. The company will also be delivering COVID-19 test samples collected at regional hospitals near its Mampong distribution center to the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research, a nearly 60 mile/100km round trip flight. The first such delivery took place on Saturday, April 18, 2020. The company expects to operate this new daily service for the duration of the Government's COVID-19 response efforts. This marks the first time in history that autonomous drones have been used to make regular long-range deliveries into densely populated urban areas. It is also the first time that drones have been used in this way to deliver COVID-19 test samples. About The COVID-19 Test Sample Delivery Service The new COVID-19 test sample delivery service allows the government to more closely monitor and respond to the spread of the disease in some of the country's most remote and challenging to reach areas. Before Zipline, COVID-19 test sample delivery could take between many hours to many days before a delivery truck had collected a sufficient number of samples from rural hospitals before it could return to the city. The time delay not only jeopardized the government's ability to respond swiftly but also increased the risk that the samples were damaged in transit due to broken cold-chain storage. Using Zipline's drones to deliver COVID-19 test samples helps save both time and money. Health facilities no longer need to wait to collect a sufficient number of tests to justify a truck delivery. Now, a single test from a rural area can be transported for analysis in under an hour. The company has taken many steps to ensure that it is operating the safest delivery system of its kind in the world, including rigorous testing of flight software and aircraft hardware, flight operations safety procedures, redundant inflight safety features, and modular frangible design. Zipline drones are designed to automatically detect issues inflight and safely return to base for repair. Test samples are packaged in accordance with the World Health Organization's Interim Laboratory Biosafety Guidelines for Handling and Processing Specimens Associated with Coronavirus Disease 2019. Each drone is equipped with redundant flight computers, motors, communications systems, flight control surfaces, as well as redundant navigation and power systems. In the event of emergencies like severe weather, emergency requests from air traffic control, or unplanned flight operation issues, each drone is equipped with a parachute that allows it to make an immediate landing by slowly descending to the ground. Zipline's International COVID-19 Response Efforts In addition to the new COVID-19 test sample delivery service, Zipline is helping the Governments of Ghana and Rwanda prepare for and respond to the pandemic in several ways. As countries seek to reduce social contact, shifting the primary delivery of vaccines and medicines from trucks to drones helps to reduce the risk of increased exposure. Zipline provides decision-makers with real-time visibility into demand across the health system and serves as an early warning system for potential outbreak hotspots. In Ghana, Zipline holds all emergency stocks of personal protection equipment for the facilities it serves, like gloves and masks, allowing health authorities to target distribution to regional providers on an as-needed basis. The company is helping to reduce hospital overcrowding in Ghana, as patients seek more basic or maintenance care at clinics closer to home. This helps free up beds for patients who truly need them and reduces the risk of exposure to non-infected patients seeking care. In Rwanda, Zipline is working with Partnerships in Health to deliver chemotherapy medications to cancer patients who are unable to travel to the hospital due to the pandemic. During disasters and outbreaks, Zipline can respond to demand surges and prevent stock-outs by immediately increasing delivery volumes. New vaccines, test kits, and other innovations can be added to the inventory as soon as they are available and delivered in real-time to help meet extraordinary needs. COVID-19 related national shutdowns have caused the cancelation of many blood drives in countries around the world, putting a strain on supply. Zipline's ability to centralize blood stocks and distribute them just-in-time to health care providers helps to increase patient access, lower waste, and save lives. COVID-19 Emergency Operations in the United States Before COVID19, Zipline planned to launch in the United States this fall, delivering to health facilities and ultimately to homes. The company believes that COVID-19 presents such an imminent threat to the country that it is prepared to begin emergency humanitarian operations in the United States right away. Zipline has been working very closely with the FAA on the necessary approvals and could begin operating within weeks of receiving the go-ahead. The company's emergency efforts in the United States would focus on distributing scarce resources like test kits and personal protective equipment like masks and gloves across the health systems more efficiently and effectively. The company can also help keep vulnerable non-COVID19 patients with chronic and underlying conditions away from the hospitalsboth to prevent exposure and to keep from overwhelming the systemby delivering care closer to where they live. And once a COVID19 vaccine is ready, Zipline can help make sure the distribution is targeted in real-time to the people and populations that need it most. How Zipline Works Zipline is dedicated to expanding universal health coverage by providing on-demand instant delivery by drone of hundreds of critical and life-saving medical products, including vaccines and blood. Health workers place orders by text message and receive their deliveries in 30 minutes on average. The drones both take off from and land at Zipline's distribution centers, requiring no additional infrastructure at the clinics they serve. The drones fly autonomously and can carry close to 4 pounds of cargo, flying up to 80 miles an hour and have a round trip range of 100 miles in high winds and rain. Each Zipline Hub can deliver to an area of more than 8,000 square miles serving millions of people. Deliveries are made from the sky, with the drone descending to a safe height above the ground and dropping off a box of medical products by parachute at a designated spot. Zipline's Record To Date Zipline's autonomous drones have flown more than 2 million miles, delivered more than 60,000 vaccines, units of blood, and critical medical products, and helped to save thousands of lives in multiple countries. Since launching in October of 2016 to deliver blood to 21 hospitals in Rwanda, Zipline has expanded its service nationwide, putting most of the country's 12 million citizens within minutes of a life-saving delivery. In 2018, Zipline began working with the U.S. Department of Defenseboth in the United States and Australiato demonstrate how its technology could help transform emergency medicine and critical care in conflict, humanitarian, and disaster relief scenarios. In April of 2019, Zipline partnered with the Government of Ghana to launch four distribution centers that will serve 2,000 health facilities and a population of 12 million people across the country. And in September of 2019, Zipline announced that it would expand its service to India as a part of a government initiative to put 120 million people within range of instant medical delivery by drone. About Zipline Zipline is an automated logistics company based in California. The company designs and operates an autonomous system for delivering healthcare products on-demand, reliably, and at scale. Zipline's mission is to provide every human on Earth with instant access to vital medical supplies. The most respected investors in the world support Zipline, including Temasek, Baillie Gifford, Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, GV, The Rise Fund, a global impact fund managed by TPG, Katalyst Ventures, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and Stanford University. The iconic California record store chain joins the long list of small businesses in jeopardy. Photo: Beck Starr/Getty Images Small businesses across America are in peril as the economic impact of the COVID-19 shutdowns start to take effect, and Amoeba Music part of the long-imperiled cohort of record stores is sending out a plea for help. The independent music retailer has outlived such massive music enterprises as Tower and Sam Goody, but as its owners say in their new GoFundMe page, We have weathered many storms 911, recessions, the Internet, downloading and streaming. But we dont know that we can weather the COVID-19 storm. Amoeba has three locations across San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the original Berkeley, California, storefront, and co-founders Dave Prinz and Marc Weinstein are trying to raise $400,000 to stay alive through community donations. We know that this is a very difficult and uncertain time for everyone, and we understand that there are many individuals and organizations in need, reads the campaign page. Any donation to this campaign will contribute to the cash resources we need to deal with the immediate future, to take care of our staff of over 400 Amoebites, and to allow Amoeba to continue operations. Additionally, they say that the company has applied for bailout loans, but with those funds running out quickly due to high demand from so many struggling businesses, they cant rely on state or federal support to pull through. Historically, weve preferred to study the male body The coronavirus is killing men at higher rates than women, even though infection rates are more or less the same. Thats because the male body and the female body respond differently to viruses. But unlike many other countries, the U.S. is not systematically tracking Covid-19 gender data. Francesca Donner, who heads our Gender Initiative, spoke with Caroline Criado Perez, author of Invisible Women, and Alisha Haridasani Gupta, gender reporter for The Times. Their conversation is excerpted from the In Her Words newsletter: Francesca: We know differences between male and female immune systems exist, yet we know very little about them. Caroline: The reason we dont know that much is that, historically, weve preferred to study the male body. We do know the female immune system is more active than the male immune system. The hypothesis is that its because women give birth and the female immune system has evolved around that. That can be bad for women in that women make up 80 percent of those with autoimmune diseases. Women also tend to have more frequent and more adverse reactions to vaccines. The result is that we are less good at diagnosing diseases in women. If you look at something like heart disease in the U.K., women are 50 percent more likely to be misdiagnosed than men. One outcome is that in the U.S. and the U.K., women are more likely than men to die following a heart attack. And yet you still encounter so much resistance in the research community, who say things like, The female body is too complicated, the menstrual cycle will interfere with the results. Francesca: Alisha, give us a little background on the sex data being collected. Alisha: The U.S. is one of 11 countries that isnt systematically tracking infections and deaths by men and women. Since we published the sex-data article, the Centers for Disease Control did release a report that included a race and a sex breakdown. But even that was a snapshot, drawing information from hospital networks in parts of 14 states. Francesca: What implications does this have in our search for a vaccine? Alisha: The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is already in phase one human trials for a potential vaccine on 45 healthy adults. It said it would need a larger number of participants to be able to disaggregate data by sex. Thats not to say that its impossible to have disaggregated data right from phase one because Johnson & Johnson said thats what its going to do as it heads into human trials in September. Thats it for this briefing. See you next time. Carole Thank you To Melissa Clark for the recipe, and to Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the rest of 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 what the U.S. might look like after states lift coronavirus-related lockdowns. Heres our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Drink that comes from the Russian for water (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here. Times employees are experimenting with new ways of connecting with and motivating their colleagues while they work from home, including poetry readings and virtual lunches. More than $22 million in federal funds from the coronavirus stimulus package is expected to go to five state colleges in Worcester, Middlesex and Essex counties, U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan announced last week. The $22,341,981 in funding comes from the Department of Educations first disbursement of $6 billion set aside for higher education institutions from the CARES Act, according to Trahan, a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor. The Massachusetts schools receiving the funds include Fitchburg State University, Middlesex Community College, Mount Wachusett Community College, Northern Essex Community College and the University of Massachusetts Lowell, the congresswoman said. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed college students and their schools under incredible financial stress," said Trahan, who represents Massachusettss 3rd District. I was proud to cast my vote for the CARES Act, which allocated $14 billion in financial assistance for institutions of higher education and their students, as well as immediate relief for student loan borrowers. "These funds are a much-needed boost for schools in the Third District, and the Department of Education should move quickly to disburse the remaining $8 billion. The $2.2 trillion stimulus package, passed on March 27, established an Education Stabilization Fund worth $30.7 billion, 46.3% of which was dedicated to both public and private institutions of higher education. More than 80 colleges and universities in Massachusetts were expected to collectively receive around $270 million from the fund, the Boston Business Journal reported. The University of Massachusetts Amherst is receiving roughly $18.3 million, the greatest amount of aid out of all the colleges in the state. Boston University is expected to get $15 million, University of Massachusetts Boston $12.2 million, Harvard University $8.7 million and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology $2.5 million. Schools that receive federal funds as part of the CARES Act are required to use at least half of the money to give emergency financial aid grants directly to students to help them with costs associated with housing, food and other basic necessities, according to Trahan. Fitchburg State will receive $3.9 million, Middlesex Community $3.7 million, Mount Wachusett Community $2.5 million, Northern Essex Community $3.2 million and UMass Lowell $8.9 million. All five schools fall into Trahans congressional district. Related Content: T ributes have been paid to three more NHS workers who have lost their lives with coronavirus. Nurse Ruben Munoz, 49, had worked at the East Surrey Hospital for a decade. He developed Covid-19 symptoms last month and went into self-isolation before being admitted to St Georges Hospital in Tooting, where his wife, Ester, is a finance officer. She said: He was such a tough man, he didnt want to go to hospital but I knew that it was very serious. His condition rapidly declined. We last saw him in a FaceTime call in hospital. Its heartbreaking. He was a doting father and loving husband. He was my hero. He loved the NHS and working as a nurse, it was his life. His colleagues and patients loved him, everybody did. Mrs Munoz said that she and her husband had been planning to celebrate his 50th birthday with a trip to Amsterdam and added: Now he is dead and we cannot believe it. Please everybody listen and keep social distancing. There was also praise today for Amrik Bamotra, a radiology support worker at the King George Hospital in Ilford, who has also died with coronavirus. Known to colleagues as Bob, he treated everyone like his own family, and leaves a wife, son and daughter, Jagjit Mehta, 37, who today told how she was allowed to pay him a final visit. She said he had been so proud to work for the NHS, and died two days before his 64th birthday. Loading.... Ms Mehta told the Standard: I went into hospital to see him, I had to put on PPE. He was in a bad way. He was deteriorating and it was important to see him. "I showed him pictures and videos of my son. It felt like it was a goodbye when he said goodnight to me. It wasnt long after I had left that I got a call from the hospital saying could I come back, I knew then he was already gone. I was lucky I got to see him for a last time. The father-of-two had gone into hospital after feeling unwell at home as he recovered from a heart operation. He had been struggling to breathe but had not been in intensive care when he died. Meanwhile, Dr Krishan Arora, 57, who had worked at the Violet Lane Medical Practice in Croydon for 27 years, has also died after becoming ill with coronavirus symptoms. Dr Arora graduated from Cambridge in 1988. Dr Agnelo Fernandes, GP borough lead for Croydon, said: Krish was extremely well-liked and worked tirelessly to care for his patients and improve services for everyone in Croydon. Tributes were also paid today to bus driver Win Tin Soe, 61, who died with coronavirus in St Marys Hospital in Paddington. He drove a No46 out of the Holloway garage and had moved to Britain from Burma many years ago. A riot broke out in Paris, France as the public expressed their anger over the heavy-handed treatment of the police to ethnic minorities during the coronavirus lockdown. The police used baton charges and tear gas in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, northern Paris, in the early hours of April 20 as fireworks exploded in the street. As groups of protesters congregated, several armed police were seen moving through the area. Extension of lockdown France's President Emmanuel Macron has extended the country's social distancing measures until May 11. The daily death toll from the coronavirus fell to the lowest level in three weeks on April 20 as 395 deaths were recorded, bringing the total to 19,718 but the deaths are usually under-reported over the weekend. In the early morning of April 20, videos posted on social media showed the red fireworks in the sky. Bins were also filmed blazing and filling the morning air with smoke as armed police moved in to the area to break the crowd. Also Read: New York Asymptomatic Mother Infects 17 of Her 18 Children with Coronavirus French journalist with Algerian background, Taha Bouhafs, posted the video of the riot and in the video it also showed him being manhandled by the police, thus leading to allegations of racism. The riot started after a 30-year-old was critically injured in the neighborhood in a collision with an unmarked police car. The friends of the victim, who have not been named, claimed the incident on the night of April 19 was an example of police heavy-handedness against ethnic minority communities during the lockdown. The source said that the injured man comes from an Arab Muslim background and that he is now critical in the hospital and the people in the city reacted very badly to what has happened. According to a local police spokesman, police and the reinforcements have been the target of rioters who have thrown fireworks and stones. The violence started in Villeneuve-la-Garenne and has spread to other towns and estates nearby. Police brutality over lockdown Last week, prosecutors in Beziers stated that the officers who are involved in the brutal attack of the 33-year-old Mohamed Gabsi are now facing criminal charges after he died while under the arrest for breaching the coronavirus lockdown. Three officers are now suspected of intentional violence by a public official leading to manslaughter and non-assistance of a person in danger. The three officers involved in the attack can be imprisoned for 15 years or more, according to the local prosecutors. The case is very sensitive because the victim was a Muslim and Beziers, located in the south of France, is run by a far-right mayor who is supported by the National Rally party. Mr. Gabsi suffered a heart attack by the time he arrived at a local police station and witnesses saw two officers sitting on top of him in their patrol car. The suspicious death of the victim is just one of the many complaints about police racism as forces across France enforce one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe. A spokesman for the Human Rights League in France said that Mr. Gabsi's death is a scandal that shows how the poor are being killed by the lockdown. On April 14, France reported a total of 19,718 deaths from coronavirus since the start of the health emergency. More than 150,000 cases have also been detected in the country. France has been in lockdown from March 17, and it will be extended until May 11, 2020. Related Article: Wuhan Lab Exposed for Poor Condition, Could Be Source of Coronavirus Leak @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Aussie star Harry Joswsey quickly become a breakout star of Netflix's newest dating series, Too Hot to Handle. And despite the 22-year-old model claiming his past experience on reality TV didn't influence his cheeky behaviour on screen, he admits it did help prepare him a little. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia from LA, Harry said: 'I've always been true to myself. I'm a massive idiot, so I never usually think about stuff that I do. I think that definitely going on this second show it was a way easier decision, because I knew exactly what I was getting into.' Too Hot to Handle EXCLUSIVE: Aussie star Harry Jowsey reveals why he broke the rules first - as he comes clean about his reality TV past With his past TV experience and subsequent modelling career, Harry was one of only two contestants to already be Instagram-verified before joining the show. The Los Angeles-based star first rose to fame on New Zealand's Heartbreak Island in 2018 when he won $100,000 with his then-girlfriend, Georgia Bryers. While his previous brush with fame was never addressed on Too Hot to Handle, Harry said he was transparent about his past with his castmates. 'I did tell them straight off the bat,' he said. 'I've always been true to myself': The model, 22, said his past experience on reality TV did not influence his cheeky behaviour on screen, but did give him an idea of what to expect 'I did tell them straight off the bat': While his previous brush with fame was never addressed on Too Hot to Handle, Harry said he was transparent about his past with his castmates He's done this before! Harry (left) appeared on the Kiwi dating show Heartbreak Island in 2018. He won $100,000 with his then-girlfriend, Georgia Bryers (right) Popular! Too Hot To Handle is ranked number two in the top ten watched Netflix shows after its debut weekend, one spot behind explosive docu-series Tiger King The wild Netflix show offers its single contestants the chance to win $100,000 - but warns if they cave into temptation by kissing, heavy petting or engaging in any sexual activity, the prize money will be deducted. Harry was the first to break the rules with model Francesca Farago, and they went on to have many more costly experiences on screen. 'I feel like from day one, we hit it off. For me, it was like love at first sight - I was infatuated with her,' he said. 'And even the fact those rules were announced, I knew I still wanted to pursue it. 'Everyone got a little bit scared and taken back, because they didn't want to lose the opportunity to win that money by potentially slipping up, but I thought, "You know what? I'm here for her."' 'Even the fact those rules were announced, I knew that I still wanted to pursue it': Harry (right) said he couldn't resist model Francesca Farago (left), even though it cost him the prize money 'You cannot get away': The main issue for the couple was the villa's AI security system, 'Lana', which had eyes and ears everywhere to catch any rule breakers The main issue for the couple was the villa's AI security system, 'Lana', which had eyes and ears everywhere to catch any rule breakers. 'You cannot get away! I think there was 60 cameras inside the villa and they can all move, spin around and zoom. And there was microphones everywhere, like legitimately it would be week four and I'd spot a new microphone that I had no idea was there before.' Harry said he didn't know about the show's format or rules when he signed up, and assumed it was going to be an island-based dating show. 'A great opportunity to just make a d**k of myself': Harry said he went in with the intentions of just having a good time while meeting gorgeous people. Pictured with Kelz Dyke 'Honestly [I thought] just Love Island vibes, like gorgeous people, a bit of alcohol chucked in there and just a great opportunity to just make a d**k of myself and that's kind of the only idea I had going in. 'The fact I would be given the opportunity to meet some of the most gorgeous people around the world and form connections was insane. It's not an everyday opportunity, so it would be silly to pass it up. Too Hot to Handle is now available to stream on Netflix COVID-19 has now killed over 160,000 globally, 2.3 million infected Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 10:36 AM The new coronavirus outbreak has now claimed the lives of 160,706 people across the world, and more than 2,328,600 others are infected, according to the latest data collected by Johns Hopkins University (JHU). Here are the latest on the coronavirus pandemic from around the world: Italy reports low daily rise in deaths In Italy, the country with the second highest deaths after the United States, the deaths from the respiratory illness rose by 482 on Saturday, the lowest daily increase since April 12. That brought the total death toll to 23,227. And the number of Italy's new cases was stable at 3,491, according to the country's Civil Protection Agency. The country's total cases now stand at 175,925, according to JHU. Spain 'past most extreme moments' Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Saturday that the nation had "left behind the most extreme moments." The country's total death toll stands at 20,639, and cases number at 194,416. The figures in Spain Europe's worst-hit nation have been increasing more slowly in recent days. Sanchez said, however, that, "These achievements are still insufficient and above all fragile. We cannot put them at risk with hasty solutions." The Spanish prime minister plans to extend but also loosen restrictive measures enforced to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. Netherlands' cases cross 31,000 Dutch health authorities reported an additional 1,140 cases on Saturday, bringing the total number of infections in the Netherlands to 31,766. They also registered 142 new deaths from the viral infection, bringing the total fatalities to 3,601. Germany reports 242 new deaths Germany reported 3,609 new confirmed cases and 242 more deaths on Saturday, according to the Robert Koch Institute, a federal government agency responsible for disease monitoring and prevention. The country's total cases reached 143,724, along with 4,538 deaths, as of Saturday. Turkey has most cases of COVID-19 in Middle East Turkey has become the worst-hit country in the Middle East as its confirmed coronavirus cases have risen to 82,329, according to Health Minister Fahrettin Koca. An increase of 3,783 cases in the last 24 hours brought Turkey's overall tally to within a few hundred of that of China, where the virus first emerged. Koca said 121 more people had also died of complications caused by the new coronavirus, taking the death toll in the country to 1,890. UAE to fine people for spreading COVID-19 information not officially approved The United Arab Emirates (UAE) says it will fine people up to 5,500 dollars if they share information about the outbreak that is not officially approved. "It is forbidden for any individual to publish, re-publish or circulate medical information or guidance which is false, misleading, or which hasn't been announced officially," state news agency WAM cited officials as saying on Saturday. The Emirates has reported 37 deaths and 6,302 infections. Israel to ease some coronavirus restrictions Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will gradually ease a coronavirus lockdown from Sunday. He will let some businesses to reopen as health officials reported a slowdown in infection rates. Israel imposed a partial lockdown in mid-March but steadily tightened restrictions, forcing many businesses to close and people to stay mostly at home. That has battered the regime's economy and sent the unemployment rate to above 25 percent. Netanyahu, however, said Israel had "succeeded in (its) mission so far" in combating the epidemic and argued that the restrictions had "proven themselves in a slowdown" in infection rates. "Our good results enable us today to start taking steps in the opposite direction not a tightening, but an easing," he said on Saturday. Israel had 164 deaths and nearly 13,300 cases as of Saturday evening. China reports low daily increase in infections, no deaths China reported 16 new confirmed cases on Sunday, nine of which were imported from overseas. The remaining seven positive cases were locally transmitted, down from 10 the previous day, according to data published by the National Health Commission. The figure was the lowest number since Saturday and down from 27 a day earlier, said the commission. No new deaths were reported, it said. China's total number of coronavirus cases now stands at 83, 804, while the total death toll from the virus stands at 4,632. India has made no decision to lift or ease flight restrictions India has not made a decision to lift or ease restrictions on domestic and international flights, a government minister said on Saturday. "The Ministry of Civil Aviation clarifies that so far, no decision has been taken to open domestic or international operations," Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said in a tweet. "Airlines are advised to open their bookings only after a decision in this regard has been taken by the Government." Prime Minister Narendra Modi also put the whole population under a 21-day lockdown in late March to contain the outbreak. The lockdown has been extended until May 3. India, with a population of 1.3 billion, has reported over 15,000 coronavirus cases and more than 500 deaths as of early Sunday, according to data from the Indian government. Taiwan to quarantine 700 sailors Meanwhile, Taiwan said it would quarantine 700 sailors who had been on a mission to the Pacific island state of Palau last month. The decision was made after officials detected three positive cases of COVID-19 among the crew. The navy will deep-clean the ships to disinfect them, Reuters reported. Taiwan has so far reported a total of 398 cases and six deaths. South Korea reports single-digit new cases South Korea reported single-digit new cases of the viral infection for the first time in two months on Sunday. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) reported eight new daily cases, bringing the total tally to 10,661 cases. The country has also registered a total of 234 deaths. South Korea extended its social distancing policy for another 15 days on Sunday while Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun offered some relief for churches and sporting fixtures. "It is safest to maintain the intensive social distancing, but it isn't easy realistically. We need to find a middle ground," Chung said. "If we can maintain a stable management at the current level, we will shift to 'routine social distancing' from May 6," he added. Health authorities said this would allow a reopening of the economy while maintaining guidelines on disinfection and preventing the spread of the virus in people's daily lives. Australia accuses China of lack of transparency over virus Australia on Sunday accused China of a lack of transparency over the coronavirus outbreak, calling for an international investigation into the origins of the virus and how it spread. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said her concern about China's transparency was at a "a very high point." A handful of countries have alleged that the virus was created at a lab in China. Beijing has dismissed such allegations. Australia reported 53 new cases on Sunday, taking the overall total to 6,586, according to Health Ministry data. There have also been 71 deaths in the country. Philippines reports 209 new cases, 10 deaths The Philippines recorded another 209 cases and 10 deaths, bringing the country's totals to 6,087 cases and 397 deaths. Trusted aide to Nigerian president dies of COVID-19 The chief of staff to Nigeria's president has lost his life due to complications arising from the coronavirus infection, the presidential office said on Saturday. Mallam Abba Kyari, the chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, was in his 70s and had underlying health conditions, including diabetes. "The Presidency regrets to announce the passage of the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari," presidential spokesman Femi Adesina said in a brief statement. "The deceased had tested positive to the ravaging COVID-19, and had been receiving treatment. But he died on Friday, April 17, 2020," he added. Kyari had tested positive with COVID-19 shortly after he returned from a trip to Germany in early March. Nigeria has reported 639 cases and 19 deaths. Guatemala's new cases come from US In Central America, Guatemala recorded 19 more cases of positive COVID-19 on Saturday. President Alejandro Giammattei said the new cases were nationals deported from the United States. The country has reported a total 257 cases of coronavirus infection and seven deaths. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 2020-04-21 - 12:16 am Bahrain Mirror (Exclusive): Activist Brian Dooley from Human Rights First said that we are in a new context because of the Coronavirus, indicating that "people, like Naji Fateel and other human rights defenders, should not be imprisoned with or without the virus." In an interview with the Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Right, Dooley stated "I think that there is a new conversation now to be had to because of the virus, i.e. the government ought to be emptying its prisons," indicating that "it's just puzzling and frustrating that they [Bahraini authorities] haven't taken that obvious next step of releasing the peaceful opposition figures and human rights defenders, [especially that] some of these people are old and have underlying health concerns." "If for the moment not forgetting the argument that they shouldn't be in prison at all and concentrate on the other argument that they ought to be released on health grounds, I think that this needs to happen fast." "Whatever the government thinks about those political prisoners on a personal level, it really ought to be thinking about its own employee, the prison officers and prison guards. The more prisoners you have, the more likely that they are going to get infected and the more likely that more guards get infected," he added. "What happens if some of these very prominent prisoners who are internationally known all around the world, like Nabeel Rajab and Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, and who are actually internationally more famous than any of the ruling family in Bahrain, get infected," Brian wandered, indicating that "it's going to be a huge problem for the Bahraini government how they are going to explain that the prominent human rights defenders died from the virus, because the Bahraini government refused to release them." Dooley stressed that keeping these people in prison in unsanitary conditions would fuel the situation, indicating that time is running and every delay in releasing these people would subject them to a greater chance of being infected. He noted that the infection of one of the prisoners could do more damage to the reputation of the ruling family. Dooley hoped that there are "within the Bahraini regime people who understand that it's not about being soft on political and recognize that in terms of the calculation of risk assessment, wondering "Do you really want to risk the lives of these internationally known human rights activists? Do you want them to get more infected? What a nightmare for the Bahraini government to have to explain why it didn't release these people!" "I just hope that there are people smart enough and sensible enough within the government to be arguing for the release of those activists." He further stated that for the past nine years, human rights organizations have been pushing for the release of certain prisoners, but the government continues to refuse, but now there is something new in the equation, and if the Bahraini government wants a way out without losing face, it can sign the release of these prisoners on health grounds, and everyone will praise it. Dooley highlighted that this is the ideal opportunity and that the Bahraini government is required to act fast, because the virus isn't waiting around for it to make a decision. Commenting on the NIHR visit and the resulting punishment of prisoners, the imprisonment of journalist Mahmoud Al-Jaziri in solitary confinement and the prevention of others from contacting their families, Dooley said "I think this is a problem that the Bahraini government has created for itself really over the years. It doesn't tell the truth and lie about all sorts of things including prison conditions," pointing out that the Bahraini government is no longer a reliable source, and no one will believe its version of events except individuals who have been raised to be loyal to the government. The Bahraini government history is full of constant lies and the evidence is that human rights organizations members have been denied access to Bahrain since years, including me. It is almost impossible for the international media to enter and conduct such an investigation. We have signed petitions for the release of Nabeel Rajab, Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, Naji Fateel, Hassan Mushaima, Sheikh Ali Salman and others. The Bahraini government should look at this now from a different angle, this is not only a threat to the prisoners' health, but also to the health of its employees, and to the surrounding civil society. It is likely that members of the ruling family would be infected with the virus, as no one can be spared. The British Prime Minister has also been infected. Dooley addressed the Bahraini people saying that it has been a long struggle and it is not over. There is more to the Bahraini story. But what's happening these days about the Coronavirus is witnessing long struggles, such as the American civil rights movement. This will last for generations. "You just have to keep pushing for reform. These dictatorships regimes crumble pretty quickly as in the Soviet union, even if they seemed strong." The interview with activist Brian Dooley comes as part of #Release_Bahraini_Prisoners campaign, launched by a group of Bahraini activists days ago on social media outlets, to call on the Bahraini authorities to release Bahraini prisoners amid serious concerns over the Coronavirus outbreak and the poor conditions they are suffering from inside the prisons. Arabic Version The Lagos State Government has set up sampling stations across 20 local government areas in the state to ramp up sample collection for COVID-19 testing. The Commissioner for Health in the state, Akin Abayomi, at a press briefing on Sunday, said individuals with symptoms that fit the COVID-19 symptoms can access the stations to drop their samples for testing. The commissioner said these stations cannot carry out tests but are only established to collect samples to help make the identification of active cases in communities faster and more effective. He stressed that the new arrangement would provide opportunity for people at the local government with symptoms of COVID-19 to present themselves early for testing. We have decentralised the locations where you can have yourself submitted for sampling. So what we have done is to move sampling stations to the local government. And if you feel that you have any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19, you can present yourself to these decentralised sampling stations. They are not testing stations, they are sampling stations and If you meet the criteria for testing, you will be able to receive the counsel of the staff and your sample will be taken. We are not just testing anybody, there is a criteria for testing; you either must have COVID19 symptoms to meet the case definition or be in close contact with somebody that has been confirmed with COVID19. Your samples would be taken and it would then be sent to one of our accredited testing facilities and those facilities will then perform the tests, the commissioner said. READ ALSO: Mr Abayomi said the strategy would help the COVID-19 response team get a better idea of what is going on in the communities and also make the diagnosis of COVID-19 early at the local government level. An early presentation of COVID-19 symptoms by patients will help provide the best opportunity for patients to survive the infection as it will give room for timely and adequate intervention and care, he said. It is important members of the public are aware that the sooner we get to know about you and the sooner we can admit you. If you have mild to moderate symptoms under the supervision of our expert, we may be able to prevent you from moving from moderate to severe and prevent you from moving from severe to critical case. We implore the communities not to feel the urge to stay at home when you have symptoms of COVID-19 because you are more likely to survive the COVID-19 infection under our supervision, Mr Abayomi said. The commissioner urged residents to report early symptoms of COVID-19 infection to the dedicated COVID-19 toll free helpline 08000CORONA. Lagos State currently accounts for more than half (376) of Nigerias 627 COVID-19 cases. Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Monday termed the ruckus at Padrayanapure here when officials had gone to shift secondary contacts to quarantine facility as an act of goondaism, and directed police to take stringent action against those taking law into their hands. "Yesterday's incident at Padarayanapura, is an act of goondaism against police, health and BBMP (civic body) officials. They have destroyed the barricades erected there and chairs used by government staff there," Yediyurappa said. Speaking to reporters here, he said, he had discussed the incident last night itself, and Home Minister and Police officials are taking all measures to maintain law and order. "Caring for whose health, our officials had gone there, without understanding it indulging in goondaism cannot be tolerated," he added. Tension had prevailed at Padarayanapura late on Sunday as some secondary contacts of COVID-19 patients along with a few locals tried to remove barricades and argued with officials who had come to shift them to a quarantine facility. Officials had gone with a list of 58 people who are secondary contacts to be sent to quarantine facility. There are also reports of alleged attack on health care and police personnel during the incident. Padarayanapura has been sealed to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. Stating that about 54 people have been arrested in connection with the incident, the Chief Minister said, according to Home Minister four more people will be arrested. "I have issued directions to take all necessary stringent action within the framework of law. The Home Minister and senior officials are at it," he said, adding that such incidents had not happened in the past, such goonda act of taking law into hand cannot be tolerated, strict measures will be taken so that such incident don't repeat. Responding to a question, the Chief Minister said whoever has committed mistake will be punished, there was no question of Hindu, Muslim or Christian in it. "An act of taking law into hands will not be tolerated, this message has to go to people across the state. In this view strict measures will be taken," he said. Hitting out at Congress MLA Zameer Ahmed Khan for his statement as to why the health workers and police officials went to the area late in the night and not in the morning, Yediyurappa termed it as "height of irresponsibility". "Who is he? What does he have do? Does government has to take approval from him for the measures it takes and its functioning...it looks like he is supporting and instigating such activities, what does he mean?" the Chief Minister asked. A person who had to seek strict action, if he is giving such statements, it is height of irresponsibility, he added. Though he condemned the incident, Khan had tried to defend the attackers stating they were uneducated labourers who didn't know what they were doing. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) High-speed automated laboratory devices are essential for the types of screening envisioned for sample analysis during the pandemic. Festo North America and subsidiary Fabco-Air Inc., classified essential businesses, are continuing to supply pneumatic and electric drive technology to distributors, equipment manufacturers, and end-users in North America. Supporting solutions for COVID-19 Festo has launched focused coronavirus mitigation projects, said Craig Correia, Director of Life Science & Process Industries, Festo North America. Among several initiatives, the first is to ensure that orders for components and systems used in medical devices receive priority treatment and are processed and shipped rapidly. A large research and development team is working full time on a design for a quick-to-manufacture emergency respiratory ventilator. Another team alongside a partner firm is developing a concept for automated production of protective masks. This team envisions a complete production system that can be setup and shipped within a standard transport container. Festo LifeTech Business Unit components are used in high-speed automated laboratory devices that are essential for the types of screening envisioned for sample analysis during the pandemic. Festo LifeTech components are also used by certified respiratory equipment manufacturers. Festo does not manufacture that equipment itself. In addition to the medical and manufacturing sectors, Festo is keeping its overall production and logistics systems sound for the pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and packaging industries as well as for washing systems for hospitals and care facilities. Festo encourages the use of the companys online resources, including the 24/7 online shop, for placing orders and checking delivery status, and online product configuration and engineering tools. The company continues to take measures to ensure continuity of production, while protecting the health and safety of employees, suppliers, and the public. For questions regarding the companys ability to serve customers in the following essential industries manufacturing, processing, medical device, and laboratory automation please email essentialbusiness.na@festo.com. And visit Festo at https://www.festo.com/us/en/. About Festo Festo is a leading manufacturer of pneumatic and electromechanical systems, components, and controls for process and industrial automation. For more than 40 years, Festo Corporation has continuously elevated the state of manufacturing with innovations and optimized motion control solutions that deliver higher performing, more profitable automated manufacturing and processing equipment. Connect with Festo: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube To be clear: I have absolutely no sympathy for the selfish so-called "protestors" who are being irresponsibly cheered on by the President to "re-open the economy" and endanger millions of American lives. While I can understand economic stresses and concerns about an overreaching government, I simply cannot abide by a movement that was literally organized by nihilistic white nationalists bankrolled by greedy right-wing donors who want other people to die in order to boost a bunch of inherently hollow economic statistics that cannot hold any meaning without human life. That being said, the Raleigh Police response to the "ReOpen North Carolina" protest was also painfully ridiculous. The protestors are in violation of the Governor's Executive Order and have been asked to leave. #ReopenNC pic.twitter.com/AIEetS42NE Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020 Protesting is a non-essential activity. Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020 "Protesting is a non-essential activity." That's what the police said. Humans are complex beings, and we are capable of holding more than two thoughts in our minds at once. That's how I'm able to recognize that these protestors were, at best, the unwitting patsies of a bigoted death cult while also acknowledging that a police department deeming protest as "non-essential" is, at best, dumb, and at worst, utterly horrifying. Even if one is to agree that these protestors should have been arrested, this is a terrible way to justify that action. They could have just as easily written this off retroactively as reckless endangerment, or simply left it as a public safety violation. (Not that police in America ever need a reason to justify arrests although these protestors were largely white, which does add some complications.) But the fact that a police officer thought to explain away these actions by insisting that the act of protest is non-essential? That unintentionally reveals a lot about their headspace. It's way so many police departments try to track people at protests to retroactively punish protestors as "Antifa", why they shut off their bodycams as they assault protestors for being "disrespectful" despite a glaring lack of physical threat, or otherwise just threaten to make things up to justify their actions. Protests are deemed "non-essential" by police because there are unfortunately far too many police officers who do not view their job as actually uploading the law. Rather, they see their duty to uphold the social order, no matter how unjust it is. The mere notion of a protest conflicts with that order, and thus, of course a cop would immediately jump to call it non-essential, regardless of the truth. (And yes, there is the added irony that, in any other circumstance, these police officers would likely be getting paid overtime to "keep the peace" at a Neo-Nazi rally.) The Raleigh Police Department did try to backpedal this stupid tweet kind of. The Raleigh Police Department has issued a statement in response to the earlier tweet regarding protesting and the Executive Order. pic.twitter.com/mg4laUpFIk Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020 In these unprecedented times and unusual circumstances, both the Governor and the County have declared a state of emergency. Under these current and temporary declarations, protesting is not listed as an essential function. The Wake County District Attorney is the individual who decides charging language for failure to adhere to the Governor's Orders and the Wake County Proclamation, when charging is appropriate, and what charges individuals may face for violating either one of these orders. However, as a law enforcement agency, the Raleigh Police Department is bound to carry out the regulations stipulated in the Executive Order and the Wake County Proclamation. In other words, they passed the buck to the District Attorney. Maybe that works in Raleigh, but in places like Philadelphia and Boston, the cops and the DAs don't always get along. In this case, the Raleigh Police claimed all of the authority, but none of the responsibility. Where have I heard that before? Fact check: Did police violate constitutional rights at 'Reopen NC' protest in Raleigh? [Will Doran / Raleigh News & Observer] Image: Becker1999/Flickr (CC 2.0) This is Up and Down, where we give a brief thumbs up or thumbs down on the issues from the past week. Up The mobile coronavirus testing North Dakota deployed in Slope, Stark and Mountrail counties helped speed up the response in Grand Forks last week after an outbreak was identified at the LM Wind Power facility. State and local public health officials conducted 424 drive-thru tests on Thursday, for employees, people who had close contact with infected workers, household members and employees not showing symptoms. The experiences in the other counties put North Dakota in a stronger position to respond to the outbreak. Gov. Doug Burgum said the state is working to further increase its ability to respond, including planning for the potential of more than one outbreak at a time. Down Social distancing is necessary to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, but its also creating opportunities for abusers. The isolation gives abusers an opportunity to control victims by limiting access to basic necessities and keeping them from seeing friends and family. Fortunately, Bismarck-Mandan authorities have not seen an uptick in domestic violence reports since the stay-at-home recommendations were put in place. But domestic violence often is not reported. Victim advocates including Bismarcks Abused Adult Resource Center are wisely not letting their guard down and are brainstorming new ways to help reach victims. Up Job Service North Dakota employees are working around the clock to meet the spike in unemployment claims. Since March 16, more than 51,000 unemployment claims have been filed, a volume the agency usually sees over two years. Meeting the demand has involved shifting employees from local Job Service offices, shifting information technology employees so teams are working all of the time, and staffing weekends. This week, North Dakotans are expected to begin receiving the $600 weekly unemployment checks from the federal government after the state began processing a high volume of back payments. Down Most bankers in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states expect the coronavirus pandemic to push local areas into recession, a survey released last week showed. The overall index for the region that includes North Dakota and surrounding states plummeted from 35.5 in March to 12.1 in April -- the lowest index recorded since the survey began in January 2006. A score below 50 suggests a shrinking economy, while a score above 50 suggests a growing economy, The Associated Press reported. More than 90% of bankers surveyed reported a decline in customer visits, and nearly one-third reported higher loan delinquency rates. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 While the company may be now known for building cars such as the Octavia, Superb, Fabia, as well as the Kodiaq, the "winged-arrow' brand actually got its start making bicycles and motorcycles over a century ago in pre-WWI Austria-Hungary. It all started back in 1895 when mechanic and avid cyclist Vaclav Laurin, and bookseller Vaclav Klement started designing and manufacturing bicycles. Under the name Laurin and Klement, the bicycles sold well so they decided to up the ante and add engines to their bicycles. In 1899, they were able to produce nearly 4,000 motorcycles of various types. Since they were already familiar with engines, the two decided to try and make their first-ever automobile. The result was the Voiturette A which became a huge seller for the two in the early 1900s. But when World War I broke out, they shifted from making civilian automobiles to building machines for the war effort. However, they quickly realized they needed an industrial partner that can make various vehicles like trucks and buses, as well as airplane engines and agricultural machinery after the war was over. This was all made possible after the two partnered up with engineering firm 'Skoda' in 1925. Since then, the signature winged arrow logo has been a staple on all Skoda vehicles. The first-ever vehicle to be produced under the joint partnership was the Laurin & Klement/Skoda 110. The vehicle was available with various modifications which include soft-top or hardtop versions, as well as a removable rear section which enabled the passenger car to be converted into a practical two-seater, flatbed truck. By the 1930s, however, they had to wrestle with a market greatly affected by The Great Depression. Luckily, they were able to come up with the Skoda Popular. Serving as one of their most important vehicles, the Popular only weighed at a measly 650 kg and can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h. It was also affordable and was deemed as the 'people's car'. So much so, that other customers decided to modify their Popular into a range of utility vehicles like ambulances and delivery vans. In the mid-1940s, Skoda became a national enterprise and saw the brand launch two new vehicles. These were the Tudor, a more modernized version of the older Popular that is available either as a sedan or wagon, and the 1200 family car which appeared to have been inspired by American car design. By 1955, Skoda released the 440, which eventually became the Octavia by 1959. It was then followed by the 1000MB which was released in 1964. It replaced the Octavia and became one of the brand's most popular vehicles on sale at the time. By 1965, more than 1,000 examples were coming out of the factory, making it the first Czech vehicle to be mass-produced. Other notable cars that Skoda made from the 1970s to the 1980s include the Favorit hatchback, the 110 R, and the Felicia Roadster. Despite making headway, the political landscape of Eastern Europe affected Skoda once more. In 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and the communist government dissolved in then Czechoslovakia. Then came the free market economy which opened more opportunities for Skoda. In December 1990, they decided on Volkswagen which resulted in a joint venture. Since then, Skoda became the fourth brand under the VAG, alongside Volkswagen, Audi, and SEAT. Under three decades with VAG, Skoda continued to grow and flourish. From models such as the Superb, Octavia, and Fabia, they have built a loyal customer base. They then went on to make their first line of SUVs that consisted of the Kodiaq, Karoq, and Kamiq. The year 2020, however, will make Skoda's venture into building an all-electric SUV, the Enyaq. By 2022, Skoda plans to have more than ten partially or fully electric vehicles available for the market. With over a century of experience building, designing, and manufacturing vehicles, Skoda wants to continue moving forward and keep pushing towards the future of the automobile. If only Vaclav Laurin and Vaclav Klement can see where their brand is now. The Charleston Digital Corridor wants to help guide entrepreneurs through the tricky process of starting and funding a new business with a new offering that features a well-known figure in the local technology community. The tech-focused nonprofit's Entrepreneur in Residence program will connect startups with a seasoned mentor who can advise the fledgling companies on issues such as hiring, raising capital and best practices. Shawn Jenkins, co-founder and retired CEO of Daniel Island-based software maker Benefitfocus Inc., has agreed to be the first to claim the entrepreneur-in-residence title. Shawns demonstrated tenacity and perseverance in taking Benefitfocus from start-up to IPO combined with his sense of giving back to the community make him the choice for our Entrepreneur in Residence role, Digital Corridor director Ernest Andrade said in a statement. The free, new program builds on the group's Roundtable initiative, which looked to connect startups with experienced professionals. Jenkins said times are going to be hard for anyone trying to launch a new business in the midst of a global health crisis that has shut down large sections of the economy. But disasters also tend to create opportunities. He noted that Benefitfocus, which Jenkins helped start about 20 years ago, began as the dot-com bubble burst and the flow of capital to internet companies dried up. He left the company in late 2017 and has kept a mostly low-key profile since then, aside from helping open the new MUSC Children's Hospital that bears his name. Jenkins said he wants to be more present in the tech community in 2020. "There are a lot of great stories that are started in difficult times," he said. "Every business is going to have some challenges ... I'd like to help somehow." It is the second move Jenkins has made to work with local entrepreneurs this year. He previously sponsored a pop-up business school program at Citadel Mall. Jenkins said he's considering leasing some space in the future Charleston Tech Center, a city-supported office development that's under construction on Morrison Drive. Warner Bros. is making some strategic changes to its movie release schedule in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. With cinemas shuttered and productions of upcoming films suspended, the studio has moved a number of its release dates. So far, Christopher Nolan's "Tenet" and the second "Wonder Woman" film will remain in their July and August dates. However, many other movies are being pushed to new dates on the calendar. "King Richard," a biopic starring Will Smith as Venus and Serena Williams' father, has been pushed from November 2020 to November 2021. This is likely because the film will be looking to be an Oscar contender and it's unclear how the awards season will shake out in the wake of Covid-19. One reason studios are sticking to theatrical releases instead of swapping over to on-demand streaming is the Academy Awards. The academy requires a film be released in a commercial theater in Los Angeles County for at least seven days and be shown three times a day in order to be eligible for a nomination. Of course, one of the other reasons studios want theatrical releases is strictly financial. These companies can make more money in theaters than they can by just releasing their films on demand. It's why only a handful of titles have opted to go straight to streaming instead of waiting for theaters to reopen. The "Sopranos" prequel film "The Many Saints of Newark" has also been pushed from its 2020 release date and will now hit theaters in 2021. Warner Bros. superhero slate has also been shuffled. "The Batman" has moved to Oct. 1, 2021, from June 25, 2021; "The Flash" will now arrive on June 2, 2022, instead of July 1, 2022; and "Shazam 2" has been moved to Nov. 4, 2022 instead of April 1, 2022. Additionally, the untitled Elvis Presley biopic from Baz Luhrmann has been moved to Nov. 5, 2021 from Oct. 1, 2021 and "In the Heights," "Scoob" and "Malignant" remain without release dates. Correction: Christopher Nolan's movie "Tenet" is scheduled to be released in July. An earlier version misspelled the film's name. A trio of far-right, pro-gun provocateurs is behind some of the largest Facebook groups calling for anti-quarantine protests across the country, offering the latest illustration that some seemingly organic demonstrations are being engineered by a network of conservative activists. The Facebook groups target Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, and they appear to be the work of Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights, and his siblings Christopher and Aaron. By Sunday, the groups had more than 200,000 members combined, and they continued to expand quickly, days after President Donald Trump endorsed such protests by suggesting citizens should "liberate" their states. The online activity implies that opposition to the restrictions is more widespread than polling suggests. Nearly 70 per cent of Republicans said they supported a national stay-home order, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll. Ninety-five per cent of Democrats backed such a measure in the survey. The Facebook groups have become digital hubs for the same sort of misinformation spouted in recent days at state capitols from comparing the virus to the flu to questioning the intentions of scientists working on a vaccine. Public health experts say stay-home orders are necessary to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 35,000 people in the United States. The Trump administration last week outlined three phases for states to reopen safely guidelines contradicted by the president when he urged citizens to rise up against the rules that heed the recommendations of his public-health advisers. Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Show all 13 1 /13 Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester holds a sign comparing Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to a Nazi during a demonstration at the State Capitol in Lansing over coronavirus lockdown measures AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan An armed protester taking part in a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Vehicles sit in gridlock during a protest in Lansing, Michigan over lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People protest against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing, Michigan AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan An armed man stands outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan during a protest against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A 2020 Trump Unity sign is displayed during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AP Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester calls for the impeachment of Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer during a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A slogan on the back of a truck during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures in Lansing, Michigan EPA Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Drivers sit in gridlock as part of a protest against lockdown measures in Michigan outside the State Capitol in Lansing during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan Protesters wave US flags outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, during a demonstration against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan A protester holds up a banner directed at Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer during a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures near the State Capitol in Lansing AFP via Getty Images Operation Gridlock: Anti-lockdown protests in Michigan People take part in a protest against lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AFP via Getty Images "If people feel that way, you're allowed to protest," Trump said Sunday. "Some governors have gone too far, some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate." Facebook said Sunday that it did not plan to take action to remove the groups or events, partly because states have not outlawed them. Organisers also have called for "drive-in" protests, in keeping with recommendations that people keep a short distance between one another. In other cases, involving protests planned for states such as New Jersey and California, the company has removed that content, Facebook said. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organised on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook," said Andy Stone, a spokesman for the company. None of the Dorr brothers responded to calls and emails Sunday. Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine was created Wednesday by Ben Dorr. His brother Christopher is the creator of Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine, as well as Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine. A third brother, Aaron, is the creator of New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine. The online coordination offered additional clues about how the protest activity is spreading nationwide, capturing the imagination of the president and of Fox News even though it represents the views of a small minority of Americans. Trump himself tied the protests to gun rights a major cause for the Dorr brothers in telling Virginians that the Second Amendment was "under siege" as he urged them to "liberate" the state. On the ground, pro-Trump figures including some who act as surrogates for his campaign as well as groups affiliated with prominent conservative donors have helped organize and promote the demonstrations. Some of the most vehement protest activity, in Michigan, has been organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition. Its founders are a Republican state lawmaker and his wife, Meshawn Maddock, who sits on the Trump campaign's advisory board and is a prominent figure in the Women for Trump coalition. Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News host and avid Trump supporter, interviewed Maddock on her show Saturday, telling her, "Keep going. Thank you." Also promoting the demonstrations including spending several hundred dollars to advertise the event on Facebook was the Michigan Freedom Fund, which is headed by Greg McNeilly, a longtime adviser to the DeVos family. He served as campaign manager for Dick DeVos, the husband of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, when he ran unsuccessfully for governor of Michigan in 2006. DeVos pictured testifying during a hearing of the House Appropriations Sub-Committee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (2020 The Associated Press) The state's Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, who has become a target for Trump and his conservative allies, last week criticized the nonprofit, noting that it was "funded in large part by the DeVos family," and saying it was "really inappropriate for a sitting member of the United States president's Cabinet to be waging political attacks on any governor, but obviously, on me here at home." McNeilly said the funds used to promote the event were "not dedicated program funds" but instead came from "our grass-roots fundraising efforts," and so had "nothing to do with any DeVos work." The Dorr brothers manage a slew of pro-gun groups across a wide range of states, from Iowa to Minnesota to New York, and seek primarily to discredit organizations such as the National Rifle Association as being too compromising on gun safety. Minnesota Gun Rights, for which Ben Dorr serves as political director, describes itself as the state's "no-compromise gun rights organization." In numerous states, they have bypassed rules requiring them to register as lobbyists by arguing that they are instead involved in "pro-gun grassroots mobilization," as "Ohio Gun Owners," whose board Chris Dorr directs, describes its work. A now-retired state legislator in Iowa, who in 2017 sought to close a loophole allowing the brothers to skirt lobbying rules, said he was not surprised that the Dorr brothers were involved in fomenting resistance to the public health precautions. "The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel," said the former state legislator, Republican Clel Baudler. Nearly 97,000 people had joined Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine by Sunday afternoon, a Facebook group whose posts are visible only to members that said Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has been on a "power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses" and "forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!" In the group, some members speculated that Evers closed most state businesses and shuttered schools to appease pharmaceutical giants - not because of data showing that the novel coronavirus is highly contagious and deadly, infecting more than 4,300 in the state and killing 220. The group, along with Ben Dorr, created an event on Facebook for an April 24 "drive-in rally" at the Capitol that has attracted hundreds of pledged participants. They also seek to steer visitors to a website for the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition, where people can enter their names, email addresses and other contact information and share their views with the state's governor. In doing so, they encourage visitors who are not "already a member of the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition" to "join us." A page asking users to join the Minnesota group offered several rates for membership, from $35 to $1,000. Another private Facebook group focused on Pennsylvania, gaining more than 63,000 members by Sunday. Many questioned the wisdom of wearing masks publicly, contrary to recommendations by state and federal officials, and linked to a similar website catering to Pennsylvania gun owners. Still, another targeting New York had become a forum for about 23,000 members to question whether the coronavirus is really that bad - despite the fact New York City has become the epicentre of the U.S. outbreak. "While seizing power at a breathtaking pace," the group's description began, "Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral!" Dozens of other Facebook pages, groups and events similarly promote protests targeting stay-home orders in state capitals nationwide. Permitting some of this content - including coordinated efforts on the part of conservative activists - marks a break with Facebook's strict new rules governing content about the pandemic. (PA (PA) Since the outbreak began, the tech giant has barred a wide array of false or misleading posts, photos and videos, including those promoting cures that do not exist. The company also has deployed its fact checkers to debunk dangerous myths about the pandemic and its origins, and it has warned people about their interactions with online misinformation. Guiding Facebook's approach - more aggressive than it typically takes even against known falsehoods - is a belief that it must stop the spread of dangerous mistruths on the platform amid a global health crisis. Many governors, however, have decried protests to open up the country as precisely that - potentially harmful to the people who attend the demonstrations and to the many more who are following guidelines and staying at home. "I don't think it's helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the president's own policy," Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, said this weekend. "It just doesn't make any sense." Representatives for the governors of New York, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania did not respond to requests for comment. A spokeswoman for Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said he has "acknowledged that the protesters have a First Amendment right to free speech," adding: "He just asks that they practice social distancing." Operation Gridlock: Thousands of conservatives block Michigan streets in protest over stay at home order Alex Stamos, director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and Facebook's former chief security officer, said the groups constitute a form of domestic disinformation because they were being operated by users with financial and political motivations to sway the public debate in unauthentic ways. He was especially alarmed by the possibility that the group's creators were deriving personal benefit by stoking online anger about public health measures. "It's always scams that drive the most ingenuity," Stamos said. Zachary Elwood, a software engineer in Portland, Oregon, who blogs about disinformation and tracked some of the activity by the Dorr brothers, urged Facebook to crack down on small clusters of users coordinating seemingly disparate activity, especially when the activity involved harmful untruths. "It's understandable that people are upset about the difficult situation we're in, but they're clearly being riled up by people with an obvious anti-government agenda," Elwood said. "Facebook shouldn't make it so easy to do that." Mauricio Rodriguez uses the word family to describe the people of Angelus Temple. He still remembers the smiles and hugs he and his mother and sisters received at the Los Angeles church when they first arrived in 1988 as immigrants fleeing a civil war in Nicaragua. They went to the church because they needed food. The Angelus Temple gave food away as part of a ministry started during the Great Depression by Aimee Semple McPherson, the famed revivalist who founded the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel. Hes been thinking about that a lot, as The Foursquare Church, which adopted multilingual ministry in its early years and has long advocated for multicultural leadership, is now for the first time hiring a diversity advocate to work on the denominational level. Rodriguez held the position in 2019, when it began as a one-year assignment. There are opportunities that God is placing right in front of us, Rodriguez said. In the same way that I was welcomed when I came as a three-year-old boy who didnt understand I was an immigrant and didnt understand the language, love overcomes language barriers and anything if we would just truly love people the way God has loved us. For one year, Rodriguez identified challenges for people from different language and ethnic groups starting Foursquare churches in the US. There are ministers from 74 nations, speaking 33 different primary languages, in the US denomination. There are also 477 immigrant congregations that operate as ministries of established Foursquare churches. Leadership expects to launch 200 more in 2020. Its easy to create a process through a lens of administration, Rodriguez said. The perspective ... 1 You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe now. Subscribers have full digital access. Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here. One month after Broadway shut down, I decided to take a walk. Theater is my beat. Times Square is my territory. And now its transformed. The first thing I noticed, after weeks away, was absence. Gone are the buskers promoting shows, the panhandling costumed characters, the Naked Cowboy and the fake monks and the school groups and the selfie sticks. Gone are the actors and the stagehands and the ushers and the fans. Then I saw presence. The shows are still there or at least their shells are. The district is a sort of theatrical petrified forest, fossilized on March 12. Now in Performances, declares a sign at the Longacre Theater, promoting Diana, a musical about the British princess, which is decidedly not in performances. Previews Begin March 13, promises a sign on the Hudson, touting a revival of Plaza Suite, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, that did not begin previews on that date or any other. I think we can be fairly assured that these facilities were aware that there could be outbreaks in their facilities and they knew of the steps, or at least had the information on the steps that they needed to take," she said. This is something we were prepared for, this is something we do our training for, and now were in the operation of assisting these long-term care facilities when there is an outbreak and to mitigate that problem. Zipline, the world's only national scale on-demand drone delivery service, announced that it has begun delivering COVID-19 test samples. Zipline drones now fly test samples collected from patients in more than 1,000 health facilities located in difficult to reach rural areas of Ghana to Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research laboratories in Accra, the nation's capital, and Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research (KCCR) in Kumasi, the country's second-largest city. The revolutionary new service improves the Government of Ghana's ability to monitor the spread of COVID-19 more quickly. It is one of several ways Zipline is helping the country respond to the pandemic. "Zipline is dedicated to helping Ghana in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic," said Zipline CEO Keller Rinaudo. "Using contactless drone delivery to transport COVID-19 test samples will allow the government to respond to the pandemic and help save lives more quickly." Thanks to the partnership with the Ministry of Health and with the help of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Zipline is now able to further strengthen Ghanas response to the pandemic, said Daniel Marfo, General Manager of Zipline in Ghana. The service began on Friday, April 17, when 51 COVID-19 test samples collected from patients at rural health facilities were transported to Zipline's distribution center in Omenako, Ghana. Over the course of four separate flights, each more than 70 miles/116km's round tip, Zipline delivered the 51 samples to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra for testing and analysis. The company will also be delivering COVID-19 test samples collected at regional hospitals near its Mampong distribution center to the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research, a nearly 60 mile/100km round trip flight. The first such delivery took place on Saturday, April 18, 2020. The company expects to operate this new daily service for the duration of the Government's COVID-19 response efforts. This marks the first time in history that autonomous drones have been used to make regular long-range deliveries into densely populated urban areas. It is also the first time that drones have been used in this way to deliver COVID-19 test samples. About The COVID-19 Test Sample Delivery Service The new COVID-19 test sample delivery service allows the government to more closely monitor and respond to the spread of the disease in some of the countrys most remote and challenging to reach areas. Before Zipline, COVID-19 test sample delivery could take between many hours to many days before a delivery truck had collected a sufficient number of samples from rural hospitals before it could return to the city. The time delay not only jeopardized the government's ability to respond swiftly but also increased the risk that the samples were damaged in transit due to broken cold-chain storage. Using Zipline's drones to deliver COVID-19 test samples helps save both time and money. Health facilities no longer need to wait to collect a sufficient number of tests to justify a truck delivery. Now, a single test from a rural area can be transported for analysis in under an hour. The company has taken many steps to ensure that it is operating the safest delivery system of its kind in the world, including rigorous testing of flight software and aircraft hardware, flight operations safety procedures, redundant inflight safety features, and modular frangible design. Zipline drones are designed to automatically detect issues inflight and safely return to base for repair. Test samples are packaged in accordance with the World Health Organization's Interim Laboratory Biosafety Guidelines for Handling and Processing Specimens Associated with Coronavirus Disease 2019. Each drone is equipped with redundant flight computers, motors, communications systems, flight control surfaces, as well as redundant navigation and power systems. In the event of emergencies like severe weather, emergency requests from air traffic control, or unplanned flight operation issues, each drone is equipped with a parachute that allows it to make an immediate landing by slowly descending to the ground. Zipline's International COVID-19 Response Efforts In addition to the new COVID-19 test sample delivery service, Zipline is helping the Governments of Ghana and Rwanda prepare for and respond to the pandemic in several ways. As countries seek to reduce social contact, shifting the primary delivery of vaccines and medicines from trucks to drones helps to reduce the risk of increased exposure. Zipline provides decision-makers with real-time visibility into demand across the health system and serves as an early warning system for potential outbreak hotspots. In Ghana, Zipline holds all emergency stocks of personal protection equipment for the facilities it serves, like gloves and masks, allowing health authorities to target distribution to regional providers on an as-needed basis. The company is helping to reduce hospital overcrowding in Ghana, as patients seek more basic or maintenance care at clinics closer to home. This helps free up beds for patients who truly need them and reduces the risk of exposure to non-infected patients seeking care. In Rwanda, Zipline is working with Partnerships in Health to deliver chemotherapy medications to cancer patients who are unable to travel to the hospital due to the pandemic. During disasters and outbreaks, Zipline can respond to demand surges and prevent stock-outs by immediately increasing delivery volumes. New vaccines, test kits, and other innovations can be added to the inventory as soon as they are available and delivered in real-time to help meet extraordinary needs. COVID-19 related national shutdowns have caused the cancelation of many blood drives in countries around the world, putting a strain on supply. Zipline's ability to centralize blood stocks and distribute them just-in-time to health care providers helps to increase patient access, lower waste, and save lives. COVID-19 Emergency Operations in the United States Before COVID19, Zipline planned to launch in the United States this fall, delivering to health facilities and ultimately to homes. The company believes that COVID-19 presents such an imminent threat to the country that it is prepared to begin emergency humanitarian operations in the United States right away. Zipline has been working very closely with the FAA on the necessary approvals and could begin operating within weeks of receiving the go-ahead. The company's emergency efforts in the United States would focus on distributing scarce resources like test kits and personal protective equipment like masks and gloves across the health systems more efficiently and effectively. The company can also help keep vulnerable non-COVID19 patients with chronic and underlying conditions away from the hospitalsboth to prevent exposure and to keep from overwhelming the systemby delivering care closer to where they live. And once a COVID19 vaccine is ready, Zipline can help make sure the distribution is targeted in real-time to the people and populations that need it most. How Zipline Works Zipline is dedicated to expanding universal health coverage by providing on-demand instant delivery by drone of hundreds of critical and life-saving medical products, including vaccines and blood. Health workers place orders by text message and receive their deliveries in 30 minutes on average. The drones both take off from and land at Zipline's distribution centers, requiring no additional infrastructure at the clinics they serve. The drones fly autonomously and can carry close to 4 pounds of cargo, flying up to 80 miles an hour and have a round trip range of 100 miles in high winds and rain. Each Zipline Hub can deliver to an area of more than 8,000 square miles serving millions of people. Deliveries are made from the sky, with the drone descending to a safe height above the ground and dropping off a box of medical products by parachute at a designated spot. Zipline's Record To Date Zipline's autonomous drones have flown more than 2 million miles, delivered more than 60,000 vaccines, units of blood, and critical medical products, and helped to save thousands of lives in multiple countries. Since launching in October of 2016 to deliver blood to 21 hospitals in Rwanda, Zipline has expanded its service nationwide, putting most of the country's 12 million citizens within minutes of a life-saving delivery. In 2018, Zipline began working with the U.S. Department of Defenseboth in the United States and Australiato demonstrate how its technology could help transform emergency medicine and critical care in conflict, humanitarian, and disaster relief scenarios. In April of 2019, Zipline partnered with the Government of Ghana to launch four distribution centers that will serve 2,000 health facilities and a population of 12 million people across the country. And in September of 2019, Zipline announced that it would expand its service to India as a part of a government initiative to put 120 million people within range of instant medical delivery by drone. 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. Featured Video Sainsbury was freed from El Buen Pastor jail over fears of COVID-19 spreading Sainsbury was released on parole two weeks ago but must stay in country Her jailbird fiancee is reportedly 'sad' that she is now alone in Colombian prison Cassie Sainsbury was found with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine in luggage in 2017 Cassie Sainsbury was found with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine in luggage in 2017 The jailbird fiancee of Australian drug smuggler Cassie Sainsbury is reportedly beside herself after the former personal trainer was released from prison on parole. Sainsbury left Joli Pico behind when she walked free from Bogota's El Buen Pastor women's prison two weeks ago after spending three years behind bars for a thwarted drug smuggling plot. The 24-year-old was arrested at El Dorado airport in April 2017 after packing 5.8 kilograms of cocaine into 18 headphone boxes, which were inside her suitcase. At the time, Sainsbury had a fiance back home in Australia, but the pair separated and she moved on with Pico, a 29-year-old fellow inmate. After a nine month romance behind bars, Pico proposed to Sainsbury, but is now struggling with the prospect of completing the rest of her sentence alone. Cassie Sainsbury was released from prison two weeks ago after serving three years behind bars (Pictured with partner Joli Pico) Sainsbury was arrested with 5.8 kilograms of cocaine (pictured) concealed in her luggage at Bogota's El Dorado International Airport in April 2017 'She's sad because her partner left,' a fellow inmate told a news.com.au. The couple will continue to pursue their relationship, despite the physical distance. Sainsbury is reportedly itching to get home to Australia, though must stay put in Colombia for at least the next 27 months as part of her parole conditions. 'She's with a very good friend of Joli's,' the source told the publication. Sainsbury doesn't know many people in Colombia, and will reportedly stay with her fiancee's friend, but the source had no doubts she would return to Australia as soon as she could - even if it meant leaving Pico behind. The 29-year-old Venezuelan woman 'still has a long sentence to see out', according to the source, after she was jailed for theft. Meanwhile Channel 9 reported Pico would be eligible for parole soon. The former personal trainer from Adelaide (pictured with her partner Joslianinyer Pico) will have to stay in Colombia for another 27 months as part of her parole conditions The pair were together for nine months before Pico - who is serving time for theft - proposed to Sainsbury in front of their cell mates late last year In an interview with 60 Minutes, Sainsbury said she was not expecting to meet somebody in prison. 'Honestly, it was the least thing that I expected to find in prison,' she said. 'It started as a friendship and then out of nowhere it just turned into a relationship.' Sainsbury revealed she has dated women in the past, but admitted she never pictured herself ending up in a 'proper relationship with a woman'. She was released from prison after President Ivan Duque allowed about 4,000 prisoners to walk free amid concerns of overcrowding during the coronavirus crisis. Since her release, Sainsbury has doubled down on her claims a drug peddler by the name of Angelo engineered the ill-fated smuggling operation. During the interview, she claimed the man drugged and raped her prior to her arrest, and that there was no doubt in her mind she would hurt her loved ones if she didn't follow through with his plan. Joli, who is serving time for theft, proposed to the 24-year-old and shared photos of their engagement rings on social media Sainsbury filmed mobile phone footage of the squalid cells inside the notorious El Buen Pastor women's prison Sainsbury flew to Colombia in April 2017, where she said she first met Angelo in person at a local hotel. A few days later, she claimed he spiked her drink before sexually assaulting her. 'He was saying that I had to be there with him, that I had to do what he wanted, that I didn't have a choice,' she told the program via Skype from Colombia. 'And then he gave me a drink and it was almost like, I felt like I was getting drunk, I was getting tipsy. 'From there, he basically forced my clothes off.' Sainsbury has always maintained she believed she would only be transporting documents, and not drugs. But she said the sexual assault made her realise Angelo would follow through on threats he made towards her family if she didn't go through with smuggling cocaine. 'He simply had the threat above me saying that if I didn't do what I was asked to do, that I was it was my family,' she said. Sainsbury has previously claimed Angelo threatened to kill her mother, sister, and former fiance Scott Broadbridge. Sainsbury and a fellow inmate leaving prison earlier this month after President Ivan Duque signed a decree to release about 4,000 prisoners due to concerns of overcrowding in prisons amid COVID-19 'I felt like I had to go through with it, because I couldn't make somebody else pay for my mistake,' she said through tears. Throughout her trial, Sainsbury claimed she was acting under duress but has never gone into detail on sexual assault allegations against Angelo. She also previously claimed to have evidence on her phone that could prove her innocence, but couldn't remember the password at her trial to clear her name. Bartlett pressed Sainsbury on why she didn't tell police about the alleged sexual assault when she was arrested at Bogota International Airport. 'It's not as easy as saying [the drugs] are not mine,' she responded. In an interview with 60 Minutes on Sunday night, Sainsbury repeated her previous claims a drug peddler named 'Angelo' engineered the ill-fated smuggling operation - but added some explosive new claims Sainsbury went on to admit she initially agreed to couriering 'documents' because she 'needed the money'. 'I know how it sounds, because obviously I accepted to come into it for money, I needed money, but I wasn't exactly like, I came there thinking, yes I'm going to go and smuggle drugs, it wasn't like that,' she said. 'But when I got there I knew something was weird. I knew something was off and it was like I'm here, like I already had both feet stuck in the sand.' Sainsbury lifted the lid on her former life as a sex worker at a brothel in Sydney's western suburbs, where she worked under the alias 'Claudia'. Pictured: Sainsbury on the Club 220 website Sainsbury also lifted the lid on her former life as a sex worker at a brothel in Penrith, in Sydney's western suburbs. She said she applied for a position as a receptionist at Club 220 in a desperate bid to make fast cash. 'The situation was very difficult for me and Scott. Neither of us had work, we had rent to pay, we had bills to pay and there was all this pressure on me to do something before we'd go under,' she said. Sainsbury claimed she only intended to work as a receptionist, but after arriving at the brothel her bosses convinced her to become a prostitute. 'I got there and [they said] ''you're not the type of person to be a receptionist, you're the sort of person who needs to try and be a sex worker'',' she said. 'I wasn't comfortable doing it, I didn't like doing it. [But] if it wasn't that then it was like ''what else?''' It comes after Sainsbury vehemently denied claims she worked as a prostitute during a 2018 interview. A former colleague at Club 220 claimed Sainsbury travelled from her home in Adelaide to the brothel and used the alias 'Claudia'. 'She would fly in and sometimes she would stay for a week or sometimes just for two, three or four days,' the woman previously told 60 Minutes. Sainsbury was locked up at El Buen Pastor women's prison in Bogota (pictured) Sainsbury was engaged to Scott Broadbridge (pictured together) at the time of her conviction, but no longer speaks to her former fiance after they split in February 2018 While the outbreak of the novel coronavirus has compelled humans to stay locked inside their houses, Mumbai has witnessed a sharp rise in the number of flamingos in and around the city. Forest department officials and environmentalists have noticed a huge flock of flamingos in the Mumbai metropolitan region, especially in Navi Mumbai, Uran, Thane Creek, Panju Island and Vasai, according to reports. Officials from the Nathuram Kokare of Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary have attributed the rise to 'less polluted water, air' and also the 'improvement in the quality of the algae', which is the primary food for the flamingos. The images and videos of the flamingos also went viral on social media, with people expressing their awe at the sight of it. While humans are locked inside, flamingos are putting in quite a spectacular show for the residents of Seawoods Complex in Nerul, Navi Mumbai ! pic.twitter.com/wYyIxo92Ch Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) April 16, 2020 This view is of Mumbai backwaters from Seawoods Complex in Nerul, Navi Mumbai. Every year a few hundred pink flamingos migrate to the backwaters ... this year it is simply spectacular ! (Source-WhatsApp) pic.twitter.com/MApw0s6Oft Rukshmanii kumari (@KumariRukshmani) April 15, 2020 Large Number of Flamingos at a creek in Navi Mumbai.... Nature reclaiming as humans take a break..... https://t.co/k8qdTspxqu Devang Sanghavi, MD, MHA, FCCP (@Dev_Sanghavi) April 19, 2020 Flamingos painting the city 'Pink' at the Wetlands in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). DYK ~ The word flamingo comes from the Spanish word flamenco meaning fire, which refers to the bright pink or orange colour of the feathers. Pratik Chorge pic.twitter.com/eaiKF8DxVx Ankit Kumar, IFS (@AnkitKumar_IFS) April 19, 2020 Its estimated that migration of flamingos in Mumbai suburbs is 25% more than last year, may be due to lower human activity by creating ideal conditions for foraging in the wetlands. It shows why wetlands are important and to be kept undisturbed. #wetlands #birds #migration pic.twitter.com/xEoRnqgSRI Ramesh Pandey IFS (@rameshpandeyifs) April 19, 2020 Never Seen Such Pink Beauties In Huge Numbers After delaying their annual migration to wetlands in the Mumbai metropolitan region(MMR) flamingos are flocking to the city in large numbers.#savewetlands @ParveenKaswan@deespeakCaptured By Star Photojournalist @pratikchorge00 pic.twitter.com/YQO0KrJO6G Ketan Nardhani (@ketan83) April 19, 2020 Even fishermen have reiterated the same as the officials saying that they haven't ever seen so many of these pink birds flocking the Panju Island. As per a Mumbai Mirror report, a wildlife warden in Thane, said, "Since there are hardly any humans around, flamingos, which are by nature social and tend to stay in large groups, are enjoying a hassle-free stay." He also said that this could be the right time for environmentalists to study the behaviour of the flamingos, which can help them to devise more ways of conserving the species. The flamingos have also been sighted at Sanjay Gandhi National Park. Meanwhile, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) estimates there are 25 per cent more birds than last year. Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex endured more than their fair share of negative press before they decided to pack it all in and leave their royal duties behind. There was one shining moment, however, when their actions werent, for once, criticized by the public and the press and when they demonstrated a real turning point as royals, one expert shares. Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex | Karwai Tang/WireImage Prince Harry and Meghans turning point identified them as down to earth There was a moment that one expert calls the turning point for Prince Harry and Meghan, where they showed how they were anything but stuffy or high glamour royals. The Sussexes first day of their Africa tour showed a new side of the couple, as they shed any notions of royal formalities in favor of a more casual visit that allowed them the opportunity to really connect with the people they encountered on the trip. Christine Ross, the editor of the Meghans Mirror blog, noted that the first day of their tour, Sept. 23, 2019, Prince Harry and Meghan arrived and were dancing with locals during their visit to a Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township. She was dancing with the children and it was such a stark contrast to some of the events we had seen before her pregnancy, Ross noted during the Pod Save the Queen podcast. Shes in this very affordable dress, shes in affordable wedges, her hair is in a ponytail shes dancing with children. Ross continued, We didnt know then what we know now but I think that tour and even just that moment and that look was a turning point in their roles, in that they werent going to be these high glamour royals anymore. They wanted to be more down to earth, with the people, dancing with the children, getting out into the crowds, she explained. Meghan went with a more casual look for the visit Meghan opted to dress more casually during their visit and didnt wear her wedding ring or any fancy accessories. On the first day of their tour, Meghan wore a black and white dress designed by Mayamiko and she and Prince Harry wore Justice Desk beaded bracelets. I love that wrap dress because its not a royal color, Ross shared. She was still showing a very normal post-partum body which so many women around the world appreciated and that outfit to me, especially as it marked the beginning of the tour, was a turning point in her relationship with her role as a duchess. Even their critics had nothing negative to say The Sussexes could do no wrong during their tour even their toughest critics couldnt fault them at the time. Piers Morgan, one of the couples most vocal critics, had nothing but praise for them. Their tour of South Africa has been an unqualified success, Morgan wrote on the Daily Mail at the time. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex havent put a foot wrong as theyve toured the country shining an important light on many issues from gender violence to poverty and education. He added, Theyve behaved like royals should behave with dignity, grace, good humor and empathy. COVID-19 cases are spreading rapidly across Canada, with total infections passing 35,000 on Sunday. The federal governments projection, released April 9, of between 500 and 700 fatalities by April 16 proved to be vastly optimistic, with over 1,100 deaths recorded by last Thursday. As of Sunday afternoon, the coronavirus death toll had surpassed 1,575. Ontario, Canadas most populous province, has been particularly hard hit. As of yesterday, 10,500 Ontarians had become infected and more than 550 had died. The provinces health care system, ravaged by decades of austerity, job cuts and privatization, has struggled to cope with the surge of COVID-19 patients. Due to shortages, health authorities have proven unable to test widely, making it impossible to accurately determine the diseases spread and carry out systematic contact tracing. Although a goal of testing 19,000 people per day by mid-April was originally set, this has been revised down to just 16,000 by May 6, amid reports that current testing rates are hovering around 4,000-6,000 per day. Among Canadas ten provinces, Ontario has consistently had the lowest perc capita coronavirus testing. This forced even the provinces right-wing populist premier Doug Ford, whose government is responsible for savaging health care spending, to declare the testing regime not acceptable. The lack of testing has been compounded by the absence of the basic equipment and supplies medical workers require to do their job. Despite Greater Toronto having been the region outside the Asia-Pacific hardest hit by the 2002-3 SARS outbreak, with 43 deaths, the Ontario government failed to make preparations for a future pandemic by stockpiling supplies and equipment and building hospital surge capacity. 55 million N-95 masks purchased after the SARS epidemic were allowed to expire in 2017 without being replaced, even though an explicit warning about their expiration was issued by the provinces auditor general in December 2017. As a result, authorities have had to appeal to the public to donate masks and are now to urging hospitals not to dispose of used masks so that they can be reused. Due to the total inadequacy of personal protective equipment (PPE), over 850 health care workers have already contracted COVID-19. At least two medical workers have died. The fact that Ontario has become a coronavirus hotspot in Canada comes as no surprise given how overstretched the provinces hospitals were even prior to the pandemic. For years, new patients have routinely been left on stretchers in hospital hallways. Others have been consigned to unconventional spaces, a new bureaucratic term developed to refer to the practice of placing hospital beds in storage areas and other unused parts of hospital buildings. A report by CBC in January based on a freedom of information request demonstrated that hospital overcrowding was already at acute levels across the province last year. Over a 181-day period between January and June 2019, many Ontario hospitals, including five in the Greater Toronto Area, and the main hospitals in Sudbury, Hamilton, and Peterborough, spent at least 160 days with patients in excess of their funded capacity. An analysis of the data from 169 acute care hospitals revealed that 40 hospitals averaged at least 100 percent capacity during the six-month period, while 39 hospitals were over 120 percent capacity for at least one day. A report by the Ontario Health Coalition noted that there is a near-consensus among government and health policy experts internationally that patient levels exceeding 85 per cent capacity lead to bottlenecks in emergency rooms and cause dangerous ambulance offload delays. These figures alone reveal the woefully inadequate level of public funding and planning, which threatens the provinces health care system with collapse in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Anyone who has experienced a visit to the emergency room in Ontario can testify to long wait times, overcrowding, understaffing, and overworked nurses and doctors. The long wait times, attributable at least in part to a decades-long drive to close hospital beds, result in an average wait time of 16 hours in emergency rooms before a patient is given a hospital bed on a ward. This past November, the average patient waited 46 hours in the emergency room of the Greater Niagara General Hospital in Niagara Falls, Ontario before being admitted to a bed. The decrease of hospital beds is a result of funding cuts over the past four decades. Data on Canada as a whole from the World Bank shows that the number of hospital beds per 1,000 people has declined from 7 per 1,000 in 1976 to 2.5 per 1,000 in 2018. Canada ranks near the bottom of OECD countries for hospital beds. In total, the number of hospital beds declined by 23,363 from 115,829 in 2000 to 92,466 in 2018, according to figures from the OECD, although during that time Canadas population increased from 30.7 to 37 million. China, by comparison, has nearly double the number of hospital beds per person than Canada. Yet even China struggled to find hospital space for the influx of patients infected by the coronavirus, resulting in the official death toll rising to over 4,600. Conditions in Canada, where little effort has been made to follow Chinas approach and build emergency hospital capacity to deal with the pandemic, threaten to be much worse. Despite Ontario Premier Doug Fords pledge to eliminate what he himself terms hallway medicine, patients continue to be crammed into overcrowded hospitals that lack the resources to properly service patients even under normal operating conditions. The January CBC report noted that unconventional ward spaces have been created to deal with patient overflow. One example is Southlake Regional Health Centre, a 500-bed hospital in Newmarket, Ontario, where a gym used for physiotherapy has been converted into an impromptu ward to deal with overcapacity. In Richmond Hill, a former meeting room, sectioned off with cubicle dividers, now acts as a 10-bed ward. Even before the coronanvirus pandemic about 1,000 patients were being housed in hallways, meeting rooms, kitchenettes, and, according to the non-profit Ontario Health Coalition, even washrooms. An Ontario Health Coalition report titled Brampton Hospital Crisis and Broken Promises provides a window into the deplorable state of health care in Ontario after decades of cuts and privatizations under provincial Conservative, Liberal and NDP governments. In 2001, Tony Clement, the then Progressive Conservative Health Minister, proposed a new Brampton Civic Hospital as a Public Private Partnership (P3). At the time, the old Peel Memorial Hospital, a 367-bed hospital originally built in 1925, was still open and functioning. In 2003, Halton-Peel District Health Council, the regional government body overseeing health care planning, projected that Brampton would require 930 beds by 2008. The provincial government proposed an alternate 810 bed plan, with the overflow handled by the Peel Memorial Hospital. That plan fell through. The Peel Memorial Hospital was closed in 2007, while the Brampton Civic Hospital operated with only 467 of its promised 608 beds until 2016. In what should by now be recognized as a sort of sick cliche, the public private partnership resulted in cost overruns, with the working class footing the bill and receiving substandard services while private investors reaped the benefits. Doctors and nurses as far afield as the UK wrote to the Ontario government begging them not to adopt the privatization scheme to build Bramptons new hospital, predicting a decline in the quality of care, but to no avail. The Liberals, who succeeded the Tories in 2003, had promised to reverse the privatization scheme, but promptly went back on their word after the election. A hospital that was initially supposed to cost $350 million ended up costing $2.6 billion in public funds paid out to private contractors. Two patients died as a result of extended wait times in a brand-new facility. The deaths were a direct result of the political establishments drive to prioritize the demands of wealthy investors over the needs of working people. This author also recommends: Canadian elite promotes anti-China campaign over coronavirus [17 April 2020] Canadas coronavirus wage-subsidy tailored to propping up business, not protecting workers incomes [14 April 2020] Workers walk out at Ontario care home due to unsafe conditions amid coronavirus outbreak [13 April 2020] President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has attended the opening of the newly-reconstructed main administrative, scientific, educational and laboratory complex of AzerEnergy Open Joint Stock Company in Baku. President of AzerEnergy Open Joint Stock Company Baba Rzayev informed the head of state of the work done. Landscaping work was carried out and green areas were laid out in the territory. The head of state was informed of the Main Administrative Center which will operate in the building. President Ilham Aliyev was also briefed on AzerEnergy Head Office building reconstruction project. The new Laboratory Center in the Complex is built to modern standards. The laboratory which was supplied with the state-of-the-art equipment, has all conditions for conducting different kind of tests. A special room was allocated in the building and fitted with necessary equipment for manufacturing medical masks. President Ilham Aliyev then met with a group of employees of AzerEnergy Open Joint Stock Company. The head of state made a speech at the meeting: - I congratulate you on the commissioning of the Main Control Center of the AzerEnergy Open Joint Stock Company. I am glad that many AzerEnergy units are located in this beautiful building the dispatcher center, the main control room, the energy institute, a training center, a laboratory, and a culture center for power engineers. I believe that the conditions here are very good. Major reconstruction was carried out in this building in a short time. It is possible to say that the building has been rebuilt and the main departments of AzerEnergy are currently located in one place, in one center. Thus, there are more favorable management opportunities now because earlier the various units and departments of AzerEnergy were located in different places, in some cases even in substation buildings, which, of course, is not very suitable for management. This building was constructed in Soviet times. Some time ago it was put up for privatization and removed from the balance of AzerEnergy. When I found that out, I gave an order to immediately return it to AzerEnergy, otherwise no-one knows what entrepreneurs would have created in this building after privatizing it. The building is very large and the premises are immense about 4 hectares. The area of the previous building was 13,000 square meters and it has now been expanded and brought up to 20,000 square meters. Some hotel, a marriage palace, a residential building or a catering facility would have been created here and energy workers would have lost this building. After the building was returned to power engineers, work began on major reconstruction and repairs at the end of 2018, and they have been successfully completed. This once again shows that the Azerbaijani state attaches great importance to the energy sector. It is no coincidence that our first steps on to the implementation of infrastructure projects were related specifically to the energy sector. Back in 2004, when the first state program on the socioeconomic development of the regions was adopted, the focus of all infrastructure projects was on the energy sector. This was natural because at that time we could not provide ourselves with electricity. We received electricity from abroad. Both the currency went abroad and the infrastructure lines available to us at the time did not enable us to provide the country with electricity. Electricity was cut off at night even in the city of Baku. Representatives of the younger generation may not remember this, but I remember that television broadcasts stopped at 12 am at that time, so that people would not watch TV and use a lot of energy. In other words, there was a huge deficit. As for the regions of Azerbaijan, people living there did not even know what sustainable energy supply was. In the best case, electricity was supplied for two to four hours a day, which, of course, negatively affected people's way of life and also created big problems for our economic and industrial potential. Therefore, on my instructions, great attention was paid to this issue in the first regional development program, and we immediately started to work. At that time, we began the construction of regional power plants. To some extent, the construction of power plants in Astara, Khachmaz, Sheki, Shahdag and Sangachal allowed us the opportunity to meet our needs. However, in parallel with this, we planned on the construction of large power plants, and a total of over 30 new stations have been built in our country over the past 16 years. If these stations had not been built, Azerbaijan would probably be five or 10 times more dependent on imports than in the early 2000s. Of particular importance among them are large stations. The largest station, the Janub power plant, was built in the city of Shirvan. Its generating capacity is approximately 800 megawatts. It is followed by the Sumgayit power plant with a capacity of 525 megawatts. The "Shimal-2" station was put into operation recently. It has a capacity of about 400 megawatts. The generating capacity of the Sangachal station is 300 megawatts. The capacity of only these four stations exceeds 2,000 megawatts. In addition, hydropower plants were built in various places across our country. It should be noted that the generating capacity of hydroelectric power plants built in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is capable of meeting the needs of the entire Autonomous Republic. The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, which used to receive electricity from Iran and Turkey, fully provides itself today and even has export potential. In general, our country has export potential today, as we have transformed from a country importing electricity into one exporting it. Of course, these major infrastructure projects require a lot of funds. Most of these funds were provided from the budget and the rest from loans that are now being repaid. Thus, we have created a very modern energy system and a stable energy supply has long been provided in the country. In addition, work done especially in recent years has completely transformed the energy economy. High-voltage lines, lines connecting us with neighboring states were extended, new substations were built in many places, transformers were installed. As part of my numerous trips to the regions, I always enquire and ask people how things are going with energy supply. In recent years, I always hear positive feedback. This makes me very happy and testifies that AzerEnergy and AzerIshig are doing a lot of work in this direction. Our energy potential must be aligned with the growing economic development. At the same time, in the last two years, AzerEnergy has introduced a new project on restoring the generating capacities of existing stations, because most of these stations were built a long time ago. The situation at these stations could not please us. We all remember the consequences of the breakdown that occurred at the Mingachevir power plant. Our country plunged into darkness. There was a crisis at all metro stations and our country was in the dark. This breakdown occurred primarily due to negligence and irresponsibility. Therefore, the leaders of AzerEnergy were replaced and punished. New leaders were appointed. They have very specific tasks which are being fulfilled today, because energy supply is a source of life for any country. There will be nothing without it. Industry and agriculture will not develop without it, it will be impossible to provide irrigation work, public transport will not work. In general, life will be paralyzed. Therefore, our main goal was to create an independent energy system and eliminate dependence on other countries. We needed to create our energy potential in such volumes as to have sufficient generating capacities in reserve, and we have done that today. Various figures could be cited, but even the most pessimistic figures indicate that we currently have at least 1,000 megawatts of generating capacity in reserve. The restoration of the capacities of existing stations is nearing completion. Among them, the Thermal Power Station in Mingachevir should be noted in the first place because this is our largest generation capacity. As a result of the breakdown at this station, our country plunged into darkness. All eight units of this station are being reconstructed. I do hope that the station will be completely reconstructed and put into operation in the next few months. The amount of recovered capacity of this station alone is about 600 megawatts. Just imagine that thanks only to the correct restoration work, we will receive 600 megawatts of additional capacity. If we take this as a standalone station, we can see that in terms of its capacity it will become the second largest station in our country after the Janub station. Restoration work is also underway at other power plants. I am sure that we will achieve our goals in this direction. All this work, as well as stability, calm, economic development of our country, growth of the industrial potential and, at the same time the construction of energy lines with neighboring countries contribute to the fact that foreign investors are already showing great interest in this area. We always wanted that. But seeing that foreign investors do not show interest in this area, we carry out all the work ourselves. A certain part of this work was covered by a loan but the main part was resolved at the expense of our own funds, and today Azerbaijan has one of the most efficient energy systems on a global scale. This is also confirmed by a report of the Davos World Economic Forum. I am saying this for a reason. In particular, the report of the Forum ranks Azerbaijan second in the world in terms of the accessibility of electricity. Just imagine in second place. Only one country is ahead of us. So we are ahead of many developed countries. And we have done that in a short time. Our independence is not even 30 years old. When we became an independent country, our energy economy was in a terrible state. It came into an even more terrible state afterwards. We remember those years. A certain company called Barmek appeared here, which, on the basis of shady dealings and conspiracy with former officials, took possession of the entire energy sector of the city of Baku and, instead of investing money, brought this system to a deplorable state and took millions outside of Azerbaijan. As if this wasnt enough, it even wanted to sue us. On my instruction, an end was put to that dirty conspiracy, this fraudulent company was expelled from Azerbaijan and the AzerIshig Joint Stock Company was set up on my order. It was me who called it AzerIshig. We returned all our energy facilities into state ownership. If we hadnt done this, we would have lived in darkness today, the entire property of AzerEnergy would have been plundered, including this building. Imagine, they put up a 13,000-square-meter building for privatization and tried to sell it for nothing. If I hadnt found that out, if they hadnt informed me, if I hadnt given the order, they would have sold it. And look at what a beautiful building you are located in now. This is practically the main center to regulate our energy system. SCADA system, dispatch system, control system everything is here. Where else could these be placed? They wanted to destroy our energy system. Therefore, our citizens should know and remember this, remember where we started and where we are now we are in second place in the world. At present, our energy potential underpins the growing economy. In the first three months of this year although oil prices fell and the coronavirus pandemic seriously affected our country non-oil industry growth was 23 percent. All these growing industrial enterprises require energy. Generation, transmission, uninterrupted supply all this is provided today. Therefore, I believe that the opening of this building today has a huge symbolic meaning. Naturally, the Institute, the Main Control Center, the Training and Laboratory Center, and the Dispatch Center are located here. At the same time, this reflects the new face of our energy system. This building was removed from auction and returned to power engineers, to its actual owners. Therefore, citizens working in this building must honor their duty. They must make sure that our energy supply is always at a high level. At the same time, a lot still remains to be done. AzerEnergy has ambitious plans, and I believe that as a result of a consistent policy, all of them will be implemented. I want to say once again that all this positive dynamics, as well as stability, have led foreign companies to decide to invest in Azerbaijan. In January this year, a preliminary agreement was reached and two major companies with extensive experience in the field of renewable energy signed the first agreements with Azerbaijan. Based on these agreements, 2 stations with a capacity of 440 megawatts will be built in our country only at the expense of foreign investors one wind and one solar. I must also note that there were seven companies interested in implementing these projects, i.e. to make investment. I do not want to name them, but there were the largest energy companies in the world among them. But the competition showed that two companies offered the best conditions and they should already start work. The coronavirus did get in the way, a certain delay is possible, but, in principle, preliminary agreements have been reached. This, in turn, will open the way for other companies. Our renewable energy potential is fairly large, we have a lot of sun and wind. Therefore, I am sure that both local and foreign companies will show interest in this area. I also want to note in connection with the activities of foreign companies that we kept this sector in state monopoly for some time, and I explained the reason for this. But at present, any company interested in investing in Azerbaijan can submit its proposals and build new stations, invest and work with us. I am also aware that some companies are interested in the stations already in operation. However, it is necessary to analyze whether we need that or not because all operating stations are in working condition and large state investments have been made. If a foreign company can operate these stations better than us, then it should submit its proposals, show what its advantages are, and if we see that the stations will operate more effectively in private hands, then let them work. But I want to draw the attention of foreign investors primarily to new stations. Let them come and invest. After all, anyone would want to work when everything is up and running. So please come, invest, produce, transfer to a common system and expand your business. This is my recommendation to foreign and local companies. I am sure that from now on, the partnership between the state and private sectors will be possible in this area as well. I sincerely congratulate you again and wish you and all the energy workers of Azerbaijan continued success. Thank you! --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz A t least 16 people have been killed in the deadliest mass shooting in Canadas history. The gunman, who was disguised as a police officer, carried out his rampage over 12 hours in Nova Scotia. Among the dead was Royal Canadian Mounted Police constable (RCMP) Heidi Stevenson, a married mother-of-two who had served in the force for 23 years. The suspect, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, mocked up a car to make it look like a police vehicle. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki said she believed the gunman had an initial motivation at the beginning that turned to randomness. Wortman was arrested at a petrol station in Enfield, north-west of the provinces capital Halifax, but he later died. Reports that he was shot dead by officers were not officially confirmed, although police did say that they had exchanged fire with Wortman. Gabriel Wortman / Royal Canadian Mounted Police/AF The rampage started late on Saturday in the rural town of Portapique, with police advising residents to lock their doors and stay in their basements. The gunman then shot people in several locations across Nova Scotia. Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said: We believe it to be one person who is responsible for all the killings and that he alone moved across the northern part of the province and committed what appears to be several homicides. Police did not provide a motive. Mr Leather said many of the victims did not know the gunman. That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, Mr Leather said. He added that police would look at a possible link to the closure of non-essential businesses due to the coronavirus outbreak. Police said the suspect was driving what appeared to be a police car but later said he had swapped to a small, silver Chevrolet SUV. They confirmed he was not a police employee. SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A single patient, emergency Investigational New Drug (IND) use was cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of severe lung injury due to COVID-19 at the Providence Saint John's Health Center, Santa Monica, CA with intravenous administration of ischemia-tolerant allogeneic mesenchymal bone marrow cells (itMSCs) manufactured by Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. Dr. Santosh Kesari, Director of Translational Neurosciences and Neurotherapeutics at John Wayne Cancer Institute, Pacific Neuroscience Institute, and Providence Saint John's Health Center, was familiar with expanded access use of investigational treatments for serious and life-threatening conditions. "I was consulted about compassionate use options for a patient with respiratory failure from COVID-19 infection. The patient was not a candidate for currently available clinical trials and had already received treatment with anti-IL-6, anti-retrovirals, hydroxychloroquine, and convalescent plasma," said Dr. Kesari. "Our team was running out of options." Having collaborated previously with Stemedica, Dr. Kesari reached out to the company to see if their itMSCs could be used for the patient. The potential use of MSCs to facilitate regeneration of damaged lung tissue and to tamp down an overactive immune response, two factors contributing to respiratory failure, is under intense investigation. Dr. Lev Verkh, Chief Regulatory and Clinical Development Officer at Stemedica added, "This IND application for emergency use was supported by pre-clinical data in an acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) model. These data provide important evidence that Stemedica's itMSCs exhibit potent therapeutic effects in pre-clinical models of infection-related lung injury. The results show: (1) improved survival in pre-clinical model of Acute Respiratory Disease Syndrome treated with itMSCs delivered by either the intratracheal or intravenous route; (2) enhanced bacterial clearance in the lungs of animals infected with bacteria; and (3) increased secretion of paracrine factors, such as angiopoietin-1, that mediate reparative effects following lung infection and injury. The IND application was also supported with safety data of itMSCs in humans obtained in several clinical trials conducted under FDA INDs sponsored by Stemedica." Dr. Nikolai Tankovich, the President and Chief Medical Officer at Stemedica commented: "It is significant that our stem cell product has helped ICU physicians to stabilize a COVID-19 critical condition patient by reducing systemic inflammation and partially resolving pneumonia in combination with the standard protocol treatment. I believe that combined stem cell and medication therapy will allow physicians to stabilize critically ill Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome patients, assisting them continue with their recovery." An application for the Expanded Use IND to treat additional patients was submitted to the FDA by Dr. Kesari and a Phase II study is in development by Stemedica. About Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of progenitor cell, protein and combination therapeutics for underserved medical conditions. Stemedica has developed a proprietary manufacturing technology platform that produces allogeneic progenitor cell products with intellectual property protection under a low-oxygen, low-tension environment in a cGMP-compliant manufacturing facility. The company's lead drug candidate, ischemia-tolerant mesenchymal stem cells, or itMSCs, is an allogeneic progenitor cell therapy currently in clinical development for the treatment of ischemic stroke, chronic heart failure, cutaneous photoaging, and Alzheimer's disease. The company's second drug candidate, ischemia-tolerant neural progenitor cells, or itNSCs, is an allogeneic cell therapy currently in development for spinal cord injury. More information on Stemedica may be found at www.stemedica.com. About Pacific Neuroscience Institute Pacific Neuroscience Institute (PNI) is devoted to the comprehensive care of patients with a wide spectrum of neurological and cranial disorders. Dedicated teams of specialists, state-of-the-art facilities and the use of leading-edge treatment along with our collaborative approach ensure that each patient receives the attention they require for successful treatment and recovery. PNI's specialty clinics are located at award winning hospitals Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica and Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance, California. www.PacificNeuro.org About Providence St. Joseph Health Providence St. Joseph Health is a national, not-for-profit Catholic health system comprising a diverse family of organizations and driven by a belief that health is a human right. With 51 hospitals, 829 physician clinics, senior services, supportive housing and many other health and educational services, the health system and its partners employ more than 119,000 caregivers serving communities across seven states Alaska, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas and Washington with system offices based in Renton, Wash., and Irvine, Calif. CONTACT: Dave McGuigan EVP, Marketing & Business Development [email protected] SOURCE Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. Related Links http://www.stemedica.com The shooting is under investigation and anyone with knowledge of the shooting was asked to contact state police at 847-294-4400. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take action against those giving communal colour to the lynching of three men by a mob in Palghar district. The state government has already ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on April 16. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh earlier warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. In a video message, Thackeray said he received a call on Monday from Amit Shah who himself said there is no communal angle to the Palghar mob lynching incident. "I have urged him to initiate action against those who are giving a communal twist to the Palghar mob lynching, which is factually incorrect. I also informed him that my government is definitely going to take action against the perpetrators," Thackeray said. The chief minister earlier said stern action will be taken against those involved in the lynching of the three men. "The Palghar incident has been acted upon. The police has arrested all those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and the police personnel, on the day of the crime itself," Thackeray tweeted late Sunday night. "Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible," he added. Deshmukh said those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings are not from different religions. "I have ordered Maharashtra police and @MahaCyber1 to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media," he said in a tweet on Sunday. "Police have detained 101 people involved into the killing of three Surat bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered high level inquiry into this killings," he said. Deshmukh said police are keeping an eye on those who wanted to use the incident to create a rift in society. Palghar police on Monday suspended two policemen for alleged dereliction of duty in the wake of the incident that took place on April 16 night when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after Donald Trump encouraged Americans to protest against strict public health measures aimed at limiting the spread of coronavirus, rallies were held in state capitals in Maryland, Texas and Ohio, with more planned for next week in other states. Hundreds of people stood shoulder-to-shoulder at the Texas Capitol on Saturday, chanting Fire Fauci! as part of a protest organized by the conspiracy theory site InfoWars. Anthony Fauci is the top public health expert on the White House coronavirus taskforce. In Maryland, protesters stayed inside their cars and honked their horns as they drove around the capital, Annapolis, to demand that Governor Larry Hogan reopen Maryland. In Columbus, Ohio, hundreds of protesters gathered, some chanting We are not sheep. The protests demanding governors reverse shutdown orders have been boosted by rightwing media outlets and by the president, who tweeted on Friday Liberate Minnesota! and Liberate Michigan! in the wake of a protest in Michigan that drew thousands of people. Related: Trump calls protesters against stay-at-home orders 'very responsible' Widespread shutdowns to prevent the spread of coronavirus have left many Americans unemployed, worried that their small businesses will not survive the next few months of the crisis, and afraid of deepening economic problems. But those actually taking to the streets to protest against public health measures represent a minority opinion, according to a recent poll. Two-thirds of Americans fear that state governments will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly, compared with only one third who worry they will not do so quickly enough, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey of nearly 5,000 American adults. Republicans were evenly divided on the issue, with 51% saying they were concerned about restrictions being lifted too quickly, the poll found. In Texas, even the InfoWars contributor who organized the rally estimated that it had attracted, at most, a few hundred people. Story continues In Maryland, organizers of the Reopen Maryland protest asked supporters to stay in their cars and keep their messaging respectful. Local news outlets shared footage of streets in Annapolis filled bumper-to-bumper with cars, many of them honking their horns. Some participants flew American flags and many scrawled protest messages on their windows. We are petitioning our governor, Larry Hogan, to immediately reopen our states business, educational and religious institutions, the protest organizers wrote in an online letter, arguing that, while coronavirus was a serious public health concern, the economic, social and educational disruption caused by shutdowns is guaranteed to cause significant, even greater, harm. Demonstrators drive though downtown Annapolis, Maryland. Photograph: Tom Brenner/Reuters One local resident who participated in the protest wrote that he wanted to show up so the governor hears both sides of the debate over how long to keep shutdown measures in place, and said he had seen hundreds of other cars participating. Right now it seems to be all shutdown, without consideration for those who are hurt by it. That does include me, Tony, a 35-year-old personal trainer from Elkridge, Maryland, told the Guardian in a Twitter message. He declined to give his last name. With gyms closed for weeks, Tony said, he has not been able to work, and as an independent contractor, he and similar workers have few support systems during the shutdown. If public parks had remained open , he said, he could hold socially distant fitness training sessions outside. It just seems like nonsense that spaces are closed that would be really minimal risk to open, he wrote, saying the choice showed a lack of balance. Tony wrote he believed some shutdown measures should stay in place, like keeping crowded club and stadium venues closed, but he wanted to see some businesses reopen, perhaps at reduced capacity. In Texas, where the anti-shutdown protest was organized by conspiracy theorists, the rhetoric was more extreme, with an organizer referring to the coronavirus hoax, and the narratives of the Deep State. Alex Jones, the InfoWars founder, stood at the center of a packed crowd of hundreds of people on Saturday afternoon and bellowed into a bullhorn, praising attendees for resisting tyranny. Few of the Texas protesters were wearing masks. Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones speaking to a crowd of hundreds of people in Austin, Texas, at a protest organized by another InfoWars personality. Theme: "You Can't Close America." pic.twitter.com/0onNIZvj3O Lois Beckett (@loisbeckett) April 18, 2020 I see a bunch of healthy Americans out here who dont seem to be afraid of a virus, said Owen Shroyer, the InfoWars personality who organized the protest, according to footage of the protest livestreamed on Periscope. Shroyers Twitter account was reportedly suspended this week after he shared posts about the protest. If I want to go out to the gym or the club, or a restaurant, Im not going to wear a mask, Shroyer said. Neither am I! a woman shouted back at him. Shroyer suggested that if thousands of Americans held protests against the shutdown all over the country, they would be able to see that the the virus doesnt spread like they told us. He referred to the coronavirus hoax on the livestream, then added that while there was a real virus, the hysteria, the shutdown, was the hoax. A spokesperson for the Texas state police did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether there had been any arrests or citations at the rally. Interactive feature was on conflicts of interest arising from Canadas $5.6bn expansion of Trans Mountain oil pipeline. The Al Jazeera English Online interactive, First Nations Divided, has won a top prize at the 25th annual Amnesty International Canada Media Awards. Produced with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, the interactive feature won in the Mixed Media category and centred on conflicts of interest arising from Canadas $5.6bn expansion of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline. When completed, the pipeline will triple its current capacity from 300,000 to 890,000 barrels of oil per day. Many First Nations elders fear environmental damage from oil spills and say the pipeline is a threat to their land and traditional ways of life. Al Jazeera English Online contributing journalists Jillian Kestler-DAmours and freelance reporter Megan OToole travelled the 2,000km Trans Mountain pipeline route, from the oil refineries of Edmonton, Alberta to the shipping hubs of Canadas Pacific Coast. Along the way, they interviewed indigenous First Nations land defenders, community leaders, legal experts and pipeline proponents. Jillian and Megan won for their sensitive storytelling centred on the voices of those most affected, said Amnesty judge and former Mixed Media winner Samantha Fink. They won for the depth of their research and sophisticated use of digital tools including photos, videos, graphics and maps that gave readers multiple access points to understanding a complex story. Im proud of our journalists who travelled for days to get to the heart of this important story, said Soraya Salam, manager of Al Jazeera English Online, and of our Americas Editor Laurin-Whitney Gottbrath who guided the storytelling process and coordinated with our head of interactives, Mohammed Haddad, to produce this excellent content. This Amnesty International award is an important recognition of our dedication to telling stories of forgotten communities whose lives are being impacted by the decisions of those in power. Winners in other categories long and short-form video, long and short-form text and long-form audio included APTN, The Toronto Star and CBC. Vivo Energy Ghana, the Shell licensee, has once again demonstrated its commitment to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic by donating over six thousand items of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the National COVID Case Management Team. The donation forms part of the companys comprehensive programme on COVID-19 prevention to complement the governments efforts at containing the virus and providing protection for frontline workers, especially those in the health sector. The PPE includes 4000 examination and surgical gloves, 1000 N95 respirators, 1000 goggles and 500 coveralls. Presenting the items at the Ga East District Municipal Hospital, the Managing Director of Vivo Energy Ghana, Mr. Ben Hassan Ouattara, commended the hard work and selfless sacrifices of the COVID-19 Management Team and the frontline workers for proactively working to contain the pandemic. In line with our vision of becoming Ghanas most respected energy business, we have also been at the forefront of supporting the governments efforts in fighting COVID-19 through our community investment initiatives. We funded an e-learning application for students at home and donated hand sanitizers and liquid soaps to some major bus terminals and retail stations, he said. Mr. Ouattara added that the company, together with its business partners, has launched a Retailer Sustainability Programme to facilitate the decentralisation of its COVID-19 prevention support in various communities. He assured the public that in line with the companys Health, Safety, Security and Environment (HSSE) intervention processes, it has equipped its Shell service stations with hand sanitizers and other cleaning solutions as a precautionary measure. Customer Service Champions have also been encouraged to wash their hands regularly and sanitize them as often as possible when transacting business on the Point of Sale devices. The company has also introduced other electronic payment options like mobile money at some of its service stations to reduce the handling of cash. The Coordinator for the National COVID Case Management Team, Dr. Ali Samba who received the items, expressed his appreciation and commendation to the management and staff of Vivo Energy Ghana for the kind gesture. On behalf of the National COVID-19 Case Management Team and our frontline workers, we wish to express our profound gratitude to Vivo Energy Ghana for its timely and much needed intervention. As one of the treatment centres for COVID-19 cases, we are excited about the donation, as PPE plays a very important the role in the management of the virus, he said. Commenting on the number of cases, Dr. Samba said the Ga East Municipal Hospital has so far provided medical care for over 160 patients, discharged about 115, and hopeful that the support will further ensure an increase in the number of recoveries. He advised everyone to observe the safety protocols and the Presidents directives on the lock down. Conditionally speaking, the clergy have specific reasons to be disappointed in modern-day Armenia because the more the existence of an ideological government is being marked in Armenia, the more overt the scarcity of spiritual life in Armenia is becoming. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said live on Facebook today. Pashinyan stated that, in many cases, one can see politics in the actions of Armenian clergy. Sometimes we see political intrigues more than we see actions arising from the Bible and the ideology of the latter, he said. Hong Kong has recorded zero new coronavirus cases for the first time since early March, health officials announced on Monday. The lack of cases led to the Department of Health and Hospital Authority deciding not to hold a daily press briefing, which has been ongoing since late January. However, the concern that imported cases of Covid-19 remains as officials turned a hotel in Kowloon City into a quarantine centre in an effort to minimise the risk of infected travellers spreading the virus. According to South China Morning Post, the Regal Oriental Hotel was turned into a quarantine facility, with existing guests transferred to another hotel on short notice on Sunday night. Hong Kong confirmed 1,025 total cases and four deaths since the outbreak started in January. The government closed schools and banned public gatherings of more than four people to contain the virus, but stopped short of a full lockdown like those imposed elsewhere. But the current social distancing measures are expected to be extended, said a health expert, as two new infections were recorded on Sunday, including the citys first local case in 10 days. Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, a respiratory diseases expert at Chinese University, told local television the measures could only be eased if there are no more local cases in the following 28 days. A spokesperson for Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection said: "Given that the situation of COVID-19 infection remains severe and that there is a continuous increase in the number of cases reported around the world, members of the public are strongly urged to avoid all non-essential travel outside Hong Kong. "The CHP also strongly urges the public to maintain at all times strict personal and environmental hygiene, which is key to personal protection against infection and prevention of the spread of the disease in the community." In neighbouring Taiwan, authorities reported a spike in cases after 700 navy personnel returned from a visit to the small Pacific island state of Palau. A total of 22 new coronavirus infections were found among the personnel, all of whom are being quarantined and were tested. Taiwans Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said cases were discovered on one of the three ships that visited Palau from 12 to 15 March but further investigations were needed before they could determine where exactly they were infected. Palaus health authority said there was little chance the sailors caught the virus while on the island, as it is one of the last states in the world yet to report an outbreak of Covid-19. High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Show all 18 1 /18 High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Najaf, Iraq A man holds a pocket watch at noon, at an almost empty market near the Imam Ali shrine Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Bangkok, Thailand Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (The Temple of the Emerald Buddha, part of The Grand Palace) Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Prague, Czech Republic An empty street leading to the historic Old Town Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Washington DC, US Lawn stretching towards the Capitol, home of Congress Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Jerusalem's Old City A watch showing the time in front of Damascus Gate Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world London, UK The Houses of Parliament seen from Westminster Bridge Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Wuhan, China Empty lanes in the city that saw the first outbreak of disease Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Havana, Cuba The Malecon road and esplanade winds along the city's seafront Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Cairo, Egypt A little busier than elsewhere: midday traffic in Tahrir Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Berlin, Germany The Brandenburg Gate, the only surviving city gate in the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Caracas, Venezuela Bolivar Avenue, opened in 1949 and the site of many demonstrations and rallies Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Moscow, Russia Spasskaya Tower (left) on the eastern wall of the Kremlin, and St Basil's Cathedral Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Istanbul,Turkey The harbourside Eminonu district is usually buzzing with activity Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New Delhi, India Rajpath, a ceremonial boulevard that runs through the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Amman, Jordan The Roman amphitheatre that dates back to the 2nd century AD Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New York City, US The main concourse of Grand Central station in Manhattan Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Kiev, Ukraine Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the site of many political protests since the end of the Soviet era Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Accra, Ghana The odd walker out in the midday sun on Ring Road Central Reuters Health Minister Emais Roberts said on Monday that more than a month had passed since the ships visited, and no one in Palau had tested positive or shown any symptoms of coronavirus. He said: There is little chance that the virus on the vessels came from Palau. There is no reason for us in Palau to panic. Taiwan has reported 422 coronavirus infections, with six deaths. Additional reporting by agencies COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Molina Healthcare of Ohio is proud to partner with the Easterseals of Central and Southeast Ohio to support the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library with a financial grant. The Ohio Governor's Imagination Library, a program of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, provides age-appropriate reading materials to families with children from birth to age five across the state. The reading materials are provided to any family who requests to participate in the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library, and the goal is to grow the program to provide every Ohio child, regardless of location in the state, with books to help support their literacy. "Molina Healthcare is committed to the children and new mothers and caregivers of Ohio," said Ami Cole, plan president of Molina Healthcare of Ohio. "We know that when children are provided the best learning resources, including age-appropriate books, they build a love for learning. This intellectual foundation is so important for the overall health of the child as they grow, and the books donated by the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library provide mothers and caregivers the tools they need to set their children up for success. We look forward to helping this program grow in counties across the state especially southeast Ohio with the great work of Easterseals." The First Lady of Ohio, Fran DeWine, is a passionate advocate for early childhood literacy and recognizes the importance of the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library and Molina's partnership. "I am thrilled that Molina Healthcare is partnering with the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library to help us put more books in the hands of Ohio's youth," said First Lady DeWine. "Early access to books is critical to a child's success inside the classroom and beyond, and we want every child in Ohio to be able to register in the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library. We are so close to making this program available in every zip code in Ohio thanks to our amazing community partners like Molina Healthcare." About Molina Healthcare of Ohio Since 2005, Molina Healthcare of Ohio has been providing government-funded, quality health care to low-income individuals. As of December 31, 2019, the company serves approximately 288,000 members through Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare-Medicaid (Duals) and Health Insurance Exchange programs across the state. To learn more, visit MolinaHealthcare.com. About Easterseals Central and Southeast Ohio Since 1935, Easterseals Central and Southeast Ohio has been creating life-changing solutions for individuals with disabilities and their families. Whether providing recreational opportunities for children or helping children and adults with disabilities gain greater independence in everyday living, Easterseals offers a variety of services to address life's challenges and to help individuals achieve personal goals. We are one of 75 affiliates of what has become National Easterseals, with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. Easterseals Central and Southeast Ohio, Inc. serves children and adults with disabilities in 28 central and southeast Ohio counties. About Ohio Governor's Imagination Library (OGIL) Inspired by Ohio First Lady Fran DeWine's passion for early childhood literacy, the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library is a partnership with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library to ensure children enter the classroom ready to succeed. Any child from birth to age five can enroll to receive a free, new book from the Ohio Governor's Imagination Library every month. The Ohio Governor's Imagination Library Program is working to ensure children in all 88 of Ohio's counties can enroll in Ohio Governor's Imagination Library in 2020 by providing a dollar for dollar funding match with each county that opens the OGIL to its residents. The Ohio General Assembly committed $5 million to the OGIL Program in the fiscal year 2020-2021 budget. About Dolly Parton's Imagination Library Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation has mailed well over 100 million free books in Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom and the United States. The Imagination Library mails more than 1.4 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to registered children from birth to age five. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading, inspiring them to dream. The impact of the program has been widely researched and results suggest positive increases in key early childhood literacy metrics. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. SOURCE Molina Healthcare of Ohio Related Links http://www.molinahealthcare.com The California Supreme Court dealt a blow Thursday to two Encinitas property owners, ruling that when they accepted a permit to build a new seawall protecting their bluff-top homes they forfeited their right to sue over limits that were placed on it. The case centers on a dispute between the California Coastal Commission and homeowners Tom Frick and Barbara Lynch over a seawall that armors their two properties against advancing erosion. After a storm demolished the original seawall in 2010, the commission granted a permit to repair it, but placed a 20-year expiration date on the barrier that the plaintiffs alleged was unconstitutional. In its ruling Thursday, the Supreme Court didnt directly address the legality of the time limit only the legal question of whether the families gave up their right to fight it by accepting the permit and building the wall in 2011. Their ruling, the justices wrote, ensures that property owners dont reap the rewards of land-use permits while rejecting unwanted elements. Advertisement In general, permit holders are obliged to accept the burdens of a permit along with its benefits, Justice Carole A. Corrigan wrote for the court. Sarah Christie, legislative director for the Coastal Commission, said the court upheld a traditional view on the rights and obligations of permit holders, in effect maintaining the legal status quo. Essentially, the court said you cant have it both ways, Christie said in a written statement. You can build your project, or you can sue, but you cant do both. That view forces coastal homeowners to choose whether to accept onerous permit conditions or leave their properties unprotected while they fight those restrictions in court, said John Groen, executive vice president and general counsel for the Pacific Legal Foundation, who argued the plaintiffs case before the state Supreme Court. Its a significant blow to homeowners on the California coast, Groen said. Now, they will have to go through litigation every time they want to challenge a permit, and they cannot act on the permit until they complete perhaps years of litigation. Frick could not be reached for comment Thursday. Lynch died in 2016, and her family moved forward with the case. The courts ruling could bolster decisions by other regulatory agencies besides the Coastal Commission, said Patrick Whitnell, general counsel for the League of California Cities, which filed an amicus brief in support of the commission. The decision covered general aspects of permit law, he said, and would potentially be applicable to any other development projects where conditions have been imposed on the approval by the agency. The issue has been particularly pressing on the coast, however, as scientists warn that rising seas could reshape the shoreline over the next century, leaving beachfront homeowners scrambling to safeguard their property, and regulators struggling to manage the change. Recent research on climate change reports that sea level rose more than seven inches over the last century, and could swell another 3 to 10 feet by the end of this century. Coastal homeowners say they need seawalls to protect their homes against that onslaught, but commission officials say the structures hasten erosion, creating worse problems down the line. About 10 percent of the states 1,100-mile coastline is armored, including a third of Southern California beaches, according to the Coastal Commission. The Frick and Lynch homes on Neptune Avenue in Encinitas feature a concrete seawall constructed after the original wooden fortification was destroyed in a 2010 storm, leaving their homes in danger on the crumbling bluffs. The Coastal Commission granted permits to repair the damaged barricade, but imposed the 20-year time limit. When it expires, the homeowners must reapply to keep the wall a condition they say diminishes the use and value of their homes. The two families proceeded to rebuild their wall and stairway, but challenged the 20-year restriction, saying it amounts to a regulatory taking of their properties. In 2013, San Diego Superior Court Judge Earl Maas agreed, and ordered the commission to remove the conditions from the seawall permit. The state agency challenged that decision, and in 2014, the 4th District Court of Appeals by a 2-1 vote reversed the lower courts decision, concluding that the homeowners had tacitly consented to the restriction by accepting the permit. Environmental groups and property rights advocates have been closely following the Encinitas case as a harbinger for the future of seawalls up and down the coastline, and hoping the court would resolve long-standing disputes about the commissions authority over the structures. Both sides, however, expressed disappointment that the court didnt take up the larger, constitutional questions including the time limit on the permit. It leaves it an open issue of whether or not the permit expiration condition is valid, Groen said. It means that in California we still have no law on the merits or the legality of those conditions. In a blog post on legal-planet.org a collaboration between UC Berkeley School of Law and UCLA School of Law that provides analysis on energy and environmental law Rick Frank, director of the UC Davis School of Laws California Environmental Law & Policy Center, commended the court for concluding that the plaintiffs forfeited their right to challenge the permit conditions. Frank, however, lamented that the justices didnt go further, arguing that a ruling on whether those conditions constituted a regulatory taking of the property would have provided welcome guidance for managing climate change. Its unfortunate that the Supreme Court didnt go beyond its procedural ruling to also address the substantive merits (or lack thereof) of the Lynch plaintiffs regulatory takings claim, he wrote. A key aspect of any effective climate change adaptation strategy is maintaining the flexibility to re-address and adjust land use decisions in light of changing ecological circumstances and increased knowledge about the on-the-ground projected impacts of climate change. deborah.brennan@sduniontribune.com Twitter@deborahsbrennan New Delhi, April 20 : Terming the Covid-19 crisis as a wake-up call, Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Group, on Monday slammed the housing policies under which slums are moved from one location to the another. Speaking at a webinar, Tata said, "For the first time, the close proximity and low value structures that we have built are the cause of new problems. The last few months have taught us that we're suffering from close proximity". "The corona issue is a wake-up call of what beholds us and what our concern is as it turns around us and holds us back. I think there should be a re-examination of what we consider to have acceptable standards in terms of quality of life. Perhaps there ought to be a revision in terms of the fact that we are dealing with communities, we're dealing with populations that need to be a part of new India," he underlined. On the issue of slums being relocated, Ratan Tata said, "We just go to affordable housing, slum elimination. We're trying to remove slums by moving them to another location, high value housing is being put over there. Slums are the residue; we're building a vertical slum. "For the first time, the close proximity, low value structures that we have built are the cause of new problems. The last few months have taught us that we're suffering from close proximity. We have the image we want to project of ourselves and there's a part we want to hide. We have social responsibilities as architects and builders." He further said: "We are creating a community which we're ashamed of. We should be really driven by the desire of creating, it creates a world culture. "I think the happenings of the last few months have should have been a wake-up call for us. We have been humbled to realise that a disease could run across the globe, totally changing the dimension of how we are and what we do." "I think we have to consider this issue as being our problem, and not their problem. We need to concern ourselves with the quality of lives everywhere. We need to ask ourselves, 'are we ashamed of what we see or proud of what we see'. We need to consider urban communities as one," he said. State-run Nalco and Coal India arm Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) will fully fund two dedicated 350-bed Covid-19 hospitals in Odisha inaugurated on Monday. The hospitals were inaugurated by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik along with Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi through video conferencing. The hospitals started by Odisha government will be run with the help of different medical hospitals of the state. "National Aluminum Company (Nalco) and Coal India subsidiary Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) will fully fund two dedicated Covid-19 hospitals in Odisha," the mines ministry said in a statement. Nalco will fund a 200-bed hospital set up at Nabarangpur district of Odisha, whereas MCL will fund the 150-bed hospital started at Talcher in Angul district of the state. MCL has also provided its medical college infrastructure for setting up the hospital. The central government has already issued guidelines to allow state governments to utilise up to 30 per cent of the balance fund available with District Mineral Fund (DMF) to combat Covid-19. This will also help the mineral rich state like Odisha in fighting with the pandemic," Joshi said. Notably, employees of Nalco have contributed their one-day salary amounting to Rs 2.5 crore to Odisha Chief Minister's Relief Fund. MCL is already funding a dedicated 500-bed Covid-19 Hospital at Bhubaneswar. This Coal India arm has also established an over 50-bed isolation centre at Jharsuguda district of Odisha. The company has also pressed into service the state-of-the-art equipment 'Fog Cannon' to sanitise peripheral areas, besides distributing masks and alcohol-based sanitisers among coal miners and people living in and around its operations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Taking suo motu cognisance, Pakistan's Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmad on Monday lambasted the government over lack of transparency in the money being spent on relief activities to support the people hit by the deadly coronavirus that has claimed 170 lives and infected 8,516 people in the country. Ahmad made the remarks about the spending of funds during the hearing of a case about the federal and provincial governments' response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A five-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by the chief justice is hearing the case. All governments (federal and provincial) are spending money for relief but there is no transparency to be seen there is no transparency in any of the steps," the chief justice said. Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a social protection package of Rs 144 Billion (USD 18.8 billion) to help poor families affected by the pandemic. Under the scheme, 12 million families (72 million individuals) will receive Rs 12,000 each on a monthly basis for four months. The federal government also gave funds to the provincial governments to help the poor and those badly affected by the lockdown. Justice Umar Ata Bandial, who is also part of the bench, said that the federal government gave Rs 9 billion to provinces without having any mechanism to ensure that it would be spent fairly. Monitoring does not affect provincial autonomy. Monitoring is also a form of an audit, Justice Bandial said. The bench also expressed dissatisfaction over the spending of Zakat money, which is collected by banks annually from the deposits by Muslims. According to Islam, every Muslim is bound to pay Zakat from his wealth. Zakat money cannot be used for office expenses. How can charity money be used to give salaries of officials?" Justice Gulzar said. The top judge asked the Council of Islamic Ideology to give its opinion if the Zakat money can be spent on payment of salaries. The bench also questioned the quarantine facilities provided by the government and said that people were being charged at isolation centers, ordering that the poor should not be asked to pay. The bench also heard representatives of provinces about the steps taken to combat the coronavirus and expressed reservations over their performance. None of the province has provided a report based on transparency, the chief justice remarked. The hearing of the case has been adjourned for two weeks. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hong Kong activists vow to return to the streets on July 1st after police rounded up high level campaigners over the weekend, arresting fifteen on charges of being involved in massive city-wide protests that brought the city to a complete standstill on several occasions last year. The Hong Kong Civil Rights Front on 20 April tweeted that it already applied for the big demonstration under a large, yellow-on-black field depicting 7.1 or July 1st, the date that marks the 1997 handover of Hong Kong by London to Beijing. Hong Kong people will not back down in the face of mass arrests, and will persist on the irreversible revolution of our times, according to the Front. The announcement comes two days after police in Hong Kong carried out a massive operation against high-profile democracy campaigners on Saturday, arresting 15 activists on charges related to massive protests that rocked the Asian financial hub last year. "No regrets" The group also included the father of Hong Kong's democracy movement, the 81-year-old Martin Lee, Margaret Ng, Albert Ho, Leung Kwok-hung, Au Nok-hin and current lawmaker Leung Yiu-chung. Also targeted was 72-year-old media tycoon Jimmy Lai, founder of anti-establishment newspaper Apple Daily, who was arrested at his home. Speaking after being released on bail in the afternoon, Martin Lee, who had never been arrested before, said he had no regrets about participating in the protests. I'm relieved and very proud to finally be listed as a defendant after seeing so many brilliant young people arrested and charged, we'd be pursuing democracy together, he told reporters outside Central Police Station. Police said the activists were accused of organising and taking part in unlawful assemblies in August and October. Five were arrested on suspicion of publicising unauthorised public meetings in September and October. "The arrestees were charged or will be charged with related crimes," superintendent Lam Wing-ho said. All 15 are due to appear in court mid-May. Concerted challenge Last year's rallies grew into a wider movement calling for greater freedoms in the most concerted challenge to Beijing's rule since the former British colony returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997. Protests and clashes with police have since died down, partly due to exhaustion and arrests but also because of the emergence of the deadly coronavirus. China's leaders have refused to accede to the protesters' demands, which include fully free elections in the city, an inquiry into alleged police misconduct during the protests and an amnesty for more than 7,000 people arrested during the movement -- many of them under the age of 20. Pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo said Saturday the local government "is trying very hard to introduce a reign of terror". "They are doing whatever they can do to try to silence, to take down the local opposition, but then united we stand," she said. "It's so obvious they're choreographing all their acts." (With AFP) The state Labor government will push through an unprecedented wave of changes to Victorias laws to allow the health system, courts, prisons, local government and the rental market to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Defendants in serious criminal trials will be able to have their cases heard by a judge sitting alone without a jury for the next six months to allow courts to comply with coronavirus social distancing measures. Premier Daniel Andrews earlier this month. Credit:Justin McManus The governments massive omnibus bill will be put to MPs on Thursday as State Parliament returns for a special one-day-only pandemic crisis session. It will then be adjourned until further notice. The state opposition is unhappy that a 305-page piece of legislation that covers 14 portfolio areas was only provided to the Coalition and other parties three days before it was due to be debated. Storyful An affable deer created somewhat of a buzz in a neighborhood near Salt Lake City, Utah, he regularly visited over the holiday period.The deer, nicknamed Cooper by local residents, has been playing with children in the neighborhood of Herriman and was even spotted posing for photos, reports said.Herriman resident Angelica Lujan recorded footage of the tame deer interacting with her children outside of her home on South Rowell Drive.Speaking to KSTU, a Utah Division of Wildlife Resources representative said despite the deers friendly attitude, the best thing for the animal is for people to leave him alone.People dont realize these beautiful, cute deer can be aggressive as they get older. Weve had times in the past where these friendly deer, they do get aggressive, said Scott Root, Conservation Outreach Manager, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.Weve had kids hurt at bus stops. Bad things happen when we feed deer in a residential area, Root added. Credit: Angelica Lujan via Storyful Trump defends COVID-19 response as death toll mounts Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 12:48 PM President Donald Trump has offered a vigorous defense of his administration's response to the novel coronavirus, lambasting the news media for their negative coverage of the White House's guidance on how to reopen the country. In a lengthy briefing on Saturday, Trump attempted to cast his administration's response to the pandemic as far better than other nations in Europe and elsewhere. The briefing, which lasted just over an hour, offered little in the way of a coronavirus response update. Instead, Trump spent the better part of the hour hammering Democrats, reporters, and the administration of his President Barack Obama for leaving behind a "broken junk" of medical supplies. At one point, Trump called the United States the "king of ventilators" and claimed that China had a higher death toll from the virus "by a lot." The president also delved into the nation's testing capacity, which experts say is of paramount importance if the country is to loosen restrictions meant to curb the spread of the virus. "We have tremendous testing capacity," he said. "Unfortunately, some partisan voices are trying to politicize the issue of testing." "They don't want to use all of the capacity that we've created. We have tremendous capacity," Trump said. "They know that. The governors know that. The Democrat governors know that. They're the ones that are complaining." State leaders like New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) have called on the federal government to expand testing nationwide as they look to reopen their economies. "As our experts said yesterday, America's testing capability and capacity is fully sufficient to begin opening up the country totally," Trump said. "Indeed, our system is by far the most robust and advanced in anywhere in the world by far." Medical advisors have told Trump that a readily available mass testing system is required before states can go forward with the reopening guidelines released on Thursday. Trump, who has insisted it was up to states to ramp up testing, said Saturday that the new guidelines would mark the start of America's "rejuvenation." Just a day after Trump told the nation's governors, "You are going to call your own shots," when it comes to reopening the economy, he fired a series of incendiary tweets that were construed by some as a call to his followers for rebellion. "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" one tweet said in capital letters. The president issued similar tweets calling for the liberation of Minnesota and Virginia. Democratic governors from Minnesota, Washington and New York slammed the president for his encouragement of protesters who have flouted social distancing rules and taken to the streets to demand lockdowns end. The US has reported more than 738,000 coronavirus cases and more than 39,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A pastor has pleaded guilty to masterminding a $33million scam with a church-based investment scheme. Kent Whitney, 38, of Newport Beach, southern California, swindled members of the local Vietnamese community to invest in his church. But the already convicted conman took the money for himself and splurged it on a lavish lifestyle. Kent Whitney, 38, of Newport Beach, southern California, (pictured middle in blue shirt) swindled members of the local Vietnamese community to invest in his church He now faces up to 23 years in jail after on Wednesday entering a plea agreement for mail fraud and filing a false income tax return. Whitney set up the Church for the Healthy Self, run out of a strip mall in the Little Saigon area in Westminster. Whitney founded the church in 2014, three months after he finished serving a 44-month prison sentence for a commodities investment fraud, authorities said. It was shut down last year after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint and a judge froze the church's assets. Whitney faces up to 23 years in jail after on Wednesday entering a plea agreement for mail fraud and filing a false income tax return The nonprofit was a 'virtual church' that provided religious offerings online but mainly served as an investment operation that targeted the Vietnamese community in Orange County, according to an SEC complaint. In his plea agreement, Whitney said that from 2014 to 2019, he scammed investors in a church trust fund out of some $33million by falsely claiming their money was safe and guaranteeing a high, tax-deductible return from investment in the reinsurance industry. In fact, much of the money went to fund a lavish lifestyle, authorities said. Gov. Gavin Newsom at the Governor's Office of Emergency Services in Rancho Cordova. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Three years ago, President Trump complained to Fox News that California was out of control. What he meant was that the state was out of his control. It still is. And states always will be, no matter who is occupying the Oval Office. Trump must have been asleep in his high school civics class when the teacher lectured about states rights and the 10th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Trump has been knocked down by federal courts a few times when he tried to force his will on California. The out of control gripe was a reference to legislation pending in Sacramento to declare California a sanctuary state for immigrants living here illegally. The president threatened to withhold federal funds if the Legislature and Gov. Jerry Brown enacted the bill. They did. But Trump wasnt allowed to block funds already appropriated by Congress. Last Monday, Trump declared he had total authority to reopen states that governors had shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus, even if they objected. Governors ignored him and proceeded with their own planning. Trump soon backed off and told the governors he was authorizing them to call their own shots so-called authorization they didnt need. One of my favorite California rebuffs of Trump came last week when Gov. Gavin Newsom authorized payments of $500 each to undocumented workers up to $1,000 per household as partial reconciliation for their snub by the president and Republican U.S. Senate. Trump and Republican senators insisted that immigrants without legal status be denied the $1,200-per-person virus payouts authorized in the $2.2-trillion federal stimulus package. Undocumented workers also arent eligible for unemployment benefits. So Newsom established a relief fund for immigrants lacking legal status. By government standards, it wasnt much. But the one-time payments will help temporarily. The governor set aside $75 million for 150,000 workers hurt by the virus shutdown. The money will be distributed by local nonprofit groups that help immigrants. In addition, he arranged for charities to raise another $50 million for roughly 100,000 more undocumented people. Story continues We feel a deep sense of gratitude for people who are in fear of deportations but are still addressing essential needs of tens of millions of Californians, Newsom told reporters. In the healthcare sector, in the agriculture and food sector, in the manufacturing and logistics sector and the construction sector This is a state that steps up always to support those in need, regardless of status. One striking thing was that a generation ago, any governor who publicly praised undocumented immigrants and gave them tax money would have generated a huge political backlash. Even a decade ago it would have fueled some fire. Most voters thought that people who broke immigration laws and entered the country illegally didnt deserve taxpayer-funded benefits even though they paid taxes themselves and should be deported. Providing benefits merely invited more illegal immigration. In 1994, Californians voted overwhelmingly for Proposition 187 to deny schooling, non-emergency healthcare and other public services to immigrants living here illegally. A federal judge ruled it unconstitutional. Today, immigrants without legal status are generally accepted by the citizenry. Theyre part of the fabric of what we are in the state, says Kim Johnson, director of the state Department of Social Services. We recognize their contributions to our society and that they, too, are burdened by our emergency health crisis. One thing that happened was this: There are now slightly more Latinos than white people living in California. And family members of many Latino citizens have a direct connection to illegal immigration. I called Mark Baldassare, president and pollster of the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California. What changed voters minds over the years? Experience, Baldassare replied. Voters set aside the rhetoric and realized immigrants importance for the California economy and our life. Personal experience every day. Knowing them. Neighbors. Parents in school. Working. Consumers. Theyre a reality, not a concept. The whole notion of build the wall was never popular in California. Baldassare recalls there wasnt much pushback last year when the Legislature and governor made undocumented adult immigrants under age 26 eligible for Medi-Cal, the states healthcare program for the poor. Children up to age 18 already were eligible. This year, Newsom has proposed providing Medi-Cal for seniors 65 and older. A PPIC poll in January found that 82% of California voters including 96% of Democrats and 60% of Republicans believe undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay here legally. In a PPIC poll last September, likely voters were asked whether they considered immigrants to be a benefit to California or a burden. Interviewers didnt specify whether the immigrants were undocumented or here legally. The answers: 66% a benefit, 28% a burden. But 58% of Republicans considered them a burden. PPIC reports there are 2.3 million undocumented immigrants in California, about 1.7 million of them in the labor force. Thats about 9% of the total workforce. Newsom said they pay $2.5 billion in state and local taxes. But no one had any details, and that seems a bit high considering their low wages. Regardless, the governor deserves credit for helping them with rent money. Its the right moral and ethical and I would argue economic thing to do, the governor said. Fortunately, the nations founders granted substantial power to the states. And Newsom and other governors are exercising it with or without presidential authorization. Municipal corporation workers sanitize DS colony where a man was found positive with covid19 in Dhanbad. PTI photo New Delhi: The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 14, 175 while 2,546 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the ministry said. The total number of cases include 77 foreign nationals. A total of 24 deaths were reported since Sunday evening. Twelve deaths were reported from Maharashtra, five from Gujarat, three from Rajasthan and two each from Delhi and Karnataka. Of the 543 deaths, the highest number of 223 fatalities was reported from Maharashtra, followed by Madhya Pradesh (70), Gujarat (63), Delhi (45) and Telengana (18). The death toll reached 17 in Uttar Pradesh while Punjab and Karnataka reported 16 deaths each. Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have reported 15 deaths each.Rajasthan has registered 14 fatalities. The disease has claimed five lives in Jammu and Kashmir, while Kerala and Haryana have recorded three COVID-19 deaths each. Jharkhand and Bihar have reported two deaths each, while Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Assam have reported one fatality each, according to the ministry's data. However, a PTI tally of the figures reported by various states as on Sunday showed 565 COVID-19 deaths in the country. According to the ministry's data, updated in the morning, the highest number of confirmed cases in the country is from Maharashtra at 4,203 cases, followed by Delhi with 2,003, Gujarat with 1,743, Rajasthan with 1,478, Tamil Nadu with 1,477 and Madhya Pradesh 1,407. The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 1,084 in Uttar Pradesh, 844 in Telengana, 646 in Andhra Pradesh and 402 in Kerala. In Karnataka, cases has risen to 390, in Jammu and Kashmir to 350, in West Bengal to 339, in Haryana to 233 and in Punjab to 219. Bihar has reported 93 coronavirus cases, while Odisha has 68 such cases. Forty-four people have been infected with the virus in Uttarakhand, while Jharkhand has 42 cases and Himachal Pradesh has 39 cases.Chhattisgarh has 36 cases so far. Assam has registered 35 cases, Chandigarh has 26, Ladakh 18, while 16 cases have been reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Meghalaya has reported 11 cases, while Goa and Puducherry have seven COVID-19 patients each. Manipur and Tripura have two cases each, while Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh have reported a case each. "Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR," the ministry said on its website. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly answers questions from reporters as she announces her veto of a Republican tax relief bill during a news conference at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kansas on March 25, 2018. (John Hanna/AP Photo) Federal Judge Blocks Kansas Governors Limit on In-Person Religious Gatherings A federal judge has blocked executive orders issued by Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly limiting in-person religious gatherings to no more than 10 congregants due to the CCP virus pandemic. A judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas issued a temporary restraining order on April 18 to allow in-person church services as long as they comply with social distancing guidelines. The case was brought by two Baptist churches who challenged the order, arguing that Kellys orders would violate the congregants rights, including their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion. Alliance Defending Freedom, the religious rights legal organization representing the churches, said Kellys orders single out churches from holding gatherings of 10 or more people while it still allows numerous nonreligious gatherings that exceed that number. The organization said the churches have less than 100 people each in rural counties in Kansas where the infection rate is less than one-tenth of one person. Moreover, the two churches have also implemented strict social distancing measures including temperature checks, six-foot separations between persons, and occupancy limit reductions. Judge John Broomes, a President Donald Trump appointee, said on April 18 (pdf) that the two churches are likely to suffer irreparable harm in the form of denial of their constitutional right to the free exercise of their religion, arising from state-imposed restrictions on religious exercises that are not narrowly tailored to further the compelling governmental interest in halting the spread of COVID-19, and which are more severe than restrictions on some comparable non-religious activities. Broomes added that the churches are also likely to succeed in their claim alleging a violation of their First Amendment right. The order will remain in effect until May 2. The two churches are also required to adhere to a number of social distancing and public health protocols meant to mitigate the risk of the spread of the pandemic. This comes after the Justice Department weighed in on the ongoing dispute between religious leaders and state and local officials trying to contain the spread of the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. The department argued in a statement of interest in a similar dispute involving a church in Mississippi that although its important for local and state officials to impose restrictions to enforce social distancing, they arent allowed to single out church and religious entities for distinctive treatment. Any government restriction must be neutral, in that any restriction applied on religious activity must be applied the same as to a nonreligious activity, Attorney General William Barr said in a statement. For example, if a government allows movie theaters, restaurants, concert halls, and other comparable places of assembly to remain open and unrestricted, it may not order houses of worship to close, limit their congregation size, or otherwise impede religious gatherings, he said. Religious institutions must not be singled out for special burdens. Ryan Tucker, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, welcomed the decision. Singling out churches for special punishment while allowing others to have greater freedom is both illogical and unconstitutional, Tucker said in a statement. Were pleased that the court halted the governor from subjecting our clients to that type of targeting and agreed that the churches are likely to prevail on their claim that doing so violates the First Amendment. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt also supported the courts decision, saying in a statement that the ruling is a much-needed reminder that the Constitution is not under a stay-home order and the Bill of Rights cannot be quarantined. The Constitution protects our liberties especially during times of crisis, when history reveals governments too quick to sacrifice rights of the few to calm fears of the many. As I have consistently counseled, the governor of Kansas must not discriminate against religious gatherings by threatening worshipers with arrest or imprisonment while allowing similar secular gatherings to proceed, Schmidt said. He added that while the government may not impose restriction selectively on Kansans of faith but not others, he still strongly urged Kansas religious leaders to cancel all in-person service and to worship remotely during the pandemic. Kelly continued to defend her order despite the ruling. This is not about religion. This is about a public health crisis, she said in a statement to The Associated Press. Kellys executive order (pdf) restricts religious gatherings of more than 10 congregants but provides for exemptions to 26 types of secular activities such as in airports or some essential retail establishments. Last week, the Kansas Legislative Coordinating Council attempted to undo Kellys order on church gatherings, but its attempt was overturned after the governor took the matter to the states supreme court. Police believe a mans body may have been dumped in a quiet south Houston neighborhood early Monday morning. Officers were called to the 14400 block of Castlereagh Drive around 1:20 a.m. after neighbors spotted a man lifeless in the grass off the roadway. Castlereagh Drive is located inside a small neighborhood near Hiram Clarke Road and West Fuqua Street. HOUSTON REACTS: 'They're killing us,' Texas residents say of Trump regulation rollbacks The man had been shot multiple times, according to Houston Police Homicide Detective Jason Escobar. No one from the neighborhood who spoke with detectives heard any gunshots, Escobar said. He said detectives believe the man may have been shot elsewhere and dumped along the street. Anyone with information is urged to call HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Houston Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS (8477). Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com Funeral Announcements A daily list of current funeral annoucements as heard on KXRA 1490 AM/100.3 FM News Updates The daily news, sports, and events delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Sports Update This current sports headlines delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Upcoming Events This email is the events of the area delivered daily from Voice of Alexandria. Breaking News The big news. Sent only as it happens. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 18:33:25|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese market of agricultural products is relatively stable and has been affected minimally by the COVID-19 pandemic, except for several varieties with high dependence on international trade, according to an analysis made by the Agricultural Information Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. China's food supply is guaranteed. Its grain production has been stable, with the annual output standing at over 650 million tonnes for five consecutive years, and China is fully self-sufficient, said Xu Shiwei, a researcher from the institute. According to the China Agricultural Outlook (2020-2029) released by the China Agricultural Outlook Conference 2020 held online on Monday, China's total annual grain output reached a record high of 663.84 million tonnes in 2019. The imports of rice and wheat only accounted for 1.6 percent and 2.7 percent of China's annual consumption, respectively, and the self-sufficiency rate reached over 95 percent, said Xu, who is also the president of the China Agricultural Outlook Conference 2020. As a result of continuous adjustment of planting structure, the planting area of corn in China decreased slightly in 2019, but the per-unit yield increased, and the total output continued to increase. As China increased the planting area of soybeans, the output continued to grow. The supply of domestic edible soybeans expanded, and the dependence on imports gradually decreased, Xu said. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:11:21|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MOGADISHU, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said on Monday it has enhanced cooperation with Somalia to curb the spread of desert locust in the country. The FAO said its collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation will help strengthen local capacities, surveillance, and control operations to combat the desert locust upsurge even as the attention has been shifted to combatting COVID-19. "Despite the current circumstances dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial that we keep reinforcing our collaboration and continue the hard work to contain the desert locust upsurge, and to protect lives and livelihoods," FAO Representative in Somalia Etienne Peterschmitt said in a statement. "Otherwise, we could end up in a serious food crisis by the end of the year." The UN food agency said it is directly supporting desert locust control unit stations to undertake vital survey and control operations. Peterschmitt said the current situation is critical, with the second generation of mature adults laying eggs and a new generation of immature adults forming swarms in Ethiopia and Kenya. These, the UN official warned, could reach Somalia during the main Gu season, ravaging young crops and pasture. Said Hussein Iid, Somalia's minister of agriculture and irrigation, said the FAO's technical expertise and capacity to mobilize resources is key for his country to confront the crisis. "Even in times of coronavirus, we must not forget the massive threat that desert locusts pose to Somalia's food security and livelihoods," Iid said. Thanks to concerted efforts by the government and the FAO, 31,026 ha out of the estimated 360,000 ha of land to be affected across the country has been controlled. The FAO said ground control has been strengthened with the purchase of 18 vehicles for spraying, in addition to another 15 vehicles currently on hire for survey and control in northern and central Somalia. "Nature-based biopesticides are a reliable, less harmful alternative for controlling locust outbreaks in fragile environments like Somalia," Iid said. Recently, the FAO said, 12 vehicle-mounted sprayers and 10 backpack sprayers were delivered in Hargeisa and Mogadishu, with a further 10 vehicle-mounted sprayers triangulated from Mali and Morocco to support control efforts. "Given the vast areas that need to be sprayed, three helicopters are being mobilized to Somalia to carry out aerial control operations," it said. Enditem RTHK: Gunman kills at least 16 in Nova Scotia A gunman in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia has killed at least 16 people, including a policewoman, during a 12-hour rampage, authorities said, in the worst act of mass murder the country has seen in more than 30 years. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who worked as a denturist, appeared at one stage to have been wearing part of a police uniform. He had also painstakingly disguised his car to look like a police cruiser. Wortman shot people in several locations across the Atlantic province, police told a briefing, saying the death toll was more than 10. Police later told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp that Wortman killed at least 16 people. Police added they had ended the threat posed by Wortman, who was dead, but would not confirm a report by the CTV network that the RCMP had shot him. One of the victims was RCMP officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the service with two children. Police said there was no apparent link between Wortman and at least some of his victims. They said they had no idea what his motivation might have been. "Today is a devastating day for Nova Scotia, and it will remain etched in the minds for many years to come," said Lee Bergerman, commanding officer of the RCMP in Nova Scotia. The massacre was the worst of its kind in Canada since a gunman killed 15 women in Montreal in December 1989. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has tighter gun control laws than the United States. Nova Scotia, like the rest of Canada, is under a stay-at-home order because of the coronavirus pandemic. (Reuters) This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. ServiceMaster DSI, the nation's largest owner and operator of ServiceMaster Franchises has been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic since the very beginning. They have helped clean and disinfect over 1,000 facilities including senior living facilities, government buildings, hospitals, manufacturing plants, supply chain hubs and more. Even before the World Health Organization labeled COVID-19 a pandemic, ServiceMaster DSI was leading the effort. Whether that leadership meant mobilizing teams across the country, procuring personal protective equipment (PPE) to meet the anticipated need or partnering with health and science experts to engineer decontamination protocols before CDC guidelines were available, ServiceMaster DSI has invested in the resources to develop effective solutions for commercial facilities. Today ServiceMaster DSI announced the expansion of their coronavirus decontamination services with the launch of their commercial facility reopening cleaning and disinfection service. This service focuses specifically on the cleaning and disinfection needed to reopen commercial facilities in the safest way possible after having been required to close during this crisis. Developed in conjunction with environmental experts specializing in the field of infectious disease, the facility reopening cleaning and disinfection service meets or exceeds all CDC guidelines and uses EPA registered, hospital-grade disinfectants. In addition, protocols are developed for the exact needs of the facility and adhere to each facilitys state-mandated guidelines and requirements for businesses returning to work. ServiceMaster DSI is monitoring each states progress and stay-at-home orders so they can anticipate the needs of businesses as the orders expire. We have been working with commercial clients and new businesses across the country from the early days of this COVID-19 pandemic. Our organization has decades of experience in cleaning and disinfecting facilities impacted by contagious disease including other Coronaviruses such as SARS and MERS, said Jim Boccher, President and CEO of ServiceMaster DSI. He continued, From helping essential businesses to our communities with regular disinfection so they could safely remain open during the crisis, to providing decontamination cleaning after facilities were exposed to a confirmed case, our teams have been worked day and night from the onset of this pandemic. As companies now look to reopen their facilities it was a natural step for us to engineer a disinfecting and cleaning service that they could trust. DSI Holdings is an ownership/management group headquartered in Downers Grove, IL specializing in providing residential and commercial disaster restoration services through the ServiceMaster DSI and ServiceMaster Recovery Management (SRM) brands. Starting with its first ServiceMaster license in 1981, DSI Holdings has grown to be the premier ownership group within the ServiceMaster network, amassing 87 licenses within the United States and serving as the flagship SRM operator. Through these brands, DSI services clients in all 50 states and its large loss team has provided commercial disaster restoration services in more than 20 countries around the world. It is oddly fitting that I am launching my first book during a global pandemic. Chasing Lemurs: My Journey into the Heart of Madagascar is about a country at risk. It is about the delicate relationship between humans and animals. It is about resilience and perseverance. The COVID-19 crisis has shone a light on health human health, yes, but also the health of our planet. In the past few weeks, we have collectively experienced the global repercussions of our actions actions such as habitat transformation and the illegal wildlife trade. We see now how our individual behaviour can impact global biodiversity, climate change, and ultimately our own survival. These are, unfortunately, lessons I had already learned first-hand. I lived and worked in Madagascar as a field primatologist for 19 months, studying endangered lemur species. During that time, I took many a ride on the Madagascar roller-coaster, a phrase I use to describe how Madagascar can inspire feelings of fascination and joy that can suddenly spin out into dismay and devastation. That experience prepared me to survive and even thrive in the challenging conditions we are now experiencing. Madagascar is a world unlike any other. The fourth-largest island in the worlds, the country off the southeast coast of Africa has been isolated from other landmasses for millions of years. As a result, evolution has occurred in a microcosm. Madagascar is home to more endemic species found only there and nowhere else than any other country. And the diversity is staggering: 11,000 species of plants, 457 species of reptiles, and 503 species of birds. It was the lemurs that brought me to Madagascar. There are 111 species and subspecies of lemur, 100 per cent of which are endemic. My personal favourite is the indri. The largest living lemur, indris look like something out of Jim Hensons Creature Shop like a toddler wearing a panda costume. And they sing. Their song begins with a harsh roar, followed by a series of modulated high-pitched calls, and a sequence of descending phrases. They use this sound for group spacing and can be heard four kilometres away. But just as, with the indris song, we hit new heights on our roller-coaster, here comes the first drop: Madagascar is a country in crisis. That was true even before there was a global pandemic. That incredible biodiversity is at risk 95 per cent of lemur species are endangered or critically endangered and the people in Madagascar are some of the poorest in the world, many living on less than two dollars a day. While living there, I couldnt help but see the ways in which humans, animals, and the environment are connected. Take Madagascars rice, which brings a loop into our roller-coaster adventure. A family of four goes through a kilogram of rice every day. But to cultivate it, many farmers use slash-and-burn agriculture, which means the forest is cut and burned, the rice grown for a single season, and the land left fallow. Agricultural practices such as slash-and-burn can devastate the environment, and especially the lemurs. Habitat loss is the biggest threat to their survival. Many lemur species are important seed dispersers and their presence in an area can help the forest to grow. If lemurs go extinct it could destroy the ecosystem. But there is no simple solution. Malagasy people struggle with basic health and nutrition. Never mind COVID-19: many in Madagascar are dying from preventable diseases such as dysentery, and in recent years the island has seen outbreaks of the bubonic plague. Living and working in the field taught me that there is always more than one perspective to consider, and there is never an easy solution. I find myself channelling that lesson a lot these days. Certain practical skills are also coming in handy: preparedness, a tolerance for isolation, and an acceptance of uncomfortable situations. I write about my first trip to Madagascar in Chasing Lemurs. I journeyed to a field site called Kasijy Special Reserve in the remote northwest for my PhD pilot project. To get to Kasijy, we had to hike 30 km across rocky and sandy terrain. We camped in the bush with no electricity. We dug our own latrines and purified the drinking water we took from the river. We had one chance to bring everything that we needed for the three-month project. Now, as I watch people hoard luxuries like toilet paper, I wonder: hasnt anyone heard of a washcloth? That first trip to Madagascar did not go as planned. Malaria is not a lot like COVID-19 but when, in the middle of the night at our remote campsite, the disease struck down my fellow researcher the only person with me who could speak English or French suddenly I was facing a pandemic-size challenge. I was forced to pivot, change plans, and persevere during a crisis. I wrote my book, secured an agent, found a publisher, and ushered the work through the editing and production process. As my book birthday neared, I prepared for speaking events. Like many first-time authors, I had daydreamed about my book launch, and now I got to plan it there would be beer from my favourite Toronto brewery and maybe some cupcakes. Then came March. As I felt the COVID-19 roller-coaster begin to fly off the rails, I reminded myself of my experience in Madagascar. There, I learned that when things get tough, you should pause, take a deep breath, and look around to find a way forward. I learned to channel anxiety and threat into constructive action. I did find a way through that crisis on the far side of the world. I finished my PhD and today, while holding down a day job, I work with the non-profit organization Planet Madagascar to conserve lemurs and help people who live in that faraway island nation, which does not feel as distant as it once did. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 04:23:33|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close RAMALLAH, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Palestine on Sunday said that the total number or coronavirus cases have increased to 437, including 115 in East Jerusalem. The Palestinian government spokesperson Ibrahim Milhem told reporters that two new cases were confirmed on Sunday evening in the southern West Bank district of Hebron, bringing the total number in the West Bank up to 322. Milhem underlined that Israel is preventing Palestinian authorities from monitoring the situation of the Palestinians living in East Jerusalem. Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaye declared that Palestine has requested a meeting with Israel to manage the passage of Palestinian workers into and out of the Palestinian territory. "Some 79 percent of the coronavirus cases are workers in Israel, which makes dealing with them the biggest challenge to our measures ... therefore we called for a meeting with the Israeli side to manage this matter," Ishtaye was quoted as saying in a press statement following his meeting with the heads of security forces. According to the statement, further medical and security precautions will be enforced in different districts, based on the epidemiological data in each area. Enditem On Tuesday, the couple spoke via FaceTime to a lawyer who was taking the old bank statement they had scrawled the information for a will on and turning it into a proper legal document. They have always planned to practice emergency medicine their entire careers, possibly someplace smaller than New York. Dealing with the pandemic, they said, had only strengthened their commitment. Over the past 10 days, they have seen a steady decline in new virus patients at their hospitals. But the fear that they will get sick remains, particularly as colleagues test positive. And doctors at Elmhurst worry that if people stop social distancing too soon, a second wave of cases will inundate the hospital. A few days ago, after Neena left at 6:30 a.m. for her 12-hour shift, Adam got out of bed, gave Nolan his bottle and breakfast and let him run wild around the apartment. It usually gives me enough time to make a coffee and sit down, he said. But this time, he said, he found himself crying uncontrollably, just finally letting out all the emotions from the past month. Right when I am crying he happens to crawl up on the couch and put himself in my lap and started talking nonsense, he continued. It just brought me back. If I didnt have Nolan and Neena here to be with and sort of remember why we do all this to begin with, it would be much more difficult than it already is. Three youths sipping cold drinks on a Gold Coast rooftop received a late-night fright when they were ordered down by the police helicopter loudspeaker and told officers had surrounded the building. In return for their exploits on Saturday, the trio were charged with trespassing and breaching novel coronavirus restrictions the latter came with a $1334 fine. It will be alleged the three accused - aged 19, 20 and 21 - were on the roof of a building on Jefferson Lane in Palm Beach about 11.20pm when they were hailed by a booming voice. "This is the police, this is the police. To the three people sitting on the building rooftop. Yes, we can see you the one with the hoodie in the middle with your cold drinks," the PolAir officer said. "The building is surrounded by police, we need you to return to the ground floor, return to the bottom immediately please. Put your hand out to your right side so I know you understand." In addition to the two main offences, the men aged 19 and 20 were also charged with drug possession offences and were due to appear in the Coolangatta Magistrates Court on July 27. The Kenyan police have arrested a 36-year-old man from Bokisero-Nyabwari Village in Nyamira North Sub-County, for killing his younger brother whom he allegedly caught having sex with their biological mother on Thursday night. Evans Mamboleo Nyachuba had visited their mother at about 8:30pm when he reportedly caught his 31-year-old sibling, Fred Onsongo Nyachuba engaging in sexual intercourse with their 55-year-old mother Doria Moraa Nyachuba. He reportedly smashed his brothers face and the back of his head with a plank, killing him at the spot. Bokisaba Location chief, Philip Masenge who confirmed the incident said Mamboleo is being held at Ekerenyo police post. The body of the deceased has already been taken to Nyamira County Referral Hospital morgue. The Police have also commenced an investigation into the matter. Source: browngh.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. Featured Video (Newser) Michigan has its first child fatality of the COVID-19 outbreak. The parents of 5-year-old Skylar Herbert took her off a ventilator on Sunday after doctors said she had no hope of recovery and was likely brain-dead, reports the Detroit News. Skylar started having headaches about a month ago, and a trip to the hospital revealed she had the coronavirus. Symptoms were mild at first, but Skylar eventually developed a fatal complication: a rare form of meningitis that causes brain swelling. "We basically just knew she wasn't coming back to us, says mom LaVondria Herbert of the decision to remove her girl from the ventilator. story continues below LaVondria Herbert is a Detroit police officer and her father, Ebbie, also is a first responder: a city firefighter. It remains unclear how Skylar contracted the virus. While her father showed symptoms at one point, a test came back inconclusive. Prior to Skylar's death, Michigan's youngest victim was 20 years old, reports the Detroit Free Press. The state has registered more than 2,300 coronavirus deaths, with the average age being 73. While Skylar's meningitis complication is a rare one, a woman in the state developed something similar, a rare form of encephalitis, notes the Detroit News. (Read more coronavirus stories.) CAIRO (Reuters) - Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa expressed his appreciation for to U.S. CAIRO (Reuters) - Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa expressed his appreciation for to U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts in achieving stability in energy markets to boost global economy growth, state news agency BNA said on Saturday. In a phone call between the two leaders, Bahrain's king also welcomed American efforts in maintaining security and stability in the region and the active role of the American military "to protect international shipping in the Arabian Gulf, Arab Sea and Bab al-Mandab". Al Khalifa also stressed the importance of international cooperation to fight the coronavirus pandemic. (Reporting by Samar Hassan; Editing by Alison Williams) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Facebooks latest attempt to woo gamers (and the subsequent advertising dollars) is, simply, an app. According to The New York Times, the app will launch today on Android devices, with plans to launch on iOS as soon as it picks up approval. With current world events and lots of us stuck indoors, it could be smart timing. Facebooks game streaming services have grown in the last few years, but its still dwarfed by the likes of Twitch and YouTube. Will an app help? -- Mat LGs heavily teased Velvet phone is a premium mid-range device. With 5G and a slick design. LG Velvet If a new iPhone and OnePlus flagship werent enough, here comes LG. Its published a video teaser that showcases its Velvet phone, including the curved edges, that raindrop rear camera layout and vivid color options that include the chameleonic Illusion Sunset. The clip also confirms rumors that this is an upper mid-range phone rather than a flagship the Velvet will have 5G, but its running a Snapdragon 765 instead of the 865 from this years high-end Android devices. Maybe, then, well be looking at another cheaper phone? Continue reading. Australia will make Facebook and Google pay for news content A mandatory code for online news deals is on the way. Morning After Australia has ordered its Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to create a mandatory code of conduct that would ask Facebook, Google and others to pay news outlets when they use content. The code would also dictate data sharing, news ranking and revenue sharing. There will be penalties if companies dont follow through as well as a binding resolution process for any disputes. Officials had been negotiating a voluntary code, but the COVID-19 pandemic and the sudden hit to ad revenue for media companies prompted the shift to a mandatory system. The ACCC also said that it was unlikely tech companies would come to a voluntary agreement on payments. Government Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, meanwhile, argued that it was only fair that news outlets got paid for the work they were creating. It follows moves in Europe to tap tech companies that profit from media companies -- France has ordered internet firms to pay for showing news article snippets, and Google subsequently decided to remove news previews. Continue reading. Story continues Instagram founders reunite to create a COVID-19 spread tracker Rt.live shows how each state is controlling the virus spread. Morning After Instagram founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger have put out their first joint product since leaving Facebook, and its not a social network. It does, however, build on their work with virality. The two have launched Rt.live, a site that helps track attempts to fight the spread of COVID-19 in each state. The project takes advantage of Systroms open-source approach to calculating Rt (the average number of people infected by a given infected person) on a daily basis to show how well a given state is coping anything below an Rt of one indicates a successful fight against the disease. The site also helps make sense of the data in a way you dont always see with these trackers. You can filter by region and the use of shelter in place orders (as you might guess, those states without orders are typically faring worse). Continue reading. Sponsored Content by StackCommerce Stack Commerce Our readers think the Pixel 3a is a first-rate budget phone Googles cheapest handset impressed our users. The Pixel 3a is almost a year old -- and its sequel approaches. The companys high-end flagship for 2018, the Pixel 3, was reproduced in the Pixel 3a handset with a budget price point. And it mostly stuck the landing. In our review, we were pleased by the mix of value and performance that the 3a offered and werent deterred by its polycarbonate body or lack of water resistance. We asked readers to share their feelings about the handset, and they provided plenty of details on how the 3a fit their particular needs. Continue reading. After Math: What to spend your stimulus check on Yeah, $1,200 probably wont cover rent. Last week was filled with new gadgets that may not be your priority. After the meds, the food and the bills... Continue reading. COVID-19 scammers may have stolen millions from the German government Many Instacart shoppers still don't have their COVID-19 safety gear Senate panel wants stricter oversight of Chinese telecoms Facebook is releasing a dedicated gaming app tomorrow In their July debate, former Vice President Joe Biden and California Sen. Kamala Harris clashed. But she now figures prominently in speculation about Biden's running mate. (Paul Sancya / Associated Press) As Joe Biden begins his search for a running mate, it seems everyone has an opinion about what kind of woman he should pick. But the kibitzers may be talking past him. They argue his vice president should be an African American. Or a Midwesterner. A leftist. Someone with the youth and pizzazz Biden lacks. Biden, however, has made it clear that hes starting with more basic concerns: He wants a running mate who is ready to step into the role of president on a moments notice. He wants someone who is simpatico, someone he is comfortable with. He is, in short, thinking more about whom hed like to run the country with than about the short-term political benefits of a running mates race, ideology or regional ties. Even so, with so much on the line in 2020, and the prospect of a close election with President Trump, Biden is being buffeted by conflicting pressures. Some progressives and black supporters worry that Biden will make a cautious choice on par with Hillary Clintons decision in 2016 to pick a low-key, moderate, white running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who critics believed added little political energy to the ticket. Biden has already made one bold political leap by announcing during the final debate of the primary season that he will pick a woman for the No. 2 slot. His campaign is expected to launch its formal process for vetting candidates soon, perhaps as early as this week. He is assembling a team to investigate potential candidates personal, financial and political backgrounds a closet-rummaging exercise to avoid surprise skeletons. Meanwhile, there is an under-the-radar competition among potential candidates and their backers and a lively political parlor game of sizing up the prospects. A ripple of excitement spread among California Sen. Kamala Harris supporters when, during a joint "virtual" fundraising appearance, Biden hinted at a partnership between them: Im coming after you, kid. Stacey Abrams, the Georgia Democrat who nearly won her 2018 bid to be that state's governor, has boldly touted what an excellent running mate she would be. Story continues Sen. Elizabeth Warren's fans were thrilled when former President Obama lavished praise on her on Twitter, hoping that meant he was promoting her as Bidens running mate. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer looked as though she was invited to audition when she was a guest on Bidens new podcast. Biden has been talking for months since long before he was the presumptive nominee about what he is looking for in a running mate and name-dropping people he considered qualified for the job. Bidens own experience of being selected by Obama looms large. "Joe Biden is familiar with the process of selecting a vice presidential candidate, having been on the opposite end of the process in 2008, said a Biden campaign official who declined to offer any details of the vetting process. Obama picked Biden over other finalists including Kaine and then-Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana believing he would provide a reassuring complement to a relatively inexperienced man seeking to be the first black president. A young black guy with no foreign policy experience had to pick an old white guy with foreign policy experience, said Jim Messina, a former Obama advisor. Biden says he, like Obama, is looking for a running mate who will complement his own strengths and weaknesses starting with age. Im an old guy, Biden, who is 77, said in January while campaigning in Iowa. People are going to look and say, Is the person that Biden picks capable, if God forbid something happened to Biden, that they would be able to take over immediately? He is also under pressure to bring racial diversity to the ticket. Many Democrats including influential backers such as Reps. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina and John Lewis of Georgia say they want him to name a black woman both because African Americans were so important to Bidens come-from-behind primary victory and because high turnout among black voters will be key to victory in the fall. If he does not, they warn, Biden may be seen as taking black voters for granted. In 2016, a drop in black turnout contributed to Clintons loss to Trump, especially in Michigan and Wisconsin. Some former Clinton aides say she missed a big, potentially crucial opportunity when she chose Kaine to be her running mate over another finalist, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, an African American who many advisors thought could bring more excitement to the ticket and might have inspired higher turnout. Steve Phillips, host of the podcast Democracy in Color and co-founder of an advocacy group by the same name, said he worries that Bidens advisors are overconfident about black support in the general election. Hillary Clinton felt the same thing, and black turnout fell off the cliff, Phillips said. Are they going to learn from the lessons of 2016? A survey of members of She the People, a political group of women of color, found a majority backed Abrams to be Biden's running mate, with Harris coming in second, said Aimee Allison, the group's founder. Biden met with Abrams last year and has praised her, but Abrams' lack of national experience may be a liability, especially in the post-pandemic political environment. Harris is less favored by progressives than Abrams but has also drawn praise from Biden and has the advantage of having been vetted during her presidential bid. Other Democrats believe that picking a Midwesterner such as Whitmer or Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota would help win the battleground states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Academic studies have found, however, that a running mates importance in delivering a state has been vastly overstated. Democrats probably would have won Virginia in 2016 even without Kaine on the ticket. The last time a vice presidential candidate had a major electoral effect was in 1960, when Lyndon B. Johnson helped John F. Kennedy win Texas in one of the 20th century's closest presidential contests. Still, Klobuchar, who campaigned for Biden after she dropped out of the presidential race, got credit for helping him win the primary in Minnesota. "We won because of Amy Klobuchar," Biden said. Whitmers political stock has risen for reasons other than her Michigan roots: She is on the front lines of the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic in a state that has been hit hard by the coronavirus. That gives her hands-on skills in managing the crisis which is at the forefront of voters' concerns. It has also given her the dubious political distinction of drawing Trumps ire on Twitter and protests in her state capital by Trump supporters who were opposed to some of her policies to enforce social distancing. With the coronavirus sure to eclipse all other issues for the foreseeable future, managerial expertise may become the most sought-after quality. The normal political judgment calls about how to balance the ticket are eclipsed by simple effectiveness, said Randi Weingarten, a Warren supporter who is president of the American Federation of Teachers. Chris Kofinis, a Democratic political strategist, argues that voters yearning for managerial competence is what has made New York Gov. Andrew Cuomos coronavirus briefings must-watch television across the country. All the talk about Cuomo is not about Cuomo, Kofinis said. What people are saying is, Heres an executive who has actually taken charge and done something.'" Another governor said to be under consideration by Biden is New Mexicos Michelle Lujan Grisham, who could also help Biden step up his game among Latino voters a weak spot for him in some primary elections. Progressive Democrats are urging Biden to tack to the left and pick a running mate such as Warren, Abrams or Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin in a bid to win over Bernie Sanders' supporters. The Vermont senator, in a recent interview on PBS, said, The more progressive the vice presidential candidate that he nominated, the better it would be in terms of the kind of response that our supporters would provide him. Warren boosters are encouraged by Bidens having adopted several economic policies she advanced. Warren has been more subtle than Abrams about her interest in being vice president. Asked on MSNBC if she would accept the position if he offered, Warren said only, Yes. One potential obstacle to Warren's selection: If Biden and she won, her Senate seat would be filled by Massachusetts GOP governor, who would probably install a Republican at least until a special election was held. Some progressive Democrats say Bidens choice is important not just for motivating voters in the current election but also to tee up the next generation of party leadership. There is a feeling that one of the things that has to come from this nomination is a vision for the future of the Democratic Party, said Neil Sroka, spokesman for Democracy for America, a liberal group that endorsed Sanders. If hes not going to change his position on Medicare for all, picking a progressive as his No. 2 could change minds about Bidens vision of the future of the party. For the record: 9:03 AM, Apr. 20, 2020: An earlier version of this article incorrectly said that the Bill Clinton-Al Gore ticket failed to carry Tennessee, Gores home state. Clinton won Tennessee in both 1992 and 1996. Gore failed to carry the state when he ran in 2000. Gov. Charlie Baker signed a bill on Monday that bars evictions and foreclosures from moving forward in Massachusetts until after the COVID-19 state of emergency is lifted, preventing renters and homeowners across the state from being forced out of their homes. The bill imposes a temporary ban on landlords issuing a notice to quit, which starts the eviction process. It also bars courts from issuing executions, orders that a sheriff or constable could enforce to force someone to move out, and pauses foreclosures. The Legislature passed the bill, H.4647, on Friday after weeks of negotiations. Rep. Shawn Dooley, who had blocked the bills passage on Thursday due to concerns about how the bill would affect landlords, but he relented by Friday. This legislation is crucial for public health, Andrea M. Park, an attorney at Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, said in a statement. If we are going to stay home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, we must all have a home to stay in. The moratorium will last for 120 or 45 days after Baker lifts the state of emergency, according to the bill. Although the courts were closed during the state of emergency, that didnt entirely stop evictions or foreclosures. Landlords could continue to file eviction cases, and in some cases, judges were still granting executions. More than 700 cases have been filed against renters in housing courts and district courts since March 16, Park told MassLive last week. The Greater Boston Real Estate Board wanted Baker to propose an amendment to remove a temporary ban on landlords issuing notices to quit. CEO Gregory Vasil told the State House News Service the notices are a key part of, but preliminary, any legal action. Housing advocates, however, said those notices could pressure renters to leave, potentially endangering them in the middle of a pandemic. Georgia Katsoulomitis, MLRIs executive director, said the legislation ensures that thousands of renters and families will stay home and avoid contracting the coronavirus. Enacting a moratorium makes good sense in both the short- and long-term and hopefully there is a bigger lesson to be learned: Access to safe and affordable housing is (or should be) a basic human right, Katsoulomitis said in a statement. While we still have a long way to go to achieve that goal, the COVID-19 crisis has brought to light just how critical access to housing is to a fair, just, safe and strong society. Material from the State House News Service was used in this story. Related Content: All passengers arriving from overseas will be asked to register where they plan to self-isolate under proposals being considered by the Government. Stricter rules on people arriving into ports and airports from abroad are being examined following controversy over the arrival of nearly 200 workers from Bulgaria into Ireland to pick fruit for fruit company Keelings last week. Read More The proposals would involve those arriving into the country being asked to register their name and the location where they will self-isolate for the next fortnight in line with public health guidance. Expand Close Essential workers: A bus carrying workers for Keelings heads for a farm in north Co Dublin. Photo: Mark Condren / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Essential workers: A bus carrying workers for Keelings heads for a farm in north Co Dublin. Photo: Mark Condren Temperature checks on passengers arriving into Ireland are also being mooted along with checks by authorities to ensure they are quarantining. Those who cannot provide an address may be directed to one of the State's self-isolation centres such as the 1,000-bed facility at Citywest. Two sources with knowledge of the proposals said they would be considered at a meeting of the Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 today but no decision has yet been made. It comes as a further 39 people have died of coronavirus in Ireland, bringing the death toll to 610. Expand Close Concerns: Business Minister Heather Humphreys. Photo: Steve Humphreys / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Concerns: Business Minister Heather Humphreys. Photo: Steve Humphreys Taoiseach Leo Varadkar ordered a review of travel restrictions at ports and airports last week after concern was expressed by the chief medical officer, politicians and the public about the arrival of a large number of people to work in the horticulture sector. He said while ports and airports would remain open, the Government "needs to keep travel to a minimum and ensure that passengers are interviewed on arrival and that quarantine is observed". Meanwhile, people with no coronavirus symptoms who have been in contact with an infected person are expected to be added to groups eligible for testing within two weeks. Keelings said all 189 seasonal workers who arrived from Bulgaria last week had been medically screened by a doctor before they travelled and had had their temperature checked when they arrived in Ireland. They were then taken to their housing in Dublin. They cannot work for 14 days and must restrict their movement in line with the HSE's guidance. Business Minister Heather Humphreys said she accepted there were serious concerns but they were "essential workers" because they "feed into the food supply chain". The Government's list of essential providers classes farmers and farm workers as essential providers during the Covid-19 crisis. Speaking to RTE's 'This Week' yesterday, Ms Humphreys noted that Keelings had advertised for 900 jobs to pick fruit but had only 40 applicants from Ireland. "If the fruit's not picked, it rots in the ground, and that has serious implications for their business and it also has a serious knock-on impact on the food supply chain," she said. The Government is also planning a national recruitment campaign to recruit a large number of temporary workers for the horticulture sector from the Live Register. Read More Ms Humphreys said: "At a time when there is 800,000 on income support because of Covid-19, we do need to ask the question why only 40 people applied for these jobs. "I have no doubt there are people sitting at home at the moment who might be quite happy to get out of the house and pick fruit, but they might be afraid how this will impact on the social welfare payment or how it would work when restrictions are lifted and their old job is available again. "So these are things we need to look at, and these are the issues that are coming up, and we want to see as a Government what we can do to help." Testing Meanwhile, the move to expand coronavirus testing criteria to include those who have been in contact with someone who has the infection is part of efforts to capture a wider picture of the spread of the virus. A significant percentage of people who have the virus do not have obvious symptoms. Currently, only people who have symptoms after being in contact with a person confirmed as positive are tested. HSE chief Paul Reid said yesterday that there were now around 1,000 laboratory tests for coronavirus under way daily and 60pc were done in Ireland, the remainder analysed in Germany. Around 11,500 swabs were taken from people in priority groups suspected of having the infection last week. It will be essential to have real-time surveillance of the spread of the virus if restrictions are to be eased in the future. But the only forms of assistance the co-op is looking into are grants, rather than loans that would require repayment, Deutsch said. This is a devastating hit for small businesses, and we dont expect to make up those lost sales in order to pay off new debt, he said. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkey's export of chemical products to Tajikistan dropped by 2.55 percent from January 2020 through March 2020 and amounted to $7.4 million, Trend reports citing the Turkish Trade Ministry. In March 2020, Turkey's export of chemical products to Tajikistan amounted to $2.2 million, showing a decrease of 6.6 percent compared to March 2019. In 1Q2020, Turkeys export of chemicals to world markets dropped by 5.1 percent compared to the same period of 2019, and amounted to $4.7 billion. Meanwhile, Turkeys export of chemicals amounted to 11.1 percent of the country's total export. In March 2020, Turkey exported chemicals worth $1.5 billion to world markets, which is 15.4 percent less compared to the same month of 2019. Turkeys chemicals export amounted to 11.6 percent of the country's total exports. From March 2019 through March 2020, Turkey exported chemical products in the amount of $20.3 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu PITTSBURGH, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- "I wanted to create a more comfortable pillow to help me sleep in various positions throughout the night," said an inventor, from Marietta, Ga., "so I invented the INNOLUP PILLOW." The invention provides added comfort when sleeping on the stomach, sides or back. In doing so, it offers an alternative to traditional pillows. As a result, it could provide a more restful night's sleep and it could help to prevent neck pain while sleeping. The invention features a comfortable and ergonomic design that is convenient and easy to use so it is ideal for households. Additionally, it is producible in design variations and a prototype is available. The inventor described the invention design. "My design reduces tossing and turning and could provide a more relaxing sleep experience." The original design was submitted to the Atlanta sales office of InventHelp. It is currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers. For more information, write Dept. 18-ALL-1967, InventHelp, 217 Ninth Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, or call (412) 288-1300 ext. 1368. Learn more about InventHelp's Invention Submission Services at http://www.InventHelp.com. SOURCE InventHelp Related Links http://www.inventhelp.com Eight domes of the newly-constructed Kartarpur Gurudwara, collapsed in a thunderstorm which hit Pakistan. India has conveyed to Pakistan that the damage to the structures in the gurudwara has caused 'great consternation' among the Sikh community, reports PTI. Twitter For those unaware, the Kartarpur Corridor links Dera Baba Sahib in Gurdaspur in India and Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan. It was opened on November 9 last year, in a historic people-to-people initiative between the two countries. Reports state that four of the damaged domes were on minarets, two on museums, one on Dewanistan and one on Darshan Deori. Luckily, there was no damage to the sanctum sanctorum of the Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib. India has urged Pakistan that in deference to the sentiments of the Sikh community, the deficiencies which led to the damage to the newly constructed structures be urgently rectified and remedied," said a source. #_ . 41 . pic.twitter.com/yHsSXJuuPE Mian javed latif MNA (@realjavedlatif) April 18, 2020 The Sikhs strong sense of faith and devotion to the holy site must be fully understood and appreciated. India has urged Pakistan that, in deference to the sentiments of the Sikh community, the deficiencies which led to the damage to the newly constructed structures should be urgently rectified and remedied, the HT quoted an official as saying. The photos posted on social media appeared to suggest the damaged domes were made of some light material and not concrete reinforced with iron rods, which is usually used for such structures. Soon after the pictures of the damage went viral, Pakistan officials were quick to post an update on the repair work done on the domes. In November last year, the two countries threw open a corridor linking Dera Baba Sahib in Gurdaspur in India and Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan, in a historic people-to-people initiative. Gurdwara #Kartarpur repaired within hours of damage caused by strong winds,this is the difference of attitude btw #Endia and #Pakistan despite extremists groups State policy is to protect, preserve and safeguard rights of minorities whereas in Endia State owns extremists pic.twitter.com/u6wYAuSh3C Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) April 19, 2020 The construction of the pilgrimage was completed in record time, and reports state that the Pakistan Army was the main driving force behind the project, and the Frontier Works Organisation, a military engineering unit, was responsible for the construction work. Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara is located in Pakistan's Narowal district across the river Ravi, about four kilometres from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine. It is the final resting place of Sikh faith's founder Guru Nanak Dev. The pilgrimage and registration for Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara was stopped on March 15 amid the coronavirus pandemic. The housing sector will remain frozen in the short term and the medium-term recovery path is also likely to have important implications for the sector, wider economy and UK currency. A slow and patchy recovery would tend to undermine Sterling confidence. According to Rightmove the UK house price index recorded a decline in asking prices of 0.2% for April following a 1.0% increase the previous month. However, it warned that the data was not meaningful in the current situation given the substantial drop in activity with not enough properties coming to the market. There was some encouraging news as the amount of available stock listed on the site declined only 2.6% which indicated that there had not been a notable withdrawal of properties on the market. Miles Shipside, a director at Rightmove, commented; During this slow-motion period we do not expect significant price falls, as home sellers will not be prepared to cut their prices while it is still not clear how the general public, businesses, financial markets, and the government are going to handle the transition to whatever turns out to be the new normal. We think it will take several months or more for the market to find its feet in this new unsteady world. Image: UK house prices Asking prices overall are likely to be little changed in the short term due to the lack of activity while prices of actual transactions are liable to be erratic given the very small sample sizes. According to property consultancy Knight Frank, more than 520,000 UK home sales will be abandoned this year, after the government effectively ordered a temporary freeze on the housing market last month last month. It added that the 38% drop in the number of house sales in 2020 would have a ripple effect across the property industry, hitting retailers, removal companies as well as tax revenue. Knight Frank also called for a stamp-duty holiday as part of efforts to jump-start the property industry once the lockdown measures are lifted. According to the company, these measures should also include extending the help-to-buy programme and relaxing planning rules. Rightmove also commented that government incentives would be needed to help kick-start the sector. On Friday, London-based estate agency Foxtons said it had modelled a reasonable worst-case scenario period of lockdown restrictions in London until the end of August 2020. This would result in revenues 78% lower than in the same period last year and it also announced that it had furloughed 750 employees as part of measures to protect the business against the slump. There will be widespread uncertainty even after lockdown measures are eased, especially as some form of social distancing will remain inevitable. In practical terms, there are still likely to be difficulties in actual viewings and work-place practices. Innovation will, therefore, have to play an important role. Consumer confidence is still likely to be fragile and banks will also be more cautious over lending. In contrast, there will be some pent-up demand. The buy to let market will also face considerable uncertainties. If caution prevails after lockdown measures are eased, it will be more difficult to secure a recovery in the sector. The underlying themes are liable to be uncertainty, further calls for tax breaks and, potentially, a slower than expected recovery. There is, therefore, a risk that the growth recovery will be weaker than expected while the government budget deficit is liable to be higher than expected, both of which are liable to be negative factors for the pound Sterling. Pound Sterling edged lower on Monday with the Pound-to-Dollar exchange rate below 1.2500 and the Euro-to-Pound exchange rate near 0.8730. Hong Kong police arrest 15 over last year's violent rallies Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 10:30 AM Police in Hong Kong have arrested more than a dozen high-profile activists and campaigners as part of a sweeping operation aimed at bringing to justice organizers of violent anti-government rallies in the Chinese territory last year. Local media reported on Saturday that police had arrested 15 individuals over charges of organizing and taking part in unlawful assemblies as well as publicizing unauthorized public meetings, particularly from August through October 2019. Among those arrested were Martin Lee a prominent Democratic Party founder and senior barrister who is known as one of the architects of the city's Basic Law and Jimmy Lai, a media tycoon and the founder of the anti-Beijing newspaper Apple Daily. Police said all 15 individuals were scheduled to appear in court in mid-May. The arrests come after a period of relative calm amid a partial coronavirus lockdown that put a lid on months of anti-government demonstrations and violent rallies in Hong Kong. The city had been rocked by turbulent protests since June last year, when the government of the semi-autonomous territory proposed a bill that would have reformed the city's extradition law. The bill was later withdrawn, but protests continued and took on violent forms. More than 7,000 people have been taken into custody for their involvement in the protests since June last year, with many having been charged with rioting, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The Chinese government says the United States and Britain fanned the flames of the unrest in Hong Kong by supporting the rioters. Hong Kong has been governed under a "one-country, two-system" model since the city a former British colony was returned to China in 1997. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address A dozen US researchers, physicians and public health experts, many of them from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, were working full time at the Geneva headquarters of the World Health Organisation as the novel coronavirus emerged late last year and transmitted real-time information about its discovery and spread in China to the Trump administration, according to US and international officials. A number of CDC staff members are regularly detailed to work at the WHO in Geneva as part of a rotation that has operated for years. Senior Trump-appointed health officials also consulted regularly at the highest levels with the WHO as the crisis unfolded, the officials said. The presence of so many US officials undercuts President Donald Trumps assertion that the WHOs failure to communicate the extent of the threat, born of a desire to protect China, is largely responsible for the rapid spread of the virus in the United States. The administration has also sharply criticised the Chinese government for withholding information. But the president, who often touts a personal relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping and is reluctant to inflict damage on a trade deal with Beijing, appears to view the WHO as a more defenceless target. In a statement provided to The Washington Post after the first online publication of this article, Caitlin Oakley, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services, confirmed that in January, the HHS had 17 staff members, including 16 from the CDC, at the WHO, working on a variety of programmes, including Covid-19 and Ebola. She emphasised that the staff members were not decision-makers. Furthermore, Id add that just because you have Americans embedded in WHO providing technical assistance does not change the information you are getting from WHO leadership, Ms Oakley said in an email. We have learned now that WHO information was incorrect and relied too heavily on China. Questioning why the WHO did not press China harder, she said the lack of transparency aided and abided by WHO leadership hampered understanding of the virus and delayed the global response. China stalled for weeks in allowing WHO experts to visit in January and February, Ms Oakley said, and the WHO never criticised them for the delay and even praised China for its transparency. Until recently, Trump has repeatedly praised China for working really hard on the virus, and during this same period offered thanks for their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well, he tweeted in late January. On behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi. Asked earlier on Sunday about the presence of CDC and other officials at the WHO, and whether it was fair to blame the WHO for covering up the spread of this virus, Deborah Birx, the State Department expert who is part of the White House pandemic team, gently shifted the onus to China, and the need to over-communicate. Its always the first country that get exposed to the pandemic that has a really a higher moral obligation on communicating, on transparency, because all the other countries around the world are making decisions on that, Ms Birx told ABCs This Week. And when we get through this as a global community, we can figure out really what has to happen for first alerts and transparency and understanding very early on about ... how incredibly contagious this virus is. Following a Trump-hosted video conference of the leaders of the Group of Seven industrialised nations on Thursday, a White House statement said much of the conversation centred on the lack of transparency and chronic mismanagement of the pandemic by the WHO. The groups focus on the global health organisation during the call stemmed largely from Mr Trumps announcement two days earlier that he was freezing all US funding for it, saying donors would be discussing what do we do with all of that money that goes to WHO. The United States provides up to $500 million (401m) a year in assessed and voluntary contributions, significantly more than any other nation. In statements following the G7 call, however, other leaders emphasised the need to build up the WHO, rather than tear it down. Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, expressed his support for the WHO and underscored the key role it must play, according to a statement from his office. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, made clear that the pandemic can only be defeated with a strong and coordinated international response, her spokesman said. In this context, she expressed full support for the WHO as well as a number of other partners. Germanys foreign minister Heiko Maas warned that the WHO cannot be weakened or in any way be called into question politically ... every inch that the US withdraws from the wider world, especially at this level, is space that will be occupied by others and that tends to be those that dont share our values of liberal democracy, he said. Canada, Japan and the European Union all of whom participated in the call also issued strong statements backing the organisation. A G7 statement issued after the call supported the need to review WHO performance. We cannot have business as usual and must ask the hard questions about how (the pandemic) came about, Dominic Raab, the British foreign secretary standing in for virus-stricken Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said. But he stressed a post-crisis review should be driven by science. In announcing the funding cutoff, Mr Trump charged last week that the WHO parroted incorrect Chinese statements and failed to investigate credible reports ... that conflicted directly with the Chinese governments official accounts. He criticised the inability of the WHO to obtain virus samples that China continues to refuse to supply. A Senate aide who has tracked the issue said there was clearly an effort by China not to provide transparent data and information in the early stages of the outbreak. We were looking to WHO to provide that information, and they did not. It was unclear as to whether they didnt get that transparency from the Chinese, or that they chose not to share what they did get under pressure from the Chinese, said the aide who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter. But some noted that the WHO has no power to compel member governments to do its bidding. The organisation has no intelligence capabilities, and no investigatory power, said Daniel Spiegel, who served as ambassador to the United Nations Geneva-based organisations, including the WHO, for the Clinton administration. They should have been more sceptical about what the Chinese were telling them, but theyre totally at the mercy of what governments provide. Among his complaints, Mr Trump seems most aggrieved by the initial WHO failure to support his 31 January decision to partially ban incoming travel from China. Days later, at a meeting of the WHO executive board, the director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said there was no need to unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade to halt the spread of the disease. That message reiterated what he had said before Mr Trumps announcement, after meeting with Mr Xi in Beijing. Mr Trump called Mr Tedros statement one of the most dangerous and costly decisions from the WHO ... They were very much opposed to what we did, he said last week. Fortunately, I was not convinced and suspended travel from China, saving untold numbers of lives. International public health experts have long debated whether border closures helped stem the spread of infectious diseases, or worsen the situation by blocking cooperation among countries. But many, including Antony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the administrations coronavirus task force, have said it was probably helpful in this case as the efforts of individual countries to contain and mitigate the virus were outpaced by its rapid global spread. On Saturday, Mr Trump said without elaboration that were finding more and more problems with the WHO. Speaking at a White House virus briefing, he said the administration was doing some research on other ways to spend money originally intended for both the WHO and the National Institutes of Health, which he said was giving away $32 billion a year. The meaning of Mr Trumps reference to the National Institute of Health (NIH), whose fiscal year 2020 budget totals $41.6 billion (33b), was unclear. The administrations 2019 Global Health Security Strategy advocates increased cooperation with the WHO and other international health organisations. But although the United States has a three-year seat on the WHO executive board, expiring in 2021, the post has remained vacant. Last month, Mr Trump nominated Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir for the position. US participation in the range of Geneva-based UN organisations is supervised by the State Departments Bureau of International Organisation Affairs, whose assistant secretary left office last November after the departments inspector general issued a sweeping condemnation of his leadership, including political harassment of career officials deemed insufficiently loyal to Mr Trump. It is currently headed in an acting capacity by a deputy. But below the level of political appointments, communication between the US governments public health bureaucracy and the WHO has continued throughout the Trump administration. In addition to working at WHO, on assignments first reported Saturday by The Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank, CDC officials are often members of its many advisory groups. The emergency committee advising the organisation on whether to declare a public health emergency of international concern during deliberations in mid to late January included Martin Cetron, director for CDCs Division of Global Migration and Quarantine. When China eventually agreed to let a joint WHO mission into the country in mid-February, it included two US scientists among 25 national and international experts from eight countries, although the Americans were not permitted to visit the core area in Wuhan. From the beginning of the outbreak, CDC officials were tracking the disease and consulting with WHO counterparts. A team led by Ray Arthur, director of the Global Disease Detection Operations Center at CDC, compiles a daily summary about infectious disease events and outbreaks, categorised by level of urgency, that is sent to agency officials. Mr Arthur, according to a CDC official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, has participated in the CDC daily incident management calls, discussing information he learned from WHO officials. Information is passed up the chain of command from CDC to the Department of Health and Human Services in daily reports and telephone discussions, this official said. Any information of a sensitive nature about the growing outbreak was and continues to be shared by CDC officials with other US officials in a secure facility located behind the CDCs Emergency Operations Centre at its Atlanta headquarters. In the early days of the virus response, those officials included HHS Secretary Alex Azar. Information about what the WHO was planning to do or announce was often shared days in advance, the CDC official said. DENVER, Colorado, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Two Rivers Water & Farming Company (Two Rivers) (TURV), a strategic company that acquires, manages and develops the infrastructure of various agricultural industries including land and water rights, and WaterVault America Inc. (WaterVault), an unaffiliated, Colorado Public Benefits Corporation, dedicated to creating sustainable economic development in rural communities, today announced that both companies have entered into a Definitive Agreement for WaterVault to acquire water rights of Cucharas Valley No. 05 Dam and Reservoir (Cucharas Dam). Two Rivers has agreed to sell their controlling 94.7% interest in HCIC Holdings, LLC, which owns 5,062 shares of the 132-year-old, mutual benefit company Huerfano-Cucharas Irrigation Company (HCIC), a mutual irrigation company and owner of water infrastructure assets and infrastructure rights in Huerfano County, including the Cucharas Dam. Previously, in 2016 Two Rivers Board voted to sell Dam Construction Rights to a separate company, Water Redevelopment, and again in July 2019 the Board voted in favor to sell their controlling interest of their HCIC ownership to WaterVault. The transaction is scheduled to be formally closed by end of April. The Cucharas Dam is located 13 miles northeast of Walsenburg, Colorado on the Cucharas River, and consists of 22 miles of potential shoreline, water rights of 31,958 acre-feet decreed, 34,404 acre-feet conditional, and 41,200 acre-feet of storage rights. The agreement between the companies consists of WaterVault paying Two Rivers $500,000 cash, and issuing a $1,000,000 line of credit, 6,000,000 shares of common stock and $58,969,000 of preferred stock in WaterVault. WaterVault will assume the related $10,000,000 debt from Two Rivers and is responsible for securing an estimated $40,000,0000 financing for future Cucharas Dam construction obligations. In January 2019, the Cucharas Dams structure was razed by the Colorado State Office of Engineers as a result of insufficient capital needed to comply with reconstruction. Story continues Since I joined Two Rivers just over 6 months ago, we have been evaluating strategic repositioning of assets and means of securing financing to rebuild the Cucharas Dam and the Orlando reservoirs in Huerfano County, along with the additional infrastructure to be able to maximize those assets and provide storage on both the Cucharas and Huerfano rivers, said Greg Harrington, CEO of Two Rivers. I feel that this transaction with WaterVault offers a strong solution to infrastructure needs, strengthens the overall financial condition of Two Rivers, and simultaneously gives our shareholders a level of continued participation in the Cucharas through WaterVault shares. The State of Colorado's Water Plan (CWP) set a measurable objective to achieve 400,000 acre-feet of municipal and industrial water conservation by 2050 and identified that there is an acute risk of around 20% farmland in the state becoming fallow principally as a result of water depletion. The CWP clearly states that Colorado must address projected gaps between future water needs and available water provisions from both the supply side and the demand side. We strongly feel that this agreement with Two Rivers will position our Company to potentially be a major player in helping Colorado reach their objective, said Steve Polyakov, CEO of WaterVault. WaterVaults co-founder, Kosher HVAC Corp., is a certified minority owned business registered with the EPA as a construction contractor that is designated as a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). WaterVault has a compelling opportunity as an SDVOSB to engage with government to bring together Colorados veteran community with important infrastructure and agricultural progress for rural America communities. We have already started the process of engaging federal and state funded programs purposefully established for developing water and agricultural infrastructure in rural communities. Polyakov continues, Water storage infrastructure is critical to water management in an increasingly high volatile environment where climate change has stressed reliable water provisions. Through smoother water supply management, we believe there is a substantial opportunity to preserve endangered agricultural land. I believe WaterVault is the right company to be able to bring the vision of Cucharas Dam rehabilitation project to fruition. There is no better time than now. Our Two Rivers team will remain focused on infrastructure expansion of our irrigated farmland and Orlando Reservoir No. 2 water systems. We are also working diligently with Colorado City and our affiliated partnerships pertaining to water supply agreements for real estate development in Huerfano County, Colorado. We are looking forward to sharing more information these projects, as they develop, Harrington said. About Two Rivers Two Rivers Water & Farming Company is a vertically integrated agricultural and water rights company with over a decade of experience focused on building a portfolio of water rights and real estate in Colorado. Two Rivers creates sustainable economic development of infrastructure for land and water delivery in our rural community and invests in agribusiness and water infrastructure assets. Our long-term focus includes capturing valuable water resources needed for farmland irrigation and community development, expanding land holdings and developing the necessary infrastructure to support growth. www.2RiversWater.com About WaterVault America, Inc. WaterVault America, Inc. is a Colorado Public Benefits Corporation, specifically formed for rural community economic development through sustainable water and agricultural investments. Their co-founder, Kosher HVAC Corp., is a certified minority owned business registered with the EPA as a construction contractor that is designated as a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). Our mission is to own and re-develop water-related infrastructure in disadvantaged rural communities in Colorado to benefit our communities by creating American jobs through restoration and preservation of irrigated agricultural land and renewal energy. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking statements.". Statements that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors, including the inherent uncertainties associated with developing and acquiring land and water resources. There can be no assurance Two Rivers will be able to initiate and operate in accordance with its business plans. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and Two Rivers assumes any obligation to update the forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. An Australian doctor has revealed the five reasons you should still leave your home to visit your doctor during the coronavirus pandemic. Dr Preeya Alexander, a general practitioner from Melbourne, urged everyone to still be vigilant about illness symptoms and chronic medical conditions even at a time when the health system was coping with the COVID-19 outbreak. 'Social distancing measures and staying home is key to preventing the spread of COVID-19 in the community but you still need to look after your mental and physical health,' said the GP, who publishes medical insight on her Instagram: The Wholesome Doctor. Dr Preeya Alexander (pictured), from Melbourne, urged everyone not to ignore their health concerns or chronic medical conditions because of the currrent situation Dr Preeya Alexander's five reasons why you should still see a doctor 1. You have bowel cancer, type 2 diabetes, measles or high blood pressure 2. You have a chronic medical condition such as asthma 3. You notice a breast lump, rectal blood loss or unexplained weight loss 4. You require a cervical cancer screening test, formally known as a Pap smear 5. You have a scheduled vaccine or any additional ones such as measles, whooping cough or meningococcal B Advertisement She said while COVID-19 was a serious issue right now, conditions such as bowel cancer, type 2 diabetes, measles and high blood pressure have 'not simply disappeared'. 'They're all still problems that we need to keep preventing and managing,' she said. 'If you have a chronic medical condition like asthma you still require frequent reviews. Having your chronic disease well managed is still crucial.' Dr Alexander said some clinics offer Telehealth consultations via video or phone while others may require you to go into the clinic. 'Some stuff can be done via video or phone consults with your GP but some stuff just can't be such as vaccinations and examinations,' she said. 'Please don't ignore a breast lump, rectal blood loss or unexplained weight loss for instance because of the current situation - you still need to see your doctor. 'Cancer prevention is essential - a cervical cancer screening test, formally known as a Pap smear, should go ahead if it's due - cervical cancer is still going to happen despite COVID-19 and this test prevents it.' She said while COVID-19 is a serious issue right now, conditions such as bowel cancer, type 2 diabetes, measles and high blood pressure have 'not simply disappeared' She explained that scheduled vaccines or any additional ones are 'still vital'. 'Yes, COVID-19 is scary but so are measles and whooping cough,' she said. 'Some councils are still immunising kids but if you want additional ones like meningococcal B, you'll likely need to see your doctor.' Dr Alexander said she will be going to her GP for her baby boy's four month immunisations when they were due so he can also get his second dose of the meningoccal B vaccine. She said GP clinics have taken extra precautionary measures to ensure the safety of their patients, doctors and staff in a bid to prevent the risk of spreading COVID-19. 'If you're worried about seeing your doctor right now that's OK - speak to your clinic and ask them what measures they have in place to reduce your risk of exposure,' Dr Alexander said. 'Lots of clinics have taken measures, for instance, to vaccinate kids in specific rooms and avoid time in waiting rooms- ask beforehand and you may feel less anxious 'In short, your GP is still there and so are all the other medical issues so don't ignore stuff, please.' Torgbe Kpodo Kavi V, Chief of Avegorme in the South Tongu District of the Volta Region, said it was time Ghanaians appreciated private burials and incorporated it into the local culture. He said private burials lessened financial burdens, saved time and promoted good hygiene and should be accepted by all, especially at the time of the Coronavirus pandemic. Togbe Kavi in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said, if you think you do not have enough money to keep the dead at the mortuary, it is better you get about five to ten people in the family and do private burial to save money for the upkeep of children who would go to school after the pandemic," he said. He asked residents in his traditional area not to treat the case of the pandemic lightly as the Volta Region had already recorded nine cases of the disease, urging bereaved families in the area to quickly organise private burials. Let us adhere to the directives," Togbe Kavi said, stressing strict adherence to no social gathering. 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. Featured Video Im shocked, just shocked that youre suggesting that during a crisis that insurance companies might in fact be considered the villains. Ive never heard that before. Thats Richard Levick speaking. Levick, who has a public affairs, crisis and reputation risk management firm named LEVICK, also has a sense of humor. His corporate slogan is: Fixing the Impossible. As Levick sarcastically suggests, while the property/casualty insurance industry is experienced in helping during disasters such as hurricanes, floods and wildfires, it is also accustomed to taking some heat during these crises. Sometimes its legitimate criticism but other times its insureds, lawyers or elected officials looking to insurance to fix problems that insurance was not intended to fix. So it is not surprising to find the industry currently dealing with expectations in several quarters that it will fix the impossible situation people are facing with the coronavirus crisis and the economic shutdown. The industry has been here before. I think that insurance companies know this. They know that theres always a challenge, a disconnect between an insured when they find out that something is not covered as they thought it might be, said Levick. LEVICK, with offices in New York and Washington, D.C., works with more than 14 different insurance organizations, helping them prepare for and navigate perils from natural disasters to cyber emergencies to reputational harm. Little Coverage In this current disaster, insurers are under fire for insurance policies with too little to offer. There are huge industries including airlines and hotels, and thousands of small businesses including restaurants and retail shops across the country, upset that their policies do not cover their business losses. They have some lawyers and politicians on their side. Insurers have been out in front explaining that even for those that have business interruption, event cancellation or other insurance, their policies most likely do not cover their losses related to the coronavirus shutdowns because there is no damage to property or most have exclusions for viruses. Insurers are having to explain their stance to lawmakers in various states who are considering forcing insurers to pay business interruption losses the insurers never anticipated under policies, as well as to restaurants and other businesses suing in the belief that their policies should be tapped because they lost business due to action by a civil authority. You have to communicate genuinely and the best way to do that is with as many one-to-one conversations as you can have. President Donald Trump himself has weighed in against insurers and said he would like to see insurance companies pay for business losses where policies do not have virus exclusions. Businesses have been paying a lot of money for a lot of years for the privilege of having business interruption insurance, but when they finally need, the insurance company says we are not going to give it, Trump said. We cant let that happen. Trumps views may have been influenced by celebrity chefs who complained to him recently. Louisiana attorney John Houghtaling II is behind lawsuits by several chefs claiming business interruption losses due to a closure ordered by government should be compensable. To avoid payments for a civil authority shutdown, the insurance industry is pushing out deceptive propaganda that the virus does not cause a dangerous condition to property, Houghtaling said in a press release. This is a lie, its untrue factually and legally. The industry estimates that losses for all small businesses (not just businesses with insurance) alone could be as much as $400 billion a month. Couples with wedding insurance and tourists with travel insurance have also expressed anger over their lack of coverage. On the plus side, workers compensation may help in some cases where health care and other essential workers contract the virus. Most of these employees will have to show they caught it while at work and not elsewhere. There is one area where insurers have been able to respond. They have been discounting auto insurance premiums to reflect that people are driving less under shelter-in-place orders. More than 30 insurers, including the 10 largest auto insurers, are collectively forgiving an estimated $8-10 billion dollars in premiums. A number are also giving free insurance to those now using their cars for commercial deliveries and most are relaxing payment and cancellation terms. The industry has also worked the political front. P/C insurance trade groups have been proactive in explaining their position on business interruption. They have succeeded thus far in redirecting the search for financial solutions away from their own coffers and towards Congress, which has already passed a $2.2 trillion relief measure and is working on another. Furthermore, the industry has volunteered to be an integral part of the process of getting relief into the hands of families and businesses in need. What More to Do Insurance Journal asked Levick how the industry might continue responding to the disappointment and anger while also protecting its reputation, relationships and solvency in an environment where insurance is not helping as much as many people want right now. What more should carriers and agents be doing? Levick shared ideas for how the industry can make the steps it takes most effective. They know theyre going to be the scapegoats. They know theyre going to be villains here, and so the question is not how do we eliminate it, but how do we reduce it, and that I think should be the goal with insurance companies, Levick said. The things the industry is doing including discounting premiums, expanding coverages, relaxing billing, targeting charitable donations and engaging in politics align with Levicks experience and thinking on what can be done beyond saying, Were sorry. They reflect the ideas that its important to do something, and even small steps matter. Break It Down Levick notes that when U.S. Marines face an impossible task, they break the task down to its smallest elements. Unzip the sleeping bag, put your left leg out, put your right leg out, put on your left sock, put on your right sock, put on your boots, tie your boots. Why? Because a crisis is paralyzing; its overwhelming, Levick said. The fear that people are understandably feeling now serves a purpose. It gets you thinking, he said, It has you seeking out hope, looking for solutions; its motivating. Its when it rises to panic that its destabilizing and flattens us, so you break everything down into its smallest elements. Levick applauds the industrys customer accommodations and political work and urges that these smaller steps be part of a bigger strategy that can help not only in the immediate crisis but also into the future. I think the key phrase here is proactive communications, proactive communications. We absolutely need to be doing that. If insurance companies are sitting there waiting for their clients to communicate to them, thats bad crisis hygiene, he said. Levick offers advice from the late General Electric CEO Jack Welch who advised, In a crisis, over-communicate. According to Levick, You have to communicate genuinely and the best way to do that is with as many one-to-one conversations as you can have. Carriers, agents and brokers, who are the ambassadors for the industry, need to keep reaching out, according to Levick. This has to be an ongoing proactive campaign. Quite frankly, if I have to go to the insurance company to find out whats going on about my business interruption insurance, all Im going to do is be angry. Why do I have to find it? And all I found was some variation of no. No, I want you reaching out to me, he said. The messages from ambassadors should extend beyond the current situation and signal hope. This has to be an ongoing proactive campaign. Quite frankly, if I have to go to the insurance company to find out whats going on about my business interruption insurance, all Im going to do is be angry. I want you talking to me about the long term. When you talk about the long term, youre no longer talking about why you cant do something, but youre talking about the long term, and youre saying, This is a challenge. But then, youre starting to talk about hope because youre talking about the long term. Remember, people arent sure theyre going to get through this. Is my business going to survive? Am I still going to have my home? Once you start talking about the long term, then people are thinking sotto voce, Wow, theres hope.' The communications can be via calls, emails, webinars, Zoom meetings, press conferences, an online press room and other forums. Its about communicating over and over, but keep them short, he said. Each message, while short, should recognize that insureds want to hear more than regrets. The message should give customers something. You can explain, but it shouldnt be the only thing or the first thing that youre leading with. Youve got to do that after youve shown some sacrifice and some empathy, he explained. Everyone knows what the bad news is; the bad news is Im not covered. But the good news is in each of these different communications. Heres one thing that we can give you in your premiums. Two, going forward, heres what we can do. Three, were switching to plain language, so people understand more. Four, were explaining why we cant cover, he continued. The tangible offers many carriers are making at the same time they are advancing their financial, political and legal arguments are key to an effective crisis management strategy. Theres an old saying in communications that when youre explaining, youre losing, but there are some powerful arguments here, and thats also why the gods of crisis demand a sacrifice, Levick says. Thats why doing something like suspending cancellations and renewals is a really good thing to be doing because it shows youre giving something. Thats the kind of smaller sacrifice you can make, the renewals, that lets people know you care. Your message of caring has to include more than just words. Just as important, each message has to align with the values expressed in other communications, including advertising. You cant claim to be something youre not, he said. Real Solutions The industry is right to be active in the broader effort to come up with real solutions. P/C insurance trade groups have been working with state regulators and members of Congress to help craft government solutions and deliver relief. There is nothing wrong with being sympathetic to the politicians needs, particularly in New York, but that does not mean agreeing to a law that mandates coverage. The last thing in the world you want is for insurance companies to be forced to cover claims in which they receive no premiums, and then be cash short for all those insureds who have other claims that they paid for coverage on. I think thats also a very powerful and sympathetic argument, Levick said. He recommends letting elected officials who are trying to address their constituents needs know that they are being heard. If insurance companies are sitting there waiting for their clients to communicate to them, thats bad crisis hygiene. You want to help them without being partisan, says Levick. He suggests issuing a joint industry statement, holding a joint press conference, or agreeing to serve on a commission. Thus, the industry helps politicians without committing to future coverage. You want to be thoughtful about what opportunities you can create here that are platforms that give them a win without causing you undue future harm. Looking Forward Taking steps now to educate the public and insureds through joint media webinars or other activities with disease specialists about the potential for future epidemics and pandemics can pay off later. You want to be able to fall back on it, and you want to be able to say, Look, for years weve been talking about this, and encouraging our customers to buy policies, and they havent,' Levick said, noting that after SARS some insurers put out SARS policies but people didnt buy them. Using plain language in speaking out helps. People dont read their insurance policies because theyre so difficult to understand. I think plain language will help, he added. That plain language could be in the form of real stories about real people that the industry helps. Make videos of them, he advises. This can be done using various web video services including Zoom and WebEx. You can get great stories with business people talking about how their insurance company is there for them in these other ways, which can be used for search optimization. Now is also a time for the industry to remind insureds to check their insurance policies and for brokers to review coverages with them. We all talk about that, but I can tell you as a small business owner, its something that you put on your agenda, and you dont get to, and that should be as important as your annual or every other year legal review of potential liabilities, he said. The current crisis further presents an opportunity for agents and their carriers to contrast themselves with direct sellers that are offering quick buys in minutes or simple forms to fill out. They need to talk to their customers conveying the message that having a relationship with your insurer is valuable. Its not about reducing the premium by another 10%, its about the coverage you have when you need it, and the relationships you have, and thats what needs to be conveyed right now, he suggests. Thats the opportunity, and the sotto voce message. So it actually is an opportunity for the industry to increase premiums because theyll be selling value. Right now, theyre just selling commodity. Topics Carriers Agencies Property Casualty Market - Vic Sotto is considered as extremely handsome and young-looking despite being 65 years old already - His wife Pauleen Luna uploaded a new photo that shows Vics true hair color and it was unveiled amid the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon - Vic is as handsome and elegant as ever despite sporting whiter hair, based on the viral picture - Netizens seem to agree with this sentiment, with many of them praising the new look of the superstar comedian PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed Vic Sotto is known for being handsome and young-looking despite being 65 years old. In a new photo uploaded by his wife Pauleen Luna, Vics true hair color was unveiled amid the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, which makes it impossible to go to a salon these days. Despite sporting whiter hair, Vic is as handsome and elegant as ever, based on the viral picture. The comments from netizens agree with this sentiment, with many of them praising the new look of the superstar comedian. PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! In a previous report by KAMI, Vics bonding moments at home with her youngest child Tali went viral on social media. Vic Sotto is a famous comedian and TV host in the Philippines. He is married to his Eat Bulaga co-host Pauleen Luna. Vic has a daughter named Talitha with his wife Pauleen. 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! Our host Paula Coling gave some amazing tips on how to wisely spend your time amid the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon! Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel! Source: KAMI.com.gh The requested page is currently unavailable on this server. Back to [RTHK News Homepage] YEREVAN, 20 APRIL, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 20 April, USD exchange rate down by 1.44 drams to 482.52 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 1.44 drams to 524.89 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.03 drams to 6.49 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 0.82 drams to 601.80 drams. The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals. Gold price down by 653.29 drams to 26257.17 drams. Silver price down by 5.99 drams to 235.18 drams. Platinum price down by 191.71 drams to 12100.43 drams. He was once rumoured to be this year's Bachelor, but it seems Dr Chris Brown has finally found love again. Following his recent split from Liv Phyland, 41-year-old Chris is now said to be dating stunning model Brooke Meredith, 29. According to Woman's Day magazine, the couple all-but-confirmed their romance last week when they were busted packing on the PDA while shopping for cleaning supplies at Bunnings Warehouse in Randwick, Sydney. Meet Chris' new squeeze! Dr Chris Brown, 41, (L) is 'secretly dating' stunning model Brooke Meredith, 29, (R) according to Monday's Woman's Day magazine 'They looked very much like a couple,' an insider told the publication. Chris and Brooke, who reportedly met through mutual celebrity friends, are said to be self-isolating together in Chris' $5.8 million Clovelly mansion. It's not hard to see why Chris would be infatuated with the statuesque blonde. 'They looked very much like a couple': According to Woman's Day magazine, the couple all-but-confirmed their romance last week when they were busted packing on the PDA while shopping for cleaning supplies at Bunnings Warehouse. Pictured: Brooke in February 2020 More than a pretty face! Not only is Brooke (pictured) a successful model, she is also the creator of health and wellness magazine, A Conscious Collection Not only is Brooke a successful model, she is also the creator of health and wellness magazine, A Conscious Collection. She also boasts more than a few celebrity pals, including Myer model Elyse Knowles, Nadia Bartel, Shanina Shaik and Rachael Finch. It comes after Chris split from Channel 10 personality Liv Phyland. Lovers in lockdown! Chris and Brooke (pictured) who reportedly met through mutual celebrity friends, are said to be self-isolating together in Chris' $5.8 million Clovelly mansion No stranger to the celebrity world: Brooke (right) boasts more than a few celebrity pals, including Myer model Elyse Knowels (left) The on-and-off couple ended their relationship late last year, with Liv telling Woman's Day at the Melbourne Cup that she and Chris are 'just really good friends'. The pair were first romantically linked in November 2018, following Chris' split from Channel Nine producer Kendall Bora. According to various magazine reports, they split at the start of 2019 before reconciling shortly afterwards. The ex files: It comes after Chris (left) split from Channel 10 personality Liv Phyland (right) In May, Chris rushed to Liv's side after she was hospitalised with a health issue. According to NW magazine, this incident made the former Bondi Vet star 'realise just how much he cares for her'. An insider said at the time: 'Chris and Liv are still very much together but for some reason they're still keeping it quiet.' 'Chris' lifestyle has always made it extremely difficult for him to hold down a relationship [but] he really does love Liv... they have so much in common and enjoy each other's company.' San Francisco Mayor London Breed announces the city's first confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus at a City Hall news conference on March 5. (Kevin N. Hume / San Francisco Examiner ) Mayor London Breed ran into a friend a few weeks ago at the grocery store. As she recounted on an online forum, he rushed to hug her. "Noooo!" she shrieked, moving back. He told her he had never been sick in his life. She countered that he could be an asymptomatic carrier of the coronavirus. "The thing that is making me lose it is people who are not staying away from each other outside," she said, laughing. "I feel like this is payback for all the problems I gave my grandmother." Since early March, Breed has garnered national attention, both for being out in front of the pandemic and playing the role of a reassuring, sometimes scolding, civic leader. On Feb. 25, before the city had a single confirmed case of coronavirus, Breed declared a state of emergency. The order, issued after similar action by harder-hit Santa Clara County, allowed San Francisco to prepare for the pandemic. In early March, the city banned all mass gatherings of 1,000 or more people, prohibiting fans from heading to Golden State Warriors games at the new Chase Center. The city's first female African American mayor, Breed, 45, has been seemingly everywhere during the crisis, usually remotely. She was on CNN again on Saturday night, and has been addressing the media at least three times a week. She's also been sharing information behind the scenes, fielding calls from mayors nationwide asking about the city's response. Nearly each day, she's applied her powers to changing circumstances. She issued an order putting a lid on how much delivery companies could charge restaurants, helped establish emergency child-care centers for the children of front-line workers, and created a call center for people in isolation or quarantine who need groceries. Having grown up in poverty and hardship, Breed also has repeatedly let San Franciscans know that she shares their pain. She interviewed a mental health expert last week on a webinar, asking for tips on how people can cope with the loneliness of isolation. "For me personally," said the unmarried mayor, "I haven't had a hug since this thing started." Story continues Not everyone is thrilled by Breed's performance. She's been criticized for making herself the face of the public health response, as opposed to Bay Area health officers. Homeless advocates say the city has been slow to get people off the streets and into hotels. Yet others credit her for making gutsy decisions, and say her political future has grown brighter in a city known for launching powerful politicians. Both of California's U.S. senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, hail from San Francisco, as does Gov. Gavin Newsom. "Who knows what the future will bring," said Assemblyman David Chiu (D-San Francisco). "But London is focused on the immediate task at hand.... I know she made decisions where there were risks of being seen as overreacting, and she was comfortable with those risks." Breed appears publicly almost every day and seems to adapt her mood to the moment. At times, she is the nagging mother. Stay home! Other times she tries to comfort. We will get through this. She frequently talks about her late grandmother, who raised her and her siblings. Breed knows that female elected officials are often judged by their appearance. With beauty salons closed, she is on her own. She appears in professional attire during her news conferences, her long wavy hair parted off-center, her lips brightened in red. "I am good at nails, at lashes and doing my hair and my makeup," she said in an interview. "When you grow up with nothing, you learn how to do things on your own." Sheryl Davis, a longtime friend of Breed, said minorities and the poor "are always worried that somebody is going to use how you look as a judgment." Breed grew up in the gritty Plaza East project in San Francisco's Western Addition, where its residents were stereotyped, Davis said. The public housing was dubbed "OC," for "out of control." Police didn't want to enter it. Coming from the project meant it was important "when you were seen, not to fit the mold of who they thought you were," Davis said. Growing up, Breed never learned her father's identity. She has declined to comment on why her mother was unable to raise her children, other than to dispel a rumor. "She wasn't on drugs," Breed said. Breed, her siblings and grandmother lived in a unit with roaches and plumbing problems. Glassware amounted to recycled jars. She was only 12 when she lost a friend to violence in the project. She heard the gunshots. She has a brother in prison and lost a sister to an overdose. Breed graduated from a city public high school, obtained a bachelor's degree in political science from UC Davis and a master's in public administration from the University of San Francisco. She started her career working for San Francisco city government. She was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2012, and her colleagues made her board president in 2015. When former Mayor Ed Lee unexpectedly died in December 2017, she served briefly as acting major. The supervisors, arguing she could not retain her district seat and still be mayor, voted to replace her with someone else. She ran for mayor in a special election and won, and in 2019 voters reelected her to a full term. She is considered a moderate in San Francisco as opposed to a progressive, which state Sen. Scott Wiener called "absurd." "San Francisco's political spectrum is left and lefter," said Wiener (D-San Francisco). During a blood drive several days ago, Wiener asked Breed to donate for him. Wiener is gay and restricted from donating, a vestige of the AIDS crisis. Breed donned a mask and gave blood, he said. Wiener described Breed as "the perfect mayor" for this sort of crisis. "She is able to handle stress in a good way," he said. "She is very good at staying focused on the task at hand and not getting distracted." Breed said plans already were underway for a stay-at-home order for San Francisco when the health officers of several Bay Area cities conferred and decided to issue their own. Unlike elected officials in the other counties, Breed called a news conference to announce the order. "It was not about needing to be the star," she said. Even so, some have questioned why she personally announced the restrictions. "She jumped the gun by an hour," said San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin, a progressive who also is fiscally conservative. "The reality is this was driven by the six chief health officers of the Bay Area, and we should never forget that." But Breed said she had good reason to be the face of the order. "When you do announcements of this magnitude, it is so critical that people see the mayor of their city along with their county health officers as partners," she said. The Bay Area's early emergency restrictions are credited for stemming the rate of infection in San Francisco and the region. By Saturday, San Francisco had recorded 20 deaths, while L.A. County, with 11.5 times the population, had logged nearly 29 times as many deaths: 577. Breed now presides over a city transformed. On Friday, the financial district was deserted. A homeless man slept in a doorway. On the Embarcadero, people walked, ran and roller-skated by the water, but most stayed six feet away from others. Some wore masks and gloves. On Mission Street, one of the city's main thoroughfares, a line of people snaked for blocks to pick up orders from a Target store. Two police officers stood by to ensure social distancing. Parking was plentiful at the now closed Civic Center. A homeless encampment in San Francisco. The Bay Area's early emergency restrictions are credited for stemming the rate of infection in the city and the region. (John G. Mabanglo / EPA/Shutterstock) Some homeless advocates and members of the Board of Supervisors have been critical of Breed for not providing more hotel rooms for homeless people, and protecting them in general. On April 10, Breed announced that 70 residents and staff at a homeless shelter had tested positive for the coronavirus. Breed, frustrated, said the city can ramp up to 7,000 rooms it now has more than 2,000 but cannot provide staff to house the 8,200 rooms the supervisors want. All city employees are now disaster workers, but not all can staff the hotels, she said. Some have children at home. Some are afraid for their health. Some homeless people won't wear face coverings or keep six feet apart from others, she said, and some suffer from addiction and other disorders. Some fearful shelter workers have walked out. An activist protests from her vehicle outside San Francisco's Moscone Center, asking Mayor London Breed to house homeless people in vacant hotels. (Ben Margot / Associated Press) The hotels need security, healthcare workers, social workers and cleaners, and the city has to provide occupants with three meals a day and prescription medicine. Large buses are being used to transport the homeless to hotels to abide by the six-feet distancing requirements. Someone needs to police elevators to ensure that only one person enters at a time. Because of the health crisis, the city is facing a billion-dollar deficit. Breed said she takes walks in her neighborhood to deal with stress, drinks a lot of water and gets plenty of sleep. She has not been tested for the coronavirus. "I am a spiritual person, and I try to focus on the positive, the good," she said. "We need more love. We need more goodness." Just before the pandemic took off, Breed received scrutiny for her 20-year friendship with Mohammed Nuru, the city's longtime head of public works. The FBI arrested Nuru in January on corruption charges. Breed disclosed she had dated Nuru briefly two decades ago, remained close to his daughters and had allowed him last year to spend about $5,600 on repairs for her car. "I realize that my close friendship to someone accused of something so serious will undoubtedly affect my life, and maybe even my lifes work," she wrote in an online posting Feb. 14. Today, people cheer her when she is spotted. When California reopens from coronavirus lockdown, Breed's first stop will be the hair dresser, she recently told a community forum. Then she will get her nails done, put on something pretty, and go dancing to live music. But that might not happen for a while, she has repeatedly told San Franciscans. If the city opens up too soon, she warned, the virus could rebound, as the Spanish flu did in 1918. For now, Breed said she is just grateful to be alive. "I have been through worse in my life," she said. "I come from nothing, and the fact that I am mayor is unbelievable to me and to the people I grew up with." Anxiety, depression and cognitive decline are prominent psychopathologies that together affect more than 40 million people in the United States. These symptoms may manifest as co-morbidities of acute brain injury, chronic neurodegenerative diseases, central nervous system (CNS) autoimmune diseases, or as consequence of chronic stress, CNS infection, aging, or drug treatments with inflammatory molecules. The common thread among all these conditions is the presence of neuroinflammation. Although neuroinflammation has recently been implicated as an important cause of these psychopathologies and a new target for the treatment of these conditions, the mechanisms underlying neuroinflammation-induced dysfunction of relevant neurocircuits remain poorly understood. Neuroscientists from Florida Atlantic University's Schmidt College of Medicine and Brain Institute (I-BRAIN) have received a five-year, $1.7 million R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a project titled, "Neuroinflammation, Neuronal IL-1R1, and Behavior." This novel project is the first to investigate how the inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1 (IL-1) influences neurotransmission through a direct action on neurons and how this action triggers behavioral changes. "Many studies have suggested that elevated expression of IL-1 is one of the most critical links between neuroinflammation and psychopathology. Increased IL-1 expression, especially in the brain, has been observed in human patients with anxiety, depression, autism and/or cognitive deficits," said Ning Quan, Ph.D., principal investigator, a professor of biomedical science in FAU's Schmidt College of Medicine, and a member of FAU's I-BRAIN. "Evidence strongly suggests that IL-1 could be a mediator of anxiety, depression and learning/ memory deficits. However, we lack a good understanding of the precise neuronal circuits through which IL-1 affects neurons and how the receptor signals to induce these psychopathologies." Quan and co-investigator Randy Blakely, Ph.D., executive director of FAU's I-BRAIN and a professor of biomedical science, FAU's Schmidt College of Medicine, will establish nIL-1R1 as a crucial link that could convert neuroinflammation to neural dysfunction, providing a new pathogenic mechanism for anxiety, depression, and cognitive dysfunction. For the study, they will focus on the specific sets of neurons that express IL-1R1, identifying them as the vulnerable targets to this pathogenic mechanism. Results from their research could suggest new targets for the treatment of psychopathology. "Very few studies have attempted to investigate how IL-1 directly modulates neuronal activity and little is known about the function of neuronal IL-1 receptor in the central nervous system," said Quan. "This missing gap can be attributed to the inability to identify IL-1mediated responses. In addition, because nIL-1R1 is expressed at low levels, detection by traditional immunohistochemical methods is difficult." To overcome these technical limitations, Quan and Blakely recently generated a mouse system to both visualize and express IL-1R1 in specific cell types in the brain or to eliminate its expression in these cells to understand how IL-1R1 loss influences behavior. For the project, the researchers will pursue three specific aims: map and characterize IL-1R1 expressing neurons in the brain to provide the first brain map of nIL-1R1 distribution; determine the role of neuronal IL-1R1 in the induction of behavioral deficits and neuropathology caused by neuroinflammation; and elucidate the cellular and molecular pathways by which neuronal IL-1R1 causes psycho- and neuro-pathology. The research team recently reported in the journal Immunity that IL-1R1 is expressed at high levels by a limited set of neurons in the brain and have recently observed that sub-inflammatory levels of brain IL-1 appear to selectively activate nIL-1R1 on these cells whereas higher levels of IL-1 are required to activate non-neuronal cells. "Florida Atlantic University neuroscientists are on the cutting-edge of developing genetic tools and techniques to help researchers pinpoint mechanisms that contribute to some of the most debilitating neurodegenerative diseases that affect us globally," said Blakely. "With this latest grant from the National Institutes of Health, we hope to elucidate the key signaling pathways of a key neuroinflammatory pathway linked to behavioral deficits and neuropathology following neuroinflammation - a pathological feature of a wide range of central nervous system diseases." ### About the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine: FAU's Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine is one of approximately 152 accredited medical schools in the U.S. The college was launched in 2010, when the Florida Board of Governors made a landmark decision authorizing FAU to award the M.D. degree. After receiving approval from the Florida legislature and the governor, it became the 134th allopathic medical school in North America. With more than 70 full and part-time faculty and more than 1,300 affiliate faculty, the college matriculates 64 medical students each year and has been nationally recognized for its innovative curriculum. To further FAU's commitment to increase much needed medical residency positions in Palm Beach County and to ensure that the region will continue to have an adequate and well-trained physician workforce, the FAU Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine Consortium for Graduate Medical Education (GME) was formed in fall 2011 with five leading hospitals in Palm Beach County. The Consortium currently has five Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited residencies including internal medicine, surgery, emergency medicine, psychiatry, and neurology. About the FAU Brain Institute: Inaugurated in 2016 on the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, Fla., the FAU Brain Institute, supports research, education and community outreach among more than 100 faculty level researchers at FAU and its affiliate research centers. One of FAU's four pillars that guide the University's goals and strategic actions, the Institute seeks to unlock the secrets of brain development, function and plasticity and how the mechanisms uncovered can be compromised to drive devastating brain disorders. From the study of neuronal development and signaling to investigations of brain diseases including addiction, autism, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, researchers from FAU's Brain Institute seek to generate knowledge that benefits society. For more information about the Institute and its members, visit http://www.ibrain.fau.edu. About Florida Atlantic University: Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six-county service region in southeast Florida. FAU's world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of three signature themes - marine and coastal issues, biotechnology and contemporary societal challenges - which provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU's existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit http://www.fau.edu. Kurnool: The residents of Budhwarpet in Kurnool did not allow the burial of the body of a 70-year-old Covid-19 victim on Sunday. The elderly man, whose identity was not revealed, died on Saturday. Since the Budhwarpet Hindu Smashan Vatika is closer to the Kurnool government general hospital where the man died, police were asked to make arrangements for the burial of the body there following guidelines issued by the central government. When the police reached the burial grounds in the afternoon, the residents gathered in a large number raising slogans against the burial. An eyewitness said the residents blocked the police vehicles and civic authorities and demanded an end to the digging of the pit. They expressed the apprehension that the burial of the coronavirus victim in the residential area could spread the virus in the area. Incidentally, Budhwarpet, from where eight coronavirus positive cases have been reported, is in a red zone. The gathering of about 100 people to resist the burial of the body of the Covid-19 victim violated lockdown norms and posed a serious health hazard. Town CI Tabreez said that they faced resistance from the residents of Budhwarpet and heeding to their sentiments, we came back," he said. Kurnool RDO Venkatesh said they were searching for an alternative site to dispose of bodies of Covid-19 victims. Indonesian police stand guard in front of the police headquarters in Palu, Central Sulawesi, after an online video circulated showing a man believed to be the East Indonesian Mujahidin group leader urging militants and their supporters to attack security forces, April 20, 2020. A farmer in Indonesias Central Sulawesi province was found dead with his throat slit as a video surfaced of a similar killing earlier this month, police said Monday, adding they suspected that a militant group linked to the Islamic State (IS) killed both men. Ambo Ajeng (also known as Papa Angga) was attacked on Sunday by a group of armed men believed to be members of Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen (MIT), while he was working at his farm in Poso regency, provincial police spokesman Didik Supranoto said. The attack occurred four days after police killed two suspected MIT militants who had shot and wounded an officer outside a Poso bank. Before being killed, the victim was taken by a group of people carrying machetes and firearms. Apparently there were more than five MIT members, Didik told BenarNews. The group fired three shots at nearby farmers but no one was hurt, Didik said. We are still investigating MITs motive for killing Papa Angga. What is known from previous cases is MIT killed locals, especially farmers, because they were accused of helping police, Didik said. According to Inspector Gen. Syafril Nursal, the provincial police chief, the victim was not a police informant. The farmer was not an auxiliary to the authorities in Poso, nor did he assist police. This cannot be tolerated and must be dealt with firmly, Syafril said in a statement. He said he had ordered members of the Tinombala task force, a joint police-army operation established in January 2016 to capture or kill MIT militants, to pursue the perpetrators. We do not want MIT to create chaos in the community. I also urge people to unite to against terrorism in Poso regency, he said. Militant video Meanwhile, investigators on Saturday discovered a video that has circulated online showing a man believed to be MIT leader Ali Kalora urging militants and supporters to attack security forces. Taghut [tyrants] will fall because of the coronavirus and the war in the near future, the man in the video said. He warned people who help police that they would be killed. We will cut your necks, by God, if you dont repent soon, God willing, he said, according to the video seen by BenarNews. The video shows the beheading of a man believed to be a farmer who was found dead earlier this month on a plantation in Poso Pesisir Utara. We are still investigating how the video could be spread. Because it is impossible for them to upload from the jungle, there must be someone who uploaded it in the village, Poso police chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Darno said. He confirmed the video was made recently and the victim was identified as farmer Daeng Tapo. Tapo was reported missing on April 4 after he was believed to have been kidnapped by MIT militants. The group is intentionally spreading fear with the video. Thats why we urge the public to remain calm and not respond to the video, Darno said. Meanwhile, the director of the Institute for Human Rights Studies and Development (LPS-HAM) in Central Sulawesi, Mohammad Affandi Zarkasi said claims that people had been killed by MIT for helping police must be investigated. How did the group know that the people they killed were police auxiliaries? Do they have informants that tip them off? he told BenarNews. Affandi said the Tinombala task force should not only focus on hunting MIT fighters, but also look for sympathizers who are in contact with the group. I suspect there are many MIT sympathizers in the villages who are not detected by the task force, he said. On April 15, police in Poso shot and killed two suspected MIT members who had wounded a police officer outside a bank. Footage from a surveillance camera showed one of the men pointing a gun at the officer as he parked his motorcycle in front of the bank. The officer put up a fight, but one of the attackers shot him in the chest, while the other tried to seize his weapon. Police chased the attackers who escaped on a motorbike and killed them in an ensuing gun battle, Didik said at the time. Indonesia, The worlds largest Muslim-majority country, has been hit by a string of terrorist attacks in the past two decades, with more recent strikes being blamed on IS-affiliated militants. There has been one death and nine COVID-19 cases at Six Nations of the Grand River territory. But just like employees at womens shelters across Canada, the staff Ganohkwasra Family Assault Support Services are coming in each day despite the risks, because they know theres more than one public health problem impacting their community right now. The employee vehicles parked outside Ganohkwasra now serve as beacons for anyone needing help, said Sandra Montour, executive director of Ohsweken-based support centre. They can go by, and they see and know were here, she said. Thats very important to us as an organization, so that our community knows we can be counted upon and relied upon during this crisis. Ganohkwasra saw its call volume nearly double last month, to 90 from an average of 50. Traffic to ShelterSafe.ca a national database run by Womens Shelter Canada spiked too, double from March 2019. The Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses (OAITH), a network of more than 70 shelters, has seen an increase in demand for intake at 20 per cent of its sites, and a significant jump in calls for services. A nationwide survey released by Statistics Canada last week showed one in 10 women was very or extremely concerned about the possibility of violence inside the home. Women are certainly trying to manage the best way they can, because they are having to choose between gender-based violence in the home, and then the fear of COVID-19, Marlene Ham, executive director of OAITH, said of victims. They are having to choose between two pandemics. After people across the country were asked to stay home to help slow the spread of COVID-19, domestic violence experts predicted intimate partner or family violence would increase, a phenomenon seen in countries that were hit by the virus weeks earlier including France and China. Last week, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for measures to reduce the horrifying global surge in domestic violence linked to COVID-19 lockdowns. One month into nationwide stay at home measures, shelter workers and experts say there is little doubt Canadians are at a greater risk of intimate partner or family violence now, particularly in the face of other stresses, such as job loss, financial hardship and greater alcohol consumption. Data obtained from more than a dozen police services across Canada tell differing stories about the impact of the quarantine measures are having on domestic violence so far; longer-term data will be necessary to capture how COVID-19 has changed these calls. Services in York Region, Waterloo Region, Vancouver, and Halifax are all reporting moderate increases in domestic violence-related calls compared either to the same four-week period in 2019, or the four-week period immediately before although, in some cases, the increase is only a few calls. In the past four weeks, the Ontario Provincial Police reported a 21 per cent increase in domestic disturbance incidents, which include intimate partner violence, sexual assault, emotional, child and elder abuse, up to 2,352 from 1,944 in the previous four weeks. Some forces, including in Toronto, Peel Region, Edmonton, Thunder Bay and Winnipeg have seen either no change or inconsistent patterns within the last month. Something to keep in mind is that Thunder Bay already has a high rate of domestic violence and the fact that these calls are not going down, while many other call types are seeing reductions during this pandemic, is concerning, said Thunder Bay police spokesperson Scott Paradis. Other police forces, meanwhile, have seen a moderate dip in calls compared to the previous four-week period or the same time frame last year, including in Durham Region, London, and Halton Region. But intimate partner experts and police services themselves say this data falls far short of capturing the complete picture. The central problem is that many instances of intimate partner or family violence go unreported at the best of times, let alone during a pandemic when victims may be confined to their homes with their abusers. Far from a signal that violence has stopped, a drop in police calls could very well be that people feel that they cant reach out for help, said Andrea Gunraj, vice-president of public engagement at the Canadian Womens Foundation, which this week launched a campaign called Signal For Help to help disseminate a hand signal to silently indicate, on a video call, that theres violence at home. The true vulnerability is not reflected right now in what were seeing a month into the pandemic, Gunraj said. Kaitlin Geiger-Bardswich, a manager with Womens Shelters Canada, said her organization is seeing two extremes. In some shelters, demand has exponentially increased, forcing staff to house victims and children in hotels and university dorms a measure already taking place to enforce social distancing. This is putting added stress on many shelters that already had stretched resources and limited space well before the pandemic struck, several shelter workers said. But the crisis lines for other shelters and services have gone really quiet and thats really concerning, Geiger-Bardswich said. She said she is hearing anecdotally that the severity of some cases is rising where there were once threats of abuse, theres now violence and more reports of strangulation, specifically. Some border closures meant to slow the spread of the virus have also caused problems, Geiger-Bardswich said. In one case, said, a woman fleeing violence and heading towards her mothers house was turned away from the Alberta-North West Territories border and told to go to a shelter in Alberta. Another reason calls to police may be down is because abusers are less likely to be jailed if arrested over efforts to reduce the spread of amid COVID-19 within the prison population, said Jane Scheel, executive director of the Simcoe-based Haldimand and Norfolk Womens Services. A woman who has lived in an abusive relationship for a time becomes very skilled at knowing how to keep herself safe, said Scheel. I feel like police interventions at this point, with no consequence to the perpetrator, is a scary thing for women. But once the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, Scheel said, she predicts the flood gates of reports will open. Another concern for survivors of violence is that their incarcerated abuser may be let out of jail on COVID-19 early release. Karrie Lynn Dymond, who lives in Durham region, only found out Thursday that her abuser was still in jail; in the meantime, shed packed a bag and made a plan to move across the country and stay with a friend. If hes out, Im getting in my car and Im leaving, she said. And that was the plan. Dymond, who runs a domestic abuse support group called Keep Your Hands 2 Yourself, is relieved knowing her ex-partner is still in jail but she knows others are still fearfully asking about their own abusers status. The province has said that only non-violent inmates who are deemed lower-risk and are already near the end of their sentence are eligible for early release. Brian Gray, a spokesperson for Ontarios Ministry of the Attorney General, said those being considered for early release are being carefully assessed to ensure they are a low risk to reoffend. Gray also noted that victims who are registered with the provinces Victim Notification System will be informed when a relevant offender is released. Victims wanting inquire about the status of an offender can also contact the provinces Victim Notification System for more information. Anick Charette, a spokesperson for the Correctional Service of Canada, said in a statement Monday that victims will continue to be notified of decisions made about an offender that harmed them. CSC is required to integrate any victim concerns into decision making in order to protect the victim, Charette said. We are working closely with the Parole Board of Canada with respect to the safe release of offenders into the community. We are currently conducting an analysis of the offender population to be in a position to make evidence-based recommendations, Charette said. The Ontario government has provided a $2.7 million emergency payment to support services for victims of domestic violence and other violent crimes during COVID-19, Gray said. The federal government has also committed to spend $40 million on womens shelters and sexual assault centres across Canada. Dymond, alongside all the experts interviewed for this story, stressed the importance of friends, family members and neighbours carefully providing support for a victim who may be stuck at home with an abuser. Its not a time to mind your own business, as Dymond said she was raised to do. I think its super important that everybody in this quarantine starts paying attention to whats happening right there in their neighborhoods, she said. Are you a victim of domestic violence? Heres how to get help: Since the pandemic began, it has become increasingly difficult to speak with people who may be living with their abusers but front-line workers are being creative. Conversations with an abused person begin with safety planning, said Pamela Cross, the legal director of Lukes Place. Part of that involves finding out if the person has privacy from her abuser and if the device she is using whether a laptop or phone is private and password-protected. A worker will explain how to delete messages, records of phone calls and browser histories. The conversation might happen by phone, by Zoom or by chat whatever and whenever works best for her. If you are a victim of abuse, Lukes Place publishes a series of safety planning tips on its website. If youre a family member, neighbour or friend checking in on someone you love, it is important to first make sure that the person can communicate safely through that channel, whether by email, text or phone. Cross said it is important to keep in contact with someone experiencing abuse and, where possible, set up socially-distanced visits or video calls. The Canadian Womens Foundation is sharing a hand signal point your palm to the camera with the thumb tucked, then close your fingers over your thumb that when used on a video call, indicates a need for help. Neighbours are especially important now, Cross said, and can start by having a friendly, socially-distanced chat with each other to build connections. One way to help is by collecting information and resources to share later when it is safe to do so. Cross said that police are continuing to respond to domestic violence calls and police stations are available for walk-ins for domestic violence victims. Free legal advice with no financial eligibility requirement is available through Legal Aid Ontario and a new emergency family law referral line. Free legal advice from Legal Aid Ontario is available at 1-800-668-8258. The family law referral line is available for half-an-hour of advice and referrals to other services at 1-800-268-7568. Lukes Place offers a virtual legal clinic for women experiencing intimate partner violence an expansion of a service already offered to women in rural areas. This can be accessed by contacting the local womens shelter at ShelterSafe.ca. Family Court Support workers continue to offer help to domestic violence victims going through the family court process. More information about that can be found through the Victim Support Line toll-free at 1-888-579-2888, or 416-314-2447, and online. With files from Alyshah Hasham El presidente @MartinVizcarraC informa sobre la situacion del Estado de Emergencia en el #Dia36 y las acciones que realiza el Gobierno para contener la propagacion del COVID-19. En vivo: https://t.co/YwHWvUEHrS https://t.co/DCgUQwQHKq Despite the government potentially lifting coronavirus restrictions in Australia next month, its not expected well go straight back to life as we know it. An epidemiology expert has warned it will likely take a vaccine for life to return to normal and in the meantime restrictions will be lifted gradually and slowly. Coronavirus restrictions will be likely lifted gradually, an expert says. Source: AAP I think the government has chosen to go down a route thats called the suppression approach, Dr James Trauer, from Monash Universitys Epidemiological Modelling Unit, told Yahoo News Australia. That means we are going to try and limit the number of cases and limit its spread, not necessarily get rid of the virus from Australia. If we were to lift lockdown and go back to what we were doing last year we are faced with exponential spread as long as we havent completely eliminated it. The curve is flattening in Australia by what is effectively a lockdown, where public gatherings are limited to two; restaurants, cafes and bars are limited to takeaway only; and people can only leave their homes for limited reasons or face the prospect of hefty on-the-spot fines. But when exactly will things return to normal? Social-distancing measures are expected to remain in place as lockdown restrictions are relaxed. Source: AAP How will the lockdown be lifted? Dr Trauer said it wouldnt necessarily be the case where the last rule implemented would be the first to be lifted. Instead the government will have to deem what activities will help stimulate society and the economy. I suspect what the government will do will gradually lift restrictions and make sure the spread stays under control and doesnt increase, he said. Well gradually be lifting some restrictions and seeing how many can be lifted before we see an increase in spread thats how I see the suppression approach unfolding. Dr Trauer said the government would have to consider two things when lifting lockdown the risk of transmission and the importance of a particular activity. We shouldnt disregard what is important for society and the economy, but part of the calculation as well is how much transmission that particular activity would generate, he said. Story continues The activities that are more important and least likely to increase transmission will be lifted first. What will change as lockdown is lifted? Social distancing Dr Trauer said some practices already being undertaken by Australians that were easy to continue would likely not change. With no-brainer things like regular hand washing and minimising unnecessary contact like not shaking hands theres no reason why we wouldnt continue on with those easy things, he said. Childcare centres and schools Any restrictions on childcare centres and schools would be the first to be relaxed, Dr Trauer predicted. The prime minister already said he wants schools to be opened across the country. Different states have made their own decisions but that will be a logical next thing to relax partly because children are not an important player in perpetuating the pandemic and cases are low in schools, he said. Most importantly, education in children is one of the most critical activities that takes place in our society. Working from home Dr Trauer said people still may be required to work from home depending on how critical it was they interact with people at work. Working from home is another part of the restrictions that will likely be reduced gradually. Something that has to be done in person is healthcare and delivery. It will be a judgement call when reopening other workplaces, he said. Bars, cafes and restaurants The restrictions on bars, cafes and restaurants will be some of the last to be lifted, Dr Trauer predicts. These may be activities we think are important, but it wont be possible to have them reinstated or up and running again until we have a vaccine, he said. With a suppression response the possibility is we wont be able to do those things until a vaccine is available. It will likely be some time before restrictions are lifted for bars, restaurants and cafes. Source: Getty Images Large gatherings Dr Trauer said it would be a matter of gradually lifting restrictions and seeing what happens with the transmission of the virus. Maybe we cant take it that far under a suppression approach, he said. There is the possibility of some form of lockdown all the way through until we have a vaccine. Dr Trauer said the suppression approach was a reasonable start to lifting the lockdown, but just because this is the pathway currently chosen doesnt mean we cant try alternatives. If it doesnt work and its evident the degree of lockdown is so extreme people cant tolerate it, and its not compatible with a functioning society and economy, then we can revisit it. But the safest route at this stage is to come back to other alternatives if this one doesnt work, he said. The dangers of lifting restrictions at once Dr Trauer said not much would have changed in a month in terms of the number of cases and rate of infections, but the government needed to have all systems in place to insure low-grade transmission. We will still have the issue of the large majority of the population susceptible so theres still the risk of exponential growth if we go totally back to the way we were, he said. Numbers on public transport in Sydney have drastically reduced due to the pandemic. Source: AAP There are different pathways you could take [when lifting the suppression] but we cant go back to life before the pandemic unless we have a vaccine. As long as the entire population is susceptible were still in a fragile situation. Leaders hint at lockdown easing Prime Minister Scott Morrison has revealed the three steps we need to take before we can relax tight restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Mr Morrison said Australia had made real progress over the past month getting the virus under control. He said there were now three steps that needed to be put in place before restrictions would be loosened, which would happen in four weeks at the earliest. Mr Morrison announced a more extensive surveillance and testing regime needed to be put in place before the government would consider lifting restrictions. A medical professional performs a COVID-19 tests at a drive-thru testing facility in Bondi. Source: AAP He said Australia would also need to implement better tracing capability and the federal government will release an app in the next fortnight using Bluetooth connections to track down people who have come in contact with others carrying the deadly disease. The prime minister said Australia would also need to isolate outbreak clusters to ensure the coronavirus did not transmit more broadly within the community. On Monday, Queensland recorded zero coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period for the first time in 42 days. Western Australia also achieved its first day of no new cases in over a month. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the landmark moment suggested if the state could maintain such low figures, restrictions could be lifted over the coming weeks. Victoria reported just one new case and Premier Daniel Andrews said there were some areas where the state might be able to make changes around the way people interact with others. I want to make it clear though that the notion that pubs are open any time soon, restaurants, bars, cafes, I dont think that will be the case, he said. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play. Taking serious note of obstructions to the cremation of a Chennai doctor who died of COVID-19, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday warned of "appropriate retaliatory measures" if the authorities fail to stop such incidents. "It is a matter of great concern that these doctors who had died in their line of duty be treated shabbily and in such an uncivilised manner," the doctors' body said in a statement, adding if the state governments do not have power to stop such incidents, "they lose their moral right to govern". Referring to the violence and attacks faced by the healthcare workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the IMA said that it has shown much restraint in spite of extreme provocations. "That doesn't mean our patience is endless. Abuse, violence, spitting, pelting of stones, denial of entry to societies and residential accommodation have been tolerated so far since we expected the governments to do their normal duty. "When they are unable to discharge their constitutional obligations, perhaps these are not normal times. Denial of dignity in death is the ultimate sacrilege," IMA National President Rajan Sharma said. Sharma said that the society must realise that doctors are rendering services at extreme risk to themselves. No nation sends its army to war without weapons. "Doctors, nurses and healthcare workers of this country have been sent to fight against COVID-19 without PPE kits and they are dying young defending their people. If the value of such services are not realised, the easiest thing for the doctor community will be to sit at home," he said. IMA Secretary General R V Asokan said, "While all other interventions have already been withdrawn, it is very unfortunate if more services are going to be withheld for non-medical reasons. The state governments concerned are better warned to perform their constitutional duties as expected. "Failing which IMA has no option but to resort to drastic steps to protect the rights of the medical professionals. Appropriate retaliatory measures will be decided if the constitutional machinery breaks down." An orthopaedic surgeon had to bury his associate, a neurosurgeon who died of COVID-19 here, in the middle of the night using his bare hands and a shovel at a crematorium with the help of just two hospital wardboys after the undertakers fled when a mob, protesting the interment, attacked them. Their opposition was due to a misconception that the contagion may spread in their neighbourhood if the virus victim's burial took place. The windscreens of the ambulance in which the body of the 55-year-old neurosurgeon was brought to the crematorium on Sunday night were smashed and even the casket was not spared. They attacked the undertakers and corporation sanitation officials, among others, using bricks, stones, bottles and sticks and chased them away. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) This is the disturbing moment detainees were reportedly pepper sprayed during a hunger strike due to the coronavirus outbreak at a privately-run U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. The alleged incident took place at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in Otay Mesa, California, on April 10. 'They are throwing pepper spray at us!' a female prisoner shouted in Spanish at her attorney during a phone conversation, which was uploaded on YouTube by immigration advocacy, PSF Caravan. 'They do not respect us, we are humans not animals,' the woman screamed. File image from May 18, 2018 shows detainees at Otay Mesa Detention Center in Otay Mesa, California. On April 11, a prisoner called her lawyer to complain about prison guards at the privately-operated center who sprayed her and other inmates with pepper spray during a hunger strike due to concerns of a coronavirus outbreak. A second female inmate standing next to her could be heard yelling 'help' while another migrant prisoner bellowed in the background. The chaotic occurrence was allegedly caused by CoreCivic's decision that forced the migrants into an agreement that provided the migrants face masks in exchange for not being held liable for any detainee that tested positive for the coronavirus. 'They want to force us to sign [the document] so that we throw away the masks. They want to charge us for t-shirts we used to make the masks,' the woman told her lawyer while she was in her cell. During the two-minute long audio, the migrant tells her legal representative that they were also on a 'hunger strike because they are coming to throw food at us like a dog. We do have rights. We are not criminals.' The woman also accused the private prison' guards of refusing to provide medical attention to an inmate who 'suffers from convulsions' and failed to give her medicine. 'There are many people who do not understand what is happening because they don't speak Spanish. They don't speak English. Help us,' she later said before she broke down into tears and yelled. Private prison company CoreCivic, which operates Otay Mesa, denied masks were withheld unless detainees signed waivers. Spokeswoman Amanda Gilchrist said they were given an 'acknowledgment form' that a mask alone could not protect them from the virus. Private prison company CoreCivic, which operates Otay Mesa, denied masks were withheld unless detainees signed waivers 'It was not the intent of the previous form to require detainees to relinquish all rights related to COVID-19,' Gilchrist said Monday, adding that the company has stopped using it. 'Detainees are only required to initial documentation evidencing they were issued a mask.' ICE said via a statement that the guards did not use pepper spray to deescalate the situation. 'The face masks were being issued to the ICE detainees in accordance with guidance recently changed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The incident involved several ICE detainees who were concerned about the new measures and became verbally disruptive while refusing the face masks,' ICE said. 'In order to maintain overall safety at the facility, CoreCivic guards followed the required protocol for deescalating the situation. Contrary to numerous reports, there was no use of force or chemical agents dispersed during the incident, and we echo our CoreCivic partners statement while reassuring the pubic the allegations are simply NOT TRUE.' At least 27 detainees at Otay Mesa Detention Center have tested positive for the coronavirus. ICE announce last week that it would be releasing 693 migrants who are at most risk of a coronavirus outbreak at their detention centers including immigrants who are elderly, pregnant, or have underlying conditions. The agency had initially chosen a small group of 160 people who are over the age of 60 or pregnant. ICE then conducted a study of the rest of its prison population and found that hundreds of others who suffered lung illness or other medical conditions also qualified to be released. The federal immigration agency has 33,800 people in custody who unlawfully entered the United States. More than half of the population never were charged with criminal offense or convicted. Any inmate that is eligible to be released will be subjected to several restrictions, including the use of a monitoring device. As of Monday, the ravaging coronavirus has caused the death of 40,931 people and sickened 766,664 in the United States. People wear their face masks waiting in line for an emergency food distribution at the 88th Street Temple Church of God in Christ on April 14, 2020 in Los Angeles, California, during the coronavirus pandemic. The Covid-19 outbreak in Los Angeles County is likely far more widespread than previously thought, up to an estimated 55 times bigger than the number of confirmed cases, according to new research from the University of Southern California and the LA Department of Public Health. USC and the health department released preliminary study results that found that an estimated 4.1% of the county's adult population has antibodies to the coronavirus, estimating that between 221,000 adults to 442,000 adults in the county have had the infection. This new estimate is 28 to 55 times higher than the 7,994 confirmed cases of Covid-19 reported to the county through early April. The number of coronavirus-related deaths in the county has now surpassed 600, according to the Department of Public Health. The data, if correct, would mean that the county's fatality rate is lower than originally thought. The results are based on antibody testing of about 863 people who were representative of LA County, the researchers said. "Though the results indicate a lower risk of death among those with infection than was previously thought, the number of Covid-related deaths each day continues to mount, highlighting the need for continued vigorous prevention and control efforts," said Dr. Paul Simon, chief science officer at the LA County Department of Public Health and co-lead on the study, in a statement. The Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of Jamaatu Nasril Islam, Alhaji Muhammad Saad Abubakar III, has said there will be no Ram... The Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of Jamaatu Nasril Islam, Alhaji Muhammad Saad Abubakar III, has said there will be no Ramadan lecture this year, following the COVID-19 outbreak. Abubakar declared that there will be no congregational prayers in Mosques across the country this year. In a statement issued through the Secretary-General of JNI, Dr. Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, Abubakar urged all Muslims to pray at home as they can not afford to be reckless with their lives. He urged Muslims faithful to recite the Holy Quran and listen to Ramadan lectures via the internet and other means available. The statement reads: As Muslims, we are not, however, oblivious of the fact that death is inevitable, but we must not be reckless with our lives, Q2:195 is a clear testimony to that effect. Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI) under the leadership of His Eminence, Alhaji Muhammad Saad Abubakar, CFR, mni, felicitates in advance with the Muslim Ummah on the forthcoming month of Ramadan. Unequivocally, Ramadan is the month of the Quran, the month of Dua (supplication) and Dhikr (Allahs remembrance), the month of Zakah and Sadaqah (giving poor dues and charity), and the month of Qiyamul-Layl (standing in the night for prayers). But due to the overwhelming eruption of the novel COVID-19 pandemic, the Ummahs enthusiasm needs to be reinvigorated as against what obtains of palpable fear over the pandemic outbreak. It should be made known that all Salawatun-nawafil (optional and nonobligatory prayers), including Taraweeh, are originally preferred to be observed at home, even though it is mustahabb (desirable) to observe it in the congregation. To sum it up, there will not be the annual Tafsir sessions and no congregational Taraweeh in mosques, until when the situation permits. We should, therefore, pray with our families at home and stay safe. Medical experts and mid-course Ulamas advice on COVID-19 should be religiously adhered to. We must collectively shun the vituperations of extremists in thoughts and actions on any matter, as warned by the Prophet (PBUH). On March 19, technology specialists participating in a training session on how to use Blackboards video platform were told, If you have a generic, just an open session with an open link, that is fine. Ok, that is fine. During that same training, several specialists asked whether it might be possible to send individual email invitations to students a solution resembling the privacy protections Fairfax ultimately adopted, which require that participants authenticate their identities as students before joining virtual classrooms. They received no clear answer. By the time Gabriel Wortman, 51, was killed in a shootout at a gas station in Nova Scotia, at least 19 people had died by his hand, including healthcare workers, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and an elementary school teacher. On Monday, the victims' loved ones began sharing their grief with the world. Nurse Heather O'Brien was one of those killed during Wortman's attack. The day after the shooting, Ms O'Brien's daughter wrote a post about her mother on Facebook. "A Monster murdered my Mother today. Murdered her, without a second thought. The pain comes and goes in waves. I feel like I'm outside of my own body. This can't be real," Ms O'Brien's daughter wrote. She said she didn't want her mother's death to be her defining moment. Recommended Tributes paid to veteran police officer killed in Canada shootings "I want everyone to remember how kind she was. How much she loved being a nurse. The way her eyes sparkled when she talked to her grandchildren and the way she just LOVED Christmas. Let those things define her. Not the horrible way she died," she wrote. Ms O'Brien's colleague at the Victorian Order of Nurses, Kristen Beaton, also died in the attack. Ms Beaton was also a mother and was working the day of the shooting. Constable Heidi Stevenson was also among those killed. She was a 23-year veteran with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a mother of two. RCMP assistant commissioner Lee Bergerman issued a statement lamenting Ms Stevenson's death. "What has unfolded overnight and into this morning is incomprehensible and many families are experiencing the loss of a loved one. That includes our own RCMP family," Ms Bergerman said. "Heidi answered the call of duty and lost her life while protecting those she served." Ms Bergerman said she'd met Ms Stevenson's family to offer her sympathies. "Earlier this afternoon, I met with Heidi's family and there are no words to describe their pain. Two children have lost their mother and a husband his wife," she wrote. Lisa McCully, who The Globe and Mail reported was a third and fourth grade teacher, also died during the massacre. The Nova Scotia Teachers' Union president Paul Wozney issued a statement lamenting her death. "[Our] hearts are broken along with those of her colleagues and students at Debert Elementary, as well as her family and friends who knew her not only as a passionate teacher but as a shining love in their lives," Mr Wozney wrote. Ms McCully's sister, Jenny Kierstead, posted a Facebook message talking about her friend's death. "This is so hard to write but many of you will want to know. Our hearts are broken today as we attempt to accept the loss of my sister, Lisa McCully, who was one of the victims of the mass shooting in Portapique last night," she wrote. "Our Condolences go out to the other family members who are affected by this tragedy. Thank you for your support, it's a hard day." In addition to the aforementioned victims, The Globe and Mail also listed the following individuals among the dead: Sean McLeod and Alanna Jenkins were a married couple employed as correctional officers. Mr McLeod worked at the Springhill Institution and Ms Jenkins worked at the Nova Institution for Women. Jolene Oliver, Aaron (Friar) Tuck and Emily Tuck were a married couple and their 17-year-old daughter. Jamie and Greg Blair were a married couple with two young children. Mr Blair had two sons from a previous relationship. Gina Goulet was a dental technician and cancer survivor. Corrie Ellison was a social service worker who was visiting his father in Portapique the night of the murders. Recommended Gunman wearing police uniform kills at least 16 in Canada Though facts are still coming to light, initial police reports suggest the shooter was dressed as a member of the RCMP and was driving around in a car made to look like an official police car. Police said that as the shooter progressed, he set people's homes on fire and shot them as they ran outside. An acquaintance of the attacker told the Globe and Mail that the killer arrived at his house and pounded on his front door, claiming the shooter "came here to kill me". WASHINGTON, D.C. - Champaign County GOP Rep. Jim Jordan would like the House Judiciary Committee to examine threats to liberty" posed by the stay-at-home orders that governors around the country have issued to stop the spread of the coronavirus. In a Saturday appearance on Fox News, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee said the committee should be looking at the threats to liberty we see where governors are saying youre going to get a ticket if you go to church, where the mayor of Los Angeles, one of our biggest cities, the mayor of Los Angeles said snitches will be rewarded. While several states have exempted church services from stay-at-home orders, some pastors have been fined and arrested for conducting in-person services in their churches during a time when authorities are trying to keep crowds from assembling and risking the spread of COVID-19. Many churches have shifted worship online. In Ohio, Republican Gov. Mike DeWine has exempted religious institutions from the states ban on gatherings of 10 or more people, but has urged religious leaders to avoid "playing with the lives of your congregation by hosting large gatherings. While many churches in the state have heeded DeWines warnings, one church outside Cincinnati has continued to hold services and received lots of media attention in the area for doing so. During Saturdays Fox interview with Jeanine Pirro, Jordan faulted a prosecutor in one of Ohios big counties for saying if he were the governor he would call out the National Guard to stop you from going to church. Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, a Republican, has said that if he were governor I would tell these churches, the first attendees at your church is going to be the National Guard because we are stopping this right now ... No one is asking you not to pray to God. No one is asking you not to pray to Allah. No one is asking you not to pray. It can be done remotely. Jordan also used his appearance to blast Democrats for never missing opportunities to go after President Trump or advance their crazy left-wing agenda." Think about what theyre saying right now during this virus, said Jordan. Theyre saying illegal immigrants should go free. Theyre saying were going to pay states, think about that, pay states to let criminals out of jail. They say abortion clinics are, quote, essential businesses, and they want to stop you from buying a gun and they want to stop you from going to church. Thats what the Democrats are for. Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota has said the nation should release ICE detainees and put a moratorium on incarcerating people who are low risk to others. To reduce the inmate count in places where the virus could easily spread, thousands of prisoners have been released throughout the country, in states led by both political parties. Ohios DeWine has recommended early release of more than 100 non-violent inmates. Efforts to declare abortion an elective surgical procedure during the pandemic in states including Ohio have been met with lawsuits by abortion rights advocates, who argue the procedure is both essential and time-sensitive. A federal judge has temporarily banned Ohio officials from using a public-health order forbidding nonessential surgeries during the coronavirus pandemic to restrict providers from performing abortions. The Trump administration has ruled that gun shops are essential businesses that should stay open during the pandemic while others close. More coverage: Can a debt collector grab your stimulus check? In Ohio many cant, says AG Dave Yost Sen. Rob Portman and five Ohio Congress members to advise White House on reopening the economy What Ohio members of Congress want in a fourth coronavirus stimulus bill How to track your federal stimulus check New Cleveland company gets federal approval to produce ventilators during coronavirus pandemic Feds approve new mask sterilization process from Mentors STERIS Battelle to expand coronavirus mask decontamination to 60 sites around the country Coronavirus response may drag on Trump in 2020 election, conservative pundits say Feds will use extra Great Lakes Restoration Initiative money to fight water pollution and invasive species Coronavirus boosts demand for Elyria-based Invacares oxygen products and beds Navy veteran running for Ohio congressional seat turns coronavirus-related firing of ships captain into campaign issue Sherrod Brown wants essential workers to get up to $25,000 in hazard pay during coronavirus pandemic Cleveland-area native Thomas Modly resigns as acting Navy secretary amid coronavirus firing flap Bir-Lahlou, 20 April 2020 (SPS) - President of the Republic, Secretary-General of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, has sent a congratulatory message to his Zimbabwean counterpart, H.E. Emmerson Mnangagwa, on 40th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Zimbabwe. On behalf of the Sahrawi people and government, I have the pleasure to extend our sincere congratulations to your Excellency and through you to the brotherly people and Government of Zimbabwe on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Zimbabwe, said the President of the Republic. Proud of our firm relation, the Sahrawi people and government seize this opportunity to express their satisfaction about the strong relations that bond our liberation movements, ZANU-PF and POLISARIO Front, and bond our two governments and peoples, he added. (SPS) 062/SPS An architecturally significant dwelling perched high above the Sunset Strip is being offered for lease at $20,000 per month. The two-bedroom residence comes with one of the poshest amenities packages we've seen in the SoCal real estate market. Recently christened "One Place," the 2,156-square-foot dwelling was the first residence designed and built by architect A. Quincy Jones. The legendary architect used the residence as his own personal studio. He designed it with soaring ceilings and huge windows, to take full advantage of its city and canyon views. Built in 1939, it has been updated and renovated several timesbut always carefully preserving Jones' architectural intent. The property is laid out so that it can function as two independent living spaces, each with its own bedroom, bath, kitchen, great room, and living space. The two structures can also be leased individually, at $10,000 per month. Exterior realtor.com Glorious windows realtor.com Dining area realtor.com Great room realtor.com That is a pretty penny for a one- or two-bedroom home, even if it is tucked in the hills of L.A.'s Laurel Canyon. However, that's where the value of the amenities come in. For starters, the home is offered turnkey, and furnished with unique and authentic pieces from Brazil, France, and Denmark. Tenants are also offered the use of an electric Mercedes vehicle for the duration of their stay. Furniture included realtor.com But what's really of value to Angelenos in the know is free access to the elite Spring Place Beverly Hills for the duration of the lease. Spring Place is a sophisticated and private members-only club with restaurants, bars, lounges, workspaces, cultural events, and a rooftop terrace. Renters of this residence can also have gourmet food delivered to them by Spring Place and may avail themselves of other perks offered by the club. "We see this home as the ideal place for creative types," says The Agency's Alana Mesica, who has the listing with two colleagues at The Agency, James Harris and David Parnes, who are also stars of Bravo's "Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles." "It's also an excellent pied-a-terre for someone who isn't in town all the time," Mesica says, "and wants all the comforts of home when they are, or perhaps for someone who's already a member of Spring Place, and would like somewhere to stay nearby." Downtown view from the deck realtor.com Mesica relishes the exceptional design of One Place, and the fact that the residence has retained a warm, homey feelunlike many of the new "modern boxes," that have mushroomed throughout the area. "It has so much unique character," she remarks. At a time when the home-buying market is in turmoil, the lease market is thriving, according to Mesica. Folks who sold their homes before the worldwide pandemic reached its peak may not be ready to buy just yet, so renting is a smart way to wait to see how the market shakes out. Mesica told us that thanks to digital marketing efforts, quite a bit of interest has surfaced in the short time One Place has been offered for lease. For renters looking for a place to cool their heels in style for a while, "It's unlike anything else on the market," she says. Bedroom realtor.com Bathroom realtor.com One of two kitchens realtor.com Backyard realtor.com The post An A. Quincy Jones Original Beckons Architecture Fans in Need of a Rental appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. The abrupt removal of a popular General from the midst of a raging war demands close scrutiny. What were the extraordinary reasons for the sudden removal of Dr Ajay Chandanwale as the dean of BJ Medical College Sassoon General Hospital last week? After all, he was at the forefront of Punes response to the global Covid-19 pandemic, with our city being one of the hotspots. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been repeatedly saying that we need to applaud our doctors, nurses and other health workers for fighting on the frontlines, and not demoralise them in any way. It is our health workers-- and not the politicians and bureaucrats-- who are the backbone of Indias war against the coronavirus. If something was seriously amiss in Dr Chandanwales leadership, then, certainly, an inquiry should have been instituted and appropriate action taken after the pandemic was brought under control- not in the midst of the battle. Predictably, a large section of the rank and file of Sassoon Hospital protested publicly against Dr Chandanwales removal. They met Pune divisional commissioner Deepak Mhaisekar to register their protest and demanded the reinstatement of Dr Chandanwale. The next day they worked with black bands. At least one senior doctor and four nurses from Sassoon have tested positive and are in quarantine. The nurses and lower health staff have been demanding safer working conditions and this is the reality of all government hospitals across the country. As is well-known, the completion of Sassoon Hospitals new 11-storeyed building was delayed by the public works department (PWD) for almost nine years. Once the coronavirus pandemic hit Pune, it was hurriedly made operational with intensive care unit (ICU) facilities and isolation beds in a matter of two-three weeks. Credible voices in the medical fraternity are unanimous that Dr Chandanwles abrupt removal was wrong. Politicians, such as the senior city Congressman Arvind Shinde, have blamed the former dean for the high number of Covid-19 deaths at Sassoon, and other alleged acts of mismanagement. Indeed, as of April 18, 42 of the total 51 Covid-19 deaths in Pune, did occur at Sassoon. As Dr Chandanwale and the Sassoon administration explained, the biggest reason for these deaths was late admissions and high co-morbidity. The political-bureaucratic bosses chose to blame the former Sassoon dean for this rather than examine and address the delay in admissions and rectify the weak links in the referral chain of Covid-19 patients. Is this a case of fire happening somewhere and the fire fighting happening somewhere else? We will know in a matter of just a few weeks from now. Watch this space. abhay.vaidya@hindustantimes.com Its not just those on the frontline who are helping during this crisis. There are thousands of people across Britain doing their utmost to help those affected by COVID-19. Each week, were celebrating these Lockdown Legends in a new video series, Up Close And Socially Distant. This week, were chatting to psychotherapist Ruth Chaloner. With reports that we could be about to experience a mental health pandemic due to the lockdown, shes hoping her recently-launched service Help Hub will offer support to those suffering from anxiety or bereavement triggered by the pandemic. Volunteer counsellors offer free 20-minute sessions of online emotional support and help them to look for people around them who they can reach out to for support. READ MORE: Coronavirus pandemic may have a 'profound' and 'pervasive' impact on mental health Ruth Chaloner, founded Help Hub, to provide online counselling to those affected by the pandemic She told Yahoo! a little bit more about just how it all began: How was Health Hub set up? Ruth: I was speaking to the CEO of Blenheim Palace actually, because I wanted to set up a charity that would support people who couldn't afford therapy. It was going to be a bursary of some sorts, which he'd agreed to in principle, and then when I started to hear about the coronavirus, I started to have a sense that we may well be expecting a deluge of people with emotional problems. And so, I phoned them up and said, I want to change it. I need to do something to help people in the short term. And he said, What do you need? How have you adapted it to help people during lockdown? Ruth: We are providing what we carefully call online emotional support. The reason for that is that we do have therapists and that's because I know that therapists will have the experience and the training to help people properly but they're not offering psychotherapy. What they're doing is helping people talk through their problems. READ MORE: How to deal with panic attacks What problems are hearing from people? Ruth: If you've got an anxiety anyway, and lots of people in the UK struggle with anxiety and depression, it will be amplified by the isolation and the fear of the coronavirus. It might be that you're trapped at home with the family and you have no space for yourself, so your anxiety will increase in that way. Story continues Or you may have a health anxiety that of course could go haywire right now. You may have an obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) that then gets far worse if you're not able to leave home and kind of cope with normal life and have other things to distract you. READ MORE: Receiving a hug from a parent is the best way to reassure children, a new study reveals And then of course, there'll be some people who are suffering with bereavement, who've been through an extremely traumatic experience and really just don't know how to handle that. They just need someone who can kind of contain them, help them with some coping strategies, ground them a bit, and maybe also encourage them to explore around them to see who else might be able to support them too in their family or their neighbours or their friends. The process of grieving is completely unknown at the moment what advice can you give to people that need to be steered through that? Ruth: Grief is a sort of journey that you have to go through to come out the other end, and it's very complex. It's different for lots of people as well; they experience it differently and some of the emotions come in different orders. I think the most important thing that anyone can do is actually talk about it. I think there's a lot of people have a natural kind of wish to suppress the feelings, but you end up quite literally burying your feelings alive and they do come back out and so it's really important to externalise what's internal in these circumstances. READ MORE: Recognising and dealing with grief is key to mental health during the pandemic Talk about the person you miss, talk about the horrible facts around it and try to find people who will be good at listening. Thats kind of where the Help Hub can help in the beginning to get you started to help you start talking about it. And how are you trying to support workers in the NHS at the moment? Ruth: We are hand-picking the best supervisors that we can find, and they will be going in to help the NHS therapists. We're hoping that they [frontline workers] will see that we can look after the people they care about too, because they're going to have anxieties about coming home and infecting their families or just not seeing very much of them. Part of our task is to reassure them that the Help Hub is that to help the families and people, they love. READ MORE: On the frontline: meet the NHS workers tackling coronavirus Ruth is also working with the charity Refugee Women, which helps women seeking refuge from persecution, rape and other torture by providing therapists who are experienced in working with refugees. How has the lockdown impacted these women? Ruth: A lot of the women who are using their service are homeless at the moment or they may be sofa-surfing, so they havent got a safe space to be. They have very little security and potentially no food (or a lot of the things that we take for granted), but what most of them do have is a cheap mobile phone. We have found some therapists in our service, who are experienced at working with refugees, and particularly with women, and we've pulled them out of the system and asked them to get involved with the charity so that they can provide a service. I believe they have about 300 women that they're helping on a regular basis. How you can help Ruth says that spreading the word about Help Hub is the useful thing anyone can do right now. The most important thing is to let people know about the service, that they can go to our website, they can sign in and book a session, she explains. Also, if there are any therapists out there who would like to volunteer, please go to our website and click on the volunteer page and we'll put you through the system, check your qualifications and get you on as online as quickly as possible. For those in need of help at this time of crisis, go to www.helphub.co.uk for 20 minutes of online emotional support. Up Close And Socially Distant is hosted by Kate Thornton and features video catch-ups with people who are all doing whatever they can, in whatever unique and special way they can, to help those around them get through lockdown. This week Kate speaks to comedian and creator of the Baked Potato Song, Matt Lucas, Domestic Violence UK ambassador and YANA project founder Jenni Steele, and psychotherapist and Help Hub founder Ruth Chaloner. EWING, N.J., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For more than 100 years, ARM & HAMMER laundry detergent and its maker, Church & Dwight Co., have focused on creating products and developing initiatives that benefit consumers and local communities. From removing phosphates in all detergents to using recycled materials for packaging, the well-being of consumers is at the heart of ARM & HAMMER business and product development, including the launch of new Clean & Simple Laundry Detergent. Additionally, ARM & HAMMER is extending its heritage of clean beyond the laundry room by expanding company and product sustainability initiatives. ARM & HAMMER was closely involved with the inaugural Earth Day in 1970 and continues to be involved since its inception. This year they are expanding their impact through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation. With support from partners like ARM & HAMMER, the Arbor Day Foundation has planted nearly 5 million trees in the Mississippi River Valley, one of the most critical wetland resources in North America. This effort has removed carbon dioxide and pollutants in the atmosphere, thereby creating cleaner air and water. Through the sustainability partnership, ARM & HAMMER is removing more than 300 million pounds of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and filtering over 3 million pounds of air pollutants each year. "ARM & HAMMER is so much more than a trusted cleaning brand; we are a family-first, community-centric brand that is invested in our people and our planet," said Laurie Kirschner, Director of Marketing for ARM & HAMMER Laundry. "As a leading laundry brand, we believe it's our job to go beyond household cleaning and support sustainability initiatives like our partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation and support of Earth Day." "ARM & HAMMER has long recognized the importance of utilizing our nation's forests as a powerful tool to build a better future for the next generation," said Dan Lambe, president, Arbor Day Foundation. "We are grateful for their partnership and their continued leadership in the corporate sustainability space." ARM & HAMMER is also packaging up its commitment to cleaner solutions for people and the planet with the creation of new Clean & Simple Laundry Detergent formulated with just six essential ingredients and water for a powerful clean. With no unnecessary chemicals, added dyes or preservatives, the laundry detergent is powerfully simple and meets EPA Safer Choice product standards to be safer for families, pets and the planet. ARM & HAMMER Clean & Simple is made at Church & Dwight plants with 100 percent certified renewable electricity and recycle-friendly packaging. ARM & HAMMER Clean & Simple provides consumers with a simple, transparent and effective solution so they don't have to compromise on clean. For more information about ARM & HAMMER Clean & Simple and the brand's promise to consumers and the planet, please visit CleanSimple.com and check out our video. About Church & Dwight Co., Inc . Church & Dwight Co., Inc. manufactures and markets a wide range of personal care, household and specialty products, under the ARM & HAMMER brand name and other well-known trademarks. About the Arbor Day Foundation Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than one million members, supporters, and valued partners. Their vision is to help others understand and use trees as a solution to many of the global issues we face today, including air quality, water quality, climate change, deforestation, poverty and hunger. As one of the world's largest operating conservation foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees. More information is available at arborday.org. CONTACT: Lee Nielsen HUNTER 212.679.6600 [email protected] SOURCE Church & Dwight Co., Inc. Related Links https://churchdwight.com Maryland owes a debt of gratitude to the people of South Korea, Gov. Larry Hogan, R, said Monday after securing 500,000 covid-19 test kits from the country over the weekend. He acknowledged Monday that the deal would not have come together if it weren't for his wife, Yumi Hogan, the first Korean American first lady of any state. Yumi joined the governor Saturday to welcome a Boeing 777, the first-ever Korean Air passenger plane to land at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, which the governor said was carrying more test kits than "four of the top five states in America" combined have completed. The delivery was the culmination of what Hogan labeled "Operation Enduring Friendship," which started March 28 when he asked his wife to join him on a call with the Korean ambassador to the United States. During the call, Hogan said, they spoke of the special relationship between Maryland and the Republic of Korea created because of Yumi Hogan. "Most importantly, I want to thank Maryland's first lady, my wife, Yumi," Hogan said, his voice slightly cracking. "She truly is a champion of this Operation Enduring Friendship." Yumi Hogan, reserved and often sporting a smile, is the first Korean American first lady of any state and has been the catalyst for "the special bond" between Maryland and South Korea, where Yumi Hogan has almost taken on a celebrity status. Gov. Hogan said he has been referred to as the "han kuk sah we," the son-in-law of South Korea, most recently by South Korea's Moon Jae-in in a videotaped greeting during a National Governors Association event last winter. "I considered it quite an honor for him to say that that night but I had no idea just how much that would truly come to mean these two very long months later," Hogan said at the news conference. Before her 2004 marriage to Hogan, Yumi Hogan was a single mother of three daughters. She grew up in a rural area on a chicken farm outside Seoul and immigrated to the United States in her 20s with her first husband, the father of her three daughters, to work in blue-collar family businesses. Living first in Texas and then California, Yumi divorced and moved to Howard County because of its schools. In Maryland, she sought out rural areas that reminded her of home, inspiring her abstract landscapes. She taught art in her basement and worked as a cashier to provide for her daughters. She became a citizen in 1994 and met Hogan six years later at an art show. In 2008, she earned a bachelor's degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Two years later, she received a master's from American University. Her work, using traditional sumi ink and hanji paper, has been displayed locally and around the world. Ending almost a year and a half of political deadlock, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival Benny Gantz of the Blue and White party have sealed a coalition deal that would see a new government in place soon. The coalition deal allows Netanyahu to lead the government first for 18 months before he makes way for Gantz in a rotation agreement, further extending his record as the longest serving premier in Israel's history. Netanyahu, 70, in July last year supassed the record of longest serving Prime Minister of the country held by one of the founding fathers of the Jewish state, David Ben-Gurion. A joint statement by Blue and White and Netanyahu's ruling Likud party said that the agreement was to form a national emergency government, apparently to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. We prevented fourth elections. We'll safeguard democracy, Gantz tweeted shortly after the announcement was made. We'll fight the coronavirus and look out for all Israeli citizens. We have a national emergency government, he asserted. As per local media reports, the deal will be signed formally after Independence Day next week. The details of the deal were not made public yet but media reports said that Netanyahu managed to persuade Gantz to agree to all his key demands, including a veto on the appointments of the next Attorney General and the State Prosecutor. The beleaguered Prime Minister, indicted in a series of cases of graft and breach of trust, is set to face trial beginning May 24. Israeli President Reuven Rivlin had entrusted Gantz to form a government after 61 out of 120 newly elected members of the Knesset (Israeli parliament) in March 2 polls backed him to lead the next government. Gantz, a former Israel Defence Forces Chief of Staff, failed to put a coalition together in the allotted 28 days time, and even in the following 48 hours of extension. The President sent the mandate back to the Knesset to choose a leader to form a government with majority support within 21 days. Failure to do so would have resulted in a fourth round of polls. Israelis voted last month for the third time in less than a year to break the deadlock on government formation. The country has always had a coalition government and never seen a single party rule since its independence. The religious parties, themselves a divided lot but definitely on the Right side of the political spectrum, have always been a part of the coalition governments except one led by Ariel Sharon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) FM office in HKSAR slams US politicians' exculpation of riot leaders Global Times By Leng Shumei Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 17:09:59 The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Sunday solemnly refuted Western politicians' exculpation of Hong Kong riot leaders, claiming their rhetoric revealed their complicity with rioters who have created chaos in the city. Chinese experts also noted that if these Western politicians really respect Hong Kong's rule of law, they should support Hong Kong government and police in punishing rioters who have violated local laws and heavily damaged the city's economy and local people's livelihood, or they are just applying a double standard. The Hong Kong police's arrest of suspects who organized and attended unapproved gatherings is an act of law enforcement that aims to safeguard Hong Kong's rule of law. Through this move, the Hong Kong government is executing its power mandated by the Basic Law, and no foreign country has the right to interfere, read a spokesperson's statement released on the office's website on Sunday. Some US politicians have ignored the facts, twisted the Sino-British Joint Declaration and exonerate those disturbing Hong Kong from a charge under the excuse of so-called transparency, rule of law and high degree of autonomy. These acts revealed the politicians' complicity with the suspects, which will certainly encounter the joint denunciation of the international community, read the statement. The spokesperson called on US politicians to adhere to the basic principle of international relations and stop interfering in the affairs of Hong Kong, stressing that the city is ruled by law and no one should place himself be above the law. The statement came after some US politicians expressed opposition to the Hong Kong government's arrests on Saturday of 15 Hong Kong riot leaders, including Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and Hong Kong barrister Martin Lee Chu-ming. It followed another statement released on the office website on Saturday rebuffing some UK politicians' similar accusations on the arrests, which revealed the UK side's double standard toward rioters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that "Beijing and its representatives in Hong Kong continue to take actions inconsistent with commitments made under the Sino-British Joint Declaration that include transparency, the rule of law, and guarantees that Hong Kong will continue to 'enjoy a high degree of autonomy'," CNBC reported Saturday. In a separate statement, US Attorney General William Barr called the arrests "the latest assault on the rule of law and the liberty of the people of Hong Kong," according to the report. Britain's Foreign Office also criticized the arrests, saying, "the right to peaceful protest is fundamental to Hong Kong's way of life and as such is protected in both the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law," according to ABC. Western politicians should not exculpate these suspects if they really respect Hong Kong's law, as riot actions these suspects organized and supported have seriously damaged Hong Kong's social order, local people's livelihood and local economy, said Tian Feilong, an associate professor and expert on Hong Kong studies at Beihang University in Beijing. Western politicians also show double standard on patriotic personages and so-called democratic fighters on Hong Kong-related affairs, but no one should place himself above the law, Tian noted. He stressed that the arrest of these riot leaders would help to restore the authority of law, protect local people's interest and nip local terrorism in the bud. The arrested individuals, aged between 24 and 81, were suspected of violating Hong Kong's Public Order Ordinance by organizing and taking part in unauthorized assemblies on August 18, October 1 and October 20, 2019, Hong Kong police said at a media briefing on Saturday afternoon. They are scheduled to appear before a court on May 18. Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, an infamous and veteran "political media person," is a unique ghost-like existence in Hong Kong's diverse political ecosystem, according to Chinese mainland experts. His NEXT Digital, and Apple Daily in particular, is characterized by slanders and attacks on the governance of the Hong Kong government and China's overall political system. Lai has played complicated and multiple roles as "fundraiser," "propagandist," and "behind-the-scenes master" during Hong Kong's radical social movements, according to Chinese mainland analysts. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Val Kilmer has admitted he's a slave to love in his new memoir, as he recalls flings with some of the world's most famous women including Angelina Jolie, Cher, Carly Simon and Cindy Crawford. But the 60-year-old admits he still pines for actress Daryl Hannah, writing in his new book I'm Your Huckleberry: 'Lord knows Ive suffered heartache. But Daryl was by far the most painful of all.' He added: 'I knew I would love her with my whole heart forever and that love has lost none of its strength. I am still in love with Daryl. When we finally broke up, I cried every single day for half a year.' The 1980s heartthrob's love life eventually ran dry, following a whirlwind of love affairs that started when he became Cher's lover aged 21 and she was in her mid-thirties. The Batman actor found himself single and out of money from losing land investments in 2015, living in a cottage in Malibu with the postman and local burrito man as his best friends. 'I was a weirdo beach bum and it was bliss then bliss turned to mayhem. I coughed up coagulated blood. I presumed this was the day of my death', Kilmer confesses in his memoir that chronicles his lost loves and lifelong spiritual journey. Val Kilmer has admitted he's a slave to love in his new memoir. The 60-year-old admits he still pines for actress Daryl Hannah (pictured together in 2003) , writing in his new book I'm Your Huckleberry: 'Lord knows Ive suffered heartache. But Daryl was by far the most painful of all' Kilmer recalled flings with the world's most famous women including Angelina Jolie (together right in 2004), Carly Simon and Cindy Crawford (together left in Moscow in 1996) The 1980s heartthrob's love life ran dry, following a whirlwind of love affairs that started when he became Cher's lover aged 21 and she was in her mid thirties. The Batman actor found himself single and out of money from losing land investments, living in a cottage in Malibu with the postman and local burrito man as his best friends Kilmer describes how he called for an ambulance and crawled up the wooden stairs from his guesthouse to the Pacific Coast Highway so the ambulance could find him. He woke up in a Santa Monica hospital after an emergency tracheotomy for throat cancer. His old lover Cher had him transferred to David Geffen's School of Medicine at UCLA where he underwent chemo and radiation over a two-month stay. A lifelong Christian Scientist following the beliefs of both of his parents, Kilmer does not deny that he had cancer, but said accepting the diagnosis seemed surreal. Kilmer's memoir chronicles his lost loves and lifelong spiritual journey Maybe his healing was by the hand of God and not doctors, he suggests. 'I do not deny miraculous healing', Kilmer writes, reflecting on the cancer that had caused his tongue to swell and block his lymph passages, requiring two tracheotomies. 'The cancer miraculously healed much faster than any of the doctors predicted'. Kilmer confesses he never felt alone and heard his hero Mark Twin say to him: 'The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time'. He recognized this as his chance to prove that he truly believed in God, so he called his spiritual practitioner who suggested he call the ambulance first. They prayed together and he felt calm. 'My healing is steady, but so far slow. Speaking, once my joy and lifeblood, has become an hourly struggle', he writes, comparing his voice to Marlon Brandon's after downing several bottles of tequila. Now when he talks, he has to put a finger to the aperture in his throat to be understood. Kilmer said his focus has turned to listening and to prayer, saying: 'I'm vain, but I'm working on it, baby, I'm working on it'. Kilmer was born in Playa del Rey, California but his parents moved to Chatsworth on the sprawling northern border of the San Fernando Valley when his block was mowed down to make an LAX runway. Kilmer was born in Playa del Rey, California but his parents moved to Chatsworth on the sprawling northern border of the San Fernando Valley when his block was mowed down to make an LAX runway His father was an aerospace equipment distributor, stingy and but generous with himself, buying a Cadillac but not letting his mother purchase curtains for the living room. Chatsworth was 'the least glamorous corner of LA' but Kilmer credits the neighborhood with giving him a starving yet stealthy spirit. At age eight, Kilmer started secretly smoking his uncle's Pall Mall cigarettes in his tree house a habit he deeply regrets. He read books by Mary Baker Eddy, founder of The Church of Christ, Scientist about divine love, feeling the thrill of being alive. He felt like 'a beatnik' --- writing plays and poems, admiring Marlon Brando and feeling spiritually ambitious with a five-year plan to achieve self-realization. 'I was naturally and inordinately theatrical. I liked attention. I liked to emote. I liked to talk. It didn't matter that I usually didn't know what I was talking about,' he writes. Kilmer escaped the dreaded San Fernando Valley for New York City where Marlon Brando, 'the north star of my theatrical fantasies', had studied 33 years earlier. He enrolled at the Julliard School, the youngest ever to get accepted at the highly rated private performing arts conservatory. His first goal was to get rid of his California accent. Kilmer graduated and then fell under the spell of Cher when she picked him up in the city. Kilmer graduated and then fell under the spell of Cher when she picked him up in the city. They rode off into the New York City sunset and headed west when he chose to live with her atop Caesars Palace in Vegas instead of furthering his acting studies. 'We both loved laughing and went on doing so for well over a year' Kilmer segued to Michelle Pfeiffer (pictured together in 1985) after playing in an ABC Afterschool Special, One Too Many and they became confidantes. He adored her, he confesses but had an unrequited crush on her younger sister They rode off into the New York City sunset and headed west when he chose to live with her atop Caesars Palace in Vegas, instead of furthering his acting studies. 'We both loved laughing and went on doing so for well over a year. 'Cher trafficked in intoxicating glamour and I, a Valley boy, fell under her spell.' After all that fun, he writes they were now less lovers and really best friends. Kilmer segued to Michelle Pfeiffer after playing in an ABC Afterschool Special, One Too Many and they became confidantes. He adored her, he confesses but had an unrequited crush on her younger sister. Ellen Barkin followed, a romance that was 'as whimsical as it was whirlwind'. 'I was crazy for her, and we had some fabulous days', he recalled remembering her laugh and the softness of her hair. But she became another who got away, 'no doubt due to my unmanageable preoccupations, my neglect,' Kilmer adds. Kilmer fled to Santa Fe and finally hooked up with Joanne Whalley (pictured together), an actress he had met years earlier and watched her from afar while she had no interest in him. Now they fell in love and married in New Mexico, honeymooned on Marlon Brando's island in Tahiti Following in their parents' footsteps: The Jay and Silent Bob Reboot actor has two children - Jack, 24; and Mercedes, 28 - with his Willow leading lady Joanne Whalley, whom he divorced in 1996 after eight years of marriage (pictured in 2018) Carly Simon soon stepped in after the two met at a party in New York. Kilmer had arrived with Cher, but she had wandered off. Kilmer quickly fell in love, writing: 'I wanted to be with Carly every day of the rest of my life.' But that faded he surmised when Carly realized he was hopelessly in love with her. Kilmer fled to Santa Fe and finally hooked up with Joanne Whalley, an actress he had met years earlier and watched from afar while she had no interest in him. Brando became Kilmer's father figure and listened to him talk for hours, comforted him and nursed him back to emotional health. Pictured: Brando and Kilmer's movie in 1996 Now they fell in love and married in New Mexico and honeymooned on Marlon Brando's island in Tahiti. They promised they would always be together but that promise began to fade when each wanted to film in a different city at the same time. They eventually split up, but not before having two children. Their relationship had unraveled when she shut him out of the parental role, leaving Kilmer rarely seeing his kids. Kilmer's childhood hero Marlon Brando, then in his 60s, came calling and wanted to meet Kilmer after seeing him play Jim Morrison in the film, The Doors. The Hollywood legend invited Kilmer up to his house on Mulholland Drive and their friendship blossomed. Brando became Kilmer's father figure and listened to him talk for hours, comforted him and nursed him back to emotional health. In return, Kilmer read to Brando, poems by Yeats, Walt Whitman, Shakespearean sonnets. Sometimes Brando would weep. Brando also gossiped about women and claimed he had an affair with Jackie Kennedy in the kitchen of the White House. Next up in love land for Val was Cindy Crawford in 1996 while getting his divorce from the mother of his children. Kilmer started creating art when he was in the hospital and it morphed into something people wanted to collect 'The truth is I am lonely part of every day': Eighties heartthrob Val Kilmer reveals he's been single since the year 2000 in his new memoir, I'm Your Huckleberry (pictured March 16) 'Oh God, I loved Cindy and just kept loving her, I thought I could have died from her love because its delight was simply too much to bear. I would die of happiness,' he gushed. They began traveling the world together but as the most in-demand supermodel, she was always one step away, heading for another city. Angelina Jolie rescued Kilmer from his solitude and she was 'perhaps the most soulful and serious of them all,' Kilmer mused. He moved on to Jaycee Gossettt in 1999 for three years but then let her slip away. Then came Daryl Hannah, 'the 6' tall Amazonian tower of delicate power'. Kilmer's heart still aches for Daryl and he writes 'I knew I would love her with my whole heart forever and that love has lost none of its strength'. Now without the company of a sweetheart and having loved so deeply, Kilmer feels he has nothing left to give in a romantic relationship and feels lonely part of every day. Kilmer started creating art when he was in the hospital and it morphed into something people wanted to collect. He set up an art factory in Brentwood and with a new lease on life, he feels he is no longer a slave to love and a hopeless romantic. He is focused on friends, his art, his foundation and his spiritual growth. Val Kilmer's new memoir I'm Your Huckleberry is available here An 88-year-old Holocaust survivor who went through six concentration camps is set to celebrate his bar mitzvah Nov. 19 at Chabad of Poway in what many call a historic moment. Ben Midler was 13 and ready for his bar mitzvah, a Jewish coming of age ceremony, when he was taken from his family by Germans who invaded his home in the Polish city of Bialystok in 1941. He recalled that the Bialystok synagogue was burned down by Germans in June that year with 2,000 Jews inside. After living in a ghetto for two years, Midler was taken to six concentration camps between the ages of 15 to 17. He still has the numbers printed on his arm. Midler said he survived because he worked in the ghetto and did not associate with other kids, who it turned out, were sent to Auschwitz. Advertisement In August 1943, Midler and 50,000 others were taken in six cattle cars three went to Treblinka and three to Majdanek. When he got to the camps, he told the officer he was a presser, which he said saved his life because at that time the Germans were fighting the Russians and needed warm clothing to be made. They gathered about 200 men and women whom were tailors and the rest they killed on the spot. Anytime they said they needed people to work, I said I am ready to go this saved my life, said Midler, who lives in Rancho Bernardo and is author of The Life of A Child Survivor from Bialystok, Poland. For someone who has lived through the Holocaust, and yet thanks G-d every day for the miracles G-d has done for him then and now, this is truly a celebration, not just for Ben Midler but the entire Jewish Nation, said Rabbi Mendel Goldstein, director of Chabad of Poway. The event is at 10 a.m. at 16934 Chabad Way. Visit chabadpoway.com or call (858) 451-0455. Locked up in our lockdown, we have reviewed and organized family photographs that have lain dormant for a long time. I wondered if readers might indulge a personal note on one photograph (below) that I dont even remember seeing before. I must have retrieved it from my parents when I cleaned out their apartment after my mothers death. It depicts me with my younger brother (Dan) on the steps of our house in Moorhead, Minnesota. The year must have been 1954. The photograph caught me by surprise. It elicited long-buried memories. It also made me laugh. I have a few notes and queries. Recalling my beloved collection of six-shooter cap guns, I wonder if those things are even permitted nowadays. I guess they are, but can boys still play like boys? I have three daughters. Im not entirely sure. The left seeks in part to extirpate the natural distinction of the sexes. Wherever the left holds sway boys would probably be well advised not to play like boys. My wardrobe in the photograph reminds me how much I loved the television Westerns that filled the networks Saturday morning lineups in the 1950s. I remember watching Fury, The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, and Sky King on Saturday mornings from about 1955 on. Of the three, Rin Tin Tin was my favorite. I dreamed (literally) of being in an episode side by side with Rusty. Similar shows that I watched regularly back then included The Lone Ranger, The Cisco Kid, Andys Gang (with Froggy), and Zorro. In addition to my collection of cap guns I had a Zorro sword with chalk on the tip with which to mark Zorros telltale Z on the walls. My mom certainly appreciated that. Having said this much, I would feel remiss if I failed to note Pinky Lees daily television show. It was also a favorite. My grandfather Paul Johnson took me and my cousins Linda and Nancy, I think, to see the show broadcast live from Hollywood in what must have been 1955. Students of ancient television history may recall that we would have sat in the Peanut Gallery and received Tootsie Rolls handed out by Pinky himself. With all that television viewing, its a wonder I had time for nursery school and kindergarten. I attended nursery school at Temple Beth El in Fargo and kindergarten at what was then Moorhead State Teachers College in Moorhead. They were both excellent. I remember watching Captain Kangaroo every morning before heading off for kindergarten. My nursery school classmate Maimon Schwarzschild, by the way, has gone on to a distinguished career teaching law at the University of San Diego School of Law. Maimons television viewing was not as deep as mine, though I remember that he reported one morning during show and tell with Mrs. Mullenbein that he had watched test pattern. Maimon was the smartest student in the class, smart enough to profit from watching test pattern. Jeffrey Hart titled his account of American life in the 50s When the Going Was Good! He didnt cover childs play or childrens television, but I think the sentiment applies. Those few teachers and students who do go to school for term two will encounter a very different classroom to the ones they knew before the COVID-19 pandemic. Some children returned to school in Queensland for the first day of term two on Monday after five weeks of learning from home during state-wide lockdowns. Queensland's policy was largely the same as New South Wales - that distance learning was preferred and schools were only for the children of those who must work outside the home during the lockdown. Pupils in Queensland now have to bring their own stationery to school and use hand sanitisers as they walk between classrooms that will allow no more than 12 people per 52 sq/m room. Children will be returning to school in Queensland for the first day of term two. An empty classroom is seen at a primary school in Brisbane Schools have had to rearrange furniture in classrooms to maintain those social distancing protocols by keeping people at least 1.5m away from each other. Frequent cleaning has also been recommended by state authorities with special attention placed on light switches, door handles, desks, toilets, taps and sinks. The Gap State High School in Brisbane sent letters to parents with a full list of changes, The Courier Mail reported. It had employed cleaners during the school day to disinfect classrooms, furniture and bathrooms during breaks. At that school, a maximum of ten students will be assigned per classroom for all lessons throughout the day. Virtual learning will still be available for children who are able to learn from home. Teacher Cindy Bunder is seen demonstrating a virtual classroom on Friday, April 3 Students must bring their own food, as the canteen will be closed and pupils will not be allowed to leave school grounds to buy lunch. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk stressed that schools are only open for vulnerable children and children of essential workers who are unable to learn remotely. As a result, The Gap State High School will send attendance surveys to parents each fortnight so school authorities can decide how many teachers they need on site and how to ensure social distancing policies are being met. Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace said the children of non-frontline workers should learn from home 'If you are working from home and incapable of supervising to ensure your child is getting online resource work happening then contact your principal,' Ms Palaszczuk said. 'But now is not the time to be sending your child to school if you don't meet those categories.' Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace said sending the children of non-frontline workers to school would make social distancing protocols impossible to meet, jeopardising the safety of students and teachers. 'We want to make sure we can exercise social distancing, we want schools to be a safe environment because remember if there is an outbreak at a school, it will immediately be shut down and parents will have to cope with that.' The new procedures are expected to run for five weeks and will be reevaluated on May 22. It comes after Ms Palaszczuk announced that 5,254 laptops would be distributed to students across the state to ensure all pupils could continue their education from home. Telstra donated 5,000 simcards and 4,000 dongles and hotspot devices to make sure all children had access to internet learning portals. Up to 15 per cent of the state's students are expected to show up at school on Monday. Infosys on Monday posted 6.3 per cent rise in consolidated net profit for March quarter but refrained from providing a revenue outlook for FY21, citing uncertainty amid COVID-19 outbreak that is expected to impact its business in the near-term. The country's second-largest IT services company - which saw revenue growing 8 per cent to Rs 23,267 crore in the March quarter - said it will honour all the offers already made to freshers and lateral hires but has suspended salary hikes and promotions for staff. Infosys anticipates a continued slowdown in the near-term influenced by a broad-based global economic recession. "Our sense is that in the near-term we will see an impact on our business. We do not have a clear view of when the recovery will come back," Infosys CEO and MD Salil Parekh told reporters. Parekh's views are similar to the sentiments echoed by peers like Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services -- both had cited future business uncertainty while announcing their quarterly earnings last week. Incidently, Wipro had resisted from providing a revenue growth forecast for June quarter, while Cognizant had retracted its annual outlook for 2020. The results were announced after the close of trading hours. Infosys scrip closed at Rs 652.90 on BSE, 3.7 per cent higher than the previous close. Sanjeev Hota, Head of Research at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, said Infosys reported below-than-expected revenue and EBIT margin performance. Infosys COO Pravin Rao said industries across geographies will feel the impact of coronavirus pandemic, and client spending in sectors like retail could remain challenged. "The impact caused by COVID-19 since last few weeks of March has led to significant displacement in the operating model while severely testing business continuity plans of companies," he added. The company - which had posted a net profit of Rs 4,078 crore in the March 2019 quarter - disclosed that about 93 per cent of its workforce is now enabled to work from home in countries under the lockdown. In India, where the nationwide lockdown has been extended till May 3, the company said it is in no hurry to get employees back on premises. "Our plan is to come back in a gradual manner, we are not in hurry to come back aggressively. In phase one, less than 5 per cent will come back to work for 3-4 weeks. Over the next 4-8 weeks, maybe 15-20 per cent will come back in a gradual manner. We will maintain very high standards of safety, temperature check, social distancing," he said. Rao added that the Bengaluru-based company is also exploring if it can set up a testing facility at its campus. Infosys has said a few of its employees globally have tested positive for COVID-19, and that it has undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who interacted with them in order to ensure they are appropriately quarantined. Parekh exuded confidence that while the immediate short-term will be challenging, the company will emerge from this "stronger" as clients in every industry will need to accelerate their digital channels in this new normal. The company said its Q4 digital revenues were at USD 1,341 million (41.9 per cent of total revenues), registering a year-on-year growth of 31.7 per cent in constant currency term. In the near-term, Infosys said it is poised to confront the challenge, help its clients navigate through it as well, and emerge resilient. "The company's confidence stems from its strong balance sheet, with approximately USD 3.605 billion (Rs 27,276 crore) in cash and cash equivalents including investments with zero debt as of March 31, 2020," the company said. The board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 9.50 per equity share for FY20. It has also approved the performance-based grant of RSUs amounting to Rs 13 crore for FY21 under the 2015 Stock Incentive Compensation Plan (2015 plan) to Parekh. The restricted stock units will be granted with effect from May 2, 2020 and the number of RSUs will be calculated based on the market price at the close of trading on May 2, 2020. Another grant was also made to him under the Infosys Expanded Stock Ownership Program-2019 (2019 Plan). The IT major said the Board has appointed Uri Levine as additional and an Independent Director for a period of three years, subject to approval of the shareholders. Also, D N Prahlad - an independent director at the company - is stepping down from the Board to devote more time for his other business commitments. Providing an update on the whistleblower allegations that had accused top leadership of unethical practices, Infosys said it is responding to all the inquires received from Indian regulatory authorities. "Additionally, in October 2019, a shareholder class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York against the Company and certain of its current and former officers for alleged violations of the US federal Securities Laws. The company is presently unable to predict the scope, duration or the outcome of these matters," it added. It said its FY20 net profit was up 8 per cent to Rs 16,639 crore, while revenue up 9.8 per cent to Rs 90,791 crore from last fiscal. The company has declared a final dividend of Rs 9.50 per share. The company - which saw its attrition growing to 20.7 per cent - had 2.42 lakh employees at the end of March 2020. This is lower than the December 2019 quarter when the company had 2.43 lakh employees. In dollar terms, Infosys' Q4 net profit was higher by 1.9 per cent to USD 592 million, while revenue rose 4.5 per cent to USD 3.1 billion. For FY20, net profit was higher by 6.3 per cent to USD 2.3 billion, while revenue increased 8.3 per cent to USD 12.7 billion from last fiscal. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nine tonnes of rice lands in Phuket in fish-exchange with sea gypsies PHUKET: Nine tonnes of rice from Yasothorn arrived in Phuket today (Apr 20) on a Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) C-130 Hercules under the campaign to exchange rice for dried fish supplied by sea gypsies along the Andaman coast. COVID-19economicsagriculture By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 20 April 2020, 07:03PM The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The nine tonnes of rice for sea gypsies landed at Phuket International Airport today (Apr 20). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The rice was unloaded at the X-Terminal building at Phuket International Airport this afternoon, with Royal Thai Air Force Civil Affairs Director Air Marshall Trephon Ongphithoon present for the occasion. Joining AM Trephon were Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana, Phang Nga Vice Governor Chotnarin Kertsom and a host of other officers. AM Trephon explained that RTAF Chief ACM Eakmanat Wongwat was asked by the Chumchonthai Foundation (Thai Community Foundation) to transport local products between areas so that communities can continue to make a living during the COVID-19 pandemic. Governor Phakaphong said the project was created after the Rawai sea gypsy chief explained to the Chumchonthai Foundation that sea gypsies were still able to go fishing, but did not have any place to sell their fish. Sea gypsies in Andaman coast provinces united under the Andaman Sea Gypsy Network and produced about a tonne of sun-dried fish in order to exchange for rice. The Northeast Farmers Network and Yasothon Association heard about the problems the sea gypsies were having and organised to provide nine tonnes of rice in exchange for dried fish, he explained. This is a good idea to motivate the cultural economy by exchanging local goods between two areas under P2P, people to people and product to product [sic]. This creative system helps us to survive during this crisis and educates people about living in different areas, Governor Phakaphong said. This could be a role model for other provinces to help them through other times of crisis, he added. I want to thank every officer and organisation for responding so well and facilitating this project. Governor Phakaphong concluded. V/Gov Chotnarin said that people in Phang Nga sent 500 kilogrammes of dried fish to exchange for two tonnes of rice from Yasothon, which will be passed on to help people living on Surin island and in Baan Nam Khem. We also sent 3.2 tonnes of pineapple to Ubon Ratchathani and Bangkok, V/Gov Chotnarin added. "That statement is important for preserving arguments on any later appeal. The commonwealth will state for the record that we are ready to proceed and that this continuance is not at our request," the prosecutor said. OConnell is not quibbling with the judges order. The court laid out the reasoning behind this decision very clearly, noting the history of the case and then evaluating what the national and Virginia States of Emergency mean with respect to the Code of Virginia, and then factoring in how the Orders of the Virginia Supreme Court impact the circuit court cases set for trial here in Orange, she said. The prosecutor pointed out that the judge was dealing with the problems created by seating more than 100 potential jurors in the close confines of the courthouse. The court noted the health and safety concerns with seating that many individuals in the facility, and the logistics of how to do it safely within the requirements of a jury trial, she said. She added that her office is disappointed to not be able to try this case when it was scheduled, and we regret deeply that the family involved in the case is not going to have this matter resolved as soon as we had hoped. The aerospace component manufacturing plant in the central city of Da Nang has been put into operation. It can provide more than 4,000 components to Boeing. Pham Truong Son, head of the Hi-tech Zone Management Board on March 29 confirmed that the plant with the design capacity of 12,470 metric tons per year, has become operational after one year of construction. The plant invested by the Universal Alloy Corporation Vietnam was built at the cost of $170 million. The subdivisions of the plant produce parts used in aerospace, raw materials and assemble with aluminum alloy materials. Products are exported to Europe, North America and Malaysia. The aerospace component manufacturing plant in the central city of Da Nang has been put into operation. It can provide more than 4,000 components to Boeing. The investor plans to export $25 million worth of aircraft components in 2021 and $82 million in 2022. In 2018, Hanwha Group from South Korea officially inaugurated the plant that makes aerospace engines. Its first products were exported in early 2019. Mitsubishi Heavy Industry from Japan also set up a facility making aircraft doors from carbon fiber compounds for Boeing 777 passenger aircrafts in Hung Yen province. Analysts noted that more and more foreign investors want to set up airplane component manufacturing facilities in Vietnam, commenting that this is good news for Vietnam, which could be seen as a new step for the establishment of an aircraft component manufacturing center in Vietnam. Nguyen Thien Tong, an aviation expert, said once foreign companies expand their production in Vietnam, they will transfer technology, train workers and organize production with Vietnamese engineers. The aviation industry needs to be developed step by step. The opening of aircraft component manufacturing factories in Vietnam shows that Vietnamese labor force can meet the requirements to do the outsourcing and its engineers are good enough to receive technology transfer, Tong said. Vu Quoc Huy from the Hanoi University of Science and Technology also thinks that the presence of the aircraft component manufacturing facilities will help develop Vietnams aviation industry. Airplane manufacturers need many supporting companies that provide components. French Airbus, for example, needs 3,000 component manufacturing companies. Vietnam only has several component manufacturing companies. Meanwhile, Tran Tien Anh from the Aviation Engineering Faculty of the HCM City University of Science and Technology keeps cautious when talking about the prospect of Vietnams aviation industry. Anh, on one hand, said the opening of new component manufacturing factories will allow Vietnamese workers to approach high technologies, on the other hand, said foreign owned facilities will only help generate more jobs in Vietnam and allow them to learn and practice. Meanwhile, he believes that the added value Vietnam can expect from the facilities is not high. The workers at the factories are Vietnamese, but the technologies are foreign, he explained. Steel will also be imported from other countries, because Vietnams steel cannot meet the standards." Hoang Viet All Vietnam Airlines aircraft disinfected for international flights Vietnam Airlines has moved to thoroughly disinfect all aircraft that operate on international routes to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and ensure the safety of passengers, flight crews, and the wider community. A low-cost, easy-to-build non-invasive ventilator aimed at supporting the breathing of patients with respiratory failure performs similarly to conventional commercial devices, according to new research published in the European Respiratory Journal [1]. Non-invasive ventilators are used to treat patients with breathing difficulty and respiratory failure, a common symptom of more severe coronavirus disease. Non-invasive ventilation is delivered using facemasks or nasal masks, which push a set amount of pressurised air into the lungs. This supports the natural breathing process when disease has caused the lungs to fail, enabling the body to fight infection and get better. The research paper provides a free to replicate, open source description for how to build the ventilator. The researchers say the prototype ventilator could support treatment of coronavirus and other severe respiratory diseases in low income regions or where ventilator supplies are limited. The study was led by Ramon Farre, Professor of Physiology in the Unit of Biophysics and Bioengineering at the School of Medicine of the University of Barcelona, Spain. He said: "In light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the escalating need for respiratory support devices around the world, we designed a ventilator that can be built at a low cost using off-the-shelf components. The ventilator is intended to support hospitals and health systems that are struggling to meet the demand for ventilatory support due to coronavirus and other severe lung diseases." The research team designed, built and tested the low-cost non-invasive ventilator with a small high-pressure blower, two pressure transducers and a controller with a digital display, which are available at a retail cost of less than $75 USD (equivalent to 60 GBP / 67 EUR). To assess the effectiveness of the ventilator prototype compared with a commercial ventilator, the research team tested the device using 12 healthy volunteers. The participants' breathing was partially hindered by having them wear bands around the chest, mimicking obstruction at the upper airways to simulate different levels of chest tightness and breathing difficulty caused by disease. The participants wore face masks fitted over the nose to facilitate breathing and were asked to score the level of comfort or discomfort they experienced both with and without ventilatory support. The researchers observed no faulty triggering of changes to the levels of air pushed from the ventilator during use, and the team says it effectively supported spontaneous breathing rhythm, suggesting that the prototype assists natural breathing well. Further, they found that the feeling of breathing relief provided by the prototype was virtually the same as what was reported using the commercial ventilator. The team also carried out respiratory "bench testing", where lung modelling is used to assess how well the ventilator supports the breathing of patients with different levels of airflow obstruction or restriction. The ventilator prototype was tested under 16 different simulated conditions, covering real life settings where non-invasive ventilation is used in clinical practice. The bench test showed that, across all simulated conditions, the prototype ventilator worked effectively to support the lungs to operate efficiently and there was no faulty triggering. Professor Farre said: "Our tests showed that the prototype would perform similarly to a conventional, high-quality device when providing breathing support for patients who, although with great difficulty, can try to breathe by themselves. This low-cost device could be used to treat patients if commercial devices are not available, and it provides clinicians with a therapeutic tool for treating patients who otherwise would remain untreated." The researchers highlight that the prototype is a non-invasive ventilator; it is not intended for the most severely diseased patients in intensive care units, who are intubated and require a mechanical ventilator to take full control of the patients' breathing, as the prototype only provides breathing support. Professor Leo Heunks is an expert in intensive care medicine from the European Respiratory Society and was not involved in the study. He said: "World Health Organization data suggests that around 80% of people who get coronavirus recover without needing hospital treatment, but those who do develop severe symptoms can experience breathing difficulties, which is distressing and puts health systems under additional pressure. Low-cost solutions like the ventilator described in this paper could provide treatment for those patients, potentially improving outcomes and helping to alleviate pressure on health systems by reducing the need for more invasive types of ventilatory support." An open source description with full technical details on how to build the non-invasive ventilator is included in the research paper. The authors say that to build the device no prior knowledge of ventilation is required, and only basic engineering skills are needed. ### WASHINGTON - The national effort to get money to Americans is at risk of being overwhelmed by the worst economic downturn in 80 years, as understaffed and underfunded agencies struggle to deliver funds to all the people who need help. Three weeks after Congress passed a $2 trillion package to lessen the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, millions of households and small businesses are still waiting to receive all the help promised under the legislation, according to government data and firsthand accounts. The bulk of the challenges have occurred with three initiatives designed to get cash to struggling Americans: a $1,200 per adult relief program that launched this week, $349 billion in Small Business Administration loans, and $260 billion in weekly unemployment benefits for the more than 22 million people - and growing - out of work. The SBA ran out of money to make small business loans this week, almost no unemployment aid has reached eligible self-employed and gig workers, and a significant number of Americans who were due to receive relief payments this week went on the IRS.gov website only to see a message that "payment status not available." Current and former government officials say it would be a tall order for any president to execute massive new programs in a matter of weeks, and tens of millions of Americans did receive direct deposits worth $1,200 or more this week. But the Trump administration's promise of swift and effective action - President Donald Trump called the small business program "flawlessly executed" this week - is colliding with a federal and state apparatus not well designed to deliver so much money so fast. The technological backbone to much of the relief - including the distribution of relief checks and the unemployment insurance system - is rooted in systems dating to the 1960s, requiring knowledge of programming languages not widely used in decades. An administration that had made little priority of keeping senior positions staffed, meanwhile, is struggling now to quickly implement one of the biggest government interventions in history. If problems continue, it could leave people even less able to pay bills or buy groceries and further exacerbate the economic decline. Politically, it could be highly damaging to Trump, who is continuing to belittle his predecessor's record of managing complex government operations. "Biden/Obama were a disaster in handling the H1N1 Swine Flu. Polling at the time showed disastrous approval numbers. 17,000 people died unnecessarily and through incompetence!" Trump tweeted Friday, adding "Also, don't forget their 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare website that should have cost close to nothing! " The White House on Friday defended its rollout, saying of 80 million payments made this week, all but 1 percent reached their intended recipients. Trump on Friday called the initiative an "incredible success. " "We couldn't be more proud of what we've done," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Friday in an interview. Still, a big test faces the administration as tens of millions of additional taxpayers are eligible for relief, and many of those without bank accounts or direct deposit information on file could face lengthy delays. Among the problems taxpayers reported this week were payments being sent to incorrect bank accounts, failures to include $500 checks for children, and not getting money at all due to a technical glitch involving tax preparers. For example, MetaBank, which serves tax preparers, received payments for 300,000 temporary bank accounts it uses for people who use an online tax service or accountant to pay their taxes. The bank sent them back to the IRS, which is now likely to issue paper checks. The IRS largely used 2018 taxpayer data, and some people have died or changed banks. The IRS said it is aware of the problems, but is limited in what it can do to help. Taxpayers trying to sort out why they got an inaccurate check - or nothing at all when they qualified for a payment - are unable to communicate with the IRS. With the tax filing deadline delayed to July 15, the agency closed the last of its service centers - in Ogden, Utah - early last week, and the IRS had not been able to expand a pilot telework program for phone agents because of budget constraints, the agency said. Americans were told to use the "Get My Payment" portal on the IRS website to check on the status of their payment and see if they need to input their bank account information. But many people who went on the portal received a message that the IRS doesn't know the status of their payment is. Or they were locked out of the website altogether. "The IRS systems are still hard-coded," said John Koskinen, who was IRS commissioner from 2013 to 2017. "It's not just a keystroke to go into the code and make the change and hope you've made it correctly. When you set up a new portal like this, it requires you to get into some very old legacy systems." The IRS uses a decades-old software and computer programming language called COBOL. The stimulus program has required multiple coding changes. The agency has at least 16 other databases with taxpayer information, none of which can communicate with the other. The IRS raced to stand up the stimulus program with a depleted staff. Overall, the agency had 76,000 employees last June, down from 99,500 in 2010. Dozens of experts in the agency's legacy computer systems have left or retired, current and former officials said. Starting in 2011, Republicans in Congress have repeatedly sought cuts to the IRS budget. "[The agency] didn't have the time to think about the outliers," said a senior IRS official familiar with the agency's technology operation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to be candid. "You've got two filing years. You've got divorced people. You've got people who've changed bank accounts. They simply couldn't account for every single scenario." The IRS technology teams have been working remotely since the outbreak intensified. The IRS staff did manage to find a way to update the "Get My Payment" information once a day - an improvement over the usual once a week update to taxpayer information, two senior agency officials said. "With tens of millions of payments, there are bound to be glitches," said Chi Chi Wu, an attorney at the National Consumer Law Center. "If you want to blame anybody, blame Congress for not adequately funding the IRS and forcing them to deal with antiquated computer systems." Aneesh Chopra, the former chief technology officer for Obama, said the problems are deeply rooted in the government's failure to modernize. "This is very much a reminder of what life had been like a decade ago," said Chopra. "The problems we highlighted then continue to permeate applications that are run at all levels of government." The IRS isn't the only agency having challenges. The Treasury Department, undersecretary Steven Mnuchin, is working to oversee a sprawling rescue - including the IRS - even while its own senior ranks are depleted. Treasury headed into the crisis with vacancies in more than half a dozen senior positions, some of whom would otherwise be playing key roles in processing the work, according to critics of the administration. Mnuchin does not have a chief of staff, for instance, or an undersecretary for domestic finance, a role responsible for monitoring large changes in the U.S. economy. Mnuchin strongly disputed in an interview that he had allowed for key vacancies in the Treasury Department, pointing to a long list of officials in key positions, and saying Congress should move faster to confirm his appointees. Treasury has two deputy chiefs of staff. Mnuchin personally reviews department news releases and informational pages, while also interacting frequently with lawmakers, Federal Reserve officials, the SBA, foreign banking ministers, and banking institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, according to the people in close contact. On top of that, Mnuchin was also intimately involved much of this week in crafting the federal rescue package for the federal airlines. With Mnuchin personally absorbed in implementing the first major bailout package, the administration has not made progress on an additional congressional package that both parties believe is necessary to dramatically increase the size of the loan program for small businesses. "People will say I'm a micromanager and involved in lots of details," Mnuchin said in an interview. "A lot of money has been allocated to us by Congress and I want to be involved in understanding the details." He added, "If I'm a bottle neck, I'm happy I'm a bottleneck - getting a lot done." Mnuchin was critical to sealing the deal over the stimulus last month, but in his absence progress another measure to expand funding for small businesses has been slow, according to multiple congressional aides. Mnuchin said in an interview he has continued to negotiate closely with Democrats this week on fixes to the small business program. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Democrats have demanded additional help for hospital workers and other concessions to increase small business lending. Republicans have resisted, though on Friday suggested a willingness to trade for more SBA funding. The SBA has rapidly run out of money as businesses clamor for funds. The initial bill approved by Congress included about $349 billion in loans for the small business program, but within days it became clear the money would not last long, and the administration has already asked for an additional $250 billion. As separate emergency loan program, meant as a bridge for small firms as they wait, was completely overwhelmed after receiving more than 3 million applications. The unemployment safety net system, run by the Department of Labor and the states, has been equally deluged as more than 22 million Americans have been laid off or furloughed since Trump declared a national emergency on March 12. Unemployment insurance is a federal program, but each state administers it for its residents. Many states were unprepared for the rush, which caused websites to crash repeatedly and people calling up to a hundred times a day to try to get through. Many states have such outdated technology - which also rely on decades-old software - that their systems have struggled to make unemployment aid available for gig workers and self-employed workers who don't normally qualify for money but were made eligible by the new law. "Our systems are barely keeping up with the overwhelming volume," said Phil Murphy, the governor of New Jersey, whose state has advertised a series of jobs recently seeking people proficient in old programming languages. Florida has resorted to handing out paper applications and said this week it has a backlog of 850,000 applications. So far, the state has only sent money so far to 34,000 people. Only four states - Iowa, Louisiana, Rhode Island and Texas - have actually started sending out any money to gig and contract workers, the Labor Department said. Among those still waiting for their first check is Khalid Mahmood, 66, an Uber driver in Woodbridge, Virginia. Mahmood had been driving for the ride-hailing company to supplement his Social Security income, which by itself isn't enough to cover his rent and other monthly bills, but had to stop as the coronavirus shuttered businesses statewide. Since then, he's tried and failed to obtain unemployment aid. "No records found," Virginia's site keeps telling him "Most of my friends who are Uber drivers, they have had no money since the day they stopped working," said Mahmood added, estimating they've been without a check for over a month now. "They are in a very bad situation." But even people who don't have complicated situations aren't getting aid. Michael McCleary a longtime hotel concierge worker at a prominent Washington, District of Columbia, hotel applied for unemployment insurance March 20. At first the system said he had "unresolved issue" and would be contacted if more information was needed. He called the office daily to try to fix it. On Thursday he waited on hold for nearly three hours only to be disconnected. At 2 a.m. Friday morning, he logged into the portal again to realize he had finally been approved - a month after he applied. "I'm monitoring my bank account to make sure it goes through. It should be a matter of days before I get a direct deposit," McCleary, 63, said. "There's just so much uncertainty." Military Police have been on patrol on the Curragh Plains in recent days to encourage users to continue to observe Covid-19 restrictions. The Police, who are based in The Defence Forces Training Centre in the Curragh Camp, are offering advice and information to members of the public on the rules required to stop the spread of the virus. The Military Police have thanked the public for their compliance so far during this difficult time. On April 10, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced a significant extension to Ireland's 'lockdown' measures aimed at slowing the spread of Covid-19. The initial two-week 'lockdown' period was extended for another three weeks until Tuesday, May 5. All non-essential businesses are closed and peoples' movements are restricted to their own households, except for exercise within 2km of home and essentials trips to supermarkets or pharmacies. Essential workers are still permitted to travel to work. The new period will take in the May Bank Holiday weekend and will be the second public holiday people will be asked to restrict their movements severely. The restrictions include:- People should not gather in groups outside their own household People should only leave home for essential supplies or exercise within 2km of home Those over the age of 70 should not leave home for any reason - this is known as cocooning. After this new three-week period, a gradual lifting of restrictions may take place. The Leaving Certificate exams have been postponed until late July or August. The Junior Cert exams have been cancelled and replaced with classroom-based testing in September. It is our deepest hope that these presentations inspire your teams and encourage you to grow as a leader. - Express CEO Bill Stoller Express Employment Professionals is hosting the 2020 ExpressTalks Celebrity Edition broadcast, a nationwide leadership event featuring best-selling author and leadership expert Simon Sinek and social psychologist and award-winning Harvard lecturer Dr. Amy Cuddy. Express locations across the U.S. and Canada will host virtual events for businesses and community leaders. The event focuses on how leaders can reach the next level, inspire their people and become more effective in their roles. The event will be broadcast on Wednesday, April 22. Participants can register online at ExpressPros.com/ExpressTalks. Dr. Cuddy kicks off the event with a presentation based on her best-selling book, Presence: Bring Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges. Through her years of research, she has unlocked the power of prejudice and stereotyping, nonverbal behavior, the delicate balance of trustworthiness and strength and the ways in which people can affect their own thoughts, feelings, performance and psychological and physical well-being. During her presentation, she will speak about how we can become more present, influential, compassionate, brave and satisfied in our professional and personal lives. Sinek closes the event with a Q&A session on how to achieve success by thinking of life and business as an infinite game. Based on his best-selling book, The Infinite Game, Sineks presentation will journey through an infinite mindset and unlock a new way to perceive business success. Sinek is best known for popularizing the concept of WHY, which he described in his first TED Talk in 2009. That talk went on to become one of the top five most watched TED Talks of all time with nearly 50 million views. We are very excited for Simon and Dr. Cuddy to share their wisdom with the communities we serve across the U.S. and Canada this week, said Express CEO Bill Stoller. It is our deepest hope that their presentations inspire your teams and encourage you to grow as a leader. *** If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bill Stoller to discuss this topic, please contact Sheena Karami, Director of Corporate Communications and PR, at (405) 717-5966. About Bill Stoller William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has more than 825 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa, and beginning in 2020 will expand to Australia and New Zealand. Since its inception, Express has put more than 8 million people to work worldwide. About Express Employment Professionals At Express Employment Professionals, were in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, our international network of franchises offer localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve, employing 552,000 people across North America in 2019. For more information, visit http://www.ExpressPros.com. New Delhi, April 20 : The Reliance Foundation's Mission 'Anna Seva' is set to be the largest initiative globally by a corporate foundation. In response to the massive humanitarian crisis caused by the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, Reliance Foundation has scaled up its meal distribution programme, Mission Anna Seva, to provide over three crore meals to marginalised and under-resourced communities across India. Mission Anna Seva is set to become the largest meal distribution programme ever undertaken by a corporate foundation anywhere globally. Reliance Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), has already distributed 2.22 crore meals in 68 districts across 16 States and one Union Territory. The beneficiaries of the programme include daily wage earners, slum dwellers, urban service providers, factory workers, and residents of old-age homes and orphanages. In a letter to two lakh-plus Reliance colleagues early Monday, Reliance Foundation founder-chairperson Nita Ambani said, "the Reliance family, therefore, feels humbled at the opportunity to serve our fellow Indians in this hour of their need." Nita Ambani also added: "Our hearts go out to the families of marginalised and under-resourced communities whose lives and livelihoods have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through Mission Anna Seva, we are committed to providing meals and grocery essentials to these families so that none of them are compelled to sleep on an empty stomach". "While we had initially committed to delivering 50 lakh meals, the prevalent situation has prompted us to expand our commitment to three crore meals. Personally, I couldn't be happier if the meal-programme becomes the largest of its kind in the world, because it would ultimately assure me that a few more mothers were able to feed their hungry babies," Nita Ambani said. Under the programme, Reliance Foundation is providing cooked meals, ready-to-eat food packets and dry ration kits to families and bulk ration to community kitchens. It is also providing meals to frontline workers such as junior medical staff, police personnel and security forces. At some locations, Reliance Foundation is also distributing food tokens that could be redeemed at Reliance Retail outlets, such as Reliance Fresh, Reliance Smart Superstore, Reliance Smart Point, and Sahakari Bhandar. The coronavirus crisis is expected to create mergers and acquisitions opportunities for foreign dealmakers in the coming months as cash-starved Vietnamese companies seek funding to overcome their difficulties. Cash-strapped local businesses hunting for foreign M&A deals Michael Han, head of SK Groups representative office in Vietnam, told VIR the crisis has created both opportunities and challenges for M&A in Vietnam. Local deals now look more attractive but they may have to compete with other markets globally. In the first quarter of 2020, the whole country saw 2,523 instances of capital contribution and share purchases by foreign investors with a total value of capital contributions reaching $2 billion, up 53 per cent against the same period last year and capturing nearly 34 per cent of the total registered capital, according to data by the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. It is apparent that Vietnam saw a rise in M&A activities in the first quarter of the year before the coronavirus pandemic intensified. According to Han, the COVID-19 outbreak has clearly impacted the market and there are two groups of investors opting to take two very different paths. First, some institutional investors have been cashing out, as evidenced by recent severe fluctuations in the stock market. Second, some strategic investors could see an opportunity to enter the market. Perhaps they are the ones who have been driving up activity during the first quarter of 2020. Masataka Yoshida, head of the Cross-border Division and CEO of Vietnam RECOF Corporation, questioned if the increased deals are the ones which started after the pandemic situation arose. It is also true that the global M&A market was enjoying a boom of sorts until the beginning of 2020 and there should have been various transactions under the water. As everyone knows, M&A transactions need a certain amount of time prior to completion, and it should be said that those which are being completed at the moment should have been started some time ago at least before the pandemic situation became recognised in China for the first time, said Yoshida. The number of M&A transactions is a lagging indicator, so the slowdown in activity from mid-February until COVID-19 is under control will inevitably be reflected gradually in the statistics from mid-April onwards. According to lawyer Truong Thanh Duc, chairman of BASICO law firm, many listed companies are experiencing falling share prices due to the health crisis. This creates opportunities for wealthy foreign buyers to cherry pick target companies at bargain prices. He noted that most overseas investors are in a better position to overcome the impact of COVID-19 than Vietnamese firms, most of which are especially vulnerable and small with limited financial capacity. If COVID-19 persists for a long time, there is a high likelihood that more local companies will be taken over by buyers, said Duc. When the pandemic is over, Vietnam is expected to see a sizeable upturn in M&A as foreign buyers capitalise on the countrys economic prospects. According to RECOFs expert, the destiny of M&A is that buyers and sellers are always on the opposite sides of the coin. The most obvious aspect of this is valuation but the economic situation of each country or global market overwhelming each side of the coin will affect the behaviour of both buyers and sellers. In other words, when the financial situation allows the number of buyers to increase, sellers will fade out as they start to enjoy the more positive economic environment (even with the potential buyers being in the same sector), and vice versa. Having said this, this situation often does not apply to international transactions like the ones between Vietnam and Japan, as Japanese companies are becoming more and more attracted to the growing economy of Vietnam as well as the markets that Vietnamese companies possess in their domestic market, the RECOF representative noted. It is true that the negative impact of the COVID-19 crisis will inevitably affect some Japanese investors for a limited period. However, the fact is that several Japanese investors will be keen to expand to foreign markets, given the shrinking of the Japanese domestic market, not only because of the coronavirus but also from the issues arising from the fall in population that they were already facing prior to the crisis. In addition, many cash-strapped Vietnamese companies may need funding to overcome their difficulties which will eventually create more opportunities for foreign investors to buy strong companies at reasonable prices. It is clear that M&A activity has experienced obstacles as the pandemic impedes site visits and physical face to face meetings between buyers and sellers. Meanwhile, social distancing measures needed to contain the COVID-19 virus will be particularly disruptive to the M&A market. According to SK Groups Han, We have been looking at a few deals in Vietnam. They are in a relatively early phase, so we prefer not to speculate on the likelihood of closing or the timing, but we are in a promising position. As the trajectory of the COVID-19 crisis is uncertain, SK Group is now closely monitoring the situation. Vietnam has done a world-class job in limiting the outbreak but for the economy to get back to normal, the group also has to see how other regions of the world recover. As the prolonged health emergency has shifted the M&A process online, RECOF is increasingly conducting marketing via their website, mail, and magazine, and is hosting teleconferences using various media rather than physically visiting sellers and buyers. However, for a real alliance and to realise the fundamental synergies between the two parties which are the aggregate of human elements in an M&A transaction, it is crucial for people from both sides to meet up, get to know each other, and make crucial decisions on a more personal level. In this context, RECOF will only be able to collect as much information as possible until the time a meeting could be set at the sellers place, said Yoshida. VIR Thanh Van Chinese M&A deals in Vietnam surge The number of capital contribution and share acquisition transactions conducted by Chinese enterprises in Vietnam in the January-November period of this year skyrocketed by more than 82% over the year-ago period. (Photo : Canadian Forces) Canadian Armed Forces officers view a map while planning assistance to civil authorities during the global COVID-19 outbreak, at National Defence Headquarters (Carling) in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada April 3, 2020. Canadian Forces/Master Corporal True-dee McCarthy/Handout via REUTERS. Preliminary findings of a mapping survey to track the spread of COVID-19 showed promising results, according to a statement by Facebook on Monday, and will roll out internationally in a few days. Facebook, together with Carnegie Mellon University, used its anonymized data to analyze people's movement--their connections, and areas where the virus is likely to spread. The survey allows individuals to report their symptoms and their location. It helps scientists understand the probable places of people who might have been infected by the coronavirus, even if a physician is not examining them. READ ALSO: COVID-19 Update: Coronavirus Vaccine Makers Ask Government's Help to Make Millions of Doses by September Initial Results are Promising Facebook told The Verge that the early results of the COVID-19 symptom survey are promising. In just two weeks of its implementation, the study is producing positive results in tracking the spread of the pandemic virus. The social media company produced its first report and new interactive maps, which will be updated daily through this pandemic. Carnegie Mellon University conducts the survey and does not share any information about symptoms back to Facebook. So far, 150,000 people daily are now submitting symptom reports after clicking on a link in the News Feed, the university said in the report. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that initial results shared by Carnegie Mellon University correlate with public data about confirmed cases of COVID-19. It is a significant indicator that the survey can forecast the spread of the disease soon. Zuckerberg added that based on symptom surveys, the tech company would use aggregated data from the university to produce interactive maps that will update every day. "I've always believed that helping people come together as a community will help us address our greatest challenges - not just by sharing our experiences and supporting each other in crises but also by working together at scale to solve problems," as Zuckerberg explained in Washington Post. The world has encountered many pandemics in the past. "But this time, we have a new superpower: the ability to gather and share data for good," said Zuckerberg. He is optimistic that data will play a vital role in responding to the current health crisis, and as the world moves towards the road to recovery. To be Roll Out Internationally Beginning Wednesday, Carnegie Mellon University said, "the effort will roll out internationally." According to Facebook, in a report in The Verge, they explained that they would expand the COVID-19 symptom tracking survey to cover other countries to measure the spread of the virus on a global scale. Facebook and Carnegie Mellon University will gather data from other parts of the world to determine the reliability of the tool on an international scale. So far, they only have collected data within the United States. Carnegie Mellon University Associate Professor Ryan Tibshirani, who is part of the team, explained that if Facebook users report symptoms in their countries and the participation rate is similar to that in the United States, the information could prove to be valuable in identifying COVID-a9 potential hotspots worldwide. If successful, Facebook-produced global maps could reveal places where elected officials have been slow to acknowledge the spread of coronavirus within their borders. Admittedly, Zuckerberg said that some governments are not excited about the project. They worried that the maps would reveal the real number of actual infected cases in their countries or the rate the virus is spreading in their areas. Since 2019, Facebook has been working on disease prevention research. The company launched a series of mapping tools designed to aid scientists in studying population density in outbreak areas and mobility patterns in a particular area. READ ALSO: COVID-19: Experts Suggest Avoid Going to Grocery Stores; Online Deliveries, Best Options? 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 08:21:44|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close ABUJA, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Up to 47 people were killed in attacks on villages in northwestern Nigeria on Saturday, local police said Sunday. A group of gunmen attacked the villages in northwestern Nigerian state of Katsina in early Saturday. Local police have been arranged to the area, Katsina police said in a statement. Enditem A redacted transcript shows has revealed that FBI source Stefan Halper bragged about his own extensive contacts with Russian intelligence officers while probing then-Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos for information about the campaigns Russia contacts during a conversation in London ahead of the 2016 election. A transcript of the conversation was released along with other documents by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) as part of a larger effort to disclose information about the FBIs Crossfire Hurricane investigation of the 2016 Trump campaign. The transcript shows Halper touted his own Russian connections before pressing Papadopoulos multiple times about allegations that the Trump campaign had conspired with the Russians and WikiLeaks to hack into the DNC. The Russians can be very helpful to us at this time, and weve got some great information coming out. You know this stuff coming out of WikiLeaks is really superb, Halper said after mentioning his relationship with Russian intelligence officers Vyacheslav Trubnikov, Leonid Shebarshin, and Yuri Traughtoff. The Daily Caller reported that Halper has an extensive relationship with Trubnikov, the former head of Russias foreign intelligence service who served as a source for Christopher Steeles infamous dossier. In January, Senator Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) cited Halpers use of Trubnikov as a source for a 2015 Pentagon study on China-Russia relations as a rationale to expand a probe into the DODs awarding of more than $1 million in contracts to Halper since 2012. Last week, requests by Grassley and Ron Johnson for the declassification of several footnotes from IG Michael Horowitzs December report of Crossfire Hurricane yielded their release. The footnotes show that, as early as 2017, the FBI believed part of Steeles sourcing was Russian disinformation. While Papadopolous did not make any claims of Russian contacts and denied having any knowledge of the DNC hack in the transcript, Halper continued to press him on the matter. Story continues I think this is a time when given Hillarys weaknesses and given her strengths, that help from a third party like WikiLeaks for example, or some other party like the Russians, could be incredibly helpful, Halper suggested, adding that it could make all the difference. But Papadopolous pushed back, saying as a campaign, of course, we dont advocate for this type of activity because at the end of the day its illegal . . . the campaign does not advocate for this, does not support whats happening. Laughing at the suggestion of purposeful malfeasance, the former Trump aide went on to state that our campaign is not engage or reaching out to WikiLeaks or to whoever it is to tell them please work with us, collaborate, because we dont, no one does that. Towards the end of the brief conversation, Halper said that he was happy to hear from you that there has been no interference in the campaign from outside groups like WikiLeaks or any of those people. In a separate transcript of a conversation with a different FBI source that was released earlier this month, Papadopoulos maintained his line of reasoning, saying he knew for a fact that the Trump campaign had nothing to do with the DNC hack. More from National Review Sir Richard Branson has warned that Virgin Atlantic will collapse unless it receives Government support (Hannah McKay/PA) Sir Richard Branson has warned that Virgin Atlantic will collapse unless it receives Government support. The Virgin Group boss said the airline needs taxpayer support in the form of a commercial loan. It has been reported that the carrier is asking for up to 500 million of public money. In an open letter to Virgin Group employees, Sir Richard wrote: We will do everything we can to keep the airline going but we will need Government support to achieve that in the face of the severe uncertainty surrounding travel today and not knowing how long the planes will be grounded for. This would be in the form of a commercial loan it wouldnt be free money and the airline would pay it back (as easyJet will do for the 600 million loan the Government recently gave them). An open letter to our Virgin family. For 50 years I have been humbled by the incredible pride our people take in working for Virgin. Here are the facts about Virgin businesses: https://t.co/Nv1RLBhp3j pic.twitter.com/BneE0mZ0Zg Richard Branson (@richardbranson) April 20, 2020 The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it. Without it there wont be any competition left and hundreds of thousands more jobs will be lost, along with critical connectivity and huge economic value. In response, Greenpeace climate campaigner Fiona Nicholls said: Richard Bransons letter failed to convince us that suing the NHS wasnt bad for the health service, moving his money to a tax haven wasnt to avoid tax, or that emitting millions of tonnes of pollution wasnt bad for the environment. There are still no justified grounds to give Virgin an unconditional bailout. Airlines around the world have grounded the vast majority of their aircraft due to the collapse in demand and travel restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, Virgin Atlantic called on the Government to offer the UKs airline industry emergency credit facilities worth up to 7.5 billion. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has previously said he will not create a specific support package for the sector but the Government is prepared to negotiate with individual firms once they have exhausted other options, such as raising cash from existing investors. Virgin Atlantic, founded by Sir Richard, has told staff to take eight weeks of unpaid leave. This led to calls for the billionaire to step in to ensure their wages are paid in full. In his letter to staff, he wrote he has seen lots of comments about my net worth but insisted this is calculated on the value of Virgin businesses before the coronavirus pandemic, rather than cash in a bank account ready to withdraw. Over the years, significant profits have never been taken out of the Virgin Group, instead they have been reinvested in building businesses that create value and opportunities, he explained. The challenge right now is that there is no money coming in and lots going out. He added: Today, the cash we have in the Virgin Group and my personal wealth is being invested across many companies around the world to protect as many jobs as possible, with a big part of that going to Virgin Atlantic. It was reported on Monday that Virgin Australia another airline part-owned by Virgin Group has gone into voluntary administration after a request for a bail worth 1.4 billion Australian dollars (716 million) from the countrys government was refused. New Delhi, April 20 : The Centre on Monday decided to convert surplus rice stocks into ethanol which will be used in making alcohol-based hand-sanitisers and for blending in petrol. The National Biofuel Coordination Committee (NBCC) under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas approved the decision. This move will enable the conversion of surplus rice available with Food Corporation of India (FCI) into to ethanol. As per the National Policy on Biofuels, whenever there is a projected over supply of food grains as anticipated by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare during an agriculture crop year, the policy will allow conversion of these surplus quantities of food grains to ethanol. Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro has sparked outrage after attending a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures, which also called for the military to take power. The far-right leader, who has long praised the country's 1964-1985 dictatorship, infringed his own government's recommendation to maintain social distancing when he spoke at the small demonstration in Brasilia on Sunday. The protest outside the capital's army headquarters held on the day Brazil celebrates its military was calling for the Supreme Court and Congress to be shut down over the stay-at-home orders intended to slow the spread of coronavirus. I am here because I believe in you. You are here because you believe in Brazil, a coughing Mr Bolsonaro told the tightly packed demonstrators, many of whom were not wearing masks. He later posted on Twitter footage of him addressing the crowd. Mr Bolsonaro himself has been a fierce critic of state governors' lockdown measures. On Friday he fired his health minister, who had been promoting social distancing to contain the outbreak. Since being sworn in early last year, Mr Bolsonaro has asked the defence ministry to organise commemorations of the two decades-long military dictatorship, paid tribute to General Alfredo Stroessner, the military strongman in neighbouring Paraguay, and backed changes in schools' history curriculum that would revise the way children are taught about the 1964 military coup. But for many Mr Bolsonaro, a former army captain, crossed a line on Sunday. The president of the republic crossed the Rubicon, tweeted Felipe Santa Cruz, president of the Brazilian Bar Association. Time for Democrats to unite, to overcome difficulties and disagreements, in the name of a greater good called FREEDOM! Supreme Court justice Luis Roberto Barroso focused his criticism on protesters. It is frightening to see demonstrations for the return of the military regime, after 30 years of democracy, he wrote on Twitter. Glenn Greenwald, a journalist and prominent Brazil-based critic of Mr Bolsonaro, tweeted: "It's surreal to live in a country that is a 35-year-old democracy and watch people go out onto the streets in a middle of pandemic to demand their democratic rights be taken away and a military dictatorship re-imposed." Mr Bolsonaro has multiplied public appearances in recent weeks, meeting with supporters, protesters, passersby or business owners. Additional reporting by AP Jerusalem, April 20 : Israel's Ministry of Health has announced the shutting down of a coronavirus testing laboratory because of 19 wrong diagnoses. The lab, located at the Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) in central Israel, began operating on April 10, Xinhua news agency. On April 17, Assuta Hospital in southern Israel said that nine patients, who were admitted to the COVID-19 ward after being tested positive in the WIS lab, were actually healthy. Similar cases were found in two other hospitals in Israel. WIS said then that the Ministry rechecked the lab tests results before referring the subjects to the hospital. The institute also blamed the Ministry for "evading responsibility". Following the incident, the Ministry conducted an inquiry, which found that 19 healthy people were misdiagnosed with COVID-19 at the WIS lab. According to the current Ministry's statement, the lab can be reopened only after repairs were made according to its demands. Israel has reported 13,491 coronavirus cases, with 172 deaths. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) West Bengal government has asked frontline medical staff in state-run hospitals not to return home daily after work in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) among doctors and nurses. Earlier, the state government had announced that doctors, nurses and other medical staff in government hospitals would get a one-week holiday every second week. On Sunday, the government issued an order urging frontline medical personnel in government hospitals to stay in their headquarters. They have been asked not to commute daily to their homes to prevent the spread of viral infection, said a senior official of the health department. The order was issued after healthcare facilities in Bengal took a hit, as multiple patients who were being treated in general wards and some frontline medical staff who were treating those patients tested Covid-19 positive. Dozens of doctors, nurses and other healthcare staff in multiple state-run hospitals were asked to quarantine themselves after the incidents came to light. Some frontline medical workers, especially from among those posted in government hospitals in districts in and around Kolkata, have been returning home daily after work. This is not desirable since it puts a daily physical and mental strain on the medical personnel. Besides, it also puts them at immense risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease, he added. The state government has made arrangements for accommodation for doctors and nurses in hotels and other places. (Newser) Dr. Anthony Fauci had a word of caution Monday for protesters around the US pushing to reopen states as quickly as possible. That word was "backfire." In an appearance on Good Morning America, Fauci acknowledged that the coronavirus was doing real damage to the economy. "But unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not going to happen," he said, reports the Hill. Fauci reiterated that states should follow guidelines laid out by the White House for phased reopenings, based on testing data. "So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, youre going to set yourself back," he said. "Its going to backfire. Thats the problem." story continues below Fauci added that the government is currently running 1.5 million to 2 million tests per week, but "we really need to get up to, at least, you know, maybe two times that, three times that." Governors have complained that not enough tests are available, and VP Mike Pence told them in a videoconference Monday that when it comes to testing, were here to help. The AP obtained audio of the call. President Trump, meanwhile, took a more confrontational approach on Twitter. The "Radical Left" and "Do Nothing Democrats" first "screamed" about ventilators," he wrote. Now they scream ....'Testing, Testing, Testing,' again playing a very dangerous political game." Trump said tests were the responsibility of states, not the federal government. "But we will work with the Governors and get it done." (Read more Anthony Fauci stories.) Actor Jaaved Jaaferi says he will file a defamation suit against a social media user for circulating an alleged fake tweet under his name. A screenshot in the name of Jaaferi was doing the rounds on social media claiming the actor made anti-Hindu comments. In a video on Twitter, the actor said he will not take the matter lightly and wondered how "hate spreads so quickly in this country." "First of all, that screenshot is fake. Neither have I tweeted anything like that nor is that my Twitter display picture. Had I tweeted that, at least someone would have replied to it. The one who took the screenshot would have also abused it," he said. The actor mentioned the Twitter handle of a person who apparently shared the screenshot first and that of another who tweeted a video, asking the actor to reply if "you dare." "I have both, courage and the answer. Just like your agenda, this screenshot is also fake. People should have at least verified. Now, either you prove the authenticity of the screenshot or make a video and apologise. We have learnt that this fake picture was first started on Facebook," he said mentioning the name of the person. "There will be a legal enquiry against him because our honourable Prime Minister has also said that strict action should be taken against fake and hatemongers. So we are going to file a defamation suit against him," the actor said. Jaaferi said it's "shameful" that at a time when people across the world are rising above "caste, creed, religion and race in the name of humanity," some are still spreading "lies and hate." "I want to request my fans and friends that please share this video as much as possible so that people, who spread hate through fake and misinformation, know that sensible and secular Indians will not tolerate this," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) When Emily Adams Bode and Aaron Aujla first moved into their downtown Manhattan rental, it was just an empty white boxno kitchen, no walls, barely any electrical wiring. But the one winning feature, a wood-burning stove, was enough to spark their imagination. When friends come over, they dont understand we built all this, Bode says on a recent visit to the apartment. Almost entirely clad in African mahogany and coffee-stained Douglas fir, the home now has the patina of a space thats been there awhile. And that, Bode says, was the goal. Over the last few years, she and Aujla, who met in 2010, have crafted separate businesses around that very idea: giving new things a sense of history. Bodes eponymous menswear line recalibrates American textile traditions into patchwork jackets and revised workwear staples that earned her the CFDAs 2019 Emerging Designer of the Year Award. (Some garments are made with antique fabrics, while others are painstakingly based on them.) Meanwhile, Aujla, operating under the name Green River Project, which he cofounded with Benjamin Bloomstein in 2017, makes furniture laden with sprawling historical referencesfrom 1930s legend Jean-Michel Frank to Indian craft to down-home woodworking. Both Bode and Aujla thrill to heavily researched, narrative-driven collections that often seem to follow the same scriptas if Green River Project were appointing a home for Bode garments. (That was precisely the case for the fashion labels Hester Street store, opened last year.) When it came to decorating their first shared apartment, the process was not all that different, starting with a story of a place and the people in it. I know how much Emily longs for New England, says Aujla, referencing her family home on Cape Cod, which inspired Bodes debut collection in 2017. We imagined that house, coming back to American ready-made materials but with a European sensibility. Story continues Re-creating that rustic canvas, Green River Project built almost everythingfrom the wooden wall panels to the furniture, including a dining table that features the outline of the firms namesake river in upstate New York. We like this idea that instead of buying things for the home, you make them, says Bode, whose only requests were a big closet and a vintage soaking tub next to a window. Eventually you build your entire world. The couple has since filled it with relics from Bodes family history (a childs chair from her aunt, her grandmothers clover lace) alongside tokens of Aujlas Indian heritage, including a trio of Himalayan masks on stands, a bamboo folding screen, and a collection of Ravi Varma prints. The apartment has quickly become an extension of their nearby studios, offering a private space for meetings and a laboratory for their wares. We made this tobacco-and-hydrangea chandelier and immediately brought it here, says Aujla. And we recently did a show of hardware, made from scrap wood, that we later installed on our cabinets. One of the few things the couple didnt make from scratch, a Ward Bennett love seat, faces a corduroy sofa from Bodes fall 2019 presentation. Inspired by a Purdue University tradition wherein graduating seniors would draw symbols on their trousers, the piece is covered in images penned by Aujla and their friend Kurt Beers. Emilys aunts name is on there with a Delacroix tiger, some Satyajit Ray motifs, and these illustrated running stretches my dad gave me, says Aujla of the sentimental scribbles. Theyre all motifs from our 10-year history, and they all have to do with our home. Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest Ghanas fight against the #COVID19 has taken a nosedive with the President rolling out a red carpet for the global pandemic by lifting a partial lockdown after only three weeks of ineffective implementation that has seen spiraling positive cases. After an initial two weeks lockdown period in only two cities of Accra and Kumasi, the country saw the number of positive infections rise to a little below 400 people in about 4 regions. This prompted the President to extend the partial lockdown by another one week, a move that many thought was insufficient without widespread tracing, testing, isolation, and treatment. The three-week partial lockdown in only two cities was largely seen to be ineffective because the number of cases continued to rise and the spread became more widely distributed to the rest of the country. Food distribution by government agencies, private organizations, and individuals to socially and economically vulnerable people also left much to be desired as crowds of people swamped lorries and food centers to scramble for food and thereby increasing the potential for the spread of the virus. Unsurprisingly, within one week, the number of positive cases has doubled in Ghana. As I write, the figure is 1042. With such a rocket speed of spread, who will expect the leader of the country to ease the fight against the virus? But Alas! Our President who claims to be guided by scientific data and the advice of the experts decided that there is no need for even a partial lockdown, not even in the hotspots. Fred Binka, top Ghanaian Professor of epidemiology said in response to the Presidents latest disastrous decision that, The data does not support a total lockdown at this point. However, we have enough data that shows geographic hotspots. These hotspots need to be locked down and testing aggressively done to isolate infected cases nationwide. This is therefore not the right time to ease lockdown in Accra or any other hotspots for that matter. Would you rather believe Professor Binka or President Akufo Addo on this matter? Does the President consult disease experts or political experts in taking his decisions? His consultants definitely do not include the top Ghanaian medical experts in the area of public health otherwise he would not take these kinds of decisions at this crucial point in time against expert advice. As one commentator put it, the Presidents science May just be right - if it were political science. Yes, many people are justified to now believe that the President is more concerned about his future political fortunes than public health. The intention of the Electoral Commission and the national identification authority to carry out public registration exercises against all odds - both of which are linked to Decembers elections -are undermined by any form of lockdown. And with these institutions and their intentions having solid support from the President, this illogical decision to end the lockdown in the midsts of spiraling numbers of infected cases throughout the country, has given credence to the notion that this President, rather than employing a public interest led bio-defense strategy to fight against COVID19, is rather rolling out a red carpet for the virus to spread - gambling in the process with the public health consequences - for political expediency. If that be the case, against the expert advice (like the one coming from Professor Fred Binka) the President may have miscalculated big time. Of course, his surrogates will not agree. They insist the rest of us dont know better than the President. They blindly follow the Presidents decisions. Yes, maybe we dont. But our President certainly does not know better than the public health experts who are speaking out against his ill-informed decision to ease the partial lockdown. The blind leading the blind is not an advisable course of action. At this point in time, guided by the view of Professor Fred Binka and other top Ghanaian public health officials, we must all be afraid of the direction we are heading with COVID19 in Ghana. There is no doubt in my mind that we are heading towards an imminent apocalyptic scenario - unless we-the-people take matters into our own hands. But how can the people help ourselves at this crucial time when most of us are zombies who will rather face the apocalypse with a blind leader than use our common sense? Source: Sacut Amenga-Etego (Journalist & Ghost Writer) STATEMENT BY THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW COMMUNIST PARTY OF AOTEAROA CAPITALISM AND THE CORONAVIRUS DOWN UNDER The workers of Aotearoa and Australia, like those of other capitalist countries around the world, are facing serious health, social, and economic crises being likened to the beginning of the Great Depression. Certainly, COVID-19 is like little else in living memory. The Australian government greatly bungled in its actions to contain the spread of the virus, putting workers, especially port workers and healthcare workers at great risk. Despite early indications of the global spread of the disease, proper protective equipment and health checks were not made a priority for our frontline workers. Testing is restricted and inadequate and is not being extended to all people presenting with symptoms. The New Zealand government took more decisive action at an earlier stage of the spread of COVID-19 and has, at least at time of writing, prevented a large-scale outbreak and community transmission from occurring. Yet issues still remain around supply of proper protective equipment to essential workers, both in hospitals and other essential businesses such as supermarkets. Civil and democratic rights have been eroded in both countries, particularly around freedom of movement and freedom of assembly. These have a public health benefit, but we must ensure COVID-19 response is not used opportunistically to restrict the democratic rights of the working class after the outbreak subsides. This lockdown on freedoms also gives the constabulary significant powers of enforcement, and we have already seen indigenous communities get further militarised in the name of public health. The suspension of Parliament in both countries is a significant reduction of the checks on government power and the ability for workers to influence Government policy through select committee submissions etc. The NZ Parliaments Epidemic Response Committee meeting via Zoom, seemingly unquestioned in bourgeois media, is an unparalleled privatisation of civic function which further subordinates government to private companies. The inefficiency of the market system and of privatised institutions has been unmasked. Businesses are being wound down and thousands of workers are losing their jobs as businesses close or wind down. Millions of people employed as casual, body hire, gig or contract labour have no leave entitlements if they are sacked. Unbelievably, governments seemed slow to anticipate the effect on workers, particularly workers in precarious jobs. Our two Communist Parties demand that all workers including visa workers receive 100 per cent of their wages. Private businesses, from airlines to hospitals, are standing in line before governments for bailouts. Many have been granted, and all at a great cost to the countries economies. Meanwhile, the protection of working people, the real creators of wealth in society, has come too little, too late, especially in Australia. GOVERNMENTS STILL RELYING ON MARKET FORCES The consensus across the board, including capitalist economists, is now that of state intervention to protect the system from the looming disaster. However, it is clear that our governments are beholden to the interests of the monopoly corporations and finance capital and are loath to in any way restrict or move beyond the absolute dominance of the market. The economic response rather tries to supplement the clearly unfit-for-purpose market dominance to ensure it does not break down. While the revolving door between our capitalist governments and private corporations means bailouts are so easily granted, the working class in the form of unions and community organisations has had to rally and work hard in order to get some relief, albeit insufficient. Unions have been classified as an essential service in New Zealand and it is clear to see why. Already over 2,000 cases of employment law breaches during the COVID-19 pandemic have been logged with the NZ Council of Trade Unions. Despite what it may seem, these are not new problems but old ones that have existed since the rise of capitalism. The working-class, who have always had precarious employment and financial instability, are the foundation of our economy. They have always been neglected, living day-to-day, with inadequate allowances that keep them in perpetual poverty. Now a tsunami threatens this unstable foundation, washing away with it the house that stands on it. The governments are still trying to prop up private enterprises in the hope that money will trickle down to everyone. Bailouts are nothing but the transfer of working peoples wealth to the coffers of the rich put in place in order to prevent our proverbial house from being washed away. The government is attempting to act quickly, hoping to avoid an impending economic collapse. ESSENTIAL SERVICES AND PROFIT MAKING The work ethics of private hospitals are dictated by the profit motive. In the current pandemic, when the need is for more hospital capacity, what an indictment it is on privatised healthcare that they have threatened to close business and lay-off hundreds of healthcare workers. The mortgage freezes are a welcome move, as it also includes those in debt to the banks for their own dwellings and not just property investors, but the measures to protect tenants fall short and the danger of evictions and financial hardship is still very real for too many. A mortgage freeze without corresponding rent freezes is a blatant wealth transfer measure from tenants to landlords. In short, the crisis has laid bare the inefficiency and troubling nature of essential services as a profit-extracting business under capitalism. NATIONALISE ESSENTIAL SERVICES, SUBSIDISE WORKERS We call for the nationalisation of all essential services including healthcare, aged-care, child-care, airlines, banks and supermarkets. The bailouts of companies should not be wealth transfers from the public purse to monopoly companies, but rather give the state equity. Any attempts to further privatise public services should also immediately stop. We call for a direct 100 per cent wage equivalent ensuring that no worker, whether casual, part-time, or a migrant worker, is left behind. Neither workers hard-earned superannuation nor other savings should be used to ride over these times. Benefit levels, including those for students, should be raised to be the equivalent of the living wage. It is important that we do not discriminate between workers who were unemployed before COVID-19 and those who need assistance because of it. Rent and mortgage freezes should be re-drafted to better cover for the safety of the people in very uncertain times. Not a single member of society should face homelessness and wealth transfer to landlords should immediately cease. We also call for the provision of a nationalised digital infrastructure, so that our reliance on private companies for communication services is reduced, especially for public education, the democratic process and other key areas of society. This system is unsustainable. A socialist system prioritises the working-class, not profits. The working-class foundation and purpose of socialist society is shown by the significantly better response to COVID-19 in Cuba, China and Viet Nam. It will not be the bosses that see our two countries through this pandemic, but the millions of workers supporting our class through the troubled waters. The working class must overcome! International Department, Communist Party Of Australia Central Committee, New Communist Party Of Aotearoa We always fight the last war. The Maginot Line is a perfect example. After World War I, the French built it to protect themselves from the Germans. (Andre Maginots fortified wall made President Trumps wall look like chicken-wire fence.) The Germans just blitzed around it. The United States spends $600 billion a year on defense spending. We buy 10 times more bullets and bombs than all the other countries in the world combined to protect us from the last war. But we arent the only ones fighting the last war. On a global scale, every year the world spends about 2 trillion dollars on defense. Its not just the U.S. Its all of US. The new world war we are waging is not against a different ideology or religion. Its not even for the usual motive of taking territory. This war is against a protein molecule. The soldiers are the doctors and nurses and grocery store clerks and the people who try not to share it. Only smart politicians, scientists and scholars working together can win victories in this war. The weapons are not bullets. They are ventilators and face masks and medicine. Moving our national defense budget from bombs to global health solutions wont be easy. The merchants of death are usually tougher and greedier than the saviors of life. If a virus could scoff, this nasty little protein molecule scoffs at national boundaries, ideologies and religions. It is forcing us to think globally in a powerful new way. My friend Tom Flynn thinks it could be done the way President Dwight Eisenhower did it. Shortly after World War I, Lt. Col. Eisenhower took an Army convoy road trip across America. The roads were so bad it took them 62 days to get from Washington, D.C., to San Francisco. Years later when Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces Eisenhower was fighting in Europe, he said, Germany made me see the wisdom of broader ribbons across the land. When Ike was president of the United States, he used national defense as the primary reason to build our national highway system. It took him a couple of years to get the Congress and the states to figure it all out, but Ike was persistent. He built more than 40,000 miles of interstate highways and strengthened the nation. So I say, its time for all the nations to stop fighting the last war. The world wars we are now in are molecular and atmospheric. Solving a global virus and solving the global climate crisis are the wars we must win. Lets divert all that gun money into butter money. Lets build more hospital ships and face masks. How many problems could the world solve and how many jobs could the world create with an extra $2 trillion a year? Can something good actually come from all the pain and death and economic suffering this virus has caused? Like the even larger climate crisis, the pandemic is telling us that this world war can only be won with a new global perspective on defense. It is simply about the survival of our species. Rob Caughlan worked in the White House on President Jimmy Carters Global 2000 Report. He has a degree in International Relations and Political Science from San Francisco State. Boris Johnson's Government Accused of "Sleepwalking" UK into COVID-19 Crisis Sputnik News 11:05 GMT 19.04.2020(updated 11:45 GMT 19.04.2020) Boris Johnson's sluggish response to the COVID-19 outbreak has been under harsh scrutiny in recent weeks as the UK's death toll climbs to 15,000, ranking it number five in terms of global coronavirus body count. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been accused of "sleepwalking" into the Coronavirus crisis in damning new revelations reported by The Sunday Times. Reportedly, back in February and March Johnson missed five crucial emergency Cobra meetings aimed at devising ways to lessen the impact of the disease on Britain. According to the reports, which are based on the testimony of government whistleblowers and scientific government advisers, there was complacency in Boris Johnson's cabinet toward making the necessary early commitments to stopping the spread of COVID-19. The UK government's national crisis committee was first brought together to discuss Coronavirus on 24 January, by which point the disease had already infected six countries. Boris Johnson however, is alleged to have skipped that meeting and later on attended Chinese New Year celebrations. Around the same time, UK Health Secretary, Matthew Hancock, informed the public that the risk of Coronavirus making its way to the UK was "low." By the time Mr Johnson appeared at his first Cobra meeting to discuss the virus on 3 March, after missing five such meetings, more than 40 Brits had tested positive for COVID-19. The result of Johnson's behaviour, according to The Times, is that the UK lost "a crucial five weeks in the fight to tackle the dangerous threat of coronavirus." A senior Downing Street adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Times that, "there's no way you're at war if your PM [Prime Minister] isn't there." The whistleblowers also took aim at Mr Johnson's apparently relaxed attitude toward the virus, pointing in particular at his decision to spend two weeks in January at his mansion with his fiancee Carrie Symonds. "What you learn about Boris was he didn't chair any meetings. He liked his country breaks. He didn't work weekends," the adviser revealed. "It was like working for an old-fashioned chief executive in a local authority 20 years ago. There was a real sense that he didn't do urgent crisis planning. It was exactly like people feared he would be," the adviser added. The report also reveals that the UK's last emergency rehearsal for a pandemic - codenamed Cygnus - was in 2016, and recommendations from that exercise to address the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical staff and the need for more ventilators were ignored. The report says that following the pandemic exercise, the government became "Brexit-obsessed" and that as a result long-term planning for pandemic scenarios had been sidelined in favour of planning for a no-deal Brexit scenario. Brexit fixation, according to one anonymous government whistleblower, "sucked all the blood out of pandemic planning." Moreover, it was revealed in the report that despite "little progress" being made in obtaining emergency masks and gowns for healthcare workers, the UK sent 279,000 PPE objects to China in February. A Downing Street spokesman has been widely quoted as rejecting The Sunday Times report, saying: "our response has ensured that the NHS [National Health Service] has been given all the support it needs to ensure everyone requiring treatment has received it, as well as providing protection to businesses and reassurance to workers. "The prime minister has been at the helm of the response to this, providing leadership during this hugely challenging period for the whole nation." Furthermore, Cabinet Office minister and Johnson ally Michael Gove told Sky News' Sophy Ridge on Sunday that The Times had been "off beam" in its reporting. "The idea that the Prime Minister skipped meetings that were vital to our response to the Coronavirus, I think is grotesque," said Mr Gove. "The prime minister took all the major decisions. Nobody can say that the prime minister wasn't throwing heart and soul into fighting this virus," he added. The report comes as 84 tonnes of crucially needed PPE items, including 400,000 surgical gowns, are expected to arrive in the UK from Turkey on Sunday. Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition Labour Party, has also zeroed in on Mr Johnson for criticism. Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Sir Keir said that, "the government was too slow to enter the lockdown. It has been too slow to increase the number of people being tested. It has been too slow in getting NHS staff the critical equipment they need to keep them safe." "We need to make sure these mistakes are not repeated," Sir Keir added. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address India has put in place a robust mechanism to insulate the three services and their strategic assets from the coronavirus infection, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday, assuring that the military is fully prepared to defend the the country from "adversarial forces" though it was fighting the pandemic. In an exclusive interview, Singh said the fight against the pandemic is the "biggest invisible war" in last several decades and India is acting on a war footing with proper coordination among all agencies concerned and support of people. He said the Army, Navy and the Indian Air Force are strictly adhering to instructions issued by the Prime Minister's Office, the Health Ministry and their own medical bodies for protection against COVID-19. "The fight against COVID-19 is possibly the biggest invisible war in our lifetime. A war against humanity and having various impact on health and economic security of the nation," he said. "We as a nation are fighting the COVID-19 crisis on a war footing and all agencies of the government are working in close coordination. The armed forces are assisting the nation in its fight against coronavirus," Singh 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 Asked whether the pandemic has impacted operational aspects of the military, Singh said they are prepared for all contingencies and ready to defend India's sovereignty from adversarial forces in all scenarios. Referring to the situation along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, the defence minister said India is dominating the enemy through targeted intelligence-based strikes on their launch pads. "The Indian armed forces are prepared for all contingencies and I can assure you that we are prepared to defend our sovereignty from adversarial forces in all scenarios," he said. His assertion comes amid apprehension about possible impact of the pandemic on the armed forces, particularly after 26 Indian Navy sailors were infected by the virus in the first such large-scale case of infection in the Indian military. "As you would have gathered from the operations along the LoC (Line of Control) in the last two weeks, we are dominating the enemy through targeted intelligence based strikes on their launch pads and eliminating them before they set foot on Indian soil," the defence minister said. Pakistan has been resorting to widespread ceasefire violations along the LoC at a time when India has been leading efforts to help the SAARC member nations in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. The Army has been adequately responding to Pakistani "misadventures" under its policy of "hot pursuit", a military official said. On the role of armed forces in containing coronavirus pandemic, the defence minister said expertise of armed forces in communications, supply chain management, medical support and engineering are being used to combat it. He also said that the government has directed leading defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) to produce medical equipment like ventilators, masks, PPEs and other equipment to address the problem of shortages. Singh said armed forces are taking measures like curtailing movement of troops, restricting leave and enforcing work from home to prevent spread of infection. A mandatory 14-day quarantine period is being enforced for all personnel coming from outside any station, irrespective of rank, he added. He said special precautions are being taken on ships and submarines where it is difficult to strictly follow social distances norms. Soldiers deployed along borders, especially in remotest regions, are safest as they are cut-off from all likely carriers of disease, he said, adding the government is ensuring their safety by deploying fresh troops who have been medically validated as having no symptoms of the infection. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here Chennai, April 20 : The DMK President M.K. Stalin on Monday urged the Tamil Nadu government to take steps on war footing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the state. In a statement issued here Stalin said it is shocking to note that the novel Coronavirus has infected journalists, police official and doctors. Stalin said the people are worried as the number of people infected with the coronavirus is on the rise in the state after Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on April 16 assured that the state may be free of the virus infection in a couple of days. Stalin said with the wide use of rapid test kits, the government should estimate the level of virus spread and take necessary preventive action on warfooting. On Sunday Tamil Nadu reported a sharp increase in the number of Covid-19 patients with 105 persons diagnosed with the coronavirus infection taking the total tally to 1,477. After reporting lower numbers in the last couple of days, the state has reported a drastic increase in the new infection numbers. When the Coronavirus (COVID 19) was first recorded in Wuhan China in 2019, many people in the African sub-region especially Ghana, least expected the virus to hit us so hard in such manner. Even if we thought of it, our expectations were on its effects in economic terms because we depended mostly on importation and not necessarily on health-wise. Maybe, leadership thought the virus is far away in Asia and that before it hits Africa, a vaccine would be ready. This was false hope and today has led to our suffering from the deadly virus infecting many people and threatening our health and economic security. This mistake led to closing our borders and airports after the virus has arrived on our shores. Realizing the consequences after the first two cases were recorded in the country, several measures have been put in place by the government and other organizations in order to contain the spread of the virus in Ghana. These measures range from security operational policy to health systems to deal with the problem and social interventions to reduce the impact on the livelihood of citizens. The most challenging measure implemented was the lockdown of the Greater Accra Metropolitan area, Kasoa and the Greater Kumasi Area. This measure was daunting considering the social and economic impact on the country and citizens. However, Ghanaians have sacrificed and gone through, giving space for the government to trace, test and treat people who have been infected by the virus and also come to know about the dynamics of the virus. Fellow Ghanaians, like the president, said in his 7th address on Sunday 19th April 2020, when he lifted the lockdown on those areas mentioned above, we know a lot about the virus: its genome, mode of infection, how to prevent it except that there is no cure for the virus. It will, therefore, be unwise economically and health-wise to keep the lockdown in place. Thus, removing the lockdown is the best decision since it is only one measure among the many mechanisms that can be adopted to overcome the virus. According to the president, over 68,000 people have been tested so far, out of which 1042 have tested positive and 99 recovered from the virus. This is a plus and commendable. Again, Scientists in Ghana is making great strides to expose the virus to deeper knowledge so that a vaccine could be developed. Congratulations to the great men of Ghana who achieved this feat. Also, there is a local initiative to produce PPEs for the combat of the virus. Indeed, the pandemic is a human security problem that cannot be fought using guns and military artilleries. It, therefore, requires strategic policies, programmes and activities ranging from economic, health, humanitarian and social to deal with the problem we are confronted with. It is important to note that, Ghana couldnt remain under lockdown for a long time. This is because lockdown is not the only measure or even the effective measure to stop the spread of the virus. It only provides space for health officials to track the virus and perhaps, contain it within a particular location. It however, have its own ramifications with regards to economic growth of the country since no productive work goes on under lockdown, social activities like funerals are halted which threatens the capacity of mortuaries with its accompanying public health problems, and effect on individual livelihood of people. People have argued that at the time of implementing the partial lockdown, Ghana had only 132 confirmed cases of COVID 19 why then must the lockdown be lifted when the nation is recording 1042 cases? In security studies, many factors could explain the reasons for the lifting of the lockdown. These are a few of them and my suggestions: 1. The level of securitization - Securitization has to do with social construction of threats and security. Security in this context is analyzed as a speech act (Waever, 1989). It concerns with when, why and how issues are labeled as security problems. Security problems are developments that threaten the sovereignty or independence of a state or society in a particularly rapid or dramatic fashion, and deprive it of the capacity to manage by itself accordingly. When a threat is adequately securitized, it paves way for drastic measures to be taken in dealing with the problem. The COVID 19 pandemic has been adequately securitized of which today, there is the legal framework The Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1020) that allows for every action to be taken at any time within the law to deal with the problem. There is administrative framework which is the National Committee on COVID 19. There is also the COVID 19 Trust Fund aimed at raising funds for the fight. In addition, there is an attempt to increase testing centers, treatment centers and establishing infectious disease center in the country. We must not relent on these efforts but ensure their full implementation since it forms the basis for addressing a major public health problem. 2. Humanitarian Interventions because the pandemic has created a lot of humanitarian needs, attempts should be made at implementing effective programmes that addresses this problem. Some approaches were adopted which include sharing of cooked and uncooked food and relief on utility bills for consumers. In addition to the above, as a matter of urgency, we must establish Social Security Fund that will cater for people who affected going forward with this problem. This fund can provide monthly income to people who become unemployed and other people affected in such situations. Also, Enterprise Stimulus Fund must be established to support businesses affected such as hotels, manufacturing industry, service industry, etc. 3. Public education The National Commission on Civic Education, the media, Civil Society including faith-based organization must intensify their operations on public education on preventive health care systems which should be developed by the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service. 4. Production of adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) more PPEs should be available to health workers in the country. In addition, every citizen must have access to basic PPEs such as masks for all, sanitizer for all. These basic needs should be on the shelves for people to purchase. 5. Increase the level of enhance testing programmes to cover more people apart from tracing contacts and testing them. The three Ts should cover more people because of the community spread of the virus. A lot could be done to identify more people who are asymptomic to isolate them from among the communities. 6. Measures such as social distancing, freeze on public and social gathering, closure of schools for the time being, avoiding handshakes, washing of hands and using hand sanitizers must not under any circumstances be compromised. We are at a battle front and possibly will overcome the virus to win this battle. It is about stopping the spread of the virus and treating the people infected. If all will play our part, we shall overcome successfully. #MASKS4ALL. Felix E. Mantey (Security Analyst) In a statement released to the Democrat this afternoon, The RCSI Hospital Group has confirmed that they have taken over the operational management of Dealgan House Nursing Home in Dundalk due to the ongoing Covid-19 epidemic. It comes after concerns over the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on both residents and staff at the private nursing home grew in recent days. RTE is reporting this afternoon that there have been ten deaths of residents from the home - some in hospital - in the last ten days, however it is unknown how many are related to Covid-19 at this stage. The statement reads: The RCSI Hospital Group has taken over the operational management of Dealgan Nursing Home, Dundalk, as of April 17 to assist during the period of Covid-19. The nursing home currently accommodates 63 residents. This involves the RCSI Hospital Group being responsible for ensuring a necessary model of care through provision of appropriate nursing and medical staff, thereby ensuring residents wellbeing. The RCSI Hospital Group is working closely with the Registered Provider at this time. It is anticipated that this arrangement will be in place for a number of weeks with a review date May 31. HIQA have been notified of this new arrangement. Verbal communication with all families of this new arrangement has commenced and written communication will issue today. Most Popular 1. Investing in a Bubble Mania Stock Market Trending Towards Financial Crisis 2.0 CRASH! - 9th Sep 21 2.Tech Stocks Bubble Valuations 2000 vs 2021 - 25th Sep 21 3.Stock Market FOMO Going into Crash Season - 8th Oct 21 4.Stock Market FOMO Hits September Brick Wall - Evergrande China's Lehman's Moment - 22nd Sep 21 6.How to Protect Your Self From a Stock Market CRASH / Bear Market? - 14th Oct 21 7.AI Stocks Portfolio Buying and Selling Levels Going Into Market Correction - 11th Oct 21 8.Why Silver Price Could Crash by 20%! - 5th Oct 21 9.Powell: Inflation Might Not Be Transitory, After All - 3rd Oct 21 10.Global Stock Markets Topped 60 Days Before the US Stocks Peaked - 23rd Sep 21 Last 7 days How to Profit from 2022s Biggest Trend Reversal - 11th Jan 22 Stock Market Sentiment Speaks: Are We Ready To Drop To 4400SPX? - 11th Jan 22 What's the Role of an Affiliate Marketer? - 11th Jan 22 Essential Things To Know Before You Set Up A Limited Liability Company - 11th Jan 22 NVIDIA THE KING OF THE METAVERSE! - 10th Jan 22 Fiscal and Monetary Cliffs Have Arrived - 10th Jan 22 The Meteoric Rise of Investing in Trading Cards - 10th Jan 22 IBM The REAL Quantum Metaverse STOCK! - 9th Jan 22 WARNING Failing NVME2 M2 SSD Drives Can Prevent Systems From Booting - Corsair MP600 - 9th Jan 22 The Feds inflated cake and a quant of history - 9th Jan 22 NVME M2 SSD FAILURE WARNING Signs - Corsair MP600 1tb Drive - 9th Jan 22 Meadowhall Sheffield Christmas Lights 2021 Shopping - Before the Switch on - 9th Jan 22 How Does Insurance Work In Europe? Find Out Here - 9th Jan 22 Effect of Deflation On The Gold Price - 7th Jan 22 Stock Market 2022 Requires Different Strategies For Traders/Investors - 7th Jan 22 Old Man Winter Will Stimulate Natural Gas and Heating Oil Demand - 7th Jan 22 Is The Lazy Stock Market Bull Strategy Worth Considering? - 7th Jan 22 METAVERSE - NEW LIFE FOR SONY AGEING GAMING GIANT? - 6th Jan 2022 What Elliott Waves Show for Asia Pacific Stock and Financial Markets 2022 - 6th Jan 2022 Why You Should Register Your Company - 6th Jan 2022 4 Ways to Invest in Silver for 2022 - 6th Jan 2022 UNITY (U) - Metaverse Stock Analysis Investing for 2022 and Beyond - 5th Jan 2022 Stock Market Staving Off Risk-Off - 5th Jan 2022 Gold and Silver Still Hungover After New Years Eve - 5th Jan 2022 Quantum AI Tech Stocks Portfolio Current State - 4th Jan 2022 The Alibaba Stock Market - 4th Jan 2022 Will Gold & Silver Be Investment Outcasts in 2022 Again? - 4th Jan 2022 Stock Market Happy 2022 Entry - 4th Jan 2022 Complete paradigm shift will make Gold the generational trade - 4th Jan 2022 Corsair MP600 NVME2 1tb Drive Sudden DEATH Failures - Back Up NOW! - 4th Jan 2022 AI Tech Stocks Portfolio Updated Buying Levels and Zones Part 2 of 2 - 3rd Jan 2022 Stock Market Sentiment Speaks: 2022 Can Be Your Best Year Ever - 3rd Jan 2022 Stock Market Sector Themes In Play For 2022 - 2nd Jan 2022 Excuse Me Mr Gold. What Year Is It? - 2nd Jan 2022 Stock Market Early 2022 Should Continue Melt-Up Trend In January / February - 2nd Jan 2022 UK Energy Crisis WARNING 2022 - How to Avoid Huge Increase in Gas and Electric Fuel Bills Right Now! - 1st Jan 2022 Why You Need A PR Expert For Your Financial Startup - 1st Jan 2022 TENCENT- Chinese High Risk GAMING Metaverse Stock Analysus for Investing 2022 and Beyond - 31st Dec 21 Gold Price Forecast 2022 - The Golden Year - 31st Dec 21 Will 2022 Be Better for Gold Than 2021? - 31st Dec 21 Sheffield Christmas Market 2021 SANTAS GROTTO at Peace Gardens, City Centre Sights and Sounds - 31st Dec 21 Nvidia Leaves planet Earth - AI Tech Stocks Analysis - 30th Dec 21 Google (Alphabet) AI Tech Stocks Analysis - 30th Dec 21 Stock Market Santa Rally Challenge - 30th Dec 21 Sheffield Christmas Market Stalls, Sights and Sounds 2021 - 30th Dec 21 Investment Roadmap for 2022 - 30th Dec 21 Overvalued Stocks and Housing Perfect Storm for Gold - 30th Dec 21 My Most surprising Crypto call to date - 30th Dec 21 Irish prisoners are getting Netflix streamed into their jail cells to help them cope with the coronavirus crisis behind bars. The inmates can now binge on movies and series for 12 hours a day because they are being kept in their cells for longer periods as part of Covid-19 measures introduced by the Irish Prison Service (IPS). The Netflix service has been rolled out in prisons across the country and last week inmates in a Dublin jail were treated to a marathon session of popular shows 'Narcos' and 'Ozarks' from 10am to 10pm. Both programmes are critically acclaimed, with 'Narcos' focusing on the empire of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar and the later 'Narcos: Mexico' on the origins of the modern drugs war. 'Ozarks', featuring award-winning actor Jason Bateman, is a series about a money launderer working for a drugs cartel while living in the remote Ozark region. While the Netflix service was introduced for inmates, it is being controlled by staff inside the jails rather than by the prisoners themselves. The decision to roll out the streaming service was part of a range of measures after prison visits were cancelled due to the Covid-19 outbreak. A spokesman for the IPS said: "During this current Covid-19 crisis, the level of constructive activity and out-of-cell time for prisoners is greatly reduced. The prison education centres have been closed in line with Government directives and several cohorts of people in custody are being held in isolation or are cocooned or have been quarantined to their cells to prevent the spread of Covid-19. "The Irish Prison Service has put in place a facility whereby prison management can broadcast films, programmes or series from Netflix to a single additional channel on in-cell televisions. The schedule to be shown on the additional channel will be determined by [management] - prisoners do not have direct access to Netflix," the IPS spokesperson added. Domes of the newly renovated Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara have collapsed due to a thunderstorm and high-speed winds in the area of the holy site's location in Punjab on Saturday evening. The domes were allegedly not even constructed with cement and iron but with plaster-of-paris material, as per accounts. After the embarrassing incident, the Sikh community has expressed disappointment with the way construction was done in Pakistan. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee has offered help to Imran Khan to reconstruct the damaged Kartarpur Gurudwara citing the Pakistan Government's "substandard construction". READ | Imran Khan's Aide Issues Bizarre 'Covid Spreads Neeche Se' Advisory As Pak's Cases Rise READ | Imran Khan Says Mid-May Pakistan Will See More COVID-19 Cases; Cites 'biggest Problem' Sikh Community upset Reports state that the Pakistan government in order to meet the deadline and save on expenditure got the prefabricated domes and assembled them on the Kartarpur Gurudwara structure. Pakistan has also levied an entry fee of USD 20 per person from the Indian side for the maintenance of the Gurdwara. However, the corridor is now closed in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Reportedly, the Sikh community has raised questions on Pakistan Army's motives in constructing the Katarpur Corridor, alleging that the Corridor was just a political stunt for Imran Khan and the Pakistan army stands exposed which was instrumental in the Kartarpur Corridor project. READ | Imran Khan's Official Makes Bizarre Claim On Pakistan's Population; Netizens React READ | Pakistan Runs To China To Help Push Imran Khan's 'waive Our Debts' S.O.S Amid Covid Battle Minister of Science & Technology Fawad Chaudhry said the matter has been addressed before the Religious Affairs Minister Noor Ul Haq Qadri with a request for an immediate inquiry. Kartarpur Corridor was opened in November last year connecting the Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India's Punjab with Darbar Sahib at Kartarpur in Narowal district of Pakistan's Punjab province allowing Indian Sikhs to visit the religious shrine. Kartarpur is said to be the place where founder of Sikhism Guru Nanak breathed his last, hence the place holds religious and historical significance for the Sikh community. There is no time when speed matters more than when a pandemic strikes, and what is unfolding with the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide speaks volumes to this. Ousmane Dione Country director for Vietnam World Bank First detected in China last December, the coronavirus has travelled to almost every country and territory around the world, infecting well over a million people and claiming tens of thousands of lives. Vietnam took decisive actions and is one of the few countries that has coped with the situation relatively well, with no COVID-19 related deaths as yet despite Vietnams role as a regional trade powerhouse and a tourism hotspot. Many of Vietnams swift and effective public health responses have been enabled by IT. The country has put its high penetration of mobile phones (150 per cent) and the internet (70 per cent) to great use. Alert notifications and reminders from health authorities to take precautionary measures are regularly circulated via text messages, websites, and social media. There are mobile applications for universal medical declaration and to keep tabs on the pandemics developments. Seamless and timely citizen outreach and engagement is just one of many benefits digital technology offers in the face of pandemic. In the time of a contagious disease, social distancing which involves a conscious effort to reduce close contact between people to slow and hopefully halt the spread of infections is arguably the best way to stop the virus. That is why countries around the world are closing borders, cancelling large-scale gatherings, shutting down schools, and asking people to stay home. These measures are disrupting everyones daily lives, but digital technologies offer a way to adapt to this new normal. Digital technologies are a key enabler to facilitate home-based work, remote learning, and home supply delivery, which have become essential in this time of pandemic. Vietnamese have been able to conduct certain businesses online and put this option to greater use since the outbreak hit in late January. The National Public Services Portal, which provides basic public services to citizens, has registered a significant surge in traffic. Visits to the portal jumped from 11 million in late January to over 28 million at the end of March, according to government data. During March, the number of online service transactions conducted via the portal doubled to more than 23,000. Popular e-commerce sites report similar trends, as reported by local media. Since the first case was reported in Vietnam, leading e-commerce site Tiki has seen an explosion in the number of purchase orders, and big retailers have seen a dramatic increase in online sales. Saigon Co.op, for example, registered a five-fold increase in online sales in the following week after the first case was detected on January 23. Yet in times of crisis, Vietnam could minimise disruption even further if it had a full-scale digital infrastructure. In a more digitalised Vietnam: - A majority of public services, not just a few, could be provided virtually; - A credible digital ID system could enable full accessibility to digital financial services and other private sector platforms; - Virtual learning platforms for students at all levels, even at public schools with limited resources, would enable students to learn despite prolonged periods of school closure; - Big data diagnostic capabilities could aid health surveillance and forecasting; - Streamlined and efficient administrative procedures could expedite disbursement of public and official development assistance investments critical resources to stem an economic fallout in a time of great uncertainty; - An IT-enabled social assistance programme could reach vulnerable groups and businesses regardless of their remoteness through digital transfers one pilot project, financed by the World Bank, demonstrates the feasibility of this approach. More than 2,600 people of ethnic minorities in the northern province of Cao Bang have received their monthly social allowance via mobile money. The list goes on. But the benefits of a digital Vietnam will not materialise overnight and there are of course associated risks, most notably data privacy, that must be addressed. What is needed are consistent and targeted investments and an accompanying legal and regulatory framework to set the rules on how to operate and manage data in the digital space. The Vietnamese government is already committed to the digital transformation agenda. Its efforts to build various e-government systems such as the National Public Services Portal and the eDocument Exchange Platform, as well as ongoing initiatives to ramp up systems during the pandemic, are laudable. And the country is also looking to harness the potential of digital payments technology as part of the new national financial inclusion strategy approved in January. This pandemic has been a test for every system, from the country to individual level. It is a reminder that Vietnam could benefit a great deal from digitalised services and should push the digital agenda even harder and faster. Digital technologies not only help promote inclusive growth, they can also make us more resilient in times of crisis enabling us to manage the impact of social disruption while remaining virtually connected, productive, and more importantly fed. VIR Ousmane Dione COVID-19 shows pressing need for quicker digital transformation Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung has urged digital companies to develop platforms for online services as COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a pressing need for Vietnam to hasten digital transformation. A huge Laois festival held every August that attracts thousands of visitors from all over Ireland has been cancelled. The Durrow Scarecrow Festival made their announcement last Saturday not to hold the 10th festival due to Covid-19. "It is with huge regret that a decision must be taken for the safety of all not to hold the 2020 Durrow Scarecrow Festival. We have looked into this extensively and following Government/HSE guidelines, research and various discussions over the past few weeks we have had to come to this very difficult decision. We would like to thank everybody for their support over the past ten years and we will look forward to seeing you next year for an even better festival," they said. Fans are disappointed but supportive. "Devestated at this news but we totally understand that this is a necessity to keep everyone safe. We travel up every year from cork and we will be bitterly disappointed to miss it. We will look forward to 2021 Stay safe everyone ," one commented. "What a shame the Scarecrow Festival 2020 won't take place. Every year it gets better and better. 2021 though will be YOUR BEST YEAR YET .... best wishes to all," another supporter said. Below: A scene from the 2019 Durrow Scarecrow festival taken by Alf Harvey. The festival proceeds were to go to creating a community hall in the village. The committee are instead asking people to donate to the fund. They are asking people to donate the 4 they would have paid to enjoy the fun in the Scarecrow Village section. "No festival this year and we are starting to fundraise to match fund a grant received for stage two of our community hall! Our Festival as most of you will know is a huge fundraiser for projects within our community. If you can assist, please do, any amount would be so much appreciated. We are in this together and will look forward to seeing you all in 2021! We are so much already looking forward to same! "We would LOVE if you would LOVE to donate to our cause and if you cant, dont worry, but obviously your donation would be huge for us. Entry for adults to our Scarecrow Village is 4 and we would love if you could make this contribution to our build and become part of our building team! (The contribution will cost you 4.40 as Go Fund Me Takes 10%, they will try and take 15% but just click on 10%). If you can become part of our building team then thank you and absolutely fantastic!" they said. "We have secured a grant of 200,000 to complete phase two of the build but we need to raise another 200,000 to match fund this grant and complete this stage of the project. Loosing the festival this year is a huge loss to us and we need to fundraise in other ways," they said. "We will be back for 2021 and will do our best to have our community centre built and open for all of you to enjoy same. We would like to thank everybody for their support over the past ten years and we will look forward to seeing you next year for an even better festival," the committee say. See their gofundme page here. M inisters were today scrambling to get a plane-load of medical gowns from Turkey as doctors told how they feared having to choose between putting their own lives at greater risk or not treating coronavirus patients. As of mid-morning an RAF plane was understood not yet to have taken off from Britain to pick up the equipment including some 400,000 surgical gowns. Cabinet minister Oliver Dowden insisted the Government was very hopeful that the mission, planned to have been completed yesterday, would be done by the end of the day. But Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, condemned the Governments current rather hand-to-mouth approach of providing personal protective equipment to hospitals, using some 150,000 gowns a day, and to GPs and care workers. Intensive care consultant Dr Alison Pittard stressed that changes to guidance on use of PPE, including for gowns, was linked to inadequate supply and there did not appear to be any evidence that it would provide equivalent protection. Staff wear personal protective equipment (PPE) as they work at the Royal Liverpool Hospital / AFP via Getty Images Pressed on whether medics faced having to choose between saving the lives of patients or refusing to do so to protect themselves, she told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: That would be our fear. A plane was on stand-by at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, to fly to Turkey to pick up an estimated 84 tonnes of PPE, or another aircraft returning from overseas could do the collection. The delay is not believed to be linked to any export ban or permissions needed for the aircraft to land, and possibly could be down to a production issue. As the Government struggled to get the kit in time: Loading.... Amid reports that Boris Johnson is wary of reigniting the epidemic if lockdown is lifted too early, Culture Secretary Mr Dowden told LBC Radio: The risk is if we get this wrong and prematurely ease restrictions, well see a second peak and potentially even more draconian restrictions second time around. The official Government death toll from Covid-19 in hospitals in London was set to reach 4,000 within days, standing at 3,825 as of yesterday, with more than 1,100 fatalities in a week. The real total is in fact significantly higher as the official daily numbers do not include those in the community and recent hospital deaths. Clap for our Carers during lockdown: Thursday 16th April 2020 1 /34 Clap for our Carers during lockdown: Thursday 16th April 2020 NHS workers hold a Thank You Captain Tom message outside the Aintree University Hospital Reuters Nurses applaud outside University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Soldiers at the Wellington Barracks, London, salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Mark Black and his sons, Thomas (left), four, and Adam, 10, from Markethill in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, play Lambeg drums outside their home to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA NHS workers applaud outside King's College Hospital Reuters An NHS staff member wipes her eyes as she holds a sign to thank British veteran Captain Tom Moore AFP via Getty Images Soldiers at the Wellington Barracks, London, salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Nurses outside the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, as they join in to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA A woman stands on a balcony with placards in support of the NHS AP Police officers at Westminster Bridge during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab clapping outside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Firefighters take a picture before the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters St Mary's lighthouse in Whitley Bay on the North East coast is illuminated blue in recognition and support of NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Nurses outside the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak clapping outside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Police officers in the street near to the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Health Secretary Jeane Freeman, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Dr Gregor Smith Scotland's interim chief medical officer applaud outside St Andrew's House, the headquarters building of the Scottish Government in Edinburgh, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic. PA Labour leader Keir Starmer takes part in a national "clap for carers" to show thanks for the work of the NHS AFP via Getty Images Traffic, firearms, patrol, mounted and dog units from Avon and Somerset Police join in the applause in Clevedon, Somerset, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA People stand in the street near to the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic. PA Residents applaud from their block of flats in Glasgow as they to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic. PA Nurses outside the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, as they join in to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA A dog in at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, helps to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers and carers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Nurses applaud outside University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA The scene outside Leeds General Infirmary as members of the emergency services salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers NHS initiative to applaud NHS workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA A double decker bus is decorated in support of the NHS at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne, to salute local heroes during Thursday's nationwide Clap for Carers initiative to recognise and support NHS workers fighting the coronavirus pandemic PA Eighty-two deaths were announced in London yesterday, a noticeable fall from previous days, which may be a sign that full lockdown measures are working although it could also partly be due to hospitals reporting systems. Meanwhile, Sir Paul Nurse, head of the Crick Institute, said the Government had began to use a string of smaller laboratories for testing but that this was still not happening enough. It is a problem not only with getting the labs in place, which I think is largely solved, its a question of workflow, getting individuals properly tested, particularly healthcare workers which is a major concern at the present time, he said. His comments will fuel speculation that while ministers may meet the target to get 100,000 tests by the end of the month, that number of people may not be being tested. The Government is facing growing accusations which it strongly denies that delays and blunders early on has worsened the epidemic in Britain and is partly to blame for shortages of PPE in some places. Mr Dowden told BBC Ones Breakfast that there had been challenges in acquiring the latest PPE consignment from Turkey. We are very hopeful that later today that flight will take off and we will get those gowns, he said. Another 25 million gowns from China had been ordered and the UK would be getting those shortly as well, he added. More gowns will be arriving from China / AFP via Getty Images Mr Hopson stressed: What we really need to get to is from the current rather hand-to-mouth approach to where sustainable supplies consistently and reliably arrive. However, he added that apart from gowns, hospitals now had sufficient PPE, though there could still be shortages for care homes, GPs and hospices. A number of London doctors contacted by the Standard yesterday said supplies were holding up. However neither the NHS Supply Chain, the Department of Health nor NHS London was able to say whether any supplies had been delivered to the capital over the weekend. Mr Dowden defended his decision to argue that the Cheltenham Festival race event should have gone ahead, despite Italy opting to quarantine 16 million people due to the number of coronavirus deaths. He told Good Morning Britain the scientific evidence they were given was that the risk at mass gatherings was no greater or less than it would have been in pubs or restaurants. Meghan Markle has branded her father a liar and denied she knew her influential friends planned to reveal details of her deteriorating relationship with him to an American magazine, new court papers have revealed. Text messages revealed in new court documents claim the Duke and Duchess of Sussex tried to protect Thomas Markle in the days leading up to their wedding while he was forced to drop out of the lavish Windsor Castle wedding due to his failing health. The Duchess of Sussex also states Thomas Markle did not answer truthfully when asked if had colluded with a photographer to stage pictures of him in the weeks leading up to the 19 May 2018 ceremony. The 37-year-old actress also maintains she was unaware that five close friends had chosen to intervene in the growing public debate about her relationship with her father by giving interviews to People magazine for an article published in February 2019. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex leaving the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey, London on Commonwealth Day, on March 9 this year Meghan Markle pictured with her father Thomas Markle. Text messages revealed in new court documents claim the Duke and Duchess of Sussex tried to protect Thomas Markle in the days leading up to their wedding The revelations come in new documents submitted to the Royal Courts of Justice for the High Court hearing this Friday between the Duchess of Sussex and the Associated Newspapers. The Duchess alleges invasion of privacy, breach of copyright and misuse of personal data over the publication of excerpts of a letter to her father about his treatment of her in February 2019. The Mail on Sunday argues that as a member of the royal family the Duchess did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy and that that there was no agreement with Thomas Markle that the letter should remain private. The series of text messages from Prince Harry and his bride-to-be Meghan Markle reveal how they questioned Thomas Markle's reason for dropping out of wedding but continued to offer him protection and urged him not to talk to the press. In one message Prince Harry says; 'If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me', and in another Meghan says; 'Very concerned about your health and safety'. But Thomas Markle feels aggrieved, saying; 'I'm sorry my heart attack is there any inconvenience for you'. The Duke of Sussex and The Duchess of Sussex depart following their wedding in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor Thomas Markle showing souvenirs he keeps on mantle of Harry and Meghan during the Channel 5 documentary called Thomas Markle: My Story Channel, that aired earlier this year The papers submitted today by the Duchess' legal team also state: 'Mr Markle did not answer truthfully when asked about the photographs taken and staged by a paparazzo photographer 'Despite discovering that he had not told her the truth, with all the distress this caused her, the Claimant [Duchess of Sussex] was still focused on finding a way for him to travel to London safely [for her wedding], and the Claimant [Duchess of Sussex] tried to reassure her father that there was no ill feeling between them.' The papers also maintain Meghan Markle's position that she did not know that five of her closest and most influential friends had agreed to give interviews to People magazine, a US celebrity publication, to fight her corner in the growing public debate about her relationship with her father. The documents revealed how her friends discovered Duchess of Sussex was distressed during visits to her London, but Meghan Markle states she had no idea they were going to speak out on her behalf on the issue of her father. That article published on 18 February 2019 referred to bitter and heart-felt letters exchanged between Meghan Markle and her father Thomas. A picture of Meghan Markle and Thomas Markle that appeared on the Channel 5 documentary that aired in January this year called, Thomas Markle: My Story The text messages between Prince Harry and Thomas Markle 12th May 2018: Thomas Markle is exposed for colluding with a paparazzo photographer to stage pictures ahead of his daughter Meghan's televised wedding to Prince Harry at Windsor Castle in seven days. 14th May 2018: Thomas Markle sends Meghan a sent a text confirming he would not be attending her wedding. 14th May 2018: Prince Harry sends Thomas Markle a text urging him not to speak to the press. Prince Harry wrote: 'Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. 'U do not need to apologize (sic), we understand the circumstances but 'going public' will only make the situation worse. 'If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which don't involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. 'So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks. 'Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1.' 14th May 2018: Thomas Markle does not reply to the text but issues a public statement via celebrity news website TMZ to say he was going to hospital after suffering a heart attack. 15th May 2018: Meghan Markle responds to the news in text messages to her father asking about his health and offering protection. Meghan Markle wrote: 'I've been reaching out to you all weekend but you're not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you don't respond Do you need help? Can we send the security team down again? I'm very sorry to hear you're in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us What hospital are you at?' 15th May 2018: Meghan Markle followed up this text about ten minutes later saying that she and Harry had decided to send the security despite not getting a response. Meghan Markle wrote: 'Harry and I made a decision earlier today and are dispatching the same security guys you turned away this weekend to be a presence on the ground to make sure you're safe... they will be there at your disposal as soon as you need them. Please please call as soon as you can.. all of this is incredibly concerning but your health is most important'. 15th May 2018: Thomas Markle responds by simply saying he would be in hospital for a few days and was okay but refused the offer of security, the documents reveal. 16th May 2018: Thomas Markle undergoes emergency heart surgery and texts daughter Meghan the same day to let her know he would not be able to attend the wedding as his doctors would not allow him to fly. 16th May 2018: Prince Harry sends a text urging Thomas Markle not to talk to the press, and signed 'Love M and H'. 16th May 2018: Thomas Markle is deeply hurt and sends curt message. Thomas Markle wrote: 'I've done nothing to hurt you Meghan or anyone else I know nothing about 20 phone calls I'm sorry my heart attack is there any inconvenience for you'. 16th May 2018: Prince Harry questions the text is really from Thomas Markle. Prince Harry wrote: 'Tom, it's Harry, please answer your phone. I need to know this is actually you because it doesn't sound like you at all.' 19th May 2018: Wedding Day Windsor Castle. Thomas Markle calls Meghan at 4.57am but the call goes unanswered. Father and daughter have not spoken since. Advertisement The documents state: 'It is admitted that People magazine, a US title, published articles based on interviews given by five unnamed friends of the Claimant in its 18 February 2019 hard copy and online edition and that these interviews contained the text quoted therein. 'It is further admitted that in the course of these lengthy articles, a brief and passing reference was made to the Letter (as well as the response from the Claimant's [Duchess of Sussex] father [Thomas Markle]. 'This reference was neither the main focus nor any substantial part of the articles. 'Further, it did not contain the detailed contents of the Letter and insofar as it purported to summarise the Letter and the Claimant's [Duchess of Sussex] purpose in sending it was completely wrong.' The papers reveal that whilst the Duchess appreciated that her close friends were concerned and distressed at the media coverage about her and were trying to help she had no idea they had planned to give interviews to People magazine. The documents state: 'In fact, the Claimant [Duchess of Sussex] did not know that a number of her friends agreed to give an interview about her to People magazine. 'As she later discovered, following visits to see her in London at the beginning of 2019, some of her close circle of friends became extremely concerned at the aggressive attacks upon her in the media and the palpable and profound impact which this was having upon her, especially as she was vulnerable as well as heavily pregnant at the time. 'As a result, one of her closest friends decided that they should help by arranging to give anonymous interviews to this American magazine whose Editor was a very good friend of hers in which they might explain what the Claimant [Duchess of Sussex] was truly like (as opposed to the tabloid portrayal of her).' The latest court papers also reveal how the Duke and Duchess of Sussex still tried to help and protect Thomas Markle despite the growing chasm between them in the lead up to the wedding at Windsor Castle on 19 Mary 2018, in a series of texts. The messages reveal how Prince Harry urged Mr Markle to stop engaging with journalists and photographers for the love of his daughter and warned him contacting the press would 'backfire'. On 14th May, five days before the wedding and days after Thomas Markle was exposed for colluding with the paparazzo photographer staging photographs he sent a text to his daughter Meghan confirming he would not be attending her wedding. The documents state: 'It is correct that on 14 May 2018, Mr Markle did send the claimant [Duchess of Sussex] a text message to apologise and confirm that he would not be attending the wedding, and approximately 30 minutes later (after several calls to him went unanswered) the Claimant's husband [Duke of Sussex] sent a message to Mr Markle from the Claimant's [Meghan's] telephone. The Duke of Sussex wrote: 'Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. 'U do not need to apologize (sic), we understand the circumstances but 'going public' will only make the situation worse. 'If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which don't involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. 'So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks. 'Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1.' On 14th May, after receiving Prince Harry's text, Thomas Markle issued a public statement through celebrity news website TMZ to say he was going to hospital after suffering a heart attack. The Duchess responded to the news in text messages to her father asking about his health and offering protection that went unanswered, the court documents reveal. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visited Canada House, in London, on January 7 this year On 15 May 2018, four days before the wedding, she wrote: 'I've been reaching out to you all weekend but you're not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you don't respond Do you need help? Can we send the security team down again? I'm very sorry to hear you're in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us What hospital are you at?' After not hearing back from her father The Duchess of Sussex followed up this text about ten minutes later saying that she and Harry had decided to send the security anyway. She wrote: 'Harry and I made a decision earlier today and are dispatching the same security guys you turned away this weekend to be a presence on the ground to make sure you're safe... they will be there at your disposal as soon as you need them. Please please call as soon as you can.. all of this is incredibly concerning but your health is most important'. Mr Markle responded to this simply saying he would be in hospital for a few days and was okay but refused the offer of security, the documents reveal. They state: 'While Mr Markle responded later that evening to say that he appreciated the offer but did not feel in danger and would instead recover at a motel, the Claimant responded 10 minutes later to make a further request for the hospital details so that she would know where he was.' Thomas Markle with a baby Meghan Markle. A picture shown in the Channel 5 documentary called Thomas Markle: My Story, that aired earlier this year The defence document filed by Associated Newspapers sets out that Mr Markle underwent emergency heart surgery on May 16, 2018, and that he texted his daughter on the same day to let her know he would not be able to attend the wedding as his doctors would not allow him to fly. The document states: 'He told the claimant he loved her and wished her the best. 'He sent a follow-up message asking who would 'be giving [her] away?' and saying that if she really needed him he would come, and that he was sorry 'about all this'. 'In response, he received a text response signed 'Love M and H', but which read as if it was from Prince Harry, (amongst other things) admonishing Mr Markle for talking to the press and telling him to stop, and accusing Mr Markle of causing hurt to his daughter. 'The text did not ask how the surgical procedure had gone or how Mr Markle was or send him good wishes. 'Mr Markle was deeply hurt and responded with a curt message: 'I've done nothing to hurt you Meghan or anyone else I know nothing about 20 phone calls I'm sorry my heart attack is there any inconvenience for you', and a couple more short messages.' Meghan Markle, as a teenager, pictured with father Thomas Markle. The image was shown in the Channel 5 documentary called Thomas Markle: My Story, that aired earlier this year The Duke of Sussex was so concerned by this message that he questioned Thomas Markle whether the message was really from him. On 16 May 2018, three days before the wedding he wrote: 'Tom, it's Harry, please answer your phone. I need to know this is actually you because it doesn't sound like you at all.' The documents stated: 'It is admitted and averred that following this unpleasant message (which she [Duchess of Sussex] was unsure came from her father [Thomas Markle]), her repeated telephone calls to him, his failure to pick up the phone to her many calls or even respond to the message to him from the Claimant's husband [Duke of Sussex] pleading with him to do so, the Claimant [Duchess of Sussex] did not speak to her father before her wedding, which took place shortly after on 19 May [2018].' Thomas Markle finally called his daughter on the morning of her wedding, but the 4.57am phone call on 19 May 2018 went unanswered and father and daughter have not spoken since, legal documents have revealed. The hearing will take place by video conference on Friday. [April 20, 2020] AMERGINT Technologies to Acquire Raytheon Technologies' Space-Based Precision Optics Business AMERGINT Technologies Holdings, Inc. ("AMERGINT") today announced it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Raytheon (News - Alert) Technologies Corporation's space-based precision optics business, headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut ("Danbury"). The business, which is part of Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon Technologies business unit, is a leading technology provider of precision electro-optical systems for National Security Space missions and defense survivability needs. Larry Hill, CEO of AMERGINT Technology Holdings, said: "We are thrilled to work with Andreas Nonnenmacher and the team at Danbury. For as long as the United States has recognized the eed to observe the Earth from space, this business has delivered technological breakthroughs to do so. We are proud to bring together their preeminent electro-optical capabilities with AMERGINT's next generation solutions for capturing, processing, transporting and exploiting mission critical data." AMERGINT is a leading provider of software-defined technology for military, intelligence and commercial space. Founded in 2008 by Mark McMillen, Randy Culver and Sean Conway, AMERGINT delivers next generation solutions to manage the capture, processing, transport and exploitation of vital mission data for communication and data links. AMERGINT is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Robert Basil, Board Member of AMERGINT, added: "We are proud to add Raytheon Technologies' storied precision-optics franchise to the AMERGINT partnership as we build a generational asset that focuses on delivering high performance national security space technologies. There has never been a more important time for technological advances in national security space applications and, together, AMERGINT and Danbury will continue to solve our partners' toughest challenges to advance and protect U.S. interests." The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of the required U.S. regulatory approvals. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. About AMERGINT AMERGINT Technologies is an essential and trusted partner in the evolution of the Space and Defense Industries by focusing on mission-critical communication and data paths through the capture, processing, transport and exploitation of vital mission data. Visit: www.amergint.com. Follow AMERGINT on Twitter (News - Alert) @AMERGINT. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005542/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The central government has taken strong objection to the Kerala government's decision of opening restaurants, MSME industries, and allowing intrastate bus travel. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has said that Kerala's guidelines on lockdown contradicted the central government's "April 15th revised guidelines on lockdown". The government of Kerala has allowed the opening of local workshops, barbershops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, private vehicles' movement. The state government has implemented odd-even scheme for private vehicles. Dine-in services at hotels and restaurants are allowed until 7 pm. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: MHA warns states against curfew violations; cases tally-17,265 The MHA said that Kerala's steps amounted to dilution of guidelines issued by the home ministry and violation of its April 15 order issued under the Disaster Management Act 2005. #CoronaVirusUpdate GoI to Kerala: GoKerala has allowed opening of activities, prohibited under Consolidated Revised Guidelines on #Lockdown2 measures, issued by MHA on 15.04.2020 to fight #COVID19. @PMOIndia @HMOIndia @MoHFW_INDIA pic.twitter.com/s3I8gFWOjx Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) April 20, 2020 "Governemnt of Kerala has allowed opening of activities, prohibited under Consolidated Revised Guidelines on Lockdown 2 measures, issued by MHA on 15.04.2020 to fight COVID-19," Home ministry said in a tweet. It added, " This amounts to dilution of guidelines issued by MHA and violation of MHA Order dated 15th April 2020 issued under the Disaster Management Act 2005". The MHA has urged Government of Kerala to revise guidelines in line with MHA guidelines, without any dilution and ensure strict compliance of lockdown measures. Meanwhile, Kerala government is reconsidering relaxations in lockdown. The state government might review dine in facility at hotels, saloons and allowing pillion riders in two wheelers. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is likely to announce the amendments in the relaxation measures on Monday's press briefing. The southern state had announced a relaxation of coronavirus lockdown restrictions in two zones from April 20. The relaxations of restrictions imposed would come into effect in the Green and Orange zones in the state from today. Earlier, the state government had divided its 14 districts into four colours- Red, Green, Orange-A and Orange-B to track the impact of coronavirus across the state. Red zone included -- Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode and Malappuram districts. In this zone, a complete lockdown will remain until May 3. Only two entry and exit points have been allowed here for carrying essential commodities. Orange-A zone comprises Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam and Kollam while Orange-B zone comprises Alappuzha, Thiruvananthapuram, Palakkad, Thrissur and Wayanad. The lockdown will be in effect until April 24 in this zone and then partial relaxation will be allowed. Kottayam and Idukki are the districts under the Green zone. Here, the state government has relaxed restrictions. However, large gatherings, the functioning of educational institutions, religious functions, celebrations and travel outside the district will not be allowed in this zone. Not more than 20 people are allowed to take part in weddings and funerals, according to government instructions. Kerala has reported 402 confirmed cases of coronavirus and only 3 deaths as of April 20, (9 AM), according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Also read: Coronavirus crisis: Gujarat pharma companies ramp up Hydroxycloroquine production The Dhanbad district administration on Monday ordered closure of the Dhanbad Divisional Rail Managers office, two days after a trackman had tested positive for novel coronavirus, an official said. Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner (DC) Amit Kumar said the direction was given after the railway worker deployed at the DRM office tested positive for the virus on April 18. The trackman had worked for some days before falling ill. The DC said, "The World Health Organisation has declared COVID-19 as a pandemic. To check its spread and maintaining health infrastructure, the DRM office has been closed with immediate effect under Section 3 (2) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 till further orders. The Dhanbad rail division comes under East Central Railway zone whose headquarter is in Hajipur, Bihar. ECR Chief Public Relations Officer Rajesh Kumar confirmed shutting down of the Dhanbad DRM office on request of the district administration. He, however, said the division operation control room located in the same building is functioning. Jharkhand has a total of 42 positive cases, including two deaths due to novel coronavirus. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former liquor baron Vijay Mallya is all set to be extradited to India from the United Kingdom after he lost his appeal in the High Court. The 64-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the High Court against his extradition to India at a hearing in February this year. Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the appeal, dismissed the appeal in a judgment handed down remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. The judges in London rejected the appeal saying that there "was a prima facie case of fraud by false representation". AFP "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," the judges ruled. The case will now go to home secretary Priti Patel for a final decision on his extradition. Mallya is wanted in India on alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to an estimated Rs 9,000 crore. The flamboyant businessman who was once known as the 'king of good times' had a business empire ranging from liquor to IPL, F1 and aviation. AFP His troubles started with the launch of his private airline Kingfisher in 2005. Despite him having no prior experience in the field Mallya made an aggressive push, which also involved the buying out of former rival Air Deccan. In its glory days, Kingfisher Airline was one of the largest in India, both in terms of fleet and passengers. But financial troubles soon caught up with Kingfisher and Mallya and by mid-2012 the entire fleet was grounded. Mallya who was also a two-term Rajya Sabha MP fled India in March 2016 after he was issued a non-bailable arrest warrant. The 64-year-old who has been living in London ever since has been mounting legal challenges after legal challenges to avoid getting extradited to India in the fraud case. AFP Mallya had also tried to reach on a settlement with the banks on the loans and had offered to pay back the principal amount that he had borrowed. This, however, was rejected by the banks who are struggling to recover their money which is way higher than the assets of Mallya which have been seized. KEY HIGHLIGHTS FDI from India's neighouring countries can happen only after government approval Chinese embassy has said the new rule violates WTO's principle of non-discrimination China's cumulative investment in India exceeded $8 billion till December 2019 The Chinese Embassy in India has criticised India's decision to restrict foreign direct investments from its neighbouring countries by making government approval mandatory. In a statement issued in Delhi on April 20, Ji Rong, spokesperson of the Chinese embassy in India said that the additional barriers set by India for investors from specific countries violate the WTO's principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment. The Chinese representative wanted India to revise "relevant discriminatory practices, treat investments from different countries equally, and foster an open, fair and equitable business environment". He also pointed out that India's fresh restrictions on FDI inflows do not conform to the consensus of G20 leaders and trade ministers to realise a free, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, predictable and stable trade and investment environment, and to keep the markets open. According to Rong, companies choose to invest and operate on the basis of the country's economic fundamentals and business environment. "Facing the economic downturn caused by COVID-19, countries should work together to create a favourable investment environment to speed up the resumption of companies' production and operation", he said, adding that Chinese enterprises actively made donations to help India fight COVID-19. On April 17, India tightened the FDI policy to prevent opportunistic takeovers or acquisitions of Indian companies due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. The restriction was specific to countries that share land borders with India and hence primarily targeting China. The statement from the Chinese Embassy said that as of December 2019, China's cumulative investment in India has exceeded $8 billion, far more than the total investments of India's other border-sharing countries. Stating that the impact of the policy on Chinese investors is clear, it said Chinese investment has driven the development of India's industries, such as mobile phone, household electrical appliances, infrastructure and automobile, creating a large number of jobs in India, and promoting mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation. Also read: 1,000 foreign firms mull production in India, 300 actively pursue plan as 'Exit China' mantra grows Toronto: A man wearing a police uniform went on a shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, killing 18 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country's history. Officials said the suspected shooter, local dentist Gabriel Wortman, 51, was also dead. A police officer was among the dead. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small rural town of Portapique, about 100 kilometres north of Halifax. Overnight, police began advising residents of the town already on lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic to lock their doors and stay in their basements. Several homes in the area were set on fire as well. Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers prepare to take a suspect into custody at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia, on Sunday. Credit:AP Authorities said Wortman disguised himself as a police officer in uniform at one point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser. Doctors, nurses, and medical staff are fighting a new threat across the globe as they work on curing patients of the global pandemic COVID-19. Multiple reports surfaced about the discrimination and abuse health workers receive while working on the front line. The incidents, which sometimes involves brutal beatings, sparked fear among medical professionals. The World Health Organization believes the abuse is primarily due to the health care workers being "seen as a potential threat." The perpetrators fear they might expose others to the virus as opposed to being the solution to the current crisis. Acid Bag In Mexico, a health care worker named Esther Garcia was thrown a plastic bag filled with a mixture of water and bleach. She was reportedly walking to the bus stop after her shift when a young man attacked her. "I was filled with fear," she said. "I didn't understand what was going on." Garcia, like many fellow health workers, supports her family on a salary of about $700 a month. With the need to feed her two daughters, and being a divorced single mother, she cannot afford to leave her job. Other medical personnel were sprayed with bleach, denied seats in public transportation, and even blocked from their communities. Mexican authorities have condemned the mistreatment done by a "scattered minority" in a country where the workers are lauded for their efforts in the battle against COVID-19. Abuse and Hostility A medical staffer working in an unnamed hospital in New York said patients have repeatedly hurled verbal abuse at them. Others spit at the workers. Their front desk has received most of the damage, with some people throwing trash and coughing on the faces of the employees. In Cortlandt, nurses who have finished their shifts found their tires slashed in the parking lot. Local authorities said the perpetrators slashed the tires of 22 vehicles. Police arrested 29-year-old Daniel R. Hall for the crime. He was charged with criminal mischief and possession of a controlled substance after he was found with a small amount of PCP. In Oklahoma, a nurse working at the Oklahoma University Medical Center was revealed to be a victim of an act of violence while on their way to work. Officials said the perpetrator believed the victim's role as a medical worker meant they were carrying and exposing people within their community to COVID-19. PTSD US-based research into moral injury showed first responders, and health care workers are at a high risk of developing trauma. According to the article, moral injury stems from having to decide who gets a ventilator and who is left to die---a situation nurses and doctors have to face should the supply of medical equipment continue to decrease. Medical workers are trained to save lives and not give up on people. Few have ever experienced a triage in which decisions had to be made due to a shortage of medical supplies. The risk of developing moral injury is heightened b workers who take long shifts and have little to no sleep before going back on the job. They have lesser time to process the incident. If left unattended, it may lead to moral injury or PTSD. The fight against the coronavirus crisis resembles that of a battlefield where there are inadequate resources and unending accumulations of the dead. Get the latest COVID-19 news: Frieden laid out one such strategy in a briefing Friday morning, calling for a four-pronged effort to box in the coronavirus through stepped-up testing, contact tracing, isolating infected people and quarantining anyone found to have been exposed. Doing this at the required scale will be a massive and costly undertaking, requiring tests to be conducted at three to 20 times the current rate of around 150,000 per day; a huge deployment of trained contact tracers (Frieden said China had one per every 1,000 residents in Wuhan, which would translate to 39,000 just in California); and the provision of safe isolation and quarantine spaces for infected and exposed people, respectively, who cannot remain in their homes (for example, if they live with elderly relatives). Isolated and quarantined people may also need meals and financial support. With the rise in the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in India, general insurance companies are set to come out with new package rates for treatment. Unlike regular surgical procedures, COVID-19 treatment requires interventions of varied kinds that cannot be covered under one single package of a health cover. Hospitals had sought intervention from insurers seeking a higher package rate than those for regular ailments since infection-prevention costs like protective gear, ventilators and specialised treatment push up COVID-19 hospitalisation costs by at least 30 percent. The package rate depends on the type of procedure, hospital and location. In Mumbai, this could range between Rs 4 lakh for a simple surgery to as high as Rs 50 lakh for advanced treatments like cancer. Health insurance policyholders may not immediately feel the pinch as product renewals are on a yearly basis. Once the new packages for COVID-19 are finalised between hospitals and insurers, new premiums could be applicable for customers next year onwards. Currently, there is no fixed COVID-19 package rates and treatment costs are being decided on a case-to-case basis. 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 S Prakash, managing director of Star Health Insurance, told Moneycontrol that it (COVID-19 treatment) is not a regular surgery where a fixed amount is decided upon for a package. We can fix a cost for room rent, personal protective equipment (PPE) and the type of treatment and number of days of treatment, and also decide on the criteria for admission, number of days of hospitalisation, criteria for discharge among others. This will ensure a fair pricing. A wide interaction between hospitals and medically qualified insurance professionals is required to reach a consensus. This will enable a sustainable pricing, he added. Also Read: Live updates on Coronavirus outbreak in India Unlike regular treatments, COVID-19 requires tests to be done multiple times. Plus, use of PPE kits on a daily basis and days of hospitalisation also influences the cost. Further, treatments like Convalescent Plasma Therapy and Monoclonal Antibody have also been identified for COVID-19. For instance, Prakash explained the cost for Monoclonal Antibody treatment costs between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh. Moneycontrol had reported how hospitals are having to bear the additional cost of infection control due to COVID-19. These hospitals are now seeking higher limits under insurance for treating COVID-19 positive patients. "This is different than regular hospitalisation cases. We have to see the kind of expenses incurred and then decide on the cost. It will be a continuous dialogue," said a senior general insurance executive. India now has a total of 17,265 COVID-19 reported cases. Of this, 14,175 cases are active, 2,546 have been cured/discharged, one migrated. The total number of deaths in India among these reported cases is 543. Industry sources said the government is also looking at bringing out certain treatment protocols and cost protocols. This will help pave the way for how insurance costs will be decided over the next few weeks. Under a regular hospitalisation cover, a set package rate is decided for each procedure. For instance, if an individual is undergoing angioplasty a set package of say Rs 4 lakh could be fixed that includes surgery, room rent, doctor fees and other medical expenses. The insurance regulator (IRDAI) has asked companies to cover COVID-19 hospitalisation under medical covers if the policy includes any type of hospitalisation. Further, IRDAI has said that insurers have to establish systems, procedures to enable efficient issuance of pre-authorisations on a 24-hour basis and for prompt settlement of claims. Further, IRDAI has said decision on authorisation for cashless treatment for COVID-19 has to be communicated to the network provider (hospital) within two hours from the time of receipt of the request. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here Saginaw Valley State University has teamed with the Saginaw Art Museum to capture history as it's happening, taken from the perspectives of those experiencing it: specifically, Great Lakes Bay Region residents. Launched this week, "The Quarantine Chronicles" webpage acts as an online repository for stories and artwork that reflect the experience of local life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Already, a small collection of content is available, but organizers hope the volume grows as community members submit more work. The project is a collaboration between SVSU's Center For Community Writing and the Saginaw Art Museum, which hosts the webpage within its larger website at www.saginawartmuseum.org/quarantinechronicles. "We want to provide a place for people to connect to one another, to be able to share their experiences," said Helen Raica-Klotz, co-director of SVSU's Center For Community Writing. "We know that art and writing are powerful mediums for self-expression and personal connection." Raica-Klotz said she hopes the webpage will eventually feature a long list of creative fiction and poetry, photographs, sketches, musings, artwork-in-process, video clips, interviews and journal entries, to name a few. Thor Rasmussen, marketing and creativity director at the Saginaw Art Museum, said he was excited to partner with SVSU on the project. "We are optimistic that 'The Quarantine Chronicles' will be a place that connects people and our shared experience during this unusual time," Rasmussen said. "Interestingly, even now - during this crisis - we see people use creative thinking to solve problems and art as a means of expressing themselves." The museum hosts items spanning thousands of years. "Each piece gives a glimpse into history," he added. "In some ways, our compilation of 'The Quarantine Chronicles' is a way for art to tell the story of our current time. As the museum continues its mission of providing art for all, we hope this project is a vehicle for members of our region to recognize art is a part of their daily lives." - Victoria Ritter, vritter@mdn.net Lucknow, April 20 : Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that all children, who have been brought by buses from Kota in Rajasthan, should be put in home quarantine. Addressing a meeting of Team 11 officials here on Monday morning, the Chief Minister said that all children should be asked to download the Aarogya app and follow the directions given in it. The Uttar Pradesh government had sent 2,000 buses to Kota to evacuate children from the state who were stranded there due to the lockdown. The children were brought and taken to their respective districts. He further said that testing laboratories should be set up in all districts that do not have the facility. The Chief Minister said that special care should be taken to follow safety protocols where some relaxation has been allowed during the lockdown to allow certain sectors to start functioning. Lili Yeo, founder of organic infant apparel company Goumi, appeared on a recent episode of Shark Tank and landed a million-dollar line of credit from Kevin O'Leary. Here's how she did it, and the lessons she learned along the way. The concept for Goumi came about when Yeo was a new mom. A friend came to visit and noticed the mittens Yeo had fastened to her baby's hands with rubber bands. They looked awful but since newborns have poor motor control, mittens and booties are needed to keep them from scratching themselves on their legs and faces. Without rubber bands to hold them in place, though, those mittens and booties are liable to come off as babies squirm. The two discussed designs for mittens and booties that looked good and stayed put. Yeo realized this was a product every new parent would want--especially if, as befits a Portland, Oregon-based entrepreneur, she made them from organic and sustainable cotton and bamboo. Goumi was profitable from year one. By year eight, the company was on track to do about $2.5 million in sales, and was about to sell its millionth item. That's when Shark Tank did a casting call in Portland. The producers contacted a VC that had invested in the company and the VC suggested several of its portfolio companies, including Goumi. How did Goumi get from the casting call to an actual appearance on the show? "It helped that we had $5.2 million in lifetime sales and we were in all the major retailers. We were not just another baby apparel company," Yeo says. Also, her upbeat energy helped a lot. "The people from the show said over and over to us that they needed positivity, that was a really key element. It's television so you need to be somewhat entertaining." Goumi's sales had more than doubled since Yeo raised her last round of funding with a valuation of $5 million in 2018. And, she says, 4x sales is a standard valuation in her industry. All that seemed to point to a valuation of around $10 million, she says. Knowing she'd need to leave some negotiation room, she asked the sharks for $1 million for an 8 percent stake in the company, a valuation of $12.5 million. But all the Sharks said that was way too high. Daymond John offered $1 million for a 30 percent stake in the company, but Yeo felt accepting that deal would be unfair to her existing investors as it valued the company at only $3.33 million. So she accepted a competing offer from Kevin O'Leary -- a $1 million line of credit at 9 percent interest for a 10 percent stake in Goumi. Sharks aren't like other investors. Yeo acknowledges that she could likely have gotten a line of credit on similar terms from a bank or other investor without giving up any equity. "But the difference between a normal investor or bank and a Shark is apples and oranges," she says. "What they bring to the table is a different level of network and connections and media, which can bring a startup to a whole different level and scale much faster." That's already happening. Eight months after the episode was filmed and just a few weeks after it aired, Goumi is launching a new line of baby bedding. "We've been dreaming of this next phase," Yeo says. Asked for her advice to other founders, she says, "So many of us think too small. We are our own biggest disqualifiers." In fact, she came very close to disqualifying herself. She'd been a Shark Tank fan for years and sometimes thought about applying to be on the show but always came up with a reason not to bother trying. "We're too far along, we're not compelling enough, these are small baby accessories so our set wouldn't be so big," she says. "It's amazing how natural these disqualifiers feel." MUSEUMS ASSEMBLE! It's time for #CURATORBATTLE! Today's theme, chosen by you, is #CreepiestObject! We're kicking things off with this 3rd/4th century hair bun from the burial of a #Roman lady, still with the jet pins in place... CAN YOU BEAT IT? pic.twitter.com/ntPiXDuM6v Yorkshire Museum (@YorkshireMuseum) April 17, 2020 Museums may not be getting visitors right now, but that doesnt mean that the curators dont still have things to do. As exemplified by a recent challenge on Twitter, theyre finding plenty of entertaining ways to keep themselves busy.This week its with a "creepiest exhibit" challenge, which is exactly what it sounds like . The Yorkshire Museum in the United Kingdom took to Twitter on April 17 to encourage museums around the world to share the creepiest object in their collections. Museums from all over the world have shared images in response, and were all going to have nightmares now The Yorkshire Museum has held a few of these #CuratorBattles, announcing a new challenge every Friday. The creepiest object, however, seems to be their most popular so far.It is great for us and other museums to be able to still share our collections with the public when our doors are closed, Millicent Carroll, of York Museums Trust, told New Relationship Will Expand Visibility of C-Bond BRS among the Insurers Online Customers HOUSTON, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- C-Bond Systems, Inc. (the Company or C-Bond) (CBNT), a nanotechnology solutions company, today announced it has licensed its service mark and logo to a leading national insurance company to market its patented C-Bond BRS (ballistic-resistant film system) to the insurers property and casualty division customers. Per the terms of the agreement, the insurance group has a non-exclusive, royalty-free, limited license to offer C-Bond BRS to its business customers across all industries. The agreement brings increased visibility of C-Bond BRS to the insurers online customers through their web portal. C-Bond BRS is a ballistic-resistant film system that significantly increases glass strength and the performance of window film. C-Bond BRS is validated to pass National Institute of Justice (NIJ Level I, Level II, Level IIA) and United Laboratories (UL 752) ballistic resistance test standards. The system includes a proprietary security film product and C-Bond Secure, a patent-protected nanotechnology film mounting solution. We are honored to partner with one of the oldest insurance operations in the United States to offer C-Bond BRS to its tier-1 business and non-profit customer base, said Scott R. Silverman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of C-Bond Systems. Our goal is to offer their customers C-Bond BRS at competitive pricing to help reduce claims and insurance rates while increasing the visibility of our products with a major insurance company. The relationship will serve as an exciting component in our multi-faceted strategy to put our brand in front of key target markets including police, fire, emergency services, schools, corporate security, airports, mass transit and government buildings. I look forward to working with their team to implement our safety solutions nationwide, concluded Silverman. Story continues 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 and FN NANO Coating directly to private enterprises, schools, hospitals and government agencies. For more information, please visit our website: www.cbondsystems.com , facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cbondsys/ and Twitter: https://twitter.com/CBond_Systems . Forward-Looking Statements Statements in this press release about our future expectations, including the likelihood that the new relationship will expand visibility of C-Bond BRS among the insurers online customers; the likelihood that the relationship will serve as an exciting component in our multi-faceted strategy to put our brand in front of key target markets including police, fire, emergency services, schools, corporate security, airports, mass transit and government buildings; 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; 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 Senior 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 Employees and sponsors should comply with the mandatory health insurance scheme in the Emirate of Dubai, which is in line with the Health Insurance Law number 11 of 2013, said a top health official. Saleh Al Hashimi, CEO of Dubai Health Insurance Corporation, said: We fully recognise the challenges faced by organisations, sectors and communities due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We must comply with the basic need of employees which is the mandatory health insurance policy and, therefore, if the employees policy needs to be issued or renewed, the employer or sponsor should fulfill his obligation. He highlighted that patients require medical insurance as their basic need to receive care across government and private hospitals and health centres. Al Hashimi urged businesses and companies to meet the minimum insurance criteria to ensure they do not burden the health system. TradeArabia News Service The Idaho mother of two missing children is being investigated in the suspicious death of her husbands former wife, along with other charges, according to multiple reports. Lori Vallow, from Idaho, who was charged in the case of her missing children, is now under investigation by the Idaho attorney generals office to do with the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of her husbands former wife, Tammy Daybell. Her husband, Chad Daybell, is also under investigation in the death of his former wife, according to Fox News. Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow are being investigated for conspiracy, attempted murder, as well as murder in connection with the death of Tammy Daybell. The [Attorney General] will assume full responsibility and authority for the case. All decisions regarding the case shall be the responsibility of the [Attorney General], according to a letter from the Idaho Attorney Generals Office. Meanwhile, Vallow is currently held in Madison County Jail, with her bail bond set at $1 million dollars after she was extradited from Hawaii where she and Chad Daybell were living after fleeing Idaho. She was charged, prior to the current investigation of Tammy Daybells death, with two counts of child abandonment a felony. She also lied about the whereabouts of her children. Vallow was ordered, back in January 2020, to produce her children physically to the court, but she failed to do so, KTVB 7 reported that Tammy Daybell died under suspicious circumstances back in October 2019 in her husbands home. Initially, investigators thought that she died from natural causes, but then in December 2019, her body was exhumed and an autopsy was performed, ultimately being ruled suspicious. The results of that autopsy have not yet been released. On October 19, 2019, family members found Tammy Daybell, 49, dead in her Fremont County home. At that time, Daybells death was believed to be natural. Tammy Daybells body was exhumed in Springville, Utah, on Dec. 11, 2019. A subsequent investigation by the [Fremont County Sheriffs Office] determined that Daybells death may be suspicious, according to the press release issued by the Rexburg Police Department back in December 2019. In the week following Tammy Daybells death, Chad Daybell married Lori Vallow. Months later, Vallows two children went missing. Chad Daybells website says that he is a member of the Church of Latter-day Saints. He has written and self-published more than 25 books. Investigators on the Tammy Daybell case only knew of the existence of Vallows children when they were on Tammy Daybells case. Vallows family stated that they had not seen either of Vallows children since November 2019. They were not reported missing. Three people connected with the couple have died over the past year. Lori Vallows fourth husband, Charles Vallow, was shot by her brother, Alex Cox, who claimed self-defense. He, in turn, died unexpectedly in December 2019. Vallows family visited Yellowstone National Park on Sept. 8, 2019. A photo from that day, obtained by authorities from Lori Vallows iCloud account, showed Lori Vallow, her brother, Alex Cox, Tylee and JJ together at the park. L ove Never Dies will be the next Andrew Lloyd Webber musical available to watch online for free this coming weekend. It is the latest production announced as part of his The Shows Must Go On initiative to make Lloyd Webbers back catalogue available to home audiences while Londons theatres are closed. The 2012 production of Love Never Dies starred Ben Lewis and Anna OByrne, and is the sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, which was screened over the weekend. It will be available to watch for 48 hours from Friday April 24 at 7pm on The Shows Must Go On YouTube channel. The story picks up 10 years after the events of The Phantom of the Opera, in 1907 when the Phantom has escaped to a new life in New York where he lives on Coney Island. He pines for Christine, whose marriage to Raoul isnt what she hoped it would be. When she accepts an invitation to perform at a renowned opera house in New York, the Phantom lures her back into his world. This is the fourth show in Lloyd Webbers run of releases, also following Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Jesus Christ Superstar. GREENWICH The number of patients at Greenwich Hospital with the coronavirus continues to decline, with the total falling below 100, hospital officials said Monday afternoon. As of Monday, 97 patients were hospitalized who have been diagnosed with the virus, Greenwich Hospital Chief Operating Officer Diane Kelly said. That is a down from 104 coronavirus patients hospitalized as of Friday, she said. Additionally, 273 coronavirus patients have been discharged from Greenwich Hospital to continue their recovery at home, which is up from the 247 that had been discharged as of Friday. We have a plateau, and its not increasing, Kelly said. Social distancing is making a big impact. That continues a pattern of declining hospitalizations that started in the middle of last week, Kelly said. Theres not enough data yet to say that the curve is bending, she said. We are definitely moving in the right direction, Kelly said. First Selectman Fred Camillo called the numbers encouraging but stressed that residents must continue to practice social and physical distancing as well as wear gloves and facial coverings. If we ease up on our vigilance right now, then the virus will pick up steam again and it will be like taking a giant step backward, Camillo said. We are going to stay vigilant to make sure that does not happen. Of the 97 patients who are hospitalized, 19 are in the intensive care unit and 17 are on ventilators, Kelly said. Greenwich Hospital has reported 38 deaths of patients with coronavirus a total that includes patients from all over the region, not just from Greenwich. Camillo said it would be a huge mistake to believe the danger has passed and that its time to reopen everything in town. Were worried that people will see this as a sign that they can let up a little bit, Kelly said. I think people are getting tired. Those two things are a concern. Social distancing, hand washing, wearing the masks, I cant stress it enough that we need to keep doing it. Camillo said he has heard from residents who want to let up on the restrictions including from members of the Representative Town Meeting, who next month will consider a nonbinding sense of the meeting resolution to open beaches and parks. But in areas that opened up too soon and all at once, they paid a price, Camillo said. While we are looking ahead and at every policy we have implemented and how to ease up restrictions in a safe and measured way, were not there yet, he said. As far as opening things up again and going about things the way we did before, thats probably not going to happen for a long time. Camillo thinks this experience will bring other changes. I think people are really going to be more aware of washing their hands frequently after they come in contact with a touchable surface. I think people will keep in mind about distancing, he said. According to the town, 566 residents have tested positive for the coronavirus, a number that appears to be slowing down after accelerating last week. Thats an increase of 13 since Friday, according to the towns Department of Health. Town Director of Health Caroline Baisley has said she believes the surge in the numbers is from tests taken weeks ago. kborsuk@greenwichtime.com A s the coronavirus pandemic continues worldwide, one woman in New York has devised a simple system to ease the financial burden for those risking their lives on the frontline. Sophie Vershbow, 30, an assistant social media director in the book publishing industry, felt key workers shouldn't be paying for their journeys to work at such a time of national crisis. As she herself began to stay at home due to New York's lockdown, she launched an initiative in mid-March to enable citizens to swap their unused Metro Cards - and so far more than 650 have been sent to key workers. Ms Vershbow told the Standard: "Like many people, I'm enrolled in a commuter benefits program through my company that allows me to use pre-taxed dollars to pay for public transit. "My monthly MetroCard arrived in the mail, so I posted on Twitter offering to mail it to an essential worker. "Dozens of people replied that they too had MetroCards they'd be happy to mail out. I set up the Google Sheet later that day." Ms Vershbow's Google Sheet ensures addresses are only exchanged between the person giving and receiving the MetroCard. Those who have an idle card to donate simply enter their name, email and card value, and an essential worker can reach out to them directly with their address to claim it. If you're an essential worker in need of a card, you just add your details and Ms Vershbow will get in touch with the name and email of a MetroCard for you to send your address to. The New York City subway costs $2.75 per ride, or $127.00 for a 30-day unlimited pass - which is the equivalent of 102. Ms Vershbow's said: "The response has been overwhelmingly positive. It's been great to connect with some of the essential workers who received cards. "It's a small thing, but I hope we've been able to help alleviate even a tiny piece of stress." Alongside Ms Vershbow's scheme, there's also a website called CoronaMetro, which similarly redistributes MetroCards from those working at home, to essential workers. New York has been exceptionally hard hit by the global health pandemic, with more coronavirus cases than any single country outside the US. Ms Vershbow said: "It's heartbreaking to watch the most vibrant place on earth become a ghost town. "I don't think there's anyone in New York City who hasn't been personally impacted by coronavirus. Of course, I'm struggling to get through the day like everyone else but I feel very fortunate to still have a full-time job I can do safely from home." ALBUQUERQUE Last month, when the first two confirmed cases of the coronavirus were announced in the Navajo Nation, I packed a bag and returned to the safest place I knew: home. I joined my parents to visit Yellow Rock Point on the Utah side of the reservation. I grew up hearing stories about a place where lambs nibbled at my mothers ears while she sat in the middle of her familys sheep corral, a place where she ate her first rabbit hunted by her grandfather as they sat under the stars in their male hogan a traditional octagonal Navajo home, made of wood and covered in mud. As we inched closer to the San Juan River, my mother saw Yellow Rock Point, a rock shaped like a melting ice cream cone that maintained its pointed tip. We drove to the very edge of a cliff and hiked to the bottom, where the family homestead still stood. Mom rushed to the hogan, where the brick foundation remained in the shape of a stop sign. She stood where she once slept and showed us where her great-grandfather made his bed and plucked his chin hair. Sri Lanka looks to lift curfew and open factories 20 April 2020 Sri Lanka's Government is considering the easing of the month-long curfew on the island from this week. Minister of Health and Indigenous Medicine, Pavithra Waniarchchi, announced that all clusters of COVID-19 in Sri Lanka had been successfully detected and that the government was keen to gradually restart industry to protect the national economy. Senior Economist and Senior Lecturer at the University of Colombo, Professor HD Karunaratne, said: "We are importing raw material from China and other countries for the main industries in Sri Lanka. For instance, to commence the construction industry we need cement products. Even in apparel, large quantities of raw materials are imported from China and other countries." However, he emphasised, when starting all these factories and offices, safety precautions should be a top priority. In addition to normal safety precautions introduced, Guidelines on COVID-19 preparedness for workplaces issued by Directorate of Environmental, Health, Occupational Health and Food Safety, a division attached to the Ministry of Health, has emphasised several key rules to strictly follow. All the staff at the time of entrance are subjected to a body temperature check and any person recording a temperature above 37C should be sent back home, under these instructions. In addition, washing their hands before entering the workplace, wearing masks on duty, having a foot bath before entering, discouraging workers from using other workers mobile phones, pens, common telephones, fax machines, etc. "I think most of these safety measures are already seen in industrial zones. In some factories, employees usually wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Hence beginning work at industrial zones will not be a huge problem," Professor Karunaratne said. Published under Smart Factory Software TRI's YMS 4.0 makes all relevant data available any time from Solder Inspection to MDA testing in a closed loop to lower the cost of production. Assure your process integration and optimization with TRI's Closed loop YMS 4.0. TRI's solution for the new trend ofserves its purpose as the central management system for the entire production line's Inspection. With the rapid adoption of new technologies in electronics manufacturing such as Inspection solutions customers receive more information regarding their production lines. TRI's Yield Management System offers the PCB manufacturing industry anSPI, AOI, AXI and ICT.YMS 4.0 providesand remote access fine tuning throughout the SMT line. Built-in support forsystems helps track Alarms and SPC data toThe Yield Management System allows operators to aggregate information from individual TRI inspection systems forline defect rates, reviewing and fine-tuning inspection results, and identifying component defect trends and emerging production issues. Nearly 700 army personnel reached Jammu on Monday through a special train from Bengaluru to join their units in the union territory after completing their professional courses in southern India, officials said. In the prevailing security scenario along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, it has been a necessity to boost the strength of security personnel in units deployed in operational areas, a defence spokesperson said. The train had left the Bengaluru Railway Station on April 17. The army personnel had completed their professional courses in Bengaluru, Belgaun and Secundrabad training centres and were waiting to join their units. All of them underwent the mandatory quarantine before coming here and adhered to social distancing throughout the journey, the spokesperson said. "All personnel are medically fit," he said. On arrival at the Jammu Railway Station, all the personnel were screened and thereafter transported to their respective units deployed in the union territory, he added. All passenger trains have been suspended since a nationwide lockdown came into effect on March 25. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) We got the opportunity to interview with the leading entrepreneur from Iraq Maziar Rajabi. A man who has passed many hurdles in life with a smile. Conversation follows: Can you please introduce yourself, your business, and a bit about what you do and the growth? Maziar Rajabi: I am 33 years old, born in Divandareh City, which is a Kurdistan Province of Iran, roughly 50,000 people living there. When I was growing up, Our part was called East Kurdistan by the Kurds generally in the region. I got an opportunity to study abroad for my postgraduate degree after two universities in Sweden and Malaysia accepted my application. During my study, I was invited to take up a position as a senior partner at a leading Canadian company, Canadian Green Solutions Inc, by my cousin. I love to discover new things, and this habit helps me move to Erbil in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Online classes were a great learning experience, and the fruits of my work came ten years later after I became a shareholder of one of the most prominent Italian companies, Mattioli S.A.S. I have managed to achieve numerous certificates from leading universities in the world like MIT, where I got a Disciplined Entrepreneurship. I also have a Global Diplomacy Program certificate from the London University and an International Project Management certificate from Adelaide University. I first started as a marketing sales manager before advancing to an IT manager. Soon I was a Senior Partner for International Business Advisory for foreign companies in Iraq. Let's go back to the early days of your business, what motivated you to start it? Maziar Rajabi: Ever since I was young, I have always believed in the growth potential of my hometown, Kurdistan region. Having an abundance of natural resources that could enable the growth of the manufacturing industry was among the advantages Kurdistan held over its neighbours. The region also has a visionary federal government that has gone to great lengths to make the region a hub for investments. Drawing inspiration from a quote I learned at a young age, "It doesn't matter if it takes time it's important you chose a right path toward the goal," there was no looking back. What were the most significant cultural challenges you faced when first starting out? Maziar Rajabi: My biggest challenge was getting my business up and running. I used to do lots of research to find out the ways to grow my business. Why do you think this was the case? Please share a bit more about each one and the reasons behind it. Maziar Rajabi: Starting a business in a new region requires a significant amount of research to figure out business opportunities. The company had to make money, and so we had to come up with ways to appeal to a broader customer base. Another challenge was the constant rise in insecurity in the region. This made conducting business even harder, and it scared away potential investors. Some didn't want to take part as they saw it be too risky. What did you do to overcome some of these challenges? Maziar Rajabi: Our numerous researches had paid off. From the data, we were able to appeal to the local community in a more friendly manner, and they too became our loyal customers. The business expanded rapidly into success. What advice will you give to young ones facing challenges to overcome cultural differences, prejudices, and trials? Maziar Rajabi: It is vital to understand the people, to overcome cultural differences. Once the locals see you are making this effort, they will accept you even faster. Where there any particular moments that stood out as tough when growing your business? How did you overcome it? Maziar Rajabi: One of the toughest periods for my business was in 2014. At that time ISIS in the region was at the peak and had even reached 30%. Oil prices were down, and business partners shifted to Canada. Our business was sinking. But I was sure that thing would become routine, I didn't lose hope. Soon luck changed as I got an unexpected call from a European firm that was looking for a remote consultant on the Kurdistan region. This was after a friend put in the right word for me, and after conducting a Skype interview, I was awarded the position on profit-sharing terms. Do you have any other comments you'd like to share about cultural differences and advice here? The more info, the merrier. Cultural differences are part of our everyday lives, with every community having their way of life. It is always essential to understand this and respect cultural diversity. While reports show people of color dying of COVID-19 disproportionately in other cities, public health officials said the data doesn't show the same trend in Dane County. Next door in Milwaukee County, data shows 54 percent of those who died of COVID-19 are black, while African-Americans only make up 27 percent of the population. Public health officials released analyzing the relationship between COVID-19 and race in Dane County. The data shows three quarters who tested positive for COVID-19 are white and 8 percent are black. The findings illustrate the opposite of what's happening in Milwaukee County. Grande said if everyone was tested, the data could look different. She said the county has limited tests and there aren't enough for widespread testing. "While we're not seeing it in the data, it's my fear it's because of the lack of testing and lack of bigger picture of what's going on, Katarina Grande, Public Health Madison and Dane County COVID-19 response data team lead said. "We see inequities in maternal health and chronic disease, why are we not seeing it here? What's going on with the data?" Lisa Peyton-Caire, The Foundation for Black Women's Wellness CEO and Founder, is committed to eliminating health disparities and other barriers impacting the lives of African American women and girls. She explained access to healthcare and bias in delivery of care has been a national issue and the COVID-19 pandemic is amplifying it. "Were exposed in a number of ways as a community and this pandemic has shown the tremendous gaps in healthcare quality, access and social and economic equal opportunity," Peyton-Caire said. She explained recently the black community has been blamed individually for contracting the virus at a higher rate. "We are concerned about the rhetoric around 'black folks need to be responsible' and blaming us for levels of infection," Peyton-Caire said. She said there are other factors that play a role in communities of color becoming infected with COVID-19 disproportionately to other races. "We know the culprit is systemic access to care, timely access to care, bias in the delivery of care, social and economic disparities that place us at a greater disadvantage of having access to care and not having paid time off to see about care," Peyton-Caire said. "We're on the front lines of the most underappreciated jobs in our community that are essential for all of our survival. All of the pieces are playing into this and we need to look systemically at those drivers of COVID-19 outcomes and not at individual behaviors." Grande explained racial health disparities in Dane County existed before the COVID-19 pandemic and they have not just disappeared. She said it's important for public health officials to understand what's underneath the numbers. "I can talk about the data and what's in the data, but it's important to talk to voices of color and leaders who experience the pandemic in ways the data can't describe well," Grande said. Public health officials said they'll continue to monitor the COVID-19 data by race in Dane County. Government recommendations that people wear a face mask whenever out in public to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus have resulted in an unexpected issue for lots of bespectacled folks: Foggy lenses. Whether someone wears a surgical mask or a homemade cloth face covering, the masks can have the unfortunate side effect of sending ones warm breath directly upward and behind a pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses. While this problem is certainly a comparatively minor one and does not affect everyone, about 64 percent of Americans wear glasses, according to the Vision Council of America. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage For those who do wear glasses, fogged-up lenses have become an issue over the past few weeks. If you are one of the many New Jerseyans who have been dealing with it, there are several potential fixes to combat the issue. Perhaps the most obvious solution is to buy a spray designed specifically to reduce fogging on glasses. There are a number of sprays and cleaners available for purchase on Amazon. If the prospect of sorting through thousands of product reviews and ratings seems like a daunting task, Environmental Design and Construction Magazine put together a list of the best anti-fog sprays, updated for 2020. If you are looking for a fix using household items instead, there is another ultra-simple method that actually has been proved effective in a scientific study. While most of us are only now encountering this problem, doctors and surgeons who wear face masks have been dealing with foggy lenses for decades. According to a 2011 study published by The Royal College of Surgeons of England, simply washing lenses with soap and water will prevent the buildup of moisture. An excerpt from the study states that immediately before wearing a face mask, one should "wash the spectacles with soapy water and shake off the excess. Then, let the spectacles air dry or gently dry off the lenses with a soft tissue before putting them back on. If it is good enough for doctors and surgeons, it ought to be good enough for a trip to the grocery store. Another method that may be effective, especially for DIY-ers using homemade cloth masks, is the use of self-adhesive fasteners that are normally used to bind hole-punched papers in a folder. By bending a fastener over the top of a cloth mask to the shape of the bridge of ones nose, it can mimic the metal piece that sits at the top of surgical masks, helping create a tight seal and keeping lenses clear. It has also been suggested, such as in this graphic from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, that folding the top portion of the mask down will create extra space for air to escape before reaching the lenses. However, while it may keep lenses clear, this may not be the most effective technique in reducing the spread of the virus, as it could reduce the snugness of the masks fit, something that the CDC maintains is one of the most important factors in wearing a mask properly. Whichever method you decide on in your attempt to reduce fogged-up lenses, make sure it conforms to the CDCs guidelines on how to properly wear a face covering. Casey Roland may be reached at croland@njadvancemedia.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. 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. Dino Melaye, a former senator representing Kogi west, says he now calculates how he spends money. In a terse post shared via his s... Dino Melaye, a former senator representing Kogi west, says he now calculates how he spends money. In a terse post shared via his social media page on Monday, the former lawmaker, who appeared to be reflecting on the happenings across the globe due to the COVID-19 outbreak, said it has become essential to be frugal. Calculation spending is now what we are into now, he wrote on Instagram alongside a picture of himself. Melayes statement comes weeks after he had taken to social media to lament his increasingly heavy bills. He had also asked God for more money while showing off a luxury apartment believed to be outside the country. Since he lost out his second term bid to Smart Adeyemi of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the state rerun, the former legislator has continued to make the headlines over an array of non-political issues. In March, the politician starred alongside Femi Fani-Kayode, a former minister of aviation, in Silent Prejudice, a Nollywood movie, which examined issues associated with the Osu caste system in southeastern Nigeria. He also caused a social media stir recently when he claimed combating the coronavirus pandemic was not about measures like using face masks or hand sanitisers but by adhering to the instruction of God. S hielding of care and nursing homes has completely failed, a GP and academic said today amid fears that the number of elderly people who have died is far higher than official statistics show. Professor Carl Heneghan, director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University, said the failure to protect residents by testing staff at care homes for coronavirus has been a serious mistake leading to tragically unnecessary deaths. His plea came amid growing fear that the authorities are sitting on evidence of a major rise in the number of fatalities among elderly people in the community, whose deaths are not included in the daily official death toll, which only covers confirmed hospital cases. Despite requests from the Standard, neither Public Health England nor the Care Quality Commission has so far supplied a figure for the number of people who have died in care homes in London due to coronavirus. They said they were working on data but for future release. Cabinet minister Oliver Dowden admitted that official figures showing 217 deaths in care homes were out of date. Speaking on ITVs Good Morning Britain, he accepted that the true figure was much greater than this because there is a time lag. Professor Heneghan told BBC Radio 4s Today: We have made two serious mistakes. The first mistake was not to continue to contact trace and test individuals. "People who work in nursing homes are key to this because the shielding has failed. Seventy per cent of all the deaths are in the over-75s. Forty per cent of nursing homes have the infection. So whatever we have done has completely failed in terms of shielding. Loading.... Care home managers complain they have been treated as second-class during the crisis, with less access to protective equipment and testing. Last week the Government announced that it was extending Covid-19 testing to all care home staff who have symptoms. ISPR website Islamabad/IBNS: An anti-terror operation in North Waziristan left at least five terrorists killed, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Monday. "Terrorist carried out fire raid on security forces Check Post, 10 kms West of Miranshah, North Waziristan. Troops effectively engaged the terrorists," ISPR said in a statement. "5 terrorists killed. During the exchange of fire, 1 soldier embraced shahadat; while 3 soldiers got injured," read the statement. Troops cordoned the area and carried out search operations. The deceased terrorist was identified as Akbar Hussain Khan Shaheed. GREENWICH The Greenwich Police Department is reminding residents that the towns parks are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The closure was ordered by First Selectman Fred Camillo. Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, says Abba Kyari, the late chief of staff to the president, paid the supreme price in... Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, says Abba Kyari, the late chief of staff to the president, paid the supreme price in his service to Nigeria. In his tribute to Kyari on Sunday, Fashola said the good way Nigerians can honour Kyaris service and memory is to continue where he stopped. The late chief of staff to the president died on Friday after battling COVID-19. He contracted the disease on his trip to Germany where he led a government delegation on power late March. Fashola said Kyari was much misunderstood and often maligned. Wherever you stood then and stand now, let us not forget that Abba was a patriot, he said. He executed President Buharis vision with his own single mindedness. One of his favourite quotes was credited to Jeff Immelt to the effect that The job looks easy when you are not the one doing it. He seemed to take a lot of comfort from these words Like all of us, Abba was flawed but he was not conceited. He was driven by conviction and never shied from an intellectual argument because his intellect was vast. Now that he has paid the supreme price in the service of the fatherland one good way we can honour Abbas service and memory is to continue where he stopped. Our most compelling assignment is to make the defeat of Covid-19 an urgent National Assignment to be completed in shortest possible time. I think Abba would love that very much. The minister added that ending the outbreak would require all of us, high and low , to observe existing guidelines. We must now undertake this assignment with a single mindedness similar to Abbas execution of his own assignment, he said. Syracuse, N.Y. The Great American Toilet Paper Shortage is waning. And its about time. Of the shortages that have irritated consumers the most during the coronavirus pandemic, the scarcity of toilet paper has to be at the top of the list. Meat shelves were bare for a while, too. But if worse came to worse, you could always survive on peanut butter and crackers. Going without TP? Thats where most people draw the line. Thankfully, the worst seems to be over. An unscientific survey by Syracuse.com on Sunday and Monday showed shelves, though not full, at least not completely empty of toilet paper at Wegmans, Walmart, Price Chopper and Target stores in the Syracuse area. And the supplies were not limited to the one-ply stuff, either. We found soft, two-ply brands from Charmin and Cottonelle, too. The shortages began soon after the pandemic took off in early March. Panicked consumers starting buying up toilet paper and hoarding it, even though the virus causes a respiratory disease (COVID-19), not a gastrointestinal illness. In addition, people are spending more time at home, so they are using more consumer-brand toilet paper. (Schools and workplaces use lower-quality commercial brands, which, it turns out, have an entirely different supply chain.) Shelves were bare of toilet paper at the Wegmans on James Street in East Syracuse on Thursday, March 12, 2020. Michael Greenlar | mgreenlar@syracuse.com Retailers responded by limiting shoppers to one package at a time but finding any on the shelves was a hit-or-miss proposition for weeks. Fortunately, manufacturers have started ramping up production. Procter & Gamble, maker of Charmin toilet paper, said its Albany, Georgia, plant put idle equipment back into operation in just two weeks a process that typically takes months to address the spike in demand. We are seeing better supply of toilet paper in all markets where we do business, Evelyn Ingram, a spokesperson for Wegmans, said. Demand is still higher than normal as households are spending more time at home, which equates to an increased need for toilet paper. She said Wegmans is maintaining the one-package limit for buyers but will continue to evaluate the need for the limit as supply improves. Mona Golub, a spokesperson for Price Chopper, said the chain is keeping its purchase limit in place, too, because its stores are still selling out of their allocations daily. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay He has designated survivors. Ryan McMahon digs in for a long war against coronavirus Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148 It was a different world when the Derry Township supervisors voted to move forward with the $31 million Hershey Community Center Project. When they cast that 3-2 on March 5 to restart the stalled project, they decided to meet again several weeks after that to discuss possible changes to reduce the cost. Then the coronavirus changed the world. Now, a month and a half later, construction is halted throughout Pennsylvania, but the township supervisors are going to meet virtually to discuss the future of the community center. Chris Abruzzo, chairman of the board of supervisors for Derry Township, said they will be discussing four possible changes Tuesday night that, if approved, could reduce the size of the competitive swimming pool and redesign a few other features. My goal is to make sure, at the end of this meeting, we have a final plan, Abruzzo said Thursday. With some residents saying the project is too big and too expensive, and others saying it needs to be this size, particularly the competitive swimming pool, to bring in revenue to help offset the costs, it could be a feisty meeting for what may be the final step of a project that has been years in the making. Residents can join the meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday through Zoom, or they can watch it on the townships YouTube channel. Details of how to do that can be found on the townships website. Most in Derry Township seem to agree a new community center is needed to replace the 50-plus-year-old one, but its the plans for the new one that have been divisive. The plans are a redesign of the first set of plans that were rejected last year after the bids came in roughly $5 million over budget. As the project stands now, the community center will be an 84,000-square-foot facility that retains most of the features of the rejected plans. It has a gymnasium, senior center, child-watch center, fitness area, locker rooms and an indoor leisure pool and competition pool. It also features an outdoor pool and event space. One major cost-cutting redesign came in the form of a compromise between the two outspoken groups of citizens. Rather than the 25-meter pool that a group of concerned citizens wanted in order to cut costs on the project or the Olympic-sized, 50-meter pool wanted by Hersheys swimming community, supervisors went with a 35-meter pool design. The new plans also reduced the building to one story with no basement. Bids on the new project were approved 4-1 in December, and the contracts were signed soon after, but work had not yet begun. In January, new supervisors Natalie Nutt and Carter Wyckoff joined the board, expressing concerns with the plans and the cost. And with the resignation of supervisor Marc Moyer, who was the sole no vote in December, that left the board split 2-2 on giving the contractor the OK to proceed. Abruzzo was appointed in February to fill Moyers vacancy, saying he saw the need for a new community center, too, but like Nutt and Wyckoff, he thought some changes could be made to cut the costs. It was Abruzzos vote in March that broke the tie, though, and gave the go-ahead to proceed, and Abruzzo will likely be the tie-breaking vote again on any changes that could come out of Tuesday nights meeting. He said Thursday he has been hearing from all sides, and he will go into the meeting with an open mind. Abruzzo said the four possible changes are: The competitive swimming pool: Though a 35-meter pool was selected as a compromise, the possibility of shrinking it in a cost-savings effort will be discussed. The foundation of the building: The foundation came into question weeks before the bids were approved due to the potential for sinkholes. The engineer-recommended a micropile foundation would add about $500,000 to the cost. A reduction in the number of bleachers: This would also be considered, particularly if the pool will be smaller. The fitness center: Shrinking the size of the proposed fitness center could also be up for discussion. Im hoping on Tuesday all that information will be available to all of the board members, and well have some good dialogue about it, Abruzzo said. There may be no motions, or all four will be motions and well vote on all four. But with the coronavirus pandemic, much has changed with the world, with incomes, with construction and just about every facet of life, which will entail much more discussion, he said. The positions of the other four supervisors seem to be unchanged by the pandemic. Board member Susan Cort, who was one of the original board members to approve the project in December, said though there is a lot of economic uncertainty right now in the township and among its residents, and that uncertainty is something to take into consideration, she favors moving forward with the project as approved. We cant make decisions based on the economic situation of this year as we recover, she said. We made plans for a community center thats going to serve us for the next 40 years. We need to keep that in mind as make a final decision. One of the main change orders that may be up is the possible shrinking of the 35-meter pool, which Cort opposes. She said the pool will help bring in revenue to offset the centers cost from swim meets, events, lessons and more. We put the 35-meter pool in for a reason and that reason still remains, she said. She hopes demolition can begin on the old community center and work can begin on the new one soon after construction is permitted again in Pennsylvania. I remain strongly committed to the community center project that we approved at the end of December, and Im glad we are moving forward, she said. Im looking forward to making whatever final decisions are needed in the next couple of days. Supervisor Richard Zmuda, who also voted in favor of the project in December, said nothing has changed his opinion, and the township needs to move forward with the project, as is, as soon as construction can begin. I dont see it as being logical to change anything at this point, he said. Any changes would require costly redesigns, he added. Coupled with further delaying the project, he argues redesigns will end up costing the township more, wiping out any potential savings sought by the changes. Were going to end up getting less for more, he said. We should be moving forward with what we already have designed. Nutt, one of the two new supervisors, said she was concerned about the overall cost and financial impact of the project before the coronavirus, and the current situation reaffirms her concerns. The revenue projections for the recreation center project were based upon a best case scenario, she said. Now we are facing a worst case scenario, one filled with uncertainty for taxpayers, small businesses and local governments. She said the financial fallout brought about by the coronavirus makes this a time to lessen the burden on taxpayers. I believe that our community should have a recreation center and pool, just not one that is too costly to build and maintain, she said. And new-supervisor Wyckoff agrees that a new pool and community center are needed, but not to the scope and scale of the project as it is now, particularly with the financial uncertainty brought by the coronavirus. The business plan and revenue projections for the project were built on a best-case scenario and I do not feel that we are in that sort of environment, presently, he said. He added he hopes supervisors can refocus the project on what the community needs instead of what would be nice to have. It is my concern that if we do not scale back on our expenditures that we will be faced with the prospect of cutting back on essential services and department needs to fund obligations that have been made elsewhere, he said. 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. By Jess Casey and Daniel McConnell The general secretary of the primary teachers union believes it is feasible to reopen primary schools but it will have to be done in a careful way and on a phased basis. John Boyle of the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) said that consultation between the union and the Department of Education had yet to begin. It would be very different in different schools. Small rural schools would have their own challenges with transport or with having four or five classes in the one classroom." Standard classrooms measure 60m sq, he told RTE. If you have 15 children, that would barely give them 4m sq around them, two metres between each child. Teachers and schools will want to work with the public health advice and plan for it appropriately. You could see half a class come in in the morning, and leave at lunchtime, he said, adding that the class could then be deep-cleaned before the next cohort of students came in. All of these types of issues wont be organised in a weekend. We would want to be coming back on an orderly phased basis. Public health expert Gabriel Scally said he is in favour of beginning to lift the restrictions on schools safely. Gabriel Scally "I do think its very important. Children, particularly children whose parents may not be terribly well off, they may not have the internet, they may not have a computer, their education, their development and their mental well-being is probably in danger of suffering. I certainly think it should be looked at," he told RTE. It all depends on keeping the virus down and the number of new cases in the community dropping away significantly in the neighbourhood, in the community. That depends on really good testing and contract tracing. Although the Government would like to see schools reopened, a date has not yet been set as the decision will depend on the most up to date public health advice. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Government is examining if primary school children can return to school as part of measures designed to reopen parts of the economy. However, he said he would not speculate on when that may be. What were working on at the moment is a plan thatll be ready, end of April early May, he said. In advance of the May 5 big day if you like what were supposed to set out is a stepwise plan, which indicates how we would reopen the country in different steps and what are the criteria that would have to be met to allow us to move from one step to the next. Until we have that I prefer not to speculate, he said, adding that he understands that a lot of people are starting to find lockdown restrictions hard. Id prefer not to raise hopes or raise expectations, only to dash them. What we are working on is a stepwise plan, whereby we could start to reopen certain services certain parts of the economy, and then reviewed every two to three weeks, depending on how things are going in terms of the spread of the virus, but Id rather give people certainty when we have that towards the end of April early May, than to speculate on that when it is not yet agreed. Its a known fact that Nokia Corporation NOK was once considered the global pioneer in advanced mobile communications. However, it is currently struggling to stay ahead of the curve, especially at a time when the world is transitioning to 5G. Under the leadership of CEO Rajeev Suri, the Finland-based telecom gear makers stock has tumbled 40.1% compared with 15.1% decline of the industry in the past year. The beleaguered company, which is now on the verge of a hostile takeover by an anonymous private equity firm, is resorting to every possible course of action to turn the tables gradually, thereby bolstering its market position in the global arena. What Ails Nokia? Nokias reported abysmal performance last year, primarily due to operational inefficiencies, escalating cost of sales and intense competition coupled with its inability to match rapid technological advancements. Financials took a backseat as gross margin was negatively impacted by a high cost level associated with its first generation 5G products, product mix and profitability challenges in China. Having faced significant challenges in mobile access and cash generation, the company decided to suspend dividend payouts and withdraw its financial outlook for 2020. Of late, Nokia has not been able to keep pace with the likes of Ericsson ERIC and Huawei. Markedly, the gradual dominance of Huawei proved to be considerably distressful for the Nokia as it apparently dreaded losing its competitive edge in the 5G race. Time and again, the Trump administration has considered Huawei to be a high-tech Trojan Horse as well as requested federal agencies to abstain from using its products over potential risk of espionage and security concerns. However, the move did not sit well with various rural U.S. carriers that mostly rely on Chinese imports as Huaweis equipment components are substantially cheaper compared with the ones provided by Nokia and Ericsson. A sluggish financial performance has compelled Nokia to cut nearly 5,000 jobs during 2019, 180 in January 2020 and hint at further downsizing. Notably, the company has been a victim of these vulnerabilities as it witnessed elevated 5G product costs in the Networks segment with higher levels of deployment service costs. Paucity of demand due to challenging macroeconomic climate and geopolitical uncertainties have affected its margins. The weak performance was further aggravated by temporary capital expenditure constraints in North America related to the merger of T-Mobile TMUS and Sprint. Nokias ability to bounce back on growth and profitability was primarily hampered by its struggle to be on par with Ericsson, which spends billions of dollars on R&D. To date, the Sweden-based firm has inked 88 commercial 5G contracts with operators worldwide while Nokias tally is at 66. Hostile Takeover Bid In February 2020, Nokia was reportedly mulling to explore a couple of strategic options like investment shift, asset sale or a potential merger with Ericsson in the face of intense 5G competition. Impressively, the merger, which is anticipated to aid both the companies, will not only tackle aggressive pricing structure adopted by China-based counterpart, Huawei, but will also help Nokia to emerge as a dominant player in the realm of next-gen mobile networks. Grapevines of a takeover bid do not look surprising, as the company has long been struggling to find a path to profitability. On Apr 16, Nokias share moved up 7% on the news. With investors drooling at the prospect of a potential deal, it is estimated that the total valuation of the rumored deal will be worth up to $17.4 billion. That said, Nokia has enlisted the services of Citigroup C to counter such alleged transaction. However, it is optimistic about merger talks with Ericsson. The arch-rivals share complementary strengths with each other owing to their geographic proximity. Such a combination is likely to be mutual rather than hostile as Nokia does not envision any fit with Samsung or Huawei. Redefining Industry Dynamics Despite the above-mentioned challenges, Nokia has been undertaking efforts on the product and service development front. Last month, it accelerated its position in IoT with a new managed service platform backed by 5G and edge computing. The company which produces 5G RAN equipment, confirmed that the hardware will comprise 35% of 5G shipments by the end of 2020 and 70% by the end of 2021. Nokia is holding joint trials with Vodafone and Korea Telecom to testify the viability of network slicing and massive Multiple Input Multiple Output technology on emerging 5G business models. After achieving a semblance of stability, Nokia believes its end-to-end capabilities are a key differentiator in the 5G equipment space. At a time, when the telecom companies are resorting to a multi-vendor approach, the Finland-based company insists that procuring equipment and services from a single vendor can reduce total cost of ownership by more than 20% as well as reduce time to market by at least 30%. This, in turn, is driving Nokias goal to reduce costs by $556 million by the end of 2020. Although the Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock has been struggling amid intense competition and geopolitical tensions. It is one of the few companies that leverages best-in-class technological capabilities to transform the way people and things communicate and connect with each other. With more and more rivals seeking to prey on Nokias market share, the company seems confident to revive its go-to-market strategy with roadmap investments. Much of this solid momentum can be attributed to its foundation of mutual trust and confidence from the existing pool of customers that enabled seamless transition from 4G to 5G. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Nokia Corporation (NOK) : Free Stock Analysis Report Citigroup Inc. (C) : Free Stock Analysis Report Ericsson (ERIC) : Free Stock Analysis Report T-Mobile US, Inc. (TMUS) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research More Midwest-based insurers are offering premium payment relief to their auto insurance customers as a result of the COVID-19 health crisis. Branch Insurance, Grange Insurance, Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, Ohio Mutual Insurance Group and Westfield Insurance are among the Midwest-based insurers that recently announced plans to help their customers with auto insurance premium relief because driving activity has slowed down as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Branch Branch, a Columbus, Ohio-based insurtech startup, is giving back 15% of monthly insurance premiums to auto policyholders in response to the current health crisis. This credit will apply to auto policies in effect during April and May and will be offered in unique options. Policyholders will be able to receive this credit themselves or help someone that is struggling financially, through the Branch nonprofit entity SafetyNest . Grange Insurance Columbus, Ohio-based Grange Insurance said its auto insurance customers will receive a 25% premium refund for April and May related to the various COVID-19 shelter-in-place orders. The company estimates the impact to be up to $25 million in relief throughout all of its operating states. Grange also is offering a grace period to pay premiums for personal and commercial policyholders impacted by the circumstances of the COVID-19 crisis. In addition, to support its commercial restaurant clients and personal auto policyholders who work in the restaurant industry, the company has temporarily suspended the enforcement of the food delivery exclusion in personal auto policies. For insured restaurant owners that need to offer food delivery services, Grange is providing commercial auto coverage to address the gap during the crisis. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance is offering premium payment due date extensions from March 19, 2020, to May 18, 2020, to insures who need to delay payment. The company is also issuing premium refunds to auto insurance clients. The company said customers can expect to receive $20 refunds for each personal auto policy. Customers with multiple vehicles insured with Indiana Farm Bureau will receive $20 for each vehicle. Ohio Mutual Ohio Mutual, based in Bucyrus, Ohio, is offering personal auto premium credits on more than 80,000 personal auto policies for an estimated total of $6 million. The company is voluntarily providing a 25% personal auto premium credit that applies to an 11-week period (March 16 May 31, 2020) for all policies in-force on May 31. Credits will be automatically applied to customers first invoice after June 1. Those with a balance less than the credit will receive a refund by check. Westfield Insurance Personal auto customers of Westfield Insurance, based in Westfield Center, Ohio, will receive a 15 percent credit on their eligible monthly auto premium for the months of April, May and June 2020. Customers with an active personal auto policy as of April 30, 2020, will receive the full credit to their account in the month of May 2020. Altogether, Westfield is returning more than $16 million dollars to personal insurance customers. Westfield is also offering flexible billing solutions to help customers facing financial hardships. In addition, Westfield will: Provide coverage to customers with a Personal Auto policy who are engaged in delivery of essential goods, including food delivery. Waive the limit for additional living expenses for customers who have experienced a claim that requires them to relocate from their residence where repairs are delayed as a result of business closures and other servicing difficulties associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Waive the limit for rental reimbursement for customers who have an insured vehicle in for personal auto repairs as a result of a claim and repairs are delayed as a result of business closures and other servicing difficulties associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Related: Topics Carriers Auto Personal Auto Ohio Indiana When youre in the market for a new place to live, finding the right neighborhood is everything. But in our current state, with shelter-in-place orders in full effect in many areas (and mere common sense limiting people's excursions), scoping out a new neighborhood can be a little more challenging. But with some online detective work and the right tools, you can learn a lot about a neighborhood without leaving your home. That's because you're not the first one to consider buying a home without being able to pound the pavement personally. As buyer's agents, we will often shoot video of the neighborhood and/or home for our out-of-area clients, says Katie Wethman, a real estate agent with the Wethman Group at Keller Williams in McLean, VA. We also have video streaming apps like FaceTime, Skype, and Zoom to bring them with us. Even though you won't be able to pop in to a local coffee shop or take a leisurely stroll down Main Street, exploring a neighborhood in the time of coronavirus is possible. So let your fingers do the walkingon your laptopand get to digging. Here's how to start your research. 1. Check out neighborhood publications and local social media An active neighborhood community will sometimes have a print publication or local social media groups that connect residents. These can provide information on local events and activities that will give you a better feel for the neighborhood. For example, Carlsbad, CA, has a local publication called Carlsbad Magazine, which covers all of the cultural happenings in North San Diego County, as well as a Facebook page. Browse Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for groups or accounts that document what's going on in the neighborhood where you're interested in moving. You can even interact with locals in the community who can give you their opinions of their locale. 2. Take a walk with Google Want to take a stroll around your potential new neighborhood without leaving the couch? Google Street View is a great way to walk the street and neighborhood virtually, says Wethman. Every listing on realtor.com features a link to the Google Street View for that address. Take a look at the Google Street View on realtor.com. realtor.com Another way to access Google Street View is to go to google.com/maps, type in the address of the house you're interested in, and click on the photo of the property in the menu to the left of the map. If Google Street View is available for that address, you should be able to click and drag the image to move down the street. Search engines like Google also let you filter for videos when you search the neighborhood name," says Wethman. "Try adding review to your search terms, and also neighborhood association or homeowners association for better results. 3. Browse websites with neighborhood data You want to gather as much information as possible on your next neighborhood, and there are a lot of websites that can help you do that. City-Data provides detailed city profiles about everything from cost of living to weather to average home prices, and its forums give useful insight from community locals. Plug in your ZIP code at AreaVibes to get a livability score and help narrow down the best places to live. Yelp provides not only reviews on local cafes, restaurants, and nightlife, but also unfiltered reviews from local residents. 4. Search other real estate listings To learn about the typical architectural styles and ages of homes in a neighborhood, browse online listings on sites like realtor.com. Is the neighborhood full of '50s ranch homes or hundred-year-old Victorians? Looking at the homes for sale will clue you in. 5. Call a real estate agent Its also a good idea to get in touch with a tech-savvy real estate agentand these days, that's most of them. A real estate agent can help by using technology to test-drive the neighborhood for you. This can easily be done by making a video of the neighborhood and sharing it with you, says John Myers, a real estate agent with Myers & Myers Real Estate in Albuquerque, NM. Myers says he has helped a lady from New York City purchase a home in Albuquerque by using a video calling app called Duo. If you've identified a home you're interested in, contact the listing agent for more information about the neighborhood. The pro will be sure to have an insider's perspective on the area and extensive knowledge on homes there. 6. Investigate schools and educational data Relocating with your family? Then you will want to research schools in the area. A good resource is GreatSchools, which provides data on K-12 schools and reviews from parents. Areas with great schools typically maintain property values, and its neighborhoods are highly coveted. And if you want to research education statistics, U.S. News & World Report has rankings of high schools with data on more than 23,000 public high schools in all 50 states. 7. Check crime rates Safety is a priority for both buyers and renters, and crime rates can give you a picture of how safe or dangerous a neighborhood is. Low crime rates are not only safer but can also help keep property values high. Websites such as CrimeReports can provide crime data from law enforcement agencies. To see if there are registered sex offenders living nearby, type the address of your potential new home in the National Sex Offender Registry's public website. 8. Plan your daily commute Wethman also suggests getting a feel for the neighborhood by monitoring traffic and your potential work commute. I recommend people test-drive the commute using commuting tools that predict traffic like Waze or Google Maps, says Wethman. These tools will predict the level of traffic during your commute hours and give you an idea of how long it'll take to get to work. Realtor.com also offers a similar commute time feature on every home listing. The post 8 Ways To Test-Drive a Neighborhood While Sheltering in Place appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. If that person that was in her room passed away from that, and my mother was in that room with her, I would have at least expected them, if possible, to let us know: Your mother was in a room with somebody that was positive, so were going to be keeping an eye on her for a couple of weeks just to make sure, Loredo said. But nothing. Sarah Brett and Chris Buckler had a rather unusual first day in their new jobs as presenters of BBC Radio Ulsters flagship breakfast news programme Good Morning Ulster. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, there were over a hundred miles between the pair on Monday as they hosted their first show together. As they took to the airwaves, Buckler, who was broadcasting solo from the BBC studio in Belfast, pointed out that "things had changed a little" as faithful listeners were greeted by their new hosts for the first time. He said: "There are different people sitting in the chair but we hope to make sure that we become your new friends." Meanwhile, Brett was on air from her home in Donegal. "Testing both the limits of the broadband in this area and my technical ability so if it all goes horribly wrong, well, you can blame me, she joked. Not your average studio. Not your usual first day. Great to be with you all this morning from 7am on @BBCgmu with @csbuckler #home pic.twitter.com/VdP1P1Vl0a Sarah Brett (@SJBretty) April 20, 2020 Buckler acknowledged that they had big shoes to fill as they follow in the footsteps of broadcasters Noel Thompson and Karen Patterson, as well as Seamus McKee, Conor Bradford and Wendy Austin who presented the show before them. Obviously this is a great programme and we had planned lots of different changes but things havent quite worked out. Its a very different time but its a very important time to be on the radio, said Buckler. We are here for you, day in and day out. Were not going anywhere," Brett promised. "Its the strangest first day I think Ive ever had but I think I can speak for both of us today, were both very proud to be here and thank you very much for having us. Buckler had been working as the BBC's Washington Correspondent, reporting on the Trump administration and stories across north America, while Brett hosted her own late night discussion programme on BBC Radio 5 live. Born in Northampton, Brett moved to Donegal when she was four years old. She has been working for the BBC since 2004 when she joined Radio Foyle. Brett and Buckler, who both worked as journalists at the Belfast Telegraph before joining the BBC, were praised for a successful first show, despite the exceptional circumstances. "Great new team this morning," one listener commented. "Good blend of voices. Sarah has great poetic voice and Chris blends with this. Best wishes for the future to you both." Another remarked on the broadcasters' chemistry, saying: "Big props to Good Morning Ulster who started with new presenters today in the middle of all of this. The banter was there, even though the presenters werent physically in the same room. It was a good show. Bravo!" One listener welcomed Sarah home from Manchester "at this crazy time, when journalism of the standard you bring is more needed than ever". It was announced in November 2019 that broadcasters Thompson and Patterson were stepping away from presenting Good Morning Ulster. The BBC said the presenters took the opportunity to stand down following a review into its schedules and programmes and they would be taking on new challenges and "enjoy a change of pace". It was also a new look for BBC Radio Ulster's drive time news programme Evening Extra, with Tara Mill and Declan Harvey in the studio for their first show on Monday. Tara has been a familiar face on BBC NI for many years as a BBC Newsline presenter and reporter. Declan joined BBC NI three years ago after working as a news journalist for BBC Radio 1's Newsbeat. Declan said: "That is it for our first programme on Evening Extra. Thank you for company. Tara, I thought you did great," with Tara replying, "I thought you were even better." NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- X-By-Wire Systems market worldwide is projected to grow by 179.4 Million Units, driven by a compounded growth of 14%. Throttle-by-Wire, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 13.2%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market. Poised to reach over 208.6 Million Units by the year 2025, Throttle-by-Wire will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05112934/?utm_source=PRN - Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 15% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over 7.2 Million Units to the region's size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over 8.6 Million Units worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Throttle-by-Wire will reach a market size of 14.9 Million Units by the close of the analysis period. As the world's second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 13.8% over the next couple of years and add approximately 31.8 Million Units in terms of addressable opportunity for the picking by aspiring businesses and their astute leaders. Presented in visually rich graphics are these and many more need-to-know quantitative data important in ensuring quality of strategy decisions, be it entry into new markets or allocation of resources within a portfolio. Several macroeconomic factors and internal market forces will shape growth and development of demand patterns in emerging countries in Asia-Pacific. All research viewpoints presented are based on validated engagements from influencers in the market, whose opinions supersede all other research methodologies. - Competitors identified in this market include, among others, Continental AG CTS Corporation Curtiss-Wright Corporation Danaher Motion LORD Corporation Mobil Elektronik GmbH Orscheln Products LLC Robert Bosch GmbH RLP Engineering SKF Group TORC Robotics Inc. ZF TRW ZF Friedrichshafen AG Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05112934/?utm_source=PRN I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. MARKET OVERVIEW Automobile "Electronification": The Cornerstone for Growth of X-By Wire Systems Recent Market Activity X By Wire: Market Review Market Outlook Global Competitor Market Shares X-By-Wire Systems Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2020 & 2029 2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS Continental AG (Germany) CTS Corporation (USA) Curtiss-Wright Corporation (USA) LORD Corporation (USA) Mobil Elektronik GmbH (Germany) Orscheln Products LLC (USA) Robert Bosch GmbH (Germany) SKF Group (Sweden) TORC Robotics, Inc. (USA) ZF Friedrichshafen AG (Germany) 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS Focus on Lightweighting Fuels the X By Wire Trend Focus on Vehicle Stability Control Fuels Engineering Interest in X by Wire X by Wire: The Foundation for Driverless Cars Design Flexibility Spurs Interest in X by Wire Systems Trend Towards Auto Transmission Benefits Shift by Wire Transmission Systems Drive-by-Wire: Primped As the Technology of the Future Electronic Throttle Control: The Most Widely Used X-by-Wire System Surging Interest in E-Mobility Paves the Way for X-by-Wire Systems Component Manufacturers' Focus On X By Wire Research to Benefit Market Growth ZF Friedrichshafen AG Remains Committed to Innovation in Auto Electronics Continental to Develop Electronic Brake System Robert Bosch Develops iBooster & eClutch Siemens Focuses on Developing BbW & SbW Systems Stable Automobile Production to Benefit Market Growth Expanding Middle Class Population in Developing Countries Fuels Growth Off-Highway Vehicles: A Major End-Use Sector for X-By-Wire Systems Stringent Regulations Governing Dependability of Automotive Systems Dampen Market Growth Rise in Vehicle Recalls Due to Failure of X-by-Wire Systems Aggravates Safety Concerns Automotive Fiber Optics & Fault Tolerant Electronics & Communication: The Answer to Reliability Issues in X by Wire Systems 42Volt Bus: The Solution for High Power Requirements in Automobiles 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE Table 1: X-By-Wire Systems Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in Thousand Units by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 2: X-By-Wire Systems Global Retrospective Market Scenario in Thousand Units by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 3: X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 4: Throttle-by-Wire (Technology) World Market by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2018 to 2025 Table 5: Throttle-by-Wire (Technology) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2009 to 2017 Table 6: Throttle-by-Wire (Technology) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 7: Shift-by-Wire (Technology) Potential Growth Markets Worldwide in Thousand Units: 2018 to 2025 Table 8: Shift-by-Wire (Technology) Historic Market Perspective by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2009 to 2017 Table 9: Shift-by-Wire (Technology) Market Sales Breakdown by Region/Country in Percentage: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 10: Other Technologies (Technology) Geographic Market Spread Worldwide in Thousand Units: 2018 to 2025 Table 11: Other Technologies (Technology) Region Wise Breakdown of Global Historic Demand in Thousand Units: 2009 to 2017 Table 12: Other Technologies (Technology) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 13: Passenger Cars (Vehicle Type) World Market Estimates and Forecasts by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2018 to 2025 Table 14: Passenger Cars (Vehicle Type) Market Historic Review by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2009 to 2017 Table 15: Passenger Cars (Vehicle Type) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 16: Commercial Vehicles (Vehicle Type) World Market by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2018 to 2025 Table 17: Commercial Vehicles (Vehicle Type) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in Thousand Units: 2009 to 2017 Table 18: Commercial Vehicles (Vehicle Type) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 III. MARKET ANALYSIS GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US X-By-Wire Systems Market Share (in %) by Company: 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 19: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Thousand Units in the United States by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 20: United States X-By-Wire Systems Market Retrospective Analysis in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 21: United States X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 22: United States X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 23: X-By-Wire Systems Market in the United States by Vehicle Type: A Historic Review in Thousand Units for 2009-2017 Table 24: United States X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CANADA Table 25: X-By-Wire Systems Market Analysis in Canada in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 26: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Canada: Historic Review in Thousand Units by Technology for the Period 2009-2017 Table 27: Canadian X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 28: Canadian X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 29: Canadian X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Review by Vehicle Type in Thousand Units: 2009-2017 Table 30: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Canada: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Vehicle Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 JAPAN Table 31: Japanese Medium & Long-Term Outlook for X-By-Wire Systems Market in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 32: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Japan in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 33: Japanese X-By-Wire Systems Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 34: Japanese Market for X-By-Wire Systems: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 35: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 36: Japanese X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Analysis by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CHINA Table 37: X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in China in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 38: Chinese X-By-Wire Systems Retrospective Market Scenario in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 39: X-By-Wire Systems Market in China: Percentage Share Analysis by Technology for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 40: Chinese X-By-Wire Systems Market Growth Prospects in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 41: X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Analysis in China in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2009-2017 Table 42: Chinese X-By-Wire Systems Market by Vehicle Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European X-By-Wire Systems Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 43: European X-By-Wire Systems Market Demand Scenario in Thousand Units by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 44: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in Thousand Units by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 45: European X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 46: European X-By-Wire Systems Market Assessment in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 47: European X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Review in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 48: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Europe: Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Technology for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 49: European X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2018-2025 Table 50: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Europe in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 51: European X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 FRANCE Table 52: French X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 53: French X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Analysis in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 54: French X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 55: X-By-Wire Systems Market in France by Vehicle Type: Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units for the Period 2018-2025 Table 56: French X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Scenario in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2009-2017 Table 57: French X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Analysis by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 GERMANY Table 58: German X-By-Wire Systems Latent Demand Forecasts in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 59: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Germany: A Historic Perspective by Technology in Thousand Units for the Period 2009-2017 Table 60: German X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 61: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 62: German X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Analysis in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2009-2017 Table 63: German X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ITALY Table 64: X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in Italy in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 65: Italian X-By-Wire Systems Retrospective Market Scenario in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 66: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Italy: Percentage Share Analysis by Technology for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 67: Italian X-By-Wire Systems Market Growth Prospects in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 68: X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Analysis in Italy in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2009-2017 Table 69: Italian X-By-Wire Systems Market by Vehicle Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 UNITED KINGDOM Table 70: United Kingdom Medium & Long-Term Outlook for X-By-Wire Systems Market in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 71: X-By-Wire Systems Market in the United Kingdom in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 72: United Kingdom X-By-Wire Systems Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 73: United Kingdom Market for X-By-Wire Systems: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 74: X-By-Wire Systems Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 75: United Kingdom X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Analysis by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF EUROPE Table 76: Rest of Europe X-By-Wire Systems Market Assessment in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 77: Rest of Europe X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Review in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 78: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Rest of Europe: Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Technology for 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 79: Rest of Europe X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2018-2025 Table 80: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Rest of Europe in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 81: Rest of Europe X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 82: Asia-Pacific X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 83: Asia-Pacific X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Analysis in Thousand Units by Technology: 2009-2017 Table 84: Asia-Pacific X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 85: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Asia-Pacific by Vehicle Type: Estimates and Projections in Thousand Units for the Period 2018-2025 Table 86: Asia-Pacific X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Scenario in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2009-2017 Table 87: Asia-Pacific X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Analysis by Vehicle Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF WORLD Table 88: X-By-Wire Systems Market Analysis in Rest of World in Thousand Units by Technology: 2018-2025 Table 89: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Rest of World: Historic Review in Thousand Units by Technology for the Period 2009-2017 Table 90: Rest of World X-By-Wire Systems Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 91: Rest of World X-By-Wire Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in Thousand Units by Vehicle Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 92: Rest of World X-By-Wire Systems Historic Market Review by Vehicle Type in Thousand Units: 2009-2017 Table 93: X-By-Wire Systems Market in Rest of World: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Vehicle Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 IV. COMPETITION Total Companies Profiled: 29 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05112934/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com OTTAWA, April 6, 2020 /CNW/ - As Canada rises to the challenge of COVID-19, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Statistics Canada have created a new weapon: time-sensitive data about what businesses are going through and how they are planning for the eventual recovery. The two organizations are teaming up to create the Canadian Survey of Business Conditions (CSBC), potentially one of the largest crowdsourced business intelligence survey in Canadian history. It will examine issues like the impact that COVID-19 has had on businesses, changes that businesses have made to adapt to the ongoing situation, challenges they continue to face and challenges they expect to face as the recovery begins, and will provide new insights into trends within the business community "Credible, reliable data is the foundation for sound decision-making by business leaders, market analysts and policy makers. During a crisis like COVID-19, relevant and timely data is mission critical, and that's why we've partnered with Statistics Canada to leverage our network of 200,000 businesses. The survey will be an invaluable tool for government to understand what businesses are going through during the shutdown, but also going forward as we recover and return to growth," said Jackie King, Chief Operating Officer of the Canadian Chamber. The new survey will be in the field this week and collect data on how businesses are currently coping with COVID-19, but the survey may be repeated in the coming weeks, depending on how the situation progresses. "The collaboration between Statistics Canada and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce is innovative and ambitious. It is one of the largest crowdsourced surveys in the agency's 100-year history. The partnership and collaboration with the Chamber are a demonstration of what can be achieved when like-minded organizations work together. The results of this survey will provide the crucial insights needed right now to navigate the way forward for Canadian businesses and governments in addressing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is this collaborative solution that is needed to effectively respond to this unprecedented situation," Anil Arora, Chief Statistician of Canada. The Canadian Chamber will also work with over 100 of Canada's leading business and industry associations, including the Business Council of Canada, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business and Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, to bring the full benefit of their respective memberships to the survey. "We are calling on every business to participate in this survey, today and going forward. We do not make this request lightly, we know this is a very difficult time for business owners and entrepreneurs. The CSBC is how we bring your voice into the data that will shape policy decisions going forward. A few minutes of your time will help decision makers pinpoint what businesses like yours really need," added King. About Statistics Canada Statistics Canada's mission is to serve Canada with high-quality statistical information that matters. The Agency produces statistics that help Canadians better understand their country-its economy, society and environment. Objective statistical information is vital to an open and democratic society. It provides a solid foundation for informed decisions by elected representatives, businesses, unions and non-profit organizations, as well as individual Canadians. About the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Because Business Matters The Canadian Chamber of Commerce helps build the businesses that support our families, our communities and our country. We do this by influencing government policy, by providing essential business services and by connecting businesses to information they can use, to opportunities for growth and to a network of local chambers, businesses, decision-makers and peers from across the country, in every sector of the economy and at all levels of government, as well as internationally. We are unapologetic in our support for business and the vital role it plays in building and sustaining our great nation. SOURCE Statistics Canada For further information: Statistics Canada Media Relations: [email protected]; Phil Taylor, [email protected] (preferred and fastest response time) Related Links www.statcan.gc.ca American news website Business Insider has praised a new Vietnamese song for lifting up peoples spirits to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. Minh Beta, the songwriter, rejected dismay and picked up the fight against the pandemic in the most positive way by cheering the nation with his upbeat song, it said. The song "Vietnam oi! Danh Bay Covid" (Vietnam! Let's Fight Covid), has been endorsed by Vietnams Health Ministry. The official music video of the song was released April 1 on YouTube and it went viral quickly thanks to its positive messages and the appearances of guest stars as superheroes in the battle against the novel coronavirus. An English version of the song was also introduced several days ago. "Let us stay at home because to stay at home is to love our country," Minh said, introducing the music video on his Facebook page. He chose the superheroes concept to appreciate the unsung heroes who have been tirelessly working in the frontlines of the pandemic and to call on heroic virtues in each individual to support the fight, Minh said. Other Vietnamese artists have also won praise for using their talents to join the nation's Covid-19 fight, including those who have created posters to motivate the general public to participate in the battle against the deadly virus. Last month, a Vietnamese public announcement on the Covid-19 in the form of a song was carried by famous comedy show "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" aired March 2. Cover versions of the song, translated into English, were later done by other artists. Kumahood actor Lilwin who is the brand ambassador for Bel-Malt presented over 5000 bottles of Bel products to KATH and the Regional Police Command. The multiple award winning act in media briefing after the donation said, "I want to do my best to ensure frontliners are well taken care of, considering how they aree risking their lives for us and really appreciate their work so far. "They have done tremendously well over the past weeks and I would urge fellow citizens to listen to all guidelines by the various health authorities and stay home to stop the spread." ACP David Agyemang Adjem, Deputy Ashanti Regional Police Commander, who received the items on behalf of the Command was grateful to Lilwin for his kind gesture and support towards ''Operation COVID safety" and also urged the general public to comply with the Presidential directives which is aimed at saving lives. Lilwin also visited some security officials who were at some check points to enforce the restriction of movement in some areas in Greater Kumasi. ---GNA A scientist at Columbia University in New York says a certain kind of light may be the secret to killing off the novel coronavirus. Dr David Brenner, director of the school's Center of Radiological Research, has been studying how to use ultraviolet light - better known as UV light - to prevent the spread of diseases for years. Germicidal UV light is used in hospitals and medical centers to clean rooms and equipment, but it's a health hazard to humans and can cause skin cancer and eye diseases. But there is a special type of UV light called far-UVC light that kills microbes but is not dangerous. Scientists are studying a special type of UV light, known as far-UVC light, that can kill microbes without penetrating human skin (pictured) A 2018 study found that it can kill more than 95% of viruses like the coronavirus. Pictured: Ambulance workers pickup an elderly man from Cobble Hill Health Center in Brooklyn, New York, April 18 China and South Korea are currently using UV light to clean buses and trains to speed up the reopening of mass transit. Pictured: A bus is being disinfected by ultraviolet light in Shanghai, China, March 4 Conventional germicidal UV light kills microbes but also penetrates the skin, raising the risk of various forms of skin cancer as well as cataracts. Far-UVC light, on the other hand, is powerful enough to be used as a cleanser but does not damage skin cells. Before the coronavirus outbreak occurred, Brenner was studying whether far-UVC light could kill airborne viruses, in preparation for flu season. A 2018 study published in Scientific Reports, which Brenner co-authored, shows that the light can kill more than 95 percent of viruses like the coronavirus. That's because the virus is covered with a thin membrane that is easily broken apart by UV rays. Brenner's team has since tested the light against two seasonal coronaviruses, and is now testing the strain responsible for the pandemic, SARS-CoV-2. 'We saw we can kill 99 percent of the virus with a very low dose of far-UVC light,' he told ABC News. 'There's no reason to believe it's going to be different from these results.' However, there is one hiccup. Far-UVC lamps have not yet been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. If they are approved, Brenner told ABC News they could be used in any public places include modes of transport like airports and train stations, in addition to schools and hospitals. 'Right now there is no real approach to trying to reduce the amount of viruses in a room where people are and somebody sneezes and coughs,' he said. 'If you could actually decontaminate the air around you pretty quickly, that would be a real plus.' When states begin to re-open their economies, disinfection - of door handles, mass transit system, elevators and such - will be a top priority to prevent a second wave. In China and South Korea, either installed UV light or attached to robots is being used to clean buses, trains and more in just five minutes. Many health experts say this method is safer, faster and cheaper than other disinfecting measures and could accelerate the reopening of the economy. In the US, there are currently 771,000 confirmed cases of the virus and more than 41,000 deaths. Not all of the Duggars are taking social distancing seriously, at least not when it comes time to worship. While a few members of the Duggar clan have posted about keeping their distance during the pandemic, family followers note that the majority have stayed quiet, leading critics to theorize that they are not abiding by strict regulations. Recent photos may suggest their assumptions were right. Several of the Duggar kids, many of whom dont live together, were spotted attending church services together. Jason Duggar, as well as several of his siblings, were spotted at church services Life Is Not All Pickles and Hairspray, a Facebook group dedicated to discussing the Duggar family, recently posted pictures showing several of the Duggars taking part in church services. In one photo, Jason Duggar is seen speaking on stage, alongside Paul Caldwell. Paul is the father of Kendra Caldwell. Kendra married into the Duggar family in 2017. While the photos are not dated, family critics believe the snapshots were taken in April 2020. Jason isnt the only Duggar who appears to be in attendance, either. Monsters & Critics note that Josiah Duggar and Lauren Swanson appear to be present in the pictures, as well as Joshua Duggar and his wife, Anna Duggar. Arkansas does not currently have a ban on church services. They are considered essential, in the state, during the pandemic. The Duggars were also slammed for hosting a family night Shortly after strict distancing instructions were put in place for much of the country, the Duggar family took to social media to share a family event. Family events are not uncommon for the Duggars. Austin Forsyth noted, in a recent YouTube video, that the Duggar family gets together every Monday evening at the familys Springdale, Arkansas compound. Critics, however, think the family should have suspended the gatherings considering the nations current health emergency. The meeting, which included at least 18 people, many of whom do not currently reside together, went against all medical advice, although it didnt exactly flounce state rules. At the time of the gettogether, Arkansas did not have any social distancing protocols put in place. The state was among the last in the country to enact distancing rules to combat the Coronavirus. The photos further the narrative that Jason Duggar is currently courting a Caldwell While many people are concerned about Jason taking part in church services during the pandemic, family followers cant help but wonder what his involvement actually means. Jason is pictured front and center on stage, suggesting he has a pretty large role in the weekly services. Does a significant role at Pastor Caldwells service indicate that Jason is courting one of the Caldwells? Rumors have been swirling for months that Jason is currently involved with Lauren Caldwell. Lauren and Jason, both 19, were spotted together in Greece last year. Later, it was rumored that Lauren was dating a different Duggar boy. Fans noticed that Lauren and James Duggar were looking a little close. With Jasons current involvement with the familys church, perhaps a courtship is back on. By Express News Service BENGALURU: Residents of Padarayanapura on Sunday evening went on the rampage and vandalized a pandal and police check-post when a team of BBMP officials along with police arrived there to take 58 secondary contacts of a deceased COVID-19 patient into quarantine. As the patient died on Sunday, the BBMP health officials drew up a list of secondary contacts who had to be quarantined and tested for the coronavirus. Police sources said all these 58 people had been identified and it was decided to quarantine them at a hotel. On Sunday evening, around 25 BBMP staffers and police personnel went to the houses of the contacts and convinced 10-12 of them to be quarantined. Though they all cooperated and were ready to come with us to the hotel where they were supposed to be quarantined, other residents in the locality started demanding that they not be taken out and arrangements be made to home-quarantine them. While we tried to convince them that it was being done in the interest of other residents in the locality, about 200 people went on the rampage, vandalising the pandal and chairs, where police staff would sit as the area is sealed off, a police officer, who was part of team, said. Padarayanapura has been sealed off since April 11 on finding five COVID-19 positive cases in one house. As there were chances that it could have take a different turn altogether if we tried to stop them, we were asked not to intervene. The entire episode lasted 20 minutes from 7.20 pm and all went back home after that. It appeared to be an act of frustration. Meanwhile, the secondary contacts were taken to the hotel and quarantined, he said. The incident was reported to the police top brass, who rushed to the spot immediately. Corporator Imran Pasha, DCP (West) B Ramesh and others spoke to the residents and appealed to them to maintain peace. Ramesh said the incident would be taken seriously and strict action initiated against those involved in vandalism. Two Chinese doctors who were critically ill with COVID-19 have seen their skin turned dark after being brought back from the brink of death. Dr Yi Fan and Dr Hu Weifeng, both 42, caught the novel coronavirus while treating patients at the Wuhan Central Hospital in January. Their abnormal skin colour is caused by hormonal imbalances after their livers were damaged by the virus, their doctor told Chinese state media. Dr Yi (pictured on the left before falling ill) beat COVID-19 after being hooked to a life-support machine for 39 days. He is seen after being revived in a clip released by Beijing Satellite TV Dr Hu (pictured on the left before falling ill) has been bed-bound for 99 days and was undergoing ECMO therapy for 45 days. His overall health is weak, his doctor told state media Dr Yi and Dr Hu are colleagues with late whistle-blower Li Wenliang, who was punished for sounding the alarm of the virus and then died of the disease on February 7. The two medics were both diagnosed on January 18. They were taken first to the Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital and then transferred to Tongji Hospital's Zhongfa Xincheng branch, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. Dr Yi, a cardiologist, beat COVID-19 after doctors hooked him to a life-support machine called ECMO for 39 days. ECMO is a drastic life-support procedure which replaces the function of the heart and lungs by pumping oxygen into the blood outside the body. Dr Yi and Dr Hu were saved by a life-support machine called ECMO. The picture shows medical staff treating a critical patient with an ECMO at the Red Cross hospital in Wuhan on March 1 Speaking to CCTV from his hospital bed on Monday, Dr Yi said he had largely recovered. He said he could move in bed normally, but was still struggling to walk independently. Dr Yi confessed that the ordeal of battling the deadly disease had, to a certain degree, traumatised him. He told a reporter: 'When I first gained conscious, especially after I got to know about my condition, I felt scared. I had nightmares often.' He said he was trying to overcome the psychological hurdle. He added doctors often comforted him and had arranged counselling for him. He is now being looked after in an ordinary ward. Dr Yi told his doctor that he was recovering well and his wounds had largely healed on April 6 Dr Hu was not able to speak at the time, but he shook hands with his doctor to thank him Footage released by Beijing TV Station shows Dr Zhan Qingyuan from China-Japan Friendship Hospital talking to Dr Yi and Dr Hu in their wards on April 6 in Tongji Hospital. Beijing-based Dr Zhan had been treating the pair and was checking on them before he and his team left Wuhan and returned to the capital city. Dr Yi told Dr Zhan he was recovering well and his wounds had largely healed while Dr Zhan told Dr Yi it was his responsibility to 'save his comrade'. Dr Hu was not able to speak at the time due to his poor health, but he shook hands with Dr Zhan to express his gratitude. Dr Yi, a cardiologist, and Dr Hu, a urologist, work for the Wuhan Central Hospital. The file photo show a doctor checking the condition of a COVID-19 patients in Wuhan on February 13 Dr Hu's condition was more serious. The urologist has been bed-bound for 99 days and his overall health is weak, said Dr Li Shusheng who treated Dr Hu. Dr Li said he was worried about Dr Hu's mental health. 'He could not stop talking to the doctors who come to check on him,' Dr Li said. Dr Hu underwent ECMO therapy from February 7 to March 22 and regained his ability to speak on April 11. He is still being looked after in the intensive care units in the same hospital as Dr Yi. Dr Li suspected that the two medics' skin turned dark due to a type of medicine they had received at the beginning of the treatment. He added that one of the drug's side effects is the darkening of the skin colour. He did not name the drug. Dr Li expected both medics' skin colour to return to normal after the function of their livers improves. Theres a section of Carrier Managements May/June 2020 edition focused on new ways to manage risk at a time of accelerating change. The topic was appropriately conceived by our guest editor, David Bradford, a reinsurance industry veteran who was also the co-founder of what is now a 20-year-old InsurTech. CM reached out to Bradford to develop a part of this magazine that was scheduled to be physically delivered to the RIMS 2020 annual meeting. Now working as a consultant advising traditional players and startups on risk challenges and innovation strategies, Bradford drew his inspiration from the 50-year-old book Future Shock by Alvin Toffler, which describes a world where too much change happens in too short a period of time. Thats how insurers and reinsurers were feeling when advances in technology and data were emerging faster than they could update systems, understand risks and conceive of new products for the modern economy. In fact, according to a survey published by Willis Tower Watson in February, insurance executives ranked cybersecurity and disruptive technology as the most dangerous risks they were facing. (Related article, Pre-COVID, Cybersecurity Tops Insurer Ranking of Dangerous Risks) That was all before the coronavirus pandemic grew to epic proportions and change stopped accelerating. In fact, the world stopped. For many of usespecially people like me who live in the epicenter in the Corona/Elmhurst ZIP code in New Yorklistening to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has become a daily constant as we watch the world from our windows and look for signs of change. On April 1, Cuomo started talking about the future. We should start looking forward at how this experience will change usor how it should change us, he said. This will be a transformative experience on a personal, social and systems basis. Going on to acknowledge fears that might prompt us to accept isolation for good, he continued: We must make sure the change is positive. How do we grow from this? he asked. If you get up, how do you get up? Do you get up smarter and wiser, or bitter, angry and fearful? How do you make the economy more resilient? he asked, noting that something like this will happen again. Were seeing it with floods and hurricanes. Why werent we ready?Why dont we gear our medical research to these threats and challenges? he asked, calling for future thinking about backing up first responders who fall ill and about the need for societal stability. You cant just tell everyone, Sit on your couch and order takeout. Thats not how we were built. I have included so much of Cuomos April address because this is an industry that deals with catastrophe on a regular basis. I hope that at the time youre reading this, you are safe and planning for the futureand youre reflecting on Cuomos central questions as they apply to your lives and your companies: How has this changed you personally? As a leader? How has it changed your company? The trajectory its been on? In Cuomos words, Were never going to be the same. Were not going to forget what happened. Profiles of several leaders who have made gigantic leaps in their careers are included in the May/June edition too. They suggest that our industry is up to the challenges that lie ahead when the world restarts. CM would like to include the thoughts of insurance and reinsurance leaders on these questions in our next edition. Please contact me if youd like to share your views for publication (ssclafane@carriermanagement.com). Regular contributor Philip Young shares with us his personal view on whether churches should marry same-sex couples. Regular contributor Philip Young shares with us his personal view on whether churches should marry same-sex couples. Christian retreat centre has new Chair of Trustees Paul Dunning has recently been appointed as Chair of Trustees of the Quiet Waters Christian Retreat Centre. He explains how he got involved and how others can do the same. Read more Magdalene Group: Women's Specialist Practitioner The Norwich-based Magdalene Group needs a Womens Specialist Practitioner to provide gender and trauma-informed support to women experiencing multiple disadvantage and provide support to female sex workers and victims of sexual exploitation and coercion. Read more Ringsfield Hall offers residential trips on Norfolk border Ringsfield Hall provides children with outdoor residential opportunities through school trips. Activities relate to nature, care for the planet and very special care and respect for the physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing of each child. Read more Ministers outreach at Sheringham model boat lake Local Christian, Graham Pickhaver has been sharing his testimony by giving out tracts at the model boating lake in Sheringham. Read more Chance to meet Norwich Christian leaders at lunch Christian church and ministry leaders are invited to the first Transforming Norwich lunch of 2022 on Wednesday January 26 at St Stephen's Church in Norwich city centre. Read more God of the second chance Jane Walters encourages us to embark on a new start with Jesus as 2022 gets underway. Read more Yarmouth church provides free hot food for needy Kingsgate Community Church in Yarmouth has re-started their Hot Food Hub, providing free hot meals for local people in need. Read more Norwich Christian unity service set for RC Cathedral All Christian churches and groups are invited to an ecumenical service on January 20 at St John's Cathedral in Norwich to pray for Christian unity. Read more Aylsham Christian charity seeks needy recipients The Cressey Henry Page Charitable Trust has been helping the poor of Aylsham for nearly 500 years, and is now seeking more needy people who need help. Read more Centre offers Christian holidays on the Norfolk coast With stunning locations in North Norfolk and North Wales, Christian Endeavour Holiday Centres are places to relax the body, replenish the mind, and rejuvenate the soul. Read more YMCA Norfolk needs two Wellbeing workers YMCA Norfolk is looking for a Wellbeing Engagement Worker and a Business Support Officer - Wellbeing Matters. Read more Two Norfolk churches share in 473k grants boost Two historic Norfolk churches are to share in a 473,700 funding package from the National Churches Trust, the UKs church building support charity. Read more Hundreds fed at free Norfolk Christmas dinners Hundreds of people who would have spent Christmas Day alone were fed and entertained across Norfolk by church and charity groups. Read more Norwich church volunteer inspired by kindness A woman who has volunteered for The Salvation Armys Toys and Tins Appeal since 2016 said she will carry on doing so for as long as possible. Read more Norwich pastor publishes new book Dr Alan Clifford, pastor of Norwich Reformed Church, has published a book on the life and ministry of 18th century church leader Edmund Calamy the Elder. Read more Life is full of uncertainties for us all says Dean The Dean of Norwich Cathedral, the Very Rev Jane Hedges, say that for every single one of us, at the moment, life is full of uncertainties. Read more Pantomime cast take part in Norwich carols The cast of Norwich Theatre's pantomime Dick Whittington and his Cat attended a Christmas Carol concert at St Peter Mancroft Church on Thursday December 23 to spread festive cheer and the Christmas message. Read more Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex wave to the crowd in Melbourne, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have told the British tabloid press that they are ceasing all co-operation because of "distorted, false or invasive" stories, it has been reported. The couple sent a letter to the editors of The Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Daily Mirror in which they said they will not "offer themselves up as currency for an economy of click bait and distortion", according to the BBC. "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know - as well as complete strangers - have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue," the letter said. The Guardian reported the new treatment would apply to the four newspapers, their Sunday editions and their online mastheads. The Daily Star has not been named, though it is published by the group that owns the Mirror and the Express. The shift means Harry and Meghan's press team will not even answer calls from the papers, the BBC said. The couple have stepped back from their royal duties and are living in California. Prior to stepping down, they launched an attack on the UK's newspapers in a dedicated media section on their new website Sussexroyal.com. The couple, who said they will be adopting a "revised media approach" from the spring, criticised Britain's royal correspondents and said they would no longer participate in the "royal rota" system which has been used by Buckingham Palace for decades. Meghan is involved in legal action against Associated newspapers, publisher of the Mail On Sunday and MailOnline, over an article which reproduced parts of the handwritten letter sent to Thomas Markle, 75, in August 2018. Harry described the media as a "powerful force" in an emotional speech just a day after saying he and his wife would be stepping back from royal duties. Video of the Day The duke has had a complicated and difficult relationship with the press through the years. His dislike of the media has seemingly intensified since the birth of his son Archie Mountbatten-Windsor last year. Harry grew up fully aware of the impact of the media intrusion on the daily life of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales. He was only 12 when the princess was killed in a crash after her car, driven at speed by a drunk chauffeur, was chased through the streets of Paris by the paparazzi. Soon after he began dating Meghan, Harry attacked the media over its "abuse and harassment" of his then girlfriend, with Kensington Palace warning on his behalf: "This is not a game - it is her life." SCHAUMBURG, Ill., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Actuarial Foundation is proud to announce the winners in this year's Hardest Math Problem student contest, a national middle school math competition designed to help students practice critical thinking supported by accurate computation. Competing for a chance to win a $5,000 grand prize, students in sixth, seventh and eighth grades completed extra challenging story problems combining reasoning skills with math. Grand prize winners receive a $5,000 deposit to a 529 savings plan and a laptop. First-place winners receive a tablet. Winning teachers from each grade receive a $500 gift card. The contest is just one in a series of free middle school math resources produced through the partnership of the Foundation and Scholastic, the global children's publishing, education and media company. Winners were required to complete an initial challenge to qualify for Challenge Two and the grand prize. Over 12,000 students entered the first challenge (more than double the entries from last year, the Contest's inaugural year) and over 1,400 students submitted entries to Challenge Two. From those correct submissions, sixth grader Lauren K. from A.I. Root Middle School was selected as the grand prize winner. Cael R., a sixth grader from Dallas Center Grimes Middle School, won the tablet. Ian K. from Nathaniel Greene Middle School was the seventh-grade grand prize winner. Eli V. from Sellwood Middle School won the seventh-grade first place prize. The winner of the grand prize for eighth grade was Jie T. from The Bell Academy and the first prize winner was Mingjia Z. from Mason Middle School. Generously sponsored by New York Life Foundation, the Contest highlights the dexterity and talents of American middle school students. "The Actuarial Foundation engages middle school students with math in a fun way that helps kids use their critical thinking skills and develops their reasoning skills to make informed decisions and solve complex problems," said Marlyn Torres, senior program officer, New York Life Foundation. "Despite these challenging times, students demonstrated their overwhelming desire for a creative outlet to test their ability to solve real world problems." The Hardest Math Problem student contest was judged by a team of actuaries who evaluated students' answers on how well they communicated their mathematical argument, their mathematical precision and their attention to detail. The theme of the Contest this year focused on helping fictional chef Carlita Kahn launch her environmentally responsible cookbook by deciphering logistics with her publisher. One of the judges, Gabrielle Brochard, FSA, MAAA, had this to say about reviewing student entries, "The level of engagement was amazing to see, with students from every state rising to answer the challenge of these difficult problems. Seeing the talent of these young people during the final judging was really a bright spot in recent times." About The Actuarial Foundation The Actuarial Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, is the philanthropic institution for the industry in the United States. The mission of the Foundation is to enhance math education and financial literacy through the talents and resources of actuaries. The Foundation's vision is an educated public in pursuit of a secure financial future. For more information, please visit www.actuarialfoundation.org Contact: Holly Monahan The Actuarial Foundation Phone: (847) 706-3659 Email: [email protected] SOURCE The Actuarial Foundation Related Links https://www.actuarialfoundation.org For the next eight days, police will enrolled more than 700 special police officers to support the lockdown efforts in the city, said Pune police commissioner K Venkatesham on Sunday. This decision was taken after a day after deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar instructed the administration to strictly implement lockdown rules in the city for at least eight days more, to control the spread of Covid-19 (coronavirus). Crowds were reported from several areas in the city as the rush to buy vegetables, mutton and chicken amplified in the wake of the deputy CMs announcement. According to Venkatesham, the police have started being more strict in the implementation of lockdown, he said, We have to break the chain of increasing Covid-19 (coronavirus) cases in the city. We request residents to cooperate with the police department. With the stricter implementation of lockdown rules, there will be more pain in terms of supply of essential supplies in the city. I would like to appeal to everyone to come out only if it is absolutely necessary. We request people over the age of 60 not to come out of home at all, said Venkatesham. According to statistics shared by police, actions were taken against 642 persons on Sunday, while many were made to sit and perform yoga as punishment The city currently has 586 Covid-19 positive cases, with 50 deaths, till Sunday. Taking note of surge in infection, Pawar on Saturday pulled up officials from the administration and police department, asking them to implement the lockdown rules strictly. To increase efforts to reduce crowd on streets, district collector Naval Kishore Ram held meeting with officials. To bring down Covid-19 positive numbers, we have to make every possible effort in next eight days so that people will stay at home, said Ram. Vinit Kadam, a resident of Katraj, said, We are not getting enough vegetables and at some shops, they are sold at a very high price. So today (on Sunday) we preferred chicken. While chicken was sold between Rs 180 to Rs 200 per kg, mutton was sold at Rs 650 to Rs 750, depending on type and quality. Another resident Asim Banekar from Swargate said, It has become difficult to get basic vegetables like potatoes and onions. Our request to the government and police is to please allow small vegetable vendors with proper precautionary measures to conduct business. As people in Zimbabwe suffer from hunger, police officers carried out a raid as part of new public health measures. They seized and destroyed three tons of fruits and vegetables by setting fire to them. The police were enforcing measures for fighting the new coronavirus. They were punishing a group of farmers who had violated restrictions on movement by bringing their produce to a busy market. The farmers returned home with nothing. Lockdowns to slow the spread of the virus have blocked many farmers from getting food to markets. Such measures are in effect in at least 33 African countries. Restrictions on movement have also threatened food aid that goes to rural populations. Many small, neighborhood markets where millions buy their food are closed. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization reports that nearly 250 million people in Africa did not have enough food before the coronavirus pandemic. That represents about 20 percent of the continents population. Now, it is worse. With lockdowns, border closures the impact of COVID-19 on Africa could be like nothing we have seen before, said Sean Granville-Ross of the aid group Mercy Corps. COVID-19 is the name of the disease resulting from the virus. Lockdowns without systems to help the poor may affect us very, very much, said Lola Castro. She is regional director in southern Africa for the U.N.s World Food Program (WFP). In Kenyas capital, Nairobi, the neighborhood of Kalema is desperate. Many people there are hungry and very poor. Last week, thousands of people fought each other for food aid. Some people fell to the ground and were crushed by the crowd. The World Food Program was already feeding millions in Africa, mainly people in rural areas, because of several disasters. The pandemic has made things worse. In Sudan, U.N. officials say restrictions on movement are stopping aid workers from reaching some of the 9.2 million people in need. The most severe dry weather in many years is threatening about 45 million people with hunger across southern Africa. Somalia is struggling to get food to people living in territory controlled by extremists. Two months ago, Somalias government declared a national emergency after desert insects destroyed thousands of hectares of crops. That left about 20 million people with severe food shortages. Now the insects have returned to the area. In the Sahel region of West Africa, nearly 30 million people are struggling to find food, said Granville-Ross of Mercy Corps. On top of these problems, the World Bank said the coronavirus could create a severe food security crisis in Africa. Among those at risk are millions of children usually fed through the WFP's school meals program. A few weeks after the virus arrived in Africa, many schools closed. About 65 million children are now missing out on meals, the WFP told The Associated Press. For many Africans, the virus is not the worry, it is surviving the lockdowns. Most Africans work in the informal sector and need to go out every day, said Matshidiso Moeti of the World Health Organization. The virus has been slow to spread in Africa. It has not yet experienced the large number of cases and deaths reported in parts of Europe, East Asia and the United States. The WFP said economies of many African countries are at risk. The organization said, For many poor countries, the economic consequences will be more devastating than the disease itself. Im Caty Weaver. The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story lockdown n. to shut down an entire country or city pandemic n. a contagious illness that crosses from one country to another impact n. the way an events affects something or someone locust n. a big that eats farmers' crops Informal sector n. working in a part of the economy that is not official consequence - n. the results of an action : The Karnataka cabinet on Monday decided to promulgate an ordinance giving it special powers to control the spread of COVID-19, which includes providing protection to front line health workers and making non- cooperation with government a punishable offence. "We have decided to bring in an ordinance in line with Kerala and Uttar Pradesh governments to manage this epidemic. It will bring into force a new epidemic act by repealing the old epidemic act," Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister J C Madhuswamy said. Under this ordinance, the government would provide protection to health line workers who are in the frontline in the fight against COVID-19. "Also, under this, non cooperation with the government, any act of purposely spreading the disease and spreading of lies and misinformation will be made a punishable offence," he added. The government has the powers to promulgate the ordinance, a state epidemic act and it does not the need the assent of the President, he said. The minister said the government has done this after going through the ordinances of the Kerala and Uttar Pradesh governments. The state government's decision comes in the backdrop of the incident on Sunday at Padarayanapura in the city when police and health officials were allegedly attacked after they tried to quarantine some people. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) CAIRO, April 20 (Reuters) - Kuwait will hire an international operator to take part in evacuating Kuwaitis from some countries where Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways can not reach, state news agency KUNA quoted directorate general of civil aviation as saying on Monday. The cabinet will name and approve this international operator. (Reporting by Samar Hassan) Children in conflict-ridden parts of Middle East and North Africa are vulnerable to coronavirus, the UN body says. The United Nations childrens agency has appealed for an additional $92.4m to help fight the coronavirus pandemic in the Middle East and North Africa, parts of which are conflict-ridden and home to the highest number of children in need. Yemen is a top concern, said Ted Chaiban, the regional chief of UNICEF, on Monday. After five years of civil war, half the health centres in the country no longer operate. Two million children are malnourished, including 400,000 who suffer from severe acute malnutrition. If you dont get support to them every month, you have a 50 percent increase in the mortality rate among those children [with severe malnutrition], Chaiban told The Associated Press news agency. It was already critical to address the needs of children in Yemen. With COVID-19, now youve got this extra layer of vulnerability. So far, there has been only one confirmed coronavirus patient in Yemen, but testing capabilities are limited and there are concerns the virus might be spreading undetected. More than 218,000 infections have been reported in the Middle East region, including close to 8,000 deaths, the vast majority of them in Iran. Chaiban said the additional funding is needed for a range of programmes across the region to soften the blow of the pandemic. 200405113844471 In addition to its regular nutrition and immunisation services, the agency is helping to establish isolation centres and improve water and sanitation. UNICEF is also running awareness campaigns about social distancing and hygiene, which are particularly difficult in crowded neighbourhoods and refugee camps, he said. Before the pandemic, some 25 million children in the region were in need of humanitarian aid. UNICEF estimates that an additional four million children are being pushed into poverty, as millions of adults in the Middle East and North Africa lose their income due to nationwide lockdowns meant to fight the pandemic, Chaiban said. A UN research released on Thursday said coronavirus is turning into a broader child-rights crisis. All children of all ages and in all countries are affected, it said. However, some children are destined to bear the greatest costs. Those badly hit will be children living in slums, refugee and displacement camps, conflict zones, institutions, and detention centres, as well as children with disabilities, the report said. The mobile courts activated by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has prosecuted no fewer than 156 violators of the Stay-at-home Presidential Order aimed at curtailing the spread of COVID-19 in the country. Wadata Bodinga, the Director, FCT Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS), made the disclosure in an interactive session with journalists, on Sunday in Abuja. Mr Bodinga said that the courts started sitting on Thursday, April 16, 2020 in AYA, Dantata and Mpape, Abuja. He said the mobile courts presided over by a magistrate have continued to try violators of the COVID-19 lock down proclamation laws. He said a total of 50 cases were prosecuted on the fist day out which 40 people were convicted while 10 were discharged. Similarly, Mr Bodinga said during the second and third days, between Friday April 17 and Sunday 19, 106 offenders were prosecuted. During the second and third days about 29 violators were convicted, 11 discharged; 66 were prosecuted with 48 convicted and 18 discharged respectively, he said. Mr Bodinga explained that the trial involves pedestrians, motorists and motorcyclists caught violating the order. He said some of the convicts were fined various sums while others had their vehicles impounded and sentenced to community service. The objective of setting up the courts had been largely achieved as fewer people are now seen on the streets. The idea to prosecute violators is not aimed at punishing anyone but to discourage people from leaving their homes against medical advice to curtail the spread of COVID-19, he said. Mr Bodinga, therefore, appealed to residents to comply with the lockdown order to avoid arrest and prosecution. (NAN) TEHRAN, Iran, April.20 Trend: Iran's Road Management Center has announced lifting of restrictions on inter-provincial roads from April 20, after a month of restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak, Trend reports citing IRNA. According to images received from surveillance cameras, traffic counting systems and roadside patrols across the country, with the exception of blocked roads, the rest of the country's transportation roads are open and traffic is running normally. The statistics shows an increase of about 5.6 percent traffic volume compared to the previous day, said the message from the Road Management Center. In particular, the reports indicate heavy traffic on the Qazvin-Karaj freeway. Iran is one of the countries heavily affected by the rapidly-spreading coronavirus. According to recent reports from the Iranian officials, over 83,500 people have been infected, 5,209 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 59,200 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. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019. KAMPALA Uganda is set to release ten people today, Monday, April 20 from Entebbe Grade B hospital after recovering fully from coronavirus, PML Daily has learnt. Their discharge today will bring the total number of recoveries to 38, against 17 active cases. The new recoveries include five Watoto choir members, three of their caretakers, and the boda boda man who had been admitted with COVID-19, according to reports. Uganda on Sunday, April 19 discharged six more patients including a baby who has recovered from COVID-19 after treatment. 15 patients were early this week discharged from Mulago National Referral Hospital in the capital Kampala, Two from Entebbe Grade B, and one from Hoima Regional Referral Hospital in the western part of the country. Health Minister Dr. Jane Aceng who was giving a status update on coronavirus response in Uganda and appealed to all of Ugandans who live along the roads followed by the truck drivers including the women who interact with them for different purposes to stay away from these truck drivers. Addressing the nation on Sunday night, President Museveni congratulated Ugandans for the progress realised thus far in the fight against the coronavirus. We have defeated the locusts, we shall defeat coronavirus, we shall defeat the floating island. I really want to congratulate all of you Ugandans. The President, however, said that anybody who has died of the coronavirus must be buried where they have died. While some Ugandans have died of the virus abroad, Uganda has not registered any COVID-19-related death within its boundaries. Related Continue Reading For the second time in a decade more than 100,000 private sector workers in Connecticut have lost their jobs, while not a single state employee has been laid off in either instance. For almost the entire decade, state workers have enjoyed contractual no-layoff guarantees, now extending to 2021. Not only that, following the Great Recession, state workers got three 3 percent annual pay raises, and, now, they will get a 3.5 percent wage hike in just three months on the heels of a 3.5 percent pay raise last July 1. Thats unfair, almost cruelly so in face of the unfolding economic ravages of COVID-19. Union leaders talk about sacrifices by state workers is shameless disinformation. Gov. Ned Lamont should place a call immediately to Daniel Livingston, the chief negotiator for the State Employee Bargaining Alliance Coalition (SEBAC) representing unionized state workers, and demand that workers forgo the July 1 pay raise and that retired state workers give up cost-of-living increases for the next decade at least. The issue of fairness and social justice does not involve only the element of shared sacrifice in times of hardship. For almost two decades, Connecticut state employees have had some of the highest pay and benefits compared with their peers across the nation. Their compensation has been significantly higher than that of states private sector workers in all years good and bad. In 2010, the states Commission on Agency Options looked at 2008 compensation data and found average state worker wages of $65,746 and benefits of $39,752 versus average private sector wages of $59,313 and benefits of $14,861 for a staggering compensation premium of more than $31,000, or 42 percent. In 2014, scholars at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), Andrew Biggs and Jason Richwine, looked at 2009-2012 data and found that very same premium of 42 percent, which was the highest of the 50 states. The next highest premiums were 35 percent, 34 percent and 26 percent for Pennsylvania, New York and Illinois, respectively. In 2019, AEIs Biggs compared private sector compensation to public compensation at all levels of government in all 50 states. From 1998 to 2017, private sector worker compensation grew only 38 percent, lagging compensation for federal workers, state and local workers, and teachers which grew 67 percent, 44 percent and 40 percent, respectively. Biggs found that Connecticut state and municipal workers compensation grew 77 percent over this period compared with a 6 percent increase in the states private sector. In 2017, Connecticut public sector workers enjoyed a whopping 51 percent compensation premium over the states private sector workers. This is a gross social injustice, but it is more than that. Public sector compensation has overwhelmed the state budget and economy. Public sector workers should embrace this reality and realize it imperils their own jobs, wages, and health care and retirement benefits. Just this fiscal year, Lamont, a Democrat who says he supports unions, and SEBAC negotiators agreed to reduce the states contribution to the states severely underfunded employee pension fund (SERS) for the simple reason that the state doesnt have sufficient revenue to fund SERS. The state is reducing its contribution to SERS by about $100 million annually over the next decade, even though SERS is one of the four worst funded state pension funds in the nation, with less than 40 percent funding. While the widely accepted narrative about the underfunding of SERS is that, historically, the state didnt make sufficient contributions, the larger truth is that any state would have had great difficulty over decades paying such high wages, paying for virtually free employee and retiree health care and, at the same time, making massive pension contributions without completely starving other state services and/or imposing economy-killing tax levels. Indeed, even without making sufficient contributions, state services have been squeezed, taxes have increased in every one of the last five budget cycles and, still, the state economy has languished. One need not be an economist or financial professional to appreciate the implications of the precipitous stock market decline and the ongoing business shutdown, which has already caused 10 million job losses, and the inevitable recession, if not depression, to follow. Unless Connecticut state employees want to follow the experience of Puerto Rico, which declared bankruptcy in 2016 under a special federal law (PROMESA), and risk a significant loss of benefits in such a procedure, they should vote to authorize SEBAC negotiators to forgo the upcoming July 1 pay raise, to accept a 10-year freeze on cost-of-living increases for retiree pensions and other necessary reforms, all of which would cause virtually no genuine hardship when compared to state workers in other states and private sector workers in this beleaguered state. Red Jahncke is the president of Townsend Group Intl, LLC, a Greenwich-based consulting firm. GREELEY, Colo., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, JBS USA announced the indefinite closure of the Worthington, Minn., pork production facility. The facility employs more than 2,000 Nobles County team members and processes 20,000 hogs per day. We dont make this decision lightly, said Bob Krebs, President of JBS USA Pork. We recognize JBS Worthington is critical to local hog producers, the U.S. food supply and the many businesses that support the facility each and every day. The Worthington pork facility will wind down operations over the next two days with a diminished staff to ensure existing product in the facility can be used to support the food supply. In partnership with the state of Minnesota and Nobles County, the company will advise its Worthington team members to follow Minnesota Governor Tim Walzs stay at home order until returning to work. The company will continue to pay its team members during the plant closure. As we all learn more about coronavirus, it is clear that the disease is far more widespread across the U.S. and in our county than official estimates indicate based on limited testing, Krebs said. We have taken aggressive actions to keep coronavirus out of our plant and keep this critical infrastructure facility operational. It is our hope that Governor Walzs effort to implement more widespread community testing will help all of us better understand the measures we must all take to stop its potential spread. We must work together to defeat this common enemy. To protect the health and safety of its workforce, the company focuses on keeping the virus out of its facilities. This can be more challenging in communities where the virus has taken hold. When COVID-19 is prevalent in the community, fear is heightened, absenteeism rises and the challenge of keeping the virus out becomes greater. When absenteeism levels become too high, facilities cannot safely operate. The company is focused on providing the safest working environment possible for its team members who are providing food for America during these unprecedented times. JBS USA has implemented several preventive measures, including: Story continues Temperature testing all team members prior to entering facilities, including the use of hands-free thermometers and thermal imaging testing technology in all locations; Providing extra personal protective equipment (PPE), including protective masks, which are required to be worn at all times, to all team members; Promoting physical distancing by staggering starts, shifts and breaks, and increasing spacing in cafeterias, break and locker rooms, including plexiglass dividers in key areas; Increasing sanitation and disinfection efforts, including whole facility deep-cleaning every day; Hiring dedicated staff whose only job is to continuously clean facilities, including common areas beyond the production floor; Removing vulnerable populations from facilities, offering full pay and benefits; Requiring sick team members to stay home from work; Waiving short-term disability waiting periods; Relaxing attendance policies so people dont come to work sick; Providing free 100% preventative care to all team members enrolled in the companys health plan; Offering free LiveHealth Online services for team members enrolled in the companys health plan that allow for virtual doctor visits at no cost; Educating and encouraging team members to practice social distancing at home and in the community outside of work; and Restricting access to facilities and not allowing visitors. JBS USA operates more than 60 meat, poultry and prepared foods facilities across the United States. The Worthington pork production facility is the third JBS USA plant to temporarily close, joining the Souderton, Penn., beef production facility, which reopened on Monday, April 20, and the Greeley beef production facility which remains closed. About JBS USA JBS USA is a leading global food company providing diversified, high-quality food products for sale to customers in approximately 100 countries on six continents. This includes meat and poultry products, a portfolio of recognized brands and innovative premium foods. Media Contact: Nikki Richardson Nikki.Richardson@jbssa.com SPRINGFIELD As students across Illinois get accustomed to remote learning, state agencies have released a new tool aimed at connecting those who need internet to drive-up Wi-Fi hotspots. The interactive map is searchable by ZIP code and municipality, and the hotspots contain information as to how internet service can be accessed. As of April 15, the map had 200 hotspots aimed at allowing students and parents or guardians to continue social distancing by remaining in their cars while using the internet. REDWOOD CITY, Calif., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc. (ADVM), a clinical-stage gene therapy company targeting unmet medical needs in ocular and rare diseases, today announced the appointment of Scott Whitcup, M.D. to the Companys Board of Directors. We are delighted to welcome Scott to our board, said Patrick Machado, J.D., Board Chair of Adverum Biotechnologies. Scott's expertise and accomplished track record as an ophthalmologist and successful drug developer fit perfectly with Adverum's mission to substantially elevate the standard of clinical care for patients suffering from neovascular AMD and other vision-threatening indications. My colleagues and I all look forward to working with Scott to realize fully the significant potential benefits our technology offers patients at risk of losing their sight. This is an exciting time to join Adverums Board as the company strategically executes on expanding its pipeline through its novel vector discovery and drug development expertise to commercialize gene therapies to treat patients with serious ocular and rare diseases, said Dr. Whitcup. The development progress of ADVM-022, including the promising clinical data demonstrated to date in the OPTIC trial, has been impressive. I look forward to partnering with the Board, and the Adverum management team, on further developing the pipeline of drug candidates and advancing ADVM-022 towards commercialization for patients with wet AMD and diabetic retinopathy. Scott Whitcup, M.D. is the founder and chief executive officer of Akrivista and Whitecap Biosciences, two companies focused on developing new therapies in ophthalmology and dermatology. In addition, he is on the clinical faculty at the UCLA Stein Eye Institute. Previously, Dr. Whitcup was the executive vice president of research and development and chief scientific officer at Allergan, where he led the discovery, clinical development, and medical affairs organizations focused on therapeutic areas including ophthalmology, CNS, urology, dermatology, and medical aesthetics. Earlier at Allergan, he served as vice president and head, ophthalmology therapeutic area, where he secured regulatory approvals for Alphagan P, Lumigan, Restasis, and Ozurdex. Earlier in his career, Dr. Whitcup was the clinical director at the National Eye Institute at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Whitcup earned a B.A. from Cornell University and an M.D. from Cornell University Medical College. He completed an internal medicine residency at UCLA and an ophthalmology residency at Harvard University at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. Story continues Dr. Whitcup serves on the board of directors of Scilex Pharmaceuticals and Anivive Lifesciences. About Adverum Biotechnologies Adverum Biotechnologies (ADVM) is a clinical-stage gene therapy company targeting unmet medical needs in serious ocular and rare diseases. Adverum is evaluating its novel gene therapy candidate, ADVM-022, as a one-time, intravitreal injection for the treatment of its lead indication, wet age-related macular degeneration. For more information, please visit www.adverum.com . Investor and Media Inquiries: Investors: Myesha Lacy Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc. mlacy@adverum.com 1-650-304-3892 Gopika Varrier By Express News Service THRISSUR: When the first positive case of coronavirus in India was reported in Thrissur on January 30, the entire attention of the country was focused on the district to know how the deadly infection was going to be managed. The first meeting led by Health Minister KK Shailaja was called at 11.30 pm, which went on until 2 am, setting in motion a routine of review and deliberation that has resulted in Kerala pretty much flattening the curve. Though the district currently has no positive cases, the review meeting -- from 5 pm to 6 pm -- is a routine with at least one of the three ministers from the district or MLAs in attendance. District Collector S Shanavas spoke to TNIE on heading the prevention activities and bringing everyone under one umbrella in the fight against coronavirus. Q: How difficult was the situation, and the experience, while managing to contain the spread? A: When the first infection was identified, we were actually clueless. But within 24 hours, a system was ready. We formed teams to collect information, trace contacts and for other arrangements. The Health Minister guided us and the health department principal secretary camped here for three days. Sixty-seventy per cent of the COVID-19 containment protocol the nation currently uses was devised and developed in our district. In the first stage itself, we quarantined 300 people. From following isolation protocol to contact tracing, our teams worked efficiently. Health workers played an important role in ensuring people actually followed home quarantine instructions. Only one case went out of hand, as a British national participated in the Kuttanellur Pooram and visited places like Athirapilly. As soon as we received information, steps were taken to trace contacts and to shut the resort where they stayed. ALSO READ| Don't dilute COVID-19 guidelines: Centre objects to Kerala easing lockdown restrictions Q: How did you go about creating awareness among people to urge them not to panic, but follow guidelines? A: In a first in the state, probably in the country, the district administration joined hands with youngsters on social media to design and propagate trolls carrying messages on protocol to contain corona infection. Troll Thrissur acted as a good platform in conveying messages like washing hands and wearing masks. We also made animation videos and pamphlets. We had a team of over a hundred counsellors attending calls to help relieve stress among those under quarantine. The important thing is that, right from the first stage, all these facilities ran successfully. Q. What was the action plan to manage migrant labourers and to address their concerns amid the lockdown? A: There are more than 30,000 migrant labourers in Thrissur. We divided the AYUSH doctors into teams visiting each camp. The doctors examined the labourers individually and assured them of medical assistance of their choice. Even in peak summer, the district has reported just eight chickenpox cases and one fever case among migrant labourers, negating chances of the outbreak of other summer epidemics. We also provided them Aparachitha Choornam', an Aryurvedic medicine that can be used to purify the atmosphere in the rooms where migrant labourers stayed. Q: What are the challenges during the lockdown? A: The lockdown was implemented successfully as the general public cooperated. One major concern was the hike in prices of essential goods. We stopped auctions at harbours, thereby putting a slab on fish price. Even in Sakthan Market, which thousands of people visit on a normal day, strict intervention was made to avoid gatherings. Inspections were conducted frequently to avoid price hike of vegetables. Q: Lockdown norms are set to be relaxed in Thrissur from April 21. What is the situation likely to be? A: It is definitely a challenge to restrict people from free movement when lockdown norms are relaxed. But we are all set to address any violation of basic norms. Work on major projects like Kuthiran tunnel and power grid cable laying will resume on April 21. China on Monday accused Western countries of "irresponsible remarks" after they condemned the arrests of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. At lease 14 veteran activists, including 81-year-old activist and former lawmaker Martin Lee and democracy advocates Albert Ho, Lee Cheuk-yan and Au Nok-hin, were arrested on Saturday on charges of joining massive anti-government protests last year. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement Beijing's actions "inconsistent with commitments made under the Sino-British Joint Declaration," which promised the city would enjoy political freedoms not afforded mainland China. Britain's Foreign Office also criticized the arrests, saying the right to peaceful protest is fundamental to Hong Kongs way of life and as such is protected in both the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shung on Monday said such remarks amounted to "gross interference in China's Hong Kong affairs and a serious violation of the rule of law and judicial independence in Hong Kong." Commenting on a UN report that recommended blacklisting 14 vessels, including a Chinese vessel, for violating sanctions against North Korea, Geng said China has been implementing the sanctions. "China has been earnestly fulfilling its international obligation. We always deal with relevant issues according to provisions of the resolutions," he told reporters. China has been neighbouring North Korea's largest trading partner and has been considered critical to enforcing UN sanctions. In response to Vietnam's protest against China's establishment of two administrative units in the South China Sea, Geng said "China will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard China's sovereignty and rights and interests." China on Saturday established one administrative district on the Paracel Islands and the other Spratly Islands in China's Sansha City, according to its state broadcaster CCTV. The Bihar government has sought an explanation from officials of the Nawada district administration allegedly responsible for issuing an inter-state pass to BJP legislator Anil Singh to visit Kota in Rajasthan in violation of the guidelines for the Covid-19 lockdown. Action was also taken by authorities over the house-warming party organised by Bihar education minister Krishna Nandan Vermas personal assistant Pintu Yadav after first information reports (FIRs) were filed against several key officials who attended the gathering in Jehanabad. Verma, who found himself at the centre of a controversy as the party violated the guidelines for the lockdown, recommended the removal of his personal assistant. Bihars chief secretary Deepak Kumar reiterated chief minister Nitish Kumars position that the spirit of lockdown must be maintained by all amid the Covid-19 pandemic, and said show-cause notices had been served to officials of the Nawada district administration to explain how the inter-state pass was issued to the legislator from Hisua so that he could travel to Kota to bring back his daughter. This is not the right time to bring back students from Kota, as the country grapples with the pandemic. This is a fight all have to fight together despite the known hardships, as caution and patience are the two things most required at this juncture, the chief secretary said. The BJP is part of Bihars ruling coalition and the opposition parties played up the issue, accusing the government of double standards. Congress leader Shakti Sinh Gohil alleged the BJP legislator was also provided a government vehicle to travel to Kota. Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav said many VIPs had been issued passes in Bhiar, whereas the poor were left to fend for themselves. A senior officer, who declined to be named, said that at a time when air, train and road travel had been stopped across the country, except for essential services, issuing a pass for a person to travel to another state couldnt be justified. The axe will fall on some officials, he said. The Bihar Legislative Assembly also issued a show-cause notice to the driver of the MLAs vehicle. The vehicle was provided to the MLA in the capacity of the whip, but how could that vehicle be taken to another state? said an officer, adding the driver was asked to explain why action should not be taken against him. With the house warming party in Jehanabad creating embarrassment for the state government, the education minister was quick to wash his hands off his personal assistant. The state government ordered the suspension of Jehanabads sub-divisional police officer and the circle officer of Makhdumpur. The law will take its own course. If anything wrong has happened, there will be consequences, an official said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford says playing out wide has given him more 'freedom' to be creative, suggesting he prefers his new role to the 'isolated' number nine position. The Red Devils academy graduate often featured as a centre-forward after breaking into the first team in 2016, but manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has employed the 22-year-old on the left flank this term. RashfoRashford has scored 15 goals and provided four assists in his 19 games on the left flank, compared to just four goals and one assist in his ten games as Uniteds centre forwardt, according to Transfermarkt. Marcus Rashford says his move to the left flank has enabled him 'to create a lot more' MARCUS RASHFORD IN 2019-20 Appearances: 31 Goals: 19 Assists: 5 Advertisement He proved United's star player in the first half of the campaign, producing multiple match-winning performances before suffering a back injury in January. Despite this set-back and the added disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Rashford believes he can recapture his prolific form when he returns on the left flank. 'When you are on the left, you can create a lot more things on your own, giving that little bit more to the team,' Rashford told UTD Podcast. Rashford has scored 15 goals and provided four assists in his 19 games on the left flank, compared to just four goals and one assist in his ten games as Uniteds centre forward 'Whereas when you are playing up front, sometimes you are isolated and need someone in midfield who can find passes for 90 minutes of a game, so you can disappear in games sometimes as a number nine. 'When I transitioned to a number nine when I was younger, that's the bit that I struggled with as I was always someone who wanted to express myself on the ball. 'When I started playing number nine, I realised that you don't see the ball as often as you do in other positions, but when you do see the ball, it's an opportunity to score goals. 'That's what I loved about being a number nine and that's what I still love about it. But right now I'm enjoying having the freedom to mix between the two - and I think it suits us well at the moment as Anthony (Martial) likes to drift to the left and drop deep as well.' The Food and Drug Administration in the past month has stepped up seizures of prescription drugs being sent to American customers from pharmacies in Canada and other countries, according to operators of stores in Florida that facilitate the transactions. While seizures at the nation's international mail facilities have periodically spiked during the past two decades, the latest crackdown is distressing many older customers whose goal is to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic. "It's very aggravating," said Cabot Jaffe Sr., 83, of Maitland, Florida, who had his asthma drug seized by the FDA in March. He gets his inhaler through Canadian MedStore, a Florida storefront business that facilitates the sale from a Canadian pharmacy for Americans with prescriptions from their doctor for the medications. It is 35% cheaper than the cost from his local pharmacy, Jaffe said, saving him hundreds of dollars a year. The FDA notice he received said the drug, Breo, was not labeled correctly because it did not state for "RX-only." "Foreign-made versions of U.S. approved drugs have generally not received FDA approval for use or sale in the United States," the FDA letter said. But, Jaffe said, the drug he gets through Canadian MedStore looks exactly like what he previously bought at a pharmacy in Florida. Many drugs sold in the United States are made in other countries. Bill Hepscher, co-owner of Canadian MedStore, said more than 200 of his customers have had drugs seized since early March. They have to reorder the medication or pay higher prices at their local pharmacy. "How can the FDA justify spending resources on this during a worldwide pandemic?" Hepscher asked. FDA officials refused to comment. The latest seizures come as the Trump administration works with Florida, Colorado and other states to set up a system to help more Americans import drugs from Canada, where many brand-name medications are significantly cheaper than in the United States. About 2% of American adults say they buy drugs from outside the United States either over the internet or during travels to Canada or overseas. Gabriel Levitt, co-founder of PharmacyChecker.com, a private company that verifies international online pharmacies for consumers, said the seizures are affecting consumers nationwide. He surmised the crackdown could be related to federal efforts to scrutinize shipments of medications and substandard hand sanitizers claiming to help treat or prevent COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The FDA has said that in most cases importing drugs for personal use is illegal, although it very rarely tries to stop Americans from bringing drugs across the Canadian border and it intercepts only a fraction of those sent by mail from foreign pharmacies. In 2019, the FDA said it planned to screen 45,000 packages after recently increasing staffing at the mail facilities. Previously, the FDA was inspecting 10,000 to 20,000 packages annually, which amounts to fewer than 0.18% of the packages assumed to contain drug products. With additional resources, the agency said it planned to increase that number to 100,000 packages per year. Since 2003, the FDA has not stopped retail stores in Florida from helping consumers buy drugs from abroad. Nine storefronts were raided by FDA officials in 2017, although the FDA has allowed them to continue operating. Judy Vobroucek, owner of Discount Med Direct, which has storefronts in Florida and Illinois that help consumers with prescriptions order drugs from Canada and other countries, said about three dozen of her customers had had their medications seized in recent weeks. "It's odd that during a pandemic the FDA is spending resources seizing packages," she said. As a result of the pandemic, Canada, New Zealand and other countries that sell to Americans will provide only a 30-day supply instead of the typical three months' worth of a drug, Vobroucek said. Linda Gebhards, 69, of Gulfport, Florida, said she has been buying the hormone drug Premarin for more than two years from Canadian MedStore, which connects her to pharmacies in New Zealand or England. She pays $97 for a three-month supply, compared with more than $500 at a pharmacy in Florida. "It was really a shock when I got a seizure letter," Gebhards said. "I only had three pills left." The head of the TTC has acknowledged the agency could be forced to implement layoffs and additional service cuts if the COVID-19 crisis persists and senior levels of government dont come forward with emergency transit funding. In an interview with the Star on Friday, TTC chief executive officer Rick Leary repeatedly praised transit workers, who he said have been doing an incredible job keeping the city moving during the pandemic. But he couldnt rule out drastic measures in response to the staggering financial blow the outbreak has dealt the agency. Nothing, because of the financial situation that were in, is off the table, he said. Asked what could prompt layoffs and further service reductions, Leary said a prolonged crisis, a further drop in TTC ridership and an absence of new government funding would be the main factors. We know there are funding challenges right ahead of us Theres a lot of decisions to be made in the near future, Leary said. Already the TTC has instituted cost-saving measures. The agencys 2020 budget included $3.7 million to improve the reliability of its bus network, but Leary said plans to add service this year are now on hold. Carlos Santos, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, which represents almost 12,000 TTC workers, said layoffs and service cuts would really be concerning. Our members would be extremely disappointed if (the TTC) did something like that after having us work in this situation and during this pandemic, he said. As of Monday, 24 TTC employees had tested positive for COVID-19, according to the agency. Dozens of employees have staged temporary work stoppages in the past week over concerns the organization isnt doing enough to protect them. Santos warned reducing service would only exacerbate crowding on the transit system, which would risk spreading the virus. The TTC usually carries about 1.8 million people per day, but ridership has fallen by about 80 per cent since the start of the crisis, according to figures the agency provided last week. The TTC has reduced service by only about 25 per cent in an effort to allow residents who need to take transit to continue to do so, while avoiding potentially dangerous crowding. According to the TTCs interim chief financial officer, Josie La Vita, the agency has lost about $80 million in fare revenue since mid-March. It has also incurred about $10 million in additional costs from enhanced vehicle cleaning procedures, the procurement of sanitary wipes, masks and cleaning products, and additional overtime for workers after absenteeism spiked at the start of the crisis. Numbers the city presented Friday showed the TTC could lose about $439 million this year as a result of COVID-19, assuming physical distancing policies remain in place until June, followed by a six-month recovery period during which ridership increases but stays below pre-pandemic levels. The loss would represent about one-third of all the fare revenue the TTC had expected to collect in 2020. Most of the rest of the agencys $2.1-billion operating budget is made up of a subsidy from the city, but the municipal government is facing more than $40 million a week in non-TTC losses and increased costs as a result of the crisis, and is legally prohibited from running a deficit. Mayor John Tory said Friday the provincial and federal governments will have to step in and help. Other Canadian transit agencies are also in dire straits. On Monday, Vancouvers TransLink announced it was issuing temporary layoff notices to 1,492 employees and further cutting service. The organization says its losing $75 million a month. The Canadian Urban Transit Association has estimated the countrys transit agencies could require $400 million a month for the duration of the crisis, plus up to $1.2 billion in bridge funding. The federal and provincial governments have so far given little indication about whether financial help is on the way. Chantalle Aubertin, press secretary for Canada Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna, said in a statement Monday the government is aware of concerns about the ongoing operational costs for local (transit) providers, but offered no details about potential federal assistance. Christina Salituro, a spokesperson for Ontario Minister of Transportation Caroline Mulroney, said the provincial government is also aware of the challenges the TTC and other agencies are facing and is reviewing potential options for supporting transit agencies across Ontario. For the moment, the city is making up the TTCs revenue shortfall. City manager Chris Murray has said the municipal government expects to have sufficient cash flow to meet the needs of the city and its agencies until at least June 1. In order to free up cash, TTC staff are reviewing the agencys capital program, which is funded in part by $116 million in proceeds from the provincial gas tax, La Vita said. If some work was paused the city could reallocate that money to fund TTC operations. Capital programs that could be delayed include non-urgent streetcar track work. Leary said the TTC intends to keep working on priority programs like subway signal upgrades and accessibility improvements. The agency is already turning its attention to how the TTC will operate once the lockdown is lifted, Leary said. It is assuming a return to something resembling normal operations after Labour Day. Although Leary has previously said he hopes to return service to pre-crisis levels, the CEO said Friday the goal will be to match the capacity to the demand. Weve got to see what that future looks like. Will people want to get on buses and trains like they did in the past? You dont know. He also said he hopes the crisis provokes a reassessment of the TTCs reliance on fare revenue for roughly two-thirds of its operating budget, a portion thats greater than other major North American transit agencies and that leaves the agencys finances particularly vulnerable to drops in ridership. People will start taking a really hard look at how funding is provided to the TTC, because these are shocking times, he said. The coronavirus brought many businesses to a halt nearly a month ago with uncertainty continuing to surround the impact of this pandemic. Many governmental agencies globally are encouraging citizens to limit their movement and stay at home whenever possible to help slow the spread of the disease. This has impacted our personal lives, but also greatly disrupted business at all levels. Pew Research Center reported nearly nine-in-ten U.S. adults say their life has changed at least a little as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, including 44% who say their life has changed in a major way. On top of that, the situation remains fluid. It seems not only day to day, but hour to hour, information changes. Everyone is scrambling to figure our next steps (dont worry, youre not alone), so developing a communication cadence and regular process to share updates is important. Right now, people are relying heavily on digital tools both to stay informed and communicate with customers, colleagues, family, and friends. For credit unions, its important to keep communication flowing regularly and across multiple channels to help keep your employees, members, vendors, and community informed on ever-changing developments. Reason #1: This situation isnt normal, its global and unprecedented Despite having business continuity plans in place, financial institutions are scrambling to maintain operating services in the least disruptive way possible for employees and members. Regular, ongoing communications help keep your employees informed and help members feel calm and taken care of. That doesnt mean every question can be answered, but by regularly checking in, theres the opportunity to maintain connections and continue to plan for whats next. This could take the form of weekly corporate check-ins, regularly scheduled operations calls, team meetings, or weekly email communications to employees and members. Reason #2: Employees are feeling uncertain Implementing regular updates to employees can be a small way to alleviate some pandemic-related stress. Particularly, employees are seeking information about their jobs, business operations, and well-being support. This may mean regular email sends, conference calls, updates from leadership, team meetings, creating an internal intranet hub, posting regular updates on the corporate website, or some combination of communication tools. Additionally, its important to recognize the personal impact of COVID-19 and to communicate about personal health resources such as heathcare status, telemedicine resources, and prevention tips. Make sure messaging is clear, relevant, and redundant so employees receive well-defined takeaways and feel that they are being heard and supported, even as the situation remains uncertain and rapidly changing. Reason #3: Members are feeling uncertain Theres a lot of misinformation, worry, fear, and concern for what comes next. Members are worried about their finances, budget, lack of income, loan payments, and other personal stresses related to COVID-19. In addition, call volume may be higher which increases wait times, branches may be closed which reduces services, or new digital options may be implemented to help provide regular banking services. Credit unions need to take steps not only to anticipate what needs their members have and how those needs can be accommodated to help support their members, but to offer clear communication about what updates are being made, how theyre adapting, and how members can expect to reach out. This can help offer clarity and actionable next steps to meet members needs. Be sure youre adopting a cross-channel approach to share these new updates to members. Reason #4: Technology makes ongoing communication possible across channels Meetings, corporate updates, customer service calls, ongoing business operations, and consumer support are relying heavily on telework tools to communicate. Along with daily staplesemail, text message, and social mediathe available technologies are endless: Cisco, Google, Zoom, Loom, Slack, Smartsheet, and on and on. Pew Research Center reports 93% of U.S. adults are relying on technology and internet to connect during the COVID-19 lockdown. With 64% reporting that while these technologies are helpful, theres not a replacement for face-to-face encounters. However, utilizing your digital channels makes communication possible and an effective way to access your members, vendors, and employees. Make sure youre pushing your message across channels for redundancy and ease of access to reach your audience effectively. Operations, business needs, and member needs are rapidly changing as COVID-19 continues to shake up our daily way of life. Setting up a recurring communications plan across your available digital channels can go a long way to help answer questions, support your employees and members, and give leadership an opportunity to provide updates. Stay up to date with corporate updates, resources, and information for clients from Allied Solutions at our COVID-19 resource hub: https://www.alliedsolutions.net/covid19. Panaji, April 20 : The Congress, here on Monday, cautioned the state government against declaring Goa Covid-19 free in a hurry as the health agencies had only tested 0.4 per cent of the 15 lakh population. "Testing is the only effective way to determine whether Goa is really in safe zone from Covid-19 pandemic. We urge the government to take steps to expedite community testing and set up facilities to quarantine likely suspects who may emerge from it," Goa Congress chief Girish Chodankar said. Terming such a little testing till April 19 as shocking, Chodankar said, of the 780 samples tested in Goa, seven turned out Covid-19 positive, which was 1 per cent of the total. "This is alarming. The government needs to justify its claim before declaring Goa Covid-19 free. The government should not make unnecessary hurry," he said. On Sunday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced that Goa's seventh and last active Covid-19 patient had tested negative. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) No fresh coronavirus cases were reported from any of the eight northeastern states in the past 24 hours even as several people, who had earlier tested positive, discharged from the hospital as they recovered from the dreaded disease, ministers and officials said on Sunday. Authorities in the northeastern states are preparing themselves to tackle the situation when some relaxations in certain sectors would be effective from Sunday midnight amid the ongoing lockdown, which was enforced across the country 26 days ago and would continue in the next two weeks. According to Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, of the 34 novel coronavirus positive cases found so far in Assam out of which one had dies, 17 patients have so far been released from the hospital and the remaining would be discharged from hospitals soon. In Aizawl, a Mizoram government statement said that after a 22-year-old woman cancer patient from the state tested positive on April 13 in Mumbai, three more Covid-19 positive cases, two male and a woman, have been detected on late Saturday evening among those residing in Mizoram House in Mumbai. The three fresh positive results, two of which are cancer patients, came after the Maharastra Health Department officials on the directions of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation tested the nasopharyngeal swab samples of 20 people residing in the Mizoram House. Mizoram Health Minister R. Lalthangliana said that at this stage, it is difficult to ascertain how Covid-19 was contacted and spread among those residing at Mizoram House in Mumbai. He also said that the state's lone COVID-19 patient, a 50-year old man being treated at the Zoram Medical College in Aizawl since last month, is showing good progress. The man returned Aizawl from Amsterdam via Delhi and Guwahati on March 16. A doctor from Mizoram, who worked in a hospital in Meghalaya, also tested positive for coronavirus in Shillong on April 14. In Manipur, health officials said that the state's second Covid-19 patient, a 65-year-old man undergoing treatment at Regional Institute of Medical Science, has tested negative for coronavirus for third consecutive tests. Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that the Central government has given directives on the relaxation of the lockdown restrictions in some parts of the state and decision on relaxation would be taken at the state cabinet meeting to be held on Monday. State Health and Family Welfare Department's Additional Director Khoirom Sasheekumar Mangang told IANS over phone that a government doctor, who had recently violated the government's quarantine norms and protocol, has been suspended from the service. Besides the Manipur patient, the lone patient in Arunachal Pradesh and the second and last patient in Tripura would be discharged from the hospitals within the next two days making the three northeastern states with no active cases. Meanwhile, defence spokesman P. Khongsai said that army troops have been conducting Covid-19 awareness Campaign' in the remote villages of the region. "Aim of the campaign was to enhance awareness amongst the villagers about the coronavirus pandemic and various precautionary measures required to be undertaken to contain the spread of the disease. As part of the campaign, information leaflets and facemasks were also distributed amongst the villagers," the Defence PRO said in a statement. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told a press conference earlier this month that his government would not provide any support to international students and visa-holders whose lives have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic and global economic downturn. Speaking for the entire political establishment, Morrison callously declared that international students who cannot support themselves in Australia should return to their home countries. There are some 2.17 million international students, workers and backpackers on temporary visas who currently reside in Australia. Many of them face visa expirations, unemployment and travel restrictions. It is estimated that there are as many as 570,000 student visa-holders in Australia. When the crisis began, no concessions were provided so that visa-holders could afford tickets for flights which more than doubled in cost. Numerous countries rapidly locked down their borders limiting travel arrangements. The ending of most international flights from Australia means that hundreds of thousands are now effectively trapped. Promoting divisive nationalism, Morrison declared at the press conference, our priority is on supporting Australians. In reality, the government, with the full support of Labor and the unions, has provided hundreds of billions of dollars to the major corporations, while virtually nothing has been done to assist the million of workers thrown into unemployment. In an attempt to deflect anger over the lack of support, acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge later stated that temporary visa holders who have been in the country for over a year will be able to access their Australian superannuation for support. Given that visa-holders are among the lowest-paid of workers, their superannuation will be woefully inadequate to cover their basic living expenses. They are, moreover, being forced to deplete their limited savings just to survive. Under regressive visa laws, international students have a 20-hour weekly limit on paid work. They are also prevented from accessing essential medical and social services. This has made it virtually impossible for students to save money and secure full-time work. Most with a job are exploited as cheap labour. Many have been forced into low-paying, sometimes dangerous, cash-in-hand jobs in the fruit picking, retail and hospitality industries. Others work in the gig economy, as ride-share and food delivery drivers. A recent survey of over 3,700 visa-holders, conducted by Unions New South Wales, revealed that almost half of the participants had lost their jobs since the crisis began. A further 20 percent said that their number of working hours had been cut. Some 43 percent said that they had to skip meals. Even before the pandemic began, many international students were living on the precipice of a crisis. According to 2017 figures from Universities Australia, one in two international undergraduate students reported overall expenses greater than their income. About 50 percent were in paid casual or part-time employment with a median of 15 hours a week. Almost nine in ten were compelled to rely on financial support from relatives. International students have been heavily affected by unaffordable housing costs in the major cities, especially Sydney and Melbourne. Thousands have been forced into crowded shared accommodation where the disease can spread like wildfire. Many now confront the prospect of homelessness. Andrea Andrade from Venezuela , who has been studying at a TAFE in Perth since 2018 and recently lost her job, told SBS News: I cannot pay rent, I cannot pay food. We did try talking to our landlords but they cannot help us. I have savings but its only a matter of time before that runs out. I do have family who can help me in case of an emergency but theyre going through the same situation. Marcos Bento, a Brazilian student who came to Australia four years ago, told the Special Broacasting Services network : If I had the four or five thousand dollars to buy one ticket back to Brazil if I had money to go back to Brazil I would have money to support myself here. After losing his job in Sydney, he said: I have no idea about the future, no money to pay rent We are afraid about the situation, we know you are meant to stay home, but if you stay home you must have food and rent or else you go homeless. Bento said that he had spent over $40,000 to study in Australia for his master's degree in public health which is due to finish in September. He said leaving the country now could mean he will fail his course and that his fees will have been wasted. He said the university had not provided him with options to finish his degree remotely. For decades, international students have been exploited as 'cash-cows' paying astronomical upfront tertiary course fees, usually in the tens of thousands of dollars a year. In 2019, the international student market was worth approximately $37 billion, comprising almost 40 percent of Australias exports of services and 9 percent of total exports. It was the Hawke Labor government that in 1985 introduced full upfront fees for international students. This was a prelude to the abolition of free education two years later, with fees brought in for domestic students. Ever since, revenue from international students has grown considerably under consecutive Labor and Liberal-National governments. Labor has bemoaned the impact that the crisis will have on the multi-billion dollar university model, but has said virtually nothing about the dire plight of international students, making clear that their abandonment is bipartisan policy. State governments, many of them Labor-led, have similarly done nothing to assist the students. The indifference of the political establishment contrasts with the response of ordinary people. In a number of cities, workers have organised to provide international students with cheap or free groceries and other essentials. Some small businesses in Sydney and elsewhere have given international students a free meal each day. The situation confronting international students is part of the offensive against the entire working class, which is being made to pay for the crisis triggered by the pandemic. It underscores the need for a fight by all students and workers for the social right to free, high-quality education for all, and for an end to the discriminatory measures targeting international students and visa-holders. More than 2,500 protesters descended on the Washington state capitol on Sunday to demand that governor Jay Inslee re-open the states economy and lift the stay-at-home order issued to slow the spread of coronavirus. The rally, at which many attendees ignored advice to wear face masks, was centred on demands that Mr Inslee allow businesses shuttered on safety grounds to reopen, with many protesters arguing that state authorities order to close down their economies amounted to an attack on the freedoms fundamental to the USs founding ideals. Speaking to Reuters, one protester at the event in Olympia said that Shutting down businesses by picking winners and losers in which there are essential and non-essential are violations of the state and federal constitution. His words echo those heard at similar protests that have sprung up in different states over the last week. At an event in Lansing, Michigan dubbed Operation Gridlock, signs on display included slogans including liberty once lost is lost forever and security without liberty is called prison. One placard in Olympia read Jay Inslee = King George. Mr Trump has lately urged protesters defying stay-at-home orders to continue their rallies and liberate their states, but has been accused of potentially inciting violence against democratic governors who have issued stay-at-home orders in defiance of his calls to lift the lockdowns as soon as possible. Asked at the daily White House press briefing if his call for liberation risked inciting violence against governors, the president said the protesters simply had cabin fever. When a reporter raised the subject of neo-Nazis role in threatening governors, Mr Trump responded: Well that I would totally say no way. I didnt see that Im sure the news plays that up. The Washington state protest included and was endorsed by known far right groups just as the president himself denied their involvement in other rallies and defended those involved in the events across the US as great people. Among those who spoke at the protest in Olympia was Joey Gibson, head of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer. While Mr Gibson denies that he is a neo-Nazi, he and the group have received praise from both neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups, including on far-right website Stormfront. Washington is home to a number of extremist groups, particularly in the more sparsely populated eastern part of the state. Among their known associates is state representative Matt Shea, who has lately called for protests against the stay-at-home order and other restrictions. Mr Shea has been ejected from the state houses Republican caucus over his extremist connections. In a report commissioned by the state House of Representatives, he was unambiguously described as a dangerous man: It is more probable than not that Representative Shea is likely to plan, direct and engage in additional future conflicts that could carry with them significant risk of bloodshed and loss of life. Support is being accelerated for micro- and small-sized businesses The funding will also address the urgent need from local communities following the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. The first programme of $10 million is designated for immediate emergency relief to support charitable organisations on the frontlines responding to the health crisis, such as public health and food relief, in each of the five geographic regions in which Visa operates: North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Central Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. As COVID-19 continues to unfold, communities are feeling the effects and need our immediate support, said Al Kelly, CEO and chairman of Visa. As a global company that operates a very local business, we recognise this need. Were also committed to the long-term recovery and will continue to explore ways we can accelerate economic activity in line with our mission to help individuals, businesses, and economies thrive. The second programme is a five-year strategic $200 million commitment to support MSEs around the world, with a focus on fostering womens economic advancement. This action expands the Visa Foundations long-standing support for small and micro businesses globally. The funds from the foundation will provide capital to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and investment partners supporting such businesses. MSEs are the backbone of the global economy, accounting for more than 90 per cent of worldwide businesses and contributing 50 to 60 per cent of global employment. There is a $300 billion annual credit deficit in funding for women-owned small and micro businesses, which is expected to grow given the recent economic turmoil unfolding due to the pandemic. In Vietnam, MSEs account for roughly 98 per cent of all businesses, 40 per cent of GDP, 50 per cent of total employment, and women-owned enterprises account for about 30 per cent of the countrys businesses. The effects of COVID-19 are being felt around the world on a myriad of levels, but in particular, the most vulnerable in our societies are also those that are most likely to experience both the health and economic shocks from this crisis, said Dang Tuyet Dung, Visa country manager for Vietnam and Laos. At Visa, we feel privileged to be in a position to offer support and contribution during this difficult time. We look forward to working with businesses, consumers, and the government in Vietnam to assist with the recovery efforts, she added. CEO Kelly added, Now more than ever, we must accelerate our support for MSEs on the frontlines driving economic growth. As many MSEs owners are women, there will be a ripple effect supporting their economic advancement, which we believe is one of the most important ways to achieve gender equality, reduce poverty, and foster inclusive economic development. Through the $200 million micro-and small-sized business programme, the Visa Foundation will provide $60 million in grants to NGOs dedicated to supporting related owners, many of whom are women, in every region where Visa operates. The foundation will also allocate $140 million with investment partners that generate positive social and financial returns for MSEs. $200 million in new financial resources demonstrates our continuing commitment to support MSEs, with a focus on womens economic advancement globally, said Graham Macmillan, president of the Visa Foundation. When women thrive, communities thrive. We know this matters now more than ever as the global economy seeks to recover and rebuild. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 17:27:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TOKYO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Japan's exports fell to their lowest level in more than three and a half years in March, as overseas demand was hit by the coronavirus, the government said in a report on Monday. According to the Finance Ministry, exports in the recording period dropped 11.7 percent to 6.36 trillion yen (59.03 billion U.S. dollars), marking the biggest fall since 2016. In the same period, the ministry said that imports retreated 5.0 percent to 6.35 trillion yen (58.94 billion U.S. dollars), owing to slumping prices for energy-linked imports. As a result, the goods trade surplus stood at 4.9 billion yen (45.48 million U.S. dollars), the ministry's preliminary data showed. In terms of specific countries and regions, exports to the United States tumbled 16.5 percent to the lowest level since April 2011, as demand fell amid virus-linked lockdowns and shuttered businesses in the world's largest economy. Exports to China, Japan's largest trading partner, dropped 8.7 percent in the recording period, while imports from China edged down just 4.5 percent, as the world's second largest economy has resumed production operations after being hit by the virus, a harbinger of rebound in industrial production. Exports to the European Union, meanwhile, fell 11.1 percent amid severe lockdowns including those in Italy and France, the ministry said. Exports to all of Asia in the recording period decreased 9.4 percent. As for fiscal 2019, the government said that imports and exports declined for the first time in three years amid downside factors including the virus pandemic and trade issues, with exports down 6 percent, while imports fell 6.3 percent. Japan logged a goods trade deficit for the second straight year standing at 1.29 trillion yen (11.97 billion U.S. dollars), the ministry's figures showed. Enditem Indeed, Adelson, 86, is known for the phrase. He has been saying some version of it since at least April 2013 when he said "yay, return of capital" on an earnings call, according to FactSet, and he had refined it to "yay, dividends" by that October. "I am known for the phrase, 'yay dividends!', and I assure you that it is still my mantra. But a strong balance sheet is also a vital and necessary component to realizing stockholder value in the decades ahead," the billionaire said in a statement. When casino company Las Vegas Sands announced that it was suspending its dividend, CEO Sheldon Adelson acknowledged that he was going against his own motto. It's been a quarterly staple ever since with more than 20 mentions on conference calls the last seven years. Las Vegas Sands has backed up its CEO's mantra. The company says it returned $26.9 billion in capital to shareholders between 2012 and the end of last year. It paid $3.08 per share in dividends in 2019. Major companies across several industries have cut or suspended their dividends due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Some of the aid for companies in the coronavirus relief bill passed by Congress also came with restrictions on dividends, putting distributions to shareholders in political crosshairs. Casino stocks like Las Vegas Sands were some of the first U.S. equities hit by the virus crisis because it shuttered casinos and hotels in Macao. Adelson's company has seen its stock fall by more than 30% this year. Nobody is hurt more by Las Vegas Sands stopping dividends than Adelson himself, as he owns more than half of the company's outstanding shares. "My interests are in line with all the investors. I love dividends. That's why I'm calling the phrase 'yay dividends.' I love buybacks. So my interests are exactly in line with investors," Adelson said in 2015, according to a FactSet transcript. Las Vegas Sands said last month that it will pay its employees while its casinos are closed. The company's next earnings call, which will be the first to cover the coronavirus time period, is scheduled for Wednesday. CNBC's Michael Sheetz contributed reporting. Andhra Pradesh: Stop devastation of coastal wetland with creek & mangrove cover demands democratic fishers workers forum April 20,2020 | Source: DMF West Bengal The fisher people of Dummulpeta, Parloipeta and adjacent wards of Kakinada are deeply concerned about the destruction of nearly 300 acres of mangroves and reclamation of a creek that provide anchorage for thousands of small fishing boats to accommodate Pedalandariki Illu programme of the state government and a container depot for Indian railways. The area, lying beside the Kakinada port, is a coastal wetland with mangrove cover. It should have been protected by the Government, instead it is being destroyed by Government projects. (Pictures enclosed) It is well known that mangroves provide fish habitats and fish spawning grounds. They protect and enhance bio-diversity. They provide natural protection against cyclones and erosion. They also filter out pollutants. Can we forget how the mangroves protect us from cyclones? Even the Forest Department and the Government of Andhra Pradesh admitted the role of mangroves in protecting human habitats from the cyclone. In recognition of the importance of mangroves the whole world along with India celebrates July 26 as the International Day for Mangrove. Coastal mangroves belong to the CRZ-I (I) category and are protected by Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification as ecologically sensitive area. Thus destruction of coastal wetland together with the mangrove cover not only devastates an invaluable natural asset of our people, but it also violates the law of the country. The small scale fishing communities thrive on natures bounty. Their livelihood is inseparably linked to marine biodiversity and as such destruction of mangroves is destruction of their livelihood. We are aware of and recognise the need of housing for the poor and low income group people, but no knowledgeable and environmentally sensitive person can support destruction of mangroves or coastal wetlands for that. Reclamation of the creek for additional land deprives the small scale fishers from anchoring their boats during periods when they do not or cannot go fishing into the sea. Boats are the means of their livelihood and a safe anchoring area is necessary to protect their boats during inclement weather including cyclones and storm surges. Destruction of the creek means destruction of the scope of their livelihood. At a time of global warming and rising sea levels coastal towns like Kakinada alongwith the habitations of coastal fishing communities are under threat of inundation by sea waters. It is learnt from experts that by 2030 the area earmarked for Pedalandariki Illu programme will be submerged by the rising sea. A map (copy attached) developed by American scientists and submitted in the Climate Change Conference of the United Nations showing areas to be submerged in red vividly indicates it. One can go ahead with distribution of housing sites in that area only by ignoring the warnings of scientists. Can a government that cares for people ignore the physical reality of sea level rise and go ahead with such an disastrous project? It may be mentioned that the Department of Forest, Government of Andhra Pradesh, in reply to the queries made by the Marine Fishermen Cooperative Society of Kakinada had under their RC. No:01/2018/KKD Range, Dt. 06.11.2019 informed that construction is not allowed in the concerned mangrove forest area. It is not out of place to remind that the Honble President of India Sri Ramanath Kovind in a recent article warned - We would do well to keep in mind the fact that at the end of the day we are merely biological organisms, dependent on other organisms for survival. Humankinds craving to control nature and exploit all its resources for profit can be wiped out in a stroke by an organism we cannot even see with the naked eye. If we destroy the balance in nature, we have to pay the price for it as we are doing now. DTFWF has written to the Collector and District Magistrate of East Godavari district with under intimation to the Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change and the Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh urging immediate withdrawal of the Pedalandariki Illu project on Kakinada coast and stop further destruction of invaluable coastal natural assets like mangrove, coastal wetland and creek. Amid the novel coronavirus epidemic, the Chinese government has taken various measures to facilitate the sales of agricultural products from poverty-stricken regions and stimulate the income growth of the poor population. A farmer picks citrus fruits in Yongsheng country, Yuannan provine. (Photo/Xinhua) China has encouraged eastern provinces to purchase products from the poor areas in central and western China. Data from the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development suggest that by March 27, nine provinces in the east of China had purchased agricultural products worth 2.1 billion yuan from the poverty-stricken regions. Various e-commerce platforms have also promoted the sales of agricultural products from poor counties. As of April 14, the special online platform under the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives gathered over 4,000 suppliers from 774 poverty-stricken counties, with a total transaction of 120 million yuan. Such promotional activities will reach win-win results, said Wang Chunyan, an official with the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, adding that they will not only bring more profits to the poor population and promote the industries in those areas, but will meet the demands of the urban residents generated by consumption upgrading. In the future, the Chinese government need to provide financial support and encourage e-commerce platforms to team up with logistics enterprises to improve the logistics and ensure the supply of products from poor regions, said Guo Hongdong, deputy director of the China Academy for Rural Development, Zhejiang University. Dai Shan, partner of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., believes it important to tap the advantages of online platforms and train the villagers in poor areas to promote products through live broadcasts. Hobsons, the education technology leader and the company behind Naviance, announced the 15-member Naviance Strategic Advisory Board (SAB) for 2020 that will support its efforts in providing the premier college, career and life readiness solutions to the K-12 market. Composed of district and school leaders, department heads, and school counselors from around the country, the advisory board will provide ongoing feedback and market insight that helps guide the product roadmap and other strategic initiatives that impact Naviance clients. With the rapidly-evolving impact of COVID-19, the SAB provides an important and timely link to understanding the immediate challenges affecting schools and districts across the nation. Meeting regularly throughout the year, members of the SAB represent a cross-section of clients and will serve as strategic partners to validate product ideas, guide product launches, help define new service offerings, and shape marketing messages and client communications. The board will speak openly about their experience with Naviance and Hobsons, share market intelligence and have the opportunity to network and collaborate on best practices with their peers. The Naviance Strategic Advisory Board consists of 15 members who serve a three-year term when appointed. They represent a diverse group of educators from public schools and private schools. Returning members: Becky Ballbach, Everett Public Schools (WA) Jennifer Glaser, Fairfax County Public Schools (VA) Pat Leonardo, Christian Brothers Academy (NJ) Carol Lopez, Broward County Public Schools (FL) Trevor Maggied, Hilliard City Schools (OH) Katherine Pastor, Flagstaff High School (AZ) Rudy Ruiz, FourPoint Education Partners (MD) Cathey White, School District of Philadelphia (PA) New members in 2020: Rebecca Cooling, Dowling Catholic HS (IA) Tommy Elder, Chehalis School District (WA) Dave Ellefson, Hutchinson High School (MN) Christopher Kolar, Palo Alto USD (CA) Cathy Longstreet, Hastings High School (MI) Terry Perkins, Humble ISD (TX) Anjela Schwab, Adams 12 Five Star Schools (CO) To learn more about the Naviance Strategic Advisory Board, visit https://inside.naviance.com/advisory-board/ About Naviance Naviance provides information and resources that enable school counselors, teachers, students, and parents to engage in meaningful conversations about how to assess a students options after high school. The platform arms students with the tools to explore, apply to, and enroll in a postsecondary path that is a best fit for the student, based on education and career goals, learning style, and personal preferences regarding where and how they would like to continue their education. For more information on Naviance, visit http://www.naviance.com. About Hobsons A leader in education technology, Hobsons helps more than 15 million students to identify their strengths, explore careers, match to best-fit educational opportunities, create academic plans, and reach their education and life goals. More than 13,000 K-12 and higher education institutions partner with Hobsons and leverage our expertise and our solutions -- Naviance, Intersect, and Starfish -- to improve college and career readiness, college recruiting and admissions, and higher education student success to support millions of students. Our leading college and career readiness platform Naviance was named the 2017 and 2018 SIIA CODiE Award winner in the Best College and Career Readiness Solution category. Amitabh Bachchan who has for years met his fans or extended family as he calls them, outside his home in Mumbai, has penned a heartfelt note about discontinuing the ritual amid lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak. The actor took to his blog late Sunday night to share his feelings about how weekends have changed amid lockdown as there are no ecstatic wild faces and mobiles recording the moment. He wrote, The Sunday does not mean the same as before .. waiting for the time to arrive .. the security in place .. that familiar sound of the step board being dragged into position .. that familiar scream of the well wishers at the gate as each domestic entrant enters and leaves premises .. of the knowing that he comes .. and then IT .. Sharing the minute details of his weekly rendezvous with his fans, he further wrote, .. ecstatic wild faces and mobiles recording the moment .. those smiling hands and the designated positioning of the ef that shall eventually find space inside the home .. moments of connect with the familiar and the informed Ef .. the ones on the buildings ahead .. precariously positioned at vantage points .. the cheer and laments , the letters of recommendations , the out of the country guests .. numerous gift s and handicrafts from the near that have come within .. photographs .. return wave at the opposite balcony as you walk in the front door .. and its done .. a while more and the pages for the autograph, pictures writings etc., all done with the care with which they have remained so sincere and long, arrives .. their personal equation with the maestro in tact they leave after this minuscule formality .. the heart of the Ef be of subtle grace .. and that done they leave as do I inside the secure home .. and the gifts that arrive kept away to be stored and valued .. T 3470 - To all Ef and well wishers an earnest request !PLEASE DO NOT COME TO JALSA GATE TODAY .. SUNDAY MEET am not going to come ! Take PRECAUTIONS .. be safe Sunday Jalsa cancel , pic.twitter.com/USm4kZBEYo Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) March 15, 2020 Amitabh Bachchan has cancelled the ritual of the Sunday meet due to the outbreak of coronavirus. He had announced on the third Sunday of March that he will not be appearing at the gates of his house and had asked his fans to not pay him a visit. He tweeted on March 15, To all Ef and well wishers an earnest request! PLEASE DO NOT COME TO JALSA GATE TODAY .. SUNDAY MEET am not going to come! Take PRECAUTIONS .. be safe Sunday ka darshan Jalsa pe cancel hai, Kripya koi wahan jama na ho aaj shaam ko! Surakshit rahein. Also read: Shilpa Shetty, Rajs workout has son Viaans cameo: Family that eats, prays and works out together, stays together Meanwhile, his wife and actor Jaya Bachchan is stationed in Delhi as she couldnt travel back to Mumbai after attending the Parliament session ahead of the lockdown. Amitabh will next be seen in Ayan Mukerjis Brahmastra, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt as the lead couple. He also has Jhund, Gulabo Sitabo and Chehere in his kitty. Follow @htshowbiz for more Waterford has shot to the top of the table when it comes to divorce applications, according to the latest figures from the Courts Service. The Deise county has leapfrogged Carlow and Dublin, which make up the rest of the top three, based on divorce applications per head of population. Newly released details of divorce and judicial separation for 2018 show that there were 3,864 applications to the circuit court for divorce that year. Another 1,238 couples looked for a judicial separation, which can allow husbands or wives to part company in a more straightforward way. In terms of divorce applications, the rate per 100,000 of population nationally was just over 81. Ten counties exceeded that figure with the rate in Waterford highest of all at 102 divorces per 100,000 of population. Second on the list was Carlow (97), followed by Dublin (92), with the next highest Westmeath (89). At the far end of the scale, the lowest rate of divorce was in Co Cavan where there were 54 divorce applications for every 100,000 people. It was followed by Roscommon (at 56) and Meath (57 per 100,000). In terms of the numbers, Dublin had by far the highest number of applications for divorce with a total of 1,233 couples looking to split. Next was Cork with 463 while at the other end of the table, the countrys least populated county Leitrim had just 25. Women were considerably more likely than men to apply for divorce. The figures show that 55.8% of applications or 2,155 in total came from wives. Judicial separation remained an option for many couples with 861 women and 377 men applying for such a split in 2018, a gender ratio of seventy to thirty. Rates of application for judicial separation compared to divorce can differ dramatically among counties as well. In Westmeath for example, there were almost five times as many applications for divorce as there were for judicial separation. However, in Cork there were just under two and a half divorce applications for every one for judicial separation. The outcome of divorce settlements were most likely to include extinguishing succession rights with that a feature of 3,174 cases decided last year. The next most likely outcome of a divorce was a pension adjustment order (1,869), custody or access orders (1,365), or a periodic payment to a child (1,208). According to the Courts Service, each divorce settlement can include a multiple of such conditions. A small number of applications were also made for nullity nationwide with 20 such cases recorded according to the data. Among the reasons allowed for a nullity declaration are mental incapacity, lack of consent, or that one or other of the couple are incapable of sexual intercourse. Of the nullity applications, 60% were made in the major population centres of Dublin, Cork, Galway, and Limerick. The figures also say that 31 applications were made for an underage marriage exemption. In 2018, 15 such applications were granted and one refused but no further detail has been provided on the circumstances involved. The statue of composer George M. Cohan is seen in Times Square in New York, while in the background some of the nearly 1,800 digital billboards and screens across all five boroughs are displaying messages of public safety, gratitude, pride, and solidarity with essential workers. AFP photo Washington: Indian-American Dr Madhvi Aya, who contracted the coronavirus in the line of duty in New York, the country's COVID-19 epicentre, could only exchange text messages with her husband and daughter from her hospital bed before she lost the battle to the deadly virus. The 61-year-old woman, who moved to the US along with her husband in 1994, was among the several Indian-American doctors in the frontline in the fight against the novel coronavirus pandemic. "Aya's text messages and her family's account of her final days reveal a woman who spent much of her life devoted to medicine before succumbing to the cruel and familiar arc of a patient with COVID-19," reported Sun-Sentinel newspaper. Indian American community leaders say that quite a number of Indian American doctors have been infected during this once-in-a-century public health crisis. The number could be in several dozens and several of the Indian-American physicians have succumbed to coronavirus. A majority of them are said to be from New York and New Jersey. Dr Rajat Gupta (name changed) was attending a coronavirus patient in the emergency room of a hospital in New Jersey early this month. A few moments later, the patient threw up. It hit his face with a force. Gupta fell ill and he tested positive for the coronavirus. Despite best efforts, doctors could not save his live, adding to the growing list of Indian-Americans who have died due to COVID-19. "It's hard to know the exact number of infected ones," Ravi Kolli, secretary of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI), told PTI. "There are at least 10 (Indian American doctors) who are critically ill." One of the largest doctors' organisations of its kind, the AAPI represents more than 80,000 Indian-American doctors, who constitute the largest ethnic group of physicians in the US. "AAPI members, as a group, are over-represented in all the hotspot areas, as well as caring for underserved populations," he said. Early this week, Indian American nephrologist Priya Khanna, 43, died in a New Jersey hospital. Her father Satyendra Khanna (78), a general surgeon, has tested positive and is said to be in a critical condition in the intensive care unit in the same hospital. "Indian-American physicians are the real heroes. Many have become positive in the process, some have died, some are in ICU now and some are recuperating at home," AAPI vice president Dr Anupama Gotimukula said. Community leaders are praying for Dr Ajay Lodha, a former AAPI president, who has tested positive for COVID-19 and now is in ICU in a New York hospital. Gastroenterologist Dr Anjana Samadder from Ohio, wife of former AAPI president Dr Gautam Sammader is also reported to be battling for her life. Another prominent Indian American physician Dr Sunil Mehra is said to be in serious condition. "They are bravely leading the enormous challenge of fighting COVID 19 pandemic at their own personal risk without a second thought, which speaks volumes for their compassion, commitment and sense of duty," Kolli said. According to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Asian American are least impacted by coronavirus among various ethnic groups. According to a CDC data that was recently updated, they account for nearly 4.4 per cent of the total infected cases." The virus has killed more than 40,000 people in the US and over 7,63,000 have tested positive. Indian American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi expressed his gratitude to the physicians and other healthcare professionals for their dedication to the nation, for helping all to cope with the situation, guaranteeing the wellbeing of all". "The healthcare workers have been feeling vulnerable as the disease can affect them and their family members and sense of duty to serve at the same time," said Dr Jayesh Shah. 08:52 The National Security Council and Office of the Director of National Intelligence have however declined to comment on the matter. CNN has also reached out to the CIA and the State Department for comment and sought comment from the South Koreans.Kim's absences from official state media often spark speculation and rumors about his health. North Korea has no free press and is often a black hole when it comes to the country's leadership. Analysts are heavily reliant on scanning state media dispatches and watching propaganda videos for any semblance of a clue.Kim last appeared in North Korean state media on April 11. April 15 -- North Korea's most important holiday, the anniversary of the birth of the country's founding father, Kim Il Sung -- came and went without any official mention of Kim Jong Un's movements.Experts are unsure of what to make of Kim's absence from any festivities celebrating his grandfather. When North Korean leaders have not shown up to these important celebrations in the past, it has portended major developments. But it has also turned out to be nothing."There have been a number of recent rumours about Kim's health (smoking, heart, and brain). If Kim is hospitalized, it would explain why he wasn't present on the important April 15th celebrations," said Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation and former CIA deputy division chief for North Korea. "But, over the years, there have been a number of false health rumors about Kim Jong-un or his father. We'll have to wait and see." Kim Jong Il's absence from a parade celebrating North Korea's 60th anniversary in 2008 was followed by rumblings that he was in poor health. It was later revealed he had a stroke, after which his health continued to decline until his death in 2011. Kim Jong Un disappeared from the public eye for more than a month in 2014, which also prompted speculation about his health. He returned sporting a cane, and days later South Korean intelligence said that he had a cyst removed from his ankle. -- ANI North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, is in grave danger following a surgery this month, according to a US intelligence official with direct knowledge.Kim recently missed the celebration of his grandfather's birthday on April 15, which raised speculation about his well-being. He had been seen four days before that at a government meeting, according to intelligence reports cited by CNN. Were going to do what we think is right what I think is right and that is try to open this economy, Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio said Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press, but do it very, very carefully so we dont get a lot of people killed. In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican, said on Monday that department stores and some other retail businesses that had previously been deemed nonessential would be allowed to reopen on Tuesday, but they must abide by social distancing guidelines. People will also be able to gain access to public beaches on Tuesday. Across the country, governors have been weighing steps toward lifting orders and reviving their stalled economies. A lack of sufficient widespread testing has been seen as one of the main obstacles. At the White Houses coronavirus briefing on Monday, President Trump reacted dismissively to governors who said they had scrambled to access testing materials, such as nasal swabs and chemical reagents. Some states have far more capacity than they actually understand, he said. That is a complex subject, but some of the governors did not understand it. UPDATED: Tuesday, April 21, 2020. Some residents of southern areas of The Woodlands in the village of Grogans Mill are fed up with what they claim are rank, noxious odors emanating from a San Jacinto River Authority waste water treatment plant. Four residents of the area broke their silence during public comment of the township board meeting on Thursday. They alleged the associated smells have continued for years. Officials with the SJRA said in an interview that the waste water plant, built in 1975, does emit normal odors associated with all waste water treatment plants. Officials also said the facility was originally constructed in an area with few homes, and the resulting encroachment of developments and homes over the past four decades has led to people residing much closer to the facility, in turn smelling the emissions. Neil Gaynor, who is a member of the Grogans Mill Village Association board, was one of four residents of Grogans Mill to call and complain about the sewage treatment plant during the April 16 virtual board meeting of The Woodlands Township Board of Directors. Like other callers, Gaynor, said the odor from the facility at 2436 Sawdust Road, which is near South Millbend Drive and Lake Harrison, which is north of the Grogans Mill shopping center, has gone on for years. The area is filled with plush homes in a neighborhood called Lakeside Cove, and callers residing in the area told the board the odors have been a problem for anywhere from four to 15 years or longer. Seeking solutions Gaynor claimed efforts to get SJRA officials to fix the issue have not led to a resolution. Gaynor and the three other callers wanted township officials to help with the process, however the township has no authority or power over the facility as it is owned and managed by the SJRA with financial support from the 11 municipal utility districts in the township. Gaynor said he sent to SJRA officials a lengthy eight-page white paper, a type of research document often used by corporate public relations firm to present complex information with a proposed resolution, he had written in November 2019. He read excerpts from the document with a list of proposed solutions he and others are seeking that have yet to happen and the community continues to struggle with the issue that he claims has gone on for years. Another resident who identified himself as a Grogans Mill resident named Mark Crabbe, said the smell is, your classic sewage smellrotten eggs. There are times I can smell it in my garagesometimes I can smell it in our house, Crabbe said. One resident, Kenneth Hall, said the smells have existed for 15 years and, like others, said residents want an immediate cessation to all of the smells no later than December 2021. The incidents always seem to occur at nighttime hours. Why do the emissions seem to occur only at night, Hall said. Plant history Jace Houston, general manager of the SJRA, said the Waste Water Treatment Facility No. 1 was constructed in 1975 and is one of three similar treatments plants in The Woodlands. Houston said that he and other officials are aware of and agree that the facility does at times emit rank, unpleasant odors. However, he said that is what is expected from any waste treatment plant and that the facility has passed inspections from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and is operating as normal. Is one of the first waste water plants in The Woodlands. It is one of three plants that serve The Woodlands. I guess the bottom line is, waste water plants built especially 45 years ago naturally have some odors from time to time, that is just normal. When it was built, it was built in an undeveloped area, Houston explained. As development has closed in around the plant, there are more and more people, and they are starting to notice the odors. There is nothing wrong with the plant. it is doing what it is supposed to do. Shifting winds In response to claims by the four residents that dozens of complaints per year have been filed with SJRA by residents for more than five years, Houston said neither he nor other SJRA staff were aware of that many complaints. He acknowledged that there have been complaints. The area surrounding the facility is filled with a mix of luxurious homes along the shores of a small lake as well as a mix of swanky apartment complexes, condominiums and more moderate priced apartments. The Grogans Mill shopping center is less than a mile away from the facility. Weve had odor calls periodically for many years. Plants dont produce odors all the time, there are cases where there is a change in process, a change in winds or temperatures, then youll get an order, he added. Nothing has changed about the plant. it still runs great and does what it is supposed to do. There are just more and more people living closer and closer. Houston said the only way to reduce the odors, which is possible, was to make significant upgrades to the facility that would cost millions of dollars and would need to be approved by the governing boards of all 11 municipal utility districts serving The Woodlands. Each entity would be required to follow state law and do extensive notification of possible tax increases, costs to fix the facility and host public hearings, he added. The MUDs are the customers of this (facility). They set the budget, they determine what they want to have spent on infrastructure improvements. They have to approve the improvements to the plant, Houston explained. What we will do, is we will take to the MUDs a list of recommendations, here are some short-term improvements, here are long-term that will fix the problem permanently, and here are a range of costs. if you want it to be a completely odor-free plant 100 percent of the time, its probably going to be tens of millions of dollars. In the meantime, the pleas for help from residents to the township may have raised awareness of the issue, but will not end the odors, something that annoys Crabbe, who lives on Secluded Trail, a small cul de sac directly north of the plant.. It is ongoing. It is your classic sewage smellrotten eggs, Crabbe told directors. I think what (SJRA) are doing is woefully inadequate. jeff.forward@chron.com A scattering of protests aimed at state lockdowns erupted across the country last week, sparked not by social-distancing guidelines, but by politicians unilaterally dictating what products citizens are permitted to purchase in box stores, attempting to shut down drive-in masses at churches, and closing parks and beaches, among other ill-conceived and gratuitous intrusions. Like any protest movement, this one is a mixed bag: Some of the protesters are acting in bad faith, some are idealists, and some are merely terrified of losing their livelihoods, their homes, and their careers while waiting around for a government check that might never come. In reality, the economy is going to reopen only when most people either feel safe enough to emerge from isolation or calculate that the risk of emerging is worthwhile. Arbitrary deadlines mean little. I suspect that the best way to temper anger surrounding the lockdowns would be for local leaders to stop acting like a bunch of petty authoritarians when the vast majority of citizens are already voluntarily doing what the government is asking to protect themselves. Instead, officials are upping their game. The otherwise hapless New York City mayor Bill de Blasio, who was happy to eschew social-distancing measures altogether until much too late in this crisis, has now created a hotline enabling denizens of his beleaguered city to rat out their neighbors to the authorities. Other mayors are deploying Chinese-made drones fitting, I suppose to catch those who violate government orders. If these drones save one life, it is clearly worth the activity and the information theyre sending, is a real thing that the mayor of Elizabeth, N.J. told MSNBC. Meanwhile, Facebook is reportedly removing the posts of those organizing anti-quarantine protests in conjunction with state governments, calling them harmful misinformation. There is some confusion over the exact nature of the social-media giants policy on self-censoring. This morning, it was reported that the company was removing all posts advertising protests against social-distancing regulations, as well as posts deemed to spread harmful misinformation about the virus. The head of Facebook communications retweeted a CNN report that the social-media company was consulting with governments in California, New Jersey, and Nebraska to shut down the organization of anti-quarantine protests on its platform. Yet, after pushback, a company spokesperson clarified that Facebook was working with states to delete only posts advertising events that violate government orders and guidelines. Story continues While Ive long defended the right of social-media companies to dictate and enforce their own speech codes as they please without any interference from politicians, its difficult to give Facebook the benefit of the doubt here. Government has some leeway in protecting public health, but it has no right, not even during an emergency, to work to preemptively prevent Americans from expressing their political beliefs. If Facebook removed advertisements for protests at the behest of state and local governments as initial reports suggested it might have it would be an clear assault on expression, made all the more appalling by the fact that the protests were aimed at the very public policy that allows the state to undercut the ability of citizens to organize a demonstration in the first place. But even if Facebook was merely working with such governments to decide what millions of Americans can say to each other, that would be a big problem for both philosophical and practical reasons. For one thing, we cant trust Facebook to competently weed out harmful misinformation. Only last week, the company started deleting hundreds of thousands of false coronavirus missives, and then redirecting users to accurate information offered by the propagandists at the World Health Organization, which allowed this pandemic to mushroom into a crisis to begin with by wasting precious weeks echoing the deadly misinformation campaign of the Chinese Communist Party. Instead of touting such a group as a reliable source of information while crippling the ability of largely powerless Americans to voice their concerns over public policy, Facebook would be better served treating political content dispassionately and allowing users to curate their own experiences even at the risk of upsetting government officials. More from National Review Ive been in a lot of Zoom classrooms over the past month, teaching, talking with college students, some sent home from study abroad and continuing on with the language lessons that made so much more sense in another country, or with the art history discussions that were supposed to build to a museum trip, others who should have been in a big lecture hall or a cozy seminar room (remember big lecture halls and cozy seminar rooms?) in New York. Generally, the students I have encountered are valiantly hanging on to their classes, putting their intellectual energy into the effort of pursuing their lives and their goals and finding meaning while living through a time of crisis that upended their plans when it upended the world. When I gave a guest lecture over Zoom recently to a hundred or so students in an introductory journalism class at New York University, where I teach, I asked the students what advice they have for parents what had their parents done to support them, what could parents do to help their children through the scholastic endeavor of finishing out a semester that was never supposed to go this way? After all, the students and their parents have invested money and effort in this semester, and it will stand as part of the college experience how can adults help them see it through, help them make it as meaningful and valuable as possible? I had in mind that we would start with some obvious and practical advice: that if families have to share space or computer equipment, online class time should be prioritized; that as far as its possible, given family constraints, students need a private and quiet place to work, and to participate in online lessons; that if a students home is in a different time zone than the universitys, classes may meet at what seem like odd hours. The new coronavirus already has wreaked havoc on school districts closing campuses for the remainder of the school year, shifting learning online and exposing a wide digital divide between students who have ready access to the internet and those who do not. And that is only this year. Next year, even if the restrictions are lifted, the coronavirus still could spark a budget crisis for traditional and charter school districts across Texas. School finance officials and state leaders already are warning that the economic disruption caused by the pandemic, coupled with the ongoing oil slump, could result in a plunge in state revenues as sales taxes drop and commercial property values slip. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar already has said the state is in a recession. As districts work to finish their 2020-2021 budgets for approval this summer, state Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Humble, said it would be prudent for them to squirrel away some money, even if it is too early to tell how much of an impact the pandemic will have on funding next year. Talking to superintendents, my message to everybody is, lets get though this year, lets get to summer time, and next session well need to watch things very closely, Huberty said. The state comptrollers office is slated to give an updated economic forecast in June, but districts must approve their budgets in June or August, depending on when their fiscal years begin. Districts across Texas already were working through seismic changes before schools and much of the country shut down last month, thanks to changes ushered in by a school finance overhaul passed by the Legislature in 2019. The reform, House Bill 3, requires districts to base their upcoming budget on current year property values, instead of the previous years values. Districts receive a larger infusion of state money, too, but the rate at which they can tax local property owners effectively will be capped by the state, said Catherine Knepp, an associate at the Moak, Casey & Associates school finance consulting group. How much local tax rates have to be lowered depends on the rate local property values rise and several other factors. Districts were still figuring out how to do that, Knepp said. Then enter coronavirus. For local revenues, Knepp said, districts most likely to be impacted by the coronavirus closures will be those in which a larger share of their tax base is commercial or industrial property rather than residential. About 60 percent of Deer Park ISDs tax base, for example, comes from industrial properties that could suffer if the oil slump continues or if businesses there shut down entirely. Pete Pape, assistant superintendent for business services in Deer Park ISD, said he already was concerned about the sustainability of the changes made in HB 3 before the new coronavirus spread to the United States. Those concerns have been compounded with the current economic situation. When the Legislature meets, they all have what they want to get done. In a good year or biennium, you never have enough money, Pape said. This next one is going to be even less, so you wonder what the priorities are going to be. Huberty said the Legislature plans to save $1 billion of federal stimulus money for the next session to help fund schools and other parts of the states budget. Although it is too early to tell how much damage could be done as businesses and much of public life remain closed, he said money could be tight next session and said superintendents should begin looking where they could trim their budgets. The bones of what we put together with HB 3 remain intact, and we got some stimulus money from the feds to help us out with next year, Huberty said. But were going to have to look at everything. Conroe ISD officials are being cautiously optimistic. At a workshop last week, Chief Financial Officer Darrin Rice said the district still plans to give teachers and support staff cost-of-living adjustments ranging from 2.5 percent for administrators to 5 percent for the districts police officers. Rice said those wage increases are possible because the district did not spend all of the cash infusion HB 3 brought last year, and enrollments are expected to rise by about 1,500 students, an increase that will bring more state funding. Trustee Skeeter Hubert asked what would happen if growth slows or stops altogether during the recession and the estimated 1,500 new students do not materialize. Keeping the estimated $4 million those new students would have brought in the budget would give the district some wiggle room if state funding becomes scarce, Superintendent Curtis Null said. The reason we want to carry $4 million forward is we know whats going to happen next time the Legislature meets, Null said. Its going to be ugly, their budget is going to be really tight. When we can carry any money forward, it can soften any blow in changes to the funding formula. Glenn Reed, interim chief financial officer in Houston ISD, said there are myriad issues and questions his team is working through now, with little data or precedent to guide them. What if more people are delinquent in paying their property taxes? What if commercial property values plummet as some businesses close for good? Will enrollments decline, just as they did after big storms and previous recessions? When I sit and think about these things, I could have 25 to 30 different things that might happen, Reed said. Which one do you pick? Now Playing: 'COVID-19 in 60': Houston coronavirus news in a minute Video: Houston Chronicle shelby.webb@chron.com Three youths sipping cold drinks on a Gold Coast rooftop received a late-night fright when they were ordered down by the police helicopter loudspeaker and told officers had surrounded the building. In return for their exploits on Saturday, the trio were charged with trespassing and breaching novel coronavirus restrictions the latter came with a $1334 fine. It will be alleged the three accused - aged 19, 20 and 21 - were on the roof of a building on Jefferson Lane in Palm Beach about 11.20pm when they were hailed by a booming voice. "This is the police, this is the police. To the three people sitting on the building rooftop. Yes, we can see you the one with the hoodie in the middle with your cold drinks," the PolAir officer said. LANSING In a time of extreme polarization, a recent study has found something most of the American public can agree on: Endangered species deserve protection and more than they get now. The study by researchers from Michigan Technical University and other institutions surveyed 1,000 U.S. residents to understand what the general public perceives as acceptable risks for endangered species. Responses indicated that the public is much less accepting of risks and losses to endangered species than policymakers and experts are. Tom Offer-Westort, a research scientist at the University of Oklahoma and the lead author of the study in Environmental Research Letters, said he was surprised how universal the findings were. Even participants who self-identified as politically conservative, gun rights advocates, farmers and ranchers groups often thought to be less supportive of the Endangered Species Act want significant protections for endangered species, he said. John Vucetich, a professor at Michigan Technological University and a leader of the Isle Royale Wolf and Moose Project, was a co-author of the study. He said he wasnt surprised by the relative agreement by the public. Its not an uncommon phenomenon for there to be an issue that appears polarizing and controversial, but it actually isnt. Why the agreement on protecting wildlife? I think people just value biodiversity, Offer-Westort said. I think people like wild animals. I think they want there to be lots of different kinds of species out there. The idea of that going away is sad and scary, and I think this is a value people share regardless of background. Despite that common value, the study also illuminates something the general public, lawmakers, policymakers and experts disagree about: What counts as an endangered species? According to the Endangered Species Act, its one thats in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. That seems simple, but those 13 words carry many interpretations. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service policy interprets range to mean the area a species occupies at the time of listing and states that a species cannot be listed solely because it has lost a significant portion of its historical range. Having a consistent interpretation allows federal agencies to use time and resources effectively while protecting vulnerable species, according to the agency. However, there are critics of the agencys understanding of the law, including Vucetich. The Fish and Wildlife Services interpretation allows it to be comfortable with higher risks of extinction, Vucetich said. The Fish and Wildlife Service is clearly just not interested in protecting endangered species to the degree that the Endangered Species Act obviously requires, he said. What becomes relevant here is that occasionally the Fish and Wildlife Service gets sued over this interpretation, and every time that they get sued they have lost on the grounds of their interpretation, he said. Vucetich isnt the only one who objects to the agencys policies. The Fish and Wildlife Service is perennially trying to look at isolated populations rather than recovery of the species as a whole, said Bonnie Rice, a senior representative of the Sierra Clubs Greater Yellowstone campaign. Changes to the Endangered Species Act during the Trump administration are especially concerning, she said. The Americans surveyed by Offer-Westort and his colleagues gave a simpler definition of which species deserve protection. According to the average response of participants, the federal government should step in to protect a species after 21.5% of its historic range is lost. Half of the participants said the government should protect a species after just 10% of its range is lost. Vucetich said, If the federal government applied the law that way, many species that are currently endangered theyd be endangered forever. Having more species classified as endangered would be sad but would more accurately reflect the severity of the biodiversity crisis, he said. Gray wolves are a poster child for the debate over what counts as an endangered species. Theyre listed as endangered throughout the Great Lakes region, except in Minnesota, where they are threatened, said Georgia Parham, a public affairs officer with the Fish and Wildlife Service. They were removed from the list in 2011, only to be put back on in 2014 after a federal court disagreed with the agencys interpretation of the Endangered Species Act. In March 2019, the agency proposed a rule to delist the gray wolf in the lower 48 states, citing a successful recovery of the species. The agency will issue a final decision on their status in the coming months after analyzing hundreds of public comments, Parham said. Vucetich said he worries that the political and economic costs of protecting endangered species encourages delisting. Wolves occupy about 15% of their historic range in the United States, Vucetich said. Until wolves live in far more places than they do, or until somebody offers an interpretation of the law that says 15% occupancy is fine and its a good interpretation of the law, then I would say that they should remain endangered. According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, sound science indicates that the gray wolf has recovered by any and all measures required under the law. And Offer-Westort said what counts as an endangered species isnt a question for experts alone. Its a question for the public because it isnt something thats based on scientific evidence alone. It should stem from what our values are, he said. Amelia Cole writes for Great Lakes Echo. A hospital in Uttar Pradeshs Meerut has apologised for a controversial advertisement on Friday, which said that Muslim patients and their caretakers coming to the hospital must test negative for Covid-19 failing which they wont be admitted. The advertisement was an appeal to all the people to follow the government guidelines so that everyone stays safe. It has nothing to do with religion. We apologise as some word hurt peoples sentiments. The hospital never intended to hurt anyones sentiments, said Dr Amit Jain, radio oncologist at Valentis Cancer Hospital, as reported by news agency ANI. A case has been registered against the hospital. We have registered a case. We are taking action as per the evidence available, said Meerut SSP Ajay Kumar Sahni. The advertisement by Valentis hospital said that in case of emergency, the patient and their attendants will be admitted but they will be tested for Covid-19 immediately. The cost for the test - 4,500 each - will be taken from the patient. The controversial advertisement published by the newspapers in Meerut on Friday. (Twitter) The reasons cited by the hospital included the alleged misbehaviour of the members of the Tablighi Jamaat, who, the ad said, had contributed to the spread of coronavirus infection in the country. This is certainly wrong and we are sending a notice to the administration of the concerned hospital, Meeruts Chief Medical Officer Raj Kumar had said on Sunday. He said further action will be taken after a reply is received from them. In the second advertisement issued on Sunday, the hospital said it apologises if anyones sentiments are even slightly hurt. Referring to the coronavirus pandemic, the hospital said it wanted people of all religions to fight the emergency together. The 1,426 new coronavirus cases reported in Singapore on Monday were due to the extensive testing of foreign workers, including Indians, lodged in dormitories, considered as hotspots for COVID-19 infections in the country, the health ministry said. Out of the vast majority of the new cases, 1,369 are work permit holders or foreigners, including Indian nationals, living in foreign workers' dormitories, it said. "The main increase today continues to be for work permit holders residing in dormitories, where we are picking up many more cases because of extensive testing," the ministry said. "These are not new infections as the workers are staying in their rooms and many have not reported sick. But when the teams go in to test them, many turn out to be positive," the Ministry stressed. Most of them have a mild illness and are being monitored in community isolation facilities or general wards. None are in the intensive care unit, said the Ministry. With the latest counted cases on Monday, Singapore has now a total of 8,014 coronavirus infections. Twenty-three of 3,420 confirmed cases in hospital are in intensive care unit. Others are stable or improving. Of the others, 3,782 cases who are clinically well but still test positive for COVID-19 are isolated and cared for at community facilities. Eleven have died from complications due to the COVID-19 infection. Thirty-three cases were discharged from hospital on Monday. In all, 801 have fully recovered from the infection and have been discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities. The number of new cases among work permit holders, or foreigners working here but living outside the dormitories, has continued to increase, with 32 such cases reported. These cases have gone up from an average of 13 cases per day in the week before, to an average of 24 per day in the past week, the ministry said. Within the local community, there are 25 cases, comprising 18 Singaporeans and permanent residents and seven work pass holders, who are also foreigners here. The number of new cases in the community has decreased from an average of 39 cases per day in the week before to an average of 29 per day in the past week, said MOH. Singapore is now the worst-hit country in Southeast Asia, surpassing coronavirus cases in Indonesia and the Philippines, according to a report by the Channel Asia on Monday. Topping the list was S11 Dormitory @ Punggol for foreign workers, which saw 469 additional cases linked to it, taking its total to 1,977. Twenty additional cases were linked to dormitory, Sungei Tengah Lodge, taking its total to 540 cases. A total of 203 additional cases were linked to Tuas View Dormitory, which now has a total of 460 cases. A total of 18 foreign worker dormitories have been gazetted as isolation areas, as the number of COVID-19 cases there continues to rise. All work permit holders and S Pass holders in the construction sector have been placed on mandatory stay-home notices until May 4 as a precautionary measure against the spread of COVID-19. The next few days are a critical period that will determine whether circuit breaker measures can be eased on May 4, 2020, infectious disease experts told The Straits Times on Monday. The measures, such as closing of schools and non-essential businesses, are to control the spread of COVID-19. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Monday called upon people living along the India-Bangladesh border to launch 'Janata patrolling' alongside the BSF to ensure that no person from the neighbouring country sneaks into India amid the coronavirus outbreak. Deb, who also holds the Home portfolio, said in a video message: "Bangladesh is a friendly state. But, we came to know from media that social distancing is not being maintained there. So, we have to resist the spread of coronavirus across the border to save our own people. "It is possible that you might have your relatives there who would like to seek help for treatment in India. I am not against humanitarianism. But I want to assert that a humanitarian approach should not become our weakness. I request everyone to make sure that no one enters Tripura from Bangladesh," he said. The BSF and the state police have already been put on alert to intensify patrolling along the unfenced stretches of the border, especially in Sonamura, Boalkhali and Gandacherra areas, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office said. Deb also said that his government has come in contact with 2,000 people from Tripura stranded in other parts of the country due to the nationwide lockdown. The state government has sent financial aid to a large number of the stranded persons and urged them to be constant touch with their families over the phone, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Mon, April 20, 2020 10:09 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2f1501 2 World G20,G20-Digital-Ministers-Meeting,health-minister,vulnerabilities,health-system,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic Free Health ministers from the Group of 20 major economies discussed weaknesses in health systems that made the world vulnerable to the coronavirus outbreak and other pandemics, a statement said after a virtual meeting on Sunday. The Saudi G20 secretariat said that the ministers shared their national experiences, addressed necessary actions to improve preparedness and discussed systemic weaknesses exposed by the pandemic. "Health Ministers recognized that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted systemic weaknesses in health systems," the statement said. "It also has shown vulnerabilities in the global community's ability to prevent and respond to pandemic threats." The statement said the ministers adopted preventative measures to contain the pandemic, but did not elaborate. A planned virtual news conference was cancelled as Saudi Health Minister Tawfiq al-Rabiah had to attend "an urgent COVID-19 KSA (Saudi) taskforce meeting". Saudi Arabia is the current chair of the G20. In opening remarks provided via video to media, Rabiah said urgent actions included the need for collaboration and engagement of global organizations for coordinated responses to the novel coronavirus pandemic, with an emphasis on supporting countries in need, and investing in research and discovery to produce technology, tools, vaccines and therapies. He also referred to the creation of a global task force to respond to pandemics, an innovation hub for knowledge sharing to improve value in health and a patient safety leaders group to provide shared platforms aimed at reducing patient safety risks. Leaders from Spain, Singapore, Jordan and Switzerland were invited to attend Sunday's meeting as well as international and regional organizations including the World Health Organization and the World Bank, an earlier G20 statement said. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced they will be stepping back as senior royals - after a whirlwind two years in the public eye. The Duke, 35, and Duchess of Sussex, 38, who made their first ever appearance together at the Invictus Games in Toronto on 25 September 2017, have squeezed in endless memorable moments in the time that has followed. Among their jam-packed schedule includes their official engagement announcement in November 2017, and the multi-cultural and US-influenced wedding that followed at Windsor Castle, on May 2018. The star-studded day was filled with VIP guests and dominated by Hollywood stars including the Clooneys, the Beckhams, Idris Elba, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Hardy and James Corden. Other highlights since their big day include Meghan's lavish baby shower trip to New York, which is thought to have cost more than $500,000 (380,000), Archie's birth on 6 May 2019, and their 10-day tour of Africa as a family late last year. Here, FEMAIL looks back at Prince Harry and Meghan's relationship timeline. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle watched Wheelchair Tennis at the 2017 Invictus Games in Toronto, Canada on 25 September 2017 - in what marked their first public appearance together The Duke and and Duchess of Sussex with their baby son (Name later announced as Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor), who was born on May 6 2019 during a photocall in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle in Berkshire FIRST PUBLIC EVENT, 25 September 2017 Hand in hand, Prince Harry proudly brought his then-girlfriend Meghan Markle to a highly public tennis match on 25 September 2017 at the Invictus Games in Toronto - marking their first official appearance together as a couple. The Suits star made an intriguing outfit choice, sporting a a 221 (retailing for $185 in the States) white shirt named The Husband, designed by her friend Misha Nonoo whose former spouse went to Eton with William and Harry, along with sunglasses and ripped blue jeans. Their appearance was seen as a sign that an engagement was on the cards for the couple, and within hours of them stepping out together bookies Ladbrokes suspended betting on an engagement announcement. The love birds arrived, fingers entwined, to the Invictus Games semi-final, in full view of members of the public and photographers. The couple put on a show of togetherness with Harry leaning close to chat to his then-girlfriend during proceedings on 25 September 2017 ENGAGEMENT ANNOUNCEMENT, 27 November 2017 Prince Harry told how he was 'thrilled' to be marrying Meghan Markle and admitted he knew the Suits star was 'the one' from 'the first day we met'. Meghan also showed the world her engagement ring designed by Harry himself containing two diamonds from Princess Diana's own personal collection set in a gold band. Harry looked nervous but happy as they made their first public appearance since the announcement in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, much loved by his late mother Princess Diana. His fiancee stroked his arm lovingly as they spoke to reporters, who asked him: 'When did you know she was the one?' and he replied: 'From the very first time we met'. He refused to say how he proposed saying: 'That will come later' but when asked if it was romantic he said: 'Of course it was' - but the couple didn't kiss for the cameras. The prince said he was 'thrilled, over the moon' adding: 'Very glad it's not raining as well.' Meghan said she was 'so happy, thank you' before they wandered back into Kensington Palace beaming. The prince said he was 'thrilled, over the moon' adding: 'Very glad it's not raining as well' and both were full of smiles as they posed at Kensington Palace Meghan's engagement ring's two outer diamonds are from Diana's own collection with a central diamond from Botswana - where they went on safari in September - all set within a gold band THE ROYAL WEDDING, 19 May 2018 Meghan Markle married Prince Harry in a multi-cultural and US-influenced wedding at Windsor Castle on 19 May, 2018. The newlyweds shared tears, laughter and a passionate kiss in front of their hundreds of VIP guests dominated by Hollywood stars including the Clooneys, the Beckhams, Idris Elba, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Hardy and James Corden. Elton John, who sang at Princess Diana's funeral in 1997, performed at the lunchtime reception hosted by the Queen in a poignant nod to Harry's late mother. All the senior British royals were also there to support the couple including Her Majesty the Queen, Prince Philip, Harry's best man Prince William and his wife Kate, who brought George and Charlotte but left baby Louis with the nanny. Meghan became the first mixed-race member of the royal family in an extraordinary journey for a girl born in LA to a white father and African-American mother who fought her way through the tough world of showbusiness to land a plum role in the TV series Suits. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry walked down the steps of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in Windsor, near London, following their wedding on May 19, 2018 FIRST OUTING AS THE DUCHESS OF SUSSEX, 22 May 2018 Meghan Markle made her first outing as the Duchess of Sussex on 22 May 2018 as the newlyweds arrived at Prince Charles's 70th birthday party at Buckingham Palace. The Duchess of Sussex was given a warm welcome into the family, with Prince Harry explicitly referring to the garden party as a 'family celebration' during his speech. Harry and Meghan enjoyed only a brief private getaway following their wedding, and delayed their full honeymoon to honour the Prince. But their newlywed energy was on full display as she rubbed her hand up and down her husband's back as they made their way out. The Duke and Duchess attended the Prince of Wales' 70th Birthday Patronage Celebration at Buckingham Palace in London on 22 May 2018, which was their first official engagement following their wedding PREGNANCY ANNOUNCEMENT AND FIRST ROYAL TOUR, October 2018 Meghan and Harry announced they were expecting in a statement via Kensington Palace on October 15, 2018. The statement read: 'Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Sussex is expecting a baby in the Spring of 2019. Their Royal Highnesses have appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public'. The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh said they were 'delighted' to be welcoming their eighth great-grandchild in a joint statement with Prince Charles, who became a grandfather for the fourth time when Baby Sussex was born. Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland said she was 'very happy about this lovely news' and 'looks forward to welcoming her first grandchild'. The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were told in person at the wedding of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank at Windsor Castle two days prior. The baby news was released in a statement by Kensington Palace saying the baby was due in Spring 2019 Harry and Meghan attended the wedding of his cousin Princess Eugenie in Windsor on 12 October 2018 (pictured) - where they told the Queen and the royal family they were expecting and she was wearing a wide fitting coat Rumours were rife that Meghan may be pregnant after her mother Doria Ragland was seen taking baby-care classes in Pasadena with a view to looking after her new grandchild. The news came as the couple were seen beaming as they touched down in Sydney to start their three-week tour of Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga - their first major international trip since they married in May. They were later photographed holding hands in the grounds of Admiralty House, where the Queen stays Down Under, when their happy news was announced to the world. Their 16-day tour of Australasia included a trip to Fiji and Tonga despite advice that pregnant women should not travel to the region because of its moderate Zika risk. LAVISH BABY SHOWER, February 2019 At seven-months-pregnant, the Duchess of Sussex celebrated the impending arrival of her first child Archie with a lavish baby shower trip to New York, which is thought to have cost more than $500,000 (380,000). Meghan's pricey - but privately-funded - party, which took place in a $75,000-a-night penthouse, included a flower arranging class for guests, using a variety of blooms from Upper East Side florist Lady Fleur. Guests at the lavish baby shower left the intimate gathering with high-end gift bags filled with luxe leather tote bags filled with the royal's favourite products. According to People, Serena Williams, Amal Clooney, and Canadian stylist Jessica Mulroney were among the attendees who were gifted Cuyana leather totes that were filled to the brim with products, much like Oscars swag bags. Meghan Markle celebrated the impending arrival of her first child Archie with a lavish baby shower trip to New York in February 2019 The Duchess of Sussex celebrated the impending arrival of the royal baby with a spectacular baby shower in New York, costing an estimated $500,000 (380,000) in total ARCHIE'S BIRTH, 6 May 2019 Prince Harry revealed his delight at baby Archie's arrival during a TV statement in which he heaped praise on his 'incredible' wife. The Duke of Sussex announced that Meghan had given birth at 5.26am to a boy weighing 7lbs 3oz, having been more than a week overdue. Prince Harry gushed that the 'little thing is absolutely to-die-for' as he announced the news on after Meghan went into labour in the early hours. Speaking from Windsor at the time, a visibly-excited Prince Harry shared his immense pride as he joked of getting just two hours' sleep the night before, before calling the birth 'the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined'. In a statement shortly after the birth was announced, Buckingham Palace said Meghan and her baby were 'both doing well', and that the Queen and other members of the royal family were 'delighted' with the news. Meghan is pictured at King's College, London in March (left) and with Harry at at Buckingham Palace in the same month (right) Speaking hours after his wife went into labour, an overjoyed Prince Harry (pictured) revealed that his wife had given birth to a healthy baby boy FIRST PICTURES OF BABY ARCHIE, 8 MAY, 2019 Meghan and Harry made their first public appearance with baby Archie in the grounds of Windsor Castle, two days after he was born. The move differed from the announcement of royal babies in the past, where new mothers had shown off their newborns on the steps of the hospital where they were born. The baby boy was lovingly cradled by his adoring father and watched attentively by Meghan, who was herself pictured for the first time in over a month since withdrawing from public life ahead of the birth. The couple appeared to be beside themselves with joy, giggling and looking into each other's eyes as they spoke, while Harry could not resist sneaking a peek down at his son as he apparently slept. Speaking from inside the majestic St George's Hall at Windsor Castle, a radiant Meghan declared: 'It's magic, it's pretty amazing. He's just been the dream so it's been a special couple of days. The world was given its first ever glimpse of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's newborn son on 8 May 2019 as his beaming parents finally showed off their 'own little bundle of joy' to millions of royal fans across the globe Baby Sussex (pictured) made his very first public appearance at a photocall alongside a thrilled Prince Harry and Meghan in the grounds of Windsor Castle 'I have the two best guys in the world so I'm really happy. He has the sweetest temperament, he's really calm.' As they both laughed, Harry said: 'I don't know who he gets that from.' Asked who the baby takes after, Meghan said: 'We're still trying to figure that out.' Harry said: 'Everyone says that babies change so much over two weeks we're basically monitoring how the changing process happens over this next month really. But his looks are changing every single day, so who knows.' Asked how he found parenting, Harry added: 'It's great. Parenting is amazing. It's only been two and a half days, three days, but we're just so thrilled to have our own little bundle of joy.' Harry said they were looking forward to spending some 'precious times with him as he slowly, slowly starts to grow up.' Asked about going to see the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, Meghan said: 'We just bumped into the duke as we were walking by which was so nice. So it'll be a nice moment to introduce the baby to more family and my mum's with us as well.' The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pictured with their baby son in the majestic setting of St George's Hall at Windsor Castle today CHRISTENING: JULY, 2019 Archie Mountbatten Windsor was christened exactly two months after he was born on July 6, last year. The young royal was pictured sitting on the lap of his mother, the Duchess of Sussex, as she nestled into the shoulder of his father, the Duke of Sussex. The image, shot against the opulence of Windsor Castle's Green Drawing Room, was one of warmth and family joy. Archie did not be take an HRH title at the request of his parents but he did, however, enjoy all the trappings of a Royal christening. This official christening photograph released by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex shows the Duke and Duchess with their son, Archie and (left to right) the Duchess of Cornwall, The Prince of Wales, Ms Doria Ragland, Princess Diana's sisters Lady Jane Fellowes, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, The Duke of Cambridge and The Duchess of Cambridge in the Green Drawing Room at Windsor Castle Finally baby Archie's face is revealed! The stunning snap shows off the adorable royal, with the little boy being held by mother Meghan Markle He was wearing the cascading ivory Honiton lace and satin gown used for all Royal babies' baptisms since the reign of Queen Victoria. The one Archie wore is a 2008 copy of the 1841 original, and was handmade by the Queen's dresser Angela Kelly. The ceremony was performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, using the silver gilt Lily Font. Commissioned in 1840 by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert for the birth of their first child, it is part of the Crown Jewels and had been brought from the Tower of London for the occasion. The names' of Archie's godparents have never been revealed, but Prince Harry's former nanny Tiggy Legge Bourke was among the 25 guests at the private event, sparking speculation she was godmother. In the main picture, Archie is flanked by three of his proud grandparents, the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and Meghan's mother Doria Ragland In a touching tribute to Harry's mother, Princess Diana's sisters Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale were prominent in the official picture. In the second image, which was black and white, Meghan was seen gazing into Harry's eyes as the proud father looked down at Archie, while placing a hand on his wife's arm. A second shot in black-and-white shows Meghan dressed in white gazing into Harry's eyes as she cradles baby Archie and her proud husband looks at their baby son. Windsor castle's Rose Garden can be seen in the background Prince Harry's former nanny Tiggy Legge Bourke was among the 25 guests at the private event in Windsor today, sparking speculation she could be one of Archie's godparents TOUR OF AFRICA WITH BABY ARCHIE, September 2019 At the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Harry and Meghan visited South Africa, Malawi, Angola and Botswana between September 23 and October 2, 2019. The royals took baby Archie, who was just four months at the time, along with them on the trip. During their visit they unveiled three new Queens Commonwealth Canopy projects, protecting forests and planting trees, and worked with the British Government to announce investment of 8m in technology and skills in the region. The Duke also travelled to Angola to focus on the ongoing mission to rid the world of landmines - following in the footsteps of the work that was pioneered by his mother, Diana. But the highlight of the trip was when baby Archie made his first appearance by meeting one of the heroes of the anti-apartheid movement, Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The Sussexes released adorable footage of them carrying their four-month-old, with the caption, 'Arch meets Archie!'. A video posted to their Instagram account shows the couple beaming as Meghan holds little Archie - who giggles at his mother - as they are greeted by Archbishop Tutu and his daughter, Thandeka Tutu-Gxashe. Meghan joked with the Archbishop's daughter Thandeka Tutu Gxashe that the little royal would have to get used the cameras in his life, while Ms Tutu Gxashe joked little Archie was 'going to be a ladies' man'. The veteran Nobel Peace Prize-winning anti-apartheid campaigner - who effectively became the leader of the liberation struggle during Nelson Mandela's long imprisonment - said he was 'thrilled by the 'rare privilege and honour' to meet the royals. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex took Archie on a tour of South Africa, Malawi, Angola and Botswana between September 23 and October 2, 2019. Pictured, during a meeting with Archbishop Desmond Tutu in Cape Town on 29 September 2019 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex met a group of dancers at the Nyanga Township in Cape Town, South Africa, on the first day of their tour of Africa on Monday September 23 Meghan met health workers and families during a visit to the mothers2mother charity organisation in Cape Town THE ITV DOCUMENTARY THAT FOLLOWED, 20 October 2019 In Tom Bradby's hour-long documentary, 'Harry & Meghan: An African Journey', which followed the royal couple during their official tour of Africa, Prince Harry admitted that he and William are travelling on 'different paths' in the first public acceptance of a rift between the brothers. In a candid interview, the Duke of Sussex acknowledged there had been deepening tensions between himself and William, following months of speculation about the state of the brothers' relationship. He made the comments in a TV documentary broadcast where he also attacked the press over the public scrutiny that he and wife Meghan Markle have faced. Harry said: 'I will not be bullied into playing a game that killed my mum.' The 35-year-old initially laughed in response to the question, then added: 'Part of this role, part of this job and this family being under the pressure it is under, inevitably stuff happens. 'But look, we are brothers, we will always be brothers. We are certainly on different paths at the moment but I will always be there for him and, as I know, he will always be there for me.' He added: 'We don't see as much as we used to because we are so busy but I love him dearly and the majority of stuff is created out of nothing. 'As brothers, you have good days, you have bad days.' Harry said spoke about his struggles with mental health and how the death of his mother affected him during the ITV documentary Prince Harry refused to deny reports of a rift between himself and brother William in a candid interview FINAL ENGAGEMENT BEFORE STEPPING BACK AS SENIOR ROYALS, 7 January 2020 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex leave after visiting Canada House in London yesterday, after their recent stay in Canada Yesterday marked Prince Harry and Meghan's final appearance before they made the decision to step back as royals. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex held hands and walked closely next to each other as they visited Canada House to meet the country's High Commissioner in London, Janice Charette. They were warmly greeted by Ms Charette and her deputy Sarah Fountain Smith, after saying they wanted to meet staff to 'thank them for the warm Canadian hospitality and support they received during their recent stay'. Meghan wore a mix of tans and camel colours for her appearance - pairing a coat from Reiss with a polo neck and 85 skirt from Massimo Dutti. The Duchess was joined by Prince Harry at their first public appearance which marked the end of their six-weeks hiatus from royal duty - where they thanked the people of Canada for hosting their private holiday. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-19 23:10:02|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close KATHMANDU, April 19 (Xinhua) -- A German scholar has recently found that the right to education for Uygurs and people of other ethnic groups is well protected in China's Xinjiang region, as young people there enjoy increasingly better opportunities. Michael Heinrich, who has been teaching German in Minzu University of China for more than five years, said in an article published on Online Khabar news website in March that he has "paid close attention to the development of Chinese education in recent years, especially the education situation in ethnic minority areas." Heinrich said he has taught a Xinjiang Uygur student, who often talks with him about the education situation in her hometown and appreciates government policies on education. The Uygur student has told Heinrich that she lives in a place where she receives Islamic religious education and China's nine-year compulsory education, and the Uygur students in Xinjiang can enjoy preferential policies, such as extra points in college entrance examination, special policies for college admissions, and employment policy support. In recent years, the Chinese government has intensified policy support on education in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and increased investment in educational resources, especially those on vocational education, the article read. "Through vocational education, more Uyghur Muslim students can enhance their survival skills and work harder by themselves and improve their living standards with these hands," it said. For some time, Xinjiang has been plagued by terrorism, religious extremism and separatism, according to the passage, and carrying out vocational education and training in Xinjiang is an effective measure to promote the rule of law and a practical action to protect the vital interests of people of all ethnic groups there. It is also a just move in fighting extremism and terrorism to contribute to the stability in Xinjiang, it added. Some Western media outlets as well as some U.S. politicians often slander the Chinese government under the guise of "human rights," which does not only disregard the facts but also interferes with China's sovereignty, Heinrich pointed out. The situation in Xinjiang that they saw was completely different from the stories told by some Western politicians and media, Heinrich quoted some people who have visited Xinjiang and witnessed its development as saying. The rights to life and development of people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are protected to the largest extent, Heinrich added. Enditem Photo credit: PUNCH The death of Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari weeks after the senior presidential aides infection with coronavirus, has undoubtedly created a void in the upper echelons of the current regime. Based on their antecedents as some of Buharis closest associates, the following are the probable candidates for Kyaris replacement. According to government officials, any of these associates could land the top job. Muhammad Bello The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Alhaji Muhammad Bello, who hails from Adamawa State, was born on January 8, 1959. An alumnus of the prestigious Barewa College, Zaria, the minister is a graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he obtained a BSc. in Management with bias for Banking and Finance in 1980, as well as MBA in the same field. Bello was in charge of credit and marketing at the ICON Merchant Bank Plc and later a director at Habib Bank Plc and several other firms. Adamu Adamu The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu is an accountant, writer, former journalist and public analyst. Adamu Adamu was appointed as Minister of Education by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015. He studied Accountancy at the Ahmadu Bello University. Upon receiving his university degree, Adamu was hired as an accountant at CCP, and then continued to work at the CNL in Bauchi State, before joining the local government in the same position. Adamu began a career as a writer and a public analyst, later emerging a newspaper editor in 1984 and becoming a columnist for Daily Trust. His articles were also syndicated in several news outlets, including the London-based Crescent International. Isa Pantami The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Pantami, hails from Pantami District of Gombe State. Pantami lectured at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University in Information Technology before joining the Islamic University of Madinah as Head of Technical Writing in 2014. In 2016, he was appointed as the Director General/CEO of the National Information Technology Development Agency. He attended Federal University of Technology, Bauchi (popularly known as Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University) where he obtained a BTech in Computer Science in 2003. He also obtained an MSc in Computer Science in 2009 and an MBA in Technology Management 2011 session from the same University. Pantami also holds a PhD in Computer Information Systems and Postgraduate Certificate in Research Methods from Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, United Kingdom. Hameed Ali The Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali, was born in Dass, Bauchi State on January 15, 1955. Ali was commissioned in 1977 after he received his training at the Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna. He attended Sam Houston State University, Texas from 1984 to 1988 and holds bachelors and masters degrees in Criminology, and an educational certificate from the Nigeria Defence Academy. After retirement, he became secretary of the apex northern sociopolitical group, Arewa Consultative Forum. Ali is an All Progressives Congress member. He supported Buharis presidential bids from 2003 to 2019. On 27 August, 2015, Buhari appointed him the CG of Customs. Kashim Shetimma Kashim Shettima was born in Maiduguri, Borno State. He earned a BSc in Agricultural Economics from University of Maiduguri in 1989 and an MSc in Agricultural Economics from the University of Ibadan in 1991. Shettima joined the University of Maiduguri as a lecturer with the Department of Agricultural Economics and was in the academia from 1991 to 1993. In 2011, he was elected governor of Borno State on the platform of the now defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party. In February 2019, he was elected the senator for Borno Central. Babagana Kingibe Ambassador Babagana Kingibe was born on June 25, 1945 in Borno. In 1960, he got a government scholarship to complete his Ordinary Levels and Advanced Levels at Bishops Stortford College, United Kingdom. In 1965, he received his bachelors degree in international relations from the University of Sussex. In 1965, he returned to Nigeria and was employed as a researcher at Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria. He was appointed the Ambassador to Greece, Cyprus and later Pakistan between 1981 and 1985. In 1986, Kingibe became a permanent secretary in the presidency of General Ibrahim Babangida. Kingibe also served from October 2002 to September 2006 as the Special Envoy of the African Union to Sudan and subsequently Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission and head of the African Union Mission in Sudan. In June 2007, he was appointed Secretary to the Government of the Federation. *** Source: Sunday PUNCH Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:35:51|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TAIPEI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan companies saw export orders up 40.4 percent month on month to 40.26 billion U.S. dollars in March when their assembly lines in the Chinese mainland rolled again. Year on year, the March figure increased by 4.3 percent, the island's economic affairs department said in a press release Monday. The March growth of export orders came after the continuous decrease in January and February and against the previous forecast made by the department in February that the export orders might drop by 9.3 percent to 13.2 percent year on year. The department attributed the soaring export orders to the reopening of factories and logistics in the mainland as the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) eased. Enterprises have begun to receive orders that they failed to take in February due to epidemic control measures, leading to the extra increase of export orders, the statement said. Among major export products, the orders for IT products increased the most by 90.8 percent month on month to 11.54 billion dollars. However, despite steady growth of exports of IT and electronic products, the island's exports in the short future may be held back by challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and low oil and steel prices, the statement said. The statistics consist of export orders taken by Taiwan enterprises and produced both in and outside Taiwan. Enditem This article is part of Privacy in the Pandemic, a Future Tense series. Using surveillance technology to get back to normal life after COVID-19 makes sense, right? If Typhoid Mary had a cellphone, wed want to know where she was, said Al Gidari, consulting director of Privacy at the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. What isnt so apparent is what degree of surveillance we need to effectively track the virus, and how much privacy we may have to sacrifice to get there. Advertisement On April 10, Apple and Google announced that they would be teaming up to develop a system of COVID-19 contact tracing using apps. This announcement, and other tracking systems and proposals throughout the world have raised concerns that enhancing surveillance to track and limit the spread of the virus could cause irreparable damage to privacy. While surveillance tools can range from individual contact tracking to aggregate tracking, none are truly anonymous because public health cant be, said Gidari. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Gidari was part of Thursdays Future Tense web event Will COVID-19 Claim Privacy Among its Victims? Gidari was joined by Kathryn Waldron, a resident fellow in national Security and cybersecurity at the R Street Institute, and Jennifer Daskal, a professor at American University Washington College of Law and faculty director of the law schools Tech, Law, & Security Program. The three discussed how to balance the needs of the masses with the rights of the individual in unprecedented times. Advertisement Advertisement Waldron focused on the different systems and tools that could be used for virus surveillance. Google and Apples approach, for instance, is to use Bluetooth to create logs of every device your phone has been near. If you tested positive for coronavirus, this could trigger a notification to other devices, even people you passed on the street or sat next to on the metro. Advertisement Advertisement While Bluetooth tools could be seen as less invasive than location tracking, Waldron warned that they still pose privacy risks. Plus, the Bluetooth approach creates the risk of false positives and unnecessary alarm, Gidari said. But at least this method it is decentralized. By contrast, Singapore, for example, is using a centralized approach in which the data is held by a government agency. Advertisement Advertisement Daskal pushed the panelists to specify what we would need for a tracking system to help combat the pandemic. Waldron said that any effort to track the virus with technology depends on both a significant number of the population to buy into tracking apps, but these apps could work only with widespread testing, which has yet to arrive in the U.S. Gidari echoed that idea and also noted that opting into tracking would have to be voluntary. Advertisement Advertisement That isnt the case elsewhere. Daskal pointed out that Poland has launched a quarantine selfie app for residents to prove that they are at home, and the government of the southern Indian state Karnataka announced its own surveillance program by tweeting a selfie an hour will keep the police away. Waldron emphasized that we need to be skeptical of coronavirus being used as an excuse to expand the existing surveillance regimes. While many Americans were surprised when a Chinese city rolled out facial-recognition thermometers on buses, the technology was already in place: China has had thermometers in airports for years, and the surveillance cameras were already omnipresent. Advertisement Advertisement So how much privacy are we willing to forfeit to return to normal? In Europe, some governments are exploring the idea of coronavirus immunity passes to indicate who is allowed to re-enter society, and Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently stated that they could be a possibility in the U.S., too. Heightened surveillance during COVID-19 is alarming and demands nuanced debate, but Gidari doesnt think this is the death of privacy: At the end of the day, privacy is going to be just as important coming out of this as coming into it. Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society. SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar State Bank of India Chairman Rajnish Kumar on Sunday urged small and medium enterprises to act prudently and avoid over-leveraging during the current situation where there is a lot of uncertainty. Speaking at an event organised by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) through video conferencing, Kumar said that if enterprises have some inherent weaknesses then they should not go for short-term borrowings. "In these uncertain situations, all businesses will need more working capital funds, which the banking system should provide, but prudence would also, at the same time, demand that over-leveraging even in these circumstances is avoidable as the money has to be repaid, and there is also an interest cost," Kumar said while speaking on the topic 'Rescuing the MSME sector post-COVID'. He, however, said that if having more working capital at this difficult time can help one bring back their business to normal within the next six months to one year, then they should go for it. Kumar warned that for businesses with fundamental flaws or inherent weakness, short-term borrowing is not advisable at this juncture. "Then it is advisable to go for a deeper restructuring because if people borrow for short term and are unable to repay on time, it will spoil their credit history," he said. He said banks are reassessing the working capital requirements for businesses on a case-to-case basis. Talking about providing liquidity support to non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), Kumar said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently announced various measures such as targeted long-term repo operations (TLTRO 2.0) to help these shadow banking players meet their funding needs. "We are reaching out to them (NBFCs) and requesting them to give their cash budget. Based on that, whatever is their short-term liquidity requirement, we will support them," he said. The RBI had announced to conduct Rs 50,000 crore of TLTRO 2.0 in various tranches. The funds availed under TLTRO 2.0 will have to be invested in investment grade bonds, commercial paper, and non-convertible debentures of NBFCs, with at least 50 per cent of the total amount availed going to small and mid-sized NBFCs and MFIs. Kumar said banks can support NBFCs or MFIs by helping to issue bonds, which can be funded through TLTRO. "If MFIs are not eligible for bonds because they do not have the required investment grade ratings, then we may be comfortable giving loans to them on the basis of their credit history," he said. On the RBI's three-month moratorium for NBFCs, he said, "I think the glamour around the across-the-board moratorium for the financial intermediaries has to be properly understood." "We know that there is an impact on their (NBFCs) collections but there is an impact on their outflows as the disbursement is not as high as it used to be," Kumar said. He said his bank has extended the repayment date for MSMEs who have opted for a one-time settlement (OTS) scheme to June 30, 2020, from March 31, 2020. According to Kumar, the tourism sector has been affected the most and the 90-day loan repayment moratorium and giving 10 per cent working capital limit may not be sufficient for the players in the segment. "For the tourism industry, the only way would be to restructure the loan," he said. Also read: What changed for the market while you were sleeping? Top 15 things to know WATERLOO --- A former Waterloo woman who was killed in Virginia where she had been living will be returned to Waterloo for burial. Angela Renee Davis Jones was shot April 3 during an apparent domestic argument at her home in Chesapeake, Va., according to police there. The gunman, her husband, then took his own life in a standoff with officers. Angela Jones, 48, was an East High School graduate and served 12 years with the U.S. Navy. The mother of two was working in risk management for Dollar Tree Inc., according to obituary information. Police said Angela Jones and her husband, 47-year-old Joseph Terrell Jones, were involved in a dispute in their Hamilton Street home, and when she attempted to leave around 1 a.m., he shot her as she was walking out the door. Joseph Jones barricaded himself in the home, and the police departments SWAT team eventually entered the house around 5 a.m. and determined he had taken his own life, police said. The family will have private services, and burial will be in Garden of Memories. Sanders Funeral Service is assisting the family. Photos: Missing children in Iowa Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 4 Angry 1 Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. T he health service's supply of face masks could be jeopardised if the Government begins advising the public to wear them, the NHS Providers boss has warned. Scientific advisers for the Government are carrying out a review of the use of face masks, despite the World Health Organisation (WHO) saying there is no evidence to support their use by the general population. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals and NHS trusts in England, has urged the Government to "fully assess" the impact any new advice could have on health service supplies. In a statement on Monday, he said: "Fluid repellent masks for health and care staff are key to safety and to avoid the spread of coronavirus. "Securing the supply of masks, when there is huge global demand, is crucial. This must be a key consideration for Government. "There needs to be clear evidence that wearing masks, along with other measures, will deliver significant enough benefits to take us out of lockdown to potentially jeopardise NHS mask supply." The WHO said people who are not in health and care facilities should only wear masks if they are sick or caring for those who are ill. Its guidance issued earlier this month acknowledged that the virus could be passed on by people who are not yet symptomatic, but it said: "Current evidence suggests that most disease is transmitted by symptomatic, laboratory confirmed cases. "There is currently no evidence that wearing a mask (whether medical or other types) by healthy persons in the wider community setting, including universal community masking, can prevent them from infection with respiratory viruses." It warned that the use of masks by the public can create a "false sense of security" and lead to people ignoring other protective measures, such as hand hygiene and physical distancing. Masks can even be a source of infection when not used correctly, the WHO added. Prof Babak Javid, consultant in infectious diseases at Cambridge University Hospitals, said that "population mask wearing should be an important part of the response to Covid". WASHINGTON - The Treasury Department is reviewing whether it has the legal authority to prevent banks and private debt collectors from seizing $1,200 government stimulus payments, according to a person familiar with the internal deliberations, as criticism builds over private lenders clawing back parts of the emergency financial relief package. The review is being conducted by legal counsel at the Treasury Department, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss agency process. It was unclear when a determination about the payments would be made. Earlier this month, the Trump administration began directly depositing stimulus checks in the bank accounts of 80 million Americans to help them survive the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus. But reports quickly surfaced that some of these payments were being redirected to banks and private debt collectors from people who have overdraft fees, delinquent loans, or other debt obligations. These garnishments have sparked a bipartisan backlash in Congress, with lawmakers arguing the money should be walled off from collection by banks and private debt collectors. Several large banks have also announced they would stop taking the money amid public criticism. USAA, which services veterans and military families, announced last week it would return the stimulus funds and change its policy after The American Prospect reported the bank took $3,400 in payments from the family of a disabled veteran to offset an existing debt. The seizure of stimulus checks by private lenders threatens to further undermine the rocky rollout of the $2 trillion coronavirus relief package, as a number of obstacles have blocked swift access to the direct payments, a massive increase in unemployment benefits, and emergency loans through the Small Business Administration. The Trump administration has defended its implementation of the law, saying it sent out 80 million checks within three weeks with an error rate of under 1% and has successfully disbursed hundreds of billions in small business aid. Millions of people stand to have their stimulus payments garnished under the current Treasury policy as nearly a third of Americans have a debt in collection, although the exact number affected is unclear, according to Lauren Saunders, associate director of the National Consumer Law Center, a nonpartisan advocacy group. Several of the largest banks, such as Bank of America and Wells Fargo, have said they will not collect these payments regardless of Treasury policy. Thousands of smaller banks and credit unions may still be doing so, and some debt collectors are trying to grab these payments. "Congress authorized these payments because people have lost their jobs and are desperate for money for food. The money needs to go to food, not the debt collectors or back bank fees," Saunders said. "I hope Treasury reverses itself immediately, because every day that goes by that people can't access their money, they are wondering how they are going to eat." Some Treasury officials have privately told outside advisers that Congress would have to pass new legislation to give them the authority to ensure the payments are not garnished, according to two people familiar with the conversations. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. A joint letter signed by the American Bankers Association, the Consumer Bankers Association, and the Financial Services Forum urged Congress to revise the Cares Act to ensure the stimulus checks not be redirected to certain garnishments. The issue has surfaced across the country, complicating the process of disbursing badly needed aid. Alex Kornya, litigation director of Iowa Legal Aid, said dozens of people have called a hotline for help because they cannot access their stimulus payments due to prior debt obligations. A mother of five living in a domestic abuse shelter sought legal help because she was unable to receive her check due to a frozen account. Because court services have been reduced, her initial hearing date was not scheduled until June. "We have been appalled by what's happening," Kornya said. "Unless someone like us is putting up a fuss, this money is getting tied up." Treasury was warned weeks ago about the potential danger of letting the payments be siphoned off. On April 9, Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., sent a joint letter to Mnuchin urging him to prevent the funds from going to private collectors settling prior debts. Some critics welcomed news Treasury legal counsel would review the matter, but expressed fear any action could come too late given that tens of millions of stimulus payments have already gone out the door. "Let's hope it isn't too late," said Sarah Bloom Raskin, a former Treasury official in the Obama administration. "The question now is whether Treasury can implement in time to provide real assistance to households waiting for their checks and needing those checks to not be hijacked by debt collectors or overdraft fees." Residents of North Taifa on Monday appealed to the Government to make available the services of water tankers to provide them with potable water. Some residents told the Ghana News Agency that the community had been hit with water shortage, which had led to formation of queues for long hours to fetch water from mechanized boreholes. According to them, they pay between 30 pesewas and 50 pesewas for water, depending on the container size. The residents also expressed concern about mechanized boreholes operators who usually alleviate their plight but with the high dependency rate and the dry season the boreholes were virtually dysfunctional. At Nkate3 Burger area and its surroundings, some residents continue to form long queues with their buckets and gallons while they found shelter around without observing social distancing as they waited for their turn to fetch. Madam Gladys Afari, a resident at Nkate3 Burger, said the search for potable water sometimes resulted in fights among residents as to who should fetch first, with the physically strong bullying their way through. Mr Sampson Obese, another resident, said three days ago, he dialled the National Information Contact Centre number, 311, to put their grievances across but was directed to call the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL). He said after calling the GWCL he was informed by a gentlemen that the Company would be going there to supply water once it had picked up his details. He explained that as at Monday morning, the Company had placed a huge water tank at a spot but there was no water for the residents, adding; We are still waiting for the tank to be filled. 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. Featured Video Nanosatellite manufacturer and mission integrator NanoAvionics, together with the Mexican Space Agency (AEM), is planning to introduce a nanosatellite pilot project for future space missions. Working with students from the Polytechnic University of Atlacomulco, the first development planned by the project partners will be a nanosatellite for the State of Mexico, the most populous state in the country, which is located in South-Central Mexico. Building the nanosatellite the AtlaCom-1 is part of a pilot project to establish a nanosatellite infrastructure for future space missions designed and built by Mexicos youth. The project, starting in September 2020, is, says NanoAvionics, a testimony to the importance of space applications enabled by nanosatellites, which are rapidly becoming essential to national economies. NanoAvionics is a nano-satellite bus manufacturer and mission integrator. The companys efforts are focused on enabling critical satellite functions and optimising their launch, hardware and operation costs ranging from single missions to constellations. Its core engineering team has implemented over 75 successful satellite missions and commercial projects during the past several years. NanoAvionics engineers will share their space mission experience and help the students and faculty at the Polytechnic University of Atlacomulco to develop the AtlaCom-1. The companys multi-purpose nanosatellite buses are pre-configured and pre-qualified, allowing mission teams to focus on their payloads. As a result, says NanoAvionics, technology development missions can produce results quicker and satellite constellations can enter commercial service much faster. Monday marks a decade since the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe, which claimed 11 lives, spilled roughly 3 million barrels of oil over months, and created ecological damage that lingers today. Why it matters: It was the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, and prompted a major overhaul of offshore drilling oversight. The big picture: The region and its wildlife still bear environmental wounds despite substantial recovery in the last decade, researchers say. A study published last week in the journal Scientific Reports laid out the results of extensive fish sampling and found widespread evidence of oil exposure. An in-depth Associated Press piece notes that some scientists see "remarkable recovery," but also reports: "Scientists who spent the decade studying the Deepwater Horizon spill still worry about its effects on dolphins, whales, sea turtles, small fish vital to the food chain, and ancient corals in the cold, dark depths." A National Geographic story based on interviews with multiple researchers finds that species including deep-sea coral, common loons and spotted sea trout are "struggling" and have lower populations. But others, including the Louisiana brown pelican, have shown "robust" recovery, they report. "Scientists say its still too early to tell definitively what the impact has been for longer-lived species such as dolphins, whales, and sea turtles," the story notes. The state of play: Michael Bromwich, the blunt former Justice Department official who reshaped drilling regulation in the aftermath of BP's Gulf of Mexico disaster, is worried that safety isn't getting the attention it deserves 10 years after the crisis and he's not alone. What they're saying: Bromwich criticized the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement one of the agencies he helped create for changes to blowout preventer and well-control regulations that he and other critics called a big rollback. In an interview with Axios, he also criticized the posture of current BSEE director Scott Angelle for saying that the agency is a "partner" to the oil-and-gas industry. These are not statements that ought to be coming from the industrys chief regulator, Bromwich said. The other side: Angelle has defended the agency's oversight, and industry and Interior officials say the rule changes made the regulations smarter without compromising safety. And, Debra Phillips of the trade association American Petroleum Institute tells the Washington Post that Trump administration changes to offshore oversight have "been mischaracterized as rollbacks." Catch up fast: Bromwich joined the Interior Department in June of 2010, when oil was still gushing out of BP's ruptured well. He oversaw reforms that broke leasing, safety and revenue collections into separate units, imposed safety mandates and set new regulations in motion. Threat level: Bromwich said the federal government now has a stronger hand to ensure safety than it did before the disaster, even though he says the current administration is not focused enough on safety. Even as weakened, the well control rule provides additional basis for confidence that companies are required to take steps that lower the risk of major new accidents, he said. More broadly, he said the agency has the tools now to be able to lower the risk of future disasters like Deepwater Horizon, but also notes: The real question is to what extent, how aggressively, are they being enforced. Bromwich and others also note the industry has taken steps since the spill on safety and response, such as the 2010 creation of Marine Well Containment Company, a nonprofit industry consortium designed to bolster response and control capacity for accidents at deepwater wells. But, but, but: He's concerned that the collapse in oil prices will lead companies to pare resources for training and safety. That "could have unfortunate consequences down the road," he said. The Indian Medical Association on Monday called for an immediate end to violence and abuse against doctors and medical professionals across the country. The IMA asked the Centre to enact central law on violence against doctors and hospitals across the nation. Our legitimate needs for safe workplaces have to be met. Abuse and violence should stop immediately, the IMA stated. The IMA stated that doctors and medical professionals across the country will light a candle at 9 pm on April 22 as protest and vigil against the violence and abuse. The IMA termed it as White Alert to the nation. #IMA demands Special Central Law Against Violence on Doctors & Declares White Alert to the nation on 22.04.2020 & Black Day on 23.04.2020. pic.twitter.com/inFOSiJusI Indian Medical Association (@IMAIndiaOrg) April 20, 2020 It said that doctors across the country will work with black badges on April 23 and declare it as Black Day if the government fails to enact central law on violence against doctors and hospitals. The IMA has maintained utmost restraint and patience inspite of extreme provocations. Doctors have been abused, beaten up, denied entry and residence. Obstruction to cremation is the last straw that IMA can bear, a statement released by the IMA read. Last week, residents of a Chennai locality protested against the cremation of a doctor from Andhra Pradesh who died of coronavirus in the city, saying it might lead to the spread of coronavirus in their locality, news agency PTI reported. Following the resistance, the doctors body was taken back to the hospital mortuary and was later cremated at another locality. Earlier this week, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association wrote to home minister Amit Shah, expressing concern over the attacks on doctors and medical staff at Lok Nayak Hospital in the national Capital and other states such as Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana. In a series of tweets, lawyer Sonali Jaitley Bakshi said her father, late Union minister Arun Jaitley, wanted to pursue the formation of a law to deal with the violence against health workers. This comes when the nation battles the coronavirus crisis with doctors and medical professionals in the frontline of the challenge. (With inputs from agencies) British billionaire Richard Branson said his airlines in Australia and the UK won't survive the coronavirus crisis without state support, and that his Virgin Group lacks the resources to see them through the pandemic. Branson said in a letter to staff on Monday posted online that he was doing everything possible to keep Virgin Atlantic Airways going. It needs a UK-backed commercial loan to ride out the crisis, while Virgin Australia is "fighting to survive," he said. The entrepreneur is struggling to convince governments to rescue his brands given his own highly visible wealth and long-time residency in the West Indies that's led him to be viewed as a tax exile. The companies pay taxes in the countries where they are based and operate, and more than 70,000 people work in Virgin operations across 35 countries, according to the letter. Bathinda With samples of 129 persons it has tested so far coming out negative, and reports of three awaited, district authorities put their covid-free status to chance. Our effort is to scan every symptomatic person. Adjoining districts in Punjab and Haryana have coronavirus patients and we are maintaining a strict watch to ensure no unauthorised person enters Bathinda. We are keeping our fingers crossed, says deputy commissioner B Srinivasan. Mohan Pal Singh Ishar, vice-chancellor of Bathinda-based Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Technical University (MRSPTU) said, Though it is tough, but we should not mind staying back more few more days for larger public health. Media deserves high appreciation for creating mass awareness. District authorities are playing a constructive role. Social distancing is the key. Vice-chancellor of Central University of Punjab Prof RK Kohli said strict enforcement of lockdown will yield desirable results. The district authorities effort of easy availability of essential commodities makes things easier. Though Bathinda is lucky not to have a single case, we should not have a casual approach. It is important to chalk out a post-Covid-19 screening programme when large groups of students and teachers will gather in the next few weeks, he adds. Public health rights activist Dr Vitull K Gupta says city residents must practise strict social distancing not only for themselves, but for safety of slum dwellers. During my free medical camps in urban slums around the city, I have seen that for the underprivileged hand hygiene is the key, as they are not sensitised towards social distancing, he adds. For farm-dependent Fazilka, fewer number of NRIs might have helped Gathering of wheat growers and vegetable traders at mandis is a cause of concern for residents of Fazilka district on the Indo-Pakistan border. Of 110 samples taken, 97 have been negative with rest awaited. A cross-section of residents favour no relaxation in curfew. They credit a fewer number of NRIs from the district behind the clean slate. However, with the wheat procurement season in the semi-arid region set to pick up next week, locals favour stricter enforcement of social distancing. A farm rights activist and entrepreneur from Fazilka town Vikram Ahuja says the district has a farm-dependent economy. Curfew is no problem for farmers, but the administration should ensure that wheat procurement is done while following social distancing, says Ahuja. Chairman of Punjab State Farmers Commission Ajay Vir Jakhar, a resident of Abohar, also favours no unnecessary relaxation in curfew. Our main winter crop of kinnow is almost harvested. Wheat growers entering mandi should follow social distancing norms, adds Jakhar. For 28-year-old kinnow orchardist Geet Setia, the interstate movement of transportation is worrying. He wants the administration to strengthen door-to-door supply of essentials to check large gatherings at Abohar vegetable market. Fazilka is a gateway for transporters from Gujarat via Sriganganagar in Rajasthan. A large number of vehicles carrying fruits and vegetables from other states enter Punjab from here. A single unchecked case in mandis can trigger a number of cases, he says. DC Arvind Pal Singh Sandhu said, Fazilka is lucky to have no cases, we are making efforts to screen every person entering the district. Data of vehicles and those travelling with any consignment is being maintained. A man has avoided prison for threatening to smash his wife's teeth out with a spanner over unfounded accusations of infidelity. Robert Gordon, 44, was given a six-month suspended sentence on charges of grabbing the woman by the throat and telling she would be dead within hours. Prosecutors said he launched the attack as the couple drove into Ballymena, Co Antrim on Sunday afternoon. Gordon, of Magherabeg Road, Randalstown, admitted common assault, threats to kill and possessing an offensive weapon. Belfast Magistrates' Court heard police were called after the woman alerted staff at a filling station on Ballymena's Antrim Road. She alleged that Gordon had tried to choke her and called her "a whore" while their car was stopped. "She said he held a spanner to her face, threatened to smash her teeth out, slit her throat and warned that by the end of the night she would be dead," a Crown lawyer said. Defence solicitor Stewart Ballentine told the court Gordon regretted actions fuelled by alcohol. "They were going to Ballymena to do their necessary shopping and for whatever reason this man accused her of cheating on him," he said. "They pulled over and he accepted that he grabbed his wife and apologises for that. "He made foolish threats in the filling station forecourt which he never had any intention of carrying out." According to Mr Ballentine the couple have been in a loving relationship for 18 years. "Mr Gordon does hope there will be a reconciliation," he added. Imposing a six-month sentence, suspended for two years, District Judge Fiona Bagnall said: "It's an unpleasant incident, and if he's back again for anything of this nature he will be in severe difficulties." On Orthodox Easter, Lebanons Greek Orthodox Metropolitan slammed the countrys political leaders. The latter must revive the economy but ordinary Lebanese must not pay for their mistakes. Rumours that the authorities plan to take money from depositors have caused widespread anger. For Maronite Patriarch al-Rahi, ordinary people are paying the price of the tug-of-war between politicians and banks. Beirut (AsiaNews/OLJ) Lebanons Christian leaders, Catholic and non-Catholic, do not want ordinary people to pay the price for past mistakes made by the countrys leaders. They spoke out yesterday, Orthodox Easter Sunday, as Prime Minister Hassan Diab's government appears incapable of addressing the countrys political crisis. "The government must show wisdom, patience and courage to get rid of all allegiances, except allegiance to its people, said Elias Audi, Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Beirut. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the coronavirus epidemic will throw Lebanons already weak economy into recession. Its GDP contracted by 6.5 per cent last year, and is expected to shrink by another 12 per cent this year. To deal with the crisis, the cabinet met last week to discuss a controversial plan that includes a special contribution from depositors. When unconfirmed reports about it appeared in the media, the government had to calm a rising tide of anger among ordinary Lebanese. Prime Minister Diab and his cabinet said that 98 per cent of all depositors would not be affected by the plan, that the poorest and neediest groups would be protected, this in a country that has carried the burden of Syrian refugees more than others. Speaking to the faithful on Orthodox Easter celebrated yesterday, Metropolitan Elias Audi said that "the government must lead Lebanon out of the crisis" without people paying the price of the mistakes made by those in power. Seizing assets is "inconceivable" and politicians have the task of "acting for everyone, not only for some people, a community or a party. We are praying for our leaders to fight other viruses besides coronavirus, primarily corruption and greed" on the basis of the principle of social justice". The Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Beshara Al-Rahi, also spoke about the issue yesterday. In his homily in yesterdays Mass in Bkerke, he urged his fellow citizens to support the government's efforts whilst insisting that they not be the scapegoat of the crisis. Whether we like it or not, the cabinet represents the authority (of the state) at this time of exceptional crisis, said the cardinal. It can succeed in its mission only if we support it. At the same time, it must show solidity and independence. For Patriarch Al-Rahi, reforms must be implemented in the interest of the Lebanese" and not "at the detriment of their lives". The fight between political leaders and the banks at the expense of ordinary Lebanese must end. The Coronavirus outbreak has laid bare the fault lines in human habits and habitations. Though it has affected millions across the world, it is the densely populated areas of large cities that have borne the brunt most. The outbreak highlights our shortcomings in addressing urban densification, growth, and adverse public health outcomes, which are further intensified by inadequate drinking water, sanitation and hygiene practices. A March 19 World Health Organization guideline outlines the risks the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) practitioners and providers, as well as policymakers and health care workers, face during the coronavirus crisis. The guideline summarises the findings of some of the ongoing researches on Covid-19 which have so far confirmed two main routes of transmission of the virus contact and respiratory. Health professionals have so far emphasised on avoiding direct contact with infected people and wearing masks in their proximity. These prescriptions have been brought to the publics notice through sustained advertising and instructions communicated through media. Though the medium of transmission are confirmed for two modes, WHO cautions people about the likelihood of the virus survival in drinking water and sewage for a limited number of days. The virus, with a fragile outer membrane that upon breaking renders it inactive, is not known to transmit through drinking water and sewage, but studies corroborate that they may survive in water for two days. Reports also confirm that 2-10% of people infected with Covid-19 suffer from diarrhoea and have viral RNA fragments in their faeces. That uncertainty should make us cautious. The WHO guidelines, which the UN body calls interim, lay down preventive WASH and waste management practices to ensure the safety of sanitation and health care workers. But how far such measures are implemented in practice remains debatable. There are three major corollaries for India in the WHO guidelines. First, provided the research on Covid-19 dont corroborate water and fecal-oral as transmission mediums for the pathogen, India is still highly vulnerable. Given the ubiquity of dense neighbourhoods in the urban and peri-urban areas of India, contact and respiratory transmission are unavoidable. This was witnessed in the post-lockdown exodus of migrant labourers from large cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad . Second, if you consider even the slightest possibility of water and/or faecal-oral transmission, India would turn into a Covid-19 hotbed. The majority of the households in most of our cities doesnt have piped water supply or sewer connections. Even in the cities where their coverage is better, water pipelines are old, which are a common cause of water-borne diseases such as typhoid, diarrhoea and jaundice. The sewage treatment plants are few, most of them are partially functional treating sewage much lower than their installed capacities and many of them dysfunctional. Most of urban India and almost all of rural India are largely reliant on groundwater sources for drinking and on-site sanitation systems such as septic tanks and pits, often flouting the basic design standards. Safe drinking water and treatment of waste remain a distant dream. This makes a wide range of people vulnerable to Covid-19, if the virus survives for long enough in water and the faecal matter. Sanitation workers are the most vulnerable, as states across the country have invoked the Essential Services Acts, which necessitates the continuation of the solid and liquid waste collection during the lockdown. New research shows that hospital waste has multiplied during the lockdown, necessitating proper disposal of potentially infected waste. But the unavailability of protective gear such as gloves and masks or soaps and sanitisers intensifies their vulnerability. In addition to that, they are not trained to operate under epidemic outbreaks. Third, irrespective of the virus medium of transmission, Indias health care workers find themselves in a precarious position. While providing care and treatment to the serious cases, the health-care workers operate in close proximity with each other and patients. Naturally, shortages of protective gear such as masks and gloves and sanitisers have invoked both anger and exasperation among the health workers across the country. To make matters worse, they, like sanitation workers, are often stigmatised as a carrier of the virus. The coronavirus outbreak should serve as a wake-up call for authorities and policymakers to scale up the WASH and waste management infrastructure and services across the country. Aditya Bhol is a senior research associate with the Scaling City Institutions for India initiative under the Urbanisation vertical at the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi The views expressed are personal "BitX Funding is committed to supporting small business through the COVID-19 outbreak by helping them through a very stressful time," said Todd Rowe, President of BitX Funding. "We receive calls from small businesses with W2, 1099 and sole proprietors who are confused and don't know where to begin. The BitX platform and customer service combine to offer a frictionless process for business owners who apply for the Paycheck Protection Program , ensuring rapid response and full transparency. The program continues to evolve, and the first round of lending was allocated so quickly the program ran out of funds. We advise business owners to keep pressing forward and to process their applications in preparation for the next wave when the Congress and Senate approve additional funding. Large banks are providing minimal support and guidance to the business community, so we recommend putting in an application with BitX. Let us see who funds first." The Paycheck Protection Program is part of the $2 trillion CARES Act that was created in March 2020 to keep America's small businesses afloat along with its workforce. BitX is helping to break through the bottleneck and to expedite PPP loans as small business owners continue to apply at an unprecedented scale. Since 2013, BitX Funding has generated over $50 million in financing for small businesses nationwide by breaking down barriers within traditional banking through an online marketplace that pairs small-business owners with optimal lenders offering startup loans, business lines of credit, short-term loan, mid-term loan, SBA loan and merchant cash advances. Todd Rowe, President of BitX Funding, is an experienced non-bank lender within the fintech universe whose corporate initiatives support his mission of galvanizing the economy of small businesses. During the pandemic, he is looking to underscore his support by expanding the processing and servicing needed to support the community. BitX Funding can accelerate the business loan process and gap funding that will help your small business succeed. For more information, press only: Todd Rowe 203.763.1430 [email protected] For more information on Product: Website: www.BitXFunding.com SOURCE BitX Funding Related Links https://bitxfunding.com The head of the Irish National Teachers Organisation, John Boyle, has said that his union has not yet had any discussions with the Department of Education and Skills about the possibility of schools reopening before the end of the current academic year. We would want to make sure that protections are in place for the students, parents and teachers - we still have 10 weeks to go in this school year, so I think it is feasible if the public health advice recommends that primary schools would be back at some stage in June, he told RTE radios Today with Sean ORourke show. It's a huge decision, we haven't had any discussions with the Department of Education and Skills about this as of yet, whereas I know post primary unions have been speaking to the department regularly since last week about the exams. We would want to make sure that we would go into a working group with the department, it would be very different in different schools. Small rural schools, they would have their own challenges with transport and also with maybe having four or five classes in the one classroom. The school where I was principal until recently, we had 1,600 children there with most of the parents congregating in the mornings. Mr Boyle pointed out that most classrooms measure up to 60 square metres squared. In that space you have maybe one or two adults, if you have a SNA and if you have 15 children that would barely give them four square metres around them, two metres between each child. With junior infants it would be very difficult for them to be able to work that out, so we would definitely need to be coming back on an orderly phased basis, we would want to make sure that the teachers would have an opportunity to meet all of their students, but they couldn't be teaching 15 students in their homes, and also teaching 15 children in the classroom, at the same time. We would want to work with whatever advice is forthcoming, we'd want to plan it out appropriately, if a school opened for the morning for half the class, that half would go home rather than go to the playground and then the next half would come in after there would be a deep clean of the school. All of these type of issues could not be organised over a weekend - the schools are closed, the teachers are working hard until the 5th of May. I would sincerely hope that towards the end of April or early May that there wouldn't be a decision made for an immediate opening schools, I would hope that the department would continue to work with the teachers' representatives and that we would plan this is an orderly reopening at the appropriate time. On the same programme, Deirdre McDonald of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland said they will take advice from NPHET, they are the ones who specialise in this, whatever they think is appropriate we will work to act with them. Our members have committed to supporting our students. All we can work with is the proposals we have. Should one academic year run into the next, we would look for a break before the next academic year starts. This is all crystal ball gazing. We have committed to supporting our Leaving Cert students. Ms McDonald added that her members will not be looking for extra money. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Demi Lovato, Royal Bank of Canada, Virgin Unite, Canadian Family Foundations and Draper Richards Kaplan announce the launch of The Mental Health Fund, which already raised $2M, to help individuals in pain from the mental health and behavioral impact of the coronavirus. This fund aims to support the work of organizations that provide crisis intervention via text message, 24/7. Crisis Text Line serves as founder of The Mental Health Fund, along with Demi Lovato, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Virgin Unite, Canadian Family Foundations, Draper Richards Kaplan, and others who have provided $2M funds to launch the initiative. The Mental Health Fund, which is live on GoFundMe, has a goal of reaching $5M. Crisis intervention via text is filling a gap in the mental health care system, especially for people who find it difficult to talk or do not have the resources to access other care. "So many people have been left alone with their thoughts, their abusers, their anxieties and are struggling with the uncertainty of these times," said Demi Lovato. "I know not everyone has the ability to get the help they need so my hope is that this fund can bring support to help alleviate some of the hardship and pain people are going through." To meet the increased demand of people in pain, Crisis Text Line , Shout UK , Kids Help Phone, , and SpunOut.ie , have come together to work with The Mental Health Fund. As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, these organizations experienced a collective 40% increase in texter volume in March and April. The data from these crisis lines' conversations demonstrates the mental health impact of this pandemic and the quarantines: Anxiety is the top issue right now. 78% of conversations indicate anxiety. Financial stress is a large portion of this anxiety. 78% of conversations indicate anxiety. Financial stress is a large portion of this anxiety. Impoverished people are in acute pain. Currently 32% of texters in the USA report their household income is under $20,000 annually. Currently 32% of texters in the report their household income is under annually. Quarantines are causing hardship as people may be sheltering in place with abusers. In March these hotlines saw a collective increase in conversations about emotional and physical abuse. "The virus itself is awful and causing anxiety and grief and then the quarantines and financial ruin is causing different intense pain," said Nancy Lublin, CEO and Co-Founder of Crisis Text Line. "We're here for all of it. Bring it on. We got you." "Physical distancing is tough on everyone, but it's particularly challenging for those who are anxious about reaching out for help," said Dave McKay, President and CEO of RBC. "By supporting The Mental Health Fund, RBC is helping make sure resources are available for those struggling with the day-to-day challenges of a more isolated world. We encourage everyone to seek the support they need, when they need it." "We are so honoured to support the critical work of the incredible people behind The Mental Health Fund. There has never been a more important time for their work. Mental health support will be needed for years to come, and we all should get behind their mission to ensure everyone can receive quality support 24/7." Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Unite. "During these unprecedented times filled with worry and fear there is support 24/7 to help with any issue big or small," said Katherine Hay, President and CEO of Kids Help Phone. "We understand days are filled with isolation and uncertainty. Together we will get through this crisis and Kids Help Phone is there every step of the way. We are grateful for The Mental Health Fund during this extraordinary time." These organizations recruit, train, and support volunteers who comfort texters struggling to cope with anxiety, depression, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, domestic violence, eating disorders, or other mental health challenges. Since 2013, Crisis Text Line and its affiliate partners Kids Help Phone, Shout, and SpunOut.ie have trained over 30,000 volunteers and exchanged over 150 million messages by text with people in pain. Your support is greatly appreciated! To learn more about The Mental Health Fund, visit GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/thementalhealthfund . If you're interested in promoting on social media, please find social language and assets HERE . About Crisis Text Line Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7, confidential support for people in crisis via text. Crisis Counselors complete a 30-hour training and have 24/7 supervision by full-time Crisis Text Line mental health professionals. In the US, Text CRISIS to 741741 24/7 a week to be connected to a trained Crisis Counselor. Crisis Text Line launched in 2013 in the United States and in 2020 in Ireland. Shout and Kids Help Phone are affiliate partners of Crisis Text Line, offering the service in the UK and Canada. About Kids Help Phone Kids Help Phone is Canada's only 24/7 national service offering professional counselling, information and referrals and volunteer-led text-based support for young people. Kids Help Phone's free, confidential services are available in both English and French. Kids Help Phone is a registered Canadian charity, and raises the majority of revenue from individuals, foundations, corporations and community fundraising. About Shout Shout is the UK's first free 24/7 text service for anyone in crisis anytime, anywhere. We offer in the moment help for times when life gets overwhelming and you need immediate support. Shout is powered by a team of Crisis Volunteers, who are at the heart of this service. We take people from crisis to calm every single day. Shout exists in the US as Crisis Text Line, but this is the first time this tried and tested technology has come to the UK. About SpunOut.ie SpunOut.ie is Ireland's leading youth website by young people, for young people with over 1.6 million readers in 2019. SpunOut.ie and Crisis Text Line (Ireland) are projects of Community Creations CLG, a registered charity in Ireland funded in part by the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Children & Youth Affairs. SOURCE GoFundMe; Crisis Text Line Related Links http://www.gofundme.com Saudi Arabia hosted a virtual meeting of G20 Health Ministers on April 19 to address the impact of Covid-19 on the global health sector and society. Chaired by Saudi Health Minister Dr Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, the meeting follows the G20 Extraordinary Virtual Leaders' Summit in March, where Ministers of Health were mandated to share national best practices and develop a set of urgent actions for the G20 to jointly combat the pandemic. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, said: I welcome the concrete actions the Kingdom is taking with the G20 Global Innovation Hub for Improving Value in Health, the Digital Health Task Force and the Global Patient Safety Leaders Group, and for its strong commitment to Health for All. We are encouraged that several G20 countries are now starting to plan how to ease social restrictions, he added. It is critical that these measures are a phased process. Lifting so-called lockdown restrictions is not the end of the epidemic in any country; its just the beginning of the next phase. We are deeply concerned that the virus now appears to be gathering pace in countries that lack the capacity of many G20 countries to respond to it. Dr Ghebreyesus highlighted three lines of action for G20 countries. First, we urge each of your countries to continue to fight the pandemic with determination, guided by science and evidence, he said. Second, we are looking to the G20 countries to continue to support the global response to Covid-19. We will soon publish a second Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, with an estimate of the resources needed for the next phase of the response. We echo President Ramaphosas appeal on behalf of the African Union to G20 countries to support African countries with stimulus packages and debt relief so they can focus on fighting the pandemic. Third, we call on all G20 countries to work together to increase the production and equitable distribution of essential supplies, and to remove trade barriers that put health workers and their patients at risk, Dr Ghebreyesus concluded. TradeArabia News Service Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, people lined up to panic buy certain food products. Americans continue to purchase and hoard so much food that led to local food banks having issues with sourcing out some grocery items for some grocery stores. More than 640 Workers Testing Positive to One of the Biggest U.S. Pork Producer The indefinite postponement of the operations of processing plants operated by Smithfield Foods, one of the country's biggest producers of pork, after at least 640 staff of their staff have tested positive for COVID-19 is raising additional concern on a possible pork shortage in the country. However, specialists reveal that the food supply in the United States remains in good condition despite some drawbacks brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Spot Shortages among Grocery Stores There are a lot of grocery stores that are experiencing spot shortages between restocking hours. This occurs mostly overnight. This means that shoppers may have a better chance of getting the complete products from their shopping list in the morning. However, the Department of Agriculture of the United States has not to witness food shortages on a nationwide scale in the county. Sonny Perdue, United States Secretary of Agriculture, assures everyone that there is plenty of food in the country. Check these out: The Food Supply Chain The food supply chain is the system that allows the flow of food from the farm to production, processing, distribution, and consumption in the country. The food supply chain in the country is designed to be fast. The food supply chain in the United States is self-sufficient. The majority of the food of Americans is produced by various American channels, and the production of food is spread out across the U.S., which means that crises in a single area in the country will not significantly affect the system. Additionally, a lot of sectors in the country do not require the use of intensive human labor because of the usage of industrial-scale machinery. Food Sectors Affected by COVID-19 Some food sectors are greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some meatpacking businesses have already shut down. Farmers are finding it difficult to sell their products and the price of corn had risen. This can result in some farms from going out of business and affect other food sectors. The most challenging part of the current crisis is not primarily placed on American farmers but the supply chain. The supply chain needs to adapt to the changing eating habits of Americans brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of the consumers now are highly dependent on supermarkets rather than restaurants and other foodservice businesses. The supply chain is still in the process of successfully adjusting to the sudden changes in demand. Many experts believe that the supply chain can successfully adapt. The lockdown imposed to halt the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus has inconvenienced the lives of millions, especially the poor, but even amid these trying times, there are many who are doing their best to help those on the frontlines of the crisis. Twitter/APPolice In a heartwarming gesture, a woman from Andhra Pradesh won many hearts after she bought two bottles of soft drinks for the police officers working in the sweltering heat. According to reports, the woman named Lokamani works in a private school in East Godavari district and earns Rs 3,500 per month. But that didn't stop her from helping cops who have been working day and night amid this crisis. With her selfless gesture, Lokamani shot to fame on social media after a video of her giving two big bottles of soft drinks to the policemen, went viral. Moved by her kindness, the police returned the bottles and gave her two bottles from their bags for her children. Before leaving, they asked her to visit them occasionally since she motivated them. Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police, Gautam Sawang, on Saturday, saluted the woman for her magnanimous gesture. DGP AP, Shri Gautam Sawang, IPS saluted the magnanimous gesture of Smt Lokamani of East Godavari District who on receiving her monthly salary of Rs.3,500 bought cold drinks for the police staff who were working in this extreme heat #Kindness #PolicingthePandemic #APpolice #COVID pic.twitter.com/3yzSPXpZYU AP Police (@APPOLICE100) April 18, 2020 Talking to her on a video call,he said: We were touched by the way you offered cold drinks to the police, showing motherly love. The same day, I told my officer to trace you, so we can thank you. I was particular that I thanked you personally. It is for people like you that the government and the police work day and night. It is to ensure the health and safety of people like you that the police are on the streets working very hard. For the way you offered cold drinks to the policemen, we salute you. We all salute you, he added. Didnt have to look hard for my #CitizenHeroes today Dont know her name or place. All I know is she has a Big heart! Apparently she just earns 3000 a month but cares enough to offer some relief to frontline warriors What a lady Take a bow mam#IndiaFightsCorona https://t.co/A6aSiwNkQX KTR (@KTRTRS) April 15, 2020 Telangana IT minister, KTR, had tweeted the video with the caption: 'Dont know her name or place. All I know is she has a big heart! Apparently, she just earns 3,000 a month but cares enough to offer some relief to front line warriors What a lady. Take a bow mam. (sic)' Lokamani, with her humble yet powerful gesture, has set an example for the rest of us to follow. At a time when people are hoarding on supplies and being selfish, she has shown what it means to be compassionate and generous. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The Philippines can soon run up to 20,000 COVID-19 tests daily with the opening of new accredited laboratories, Malacanang said Monday. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the opening of the Philippine Red Cross' own testing center this week would help double local capacity for processing swab samples, with 17 existing laboratories currently able to run between 8,000-10,000 tests. The government only recently changed its tune about rapid test kits, which were eventually cleared for use provided their results are verified through the more thorough polymerase chain reaction or PCR machines. LIST: Who can be tested using rapid COVID-19 test kits? Conducting more tests is now the priority of government, Roque said, with mass testing recommended by the World Health Organization as well as by the team of Chinese medical experts who recently visited Manila to provide some tips to fend off the virus. "Ngayon dumating na tayo sa punto na bukas po, meron na tayong kakayanan na hanggang 20,000 testing daily. Pero kulang pa rin yan dahil kinakailangan nating ma-test at least 1 percent ng 110 million Filipinos [We have come to a point where by tomorrow, we can run as much as 20,000 tests daily. But that's still not enough because we should test at least 1 percent of the 110 million Filipinos]," Roque said in a press briefing. This translates to about 1.1 million residents who must be tested for the disease. Accredited labs have tested 52,837 people as of Friday. Roque said government is targeting to run 900,000 PCR tests as well as 2.2 million rapid tests to make it thorough. Rapid test kits can provide results as fast as 15 minutes, versus a 24-48 hour window for the traditional machine testing. However, Health officials have warned that the rapid kits could show "false negative" results as these only detect the presence of antibodies fighting the infection in a person's blood, versus the PCR method which detects the actual presence of the virus. However, Department of Health Spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire said the target should not be the percent of population but specific "patient classes." Latest DOH guidelines state that patients showing severe and critical symptoms are the top priority, followed by those with mild symptoms but are among "vulnerable" groups like the elderly, those with preexisting conditions, high-risk pregnant women, and healthcare workers. RELATED: Allocate 20-30% of testing lab capacity for healthcare workers IATF Next on the list are patients with mild symptoms who have history of travel or exposure to an infected person, and then those not showing any ailment but have a travel history and exposure to a COVID-19 patient. Roque said the team of Chinese doctors have also suggested to add more quarantine facilities, so government has responded by designating 2,780 centers that can cater to as much as 168,000 coronavirus patients. A blood product drawn from deep within the veins of people who have recovered from coronavirus may help others win their fight against it. Convalescent plasma, as the treatment is known, is being investigated both as a treatment for Covid-19 and as a way of protecting frontline medical staff from catching the virus. But just what is it? And how could it help in the battle against coronavirus? Plasma, a key component of blood, is already saving lives in a multitude of ways; from warding off tetanus infection if you stand on a rusty nail to preventing organ failure in victims of car crashes. Blood plasma could help treat coronavirus patients. The plasma from those that have survived the infection will be filled with defensive antibodies. (Pictured: Woman in hospital in Seattle) The straw-coloured fluid is so precious it has been nicknamed liquid gold. It accounts for 55 per cent of bloods volume and carries three key constituents around the body red and white blood cells and platelets (tiny cells that help form clots to stop bleeding). Plasma also helps remove waste products from the body and contains electrolytes dissolved salts which help regulate the bodys chemistry and allow our muscles to work properly. It also contains thousands of vital proteins including albumin, fibrinogen and antibodies. Albumin, which is made in the liver, keeps fluid from leaking out of blood vessels and into the bodys tissues, while fibrinogen is involved with clotting, and antibodies destroy bacteria, viruses and other substances the immune system sees as foreign. It is the antibodies that are at the core of the convalescent plasma therapy being investigated for coronavirus. This therapy, first used to treat infections more than a century ago, hinges on the fact that people who have recovered from a virus have antibodies in their blood that detect and destroy the virus the next time it attacks. The theory is that by giving antibody-rich plasma from someone who has recovered from Covid-19 to someone who presently has it, it should help them fight it off. The NHS is appealing to people who have recovered from COVID-19 to see if their blood can help critically ill patients in the UK. The treatment is being used in countries including Qatar Crucially, while a drug or vaccine for a new disease can take years to develop, blood from survivors is available almost instantly, but it would need to undergo stringent safety measures, such as screening for infections, before use. Corona explainer: A guide to why the virus causes certain symptoms This week: Headache According to the World Health Organisation, around one in seven experiences a headache as a symptom of Covid-19. One theory behind the cause is that when a virus invades the airway, the immune system releases large amounts of the protein interferon to fight it off. This hinders the replication of the virus and also bolsters the immune systems response to it. However, the release of interferon can irritate nerves found in the lining of our blood vessels including those in the head which then dispatch pain signals to the brain. Doctors think interferon is to blame because patients who take drugs made with the protein, such as those with multiple sclerosis or hepatitis C, frequently report headaches, as well as general flu-like symptoms, as a side-effect of the treatment. Advertisement The treatment has already shown promise in small-scale studies on coronavirus patients in China. To carry out the treatment, a donors blood is taken and piped through a machine that separates out the plasma before returning the rest of the blood to the donor. Next the plasma is screened for other infections and, if safe to use, 200ml of plasma is infused into the coronavirus patient, which takes 20 to 30 minutes. In one study, involving five critically ill patients, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association earlier this month, all improved and three were able to come off the ventilators after having the infusion. In another study, which involved ten severely ill patients, symptoms including fever, shortness of breath, coughs and chest pain improved within three days of being infused with plasma from people who had recovered from coronavirus, reports the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Previous pilot studies suggested the therapy helped patients with SARS and MERS, two similar viruses that have caused outbreaks of severe illness in recent years. Trials are also under way in France, Germany and the U.S., where universities and hospitals in 20 states are working together on testing the treatment. Plasma donors include the mayor of Miami, who has recently recovered from Covid-19. The UK is gearing up to start trials with experts predicting the first patients could be treated within a fortnight. NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is starting to collect plasma from people who have recovered from the virus and says it is working hard to get the green light to use it in trials to determine whether it improves patients speed of recovery and chances of survival. But some experts are questioning why we are behind other countries. The NHS is now asking coronavirus survivors to donate blood in hope of trialling a promising plasma-based therapy on infected patients Colin Hamilton-Davies, a consultant in anaesthesia and critical care at Barts Hospital in London, has warned time and lives are being wasted, adding the treatment could save many lives if implemented quickly. Professor Sir Munir Pirmohamed, president of the British Pharmacological Society and a professor of pharmacology at Liverpool University, says proper trials are needed to determine whether the treatment is truly beneficial and cautions that there are still many unanswered questions. Social media myth buster: Coronavirus We debunk the Covid-19 hoaxes online. This week: A dry mouth allows coronavirus to enter the body A dry mouth can make you susceptible to a lot of things in terms of decay and gum disease, because saliva has antibacterial properties, says dentist Sunny Sihra, of Simply Teeth in Essex. But Covid-19 infection is caused by a virus and saliva does not have antiviral properties. Also, people generally breathe coronavirus in, through the nose. Sipping water every 15 minutes to wet the mouth and flush the virus into the stomach, as hoax messages advise, is not going to help. The most important thing is washing your hands, trying to avoid contact with others and stop touching your face, nose and eyes as it can get in through mucous membranes there. Advertisement For example, its unclear when the best time is to collect plasma from donors, how much to give patients and at what point to give it. And collecting and infusing enough plasma to treat large numbers of patients would be a huge challenge. Those results were encouraging, says Professor Pirmohamed. But we also dont know whether it was the plasma that did it or the other drugs patients were also given, or a combination. Even if shown to work, treating large numbers of patients may become an issue. There are a lot of logistical hurdles to overcome. Another option is not infusing patients with whole plasma but just the specific antibodies that protect against coronavirus. Concentrated in high amounts, they should be more powerful and could be given in an injection that takes a few seconds, rather than via a lengthy infusion. These treatments, known as hyperimmune immunoglobulins, could also potentially be made in large quantities and stored in hospitals, for use when needed. They will take longer to develop, but several companies, including Bio Products Laboratory, a Hertfordshire-based company that makes medicines from plasma, are already working on them. Identifying the right antibodies to include in the recipe will be key but a jab could be available by September, says Dr John More, director of research and development at Bio Products Laboratory. It could be given to frontline healthcare workers to provide protection against coronavirus until a vaccine becomes available, he adds. Treatments based on antibodies extracted from plasma are already in use for other conditions. A scientist runs clinical immunology tests on blood plasma in Seattle, Washington For instance, if you cut yourself outdoors, you will likely be given an injection of antibodies against the tetanus bacterium (deep wounds are a breeding ground for the bacteria which live in soil and dust). Meanwhile, those bitten by a rabid dog will be given an injection of antibodies against rabies, and chickenpox antibodies can be given to pregnant women who have been exposed to the illness to prevent them developing complications in the unborn child. Antibodies from plasma also have another use in pregnancy to prevent rhesus haemolytic disease, in which antibodies in the womans blood destroy her unborn babys blood cells. While harmless for the woman, it can lead to brain damage, deafness and blindness in the foetus and even stillbirth. Given during pregnancy, anti-D immunoglobulin treatment successfully nips the production of these antibodies in the bud. While in the 1950s, around 1,000 babies a year died of the condition, routine screening means such deaths are now vanishingly rare. Proteins in plasma involved in the blood clotting process are also extracted, purified and used as treatments for genetic disorders that affect clotting. Whole plasma obtained from donated blood is used in hospitals to help stem bleeding (due to the various clotting proteins it contains) in patients who have lost a lot of blood in an accident, during surgery or giving birth. If bleeding is very severe, patients can be given a more concentrated version of plasma called cryoprecipitate, which is extra-rich in fibrinogen. This provides extra help with clotting, says Mike Murphy, a professor of transfusion medicine at Oxford University and a consultant haematologist for NHS Blood and Transplant. Plasma can also be given to stop serious internal bleeds in patients on warfarin (a blood-thinning medicine). Plasma has many therapeutic areas of use and can be used in a number of different ways, says Professor Pirmohamed. We now need to find out whether it could help with coronavirus, too. If it is, truly beneficial it can be rolled out to the mass population, he adds. Its been 50 years since the first Earth Day in 1970, when 10 million people took to the streets, parks and auditoriums for a national teach-in on the environment. At the time, questions were mounting about the lead fumes puffing out of tailpipes, the Cleveland river soaked in industrial waste that had caught fire the year before, and the thousands of dead, oil-soaked birds that had washed up on the beaches of Santa Barbara in the largest oil spill in American history. That April, 10 per cent of the U.S. population came together to voice their outrage and demand a new way forward for the planet. By the end of the year, the Environmental Protection Agency had been founded, ushering in an era of groundbreaking clean-air, water and endangered-species regulation that would reshape corporate Americas relationship with nature, providing a cornerstone for modern environmental policy. The business community hasnt always been an ally of the planet, but it would have a significant role to play in the next half century of environmental action including developing and deploying solutions, on a global scale, to problems they quite often had a hand in creating. There is a lot to reflect on from the last 50 years. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, its worth remembering we have a pretty good track record of fixing planetary-scale problems when we set our minds to it. Destructive DDT pesticide was banned in 34 countries, leading to the dramatic comeback of bald eagles, peregrine falcons and osprey. We are just two countries away from the global elimination of lead in gasoline. Emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide were capped, eliminating the scourge of acid rain that threatened to blacken our forests and kill our lakes. Three things have become clear over the past 50 years. One, deadly environmental problems require regulation, often in the form of banning offending pollutants. Two, unlike, say, the Olympics, the cost of tackling environmental problems usually ends up being less than anticipated, as former U.S. treasury secretary Larry Summers once noted, partly because projected costs are inflated by those who have a vested interest in the status quo and unexpected innovations drive down costs. And three, business can innovate and deliver solutions at scale when governments get the regulations right. So in honour of the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Corporate Knights, Earth Day Canada and Earth Day Initiative launched an open-nomination process to determine which corporate actions have had the biggest impact on improving the state of affairs on our planet. The final list includes a few companies that reflect the visionary souls of their environmentalist founders, like Patagonia, Body Shop and Interface flooring. There are also some mad-scientist disrupters and brown-to-green corporate chameleons in the bunch. By far the most common is the early mover, those companies that heard the bell tolling before the rest of their peers and made a beeline to change their ways and, collectively, the trajectory of life on Earth. Some of those early movers were major emitters under the glare of heavy activist campaigning that brokered peace deals with non-profits and regulators. Others were entrepreneurs who saw which way the wind turbines were blowing, or scalers who used their market power to corral large segments of the economy into greener pastures. Many companies didnt make the cut. DuPont was nominated for breaking ranks with other chemical giants by backing the Montreal Protocols phaseout of ozone-depleting CFCs (a critical move from a company that had made the chemical in great quantities for decades), but it had spent years aggressively undermining earlier domestic bans in the U.S. GM was the first North American automaker to say it would make cars that run on both unleaded and leaded gasoline, but the car company (which invented leaded gas in 1921) also fought tooth and nail against regulations that would effectively outlaw leaded fuel altogether. The final Top 50 actions that made the list are examples of moments that reveal the profound impact corporations can have on the planet when they lead change rather than follow it. This list isnt an endorsement of a companys entire corporate legacy. Its a recognition that one act one sustainability chiefs initiative; one big-tent collaboration with non-profits, regulators and like-minded companies; one sustainably minded CEO can shift the tides. In reality, a whole cohort of players made each action possible educators and agitators (i.e. persistent scientists, activists and journalists) as well as implementers and navigators (behind-the-scenes public servants and employees). Combined, their efforts have helped clear toxic pollutants, curb gigatons of climate-cooking carbon, conserve landfills of waste, preserve acres of forest and save countless species, giving our grandchildren a fighting chance to call a thriving planet home on Earth Days 100th anniversary. In the meantime, the whole purpose of this years Earth Day, explains co-founder Denis Hayes, is to try to create enough pressure on governments and companies around the world to be aggressive in their leadership on (climate action). In my ideal world, says Hayes, we would look back on 2020 as an inflection point for carbon emissions Id like to see us having designed an economy that can operate with equilibrium. While the pandemic is the most urgent threat facing us this year, the climate crisis represents the greatest challenge to the future of humanity and also vast opportunities for those disrupters and scalers that deliver closed-loop, clean-economy solutions. We hope this Green 50 list will inspire more leadership at a time when the planet and every living entity on it needs it most. Open nominations for the Green 50 were held in February. In addition, Corporate Knights contacted close to 100 thought leaders in various sectors and industries to get their input. A team of expert advisers helped reduce the shortlist to 150, then a panel of judges voted on their top 50 picks. The full Green 50 will be on Corporateknights.com April 20. The following judges helped us select the Green 50: Pierre Lussier, director of Earth Day Canada John Oppermann, executive director of Earth Day Initiative Toby Heaps, CEO and co-founder of Corporate Knights Adria Vasil, managing editor, Corporate Knights President Nana Akufo-Addo has lifted the three-week partial lockdown imposed in the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi districts with effect from 1 am Monday, 20th April 2020. This is in spite of the country's Coronavirus case count having increased to 1,042. Total samples tested so far stands at 68,591 with 1.5 % testing positive. President Akufo-Addo announced this during his seventh address to the nation on the outbreak today, Sunday, April 19, 2020. Reasons For Lifting Lockdown According to him, the main reason the country has seen an increase in the number of confirmed cases over the last three weeks is because of the decision to aggressively trace and test contacts of infected persons. This has enabled us to identify and isolate infected persons, protect the population from further infections, and contain better the spread of the virus, he said. The President continued, Indeed, Ghana is the only other country in Africa to have conducted more than 60,000 tests, and we are ranked number one in Africa in administering of tests per million people. ....in view of our ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing of infected persons, the enhancement of our capacity to test, the expansion in the numbers of our treatment and isolation centres, our better understanding of the dynamism of the virus, the ramping up of our domestic capacity to produce our own personal protective equipment, sanitisers and medicines, the modest successes chalked at containing the spread of the virus in Accra and Kumasi, and the severe impact on the poor and vulnerable, I have taken the decision to lift the three-week-old restriction on movements in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and Kasoa, and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and its contiguous districts, with effect from 1 am on Monday, 20th April, he explained. Observe Protocols Although the lifting of the restrictions may come as a relief to the many whose livelihoods may have been hit hard following the imposition, access to some major sectors remains restricted. Th countrys borders remain closed. Further to these, all other measures including social distancing are also to be adhered to. Additionally, suspension of public gathering including religious meetings, still stands; likewise the closure of all educational facilities. 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. Featured Video Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. ROMEOnly a few weeks ago, at the beginning of Italys lockdown, handwritten notes offering help started appearing taped to the walls of Romes palazzi: Are you in a difficult situation, and would rather not go out? We can help you with grocery shopping and small errands. We live in the building, and in this emergency, we would like to help those in need, one read. Advertisement But these have now been replaced by a different type of offer: My name is Armando, I am a 50-year old father, Im healthy, polite, and I cannot afford not to work. Im offering my services for 10 euro an hour, reads one in Romes Torpignattara neighborhood. I will walk your dog, clean your house, do your shopping. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Italy was the first European country to be hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak, and its high mortality rate, nationwide lockdown, and close-to-collapse healthcare system should have been a warning to other governments. Most did not take heed, and the Italian story is being replayed in countries across the globe. Now, Italy is foreshadowing other, worrying ramifications of the pandemic. With shops, restaurants, and the majority of businesses in their fifth week of closure, Italians are running out of money. While the beginning of the lockdown was characterized by a sense of hopepeople gathered on their balconies to sing, dance, and reassure each other that andra tutto bene (everything will be okay)Italians are now growing increasingly weary. Everything, it seems, will most certainly not be ok. Advertisement Advertisement Armando, the 50-year old father looking for work in Rome, has been an actor for over 30 years, but his last production came to a halt in early March due to the virus. I was already going through some financial difficulties, and since this happened, Ive had to look for different solutions. Im not embarrassed about it. I think its the right thing to do. No one has hired him to walk their dog yet, but hes found work delivering for a sushi restaurant, and hopes to make about 600 ($655) a month, which is something, in times like these. Advertisement The government has sought to offer some relief, and the measures outlined in its 25 billion euro ($28 billion) Cure Italy decree, passed in March, include a suspension on mortgage payments in limited cases, a suspension of tax for some small businesses, and a one-off payment of 600 (approximately $655) for self-employed and seasonal workers. When the bonus became available on April 1, so many people rushed to apply that the social security website crashed within minutes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While these measures might offer a temporary lifeline to some people, many others are excluded from any sort of government help. Without tax contributions that would qualify them for financial assistance, those who work in nero, or off the books 3.7 million according to Italys official statistics office, Istat are left with nothing, many unable to afford even the bare necessities. A 30-year-old man, who asked for his name not to be disclosed, had been working in a startup that organized wine tours in the rolling hills south of Rome. The company was going really well, until it all drastically stopped. I worked in nero, so I am not eligible for any type of support he explains, resignation in his voice. Italy is full of micro-companies like this one, where people work off the books, so I imagine there are countless people in my same position. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Renata Semenza, a professor in Economic Sociology and Labor Studies at the at Milans Universita degli Studi, says that it is difficult to predict how this crisis will affect the black market exactly, but one thing is certain: Everything is connected, the informal economy is an intrinsic part of the formal, regular economy, so if one slows so will the other. So far, there has been little sympathy for informal workers by the political establishment. When Romes mayor Virginia Raggi mentioned on TV that she felt close to people working off the books and who are suddenly without work, she was vehemently criticized by opponents and political commentators. Those working in the informal economy are not the only ones suffering the consequences of this lockdown. Recent changes in the Italian labor system and a move towards more flexible forms of employmentshort-term or freelance contracts, for examplehave led to precarious and unstable working conditions. Advertisement Advertisement The forecast for freelancers, people who are self-employed, or on short term contracts is very bad says Semenza. There will be a very significant drop in expected income for these groups, much more than for people who are regular employees. But the positive thing is that for the first time the Italian government has recognized these non-traditional categories, and is helping them [with the 600 bonus]. Advertisement But being in the system and paying taxes still doesnt guarantee state assistance. Sebastiano Walter Tarda, 29, lives in Mascalia, a small town close to Catania in Sicily. After years of studying and saving, he finally opened a psychology practice in January, but was forced to close it a few months later. Because he didnt have an income from his work as a psychologist in 2018, he doesnt qualify for the governments bonus or a similar relief package set up by a trade group for psychologists. Advertisement Hes one of the lucky ones, he says, because he lives with his family and doesnt have to pay rent. But his mother doesnt work, and his father, who qualifies for the governments 600 bonus but doesnt know when he will receive it, has had to close his sawmill business. The whole family is now living off the pension that Sebastianos grandfather, who also lives with them, receives every month. They dont know how long that can last. In the face of this uncertainty, tensions have been mounting in Italys poorer southern regions. A grainy phone video filmed in Naples and shared on social media shows a man standing at a supermarket checkout, unable to pay for his small basketful of pasta, oil, and tinned tomatoes. Other clients are sympathetic: He cant eat, you see? He hasnt bought champagne and wine, he just wants the essentials. Another video from Bari, in Puglia, captures a family of three, crying and screaming in front of a shuttered bank: We dont have any money, what are we supposed to do? Come to our home and see, we have nothing left. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has set aside 400 million euros ($436.5 million) for mayors to convert into food stamps, but that amount is unlikely to cover the needs of the thousands of people who have suddenly lost their income. Italians have set up makeshift food banks, leaving parcels on benches around the city, and local parishes are also stepping in to fill the void. Its a really dark time says Andrea Pupilla, a priest at the Caritas Diocesana (a church-run charity) of San Severo, in Puglia. Over 2000 families have applied for the food stamps, and we are working with the council to help them cope. Many people around here lost their income from one day to the next, they have no alternatives. Advertisement While there is no doubt that Italy is about to enter another difficult stage of this crisis, one glimmer of hope comes from the decreasing number of deaths: 431 on Easter Sunday, the lowest in three weeks. In many parts of the world, however, numbers of infections continue to skyrocket, and the scale of job losses is without precedent. Just like the high-death toll, the lockdown, and the overwhelmed hospitals, the bleak situation of Italian workers should be a harbinger for the rest of the world. For more on the impact of COVID-19, listen to Mondays What Next. A major computing breakthrough has allowed researchers to develop ultra-low power devices capable of operating at the same voltage level as a brain. Scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst figured out a way to use biological, electricity conducting filaments to make an electronic memory device known as a memristor. Using protein nanowires developed from the bacterium Geobacter, the scientists realised they could create a device as power-efficient as a human brain synapse. Details of the new technology were published in the journal Nature Communications. "People probably didn't even dare to hope that we could create a device that is as power-efficient as the biological counterparts in a brain, but now we have realistic evidence of ultra-low power computing capabilities," said computer engineering researcher and co-author Jun Yao. "It's a concept breakthrough and we think it's going to cause a lot of exploration in electronics that work in the biological voltage regime." 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 test the nanowires, the scientists experimented with a pulsing on-off pattern sent through a tiny metal thread 100-times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. The pattern of positive-negative charge created an effect similar to the process of learning in a real brain. "You can modulate the conductivity, or the plasticity of the nanowire-memristor synapse so it can emulate biological components for brain-inspired computing," Dr Yao said. "Compared to a conventional computer, this device has a learning capability that is not software-based." Recommended AI translates thoughts into text using brain implant The biological nanowires offer many advantages over artificial silicon nanowires beyond simply requiring vastly lower amounts of energy. The are more stable in water or bodily fluids, meaning they could be used for biomedical applications like heart rate monitor devices. Dr Yu said they could even conceivably be integrated with existing biological processes for cyborg-esque functionality. He said his team now plans to "fully explore the chemistry, biology and electronics" of the nanowires, adding, "This offers hope in the feasibility that one day this device can talk to actual neurons in biological systems". Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all. Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now. The coronavirus outbreak is devastating local government budgets. Revenue has plummeted because of the shelter-at-home order. Economic activity funds a big part of the city's budget through taxes, and a ton of that is on ice right now. In Los Angeles, city officials now face stark choices about which programs to keep whole and which to cut. Mayor Eric Garcetti's budget proposal will be released at 1 p.m. today. icon DON'T MISS ANY L.A. CORONAVIRUS NEWS Get our daily newsletters for the latest on COVID-19 and other top local headlines. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Garcetti used his State of the City address Sunday evening to warn that his budget would be "a document of our pain." He likened this to 9/11, when LAX closed for a couple of days and passenger traffic was down by a third that month in 2001. It took 10 years to recover, Garcetti said. "Today, airport passenger traffic is down 95 percent," he added. "From a fiscal perspective, this is the worst it's ever been." Last week City Controller Ron Galperin put the revenue writing on the wall: the city is facing hundreds of millions of dollars in shortfalls. To find those savings, Garcetti already instituted a hiring freeze, but said he has to go further: borrowing from the rainy day fund; cutting many department budgets; and furloughing thousands of civilian city workers, essentially reducing their pay by 10 percent. The mayor acknowledged that will be hard on people who rely on city services, and tough for workers who will see smaller paychecks. He said he'll try to reduce those furlough days as soon as possible. One of the ways to do that would be a big check from Washington. Garcetti appealed again to the White House and Congress to appropriate more funding for local governments, saying they should "help bail out America's cities, just as you bailed out the banks." He echoed organizations representing city and county leaders that have requested more financial help from the federal government. "If you want to reopen America, America's cities are where this nation begins." But for now, Garcetti has to work with what he's got -- and he said that means a belt-tightening budget that will reduce spending on community programs, parks and the environment. Some core departments will be spared. Garcetti promised to "draw a red line" around community safety, clean streets, housing, and meals programs for children and seniors. The mayor tried to soften the news of austerity measures by presenting a vision of what recovery could look like. "The real question is how we will come back," Garcetti said, arguing this process should be more broad-based than what transpired after the Great Recession. He said attention should be given to inequities in our economy that leave many people vulnerable -- without housing or healthcare. Garcetti talked about a proposed coalition of doctors, local governments, businesses, and health agencies dubbed the "CARES Corps," which would theoretically help coordinate the steps needed to get the economy moving again: testing; monitoring; tracking and isolating new coronavirus cases; and researching therapeutics and a vaccine. And Garcetti called on the federal government to make sweeping, structural changes as part of the recovery effort, like backing an eviction moratorium, making college tuition-free, and passing an infrastructure package. These are big, bold plans popular with the left wing of the Democratic Party that helped win California for Bernie Sanders. But they aren't likely to be on the agenda for the Trump administration or a Republican Senate anytime soon. WHAT'S NEXT? The mayor's proposal is just that -- a suggestion based on requests from city departments and the chief executive's policy priorities. The city council takes that document and works its way through, making amendments based on the Budget Committee's public hearings, city administrative officer (CAO) analysis and councilmembers' priorities. The city charter says the council must pass its budget no later than June 1. The mayor then has five working days to send it back to them with a veto, or tweak the council's budget using a line-item veto. But the council also has five days to override any veto with a two-thirds vote. And voila: an adopted budget for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. Mayor Garcetti's 2020-21 proposed budget is expected to be released at 1 PM. This story will be updated. This investigation is a collaboration between the Chicago Tribune and ProPublica Illinois. Long before the coronavirus crisis shut down Illinois schools, state education officials had encouraged districts to prepare for circumstances when they would have to teach remotely. But most of the states 852 school districts didnt have e-learning plans in place when schools closed in mid-March, a ProPublica Illinois-Chicago Tribune analysis has found. Many of those districts have found themselves scrambling to figure out how best to teach students when they cant be face to face. They have had to search for the best online platforms -- Google Meet or Zoom or Flipgrid or Seesaw? -- and try to determine how many students lacked internet service while districts that had already established the logistics have been able to pivot more easily into actual instruction. I do think that we would be facing a much smoother transition to remote learning if districts had spent more time developing the plans sooner, but we could not have predicted our current situation, said Aaron Mercier, superintendent of the Regional Office of Education that serves Carroll, Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties along the states borders with Wisconsin and Iowa. The results wont be picture perfect e-learning in every situation, but our schools are committed to making sure that students continue to learn. On Friday, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced his decision to close all schools for the rest of the school year for the states 2 million students. In making the decision, Pritzker said he considered that Illinois has an educational landscape in which some districts have more experience with remote learning than others, a challenge that he said weighed heavily on the difficult decision to close schools for months. Remote learning looks different in each of our communities and thats encouraged. Some rely on paper and pencil methods more than digital, and vice versa, Pritzker said. The Illinois State Board of Education launched a pilot program in 2015 with three school districts to test the feasibility of teaching online during winter weather or other emergencies instead of having to make up the days in person. Based on the results of that program, the General Assembly last year passed a law allowing schools to use up to five e-learning days each school year as long as they created plans that were approved by the regional offices of education. While the e-learning plans were designed for short-term closures, districts that had developed those plans were in a better position to move to the ISBE-mandated remote learning at the end of March. For some districts, it meant students had already practiced how to use the online platforms. And districts surveyed families to determine which students needed a laptop or other device and who needed a mobile hot spot to access the internet. The Tribune and ProPublica Illinois surveyed the states 38 regional offices of education to determine how many districts had e-learning plans approved before the pandemic forced buildings to close. Information was provided for about 670 of Illinois 852 public school districts and special education cooperatives; roughly 1 in 4 , or about 200, had plans approved before March 17, the first day the governor shut schools. Of those, dozens submitted plans in the days leading up to the closures. Gurnee School District 56, in Chicagos north suburbs, participated in the pilot program and practiced e-learning as if it were a fire drill: Teachers suddenly announced to their classes that it was time for e-learning, and students had to stop what they were doing, log in to their laptops or iPads and show they knew how to access their work. Theres a huge learning curve for both students and their teachers, said Colleen Pacatte, superintendent of the 2,000-student district. The practice sessions allowed the district to make adjustments in its system well before the pandemic hit, switching from one set of online tools that didnt work to others that did and making video tutorials to parents so they could understand how to use the technology and help their children at home. I empathize so much with the districts that are just trying to figure it out or districts running stuff off and delivering it, Pacatte said. These e-learning plans are different from the remote learning plans that the state required school districts to develop in late March. Remote learning plans can include both online and traditional work. The plans detail the hours teachers are available each day, how parents should submit attendance records for their children, what will be taught, how students can access learning materials and how school employees will communicate with families. ISBE directed schools to begin remote learning on March 31, allowing them up to five planning days before instruction began. Chicago Public Schools began remote learning last week, following five planning days and then a weeklong spring break. The district did not have an e-learning plan in place prior to the state shutdown. Many districts that didnt have e-learning plans already approved have quickly created them. That includes some large districts in Naperville, Palatine, Schaumburg and Joliet -- all of which finalized e-learning plans in March. Among the districts served through the regional education office in north Cook County, only Evanston District 202 had an e-learning plan in place before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the south suburban Will County region, five of the 33 school districts had approved e-learning plans before the state shutdown. While the adjustment has been difficult for teachers and students everywhere, districts that had already done some planning had the basement of the house built and didnt need to start digging the foundation, said Will County regional superintendent Shawn Walsh. Regions of the state with greater internet accessibility -- measured by rates of broadband access per 1,000 households -- were more likely to have e-learning plans in place, the ProPublica Illinois-Tribune analysis found. All 49 districts and public programs served by the north suburban Lake County Regional Office of Education had plans before March 17, though only 13 submitted the plans earlier in the school year. Most of the school districts in Grundy and Kendall counties as well as the education region that serves Jersey, Macoupin, Calhoun and Greene counties along the Missouri border had plans too. If you had a plan in place already, it would have made things easier. I was just talking to one of my superintendents a few minutes ago, and he feels the first week or so was a challenge and when they got things ironed out in this situation that things have run smoother, Ron Daniels, a regional superintendent who oversees 45 school districts near St. Louis, said in an interview last week. Before schools closed, only two of Daniels schools had e-learning plans -- a parochial school and a small elementary school. Many schools decided not to participate because their rural communities had no internet access, or it was unreliable. They would have preferred to make up lost days in person if there were emergency closures, though they couldnt have anticipated a monthslong shutdown, he said. The St. Rose School District in his region submitted an e-learning plan on March 25 for March 31 - ????? The plan requires the districts 200 students, from kindergarten to eighth grade, to join their class through Google Meet every morning, when attendance is taken. Teachers upload to Google Drive on the go learning packets for each grade. Fourth graders get reading passages and math problems. Seventh-grade geography features daily reading passages on different parts of the world. On the 10th day of remote learning, students were assigned to read about the Berlin Wall. The shift to e-learning was an adjustment for school districts near Carlinville in central Illinois, none of which had e-learning plans in place before the COVID-19 shutdown. This wasnt something on our radar, said Michelle Mueller, a regional superintendent who oversees 14 school districts across four counties. Most of them do not have a laptop or other device for each student, making remote learning a challenge. Nobody in my area had the forethought where they had (plans) in place to use for inclement weather days. It has really been a culture shock for my teachers. Maercker District 60, which has 1,300 students across three schools in DuPage County, developed an e-learning plan last school year, after the state legislature allowed it, and then practiced it on a Friday a year ago. Teachers tested different techniques and parents provided feedback. We had a great response and, because of it, we decided we would roll it out anytime school needed to be canceled this year, said Maercker superintendent Sean Nugent. Even before the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, teachers were meeting at the start of each month to design interactive distance-learning experiences in case of an unexpected school closure. Our people were spending all of this year thinking through how might this work digitally versus having to do it in (a few) days, on the fly, Nugent said. The districts online learning plan includes links to a Google form for elementary school parents to check their child in to school each day. There are YouTube videos of math lessons and daily assignments, and enrichment activities, including e-books, are catalogued in Google Drive. Teachers are available from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. every day for live text chats and impromptu Zoom and phone calls. In the remote learning guidance that ISBE issued at the end of March, the agency encouraged districts to focus first on students immediate needs to be physically and emotionally safe, and then deliver education. Simplicity is best, the 62-page guidance document said, acknowledging that remote learning doesnt always mean learning with technology. Given the reality of the digital divide, most schools may need to provide digital and nondigital access to content, the document said, asking districts to offer students flexibility that avoids penalizing students for their choice. Whether remote learning occurs online or with pencil and paper, schools should provide enough work for students to keep a regular daily schedule, the guidelines state. For kindergartners, that should amount to between 30 and 90 minutes per day; for high school students, between two and 4.5 hours. Multilingual and early-childhood students and students with disabilities also must have appropriate remote learning opportunities. Grades can be issued, but only if they dont negatively affect a students academic standing. Missed or poor work can be redone or made up later, ISBE said. ISBE surveyed school districts last month to assess how they planned to implement remote learning. Of the 655 that responded, about 9% said they were using only digital learning. An equal percentage said they were sticking to nondigital options. The majority of districts -- about 82% -- said they were blending online and paper-and-pencil instruction. More than 425 had students log into online learning websites like Khan Academy, and more than 430 said they met face to face with students via FaceTime, Google Hangouts or other video chat services. Some 230 districts reported to ISBE that theyd been delivering class materials to students at home by running school-bus routes or other home delivery. In Gurnee, e-learning packets -- basic information about how to go to class online -- were handed out in plastic bags during school orientation last year, said Angenetta Frison, whose 4-year-old daughter, Taylor Hill, is in pre-kindergarten. Frison said she got the packet, set it aside and didnt think of it again until the coronavirus hit. Its well put together, Frison said, from the instructions to the planned online meetups so the students can see one another. Everything has been seamless. ... All the parents Ive spoken to echo that were glad we are in a district that was prepared. Pacatte, the Gurnee superintendent, said shes tweaked the districts e-learning plan for a longer-term shutdown. Now, she requires all classrooms to meet virtually at least once a week to help maintain relationships, which wouldnt have been necessary during a snow day. Because the district didnt need the five planning days, teachers are using consecutive Wednesdays for team meetings to assess the plans and make changes. Pacatte said she fielded calls from other superintendents asking for advice, and last month she was a panelist on several webinars to help other Illinois school officials catch up. For one of them, 900 people logged in to listen. Smith Richards is a Tribune reporter. Cohen is a reporter for ProPublica Illinois. At least 55 residents of a New York City nursing home have died after a coronavirus outbreak crippled the facility as the death toll at care facilities in the US hits 8,000. Experts have repeatedly said that the virus is the most deadliest to the elderly population. Across the nation, nursing homes have been significantly impacted by COVID-19 with alarming outbreaks in Washington state, Massachusetts and Virginia. The Cobble Hill Health Center, a 360-bed facility in an upscale section of Brooklyn, has become yet another glaring example of the nation's struggle to control the rapid spread of the coronavirus in nursing homes that care for the most frail and vulnerable. On Sunday, officials announced that those with family members in a nursing home will now be told if someone comes down with coronavirus in the facility. This new initiative from the White House coronavirus task force suggests that those with family members in these centers were not previously being informed if their loved ones were at risk of contracting the virus from an individual or outbreak. Scroll down for video At least 55 residents at the Cobble Hill Health Center (pictured on Friday) have died amid a coronavirus outbreak at the facility Out of an Associated Press tally of 8,003 nursing home deaths nationwide, a third of them are in New York state. A patient is loaded into an ambulance by emergency medical workers outside the Cobble Hill Health Center on Friday In mid-March, Donny Tuchman, the CEO of Cobble Hill Health Center began sending increasingly alarming emails about banning visitors, screening staff, confining residents, wiping down all surfaces, and having all-hands-on-deck meetings to prepare everyone for the coronavirus 'freight train'. 'I'll be darned if I'm not going to do everything in my power to protect them,' Tuchman wrote before things got worse. More than 100 staffers, nearly a third of the workforce, went out sick. White House task force says relatives of residents in care centers will be told if someone comes down with coronavirus Seema Verma, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services within Health and Human Services, announced Sunday that those with family members in a nursing home will now be told if someone comes down with coronavirus in the facility. 'Today we are announcing we are requiring nursing homes to report to patients and their families if there are cases of COVID virus inside the nursing home,' Verma said during a White House coronavirus press briefing. Verma said the task force is also now requiring nursing homes to report any instances of COVID-19 to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Under the White House social distancing guidelines, those over 60 years of age are told to stay home entirely. Verma added that HHS is launching this effort to keep old-care living facilities 'transparent' in the wake of the pandemic. Advertisement Those left began wearing garbage bags because of a shortage of protective gear. Not a single resident has been able to get tested for the virus to this day. Out of an Associated Press tally of 8,003 nursing home deaths nationwide, a third of them are in New York state where more than 10,000 people have died and another 134,000 have been infected. The Sapphire Center in Flushing, Queens, has recorded 29 coronavirus deaths. Friends and relatives who have visited the Cobble Hill Health Center in recent weeks, as well as the home's own statements, paint a picture of a facility overwhelmed and unequipped to deal with its coronavirus outbreak, with shortages of staff, personal protective equipment and the availability of reliable testing. 'They were under siege,' said Daniel Arbeeny, who brought his ailing 88-year-old father from a hospital to the home in late March. 'They were doing the best they could, as far as we could tell at arm's length, under siege.' Tuchman said Sunday that he believes many other homes have more deaths than Cobble Hill but his has been singled out for its honesty. He said it responded to the state's voluntary survey with cases in which it was 'possible' COVID-19 could be a factor, since his home wasn't able to test any residents due to the lack of available kits. Tuchman also said he reported 50 deaths, not 55, though the state repeated that tally Sunday. 'There's been a lot of lip service about how vulnerable nursing homes have been, and everyone has the best intentions, but it didn't materialize,' Tuchman said. 'The PPE didn't materialize, the staffing surge didn't materialize, the testing didn't materialize. ... How did we expect this not to spread?' The Sapphire Center in Flushing, Queens, has recorded 29 coronavirus deaths There are more than 779,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the US with 41,449 deaths Though Tuchman doesn't know for sure how the virus got into Cobble Hill, he noted there has been a parade of paramedics and staffers allowed into the building each day who were screened with health questions and temperature checks, not enough to keep out those who are sick but not showing symptoms. Soon after news broke of Cobble Hill's death toll, Steven Vince went there to talk to administrators about his recently passed uncle, whose death certificate listed him possibly having COVID. An administrator told him they were confident his uncle did not have the virus. 'It's very surprising because I don't think anyone from the facility contacted us to tell us anything like this or basically bring this to our attention in any way,' he said. Eva Buchmuller, a New York City artist whose best friend has lived in Cobble Hill with Alzheimer's for three years, said she wasn't that surprised the virus spread in the nursing home's cramped quarters, with small rooms tightly packed along narrow corridors and residents not allowed to open windows. She believes it's highly likely her friend is infected. 'How could you avoid not getting the virus?' she said, adding it's 'always, always filled up'. Built in a stately brick building that once was a 19th-century hospital, Cobble Hill was most recently rated three out of five stars by the federal government for overall quality and the facility has a complaint rate that's half that of the statewide average for nursing homes. Employees of veterans care facility are told to come to work despite testing positive for coronavirus A total of 60 veterans have died at the Soldier's Home facility in Holyoke, Massachusetts during an outbreak of the coronavirus. Two weeks ago it was reported that at least two employees at the facility are still working out of fear for their job despite testing for positive for the virus. According to ABC News, two other employees, Carmen Rivera and Joe Ramirez, who fell ill with the virus and have been out since last month, said at least two of their coworkers at the Soldiers' Home have still been going into work. Ramirez, who is a certified nursing assistant, said his colleagues are 'afraid of losing their job' and 'of retaliation'. Cory Bombredi, the Local 888 union organizer for the home said there is a written policy in place for workers to continue coming into work. The policy says that 'if you're COVID-19 positive and asymptomatic, you still have to show'. Bennett Walsh, the superintendent of the home, has been placed on administrative leave and a new clinical command structure is in place. The Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and the US Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts have also launched an investigation. Both federal agencies are working to determine if the facility violated the rights of its residents by failing to provide adequate medical care. Advertisement Its beds are in high demand - it has 98 per cent occupancy, according to the state - in a city that has seen closures in nursing homes that developers have eyed for apartments. Over the years, it's shown signs of innovation. It has, at various points, taught massage therapy to nursing assistants, housed a small alternative public high school, brought local artists in to teach residents dance, offered music therapy and was at the forefront of nursing homes setting up Alzheimer's units and cutting reliance on antipsychotics that can leave residents with dementia. In early 2018, Cobble Hill boasted on its website that it was hosting a delegation of 18 physicians and hospital administrators from Hubei Province, China - which would become the global epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak - 'to see best practices first hand'. Earlier this month, Daniel Arbeeny and his family decided to move his elderly father - who was not believed to have COVID-19 - from the Cobble Hill facility to the family's home on a nearby block. After he left, the family helped coordinate a donation of face shields and doesn't blame the nursing home for the outbreak or its outcome. 'To me, it's just a bad situation,' he said. 'They were dealt a bad set of cards.' New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday on MSNBC's 'Morning Joe' that the situation at Cobble Hill and other nursing homes in the city shows that 'you cannot pretend that this ferocious disease is simply going to walk away at one point or just flick a switch and its gone'. And while New York City may be the epicenter of the coronavirus, it's not the first city to suffer a major loss in one of its nursing homes. In late February, residents at the Life Care Center of Kirkland in Washington state, were among the first to die after an outbreak of the coronavirus occurred at the facility. The outbreak has taken the lives of at least 43 people at the Kirkland center. Other state facilities have also been significantly impacted by the virus, including Soldier's Home in Holyoke, Massachusetts and the Canterbury Rehabilitation and Health Care Center in Virginia. The Soldier's Home recently reported four additional resident deaths over the weekend bringing their death toll to 60. Among those residents, 50 have tested positive for the coronavirus, one is unknown and one is still pending. The death toll has prompted a federal investigation into the facility to determine if it violated the rights of its residents by failing to provide adequate medical care during the pandemic. At the Canterbury Rehabilitation and Health Care Center in Virginia, officials have reported 49 deaths. The Soldier's Home recently reported four additional resident deaths over the weekend bringing their death toll to 60. Among those residents, 50 have tested positive for the coronavirus, one is unknown and one is still pending At the Canterbury Rehabilitation and Health Care Center (pictured) in Virginia, officials have reported 49 deaths. At least 127 elderly people out of the 163 residents of the center in Henrico County have tested positive for the coronavirus At least 127 elderly people out of the 163 residents of the center in Henrico County have tested positive for the coronavirus, said its medical director Dr James Wright. 'It's been tough,' Wright said in an interview with Reuters. 'We were surprised by how quickly this went through,' he said. 'It's a battle that at times we feel like we're losing. It's a battle that we have to fight every day and night, seven days a week.' At least 35 members of Canterbury's staff have tested positive for the coronavirus, but Wright said he did not know how many have fallen ill. He added that the virus has exacerbated an existing staffing shortage, with some staffers refusing to come to work for fear of getting ill. 'We did the best we could,' he said. Of the 97 known coronavirus outbreaks in Virginia, 53 are in long-term care facilities such as Canterbury, state health officials said during a press briefing Monday with Virginia Governor Ralph Northam. Police find 17 bodies piled up in New Jersey nursing home's morgue Authorities revealed last week that 17 bodies were found piled up in the Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center's morgue in Andover, New Jersey. Officers in the small locality of Andover, around 52 miles west of New York City, discovered the bodies following an anonymous tip-off. The discovery came on Monday at the facility, which is one of the largest care homes in New Jersey, a state badly hit by coronavirus. The cause of death of the 17 has not been confirmed but 68 people have recently died at the facility, and 26 of those tested positive for COVID-19. Authorities revealed last week that 17 bodies were found piled up in the Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center's (pictured) morgue in Andover, New Jersey Thirteen of the discovered bodies were moved to a refrigerated truck outside a hospital in the nearby town of Newton. A funeral home picked up the other four. Medical personnel transport a body from the facility on Thursday Police did not confirm the number of bodies found. But in a statement posted on the Andover police Facebook page, one of the home's owners, Chaim Scheinbaum, said the morgue, which normally houses four bodies, 'never had more than 15 present' on Monday. 'The staff was clearly overwhelmed and probably short-staffed,' Andover Police Chief Eric Danielson said. Thirteen of the discovered bodies were moved to a refrigerated truck outside a hospital in the nearby town of Newton. A funeral home picked up the other four. Seventy-six patients who are still housed at the facility have tested positive for coronavirus, and 41 members of staff are out sick with it. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said he was 'outraged' that bodies had been allowed to pile up and ordered an investigation. 'It's pretty clear that a big weakness in the system, and in reality, is long-term care facilities,' he said. 'I don't know if I'm shocked by any means.' New Jersey officials have recorded more than 85,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus with more than 4,200 deaths. By Tracy Rucinski CHICAGO (Reuters) - United Airlines said on Monday it expects to report a pre-tax loss of about $2.1 billion for the first quarter, after the coronavirus outbreak smothered its growth aspirations in Latin America and led the company to seek another $4.5 billion in government aid. Chicago-based United said first quarter revenues are seen at $8 billion, down 17% from a year earlier, with the bulk of the declines in the last two weeks of March as coronavirus outbreaks accelerated globally, causing an average daily revenue loss of $100 million. The results are preliminary and final first-quarter numbers may change, it said, without disclosing a date for publication. Southwest Airlines Co said on Monday it was delaying its first-quarter results publication to April 28 from April 23. Delta Air Lines Inc is due to publish on Wednesday. All U.S. airlines are seeking government money to help them weather what they say is the worst crisis in the industry's history. With few people flying, United said it plans to operate only about 10% of its normal schedule in May and June. In addition to $5 billion it will receive from the U.S. government to cover payroll through Sept. 30, United said it also expects to borrow up to about $4.5 billion from the U.S. Treasury Department for up to five years. Once the terms are finalized, it will have until the end of September to decide whether to draw the money. If it borrows the full amount, United would issue warrants for the Treasury to buy 14.2 million shares at its April 9 closing price of $31.50 per share. Shares in United were down about 3.7% at $28.01 in afternoon trading. The estimated first-quarter loss includes just over $1 billion in special charges, mainly reflecting a reserve on a loan United made in connection with an investment in Colombia's Avianca Holdings as part of its plans for a larger tie-up in Latin America. The loan was backed by a controlling interest in Avianca, which has not flown any passenger flights since March 24 as its main Colombia and El Salvador hubs shut down their air spaces. Story continues Avianca has furloughed half of its staff with no pay and has not publicly disclosed when it expects to fly again as governments in Latin America repeatedly extend quarantines. United also wrote down the value of its investments in Brazilian carrier Azul Linhas Aereas Brasileiras and took a $50 million impairment charge for its routes in China, where the coronavirus first started to affect travel in January. U.S. airlines, including United, have warned that they will have to downsize in October if demand does not show signs of recovering. United had $6.3 billion of liquidity as of April 16, it said, and announced this weekend a sale and leaseback deal with Bank of China (BOC) Aviation involving six Boeing 787-9 jets and 16 737-9 MAX planes. The MAX jets were built for United but are parked at Boeing Co facilities until regulators approve the aircraft to fly again since two fatal crashes led to a global grounding last year. (Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Additional reporting by Ankit Ajmera, David Shepardson and Marcelo Rochabrun; Editing by Bernard Orr, Jonathan Oatis and Dan Grebler) Reuters AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Philips shares plunged more than 11% on Wednesday morning after the Dutch health technology company hiked the cost of its massive recall of ventilators and said earnings would take a big hit from global supply chain shortages. Comparable sales fell 10% on a yearly basis to 4.9 billion euros, Philips said, as hospitals had to postpone the installation of equipment due to a lack of parts. Van Houten said the supply chain problems had intensified over the fourth quarter, and were not expected to disappear in the first months of 2022. The number of active cases actually increased by one after the relapse of a Hanoi woman three days after her discharge. Excluding her, 202 of Vietnams 268 patients have been discharged from hospitals. "Patient 188," 44, a resident of the capital citys Chuong My District, is an employee of the Truong Sinh Company, which provides food and logistic services for several hospitals in Hanoi, including the Bach Mai Hospital, a major Covid-19 hotspot. So far, 163,377 novel coronavirus tests have been conducted nationwide. Tran Dac Phu, senior advisor at the Public Health Emergency Operations Center under the Health Ministry, said Sunday: "So far there has been no new community transmission hotspot in the country, which is a positive sign. However, I insist that we do not let our guard down." "Patient 188" is Vietnam's second case to relapse and test positive for the novel coronavirus. The other was "Patient 22," a 66-year-old British man who flew from the U.K. to Vietnam on March 2. His was discharged in Da Nang and his sample tested positive again when it was taken two weeks later just before his departure from HCMC. However, he has tested negative back home in the U.K. "Relapse is something that can totally happen, even if it is rare," Phu said, adding that global health institutes and the World Health Organization have many theories for that, including mistakes in testing, the immune systems of the patients, which have not been strengthened enough to beat the virus once and for all. They also think that the novel coronavirus has reactivated after going into a "sleeping state." "Theoretically, recovered Covid-19 patients who later relapse can still transmit the virus to others," he warned. Businesses within Accra, Kumasi and Tema have bounced back to their usual vibrancy a few hours after President Akufo-Addo announced the lifting of a partial ban imposed on the two areas. A morning tour by Citi News teams found that many shop owners had begun opening their shops while traders thronged the various markets to sell their wares. Commercial vehicles; taxis and trotros were also in full operation with vehicular traffic already building up in some areas. At the Adabraka market, Caleb Kudah reported that many traders had arrived at the market at dawn to trade. The pavements around the market as at 6:00 am had already been occupied by some traders who seated closely to each other. There is no social distancing at the Adabraka market. The main gate to the market was just opened and the people rushed in. Prior to the fumigation of the market, there was soap and water where you could wash your hand before going in, but today, I dont see such a thing here. A few of the traders are wearing face masks. The streets have been considerably busy, the market is choked with people, trucks are moving and others are parked. At the Zenu Atadeka market in Ashaiman, Elvis Washington said many people have thronged the market with nearby shops opened and already conducting business. According to him, there is already vehicular traffic in the area as more commercial vehicles, popularly known as trotro have taken to the road. He said commercial vehicles were fully loaded with passengers in breach of the social distancing rule. Elvis Washington also observed that most people were not wearing face masks as a protective gear. This morning, people are up and about going about their normal duty. Okada riders are here and traffic has started building up. Everything is back to normal here and most shops are open. Trotros are also working but you will notice that they are flouting the social distancing protocol. Social distancing and wearing of face masks is missing here at Zenu Atadeka, Elvis Washington said. In the Ashanti Regional capital, Citi News Hafiz Tijani said life appears to be returning to normalcy as many people were seen jogging closely together on the streets. He reported that some people were heavily involved in the sale of face masks. Im around the Kumasi Central Market and a lot of people are trooping in to the Central business district. A lot of traders are already opening their shops. Social distancing is not being followed here especially at the Dr. Mensah section of the Kejetia market. People are on the street jogging, a lot of people here are putting on their face masks are others are cashing in by selling them for between 1 cedi and 2 cedis, he said. President Akufo-Addo in a televised broadcast on Sunday, April 19, 2020 lifted the partial lockdown on some parts of the country which was necessitated by the spread of the novel coronavirus. According to the President, the ease of restrictions was in view of the country's ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing of infected persons among others. President Akufo-Addo in his address however, indicated that other restrictions such as the one on public gatherings are still in place. He urged Ghanaians to wear face masks everywhere they go and strictly adhere to the various COVID-19 prevention protocols including handwashing and social distancing. ---citinewsroom A gunman who at one point masqueraded as a policeman killed at least 16 people in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia during a 12-hour rampage, authorities said on Sunday, in what was the country`s worst modern-era mass shooting. Among the victims of the shooting spree that spread across part of the Atlantic Canadian province was RCMP officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force with two children. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who worked as a denturist, appeared at one stage to have been wearing part of a police uniform. He had also painstakingly disguised his car to look like a police cruiser. Police added they had ended the threat posed by Wortman, who was dead, but would not confirm a report by the CTV network that the RCMP had shot him. Wortman shot people in several locations in Nova Scotia, the RCMP told a briefing. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp the police knew of at least 16 victims, besides the shooter. She added there was no indication at this time that the killings were terrorism-related. Police said there was no apparent link between Wortman and at least some of his victims. They said they had no idea what his motivation might have been. "Today is a devastating day for Nova Scotia, and it will remain etched in the minds for many years to come," said Lee Bergerman, commanding officer of the RCMP in Nova Scotia. The death toll exceeded that of a Montreal massacre in 1989 when a gunman killed 15 women. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has tighter gun control laws than the United States. Nova Scotia, like the rest of Canada, is under a stay-at-home order because of the coronavirus pandemic. Police discovered the killings late on Saturday after multiple reports of shots at a house in the small coastal town of Portapique, about 130 km (80 miles) north of the provincial capital, Halifax. "When police arrived on the scene, members located several casualties inside and outside of the home," said Chris Leather, the Nova Scotia RCMP`s criminal operations officer. Several buildings in the town were ablaze and police exchanged gunfire at one point with Wortman. Probes subsequently disclosed he had also killed people in several other locations. "We`re not fully aware of what (the) total might be," said Leather. At one point on Saturday evening, Wortman "appears to have been wearing - if not all - then a portion of a police uniform," Leather said. But he did not specify whether the suspect had been disguised as an officer when the killings occurred. "The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather said. `WE HEARD GUNSHOTS` According to the websites of the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia and the province`s Better Business Bureau, Wortman operated a denture clinic in Dartmouth, close to Halifax. In response to a question, Leather said police would look at a possible link to the coronavirus outbreak, which has forced the closure of non-essential businesses. A local resident said she had come across two burning police vehicles while out driving on Sunday. "There was one officer we could see on scene and then all of a sudden, he went running toward one of the burning vehicles," Darcy Sack told the CBC. "We heard gunshots," she added. Television footage from Portapique showed two burned-out vehicles on a road. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil decried what he called senseless act of violence. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would help Nova Scotians "as they heal from this tragedy." The killings do not represent the largest act of murder in the country`s history, given that 268 Canadians were among the 329 people who died in 1985 when a bomb brought down an Air India jet over the Atlantic. FILE PHOTO: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin (not pictured) following their talks in Moscow ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that the Syrian government was violating a ceasefire in the northwestern Idlib region, warning that Damascus would suffer "heavy losses" if it persisted. Turkey and Russia, which back opposing sides in Syria's war, agreed on March 5 to halt hostilities in northwestern Syria after an escalation of clashes there displaced nearly a million people and brought the two sides close to confrontation. Speaking in Istanbul after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan said the Syrian government was using the coronavirus outbreak as an opportunity to ramp up violence in Idlib, and added that Turkey would not allow any "dark groups" in the region to violate the ceasefire either. (Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu and Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Gareth Jones) If there can be optimism amid the coronavirus pandemic, its in north Alabama. "Good news," Huntsville Hospital CEO David Spillers said in opening his remarks at a briefing Monday. "Things continue to trend well for our area, Madison County in particular." The numbers bear out the optimism while underscoring the value of having readily available widespread COVID-19 testing as Alabama looks to begin the process of reopening next month. Spillers said almost 9,000 tests have been conducted so far across north Alabama by the Huntsville Hospital Healthcare System. And at the same time, the Huntsville metro area has far fewer positive tests than Alabamas other large metro areas. Meanwhile, the demand for coronavirus testing has plummeted, Spillers said. Three weeks ago, Spillers bemoaned not being able to offer 500 to 600 tests a day due to a lack of supplies. Now the hospital is averaging about 125 people per day seeking tests. Related: AL.coms coverage of the coronavirus Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle made the comparison with other regions around the state. As of Monday afternoon, the Madison, Morgan and Limestone counties region the economic hub of north Alabama -- had a total of 288 positive tests. Elsewhere: Birmingham area (Jefferson and Shelby counties): 956 Mobile area (Mobile and Baldwin counties): 789 Auburn area (Tallapoosa, Chambers and Lee counties): 758 "The community has done a good job," Battle said. "The community is taking this very seriously. We have separated, we have sanitized. And we've made sure that we are ready." Ready, that is, for the state to begin reopening, which Battle said hes anticipating for the first week of May. More reason for the optimism in north Alabama: The three hospitals in Madison County have a total of 7 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, Spillers said. And of those 7, only 1 is on a ventilator. For perspective, Spillers said, there are 55 other patients at Huntsville Hospital who are on ventilators for non-coronavirus issues. Across the Huntsville Hospital System, Spillers said there are 14 patients hospitalized with COVID-19. And even as Spillers said he is "concerned" about the surging cases in Marshall County neighboring Madison County to the southeast there are only 6 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 out of 164 positive tests. The two hospitals in Marshall County are part of the Huntsville Hospital System. So if those hospitals begin to see a strain on resources from treating COVID-19 patients, he said, those patients can be transferred to Huntsville which has gone through a weeks-long buildup for a feared surge of hospitalized patients that, as yet, has not happened. "I do believe testing is the primary reason that our community has fared better than the other population centers in the state," Spillers said. "Early testing and a lot of testing allowed us to isolate people early in the process to keep it from spreading. The fact that we'll have additional testing in the community as the economy opens back up is very positive. We will need to do even more testing in the future as we open businesses back up to ensure we dont end up in a situation like some of our other communities around the state. More widespread available testing is also a key element of the national reopening plan released last week by the White House. Both Spillers and Battle, however, acknowledge that today's optimism may be replaced with tomorrow's gloom if there's a sudden spike in positive tests and more critically a surge in patients who need hospitalization. In fact, both said that they expect COVID-19 cases to surge again when the state does reopen as people will likely become lax about taking measures to prevent spread of the disease. "I think it's inevitable," Spillers said. For now, though, the snapshot in north Alabama is upbeat. Spillers mentioned that Huntsville Emergency Management Service Inc., which services Madison County, described their weekend as normal in a Monday meeting. Thats the first time Ive heard in a while that theyve had a normal day and a normal weekend, he said. Ana Diaz, a nurse at Northwell Syosset Hospital, plays tennis with her husband Melanio on a makeshift court they created on the driveway of their home in Merrick, New York, on April 19, 2020. (Al Bello/Getty Images) Lockdown Theater Brings Hoopla and Amateur Epidemiologists Commentary I know that a lot of people are eagerly awaiting the roll-out of the new Netflix compilation of all the White House pressers from the Coronavirus Task Force. Im told that, thanks to the sponsorship of Hermes scarves, all 876 hours will go on-line at once, so those of us under virtual house arrest can binge watch it for the next month or so. Those with a premium account can opt for an edition that omits any questions from Jim Acosta. Speaking for myself, I hope it comes soon, for it looks as though we may soon be allowed out of our houses again. Ill like that, though I expect that there will be a period of adjustment. When you are in a dark room for a while and then go out into brilliant sunlight, the light is dazzling. Thats one reason coming out of a movie theater on a sunny summer afternoon is so disorienting. You get acclimated to the tenebrous environment. I suspect something similar and even more disorienting when the Lockdown ends. I wonder when the critical reassessments will start. That will probably depend on the state of the economy, though I would like to find a more emollient word for the pulsing elan vital that sustains us. Economy sounds abstract and somehow in opposition to human things, whereas in fact it is part of what makes human things possible. An acquaintance of mine made what I think is an astute observation when he wrote that Politicians and bureaucracies tend to respond to crises with theater. After 9/11 it was airport security theater. Following Corona it was lockdown theater. Theres some utility to it, but only some, there is much more hoopla. I agree, except for the theres some utility to it bit. In my view, the TSA is 100 percent airport security theater. If we really wanted to be secure airline travel, wed allow passengers to carry concealed weapons. A baddie pops up with a box cutter, pow, Mr. Smith in 11D puts his Beretta M9 to good use. No more baddie and the nice lady next to him gets to keep the box cutter as a souvenir. How about lockdown theater? What good has it done? The main current of opinion favors the process if not necessarily the theater. In a particularly nauseating piece, even for The New York Times, our former paper of record notes today that the situation on the ground seems to be improving, but asserts that The gains to date were achieved only by shutting down the country. Playing Epidemiologist I know that many people think that is the case, but there are some dissenting voices. The biostatistician Knut Wittkowski is one, and I recommend this interview (https://archive.is/0jB0M) as a primer on his thoughts about the subject. Wittkowski has been the object of much abuse by those acting in, or producing, the Lockdown Theater, but it is worth noting that more and more bits of data are emerging to support his main contentions: 1. that the medical problems caused by the CCP virus, often known as the novel coronavirus, are respiratory illnesses; 2. that like all respiratory epidemics, this one follows a predicable course; 3. that one should respond by protecting the elderly and fragile; but 4. that massive self-isolation impedes the development of herd immunity and makes a second wave more likely. Maybe he is all wet, maybe not. Since part of Lockdown Theater is that everyone has to play being an expert epidemiologist and talk knowingly about William Farr, R0, patient zero, and the like. Its a bit like playing Ben Casey, if you remember him, or Dr. House if youre a young un. You just bone up on a bit of the jargon, then mobilize it to heap contempt on anyone with whom you disagree politically. The best part is that not only do you get to sound like you know something about epidemiology, but also you get to imply that the object of your contempt is both wrong and a bad person for disagreeing with you. Iranian Innovations Meanwhile Iran is on the case. Everyone knows that drinking camel urine is an effective treatment for respiratory illnesses caused by the CCP virus. But a pro-regime expert called Mehdi Sabili has the important advice that it should be warm. I am happy to be able to share this important advice with my readers. Speaking as an American, though, it is a little embarrassing to be shown up so vividly by Iranian technology. I dont mean their breakthrough treatment involving camels. That is important. But what I have in mind is their diagnostic technology, which puts the West to shame. Everyone here is nattering on about the need for widespread testing. In my view, what matters most is widespread testing for people with antibodies to the virus, because that will tell us how lethal the illnesses caused by the virus really are. Still, if you want to know who is currently infected by the disease, the Iranians have that problem solved. Just a few days ago on Iranian television, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) demonstrated a device that can detect a person infected with the coronavirus from 100 meters away. Not only that, it can detect an infected surface or individual in five seconds. Unfortunately, a spokesman for the IRGC said that the technology would not be shared with Americans until all sanctions are removed. Worse luck. There are some cynics who say that the device resembles the fraudulent bomb detecting wands disseminated by a British businessman. I have it on good a authorityits a unnamed source close to the situationthat the new device are not repackaged pseudo-bomb detectors. No, they are really repurposed Orgone Boxes purchased surreptitiously at an estate sale from a descendent of their inventor, Wilhelm Reich. Roger Kimball is the editor and publisher of the The New Criterion and publisher of Encounter Books. His most recent book is The Fortunes of Permanence: Culture and Anarchy in an Age of Amnesia. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. DANBURY Western Connecticut State University plans to lend a hand to students struggling financially during the coronavirus pandemic. A fund is available for students who have lost jobs, cannot afford food or tuition, or may need other financial help. With some well-timed assistance, our students will not have to choose between lifes necessities or continuing their education, the university said in an appeal to alumni, faculty and staff asking for donations for the fund. So far, more than 60 students have received aid, with the average grant at $425, said Jay Murray, associate vice president for enrollment services. At least 127 students have applied, he said. Donations to the Colonials Care Student Assistance Fund may be made online. The university has had a good response so far, but the total number of donations was not yet available, WCSU spokesman Paul Steinmetz said. This is separate from the $2.1 million the university is expected to receive for emergency financial aid for students, which is part of nearly $4.3 million allocated for WCSU from the federal coronavirus relief bill, said Leigh Appleby, spokesman for the Board of Regents. The money will be distributed to students to help pay for housing, food and other basic essentials, U.S Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Conn., said. As a legislator and an educator, I am uniquely aware of the importance of stable housing and food for our students in colleges and universities, she said when she announced the grants last week. This funding will assist students who have been financially impacted during this pandemic. The four Connecticut state universities are working together to determine a consistent, expeditious and equitable way to distribute the funding to students, Appleby said. Meanwhile, the Colonials Care fund includes $50,000 from the Student Government Association, which donated a chunk of the money it would have used for now-canceled events in the spring. This money came from student fees, said Paul Horkan, the president of the SGA. It literally comes from the pocket of students, so it made sense to put it back into their pockets, he said in a statement. The fund was created in 2018 to help students with emergency expenses so they could stay in school, but the university said this money may be needed now more than ever. During this difficult time, WCSU students are facing new and unexpected challenges and financial hardship, the appeal letter states. Many of them come from low-to-moderate income households or have other circumstances such that the impact COVID-19 has had on them and their families is unprecedented. Between unforeseen expenses and the loss of income because of this crisis, we know that many WCSU students will need additional support in order to continue their studies. The online application for the fund asks students to explain why they need the assistance and whether their request is for books, transportation, tuition assistance or other. Requests may not exceed $500. Money may be used cover a tuition balance or other emergency expenses related to students educational needs, such as books, food, rent, or technology costs, Steinmetz said. The university and its students have been been part of the effort to combat the spread of the coronavirus. About 220 beds are set up at the ONeill Center in case patients recovering from COVID-19 need to be sent there, while two residence halls are ready to be used if the state needs them. At least 10 nursing students are volunteering at Danbury Hospital during the outbreak, Steinmetz said. These students responded to calls for help from the governor and Nuvance Health, while additional students are working in their regular jobs at Danbury, Norwalk, Waterbury and Yale hospitals, he said. The nursing, health services and other university departments donated personal protective equipment 550 surgical masks, 400 gloves and 174 isolation gowns to Danbury Hospital. University departments also programmed a 3D printer to manufacture a component used in the assembly of protective face shields for medical personnel. That printer was delivered to St. Marys Hospital in Waterbury, which originally requested it, while another is available for additional hospitals. The effort is part of a statewide project that hopes to build 20,000 face shields in the next several weeks. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said there should not be any ban on liquor shops in the state if social distancing measures, in place to curb the COVID-19 spread, are strictly followed. Liquor shops are closed in the state since late month when the coronavirus-enforced lockdown was implemented. "If social distancing is properly maintained, there should not be any ban on liquor shops," he said. Tope was replying to a question on the state government not clarifying, in its April 17 notification, whether liquor shops will be allowed to remain open after it permitted resumption of industrial and business activities in non-coronavirus hotspots. The health minister did not provide further details, but his response gave impression about possibility of allowing liquor shops to function with social distancing measures in place. However, senior officials in the excise department categorically nixed any such possibility. Liquor shops are closed as per the orders issued under the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 and the Disaster Management Act, 2005, because they do not fall in the category of essential commodities, a senior excise official told PTI. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville, Calif., two healthcare workers became infected with the coronavirus in February after using a nebulizer and other devices to treat an infected patient. Read more In mid-February, when the coronavirus was well on its way in the United States but almost no one was on the lookout, two employees at a northern California hospital struggled to help a woman who was feverish and gasping for breath. They gave her a nebulizer. They put her on a type of breathing machine sometimes used for sleep apnea. After several days, one of the health-care providers stuck a tube down the womans throat and hooked her up to a ventilator. Eleven days later, she tested positive for the virus. Sure enough, the two hospital workers did, too. But how to explain 15 other nurses and therapists each involved in procedures that would have filled the air with the patients infectious particles who did not? Four months into this worldwide affliction, these kinds of puzzles continue to defy easy answers. As a rule, the greater a persons exposure to a virus, the higher the chance of infection and the worse the symptoms up to a point. With this virus, witness the more than 9,000 U.S. nurses, paramedics, doctors, and other health professionals who had tested positive as of April 9, including at least 700 who had to be hospitalized. But mounting evidence suggests the dose of the coronavirus is just a small part of the story, researchers say. In many of the patients with severe symptoms, the immune system has somehow gone haywire, overwhelming the lungs with inflammation so that the bodys response is worse than the virus itself. That older people would be more likely to get very sick is no surprise, as their immune systems tend to be weaker. People with preexisting heart or lung disease, sure. But some combination of other factors seems to be at work, determining why many suffer mild symptoms or none at all. READ MORE: How much diabetes, smoking, and other risk factors worsen your coronavirus odds Patients genes almost certainly play a role. Perhaps so does their microbiome, or what infections they have encountered in the past, said Arturo Casadevall, chairman of microbiology and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Everybody wants a simple answer, he said. When it comes to infectious disease, the most important message you can convey is that many variables combine to produce unpredictable outcomes. Here is a crash course on where scientists are looking for clues: The front lines A key defense against the coronavirus, and any respiratory virus, is not the immune system at all, but mucus. Countless infectious particles are trapped in this gunk; we swallow more than a quart every day. Once the mucus reaches the stomach, the viruses within are safely dissolved in acid. But the more viruses a person inhales, the greater chance some will bypass this barrier, latch onto cells in the airways, and get inside to start multiplying the definition of an infection. Its like playing the lottery, said Matthias Schnell, a professor of microbiology at Thomas Jefferson University. With the coronavirus, the number of particles, the way they are transmitted, and the type of human cell they encounter all are likely to be key. Smaller aerosol particles the kind produced more often by ventilators travel deeper into the airways, potentially leading to more severe illness, said Richard Webby, a flu specialist at St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital in Memphis. A description of the episode at VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville, Calif., contained in a study by local and federal health officials, does not include how sick the workers became after operating ventilators and other aerosol-generating devices only that two tested positive and 15 did not. Scientists test different exposures to other viruses, such as those that cause common colds and the flu, by placing microbe-laden droplets in the noses of human volunteers. The coronavirus is too dangerous for that, but researchers have started doing such experiments in ferrets. The animals do not seem to get as sick as humans, yet their response is similar enough that they could be used as a model for how humans might respond to drugs. Learning to fight Once a virus gets inside a target cell, the immune system kicks into gear. The cell releases chemical warning signals to its neighbors. It tries to self-destruct before the virus can make copies of itself. Should any of these copies escape, specialized killer cells stand by to engulf them. These early innate responses to infection ramp up almost immediately. A second, adaptive response generally takes a few days. It is set in motion by white blood cells that carry pieces of viruses to the lymph nodes, where other immune-system cells learn various customized strategies to fight back. A diagram of all this looks like a plateful of intertwined spaghetti noodles, illustrating one reason that developing drugs against viruses can be difficult. Treat someone with a drug that affects one strand, and you may produce an unintended consequence in another, giving the virus a boost. READ MORE: Why the coronavirus and most other viruses have no cure Another good analogy is a symphony, with all sorts of molecules and cells entering and leaving the fray at various times, said Glenn Rall, a Fox Chase Cancer Center professor who studies viruses that infect the brain. Usually the players get the job done, despite the fact that there is no overall conductor. But in some people infected with the coronavirus, the music spins out of control, and no one is sure why. Among the possible culprits: Chemicals called cytokines, normally essential to the bodys immune response, can provoke an inflammatory storm. University of Pennsylvania researcher Carl June has proposed treating that problem with an immune-suppressing drug called cyclosporine. A gauzy "web formed by overactive white blood cells called neutrophils may cause lung damage. That topic is being studied by 11 research institutions including Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Deficiency in an enzyme called G6PD interferes with the ability of red blood cells to clean up toxic by-products of metabolism. This condition ordinarily causes no symptoms, but it affects millions worldwide, especially those of Mediterranean descent. Among those infected with the coronavirus, the added stress from this deficiency could make them sicker, said Dan J. Vick, a pathologist at Central Michigan University. Could that explain the high death rate in Italy? Bahaa Elzein, 30, who is starting a residency at Detroit Medical Center this year, is intrigued. Young and otherwise healthy, he is of Lebanese descent and has the enzyme deficiency. He became infected with the coronavirus in March, though he is not sure how, and it left him bedridden more than a week. It hit me," he said, like a bus. ASK US: Do you have a question about the coronavirus and how it affects your health, work and life? Ask our reporters. Still others have investigated patients blood type. A Columbia University study suggests those with type A-positive may be at greater risk of infection, but there is no plausible explanation for why that might be, coauthor Nicholas Tatonetti said. Men seem more likely to be hit hard, suggesting that hormones may play a role. More answers may come soon. On April 14, the leaders of the UK Biobank one of the worlds largest databases of human genetic and health records, with more than 500,000 people enrolled announced that data on those infected with the coronavirus would be available to other researchers. For those who recover, another unanswered question is how long they are immune. Infection with a specific strain of virus generally makes the person immune to future infections with that strain for a year or more. This immunity also may offer some protection against similar strains, as seems to happen with the flu. But for some viruses, the opposite is true, said Casadevall, the Hopkins researcher. A prime example is dengue, a viral disease that causes such severe joint pain that it is nicknamed breakbone fever. People infected with one type of dengue become resistant to that type. But if they are then infected with another type, they can become even sicker, Casadevall said. Antibodies that were developed to fight the one type somehow enable the second type to wreak havoc. You are the product of every immunologic experience you have had since you were a baby, he said. Who can tell the answers to such questions for the coronavirus? As the pandemic rages on, the hunt has only just begun. Health care is one of the most crucial and basic needs of every human being. Companies such as GA Insurance Kenya are at the forefront of ensuring that clients have access to quality medical care through their insurance packages. GA Insurance has earned its place in the Kenyan medical insurance market, having existed for over 6 decades. Image: facebook.com, @gainsurance Source: UGC GA Insurance products are diverse and range from accident medical covers to general medical service products. It has since restructured to position itself better for business in the region. It operates in several East African countries including Kenya and Tanzania. GA was incorporated as a Kenyan Insurance Company in 1979 and has been serving its clients diligently ever since. GA Insurance Kenya has a lot more to offer its clients. GA Insurance Kenya - what to expect The company has been able to achieve a lot over the period of its existence because of excellent leadership over the decades. This can be attributed to well-abled GA Insurance management. The company has a dedicated team of leaders including their Health general manager, Atia Yahya. Products offered GA Insurance products are diverse and encompass, both health and none-health insurance products. These are: Motor Insurance Private Car Commercial Vehicle Two-wheelers Fire and Allied Peril Insurance Industry All Risk Policy Fire and Allied Perils Policy Fire Consequential Loss Policy Health/ Accident/Travel Group Health Insurance Individual Personal Accident Group Personal Accident Overseas Travel Insurance Engineering Contractors All Risk Insurance Electronic Equipment Insurance Erection All Risk Policy Machinery Breakdown Liability Insurance Workmens Compensation/ Employers Liability Public Liability Insurance Products Liability Insurance Comprehensive General Liability Directors & Officers Liability Professional Indemnity Policy Marine Marine Cargo Marine Hull & Liability Insurance Aviation Aviation Hull Insurance Aviation Personal Accident (Crew ) Aviation Hull War & Allied Perils Policy Aviation Liability Miscellaneous products Office Shield Domestic Package Goods In Transit Money Insurance Fidelity Guarantee Advanced Bond Performance Bond Burglary All Risk Insurance Sporting Equipment and Gear Policy Bankers Blanket Bond Event Cancellation Insurance GA health insurance Image: facebook.com, @gainsurance Source: UGC Even though the company has a lot of insurance packages to offer its clients, health is one of the most crucial. Like all other service providers in the sector, this cover comes with certain terms and conditions. The cover offers both inpatient and outpatient services. GA health insurance is categorized into 4, as shown below. 1. Trauma care insurance This is an emergency or evacuation insurance package aimed at offering emergency care services to patients with traumatic injuries. The TraumaCare Plan covers the following: 1 air evacuation and 2 road evacuations within Kenya Hospitalization costs of up to KES. 100,000 p.a Last expense of KES. 50,000 p.a An affordable premium of KES. 1,550 p.a The benefits of the plan include: No Waiting Period No Age Limit Simple mode of Identification-National ID A dedicated toll-free 24-hr helpline Access to a countrywide network of hospitals Affordable premium However, with great benefits come several major exclusions that include: Extreme sporting activities Illegal activities and substance abuse Transfer of patients within hospitals of the same capabilities Transfers of members with simple injuries and mild sickness treatable by local facilities Towing services 2. SME's Economy plan This package comes with several limitations that customers need to be aware of. It is necessary to understand the omissions and inclusions allowed even as you pay for the premium. The package has the following: Inpatient services Outpatient services Dental and optical care Maternity The trick is to know the limits and premiums one should pay per limit. This will help you make an informed decision. In addition to that, understand the annual limitations and restrictions which include: Last joining age is 55 years General health check-ups are excluded Exclusion of war and kindred risks (whether war be declared or not) Exclusion of cosmetic surgery, unless necessitated by an accident Family planning/infertility is exempted Treatment other than by registered medical practitioner is not allowed Intentional self-injury, drunkenness, drug addiction is not allowed Naval, military or air force operation is excluded Expenses recoverable under any other insurance, e.g., GPA, NHIF, WIBA is not allowed Beauty treatment in nature cure clinics or health hydros is not allowed Contamination by radioactivity from nuclear fuel, waste or fission is not covered Age-related hearing aids and senility are excluded 3. SME Premier plan This resembles the plan before it only that the outpatient and inpatient rates differ. There is also a slight difference when it comes to the annual cover limits. The main exclusions are similar to those mentioned above. It also covers inpatient, outpatient, dental, and optical care, as well as maternity. 4. Surgicare Just as the name suggests, Surgicare plan is an insurance product that shoulders the financial burden of surgical expenses related to heart, cancer, vascular, orthopaedic, among others. It is a special package for GA Insurance clients. The surgeries covered include: Open heart surgery; including congenital and paediatric Thoracic surgery Surgical oncology - Cancer operations Neurosurgery Vascular surgery Orthopaedic/Joint Replacement GA Insurance portal If you are interested in any of the services offered by the company, all you need to do is to register and become a member. Then you can always visit the company's website and key in your email address and password. This will give you access to all your details. Alternatively, you can use the medical portal by logging in using your email and password. You will also need to fill in the GA Insurance claim form every time you need to make a claim. GA Insurance list of hospitals Image: facebook.com, @gainsurance Source: UGC GA Insurance works with several service providers ranging from garages, hospitals, and even assessors depending on the need. While they are said to work with several hospitals, one of the most popular listed consultant surgeon is Dr. W. M. Wokabi (Consultant Surgeon) who is located in Nairobi. You need to reach out to the company to know which hospitals they work or collaborate in your area. Contacts and branches You can reach out to the company's branches through the following addresses: 1. Nairobi: GA Insurance Ltd. 4th Fl. GA Insurance House, Ralph Bunche Road, P.O.Box 42166 00100, Nairobi Tel: 0709 626 000 2. Medical contact centre line ( 24 hours ): Tel: 0709 626 400 3. Westlands Branch Office, 2nd Flr, The Westwood, P.O.Box 42166 00100, Nairobi Tel: 0709 626 000 4. GA Insurance Mombasa branch Upper Mezzanine Floor, Biashara Building, Nyerere Avenue, P.O.Box 84081 - 80100, Mombasa Tel: 0709 626 000 5. Kisumu Branch Office Ground Floor, Bon Accord House, Temple Road, P.O.Box 7706 40100, Kisumu Tel: 0709 626 000 GA Insurance Kenya is one of the most reliable medical insurance service providers in the country. You can reach out for more details using the details given above. Source: TUKO.co.ke South Africa is preparing 1,644 emergency field hospitals and quarantine sites to combat the increasing number of COVID-19 infections in the country. In Johannesburg, the commercial city of the country, 2,000 beds for quarantine patients are being set up at the Nasrec centre. Each April, Nascrec has been the venue for over a century of South Africa's largest annual consumer trade fair, the Rand Show, which was cancelled this year due to the national lockdown to contain the spread of the deadly virus. Nasrec is just one of the public venues which will be converted into field hospitals. Some will be built from scratch. In some provinces, marquees will be erected as temporary measures. The government initiative is aimed at addressing the dire shortage of health facilities in the country to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. It will supplement the current total capacity at both state and private healthcare facilities of just over 3,300 intensive care beds and around the same number of ventilators. Current projections are that between 4,100 and 14,700 beds may be required depending on how current initiatives for deploying massive home testing, self-isolation and quarantine pan out. Latest figures show that there are 3,158 confirmed infections, 903 recoveries and 54 deaths resulting from the pandemic. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A farmer has hit out at careless walkers having picnics and sunbathing in her fields during lockdown amid fears her vulnerable family could contract coronavirus. Amanda Woolley, who runs Plumbley Lane Farm in Mosborough, Sheffield, says people are ignoring signs telling walkers not to dawdle on their land. The Woolleys, who have owned the farm for decades, spotted sunbathers and picnic lovers enjoying the recent sunny weather, much to their anger and frustration. The 47-year-old lives on the farm with her daughter Livy, diabetic husband John and his elderly parents, and said people are treating the farm like 'a national park'. Amanda Woolley fears for her diabetic husband and elderly parents-in-law as people flout coronavirus lockdown guidance and sunbathe on her farm in Sheffield She said: 'We get a lot of people that are out for their daily walks but some of the people coming here are not from this area. 'They're walking around with maps asking us where to go because they've got no sense of direction and we've got people that are in our field having picnics. 'It's almost like we're being treated as a national park.' The family installed signs urging people to 'pass through the farm quickly, not touch gates, walls or stiles and to not touch any animals'. Their rules are being flouted and Mrs Woolley contacted South Yorkshire Police to try and put a stop to the trespassers. The family installed signs urging people to 'pass through the farm quickly, not touch gates, walls or stiles and to not touch any animals' 'It happens every single day and it's a nightmare,' she said. 'People shouldn't be going out and these people are not taking any notice whatsoever. 'We all want to get through this and we are all in the same boat. We've always had walkers and it is a lovely walk. 'Living here you get to know who the regular walkers are but these are people that are just turning up and they're going out for hours on end with backpacks on. 'It goes against everything that has been said and it's wrong.' Mrs Woolley is particularly concerned for her husband who is diabetic and his parents who are elderly and therefore more vulnerable to coronavirus. 'You have got to listen to what the Government is saying and the advice that has been given,' Mrs Woolley said. 'They are telling us to go out for a brisk walk and then go back inside and when you do don't be touching our gates and stiles - just do what you've got to do. 'It's a free for all at the moment and when this lockdown is done these people will probably go back inside because they're not normally out. 'They need to listen to the guidelines and think about other people because we all want to get through this.' The number of coronavirus deaths reduced to 596 yesterday, the lowest the country has seen since April 6. However, the number of infections continues to rise The College of Policing released updated guidance on how officers should enforce the lockdown last week. Officers explained what are considered 'reasonable' excuses to leave home, such as buying several days' worth of food including luxury items. The list issued by the National Police Chief's Council and College of Policing also says people should be allowed to collect surplus basic food items from a friend. It also permits providing support to vulnerable people or moving to a friend's address for several days to allow a 'cooling-off' following arguments at home. Other permitted acts include buying a small amount of a staple item or necessity, and purchasing tools to repair a fence panel damaged in recent bad weather. The College of Policing released updated guidance on how officers should enforce the lockdown last week They can also stop to rest or to eat lunch while on a long walk, or drive to the countryside and walking - where far more time is spent walking than driving. Employees are allowed to travel to work whether or not they are key or essential staff, as long as it is not reasonably possible to work from home. However, police say it is not reasonable for people to go out to buy paint and brushes, simply to redecorate a kitchen. Driving for a prolonged period with only brief exercise is also banned, as is a short walk to a park bench, when the person remains seated for a much longer period. In addition, police say a person should not work in a local park if they can work from home, and no one should be knocking on doors offering cash-in-hand work. They also say that visiting a vet's surgery in person to renew a prescription where this could be done over the phone is also banned. Artist Marty Lyons putting the finishing touches to a mural paying tribute to the NHS and key workers on the Falls Road in west Belfast, Northern Ireland. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye. Health Minister Robin Swann has announced that 13 more people have died in hospital from Covid-19 in Northern Ireland. He made the announcement during the Executive's daily press briefing on Monday. It brings the death toll in Northern Ireland to 207. A total of 2,728 people have tested positive for the virus in the region, with a total of 15,677 patients tested. This represents 83 new cases. Three more care homes have had positive cases, bringing the total number of homes affected to 56. Mr Swann said that, under the latest worst case scenario modelling, around 1,500 people will die within the first 20 weeks of the coronavirus outbreak, down from the previous modelling of 3,000 deaths. This includes deaths in hospital, care homes and in the community. The Health Minister said that this is a significant revision down and that this is because social distancing is working. Mr Swann initially feared up to 15,000 could die in Northern Ireland if the outbreak was allowed to spread without any social distancing. Mr Swann also said that he could not guarantee that health staff would not be asked to reuse Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) at some point if there is a shortage. It comes after an expert in viral epidemics has warned that Northern Ireland may have to remain in lockdown until July. Dr Michael Donnelly also said that removing social isolation measures slowly and carefully could potentially stop a second surge of the deadly virus. Read More Follow how all Monday's main developments unfolded: With the opening of five more standalone COVID-19 hospitals in Odisha, the total bed capacity in such medical facilities in the state on Monday reached 5,000, officials said. These five hospitals were opened for COVID-19 patients in the districts of Sundargarh, Bargarh, Angul, Jagatsinghpur and Nabarangpur. Together, these hospitals have a bed strength of 825. Now, dedicated COVID-19 Hospitals are located in 26 of the 30 districts of Odisha. Speaking at the opening function of the hospitals, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said: "Its a war we have to win. Odisha has established COVID hospitals with 5000 beds in a record time within 30 days." Patnaik also appreciated the sacrifices made by doctors, health workers and their family members. He thanked the Central Public Sector Undertakings like NTPC, MCL, IOCL, PPT and Nalco for their support to set up these hospitals, a statement issued by the Chief Ministers Office said. Patnaik also interacted with doctors and health workers during the opening of these hospitals. Union Steel, Petroleum, Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Coal, Mining, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and Odisha Health Minister Naba Das joined the function of opening of the new hospital through video conference. Pradhan appreciated the efforts made by Odisha in the fight against COVID-19. He expressed confidence that Odisha will be highly successful in containing coronavirus. Joshi expressed hope that Odisha and India will certainly come out of the crisis soon. He informed that Nalco and MCL employees have contributed Rs 2.5 crore to the Odisha Chief Minister's Relief Fund. The dedicated COVID-19 Hospital have been set up across the state in order to provide specialized treatment to the suspected and confirmed COVID-19 cases. The 150-bed COVID hospital at Angul will be managed by SUM hospital Bhubaneswar and will be supported by MCL, the 200-bed COVID hospital at Bargarh will be managed by Vikash Multispecialty hospital and supported by IOCL. The 200-bed COVID hospital at Sundergarh will be managed by the district administration through DMF and with support of NTPC. The 75-bed COVID hospital at Paradeep will be managed by the district administration with support from Government of Odisha and Paradeep Port Trust. The 200-bed COVID health care centre at Nabarangpur will be managed by the district administration and Christian hospital with the support of Nalco. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Kristen V. Brown and Michelle Cortez, Bloomberg News Some people experience COVID-19, also known as the novel coronavirus, as nothing more than a mild cold, and others exhibit no symptoms at all. Then there are the thousands who sicken and, often, die. Scientists are working hard to understand the underlying reasons for such huge discrepancies in symptoms and outcomes. No one knows the answer yet. One theory: It is locked deep in our genetic makeup. We know that age and underlying health conditions, such as hypertension, play a large role in determining how people fare once theyve contracted COVID-19. But these alone dont explain the wide diversity of symptoms. Studying the genetics of the virus and people who are more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 could not only help identify and protect those more at risk but also help speed treatment and drug development. What is it that makes some people very sick and other people hardly sick at all? There are two major possibilities, says Kari Stefansson, head of deCODE Genetics, an Icelandic subsidiary of Amgen Inc. that has conducted some of the most extensive studies of the virus to date. One is the genetic sequence of the virus itself: that some strains make people sicker than others, he says. The other: the unique genetics of each person who catches the disease. Some peoples genes may simply make them more vulnerable to severe illness, while others genetics may confer resistance. It is generally accepted that our genes do play a role in how we respond to viral infections. On the extreme end, one mutation of the gene CCR5, for example, makes those who carry it resistant to human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV. Certain genetic variants, especially in genes that influence the immune system, seem to predispose people to a host of other infectious diseases. One 2017 study looked at 23 common infections including chickenpox, shingles and cold sores and found genes that seemed to be associated with many of them. Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter Stefansson and other scientists suspect human genetic variations may play a similar role in people who suffer from COVID-19. There are some early indications of this with the novel coronavirus. The receptor it uses to penetrate host cells, called ACE2, can be present in varying numbers in different people based on their genetics and on environmental factors, such as what medicines they take. In recent weeks, efforts have mobilized to study the genetic underpinnings of the human bodys response to the virus. The Host Genetics Initiative, for one, is a collaboration of hundreds of scientists at dozens of institutions conducting more than 100 studies that aim to examine the genetics of people infected by SARS-CoV-2. Its clear we dont understand why theres so much difference between individuals responding to COVID-19, said Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla, California. Beyond theory, theres very little data so far. The hope is that such evidence will be forthcoming soon. Pharmaceutical company Amgen is working on developing novel coronavirus treatments that use antibodies to attack the virus. deCODEs research will inform that work, providing genetic insights from patients who were previously infected. Consumer DNA-testing company 23andMe Inc. is also putting its vast trove of genetic data to use hunting for clues about how the virus works. The company will survey customers who contracted it and look for commonalities among those who experienced a severe response. There are some obvious regions of the genome to begin exploring, said Adam Auton, a principal scientist at 23andMe, but its early days. This is a numbers game, he said. It could be even 23andMe wont have enough data to understand the host genetics of COVID-19. Researchers have already begun to get some sense of who is most vulnerable. Some are honing in on the immune system and its response to infection as a potential trigger for severe disease. As the body mounts an intense effort to fight off the previously unknown pathogen, the immune system can kick into overdrive whats known as a cytokine storm causing collateral damage that may do more harm than the virus itself. If we can understand why some people experience cytokine storms, we can better treat them, said Akiko Iwasaki, a Yale University immunologist. We dont have a rational way of designing therapeutics. Were just giving the same drugs to people hoping they respond. If we can get down to a molecular level of understanding, we can be a lot more effective Children with less-developed immune systems could be less vulnerable. Evidence from deCODE suggests women also may experience severe symptoms less frequently. Those in harms way are older adults and people with conditions that are tied to inflammation. Many of these conditions also have a genetic component. Doctors at NYU Langone Health in New York analyzed more than 4,000 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in March, as the virus was shutting down the city. Those over age 65 or who were significantly overweight, carrying an extra 80 to 100 pounds, were more likely to be hospitalized. Patients with low oxygen levels and signs of inflammation on lab tests were most likely to be critically ill. The most surprising finding was the strong tie between obesity and critical illness, said lead researcher Christopher Petrilli, an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. Overweight patients who were under age 60 were twice as likely to be hospitalized as their thinner peers, while those who were obese were three times as likely to need intensive care, the study found. The results make sense because obesity is a pro-inflammatory state: People who carry extra weight have higher levels of immune response and inflammation, Petrilli said. Its absolutely related to genetics, he said. Genetics plays a critical part in the development of your immune system. Its a combination of that and things you have been exposed to in the past, plus other factors like obesity. Three of the most-powerful risk factors for severe disease all have a genetic component: high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. New York state, which is closely tracking people who died from COVID-19, found that almost 90% had other health conditions. The most common are high blood pressure, found in 56% of the 10,834 deaths through April 13, diabetes, high cholesterol and heart disease. Stefansson, at deCODE, said the viruss extreme variability is one of its strengths. Most people it affects in a mild way, so they can spread the infection, but there is a subset of the population that gets seriously ill. It is both highly contagious and highly lethal, he said. Its just a bad combination. Get the latest Oregon coronavirus updates from The Oregonian/OregonLive via free text alerts Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. In homes across the country, Americans are sanitizing and disinfecting like they never have before. Thats great, experts say, particularly when it comes to the very healthy hand-washing habit many have developed in recent months. The only problem: Some people are going too far. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, calls to poison control centers have spiked, and a huge number of those calls have to do with cleaning products and hand sanitizer. Advertisement A CDC analysis published Monday shows there were about 20 percent more calls to poison centers in January, February, and March than in the same span last yearwith a considerable spike at the beginning of March, when the U.S. began treating the threat of the virus as a national emergency. The pandemic is also reflected in the subjects of those calls: Those citing bleach specifically increased among calls about cleaning products (by 62 percent), while hand sanitizers and nonalcohol disinfectants each saw increases of about 37 percent. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Dr. Joshua King, the medical director at the Maryland Poison Center, said that his organization has experienced, in his estimate, 50 percent more calls related to hand sanitizer in recent months. The CDC itself said that the numbers it found likely underestimate the total incidence and severity of poisonings because they are limited to persons calling poison centers for assistance. King said that while he didnt have any numbers on other kinds of calls, he believes that its likely every state is experiencing an uptick in cases. Advertisement Advertisement There are a few obvious factors that would explain these numbers. Certainly, people are cleaning and sanitizing more than normal, and many may be experimenting with products and techniques, in part because they may not be able to buy their normal household cleaning supplies at the grocery store. Notably, many people are attempting to clean their actual groceries. The CDC analysis cited one case in which a woman soaked her produce in a mixture of vinegar, water, and 10 percent bleach solution to cleanse it, but subsequently developed respiratory problems and ended up being treated for hypoxia at an emergency room. King noted that there are other things at play besides our overactive cleaning habits. Children, for example, are more likely to ingest household substances of all sorts because they are home, often with working parents, and harder to supervise there than they would be in school or at a day care. Or maybe theyre with relatives not normally accustomed to child care. For example, Grandma is on heart medication and accidentally drops it, and the child gets into it, King said. Advertisement Advertisement It should be noted that hand sanitizer does not usually cause serious problems unless a child ingests a significant amount of it, which can cause dangerous intoxication and require medical attention. (People do sometimes intentionally ingest hand sanitizer as an alcohol substitute, although this phenomenon isnt new. Thats usually teenagers, King said.) But beyond a few extreme cases, hand sanitizer issues can generally be resolved by rinsing off an affected area with water. Advertisement Advertisement More intense cleaning solutions, particularly bleach, tend to have worse effects. Some people called into poison control after using an industrial bleach meant to be diluted or after using bleach in poorly ventilated spaces. Others ran into problems by mixing bleach with ammonia, acids, or other cleaners, resulting in toxic gases. Advertisement Advertisement The pandemic doesnt just make poisoning more likely; it also makes treating poisoning cases more difficult, King said. His center has noticed that some people it tells to go to the emergency room will instead stay home, out of fear of exposure at the hospital. And its creating other problems: The biggest concern that poison centers have is that people might take medications without prescription to self-treat coronavirus, King said. A case in Arizona made news when a couple consumed chloroquine phosphate, a fish tank cleaning chemical, after seeing that it contained the active ingredient in a malaria medication President Donald Trump trumpeted as an effective treatment for the virus. The husband died and the wife was sent to the ICU. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement So how do you make sure to eliminate any possible viral pathogens without accidentally poisoning yourself? King said theres no need to take extreme measures or mess with industrial cleaners at all. Stick to the normal stuff youre used to, and stick to soap and water if youve run out of household cleanersitll work just as well. As for food, the CDC has said youre not very likely to come in contact with the virus from packaging on your food, so theres no real need to disinfect your groceries. (The real risk when shopping is from respiratory droplets from other shoppers.) But if it would bring you peace of mind, using soap and water is the best bet, according to King, as long as youre careful to rinse all the soap off (soap residue can make you sick). If youre still anxious, leave your nonperishable products somewhere you wont touch them, as the virus will lose most of its infectiousness in 24 hours and virtually all of it in 72. If youre worried about vegetables, King said, cooking them would do the trick. After unpacking the groceries, wipe down your counterswith a normal, safe household disinfectantand then wash your hands. If you do think you may have used hand sanitizer or a cleaner in a way that it shouldnt be used, or if youre experiencing any kind of irritation or difficulty breathing after using a cleaning product, call the poison control center. That way, a professional can tell you whether you need to seek out immediate helpor leave the emergency room and the resources needed to staff it for COVID-19 patients. By Helen Coster (Reuters) - Wynn Resorts Chief Executive Officer Matt Maddox on Sunday called on the Nevada governor to begin to reopen the Las Vegas Strip in mid- to late May with extensive safety measures in place, assuming the state is in line with certain benchmarks around the spread of the coronavirus. In an opinion column https://thenevadaindependent.com/article/a-plan-to-re-open-nevada published on the Nevada Independent news website, Maddox said Governor Steve Sisolak should reopen parts of the local economy in early May. Begin with reduced occupancy, physical distancing measures in place, temperature checks and no large gatherings, Maddox wrote. We all need to wear a mask. He also laid out Wynns health and safety guidelines for reopening, which include allowing a maximum of four people to ride in an elevator at one time; and requiring guests to enter the resort through doors that are either propped open, are automated or manually operated by an employee. Sisolak ordered all casinos and other nonessential businesses in the state to close for 30 days beginning March 18. He extended that order until April 30, and last week said he has no specific date for when nonessential businesses might be allowed to reopen. The United States has by far the world's largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 730,000 infections and over 39,600 deaths, according to a Reuters tally. In Nevada, there have been at least 3,725 people confirmed to have the coronavirus and 155 deaths. Wynn Resorts - which owns and operates the Wynn Las Vegas, the Encore Boston Harbor, the Wynn Macau and the Wynn Palace, Cotai - closed its U.S. properties on March 15 and 17. Wynns Macau casinos reopened on Feb. 20 after a mandatory, industry-wide two-week closure. It and other casinos resumed operations with government-mandated restrictions that include temperature checks, fewer open tables on the casino floor, and rules against guests standing or congregating. Story continues While the coronavirus epidemic in China has been momentarily halted, in the United States it is spreading from cities to suburbs and rural areas. U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been pushing to end state-mandated stay-at-home orders, last week laid out federal government guidelines for states to reopen their economies in a staggered, three-stage approach. Health experts have warned that to avoid a second wave of infections once people resume activity, extensive testing must be available to track infections, as well as contact tracing and antibody testing. Wynn is paying all salaried, part-time and hourly North American employees through May 15, which is costing the company approximately $3 million per day or $180 million for two months, according to Maddox. (Reporting by Helen Coster; editing by Grant McCool) Copyright 2020 Albuquerque Journal SANTA FE With thousands of people in New Mexico quarantined in their homes, suicide and crisis hotlines in the state say they expect an increase in calls in upcoming weeks as the impact of the coronavirus takes its toll on peoples mental health. We are preparing to ensure that we are able to take every single call, said Wendy Linebrink, program director for New Mexico Crisis and Access Line, which takes calls from across the state. Crisis hotlines, like so many other institutions, have had to change their operations to protect employees while they continue to provide services. NMCAL currently has all of its call takers working from home. NMCAL usually takes around 5,000 calls a month. While that number has not changed recently, Linebrink said the type of people using it is expected to. We might begin seeing more professionals calling us, because they are still working and being exposed, she said. People who are staying in their homes during the crisis are also calling in large numbers. They say its just been hard being inside, being alone, looking at the same setting, said Jared Miller, one of the call takers. Its kind of wearing on some individuals. Call volume is expected to increase as the crisis continues, Linebrink said, as environment stressors last from weeks to months. NMCAL has three shifts of 20 full-time call takers and more can be contacted if they see a surge in calls, she said. However, for crisis centers relying on volunteers, keeping a full staff has proven difficult. The Agora Crisis Center, operated by the University of New Mexico, relies almost entirely on a volunteer staff who cannot work from home. Molly McCoy Brack, Agoras executive director, said they have a maximum of three staff members taking calls at any time. Its probably often only one person on shift at a time, she said. She said Agora took 1,200 calls last month, although that does not represent the total number of callers since phone lines are often busy. Unanswered callers are directed to a nationwide crisis hotline and encouraged to leave a message. Many of those calls are also related to the virus, McCoy Brack said. People are struggling with suddenly being confined to their home, she said. Thats coming up more than usual. Agora and NMCAL also offer resources for those struggling with substance abuse, domestic violence and food insecurity. Miller said although the work can be difficult, being able to help people during a crisis continues to motivate call takers. I think thats been what helps us at work, he said. Where to get help National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 Agora Crisis Center: 505-277-3013New Mexico Crisis and Access Line: 1-855-NMCRISIS (662-7474) Soldiers unload Chinese medical supplies at Skopje International Airport in Skopje, North Macedonia, April 18, 2020. A plane loaded with Chinese medical supplies to help North Macedonia fight against COVID-19 arrived here on Saturday. (Chinese Embassy in North Macedonia/Handout via Xinhua) SKOPJE, April 19 (Xinhua) -- A batch of medical supplies provided by the Chinese government to help North Macedonia battle the coronavirus was handed over to the European country soon after its arrival at Skopje International Airport on Saturday. Chinese Ambassador to North Macedonia Zhang Zuo and Deputy Prime Minister of North Macedonia Bujar Osmani, who is under self-isolation, spoke at a handover ceremony via video link. Zhang said that China will bear in mind that North Macedonia's leaders and friends from all walks of life have expressed their solidarity with the Chinese government and people when China was at a critical moment in its fight against the coronavirus. As North Macedonia currently faces the challenge of the pandemic, China in return offered medical supplies in response to the urgent request of North Macedonia, he added. The ambassador noted that since the outbreak of the pandemic, China has maintained close communication and cooperation with North Macedonia, sharing experiences and providing assistance as possible as it can. He said that China is willing to explore flexible and diverse ways of fighting the coronavirus with North Macedonia and promote mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. For his part, Osmani expressed his gratitude to China for providing medical supplies at the most critical moment in North Macedonia's battle against the coronavirus, adding that the fight against the pandemic requires solidarity, cooperation and mutual assistance of all countries and ethnic groups. He said that North Macedonia hopes to borrow China's experiences in coronavirus fight and win the war at the earliest. There are a total of 1,207 confirmed coronavirus cases in North Macedonia, of which 179 are recoveries and 51, fatalities, according to the latest figures from the country's health ministry. Charlton worked for the South Loop-based Studio ARQ and was a member of the American Institute of Architects Chicago's Young Architects Forum, Kutnick told the court. The AIA described the forum as a network of up-and-coming architects and designers. An employee at ARQ who asked not to be identified late Sunday said Charlton worked as a project coordinator for more than a year with the firm but is no longer employed there. Microsofts latest contribution to the fight against COVID-19 is Plasma Bot, a screening tool meant to help recovered COVID-19 patients donate their plasma to treatment efforts. The bot asks a series of questions, and if it determines youre a potential donor, it will direct you to a licensed plasma collection center in your area. In a blog post, Microsoft explains that it believes plasma from recovered patients (also known as convalescent plasma) may help fight the disease in two ways: it could be given via transfusions to current patients, and it could be used to develop other therapies. Microsoft is partnering with the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance to study plasma-based therapies, and its Plasma Bot is available through the CoVIg-19 website. We are now convinced that the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance has a real chance to save lives, at significant scale, and possibly much sooner than other approaches currently being developed, Microsoft wrote. Eventually, Microsoft hopes to make the bot available through other web, social and search channels. It will first recruit donors in the US, where the company says donating should be easy. It claims that 50 percent of the eligible donor population in the US lives within 15 minutes of one of the 500 centers operated by CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance member companies. Microsoft plans to expand its recruitment efforts to Europe, but it hasnt said when that might happen. Since the pandemic began, bots have been helping users check their symptoms and find accurate information. If donated plasma becomes a reliable way to treat COVID-19, we might see more bots of this nature, too. Security forces apprehended two overground workers of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) Pakistan based terror outfit from the Shopian district of South Kashmir on Monday, officials said. A joint team of security forces led by police arrested the two overground workers ofJeM during vehicle checking at Wachi in Shopian, a police official said. Shopian police, along with 55RR and CRPF 178 Bn apprehended two terrorist associates of Jaish outfit. "The arrested persons were planning to attack forces deployment near Wachi Shopian," officials said. "Specific information was received today by police Shopian about the movement of two militant associates of JeM outfit who are planning to attack Security force deployment. A Naka was immediately established near the Wachi petrol pump," they said. READ | Gunfight In J&K's Shopian District; Two Unidentified Terrorists Killed Militants were provided with arms "While observing Naka, two suspects, identified as Uzair Ahmad Dar and Adoor Ahmad Kok, duo residents of Zainpora village tried to flee from the spot but security forces - 55RR and CRPF 178 overpowered both the suspects and were detained," officials said. They said that during frisking, a pistol eight rounds and two grenades were recovered from their possession. "During preliminary investigation, both the accused claimed themselves as militant associates of JeM outfit and they were provided arms and ammunition recently," officials informed. Meanwhile, a case under FIR never 27/2020 under section 18,20,23,38,39 ULAP ACT, 7/25 IAA has been registered at Police Station Zainapora and further investigation has been taken up. READ | Encounter In Shopian Underway With Search And Cordon Operation, One Terrorist Neutralised Pertinently, on Sunday late evening unidentified terrorist shot dead a policeman in Hiller in Anantnag district of south Kashmir. Identified as SGCt Manzoor Ahmad, posted at Larnoo Police Station was at his home in Hiller when militants attacked him. Wreath laying ceremony was on Monday held in District police lines Anantnag, where floral tributes were paid to the slain policemen. "We pay our rich tributes to the slain cop for his supreme sacrifice made in the line of duty. We stand by his family at the crucial juncture," JKP said. The killing of Manzoor Ahmed comes a day after three paramilitary CRPF personnel were killed and two injured in a terrorist attack in Sopore town of north Kashmir. READ | Three CRPF Jawans Martyred In J&K's Sopore As Terrorists Open Fire At Their Vehicle READ | Militancy Under Control In J&K; Cross-border Elements Desperate To Foment Trouble: L-G Murmu Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis has received permission from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct randomized trials of the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of COVID-19, Reuters reported. Earlier this month, the FDA authorized the use of this untested generic drug, developed several decades ago, for the treatment of coronavirus in emergency cases, but there is no scientific evidence of its effectiveness. There are currently no approved medications for the COVID-19 treatment. In the coming weeks, Novartis plans to recruit 440 patients for the third phase of clinical trials from over a dozen locations in the US. Their results will be announced as soon as possible, the company said. The use of a drug approved for the treatment of lupus and rheumatoid arthritis has increased dramatically after President Donald Trump supported it. Concerns are expressed that administration support for an untested medication for the treatment of COVID-19 has led the FDA to take a decision in this regard, bypassing the usual formalities. We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease, said John Tsai, Novartiss top drug developer. We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Companies such as Novartis, Roche and Gilead Sciences are testing existing drugs designed to treat other diseases for signs that they can be redesigned to fight the coronavirus epidemic. Gilead Sciences recently expanded trials of its remdesivir drug for treating Ebola. However, there are concerns that Trump and others' claims that hydroxychloroquine can dramatically change the situation with COVID-19 have pushed into the background information about the dangerous side effects of this drug, including loss of vision and heart problems. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan has also said the medicine is one of his biggest hopes against the viral epidemic. Hydroxychloroquine is the subject of several studies in the US, including the University of Washington and the University of Minnesota, as well as at the National Institutes of Health. A subsidiary of Novartis, Sandoz, which is engaged in the production of generics, has promised to donate 130 million doses of the drug. Sanofi pharmaceutical company also intends to donate 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to 50 countries. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tyne Villan (Inquirer.net/Asia News Network) Mon, April 20, 2020 16:15 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd30f6e6 2 Lifestyle designer,handbag,Arnold-Putra,fashion-designer,human-spine Free Whether its a Speedy Bandouliere or an Hermes Birkin, celebrities and influencers surely have one of these sitting casually inside their wardrobes. Some consider these luxury bags as worthy investments while others just simply associate them with being rich and famous. Needless to say, handbags (which purpose is to just carry our personal items) have evolved from being a fashion staple to signifiers of wealth, beauty, and power. But if you were as crazy rich as Heart Evangelista, would you consider purchasing a handbag made out of ahuman spine? Nope, were not pulling a prank on you. Reported by Insider, Indonesian fashion designer Arnold Putra is allegedly selling a handbag made from materials you would never expect in a usual pursealligator tongues and human spine. Based on the designers Instagram post (which first went viral in 2016), the bags handle was made entirely from a child who suffered from osteoporosis. Currently, it is being sold in other fashion sites for US$5,000. Read also: Indonesian fashion designers help sew, donate protective gear for medical workers After his post caused so much outrage among online users, he told Insider that the account doesnt belong to him, but he has certainly contributed to it. He then went on to say that the spine was medically sourced from Canada with papers. Although he refused to disclose more, he told the news outlet that the bones were from licensed companies that receive human specimens donated to medicine and occasionally sell them as surplus. Meanwhile, for the alligator tongues used to complete the outer layer of the handbag in question, Putra said that they were byproducts of the alligator meat and leather industry. In 2016, the National Geographic reported that there is currently a large legal trade in human bones in some parts of the US and Canada. And this story is proof that it may be possible to legally use these materials for fashion accessories. Topics : This article appeared on the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. MIAMI - Police said they dispersed crowds violating social distancing guidelines during David Guettas coronavirus relief concert in Miami. There were no arrests made when police broke up groups on the sidewalks far below the two-hour rooftop concert played by the DJ on Saturday, The Miami Herald reported. Florida has prohibited gatherings of more than 10 people during the pandemic. While some residents in downtown Miami were able to see the concert from their balconies, the relief benefit also drew in over 9 million views on Facebook and nearly 2 million views on YouTube. The concert raised $700,000, Guetta said in a Facebook post Sunday. The money will go towards four organizations, including Feeding South Florida and the World Health Organizations Solidarity Response Fund. Floridas coronavirus caseload reached 26,314 with 774 deaths as of Sunday evening, the states Health department said. Teachers have said being asked to predict their students' grades is "fundamentally unfair". Two local teachers were among those expressing concern after Stormont Education Minister Peter Weir announced that Covid-19 restrictions mean GCSE, AS and A-level tests will be replaced by a "calculated grade" that takes into account homework and mock exams. This applies to exams set by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA). Concerns were raised last week that teachers will now face a flood of appeals. Emma, who asked to be known only by her first name, teaches at a Belfast college and said the new system would put enormous pressure on staff. "I think it's going to be the toughest challenge teachers are going to face in their teaching career," she said. "I feel we're having to play God a little bit. "Teachers really care and we work so hard throughout the year. It's crushing for us but we have to think positively, we have to think fairly." A-levels teacher Simon Green said he was "disappointed" by the decision. "It seems to me fundamentally unfair to use data from mock exams and homework that students were told would not count towards their final grade," he said. Mr Green said the change could also disadvantage students who performed better in tests. "There is also the issue of very bright students who cram for exams and therefore whose ability is not necessarily reflected in the work they have previously submitted," he said. Justin McCamphill from NASUWT, Northern Ireland's largest teachers' union, said more assurances were needed. "There is a consensus from members on the ground that this is challenging, but probably the only thing that can be done in the circumstances," he told the Belfast Telegraph. "We think schools shouldn't rush into doing anything drastic. "They have until the end of May to complete this exercise, so they need to plan for it carefully. "They also need to manage the expectations of parents and pupils that individual decisions on grades and ranking will not be shared. "I would say that we understand teachers are nervous. This is a situation that is fraught with difficulties. "So again, I would say don't be rushing into this and wait until CCEA produce clarification on exactly what it is they expect teachers to do." UK Education Secretary Gavin Williamson also set out his criteria for allowing pupils back to school. In a direct address to school children across the UK, he said: "To any young people watching, I wanted to say to you how sorry I am that you've had your education disrupted in this way." He said there were five tests needed to allow schools to reopen. These include ensuring the NHS had capacity to cope with coronavirus and for daily death rates to come down. Also required is reliable data to show rates of infection is decreasing to manageable levels, and assurances that testing capacity and PPE levels were sufficient for present and future demand. Mr Williamson added: "Perhaps most crucially, we need to be confident that any changes we do make will not risk a second peak of infections. "When we can be sure that we have met these five essential points, we can think about getting children into schools again, learning, mastering new ideas and being with their friends once more." Elsewhere, the Irish Health Minister Simon Harris has said he would support opening schools for one day a week before the end of term in order to provide "breathing space" for parents and children. "I'd like to see a situation where you could expand somewhat the areas in which people can go beyond their home," he said. "I am conscious that cocooning may remain a reality for quite a period of time, but is there a safe way that they can get out every now and then and take a walk, but I am not going to be making these decisions." Rome, April 20 : Italian authorities have placed 34 migrants rescued from the Mediterranean Sea last week, in quarantine amid the deadly coronavirus outbreak in the European country. The rescue boat Aita Mari, run by Spanish NGO Salvamento Maritimo Humanitario, transferred the migrants to the Italian Rubattino ferry in Palermo, Sicily, on Sunday, reports Efe news. They will have to spend two weeks aboard the ferry along with another 147 people rescued from the sea on April 17 by the Alan Kurdi, a vessel operated by German NGO Sea Eye. Red Cross assistants will remain on board the quarantine ferry, which is stationed a mile off Palermo. The Italian government organized the transfer via the coastguard service but has blocked migrant disembarkation at the ports themselves as one of its measures against the spread of Covid-19. The ministry of infrastructure and transport said the transfer of the migrants to a quarantine boat was a "humanitarian" act. "The humanitarian act of transferring them to Italian ports is not possible at this time due to the strong pressure on the health system in this emergency phase due to COVID-19," it said in a statement. The Italian and Maltese governments have both ruled their ports unsafe for migrant arrivals during the pandemic. The Aita Mari had pulled out of the Italian port of Syracuse on its way to Spain on April 13 but was alerted to the presence of a dinghy with 44 people, whom it rescued with the help of Maltese authorities. Later, 10 migrants were evacuated for health reasons. The captain of the vessel, Marco MartAnez had requested help on April 18. He warned there were no medical staff on board the boat to assist the migrants. Following the rescue on April 13, it was denied port access in Lampedusa and so headed to Italy. The Centre has asked states and union territories to strictly comply with the lockdown measures announced to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic and not to dilute them at any level. In a communication to chief secretaries of state governments and Union Territory administrations, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said some states and UTs are issuing orders allowing activities which have not been allowed as per the guidelines issued by the home ministry under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. "I would again urge you to ensure compliance of the revised consolidated guidelines, and direct all authorities concerned for their strict implementation in letter and spirit without any dilution and to ensure strict compliance of lockdown measures," he said. The consolidated revised guidelines on the measures to be taken by central ministries and departments, and state and Union Territory governments were issued on April 15 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 3. The lockdown was earlier from March 25 to April 14. The home ministry has sought strict implementation of the guidelines in all parts of the country to contain the spread of COVID-19. The home secretary also drew the attention of the chief secretaries to the guidelines which categorically say that state and Union Territory governments will not dilute them in any manner and strictly enforce the same. They can, however, impose stricter measures than the guidelines as per the requirement of local areas. Bhalla also pointed out to a recent Supreme Court observation that all state governments, public authorities and citizens will faithfully comply with the directives and orders issued by the Union of India in letter and spirit in the interest of public safety. The observations, which must be treated as the directions of the apex court, was conveyed in "my letter dated April 1 to all states and UTs (union territories)", he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Oil prices have been seriously hit by a lack of demand, as the economy slows (Nick Ansell/PA) Traders scrambled to make sure they were not lumbered with unwanted barrels of US oil on Monday, sending prices down to their lowest point since the 1980s. The FTSE 100 closed the day up by 25.87, or 0.45% to 5812.83, but all eyes were firmly on the other side of the pond. With contracts for Mays US oil deliveries due to expire on Tuesday, investors struggled to find buyers for their barrels. The price of West Texas Intermediate plummeted 44% to 10.28 US dollars per barrel, levels not seen since 1986. Traders normally play a game of pass the parcel with oil contracts, which are promises to deliver a barrel of oil at a certain date. Whoever is left with the contract as the expiry date hits has to take delivery of the oil. Usually it is not a problem to find a buyer who wants the physical oil, however with storage sites rapidly filling up around the world and consumer demand plummeting, traders have had to slash their prices, or face being left with unwanted oil. After our action, @Metro_Bank has committed to pay more than 10.5m in refunds. This is after failing to inform customers they would be charged for entering unarranged overdrafts. Read more: https://t.co/CJtc0noCND pic.twitter.com/yUYF0fT2OM Competition & Markets Authority (@CMAgovUK) April 20, 2020 The WTI May contract is due to expire tomorrow, and it appears the selling pressure is ramping up as dealers scramble to get out of the contract, David Madden, an analyst at CMC Markets, said. While the US standards May contract collapsed, international standard Brent dropped by around 6% to 26.51 US dollars per barrel. Although European markets were sluggish, they seem to have largely shrugged off the impact of the oil troubles in the US. Oil majors, normally the first to suffer when oil prices plunge, were rather untouched. BP ended the day down 0.4%, while Shell closed 2% lower. Just after markets closed in the UK, a pound cost 1.2473 dollars, down 0.2%, and 1.1465 euros, a 0.3% reduction. Top European markets largely mirrored the performance in the UK, with the Dax in Germany gaining half a percent, and the Paris-based Cac 40 rising 0.65%. In company news, the shares in AB Foods remained broadly flat as its subsidiary Primark agreed to pay suppliers another 370 million to cover stock currently in production or yet to be delivered. The Competition and Markets Authority revealed that Metro Bank would repay customers more than 11 million in overdraft fees and interest, after it failed to properly warn account holders that they were going into their overdraft and would be charged. Shares shrugged off the news, rising 2%. There was more action in the share price of furniture retailer DFS, which rose by 11% as management revealed it is in the advanced stages of negotiations over a refinancing deal and it also reported a surge in online orders. It said it is in talks over an additional 60 million to 70 million debt facility as it looks to bolster its finances in the face of coronavirus. The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Unilever, up 188p to 4,303p, Rentokil, up 19.6p to 455p, Ashtead, up 71.5p to 1,838.5p, Reckitt Benckiser, up 252p to 6,500p, and Next, up 150p to 4,585p. The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Meggitt, down 15.8p to 259.9p, Barratt Developments, down 24.6p to 461.1p, Taylor Wimpey, down 6.4p to 129.95p, EasyJet, down 26.6p to 612.2p, and IAG, down 7.7p to 225.7p. Excellence recognized: Presidential Awards recognize three for leadership, teaching Monday, April 20, 2020 MANHATTAN Excellence and dedication are earning a Kansas State University department head, horticulture teacher and biochemistry graduate teaching assistant the university's 2020 Presidential awards. Michael Young, professor and head of the psychological sciences department, is the recipient of the Presidential Award for Outstanding Department Head. Chad Miller, associate professor of horticulture and natural resources, and Ashish Kumar, doctoral student in biochemistry, are recipients of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. Each award includes a $5,000 honorarium sponsored by the university president's office and Curtin Property Company, a real estate development firm with offices in Manhattan and Kansas City. "Over a quarter-century ago, the Curtin Property Company founded a unique partnership with the Kansas State University president. The goal was to create a special focus on excellence among K-State's outstanding faculty and leaders," said Chris Curtin, company president. "At the donor's request, the Presidential Awards of Excellence name was selected, and the program has since honored scores of extraordinary teachers and leaders changing the lives of their students and illuminating the spirit of excellence of the K-State faculty. The Curtin Property Company, its numerous K-State graduates and its Manhattan associates at Georgetown Apartment Homes and Westchester Park Apartments are pleased to honor the 2020 Presidential Awards of Excellence winners." Young joined K-State in 2012 as head of the psychological sciences department. Under his leadership, the department has thrived in teaching, research and more. The department's extramural funding has increased significantly, including landing a $10.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's COBRE program to establish the Cognitive and Neurological Approaches to Plasticity research center. To encourage teaching and research excellence by the department's graduate students, Young helped increase stipends for graduate teaching and research assistants, and he helped create new awards to recognize excellence in these areas by graduate students. Supporting faculty is a big part of Young's job. He helps mentor the department's new tenure-track faculty. Several psychological sciences faculty members have earned major university awards for their work under Young's leadership, including the Coffman Chair for Distinguished Teaching Scholars, Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, and the Commerce Bank and W.T. Kemper Foundation awards for Distinguished Graduate Faculty and Outstanding Teaching. Refurbishing the department's classrooms and reception areas also have been a Young priority. Young credits his success as a department head to building trust with faculty, staff and students. "I work hard to be approachable, which helps me to react quickly to issues as they arise," Young said. "I also strive to be fair and supportive. Building on a culture of trust makes it easier to sustain excellent teaching and research activity because the faculty know that my goal is to support their success." With the university's switch to remote operations, Young has made it a point to be accessible. "The past few weeks have been especially challenging for me because a key part of my success is checking in regularly with the younger and pre-tenure faculty who may be reticent to just pop into the department head's office," he said. "I use synchronous Zoom meetings with faculty, rely on email when I must, and even pick up the phone for the occasional chat with a faculty member an exceedingly rare event before the pandemic." Miller enjoys teaching and it shows. Since joining K-State in 2011, he has won several major national honors for his teaching, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Agricultural Sciences New Teacher Award, North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture Educator Award, and the American Public and Land-Grant Universities' inaugural Innovative Teaching Award. He also has earned university, college and departmental awards for teaching, advising and service. Along with teaching seven horticulture courses each year, Miller advises around 30 horticulture students and is co-advisor to the Horticulture Club and advises the Pi Alpha Xi chapter, the honor society for horticulture. "I have always liked learning and enjoy assisting others in their learning pursuits," Miller said. "It is very rewarding to get to know my students and see their progress over the course of a semester and their time at K-State, especially since I have the opportunity to interact with the students in multiple courses and as advisees. Another great enjoyment about teaching is that I am continually learning about the discipline, learning new techniques and methods to incorporate into the classroom to ideally assist in my teaching abilities." With the switch to remote learning, Miller said communication and flexibility have been key in helping his students adjust to the change. "I created some simple activities to assist students with the transition to the online/remote teaching platform," he said. "I also work to maintain my excitement and genuine interest and passion for horticulture in the course content. I am working to incorporate a variety of activities and methods for presenting materials and for evaluation so things do not become too mundane, with the goal of keeping my students engaged." Kumar has been a graduate teaching assistant for the biochemistry and molecular biophysics department since 2016 and consistently earns high marks from students for his teaching. Courses he has been involved with include General Biochemistry Lab and Introduction to Organic and Biochemistry, both of which serve 50 or more students each semester. He is in charge of ensuring the lab courses have the appropriate equipment and materials. He also has created a new experiment for the General Biochem Lab course based on his own research findings. "Apart from concentrating on giving lectures, demonstrating labs, quizzes, etc., I try to create that kind of environment in the class where all the students can know each other more than just by their names," Kumar said. "And when this happens, interactive sessions with students become so fruitful. For me, this is the most enjoyable part about teaching." Kumar was prepared for the recent switch to remote learning. A few years ago, he was in charge of taping lectures and creating video primers on lab experiments to make the General Biochemistry Lab course a K-State Online offering. His work as a teacher and researcher has impressed Phil Klebba, university distinguished professor of biochemistry and biophysics. Kumar is a member of Klebba's lab and has served as a GTA for Klebba several times. "Over the past few years, partly because of his GTA activities, Ashish has become expert in many fundamental areas of biochemistry," Klebba said. "This expertise makes him both an insightful researcher and a highly competent teacher of undergraduate students." Kumar was recently selected as one of K-State's top graduate researchers and presented his work at the 17th annual Capitol Graduate Research Summit in Topeka. His poster presentation on his work to develop fluorescent molecular sensors for the sensitive detection of important bacterial byproducts or metabolitesearned Kumar a $500 scholarship. For his teaching and his research, the biochemistry and molecular biophysics department has recognized Kumar with its Charlie Hedgcoth Jr. and Phillip Nordin Graduate Memorial awards for Excellence in Graduate Research Teaching and Excellence in Graduate Research. Kumar plans to complete his doctoral studies in fall 2020 and would like to work as a postdoctoral fellow in the next stage of his research career. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL) and its subsidiary United Airlines, Inc., together, recorded a pre-tax loss of $2.1 billion, for the first-quarter of 2020. During the three months ended March 31, 2020, the company recorded $63 million of special charges, primarily associated with a $50 million impairment for its China routes. Also, it recorded a $697 million expected credit loss allowance for the BRW Aviation Holding LLC and BRW Aviation LLC term loan and related guarantee. On an adjusted basis, pre-tax loss was $1.0 billion, for the quarter. First-quarter total revenues were $8.0 billion, a 17% decline year-over-year. As of April 16, 2020, the company had $6.3 billion of cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments and undrawn amounts, including $2 billion under its undrawn revolving credit facility. On April 17, 2020, the company submitted an application to the Loan Program under the CARES Act. Under the Loan Program, the company expects to have the ability through September 30, 2020 to borrow up to approximately $4.5 billion from the U.S. Treasury Department. The company expects to receive approximately $5.0 billion through the Payroll Support Program under the CARES Act. 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 Northern Ireland nurse has spoken of the fear among health care staff that they may be asked to reuse Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). She said her work on the frontline in the battle against the virus left her and her family feeling as if they were regarded as lepers. While on concerns around PPE, she said it felt like she was cannon fodder. It comes after Public Health England (PHE) changed its guidance to recommend staff reuse PPE during shortages "when it is safe to do so". The recommendation has not been implemented in Northern Ireland and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has written to Health Minister Robin Swann to seek clarity over the issue. RCN NI director Pat Cullen said that Mr Swann responded promptly but that his response "did not go far enough". A Department of Health statement said health bodies would be consulted if any decision was taken to change the guidance. "This guidance on the reuse of PPE is not implemented in NI at this point. And if or when it might be required, the department will consider this, taking account of the national and scientific evidence and will provide further advice at the appropriate time," the statement read. "Such consideration will be undertaken if required, and only following full engagement and in consultation with professional bodies and trade union representative organisations." We're as petrified as everyone else in the general public, we have families too, we don't want to be bringing this home to our families or, more importantly, giving this to other sick patients. Senior nurse Denise Kelly Senior nurse Denise Kelly spoke to BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme on Monday morning after she finished her night shift. She said that staff were "absolutely terrified" by the Public Health England guidelines to reuse PPE, though confirmed that she hadn't been asked to reuse PPE, nor had any of her colleagues. "I don't know what's coming in the next couple of days, but I just hope we can get that surety from our ministers that we are not going to be put in that position," Mrs Kelly said. "At the end of the day I'm a human being, we're as petrified as everyone else in the general public, we have families too, we don't want to be bringing this home to our families or, more importantly, giving this to other sick patients. "We need to feel comfortable when we go into work, I can't emphasize this enough, please don't put us in this position." Mrs Kelly said her 12-year-old daughter Ciara had been called 'coronavirus' because of her mum's job as a nurse. "We're being viewed nearly as lepers, not just as frontline workers. Our children too, our families, it's causing a lot of tensions," she said. "There's a fear of people distancing away from us or you work in the hospital, you're with those patients, you may give something to us. That has massive social and psychological implications for us too. "I don't think people can underestimate the effect. We're out there saving lives, we're trying to do our best for the public and that perception is being a leper and to an extent, when we talk about PPE, cannon fodder." Expand Close First Minister Arlene Foster (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp First Minister Arlene Foster (Kelvin Boyes/Press Eye) First Minister Arlene Foster told Good Morning Ulster that advising the reuse of PPE would not be introduced in Northern Ireland. "Our nurses and our health care workers need to have that clarity," she said. Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said the reuse of PPE would "never be acceptable". She said that the Executive was constantly working to procure more PPE from a range of sources, including local businesses, the rest of the UK and China. (Reuters) - Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned the United States about its military activities in the Gulf on Sunday, adding that their navy had as a result increased patrols, which would also secure the passage of Iranian ships and combat fuel smuggling. The U.S. military said on Wednesday that 11 Revolutionary Guards naval vessels had come close to its navy and Coast Guard ships, describing the moves "dangerous and provocative". The Guards' statement on Sunday, which said Iran will give a decisive response to any mistake by the United States in the Gulf, provided the first confirmation of the incident. "We advise the Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and to refrain from any adventurism and false and fake stories," the statement said. "They should be assured that the Revolutionary Guards navy and the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran sees the dangerous actions of foreigners in the region as a threat to national security and its red line and any error in calculation on their part will receive a decisive response." The U.S. military statement said the Iranian vessels approached six U.S. military ships conducting integration operations with Army helicopters in international waters. At one point, the Iranian vessels came within 10 yards of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Maui, the U.S. military said. In its statement the Guards navy denied the U.S. military's account of the incident and said the U.S. had acted unprofessionally. While such incidents occurred occasionally a few years ago, they had stopped. But tensions between the two states spiked this year after the United States killed Qassem Soleimani, the head of Irans elite Quds Force, in a drone strike in Iraq. Iran retaliated on Jan. 8 with a rocket attack on Iraqs Ain al-Asad base, where U.S. forces were stationed. No U.S. troops were killed or faced immediate bodily injury, but more than 100 were later diagnosed with traumatic brain injury. (Reporting by Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Alexander Smith) The South African government will consider a proposal for a one-off wealth tax during an economic recovery planning meeting on Monday, according to a report in Rapport. Such a tax could assist Africas most industrialized economy as it bounces back from the coronavirus outbreak and a five-week lockdown that is scheduled to be lifted on April 30. The proposal comes from a group of economists, led by former South African National Treasury budget chief Michael Sachs, the local newspaper reported, citing a plan that was presented to the cabinet last week. A number of South Africas richest citizens, such as Johann Rupert, Patrice Motsepe and Nicky Oppenheimer have already committed large sums to help the countrys government during the crisis. Many executives across the country have also donated one-third of their salaries to the cause. South Africa plans to slowly reopen parts of the economy, restarting about 50% of its mining production in coming days. It has had more than 3,000 coronavirus infections, with 52 deaths, since its first reported case on March 5. Optimised Theta Project Delivers Additional 40,000 Oz Gold Sydney, April 20, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Theta Gold Mines Limited ( ASX:TGM ) ( OTCMKTS:TGMGF ) is pleased to announce a new optimised mine schedule for its Theta Open Pit Starter Project that adds 40,000 oz of gold over the Feasibility Study released in May 2019.The new Mine schedule significantly improves the metrics of the project (see Table 1*) over the May 2019 Feasibility Study (May '19 FS), has a reduced environmental footprint, reflects an increase in the production rate from 500 ktpa to 600 ktpa, includes the mining of several old mine waste rock dumps and increases the overall mine operational flexibility.HIGHLIGHTS(All numbers in USD and financials based on USD 1 500/oz gold price and 16.00 ZAR/USD)- Pay-back period reduced to 8 months (May '19 FS: 14 months payback period)- 260 koz delivered to plant over Life of Mine ("LoM") (May '19 FS: 219 koz Au)- First year production of 49.5 koz (May '19 FS: 46.3 koz)- Life of Mine (LoM) 6.5 years (May '19 FS: 5 years)- US$150.2 million EBITDA over LoM (May '19 FS: $99.6 million LoM)- Internal Rate of Return 123% (May '19 FS: 65.1%)- US$85 million Net Present Value (May '19 FS: $50 million NPV)- US$855/oz all-in sustaining cost (AISC) LoM, bottom quartile for South Africa producers (May '19 FS: $760/oz cost ("AISC") over the 5-year LoM)- Total Capital Cost US$31.4 million includes 20% plant throughput increase and at 16.00 ZAR/USD (May '19 FS: $34.3 million at 14.01 ZAR/USD)- There remains significant resource development upside from the contiguous southerly extension of the Theta Hill mineralisation into Mining Right 341 and other open cut resources nearby - this is no change from the May '19 FS and, for clarity, these additional resources have not been included in the May '19 FS or this Optimised Study.The Theta Open-pit Starter Project includes the Columbia Hill deposit and part of the Theta Hill deposit within Mining Right 83 ("MR83") (Figure 1*) in the Pilgrims Rest area of South Africa.Waste Rock dumps of various sizes and from four main areas which were sampled by Rand Mines in the 1990's are now included in the new mine schedule and add easy gold ounces for the planned mine operations. The bulk of the waste rock dumps (75%) have been scheduled to be processed in the last year of Mine Schedule and as such have limited effect on the payback period.The payback period has been reduced from 14 months in the May '19 FS to 8 months. The optimized mine schedule has reduced initial overburden removal by mining smaller pits and also has improved revenue streams as a result of increased ZAR gold prices.The Optimised Study reflects strong project economics and commercial viability across a range of gold prices. The new mine schedule significantly enhances all the project economics despite a reduction in the LoM grade.Table 1 below sets out the comparison of the initial May '19 FS to the Optimised Study at various gold price scenarios. Salient details between the Optimised Study run at $1 500/oz vs the May'19 FS base case at $1 257/oz include:1. The IRR nearly doubling from 65% to 123%;2. Mine life increases from 5 years to over 6.5 years;3. EBITDA increases by $50 million over the LoM to $150 million; and4. NPV increases by $35 million to $85 million.The company continuous to honor its commitment to improving the project economics and expansion of the production profile. The team has delivered a new optimized mine schedule, completed a draft mining contract, delivered the mill to site and has initiated and received initial feedback as part of the plant construction contract which is all a clear demonstration that the project is moving forward.The company has a five-year plan which targets 4 mine developments, Theta open-pit Starter Project (MR83 only), Theta open pit extension (MR341) and the Rietfontein and Beta underground mines. This 4-mine strategy provides the company with a clear growth strategy at a combined open pit and underground resource of over 2.75 Moz with only the Theta Project Starter Pit portion of this resource included in the Optimised Study. All ore is planned to be processed within the permitted TGME plant footprint area with the new 600 ktpa CIL plant designed to be readily expanded to cater for 1.2 Mtpa of oxide ore with a modest capital expenditure and minimal operational down time. Expansions for the processing of underground ore can also be readily achieved within the footprint and tied into the new 600 ktpa plant.Chairman Mr Bill Guy stated, "The new optimised mine schedule is a credit to the team and the work and energy put into the Theta Open pit Starter project has been rewarded. The new mine schedule demonstrates clear robust project economics, with more gold extracted and greater value for the shareholders.At Theta Gold the resource pipeline into the future is strong, and the grandeur of resources and geology in South Africa should not be underestimated. As gold is now finding favor again, the Company is keen to be part of the South African mining industry that has produced in tonnage terms of gold bullion more tons of gold than any other country. Over 40% of world gold has come from the small corner of South Africa, we call home.During this quarter, and while the team is restricted in movements due to the coronavirus lock down, we will continue to progress the mining contract through to a final document with a preferred contractor, amend the EIA and resubmit it so we can readily implement the expanded mine schedule, progress discussion with five engineering firms tendering for the TGME gold plant construction.The Board's eye is firmly on the near-term development into gold production and in the medium term to grow the production profile as we develop and bring more mines on stream. We are building a sustainable business for long term benefits for all shareholders and our local community. "Optimised Study Mine Schedule SummaryThe optimized schedule allows for a life of mine ("LOM") of 6.5 years and design takes into consideration the company's commitment to be an environmentally responsible miner.The Ore Reserves estimated for the Theta Project represent the Iota section of Columbia Hill, and approximately 35% of the Theta Hill and Browns Hill deposits within the MR83 boundary. The Theta Hill and Browns Hill deposits extend to the south and into Mining Right 341 ("MR341") (Figure 1*). MR83 is fully permitted for underground mining and an amendment to include open pit mining is in progress. There is an inclusion of a portion of historical waste rock dumps (inferred resources) in the schedule, albeit that 75% of this material is processed at the end of the mining schedule. The dumps are within a short trucking distances of the gold plant (average ~4 km).Further expansion opportunity exists to extend the project to the south into MR341 and this will be considered in future development work.A whole new CIL Plant has been planned and recently redesigned to treat ore at a rate of 600 ktpa and increased by 20% from the May '19 FS (see ASX release 28 Jan 2020 "Results of the Independent Plant Design Optimisation Study"). Annual plant throughput and total deposition volume is constrained by the current approved Tailings Storage Facility ("TSF") at 600 ktpa and 2.5 Mt respectively. Future tailings dam expansions have also been considered in the study and will require design and approvals before implementation.All processing layouts were configured in and around the existing CIL Plant infrastructure to allow for potential future plant expansions. The plant capital has allowed for all new equipment, except for the mill (see ASX release 2 Oct 2019 : "Theta Agrees to Purchase Mill Operated by Glencore") An opportunity therefore exists to make use of further high-quality refurbished equipment which may lead to further capital cost savings.Financial SummaryFinancial modelling was completed over a range of gold and exchange rates to reflect low, mid and high gold and exchange rate scenarios and are labelled Lower Case, Base Case and Stretch case respectively. Unless otherwise stated, the company has considered the Base Case as its primary financial model as it still reflects a conservative approach in the current market environment. All the financial metrics are improved over the feasibility study released in May 2019 and at all scenarios modelled, and clearly demonstrate that modern mining methods being applied to this field for the first time are certainly economically feasible.*To view the full report, including tables and figures, please visit: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. A staff member at the Wyoming Rescue Mission in Casper tested positive for COVID-19 last week, multiple sources said, and one resident says the situation wasnt handled with enough urgency, claiming that a different staff member told him to keep quiet about the case. Brad Hopkins, executive director of the mission, confirmed the positive case to the Star Tribune on Monday morning. He said a staff member woke with symptoms on Tuesday morning of last week and consulted the Healthcare for the Homeless clinic on the Lifesteps Campus. Clinicians then directed the staff member to seek testing for the virus, according to Hopkins. Hopkins said the staff members positive test result came back Thursday, but residents of the mission were notified before then about the situation. He said three other staff members were put on 14-day quarantine and eight residents were taken to the Westwood Elementary quarantine facility established by the Natrona County Emergency Operations Center. Hopkins said all eight residents tested negative for the virus and will return to the shelter Monday. A resident of the mission who spoke to the Star-Tribune on the condition of anonymity said he was informed about the positive case on Wednesday of last week. The resident, who asked for anonymity for fear of retaliation, said a mission staff member Wednesday night came into the mens bunk room at the shelter and told residents there had been a confirmed case of the virus. He came in the room and told all of us in the dorm that somebody had tested positive for COVID-19, and he had a little hand sanitizer thing, and he had us all sanitizing our hands, the resident said. No residents were taken to be tested or quarantined that night, according to the resident. The residents were told there would be a meeting to discuss the situation, but to his knowledge, the meeting never happened, the resident who spoke with the Star-Tribune said. When asked, Hopkins said residents were informed of the situation immediately after finding out themselves. The resident said that was not entirely true. Instead, the next day, the resident confronted a different staff member about the positive case. He was first told by that staff member there was no case. And it was probably an hour later, two hours later, he come back over and he asked me to speak with him. And he pulled me off in a room by ourselves. And then he said there is somebody that tested positive, the resident said. The staff member asked the resident to keep the information to himself. The resident said to his knowledge no one at the shelter was taken to be tested or quarantined Thursday, either. By Friday night, however, the resident said at least seven people from the mens dorm, including a friend of his and his bunk mate, were taken to the Westwood facility to be quarantined or tested. Between Wednesday and Friday night, residents of the mission were able to leave for work or other obligations, according to the resident. The resident interviewed said though he shared a dorm with the residents who were taken to be quarantined, he had not been interviewed about his contacts with either the staff member or the other residents. It seems like that theyre not really saying whats going on, and its causing people to just be lackadaisical about what theyre doing, where theyre going, who theyre around, the resident said. Hopkins said the Rescue Mission contacted the Natrona County Health Department right away Tuesday morning about the potential case. He said the department handled contact tracing and quarantines from there. Hopkins added that case managers at the mission have been wearing masks during meetings for at least the last two weeks. He also said guests of the shelter have not been encouraged to leave during the day except for work. Hopkins said there are no other positive cases at the mission and the shelter is following the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions guidelines for reducing infection. Hopkins said staff are taking residents temperatures before they are allowed back into the shelter and following strict sanitizing guidelines. Dr. Mark Dowell, Natrona Countys health officer, previously said he was significantly concerned about potential exposures to residents of the mission and other communal spaces. Its one of the reasons the city set up Westwood as a quarantine space, so that people with nowhere else to go can isolate there safely while limiting exposure to other vulnerable populations. You can imagine, if a homeless person gets infected like at the mission, itll spread all over the county, Dowell said last month. Star-Tribune staff writer Seth Klamann contributed to this report. Follow local government reporter Morgan Hughes on Twitter @morganhwrites 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. Anand Mahindra US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has thanked the Mahindra Group, for manufacturing "life-saving equipment" in Detroit, Michigan. Mahindra's American unit, Mahindra Ag North America, or MAgNA, recently started manufacturing collapsible aerosol boxes at its facility in Auburn Hills, Detroit. The company's facility was already manufacturing other protective medical equipment such as face masks and shields. Thank you to the Mahindra Group for rising to the occasion and using your facilities to manufacture life-saving equipment. https://t.co/890KEcF1R8 Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) April 20, 2020 Michigan-based news portal The Detroit News said that Mahindra Group was joining the "arsenal of health" efforts spearheaded by Ford and GM, which was promptly acknowledged by Secretary Pompeo in tweet that read: "Thank you to the Mahindra Group for rising to the occasion and using your facilities to manufacture life-saving equipment." Chairman of Mahindra Group, Anand Mahindra, had earlier tweeted about the aerosol box designed by MAgNA which protects health workers while they're intubating 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 The OEM is manufacturing these aspiration boxes out of the polycarbonate material used in windshields. The Detroit-desgined boxes are also being manufactured in India at Mahindra's Nashik plant. Pawan Goenka, MD and CEO at M&M said that the company has supplied close to 80,000 face shields to medical staff across the country. He added that the company was currently testing AMBU bag respirators, called AIR100. Mahindra's US headquarters is working closely with the State of Michigan to identify other products and services that can be rolled out by "re-tooling" its auto manufacturing forces to aid the state's COVID-19 response efforts. Additionally, the company has started a door-step delivery programme for dealers of its off-road vehicle ROXOR, which is based on the iconic Thar that the company makes in India. Tech giant Microsoft is launching a plasmabot to explore the possibility of treatment for COVID-19. It is encouraging patients who were once infected and now have been completely cured to come forward and donate plasma. To reach a large number of people, Microsoft has decided to come up with a plasmabot, CNBC reported. A plasmabot is a chatbot that will answer people's queries related to the virus. The plasmabot is slated to go live this weekend. Plasma is a component of blood that has been used as a treatment for years. When a patient recovers from a disease, they produce antibodies to fight the presence of antigen that causes the disease, like a virus. Those proteins remain in the blood for a few days. Convalescent plasma therapy has already been started in Gujarat and Kerala in India, IANS reported. Microsoft, in a blogpost, has said that there are two possible ways in which plasma can be collected. The first one is to make transfusions directly available to those who are battling the virus. The other approach is to collect antibodies to make medicine. As of now, the US Food and Drug Administration has not approved any treatment using plasma. However, Microsoft Head of Research Peter Lee noted that the goal is to recruit as much plasma as soon as possible. There is no vaccine or treatment for coronavirus in today's date and it could take around a year or more for doctors to generate one. Lee does not suggest convalescent plasma as a potential vaccine but believes that plasma therapy has the "potential to save lives". For this reason, Microsoft is setting aside resources as the plasma of recovered patients can only be used for a limited period. Donating plasma is similar to donating blood but is reportedly a more elaborate and involved process. A report by news agency IANS stated that it takes about an hour to donate plasma. It notes that plasma donors are hooked up to a small device that removes plasma while simultaneously returning red blood cells to their bodies. Plasma donations can be made twice a week as a donor will not have to wait for long between donations for the red blood cells to replenish. The main challenge in the process is to have enough number of recovered patients. Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, has mourned the death of Abba Kyari, the late chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, saying the deceased paid the supreme price in his service to Nigeria. Fashola said the good way Nigerians can honour Kyaris service and memory is to continue where he stopped. Kyari, who died on Friday from COVID-19, contracted the disease on his trip to Germany where he led a government delegation on power in March. Fashola said Kyari was much misunderstood and often maligned. Wherever you stood then and stand now, let us not forget that Abba was a patriot, he said. He executed President Buharis vision with his own single mindedness. One of his favourite quotes was credited to Jeff Immelt to the effect that The job looks easy when you are not the one doing it. He seemed to take a lot of comfort from these words Like all of us, Abba was flawed but he was not conceited. He was driven by conviction and never shied from an intellectual argument because his intellect was vast. Read Also: I Saw Abba Kyaris Death, Prayed About It, But Its Gods Will: Prophet Fufeyin Now that he has paid the supreme price in the service of the fatherland one good way we can honour Abbas service and memory is to continue where he stopped. Our most compelling assignment is to make the defeat of Covid-19 an urgent National Assignment to be completed in shortest possible time. I think Abba would love that very much. Fashola said also that to end the pandemic, he urged all of us, high and low , to observe existing guidelines. We must now undertake this assignment with a single mindedness similar to Abbas execution of his own assignment, he said. Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that range from the common cold to MERS coronavirus, which is Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus and SARs, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus. Coronaviruses are circulating in animals and some of these coronaviruses have the capability of transmitting between animals and humans, which is referred to as spillover event (WHO, 2020). The COVID-19 virus affects different people in different ways, is a respiratory disease and most infected people will develop mild to moderate symptoms. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without any special medical interventions. Around 1 out of every 6 people who get COVID-19 becomes seriously ill and develop difficulty breathing. Older people (over 60 years old) have a higher risk of developing severe disease and death and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are also more likely to develop a serious illness that will require timely medical care (WHO, 2020c). On 31st December 2019 the World Health Organization (WHO) China Country Office was informed of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province of China. On 7th January 2020, the causative pathogen was identified as a novel coronavirus (2019- nCoV) and human-to-human transmission was reported soon after. On 12th February 2020, the novel coronavirus was named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) while the disease associated with it is now referred to as coronavirus disease COVID-19 (MoH, 2020). This Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is the latest virus to cause global health panic (Nuwagira & Muzoora, 2020). Studying the dynamics of a newly emerged and rapidly growing infectious disease outbreak, such as COVID-19, is important but challenging because of the limited amount of data available on the virus. In addition, the unavailability of diagnostic reagents early in the outbreak changed the surveillance intensity, case definitions and overwhelmed healthcare systems (CDC, 2020). The index case occurred on December 8, 2019, in Wuhan, China. Since then, cases have been exported to other Chinese cities, as well as internationally, highlighting concern of a global outbreak (Edrada et al., 2020). Because of the exportations of the novel coronavirus 2019 in the People's Republic of China to other countries, WHO Director-General under the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005) regarding the outbreak convened its second meeting, the Emergency Committee which took place on Thursday, 30th January 2020, from 13:30 to 18:35 Geneva time (CEST). The Committee gave advice to the WHO Director-General; Dr. Tedros Adhanon Ghebreyesus who then made the final decision and determined the outbreak as Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and subsequently declaring the COVID-19 as a pandemic on 11th March 2020 (WHO, 2020d). As of 19th April 2020 (11:51 am), globally, 2,241,359 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 15,551 deaths. Out of these cases, the African region has a total of 13,892 confirmed cases with 628 deaths (WHO, 2020a). Ghana confirmed its first two cases of COVID-19 on 12th March 2020, when two people returned from Norway and Tukey. But as at 20th April 2020 (11:54 am) Ghana's total confirmed cases are 1042 with 9 deaths (GHS, 2020). Ghana's response to the COVID-19 pandemic is not entirely different from other country's but the context, content and process of implementation may vary form one state to the another. Government is the key stakeholder in the implementation of public health measures outlined by WHO with technical advice and support from Ministry of Health and Ghana health Service to control the outbreak. The decision taken so far can be assessed by categorizing them into: Humanitarian, Political and Security. Humanitarian aspect In the fight against COVID-19, WHO has outlined three general humanitarian principles that's Humanity, Neutrality and Impartiality. Humanity means the government has to prevent and alleviate human suffering and must do so by protecting and respecting the life, health and dignity of all Ghanaians. Data collected online (online survey) from 163 responses showed that (56.8%) agreed that the government is preventing and alleviating human suffering caused by the outbreak, (20.4%) were neutral, (14.8%) strongly agreed, (5.6%) disagreed and (2.5%) strongly disagreed. Neutrality means the government must take no side in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The same data reviewed that (42.6%) agreed that the government is taking side in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. (17.3%) strongly agreed, (15.4%) were neutral, (14.8%) disagreed and (9.9%) strongly disagreed. Finally, impartiality, meaning the government must fight the COVID-19 pandemic without discrimination. (39.5%) disagreed that the government is discriminating in the attempt to fight the outbreak. (35.8%) strongly disagreed, (13.0%) were neutral, (9.9%) agreed and only (1.9%) strongly agreed. Political aspect As many countries are facing the unprecedented challenges from COVID-19 the tension on governments is extreme and the impact on people all over the world continues to grow. Leaders around the world are taking laborious decision to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ghana government has not derailed from this exercise, some decision has been taken which may affect some people obviously. (29.0%) disagreed that Ghana's preparedness during COIV-19 pandemic before the 1st case was reported in the country was satisfactory. (26.5%) were neutral, (25.3%) strongly disagreed, (16.0%) agreed and (3.1%) strongly agreed. (62.3%) strongly agreed that the Government should have closed Ghana's borders earlier than it was done. (29.6%) also agreed, (3.7%) disagreed, (2.5%) remain neutral and only (1.9%) strongly disagreed. On the closure of school by the government, (54.9%) strongly agreed it was necessary to close all school to stop the spread of the outbreak in Ghana. Also, (41.4%) agreed, (1.9%) strongly disagreed, (1.2%) disagreed and only (0.6%) were neutral. Moreover, (55.6%) strongly agreed that it was necessary for the government to close all churches and mosques as it was done to stop the spread of the outbreak in Ghana. (40.7%) also agreed, (1.9%) were neutral, (1.2%) disagreed with that decision and only (0.6%) strongly disagree. Finally, on the political aspect, with specific to address to public and media briefing (50.0%) agreed that the government has provided accurate, credible and timely information to the public about COVID-19 outbreak and its control. (21.6%) strongly agreed, (15.4%) disagreed, neutral was (9.3%) and (3.7%) strongly disagreed. Security aspect On March 31, 2020 Ghanaian Times published that more than 37,500 police and military personnel have been deployed to restricted areas to help enforce measures instituted to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country. They comprised of 35,000 police personnel and 2,000 military personnel. (50.0%) strongly agreed that the deployment of security personnel to enforce restriction of movement at lock-down areas is a good decision. (46.3%) agreed, (2.5%) were neutral and only (0.6%) strongly disagreed and disagreed with that decision. Also, (45.1%) agree that the security personnel deployed to lock-down areas to enforce restriction of movement have performed their duties to my satisfaction. (20.4%) were neutral, (17.3%) disagreed, (13.6%) strongly agreed and (3.7%) strongly disagreed. This pandemic has challenged many nations including developed and developing countries sense of invulnerability, self-confidence, public infrastructure and their definitions to initial response to outbreak situations. However, this could be a wake-up call for state to develop a comprehensive plan on disease outbreaks, upgrade in disease surveillance and investigation, enhance public health laboratory capability and develop effective risk communication capacity. Together we can defeat this pandemic, be part of the team where ever you to combat this pandemic. REFERENCES 1mg. (2020). Coronavirus : No-Panic Helpguide Prepare carefully, but don ' t panic. CDC. (2020). https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/26/7/20-0250_article. Edrada, E. M., Lopez, E. B., Villarama, J. B., Villarama, E. P. S., Dagoc, B. F., Smith, C., Solante, R. M. (2020). First COVID-19 infections in the Philippines : a case report, 0. GHS. (2020). https://ghanahealthservice.org/covid19/. MoH. (2020). CASE MANAGEMENT MANUAL FOR COVID-19 -MINISTRY OF HEALTH- GHANA MARCH 2020, (March). Nuwagira, E., & Muzoora, C. (2020). Is Sub-Saharan Africa prepared for COVID-, 2022. WHO. (n.d.). www.who.int. 2020. WHO. (2020a). Coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID-19 ), 2019(April). WHO. (2020b). GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE PLAN COVID-19. WHO. (2020c). https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1. WHO. (2020d). https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/30-01-2020-statement-on-the-second-meeting-of-the-international-health-regulations-(2005)-emergency-committee-regarding-the-outbreak-of-novel-coronavirus-(2019-ncov). Safdarjung Hospital witnessed high drama on Sunday afternoon after an orthopaedic patient allegedly undressed, climbed onto the windows overhang on the third floor and threatened to kill himself, police and fire officials said. Delhi Fire Services (DFS) director Atul Garg said around 2.42pm, the fire control room received a call regarding a suicide attempt by a patient at Safdarjung Hospital. The man claimed that he Covid-19 positive and threatened to slit his wrist and infect rescuers if they tried getting close to him. The patient also started spitting on a team of doctors and police personnel who were trying to rescue him. Also read: Meerut hospital apologises for ad which said no entry to Muslims without Covid-19 test The rescue team members placed a net below the building so as to save the man even if he was to jump off. He was later somehow convinced to come down and rescued, said Garg. Also read: Indias Covid-19 cases rise to 17,265, death toll at 543 An official from the Safdarjung Hospital authorities, said, The man was not infected. He is an orthopaedic patient and had some breakdown. He was breaking things. The doctors sedated him and took him back to the ward where he has been undergoing treatment. Watch: Man threatens to jump from Delhi hospital building, spits at rescuers A senior police officer said that the Safdarjung Enclave police was informed that a patient had gone to the terrace of the hospital building and was attempting to jump down. He was naked and shouting continuously. He did not listen to the doctors. Our policemen and rescue team of the fire department safely rescued him, the officer added. The Vietnamese governments measures of distributing a VND 62,000 bn social security support package has also been of great help in stabilizing the daily lives of a vast number of vulnerable people in communities who depend on daily and hourly wages. In this time of dire and desperate need, the Covid-19 pandemic is also fully testing all the traits of compassion towards our fellow human beings. On the morning of 13 April, a news article showed an image of a foreign man standing at the corner of Vo Van Kiet Street and Nguyen Tri Phuong Street, wearing a mask and holding a signboard that read "No job. Help me buy food. Thank you". This image aroused varied and high strung emotions in people living in Ho Chi Minh City as well as across the country. Many people in Ho Chi Minh City responded immediately by pulling out their wallets and offering monetary support. Reacting to this overwhelming surge of generosity, this foreign man only accepted just enough funds to support his daily needs and refused to accept any money beyond his requirements. This particular foreign man, called Mr. J.D, was a British national and had been working as a teacher at an English center. Soon after the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and following the advice of the administrations, the English center that employed him had to shut down. After struggling for two months to make ends meet, Mr. J.D. finally took this drastic step reluctantly as the only solution and means to survive in his difficult situation. He said that he had been working as a teacher but now without a monthly salary he was left with no choice and came up with this humiliating idea to stand on the street corner and ask people to help him. Because he was wearing a mask, he thought he would not be recognized, even though he admits he was very embarrassed. He felt he also had no other alternative to a way out of his situation, and hence chose this path as a way to survive. All human instincts call for survival, with food being our very basic need. In this time of a global pandemic, not everyone is in a comfortable place, nor does everyone has a daily bowl of rice to eat. People who are living and working in Ho Chi Minh City have come here from many different places, and are dependent on an income to survive. They all understand the situation very well and therefore extended their arm to help Mr. J.D. with all sincerity and affection. When the image of Mr. J.D. appeared in the media, many people immediately went to the corner of Vo Van Kiet Street and Nguyen Tri Phuong Street to offer help to him. When they did not find him there, they went in person to the Inn where Mr. J.D. lived on Nguyen Van Cu Street to offer their help in his time of need. The story of Mr. J.D. proves that the spirit of solidarity and kindness lies abundant within the hearts of the Vietnamese people. Vietnamese people not just love and help their own Vietnamese fellow citizens, but their hearts are open to all fellow human beings as well. This is a beautiful genetic trait of the Vietnamese people that has been embedded for centuries as part of their very culture. Even when the Government social security support package had not yet reached the poor people in need, gestures of support and kind help to their fellow countrymen was already flowing in communities. The most philanthropic example is that of Mr. Hoang Anh Tuan who set up an ATM for rice at 204B Vuon Lai Street in Tan Phu District in Ho Chi Minh City, which provided free rice for the needy. This activity was then replicated in Binh Chanh District and District 12, and now can be seen providing free rice in even other provinces as well. Compassion and kindness has no limitations, and crisis always brings out the best in people. The ATM distributing free rice is a boon to those who have lost jobs and are now in dire need to feed themselves and their families. For such an act of kindness the one who serves as the provider also receives great blessings for his act of kindness. However, not all has gone well during this time of crisis. A clip on social media showed an angry altercation between a landlord and tenant, on a dispute over a VND 50 mn deposit made by the tenant to the landlord on Thich Minh Nguyet Street in Tan Binh District in Ho Chi Minh City. In this case, Ms. KL rented the house owned by Ms. NTD for the sum of VND 22 mn per month for a period of two years. After the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ms. KL could not afford the rent so she wanted to return the house back to the landlord, which meant that she wanted to terminate the two-year lease prematurely. Ms. NTD then kicked Ms. KL out of the house and did not return her the VND 50 mn deposit on grounds that she was violating her contract. Both parties got into a heated argument and the ward police was called to intervene and reconcile the situation. Logically speaking, Ms. NTD is absolutely right, but seeing the present situation many people sided with Ms. KL out of sympathy, although the notarized contract was legally valid. However, if the case is brought to court, Ms. NTD will be penalized for evading income tax from rent of the house. According to lawyers, for a unilateral termination of the contract and reimbursement of the deposit in this time of a pandemic, the tenant has protection under of the Civil Code to request annulment of the contract and claim a refund of the deposit money. However, the problem here is not about who is right and who is wrong, but it is a question of being compassionate at a time that calls for support for all fellow human beings. The behaviour of Ms. NTD may not be in violation of the law, but it does lack human empathy. There are many examples of landlords in Binh Duong who are not only exempting the rent payment for their tenants during the Covid-19 crisis period but are also offering other support such as food to their tenants. We can only reflect on how much money is actually enough for a human being, and VND 50 mn does not make anyone rich, but poor treatment makes us lose all human dignity. The sudden outbreak of the Covid-19 and fear of the deadly contamination it can cause has no doubt affected the economy across the country. People on daily wages and hourly incomes have been the most severely traumatized. In this hour of tragedy there emerge stories of both human kindness and cruelty, although honesty and integrity are still not lost entirely in this world. During this dire period of a global pandemic, honesty and integrity must be persevered much more sacredly. A strong spirit of solidarity, love, warmth and help for each other must flourish everywhere to lend support to our fellow human beings throughout this very difficult time, however long it lasts. Tuy Hoa Keralas decision to dilute lockdown norms irks Centre India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: The Centre has objected to the Kerala government diluting the lockdown restrictions. The Centre is now planning on writing to all the chief secretaries to ensure strict compliance of the lockdown guidelines. Kerala, however, said that the Centre was informed about its decision. "It has come to notice that some states/Union territories are issuing orders allowing activities which have not been allowed as per guidelines issued by MHA under the Disaster Management Act, 2005," Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said in his letter. Kerala govt to ease COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in 2 zones from Apr 20 On April 18, the Kerala government released detailed guidelines to re-open Kerala in a staggered manner from Monday. The state has been divided into four zones- Red, Orange A, Orange B and Green. Kasargod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Mallapuram will have no relaxations as they fall under the red zone. The hotspots would remain sealed and will have only an entry and exit point for the supply of essential goods and services. In the rest of the places, based on zone classification, private vehicles will be allowed in the odd-even scheme within districts. Restaurants will be allowed dine-in facilities until 7 pm, while the take out facility will be available until 8 pm. The government has also said bus travel for short distances will be allowed within the districts. However, strict social distancing norms would be followed. Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam and Kollam fall under the Orange A zone and partial relaxation will be given from April 4 onwards. Alappuzha, Trivandrum, Palakkad, Wayanad and Thrissur which fall under the Orange B zone will get partial relaxations from Monday onwards. However, most of the relaxations will be at Kottayam and Idukki, which fall under the green zone. TV presenter Dermot O'Leary's pregnant wife Dee Koppang showed off her blossoming bump in an Instagram snap posted on Sunday. The producer and director, 41, shared a picture of herself attempting to do 46-year-old Dermot's hair and make-up for the One World Together highlights show. TV stars have been foregoing their usual grooming team in a bid to keep to social distancing measures amid the coronavirus pandemic. 'Apologies if he looks orange': Dermot O'Leary's pregnant wife Dee showed off her bump as she did his hair and make-up for the One World Together highlights show on Sunday Giggling: She wrote this hilarious caption alongside the post Dee captioned her picture with the words: 'No pressure... had to do @radioleary hair & make up for tonights @bbcone @glblctzn live show... (7.15pm) 'Apologies in advance if he looks orange on the show Theres only so much @sarahexley1 could teach me on a Zoom tutorial...' Dee and Dermot announced they were expecting their first child with a sweet Instagram post shared back in February. Lovely: Dee and Dermot announced they were expecting their first child with a sweet Instagram post shared back in February Happy times: Dermot had his wife in tow to help him look the part National treasure Dermot took to Instagram to share their growing family news, posting a snap of a floral wreath surrounding a message that read: 'Koppang O'Leary productions presents "new arrival" coming soon'. Dee dated Dermot for a decade before the pair wed in 2012. A host of stars including Lady Gaga, Celine Dion, Paul McCartney, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish took part in the One World: Together at Home xoncert. Baby joy: Dermot and his wife Dee appeared in good spirits as they attended the 73rd annual EE British Academy Film Awards in February after announcing their baby news It was a musical telethon broadcast around the globe. The performances were organised by the Global Citizen movement and the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise funds in the fight against coronavirus. Dermot presented a highlights show from the eight-hour performance on BBC One on Sunday. Toronto: The cases of increasing crime has caused panic in the hearts and minds of people, every day, a case comes to light that completely shakes a person, while people's hearts. The fear of this thing is increasing. Recently, in Canada, a man wearing a police uniform opened fire on people. 16 people lost their lives in this shootout. According to officials, a person in the police officer's uniform in the province of Nova Scotia opened fire in which 13 people were killed. In the last 30 years, it is being called the deadliest attack in Canada. Officials have said that the suspected shooter has also died. A police officer was among the 16 people killed in this shootout. Several bodies have been found inside and outside a house in Portapic, a small rural port about 60 miles (100 kilometers) north of Halifax. UK Prime Minister Johnson is doing this work after winning battle with corona The police started advising the residents of the city overnight. People are forced to close their doors and stay in their homes due to the Coronavirus epidemic. Police identified the shooter as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who lives in Portapic for a few days. Officials said he wore a police uniform at a check point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police car. Pope makes big announcement, says, "Help needy from wherever you are" Police first announced that they had arrested Wortman at a gas station in Enfield, outside Hortax, but later said he died. The police did not explain how it happened. He did not reveal anything about this. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeill said it was the most brutal incident of violence in our province's history. RCMP spokesman Daniel Bryan confirmed that 16 people were killed, in addition to the suspect. The deceased officer was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, another officer also injured in the shootout. Corona vaccine sample discovers in Israel Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan has sent a telegram of condolence to Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, as reported the news service of the Government of Armenia. I am deeply shocked by the news about the atrocious crime that took place in Nova Scotia and took the lives of 16 innocent people. I express my sincere condolences to you and the friendly Canadian people on the occasion of this incredible act of violence that shocked all Canadians during the days of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic that has befallen. I ask you to transmit my words of consolation to the families and close ones of the victims and wish them patience and endurance, the Prime Ministers telegram reads. Ten sheep have died following a suspected case of livestock worrying on a Scottish Borders farm, police have said. The incident, which happened on Halmyre Mains Farm near West Linton, occurred on either 15 or 16 April, police believe. Dog owners have now been warned to ensure their pets are on a lead at all times when near livestock. It comes as Scottish farmers pleaded with the public to follow posters on how to access and enjoy the countryside with 'care and respect' during the Covid-19 crisis. A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Dog owners are asked to be aware of the effects of sheep-worrying, and let others know too. "Make sure you know where your dog is at all times. If you're letting your dog off the lead, be confident there are no livestock nearby. "Be sure that your dog will return to you promptly on command and if in doubt, keep them on the lead." The police are appealing for witnesses to this incident or anyone who may have information in relation to this incident. "If you have information you can contact Police Scotland on 101 quoting Incident 866, April 16, 2020," the spokesperson added. "Alternatively you can call Crimestoppers Anonymously on 0800 555 111." Livestock worrying cost farmers 1.2m last year as irresponsible owners continue to allow dogs to roam free in the countryside. Despite sharp falls in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, rises in England contributed to the continued high cost of attacks. Lockdown: Ayushmann Khurrana with wife Tahira Kashyap spill all the beans in an online rapid-fire quiz. The duo makes hilarious revelations related to their happy marriage, as they are always right, the actor captioned the video. Lockdown: Actor Ayushmann Khurrana is the new superstar of the Bollywood as he is basking in the success of his back to back hit films, which not only brought moolah but fame to him. From delivering Shayaris to his prowess acting skills, he leaves no chance to entertain his fans to the fullest. While in the quarantine period, he is still unstoppable as on a daily basis the actor post humourous yet informative videos on his Instagram handle. Earlier this week, the actor with his lady love Tahira Kashyap took a rapid-fire quiz, where they both were seen spilling all the beans related to their relationship, from inmate secrets to who is bigger baby during illness. In the video, the duo made some funny revelations related to their happy marriage and claimed to be a funnier, attractive, hard worker than the other. However, there was a catch! The duo got stuck in some of the questions like Who is always right, who seeks more attention, who purchases the better gift, who is more sexually aroused, both of them sheepishly accepted and took their names. Check the post here: The actor shared the video with a caption: Whos Always Right, they were sure about the questions tagging wife Tahira. Meanwhile, talking about Ayushmanns part in COVID-relief, the actor extended his helping hands to a Delhi based NGO, GulMeher, which helps ragpickers. He told to ANI, that he and his wife have been associated with the NGO for the last one year. They are doing every bit to support needy people who are bearing the brunt, amid lockdown. With that, the actor is also spreading awareness related to the deadly coronavirus, urge his fans to stay at home and respect COVID-19 warriors who are keeping their life at risk to save all. For all the latest Entertainment News, download NewsX App The Duke of Edinburgh has made a rare public statement to thank coronavirus key workers. In the letter, the 98-year-old explains that he wanted to recognise the vital and urgent medical and scientific work taking place during the pandemic. The Duke, who retired from public duties in 2017, also thanked key workers involved in food production and distribution. The statement was published on the royal familys social media channels and has been tied to World Immunistion Week, which begins on 24 April. The statement reads: As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from Covid-19. On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected. The Duke is affiliated with more than 750 organisations involved in responding to the coronavirus outbreak. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou These include the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the University of Edinburgh and The Royal Society, which has been working to identify how to slow the spread of the virus. Prince Philips statement comes after concerns about his health arose last year. In December 2019, the Duke was taken to hospital for a planned visit on the advice of His Royal Highness Doctor. He travelled from Norfolk to the King Edward VII Hospital in London for observation and treatment, but Buckingham Palace said the visit was in relation to a pre-existing condition and was just a precaution. Quarantine is definitely more screentime albeit on the consumers' end. Be it the mobile phone or the television, perhaps both are the best tools to be exploited to the core when in quarantine. Editor's note: This series will focus on the difficulties faced by the medical fraternity at COVID-19 hospitals, their duty hours, access to protective gear, facilities they get during quarantine, how are their families coping with this new reality across different states in the country. This is the first part of the series. "I never realised that he was worried about me and even if he was he never expressed it to me. Probably he was quite tensed within. Maybe he got worried as I was not around and I was working in such dangerous circumstances. I would never know now if he was worried about me." These are conflicting thoughts of a son who lost his father when he was not at home. It was sudden, unexpected and devastating for the son who is now serving a 14-day quarantine period. There are many people who are in quarantine at present due to the novel coronavirus but Mukesh Ingti is no ordinary individual. Ingti is a cleaner at the District Hospital Sonapur, a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in Assam's Kamrup Metro district. A tale of grief The first team of medical professionals from the District Hospital Sonapur, a medical facility located just 24 kilometres away from the Assam Secretariat in Guwahati, are now in mandatory quarantine period after a week of service at the hospital. "I was on duty at the hospital from 1 to 7 April. Now I am in quarantine at a hotel in Guwahati. Suddenly on Tuesday (14 April) I got a call from home informing me of my father's demise very early in the morning at around 2.30 am. I was shocked. I have been talking to my parents, my wife and my 12-year-old boy every day," said Ingti, who is from Amguri village, which is seven kilometres away from Sonapur town. "My father was suffering from high pressure for a few years now and was on medication for a while. I don't know what exactly happened. I also have another son who is just a month and a week old. They said everything was fine. I also never told them about things here lest they get worried," he said. Ingti is in quarantine at Hotel Contour in Guwahati along with others from different government hospitals who like him were in active COVID-19 duty in their respective facilities. Click here for Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates For Ingti, it is not an easy time. It is the hour when his family needs him the most but he sacrificed that for the greater good of the society, an invaluable lesson for those who violate the nationwide lockdown for no valid reason. "When I informed our hospital superintendent, she told me that she could not allow me to go home without permission from the higher-ups in the department. Soon after a lady official from the health department called me and told me that they will send me home in this hour of personal grief. She explained the dos and don'ts to me and advised me not to stay there long, not to touch anyone including my father as I am in the middle of my quarantine period. She told me only to see my father's face and return to the hotel within a short time. I did the same because I know the risks involved as I was in contact with coronavirus patients for seven days. Before sending me home they took a swab from my nose and throat. I got the result today and it was negative," Ingti said on Wednesday. Click here to read the complete series The government ensured that Ingti wore full protective gear when he went home in a government-arranged vehicle to pay the final respects to his father. He returned to his quarantine facility within an hour. "When I reached home I learned that my father had sleepless nights for the past few days. Anyone will be little tensed in this kind of situation. We are three brothers and my elder and my younger brother don't stay with us as they work in different districts. So I looked after my family including my parents," he said. '14 days in one room is not a joke' Lodged at Taj Group's Vivanta Guwahati, the charm of a five-star hotel is a poor competitor to a 14-day confinement in a single room. Due to COVID-19, unique work schedules have come to take over the regular ones. Through thick of things for seven days at the District Hospital Sonapur at a stretch, staff nurse Queen Baishya is suddenly out of action. The reason being the protocol of seven days of duty followed by 14 days of quarantine after handling COVID-19 patients. "I have been active on social media these days and watching a lot of television. My daily schedule changed during quarantine. It is almost 9 am when I get up. I even go to bed late at night these days," said Baishya. Although the state government is trying hard to keep its healthcare professionals in quarantine as comfortably as possible, these individuals are also employing different ways to kill the boredom. For her hands deft in administering intravenous drips and giving injections to patients, another staff nurse at the District Hospital Sonapur, Karabi Borgohain, held a pen and a pencil instead in search of creative ways to spend her time in quarantine. "I did a few sketches and wrote a poem as well," Borgohain said. "I am reading Chandana Goswami's Patkair Ipare Mor Desh (My Country is on the Other Side of the Patkai)," she said. Reading during quarantine is something Borgohain hasn't chosen alone. "They supply us with the Times of India and The Assam Tribune every morning and I go through them thoroughly. I also brought a few books with me. Right now I am reading India After Gandhi by Ram Chandra Guha. I finished reading two books by Mrinal Talukdar as well -- Post-Colonial Assam and 1962. Reading is my hobby. In fact, since childhood, we have a library at home. But due to my hectic schedule now, reading has gone down drastically. So I am making most of my time now in quarantine," said Dhiraj Kumar Pathak, one of the first three doctors who attended to COVID-19 patients at District Hospital Sonapur for seven days and is now in quarantine at Vivanta Guwahati. A trained pathologist, Gitanjanli Das, whose quarantine started from 15 April as she belongs to the second batch of doctors treating COVID-19 patients at District Hospital Sonapur, plans to relax and read. "I brought a few books with me authored by Anuradha Sharma Pujari. I love her writing. But my primary goal is to rest," she said. Also from the second team of doctors from the same facility, Utpal Patir has got rather serious books with him to read in quarantine. "I am from Radiology and I have brought a few books with me on it. I would like to go through my textbooks with reference to the cases that I handle. Apart from that, newspapers will take a certain part of my time in the next 14 days of quarantine. I plan to continue with my morning exercise as well," said Patir. "I also subscribe to Amazon Prime. This is my broad plan and maybe I will add a few more things as the days go by." Quarantine is definitely more screentime albeit on the consumers' end. Be it the mobile phone or the television, perhaps both are the best tools to be exploited to the core when in quarantine. "I am using streaming services to keep myself occupied. I watched series like Panchayat on Amazon Prime and Special Ops on HotStar. In the past week, I watched the Ramayan religiously at 9 o'clock in the morning on Doordarshan. I missed the episode broadcasted at 9 pm a few times though," said Pathak. Borgohain is trying to improve her culinary skills with some tips from cooking shows. "I watch the news on TV so that I can keep myself updated on what's happening on the coronavirus front. I also love watching cooking channels," she said. For pathologist Das, who hasn't introduced herself to the world of streaming services yet, it is a perfect time perhaps to debut. "I have not subscribed to streaming services like Amazon or Netflix but maybe I will have to do soon," she said. Das worked at the Gauhati Medical College before and shifted to District Hospital Sonapur last November after getting a promotion. Away from family More than the feeling of being caged, the thought of being away from family is profound for all these medical staffs who are in quarantine. "We could not go home during Bihu this time. It is my child's first Rongali Bihu. I really felt sad on the day of Bihu (14 April) because I had to stay away from home and I won't lie about it. I never said that to my folks back home because they will be sad," said Pathak. Nothing can perhaps be more motivating than a video call home in these times. "I make video calls to my home three or four times a day. I also do video calls with my friends. I am getting calls from my friends who are enlisted for COVID-19 duty and have not started yet. They have all completed their training and want to know about the practical experience from me. So I share my experience with them," he said. The comfort of seeing each other via video calls in these trying times can be of great comfort to both these healthcare professionals and their families. "I am from Sualkuchi and I have my parents, my brothers and my sister-in-law. I have worked for two years now at the District Hospital Sonapur. I was at the Rani Community Health Centre before. I stay in the quarter at the District Hospital Sonapur. I do video calls to my family at times. My parents were very worried when they enlisted me for COVID-19 duty. So when the patients were admitted to the facility they almost stopped eating. My father is always worried about me anyway. Now they are a bit better as I am not in the hospital and they can do video calls with me," said Baishya. The longing for home was evident in her voice. "We may get to go home provided we prove negative in the test they are going to do just before the quarantine ends. We are a group of 50 staff nurses at the District Hospital Sonapur and there will be some time before we join back again," she said. Even Pathak can't wait to be home, to be with his eight-month-year old infant son. "If everything remains fine it will end on Wednesday (22 April 2020). After that, we were told that we will be allowed to go home. It will also depend on what kind of routine they make and the number of patients admitted in the facility. In all likelihood, out of the three cases, two will be discharged later in the day. The third patient is over 60 years of age. His condition is not complicated but since he is above 60 years of age, that's why probably he is still testing positive. The other two patients are relatively younger to him," he said. On the same day later, on Wednesday, two patients were released from District Hospital Sonapur becoming the first from the state to overcome COVID-19. "Before we came to the hotel, we gave the discharge slip for two patients out of three," said Patir. In the evening, the patients were released in the presence of Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. 1/2 In midst of gloom, today we wish to cheer! Two #Covid patients Nuruddin & Jonab Ali, treated at Sonapur Civil Hospital, and were successively tested negative twice as per @ICMRDELHI protocols, are being discharged. They're being sent for a 14-day home quarantine. #AssamCares pic.twitter.com/KK0JsaPwV5 Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) April 15, 2020 However, as this story is being published the third patient has also been released from the hospital. One #COVID19 patient - Hazrat Ali has been discharged today from Sonapur Civil Hospital, after his two successive tests confirmed as negative. Cured patients -18. Request all to strictly follow home quarantine guidelines. pic.twitter.com/vYqXUzNWxV Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) April 20, 2020 For Patir, the whole world has literally turned upside down for his family because of COVID-19. "I am originally from Bilmukh village, Lakhimpur district and stay at Narengi in Guwahati. I have my wife and two children. Now my children at my brother-in-law's place in Lakhimpur. My wife is also a doctor and she is part of the COVID-19 response team. She works at the Ulubari Urban Health Centre which is under the Gauhati Medical College. She is working as a nodal officer of the COVID-19 response team. There is no one at home so we had to keep our children at our relative's place. The younger one is five-year-old and the older one is 10-year-old. So right now my wife is staying at a different place, I am at another and the children are in a different place. None of us could meet each other during Bihu. The only option left for us is a few video calls," he said. A mother of twins, pathologist Das can only helplessly watch her husband and an aunt of hers taking care of her children while she is away in quarantine. "I plan to watch TV and of course video calls to my family, my twins in particular. They are four-and-half-years-old. My husband is a Public Works Department engineer and is posted in Nagaon district. Now he is home and taking care of the children. It is getting quite tough for him because the maid has also cannot come as the society has prohibited the entry of outsiders because of coronavirus. I pleaded with an aunt of mine and she agreed to stay at my place in my absence. My husband and my aunt are managing somehow. I never stayed away from children so I am feeling really sad. Looking after is already a challenging job and now with the lockdown, they are literally locked up inside the flat. In fact, I was so busy working that I hardly knew when the Bihu passed," she said. Staff nurse Borgohain is depressed that she cannot do video calls home. "I am from Dhemaji and my husband is from Mangaldoi. I have a two-year-old daughter. I missed home during Bihu. I don't do video calls home because if she sees me she will start crying. Her name is Nistha. I will be really sad then. It will also become hard for her father to manage her. My husband is a manager with Surya Gold Cement. He is home because of the lockdown and looking after our daughter," she said. Although the first team of healthcare professionals from District Hospital Sonapur spent the Rongali Bihu alone for the most part of the day, the health minister had a surprise stored for them. "This time no laru, pitha (traditional Assamese delicacies) were made back home because I wasn't there. But to the surprise of most of us here, the health minister visited us on the day of Bihu and gave us packets of Assamese delicacies. He also gave Gamocha (traditional Assamese rectangular cloth given as a mark of respect also known as Bihuwan) to each one of us. On those packets, he wrote with his own handwriting wishing us Bihu. These small gestures actually motivate us and will also inspire the new batches of doctors who will join duty. I must also add many people wished us over the phone and messaged good wishes," said Pathak. Baishya too shared similar emotions. "I did feel bad staying alone during Bihu but Himanta Biswa Sarma gave us a pleasant surprise. I am yet to finish the packet of pitha. That he remembered us in spite of his busy schedule is an overwhelming feeling for us. In fact, we got pithas again with breakfast the next day. That way, we got pitha twice," she said. The food protocol For those staying at the Vivanta Guwahati, the food protocol has been different. "I am staying here comfortably. They place our food outside the room. The hotel staff is also a bit paranoid since we handled positive cases," said Borgohain. Pathak pointed out that it was necessary to not scare the hotel staff. "There is a food tray outside the room. They keep the food there at regular intervals. Usually, the breakfast is given around 8.30 am, lunch around 1 pm and dinner around 7.30-8 pm. After the food is placed on the tray outside, they call us on the intercom to inform that the food has been placed. Apart from that, I make tea in the room itself in an electric kettle. The food is good. Only thing is I am missing the Assamese food. They are providing us with north Indian cuisine," he said. The following of protocols have been so strict that these professionals have ingrained within themselves to follow them to the tee. "Although I can go out of the room I prefer not doing so as there is a possibility of contamination. We have been following all the SOPs and it doesn't matter if we don't go out of the room for a few days. We will have to keep in mind that the Taj authorities actually called their staff from home despite the lockdown so that they can serve us. We should not make their work difficult and follow the rules," Pathak said. However, staff nurse Borgohain takes a small walk for a very short time. "There is a corridor outside where I sometimes take a walk for a couple of minutes," she said. Hotel Contour, where Ingti is quarantined, has a different set of rules. "I am sharing the room with one of my colleagues and staying on the fourth floor of the hotel. We have to go to the first floor for food. There are people complaining about the food lacking in fish or chicken but I am happy with it," said Ingti. "We are around 20-22 people in quarantine in the hotel from various hospitals and four of us are from the District Hospital Sonapur. There are some shortcomings but overall it's fine. We are not allowed to go outside the hotel. I watch TV sometimes or take a walk on the hotel premises. The health department is also keeping a strict tab on our health condition," he said. Fighting against odds Today is the 10th day in quarantine for the first team of healthcare professionals from District Hospital Sonapur. They are wholeheartedly acknowledging the effort of the government, the hotel staff where they are staying in quarantine and the public in general in taking care of them and for the appreciation shown towards their work. "Whatever it is so far, it has been good and we have been taken good care by the government, the Taj authorities and the general public. We never expected this kind of recognition," said Pathak. What the doctor from District Hospital Sonapur did not say was that others need to be responsible as well, follow the government guidelines strictly, not hide their travel history, not flout the lockdown for fun, support healthcare professionals through cooperation and not merely praise them on social media and phone calls. YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. The ministry of emergency situations informs that on April 20, as of 08:15, the roads are mainly passable in Armenia. The ministry told Armenpress that the roads leading to the Amberd Fortress and Lake Kari will remain closed for uncertain time. The Georgian side reports that the Stepantsminda-Lars highway is open only for trucks. Drivers are urged to use snow tires. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, I have been rooting for our governor, Tom Wolf. We all need him to be successful in protecting our neighbors from this disease, and initially his response was consistent and transparent. But now, his secretive approach is harming his multi-state effort to reopen the economy and creating major difficulties for vulnerable Pennsylvanians. Tom Slattery understands that better than anyone. Mr. Slattery and his wife recently sold their home, planning to move into a 55-plus community built by Traditions of America, a Berwyn-based company. While their new home is nearly complete, and workers could work on it safely, completing it is illegal under Wolfs March 19 executive order shutting down non-life-sustaining businesses. My wife is currently getting chemotherapy for cancer, Mr. Slattery says. Her immune system is compromised, and shes exactly the kind of person you want to take extra care to protect from contracting the virus. But due to Wolfs selective shutdown of residential construction, Mr. and Mrs. Slattery will not have a place to live in June. Many older Pennsylvanians, who are particularly susceptible to the coronavirus, are also at risk of homelessness. What could be more life-sustaining than keeping them safe and healthy? Sadly, this is just one example of the chaos Pennsylvanians are experiencing. Wolf did not consult with lawmakers or business leaders before issuing his shutdown order, missing the opportunity to build support and prevent problems like these. As a result, payroll companies were told to shut down, though doctors and nurses couldnt be paid without them. Manufacturers critical to the supply chain for life-sustaining equipment were closed. Truckers were told to continue deliveries, but Turnpike bathrooms were off-limits. Its understandable that a response to an unprecedented crisis will require some fixes. But these decisions, many of which were quickly reversed, could easily have been prevented. Then Wolf took a step no other governor has by instituting a disastrous waiver process. Business owners and lawmakers have cried foul over these waivers that have allowed select businesses to reopen. Workers across the state have been laid off or sent home while others,sometimes in the same industry, continue workingand theres been no clear rationale for why. More than 42,000 waiver requests were submitted before Wolf again surprised employers by suddenly shutting the process down on April 3. At that time, more than 11,000 requests had gone unanswered. For those that did receive a response, approvals and rejections seemed to have little rhyme or reason. Meanwhile, hundreds of businesses have received police warnings for remaining open. Its easy to understand the misgivings about these waivers, especially when the governors former business, Wolf Home Products, received a waiver. Public outcry resulted in the waiver being pulledbut neither the waiver nor its cancellation was explained. Heres the truth: We dont know the standard for receiving a waiver. Nobody knows who makes waiver decisions. There is no public list of businesses who have been allowed to reopen. And the Wolf administration refuses right-to-know requests for an explanation. This is a flagrant dismissal of transparency. Never before have Pennsylvania workers livelihoods been taken from them en masse without explanation. Pennsylvanias heroes of innovation and production are the key to overcoming COVID-19 and its economic aftermath. We can preserve their livelihoods without compromising safety. Thats why lawmakers are seeking to push the reset button on the business shutdown with Senate Bill 613, passed by the General Assembly this week. They believe arbitrary waivers should be replaced by nationally recognized standards from the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to determine what businesses are essential. The measure also requires businesses, like residential construction, to meet stringent health standards from the CDC before they reopen. That will bring transparency and clarity to an incoherent process. I have no doubt that Gov. Wolf wants whats best for all of us. But his insistence on going it alone and making decisions behind closed doors is crippling his credibility at a time when Pennsylvanians need to trust his leadership. Adopting clear standards, like those lawmakers just passed, will go a long way to restoring confidence that our state governments decision making is in all of our best interests. Charles Mitchell is president and CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation (CommonwealthFoundation.org), Pennsylvanias free-market think tank. This piece was originally published on Just Security, an online forum for analysis of U.S. national security law and policy. After 37 years practicing medicine in San Francisco, Dr. Donald Abrams is hanging up the stethoscope on June 29, 2020. A pioneer in the fight against AIDS, his extraordinary career is now, as he put it to me, bookended by epidemics. Because of the fear around AIDS in the early years, with an unknown mode of transmission and a 100 percent mortality rate at the time, some providers understandably did not want to care for that population. But Donald bravely and tirelessly treated these mostly gay young men who were withering with the disease. Now, still energetic at 70, Donald was eagerly anticipating his last-ever two weeks leading a hospitals inpatient medical team starting on April 4. With the onset of COVID 19, however, he began to have second thoughts. He sheepishly asked a colleague about the risk, given his age and asthma. The colleague replied, Grow up and wash your handsYou know how to handle an infectious disease. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Over the next two weeks, his family and friends increasingly expressed concern. I did not want to make [their] life difficult, he wrote of his employer, but I was getting cold feet. An inpatient medical team, led by a faculty internal medicine doctor, is composed of interns, residents, and medical students. Large hospitals usually have multiple teams caring for hospitalized patients. Also known as the medicine teaching service, they admit patients from the emergency department, take care of them on the wards, and, depending on the hospital, may follow them into the intensive care unit, if necessary. Finally, he mustered the courage to say, I cannot bring myself to, and no one who cares for me would let me attend on the medicine service. Advertisement I felt guilty, forcing them to scramble and look for a replacement with such short notice, Donald, a friend of two decades, told me. And the irony of me being on the front lines in the HIV [start] of my career but declining to participate during the COVID portion was not lost. In the end, his colleagues reassured him that I had paid my dues and now was the time to keep me safe, he said. Bowing out is not how he wanted to end his career, but he had to accept that it was the sensible and ethical thing to do. Advertisement As a physician with a disability, I faced a fairly similar dilemma. I have a spinal cord injury, and although I am an associate professor of radiology at a top teaching hospital, I too became anxious about working after reading about the mounting cases of coronavirus infections and COVID-19 illness in the United States. Was I at higher risk for a severe infection or a bad outcome? In early March, the website of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention listed only a few chronic conditions as risk factors. Yet I knew the list was incomplete, leaving out obvious conditions such as immune suppression and neurological conditions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I consider myself strong and resilient, having lived through the experience of rehabilitating and rebuilding my life after my accident. I am also generally healthyI do not have a chronic illness. But my injury weakened my diaphragm and respiratory muscles in addition to my arms and legs, so I have diminished lung function and a persistent, feeble cough. That means I would have difficulty fighting coronavirus, and more difficulty weaning off a ventilatorshould I need one. Before social distancing and shelter in place orders, I felt acutely self-conscious about my concerns of working amid the virus. Was I blowing the risk out of proportion? After some intense reflection, I emailed my division chief and department leadership requesting permission to work from home. My department has always been supportive, and this was no exception. As a purely diagnostic radiologist, who doesnt do invasive procedures or have a clinic, most of my patient interaction is through their radiologic images. For this reason, the accommodation request was not unreasonable. Indeed, I could do the same volume of work from my home workstation as I could in the hospital. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Unfortunately, not everyones employer is so supportive. Around the same time, an immune-suppressed radiology resident at another institution emailed me for advice. The residents request to read CT scans and the like remotely was met with skepticism and delays. Despite an email from a director asking about pre-existing conditions, there was no reassurance that steps would be taken to protect them. A faculty member to whom the resident reached out for advice confided that not coming into the hospital might make other faculty less confident in the residents abilities. Ultimately the faculty member told him to be careful, emphasizing that all healthcare providers are taking a risk and that the physicians who have lost their lives to coronavirus are heroic, which added to the residents guilt. Advertisement Advertisement The volunteerism of healthcare providers during this COVID crisis is commendable, and very different from the fearful response to AIDS. Many are risking their lives in the service of others, especially where there is a shortage of personal protective equipment. But is it ethical to put health care providers with high-risk medical conditions on the front lines? Some of our colleagues are on immunosuppressive drugs for organ transplants, have autoimmune diseases, or are on chemotherapy. Data are limited for SARS-CoV-2, as this coronavirus is named, but similar viruses can more easily infect them, taking advantage of their inability to mount an immune response, even leading to pneumonia and multi-organ failure. Not only would this take them out of the workforce, but they are more likely to utilize valuable resources, such as ICU beds and ventilators, should they fall ill. Advertisement Advertisement So how could the physician workforce engage its docs with disabilities while not endangering them? I believe that supervisors should work with providers who have disabilities and chronic illness to move them away from the front lines and into other roles where they can still participate, but at a safer distance. They could do virtual rounds with inpatient hospital teams, or perform telemedicine visits to help keep vulnerable outpatients away from the hospital. They could help their colleagues with unmet research obligations. Although some work up front would be required to rethink workflows, not much imagination is required to generate these and other options. There are, in short, many cost-effective and humane accommodations that would be worthwhile. These measures make so much sense that hospital leadership should be inspired to act, and public health officials focused on the pandemic at the local, state, and federal level should consider ways to encourage such measures. In fact, now that we have seen that telemedicine works well, we should not abandon it after this pandemic. It not only is more convenient for patients, but it also could make medicine as a career more accessible, and to help marginalized physicians stay in the workforce. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Within the medical world itself, there is a powerful culture of ableism. Social norms emphasize superhuman efforts of those who toil around the clock, endure without food or breaks, and above all, dont complain. Nowhere is this culture more prevalent than in medical schools and residency programs, where students and residents are even less empowered to self-disclose an illness or disability and ask for accommodations. One can imagine how these discussions sometimes play out on the backdrop of a professional culture that debated for years the wisdom of limiting residents to 80 hours per week. Our more junior colleagues with disabilities are both more impacted by the ableism, and more likely to internalize it. They may be reluctant to admit limitations, and eager to prove their strength. Consequently, it falls to leadership to initiate the conversation broadly, to normalize sensible self-protective behavior for all, but especially for those at higher risk. Advertisement As cases and deaths mount, we should not be lulled into complacency by the possible successful flattening of the curve in some locations. We need to be aggressively proactive about protecting our high-risk staff. We may not even know the medical history of providers in our departments and may be surprised at who is vulnerable during this pandemic. So, official policies must communicate support for high-risk providers, encourage requests for accommodation, and help reduce the guilt and shame that may serve as a disincentive to disclosure. Under these conditions, providers can request accommodations that minimize exposure, save lives, and still serve patients. The author wishes to thank Drs. Lisa Meeks and Arghavan Salles for their suggestions and edits. More From Just Security: The Dancer: President Trump, the Anti-Lockdown Posture, and Dr. Faucis Ace Card What Counts As Sufficient Transparency on Civilian Casualties in Somalia T he police were left stunned when a goose laid an egg in a normally bustling UK train station. Officers were on patrol in the deserted York train station amid the coronavirus lockdown when they made the discovery. The bird had laid the egg in a flower pot in the station entrance. British Transport Polices North Yorkshire force tweeted: This afternoon PCSO Ridley was on patrol at York Train Station when he noticed this goose had laid an egg amongst the flowers in the normally extremely busy main entrance. Amazing. Thank you to all those who continue to support our #NHSheroes in obeying the #lockdown. The post, liked more than 2,000 times, received a flurry of wellwishes for the animal - and puns. The North Yorkshire Crimestoppers charity replied: Its important not to get in a flap over this, the proverbial goose is not cooked as they are safe and well. The old bill will look after the birds bill and last and not least I feel a right feather brain for all the bad puns #GoodHumouredResolve. York train station is normally packed / PA Another user remarked: If nothing else anyone passing by will learn the true meaning of social distancing, momma goose aint gonna let anyone Within 2m of her brood! The police confirmed they have no plans to disturb the goose as its egg begins to hatch given how quiet and calm the situation is. Survey Finds CCP Virus Unity, but Big-Issue Polarization Drives `Bipartisanship That Bankrupts Country News Analysis Americans are impressively united across political and ideological groups on the seriousness of the CCP virus crisis, even as the nation remains deeply polarized on major issues, a new national survey finds. There is, however, a dangerous twist in an underlying bipartisanship among Americas political leadership thats rarely discussed in the mainstream media or acknowledged by most political leaders, according to Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). Ninety percent of 2,000 Americans interviewed at the end of March by More in Common agreed with the statement that were all in this together about the crisis sparked by the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. Deep unity was seen among respondents whether they identified as Democrats (91 percent), independents (89 percent), or Republicans (93 percent), as well as among those calling themselves traditional conservatives (97 percent), moderates (92 percent), and traditional liberals (95 percent). More in Common is a New York-based nonprofit devoted to building communities and societies that are stronger and more resilient to the forces of social fracturing and polarization. The foundation also has offices in London, Berlin, and Paris. Weve seen a dramatic increase in peoples sense of solidarity, they feel that they are less polarized than ever. On the other hand, the reality is that things havent really changed all that much, Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, told a digital panel on the surveys results hosted April 18 by FixUS. FixUS is a project of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Rauch says he doubts the unity related to combating the virus will last. Similarly, Princeton University political science professor Nolan McCarty told the panel that one of the things that is often missed in these discussions is polarization across states. Because many states have become much more partisan in terms of governmental control, were at a moment when the partisan and ideological divisions across states are, at least as far as I can measure, at an all-time high. Large pluralities among liberals (40 percent) and conservatives (50 percent) in the survey said they have nothing in common with each other, McCarty added. Such polarization is often described as the culprit producing a paralyzing partisan gridlock that prevents progress in the nations capital. Collusive Bipartisanship Lee, who was elected in the Tea Party revolt that fueled massive Republican gains in Congress in 2010, has a unique take on the issues of partisanship, polarization, and bipartisanship. What we often see in Washington and very often what people like to complain about and reflexively attribute to partisan gridlock is neither partisan nor, strictly speaking, fairly describable as gridlock, Lee told The Epoch Times in a recent interview. We dont get to be $23 trillion, or $24 trillion or $25 trillion, whatever it is that we are now in debt, without a whole lot of Republicans and a whole lot of Democrats agreeing to do that, he said. Lee attributes the situation to an excessive inclination on the part of many in Congress to engage in bipartisan collusion to expand the role of government, and of the federal government in particular, in a way that is never going to satisfy most Americans. The problem, as Lee sees it, is that, as this collusive bipartisanship pushes government more deeply into the everyday affairs of most Americans, it also cultivates ideological polarization, while prompting decisions that complicate the countrys increasingly dire financial condition. The Heritage Foundations Robert Moffit agrees, telling The Epoch Times that Lee is correct when he says that the deep divisions in Congress are not merely divisions between Democrats and Republicans, but rather a deepening polarization among the American people themselves. Moffit, who served in the Reagan administration and on Capitol Hill before joining the conservative think tank as a senior fellow in domestic policy studies, added that the division exists on a whole series of issues, including social and economic policy, health care policy, the role of the federal government. There are even deeper and profoundly sensitive questions such as the value of human life, both at the beginning and at the end of life. Moffits Heritage colleague, attorney Hans von Spakovsky, told The Epoch Times that members of both parties are responsible for the dangerous expansion of the federal government, the reckless spending, and the delegation of power and authority to an administrative state made up of bureaucrats not accountable to the American electorate. Practical Solutions Von Spakovsky is a senior legal fellow in Heritages Institute for Constitutional Government. Asked about Lees analysis, Keith Allred, executive director of the National Institute on Civil Discourse (NICD) at the University of Arizona, told The Epoch Times that broad, bipartisan support is a strong, but not perfect indicator of wisdom. The founders built that fundamental idea into the Constitution. Another factor, according to Jimmy Williams, former senior economic adviser to Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), is the decline in personal friendships among lawmakers. Its very easy to dislike someone you dont have a personal relationship with. Members and their spouses used to know each other well. Their kids went to school together in the D.C. area. They had dinner and cocktail parties. Today? Members are encouraged to leave D.C. the second they can to campaign. That means they dont know each other. If theres one thing Id suggest, it would be this: Members work six days a week in D.C. for the first year and a half, then pare back the work week to campaign. There is hope for a more unified country, compared to the years prior to the Civil War, according to NICDs Allred, who pointed out that today, more than 40 percent of Americans consider themselves independents. Each party is a smaller minority. Most Americans are hungry for a system that gets beyond the hyper-partisanship of our day. The difference is it was hard to see a mutually acceptable solution in the years immediately preceding the Civil War. Today, we simply need a focus on practical solutions wise enough to attract broad support among a public that is far less divided on the issues than Congress is. Contact Mark Tapscott at Mark.Tapscott@epochtimes.nyc. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Monday announced more than 11,000 Tennesseans received free COVID-19 tests through the weekend efforts of Unified-Command Group to offer tests regardless of traditional symptoms. The Unified-Command Group is a joint partnership between the Tennessee Department of Health, the Tennessee Department of Military and the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. "Tennesseans across the state heeded the call of when in doubt, get a test and we believe these efforts will be an important part of our overall strategy to reboot Tennessees economy, said Governor Lee. While demand exceeded original projections, our Unified-Command group adapted quickly this weekend so that individuals who needed tests could receive them. Saturday turnout was the largest with more than 6,500 samples taken from 22 sites across all three grand divisions of the state. Tennessee Department of Health personnel and Soldiers and Airmen of the Tennessee National Guard operated 19 sites, four more than originally planned, to meet the testing demand. The additional sites were opened in coordination with city and county officials to meet demand based on local needs. Hours were extended to ensure all participants received a test. Sunday testing turnout exceeded expectations with more than 4,600 tests collected across 11 sites. On both days, many Tennesseans drove to sites outside their county of residence to obtain a test from a neighboring county that operated a weekend site. "Since Governor Lee's expanded testing initiative announcement last week, we continue to see an increase in the number of citizens who want to be tested whether it's on a weekday or weekend and regardless of symptoms," said Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey. We thank our local partners for their help in making testing events a success and encourage citizens to utilize their local health departments for testing during the week. Expanded testing will continue for the next two weekends, April 25-26 and May 2-3. A full list of sites can be accessed here. In addition to drive-through sites, all rural county health departments across the state offer free COVID-19 testing five days a week. WEEKEND SNAPSHOT EXPANDED TESTING Brasilia, April 20 : Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has once again ignored social distancing measures amid the coronavirus pandemic and took part in several demonstrations staged by his supporters. In an address to his supporters from atop a pickup truck on Sunday, Bolsonaro once again spoke about the fight against "old politics" and the "patriotic" spirit of the Brazilians, reports Efe news. In capital Brasilia, Bolsonaro addressed hundreds of supporters who, after taking part in a motorcade against quarantine and social distancing measures, gathered outside the Army Headquarters to call for a military intervention by the leader against the legislature and judiciary. Bolsonaro did not wear a mask or gloves although he avoided direct physical contact as he had done during another demonstration by his supporters in front of the presidential Planalto palace, when he lowered the ramp and waved to his supporters and, far from taking action to disperse the gathering, encouraged it. The right-wing leader, who has already tested negative for COVID-19 after a trip to the US last month, had repeated coughing fits on Sunday, without being mindful of those accompanying him, including advisers, lawmakers and bodyguards. His supporters carried posters and shouted slogans such as "Military Intervention with Bolsonaro", "Out, Maia" - referring to the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Rodrigo Maia -, and even alluded to "AI-5", the authoritarian decree issued by the military dictatorship (1964-1985). "Now it is the people in power... We don't want to negotiate anything," said the President, who has repeatedly ignored health recommendations issued to contain the pandemic and even gone as far as to call coronavirus "a little cold" or a "little flu" at the start of the outbreak. Subsequently, the head of state also criticized the mandatory lockdown imposed by states such as Sao Paulo, the most populous in the country with 46 million inhabitants, which accounts for almost half of the 2,462 reported coronavirus deaths, and recommended quarantines for only at-risk populations. Currently, there are 38,654 COVID-19 cases in the country. In Sao Paulo, Bolsonaro's supporters organized at least two motorcades, from Ibirapuera Park and some upper-class neighbourhoods to the central Avenida Paulista, where hundreds of demonstrators protested against the governor, Joao Doria, a former ally of the president. In addition to these two motorcades in Brazil's largest city and those in Brasilia, demonstrations in support of the federal government and against local authorities were also staged in some interior cities in Sao Paulo state and other regional capitals such as Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Recife, Natal and Porto Alegre. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text The Kete Muslim Youth Association has joined the COVID-19 fight with a donation of various items at Kete Krachi in the Oti Region. The items donated worth GH5, 000.00 cedis include Veronica buckets, hand sanitizers, liquid soaps among others. Haardi Abdul Rahman presented some of the items on behalf of the Association to the Omanhene of the Krachi Traditional Area, Krachiwura Nana Mprah Besemuna III. Nana Mprah Besemunah III receiving the items commended the Association for their initiative and urged all his subjects to observe the laid down protocols to curb the spread of the pandemic. Nana Besemuna III called for peace and unity among the people as the fight against the pandemic continues. Other institutions that also received the donations were; Kete Krachi Government Hospital, Kete Krachi Prisons, GBC Kaakye FM, Traditional Council, Mosques and some vantage places in the Kete Township. President of the Kete Muslim Youth Association in Accra, Shaafi Alhassan in an interview with First1News said, Following the outbreak of pandemic the youth wants to be proactive in the prevention of the disease by contributing our quota. Shaafi Alhassan admonished the residents of Kete and its environs to adhere to the protocols given by health personnel by washing their hands with soap under running water and also stick to the social distancing protocol. In an interview with First1News, Alhaji Ing. Aminu Abubakar a native, he stated the move is a great milestone towards peace in Kete. The reception given to the Muslim youth at the Traditional Council was great. We have responsibility as youth, using myself as example my uncle is the Krachiwura and my Father is the grandson of the famous Shehu Umar of Kete Krachi. There is the need to synchronize the Muslims of Kete and the Krachi like it used to be in the days of our grandparents. He also advise everybody to adhere to the protocols outline by the by Ministry of Health; social distancing, frequent hand wash and sanitizing. Source: first1news.com Former lawmaker, Senator Shehu Sani has cautioned the federal government of Nigeria not to follow the footsteps of Ghana by lifting lockdown in the country. Recall that on Sunday, Ghanas President Nana Akufo-Addo lifted the 21-days Coronavirus lockdown in the country. Also Read: Ghana President Lifts Lockdown Despite Increase In Pandemic Reacting to this, the former lawmaker from Kaduna expressed that Ghana should not be Nigerias guide on whether to lift the lockdown or not. He expressed via his official Twitter handle that the extension or lifting of the lockdown should be decided based on the realities of Nigeria and the level of preparedness to handle such a gamble. See his tweet below: WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide a case from Georgia about the reach of a federal computer hacking law. The case involves Nathan Van Buren, who was a police sergeant in Cumming, Georgia. The FBI set up a sting operation to find out if Van Buren would provide law enforcement information in exchange for cash, and he was offered money in exchange for searching a Georgia license plate database. Van Buren was ultimately convicted of fraud and violating the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Van Buren argued the law didnt apply because he accessed a database that he was authorized to access. The case wont be argued before the fall. Karnataka imposes weekend curfew to contain the surge in Covid-19 cases; details here Crime rate in Bengaluru: Murders and burglary cases dropped in 2021 in Karnataka's capital How Bengaluru is containing the spread of the coronavirus India oi-Briti Roy Barman Bengaluru, Apr 20: There would be a limited number of relaxations which would be allowed in some parts of Bengaluru post-April 20 lockdown announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. To take control of the situation, the Karnataka government has identified several containment zones in a bid to curb the spread of the pandemic. Karnataka has witnessed over 359 cases according to the data provided by the health ministry. Bengaluru has reported 89 of which 44 have been discharged. 4 deaths have been reported. In view of the high number of cases being reported from Bengaluru, the authorities had identified several hotspots and sealed them off. Restriction will continue, but selective relaxations in non-containment zones Meanwhile, Chief Minister of Karnataka, B S Yediyurappa has said that the lockdown relaxations will not be lifted across the state until the midnight of April 21. What is a containment zone: A containment zone is a specific geographical area where positive cases of COVID-19 are found. Strict movement restrictions are in place to prevent the further spread of the virus. These zones are made to map the local transmission and prevent the spread of the virus. Under this some lanes or neighbourhoods as declared as containment zones even if it has one case. The MHA in its advisory said that the relaxations post-April 20, will however not apply to the containment zones. According to a circular from BBMP, containment areas in Bengaluru are divided into three zones which are A, AP and CL. "A"Containment Zone limits will be 100 Metres radius around the COVID-19 POsitive case premise. "AP" Containment Zone limits will be the entire Apartment block/building. "CL" Containment Zone limits will be as defined in the Map Annexed. Following are lists of directions of the activities in the containment zones have given by BBMP: Special Health Needs: Health Authorities shall identify and list persons requiring special needs (Pregnancies, Cardiac Disease and other serious ailments) in Containment Zone with the help of Resident Welfare Association for the building/ area placed under Containment Zone. Perimeter Control Police Authorities will have to cordon off all entrances and not entail any person coming out of Containment Zone for any purpose. coming out of Containment Zone for any purpose. There will be only one entry and exit for each Containment Zone. No Private Vehicle would be allowed inside or outside the Containment Zone. Police Authority to ensure that there is complete sealing of the Area. Police to undertake complete curfew management and allow essential services and medical emergencies. Police Authorities can use Drone and other technologies in Containment Zone for total lockdown. There shall be restriction on the movement of persons even inside the Containment Zone. Surveillance and Preventive Health Authorities shall immediately start Surveillance and Preventive activities and establish Health Outpost with necessary field staff for health screening along with intensive Information, Education & Communication campaign. Contact Tracing & Tracking as per protocol and immediate shifting of High Risk Contacts to institutions and subjecting Low Risk Contacts to Home Quarantine is to be done. (Low Risk to be moved to Institutions based on the area in which they are residing like slums). Contacts to institutions and subjecting Low Risk Contacts to Home Quarantine is to be done. (Low Risk to be moved to Institutions based on the area in which they are residing like slums). Testing of Swab Samples of High & Low Risk Contacts. Health profiling of entire population to find Influenza like Symptoms and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness and subject them to necessary treatment. Shifting of Secondary Contacts (Low Risk Contacts) from Home to Institutional Quarantine (Hotels) in case of slums identified in CL- 2 & 3. Solid Waste Management: Solid Waste Management Authorities to ensure daily Waste management that is inclusive of Bio-Medical Waste Management and ensure spraying of disinfectant in the Containment Zone. inclusive of Bio-Medical Waste Management and ensure spraying of disinfectant in the Containment Zone. Power Sprayers, Drone Sprays and Jetting Machines etc. shall be deployed extensively in the Containment Zones for effective and sustained sanitization of the area. Essentials: In view of restriction of movement of persons residing in the Containment Zone both inside as well as outside the Containment Zone, it is imperative to ensure that the essential commodities are made available at their door step. BBMP to ensure provision of drinking water in case of shortage by coordinating with BWSSB. To ensure house to house provisioning of essential supplies and services. Food Packets and Ration provisioning for the needy in the Zone. Provision of Ration by Fair Price Shops at door step of the card holder. Provision of daily necessities like Milk, Newspaper, Vegetables, Groceries, Bread Products, Meat etc. is to be planned in a manner which takes into account time of requirement of such commodities and if an area/ cluster is large it can be further subdivided for the purpose of supplying essentials. Buffer Zone Management: Intensive Buffer Zone will be 1 km radius wherein house to house screening will be done by health authorities. Health authorities will conduct active surveillance and social distancing measures in the Buffer Zone. Incident Commander of the Containment Zone will be responsible for management of the Buffer Zone as well. Social Distancing measures in area around Containment Zone in the buffer zone must be strictly enforced by Police and no public function / gathering is to be allowed in the buffer zone and use of masks to be enforced. Surveillance by Health Team to find Influenza-like Illness and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness and managing the same through Fever Clinic or Isolation depending on the case. The BBMP circular also has stated that non-reporting of new COVID case within last 28days of the positive case of the containment zone and less than 10 contacts remaining in home quarantine in containment zone. Crisis Management Team Incident Commander - Crisis Management Team: He will be responsible for overall management of the Containment Zone and Buffer Zone. Incident Command Centre would be the Ward Office of BBMP. Logistic Support to Incident Commander shall be provided by BBMP. Joint Commissioner, Zone shall ensure that all necessary support from engineering, solid waste management, health and revenue teams of BBMP is provided to the Incident Commander. Read the entire document on containment here: By Zhang Bin, Chen Bo BEIJING, Apr. 20 It is learnt from the Equipment Development Department (EDD) of Chinas Central Military Commission (CMC) that the Chinese military is to hold the Equipment Big Data Summit 2020 in the coming September. The summit aims at further propelling application of such technological achievements as big data, cloud computing and AI in Chinas military equipment development, and upgrading the capability of modern governance system. The summit will be hosted by the EDDs Equipment System Assessment Center. The organizers have now published notification on soliciting essays from big data practitioners inside and outside the military. And the essays to be solicited cover a wide range of areas, including data service system, data collection and storage, data governance and security, intelligent computing application, and block chain application. Demonstrators rally last week in Huntington Beach. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) An Orange County man has been arrested on suspicion of threatening a KTTV Channel 11 cameraman with a knife hours after a quarantine protest Friday in Huntington Beach. Christien Petersen, 36, of Costa Mesa was taken into custody at 7:49 p.m. Friday for exhibiting a deadly weapon other than [a] firearm and for kidnapping, the Huntington Beach Police Department's log stated. Petersen, who is believed to be a lawyer, is being held on $100,000 bond and is expected to be in court Tuesday. Police said Petersen was allegedly intoxicated and upset when he was filmed by a Fox cameraman for a report in the aftermath of that days Live Free or Die protest, which focused on ending COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. According to Angela Bennett, a Huntington Beach Police public information officer, Petersen asked the camera operator not to film him. Petersen then pulled out a small pocketknife and threatened the cameraman when he refused, police said. A Fox reporter on assignment with the cameraman called police, who arrested Petersen. Police did not explain the kidnapping charge, even though the cameraman wasnt physically removed from the premises. I dont know about the kidnapping charges, Bennett said, adding that the investigation was continuing. Fox spokeswoman Erica Keane said the reporter and cameraman were pretty shaken up, but they are thankfully OK. They are also expected to take a couple of days off, Keane said. Fox did not air a television report that evening because all raw footage was immediately turned over to Huntington Beach police. The station has not identified the reporter or cameraman, but is expected air further details during a regular broadcast. Friday evenings incident took place on Main Street and Walnut Avenue, where more than 100 people congregated around 1 p.m. for a roughly two-hour protest against Californias stay-at-home order, which is aimed at slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus. Bennett said no arrests were made during the protest. Updates: 4:43 PM, Apr. 20, 2020: Fox spokeswomans name was added. Massachusetts' Institute of Technology (MIT) at its Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) has developed a device that can monitor patients with the highly infective COVID-19 remotely and thus prevent the spread of the infection to healthcare workers. COVID-19 The COVID-19 pandemic has spread to nearly all countries across the world, and the high rate of infection from the virus causing it called the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has made treatment difficult. Patients diagnosed with the condition need to be strictly isolated to prevent further spread. Healthcare workers coming in close contact with such patients are often at a greater risk of acquiring the infection. There are preliminary studies that reveal that the high viral load from the infected patients could be dangerous to the healthcare workers coming in contact with the. MIT's solution would allow healthcare workers to monitor infected patients from a safe distance. What is the device? CSAIL's new device, called the Emerald, can not only measure the vital parameters of the patient, such as breathing but also record the sleep patterns and transmit it to the treating healthcare professionals via wireless signals. The Emerald was developed by a team led by MIT professor Dina Katabi. It contains a WiFi-like box that measures wireless signals that are picked up by artificial intelligence. The AI-enabled device can measure movements, sleep patterns, and vital signs of the patient. What is unique about the device is that it radiates about a thousand times less radiation than from a mobile phone, explain the researchers. Emerald. Image Credit: MIT Trial Emerald is being trialed in different hospitals and assisted-care homes. One such is the Heritage Assisted Living in the Boston suburb of Framingham. After the patient consented to be part of the trial with the device, it was installed in her room. AI and Dr. Ipsit Vahia are monitoring the vital signs and other parameters of the patient from the safety of another room or even location. Parameters such as movement, walking speed, breathing patterns can also be recorded. Researchers found that Emerald had recorded that the patient's breathing rate had reduced from 23 per minute at baseline to 18 per minute, and with time her sleep patterns normalized. She was able to walk at a faster rate within her apartment rooms. Her recovery process could be tracked. Non-contact health monitoring for COVID-19 Play Vahia, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, said in a statement, "When doctors have to interact directly with patients to conduct exams or monitor vital signs, each step along the way represents an increased risk that they will get infected. Given how Emerald can generate important health data without any patient contact, it could minimize the risk that doctors and nurses will catch the disease from their patients." Vahia went on to add that the anxiety caused by the disease often affects heart rate and other parameters and also influences sleep. Many of the patients complain of insomnia, he said. Emerald use in this patient could successfully reveal the presence of sleep apnea in the patient, which could be confirmed by later testing. William McGrory, who oversees mental health services for Heritage Assisted Living said, "It's clear that, with these high-risk elderly patients, they would greatly benefit from us being able to passively gather medical data over time when it is not possible to interface with each person directly." He said that Heritage is conducting a pilot project using Emerald for the assessment of other conditions such as dementia. Katabi and colleagues have been working with other hospitals and pharmaceutical companies as well in the development of health monitoring remotely. COVID-19, she said is a challenging situation, especially in retirement homes, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities where there are mostly elderly populations with other diseases that are more at risk of getting infected with COVID-19 and also dying of it. Katabi says devices like Emerald can not only reduce the contact and risk of infection but also expand the healthcare capacity by allowing more patients to be monitored at once. This can also help healthcare workers triage less severe patients and monitor them within their own homes rather than overwhelming the hospitals and healthcare systems, which could be reserved for only severe cases. Implications for future According to Vahia, the director of McLean Hospital's Technology and Aging Laboratory, that develops technologies for elderly care, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the exploration of several new medical technologies to help large number of patients and providing care to as many as possible with limited resources. He said, "Even in just the last few weeks, there's been a newfound urgency about developing remote-sensing technologies like Emerald that can help doctors do their jobs as safely as possible." A new way to monitor vital signs (that can see through walls) | Dina Katabi Play Report released on the Roundtable on Human Rights in the Salmon Farming Industry April 20,2020 | Source: Rafto The Roundtable on salmon farming and human rights, organized by the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights, The Institute for Human Rights and Business, and The Danish Institute for Human Rights, on 6 December 2019 at Bergen, Norway, was held in light of the urgent need to have a stronger focus on human-rights issues in the salmon farming and aquaculture feed industries globally. While, in the past, some attention has been paid to environmental impacts of the industry, as well as some social- and governance-related issues, not enough attention has been paid to human rights. Therefore, three human-rights organizations with extensive experience in human rights and business, including working with businesses -- the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights, The Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR) and The Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) -- gathered more than 25 stakeholders, including companies from the salmon farming and aquaculture feed industries and financial organizations, to discuss this topic in Bergen, given the significance of the aquaculture industry to Norway. The day started with presentations by the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industries and Fisheries, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and a representative of The Norwegian Seafood Federation which gave a general overview of the situation in Norway and actors at the international level, demonstrating the importance of human rights in this industry. These were followed by presentations from the various salmon farming and aquaculture feed companies and financial actors in the room. Background Norway is the second-largest seafood exporter in the world. In light of discussions regarding the development of mandatory human-rights due diligence legislation for Norwegian companies, there is growing momentum to put human rights higher on the agenda also for the Norwegian salmon farming industry. From a State perspective, human rights are of high priority; they are a part of the Norwegian Constitution and are core principles in important decision-making processes, including promoting the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). For the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, addressing the challenges in the seafood industry is a high priority at the national and international levels, for example, through collaborations with Interpol and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to address the issue of illegal fishing. There is an increasing number of frameworks and initiatives that push for companies globally to respect human rights. The globally authoritative framework is the UNGPs, which was endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2011 and outlines what the responsibility is for companies to respect human rights. Companies in all industries, small or big, should practise human-rights due diligence, a multi-step process that allows companies to: (1) assess their negative human-rights impacts; (2) integrate policies and act on these findings; (3) track and monitor effectiveness; and (4) communicate and report on this. Companies should also engage with internal and external stakeholders and provide access to remedy. Other relevant development aims include the SDGs, to which many companies are committed to contributing. Research has indicated that more than 90 per cent of all goals and targets of the SDGs are grounded in international human rights. Therefore, if companies respect human rights, this is the best way to contribute to the realization of the SDGs. Specific to the seafood industry, various initiatives are underway to raise the bar in terms of the industrys social practices. The FAO started developing guidance for fisheries and aquaculture companies on what socially responsible business conduct entails through the FAO Guidance on Socially Responsible Fish Value Chains. The World Benchmarking Alliances Seafood Stewardship Index is benchmarking the worlds largest seafood companies on sustainability issues, including on social and human-rights themes. Salmon farming companies are also engaged in sector-level initiatives that address sustainability issues, including human rights, such as the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBoS) initiative or the Global Salmon Initiative. One campaign which pushes retailers of seafood to take their responsibility is Oxfams Behind the Barcodes campaign, which examines the policies and practices of some of the biggest supermarkets around the world and pushes them to have a closer look at the social practices behind their products, including seafood . All these developments demonstrate that human rights can no longer be overlooked by the fisheries and aquaculture industry, including by salmon farming companies. In conclusion: First, it is important to note that the salmon farming industry can have a positive impact on the realization of human rights, in terms of access to food and nutrition, improved livelihoods and job creation. However, the industry also has multiple negative impacts and there is an increasing realization that human rights cannot be ignored any longer by the industry. Many of the Norwegian salmon farming and aquaculture feed companies have committed to respecting human rights, either through public commitment to the UNGPs and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises or through their involvement in various sectoral, or multi-stakeholder, initiatives which have a sustainability or social focus. The companies in the industry are increasingly transparent about the human-rights issues and challenges in the industry, but what they still lack is access to practical tools and resources tailored to the salmon farming industry as well as reliable data to assess and address their main human-rights risks. Companies in the industry rely on audits to assess impacts, which, judging from experience from many other industry sectors, is very likely not sufficient. The Roundtable also reinforced that human-rights and labour-rights issues do not only occur in the global South but are also prevalent in countries such as Norway, the United States and Canada, and should, therefore, be more proactively addressed in these contexts. In the final session, which focused on the role of financial actors, it became evident that financiers have an important role to play in pushing the industry to act more responsibly when it comes to human-rights impacts; they need to practise due diligence and collaborate to ensure that the companies they finance act responsibly. But which other actors can have an influence on the industry; what are the levers for change in the industry? It was pointed out that retailers and consumer groups have an important role to play in changing the behaviour of all actors along the seafood value chains, given the increasing drive towards more robust human-rights due diligence, transparency and reporting. Next steps The participants of the Roundtable valued the discussions on human rights and expressed interest in continued dialogue on human rights in the salmon farming industry. As potential next steps, the participants and organizers discussed various ideas for follow-up, including: Sector-specific tools and resources to assess human-rights risks and impacts; Training and awareness raising on human rights in the salmon farming and aquaculture feed industries; Possible joint human-rights studies or impact assessments in common segments of the industrys supply chain or common countries where the companies operate; Future roundtables to continue to discuss specific human-rights topics or a focus on specific countries, i.e. labour-rights issues in the salmon farming industry, indigenous peoples rights in the salmon farming industry, climate justice and the salmon farming and aquaculture feed industry, or human-rights impacts of the industry in specific country contexts, such as Chile, Canada or Scotland. Theme(s): Fisheries Resources. A medical staff member cares for a patient with the coronavirus. Flavio Lo Scalzo/Reuters We're still learning about all the terrible things the novel coronavirus does to human bodies. Doctors are unsure of the best way to treat it. In the sickest patients who have COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, the disease affects more than just the lungs. Doctors have reported kidney problems, heart problems, and an unusually high rate of blood clots in severely ill patients. Doctors aren't sure how to treat the blood clots. Some are proposing heavy doses of blood-thinning medications, while others are exploring clot-busting drugs otherwise used to treat strokes. Trials to evaluate whether those options help patients recover are ongoing, but results are still months away, leading doctors to make decisions on their own. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Dr. Alex Spyropoulos is focused on one big question when it comes to patients who are severely ill with COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The question: If doctors give therapeutic doses of the blood-thinner heparin, do those doctors save the lives of COVID-19 patients? Spyropoulos is an expert on blood clots at Northwell Health in New York, and he said that's the single most important question he's come across in the time he's spent in his field. As the coronavirus pandemic has spread, infecting millions globally and killing hundreds of thousands, doctors have been forced to rapidly figure out how to treat it without a vaccine or medicines that cure it. They're still not sure of the best way to get oxygen into the damaged lungs of the most severely ill patients, for example. DataTicker - Covid 19 Global and US And now, they're learning that the respiratory disease appears to be impacting more than just the lungs, particularly in severe cases. Doctors have reported kidney issues, heart problems, and more recently, issues with blood clots appearing in different parts of the body. Not helping the matter, researchers have also reported complications that might make it harder for people to form blood clots in other hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Story continues Never miss out on healthcare news. Subscribe to Dispensed, Business Insider's weekly newsletter on pharma, biotech, and healthcare. Typically, doctors like Spyropoulos prefer to rely on results from robust clinical trials to figure out whether treatments are effective. But because the virus is so new, trials are just getting started, with results expected in the coming months. "We're driving blindly based on what we call very weak but very compelling data," Spyropoulos said. In the absence of sturdy scientific evidence backing up whether one approach or another is best, doctors are debating the best way to treat the disease. Studies are ongoing looking into the answer to Spyropoulos's question, as well as whether clot-busting drugs typically used to treat strokes are a better approach. Read more: There are more than 70 potential coronavirus vaccines in the works. Here are the top efforts to watch, including the 16 vaccines set to be tested in people this year. 'Remarkably high' incidence of clotting in COVID-19 patients Early on in the coronavirus outbreak, doctors in the US were hearing from colleagues in China about the virus' effects on the heart, Dr. Thomas Maddox, who serves as chair of the science and quality committee of the American College of Cardiology, told Business Insider. The effects seemed to be related to both a viral invasion of the heart and to the stress of fighting the respiratory disease. With COVID-19, doctors are also seeing blood clots occurring in the lungs and bodies of patients on ventilators, Dr. Greg Martin, a professor of pulmonary critical care at Emory University and president-elect of the Society of Critical Care Medicine, told Business Insider. Clots can wreak havoc on the body, traveling and blocking up veins, leading to strokes, heart attacks, kidney problems, lung problems, and more. Blood clots aren't uncommon in severely ill patients in intensive care units, or even in hospitalizations. While in the ICU, patients are typically on breathing support and sedated, which limits their ability to move as they heal. Staying still raises the risk of clots. Read more: The US is sprinting to develop a coronavirus vaccine or treatment. Here's how 19 top drugmakers are racing to tackle the pandemic. Northwell Health's Dr. Alex Spyropoulos with a colleague. Northwell Health Other viruses also raise the risk of clots But doctors have a hunch that the virus might play a role in increasing the risk of clots, too. "We think it's one of the most important, if not the most important, issue with respect to monitoring sick hospitalized COVID-19 patients," Spyropoulos said. It wouldn't be the first time, he said. Doctors noted an elevated risk of clotting in patients with H1N1, or swine flu, as well as in the SARS outbreak, another coronavirus, in the early 2000s. With the novel coronavirus, more clots seem to be originating in the lungs, Spyropoulos said. In a recent observational study, Dutch researchers looked at 184 patients in the intensive care unit with coronavirus. About a third of them had a complication associated with a clot, such as clots in the lungs, clots in the legs, stroke, heart attack, or other clots cutting off blood to other parts of the body. All were on preventive treatment intended to prevent clotting in the body. That's a higher rate of problems than might typically be seen in patients in intensive care units, Spyropoulos said. Typically, he said, clotting rates in ICUs for different conditions are between 5-10%. The researchers called it "remarkably high," recommending increasing doses of the blood-thinning medication. To figure out the best way to treat patients, researchers are evaluating two options: Heparin, a blood thinner that prevents clotting complications in patients. Clot-busting drugs, typically used to treat strokes. Making decisions in the absence of evidence For now, most of the evidence doctors are using isn't much better than anecdotes. The ACC is currently reviewing recommendations on how to take care of the clotting complications seen in COVID-19 patients, but heart doctors won't have much evidence to guide them until they get clinical trial results, likely, in the second half of this year. "Our journals are inundated with essentially opinion pieces," Maddox said. To preventing clotting complications in COVID-19, Northwell's Spyropoulos has been relying on his clinical experience to make decisions. "If you have a deep experience in this field you can make reasonable assumptions and extrapolations and observations from indirect data," Spyropoulos said. For the past month partially while out sick with COVID-19 himself he been working with the health system to adjust guidelines, stepping up preventive dosing of blood thinners and making sure doctors are more sensitive to signals that might indicate clotting, such as swelling in the legs of patients. The health system has also been keeping tabs on signs of clotting once patients leave the hospital and prescribing blood thinners when patients are discharged. Clotting complications outside the hospital in COVID-19 patients For now, most of the conversation is about what to do with blood clot complications in hospitalized patients. But, Spyropoulos said, there are two additional questions he's keeping his eye on. One is whether clotting complications are happening in milder COVID-19 cases that don't require a hospital stay. That's a question that's far from being answered, particularly given the lack of routine testing available. The other question is whether blood clots are causing problems after COVID-19 patients leave the hospital, leading to sudden deaths. Spyropoulos said he's concerned about complications arising after patients are discharged. In early autopsy data from Northwell, there appear to be major clotting events like a massive heart attack or lung clots in 40% of patients who have died after leaving the hospital. Read the original article on Business Insider The Perspective Atlanta, Georgia April 20, 2020 In 1979, another human suffering, due to the Cambodian genocide under the Pol Pot regime, was put to a halt. Good men won over evil men because someone envisioned the idea to establish an entity (i.e., Mercy Corps) to reduce human suffering. So, now is the idea of reducing human calamity such as the pandemic Coronavirus still relevant? If yes, why some nongovernmental agencies such as Mercy Corps failed to build clinics, train medical personnel, buy protective equipment and respirators supplies that would have reduced the spread of diseases such as the Coronavirus? Mercy Corps could have used some of the idle cash of the $126M held at bank accounts to finance hospital programs? This economic arrangement, in my view, would also be correcting an error made when Mercy Corps used donors contributions to pay $200M to personnel and consultant, but spent $35M for Programs and Supplies in 2019. I surmise donors want NGOs to use cash and finance programs, but not to pay excessive compensations. Or, why not donate some of the $29M investment (i.e., Derivatives; money invested in the gambling on Wall Street). Further, why not reduce the $35M distributed to other NGOs and use the savings to fight illiteracy and hunger. Predictably, donors who have and continue to solve human sufferings might willingly replenish cash reserves that Mercy Corps used to finance humanitarian problems. If Mercy Corps has not changed its mission, it is certainly different from another nongovernmental agency called Mercy, which was established in 1827. The 1827 Mercy generated $29M in 2018, while the 1979 Mercy Corps generated $400M in the same year. Besides, the 1827 Mercy does not pay salaries over $60,000, according to its assertion made in the 2018 Financial Statements, but Mercy Corps paid an excessive salary. Interestingly, while 1979 Mercy Corps might be different from 1827 Mercy, its financial arrangements are similar to other nongovernmental agencies. For instance, instead of investing in food production or providing shelter, Mercy Corps, UNDP, UNICEF invest in risky investment portfolios such as derivatives (defaults swaps), keep huge cash held at banks accounts, undertake profit-making activities or increase profits of farmers in rich countries. Let us look at Mercy Corps expenses and Assets. EXPENSE SCHEDULE OF MERCY CORPS DESCRIPTION ASSISTANCE RELIEF ECONOMIC DEVELOP. HEALTH EXPENSES ADMIN. EXPENSES TOTAL PERSONNEL $28M $52M $13M $39M $166M PROFESSIONAL 6M 9M 2M 4M 31M MATERIAL AID -0- 1M 1M 0.1M 0.4M SUPPLIES 9M 7M 2M 0. 2M 35M CONSTRUCTION 3M 2M 5M 16M SUBGRANTS 60M 34M 5M 134M OTHERS TOTAL 120M 140M 37M 55M 470M (See Page # 6 of the 2019 Financial Statements.) Mercy Corps and Affiliates 2019 Consolidated Statement of Financial Position DESCRIPTION 2019 2018 CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS $126M $135M INVESTMENTS 19M 23M MICROFINANCE 99M 82M INVENTORIES & MATERIAL AID 1M 0.8M TOTAL 361M 347M (See page # 3 of the 2019 Financial Statements). Mercy Corps Expenses and values of Assets indicate that it has deviated from the original purpose of its existence. Its new interests are they similar to those of the World Bank and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO). These two institutions were organized after World War II to address poverty, ignorance, disease and weave together a safety net for the world's poorest. But they have failed, according to C. Peter Timmer, a Stanford University scholar who studies food security. The World Bank, instead of fighting poverty, generates trillions of dollars (i.e., as interest income) from lending money to poor countries that it borrows from Wall Street. (See 2016-2019 Financial Statements). It allocated minuscule amount, if any, to build local housing units and/or educational facilities, the ladder to prosperity. Its assets, which make up about ninety percent of the values of its total assets and its related liabilities are owned by and owed to profiteers respectively. Many of these owners of assets, the real owners of the World Bank, using donors money, gamble on Wall Street for profits. For FAO, instead of assisting farmers in poor countries to produce food, it buys rich-farmers commodities at inflated prices, thereby increasing their profits. For example, in 2017, it used $6B donations to buy the excess farmers produced. FAO officials argue that if it did not purchase farmers excess commodities, the price of food will decline, a recipe for bankruptcy. So, it buys the excess food for poor countries, and thereby, preventing them from producing food. Mercy Corps, like FAO or the World Bank, has abandoned the 1984 initiatives that focused on development issues such as "health, education, & infrastructure. Let us visit the above Expense Schedule and Assets Schedule to see where and how Mercy Corps spent the $400M revenue. Did it buy medical supplies, agricultural equipment, educational buildings, etc.? It did not. In fact, it allocated $1M for Programs, but kept $126M in bank accounts, allocated $98M to generate income, and invested $89M in firms on Wall Street. Its payroll was $200M in 2019. Nongovernmental agencies such as the FAO, UNICEF, Mercy Corps should not ask donors for contribution while they continue to increase profits for big business. Well, let us remember that NGOs (i.e., de facto agents of big business), like any rich entity, will not forgo huge donations. More so, they will support former employees to occupy influential positions to increase profits of big business. If you have any doubt, read the book called The Economic Hit Man, written by Mr. John Perkins. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/18/AR2008051802233.html (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercy_Corps) https://frontpageafricaonline.com/news/mercy-corps-partners-launch-youth-empowerment-project-in-liberia/ https://www.devex.com/news/mercy-corps-significant-failings-are-an-opportunity-for-the-aid-sector-staff-say-95878 (https://www.mercycorps.org/how-to-help/fundraising/frequently-asked-questions) https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4078 https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&channel=iphone_bm&sxsrf=ALeKk006GOF80_RXHiFJ8XByF9nzfc1mHw%3A1585736148756&source=hp&ei=1GmEXo3AK4SwabnZi4AH&q=difference+between+mercy+and+mercy+corps&oq=&gs_lcp=ChFtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1ocBABGAMyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECcyBwgjEOoCECdQAFgAYOwzaAFwAHgAgAEAiAEAkgEAmAEAsAEI&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-hp Seema Verma announced Sunday that those with family members in a nursing home will now be told if someone comes down with coronavirus in the facility. 'Today we are announcing we are requiring nursing homes to report to patients and their families if there are cases of COVID virus inside the nursing home,' Verma said during a White House coronavirus press briefing Sunday evening. Verma, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services within Health and Human Services, said the task force is also now requiring nursing homes to report any instances of COVID-19 to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The elderly are among the most susceptible to dying should they contract coronavirus, and under the White House social distancing guidelines, those over 60 years of age are told to stay home entirely. This new initiative from the coronavirus task force suggests that those with family members in these facilities were not previously being informed if their loved ones were at risk of contracting the virus from an individual or outbreak at the nursing home. Health and Human Service official Seema Verma announced Sunday that nursing homes will now have to report if there is a case or outbreak of coronavirus in the facility to families of those residing at the center 'Today we are announcing we are requiring nursing homes to report to patients and their families if there are cases of COVID virus inside the nursing home,' Verma said at the briefing The elderly are among the most likely to die if they contract coronavirus, and COVID-19 has been known to spread swiftly through elderly-care facilities Verma added that HHS is launching this effort to keep old-care living facilities 'transparent' in the wake of the pandemic. COVID-19 is much more likely to take the life of older individuals or those who are immunocompromised. 'Today we are announcing under the president's leadership an effort around nursing home transparency,' Verma told limited press from the podium at the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room Sunday. 'It's important that patients and their families have the information that they need, and they need to understand what's going on in the nursing home,' she continued. Verma also said the federal government is making sure that nursing homes have the accessibility they need to test for coronavirus. 'We are paying labs to go out to nursing homes to collect samples,' the HHS official said. Her announcement comes as states continue to lament that they do not have enough testing supplies for the demand of those who need or seek coronavirus testing. Governors in several states have claimed they have the ability to double or triple their testing, but not the supplies from the government to do so. Donald Trump said during the nearly-daily briefing that the federal government had amped up its production and distribution of testing kits, which he exhibited is just a single swab. Verma also said: 'We are paying labs to go out to nursing homes to collect samples' to test residents at nursing homes for COVID-19 Trump boasted that his administration is boosting production and distribution of coronavirus testing kits, explaining that they are very similar to cotton swabs by holding both up during the briefing He even compared the medical nasopharyngeal swab to a cotton swab often used to clean ears, pulling them both out of his suit jacket pocket and holding them up for the cameras and press to see and compare. 'We continue to procure millions of swabs, test collectors I have something right here, I just happened to have. It's a swab. Looks innocent. Not very complicated. Anybody like to see what it looks like? Should I open it?' he asked the press as he held up a still wrapped swab. 'Open it up? I will,' he said after the press in the room said they wanted to see it. 'This is what it's about, right?' he said, holding it up. 'Does it remind you of something? Reminds you of this, right? One's a swab, one's a Q-tip,' he continued, holding up both next to each other. 'It's actually different. It's very sophisticated actually,' the president admitted. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the necessity of having domestic supply chains, clashing with the ideals of globalism, President Donald Trump said on Sunday. This pandemic has underscored the vital importance of restoring our supply chains and bringing them back into the United States, where they should have never left, Trump told reporters in Washington, charging that people who thought otherwise are globalists. What happens if you are in a war and you have a supply chain where half your supplies are given to you by other countries? he asked. It doesnt work. It certainly doesnt work during rough times, bad times, dangerous times, Trump said. The president has repeatedly hammered globalism before and after entering office. He has said that domestic manufacturing is key to maintaining economic power and has decried the offshoring of production through deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that studies show contributed to thousands of lost jobs. Membership in unelected global bodies, such as the United Nations, and participation in global deals, such as the Paris climate accord, has also been opposed by Trump, who has withdrawn from some accords and worked on strengthening Americas role in others. Trumps presumed rival for the presidency, Joe Biden, supports re-entering the nuclear deal with Iran and the Paris accord. He has harangued Trump for his actions, as have many top Democrats. World Trade Organization Trump has increasingly voiced discontent with the World Health Organization, a United Nations group that is close to the Chinese Communist Party and has been accused of helping the regime cover up the pandemic caused by the CCP virus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. The World Trade Organization (WTO) was mentioned on Sunday, with Trump linking the groups together. The World Trade Organization, from the day China came in, thats where China bloomed, Trump asserted. They were mainlining it and then boom, they were up like a rocket ship, because they took advantage of every little ridiculous clause in the World Trade Organization documents. His election was likely in part because of the actions of China, the president said, noting he campaigned heavily on trade, telling voters the United States was getting ripped off. Trump championed deals hes made with Japan and Mexico while calling NAFTA one of the worst deals ever made in trade history. The WTO declined to comment on Trumps remarks. The organization says on its website that its main function is to make sure trade flows as smoothly, predictably, and freely as possible. Leaders of the group have recently called for countries to refrain from imposing export controls or tariffs, especially on essential goods like medical supplies. They have promoted the notion that the United States and China should rollback tariff hikes made in recent years, including America immediately rolling back the 7.5 percent tariff on Chinese imports. A downside of the pandemic, WTO Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff said in a virtual lecture on April 9, is that governments are limiting exports and demanding that domestic production be reserved for national consumption. Nations should give consult with the WTO on such measures and give notice before putting them into place, Wolff said last month. From The Epoch Times Aerospace specialist Bombardier is aiming for a return to work at its Belfast sites on May 4, with some operations potentially resuming as early as next week. The Canadian-owned plane manufacturer yesterday confirmed it has informed staff of the plan after consultations with trade unions. The company said it "may begin work progressively in some areas and functions" from April 27. The decision has been criticised by People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll who said: "I cannot see how supplying aircraft parts is an essential service during this crisis, and I think we should be made aware if and why a Stormont Minister officially deemed Bombardier workers as essential. "If Bombardier workers were not deemed essential, then the Executive must urgently act to prevent this return to work. "Workers are already speaking out and have been in contact with me to raise concerns. "Their lives should not be risked for business interests. "As a priority, the Executive, and the Irish and British Governments should rebuke those businesses which are attempting to reopen before lockdown is ended, and move to shut down any attempt to return to work." In a statement, Bombardier confirmed it had already tested measures in some areas of its business. "We recently issued an employee communication confirming that we have taken a decision, in consultation with our trade unions, to extend our current furlough period, targeting a return to work at our Belfast sites on Monday, May 4, 2020," a spokesperson said. "We also communicated that we may begin work progressively in some areas and functions from April 27, 2020 to support crucial deliveries, particularly to external customers. "The health and safety of our employees remain our top priority. "During this furlough period, we have carried out a thorough review of all our facilities, in collaboration with our trade unions and the Health and Safety Executive, to put the best measures in place and ensure we meet the latest government social distancing and workplace health and safety guidelines. Indeed, we have already piloted some measures in certain areas. "On their return, employees will experience quite significant changes in some working areas and practices to ensure their safety. "They may also be required to work alternative patterns to facilitate safer working. "Management will support employees to adapt to this new way of working, but we will of course continue to communicate with them regularly before their return. "Where possible, we will also continue to maximise working-from-home opportunities." The Department for the Economy published a list of 'priority sectors' on Friday, but described it as advisory, stating that Northern Ireland companies would be able to make their own decisions. A leading employment law specialist said there was no legal reason why a company could not call on employees to return to the workplace if all appropriate health and safety measures had been taken. "In real terms there is no reason why a company can't phase employees back in, as long as they have completed all relevant risk assessments and consulted with trade unions," said Louise McAloon, who heads the largest employment law practice in Northern Ireland at Worthington's Solicitors. "There are options of furlough in rotation to ensure all workers are treated equally and if social distancing measures are maintained, there's no legal reason not to open." (TNS) Petitions asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to block the roll out of 5G in California neighborhoods have popped up on social media in recent weeks, raising concern that the super-fast fifth generation of mobile broadband will cause adverse health effects like cancer and DNA damage.Onepetition asking Newsom to stop the installation of 5G in schools had more than 3,700 signatures as of Sunday.I believe that our local government, representatives and Gov. Newsom have a very serious responsibility to make decisions with the health and well being of the citizens of California always in mind, said campaign organizer Corissa Furr. And the fact that he is allowing the installation of 5G in all of our schools right now, with zero evidence that this technology is safe, is a disservice to all of us.5G is the next generation of wireless technologies that the communications industry believes will power the economy through faster-than-ever coverage in all corners of the U.S. California education and government officials generally have embraced the technology and encouraged wireless companies to offer it.Wireless companies like Verizon and AT&T have already rolled out 5G for consumers and business customers. T-Mobile and Sprints merger was approved Thursday in California on the condition that the new company provide 5G wireless services that can compete with AT&T and Verizon.Verizon plans to expand 5G nationally to 100 schools by next year as part of its Verizon Innovative Learning initiative in under-resourced schools, Verizon spokeswoman Heidi Flato said. AT&T was the first in 2019 to offer 5G mobile service in several U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose.We continue to test and turn up 5G in additional markets, and were excited to begin to unveil the revolutionary new capabilities 5G will offer to consumers and businesses, said AT&T spokeswoman Ali Davis. Well share more in the coming weeks as our 5G network becomes more broadly available to consumers in new areas.More than 150,000 cell sites and towers have already been installed in the United States, according to the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, and by 2026, that number is predicted to grow beyond 800,000.So is there reason to worry?Yes and no, experts say.Access to 5G is a good thing, said Brandon Brown, an epidemiologist and associate professor in the Center for Healthy Communities at UC Riverside School of Medicine, especially during the coronavirus pandemic, when people are relying on internet access to work from home.If anything, Brown said, 5G is helping us.Cell phone range radiation falls on the lower end of the electromagnetic spectrum in whats called non-ionizing radiation. Unless humans are exposed to intense, direct amounts of this energy, the lower frequencies dont cause harm, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The people petitioning Newsom worry that 5G technology will use radiation frequencies beyond current health recommendations. Cell sites are generally installed in close clusters to street lamps or light poles, raising worry over increased and nearby radiation exposure in neighborhoods.In response to this concern, the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection has updated its guidelines and determined 5G technologies do not pose a significant health risk.The American Cancer Society also notes that these lower frequencies do not directly damage the DNA inside cells like radiation from x-rays, gamma rays and UV light, which can cause cancer. While radiation waves can heat up body tissue, the organization says, the levels of energy used by cell phones and towers are much lower.Still, many organizations, including the CDC and the World Health Organization, say more research and time is needed to definitively reject claims linking long-term cell radiation exposure to adverse health effects like cancer.Some advocates argue that, until then, 5Gs roll-out should be postponed.We dont have the evidence yet one way or another of whether its safe or not, said Joel Moskowitz, director of the Center for Family and Community Health at UC Berkeleys School of Public Health. Its meaningless to say theres no evidence of harm if theres no research. Its like saying you have a new drug, theres no research on it, theres no evidence of harm, so everyone should be able to take it.Moskowitz said the $1 billion telecommunications lobbying industry has obscured what for him are scientific questions to determine the risk of some wireless services.Newsoms office did not answer questions about the petitions.California Department of Education spokeswoman Cynthia Butler said the agency is committed to addressing connectivity issues and ensuring students have technological devices needed to complete school work.We do know that low-income, rural and disadvantaged schools have long lacked resources, and its no coincidence that we have achievement gaps in these areas that existed before COVID-19, Butler said. By Ofeliya Afandiyeva Azerbaijan was the main electricity provider to the neighboring Georgia in the period of January-March 2020. Thus, Azerbaijan supplied 402.8 million kWh to Georgia of the total 744.2 million kWh exported to the country in the first quarter of 2020, Electricity System Commercial Operator (ESCO) of Georgia has reported. Azerbaijans electricity exports decreased by 12.2 percent compared to the same period in 2019. Russia was the second electricity supplier to Georgia in 2020 with the export of 341.4 million kWh (an increase of 4.6 times). Over the three months of this year, 51.1 million kWh of electricity was transported through the territory of Georgia from Azerbaijan to Turkey (an increase of 3.5 times). As previously reported, in 2019, electricity production in Georgia decreased by 2.3 percent compared to 2018 - to 11 billion 864.7 million kWh. Last year, the republic imported 1 billion 626.5 million kWh (an increase of 7.8 percent), exported 243.4 million kWh (a decrease of 2.4 times). Electricity consumption increased by 1.4 percent - up to 12 billion 774.2 million kWh. Note that in 2018 Azerbaijan and Georgia signed a memorandum on the prospects of Azerbaijani-Georgian power systems after discussion of the state of the power systems of Azerbaijan and Georgia, as well as the construction of a 330 kW two-way (duplex) transmission line. Azerenergy JSC is the main exporter of electric energy in Azerbaijan. SOCAR also is deeply involved in the energy market in Georgia which was established in 2006. The company's activity includes retail and bulk selling of fuel in Georgia, importing of petroleum and liquid gas, construction of oil terminals and warehouses. The two countries broadly cooperate in regional energy development, transportation and economic partnership projects such as Southern Gas Corridor, Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline (BTC), Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway (BTK), the TRACECA, and the BSEC. As our country works through the COVID-19 outbreak, veterans should reflect on their military training and experience. Training ingrained the belief that the American service members can accomplish amazing things as individuals but also when we all carry the load in the same direction to accomplish the mission and to protect our comrades. Veterans of all military services continue to serve our fellow citizens. To paraphrase a long-time military phrase, We will innovate and overcome in this struggle, too! VETERANS ASSISTANCE The McLean County Veterans Assistance Commission office is closed to entry by the public, but the staff and its main functions are still operating. The VAC provides short-term emergency assistance for partial rent or mortgages and for utility bills. Veterans with such financial issues may still apply for financial assistance. Loss of job, ineligibility for unemployment benefits, unexpected medical bills, etc., may be considered for assistance through the VAC. Eligibility requirements include a minimum 30 days residency in McLean County, 180 days of federal military service, an honorable discharge and a means test on income, etc. The VAC food pantry is available without regard to income level. Veterans interested in pursuing any of the VAC financial assistance benefits or the food pantry should contact the VAC office at 309-888-5140. All requests for services are handled by appointment only and all interviews will be conducted over the phone. VAC van trips to the Peoria VA Clinic for specialty healthcare have been temporarily suspended as have VA-sponsored van rides to the Danville VA Medical Center. Both van services will be resumed when the virus outbreak crisis has been resolved. Q: I am not a veteran but my uncle served in World War II. I was raised by my aunt and uncle from the time I was two years old. I am trying to put together a family history and would like to include my uncles military service. I understand there is a document called the DD214 which would have a lot of information about his service, which would provide a great place to start filling in the blanks. How do I get that document? A: Most military records are maintained at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. There is no charge to acquire records from the NPRC. Personnel records of military members who were discharged, retired or died in service 62 or more years ago have been transferred to the legal custody of the National Archives and Records Administration and are referred to as archival records. There may be a charge to obtain these records as they are maintained at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. If the veteran is deceased, only next of kin will be permitted to obtain the veterans separation record, whether a DD214 or World War II separation document. Next of kin is defined as unremarried surviving spouse, father, mother, son, daughter, sister, or brother. If you were adopted by the veteran, you must provide a copy of the official court order of the adoption. The Standard Form SF 180 Request Pertaining to Military Records is available by browsing SF 180 on the internet. For more guidance on locating information about your uncles service, contact the VAC office at 309-888-5140. Vogler is superintendent of the McLean County Veterans Assistance Commission. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Wild birds can cut the temperature of their beaks when food is scarce to help them preserve energy and prevent heat loss, a study has found. Researchers at the University of Glasgow used thermal imaging technology to measure the body surface temperature of birds faced with food shortages. Small songbird, the great tit, was used in the study and measurements showed that shortly after food became unavailable the birds allowed their beak to cool. The team found that about an hour into food restrictions the temperature of the beak began to gradually rise - showing a level of control over how and when it cools. Researchers at the University of Glasgow used thermal imaging technology to measure the body surface temperature of birds faced with food shortages The ability to control the temperature and by how much it changes is likely to prevent unwanted consequences including loss of functionality. Researchers said that this is the first time the technique of birds cooling their bills during food restriction has been seen in wild birds. By continuously filming a wild population of great tits, the researchers were able to see that bill temperature was immediately reduced in response to food restriction. Lead author Lucy Winder, who undertook the study said not knowing where their next meal is coming from can be a real challenge for wild animals. 'What these findings tell us is that birds reduce heat loss from their bill by selectively restricting blood flow well before they enter a state of starvation', she said. 'So when a reliable food supply is cut off, birds are predicting they will face energetic shortfalls in future and are pre-emptively acting to prevent this from occurring. 'Our study demonstrates the ability of animals to adapt to changes in food availability, which may allow them to survive in an unpredictable changing environment.' Scientists said the research on a wild population of birds at Scene, based on the shore of Loch Lomond, was confirmed by measurements of great tits in outdoor aviaries at Lund University, Sweden. Small songbird, the great tit, was used in the study and measurements showed that shortly after food became unavailable the birds allowed their beak to coo The study also found that eye-region temperature in the wild birds remained at similar levels throughout the food restriction, compared with unrestricted birds. This suggests that birds selectively cool the bill rather than lowering the temperature of all surface tissue. Dr Dominic McCafferty, senior lecturer at the university's Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, said the findings provide evidence birds cool their bill when a predictable food supply is suddenly disrupted. He said this is 'likely as a means of minimising depletion of body reserves for a perceived future shortage in energy.' 'This was an interesting finding as it demonstrates how small animals must respond to winter conditions, when habitats are challenging and food is limited.' The study is published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. DUBLIN, April 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- 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/uvi3qf Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] 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 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 SOURCE Research and Markets Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com During the lockdown, migrant labourers in India have walked hundreds of kilometres back to their homes while a few others pedalled their way back after losing their source of livelihood. On Monday morning, a group of 27 migrant labourers from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha who had gone to work in different factories of Chennai were perhaps the first lot of migrant labourers who escaped their workplace by the sea route. Travelling over 500 km the group of 27 reached the sea beach at Donkuru village close to the Odisha-Andhra border. Ganjam district collector Vijay Amrita Kulange said the 27-member team of migrant labourers including 10 from Odisha had gone to Chennai to work in local factories there a few months ago. After the lockdown was announced and their factories shut down, these labourers tried hard to go back to their homes. But in the absence of any transportation, they were stranded. After a few days they started to run out of their savings. They decided to pool in money so as to buy a fishing boat for Rs 2 lakh in which they decided to escape, said Kulange. Though the initial plan was to anchor at Pati Sonapur beach, 10 km from Berhampur town of Ganjam district, they decided to anchor near the beach at Donkuru as a majority of the labourers were from Andhra Pradesh. Soon after they anchored close to the Donkuru village they were taken to a quarantine centre in Rajampuram and Sompeta in Srikakulam. The Srikakulam police said cases have been lodged against the 27 for defying lockdown. These men will be tested for the coronavirus at the end of the 14 day quarantine period, said circle inspector Vinod Babu of Srikakulam. Officials said as the migrant labourers were from the fishermen community, they had no trouble at sea. They had rice and other grocery items in the twin engine fishing boat. As they had mobile phones with them, navigation was not an issue, said an official of Srikakulam. Due to a lack of test kits and previous restrictions placed on patients, thousands of Houstonians may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus, battled COVID-19 and still not even know they had it and are now immune to it. Up until a week ago when Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner opened testing to all citizens, most COVID-19 testing sites only accepted a small population of patients, namely first responders, healthcare workers, the elderly and those with previous health issues. The number of people who actually have or have had the virus is still uncertain due to the fact that Texas is the second-worst state in the nation for testing, with only 332 tests conducted for every 100,000 people, according to a recent Houston Chronicle investigation. ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: How many missed? Texas is second-worst in the nation for COVID-19 testing Identifying those who were exposed to COVID-19 and are now immune is critical in helping patients who are still ill and helping the city return to normalcy. Houston-based APEX Urgent Care is one of the few area clinics offering a unique test that identifies these patients. The premier biotech COVID-19 IgM-IgG rapid antibody test uses a patients blood sample to identify COVID-19 antibodies, which could ultimately be used for blood donations and treatments for other critically ill patients, according to APEX Urgent Care Medical Director Dr. Uzo Odili. They need to be identified, Odili said of the patients who may not know they had COVID-19. In addition to helping develop treatment strategies, Odili said identifying immune COVID-19 patients will help the general public and especially help Houstons frontline workers have peace of mind about interacting with the public again. THE LATEST: Houston coronavirus updates: What you need to know for April 20 Having immunity is just going to be something that allows employers and a lot of people in the workplace feel better about returning to some sense of normalcy, Odili said. APEX is offering the tests at its two locations in Katy and Richmond but is already booked through next week. Since the clinic started offering the tests last Wednesday, it has tested about 300 people, with 10 percent showing they have the antibodies. Odili said the clinic was able to acquire another 400 tests but is unsure if it will be able to get more. These things are in high demand, all over the country, he said. APEX Urgent Care is one of the few clinics currently offering the tests. Odili said there is less focus to offer the antibody tests in Houston because the infection is not peaking here and our healthcare systems are not as overwhelmed as other cities. Ideal candidates have suffered significant illness at least several weeks ago and were not able to get tested because they were not critically ill at the time or were not hospitalized. The test consists of a simple prick of the hand to collect a blood sample and takes a total of about 20 minutes to deliver results. ARE YOU CONTAGIOUS? Reports suggest many have had coronavirus with no symptoms Just because a person has recovered from COVID-19 does not mean they automatically are immune from it, though. Odili said that people with weakened or compromised immune systems may not make antibodies after infection, but this is not necessarily common. Odili added having COVID-19 antibodies does not guarantee complete protection from repeat infections. Because the coronavirus is so new, doctors can only estimate how long antibodies can offer protection. We are hoping that will provide several months to a full year of immunity, just like you would have after a flu vaccine or a flu infection, he said. But it would not be surprising if we saw seasonality to this infection and patients suffer illness again, year after year, until a vaccine is developed. Odili said his clinics are using the tests for informational purposes only and that using antibodies for passive antibody transfer, or to help critically ill patients, would have to happen at a large scale hospital system that has facilities on hand to separate serum from plasma and develop the treatment. But part of the first step toward that would be identifying the people who have the antibodies, he said. The test has a 96% accuracy rate and has emergency use authorization from the Federal Drug Administration. Odili said similar to many of the COVID-19 tests that are currently available, this test is not actually FDA approved because there has not been enough time for the FDA to do its own testing. Emergency use authorization is how the majority of these tests have made it to Americas market, Odili said. The majority of these tests likely have the validation data behind them. But if the person wanted to be extra sure, they can just have a discussion with whoever is providing them their test. Because the test is so new, there arent any insurance agreements that cover it. The clinic is offering the tests for $99 at both its locations, by appointment only. Patients must complete a pre-registration process through a telehealth app before being approved and must be at least 12 years or older. We did not anticipate this level of demand, but we did know this is something that is going to help move cities forwardand we are happy to help bring that to Houston, Odili said. For more information, visit the clinics website. 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 The Panama authorities are currently holding roughly 1700 illegal migrants who are going to the United States in a jungle camp following the detection of several COVID-19 cases among them. This is according to an official source. In addition, the migrants are kept in La Penita, a jungle close to the border of Colombia, in facilities developed and designed to accommodate just roughly 200 individuals. It was also reported that around 17 migrants have also been detected with COVID-19 and are now out of the camp. Even some Red Cross staff needed to leave the place, as well, to be held in quarantine since they were "in contact with a local police officer who perished because of COVID-19. This is according to the International Federation of Red Cross for the Americas, Walter Cotte. Illegal Migrants in Panama Panama's National Migration Service (SNM) reported last year, the removal of more than 500 Nicaraguan migrants from Panama for the first half of 2019, almost one-fourth of the total population of foreigners which is 2,034, were deported to respective their home countries during this time. Out of these over 500, or 531 to be exact, 86 the officials of the Panama immigration officially deported migrants, Panamanian immigration officials. Twelve migrants were banned from going back to their country, while the 433 left voluntarily went back to Nicaragua. June represented the most number of migrant deportations of last year, with 24 formal removals of Nicaraguan nationals. The data which came from SNM indicated that while the Nicaraguans composed of a significant share of permanent bans and deportations from Panama, the nation is ranked third, behind Colombians and Cubans. Presidential Decree 269 Officials of the Panama immigration have used commonly used "voluntary return as their main approach for immigration enforcement." More so, since 2017, Panama has employed stricter policies for its immigration. Relatively, Presidential Decree 269 has mandated that it is a must for any foreign tourist in Panama to depart after 90 days, which is shorter than the previous 180 days limit. This particular ruling was specially created to address the present influx not just of the Nicaraguans, but of Venezuelans and Colombians, as well. Based on the official data of the SNM, 2018 saw more than "1,066 returns from Panama of the Nicaraguans," roughly a 33-percent decline from the 2017 figure from which around 1,603 were deported. From 2010 to 2018, according to reports, there were more than 6,400 expulsions of Nicaraguans from this country, with 1,000 of such deportations taking place in the past four years. In the previous months, the neighbors of Panama, like Costa Rica, Mexico, and Guatemala, have encountered high volumes of migrants, too, at their borders. COVID-19 in Panama In Panama, where, as of this writing, there are 4,467 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 126 deaths, migrants are receiving treatments at "three temporary border posts" where the UNICEF, the Red Cross, and the government are providing them with food, water, and health care. And, despite the threats, the border between Panama and Colombia has, for many years, become a Despite the dangers, the border between Colombia and Panama has, for years, become a passageway for illegal immigrants, mainly those from Venezuela, Cuba, and Haiti. This has also turned to be the same pathway for distant countries like Nepal, Cameroon, Bangladesh, and Congo. Check these out! Google Play suspends evangelical church's app over COVID-19 'sensitive events' policy Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Google has suspended a mobile app launched by an evangelical church in Idaho, claiming that the app violates the tech giants sensitive events policy related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last Friday, Christ Church of Moscow, Idaho, alerted its followers that Google Play had suspended its ChristKirk app from the Play Store. Google Play suspended our ChristKirk app today, a Facebook post reads. The post includes a screenshot of the notification Google sent to administrators of the app stating that Google Play prohibits apps that lack reasonable sensitivity towards or try to capitalize on a natural disaster, atrocity, conflict, death, or other tragic event. We presume they're talking about Pastor Douglas Wilson's short lessons on responding faithfully to the COVID-19 crisis, the church added in its post. Or maybe Pastor Toby J. Sumpter's sermon calling God's people to humble repentance. Regardless What gives, Google? According to Google Plays sensitive events policy, examples of violations include apps that are appearing to profit from a tragic event with no discernible benefit to the victims, apps that deny a major tragic event or apps that lack sensitivity to deaths of people or groups. On Tuesday, the church provided an update on Facebook explaining that it had appealed the suspension. We do not believe we were in violation of their rules, the update reads. Google Play suspended essentially *all* apps that referred to COVID-19. Over the last few weeks, Facebook, Google and other tech giants began using algorithms and new rules to scrub their platforms of coronavirus-related misinformation, The Associated Press reports. In early April, Google Play updated the Play Store listing guidelines. In an explainer piece, Google Play Business Development Manager Sam Tolomei said that the company is only approving apps that reference COVID-19 in their store listing if the app is published, commissioned, or authorized by an official government entity or public health organization. Additionally, apps will only be published if they do not contain any monetization mechanisms. Such mechanisms include in-app products or in-app donations. This includes references in places such as the app title, description, release notes, or screenshots, Tolomei added. Other apps that have been removed by Google Play during the COVID-19 pandemic include the website Info Wars. The app was removed in late March after its founder Alex Jones disputed the need for social distancing amid the outbreak, according to WIRED. According to The Washington Examiner, Christ Church received a response to its appeal on Thursday. However, Google restated its belief that the app is in violation of the sensitive events policy. The church was told that the app would not be reinstated until all references to COVID-19 were removed. A screenshot of correspondence with a Google employee published by The Washington Examiner suggests Google asked the church to remove references to COVID-19 in its listing and the in-app experience. Pastor Doug Wilson, an outspoken Calvinist, wrote in a blog post that he believes Google is censoring things on such a massive scale now that no one individual can claim he is being picked on. If they were singling us out, and removed our content because I had said, for example, that this whole thing was a summoning of Americans to repentance, that would have been obnoxious enough, Wilson wrote. But if they say that no American using their platform can talk about COVID-19 at all, and they are going to axe your content simply because COVID appears in the title of your video clip, then how is that a much bigger offense? How is this not like T-Mobile saying they are happy to have you as a customer, but they would like you to be aware of the fact that according to their terms of service, if you start talking about the upcoming 2020 election with your friend across the country, your call will be dropped? he added. A lot of misinformation is flying around during the course of elections, you know. And if they did this by means of an algorithm, affecting tens of thousands of people, it would not be an even-handed lack of censorship, but rather censorship at a staggering level. Christ Church Executive Pastor Ben Zornes told The Washington Examiner that the church is evaluating the best way forward. He said the purpose of the app was to provide the congregation with "sermons and a couple podcasts helping our people think biblically about the coronavirus," [W]e believe this is censorship and wrong-headed, Zornes was quoted as saying. We are not purporting to present any medical advice or information on the virus, we are simply presenting what we believe Scripture teaches in regards to how to face such crises in faith and love to our neighbor." Googles suspension of the Christ Church app drew the ire of conservative evangelical commentator Rod Dreher. Dreher argued in an op-ed that what probably got the app in trouble was a sermon from late March in which Wilson condemned abortion and gay marriage as sins that require repentance. My point is this: whatever my conflicts, theological and otherwise, with Doug Wilson and his circle, I profited from hearing these sermons. I was challenged by them, in a good way, Dreher wrote. Did I agree 100 percent with them? No I did not. Do I believe that these sermons ought to be freely available on Googles platform for people to hear? Absolutely. We dont know precisely why Google booted Wilsons churchs app, but listening to Wilsons sermon, its not hard to guess why, Dreher continued. Christ Church, which held a drive-in service on Easter, is part of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches. The CREC is an association of over 100 churches worldwide. The networks leader stated in an April 14 letter that the association may no longer comply with government social distancing orders. CREC Presiding Minister of Council, Virgil Hurt, wrote in the letter to governing authorities that it is now apparent that our initial information was incomplete. The pandemic is not what we all thought it was going to be, Hurt wrote. It is now clear that the stated rationale for these temporary, emergency actions, to flatten the curve, has been achieved, and that these temporary measures are no longer necessary. Hurt warned that if society continues with the course of action things may get much worse. The citizens of the United States and our congregants are already beginning to strongly feel the need to get back to regular living, Hurt stressed. While we do not currently have a date at which we will no longer comply with the extreme restrictions, we believe the time is now at hand for our leaders to stand down from the extreme isolation efforts, and the date at which we will no longer comply is soon approaching, in days or weeks, not months. While we despise death, we do not fear death, because for us, to live is Christ and to die is gain, Hurt added. May God grant us repentance, and as we confess and repent of our many sins, we trust that He will be gracious to us and heal our land. [April 20, 2020] Janus Henderson Announces Modifications to 2020 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders Janus Henderson Group plc (NYSE/ASX: JHG) is scheduled to hold its 2020 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders ('AGM') at the Company's office in Denver, Colorado, on 30 April 2020. However, as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Colorado state and local authorities have issued stay-at-home orders that prohibit most gatherings of any number of people. The health of our shareholders, employees and stakeholders is paramount, and the Company will adhere to all government and public health authority recommendations and restrictions to support the effort to limit the spread of COVID-19. As a result, the Company's Board of Directors has decided to make the following changes to the arrangements for the AGM: We are not permitted to hold a virtual-only AGM under the terms of our governing documents, and therefore, we currently plan to hold the AGM as scheduled at our Denver office on 30 April 2020. However, in order to comply with the stay-at-home orders and public health directives, shareholders will not be permitted to attend the AGM, and anyone seeking to attend the meeting in person will be refused entry. Shareholders are strongly encouraged to vote and submit their proxy by internet, by telephone or by signing and returning the proxy card that was included in the Notice of Annual General Meeting sent to shareholders on 19 March 2020. When voting by proxy, shareholders should appoint the Chair of the meeting as their proxy to ensure that their votes will still be counted despite being unable to attend the meeting in person. If a shareholder appoints someone else as their proxy, that proxy will not be able to attend the meeting in person or cast the shareholder's vote. In order to keep in-person AGM attendance to the bare minimum and observe proper social distancing measures for the small number of people required to attend, our advisers and other guests have also been asked not to attend. The AGM will be limited to only the formal business of the meeting, with no traditional investor presentation or live question-and-answer session. The Company values the views of its shareholders, and any shareholder wishing to submit a question to the Board may do so by sending an email to [email protected] Shareholders may listen to the meeting via a listen-only conference call and webcast. As the call and webcast will be listen-only, participation through these means will not constitute formal attendance at the AGM, and shareholders who dial in or view the webcast will not be able to vote or ask questions on the day of the AGM. Any shareholder wishing to listen to the meeting should call: From: United Kingdom 0800 358 6377 (toll free) US and Canada 800 289 0438 (toll free) Australia 1 800 573 793 (toll free) All other countries +1 323 794 2423 (this is not toll free) Conference ID 6923607 Prior to the meeting, a webcast link will be accessible from the Company's investor relations website, www.janushenderson.com/ir, and the Company's 2020 AGM website, www.janushenderson.com/AGM2020. A replay will be available for a period of at least 14 days following the call. The Company is taking the above measures to make the AGM as safe and efficient as possible, safeguarding the wellbeing of shareholders, colleagues and other participants alongside ensuring the right steps are taken to preserve the long-term health of the business. The COVID-19 situation remains fluid, and, if further changes to the AGM become necessary, we will announce those changes as soon as practicable via our investor relations website and our designated website for the 2020 AGM. About Janus Henderson Janus Henderson Group (JHG) is a leading global active asset manager dedicated to helping investors achieve long-term financial goals through a broad range of investment solutions, including equities, fixed income, quantitative equities, multi-asset and alternative asset class strategies. At 31 December 2019, Janus Henderson had approximately US$375 billion in assets under management, more than 2,000 employees, and offices in 28 cities worldwide. Headquartered in London, the company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005177/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Yesterday, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that all of the original $349 billion in funding for its paycheck protection program (PPP) had been fully allocated. As the industrys Washington Watchdog, NAFCU has been committed to ensuring credit unions have all the resources needed to effectively participate in the program since its launch and will continue to advocate for further funding for the program. The Senate may again consider additional funding for the PPP when they meet Monday, after two pro-forma sessions this week failed to do so. Until then, NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger is urging policymakers to prevent the current public health crisis from turning into a full-fledged economic crisis, too. Today, many credit unions have a large number of pending loan applications from small business owners looking for emergency financial assistance, said Berger after the announcement that the PPP funds were fully allocated. With credit unions heavily engaged in serving underserved communities, which have been hit the hardest during this economic downturn, it is imperative policymakers set aside a portion of additional funding for credit unions. Relatedly, the Federal Reserve announced Thursday that the PPP liquidity facility is now fully operational. The Finance Ministry on Monday said it has sanctioned Rs 46,038 crore for the devolution of states' share in central taxes and duties for April New Delhi: The Finance Ministry on Monday said it has sanctioned Rs 46,038 crore for the devolution of states' share in central taxes and duties for April. In a tweet the ministry said to assist states effectively address situation arising out of COVID-19 pandemic, as a special dispensation, the calculation of net proceeds of shareable taxes has been kept unchanged as per Budget 2020-21. The Budget had projected the share of the states in taxes at Rs 7.84 lakh crore for 2020-21. Ministry of Finance has issued sanctions for April instalment of Devolution of States Share in Central Taxes and Duties amounting to 46,038.10 cr today. The inter-se share is as per the recommendations of the XV Finance Commission. #IndiaFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/QdcwNtpov7 Ministry of Finance #StayHome #StaySafe (@FinMinIndia) April 20, 2020 The 15th Finance Commission had recommended the share of states at 41 percent of the divisible pool and 1 percent for the newly-created union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. The 14th Finance Commission had recommended the states be given 42 percent share in taxes. "Ministry of Finance has issued sanctions for April instalment of Devolution of States' Share in Central Taxes and Duties amounting to Rs 46,038.10 crore today. The inter-se share is as per the recommendations of the XV Finance Commission, the ministry tweeted. WASHINGTON After insisting it was up to governors to ramp up coronavirus testing in their states, the Trump administration is finally acknowledging their pleas for help. Vice President Mike Pence will lead a teleconference with the nation's governors Monday morning from FEMA headquarters in response to calls for a national testing strategy to help secure in-demand supplies like testing swabs and chemical reagents a day after Trump announced that he would be using the Defense Production Act to compel one company to manufacture swabs. Pence will "review what more they can do and do together to develop locally tailored testing strategies," Trump said at a White House news conference Sunday. "We want to help them out." Officials and health experts say the country needs to dramatically scale its testing infrastructure if it is going to safely roll back restrictions and reopen businesses without risking a major spike in infections that would negate weeks of social distancing and economic strife. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious diseases expert, told ABC's "Good Morning America" Monday morning that the nation is currently running about 1.5 to 2 million tests per week. But, "we really need to get up to, at least, you know, maybe two times that, three times that." Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter Administration officials have insisted that the U.S. currently has enough testing capacity to safely implement "Phase One" of a plan they released last week to begin a slow return to normalcy. And they have argued that states could be running twice as many tests as they are now if only they were using all the equipment they already have access to. "So we really gotta help them to get to it. And that's what's being done right now, to try to make the connectivity between what's unused capacity as well as tests within that capacity to help them," Fauci said. "We gotta keep going. It's gotta be done together really in a partnership." Trump on Sunday said the White House would be sending sending governors a list of the large laboratory machines in their state before the call. "They have a lot of machinery in the states that some aren't that aware of, but they're there," he said. But governors on both sides of the aisle have been complaining for weeks now that they can't ramp up testing without federal assistance, especially when it comes to accessing supplies. "We really need help," Republican Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." Maryland's Republican Gov. Larry Hogan told CNN Sunday.that testing was "probably the number one problem in America, and has been from the beginning of this crisis." "To try to push this off to say that the governors have plenty of testing, and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren't doing our job, is just absolutely false," he said. "Every governor in America has been pushing and fighting and clawing to get more tests, not only from the federal government, but from every private lab in America and from all across the world." Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, another Republican, on Friday called on the federal government to take a larger role to stop states from competing against once another for supplies. "It's a perilous set of circumstances trying to figure out how to make this work, and until we've got the testing up to speed which has got to be part of the federal government stepping in and helping we're just not going to be there," he said. For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. But for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. In recent days, however, protesters have taken to the streets in some states, flouting their governors' stay-at-home orders and social distancing regulations as they demand an end to restrictions. Fauci told ABC that, "clearly this is something that is hurting from the standpoint of economics," but warned that, "unless we get the virus under control, the real recovery economically is not gonna happen." "So what you do if you jump the gun and go into a situation where you have a big spike, you're gonna set yourself back," he said. "It's gonna backfire. That's the problem." The Associated Press Subscribe to our Oregon coronavirus newsletter: In Pics: PM Modi to inaugurate new campus of Classical Tamil institute in Chennai today PM Modis security breach: SC to announce name of judge to head probe panel today COVID-19: Will stand by Maldives in this challenging time, says PM Modi India oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P New Delhi, Apr 20: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke to the President of the Republic of Maldives Ibrahim Mohamed Solih over the crisis situation of coronavirus in the island nation. In a telephonic conversation, the leaders talked about the "health and economic challenges" Maldives is facing due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said that India would stand by the Maldives in this "challenging time". Will admit only coronavirus free Muslims says hospital, faces FIR "The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together. India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time," the Prime Minister said in a tweet. PM Modi's conversation with the Maldives President comes a day after President of Kazakhstan, Qasym-Jomart Toqayev, thanked India and PM Modi "for the donation of medical supplies to Kazakhstan to contain COVID-19". Coronavirus: Full list of containment zones in Delhi The Union Health Ministry on Monday said that India has reported 1,553 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours. The ministry updated the coronavirus tally in the country to 17,265. The tally includes 14,175 active cases, 2,547 people cured or discharged and 543 fatalities. Press Release April 20, 2020 Zubiri Donates COVID-19 Test Kits to Mindanao In aid of the country's continuing battle against the coronavirus pandemic, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel F. Zubiri has set his sights beyond Metro Manila, donating six thousand (6,000) COVID-19 antibody diagnostic kits to hospitals in his home region of Mindanao. Two thousand (2,000) kits will go to Bukidnon Provincial Medical Center in Malaybalay, Bukidnon; two thousand (2,000 kits) to Northern Mindanao Medical Center in Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental; one thousand (1,000 test) kits to Caraga Regional Hospital in Surigao, Surigao del Norte; and one thousand (1,000) kits to Cotabato Regional and Medical Center in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). All are set to receive the donations on the 20th and 21st of April. This is the second wave of COVID-19 test kit donations made by Zubiri, after he spearheaded a donation of an equal number of PCR test kits to the Philippine General Hospital through the University of the Philippines - National Institutes of Health earlier this month. "Kung sa Metro Manila lang tayo mag-focus, hindi natin matatalo itong COVID," Zubiri insisted. "The longer we hold other regions back from massive testing, the higher the chances that the virus will continue to spread there, even with community quarantine. We can't afford for that to happen. Dapat maagapan natin as soon as possible." The test kits to be donated are the rapid antibody test kits recently promoted by President Rodrigo Duterte during his weekly briefings. These kits can be used without testing laboratories. "I know the gold standard of testing for COVID-19 are the PCR test kits, like those we donated to PGH. But in the absence of accredited laboratories across the country, these rapid test kits will have to do for now," Zubiri said. "I am prioritizing these areas of Mindanao, as the DOH has yet to accredit a single testing lab in these areas. This is one of my biggest frustrations, as there is only one accredited laboratory in Mindanao, located in Davao City and nowhere else at the moment. The DOH should cut the bureaucratic red tape and at least focus on regional laboratories and testing centers." While Luzon, particularly Metro Manila, holds majority of the country's COVID-19 cases so far, Mindanao has not been spared from the virus. There have been over one hundred and thirty (130) positive cases in Mindanao as of writing, an alarming number given the limited testing capacity in the region so far. Zubiri, who himself had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and has recovered from it, voiced sympathy for health care workers in Mindanao: "So many nurses, doctors, hospital workers back home have reached out to me, asking if there's a way we can help them. Nasa frontlines sila araw-araw, risking their own well being for us, and yet they can't get tested because of a shortage of kits. It's disheartening. I hope some of the test kits that we're sending out can be allocated for our health workers, so they can continue with their noble duty to our people." "We really need nationwide testing. That's the only way we can properly identify the scope of this virus, and the only way we can begin to eliminate it." As a hotel and casino entrepreneur, Donald Trump had his fair share of grand openings. On October 26, 2016, for example, Trump officially unveiled the Trump International Hotel in the Old Post Office on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington. "With the notable exception of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, this is the most coveted piece of real estate in Washington," he said. Less than two weeks later, he won occupancy of 1600. And, confined there last week, he clearly itched to stage a much bigger event: the reopening of America, a nation where 97% of the people are under stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of Covid-19. But as Trump pushed for the relaxation of restrictions, the disease continued exacting a relentless toll in infections and deaths. On Monday, Trump claimed he had "total" authority in this emergency to make the key decisions. On Thursday, he said it was the nation's governors who should make the call on when to reopen. And on Friday he tweeted, "LIBERATE MINNESOTA!" "LIBERATE MICHIGAN!" and "LIBERATE VIRGINIA..." "The problem is that we have a reality show president who has run headlong into a grim reality for which he was ill-equipped and unprepared," wrote David Axelrod. "You can't spin a pandemic, Mr. President. And the numbers that matter aren't your TV ratings." The "White House response to coronavirus has been chaotic, wildly inconsistent, and often dangerous," Jill Filipovic argued. "Trump is threatened by the prospect of governors working together outside of his authority, because he's already seen many of them prove themselves more competent leaders than he is. And they have the approval ratings to show for it." With his tweets, "Trump is calling for open revolt in three states -- all of which are potentially competitive in 2020 and run by Democratic governors," wrote Frida Ghitis. "The three states are also home to thousands of people diagnosed with Covid-19, a disease that has killed tens of thousands of Americans, with the potential to kill millions in the US if allowed to freely run its course in the population." Changing the subject In between asserting and relinquishing his authority, Trump railed at the World Health Organization and congressional Democrats. On Tuesday he announced he is cutting off funding to the WHO, the planet-wide organization responsible for battling the virus, and on Wednesday he threatened to become the first President to adjourn Congress. "Trump is desperately trying to deflect attention from his own catastrophic behavior," wrote Jeffrey D. Sachs. "He has presided over one of the largest security failures in US history, with far more deaths than at Pearl Harbor or on 9/11. While the President has called for an investigation of the WHO, it's his own administration's disastrous response to the crisis that needs scrutiny." The White House's coronavirus task force recommended a three-phase relaxation of the shutdown, on timetables that would vary by state, but many experts warned that a swift reopening would be risky -- until there is widespread testing and tracing. "As much as everyone would like to be back to some kind of normalcy by next month, the chance of that materializing is slim to none," wrote Dr. Irwin Redlener. "We have a lot to learn from countries that initially seemed to have the outbreak under control but are now beginning to see a resurgence. Singapore and Hong Kong are already experiencing new outbreaks of Covid-19, possibly due to travelers returning from other parts of the world. In Hokkaido, Japan, strict control strategies have been re-introduced because of a new surge of Covid-19." Nicole Hemmer wrote that protests by conservatives at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan reflect "the struggle many Americans are having on a very personal level: a deep craving for a return to our old lives and a rational fear that old habits are now life-threatening risks." "Most of us are experiencing some range of denial, shock and grief. And while public officials can offer us information and solace -- two things we desperately need -- they cannot give us answers for what our new world will look like, because it is a world we have not yet made," Hemmer added. Dr. Celine Gounder said the people who should be leading the national and state Covid-19 briefings are those with the most knowledge -- scientists, doctors and nurses, not politicians. "When politicians, political appointees, and political pundits speak, we first ask ourselves, 'What's their agenda?' Whether we believe their message depends on our political identity and theirs." What we owe our heroes At 7 p.m. New Yorkers lean out their windows and stand on terraces to thank the medical workers and others saving lives in the American epicenter of the pandemic. Some sing "New York, New York," the song made famous by Frank Sinatra and which is played at the end of games at Yankee Stadium. ("If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere.") The "city that never sleeps" is where Samantha K. Smith's father, a New York City police officer, labored at Ground Zero to help recover human remains in the months following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. "He was chronically exhausted, angry, hyper-vigilant, on an inhaler and in desperate need of more support than we could provide him. Eight years after 9/11, my parents ended their 25-year marriage," Smith wrote. Today's heroes in New York and around the world will also feel the after-effects of their service in wartime conditions, she pointed out. "We must support our heroes by having systems in place, securing them affordable and ready access to mental health counseling, drug and alcohol treatment, and the proper time they will need to heal." In one 24-hour span in late March, 13 patients died of Covid-19 at New York's Elmhurst Hospital. An emergency medicine doctor at that hospital, Alicia Lu, and Dan Wu wrote that the least we can do for health care workers is provide them with head-to-toe protective suits, and they started a fundraising effort to obtain them. "The response has been overwhelmingly positive, with frontline health care workers across New York hospitals requesting the suits," they wrote. A new report found that more than 9,000 US medical workers have been diagnosed with the coronavirus and at least 27 have died, observed Dr. Kent Sepkowitz. "This CDC report should shame policymakers and add urgency to the pace of our response. It is important to realize that the shortages and poor planning that have led to these cases are not a thing of the past; rather, the dithering and profiteering and blame-shifting continue to expose all critical infrastructure workers to avoidable risks right now, today." For more on Covid-19: John Avlon: Cab driver. Harvard dad. Covid-19 victim. John D. Sutter: What does air pollution have to do with Covid-19? Bakari Sellers: What the Surgeon General gets wrong about African Americans and Covid-19 Ira Helfand, Arun Mitra and Tilman Ruff: Will Covid-19 save the world? Erica Farrand: Doctor. Friend. Patient. Colleague. Jeff Yang: California and New York were both hit by Covid-19 early, but the results are very different Vitali Shkliarov: In Belarus, Covid-19 is a modern-day Chernobyl Emily Liu: Covid-19 has inflamed racism against Asian-Americans. Here's how to fight back David Andelman: France's Macron positioning himself as leader of the world Peter Bergen: Time to fire Jared and Ivanka Nancy Kaffer: Michigan's protests are a bellwether of an increasingly dangerous partisan divide His name on the check The effort to rebuild the shattered US economy shifted into higher gear as aid began to flow from Washington in the form of $1,200 payments to most taxpayers and a paycheck-protection loan program for small businesses. But the $350 billion in loan money quickly ran out as the two parties in Congress struggled to reach agreement on more aid. Those taxpayers without IRS direct deposits will be getting paper checks sent to their homes bearing Donald Trump's name. "In a stroke of egotistical genius, if not the stroke of a Sharpie, the president has made sure his name will be printed on the checks that millions of Americans will receive as part of the government's response to the economic losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic," wrote Michael D'Antonio. Duke University announced a hiring, building and salary freeze for the coming year, a sure sign of the whirlwind that is punishing American higher education, wrote David Perry. Some colleges and universities are weighing calling off in-person classes for the fall semester. "Both public and private institutions may collapse, and the most vulnerable students are going to suffer," Perry noted. "Our colleges and universities will need more infusions of cash from both federal and state governments to make it through the disruptions that are yet to come, but it's time to start thinking about how to go beyond bridge loans and stop pretending that we'll ever get back to normal. Writing for CNN Business Perspectives, Yuliya Panfil and Tim Robustelli noted that the federal stimulus bill offers important protections for renters and people holding mortgages but said these don't go far enough. "In the long term, it's critical that America broadens its housing safety nets, particularly for renters. That means more time to catch up on missed payments, and a longer timeline for evictions. It means a right to counsel for tenants in eviction proceedings. And, it means the right to withhold rent when housing isn't habitable, without fear of eviction." When the pandemic is over and the full cost of responding to it is toted up, the number will surely be astoundingly high, in the many trillions of dollars. Investing in measures to prevent the next pandemic is a no-brainer, wrote Jennifer Prah Ruger. "Developing and implementing a timely and effective pandemic preparedness system for all countries could cost an estimated $3.4 billion annually, while the expected annual benefit is an estimated $37 billion, according to the World Bank." "Fulfilling our duty to prevent Covid-19 as economically as possible -- had we done it -- might just have been one of the most straightforward decisions of the 21st century." Coping at home Six years ago, South African explorer Riaan Manser and his girlfriend, now wife, Vasti, spent 173 days in a 22-and-a-half foot boat, rowing from Agadir, Morocco to New York, most of the time in isolation from other people. "If there was one way to test the limits of a relationship, we thought, this would surely be it," he wrote. Despite storms, meteorological and otherwise, along the way, their relationship survived, and now they're in a different kind of isolation in South Africa. "We are giving each other more space, or as much as you can under one roof. We are trying harder to listen more intently to each other. And we are doing our best to be as honest and transparent as we can be about our feelings and frustrations." Susanne Sener lives on a mountain above the clouds in Colorado, wrote Thomas Lake. She "was only 56, but she'd lived there half her life. Not running from anything. Not hiding from anyone. She just liked it up there: the fresh air, the vast horizon, the way it felt to see a mountain lion in the morning light. Then the pandemic came, and the solitude felt necessary. By Easter Sunday, she'd been alone for 38 consecutive days." Then a "small thing" happened, and it tells us "what it means to help each other, and the American ideals that stand in our way." Sara Stewart and her husband are working from home, and that's fine. Except for the "tidal wave of more extroverted friends and acquaintances newly eager to connect. Calls and texts and emails have poured in, with 'How are you holding up?' becoming the new 'How's it going?'" Stewart describes herself as a "true introvert" but adds that this is not necessarily a plus right now. "The notion that introverts suddenly have it made while we're all ordered to stay in is wildly misplaced. Our home life -- traditionally a refuge for laying low and recharging social batteries -- is suddenly required to be all things at once." Don't miss Jere Hester: They broke up 50 years ago. How the Beatles still bring joy in scary times Sara Novic: What deaf truckers have to fear from the Trump administration Joe Lockhart: The secret weapon hidden in Obama's endorsement of Biden Frimet Goldberger: Why my former community makes for such compelling television AND... What are you reading/watching? Don't tell Holly Thomas that she should be watching "Tiger King," "The Two Popes," "Uncut Gems," "Phantom Thread," or "A Quiet Place." She's opting for traditional fare: period dramas like "Pride and Prejudice" and "Jeeves and Wooster." "I am watching anything set a long enough time ago that the Internet does not exist, no one watches television, news is non-existent, and all human interactions are done in person, but without anyone expressing their actual feelings -- unless in a quivering, awkward outburst," Thomas wrote. "I want characters' houses to be preposterously large, even when its inhabitants are supposedly 'down on their luck.' I want lush landscapes punctuated by the placid clip-clop of horse shoes, characters who 'take a turn' about the living room, and concerns about gentility levels as the hazard de jour." (For another skeptical view of "Tiger King," read Charlie Dent's account of his time as a Covid-19 patient.) What's the appeal of reading right now? Poet Tess Taylor, who's reading John Keats' letters and "Austen Years" by Rachel Cohen, has "been thinking that one critical function of literature in this moment is to help us make sense of the tear in the texture of time. All of us are experiencing ruptures. All of us have lost the world as we knew it." "If we are most lucky, we are waiting in an odd suspended present, sheltering in place, trying to get by. We also may be losing people we love, losing employment, losing the ability to get even simple groceries. We may be losing decades of work. We may be realizing that the home where we live is not the home where we need to live. It is a time of many tiny revelations: Each day is a rift, a strange reinvention. Good books help us find language for living inside the tear." Read Taylor's piece and fill out the form to tell us what you're reading, and why. We'll report back. 'Villages are much better prepared than towns as far as COVID-19 is concerned.' IMAGE: Women in a Bihar village queue up to access their bank accounts during the national lockdown. Photograph: PTI Photo "The lockdown has taught us many things. It has hit all of us hard, especially the poor. But it has prepared all of us for a long battle till the vaccine comes," Pratyay Amrit, the senior-most bureaucrat in charge of disaster management in Bihar, tells Archana Masih/Rediff.com, explaining how a state with the largest migrant population is helping Biharis stranded in other states and defending its citizens from the deadly virus. This pandemic is something civil servants have not faced before in their careers. How are you dealing with a crisis that does not have a precedent? It the rarest of rare, but I still feel it is a great honour to be at the helm of affairs at this critical juncture. Whatever we are doing gives immense satisfaction. I have been in the disaster management department for almost four years and have been part of the Kosi river flood disaster team (one of Bihar's most devastating floods which occurred in 2008) and other disasters in Bihar. But this is different from the floods and other disasters we have faced in the past. What is a day like as the top-most official handling disaster management in the state? The day starts early and we plan for the day. We have a small, dedicated team of good officers. I feel small teams are more effective in dealing with a crisis. We talk to the district magistrates, coordinate with the health department. We assist in contact tracing the moment someone is tested positive. It is not possible for the civil surgeons or doctors to do this, so we step in and start getting lists of contacts prepared etc. Secondly, funds have been disbursed to the district magistrates for disaster according the three-tier system that has been followed by the Bihar government. All the border districts have Apda Rahat Kendras (District Disaster Relief Centres). These centres are in readiness. Many migrant labourers, who have managed to return by whatever means -- I won't get into that debate -- we get them medically examined and scanned as soon as they reach our borders. They are housed in government schools keeping social distancing in mind. These are known as village quarantine camps. Food is provided. The many people who returned immediately after the lockdown were very keen to go to their villages. So after 2-3 days we transported them (from the border districts of Bihar) in buses arranged by the state government to their respective districts and villages. IMAGE: Pratyay Amrit, Principal Secretary, Disaster Management Department, Bihar. Photograph: Kind courtesy Pratyay Amrit The state also has Seema Apda Rahat Kendras (Border Disaster Relief Centres). Meanwhile, we have a third relief centre for destitute, beggars, rickshaw pullers etc in towns. There are 168 such centres that provide food to 60,000 people per day. Who monitors the village quarantine centres to ensure adequate food is being provided and social distancing being followed? Bihar has seen one of the highest influx of migrants and there are many challenges in implementation, I'll be very candid. A local government functionary is in charge of every village quarantine centre. The mukhiyas have also been given responsibility because social pressure and community leadership plays an important role. Otherwise, it will not be possible to keep a person who has travelled 1,300 kms on foot or by hook and crook, inside a school and prevent him from going to his house when it is just next door. There have been cases where migrants have slipped out and gone to their homes at night. It is not possible for us to put CCTV cameras to monitor 60,000 people staying in such camps in more than 3,500 government buildings. Neither is it possible to put a police force at all these buildings. The government official in charge of the village quarantine camp and the mukhiya are responsible that they remain there for 14 days and do not move around. Food is provided twice a day. We are also going to provide clothes, mosquito nets, utensils, durries, milk for children. In Bihar, we have been doing the same for the past 8 to 10 years during floods. It is a standard operating procedure and we are going to implement it immediately. The entire cost will be borne by the chief minister's relief fund. Perhaps the migrants will find it easier to stay for 14 days with enhanced provisions because it has not been easy to really enforce it. Along the way, we have also learnt a lot of things. The thela-wallahs, rickshaw-wallahs, beggars etc -- they have to go to a particular place where food is being distributed to eat. How is the state ensuring that they are able to reach that place and are not deprived of food? If you look at data, you will not find a hunger death in Bihar for the last 10 to 15 years. Bihar has fertile land and high density of population, a person close to starvation will not go unnoticed and will be fed. In Patna, there are 17 centres where 24,000 people are getting food. Some centres are located near the rickshaw stands which is where the rickshaw-wallahs are, hence they don't have to travel much to access it. Food packets are distributed to all slum dwellers in Bihar through the respective thanas. 10,000 packets are distributed in Patna alone. Bihar doesn't encourage NGOs to run community kitchens. This has been a standard rule since 2008. The chief minister strongly believes that there is no issue of funds and is of the clear opinion that in case of a disaster, all the other priorities of the government will be put on hold and the money will be diverted towards disaster. That is how we have been successful in handling floods. We have our SOPs in place. We won several accolades for handling the Kosi disaster and that continues even in this pandemic. If an NGO or somebody is so keen, they can prepare the food, but will have to hand it over to the district administration. We had urban flooding in Patna last year. We did not allow NGOs or any kind of flood tourism, like taking photos while distributing puris. IMAGE: Biharis queue up to access their Jan Dhan bank accounts in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo The state government disburses Rs 1,000 each to the migrants stranded in different parts of the country. How many have received the money in their accounts? It is a unique scheme and now Jharkhand is doing the same and maybe UP also. It was not easy, but as of Saturday (April 18) 15.94 lakh people have registered themselves. Out of which Rs 14.29 lakhs payment has been processed and the money has reached the accounts of 10.79 lakh people. The remaining will be completed by Monday (April 20) evening. How will they get to banks/ATMs in the lockdown? We have been talking to people and we have not got any complaint regarding this so far. The ATMs are functioning. We get complaints that it is taking time, OTP is not getting generated etc. It takes patience to handle it and we are doing so and it is working. How has the state government reached out to other state governments about the welfare of Bihari migrants stranded in those states? Bihar has maximum migrants labourers and we are very concerned about them. The chief minister himself spoke to the respective chief ministers. The chief secretary has written letters to the states where our migrants hotspots are like Mumbai, Delhi, Haryana, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Punjab. We have also given money from the chief minister's relief fund to the Bihar Foundation which is running centres in Mumbai, Chennai, Sikkim, Puducherry. It is a separate entity with an IRS (Indian Revenue Service) officer based out of Mumbai as its CEO. There are local representatives in places like Dharavi, Vashi, Belapur, Kalyan, Bhiwandi, Mankhurd etc. They send us a report every day. These are some of the ways we are trying to help our people. We also have a very good 24x7 helpline with a dedicated team of 50 to 60 people. When we receive requests from places where 20 or more migrants are stuck, we then take the matter up to a certain higher level. We talk to the district magistrates, tehsildars. We have created a group of IAS/IPS officers in the Bihar cadre who are not originally from the state, but hail from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Haryana etc. They have their own mini secretariats and speak to their counterparts in their respective native states to help those in need of help. We have a WhatsApp group called 'Healing Touch' through which we monitor these efforts. As of Saturday, we have received more than 72,000 calls at the CM's office, Bihar Bhavan and disaster management department and we have reached out to 25 lakh people. Are these calls mostly about asking the state government to bring them back home? Week 1 was basically about ration and wanting to return home. Week 2 was mostly about complaints related to ration and the need for money. Today (April 18), which is week 3, we have got 1,300 calls about money and almost 100 calls about issues related to the Rs 1,000 and the app. Are the migrants who have returned getting work under MNREGA? We are going to start MNREGA from April 20th to provide work to the migrants who have returned. We have a scheme called Jan Jivan Hariyali, a historical scheme which undertakes work like digging ponds, plantation etc. It is manually-driven earthwork without using machines and JCBs. IMAGE: Masks being distributed on a street in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo Are we going to see a reverse migration, where migrants will not venture out of the state for some months after the COVID-19 crisis? How is Bihar planning to tackle this return? Just as parents look forward to having their children back, the migrants also want to return. Nothing is going to stop them from returning once it is allowed and they should come back home. I feel it is a golden opportunity as a bureaucrat to really see our strength and use them productively. This is the time to implement some of the good proposals of setting up small scale industries and use migrant labour in the state in a big way. I am sure they are going remain in Bihar till the Chhath Puja and the Bihar election. Personally, I feel we all have to live with COVID-19 till we get a vaccine and it is almost going to be a way of living. The lockdown has taught us many things. It has hit all of us hard, especially the poor. But it has prepared all of us for a long battle till the vaccine comes. Life will change post-May 3 whether it is in office, using masks, social distancing. MNREGA will also have to be done with social distancing. My own assessment is that villages are much better prepared than towns as far as COVID-19 is concerned. Insurance Business has just announced a brand new event - Broker Connect: Australasias new networking forum dedicated exclusively to brokers and insurance professionals, aimed at uniting the industry for networking and business during these difficult times. This online event the first of its kind in the market allows brokers to visit virtual booths, arrange one-to-one video chats, gain or distribute brand awareness, leverage new connections in a timely and exciting way, and generally keep the wheels of their business turning. Italy, Spain and Austria are taking the first tentative steps out of lockdown, with Germany soon to follow. In Italy, forestry workers and IT manufacturers are back at work, while Austria is re-opening parks and small shops. Zania Stamataki, University of Birmingham; Beatrice Heuser, University of Glasgow; David Hunter, University of Oxford, and Jonathan Ball, University of Nottingham share their views on how and when other nations might exit the lockdown. Zania Stamataki, senior lecturer and researcher in viral immunology, University of Birmingham Its too early to say if people who have recovered from Covid-19 have developed protective immunity. Until these studies are concluded, we must take every precaution to avoid re-exposure. This is because in some infections, such as dengue virus, re-infection can result in more severe disease. We dont know yet if this is the case for SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus behind Covid-19. It would be unwise to return to business as usual when the lockdown ends. We suffered great losses and we ought to learn from this pandemic. We need fast and accessible testing for virus surveillance, and we need sensible strategies to contain small outbreaks without compromising vital services. Do we have time to refine our vaccines thoroughly? Our urgency to end the global quarantine will lead to rapid vaccine development and the pressure to release vaccines with verified safety profiles but questionable efficacy. Candidate vaccines that pass safety tests in young, healthy volunteers will probably have reduced efficacy in vulnerable groups who struggle to raise protective immunity, such as the elderly and people with compromised immune systems. It is critical to carefully plan how to protect people at high risk of severe complications. We should retain privileged access time to services such as early supermarket shopping hours and extend this facility to other vital services, such as hospital appointments. Beatrice Heuser, professor of international relations, University of Glasgow As they are announcing the end of lockdown, and its substitution by extensive restrictive measures, governments are remaining silent about the highly likely need for one or more further lockdowns if these measures are not enough to prevent a renewed surge of infections. The measures that most European countries will continue to impose include the continued closure of restaurants, cafes and bars, no mass gatherings, no tourism, instead mass testing and wearing of masks, intrusions on civil liberties by tracking and isolating infected individuals. Governments have discarded the ideal option, from a health point of view, of continuing lockdown until a vaccine or other effective treatment is found. But they could still go for a stop-and-go option with scheduled future lockdowns alternating with open periods in which the above restrictions nonetheless apply, as we argue in our new report. Instead, they keep their fingers crossed that the restrictions alone will be enough. The prospect of additional periodic lockdowns may seem very disagreeable. In reality, however, a planned, regionally and internationally coordinated scheduling of future lockdowns might be preferable to announcements of emergency lockdowns at a weeks notice or less as happened when the British government implemented the lockdown. David Hunter, professor of epidemiology and medicine, University of Oxford It is now clear that when the peak of the first wave has passed, most of us perhaps more than 80% will not have been infected with SARS-CoV-2 and will still be vulnerable to being infected, passing on the infection or becoming ill. Everyone agrees that testing for the virus will be key, and testing for recovery from infection (antibodies) should play a role for health and care workers. No one is even pretending that enough tests will be available for a full release from lockdown. Without saturation testing, releasing the lockdown will need to be gradual (and potentially reversible) in order to prevent a second wave. To limit the number of susceptible people being exposed, difficult decisions will need to be made about who can return to work. Those who can continue to work effectively from home should continue to do so. Jobs will need to be ranked in order of degree of importance to society and the economy. Those in the most important jobs should return to work first. Workplaces able to practise social distancing will be safer than those that require workers to be close together. Temperatures may be taken at the factory gates or office entrance. Mass gatherings will be banned, and congregating in pubs and restaurants, theatres and cinemas greatly limited. These steps will create controversy, create winners and losers, and risk social cohesion. Governments (national and local) will need to prepare the public for these incremental steps, articulate an orderly series of lockdown releases, and be seen by the public to have clean hands in these decisions rather than favouring political donors, regions or pressure groups. Safely releasing the lockdown will be much more difficult than imposing it. Jonathan Ball, professor of virology, University of Nottingham Coming out of lockdown wont be easy. The virus hasnt gone away weve simply slowed the spread. As soon as social distancing measures are relaxed we can expect the virus to bounce back, and its controlling this rebound that will prove key. So how can we return to normality without giving the virus free rein again? Testing will be key. We will need the capacity to perform extensive testing for the virus using the so-called PCR test on throat or nose swabs out in the community, not just in hospitals where most of the testing in the UK is now focused. And that wont be easy. We will have to move from performing tens of thousands of tests a week to literally hundreds of thousands if we are going to be able to identify where and when the virus re-emerges and stop it spreading more widely. Another possibility is to have a phased relaxation, allowing those less vulnerable to developing severe Covid-19 to return to work first, or perhaps lifting sanctions on people known to have already been infected and who have hopefully built up a degree of immunity. The first option is not without risk and anyone can suffer serious disease or, worse still, be an easy vehicle for transmission onto other more vulnerable people. Similarly, option two will require there to be wide-scale testing using an accurate antibody test. It will also assume that those people are protected. Whatever the government does, it will have to be backed up by more extensive testing and building that capacity will take time. Zania Stamataki is Senior Lecturer in Viral Immunology, University of Birmingham; Beatrice Heuser is Professor of International Relations, University of Glasgow; David Hunter is Richard Doll Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine, University of Oxford, and Jonathan Ball is Professor of Molecular Virology and Director of the Centre for Research into Global Virus Infections, University of Nottingham This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have told the editors of British tabloid newspapers that they will never again deal with their outlets, in an unprecedented direct attack on a large part of the media that leaves little chance of repairing the relationship. The Guardian reports that on Sunday night, April 19, Prince Harry and Meghan sent a letter to the editors of the Sun, Daily Mail, Mirror and Express saying that from now on they would not respond to any inquiries from journalists working for the outlets. Instead there will be a policy of zero engagement, except when necessary through the couples lawyers. In a strongly worded attack, the duke and duchess said they refused to offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion and accused the outlets of running stories that are distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. The move is designed to signal to the wider public not to trust any of the reporting about the couple carried by British tabloids. It comes as Meghan prepares to take on the Mail on Sunday in a court case over its decision to print a letter she sent to her estranged father, with a virtual hearing scheduled to take place on Friday. In the letter Harry and Meghan tell the editors that they believe a free press is a cornerstone to any democracy that can shine light on dark places, telling stories that would otherwise go untold, standing up for whats right, challenging power, and holding those who abuse the system to account. The message from their representatives says: It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. When power is enjoyed without responsibility, the trust we all place in this much-needed industry is degraded. There is a real human cost to this way of doing business and it affects every corner of society. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know as well as complete strangers have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue. Addressing the editors directly, the letter continues: With that said, please note that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. There will be no corroboration and zero engagement. This is also a policy being instated for their communications team, in order to protect that team from the side of the industry that readers never see. This policy is not about avoiding criticism. Its not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it cant be based on a lie. The couples representatives said they are happy to engage with other outlets, especially grassroots and new media outlets, to spotlight issues and causes that so desperately need acknowledging What they wont do is offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion. The couples total ban on dealing with the British tabloid media also applies to the Sunday editions of the newspapers and their associated websites. Harry and Meghan have previously made clear that they particularly object to the way stories from British newspapers about the couple are carried around the world, especially by the Daily Mails sister publication MailOnline which has an enormous audience in the US and its columnist Piers Morgan. Harrys separate legal claims against the parent companies of both the Sun and the Mirror for alleged historical phone hacking cases are also ongoing. 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. Featured Video We have learned the hard way that the scientists who produce mathematical models predicting disaster are not to be granted the presumption of infallibility. Nor are their demands that we impoverish ourselves in order to avert a disaster a matter of "settled science." The coronavirus doom that the Cassandras of prestigious scientific organs predicted is nowhere to be found, and it turns out that models are based on assumptions and can be spectacularly wrong. Americans have sacrificed trillions of dollars and turned our lives upside-down based on predictions of millions of deaths if we didn't follow radically change our way of life, based on the pandemic predictions of modelers in the U.K. and USA. How embarrassing for the modelers that tell us we have to make even deeper sacrifices for a global warming disaster that is decades away, if it ever develops. You can smell their panic in this planned propaganda blitz from the Olympian heights of the media establishment. Chris White of the Daily Caller News Foundation writes: A project co-founded by the Columbia Journalism Review is asking hundreds of news outlets to focus their reporting on climate change on Earth Day as journalists focus primarily on coronavirus coverage. The journalist heading the effort believes the media should be devoting the same level of attention to global warming as they do to a virus that has killed more than 100,000 people worldwide. (snip) The founders behind Covering Climate Now are asking their network of more than 400 media outlets to blanket the airwaves with stories about climate change during the week of Earth Day. Reuters, Bloomberg News, and The Daily Beast are among the biggest names listed as partners of the project. The project's co-founder, Mark Hertsgaard, has said news outlets should be devoting the same amount of time to climate change as they do COVID-19. Paraphrasing the Wizard of Oz, "pay no attention to the modeler behind that curtain!" But that's not going to happen, no matter how much propaganda is put out predicting doom. People are righteously angry over paying a huge price because some boffins with computer models overemphasized risks. They understand that models are just guesses and that the modelers who predict the biggest disaster also get the most attention. To the 60,000 or more American fatalities due to the Wuhan virus, we can add the demise of the credibility of global warming models. The thin veneer of scientific infallibility has crumbled and cannot be restored. Graphic credit: Pixabay. One may not need to be able to read the cannabis leaves to divine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cannabis and insurance. Some good guesses from any insurance professional with their foot in the door of a dispensary, farm, lab or distribution facility, might go along the lines of: Vaping will be tougher to insure; reinsurance will be harder to find; expect even more exclusions in policies; greater capacity. The impact of the virus on the cannabis industry, like many other industries, is most notably lagging sales and sluggish business activity. A brief run on cannabis by hoarders precipitated a big downturn at dispensaries. Recreational marijuana sales in four big markets slowed in March as the impact of the virus continues to disrupt both the cannabis industry and the broader U.S. economy, according to the research firm Headset. The data shows recreational cannabis sales in Colorado and Nevada declined from March 2019 to March 2020, while sales in California and Washington rose but at a slower rate. Beyond that sales impact, cannabis may have gotten a reputational boost when numerous states declared it an essential business that could remain open, potentially changing the insurance landscape for the industry by putting insurers on notice that while marijuana may still be considered illegal in the eyes of the federal government, most states consider it to be not only legitimate but important. This point was echoed by more than one of the four experts sought out by Insurance Journal to tell us how the crisis will impact the industry. Following are the four ways each believe the COVID-19 crisis will change insurance and cannabis. Ian Stewart, a partner in Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP 1. Cannabis as an essential service. The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the absurd incongruity of cannabis being both federally illegal and deemed an essential service by numerous states. Access to cannabis used for medical purposes varies greatly state to state. In medical cannabis states, registered medical cannabis patients have little or no choice but to obtain their medicine through licensed dispensaries. In adult-use states such as California and Colorado, many who use cannabis for medical purposes obtain it through adult-use retail stores and delivery services. Regardless of the distribution model, the message has been heard and cannabis has been included as an essential service at some level in the following states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Washington. This bodes well for the long-term sustainability of the industry. 2. Delays with cannabis legalization efforts. COVID-19 has largely derailed legalization efforts across numerous states and federally. States like New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Vermont have been forced to shift their priorities and delay adult use legislation. Voter initiatives and legislative efforts in several medical states are also in jeopardy, including in Arkansas, Nebraska, Missouri and Oklahoma. Federally, any cannabis-related legislation such as SAFE Banking is DOA on Capitol Hill until well after the election. 3. Delays with new cannabis insurance products. These disruptions have also found their way into the cannabis insurance market. Carriers and MGUs are waiting and watching before rolling out new insurance products, particularly with respect to specialty lines. The cannabis reinsurance market, which was already tightening before the pandemic, continues to contract. 4. The big squeeze is on. Disruptions from COVID-19 may be felt first and most urgently by smaller licensed operators in unlimited license states like California and Oregon, as opposed to larger and better capitalized operators in limited license states like Florida and New York. To properly plan for COVID-19 fallout, cannabis insurers should be aware of the significant differences in competitive market forces between limited and unlimited license states. Many cannabis insureds of all sizes may not survive, however. The cannabis industry was facing a downturn in available financing from the capital markets before the pandemic, and coronavirus assistance through the CARES Act and other federal programs is not available to the cannabis industry. Business interruption coverage was not widely available to, or purchased by, most cannabis companies. Matt Porter, vice president at Brown & Brown Insurance Services of California Inc. 1. Vaping/product liability will become more stringent as a result of COVID. Vape pen manufacturers were already in a tight spot with the most recent vape scares, especially those manufacturers who were sourcing products from overseas. With this most recent virus coming out of China, I would expect that underwriters are going to be even more hesitant and stringent to extend coverage to these manufacturers who are sourcing components of their pens from China and the large production facilities there. 2. There will be more exclusions to product liability for all operations, further than just the vape pen manufacturers. Given the outbreak of this virus I wouldnt be surprised if product liability carriers will attempt to limit their exposure further. We already saw previously existing health conditions being a hurdle and major exclusion on current policies. I would expect that with the COVID implications and how underlying health issues are contributing to the death rate, the underwriters will most likely look to increase the exclusions to reduce their responsibility to pay claims from contributing health issues like asthma and breathing issues. 3. Reinsurance. Right now, I dont necessarily think the reinsurance market is going to be hit due to COVID since the industry is holding pretty firm that these pandemics are not a covered cause of loss. We have seen attempted litigation and governmental response trying to force insurers to pay income loss claims as a result of COVID 19. If the vast majority of these claims are paid, we would be looking at multi-billion dollar loss amounts, and if these begin to get paid, the reinsurance market is going to be hit extremely hard. 4. Capacity could open up. The cannabis space has been deemed essential, so we are seeing larger revenues and payroll projections, which could incentivize more carriers to enter the space John L. Balian, director of the cannabis industry practice for Wood Guttman & Bogart Insurance Brokers 1. Vaping will be tougher to insure. Vaping will continue to be tough in general COVID-19 will just add another level of complexity to the overall risk profile for accounts with this type of exposure at the underwriting level. 2. More exclusions to add to the numerous exclusions cannabis businesses have in their policies. Carriers and reinsurers will likely look to make sure that COVID-19 is addressed by name in policy forms in the future. It likely will be along the lines of additional exclusions akin to other common policy exclusions like asbestos. 3. Reinsurance will be harder to find. Reinsurers will have to entertain the potential business impact of COVID-19 on their standard business, so opting in to participating in new niche markets may get pushed to the backburner. 4. The business will actually have more capacity. Due to recent media publications showcasing cannabis as being essential and the increased (short-term) sales boom, net new capacity might entertain this as being the right time to jump in. Alyson D. Jaen, with Fortis Law Partners 1. Vaping will be tougher to insure. More insurance companies may be hesitant to insure vaping products, especially with the vaping crisis that emerged in 2019 and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Because the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is a respiratory illness, insurance companies may be more cautious to provide insurance on products that exacerbate respiratory illnesses. In addition, insurance companies may point to the increase in litigation due to lung-related injuries during the vaping crisis as a reason to limit insuring vaping products during the COVID-19 crisis. 2. More exclusions to add to the numerous exclusions cannabis businesses have in their policies. Cannabis businesses already face a plethora of exclusions to their insurance policies. For instance, many standard commercial general liability policies contain exclusions for Schedule 1 substances. Insurance companies may use the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason to add more exclusions to their policies, especially for cannabis businesses that specialize in vaping and/or other smokable cannabis products. 3. Reinsurance will be harder to find. Unfortunately, obtaining quality insurance as a cannabis business has always been a bit problematic, and finding insurance companies who will back marijuana-related books, at times, has been a difficult task. At a time when so many businesses are filing insurance claims, cannabis businesses may find that insurance companies are not willing to reinsure cannabis policies because it is deemed too risky to do at this time. 4. The business will actually have more capacity. Several states have reported an increase in sales and demand for cannabis products since the COVID-19 outbreak began. Annual and monthly insurance premiums run much higher for cannabis businesses than for other businesses. Because of this, now could be a good time for insurance companies to reach out and work with cannabis businesses while sales are up and the businesses are running at higher profit margins. Topics Carriers California COVID-19 New York Reinsurance Cannabis Market Colorado Manufacturing Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Andreas Karaiskos (The Jakarta Post) London Mon, April 20, 2020 16:29 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd3108d5 3 Opinion #COVID19,#coronavirus,COVID-19,coronavirus,Asia-Pacific,finance,economy,business,fintech,financial-technology Free The coronavirus pandemic has magnified and exposed social imbalances in the region underscoring the importance of financial inclusion as well as environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG). Companies focused on addressing shortcomings in these societal aspects may communicate their interests to socially responsible investors. What a difference a year makes in the way that conversations on ESG and its potential implementation are playing out in the Asia-Pacific region. Much of the focus in 2019 was on the themes of ESG. The bushfires that ravaged Australia and the heavy haze that enveloped many nations in Southeast pushed climate change, deforestation and pollution to the top of the agenda of many investors and market participants. Governance became a major ESG talking point too in 2019. The attention on disclosure and transparency intensified on the back of scandals surrounding Asias largest and most prominent corporations, such as Nissan and the automakers senior management, as well as charges of malfeasance against former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak over billions of dollars missing from the sovereign wealth fund 1MDB. Fast forward to 2020, and the world is facing the specter of social distancing, lockdowns, deserted airports and empty supermarket shelves developments that could become the new normal depending on how the unfolding pandemic evolves. While the health-, economic- and social crisis is creating untold strain on governments, businesses and individuals, it is also placing greater scrutiny on the social impact of corporate activity on issues like financial inclusion, gender equality and labor management under the watchful eyes of the general public, policymakers and, just as significantly, the growing ranks of ESG and socially responsible investors. Philanthropy has been a popular way of returning the favor to society, but charity begins at home as the saying goes. Corporate commitment to ones own staff amid a crisis may help a rare few companies stand out from the crowd in terms of social responsibility. Take the declaration by Lululemon and Microsoft to support their staff with regular pay even as other companies were announcing layoffs and salary cuts across the world. Perhaps only companies with sufficient financial strength have the luxury and wherewithal to do this. However, in this new paradigm, it may be a discussion worth having by management and shareholders in the chase for financial returns. The billions of Asians under government lockdowns, staying and working from home ushered in a boom in online services and home deliveries. Ride-hailing and delivery drivers across Asia have become the unsung heroes facilitating daily necessities, connecting consumers with their purchases, destination or dinner. The latter, along with temps and freelancers, struggling with second or third jobs, form part of the so-called informal workforce that lacks the safety net of steady pay checks, health and home insurance, loans or financial services. This situation becomes even starker in countries such as India, where more than 400 million informal workers or 90 percent of the total workforce face increasingly challenging conditions wrought by the pandemic. With concerns of rising defaults and bankruptcies, informal workers as well as small and medium enterprises (SMEs) face a funding squeeze as banks and other traditional financing firms cut back. As it is, only a third of SMEs in Southeast Asia, for example, have access to loans and credit lines limiting their potential for growth and scale, according to a report by Singapores Economic Development Board. Even so, some banks, such as Singapores United Overseas Bank, have stepped up to the plate to become more inclusive in their lending practices allocating S$3 (US$37.15) billion for its affected clients, in particular SMEs. Asian governments have already taken notice. Financial inclusion has become a key objective for Singapores fintech aspirations, and a prerequisite for any company that wants to attain a virtual baking license in Hong Kong. Alibabas Ant Financial, ride-hailing group Grab and ByteDance, the company behind TikTok, have cast their hats into the ring for digital banking licenses in Singapore. More disruptors like them would certainly be welcome to serve the more than 1 billion people in Asia that the World Bank defines as the unbanked. The big emerging markets in Asia, such as India and Indonesia, with large unbanked populations would benefit in areas such as payments, fund transfers and micro-loans for farmers, small borrowers and womens groups. Technology could become the important enabler in these inclusive initiatives. Fintech firms can leverage on the power of artificial intelligence, analytics, risk management, credit verification and scoring to mitigate the lack of information and collateral in these markets. *** CEO of Fitch Learning, a global provider of learning resources and solutions for the financial services industry. Fitch Learning is part of Fitch Group. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Premier Foods, which owns the Mr Kipling cakes brand, said it saw 'exceptional levels' of demand for its products due to the coronavirus lockdown. The food manufacturer, which also makes Loyd Grossman sauces and Bisto Gravy, said its UK sales shot up 15 per cent in March compared to the previous year. Sales in the first three months of 2020 went up 7.3 per cent meanwhile as consumer purchases of food and drink surged owing to the Covid-19 outbreak. Mr Kipling's Cherry Bakewell tarts (above) are a popular product made by Premier Foods Shares in the food giant had climbed by 18.7 per cent soon after midday as it stated that its manufacturing plants and distribution centres have been working at 'maximum capacity' and are 'coping well' in response to the soaring demand. Factory workers have been rewarded by the St. Albans firm with an extra two days annual leave and a 250 cash bonus for working in such a 'challenging time.' Premier, which also part-owns Hovis remarked that the burgeoning demand has fallen 'from the exceptional levels seen in March,' but that it would remain 'higher than average' due to restrictions forcing more people to eat meals at home. Bachelors Super Noodles and Smash instant mash potato are among its brands that have experienced a boost in popularity in recent weeks, according to the BBC. The Angel Delight owner insisted that though its sales volumes were high, its 'first priority is the health and wellbeing of its colleagues, customers and other stakeholders. 'The Group also takes its responsibility as a major UK food manufacturer very seriously and is working closely with its customers to ensure maximum availability of its product ranges for consumers.' Premier Foods part-owns Hovis, the iconic British flour and bread company Premier said it now expects to post a trading profit for the year ending March 28 at the 'top end of market expectations' following a high-performing March period. It also announced that it was reorganising its pension schemes, following a year-long strategic review at the business. RHM, Premier Foods and Premier Grocery Products, which are the company's three separate schemes, will be merged into a single plan instead. It believes the arrangement 'will provide greater funding certainty' and help cut future pension deficit contributions by between 8million and 21million. In the long term, this could mean a reduction in its pension indebtedness from around 300million-320million now to about 175million to 185million Chairman Colin Day called the merger a 'ground-breaking agreement' which would 'unlock benefits and value for all stakeholders in the Company, leveraging the strength of the RHM scheme and substantially improving the position of the Premier Foods schemes.' The debt-laden business has come under fire from activist investors in recent years, resulting in a leadership shake-up last year. G's Growers paid 40,000 to bring in 150 experienced Romanian farm workers to help British pickers get 'up to speed' with the job, it has been reported. Anthony Gardiner, marketing director for Cambridgeshire-based G's, told The Daily Mail the situation was getting desperate due to the impact Covid-19 has had on international travel. The firm, one of the UK's largest vegetable producers, has already hired 500 British workers to help pick crops on its farms. But it needed to spend 40,000 on charter flights to bring in an experienced workforce from Romania to help newly-recruited Brits to 'comply with food and hygiene standards'. The Romanian workers landed in London Stansted last week, and were bussed to sites around East Anglia. Recent estimates by the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) show that there could be a shortage of 80,000 farm workers due to the coronavirus. Mr Gardiner said that for the first time since the 1980s, British farm workers would outnumber their foreign counterparts. Speaking to MailOnline, he said the recruitment drive for much-needed agricultural labour is 'going really well' and will be 'ramped up' in the following weeks. "We anticipate that 60 per cent of people we are bringing in are going to be UK-based residents but you can't run a business on completely brand new people. "You have got to have some people who are experienced and know what they are doing. "They will help bring the newcomers up to pace and to comply with food hygiene and safety standards," he said. G's hopes that two-thirds of its workforce for this year will be British, but experienced workers from eastern Europe are needed to help them learn, Mr Gardiner explained. "It is not just picking. You need knowledge of food safety to do it properly." I have to come into work concerned about whether Im going to be the next victim or not, said Officer Marc Perez, fresh out of the police academy, after a patrol shift through Northwest Detroit. Theres only so much an officer can do to prevent himself from coming into contact with that actual virus. Every day is stressful for me. I met with the complainant who works as part of Walmart's AP team. She stated that at 1622 hrs, there were two suspects who concealed merchandise within Walmart shopping bags and passed all points of sale without paying for the items. The total value of merchandise stolen was $333.45. The two suspects were both black females. The first female suspect appeared to be a younger female wearing a pink jacket, brown pants, and white shoes. The second female suspect appeared to be an older female wearing a leopard print jacket, yellow shirt, sunglasses, and black pants. * * * Police responded to a Damaged Property Accidental at Autumn Lake Trail. The victim said that his wife parked their vehicle in the driveway this morning at around 6:45 a.m. and after she had gotten out of the vehicle, it rolled into their mailbox damaging the vehicle and the mailbox. He said that she had probably accidentally left the vehicle in gear. He said the driver side front door was damaged on the vehicle. * * * An officer responded to a Shoplifting at 1400 E Main St. Upon arriving I spoke with complainant who stated an unknown suspect had shoplifted around $150 from his store. He stepped away from the register to verify if a credit card was valid or not, and when he returned the suspect known as "Park", had fled with a buggy full of groceries. Police were unable to locate "Park" anywhere in the area. * * * Police responded to a Shoplifting at 6241 Perimeter Dr. (Sportsmans Warehouse). An employee stated that yesterday a white male came into the store and stole a Carhart jacket valued at $160. The store had video footage of a white male entering the store, put the jacket on, and then exiting the store without paying for it. There is also video of the suspect leaving in a black Ford Explorer with a GA tag. * * * Police received a call of an alarm at 802 Broad St. Upon arrival police found the front glass window to be broke out along with a glass door which was smashed as well (total damage was estimated at $3,000 by the victim). Upon making entry it appeared someone had taken some cigarettes. Police cleared the building to ensure no one else was inside. The owner/victim responded to the scene. The victim told police there was about 10 cartons of cigarettes which were stolen. The victim stated each carton was worth about $58.00 with a total of $580.00 worth of property stolen. Police viewed their camera footage and found a black bald male, throwing a rock three times at the front of the business. Police observed the male suspect climb in the window and take the cigarettes then exit the same way he entered. Police searched the area however were unable to located the suspect or other evidence. Police contacted the day shift supervisor to send out the video and images. * * * An officer responded to a Shoplifting at 1227 E Main St. Upon arrival I spoke with the manager of the Mapco at the above address, who said at approximately 0005 hrs. on the above date, he observed an unknown black male approximately 6'2", wearing dark pants and a white rain coat, enter the above store. The manager said the unknown black male went to the coolers and grabbed 2 12 packs of 12 oz cans of Michelobe Ultra. He said the unknown black male left the store, passing all points of sale, with the beer and without paying. * * * Police responded to a Theft from Motor Vehicle at Tunnel Blvd. The resident said she left her car door unlocked during the night. No one has bothered her things in 30 years, she said. Her car had about $340 in cash in a wallet under her front seat and some cash in her center console. It had been raining and prints were able to be retrieved. * * * An officer responded to 6109 Lee Hwy. Police spoke with a woman who said she was pumping gas at the Sam's club gas station and sat her wallet on the back bed of her truck while she pumped gas and cleaned her windshield. She stated a man was looking at her at the next pump over but she stated she didn't think anything of it. She stated after pulling away from the pump she realized her wallet wasn't with her. she stated when she returned to the gas station no one had turned in her wallet. The woman said she believed the man at the pump next to her stole the wallet. She stated she wanted police to look at the camera but Sam's was already closed and police were unable to review the cameras. She said she would check with Sam's in the morning and notify the police. By PTI CANBERRA: Global digital platforms Google and Facebook will be forced to pay for news content in Australia, the government said on Monday as the coronavirus pandemic causes a collapse in advertising revenue. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission would release in late July draft rules for the platforms to pay fair compensation for the journalistic content siphoned from news media. Frydenberg said he believed that Australia could succeed where other countries, including France and Spain, had failed in making Google and Facebook pay. "We won't bow to their threats," Frydenberg told reporters. "We understand the challenge that we face. This is a big mountain to climb. These are big companies that we are dealing with, but there is also so much at stake, so we're prepared for this fight." The ACCC had attempted to negotiate a voluntary code by which the global giants would agree to pay traditional media for their content. But the parties couldn't agree on "this key issue of payment for content," Frydenberg said. Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said Australia would take a different approach to Europe, relying on competition law rather than copyright law. Google and Facebook said they had been working to the ACCC November deadline to negotiate a voluntary code. "We're disappointed by the government's announcement, especially as we've worked hard to meet their agreed deadline," Facebook Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand Will Easton said in a statement. "COVID-19 has impacted every business and industry across the country, including publishers, which is why we announced a new, global investment to support news organisations at a time when advertising revenue is declining," he added, referring to a $100 million investment in the news industry announced in March. Google said it had engaged with more than 25 Australian publishers to get their input on a voluntary code. "We have sought to work constructively with industry, the ACCC and government to develop a code of conduct, and we will continue to do so in the revised process set out by the government today," a Google statement said. ACCC Chairman Rod Sims played down the prospect of Google shutting down its Australian news platform rather than pay for content as it had done in Spain. "Around 10% of search results are media stories. This will seriously affect the usefulness, for example, of Google Search, so I think we have to understand that there's value both ways here and I think it will be hard for Google and Facebook just to say we won't have any contact with news media at all," Sims told Australian Broadcasting Corp. Michael Miller, Executive Chairman Australasia of News Corp. Australia, the nation's largest newspaper publisher, said: "We are looking for a fair payment and at the same time a substantial payment." Frydenberg declined to estimate how much Google and Facebook would pay news media, other than to say it would amount to millions of dollars. Google was netting 47% of online advertising spending excluding classified ads in Australia, and Facebook was claiming 24%, he said. Media companies have stopped printing dozens of newspaper mastheads across Australia because the pandemic shutdown has caused advertisers to stop spending. The Australian National Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, which will be premiered live on Facebook and YouTube this Friday 24th April 2020, will feature Federal and State political leaders, including New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian, Federal parliamentarians Tim Wilson, Joel Fitzgibbon, Trent Zimmerman and Kristina Keneally, as well as Shadow Treasurer of New South Wales, Walt Secord, Armenian National Committee of Australia reported. The politicians will offer their video messages of solidarity on the occasion marking the 105th anniversary of the genocide that saw the Ottoman Empire systematically massacre over 1.5 million of its Armenian citizens, and a further 1 million Assyrians and Greeks. Gladys Berejiklian, who currently leads Australia's largest state of New South Wales as its Premier, is a grandchild of Armenian Genocide survivors. Tim Wilson, the Federal Member for the Victorian electorate of Goldstein, is also of Armenian heritage and visited Armenia in 2019 as part of the first Federal Australian Delegation to the Caucasus nation. Federal Member for North Sydney Trent Zimmerman, who was also on that trip where he and fellow Members of Parliament paid their respects at the Tsitsernakapert Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan, will also address the Commemoration as Chair of the Federal Australia-Armenia Inter-Parliamentary Union (Friendship Group). The group's Vice-Chair is the Member for Hunter Joel Fitzgibbon, who is also Australia's former Defence Minister and current Shadow Minister for Agriculture, will also express his support on the occasion, as will the Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, Senator Kristina Keneally. Vice-Chair of the NSW Armenia-Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group Secord, who is a prominent Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council and a visitor to Armenia, Artsakh and Western Armenia, will also form part of official proceedings. The Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU), who forms part of the organising Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee, welcomed the participation of some members of the country's political elite. "It is important our community hears from the representatives we elect to parliament, and witness directly how our grassroots advocacy efforts have built up a critical mass of supporters calling for Australia's recognition of the Armenian Genocide, and more broadly, justice for the Armenian Genocide," said ANC-AU Executive Director Haig Kayserian, who will deliver the Commemoration's Advocacy Report. The Commemoration, which will be premiered live at 7:30pm (Australian Eastern Standard Time) via Facebook and YouTube links that will be provided in coming days, will also include a Keynote Feature on Australia's involvement in the Armenian Genocide, which was through eyewitness testimony documented by ANZAC soldiers and the country's first major international humanitarian relief effort. This keynote will feature genocide scholar, Dr. Panayiotis Diamadis and author Vicken Babkenian. Covid-19 restrictions on public gatherings means this format will replace the commemoration events typically held in Sydney, Melbourne and other capital cities across Australia, which together attract over 1,500 attendees. Portapique, Nova Scotia: The death toll from the worst mass shooting in Canadian history rose to 18, including a police officer, Canadian police said on Monday, adding that they expected to uncover more fatalities from the weekend massacre in Nova Scotia. The suspect, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, also died in the attack. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would move ahead on the gun control legislation he promised during last year's election campaign. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses Canadians on the COVID-19 pandemic from Rideau Cottage in Ottawa. Credit:AP "We're relatively confident we've identified all the crime scenes," Nova Scotia RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told reporters on Monday, but said that fires set at some of those sites, mostly residences, made the search for other victims difficult. DUBLIN, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Impact of COVID-19 on the European Economy" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. Impact of COVID-19 on the European Economy, Deviation & Trends Analysis Report: Segmentation (Automobile, Food & Beverage, Machinery, Electrical and Electronics, Aviation, BFSI, Retail and E-Commerce, Healthcare, Travel and Tourism, and Others) Europe is among the largest economies across the globe in terms of industrial production. The GDP of the European Union (EU) was estimated to be $18.8 trillion in 2018, increased from $17.4 trillion in 2017, represented nearly 23% of global GDP. This result owing to the remarkable focus towards the production of all finished goods and services within the country. In 2018, EU industrial production surpassed the level that was observed in 2008. More than 75% of the value of sold production in EU 28 was generated by six member states, including Germany, Italy, France, UK, Spain, and Poland with 28%, 16%, 12%, 9%, 8%, and 5%, of total EU respectively (Eurostat). The region has a significant production of food products, motor vehicles, machinery and equipment, and basic metals and fabricated metal products. In 2018, the production of food products in EU 28 increased by nearly 117 billion (16%) compared with 2008. In addition, there is a considerable production of machinery and equipment, such as construction and transportation equipment in European countries, including UK and Germany. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in UK, the production of machinery and equipment increased by 1.8% and reached nearly $36 billion in 2018. However, European countries are currently facing a recession due to factory shutdown and shortage of raw material amid the COVID-19 outbreak. After China, European countries, including Italy, Spain, and UK are highly affected by COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the epidemics of COVID-19, the manufacturers of the automobile, chemical, electronics, and aircraft are facing concerns regarding supply chain disruption. The government orders to suspend production is further affecting industrial output in the region. Several automobile companies, retailers, and machinery and equipment manufacturers have temporarily shut down their factories to minimize the spread of coronavirus. For instance, in Italy, Ferrari S.p.A. has suspended production for two weeks due to Italian government orders for nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 epidemic. It is expected that Ferrari and Fiat began producing. Further, Jaguar Land Rover Automotive PLC, a part of Tata Motors, suspended its UK production facility in line with the government advise to reduce the spread of coronavirus. The study on the impact of COVID-19 on European industry is classified into automobile, food & beverage, machinery, electrical and electronics, aviation, retail and e-commerce, healthcare, travel and tourism, and others. BFSI and automobiles are among the most affected sectors due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the region. European banks were facing financial and debt crises in 2019 and the COVID-19 crisis has created uncertainty in the financial sector. As per the European Banking Authority (EBA), as of June 2019, the weighted average ratio of non-performing loans stood at 3%, rather than 6% in 2015. The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to worsen the level of bad loans in banks' balance sheets. Hence, it is expected that several small and medium-sized businesses will struggle to repay their debts and have been forced to close, which, in turn, will more worsen the condition. However, Europe's central banks are focusing on reviving their economy by offering support to businesses. For instance, during a special meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on 10th March 2020, the Bank of England declared to reduce Bank Rate by 50 basis points from 0.75% to 0.25% to counter the economic shock following from the coronavirus effect. This will support to keep firms in business and support avoiding longer-lasting economic harm. Key companies getting affected by coronavirus epidemic in the region include Ferrari S.p.A., Siemens AG, BASF SE, British Airways plc, Siare Engineering International Group s.r.l., and Rolls-Royce Holdings plc. Siare Engineering International Group s.r.l. is in talks with Fiat and Ferrari to help produce more ventilators to fight coronavirus pandemic in Italy. The Italian government has asked Siare to augment its production of ventilators from 160 to 500 per month, as death toll surpassed 5,000 and is growing rapidly. Siare may face concerns regarding obtaining parts, which can be overcome by partnering with automakers with better purchasing power and an efficient supply chain. Apart from automakers, aviation firms are also expected to join ventilator production to cope up with the increasing demand. The report covers: Comprehensive research methodology of the pre and post-COVID-19 impact on the European economy. This report also includes a detailed and extensive market overview with key analyst insights. An exhaustive analysis of macro and micro factors influencing the market guided by key recommendations. Analysis of regional regulations and other government policies impacting the European economy. Insights about market determinants which are stimulating the European economy. Detailed and extensive market segments with regional distribution of forecasted revenues. Extensive profiles and recent developments of market players. Key Topics Covered 1. Report Summary 1.1. Research Methods and Tools 2. Market Overview and Insights 2.1. Scope of the Report 2.2. Analyst Insight & Current Market Trends 2.2.1. Key Findings 2.2.2. Recommendations 2.2.3. Conclusion 2.3. Government support/bailout packages 2.4. Banking Initiatives 2.5. Supply Chain Analysis 3. Industry Overview 3.1. Historical market growth estimation of the European economy excluding COVID-19 pandemic effect 3.2. Deviations in the European economy growth rate due to COVID-19 pandemic 4. Verticals Affected Most 4.1. Automobile 4.2. Food & Beverage 4.3. Machinery 4.4. Electrical & Electronics 4.5. Aviation 4.6. BFSI 4.7. Retail & E-Commerce 4.8. Healthcare 4.9. Travel & Tourism 4.10. Others 5. Country Analysis 5.1. Italy 5.2. Spain 5.3. UK 5.4. Germany 5.5. France 5.6. Rest of Europe 6. Company Profiles Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A. Associated British Foods plc Aviva plc BAE Systems plc BASF SE Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) AG British Airways PLC Dyson Ltd. F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG Ferrari S.p.A. Fiat Automobile S.p.A. J Sainsbury plc Joseph Cyril Bamford Excavators Ltd. (JCB) KfW Bankengruppe Nestl S.A. Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA Novartis AG Rolls-Royce Holdings plc Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc Siare Engineering International Group s.r.l. Siemens AG Tesco PLC Thomas Cook Group PLC For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/5e74ux Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] 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 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1904 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 SOURCE Research and Markets Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com TEL AVIV, Israel - Israeli researchers reported Monday that the global coronavirus outbreak has sparked a rise in anti-Semitic expression blaming Jews for the spread of the disease and the economic recession it has caused. The findings, which came in an annual report by Tel Aviv University researchers on anti-Semitism, show an 18% spike in attacks against Jews last year. The report warns that the pandemic has threatened to amp up incitement even more. Although they did not include 2020 statistics, the researchers said the hatred has come from sources as varied as right-wing European politicians, ultra-conservative American pastors, anti-Zionist intellectuals and Iranian state authorities. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant rise in accusations that Jews, as individuals and as a collective, are behind the spread of the virus or are directly profiting from it, said Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress, an umbrella group representing Jewish communities across the continent. The language and imagery used clearly identifies a revival of the medieval blood libels when Jews were accused of spreading disease, poisoning wells or controlling economies. Tel Aviv Universitys Kantor Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry releases its report every year on the eve of Israels Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins Monday at sundown. Researchers said the 18% increase in anti-Semitic violence in 2019 continued a steady rise of recent years. Seven Jews were killed in 2019 in more than 450 attacks across the globe against synagogues, community centres and other Jewish targets. The researchers said the hateful response to the novel coronavirus and the COVID-19 illness it causes was the continuation of an ancient form of anti-Semitism that involves blaming Jews when things go wrong. They recorded expressions such as pinning the source of the virus on Jews rejecting Christ, to accusing Jews of perpetrating the viruss spread in order to profit from vaccines they would ultimately create to combat it. The FBI also warned against calls coming from neo-Nazis and white supremacists to spread contagion among Jews. Kantor warned that the virus had the potential to spark populist extremism, similar to what erupted after the Great Depression and contributed to the rise of Nazism. The dire warning comes on the heels of another difficult year for Jews, capped by the October shooting attack on Yom Kippur against a synagogue in the German city of Halle. Germany averaged five anti-Semitic incidents a day in 2019. Overall, at least 169 Jews were physically attacked in the world in 2019, some close to or even in their homes. A recent survey, led by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, found that four out of 10 European Jews under the age of 60 have considered emigrating because of the rise in anti-Semitism. It doesnt say where they want to emigrate. Also, the survey said eight out of 10 feel anti-Semitism is a problem in their countries. Several governments have taken additional measures to protect Jews, with more than 20 countries adopting the working definition of anti-Semitism as outlined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. A Code of Conduct against illegal hate speech on the web was also signed in 2019 with internet platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube vowing to scan material identified as such and remove it within 24 hours. In January, Israel hosted dozens of world leaders for the largest-ever gathering focused on combating anti-Semitism. ___ Follow Aron Heller at www.twitter.com/aronhellerap Nursing grads working on front lines Monday, April 20, 2020 8:30 AM News, Alumni, Academics Pittsburg, KS Carley Perkins, a 2014 graduate of PSUs Irene Bradley School of Nursing, is working as a volunteer on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic in New Jersey, one of the hardest hit areas with 68,824 confirmed cases as of April 16 and 2,805 deaths. Each day has been an eye-opening experience for the Tulsa, Oklahoma, resident one she couldnt have imagined as a student a few years ago. Ive been a nurse for six years and I pray we never have to go through something like this again, she said. But Perkins chose nursing because she wanted to make a difference, and she is happy to be doing that in an especially meaningful way now, she said. At home back in Tulsa, the hospital census was so low, many nurses hours have been cut or they are being put on call. I couldnt stand sitting at home not working knowing that these people up here in the Northeast were drowning and needing help, so I volunteered to come help, she said. I would hope they would do the same for us if we were in a state of needing desperate help. Shes working at Pascack Valley Medical Center, a smaller suburb hospital in Westwood, N.J., on a COVID-19 med surge floor on which all patients have tested positive or have pending results. I arrived in New Jersey on April 9, originally planning to stay for two weeks, she said. They were expecting a surge back in Tulsa and wanted us to be back to work there when it hit. This week, she extended her stay an additional two weeks, until May 6. New York and New Jersey got hit very hard and very fast with this spreading virus, she said. Here, they have opened additional floors that don't usually hold patients. They are so short on help, with the extra load of patients and with some staff members being out, they were in desperate need of nurses and respiratory therapists. In spite of getting what she said she believes was a top-notch education in a highly rated nursing program, nothing could have prepared her for this. Each patient with COVID-19 presents differently so you never know what youre going to walk into, she said. The reception theyve gotten from the community is one of sincere appreciation. Were staying in Courtyard Marriot in Montvale, N.J., and its occupied by all doctors and nurses, she said. Michael, the hotel manager, has gone above and beyond and treats us like gold. Hes called many local restaurants and has donated dinners waiting in the lobby for us every single night, along with bottled water, and snacks. It's been such a blessing not having to worry about food; businesses all close at 8 p.m. and sometimes we haven't even left the hospital by then. The hardest part: no visitors are allowed in the hospitals. Some families are having to say goodbye to their loved ones via Facetime and phone calls, she said. It is heartbreaking, but the families are so thankful and appreciative that you are taking care of their loved one. Others Other PSU nursing graduates also are in hot spots. Ryan Raley, who was in Perkins' graduating class and works with her at Hillcrest Medical Center in Tulsa, is working alongside her in New Jersey. Ashley Kush, a 2009 graduate who is now a family nurse practitioner in Kansas City, recently left KC with her best friend to help with the COVID-19 response in New York City. Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Monday lost his appeal in the UK High Court against the 2018 order to extradite him to India to face charges of financial irregularities. Mallya, 64, is wanted in India to face charges of financial offences amounting to 9,000 crore borrowed by his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) from several Indian banks. The case will now go to home secretary Priti Patel for a final decision on his extradition. Justices Irwin and Elisabeth Laing handed down their verdict by email. The flamboyant businessman was ordered to be extradited to India back in December 2018 on a request from the Indian government that has accused him of knowingly misrepresenting the profitability of his companies when he sought bank loans in 2009. Also read | Vijay Mallya phoned lobbyist aide, asked for help to manage his case: ED In their 46-page judgement, Justice Irwin and Justice Laing said: (In) our judgment, the SDJ (senior district judge Emma Arbuthnot) was entitled to find that there was a prima facie case of fraud by false representation(We) reject the submission that the SDJ was wrong to find a prima facie case of conspiracy to defraud. The judges rejected the six grounds on which Mallyas lawyer, Claire Montgomery, had appealed, and upheld Arbuthnots judgement. The judges said: It is clear beyond any doubt that the SDJ directed herself properly. It is clear she had the criminal burden and standard in mind when she considered whether there was a prima facie case. The role of an extradition court considering this question is to consider whether a tribunal of fact, properly directed, could reasonably and properly convict on the basis of the evidence. The extradition court is, emphatically, not required itself to be sure of guilt in order to send the case to the Home Secretary. Also read | Please banks, take your money: Vijay Mallya appeals again after UK court hearing The extradition court must conclude that a tribunal of fact, properly directed and considering all the relevant evidence, could reasonably be sure of guilt. There is no basis upon which it could be said the SDJ misunderstood this, or that she misdirected herself, they added. Indias case for his extradition rests on, what had been described in court proceedings by the prosecution as, the three chapters of dishonesty: misrepresentations to various banks to acquire loans, the misuse of the loans and his conduct after the banks recalled the loans. The Crown Prosecution Service, on behalf of the Indian government, argued that there was at least a case that Mallya had to answer back home and a reasonable jury could conclude that the businessman and his company indulged in conspiracy, fraud, and used loans for unintended purposes, including part of the loans going to his motor racing team. Mark Summers, CPS lawyer, reminded Justice Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing of the high court of England and Wales that in extradition cases, British courts are solely required to establish whether the person requested has a prima facie case to answer, not to establish the truth. To that extent, he argued, the magistrates court had taken into account all relevant evidence and had ruled that Mallya had a prima facie case to answer and that he needed to be extradited to India to face trial. Mallyas lawyer Claire Montgomery, on the other hand, has insisted that Mallyas inability to repay bank loans was due to a genuine business failure and the result of wider challenges facing the aviation industry at the time. Mallya has, on numerous occasions, alleged that he was prepared to repay the loans. I have made repeated offers to pay 100% of the amount borrowed by KFA to the Banks Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks. I wish the FM would listen in this time of crisis, he tweeted on March 31. In New Delhi, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBII) and ED, which have been pursuing the case against Mallya, welcomed the verdict. It is a significant achievement in continuing a war against economic fugitives who have been managing to stay away from the judicial process in the country. It also validates the painstaking and meticulous investigation done by the CBI, CBI spokesperson RK Gaur said.. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON New Delhi, April 20 : Union Home Ministry has directed all the states to ensure compliance of the revised consolidated lockdown guidelines issued by it and also directed all concerned authorities for strict implementation of the restrictions "without any dilution". In a letter to the Chief Secretaries of all the states, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla instructed them to follow Centre's lockdown guidelines in "letter and spirit". Bhalla issued the letter on Sunday following reports that some of the states and the Union Territories were issuing orders allowing activities which were not under exemptions in the consolidated guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs issued on April 15 under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. It was informed to the Home Ministry that the Kerala government issued a revised guideline on April 17 and circulated it to all departments, District Collectors, Superintendents of Police and other heads of department allowing activities which are prohibited by the Centre. "I would again urge you to ensure compliance of the revised consolidated guidelines, and direct all concerned authorities for their strict implementation in letter and spirit without any dilution and to ensure strict compliance of lockdown measures," the letter says. Citing Supreme Court's order dated March 31, 2020, Bhalla reminded the states about the the apex court's observations, that "we trust and expect that all concerned viz. state governments, public authorities and citizens of this country will faithfully comply with the directive and orders issued by the Union of India in letter and spirit in the interest of public safety. "The observations, must be treated as directions of the apex court, were conveyed in my DO letter dated April 1 to all state and UT governments." Bhalla also mentioned that these guidelines shall not be diluted by the states and UTs in any manner and shall strictly enforce and impose as per requirement of the local areas. The Home Ministry issued a fresh consolidated guideline a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 announced extension of lockdown for another 19 days. The second phase of lockdown will end on May 3. The guidelines were issued by the Home Ministry to fulfill the purpose of lockdown to contain the spread of novel coronavirus which so far killed 543 people in India. The Agra Police have registered a case against the management of the Shri Paras Hospital for concealing important information after a woman admitted there later tested positive for COVID-19. Till 18 April, 241 cases of novel coronavirus have been reported in Agra, and the district presently accounts for the most number of cases in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Local authorities have placed much of the blame on a private hospital, Shri Paras Hospital, alleging that it concealed crucial information. The Agra Police have registered a case against the management of the Shri Paras Hospital for not revealing the actual number of patients and staff after a woman undergoing treatment there later tested positive for coronavirus. The hospital's secretary Shiv Pratap Yadav strongly denied the police's allegations. According to him, the woman was admitted to the hospital on 25 March due to a kidney-related ailment. Yadav said, "The woman stayed in the hospital till 2 April, but she didn't get any better. So, we referred her to Delhi. But she went to a hospital in Mathura instead, and later tested positive for coronavirus. How were we to know that a kidney patient would test positive for coronavirus?" The woman tested positive for coronavirus at Mathura's Nayati Hospital. Umesh Singh Tripathi, Station House Officer of New Agra police station, said, "We filed the FIR because the hospital hid a lot of information from us. They hid the actual number of patients, attendants and staff members in the hospital, which were crucial details. While the hospital claimed that there were only 110 people in the building at the time, we found more than 200 people." The FIR has been filed against Arinjay Jain and SP Yadav, the owner and manager of the Shri Paras Hospital respectively. The police have invoked Sections 188, 269, 270 and 271 of India Penal Code (IPC) in the FIR. They deal with disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant, negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life, malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life and disobedience to quarantine rule. The local administration subsequently declared the hospital a hotspot, and sealed it on the night of 6 April. According to Agra district magistrate Prabhu N Singh, the hospital's negligence is a major reason for the spread of coronavirus in the district. However, Shiv Pratap Yadav said, "The Shri Paras Hospital is a large hospital, with 80 beds. After the lockdown was announced, we only admitted patients who were in urgent need, such as diabetic patients. Due to these humanitarian concerns, we had to remain open, and we did just that." The first case of the novel coronavirus was confirmed in Uttar Pradesh on 5 March in Ghaziabad. Till 19 April, the state has reported 1,084 COVID-19 cases and 17 deaths. For the past two years, the authorities have not only rejected the services of criminals, but have also been fighting against them. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said live on Facebook today, touching upon the groups of people who are disappointed after the revolution. He stated that criminals thought they could continue to receive certain privileges through elections and by pressuring critics, but this is not the case. According to Pashinyan, the other group of people who are disappointed are corrupt officials who think theyll be able to have their places in the public administration system again and restore the corrupt system. This wont happen. However, this doesnt mean that there is nobody who wont take bribes. People take bribes, but the problem is that they are caught, and this isnt too acceptable for corrupt officials. Now people take bribes with personal liability because the former corrupt system has been destroyed, Pashinyan said. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's father Anand Singh Bisht passed away at 10.44 am today, State Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish K Awasthi informed, while expressing deepest condolences. CM Yogi Adityanath's father left for his heavenly abode at 10.44 am. Our deepest condolences: State Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish K Awasthi (in file pic - Additional Chief Secretary Home) pic.twitter.com/vG6hUqDBch ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 20, 2020 The UP CM's father was being treated at All India Institute Of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, Delhi. He was admitted to the hospital on March 15. Yogi's father had complications in kidney and liver. The hospital's Gastroenterology Department, headed by Dr Vineet Aahuja, was looking after him. Yogi's father used to live in Panchur village of Uttarakhand's Yamkeshwar area. He had retired as forest ranger from the state Forest Department in 1991. In the form of nine Carry Utility Vans (UV) and one Super Carry CV, Suzuki is lending a hand to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and our front liners transportation needs, and for the delivery of essential goods as well. The need for health care workers has never been more urgent. Following the enhanced community quarantine, though, it has been difficult for them to simply get to and from work. Suzuki Philippines Inc. (SPI) acknowledges this dilemma and has partnered with DOTr for a solution. With Metro Manila at the heart of Luzons pandemic, specific routes have been allocated for the Carry UVs to ferry our front liners along the routes, and with pick-up and drop-off points at the following: SM City San Jose Del Monte to Centris Station (EDSA, Quezon Avenue) SM City Masinag to The Medical City, Ortigas Ortigas Hospital and Healthcare Center to Rizal Medical Center Centris Station (EDSA, Quezon Avenue) to Cubao-Arenta Center MRT 3 Station SM City Taytay to De Los Santos Medical Center and St. Lukes Medical Center along E. Rodriguez Avenue SM City San Mateo to Robinsons Galleria SM City San Jose Del Monte to SM Fairview and Commonwealth Avenue. During these challenging times, we in Suzuki Philippines Inc. understand the impact that we can make as part of the automobile industry. We are more than willing to provide assistance to our frontline health workers for their unwavering commitment to continue serving the Filipino people especially at the current time. We are grateful for their solid dedication and we thank the DOTr as well for opening up a window for us to be of help, said Akira Utsumi, President of Suzuki Philippines Inc. This effort is in line with the Free Bus Ride for Medical Workers Program of the DOTr. Suzuki believes that they can help ease the burden of our front liners daily commute, and with this partnership, we can be sure that they will. Government sources in Afghanistan say at least 20 officials working at Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's palace have tested positive for the coronavirus, prompting the 70-year-old leader to limit most of his contact with staff to digital communication. An official document delivered to the Presidential Palace in Kabul is thought to have infected staff, many of whom began feeling unwell and were tested earlier in April, a senior Afghan health official told Reuters on April 18. "A contaminated document was sent to an office inside the palace from another government department and that's how the employees were infected," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Some of the employees were still working in their offices when the results came out," the Afghan official said. "We had to quarantine them and their families, but the numbers could be higher." Sediq Sediqqi, Ghani's spokesman, said the Civil Service Commission had already asked government employees to stay at home before the tests were conducted. Sediqqi said on April 18 that the order had been extended for another three weeks. The Afghan president is said to be conducting most business through video conference calls and is meeting in person with only a handful of his inner circle. Afghanistan, already experiencing shortages of food and medicine while violent clashes with the Taliban continue, had recorded 933 cases of coronavirus as of April 18. Thirty people have died of the virus in Afghanistan, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University in the United States. Afghan health officials say the number of cases is likely to be much higher than reported due to limited testing. The Health Ministry has warned that, unless containment measures are improved throughout the country, Afghanistan is heading for a catastrophe in which millions could be infected. The United Kingdoms government will pay 80 percent of wages for workers placed on temporary leave. More than a million United Kingdom workers have been placed on temporary leave due to the coronavirus, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said on Monday, reporting a flood of applications since the governments costliest programme to support the economy opened. The scheme will pay 80 percent of employers wage bills until the end of June for staff suspended during the coronavirus lockdown up to 2,500 pounds ($3,100) per worker per month. It received 140,000 applications from firms in the first eight hours it was open on Monday. A further 449 people in the UK have died in hospital after contracting coronavirus, it was announced on Monday, bringing the countrys total number of deaths in hospital to 16,509. There were 19,316 tests carried out on Sunday, a long way from the governments target of 100,000 tests undertaken daily by the end of April. Businesses that apply for the governments furlough plan by Wednesday should receive a cash injection before the end of the month, when wages are often due, said officials. The grants will help pay the wages of more than a million people a million people who if they hadnt been furloughed would have been at risk of losing their jobs, Sunak said at the governments daily news conference. Civil servants have come out of retirement to help the countrys tax office set up the scheme, the chancellor added: Times like this demand that the state turns to its most immediate purpose: the protection and support of its people. 200418084810485 Sunak again refused to estimate the total cost of the programme, but the governments budget watchdog said last week it could reach 42 billion pounds ($52bn) within three months if it were to cover 30 percent of the UKs workforce. The estimate was based on its projection that Britains economy would shrink by 35 percent during the three months to June due to lockdown restrictions. Sunak said the scheme would help ensure the economy could return to normal more quickly when COVID-19 restrictions end. Companies collapsing Meanwhile, the number of British companies folding jumped in March in a potential early sign of the impact of the crisis, according to research published on Monday. Analysis from the Enterprise Research Centre led by staff at the University of Warwick and Aston University in central England showed a 70 percent jump in company dissolutions to just over 21,000 in March 2020, compared with the same month a year before. Compared with February, the increase was just over 19 percent. Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond urged officials to help companies get ready for the time when the nations lockdown is lifted. It is vital that business is ready for the green light when the government decides to signal it, he told a Chatham House webcast. Underwriting loans A government programme to underwrite loans to businesses with a turnover of less than 45 million pounds ($56m) had already helped 12,000 businesses, Sunak said. This is up from 6,000 last week, when there was a backlog of more than 20,000 applications. Bank of England (BoE) Governor Andrew Bailey said on Friday that banks needed to speed up lending under the programme and that it would help if the government underwrote 100 percent of lending to the smallest firms, removing the need for banks own credit checks. BoE chief economist Andy Haldane said on Monday that this approach had worked in other countries such as Germany, though it was ultimately a political decision as it would increase taxpayers potential losses if the loans were not repaid. But Sunak said on Tuesday that he was not persuaded, and that Britains overall support package for businesses including the wage support programme was more generous than the packages of most other countries. Where they have used loan guarantees that are different to ours they have done it partly because they are not doing some of the other things we are doing for example the furlough scheme, he said. America is a resilient nation. Americans are optimistic, innovative, forward-looking and compassionate. And when a crisis occurs, America's best qualities shine through and burn brightly. We are in the midst of an unprecedented health crisis that has caused a momentous disruption to our nation's and the world's economy as businesses have been ordered to shut down and individuals ordered to stay at home. Recent data suggest signs of improvement and hope. And while this fight is not yet over, we are going to win. Once this health-care battle is won and the stringent measures that have locked down our economy begin to loosen, we must turn our attention to the significant impact and financial consequences it has had on the millions of workers who have lost jobs or face new anxiety over employment insecurity. More from FA Playbook: Op-Ed: 4% rule creates risk for retirees amid pandemic Most advisors see markets diving lower: study Advisors urge clients to avoid these mistakes And while massive government relief has been injected to address present economic displacement, longer-term consequences that have affected and will affect workers' futures must be addressed. Recent financial polls show that the pandemic is causing Americans significant anxiety about their economic situation. Some findings conclude than nearly 66% of Americans are concerned about losing their savings or their retirement savings, while about 30% are concerned and thinking of postponing retirement. Clearly, retirement security for millions of American workers is an issue that will need attention as we advance into recovery. Our nation already was facing a retirement crisis where too few Americans are accumulating sufficient savings that will generate a monthly retirement income that will not be outlived. The loss of jobs and inability for millions of workers to contribute to retirement savings, compounded by the pandemic-related market volatility and a steep drop in account balances, may have a similar effect to what retirement savers saw in the 2009 recession. The Australian sharemarket is set to slide after oil prices tumbled into negative territory in overnight trading. 1. Stocks pull back, in a soggy start to the week: Markets de-risked to begin the new trading week. Despite the continued cause for optimism as the US economy moves closer to reopening, a big of week of corporate earnings, along with volatility in energy markets, pushed investors to the sidelines. The S&P500 shed 1.79 per cent during Wall Street trade, capping off what was an overall mixed days trade in Asian and Europe. The Nikkei dipped 1.15 per cent in Asian trade, while the DAX and FTSE100 managed to gain 0.47 and 0.45 per cent respectively. Oil prices plunged in overnight trading Credit:Photo: Bloomberg 2. Oil prices plunge as global oversupply hits: News flow was dominated by turmoil in oil markets last night. The price of the May WTI Crude futures contract fell into negative territory during US hours to trade as low as -$US40.32. The move comes as traders unload the expiring May contract, to avoid physical delivery of oil at a time when the markets oversupply is leading to a spike in storage costs. Though market action ought to normalise as traders move to trading the June contract, concerns about the financial impacts of the global oil supply glut will remain heightened. 3. Traders opt for safety over risk: Market participants displayed a bias for safe haven assets as high-event risk and energy market volatility stifled risk appetite. The US dollar broadly outperformed, with the US dollar index edging 0.2 per cent higher. US Treasuries climbed, pushing the yield on the benchmark 10 Year note to 0.62 per cent. Lower yields aided a pop in gold prices, which jumped 0.9 per cent off its intraday lows in US trade, to return to trading just shy of $US1700 per ounce. New York State Coronavirus Death Toll Rises by 507 in 24 Hours - Governor Sputnik News 16:34 GMT 19.04.2020(updated 16:54 GMT 19.04.2020) Earlier in the week, Cuomo ordered all state residents to wear face-coverings in public to prevent new infections. He also extended the statewide economic shutdown until May 15. Governor of New York State Andrew Cuomo stated on Sunday that the coronavirus outbreak in the state, the epicentre of the epidemic in the United States, is "on the descent." "We are past the high point, and all indications at this point is that we are on the descent. Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do but right now we're on the descent," Cuomo said during a press conference. The official noted that a total of 507 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported in 24 hours. As of Sunday, the World Health Organisation has registered more than 2.2 million coronavirus cases and more than 150,000 fatalities. As far as the US is concerned, Johns Hopkins University has registered 737, 319 cases and nearly 40,000 fatalities from the coronavirus outbreak. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 05:13:30|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LOS ANGELES, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The busiest U.S. port was hit hard in the first quarter of the year by the White House's trade policy and the coronavirus outbreak, Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka told local media Monday. During an interview with KNX 1070 News Radio, Seroka said the port continued to run smoothly with no congestion or disruption, but business was affected by COVID-19 as well as trade disputes between the United States and its major trade partners. "Volume right now is about a half of what was during the peak season in 2019," he noted, adding the volume in the first quarter was down about 18.5 percent. The Port of Los Angeles announced last week that it had moved just 1,799,749 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) during the first quarter of 2020, while the number in the first quarter of 2019 was 2,208,733 TEUs. In a video released by the port last week, Seroka said higher container volume is anticipated in April as manufacturing in China normalizes and some U.S. businesses replenish their inventories. "This is encouraging news in the short term, but unfortunately, overall volume in 2020 will be considerably lower than last year," he said in the video. Enditem (Photo : Kate Trifo on Unsplash) COVID-19 Requirement: Non-Medical Masks Must Be Wear By Air Travellers Starting On April 20 According To The Canadian Federal Government (Photo : JC Gellidon on Unsplash) COVID-19 Requirement: Non-Medical Masks Must Be Wear By Air Travellers Starting On April 20 According To The Canadian Federal Government As the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe, governments have begun to implement different measures to prevent further infections through foreign travelers. According to a report on Yahoo Style, the Canadian Federal Government will be implementing a new COVID-19 requirement for all air passengers to wear non-medical masks before they can enter Canada. The new rule will begin on April 20. The Canadian Federal Government is currently rolling out new rules that will require all air travelers to wear face masks that will cover their nose and mouth at all times while in transit. Marc Garneau, the transport minister, announced on Friday, April 17, that a package of new measures will require air passengers flying into Canada to wear masks at all Canadian screening checkpoints if a 2-meter distance is not possible due to the number of people. The passengers must wear masks whenever they cannot practice physical distancing or when they are ordered to do so by airline staff or a public health official. The new rule will require air travelers, arriving at or departing from Canada, to show that they have non-medical masks or any face-covering during the boarding process. If they can't comply with the regulation, they will not be allowed to continue their flight going to or departing from Canada. "If you need to travel, wearing a face-covering is an additional measure you can take to protect others around you, especially in situations where physical distancing guidelines cannot be maintained," said Marc Garneau in a report on the Government of Canada's website. New COVID-19 Requirement: Air travelers must wear non-medical masks, according to the Canadian Federal Government According to the previous report of Yahoo Style, the new guidelines also require people who are traveling by ship, train, boat, or automotive vehicle to voluntarily wear non-medical masks if they cannot practice social distancing. However, children under the age of two and some people with disabilities are exempted from the new rules. On the other hand, passengers who are showing symptoms of the coronavirus will not be allowed to board any aircraft even though they are wearing non-medical masks. Previously, Canadians were not being required to wear non-medical masks since physical distancing was maintained and was seen as sufficient measure to prevent further infections from the coronavirus. According to the report, Canada said that in addition to the new measures, airlines are now making N95 masks, single-use gowns and gloves available to flight staff. They are also providing all their flight attendants with sterile wipes and hand sanitizer. There have also been several changes to their onboard service. Meanwhile, North American Airlines has replaced its regular beverage service with bottled water, and food is no longer being served. The airline's international flights will also be limited to only bottled water on their beverage service, but pre-packaged meals will still be provided to passengers. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Signage is displayed on the exterior of the Novartis AG Institutes for BioMedical Research building in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., on Friday, Aug. 5, 2016. Novartis has won the go-ahead from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to conduct a randomized trial of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 disease, the Swiss drugmaker said on Monday, to see if it helps patients. The decades-old generic medicine got FDA emergency use authorization this month for its unapproved use for coronavirus disease, but so far there is no scientific proof it works. There are currently no approved COVID-19 medicines. Novartis plans to start recruiting 440 patients for its Phase III, or late-stage, trial within weeks at more than a dozen U.S. sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. Use of the drug, also approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has soared after having been promoted by President Donald Trump, with some worried the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine for COVID-19 has short-circuited the FDA's oversight process. "We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease," said John Tsai, Novartis's top drug developer. "We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study." Companies such as Novartis, Roche and Gilead Sciences are testing older medicines developed to treat other diseases, for signs they could be repurposed to tackle the coronavirus epidemic. Gilead just expanded a trial of its Ebola drug remdesivir. Still, some fear the championing of hydroxychloroquine by Trump and others as a potential "game changer" against COVID-19 has overshadowed dangerous side effects like vision loss and heart problems. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan has also said the medicine is one of his biggest hopes against the viral epidemic. There are several additional studies of hydroxychloroquine underway, including at the University of Washington and University of Minnesota, as well as work by the National Institutes of Health in the United States. Novartis's Sandoz generics unit has pledged to donate 130 million doses of the medicine for use. Sanofi has also said it will donate 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to 50 countries. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 05:48:08|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TRIPOLI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Monday expressed concerns over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in and around the capital Tripoli and in the city of Tarhuna, some 90 km south of Tripoli. "UNSMIL is extremely concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Tripoli and its surroundings as a result of the intensification of fighting in the past few days," UNSMIL said in a statement. During the past few days, five civilians were killed and at least 28 civilians were injured, including women and children, because of the dramatic increase of indiscriminate shelling on civilian-populated areas in Tripoli, it said. The mission noted that the shelling also forced more people to flee their homes and caused damage to civilian properties and infrastructure. "UNSMIL is also alarmed by the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Tarhuna because of the military escalation in and around the city, resulting in the fresh displacement of civilians," the statement added. The mission also expressed concerns over reported arbitrary arrests of civilians and mistreatment of both civilians and fighters in Tarhuna. "This senseless and protracted war must stop immediately. UNSMIL renews its call for a humanitarian truce to allow Libyans to prepare for the holy month in peace and the authorities to provide the urgently needed services, treat the wounded and address the mounting threat of COVID-19," the statement said. On April 4, 2019, the east-based army launched a military campaign in and around Tripoli in an attempt to take over the city and topple the rival UN-backed government. The armed conflict killed and injured many civilians and displaced more than 150,000 others away from their homes, according the UNSMIL. Last Wednesday, UNSMIL said it is alarmed by the continuing escalation of violence in Libya, particularly by the recent intensification of fighting, causing civilian casualties and risking new waves of displacement. Enditem Technavio has been monitoring the ground protection mats market and it is poised to grow by USD 298.91 million during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 4% 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/20200420005500/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Ground Protection Mats 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. Checkers Industrial Products LLC, LODAX, Newpark Resources Inc., Quality Mat Co., and Signature Systems Group LLC are some of the major market participants. The increasing construction activities 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 construction activities has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Ground Protection Mats Market 2019-2023: Segmentation Ground protection mats market is segmented as below: End-user Industrial Commercial 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=IRTNTR31282 Ground Protection Mats 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 ground protection mats market report covers the following areas: Ground Protection Mats Market Size Ground Protection Mats Market Trends Ground Protection Mats Market Industry Analysis This study identifies high need for ergonomic ground protection mats as one of the prime reasons driving the ground protection mats market growth during the next few years. Ground Protection Mats Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the ground protection mats market, including some of the vendors such as Checkers Industrial Products LLC, LODAX, Newpark Resources Inc., Quality Mat Co., and Signature Systems Group LLC. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the ground protection mats 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 Ground Protection Mats Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023 Detailed information on factors that will assist ground protection mats market growth during the next five years Estimation of the ground protection mats market size and its contribution to the parent market Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior The growth of the ground protection mats market Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of ground protection mats 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 END-USER Market segmentation by end-user Comparison by end-user Industrial Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Commercial Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Market opportunity by end-user PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation Geographic comparison APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023 North America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Europe Market size and forecast 2018-2023 South America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 MEA 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 Increase in demand for eco-friendly mats Growth in demand for ergonomic ground protection mats Technological advances in ground protection mats PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview Landscape disruption Competitive scenario Comparative analysis of key vendors PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors Checkers Industrial Products LLC LODAX Newpark Resources Inc. Quality Mat Co. Signature Systems Group LLC 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. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005500/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ By Express News Service BHOPAL: A 30-year-old Coronavirus positive National Security Act (NSA) detainee Javed Khan, who escaped from an isolated ward of the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Medical College Hospital in Jabalpur on Sunday afternoon, was arrested from the border of adjoining Narsinghpur and Raisen district in wee hours on Monday. After escaping from the hospital at around 3 pm on Sunday, the detainee, hailing from Indore, took a lift from a truck in Jabalpur outskirts and reached Narsinghpur from where he was trying to flee to Indore on a motorcycle. However, alert cops foiled his escape plans and arrested him at Narsinghpur-Raisen border police check-post (around 80 km from Jabalpur) in the wee hours on Monday. "The alert cops of Narsinghpur district, who nabbed Javed will get the Rs 65,000 reward, including Rs 50,000 bounty declared by the DGP MP and Rs 15,000 bounty announced by the Jabalpur Jewelers and Goldsmith Association," Jabalpur district SP Amit Singh told The New Indian Express, while confirming Javeds arrest. Meanwhile, primary investigations have revealed the possible complicity of a security guard and ward boy of the Medical College Hospital with Javed Khan in executing his plans to escape from the isolated ward of the hospital. Ongoing probe has also brought to the fore that another COVID-19 positive patient admitted at the same hospital had helped Javed make, not one, but six phone calls to his contacts over the last few days for planning and executing the escape plan. "Were investigating the escape from all angles and all those found wanting and party to the crime too will be booked by Jabalpur Police in the matter," Singh added. ALSO READ| Economic, industrial work to resume in Madhya Pradesh from April 20 Four police constables from whose custody Javed had escaped have already been suspended. Importantly, Javed was being treated at an isolated ward of the hospital since April 11. On Sunday afternoon, other coronavirus positive patients under treatment at the same hospital were being shifted from one ward to another, when Javed slipped away from his isolated ward, despite security guards having been deployed to keep an eye on him. Javed was among the four men against whom NSA was invoked on April 8 after they were arrested for attacking an on duty police constable in Chandan Nagar COVID-19 containment zone of Indore on April 7. While two of them, including Javed were sent to Jabalpur Central Jail on April 9, two others were sent to Satna Central Jail. Out of the four men, three have so far tested positive for the COVID-19 infection. While Javed was admitted at the hospital in Jabalpur, the two other Coronavirus positive NSA detainees who were sent to Satna Central Jail are under treatment at a private hospital in Bhopal. A furious motorist has filmed the moment he got into a heated debate with police about whether or not he was telling the truth about saying he was going to the supermarket during the coronavirus lockdown. The driver and passenger were stopped by police in a suburban street in New Zealand last week. The pair told police they were going to the supermarket but the police refused to believe them. The officers then seized the driver's licence and continued to question the pair about where they were going. New Zealand is under strict level four lockdown rules in a bid to slow the spread of the deadly illness. Residents are banned from leaving their homes for anything but essential reasons, which includes food shopping, medical care and exercise. The officers insisted they escort the pair to the supermarket and home again. When they said they would give the licence back to the driver once he had returned home, the debate got heated. The driver (pictured) and passenger were stopped by police in a suburban street in New Zealand last week. They claimed they were going to the supermarket but the police didn't believe them 'Do you want us to drive without a licence?' the passenger can be heard asking. One of the officers responds, telling him it's not an offence to drive without a licence but it is an offence to not be able to produce it. 'So you're telling us to break the law basically?' the passenger asks. 'Which supermarket are we going to? We'll follow you there and we'll follow you back to your home address,' the other officer says. The pair can then be heard laughing before they tell the officers they are making them not want to go shopping anymore. The officer then questions why they had had a change of heart when the passenger pulls out a shopping list. The motorist is then told he can either drive to the supermarket or he will be under arrest for a lockdown breach. 'I'm going to the supermarket, but you won't give us our licence,' the passenger says. A furious motorist has filmed the moment he got into a heated debate with police about where he was driving to during coronavirus lockdown The passenger pulled out a shopping list, which had butter, milk, flour, sugar, eggs and carrots on the list He then tries to reach for the licence but the officer refuses to hand it over. The officer tells the pair they must go to the supermarket and then go home before handing it back. The pair then accuse the officers of trying to make them break the rules before they get back into their car. 'Hey you guys might want to get in your car so you can follow us to the supermarket,' the passenger says. The footage sparked a debate online after it was shared on Facebook. Some social media users thought the police were being unreasonable and did not understand why the police were insisting they follow them to the supermarket. 'What was the point in keeping their license if they were going to follow them. Muppets wasting time and energy,' one person wrote. 'Wow letting people drive without a license?! Thats the first....' another wrote. However, a number of people thought the police were being fair. 'How many people are driving around with shopping lists as an excuse to be out an about,' one person wrote. The pair then accuse the officers of trying to make them break the rules before they get back into their car 'If you see how many people are breaching the lockdown rule and the bulls**t excuses that are being given to the police I can understand why they have been pulled up and questioned,' another wrote. 'Bro just go shopping, well done to the police for handling it they way they did,' wrote another. Police have been clamping down on people flouting coronavirus lockdown rules in recent weeks. On Monday, the Cabinet will meet to decide whether to end four weeks of level four restrictions and downscale to a level three lockdown. Under level three lockdown rules, schools will reopen, and more businesses - including the construction and forestry industries - can get back to work. Restaurants will be able operate for delivery orders only. Daily Mail Australia has contacted the New Zealand police for comment. Closing some of Sydneys favourite beaches has been one of the most controversial social distancing measures introduced to fight COVID-19 but relief now seems to be on the way, at least for hardcore surfers. Randwick Council re-opened its beaches on Monday on a limited basis and Manly and Waverley are likely to follow soon. Luckily, it was a dull weekday at Coogee, which kept crowds down and all the rules on social distancing seem to have been observed. It may be more difficult on a warm weekend. Access to beaches in some of our wealthiest suburbs is probably not the most significant issue facing Australia during the coronavirus outbreak. But it has resonated because it is symbolic of many other restrictions on daily life. The languid life of sand and surf has always played a big part in how this city sees itself. To lose it was a huge shock. The beaches were closed after thousands packed out Bondi on a particularly balmy day at the end of last month, clearly breaching social distancing rules by sitting well inside the 1.5 metre limit. Lolling on a beach towel all day was also clearly not an essential activity, or exercise. Many complained about the closure but it was a necessary wake-up call for all Sydneysiders. We suddenly realised that we would have to change our behaviour radically to beat this disease. Germany needs to understand it will have to fund the post-pandemic recovery across Europe, Spain's economy minister told CNBC Monday, just days ahead of another pivotal meeting for the European Union (EU). The 27 European countries that make up the EU remain at loggerheads over how to mitigate the economic shock from Covid-19, despite putting together a half-a-trillion-euro package for more immediate spending needs earlier this month. Their main concern now is to present a second plan that will deal with the vast amount of virus-related debt that is expected to creep up across the region. Nadia Calvino, Spanish economic affairs minister and deputy prime minister, told CNBC Monday that Germany has a budget surplus that it is "quite determined" to use. "Now, what we need is for them to understand that we need to also fund the recovery of the rest of the (EU) countries, that we need to fund the recovery of the whole of Europe," she added. The coronavirus pandemic has resurfaced old divisions among the countries that make up the EU. More fiscally-conservative nations, such as Germany and the Netherlands, are reluctant to take unprecedented steps and issue mutualized debt a financial tool often dubbed "corona bonds" to deal with the economic ramifications from the crisis. These countries argue that doing so would not be fair to their taxpayers. On the other hand, highly-indebted nations, such as Italy and Spain, say this is the only way to tackle the "symmetric shock" from the virus. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte repeated over the weekend that it is time for "corona bonds." Getting on a plane is a distant dream for the majority of us in lockdown. However, a new report by the Sunday Times has revealed the world's wealthiest are still flying to and from the UK on private jets during the COVID-19 lockdown, with 1,312 flights having taken place since stay at home measures were introduced. The government has called for people to rule out non-essential travel, which according to its travel guidelines includes visits to second homes, camp sites, caravan parks or similar - whether for isolation purposes or holidays. In the case of the 1,312 flights, 545 of them were flights arriving in the UK from coronavirus hotspots such as Spain, France and the United States. A source told the Times, These are some of the wealthiest people who count the UK as their home, who are fleeing to second homes since the lockdown was imposed. Getty Images Despite places such as Hong Kong and South Korea testing arrivals to the country for coronavirus at the airport, and others such as the United States banning incoming travellers from non-residents, the UK has not introduced stricter travel restrictions to curb imported cases of COVID-19. Speaking to the Times, Professor Gabriel Scally at the Royal Society of Medicine called it hard to understand the UKs most peculiar approach. According to aviation consultancy WingX, the most private flights landing in the UK were from Germany (32), with France (27) and Spain (25) trailing behind. 15 had also come from the US. As for the 767 flights leaving the UK, the majority were headed to France and Germany (34 planes each), 30 to Spain, 23 to Russia and 10 to the UAE - a flight which is estimated to cost as much as 100,000. French passengers will be exempt from forthcoming UK coronavirus quarantine measures / Getty Images Speaking to the Times, Air Charter Service chief executive Justin Bowman defended a number of the private jet flights. He said, Governments are facing huge challenges moving people from different parts of the world back to the UK, where they are stranded. The airlines stopped pretty much overnight. There are still thousands of people in the wrong place. Many of these flights will be legitimate repatriations from around the world. I would hope those abusing the rules are in the minority. Clive Jackson, founder of private jet firm Victor also added, We have an obligation not to flout the rules as we have an essential part to play in the Covid crisis, providing genuine medical evacuation and repatriation for families in distress. Getty Images According to Bloomberg, Victor was queried by a film studio to fly 50 people to Los Angeles from Tokyo to limit interaction with other travellers. In March, Adam Twidell of Private Fly (a private jet hire service) said that there had been a rise in demand for short notice on-demand charter relating to the coronavirus. Speaking to the Evening Standard, the CEO said it was "very busy indeed" and added that there was a 50-60% increase since last March - though the increased demand plus stringent travel restrictions was making it "more challenging to source aircraft in some cases." With enquiries coming from both corporations eager to get their staff out of coronavirus hotspots and individuals, he told The Guardian, We are now seeing clients looking to take a private flight between a variety of global destinations, to avoid exposure to crowds in [commercial] cabins and airport terminals. Getty Images In many cases, these are passengers who dont usually fly by private aviation but are looking to protect themselves, their families and employees, he continued. The private aviation industry has faced controversy prior to the outbreak, with Labour expressing its intention last year to ban private jets from UK airports by 2025 due to their mammoth carbon footprint. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast AT LEAST 100 youth organizations and local personalities from all over the country have converged to initiate a digital fundraising campaign that aims to assist grassroots associations in giving aid to Mindanaoan communities affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Led by the volunteer-powered organization I am M.A.D. (Making A Difference) and advocacy-based group Millennials PH, the youth networks recently launched Kapit-Mindanao, a fundraiser to support low-wage earners, non-settler communities, Indigenous Peoples, and the hardest-to-reach barangays most vulnerable in this period of crisis. As a Mindanaoan myself, I feel obligated now more than ever to try and help out in any way I can, and reach the most unreached areas in Southern Philippines in terms of relief, said Meryl Hilda Jalani, national president of Millennials PH and lead convener of Kapit-Mindanao. A cash donation goal of P1 million will be distributed to youth-led organizations from all over Mindanao who have their own donation drives and response initiatives. Beneficiaries from the campaign come from 20 areas in all administrative regions in Mindanao, including Zamboanga del Norte, Sarangani, Agusan del Sur, and even as far as Tawi-Tawi, among others. For frontliners, low-income families, indigenous communities The different initiatives in the communities range from providing personal protective equipment (PPEs) to frontliners, food packs and family kits containing rice and grocery items, as well as relief goods for indigent communities. The fundraising campaign's beneficiaries include tricycle drivers from Talakag in Bukidnon, Iligan City, Sindangan in Zamboanga del Norte, and Lamitan City in Basilan; as well as low-wage earners and street vendors from Sultan Naga Dimaporo in Lanao del Norte, Tipo-Tipo in Basilan, Cotabato City, and Alabel in Sarangani. Other beneficiaries of this initiative include medical frontliners from Lianga in Surigao del Sur, Butuan City, Surigao City in Surigao del Norte, Siocon in Zamboanga del Norte, and as far south as Bongao, Tawi-Tawi. Story continues This youth-led initiative also aims to reach out to indigenous peoples such as the Sama Dilaut community in Davao City, the T'Boli community in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato; as well as indigent families coming from Maitum in Sarangani, Bayugan in Agusan del Sur, Kabacan in North Cotabato, Datu Odin Sinuaut in Maguindanao, and Barangays Pasobolong, La Paz, Talon-Talon, Buenagatas, and Maasin in Zamboanga City. Biggest Barkada Goals, #SocialMediaBayanihan Dubbed by organizers as the Biggest Barkada Goals, Kapit-Mindanao has so far raised over P155,000 a week after its digital launch. We started receiving donations as much as P20,000 to the smallest but very meaningful one peso. This is a true testament that no amount is too big or too small to help, that anyone can make a difference especially in these trying times, said Maco Ravanzo, co-founder and chief executive volunteer of I am M.A.D. (Making A Difference), co-lead convener of Kapit-Mindanao. The campaign is organized together with the Association of Young Environmental Journalists, Marejada Pilipinas, Project Disponer, Miss Zamboanga, and Tayo Awards Foundation, and partnered with 87 other youth organizations nationwide. Non-government organizations like Families of the Missing and Keep Hope Alive, as well as small-medium enterprises like Karabella and Jacinto, have joined the campaign in support of Mindanao, among many others. Kapit-Mindanao calls on everyone to be part of this biggest digital campaign through the hashtag #SocialMediaBayanihan. Local personalities like Ulan and Camp Sawi director Irene Villamor and mental health advocate Dr. Gia Sison have also expressed their support. To support this initiative, go to bit.ly/KapitDonate or follow Kapit-Mindanao on Facebook (fb.com/kapitmindanao), Instagram and Twitter (@KapitMindanao). For inquiries, send an email to kapitmindanao@gmail.com. (PR) South Korea said Monday it will ban the entry of all automobiles involved in the livestock industry to pig farms in border areas amid the soaring number of African swine fever (ASF) infections detected from the remains of wild boars. The new measure, to go into effect in May, will affect around 395 pig farms in the northern areas of Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The decision came as South Korea believes the entire border area might have been contaminated. The country has detected at least 545 ASF cases from wild boars caught or found dead from the border areas through Sunday since October last year. South Korea confirmed its first-ever outbreak of the animal disease in September last year. So far, local authorities have culled about 400,000 domestic pigs as part of preventive measures. Although no additional ASF cases on farms have been reported since early October, authorities have been discovering dead wild boars carrying the disease along the inter-Korean border. So far, all confirmed cases among both domestic and wild pigs have been reported in such areas. South Korea plans to deploy six unmanned helicopters to carry out disinfection operations near the border. (Yonhap) ROME, April 19 (UPI) A Scandinavian Airlines jet bound from Tokyo to Copenhagen with 75 persons aboard caught fire and burned today when an engine exploded during takeoff. Twenty-three persons were injured. Most of them suffered burns or bruises in fleeing the DC-8 jet. Most seriously injured was a steward, Lief Tomerow, 40, a Dane, who suffered first and second degree burns on the face and fractures of the left leg and wrist while helping passengers to escape. Romes Fiumicino Airport was closed to traffic for four hours. Authorities said that the main runway would be closed for several days until the wreck can be cleared away. SantEugenio hospital in Rome, where the injured were taken, reported that all were in good condition. The hospital is close to the airport and has a special burn treatment center. Recently labeled as "one of the meanest people alive," Ellen Degeneres has been facing a wave of backlash after a Twitter thread went viral exposing her diva personality. It seems that America's most beloved talk show host is not as nice as what the public thinks after she got exposed by her former staff through the now-viral post of comedian Kevin T. Porter. "Queen of Social Distancing" To recall, Porter asked his followers to share their "most insane stories [they've] heard" about DeGeneres in an effort to raise funds for the Los Angeles Food Bank. Things got out of hand as several users shared their unpleasant experiences with the renowned host. Someone even called her "Queen of Social Distancing" since the host does not want her staff to be in the same room as hers. In a separate incident, Ellen's current production crew was said to be "distressed and outraged" after the management failed to provide them with concrete plans regarding their wages. It was reported that 30 members were left in the dark for two weeks after the show went off the air in March due to the ongoing pandemic. NikkieTutorials Reveals Nightmare Experience On "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" Following the wave of criticisms, famous beauty vlogger Nikkie de Jager or better known by her YouTube channel name as NikkieTutorials admitted that she regrets guesting in "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" after her awful encounter with the talk show host. In her interview with a dutch publication &C Magazine, she revealed that she felt disappointed with the comedian's unequal treatment towards her. "Maybe I'm being naive, but I expected them to welcome me with confetti: 'Welcome to The Ellen DeGeneres Show!'" Nikkie said, referring to her January appearance on the show. "But instead I got greeted by an angry intern, who was a bit overworked. I expected a Disney show, but I got Teletubbies after dark," she added. The 26-year-old Dutch native was invited to appear in DeGeneres' show to talk about her decision to come out as a transgender. Moreover, Nikkie went on to spill the tea after she mentioned that the Emmy Award winner did not even greet her backstage and she was not allowed to use the closest toilet to her because it was reserved for other guests like the Jonas Brothers. "Every guest at Ellen had a private toilet, but I didn't," the beauty guru recalled. The famous YouTuber even advised her fans to manage their expectations when meeting their idols to avoid being disappointed like her. Ellen's Tone-Deaf Remark Amid Coronavirus Pandemic Aside from the famous vlogger, netizens also slammed the TV host for her insensitive coronavirus remark. DeGeneres was recently criticized after she compared her $27 million mansion to a "jail." "One thing that I've learned from being in quarantine is that people - this is like being in jail, is what it is," Ellen mentioned. Since then, the video has been taken down from YouTube after receiving a massive backlash from the public. READ MORE: Tom Hanks Revelation: 'Cast Away' Star Shares TRUTH About COVID-19 Battle DURHAM, N.C. -- As droughts become more frequent and intense, the fragmentation of water service in the U.S. among tens of thousands of community systems, most of which are small and rely on local funding, leaves many households vulnerable to water contamination or loss of service, a new Duke University analysis finds. These vulnerabilities aren't distributed equally, the study shows. Households in low-income or predominantly minority neighborhoods are likely to face the highest risks. Resolving this disparity and making sure the taps in these homes don't run dry will require a fundamental re-evaluation of how the nation's patchwork of community water systems (CWSs) is managed and funded. "Small water systems already are at a disadvantage when it comes to protecting water security during drought, because of the financial constraints they face," said Megan Mullin, associate professor of environmental politics at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment, who wrote the analysis. "Underlying patterns of segregation can amplify these weaknesses along economic and racial lines." Mullin published her peer-reviewed article April 17 in a special drought edition of Science. Disparities in drinking water insecurity are rooted in segregation and the local political economy of public services, she explained. Because CWSs rely on user fees for their funding, they historically have extended service to neighborhoods or adjacent municipalities where residents are more able to pay. The result is that some communities get high-quality water service, while others - often rural communities or places where poverty is concentrated - get lower-quality service. Repairs or upgrades to pipes and other infrastructure are made less frequently, allowing leaks and increasing the potential risks of contamination. When drought arrives, these systems can't cope. "Drought aggravates vulnerabilities for small, under-resourced water systems. The user fee finance model then limits options for drought response, because policies that conserve dwindling water resources reduce revenue for water systems and make it harder for residents to pay their water bills," Mullin said. "Until now, people have tried to resolve these disparities through piecemeal approaches. We need to think more fundamentally about our reliance on user fees as a financial model for the delivery of such an essential service. States should consider equalizing resources across water systems to counter the legacy of racism and segregation, as we have done in public school funding," she said. To do this, policymakers need to have a clearer understanding about the nature and extent of demographic disparities between water systems, she said. Recent efforts to develop maps of water system service areas in several states show promise, she said, and should be replicated nationwide and integrated with data on drinking water finance, infrastructure, and water supply and use. Over the last year, Mullin has been leading a team of Duke students to produce such a map of North Carolina water systems, through a partnership with the state's Division of Water Resources. "Of the 50,000+ community water systems delivering water year-round in the United States, more than 80% serve fewer than 3,300 people," Mullin said. "Systems this small face tremendous challenges in delivering safe drinking water even under normal conditions, and as droughts become more frequent and intense, the challenges are going to mount." For these systems to become more resilient, they need to encourage and enforce water conservation. The strongest tools at their disposal for doing that are tiered pricing and mandatory use restrictions, but these reduce the water-use fees the systems depend on for funding and create an economic burden for low-income customers that could result in failure to pay and subsequent service shutoff. Equalizing resources across water systems, as states already do for public schools, would circumvent many of these trade-offs and improve water security to millions of American homes. ### Research supporting the new review paper was funded by a Research Collaboratory grant from Duke University. CITATION: "The Effects of Drinking Water Service Fragmentation on Drought-Related Water Security," Megan Mullin. April 17, 2020, Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.aba7353 The UN children's agency appealed Monday for an additional $92.4 million to help fight the coronavirus pandemic in the Middle East and North Africa, a conflict-battered region with the highest number of children in need anywhere. Yemen is a top concern, said Ted Chaiban, the regional chief of UNICEF. After five years of civil war, half the health centers in Yemen no longer operate. Two million children are malnourished, including 400,000 who suffer from severe acute malnutrition. If you don't get support to them every month, you have a 50% increase in the mortality rate among those children (with severe malnutrition), Chaiban told The Associated Press. It was already critical to address the needs of children in Yemen. With COVID-19, now you've got this extra lawyer of vulnerability. So far, there has only been one confirmed coronavirus patient in Yemen, but testing capabilities are limited and there are concerns the virus might be spreading undetected. More than 218,000 infections have been reported in the region, including close to 8,000 deaths, the vast majority of them in Iran. Chaiban said the additional funding is needed for a range of programs across the region to soften the blow of the pandemic. In addition to its regular nutrition and immunization services, the agency is helping to establish isolation centers and improve water and sanitation. UNICEF is also running awareness campaigns about social distancing and hygiene, which are particularly difficult in crowded neighborhoods and refugee camps, he said. Before the pandemic, some 25 million children in the region were in need of humanitarian aid. UNICEF estimates that an additional 4 million children are being pushed into poverty, as millions of adults in the Middle East and North Africa lose their income due to nationwide lockdowns meant to fight the pandemic, Chaiban said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The global industrial filtration market is projected to reach USD 41.1 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 6.9% from 2020 to 2025. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04049450/?utm_source=PRN The global industrial filtration size is projected to reach USD 41.1 billion by 2025 from an estimated market size of USD 29.5 billion in 2020, at a CAGR of 6.9% during the forecast period. This growth is primarily due to the increasing investments in industrial water and wastewater treatment to improve the process efficiencies, and the need for better indoor air quality at industrial facilities. The liquid type filtration segment is expected to the largest market, by type for industrial filtration during the forecast period. The industrial filtration market, by type, is segmented into air and liquid.The liquid filtration segment is driven owing to the increase in demand for zero discharge & zero-emission from manufacturing, and public utilities. Furthermore, the advanced environmental technologies installed in wastewater treatment plants to treat industrial water is likely to increase the demand for liquid type filtration. The most commonly used technology for liquid filtration is pressure technology and is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The nonwoven fabric segment is expected to the largest market, by filter media for industrial filtration from 2020 to 2025. " Nonwoven fabrics accounted for the highest share of the global industrial filtration market in 2019.The growth of this fabric is due to high absorbency, strength, and reliability. Nonwoven fabric is the most used filter media. The complex arrangement of fibers, high speed and low-cost manufacturing techniques, and various design possibilities due to the versatility of the structure make them suitable for use in a wide variety of industries such as pharmaceuticals, mineral processing, and others. North America is expected to lead in the industrial filtration market. North America is the largest market for industrial filtration during the forecast period.The region has been segmented by country into the US, Canada, and Mexico. The demand for industrial filtration in this region is driven mostly by applications such as pharmaceuticals, oil & gas, power generation, manufacturing, and process industry.The process industries are the largest industry in North America during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing demand for filtration in the food & beverage industry for removing dirt, rust, living bacteria, microorganisms, and other contaminants from beverages. Moreover, the increase in regulations for wastewater effluent treatment is likely to drive the market for industrial filtration. Breakdown of Primaries: In-depth interviews have been conducted with various key industry participants, subject-matter experts, C-level executives of key market players, and industry consultants, among other experts, to obtain and verify critical qualitative and quantitative information, as well as to assess future market prospects. The distribution of primary interviews is as follows: By Company Type: Tier I: 61%, Tier II: 20%, and Tier III: 19% By Designation: C-Level Executives: 56%, Directors: 30%, and Others: 14% By Region: North America: 40%, Europe: 30%, Asia Pacific: 10%, Middle East & Africa: 10% and South America: 10% Note: Others include sales managers, marketing managers, product managers, and product engineers. The tier of the companies is defined based on their total revenue, as of 2017; Tier 1: USD 1 billion, Tier 2: USD 500 million1 billion, and Tier 3: The global industrial filtration market is dominated by a few major players that have an extensive global and regional presence. The leading players in this market are Alfa Laval (Sweden), Donaldson (US), Danaher (US), Parker Hannifin (US), Eaton (Ireland), Ahlstrom-Munksjo (Finland). Research Coverage: The report defines, describes, and forecasts the global industrial filtration market by type, filter media, product, industry, and region.It also offers a detailed qualitative and quantitative analysis of the market. The report provides a comprehensive review of the major market drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges.It also covers various important aspects of the market. These include the analysis of the competitive landscape, market dynamics, market estimates, in terms of value, and future trends in the industrial filtration market. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04049450/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com Fellow Kenyans, I know we are stubborn people. This may be by design or default and also, we are at a point where nothing the government says makes sense. It could be because our leaders have never had our interest at heart anyway. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the government has imposed social distancing measures which have seen the closing of houses of worship, night clubs, sporting activities, closing markets and restaurants among others. READ ALSO: 6 ways to care for each other during COVID-19 pandemic The government has been asking Kenyans to heed to government directives. Photo: Ministry of Health. Source: Facebook READ ALSO: William Kabogo tells govt to evacuate Kenyans from China on loan, let them pay later Some of us, however, are just peculiar. That a grown-up who works in the health sector would order an ambulance to sneak his dipsomaniac juvenile home after curfew reads like a script out of Nollywood. That an elected who knows he is infected would move with reckless abandon even when he knows he is infected is hard to understand. That most of us find refuge in houses of worship or over a glass of chilled beer served at the bar counter is not in doubt. And, by the way, when we flatten this curve, we must seriously deal with mental health issues and stress factors that make some of our houses in which we spend a lot of money constructing or pay rents not habitable that we seek solace elsewhere. For now, those of us defying the strict public health measures are an enemy of the people. You are the devil that is dancing on the grave of the dead and tossing a glass whenever a new number of those infected is announced. You are the demon that is taking us through the torture of not being able to hop into the next ride to the village for some fresh air and post pictures of us boarding some low-cost airline to coast over weekends. You are the reason why school-going children will stay home till God knows when. You are the reason why our hotels, airports, shops have rendered millions jobless. You are the joy killer that has forbidden us from hugging, pecking and cuddling. If you continue roaming like a wild pig breaking all rules, our economy will sink and soon, you will run out of the cash you are splashing around in the name of enjoying freedom. Unfortunately, this virus is not like an ordinary virus where falsehood has been peddled that a tot of gin, lemon and how water will clear your chest. This one will cost you an arm and a leg to treat besides spending time in jail as a guest of the state. Besides, you will be the carrier that will infect your mother, your father, your wife, your husband and children because of your irresponsible behaviour. This disease makes death a lonely affair. No family to watch you close your eyes, no religious leaders to intercede to God to forgive you your sin. There will be no flowers at your funeral and some of your relatives may not be able to say their last wishes. Italy and the United States where the health systems have been overwhelmed, it has been a disaster never witnessed before. The stench of death hand over the air. Families are crying for corpses they cant view. Fellow Kenyans, if we continue to behave normally, this disease will treat us abnormally. This is a burden too heavy we can't afford to invite into our homes. We must act, we must stay safe, we must sanitize. Daniel Otieno is a strategic communications expert and a veteran journalist The views expressed in this opinion piece are his and do not necessarily represent the position of TUKO Media Ltd in any way. 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. Kenyans in China speak out on the discrimination of Africans by Chinese citizens | Tuko TV. Source: TUKO.co.ke ISTANBUL Mumtaz Senel, mayor of the Yesilova district in western Turkey, got a knock on his door at about 4:30 this morning from a person who identified himself as police. When Senel opened the door, the assailant immediately shot five rounds, hitting the mayor in the legs and feet. Senel fell back and his wife was also hit when she attempted to intervene. Thats enough, your message is clear, Senel shouted, before the gunman retreated to an escape vehicle and sped away. Both the mayor and his wife, Fatma Senel, underwent surgery following the attack and are now reportedly in stable condition. Initial reports suggested the mayor, a member of the main opposition Republican Peoples Party (CHP), may have been targeted for his environmental campaigns against the development of the nearby Salda Lake, a tourist attraction that has been slated for a controversial construction project. Famous for its white sands and clean water, it is locally known as the Maldives of Turkey or the Saldives. Yet in an interview with the Turkish newspaper Sozcu, Senel said the assault was most likely linked to the recent closure of a local hotel, which recently had its license revoked after a prostitution ring was found to be operating in the municipality-run business. The hotel was closed and so I was attacked, Senel told Sozcu. There is no other reason for the incident, in our opinion. The attack has raised concerns among opposition lawmakers in Turkey, who say a recently passed partial amnesty law may have emboldened criminals. Designed to shrink prison populations to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus in state penitentiaries, lawmakers said the bill achieved its aims by lowering minimum sentence requirements for non-lethal assaults, thereby creating the possibility of reduced punishments for new criminal acts in Turkey. I believe we will see more crimes like this in the coming days, Zeynel Emre, Istanbul deputy for the CHP and member of the Parliamentary Justice Commission, told Al-Monitor. Politicians and civil servants are very vulnerable to attacks like this in Turkey, he added. Passed April 14, the reforms sought to release up to 90,000 prisoners in Turkey by reducing parole requirements from two-thirds to 50% of sentences, allowing eligible prisoners who completed at least half of their jail time to serve out the rest of their punishment on parole. The measures were criticized for excluding political prisoners such as politicians, journalists and civil society members, and now the legislation is coming under renewed scrutiny following the assault on Senel. The real reason behind such attacks is the impunity in the country, Baris Yarkadas, a journalist and former CHP deputy, told Al-Monitor. When someone wants to commit a crime they think, Well, there will be another amnesty so I will commit my crime and be released in a few years later. Yarkadas continued by highlighting a recent attack on the Kars municipal building in eastern Turkey, a district run by the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party. In statements given to the police, the three assailants said they had tripped over furniture in the municipality and they were promptly released. This is the kind of inaction, this is the kind of impunity that encourages assailants to commit more crimes, Yarkadas told Al-Monitor. Two suspects have been detained in relation to the Yesilova shooting and an investigation is underway, according to the Turkish Interior Ministry. Reports suggest as many as five assailants may have been involved in planning and orchestrating the shooting of the Yesilova mayor. Last week, construction vehicles were photographed taking the white sand from Salda Lake, sparking anger among some Turkish citizens who claimed construction companies were taking advantage of coronavirus quarantine measures to conduct illegal work. Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum condemned the incident, saying surveillance cameras would be installed around the lake in response, while Omer Bulut, chairman of the Housing Development Administration of Turkey, dismissed the consultancy firm and project managers overseeing the project. Yarkadas said he spoke with Senel following his surgery this morning and that both the mayor and his wife are in good condition and are determined to continue their work. As the lockdown initiated due to the coronavirus pandemic has been extended, one of the biggest concerns has been the disruption to education As the lockdown initiated due to the coronavirus pandemic has been extended, one of the biggest concerns has been the disruption to education. Schools and colleges at all levels have been shut. Entrance and recruitment exams have been postponed. The latest UNESCO report on the impact of COVID-19 on education has noted that around 32 crore students in India have been affected by this. The government, in its directions, has recognised this and encouraged educational institutions to engage with students and provide counselling support during this time. The other aspect that has been seen is the push for online education and e-learning during this time. In the Ministry of Home Affairs' notification issued on 15 April which contains the guidelines issued for the lockdown period till 3 May, it is mentioned that online learning is to be encouraged and institutions must adhere to the academic calendar through online education. This could have worked if India had the infrastructure or the digital literacy levels to support this. Regrettably, the country is lacking in both. Follow all the latest coronavirus updates here First, let's look at the issue of infrastructure. As per the latest data from TRAI in February 2020, India has around 115 crore wireless subscribers, of which around 66 crore have access to broadband-quality internet. Broadband in India is defined as equal to/or above 512 kbps in terms of download speed. So in a country of around 130 crore, around half currently has access to a decent standard of internet. If we look specifically at the feasibility of conducting online classes, we have to look at the question of infrastructure from two perspectives that of the school and of the student. Now, some select private schools may have the infrastructure to move all their classroom processes online, but the same cannot be presumed of most private and government schools across the country. Our education system is already besieged with various infrastructure issues such as the lack of classrooms and toilets, open spaces and recreational facilities etc. To expect all schools to be able to deliver online education is problematic. According to an Annual Status of Education (ASER) study conducted in 2018, in 596 government schools belonging to 619 districts, only 21.3 percent of students had access to computers in their schools. Now let's look at this from the perspective of students. Again, only some students from privileged families may have access to computers and personal smartphones or tablets. The 2011 Census reveals just 9.4 percent of households in the country had either a laptop or a computer, and only three percent of these homes had an internet connection. While 20 percent of urban households and five percent of rural households owned a computer or laptop, a mere one percent of rural Indian households owned a computer with internet access. Even if we assume that these numbers have doubled or tripled over the past decade, that still leaves out a large number of people. Even with the increase in smartphone ownership, not many students in low-income households and rural areas may have access to computers, personal smartphones or reliable internet connections, which would allow them to participate in online learning initiatives. Second, there is the question of digital literacy, where the situation gets bleaker. The National Digital Literacy Mission (NDLM) was approved in March 2014 and had a target to train 10 lakh citizens in select districts. Subsequently, the Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (DISHA) was approved in December 2014 with an additional target of 42.5 lakh candidates across the country. The only difference between the two schemes is that in DISHA, besides common citizens, ASHA workers, government functionaries and Fair Price shop workers were also trained. The coverage targets have been increased under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA), which seeks to make six crore persons in rural India digitally literate. However, Till October 2018, around two crore individuals have been covered, which is just 1.67 percent of India's population. These schemes are mostly focused on rural areas, leaving us with no reliable indicators about the number of people in India who can be called digitally literate. Onto the topic of school students. and in response to an RTI filed in November 2019, asking for details of digital literacy numbers amongst school students, this writer was directed to the ICT syllabus created under the national policy on ICT in school education. There are some positive aspects to this course design, specifically how the structure for students from Classes 1 to 5 focuses on using games to familiarise children with different tasks. One flaw here is the focus on computers as the unit of training, rather than smartphones. This ignores how technology penetration is happening in India, with many first-time users coming online directly on smartphones and skipping computers entirely. This means there is a requirement for expensive IT infrastructure, as well as broadband connectivity, to make these courses possible again ignoring the realities of school infrastructure in India, creating a digital divide among students and favouring the more privileged ones. This can be seen in how the syllabus mentions that since ICT infrastructure may not be available in all schools, state boards can come up with a different method of assessment, leading to a lack of standardisation in the assessment of digital literacy levels among students of different states, and affecting the quality of skills learnt by students from poorer states. It is important to point out that none of what we have discussed currently applies to students in the Kashmir Valley, where the government has restricted access to high speed internet, thus denying them the ability to access any online learning resources. It would be unfair to blame the government for being underprepared for enabling online education during this time, because no government has been prepared for the extraordinary situation created by COVID-19. However, there are long-term benefits to be achieved if the State attempts to mainstream digital literacy and enable online education in its efforts. Digital literacy cannot be defined in a limited way as just the ability to use computers. It must comprise of a range of skills, such as the use of digital tools, ability to process information, create and share knowledge on social networks and other skills that are increasingly becoming vital to progress in a professional environment. Digital literacy must be seen as a life skill since technology is penetrating all aspects of our life now. It is important that education in India keep up with this. There must be a specific component in the education budget that looks at enabling online learning in the education system. This must focus on infrastructure creation, skill development initiatives and teacher training. Teachers must be motivated and trained in order to have optimum utilisation of this infrastructure. It is the State's responsibility to ensure that children from less privileged communities do not suffer by being placed on the wrong side of the digital divide. Digital literacy must be prioritised from the primary school level onwards, especially in the case of girl students in rural India, who are often forced to discontinue their education after the primary or secondary level due to a lack of opportunities and/or social and familial pressure. We are living in an information society and the State is obligated to ensure that our children are fully prepared for it. Promoting online learning cannot be seen as a temporary measure, but must be integrated into the overall education policy of the country. The author is a programme manager at Nyaaya, an initiative of the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy Belfast City Council insisted yesterday that it had no plans to review its ban on mourners at Roselawn crematorium. The crematorium, which is the only such facility in Northern Ireland, has been closed to mourners since March 23. While up to 10 mourners, friends and family may attend a burial at a city council cemetery, there is no such facility at the crematorium. Following concern expressed on social media at the weekend about the ban, a city council spokeswoman told the Belfast Telegraph: "Belfast City Council regrettably took the decision to close the chapel at Roselawn crematorium and associated facilities to mourners from Monday, March 23 due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. "Cremations are still being carried out but unfortunately no family can be in attendance. "City of Belfast Crematorium is a regional service providing cremation services for NI as well as being accessible to people from the Republic of Ireland." The spokeswoman added: "It is the only facility in NI and it is essential that we maintain the ability to operate this facility effectively in coming months. "Council wishes to express its deep sympathy to all families who face the passing of a loved one during these very difficult circumstances." The spokeswoman said that the restrictions had been put in place to protect the public as well as crematorium staff and those such as funeral directors, undertakers and clergy who were part of the process. She rejected suggestions that there was a backlog of cremations at the Roselawn facility. Relatives of people whose remains have been cremated must travel to the east Belfast facility to collect their ashes, while obeying the current social distancing restrictions. Earlier this week, the National Association of Funeral Directors criticised councils for blanket bans on mourners at graveyards and crematoriums. It said services should be allowed to continue within social distancing guidelines, and criticised some local authorities for going too far with their restrictions. York City Council had banned all mourners from York Crematorium - but is now allowing loved ones to gather outside. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) President Rodrigo Duterte will decide this week whether to extend the six-week long Luzon lockdown or shift to a "modified" quarantine, his spokesman Harry Roque said Monday. Roque said Duterte will meet medical experts such as epidemiologists and virologists, including former Health secretaries, on Monday afternoon for their recommendations as the country grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic. The President will also factor in the suggestions of the Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases. "Ang desisyon niya ay nakabase sa paghanap ng balanse doon sa obligasyon ng estado sa isang panig na pangalagaan ang kalusugan nating lahat, doon naman sa karapatan ng mga mamamayan na magkaroon ng hanapbuhay [The President's decision will be based on finding the balance between the state's obligation to take care of everyone's health and the right of people to make a living]," Roque said in a virtual press briefing. Roque said the President will likely decide on the fate of the enhanced community quarantine soon to give time for authorities and residents to prepare. READ: IATF studying return to 'new normal' after April 30 Currently, the strict stay-at-home rule is deemed the strongest defense against infections with yet no approved medicines or vaccine for COVID-19. However, Roque acknowledged that the government's cash aid isn't sustainable, as the monthly subsidy ranging from 5,000 to 8,000 is merely for "food survival." He added that even the President has grown impatient staying indoors, as this is the longest time which he spent in Manila. Duterte frequently flies home to Davao City prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. "Pwede pong magkaroon ng modified ECQ na limitado sa geographical location. Hindi naman lahat ng parte ng Pilipinas ay mataas ang kaso ng COVID-19. Siguro doon sa mabababa o walang COVID-19, pwede nang huwag magkaroon ng quarantine," he added. Roque clarified that this will still be threshed out if the modified quarantine will be implemented at the level of the province, towns and cities, or barangays. [Translation: We can have a modified ECQ limited to geographical location. Not all parts of the Philippines have a high number of COVID-19 cases. Maybe the quarantine can be lifted in places with low or no infections.] READ: Govt think tank recommends gradual relaxation of quarantine restrictions after Luzon lockdown The presidential spokesperson said there are just two options on how to proceed: extend or modify the ECQ. He also ruled out rumors of a total lockdown circulating online, saying these claims are "fake." Duterte will likely make another public address this week, but Roque did not provide details yet. So far, Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion has recommended limiting the quarantine to barangays with a high number of cases, while Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III proposed a broader definition that areas with fewer infections and comorbidity should not be covered by the enhanced quarantine anymore, Roque said. The Luzon quarantine has been in place since March 15 and is due to expire by April 30. During the period, only workers in "essential" industries are allowed to report for duty, while the rest are made to stay home. READ: Lawmaker bats for two-week extension of ECQ after April 30 The trend of new daily infections appears to be on a decline, Roque said, even as cases have risen to 6,259 as of Sunday afternoon. "Kung magpapatuloy ito, tingin ko mas magiging kumpyansa ang ating Presidente na magkaroon ng modified ECQ dahil makikita niya na gumana na 'yung ating ECQ [If this trend continues, I think the President will have more confidence to move to a modified ECQ because he will see that the quarantine has worked (to slow down the number of cases)]," Roque said. Roque also clarified that the President has not formally tapped the military to implement the lockdown order, saying that Duterte will need to write an issuance for this. This is an "extraordinary" power granted by the Constitution but is not equivalent to Martial Law, he added. New Delhi, April 20 : With the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down major parts of the global economy, governments are responding with massive stimulus packages aimed at supporting businesses and individuals. And not surprisingly, cyber-attackers are busy using scam and phishing techniques to get their share, security researchers warned on Monday. These scam websites use the news of the coronavirus financial incentives, and fears about coronavirus to try and trick people into using the websites or clicking on links, cybersecurity firm Check Point Software Technologies said in a blog. Users who visit these malicious domains instead of the official government websites risk having their personal information stolen and exposed, or payment theft and fraud. Check Point researchers have found that since January, a total of 4,305 domains relating to new stimulus/relief packages have been registered globally. In March 2020, a total of 2,081 new domains were registered --38 malicious and 583 suspicious. In the first week of April, 473 were registered -- 18 malicious, 73 suspicious. "We've also seen a major increase in the week starting March 16 during which the American government proposed the stimulus package to taxpayers," said the company. The number of new domains registered that week was 3.5 times higher compared to the average of previous weeks, it added. In the US alone, the federal government is rolling out a $2 trillion package of Economic Impact Payments to help give the economy a shot in the arm and prevent a crash. Hackers and threat actors want to cash in on the rush to get these vital payments and fill their own pockets at the expense of others. Google recently reported that in just one week from 6 to 13 April, it saw more than 18 million daily malware and phishing emails related to Covid-19 scams - and that's in addition to the 240 million daily spam messages it sees related to coronavirus. Giving examples of economic stimulus-related attacks, Check Point cited emails with malicious attachments such as "RE: UN COVID-19 Stimulus" (distributing the AgentTesla malware) and "COVID-19 Payment" distributing the Zeus Sphinx trojan. When clicking on the "Reconfirm" button, the victim is directed to a phishing login page. The researchers said that 94 per cent of coronavirus-related attacks during the past two weeks were phishing attacks, while three per cent were mobile attacks -- either via dedicated mobile malware or via malicious activity carried out on a mobile device. "We have also seen a huge increase in the number of attacks, to an average of 14,000 a day, which is six times the average number of daily attacks when compared to the previous two weeks. And over the past week from 7th April, the average number of daily attacks increased sharply to 20,000," Check point said. Since mid-February we have seen an escalation in the number of coronavirus-related domains being registered. In the past two weeks, almost 17,000 new coronavirus-related domains had been registered, warned the cybersecurity firm, adding that two per cent of those domains were found to be malicious, and another 21 per cent suspicious. In all, there have been 68,000 coronavirus-related domains registered since the beginning of the outbreak in January 2020, it said. To stay protected against phishing attacks, people should beware of lookalike domains, spelling errors in emails or websites, and unfamiliar email senders. (Newser) A man was taken away in handcuffs from a reopened Florida beach Sundayand it wasn't for failing to respect social distancing limits. Police say Mario Matthew Gatti was wanted for a January murder in Pennsylvania, USA Today reports. The 31-year-old allegedly shot 33-year-old Michael Coover Jr. in a community near Pittsburgh on Jan. 16 while Coover was cooking dinner, reports CBS Pittsburgh. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department says officers were patrolling the beach to ensure people were complying with regulations when they spotted Gatti loitering suspiciously near some dunes and identified him as a fugitive. He faces charges including criminal homicide, burglary, making terroristic threats, and illegal possession of a firearm. (Read more Florida stories.) New Delhi, April 20 : The central government, here on Monday, set up six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs), led by the Additional Secretary level officers, to monitor implementation of lockdown, supply of essential goods and other related issues. The teams, constituted in exercise of powers conferred under the Disaster Management Act 2005, had reached their designated places, said a Home Ministry Joint Secretary at a press briefing. While two teams each have been set up for West Bengal and Maharashtra, one each for Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Each six-member teams comprise a senior public health specialist and a National Disaster Management Authority (NMDA) official. The IMCTs will make on-spot assessment of situation and issue necessary directions to the state authorities and submit their reports to the central government. The IMCTs will assess compliance and implementation of lockdown as per the guidelines and focus on issues, like the supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, hospital facilities and sample statistics in the districts, safety of health professionals, availability of test kits, PPEs, masks and other safety equipment, and conditions of the relief camps for labourers and the poor. The IMCTs have been set up following reports of lockdown violations causing serious situations in Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Mumbai and Pune (Maharashtra), Jaipur (Rajasthan) and Kolkata, Howrah, Medinipur East, 24 Parganas North, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri (West Bengal). Coronavirus has claimed 543 lives and infected more than 14,000 across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 extended the 21-day lockdown for another 19 days till May 3. Key Companies Covered are Aurobindo Pharma, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd., Mylan N.V., AbbVie Inc., Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Abbott, Biocon, Cipla Inc., Amgen Inc. among others PUNE, India, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The global active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) market is set to gain impetus from the rising implementation of strict norms and regulations in several countries regarding the production of high-quality API. It is further aiding in upsurging the overhead costs of in-house API manufacturing. Therefore, numerous pharmaceutical companies are focusing on outsourcing the manufacturing. This information is provided by Fortune Business Insights in a recent report, titled, "Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Type (Generic API, and Branded API), By Synthesis (Biological API, and Synthetic API), and Regional Forecast, 2019-2026." The report further mentions that the API market size stood at USD 164.20 billion in 2018 and is projected to reach USD 261.28 billion by 2026, exhibiting a CAGR of 6.1% during the forecast period. Request a Sample Copy of the Research Report: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/request-sample-pdf/active-pharmaceutical-ingredient-api-market-102656 This Report Answers the Following Questions: An Overview of the Impact of COVID-19 on this Market: What are the recent API market trends that are affecting the market? Which are the top companies present in the market? How many companies have signed new contracts and agreements? What type of multi-year and annual collaborations are the organizations exploring? What are the major growth drivers, challenges, and opportunities? The emergence of COVID-19 has brought the world to a standstill. We understand that this health crisis has brought an unprecedented impact on businesses across industries. However, this too shall pass. Rising support from governments and several companies can help in the fight against this highly contagious disease. There are some industries that are struggling and some are thriving. Overall, almost every sector is anticipated to be impacted by the pandemic. We are taking continuous efforts to help your business sustain and grow during COVID-19 pandemics. Based on our experience and expertise, we will offer you an impact analysis of coronavirus outbreak across industries to help you prepare for the future. To get the short-term and long-term impact of COVID-19 on this Market. Please visit: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/active-pharmaceutical-ingredient-api-market-102656 Drivers & Restraints- High Demand for Novel Drugs to Boost Growth The Indian Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) mentioned that during 2015 to 2020, the pharmaceutical industry of India is set to exhibit a considerable CAGR of 22.4%. As per one of our lead analysts, "The incidence of chronic diseases is surging at a fast pace worldwide backed by the rising geriatric population. Rapid urbanization, as well as increasing adoption of sedentary lifestyle would also contribute to the growth." Apart from that, there is an alarming rise in the number of new cases of chronic diseases. It is therefore, skyrocketing the demand for state-of-the-art drugs. High demand for biosimilars and biologics would hence, propel the active pharmaceutical ingredient market growth in the coming years. However, changes in price policies in the developing nations may hamper growth. Segment- Synthetic API Segment to Grow Steadily Backed by their Cost-effective Nature Based on synthesis, the market is bifurcated into biological API and synthetic API. Out of these, the synthetic API segment led in terms of API market share in 2018 backed by the cost-effective nature of raw materials used for producing these APIs. They are cheaper than the biological API. The biological API segment is anticipated to grow considerably throughout the forecast period on account of the rising technological advancements in biologics, as well as high demand for biopharmaceuticals to treat many diseases. Additionally, the surging number of FDA approvals for biological drugs, namely, recombined proteins, blood components, and vaccines would contribute to the growth of this segment. Quick Buy - Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Market Research Report: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/checkout-page/102656 Regional Analysis- Presence of Many Contract Manufacturing Organizations to Favor Growth in Asia Pacific In terms of region, the market is divided into Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, and North America. Amongst these, in 2018, North America procured USD 79.80 billion API market revenue. This growth is attributable to the rising government initiatives to develop unique drugs, as well as the rising prevalence of chronic diseases in this region. Asia Pacific, on the other hand, is expected to outpace Europe and North America in the near future because of the rising number of pharmaceutical industries and contract manufacturing organizations present in the developing countries, such as India and China. Owing to the availability of raw material in abundance and lower labour cost, these countries have started becoming major venues for outsourcing API manufacturing. Also, several manufacturers have implemented favourable regulatory policies in this region to broaden their production capacity. It would also boost growth. Competitive Landscape- Key Players Focus on Developing Various APIs to Boost Sales The market includes many contract manufacturing organizations that are mainly aiming to develop biological APIs. Companies located mainly in Asia Pacific are focusing on creating generic APIs. But, key players situated in North America and Europe are moving towards the development of biological API. Below are a couple of the recent industry developments: January 2020 : Astellas Pharma Inc. developed its brand new API manufacturing facility for a first-line immunosuppressant called Prograf. It will be used for organ transplantation. : Astellas Pharma Inc. developed its brand new API manufacturing facility for a first-line immunosuppressant called Prograf. It will be used for organ transplantation. June 2016 : AbbVie Inc. widened its small molecule API facility located in Singapore to strengthen its position in women's health and oncology sectors. List of the Key Companies operating in the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Market. They are as follows: Aurobindo Pharma Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. Mylan N.V. AbbVie Inc. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Abbott Biocon Cipla Inc. Amgen Inc. Other key market players Have Any Query? Ask Our Experts: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/speak-to-analyst/active-pharmaceutical-ingredient-api-market-102656 Detailed Table of Content: Introduction Research Scope Market Segmentation Research Methodology Definitions and Assumptions Executive Summary Market Dynamics Market Drivers Market Restraints Market Opportunities Key Insights Prevalence of Chronic Diseases -2018 New Product Launches by Key Players Recent Industry Developments- Partnerships, Mergers, And Acquisitions Therapeutic Applications of the Different Types of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Global Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2015-2026 Key Findings / Summary Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast - By Type Generic API Branded API Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast - By Synthesis Biological API Synthetic API Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast - By Region North America Europe Asia Pacific Rest of World TOC Continued.! Request for Customization: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/customization/active-pharmaceutical-ingredient-api-market-102656 Have a Look at Related Reports: Contract Research Organization (CRO) Services Market Size, Share and Global Trend By Service Type (Discovery, Pre-Clinical, Clinical, Laboratory Services), By Application (Oncology, Cardiology, Infectious Disease, Metabolic Disorders), By End User(Pharmaceutical & Biotechnological Companies, Medical Device Companies, Academic & Research Institutes) and Geography Forecast till 2026 Genomics Market Size, Share and Global Trend By Type (Products, Services), Technology (Polymerase Chain Reaction, Next-generation Sequencing, Microarray, Sanger Sequencing), Application (Diagnostics, Research), End-User (Research Institutes, Healthcare Facilities & Diagnostic Centers, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnological Companies, Contract Research Organization (CROs)) & Geography Forecast till 2026 Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) Market Size, Share and Global Trend By Type (Products, Instruments & Software, Consumables, Services), By Application (Diagnostics, Research), By End User (Research Institutes, Healthcare Facilities & Diagnostic Centres, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnological Companies, Contract Research Organization) & Geography Forecast till 2026 Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Service {By CMO (API, Finished Product {Solid Dosage Forms, Injectables, and Others}, and Packaging)} {By CRO (Discovery, Preclinical, Clinical Trial, and Laboratory Services)} and Regional Forecast, 2019-2026 Contract Manufacturing Organization (CMO) Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Type (API Manufacturing, Finished Dosage Form Manufacturing (Solid Dosage Forms, Injectables, and Others), and Packaging), and Regional Forecast, 2019-2026 Cancer Biomarkers Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Cancer Type (Breast Cancer, Lung Cancer, Colorectal Cancer, Prostate Cancer, and Others), By Biomarker Type (PSA, HER-2, EGFR, KRAS, and Others), By End User (Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies, Diagnostics & Research Laboratories, Hospitals & Specialty Clinics, and Others), and Regional Forecast, 2019-2026. Regenerative Medicine Market Size, Share and Industry Analysis By Product (Cell Therapy, Gene Therapy, Tissue Engineering, Platelet Rich Plasma), By Application (Orthopaedics, Wound Care, Oncology), By Distribution Channel (Hospitals, Clinics) & Regional Forecast, 2019 - 2026 Biobanking Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Sample Storage (Blood, Cells & Tissue, and Others), By Application (Regenerative Medicines, Life Sciences, and Others), By Settings (Academic Medical Institutes, and Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies), and Regional Forecast, 2019-2026 About Us: Fortune Business Insights offers expert corporate analysis and accurate data, helping organizations of all sizes make timely decisions. We tailor innovative solutions for our clients, assisting them to address challenges distinct to their businesses. Our goal is to empower our clients with holistic market intelligence, giving a granular overview of the market they are operating in. Our reports contain a unique mix of tangible insights and qualitative analysis to help companies achieve sustainable growth. Our team of experienced analysts and consultants use industry-leading research tools and techniques to compile comprehensive market studies, interspersed with relevant data. At Fortune Business Insights we aim at highlighting the most lucrative growth opportunities for our clients. We, therefore, offer recommendations, making it easier for them to navigate through technological and market-related changes. Our consulting services are designed to help organizations identify hidden opportunities and understand prevailing competitive challenges. Contact Us: Fortune Business Insights Pvt. Ltd. 308, Supreme Headquarters, Survey No. 36, Baner, Pune-Bangalore Highway, Pune - 411045, Maharashtra, India. Phone: US: +1-424-253-0390 UK: +44-2071-939123 APAC: +91-744-740-1245 Email: sales@fortunebusinessinsights.com Fortune Business Insights LinkedIn | Twitter | Blogs Press Release: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/press-release/active-pharmaceutical-ingredient-api-market-9792 Photo- https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1157208/Active_Pharmaceutical_Ingredient.jpg Logo- https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/881202/Fortune_Business_Insights_Logo.jpg China on Monday asked India to revise what it described as a discriminatory change in foreign direct investment (FDI) regulations aimed at preventing opportunistic takeovers of Indian firms amid the Covid-19 crisis. The Indian government brought China under the ambit of regulations preventing such takeovers and acquisitions on Friday, with authorities saying any Chinese investments would now require the governments approval. The revision of the FDI policy came close on the heels of Chinas central bank buying a 1.01% stake in HDFC in the first quarter of 2020. We hope India would revise relevant discriminatory practices, treat investments from different countries equally, and foster an open, fair and equitable business environment, Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement that was Beijings first formal response to the tweak in Indias FDI regulations. Ji said the additional barriers set by India for investors from specific countries violate WTOs principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment. The Chinese side also contended the changes in Indias FDI rules do not conform to the consensus of G20 leaders and trade ministers to realise a free, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, predictable and stable trade and investment environment, and to keep our markets open. There was no immediate response to Jis remarks from Indian officials although people familiar with the matter said the Indian government couldnt allow vulnerabilities created by the Covid-19 pandemic to be exploited by any country, including China. One of the people cited above said on condition of anonymity: A pre-emptive action was needed to protect Indian assets from hostile acquisitions and takeovers -- particularly start-ups that have little money power. The necessity is not just felt by India, but many other countries, including powerful G20 nations which have expressed serious concerns about Chinese designs. The person added: The actions of Chinese investors, with tacit backing from their government, are not fair business as usual. Hence there is a need to protect our domestic interests. The people said there was no bar on the entry of Chinese firms into India or investments by them, but all proposals will have to go through the government. This is not just targeted at China but all countries that share borders with India. It is surprising why China is so perturbed, if it believes in ethical business, the person cited above said. Earlier, only investments from Pakistan and Bangladesh required the Indian governments approval for security reasons. Without naming China, an order issued by the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) on April 17 said the scope of the policy has been widened to cover all neighbouring countries that share a border with India. Ji noted that Chinas cumulative investment in India exceeded $8 billion as of December 2019, far more than the total investments of Indias other border-sharing countries. She added, The impact of the policy on Chinese investors is clear. The revision of the foreign investment policy by the DPIIT will make it much difficult for companies from countries sharing land border with India, including China, to invest in the country, Ji said. Ji contended Chinese investments have driven the development of Indias industries, such as mobile phone, household electrical appliances, infrastructure and automobile, creating a large number of jobs in India, and promoting [mutually] beneficial and win-win cooperation. She also noted that Chinese enterprises were actively making donations to help India fight Covid-19 and sought to urge India to create a favourable investment environment that would help drive recovery after the pandemic. Where companies choose to invest and operate depends on the countrys economic fundamentals and business environment. Facing the economic downturn caused by Covid-19, countries should work together to create a favourable investment environment to speed up the resumption of companies production and operation, Ji said. The Indian governments tweak in FDI rules followed concerns that Chinese firms, including its mammoth state-run companies, could take over Indian companies at a time when their valuations and finances have taken a massive hit because of the economic crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic that originated in Wuhan nearly four months ago. Anil Talreja, partner and leader of the consumer business practice at Deloitte India, said: Such restriction is warranted at least during the time India Inc recovers and stands on its feet again. This shield would also apply to companies in the consumer retail and automotive {businesses} where FDI was otherwise under the automatic route. Shardul Shroff, executive chairman of the law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, said: This variation on FDI being subjected to government scrutiny will help India monitor its FDI which could be directed to acquisitions and takeovers of Indian entities at low valuations, at least in the course of the pandemic, through government route only. According to the DPIITs order, an entity of a country, which shares land border with India or where the beneficial owner of an investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country, can invest only under the Government route. The order also requires the governments approval for transferring ownership of an Indian company to any existing or future foreign investor belonging to the countries that share a border with India. Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar share borders with India, but there are some exemptions for Nepal and Bhutan-based entities. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on April 12 cautioned the government against takeover threats. The massive economic slowdown has weakened many Indian corporates making them attractive targets for takeovers. The government must not allow foreign interests to take control of any Indian corporate at this time of national crisis. MasterChef viewers were left baffled during Monday night's Australian barbecue group challenge. While lamb and prawns are typical BBQ dishes, the orange team bizarrely chose to use banana as the hero ingredient of their dessert. Dani Venn had the task of slicing, smoking and grilling the starchy fruit for 1200 locals at Melbourne's St. Kilda Beach, and was roasted on Twitter. 'What an abomination!' MasterChef fans roasted Dani Venn (pictured) for choosing to grill 'mushy' BANANA in the ultimate Australian barbecue challenge, on Monday night's episode 'Those bananas look like an abomination,' one viewer said online. Another sarcastically wrote: 'Ah yes, the well-known Australian cultural icon... the banana?!' as well as one who questioned: 'Lamb, prawns, banana = A BBQ?' One pointed out the bananas' lack of appeal, writing: 'Those bananas look terrible. There's a fine line between caramelised or slightly charred and just plain old burnt.' Baffled: Fans of the show found it bizarre that the orange team decided to grill banana in a BBQ challenge. They also pointed out the difference between caramelised and burnt banana Monday night's challenge saw the contestants divided into three teams: orange, yellow and purple. Dani in the orange team, got to work on the dessert: grilled bananas with a dolce cream, crumble and passionfruit syrup. The dessert's hero ingredient was a surprising choice, with the other teams opting for typical barbecue accompaniments in mango and pineapple. On the job: Dani in the orange team, got to work on the dessert: grilled bananas with a dolce cream, crumble and passionfruit syrup. She sliced, smoked and grilled the starchy fruit Pressure: Sweltering under the heat of the grill, a frazzled yet determined Dani set out to prepare a delicious dish that would save her team from entering Tuesday night's pressure test Sweltering under the heat of the grill, a frazzled yet determined Dani set out to prepare a delicious dish that would save her team from entering Tuesday night's pressure test. Dani said to her team members that opinions on how to grill the banana without it turning into 'mush' was overwhelming. 'I'm actually getting really confused and there's so many voices, it's really hot,' she vented. Everyone putting their two cents in: Dani said that various opinions on how to grill the banana without it turning into 'mush' was overwhelming Mushy mess: Despite the bananas getting stuck to the grill and burning on top, Dani continued to toss them around using a spatula Not ready to give up, Dani added: 'I mean, how hard can it be, it's just a banana!' Despite the banana sticking to the grill and burning on top, Dani was impressed by the taste. And as the judges sampled the dessert, they were amazed with the result, with Jock Zonfrillo describing it as 'delicious'. MasterChef: Back To Win continues Tuesday at 7.30pm on Channel Ten Surprisingly difficult: Not ready to give up, Dani added: 'I mean, how hard can it be, it's just a banana!' A prediction made by Albert Einstein over a century ago has been confirmed by astronomers who have tracked a star pirouetting around a supermassive black hole in the middle of our galaxy. Scientists spent 27 years gathering exact measurements to demonstrate how the orbit of the star, known as S2, is not shaped like an ellipse, as predicted by Isaac Newton's gravity theory, and published the findings in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. Instead, it travels a route around Sagittarius A*, a huge black hole at the centre of the Milky Way, to trace a rosette-like pattern when looked at from above. Additionally, the discovery adds to the evidence that Sagittarius A* - a staggering 26,000 light years away - is a supermassive black hole, and approximately four million times the mass of the sun. The clustering of galaxies with active black holes. / PA Chilean astronomers used the European Space Observatorys Very Large Telescope, which sits on a mountain in Chile's expansive Atacama desert, to identify the star's orbit. Typically stars and planets have an elliptical, or non-circular orbit, and move nearer, then further away, from the object they're circulating. However S2's orbit precesses, so the location of its closest point to the supermassive black hole alters with each turn. Each orbit is rotated from the place of the previous one, so a rosette formation is created and it appears as if the star is dancing around the black hole. Einstein published his general theory of relativity in 1915. It's recognised as a foundation of modern physics which helps scientists understand the forces of gravity, but had never previously been proven in the existence of a star orbiting a supermassive black hole. Reinhard Genzel, a director at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE) in Germany and programme leader, said the first evidence of general relativity was seen in the orbit of Mercury around the Sun. He said: One hundred years later we have now detected the same effect in the motion of a star orbiting the compact radio source Sagittarius A* at the centre of the Milky Way." Stefan Gillessen, also of the MPE in Germany, told The Times that according to Einstein's theory, as the star approaches the black hole, it should experience an "extra" gravitational pull that Newton did not account for. Einstein predicted how much the star's orbit changes, and now the data collected by scientists exactly matches his theory. The effect is known as Schwarzschild precession, and has never been measured before for a star around a supermassive black hole. Once every 16 years, S2 moves in towards the black hole to a closest distance of less than 20 billion kilometres, which is 120 times the distance between the sun and Earth. The findings are also significant in further understanding the mysteries of supermassive black holes. French lead scientists on the project, Guy Perrin and Karine Perraut said: Because the S2 measurements follow general relativity so well, we can set stringent limits on how much invisible material, such as distributed dark matter or possible smaller black holes, is present around Sagittarius A*. Amanda Holden reveals her go-to beauty buys in her latest make-up tutorial "with a twist". (Getty Images) Yahoo Lifestyle is committed to finding you the best products at the best prices. We may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change. Amanda Holden never fails to impress fans with her flawless beauty and stylish outfits. The Britains Got Talent judge hit the headlines when she carried out household chores in very glamorous ensembles, as she mowed the lawn in her wedding dress during lockdown. Now, the talking point has shifted to the 49-year-old presenters latest make-up tutorial with a twist. Over the weekend Holden recruited the help of her 14-year-old daughter Alexa - also known as Lexie - to demonstrate her beauty routine in a hilarious video, which was shared on Holdens official Instagram account. In the clip Holdens arms are behind her back and replaced by her childs hands, who applies all of the cosmetic products. At the start of the video Holden reveals the first thing she does is apply a CC cream or foundation with a high SPF. There is one product in particular she swears by - IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream with SPF. Lexie went on to smother the cream all over Holdens cheeks and forehead, which Holden found very amusing. Buy it: IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream with SPF 50+ | 32 from Cult Beauty The product works as a base layer for other make-up products to be applied on, or it can be worn on its own. The CC cream not only conceals imperfections and balances uneven skin tone, it also minimises the appearance of pores, while also providing protection from UV rays. The nourishing formula contains hyaluronic acid, as well as soy extract and other vitamins, to moisturise the skin, as well as collagen to firm and tighten the target area. Holdens make-up must-have comes in 12 shades, ranging from light, medium and neutral to rich and deep hues, to suit everyones skin tone, and each tube costs just 32. Story continues After applying the best Holden went on to use Too Faceds Natural Face Palette, which includes a medley of six bronzers and blushers. Holdens make-up tutorial concluded with her daughter using Bobbi Browns eyeshadow palette on her eyelids, before adding a touch of red lipstick and lipgloss. For better or for worse. In sickness and in health. Little did Barbara Reed know these wedding vows would have a profoundly different meaning when she wheeled her husband into Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital on April 1, 2020. "I was just sitting in the parking lot, crying, because I forgot to say I love him. I thought I may never see him again," Barbara said. Her husband, Matthew first began to exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 on March 22. BREAKDOWN OF CASES: Zip code data help Harris County residents determine coronavirus cases in neighborhood "My first symptom was a low-grade temperature. I went and got tested at Next Level Urgent Care," Matthew said. "They said it would be about 8 days before we got results. But we got the test results in 4 days, and it was positive." Matthew said his symptoms grew worse. "I started to have shortness of breath. Every day after that, it got more severe," he added. Matthew credits his wife for keeping vigilant care of him and taking meticulous notes. "She documented what I took. If I had a rough time sleeping, taking my temperature," he said. Barbara said the diagnosis was heart-wrenching. "It rocks you. You go into panic mode. You think--what's the next step?" Every four hours, like clockwork, Matthew's high temperature would return. "It got as high as 104. That was at home, not at the hospital. We fought this in our home, not in the hospital for 11 days. Then, he got worse," Barbara said. Matthew said that after days of fighting the virus, he knew he needed help. "After a really rough night on the 31st, I woke up and that was the day I went in," Matthew said. Barbara said his breathing had become labored. She discovered it was crucial to monitor his oxygen level -- the saturation of oxygen into the red blood cells, which she evaluated through a Pulse Oximeter. "He just wasn't getting enough oxygen into his system. He'd been severely dehydrated," Barbara said. Barbara then packed his bags, paying diligent care to what he would need. Tucked in with his clothes were headphones, a phone charger and pictures of his two children, Luke and Ella. Before she left the house, she called ahead to Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital to find out what the admissions process was and what she could expect. "I didn't want any questions about COVID-19. Calling ahead was one of the most important things I could have done. He immediately need the IV, he was that dehydrated. They admitted him right away," Barbara said. Once he was in the hospital's care, she could tell he came at the right time. "He was struggling to breathe. The oxygen was on pretty much the whole time he was there," she said. In Matthew's case, Memorial Hermann's patient support was through traditional care, not experimental treatments. "They took care of the oxygen, respiratory exercise, the inhaler. They did a lot of things that I know helped. He was not critical at that point," Barbara said. Matthew had also lost his appetite. "Everything tastes metallic when you're a COVID-19 patient. He wasn't eating food. He had lost 16 pounds," Barbara said. 'LONELY DISEASE': Coronavirus ravages a Houston family What made it even more heart-wrenching for Barbara was the realization that she would not be able to share the couple's eighth anniversary together, side-by-side. She then came up with a creative plan. The idea came to her when she took her pups, Taco and Belle, on a walk. "I realized our anniversary was tomorrow, and he's not going to be coming home. I was really upset and not sure what to do," Barbara said. She called a local Katy spot, Twinkle Greetings, to help her set up signs in the lawn at Memorial Hermann where Matt could see them from his hospital window. Barbara even went a step further, donning her old wedding dress and brandishing the signs of affection. Her sign read, "You're my lobster,"--a reference to an old 'Friends' episode referring to lobsters' monogamous traits. Barbara even got Luke and Ella involved in the heartfelt display. "I didnt know any of this was coming," Matthew said. "It was an incredible shot in the arm. I felt isolated. I could only video chat with people. It was heartwarming." Matthew was released from the hospital after a relatively short stay, his symptoms becoming manageable enough to return home. He credits his Memorial Hermann nurses, Jennifer and Shereka, for helping bring him back to a picture of health. "All the love should go to the nurses. They were the ones who did so much of the work," Matthew said. alison.medley@chron.com Advertisement After weeks of being denied access to the surf and sand due to the coronavirus threat, locals have welcomed Monday's reopening of some of Sydney's most popular beaches. Coogee, Clovelly, Maroubra and Malabar beaches were all reopened on Monday, three weeks after Randwick City Council closed them to the public to comply with strict coronavirus social distancing rules. The Randwick ban followed a similar closure at nearby Bondi, where locals and backpackers had flocked on an unseasonably hot March day - turning the surrounding suburbs into Sydney's COVID-19 hotspot and prompting authorities to immediately close the famous beach and surrounding shores indefinitely. But with the number of coronavirus cases in New South Wales continuing to fall, Randwick opened its beaches, albeit with signs indicating access was for 'exercise only' and not sunbaking and social activity. Swimmers were able to return to beaches within Randwick City Council, in Sydney's eastern suburbs, on Monday for the first time in three weeks The recent drop in COVID-19 cases saw the beaches reopened, but signs clearly spelled out to those in the area they were open for 'exercise only' The decision to close Coogee, Clovelly, Maroubra and Malabar beaches was made in late-March due to the coronavirus social distancing rules Australian cricket star David Warner (right) and his wife Candice (left) were among those who got some exercise in along the foreshore at Coogee Beach on Monday morning A month without an ocean swim had been an ordeal for local Tony Sloman, who hits the water daily - even through winter. Mr Sloman, 57, believes it is a good time to reopen the beaches as the public was now fully aware of the importance of social distancing, plus cooler weather will mean there will be less people inclined to head to the beach for a day out. 'It's been about four weeks and for someone like me, that's a long time, I swim almost everyday and I swim right throughout the year,' he said. 'For many like myself, my health - not just my physical health but mental health - has relied on being in the water. 'When they shut the beaches you'd go along the coastal walks and they were packed with people walking or a jog, so to a swimmer there didn't seem to be much logic in not being able to swim in ocean water for exercise. 'If you look around, people are respecting it. And they realise that if you don't respect it, and respect each other, it will be taken away again.' While the ban was in place, anyone who was tempted to clamber over the temporary fencing was at risk of a $1000 fine - no matter how briefly they swam or surfed in the ocean. Tony Sloman, who hits the water daily - even throughout winter - said he understood the restrict people's activities, but was unsure why oceans were closed to swimmers while parks and walkways remained open for exercise like walking and running Swimmers were regularly told by lifeguards over the personal address system that they could no sunbake or lie on the beach, and were required to promptly get in and out of the water The reopening meant two-year-old Moses Epa Iosepha was again able to run around on the sand with his mother Cristal Overcast skies meant Coogee Beach was largely quiet on Monday, with those brave enough to venture into the water saying it was cold Aside from surfers and swimmers, the ban had frustrated parents who were looking for somewhere to take their children during their permitted daily group exercise. It meant two-year-old Moses Epa Iosepha had been unable to chase seagulls around on the sand. His parents Alex and Cristal said they were thankful that the reopening of Coogee Beach meant they had a spot for him to run around, with most playgrounds closed. 'It's good for people who exercise and enjoy the beach, but particularly for us with a young kid it's great for him to be able to get outside and run around,' Mr Epa Isopeha said. 'We live by the beach and he loves the water, so to have that taken away was a big loss for us.' Local couple Orla Clarke and Gary O'Flynn too had missed being able to duck down to the beach on recent sunny days. 'I've missed it so much, we just like getting in for a quick dip, and so it's a good thing that it's open again, as long as people are just doing that,' Ms Clarke said. Sings were placed along the sand at Coogee Beach outlining the social distancing requirements, including that people gather in groups of no more than two and stay at least 1.5 metres apart at all times Lifeguards and workers from Randwick City Council were in attendance at all beaches on Monday morning to oversee the lifting of restrictions Local couple Orla Clarke and Gary O'Flynn admitted they had missed being able to duck down the beach for a quick dip, particularly after a few recent sunny days Despite the beach being reopened, many of the temporary fences and barriers remained in place at Clovelly - making it hard for some people to enter the water 'People can't be sunbaking or lying in the sun, but they have been making announcements about that regularly.' 'It's understandable that they closed it and with what happened in Bondi a few weeks ago, something had to be done, but it's great it's back open,' Mr O'Flynn said. Hundreds of keen surfers flocked to the waves early on Monday to make the most of the opportunity to get back in the water. Many who would normally surf at nearby Waverley Council beaches in Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte, drove south to the Randwick beaches for the chance to catch a wave without risking a fine. Waverley is assessing a proposal to reopen its beaches, however the area is still listed as a hotspot for coronavirus by NSW Health and for the time being, fences remain in place to block direct access to Bondi. Some desperate surfers have therefore sought access by jumping into dangerously rough surf off the rocks at neighbouring Mackenzies Beach. Hundreds of keen surfers flocked to the waves early on Monday morning (pictured: Surfers in Maroubra) Residents are only allowed on the beach to exercise, sunbathing is banned (pictured: A swimmer drying off) Sources told Daily Mail Australia there was little hope of surfers being able to access Bondi for at least the next two weeks, as Mayor Paula Masselos was 'dead against it'. NSW Police on Friday said it was 'comfortable' with future plans to open Bondi, but it was still being argued over by councillors, surf lifesaving, and the NSW government. The proposal, the details of which were still being debated, would likely retain fencing and have staff manage the number of people on beaches, with the power to shut down access if crowds began to form. 'Staff have developed proposals for managing our beach closures in a way that would allow for water access for ocean swimming and surfing,' an email to Waverley councillors from general manager Ross McLeod read. 'Consultation on these proposals took place with Eastern Suburbs Police [on Friday] with a shared level of comfort being reached. 'The mayor is in contact with the (state) ministers office and with stakeholders including the surf clubs and our neighboring councils.' While Waverley was still weighing up the pros and cons of opening, Randwick City Council mayor Danny Said he acted in the interests of the public. 'Living along the coast, I know how important our beaches are to the mental and physical health of so many in the community,' Mr Said explained. 'The past three weeks have been difficult as we've all had to make changes and sacrifices to our daily routines. 'Our decision to close the beaches three weeks ago was not taken lightly and factored in the risk of coronavirus spread, particularly given the concentration of COVID-19 cases in the eastern suburbs area along with the popularity of our beaches. Surfers returned to Maroubra Beach beach on April 20 after the Randwick council lifted the ban. Only exercise is allowed at this stage The beaches have been closed for three weeks to stop people from gathering in large groups amid the coronavirus pandemic (Pictured: A surfer paddles out at Maroubra beach on April 20) 'Our decision was also based upon expected crowd numbers and people's initial behaviour in relation to social distancing rules. 'By not going to the beach, each of us has helped others in need. We've helped slow the spread and flatten the curve. I know it's been tough, but I thank everybody for doing the right thing.' Surfers in Maroubra were keen to get back in the water after being banned from the waves for almost a month The beaches were reopened so residents can use them for exercise while adhering social distancing rules (Pictured: Swimmers and surfers return to Maroubra beach on April 20) The sun wasn't even up when surfers flocked to Maroubra Beach beach on Monday, April 20, after the ban was lifted Mayor Said was confident residents would be enjoy the beaches for exercise while keeping their distance from others and not lounging around on the sand before or after their swims. 'Our beaches are not open to general use and can only be accessed for exercise. Activities such as sitting on the sand, sun-baking or gathering in groups will not be permitted and council staff and police will be enforcing these restrictions. 'I urge everybody to do the right thing and practice social distancing while exercising so that we can maintain access for exercise purposes and get through this difficult period together,' Mr Danny Said. Ocean rock pools in Randwick City will remain closed until further notice as they are subject to a public health order to close. The waves were packed with surfers at Maroubra beach, they were all keen to get back in the water after being stuck on dry land for almost a month PHILADELPHIA, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in South Florida has awarded an unprecedented $354,777 sanction to Yuri Lyubarsky, a disabled Miami resident who had accused Pennsylvania attorney Eric Rayz of violating the "automatic stay," a key provision of bankruptcy law. Pennsylvania-based litigation management firm LSS (Litigation Support Services) and its principal Andrew Mogilyansky were key members of Mr. Lyubarsky's legal team. The $354,777 award is the highest-ever sanction issued by any U.S. Bankruptcy Court against a lawyer for violating the automatic stay. The court called Eric Rayz's conduct "sneaky", "egregious", "extreme and troubling", "without regard to appropriate and legally imposed boundaries" and "an affront to the bankruptcy system" and described Rayz's sworn testimony as "unbelievable". The full text of the court decision is available at www.LitigationAid.com/Decision-Lyubarsky-v-Rayz-2020.pdf. "Before we got involved, Mr. Lyubarsky was an underdog locked in a decade-long fight against an overzealous lawyer," said Andrew Mogilyansky, Managing Partner of LSS. "Using claims his offshore client purchased for only $3,000, Eric Rayz wrested over $200,000 from Mr. Lyubarsky and even tried to seize his disability benefits. When Mr. Lyubarsky filed for bankruptcy in 2018, Rayz violated bankruptcy law by demanding an immediate additional payment of $250,000 and threatening severe retribution if Mr. Lyubarsky did not comply. He then lied under oath in an unsuccessful attempt to cover it up. We are happy that the court punished Rayz for this misconduct and restored justice to our client." Contributing over 63% of the legal team's total hours, Mr. Mogilyansky worked on the case in tandem with lead counsel Gary Seitz, senior partner at GSBB (Gellert Scali Busenkell & Brown). "As the court found today, Eric Rayz unlawfully threatened Mr. Lyubarsky in an improper effort to obtain a $250,000 payment," said Mr. Seitz. "After that failed, Rayz filed a falsely exaggerated claim for $400,000 claim that withheld a key document." When this was uncovered by LSS and brought to the court's attention, Rayz defended his misconduct with doctored pictures and testimony that the court found "convoluted" and "unbelievable". "Andrew Mogilyansky was key to this case," said lead counsel Mr. Seitz. "He came up with the idea of demanding sanctions from Rayz, identified factual gems and legal theories that made our victory possible, helped define legal strategy and suggested a brilliant move at trial. Andrew's talent, analytical skills and competence were key to our success. This is especially remarkable given his difficult personal history and the adversity Andrew overcame before starting LSS." This opinion was echoed by Mr. Seitz's co-counsel. "Andrew Mogilyansky made incredibly valuable discoveries in court records and identified legal errors missed by a succession of prior lawyers. He uncovered documents Rayz withheld and pictures Rayz tampered with. Andrew's involvement was a game-changer for our entire legal team," said Florida attorney Leonid Nerdinsky. Two Philadelphia lawyers who worked with LSS on other cases acknowledged Mr. Mogilyansky's expertise in their supporting affidavits filed in Florida. "With respect to Andrew's professional skills, his research, analytical, writing and negotiation skills are unmatched," wrote George Bochetto, senior partner at Bochetto & Lentz, P.C. Elvin Ross, the managing partner of law firm Legis Group LLC, wrote that he had "marveled at the ingenuity of Andrew's ideas on both tactical and strategic direction of the case, his masterful guidance of all related negotiations, and at how legally precise and eloquent his drafts of pleadings and communications were." "My life changed when Andrew Mogilyansky stepped in to help me," said Yuri Lyubarsky, the disabled man who will reap most of the court decision's benefits. "Andrew then persuaded Gary Seitz to help me as well. Rayz made my life miserable for over a decade. He froze my disability benefits. I was a deer in the headlights, contemplating suicide. Gary Seitz and Andrew Mogilyansky saved my life and restored my faith in Justice." About LSS: Litigation Support Services LLC is a boutique consultancy that helps select clients manage important high-value negotiations and litigation. For more information, visit www.LSS.LLC. Contact: Andrew Mogilyansky, LSS Managing Partner, 215-909-9000, [email protected] Media Packet: An information packet containing records described in the court's decision (such as the doctored picture) is available at www.LitigationAid.com/Information-Packet-Lyubarsky-2020.pdf. SOURCE Litigation Support Services LLC Related Links litigationaid.com A prominent doctor has resigned from a medical board over the Government's handling of the coronavirus crisis in nursing homes. Dr Marcus de Brun has described the management of the crisis as "the biggest political blunders in the history of the Irish State". Read More The GP was appointed by Health Minister Simon Harris to the board of the Medical Council two years ago. He has now resigned from the board in protest at the lack of focus on nursing homes. Dr de Brun says the strategy to isolate the entire populations means those most at risk have featured as something of an afterthough. Unquestionably the most vulnerable cohort of patients in Ireland are those residents of Nursing Homes. This fact should have been entirely obvious to all involved in the management of the crisis. "Most of these individuals are of course elderly and most have significant underlying health conditions. Nursing home residents cannot or could not be expected to avail of the same measures applied to the general public, he wrote in an article criticising the handling of the crisis. It remains an evolving tragedy Dr de Brun says their needs and care were only considered at a ministerial level in late March, long after the arrival of the virus on in late February. It beggar's belief, and remains an evolving tragedy, that these vulnerable people were not considered as the first priority for the state, rather than being the last to be considered. Dr de Brun runs the Rush Family Practice in Co Dublin since 2010. He is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland: MB. He also holds a degree in Microbiology from TCD. The shire has ordered "Prince" Leonard and his sons to stop building an administration block, art gallery, chapel and motel-style accommodation near the nine-bedroom Hutt River farmhouse, 360 miles north of Perth. An historic picture - the first group of tourists (from all over Australia) rally round the flag at Hutt River Principality. Prince Leonard is arrowed. A group of tourists surrounds the flag at Hutt River principality. Arrow shows "Prince" Leonard. February 25, 1973. A father of seven, the dark-haired administrator, who is pushing 50, says that the Commonwealth Department has stopped paying child endowment to his sons' children because they are living in the breakaway "state." "The administration is compensating them for this," he says. "We do not expect child endowment. Neither do we expect to be subject to bylaws framed outside the principality." The Casleys have already faced smaller tests of their legality and lost both. Prince Leonards son Wayne was fined $40 for failing to register for national service, and both the administrator and his son Ian have been fined $2 for failing to vote at the last Federal elections. "We paid the fines under protest," says the little prince. "We don't want any friction between the principality and the rest of Australia." The Casleys seceded originally over what the patriarch describes as a "ridiculous" wheat quota allocated to the Hutt River property for 1969. "They gave me a quota for 1,647 acres," he recalls bitterly. "It would have taken me one day to harvest it with the machinery I've got here, but the profit wouldn't pay the hire-purchase on my tractors." A few months ago the Casleys started building the nucleus of a tourist resort which, they hope, will keep the principality on its feet. "Eventually we hope to develop the principality with a hotel, casinos and sporting facilities." But by the time the walls had started to rise for the chapel, the administration block and the motel units, the Northampton Shire Council pounced. "Prince" Leonard had failed to get a building permit from the council. And, with a third of the $100,000 project completed, the council said stop - or else. "Prince" Leonard with wife "Princess" Shirley in 1973. Credit:Fairfax Media The sincere, urbane "prince" crossed the border into Northampton, a thriving wheat-cattle-sheep ton about 90 miles north of Geraldton, to state his case before the council. Though he reasoned with the councillors, telling of his secession "proof", Leonard Casley cut little ice. Refused "They wanted me to sign a letter to the effect that the Northampton Shire was the local authority and that I would abide by their bylaws. I refused point blank. "As Prince Philip once said, 'anyone who submits to aggression commits a greater crime'." Relations between shire and principality became strained, to say the least. "Prince" Leonard retreated to his picturesque principality - comprising fertile grazing land bisected by a small river - to consider his strategy. "They say that if I continue to build they will take legal action to pull down my buildings," says the administrator. "If they do this, we'll just build them again. To tear down a chapel is desecration." He and his sons are thinking about "further action" if the shire keeps pulling down their buildings. Australia's newest so called "State", the Hutt River Province, has produced its first official map (left). Credit:Unknown Told Queen "I'm a peaceful man," says "Prince" Leonard, "And I hope there is no violence. "In all my dealings with the principality I have kept the Queen of England briefed as a matter of courtesy, as well as the Governor-General. "If necessary, I'll appeal to their sense of decency." The "prince" had hoped to have the non-denominational chapel completed by April 21 - the third anniversary of his secession. It was to have been consecrated by the Bishop of the North-West, on that day at the same time as the baptism of the principality's first-born child. (First-born child is the "prince's" grand-daughter Rosanne, 11-months-old daughter of Ian and Annette Casley) "The chapel will be a beautiful building with semi-transparent blue windows. It will house a religious art exhibition by Frank Pash and will have a portrait of the Pope - to show that we are non-denominational." Loading Leonard Casley's three eldest sons have portfolios in the principality. Richard is Treasurer, Ian Postal Services Minister and Wayne Foreign Affairs Minister. Industry estimates indicate that in India, branded and organised hotels annual revenue is Rs 38,000 crore, it added. New Delhi: The hotels and hospitality sector in India has declined sharply in the first quarter of 2020, as the COVID-19 outbreak impacts various segments of the sector, according to global real estate consultant JLL. Coming off a high performance base in 2019, the COVID-19 outbreak and the containment measures introduced by the government have resulted in a severe drop in foreign and domestic travel, across both the tourism and business traveller segments, the report ''India Hospitality Industry Review 2019'' has said. "In the third week of March 2020, at an all-India level, the hotels sector witnessed a decline of more than 65 per cent in occupancy levels as compared to the same period of the previous year," it added. As travel restrictions around the world intensified further, second and third quarters of 2020 are likely to be similarly impacted, it added. At least 30 percent of hotel and hospitality industry revenue could be impacted if situation doesn't improve by the end of June 2020. With more than 60 percent of organised hotels in India already shut and several others operational with single digit occupancies, a recovery will be gradual, the report said. Industry estimates indicate that in India, branded and organised hotels annual revenue is Rs 38,000 crore, it added. "As the sector navigates turbulent times through the pandemic, growth and development of hotels in India is also likely to be impacted in the next two years. Any dry powder that is available today will focus more on buying operating assets rather than building new ones," JLL India CEO and country head Ramesh Nair said. The strong performance of the office sector was the key to robust hotel market performance across the top 7 business cities of India, the report said. "There are several macro factors that play favorably to Indias hotel and hospitality industry. First and foremost, the massive domestic sector, which has also become travel savvy over the years, will likely drive the rebound as travelers extend their average length of stay at a certain destination," JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group MD Jaideep Dang said. Secondly, India may get an increased share of manufacturing and logistics business that may bring back business travelers to the country in the medium term, he added. Focus on development could shift towards Tier 1 cities, which are fundamentally stronger business-driven markets, the report said. On debt side, new hotel development will be impacted as there will be limited lender appetite, particularly in more volatile resort markets. Investors led by private equity funds will be looking out for stressed assets as the working capital pain and reduced revenues will impact yields for existing hotel owners, it added. "2020 started with a strong deal pipeline estimated at about $1 billion worth of tradeable assets. Investment action will likely get deferred as the sector rebuilds itself after containment of COVID-19, however, we estimate that more assets may fall in the ring for sale in the latter half of the year, the report said. Growth and development is likely to slow down in the next two years. Projects under development will likely get delayed and raising development finance will also become more challenging, it added. Depending upon an early containment of the pandemic, green shoots on transaction activity will likely appear towards third quarter of 2020, the report said. NATO Allied Air Command NATO Allied Air Command A Belgian F-16 fighter patrolling the Baltic region on Friday morning intercepted two Russian Air Force fighters flying over a US destroyer off the coast of Lithuania. "The Belgian F-16 conducted a professional intercept and left the scene, demonstrating that NATO remains ready, vigilant and prepared to respond to any potential threat," NATO's air command said in a brief statement. The USS Donald Cook is deployed to the region with a focus on "regional stability" and "honing anti-submarine warfare capabilities in the Atlantic," NATO said. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. A Belgian F-16 fighter patrolling the Baltic region on Friday morning intercepted two Russian Air Force fighters flying over a US destroyer off the coast of Lithuania. A video released by NATO's Allied Air Command on Monday showed the Russian jets "manoeuvring in international airspace" over the USS Donald Cook, a US destroyer deployed to the Baltic Sea since April 11. "The Belgian F-16 conducted a professional intercept and left the scene, demonstrating that NATO remains ready, vigilant and prepared to respond to any potential threat," the air command said in a brief statement. The USS Donald Cook is deployed to the region with a focus on "regional stability" and "honing anti-submarine warfare capabilities in the Atlantic," NATO said. The USS Porter was also deployed on April 13 for a joint exercise with the Regina Maria, a Romanian frigate. "These deployments show that NATO allies are working closely together, determined to ensure that potential adversaries do not exploit the situation to further their interests," Oana Lungescu, a NATO representative, said in a statement on Friday. NATO members routinely rotate their patrols in the Baltic airspace. The US military has made note of recent provocations made by Russian fighter jets. Story continues On April 8, US F-22 fighters intercepted two Russian IL-38s, a maritime patrolling aircraft, entering the Bering Sea in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone. A week later, a Russian Su-35 fighter jet buzzed a US Navy P-8A Poseidon, an anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare aircraft, flying over the Mediterranean Sea. The Russian jet flew an "inverted maneuver" 25 feet in front of the US aircraft, US Naval Forces Europe-Africa said, adding that the crew of the P-8A Poseidon experienced "wake turbulence" during the 42-minute encounter. On Sunday, another Su-35 fighter intercepted a P-8A Poseidon over the Mediterranean Sea in a similar fashion. Belgian jets have intercepted Russian aircraft in the past. In September, Belgian F-16s were scrambled to intercept two Russian Tu-160 bombers accompanied by two Sukhoi Su-27s over the Baltic Sea. Read the original article on Business Insider ArcelorMittal is idling the #4 blast furnace and laying off workers at the Indiana Harbor steel mill in East Chicago, and the number of layoffs is only expected to increase. The steel mill temporarily shut down the blast furnace that forges raw materials into iron Monday. "The COVID-19 outbreak has impacted ArcelorMittal USAs key use markets. In response to this, we are adapting our capacity to meet changing demand while maintaining the flexibility of our operations," ArcelorMittal spokesman Bill Steers said. The steelmaker hopes to bring blast furnace #4 back online by May 11, but that target date could be pushed back as the unfolding coronavirus public health crisis evolves. ArcelorMittal has been offering voluntary layoffs at #4 Steel Producing at the mill in East Chicago. United Steelworkers union officials do not know how extensive the layoffs will be but were told "a significant number" of workers there will be put in a plant-wide general labor pool so they can continue working while assuming new responsibilities while the blast furnace is temporarily down. : Several companies which have set up units in neighbouring Sri City special economic zone have commenced production of medical products to support the country's fight against the coronavirus outbreak. Companies including Pals Plush, VRV Asia Pacific, TIL Healthcare which have presence in the SEZ at Tada, around 110 km from here,are engaged in producing healthcare products such as personal protection equipment, among others Pals Plush Indias, a manufacturer of soft toys and accessories,is now producing personal protection equipment including face shields, an official said. VRV Asia Pacific Ltd, a Chart Group Company (of United States,is producing liquid cylinders and storage tanks for storing liquid oxygen as the demand for medical oxygen in hospitals was increasing. VRV was one of the few companies to make cryogenic storage cylinders and tanks, he said. TIL Healthcare, the pharmaceutical division of Jhaver Group of companies, has received the license to produce Hydroxy Chloroquine Sulfate tablets. The company would commence production once the raw material arrives. Sri City Founder Ravindra Sannareddy said Sri City industrial community looks forward to take part in such initiatives to help the citizens. The companies during the brief interaction with government authorities have informed them about the issues they were facing. Sri City Development commissioner R Muthu Raj said, "We will coordinate with the state government officials and facilitate smooth running of these units. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BEIJING, April 20 (Reuters) - A spillage of waste molybdenum ore in northeast China last month was the biggest tailings leak the country witnessed in almost 20 years and needed the toughest environmental emergency response, the environment ministry said on Monday. The incident on March 28 in Heilongjiang province sent 2.53 million cubic meters of water containing waste molybdenum ore - mined for the metal used in stainless steel and tools - into the local river system, reviving fears over the safety of ponds used for tailings. Tailings dams are commonly used by mining firms to store waste remnants of ore. The spill reached as far as 110 km (68.35 miles) southwest of the mining site, where the chemical oxygen demand reading (DOC) - a measure of water quality - was 5.7 times higher than standard levels. A high COD reading indicates a greater threat to aquatic life. There were no reported casualties in the Heilongjiang incident, which occurred at a pond belonging to Yichun Luming Mining, but the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said on Monday the incident required "the toughest emergency management" and "extremely complex rectifications." Meanwhile, Yichun Luming's production licence was temporarily suspended after the spill. The ministry also said it launched an investigation into the spill with the Ministry of Emergency Management and Heilongjiang province and would make the probe report public. Last week, both ministries announced a broader month-long probe into hidden risks at tailings dams across the country. Tailings dams have been under close scrutiny globally since the collapse of one in Brazil last year killed more than 250 people. In China, 276 people died when a tailings dam at an iron ore mine gave way in Shanxi Province in September 2008, around one month after a similar incident, also in Shanxi, killed at least 43 villagers. [ ] The environment ministry said the local Hulan river had now been "basically cleared" after weeks of on-site emergency treatment and that the key objective of not allowing excessive waste to enter the Songhua river, the fifth-longest in China, had been achieved. (Reporting by Tom Daly and Min Zhang, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips) Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The government on Monday released guidelines for use of COVID-19 test kits that produce results in under an hour. The issuance comes as the public continues to clamor for wider mass testing to detect cases to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease. Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, spokesperson of the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, named specific sectors who are allowed to use rapid antibody-based test kits a controversial diagnostic tool that produces quick but possibly inaccurate results. Unlike the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction or RT-PCR tests preferred by the countrys health expert, rapid antibody test kits use blood samples. Such kits are unable to detect the COVID-19 virus. Instead, it measures a patients antibodies through the sample. Only licensed medical doctors can request and administer antibody-based test kits, which can produce results in under an hour. Whether they are testing symptomatic or asymptomatic people, they are required to wear protective gear to make sure they will not contract the highly-contagious disease. Doctors can only use rapid test kits validated by the Food and Drug Administration, Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, and the Department of Science and Technology. Who can be tested using rapid antibody test kits Nograles said the following persons under monitoring (PUMs) or persons and healthcare workers who have no flu-like symptoms and no history of travel can be tested using the rapid antibody test kits: - Healthcare workers with no symptoms but have unprotected exposure can be tested using the rapid test kits if RT-PCR kits are unavailable. They can be tested using the rapid kits to get clearance to go back to work - A symptomatic close contact of a known or suspected case can be tested if there is no stock of RT-PCR test. However, regardless of the test result, they need to remain isolated - A close contact of a COVID-19 patient, but not showing any symptoms - Filipinos returning from another country can be tested using the rapid test kits when they arrive at a quarantine facility. The rapid test kits can also be used before they are discharged after fulfilling their mandatory 14-day quarantine. - People who are not showing symptoms but are residing in areas with suspected community-based COVID-19 transmission. Testing can be performed at the household, sitio, and barangay level with proper sampling methodology upon coordination with the epidemiology bureau and local health officials DOH and local infectious disease experts have advised against the use of rapid testing, preferring the use of RT-PCR tests as it gives a definitive diagnosis. While it is the gold standard test," it takes at least 24 hours to process sometimes even longer due to bottlenecks. With the RT-PCR tests, trained professionals test nose and throat swabs to find out whether a person has coronavirus. Once the repeat test yields a negative result, the patient can be allowed to go home. President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the purchase of rapid test kits amid the shortage of RT-PCR test kits and its long turnaround time. Around 3,000 kits with 45-minute processing time are set to arrive in the country next week. Nograles said the test results from the rapid antibody test kits will not be included in the official tally of confirmed and recovered cases recorded by the Department of Health. KALAMAZOO, MI -- An assisted living facility near Kalamazoo has seen 10 cases of the coronavirus, including two deaths. Park Village Pines in Oshtemo Township has tracked 10 cases of coronavirus at the facility so far, including two deaths, and is taking steps to stop further spread of the virus, Executive Director Dave Bos said in a letter to residents families that he shared with MLive. The facility opened a triage center for those who tested positive for the virus, which currently houses six residents. Two more residents are hospitalized and two others have died from the virus, Bos said. Four residents have tested negative for the virus and two others are awaiting test results, Bos said. Our commitment to our residents and their families is to keep them as safe as possible under these circumstances, Bos said. The quarantine we currently have in place is a necessary step to make our building as safe as possible for residents and staff. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order last week mandating that facilities like Park Village Pines create a separate area for residents who test positive for the virus. The order is necessary, the governors office says, because a couple cases of the virus in a small setting with vulnerable people can threaten the safety of the entire facility. I know this is a hard time for Michigans elderly residents, their families, and the hardworking staff who work with them every day, Whitmer said in the release. I will continue to do everything in my power to protect Michiganders everywhere from the spread of this virus. No employees at Park Village Pines have contracted the virus at this point, Bos said. Bos said many people have been asking how the virus entered the facility if the staff have tested negative. Officials suspect that one or more residents picked up the virus while visiting their doctor or another medical facility and carried it back with them, he said. Those staying in the triage center can reenter the main area after overcoming the virus, he said. Residents with no symptoms for seven days and fever-free for 72 hours without the use of fever suppressants are considered free from the virus by a physician, Bos said. This is an unfortunate and unprecedented situation that many communities in Kalamazoo and around the country are dealing with, Bos said in an email to MLive. We have worked extremely hard at keeping our community virus free even before the coronavirus threat was in Michigan and I believe our efforts have been effective at keeping the number of residents with coronavirus to a minimum. 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. Also on MLive: Whitmer orders nursing homes to transfer coronavirus patients to separate units or special facilities Several residents, employees test positive for coronavirus at Berrien County nursing home Cluster of COVID-19 identified at Benton Harbor nursing home BETHALTO 1st MidAmerica Credit Union has named Elysa Robin as the new Vice President of Human Resources. She comes to the credit union with over 32 years of human resources experience. I like the community aspect of the credit union, Robin said. I admire 1st MidAmericas community presence and am looking forward to being involved in the community and working with the members we serve. Robin is originally from the Chicago area. For more details, visit www.1stMidAmerica.org. Members of the Federal Capital Territory Enforcement Team on COVID-19 were not aware of the burial of the presidents late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, an official said. Attah Ikharo, the head of the team disclosed this to PREMIUM TIMES on Monday. This is in reaction to outrage over the disregard for social distancing and other health advisories at Mr Kyaris funeral. Many Nigerians have asked the Task Force to arrest and prosecute those who violated the protocols and guidelines of the NCDC at the funeral. Some Nigerians have also faulted the teams method of prosecuting defaulters of the lockdown order, accusing it of targeting the vulnerable. Already, the presidency has barred some presidential aides who attended the funeral from the Villa and has ordered that they be self-isolated. Moreso, other attendees who participated in the burial have been identified. They will be isolated and tested as well, an official told PREMIUM TIMES. However, reacting to the controversy, Mr Ikharo said members of the team were spread out across the Federal Capital Territory and were not aware of the burial. He also said President Muhammadu Buharis order of self-isolation to the aides already sends a strong message. For us in the enforcement, we (were)around Airport Road during the burial, Kubwa road, Nyanya, Dutse Alhaji and Mpape. We were not aware when the burial took place. But what I think should be more consolatory and more rewarding is the fact that the presidency has come up to say all those who attended that burial should go on self-isolation. And the journalists who were there, the state house media unit has also come out clearly asking them to go on self-isolation. I think that has sent a very strong message coming from the highest organ of government in the land. For me, as an enforcer, I commend the president for that and I think that message is enough to tell people the governments stand on this, he said. He also added that over 150 persons have been prosecuted and more prosecutions are ongoing as the team is yet to collate the total number for the day. He also said some of those convicted are asked to do community services and others are fined between 3000 to 5000, depending on the gravity of the crime. But most of them were asked to leave their vehicles until (after) the COVID-19 period which we dont know how long it will last, he added. He further appealed to residents to comply with the lockdown order to avoid arrest and prosecution. The UN children's agency appealed Monday for an additional $92.4 million to help fight the coronavirus in the Middle East and North Africa, a conflict-battered region with the highest number of children in need anywhere. The additional funding is needed for a range of programs across the region to soften the blow of the pandemic, said Ted Chaiban, the regional chief of UNICEF. Before the pandemic, some 25 million children in the region were in need of humanitarian aid. UNICEF estimates an additional four million children are being pushed into poverty, as millions of adults in the region lose their income due to nationwide lockdowns meant to fight the pandemic, Chaiban said. In addition to its regular nutrition and immunization services, the agency is helping to establish isolation centers and improve water and sanitation. UNICEF is also running awareness campaigns about social distancing and hygiene, which are particularly difficult in crowded neighborhoods and refugee camps, he said. Yemen is a top concern, said Chaiban, as after five years of civil war, half the health centers in Yemen no longer operate. Two million children are malnourished, including 400,000 who suffer from severe acute malnutrition. So far, there has only been one confirmed coronavirus patient in Yemen, but testing capabilities are limited and there are concerns the virus might be spreading undetected. More than 218,000 infections have been reported in the Middle East, including close to 8,000 deaths, the vast majority in Iran. A group of US lawyers is seeking trillions from the Chinese government, accusing Beijing of knowing about a coronavirus outbreak on its soil then covering it up. The class action lawsuit includes thousands of people from nearly 50 countries and was filed in a Florida court on Friday. The suit comes as legislators from both US political parties including some Republicans have criticised China and said Donald Trump and his administration were not being tough enough on China over the outbreak. So far, however, Mr Trump and his administration have taken no concrete action against Beijing. And the president, during a Sunday evening press conference, sent mixed messages about China and its handling of the outbreak. He both said he is "not happy" and made clear a trade deal his team struck with Chinese President Xi Jinping which the US leader hopes to follow with a second, more comprehensive, pact has eased his anger. "Now, of course, the virus came along, and I'm not happy. I'm not happy. And I let him know I'm not happy," Mr Trump said of Mr Xi. "So, you know, we had a great relationship with, we had a very bad relationship with China. Then we had a good relationship because we made a great deal. "But we're not happy. This is not a good thing that happened. It came out of China, so we're not, we're not in a position where we're going to say much yet," Mr Trump said. Why? "But the deal itself is great. The deal is, it's going to put many, many people to work in our country," Mr Trump said. "But all of that has to be taken into account when you look at all of the people that are dying in our country, but all over the world, all over the world. People are dying." Humans may be staying home during the CCP virus pandemic, but animals sure are coming out. On Sunday, in the South Australian capital of Adelaide, a kangaroo was spotted bouncing through deserted streets in the center of the city. For context, Adelaide isnt exactly a small townits a coastal city of more than 1.2 million people. The kangaroo was spotted by South Australia Police on CCTV. A spokesperson said the marsupial narrowly escaped a road accident, before heading to park land. It was quite unique, the spokesperson said, adding that it was likely the quiet of Adelaides CCP virus lockdown that drew the kangaroo to the city center. Protective Security Officers tracked a suspect wearing a grey fur coat hopping through the heart of the #adelaide CBD this morning. He was last seen on foot heading into the West Parklands ????????????#animaltakeover #whatsthatskip #kangaroo #cityslicker pic.twitter.com/JPyVXIYQRw South Australia Police (@SAPoliceNews) April 19, 2020 All Australians are required to stay at home except for essential reasons, like buying groceries or seeking medical care. Gatherings are limited to two people in public spaces, and all public outdoor areas, including playgrounds, are closed. These scenes are playing out across the world, as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virusa novel coronavirus that originated in China and has since caused a global pandemicis restricting movement, business closures, remote working measures and stay-at-home orders keep people off the streets. In the Thai province of Phuket, meanwhile, the number of turtle nests on some beaches has reached a 20-year highand Kanokwan Homcha-ai, supervisor of the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, said Monday the increase is likely due to the lockdown measures implemented in March. Phuket is Thailands most popular island, and a major tourist attraction. Then it became a hotspot for the countrys CCP virus outbreak, and was put under strict lockdown. Now, the tourists are gone and streets are emptyand so are the beaches and coastlines. Homcha-ai said the CCP virus measures could have long-term positive effects for other species and the environment, since marine life have more time to regenerate undisturbed by human activities. And in Wales in late March, a herd of goats left their home in the Great Orme headland to roam around the northern coastal town of Llandudno. The streets were quiet after new restrictions on social movementand the goats happily filled the empty spaces. Videos and pictures shared online show the goats grazing on grass from church grounds, flower beds, and residential properties. CNN Wire and NTD staff contributed to this report. 3 Indian soldiers killed in Kashmir militant attack: India Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 10:33 AM Three Indian soldiers have reportedly been killed in a militant attack in the Indian-controlled Kashmir. Two gunmen on a motorbike opened fire on a military post in the northwestern Sopore area of Kashmir on Saturday evening, killing three soldiers, Central Reserve Police Force spokesman in Srinagar, Pankaj Singh, said. Singh added that two other soldiers had been wounded in the attack. The assailants were able to flee, he said. Police cordoned off the area, and a search for the attackers was ongoing in the neighborhood. Media reports said it was the fourth attack in the Indian-controlled Kashmir in the past 24 hours. The attacks took place while Indian army chief, General MM Naravane, was on tour in the area conducting a two-day inspection of Indian troops. Naravane had on Friday blamed neighboring Pakistan for orchestrating militant attacks against Indian troops in the disputed region. Pakistan has dismissed such claims. Kashmir has been disputed between India and Pakistan since their partition in 1947. The two countries have fought three wars over the Himalayan region, currently divided between them by the Line of Control (LoC). Last week, four civilians, including a two-year-old boy, were killed during an exchange of fire between troops from Pakistan and India. Bilateral relations between the two nuclear-armed nations plunged to a new low after India revoked Kashmir's semi-autonomy and launched a crackdown in August 2019. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Page Content SSRP Website goes live at Midnight On March 6, 2020, Government of Sint Maarten began implementing the measures and travel restrictions to control the spread of COVID-19. The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, to which Sint Maarten responded with further tightening of its travel restrictions and public health measures. On March 22, 2020, our ports were closed for transportation of persons however, remained open for cargo operations. The pandemic continues to expand, with more than 175 countries having reported cases of COVID-19. The COVID-19 viral outbreak has already brought considerable human suffering and major economic disruption, prompting governments worldwide to act swiftly and forcefully with targeted public-health responses and supportive macroeconomic policies. With the closure of its borders, the economic activity in Sint Maarten has drastically declined and is further projected to have continued adverse effects on the major economic pillar, tourism. The CBCS forecasts an economic contraction of approximately 30 percent of our GDP if borders remain closed for six (6) months. As a result, the impact is not limited to the rapid increase of unemployment, but includes businesses and individuals failing to meet financial obligations, increased government budget deficits due to a sharp drop in tax revenues and increasing expenditures putting pressure on the balance of payments and foreign reserves coming under pressure. Based on the above elucidation, Sint Maarten is in dire need of financial assistance to implement measures to assist affected groups, mitigate any potential spillover effects and restore growth, and confidence. The Government of Sint Maarten has put together a Relief and Economic Stimulus Program that captures direct relief for the following: o Payroll support for businesses that are impacted; Income support for Sole proprietors, vendor license holders, bus and independent taxi drivers; Income support for unemployed; Liquidity support for the government; The Income Support Program includes income support to sole proprietors, vendor license holders, independent bus and taxi drivers who are facing revenue losses due to COVID-19. Qualifying applicants will receive up to ANG 1,150. SMTF (St. Maarten Training Foundation) will assist government with the administration of the program. Total cost of this program is estimated to be ANG 1.34 million per month. In addition to the established social assistance which will continue to be provided, a COVID-19-specific Unemployment Support Program has been developed. In a scenario in which payroll support is provided further limiting and reducing layoffs, ANG 1,150 will be provided to persons who become unemployed due to COVID-19. A total of Ang 3.6 million has been reserved. This program will also be implemented with the administrative assistance of STMF. Details of the application can be found on www.ssrp.sx. The government will be rolling out these programs this week. Working closely with SZV, the Payroll Support Plan which is geared towards job retention and creating a buffer for the increasing economic impact. Government will pay a maximum of 80% of payroll for qualifying businesses. This program has been prepared for a period of 3 months maximum. Though Sint Maarten still awaits the response of the Netherlands on the submitted proposed stimulus plan, and no COVID-19 financial support has thus far been received, the government thought it imperative to start now and has decided to use existing government liquidity to do so. In order for employers to qualify for the Payroll Support Plan, they will be required to prove, based on the declared revenue (the total of the taxed- and exempted revenue) as per the comparison of the monthly TOT returns for the applicable months of 2019 and 2020, that their revenue has declined by more than 20% because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, the Government of Sint Maarten has introduced a program for employers to support employees that are not qualifying for the Payroll Support Plan but have a decline of revenue of more than 20% in the month of April 2020 as a result of the Lockdown. This additional program is referred to as the Lockdown Payroll Support Plan. The Social and Health Insurances (SZV) has been entrusted by the Government of Sint Maarten to execute the Covid-19 Stimulus Payroll Support Plan on behalf of Government. Employers that want to apply for this Payroll Support Plan must have an active account for the SZV Employer Portal. This form is accessible via the SZV Employer Portal as of Tuesday April 21, 2020. Employers who would like to make use of the Payroll Support Plan or the Lockdown Payroll Support Plan, are urged to: 1. Read the detailed information on the COVID-19 Stimulus Payroll Support Plan at www.ssrp.sx 2. Register for an account for the SZV Employer Portal via www.szv.sx and start gathering all supporting documents. 3. Fill in the application form to request the Payroll Support Plan. In addition to the Payroll Support Plan, the Government of Sint Maarten introduced a second payroll support plan, the Lockdown Payroll Support Plan. This program is for those employers that are not qualifying for the Payroll Support Plan and have a decline of their revenue of more than 20% in April 2020 (compared with April 2019) as the result of the lockdown that was enforced by Government as of April. Payment of the applicable contribution for Lockdown Payroll Support Plan will be done by SZV between May 25 and May 30, 2020. The government has launched a website regarding information on support www.ssrp.sx. Employees will be able to contact a digital Employee Helpdesk. The Employee Helpdesk will become operational as of noon April 20, 2020. Employees will be able to ask questions and or request information. Thus far, there has been no financial assistance provided by the Netherlands. The continuation of the stimulus plan as written is reliant on the approval and support of the stimulus plan being approved by the Netherlands. Thousands of Americans would be alive today if President Donald Trump had spent more time listening to the World Health Organization instead of trying to destroy it. Trumps announcement that he will halt U.S. funding for the WHO just as the world is facing a raging pandemic is a dangerous attempt to find a scapegoat for his own failings. It is like taking away a fire departments trucks in the middle of a blaze. Many Americans know nothing about the WHO, but its worldwide budget (of which the United States pays about one-fifth) is less than that of some American hospital centers. Yet it is charged with fighting Ebola and polio, saving childrens lives and keeping the world safe from pandemics like this one. Trump says that he is cutting the funds while his administration reviews the WHOs handling of the coronavirus. His own pandemic preparedness plan, which he characteristically has failed to implement, called for building support for the WHO because its a critical player to keep Americans safe. Yes, some of the complaints about the WHO are valid, and Ive made them myself: It has been too cozy with China, it made some wrong calls on the coronavirus early on such as doubting Jan. 14 that there was human-to-human transmission and it should stop blocking participation by Taiwan. But it has still managed the coronavirus crisis far better than the Trump administration. The WHO tweeted its first warning about the coronavirus as early as Jan. 4 and then rang alarm bells, culminating at the end of that month when it declared a public health emergency of international concern. It developed an effective diagnostic test for the coronavirus that is used in dozens of countries worldwide, while the U.S. still cannot manage adequate testing. In late January and February, the WHO issued increasingly urgent warnings about the coronavirus. Trump ignored them, instead insisting that it was totally under control, predicted the number of infections would drop, declared that its going to disappear and consistently downplayed the virus while talking up the stock market. Trumps passivity, even as the WHO and his own advisers warned him of the risks, squandered the chance to acquire more personal protective equipment for doctors and nurses. His likening of COVID-19 to the flu led people to join public gatherings like Mardi Gras and Spring Break, and that is one reason the U.S. has had 80 deaths per 1 million inhabitants from COVID-19, compared with 4 in South Korea and fewer than 1 in Taiwan. Ive known the WHOs director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, for 20 years and have had disagreements with him, largely over his accommodation of dictators. But I have deeply admired his passion for battling malaria, malnutrition and maternal mortality, and Ive seen his work save lives. Growing up in Ethiopia, he lost a brother apparently to measles, and that left him with a deep commitment to improve health care access. The WHO is bureaucratic, frustrating, timid and indispensable. No other organization can fill its international role overseeing the fight against disease. It has battled an outbreak of Ebola since last year in Congo, and thats one reason we havent had Ebola cases in the U.S. Every day, the WHO saves lives. It has promoted safe childbirth, and the number of women dying in childbirth has been cut almost in half over 25 years. It fights female genital mutilation and helps women with obstetric fistula. It is struggling to eliminate cervical cancer. It is part of the campaign against polio. Normally, an American president is a leader in global health, and Democrats and Republicans have often cooperated on a humanitarian agenda. President George W. Bush started a program against HIV/AIDS called PEPFAR that has saved 17 million lives. President Barack Obama helped lead the global effort to end the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014-16. In contrast, Trump has provided zero global leadership against the coronavirus, and he is now trying to crush the one organization providing such leadership. Trumps complaint about the WHO is that it is too close to China, and theres truth in that but Trump himself fawned over Chinas response to the pandemic. China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus, Trump tweeted on Jan. 24. I want to thank President Xi. Gutting the WHO will mean more kids dying of malnutrition, more moms dying of cervical cancer and the coronavirus infecting more people in more countries impairing the pandemic response, which may well cost even more American lives. And all because an American president is seeking a scapegoat for his own ineptitude. Yes, Americans have died unnecessarily from COVID-19, and Ive been seared by my own reporting in hot zones of New York hospitals. But if Trump insists on holding people accountable, he neednt denounce the WHO. He can gaze in the mirror. Twitter.com/NickKristof Oh no, it seems like Samsung's popular Galaxy S20 Ultra is having some problems with the recent update. The phone was reported glitching and most owners are not happy with this happening to their Galaxy S20. Samsung has been trying their best to deal with the current situation while telling their users that they are already on the move. Samsung is reportedly doing their best to handle the situation but there are still a lot of unanswered questions like what on earth just happened? The bugs on the Galaxy S20 Ultra Although Samsung has been exhausting a lot of their efforts in trying to fix the existing problems and bugs in their recent Galaxy S20 Ultra, it seems like things are not moving as swiftly as they have hoped to. According to SamMobile , Samsung has even recently pulled out their latest update just days after there have been numerous reports of glitches. Although the company has not yet officially outlined the root of the decision, users have still reported green screen tinting once they set their display to use its own signature high refresh rate, not to mention slower high-speed charging. Most of these defective features were what made the Galaxy S20 Ultra popular and some of their customers even bought this phone for the same problematic features that they are currently experiencing with their own phones. Read Also: 8GB RAM OPPO Reno Ace 2 Does It in Just 30 Minutes! The World's Fastest Wireless Charging Smartphone Is Finally Here! Samsung's response to the current bugs Engadget has asked Samsung for their official comments regarding how they are going to fix the current bugs. Samsung has given their response but it may not be too satisfactory for the general public who is still wondering what on earth is going on. According to Samsung, they are already on the move regarding the tinting issue, but as for the other flaws (most notably the slow camera autofocus) have marred this Ultra's debut. Fans are not too happy with this response and this could potentially hurt Samsung's Galaxy S20 Ultra The flagship phone's current price of $1,400 is already really steep for most of those looking to buy their new phone and now with the current hiccups, some people might even think twice before they decide to actually purchase this phone for themselves. Read Also: iPhone SE Reveals How Expensive Previous Apple Products Actually Are! $49 for 128GB, $149 for 256GB and More Samsung's place in the market Apple may be the most talked about or the most popular brand in the market as of today but Samsung is actually slowly gaining more popularity with the rise of its new products. Setting aside the current situation for the Galaxy S20 Ultra, Samsung actually has other really great smartphones that do quite well in the market. Android is the official competitor of the iOS and it seems like Samsung is one of the phone brands that is able to put this operating system to good use. Their products take android to the next level and have even increased the popularity of the android itself! As charities brace for a spike in the numbers of homeless people due to job losses arising from the coronavirus lockdown, a warning has been issued that street people are among the most vulnerable to contracting COVID-19. The combination of illness spreading among the homeless, the rise in the number of people on the streets after being laid off, and a shortfall in charitable donations as money becomes scarce means the coronavirus lockdown will have a devastating impact on the poor. Government programs have been introduced to help the newly jobless keep paying the rent until businesses can reopen, and most states have been taking homeless people off the streets and putting them up in vacant hotels. However a walk through the CBD in any of Australia's major cities shows many were still sleeping rough. Homelessness NSW chief executive Katherine McKernan told Daily Mail Australia that homeless people are both likely to catch the illness and to suffer greatly from it due to the prevalence of underlying health conditions. Experts fear for homeless people sleeping rough on city streets as they are vulnerable to catching and spreading the coronavirus among their community. Pictured is a man sleeping at Martin Place in Sydney's CBD 'Just under 50 per cent of homeless people have a physical health issue and 30 per cent have a respiratory illness,' she said. 'So if they were to become unwell with coronavirus it would impact them significantly.' She said those sleeping rough typically gather in groups overnight for their own protection; a habit that could fuel the spread the virus among them. 'They don't move around very much so it's not like they are going to spread the coronavirus,' she said. 'They are more at risk from the broader community rather than the other way around.' The country-wide lockdown has exacerbated the tendency for the homeless to band together for protection, as the sparse number of people and open shops in the cities has made them more vulnerable to being attacked by opportunists. 'With the city closing down it has been stressful for people sleeping rough because there are no cafes and shops around so consequently they've connected with other people sleeping rough,' she said. 'That has been against social distancing rules but they have been forced to do that due to the isolation and loneliness,' she said. Homelessness charities have welcomed a $34 million grant from the NSW government to get the needy off the streets and into short-term accommodation, but the lack of an exit plan was concerning. Ms McKernan said homeless people need to secure a reliable source of income and/or housing by the time that shelter expired, or they will be straight back on the streets. Homelessness NSW CEO Katherine McKernan said rough sleepers often gather in groups for their own safety making accommodation necessary to slow the spread in their community The coronavirus pandemic had already created a new wave of homeless people that Ms McKernan feared were unaware of the support services they can access. 'We are seeing people fall through the cracks already that have lost their jobs and have not worked with services before and have already left their accommodation,' she said. 'We've seen a lot of people sleeping in their cars and sleeping rough that have never done that before.' What is homelessness? People who sleep rough on the streets make up only seven per cent of homeless people in Australia. Families and individuals who stay in crisis accommodation are also counted as they do not have a home to go to. Some are forced to 'couch surf' with family and friends while sleeping in their car or spending nights in cheap hotels to get by. While others live in crowded homes with poor living standards such as boarding houses Source: Mission Australia Advertisement Action on getting homeless people off the streets and reduce their likelihood of both contracting and spreading coronavirus had largely been done at the state level. South Australia and Victoria moved quickly to put homeless people in hotels left empty by a decimated tourism industry. Queensland followed, granting $24.7 million to charities to help get people off the streets, while NSW offered up $34 million. Western Australia was slower to respond, but in Perth the hotels themselves offered up rooms and gave rough sleepers the VIP experience. Empty city streets have left homeless people anxious of being randomly attacked as many continue to sleep rough. Pictured is Sydney's CBD Daily Mail Australia spoke to several rough sleepers across the Sydney's CBD to get a sense of how the situation had changed on the streets since the lockdown began. Jeff has been homeless on and off for the past two years and said - despite government efforts to halt rental evictions - he had noticed a wave of people moving onto the streets. 'You see a lot more people on the streets since it happened, especially a lot more women,' he said. 'There are a lot of people who you would not normally pick as homeless, they dress well and often have makeup on but then you see them start digging through bins.' Sitting in Wynyard Park, surrounded by swarms of rats, the former supermarket worker explained he wasn't fearful of catching the virus as he did his best to practice social distancing and stay healthy. Jeff, a rough sleeper in Sydney's CBD, said since the outbreak began he has seen a new wave of people ending up on the streets Jeff said he had not yet taken up the offer for 28 days of free accommodation in a hotel as he wanted to save that up for the winter months, but would likely go in soon as the nights began to turn cold. 'All the hotels are empty and going broke, so they are putting people up in hotels,' he said. 'Before charities would bundle you into these rooms with crazy people that would be hitting themselves on the head with saucepans - it was a bit much.' Jeff said he, like most street people, initially became homeless due to debts and had to forego rent to pay back bills. 'Most people don't end up homeless because of drugs and alcohol - that usually comes later,' he said. Nichole Yade is the general manager at Lou's Place, a women's shelter in King's Cross that had been operating for over 20 years. Ms Yade said the lockdown, and long periods trapped inside the home, had caused a significant increase in the number of women seeking shelter from domestic violence. 'We have seen more families doing it tough and relationships that may have been a bit wobbly - with additional financial strain and social distancing - have been pushed even more.' She said fear surrounding the disease has allowed controlling and abusive partners to tighten their grip even more. 'I've talked to a woman where a husband wouldn't let her leave the house because he was worried about their toddler getting coronavirus,' she said. 'He is controlling all her finances, all her physical movements and yesterday there was an escalation to physical violence because she was feeling trapped at home and wanted to take the young child to see the doctor.' Ms Yade said mothers had much more difficulty leaving an abusive partner as they wanted to protect their children. Lou's Place receives no government funding and relies on charitable donations, but with money tight due to the economic downturn caused by the lockdown, the shelter finds it's very existence under threat when it is needed most. 'As an economic crisis hits the community is the community going to be able to keep giving money to keep services like ours going?' Ms Yade said. - Wirecard join forces with Visa in the Middle East to deliver fast to market digitized solutions ASCHHEIM, Germany and DUBAI, U.A.E, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Wirecard, the global innovation leader for digital financial technology, today announced they have signed an agreement to be the preferred payment processor for Visa to bolster the Visa Fintech Fast Track Program in the Middle East region. The Visa Fintech Fast Track Program enables fintech partners to develop new commerce experiences leveraging the reach, capabilities, and security that VisaNet, the company's global payment network, offers. As a strategic partner of Visa, Wirecard will provide its financial technology and payment solutions, as well as its in-depth market expertise aimed at accelerating growth and innovation within the thriving payment and fintech community in the region. Together, Wirecard and Visa will additionally cooperate to develop programs aimed at accelerating growth and innovation for their respective businesses. Wirecard now has the ability to access Visa's growing network that is part of the Visa Fintech Fast Track Program and provide guidance to fintechs in helping them get up and running in the most efficient way possible. "We are excited to be a part of the Visa Fintech Fast Track Program and together, we can continue delivering financial technology innovations to the key Middle East market," commented Humza Chishti, Regional Manager for Wirecard in the Middle East. "We recognize that fintechs are nimble and fast and expect the same of any partner. The Visa Fintech Fast Track Program meets fintechs at the speed they work, streamlining access to Visa assets and capabilities, both globally and across the region. This partnership with Wirecard will allow us to continue to enhance the value of fintechs being part of our network and ensure that we work together on innovative new commerce experiences that can be delivered at scale and with pace," added Otto Williams, Vice President, Strategic Partnerships, Fintech and Ventures, CEMEA at Visa. Learn more about Visa's Fintech Fast Track program at https://Partner.Visa.com. About Wirecard: Wirecard (GER: WDI) is one of the world's fastest growing digital platforms in the area of financial commerce. We provide both business customers and consumers with a constantly expanding ecosystem of real-time value-added services built around innovative digital payments by using an integrated B2B2C approach. This ecosystem concentrates on the areas payment and risk, retail and transaction banking, loyalty and couponing, data analytics and conversion rate enhancement in all sales channels (online, mobile, POS). Wirecard operates regulated financial institutions in several key markets and holds issuing and acquiring licenses from all major payment and card networks. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (DAX and TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060). Find out more at www.wirecard.com. About Visa Inc.: Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world's leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network - enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company's relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit www.visamiddleeast.com, Visa MENA Blog or follow us on Twitter @Visamiddleeast. Wirecard media contact: Wirecard AG Jana Tilz Tel.: +49(0)89-4424-1363 Email: jana.tilz@wirecard.com A trio of far-right, pro-gun provocateurs is behind some of the largest Facebook groups calling for anti-quarantine protests across the country, offering the latest illustration that some seemingly organic demonstrations are being engineered by a network of conservative activists. The Facebook groups target Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, and they appear to be the work of Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights, and his siblings Christopher and Aaron. By Sunday, the groups had more than 200,000 members combined, and they continued to expand quickly, days after President Donald Trump endorsed such protests by suggesting citizens should "liberate" their states. The online activity implies that opposition to the restrictions is more widespread than polling suggests. Nearly 70% of Republicans said they supported a national stay-home order, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll. Ninety-five percent of Democrats backed such a measure in the survey. The Facebook groups have become digital hubs for the same sort of misinformation spouted in recent days at state capitols - from comparing the virus to the flu to questioning the intentions of scientists working on a vaccine. Public health experts say stay-home orders are necessary to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 35,000 people in the United States. The Trump administration last week outlined three phases for states to reopen safely - guidelines contradicted by the president when he urged citizens to rise up against the rules that heed the recommendations of his own public-health advisers. "If people feel that way, you're allowed to protest," Trump said Sunday. "Some governors have gone too far, some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate." Facebook said Sunday that it did not plan to take action to remove the groups or events, partly because states have not outlawed them. Organizers also have called for "drive-in" protests, in keeping with recommendations that people keep a short distance between one another. In other cases, involving protests planned for states such as New Jersey and California, the company has removed that content, Facebook said. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook," said Andy Stone, a spokesman for the company. None of the Dorr brothers responded to calls and emails Sunday. Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine was created Wednesday by Ben Dorr. His brother Christopher is the creator of Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine, as well as Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine. A third brother, Aaron, is the creator of New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine. The online coordination offered additional clues about how the protest activity is spreading nationwide, capturing the imagination of the president and of Fox News even though it represents the views of a small minority of Americans. Trump himself tied the protests to gun rights - a major cause for the Dorr brothers - in telling Virginians that the Second Amendment was "under siege" as he urged them to "liberate" the state. On the ground, pro-Trump figures - including some who act as surrogates for his campaign - as well as groups affiliated with prominent conservative donors have helped organize and promote the demonstrations. Some of the most vehement protest activity, in Michigan, has been organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition. Its founders are a Republican state lawmaker and his wife, Meshawn Maddock, who sits on the Trump campaign's advisory board and is a prominent figure in the Women for Trump coalition. Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News host and avid Trump supporter, interviewed Maddock on her show Saturday, telling her, "Keep going. Thank you." Also promoting the demonstrations - including spending several hundred dollars to advertise the event on Facebook - was the Michigan Freedom Fund, which is headed by Greg McNeilly, a longtime adviser to the DeVos family. He served as campaign manager for Dick DeVos, the husband of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, when he ran unsuccessfully for governor of Michigan in 2006. The state's Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, who has become a target for Trump and his conservative allies, last week criticized the nonprofit, noting that it was "funded in large part by the DeVos family," and saying it was "really inappropriate for a sitting member of the United States president's Cabinet to be waging political attacks on any governor, but obviously, on me here at home." McNeilly said the funds used to promote the event were "not dedicated program funds" but instead came from "our grass-roots fundraising efforts," and so had "nothing to do with any DeVos work." The Dorr brothers manage a slew of pro-gun groups across a wide range of states, from Iowa to Minnesota to New York, and seek primarily to discredit organizations such as the National Rifle Association as being too compromising on gun safety. Minnesota Gun Rights, for which Ben Dorr serves as political director, describes itself as the state's "no-compromise gun rights organization." In numerous states, they have bypassed rules requiring them to register as lobbyists by arguing that they are instead involved in "pro-gun grassroots mobilization," as "Ohio Gun Owners," whose board Chris Dorr directs, describes its work. A now-retired state legislator in Iowa, who in 2017 sought to close a loophole allowing the brothers to skirt lobbying rules, said he was not surprised that the Dorr brothers were involved in fomenting resistance to the public health precautions. "The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel," said the former state legislator, Republican Clel Baudler. Nearly 97,000 people had joined Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine by Sunday afternoon, a Facebook group whose posts are visible only to members that said Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has been on a "power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses" and "forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!" In the group, some members speculated that Evers closed most state businesses and shuttered schools to appease pharmaceutical giants - not because of data showing that the novel coronavirus is highly contagious and deadly, infecting more than 4,300 in the state and killing 220. The group, along with Ben Dorr, created an event on Facebook for an April 24 "drive-in rally" at the Capitol that has attracted hundreds of pledged participants. They also seek to steer visitors to a website for the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition, where people can enter their names, email addresses and other contact information and share their views with the state's governor. In doing so, they encourage visitors who are not "already a member of the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition" to "join us." A page asking users to join the Minnesota group offered several rates for membership, from $35 to $1,000. Another private Facebook group focused on Pennsylvania, gaining more than 63,000 members by Sunday. Many questioned the wisdom of wearing masks publicly, contrary to recommendations by state and federal officials, and linked to a similar website catering to Pennsylvania gun owners. Still another targeting New York had become a forum for about 23,000 members to question whether the coronavirus is really that bad - despite the fact New York City has become the epicenter of the U.S. outbreak. "While seizing power at a breathtaking pace," the group's description began, "Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral!" Dozens of other Facebook pages, groups and events similarly promote protests targeting stay-home orders in state capitals nationwide. Permitting some of this content - including coordinated efforts on the part of conservative activists - marks a break with Facebook's strict new rules governing content about the pandemic. Since the outbreak began, the tech giant has barred a wide array of false or misleading posts, photos and videos, including those promoting cures that do not exist. The company also has deployed its fact checkers to debunk dangerous myths about the pandemic and its origins, and it has warned people about their interactions with online misinformation. Guiding Facebook's approach - more aggressive than it typically takes even against known falsehoods - is a belief that it must stop the spread of dangerous mistruths on the platform amid a global health crisis. Many governors, however, have decried protests to open up the country as precisely that - potentially harmful to the people who attend the demonstrations and to the many more who are following guidelines and staying at home. "I don't think it's helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the president's own policy," Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, said this weekend. "It just doesn't make any sense." Representatives for the governors of New York, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania did not respond to requests for comment. A spokeswoman for Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said he has "acknowledged that the protesters have a First Amendment right to free speech," adding: "He just asks that they practice social distancing." Alex Stamos, director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and Facebook's former chief security officer, said the groups constitute a form of domestic disinformation because they were being operated by users with financial and political motivations to sway public debate in unauthentic ways. He was especially alarmed by the possibility that the group's creators were deriving personal benefit by stoking online anger about the public health measures. "It's always scams that drive the most ingenuity," Stamos said. Zachary Elwood, a software engineer in Portland, Oregon, who blogs about disinformation and tracked some of the activity by the Dorr brothers, urged Facebook to crack down on small clusters of users coordinating seemingly disparate activity, especially when the activity involved harmful untruths. "It's understandable that people are upset about the difficult situation we're in, but they're clearly being riled up by people with an obvious anti-government agenda," Elwood said. "Facebook shouldn't make it so easy to do that." - - - The Washington Post's Elizabeth Dwoskin contributed from San Francisco. Gulf State Park Pier is one of the few publicly-owned attractions along the 32-mile strip of beaches in Baldwin County that has remained opened during the coronavirus pandemic. But by next month, when the beaches are expected to reopen, the massive fishing pier will close. The piers closing begins on May 11 and runs to mid-July to allow for a $2.4 million renovation project funded through the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment fund. The money, which was authorized last year by an Alabama Trustee Implementation Group consisting of state and federal conservation and environmental agencies -- is tied to restoring lost recreational activities from the oil rig explosion that occurred exactly 10 years ago today. Visiting Gulf State Park Pier is almost a rite of passage for people who come to Gulf Shores, said Chris Blankenship, commissioner of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Because it is such an important part of our park, we are absolutely dedicated to maintaining the pier and ensuring it is safe and accessible to our many thousands of guests. The renovation project includes replacing the structures wooden decking and railings, installing new turtle-friendly lighting, building a new observation decide and refurbishing office, bathroom, concession and bait shop areas. The new observation deck will be a 50-by-18-foot observation deck elevated by 10 feet, 6 inches above the existing octagon at the south end of the pier. The new deck will add bout 850 square feet of additional viewing space for pier visitors and will include an elevator to the top that will be handicap accessible. The new decking is expected to hold up for decades against saltwater, wind and rain exposure. Closing the pier will likely come after a decision is made about reopening the beaches, which were closed on March 20 by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey through a state of emergency order. A task forces recommendation, issued last week by Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth, calls on Ivey and State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris, to reopen the beaches for recreational purposes on May 1. Last months beach closures occurred following concerns about large groups of Spring Break visitors congregating on the beaches. Also closed were restaurants and hotels, leaving Beach Boulevard nearly desolate in recent weeks. The road is often inundated with spring travelers who visit Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Double red flags typically flown during hurricanes to warn people that the Gulf waters are closed have been flying throughout coastal Alabama since Iveys order. But the state has kept the hiking and bike trails open in Gulf State Park, a 6,500-acre state-owned coastal park sandwiched in between Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. The state-owned Meyer Park has also been open for camping. Blankenship, in an interview with AL.com last month, said the state restricted crowd sizes to 200 on the pier at one time. He also said that state employees are monitoring social distancing to ensure that anglers were separated by at least 6 feet apart. But Blankenship also said that it was difficult to monitor. At least one fisherman, who visited the pier late last month, decided to fishing on the far northern end of the pier to avoid the large crowds that had gathered on other sections of it. Im trying to stay away, said Tony Nguyen, a Birmingham resident who drove to Gulf Shores to fish. The pier is one of the longest on the Gulf Coast, measuring 20-feet wide and providing 2,448 feet of fishing space. Other public piers have closed around the U.S. since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Notably, the Fairhope Pier was ordered closed on March 22, following a TV media report about large gatherings on it after Ivey had issued her beach closing order. Fairhope Mayor Karin Wilson, in a statement last month, said the Fairhope Pier was initially left open as a way to give people a healthy option to get fresh air and exercise while also maintaining their distance. She said the negative publicity of keeping the pier open, could have exposed the city to liability. The Stow, Massachusetts police chief has been relieved of his duties after a video was posted online prompting Massachusetts State Police investigators to meet with him. Sources told MassLive that investigators believe it was Police Chief Ralph Marino on the video, which was posted by Predator Poachers Massachusetts. The group states it catches predators on dating sites. The group has no affiliation with law enforcement. TB Daily News reports the group has caught 30 people allegedly trying to solicit sex with minors. NBC10 Boston reports the chief met state police over the weekend. Marino, according to the statement released by the town, placed himself on indefinite administrative leave after the meeting. Sgt. Darren Thraen is now listed at the departments acting police chief, according to the departments website. The town said in the statement to NBC10 Boston that officials will cooperate in "any investigation of Chief Marino or any other matters. There is no reason to believe that the activities being investigated involve or concern the operations of the Stow Police Department," the statement said. The statement did not discuss the video. In a video posted to the groups YouTube page, a man calls himself an activist while confronting Marino. The video shows Marino leaving in what appears to be a police-issued vehicle. The group claims Marino tried to solicit a minor. The man from the Predator Poachers Massachusetts group said in the video he poses as a young boy online in order to catch predators. A chat log shown by the group in the video shows a sexual discussion between a member of the group and another person. That person, who is allegedly to be Marino, sends photographs. The photographs shown in the video appear to be Marino. TB Daily News and the chat log show the man chatting with the group was trying to meet a 14-year-old boy. A member of the group confronts the man, who appears to be Marino. The meeting appears to have happened over the past couple of days in Worcester County. The Worcester District Attorneys Office said it had no comment or statement. Marino was in front of cameras on Tuesday when police were searching for a 2-year-old girl who went missing. The girl was found. It appears the Facebook page for the Stow, Massachusetts Police Department has now been taken down. Counsel Financial is pleased to announce the addition of Todd Kushman to the Company's management team. Mr. Kushman joins Counsel Financial as Managing Director of Strategic Initiatives & Financial Operations, bringing with him over 20 years of experience in financial operations, risk management, raising equity capital and debt financing. At Counsel Financial, Mr. Kushman will focus on optimizing Counsel Financials capital structure by overseeing internal financial operations and will be responsible for building relationships with current and prospective strategic partners and clients. Prior to joining Counsel Financial, Mr. Kushman was a principal at Victory Park Capital where he was responsible for the firm's debt capital raising efforts and Risk Management. Prior to Victory Park Capital, Mr. Kushman co-founded Torrey Pointe Capital, a macro hedge fund, where he managed all capital raising and non-trading functions. Mr. Kushman also held the position of Managing Director at Cerberus Capital Management, where he executed strategic financings. He also served as a board member and led the investment committee of Scottish Re Group Limited. Prior to Cerberus Capital, Mr. Kushman was Chief Operating Officer for Ally Financials Capital Markets & Investments division. He served as Allys Head of Market, Counterparty and Mortgage Credit Risks. Prior to Ally, Mr. Kushman built the Structured Product Derivatives trading desk at Bear Stearns, and its successor, J.P. Morgan. Mr. Kushman received a B.S.B.A in Accounting from The Ohio State University and a MBA in Finance & Media Management from Fordham University. In addition, he is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive). Counsel Financial continues to grow amidst the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. It remains a stable source of capital for contingent-fee law firms and its team is committed to assisting plaintiffs attorneys throughout this unprecedented time and beyond. The Company emphasizes the importance of building long-term strategies in order to maintain firm operations and advocate strongly for clients in a rapidly changing environment. Counsel Financial has provided working capital exclusively to the plaintiffs bar for two decades and is exclusively endorsed by the American Association for Justice and The National Trial Lawyers. The company continues to adjust its financial products to fit the changing legal landscape and build upon its experienced team of attorneys and professionals, in order to best serve its clients. With added flexibility, Counsel Financial can now meet any law firm need, with funding from $500,000 to $50 million+. (Adds details, reaction of gold miners' lobby group) MOSCOW, April 20 (Reuters) - Russia will start granting perpetual licences for miners to export gold instead of one-off rights, a decree showed on Monday, to support them in shipping metal overseas independently as demand in its regular trade chain is hit by the coronavirus. Russian commercial banks, usually the main gold buyers from miners, have found it more difficult to export gold as the virus outbreak has grounded passenger flights. "We have spent over a year on this process and we are happy that gold miners will now be entitled to export the metal under general licences," Sergei Kashuba, the head of Russia's Gold Industrialists' Union, a non-government producers' lobby group, told Reuters. Russian banks have said that domestic demand for gold has also been curbed by the central bank's decision at the start of the month to suspend its gold purchases from banks. "We believe that, while the Central Bank has suspended purchases of gold in the domestic market, the presence of general licences will allow gold producers to have greater control over where to sell the metal," Kashuba added. An immediate jump in gold exports by gold miners is unlikely, however, as it will take several month to tune up the process. Miners need to find buyers abroad and decide how much precious metal they can offer to them, Kashuba said. Russian Polyus , Polymetal , Petropavlovsk , GV Gold, Nord Gold and Canada's Kinross are among the top miners of gold in Russia, the world's third-largest producer behind China and Australia. "This step equalizes us in rights with local commercial banks and further improves market infrastructure, which is supportive in an environment of elevated demand for gold on global markets," Polyus, the largest gold miner in Russia, told Reuters. It said it was now in talks with several potential buyers abroad and would decide to export the bullion if those buyers offered a better net-back price, which includes delivery costs, than Russian commercial banks at home. (Reporting by Polina Devitt and Darya Korsunskaya; Editing by Edmund Blair and Alex Richardson) Louisiana registered 595 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, according to the Louisiana Department of Health, and 32 additional deaths. The state's total cases rose to 24,523 and associated deaths climbed to 1,328. The death toll continued a two-day slowing trend with 61 deaths attributed to the virus since Sunday. The previous five days had averaged more than 76 deaths per day, with the peak coming on April 14 with 129 deaths reported Monday's data release included new information from the state on the location of diagnosed coronavirus cases, which can now be pared down to specific census tracts throughout Louisiana. Previously Louisiana had identified such cases by parish. Each of Louisiana's 64 parishes has at least one diagnosed case of coronavirus. Orleans and Jefferson parishes continue the be the largest hotspots throughout Louisiana with a combined 11,909 cases and 625 deaths. The case total accounts for 48.5% of all cases across the state. Jefferson Parish currently has 387 fewer cases than nearby Orleans Parish, but its case count has been trending upward at a faster rate. Orleans Parish registered 148 new cases and 10 additional deaths on Monday as Jefferson Parish added 169 and four new deaths associated with coronavirus. Louisiana's initial data release did not include an updated total of commercial tests reported, while the total state lab tests reported increased by 57. See our coronavirus tracking map here. MORE DATA BELOW This report will be updated. LOUISIANA CORONAVIRUS NUMBERS AS OF MONDAY (NOON) 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 (numbers from Saturday in parentheses) Diagnosed cases : 24,523 (up 595 from 23,928) : 24,523 (up 595 from 23,928) Known coronavirus-related deaths : 1,328 (up 32 from 1,296) : 1,328 (up 32 from 1,296) Hospitalized coronavirus patients : 1,794 (up 46 from 1,748) : 1,794 (up 46 from 1,748) Hospitalized coronavirus patients on ventilators : 332 (down 17 from 349) : 332 (down 17 from 349) Parishes with diagnosed cases : 64 of 64 : 64 of 64 Total state tests completed : 6,482 (up 57 from 6,425) : 6,482 (up 57 from 6,425) Total commercial tests reported: 135,079 (No change) CASES/DEATHS ACROSS NEW ORLEANS METRO AREA Monday update Orleans : 6,148/339 (up 148/10 from 6,000/329) : 6,148/339 (up 148/10 from 6,000/329) Jefferson : 5,761/286 (up 169/4 from 5,592/282) : 5,761/286 (up 169/4 from 5,592/282) St. Tammany : 1,057/73 (up 46/2 from 1,011/71) : 1,057/73 (up 46/2 from 1,011/71) St. John the Baptist : 669/53 (up 27/0 from 642/53) : 669/53 (up 27/0 from 642/53) St. Bernard : 423/12 (up 12/0 from 411/12) : 423/12 (up 12/0 from 411/12) St. Charles : 508/28 (up 20/0 from 488/28) : 508/28 (up 20/0 from 488/28) Lafourche : 573/27 (up 45/2 from 528/25) : 573/27 (up 45/2 from 528/25) St. James : 222/15 (up 4/0 from 218/15) : 222/15 (up 4/0 from 218/15) Terrebonne : 342/21 (up 24/0 from 320/21) : 342/21 (up 24/0 from 320/21) Plaquemines : 164/13 (up 7/2 from 157/11) : 164/13 (up 7/2 from 157/11) Washington: 195/11 (up 4/0from 191/11) Courtesy San Antonio Police Department Police are investigating the death of a woman who was reported missing on San Antonios Northwest Side last week. Roxann Rodriguez Chavez, 56, was found dead in her residence Sunday, police said. She was last seen near the 9000 block of Trendwood on April 12. Chavez suffered from medical conditions and required treatment, officials said. With the alarming rate at which the current pandemic of COVID-19 is spreading, it is of little wonder that governments all over the world have advised against all forms of non-essential travel. This development has affected so many travel plans that have had to be either cancelled or postponed. This article will apply to those in Ireland. For those of us that are affected by this advisory and are in the process of either postponing or cancelling the trips we have planned, we can take advantage of the generous offers the various airlines, hotels, and travel agencies have put up to alleviate the discomfort for the meantime. These companies have gone to great lengths to relax their laws on change and cancellations, appearing to sympathise with affected travellers. However, it is unknown just how long they will do this. It is important to note however that unless your trip was cancelled by the airline or tour company (and it isnt even guaranteed), you shouldnt expect a full refund. The most probable solution you are likely to get is a future travel credit to be used for a later flight or trip. All these being said, it is more important to know how this COVID-19 outbreak is truly affecting your travel and what you can do to make it easier. What Are My Travel Rights? You should get in touch with your travel agent, airline, or tour operator to know if you can reschedule your flight for another time or you need to wait to see if the DFA travel advice will be extended. As with the airlines and travel companies, it is also unknown how long the DFA travel advisories will last but you can always check their website for updates. Where Should You Avoid? The DFA advisories are being regularly updated with all but very essential travels around the world. If your flight ends up being cancelled, do not fret as your airline is expected to offer a refund. They also must return stranded travellers home. The only time this doesnt apply is if the said traveller has received a refund for the return trip. Also, flights are being arranged to bring home those who are struggling to get back from certain places. Apart from the DFA, other agencies in other countries also have their restrictions which must be adhered to. For example, the EU currently has very strict travel restrictions in place also. Is Rebooking An Option? Generally, insurers and airlines are following in the footsteps of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFA) if you are in Ireland, and the Foreign Office Travel Advice if you are in the UK. You need to follow their advice which can be done using either the DFA Travelwise app or by calling their dedicated phone line. Failure to provide a specific DFA warning to back your need to cancel your trip might end up with you not getting a refund and being charged the normal cancellation charges.You should get in touch with your travel agent, airline, or tour operator to know if you can reschedule your flight for another time or you need to wait to see if the DFA travel advice will be extended. As with the airlines and travel companies, it is also unknown how long the DFA travel advisories will last but you can always check their website for updates.The DFA advisories are being regularly updated with all but very essential travels around the world. If your flight ends up being cancelled, do not fret as your airline is expected to offer a refund.They also must return stranded travellers home. The only time this doesnt apply is if the said traveller has received a refund for the return trip. Also, flights are being arranged to bring home those who are struggling to get back from certain places.Apart from the DFA, other agencies in other countries also have their restrictions which must be adhered to. For example, the EU currently has very strict travel restrictions in place also. In the event of cancelling your trip, a variety of flights will offer you the chance to rebook your flight for free. However, often only hotels in places that have been locked down are offering either refunds or the chance to rebook. In a situation where the hotel is open and bookings are non-refundable, you may not be getting anything back. Insurance companies will advise you to first contact your airline or tour company to confirm if you are eligible for a refund or rebooking. Although, even if your tickets are refunded, other costs need to be considered and may be covered by your travel insurance. It is for this reason that the safekeeping of all invoices and receipts cannot be overemphasized to have your claims process go as smoothly as possible. While going through your claims processing, you will come to realize that different insurance companies have different policies as to when you can file for a claim. Some will accept it as early as 28 days before departure while some might wait till just 2 days before should the advisories be changed. Changing Your Mind about Traveling Even Though Your Flight Was Not Cancelled Even if your flight is not cancelled but you have decided against travelling for reasons of safety or some other thing, you could be entitled to a refund or rebooking at a later date. However, it is more probable that you will be offered an alternative like a voucher to be used again. Effects on Insurance Companies PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 18:03:47 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 318 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / TransCanna Holdings Inc., (OTC:TCNAF; CSE:TCAN) a leading California-based cannabis company, building synergistic brands for the California lifestyle through its wholly owned California subsidiaries, today announced that it will be presenting at the Planet MicroCap Showcase 2020 on Wednesday, April 22 at 4:20 PM PT. Chairman of TransCanna, Arni Johannson will be hosting the presentation and answering questions from investors.To access the live presentation, please use the following information:Planet MicroCap Showcase Virtual Investor Conference 2020Date: Wednesday, April 22, 2020Time: 4:20 PM Pacific Time (7:20 PM Eastern Time)Webcast: https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/2059/34394 If you would like to book 1on1 investor meetings with TransCanna, please make sure you are registered for the virtual event here: https://www.planetmicrocapshowcase.com/signup 1on1 meetings will be scheduled and conducted via private, secure video conference through the conference event platform.If you can't make the live presentation, all company presentations "webcasts" will be available directly on the conference event platform on this link under the tab "Schedule": https://www.planetmicrocapshowcase.com/presenting-companies About TransCanna Holdings Inc.TransCanna Holdings Inc., is a California-based, Canadian-listed company building cannabis focused brands for the California lifestyle, through its wholly owned California subsidiaries. With a 196,000 square foot manufacturing and production facility and a solid distribution strategy, the Company is poised to serve the world's largest cannabis market effectively and will expand to all of North America, then scale to full global operations. For further information please visit ourwebsite www.transcanna.com About Planet MicroCap ShowcasePlanet MicroCap Showcase brings together promising companies with well-known and influential microcap, investors, fund managers and newsletter writers for three days of company presentations, one-on-one meetings, and networking.If you would like to attend the Planet MicroCap Showcase, please register here: https://planetmicrocapshowcase.com/signup Contact:Investor Relations:Glenn Little604-349-3011SOURCE: TransCanna Holdings Inc., via Planet MicroCap Showcase Iran Accuses U.S. Of Giving 'False' Account Of Gulf Encounter By RFE/RL April 19, 2020 Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has accused the United States of giving a false account of a recent encounter between the two states' navies in the Persian Gulf, after Washington blamed Iranian vessels for harassing its ships. "We advise Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman, and avoid any adventurism and false stories," the IRGC said in a statement on its official website on April 19. The force warned that any "miscalculation will receive a decisive response." The U.S. Navy had said that 11 vessels from the IRGC made "dangerous and harassing approaches" toward U.S. naval ships in the Gulf on April 15. The U.S. ships were in international waters carrying out exercises at the time of the incidents, according to the U.S. 5th Fleet, which is based in Bahrain. In the IRGC's telling, its forces were on a drill and faced "the unprofessional and provocative actions" of the U.S. ships. Close interactions with Iranian military vessels have occurred in the region in the past, drawing warning shots from U.S. Navy ships when Iranian vessels got too close. Tensions between Iran and the United States increased in January after the United States killed Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike in Iraq. With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-accuses- u-s-of-giving-false-account-of-gulf- encounter/30564479.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Denmark has told companies that they will not be eligible for bailout funds to help them through the coronavirus pandemic if they are registered in tax havens, prompting calls for other countries, including the UK, to attach similar strings to their own financial support packages. The Danish government also said companies that access government support must not use profits to buy back shares or pay dividends to shareholders in 2020 or 2021. Earlier in April, Poland said its bailout funds would only be available to companies that pay tax in the country. The moves have reignited debate over tax avoidance and come as Sir Richard Branson faced criticism after asking the UK government to bail out Virgin Atlantic with a 500m loan. Sir Richard said in a blog post that he would offer his private Caribbean island as collateral against any money advanced by the government, warning that without help Virgin Atlantic would go bust. Britains seventh-richest person, who has an estimated wealth of 4.7bn, said he has pumped 250m into the airline, which is 51 per cent owned by Virgin Group. Campaigners pointed out that the groups ultimate holding company, which Sir Richard and his family control, is based in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), which does not charge any corporation tax. Sir Richard has not personally paid tax in the UK for the past 14 years. BVI ranks as the worlds number-one corporate tax haven, according to research by the Tax Justice Network. Its also the ninth most secretive jurisdiction in the world when it comes to publishing companies financial information. Sir Richard said Virgin pays all taxes required of it in all jurisdictions where it operates. However, Alex Cobham, chief executive of the Tax Justice Network, said in a tweet that it was impossible to assess the truth of Sir Richards claim because BVI companies provide little or no transparency. Transport companies, some of which have been found in the past to have taken advantage of tax avoidance measures, were granted a 400m bailout earlier this month after plummeting passenger numbers threatened their survival. How might a UK tax avoidance requirement work? Paul Monaghan, chief executive of Fair Tax Mark, an accreditation organisation that allows companies to demonstrate they make a fair contribution, said Denmarks approach should be praised but it also has some limitations that the UK should try to avoid. The Danish system will almost certainly have to use the EUs corporate tax avoidance blacklist, which does not include some of the worst-offending countries. The list was strengthened last year with the addition of the Cayman Islands, a key financial secrecy jurisdiction, but it is generally considered weak. EU nations, including the Netherlands, Ireland, and Luxembourg, which facilitate billions of euros of tax avoidance every year, are not on it, nor are Switzerland or most of the overseas territories and crown dependencies that make up the UKs network of tax havens, including BVI, Jersey and Guernsey. The Danes are doing as much as they can within EU state aid law, said Mr Monaghan. If you go down the route of excluding companies registered in tax havens you end up having to use the EUs blacklist. Instead, Fair Tax Mark is proposing that any company that accepts bailouts must sign up to a set of binding fair tax principles. This would work in a similar way to the conditions attached when a company takes out a loan from a bank. First, they would have to publish a tax policy that commits them to no artificial use of tax havens. Any bailed-out company would no longer be able to use accounting manoeuvres to move profits from where they are actually made to a low-tax jurisdiction such as Bermuda or the British Virgin islands. The policy would be audited annually and signed off by a named director who is responsible for compliance. Second, companies would have to commit to full country by country reporting of profits and taxes. This is the long-standing ask of the tax justice movement because we dont really know if companies are paying a fair amount in each country without it, said Monaghan. Take the example of Google, which books about 1.6bn of revenue in the UK but we think it should be more like 6bn. I got my Microsoft Office subscription renewal through recently. It came from Ireland again, not from the UK even though Microsoft says it books profits where the activity is. Furlough scheme Under Fair Tax Marks plan, companies that use the furlough scheme to claim refunds from the government for employees wages would not have to sign up. It would be specifically targeted at firms calling for a direct bailout, as Virgin Atlantic is. Unlike the Danish plan it would be solely focused on future conduct. Mr Monaghan is hopeful that the current crisis can become a turning point for tax justice. To the man and woman in the street this isnt that radical, what were asking for. Polling by Fair Tax Mark shows it is popular. The public mood, the narrative right now about everyone pitching in and expecting fairness, means it is very conducive for some breakthroughs on tax. We are potentially standing on the precipice of some quite big gains. ATHENS, Greece, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TOP Ships Inc. (the Company), an international owner and operator of modern, fuel efficient "ECO" tanker vessels, announced today that its 50% subsidiary, Eco Nine Pte., concluded the previously announced sale of its 100% owned vessel, M/T Palm Springs, and that the cash release to the Company amounts to $9.7 million. About TOP Ships Inc. TOP Ships Inc. is an international ship-owning company. For more information about TOP Ships Inc., visit its website: www.topships.org. 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. 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, our management's examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. Contacts: Alexandros Tsirikos Chief Financial Officer TOP Ships Inc. Tel: +30 210 812 8107 Email: atsirikos@topships.org The Berejiklian government will recall NSW Parliament on May 11 to pass critical rental relief legislation to help residential and commercial tenants and landlords hit by the coronavirus crisis. A scaled-back Parliament will sit to debate new measures to help renters who have lost at least 25 per cent of their income or businesses with revenue down at least 30 per cent. NSW Parliament needs to be recalled to debate rent relief measures. Credit:Glen McCurtayne The NSW government says it will provide $440 million in rent relief through land tax waivers or rebates to be split evenly between business and residential landlords. But Labor has described the measures as "woefully inadequate" and says the changes will mean "tens of thousands of landlords and tenants" will miss out on any assistance. The construction of a 100-bed Isolation and Treatment facility has begun as part of a rapid response to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and other infectious diseases in the country. The $3.5-million (about GH19.83 million) facility, which is expected to be completed in six weeks, will be the first-ever Specialist Infectious Disease Centre to be built in the country. It will have a medical staff block, a case management centre and an Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The project is being funded by the COVID-19 Private Sector Fund and will be located at the Ga East Municipal Hospital, Kwabenya, where the countrys largest National COVID-19 Treatment Centre is sited. The permanent structure is also meant to further strengthen and enhance the countrys ability to deal with the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic which is fast hitting Africa. The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, joined Trustees of the Private Sector Fund and other stakeholders of the project through a remote online connection from the Jubilee House to cut the sod for the construction of the project to start. Presidents gratitude A release from the funds secretariat quoted the President as saying: Citizens must stand out to support government in times of a national crisis and the COVID-19 Private Sector Fund has shown a clear example by bringing different professionals together within the shortest time possible to execute this project, adding that, for the Private Sector Fund to assist in this fight is an excellent initiative and tremendous demonstration of their commitment to the welfare of this country. The President said the National COVID-19 Trust Fund set up by government was up and running and called on the Trustees of the Private Sector Fund to liaise with the national fund and share ideas on how to effectively deploy the money that had come into the public fund. The President thanked the Private Sector Fund for the project and assured them of his full support, saying: Your contribution to Ghanas health sector will not be forgotten. As a strong advocate of the private sector, you have indeed vindicated my position and made this initiative a permanent feature of the private sector in Ghana. Other cities to benefit For his part, the Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the fund and Chairman of Fidelity Bank, Mr Edward Effah, said: The Fund will build similar facilities in Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale to deal with other diseases such as Meningitis, SARS and Ebola aside from coronavirus. He said the trustees were counting on the public to contribute towards the fund since we have put in place adequate measures to ensure maximum transparency and accountability. Mr Effah said they had appointed Stanlib Ghana Ltd as the Fund Administrator, Fidelity Bank and Ecobank are serving as the Fund Custodians, with Ernst & Young acting as the Fund Auditors. Brief about Fund The Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Fund and Chairman of Tropical Cable and Conductor, Mr Tony Oteng-Gyasi, said: The Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund was established by 10 private businessmen and women to raise GH100 million to complement governments efforts to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country. 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. Featured Video New Delhi, April 20 : Google has released a much-awaited Chrome update, but it also warned around 2 billion users of the browser about a security flaw across Windows, Mac and Linux. "The stable channel has been updated to 81.0.4044.113 for Windows, Mac, and Linux, which will roll out over the coming days/weeks," Google said in a blog post last week. "This update includes 1 security fix," it added. As Paul Ducklin, Principal Research Scientist at cybersecurity firm Sophos pointed out in a blog post, "the bug itself is still a secret" and it is a matter of concern that Google advises that the new version "will roll out over the coming days/weeks." This is because the bug is critical enough to imply that it is exploitable and that exploiting it could let a crook implant malware on your computer, Ducklin said. Google made a list of all changes in the update for people to see and urged people to alert it if they find any new issue. "The community help forum is also a great place to reach out for help or learn about common issues," Google said. "Access to bug details and links may be kept restricted until a majority of users are updated with a fix. We will also retain restrictions if the bug exists in a third party library that other projects similarly depend on, but haven't yet fixed," it added. A woman in an emotional video appealed to authorities in Delhi to take proper care of her husband who tested positive for coronavirus and was taken for treatment in LNJP hospital. Sweta Gupta, in a video, claimed that her husband was not being attended to even though he had high fever. Springing into action, AAP MLA Dilip Pandey said he got in touch with the doctors at LNJP Hospital and asked them to address this matter with urgency. In a video posted on Twitter, the patient's wife Sweta Gupta narrated how her husband tested positive on April 16 and was taken to LNJP hospital where he was still waiting for treatment. Pandey said he received a call from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who asked him to look into the matter. "A team of doctors attended Arvindji (Gupta's husband). I have also conveyed to Sweta ji that her husband is being well taken care of," Pandey said in a video message. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Top business figures from across industry should be brought into the top of Government to work alongside ministers to focus the UK's 'collective firepower' on beating coronavirus, Tony Blair said today. The former Labour prime minister said that the Government needed a complete overhaul of the way it works in order to be in a position to lift the lockdown that is having a catastrophic impact on the economy. He outlined a plan for 10 'czars' to be appointed to run different aspects of the battle against the pandemic, including increasing the amount of PPE and the creation of a vaccine, amid widespread criticism of the Government and public sector bodies like Public Health England. His idea has echos of the appointment of Lord Beaverbrook, the newspaper magnate who was made a minister by Winston Churchill during the Second World War to galvanise the nation's industrial output. Speaking to Sky News today Mr Blair that coronavirus was 'the most complicated and difficult challenge I have ever seen in politics', and he offered 'constructive advice'. But he added that Boris Johnson's Government had been 'slow' to adapt to the growing threat. His Tony Blair Foundation for Global Change (FGC) today release a document outlining ways to combat Covid-19 and restart the economy. 'This is an extraordinary difficult challenge and in the paper what we suggest is ways the government could be reordered around the central tasks of this, so things like the acquisition of protective equipment, mass testing, tracing,' he said. 'In my view ... in each of these areas, you have got to have the right senior person in charge, a politician and someone probably from the outside. The former Labour prime minister said that the Government needed a complete overhaul of the way it works in order to be in a position to lift the lockdown that is having a catastrophic impact on the economy His idea has echos of the appointment of Lord Beaverbrook, the newspaper magnate who was made a minister by Winston Churchill during the Second World War to galvanise the nation's industrial output 'A lot of these things need private sector not public sector skills and the right expertise in order that in this preparation phase you are doing everything you possibly can so that when you start to ease you have the best chance of getting economic activity going.' The Canadian who came to Britain, built a news empire and galvanised wartime industry to produce the Spitfires needed to defeat Hitler Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, was a Canadian-born businessman and newspaper magnate whose financial and industrial acumen was harnessed by Winston Churchill during the Second World War. After a successful business career in his native land he came to Britain in the years before the First World War. Strong political connections saw him elected a Conservative MP in 1910 and during the Great War he was made a peer as Lord Beaverbrook, becoming responsible for wartime propaganda. In 19016 he bought a controlling share in the Daily Express, which was to provide his powerbase in the coming decades. He built into the best-read newspaper in Britain but in the build-up to the Second World War he was a proponent of appeasement of Hitler. However, once war was declared he swung behind the war effort. He was made minister of aircraft production by Churchill after he became PM in 1940 and made a series of radical changes, upping targets, removing managers of failing plants and ruffling feathers of top brass at the the War Ministry. But the result was a dramatic increase of fighters and bombers when they were most needed. He went on to become minister of supply and minister of war production, but quit in February 1942 after clashing with Ernest Bevin, the minister of labour. He remained in Government for the rest of the war but quit the Conservatives in 1951 and renounced his British citizenship. He died in 1964 aged 85. Advertisement It came as ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, said trusts are being forced into 'hand-to-mouth' workarounds, including washing single-use gowns and restricting stocks to key areas. The NHS Confederation, which represents organisations across healthcare, has also reacted angrily to Government promises of more PPE, saying delays on the shipment from Turkey 'makes a difficult situation worse'. Its chief executive, Niall Dickson, said: 'It would have been better had the Government not made the announcement in the first place' and said staff would need to make their own assessment over whether they felt safe with the PPE currently on offer. Public Health England has also faced criticism over allegations it hampered the development of 'game changing' coronavirus antibody tests by not sharing blood samples from infected patients with private labs. A leaked memo earlier this month claimed private labs in the UK felt hamstrung by PHE's failure to respond to multiple requests asking for blood samples from infected patients. Today the prospects of an early end to the crippling coronavirus lockdown receded as Boris Johnson was understood to be prioritising staving off a second wave of infections. The Prime Minister has told colleagues his 'overriding concern' is to avoid a second peak in the pandemic that would plunge the country back into turmoil. Mr Johnson is still recuperating from the disease at Chequers, but conveyed his views during a two-hour meeting on Friday with foreign secretary Dominic Raab, senior adviser Dominic Cummings, communications director Lee Cain, and cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill. In a round of interviews this morning, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: 'The PM is very concerned about a second peak if we lift the restrictions too soon.' Under the FGC plan, A Sustainable Exit Strategy: Managing Uncertainty, Minimising Harm, a single person would be in charge of each of 10 different priorities: mass testing, supplies of PPE to frontline medics, business liaison, vaccines, schools, the technology sector, tracing those with the disease, shielding the vulnerable, ways to reopen international travel, and communications. The ex-PM said the UK needed to be 'ahead of the curve' as soon as medical and scientific conditions allowed it to emerge from the lockdown into a 'new normal'. He said: 'I cannot see any way out of this lockdown unless you do mass testing. 'To do this in the right combination, at scale, where you may be testing a significant proportion of the population, I can't see how you do that unless you have got a massive logistical and procurement exercise underway. 'That is almost like a government department. I am just suggesting these 10 areas where, if I were back in government today, there would be a senior minister, probably a senior business person alongside them with the right technical advice, doing absolutely nothing other than focusing 100 per cent on that.' He called for mass testing 'including the development of the community force' to help with the process. The ex-PM also said that regarding personal protection equipment (PPE) that 'mask acquisition and production on a vast scale' was 'essential' for the safety of frontline staff. On the development of a vaccine, Mr Blair called for 'utilisation of every means nationally and globally to identify those treatments which can reduce the severity of the disease'. Once new cases fall substantially, the UK could consider easing restrictions by opening schools first. The Blair Foundation also suggested age segmentation with younger people at much lower risk being allowed to return to work sooner. Conference organisers have been hit hard by coronavirus lockdowns, but one answer is to hold events online or even better in virtual reality. VR Education specialises in this type of technology and for the AIM-listed business, this period of enforced homeworking might prove to be a company maker. A month ago, for example, it ran a virtual conference for Taiwanese electronics group HTC. VR Education specialises in virtual reality conferences The Hyve conference is normally an event that delegates attend but as it was due to be held in China, HTC asked VRE if it could host the event virtually. Dave Whelan, VRE's chief executive, says it had over 1,000 people log on at the event through its virtual reality software platform Engage. Speakers and attendees from Europe and the US were able to interact with visitors from China while over 1.1million watched the live streaming of the conference. Since the Hyve event, enquiries since taken off from organisers all over the world says Whelan, with the business having to employ additional business development staff to handle the workload. 'Because of the virus, organisers are assessing how they have done business in the past and asking can we do this online in future,' he says. A key advantage of its Engage VR platform is that it has a very low bandwidth requirement for conversations inside the platform. 'We don't transmit video. What we send is positional data, which is a large text file, and MP3 audio,' says Whelan. That means Engage will work perfectly well in places where bandwidth constraints cannot run a Skype meeting or Zoom video conference. Anyone who has used Zoom and Skype also knows they can get very busy, very quickly as people talk over each other. Engage though uses 3D spatial audio say Whelan, so if you are in a group of 50 people in a virtual room and there is a presentation going on at the front, you can lean over to the person next to you and whisper as if you were sitting next to them. It is a leap forward for virtual events and conferences but VRE is making strides in other areas. The Engage platform was built as an educational tool originally and here, too, business is flying. Last week, it signed a partnership deal with US firm VictoryXR, which will use Engage to provide online science lessons to school children in the US. VictoryXR has learning experiences across 50 different subjects, with teachers able to run live virtual classes through the Engage platform, add additional content and replay the lessons. There are around 2.5million home students in the US, though Whelan expects this number to rise quickly now that people have become more familiar with home online tuition as schools have shut. The partnership with VictoryXR will also expand VRE's services and content globally. Looking to the future: Virtual reality headsets are tumbling in price Games activity, too, has rocketed since the lockdowns came into force and that has translated into big rises in the social usage of VRE's software. A new game Space Shuttle Commander is due to come out shortly on best-selling headset Oculus, and Whelan says Engage is being used a medium to help people keep in touch in the current lockdown situation. He believes the enforced changes of situation for people that will prove a tipping for the VR sector. Up to now the sector has promised much but struggled to deliver, but few doubt that fundamental changes in how people work have taken place recently. The concept is being proven, Whelan says, and going forward, the prospects look bright. Also helping is the fact that VR headsets are tumbling in price and a computer isn't necessary any more as a 5G connection works extremely well. Revenues in 2019 were a 1million and at 7.75p currently VRE is worth 15million, but that might not be the case for much longer if the interest turns into orders. Following the success of the Hyve conference, HTC wants to be become a reseller of VRE's software in China to combine with its hardware, for example. Discussions are underway with other large conglomerates including telecoms companies and hardware businesses and Whelan believes a page has been turned. 'Trading is going well,' says Whelan, adding the last couple of months have been transformative. 'Now one saw this coming. We thought 5G was going to be the push for VR technology, but with the virus causing a lot of people to reassess how they work and communicate, now is the time that this technology is going to flourish.' A U.S. Navy plane P-8 Poseidon takes off from Perth Airport on route to conduct search operations for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 in southern Indian Ocean, near the coast of Western Australia, Saturday, April 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Rob Griffith) Russian Jet Intercepts US Navy Aircraft Over Mediterranean Sea A Russian fighter aircraft approached a U.S. Navy plane over the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday, according to both governments. The U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet described it as another unsafe Russian intercept of a U.S. Navy P-8 in international airspace above the Mediterranean Sea. It said the Russian jet got within 25 feet of the Boeing P-8 Poseidon and put both crews in harms way. We expect nothing less than professional & safe interactions! The 6th Fleet also included a video of the Russian aircraft. BREAKING: Another unsafe #Russian intercept of @USNavy P-8 in international airspace above #Mediterranean Sea! The Russian aircraft got within 25 feet of the P-8, putting both crews in harms way. We expect nothing less than professional & safe interactions!@USEmbRuPress pic.twitter.com/gDdcQQRkOi U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet (@USNavyEurope) April 19, 2020 The unnecessary actions of the Russian SU-35 pilot were inconsistent with good airmanship and international flight rules, seriously jeopardizing the safety of flight of both aircraft, the U.S. Navy said in a longer news release on Monday. While the Russian aircraft was operating in international airspace, this interaction was irresponsible. We expect them to behave within international standards set to ensure safety and to prevent incidents.. The SU-35 jet intercepted the P-8A twice over a period of about 100 minutes, the Navy said. While the first intercept was deemed safe, the second was not, according to the news release. This incident follows the April 15, 2020 interaction over the same waters, where a Russian SU-35 flew inverted within 25 ft. of the U.S. P-8A. In both cases, the U.S. aircraft were operating consistent with international law and did not provoke this Russian activity, the Navy said. An SU-30 plane in a file photo. (Liu Jin/AFP/Getty Images) The Russian military confirmed the intercept, saying the aircraft took off from the Hmeimim airbase in Syria and was on a mission to identify a target approaching Russian facilities in the country. The pilot of the Russian fighter after approach identified the tail number of the aircraft belonging to the US Navy, and took it for escort, the Russian statement said. The aircraft then changed its course, the statement read, CNN reported. The U.S. militarys Space Command said last week the Kremlin also conducted an anti-satellite missile. Gen. John W. Jay Raymond, with the Space Command, said the test provides yet another example that the threats to U.S. and allied space systems are real, serious and growing. Business & Finance, Home & Garden, Politics By Ls Cohen Published: April 20 2020 Long Island Towns are making plans to collect tax payments while encouraging New York State to allow a delay in payments until August. Riverhead Town has already posted that second half property tax payments are still due in May with the disclaimer that to date an extension has not been issued by the NYS Governor. In a step to help its residents, Oyster Bay announced that their eCheck processing vendor agreed to reduce the fee charged for online property tax payments. Any payments made in the next 60 days will be 75 cents instead of the usual $6 since the town offices are not taking in-person payments. Islip and Huntington Towns have also both stated that they are banding with others to voice their concerns and ask for an executive order to delay property tax payments until August. To provide further relief, we have also urged the Governor to issue an Executive Order to extend the tax collection deadline for payment of school taxes for a 30-day period, said Oyster Bay Receiver of Taxes Jeffrey Pravato in a statement. Islip town posted a statement that it joined with other towns to urge Governor Andrew Cuomo to allow residents to pay up to August 1 without penalty and interest for the second half payment only. Numerous residents have contacted our offices inquiring about extending this tax payment date, similar to the extension granted in payment of Federal and State income taxes that has been put in place, said Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter in a statement. Carpenter said belaying payments might help those who are in economic and health distress. As more and more residents lose income during this health and financial crisis, allowing taxpayers additional time to pay their second half taxes can mean the difference between solvency and extreme hardship for so many, she said. As of now, second half taxes will still be due on or before May 31. Towns collect property taxes, but say that they cant issue an order to postpone payments. Association For a Better Long Island and Long Island Builders Institute send a joint letter to Governer Cuomo requesting an extension. Real property tax payment deadline is scheduled for May 10, 2020 in Nassau County and May 31, 2020 in Suffolk County. We are in a state of emergency, where numerous business are required to close and companies are required to reduce their in office workforce by 100%, the letter read. Therefore, impacted residents and businesses will face difficulty paying real property taxes by the May deadlines. The letter dated April 7, called for at least a 21 day extension along with the ability to make partial payments, without penalty, which they said will save businesses, reduce family pressure, and ensure economic development projects move forward. Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci added his voice saying that he requested an executive order from the governor and the county executive in March. In a statement Huntington Town said that residents have asked about an extension. The Town of Huntington cannot take this matter into its own hands without intervention by New York State and Suffolk County, the Town said in its statement. As of Friday, Huntington Town said it did not get an answer to its request. Islip Supervisor Carpenter also expressed her towns inability to do much about the tax deadline without intervention. The Islip Town Board has requested such an executive order to allow our residents this much-needed relief, and hope that our plea is heard, said Carpenter. Six cars on a Union Pacific line train derailed in Emeryville on Sunday afternoon, causing no injuries but temporarily blocking several street crossings. At 1:47 p.m., three empty tank cars and three refrigerated box cars skidded off the tracks in an upright position near Powell and Horton streets, according to Union Pacific spokesman Tim McMahan. Los Angeles, April 20 : Pop icon Lady Gaga was seen cheering for Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan during "One World: Together at Home", which celebrated healthcare workers fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. A video of GaGa rooting for Shah Rukh is doing the round, which seems to be have taken from the "Shallow" hitmakers Instagram story. In the clip, Shah Rukh is seen talking about the pandemic while GaGa is heard hooting. Several Shah Rukh fan clubs have shared the video on social media. GaGa's COVID-19 relief concert "One World: Together at Home" has raised almost $128 million in the US. The two-hour event, which also saw the participation of Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra, featured performances by Gaga, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Lizzo, and Taylor Swift among others, was not planned as a fundraiser but the April 18 show inspired people across America to donate, reports aceshowbiz.com. -- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed Ireland now has the capacity to perform up to 100,000 Covid-19 tests per week due to new equipment sourced in China. New testing kits and reagent sourced from China should allow Ireland to significantly ramp up its testing capacity but it could take a fortnight to coordinate the efforts across the country. Dr Paul OBrien, a regulatory expert on China, told RTEs Today with Sean ORourke, that a coordinated effort with the IDA yielded a significant number of test kits. It has now been flown to Ireland by Aer Lingus. The National Virus Reference Library has completed extensive due diligence on the equipment which is up to spec he said. It is of gold standard quality. The additional testing capacity will give Ireland a better chance at replicating South Koreas model of testing and tracing, he explained. Dr OBrien, whose connections in China were crucial to sourcing the equipment, added that the narrative about PPE quality has been skewed and said that previous issues were more to do with regulatory questions than quality. On the same programme, infectious diseases consultant, Prof Paddy Mallon warned that it would take two weeks to get coordination up to scratch. What we have in place now is the PCR machines and the reagent supply to do literally hundreds of thousands of extractions, he said. "Containment of this infection is key to us getting out of the lockdown safely, if we have testing operating at a high volume, and the reproduction number less than one, then we're in a position to test our way out of this. It's up now to the HSE to coordinate so someone who wakes up on a Monday morning with symptoms can get access to a swab, to process that swab, and to feed back the result within 24 hours. This needs to happen between now and the start of May, said Prof Mallon. The equipment is now being distributed around the country so that testing can be ramped up, said Prof Mallon. Prof Mallon said Ireland encountered the same problems as many other countries in Europe: reagent and extraction kits were running low and many countries were competing for same supplies. "It is one large piece of the jigsaw, he added. Respiratory consultant at the Bon Secours hospital in Cork, Dr Oisin OConnell said this was fantastic for Ireland as a whole. Testing capacity has to be increased to limit the spread of Covid-19, he said. This deal has really helped that. Increased testing and rapid results along with increased tracking and tracing will allow the country to get the economy back up and running earlier, he said. Ireland to be able to perform extra Covid-19 tests thanks to equipment sourced in China By Vivienne Clarke Dr Paul OBrien, a regulatory expert on China, has said that Ireland now has the capacity to perform extra Covid-19 tests thanks to equipment sourced in China. Speaking on RTE radios Today with Sean ORourke show he explained that because of contacts he developed when training in China, along with support from the IDA, the testing equipment was sourced and then flown to Ireland by Aer Lingus. The National Virus Reference Library has completed extensive due diligence on the equipment which is up to spec he said. It is of gold standard quality. Following discussions with Chinese hospitals, including a centre of excellence for infectious diseases, and a telecast facilitated by RTE, the Chinese were very impressed that Ireland was trying to copy some of their strategies, which made the procurement process easier, added Dr OBrien. On the same programme, infectious diseases consultant, Prof Paddy Mallon warned that it would take two weeks to get coordination up to scratch. What we have in place now is the PCR machines and the reagent supply to do literally hundreds of thousands of extractions". "Containment of this infection is key to us getting out of the lockdown safely, if we have testing operating at a high volume, and the reproduction number less than 1, then we're in a position to test our way out of this. It's up now to the HSE to coordinate so someone who wakes up on a Monday morning with symptoms can get access to a swab, to process that swab, and to feed back the result within 24 hours. This needs to happen between now and the start of May, said Prof. Mallon. It was Dr OBriens contacts in China that gave access to these vital supplies, he added. The equipment is now being distributed around the country so that testing can be ramped up, said Prof. Mallon. The ground work is done now, said Dr. OBrien. Respiratory consultant at the Bon Secors hospital in Cork, Dr Oisin OConnell said this was fantastic for Ireland as a whole. Testing capacity has to be increased to limit the spread of Covid-19. This deal has really helped that. Increased testing and rapid results along with increased tracking and tracing will allow the country to get the economy back up and running earlier, he said. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says it is "very positive" that NSW recorded just six new cases of coronavirus in 24 hours, with thousands more people tested in the past week. But two new cases were from the Anglicare Newmarch House, which is now the largest COVID-19 cluster in the state after the Ruby Princess cruise ship. There are 2963 coronavirus cases in NSW. "We want to encourage all of you who have symptoms, especially in those high risk communities, to please come forward and get tested," Ms Berejiklian said. "For a Sunday, those numbers are good and the fact we only had six cases identified is also very positive." Oklahoma City National Memorial At 9:22 a.m. on April 19, 1995, everything changed for Federal Employees Credit Union (FECU) in Oklahoma City. What started as a normal day for those at the credit union within the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building ended in a horrific attack that killed nearly 200 people, including 18 credit union employees and 100 members. Twenty-five years later, Allegiance Credit Union (formerly FECU) stands strong and continues to serve the Oklahoma City community. The story of Allegiances resiliency in the face of adversity is as important today as the nation faces a time of crisis. Looking back 25 years After the attack, Amy Downs, president/CEO, and Terri Talley, business development officer, were buried in rubble 20 feet from each other. Of the credit unions 33 employees, they were two of 15 survivors. The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, has revealed that the state government would establish a task force to replace federal security agencies manning its borders. The governor disclosed this on Monday while signing the Executive Order RVSG-02 No. 3 -2020 at the Government House, Port Harcourt. Also Read: BREAKING: Rivers Govt Releases 22 Exxon Mobil Staff Wike explained that the establishment of a task force to man the borders became necessary because of the likelihood of sabotage from federal security agencies. This decision is coming following the clash between the Rivers Governor, Federal Government of Nigeria and oil companies in the State, which led to the redeployment of the State Commissioner of Police. Crime thriller The Unknown Man, starring Joel Edgerton, will start shooting in and around Adelaide, Australia, as soon as the COVID-19 restrictions ease. The movie, originally announced at Berlin's European Film Market in February, is written and directed by Thomas M Wright, reported Variety. The movie also feature British actor Sean Harris. The story revolves around Henry (Edgerton) and Mark (Harris), who strike up a friendship after meeting on a plane, with Henry unaware that Mark is actually an undercover officer working to convict him for an unsolved murder committed years ago. The film is be produced by See-Saw Films and Anonymous Content. Edgerton is also serving as a co-producer. The project has a major production investment from Screen Australia with support from the South Australian Film Corporation. This is a challenging time for our industry, particularly for crew, but we are gearing up to move straight into production on The Unknown Man', which will be shooting in and around Adelaide, as soon as is practicable, said See-Saw Films' Rachel Gardner. South Australian Minister for Innovation and Skills, David Pisoni, said they aim to give a much needed kickstart to screen production activity in the state. Whilst there is no doubt that the impacts of COVID-19 have created significant challenges for businesses and practitioners in the South Australian screen industry, we are actively investing in the recovery of the sector, looking forward to major projects like this, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The lynching of three men in Palghar district of Maharashtra last week during lockdown triggered a political slugfest and accusations of projecting it with communal overtones on Monday as the state government vowed to bring those behind the mob attack to book. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take action against those giving communal colour to the lynching incident. The state government has already ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on the night of April 16 when three Mumbai residents who were on their way to Surat in Gujarat in a car were lynched by villagers in Palghar district on the suspicion that they were thieves. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh earlier warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. In a video message in Mumbai, Thackeray said he received a call on Monday from Shah who himself said there is no communal angle to the mob lynching incident in Palghar, located adjoining Mumbai. "I have urged him to initiate action against those who are giving a communal twist to the Palghar mob lynching, which is factually incorrect. I also informed him that my government is definitely going to take action against the perpetrators," Thackeray said. Inspector General of Police (CID) Atulchandra Kulkarni will head the probe into the lynching incident, he said. Thackeray said the three men lynched by the mob seemed to be victims of some rumour and there is no communal background to the incident. "As per my information, the seers were on their way to Surat in Gujarat during the lockdown. They were stopped by the Dadra and Nagar Haveli police and sent back to Maharashtra, he said. As they took an internal route passing through Gadchindhali village, they were stopped by locals who suspected them to be a gang of thieves stealing children, the chief minister said, adding police vehicles were also attacked by the mob. "Over 110 people have been arrested so far from Palghar, including five main accused. Two police officials have been suspended for dereliction of duty, he said. Out of the total accused, nine are juvenile and they have been sent to a remand home, Thackeray said. "I have informed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who had called seeking details about the incident," he said. Deshmukh earlier said the attackers and the victims are not from different religions. The deceased were identified by the police as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). Palghar Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh ordered suspension of Kasa police station's assistant inspector Anandrao Kale and sub-inspector Sudhir Katare for alleged dereliction of duty, a police source said. In New Delhi, the Congress accused the BJP of playing on the lynching incident and said the saffron party's attempts at politicising and communalising the issue were shameful. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the incident is extremely unfortunate and his party unequivocally condemns it. "There is no communal or Hindu-Muslim angle to the attack as is being sought to be projected by those, who see an opportunity in every such incident to inflame communal passion. We urge all such persons and groups including political parties and a section of the media to desist from doing so," Surjewala said in a statement. "Tragically, the BJP and its ecosystem as also a section of media are attempting to project the incident with communal overtones. These attempts to politicise are deeply shameful and must be rejected with the contempt they deserve," he said. Surjewala said the Congress has urged Thackeray to ensure an expeditious trial and punishment for the guilty. Earlier in the day, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused the BJP of playing on the Palghar incident. "I think the BJP is playing at a very very disturbing moment in our society's history," Ramesh told journalists at a press conference held online. In Mumbai, the Congress on Monday alleged that majority of the people arrested for the lynching incident district were members of the BJP. State Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant also accused the BJP of playing "communal politics" to derive a political mileage from the incident. The saffron party has refuted the charge of giving communal colour to the mob attack and demanded a probe into the police in the incident. In the wake of the incident, several BJP leaders slammed the Shiv Sena-led coalition government--also comprising the Congress and the NCP--for the "administrative" failure to protect the Hindu seers. BJP leader Pravin Darekar said his party was not communalising the incident and was only speaking about "failure" of the police and the home department. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Malcolm Turnbull has sensationally claimed he was dumped as PM by a cabal of media moguls who conspired with right-wing Liberals in an attempt to deliberately lose the 2019 election - so Tony Abbott could lead the Coalition to victory in 2022. Mr Turnbull said the goal was for the Coalition to suffer in Opposition for three years, paving the way for Mr Abbott to reclaim the leadership in time to win the 2022 election. 'Now, just describing that sounds unhinged, doesn't it?' Mr Turnbull told the ABC's 7.30 on Monday, speaking of his theory. 'But that was Abbott's agenda and as Rupert [Murdoch] acknowledged to me, it had the support of one of his most senior and most influential editorial executives and I think it went a lot further than that. 'So it was crazed and it was part of [radio host] Alan Jones's agenda. I mean, they tried to foment a coup at the end of 2017.' Mr Turnbull himself took the Prime Ministership from Mr Abbott after a successful leadership challenge in September 2015. The former Member for Wentworth told 7.30 several right-wing media power brokers had been in on the supposed conspiracy. Mr Turnbull claimed News Corp executive chairman Rupert Murdoch shopped the plan out to Seven Network majority owner Kerry Stokes. 'Look at what Rupert Murdoch said to Kerry Stokes. ''We've got to get rid of Malcolm ...Three years of Labor wouldn't be so bad'',' Mr Turnbull said. Mr Turnbull said a foreign company, controlled by foreign nationals, conspired to overthrow the Prime Minister of Australia - and were determined to get rid of him because he was a prime minister they 'did not own'. 'The one thing those plutocrats knew, the billionaire proprietors knew, was that I did not belong to them ... They wanted to have, again, a prime minister who they felt they had some control over, they had an ownership of, and they wanted to feel as they had done with Abbott - that they were in charge.' Tony Abbott (left) talking to Malcolm Turnbull in 2009 when they were in opposition together. Mr Abbott was ousted from the Prime Ministership by Mr Turnbull in 2015. Mr Turnbull in turn lost the Prime Ministership in 2018 and immediately resigned his seat In the Coalition, Mr Turnbull blamed right-wing power broker Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton along with Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, Mr Abbott and his supporters for his ouster. As prime minister, Mr Turnbull backed policies unpopular with the right-faction such as same-sex marriage and tackling climate change, but he said this wasn't the reason the media-party cabal had ousted him from power. 'They would have preferred Bill Shorten to be Prime Minister than me. A Liberal Party that they could not control was not a Liberal Party they wanted to have. It was - it is all about raw power, I'm afraid.' Mr Turnbull has been giving interviews to promote his new tell-all book, A Bigger Picture. Malcolm Turnbull (left) in August 2018 when he was still Prime Minister, with party centrist Scott Morrison (right) who was then the Treasurer He told 7.30 that although he knew the party had become very factionalised and 'tribal', that he had tried to work with everyone despite being warned to trust no-one. With everybody telling him not to trust everybody else, the former prime minister said it would have been easy to become lost in a sea of paranoia. 'I was determined to look past that,' he said. The former investment banker said when the 'coup' occurred it was not because he was so unpopular as a leader that the Coalition thought they'd lose the election. Mr Turnbull said his political enemies hatched a plot to remove him from power, let the Coalition lose the 2019 election and suffer in Opposition so Tony Abbott could be returned to power in 2022 as Prime Minister once again 'They overthrew my government and overthrew my prime ministership not because they thought I'd lose an election but because they thought I would win it,' he said. 'Murdoch acknowledges that one of his senior executives was part of the Abbott plan to bring down the government with the goal of sending us into opposition so that Abbott could come back as leader after the election and bring the party back to victory in 2022.' Mr Turnbull, a Liberal moderate, was ousted from power in August 2018 and replaced by Scott Morrison who was seen as a compromise candidate. The Coalition hoped Mr Morrison would be able to end deep party divisions and bring together the party's right wing, angry at the overthrow of Mr Abbott, with the moderate faction. Instead, an embittered Mr Turnbull resigned from Parliament, destroying the Coalition's narrow one-seat majority and leaving his colleagues to rule a minority government until the 2019 election returned them to power with a narrow majority. "We know that providing the opportunity for kids to sing and dance is more critical than ever, and were so grateful for the opportunity to join the Bronx Edulution and pursue equity in access to high-quality music education." ETM Executive Director Penny Swift Education Through Music, a nonprofit that provides music education to 36,000 New York City students, is teaming up with BronxNet, a community media and media education organization serving the Bronx, to provide students with access to music education in their own homes via their cable box. BronxNet is partnering with Bronx educators and administrators on the distance learning initiative Bronx Edulution to broadcast remote learning content on BronxNet channels. The content, presented by Bronx educators, covers a range of subjects geared towards elementary, junior high, and high school students, as well as their families. Programming blocks will feature ETM's original distance learning music education resources and videos as a part of the broadcast. The two-hour, weekday block will reach those students who may not have access to the internet or reliable devices. Education broadcasts begin on Monday, April 20th, from 9 11am and can be viewed on BronxNet channel 68-Optimum and 34-Fios as well as the BronxNet website: http://www.bronxnet.tv, starting April 20, 2020, Content will also be programmed on additional BronxNet channels in the near future. Were thrilled to partner with BronxNet. said ETM Executive Director Penny Swift. We know that providing the opportunity for kids to sing and dance is more critical than ever, and were so grateful for the opportunity to join the Bronx Edulution and pursue equity in access to high-quality music education. "BronxNet is proud to partner with Education Through Music via the Bronx Edulution on BronxNet TV to bring important arts engagement programming to students through television as our communities endure the global crisis," said BronxNet Executive Director Michael Max Knobbe. NYCs Department of Education will also be providing some guidance. Partnering with BronxNet is a super special and unique opportunity to for us to get into the houses of our students, said Bronx Executive Superintendent Meisha Ross Porter in an interview on BronxNet. About Education Through Music Education Through Music was founded in 1991 to promote the integration of music into the curricula of under-resourced schools in order to enhance students academic performance and general development. ETM forms long-term partnerships with elementary and middle schools to develop sustainable, long-term music programs. You can view some of ETMs distance learning resources on their website at http://www.etmonline.org/distancelearning. The ETM model currently serves nearly 36,000 students in New York City, and our model reaches more than 15,000 children through the work of our licensed affiliate organization in Los Angeles and Denver. ETM's comprehensive, sustainable music education network has garnered the support of corporations, public policy makers and foundations, including The Music Man Foundation, CMA Foundation, Steinway & Sons, Booth Ferris Foundation, The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, and DAddario Foundation. For more information, visit us at http://www.ETMonline.org About BronxNet BronxNet is the independent nonprofit organization serving the people of the Bronx with media production training, access to technology, and television channels. BronxNet programs six channels - 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 and 38 on the Verizon Fios system and six channels - 67, 68, 69, 70, 951 and 952 - on the Optimum system in the Bronx. BronxNet's ultra-local programming helps connect the Bronx with the world while our training programs and partnerships are a part of community development through media. For more information visit: http://www.bronxnet.org ### Representative image live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Shares of Gujarat Pipavav Port gained 4 percent intraday on April 20 as APM Terminals ensured smooth operations despite lockdown. The stock, quoting at Rs 56.45, up 2.45 percent on the BSE at 1226 hours IST, has gained almost 19 percent in a month. "APM Terminals Pipavav port (Gujarat Pipavav Port) is running 24X7 due to the concerted efforts of all the stakeholders of APM Terminals Pipavav that has resulted in the smooth functioning of the port ever since the lockdown was announced in March 2020," company said in its release. The port handled over 35 vessels and more than 175 rakes since the lockdown without any delay, it added. The company said the port has created additional yard space and working with extended logistics partners to ensure the smooth flow of goods and help address any emergent supply chain needs. The port continued to take stringent precautionary measures as per various statutory guidelines to ensure the safety of the employees, workforce and the community around, it added. Long-term care connection accounts for high mortality rate in county Chart shows Covid-19 cases and number of deaths in North Carolina counties with at least 100 cases. [HENDERSONVILLE LIGHTNING GRAPHIC] Henderson County has the highest Covid-19 mortality rate among North Carolina counties with at least 100 cases, based on the reported death toll of 12 as of Saturday, primarily because of its older population and the fact that every fatality so far has been associated with a long-term care facility. A review of state- and county-reported data showed that the mortality rate here, at 9.75 percent, was higher than the rates in other counties with at least 100 Covid-19 cases. The Hendersonville Lightning reviewed the state Department of Health and Human Services statistics on positive cases and the number of deaths for all 100 counties. The newspaper focused on counties with at least 100 cases to compare death rates (see chart). (The county's totals climbed to 129 cases and 13 deaths after Sunday's update. Figures in this report are based on totals through Saturday.) Henderson County has been reporting the number of positive cases and Covid-19-related deaths daily since the outbreak started. The number has been going up gradually since the first reported death on April 2. Based on the county's 123 cases and 12 deaths, Henderson County's death rate comes out to 9.75 percent, the highest among the 15 counties with 100 or more cases. Johnston County, with 118 cases and nine deaths, had the second highest fatality rate, at 7.6 percent. Guilford County, with 162 cases and 12 deaths, had the third highest rate, at 7.4 percent. In Rowan County, which has a general hospital and a V.A. Medical Center, the death rate was 5.5 percent. No other county had a death rate higher than 5 percent. Statewide, there are 6,140 laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases and 164 deaths, for a death rate of 2.67 percent. "The mortality rate today for Henderson County is skewed because over half of testing today has been singularly dedicated to populations in long-term care facilities," Steve Smith, Henderson County's public health director, said Sunday in an email response to questions the Lightning submitted. "When our number of cases was at 99, I recall that 70 of those were long-term care facility residents." Smith cited a CDC report on a study of Covid-19 deaths that "estimated a mortality rate of 10 percent to 27 percent for those ages 85 and over, 3 percent to 11 percent for those ages 65 to 84, 1 percent to 3 percent for those ages 55 to 64 and less than 1 percent for those ages 20 to 54." "Our experience would appear to be consistent with these estimates," he said, with a "15.7 percent mortality rate for those 70" patients in long-term care facilities. "All deaths to date have been associated with that setting." A higher mortality rate would be expected because "age ranges in long-term care facilities certainly extend into the 80s and even 90s. The long-term care facility is also not representative of the general population for those age groups with almost everyone having additional underlying health conditions or some degree of compromised immune system. "The other takeaway here," he added, "is that we have not yet experienced a death from the general population." Smith, other county officials and health care providers have emphasized in briefings that the number of elderly people in congregant living facilities gives Henderson County a more vulnerable population than most counties. (The Henderson County Nursing/Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee monitors 38 long-term care facilities that house about 670 residents or patients.) A discrepancy in the state's count of Henderson County's fatalities, at 6, and the total of 12 reported Saturday by the Henderson County Public Health Department is likely just a time-lapse issue, Smith said. "There will always be a lag time between the time we report a Covid-19 death and the time when the state reflects that same death report," Smith said. "The state is reliant on our input into the North Carolina Electronic Disease Surveillance System and a thorough and subsequent review of medical information related to the case. In some limited cases, the State may not recognize a particular submission as a Covid-19 death if there were other contributing factors. That determination also includes a review of the death certificate which might list Covid-19 as a primary cause of death or just a contributing factor. Given the numbers of deaths statewide, that is always going to take more time for the State to review and finalize. Our model for now is that if a confirmed Covid-19 case dies (Henderson County resident), well report it as a death as our best near-term representation of mortality." 23 cases at Cherry Springs The number of Covid-19 cases in the county nearly doubled, to 51, when the health department reported on April 5 that 23 cases had been confirmed at the Cherry Springs Village assisted living center on Clear Creek Road. Responding to a question at a news conference the next day about the high number of cases here 20 more than Buncombe County's total at that point Smith said the county's public health surveillance team had focused on the places where cases were most likely to be found. I know its unnerving for some people to have the higher case count in Henderson County but I think that is true today because weve been looking, Smith said at the time. Weve been going out to find these cases. Honestly, Im concerned about the status of these kinds of facilities statewide. I think theyre very susceptible and of course the people that rely on them for care are very susceptible. The 26th most populous county in the state, Henderson County has the 10th highest number of Covid-19 cases and second highest number of deaths (along with Rowan and Guilford counties) after Mecklenburg County, which has 24. County withholds location, age of Covid fatalities One impediment to more fully understanding the death rate here is the county's decision to withhold information on the location, circumstances, gender and age of the fatalities. The county's Department of Public Health and its two hospitals, Pardee UNC Health and Advent Health, have said that for patient privacy reasons they would not report Covid-19 deaths after the first one, an older patient who lived at Carolina Village, on April 2. Nor are the Public Health Department and the hospitals publicly reporting the number of Covid-19 patients in their facilities. When a retired physician, William Vine, asked Smith in an email how many Covid-19 patients were hospitalized, the public health director said not many. "These have been very small numbers to date (single digits or even just one patient at times)," Smith responded. "(Neither) public health (officials) nor the hospitals anticipate reporting this for a small jurisdiction since it might lead to identification of an individual. That position has been reviewed with the UNC School of Government and the County Attorney." Public reporting on the age, gender, location and circumstances of Covid-19-related deaths varies widely from county to county, the Lightning's review of 15 counties with more than 100 cases found. The Granville-Vance Public Health agency, for instance, reported more detail on Covid-19 deaths than many counties. "A 72-year old male from Vance County died yesterday, April 12," the agency said in a news release on Monday, April 13. "He was hospitalized and had multiple pre-existing health conditions that worsened as a result of COVID-19. In Granville County, the Bureau of Prisons reported four deaths (at the federal prison in Butner) to Granville Vance Public Health today. On April 11, an 81-year-old male died, on April 12, a 57-year-old male and a 78-year-old male died, and on April 13, a 46-year-old male died, all from complications related to COVID-19. All individuals were also hospitalized and experienced underlying health conditions." Cabarrus County's Covid-19 dashboard breaks down the county's cases by race, zip code and four different age groups. Wake County breaks down cases by gender and 12 age groups. Rowan County's website reports positive tests, negative tests, number hospitalized and number recovered and breaks down the total positive cases by race, gender and zip code. Mecklenburg County Public Health announced Friday that it would begin identifying long-term care facilities that report an outbreak of COVID-19, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines as two or more positive cases. The agency listed seven facilities with outbreaks. The state DHHS website reports that Henderson County has outbreaks in three nursing homes and one residential care facility. Henderson County is not identifying long-term care centers with outbreaks, for what Smith described as privacy reasons. Outbreaks that have been made public, he said, were "self-disclosed" by Cherry Springs, which is a residential care facility, and the Brian Center and the Laurels, both nursing homes. "We wont be providing case and death counts by facilities or locations going forward for the same reasons cited above (it could lead to identification of specific individuals)," Smith said in his email response to Dr. Vine. Asked by the Lightning whether he could provide the ages of the 12 Covid-19 fatalities, Smith said: "No, but we do anticipate qualifying future cases and deaths in age ranges in the future so that the public can see the general distribution." * * * * * Links to websites used in this story: NCDHHS chart of congregant care cases. DHHS county by county case totals and death counts. How deadly is the new coronavirus? CDC report on high mortality rate for elderly patients. Henderson County Public Health Department Covid-19 dashboard. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Beginda Pakpahan (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 13:05 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fd33c 3 Opinion ASEAN,AHA-Center,ASEAN-Plus-Three,coronavirus,COVID-19,#coronavirus,#COVID19 Free The number of people infected with COVID-19 has nearly exceeded 2 million people worldwide, with a death toll of over 146,000 according to worldometers.com on April 15. Most Southeast Asian nations have also been affected, with Indonesia having the highest death toll of over 530, and more than 6,200 confirmed cases of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. As some 20,000 in the region were affected and almost 1,000 were confirmed to have died of the virus, on April 14 ASEAN member states held a special summit on COVID-19 via teleconference. They sought to ensure the free movement of goods and also an effective regional supply for hazmat suits for health workers, health kits, pharmaceuticals and foods during the pandemic. Also on April 14, ASEAN and three external partners (Japan, South Korea and China) had a special online summit. The ASEAN Plus Three have agreed to ensure the flow of commodities, food and medical supplies to tackle trade barriers for health kits, agricultural products and food along their borders and to mitigate any socioeconomic impacts on their citizens within Southeast Asia and East Asia. ASEANs obvious vehicle for collaboration is its own ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Center), which is almost a decade old. Therefore, following the summit, the first concrete measure would be for ASEAN to belatedly task the AHA Center to monitor the developments of the pandemic in the region and effectively channel all donation and resources apart from assisting member states with crisis management. While most countries have looked to their own resources so far, the AHA Center together with member states could better develop health interventions. Second, following the special summit with the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea, collaboration pandemic. To better curb the spread of the virus and survive the pandemic, ASEAN member states and its external partners could activate existing political, economic and social cooperation. For example, ASEAN together with China, Japan and South Korea can exchange information, best practices and methods for the treatment of infected people. Additionally, ASEAN, China, Japan and South Korea should optimize their multilateral funding cooperation initially born out of the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s and later the global financial crisis of 2009, the Chiang is needed for the better fulfillment of health kits, essential medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, laboratory diagnoses, treatment of cases, containment strategies and innovation of drugs and vaccines for COVID-19. Additionally, ASEAN can improve relations between the regional association and the United Nations, particularly the World Health Organization, for a more effective response to the global ASEAN together with China, Japan and South Korea can exchange information, best practices and methods for the treatment of infected people. Mai Initiative Multilateralization agreement, as also encouraged by President Joko Jokowi Widodo, and also plurilateral financial swaps to anticipate and mitigate the impacts of a looming economic recession and to prevent social unrest. The initial result of ASEANs latest summit is the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund based on such existing arrangements, to at least overcome the current scarcity of medical supplies. The overall challenge for ASEAN is how member states improve solidarity and preserve unity during these unprecedented times. *** Political and economic analyst on global affairs at the University of Indonesia (UI) Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Western Europes pay-TV market is set for decline over the next five years falling below the landmark figure of 100 million paying customers, but, according to a study from Digital TV Research, the fall will not be as steep as across the Atlantic. Digital TV Researchs Western Europe Pay TV Forecasts report forecasts that Western Europes pay-TV subscriber numbers will drop by only 2.67 million between 2019 and 2025 slipping to 99.86 million by 2025, representing a 2.6% fall in the six years of the survey.Digital TV Research predicts that all but four of the Western Europe 18 countries covered by will lose pay TV subscribers between 2019 and 2025. Germany is set to decline by the most, down by 871,000, followed by the UK which is forecast to lose 785,000 customers.Commensurate with the fall in subscribers, Western European are set to drop 12.5% as homes pay less for TV as they move to bundles. The Western Europe Pay TV Forecasts report also found that IPTV is gaining subscribers at the expense of the other pay-TV platforms. It overtook satellite TV in 2015 and is predicted to do the same to cable. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) - A soldier critically wounded in an encounter with Abu Sayyaf bandits in Sulu last week succumbed to his wounds on Monday morning, bringing the death toll of soldiers in the clash to 12. The Armed Forces of the Philippines Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) identified the latest fatality as Staff Sergeant Alexander B. Bolesa, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds during the firefight. Eleven other soldiers, including a junior officer, were also killed in the April 17 gun battle in Patikul town, a known stronghold of the group. The Wesmincom said the 21st Infantry Battalion encountered 40 Abu Sayyaf members. CNN Philippines' correspondent David Santos contributed to this report Rwanda's President Paul Kagame has warned that it could take a generation or more for Africa to recover from the shock of the Covid-19 pandemic. He told the UK Financial Times that the continent would need at least $100bn (80bn) in foreign support. The World Bank has already warned that Africa will slip into recession, its first in 25 years, as global trade shrinks and commodity prices continue to fall. Mr Kagame said he was confident progress could be made following what he called good engagement from partners such as France, Germany, China and the US. Nations belonging to the G20 group of leading economies last week agreed to suspend debt payments owed to them by some of the world's poorest countries, including many in Africa. Africa has confirmed more than 21,000 Covid-19 cases so far. Last week the World Health Organization warned the continent could become the next epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak. UN officials say it is likely the pandemic will kill at least 300,000 people in Africa and push nearly 30 million into poverty. 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. Featured Video OTTAWA, Ontario, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The SmartCone 19 Task Force, an international collaboration of technology companies dedicated to providing a safe, secure and protected work environment for both employees and employers, understands people need to work so they can provide for their families and keep the economy stimulated. But without a safe plan, many are uneasy to work at their essential jobs or return once their non-essential companies open back up. The solution put technology on the front line. SmartCone's "Return to Work" (R2W) solution provides a closed-loop, end-to-end mobility system that can track employees and keep them safe as they go to and from work. The closed-loop system includes: At-home health station for personalized health monitoring. Intelligent public transit with thermal scanning and disinfection systems paired with SmartCone's Artificial Intelligence to monitor safe distancing. At the office, factory or plant, checkpoint stations are installed to provide high-speed scanning for everyone entering the workplace. R2W then extends into the workplace by tracking people to ensure safe physical distancing through wearables to include contact tracing and advanced monitoring. Routine disinfection procedures will be recorded and stored. "Our mission has always been to collaborate and integrate existing solutions from sensors to AI to dashboards in a meaningful and useful way quickly," said CEO and founder Jason Lee. "In fact, that is why we created SmartCone to provide a rapid deployment ecosystem to address real-world problems. And I think the current situation qualifies." In the past 18 months, SmartCone has demonstrated the ability to deliver innovative and patented solutions in security, transportation, logistics, health and tracking based on its IoT communication, identification, sensing, monitoring and AI analytics technologies to include two iterations of this solution: Mobile Response Unit with LTE-powered Wi-Fi Access Points in New Mexico ; ; High-accuracy thermal cameras for automated group temperature readings at a nuclear facility. SmartCone is dedicated to finding relevant technologies to further the fight against COVID-19 and bring safety solutions to the world over. If you know a technology that can help, please contact us. About SmartCone 19 Task Force The SC19 Task Force initiative brings global companies together for rapid deployment of technologies to aid frontline workers, along with companies wanting to offer a safer workplace during these challenging times. Learn more at www.19taskforce.com. About SmartCone Technologies, Inc. SmartCone Technologies Inc. (SCTI) is a unique data sensory company that commercializes new Internet-of-Things (IoT) technologies to power a wide array of sensors, cognitive edge computing, sensor fusion and artificial intelligence (AI) analytics. Learn more atwww.thesmartcone.com. For more information, contact Tenille Houston at 613-617-7467 or [email protected] Related Images smartcone-19-task-force.png SmartCone 19 Task Force SmartCone 19 Task Force, an international collaboration of technology companies dedicated to providing a safe, secure and protected work environment for both employees and employers SOURCE SmartCone Technologies, Inc. Related Links http://www.thesmartcone.com U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Leon Neal/Getty Images Canada announced that restrictions barring non-essential travel across the U.S.-Canada border will be extended another 30 days, to May 21. The United States and Canada introduced the border restriction in March and this is the second time the policy has been extended. In a public address on Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the countries will continue to monitor the situation and the restrictions are likely to continue for "many weeks." Earlier this week U.S. President Donald Trump said that Canada could be one of the first countries approved for non-essential travel as the coronavirus pandemic becomes more manageable. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. The United States and Canada have extended travel restrictions along their shared border for another 30 days, until May 21, as both countries combat the coronavirus pandemic. Citizens have been restricted from traveling between the countries for non-essential travel like vacations or casual visits. Business-related travel and trade between the countries are still permitted. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the shared extension during a public address on April 18 and said he expected the border restrictions to remain in place for at "many weeks" to come. The two countries first announced the travel restrictions in March, and this is the second time the policy has been extended. During a COVID-19 briefing earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Canada and the U.S. were "doing well" and their shared border could be one of the first to fully reopen for recreational travel. Canadian officials have not expressed the same level of optimism. Trudeau said it would be some time before his country could begin plans to fully reopen the border. "As we move forward, there will be special thought given to this relationship," he said in a daily briefing. "But at the same time, we know that there is a significant amount of time, still, before we can talk about loosening such restrictions." Story continues The government of Canada recently introduced new rules requiring all air travelers to wear some kind of face covering, part of a growing trend in which masks are becoming an unavoidable part of life. The measures will go into effect on Monday, April 20 and apply to all trips by air to, from, and within Canada. It is part of a broader response to the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe. As of April 19, the United States has 695,353 confirmed coronavirus cases and 32,427 deaths, while Canada has reported 32,400 total infections and 1,346 deaths, based on data from the World Health Organization. Read the original article on Business Insider KYODO NEWS - Apr 20, 2020 - 18:58 | Feature, Japan, Coronavirus, All As coronavirus fears grip Japan, labor unions are receiving a growing number of reports from people who have faced discrimination at the hands of their bosses and harassment by customers frustrated with merchandise shortages. A 73-year-old woman working at a manufacturing company in Nara, western Japan, said her boss shouted for her colleague to stop asking the woman to eat a meal together in early April. She also found out that the same boss had told another colleague to stay away from her. "I can only think of the novel coronavirus as the reason. I am commuting from Osaka," where the number of infections has been growing, she said. In Osaka Prefecture, more than 1,200 have been infected with the virus, compared to just over 60 in Nara Prefecture. The woman says it was a hurtful experience as she was forced to stop eating lunch at her workplace. The Japanese Trade Union Confederation, the country's largest labor organization also known as Rengo, said it had received reports of virus-linked harassment that included a boss spraying sanitizer at a subordinate and a fresh recruit being told to come to the office as usual because young people were at lower risk of becoming serious ill from the virus. "Not just overreaction but inconsiderate statements and actions do constitute harassment," said a Rengo official who deals with workplace harassment, adding "insecurity and stress are harming human relations and tend to instigate harassing conduct." A survey by the National Supermarket Association of Japan in March revealed harassment by customers was also on the rise as people take out their frustration on shop workers when products they want such as face masks are sold out. There was a case in which a customer called a store every time a delivery truck arrived, demanding its workers restock shelves as soon as possible. Others reported customers making complaints based on rumors. "There are many stores that are short-staffed and are in a vicious cycle of having to deal with complaints and busy shelf stocking and checkout work," said an association official. There have also been cases of discrimination against medical workers and a persistent view among people that individuals become infected with the virus because of their own fault. Keiko Fujino of the Japan Institute for Women's Empowerment & Diversity Management, a foundation for the promotion of workers' welfare, said people should report virus-related harassment just like any other form of harassment and seek consultation. "This may be an issue new to firms, but they need to examine how (harassment) occurred and deal with it appropriately," she said. Fujino also urged people working at home to be more careful about their choice of words when communicating online. "People need to be aware that it is hard to communicate their feelings (online) and be respectful of the feelings of people on the other end," she said. Related coverage: Virus expert says Tokyo Olympics not "likely to be held" in 2021 Rakuten starts sells testing kits, Sharp face masks in fighting virus Tokyo's Toyosu fish market struggles amid coronavirus pandemic Coronavirus fears give rise to stigma in Japan's local communities BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Fidan Babayeva - Trend: Azerbaijan has all economic resources required in the post-pandemic period, Ruslan Atakishiyev, chairman of the Azerbaijani Center for Economic Reforms Analysis, told Trend. Moreover, Azerbaijan may reduce investment funds for some minor projects and save money, Atakishiyev added. A decision was made to provide lump-sum payments in April and May to 600,000 people after a meeting chaired by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and with the participation of ministers, which took place on April 17 in the form of video conference. At the next stage, it is planned to collect and systematize the necessary information, where all these people will be registered to ensure their further employment, the chairman said. "Moreover, during the quarantine regime, a process was launched to create 50,000 paid public jobs during the period from April through May, Atakishiyev said. For this purpose, 30 million manat ($17 million) was allocated. So far, 5,000 people have been already employed. During the meeting on April 17 President Aliyev stressed that it is necessary to increase this number up to 90,000. The process of attracting 12,000 families to the self-employment program was launched in 2020, the chairman said. Some 70 million manat ($41 million) was allocated from the Unemployment Insurance Fund for this purpose. Regional Development Public Union of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation actively contributes to the development of the program by attracting 250 families a year in it. "The number of recipients of social assistance has reached 330,000, the chairman added. The amount of targeted social assistance for each family is 222 manat ($130). In accordance with the presidents order, the mechanisms for targeted social assistance have been simplified and the conditions have been alleviated. There is a guarantee that more families will receive support from this program, which proves once again that the president is taking the necessary, consistent measures to improve the social well-being of low-income families." ---- Follow the author on Twitter: Fidan_Babaeva Liverpool, N.Y. Is it fair to proceed with property reassessments during the coronavirus pandemic a time of economic uncertainty and hardship for many? The Liverpool mayor and village board dont think so. They have asked Salina to delay a reassessment of part of the town for a year, mainly due to hardships created by the effects of the coronavirus pandemic that fully blossomed over the last month. The town, which began the project last spring, has already done its work and has decided to reassess between 5,000 and 6,000 properties in the village and seven other neighborhoods a task the state mandates must be completed by May 1. Reassessments are done periodically by towns and other governments to make sure each propertys assessment matches its market value. If an assessment is too low, a taxpayer isnt paying their share of the taxes. If it is too high, the owner is paying too much. Notices of change to property assessments are scheduled to start going out Monday. My overall feeling on this is that the timing is just totally inappropriate, said Liverpool mayor Gary White, who along with the four-member village board adopted a resolution earlier this month asking for the project to be delayed. White sent a letter last week to village residents explaining his concerns and suggesting that they contact Town of Salina officials. The village is one of eight areas within the town being re-assessed. Others are the Pawnee, Juanita, Chestnut Hill, Sheridan, Memphis, Sunflower and Mattydale neighborhoods. The last Liverpool village re-assessment was completed in 2012. Commercial properties throughout the town are also being re-assessed, a process that hasnt been completed town-wide in 24 years. White and the village board argue that re-assessment data, collected from July 2018 through June 2019, has been rendered inaccurate by the current health crisis, which he said will almost certainly lower a number of property values. Since higher assessments for some property owners can mean tax hikes for property and business owners, those increases could be an added hardship at a time when theres so much economic uncertainty, he said. Further, White said, the process of granting residents an in-person hearing in front of a panel known as Grievance Day will be compromised by restrictions on gathering and interactions imposed during the pandemic by state and county authorities. On Thursday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo extended his order for non-essential businesses and schools to remain closed until May 15. Grievance Day would normally be held on May 26, but town officials are trying to get permission to delay it. Salina town supervisor Colleen Gunnip and assessor Denise Trudell said delaying the project would allow a tax inequity to continue in the areas being re-assessed where property values have risen substantially the past few years. A delay also would force all of the towns residents to contribute more in Salinas share of school district and county taxes because the towns equalization rate is about to drop from 100 to 90%. "The issue is that if we do nothing, everybody in Salina will pay a larger portion of the school and county taxes because of the equalization rate drop," Gunnip said. Equalization rates are set by the state. They are a factor in a formula that determines each towns share of school and county budgets. For Salina, the districts involved are Liverpool and Cicero-North Syracuse. The town has had a 100% equalization rate for the past 20 years. Without a reassessment, Trudell said residents whose properties are valued now well below full market value would end up paying significantly less taxes than those whose properties are valued at or near full market value. "My job is to make sure everyone is paying their fair share, and not too much," Trudell said. "There would be many people not paying their fair share if we don't go forward, which means a lot of people would be paying more than their fair share." For example, suppose two homeowners had properties valued at $125,000. If one of the properties was at fair market value (the price they could reasonably expect if they were to sell), while the other had a fair market value closer to $175,000, that second owner wouldnt be paying enough property taxes. Trudell said the state has not changed the May 1 date for submitting preliminary tax rolls. The town is currently in the process of trying to push its Grievance Day back two weeks, from May 26 to June 8, to give residents more time to communicate with town officials and prepare to argue their assessment if they want. Some people said they wanted it pushed back a few months, Trudell said. I dont have that ability. The state tells me what I can and cant do. If we could, we would. Changing the Grievance Day would require a public hearing, but the town feels moving the date into June might allow more people to directly participate in the process. We definitely feel that we can abide by the Governors directives, if were still required to do social distancing, Gunnip said. And it doesnt mean that if youre a senior citizen you have to have a computer. We will make accommodations as best we can between the phone, the mail and email. If people have to come in we can definitely do that and make sure theres social distancing. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Weve flattened the CNY coronavirus curve, but what now? (Where we stand) Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Updated: See our newest list of CNY restaurants offering takeout and/or delivery Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Nolan Weidner is a reporter for the Syracuse Post-Standard and Syracuse.com. Got a comment or idea for a story? He can be reached by call or text at 315.247.7419 or via email at nweidner@syracuse.com. Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. Doctors and nurses and orderlies, truck drivers and grocery workers and transportation workers, nursing home aides and sanitation workers and EMTsthey are all, along with so many others, heroes. Stipulated. There is no amount of honking, singing, or clapping that can adequately express our gratitude for these people, across so many professions, who suit up every day, imperiling their own lives and the lives and health of their loved ones, to make sure that the needs of the rest of us can be met. Thats why it feels good to honor and celebrate and fete and lionize these extraordinary people, who are answering the call of honor and duty every single day as we attempt to flatten the curve. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But in this country parched for heroes, there is a long tradition of using the language of heroism to disserve the heroes and, indeed, to affirmatively harm them. After virtually every mass school shooting, the children who were killed for having attended school that day are celebrated as brave little warriors; the teachers and staff who hurl themselves in the path of flying bullets to protect those children are also held up as saviors and saints. More often than not, this search for superhuman lifesavers in a crisis short-circuits the ordinary processes of accountability and reform. Its considered inappropriate to talk about political and systemic failures immediately in the wake of a tragedy because doing so might dishonor the heroes and victims. And under that cloak of national reverence and well-intentioned hero worship, political and systemic failures are never corrected in ways that might prevent other ordinary Americans from ever having to commit such acts of heroism in the future. Advertisement Advertisement After the Wisconsin primary elections this month, wherein voters had to stand in line for hours wearing protective gear in order to do the one thing that democracy is meant to demand (er, vote), they too were held out as heroes of the pandemic. But as my colleague Mark Joseph Stern wrote at that time: We should be inspired by Wisconsinites refusal to let Republicans silence their voices. But we should also be horrified that some Americans may have literally sacrificed their lives to exercise this constitutional right. When ordinary people are forced to do extraordinary things as a result of poor planning, political maneuvering, retrospective ass-covering, or all of the above, they are heroic, surebut its also a tragic failure and a shame on all the rest of us. Advertisement Advertisement The language of heroism is further used to distract attention from the fact that some of our newfound heroes do not have any choice in the matter. The appalling infection rates among transportation workers and drivers and food workers is a result of an economic arrangement in which they may well be a paycheck away from losing their homes, or cars, orironically enoughtheir health care. Yes, they are all heroes, but they are also stuck, and if calling them angels deflects from how broken their compensation and job protection arrangement really is, then we need to find a new way to talk about it. Heroism is associated with unnatural martyrdom, willing sacrifice, and, above all, choice. But as a Walmart cashier, Jennifer Suggs, told New Orleans public radio station WWNO: Were not essential. Were sacrificial. I will be replaced if I die from this. I dont have a mask or gloves. The only thing I have is a stupid blue vest. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The rhetoric of heroism leads to another unforgivable act of violence done to our heroes: It silences them. The cost of being a hero today is that in return you are meant to accept your halo and wings and then die quietly. If that strikes you as occurring in the wrong order, thats because it is. It is particularly wrong in the case of medical workers, who simultaneously seem to be among those at the greatest risk of contagion, who often have the fewest choices, and who are also facing the most vicious campaign of censorship, threats, and recrimination for asking for the seemingly simple things that might keep them alive. Advertisement Advertisement When ordinary people are forced to do extraordinary things as a result of poor planning, they are heroic, surebut its also a tragic failure and a shame on all the rest of us. All around the country, we hear of doctors and nurses and EMTs and others who have been silenced and even fired for speaking outside the four corners of their hero badge. Michael Hiltzik reports in the L.A. Times of nurses in Los Angeles who were disciplined by their hospitals for speaking out about the shortage of personal safety equipment. Several, he writes, have faced discipline for bringing PPE from home or raising money to buy it for their colleagues. Kaiser Permanente, the giant national managed care organization in Oakland, threatened to fire nurses on the spot if they were caught using their own N95 masks, according to the nurses union. Advertisement As physicians Arghavan Salles and Jessica Gold noted in Vox, a long-standing medical culture that rewards poker-faces, respect for authority, and putting the patients need first means that doctors feel uniquely unable to voice their genuine fears or anger about the current state of affairs. In some case they are even under threat for what they post on social media. Nicholas Christakis, a physician and professor who directs the Human Nature Lab at Yale, talked with the Atlantics Conor Friedersdorf two weeks ago about health care workers who were being sanctioned for speech. He said: Instead of being treated as independent professionals who swore a Hippocratic oath and are carrying out a moral callingI mean, these health-care workers are literally risking their lives. Its hard to imagine a more important calling than one that requires this of you. And theyre doing it for us. The idea that they can simultaneously be shut up is just offensive to me. But then again, that is also one of the undiagnosed side effects of fantasies of heroism. We mostly prefer our heroes to be of the strong, silent variety. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But finally, and perhaps most critically, the problem with labeling any of our essential workers heroes is that one sides heroes swiftly become the other sides enemy. When President Donald Trump calls himself a wartime president, he isnt wrongits just that the war he is presiding over is a civil one. Americans have been fundamentally torn apart with regard to any shared understanding about science, truth, freedom, the economy, governance, or life itself. Though he mouths platitudes about the heroism of doctors and scientists, they are still facing death threats, just as they are risking death by going to their jobs without adequate protectionprotection he could be focusing on providing to them. A viral video of two Coloradans in scrubs staging a silent protest on Sunday reveals just how quickly the presidents messaging about the overreach of Democratic governors attempting to protect their states could turn into an attack on the medical personnel who are certain to bear the brunt of opening up the country before it is safe. That video, and the attention it garnered, perfectly captures the dilemma of so many essential workers: Youre a hero until you politicize the problem. The moment you veer off scriptindeed, the moment you perhaps find your own voice to speak up about what is actually happening to youyou so easily become the enemy, a hoax, and a target. Weve seen that pattern play out with actual military heroes for years now, from John McCain to Alexander Vindman to Capt. Brett Crozier. We know by now that Donald Trump prefers his heroes to be martyrs, and anyone who opts to act with real moral courage, real leadership, or a genuine desire to place their mission over Trumps electoral fortunes will be quickly demoted to public enemy. Todays hero is tomorrows conspiracy theory. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement One might have wished that despite the uneasy military undercarriage of the language of heroism, the country could have come together to show genuine respect and humane compassion for all those who have walked into the maw of the pandemic without PPE or concern for themselves, and without the need for adulation and acclaim. But it was perhaps inevitable that, with the martial metaphor, a nation at war with itself couldnt agree to protect its heroes firstthat it might turn on them, in some quarters, simply for being willing to save lives while churlishly asking for the bare minimum of protections while doing so. We keep struggling with the language of privilege and good fortune. When asked how we are, we intone solemnly that we are lucky not to have to risk our lives in this crisis. Maybe instead of thanking and revering and worshipping our first responders we could instead simply ask them what they need and then find a way to give it to them. Even heroes need armor and a spear. Yes, these essential first responders are our heroes. But if the price of their heroism is silencing, retribution, death threats, and delegitimization, we should perhaps find another name for them. Might I suggest that we start by remembering they are humans, too? A man was allegedly kidnapped by four people, who used his own car to drive him away, before they threatened and beat him on the Gold Coast, according to police. Authorities caught up with a group in the Moreton Bay suburb of Burpengary a few hours later, where dog squad officers arrested three people and a fourth person later handed himself in. It will be alleged the four people forced a 30-year-old man from a Southport apartment into his own car about 6pm on Friday before they drove off with the car and the victim's motorbike. It will also be alleged the victim was driven to a location nearby where the group threatened him and beat him, leaving him with serious facial injuries. WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Monday ruled 6 to 3 that state court juries must be unanimous to convict a defendant of a serious crime, a decision that scrambled the court's usual ideological lineups and prompted soul-searching among some justices about when to overturn precedent. Louisiana and Oregon are the only two states that do not require unanimity for major crimes, and Justice Neil Gorsuch said each state's decision was rooted in discrimination. Although unanimity is not mentioned in the Constitution's guarantee of an unbiased trial, he wrote, it is clear what is required. "Wherever we might look to determine what the term 'trial by an impartial jury trial' meant at the time of the Sixth Amendment's adoption - whether it's the common law, state practices in the founding era, or opinions and treatises written soon afterward - the answer is unmistakable.," wrote Gorsuch. "A jury must reach a unanimous verdict in order to convict." But it was not so obvious to a previous court. In a 1972 Supreme Court opinion, the court ruled 5 to 4 that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimous verdicts in federal trials. But one of the five, Justice Lewis Powell Jr., said unanimous verdicts were not required in state trials. Whether to overrule the decision - in a case called Apodaca v. Oregon and a companion case, Johnson v. Louisiana - and whether Powell's view was a precedent at all, deeply divided the court. Agreeing with Gorsuch on the outcome of the current case were liberal justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor, as well as Gorsuch's fellow conservatives Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh. But Thomas disagreed with Gorsuch's reasoning, and Sotomayor and Kavanaugh wrote separately to explain their reasons for overruling a previous decision. On the other side were conservatives Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel Alito Jr., and liberal Justice Elena Kagan, who has become the justice most reluctant to overturn precedent. One of the most debated and closed watched developments on the court is how the conservative majority will view stare decisis, the doctrine that advises past decisions of the court should not be easily discarded. Liberals worry the ascendant conservatives will cast aside decisions on such hot-button issues as protection against discrimination and abortion rights. Alito noted in his dissent: "By striking down a precedent upon which there has been massive and entirely reasonable reliance, the majority sets an important precedent about stare decisis. I assume that those in [today's] majority will apply the same standard in future cases." Kagan did not join that portion of his opinion. The Louisiana case was brought by Evangelisto Ramos, convicted of second-degree murder in 2016 on a 10-to-2 jury vote and sentenced to life in prison. "Instead of the mistrial he would have received almost anywhere else, Mr. Ramos was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole," Gorsuch noted. Gorsuch agreed with attorneys for Ramos that the reason for the laws in Louisiana was a Jim Crow attempt to diminish the impact of African Americans serving on juries. Gorsuch agreed, and devoted a large portion of his opinion to the past. "Louisiana first endorsed nonunanimous verdicts for serious crimes at a constitutional convention in 1898," he wrote. "According to one committee chairman, the avowed purpose of that convention was to 'establish the supremacy of the white race,' and the resulting document included many of the trappings of the Jim Crow era." He added: "Adopted in the 1930s, Oregon's rule permitting nonunanimous verdicts can be similarly traced to the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and efforts to dilute the influence of racial, ethnic, and religious minorities on Oregon juries." Gorsuch attacked the logic of the court holding that unanimity was required in federal trials, but not state trials. In such cases, he said, it makes sense for the court to overturn such a decision. "Even if we accepted the premise that Apodaca established a precedent, no one on the court today is prepared to say it was rightly decided, and stare decisis isn't supposed to be the art of methodically ignoring what everyone knows to be true," Gorsuch wrote. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote separately to explain why she was joining Gorsuch. "While overruling precedent must be rare, this court should not shy away from correcting its errors where the right to avoid imprisonment pursuant to unconstitutional procedures hangs in the balance," she said. Kavanaugh and Gorsuch were extensively questioned by Democrats at their confirmation hearings about respecting Supreme Court precedent, the questions usually preceded by worries about Roe v. Wade, the decision that first established a right to abortion. Both have shown themselves comfortable overturning precedent, and Kavanaugh wrote that Ramos's case was a good example of when past decisions should be reconsidered. "Why stick by an erroneous precedent that is egregiously wrong as a matter of constitutional law, that allows convictions of some who would not be convicted under the proper constitutional rule, and that tolerates and reinforces a practice that is thoroughly racist in its origins and has continuing racially discriminatory effects?" Alito said it was "deplorable" if Louisiana and Oregon had been motivated by discrimination in building their trial systems, but that had nothing to do with the "hard constitutional question" of whether the Constitution required the same system for federal and state courts. He said Louisiana and Oregon had relied on past Supreme Court decisions to convict thousands of criminals, and now "face a potential tsunami of litigation" from those convicted under the now discredited system. Gorsuch said it was unclear how many could challenge their convictions. It would apply only to those whose cases are ongoing, and it would be up to future litigation to decide if it should apply retroactively. Ben Cohen, Ramos' lawyer at the Promise of Justice Initiative, said in a statement: "We have been bringing challenges to Louisiana's outlier split jury rule to the U.S. Supreme Court since 2004. We are heartened that the Court has held, once and for all, that the promise of the Sixth Amendment fully applies in Louisiana, rejecting any concept of second-class justice. In light of the COVID-19 crisis, it is essential that prisoners who are wrongfully incarcerated be given the chance for release as soon as possible." Civil rights groups also praised the decision. "The reality of historical and ongoing racial discrimination makes unanimous juries particularly essential to the legitimacy of trials in the American justice system," said Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. "The Supreme Court's decision today marks a step forward in the long road to ensuring an unbiased jury system, which is essential for protecting our democracy." Louisiana voters in 2018 passed a referendum requiring unanimous verdicts in felony trials. But it applied only to crimes committed after Jan. 1, 2019, and thus did not affect Ramos. The case is Ramos v. Louisiana. Haiti - FLASH : The state of emergency renewed for 1 month Sunday, April 19, Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe, speaking during a broadcast at the Permanent Information Center on the Coronavirus (CIPC), confirmed that the state of health emergency that had been declared by the Government on April 19 https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30311-haiti-flash-president-moise-declares-a-state-of-health-emergency-text-of-the-order.html will be renewed for 1 month from Monday April 20 until May 20. This renewal will be ratified on Monday during a virtual Council of Ministers and the Order will be published on Monday in the Official Journal "Le Moniteur". Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe, who summarized the evaluation of this measure, said that there was still a lot of work to do and that the Government was not satisfied with the results. The main restrictive measures will be maintained: international airports, air, land and sea borders will remain closed as well as schools, universities, all places of worship among others, the curfew will be maintained. One of the important changes concerns the factories. As Jouthe announced on Wednesday April 15, as of April 20, the Government will authorize the gradual resumption of activities within the textile sector, a resumption of 30% in turn, in a fortnightly rotation mechanism, to allow all workers to remain productive while waiting for a return to normal https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30541-haiti-economy-pm-jouthe-announces-a-gradual-resumption-of-activities-in-the-textile-sector.html See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30569-haiti-covid-19-daily-bulletin-april-19-2020.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30541-haiti-economy-pm-jouthe-announces-a-gradual-resumption-of-activities-in-the-textile-sector.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30311-haiti-flash-president-moise-declares-a-state-of-health-emergency-text-of-the-order.html S/ HaitiLibre The Covid-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on all our lives. Employers and employees across all sectors found themselves adapting overnight to an entirely new way of working. Remote Working With much of the workforce now working remotely, a good step for employers is to look at their remote working policy. They should check it is fit for purpose and communicate with staff to ensure they understand the content. Given that we are all working apart from each other physically, clear communication is key so employees understand what is expected of them when it comes to working hours and availability. Flexible patterns of work could be considered where possible as many employees are now balancing their work life with the demands of home-schooling or caring for relatives. Employers also need to watch out for the health and wellbeing of their employees during these stressful times. If there is an employee assistance programme in place, employees should be reminded to avail of it. If there are online supports that employers can direct their employees to, such as mindfulness courses, then this would be a good step to take. They should be ready to discuss issues with their employees and identify solutions to problems that arise in this new work landscape. Employees should be offered encouragement and support as they settle into this new way of working. The New Normal It is worth remembering that certain obligations on employers remain unchanged even though the "normal" pattern of work has been interrupted. Under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, employers are under a general obligation to ensure the safety and welfare of their employees. These obligations apply whether the employee is working in the office or working remotely. Employers should consult with staff and make sure employees are aware of specific risks of working from home, that their work activity and the workspace are suitable, suitable equipment is provided and they have a point of contact for any assistance they need. It is also worth remembering that the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 is still applicable when staff are working remotely. Employees are entitled to their usual breaks and rest periods as defined in the Act and cannot work in excess of 48 hours per week, on average. The Act also contains certain record-keeping obligations. Employers may find it difficult to keep track of hours, breaks and rest periods when their staff are working off-site. However, the obligations remain so consideration should be given to reminding employees that they are to take their breaks, rest and not work excessive hours. Confidentiality and data protection are key concerns when employees are working remotely. Some may be sharing a workspace or home office with other people. Employers should inform staff of any policy and measures in place relating to data protection or, if no such policy is in place, consider introducing one. Employers could think about offering online data protection training for staff working from home. Employers may be concerned about an overly large "bank" of annual leave entitlements building up during this time, particularly as employees may seek to cancel pre-booked annual leave due to their current inability to travel. Annual leave entitlements are governed by the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. An employer can require an employee to take statutory annual leave subject to certain considerations. They must consider the rest and recreation opportunities available to the employee as well as the employee's need to reconcile work and family responsibilities. If an employer wants to require an employee to take annual leave, the employee or the trade union (if any) must be informed at least one month before the date on which such leave is to commence. This period may be waived if the parties enter into arrangements that are more favourable to the employee about the time of the leave and pay while on leave. It remains unclear in the present circumstances whether compelled annual leave would comply with the rest and recreation consideration mentioned in the Act. The nature of current restrictions in place to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 might make it difficult for an employee to avail to the fullest of time for rest and recreation. Accordingly, a sensitive approach to this topic is advised. Back to the Office This is certainly a good time to think about the long-term direction of a business and, for many sectors, remote working may have the potential to become the new normal. When restrictions are eventually lifted, the workplace may see an increased demand for flexible remote working policies to be put in place. Whilst employers are under no strict obligation to allow employees to work remotely, they should participate with their employees and facilitate discussions around the possibility of continued remote working. The way we live our lives and the way we work has changed drastically over the last few weeks. Employers not only have to consider the current challenges the Covid-19 crisis presents, but now also need to consider how they will navigate the future of work. As restrictions ease and the economy picks up, there will be a gradual return to normality. Preparation and adaptability will be key for dealing with changes as they unfold. Catherine O'Flynn is the Head of Employment & Benefits at William Fry That's $199 under our mention from yesterday and within a buck of the lowest price we've ever seen. It's a current price low by $199. Buy Now at Costco The following is a listing of news and events related to impacts of the coronavirus pandemic: Montgomery accord Montgomery County's emergency management director received a message from a family in Montgomery, Alabama, looking to donate gloves to assist health care workers in New York. They selected Montgomery County because of the connection to where they live, according to officials in the local county. "We thought it was a great example of the mantra we have been using Stronger Together ... it doesn't matter which Montgomery County you happen to live in," according to the county executive's office. Blood drive The American Red Cross will host a blood drive at the Guilderland Public Library from 1 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 5. Donors must preregister in advance on redcross.org; no walk-ins will be accepted. Protocols will be followed by the Red Cross to ensure the safety of everyone involved, including: temperature screening for donors, staff and volunteers; systematic disinfecting; social distancing; and employing fresh gloves for each donor. The library remains closed to the general public; only donors, staff and volunteers will be permitted entrance. To make an appointment, go to rcblood.org/appt, enter the library zip code (12084) and search for Guilderland Public Library, May 5. Survey of physicians A survey of Medical Society of the State of New York members released Thursday found 83 percent of respondents have had a reduction of more than 50 percent in the volume of patients visiting their practices. Also, 80 percent have suffered a loss of revenue of more than 50 percent since the outbreak of COVID-19. More than a quarter have had to layoff, or furlough, more than 50 percent of their staff. "Very disturbing reports were also received from physician respondents that despite having applied for help as soon as the funds became available, they have received no assistance to date," the society reported. Escape to the stars The Mid Hudson Astronomical Association meets online using Zoom at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Astrophotographer and club member Greg Salyer will describe and explain how he operates his securely mounted backyard telescope from the comfort of his home. Later in the week on Friday, weather permitting, he'll conduct a remote star party from his backyard using Zoom. The projected time will be 8:30 and the meeting number will be posted beforehand. Attendees must go to the MHAA website at midhudsonastro.com and select "attend" through MeetUp. The Zoom meeting number for Tuesday is 958 0261 7571. The password for the meeting will be sent to those who mark "attend" on Monday evening. Schenectady meter payments suspended Mayor Gary McCarthy issued a new emergency order on Friday to suspend all metered parking payments in Schenectady. Schenectady County Metroplex Development Authority has also waived all parking fees at 13 parking lots and the downtown parking garage. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. WMHT program WMHT has started a regional initiative called Extraordinary Neighbors to highlight the good people are doing during the pandemic. People can nominate some of their friends, colleagues, and neighbors. Learn more at https://www.wmht.org/ExtraordinaryNeighbors Mask deliveries Americares, working with GE Foundaton, is delivering more than 1.4 million protective masks for health workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The masks will help to alleviate shortages at hospitals and primary care facilities in 11 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Poster contest Saratoga County Sheriff Michael Zurlo announced a COVID-19 poster contest for students in grades K-12 in the county. The theme is 'What Saratoga County First Responders Mean To Me.' Posters must be received by May 18. Those who wish to enter the contest can mail their completed poster (on any size paper) to the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office, 6010 County Farm Road, Ballston Spa, New York 12020 or e-mail submissions to sheriff@saratogacountyny.gov. Food drive The South End Children's Cafe will host a food drive from 5 to 6 p.m. Monday at 25 Warren St., Albany. The cafe is entering week six of feeding over 400 children and families dinners along with groceries. On Monday it is collecting taco kits, small sour creams, small bags of shredded cheddar, microwaveable rice or rice in the bag, hamburger patties, hamburger rolls, loaves of bread, canned corn (not creamed), fresh fruits and fresh vegetables, any kind of chicken (fresh or frozen), eggs, butter and grocery store gift cards. First Vice-President of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva has made a Facebook post congratulating the country`s Christian community on the occasion of Easter. In a post on her official Facebook page Mehriban Aliyeva says: I sincerely congratulate the entire Christian community of Azerbaijan on the occasion of the Holy Easter! On this day, the prayers are read for the health, happy future of our citizens and tranquility of our country. Joining all these prayers and wishes, I express my confidence that we will be able to cope successfully with the difficulties we face today thanks to the solidarity, determination and will of our people! May the Almighty God grant each of you robust health, long live and happiness! --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz People walk by a special coronavirus intake tent at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. AFP Photo New York: The state of New York, epicenter of America's coronavirus infections, appeared to have passed the peak of the outbreak Sunday, as President Donald Trump bumped heads with governors over the pace of ending lockdowns. The United States has so far recorded more than 758,000 coronavirus cases and nearly 41,000 deaths, far more than any other nation. While some governors warned that the administration has failed to adequately boost testing, thousands of Americans were flouting stay-at-home orders to protest their states' prolonged closures. In Washington state, an early US virus hotspot, more than 2,000 people -- many of them ignoring social distancing guidelines -- congregated at the capitol to demand the governor re-open the state's shuttered economy. Sunday's anti-lockdown protests there and in Denver -- where some demonstrators wore Trump 2020 face masks at a "ReOpen Colorado" rally -- highlighted the growing frustration some Americans have over how state governments are responding to the crisis. "This 'cure' is deadlier than COVID!" read one sign carried by a maskless protester in Denver, referring to policies that have shuttered the US economy and led to 22 million Americans losing their jobs. New York has borne the brunt of the virus, which has killed more than 18,000 people in the state, according to a Johns Hopkins University tracker. "We are past the high point, and all indications at this point is that we are on the descent," state governor Andrew Cuomo told a press conference. "Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do, but right now we're on the descent," he said. New York's improving data came as the political battle between Trump and other state governors dragged on, with virus testing rates emerging as the focus. Trump pointed to continued "improvement with declining trajectory of cases" in cities like Detroit, New Orleans and Houston as evidence that his containment strategy was working. "We are going to start to open our country," Trump told reporters. "We'll do it very, very carefully, and I think it's going to be very successful." Experts say extensive virus testing is crucial to a safe reopening of the economy, but some governors said testing capacity fell far below the levels needed to avoid sparking new outbreaks. Vice President Mike Pence told Fox News on Sunday that every state had the ability to do enough testing "to move into phase one." Trump's re-opening plan begins with a "phase one" that ends stay-at-home restrictions for healthy people and allows some businesses like restaurants and gyms to re-open with physical distancing. Efforts by the Philadelphia Department of Prisons to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus in the citys jails have not gone far enough and in some cases are violating constitutional rights, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania said Monday in a lawsuit filed on behalf of 10 inmates. The suit, filed in federal court in Philadelphia, alleges that some inmates have been denied access to soap for days at a time, that others who show symptoms of the disease have lingered among the general population before being quarantined, and that inmates who have fallen ill are being returned without testing to see whether they are still contagious. And while corrections officers have attempted to curb transmission by implementing a shelter in place policy that confines all inmates to their cells except for showers and phone calls, prisoners have not consistently been granted those opportunities, leaving some confined for days at a time in a state similar to solitary confinement, the ACLU said. The result, said Amanda Skinner, wife of one of the inmates on whose behalf the suit was filed, has left the jails population unsure of the risk they are facing and lacking the means to protect themselves. Hes scared, Skinner, of Port Richmond, said of her husband, Joseph, who has been held at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility since July on drug and conspiracy charges and a probation detainer. He suffers from asthma that has led to multiple hospitalizations. This would be a death sentence with his medical condition, Skinner said. 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. The lawsuit comes as the outbreak in Philadelphias four jails continues to spread, despite lockdown measures being implemented nearly a month ago, and efforts to release certain nonviolent detainees and those being held on low-level charges or minimal cash bail that have reduced the jail population by roughly 17%. As of Monday, city officials reported that 126 inmates had tested positive for the disease, and that 56 of them are ill and remain incarcerated. The jails reported their first death last week a 48-year-old woman who had been held since September 2018 on robbery and other charges. Though the city has not released information on the spread of the virus among corrections officers citing privacy issues officials with the officers union have said at least 43 guards have also tested positive, raising concern that the outbreak behind bars could spread to the wider community. Public health advocates warn that prisons are especially vulnerable to outbreaks due to their cramped quarters, lack of proper hygiene, and inability to implement recommended social distancing guidelines. The coronavirus transmission rates in the Cook County Jail in Chicago, New York Citys Rikers Island prison, and an Ohio state prison near Columbus are among the highest in the world, the New York Times has reported. A city spokesperson declined to comment on the ACLU lawsuit Monday, saying officials were still reviewing it. In addition to the shelter in place policy, the jails have banned most visitors and issued cloth masks to inmates and corrections officers. But inmates and guards have complained that they are asked to reuse those masks over multiple days, in contradiction to recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The ACLU of Pennsylvania has been active in a number of lawsuits over the last month seeking the release of people incarcerated in county jails, prisons, and immigration detention centers. The Public Interest Law Center filed a similar suit on behalf of three inmates at the federal detention center in Philadelphia last week. In its suit filed Monday, the ACLU urges the court to demand more stringent mitigation efforts in the Philadelphia jails, to appoint a medical officer to oversee their implementation, and, if those efforts fail, to order the release of all inmates over 55 or those with preexisting health conditions that make them more medically vulnerable to the coronavirus. The commonwealth has been under a public health emergency for more than a month now, and yet the city has taken woefully inadequate steps to stop the spread in the jails, said Reggie Shuford, the organizations executive director. The failure of jail administrators to act in this pandemic is both unhealthy and unlawful. Most days we put our faith in God that we're on the right path. But then comes that one day when He decides to put his faith in us. For Brandon Shahan and his fiance Sandra Bednarz, that day was Good Friday. The two were driving home in separate cars to Dows, about a mile past Dows Junction, when Bednarz spotted a minivan in the ditch with flames coming out of the hood in two places, and a woman in the driver's seat. They both pulled over. It was about 8:30 p.m. By the time the two got to the minivan, the flames had spread to the passenger side of car, where they discovered three children in the second row seats. After assisting mom Amanda Jones who was calling 911 for help out of the car, Bednarz and Shahan helped 7-year-old Jerzey -- who had already unbuckled her seat belt and opened the door -- get out the van, along with her younger brother Jace, 5. Shahan helped Jones, Jerzey and Jace, who was crying uncontrollably because he left his favorite blanket in the car, up out of the ditch and across road, a safer distance away. -------- Amanda Jones' mind was racing in too many directions at once. She and her three kids were trying to get home. She had pulled over to the side of the road to start a movie for the kids but her rear tire ended up off the road. She couldn't get enough traction to pull away so she tried putting the car in reverse and instead ended up fully in the ditch. She turned the car off and called a friend for help. Realizing she had a wait in front of her, Jones turned the car back on to start the movie. Smoke began wafting in through the vents and seconds later, flames shot up through the hood in two spots. She opened her window and called 911. -------- Shahan, a dryer service manager at Sukup Manufacturing, assumed his fiance Bednarz was right behind him as he hustled Jones and her two children to safety. But when he turned around he saw two things immediately. One was that Bednarz was still in the minivan, stretched across the second row seats, fighting with the restraints that held a third child, 2-year-old Carson, in his car seat. "I was not leaving that car without that child," said Bednarz, a chiropractor with several small practices in North Iowa. By now, she said, flames were shooting four feet high out of two sides of the car, including right outside where Carson was sitting. "I could see the fire through the car window," Bednarz said. "It was terrifying. The child was calm and just looking at me, but I couldn't get that third restraint. "I have nieces and nephews so I know how car seats work. I could hear Brandon yelling. It felt like a ticking time bomb." And that was the other thing both Bednarz and Shahan realized at about the same time. The fuel line had just exploded. --------- Car fires are nothing like we see on TV. They don't start out of nowhere and they generally don't blow cars into the air. But they do burn hot, about 1,500 degrees, and they do spread quicker than most realize. Bednarz felt the fuel line blow and knew she was nearly out of time. So did Shahan. He pulled her out of the car, where flames were now above the roof on three sides, including the back by the fuel tank. "As I told her I was going to get the child, I realized there was a chance I might not be coming back," Shahan said. A car's fuel tank is insulated to prevent it from immediately exploding if fire reaches the fuel line. But that doesn't mean the tank will never blow. Eventually, depending on the heat of the fire, it will, often a mere minute or two later. "He was literally standing in the flames getting Carson out," Jones said. Shahan didn't notice. "It was suddenly like I was the calmest I'd ever been in my life," he said. Bednarz and Jones said Shahan was in the burning car for nearly a minute, working to get baby Carson out of his seat. He said he had no sense of time at all. "I felt like I was in a miracle. Like God had just pushed the pause button on everything," he said. Bednarz said he emerged through flames with the baby and was just crossing the road when the fuel tank blew, fully engulfing the minivan. It was about 8:40 p.m. ----- Nearly a week later, Jones and her three children stopped by Shahan's home to give him and Bednarz thank you cards. They talked for a bit and took a photo together. "If they had not been there to help me out I don't know what would have happened," Jones said. Shahan and Bednarz complimented each other on their perseverance and heroism, but ultimately both felt more of a divine hand than anything else. "You just have to put your faith in God," Bednarz said. But sometimes, just sometimes, it might be the other way around. Love 42 Funny 1 Wow 4 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The BRI is a far-reaching plan for transnational infrastructure development, linking five continents through land and sea corridors and industrial clusters. Launched in 2013, it was initially planned to revive ancient Silk Road trade routes between Eurasia and China, but the scope of the BRI has since extended to cover 138 countries, including 38 in sub-Saharan Africa and 18 in Latin America and the Caribbean. Prior to the pandemic, the Asian Development Bank estimated that the infrastructure financing needs of emerging Asia alone would amount to $26trn through 2030. It is thus unsurprising that many low- and middle-income countries came to see the BRI as a vehicle for catalysing much-needed investment in capital projects. By early January 2020, 2951 BRI-linked projects valued at $3.87trn were planned or underway across the world. Although the criteria for what actually constitutes a BRI project are not formally defined, linking a project to the BRI through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) or another agreement provides access to finance from Chinese policy banks and specialist funds, as well as connections to Chinese contractors and suppliers eager to make use of their excess capacity. However, as borders began to close in response to the pandemic, and governments shuttered non-essential industries and asked citizens to stay at home, progress stalled on a number of major BRI developments. Restrictions on the flow of Chinese workers and construction supplies have been cited as factors for project suspensions or slowdowns in Pakistan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar and Malaysia. Some BRI projects are in poorer nations, which may require medical and health care assistance to be a priority ahead of continuing infrastructure projects, and this will vary from country to country, Chris Devonshire-Ellis, founding partner of Dezan Shira & Associates, told OBG. Taking into account that Covid-19 originated in Wuhan, China, late last year, the use of large numbers of Chinese construction workers on BRI projects has become a contentious issue in some nations, even though China has been relatively successful at containing the spread of the coronavirus within its borders. These factors require a considered approach and this will lead to delays in the resumption of projects. However, these issues will be resolved in time, Devonshire-Ellis added. Yellow slice projects In many of the markets that constitute the yellow slice of the global economic pie those dynamic emerging economies that form part of the OBG portfolio big-ticket BRI projects have been a major driver of infrastructure development in recent years. For example, Egypt is ranked in the Refinitiv BRI Database as the country with the second-highest number of BRI-linked projects by volume after Russia, with 109 under construction or in the pipeline. It also has the seventh-highest cumulative value of BRI-linked projects (almost $100bn). Saudi Arabia has emerged as the country with the fourth-highest number of BRI-linked projects by volume (106) and second-highest by value ($195.7bn). Malaysia, Indonesia and the UAE also make the top-10 rankings for both project volume and value. Major BRI-linked projects under way or in the pipeline in those countries include the 950-megawatt Noor Energy 1 solar power plant in Dubai; the $6bn high-speed rail line between Jakarta and Bandung in Indonesia; and the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone. Elsewhere, BRI projects underpin the major infrastructure pipeline for some developing states. For example, in Myanmar, a lower-middle income economy, 33 bilateral agreements were signed in January for the acceleration of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), which falls under the BRI umbrella. Projects planned as part of the CMEC include rail links and a deep-water port at Kyaukpyu, which will provide a strategic connection between Chinas south-west and the Indian Ocean. Managing the debt burden One criticism sometimes levelled at the BRI is that developing economies risk unsustainable debt burdens for projects that are not necessarily in their national interest. For example, in December 2017 Sri Lanka formerly ceded 70% control of Hambantota Port to a Chinese state-owned firm on a 99-year lease as it was unable to service loans used to build the $1.3bn strategic gateway on the Indian Ocean. Perhaps mindful of this example, in 2018 Myanmar renegotiated the cost of the Kyaukpyu deep-water port project down from $7.3bn to $1.3bn, with some Myanmar officials concerned that the project disproportionately served Chinas energy, trade and security interests. However, as the coronavirus-induced economic slowdown threatens to increase the debt burdens on developing economies, and places China itself under added fiscal pressure, Chinese loans linked to BRI projects are once again in the spotlight. Bilateral loans made by Chinese state-owned institutions to foreign partners have increased in tandem with the proliferation of BRI projects across the world. According to a March 2020 report in the Wall Street Journal, some $200bn in emerging market debt owed to China has not been reported in official figures. Much of this undisclosed debt was traced by researchers to BRI projects. Meanwhile, a 2019 study by the Germany-based Kiel Institute for the World Economy found China was the worlds largest bilateral creditor, and that the combined debt owed to China by 50 developing countries had grown from an average of 1% of their GDP in 2015 to 15% by 2017. Unlike multilateral institutions, direct loans from Chinas policy banks are often extended at commercial rates and secured against collateral such as oil or other commodities. With so many emerging economies now appealing to bilateral creditors and multilateral finance institutions for debt relief and restructuring, it remains to be seen how China will respond. In the past, China has preferred to conduct debt renegotiations on a private, government-to-government basis. However, it was seemingly included in a G20 agreement for a temporary moratorium on debt repayments from the worlds least developed countries to bilateral creditors, which was announced on April 15. The example of Myanmars Kyaukpyu port as well as the 2019 renegotiation of Malaysias East Coast Rail Link, which reduced the cost by one third should provide further hope to countries signed up to the BRI who may now be re-evaluating costs and benefits. Multilateral approach With Chinas economy contracting in the first quarter of 2020 for the first time in decades amid rising unemployment claims at home, Chinese capital resources are likely to be mobilised to meet domestic needs in the short term, which could translate into reduced investment in the BRIs more peripheral markets over the next 12 to 24 months. Premium: 2 Stocks To Consider As Oil Falls Into The Negatives Combined with the fact that many of the countries signed up to BRI projects face escalating foreign debt pressures, the stage may be set for a long-term reorientation towards more strategic and cost-efficient infrastructure projects, which meet clearly defined domestic or regional demand, and rely less on opaque loans from Chinese policy banks. BRI projects in the pipeline could be made more open to varied financing options involving multiple stakeholders, such as multilateral institutions, foreign banks, private equity and green bonds. This could help to spread financial risks and promote greater levels of transparency, efficiency and innovation. Some of Chinas neighbours and financing institutions active in Asia are well-positioned to play a greater role in BRI projects. For example, Singapore has the technical and financial ecosystem necessary for structuring, funding and executing major infrastructure projects in South-east Asia, as well linguistic and cultural ties to China that should make it an attractive partner. Even before the pandemic, private financing and co-financing had been playing a growing role in BRI projects. Efforts have been to adopt formal lending rules similar to those of multilateral development banks (MDBs), and in March 2019 Chinas Ministry of Finance signed an MoU with several MDBs to establish a Multilateral Cooperation Centre for Development Finance. As of December 31 last year, project financing was the main source of funds for 676 out of 1015 projects analysed in the Refinitiv BRI Database. Private sector finance accounted for 20.5% of the total funding for all projects in the database, while publicly listed firms contributed 6.8%. However, these totals are still significantly less than the 46.1% of finance attributed to government institutions. China was increasingly open to the multilateralisation of the BRI prior to the pandemic and that will no doubt continue, with capital from multilateral institutions and private sources needed for certain projects to be sustainable, Parag Khanna, Founder and Managing Partner of FutureMap, told OBG. However, Khanna, author of the book The Future is Asian, does not believe Chinas domestic obligations will detract attention from the BRI. Premium: The Oil Sector That Will Suffer The Most The BRI will not lose importance for China, because it is a significant portion of its grand strategy. Much as we see China continuing its military doctrine of probing for opportunities, it will still seek to use BRI as an umbrella for increasing its geographic connectivity, supply chain efficiency and commercial leverage with key states in Asia, the Middle East, and beyond, he added. Broader infrastructure challenges Beyond the BRI, the infrastructure industry in general is grappling with severe challenges as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. These include external financing bottlenecks, difficulties in mobilising consultants and contractors, delays in government approvals and permissions, and slowdowns in productivity related to remote working, according to Allard Nooy, CEO of InfraCo Asia, a donor-funded, commercially managed infrastructure development firm. Due to constraints on the movement of construction equipment and materials, the crisis is also highlighting the need for logistics and supply chain diversification for better crisis management. There are indications that many Chinese manufacturers serving the construction industry have begun to cultivate alternative supply chains in South-east Asia. Notwithstanding physical disruption to the infrastructure sector, much preparation work can still be performed online, allowing some progress to be made on certain projects. Promisingly, such projects include many that form part of the so-called green economy, which could emerge as a sustainable, high-growth segment as policymakers seek long-term recovery strategies. Support for renewables in the pipeline appears strong, perhaps because such projects typically face relatively fewer construction issues and also tend to have a more straightforward revenue structure than other types of infrastructure. This allows for easier credit assessment compared to larger scale infrastructure projects, where revenue is exposed to market - or usage - risk, Seth Tan, executive director of Infrastructure Asia, a facilitation office under the Singapore government, told OBG. By Oxford Business Group More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: In Beijing, people struggling to resume normal life amid continuing restrictions and their own fear of coronavirus. Beijing, China Millie Yang had been self-quarantining at home in Beijing with her 11-year-old son for several weeks when the youngster begged to be taken to hospital. Ive got the virus, he said through tears. I cant breathe. His fear of COVID-19 had been mounting in recent days and Yang suspected he was having a panic attack. Eventually, her son calmed down he did not have the virus. But almost three months after the outbreak first escalated in China, he has yet to play outdoors in the courtyard of their apartment compound. He attends classes via online video chat. It has been tough for the whole family and they are hopeful that schools will reopen soon, Yang said. Yang is one of many parents still working remotely, who together care for as many as one million primary- and middle school-aged children who remain at home in Beijing. She ventures out only for groceries. As a caretaker, she is excused from in-office attendance requirements, which Chinese-owned companies began enforcing in early March in an effort to kick the economy back into gear. Officially, government data shows attendance levels for the capitals large-scale enterprises have returned to 99.9 percent and traffic jams have returned to the ring roads. However, social media anecdotes abound of people lying on attendance forms, or in some cases even keeping devices running at empty desks, to prevent bosses from discovering that some offices are not operating to the level before the outbreak. But even as people return to work it is not easy for them to resume their former routines. Friends have described being in Beijing right now as feeling like the night before a storm is going to hit, said Krish Raghav, who works for a local brewery. Everythings open, but it all feels a little off. Beijing is reopening but restrictions remain in place and quarantines are required for all those who arrive from outside [Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo] Ruth Jiao, who works in marketing for an international tech company, has begun socialising again, but not in the same way as she did before. I wouldnt meet friends I havent seen in a long time, because I dont know who theyve seen, she said. And I dont want to put people in a weird position of having to reject my invitation if they dont feel comfortable. Beijing a priority Even as new cases have plummeted, fears of a second wave of infections have prompted the imposition of restrictions that are even more strict than before including mandatory quarantines. President Xi Jinping has identified the city as a top priority in virus prevention efforts. The security and stability of the capital city is directly related to the overall work of the party and country, he said in a recent speech. Daily life is now accompanied by new restrictions and small inconveniences, most of which have been welcomed as an indication that the crisis is being properly managed. Masks are mandatory those who attempt to leave their homes without one can expect to be reminded not only by local security guards, but by other residents. A citywide system of communal surveillance and tracking is conducted by the lowest level of government: neighbourhood committees. Members now guard the entrances of apartment complexes and in some cases entire streets, taking temperatures via hand-held machines. Many venues also require visitors to log identification details. In the case of a new infection, these logs will be used to track everyone who might have crossed paths with the carrier. Some shopping centres and office buildings use more high-tech methods of tracking, including facial-recognition temperature scanners and mobile phone data-linked QR codes that confirm whether a person has been in Beijing for more than two weeks. Since March the government has shifted its focus outwards, towards the threat posed by incoming travellers. A new danger zone is the border between Russia and the Heilongjiang region, where last week 49 Chinese nationals tested positive in a single day as they attempted to travel home from Russias far east. People arriving in Beijing from overseas or elsewhere in China are now required to complete a 14-day hotel quarantine, at their own expense. An office building in Suienhe on the border with Russia has to be turned into a hospital following a jump in cases among Chinese returning from Russia [China Daily via Reuters] The citys mandatory quarantines provide some sense of security, Raghav said. He recently completed quarantine himself, as one of the last foreigners to enter China before a travel ban against non-Chinese citizens was announced in late March. For that opportunity, Raghav, who is Indian, paid almost four times the standard ticket price to cover a flight from the US, where he had been attending a writing residency; and the cost of a 14-day stay in the five-star Pullman Hotel. Im grateful that Im here at all, he said. Theres a level of privilege in being able to afford it. I have friends for who this just meant they couldnt come back to China. Discrimination against foreigners While the hotel quarantine was comfortable, Raghav was bothered by the way in which returnees were treated on their initial arrival in China. The group was herded into close quarters and tested en masse, he said, in a process that at times felt dehumanising. If one of us had been sick, the entire unit would have been seen as contaminated, he said. The reality is that youre a data point that needs to be managed. However, he expressed gratitude that as the only foreigner on his flight, he was treated no differently from the Chinese travellers. Other foreigners have reported discriminatory experiences. Adriaan Martens, a South African national who has lived in China for five years, was recently barred entry from a friends apartment compound for being a foreigner. His partner, who is Chinese, was not allowed in either, for having been in close contact with a foreigner. The government says 99.9 percent of people at larger businesses are back at work and traffic jams have reappeared on Beijings ring roads [Wu Hong/EPA] That made me feel like a virus, Martens said. My whole life is here. I own nothing back home. Driving home, I was crying because I felt dirty. Many foreigners report that while they continue to feel welcome in China, they have observed an increase in xenophobic sentiment. Authorities have given mixed messages: at times appearing to encourage such behaviour, as when a senior official suggested that the US military might have brought the virus to China. In the southern city of Guangzhou, officials recently condemned the discriminatory treatment of African immigrants, who have in some cases been evicted from their homes; but have yet to speak out against discrimination against foreigners in general across China. Additionally, broad guidelines from Beijings Municipal Epidemic Prevention and Control headquarters have created conditions in which neighbourhood committees are free to enforce certain measures at their own discretion including stricter rules for foreigners. Ruth Jiao, a Beijing native, says that her relatives have cautioned her against interacting with foreigners, a fear that she believes is rooted not in racism but in an assumption that foreigners are more likely to have travelled in recent months. Airplanes and airports are high-risk and theres also a sense that other countries are not managing the crisis well, she said. In fact, 90 percent of Chinas imported cases before the ban against foreigners were among Chinese nationals returning home, according to a statement by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Luo Zhaohui in late March. Martens had previously explored paths to permanent residency in China but is now having second thoughts. I would love to stay here forever, he said. But if Im going to have difficulties with everyday activities, then Id rather go back home and avoid the humiliation. Jiao, who works in marketing for an international tech company, is more optimistic. She believes the current xenophobia will fade when the crisis is over. She noted that Chinese people have faced similar fears in other countries. I think that its natural to fear the unfamiliar. Its not right, but its not surprising. Im hopeful that these fears are temporary. Over 1,000 persons have been apprehended across Akwa Ibom State for alleged violation of the stay-at-home order in the state in the past six days, an official has said. The Commissioner for Justice, Akwa Ibom State, Uwemedimo Nwoko, disclosed this on Monday in an interview with PREMIUM TIMES. Akwa Ibom, like most other states in Nigeria, has been under lockdown to halt the spread of the coronavirus. Akwa Ibom has nine confirmed cases of the coronavirus as of April 19. It is the number of people apprehended from the various police divisions across the state since April 14, Mr Nwoko said. They are going to be taken before a magistrate court. Mr Nwoko said the court that would try the offenders are not mobile courts as erroneously thought by some people. It is the magistrate court that has just been activated and directed to sit by the state chief judge, one per senatorial district in the state, he said. Mr Nwoko said for pedestrians who are first time offenders, the maximum sentence is a N10,000 fine or a community service for seven days, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. The fine would increase to N20,000 and the community service, 14 days, if an offender is caught again violating the order, he said. For bicycles, motorcycles, tricycles, and mini-buses, they would have to pay a N20,000 fine or do community service for seven days, in addition to having their vehicle (being) impounded, if it is the first instance. For buses and all types of car, the penalty is a N50,000 fine for a first time offender. And for trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles, the fine is N100,000. The commissioner recounted a scene he encountered on Monday in Uyo where a truck driver who said he came all the way from Ogun State was apprehended by security officials enforcing the lockdown. I asked him, How did you get here? How did you get through the borders across all the states? He brought out a paper and said it was a pass. I asked him if it was (President) Buhari that signed it because it should be only Buhari that can sign a pass that could take you across all the states boundaries in Nigeria. Read also: He said it was given to him by the Ogun State government, I told him that was not enough. PREMIUM TIMES has not validated this claim Mr Nwoko, however, said he advised the law enforcement officers to proceed and take a statement from the truck driver. The major challenge we are facing is trying to balance the interest of enforcement and the social interest of our people. We want as much as possible to reduce the pain this enforcement would bring on the people. We want to try as much as possible to balance it so that the people would know that this is in their interest. We are not happy to do this, but we must do this because of the interest of the people. A man has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the deaths of 39 migrants found in a refrigerated lorry container in Essex. Ronan Hughes, of Co Armagh in Northern Ireland, was charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, as well as immigration offences, Essex Police said on Monday. The 40-year-old is due to appear at Dublin's High Court on Tuesday. He was detained on Monday following the execution of a European arrest warrant in Ireland. The 39 Vietnamese nationals were found in a lorry container parked on an industrial estate in Grays on October 23 last year. Ten teenagers, including two 15-year-old boys, were among those found dead. On April 8, Maurice Robinson, 25, of Craigavon in Northern Ireland, pleaded guilty to 39 counts of manslaughter at the Old Bailey in London. He previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and acquiring criminal property at the same court on November 25. He is due to be sentenced at a later date. In February, Eamonn Harrison, of Mayobridge, Northern Ireland, was granted permission to appeal against his extradition to the UK under the terms of a European arrest warrant issued by Essex Police. The 22-year-old is facing 39 manslaughter charges, one of human trafficking and one of assisting unlawful immigration. An SKC employee inspects a prototype of blank mask, a core material for semiconductor manufacturing. / Courtesy of SKC By Baek Byung-yeul, Kim Yoo-chul A few days after the landslide election victory for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the government said SKC is set to mass-produce mask blanks, a component needed for semiconductor manufacture. The announcement came while Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's approval rating continued to fall for his dithering response to COVID-19. "SKC is ready to mass-produce mask blanks, an essential material for the semiconductor manufacturing process and one of the materials of which Korea is heavily dependent on Japanese makers," the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. Regarding the specifics of the timing, SKC said, "We will start to mass-produce mask blanks in the second half of 2020." SK Group's components affiliate has been testing a prototype of its high-end mask blank products with a local semiconductor company. Since 2018, the company has invested 43 billion won ($35 million) to build a new mask blank production plant and completed construction at the end of 2019. The announcement came a few days after President Moon Jae-in's ruling DPK won a sweeping victory in the crucial nationwide general election. Right after the results, a senior presidential aide said Cheong Wa Dae and the government plan to prioritize various economic agendas to regain economic momentum after the virus-hit economic crisis. Cheong Wa Dae officials said South Korea will explore ways to overcome the coronavirus like it overcame Japan's export restrictions. Tokyo removed Seoul last year from its list of preferred trading partners. From that standpoint, developing the capability to mass-produce mask blanks may give Seoul an upper hand in resetting its diplomatic policy toward Tokyo over the latter's trade retaliatory measures. The DPK's landslide victory is helping Moon get away from any worries of "lame duck status" and move forward with his agenda to facilitate a rapid economic rebound offering financial assistance to South Korean component manufacturers that produce materials crucial to the country's manufacturing industries. SK Group is actively responding to such initiatives. Lee Yong-sun, chief operating officer of SKC, also expressed the company's gratitude to the government as the government advanced the licensing process for a newly built plant and applied the tariff quota system for imported equipment. Cheong Seung-il, vice industry minister, made his visit to SKC's mask blank manufacturing plant in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, and praised the hard work of the company's employees. The industry ministry said SKC, a chemical unit of SK Group, is at the forefront of the government's agenda to reduce reliance on Japanese suppliers. "It is important for the government and domestic companies to closely cooperate with each other to improve the technological capability of the high-tech materials, parts and equipment sectors and build a healthy industrial ecosystem," Cheong said, adding the government will inject more than 210 billion won ($172 million) to companies in the materials, parts and equipment fields. Mask blanks are a core material used to engrave electronic circuit patterns on semiconductor wafers. The material is among the top 20 tech materials that Korea is heavily reliant on Japanese companies for, as Korean chip makers depend on the country for more than 90 percent of their mask blanks. Korea-Japan relations have been deteriorating over the last two years with no clear resolution in sight. Japan was still demanding South Korea drop its Supreme Court ruling that ordered Japanese companies to compensate surviving South Korean victims of wartime forced labor. South Korea said it won't accept the request claiming the court ruling is a matter of sovereignty and jurisdiction. Meanwhile, Japan's recent adoption of a temporary 14-day self-quarantine period for people flying in from South Korea and China, as well as the suspension of its visa waiver program, prompted Seoul to suspend its visa-free entry program. The leaders of the countries have taken a rather conciliatory tone toward each other with both of them agreeing to resolve the conflicts via dialogue. But no substantial progress has been made. Also, the Japanese public has been losing patience with its government's handling of COVID-19, threatening Prime Minister Abe's grip on state affairs. Over 80 percent of people responding to a recent survey released by Kyodo News, Monday, said the government's declaration of a state of emergency in the nation's key cities on April 7 came "too late." "With the election win, Moon's approval rating is soaring and this will provide a fresh impetus to possibly restore souring ties with Japan. By supporting efforts by a domestic company to produce materials that South Korea relies on Japan for, the South Korean government may seek a real exit strategy on the Japan issue," a former Cheong Wa Dae aide said by telephone, adding Moon doesn't need Japan to improve his approval rating. Shutterstock VARADERO, Cuba/KINGSTON, April 20 (Reuters) - No one is swimming in the turquoise Caribbean waters of Cuba's Varadero beach resort, nor lounging on its white, palm-fringed beaches. Its hundreds of hotels, shops and restaurants stand empty and eerily quiet. The nearby airport, the lifeblood of Varadero's economy, closed after Cuba shut its borders two weeks ago to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus. Now, undisturbed by tourists, lizards scamper around the grounds of the luxurious hotels, on the hunt. Across the Caribbean, similar scenes of desolation are playing out as the most tourism-dependent region in the world reels from a pandemic that has shut borders, grounded airlines, berthed cruise ships and sent much of the planet into isolation since mid-March. From the historic towns of the Dominican Republic to the isolated coves of Tobago, tourism employs an estimated 2.5 million people and generates - directly and indirectly - nearly one-third of the region's economic output, according to the Caribbean Tourism Organization. Read More on Reuters Weeks after a woman in Bengals Kalimpong district died of Covid-19 and 10 members of her family treated for the infection, people in the states hill region are acting under stress and fear. In the last few days, Laxmi Ghatani, 70, Sujata Sherpa, 22 and Dishan Khati, an eight-year-old, have faced the outcome of a fear psychosis among common people and even health workers and doctors. Kalimpong district has been declared coronavirus free after 10 members of the regions only affected family, and a maid who worked for the family, tested negative after treatment. The family lost a 44-year-old woman member on March 30. Although no new case has been reported in the district that shares its borders with Bhutan, Sikkim and Darjeeling, Kalimpong s residents, especially those who are old and unwell, are facing discrimination. Ghatani, a resident of Mungpoo in Darjeeling district, fell ill on Saturday and her family members took her to Rambi community block primary health centre the next day. The doctor referred her to Kalimpong district hospital but the health centre allegedly denied an ambulance. After much persuasion an ambulance took the patient up to Chitray, located 14 km away from Kalimpong. The patient was then taken to a Kalimpong hospital in a car provided by a social worker, Jyoti Karki. The old woman was admitted at 1 pm and she died at 8 pm on Sunday. Bimal Ghatani, one of the sons of the deceased, said Had we been able to admit her in Kalimpong hospital on time she might have survived. Precious hours were lost in search of an ambulance. Bimal, who is a carpenter, said At Mungpoo, local people made it clear that those who took my mother to Kalimpong cannot return home. They have been told to stay in quarantine for 14 days. Dr C K Chettri, block medical officer of Rambi said The family of Ghatani never sought the government ambulance. Jyoti Karki said, People of Kalimpong are facing social discrimination in other areas. Last week, eight-year-old Dishan Khati, a resident of Tirpai in Kalimpong had fever, cough and signs of pneumonia. On April 15, a doctor in Kalimpong referred him to a private nursing home in Siliguri saying that all arrangements had been made and the nursing home was one of those authorized to treat Covid-19 patients. Yasaka Khati, the childs father who is a driver, said, Though the government is saying that ambulance in cases like these will be provided free I was forced to take my son to Siliguri in my vehicle as the driver of a government ambulance demanded Rs 1500. That was not all. The nursing home authorities refused to admit my son and even policemen did not help. We took my son to the state-run North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (NBMCH). There, we had to wait for long hours before my son got admission. But we were not happy with the arrangements, Khati said. On April 16, we took my son back to Kalimpong hospital. The boy is doing fine now, said Khati. On April 15, Sujata Sherpa, a pregnant woman from the Algarah area in Kalimpong was referred to a Siliguri hospital by the Kalimpong district hospital for an USG test. Sujata and her husband, Sangey Sherpa, went to Siliguri district hospital. The moment hospital staff came to know that we were from Kalimpong, they started behaving differently and told us to go to NBMCH at night. At NBMCH, the staff refused to get my wife admitted as she was bleeding. We were asked to return the next day. We were so helpless that we had to spend the night of April 15 in a church in Siliguri, said Sherpa. The USG was done the next day and the couple returned home with help from social workers. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON At least one prisoner has been killed and 13 more injured in a riot at a prison in western Colombia. The Colombian National Police said inmates rampaged over the impending arrival of a group of detainees, whom they feared would cause a coronavirus outbreak. The incident happened at the Anayancy prison in Quibdo, Choco, on Sunday morning. A spokesperson for the Colombian National Police said the Choco Police Department was called in to assist the prison guards in seizing control of the jail. A paramedic (second from right) tends to a detainee, one of 13 injured during a prison riot in Quibdo, Colombia, on Sunday morning that also left one prisoner dead. The rebellion was caused by a group of inmates who feared the impending arrival of a set of detainees would spark a coronavirus outbreak at the penitentiary An injured prisoner rests on a stretcher after he was hurt during Sunday's prison rebellion in western Colombia According to the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute, 30 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, including 17 at a detention facility in Villavicencio, a city in the province of Meta. Brigadier General Norberto Mujica, director of the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute, announced Monday the temporary release of almost 1,000 prisoners, who were considered at-risk of contracting the deadly virus. A plan to put 10,850 inmates under home confinement, including those over the age of 60, had been set in place since March, after a prison riot left 23 detainees dead and 83 others injured at La Modelo prison in Bogota. Prisoners there blasted the penitentiary's unsanitary conditions. Doctors at a hospital in Quibdo, Choco, treat some of the 13 inmates who suffered injuries during a riot at a prison Sunday morning The Anayancy prison in Choco, Colombia, was the site of a rebellion that left one inmate dead and 13 others injured Sunday morning. The Colombian National Police said prisoners sparked the Sunday morning's riot over the impending arrival of a group of detainees, whom they feared would cause a coronavirus outbreak Those eligible for release also include pregnant women and mothers with children under the age of three. The government is also allowing terminally ill prisoners, convicts with sentences of less than five years and those who have served at least three-fifths of their sentences, to be released. Colombia has been under a nationwide lockdown since March 24 to combat the spread of the coronavirus. It's slated to be lifted April 27. The health ministry registered 179 deaths and 3,792 sickened patients related to the global pandemic as of Monday. USE THE MAIL Responding to A Swarthmore Voter who does not like The League of Women Voters urging voters to use the mail-ballot option: Citizens were given the right to vote, but it does not have to be inside a voting booth. I work at the polls and I hope that everyone uses the mail-in ballot option. With the new in-person voting equipment, you will spend more time at the polls than before. You first sign in as you have always done. Then you are given a paper ballot, which you take to a designated area to fill out. Then you take your ballot to the scanner and put it in. And if you choose to use the touch pad option to fill out your ballot, that takes longer than the paper ballot and you still have to put it into the scanner. Not a lot of space for social distancing when there are multiple precincts at one polling place. With the mail-in option, you fill out the ballot in the comfort of your home whenever you want, as long as it is received by 8 p.m. on election day. You dont have to be at a polling center on only one specific day. Did you see the photos of the recent Wisconsin primary, where people had to wait hours in line to vote? I also hope that the administrators/managers at all senior communities and facilities ensure that all their residents vote by mail-in ballot. USE YOUR VOTE HAVE A BLAST, PHIL Phil, I will miss your editorials. You gave insight into a number of memorable topics. I read the paper everyday and do the puzzles. I hope a print copy will still be published. God bless you, Phil Heron. Enjoy retirement. MISSING PHIL Heres to Phil Heron for a blessed retirement. We will miss you. Youve done a wonderful job. God bless! NORWOOD ANNA CHECK IT OUT This weeks random ramblings: In response to certain Sound Off regulars, apparently lacking in hobbies and reality, had Obama sent out these get me re-elected checks, you would cash them as well. So lets stop with that hypocrisy. Had he insisted his name be on said checks, you Trumpos would lose your minds. As to a debate between Biden and Trump, supposedly to display Biden as a bumbler, you might want to check some of your darling Trumps speeches and pronouncements. What ever he is sniffing, its not helping that mushy speech. Trump fans, you might want to pick your heroes a little wiser next time. SIR PEACE RIOT DONT THANK TRUMP A Saturday Sound Off seemed to think it would be hypocritical for Trump haters to cash their stimulus checks. Why? The money isnt coming from Trump, even though he delayed the payments so he could put his signature on the checks. The stimulus was passed by Congress, and we can thank Democrats for making sure it didnt go primarily to big corporations. People need stimulus checks in large part because of Trumps failures in preparing for and responding to this crisis. So no, I wont be thanking Trump for trying to help everybody out. I dont see Trump trying to help anybody but Trump. PJ BONUSES NEEDED being a former Green Beret, the U.S. Army gave me $110 a month hazard duty pay! I am suggesting that the employees in our grocery and convenience stores also should get hazard duty pay of 10 percent. I would be willing to pay 10 percent more for my purchases to show my appreciation. Especially to the employees of Shoprite in Brookhaven. They are great an also give me a 5 percent veterans discount. RIDDLEWOOD KEN CUT THE POLS How much of a wage cut have the congressional/senatorial and all other government employees encountered? This plague has turned our lives upside down. The non-government citizens shouldnt be the only ones to bear this burden. Also, farmers shouldnt get federal money for loss of crops when they let the crops rot and bury them. Prisoners could pick those crops just as they do road cleanups under prison supervision. This is not the time to find a shortage of food at our grocery stores as well as a significant increase in prices! CONCERNED CITIZEN The Assam government on Monday said it has shelved a plan to construct five temporary hospitals for COVID-19 patients, and in its place set a target of creating 1,000 ICU beds at its permanent facilities across the state. Health and Family Welfare Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the decision was taken considering the current situation in which permanent infrastructure in the healthcare sector needs to be strengthened in the state. "The fear of coronavirus is there in the state at this moment. So we are focussing on increasing the strength at permanent hospitals," he said at a press conference here. On March 26, Sarma had announced that the state was planning to build five temporary hospitals with 300 beds each across the state to treat COVID-19 positive patients. Sarma, who is also the state Finance minister, informed that the government has collected Rs 99.56 crore as donations in Asom Arogya Nidhi account for creating the temporary structures, but it will stop collecting it after the amount touches Rs 101 crore. "Now our target is to create 1,000 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds in our own hospitals. Many hospital buildings are coming up at the moment in the districts. In this way, we will have our own permanent facilities," he added. The Central government is likely to provide Rs 168 crore to the state for its fight against the novel coronavirus, Sarma said. "Therefore, with Rs 100 crore from Asom Arogya Nidhi, we will have Rs 268 crore in total. It will be sufficient to augment our existing facilities," he added. According to the Assam Health and Family Welfare Department's daily bulletin on Sunday, there are 440 ICU beds and 303 ventilators in government and private hospitals for treating COVID-19 positive cases. The state has tested a total of 4,865 samples so far for novel coronavirus, of which 34 have been found positive and one has died, while 18 have been cured and released from hospitals. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New York has launched antibody testing for 3,000 people who will be randomly selected at grocery stores in an effort to find out how much of the population had coronavirus, but it remains to be seen how accurate the test is. The test was developed in the state's lab and health officials say it has proven to be 'very' accurate but they will not give a precise accuracy percentage. The hope is that it will identify antibodies among enough people to reflect how much of the wider population had the virus. Those who participate will be reflective of the general demographic of the state's 19.8million population. 'The test has been shown to be very accurate and while it detects antibodies related to COVID-19, it does not detect antibodies to the commonly circulating coronaviruses, such as those that cause the common cold,' a State Department of Health spokesman told DailyMail.com on Monday. Cuomo announced the effort on Sunday at his daily briefing. 'This will be the first true snapshot of exactly how many people were infected by COVID-19 and where we are as a population and will help us to reopen and rebuild without jeopardizing what we've already accomplished,' he said. Antibody testing has been heralded as the key to restarting the economy but there are concerns about how accurate it is. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday touring the Northwell Health Lab which will carry out some of the tests Participants will be chosen at random at grocery stores and will have their blood drawn with a finger prick test There are dozens of tests flooding the market and states and cities are plucking from them to try to determine how many people will have had the virus. On Monday, the FDA warned there are companies that 'are falsely claiming that their [antibody] tests are FDA approved or authorized, or falsely claiming that they can diagnose COVID-19.' Many have around a 90 percent accuracy rate which tells them that, for example in the case of New York, 10 percent of the test results will be inaccurate. The problem lies in identifying which 10 percent are inaccurate. A piece of the antibody test kit being used by Somas Community Care in Hempstead, New York. There are dozens of tests being used On Monday, Dr. Anthony Fauci said the country still had a 'way to go' before it could count on antibody testing as part of a back-to-work plan. 'The assumption that with the tests that are out there, if you have an antibody positivity, youre good to go,' the leading infectious disease specialist said Monday. 'Unless that test has been validated and you can show theres a correlation between the antibody and protection, it is an assumption to say that this is something that we can work with,' he said on Good Morning America. He noted that only a handful - four, to be exact - coronavirus antibody tests had been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and there's little clarity to the reliability of others. Because the FDA was so desperate to get antibody testing underway in a more expedited way than the diagnostic tests it was accused of releasing too slowly when the panic began, dozens are being sold from China with minimal regulation. Some doctors are also misusing them by attempting to diagnose people with them. The tests do not pick up whether or not a person currently has the virus, only if they have the antibodies that are supposed to develop as part of their recovery from it. 'People dont understand how dangerous this test is. 'We sacrificed quality for speed, and in the end, when its peoples lives that are hanging in the balance, safety has to take precedence over speed,' Michael T. Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, told The New York Times. In Arizona, ARCpoint Labs is selling the tests to the general public or $60. The tests are made by Chinese bio-tech company Zhejiang Orient Gene Biotech. It claims the tests are 61.8 percent accurate in detecting IgM antibodies and 94.4 percent accurate in detecting IgG antibodies. Both need to be found together to detect COVID-19 antibodies. Different tests are being carried out in Massachusetts. Officials say there are many on the market but few have been proven to be reliable ARCpoint is telling people that if a person tests negative for IgG antibodies but tests positive for IgM antibodies, they are suspected to be in the early stages of an infection and are told to continue social distancing for another five to seven days. If they test positive for both, they are being advised that they have cleared the virus from their systems and can return to work. In Laredo, Texas, a test that officials were told was between 80 and 90 percent accurate returned an accuracy rate of just 20 percent. Laredo officials spent $500,000 on 20,000 tests from Anhui DeepBlue Medical Technology, another Chinese company, in the hope they would clear people to return to work. Once health officials started performing quality controls on them, they realized how inaccurate they were. Police have now seized the tests. 'We still have a ways to go on antibody testing': Fauci warns it's 'an assumption' to say people who test positive are immune and can return to work What's more, scientists haven't had the chance to track enough people who have recovered from coronavirus for long enough to know for sure whether those antibodies provide immunity to reinfection, or for how long. Antibody tests for coronavirus have been rolled out across the US amid officials' hopes that they'll reveal who can go back to work - but 'we still have a ways to go' before the tests can really tell us that, Dr Anthony Fauci told Good Morning America. 'The assumption that with the tests that are out there, if you have an antibody positivity, youre good to go,' the leading infectious disease specialist said Monday. 'Unless that test has been validated and you can show theres a correlation between the antibody and protection, it is an assumption to say that this is something that we can work with.' He noted that only a handful - four, to be exact - coronavirus antibody tests had been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and there's little clarity to the reliability of others. 'We don't know how long that protection, if it exists, lasts,' said Dr Fauci. 'Is it one month, three months? Six months? A year?' Dr Anthony Fauci warned Monday on Good Morning that antibody testing does not yet reliably indicate who has developed immunity to coronavirus, and that to say someone is protected from the virus by antibodies the test detects would be an 'assumption' Dr Fauci has previously admitted that interpreting the results of COVID-19 antibody tests relies on assumptions. 'It's a reasonable assumption that this virus is not changing very much. If we get infected now and it comes back next February or March we think this person is going to be protected,' he said in a JAMA webcast, attended by Stat News. In lieu of a solid base of information about this virus and the antibodies that we develop in response to it: 'Sometimes you have to act on a historical basis,' Dr Fauci says. HOW DO 'STRIP' BLOOD TESTS FOR CORONAVIRUS WORK? Simple blood tests for coronavirus, like Premier Biotech's, work much like pregnancy tests. After the sample of blood is collected, a technician injects it into the analysis device - which is about the size of an Apple TV or Roku remote - along with some buffer, and waits about 10 minutes. The blood droplet and buffer soak into the absorbent strip of paper enclosed in the plastic collection device. Blood naturally seeps along the strip, which is dyed at three points: one for each of two types of antibodies, and a third control line. The strip is marked 'IgM' and 'IgG', for immunoglobulins M and G. Each of these are types of antibodies that the body produces in response to a late- or early-stage infection. Along each strip, the antibodies themselves are printed in combination with gold, which react when the either the antigen - or pathogen, in this case, the virus that causes COVID-19 - or the antibody to fight are present. Results are displayed in a similar fashion to those of an at-home pregnancy test. One line - the top, control strip - means negative. Two lines - the top control line and the bottom IgM line - in a spread-out configuration means the sample contains antibodies that the body starts making shortly after infection. Two lines closer - control and IgG - together mean the person is positive for the later-stage antibodies. Three lines mean the patient is positive for both types of antibodies. Advertisement That historical basis is research on antibodies developed against other coronaviruses, including COVID-19's closest relative, the virus that causes SARS. Humans do develop antibodies that work against these viruses, but the duration of protection varies. For the viruses that cause common colds, immunity is fairy weak and short lived. But against the SARS virus, antibodies develop within a couple of weeks, and may last years. This evidence informs the educated guess that antibodies we develop against COVID-19 will provide some protection - but it's by no means proof. And even the best blood tests for antibodies - or serologic tests - can't tell us that yet. 'Right now, we have no evidence that the use of a serologic test can show that an individual is immune or is protected from reinfection,' the World Health Organiazation's DrMaria Van Kerkhove said at a briefing last week. A Columbia University expert told DailyMail.com it could take years to find an antibody test accurate enough. But they added that scientists are desperately trying to find a blood-based test at 'lightning speed' - within a few months. It's important to understand how the virus itself triggers a healthy immune system to start producing antibodies, and scientists are divided on its behaviour. This results in antibody tests with various designs, some of which have failed to work with enough accuracy because they are not specific enough for SARS-CoV-2. Doctors also say it is unclear, at this stage, the level of antibodies in the blood that provide immunity and how long that protection lasts. Some early animal studies suggested that antibodies could block reinfection for at least two weeks. But research on the new coronavirus' closest relative - SARS - shows a patient generates antibodies that last an average of two years. Dr Whittier said the crux of the matter is, 'we don't know what we don't know'. Morocco is part of a group of 13 countries that are examining ways of coordinating actions in the fields of health, trade, free exchange, tourism and economic and financial measures in a bid to reduce the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The group, including Britain, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, Singapore, South Korea, and Turkey has called for global cooperation to discuss practical solutions to reduce the economic impact of the Corona virus. In a joint statement Saturday, the 13-member group called for global cooperation to lessen the economic impact of the pandemic, reported AP news agency. It is vital that we work together to save lives and livelihoods, they said. The group said it was committed to work with all countries to coordinate on public health, travel, trade, economic and financial measures in order to minimize disruptions and recover stronger. This includes maintaining air, land and marine transportation links to ensure the continued flow of goods including medical equipment and aid, and the return home of travelers, they said. Coordination between these countries began in March, i.e. few weeks after the spread of the pandemic, and Morocco was the only representative of the African continent before being joined by South Africa under the umbrella of the rotating presidency of the African Union, reported Moroccan online news outlet Hespress. The group held so far six meetings via video conference, at the initiative of Canada, which insisted on the participation of Morocco to benefit from its experience in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Hespress, the meetings are held at the level of foreign ministers on Friday every week, while senior officials of the same countries meet on Tuesdays to coordinate their actions and share their experiences in managing the situation. Morocco shared with this international coalition its successful experience in coping with the repercussions of Corona, led by King Mohammed VI, who is also endeavoring to find solutions to the repercussions of the crisis on the African continent. The Monarchs initiative to confront Corona in Africa, which had won the admiration of African countries, was presented to the international coalition, said Hespress. The group praised the royal initiative, especially that it is not the first of its kind, as it was preceded by several others in the sectors of migration, climate and development, said the news outlet. The group also hailed the proactive measures announced by King Mohammed VI to deal with the Corona epidemic. In a bid to unify Africas response to covid-19, King Mohammed VI has proposed lately the launch of an initiative by African Heads of State aimed at supporting African countries in their fight against coronavirus pandemic. The Moroccan Sovereign made the proposal during phone talks he held with presidents of Cote dIvoire Alassane Dramane Ouattara, and of Senegal Macky Sall. The royal initiative, which seeks to bring Africans together against this global health crisis, seeks to enhance the exchange of experiences and good practices to cope with the health, economic and social impact of the pandemic. DOWAGIAC, MI -- A furniture manufacturer in Southwest Michigan is permanently reducing its workforce after a forced closure related to the coronavirus. Ameriwood Industries, a furniture manufacturer in Dowagiac, permanently laid off 79 employees and will repurpose its facility into a distribution center, according to paperwork filed with the state of Michigan April 13. This reduction is a result of a significant downturn in our business and has become immediately necessary due to the halt in business caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the governor of Michigans Stay Home, Stay Safe executive order, which has shut us down almost entirely," the company wrote in the notice to the state of the change to its workforce. The company is permanently laying off three salaried professionals and 76 hourly employees, the letter stated. The manufacturers parent company, Dorel, was forced to make some hard financial decisions and will repurpose the Dowagiac facility from a manufacturing operation to a distribution and warehouse operation supporting the parent company. Production operations located in Dowagiac will be moved to other facilities and the local facility will be converted to a Midwest Distribution Center, the company said. This means a drastic change to the number of employees that will be needed going forward and the permanent elimination of a large number of jobs in Dowagiac effective immediately, the company said. Businesses across the state are cutting staff and closing doors amid the COVID-19 outbreak and resulting executive order from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer instructing Michiganders to stay home" expect for very limited essential purposes. Other than those working for essential businesses, employees are mandated to stay home while officials fight the spread of COVID-19. As of Monday, April 20, there are more than 31,000 cases of the coronavirus in Michigan and nearly 2,400 deaths. 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. Also on MLive: Monday, April 20: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan 1,489 Four Winds Casinos employees on furlough during mandated closure Michigan lawmakers express concern at lack of federal help for states small businesses Thousands of EU migrants work as doctors, nurses, carers, cleaners and porters as the UK fights gravest threat in years. London, United Kingdom Thousands of EU migrants are working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic in the United Kingdom, as doctors, nurses, carers, porters and cleaners. Others are still out every day, repairing water boilers, stocking supermarket shelves, driving Londons buses. Every Thursday at 8pm, Britons take to their windows and balconies to applaud them for keeping the country on its feet. With the number of recorded deaths now above 16,000, the severity of the crisis has eclipsed the political fallout over Brexit. But the clock is still ticking towards the end of the transition period on December 31, as well as a June 21 deadline for EU citizens to apply to remain in the United Kingdom through the EU settlement scheme. Charities have warned that the pandemic may have an impact on those applications as resources are redirected to fend off brewing social and economic crises. A points-based immigration system announced earlier this year sets a minimum salary threshold at 23,040 pounds ($28,755) meaning low-paid key workers would be unable to stay. The average salary of a care worker, a sector that relies heavily on migrants, is well under 20,000 pounds; hospital porters and cleaners earn even less. Al Jazeera heard the stories, concerns, and hopes of four EU migrants who are keeping the UK ticking through the crisis. I dont want clapping. I want the government to give me proper wages Joan Pons Laplana, 45, Spanish intensive care nurse in Yorkshire I started working in intensive care 20 years ago. Lately, I was a senior nurse doing digital projects, but because of the coronavirus, all projects have been stopped, and I was brought back to the front line after 10 years. I work 12-hour shifts, three days a week. I spend half an hour [getting] dressed to be able to work. Its tough when you go home one day, and when you go back the next, the person you were taking care of has passed away. It makes you realise how fragile we all are. Some of the patients are younger than I am, and thats even more scary. I am divorced, and at the moment, I am not seeing my children to avoid transmitting them the virus. I hear more and more doctors are dying because they are being exposed without PPE [personal protective equipment]. And in the community [among first responders and home visit nurses] it is even worse than inside hospitals. Im also a father, a son; I am not just a nurse. And besides that, I am European. Until a few weeks ago the government didnt want us. Suddenly in the last three weeks, I went from being a low-skilled worker to a key worker. Part of me every time they do the clapping, I think I dont want clapping. I want the government to give me proper wages, to start treating me like a proper human being, to recognise the work we do. I need security for my future, and settled status doesnt give me security. Nothing is resolved. We cant avoid close contact Bartosz Glinkowski, 38, Polish delicatessen owner in southwest London Glinkowski runs a food shop in the UK [Courtesy: Bartosz Glinkowski] We only allow in four people at a time. The masks, the gloves, we have always been using them for certain things, but now we use them all the time. We put a plastic screen up in front of the counter. It is not easy, and in the end, we cant avoid close contact, to be honest, the shop is not that big we are worried, and I have three kids one is three months old. But if you have to do it, you have to do it, you know. 200419071536635 I opened this shop six years ago, but have been in the UK for 17 years. Its become a bit quieter since the referendum; business has been going down gradually by around 20 percent. Lots of my regulars have gone back home. Now, the store is even busier than normal people try to avoid crowded places and go to the smaller shops instead of large supermarkets, and tend to avoid going far from their houses as much as possible, I think. If all caregivers quit right now, it would be a disaster Patricia Trigo Diaz, 50, Spanish care worker on the Isle of Wight Diaz worked for several NGOs in Spain before moving to the UK last year [Courtesy: Patricia Trigo Diaz] I have a law degree and have worked for a cultural and social foundation and several non-profit organisations in Spain. I came to the UK in December to work as a home care worker, for which I trained, obtained the required qualifications and registered. I had planned to stay a few months and return to Spain to rest and attend to my affairs there before coming back to work in the UK, but I had to rethink everything. On the one hand, you think about whether you should return to your country and surround yourself with what you know. On the other, you value the work you are doing and what you contribute. The fact that [I am] taking care of an 89-year-old woman who cannot stand on her own, and the responsibility that entails, and being among the groups at risk has given me more reasons to stay. Imagine if all the caregivers quit their jobs right now; it would be a disaster. My intention is to [apply for] pre-settled status in a few months. I think it would be very unfair that after having accepted the challenge and the responsibility of staying in my job right now, I have some kind of problem in the future. There are so many features to my identity that are vulnerable, and this is just painted over by the clapping Roghieh Dehghan Zaklaki, Austrian-Iranian GP in north London Zaklaki moved to Britain after completing a medical degree in Austria [Courtesy: Roghieh Dehghan Zaklaki] The way we deliver medical care has completely changed. In the last few weeks, we have been doing consultations over the phone [and on video]. I still go to my practice, but there is much less interaction. We still have our emergency list, but most of that is now taken over by concerns about coronavirus. It has taken over all our work. I was born in Iran, and migrating to Austria was my fathers choice. But moving to the UK was my conscious and deliberate choice as a grown-up woman after doing my medical training in Austria. One of the reasons I came here was renowned British tolerance, and because of the reputation for excellence of general practice and primary care here in the UK. [These] reasons are related to a particular image that I had of the country and its medical institutions. That was the reason I was so heartbroken after the referendum. [I felt] gradually but steadily marginalised, alienated and devalued in British society. I used to think of the NHS as our NHS, used to be so proud of it. Then because of [the introduction of] policies restricting access to some groups like undocumented migrants, it didnt feel like my NHS any more. There are so many features to my identity that are vulnerable, and this is just painted over by the clapping. I become invisible as a migrant, as an EU citizen. If you look around, look at the faces in the real-life NHS. They resemble the faces of [UK far-right figure] Nigel Farages anti-immigration bus. B illionaire Sir Richard Branson today warned Virgin Atlantic will need financial aid from the Government in order to survive the coronavirus crisis as he defended himself amid backlash over a bailout request. As the Virgin Group boss works "day and night" to save jobs, he says the airline needs taxpayers' support in the form of a commercial loan. Sir Richard has also said he will put his private Caribbean island up as a collateral in his attempt to persuade the Government to save the airline from going bust. In an open letter to staff, published on Monday, Sir Richard said this period was "the most challenging time" he has ever faced during his five decades in business. It comes after he faced intense criticism for trying to convince ministers to give Virgin Atlantic a 500m bailout to help it survive the economic fallout from the pandemic. 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 He wrote: "It is hard to find the words to convey what a devastating impact this pandemic continues to have on so many communities, businesses and people around the world. "From a business perspective, the damage to many is unprecedented and the length of the disruption remains worryingly unknown." Calling for financial support from the Government, he said: "We will do everything we can to keep the airline going but we will need government support to achieve that in the face of the severe uncertainty surrounding travel today and not knowing how long the planes will be grounded for." With more than 70,000 people working in Virgin companies across 35 countries, Sir Richard said he is doing all he can to protect jobs and keep businesses afloat. Last month, he announced he would be investing 215 million into his Virgin empire to protect jobs amid the crisis. "Together with our Virgin company teams, I am working day and night to look after our people and protect as many jobs as possible," he said. "Were doing all we can to keep those businesses afloat and I am so thankful to all of you who have continued to work so hard in these difficult times." But the 69-year-old said the challenge right now is that there is "no money coming in and lots going out". Coronavirus in numbers: UK hospital death toll rises to 16,060 He said: "Ive seen lots of comments about my net worth but that is calculated on the value of Virgin businesses around the world before this crisis, not sitting as cash in a bank account ready to withdraw. "Over the years significant profits have never been taken out of the Virgin Group, instead they have been reinvested in building businesses that create value and opportunities. "The challenge right now is that there is no money coming in and lots going out." It comes after Labours shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald urged Sir Richard to look to his own considerable reserves withdraw his proposal that Virgin airlines staff take eight weeks unpaid leave to mitigate the economic consequences of the crisis. Mr Branson has called for Government support for the airlines industry / Getty Images Sir Richard addressed the criticism about the wage cut and said: "This was a virtually unanimous decision made by Virgin Atlantic employees and their unions who collectively chose to do this to save as many jobs as possible it was not forced upon them by management." The airline is one of many to have brought in drastic measures to cope with a fall in passenger demand, due to global travel restrictions and the reluctance to travel due to the disease. Despite Mr McDonald urging the Government not to offer Sir Richard financial support "until he is down to his last billion", Sir Richard called for the Government to support the airlines industry during this "unprecedented crisis" in the open letter. Virgin airlines is one of many to have brought in drastic measures to cope with falling passenger demand / Getty Images He said: "This would be in the form of a commercial loan it wouldnt be free money and the airline would pay it back (as easyJet will do for the 600m loan the government recently gave them). "The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it. "Without it there wont be any competition left and hundreds of thousands more jobs will be lost, along with critical connectivity and huge economic value. Virgin Atlantic started with one plane 36 years ago. Over those years it has created real competition for British Airways, which must remain fierce for the benefit of our wonderful customers and the public at large." He also expressed concern about the consequences of the collapse of Virgin Australia. "We are hopeful that Virgin Australia can emerge stronger than ever, as a more sustainable, financially viable airline," he said. "If Virgin Australia disappears, Qantas would effectively have a monopoly of the Australian skies. We all know what that would lead to." Sir Richard hit back at those criticising Virgin Money Giving, the company's non-profit fundraising platform, for the fees it takes when processing a donation to charity. "Virgin Money Giving never makes a profit and never will," he said. Europe takes it's first steps out of Coronavirus lockdown 1 /25 Europe takes it's first steps out of Coronavirus lockdown People queue at a hardware store during a partial reopening after the Austrian government eased lockdown restrictions Reuters A worker checks the temperature of a customer at the entrance of a supermarket in Itay Reuters Customers hold flowers in front of a DIY store in Graz, Austria, after it re-opened on April 14, 2020, following a "shutdown" in a measure to limit the spread of the new coronavirus APA/AFP via Getty Images People wearing protective face masks and gloves walk in the streets as the Italian government allows the reopening of some shops while a nationwide lockdown continues following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Venice, Italy, Reuters People queue to enter a hardware store during a partial reopening after the Austrian government eased restrictions following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Eisenstadt, Austria Reuters Camilla Cocchi wears a face mask and gloves as she sorts out clothing in her children's clothes shop after it was allowed to reopen following lockdown measures to contain the spread of Covid-19, in Rome AP A man wearing a face mask shops in a hardware store during a partial reopening after the Austrian government eased restrictions following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Eisenstadt, Austria Reuters "Respect the 2 meters distance" banner is seen at a fish stand as the Italian government allows the reopening of some shops while a nationwide lockdown continues following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Venice, Italy, Reuters Customers wearing face masks push shopping carts in front of a DIY store in Vienna, Austria, after it re-opened on April 14, 2020, following a "shutdown" in a measure to limit the spread of the new coronavirus APA/AFP via Getty Images A worker checks the temperature of a customer at the entrance of a supermarket, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Turin, Italy Reuters Customers line up in front of a DIY store in Graz, Austria APA/AFP via Getty Images Gianfranco Mandas wears a face mask as he sorts out clothing in his children's clothes shop after it was allowed to opens following restriction measures to contain the spread of Covid-19, in Rome AP Customers wearing face masks push shopping carts in front of a DIY store in Vienna, Austria, after it re-opened on April 14, 2020, following a "shutdown" in a measure to limit the spread of the new coronavirus APA/AFP via Getty Images Customers queue at the Trastevere market, as new restrictions for open-air markets are implemented to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Rome, Italy, Reuters Customers wearing face masks push shopping carts in front of a DIY store in Vienna, Austria, after it re-opened on April 14, 2020, following a "shutdown" in a measure to limit the spread of the new coronavirus APA/AFP via Getty Images A man wears a protective face mask and gloves at the newsstand as the Italian government allows the reopening of some shops while a nationwide lockdown continues following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Venice, Italy Reuters People wearing face masks work in a hardware store during a partial reopening after the Austrian government eased restrictions following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Eisenstadt, Austria Reuters Customers queue at the Trastevere market, as new restrictions for open-air markets are implemented to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Rome, Italy Reuters A general view of the parking area of a hardware store during the partial reopening of shops after the Austrian government loosens its lockdown restrictions during the global coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna Reuters The businessman also took the opportunity to address criticism about living in the British Virgin Islands and said he will put his private island up as a collateral. "There have been comments about my home," he said. "Joan and I did not leave Britain for tax reasons but for our love of the beautiful British Virgin Islands and in particular Necker Island, which I bought when I was 29 years old, as an uninhabited island on the edges of the BVI. "Over time, we built our family home here. The rest of the island is run as a business, which employs 175 people. "As with other Virgin assets, our team will raise as much money against the island as possible to save as many jobs as possible around the group." Prof Sarah Gilbert talks about coronavirus vaccines Outlining the steps his businesses have taken to assist in the pandemic,Sir Richard said the Virgin Orbit team have designed and developed new mass producible ventilators, while Virgin Galactic and partners have designed and developed oxygen hoods. Virgin Unite has also donated millions to support community health workers on the ground in Africa, he said. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast He signed off the letter to his staff by saying: "It really breaks my heart to see the impact this pandemic is having across peoples lives and businesses around the world. "When this crisis passes, as it eventually will, the world will be very different to the one we are used to. "I know we will come out stronger and kinder to each other as a result. Ambuja Cements seeks production start from 20 April ICR Newsroom By 20 April 2020 LafargeHolcim subsidiary Ambuja Cements plans to start production in phases at its plants across India from 20 April and is seeking government approval. The company had suspended operations on 23 March due to the coronavirus pandemic. The company is taking steps to adhere to the standard operating procedure for social distancing mandated by the government in the new guidelines issued by the government on 15 April, it said in a regulatory filing. "The company is seeking necessary permissions/approvals from the relevant government authorities for resumption of operations at various locations from April 20, 2020, in a phased manner. "The operations at various locations will be resumed in full compliance of the said order and conditions/directives as may be mentioned in the approval by the relevant government authorities," it said. Ambuja Cements operated five integrated cement plants and eight grinding units with a total cement capacity of 29.65Mta. Published under President Trump's former deputy national security adviser, Victoria Coates, is denying new allegations that she is "Anonymous" the author behind a New York Times op-ed and later a book detailing a resistance movement against President Trump within his own administration. What she's saying: "The allegations published in Real Clear Investigations are utterly false. I am not Anonymous, and I do not know who Anonymous is," Coates says in a new statement obtained by Axios. Cleta Mitchell, Coates lawyer, adds that RealClearInvestigations "peddled false statements citing only anonymous sources, despite on-the-record denials from Javelin LLC (the literary agent for Anonymous), the White House, and three well-respected former members of the Trump Administrationand now Dr. Coates as well." "We are continuing to explore all available legal options," Mitchell concluded. Details: Earlier this week, RealClearInvestigations published a story asserting that a months-long White House investigation identified Coates as "Anonymous," citing "people familiar with the internal probe." Coates had declined to comment on the record for the story. RealClearInvestigations did not immediately respond to a request for a response to Coates' statement. Between the lines: The allegations against Coates aren't new. Last fall, rumors claiming Coates was the "Anonymous" writer began circulating throughout Washington, despite the administration rejecting the allegations against her. A bright red robot at the district collectorate here is helping people maintain social distancing and minimise spread of coronavirus by dispensing sanitiser to staff and visitors. Fitted with sensors, the robot detects human presence and dispenses sanitiser. Such robots will soon be deployed in hospitals in the district for giving food, water and medicines to patients to help reduce contact between healthcare workers and positive cases. "We have deployed a robot, made by local engineering students, at COVID-19 control room at the collectorate. The robot is used for giving sanitisers to employees and visitors, thereby avoiding human involvement in the job," District Magistrate, Bulandshahr Ravindra Kumar told PTI. The robot, which has the capability to walk, can work for one to one-and-a-half hours at a stretch after which its battery needs to be recharged. As of now, it will dispense only sanitiser. "Presently, we have only one robot. But, we are facilitating the makers to buy spare parts so that they can deliver two more. Very soon, we will be using services of robots for giving food, water and medicines to patients in hospitals," the DM said. These robots will not only help doctors and staff but also prevent them from direct contact, thus avoiding infections, he stressed. He said credit for the robot goes to local techies - Nishant Sharma and Atul Kumar - both pursuing engineering courses at separate private institutions in Noida. Sharma said, "When we came to know about the disease and the way it spreads, we thought of doing something. We made this robot after toiling for over a month. "We named it 'Delta 3.0'. It has sensors and as one comes near, the gadget pours sanitiser in the hand of the person," he explained. The robot has a display and speaker through which it can give instructions to patients and display the fed message or slogans, Sharma said. It is controlled through a mobile application, he said, adding that it costs over Rs 1 lakh but if supported by the government the price could be brought down. Till Sunday, Bulandshahr district has reported 15 coronavirus cases of whom two have been discharged while one COVID-19 positive patient has died. Health officials said 12 active cases were still there. Among the affected persons, nine belonged to Tablighi Jamaat. The DM said that each of those in institutional or home quarantine have been given a soap, two washable face masks and hand sanitisers. "We are also giving 25 kg bleaching powder and 20 litres of sodium hypochlorite for sanitisation of villages as a precautionary measure," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) How COVID-19 Impacted PPE Supplies How PPE Supplies Help in the Battle Against COVID-19 Cough Fever Shortness of breath Finding COVID-19 PPE Supplies PPE Tips: Testing Your Face Mask Put on your face mask Hold your lighter six inches from your mouth, then activate 3.Blow on the flame and try to extinguish it Put on your face mask Empty a packet of Sweet N Low onto a spoon or flat surface Try sniffing with the mask on and the mask off, noting any difference Hold your face mask by the elastic bands, with the inside of the mask facing up Fill the mask with water Helping Our Communities: Donating COVID-19 PPE Supplies Northwestern Hospital Chicago Police Department NorthShore Skokie Hospital Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare Childrens Wisconsin-Michigan Northwest Community Hospital In the last month, the COVID-19 pandemic has flipped our country on its head. Businesses are shutting their doors, families are sheltering in place, and our fearless health-care workers are heading into a battlefield every day.COVID-19, also referred to as the novel coronavirus, first appeared in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, and has spread across the globe in the last four months. With cases now exceeding the million mark, the health-care industry is overwhelmed with new patients daily. As hospitals are inundated with coronavirus patients, supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) have dwindled.iPromo has taken notice and taken action. Were proud to now offer certified face masks and other lifesaving PPE supplies that health-care workers, essential business owners, and government agencies need in our iHealth line of products.As coronavirus cases increased across the country, fear and panic led American citizens to stockpile face masks and other essential PPE supplies, and manipulative opportunists have taken to price gouging.The opportunists who hoarded these coronavirus relief supplies then turned around to resell them at significant markups , which led online marketplaces to ban sales of these products whether sellers were legitimate or not.Unfortunately, as the public has purchased face masks in bulk and marketplaces have shut down sales of these products, health-care professionals and essential service workers are left without.The World Health Organization (WHO) released interim guidance for the rational use of personal protective equipment for COVID-19:Based on the available evidence, the COVID-19 virus is transmitted between people through close contact and droplets, not by airborne transmission. The people most at risk of infection are those who are in close contact with a COVID-19 patient or who care for COVID-19 patients (WHO, February 27, 2020).PPE is used by health-care personnel to protect themselves, patients, and others when providing care to those affected by this pandemic. Coronavirus PPE can help prevent the spread of this terrible disease. PPE shortages are proving to be a disastrous challenge for U.S. health-care facilities, government agencies, and essential service businesses.As health-care and essential business workers across the country beg their hospitals, local governments, and president for more protective equipment, honest manufacturers and distributors are scrambling to meet demand in this unprecedented situation.iPromo has answered this call. Thanks to our longstanding relationships with foreign vendors, weve been able to completely shift our strategy to ensure our nations health-care workers, essential service businesses, and government agencies have the coronavirus relief supplies they need to protect themselves.Our owner, Leo Friedman, spent endless nights speaking with our suppliers, working on switching our supply chain from promotional products to hand sanitizer, face masks, digital thermometers, and other crucial certified COVID-19 PPE products.Weve started iHealth, transitioning from our traditional offerings of branded merchandise to securing critical health products and medical supplies for health-care workers in our home city of Chicago and across our great nation.Coronavirus PPE supplies are essential for mitigating the spread of the coronavirus. COVID-19 symptoms overlap with other health conditions, such as the flu, common cold, and allergies. The most common symptoms include:Source: WHOIn rare cases, COVID-19 can lead to severe respiratory problems, kidney failure or death. COVID-19 protective gear can help prevent the spread of infectious particles, helping curb this pandemics growth.Ensuring health-care workers and essential business owners have access to protective personal equipment is mission critical, and we are proud to play our part in this effort. We are committed to providing necessary health products at fair prices, no price gouging, no false promises.As we process orders, health-care services, government agencies, and essential services are given first priority.Personal protective equipment is limited in the United States and it can be difficult to track down the essentials. Were proud to offer necessary health-care products needed for health-care professionals and essential service businesses who need them.See the list below to determine which coronavirus PPE items we currently have available, along with updated delivery windows:Note: Speed of delivery varies on air cargo availability and quantity ordered due to extreme demand for essential PPE supplies. Rely on our 20 years of international sourcing expertise to deliver for you as fast as possible. Please reach out to our team with any questions about delivery windows.Our guiding principle: No price gouging. Transparency is paramount; because the cost of shipping makes up the bulk of total expense, you can review our hand sanitizer options to be shipped by sea or air, so that you understand exactly where the cost originates.Before wearing your respirator face mask, its important to know that its reliable. While most dont have access to lab-level testing equipment, you can apply OSHAs N95 quality standards to KN95 face masks. The following three tests can help you verify the quality of your face mask within 10 seconds:If you cannot blow out the flame, your mask is certified. If you are able to blow out the flame, the mask is of poor quality.Certified lab-tested KN95 masks are made of strong, full-mesh nylon which meets strict standards for inspiratory and expiratory resistance. The material should obstruct airborne contagions during inhalation and exhalation without reducing air circulation.: If you can barely detect a sweet scent, your mask is of high quality. If you can still smell the Sweet N Low completely, its a poor-quality mask.A certified lab tested KN95 mask is designed to filter out at least 95 percent of particles sized 3 microns or larger. Sweet N Low is made up of saccharin, which has particles of 7 microns in size. If youre able to smell Sweet N Low through your mask, its not filtering well.If the mask cups the water with zero leakage, its of high quality. If water leaks, the quality is low.Certified masks feature a waterproof layer to protect the wearer from biological fluids. OSHA says that your mask can be washed for reuse if it maintains its structural and functional integrity and the filter material is not physically damaged or soiled.If youre not in the medical industry and want to find DIY alternatives so that lifesaving COVID-19 PPE supplies go to our hardworking health-care workers, here are a few resources:If you find yourself with more COVID-19 protective gear than you need, donation is key.We are so grateful to the hardworking healthcare and essential business owners working tirelessly to keep our world turning. To show our thanks and help with the fight against the coronavirus, we are donating lifesaving face masks to local hospitals. Thus far, weve donated medical supplies to:During this time of uncertainty, we must all come together for the greater good. If you have access to medical supplies or would like to purchase PPE supplies for donation, see these guidelines from The Wall Street Journal, and check out these donation requests from hospitals across the country:Check outand learn how were working to help our country in this time of need.At iPromo, our current mission is to deliver high-quality COVID-19 protective gear as quickly as possible to health-care systems, government agencies, and essential service businesses that need to stay open and interact with the public. Give us a call today to place an order for these lifesaving supplies. Vietnam plans to reduce the rate of underweight and malnourished children under five to less than 15 percent by 2030. Ethnic minority children in Bat Xat district, the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai (Photo: VNA) The target is set in a programme on the protection and development of ethnic minorities for 2021-2030 which has been approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. The plan prioritises ethnic minority people residing in 12 provinces, namely Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Tuyen Quang, Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh and Kon Tum. It aims to drastically reduce maternal and child mortality rates as well as malnutrition among children under five, contributing to improving the quality of the population and ensuring equal development among ethnic groups. Vietnam is home to 52 minority groups who make up 14 percent of its population of 96 million. Child malnutrition remains a major problem in the country, especially among ethnic minority communities in remote areas. According to the National Assemblys Council for Ethnic Affairs, the prevalence of undernutrition among ethnic minorities mainly exists in the Central Highlands, North Central region and northern mountainous region. Ethnic minority groups that have the highest rates are Chut, Bo Y, Ro Mam and Si La with 40, 35, 30 and 21.7 percent, respectively. A World Bank report released in December last year found that nearly 1 in 3 ethnic minority children are affected by stunting, more than twice as much as the Kinh majority; and 21 percent of ethnic minority children are underweight, a ratio 2.5 times higher than that of their Kinh peers. Stunting is linked to lower economic productivity, including a 10-percent reduction in lifetime earnings. When multiplied across an entire nation, poor nutrition can cost a nation up to three percent of its GDP annually, it said. According to the programme, by 2025, the rate of underweight and malnourished children under five will be reduced to less than 20 percent. The number of child marriages and consanguineous marriage will be cut by 2-3 percent per year and more than 35 percent of youths would receive pre-marital advice and health examinations for early detection of infectious diseases and HIV. The rate of maternal mortality will decrease by 25 percent and mortality rate among children under one will fall by 2-5 percent. At least 50 percent of pregnant mothers and newborns will be screened for the four most common congenital diseases. By 2030, the number of child marriages and consanguineous marriage is expected to be reduced by 3-5 percent per year, while more than 50 percent of youths will receive pre-marital advice and health examination for early detection of infectious diseases and HIV. At least 70 percent of pregnant mothers and newborns will be screened for the five most common congenital diseases. Nearly all ethnic minority people aged between 15 and 60 can read and write. Up to 70 percent of workers will receive appropriate training required for local development. In November last year, the National Assembly passed a resolution on the master plan on socio-economic development in ethnic minority-inhabited, mountainous and extremely disadvantaged areas in the 2021-2030 period. Under the master plan, by 2025, the income of the ethnic minority population would double that of 2020s figure while the ratio of poor households would fall by 3 percent a year. Infrastructure-wise, all schools, classrooms and medical stations are expected to be built or upgraded with duration in mind, 100 percent of communes are expected to have cement roads leading to their centres, 99 percent of households have access to the national power grid or other suitable power sources, 90 percent of the residents have access to clean water and 100 percent of the population have access to television and radio. By 2030, average income per capita of ethnic minority people would account for half of the national one. The poverty rate will be cut to under 10 percent. The plan also sets the targets of having 40 percent of the ethnic minority population being capable or trained in industrial jobs, tourism and service sectors, while 80 percent of rural households are to be engaged in commercial agricultural production./.VNS New approaches needed to address malnutrition in ethnic minority children: WB report Vietnam needs new approaches that are designed based on geographic conditions and cultural characteristics of ethnic minority communities to address the persistent malnutrition among ethnic minority children, said a WB report. New Delhi: Facing fraud and money laundering amounting to an alleged Rs 9,000 crore, 64-year-old liquor baron Vijay Mallya's appeal against an extradition order to India was rejected by UK High Court on Monday (April 20). The former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the High Court at a hearing in February 2020. According to reports, Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the appeal, dismissed Mallya's appeal in a judgment handed down remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. The Lord Justices is quoted as saying, "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India." The 64-year-old embattled businessman has recently denied wrongdoing stating that he intends to repay those loans. On April 10, the High Court in London had deferred hearings on a plea by the SBI-led consortium of Indian banks, seeking the indebted tycoon to be declared bankrupt to enable them to recover a loan from him, according to a PTI report. Justice Michael Briggs of the insolvency division of the High Court had granted relief to Mallya, ruling that he should be given time till his petitions to the Supreme Court of India and his settlement proposal before the Karnataka High Court be determined, allowing him time to repay his debts to the banks in full. "This bankruptcy petition is by any measure extraordinary. The banks are pressing for a bankruptcy order at a time when there are extant proceedings in India," read the judgment, adding "In my judgment the banks are secured, at least in part? The hearing of the petition should be adjourned for the purpose of amendment and for time to pay the debts in full." A consortium of Indian public sector banks led by the State Bank of India had sought a bankruptcy order against Mallya as part of efforts to recoup around GBP 1.145 billion of unpaid loans from Mallya. On March 31, Mallya had tweeted, "I have made repeated offers to pay 100 percent of the amount borrowed by KFA to the Banks. Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks. I wish the FM would listen in this time of crisis." Mallya is wanted in India under charges of financial fraud worth around Rs 9,000 crore in borrowings by his Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) from several Indian banks. The case followed the collapse of his defunct Kingfisher Airlines. Mallya was arrested in April 2017, in London on India's request for extradition. The liquor baron was granted bail but was again arrested in London in October 2017, following an Enforcement Directorate (ED) affidavit. In December 2018, a UK court had ordered the extradition of Vijay Mallya. Queen Elizabeth II's husband, Prince Philip, on Monday issued a rare statement to praise all those working on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic and thank key workers who have been keeping vital services up and running across the UK. The 98-year-old royal, who retired from public duties in 2017 and has only occasionally been seen in public since, has been based at Windsor Castle with the Queen, 93, during the lockdown imposed to try and curb the spread of the deadly virus. "As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all united in working to protect us from Covid-19, reads his brief message issued by Buckingham Palace on the royal family's social media channels. "On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services going, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected," he said. Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, is affiliated to more than 750 organisations, including the scientific, technological research, healthcare and infrastructure sectors which have been responding to the coronavirus outbreak. The message comes a day before the Queen's 94th birthday, which will be marked in a subdued way this year after the monarch cancelled the traditional gun salutes as well as the Trooping of the Colour parade, usually held in early June, amid the Covid-19 lockdown. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a statement, Julius Neequaye Kotey, the Constituency Communication Officer of the party rebuked Metro TVs Paul Adom Otchere, host of Good Evening Show for his unsubstantiated attacks on Dr Zanetor Agyemang-Rawlings for exposing the biases and ruthlessness of government towards innocent citizens. Read the full statement below; PRESS RELEASE Sunday, April 19, 2020 A STATEMENT FROM KLOTTEY KORLE CONSTITUENCY NDC ON THE PARTISAN DISTRIBUTION OF COVID-19 RELIEF ITEMS AND A RESPONSE TO ATTACKS ON HON ZANETOR AGYEMAN-RAWLINGS Fraternity greetings from Klottey Korley Constituency NDC to all media practitioners living up to the dreams of project Ghana. Thanks to your resilience, in times such as the world, is overwhelmed with covid-19, you go the extra mile to feed the social-distanced, contact-traced and the locked-down with every form of information you fetch. Ayekooo!!! Sincerely speaking, information gathered and corroborated by most media outlets on government distribution of relief items to the deprived, the less privileged and the vulnerable in society, has been marred and exposed in a scandal of partisan considerations, which didn't leave Klottey Korley Constituency out of its frequency and spread. Klottey Korley Constituency had a fair share of this unfair and unjust public humiliation and ill-treatment, as firmly confided by the MP, Hon Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings; and contained in her statement of admonishment to government and it's agencies and agents. She didn't act in isolation. Her public condemnation was evidence-based, if the discerning and objective media will admit. Whereas a rebuttal and a rejoinder were anticipated to her statement, the official response from the Metropolitan Chief Executive of AMA, Mohammed Adjei Sowah, from the Korle Klottey Municipal Chief Executive, Nii Adjei Tawiah, and from such other NPP activists and government functionaries in commentaries, were full of biases and fraught with intransigence, inconsistencies and fail to publicly accept to address these reported anomalies. It is also a frightening and a regrettable dimension of collusion the complaints by Hon Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings have assumed, as other people, including Paul Adom Okyere, used the opportunity to lower his diminished credentials. In his cowardice, he took advantage of her dismissed presence and a right to a rejoinder to lump her together with the NDC and the Rawlingses to ravenous and gullible revenge. This same Paul Adom Okyere in a later interview with Umar Sanda, Citinews, admitted he never spoke to Hon Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings or granted her an opportunity to clarify her statements on his programme, Good Evening Ghana. It seems Paul hasn't learnt the hard lessons which banned him from ever reapplying to study at Ghana Law School, after his concocted stories about a lecturer were exposed by a Commission so set to investigate allegations he levelled against this said lecturer. Otherwise, it was [and should] never [be] the editorial policy of Metro TV and the programme Good Evening Ghana to use the platform to launch scathing attacks on perceived political opponents. Paul Adom Okyere, undoubtedly influenced by his appointment by the government as a board member of NCA, is using the platform to pursue a political agenda in service to his privileged appointment. This leaves a vacuum of good faith and trust for other panelists appearing on the programme, of which he is the host. It is incumbent to call the NDC to boycott the programme. After all, Good Morning Ghana is a better and a confirmed replacement. And if his employer is listening, it is that time to relieve Metro TV from such ego bloated, condescending and reckless character full of himself. This is also an opportunity to commend President John Dramani Mahama, for a demonstrated steadfast and high calibre leadership qualities shown through irresistible pragmatic directives, which government has announced in indications to adopt and adhere, albeit begrudgingly and faulted. Some of the directives include a call for government to absorb utility tariffs on water and electricity. He also called on government to dialogue on tax cuts for small scale businesses, reduce hikes in fuel prices and the reduce internet data voice charges. Klottey Korley Constituency NDC expresses gratitude to President John Dramani Mahama for the donation of PPEs and gum boots to district, regional and referral hospitals. Other items donated include medical supplies and equipment to front line health workers and food items to communities hard hit by the imperatives of the partial lockdown. Besides the call to government to open the Navrongo Research Centre and another at Tamale for testing of cases from that part of the country, President John Dramani Mahama further advised government to establish a modern center for studies in diseases. Earlier, the NDC Flagbearer led the way by first forming a Technical Advisory Team for Covid-19 to back government initiatives. All these salient approaches go to compliment his extraordinary and unmatched public-spirited service for God and country, which characterised his tenure of office from 2012-2016, a period acknowledged as unprecedented in infrastructural development and projects, in the entire history of Ghana. May God continue to give you more strength and wisdom, as Ghanaians wait eagerly for your return to complete the full delivery of yet another tenure to transform Ghana. Eye zu! ! ! Klottey Korley Constituency NDC Communications Bureau Julius Logass. 0244 727777 Infosys on Monday said its few employees globally have tested positive for COVID-19, and the company has undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who interacted with them, in order to ensure they are appropriately quarantined. The company -- which announced its Q4 and full year FY20 earnings on Monday but suspended the standard pratice of giving revenue outlook citing business uncertainty -- said it has anticipated a continued slowdown in the near-term influenced by a broad-based global economic recession. "A few Infosys employees across the world have tested positive for COVID-19. The company is in touch with them and their families to provide active and continuous support to help them through the rest and recovery. "Infosys has also undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who have interacted with them and ensuring that they are appropriately quarantined," Infosys said in a statement. The company said with lockdowns effective in several parts of the world, 93 per cent of the Infosys global workforce is now working from home. Infosys is approaching plans in the weeks ahead "with cautious optimism", while carefully monitoring advisories and adapting tactics to policies and injunctions in the cities, states and countries that it operates in. "Infosys has completed scenario-planning for when its employees, in incremental batches, will return to work out of its global offices, and client offices, while adhering to the social distancing prescriptions for workplaces and strictly as per local regulatory advisories. Employee safety will not be compromised even as the company relies on project requirements to drive the on-premise and remote staffing mix," it said. Infosys said it will honour the job offers it has extended to the markets, in order to enhance the skill-sets it can bring to recovery-focused client environments. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Kent Harrington (The Jakarta Post) Project Syndicate/Atlanta Mon, April 20, 2020 11:04 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2f55fb 3 Opinion CIA,Donald-Trump,united-states,US,COVID-19,coronavirus Free Intelligence agencies are used to making headlines when they fail to do their job. But after months of US President Donald Trump ignoring their warnings about COVID-19, and after years of his administration discounting their alerts about the danger of a pandemic more generally, it is time that intelligence professionals receive the credit they deserve. It should come as no surprise that Trump repeatedly dismissed intelligence about the threat of the coronavirus throughout January and February. Trump has long made clear that he has no patience for those who dont pander to his views. When intelligence leaders contradicted him on several issues in their annual briefing to Congress last year, he told them to go back to school. This year, the bill for Trumps war on intelligence is coming due in the form of lost lives and overwhelmed health-care systems. US intelligence agencies had sounded the alarm and even provided the enemys battleplan, detailing precisely how a novel coronavirus pandemic would unfold. Still, the wannabe wartime president did nothing. Res ipsa loquitur the negligence speaks for itself. Most Americans will never see the raw intelligence and in-depth analysis that the president receives every day, nor can anyone who is not on the front lines appreciate the sheer breadth of national-security challenges that intelligence analysts and officers must follow. That is why the public briefings by intelligence leaders are so important, especially when they expose the presidents own willful ignorance. Obviously, public briefings cannot lay out every detail about the issues the intelligence community tracks. But as someone who worked on dozens of unclassified briefings at the CIA, I know that professional analysts do their utmost to portray classified findings accurately, even as they protect their sources and methods. Consider the annual threat briefing to Congress, which has been postponed indefinitely for this year. In delivering the assessment, the Director of National Intelligence offers a unified perspective drawn from a wide array of agencies whose primary job is to find facts and track their implications. In the 2019 briefing that so upset Trump, then-DNI Dan Coats reaffirmed the intelligence communitys conclusion that Russia had interfered in the 2016 election on Trumps behalf, and warned that Trumps bromance with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un had not diminished that countrys nuclear ambitions. More to the point, the DNIs annual briefing has repeatedly warned about the risk of a global pandemic. The intelligence community first raised the alert immediately after President Barack Obama took office in January 2009, when then-DNI Dennis Blair testified that, The most pressing transnational health challenge for the United States is still the potential for emergence of a severe pandemic, with the primary candidate being a highly lethal influenza virus. Following the 2009 H1NI (swine flu) outbreak, Blair doubled down in 2010, highlighting the potential for a pandemic to disrupt the economy. A lack of consistent surveillance and diagnostic capability for diseases in animals, he said, undermines the United States ability to identify, contain, and warn about local outbreaks before they spread. Blairs successor, James Clapper, delivered the same message in March 2013, but also refined the US assessment of the threat with prescient detail. Pointing to the growing danger posed by zoonotic viruses, he warned that an easily transmissible, novel respiratory pathogen that kills or incapacitates more than 1 percent of its victims is among the most disruptive events possible. Such an outbreak would result in a global pandemic. In foretelling the COVID-19 pandemic exactly, Clapper made clear that, This is not a hypothetical threat. Trump received the same message in May 2017, when Coats highlighted a World Bank assessment predicting that a pandemic would cost the world around 5 percent of GDP. Coats then issued the same warning in 2019, testifying that, The United States and the world will remain vulnerable to the next flu pandemic or large-scale outbreak of a contagious disease that could lead to massive rates of death and disability, severely affect the world economy, strain international resources, and increase calls on the United States for support. Is anyone surprised that Coatss successor isnt bothering with a briefing this year? But the DNIs annual assessments arent the only unclassified briefings that show the extent of Trumps negligence in the face of the pandemic. Every four years, the National Intelligence Council, the US intelligence communitys senior analytical body, produces Global Trends, a forecast of the forces likely to shape the decades ahead. The timing isnt coincidental: the strategic outlook appears when administrations change, offering presidents a long-term international perspective with which to fashion or refurbish their national-security goals. Trump has described the COVID-19 pandemic as an unforeseen problem that came out of nowhere. The authors of the past three Global Trends reports would beg to differ, as would the hundreds of experts whom they consult in constructing their analyses. Consider the 2008 report, Global Trends 2025, which was all but oracular. The emergence of a novel, highly transmissible, and virulent human respiratory illness for which there are no adequate countermeasures could initiate a global pandemic, the authors warned. The threat, they added, would likely emerge in an area marked by high population density and close association between humans and animals, such as many areas of China and Southeast Asia. Even with limits placed on international travel, travelers with mild symptoms or who were asymptomatic could carry the disease to other continents. From peddling disinformation about the virus to disbanding the National Security Council directorate overseeing pandemic threats, Trump has squandered multiple opportunities to get ahead of the COVID-19 crisis. The health and economic consequences that we are now experiencing have long been predicted. US intelligence analysts were warning about precisely this scenario for at least 12 years. But even they could not foresee that America would end up with a president willing to sacrifice so many lives on the altar of his ego. *** Former senior CIA analyst, served as national intelligence officer for East Asia, chief of station in Asia, and the CIAs Director of Public Affairs. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. A Russian fighter jet on Sunday intercepted an American Navy spy plane in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea for the second time in four days, the United States military said. The US Navy released a brief, seven-second video clip showing a Russian SU-35 fighter plane fly within 25 feet in front of a P-8A Poseidon aircraft a maneuver that the Pentagon said was 'unsafe and unprofessional.' The American military said that the Russian pilot twice intercepted the US Navy aircraft 'over a period of 100 minutes.' 'The first intercept was deemed safe and professional,' according to a statement from the US Navy's Sixth Fleet. The above image is taken from a short video clip released by the United States Navy's Sixth Fleet. It shows a Russian SU-35 fighter jet intercepting an American P-8A Poseidon aircraft in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday According to the American military, the Russian jet came dangerously close to the US P-8A The Americans said that the SU-35 came within 25 feet of the P-8A, exposing the US aircraft to wake turbulence and jet exhaust' 'The second intercept was determined to be unsafe and unprofessional due to the SU-35 conducting a high-speed, high-powered maneuver that decreased aircraft separation to within 25 feet, directly in front of the P-8A exposing the US aircraft to wake turbulence and jet exhaust.' The P-8A then 'descended to create separation and ensure safety of both aircraft,' according to the Sixth Fleet. 'The unnecessary actions of the Russian SU-35 pilot were inconsistent with good airmanship and international flight rules, seriously jeopardizing the safety of flight of both aircraft.' DailyMail.com has reached out to the Russian government seeking comment about the US Navy's allegations. On Thursday, the US Navy said that a Russian jet flew within 25 feet of a US surveillance plane during an 'unsafe' maneuver at high-speed over the Mediterranean Sea. An SU-35 carried out an 'inverted' intercept on a US P-8A Poseidon aircraft that lasted 42 minutes yesterday, according to the US Navy. According to the statement one of the Navy's aircraft was intercepted by the Russian jet while flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea. It was claimed by the Navy that its aircraft 'was operating consistent with international law and did not provoke this Russian activity' when it was approached by the jet. This is the second time this week that the Navy says one of its planes was intercepted by a Russian aircraft. A Russian fighter jet intercepted a US aircraft over international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea on Wednesday (pictured Russian SU-35's in a file image) A US P-8A Poseidon aircraft (picture above in a file image) was involved in an 'unsafe' inverted maneuver by a Russian SU-35 The US Navy said the smaller Russian jet flew 'unsafe' and at 'a high-speed, inverted maneuver', 25 feet directly in front of the American aircraft, although it is not clear which direction the plane was travelling at the time The Navy's 6th Fleet, which is based in Gaeta on Italy's western coast, described the incident as 'irresponsible'. It said in a statement: 'The interaction was determined to be unsafe due to the SU-35 conducting a high-speed, inverted maneuver, 25 feet directly in front of the mission aircraft, which put our pilots and crew at risk. 'The crew of the P-8A reported wake turbulence following the interaction. The duration of the intercept was approximately 42 minutes. 'While the Russian aircraft was operating in international airspace, this interaction was irresponsible. 'We expect them to behave within international standards set to ensure safety and to prevent incidents.' The crew of the P-8A Poseidon was said to have experienced 'wake turbulence' during the inverted maneuver. The Navy's 6th Fleet is based in Gaeta on Italy's western coast and Russia has a base at the Khmeimim Air Base in Latakia, in Hmeimim. The interception happened over international airspace in the Mediterranean F-22 stealth jets intercepted four Russian bombers and two Russian Su-35 fighter jets off the coast of Alaska and four Russian Tupolev Tu-95 bombers (one shown above) A Russian SU-35 jet performed a similar maneuver towards a P-8A Poseidon over the Mediterranean Sea in June 2019. The jet 'dangerously buzzed' the US aircraft three times over three hours and conducted a pass directly in front of it. Officials from the 6th Fleet said at the time that the US plane was not trying to bait or 'provoke this Russian activity', adding again that the stunt was 'irresponsible'. The recent encounter comes as Russia performed another provocative test on Wednesday by firing an anti-satellite missile, according to US Space Command. Russia's missile system is capable of destroying satellites in low Earth orbit and comes on the heels of Russia's on-orbit testing the US highlighted in February, the statement said. Gen. John W. 'Jay' Raymond, USSPACECOM commander and US Space Force Chief of Space Operations, said the US will defend itself against 'hostile acts in space'. He said in statement: 'The United States is ready and committed to deterring aggression and defending the Nation, our allies and US interests from hostile acts in space. 'This test is further proof of Russia's hypocritical advocacy of outer space arms control proposals designed to restrict the capabilities of the United States while clearly having no intention of halting their counterspace weapons programs. 'Space is critical to all nations and our way of life. The demands on space systems continue in this time of crisis where global logistics, transportation and communication are key to defeating the COVID-19 pandemic. 'It is a shared interest and responsibility of all space-faring nations to create safe, stable and operationally sustainable conditions for space activities, including commercial, civil and national security activities,' Raymond added. Russian and Chinese anti-satellite weapons were cited as one of the reasons for the US to create a Space Force to defend its equipment. It looked more like a flash mob than a political demonstration. But as thousands of masked and socially distanced Israelis gathered at an anti-corruption rally in Tel Avivs Rabin Square on Sunday, an array of opposition politicians belied any impression that this was performance art. Israel has been mired in a political crisis as far back as December 2018, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called early elections just as he was facing corruption charges. Three successive polls have failed to deliver a decisive victory to Netanyahu or any of his rivals, and although Israels longest-serving leader has been formally indicted he was embroiled in 11th-hour negotiations to form a new government as the protests took place. On Monday, Netanyahu and his political rival Benny Gantz signed a coalition deal that will involve them rotating the premiershipwith Netanyahu serving the first 18 months. His critics accuse him of undermining Israels democratic institutions in a bid to hang onto power. A person with indictments cant appoint a police chief, a state prosecutor, an attorney general, the judges who will deal with his case. That is Netanyahus list of demands, opposition lawmaker Yair Lapid told the gathered crowd. Thats how democracies die in the 21st century. Theyre not wiped out by tanks overrunning parliament. They die from within. Lapid defected last month from the opposition Blue and White party after its leader Benny Gantz agreed to serve as Israels parliamentary speaker, a move widely interpreted as a precursor to a power-sharing deal with Netanyahu. Lapid was one of around 2,000 people who attended the Black Flag demonstration in Rabin Square to express their opposition to anti-democratic moves introduced by Netanyahu, according to Israels Haaretz newspaper. Protestors were carefully spaced two meters apart, but the social distancing measures were not the only thing striking about the protest. It brought together a diverse group including former members of Blue and White, including Lapid and Moshe YaalonNetanyahus former Defense Ministeralongside left-wing activists, and lawmakers such as Ayman Odeh, who leads a coalition of four Arab-Israeli dominated parties that Netanyahu has attempted to portray as terror supporters. Story continues Its not easy for me to stand among some of the speakers here tonight, but we need to see the main point only through a joint Jewish-Arab struggle can we succeed, Odeh told protesters, adding that the crisis presented a huge opportunity for a wide Jewish-Arab front for peace and democracy. What connects all the groups and causes is the shout out for Israeli democracy that is being harmed these days by Netanyahu and his allies, Shaqued Morag, executive director of the anti-occupation group Peace Now tells TIME. Morag says she sees Netanyahus plan to annex swathes of Palestinian territoriesa move President Trump greenlit in Januaryas the principal threat to Israeli democracy. But other demonstrators focused on Netanyahus corruption cases, and on the Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, who was negotiating with Netanyahu after having vowed not serve in a government led by a prime minister under indictment. Israelis light flash lights as they protest at a rally in Rabin Square on April 19, 2020 in Tel Aviv, Israel. Thousands of Israelis gather at an Anti-Corruption rally under coronavirus restrictions, decrying proposed unity government talks between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz. (Photo by /Getty Images) | Amir LevyGetty Images Like many world leaders, Netanyahu has enjoyed a recent bump in popularity. In a late March poll, the majority of Israelis said they approved of his handling of COVID-19. That included being one of the first world leaders to impose mandatory quarantine on all foreign arrivals. But his transitional government has also introduced controversial new measures in response to the pandemic. Among them is a new law that allows the countrys internal security agency, the Shin Bet, to trace the cellphones of people believed to have come into contact with COVID-19. For human rights advocates, the lawwhich passed without parliamentary debateconstitutes a potentially dangerous expansion of the states surveillance apparatus. We see it as a way in which the occupation leaks from the West Bank to the Israeli society, says Peace Nows Morag. These are tactics that are used in order to govern civic space with military technologies. Besides the popularity bump, the COVID-19 crisis has bought Netanyahu several other political benefits: it delayed his corruption trial, which had been scheduled to start on March 17; it also bolstered his calls for the formation of an Emergency Government to navigate the pandemic. In late March, Gantz and Netanyahu were reportedly close to a power-sharing agreement that would have allowed Netanyahu to remain prime minister until September 2021, with Gantz rescinding on a pre-election promise not to work with the indicted Likud leader. Days later, Netanyahu scuppered that deal anyway, imposing a set of last-minute demands. Netanyahus demands now include the power to appoint a police chief, state prosecutor, and attorney general Yapid told protesters, comparing the deterioration of democracy in Israel to the process that has occurred in Hungary and Turkey. They say, Well fight from the inside. You wont fight from the inside, Lapid said in remarks that appeared to target his former running-mate Gantz. You dont fight corruption from within. If youre inside, youre part of it. [newsletter-time-talks] An overwhelming majority of Britons believe Boris Johnson should demand an international investigation into China's handling of the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak. Over 80 per cent of people in the UK want Beijing to face a global inquiry into what happened, according to a poll commissioned by the Henry Jackson Society think tank. Meanwhile, seven in ten people believe ministers should try to take legal action against the Chinese government if it is found to have broken international law in relation to its outbreak response. The poll numbers come amid rising Tory MP fury over the communist state's actions, with Beijing having faced repeated questions over the accuracy of its death toll figures. Boris Johnson, pictured in Downing Street on March 19, is under growing pressure to demand an international probe into China's handling of the initial coronavirus outbreak There are now growing calls for an international probe with senior Conservatives urging the government to conduct a total reset of relations with China once the pandemic is over. Downing Street sources have previously warned China it faces a 'reckoning' over its handling of the outbreak. Any push by the UK government for China to open itself up to an investigation would have the support of most of the British public, based on the latest poll's findings. The survey, published by The Times, found that three quarters of Britons - 74 per cent - believe China is to blame for the spread of the disease. The growing backlash against the Chinese government has also prompted renewed pressure on Downing Street to revisit its decision to grant Huawei a role in building the UK's 5G network. The US has urged its allies not to use the Chinese tech giant in critical infrastructure due to security concerns. Those concerns have always been rejected by Huawei. Some 40 per cent of the British people are opposed to Huawei being involved in the network while 27 per cent are in favour of the firm being involved. The Henry Jackson Society has suggested the UK could win hundreds of millions of pounds in damages if it was to pursue legal action against China over the outbreak. Alan Mendoza, executive director of the society, said: 'It's now up to the government to act on its promise this week that there will not be "business as usual" with China post-pandemic, and that it's listening to the British people's views about who is to blame.' Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab last week warned China it faces 'hard questions' about the source of the coronavirus disease. He said there would have to be a 'deep dive' into the facts around the outbreak, which started in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Speaking at a daily Downing Street press conference, Mr Raab had said: 'I think there absolutely needs to be a very, very deep dive after the event review of the lessons - including of the outbreak of the virus - and I don't think we can flinch from that at all, it needs to be driven by the science.' He said such a probe would need to 'look at all sides of this and do it in a balanced way' but he added that 'there is no doubt we can't have business as usual after this crisis'. The Canadian government has introduced emergency measures to protect vulnerable companies from takeover by predatory foreign investors, a move similar to the Indian governments decision to remove the automatic approval route for investments from countries sharing a border with India. Ottawa announced a slew of measures that will subject certain foreign investments into Canada to enhanced scrutiny under these extraordinary circumstances. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressed these concerns during his daily media briefing and said his government will be strengthening our oversight and paying close attention to foreign investment in this country to ensure that there arent people taking advantage of this crisis. As with New Delhis decision, no country has been named in the announcement from Ottawa, though there have been fears within the country that Chinese state-owned companies may take advantage of the situation. A statement from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada appears to underscore this point. In a statement, it noted that some investments by state-owned enterprises may be motivated by non-commercial imperatives that could harm Canadas economic or national security interests, a risk that is amplified in the current context. In this context, it decided that all foreign investments by such companies or by private investors assessed as being closely tied to or subject to direction from foreign governments will be subject to the enhanced scrutiny under the Investment Canada Act. The statement added the rationale for these steps: Many Canadian businesses have recently seen their valuations decline as a result of the pandemic, consistent with patterns in other major economies. These sudden declines in valuations could lead to opportunistic investment behaviour. The Canadian government will pay particular attention to investments to businesses related to public health or involved in the supply of critical goods and services. It said that the government will ensure that in-bound investment does not introduce new risks to Canadas economy or national security, including the health and safety of Canadians. These protectionist measures will remain in place till the economy recovers from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Thiruvananthapuram, April 20 : Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday said that there were six new coronavirus positive cases in the state taking the total number presently under treatment to 114. In all, current and cured cases stand at 408. "Today there are 45,925 people under observation at home and 398 at various hospitals in the state," said Vijayan. My passion is going live. There is nothing like the buzz of doing a live news report. A few nerves are a good thing as they give you that extra adrenaline rush to perform better. My biggest skill is being cool under pressure. That, and having the gift of the gab. Being cool under pressure simply comes with experience. And the gift of the gab, well Growing up in Farran, I was a very outgoing child. Always a talker. I watched television morning, noon and night and loved the idea of working in the media. There's been global condemnation of a decision by US President Donald Trump to halt funding for the World Health Organization. Mr Trump said the UN body had failed in its handling of the coronavirus outbreak and must be held accountable | Read more: https://t.co/PQwfHICLNV pic.twitter.com/LGMXswv5EU RTE News (@rtenews) April 15, 2020 I went up to Dublin to study Communications at DCU and began my broadcasting career with Red FM back in Cork in 2002. Three years later I made the move to TV3 and five years ago to RTE. Ive been extremely lucky. I cant say Ive had any major challenges so far. Moving to Washington in 2018, as the RTE correspondent, was a big thing for me and my family of course, but in a positive way. I met my wife Joanna at Irish College in Ballyferriter in 1998. Shes from Crosshaven and works as a primary school teacher. We have two daughters, Erin, six and Lucy, 10. To keep mentally sane, Im still very much a talker. I deal with any stress through rationalisation and by discussing whats on my mind with Joanna. And normally, I go running a lot. During these days of social isolation thats not so easy, but on the plus side Im getting to hang out with the girls and Joanna we have a small backyard and it helps to know everyone is in the same situation. If I could be reborn as someone else Id be a fly on the wall in Donald Trumps Oval Office. I enjoy the hectic pace of news journalism and the fact that it is deadline based. The threat of a deadline excites me rather than stresses me. Im getting better at having a work/life balance although I do see the role I currently occupy as meaning Im on call 24/7. But the time difference [between the US and Ireland] really helps. My phone is always on for breaking news. Donald Trump could send a world changing tweet at any moment. My biggest fault is a tendency to over-analyse things. I certainly do believe in an afterlife. I had a Catholic up-bringing and go to mass over here. For my job, obviously, I have to be objective about everything, including the Trump administration and to remember that half the country did vote for him. Im often asked for my personal views and, even then, always try to see both sides. The Twitter reaction lets me know if Im getting the balance right. If so, I get an equal amount of comments telling me Im highlighting the positives too much and that Im being too anti-Trump. The personality trait I look for in others is simple: I like easy-going people. People I can strike up a conversation with. Im a lark, not an owl. Maybe its because my first job was on a morning breakfast show. Now, having the children gives structure to my life, quite apart from work. The best advice Ive ever received, and the phrase that saves me in times of trouble, is not to sweat the small stuff. The personality trait that irritates me most is a general disrespect for others, you know, people who seem to look down on other people. So far life has taught me not to get too bogged down with the work side of things because people will soon forget that you were on the Six One News back in the year whatever it is family and friends that count. I do try to take a step back and remember that. The Centre has termed the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) situation especially serious in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other areas while forming six ground teams to assess the situation and issue directions, even as it warned all states against diluting national lockdown rules, weakening Indias response to the crisis, and compromising the countrys public health. Some states conditionally lifted select restrictions of the lockdown in place till May 3 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said last week that curbs could be relaxed in places outside containment zones and potential hot spots to revive economic activity. On Sunday evening, Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla asked all chief secretaries to strictly follow the lockdown guidelines. He separately wrote to the Kerala chief secretary against watering down the restrictions after the state allowed opening of restaurants and bus travel in cities, and small industries in urban areas. Kerala was preparing to issue an order to roll back the decision, an official said on condition of anonymity. The Centres warning to Kerala and all other states and Union Territories (UTs) came amid specific communications to Maharashtra, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan to red-flag violations and issue specific instructions on controlling the outbreak. The Union home ministry told the four states that incidents of violence against health workers, complete violation of social distancing norms outside banks, public distribution system (PDS) outlets and markets, and the movement of private and commercial vehicles with passengers in urban areas have been reported. After analysing the prevalence of such violations in major hot spot districts, it is clear to the central government that the situation is especially serious in the above mentioned areas and expertise of the Centre needs to be used, a statement released by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) said on Monday. These violations pose a serious health hazard, both for the population of these districts and others in the country, the home ministry said. It also pointed to the Supreme Courts March 31 observation that states are expected to faithfully comply with the directives and orders of the Centre in letter and spirit. After analysing the prevalence of such violations in major hot spot districts, it is clear to the central government that the situation is especially serious in Mumbai and Pune (Maharashtra), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri (West Bengal), the home ministry said. The Centre said six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) will visit the identified areas in the four states within the next three days to make spot assessments and recommend remedial measures in a report to the central government. While Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot did not comment on the IMCT visit, he tweeted on Monday to urge people in the state not to violate lockdown rules. Commenting on the central teams visiting Madhya Pradesh, additional chief secretary, health, Mohd Suleman said: The team is meeting officials. I am yet to speak to them. There was no immediate response from Maharashtra officials on the Centres plan. The IMCTs will assess the compliance with and implementation of lockdown measures, supply of essential items, preparedness of the health infrastructure and hospital facilities, safety of medical professional and the conditions of migrant workers housed in relief camps. They will also assess the movement of people outside their homes, maintenance of social distancing measures and the availability of test kits and personal protective equipment in these areas, plus a few others in West Bengal, and submit a report to the Centre, according to the statement. While two IMCTs each have been formed to assess the ground situation in West Bengal and Maharashtra, one team each will travel to Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Orders have been issued to the chief secretaries of the four states on the exercise. The five-member teams comprise officials from the ministries of health and consumer affairs and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 590 and the number of cases climbed to 18,500 in the country on Monday, according to data compiled from states. There are 4,666 confirmed coronavirus cases in Maharashtra of which 232 people have lost their lives. Mumbai has 3,032 cases. In Madhya Pradesh, out of the 1,485 cases, 74 people have succumbed to the disease. There were 82 containment zones in the city on April 10, which have since gone up to 167. Indore has the highest such zones in the state. Indore, with 897 patients, has reported the sharpest spike in the number of cases over the past few days. Rajasthan has so far reported 1,535 cases of which 25 people have died. In West Bengal, there have been 339 confirmed cases and 12 people have died due to the infection. However, the state of 91.2 million people has tested only 5,469. After the home ministrys communication, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee asked the Centre to give valid reasons for the deployment IMCTs. We welcome all constructive support and suggestions, especially from the Central government in negating the COVID-19 crisis. However, the basis on which the Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including a few in WB under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 is unclear, she tweeted. I urge both Honble Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ji and Home Minister Amit Shah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism, the CM added. The orders, signed by Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla in his capacity as the chairperson of the National Executive Committee under the Disaster Management Act, also said that the ministry of civil aviation will provide to the IMCTs air transportation from New Delhi as their deployment is for an essential purpose. The state governments will have to provide logistical support to the IMCTs; equip them with PPEs; and extend all cooperation for their visits to local areas, including providing documents and records as requested. Separately, the Centre warned the Kerala government over its decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in urban areas, saying it amounted to dilution of lockdown guidelines and also the Supreme Court observation. The Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left government in Kerala said there was some misunderstanding due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of the lockdown protocol for controlling Covid-19. In a communication to chief secretaries of state governments and Union territory administrations, Bhalla said some states and UTs were issuing orders allowing activities that were not allowed as per the guidelines issued by the home ministry under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. States and UTs can take stricter action than what is mentioned in the guidelines but cannot dilute or weaken them, the ministry said on Monday. Home ministry joint secretary Punya Salila Srivastava said the home secretary wrote afresh to the states as some of them were issuing certain guidelines that amounted to diluting the lockdown leading to severe repercussions to health of the citizens. MHA is regularly monitoring the lockdown situation in the country. Wherever lockdown is being violated we (MHA) are taking adequate action in coordination with state governments, she said at a daily briefing. Writing this letter became important, she said, as in some states facilities were being allowed which were not permitted under the MHA guidelines. On Monday, senior officials of the central and state governments went back to work as public offices reopened nearly a month after restrictions were enforced. In its revised guidelines, the home ministry had mandated that deputy secretaries and above ranks of the Union government were to rejoin offices while up to 33% of junior officers could be called in according to a department/ministrys requirement. (With inputs from agencies) SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON In these trying times, Scott Turows April 16 Thursday Opinion column about the merits of the much-maligned pocket handkerchief, Theres no better time to bring back the pocket handkerchief, brought a welcome (and nostalgic) smile to my face. From the time I was a pre-teenager more than 50 years ago, Ive rarely left the house without that plain old folded piece of white cotton in the back right pocket of my jeans, khakis or dress slacks. Bravely bearing the slings and arrows of abuse heaped upon me by my young son and wife, I simply never felt I was fully dressed until that square of unassuming cloth was where the universe always intended it to be. TTM to Focus on Longer Cycle Growth Markets SANTA ANA, Calif., April 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TTM Technologies, Inc. (TTMI) (TTM) today announced the completion of the divestiture of its four China manufacturing plants comprising substantially all of the assets of its Mobility business unit. The Buyer is AKMMeadville Electronics (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. (AKMMeadville), a Chinese consortium consisting of Meizhi Investment (Xiamen) Co., Ltd., Xiamen Semiconductor Investment Group Co., Ltd., AKM Electronics Industrial (Panyu) Ltd. (AKM), and Anmei Ventures (Xiamen) Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) (Anmei). The transaction is an important step in advancing TTMs stated strategy of increasing its focus on growth markets characterized by long product cycles such as aerospace and defense, automotive, medical, industrial, instrumentation and networking/communications that more fully leverage TTMs early engagement capabilities and industry leading differentiated solutions, while decreasing its focus on seasonal, consumer-oriented markets such as cellular. I am very pleased to announce completion of this transaction even as the health and economic risks for the global economy related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) have escalated over the past several months, said Tom Edman, CEO of TTM. We expect that the remaining TTM business will be less seasonal and will benefit as we serve longer cycle markets that better fit our strategic direction. We remain excited about the anticipated growth opportunities in 5G infrastructure, cloud data centers, aerospace and defense electronics, and increasing automotive electronic content. Finally, the cash proceeds from this sale will further strengthen our balance sheet during a period of global economic uncertainty and provide capital capacity for future growth investments. The transaction is structured as the sale of TTMs Mobility business unit consisting of its four China manufacturing plants on a debt free, cash free basis for a total of $550 million in cash, subject to working capital adjustments at closing. Net proceeds from the sale of these four plants are expected to be deployed to invest in the business or reduce our debt. The sale does not include certain accounts receivable of the business unit as of the closing date, now estimated to be approximately $95 million, which we expect to collect during the next 3 to 4 months. The current estimated accounts receivable is less than previously disclosed due to an earlier than expected closing of the transaction. Story continues The proceeds shall be paid in US dollars in tranches after we receive regulatory clearance for the funds to be remitted to TTM out of China. If TTM has not received the proceeds by August 7th, TTM will be able to exercise bank guarantees payable in US dollars by the Hong Kong branches of third party banks which were provided by the buyer as security for financing the transaction. In the fiscal year 2019, the Mobility business unit generated revenues of $556 million, non-GAAP operating income of $14.8 million and adjusted EBITDA of $90.5 million.1 1A reconciliation of non-GAAP operating income and adjusted EBITDA to GAAP operating income has been provided in the table included in this press release under the heading Mobility Business Unit Operating Income and EBITDA Reconciliation. First Quarter Investor Conference Call and Webcast As previously announced, TTM Technologies will release its first quarter 2020 financial results after the market closes on Wednesday, April 29th, 2020 and will host a conference call on Wednesday, April 29nd, at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time/1:30 p.m. Pacific Time to discuss its first quarter 2020 performance. At that time the company will issue financial guidance for the second quarter of 2020. Telephone access is available by dialing 800-309-1256 or international 720-543-0314 (ID 557290). The conference call will also be simulcast on the companys website, www.ttm.com, and will remain accessible for one week following the live event. About TTM TTM Technologies, Inc. is a major global PCB manufacturer, focusing on quick-turn and volume production of technologically advanced PCBs, backplane assemblies and electro-mechanical solutions as well as a global designer and manufacturer of RF and microwave components and assemblies. TTM stands for time-to-market, representing how TTMs time-critical, one-stop manufacturing services enable customers to shorten the time required to develop new products and bring them to market. Additional information can be found at www.ttm.com. About AKM AKM Electronics Industrial (Panyu) Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of AKM Industrial Company Limited (AKM), a Hong Kong listed company (01639) established in 1993. AKM specializes in the manufacture of flexible printed circuits (FPC) and related electronic component assembly and provides customers with one-stop services from its plants in China and India. Additional information can be found at www.akmmv.com . Forward-Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements that relate to future events or performance. TTM cautions you that such statements are simply predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. These statements reflect TTM's current expectations, and TTM does not undertake to update or revise these forward looking statements, even if experience or future changes make it clear that any projected results expressed or implied in this or other TTM statements will not be realized. Further, these statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond TTM's control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. For a description of additional factors that may cause TTMs actual results, performance or expectations to differ from any forward-looking statements, please review the information set forth in the Risk Factors and Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of TTMs public reports filed with the SEC. Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures This release includes information about the Mobility business units non-GAAP operating income and adjusted EBITDA, which are non-GAAP financial measures. TTM presents non-GAAP financial information to enable investors to see TTM through the eyes of management and to provide better insight into TTMs ongoing financial performance. A material limitation associated with the use of the above non-GAAP financial measures is that they have no standardized measurement prescribed by GAAP and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. TTM compensates for these limitations by providing full disclosure of each non-GAAP financial measure and reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. However, the non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Mobility Business Unit Operating Income and EBITDA Reconciliation Mobility Business Unit FY 2019 GAAP Revenues 556,098 GAAP Operating Income 10,492 Amortization of intangibles 2,698 Restructuring, acquisition-related, and other charges 1,601 Non-GAAP Operating Income 14,791 GAAP Net Income 11,742 Income tax provision 115 Interest expense 1,147 Amortization of intangibles 2,698 Depreciation expense 73,204 Restructuring, acquisition-related, and other charges 1,601 Adjusted EBITDA 90,509 Contacts: TTM Investors Sameer Desai, Senior Director, Corporate Development & Investor Relations Sameer.desai@ttmtech.com 714-327-3050 Press Inquiries Winnie Ng Vice President, Corporate Marketing TTM Technologies, Inc. +852 2660 4287 / +1 714 327 3000 winnie.ng@ttm.com To aid drivers impacted by lockdown and provide them instant relief, on Monday launched an initiative under which it will transfer Rs 3,000 to each driver's bank account. The initiative named HOPE (Helping Our People during Emergencies), aims to support drivers financially to aid the battle against the COVID-19 lockdown. The nationwide lockdown has impacted a large number of drivers, whether they are drivers ferrying goods between states, or those who drive taxis and for ride-sharing companies. These drivers are mostly stranded and are struggling to make ends meet. The company has partnered with Samhita Social Ventures - a social enterprise and SuperMoney - a financial lending tech platform to reach out to the beneficiaries within ecosystem. This move will create an ecosystem to channelise CSR funds of other companies to provide economic support and recovery to workers, the company said in a statement. "As a part of the initiative, will be providing immediate relief by transferring Rs 3,000 to each driver's bank account, to buy essential commodities. This will be followed by other support provided to these drivers like health insurance cover, leveraging government schemes and loan guaranteeing model," the statement said. In addition to this, would strengthen healthcare professionals' abilities to respond and provide support to affected families using digital channels, it added. "With over 30 per cent of commercial vehicles stranded on roads across the country, drivers need urgent support. Truck drivers and their families are in immediate need of cash for food and other basic facilities," Mahindra Logistics MD & CEO Rampraveen Swaminathan said. Swaminathan further said "we have launched several programs to support the driver community along with our business partners. Through this initiative, of short term financial relief and hope we aim to help these drivers and their families until the situation in the country is restored," Swaminathan said. Samhita Social Ventures Founder and CEO Priya Naik said :"Through our India Workers' Alliance, we are delighted to partner with Mahindra Logistics, to support India's blue collar and gig economy workers whose lives and livelihoods have been severely impacted. Our single objective is to help them survive this crisis and enable them to get back on their feet." In addition to this, Mahindra Logistics also announced that its enterprise mobility business, Alyte will provide emergency cab services for those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. This free service has begun in Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai, with more cities being added every day. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) China News on Women Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page Israelis attended no public Holocaust remembrance ceremonies tonight. The main annual event taking place at the Yad Vashem memorial square and aired on public television was recorded ahead of time with no public participation. Addressing Israelis from his office, President Reuven Rivlin spoke this evening at length about solidarity in the time of the Holocaust, calling on Israelis, world leaders and world citizens to show human solidarity against the coronavirus threat. With mass gatherings still strictly forbidden by measures to slow the pandemic, Israelis are marking Holocaust Remembrance Day differently this time around. Tomorrow, April 21, at 10:00 in the morning, the sirens will sound as they do every year for a minute of silence. Normally, everything in Israel comes to a halt on that moment, with cars stopping on the shoulders of roads and drivers getting out of their vehicles to stand while the sirens sound. This year, people are called to come out to their balconies and stand there for the minute of silence, sharing the significant moment with whoever is around. Some organizations working for the welfare of Holocaust survivors called on Israelis to follow this minute of silence by singing Israels national anthem Hatikva in a show of solidarity with the many elderly survivors confined at home in these difficult times, as their loneliness is ever greater under confinement. The Amcha association, which provides mental health and social support services for Holocaust survivors, has called on Israelis to bring signs to their balconies reading, "Remembering from close by, embracing from far." Maintaining social distancing, students in the southern city of Ashdod held a ceremony this evening outside the windows of an old-age residence that is home to Holocaust survivors. Usually, the Knesset holds its "Every Person has a Name" ceremony on Holocaust Remembrance Day, with parliamentarians reading the names of people who perished in the Holocaust aloud. The ceremony was canceled this year, alongside a series of other traditional events. But the Our Six Million association has proposed a new initiative to remember individual Holocaust victims. Over the past few years, it has gathered countless stories of Holocaust victims, many of them never told before. The names of the victims are featured on the associations website and Israelis are encouraged to print them out with their accompanying bar codes and attach them on a memorial candle to be lit tonight on windows and balconies. The bar codes will bring up the story of the deceased individual with the help of a mobile phone app. And then there is the Memories in the Living Room project, which has been running for several years now. Friends gather in living rooms to listen to a Holocaust survivor share his or her story, express themselves through related art and take part in discussions about the Holocaust. With gatherings banned, many Israelis intend to host Zoom meetings with Holocaust survivors tomorrow. COVID-19 wont stand in their way of remembering and paying tribute. Japanese mobility brand Honda has been chosen by Kelley Blue Book as America's Best Value Brand" among non-luxury automakers for the sixth consecutive year. This recognition is a testament to Honda's success in developing and retaining a brand that earns the attention and enthusiasm of new car buyers. Based on the annual new-car buyer perception data, the 2020 Kelley Blue Book's Brand Watch study collects data on how consumers view automobiles. Brand Watch tracks and studies brand and model perception, and analyzes more than 12,000 in-market new-vehicle shoppers yearly on KBB.com. Honda brand image The study gives an in-depth, comprehensive look into how shoppers view important attributes that drive them to purchase a vehicle. It also studies brand or model familiarity and loyalty among new-car buyers. Award categories are calculated among luxury, non-luxury and truck shoppers. "Building brands that leave positive impressions with car shoppers is of the utmost importance to automakers who wish to stand out and succeed in an increasingly crowded marketplace," said Isabelle Helms, vice president of research and market intelligence for Cox Automotive. "Delivering products that are compelling to shoppers, backed by solid marketing communications, has proven to influence purchase considerations and outcomes. Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Award winners recognize the automakers who are on top of their game in the minds of new-car shoppers." Honda, which has been making vehicles in the US for almost 40 years already, currently operates 19 major manufacturing facilities in North America. The Japanese company started its automotive journey in 1963, with the release of Honda T360. Meanwhile, its first four-door sedan was the Honda 1300, which featured a four-cylinder, gasoline-powered engine. Honda car One of the company's most popular vehicles is the Civic hatchback, which appeared in 1972 and replaced the N600. It's considered the second-longest, continuously running nameplate from a Japanese manufacturer, and continuously pitted with its long-time rival, the Toyota Corolla. Story continues Aside from the United States, Honda currently has factories located in Japan, Canada, China, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Brazil, Indonesia, India, Thailand, Turkey, Argentina, Mexico, Taiwan, and the Philippines. Also Read: The National Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi has described the presidents decision to lift the ban of partial lockdown as totally premature and lacks scientific basis. According to Sammy Gyamfi, the decision is politically motivated that aims at making space for the Electoral Commission to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections. "The lifting of the partial lockdown by President Akufo-Addo, at a time the country is witnessing astronomical increases in positive COVID-19 cases, particularly horizontal infections, is totally premature and lacks scientific basis. He also questioned why the president will place political convenience ahead of public safety. It is clearly a politically motivated decision, calculated to allow the EC the space to undertake its entrenched and illogical determination to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections and nothing more." President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo lifted restrictions imposed on the movement of persons within some parts of Greater Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi after a three weeks partial lockdown. This decision, the President says is to give government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and quarantine those who tested positive and isolate them for treatment. However, Sammy Gyamfi describes this decision as "a reckless political gamble that portends great danger for this nation. Ghanaians must never forgive him if this unimaginable decision exacerbates our COVID-19 situation. The blame for any fatality that is occasioned by this reckless decision must lie squarely with the President." Below is his full statement LIFTING OF PARTIAL LOCKDOWN BY PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO; A CHOICE OF POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY OVER PUBLIC SAFTEY. The lifting of the partial lockdown by President Akufo-Addo, at a time the country is witnessing astronomical increases in positive COVID-19 cases, particularly horizontal infections, is totally premature and lacks scientific basis. It is clearly a politically-motivated decision, calculated to allow the EC the space to undertake its entrenched and illogical determination to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections and nothing more. Either than that, why will President Akufo-Addo impose a partial lockdown with the objective of halting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, at a time we had only recorded 137 cases across just four (4) regions of the country and with 5 deaths, but turn around to lift the partial lockdown, at a time our positive case count has galloped to 1,042, across ten (10) regions and with nine (9) deaths? Countries with far lower cases have not lifted or relaxed their lockdown restrictions. Yet, we who are currently the country with the highest COVID-19 cases in West Africa, have against expert advice, lifted our partial lockdown. Doesnt this defy science and commonsense? President Akufo-Addos decision to lift the lockdown at this crucial time, is a reckless political gamble that portends great danger for this nation. Ghanaians must never forgive him if this unimaginable decision exacerbates our COVID-19 situation. The blame for any fatality that is occasioned by this reckless decision must lie squarely with the President. What the President has essentially done, is to place political expediency ahead of Public safety. And what that shows, is that human lives dont matter to President Akufo-Addo. May God be our help. SAMMY GYAMFI Esq. 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. Featured Video M15 could have its funding could be cut in favour of more money being given to pandemic planning despite the agency's work being more important than ever. The agency's outgoing Director General Sir Andrew Parker said the coronavirus crisis could force ministers to 'adjust the dials' on public spending. The 58-year-old insisted that MI5 was able to continue its work during the lockdown, adding that potential threats to the country were also subject to the restrictions. The death toll from coronavirus dwarfs that from terrorist attacks since 2001 and he acknowledged that could lead to a shift in the Government's thinking in future. M15's outgoing Director General Sir Andrew Parker says the government may reduce the amount of funding given to intelligence agencies in favour of more being given to the NHS 'I don't envy elected politicians who have to make those priority decisions about where you place the relative priorities - and therefore taxpayers' money - between different sorts of risk, between the possibility of a pandemic versus these national security threats versus road safety,' Sir Andrew told the BBC. 'Those are really tough decisions. 'There is no doubt at all that having lived through the worst pandemic in a century, the Government is bound to think differently about how to configure against that risk and adjust the dials accordingly across public spending, I'm sure. 'But all of those decisions are yet to be taken.' Sir Andrew said MI5's work was vital now to prevent terror attacks or other incidents which would add to the burden on the emergency services. Sir Andrew says MI5 is more important than ever during the coronavirus pandemic, helping to deal with the crisis by releasing their own medical staff back into the NHS 'At this time - maybe even more than normally - it is vital that the nation's national security machinery is working so that the national emergency we are in now isn't further complicated or compounded by other events,' he said. 'You'll understand if I don't go into exactly the ways in which we are working - what shape we are in. 'But MI5 is at work in a whole variety of ways flexibly operating to do our job. 'Like many organisations around the country, MI5 is contributing to the effort to deal with the crisis on a few other fronts as well. 'We have released back into the NHS qualified medical staff that we have.' Ken McCallum will become the youngest ever Director General of M15 this month, but his official age remains a state secret MI5 had also given security advice on the design and construction of the Nightingale field hospitals. Sir Andrew said there was a 'different shape' to the threats faced by MI5 during the lockdown. He said: 'Some of the people that we are most concerned about as potential sources of threat in this country are, of course, themselves under the lockdown arrangements and so movements are restricted. 'That makes a difference to behaviour but it does not eradicate the threat. There is plenty of work that we are doing to stay on top of things.' Sir Andrew, who retires this month having been in charge of MI5 since 2013, will be replaced by service veteran Ken McCallum. MI5 gave security advice on the design and construction of the Nightingale field hospitals, including the Manchester Central hospital (above) The outgoing security chief said one of the main changes since he first joined the service in 1983 had been the shift in the diversity of the people it employs, particularly the ending of a ban on recruiting gay people. 'I can't remember, other than specialist linguists we employed, seeing many non-white faces around the organisation back then,' he said. 'In particular, the one that sits sharply in contrast today is that if you were gay back then, you could not be employed here. 'That was for some historical reason from years, decades, before about vulnerability to blackmail that were completely outdated.' 'That must have caused all sorts of hurt to people and that has to be a matter of regret and shame for all of us.' The number of coronavirus death reduced to 450 today, the lowest since April 6 and just more than half of the amount of people who died two days ago Sir Andrew's replacement Ken McCallum will be the youngest ever director general when he takes over the top job at MI5 next month. He has spent almost a quarter of a century working for the security service and is understood to be well-liked by colleagues, approachable, trusted and incisive. In 2018, Mr McCallum took charge of the agency's response to the attempted assassination of former Russian agent Sergei Skripal in a nerve agent attack in Salisbury. He will take over the job this month when Sir Andrew retires. Firefighters in New Delhi disinfect an area in Nizamuddin, from where several people who had attended an Islamic congregation later tested positive for COVID-19, April 2, 2020. Countries in South and Southeast Asia find themselves in a dilemma as they respond to the threat from COVID-19, as bad as things already are. They have to walk a fine line between enforcing public health measures to curb the pandemic while not offending religious sensibilities, such as in the case of a conservative Muslim network whose name has made headlines across the region in recent weeks. Getting Islamic religious authorities to go along with a governments public health initiative generally wasnt a problem. But a misjudgment by Tablighi Jamaat, a conservative Islamic reformist movement, has proven to be detrimental. Many followers of the India-based missionary group tested positive for the coronavirus disease after attending massive religious revivalist gatherings in Malaysia, India and Pakistan, despite warnings from medical personnel and fellow Muslims to observe social distancing as a way to protect people from the coronavirus. Other followers who traveled to Sulawesi Island in Indonesia to attend another gathering, which eventually was cancelled, also caught the virus. Tablighi members have said their fate lies in Gods hands. Meanwhile, authorities in his home country suspect the groups Indian emir, Maulana Muhammad Saad Kandhlawi, of not doing enough to curb the recent mass gathering at his mosque in New Delhi. Nearly a third of the 4,400 confirmed cases of the virus in India, as of April 6, were linked to the gathering at the movements headquarters in the Nizamuddin section of the Indian capital, officials said. The Delhi Police Crime Branch is probing Maulana Saad and others for violating government orders on gathering restrictions, India Today reported on April 15. In Malaysia in late February and early March, about 16,000 people from across South and Southeast Asia converged in Kuala Lumpur to attend another Tablighi gathering. Within weeks of the Malaysian event, it became obvious that the gathering was a breeding ground for COVID-19. As of the end of last week, Malaysian authorities had linked more than 1,946 cases to that event. This cluster has expanded to five generations of cases from which 26,021 samples were taken. From Brunei alone, out of the 50 Tablighi Jamaat members who attended the event in Kuala Lumpur, 45 tested positive for the virus, according to one report. Thai followers of Tablighi In Thailand, about 340 Thai Tablighi Jamaat followers who had attended the Malaysian event or had traveled to Indonesia for the gathering that was cancelled tested positive for COVID-19 after returning home. This cluster included 170 residents of the Thai Deep South. Most of the infected ones did not display any symptoms upon their return. But one by one, they showed up in hospitals during the weeks that followed. On March 17, only four cases had been detected in Thailands southern border region, but that number jumped to more than 280 by mid-April. Thai officials operating in the Muslim-majority and Malay-speaking far South face a bigger challenge in containing the virus because the border region is home to a separatist insurgency that has claimed more than 7,000 during the past 16 years. But Barisan Revolusi Nasional (the National Revolutionary Front or BRN), the rebel group that controls virtually all of the combatants on the insurgent side, has cooperated and heeded the advice of local youth activists, like The Patani and PerMAS, by declaring a cessation to hostilities until the pandemic is brought under control. The first wave of armed insurgency in this Malay-speaking region erupted in the early 1960s 50 years after Thailand then Siam drew the border with British Malaya. Violence from the insurgency arose in response to Thailands policy of assimilation, which the Malays of Patani feel comes at the expense of their ethno-religious identity. The vast majority of the more than 2 million residents of this historically contested region identify themselves as Malay as opposed to Thai and share the same mistrust of state agencies as the BRN separatists. Tablighi Jamaat members in the Deep South constitute a small fraction, numbering in the tens of thousands. While they see themselves as Malays, they do not embrace the cultural and historical narrative of the Malays of Patani, at least not to the point of taking up arms against the state. Thai Tablighis Dont Back Insurgency Tablighi Jamaat is a movement that prides itself on being apolitical. Its work mainly consists of reviving the faith of weaker Muslims to ensure their passage to paradise. Until then, Muslims should practice their religion as it was practiced during the life of Prophet Muhammad. This means sleeping on a straw mat rather than a soft bed and brushing ones teeth with a twig rather than a toothbrush. However, certain aspects of the interpretation of Islam embraced by Tablighi Jamaat continue to pose problems for Muslims who otherwise might want to join the movement. These include the veneration for the movements founder and his family, the ritualization of certain select scriptures, and the 40-day preaching tour that all members are obliged to undertake annually regardless of the depth of ones religious intellect. In his book Holy Ignorance: When Religion and Culture Part Ways, Olivier Roy, a professor at Sciences Po in Paris, placed Tablighi Jamaat in the reformist camp, or born again believers who rebuild their identities through their rediscovery of religion. Along the way, these reformists, like the Wahabi and Salafi, break away from their cultural roots. Roy pointed out that this shift did not exclusively apply to Muslims. In Christianity, such a shift is also taking place from Catholicism and classic Protestant denominations, such as Methodism and Anglicanism, towards a more fundamentalist and charismatic form of religiosities, such as evangelicalism and Pentecostalism. Reformists tend to reject culture, philosophy, and even theology to favor a literal reading of sacred texts and an immediate understanding of truth through individual faith. And as these reformists strive for religious purity along the way, the space in-between of accommodation, disappears, Roy wrote. The Thai state may have a good working relationship with Tablighi Jamaat, especially in the conflict-affected far South where the groups members dont support the separatist insurgency. But translating public health messages to people at the grassroots level, on the other hand, is still a challenge. As a Buddhist state, Thailand tries to be extra careful in issuing public directives that pertain exclusively to Muslims, such as cleansing rituals for loved ones who have died, as well as refraining from mass prayer at community mosques. A perceived interference could very well push the Tablighi Jamaat members in Thailand toward the Emir in India whose stance is nothing less than a challenge to the governments around the region that are desperately trying to fight this pandemic and keep their societies and nations intact. Don Pathan is a senior program officer at The Asia Foundation Thailand. The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and not of BenarNews. Agency owners can make their lives easier and richer if they follow one simple rule: Run their agency as a business. This means doing what businesses do, including working on the business rather than just in it. This is solid advice. There is nothing novel about this advice, but it is high quality advice. A well-run business has less internal friction, less of the daily minutiae that saps energy, fewer frustrations and even fewer emails relative to the email floods usually received when one is running an agency. Running an agency like a business is like using motor oil in a motor. Profits are inevitably higher, as is the growth rate. This panacea does have a price everything has a price. The currency for this price cannot be borrowed. It must be paid in full, upfront. The price is true leadership combined with an absolute commitment to running a business. This is an easy sentence to write or say, but it is the execution of this sentence that is hard. Making execution even harder is all of the ways you can convince yourself that you are committed to building a business when you are not. Similarly, making running an agency even more difficult are all the advisors and carriers and such that give self-serving advice that seems like good business advice but is not. I grew up in a strict church that preached how the devil was always disguised to lead one astray. It is a poor analogy (on some, but absolutely not on all levels). Agency owners are often led astray by their own misunderstandings and subconscious twists of reality. Quite often, agency owners are misdirected by third parties telling them, You really are building a business when they are really just working in an agency. One horrible misdirection involves setting an agency up for sale when the agency has no idea that is what the advisor is doing. Maybe the worst involves almost setting up agencies for E&O claims. Agency owners are vulnerable, like kids without vaccines, to these manipulations because most got into insurance for almost any and every reason other than to run a business. Maybe they got into insurance because they like people, like helping people, like making money, like sales, and maybe they like the insurance industry. I have found few who became an owner primarily because they liked balance sheets, training producers, hiring staff, and dealing with agency management system upgrades. To make life easier and richer, here are my recommendations, with special points for small agencies, because they do have it harder. 1. Outsource Identify what you do not like to do but are required to do to run the business (versus running the agency think business). Then hire someone or outsource every one of these items you can afford to get them off your plate. Not doing the stuff you dislike frees up massive amounts of time and energy. Ive read estimates and detailed studies that show 70% differences in time and energy savings. In other words, a person may require 70% more time to do something he/she does not like versus something they do like. To save that 70% wastage means massive additional hours being available to do what you enjoy. You will make your money back on those extra investments. You do have to pay upfront though. Agency owners are often led astray by their own misunderstandings and subconscious twists of reality. 2. Trust Paying money is only one aspect. Finding people that you trust to take over those duties may be difficult. Trust is a major issue. I have found people running agencies struggle more finding people to trust. To some extent, trust is their issue, not the other persons trustworthiness. People running a business seem to have dealt with their lack of trust of others more successfully. Either way, finding the right person is often difficult. This point is also a real susceptibility, too. Humans tend to be good and knowledgeable at what they like. When hiring someone for a job the employer does not want to do themselves, one often lacks the ability to judge whether that person is truly qualified. I see this problem every week in two specific areas owners already know they need to outsource: law and taxes. Extremely few attorneys or accountants know insurance agency accounting or law. Owners know they need professionals, but they do not know law or accounting and the professionals they hire do not know insurance agency law or accounting, and both are unique. With both parties being blind, all kinds of mistakes occur. A good example is how attorneys write producer contracts. Producer vesting and deferred compensation are great examples. Few producers or agency owners know anything about the 409A regulations. Few general practice accountants or attorneys know anything about 409A regulations either. Yet, these are crucial regulations that absolutely apply to independent insurance agencies. If you want to work less and make more, run your agency like a business. 3. Dont Be Cheap Many owners unnecessarily exacerbate situations by being cheap. The complete ineptitude exhibited by some of the online chat forums where owners ask, How do you.? Or Do you have an employment agreement for . That I can use? should be outlawed. We mandate motorcycle helmets to protect people from themselves, so we should ban these sites for the same reason. For example, a producer contract from one state may have zero applicability in another state. Why anyone would think some generic contract would apply to every situation in every state is beyond me. Ignorance I suppose, but the solution is to accept that running a business requires making investments and spending money you may not emotionally want to spend. Asking an ignorant person for advice makes no sense and just because they run a similar firm does not qualify them to give serious legal or accounting or HR advice. While a peer may be an expert, not all peers are experts. The disasters I have seen on buy/sell agreements resulting from peer advice, even non-specialized attorneys advice are particularly potent warning signs. Separate from paying for quality advice, but similar, is paying for high quality agency management systems and then getting fully trained on those systems. The difference between my clients who are running agencies and do not know how to use their agency management systems and those who are running businesses and do know their system well is a strong correlation. 4. Owner Compensation Owner compensation is another great place to distinguish between whether you are running a business or an agency. If you are running a business, your compensation will be dictated by good business practices rather than tax strategies. For example, an owner(s) running a business will have a good formula for being paid and determining how much money to leave in the agency (especially for trust monies and working capital). A tax strategy is determined by how much one can take out of the company and pay as little tax as possible. 5. Accounting Practices A good example of running a business is using a CPA who will take the time to learn, on their dime, how trust laws apply (all states are trust law states) to agencies, agency bill accounting, and will encourage you to run a business through clean accounting practices. 6. Producer Compensation Paying producers what they are worth rather than what they need is another differentiator. Agencies run as businesses typically pay 25% to 50% less than agencies run as agencies. It is one reason agencies run as businesses are more profitable. 7. Workplace Drama Agencies run as businesses typically have less drama. Now, some agency owners like workplace drama so this may be too high a price to pay. If you want to work less and make more, run your agency like a business. Topics Agencies Legislation Two Rohingya Muslims from Telangana, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi last month, have tested positive for COVID-19, state Director General of Police M Mahendar Reddy said on Monday. In all, seven Rohingyas living in the state had attended the Islamic religious event in Nizamuddin and two of them tested positive for COVID-19, he said. The Union Home Ministry had last week asked all states and union territories to screen the Rohingya refugees living under their jurisdiction for COVID-19 as many of them had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation. The ministry had said the Rohingyas residing in camps in Hyderabad had attended Tablighi Jamaat 'Ijtema' at Haryana's Mewat, and had also attended the meet in Delhi. Reddy said the condition of the two refugees was stable. "It has been found that five Rohingyas from Hyderabad and two from Nalgonda district had participated in the Delhi event. Out of them only the two from Nalgonda tested positive for coronavirus and they are now doing fine," he told reporters here. Responding to a question, Reddy said testing of samples of all people from Telangana who returned after participating in the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi and their contacts had been completed. In view of Telangana extending the ongoing coronavirus lockdown till May 7, the DGP further said he discussed with the police officials on the implementation of the lockdown and it has been decided to implement lockdown more strictly in the state. The existing passes issued for essential services will be reviewed, he said adding the pass holders need to re-apply and passes will be cancelled if anyone was found misusing it. Police have seized nearly 1.21 lakh vehicles across Telangana during the lockdown period so far and registered cases against the violators of the curbs, the DGP said. He said police have made stepped up security in 329 containment zones spread across the state, where 651 active coronavirus cases have been reported as of Sunday. Reddy said the three-kilometre radius restriction imposed to prevent people from moving around the city would be strictly implemented and whenever one goes out for essential commodities they should carry residential proof with them or their vehicles will be seized. Under the rule, people can only go to places within a three KM radius from their houses for purchasing essentials. The state government has extended the lockdown till May 7. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thousands of people across the United States have protested against stay-at-home orders after President Donald Trump encouraged people to defy coronavirus lockdown imposed by state governors. US President Donald Trump, who will seek re-election in the 2020 elections, has called for reopening of economic activities saying enough coronavirus testing has been done a claim refuted by several governors belonging to both parties. An estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol in Olympia to protest against Democratic Governor Jay Inslees stay-at-home order, defying a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. In Denver, hundreds of people gathered at the state capitol to demand the end to Colorados shutdown. As protesters clogged streets with cars, healthcare workers in scrubs and face masks stood at intersections in counterprotest. Stay-at-home measures, which experts say are essential to slow the spread of the virus, have battered the US economy and more than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Demonstrations to demand an end have previously erupted at a few spots in Texas, Wisconsin and the capitols of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. Trump has faced criticism for the handling of the pandemic, which has killed more than 40,000 people and infected nearly 750,000 in the US. Not in a position to feed people during the Shraddh ceremony of his late father scheduled for April 25 because of the nationwide lockdown, Agartala-based Mohun Bagan fan Debu Dutta has donated the amount kept aside for the purpose to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Tragedy struck the 50-year-old science teacher of a Higher Secondary School, a die-hard Mohun Bagan fan since his college days, when his businessman father, Swaraj Kanti Dutta died at the Agartala Government Medical College Hospital on April 13 after battling a fortnight with hypoglycemia. "The Shraddh function is due on April 25 but owing to the ongoing situation it will not be possible to feed people during the ceremony. So I decided to donate the amount I had kept aside for this to the State Relief Fund," Dutta told PTI from Agartala. "At least it will be of some help during this crisis and my father's soul will rest in peace. My father was a known businessman in our locality. He always helped the poor and I felt it was a befitting gesture." Dutta, however, did not disclose the amount and said he would also feed about 100 underprivileged people of his area once the lockdown is lifted. Overwhelmed by the gesture, Mohun Bagan top officials including general secretary Srinjoy Bose have sent condolence messages to Dutta. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Religious leaders have been urged to accept the scientific facts, underpinning the policies and measures put in place to contain and stop the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Evangelist Dr. Lawrence Tetteh, President of Worldwide Miracle Church, said they should be broadminded in their comments and response to these measures. We must observe all protocols by educating our church members and the wider community where we live to be hygienic-minded by keeping their environment clean. He was speaking, when he led the Lawrence Tetteh Ministries (LTM) and the Worldwide Miracle Outreach (WMO) to donate some items to church leaders at Ashaiman and to formally announce the postponement of the Ashaiman for Christ Crusade. The programme scheduled for Wednesday, April 22, to Friday, April 24, has been put off due to the outbreak of flu-like pathogen. He congratulated Ghanaians, for what he said, was their patience, understanding, cooperation and support for governments measures and interventions to prevent the spread of the virus. As a nation, we must develop holistic approach to the pandemic and have a transformational mindset in dealing with all other national issues, he counselled. Evangelist Dr. Tetteh said it was time for everybody to hold fast to the word of God, assuring them that, All things work together for good for those who love God and are called for his purpose. The COVID-19 is turning the whole world to reflect upon life, wealth and power in relation to their Superior being. The pandemic is drawing us together as one nation, sensitive to the plight of each other, demonstration of empathy, sympathy and love for one another. These are fundamental principles and values upon which our Christian faith is founded. He applauded the frontline health workers for keep pushing and putting themselves in harms way to save lives. The Very Reverend Francis Andrews Tawiah, Head Pastor of the Full Gospel Church International, Ashaiman, and Chairman of the Local Planning Committee of the Ashaiman for Christ Crusade, said they were grateful for the donation. 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. Featured Video Pittsfield Cancels Third Thursdays; Plans Economic Assistance to Business PITTSFIELD, Mass. The city has canceled Third Thursday events for May and June and the fate of the popular Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade that brings more than 20,000 to the city is up in the air. Mayor Linda Tyer made the announcement during her weekly COVID-19 update on PCTV on Friday, confirming what she'd said earlier on a local radio show. "We hope to resume again in July, but honestly, that remains to be seen," she said. The Third Thursday program has been bringing thousands of people to North Street once a month for 14 years for music, performances, food, activities and more. The cancellations are a reminder that it may be months before the life returns to any type of normalcy because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Instead of celebrations, the city is developing economic initiatives for local businesses using a range of funding opportunities including emergency funds that have been approved by Federal Emergency Management Agency for COVID-1-related recovery. Tyer said the city has $789,382 in Community Development Block Grant Funds and is looking at the Small Business Fund and Community Preservation Act monies. "The city will provide funds to individuals and businesses that are experiencing economic hardships because of the COVID-19 pandemic," she said. "There will be more details to share in next week's update." The former St. Joseph's High School was opened this week as a shelter for homeless to provide them with meals, sleeping quarters, showers, bathrooms and laundry that will allow them to safely "social distance." The operation is open 24/7. "This is a critical new program provided by ServiceNet because so many of the places where homeless gather during the day have been closed," she said. Those suffering from COVID-19 who do not require hospitalization will find medical care and respite at a local hotel under the auspices of Community Health Plan. Pittsfield has also made arrangements with two hotels for a total of 28 rooms for housing first-responders who have to isolate or quarantine. This will also be available to first-responders in communities with mutual aid agreements with Pittsfield. County Ambulance has received state approval to administer in-home COVID-19 testing for county residents who cannot get to the testing tent at Berkshire Medical Center. Those who feel they may have symptoms or been in contact within someone who tested positive must still contact the BMC hotline at 855-BMC-LINK or 855-262-5465 to determine testing criteria and get a doctor's order for a test. "This is an incredible accomplishment and a vital service especially for seniors and others who may not have access to reliable transportation," the mayor said. Tyer also repeated changes in fees announced earlier in the week: the due date for municipal tax payments has been delayed to June 1; no late fees or interest will accrue on late payments after March 10 that are paid before June 30; and terminations for water, sewer or trash pickup will occur as long as payments are made by June 30. The mayor urged residents to abide by new regulations at grocery stores and to shop alone, get essentials, and do it quickly. She also said public safety and other city vehicles would not be allowed to participate in any wave or special occasion parades. "I understand families are looking for ways to mark special occasions, especially for children," Tyer said. "But the parade becomes a reason for people to congregate and get too close to each other and put each other at risk ... "Our message about staying at home is clear and must be consistently modeled by our first-responders." The mayor said the data on the number of COVID-19 cases recovering is encouraging but offered her sympathy to those who have lost a loved one. The city has lost three residents including the first in the county. "When my team and I are making decisions to protect you we carry everyone of you in our heart," Tyer said. "We know how much your lives have been disrupted but we have to ask you again and again to stay home, mind your distance and practice good hand hygiene. "We can do this. We can be the first city and the first county in the state of Massachusetts to crush the curve." Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath spoke to his Maharashtra counterpart Uddhav Thackeray on Monday and sought action against the accused in the Palghar incident in which three people were lynched over rumours of them being kidnappers. Thackeray has reportedly assured Adityanath that stern action would be taken in the matter. Swami Kalpvriksha Giri , Swami Sushil Giri and their driver Neelesh Telgade were attacked and killed on Thursday night after rumors they were kidnapping children to harvest organs, including kidneys. The police reached the spot and when they put the victims in the police car, the mob attacked them again. Policemen have also been injured in the incident. Though all three were finally brought to the hospital, they were declared brought dead. More than 110 people have been taken into custody. A deserted street in Ho Chi Minh City in April 2020 during the social distancing campaign. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have proposed that the government not extend the social distancing campaign set to end April 22 in both cities. Ngo Van Quy, Hanoi Deputy Chairman, said at a Monday afternoon meeting that if by April 22, there are no new Covid-19 cases and the epidemic is "basically controlled", Directive 15 rather than Directive 16 should be implemented. While Directive 16 orders the current nationwide social distancing campaign, Directive 15, issued March 27 by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, asks localities across the country to stop social events, gatherings of over 20 people in a place and gatherings of 10 people or more outside workplaces, schools and hospitals. A minimum distance of 2 meters between people in public places should be ensured. Directive 16 does not allow gatherings of more than two people and asks people to stay at home, stepping outside only for emergencies, buying food and medicine, and working in factories, production facilities and businesses that involve trade in "essential" goods and services. Quy also asked ministries to provide specific safety guidelines for companies, factories, construction sites and businesses permitted to operate during the epidemic. Hanoi officials said at the meeting that the city has continued to practice social distancing, increased testing, zoned disease-hit areas and controlled the spread of outbreaks in the past week. The capital city has recorded the highest number of infections in the country with 132 cases, but it has not recorded a new infection for the past seven days. It has 29 active patients at present, the rest having been discharged. At Ha Loi Village in the capital citys Me Linh District, the citys second largest hotspot after Bach Mai Hospital, medical staff have tested every resident, nearly 13,000, and identified five positive cases that have been announced. The rest tested Covid-19 negative. Hanoi authorities identified 1,793 cases related to the Me Linh flower market on National Highway No.23 that runs through the district, which was one of the places "Patient 243" visited. The case of the 47-year-old man who visited Bach Mai hospital was announced on April 8. Of the 1,793, rapid testing of four people initially showed positive results, but were later reversed following re-examination. This means Hanoi has been able to contain the outbreak in Ha Loi Village, officials stated. In Dong Cuu Communes Tren neighbourhood, Thuong Tin District, where "Patient 266" lives (confirmed April 14) authorities isolated 50 people whod come into close contact with her and tested 1,196 people. The results came out negative. The situation is basically under control, they said. Hanoi has also tested more than 29,000 of 31,000 people associated with the Bach Mai Hospital, Vietnams top hotspot with at least 46 related cases. No one has tested positive among them. Starting Saturday the city began testing traders and shoppers at several wholesale markets frequented by thousands of people every day. 1,064 people have showed negative test results. "This means that Hanoi has basically not found any new sources of Covid-19 infection in the community," Quy said. However, he noted that people should remain vigilant because Hanoi is still a "high-risk" city. Directive 16 worked, new one needed Ho Chi Minh City, with three active infection cases in total, also proposed that the government lifts the social distancing campaign. The rationale for this, Chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong said Monday afternoon, is that of the city's 54 confirmed cases, 51 have recovered and been discharged from the hospital. HCMC has also gone through 17 consecutive days without a new infection. The success was thanks to the implementation of Directive 16, he noted. "The city proposes that the government soon issues a new directive in the spirit that every activity is carried out with safety policies to prevent the disease," Phong said. Although there was no outbreak in the community, there are still many potential risks, he said, adding that the city has carefully prepared measures to restart economic activities while remaining focused on the Covid-19 fight. The measures include organizing a city-level quick response team, 24 district-level response teams and 322 quick response teams at lower levels to monitor residents' compliance with social distancing. Compliance will also be checked at traditional and wholesale markets throughout their opening hours, Phong said, adding that those not wearing masks will be fined and not allowed entry. The city will also deploy public security forces in 24 districts to ensure that people practice social distancing until the government declares the end of the epidemic and also ensure that criminal activities are kept in check. "Ho Chi Minh City has prepared itself to promote economic development when the social distancing ends to achieve the dual goals. The city is also looking into opening a number of essential activities with little risk of infection that comply with the central criteria for disease control measures in each sector and field," Phong said. Low-risk, small-scale businesses will be allowed to operate first on a pilot basis. If the results are good, others will follow. For large-scale industries, the pilot period will last 30 days. Depending on the development of Covid-19, the city will adjust the pilot period and authorize business operations accordingly. The city is also working on a safety guideline in schools to prepare for the return of students in mid-May, Phong said. There are currently 71 people in concentrated quarantine facilities and 197 others being home-quarantined in the city. Last Wednesday, the PM had extended the social distancing campaign for a week until April 22 in Hanoi, HCMC and 10 other localities deemed to be at "high risk" of the Covid-19 virus spreading. The 10 other localities are Lao Cai, Quang Ninh, Bac Ninh, and Ninh Binh provinces in the north; Da Nang City and Quang Nam, Binh Thuan, Khanh Hoa, and Ha Tinh provinces in the center and Tay Ninh Province in the south. A VnExpress survey held since Monday noon that polled 40,000 people showed nearly 15,000 (37.5 percent) suggesting that the social distancing campaign not be extended after April 22. Forty-four percent said people should practice social distancing until the end of April, while the remainder said the campaign should only be applied in Hanoi and Saigon. Vietnam has gone through four consecutive days without a new infection. Of the country's recorded 268 cases, 214 have been discharged and many of the active patients have tested Covid-19 negative at least once. Saudi Arabia has announced its official crude pricing (OSP) for May, selling oil more cheaply to Asia while keeping prices flat for Europe and raising them for the United States, after OPEC and its allies agreed the biggest output cut deal in history. Saudi Arabia's state oil giant Aramco has set the May price for its Arab light crude oil to Asia at a discount of $7.3 to the Oman/Dubai average, down $4.2 a barrel from April, according to a document seen by Reuters on Monday. The cut to Asia was in line with market expectations. According to a Reuters survey, Asian refiners have called on Saudi Arabia to slash its crude OSPs for a third straight month in May after Middle East benchmarks and refining margins dropped amid ample supplies and lower demand due to the coronavirus. Meanwhile, the firm has raised the May OSP of its Arab light crude oil to the United States to a discount of $0.75 per barrel versus the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI), up $3 a barrel from April, according to the document. Aramco left its OSP for Arab light crude oil to Northwestern Europe unchanged from April at a discount of $10.25 per barrel to ICE Brent. The cut in prices to Asia reflect weak demand, while OSPs to Europe and the United States reflect oil market fundamentals and the global supply cut pact, an industry source familiar with the pricing process told Reuters. Aramco has delayed its OSPs announcement several times over the past few days until after finalizing the OPEC+ reduction agreement. Last month, the world's top exporter Saudi Arabia surprised everyone by ramping up supplies and slashing prices for April, sparking a battle for market share globally and causing global oil prices to plunge to 18-year lows. Markets globally are now flooded with cheap oil with storage space filling up fast, while refiners cut output or shut plants following coronavirus lockdowns. On Sunday OPEC and allies led by Russia agreed to a record cut in output to prop up oil prices amid the coronavirus pandemic. The unprecedented deal with fellow oil nations, including the United States, could curb global oil supply by 20%. Saudi crude OSPs set the trend for Iranian, Kuwaiti and Iraqi prices, affecting more than 12 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude bound for Asia. The tables below show the full free on board (FOB) prices for April in U.S. dollars. Saudi term crude supplies to the United States are priced as a differential to the ASCI. Seeking to translate that experience into music, he engaged the synthesizer pioneer Robert Moog to design an interface that would enable brain waves, pulse, breath and galvanic skin response to trigger sonic responses from a synthesizer. Rome in the 1960s was home to a global confluence of avant-garde art and radical politics. It was there, in 1966, that Mr. Teitelbaum came together with two similarly iconoclastic American composers and improvisers, Alvin Curran and Frederic Rzewski, to form Musica Elettronica Viva, or MEV. Motivated by the nascent electronic music of John Cage and David Tudor, as well as the work of free-jazz innovators like John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman, MEV would sustain its activities for more than 50 years. Richard, who seldom took the lead, was the fundamental air around the music, surrounding it with knowledge, humor, occasional politically charged reminders, still never fearing to take over and wipe us all out with the whole history of electronic music, Mr. Curran said in a statement. While our aspiring musical philosophical styles in concert were distinct, Richard gave us the reliable mystical thread that bound us all. Early synthesizers were bulky, complex assemblages of boxes, knobs, plugs and wires. Mr. Teitelbaum who is believed to have been the first to bring a modular Moog synthesizer to Europe, in 1967 had to forge ways to work in real time alongside other musicians, whose instruments ranged from cello and saxophone to glass panes and metal objects amplified with contact microphones. Another challenge was more political: how to develop a signature sound in a milieu that de-emphasized individuality. In a typical spring, the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk would be bustling, welcoming spring breakers and families from throughout the state. But due to the California-wide shelter-in-place mandate, the outdoor theme park and the beach are nearly empty. Drone pilot Alekz Londos shot footage of the usually packed oceanside vacation hotspot over the weekend, writing he "took this video to show those indoors and others around the world what the current situation is here in Santa Cruz." As of Monday, Santa Cruz has counted 101 cases of the coronavirus, with two deaths. Those are substantially lower numbers than county neighbors like Santa Clara and San Mateo, which have weathered some of the worst outbreaks in the state. Santa Cruz County officials have issued a shelter-in-place order to last through May 3, though local officials reopened beaches late last week. (Parking lots near the boardwalk remain closed.) "It doesn't mean we can have a congregation of large people," said Fire Chief Jason Hajduk in a county update. "We're asking everyone to take those issues seriously." See the drone footage below. MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here. Alyssa Pereira is an SFGate digital editor. Email: alyssa.pereira@sfgate.com | Twitter: @alyspereira BP boss Bernard Looney and chairman Helge Lund will donate 20 per cent of their salaries for the rest of this year to mental health charities. Looney said the pair wanted 'to do our part' during the coronavirus pandemic, which he described as a 'mental health crisis as well'. In a blog post on social networking site LinkedIn, he said: 'Why mental health? It is something that affects us all. Everyone is dealing with something in life. BP boss Bernard Looney (pictured) and chairman Helge Lund will donate 20 per cent of their salaries for the rest of this year to mental health charities 'And with the virus it is amplified. Not everyone will be infected but everyone is affected. Stress, fear, anxiety, isolation. This is a mental health crisis as well.' Looney did not specify which charities they would support, though BP recently made a corporate donation to Mind. The 49-year-old Irish businessman, who took over at BP in mid-February, is on a salary of 1.3million. He has not said if the donations will be from April to December or May to December. Between May and December Looney would be giving away 170,000 while Lund, who receives fees of 785,000 a year, would hand out 105,000. The mental health donation comes after BP in mid-March offered free fuel to emergency services vehicles during the outbreak, as well as a free cup of coffee at its forecourts. The share price has plunged by a third since late February and it is making drastic cost-cuts, but no employees will lose their jobs for three months and it is not wielding the axe on its dividend. Soon after Looney took over he announced sweeping climate goals and a radical restructuring, while he has also established himself as social-media friendly, posting to photo-sharing site Instagram as well as LinkedIn. Anglo American bosses have agreed to donate 30 per cent of their fees or salaries for three months to their choice of Covid-19-related charities or funds. In South Africa the global mining giant, which owns South Africa-based mining behemoth De Beers, is handing 2.4million to two groups. Patient numbers in Australia's hospital emergency departments have fallen to record lows with doctors concerned some people are delaying life-saving treatment. The number of people attending hospital clinics to be screened for the deadly coronavirus has also dropped by up to 80 per cent over the past month. Patients numbers in hospital emergency departments have plummeted to a record low across Australia with doctors concerned some people are delaying life saving treatment. Credit:Damian Shaw Hospitals across Australia have observed a rapid decline in patient numbers of up to 50 per cent in some hospitals alongside an alarming deterioration in cardiac emergencies. This comes after The Age revealed last week that patients were having heart attacks in their homes as they avoided hospitals amid fears they would be burdening the healthcare system, while some chronically ill people were skipping critical medical appointments. US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) action to withdraw pre-emptive veto upheld VANCOUVER, CANADA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. (NDM.TO)(NYSE American:NAK) ("Northern Dynasty" or the "Company") reports that, on Friday April 17, a US federal district court judge in Alaska granted the US Environmental Protection Agency's ("EPA") Motion to Dismiss' a case brought by a collection of anti-Pebble activist groups. The litigation challenged EPA's July 2019 decision to formally withdraw its prior regulatory action under Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act (initiated in 2014 by the Obama Administration), which sought to pre-emptively veto the Pebble Project before permit applications had been filed or an Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") permitting process was undertaken. In granting the Motion to Dismiss, US District Judge Sharon L. Gleason found the anti-Pebble activists had "failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted". In a statement released April 18, 2020, Pebble Limited Partnership ("Pebble Partnership" or "PLP") CEO Tom Collier said the US legal system has once again re-affirmed the Pebble Project's right to receive a fair and objective permitting review under the Clean Water Act ("CWA") and National Environmental Policy Act ("NEPA"). He said the court decision received last week removes yet another obstacle to receiving a Final EIS and Record of Decision on the Pebble Project by mid-2020. *** The Pebble Partnership statement released April 18, 2020 quotes PLP CEO Tom Collier: "For years, we have sought basic fairness for the Pebble Project to be fully vetted under the regular permitting process and to block attempts to preempt that fundamental right. Once again, a coalition of anti Pebble groups including national environmental groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council have been proven wrong in their ad hominem attacks on Pebble. This time a Federal District Judge in Alaska has ruled that their most recent attack did not even state a cause of action that required review by the court. Therefore, their lawsuit against EPA was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Story continues "We have long held that the preemptive veto against Pebble was poor public policy and that decisions about the merits of developing a mine at the Pebble Prospect should be made through the legal, statutory process defined by NEPA. The preemptive veto was brought against the project by the Obama era EPA before a single permit to develop had been filed with a regulatory agency. The current administration made the correct decision to withdraw the preemptive veto and allow the project to be reviewed via the legal, statutory process defined by NEPA and the CWA. The Federal District Court correctly recognized the validity of this decision. The EPA, in their decision to withdraw the preemptive veto, noted that a detailed plan of development had been submitted for review allowing the agency and other regulators to fully vet the project. "This decision moves Pebble one step closer to completing its federal permitting process. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers current schedule calls for the Final Environmental Impact Statement and the Record of Decision for the project to be issued by mid-year. We see no reason why this schedule will not be met, especially now that this meritless litigation has been dismissed. "We firmly believe the project will be developed without harm to the Bristol Bay fishery and for the benefit of the region, especially the communities around Iliamna Lake. Preliminary reports from the Corps of Engineers indicate it can be done responsibly and we look forward their final report this summer." About Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. Northern Dynasty is a mineral exploration and development company based in Vancouver, Canada. Northern Dynasty's principal asset, owned through its wholly owned Alaska-based U.S. subsidiary, Pebble Partnership, is a 100% interest in a contiguous block of 2,402 mineral claims in southwest Alaska, including the Pebble deposit. PLP is the proponent of the Pebble Project, an initiative to develop one of the world's most important mineral resources. For further details on Northern Dynasty and the Pebble Project, please visit the Company's website at www.northerndynastyminerals.com or contact Investor services at (604) 684-6365 or within North America at 1-800-667-2114. Review Canadian public filings at www.sedar.com and US public filings at www.sec.gov. Ronald W. Thiessen President & CEO US Media Contact: Dan Gagnier Gagnier Communications (646) 569-5897 Forward Looking Information and other Cautionary Factors This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in its forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements should not be in any way construed as guarantees of the ultimate size, quality or commercial feasibility of the Pebble Project, that the Pebble Project will secure all required government permits, or of the Company's future performance. Assumptions used by NDM to develop forward-looking statements include the assumptions that (i) the Pebble Project will obtain all required environmental and other permits and all land use and other licenses without undue delay, (ii) studies for the development of the Pebble Project will be positive, (iii) NDM will be able to establish the commercial feasibility of the Pebble Project, and (iv) NDM will be able to secure the financing required to develop the Pebble Project. The likelihood of future mining at the Pebble Project is subject to a large number of risks and will require achievement of a number of technical, economic and legal objectives, including (i) obtaining necessary mining and construction permits, licenses and approvals without undue delay, including without delay due to third party opposition or changes in government policies, (ii) the completion of feasibility studies demonstrating the Pebble Project mineral reserves that can be economically mined, (iii) completion of all necessary engineering for mining and processing facilities, and (iv) receipt by NDM of significant additional financing to fund these objectives as well as funding mine construction, which financing may not be available to NDM on acceptable terms or on any terms at all. The Company is also subject to the specific risks inherent in the mining business as well as general economic and business conditions, as well as risks relating to the uncertainties with respect to the effects of COVID-19. The NEPA EIS process requires a comprehensive "alternatives assessment" be undertaken to consider a broad range of development alternatives, the final project design and operating parameters for the Pebble Project and associated infrastructure may vary significantly from that currently being advanced. As a result, the Company will continue to consider various development options and no final project design has been selected at this time. For more information on the Company, Investors should review the Company's filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and its home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com. SOURCE: Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/585826/Northern-Dynasty-US-Federal-District-Court-Rejects-Litigation-Filed-by-Pebble-Opponents The National Ambulance Service says it is yet to receive the needed Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) from the Health Ministry for its staff days after it made the appeal at one of the COVID-19 press briefings. The Service last week made an appeal to the Ministry of Health and the general public to provide its staff with some PPEs as parts of efforts to save them from getting infected with coronavirus in their line of duty. The Executive Director of the National Ambulance Service, Professor Ahmed Zakariah in an interview with Citi News said the service is currently relying on the limited number of PPE available to them. The sector ministry, especially the Minister always tries as much as possible to let the logistics committee provide us with logistics. Its not all the time that they are able to get all the numbers needed. But as and when they receive their logistics, they try to also make sure we get some. In such cases, you dont wait till youre overwhelmed. Its better you prepare and make sure that you have adequate supply of every logistic so that youll get ready and wait, he noted. Various health workers have since the outbreak complained about the lack of protective clothing needed while coming into contact with persons suspected to have the virus. Nurses and Midwives, for instance, were advised by their mother association, the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) to leave isolation units if they are not supplied PPE by the government. In a release on Friday, March 13, 2020, they said health officials must ensure that protective gears are made available to the nurses and midwives who will be on the frontline working in isolation units in the four designated treatment centres for Coronavirus in Ghana. ---citinewsroom LGBT literature dominates American Library Associations top 10 most challenged books list Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Public library books that promote LGBT relationships and political views were among the most challenged books of 2019, according to a recent report by the American Library Association. The ALAs Office for Intellectual Freedom released their annual top 10 most challenged list this week, as part of their observing National Library Week, which takes place April 19-25. At number one was George by Alex Gino, which had been challenged, banned, restricted, and hidden to avoid controversy over LGBT content, which includes a transgender character. Second place went to Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin and third went to A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss and illustrated by EG Keller. Only two of the top 10 books listed were challenged for reasons other than objections to LGBT content. This included The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood, which was banned and challenged for profanity and sexual content, and the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling over its focus on witchcraft. Data for the report came from 377 documented challenges to books in libraries and schools in 2019, with a total of 566 books being challenged overall plus 41 other reading materials like magazines and newspapers. According to the ALAs State of Americas Libraries 2020 report, the total 607 reading materials challenged represented a 14 percent increase in challenges compared to 2018. The report found that 45 percent of the challenges came from patrons, while 18 percent came from parents, 13 percent came from administrators, and 12 percent came from political and religious groups. The ALA has stated that they oppose these challenges, arguing that they hinder intellectual freedom, and also that they believe these documented examples are only a snapshot of book challenges. Surveys indicate that 82-97% of book challenges documented requests to remove materials from schools or libraries remain unreported and receive no media, stated the group. Although LGBT-themed books have often featured prominently on the annual ALA list of most challenged, in 2015 the Bible made it to No. 6 on the list. "You have people who feel that if a school library buys a copy of the Bible, it's a violation of church and state," explained James LaRue, then head of the ALA OIF, as reported by the Associated Press in 2016. "And sometimes there's a retaliatory action, where a religious group has objected to a book and a parent might respond by objecting to the Bible." The ALA has stated in the past that Bibles are acceptable books for public libraries to include, provided they are not promoted or endorsed by the library. Dr. Deborah Birx said that the White House is very focused on how Boston is dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic as the virus continues to spread across the state. Were still very much focused on Boston and across Massachusetts where the epidemics continue to spread across Massachusetts as well as in Boston, Birx said in an interview with Face the Nation. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has identified 400 ventilators that can be sent to Massachusetts if the state requests them during its COVID-19 surge. His remarks came during a press conference on Sunday where he stated he had spoken to Gov. Charlie Baker over the weekend as Massachusetts finds itself dealing with an increasing number of cases. Vice President Mike Pence also said that Boston is one of the areas that the White House will be watching in the coming days. Areas that we continue to watch carefully on the task force include Chicago-metro area, Boston-metro, and the Philadelphia-metropolitan area, Pence said at the White House briefing on Sunday. The number of coronavirus-related deaths in Massachusetts increased to 1,706, with 146 new deaths reported on Sunday. Statewide, there are now 38,077 new positive cases of the virus, according to the latest figures, up from 36,372 on Saturday. Altogether, 162,241 COVID-19 tests have been carried out by state and commercial labs. Gov. Charlie Baker says getting a better handle on where COVID-19 is taking hold throughout Massachusetts, and learning from those whove tested positive, are critical steps to reviving a state economy thats come to a halt. Coronavirus in Mass.: Cases, maps, charts and resources Related Content: By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 04, 2020 | 04:51 PM | FRANKFORT Out of the new cases, three were in Graves, one in Hickman, and one in McCracken. There are currently 333 Kentuckians hospitalized, with 174 of those in the ICU. As of Monday their were 8 new deaths associated with the virus, bringing the total number of deaths to 261. A total of 1,921 Kentuckians have recovered. Watch the entire update here: During his Monday update, Governor Andy Beshear announced 163 new cases of the virus in the state, for a total of 5,245 cases. A hairdresser has won more than 20,000 after being ordered by her boss to pick up dog mess from the salon car park when they found out she was Muslim. Former model Tonie Bond claimed she was made to pick up the faeces and take out rubbish by Leanne Large, whose mother owned the barber shop. Ms Bond, who is in her 50s, was also the victim of an exaggerated rumour that she had made sexual comments to a teenage boy while he was having his hair cut. And when she was forced off work with anxiety and depression Miss Large repeatedly filmed her walking past the salon, remarking that she was 'laughing' at us. An employment tribunal ruled that Ms Bond was the victim of religious discrimination and had been made to perform menial tasks because she was Muslim. Former model Tonie Bond (pictured) claimed she was made to pick up the faeces and take out rubbish by Leanne Large, whose mother owned the barber shop It ordered the 'Lads and Dads' salon in Colwyn Bay, north Wales, to pay her more than 20,000 in compensation. The tribunal heard Ms Bond began working at the barber's in 2016. At some point, Ms Leanne, who also worked there, discovered she was Muslim. Within six months of starting as a hairdresser, Ms Bond was instructed to take rubbish out of the workshop and to clean up dog excrement in the car park, even though someone else was responsible for that. One customer told the panel that in the summer of 2017: 'Ms Large said that she 'had recently learned that Tonie was a Muslim and that she couldn't have that'.' Ms Large told the customer that Ms Bond had been 'flirting with younger customers'. Ms Bond, who is in her 50s, was also the victim of an exaggerated rumour that she had made sexual comments to a teenage boy while he was having his hair cut The tribunal heard that a letter was sent to the salon which read: 'My sixteen-year-old son is a regular customer of yours, on his recent visit he was seen by a fifty-year-old lady who made very improper comments to him. My son was very embarrassed by this and when he told me what was said I was utterly disgusted'. Ms Bond told the tribunal in Mold, Flintshire that Miss Large had falsely told her the letter specifically referred to her as the hairdresser concerned. She said she was very upset about this and demanded that the salon put a note in its window exonerating her, claiming 'gossip' could harm her career. An employment tribunal ruled that Ms Bond was the victim of religious discrimination and had been made to perform menial tasks because she was Muslim Ms Bond took sick leave from the barber's due to stress. But while she was off work, Ms Large videoed her on two occasions walking past the shop window, which she said added to her anxiety. Eventually, after a long period of absence due to ill health, the company owner dismissed her in July 2018. The tribunal found the salon guilty of religious discrimination, unlawful deduction of wages, unfavourable treatment. It concluded: 'We find on the balance of probabilities that the direction to take out the rubbish and clean up dog excrement were acts of direct discrimination on the grounds of perceived religion.' Ms Bond was awarded 19,352 in damages, plus nearly 1,000 in unpaid wages. The judgement reads: 'The discriminatory conduct led to the claimant's disability, her extended sickness absence, (and) her continuing ill health.' Goa: Dwindling dry fish trade hits livelihoods by Arpit Basu April 20,2020 | Source: The Times of India The lockdown has hit the already dwindling dry fish trade in the state, leading to a fall in export to other states. According to recent estimates, dry fish produce worth over Rs 3 crore was spoilt and livelihoods of around 50,000 fish vendors, especially women vendors, has been affected. Since March 22 transportation has not been available to deliver the produce to wholesalers in the state and outside. These fish vendors or the fishermen dont have proper storage facilities and within one month the dry fish starts to spoil, said Arijili Dasu, a fishermen activist to TOI. Andhra Pradesh produces around five lakh tonnes of dry fish in a year, the major part of which is exported to the eastern and north-eastern states and some tribal pockets in Malkangiri in Odisha and Chhattishgarh. Around 10 per cent of the produce is consumed locally mostly in tribal areas of the Agency. Normally we start drying fish while on the boat itself. Once we land it takes a couple of days to process the dry fish. If processed properly, the fish can last up to 15 to 25 days without cold storage facility or refrigeration. Since we dont have any proper storage facilities at all the four dry fish producing harbours Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Nizampatnam and Machilipatnam in the state, all our catch has been spoilt, said M Bulaya, a fisherman. Fishermen associations have written a letter to Giriraj Singh, Union minister of fisheries asking him to provide compensation of Rs 10,000 to fish vendors and fishermen associated with the trade. Whatever they have caught before March 22 and produced after March 22 got spoilt. There has been no fresh catch since the last week of March and from April 16 the mandatory fishing ban has been imposed. It means these fishermen and fish vendors would be out of business for over 90 to 100 days, said Dasu. During Pandemic, Safe Haven Should Be Used Instead of Abortion NEWS PROVIDED BY The Justice Foundation April 20, 2020 SAN ANTONIO, Texas, April 20, 2020 /Standard Newswire/ -- Allan Parker, The Justice Foundation President, announces TJF is offering free legal information to any pregnant woman in America who feels that she cannot care for the "infant life" (U.S. Supreme Court-Gonzales v. Carhart, 2007) in her womb at this time and needs an abortion. TJF can assist her with understanding her state's Safe Haven laws by which she can, without cost, release her baby to the community. She can simply release the baby to a hospital, fire station, or other designated place within a specified time after birth. If she is low-income, the state can also provide prenatal care and delivery of the child at no cost to the woman. Many women are feeling pressured by circumstances such as lost jobs, economic uncertainty, etc., into getting "emergency" abortions when they could be using the Safe Haven laws which are available in every state. See www.nationalsafehavealliance.org. Cynthia Collins, Operation Outcry Global Advisor and Founder of the Louisiana Abortion Recovery Group says: "Fear leads to death; hope leads to life. We need to offer women hope for the future, not death." The Justice Foundation can assist women to prevent being illegally forced to abort. Unlike abortions, Safe Haven is free and equally available to the rich and poor. There is no cost, no obligation, no legal procedure and the woman is totally free to release her child to the state with no obligation for future child support. Unfortunately, because of its financial bias, the abortion industry is not telling women about the free services provided by her state's Safe Haven law and Medicaid for those who have lost their jobs and are pregnant. The fact that the abortion industry is continuing its attempt to exploit the coronavirus crisis in order to stay open is absolutely deplorable. Their callous disregard of women's health and the infant lives in the womb and others could not be more obvious. The helpline number to contact thousands of pregnancy resource centers across the nation for free is the Option Line: 1-800-712-4357 or text "HELPLINE" at 313131. About The Justice Foundation To learn more about The Justice Foundation and The Moral Outcry movement, please visit www.themoraloutcry.com or www.thejusticefoundatiion.org. To book interviews with Allan Parker, Cynthia Collins, or other pro-life leaders involved with this initiative, please email The Justice Foundation media team at media@txjf.org. SOURCE The Justice Foundation CONTACT: Allan E. Parker, info@txjf.org Related Links www.themoraloutcry.com www.thejusticefoundatiion.org www.txjf.org The company logo of Halliburton oilfield services corporate offices is seen in Houston By Liz Hampton and Nishara Karuvalli Pathikkal (Reuters) - U.S. oilfield services giant Halliburton on Monday reported a $1 billion first-quarter loss on charges and outlined the largest budget cut yet among top energy companies as U.S. crude futures plunged to two-decade lows. U.S. oil prices have collapsed 80% since January and on Monday traded under $11 a barrel , a 34-year low, and below many shale drillers' cost of production. The coronavirus pandemic has crushed oil demand and prompted a sharp decline in the need for oilfield services. Halliburton said it would cut this year's capital outlays by roughly 50% to $800 million, the steepest by a major energy company so far, and reduce other costs by about $1 billion. It has laid off hundreds and furloughed thousands of workers. The company has no plans to cut its shareholder dividend but added it was a "lever" that could be pulled and promised not to take on debt to protect the payment. Rival Schlumberger last week cut its dividend by 75%, a move welcomed by investors. Halliburton, which generates most of its business in North America, booked $1.1 billion in pre-tax impairments and other charges, mostly relating to the value of a pressure pumping business that breaks shale rock to release trapped oil and gas. It posted a 25% drop in revenue from the region to $2.46 billion, while reporting a 5% increase in international revenue to $2.58 billion. "North America is experiencing the most dramatic and rampant activity decline in recent history," Halliburton Chief Executive Jeff Miller said in a call with analysts. Customers' capital spending is headed toward a 50% reduction for 2020, he said. Oilfield service rivals Schlumberger and Baker Hughes also recorded large hits to earnings on writedowns and slashed their project spending budgets. Wall Street analysts were encouraged by Halliburton's cost cutting measures, and its shares were up about 2% to $7.73 in morning trading. They are down 70% year-to-date. Story continues "We like the company's proactive mindset and actions," analysts for investment firm Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co wrote in a note. Halliburton warned it faced business disruptions from coronavirus-related border closures and travel restrictions that have prevented the company from accessing certain operations, as well as stay-at-home work arrangements. It reported a net loss of $1.02 billion, or $1.16 per share, in the first quarter, compared with a profit of $152 million, or 17 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding charges, Halliburton earned 31 cents per share, beating Wall Street estimates of 24 cents per share, I/B/E/S data from Refinitiv showed. (Reporting by Nishara Karuvalli Pathikkal in Bengaluru; Editing by Alexander Smith, Nick Zieminski and Steve Orlofsky) KYODO NEWS - Apr 21, 2020 - 00:06 | All, Japan, Coronavirus Japan on Monday reported another 25 deaths caused by the novel coronavirus, its highest tally for a single day, with the number of infections still rising almost two weeks after a state of emergency was declared for Tokyo, Osaka and some other areas with large urban populations. The total death toll now stands at 276, while Japan has confirmed at least 11,137 COVID-19 cases, excluding about 700 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined near Tokyo in February and those among people who returned to the country on charter flights after the virus was first detected in China late last year. When Prime Minister Shinzo Abe first declared a state of emergency for seven prefectures, including Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka, on April 7, he said the number of infections was projected to peak in two weeks and start decreasing if contact between people was reduced by 80 percent. But daily infection figures above 400 are still not unusual, including three days last week. The largest daily increase of reported cases was 501 on April 11. Under such circumstances, Abe expanded the emergency situation to all of Japan last Thursday. Tokyo's daily increase of new cases topped 200 for the first time on Friday. The pace of infection is also accelerating in other parts of Japan, such as the northern main island of Hokkaido, where the number of new cases has been increasing again since around April 8 after it lifted its own state of emergency in mid-March. But daily infection figures above 400 are still not unusual, including three days last week. The largest daily increase of reported cases was 501 on April 11. Under such circumstances, Abe expanded the emergency situation to all of Japan last Thursday. Tokyo's daily increase of new cases topped 200 for the first time on Friday. The pace of infection is also accelerating in other parts of Japan, such as the northern main island of Hokkaido, where the number of new cases has been increasing again since around April 8 after it lifted its own state of emergency in mid-March. Related coverage: Q&A: How do I receive 100,000 yen from the government? Singapore reports huge jump in infections, COVID-19 cases top 8,000 Masks with animal mouth designs lighten mood amid coronavirus spread A tweet by the Chhattisgarh health minister TS Singh Deo declaring that his state had purchased 75,000 rapid testing kits from a South Korean firm has sparked off a huge row in Andhra Pradesh after it turned out that the state government had paid twice as much for the testing kits than its neighour. Furious, the Andhra Pradesh government which had placed the order on April 7, has told the company to match Chhattisgarhs price. If Andhra does get the same price, it could end up saving Rs 78 million. Andhra Pradesh had placed an order with the supplier, SD Biosensors Pvt Ltd, Korea, for two lakh rapid test kits. According to this deal, the government would pay Rs 730 per kit excluding GST. For 2 lakh kits, it comes to about Rs 146 million. When the first consignment of one lakh kits reached the state government via a special Air India flight on Friday, there were photo-ops at Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddys camp office. He received the first testing kit, and even had himself tested. One lakh #Covid19 rapid test kits imported from South Korea in a special flight, were launched by Hon'ble Chief Minister @ysjagan at the camp office in Tadepalli, today. These test kits give results within 10 minutes & are expected to ramp-up testing in Andhra Pradesh.#Covid_19 pic.twitter.com/4LplO3de2k CMO Andhra Pradesh (@AndhraPradeshCM) April 17, 2020 These test kits give results within 10 minutes and are expected to ramp-up testing in Andhra Pradesh, the chief ministers office tweeted soon after along with a couple of photographs. The uproar in Andhra Pradesh came the next day when Chhattisgarh health minister TS Singh Deo tweeted that his government was procuring 75,000 high quality rapid testing kits at Rs 337 excluding GST. The rate we have been able to close at is the lowest in India, he said. The minister credited the South Korean Ambassador in India Shin Bong-Kil, the Indian Ambassador in Seoul Sripriya Ranganathan and the central government for help in closing the deal. We are procuring 75,000 high quality rapid testing kits at a benchmark price of 337 + GST from a South Korean company based in India, which has proven to be the lowest bidder. The rate we have been able to close at is the lowest in India. (1/2) TS Singh Deo (@TS_SinghDeo) April 17, 2020 Andhra Pradeshs opposition Telugu Desam Party quickly rushed to allege a scram. How could we pay Rs 730 for the same test kit which the Chhattisgarh government had bought for Rs 337? Can you please explain, whether it is called commission or third-party payment or J-tax (Jagan tax)? asked senior TDP legislator Gorantla Buchaiah Chowdary. Andhra Pradesh Medical Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd managing director V Vijaya Rama Raju promptly served notice on th South Korean companys local dealer Sandor Medicaids for the huge price difference. In his notice, the state-run firm underscored the contract conditions that empowered the government to recover the price differential if any instance comes to the notice of the government that the above medical items are supplied at a lower price than price quoted now. As such it is informed that, the payment will be made as per the Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation Limited rate of Rs.337 per each kit excluding GST for the supplies made to the Government of Andhra Pradesh, the notice said. Deputy chief minister and health minister Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas insisted that the state had been transparent about the entire deal. The purchase was made from the lowest bidder and the entire transaction was done according to the guidelines framed by the Centre, he said. Health commissioner K Bhaskar suggested that it was possible that the price difference could be linked to the fact that Andhra imported the rapid test kits directly from South Korea, while Chhattisgarh bought them from the local franchise of the South Korean company When we had placed an order, the Korean companys Indian unit did not have the permission from ICMR to supply rapid test kits, he said, adding that in the coming days, the price of rapid test kits could come down to even Rs 50 per kit. Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy reviewed the action taken at a meeting on Monday and complimented officials for moving swiftly to save public funds, a state government official said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Raising hopes in the battle against COVID-19, the government on Monday said infections are now doubling nationwide at a slower place of 7.5 days and 59 districts have not reported a single case in a fortnight, while several states sought to contain the ballooning economic cost of the pandemic by easing some lockdown curbs. However, some states preferred to maintain strict restrictions for fear of losing control, with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka joining Delhi in deciding against any relaxation till May 3. Telangana went a step further by extending the lockdown till May 7. Punjab, which had earlier ruled out any relaxation till May 3, said some industrial activity may resume in areas other than those identified as high-risk 'containment zones'. The first set of relaxations from the nationwide lockdown, which came into effect on March 25, kicked in at select places across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Goa among other states, even as several states reported a rising number of cases. According to the Union Health Ministry figures, the number of coronavirus positive cases saw a sharp increase of 1,553 between Sunday and Monday, while there has been a recovery rate of about 15 per cent. In its 5 PM update, the Ministry said the COVID-19 death toll has risen to 559 and the number of cases has risen to 17,656 across the country. However, a PTI tally of figures reported by various states and union territories, as on 6.30 PM, showed 17,744 confirmed cases, 2,859 recoveries and 584 deaths. Maharashtra alone has reported 4,600 cases, while Delhi has also crossed 2,000. Gujarat has over 1,800 cases, while Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan are above 1,500 each, closely followed by Madhya Pradesh at over 1,400. But despite the relaxations announced by state authorities, which are mostly limited to non-urban areas, industry executives said most companies have decided to wait for a complete exit from the lockdown as continuing restrictions on goods and people's movement make it difficult to resume stalled economic activities, which are estimated to have suffered a loss of Rs 7-8 lakh crores already. While attendance at government establishments also increased marginally, there have been no relaxations as such for the public road transport, railway passenger services and flights. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said restrictions on domestic and international flights will be lifted when the government is confident that spread of coronavirus has been controlled, and poses no danger to Indians. On a positive note, Health Ministry Joint Secretary Law Agarwal said as many as 59 districts across 23 states and union territories have not reported a single case in the last 14 days and also asserted that the rate of the number of cases doubling has improved to 7.5 days, from 3.4 days before the lockdown. Last Friday, he had put the rate of doubling of cases at 6.2 days. In Goa, all patients have been discharged and no fresh case has been reported, Agarwal said. While the small state on the country's southwestern coast eased some lockdown restrictions, in line with the central government's guidelines, the leaders there warned against any hurry in declaring the state a 'green zone' one or free of the virus. Kerala, where the doubling rate of cases is among the best in the country at 72.2 days, also announced a number of relaxations, but had to rescind some after facing the flak from the Centre. In a letter to the state government, the Union Home Ministry said Kerala's decision to open restaurants, allow bus travel in cities and open MSME industries in urban areas amounted to dilution of the lockdown guidelines and also a Supreme Court observation. Later in the day, the state government decided not to allow plying of buses in cities, opening of restaurants and pillion riding on two-wheelers. At a daily press briefing on COVID-19, Home Ministry Joint Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava said states have been told that some of them were issuing certain guidelines that amounted to "diluting" the lockdown leading to "severe repercussions to health" of the citizens. She said states and union territories (UTs) can take stricter action than what is mentioned in the guidelines issued by the central government to enforce the nationwide lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but cannot dilute or weaken them. Separately, the Home Ministry also said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures risks the spread of the novel coronavirus further. The Ministry said six inter-ministerial central teams will visit these identified areas in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan within the next three days to make on-the-spot assessment and recommend remedial measures in a report to the Centre. In identical orders issued to the four states on Sunday, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 front-line healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. Fresh cases reported from various parts of the country included those of police personnel in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, of health workers at various places, journalists in Mumbai and even of prisoners in Madhya Pradesh's Indore. Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind appealed to Muslims to adhere to all the guidelines of the lockdown and perform all religious rituals during Ramzan, starting later this week, staying inside their homes. Separately, officials at the famous Badrinath temple in Garhwal Himalayas said the date for opening its gates has been deferred to May 15, from the earlier schedule of April 30. Amid rising number of cases, Tamil Nadu government said prohibitory orders and other COVID-19 lockdown curbs will continue till May 3 without any relaxation, while the Karnataka cabinet decided to promulgate an ordinance, giving it special powers to control the spread of COVID-19. These include provision for protection to front line health workers and making non-cooperation with the government a punishable offence. Karnataka has also decided to continue the COVID-19 lockdown measures till May 3 without any relaxation, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister J C Madhuswamy said. But, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and the COVID-19 Task Force has been authorised to meet in three or four days to review and take further decisions about any relaxation. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said some relaxation for economic activities has been given from Monday but it is limited, as he asked people not to violate lockdown norms and avoid going out of their homes. In Uttar Pradesh, no relaxation would be given in Lucknow, Agra and Firozabad. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said limited industrial activities have been allowed in certain areas of the state, but this should not be seen as indication that the threat of coronavirus has receded in any way. There has been a rise of 835 cases of COVID-19 in Maharashtra in the last 36 hours, but we are relaxing the stringent norms of lockdown to restart the wheels of economy, he said. Assam's Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state "will not be able" to pay salaries of its employees for May if it does not get financial support from outside. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Strides Pharma Science announced that its step down subsidiary, Strides Pharma Global, Singapore, has received approval for Flucytosine Capsules USP, 250 mg and 500 mg from the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA). The product is a generic version of Ancobon Capsules, 250 mg and 500 mg, of Bausch Health US, LLC. According to IQVIA MAT data, the US market for Flucytosine Capsules USP, 250 mg and 500 mg is approximately US$ 45 Mn. The product will be manufactured at the company's flagship facility at Bangalore and will be marketed by Strides Pharma Inc. in the US market. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 19:19:49|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BERLIN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Germany reported 1,775 new cases of COVID-19 infection in the past 24 hours, raising the country's cumulative number of infection to 141,672, fresh figures showed on Monday. A further 110 patients had died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 4,404, according to figures released by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the German government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. Germany has staggered the rest of the world with an impressively low "case fatality rate," which is the number of deaths divided by the total number of confirmed cases. According to RKI, the "case fatality rate" among confirmed COVID-19 infections was at 3.1 percent in Germany. RKI figures also showed that the estimated number of people in Germany who had already recovered from COVID-19 went up by around 3,500 within one day to 91,500 as of Monday morning. Starting on Monday, shops in Germany with a maximum sales area of up to 800 square meters are allowed to open under new hygiene regulations as well as access and queue control, the German government announced last week. The only exception is Bavaria where shops would not be allowed to reopen for another week. Bavarian Minister-President Markus Soeder said that Bavaria wanted to approach the openings "more cautiously" and "more restrained." Bavaria is the German federal state with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases. According to RKI, Bavaria had 37,849 confirmed cases on Monday, of which 1,286 people died so far. Across Germany, distance requirements of at least 1.5 meters in public as well as contact restrictions have been extended until May 3. German Health Minister Jens Spahn was expecting that the rules of distance and hygiene would remain in force for a long time. He expected the rules to remain in force "for months," Spahn told public broadcaster ZDF on Sunday. "Until there is a vaccine, we will have to look after each other." The German government is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the current coronavirus situation. Enditem Strikes have spread across the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez, which borders El Paso, Texas, involving hundreds of maquiladora workers demanding the closure of non-essential factories, which have been kept open despite the growing death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic, including 13 employees at the US-owned Lear car seat plant. The strikes, which follow similar actions by workers at the border cities of Matamoros, Mexicali, Reynosa and Tijuana, are part of a growing international resistance involving workers across Europe and the US as the pandemic continues to spread out of control. Transnational firms and the Mexican financial aristocracy are determined to keep the flow of parts coming from the cheap-labor industrial belt across the US-Mexico border and northern Mexico as the global automakers prepare to reopen assembly plants across the US, Europe and Canada. On Sunday, US president Donald Trump said he spoke with his Mexican counterpart Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) Saturday to coordinate the reopening of supply chains. With warnings of the deepest economic crisis in Mexicos history and a massive under-reporting of infections and deaths and with no plan to contain the escalating outbreak in the country, the AMLO administration has allowed vast swathes of industry to remain open and announced a reactivation as early as June 1. Raul Rosales (right), a quality control supervisor at Lear who tested positive and is now on a respirator. Pictured here in December (Source: Monica Rosales Facebook) The strikes at Ciudad Juarez began last Wednesday as workers at a Therm-O-Disc Emerson plant protested the nonessential production of thermostats without protective equipment. On Thursday, workers at the smoke-alarm maker Honeywell struck after a co-worker reportedly died of COVID-19. Honeywell, which has insisted that its production is essential, threatened workers with reprisals and offered a $17 bonus per week to shut down opposition. Our life is not a game, its not a tossup. We want a quarantine with 100 percent of our wages, a worker told the video news site Ruptly. Workers at electric-motor producer Regal Beloit struck Friday after two workers died of COVID-19. Since then, workers have also struck at Amphenol CTI (Canadian wire harness business), TPI Composites (US wind turbine blade manufacturer), Norma Group (German welding and joining technology company), Argentina-based Electrocomponentes, Syncreon (US-based warehouse and export packaging firm) and Critikon (US-based medical supplier). Workers took matters into their own hands after government authorities, management and the trade unions took no action to shut down plants when news broke of the deaths at Lear and other maquiladoras . The first coronavirus case in Ciudad Juarez was confirmed on March 17, and the Chihuahua state authorities recommended the shutdown of nonessential operations on March 23. The Los Angeles Times interviewed two workers at the Lear plant who spoke anonymously and described a wave of cough and fever by mid-March. At the time, AMLO was insisting that pandemics wont do anything to us. Lear workers lacked hand sanitizer and those with symptoms were not given sick leave. It was not until March 30 that the Mexican government declared a health emergency ordering nonessential activities to stop and urging companies to provide 100 percent pay during the shutdowns. The government decree, however, was deliberately vague regarding when the plants had to close, what constitutes essential activities and whether pay cuts agreed by the corrupt trade unions were legal. At the same time, the AMLO government and state authorities have taken no actions against companies that defied their orders. While Lear closed its plants in Mexico on April 1, Chihuahua officials said last Saturday that, out of the 160 factories in Ciudad Juarez, 28 nonessential plants, 33 considered essential and 35 with some essential activities remained open, while 64 were closed. About 120,000 of the 300,000 maquiladora workers remain at work. The city had 108 confirmed cases and 20 deaths from COVID-19 on Sunday; however, lawyers representing the medical staff at Hospital 66 in Ciudad Juarez shared images with piled body bags. The personnel at IMSS 66 reports more than 80 dead by Friday only in that clinic, imagine how many are infectedmany in the maquiladoras, lawyer Mario Espinoza Simental commented. Doctors denounce the lack of PPE in the hospitals and demands that they send workers back to the factories with little more than acetaminophen because of the lack of testing. The Health Ministry director for the Northern Zone, Dr. Arturo Valenzuela, declared Saturday that there were deaths earlier this year that were reported as pneumonia and other ailments but were probably COVID-19, including of factory workers. Nationwide, the official count of COVID-19 cases stood at 8,261, but top health officials have estimated that there are more than 56,000 infections. The outbreak is effectively out of control, while no economic support is being given to laid off workers, most of whom are forced to depend on the informal sector without unemployment benefits or health insurance. The International Labor Organization estimates that Mexico could lose 1.7 million to 7 million jobs as a result to the pandemic crisis. By comparison during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, one-tenth the total or 772,000 jobs were lost, pushing 10 million people below the official poverty rate. Now some 50 million Mexicansout of the population of 130 millionare considered poor and 50 million more are at risk of falling below the poverty threshold. The only federal assistance provided involves loans at 6.5 percent interest or higher for small and medium companies that will begin on May 4. Not only are companies carrying out mass layoffs, but the AMLO administration has ordered a 50 percent budget cut in most federal institutions outside of health care, the Army, Navy and National Guard. This will lead to mass layoffs in education, culture, public services and other sectors. Amid the lack of testing, PPE and other medical equipment, AMLO has vowed to do the impossible to avoid increasing the public debt. While the 2020 federal health care budget was only $5.2 billion, the six richest billionaires in Mexico control $108 billion, and the last decade saw an increase of dollar millionaires from 78,000 to 173,000. At the same time, Mexico has spent over $120 billion in law enforcement and the militaryknown for its rampant violence and corruptionon the so-called war on drugs since 2006, and AMLO created a National Guard to perpetuate this. After 13 years of war, March 2020 was the deadliest month with 2,585 homicides, with Ciudad Juarez as one of the epicenters with 159 killings. Reuters reported Sunday that some [Mexican business executives] are threatening to not pay taxes until the economy recovers from the coronavirus, particularly in northern border states such as Chihuahua and Tamaulipas, where Matamoros is located. Several companies have also called on the police to force striking workers back into the plants. The Mexican ruling class and its US and European patrons are terrified that their response to their efforts to lay the burden of the crisis on the working class will lead to a social explosion that AMLO will be unable to contain. There was already a simmering rank-and-file rebellion against the corrupt trade unions and the transnational corporations expressed by waves of wildcat strikes in Ciudad Juarez in 2015-16 and Matamoros last year. Last weekend, David Ibarra, a former finance minister and current board member at several Mexican multinationals called for an agreement between the government, the business sector and organized labor over a new social consensus. The call for a new consensus is being widely made by capitalist commentators internationally and has proven to a thinly veiled call to reopen capitalist economies and to use more authoritarian measures to crush the resistance of workers who refuse to die for corporate profit. In an April 13 column for the New York Times, Chilean journalist Patricio Fernandez warns of a larger second wave of discontent over the response to the pandemic that would be far greater than the mass upheavals in Chile that occurred over the last year. And we are not talking of a theoretical and unknown fury. We just saw its teeth, he writes. After denouncing protesters as marginal lumpen mobs, he calls for a greater presence of the state and a law-and-order bet as the best strategy to avoid a breakdown of dimensions that will be hard to fix. A coalition of forces including the US trade union confederation AFL-CIO, the so-called independent trade unions tied to AMLOs Morena party and their pseudo-left apologists intervened during the previous rebellions of workers in Ciudad Juarez and Matamoros to chain workers within the gangster-ridden unions, which are now partnering with the corporations to force workers to remain at the unsafe maquiladoras . There is indeed a second wave of struggles among workers in Mexico and this time it is a matter of life and death. The World Socialist Web Site calls on workers to form rank-and-file factory and workplace committees, independent of the unions, to shut down all non-essential production and guarantee full wages and medical benefits to all laid off workers. At the same time, these committees must demand universal testing, immediate and fully paid medical care for affected workers, and no return to work until all workers have proper protective gear and a safe working environment, overseen by factory committees working in conjunction with health care professionals. Rank-and-file committees in Mexico must unite with workers in the US and Canada to wage an internationally coordinated struggle to shut down all nonessential production and demand the immediate conversion of the factories to produce testing equipment, ventilators and protective gear for medical and other essential workers, while protecting the workers who manufacture these vitally necessary products. This is the first sight of the Royal Navys new patrol ship in one of the most starkly beautiful and remote places on the planet to fly the Union Flag. This is the first sight of the Royal Navys new patrol ship in one of the most starkly beautiful and remote places on the planet to fly the Union Flag. British Royal Navy New Patrol Ship HMS FORTH Debuts in South Georgia (Picture source: Royal Navy) For the first time since arriving in the South Atlantic, HMS Forth crossed 850 miles of icy ocean to patrol the waters around South Georgia. The distant archipelago forms part of the territory 2,000-tonne Forth, which arrived in the Falklands at the turn of the year as the islands new patrol ship, must reassure and, ultimately, protect. The Falklands patrol ship spends the majority of her time around the namesake islands. But several times a year it heads to South Georgia for a mix of military training, providing support to the island authorities and British Antarctic Survey scientists.0 HMS Forth is a Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessel in active service with the Royal Navy. Named after the River Forth, she is the first Batch 2 River-class vessel to be built. She was commissioned into the Royal Navy on 13 April 2018, following a commissioning ceremony at her homeport HMNB Portsmouth. As of January 2020, she replaced HMS Clyde as the Falklands Patrol ship. In terms of specifications, the HMS Forth has a full load displacement of 2,000 tons. With a total length of 90.5 m (296 ft 11 in), a beam of 13 m (42 ft 8 in) and a draught of 3.8 m (12 ft 6 in), the ship can reach a cruising speed of 24 knots and offers a range of 5,500 nm. The HMS Forth's main armaments comprise of a 30 mm cannon, 4 General purpose machine guns and 2 Miniguns. British Royal Navy New Patrol Ship HMS FORTH Debuts in South Georgia (Picture source: Royal Navy) Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov has said that the landowners, who might be guilty of an outbreak of wildfires in Zhytomyr region, will be called to account if this version is confirmed. Danilov said on his Facebook page that he participated in a meeting of the emergency operations center in Ovruch district, Zhytomyr region, along with Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak, Interior Minister of Ukraine Arsen Avakov and Head of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine Mykola Chechotkin on Sunday, April 19. The officials went on a working visit to check the situation with wildfires there. "During the meeting, in particular, we considered the issue of liability of the landowners, who might be involved in the outbreak of wildfires. It won't be long before we find out the conclusions," Danilov said. Along with about 150 other American Patriots today, Barnstable County Commissioner RON BEATY took part in the... Posted by Reelect RON BEATY for Barnstable County Commissioner on Sunday, April 19, 2020 Hundreds of protesters from a conservative group known as the United Cape Patriots gathered in Cape Cod to protest the lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. I just drove by the protest against the COVID-19 closings at the Bourne rotary, said Dave Perry on social media. Nothing but a Trump rally! About 100 people there, 60 to 70 Trump signs several signs saying Open Our Schools. The United Cape Patriots organized the event that took place early afternoon on Sunday. This is a nonpartisan event to let our elected officials know we are ready to return to work based on the steep decline in Barnstable County new (COVID-19) cases and the economic impact our most vulnerable low-income neighbors are experiencing, the groups founder, Adam Lange, of Brewster, said in an interview with the Cape Cod Times. The group is hoping Gov. Charlie Baker consider lifting restrictions in counties in the state, including Barnstable, that meet the criteria for reopening. Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said Friday his city is nowhere close, to being ready to reopen from shutdowns related to the coronavirus pandemic, citing a dramatic need for more testing. According to researchers at Harvard University, Rhode Island is currently the only state conducting enough COVID-19 tests to safely reopen the economy. Harvard University discussed the importance of per capita testing, according to a report by the New York Times. Related Content: The coronavirus pandemic has forced Midland Yoga Works to adapt. The local studio has moved yoga sessions online to Zoom, the app Mindbody and its own app, Midland Yoga Works. Owner Cyndi Simpson said she had no idea the studio would be closed for this long so she has made lessons available to accommodate peoples schedules. We dove into Zoom and offered free classes while I figured it out, Simpson said. Now were pretty much having three to four classes a day on a regular schedule online so people can sign up for the class. I send them a link to the Zoom class. She said they have been successful having people sign up for classes. A client from Wyoming who visits Midland for work asked to join the Zoom classes. Simpson also takes some of the classes and uploads them to Mindbody and Midland Yoga Works apps for people who might not be able to attend the live Zoom session. More Information Get moving www.midlandyogaworks.com See More Collapse You can access any of those videos on demand, Simpson said. If you have kids at home, and you have to start school at 9 a.m. when we have a class, you can do the class at seven in the morning if you want or at 1 p.m. when the kids take a rest. Were trying to accommodate lots of different schedules. The goal during the pandemic has been to keep the business running and to keep people moving during this stressful time. Its really pretty fun as I send the invite for the Zoom class. We see all of our friends popping up, and then at the end of class they can turn on their mics and say hi to everybody, Simpson said. We all miss each other. Its kind of lonely at the studio but itll come back, and we will meet again someday. She is offering 100 free memberships to first responders, medical workers, grocery store workers or anybody who is working on the front lines during this stressful pandemic. I would like to give away 100 free memberships to first responders or people in stressful situations, Simpson said. I cant work in the hospital, but this is what I can do: donate free memberships I would like to give some of this stuff away so that people have a chance to release some of that stress and create a little bit of movement for your body and your mind. Classes have also been discounted to $10 for drop-in Zoom sessions, she said. On-demand videos and videos on Facebook are free but Simpson would like to find a way that instructors can get paid for people watching the pre-recorded videos. There are some paid classes because I still need to pay the instructors, she said. But Im trying to put some things online for free. She praised the Midland Yoga Works instructors and said its important to continue to pay them for their hard work in preparing and demonstrating the classes during this time. Its really vulnerable sometimes to be an instructor, she said. The studio still provides free classes on Sundays -- which when they were meeting in person would allow people to donate to local charities. Simpson said she would like to add a donation button on the Mindbody app but hasnt figured out how to do that. We donate to mostly local charities like Fields Edge and Casa de Amigos, she said. I still think thats important because they are under a lot of stress right now, too, so if we could help them financially that would be really great. Simpson said it continues to be important to move through this crazy time in peoples lives. We need some things that are stable and what moves and hold onto those stable things, she said. Hopefully, the classes we provide for the people in Midland that have been coming for years and years and years become part of the stability, something they can rely on and come back to. A third of the state lost power because of a freak snowstorm and a powerful windstorm as residents were locked down because of the pandemic. Rivers swelled because of heavy rain. Then an explosion ripped through a paper mill. It all added up to an unforgettable week at the Maine Emergency Management Agencys 24-hour operations center. There were so many things coming our way. We were waiting for the locusts, and the tornadoes. I dont think anything could shock us at this point, said spokeswoman Susan Faloon. The misery of the pandemic with Mainers under order to shelter at home was compounded by the snowstorm that knocked out power to more than 270,000 homes and businesses at the peak. The storm meant that tens of thousands of homes and businesses were in the dark on Easter morning. Then a windstorm the next day made work even harder for utility workers with even more power outages. All told, more than 410,000 customers lost power at some point between the snowstorm and the windstorm. That represented the largest number of power outages since a bomb cyclone in October 2017 caused more than 500,000 power outages. In the end, the utility workers toiled away, around the clock, for nearly a week to restore power. Rising rivers also calmed down. Then the ground shook and a plume of smoke emerged over the Androscoggin Mill in Jay, where about 200 workers were toiling away. Emergency responders feared mass casualties. Governor Janet Mills fought back tears during a press conference as she proclaimed that, miraculously, no one was hurt. Maine Emergency Management Agency Director Peter Rogers said his team was well prepared, communicated well and didnt miss a beat despite the stream of bad news. There were five potential disasters in less than week, from the snowstorm that began Thursday, April 9, to the explosion at the Androscoggin Mill on Wednesday, April 15. I think thats unprecedented for us, Faloon said. This goes to show you were resilient as a state. We can handle a lot. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Maine SENTENCING of five people over the gruesome death and dismemberment of grandmother-of-seven Patricia OConnor has been delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Murderer Kieran Greene (35) bludgeoned his partners mother Patricia (61) with a hurley at her Dublin home in 2017 before cutting up the body and scattering the remains in the Wicklow mountains. Patricias husband Gus OConnor (75), their daughter Louise (41), granddaughter Stephanie (22), and Louises ex-boyfriend Keith Johnston (43) acted to cover up the murder by impeding Greenes prosecution. They were all due to be sentenced at the Central Criminal Court today but Mr Justice Paul McDermott adjourned their cases for two months due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions in the courts. Expand Close Kieran Greene - convicted of Patricia O'Connor murder / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Kieran Greene - convicted of Patricia O'Connor murder Gus OConnor had pleaded guilty but the other four denied the charges and were convicted by unanimous verdicts following a trial that ended in February. Greene, who faces life in jail for murder, has remained in custody since his arrest in 2017. The others, who could each be given to up to 10 years imprisonment, are on continuing bail until sentencing. This morning, Greene appeared by video link while the four co-accused were excused from attending. Dressed in a white jumper, he sat facing the camera during the brief hearing. His lawyer and counsel for the other four accused and the prosecution were in court. Mr Justice McDermott said the case was in for sentence but he was not in a position to proceed, with regard to "the particular circumstances that previal." Expand Close Gus OConnor admitted lying to gardai about his missing wife Patricia despite knowing she was already dead / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Gus OConnor admitted lying to gardai about his missing wife Patricia despite knowing she was already dead The accused had been excused from attending "apart from Mr Greene, who was in custody," he said. Victim impact statements would be received on the sentence date and he proposed to put the case in for sentence on June 22. The parties should appear on that date, though there may be an indication by the court service that attendance is not necessary if the current restrictions remain, Judge McDermott added. The lawyers all consented to the adjournment and Greene said "thank you" at the end of the proceedings. During the trial, the court heard Greene beat Patricia to death at the house they shared at Mountainview Park, Rathfarnham on May 29, 2017. He buried her body in a shallow grave in a cornfield in Co Wexford, then days later returned and dug it up, dismembered it with a hacksaw and dumped the remains in the mountains. Expand Close Keith Johnston, Louise OConnor and Stephanie OConnor outside court / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Keith Johnston, Louise OConnor and Stephanie OConnor outside court He initially handed himself in to gardai and told them he killed Patricia in self defence after she attacked him with a child's hurley in the bathroom. However, he retracted this admission months later and said he had agreed to take the blame for Patricia's death but it was actually Gus O'Connor who killed his wife. This version of events was rejected by the prosecution and jury. Stephanie O'Connor, daughter of Louise OConnor and Keith Johnston, impeded Greene's prosecution by dressing up as her dead grandmother on the night of the murder. The jury had heard this was so she would be captured on a neighbour's CCTV supposedly storming out of the house after a row, to create the illusion that Patricia was still alive and bolster any claims that she was missing. Louise, who was Greene's partner at the time of her mother's murder, impeded the prosecution by agreeing to Stephanie disguising herself as Patricia. Johnston, Stephanie's father and a "trusted member" of the extended family, went on a "shopping spree" with Greene days after the killing to help him buy hacksaws, hatchets and other tools the murderer later used to cut up Patricia's remains. Before the trial started, Gus O'Connor pleaded guilty to impeding Greene's prosecution by falsely reporting Patricia missing on June 1, when he knew she was dead. With this clearance, Genome & Company will be the first Asian company to initiate a first-in-human trial of anti-cancer microbiome and anti-PD1/anti-PD-L1 combination treatment as a sole sponsor. The phase 1/1b clinical trial will be initiated at the US clinical sites and the first patient is expected to be enrolled within this year. "IND clearance from FDA for our first anti-cancer microbiome therapeutic GEN-001 is a very significant milestone as it will transition Genome & Company into a clinical-stage biotechnology company. We hope to add meaningful value and advancement in the microbiome and immuno-oncology industry with our combinational approach to cancer patients who have progressed on prior anti-PD1/anti-PD-L1 therapy," said Dr. Hansoo Park, Chief Technical Officer of Genome & Company. Dr. Jisoo Pae, CEO of Genome & Company further quoted, "This IND approval is a meaningful corporate milestone and a critical step forward to achieving new arrangements in strategic partnering. We are indeed looking forward to further investigate how our clinical data will be translated into our cancer patients. I thank all the members and partners of Genome & Company for dedicating themselves to accomplishing this milestone." In January this year, Genome & Company had entered into a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany and Pfizer Inc. to evaluate the safety, tolerability, biological and clinical activities of GEN-001 therapy in combination with avelumab in multiple cancer indications. The combination trial is designed to be a first-in-human study including dose escalation and expansion cohorts to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy. BAVENCIO is a trademark of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. About GEN-001 GEN-001 is an oral microbiome therapeutic candidate developed to have immune modulating activities, resulting in potential partnership with immune checkpoint inhibitors. GEN-001 consists a single strain bacteria isolated from gut of healthy human volunteers that has been shown to activate dendritic cells, macrophages and T cell response. In preclinical studies, GEN-001 has shown optimal safety margin and synergistic effects in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors by enhancing the effect of suppressing the growth of both immune checkpoint inhibitor sensitive and resistant tumor models. About Genome & Company Genome & Company is a clinical stage biotechnology company based in Republic of Korea that focuses on discovering and developing the next waves of innovative therapeutics in immuno-oncology through diverse modalities of microbiome, novel target immune checkpoint inhibitors and fusion proteins to fulfill the unmet needs of cancer patients. www.genomecom.co.kr Avelumab Approved Indications Avelumab (BAVENCIO) in combination with axitinib is indicated in the US, EU, Japan and other countries for the first-line treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also granted accelerated approval for avelumab (BAVENCIO) for the treatment of (i) adults and pediatric patients 12 years and older with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (mMCC) and (ii) patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) who have disease progression during or following platinum-containing chemotherapy, or have disease progression within 12 months of neoadjuvant or adjuvant treatment with platinum-containing chemotherapy. These indications are approved under accelerated approval based on tumor response rate and duration of response. Continued approval for these indications may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trials. Avelumab is currently approved for patients with mMCC in 50 countries globally, with the majority of these approvals in a broad indication that is not limited to a specific line of treatment. Avelumab Important Safety Information from the US FDA-Approved Label The warnings and precautions for avelumab (BAVENCIO) include immune-mediated adverse reactions (such as pneumonitis and hepatitis [including fatal cases], colitis, endocrinopathies, nephritis and renal dysfunction and other adverse reactions [which can be severe and have included fatal cases]), infusion-related reactions, hepatotoxicity, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) [which can be severe and have included fatal cases], and embryo-fetal toxicity. Common adverse reactions (reported in at least 20% of patients) in patients treated with BAVENCIO monotherapy include fatigue, musculoskeletal pain, diarrhea, nausea, infusion-related reaction, peripheral edema, decreased appetite/hypophagia, urinary tract infection and rash. Common adverse reactions (reported in at least 20% of patients) in patients receiving BAVENCIO in combination with axitinib include diarrhea, fatigue, hypertension, musculoskeletal pain, nausea, mucositis, palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia, dysphonia, decreased appetite, hypothyroidism, rash, hepatotoxicity, cough, dyspnea, abdominal pain and headache. Grade 3-4 clinical chemistry and hematology laboratory value abnormalities reported in at least 10% of patients treated with BAVENCIO monotherapy include hyponatremia, lymphopenia, GGT increased; in patients receiving BAVENCIO in combination with axitinib, grade 3-4 clinical chemistry and hematology laboratory value abnormalities included blood triglyceride increased and lipase increased. For full Prescribing Information and Medication Guide for BAVENCIO, please see www.BAVENCIO.com. SOURCE Genome & Company Related Links http://www.genomecom.co.kr There are many ways in which royals live life differently. For example, a lot of people know that they generally grow up in palaces filled with butlers, maids, and nannies. As adults, they might also be expected to do charity and diplomatic work instead of getting a 9-to-5 job like everyone else. Something that also raises a lot of questions among fans is how royals approach their names. Prince Harry recently made news for changing his name after his royal exit, so there are no doubt many people who are confused about what his legal name is now. Read on below to learn about Prince Harrys name and how it has changed over the years. What was Prince Harrys legal name when he was born? Prince Harry | Chris Jackson/Getty Images Prince Harry was born as Prince Henry Charles Albert David of Wales. He is the son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana. Both of Prince Harrys parents were known as the Prince and Princess of Wales. As such, it was not surprising that of Wales became Prince Harrys last name as well. Technically, the royal familys last name is Mountbatten-Windsor, which was made by combining Queen Elizabeths last name (Windsor) and Prince Philips (Mountbatten). Mountbatten-Windsor is the name that any royal can use for official purposes. However, many royals choose to use their own title as their last name. Growing up, Prince Harry and his brother, Prince William, were known as Harry Wales and William Wales in school. What did Prince Harrys legal name become after he got married? When Prince Harry married Meghan, Duchess of Sussex in 2018, Queen Elizabeth granted him the title Duke of Sussex. Prince Harry, then, dropped his of Wales last name and used his Sussex title instead. His legal name, according to his sons birth certificate in 2019, was His Royal Highness Henry Charles Albert David Duke of Sussex. However, it is important to note that his son, Archie, has the last name Mountbatten-Windsor. It is believed that, since Prince Harry and Meghan want to give Archie a more normal upbringing, they opted for him to use the last name Mountbatten-Windsor instead of Sussex. What is Prince Harrys legal name now? Earlier this year, Prince Harry and Meghan announced they were splitting away from the royal family. As part of their exit agreement, the couple reportedly also dropped some things from their names. When Prince Harry registered his new charity project, Travelyst, he dropped his HRH title. Additionally, there are reports that he will no longer use the last name Mountbatten Windsor. At an event for Travelyst in Scotland back in March, the host shared with the crowd to keep things casual with Prince Harry, saying: Hes made it clear that we are all just to call him Harry. So ladies and gentlemen, please give a big, warm, Scottish welcome to Harry. However, a source told Us Weekly, that Prince Harry is not planning to officially drop his Mountbatten-Windsor title legally. He will simply keep things casual whenever he can and go by his first name. For now, his legal name is said to be Prince Henry Charles Albert David, Duke of Sussex. Will Prince Harry change his name even more? Its not clear whether this is the final version of his name or whether Prince Harry could change it even more. Some fans speculate that, given his alleged desire to be known by just his first name, there is a chance that he might simply go by Harry Sussex at some point. Because Prince Harry and Meghan have shown that they are different than other royals, perhaps it could be possible for Prince Harry to change his last name to Markle. Additionally, the two of them could combine their names in some way as well. Post-secondary students in Brandon have had to adjust their summer plans due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us Post-secondary students in Brandon have had to adjust their summer plans due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Hailey Curtis was planning on working at COR Enterprises in Brandon this summer, but was told her job was no longer available due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hailey Curtis Curtis, 20, graduated from Brandon University with a degree majoring in math. COR specializes in providing vocational training to developmentally challenged adults. Curtis was a daytime staff member there last summer and found the work rewarding. Approximately three weeks ago, Curtis was contacted by her boss telling her that they wouldnt be bringing on any summer staff. "Now Im scrambling to find a new job for the summer," she said in a phone interview Friday. "It was a really rewarding position and I really enjoyed it as a summer-specific thing. It sucks that (the clients) dont have the program now either. They have to stay home now too." Curtis did apply for the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit, a fund set up by the federal government to provide relief to jobs affected by the pandemic. CERB provides $500 a week for up to 16 weeks, according to the government website. She qualified for the funds and is awaiting for the first payment to arrive. As of Friday, 7.5 million Canadians had received payment through the program. SUBMITTED David Naylor, a recent Brandon University grad, won't be able to perform at weddings or any other music-related gigs this summer. However, many students do not qualify for CERB. For instance, Curtis sister Drew, a culinary arts student at Assiniboine Community College, did not qualify. Drew does a job working at Kuipers Family Bakery in Brandon, which is considered an essential service. Drew said she should have full-time employment working there this summer. CERB is given to those who made more than $5,000 the previous year, who are at least 15 years old and have not quit their job voluntarily, among other requirements. An online petition has been circulating called "#DontForgetStudents" with more than 41,000 signatures as of Friday afternoon. "Many have expenses due now, and will have no source of income because of the crisis," the petition reads. "We implore the Government of Canada to provide income support to cover all students and recent graduates, regardless of prior work experience and income." The federal government did not respond to requests for comment regarding efforts being made to help students. Brandon University has set up an emergency relief fund. Its website says more than $50,000 has been given out in grants to students affected by the pandemic. The university tweeted on Friday that nearly $15,000 had been donated to the fund in the past week. The Brandon University Students Union, along with the Canadian Federation of Students, is calling on the feds to widen the net of those eligible for the CERB. SUBMITTED Kyle Booy, a Winnipegger studying education at Brandon University, said his job at a rubber paving company won't change too much this summer. "From Brandon to Toronto, its hard for students to get jobs right now," said vice-president internal Whitney Hodgins. Prior to the pandemic, there were plenty of work-study applications approved, which would allow students to work during the summer, Hodgins said. She also mentioned the campus food bank is operating and is being well used. Curtis is currently living on her own and with her savings and CERB coming soon, she should be able to get by financially for a while. For now, she is refreshing job sites every morning, looking for jobs. Curtis said there are landscaping and jobs working at grocery stores available. Curtis did work as a groundskeeper at ACCs North Hill campus a couple years ago. She reached out to her old supervisor there about potentially coming back, but they dont know if they will get funding for that program, either. "All of it is kind of at a standstill, so its kind of stressful," Curtis said. It is not doom and gloom for every student, however. For David Naylor, who recently graduated from BU with a bachelor degree in music, he has lost some opportunities for income, but remains financially stable for now. Naylor specialized in classical piano performance and teaches piano through the Eckhardt-Grammatte Conservatory at the university. He has moved most of his classes to video chat. Naylor said he has lost some students since restrictions have been place. The teaching job normally wraps up by the end of the May, however. Naylor also works at the Gate Church Community in Brandon, which provides eight to 10 hours of work a week, and he said that hasnt changed much. He is the music co-ordinator for Chez Angela downtown and performs gigs at weddings and with other groups, which have all been cancelled. "Not only personally as a working musician have I lost some work, but as somebody who likes music, there isnt a lot of live music to catch," he said. Naylor remains positive though, he said he planned to take it easier this summer anyways. Naylor plans to hone his craft and aims to get back things rolling again in the fall pandemic permitting including his end-of-year recital he planned with other musicians. "I havent applied for anything, Im fortunately in an OK situation," he said. "I worked during my degree so Im doing pretty good financially." Kyle Booy, who just wrapped up his first year of education at BU, had his practicum cancelled as schools have all moved to online learning for the foreseeable future. The Winnipegger works at a rubber paving company, which does jobs all over Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Prairie Rubber Paving has done the BU Early Learning Centre as well as the civic centre in downtown Brandon, as well as other residential projects. Booy said there might be a decline in residential jobs this season, as people are a bit tighter on money. "Lots of jobs out there this summer, sounds like it still will be busy," he said. Booy expects there will be less travelling this summer. Prairie Rubber Paving is considered an essential service and there wont be a ton of adaptations Booy will have to make this summer. "I dont see much changing, because our crews are the size of three people," he said. "Were below the restriction and for the most part we dont stay that close to each other. I think well be under the code and fine that way." rstelter@brandonsun.com Twitter: @steltsy94 Life is not normal for anyone right now, and that is very true for those who toil behind the counter in the pharmacy world. Aside from overall concerns about contracting COVID-19, there are many concerns for our profession. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion Life is not normal for anyone right now, and that is very true for those who toil behind the counter in the pharmacy world. Aside from overall concerns about contracting COVID-19, there are many concerns for our profession. We dont receive personal protective equipment of any kind, nor even preferred access to such equipment. Thus, we are left to fend for ourselves in the retail market, which is still quite backlogged. Whatever PPE we get, it is a battle to constantly acquire more as there is no clue as to when the COVID-19 concerns will let up. There are also many changes in how we have to operate. The 30-day limit on prescription refills was implemented by governments at the recommendation of the Canadian Pharmacists Association, for good reason: out of concern about possible stockpiling of medications something akin to the much more familiar hoarding of toilet paper that has occurred during the pandemic. The obvious consequence is increased dispensing fees for the public, and also increased visits to the pharmacy. As a pharmacist, I didnt ask for this, and I for one would rather see fewer people these days so as to reduce my risk of getting COVID-19. But governments are correct. Their reason for this restriction is, and has been, our reality for a few years: drug shortages. Some dispute that these shortages exist, but I can assure you this problem does exist and has existed for some time now. As governments always strive to maximize our health-care dollars, the push to lower generic drug prices over the past few years has led to numerous drug shortages. Part of the problem is in always seeking the cheapest manufacturer; eventually, the only way these drug manufacturers are able to undercut North American drug companies is by cutting corners and using cheap labour. When such a factory is finally inspected, it sometimes comes to light that it has been using non-approved ingredients, some of which might even be carcinogenic, as happened with telmisartan, losartan, and metformin as recent examples. So that supply chain dries up, until another generic manufacturer can produce a slightly better product. It is no surprise that these manufacturers that either produce the active ingredient or the entire medication are mostly in India or China. Guess which country had all its manufacturing come to a halt first? China. There goes the supply chain. India followed soon after. The end result on our continent is halted supply chains for pharmaceuticals. Toss into the mix the fact the largest wholesaler, McKesson, also owns its own pharmacies Rexall and that the competition bureau in Ottawa felt this was still fair competition, and the end result is rationing and unexplained shortages for some pharmacies and pharmacy chains, but not others. So in the COVID-19 world, we now have to deal with these shortages by contacting doctors to prescribe alternatives. Like many other workers, doctors are spending much of their time dealing with daily changes and personal-security issues, adapting to virtual consults and other procedural obstacles. As a result, theyre not as easy to reach. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. When we contact them to change to drug B because drug A is in short supply, by the time they reply, drug B might now be unavailable and maybe a drug C is available. Things change that fast. If drug C isnt available (or if its not appropriate for a particular patient), a new drug class must be considered, which involves the doctor taking more time to make the best choice. A good example is Ventolin, a common bronchodilator for asthma. There are few, if any, good alternatives, and we have waiting lists of patients wanting two, three or six such inhalers to have on hand, just in case. Is this hoarding? Ill leave that for you to judge. So now we have to spend not only the aforementioned extra time, but also new time cleaning and disinfecting, ensuring physical distancing within our locations, acquiring shields and using our very limited PPE as effectively as possible. At the end of the day, we go home, spending extra time washing up, being careful and hoping we arent infecting our families as a consequence of our work. These are some of our burdens. The publics is to temporarily endure more frequent dispensing fees. Lets all do our part by following the recommendations of public-health officials. But lets also cut each other some slack. These are not normal times. Willson Caetano is a graduate of the University of Manitobas faculty of pharmacy and a practising pharmacist for the past 23 years. [April 20, 2020] CreditEase Fund of Funds Profiled in London Business School Case Study LONDON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CreditEase's support on investors' asset allocation with a Fund of Funds (FoF) has been officially introduced to the masterclass in private equity at the London Business School (LBS), making it the first Chinese FinTech company selected as an LBS case study. "We picked CreditEase FoF not only because it represents Chinese exploration on FinTech, but also because it is worth attention and research of private equity professionals around the world," said Professor Florin Vasvari, the program leader and instructor, who spent nearly one year on developing the course and interviewing the core team of CreditEase Private Equity FoF. Prof. Vasvari is the co-author of Private Capital, a highly acclaimed book endorsed by leading figures in the private equity industry. Since its establishment in 2013, CreditEase FoF's globalized team has managed assets over 25 billion yuan, a leading player among domestic market-oriented FoFs. It has invested in more than 200 funds and indirectly invested in more than 4,000 high-growth enterprises covering TMT, health care, consumption upgrading, energy and environmental protection and other emerging industries. By far among the companies CreditEase FoF has invested, more than 100 went public or listed on National Equities Exchange and Quotations. The outperformance of CreditEase FoF is not only owing to the investment strategy that evaluates both sustainability and stability of funds, but also based on real-time analysis generated by an AI platform with processing capacity of 10 million data items per second, enabled by cloud computing, big data and self-developed AI algorithm. The AI system tracks 20,000 investment firms, 30,000 funds and over one million financing enterprises, screens target funds with the highest investment value and maes dynamic adjustments. "CreditEase FoF is a pioneer and practitioner of financial and technology innovation in China. It is of great research value to the global wealth management industry," said Dickie Liang-Hong Ke, Sloan Fellow at London Business School and a well-known innovation and entrepreneurship expert. Mr. Ke has been paying a lot of attention to the development of Fintech innovation in China for many years. He began to communicate with CreditEase two years ago, and initiated the interviews and kicked off the case study with Professor Florin Vasvari. Tang Ning, CreditEase Founder and CEO, highlights the rising role of FoF in wealth management and asset allocation that drives capital market positively and serves real economy, particularly new economy. "Market-oriented FoFs effectively connect social capital with the needs for scientific and technological innovation, providing long-term, patient and humane funding support," said Tang. "A key contribution of FoF to the Chinese financial industry and the society is to perfectly match the enormous wealth created by traditional economy over the past 40 years, thanks to the reform and opening up, with the capital required by new economy to boost scientific and technological innovation for the next 40 years," said Tang. "This is what a wealth management company can serve the society, and also what a FoF can do for the future of China. I think it's revolutionary," added Tang. About CreditEase Founded in 2006, CreditEase is a world-leading FinTech conglomerate in China. It specializes in inclusive finance and wealth management with a dominant position in credit technology, wealth management technology, insurance technology, etc. The main business sectors of CreditEase include Yiren Digital, CreditEase Wealth Management and CreditEase Insurance. Better tech, better finance, better world. About London Business School London Business School's vision is to have a profound impact on the way the world does business. The School is consistently ranked in the global top 10 for its programmes and is widely acknowledged as a centre for outstanding research. As well as its top-ranked full-time MBA, the School offers degree and award-winning executive education programmes to executives from around the world. With a presence in four international cities London, New York, Hong Kong and Dubai the School is well-positioned to equip students from more than 130 countries with the tools needed to operate in today's business environment. The School has more than 44,000 alumni, from over 150 countries, which provide a wealth of knowledge, business experience, and worldwide networking opportunities. London Business School's 157 academics come from more than 30 countries and cover seven subject areas: accounting; economics; finance; management science and operations; marketing; organisational behaviour; and strategy and entrepreneurship. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/creditease-fund-of-funds-profiled-in-london-business-school-case-study-301043353.html SOURCE CreditEase [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Namita Bajpai By Express News Service LUCKNOW: Meerut-based Valentis Cancer hospital, caught in a controversy over issuing a newspaper advertisement denying entry to Muslims without COVID-19 test, tendered an apology on Monday. The hospital in the advertisement had mentioned that Muslim patients and their attendants would be admitted only if they tested negative for the coronavirus. Meerut police had filed a case against the hospital owner over the issue. Notably, in the 11-point advertisement, published in a Hindi language daily dated April 17, the Cancer Hospital had referred to the religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin holding it responsible for the spike in coronavirus cases in the country. It had censured a section of the community for misbehaving with health professionals. It is due to the ignorance of some Muslim brothers that everyone will have to suffer for some time, the advertisement had read. But this is in the larger public interest and also in the interest of Muslim brothers. While issuing an apology, the hospital authorities clarified that the ad was a general appeal to all citizens to follow government guidelines to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. They claimed that their intent was neither to target any particular community nor did they intend to give it a religious undertone. As per the hospital authorities, the ad was merely an appeal for all to stay safe and had nothing to do with religion, the hospital authorities further said, adding, they apologized as some words had hurt peoples sentiments. The controversial advertisement also said that in case of emergencies, the hospital agreed to carry out immediate COVID-19 tests but at a cost of Rs 4,500 per patient. A day later, the hospital issued a clarification in another ad saying that it denied, regretted and apologized for the wrong message that was published by mistake. As per the Incholi Station House Officer, Brijesh Kumar Singh, a case was filed against hospital owner Amit Jain for deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings. To prepare for a coronavirus surge, initial public-health guidance advised hospitals and medical facilities to shut down for non-emergency care. The motivation was largely to preserve medical resources for those infected with the coronavirus, although another benefit has been to reduce the viruss contagion to other patients. Acting on federal advice, 31 states and the District of Columbia restricted non-emergency care at hospitals and surgery centers, including cancer treatments and other potentially life-saving services. Others voluntarily shut down elective services. On the positive side, the chain reaction will accelerate adoption of telehealth, which was vastly underutilized despite its promise to streamline care, reduce wait times, keep sick people out of waiting rooms, and address geographic disparities in access to care. On the negative side, hospital capacity has idled, devastated provider revenue, and led to widespread furloughs. Hospitals appealed to Congress for relief, and Congress delivered, with a $100 billion bailout fund and an increase in Medicare payments for coronavirus treatments. The fund is to compensate for coronavirus costs and to help hospitals whose revenue has plummeted. But that money isnt free. Congress provides it through additional borrowing. For the first time in our nations history, the U.S. is on track to spend more than twice the amount it collects in revenues, even before Congress passes a fourth coronavirus spending bill. The Federal Reserve is monetizing much of this new debt, bloating its balance sheet with an unprecedented $3.6 trillion in Treasury issuances. Congress gave enormous flexibility to the secretary of health and human services (HHS) to distribute the funds. The first $30 billion is out the door and was based on past Medicare payments. The HHS secretary also decided to compensate hospitals for treating the uninsured, and this funding will likely be several billion dollars. Although two-thirds of the initial bailout funding still needs to be distributed, hospitals and some of their congressional allies are calling for another $75 billion in taxpayer assistance. Story continues Yet before exacerbating the profound fiscal and monetary distortions by spending more on hospitals, policymakers need to confront three questions, particularly since the anticipated coronavirus surge failed to materialize in most of the country. Can some hospitals and other medical facilities, such as independent surgery centers, open their doors for non-emergency services now, or relatively soon? Are further government bailouts needed, since a portion of delayed care will eventually be scheduled and HHS has created a significant loan program for medical professionals? Should hospitals be required to institute any reforms if Congress allocates additional bailout funds? Its important to consider that the epidemic has been severe in only a few regions of the country. Nearly half of all cases and deaths are from New York State, including more than a third of the total in New York City. Other parts of the country hit hard are the Northeast Corridor, from Boston to Philadelphia, along with New Orleans and Detroit. While reopening the health-care system to non-emergency care may be imprudent in these places because of greater infection risk, the benefits of reopening health-care systems, with necessary precautions, probably exceed the corresponding costs in much of the rest of the country. Policymakers must have realistic estimates of the amount of revenue that will return to hospitals and medical facilities when reopening occurs. Significantly, loan programs, such as the HHS program underway, are designed to get providers through a temporary revenue drought and are far more appropriate than a bailout. And some hospitals have greater needs than others. With all the spending Congress already has approved, additional money for hospitals at this time is not responsible. However, if Congress hastily offers a second bailout, its vital that certain conditions be placed to protect consumers. These could be modeled on HHSs wise decision to condition receipt of the initial bailout funds on hospitals agreement not to charge patients more for coronavirus treatments than their insurance company agrees to pay, preventing a practice called balance billing. As a condition of another pot of taxpayer money, Congress should codify an HHS rule that requires hospitals to post prices by January 1, 2021. Right now, hospitals are suing to block this rule, claiming that HHS lacked the authority to implement it. Congress should codify it to protect consumers. Tens of millions of workers have lost jobs, and money for families is extremely tight. A more transparent system will enable better health decisions and will also help employers structure benefits as they try to keep their business afloat. Hospitals taking bailout funds should also be prohibited from ruining patients credit and sending them into collections if the patient has negotiated a payment plan or if the medical debt is simply from a balance bill. Taxpayers and consumers are owed at least this much for a further bailout. Brian Blase is a senior fellow at the Galen Institute and the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA). Josh Archambault is a senior fellow at the FGA. Doug Badger is a senior fellow at the Galen Institute. More from National Review JERSEY CITY Cosmo Cangiano drives from Staten Island to Jersey City every day to his new shop in Downtown. He says hes not afraid to go into work because he has one goal: help people get food. Cangianos Marketplace opened its 225 Pavonia Ave. storefront for the first time on Tuesday and business hasnt been slow since, Cangiano told The Jersey Journal on Sunday. Me, my family and my partners family are having such a hard time finding food, thats why we really did want to open for everyone here, Cangiano said. To make things a little easier for everybody. The store which first appeared in the city as a pop-up sandwich shop in July currently has seven workers and offers food from their meat department, fresh bakery and deli department. They also sell milk, eggs, espressos, cappuccinos, bagels and Italian specialties. Cangianos grandparents opened the first Cangianos in Brooklyn in 1919. Brothers Bill and Vincent Vallely, his business partners, helped set up the pop-up shop. Norman Bonoan is another partner. Just like everywhere else, Cangianos is allowing only 10 people at a time and all must be wearing masks. If a customer doesnt have a mask, theyre given one at the door. Cangiano hopes the precautions face coverings and social distancing the public has been advised to take helps fight against the coronavirus outbreak, but were doing what we can, he said. For Cangiano, if theres one thing COVID-19 has taken away, its letting customers sample the food. We cant let people really experience what were doing, Cangiano said. They just have to take our word for it. The shop is open Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. But Cangiano said hes been keeping the doors open a little later to finish putting labels and signs while letting customers in as well. People can order on the phone for pick-up or head down to the storefront. Cangiano emphasized that the communitys response has been good and hes glad he took the opportunity. But, more importantly, he hopes hes giving local families some relief during this pandemic. (We) want to help them get basic necessities and not have to wait on line for five hours somewhere else, he said. Alex Wong/Getty President Donald Trump kicked off his Monday coronavirus task force briefing by criticizing one of the leading Republican governors during the coronavirus pandemic. At the start of the briefing, the president said the nations governors had been given a list of the names, addresses, and phone numbers of the labs where they can find additional testing capacity within their states. Hundreds and hundreds of labs are ready, willing, and able, he insisted. Some of the governors, like as an example the governor from Maryland, didnt really understand the list. He didnt understand too much about what was going on, so now I think hell be able to do that. Its pretty simple. Georgia Governor Allows Gyms, Salons, and Bowling Alleys to Reopen Friday as Coronavirus Cases Climb Larry Hogan, the Republican governor of Maryland, has emerged as one of the more hands-on state leaders during the pandemic. Hogan was mentioned frequently as a possible GOP primary challenger to Trump before publicly abandoning the idea in June. The presidents relationship with the nations governors has been tense during the coronavirus pandemic, as some have not been shy about their issues with the federal governments response. During an appearance on CNN soon after Trumps early briefing attack, Hogan said he didnt want to get into criticizing back and forth, noting that Trump was not on the call. Hogan guessed that what Trump may have been talking about was a list that was sent out to governors of all of the different lab facilities in their states. He said most of the governors already knew where the lab facilities were in their states. While the list was appreciated, Hogan said, a large number on the Maryland list were federal facilities. They were either federal health facilities that weve been desperately trying to get help from or military installations, none of which were state owned labs or facilities where we could actually do any testing, Hogan said. But Im not sure what the presidents referring to. I have a pretty good understanding of whats going on, and I appreciated the information that was provided by his team, but he wasn't there for, Im not sure what he was trying to say. Story continues Trump has made a point of criticizing Democratic governors, even calling on three Democratic states to be liberated on Twitter Friday. He continued to antagonize them early during Mondays briefing. States have to look at their complete inventory of available capacity, Trump said, before lashing out at Gov. J. B. Pritzker of Illinois. Some states have far more capacity than they actually understand, and it is a complex subject, but some of the governors didnt understand it, Trump said. The governor as an example, Pritzker from Illinois did not understand his capacity. Not simply ask the federal government to provide unlimited support. You have to take the support where you have it, but we are there to stand with the governors and to help the governors and thats what were doing. Trump became defensive again on the topic of ventilators and testingwhich have become flash point issues during the public-health crisissuggesting ventilators were a national talking point simply because people wanted to attack him. Remember it was all ventilators, Trump said. And the reason it was all ventilators, they said theres no way hell ever be able to catch this one. And not only did we catch it, we are now the king of ventilators all over the world. During the press conference, Dr. Deborah Birx, the coronavirus task force response coordinator, was also asked about South Carolina, where, according to the Columbia, S.C. newspaper The State, certain non-essential retail outlets can soon reopen. Shouldnt they not be reopening stores today? a reporter asked Birx. Birx seemed to throw shade on South Carolinas Republican leader, Gov. Henry McMaster, saying they have asked the nations governors to follow the guidance provided by the federal government. But each of the governors can decide for themselves whether theyve reached specific guidelines in specific areas, she conceded. Hogan was further scorned by Trump before the briefing was over. The Maryland Republicans office said Monday the state will get 500,000 COVID-19 tests from South Koreas LabGenomic. I dont know what the governor of Maryland is doing in South Korea, but there is excess capacity every day, said Brett Giroir, the assistant secretary for Health at HHS. Vice President Mike Pence then said he wouldnt begrudge him or his health officials for ordering tests. But moments later, Trump said the governor could have called Pence and could have saved a lot of money. No, I dont think he needed to go to South Korea, Trump insisted. I think he needed to get a little knowledge. Would have been helpful. The briefing went off the rails before it ended. At one point, the president answered a reporters question by saying a lot of people love Trump. Lot of people love me, you see them all the time, right? Trump said. I guess Im here for a reason. To the best of my knowledge I won, and I think were going to win again. I think were going to win in a landslide. Not long after, he returned to attacking the press, saying he thinks the media foments a lot of anger, and complained about times where hes asked a tremendously hostile question. And then Ill answer in a hostile way, which is appropriate, otherwise you look foolish, Trump said. Otherwise it looks like, just walk off the stage and bow your head. I cant do that. I just cant do that. Read more at The Daily Beast. Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more. LONDON India's third-largest motorbike manufacturer TVS Motor has sealed a $20 million deal to buy British brand Norton Motorcycles as part of a distress sale. The all-cash transaction, which was announced on Friday, will see the Indian firm take control of the 122-year-old Leicestershire brand for 16 million pounds ($19.98 million) through one of its overseas subsidiaries. It marks the latest swoop by an Asian company on an iconic British brand, after Jaguar Land Rover became part of Tata Motors. "Norton presents us with an immense opportunity to scale globally," said TVS's joint managing director Sudarshan Venu, adding his firm would provide "full support for Norton to regain its full glory". Reuters was first to report that an agreement had been reached, with TVS pledging to revive the British brand which is controlled by Chief Executive Stuart Garner. TVS will invest in some of Norton's most famous models, including Commando, Dominator and V4 RR. Discussions between TVS and accountancy firm BDO which acted as Norton's administrator kicked off earlier this year after the British firm, founded by James Lansdowne Norton in 1898, fell into administration in January. Venu said TVS, which is listed in India with a market value of $1.8 billion, would work closely with Norton's employees and customers to retain its identity and outline a specific business plan. Rothschild acted as TVS's financial adviser on the deal, while law firms Khaitan & Co and Slaughter and May provided legal advice. Related Video: Click here to See Video >> One week before the coronavirus lockdown was announced in Spain, 25-year-old Elena Craven returned from a two-week expedition to Uganda, with the Malaga-based NGO, SAWA, which means 'Together' in Arabic. Elena is studying to become a nurse in Malaga and she explains that putting her training into practice for an NGO was something she had wanted to do for a long time. It was her first time in Africa and she says, "You soon realise the value of every day things and how fortunate we are." Elena was collaborating with a medical team which set up a temporary field hospital in a small village in Uganda to test children for Malaria and other diseases. "Every single test we ran was positive," she says. She and her team also taught children basic hygiene, like how to wash their hands and feet, distributed mosquito nets and helped to install water tanks with a system to collect rain water. She also describes how the team treated the feet of over 200 children to help prevent against jiggers, or chigoe fleas; a parasitic insect found in sub-Saharan Africa. "We would disinfect the feet, remove the jiggers and apply Vaseline to the feet to prevent the insects from coming back again," she explains. The trip coincided with the rapid spread of Covid-19 in Europe, and in particular Spain, and it has made Elena philosophical about the virus here. "The people in Uganda only have a few basic resources and many illnesses they have to deal with already," she says. "While I was there, there were no reported cases but I have heard there are some now and if it spreads there, they already have the existing diseases and it's like coronavirus is one more to add to that." Elena goes on to reflect that the idea of social distancing in Europe is relatively easy - most people live in a house, with windows. "In Uganda the houses and schools don't have doors and windows and a lot of people don't wear shoes. It's very difficult in small African communities where people live together to social distance." Despite the hardship, Elena describes the people she met as "happy with what they have". People are "always singing and dancing", she says, adding "and of course the landscape is overwhelmingly beautiful". Elena took with her two big suitcases full of clothes, shoes, medicines and sanitary products, all of which were donated by friends, family and colleagues and she continues to collect donations. SAWA works predominantly in Africa and the Middle East in disaster areas, health, education, aid distribution, investment and scholarship programmes. According to the Johns Hopkins University, there are currently 55 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Uganda. In response to the crisis, SAWA has set up an aid programme to help communities in the countries it already works in. Elena hopes to go back to Uganda as she continues her studies here in Malaga, but points out that given the current situation she is "not sure when that might be." Qatar Emir, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, has pledged the Gulf countrys help to Algeria in the fight against novel covid-19 that has infected 2,629 people and killed 375. Qatars ruler called the Algerian President to inquire about developments in the North African country over the pandemic which has deeply affected the gas and oil-rich country also facing economic hardship owing to oil price crash. Sheikh Tamin promised Qatars support to help overcome the pandemic, a statement from the Algerian presidency said. Algeria is one of the hard hit countries in the Arab world where the disease is still spreading despite a global slowdown. Algeria Sunday confirmed 2,629 cases and 375 deaths caused by covid-19. Qatar sent earlier this month two field hospitals to Italy; the worst hit country in Europe. Statistically speaking, long term investing is a profitable endeavour. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. Zooming in on an example, the Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S.A (NYSE:BLX) share price dropped 66% in the last half decade. We certainly feel for shareholders who bought near the top. And it's not just long term holders hurting, because the stock is down 51% in the last year. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 51% in the last three months. We note that the company has reported results fairly recently; and the market is hardly delighted. You can check out the latest numbers in our company report. See our latest analysis for Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time. During the five years over which the share price declined, Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 5.6% each year. Readers should note that the share price has fallen faster than the EPS, at a rate of 19% per year, over the period. This implies that the market was previously too optimistic about the stock. The low P/E ratio of 5.11 further reflects this reticence. The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail). NYSE:BLX Past and Future Earnings April 20th 2020 Dive deeper into Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior's key metrics by checking this interactive graph of Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior's earnings, revenue and cash flow. What About Dividends? As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). 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 Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, it has a TSR of -54% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return. Story continues A Different Perspective While the broader market lost about 0.8% in the twelve months, Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior shareholders did even worse, losing 47% (even including dividends) . However, it could simply be that the share price has been impacted by broader market jitters. It might be worth keeping an eye on the fundamentals, in case there's a good opportunity. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 14% over the last half decade. 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. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior better, we need to consider many other factors. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior (of which 1 is potentially serious!) you should know about. 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 US 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. Defenceless civilians, including women and children, are victims of the ongoing fighting between the Myanmar military and Buddhist rebels from the state of Rakhine. Hospitals have had to treat the wounded rather than contain the COVID-19 outbreak. Paletwa (AsiaNews) More than the coronavirus, people in Chin, a state in western Myanmar, fear bombs. The area is being ravaged by a fighting between the Arakan Army, a mostly Buddhist rebel group, and the Myanmar Armed Forces (Tatmadaw). So far, only five people appear to have died in the country from the COVID-19 virus. But according to local sources, cited by Radio Free Asia, 28 Chin civilians have died in violent fighting in March alone. On 7 April, seven civilians were killed in one of several air attacks in the Paletwa area. The victims include two children. The charred remains of a woman, her arms folded protectively around her three-year-old child, were also found in a house burnt to the ground. A week earlier, several civilians were wounded in an airstrike in the village of Bawngwa. Previous air attacks on 14 and 15 March killed 21 civilians, including several children. The military rejected the accusations, calling them baseless. Hospitals in Chin State, one of the least developed in Myanmar, are poorly equipped. As a result of fighting between the military and Buddhist rebels, the few healthcare staff in the area are forced to devote resources and energy to treat the wounded rather than the pandemic. There is also the problem of crowding. Villagers who fled bombing and fighting sought refuge in cramped camps for displaced people, where it is almost impossible to maintain social distancing to contain the coronavirus. In addition, the government has shut down the Internet in Paletwa and in eight municipalities in the nearby state of Rakhine. The United Nations have called on Myanmar authorities to reactivate mobile connections and to allow immediate access to the area. Without the Internet, affected communities have no way of accessing the information necessary to deal with the pandemic, and cannot be helped by humanitarian organisations. The Buddhist rebel group is emanding greater autonomy for Rakhine. Earlier this month, together with other armed groups in the country, it called for a ceasefire to deal with the pandemic crisis. The Myanmar military consider the Arakan Army a terrorist organisation, and have rejected the proposal calling it "unrealistic". Sena targets NCB: Officers trying to extort money by framing youngsters must be arrested Opposition front not possible without Congress: Shiv Sena leader Raut after meeting with Rahul Gandhi Sanjay Raut on chopper tragedy: We claim to have modernised armed forces, how could this happen? Campaign curbs should apply to all, PM Modi must lead by example: Sena's Raut Raj Bhavan should not become centre for political conspiracy: Shiv Sena India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Mumbai, Apr 20: Shiv Sena's anger over the delay in Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's nod for nominating Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray as a legislator surfaced on Sunday, with MP Sanjay Raut launching a veiled attack against the former BJP leader. Without naming Koshyari, who has sought legal advice after the state Cabinet recently recommended Thackerays name as a member of the Legislative Council from the governors quota of nominated members, Raut left no doubt as to who was the target of his attack. Coronavirus outbreak: Shiv Sena threatens BJP of exposing its 'conspiracy' on migrant crisis "Raj Bhavan, governor's house shouldn't become centre for political conspiracy. Remember! history doesn't spare those who behave unconstitutionally. @maha_governor," Raut tweeted. Thackeray is not a member of either of the two houses of the state legislature. As per the Constitution, a minister or a chief minister who is not a member of either of the houses has to be elected to either of the houses within six months of being sworn into the post, failing which the person must resign. Thackeray was sworn in as chief minister on November 28, 2019, and completes six months in office on May 28, 2020. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar had recently held a Cabinet meeting which suggested Thackerays name as an MLC as a governor-nominated member. In another tweet, Raut also referred to 'shameless' governor Ram Lal. Ram Lal, who served as Governor of Andhra Pradesh from August 15, 1983, to August 29, 1984, courted controversy after he appointed that state's finance minister N Baskar Rao as Chief Minister, while the incumbent CM N T Rama Rao was away in the US for surgery. This change was supposedly done at the behest of then Congress Leadership, even when Baskar Rao had no more than 20 per cent of MLAs supporting him. NTR returned to the state after a week and launched a massive campaign against Ram Lal. A month later, then-President Zail Singh dismissed Ram Lal as governor and three days later NTR again became the Andhra CM. (TNS) Most city councils around the Minneapolis metro area are meeting remotely during the pandemic, via video or phone conferencing. But meetings aren't mandatory and some cities, like Brooklyn Center, Minn., are opting out altogether."Because we didn't have the technological capabilities established at the time and because having in-person meetings would have been detrimental to the public health, we thought it was critical to cancel those meetings," Mayor Mike Elliott said.Gov. Tim Walz's stay-at-home order last month gave cities the authority to meet during the pandemic by phone or electronic means such as video apps Zoom and Skype. Before the order, that was an option that could be invoked only by cities experiencing a natural disaster such as a flood or tornado.Governing boards may still meet in person, as long as they practice social distancing. The Anoka County Board holds meetings in person that are livestreamed online, with commissioners sitting farther apart than usual.Research manager Amber Eisenschenk of the League of Minnesota Cities said most cities in the state are meeting remotely. The league provides guidelines for city officials on how to conduct teleconference meetings on its website, though she said councils aren't being told they have to meet."Cities haven't been using this widespread," Eisenschenk said. "You had to have an emergency or health pandemic to use the telephone meeting option. It's not something that we practiced before. Most have not been in a position to use this before."There's a limit to remote meetings: A city official has to be in the council chambers to open the meeting to the public. To comply with state open meeting laws, city officials must ensure that technology platforms used for a meeting can be monitored remotely by the public.The city must also provide instructions, web links and necessary access codes to the public, typically on its website. It's up to each city to decide whether to include a remote public comment period.Cities holding virtual meetings include Bloomington, Brooklyn Park, Champlin, Eden Prairie, Edina, Golden Valley, Hopkins, Plymouth, Richfield and St. Louis Park.Larger cities with more technology were able to make the transition from in-person to remote meetings smoothly, but it wasn't so seamless for others, Eisenschenk said. "A lot of cities are scared to do a conference call because they've never done it before," she said.Elliott said that without any critical or pressing matters on April's agendas, Brooklyn Center officials decided to postpone City Council meetings until they get the technology to do it remotely. The first council meeting is slated for May 11, when council members will attend via video and telephone, he said. The public will be able to watch on the city's website. Samantha Armytage has called for all of Australia's beaches to be closed until the coronavirus crisis is over. Beaches in Sydney's eastern suburbs run by Randwick City Council - including Maroubra, Coogee and Clovelly - will reopen on Monday after being taped off to the public since March 28. Beachgoers will be restricted to fitness activities like jogging, swimming or surfing and NSW police minister David Elliot said those lying on the sand are breaching the Public Health Act and risk being fined. Bondi Beach remains closed to prevent large gatherings during the pandemic, but Armytage said the strict restrictions should remain in place for all beaches. Coogee Beach will reopen on Monday after being taped off since March 28 - but beachgoers will be restricted to exercise activities only like running, swimming and surfing Armytage said on Monday morning all beaches should remain closed to the public until the coronavirus crisis is over 'I just wish we could keep people off all the beaches until this thing is done,' the Sunrise host said on Monday morning. Mr Elliot said 'static' activities like sun baking were still banned to prevent a repeat of the large crowds flocking to Bondi on March 21 - forcing Waverley Council to close the beach to stop the spread of COVID-19. 'If one person wants to sit on Coogee Beach, we'll end up like last month at Bondi where a thousand people come down and that of course is a breach of the act,' he said. 'I cant wait to get rid of these regulations I just cant. They aren't here because the government wants to punish anybody or because police like enforcing these laws. 'But with the statistics the way they're going when you compare Australia with the rest of the world - we'll be more likely to end these restrictions than anyone else.' Armytage questioned Mr Elliot why Bondi Beach would stay closed, but Coogee Beach would reopen. 'The councils are the landlords - they are the owners of these parks and recreational spaces. Under the health regulations, they're the ones obliged to ensure the act is adhered to.' Pictured: Surfers returning to Maroubra Beach in the early hours of Monday morning after the beach was reopened for fitness activities NSW police minister David Elliot said despite the relaxed restrictions on beaches run by Randwick Council those simply lying on the sand are breaching the Public Health Act and risk being fined No more than two people are allowed to exercise together under the relaxed restrictions and they must move on once they have completed their exercise. 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 'Living along the coast, I know how important our beaches are to the mental and physical health of so many in the community,' Mayor Danny Said said. 'The past three weeks have been difficult as we've all had to make changes and sacrifices to our daily routines. 'We appreciate that with the current restrictions in place people are increasingly looking for access to more open spaces including water for their physical and mental well-being.' On Sunday, huge crowds of defiant surfers made the most of the 21C weather on Sunday at Bondi Beach despite it being closed for almost a month. Off the coast of Bondi Beach and in the waters of neighbouring Mackenzies Bay, hundreds of surfers could be seen from the shoreline patiently waiting to catch a wave. Hundreds more were spotted on their boards in the water directly in front of Bondi Beach, enjoying the four-foot swell and south-westerly winds. The sun wasn't even up when surfers flocked to Maroubra Beach beach on April 20 One surfer at the Bronte-Coogee Aquatic Reserve jumped over a set of railings into the ocean directly in front of a large sign which read 'beach closed'. Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned on Thursday social distancing restrictions will remain in place for at least another month. It comes despite the growth rate in coronavirus cases slowing to less than one per cent over each of the past seven days. There are 6,612 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Australia, with 71 having died from the virus. Members of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, have admitted to unintentional violation of the principles and protocols of the coronavirus lockdown during the burial rites of Abba Kyari, the late chief of staff (CoS) to President Muhammadu Buhari. Speaking at the PTF briefing on Monday, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, said the committee regrets the unintentional violation of protocols at Mr Kyaris funeral. Mr Mustapha, who doubles as the chairman of the taskforce, also said lessons have been learnt from the situation. The PTF recognises, regrettably, the unintentional violation of the principles and protocols that form the core of our message to Nigerians, at the funeral of the late chief of staff. These principles for emphasis, include: the guidance provided on mass gatherings, social distancing, Personal Hygiene and restriction of movements. Lessons have been learnt and appropriate measures have been taken to close all gaps, he said. Mr Kyari died on Friday in Lagos following complications from COVID-19. His remains were flown to Abuja on Saturday morning where he was buried. Though the federal government earlier announced that the funeral would be conducted in private to show compliance with the guidelines against the spread of COVID-19, a large crowd of sympathisers still thronged the burial ground to pay their last respects. Mr Mustapha and several senior government officials and politicians were amongst those sighted at Gudu cemetery, where the funeral held. Many Nigerians have however expressed their disappointment over the disregard for social distancing and other health advisories at Mr Kyaris funeral. Some Nigerians have also asked the Abuja Task Force to arrest and prosecute those who violated the protocols and guidelines of the NCDC at the funeral. Already, the presidency has barred some presidential aides who attended the funeral from the Presidential Villa and has ordered they embark on self-isolation for 14 days. Also, other attendees who participated in the burial have been identified. They will be isolated and tested as well, an official told PREMIUM TIMES. As of Sunday evening, Nigeria has recorded 627 cases of COVID-19. Of these, 170 infected people have recovered and have been discharged while the death toll rose to 21 from 19 reported on Saturday. Remaining focus Mr Mustapha urged the general public to remain focussed at a time like this. He assured Nigerians of their safety and the determination of the PTF to combat the pandemic The significant increase in the number of cases and distribution across states underscore the importance of remaining focused as citizens and as a nation because of the enormity of the challenges ahead. This is the time for all hands to be on deck so that the PTF can improve on its delivery. We must all come together because we face a common enemy and potential risk. We must flatten the curve at all cost and restore our country to full activity, he said. Also at Mondays briefing, the national coordinator of the taskforce, Sani Aliyu, said necessary measures have been taken to decontaminate the Gudu cemetery where the funeral took place. He urged the public to keep holding the government accountable for better results. There is panic in Borno State as a nurse died on Saturday at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital of suspected coronavirus. The news of the death of the man, Babangida Buba, a retired nurse with the Hospital Management Board, Borno, created panic as it might be the first case of coronavirus death in the state. The deceased after leaving the services of the state government joined Medecins Sans Frontieres otherwise called Doctors Without Borders and worked with the organisation in Pulka before he died. Buba, an anaesthetic nurse, was rushed to Maiduguri from Pulka last week when his health condition deteriorated. Some posts on the social media further stirred speculations that the deceased must have died of COVID-19. A post on the social media by one of his colleagues read, The first COVID-19 death has been recorded in the UMTH, Borno State. The deceased was admitted to the Medical Ward III last week and died under suspicious circumstances which led to a test being conducted on the corpse and the result came back positive for COVID-19. The bad thing is that he had contact with several health workers both within and outside the UMTH. He was brought from Pulka to the UMTH by two nurses who are also now at risk together with their families. However, the Borno State Deputy Governor, who is also the Chairman of the State Task Force on COVID-19, Alhaji Usman Kadafur, called on the people not to panic, insisting that the case was under control. Kadafur said, A sample has been taken and the result has been communicated to the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Control, the people that are mandated to make a statement on that. But as a committee, we are working and reviewing things in the town so for now, I assure you that if there is anything from the outcome of the NCDC, we will make it public. The deputy governor added that though there was no restriction in the Maiduguri metropolis, if there is a need to do so, we will do that but for now, we only have the inter-state lockdown into the state. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates To support vulnerable individuals and groups amid the restriction of movement, the Tobinco Group of Companies on Sunday distributed food items worth GH220,000.00 to 2,000 vulnerable families in movement restricted areas across the country. Beneficiary communities in the Greater Accra Region included Kotobabi, Mamobi-Nima, Agbogbloshie, Old Fadama, Chorkor, and Pig Farm. Every family or room in a household received a packaged box containing a 5kg bag of rice, gari, onions, mackerel, sardines, champagne, cooking oil, tin tomatoes, sugar and biscuits. The house-to-house mode of distribution was to prevent the possibility of overcrowding in the beneficiary areas and ensure that the social distancing protocol and stay home' directives were adhered to. Dr Samuel Nana Amo Tobin, the Chairman of the Tobinco Group of Companies, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said the critical moment when the nation was battling with COVID-19, was also when individuals and corporate institutions had to show more love to the needy. He commended benevolent entities for supporting government to contain the effects of the pandemic; however, he suggested that the manner in which food items were shared to the needy be improved as it encouraged overcrowdings. That is why we decided to move from house to house to share to families. The excitement with which people ran to meet us meant they were expecting help in this difficult time. This means if the foods were distributed on the streets, many of them would have run to the streets which would have made it impossible to observe the social distancing protocol, he added. Dr Tobbin called on all to support others in need, saying: Dont wait to get too much before you help others. If people are not getting food to eat and you can send a little mobile money to help them, please do it. A woman approached me and said she was ready to give out her daughter to me to be used for an advert of any of the Tobinco product, just so I could give her food to eat. This touched my heart and I realised the extent to which people needed support in this challenging moment of COVID-19. The Group Chairman advised the public to observe the COVID-19 safety measures by washing their hands often with soap under running water, using hand sanitizers frequently, observing social distancing protocol, avoiding touching eyes, mouth and nose, and covering mouth or nose with disposable tissues when coughing or sneezing to stay safe. However, I plead with everyone that if you are not among the essential service providers, then stay home because that is the only way we can emerge victorious over this novel Coronavirus and save this nation, he added. The Tobinco Group had earlier on donated Tobcee chewable Vitamin C plus Glucose tablet, Zinvite blood capsules, B-G-Glutamine plus tab, Omal hand sanitizers, face masks, aluminum veronica buckets, and handwashing bowls at a total cost of GH251,000.00 to the Ministry of Health to help in the management of COVID-19. The Group constitutes Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited, Samuel Amo Tobin Foundation, ABii National Savings and Loans, Entrance Pharmaceuticals and Research Centre, Priority Insurance, Atinka Media Village, Entrance University and Entrance University Hospital, Dor Events, and Toblues Properties Limited. As at Sunday April 19, 2020, Ghana has recorded a total of 834 confirmed cases of the COVID-19, with 99 recoveries and nine deaths. 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. Featured Video The Tamilnadu Salt Corporation Limited (TNSALT), under Govt. of Tamil Nadu, has invited applications in a prescribed format from eligible and qualified candidates for filling Four (04) vacancies to the post of Deputy General Manager (01), Deputy Manager (Marketing, Accounts and Administration -03) and Executive Assistant (01) through direct recruitment on contract. The offline application process towards the same closes on May 18, 2020 by 5:00 pm. CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Deputy Manager, DGM and Executive Assistant Organisation Tamilnadu Salt Corporation Limited (TNSALT) Educational Qualification Graduation/Post-Graduation in relevant area/field Experience Desirable Job Location Tamil Nadu Salary Scale As per the TNSALT norms Industry Salt Corporation Application End Date May 18, 2020 Age Criteria And Fees Candidates interested in applying for Manager, DGM and EA posts through TNSALT Recruitment 2020 must meet the age criteria as per the TNSALT norms, with relaxation (upper age limit) for reserved categories as per the Tamil Nadu Govt. norms. For details regarding application fee, if any, refer to the official advertisement given at the end of the article. ONGC Recruitment 2020 For Medical Officer Posts, E-Mail Applications Before April 24 Educational Criteria And Eligibility Candidates applying for Manager, DGM and EA posts through TNSALT Recruitment 2020 must possess a Graduation/Post-Graduation Degree in relevant field from a recognised University/Institution with relevant years of work experience in the concerned area as specified in the notification. Selection And Pay Scale The selection of candidates as Manager, DGM and EA posts through TNSALT Recruitment 2020 will be done based on the candidates' Academic Qualifications, Experience and Interview. Candidates selected Manager, DGM and EA posts through TNSALT Recruitment 2020 will be paid emolument as per the company standards. ONGC Recruitment 2020 For Manager, Engineer, Exec Assistant And Officer. Apply Offline Before May 8 How To Apply Candidates applying for Manager, DGM and EA posts through TNSALT Recruitment 2020 must fill the application in a prescribed format and send the same along with relevant supporting documents to the address specified at http://tnsalt.com/tnsalt-new/ on or before May 18, 2020 through a proper channel by 5:00 pm. Read the detailed notification about TNSALT Recruitment 2020 for Deputy Manager, DGM and Executive Assistant posts here Eva Mendes has explained why she never posts about her partner Ryan Gosling and their children online. The actor is getting praised for engaging with an inquisitive fan who wanted to know why she hastened to post photos of her daily life. After stating she was unsure what to share to lift peoples spirits during coronavirus lockdown, Mendes shared a picture of one of her favourite pieces of art. She wrote: During these times, Im so confused about what to post, so Im going to post things that move me in hopes that they move you as well. Since I dont post about my immediate family, and it feels so wrong to post about work, here you go, she continued, sharing the Rene Magritte artwork. It was here where the follower asked why she did not share pictures of Gosling, and Mendes replied: I have always had a clear boundary when it comes to my man and my kids. Ill talk about them of course, with limits, but I wont post pictures of our daily life. She continued: And since my children are still so little and dont understand what posting their image really means, I dont have their consent. And I wont post their image until theyre old enough to give me consent. As far as Ryan and I, it just works for us this way, to stay private. Eva Mendes responded to an inquisitive fan on Instagram (Instagram) Mendes and Gosling, who met while working on The Place Beyond the Pines, have been in a relationship since 2011. The couple have two daughters. In 2017, during a Golden Globes acceptance speech, Gosling thanked Mendes for raising our daughter, pregnant with our second and trying to help her brother fight his battle with cancer while he worked on the musical La La Land. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up 35 times actors fell in love on set Show all 35 1 /35 35 times actors fell in love on set 35 times actors fell in love on set Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Mr & Mrs Smith (2005) Who can forget the passionate fight scenes in Mr & Mrs Smith, as the onscreen spy couple who are contracted to kill one another? It was on this film set that Pitt and Jolie met and reportedly fell in love though they both deny that there was any overlap between their relationship and Pitts marriage to Jennifer Aniston. The couple dubbed Brangelina shared six children together, got married in 2015 but separated in 2016. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1994) The couple met auditioning for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1994, got married in 1997, and have been together ever since. They have two children together, Willow and Jaden. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn Woman of the Year (1942) Tracey famously remained married throughout his 25-year love affair with Hepburn, whom he met when filming Woman of the Year in 1942. "I'm a bit tall for you, Mr Tracy," Hepburn observed. "Don't worry," a producer standing by responded. "He'll cut you down to size." They starred in nine movies together, struggling to upstage one another every time, but it was not until after Tracy's wife died in 1983 that Hepburn publicly acknowledged her relationship with her Hollywood co-star. Getty Images / Stringer 35 times actors fell in love on set Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart Twilight (2008) The world went mad for Robert Pattinson. What can be more seductive than a good-looking vampire who then dates his co-star in real life? Pattinson and Stewarts on-off relationship dominated the headlines after they met on the set of Twilight in 2008 while playing lovers Bella Swan and Edward Cullen. It all came to a head when paparazzi photos caught Stewart kissing her married Snow White director Rupert Saunders in 2012. Pattinson and Stewart briefly reconciled, but then split up for good in 2013. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Jennifer Lawrence and Darren Aronofsky Mother! (2017) Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrences relationship with Darren Aronofsky took off when they met on set of his film Mother! in which Lawrence was cast in the lead role opposite Javier Bardem. But a year later, they broke up, with Lawrence citing the stresses of having a working relationship as the cause of the break-up. Wed be on the tour together [and] I'd come back to the hotel and the last thing I want to talk about or think about is a movie. He comes back from the tour and that's all he wants to talk about. I get it, she continued. It's his baby. He wrote it. He conceived it. He directed it. So I was doing double duty of trying to be a supportive partner while also being like Can I please for the love of God not think about Mother! for one second? Rex 35 times actors fell in love on set Freida Pinto and Dev Patel Slumgdog Millionaire (2008) The couple who fell in love on the set of the Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire in 2008 and embarked on a six-year relationship after rising to fame together. They both went as far as to describe one another as soul mates, while Slumdog co-star Anil Kapoor said the couple shared magic chemistry, but sadly, they didnt last. Pinto admitted that she was having an early mid-life crisis and needed to learn how to love herself. 35 times actors fell in love on set Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz Dream House (2010) Although Weisz and the Bond star had known each other for years, their romance reportedly started on the Canadian film set of the thriller Dream House, in which they play a married couple in a haunted house. Although the couple at first denied it, Weisz then split from her partner of nine years, Darren Aronofsky, while Craig split from his fiancee of seven years, Satsuki Mitchell, an American film producer. In 2011, they tied the knot, and they had their first child together in 2018, when Weisz was 48. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton Cleopatra (1963) The turbulent relationship between Taylor and Burton is one of the most infamous in Hollywood history. It all started on set of the epic Hollywood movie Cleopatra, when they played the lovers Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Taylor was married to Eddie Fisher and Burton to Sybil Williams but they tied the knot in 1964, divorced in 1974, then married again in 1975 and divorced in 1976. Thats a lot of wedding presents and lawyer bills. Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder Edward Scissorhands (1990) The Hollywood stars famously dated between 1989 and 1993, after meeting on the set of Edward Scissorhands. Depp was so in love with his onscreen love interest while filming the Tim Burton film that he got the tattoo Winona Forever. When the two split up in 1993, he had the tattoo changed to Wino Forever. Apparently Hairspray director John Waters, was ordained as a minister just to officiate their wedding, but he talked them out of it, as Ryder, then aged 19, was so young. 35 times actors fell in love on set Mia Goth and Shia Lebeouf Nymphomaniac (2012) Goth, a then-unknown British actor, met Hollywood star Lebeouf on the set of Lars von Triers sexually provocative film Nymphomaniac. Eventually, the couple had a commitment ceremony in 2016 at an Elvis Presley-themed chapel in Las Vegas and promised to adopt one another's hound dogs. The wedding was live-streamed and picked up by TMZ (apparently unbeknown to Shia). Lebeouf went on to date FKA twigs, whom he met on the film set of his own film Honey Boy. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz Vicky Christina Barcelona (2008) This Hollywood couple got together on set of the Woody Allen film. Bardem played the artist Juan Antonio, who is attracted to both Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), while still married to his unstable ex-wife, played by Cruz. They first met while shooting Jamon Jamon in 1992, but the path of true love was a long one. They were married in 2010 and have two children together, Leo and Luna. 35 times actors fell in love on set Liam Hemworth and Miley Cyrus The Last Song (2010) Hemsworth and Cyrus first fell in love while shooting the coming-of-age teen romance, which was directed by Nicholas Sparks. Cyrus played the rebellious teenager Ronnie who falls in love with Hemsworths beach volleyball player Will. After a three-year, on-off relationship, they got engaged in 2012, but separated in 2013. Then, in 2016 they got back together again. Finally it all seemed rosy when they got married in 2018. However, this year they split up, and Cyrus is now dating musician Cody Simpson. AFP/Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart To Have and Have Not (1944) When Bacall and Bogart met on the set of To Have and Have Not, she was 19 and he was 45, and with his third wife. But the on-set chemistry was instant. The sultry Bacall was making her film debut as Bogarts love interest a role that catapulted her to stardom. The pair began a romantic relationship a few weeks into filming it and never looked back She continued to star with Bogart in The Big Sleep (1946), Dark Passage (1947) and Key Largo (1948). They married in 1945 and stayed together until his death of esophageal cancer in 1957. 35 times actors fell in love on set Michelle Williams and Heath Ledger Brokeback Mountain (2005) Apparently it was love at first sight for Ledger, who met Williams on set of the Oscar-winning film Brokeback Mountain. The central gay romance in the film was between Ledgers Ennis Del Mar and Jake Gyllenhaals Jack Twist. But Williams played Ledgers characters long-time fiancee Alma Beers. In real-life, the couple, who split-up in 2007, had a child together. Ledger tragically died of an accidental overdose in 2008. Getty / Evan Agostini 35 times actors fell in love on set Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin True Blood (2014) It was also love at first sight for Moyer, who met Paquin during a screen test for the hit HBO vampire show. By day three or four oh, this is going to sound so syrupy but I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, said Moyer. It was within seconds, really, and it just became a thing. They married in 2010 and had twins, Charlie and Poppy, in 2012. Getty Images for EJAF 35 times actors fell in love on set Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams The Notebook (2004) As much a part of cinematic lore as Burton and Taylor, Gosling and McAdams initially got off to a rocky start when filming The Notebook so much so that Gosling wanted to read an off-camera scene with a different actress. They managed to get through the film, and became one of Hollywood's favourite real-life couples for the next three years until they split in 2007. Warner Bros 35 times actors fell in love on set Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied Black Swan (2010) Portman fell in love with her French dancer husband on the set of the twisted Darren Aronofsky thriller Black Swan in 2009, which he choreographed and danced in. They got married two years later and have two children. Just after giving birth to her first child with him, she dedicated her Best Actress Oscar for the film to her beautiful love, Benjamin, who has now given me my most important role in my life. Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Kit Harington and Rose Leslie Game of Thrones (2012) Harrington and Leslie went from on-screen couple to real-life husband and wife. The former Game of Thrones co-stars reportedly fell in love on the set of the shows second season in 2012. Leslie played Ygritte, a wilding who falls in love with Harringtons character Jon Snow. Harrington said: I met my wife in this show, so in that way it gave me my future family and my life from here on in. The couple were on-off until they got engaged in 2017 and married the following year in Scotland. AFP/Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Helena Bonham Carter and Kenneth Branagh Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994) Branagh allegedly had an affair with Bonham Carter while acting alongside her in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein, which he directed. Their union famously ended his six-year marriage to Emma Thompson. After Branaghs divorce from Thompson in 1995, the couple had a public romance until 1999. Channel 4 35 times actors fell in love on set Lauren Morelli and Samira Wiley Orange is the New Black (2014) Writer Samira Wiley and actor Lauren Morelli met on the set of Orange is the New Black in 2014, when they began dating. They were married in 2017. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell Swing Shift (1984) One of Hollywoods longest-standing couples they have been together now for over 35 years fell in love on the set of Swing Shift in 1984. Although they met in 1966 on set of a Disney movie, it was during the filming of this World War II romance film that Russell said to her, Man, you've got a great figure. Not the most romantic of sentences, but it did the trick. The couple have vowed not to marry, but they have a son together, as well as Hawns two children from her marriage to Bill Hudson. Hawn said: I like waking up every day and seeing that he is there and knowing that I have a choice. There is really no reason to marry." Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Clark Gable and Carole Lombard Ben Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1924) While their first encounter was on the set of 1924's Ben Hur, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard weren't formally introduced until 1931. They married eight years later and tried to live a simple life, away from Hollywood, on a ranch in the San Fernando Valley. Tragically, Lombard was killed in a plane crash in 1942. Her faithful dachshund, Commissioner, didn't leave Gable's side after her death. George Hurrell, Courtesy of the Kobal Collection 35 times actors fell in love on set Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck Daredevil (2003) Love is complicated. Garner and Affleck met while filming 2003s Daredevil and shortly afterwards started dating publically in 2004 after Affleck had split from Jennifer Lopez. They had three children together and then, after rumours of Afflecks affair emerged, the couple split in 2015 and divorced in 2018. But apparently they still share a special relationshipand enjoy co-parenting their kids. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Ian Somerhalder and Nina Dobrev The Vampire Diaries (2009) Dobrev played Elena Gilbert, a young orphan who falls in love with vampire Damon Salvatore, played by Somerhalder, in the supernatural teen drama. Soon, rumours of a real-life romance between them surfaced, which excited fans greatly, and it was confirmed by the couple in 2011. Sadly, they split up in 2013. Bizarrely, considering the vampire theme, Somerhalder went on to marry Twilight actress Nikki Reed in 2015. 35 times actors fell in love on set Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds The Green Lantern (2011) The now-married couple met while filming the superhero movie The Green Lantern in 2010. Reynolds was married at the time to Scarlett Johannson and Lively was dating her Gossip Girl co-star Penn Badgley. They claimed not to have started dating until 2011, when Reynolds divorce to Johannson was finalised. They have just had their third child together. Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Step Up (2006) They were the golden couple after meeting on set of the dance movie Step Up in 2006, where sparks started flying as early as the audition. But after nearly nine years of marriage, they announced their split in 2018. Their joint statement said: We fell deeply in love so many years ago and have had a magical journey together. Absolutely nothing has changed about how much we love one another, but love is a beautiful adventure that is taking us on different paths for now. Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel The Apartment (1996) The former Italian model turned actor who shot to fame in The Matrix Reloaded and The Passion of Christ met French actor Vincent Cassel on the set of Gilles Mimounis film, The Apartment. Cassell plays a recently engaged man who sees a former girlfriend (played by Belluci), and becomes obsessed with meeting her again. The former couple had a 14-year marriage and two daughters, before announcing their divorce in 2013. Studio Canal 35 times actors fell in love on set Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier Fire Over England (1937) One of the most legendary Hollywood love stories began when Laurence Olivier saw Vivien Leigh in the 1935 play The Mask of Virtue. Olivier stopped to congratulate the rising star, and the pair both married at the time took an immediate liking to one another. They began an affair, keeping it secret from the public, and eventually married in 1940 after receiving divorces from their previous partners. However, Leigh's developing mental illness and Olivier's rising stardom caused tension between the couple, and they divorced in 1960. Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Claire Danes and Hugh Dancy Evening (2006) Claire Danes, who is best known for playing Carrie Mathison in Homeland, fell in love with English actor Hugh Dancy while filming the ensemble drama Evening in 2006. They got married three years later in France. In a 2014 interview, Danes said of her husband: He is a gentleman. Downton Abbey-esque? I guess. He was raised well, went to great schools, hes a clever guy and he makes me giggle I scored. I lucked out, big-time! Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Brad Pitt and Gwyneth Paltrow Seven (1994) These two actors began dating in 1994 after meeting each other on the set of David Finchers Seven. Pitt played a detective who had recently moved to New York City with his wife Tracy (played by Paltrow) to track down a serial killer. Two years later, Pitt proposed to Paltrow, but their engagement was called off in 1997. Getty 35 times actors fell in love on set Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes The Place Beyond the Pines (2011) The famously private couple got together during filming for The Place Beyond the Pines in 2011, and have since had two children together. Getty Images / Sonia Recchia 35 times actors fell in love on set Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman Days of Thunder (1990) The couple fell in love during the casting of Days of Thunder. Kidman said: He basically swept me off my feet. I fell madly, passionately in love. They got married in 1990, adopted two children and then divorced in 2001. The reasons for the split are not clear but his commitment to Scientology may have been a factor, and Kidman has admitted that she felt as though she was living in his shadow. AFP/Getty Images 35 times actors fell in love on set Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) Emma Stone Andrew Garfield began dating on the set of The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012 and dated for four years. They remain good friends. GETTY 35 times actors fell in love on set Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn The Break-Up (2005) After her divorce from Brad Pitt, Aniston started dating Vince Vaughn while they filmed The Break-Up together in 2005. Their own breakup happened a year later. She then met her future husband Justin Theroux while on set of Wanderlust in 2011. They married in 2015, but divorced last year. 35 times actors fell in love on set Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender The Light Between Oceans (2016) Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander are staunchly private about their relationship. What we do know is that they met on the set of Derek Cianfrance's romantic drama, and Fassbender described their chemistry as "immediate" "I said early on, 'This girl frightens me.' She's so fierce and brave... it kind of bowled me over." They married in a private ceremony in Spain in 2017, and now reside in Lisbon, Portugal. Getty If she hadnt taken all that on so that I could have this experience, it would surely be someone else up here other than me to today, he said, adding: Sweetheart, thank you. Deborra-Lee Furness had her pick of famous men before settling down with husband Hugh Jackman. Appearing on an episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon via video conference last week, the 51-year-old actor and his wife recounted an incident where Deborra-Lee turned down Mick Jagger. Hugh said it was at the very start of his relationship with the 64-year-old actress, and he had invited Deborra-Lee and 12 others to his home in Melbourne for dinner. The chosen one: Deborra-Lee Furness had her pick of famous men before settling down with husband Hugh Jackman (both pictured) 'Deb got a phone call halfway through dinner. We're in Melbourne, Australia, and the phone rings and Deb picks it up and everyone goes quiet...' he recounted. 'Deb's talking, and she's like "Who? Hang on a sec", and then she says, "Mick Jagger's in a limo outside your house, and wants to go and party with me."' Confirming the story, Deborra-Lee added: 'My girlfriend wanted me to come party with Mick Jagger.' Rock on: On an episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the 51-year-old actor and his wife recounted an incident where Deborra-Lee turned down Mick Jagger (pictured) Hugh said he was expecting his wife of 24 years to leave his dinner to go and party with the 76-year-old Rolling Stones frontman. But he was pleasantly surprised when Deborra-Lee turned down the offer and decided to stay at his house instead. 'She goes, "You can tell Mick I'm having dinner with Hugh Jackman,"' the clearly chuffed actor continued. Off to a good start: Hugh said it was at the very start of his relationship with the 64-year-old actress, and he had invited Deborra-Lee and 12 others to his home in Melbourne for dinner Hugh confessed that was the moment he knew Deborra-Lee must've really liked him. 'I went, "Whoa". Part of me was thrilled, and part of me was like, "You should have gone,"' he said incredulously. But Deborra-Lee admitted she didn't even consider it: 'I don't even like rock 'n' roll, so it wasn't a hard pass.' Why a doctor in Kyrgyzstan retracted his criticism of low-quality protective masks amid the coronavirus pandemic. The government in Kyrgyzstan is facing a backlash for forcing doctors to apologise after complaining that they do not have enough personal protective equipment. Medical staff account for a quarter of new infections there. Al Jazeeras Robin Forestier-Walker reports. Tough times often bring out the best in people. Neighbours helping neighbours, strangers helping strangers. All out of the goodness of their hearts, because thats just what you do. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Tough times often bring out the best in people. Neighbours helping neighbours, strangers helping strangers. All out of the goodness of their hearts, because thats just what you do. In any sort of crisis, you look inward to make sense of the situation. But taking a moment to look outward to your community your street, block or building is just as crucial. In times of uncertainty, hardship and fear, community is more important than ever. And as the world deals with the COVID-19 pandemic, were relying on our friends and support groups for solidarity, guidance and empathy. CARING AMID COVID-19 CRISIS Click to Expand Did someone get you groceries during your self-isolation? Did you deliver a meal to a neighbour? Did someone go above and beyond during this trying time? Tell us about it. We want to share the uplifting stories happening in our community as we cope with the novel coronavirus pandemic. Email: kindness@freepress.mb.ca "Healthy and supportive relationships with others help to settle and calm our nervous system in a variety of ways, including helping us to have a greater sense of safety and security in belonging to a group," says Dr. Jo Ann Unger, a clinical psychologist and president of the Manitoba Psychological Association. "We need to become very mindful and conscious about how we are taking care of ourselves and this includes our social supports." Were all feeling the effects of COVID-19. Hardships look and feel different for everyone and its often the vulnerable who struggle the most in times of crisis children in need, the elderly, the homeless, newcomers and many others who have lost access to critical services and programs owing to social distancing. Were a strong community and social distancing doesnt mean we have to brave this on our own. "Were social creatures by nature and being more separated physically can feel uncomfortable or even stressful," Unger says. "In addition, it can erode our sense of community and our sense of identity, as our sense of who we are is partially defined by our relationships and the groups we belong to." MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS For the Front Steps Project, local photographer Kristen Sawatzky (with her dog Otto) took pictures of local families in exchange for donations to charity. The COVID-19 struggle has led to the emergence of "caremongering" an online movement spreading across the country offering good deeds to help one another. These people, dubbed "caremongers," come together to form networks to support their communities, including those who are in isolation, financially unstable or otherwise in distress. The BBC even ran a story about how the first caremongering group in Toronto went viral across Canada. "In Canada, a country whose inhabitants are stereotyped in the media as kind to a fault," the BBC reports, "helping others has become an organized movement called caremongering." Groups have sprung up across the country, many organizing through social media platforms. Countless offers of help have piled up on Facebook, on flyers in laundry rooms and building lobbies and through support groups. individuals get groceries, pick up prescriptions or other things they may need assistance with. The groups vary in size, from a handful of members to thousands. Some distribute food and supplies, while others run errands for those who are unable to do so. Some serve as a platform to organize volunteer groups. Kristen Sawatzky photo Clockwise from top left: BJ, Ashley and Isla Verot with Bean the Boston terrier "Helping others gives a sense that we are taking some action and we are doing something to address this problem we are facing as a planet," Unger says. "Research shows that taking some form of action in times of adversity reduces the negative impact of that adversity on our mental health." Facebook groups such as "CareMongering Winnipeg Community Response to COVID19," run by the South Winnipeg Family Information Centre, and "We got this Winnipeg" are both resources helping members of the community gain access to food, housing and health care. There are educational resources, offers to run errands and people can post requests for aid and support. But these groups are about more than just helping others in a time of need they provide a place for people to see acts of goodwill in their communities. Some of us may not have had to think about social connection and support in the past, Unger says, as it may have come naturally through our daily lives. Now, we may have to be more conscious about connecting in new ways. "One very important way we can support each other is by providing a listening and empathetic ear. Having someone listen to the things you are experiencing without trying to change or fix things is very helpful," she says. "Specifically, reaching out to people who are living alone. Often these are also elderly people who could also benefit from other forms of practical support." Kristen Sawatzky photo The Ross family: Darren, Leanne, Connolly, Sullivan and Frankie the pug pose on the steps. Unger says a number of peer support agencies are providing important phone or video support. The Anxiety Disorder Association of Manitoba has opened a support line 204-925-0040 for Manitobans struggling with feelings of anxiety during the COVID-19 crisis. As well, Age and Opportunity: Support Services for Older Adults is continuing to offer "Senior Centre without Walls," a telephone-based service that offers opportunities for daily social connection to Manitobans 55 and older. Its phone number is 1-888-333-3121. While social distancing is keeping people apart, photographer Kristen Sawatzky wanted to keep community connection alive by bringing people together, metaphorically speaking. "All of my work came to a screeching halt and I started feeling quite helpless and sorry for myself," she says. "I kept asking myself How can I help?" While chatting with a friend, she learned about the Front Steps Project, a photography initiative that began in the United States and supports local fundraising efforts. Photographers go to peoples homes and take photos of families on their front steps from a safe distance, of course. The movement has spread across the social media globe. The cost of the photo session? A donation to a local charity. Kristen Sawatzky photo Melissa Langdon & Matt Paris-Irvine took part in Sawatzky's Front Steps Project. "Its a way to spread joy while making a difference to those in our community that need it the most," Sawatzky says. Inspired by the photography fundraiser, she got to work and started a local version of the Front Steps Project in Winnipeg. She made a post on Facebook and Instagram that she would be taking photos between March 25 and 27. Nine hours later, her schedule was fully booked. She had a wait list so long that she decided to add one more day of shooting on March 31. Sawatzkys only requirement was for people to make a charitable donation to any local organization, as she didnt want to limit fundraising to just one group. "We have all been impacted by COVID-19 and so many organizations are in need right now," she says. Sawatzky is no longer taking photos for Front Steps but she managed to photograph 90 families and continues to get inquiries. Kristen Sawatzky photo Beckett Guile-Hardy with Maggie May the Boston terrier "Ive actually stopped counting!" she says. On April 9, the Professional Photographers of Canada issued a statement recommending photographers abstain from the photo sessions based on government recommendations to stay home unless it is essential to go out. Over the four days of shooting, Sawatzkys photography endeavour raised more than $7,000. Winnipeg Harvest received a large portion of the donations, with the rest of the funds going to the likes of Siloam Mission, HSC Foundation, Main Street Project, Rossbrook House, Bear Clan Patrol and Villa Rosa. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. "This is such an unprecedented time that is forcing us to take stock of what truly matters in our lives," she says. "Im happy to use my skill set to spread a bit of joy to others, whether its putting a smile on someones face or food on someones table." Kristen Sawatzky photo Tyrell Witherspoon, right, and Matthew Armet (and their cats, Fenwick and Oliver) Crisis can bring out both the best and the worst in humanity. But now is the time to come together by staying apart and offering assistance to those in need. Help your elderly neighbours and others in high-risk groups or self-isolation, support local businesses and charities, and call your friends and family to see how theyre holding up. Helping others in our community is an inspiring bright light in these dark times. And as we keep our distance from others, our communities are growing closer. sabrinacarnevale@gmail.com @sabrinacsays A Zimbabwean mother claims she wrestled her three-year-old son from the jaws of a crocodile by shoving her fingers into its nostrils. Maurina Musisinyana, 30, from the southeastern town of Chiredzi, was fishing on the banks of the Runde River when she heard a scream from one of her two sons, who had been playing nearby. She said she saw son Gideon being dragged into the water by a Nile crocodile. She had been told that the best way to weaken a crocodile was to press its nose to suffocate it. Maurina said she ran over and was able to cover the crocs nostrils while, with her other arm, pulling her sons head from its jaws. After releasing the boy, the animal bit Maurina on the hand before letting go of her and retreating back to the water. Both mother and son were rushed to hospital, with Gideon bleeding profusely from his wounds. The cuts to his face were also making it difficult for him to breathe, but doctors said he has responded well to treatment. Speaking to ZBS, Maurina said: I still do not believe that I rescued my son. Maurinas approach to fighting off the croc was well grounded. When on land, the Nile crocodile breaths chiefly with is mouth. When it is even partially submerged in water, a valve in its throat closes and it needs its nostrils to breathe. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Tom Hanks has detailed what it was like being in hospital with coronavirus. The actor and his wife Rita Wilson tested positive for Covid-19 in March. They were in Australia at the time, where Hanks was filming Baz Luhrmanns biopic on Elvis Presley. Speaking on The National Defense Radio Show, Hanks said he had bad body aches and was very fatigued, and he was exhausted after just a 12 minutes of exercise. I was wiped he said. Whoever it was, a doctor or nurse, would come into our air pressurised isolation rooms. She said, How are you feeling? and I said, I just had the weirdest thing. I just tried to do basic stretches and exercises on the floor and I couldnt even get halfway through. And she looked at me through her glasses like she was talking to the dumbest human being. And she said, You have COVID-19.' Discussing the differences between his and Wilsons symptoms, Hanks added: Rita went through a tougher time than I did. She had a much higher fever. She had lost her sense of taste and sense of smell. She got absolutely no joy from food for a better part of three weeks. He said at one point, Wilson was so nauseous, she had to crawl on the floor from the bed to the facilities. The couple have recovered and returned back home to Los Angeles. Having been told they are now immune from the virus, Hanks and Wilson have donated their blood as part of a study to see whether their antibodies can help develop a vaccine. Late Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, reportedly showed signs of recovery and was to discharged from the hospital before his condition unexpectedly got worse and eventually led to his death. The nation reports that, late Abba Kyari received some members of his family in the hospital on Wednesday, April 15, and he even walked around his isolation area to show his fitness. Members of the family were expecting his discharge on Friday, April 17. Unfortunately, Kyari died at First Cardiology Consultants Hospital in Lagos on Friday from what the Lagos State government described as complications of Coronavirus infection. The Nation reports that witnesses reported of massive police presence at the private facility on the day he died. The complications in his health were said to have arisen from diabetes and respiratory tract infections. The Nation adds that the late Chief of Staff neither consulted the Presidential Task Force on the campaign against COVID-19 nor the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) before deciding on private treatment in Lagos. According to the said report, officials of PTF and NCDC only read the announcement of his relocation to a private hospital in Lagos like other Nigerians. It was also gathered that he did not avail himself of expertise advice by NCDC and medical teams. A top source said to the publication: We read his statement on his decision to move to Lagos for private treatment like every Nigerian. He did not seek any advisory from the PTF and NCDC. And since he said he did not want to overburden the public health sector, we allowed him to have his way. We could not have stopped him because it was a private health option and he went to a designated hospital for COVID-19 treatment. We respected his decision because of underlying health challenges he had which he wanted the hospital to manage with COVID-19. It was not the Federal Government that took him to the First Cardiology Consultants hospital in Lagos. In essence, he was not NCDC patient in the real sense of it. A source said the family was confident that Kyari would survive Coronavirus. The source said: As at Wednesday, Kyari was seen walking round his isolation area when some members of his family came on a visit. His health improvement gave a ray of hope that he was fast recovering. In fact, words had gone round to his relations that he might be discharged on Friday. But he died following relapse, occasioned by diabetes and respiratory tract infections in the evening of Friday. How his condition changed for the worse shocked all the medics around him. He died between 9pm and 10 pm. So, he died of COVID-19 and underlying factors or complications. Lagos State Health Commissioner Akin Abayomi confirmed that Kyari died of complications. The statement said: Following enquiries on the passing away of the Chief of Staff to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Mallam Abba Kyari on Friday 17th April 2020, the Lagos State Government states that: Mallam Abba Kyari died from complications of Coronavirus infection at First Cardiology Consultants in Lagos. This hospital is a Lagos State designated high care, biosecurity-compliant, COVID-19 facility, accredited by the Health Facility Management and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA) of the Lagos State Ministry of Health. As a basis for accreditation, First Cardiology Consultants established a separate specialist wing with staff dedicated to the treatment of complicated cases of COVID-19, under the supervision of the Lagos State COVID-19 emergency response team. It was revealed that Kyaris presence in the hospital was treated with topmost secret. A notice pasted at the gate of the hospital announced that the institution does not handle COVID-19 cases. Visitors were also notified of conditions to meet before entry can be granted. The relative of a patient who spoke to the publication said the hospital had made it clear that they do not treat COVID-19 patients. She added that before the hospital took in her aunt, who had difficulty breathing and was on oxygen, they were asked to go elsewhere for COVID-19 screening first. The relative added in her statement to The Nation: It takes three days for the result to come out and we had to wait. It was when the result came back negative that they accepted to treat our relative. So, people are surprised to discover now that Mallam Kyari who was publicly known to have COVID-19 was admitted here. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang's Regular Press Conference on April 20, 2020 2020/04/20 CCTV: In his recent Qiushi Journal article entitled "Unity and Cooperation Are the Most Powerful Weapon for the International Community Against the Disease", President Xi Jinping wrote about his support for cooperation with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Can you talk a bit more about China's cooperation with the foundation in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic? Geng Shuang: President Xi's important article in Qiushi Journal entitled "Unity and Cooperation Are the Most Powerful Weapon for the International Community Against the Disease" elaborates the Chinese government's position and propositions in advancing anti-epidemic international cooperation with a vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind. The virus is a common enemy of all mankind. To combat the pandemic and restore economic growth requires the concerted efforts of all countries, including China and the US. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a partner in China and the international community's fight against COVID-19. Since the pandemic broke out, Chinese science institutions and the Gates Foundation have carried out cooperative research on pathogenesis, prevention and treatment. Recently, the Gates Foundation announced a new donation to support R&D in diagnostic tools, treatments and vaccines, support WHO and other international organizations in strengthening international cooperation on epidemic prevention and control, and oppose using this pandemic for stigmatization. We appreciate and welcome that. At present, the pandemic is still spreading rapidly around the world. China is ready to continue to work with the international community, including the Gates Foundation, to strengthen cooperation in epidemic prevention and contribute to the well-being of all as well as global public health security. CNN: US president Trump said on Sunday that the US still wants investigators to go to China to investigate the coronavirus outbreak and the two sides are discussing this. He also said on Saturday that China could face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the coronavirus pandemic. Last Friday, two US lawmakers introduced a bill that would allow Americans and local governments to sue the government of China for misleading WHO and causing the global spread of COVID-19. What is your response? Geng Shuang: I'll answer all your questions together. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, in an open, transparent and responsible spirit, China has taken the most comprehensive, rigorous and thorough measures to contain its spread and conduct international cooperation. In this process, China has made tremendous sacrifices, accumulated valuable experience, and made significant contributions to the global response. The international community bears witness to and applauds China's efforts and progress. The virus is a common enemy to all mankind and may strike anytime, anywhere. Like other countries, China is also a victim, not a perpetrator, even less an accomplice of COVID-19. In the face of major public health crises and infectious diseases, the international community should stand in solidarity and work together, not resort to mutual accusation or demand retribution and accountability. As I recall, there has never been any precedence of the latter. Did anyone ask the US to offer compensations for the 2009 H1N1 flu, which was first diagnosed before breaking out on a large scale in the US and then spread to 214 countries and regions, killing nearly 200,000 people? AIDS was first reported in the US in the 1980s and then swept across the world, causing untold sufferings to countless victims. Did anyone come forward and ask the US to be held accountable? In addition, Kishore Mahbubani, a professor at the National University of Singapore, said in an interview the other day that the financial turmoil in the US triggered by the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 turned into a global financial crisis. Did anyone ask the US to take the consequences? The US must understand that their enemy is the virus, not China. The international community can only defeat the virus by pulling together. Attacking and discrediting other countries will not save the time and lives lost. We hope that those on the US side will respect facts, science, and international consensus, stop attacking and blaming China for nothing, stop making irresponsible remarks, and focus instead on fighting the epidemic at home and promoting international cooperation. Australian Broadcasting Corporation: The Australian Foreign Ministry Marise Payne has called for an investigative mechanism and inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus and the global response including here in China. She also said her level of concern about transparency in China is at a high point. Does the foreign ministry have any comment? Geng Shuang: Australian Foreign Minister Payne's remarks are not based on facts. China is seriously concerned about and firmly opposed to this. Since the outbreak began, China has always acted in an open, transparent and responsible manner and taken a series of resolute, timely and forceful measures. It lost no time in reporting the outbreak to WHO, shared the genome sequence of the virus with other countries, and carried out international cooperation on epidemic prevention and control among experts of different countries, which has won plaudits from the international community. Any doubt about China's transparency is not only inconsistent with the facts, but also disrespectful of the tremendous efforts and sacrifices of the Chinese people. The Chinese side has repeatedly stressed that the issue of the origin of the novel coronavirus is a serious question of science that should be studied by scientists and medical experts. We hope that the Australian side can treat this issue in an objective, scientific and scrupulous manner. I stated China's position on this while answering the question from CNN. We hope that Australia will do more things to deepen China-Australia relations, enhance mutual trust and help epidemic prevention and control in both countries, rather than dancing to the tune of a certain country to hype up the situation. China Review News: The police in Hong Kong arrested 14 people, including Jimmy Lai and Martin Lee, for organizing and participating in unlawful assemblies. US Secretary of State Pompeo, Australian Foreign Minister Payne and British Foreign Office spokesperson issued statements in response to their arrest, saying that they are closely following the case, that they are concerned about this arrest of pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong, and that the right to peaceful protest is protected in both the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law. Do you have any comment? Geng Shuang: Regarding the lawful arrest operation conducted by the Hong Kong SAR police, a handful of Western politicians are piling unwarranted criticism and even demanding the withdrawal of charges. They are blatantly interfering with Hong Kong's affairs and flagrantly trampling on Hong Kong's rule of law and judicial independence. We strongly condemn and firmly oppose that. Hong Kong upholds the rule of law. No one is above the law. Smearing or distorting the police force's law-enforcement activities shall not be allowed. I stress once again that Hong Kong is China's special administration region, and its affairs are entirely domestic affairs that brook no foreign interference. We urge the relevant sides to earnestly respect Hong Kong's rule of law and judicial independence, stop bolstering anti-China rioters, and stop interfering in China's internal affairs. TASS: French professor Luc Montagnier, a recipient of Nobel Prize in medicine in 2008, said Saturday at an interview on television, that the coronavirus, as he assumes, has been engineered in the lab and contains some genes of human immune deficiency virus. I wonder if China has any comment on this? Geng Shuang: The origin of the virus is a matter of science that should be left to scientists and medical professionals. It should not be politicized. It is the established general opinion of WHO and scientists and professionals in public health in the vast majority of countries that there is no evidence showing the virus came from a lab. CRI: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in an interview on April 17 that China "didn't put information out into the international space as they're required to do in a timely fashion". What is your comment? Geng Shuang: Recently, some US officials have made repeated attempts to denigrate China's prevention and control efforts, trying to muddy the waters and find a scapegoat for their poor domestic response. But a lie is a lie no matter how many times it is repeated, and China has exposed their lies with facts and actions. We advise these US officials to focus on their domestic prevention and control efforts instead of desperate scapegoating, which only makes their incompetence more conspicuous. The blame game will not help ease the situation in the US, but will seriously interfere with the anti-epidemic cooperation between China and the US and damage bilateral relations. China Daily: US White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro said during a recent interview that the Chinese hid the virus behind the shield of the World Health Organization, and hoarded personal protective equipment which they are now profiteering from. Do you have any comment? Geng Shuang: Since the outbreak of COVID-19, in an open, transparent and responsible spirit, China has been providing timely updates to WHO and the international community, engaging in international cooperation and providing support and donation to other countries to the best of its capacity. This is a fact witnessed by all. It is even more ridiculous to say China hoards personal protective equipment. Navarro's lies will simply crumble at the following facts of China's assistance to the US. According to the incomplete statistics from Chinese customs, from March 1 to April 17, China provided the US with 1.864 billion masks, 258 million pairs of gloves, 29.19 million surgical protective suits, 3.13 million goggles, 156 invasive ventilators and 4,254 non-invasive ones. The American people all commend China for the convenience offered for US procurement and the donations the Chinese people provided to the US. We urge Navarro and his like to stop spreading rumors and shifting responsibilities. They should be focusing on fighting the virus at home. Shenzhen TV: Lately President Trump, Secretary Pompeo and other US officials have claimed on many occasions that COVID-19 originated from a lab in Wuhan and investigations should be conducted. I wonder if you have a comment? Geng Shuang: As we have repeatedly stated, the origin of the virus is a matter of science that should be left to scientists and medical professionals. It should not be politicized. It is the established general opinion of WHO and scientists and professionals in public health in the vast majority of countries including the US that there is no evidence showing the virus came from a lab. Yesterday head of the Wuhan Institute of Virology rejected the false US comments in an interview. He stressed that the institute is run on a set of strict management rules and that the US allegation is pure conjecture without a shred of evidence or logic. There is zero infection within the institute and the entire staff are now devoting themselves to research projects. The irresponsible spreading of conspiracy theories by certain US individuals will do nothing but disrupt research work and damage cooperation between Chinese and American scientists. We urge these people to respect facts, science and international consensus. They need to realize that their enemy is not China, but the virus. Their most urgent task at hand is to focus on domestic control efforts and strengthen international anti-pandemic cooperation, instead of attacking and smearing China to deflect attention and shift the blame. TASS: According to Xinhua, Sun Lijun, Vice Minster of Public Security of China, was put under probe and being investigated for serious violations of discipline and law. According to state media, Sun Lijun was member of the central government's working group which was dispatched to Hubei in the first month of the epidemic. He was working in Hubei in February and March. Is this probe due to his work in Hubei? Geng Shuang: Regarding the discipline review and supervision investigation of Vice Minister of Public Security Sun Lijun, the Chinese authorities already released information. I have nothing to update you at the moment. AFP: A United Nations report found that North Korea sharply increased trade in coal and oil products last year despite UN sanctions so this is apparently done with the help of China's shipping industry. I wonder if the foreign ministry have any comment on that? Geng Shuang: I think my colleague took a similar question last week, so I won't elaborate on it. On the implementation of DPRK-related UN resolutions, China has been earnestly fulfilling its international obligations and dealing with relevant matters in accordance with the resolutions. Reuters: Vietnam has said China's claim to have established administrative units on islands in the South China Sea seriously violates Vietnam's sovereignty. What's your comment on this? Geng Shuang: Following the approval of the State Council, Sansha City of Hainan Province has established two districts, Xisha District and Nansha District. This is China making administrative division adjustment within the scope of its sovereignty. It is conducive to improving and enhancing Sansha City's administrative management and promoting the coordinated development of the city's economic growth and environment protection. China has sovereignty over the Xisha and Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters, and sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the relevant waters and the seabed and subsoil thereof. In accordance with domestic laws and regulations, the Chinese government has selected and published the names of some islands and reefs of the Xisha and Nansha Islands as well as the seabed of waters under its jurisdiction. This is what we do regularly in accordance with law to improve marine management, which also accords with international law and international practices. China firmly opposes Vietnam's words and actions that undermine China's sovereignty and rights and interests in the South China Sea, and will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard China's sovereignty and rights and interests. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkey's export of electrical goods to Israel increased by 2.38 percent from January through March 2020, exceeding $69.2 million, Turkeys Trade Ministry told Trend. In March 2020, export of Turkish electrical goods to Israel increased by 0.65 percent compared to March 2019, and exceeded $24.1 million. In 1Q2020, Turkey's export of electrical goods to world markets dropped by 5.9 percent compared to the same period of 2019, amounting to $2.5 billion. During the reporting period, Turkey's export of electrical goods amounted to 5.9 percent of the countrys total export. In March 2020, Turkeys export of electrical goods to world markets amounted to $832.8 million, which is 16.1 percent less compared to March 2019. The export of electrical goods from Turkey in March 2020 amounted to 6.2 percent of the country's total export. From March 2019 through March 2020, Turkeys export of electrical goods exceeded $11 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu The Center for Mahalla Development in Uzbekistan / Courtesy of Embasy of Uzbekistan The Embassy of Uzbekistan in Korea contributed the following article. ED. From ancient times, mahalla in Uzbekistan has been a powerful cultural center, an effective body of citizen self-governance, the structure closest to the people; a unique institution of civil society. The role and significance of mahalla has always been priceless in the careful preservation of national and universal values, culture, lifestyle, thinking and spirituality of the multinational people of Uzbekistan, passed down from generation to generation. In accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, "on measures for improving the social and spiritual atmosphere in society, further supporting the Mahalla Institute, as well as raising the system of working with families and women to a new level," the Ministry for Supporting Mahalla and Family was established in Uzbekistan. Considering an important role of mahalla in the community and to support workers in the respective field, March 22 was declared the "Day of Mahalla System Workers." The Ministry for Supporting Mahalla and Family will serve as the authorized government body for the development and implementation of a unified state policy in the field of supporting families, women and the elderly, protecting their rights and legitimate interests, as well as establishing cooperation with citizens' self-government bodies. One of the tasks of the ministry will include assistance and full implementation of the "comfortable and Safe Mahalla" principle in society, establishment of close cooperation with citizens' self-government bodies in improving social and spiritual environment in families and mahalla. Ensuring protection of women's rights and interests is yet another vital task of the ministry. Specialists will maintain close cooperation with women in all mahallas to promptly detect and address problems. A research institute "Mahalla va Oila" ("Mahalla and family") will be established on the basis of the Scientific and Practical Research Center "Oila" ("Family") under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Training and Research Center "Mahalla" with its transfer to the Ministry structure. The new ministry will also play the main role in raising the status of the mahalla institution in solving problems of the population and exercising public control over activities of state bodies; will carry out tasks to support and assist citizens' self-government in the following areas: maintaining a unified state policy aimed at strengthening the institution of family, primarily aimed at implementing the idea of a "healthy family a healthy society", organizing targeted assistance to disadvantaged and problem families; ensuring effective implementation of state policy in supporting women, protecting their rights and legitimate interests, increasing their role and activity in the public and political life of the country, ensuring guarantees of equal rights and opportunities for women and men; timely identification of women's problems, provision of social, legal, psychological and material assistance to women who need help and find themselves in a difficult social situation, including women with disabilities; ensuring the employment of women, improving their working conditions, providing women, especially young girls in rural areas, with comprehensive targeted support for their wide involvement in family and private entrepreneurship, craftsmanship; developing proposals for supporting the activities of citizens' self-government bodies, protecting their rights and legitimate interests, as well as developing the mahalla system; strengthening the role and importance in society of citizens' self-governing bodies, raising their status in working with everyday problems of the population and implementing effective public control; strengthening mutual cooperation of internal affairs bodies, other government departments and public organizations in matters of ensuring the rule of law and preventing delinquency in mahallas; implementation of a set of measures aimed at improving the material and technical security of citizens' gatherings, as well as the introduction of modern information and communication technologies to the field. Self-government bodies will deal with issues of attracting the population to entrepreneurship and family business, the efficient use of land, the prevention of misappropriation of land, and landscaping. At the same time, under the state programs "Har bir oila tadbirkor" ("Every family is an entrepreneur"), "Yoshlar kelajagimiz" ("Youth is our future"),"Hunarmandchilik" ("Handicraft"), loans will be allocated to the population. These loans will be directed to the private sector in providing services to the population, in particular, beauty and hairdressing salons, bakeries, sewing and pastry shops, chayxana, guzars, etc. Zeotap announce the launch of its Customer Intelligence Platform (CIP) that enables brands to connect and transform their first-party data into actionable customer intelligence with activation available across the marketing ecosystem in more than a dozen countries. According to a BCG report on the Dividends of Digital Marketing Maturity, conducted with senior marketers of more than 200 global brands last year, only 2% of brands claim to have reached full digital marketing maturity; 97% said their use of data was immature and 83% could not make connections across different touchpoints. The study also revealed brands that improved data connectivity and made better use of integrated technologies could offer more tailored products and dramatically improved consumer experiences. They drove reductions of more than 40% in cost per action (CPA) and increases of up to 50% in online transactions. In particular, better technology improved return on advertising spending (ROAS) by up to 33% for participating brands. Zeotap's Customer Intelligence Platform (CIP) addresses marketers needs with an integrated suite of solutions for first-party data unification, deterministic identity resolution, third-party data enrichment, analytics/modeling, and activation. It replaces the variegated collection of point solutions with which brands typically wrestle, leading to meaningful performance gains and material cost efficiencies. Zeotap also employs best-of-breed governance, risk management and compliance (GRC) measures across its entire stack, including those pertaining to its ISO 27001 and CSA STAR certifications. A brand can unleash the full impact of the CIP in three simple steps: Connect first-party data residing across multiple internal data repositories or siloes to develop a single unified customer view. Link this private graph with zeotap's proprietary global offline-to-online and online-to-online identity graph for turnkey onboarding, cross-device extension, and lookalike modeling. first-party data residing across multiple internal data repositories or siloes to develop a single unified customer view. Link this private graph with zeotap's proprietary global offline-to-online and online-to-online identity graph for turnkey onboarding, cross-device extension, and lookalike modeling. Transform first-party data easily into enhanced customer insights with multifaceted intelligence. Data can be blended with zeotaps exclusive unified enterprise data set sourced from 100+ partners and spanning two billion consumer profiles. Use existing analytics infrastructure or deploy zeotaps dedicated Data Clean Room to layer first-party data with zeotap data, campaign performance logs and popular panels for advanced machine learning without assuming additional data ownership. first-party data easily into enhanced customer insights with multifaceted intelligence. Data can be blended with zeotaps exclusive unified enterprise data set sourced from 100+ partners and spanning two billion consumer profiles. Use existing analytics infrastructure or deploy zeotaps dedicated Data Clean Room to layer first-party data with zeotap data, campaign performance logs and popular panels for advanced machine learning without assuming additional data ownership. Activate any configuration of data across a plethora of pre-integrated marketing ecosystem partners such as Adobe, Amazon, AppNexus/Xandr, Facebook/Instagram, Google, MediaMath, Salesforce, Snapchat, Spotify, The Trade Desk, TikTok, Verizon Media and a wide network of local publishers and partners in any of zeotaps 14 markets. Additionally, benefit from zeotaps agile capabilities to create connections to any new partners via APIs, including dynamic content/creative optimization solutions Projjol Banerjea, CPO and founder at zeotap said, "Since 2014, our product journey has been guided by a North Star in the form of delivering value to marketers. This new integrated platform is a culmination of development efforts steered by constant feedback from our loyal clients. He added, In light of the current global situation, the overall integrated proposition is all the more compelling." Zeotap works with more than 70 of the top 100 global brands including Unilever, Mercedes Benz, Red Bull, BBVA, Orange Telecom and Vodafone across a range of marketing activities. Industry analysis firm AdExchanger awarded it the Best Data-Enabling Technology (2019). We are very pleased with our partnership with zeotap. Since our collaboration started, we have been using their deterministic data to improve our digital marketing strategies. Now with direct access to their customer intelligence platform, we have been able to unlock many possibilities: audience planning, custom segment creation, activation in any online channel and even data enrichment, which is essential to us. We are also very happy with the proactive support we receive from the local team, which is a key factor to keep growing together. We look forward to continuing our collaboration in Spain and also recommend it to our colleagues in other markets, said Victor Frontan, Programmatic & DMP Specialist at BBVA. Zeotap have also announced the appointment of Jim Thoeni as its global Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). Jim, based out of New York and San Francisco, was most recently Area Vice President North America for Salesforces Marketing Cloud business. He has over 20 years of international experience with a proven track record of driving sustainable, predictable, and scalable growth by focusing on the empowerment and success of his teams and customers. As CRO, Jim will have worldwide responsibility for all revenue-generating and customer-facing teams and activities and will report directly into Daniel Heer, CEO and founder of zeotap. I was blown away by the innovativeness of zeotaps new Customer Intelligence Platform and the rave reviews from early adopter clients. In my conversations with brands, Ive realized companies of all sizes across different industries yearn for a full-stack, end-to-end solution to execute their data strategies so they can connect with customers in more relevant and efficient ways, Thoeni said. Zeotap is uniquely positioned to be the global leader in customer intelligence and Im thrilled to join an incredible team of colleagues, partners, and customers. According to Daniel Heer, Were capitalizing on five and a half years of asset-building and learnings. Our new Customer Intelligence Platform is truly unrivaled in terms of both scale and scope. Were thrilled to have Jim join us at this exciting juncture to usher in a new era for zeotap that I'm confident will comprise many more success stories with clients. Analysts downgrade some key stocks, including Disney and Peloton, as the rebound may have gone too far Published Mon, Apr 20 2020 9:58 AM EDT The Washington Post's so-called "Fact-Checker" omitted critical facts from his article criticizing President Donald Trump's condemnation of the World Health Organization. On April 17, 2020, Glenn Kessler's "Analysis: Trump's false claim that the WHO said the coronavirus was 'not communicable'" gave President Trump three out of four "Pinocchios" for the allegedly deceptive statement that the WHO "publicly endorsed the idea that there was not human-to-human transmission happening" and that the WHO said it was "not communicable." Kessler quotes a January 13, 2020 WHO news release, which states: "To date, there has been no suggestion of human to human transmission of this new coronavirus." Kessler does not make any comment specifically about this sentence. Moreover, Kessler cites a document that proves that there was such a "suggestion" before January 13, 2020 but does not quote from that part of the document. Kessler states: Dec. 31, 2019: The WHO was alerted to a potentially new virus in China. That same day, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control said it sent an email to the WHO regarding rumors of at least "seven cases of atypical pneumonia," which it said is code in China for "a disease transmitted between humans caused by coronavirus." Kessler cites an April 11, 2020 news release by the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control stating that "in the email we took pains to refer to atypical pneumonia, and specifically noted that patients had been isolated for treatment." Kessler does not quote the part noting that "patients had been isolated for treatment." Also unreported is the text of the actual December 31, 2019 email to the WHO, released on April 11 by the Taiwan Ministry of Health and Welfare, stating that the seven "cases have been isolated for treatment." Isolation of the seven cases constitutes at least a "suggestion" of human-to-human transmission. On April 14, Henry Holloway of the Sun wrote, "ALARM BELL Taiwan's coronavirus December warning to WHO about person-to-person spreading went unheeded bombshell email reveals, " reporting an April 11 news conference: The email points out reports of patients being "isolated". Taiwanese health minister Chen Shih-chung argued this obviously refers to the risk of transmission at a press conference on Saturday in Taipei. He said: "If being treated in isolation is not a warning, then what is?" All this is omitted from Kessler's article. President Trump's statement that the WHO "publicly endorsed the idea that there was not human-to-human transmission happening" and that the WHO said it was "not communicable" should be evaluated in the context of all of the WHO's statements and all the facts. The WHO falsely denial on January 13, 2020 that there was any "suggestion" of human-to-human transmission. President Trump's statement is essentially correct. Even the New York Times reported on February 1, 2020 in "As New Coronavirus Spread, China's Old Habits Delayed Fight," by Chris Buckley and Steven Lee Myers, through the first few weeks of January 2020: "The World Health Organization's statements during this period echoed the reassuring words of Chinese officials." As the Sun reported: "The health minister also accused WHO of quibbling over wording[.]" This is what Kessler and the Post are doing: quibbling over wording as they fail to report the WHO's deception. The most criticism Kessler has for the WHO is this: Trump could have made a case that the WHO was slow to speak firmly about the possible human-to-human transmission[.] ... The WHO could have highlighted the human-to-human transmission sooner than it did and pressed China for more information. Not only was the WHO slow to speak; it spoke falsely. A self-proclaimed "fact-checker" who omits facts that contradict the policy agenda he and his newspaper are promoting should not be called a fact-checker. There are better words to describe such a person and the newspaper that publishes his articles, especially when millions of lives are at stake. Allan J. Favish is an attorney in Los Angeles. His website is allanfavish.com. James Fernald and Mr. Favish have co-authored a book about what might happen if the government ran Disneyland, entitled Fireworks! If the Government Ran the Fairest Kingdom of Them All (A Very Unauthorized Fantasy). China last week raised the novel coronavirus toll in Wuhan by 50% amid outrage over its under-reporting of the scale of the outbreak. People who died like flies at home in Wuhan were not factored in earlier, it sought to explain, as calls from global leaders like British foreign secretary Dominic Raab to make it accountable grew louder. India though is understandably silent. US President Donald Trump rubbished the new data, suggesting the actual toll could be closer to what his nation now experiences, certainly in five figures, not four. Chinas data rigging robbed other nations of the lead time they would have otherwise had to prepare themselves for the pandemic. And the WHO chose to go with China and tamp down fears in the initial weeks, advocating free movement of people and criticising initial travel curbs by various countries, causing the export of the deadly virus in the process. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesuss China leaning gave Trump the handle to suspend funding and make him a scapegoat of the messy fallout at home, where his re-election is no longer a done deal. The US contributes about $150 million to the WHOone-fifth of the total annual poolwhile China offers $30 million. While Trumps timing was appalling, his grouse at having no leverage despite maximum funding cannot be glossed over. Peter Piot, the co-discoverer of Ebola, learnt how to deal with the communist regime the hard way, when his report on its possible under-reporting of HIV/AIDS cases in China in 2002, in his capacity as UNAids head, drew the attention of the then UN chief Kofi Annan. Piot claims Annan asked him to remember nobody has ever won against China. Piot finally offered a public apology for the report. The anecdote, while indicating Beijings diplomatic muscle, shows why the UN Security Council is yet to debate the pandemic. The dragon might have escaped global scrutiny so far but cannot duck it for too long. When the dust settles, it will be called to book for the preventable deaths and economic paralysis wrought by it across geographies. A class action suit at The Hague is just a starting point. The Australian government has promised a $1.1 billion health and domestic violence package to help protect vulnerable Australians during the COVID-19 crisis. But one of the most vulnerable groups of all, Aboriginal women and their children, may see little benefit at all. Recent cuts to critical Aboriginal family violence services mean support for Aboriginal women and children vulnerable to domestic violence was already going backwards before the governments latest promises. New restrictions and social distancing also pose a unique challenge to the Aboriginal community-controlled sector, community health, social and family services that are relied on by Aboriginal women for family violence support. Even before COVID19 many Indigenous families struggled to get the healthcare services they need. Credit: Aboriginal women and children are significantly over-represented in all domestic and family violence statistics. Aboriginal women are 32 times as likely to be hospitalised due to family violence as non-Aboriginal women. Aboriginal children are seven times as likely to be the subject of substantiated child protection notifications, often due to family violence. These higher risks are exacerbated during times of crisis and high stress, like now. A government scheme to pay the wages of those out of work because of the coronavirus pandemic received claims to cover 67,000 jobs within half an hour of going live. Under the coronavirus job retention scheme, employers can put workers on furlough a leave of absence up to the end of June with the government covering 80 per cent of their wages up to 2,500 per month. A HM Revenue & Customs system to process the claims started operating on Monday morning with payments to be made by the end of the month, before many firms payroll deadlines. HMRC chief executive Jim Harra told the BBCs Today programme that employers had made 67,000 claims in the first 30 minutes. He said: The big payroll date this month is on the 30th, so employers can claim anytime today, tomorrow or on Wednesday, and theres time to get that money into their account for the 30th of April. The Treasury said HMRC can handle 450,000 claims an hour while Mr Harra expressed confidence that the system would cope with demand. It is the most significant test so far of the governments economic support packages which have attracted praise for their size and scope but which are also facing growing criticism as households and businesses struggle to access funds. Thousands of workers who were due to start new jobs at the end of February or the beginning of March have been left without any wages because the cutoff date for the furlough scheme means they are not protected. Despite the furlough scheme, many businesses have simply got rid of staff, rather than shoulder the administrative burden of keeping them on the payroll. More than 1 million extra claims for Universal Credit have been received since the pandemic began. A report from the Resolution Foundation think tank forecast that as many as 11.7 million people could be furloughed or unemployed over the next three months, with those in the lowest-paid sectors worst affected. It has also emerged that only a small fraction of small and medium-sized businesses have been able to access government-backed loans, leaving thousands of firms likely to run out of cash within weeks. Charities are expecting an unprecedented surge in debt problems in the coming months, with many related to council tax and rents which account for a large part of household outgoings. The Money Advice Trust, which runs National Debtline and Business Debtline, is calling on the government to improve and expand support for millions of households amid fears of rising unemployment and personal debt. Joanna Elson, chief executive of the trust, said the government should be congratulated on the measures it has introduced but warned of significant gaps in the support. Recommended Coronavirus furlough scheme extended to end of June Debt advisers are hearing from people whose incomes have collapsed, who are worrying about paying the bills and in many cases simply cannot wait for support from government schemes to come through, even where they are eligible for help. People struggling with council tax bills, self-employed people facing immediate hardship and private renters are particularly at risk of falling into serious financial difficulty. The government must take urgent action to close the gaps in its Covid-19 financial support package, or many more households will fall into problem debt. The trust is urging the government to allocate additional funding to enable all local authorities to offer payment holidays on council tax bills. How does the furlough scheme work? If you are furloughed then your employer is keeping you on the payroll while the business has less work than normal. While on furlough you cannot undertake work for or on behalf of your employer. Many shops, restaurants, hotels and other service industries in the UK have found themselves with no customers after being forced to close amid the pandemic, and many other firms have had work cancelled. Who is eligible? Any employer with a UK payroll and a UK bank account will be able to claim on their employees behalf. Employees must have been on their employers payroll scheme and had this notified to HMRC on or before 19 March. This means that people who work for businesses, charities and public authorities will be entitled to the money if their employer signs up. Employees can be on any type of contract, including zero-hours or temporary. If you were employed as of 28 February and on the payroll, but were made redundant or stopped working before 19 March, you can qualify for the scheme if your employer rehires you and puts you on furlough. Employers can backdate claims to when employees were first furloughed, with the earliest date being 1 March. How much will I get paid? Businesses will be able to pay their employees 80 per cent of their regular monthly wage, or 2,500 a month, whichever is lower. If on the scheme, your employer must pay you at least the 80 per cent of your usual income, however, they are also free to top this up if they wish. This means that if you earn 24,000 a year, you will earn a gross income of at least 1,600 a month on the furlough scheme. Once an employer has claimed, they will receive a claim reference number. HMRC will then check that the claim is correct and pay the claim amount by Bacs into the employers bank account within 6 working days. Additional reporting by PA The National Health Service (NHS) confederation has reportedly criticised the United Kingdom government for promising personal protective equipment supplies that cannot be delivered amid the growing shortages in the country. NHS Confederation chief executive Niall Dickson has said that the government should have made an announcement of delivering PPE kits only after receiving the supplies and not in advance giving false hope to healthcare workers. Read: Iran Extends Furloughs For Prisoners For Another Month To Curb COVID-19 Spread In Jails According to reports, the UK government had announced that it will deliver PPE kits such as gowns, gloves and masks to NHS staff, which it later failed to do so. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden while talking to the press said that a planeload of supplies is stuck in Turkey due to some logistical issues but promised to deliver it within a day. Oliver said that he is confident of the plane taking off from Turkey later today, which was initially scheduled for take-off on April 19. Read: Australia Calls For Review Of Circumstances That Led To Start Of COVID-19 Pandemic According to reports, over 52 medical staff members that include both doctors and nurses have lost their lives in the United Kingdom due to COVID-19 so far. Health experts say the deaths could have been avoided if proper PPE kits to carers were provided in time. According to data by worldometer, the United Kingdom has recorded more than 1,20,000 cases of coronavirus, of which over 16,000 people have lost their lives. There are currently 1,03,663 active cases while 1,559 remain under critical condition. Read: UN Urges Countries To Protect LGBT+ People Against Discrimination Amid COVID-19 Crisis Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus outbreak has infected over 2.41 million people globally and has killed nearly 1,65,000 patients since it first broke out in December 2019. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the initial epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. Other countries that are currently the worst affected are Italy, Spain, France, Iran and the United Kingdom, where the death toll has surpassed 16,000 mark each. Read: Anti-Brexit Group Projects Plea Of NHS Workers On To Walls Of UK Parliament (Image Credit: AP) Thousands of Muslims attend the funeral for senior emir Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari in the Brahmanbaria district of Bangladesh, April 18, 2020. Bangladesh on Monday reported 492 new COVID-19 cases the biggest daily jump in confirmed infections as government officials urged people to stay indoors after tens of thousands defied a stay-at-home order to attend an Islamic leaders funeral on Saturday. Ten more coronavirus deaths were also recorded during the previous 24 hours that took the national toll to 101, according to health officials who said the funeral crowd could aggravate the pandemic in Bangladesh, one of the most densely populated countries in the world. We are in a great crisis. Unless we strictly follow the lockdown guidelines, we cannot stop a surge of deaths in the future, Nasima Sultana, an additional director general of the directorate of health, told reporters during an online briefing. The total number of cases nationwide is closing in quickly on the 3,000 mark. During the past week the figure has tripled, going from 803 cases on April 13 to 2,948 on Monday. Officials pointed to people not obeying the governments instructions to remain indoors and avoid large public gatherings as a reason for the soaring number. We have repeatedly been urging the people to understand the gravity of the infection and stay at home. The shutdown is for containing fresh infections and preventing death. But people are not abiding by the government order to stay home, Health Minister Zahid Maleque told BenarNews. If people do not stay home, the numbers of infections and deaths are likely to shoot up, he said. In Singapore, meanwhile, hundreds of Bangladeshis who went there for jobs have contracted COVID-19, according to Singaporean health officials and Dhaka media reports. Globally, more than 2.4 million infections have been recorded while the death toll stood at more than 168,000 as of Monday, according to data compiled by disease experts at U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University. To stop the spread of COVID-19 in Bangladesh, the government ordered a shutdown beginning on March 26 to continue through April 25, with officials declaring the period a special holiday. Despite the governments efforts, Bangladesh has seen COVID-19 cases skyrocket in recent days after recording its first case on March 8 and seeing the number increase to 218 one month later. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said he expected to see a crackdown moving forward. You are right that people are not abiding by the lockdown order of the government despite efforts of the armed forces and the law enforcement agencies. As the situation turns bad to worse, we must be tough to force the people to obey the government order, Khan told BenarNews. You will see that in the coming days, he said without elaborating. A human flood On Saturday, tens of thousands of Muslims gathered at Jamia Rahmania Madrassa in Bertola village in the Brahmanbaria district, about 100 km (62 miles) from Dhaka, for the funeral of senior emir Maulana Jubayer Ahmed Ansari. Amanul Haque, the madrassas vice principal, said organizers did not ask Muslims to attend the funeral for Ansari, the principal founder of the madrassa established in 1991. Maulana Ansari is a great Islamic scholar. At least 1 million followers listen to his speeches on YouTube, he told BenarNews. As the news of his death spread, people poured into the madrassa. We had no idea that there would be a human flood. If we asked people to attend, there would be uncountable number of people in the Namaz-e-Janaza [Muslim funeral prayer], Haque said, adding organizers did not know that COVID-19 spread through human contact. Brahmanbaria district police chief Mohammad Anisur Rahman said that a three-member investigation team was trying to determine whether madrassa authorities had planned for a large gathering or if the mourners showed up on their own. We have locked down eight nearby villages from where the mourners mainly came. They will have to be in quarantine for at least 14 days. If we find anyone secretly planned the gathering, we will take action against him, he said. Former Health Minister A.F.M. Ruhal Haque called the gathering a shameful incident for the whole nation. How irresponsible are we that thousands of people stood touching their bodies to attend the funeral at this critical moment. Nearly a month ago, we saw huge gathering for prayer to get rid of coronavirus, he told BenarNews. He said the gathering and other incidents likely would increase the number of COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh. The government bans movement, but people have been moving freely at market places and intersections, said Ruhal Haque, a physician. Only the Almighty Allah, can save us from an impending health catastrophe. Singapore As cases spike nationally, the number of infected Bangladeshis in Singapore appears to be growing as well, according to the city-states health ministry and Dhaka media. The Singapore health ministry has recorded about 8,000 COVID-19 cases, including 1,426 in the last day. Of those new cases, only 18 were Singapore citizens while more than 1,300 were work permit holders living in dormitories inhabited by Bangladeshis and others. Dhaka media reported that nearly 3,000 Bangladeshis have contracted COVID-19 in Singapore. One of the reasons of higher number coronavirus infections among the Bangladeshi workers in Singapore is they live at congested dormitories with little ventilation. Again, they work very hard and have limited space to sleep, Syed Saiful Haque told BenarNews. The employers in Singapore are better, so, they should take care of the hapless workers who work for them day and night, said Haque, the chief of WARBE Development Foundation, an NGO dedicated to the welfare of Bangladeshi overseas workers. Bengaluru, April 20 : Fifty-nine people have been arrested for violence, assault on Covid-19 warriors and damaging public properties in the coronavirus-hit areas of Karnataka capital. "We have filed 5 cases and arrested 59 people, including many youngsters, in the Padarayanapura area, the city's south-west suburb, for attacking healthcare workers, inciting violence and damaging public properties on Sunday," said Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao, here on Monday. The incident occurred when around 40 secondary contact persons were being shifted to the quarantine centres. The people related to them attacked the women coronavirus warriors, doctors and police personnel. The area had been sealed last week after three Covid-19 cases were found. All three had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in New Delhi's Nizamuddin in March. "Security has been beefed up with additional deployment of the police personnel. The situation is under control. Probe is on to find the instigators of the attack and those involved in damaging public properties," Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Ramesh Bhanot told IANS. Video clips that went viral on the social media showed three groups attacking the warriors, doctors and the cops with sticks, stones and destroying a make-shift office in a tent with chairs, tables and stationary material. "Barricades placed on roads to prevent vehicular movement in the sealed area were scattered," Bhanot said. Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai visited the area with Rao, Bhanot and other senior police officials for a spot assessment. "Serious action will be taken against the perpetrators of the violent incident, especially assaulting the women Covid-19 warriors and doctors," Bommai said. Condemning the incident, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa asked Rao to provide full security to the healthcare personnel, including Asha workers, doctors and paramedics, leading the war against coronavirus. "No attack on Covid-19 warriors will be tolerated," tweeted Yediyurappa in Kannada later. Pakistan escalates efforts to disrupt, but Army has terror under control India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: Militancy is under control in Jammu and Kashmir but Pakistan has escalated its efforts to disturb peace with a two-fold increase in ceasefire violations by its troops along the border, lieutenant governor Girish Chander Murmu has said. "Ceasefire violations have doubled. Cross-border elements are desperate," Murmu told in an interview at the Raj Bhawan here. The security situation in the Union Territory "is better" as compared to 2018, he said, adding "half of 2019 was under strict restriction. The militancy is under control. The (militancy-related) incidents have decreased." With 411 ceasefire violations being reported in March alone, India issues demarche to Pakistan Jammu and Kashmir has been under tight security since August 5 last year when the central government announced its decisions to abrogate its special status under the Constitution and divide the erstwhile state into two Union Territories -- Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Referring to the rise in ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops, the lieutenant governor said "cross-border elements are desperate" to stage infiltration of terrorists into this side. Noting that militancy-related incidents increase marginally during the summer, he said, "When the winter period ends, little bit activity increases. They are engaged in infiltrations, as we keep getting information.... Ceasefire violations have doubled. Cross-border elements are desperate (to stage infiltration of terrorists into this side)." Three persons, including a woman and child, were killed on Saturday in artillery shelling by Pakistan in Chowkibal, Kupwara, near the Line of Control (LoC) in north Kashmir on April 12. "There were a total of 646 incidents of ceasefire violations along the International Border (IB) as well as the LoC between January 1 and February 23 this year," Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said in March. Over 3,200 ceasefire violations by Pakistan troops were recorded in 2019. There is 198 km IB and over 510 km of LoC with Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. Murmu pointed towards the growing frustration among cross-border elements due to prevailing peace in Jammu and Kashmir. India issues demarche to Pak over killing of 3 Indians in ceasefire violations in J&K "They do not digest or tolerate the peace prevailing in Jammu and Kashmir since August 5 last year. They are unable to incite people (to stoke trouble and increase violence in J&K). But the public is cooperating. The public is happy. They have got better services during President's rule," he said. He said that somehow there are no internal disturbances, so forces across the border have increased the pitch in border areas by engaging in firing and shelling. "In the hinterland, it is peaceful," he added. As the winter ended, terrorists have begun to attack security forces and kill civilians in Kashmir Valley in the past fortnight. Four CRPF troopers were killed and another jawan was injured after militants fired at their vehicle at Sopore in Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday evening. Two terrorists, who had snatched two service rifles and killed a policeman in Kishtwar's Dachhan on April 13 by using axes, were killed in an encounter in Chenab Valley's Kishtwar, the police said on Friday. In another incident, Two Hizbul Mujahideen militants were killed in a gunfight with security forces in south Kashmir's Shopian on Friday. Five terrorists were killed earlier this month as the Army foiled an infiltration bid along the Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, a defense spokesperson said. Five soldiers also died in the gunbattle with them. Hundreds of protesters had gathered at the Pa. capitol in Harrisburg to protest Gov. Tom Wolfs coronavirus shutdown of non-essential businesses. PennLive has multiple reporters, photographers, and videographers on hand to cover it, and you can watch it unfold live in the Facebook video below. From PennLives Steve Marroni: Mercedes and Pete Nebroski, a daughter and father from State College, are among the hundreds of protesters gathering at the Capitol in the Reopen PA Rally. She said she recognizes COVID-19 is a potentially dangerous virus, but disagrees with the states interference with the economy. The cure is worse than the disease in this case, she said. Click here for more live updates. Residents of the Syrian coast are anticipating, what could be, a devastating earthquake, but officials are confident that buildings can withstand writes Al-Watan. Residents of Tartous are anxious about news of repeated earthquakes, as COVID-19 falls to second place on their list of concerns. If it is not possible to know when the next earthquake will come, it is still vital to know the extent of preparations, if at least to keep damage to a minimum. According to Hassan Hassan, Director of Technical Affairs in the Tartous City Council, the system for certifying buildings in Tartous and all of Syria imposes strict adherence to earthquake codes when licensing and reviewing all buildings and facilities. He added that engineers and specialists conduct a number of studies about the type of building to be constructed. Those studies are audited by consultant engineers and validated by a branch of the Engineers Syndicate, then followed up by a supervising engineer who conducts workshops and organizes regular reports, in addition to carrying out the necessary tests on the concrete and other building materials. The goal is to ensure that the construction meets the conditions of the study and adheres to all safety requirements. Hassan clarified that the design and construction of buildings in Syria is studied in accordance with the Syrian Arab Code for reinforced concrete released by the Syrian Engineers Syndicate in 1995, when a number of design requirements were published for buildings to resist earthquakes. The code also calls for authorities to map out seismic areas in Syria. Since then, structural designers have been obligated to take into account the impact of earthquakes on their buildings. He added that since then, a number of additions were made to the code, including requirements for making buildings earthquake-resistant, internationally recognized ways to calculate and analyze structures, and an updated seismic map. 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. To educate and alleviate fears of her fellow community members, LBJ teacher Becca Ramirez, 25, posted a video talking about what it feels like to have COVID-19, its symptoms, misconceptions and how it has changed her life. Today Im really talking to people my age, she said. Because I really want to educate people our age on the subject I have COVID-19 and Ive known Ive had COVID for four weeks. Ramirezs Facebook video sees her outside wearing a shirt with the word Empathy on it and stressing the importance of showing empathy and care for anyone who is, has been or will be affected by the pandemic. She said it is not the time to point fingers but to be empathetic and kind, check in on loved ones and to avoid living in fear and denial. READ MORE:Child is latest positive case as Nuevo Laredo reaches 29 Its been really hard for me to really tell anyone, even my closes friends, Ramirez said. This virus has had the potential to make people hostile, angry and cruel against victims of COVID. According to Elizabeth Reyna-Gardner, PILLAR Licensed Professional Counselor, hostility and anger towards others causes stress that both parties are affected by. The more we think on negative emotions, the more it affects the sympathetic nervous system which controls heart rate, Reyna-Gardner said. Heightened stress levels decrease resistance to infection and come from negative feelings which compound the risks and dangers of COVID-19. This leads to a patient not only fighting the virus but the mental stress that is heavily weighing down on them as well. Reyna-Gardner recommends everyone to avoid focusing on situations they cant control such as how others respond to the lockdown or what they think or say. Instead, they should focus on what they can do to safeguard themselves and their loved ones, which means to avoid how people react on social media or the news. Keep yourself grounded and dont overwhelm yourself, she said. Being aware that everyone is being affected by COVID-19, meditating, relying on faith and communicating with loved ones helps ones mental state which in turn helps the body and its response to viruses and diseases. Most of the video is Ramirez detailing what it was like to live with COVID-19 and its symptoms and clearing up common misconceptions. She said that before accepting the fact that she had it, she woke up feeling off four weeks ago, which then led to an irritated throat. Ramirez thought it might be allergies until later that week when she was on the verge of passing out and feeling faint. Impaired vision and shortness of breath are what prompted her and her family to get tested, but only her parents were tested due to her and her younger brother not meeting the testing prerequisites. READ MORE: Coronavirus outbreak among Laredo hospital staff traced to asymptomatic patient According to the Texas Health and Human Services, people with respiratory issues are advised to contact a physician or medical facility to get tested for flu or other viruses first. There, medical professionals will determine if a COVID-19 test is needed. Symptoms that will be looked for are fever, cough and shortness of breath, all which Ramirez said she had. Ramirez went on to talk about her first week after the symptoms started and said that it wasnt too bad and that it would possibly be easy for her to get better. The second week proved that was not the case. She started by saying she felt like she had a 50-pound weight on her chest and heart, which caused unusual heartbeats and increased anxiety. I felt like someone was also just squeezing my lungs and the tubes that get my air out, Ramirez said. I felt a lot of pain in my lung area of my back. Its like youre inside a torture chamber 24/7. She reiterated that she does not want to stoke any unnecessary fear and said that in order to avoid additional anxiety, she distanced herself from reading the science behind the symptoms and had just practiced social distancing to protect everyone around her. As the second and third week continued, phlegm built up, and in what was the most miserable period of the illness, Ramirez said that her throat and lungs always dried up regardless of how much liquid she drank. She was thankful for having no signs of a fever, but the overall experience was miserable, and her symptoms lasted until Tuesday. Im still feeling symptoms. Even as I sit here right now, I feel a little bit out of breath, she said. Early in the video, she outlined some common misconceptions that related to her experience and warned others her age that it doesnt matter how young or old they are, it was happening to everyone. Another misconception was that the virus would last only a week or two. What is sneaky and scary about COVID is that youll wake up one day and youll feel fine, Ramirez said. Youll go for hours feeling that way, and then at around 8 p.m. at night, it will knock you down again. She ended her video talking about how her life has changed so early in her lifetime, and she encouraged everyone to continue social distancing procedures. ST. LOUIS The Board of Aldermen held its first-ever meeting by teleconference with no major glitches Monday, voting to pave the way for new energy efficiency standards for hundreds of large buildings in the city. The measure, which sets up a new city panel to devise new energy use standards to be adhered to by mid-2025, was among 34 bills passed on the final day of the boards 2019-2020 session. Dozens of other bills, such as a controversial plan to increase the number of police districts, died. While various governmental bodies in St. Louis and across the metro area have been holding virtual meetings for weeks because of coronavirus stay-at-home orders, city aldermen have been on their regular spring break since March 13. Mary Goodman, an aide to Aldermanic President Lewis Reed, said staffers held two training sessions to get the 27 current board members familiar with Zoom teleconferencing procedures. State public health officials would not say whether guidance or special consideration was given for those facilities with poor infection control inspections in the past. When asked, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Public Health said that we work closely with any facilities that are experiencing COVID-19 cases, and especially those with outbreaks of three or more residents with confirmed cases). Our Heritage staff has been using best practices for infection control and PPE use, to keep our well residents well, and nursing our sick residents back to health, according to a statement. We mourn those weve lost, and our heart breaks for the families. State officials have released the names of long-term care facilities once an outbreak is confirmed, but Iowa Long-Term Care Ombudsman Cynthia Pederson believes the public should be made aware of any cases in the facilities. In my interaction with other states, the issue of information sharing in a timely manner continues to be of concern, Pederson wrote in an email to The Gazette. By Akbar Mammadov Azerbaijan expects the implementation of the resolutions adopted by international organizations with regard to the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict rather than the mere condemnation of the so-called elections in Azerbaijans Nagorno-Karabakh region occupied by Armenia, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said in an interview with The London Post on April 18. Today deliberate actions are being carried out in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan with a view of changing their demographic, cultural and physical nature. Such actions, including the so-called elections, constitute a clear violation of norms of international law and relevant international conventions. It is clear that such policy and practices can in no way be reconciled with the objectives of achieving a peaceful resolution of the conflict, thus necessitating the urgent action by the wider international community for defending the values, norms and principles of the rules-based inter-State relations, as enshrined in the UN Charter, Mammadyarov said. This is what Azerbaijan is striving for and this is what needed to provide lasting peace, security and stability in the region, the minister said. Commenting on the so-called elections in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh territories held in two rounds on March 31 and April 14, Mammadyarov emphasized that such elections will be possible only after the withdrawal of the Armenian occupying forces, return of the expelled Azerbaijani population to their places of origin, and restoration of dialogue and cooperation between the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of the region. Obviously, against the background of continuing military occupation and ethnic cleansing of the territories of Azerbaijan by Armenia, the holding of elections in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan constitutes a clear violation of the countrys constitution, as well as the norms and principles of international law, including the UN Charter, CSCE Helsinki Final Act of 1975 and the related UN Security Council Resolutions and, therefore, shall have no legal effect whatsoever, the minister added. The international community has consistently deplored in the strongest terms the use of military force against Azerbaijan and the resulting occupation of its territories. In 1993, the United Nations Security Council adopted 4 resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884), condemning the occupation of the territories of Azerbaijan and reaffirming respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the inviolability of its internationally recognized borders. The minister also noted that in those resolutions, the Security Council also confirmed that the Nagorno-Karabakh region is an integral part of Azerbaijan, and demanded the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian occupying forces from all the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. As in previous cases, this time again the international community firmly rejected the so-called elections in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and declared them illegitimate, the minister said, adding that the Non-Aligned Movement, OIC, EU, NATO, Turkic Council, GUAM, TURKPA, and the others, also the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, as well as the numerous states which came up with the separate statements. Reiterating the resolutions adopted by the UNSCs and the European Parliament and the OSCE Minsk Group, as well as other international organizations positions, the minister emphasized that the legal basis of the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is quite solid. The Azerbaijani foreign minister also noted that in case of the so-called elections in Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan the violations of the Constitution and laws of the country is so obvious that Constitutional Court did not even take it for consideration. Speaking about the roles of OSCE Minsk Group co-chair states (Russia, USA and France) to mediate the peace negotiations, Mammadyarov said that the expectation of Azerbaijan from the key players and important actors of the international relations is of course about implementation of the UN Security Council demands. "The UK Foreign Office has also formally rejected conducting the so-called elections in Nagorno-Karabakh and the UK Embassy in Baku publicly reacted, the minister reminded. --- Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Many of those districts have found themselves scrambling to figure out how best to teach students when they cant be face to face. They have had to search for the best online platforms Google Meet or Zoom or Flipgrid or Seesaw? and try to determine how many students lacked internet service while districts that had already established the logistics have been able to pivot more easily into actual instruction. Shaheed El-Hafed, 19 April 2020 (SPS) - President of the Sahrawi Republic, Brahim Ghali, called on the United Nations to protect Sahrawi political prisoners in Moroccan prisons facing the danger of the Covid-19 pandemic. In a speech to the nation, the Saharawi president, secretary general of the Polisario Front alerted the United Nations that Saharawi political prisoners live in deplorable conditions in Moroccan prisons at a time when the world is fighting against the Covid-19 pandemic. He called on the UN organization to act to protect the Saharawi people in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, especially the Saharawi political prisoners in the jails of the Moroccan occupation, adding that Morocco assumes full responsibility for the circumstances of the current situation. The Saharawi president had already called on the United Nations to intervene urgently for the release of Saharawi political prisoners from Moroccan prisons with the escalation of the new coronavirus, in a letter addressed to the Secretary General of the organization, Antonio Guterres, last March. Brahim Ghali, in his speech to the nation, welcomed the positive response of the Saharawi people to the measures implemented by the Saharawi government to deal with the pandemic, recalling that the international situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic requires strict compliance with prevention measures. President Ghali also praised the enormous work done by health personnel and administrative and security authorities to cope with and prevent this pandemic that is shaking the world. On 19 March 2020, the Sahrawi government put in place a series of measures to deal with the pandemic. The National Coronavirus Surveillance and Prevention Mechanism (COVID-19) was also established to control and monitor the pandemic. (SPS) 062/SPS/APS Half a million masks were delivered yesterday to the warehouse of Italys Civil Protection near Rome. The gift stems from the "serious situation" in some countries. For De Siervo, from Civil Protection, the people of Taiwan demonstrated great friendship. Taiwans ambassador said she was happy and honoured to be able to help and that we can do it together. Rome (AsiaNews) The Taiwanese government has donated seven million masks to the eleven European countries most affected by the coronavirus outbreak, most notably Italy, Spain, Germany and France. In a statement, Taiwans unofficial diplomatic office in Italy, the Taipei Representative Office in Italy, said that the medical supplies (pictured) were delivered yesterday afternoon to the warehouse of Italys Civil Protection agency in Fiumicino, near Rome. The gift is a response to the serious situation caused by the COVID-19 epidemic in some countries. Five hundred thousand masks were delivered to Italys Civil Protection Agency at its warehouse at JAS Worldwide Italy in Fiumicino, read the statement. Taiwans representative to Italy Andrea Lee and her staff were present at the event, along with officials from the Civil Protection Agency. Giovanni De Siervo, Civil Protection coordinator, noted that the people of Taiwan have demonstrated the great friendship that binds them to our country. For her part, Ambassador Lee said that friends can be seen at times of need, and that she was happy and honoured to be able to help Italy. Hence, Long live Italy! Everything will be fine; together we can do it. Taiwan is one of the countries that have best managed the emergency caused by the novel coronavirus, faster and more efficiently than the World Health Organisation (WHO) in fighting the pandemic. In recent weeks, the island nation has donated millions of masks to Europe and the United States, which are still coping with the peak of the viral outbreak. The gift to Italy, officials say, represents "further proof of the spirit of generosity" of the islands people, best captured by the well-known motto Taiwan Can Help. The donation will also strengthen long-term bilateral relations between the peoples of Taiwan and Italy. Twitter has slammed Idris Elba after he said he thinks the world should quarantine for a week every year to 'remember this time' once the COVID-19 pandemic is over. The 47-year-old, along with his wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba, 29, tested positive for a 'very mild' strain of the coronavirus in March but has now fully recovered. He said: 'I think that the world should take a week of quarantine every year just to remember this time. Remember each other. I really do. 'You're not living in the real world': Idris Elba is slammed for saying the world should quarantine for a WEEK each year to 'remember this time' (stock picture) 'I think it's other species use it. It's called hibernation. But it does remind you that the world doesn't tick on your time. 'It's been about six weeks from the beginning to this point right now for us, where it's essentially our lives turned around. 'Definitely scary and unsettling and nervous. And I think that's been like a real collected world experience.' Scary time: Idris and his wife Sabrina were both diagnosed with a 'very mild' case of coronavorus back in March and have now recovered He continued: 'You know, everyone's sort of feeling the way we have been feeling, but it has definitely been sort of just a complete upheaval.' The couple remain in New Mexico, where Elba was filming when he became ill, but plan to return to London as soon as they are able to. Model Sabrina added: 'Thankfully, we were extremely lucky to be able to get very mild cases of COVID and the outpouring of support and all of the people who have reached out to us, it's just been overwhelming.' Idris said he was forced to miss his son's sixth birthday but hopes to see him soon. He said: 'We've been fortunate. We have been staying in a lovely place that's been very comfortable for the time. But we're looking forward to going home.' Twitter was not impressed with Idris's idea of a yearly week-long quarantine given that for some people, the experience has been truly horrendous. '@idriselba You think everyone can take time off work to stay indoors? You are not in the real world. Do you think those poor people who live in tower blocks with six kids running crazy would want to do this. You fool!' People wrote: 'Like we arent suffering enough and he comes out with this cr**.' 'To Fogle (verb) I Fogle We Fogle they Fogle Idris Elba Fogles.' 'Got love for the great (and still actually underrated in many places) @idriselba, but this was a little silly from him.' 'Get a grip @idriselba. People can't afford to just stay at home for a week.' NO! A lot of people were not feeling Idris's suggestion, understandable given that some people are suffering a truly horrendous time amid the pandemic - though he meant well 'Nobody wants to be reminded about the coronavirus, Idris Elba needs to take his own advice Face with tears of joy... #IdrisElba #Coronavirus #Covid19' Yet a couple of people agreed with him and wrote: 'I think #idriselba has it spot on and I for one will commit to spending a week in isolation with him.' 'I agree, this quarantine has done wonders for the planet, imagine if we did it every year - planned so countries could financially prepare for it. Don't understand why he has received such a backlash for this. Idris Elba the new Greta.' Into it: A small handful of people could see where Idris was coming from 'People are proper going off at Idris Elba for suggesting we should isolate for a week every year in remembrance. Chill.' As UN Goodwill Ambassadors, the couple have joined up with the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to support rural farmers trying to cope with the COVID-19 outbreak. It is a call for an additional $200mn from donor governments in addition to the $40mn in seed funding provided by IFAD. Sabrina said: 'People forget that 80% of the poor population live in these rural areas. 'What we are really worried about at the moment, and why we are launching this fund is that those people are being forgotten.' The World Health Organization is projecting and alerting leaders in our Region (Arica) to prepare for possible surge in COVID-19 cases in the coming days. You may disagree with W.H.O., but it will rather be wise to accept that the worst could happen and to get ourselves prepared for it will be far better than rubbishing such projection/caution. Experiences across the world have taught us that the real fight against COVID-19 is at the peak of the curve. What do we stand to lose as a continent or country if we accept the projection put forward by the World Health Organization; prepare for the worst-case scenario and the surge in cases never happens? What do we stand to lose if we rather rubbish the projection of possible surge in cases and it eventually happens? Think about the two. This pandemic, apart from its origin/prognosis being shrouded in a lot of conspiracy theories, it has also created seeming mistrusts between nations and we have seen some nations who are also beginning to showcase grand mistrust for a reputable international organization like the World Health Organization. An organization that has over the years helped protect the health of millions across the globe, particularly the poor and the vulnerable. You may sit in Africa and speculate that, per the World Health Organizations recent projections/caution, it is wishing doom for Africa. I rather see the World Health Organizations caution as timely and relevant. Per the fragile nature of the health systems in Africa and our general attitude toward the containment of COVID-19, you dont expect a world health governing body like W.H.O. to relax its risk communication strategy. The W.H.O. may be using the fear appeal model/theory in its communication to Africans. And I see that as appropriate and timely because it may resonate with our attitudes to disease prevention and the very health systems we have built over the years. The benefits of employing the fear appeal model is well-grounded in scientific works such as the one (meta-analysis) done by Tannenbaum et al., (2018) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5789790/ Admonitions like this could help prevent leaders and citizens in Africa from going to sleep on our collective responsibilities in containing the virus. We may also want to find out why countries like the United State of America projected 200,000+ case fatalities? I may be wrong, but such projection may be grounded in the fear appeal model. In any case, Africa is not a country, Africa is a continent, made up of many unique countries. It is up to individual countries in Africa to want to accept the World Health Organizations caution or do otherwise. I pray my country welcomes this caution from the World Health Organization in good faith, and come to the realization that W.H.O. is essentially telling us as a country to prepare to handle the overwhelming situation, while we handle the relative handful of cases momentarily. There is no doubt about the tremendous job Ghanas COVID-19 team is doing to contain this virus, even though there exist few lapses. But I have also been wondering: per the data and information available, could Ghanas COVID-19 team and our scientific experts also attempt giving us a localized (Ghanaian) model; where we probably have Ghanas scientific projections/assumptions of when we are expected to peak (with projected numbers of morbidities and mortalities) and when we are expected to see a decline? Yes, models may have their limitations and may not come with 100% precision. That notwithstanding, our Ghanaian model may help us see better into the future, help manage anxieties and get us all better prepared for the future. Thanks to the President for the quality of leadership he has shown in this crisis thus far. And kudos to the COVID-19 team, our scientific experts, healthcare providers and everyone contributing his/her part to the fight against this dreadful virus. Lets continue to play our parts (no matter how small) because that is what we need to pull through this together. #StayHome #StopTheSpread #StaySafe Author: Samson Gbolu Health Promotion Activist & Social Entrepreneur The Assam government on Monday deposited Rs 2,000 each under a "special scheme" to the accounts of 86,000 people from the state, who are stranded across India due to the ongoing nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19. Addressing a press conference here, Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the decision to provide financial support to those stuck at different places was taken by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal during a review meeting on Sunday. "This is the first instalment of financial support to the needy people from Assam who are stranded outside. The second instalment will be released before the lockdown is lifted," Sarma said. He, however, said the amount for the second tranche has not been decided yet. "In the first phase, we identified 99,758 people eligible to get this assistance. The rest will get the money within the next few days," said Sarma, who is also the state's health and family welfare minister. He said the special scheme was launched through an IT-enabled system, and 4,29,851 people had contacted the state government officials via the central server in Guwahati. "After final verification of the names and bank details, 99,758 persons were found to be eligible," he added. Sarma said this initiative has also helped create a database of the workers and labourers from Assam employed in other states, with Karnataka recording the largest number at 68,000. "Now, when they arrive in Assam after the lockdown is lifted, we will be able to track them easily. Accordingly, the DCs and SPs will make arrangements for quarantine," the minister said. Sarma said the state government has already deposited Rs 25,000 each to families of 647 people from Assam, who are suffering from different ailments and undergoing treatment outside the state after getting stranded due to the curbs. "We aim to provide this assistance to 725 patients currently outside the state," he said. The Assam government has already provided the first instalment of USD 1,000 each to 230 people from the state stuck abroad, out of the declared amount of USD 2,000, Sarma said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A message in a bottle thrown into the sea off the coast of Kent more than 40-years-ago has finally received a response after washing up in Holland. The faded note was inscribed by Natalie Smyth and Nadine Warren, both '15 and-a-half' at the time, and sent from Dungeness on July 10, 1979 and it asks the recipient to send any reply to an address in Maidstone. But now, one of the women who wrote the note all those years ago told how a Dutch family got in touch. Miss Smyth, now 56, said the bottle washed up months later in 1979 in Westkapelle, Holland. Natalie Smyth and her friend Nadine Warren at school in 1979. Nadine is fourth in on the left on the back row, Natalie is third from left on the third row The letter thrown into the sea by Natalie Smyth and her friend Nadine Warren in 1979 The note was kept safe by a woman for all these years, but when it was discovered by her son, Roger Woldenberg, during a home de-clutter he suggested harnessing the power of social media to see if he could find the people behind it. Mr Woldenberg messaged another Natalie Smith from Maidstone, asking if she was one of the girls who sent the message. It wasn't her, but Ms Smith posted a picture of the note on Facebook, in the hope the Natalie Smyth in question could be found. Miss Smyth, a former Maidstone Grammar School for Girls pupil, said at first she struggled to remember the fateful day the message in a bottle was sent on its way. She added: 'After a while, I remembered that me and Nadine were on a geography field trip to Dungeness and Rye. And I do have a memory of us throwing plastic bottles into the sea. 'I cannot remember if doing this was part of the trip - to see how currents move - but it's possible we were just being rebellious and doing it. If that's what it was, I feel a bit embarrassed now given how polluting we now know plastic to be. Natalie Smyth, pictured, now 56, has revealed a Dutch family has finally responded 'It feels amazing to think someone held onto that note for 40 years and I certainly didn't expect any of this attention.' Miss Smyth now lives in Oxford, where she is head of catering at St Anne's College at Oxford University. She added: 'I remember Nadine living at Bedgebury Close in Vinters Park, but I believe she has since emigrated to Canada.' The Facebook posts have also led to Miss Smyth re-making contact with several of her school friends. Still, there is no way to prevent a child from having autism, in large part because experts dont actually know what causes it in most people. We can find many, many factors that are correlated with autism, said Dr. Katarzyna Chawarska, Ph.D., professor of child psychiatry at Yale Universitys Child Study Center. But in reality, we really dont know if theyre involved in the cause of autism. Its also important to note that many autistic people and their families see autism as something to be celebrated. And that traits of autism exist in everyone. Many of them, whether you have autism or not, may very well give you something thats positive, such as an intense passion for certain subjects and a keen eye for detail, said Ed Cook, M.D., professor of psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago. One thing is certain: Theres no one single cause of autism, and every case is the product of multiple factors working together. Whats in Your DNA? Until the 1970s, many experts subscribed to now-discredited notions about autism being caused by cold parenting styles or growing up in extreme isolation (as in the famous case of the Wild Boy of Aveyron in France in the late 1700s). Since then, studies have shown autism runs in families and have put its heritability at around 80 percent, or about as heritable as height or eye color. Scientists cannot fully explain why autism runs in families. They suspect that, like height, it has complex causes and is determined by numerous genes that act together to influence a persons odds of having autism. Their studies suggest that, collectively, these genes could explain about half of autisms genetic basis. Another 10 to 20 percent can be explained by rare but powerful mutations that occur at random and are unrelated to genes that run in families. Scientists have found about 100 such genes that, when mutated, can substantially raise a persons odds of having autism. Even when these mutations do occur, they dont cause autism every time. None of these things are perfectly predictive of an autism diagnosis, and each one of them is individually quite rare, said Dr. Jeremy Veenstra-VanderWeele, M.D., a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Columbia University. We cant really put our finger on exactly what the risk is going to be for an individual. MADISON, Wis., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- If you are single and trying to date, you might want to mention your cooking skills in your dating profile. And if you are hunkered down with your significant other, a surefire way to impress them is to cook them a meal. New research conducted by OnePoll on behalf of The Little Potato Company reveals the huge role cooking plays in our relationships. "Cooking and food is woven into every relationship we have whether it's memories of grandparents, teaching kids about healthy eating or impressing romantic partners, and it's become even more important now that we are home together all the time," said Angela Santiago, CEO and co-founder of The Little Potato Company. "At The Little Potato Company, we're happy to be part of those stories with our fresh Creamer potatoes that help people of all cooking abilities easily make a nourishing homecooked meal for those they care about." The new study of 2,000 Americans examined the role cooking plays in our relationships: For singles: Two in three Americans polled agreed they would be more likely to go on a first date with someone if they mentioned they're a good cook on their dating profile. Four in five said if a first date talked about how they liked to cook they'd be much more open to a second date with them. Making an impression: Almost two-thirds said they've learned to cook or tried to get better at cooking to impress a date or partner. One in three Americans have tried to pass off store-bought food as their own cooking to impress a date. The majority (86%) of Americans find cooking to be an attractive trait. When it comes to settling down for good, finding a partner who can cook is or was a top priority for two out of three respondents. Nearly double the number of respondents say they prefer home-cooked meal to a fancy restaurant for a date. Cooking is the most surefire way to someone's heart, beating out flowers (24%), phone calls (22%) and presents (10%). For people in relationships: More than four in five (81%) respondents who are married or in a relationship say they are still quite impressed when their partner cooks them a meal. 43% of Americans would give up coffee if it meant somebody cooked them dinner every night, and over one in three (35%) would give up a planned vacation. The most romantic meal to cook for a potential partner is steak and potatoes according to 40% of Americans, followed by pasta and garlic bread (34%) and chicken and veggies (28%). 73% said cooking with their partner is one of their favorite things to do. Family ties: It's not all about romantic relationships, more than two-thirds of respondents (70%) said cooking with their family is one of their favorite ways to spend time together. To help cooks of all levels impress their friends and family, The Little Potato Company offers delicious, nutritious and convenient Creamer potato products that are endlessly versatile. The Little Potato Company offers pre-washed Creamer potatoes that don't require peeling in 1.5 and 3 lb. bags, Microwave and Oven|Grill Ready kits with seasoning packs, and pre-seasoned fully cooked Easy Sides. Little Potatoes are naturally fat-, gluten-, and cholesterol-free vegetables packed with essential vitamins and minerals and are free of artificial colors and flavors. About The Little Potato Company The Little Potato Company passionately focuses only on little potatoes. For more than 20 years, the entrepreneurial, company has been the leading producer of Creamers which are highly nutritious, fully mature and naturally delicious small specialty potatoes. Coveted by foodies and chefs alike, the company's proprietary colorful Creamer are available in produce sections across the U.S. and Canada. These popular little Creamers are sold pre-washed and can be cooked in just 5 minutes. Co-founded by CEO Angela Santiago, the family-owned company is dedicated to product innovation and bringing excitement to the potato category. For recipe ideas and inspiration, visit LittlePotatoes.com or Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest @LittlePotatoCo. SOURCE The Little Potato Company Related Links https://www.littlepotatoes.com BEIRUT - Fear of coronavirus is pushing tens of thousands of displaced Syrians who in recent months fled the war-torn region of Idlib in the country's northwest to return to their homes, even if they have been damaged by the conflict, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in its most recent bulletin on the humanitarian situation in Idlib and the rest of northwest Syria. On March 5, Russia and Turkey reached an agreement for a military ceasefire in the area of Idlib and Aleppo, and war operations have been suspended since that time. Apart from a few sporadic incidents, the area has been experiencing a situation of relative calm that has made it possible for tens of thousands of people to return. These people are fearful of the risk of contracting Covid-19 in areas where nearly four million local residents and displaced people are living crowded together in precarious health and hygiene conditions. The United Nations said that against this backdrop, in recent weeks 126,000 Syrian civilians have returned to the districts of Idlib and Aleppo, which are outside government control and under Turkish influence. Of these, 106,000 returned to the small towns and villages they fled between December and February during the massive Syrian government and Russian offensive. The UN said another 20,000 civilians returned to refugee camps or temporary accommodations where they had been previously staying. These people aren't originally from Aleppo or Idlib but are internally displaced Syrians from other areas. Last month we spotted a phone called Oppo Find X2 Neo which after further inspection was found to be the Reno3 Pro 5G, down to the curved display and singe punch-hole design. Now the device is listed for sale in the Netherlands by Belsimpel, even if it isnt appearing on the dutch page of Oppo. The phone is available for pre-order for the staggering price of 719, which is still cheaper than the Find X2 and Find X2 Pro, both already selling in the European country for 999 and 1,199. The Find X2 Neo comes with Snapdragon 765G, but smartphone enthusiasts should rejoice - the only one memory combination is 12 GB RAM + 256 GB storage. The screen is 6.5 AMOLED panel with 90 Hz refresh rate, Full HD+ resolution, and the screen has curved edges on the side. While the Reno3 Pro 5G launched with a single 32 MP selfie camera, the Find X2 Neo is listed with a 44 MP sensor and an f/2.0 lens in front - this is likely the same sensor as in the Reno3 Pro, but with no auxiliary 2MP shooter. The four cams on the back come in a 48 MP main shooter + 13 MP f/2.4 telephoto + 8 MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle + 2 MP B/W combination. It supports 4K video or 1080p at 60 fps. The battery in the Find X2 Neo is 4,025 mAh with 30W VOOC 4.0 fast charging, but no wireless charging available. Other specs include ColorOS 7, based on Android 10, USB-C port, UD fingerprint scanner. Oppo Find X2 Neo in Blue and Black Belsimpel has listed the phone in two colors - Black and Blue. The price is 719 and pre-order is available, but shipping is said to launch in three weeks. The retailer also offers some monthly deals with major Dutch carriers like Tele2, Vodafone and T-Mobile which can lower the net price of the phone down to 600. Source 1 Source 2 (both in Dutch) | Via Coronavirus Outbreak Highlights: Five more areas of Delhi were added to the list of COVID-19 containment zones in the last 24 hours. The number of containment zones in the National Capital is now at 84. Auto refresh feeds Rao informed that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state climbed to 858, including 21 deaths. Five districts - Warangal, Yadradri Bhadradri, Siddipet, Wanaparthy - are coronavirus-free, he said, adding, "We are doing better than many other states". "The cabinet has decided to extend the lockdown in the state till 7 May. The cabinet will take stock of the situation on 5 May," he said. Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao has announced extension of the lockdown imposed in view of the novel coronavirus in the state till 7 May. He said the lockdown will be enforced in a stringent manner. Food delivery mobile applications will not be allowed starting Monday. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told a news conference on Sunday that some activity would be permitted in the least-affected parts of the state while observing a strict lockdown in the red zones that have the maximum number of cases. Maharashtra, home to financial centre Mumbai, has the biggest share of Indias caseload of 16,116 infections, including a large number now ripping through its densely-packed slums. Maharashtra will allow a limited number of sectors to resume business on Monday, after a weeks-long shutdown to curb the fast-spreading coronavirus that left millions out of work. Orange-B zone comprises Alappuzha, Thiruvananthapuram, Palakkad, Thrissur and Wayanad. The lockdown will be in effect until 24 April in this zone and then partial relaxation will be allowed. Kottayam and Idukki come under the Green zone, in which lockdown will be in effect until 20 April and then regulations will be eased. Kerala has classified the districts in the state under four different zones Red, Green, Orange-A and Orange-B, for containing the COVID-19 pandemic. The Kerala government will ease lockdown restrictions in its Green and Orange-B zones in the state effective from Monday. In some districts, even restaurants, shops, and public transport facilities will be allowed to operate, said state government officials. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 13,295 while 2,301 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the ministry said. The Union health ministry on Sunday said that at least 519 people had died due to the novel coronavirus so far and the number of confirmed cases have climbed to 16,116 in India, registering an increase of 31 deaths and 1,324 cases since Saturday evening. "We have decided to keep people of Delhi safe. The lockdown will remain and there will be no relaxation. We will review the situation again after a week," said Kejriwal. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday announced that in view of the current coronavirus situation in the National Capital, no relaxation will be given in the lockdown for at least a week. So far six people have succumbed to the infectious disease. "Fourteen people have tested positive for coronavirus, taking the tally to 255," said the Agra district administration in a statement. With 14 more individuals testing positive for the novel coronavirus in Agra on Sunday, the total number of confirmed cases in the district climbed to 255. "The testing kits supplied by ICMR-NICED about two weeks ago have started to throw up a large number of 'inconclusive' results, necessitating a repeat/confirmatory test run, thereby causing a delay in the generation of the final test report," said the health department. The Heath Department in West Bengal, in a series of tweets on 19 April, alleged defective test kits supplied by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) as one of the reasons behind delays in COVID-19 sample testing. The number of positive COVID-19 cases has increased to 1,407 in Madhya Pradesh including 72 deaths, while 131 patients have recovered. She was born in Sultania Hospital, where two hospital nurses earlier tested positive for the infectious disease, said the state health department. The parents of the infant have been tested for the novel coronavirus, and their reports are awaited. A nine-day-old baby girl tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Bhopal on Sunday, taking the overall count in the city to 214 in the city. The number of confirmed cases in India rose to 17,265, while the toll now stands at 543. The confirmed cases include 36 new cases in the last 24 hours and 2,546 cured/discharged/migrated persons. Uma Subramanian, a co-founder of the Aarambh India Initiative, mentioned several instances in which the lockdown has aggravated the problems that families of child sexual abuse survivors face. She said, "For example, one girl whom we are supporting presently has cerebral palsy. Her father is accused of sexually abusing her, and was arrested for a brief while. He was later released on bail, after which he refused to financially support the family any longer. The childs mother works as a daily wage labourer, and work has dried up for her due to the lockdown. The restrictions on movement also mean that it is difficult for her to access the required medical support for the child." As part of the study, the NGO interviewed 127 families with whom it is presently associated, most of them being from the underprivileged sections of society. The researchers say that for many families, the challenges of dealing with the aftermath of child sexual abuse have been compounded by a sudden loss of income and a lack of social support. The lockdown due to the novel coronavirus outbreak has greatly added to the woes of families of child sexual abuse survivors in Mumbai, a recent study by NGO Aarambh India Initiative has found. The Centre will allow certain relaxations on the nationwide lockdown, effective from Monday, in select areas without hotspots. In the wake of extension of national lockdown till 3 May, a series of directives have been put in place to ensure a strict compliance of lockdown. However, keeping in mind the current financial situation of low-income earners and farmers, the Centre had said that it will be permitting a few more services to function in areas that are not COVID-19 containment zones from Monday. Operation of the fishing aquaculture industry, movement of fish and fish products and workers of all these activities are allowed. The guideline also allows operations of tea, coffee and rubber plantations with maximum of 50 percent workers. The Centre has set up six inter-ministerial teams to make on-spot assessment of COVID-19 situation and issue necessary directions to States. The teams will focus on compliance, implementation of lockdown; supply of essentials and safety of health workers. Rapid tests are most likely to start in Delhi from Monday. As many as 45 people have succumbed to the infectious disease while 38 of them have suffered from serious ailments, said Jain. After 110 more individuals tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Delhi on Sunday, the total number of confirmed cases in the National Capital climbed to 2,003 on Monday, said health minister Satyendra Jain. "No advance reservation of train tickets, including E-tickets, till further advice, however, facility of online cancellation will remain functional," read the notice. All ticket counters for bookings including UTS and PRS will not be operational. The Centre issued a statement on Monday reiterating that services of all passenger trains will remain suspended till 3 May, the last day of the nationwide lockdown, until further orders. However, the 60 Jute factories across the state will remain functional with only 15% workforce. Apart from the essentials, the government offices have also resumed operation with a basic workforce of 25 percent. The IT companies have also been allowed to function from Monday with an employee attendance of 25 percent. The West Bengal government has announced several easing of lockdown regulations in the state. The flower markets, vegetable and fruits markets continue to remain open. The health minister also made a request to everyone in the state to strictly adhere to home quarantine guidelines. As many as 18 COVID-19 patients in Assam have recovered and since been discharged, said health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday. Taking on Twitter, Sarma said a COVID-19 patient named Hazrat Ali was discharged on Monday from Sonapur Civil Hospital, after his two successive tests confirmed as negative. "We have given relaxations in accordance with the Centre's guidelines. I think there is some misunderstanding, based on which the Centre has sought an explanation. Once we give an explanation, it will all be sorted out. The Centre and the state have the same stand with regard to fight the pandemic. There is no contradiction in the stand taken. It's just a misunderstanding we will clear it," State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said. The Union Home Ministry has taken strong objection to Kerala government's decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it amounts to dilution of its lockdown guidelines. The Kerala government on Monday said there was some "misunderstanding", due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of the lockdown guidelines after the state had allowed opening of restaurants and MSME industries in municipal areas among others. Sixty seven patients have succumbed to the infectious disease in the state while, 106 have recovered so far. With 108 more individuals testing positive for the novel coronavirus in Gujarat, the overall count in the state climbed to 1,851 on Monday. Of the fresh cases, 91 were reported in Ahmedabad. The government is considering a relaxation in lockdown after 21 April. The Karnataka government extended the lockdown imposed in view of the novel coronavirus till 21 April midnight after issuing fresh orders. The state cabinet will meet on Monday to discuss on the issue, sources told PTI. "Since some airlines didn't heed our advisory, opened bookings and started collecting money from flyers, a directive was issued to them on 19 April restraining them from doing so. They were also informed that they'll be given sufficient notice and time to commence bookings, said Puri. Civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri pn Monday reiterated that flight restrictions were in place till 3 May, till the lockdown imposed in view of the novel coronavirus was lifted and posed no danger to anyone. The print reporter was staying at a common lodging in Triplicane along with 5 other reporters and has attended a press briefing held by the Health Secretary Beela Rajesh. He had been shifted to the health beat following the spread of the virus but was not regularly going out on the field. Two Chennai-based journalists have tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Sunday, after they exhibited mild symptoms of the disease. While one of them is a 25-year-old print reporter, the other is a 23-year-old journalist who is part of the editorial team of a news channel. Five dedicated COVID-19 hospitals were launched in Odisha on Monday. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik, Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Prahlad Joshi and other officials were present at the launch via video-conferencing. The recovery rate of COVID-19 patients in the city was at 8 percent after 71 individuals were cured. With three more people testing positive for the novel coronavirus in Indore, the overall toll in the city climbed to 52 on Monday. The total number of confirmed positive cases has stood at 897. He directed authorities in 19 districts with 10 or more coronavirus cases to take extra precautions. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during a video conference with respective district magistrates on Sunday night, had authorised them to take a call on giving relaxation from Monday after assessing the prevailing conditions there. With the increase in the total number of COVID-19 cases in some districts of Uttar Pradesh, the administration in Lucknow, Agra and Firozabad have decided against giving any kind of relaxation during the continued lockdown. Reports from other districts in the state on giving relaxation were awaited. In the Ministry of Home Affairs' notification issued on 15 April which contains the guidelines issued for the lockdown period till 3 May, it is mentioned that online learning is to be encouraged and institutions must adhere to the academic calendar through online education. This could have worked if India had the infrastructure or the digital literacy levels to support this. Regrettably, the country is lacking in both. The government, in its directions, has recognised this and encouraged educational institutions to engage with students and provide counselling support during this time. The other aspect that has been seen is the push for online education and e-learning during this time. As the lockdown initiated due to the coronavirus pandemic has been extended, one of the biggest concerns has been the disruption to education. Schools and colleges at all levels have been shut. Entrance and recruitment exams have been postponed. The latest UNESCO report on the impact of COVID-19 on education has noted that around 32 crore students in India have been affected by this. With 42 more people testing positive for COVID-19 in Pune on Sunday, the total number of positive cases in the city climbed to 586. As many as 18 COVID-19 patients have recovered from the infectious disease. In a communication to state governments, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 frontline healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. These should be stopped, it said. The COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and violation of lockdown measures risk the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Centre said on Monday. "I've heard that some people are treating relaxations as lifting of lockdown. If they continue to behave like this we'll take strict measures," said Thackeray. No one should think that lockdown has been lifted in Maharashtra, we have just tried to revolve the wheel of economy a bit, said chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement that the barriers set by Indian side for investors from specific countries violate WTOs principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment." China on Monday criticised India for tweaking its foreign direct investment rules to prevent the opportunistic takeover of Indian firms as covid-19 pandemic ravaged the economy, saying the move violates World Trade Organisation rules. The IMA said it is sounding a White Alert under which all doctors and hospitals will light a candle at 9 pm on 22 April to mark the protest against incidents of violence. On Thursday, all the doctors across the nation will work with black badges as a mark of protest. In the wake of assaults on doctors, Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday said that it will observe 'Black Day' on 23 April if the government does not enact Central Law on violence against healthcare workers. While the frontline workers are putting their lives at risk in the fight against coronavirus pandemic, many are not being valued for their immense efforts. "The role of our health-workers, policemen and all frontline workers is commendable. I appeal to all citizens to continue to cooperate with lockdown rules," he added. Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said that the coronavirus situation in the state is "completely under control". The BMC also said that "fisheries and related work, cable services, DTH and call centres can resume work in non-containment areas, with minimum staff." The list of activities that will be allowed in Maharashtra from Monday include "work at infrastructure projects and wedding events, only if these are outside designated containment zones and follow strict safety procedures against coronavirus." The Maharashtra government has decided to bring in some easing of restrictions on some business activities, starting from Monday, in a bid to minimise the impact of the coronavirus lockdown on the state economy. The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Secretariat resumed work from Monday after they were shut on 24 March in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak. Thermal screening of visitors was conducted at the Parliament on Monday. Cars of all the visitors were being sanitised in the Parliament House Complex. News18 reported that the Badrinath temple in the Himalayas, which was scheduled to open on 30 April, will be opened on 15 May. "The decision to reschedule the opening of the temple gates was taken in view of circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic," the report said. Reports said that six new coronavirus cases were reported in Odisha on Monday, taking the total cases to 74 in the state. The total number of active cases stand at 49. MHA's PS Srivastava on Monday said that the ministry has written to the Kerala government "expressing concerns over modified guidelines regarding lockdown issued by the latter. Kerala has allowed some activities that violate the ministry's instructions issued under Disaster Management Act," she said. The Union health ministry, in its daily briefing, on Monday said that since Sunday there have been 1,553 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 17,265. 36 more deaths also reported in the last 24 hours. "We have received a grievance that In West Bengal, RTPCR kits are not working properly. These kits are US FDA approved & have good standards, only thing is they should be stored under 20 degrees temperature, otherwise, results may not be correct," said R Gangakhedkar, ICMR. Total number of cases now stands at 368, 55 reported in Jammu and 313 reported in Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir principal secretary Rohit Kansal said that 14 new COVID1-9 cases were reported in the union territory on Monday, all of which are from Kashmir. The number of districts where no case has been reported in last 14 days has increased to 59. Goa is now COVID-19 free, he added. Health ministry joint secretary Lav Aggarwal said that Mahe in Puducherry, Kodagu in Karnataka and Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand have not reported any COVID-19 case in last 28 days. Andaman and Nicobar Islands chief secretary said that one more person has tested positive for COVID-19 in the union territory. "He came in contact with one of the present four positive patients. So, the total number of positive cases now stands at five," said Chetan Sanghi, Chief Secretary, Andaman and Nicobar Islands. "India's doubling rate before the lockdown was 3.4 days, it has now improved to 7.5 days. As per data on 19 April, in 18 states, the rate is better than the national average," said Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry. Lav Aggarwal, health ministry joint secretary on Monday said, "Journalists testing positive for COVID-19 is very unfortunate news. When you (journalists) attend your call of duty, kindly take the required precautions, follow the norms of social distancing and wear face masks." West Bengal chief secretary Rajiv Sinha said that 54 more COVID-19 cases were reported in the state in the last 24 hours. The Himachal Pradesh government said that there were 23 active COVID-19 cases in the state as on Monday. Of these, 11 patients have recovered, four migrated out of the state and one person succumbed to the disease. A total of 2,902 people have been tested for COVID-19 so far. "Each Arunachali will receive Rs. 3,500 as one-time financial aid as per recent cabinet decision," he said. Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu said that on Monday, the government released about Rs 5.20 crores as financial assistance for 14,859 Arunachalis stranded outside the state. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday opposed the Centre's decision to send 'inter-ministerial central teams' (IMCT) to districts calssified as hotspots in the state, and said that the purpose of the plan was "unclear" and questioned the Narendra Modi and Amit Shah over the criteria to warrant such a review. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that essential item like PPEs against coronavirus should be made GST-free. "It is wrong to acquire GST from people, who are already fighting poverty, through sale of soaps, sanitisers, masks," he said. Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said that 283 more COVID-19 cases were reported in the state as of 11 am, taking total positive cases in the state to 4,483. He said that of the 283 new cases, Mumbai has recorded 187. The statement added, "Number of COVID-19 cases reaches 245 in Punjab including 38 cured and 16 deaths. 61 cases have been reported in SAS Nagar, 48 in Jalandhar and 26 in Patiala." The Punjab health department was quoted by ANI as saying that only one person has been tested positive for COVID-19 in the state on Monday. The person is contact of a COVID-19 patient, the statement said. "For the last 72 hours, no COVID-19 positive patient has been found even in that red zone district. I am hoping that whole of Chhattisgarh will be green zone soon," he said. Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghesh on Monday said that there is only one red zone district in the state. Manipur chief minister Biren Singh said that the state has become COVID-19-free. "We have decided to relax coronavirus lockdown in rural areas but it will continue in Imphal till further orders. Shops of essential goods will open between 8 am and 2 pm in urban areas," he said. "More than 24,03,410 declared cases have been registered in 193 countries and territories since the epidemic first emerged in China in December. Of these cases, at least 5, 37,700 are now considered recovered," India Today reported. The worldwide toll of the coronavirus pandemic rose to 1,65,216 on Monday, according to the tally by AFP. Reports said that 30 new COVID-19 cases were reported from Mumbai's Dharavi on Monday. The total tally of cases in the densely-populated area rose to 168 with 11 deaths so far. Reportedly, the doctor was part of the team that conducted a survey regarding the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin area in March. The head of a government health centre in the district, who had tested positive for COVID-19, and a 72-year-old man suspected to have contracted coronavirus have died, PTI reported. Both of them were at a quarantine centre in the TMU Hospital in the district and died on Sunday night. Delhi Police on Monday used droneesfor surveillance in a COVID-19 hotspot, Chandni Mahal, which has been declared a 'containment zone'. Lane 24-28 of Tughlaqabad Extension, Block - G of Jahangirpuri, Flat number 265 to 500 of Sanjay Enclave, Block 34 of Trilokpuri, and Block AF of Shalimar Bagh have been added to the list of containment zones. Five more areas of Delhi were added to the list of COVID-19 containment zones in the last 24 hours. The number of containment zones in the National Capital is now at 84. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot spoke to Home Minister Amit Sha on Monday, requesting him facilitate the return of migrants from Rajasthan stuck in other states due to the COVID-19 lockdown. "We have also decided to use hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) as a precautionary measure in some areas, like Dharavi in Mumbai. We will take care that people with cardiac issues and those above 65 years & below 15 years of age are not given hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) tablets," he said. Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope said that 75,000 rapid tests will be conducted soon "as the central government has given us conditional permission for it". Two more deaths, in Nagaur and Kota, were reported in Rajasthan on Monday. Total coronavirus cases in the state now at 1,576 and toll is at 25. The Rajasthan health department said that 98 more COVID-19 new cases were reported in the state on Monday, including 50 in Jaipur, 32 in Jodhpur, and seven in Kota. 5 more areas of Delhi added to the list of #COVID19 containment zones in the last 24 hours. The number of containment zones in the national capital is now at 84. pic.twitter.com/xFsF2OCqVD Lane 24-28 of Tughlaqabad Extension, Block - G of Jahangirpuri, Flat number 265 to 500 of Sanjay Enclave, Block 34 of Trilokpuri, and Block AF of Shalimar Bagh have been added to the list of containment zones. Five more areas of Delhi were added to the list of COVID-19 containment zones in the last 24 hours. The number of containment zones in the National Capital is now at 84. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot spoke to Home Minister Amit Sha on Monday, requesting him facilitate the return of migrants from Rajasthan stuck in other states due to the COVID-19 lockdown. With 65 patients being discharged from hospitals on Monday, number of cured patients stands at 572. The Maharashtra health department said that 466 new COVID-19 cases and nine deaths were reported in the state till 6 pm on Monday, taking total number of cases to 4,666 and toll rises to 232 in the state. The ICMR on Monday said total Operational (initiated independent testing) Government Laboratories reporting to ICMR are 201 and 3 collection sites. The West Bengal government on Monday conducted rapid antibody tests as per ICMR directives in red zones' where containment measures are going, The Indian Express reported. "The rapid antibody tests were done in Kolkata's Belgachia urban slum area where there were reports of considerable outbreak," the report said. "We have also decided to use hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) as a precautionary measure in some areas, like Dharavi in Mumbai. We will take care that people with cardiac issues and those above 65 years & below 15 years of age are not given hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) tablets," he said. Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope said that 75,000 rapid tests will be conducted soon "as the central government has given us conditional permission for it". Reports said that 750 rapid testing kits were given to the Gurgaon health department on Monday, which are likely to aid a "faster" provess. Two more deaths, in Nagaur and Kota, were reported in Rajasthan on Monday. Total coronavirus cases in the state now at 1,576 and toll is at 25. The Rajasthan health department said that 98 more COVID-19 new cases were reported in the state on Monday, including 50 in Jaipur, 32 in Jodhpur, and seven in Kota. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday demanded a special central law on violence against doctors, nurses, health care workers, and hospitals by an ordinance. IMA to observe 'white alert' on 22nd April. Three new COVID-19 cases were reported in Jharkhand on Monday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 45. Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates: Five more areas of Delhi were added to the list of COVID-19 containment zones in the last 24 hours. The number of containment zones in the National Capital is now at 84. Lane 24-28 of Tughlaqabad Extension, Block - G of Jahangirpuri, Flat number 265 to 500 of Sanjay Enclave, Block 34 of Trilokpuri, and Block AF of Shalimar Bagh have been added to the list of containment zones. The Centre on Monday said that India's COVID-19 doubling rate has improved to 7.5 days from 3.4 days before the lockdown was enforced to check the spread of the coronavirus. "India's doubling rate before the lockdown was 3.4 days. It has now improved to 7.5 days. As per data on April 19, in 18 States, the rate is better than the national average," said Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry, at a daily briefing. "The number of districts where no case has been reported in the last 14 days has increased to 59 in 23 States and UTs. Goa is now COVID-19 free," he said. India's total number of coronavirus positive cases has risen to 17,656 including 14,255 active cases, 2,842 cured/discharged/migrated and 559 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. "Mahe in Puducherry, Kodagu in Karnataka and Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand have not reported any COVID-19 case in last 28 days," said Agarwal. The head of a government health centre in the district, who had tested positive for COVID-19, and a 72-year-old man suspected to have contracted coronavirus have died, PTI reported. Both of them were at a quarantine centre in the TMU Hospital in the district and died on Sunday night. Reportedly, the doctor was part of the team that conducted a survey regarding the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin area in March. Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said that 283 more COVID-19 cases were reported in the state as of 11 am, taking total positive cases in the state to 4,483. He said that of the 283 new cases, Mumbai has recorded 187. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday opposed the Centre's decision to send 'inter-ministerial central teams' (IMCT) to districts calssified as hotspots in the state, and said that the purpose of the plan was "unclear" and questioned the Narendra Modi and Amit Shah over the criteria to warrant such a review. The BMC on Monday said that 53 journalists in Mumbai tested positive for COVID-19 and all are under isolation. Samples of 171 journalists reporting from field, including photographers, video journalists and Reporters were collected. Most of the positive journalists were asymptomatic. Health ministry joint secretary Lav Aggarwal said that Mahe in Puducherry, Kodagu in Karnataka and Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand have not reported any COVID-19 case in last 28 days. The number of districts where no case has been reported in last 14 days has increased to 59. Goa is now COVID-19 free, he added. The Union health ministry, in its daily briefing, on Monday said that since Sunday there have been 1,553 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 17,265. 36 more deaths also reported in the last 24 hours. The Union ministry of agriculture on Monday said that despite restrictions imposed as part of the COVID-19 lockdown, the sown area of summer crops has increased "significantly", "registering an increase of 36 percent over the previous year, pushed up mainly by rice cultivation". No one should think that lockdown has been lifted in Maharashtra, we have just tried to revolve the wheel of economy a bit, said chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. "I've heard that some people are treating relaxations as lifting of lockdown. If they continue to behave like this we'll take strict measures," said Thackeray. While the frontline workers are putting their lives at risk in the fight against coronavirus pandemic, many are not being valued for their immense efforts. In the wake of assaults on doctors, Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday said that it will observe 'Black Day' on 23 April if the government does not enact Central Law on violence against healthcare workers. On Thursday, all the doctors across the nation will work with black badges as a mark of protest. With 42 more people testing positive for COVID-19 in Pune on Sunday, the total number of positive cases in the city climbed to 586. As many as 18 COVID-19 patients have recovered from the infectious disease. With the increase in the total number of COVID-19 cases in some districts of Uttar Pradesh, the administration in Lucknow, Agra and Firozabad have decided against giving any kind of relaxation during the continued lockdown. Reports from other districts in the state on giving relaxation were awaited. With three more people testing positive for the novel coronavirus in Indore, the overall toll in the city climbed to 52 on Monday. The total number of confirmed positive cases has stood at 897. The recovery rate of COVID-19 patients in the city was at 8 percent after 71 individuals were cured. With 108 more individuals testing positive for the novel coronavirus in Gujarat, the overall count in the state climbed to 1,851 on Monday. Of the fresh cases, 91 were reported in Ahmedabad. Sixty seven patients have succumbed to the infectious disease in the state while, 106 have recovered so far. The Kerala government on Monday said there was some "misunderstanding", due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of the lockdown guidelines after the state had allowed opening of restaurants and MSME industries in municipal areas among others. The Union Home Ministry has taken strong objection to Kerala government's decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it amounts to dilution of its lockdown guidelines. The West Bengal government has announced several easing of lockdown regulations in the state. The flower markets, vegetable and fruits markets continue to remain open. Apart from the essentials, the government offices have also resumed operation with a basic workforce of 25 percent. The IT companies have also been allowed to function from Monday with an employee attendance of 25 percent. After 110 more individuals tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Delhi on Sunday, the total number of confirmed cases in the National Capital climbed to 2,003 on Monday, said health minister Satyendra Jain. As many as 45 people have succumbed to the infectious disease while 38 of them have suffered from serious ailments, said Jain. Rapid tests are most likely to start in Delhi from Monday. The Centre will allow certain relaxations on the nationwide lockdown, effective from Monday, in select areas without hotspots. In the wake of extension of national lockdown till 3 May, a series of directives have been put in place to ensure a strict compliance of lockdown. However, keeping in mind the current financial situation of low-income earners and farmers, the Centre had said that it will be permitting a few more services to function in areas that are not COVID-19 containment zones from Monday. Objecting to relaxation of some measures in Kerala adopted during the nationwide lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic, the home ministry sent a letter to the state government stating the violation of the 15 April order. Meanwhile, India's toll rose to 543 and the number of confirmed cases stood at 17,265. A nine-day-old girl tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Bhopal on Sunday, taking the overall count in the city to 214 in the city. She was born in Sultania Hospital, where two hospital nurses earlier tested positive for the infectious disease, said the state health department. The parents of the infant have been tested for the novel coronavirus, and their reports are awaited. The number of positive COVID-19 cases has increased to 1,407 in Madhya Pradesh including 72 deaths, while 131 patients have recovered. The Heath Department in West Bengal, in a series of tweets on 19 April, alleged defective test kits supplied by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) as one of the reasons behind delays in COVID-19 sample testing. "The testing kits supplied by ICMR-NICED about two weeks ago have started to throw up a large number of 'inconclusive' results, necessitating a repeat/confirmatory test run, thereby causing a delay in the generation of the final test report," said the health department. Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao has announced extension of the lockdown imposed in view of the novel coronavirus in the state till 7 May. He said the lockdown will be enforced in a stringent manner. Food delivery mobile applications will not be allowed starting Monday. "The cabinet has decided to extend the lockdown in the state till 7 May. The cabinet will take stock of the situation on 5 May," he said. The Union health ministry on Sunday said that at least 519 people had died due to coronavirus so far and the number of positive cases have climbed to 16,116 in India, registering an increase of 31 deaths and 1,324 cases since Saturday evening. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 13,295 while 2,301 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the ministry said. While Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray announced that some industries will be allowed to resume operations in certain areas from Monday, Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao has announced an extension of the lockdown till 7 May. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a LinkedIn post, urged unity and brotherhood in the face of COVID-19. COVID-19 does not see race, religion, colour, caste, creed, language or borders before striking. Our response and conduct thereafter should attach primacy to unity and brotherhood. We are in this together: PM @narendramodi PMO India (@PMOIndia) April 19, 2020 State-wise data Of the 519 deaths, the highest number of 211 was reported from Maharashtra, followed by Madhya Pradesh (70), Gujarat (58), Delhi (43) and Telangana (18). The death toll reached 17 and 16 in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab respectively. Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have reported 15 deaths each. Karnataka has reported 14 deaths, West Bengal 12, while Rajasthan has registered 11 fatalities. The disease has claimed five lives in Jammu and Kashmir, while Kerala and Haryana have recorded three COVID-19 deaths each. Jharkhand and Bihar have reported two deaths each, while Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Assam have reported one fatality each, according to the ministry data. According to the health ministry's data updated in the evening, the highest number of confirmed cases in the country is from Maharashtra (3,651), followed by Delhi (1,893), Gujarat (1,604), Madhya Pradesh (1,407) and Tamil Nadu (1,372). The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 1,351 in Rajasthan and 1,084 in Uttar Pradesh. Telangana has 844 cases, Andhra Pradesh 603 and Kerala 400. The number of cases has risen to 384 in Karnataka, 341 in Jammu and Kashmir, 310 in West Bengal, 233 in Haryana and 219 in Punjab. Bihar has reported 86 coronavirus cases, while Odisha has 61 such cases. Forty-two people have been infected with the virus in Uttarakhand, while Himachal Pradesh has 39 cases. Chhattisgarh has 36 cases, Assam and Jharkhand have registered 35 cases each. Chandigarh has 23 COVID-19 cases, Ladakh 18, while 14 cases have been reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Meghalaya has reported 11 cases, while Goa and Puducherry have seven COVID-19 patients each. Manipur and Tripura have two cases each, while Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh have reported a case each. "Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR," the ministry said on its website. The website also mentioned that the patient from Nagaland was shifted to Assam. 'Need to start economic wheels again': Uddhav Thackeray Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told a news conference on Sunday that some activity would be permitted in the least-affected parts of the state while observing a strict lockdown in the red zones that have the maximum number of cases. We need to start the economic wheels again. We are giving selective permissions from tomorrow, especially in orange zones and green zones, he said, referring to areas with lower levels of infection. Industries ready to provide accommodation to their workers during the lockdown will be given food grain supply and permission for raw material from the state, he said. "The state government is allowing the industries from green and orange zones to start production and processing activities in a restricted manner. The industries will have to arrange the accommodation for their workers. They would not travel long distance for work," he said. The green zones are those which have not reported any coronavirus case, while orange zones are the ones where only a few cases have been reported. The chief minister also said that except for movement of essential services, all the district borders would remained sealed. But Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said his government has decided not to relax lockdown restrictions which is in force till May 3 as of now since coronavirus appears to be spreading at a "faster pace" in the national capital. The government will assess the situation again after one week, he said. The Telangana government has decided to extend lockdwon in the state till 7 May. During this period, food delivery services will not be permitted to function and no religious congregation will be allowed in any place. Govt bars e-commerce companies from selling non-essential products Four days after e-commerce companies were allowed to sell products like mobile phones, refrigerators and ready-made garments, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla issued an order excluding non-essential items from their business. The April 15 order had said e-commerce platforms were allowed to sell such items from April 20. Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA) officials had earlier said televison sets and laptops could also be sold online after which a few e-commerce companies had starting accepting orders. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also wrote a letter to the chief secretaries of all States and Union Territories giving a clarification. "...I would like to clarify that while operations of e-commerce companies for non-essential goods stands prohibited, however they will continue to operate for essential goods as has been allowed earlier and continue to be allowed," he said. Bhalla also said labourers, who are stranded in different parts of the country due to the lockdown, will be allowed to go to their respective places of work within a state with certain conditions. He, however, made it clear there will be no inter-state movement of workers during the lockdown. Since additional activities, outside the containment zones, have been permitted in the 'consolidated revised guidelines' with effect from April 20, these workers could be engaged in industrial, manufacturing, construction, farming and MNREGA works, he said. Agriculture, construction, Information Technology(IT), industrial units in the SEZs and rural areas and e-commerce operations were among the select sectors where the coronavirus-induced lockdown restrictions are to be lifted from April 20 in a bid to also reduce the distress caused to millions of people. The announcement to ease the curbs to allow some select necessary activities in areas which are not COVID-19 hotspots was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 while declaring the extension of the three-week nationwide lockdown for another 19 days till May 3 to battle the pandemic. The next day, the MHA unveiled the guidelines with some conditions. The relaxations lay strict emphasis on social distancing with a warning by the Centre it will be withdrawn if there is any violation of lockdown norms. Wearing of masks is also being mandatory besides making spitting a punishable offence with a fine of at least Rs.1,000. The permitted activities from April 20 are aimed at ensuring agricultural and related activities remain fully functional, rural economy functions with maximum efficiency, employment opportunities are created for daily wage earners and other members of labour force, select industrial activities are allowed to resume their operations, with safeguards and mandatory standard operating protocols and digital economy, the MHA said. With inputs from agencies In his classic book Understanding Media, revered Canadian philosopher and media theorist Marshall McLuhan wrote the following prophetic words: When the technology of a time is powerfully thrusting in one direction, wisdom may well call for a countervailing thrust. Over the past half decade, even as digitally mediated communication has encroached on nearly every aspect of life, McLuhans countervailing thrust has begun to take shape. The list of those pushing back against the digital ages most nefarious side effects includes journalists like Rana Foroohar; professors like Sherry Turkle, Cal Newport, and Shoshana Zuboff; and lawyers like Tim Wu. Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Mark Warner (D-VA) among others have also become critical of how certain aspects of digital technology are eroding public discourse and potentially causing their users cognitive and psychological harm. Even some of Silicon Valleys leading lights have begun vocally resisting where technology is taking us, virtual reality pioneer Jaron Lanier and former Google ethicist Tristan Harris among them. In Christian circles, perhaps the most notable critics of the digital age are Tony Reinke with his books 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You and Competing Spectacles, and Andy Crouch with his book The Tech-Wise Family. All of these voices, and others like them, have written persuasively about the negative effects of digital technology on our brains, our relationships, and our work, arguing that users should take a more careful and intentional approach to technology use in order to mitigate its harmful effects. Jay Kim, a pastor at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, California, joins the countervailing thrust against ubiquitous digital technology in his new book, Analog Church: Why We Need Real People, Places, and Things in the Digital Age. But instead of analyzing how Google and Facebook have impacted individuals, Kim provides a thorough and convincing critique of the churchs often uncritical co-opting of the digital infrastructure of the internet, smartphones, and social media. He looks at how this phenomenon has shapedand in some cases, corruptedevangelical churches, and then asks what should be done in response. The Red-Hot Pursuit of Relevance In laying the foundation for the book, Kim quotes McLuhans call for a countervailing thrust. This is especially necessary, he writes, when it comes to the way the digital age and its technological tools are changing the way the church gathers to worship. We need a shakeup of the way we think about, plan, and engage in worship. Indeed, one of Kims most critical arguments addresses the way many evangelical churches, in their red-hot pursuit of relevance, have turned to celebrity pastors and rock-concert styles of worship, replete with fog machines and strobe lights. To illustrate the folly of such an approach, Kim tells the story of Jake, an electronic dance music (EDM) artist who, upon attending a church that used a smoke-machine and laser lights, admitted, I didnt feel like I was cool enough to be there. I dont think church should be like that. According to Kim, young people like Jake are unimpressedeven repulsedby the churchs quest for relevance. Whats more, this quest has come at the cost of something far more important: transcendence. What millennials and Gen Zers like Jake crave in the digital agewhat all of us crave, really are authentic communities that prioritize transformed lives over splashy techniques for transmitting information and manufacturing experiences. Essentially, what people want and need, to invoke the title of Kims book, are analog churches. Article continues below Later in the book, Kim shares his own impressions from preaching at a multisite church. As he was about to assume the pulpit, the service coordinator reminded him, Jay, dont forget to look directly into the camera at the back of the room so the campuses feel connected to you. Kim explains that even as he tried following this recommendation, he felt shaken. He began wondering whether there was a better way to herald Gods Word. Here Kim makes an important distinction between digital forms of communication (like video sermons) and analog forms of communication that rely on face-to-face, embodied interaction: While the digital can inform, only the analog can transform. By relying on video sermons, Kim argues, too many churches are missing out on the opportunity for preachers to embed themselves in real time and in real space with real people. Of course, underneath the multisite church movement and its video sermons is a conscious decision by many evangelical churches to align themselves with business-leadership models used in corporate America. Kim argues that this has resulted in a trend toward pragmatic and results-based decision-making. Within this model, the language of commodity replaces the language of community, and ideals of compatibility and comfort trump an ethic of commitment. These shifts make the church feel more like a business than the family of brothers and sisters in Christ that Scripture envisions. As Kim sees it, the world is hungry for an analog resurgence, and the church is uniquely equipped to provide a refuge for the digitally weary. Indeed, some churches, such as The Village Church in Texas and Redeemer Presbyterian in New York, have already moved away from the multisite church model. More recently, Bethlehem Baptist Church of Minneapolis, another nationally prominent multisite congregation, began considering a transition from video preaching to weekly live preaching at each of its three campuses. It bears mentioning, of course, that Kim is far from disavowing video sermons in a time of crisis, as we face now in these days of the coronavirus and social distancing. To preempt those who might question his stance on video sermons and internet churches when many believe these are our only viable options during the current shutdown, Kim took to The Gospel Coalition to argue that online church, however necessary for a time, is not a long-term solution. As we temporarily direct our congregations to these online spaces, it is of utmost importance that we clarify this digital reality as a temporary compromise rather than an ongoing convenience, wrote Kim. Alongside the blessings of incarnational ministry and live preaching, churches that forgo the multisite model enjoy the added bonus of guarding against what Kim calls the cult of Christian celebrity. Events at Mars Hill Church and Willow Creek Community Churchwhere video sermons furthered the rise of celebrity pastors who eventually crashed and burnedoffer a set of cautionary tales. While Kim stops short of calling for the end of all multisite churches, his vision of analog churches that resemble families more than businesses leans tellingly in that direction. Though Kims greatest concern is how digital technology has altered the ways we gather and worship, he also takes care to address its influence on our approach to Scripture. Smartphones, Bible apps, and feel-good verses uploaded to Instagram have fragmented our experience of Gods Word. The result, Kim says, is a generation of believers who view Bible reading as a fast, convenient, and individual exercise. Article continues below While it is doubtless a blessing to have Gods Word in our pockets everywhere we go, Kim suggests that we have been too quick to give up the corporate reading of Scripture, instead relying on daily devotions to feed our souls. These are essential to spiritual growth, Kim argues, but they are only meant to be supplemental. Together Again As a remedy to the shallow, bite-size manner of reading Scripture that plagues the church in the digital age, Kim introduces several ministries and churches that are creating time and space for Christians to encounter the whole counsel of Godtogether. Neighborhood Church in Visalia, California, for example, hosts a weekly gathering where dozens of believers meet to read through Gods Word. Kim also mentions a ministry he works with, the ReGeneration Project, which seeks to improve biblical literacy among younger generations. While these ideas (and several others in the book) provide practical steps forward for pastors and leaders looking to de-digitize their churches, Kim would have done well to include more practical advice, either from his own ministry or from what he gleaned during his research. On the whole, the book is written with church leaders and pastors in mind. Kims chapter on the necessity of a more analog approach to Scripture is filled with useful insights for everyday believers, but for better or worse, the majority of the book will appeal more to decision-makers in formal ministry. It would be great to see a book with similar insights targeted toward the laity (Analog Faith, perhaps). Even so, Kim makes a convincing case for the church to confront the digital age with an analog mindset. His book is a worthy addition to the online-skeptical countervailing thrust gathering steam across our contemporary landscape. John Thomas is a freelance writer whose work has appeared at Christ and Pop Culture, The American Conservative, and Desiring God, among other outlets. Experts have admitted that the true number of deaths from coronavirus in the UK remains unclear, as official statistics on patients dying in hospitals dipped to their lowest for two weeks. Describing the fall as encouraging, Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, appeared to signal increasing official confidence that the outbreak has passed its peak and will soon allow a shift in the governments approach, as he told the daily Downing Street press conference that the UK can now look forward to the next stage of the battle against Covid-19. But he warned it was too early to start lifting lockdown restrictions, declaring: There is light at the end of the tunnel, but we are not there yet. The chancellors comments came as it emerged that Boris Johnson has urged caution over the premature lifting of social distancing measures. The prime minister told senior ministers and advisers at a meeting at Chequers on Friday that this would risk a damaging second wave of the virus. Public Health England (PHE) medical director Yvonne Doyle said that Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures from the early weeks of the pandemic suggested that around 10 per cent of total Covid-19 deaths were taking place outside of hospitals many in care homes at that point. She was unable to rule out the final figure being as much as 40 per cent higher than the hospital tally suggests. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou Weekly mortality figures for England and Wales, to be published by the ONS on Tuesday, will reveal the total number of Covid deaths in the seven days to 10 April, when reported fatalities in hospital peaked at 980 in a single day. The new statistics will provide an important marker of the extent to which the killer virus was spreading unnoticed in care homes and hospices during that period, and indicate whether the same success was being achieved in flattening the curve of infection in the community as inside hospitals. Prof Doyle told the No 10 press conference that it was undoubtedly the case that the data on deaths with Covid-19 symptoms in hospital, released each day by PHE, dont tell the whole story of total deaths and that the ONS figures would give a more comprehensive view. Challenged over whether the final death toll could be as much as 40 per cent higher than suggested by the PHE figures, which have so far recorded 16,509 fatalities, Prof Doyle said: I dont know whether 40 per cent is a correct figure. I couldnt really say that. We know from looking at the pattern that nine out of 10 deaths do occur in hospital. Yvonne Doyle (Pippa Fowles / 10 Downing Street handout / EPA) (Pippa Fowles / 10 Downing street handout / EPA) The burden of mortality outside hospital will not be evenly spread across the country, with variations depending on the concentration of care homes and hospices in particular areas, she said. The 449 coronavirus deaths in hospital on Sunday represented the lowest daily total since 6 April and the second day in succession of declining figures. However, previous data has regularly shown a weekend effect as figures on hospital admissions and deaths take longer to feed through. The 3,023 positive tests on patients and critical workers in hospital and PHE labs was the lowest since 31 March down from a peak of 5,903 on 5 April. And the number of hospital beds occupied by Covid-19 patients in hotspot London continued a decline which has now lasted seven days, as more patients were discharged than admitted. Bed use across Britain was described as stable. Deputy chief scientific adviser Angela McLean voiced relief that numbers of infections were pretty much stable and flat, rather than showing the steep upwards climb of the early days of the outbreak. But Mr Sunak reinforced official signals that any easing of lockdown restrictions remains some time away, saying we are not there yet. The chancellor said: As we look forward towards the next stage of our battle against this disease, there are encouraging signs that we are making progress. But before we consider it safe to adjust any of the current social distancing measures, we must be satisfied that we have met the five tests set out last week by the first secretary [Dominic Raab]. Those tests mean that the NHS can continue to cope; that the daily death rate falls sustainably and consistently; that the rate of infection is decreasing; that operational challenges have been met; and most importantly that there is no risk of a second peak. Ministers remain focused on the message that the public should stay at home to protect the NHS, said Mr Sunak, adding: Anything else that people might be speculating on is wrong, we are crystal clear on that message. Oxford University structural biology professor James Naismith said it was clear that the UK had passed the peak of the first wave of coronavirus. Although we have clearly passed the peak of the announced hospital deaths in this first wave, 449 deaths can never be thought of as any other than very sad news, said Prof Naismith. The UK has been one of the hardest hit countries in this first wave and we still have to add in deaths from care homes and wider community. It is urgent that we learn what can be applied here so we do better. Flash Eighteen Afghan soldiers were killed and three others wounded in a Taliban attack in the country's northern province of Takhar on Sunday night, a local official confirmed on Monday. The clashes started at midnight after dozens of Taliban militants launched a wide offensive on a district police station and a nearby military camp in Khwaja Ghar district, Abdul Khalil Asir, provincial police spokesman, told Xinhua. The militants who came from mountains tried to overrun the district police station and seize the control of the district, but their plan was thwarted by the security forces. Several militants also sustained casualties based on the bloodstains on the clash site, the official noted. The Taliban militant group has not responded to the report so far. Violence decreased in Afghanistan after a peace deal was signed between the United States and the Taliban in Doha of Qatar as well as a joint declaration issued by the U.S. side and the Afghan government in late February. However, sporadic clashes and fighting occur in countryside as Taliban militants have been attempting to take territory and consolidate their positions. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 17:48 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd3187ad 1 National COVID-19-in-Indonesia,rapid-testing,East-Java,Malaysia,Pesantren,Magetan Free The Magetan administration in East Java conducted rapid tests for COVID-19 at the Temboro Islamic boarding school (pesantren) on Monday, following a report that dozens of Malaysian students returning from the school had contracted coronavirus. "We'll have a meeting regarding the report this morning. And while the meeting runs, some officials will conduct rapid tests at the pesantren," Magetan Regent Suprawoto said on Monday, as quoted by tempo.co. Read also: COVID-19: Participants of South Sulawesi religious mass gathering put in isolation The Malaysian Health Ministry announced a day earlier that a new cluster of COVID-19 had emerged from 43 students who had recently returned from Temboro. "The new cluster was detected at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on April 16," Malaysian Health Ministry health director general Noor Hisham Abdullah said during a daily press briefing on Sunday. He added that 34 students were now being quarantined in Malacca, while nine others were being treated in Kuala Lumpur. On Sunday, the Magetan regency was declared a COVID-19 red zone with 10 reported cases. East Java has recorded a total of 555 cases so far. Indonesia still has a very low testing rate, with only 136 tests per 1 million people, according to pandemic data released by Worldometer. Neighboring Malaysia and Singapore have testing rates of 2,988 and 16,203 per 1 million people respectively. (vny) Delhi police on Monday wrote to its counterparts in Haryana, UP and Rajasthan to allow its personnel living in the states to come to the national capital for duty. The letter was written on Monday by Special Commissioner of Police (Operations) Muktesh Chander to the DGPs of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan urging them to permit Delhi police personnel living in their states to come here on the basis of their identity cards. A number of Delhi police personnel live in the extended Delhi-NCR region and they commute every day for duty, the letter said. It has been observed that at some places in NCR, they are being restrained in their homes, it said. "In the fight against COVID-19, Delhi police can't afford to lose the manpower residing in NCR. It is therefore requested that these Delhi police personnel should be permitted to come to Delhi for duty on the basis of their identity cards," it stated. Last week, Delhi police identified 57 locations to accommodate its personnel who are deputed in sensitive areas due to COVID-19 pandemic. A letter had been written in this regard by Special Commissioner (Armed Police) Robin Hibu to all the deputy commissioners, special commissioners and joint commissioners. The police personnel whose houses were in COVID-19 hotspots of the national capital can stay at the identified locations. The details of these locations are available with the deputy commissioners in all the districts of Delhi. The deputy commissioners have been instructed to provide accommodation to the police personnel at these locations. The officials in all the districts have been requested to inform the personnel in their jurisdiction regarding availability of these accommodations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Cars line up at a food distribution site in a parking lot at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza shopping center in Los Angeles. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) The coronavirus outbreak has shut down entire school districts and turned bustling commercial corridors into ghost towns, but theres one sector of society thats busier than ever: philanthropy. The charitable acts have come in all shapes and sizes. Small checks to food pantries, foundations issuing emergency grants to desperate nonprofits and, most conspicuously, billionaires doling out big-dollar gifts with all the attendant publicity. Large charitable gifts from corporations, foundations and individuals, including faith-based and other sources, hit $7.8 billion worldwide last week, with about two-thirds originating in the United States an amount that dwarfs records set after other disasters such as Hurricane Sandy. It shows no signs of slowing up yet, said Andrew Grabois, manager of corporate philanthropy at Candid, a nonprofit tracking the response. "We are just getting grants by the hour." The calamity has stressed the charitable industry as it faces demands not imagined since the Great Depression. It has sent foundations scrambling to dole out the new funding to nonprofits overwhelmed by some 22 million people who have lost jobs since President Trump declared a national emergency, even as some states prepare to reopen some businesses and public facilities. And, like much else in a modern America preoccupied by inequality, the disaster has heightened tensions in an industry dependent on much of its funding from the wealthy. Rich donors are facing calls to give more, even as some of the biggest gifts have drawn scorn from critics of so-called billionaire philanthropy. Twitter and Square Chief Executive Jack Dorsey, center, shown with company executives Audrey Herblin-Stoop and Damien Viel in Paris in 2019, is a high-profile coronavirus philanthropist. (Antoine Gyori / Corbis via Getty Images) The difficulty is reflected in the bewildering number of ad hoc funds, with nearly 100 established statewide by last week, according to a listing of vetted funds by Philanthropy California, an association of foundations and other charities. The challenging part is coordinating all these efforts, said Phuong Pham, communications director of Southern California Grantmakers, a regional association that has been working to resolve the issue. In the mid to long term, there will be fewer funds and more collaboration, but in this time we cant let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Story continues The funds have been set up by public agencies, United Way chapters and community foundations, as well as by faith-based groups, private foundations and others. Meanwhile, there's been a movement to relax the typical restrictions on how the money can be spent by the nonprofit agencies on the ground. Its been very fog of war," said Wendy Garen, chief executive of the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, a Los Angeles private charity started decades ago by the founder of the Parsons Corp., which funds human services, health and other areas. What we think we knew on Monday by Wednesday makes no sense. The United Way of Greater Los Angeles, which typically raises the bulk of its money from workplace and corporate campaigns, had raised $9.5 million by Friday for its coronavirus response, about half through small contributions, said Chief Executive Elise Buik. "You are just seeing a rush of giving in a very short time," she said. Although there is no doubt that the need is greater than private philanthropy can meet, Buik says organizations such as the United Way have been able to move faster than the government has, with her agency deploying $3.5 million through the first week of April to recipients that included homeless outreach organizations. An additional $1 million was set to be disbursed this week. We had a lot of vulnerable people before this started. They were living paycheck to paycheck, she said. This crisis for me really exposes those cracks. Amazon's Jeff Bezos, shown at a 2019 event in Las Vegas, has given millions during the health crisis. But critics say billionaire philanthropy is not a solution. (John Locher / Associated Press) Attorney Matt Johnson, brought in to help run the coronavirus crisis response for the Mayor's Fund for Los Angeles, said that the fund, which has received contributions from Jay-Z and Rihanna, has been focused on getting money to needy people the government isn't serving also a target of the United Way's next round of grant making. "If you are undocumented or someone in your household is undocumented," he said, "you are not entitled to federal funds. In L.A., there are tons of families where you might have an undocumented family member living with you." To get a sense of the demand, consider the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, which was given an emergency $50,000 grant by the Parsons Foundation. It has seen demand explode, and has been distributing nearly 75% more food than normal, with demand surging among hospitality workers and others. One Saturday in March, it handed out 30-meal boxes of food to 1,159 families in Long Beach, where truckers serving the ports lost work when China factories went dark. It's impacted so many sectors of our economy. It's almost hard to wrap your mind around it. It's like this very condensed, compacted Great Recession happening in four weeks, said Michael Flood, chief executive of the food bank, which used the grant money to hire temporary workers. That level of need has widened fault lines that already had appeared in the philanthropic community over the last decade, as wages stagnated while immense wealth was created in tech and other industries amid a stock market boom. The lion's share of the donations has so far come from corporations, whose pledges have topped $4 billion worldwide when including funds from corporate-controlled foundations. Private foundations, typically run by wealthy families or individuals, have given less than $500 million, as have private independent foundations no longer controlled by their benefactors, such as Parsons, according to Candid. Small nonprofits have been eligible for financial assistance from the federal government's $2-trillion stimulus package, which also temporarily increases and makes more widely available tax breaks for charitable giving. But even as the virus-related market downturn has eaten into the value of endowments, some have been calling on the wealthy and their private foundations to do more. A volunteer loads a box of food into a car on Friday at a distribution site at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza shopping center. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) Nine philanthropic groups signed an April 2 open letter calling on foundations and all funders to significantly increase their spending on grants, specifically noting that black, indigenous and other communities of color are being devastated by mass unemployment. Unprecedented challenges require unprecedented responses, the letter said. Private foundations are required to make an annual distribution of at least 5% of their assets, including an allowance for administrative costs allowing them to exist in perpetuity given historical investment returns. Spending more could mean dipping into their capital, rather than just relying on returns. We are seeing nonprofits in communities hit by massive increases in demand coupled with declines in revenue, said Phil Buchanan, president of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, a signatory of the letter. I am not calling on foundations to spend themselves out of existence. There is a lot of opportunity in the future to be more prudent in the grant making or to be more savvy on the investment side and build it back up. The Libra Foundation, the private charity of a branch of the Chicago-based Pritzker family, is one of the few foundations that has publicly backed the letter's call. It is doubling its grant making this year to $50 million, which represents about 10% of its endowment. The San Francisco-based foundation, which funds social, gender and environmental justice groups, had actually decided to up its spending before the outbreak partly due to it being a U.S. census year, and it is abiding by that decision despite the market downturn, said Crystal Hayling, executive director. "Your endowment will definitely take a hit," she said, "and it may take you a while to build back up, but if our purpose is to respond to communities, then I think we have to put that front and center at times like these. Among the beneficiaries of its largess is the National Domestic Workers Alliance, which the foundation has been supporting as it seeks to organize home care workers such as house cleaners. The alliance has established an emergency assistance fund, because many domestic workers have lost jobs or are trying to stay home themselves. "It's our job to stick with them during those difficult times," Hayling said. That hasnt been a universal response to the letter. Buchanan said that although he'd heard that some foundations were already considering just such a move on their own, others are in outright opposition amid a stock market that tanked and is still off its record high in February. Phil, you really dont get it. We have already taken a big hit and we cant lock in our losses now. Weve got to be here for the next crisis in 30 years, was one type of response Buchanan said he had heard. The crisis has similarly brought renewed attention to the immense growth of donor-advised funds, a charitable investment vehicle sponsored by traditional public charities, such as the California Community Foundation, but also by independent charitable affiliates of financial services companies. Money is deposited into the fund and disbursed at will by the donor to recipients. The funds are simpler to establish than a private foundation and have made Fidelity Charitable the nation's largest grant maker, giving out more than $5.25 billion last year . But the funds have drawn criticism because they allow donors to take an immediate tax deduction which can be beneficial if facing a large tax bill without any disbursement requirement, leading to the warehousing by some of philanthropic dollars. Donor-advised funds have become favorites of the tech community, such as WhatsApp founder Jan Koum, who Bloomberg reported contributed $114 million after selling the messaging service to Facebook. Antonia Hernandez, chief executive of the California Community Foundation, said that the accusations of hoarding did not apply to her L.A. institution, where annual payouts from donor-advised funds are roughly 15% to 20% and total some $200 million. "Our donors are very generous," she said. Nevertheless, the Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy put out a nationwide call for donors to release money to nonprofits battling the coronavirus, noting a study that found there were 700,000 donor-advised accounts holding an estimated $110 billion nationwide as of the end of 2017. "Where there is a crisis, there is opportunity to be seized to get more philanthropic capital off the sidelines and put it to work in really smart ways," said Melissa Stevens, executive director of the center. "Donors have the opportunity and really the obligation to do their part." Fidelity Charitable has challenged its donors to set aside $200 million in coronavirus-related grant recommendations by May 5, and as of Friday $147 million had been made, according to its website. But with masses of Americans facing deprivations not experienced in generations during an era some have compared to the Gilded Age some of the biggest donors have found themselves the target of barbs. When you hear that Jeff Bezos has donated $100 million to food banks during this crisis, remember that Amazon paid just 1.2% in taxes on $13,285,000,000 in profit last year, tweeted Berkeley professor Robert Reich, a critic of billionaire philanthropy who served as Labor secretary under President Clinton. The solution isnt philanthropy. Its making everyone pay their fair share to strengthen our safety nets. Among the highest-profile givers is Bill Gates, while Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has so far made the biggest pledge, to put $1 billion from his stake in payments firm Square more than a quarter of his wealth into a limited liability corporation to fight the outbreak and, later, fund other causes. One of his first outlays was $2.1 million to the L.A. Mayors Fund to help domestic violence victims, who can face physical harm if they must stay at home. Rihanna's foundation also gave $2.1 million to the cause. The use of an LLC doesn't confer any tax advantages until money is disbursed, but even so, big donations by him and others in the tech community have been derided. Journalist Anand Giridharadas, who critiqued billionaire giving in his 2018 bestseller "Winners Take All," said it was important to understand why philanthropic giving had become so critical namely public policies and a tax system that benefits the wealthiest and big corporations but has left the nation with meager health, employment and social services compared with other developed countries. "If you look at why our systems are as precarious as they are in this country relative to other countries ... the biggest culprit is the same billionaire class that is now so publicly heroically stepping up," he said. "We would not be this bruised if not for the very people masquerading as the help." Financier George Soros, at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland in January, says the U.S. "missed the opportunity to create a more just economy" after the Great Recession. (Fabrice Coffrini / AFP via Getty Images) Variations on that sentiment are also shared by members of the giving class. The Open Society Foundations, founded by liberal financier George Soros, donated $130 million globally to provide relief for communities hit hard by the viral outbreak. We missed the opportunity to create a more just economy after the financial crisis of 2008 and provide a social safety net for the workers who are the heart of our societies. Today, we must change direction and ask ourselves: What kind of world will emerge from this catastrophe, and what can we do to make it a better one? Soros said in a statement accompanying the gift. But prominent philanthropic scholar Una Osili, who leads the research program at Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, believes the crisis has highlighted not just a debate over the role of philanthropy in a polarized society, but also America's penchant for charity. That fondness was something French political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville famously observed as far back as the 1830s, and it was rooted, Osili said, in our founders' conception of a restricted government, leading to a limited safety net and tax policy that encourages charitable contributions. It has made Americans the most generous givers among developed countries as measured by household giving as a percentage of gross domestic product, with total giving reaching $428 billion in 2018, she said. "It's not just the large gifts there is a generosity taking place at the community level by everyday people and sometimes really heroic acts where people are stepping up to help their neighbors," Osili said of the current response. Advertisement In Aizawl, a Mizoram government statement said that after a 22-year-old woman cancer patient from the state tested positive on April 13 in Mumbai, three more COVID-19 positive cases, two male and a woman, have been detected on late Saturday evening among those residing in Mizoram House in Mumbai.The three fresh positive results, two of which are cancer patients, came after the Maharastra Health Department officials on the directions of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation tested the nasopharyngeal swab samples of 20 people residing in the Mizoram House.Mizoram Health Minister R. Lalthangliana said that at this stage, it is difficult to ascertain how COVID-19 was contacted and spread among those residing at Mizoram House in Mumbai.He also said that the state's lone COVID-19 patient, a 50-year old man being treated at the Zoram Medical College in Aizawl since last month, is showing good progress. The man returned Aizawl from Amsterdam via Delhi and Guwahati on March 16.A doctor from Mizoram, who worked in a hospital in Meghalaya, also tested positive for coronavirus in Shillong on April 14.In Manipur, health officials said that the state's second COVID-19 patient, a 65-year-old man undergoing treatment at Regional Institute of Medical Science, has tested negative for coronavirus for third consecutive tests.Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that the Central government has given directives on the relaxation of the lockdown restrictions in some parts of the state and decision on relaxation would be taken at the state cabinet meeting to be held on Monday.State Health and Family Welfare Department's Additional Director Khoirom Sasheekumar Mangang told IANS over phone that a government doctor, who had recently violated the government's quarantine norms and protocol, has been suspended from the service.Besides the Manipur patient, the lone patient in Arunachal Pradesh and the second and last patient in Tripura would be discharged from the hospitals within the next two days making the three northeastern states with no active cases.Meanwhile, defence spokesman P. Khongsai said that army troops have been conducting COVID-19 awareness Campaign' in the remote villages of the region."Aim of the campaign was to enhance awareness amongst the villagers about the coronavirus pandemic and various precautionary measures required to be undertaken to contain the spread of the disease. As part of the campaign, information leaflets and facemasks were also distributed amongst the villagers," the Defence PRO said in a statement.Source: IANS Germany will cover the cost for treating novel coronavirus patients taken in from European Union neighbour countries as a gesture of goodwill, Health Minister Jens Spahn said on Monday. Germany has been spared the worst of the coronavirus crisis seen in some of its hard-hit European neighbours, and has taken in patients -- mainly from France -- to relieve pressure on their overburdened healthcare systems. A total of 229 foreign patients have been treated in Germany, a spokesman for the foreign ministry said Monday -- 130 from France, 44 from Italy and 55 from the Netherlands. Their treatment has so far cost about 20 million euros ($21.7 million), according to Spahn. "Germany will cover the treatment costs of these patients, that is what we understand by European solidarity," Spahn said ahead of a meeting of ministers tackling the virus crisis on Monday. "The willingness and capacity is there to admit more if necessary," he added. The number of coronavirus deaths and infections in Germany has remained well below some of its neighbours. As of Monday, Europe's biggest economy had over 140,000 confirmed cases and 4,404 deaths, while Spain and Italy have reported more than 20,000 deaths each. France has close to 20,000 fatalities while Britain has more than 16,000. Germany had 28,000 intensive care beds before the start of the crisis and has since increased that number to 30,000. Over 12,600 beds remained free Sunday according to the Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive and Emergency Medicine (DIVI). Spahn's announcement came as many parts of Germany reopened some shops on Monday after weeks of lockdown. The health minister said Friday the pandemic was "under control". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 09:28:42|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close HANGZHOU, April 20 (Xinhua) -- An online trade fair assembling 100 medical supply manufacturers in east China's Zhejiang Province and more than 80 Italian medical institutions, multinational firms and business associations was launched Friday. Scheduled to conclude on April 22, the fair is expected to help meet the urgent demand for anti-epidemic supplies in Italy. It will also hold two targeted procurement sessions for Italian private businesses and for an Italian hospital respectively. Han Jie, deputy head of the Zhejiang provincial department of commerce, which launched the fair, said Zhejiang has planned over 50 online fairs targeting various overseas trading partners in the first half of 2020. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:12:32|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA) raised some 880 million yuan (125 million U.S. dollars) in cash and donations in 2019, according to an annual report published Monday. About 830 million yuan was spent on public welfare programs, benefiting nearly 6.9 million people in poverty and in disaster-hit areas, the report showed. The CFPA said it received donations from 4,795 institutions last year and 4.4 billion donations from the public had been made during the same period, adding that about 97,000 volunteers offered more than 1.5 million hours of service. The foundation also launched international projects in 11 countries, including Myanmar, Nepal and Ethiopia, in 2019. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 14:30:20|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese courts will reject employers' applications to fire employees citing epidemic-related excuses, according to a guideline released by the Supreme People's Court (SPC) Monday. Among other guidance for courts on handling epidemic-related civil cases, the document said an individual having been infected or suspected of being infected with COVID-19 or staying in quarantine due to the disease, or hailing from Hubei Province or other coronavirus hot spots are not valid reasons for employers to terminate labor contracts with employees. Calling for better protection of consumers' rights and interests, the SPC asked courts to invoke the punitive punishment principle when ruling over cases involving the manufacturing and sale of fake or inferior face masks, safety goggles, protective suits, disinfectants, food and drugs, the guideline said. The document also said in law suits, courts can adopt flexible measures against the properties of micro, small and medium-sized businesses seriously affected by the epidemic amid efforts to help them tide over the difficulties. Enditem Governors across the country Sunday criticized President Donald Trump's expression of solidarity with people protesting various state-issued stay-at-home orders, saying his comments are "dangerous" and "don't make any sense." "I don't know any other way to characterize it, when we have an order from governors, both Republicans and Democrats, that basically are designed to protect people's health, literally their lives, to have a president of the United States basically encourage insubordination, to encourage illegal activity," Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, said on ABC's "This Week," adding, "To have an American president to encourage people to violate the law, I can't remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing." Inslee said Trump's comments were "dangerous" because they "can inspire people to ignore things that actually can save their lives." Trump's promotion of the protesters was "hobbling our national efforts to protect people from this terrible virus." "And it is doubly frustrating to us governors because this is such a schizophrenia, because the president basically is asking people: Please ignore Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx. Please ignore my own guidelines that I set forth, because those guidelines made very clear, if you read them and I don't know if the president did or not but, if you read them, it made very clear that you cannot open up Michigan today or Virginia," Inslee said. "Under those guidelines, you need to see a decline in the infections and fatalities. And that simply has not happened yet." The past week saw an increasing number of protests across the country at which demonstrators railed against coronavirus restrictions that health experts say are necessary to curtail the spread of the virus. The protesters have said they believe the shutdowns, which have harmed business and stunted leisure activity, have gone too far, especially in areas that haven't seen major outbreaks like those in New York City and Detroit. But health experts have warned it won't take much for a relatively unaffected place to become a hot spot, as just one infected person is able to spread the virus to several other people. Story continues Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak The demonstrations have been small for the most part. A Gallup poll conducted this month found that just 20 percent of Americans would like to see an immediate return to normal, while 71 percent prefer to wait and see how the outbreak develops. That includes just 31 percent of Republicans who want to see an immediate return, as well as 23 percent of small town and rural-dwelling respondents. The protests, which have been promoted in large Facebook groups with names like "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" and "ReOpen NC," have attracted a large pro-Trump contingency, with demonstrators wearing and waving Make America Great Again gear, as well as "Don't Tread on Me" flags. Protests like "Operation Gridlock" in Michigan, the largest of the demonstrations so far, have been organized and promoted by leading conservatives. Some have even been seen waving Confederate flags at the rallies. The rallies have led to crowds gathering' in close proximity, with many participants forgoing masks and violating social distancing guidelines. Late last week, Trump cheered the effort to "LIBERATE" Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, three states with Democratic governors. He defended the tweets Friday, saying he thinks some states' stay-at-home orders "are too tough" and adding that he feels "very comfortable" with his tweets. "These are people expressing their views," he said. "I see where they are, and I see the way they're working. They seem to be very responsible people to me, but it's you know, they've been treated a little bit rough." Speaking at a press conference later Sunday, Trump said the protesters were "great people" who were dealing with "cabin fever." The administration last week released guidelines for how states can begin easing restrictions recommending a multi-stage process that includes robust testing. Governors said Sunday that Trump's encouragement of the protesters was confusing considering those guidelines. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, said on CNN's "State of the Union" that Maryland is "doing everything we possibly can to reopen in a safe manner" but that "I don't think it's helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the president's own policy." "The president's policy says you can't start to reopen under his plan until you have declining numbers for 14 days, which those states and my state do not have," he said. "So then to go encourage people to go protest the plan you just made recommendations on Thursday it just doesn't make any sense. We're sending completely conflicting messages out to the governors and to the people as if we should ignore federal policy and federal recommendations." Speaking on NBC News' "Meet the Press," Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said that he's asked protesters to "observe social distancing" and that "we're all big believers in the First Amendment." "They were protesting against me yesterday, and that's just fine," he said. "They have every right to do that. We're going to do what we think is right, what I think is right, which is try to open this economy but do it very, very carefully so we don't get a lot of people killed. But we have to come back, and we're aiming to do that May 1. It's very consistent ... with the very thoughtful plan the president laid out." Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, said on CNN that Trump was focusing on protests after having been "unable to deliver on tests." "And this is not the time for protest," Northam said after Trump encouraged gun rights activists in Virginia. "This is not the time for divisiveness. This is time for leadership that will stand up and provide empathy, that will understand what's going on in this country of ours with this pandemic. It's the time for truth. And it's the time to bring people together." Download the NBC News app for full coverage and alerts about the coronavirus outbreak A new NBC News / Wall Street Journal poll conducted just before the administration's reopening guidelines were announced showed that 58 percent of registered voters are more concerned that America will "move too quickly in loosening restrictions" and cost more lives than they are about the country's taking too long to loosen the orders. Meanwhile, earlier last week, Trump said he was "not going to put pressure on any governor to open." Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," Vice President Mike Pence addressed Trump's encouragement of the protests, saying that "no one in America wants to reopen this country more than" Trump and that "when the president speaks about reopening America it's all about encouraging governors, as soon as they determine as most proper and most appropriate, to be able to do that and do that quickly." Pence said on "Meet the Press" that the U.S. has "to make sure the cure isn't worse than the disease" and that there are "real costs" to staying shut down, pointing to business closings and health risks tied to isolation. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat who has instituted one of the most restrictive stay-at-home orders as the state deals with one of the worst outbreaks in the U.S., said on "Meet the Press" that she stood by the measure. "Michigan right now has the third-highest number of deaths from COVID-19, and yet we're the 10th-largest state," she said. "We have a disproportionate problem in the state of Michigan. And so we could take the same action that other states have, but it doesn't rise to the challenge we're confronting. And that's precisely why we have to take a more aggressive stand." "Who among us wouldn't rather forgo jet skiing or boating right now if it's going to save your grandparent or your neighbor's life?" she later said on CNN. "And that's precisely what the tradeoff is at the moment." I know the effects of the measures to contain the virus have been difficult for many, and that is why I mandated the creation of the GH1.2 billion Coronavirus Alleviation Programme to support households and businesses, President Nana Akufo-Addo stated. In the seventh COVID-19 Presidential broadcast to the nation, which focused on Ghana's enhanced response to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Akufo-Addo said out of the amount, GH280 million was being used to provide food for the vulnerable and free water for all Ghanaians for three months. He said GH323 million is being used for April, May, and June to motivate the health workers and GH600 million of assistance is being provided to micro, small and medium-scale businesses. The President noted that the disbursements of the GH600 million would start in May. He said furthermore, the Government was fully absorbing electricity bills for one million active lifeline customers, and is granting a 50 per cent subsidy on other customers using their March 2020 bill as their benchmark for April, May and June. He said in total, the relief on electricity would amount to some GH1.02 billion. Again, the Government, through the ministries of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Local Government and Rural Development, and the Food and Agriculture through the National Buffer Stock Company, had provided over 2.5 million packs of cooked food to vulnerable persons in the affected districts of Accra and Kumasi. This was done in collaboration with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) and the District Disaster Management Committees. He said other food items had also been distributed, in collaboration with the faith-based organisations, to 470,000 families in the same areas, as against the original target of 400,000. I express my profound gratitude to the private sector, faith-based organisations, and traditional authorities for their support in this endeavour, President Akufo-Addo said. I also commend highly the many individuals and private organisations who, on their own, organised hot meals and fed a number of vulnerable people within the restricted areas. To these individuals, ayekoo for being good neighbours to your fellow Ghanaians. The President said: As we continue to battle this pandemic, it is imperative we plan to restore Ghana onto a sound economic footing, and create a path towards growth and transformation. He said the recent one billion-dollar Rapid Credit Facility, secured from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) without any precondition and approved by Parliament, would be used to help close the financing gap created by the pandemic through shortfalls in revenues and additional expenditures. I welcome the three billion cedi (GH3 billion) credit and stimulus package from the commercial banks, with the support of the Bank of Ghana, to revitalise industries, especially in the pharmaceutical, hospitality, services, and manufacturing sectors, he stated. The Minister of Finance, and his South African counterpart, as co-Chairs of the Committee of African Finance Ministers, had been leading a Pan-African effort to bring debt relief to the Continent in these difficult times, he said. The President said last Friday they achieved a nine-month debt standstill from the World Bank for all qualifying members of the International Development Association (IDA), starting from May 1, 2020, totalling some 44 billion dollars for the countries of Africa. He said in the case of Ghana, it amounted to a freeze on principal and interest payments for the year, totalling 500 million dollars to create greater fiscal space to help make the economy more resilient. He said he had charged the Finance Minister to leave no stone unturned to achieve greater and comprehensive debt relief programme for Africa. ---GNA GREENWICH Domestic abuse agencies and law enforcement officials are reporting an increase in the number of people reaching out for help as they remain at home, holed up with abusers, during the coronavirus pandemic. That was the report Monday afternoon, as domestic abuse survivors joined a virtual conference led by U.S. Rep. Jim Himes (D-4th District) and leaders of agencies that support domestic violence victims. We have found two different dynamics that have been going on right now, as everyone has been asked to stay in place, said Suzanne Adam, executive director of the Domestic Violence Crisis Center, serving Stamford, Norwalk, Darien, Weston, Wilton and Westport. A number of people have noticed that the tension in their homes is going down because domestic violence is about control and very often abusers use tactics, such as isolation, to maintain control over their partners, she said. But others are noticing the opposite. By being home, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, other victims are reporting that domestic violence is escalating, as they remain home with abusers, she said. Some abusers are also cutting off victims from hand sanitizer and medical services while threatening survivors if they mention reaching out for help, said Adam. In Connecticut, 18 agencies are working under the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence to combat the problem. On average, the agencies serve nearly 40,000 victims of domestic violence each year, said Karen Jarmoc, president and CEO of the umbrella organization. Her agency runs the CTSafeConnect.org platform, a statewide hub providing resources and information to victims across the state. The online resource has tracked an 8 percent uptick in the number of victims reaching out for help since the start of the pandemic, she said. When this started, in early March, domestic violence shelters were at 130 percent capacity statewide, Jarmoc said. Thats a huge number, and what that means is, families and individuals are paired up in shelters to accommodate the safety and the need, she said. Similarly, the Greenwich YWCA reported about a 10 percent increase in new clients seeking services each week amid the pandemic. The amount of services per client are up three to four times in comparison to the same time period last year, with most needing additional counseling, said Mary Lee Kiernan, president and CEO of the YWCA. We are busy, she said. Arrests on domestic violence charges have also increased, particularly in urban areas, said Jarmoc. In rural areas, those statistics have remained steady or dropped. There are increased concerns for victims, as law enforcement moves away from a model of keeping an arrested offender overnight in jail for arraignment. These individuals are being released on a promise to appear, as courts reduce their hours or close temporarily, said Jarmoc. Victims who need a restraining order can apply online by visiting, https://jud.ct.gov/remote_restrain.htm. Those who need assistance with the application can visit, CTSafeConnect.org, and an advocate will help. Restraining order applications are way down, said Jarmoc. Its very, very concerning. Is it because people are not able to know theres this online option? Are they afraid about implications? Members of Connecticut Protective Moms, a new group supporting mothers and children during and after divorce, posed a series of family court and custody questions. They asked whether there are significant issues in family court that lead to increased instances of domestic violence and if theres a particular issue with contentious cases stalled and custody remaining uncertain. Jarmoc said, yes to both, that there have been ongoing concerns about how domestic violence is managed in the family court setting. And this was a hope to be able to address some of these concerns in this upcoming legislative session, which has now understandably been put off temporarily, and maybe permanently, she said. Kiernan pointed to one study that suggests abusers are granted custody three times more often than victims in custody cases. And we do hope that the future legislation around this is going to include that very, very important point, Kiernan said. Agency leaders said all of their services remain up and running during the pandemic and they encouraged victims to reach out for help, if it is safe to do so. All information is kept confidential. Victims can visit CTSafeConnect.org to be connected with their local domestic abuse services provider. Victims who suspect their computer is being monitored should call or text 1888-774-2900 instead. The conversation can be viewed on Jim Himes Facebook page at www.facebook.com/RepJimHimes/. tatiana.flowers@thehour.com RACINE The Wisconsin Elections Commission has weighed in on Racine Unified School District referendum ballots that were contested on the grounds of witnesses not providing an address. In a decision emailed to Matt ONeill, acting counsel for RUSD during the recount, Michael Haas, staff counsel with the Wisconsin Elections Commission stated that the label with the voters information cannot be used to validate the witnesss signature, even if the voter and witness live in the same residence. A caveat, though, will allow counting ballots where a poll worker acting as a witness neglected to add their address. The Elections Commissions recommendation was not issued until about 4 p.m. so it was unclear as of press time Monday how the recommendation would impact the overall count at that point in time. The recount is scheduled to continue Tuesday, from 8:30 a.m. until at least 5 p.m., at Festival Hall, 5 Fifth St. The process, which began on Saturday, is being done by hand. The April 7 referendum asked voters to allow the district to collect $1 billion beyond its revenue limit over the next 30 years. The initial results, announced April 13, showed the referendum passing by five votes, 16,748 in favor and 16,743 opposed. By the end of the day on Saturday, that margin had been reduced down to three votes. Witness addresses the issue Generally, there were two scenarios when witnesses did not provide their address under their signature. In some cases a family member from the same household witnessed a ballot. Some clerks accepted those ballots because they were able to verify using voter rolls that the witness resided with the voter, and argued the voter information on the envelope, which included the address, validated the witness signature. As the recount proceeded on Monday morning, members of HOT (Honest, Open, Transparent) Government, challenged those ballots. While we understand the logic in using the label with the voters name and address to determine the witness address and confirming that information with the poll book, in the opinion of WEC staff the witness address cannot be completed in that manner and the certificate envelope remains defective, Haas wrote in his emailed decision. The label with the voter information is specific to the voter, not the witness. And while the label is on the envelope, it is not part of the witness certification. Even though it seems clear that the voter and the witness reside at the same address and that is confirmed by the poll list, the statutes do not appear to permit the recount board to complete the witness address information. The other scenario occurred during in-person absentee voting, when a poll worker signed as a witness for a ballot. Not all poll workers included their home address under their signatures. Haas said the WEC counts these as clerical errors and those ballots should still be included in the final count. As page 14 of the Recount Manual outlines, voters should not be penalized for election official error, and if the recount board has reliable evidence that it was a clerk or clerk staff who neglected to list the witness address during in-person absentee voting, the board can choose to count such a ballot, Haas wrote. Before WEC issued its recommendation, the recount had been completed for North Bay, Wind Point, Elmwood Park and nine wards in the Village of Caledonia. ONeill said the decision applies to two wards that were already counted. Those challenged ballots will be re-tabulated and updated results will be posted on Tuesday. He also said he believes the WECs decision will make the recount process faster going forward. Alyssa Mauk of The Journal Times contributed to this report. Love 7 Funny 1 Wow 7 Sad 0 Angry 13 Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. China's Vice Minister of Public Security, UNSW graduate Sun Lijun, is being investigated for "severe violations of discipline and law" a month after playing a key role in the Chinese Communist Party's response to the coronavirus crisis. The allegations include a failure to adhere to political discipline, follow rules and "wanton behaviours", according to minutes of a meeting of the Ministry of Public Security. Sun led ceremonies for police officers in Wuhan, the centre of China's coronavirus outbreak, as recently as March, telling recruits and party members to be "ready to sacrifice everything for the party and the people" and to wear the "party emblem and the flag on their minds forever". Sun Lijun, Chinese Vice Minister for Public Security. Credit: He now faces an inquiry by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, which is charged with leading President Xi Jinping's corruption crackdown. Sun is the latest in a string of high-profile leaders to be investigated as the Chinese Communist Party moves to bolster its social and political control in the wake of coronavirus' first surge across the country. A drugs baron who smuggled 1billion of cocaine from Colombia into Britain has reportedly been freed from jail after serving just half his 30-year term. Brian Wright, 73, was released from top-security Whitemoor Prison in Cambridgeshire, on Tuesday, despite previously being warned he would die inside, The Sun reported. Labelled the 'Milkman' by criminal pals because he always delivered, the Irishman was the boss of one of Britain's biggest cocaine smuggling rings. A source told the publication that the decision to release Wright was 'highly unusual' since he had not been transferred to an open prison first. Brian Wright (pictured previously) has reportedly been freed from jail after serving just half his 30-year term At the time of his sentencing in 2007, Wright's barrister confessed in court: 'He knows that he will probably die in jail.' Wright, who is said to be living in a bail hostel now, was forced to pay up to 2.3million in ill-gotten gains before his release - but the crime godfather is worth an estimated 600million. His release sparks fears he may now try to reestablish his criminal empire on the outside, according to the publication. A source said: 'When Wright was put away, everyone thought that would be it, including him. But it seems that the dice have rolled in his favour yet again.' Wright was born in Ireland, one of nine children, and moved to England when he was 12, growing up in Kilburn, north London. Wright, 73, was released from top-security Whitemoor Prison (pictuerd above) in Cambridgeshire, on Tuesday He built his criminal empire in the 1990s, dealing directly with Colombian cartels, before being arrested with MI6's help in 2005. Wright became one of Britain's most wanted fugitives after going on the run in 1999 when 15 members of his gang including his son were arrested for smuggling cocaine into Britain on board yachts. In 2005 an International Arrest Warrant was executed when Wright emerged near Malaga. He was found living, according to Customs sources, as if he 'did not exist'. He had no bank account or car and was not living at his own address. His passport was never found. Wright's appearance was unchanged and he had not adopted a false identity, but money was in place for his daily needs, Customs said. Even after he was arrested, his love of gambling did not desert him: he attempted another cheeky wager, boasting that he would never be brought to trial and offering to bet 1 million against an officer's 1 that that would be the case. But he was found guilty and sentenced in 2007, after two years on remand. Triveni Group, one of India's largest sugar companies, is planning to double its hand sanitiser production in the next ten days and has said it wants to stay invested in the business even after the coronavirus pandemic dies down. Like many other sugar producers in the country, Triveni got into bottling hand sanitisers using the ethyl alcohol produced in its factories to plug the acute shortage in the wake of the pandemic. It is planning to increase production from the current 4,000 litres to 5,000 litres in the next few days and then to 10,000 litres by May 1. "We started production within 5 days of the lockdown," says Tarun Sawhney, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Triveni Engineering and Industries Ltd. "The main ingredient in the production of sanitisers is ethyl alcohol and we are following WHO recommended formulation by using 80 per cent ethyl alcohol which is produced in-house. The remaining ingredients are required in small quantities and sourced from the market. Our pricing falls well below the ceiling price fixed by the government, which is Rs 100 for 200 ml packs (and pro rata increase in prices for larger volume packs)." So far the company has invested Rs 1.5 crore in phase 1 for producing sanitisers but it intends to ramp up investment 10-fold, commensurate with the increase in production. The company also plans to launch diferent variants like a 200/500 ml stock keeping unit (SKU). "Bottling and packaging is being done in-house. We are in the nascent stages of production, and have catered to the government needs at this point in time. As production ramps up, we will launch it across FMCG and pharma channels and the initial orders through the same are in the process of execution," Sawhney says. "We would like to reiterate that our hand sanitiser business is here to stay and the product will very much continue to be a part of our portfolio, post the pandemic too." Like Triveni a number of new players from a variety of sectors have joined the bandwagon to make sanitizers in the country. With demand shooting through the roof, sanitizers are expected to corner a significant 15 percent share of the overall personal hygiene segment of the market from just 4 percent right now. "Our existing distillery workforce is providing the supervisory services in the production of sanitisers. We have employed about 30-40 additional people, mostly unskilled, who come from neighbouring areas of the distillery and in fact we are providing employment to the rural unskilled workforce," he says. "The government had been extremely proactive and supportive - it provided all the approvals (drug, excise etc.) on a priority basis, and also assisted in ensuring that the product is expeditiously distributed across the region in an unhindered manner. It is also assisting us with databases of drug distributors so that we can develop a separate distribution channel for our product to ensure that the product reaches the end customer very fast." For now Triveni is supplying the sanitisers free of cost to district administrations and at subsidised rates of Rs 100 per litre to other government officers and institutions. Even when it hits the market for business, Sawhney says the sanitisers would still be priced well below the government's prescribed ceiling prices. "We shall be going through the distribution chain at higher prices (more than Rs 100 per litre) but below the govt ceiling prices so that we are able to make some profits," he adds. "At this point in time, pure profit is not the motive." Melbourne midwife Jacqueline Vella is devastated after losing thousands of dollars on a cancelled family holiday, but she and many other grounded travellers have nowhere to turn after the peak travel industry body last month suspended its complaints handling panel for months. Ms Vella has been "crying for days" after losing about half the money she spent to book a dream $20,000 family holiday to Europe and Disneyland. She said Flight Centre refunded her Emirates flights worth $10,705, minus $1500 in fees, but money spent on Disneyland tickets and accommodation in Paris and Rome put her losses at almost $10,000. Thats so unjust considering the cancellation is due to the current COVID-19 circumstance, which is beyond our control, Ms Vella said. Two clients who the Illinois Innocence Project represented were released earlier this month by Gov. JB Pritzker. The most celebrated of the cases was Marilyn Mulero, who was sentenced to death in 1993 for her supposed role in the deaths of two men in the Humboldt Park area of Chicago. The Innocence Project is housed at the University of Illinois Springfield. Mulero was granted clemency by the governor. Her plight was featured in the 2019 theatrical release "Brian Banks." Carl Reed, who served 20 years behind bars, had his sentenced commuted by Pritzker. Reed, according to an Innocence Project post on Facebook, had extensive pre-existing health conditions that put him at high risk of death or serious illness if he contracted COVID-19 in prison. Mulero had a clemency hearing in Chicago on Oct. 9 in front of five members of the Prisoner Review Board. Lauren Kaeseberg, a Chicago-based attorney for the Innocence Project, was one of three attorneys who argued on Mulero's behalf. Mulero was sentenced to death after entering into a "blind plea." The sentence was later reduced to life without parole. Mulero, along with Jacqueline Montanez and Madeline Mendoza, both juveniles at the time of the murders, were convicted for the murders. Montanez, who is due to be released in 2023 because of new sentencing guidelines regarding juveniles, has confessed to being the lone gunman in the murders. A video of Montanez's confession was played at Mulero's Prisoner Review Board hearing. Mendoza has already served out her 35-year prison term. Also at issue in Mulero's case was the action of two Chicago Police Department detectives, Reynaldo Guevara and Ernest Halvorsen. They allegedly forced a confession out of Mulero after she was interrogated and physically threatened the night of the crime and manufactured false witness statements. Mulero sought to have the confession dismissed prior to her plea. The California Innocence Project and the Exoneration Project joined with the Innocence Project in filing a new clemency petition on Mulero's behalf last year. Kaeseberg, in an interview with The State Journal-Register in October, said that Mulero had became a model prisoner and had a job offer and a place to live pending release from prison. The "Defenders of the Innocent" May 2 fundraiser is postponed. Amanda Knox, who was ultimately acquitted of the murder of her college roommate in Italy in a case that gained world-wide attention, was scheduled to speak and perform as a guest vocalist with the Exoneree Band. The band's five members spent a collective 92 years imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The following article gives a breakdown of U.S. aid being sent to Africa to battle COVID-19. The U.S. Government is leading the worlds humanitarian and health response to the COVID-19 pandemic even while we battle the virus at home. As part of this comprehensive and generous response from the American people, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have now committed nearly $508 million in emergency health, humanitarian, and economic assistance on top of the funding we already provide to multilateral and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are helping communities around the world deal with the pandemic. This funding will support critical activities to control the spread of this disease, such as rapid public-health information campaigns, water and sanitation, and preventing and controlling infections in health-care facilities. Total U.S. government assistance in the global fight against COVID-19 provided to date includes nearly $200 million in emergency health assistance from USAIDs Global Health Emergency Reserve Fund for Contagious Infectious-Disease Outbreaks and Global Health Programs account, nearly $195 million in humanitarian assistance from USAIDs International Disaster Assistance (IDA) account, and $50 million from the Economic Support Funding (ESF), which will help governments and NGOs in more than 100 of the most affected and at-risk countries during this global pandemic. In addition, through the State Departments Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, which is responsible for the Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) account, we now have a country-by-country breakout of the previously announced $64 million in humanitarian assistance for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to address threats posed by the pandemic in existing humanitarian crisis situations for some of the worlds most vulnerable people as part of the UNs Global Humanitarian Response Plan for COVID-19. U.S. government departments and agencies are working together to prioritize foreign assistance based on in-country coordination and the potential for impact. With new and previously announced funds, the United States is providing the following specific assistance: Africa: Angola: $570,000 in health assistance is helping provide risk-communications and water and sanitation, and prevent and control infections in key health facilities in Angola. This assistance comes on top of long-term U.S. investments in Angola, which total $1.48 billion over the past 20 years, including $613 million in health assistance. Botswana: $1.5 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance builds on nearly $1.2 billion in total assistance in Botswana over the last 20 years, $1.1 billion of which was for health. Burkina Faso: More than $6 million in health and humanitarian funding will go toward risk-communications, water and sanitation, preventing and controlling infections in health facilities, public-health messaging, and more. This includes $2.5 million in health assistance, $1.5 million in IDA humanitarian assistance, and more than $2.1 million in MRA humanitarian assistance, which will help protect the health of refugees, internally displaced persons, and their host communities in Burkina Faso during the pandemic. Over the past 20 years, the United States has invested more than more than $2.4 billion total in Burkina Faso, $222 million in health alone. Cameroon: Nearly $8 million in health and humanitarian assistance will help provide infection-control in key health facilities, strengthen laboratories and surveillance, prepare communities, and bolster local messaging. This includes $6.1 million in health and IDA humanitarian assistance from USAID, in addition to nearly $1.9 million in MRA humanitarian assistance to support refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and their host communities. This assistance builds upon more than $960 million in total U.S. investment in the country over the past 20 years, $390 million of which was in health. Central African Republic: $5.2 million in humanitarian assistance, including $3.5 million in IDA humanitarian assistance that will go toward risk-communications, preventing and controlling infections in health facilities, and safe water supply, and $1.7 million in MRA humanitarian assistance that will help protect the health of refugees, internally displaced persons, and their host communities in the Central African Republic during the pandemic. The U.S. Government has provided $822.6 million in total in the Central African Republic over the last 20 years, including $4.5 million in emergency health assistance in Fiscal Year (FY) 2019. Republic of Congo (ROC): $250,000 in health assistance will address the outbreak. The United States has invested in the Republic of Congo for decades, with more than $171.2 million in total U.S. assistance for the ROC over the last 20 years, $36.8 million of which was for health assistance. Chad: More than $3 million in humanitarian assistance, including $1 million in IDA for preventing and controlling infections in health facilities, raising community awareness of COVID-19, and improving hygiene, and more than $2 million in MRA humanitarian assistance to help protect the health of refugees and their host communities in Chad during the pandemic. This new assistance builds upon the foundation of nearly $2 billion in total U.S. assistance over the last 20 years, including more than $30 million in health assistance. Cote dIvoire: $1.6 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. Over the past 20 years, the United States has invested more than $2.1 billion in long-term development and other assistance in Cote dIvoire. Democratic Republic of the Congo: $14.4 million, including $14.0 million in health assistance and IDA humanitarian assistance that will improve the prevention and control of infections in health facilities, and support improved awareness of COVID-19, including by working with religious leaders and journalists on risk-communication messaging. An additional $400,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance will help protect the health of refugees, internally displaced persons, and their host communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the pandemic. This builds upon more than $6.3 billion in total U.S. assistance over the past 20 years, including nearly $37 million in health. Djibouti: $500,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. The United States has already invested more than $338 million total in Djibouti over the last 20 years. Eswatini: $750,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. Funds will go to bolstering Eswatinis emergency health response, which may include commodity procurement, contact tracing, laboratory diagnostics, and raising public awareness. This assistance builds upon the foundation of U.S. assistance in Eswatini, which totals more than $529 million in total assistance over the last 20 years, including more than $490 million in health assistance. Ethiopia: More than $9 million in assistance to counter COVID-19, including $8.3 million in health and IDA humanitarian assistance for risk-communications, the prevention and control of infections in health facilities, disease-surveillance, contact-tracing, and coordination; and $789,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance for refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and their host communities. This assistance is in addition to the United States long-term investments in Ethiopia of more than $13 billion in total assistance, nearly $4 billion in health alone, over the past 20 years. Ghana: $1.6 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance builds upon $3.8 billion in total U.S. assistance to Ghana over the last 20 years, including nearly $914 million in health assistance. Guinea: $500,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. The United States has invested nearly $1 billion in total assistance for Guinea over the last 20 years, including $365.5 million in health assistance. Kenya: Nearly $4.5 million in health and humanitarian assistance, including $3.5 million in health assistance to bolster risk communication, prepare health-communication networks and media for a possible case, and help provide public health messaging for media, health workers, and communities; and $947,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance for refugees and host communities. This COVID-19 specific assistance comes on top of long-term U.S. investment in Kenya, which totals $3.8 billion in total U.S. assistance to Kenya over the last 20 years, including $6.7 billion in health assistance alone. Madagascar: $2.5 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. The United States has invested more than $1.5 billion in total assistance for Madagascar over the last 20 years, including nearly $722 million in health assistance alone. Malawi: $4.5 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. The United States has provided more than $3.6 billion in total assistance for Malawi over the past 20 years, including more than $1.7 billion in health assistance. Mali: $5.7 million in assistance for COVID-19 response includes $4.4 million in health and IDA humanitarian assistance for risk communication, infection prevention and control, and coordination, and nearly $1.3 million in MRA humanitarian assistance to support refugees, internally displaced persons, and their host communities in Mali during the pandemic. This new assistance builds upon decades of U.S. investments in Mali, which totals more than $3.2 billion in total assistance over the last 20 years, including more than $807 million in health assistance. Mauritania: $250,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. The United States has provided more than $424 million in total assistance over the last 20 years for Mauritania, including more than $27 million in health, building a strong foundation for their pandemic response. Mauritius: $500,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance builds upon the foundation of more than $13 million in total U.S. assistance over the past 20 years, including $838,000 in health assistance. Mozambique: $5.8 million in health and IDA humanitarian funding will help provide risk communication, water and sanitation, and infection prevention and control in key health facilities in Mozambique. The United States has invested nearly $6 billion total investment over the past 20 years, including development and other assistance, including more than $3.8 billion in health assistance. Lesotho: $750,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance builds upon decades of U.S. investments in Lesotho, which totals more than $1 billion in total assistance over the last 20 years, including more than $834 million in health assistance. Liberia: $1 million in health assistance will provide critical aid for all 12 Liberian counties (emergency operation centers, training, contact tracing, hospitals, and community health services), support quarantine efforts, and provide community level support. The United States has helped lay a strong foundation for Liberias COVID-19 response through more than $4 billion in total assistance over the past 20 years, including more than $675 million in health assistance. Namibia: $750,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance comes in addition to nearly $1.5 billion in total U.S. assistance to Namibia over the past 20 years, including more than $970.5 million in long-term health assistance. Niger: Nearly $4 million in assistance includes nearly $2.8 million in health and IDA humanitarian assistance for risk communication, infection prevention and control, and coordination, and $1.2 million in MRA humanitarian assistance will support refugees and their host communities in Niger during the pandemic. This assistance comes on top of more than $2 billion in total U.S. assistance for Niger in the past 20 years, nearly $233 million in health assistance alone. Nigeria: Approximately $21.4 million in assistance includes nearly $20 million in health and IDA humanitarian funding for risk communication, water and sanitation activities, infection prevention, and coordination, and more than $1.4 million in MRA humanitarian assistance for refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and their host communities. This assistance joins more than $8.1 billion in total assistance for Nigeria over the past 20 years, including more than $5.2 billion in U.S. health assistance. Rwanda: More than $2 million in assistance for Rwandas COVID-19 response includes $1.7 million in health assistance that will help with surveillance and case management efforts in response to COVID-19, and $474,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance to support UNHCRs COVID-19 response for refugees and host communities in Rwanda. This comes on top of long-term U.S. investment in Rwanda totaling more than $2.6 billion in total assistance over the past 20 years, including more than $1.5 billion in health. Senegal: $3.9 million in health assistance to support risk communication, water and sanitation, infection prevention and control, public health messaging, and more. In Senegal, the U.S. has invested nearly $2.8 billion in total assistance over the past 20 years, nearly $880 million in health alone. Sierra Leone: $400,000 in health assistance to address the outbreak. This assistance joins decades of U.S. investments in Sierra Leone, totaling more than $5.2 billion in total assistance over the past 20 years, including nearly $260 million in health assistance. Somalia: Nearly $12.5 million in assistance for COVID-19 response includes $11.6 million in IDA humanitarian assistance to support risk communication, infection prevention and control, and case management, and more, as well as $892,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance to support UNHCRs COVID-19 response in Somalia. This assistance comes in addition to $5.3 billion in total assistance for Somalia over the last 20 years, including nearly $30 million in health alone. South Africa: Approximately $8.4 million in health assistance to counter COVID-19 will support risk communication, water and sanitation, infection prevention and control, public health messaging, and more. This assistance joins more than $8 billion in total assistance by the United States for South Africa in the past 20 years, nearly $6 billion invested in health alone. South Sudan: $13.1 million in assistance for South Sudans COVID-19 response includes $11.5 million in IDA humanitarian assistance for case management, infection prevention and control, logistics, coordination efforts, risk communication, and water, sanitation and hygiene programs, and nearly $1.6 million in MRA humanitarian assistance will support refugees, internally displaced persons, and their host communities in South Sudan during the pandemic. This funding builds upon past U.S. investments in South Sudan totaling $6.4 billion for South Sudan over the past 20 years, including more than $405 million in health. Sudan: Nearly $13.7 million in assistance includes $13 million in IDA humanitarian assistance for risk communication, case management, disease surveillance, infection prevention and control, and water, sanitation and hygiene programs, and $671,000 in MRA humanitarian assistance to support refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and their host communities. The United States has invested more than $3 million in health and more than $1.6 billion in total assistance for Sudan over the last 20 years. Tanzania: $1.4 million in health assistance supports risk communication, water and sanitation, infection prevention and control, public health messaging, and more. The United States has invested more than $7.5 billion total for Tanzania over the past 20 years, nearly $4.9 billion in health alone. Uganda: $3.6 million in assistance includes $2.3 million in health assistance to address the outbreak and nearly $1.3 million in MRA humanitarian assistance will support refugees and their host communities in Uganda during the pandemic. This assistance is provided in addition to the nearly $8 billion in total U.S. assistance for Uganda over the last 20 years and $4.7 billion in health assistance alone. Zambia: $3.4 million in health assistance supports risk communication, water and sanitation, infection prevention and control, public health messaging, and more. This new assistance joins $4.9 billion total U.S. assistance for Zambia over the past 20 years, nearly $3.9 billion in U.S. health assistance alone. Zimbabwe: Nearly $3 million in health and IDA humanitarian assistance will help to prepare laboratories for large-scale testing, support case-finding activities for influenza-like illnesses, implement a public-health emergency plan for points of entry, and more. This new assistance builds on a history of U.S. investments in Zimbabwe nearly $3 billion total over the past 20 years, nearly $1.2 billion in health assistance. President Trump is being blasted by the Washington Post, and presumably by every other mainstream media outlet, for tweeting in support of those who protest lockdowns in certain states. When protesters rallied against the orders of Gov. Walz in Minnesota and Gov. Whitmer in Michigan, Trump tweeted Liberate Minnesota and Liberate Michigan. Liberal journalists expressed outrage that, having just agreed that governors should make the decisions about when and how to reopen the economies in their states, Trump proceeded to undermine his own guidance by calling for the liberation of Minnesota and Michigan from their governors lockdown orders. One writer suggested, idiotically, that Trump was illegally advocating the overthrow of state governments. I dont see any contradiction between Trumps leaving decisions to states and criticizing specific state decisions. By leaving these decisions to governors, Trump did not forfeit his right to criticize particular decisions by particular governors. Governors agree that its up to the president to determine how many tests, ventilators, etc. to obtain for the national stockpile, and how to distribute these items to the states. That doesnt mean they shouldnt criticize the president if they disagree with his decisions in this regard. Moreover, a call to liberate Michigan (for example) isnt necessarily a call to end the lockdown in that state. Michigans governor, for example, has imposed lockdown regulations that dont seem to make much sense. To the extent that her diktats go too far, calls for liberation are justified. Personally, however, I dont think Trump should be tweeting out slogans. If he has a beef with a particular states approach to preventing the spread of this virus, he should spell it out with specificity preferably in a private discussion with the governor, at least for starters. Thus, although the mainstream medias outrage over Trumps tweets is overblown, ridiculously so in some cases, there is a sound basis for criticizing them. N HS workers will be celebrated with a September supper hosted by M Restaurants, the group has announced. At M Theadneedle St, group CEO Martin Williams will host 200 NHS doctors and nurses and their partners, extending the invitation to those whove lost their partner as a frontline NHS worker. The evening will be complimentary and, provided lockdown has been lifted, is slated for September 28. I am delighted that we are able to show our massive appreciation for the NHS in our own small way by both providing 1000 meals a week for front line workers and by creating a special dinner of appreciation once the lockdown rules have relaxed and we are able to do so. I am very excited to be able to plan to host a dinner at M Threadneedle St which celebrates the incredible work and bravery of the NHS doctors and nurses. The partners of our NHS heroes have also played a huge part in this crisis, so we will be inviting them and honouring them also, particularly those who have lost their loved ones. The menu will be overseen by the groups culinary director Michael Reid, who many may recognise from the recent series of Ready, Steady, Cook. M Restaurants, which Williams oversees alongside the Gaucho group, have also pledged 1,000 meals a week for those working at Guys & St Thomas and the Nightingale hospitals. The group has partnered with the Hildon Foundation and Deliveroo to do so, and become one of the latest restaurants doing its bit to support the NHS. News also broke today of restaurant group D&D, which operates top restaurants across the globe, including Quaglinos and Radici in London, preparing 2,000 meals a day for key workers across the country. Motilal Oswal Real Estate (MORE) has raised Rs 1,150 crore for its fourth realty fund from high net worth individuals to invest in housing and commercial projects across six major cities, a senior company official said. The fund raising exercise for its India Realty Excellence Fund IV (IREF IV) started in September 2018, and now the final closure has been achieved with a commitment of Rs 1,150 crore. "We have raised Rs 1,150 crore for our fourth fund during a very challenging period," MORE Director & CEO Sharad Mittal told PTI. The company has already made an investment commitment of around Rs 550 crore in nine projects from this fourth fund, he added. "Our average investment size is around Rs 75 crore. Around 80 per cent of our portfolio is residential projects and 20 per cent commercial," Mittal said adding the company targets upwards of 20 per cent return on its investment. He said the company would be cautious in making further investments from its fourth fund and would wait and watch for at least next 4-5 months to understand the impact of global economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus outbreak. "We will focus on managing assets under our portfolio," Mittal said. The money has been raised primarily from high net worth individuals (HNIs) and family offices. "Existing investors from our previous funds have provided commitments to this fund notwithstanding the NBFC crisis during which we have raised this IREF IV fund," Mittal said. MORE had earlier raised around Rs 1,700 crore for three real estate funds. MORE is part of Motilal Oswal Private Equity (MOPE), which is the alternative investments platform of Motilal Oswal Group. At present, the cumulative AUM (asset under management) under MORE stands at more than Rs 3,600 crore. Vishal Tulsyan, MD & CEO, MOPE said, In our private equity business, we manage an AUM of more than Rs 7,000 crore, of which 50 per cent is growth capital and 50% is real estate. Over the last few years, we have raised 4 funds and have established a successful track record as a domestic fund manager." "Investing in real estate is one of the group's core strategies and while we continue to focus on residential real estate, we will also evaluate investing in other asset classes as the sector transforms in the coming years," he said. Mittal said the company has made investment in projects of Casagrand Group (Chennai), Shriram Properties (Bangalore), Phoenix Group (Hyderabad), Kolte Patil Developers (Pune), ATS Group (Delhi NCR), SD Corp (Mumbai). "The impact of the recent COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented wherein trade and businesses worldwide have come to a halt. It has impacted all sectors, including real estate. In India, since the announcement of the nation-wide lockdown, construction and sales activity across the entire real estate sector has been on a pause," Mittal said. He said the company is regularly reviewing the situation with developer partners to ensure proper cash flow management. - Ghana has received $1.6m health assistance from the United States of America to fight coronavirus - The country is among many other African countries who have received various sum for the same purpose - In the letter dated April 16, 2020, the countries included Kenya, Angola, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, and others Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in Install our latest app for Android and read the best news about Ghana Ghana has received a sum of $1.6 million from the United States to fight coronavirus. In a letter dated April 16, 2020, and sighted by YEN.com.gh on the US Department of State website, other African countries have also received sums. The letter says the donation is part of the countrys humanitarian and health assistance response to COVID-19. READ ALSO: COVID-19: Accra landlady cancels 3-month rent to help tenants (Photo) This sum, according to the letter, adds up to previous assistance the country has rendered Ghana over the last 20 years which adds up to $3.8 billion. $1.6 million in health assistance to address the outbreak. This new assistance builds upon $3.8 billion in total U.S. assistance to Ghana over the last 20 years, including nearly $914 million in health assistance, part of the letter reads. Other countries in Africa that have benefited from the gesture include Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Cameroun, just to mention a few. READ ALSO: John Dumelo opens his store room like Makola to donate provisions to people of Ayawaso Meanwhile, the US is known to have repatriated its citizens from across the world including Ghana since the outbreak of the coronavirus. As at Sunday, April 19, 2020, the USA has confirmed a total of 742,637 cases of coronavirus, 66,727 recoveries and 39,201, becoming the country leading in the number of deaths. In Ghana, so far, 834 cases have been confirmed with 99 recoveries and 9 deaths. As part of the measures to curb the spread, there is currently a 3-week partial lockdown in the country. READ ALSO: Fella Makafuis Ewe family allegedly angry with Deborah Vanessa over sweet ex saga 51-year-old Fred Drah recovers from COVID-19 in Ghana | #Yencomgh READ ALSO: Yaa Jackson and Criss Waddle spark dating rumours; their bed matter hits online Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Source: YEN.com.gh Scene at a nearly empty terminal at Los Angeles International Airport, where the number of people traveling by plane has plummeted amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times) Somehow, word got around among retired New York City firefighters about a perfect second-career job: a local company, with lots of travel perks. One by one, they became flight attendants at JetBlue. Ralph Gismondi was among the first of an estimated 30 or so former firefighters who joined the airline. He retired as a fire captain after several decades that included a stint at ground zero on 9/11. He began working as a flight attendant for JetBlue in 2003 and saw each trip as a chance to fine-tune his comedy routine over the public address system. On layovers, he would play the piano in hotel lobbies and rally other flight attendants for nights out on the town, coworkers said. On April 5, Gismondi became the first JetBlue employee to die of COVID-19. Within days, two more JetBlue deaths linked to the coronavirus followed: Pilot Kevin McAdoo, a U.S. Air Force veteran, died April 7. Then, 27-year-old Jared Lovos, a fitness enthusiast who had been a JetBlue flight attendant and transferred last summer to human resources, died April 10. New York City Fire Department Capt. Ralph Gismondi, left, retired and became a JetBlue flight attendant. (Transport Workers Union) Across the industry, The Times learned of at least 15 workers who have died from COVID-19 from April 5-13, according to the airlines, unions and interviews with family members and friends. Yet without any central tracking, the true number of deaths in the airline industry is likely to be significantly higher. Jared Lovos before his death from COVID-19. He had been a JetBlue flight attendant and transferred last summer to human resources. (Abnner Pereira) An American Airlines gate agent at Los Angeles International Airport, an aircraft mechanic at a Tulsa, Okla., airport, a baggage handler at Dallas-Fort Worth and a food services manager at JFK airport in New York are all counted among the recent dead. And the human toll of air travel is mounting. Many pilots and flight attendants see these as preventable deaths. Passenger numbers are down 95% compared with the same week last year. Airlines have made drastic cuts to service. At the same time, they are still offering specials like $35 round-trip tickets from Los Angeles to Chicago. Major airlines are set to receive $25 billion in coronavirus relief funding from the federal government; the bailout requires that carriers maintain baseline service levels. Story continues We are doing nothing but spreading the disease, said one American Airlines flight attendant, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Delta emailed flight attendants April 9 telling those with the coronavirus to refrain from notifying other crew members or posting on social media, according to an email obtained by The Times. In a statement, a spokesperson for Delta said that the email used "incorrect language" and that the airline's notification process "protects confidentiality of employees" and "follows and in some cases exceeds CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidance." While policies are inconsistent among airlines, crew members across the industry report that they either haven't been told when theyve been exposed to coworkers with the coronavirus, or notification comes too late. Until recently, airlines banned flight attendants from even wearing masks. The airlines are breaking no Federal Aviation Administration rules regarding the pandemic. In fact, the FAA has none; it recommends but does not mandate that airlines follow the CDC's guidelines. Pilot and flight attendant unions have blasted airlines for failing to properly notify crew members of exposure, demanding that the FAA mandate CDC recommendations. The FAA did not respond to detailed questions but referred a Times reporter to a letter from FAA Administrator Steve Dickson. "We are not a public health agency," Dickson wrote. All the way through mid-April, the FAA was telling airlines that crew members may continue working as long as they remain asymptomatic. But symptoms may take 14 days to appear, and the CDC now says that upward of 50% of people with the infection may be asymptomatic. The Assn. of Flight Attendants has called for the grounding of all leisure travel, with air travel limited to essential services like cargo and medical flights. JetBlue said the airline follows CDC guidelines and provides 14 days of paid leave to anyone instructed by a doctor or health official to quarantine, even if a test is unavailable. "There is nothing more important to us than the health and safety of our crewmembers and customers," a spokesperson wrote in a statement. JetBlue flight attendant Ralph Gismondi died April 5 from COVID-19. (Transport Workers Union) This is the part that gets me, said a JetBlue flight attendant, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak to the media, and who was a friend of former firefighter Gismondi. He was saving lives, and then he retired and went to passing out potato chips and pretzels. And this is what this man is going to die from? For 11 hours, flight attendant Jorge Merelles heard the sound of coughing throughout the plane from Rio de Janeiro to Miami on March 15. One woman, in particular, was gasping for air and very pale, with a deep cough like a smoker. There were a lot of elderly customers onboard who came from the canceled cruise ships. A lot of them were sick. None of them were wearing masks, Merelles said. Merelles and the other flight attendants were not allowed to wear masks at the time. Merelles got home to Miami and then flew six more legs over the course of the next week, traveling back to Brazil, to Mexico, to Los Angeles and St. Louis. On March 23, he started to feel tired. Then came a headache, a slight fever and shortness of breath. The following day, he lost his sense of taste, his fever spiked and his body ached. That night, unable to stand, he went to the hospital suspecting he had COVID-19. I was thinking of the Rio flight, he said. He spent the next eight days in the hospital, treated as a presumptive COVID-19 patient while awaiting test results. On the third day in the hospital, Merelles received a FaceTime call from a flight attendant friend, who said he was in the hospital with COVID-19 and his wife was in the ICU on a ventilator with the virus too. Before long, the two men realized they were in the same hospital, FaceTiming one another from three rooms apart. It was a sobering sign of how widespread infection had become among flight attendants. On April 1, the day Merelles was discharged from the hospital, his COVID-19 test came back positive. Merelles said it was only then that his airline started notifying crew members with whom he had flown. But the notification went to coworkers with whom he had worked in the 48 hours prior to the onset of his symptoms. By and large, airlines arent consistently telling pilots and flight attendants when theyve been exposed, according to pilot and flight attendant unions and interviews with crew members. Or, as Merelles experienced, airlines are waiting too long. He said it wasn't until April 15, a full month after his Brazil flight, that his airline called to say there had been confirmed positive cases onboard. Merelles firmly believes that all aircraft should be grounded, with flights solely for medical purposes, cargo and mail. If they have crews, have those crews tested. Check them out. Have a very tight control over this. Thats the only way to get out of this, he said. I think we are still spreading it from city to city. Flight attendant Jorge Merelles was exposed to the coronavirus on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Miami on March 15. He later was hospitalized and tested positive for the infection. (Jorge Merelles) A long line of cars drove past Gismondis house on Long Island on April 11, some with JetBlue scarves flying from the mirror. One by one, Gismondis fellow flight attendants slowed down to wave at his wife and family wearing masks and standing in the driveway. Not far away, a baggage handler from JFK airport was in the hospital with only a few days left to live. Leland Jordan, an architectural drafter, had moved in 2009 from Guyana to New York City. Working as a baggage handler was the only job he could get as an immigrant. From 9:30 p.m. till 5:30 a.m., Jordan routed bags from international flights in JFKs Terminal 4. Lacking health insurance, the 73-year-old worked as much overtime as he could get to pay for his diabetes medication and medical expenses, according to his wife, Juliet. On March 17, Jordan fell ill at work and had to be transported to the hospital by ambulance. He was later discharged to his home in Far Rockaway, Queens, near the airport. Feeling better, he went back to work. Jordan and his coworkers spent their shifts stationed in a confined indoor space, handling all of the international bags. Jordan went to his supervisor to say it wasnt right that they were not practicing social distancing and had no protective gear, his wife said. Leland Jordan was a baggage handler at JFK airport. He died from COVID-19. (Juliet Jordan) The contractor laid off Jordan and other workers March 24. About a week later, Jordan started coughing. He said he was just getting a little cold. But we didnt know, his wife said. Then he started getting a headache and grew worse. She called an ambulance April 7. He walked down the steps very strong and went and sat on the stretcher. I never thought I wouldnt see him back. But Jordan declined quickly. He died April 13. One of his coworkers, a fellow baggage handler at JFK, also died after becoming infected with the virus, according to his union, 32BJ SEIU. Everybody was worried about the dangers of COVID, said Jordans wife. But when youve got to work, youve got to work. You need money. When thats the only income you have, you have to work. Manila, April 20 : US President Donald Trump and his Philippine counterpart Rodrigo Duterte discussed possible bilateral cooperation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in a phone call, at a time of tense relations between the two countries. The call, on Sunday night, was confirmed to the local media on Monday by Senator Bong Go, Duterte's former special adviser, who did not give any other details of the conversation, reports Efe new. The US is the country with the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the world, 759,467 and 40,677 deaths; while the Philippines is the country in Southeast Asia with the highest number of infections, 6,259 and 409 deaths. The Philippines began massive tests last week to isolate positive, even asymptomatic, cases to contain the disease. The relationship between Trump and Duterte has been tense after the US Senate passed a law in January that imposed sanctions for Filipino officials implicated in human rights violations in the drug war and in the "illegal detention" of opposition senator Leila de Lima. Duterte responded in retaliation by suspending the troop visit agreement, key to close military cooperation between the two countries, and formally rejected Trump's invitation for an official visit to Washington. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text The key witness for the prosecution appeared in a Russian court on Monday to testify in the high-profile trial of a former US marine charged with espionage, agencies reported. The trial of Paul Whelan, 50, is continuing behind closed doors in a Moscow court despite the coronavirus pandemic and diplomatic protests. Whelan's lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov told agency Interfax that the witness had testified against Whelan. The lawyer did not provide further details of the session but said the defence would dispute the account offered by the witness. "We believe there are contradictions in his testimony," Zherebenkov said. US ambassador John Sullivan was not allowed to attend Monday's hearing, the embassy said in a statement. The ambassador criticised Russian authorities for not allowing Whelan to contact family and refusing to provide medical care. "He needs medical treatment for a medical issue that could be treated very simply, but it is a serious issue and the Russian government has refused," Sullivan said in the statement. "That's intolerable, and it is unacceptable." Russian authorities said journalists and embassy employees are not allowed to attend the hearings due to the coronavirus epidemic. Whelan, who also has Irish, Canadian and British citizenship, was arrested in December 2018 for allegedly receiving state secrets. He risks up to 20 years in prison if convicted. The ex-marine maintains he has been framed, saying he took a USB drive from an acquaintance thinking it contained holiday photos. He has used earlier court hearings to appeal to journalists in English, saying that he is being mistreated in prison, not given full translations of documents and rarely given access to his lawyer. Whelan is among high-profile detainees in Russia mooted for a potential prisoner swap with the United States. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday asked various district magistrates to decide what restrictions will be eased amid the Covid-19 lockdown from today and inform the state government about the same. The chief minister, however, maintained that no leniency is to be given in areas that are categorised as coronavirus hotspots and containment zones. All district magistrates should decide at the local-level after seeing the circumstances to give exemption in certain activities during the lockdown, and then inform the state government in this regard, a statement released by Uttar Pradesh government read. The district officials will work out the modalities regarding opening of specified industries, banks and other units in the 56 districts that have reported less than 10 coronavirus cases. Adityanath said that the district magistrates of 19 sensitive districts and those where there are 10 or more cases of coronavirus must decide carefully and with alertness. The district magistrates of 19 sensitive districts, where there are 10 or more COVID-19 cases, should also take a decision on the basis of sajagtaa (alertness) and satarktaa (carefulness). However, this decision will not be implemented in the hotspot areas, he said. For coronavirus hotspots Adityanath said healthcare services, sanitisation services and doorstep delivery will be allowed at coronavirus hotspots and all other activities will remain prohibited in these areas. Industrial activities For the resumption of industrial activities in select areas, he said the decision should be taken in mutual consultation of the district magistrates, divisional commissioners, DIGs, IGs, ADGs, SPs, SSPs and officials of the district industry centre. Action should be ensured at the local-level for construction of expressway and highways, he said. Support to farmers Farmers should get the minimum support price for their crops. Apart from purchasing crops at the purchase centres, arrangements should be made to purchase crops from their fields. Apart from the hotspots, massive sanitisation should be undertaken at all the places, Adityanath said. Ensure migrant labourers reach home They have completed the duration of quarantine, but even then they should be placed under home quarantine. Different teams should be formed at the district level, the teams should be given specific responsibility and their effective monitoring be done. Fodder for stray cattle should also be made, the chief minister said. Adityanath also said that nearly 8,000 students from Uttar Pradesh who were studying in Kota have been brought back. All of them are under home quarantine. The chief minister also issued directives to ensure that there is no laxity in social distancing norms and lockdown measures are observed during the Ramzan which begins from April 23. All the religious activities should be done from home, he said. In his address to the nation on April 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended the coronavirus lockdown till May 3. The Prime Minister also said that certain areas, non-coronavirus hotspots and regions that are not facing the threat of Covid-19 spread, can resume some activities from April 20. These relaxations are not allowed in areas identified as Covid-19 hotspots or containment zones. His transformational vision and strategic orientation played a crucial role in navigation of BMW Group India in a challenging business environment. BMW Group India president and CEO Rudratej Singh passed away on Monday morning following a cardiac arrest. BMW Group India, as an interim measure, has appointed its chief financial officer Arlindo Teixeira as acting president. "The company with profound sorrow, announces the demise of Rudratej Singh (46), president and chief executive officer on April 20, 2020," BMW Group India said in a statement. Sources confirmed that Singh suffered a massive cardiac arrest, though the company said the cause behind the sudden and unexpected demise is yet to be ascertained. "Our prayers are with his family and loved ones during this difficult period. He will always be remembered as an inspiring and compassionate human being," BMW Group India said. His transformational vision and strategic orientation played a crucial role in navigation of BMW Group India in a challenging business environment, it added. "His demise comes at a crucial junction when BMW Group India was in midst of implementing strategic measures for strengthening the dealer network across India," the automaker said. Singh had joined BMW Group India in August 2019. He had more than 25 years of experience and held multiple leadership positions both in the automotive and non-automotive industries. In his last assignment, Rudy, as he was fondly called, was the global president at Royal Enfield and before that he worked with Unilever in India and international markets for over 16 years. By Gabriella Borter and Doina Chiacu (Reuters) - Governors in U.S. states hardest hit by the novel coronavirus sparred with President Donald Trump over his claims they have enough tests and should quickly reopen their economies as more protests are planned over the extension of stay-at-home orders. New York continued to see hospitalizations decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. By Gabriella Borter and Doina Chiacu (Reuters) - Governors in U.S. states hardest hit by the novel coronavirus sparred with President Donald Trump over his claims they have enough tests and should quickly reopen their economies as more protests are planned over the extension of stay-at-home orders. New York continued to see hospitalizations decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. There were 507 new deaths, down from a high of more than 700 a day. "If the data holds and if this trend holds, we are past the high point and all indications at this point are that we are on a descent. Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do," Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a daily briefing. Cuomo, along with other governors, are clamoring for more testing. "The administration I think is trying to ramp up testing, they are doing some things with respect to private labs," said Republican Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland during a CNN interview. "But to try to push this off, to say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren't doing our jobs, is just absolutely false." Democratic Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia told CNN that claims by Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that states have plenty of tests were "just delusional." The region of Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. is still seeing increasing cases even as the epicenter of the U.S. outbreak, New York, has started to see declines. Boston and Chicago are also emerging hot spots with recent surges in cases and deaths. Several states, including Ohio, Texas and Florida, have said they aim to reopen parts of their economies, perhaps by May 1 or even sooner, but appeared to be staying cautious. Trump's guidelines to reopen the economy recommend a state record 14 days of declining case numbers before gradually lifting restrictions. Yet the Republican president appeared to encourage protesters who want the measures removed sooner with a series of Twitter posts on Friday calling for them to "LIBERATE" Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, all run by Democratic governors. Governor Jay Inslee of Washington redoubled his attacks on Trump's call to "liberate" states, saying the president was encouraging people to violate state laws on self-isolating. "These orders actually are the law of these states," he said. "To have an American president encourage people to violate the law, I can't remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing." The United States has by far the world's largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 730,000 infections and over 39,600 deaths. The governors of Michigan and Ohio on Sunday said they could double or triple their testing capacity if the federal government helped them acquire more swaps and reagents, chemicals needed as part of the testing process. Demonstrations to demand an end to stay-at-home measures that have pummelled the U.S. economy have erupted in a few spots in Texas, Wisconsin and the capitols of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. More than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Trump had touted a thriving economy as the best case for his re-election in November. On Saturday, several dozen protesters gathered in the Texas capital of Austin chanting "USA! USA!" and "Let us work!" In Brookfield, Wisconsin, hundreds of demonstrators cheered as they lined a main road and waved American flags to protest at the extension of that state's "safer at home" order. The demonstrators mostly flouted the social-distancing rules and did not wear the face masks recommended by public health officials. U.S. lawmakers are very close to an agreement on approving extra money to help small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic and could seal a deal as early as Sunday, congressional and Trump administration officials said. An agreement would end a stalemate that has lasted more than a week over Trump's request to add $250 billion to a small-business loan program. Congress established the program last month as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus economic relief plan, but it has already run out of money. (Reporting by Gabriella Borter in New York and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Additional reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Daniel Wallis) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Vale's iron ore production dropped 18% in Q1 compared to same period a year prior, said the company in a news release from Friday. The company's iron ore fines production totalled 59.6 Mt, while guidance was set at 63-68 Mt. Vale blamed unscheduled maintenance and bad weather. In Canada, Vale ramped down its Voisey's Bay mining operation and placed it on care and maintenance for an initial period of four weeks, later extending this period additionally by up to three months, with an impact of up to 6 kt of copper concentrate production in 1H20. Despite disruptions, base metals didn't take too great a hit. Compared to the same quarter a year ago, nickel production was down 2.9% while copper and cobalt production was about the same. But going forward, base metal production will decline. "Considering the idling of Voiseys Bay and the impact of COVID-19 on Vale's ability to perform plant maintenance stoppages common to Base Metals as scheduled, the company revised its 2020 production guidance for nickel ex-VNCto 180-195kt (from 200-210 kt) and for copper to 360-380 kt (from 400 kt)," wrote the company. Vale said it has felt disruptions from COVID-19 containment measures, but the impact could become more "meaningful." "Looking ahead, the COVID-19 impact on Vale's operations could be more meaningful, mainly from: (i) the potential increase in absenteeism levels in its producing sites, if Vale needs to intensify safety measures to protect its employees in case there is an escalation of contagion in the communities close to operations, (ii) postponement of scheduled plant maintenance stoppages in Base Metals due to safety restrictions, and (iii) potentially deeper restrictions imposed by authorities in order to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which may ultimately strain Vale's minimum labour contingent. A group of Hindu organisations in the US has launched an exclusive helpline to address the issues faced by thousands of Indian students amidst the unprecedented coronavirus crisis that has left a large number of them stranded and without accommodation. The COVID-19 Student Support Network helpline, 802-750-YUVA (9882), is a collective initiative of Hindu Yuva, Bharatiya, Vivekananda House and Sewa International. Being run by 90 students, who have volunteered for the cause from across the country, the helpline will assist Indian students in distress in various areas including delivery of essential supplies as groceries and medicines and providing them with accommodation, if they do not have any place to live, said Prem Rangwani, one of the local organisers from Washington DC. The helpline, which also has experts and professionals as volunteers, would also provide counselling to Indian students on immigration related issues and provide them with resources on mental health issues if needed. According to Gaurav Singhal, one of the organisers from New Jersey, the support network plans to organise webinar to filter the chaotic and confusing information available by hosting experts on a wide variety of topics such as immigration, finances and health. Around 250,000 Indian students are enrolled in various American universities and almost all of which have been shut down. The students have been asked to vacate their hostels. Several universities, but not all, have made special provisions for accommodating international students. Still a large number of them have to find their own accommodation. Several hotel and motel owners, and a number of Indian community organisations have come forward to provide temporary housing to needy students. COVID-19 Student Support Network has been working with the Asian American Hotel Owners Association and other Indian volunteers to provide them with accommodation. While quite a number of Indian students were able to travel back to India before the travel restrictions were imposed, a large number of them are in need of help. The helpline is a community effort to help the Indian students as much as they can, Rangwani said. Meanwhile, several US universities have started emergency funds for students and have also set up COVID-19 relief funds that provide financial assistance to their students. Some universities are also offering virtual counselling sessions for dealing with emotional and psychological distress. As a result of the coronavirus crisis, more than 95 per cent of the American population are under stay-at-home order. But essential services are fully functional all across the US. These include - restaurants that are offering take away orders, and also most grocery stores/supermarkets. These stores are also providing pick-up/delivery through online orders, where customers wish to avoid personal presence for shopping. Pharmacies are part of the essential services and are open. There have been instances of many students running out of money. In many cases, COVID-19 Student Support Network has been providing them with necessary help. The number of COVID-19 deaths in the US crossed 41,000 and the total infections were more than 764,000 so far. New York, the epicentre of the deadly COVID-19 in the US, has 2,42,000 cases and over 17,600 fatalities so far. It has registered a 50-percent decline in new cases over an eight-day period. The novel virus, which emerged in China in December last year, has killed over 160,000 and infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The grass-fed milk powder product, jointly developed by GoldMax and Fonterra Co-operative Group, a well-known dairy company from New Zealand, will meet the high-end nutritional needs of Chinese consumers, according to Lu. "Grass-fed milk powder follows the principle of natural and free-range breeding," said Wu Suguo, president of GOVKING Group (GoldMax, New Zealand). GoldMax is among the first batch of Chinese milk powder brands certified by New Zealand AsureQuality for grass-fed milk, which reflects the excellent brand value. GOVKING Group and Haikou Integrated FTZ inaugurated the GOVKING cross-border e-commerce live streaming incubator, officially announcing that the two sides will make full use of their respective advantages to jointly build the incubator. The event was broadcast live by Xinhua Silk Road to consumers in many countries around the world, as well as platforms such as kuaishou, vzan, JD.com and taobao. The live broadcast attracted a total of 4.57 million online views, and online sales topped ten million yuan. GoldMax's Love, a high-end formula product in New Zealand, has been a top selling brand for four consecutive years since it was put on the shelves in the duty-free shops in Hainan in 2015. In the future, GoldMax will embrace the new wave of short video clips and live broadcast for e-commerce, and cultivate a marketing ecosystem of celebrities, social media influencers and talents. Original link: https://en.imsilkroad.com/p/312851.html SOURCE Xinhua Silk Road The Apostolic Administrator of Estonia consecrates the Baltic nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, as the Church seeks to offer spiritual consolation to those suffering the effects of Covid-19. By Devin Watkins Estonia is the worst-hit of the three Baltic States. Although the situation is not as bad as in some other European nations, as of Monday there were 1,535 confirmed cases and 40 coronavirus-related deaths. One Estonian island has had it particularly rough. A large proportion of the inhabitants of Saaremaa have caught the virus, accounting for over half of all hospitalized patients. Spiritual response In response to the crisis, the Apostolic Administrator of Estonia consecrated the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Sunday. Bishop Philippe Jourdan told Vatican Radio that the purpose was two-fold: to pray for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic, and to help people turn these trying times into an opportunity for personal conversion. We believe that God doesnt want bad things to happen to us, but we use them also for personal conversion, he said. The consecration took place on Divine Mercy Sunday. Bishop Jourdan said devotion to the Divine Mercy is quite extensive in the Baltic nations, since several of the apparitions of Our Lord to St. Faustina Kowalska occurred in Lithuania. Some access to Sacraments Bishop Jourdan went on to describe the situation on the island of Saaremaa, saying life there is much different than in the rest of the country. The island is completely isolated. Some Catholics are living there, and they are under complete lockdown. But, he said, people in the rest of Estonia are less constrained in their movements. Churches are open and people are free to move around, though gatherings of more than two people are prohibited. At least churches are open, said Bishop Jourdan, so people can come pray before the Blessed Sacrament, receive Holy Communion with all the necessary precautions and receive the Sacrament of Confession. In a certain sense, people have the possibility to live a sacramental life. Live-streamed Masses Bishop Jourdan said police occasionally check to make sure no religious services are being held. He added that the government has been very helpful, providing masks and other sanitary products to all churches. For those who prefer to stay at home, all Masses are being live-streamed on the internet, as in other parts of the world. Extraordinary solidarity Without public Masses, there are no collection baskets being passed around. But Bishop Jourdan said Estonian Catholics are responding well and are still making donations. People feel that the Church is not just an organization providing services but is their family, he said. The Bishop also expressed appreciation for the young people who have offered to help shut-ins by doing shopping for them. He said this is just one sign of the extraordinary solidarity that Estonians are showing one another in this difficult time. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 05:04:48|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A yarn bombed tree is seen with words of thanks to honour frontline workers fighting against COVID-19 in Burlington, Ontario, Canada, April 19, 2020. As of Sunday afternoon, 34,813 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed across the country, with 1,583 deaths. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua) OTTAWA, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday that it is too early for the country's House of Commons to resume full sittings Monday when the COVID-19 pandemic is still ravaging in the country. Canada is making progress in the battle against COVID-19 but will have to be extremely cautious about removing physical distancing measures and other restrictions, Trudeau said at his Sunday's press conference. "We've seen the numbers trending in the right direction, so we need to keep doing what we're doing and keep being extremely careful." Without unanimous consent from parties on an alternative arrangement, the House is scheduled to resume full sittings on April 20 after it was suspended five weeks ago. Members of Parliament from across Canada are expected to return to their seats tomorrow unless the ruling Liberal government and opposition parties can agree on an alternative arrangement while public health officials continue their push for nationwide physical distancing. "We are in a situation where our public health authorities, our experts and common sense tell us we need to continue to limit our movements," Trudeau said. "We need to continue to work from home, we need to continue to do everything we can to ensure that people are kept safe from further spread of this pandemic," he added. With physical distancing order still in place, political parties have been negotiating over how to continue fulfilling their parliamentary roles while respecting safety protocols. So far, no parties have advocated for the House to reconvene with all 338 MPs returning to work in Ottawa. The ruling Liberal Party proposed one in-person sitting with a limited number of MPs per week bolstered by a virtual sitting to prevent COVID-19 from spreading among all 338 MPs along with their staff, clerks, interpreters, security and cleaners. But the opposition Conservative Party pushed for three in-person sittings per week with a smaller number of MPs and two hours per day for question period. Meanwhile, the New Democratic Party asked for the House to meet in-person once per week, on top of two virtual sessions that would involve hearing from a larger contingent of MPs. The Green Party of Canada said it will not provide unanimous consent for frequent in-person sittings until public health advice backed the move. As of Sunday afternoon, 34,813 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed across the country, with 1,583 deaths. Enditem France on Sunday reported 395 deaths from Covid-19 over the past 24 hours, as the number of new patients being hospitalised continued to slowly decline. The new deaths 227 in hospitals and 168 in nursing homes bring France's overall toll to 19,718, public health chief Jerome Salomon told a joint press conference with Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, Health Minister Olivier Veran and infectious diseases specialist Professor Florence Ader. Salomon said the total number of people in intensive care units fell for the 11th day in a row, to 5,744 but stressed that number remained very high". He added: Today there are 30,610 hospital patients, or 890 new patients admitted in the past 24 hours. France has now recorded 12,069 deaths in hospitals and 7,649 in medico-social establishments and nursing homes since the beginning of the epidemic. The French press agency AFP reported that globally 160,000 have died from Covid-19. As France gets ready to exit its strict lockdown on 11 May, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe offered insight into the government's strategy for getting the country up and moving again telling the press conference that our lives after confinement "will be nothing like they were before it". He said: This virus is still killing people every day; people are losing parents and partners who they cannot bury with proper dignity in the manner in which they would like," adding the 30,000 people still in battling the virus in French hospitals was a considerable figure causing continued stress for frontline healthcare workers. Separately, Veran announced that families will be able to visit loved ones in nursing homes or establishments for disabled people starting Monday. The visits, at the discretion of those in charge of the facilities, must not be made by more than two people while no physical contact will be allowed with the person being visited. Married At First Sight's Michael Goonan has awkwardly defended Stacey Hampton after she was accused of being a 'gold digger' who only dated him for his money. In a Facebook Live interview with KOTNmedia on Friday, the 28-year-old company director encouraged trolls to take it easy on his ex-'wife'. 'Look, I'll defend her. No girl wants to date a guy who works at McDonald's. Girls want guys with ambition,' Michael said. Exes: Married At First Sight's Michael Goonan (left) has awkwardly defended Stacey Hampton (right) after she was accused of being a 'gold digger' who only dated him for his money Michael explained that it's only natural for people to want to excel in life, and this means having standards when it comes to choosing a partner. 'We all want to strive for a little bit more,' he added. He then made excuses for Stacey's shallow behaviour at their wedding, which was filmed in September, by saying he had been 'immature' on their big day. 'No girl wants to date a guy who works at McDonald's': In a Facebook Live interview on Friday, the 28-year-old company director encouraged trolls to take it easy on his ex-'wife' (pictured) He also defended Stacey, 26, after she cheated on him with Mikey Pembroke on the show, and praised her as a 'good mum' to her sons, Kosta and Kruz. 'I don't want her kids growing up thinking she's a slut. The only person cheated on wasn't Australia, it was me. I've moved on. I'm happy. So who cares?' he said. Ever since her debut on MAFS, Stacey has been forced to respond to claims she only stayed with Michael for his money. Water under the bridge: He also defended Stacey, 26, after she cheated on him with Mikey Pembroke on the show, and praised her as a 'good mum' to her sons, Kosta and Kruz The law graduate appeared somewhat uninterested in her husband on their wedding day, only to change her attitude once she discovered his wealth. Stacey was blasted by viewers in later episodes, when she told Michael she wanted a credit card to spend his money. But she has strongly disputed this portrayal, insisting that she is financially secure and doesn't need anyone else's money. 'I had my own financial stability [before MAFS] with more than Michael could have provided,' Stacey said earlier this month. Three staff of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) are in trouble for participating in the popular Dont Rush Challenge. Nigeri... Three staff of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) are in trouble for participating in the popular Dont Rush Challenge. NigerianEye was privy to a query served the three NIS staff, Priscilla Irabor (38549), Catherine J. Bakura (38152) and Blessing Alfred Udida (38002). was privy to a query served the three NIS staff, Priscilla Irabor (38549), Catherine J. Bakura (38152) and Blessing Alfred Udida (38002). The viral video challenge has been on globally for months and in this case, the trio were accused of flaunting their bodies while clad in uniform. Though servicemen, women and other law enforcement officers, in many countries have made similar clips and posted on social media to show the world their humane side amid the coronavirus crisis, the NIS is having none of it. The query read: The attention of the Comptroller General has been drawn to a video clip trending on social media in recent times which revealed a rather disturbing and embarrassing display of indecent flaunting of your bodies, desecration of Service uniform/beret and the use of inappropriate language thereby, sabotaging the values upheld by the service. To state the obvious, your act has caused a lot of embarrassment to the NIS and in line with our standard as a paramilitary organisation, is considered scandalous and an act unbecoming of an officer and therefore a violation of the PSR 030401 and 030402. This is a serious offense liable to dismissal from Service. The query was signed by Ishiaka Haliru, an Assistant Comptroller General on behalf of the Comptroller General, Muhammed Babandede. Haliru, the officer in charge of Human Resource Management (HRM), gave the affected officers 72 hours to respond. Nigeria Immigration spokesman, Sunday James, a Deputy Comptroller of Immigration, told our correspondent on Monday that he is yet to receive any information on the matter. About this story, Im not aware of the query. Its just today that I resumed from leave so Im not aware, the Public Relations Officer said. However, findings by our correspondent revealed that the officers have replied to the query and await their fate. As the Australian airline he founded teeters on the brink of administration, Sir Richard Branson has warned staff working for Virgin Atlantic that the carrier could close if a government loan is not forthcoming. In an open letter, the Virgin founder wrote: Over the five decades I have been in business, this is the most challenging time we have ever faced. It is hard to find the words to convey what a devastating impact this pandemic continues to have on so many communities, businesses and people around the world. From a business perspective, the damage to many is unprecedented and the length of the disruption remains worryingly unknown. We are operating in many of the hardest hit sectors, including aviation, leisure, hotels and cruises, and we have more than 70,000 people in 35 countries working in Virgin companies. Were doing all we can to keep those businesses afloat. Addressing the problems at Virgin Atlantic which, like other international airlines, has seen demand disappear, he said: We will do everything we can to keep the airline going but we will need government support to achieve that in the face of the severe uncertainty surrounding travel today and not knowing how long the planes will be grounded for. This would be in the form of a commercial loan it wouldnt be free money and the airline would pay it back (as easyJet will do for the 600m loan the government recently gave them). The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it. Without it there wont be any competition left and hundreds of thousands more jobs will be lost, along with critical connectivity and huge economic value. Virgin Atlantic started with one plane 36 years ago. Over those years it has created real competition for British Airways, which must remain fierce for the benefit of our wonderful customers and the public at large." The Virgin Atlantic chief executive, Shai Weiss, has been in talks with the Treasury over a loan, but it is understood officials wanted the airline to tap shareholders for more cash. Virgin Atlantic is 49 per cent owned by the US giant, Delta Airlines, which has been granted billions of dollars in aid by Washington DC. In the letter, Sir Richard also tackled critics who say that he should use more of his personal fortune to bail out his businesses. Ive seen lots of comments about my net worth but that is calculated on the value of Virgin businesses around the world before this crisis, not sitting as cash in a bank account ready to withdraw. Over the years significant profits have never been taken out of the Virgin Group, instead they have been reinvested in building businesses that create value and opportunities. The challenge right now is that there is no money coming in and lots going out. In response to the open letter, Fiona Nicholls, climate campaigner for Greenpeace UK, said: Richard Bransons letter failed to convince us that suing the NHS wasnt bad for the health service, moving his money to a tax haven wasnt to avoid tax, or that emitting millions of tonnes of pollution wasnt bad for the environment. "There are still no justified grounds to give Virgin an unconditional bailout. Virgin Australia, which Sir Richard founded 20 years ago, is believed to be in voluntary administration. No official announcement has yet been made. Novartis has reached an agreement with U.S. regulators to hold a randomized trial of generic malaria drug hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 disease in 440 hospitalised patients, the Swiss drugmaker said on Monday. The decades-old medicine has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use authorization for coronavirus disease, but so far there is no scientific proof it helps those afflicted. "We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease," said John Tsai, Novartis's top drug developer. The drug, also used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has been promoted by President Donald Trump, with some worried the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine for COVID-19 has short-circuited the oversight process. INDIA CORONAVIRUS TRACKER: BusinessToday.In brings you a daily tracker as coronavirus cases continue to spread. Here is the state-wise data on total cases, fatalities and recoveries in one comprehensive graphic Also read: Coronavirus crisis: Gujarat pharma companies ramp up Hydroxycloroquine production Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: Gujarat reports 108 new COVID-19 cases; 91 in Ahmedabad Bazaar Corporate Radar | Feb 22, 2021, 12:00 AM IST Bazaar Corporate Radar Bazaar Corporate Radar is your window into the minds of top CEOs, Boardrooms, global economists, fund managers and sector analysts. If it?s making news, you?ll find it on Bazaar Corporate Radar. Prime Minister Narendra Modis government said some activities, including factories and farming, would be allowed from Monday in the hinterland which has been less-hard hit by COVID-19. New Delhi: Some shops and businesses opened in rural India on Monday as part of a staggered exit from a weeks-long lockdown that has left millions out of work and short of food, while coronavirus infections rose by more than 1,500 over the previous day. Indias 1.3 billion population has been under one of the worlds toughest lockdowns with people forbidden from stepping out of their homes except for food and medicines until 3 May. But Prime Minister Narendra Modis government said some activities, including factories and farming, would be allowed from Monday in the hinterland which has been less-hard hit by COVID-19. Small businesses reopened in the rural parts of most populous Uttar Pradesh after the lockdown in late March but police were deployed to ensure people maintained social distancing. Ramkumar Sharma, a carpenter on the outskirts of Lucknow, the state capital, said he had opened up for business again and that he would take precautions going forward. This is a great relief to be able to work, he said. A small group of construction workers showed up a labour centre nearby hoping to get hired for day jobs, only to be dispersed by police. Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers fled the big cities for their homes in the villages, unable to pay for food and rent, after Modi announced a 21-day lockdown last month which he extended by another 19 days. Even before the pandemic, Indias $2.9 trillion economy was growing at its weakest pace in over a decade, but now it is expected to slow to even zero growth in the fiscal year that began on 1 April, private economists say, putting further pressure on jobs. The focus is on select industries and farming, and rural employment guarantee programme, said Punya Salila Srivastava, a joint secretary at the home ministry which is managing the re-start of the economy. India had 17,264 cases of coronavirus infections as of Monday and more than 60 percent of these were from five of Indias 28 states. Such an uneven spread allows health officials to focus their efforts on the top affected areas, or red zones, such as Delhi and Mumbai, while allowing other states to re-start activities, another official said. Around 4,000 factories resumed operations in western Gujarat, one of the countrys most industrialised regions, the chief ministers office said. These included small, medium and big firms in sectors such as chemicals, engineering, textiles, plastics, packaging and automobiles, said Ashwani Kumar, secretary to the Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani. Modis critics have said he should have better planned the lockdown to lessen the impact on the economy and that India had no choice but to ramp up its testing for the coronavirus. The one-size-fit-all lockdown has brought untold misery and suffering to millions of farmers, migrant labourers, daily wagers and business owners, said Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress, said in a tweet last week. It needs a smart upgrade, using mass testing to isolate virus hotspots and allowing businesses in other areas to gradually reopen," he said. On Sunday, India tested 27,824 samples, the highest so far, but still some way off the target of 40,000 a day which officials want to eventually raise to 100,000. As many governors across the US say coronavirus testing is far from full capacity, a few states may lift restrictions this week. Announcements of lifting restrictions come as the United States' coronavirus death toll topped 40,000 on Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The 40,677 deaths are among more than 755,533 coronavirus cases, the university's Covid-19 tracker shows. Several regional groups of states have discussed strategies to reopen with each other. On Monday, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to announce orders that will lift restrictions on beach, river and lakefront access as well as allow shoppers to return to retail site to purchase jewelry, clothing, and furniture, according to a report from The Post and Courier. Despite the expected reopening of some sectors of South Carolina, a coalition of coastal towns in the Charleston area said in a joint statement Sunday that they will continue to limit access to non residents and monitor travel within their jurisdictions. Other states are working on plans to reopen following the release of guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week. The guidance suggests that states expand their testing capacity but some say they need more supplies and staff to do so. States want testing capacities expanded Over the weekend President Trump said governors across the country had the capacity to complete more testing but weren't utilizing their resources properly. "They don't want to use all of the capacity that we've created. We have tremendous capacity," Trump said during a briefing at the White House. "They know that. The governors know that. The Democrat governors know that. They're the ones that are complaining." Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam called the President's comments "delusional." Northam said he wants to see at least two weeks of tending numbers of coronavirus cases decreasing before businesses in his state reopen. "We want to make sure we're doing it responsibly and we're doing it safely," the democratic governor of Virginia told CNN's Jake Tapper on The State of the Union. "We've been fighting for testing, it's not a straightforward test. We don't even have enough swabs believe it or not," Gov. Northam said. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan also told CNN's Jake Tapper that Trump's claim that governors have plenty of tests and simply aren't doing their job "absolutely false." Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker gave similar remarks Sunday. He said he wants things to be reopen so residents can enjoy recreation this summer but said they need to listen to scientists and doctors investigating the virus before they can comfortably and safely reopen businesses to the public. In order to safely do so the state needs more lab technicians, more reagent and more RNA extractors to analyze specimens taken, Pritzker said. Harvard researchers warned that if the country wants the economy to open back up -- and stay that way -- testing must go up to at least 500,000 people per day. Testing nationwide is currently at 150,000 per day, they said, adding that "If we can't be doing at least 500,000 tests a day by May 1, it is hard to see any way we can remain open." Gov. Cuomo: 'We controlled the beast...we did not kill the beast' Aside from testing for the virus itself, antibody tests are being considered as a main component in determining reopening, the FDA Commissioner said in a statement Saturday. "Results from these tests can help identify who has been infected and developed antibodies that may protect from future infection as well as identify those still at risk," the statement said. As promising as these tests could be, the FDA statement said that it is still unknown if people with antibodies are fully protected from reinfection or how long their immunity might last. Despite the lack of information on how effective the current antibody testing will be, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday that the state will undertake the "most aggressive" statewide antibody testing survey in the country. "We're going to sample people in this state thousands of people in this state across this state to find out if they have the antibodies," Cuomo explained. "That will tell us for the first time what percent of the population actually has had the coronavirus and is now at least short term immune to the virus." "We controlled the beast," Cuomo said. "We did not kill the beast. And the beast can rise up again." If and when restrictions are lifted they will need to monitor infection and hospitalization rates and adjust their plan accordingly. "And if we went through all of this and lost all of these people and forced essential workers and hospital workers to do unbelievable tasks to get us through this crisis and we recreate the crisis, then shame on us," Cuomo said. Louisiana, which saw the fastest per capita growth of anywhere in the world a few weeks ago, seems to be "trending in a good direction," Gov. Bel Edwards said during a Sunday press conference. While case counts continue to rise in the state, the rate of hospitalizations and patients on ventilators has decreased, according to Edwards. "We're in much, much better place today than we thought we were going to be," Edwards said, saying Louisiana citizens are taking the stay at home order seriously and sticking to social distancing guidelines. Illinois Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike shared a similar sentiment that despite more than 30,000 positives statewide, she was "cautiously optimistic" that the number of new cases would continue to decrease. Downward trends in case counts are part of the CDC's guidelines to "get and keep America open" issued on Friday. The guidelines also recommend that rapid testing and increased hospital capacity be considered prior to states reopening. Some restrictions being lifted this week Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced three orders and the establishment of a Strike Force to Open Texas. The team will work to develop strategies, standards and time frames for reopening businesses. Abbott plans to announce a plan to reopen on April 27, according to the order. Despite several state leaders announcing their intention to reopen, over the weekend many civilians held protests across the country demanding to be let back to work to try and resuscitate the economy. More protests are planned for Monday in upstate New York, Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Missouri. Over the weekend, protesters flooded Austin calling for the reopening of businesses. Similar protests were held in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Minnesota, North Carolina and Utah last week. Pine Grove Behavioral Health & Addiction Services, one of the nations most comprehensive treatment campuses, is working to help Mississippis citizens during this pandemic by providing a free community support line related to COVID-19 Stress and Anxiety. This emotional support line is intended for adults ages 18 years old and older, and the number to call is 1-888-574-HOPE (4673). The support line hours of operation begin statewide on Monday, April 20th, 2020, and the line will be open and ready to accept calls daily from 8:00 AM to midnight, 12:00 AM. Pine Grove understands the changes in daily life due to the COVID-19 pandemic may seem overwhelming at times and mental health support for our state is needed. This support line is staffed by Pine Groves caring and qualified professionals, who want to help our fellow Mississippians during this pandemic. Debbie Sanford, Administrator of Pine Grove Behavioral Health & Addiction Services said, For 36 years Pine Grove has provided the highest quality behavioral health care and addiction treatment for the citizens of Mississippi and beyond. We are proud to be located in Mississippi and we care deeply about helping our state during this unprecedented pandemic. The upheaval in everyones daily lives because of COVID-19 is stressful. Mississippi citizens are well-known for their resilience in the face of any challenge; we want to make sure they have the tools and resources they need to continue moving forward. This emotional support line is intended to provide stress management tools for people, who are experiencing increased levels of worry due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this line is to listen, and provide resources and self-care strategies for our citizens. Pine Grove encourages people to call this support line if they are experiencing any source of stress and anxiety due to life changes regarding the pandemic. We understand that health and safety are of the utmost importance, which is why Pine Grove also expanded its programs in response to the pandemic to include telehealth services for children, adolescents and adults. Outpatient tele-therapy sessions are available and Pine Grove expanded its telehealth services to include its drug treatment Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) for men and women. All Pine Grove Evaluation Center services are available via telehealth as well. Patients interested in these services may also call 1-888-574-HOPE (4673), and visit https://www.pinegrovetreatment.com. Pine Groves world renowned programs treat gender specific chemical addiction including a specialized track for co-occurring eating disorders. Additionally, Pine Grove offers an Intensive Outpatient substance abuse healing program for adults, and a program specifically for those who are age 55 plus. Other Pine Grove specialty programs include a dedicated professionals treatment curriculum and a comprehensive evaluation center. Pine Grove also features a program for patients with sexual addiction. Inpatient Services including an Adult Psychiatric Unit, along with a Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Unit, and Outpatient Services are other components. Pine Grove was established in 1984 and has provided nationally and internationally recognized health care for 36 years. THE Victoria Falls Rapid Response Team has sent samples to the National TB Reference Laboratory in Bulawayo for confirmation after one of the eight deportees from Botswana tested positive for suspected Covid-19 symptoms following Rapid Diagnostic Testing (RDT). The deportees are isolated at Mosi-oa-Tunya High School in Victoria Falls which was identified as a quarantine centre for Matabeleland North for all returnees from Botswana, Zambia and Namibia. Matabeleland North Provincial Medical Director Dr Purgie Chimberengwa said the Rapid Response Team collected RDT samples of one of the deportees who tested positive after the RDT. This comes as DNA and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) results of two other suspected cases that had tested positive on RDT in Umguza and Tsholotsho came out negative. One of the returnees at the quarantine centre tested positive after RDT and the Rapid Response Team has taken samples for DNA PCR testing and we are waiting for results, said Dr Chimberengwa in an interview. More deportees are expected in Victoria Falls, according to officials. Dr Chimberengwa said a sample from Nyamandlovu, Umguza district and another from Tsholotsho that had initially tested positive after RDT tests came out negative after DNA PCR tests. The province is doing RDT and sending samples to Bulawayo for confirmation. We did RDT tests on a family of five in Umguza and another person in Tsholotsho. The Umguza suspected case was linked to Case Number 14 who had visited friends in Nyamandlovu before knowing his status. The whole family of five was tested and one tested positive. We sent the samples for confirmation and results came back negative which meant it was a false positive result. The Tsholotsho case is that of a TB patient who was unwell and visited the hospital where he tested positive on RDT but the DNA PCR results came back negative hence he was cleared, said Dr Chimberengwa. Meanwhile, two Hwange residents died after a short illness in separate incidents last week after complaining of flu-like conditions which the Rapid Response Team treated as suspected cases of Covid-19, but results show that they did not die from the virus. Dr Chimberengwa said results showed that the deceased, a woman aged 34 from Cinderella and a 62-year-old man from Madumabisa died of other health complications. The deaths were not Covid-19 related but everyone was panicking. We had to follow procedure to treat every sudden death as a suspected positive case so that we follow all procedures but the samples tested negative, said Dr Chimberengwa. Islamabad: Pakistan has bowed to calls from clerics and religious parties to ease restrictions on congregational prayers in mosques, despite fears the gatherings could boost the spread of COVID-19. The move ahead of Ramadan to scrap rules limiting mosque attendances to no more than five people put the world's sixth most populous nation at odds with major Muslim states where they remain closed. Saudi Arabia's highest religious body, the council of senior scholars, urged Muslims worldwide on Sunday to pray at home during the month of fasting if their countries required social distancing. A daily-wage worker waits with others to receive relief food supplies from railway officials as authorities suspended nation-wide railway service as a preventive measure against the outbreak of coronavirus, in Lahore, Pakistan, on Sunday. Credit:AP "Muslims shall avoid gatherings, because they are the main cause of the spread of infection... and shall remember that preserving the lives of people is a great act that brings them closer to God," the council said in a statement. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said his own country's mosques and holy shrines would remain shuttered for at least the first two weeks of the holy month of Ramadan, which begins on Thursday evening. The city of Northampton is seeking donations of face coverings amidst the coronavirus pandemic after the community received hundreds of requests from residents and local organizations for the piece of personal protective equipment, Mayor David Narkewicz announced Monday. The Northampton Health Department issued an order last week requiring members of the public to wear face coverings when going to areas where social distancing cannot be practiced, including essential businesses like grocery stores and restaurants. Since the mandate was put into effect on April 16, the city has received more than 2,500 requests for the piece of PPE from residents, social service agencies, police and fire departments, businesses and others, according to a statement from the mayor. Officials are now asking residents to donate face coverings and drop them off at Cooley Dickinson Hospitals north entrance Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. People can find more information on the hospitals website. Cooley Dickinson Hospital and the city of Northampton have partnered to streamline collections, to launder and package donations, and to distribute face coverings to those in need, the statement said. Face coverings can be simple and homemade, made of cloth, fabric, or other soft or permeable material without holes that cover the nose and mouth. Face masks are a much-needed commodity during the COVID-19 public health crisis. The viral respiratory infection spreads via respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. The state issued an advisory earlier this month recommending people wear face coverings in public. The Centers for Disease Control also advised individuals to put on the piece of personal protective equipment when they are not able to engage in safe social distancing. Several other communities, including Peabody and Salem, instituted orders similar to Northamptons requiring the use of face coverings in public. Other cities and towns have issued guidance but not mandates recommending the same. In Northampton, the piece of personal protective equipment must be worn in three settings: when visiting essential businesses, when seeking health care and when using public or shared transportation. Employees and patrons alike of essential businesses are required to use face coverings, according to Narkewicz. A face covering may reduce the risk of transmitting the virus that causes COVID-19 when maintaining at least 6 feet of distance isnt possible, Northampton Public Health Director Merridith OLeary said in a statement. As always, the best and most reliable prevention is to stay at home. Those in need of face coverings in Northampton have been urged to buy them if possible. Public agencies, businesses and people who are at a high risk of developing severe illness from the virus and who cannot afford the pieces of PPE can request them by submitting a form to the city. Materials - including tight-woven fabric made of cotton, polyester thread and elastic bands that are an eighth to three-eighths of an inch in width - can also be donated to the city outside the Northampton Fire Department at 26 Carlon Drive, the mayor said. Narkewicz noted that staff at the Western MAsk Project, a group of volunteer sewers, have also been making the piece of PPE for workers on the frontlines of the crisis, including health care employees and first responders. The CDC has provided a tutorial showing how to make effective face coverings. Related Content: (Reuters) - Shake Shack Inc (SHAK.N) said it will return the small business loan it received from the U.S. government, making it the first major firm to hand back money provided to help businesses ride out the impact of the coronavirus lockdown. The company will immediately return the entire $10 million U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loan as it was able to raise additional capital, CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said here in a blog post on Monday. Last week, it raised about $150 million in an equity offering. SBA, which is a key part of the governments $2.2 trillion aid package, is aimed at helping small companies keep paying their employees and their basic bills during the shutdowns so that they are able to reopen quickly when public health allows. More than 25% of the total $350 billion fund went to fewer than 2% of the firms that got relief, including a number of publicly traded companies with thousands of employees and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual sales. This lead to a backlash from smaller establishments and mom-and-pop restaurants, one of the hardest-hit sectors as diners stay at home due to lockdowns. Ruth Hospitality Group Inc (RUTH.O), Potbelly Corp (PBPB.O) and Fiesta Restaurant Groups (FRGI.O) Texas Taco Cabana are among the chains that have borrowed money. Several franchises of McDonalds Corp (MCD.N) and Dunkin Brands Group Inc (DNKN.O) are also said to have applied for the loan. If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding? Garutti and Meyer wrote. Shake Shack said the money it received could be reallocated to the independent restaurants who need it most, (and) havent gotten any assistance. Shake Shack runs around 189 restaurants in the United States, with about 45 employees in each outlet. The company closed about half of its 120 locations worldwide, and furloughed or laid off more than 1,000 employees after sales fell 28.5% in March. On Sunday, President Donald Trump defended restaurant chains, hotel operators and hedge funds accessing funding meant for small businesses. U.S. Democrats and Republicans are nearing an agreement on extra money to help small businesses, Trump said on Sunday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on CNN the deal being discussed with Congress would include $300 billion more for the Paycheck Protection Program loan program for small businesses. When his beloved dog, Gunnar, was hit by a truck and left paralyzed, Jason Parker, from Osseo, Wisconsin, decided to fight for his canines life before inaugurating a non-profit organization in his name. Today, Jason provides wheelchairs for other injured animals in an effort to give them renewed joy and a new lease on life. In an email interview with The Epoch Times, Jason shared his and Gunnars story. Jason and Gunnar. (Courtesy of Jason Parker) The Tragic Accident Gunnar was hit by a truck in February of 2014 and left a paraplegic, Jason began. We took him to the University of Minnesota for emergency surgery, but there was too much damage to his spine for him to make a full recovery. Jason and his wife, Stephanie, were offered by the veterinarians who treated Gunnar to have the dog put to sleep, but he refused to give up hope. Jason, a volunteer firefighter, maxed out the couples credit cards paying for surgery, boarding, and months of physical therapy for Gunnar, but it was to no avail; the dogs hind legs were irreparably damaged. Gunnar got a second chance at life. (Courtesy of Jason Parker) Giving for Gunnar The devastated dog owner then took to researching options to improve Gunnars quality of life and discovered canine wheelchairs, but by then the couple had exhausted their funds. However, an article in a newspaper saved the day. A local newspaper contacted me after hearing about Gunnars story, which I had chronicled on social media, and wanted to do a story on him to run in the Sunday paper, Jason explained. The title of the story was Giving for Gunnar. Without my knowledge they had set up an account in Gunnars name where people could donate to his ongoing care, he continued. The couple then purchased Gunnars first $600 wheelchair with the donations, and by spring of 2014, Gunnar had regained his mobility. People from all over the reading area sent cards, money, and well wishes to a dog that they had never met, Jason recalled. It restored my faith in humanity. Full of Joy Jason reflected that Gunnars life was full of joy even after his accident. The first time we put him into the wheelchair, his eyes lit up, Jason said. I will never forget that look, or the way it made me feel seeing the life come back into his eyes. Jason and Stephanie then decided that the best way to express gratitude to the community that had donated its hard-earned money to help their dog was to pay it forward by doing the very same thing for other animals in need. I wanted to pay it forward to folks that were in our position, and shelter and rescue animals that needed a mobility device, Jason explained. Lukah, a golden retriever, is able to run all over the farm with the help of his new cart. (Courtesy of Jason Parker) In August 2016, a pit mix stray named Hope, from Texas, became Jasons first case. Hope had been hit by a vehicle and needed to get back on her feet, so Jason located a used wheelchair, purchased it, and shipped it to Hopes caretakers. After a few months of rehabilitation, Hope was successfully adopted. Along with some great physical therapy, said Jason, she recovered and now runs freely without the need for the wheelchair. Soon after, a charity with a brand-new mission was born: Gunnars Wheels. I wanted everyone involved to experience the same joy that Gunnar and I enjoyed while he was in his wheelchair, Jason explained. A Typical Day at Gunnars Wheels On a typical day, Jason rises early to read messages received overnight from owners and rescues. Describing the charity as a lifetime loaner program, Jason then matches returned wheelchairs with potential recipients based on their breed, weight, and body measurements. It costs nothing for rescues and granted owners, Jason explained. All we ask is that the chair is returned to us when finished with use, whether the animal passes away or recovers, so we can match it up with the next animal in need. Trotter gets a second chance at life. (Courtesy of Jason Parker) Jason asks each owner to affix a photo and brief biography of their dog to their wheelchair before returning it so that each dog is remembered and the pay it forward philosophy becomes more tangible. I believe it helps with the grieving process for the previous owner, and provides hope for the new recipient, Jason reflected. As of 2020, Gunnars Wheels has over 1,300 wheelchairs in its fleet and has helped almost 2,000 animals in need since 2016. Jason counted dogs, cats, goats, rabbits, a baby deer, a tortoise, and even an opossum among the charitys many recipients. Emmy Lou rolls again after her new set of wheels. (Courtesy of Jason Parker) Success Stories Among Jasons favorite success stories is a German shepherd named Champ that survived distemper. The dog retained some motor control and was thus fitted with a four-wheeled chair called a quad that can be used for walks, play, and exercise. We outfitted his cart with a handle, Jason explained, so his mom can help steer him clear of obstacles and help him maneuver through crowds. As Jason continues to help animals in need with his non-profit, his best piece of advice for anyone caring for a special-needs animal is simple: dont be afraid to try new things. Think outside the box to help you and your animal adapt to a new normal, he advised. Research and ask questions. Jason refers to the online community as family, explaining, these folks are some of the best people you may or may not ever meet. Strength, Love, and Compassion Sadly, Gunnar passed away in October 2017, but his legacy lives on in Jasons ongoing work for other injured animals. Gunnar was a magnificent animal, much like anyones animal, Jason reflected. There is a saying: Everyone thinks their animal is the greatest, and none of them are wrong. My fondest memories of him were post-accident, Jason continued. We had a great life pre-accident, but post-accident is where he showed me the true meaning of strength, love, and compassion. Welcome signs into a British city are still promoting a Chinese twin city nine months after ending their relationship following a scandal over a 'dog meat festival.' Labour-controlled council chiefs in Newport, South Wales, pledged to cut links with twin city Wuzhou in Guangxi province in July 2019 following large protests by residents over the cruel festival held in the Chinese city. The Yulin dog meat festival will be held in June and has been running for a decade. However it has attracted widespread outrage with more than 1.5 million people around the world signing an online petition demanding to ban the sick festival. A road sign on the busy M4 still shows how Newport is still twinned with Wuzhou But despite the links being officially severed with Wuzhou, road signs into Newport are still displaying the twin link on the busy M4, on main Malpas Road and on the A48 at Penhow. Wendy Higgins, of the Humane Society International UK, said: 'The council made a pledge to remove references to the province from signage, and so its disappointing that this has still not been done. 'We certainly hope the Council will keep its promise before the first dogs and cats are killed for this years Yulin festival. 'Thousands of dogs and cats will once again be beaten, killed and consumed at the Yulin festival in Guangxi province, China. 'It is perhaps the most infamous example of a brutal trade that sees millions of mainly stolen pet cats and dogs killed every year in the country. Entrance to the city on the A48 at Penhow also shows how the sign has not been updated 'Guangxi province is one of the main dog and cat meat trade areas in China, and so Newport Council made the right decision to cease its town twinning as inappropriate.' Newport Council promised to act after a petition demanding an end to the 23-year relationship between the two cities gained almost 40,000 signatures. A spokesperson for Newport Council said ties had been officially cut but they were still waiting for signs to be updated. The spokesperson said: 'Newport City Councils twinning with the province was dormant for a number of years but all ties were cut officially last summer. 'The signs that are still in place date back several years and the wording will be amended or removed when possible and appropriate.' (Photo : REUTERS/Stephen Lam/) TM Roh, president & head of mobile communications business of Samsung Electronics, unveils the Galaxy S20, S20+ and S20 Ultra smartphones during Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2020 in San Francisco, California, U.S. February 11, 2020. To recover from the loss in the first quarter of 2020 due to coronavirus pandemic, Samsung will focus on releasing affordable 5Gsmartphones throughout the year. Globally, smartphone sales have dropped by 13.3% in the first quarter. According to Strategy Analytics, In February, only about 60 million units were sold, which was a 38% decline from last year's 99.2 million units. However, global sales are likely to drop further by 10% this year due to the pandemic. This has prompted Samsung to focus on cheaper smartphones to encourage the market to switch their phones without breaking the banks. Last week, Samsung unveiled its affordable 5G line-up, including Galaxy A51 5G and Galaxy A71 5G in the United States, and selling these handsets at $499.99 and $599.99, respectively. In South Korea, they are likely to respectively cost around 500,000 Won ($411) and 700,000 Won ($575). Interestingly, the Galaxy A71 5G is also now available in China at 3,999 Yuan ($480). There is also growing speculation that the rest of Samsung's A-series will be budget-friendly 5G phones. The tech giant Samsung has been strongly supporting the development of 5G smartphones since the release of its premium devices like Galaxy S10 5G, Galaxy Note 10+ 5G, and Galaxy A90 5G. Comparing the prices of this new line of affordable 5G smartphones, apparently, Samsung has slashed the price of its 5G smartphones by 62% in just 11 months. Last year, Galaxy S10 5G, the first Samsung 5G smartphone, was priced at $1299.99. Meanwhile, these new Samsung models and other upcoming affordable 5G smartphones will be launched in all countries with 5G networks. In addition, the South Korean smartphone company will continue to launch new Galaxy A and Galaxy M series devices in all markets in a bid to recover from the sales decline. READ ALSO: [BREAKING] Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite is Sale on Friday! Take Home this Handset for Only $650 Galaxy S20 series The sales of Samsung Galaxy S20 series phones have been significantly lower than what the company had expected. A new report by Seoul Economic Daily suggests the Galaxy S20 trio only sold roughly 60% as much as the Galaxy S10 series within the same amount of time on the market last year. This does not look good and seems unlikely for the company to achieve its 32 million sales target for the Galaxy S20 series. Aside from the health crisis, the high pricing of the Galaxy S20 series phones has also impacted sales. Budget-friendly 5G Phones While waiting for the new Samsung line-up, you may want to check on these affordable 5G smartphones. OnePlus 7 Pro 5G The OnePlus 7 Pro 5G was one of the first phones to support a 90Hz refresh rate on its display. A popup front camera lets the screen flow to every edge of the phone, and a faded blue color scheme on the back makes this a cool looking phone. It does not lack the power either with a Snapdragon 855 and 8GB of RAM. The OnePlus 7 Pro has a 5G variant on Sprint that costs $840, which is cheaper than 5G phones from LG and Samsung priced at $1,000 and above. Motorola Moto Z4 The successor of 2018's Motorola Moto Z3, Moto Z4, can connect to 5G using a Moto Mod modular accessory, which attaches to the back of the phone using magnetic pins. The Moto Z4 phone is sold at $499 plus the Mod, which costs $350. Coolpad Legacy 5G The Chinese brand Coolpad will launch its first 5G phone, the Legacy 5G, in the second quarter of 2020. At less than $400, it will be one of the cheapest 5G phones on the market. The Legacy operates on a sub-6GHz spectrum and can be used under 5G networks T Mobile, AT&T's, Sprint's network, and other rural carriers. READ ALSO: Leaked: Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 Has a Missing Feature From Note 10 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Brazos Bend State Park has reopened to the public but there are some things visitors should know before they head to the Fort Bend County park. The park was reopened as of Monday following last weeks order from Gov. Greg Abbott. But there are restrictions which must be followed for any visitors. According to a written statement from the governors office: WINNIPEGThe Manitoba government extended its state of emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic Monday and shed more light on its plans for temporary public-sector job reductions to free up money for health care. The state of emergency that was to expire this week has been extended another 30 days until mid-May. Extending the state of emergency will ensure we are able to provide the necessary resources to the front line of our health-care system Pallister said. Public health orders that limit crowd sizes, close non-essential businesses, and force interprovincial travellers to self-isolate for 14 days are, for now, still set to expire May 1. But those will be continually evaluated, said Dr. Brent Roussin, the provinces chief public health officer. Roussin reported one new case of COVID-19 Monday, bringing the total of confirmed and probable cases to 254. He also revealed the death of a Winnipeg-area woman in her 80s with underlying health conditions the sixth death in the province since the pandemic began. The Progressive Conservative government has forecast a $5-billion hit to the provincial budget this year a combination of higher health spending and reduced tax revenues from a slumping economy. Last week, the government asked public-sector workers who are not on the front line to consider accepting reduced work weeks or temporary layoffs. It also wrote to Crown corporations, universities and other publicly funded bodies, asking them to map out three scenarios for a reduced workforce between May 1 and Sept. 1 cuts of 10 per cent, 20 per cent and 30 per cent. Those plans are due this week. Then well discuss ... what savings can appropriately be achieved right now, Pallister said. But lets understand that this is a pandemic were in the middle of it and that it presents very real challenges that frankly are without precedent. University officials said they were preparing the plans. Its certainly a challenging request the government has given to us, University of Manitoba president David Barnard said. The University of Winnipeg has already laid off staff who provide services that are needed when students are on campus, said Chris Minaker, senior executive officer of external engagement We want to do our part to support the provincial government, Minaker said in a written statement. We are reviewing the options and will provide those to government as requested. The NDP Opposition called on the government to reconvene the legislature this week so that its cost-cutting can be debated. With the prospect of thousands of job cuts, now more than ever, the government needs oversight and accountability, NDP Leader Wab Kinew said in a written statement. Note to readers: This is a corrected story; a previous version said the government is extending its health orders. Read more about: Delhi to ease restrictions, if Covid cases come down in next 2-3 days: Health Minister Lata Mangeshkar health update: Doctor says,'She in ICU with Covid-19 and pneumonia, will be under observation' Will admit only coronavirus free Muslims says hospital, faces FIR India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Meerut, Apr 20: Police have booked the management of a cancer hospital here after it put out an advertisement saying it would treat Muslims only when they produce a report showing they have tested negative for coronavirus. The newspaper advertisement released by the Valentis Cancer Hospital on Friday also said most Hindus and Jains are "misers", and asked them to contribute to the prime minister's fund to help fight coronavirus. Coronavirus clusters in Ahmedabad, where containment is taking place Facing flak on social media, the hospital came up with another advertisement on Sunday, carrying an apology. The original advertisement blamed the Tablighi Jamaat -- whose congregation in Delhi last month was seen as a coronavirus hotspot -- for spreading the disease in the country and then set conditions for admitting Muslim patients. They must get themselves and their attendants tested for coronavirus and bring the report along, it said. Police have registered a case against hospital manager Amit Jain, Incholi SHO Brijesh Kumar Singh said on Sunday. Asked to comment on the controversial advertisement, Meerut's Chief Medical Officer Raj Kumar said, "This is certainly wrong and we are sending a notice to the administration of the concerned hospital." He said further action will be taken after a reply is received from them. In the second advertisement issued Sunday, the hospital said it apologizes if anyone's sentiments are even slightly hurt. Referring to the coronavirus pandemic, the hospital said it wanted people of all religions to fight the emergency together. Coronavirus: Full list of containment zones in Delhi "We never had the intention to hurt anyone's feelings. If anyone from the Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Sikh or Christian community has been hurt, we extend our heartfelt regrets. The new advertisement said the hospital was wrong in calling Hindus and Jains "misers". The hospital administration could not be contacted despite several attempts. Vijay Mallya is likely to be brought back to India in next a couple of weeks as his plea against the extradition is refused by the London High Court. Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya faced a major setback on Monday, April 20, as the London High Court turned down his plea against his extradition. Mallya, who has been on a run, is accused of financial frauds by several Indian banks. Earlier, his pleas against the extradition was junked by lower court and now the London High Court has rejected is request. Reports said the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) have been pursuing Mallyas extradition case since 2016 and today they finally received a good news. UK Home Secretary Priti Patel will now decide Vijay Mallyas extradition and it is assumed that he will be brought back to India in next couple of weeks. In its observation, the Court found Mallya accused of finacial frauds committed between September 1, 2009, to January 24, 2017 in India. The court found that Mallya conspired together with A Ragunathan, S Borkar, A Nadkami, A Shah, Y Agarwal, B Batra, O Bundellu, S Srinivasan, R Sridhar and others to trick India banks, corporations, companies and firms to deposit funds with IDBI bank and dishonestly got permission to disburse heafty amount loans to his company Kingfisher Airlines. The London High Court added that Mallya defrauded in the order of (a) INR 1500 million on October 7, 2009, (b) INR 2000 Million on November 4, 2009, and (c) INR 7500 million on November 27, 2009, with the intention not to repay the said loans as agreed and required. He also provided false information to the banks with respect to Kingfishers profit accounts. For all the latest National News, download NewsX App I want to start this weeks column with a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who have reached out to me and my wife Cindy over the past few weeks as we both battled the novel coronavirus. Your well wishes and prayers meant a great deal and gave us both strength during our fight against this sinister virus. As the pandemic continues there are so many on the front lines that are deserving of our respect, admiration, and thanks. Nurses, doctors, first responders, police, corrections officers, grocery store and pharmacy workers, truck drivers, and many others are risking their health and spending countless hours away from their families to help our state and nation endure through these difficult times. I understand many are struggling with health and economic issues. There are no easy solutions moving forward and additional aid will have to come from the state and federal levels to help with our recovery. Already, I have joined with my Senate Republican colleagues to push for a couple of key actions. First, a letter was sent to the United States Department of Agriculture calling for assistance for our farmers. Agriculture is New Yorks top industry and vital to our health and way of life. Unfortunately, in the best of times, farming can be a struggle and the Coronavirus is taking a devastating toll on many farms. The letter reads in part: New York dairy farmers need urgent assistance. To be clear, they are not looking for a handout, and they are not in this grim position because of their own failure. Government action to respond to COVID-19 while necessary has artificially eliminated the natural demand for dairy products, so it is the duty of government to rectify the situation and help dairy farmers remain financially viable in this difficult time. For this reason, we look to USDA for help. The recently passed CARES Act appropriates $9.5 billion to USDA, and we urge you to use that funding for direct financial assistance to farms who have faced harm because of COVID-19. Additionally, we urge the Department to make purchases of dairy products like fluid milk, butter, cheeses, and dry milk powders. Direct commodity support and export assistance would also help farms manage their decreased domestic demand. At a time when so many Americans are out of work, more individuals are turning to food pantries for their next meal. However, many food pantries lack cold storage space to keep milk products fresh. This is an excellent opportunity to create a voucher program for people in need through the Milk Donation Program, as authorized under the 2018 Farm Bill, to facilitate the distribution of donated milk through grocery stores and other venues. Doing so would help poor Americans keep food on the table, and also add demand for dairy farmers. Late last week, the USDA announced $16 billion in direct support for farmers in need. Another $3 billion will be used to purchase meat, dairy products, fruit and vegetables with excess food going to food banks. This is a big win. Additionally, I am calling on the governor to release scheduled raises for essential state workers. The state is delaying the two percent raises for 80,000 individuals who are on the front lines, and in some cases, performing very dangerous jobs. The letter reads in part: Recognizing this service in these unprecedented times, then, I appreciate this opportunity to urge you to immediately provide an exemption for essential workers unable to work from home, and unable to take adequate social distancing precautions on the job, from your freeze of their scheduled two-percent salary increase. These include corrections officers, law enforcement officers, nurses and other public hospital staff, and direct caregivers in nursing and group homes, and mental health care facilities. These are just a couple of elements. I will be highlighting many others as we continue to respond to this health crisis. For health information and updates on state polices, visit https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/home. State Sen. James L. Seward represents New York's 51st Senate District, which includes part of Cayuga County. Love 2 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 317 Shares Share How much will this cost me? This is the last thing that a patient with COVID-19 should have to think about, but this is a major concern for the at least 27 million Americans facing the pandemic without health insurance. These individuals include construction workers, drivers, and cashiers, many of whom must continue to work because they are financially strapped or because they are essential personnel. As a physician on the frontlines of the coronavirus response, I worry that uninsured individuals who contract coronavirus will not present to medical care or even continue working, due to financial concerns. In one uninsured patients experience, her total bill for coronavirus testing and treatment at a Boston-area hospital was $34,927.43. Last month, Congress approved the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which will fund free coronavirus testing for everyone, including the uninsured. While optically appealing, in the grand scheme of medical care indicated for COVID-19, this provision is a band-aid over a bullet hole. Patients are still responsible for the cost of hospitalization and treatment, which can be astronomical. If the hospitalization includes intubation and several days in the intensive care unit, the bill can be hundreds of thousands of dollars. States like California and New York have opened enrollment in the state insurance exchanges created through the Affordable Care Act. The federal administration, which runs/oversees the remaining 38 state exchanges, recently rejected a special enrollment period for the rest of these markets. For the millions of uninsured Americans who do not qualify for health care under Medicaid, this leaves them with few options. Health care experts agree that making health care as cheap and as accessible as possible is key to controlling the pandemic, yet the current administration has chosen to reject this option. In addition to not opening a special enrollment period through the federal exchange, the administration is also attempting to repeal the Affordable Care Act. In early March, during the initial rumblings of the pandemic, a group of Republican attorneys general led by Texas, were granted a Supreme Court hearing of their case to invalidate the ACA. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear this case in the fall, likely around election season. Given that experts predict that COVID-19 may reappear in the fall, repealing the ACA at that time without having a replacement would leave 21 million Americans without health insurance. When asked if he would consider rescinding the lawsuit in the setting of coronavirus, Trump reiterated at a press conference that he still wanted to get rid of the ACA, without specifying how he would replace it. Worst-case scenarios estimate that 50 percent of Americans could contract coronavirus. However, it is readily apparent that not everyone will be affected equally. Construction workers, drivers, cashiers, and other frontline workers are most at risk for becoming sick, and for losing insurance or not having it to begin with. The decision to not expand health care coverage right now will relegate Americans already hurting from a struggling economy, to financial ruin if they were to be hospitalized. These hospital bills are not something that a $1,200 stimulus check can cover. While the ACA has its imperfections, we cannot ignore the fact that it provided health insurance to 21 million people and could provide health insurance to millions more. It is crucial that the federal government open the insurance exchange so that uninsured individuals and workers who recently lost their employer-provided coverage can sign up for health insurance. It is also equally critical that they dont take this coverage away in the fall, given the projected seasonality of COVID-19. There has never been a more pressing time to expand health care coverage in America: we need health insurance, and we need it now. Jingyi Liu is an internal medicine resident. Image credit: Shutterstock.com I can think of no reasonable explanation for the president of one of the worlds richest, most medically advanced societies to buck all serious advice and tweet as my president did, on Saturday, the following directives: LIBERATE MINNESOTA, LIBERATE MICHIGAN, and LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege. By now, New Yorkers like me can already tell you what happens when you don't observe social distancing: you watch hospitals struggle to keep up. You watch people die, over and over and over again. You watch cities and communities fall to pieces. The president knows this. Many believe he is stupid. I dont happen to think thats true in the traditional sense of the word. Bookish he is not, but stupid? No. Every tweet he throws into a crowd is an unpinned grenade. Donald Trump, resolute, has encouraged the residents of those three states (and others) to buck the edicts set forth by their governors. The result: protests all in close quarters, it should be noted, an even more preposterous visual element in all of this, people shoulder-to-shoulder in the middle of an epidemic on the steps of government buildings, screaming about violations of so-called freedoms. These protestors might die as a result, the literal kerosene to the presidents lit match. Trump knows, fundamentally, that the worst is not yet behind us. And yet, he is hell-bent on waging war against his own citizens. Because the president thrives in moments of political upset. Political upset got him elected, and hes banking that political upset (or, really, a civil war) will get him elected again, too. Except, this time, the consequences are more dire than the circulation of memes on the internet, accusing Hillary Clinton of running a pedophile ring in the nonexistent basement of a DC pizza joint. This time, Trump will have the blood of thousands of Americans on his hands. The people who jump when Trump says jump, the ones who showed up at the protests and who organized at the drop of a hat when they saw his tweets and the ones who will likely contract the disease because they did everything science and medicine tells us not to are the same people who voted against their own self-interests in 2016. Coronavirus: Trump allies with protesters in Michigan These are the people from the Rust Belt, who were promised higher wages by a man who has never himself known sacrifice yet their wages remain stagnant. These are the people from the Midwest who were told that the president had a plan for more comprehensive health insurance for them and who are still, nearly four years later, navigating the same uncertain waters of private insurance. These are people from all over, who were told that the United States would see ceaseless fortune as the result of one mans business acumen, and who are now, in 2020, seeing themselves plummet instead toward the bottomless pit of a recession, brought on by an unforgivably delayed response to a pandemic by that same businessman. These are Trumps warriors and victims. These are the casualties of Trumps civil war. Over the weekend, protests erupted in Colorado which pitted flag-waving pro-Trumpers against counterprotesting healthcare workers from local hospitals. This is how it begins. Steel yourselves, Americans. It is not that our president knows not what he does. He knows, but he does not care. We are all disposable. When war erupts, as we know it will, remember this moment, when we tested the boundaries of how far our democracy could stretch, when we pulled an elastic until it could no longer be pulled past taut. He will test us with civil war, but whether or not we arrive at civility on the other side rests purely on us. -As a specialized agency for public health, the WHO has striven to fulfill its purposes of collecting information on various infectious diseases globally and issuing timely warnings. -As a key platform for multilateral cooperation mechanisms, the WHO has played an important role in coordinating international efforts to end the global fight. -In addition to daily situation reports starting on Jan. 21, the organization has published practical guidance that covers all aspects of epidemic prevention and control on its website, including surveillance and case definitions, patient management, risk communication and community engagement, country-level coordination, planning and monitoring, and guidance for schools, workplaces and institutions. GENEVA, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has taken timely and decisive measures with an objective, scientific and impartial response to guide global anti-epidemic cooperation, gaining wide recognition from the international community. Despite the rapid spread of the pandemic, which, according to the latest figures of the WHO, has led to over 2.1 million cases and more than 146,000 deaths globally, the U.S. administration announced earlier this week that it is halting funding to the WHO, after weeks of criticism of the health organization and its handling of the outbreak. World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a daily briefing. (Xinhua/Chen Junxia) While some Western politicians have politicized the virus and smeared the efforts of the WHO, China has called for solidarity and cooperation in the global fight. In an article published in the Qiushi Journal on Thursday, Chinese President Xi Jinping wrote that only with solidarity and cooperation can the international community prevail over the epidemic and protect humanity's common home. TIMELY WARNINGS As a specialized agency for public health, the WHO has striven to fulfill its purposes of collecting information on various infectious diseases globally and issuing timely warnings. The WHO "has largely served its purpose well" in the COVID-19 crisis, said Thomas Bollyky, director of the global health program and senior fellow for global health, economics, and development at the Council on Foreign Relations, a U.S. think tank, urging Washington not to "degrade it amid a crisis." On Jan. 5, the WHO published its first disease outbreak news on the new virus, including a risk assessment, advice, and China's reports on the virus, two days after China informed the organization of the outbreak, as well as relevant countries and regions. On Jan. 12, the agency said in a press release that "China shared the genetic sequence of the novel coronavirus, which will be of great importance for other countries to use in developing specific diagnostic kits." On Jan. 31, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), sending the highest level of alarm. On March 11, Ghebreyesus said at a press conference that "COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic." The WHO quickly declared a PHEIC and classified COVID-19 a pandemic soon after, Lawrence Gostin, a public health law professor at Georgetown University, tweeted on April 8, adding that "US/Europe had time to prepare. They didn't! Easy to blame @WHO, but it's our fault." U.S. President Donald Trump is attacking the WHO "because he loves to have international targets that deflect from his own performance on the pandemic," Darrell West, director of governance studies at Brookings Institution, a Washington D.C.-based think tank, told Xinhua. In addition to sounding warnings at critical moments, the WHO always sends experts to virus-hit regions to collect information to better understand the situation. On Jan. 28, a senior WHO delegation led by Ghebreyesus traveled to China's capital Beijing. On Feb. 16, the WHO-China Joint Mission, consisting of 25 experts from eight countries and the WHO itself, began its nine-day field study trip in Beijing and the provinces of Guangdong, Sichuan and Hubei. Bruce Aylward, an epidemiologist who led an advance team from the World Health Organization (WHO), speaks during a press conference of the China-WHO joint expert team in Beijing. (Xinhua/Xing Guangli) "China's good cooperation with the World Health Organization has enabled various national authorities to prepare, as best as possible, for the difficulties brought by the wave of contamination," former French prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin told Xinhua. ANTI-EPIDEMIC COORDINATOR The pandemic is "a global emergency, and every aspect of the response needs coordination," said Dr. David Nabarro, co-director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London, who has been appointed as a special envoy for the response to the coronavirus pandemic. As a key platform for multilateral cooperation mechanisms, the WHO has played an important role in coordinating international efforts to end the global fight. On Feb. 7, warning that the world is facing severe shortages of personal protection equipment (PPE), Ghebreyesus said the WHO is engaging more than ever with private sectors globally to send test kits, masks, gloves, respirators and medical gowns to every affected region. According to a report published by the Brookings Center on Regulation and Markets late last month, the WHO had sent hundreds of thousands of tests to different countries by early February, but the United States insisted on developing its own test kits, delaying testing throughout nearly all of February -- "a lost month during a critical period." So far, the organization has shipped more than 2 million items of PPE to 133 countries and regions, as well as over 1 million diagnostic tests to 126 countries, the WHO chief said at a news conference on April 8. To fast-track global research on the disease, a two-day forum on COVID-19 coordinated by the WHO concluded in Geneva on Feb. 12, identifying nine thematic areas of research on the outbreak, such as vaccine research. Noting that vaccine research "is an issue that must have strong global coordination," Nabarro said, "I'm very pleased the World Health Organization has established mechanisms for doing this and I hope that all nations will follow it." On April 8, Ghebreyesus said that the WHO has pledged over 800 million U.S. dollars in response to the pandemic, including more than 140 million dollars raised through its COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund launched in March. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (L) speaks at a press conference. (Xinhua/Chen Junxia) "Our position is that the UK has no plans to stop funding the WHO, which has an important role to play in leading the global health response," a spokesperson for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said at a media briefing on Wednesday. The British government on April 12 announced a donation of 65 million pounds (81 million dollars) to the WHO to support the anti-epidemic fight. PRACTICAL GUIDANCE The WHO played an important role in directing the global fight against COVID-19, said Takakage Fujita, director general of a Japanese civil group dedicated to upholding and developing the well-known Murayama Statement. In addition to daily situation reports starting on Jan. 21, the organization has published practical guidance that covers all aspects of epidemic prevention and control on its website, including surveillance and case definitions, patient management, risk communication and community engagement, country-level coordination, planning and monitoring, and guidance for schools, workplaces and institutions. On March 18, the WHO and its partners launched the Solidarity Trial, an international clinical trial to help find an effective treatment for COVID-19. "I'm glad that many countries have joined the Solidarity Trial, that will help us to move with speed and volume," Ghebreyesus said at a news briefing on March 23. Through its OpenWHO platform, the agency provides real-time training for medical workers with interactive and online courses in 43 languages, including public health expertise and in-depth discussion and feedback on key issues, which has attracted 1.2 million participants. In a reply letter to Ghebreyesus, Xi said on March 26 that China will continue to firmly support Ghebreyesus and the WHO playing an active and leading role in the global fight. "The WHO, with thousands of its staff, is on the front lines, supporting member states and their societies, especially the most vulnerable among them, with guidance, training, equipment and concrete life-saving services as they fight the virus," United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement on April 8. Photo taken on April 3, 2020 shows UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaking at a virtual press briefing. (Xinhua/Xie E) The UN chief on Tuesday noted that "now is the time for unity and for the international community to work together in solidarity to stop this virus and its shattering consequences." Redmond WA, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Codeproof Technologies, a leading enterprise mobility management provider is offering a custom mobile device management (MDM) solution free for 6-months to hospitals, healthcare providers and frontline responders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the current crisis, healthcare providers are treating thousands of sick people every day in a time-sensitive manner, requiring rapid communication and the exchange of large quantities of sensitive data regulated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In doing so, they interact with a variety of electronic health record technologies across a variety of devices and platforms. In this environment, a powerful, easy-to-learn, secure UEM solution is invaluable ally, allowing providers to focus on providing the best possible care for the ill. Codeproofs solution offers a suite of custom features for healthcare providers to securely access business apps, business data, and sensitive health information needed to perform their jobs efficiently within regulatory bounds at scale. These features include, among others, productivity tools, data encryption, location tracking and security alerts. Codeproof is offering this set of powerful tools to healthcare providers free for six months as they deal with the current surge of patients. Codeproofs highly responsive, 24/7, personalized, global technical support ensures that transition to and use of our solutions is smooth, efficient and effective. "We pride ourselves on being a team that is acutely responsive to its customers' needs," said Satish Shetty, CEO of Codeproof. "Given the difficulties now being faced by healthcare providers, we are uniquely well equipped to support them with our easy-to-use, powerful UEM solutions backed by industry-leading customer service. During this crisis, we need to be more vigilant in preventing data and IP theft, making software security more critical than ever." Codeproof also provides solutions to other organizations impacted by the pandemic. For the education industry, Codeproof gives IT administrators the ability to pre-provision mobile devices with 4G internet and limit their use to a handful of teacher-approved apps. This ensures data security and student discipline during class hours. Also available is the ability to turn any mobile phone into a dedicated mobile hotspot to serve students and teachers who otherwise lack adequate internet connectivity. About Codeproof Codeproof is a modern unified endpoint management and cybersecurity company that enables businesses to easily secure, deploy and manage mobile applications and corporate data on company and employee-owned (BYOD) mobile devices. We offer customers an industry-leading feature sets, best-in-class customer support, easy onboarding, and simple interfaces. Our flagship product, the Codeproof UEM Platform, offers fast, simple, and integrated security and mobile management with a focus on corporate data leakage prevention through mobile end-points. From a central cloud-based dashboard, businesses can quickly deploy and manage all their devices. Key features include Mobile Application Management, Mobile Device Management, Mobile Content Management, as the ability to support mobile devices from most OEMs. SiteSecure is a BYOD solution which blocks phone cameras inside specified spaces such as factory and office campuses to prevent data theft, IP theft, and other security breaches. DriveSafe is a distracted driving solution combining hardware and software for transportation, trucking, and taxi companies to improve driver safety and avoid the high costs of legal liability. Managed Mobile Hotspot allows IT administrators to pre-configure and lock-down a mobile device to function as a dedicated hotspot device. Codeproof Technologies Inc. is a Delaware corporation with its headquarters at Redmond, WA and a branch office in Bengaluru, India. For more information, visit www.codeproof.com HDFC Bank rose 3.49% to Rs 942.20 after the bank reported strong Q4 results on Saturday (18 April 2020). HDFC Bank's net profit rose 17.72% to Rs 6,927.69 crore on 15.10% increase in total income to Rs 35,917.63 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q4 March 2019. Profit before tax (PBT) for Q4 March 2020 was at Rs 9,174.33 crore, up by 2.5% from Rs 8954.38 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. Net interest income (interest earned less interest expended) for the quarter ended on 31 March 2020 grew to Rs 15,204.1 crore from Rs 13,089.5 crore for the quarter ended on 31 March 2019, driven by growth in advances of 21.3%, and a growth in deposits of 24.3%. The net interest margin for the quarter was at 4.3%, the bank said. During the quarter, there was a considerable slowdown in economic activities following the outbreak of COVID-19. Furthermore, with the government initiating lockdown in the latter half of March, and the bank's strict adherence to social distancing, not only did the bank witnessed an impact on its business volumes - in terms of loan originations, distribution of third party products, and payments product activities, but the bank also could not optimize its collection efforts, and as a result of which fees/other income were lower by Rs 450 crore, the private lender said in a statement. Operating expenses for the quarter ended on 31 March 2020 were Rs 8,277.8 crore, an increase of 16.3% over Rs 7,117.1 crore during the corresponding quarter of the previous year. The cost-to-income ratio for the quarter was at 39% as against 39.6% for the corresponding quarter ended on 31 March 2019. Pre-provision operating profit (PPOP) at Rs 12,958.8 crore grew by 19.5% over the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Provisions and contingencies jumped 100.32% to Rs 3,784.49 crore in Q4 March 2020 from Rs 1,889.22 crore in Q4 March 2019. Total provisions for the current quarter included credit reserves relating to COVID-19 in the form of contingent provisions of approximately Rs 1550 crore. The core credit cost ratio was 0.77%, as compared to 0.92% in the quarter ending 31 December 2019 and 0.69% in Q4 March 2019. Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 12649.97 crore as on 31 March 2020 as against Rs 13427.25 crore as on 31 December 2019 and Rs 11224.16 crore as on 31 March 2019. The ratio of gross NPAs to gross advances stood at 1.26% as on 31 March 2020 as against 1.42% as on 31 December 2019 and 1.36% as on 31 March 2019. The ratio of net NPAs to net advances stood at 0.36% as on 31 March 2020 as against 0.48% as on 31 December 2019 and 0.39% as on 31 March 2019. The private lender's net profit rose 24.57% to Rs 26,257.32 crore on 18.42% rise in total income to Rs 138,073.47 crore in the year ended March 2020 over the year ended March 2019. The net interest margin for the year ended on 31 March 2020 was 4.3%. The cost to income ratio for the year ended on 31 March 2020 was at 38.6%, as against 39.7% for the year ended March 31, 2019. The bank's PBT for the year ended on 31 March 2020 was Rs 36,607.16 crore, up 13.7% from Rs 32,199.64 crore for the year ended on 31 March 2019. Total deposits as of 31 March 2020 were 11,47,502 crore, an increase of 24.3% over 31 March 2019. CASA deposits grew by 23.9% with savings account deposits at 310,377 crore and current account deposits at 174,248 crore. Time deposits were at 662,877 crore, an increase of 24.6% over the previous year, resulting in CASA deposits comprising 42.2% of total deposits as of 31 March 2020. The bank's continued focus on deposits helped in the maintenance of a healthy liquidity coverage ratio at 132%, well above the regulatory requirement. Total advances as of 31 March 2020 were 993,703 crore, an increase of 21.3% over 31 March 2019. Domestic advances grew by 21.4% over 31 March 2019. As per regulatory [Basel 2] segment classification, domestic retail loans grew by 14.6% and domestic wholesale loans grew by 29.3%. The domestic loan mix as per Basel 2 classification between retail:wholesale was 51:49. Overseas advances constituted 3% of total advances. On the asset quality front, HDFC Bank said that in accordance with the RBI guidelines relating to COVID-19 Regulatory Package dated 27 March 2020 and 17 April 2020, the Bank would be granting a moratorium of three months on the payment of all installments and/or interest, as applicable, falling due between 1 March 2020 and 31 May 2020 to all eligible borrowers classified as Standard, even if overdue, as on 29 February 2020. For all such accounts where the moratorium is granted, the asset classification shall remain standstill during the moratorium period (i.e. the number of days past-due shall exclude the moratorium period for the purposes of asset classification under the IRACP norms). The Bank holds provisions as on 31 March 2020 against the potential impact of COVID-19 based on the information available at this point in time and the same are in excess of the RBI prescribed norms. As a result, GNPA and NNPA ratios were lower by 10 bps and 6 bps respectively. The bank's total capital adequacy ratio (CAR) as per Basel III guidelines was at 18.5% as on 31 March 2020 (17.1% as on March 31, 2019) as against a regulatory requirement of 11.075% which includes capital conservation buffer of 1.875%, and an additional requirement of 0.20% on account of the bank being identified as a domestic systemically important bank (D-SIB). In a separate announcement on Saturday, HDFC Bank informed that pursuant to the recommendation of the nomination and remuneration committee (NRC), the board of directors of the bank has finalized the names of three candidates for the position of MD & CEO of the bank. As per the extant RBI norms, the Bank will be submitting its application to RBI with the names of the candidates in the order of preference, seeking approval for the appointment of the new MD & CEO, who shall succeed Aditya Puri whose term is due to expire on 26 October 2020. HDFC Bank is one of India's leading private banks. As of 31 March 2020, the bank's distribution network was at 5,416 banking outlets and 14,901 ATMs / Cash Deposit & Withdrawal Machines (CDM5) across 2,803 cities / towns as against 5,103 banking outlets and 13,489 ATMs towns as of 31 March 2019. Of the total banking outlets, rural areas. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kolkata, April 20 : The West Bengal government has ordered the frontline medical personnel in state-run hospitals to stay in their headquarters and not commute to and from their residences for reducing strain and avoiding exposure to the coronavirus infection. In a fresh guideline, the state health department said some frontline medical workers, especially from among those posted in government hospitals in the districts in Kolkata's vicinity, were commuting to and from their residences daily. "This is not desirable as it puts a daily physical and mental strain on the medical personnel, besides putting them at risk of being exposed to the virus," the guideline said. The government last week issued an order specifying that frontline medical workers will be given weeklong duties in government hospitals and taken off-duty for seven days for rest and recuperation. The administration has already made arrangements for providing suitable boarding facilities to frontline medical personnel in the vicinity of their workplaces, to preclude the need for daily commuting, the order said. "It is hereby ordered that frontline medical personnel in government hospitals shall stay in their headquarters and not commute daily from and to their residences, " the order said. The frontline medical personnel have been asked to take prior permission from the Chief medical officer (health) or head of the medical institution concerned for any departure from the principle for any unavoidable reason. Considered both an event and farmers market, Tomball Farmers Market is one of the largest in Harris County. With 4,000-5,000 patrons coming through on a typical Saturday, executive Director Michelle Bundy knew they needed a game plan to open safely due to COVID-19. Farmers markets across northwest Harris County have altered operations in response to coronavirus containment measures such as stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidelines. ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Coronavirus live updates: Oil prices plunge below $0 a barrel, Hidalgo names recovery czar The Tomball Farmers Market reopened April 11 after shutting down in mid-March. Market organizers received word from Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo that farmers markets were considered essential. The market reopened as a non-event with vendors sanitizing their area every hour, wearing face masks even though it wasnt mandated, and some using contactless card readers. I applaud the community and our vendors, they just did such a fabulous job, Bundy said. Im anxious to see how it goes as people get adjusted to the new safety guidelines. The market is operating under modified hours, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Families are being asked to send only one member to make purchases from vendors. According to Bundy, there was a significant reduction in the number of customers April 11 with only a couple hundred people coming out. Some quickly grabbed items they had preordered and left. COVID-19 CHANGES: Farmers market in Magnolia resumes walk-through experience Bundy recognized there werent going to be thousands coming but knew there would be some, adding that customers were ready to come back in whatever way was suggested. The Tomball Farmers Market usually has 79 vendor spaces. The number of spaces was reduced to 26 to allow for 6-10 feet between each vendor, added space for patrons and more room to walk through aisles. Surveys were sent to vendors gauging their interest in participating during this time and asking for ideas. Market coordinators kept in mind Hidalgos statement, deeming farmers markets as essential businesses. We prioritized farmers because we are a farmers market, so they get first dibs on the spaces, Bundy said. The market decided to alternate between vendors selling the same product. Vendors rotate every week, giving each small business owner a chance to sell their goods. Vendors are also using the TFM Online Facebook group page to connect with the community in an online environment. Vendors post menus for the week and customers comment with orders; some vendors are even going online for the first time. SCHOOL CLOSURES: Tomball ISD schools closed for remainder of school year We wanted to offer another option, so thats been going very well since mid-March, said. That will continue even once we open regularly. Bundy also urged patrons via a newsletter to continue supporting their local farmers market as keeping the market open must be a community effort. Bundy said the market is committed to inviting every vendor back as soon as time permits. Were just hoping to keep our vendors afloat, Bundy said. This will also help us create a plan going forward, if this pandemic does happen again. We just want people to know that theres another option if they need it. Anticipated opening The new Old Town Spring Farmers Market was supposed to open April 17 after months of planning. But under the advice of the health department, event organizers decided to postpone opening. Old Town Spring Farmers Market, operated and managed by Family Fun Houston, is now scheduled to open May 1 and ready to begin supporting local businesses, farms, growers and makers in the safest possible way. Were just looking to get started and rolling, said Mary Middlebrook, event organizer with Family Fun Houston. Were really excited. Some of the people in Old Town Spring have been talking about it for years. The market will open Friday afternoons from 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. There are 45 registered vendors but only 20 have confirmed for the opening as some have decided to postpone until after summer. Middlebrook said Family Fun Houstons excited to have an event on a regular basis and interact more on a local level with residents of Spring and surrounding areas. Family Fun Houston is the parent company of Old Town Spring Farmers Market and organizes multiple events north Houston area events like Rayford Sunday Market in Spring (postponed until May 3) and one-off community events like Taste of the Town. To safely set up and make sure everyone has enough social distancing space, Middlebrooks said the market can fit about 35 vendors. Normally, she said the market would be able to fit about 50 vendors. There are still a lot of small businesses out there and I think were well educated now about how to go out in public, Middlebrook said. Im confident in our community to be responsible and support local and in our vendors to come out and offer products safely as well. Middlebrook said its crucial that people understand that the farmers market will have different type of atmosphere now. Social distancing markers and advisory posts for shoppers will be in place. Shoppers will be asked not to touch products, not to bring big families, and to shop safely by wearing masks and using hand sanitizer, available from vendors or at the information booth. A pre-ordering system is also in the works where vendors communicate with shoppers via social media for pickup orders, instead of shopping on the spot. Social media does make it a little bit easier to connect even with the vendors that dont have websites, Middlebrook said. Some farmers market vendors have taken a significant hit to their business due to COVID-19, according to Middlebrook, but she hopes they can come together with a plan to support them. Make sure everybody is able to set up and run their business following the rules but be able to bounce back, Middlebrook said. There are several other markets that have done a fantastic job supporting some of the vendors Ive worked with. While Old Town Spring is waiting to get started these markets have been able to come forward supporting local and small businesses. Im just hoping that our market can be as amazing as those are. Implementing precautions Jersey Village Farmers Market opens the first Sunday of every month but skipped April just to be safe. For now, the city is planning to have its May 3 market from 12-3 p.m. The three-year-old market is an extension of the recreation division of the City of Jersey Villages Parks and Rec department. Recreation and Events Coordinator Josh Rodrigue said theyve been working to help older vendors who may be struggling during this time. The market usually has about 30 vendors and brings in around 400 patrons monthly but is expecting around 20 vendors next month, according to Rodrigue, and is working to establish safety precautions with vendors. Were looking at what we might ask the vendors to do or provide them with gloves if they dont have their own, Rodrigue said. Were looking at implementing precautions at least for May or some of the next couple of months. All Jersey Village events have been canceled since spring break and the department is hopeful to see community members excited to come out. This would be our first event in over two months, Rodrigue said. The way Jersey Village approaches their markets will continue to be affected in the coming weeks, and perhaps longer as the possibility of future health crises may influence how people think about coordinating events down the road. It definitely will be a thing that we keep in mind when were planning events in the future, Rodrigue said. Applications for Jersey Village Farmers Market vendors are still being accepted. For more information, visit the Farmers Market page on the City of Jersey Village Parks and Recreation website: www.jerseyvillagetx.com/page/parks.farmersmarket. For more information about Old Town Spring Farmers Market, visit www.oldtownspringfarmersmarket.com. To learn more about the Tomball Farmers Market, visit www.tomballfarmersmarket.org. alvaro.montano@chron.com H ospital leaders have criticised the Government after a shipment which contained vital equipment for NHS staff was delayed. The organisations representing NHS trusts in England said they were speaking out of "frustration and exasperation" as they hit out at minsters in an ongoing row over the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers. They urged ministers to focus on "what we can be certain of" after weeks of "bitter experiences" with failed deliveries, the latest of which would have included 400,000 surgical gowns from Turkey. The organisations have now urged Health Secretary Matt Hancock to only announce deliveries in public once they have arrived to avoid disappointment. The Government has been under increasing pressure to ensure the safety of frontline health staff by providing better PPE. Ministers originally said the 84 tonne consignment would arrive from Turkey on Sunday, but are now saying they are "hopeful" it will now arrive on Monday. Hospital leaders are demanding the government sorts out lack of PPE equipment for frontline NHS workers / AFP via Getty Images Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers told the Guardian: We have, over the last 24 hours, seen an unhelpful focus on one individual consignment coming from Turkey. We are told that this consignment is still stuck in Turkey with no certainty, at the time this comment was issued, on how many gowns, if any, will leave for the UK, [and] when. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick (right) and NHS Medical Director, Professor Stephen Powis, during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, on coronavirus / PA Given the current uncertainties over gown manufacture and supply, due to global shortages, we suggest that any future announcements on what gowns might be available for delivery, when, just focus on what we can be certain of." He added: Bitter experience in recent weeks has shown that promised consignments of gowns cannot be relied on until they come, are checked and found to contain the right kit." Paramedics wearing PPE help a patient from an ambulance into The Royal London Hospital in east London / AFP via Getty Images Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the British Medical Association, said: We made it clear weeks ago that we need to do something about the likelihood of a lack of protective equipment. Claudia Paoloni, president of the doctors union HCSA, added: Our NHS workers are going above and beyond on a daily basis to heal. They should expect at the very least adequate protection to keep them fit and well to engage in this fight. Yet instead they are being asked to sacrifice themselves due to the failings of others. During the daily Downing Street press conference on Sunday, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson addressed the issue, adding: What weve seen over the last few months is an enormous effort, its a national effort, but its also an international effort to secure PPE from right around the globe, but weve seen so many brilliant British businesses repurpose themselves in order to be able to provide it. Meanwhile, the Government scheme for workers who have been furloughed given a temporary leave of absence opened today. The launch of the scheme comes as the Government was warned of the economic cost for many companies of any delay in its implementation. Under the initiative, employers can go online to claim cash grants worth up to 80 per cent of wages, capped at 2,500 a month per worker. Chancellor Rishi Sunak also launched a 1.25 billion package to aid firms in the innovation sector, including a 500 million investment fund for high-growth companies hit by the crisis. Small and medium-sized firms specialising in research and development will be eligible for access to 750 million of grants and loans. Elswhere, Labour former prime minister Tony Blair said a clear strategy is needed to end the lockdown. As controversy raged about Boris Johnsons stance in the lead-up to the pandemic, Mr Blair said Britain had been too slow in trying to suppress the outbreak of disease compared to other countries. The ex-PM said the UK needed to be ahead of the curve as soon as medical and scientific conditions allowed it to emerge from the lockdown into a new normal. Downing Street hit back at newspaper reports that Mr Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of falsehoods and errors after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the Government missed the boat on testing and PPE A Government spokesman said: This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak. Meanwhile, Leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg insisted decisions on issues, such as lifting the lockdown, could be made without the PM. He told BBC Radio 4s The Westminster Hour: We have Cabinet government not presidential government. The Prime Minister chairs meetings and decisions come from those meetings. But when hes away theres somebody else chairing the meetings and thats the First Secretary. And the Prime Minister very wisely set this up very early before he went into hospital so everyone knew how decisions would continue to be made and decision making is carrying on even with the Prime Minister out of action recovering at Chequers. After months of training, waiting out Snowmageddon, and a stretch of unemployment, Carla McEvoy was ready to take to the skies as a flight attendant. "My first flight was on Wednesday. I got laid off the Thursday before," said McEvoy, 23, of Admiral's Beach, St. Mary's Bay. "I'm heartbroken. Absolutely heartbroken." McEvoy is one of millions of Canadians stuck without work and having to rely on government benefits to make it through the COVID-19 pandemic. PAL Group announced on March 23 it issued temporary layoff notices to more than 300 employees, with roughly half the layoffs in Newfoundland and Labrador, McEvoy included. The one bright side, McEvoy said, is that she had no trouble filing her employment insurance claim. She's used to navigating the system, having been laid off from home construction company Rona the year before. "I didn't really work in the summer because there is no work around the bay," McEvoy said. AfaaHalifax/Instagram "I was on EI throughout last summer, went to school in September for three months, hooked a job, and now I'm laid off again, so I'm definitely going crazy." McEvoy's layoff from PAL is temporary, but like so many other Canadians walloped by the consequences of a global pandemic, the future is uncertain. "I don't really know what normal is going to be for me when I go back to work if I even get back to work because they might be in such a hard shape that they might not hire me back," she said. "I had plans on once I get on my feet and gets working, get my own spot in town, move out and get on my own again and all of this happens." Road construction predicament Statistics Canada released employment data from March that revealed a loss of 7,000 part-time jobs when compared with February numbers, or a plunge of nearly 20 per cent. Surprisingly, full-time jobs increased, but that was before the pandemic was in full swing. Overall the province lost 5,800 jobs for the month of March. Story continues This is the time of year when Michelle Eastman and her husband begin to gear up for work in road construction. The Gander Bay couple are seasonal workers who rely on EI throughout the winter something she says many other people do in the small central Newfoundland community. But even that has hit a snag. Submitted by Michelle Eastman Transportation and Works Minister Steve Crocker says this will not be a normal year for road work, and there have been delays in granting tenders. The department is assessing each job to see if it can be done safely with COVID-19 distancing rules in mind. "If we do get to go back to work, say it is September, construction season only lasts until November. What are we going to do with two months' work?" Eastman said. The Eastmans don't want to lose regular EI by signing on to federal government benefits that are in place due to COVID-19. "It will be lower. We're all wondering, if we sign onto this, will our regular EI benefits continue as well?" Eastman said. "It will be very difficult. We struggle now with regular EI." A spokesperson with Employment and Social Development Canada said seasonal workers whose EI runs out between now and October 2020 can apply for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. There will be no other program assisting seasonal workers on top of the $2,000 monthly benefit. Business dreams on hold Sarah Whelan held a grand opening for her new salon, Shine, in January, a week before the massive snowstorm hit. Whelan, a mother of two, said the Riverhead, St. Mary's Bay area was in need of a hair salon and was excited to begin her new career as an entrepreneur. On March 15, the provincial government ordered hair salons to close during the pandemic, just months into her new job. "I had a really heavy heart when I got the news we had to close. I totally understand infection control and the fact that we have to do our part to flatten the curve, but it was certainly disheartening," she said. "You're trying to make your mark as an entrepreneur and it's hard." Submitted by Sarah Whalen Whelan is able to take advantage of the emergency relief benefit, something she commends the federal government for implementing, though it is not as much as the family is used to taking in. In the meantime, Whelan says her family is getting a lot of projects done in their house, and she's looking ahead to when some of the regulations are relaxed, including getting barriers between herself and nail clients. "I think it's going to be the way of the future," Whelan said. "We're all going to have to continue to practise superb infection control and be mindful of what's out there." How long will it last? Then there are the workers who are still required on the job but don't see the benefits outweighing the negatives. Christine Kirby is a cleaner in St. John's who primarily works inside businesses and organizations. Her job is essential and is in high demand but she doesn't feel comfortable working. "The virus is making me nervous. Not so much for me, but for other people around me," Kirby said. "I'm just trying to protect them as much as I can." Kirby said her employer is understanding, but she's unsure how long she will be able to be off work. Projections released by the provincial government suggest cases of COVID-19 could peak around mid-November, although Health Minister John Haggie has been clear that projections are not a crystal ball. "If it's not over soon, I'm going to have to head back to work and I won't feel comfortable doing that." Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador Petrov AFFAIR GIGANTIC FRAME-UP AGAINST PEOPLE The answer to the outrageous attack being planned through the Petrov* affair must be a redoubling of all efforts to unite the working class for the defeat of the Menzies Government of national betrayal. Communist Party President R Dixon said this on Thursday night in the course of a powerful, factual indictment of the Menzies Government. Mr Dixon was addressing a meeting of Sydney communists. Although called at less than twenty-four hours notice, the hall was jammed full. Mr Dixon utterly refuted Menzies claim that there was connection between the Soviet Embassy and the Communist Party of Australia. Never has there been any directions whatsoever to the CPA from the Soviet Embassy or the Soviet Government, he said. Stories in the daily press, supposed to be based on Petrovs documents were downright lies, and it is obvious that there are schemes and plans to base frame-ups on such lies and forged documents. Frequent cheers punctuated his speech. The spirit of the meeting was demonstrated by the fact that a call for a collection for Party funds brought 136 in cash and 302/10/ in pledges. 250,000 copies of a hastily printed leaflet Menzies Concocted Spy Plot were distributed to those at the meeting, and by Monday morning most of them had been spread throughout the city and suburbs. PROVOCATIVE STUNT Mr Dixon said that the Menzies Government was using the Petrov affair for provocation against the Soviet Union, the Communist Party, and the Australian people. The Petrov affair is a provocative political stunt by the Government, designed to confuse and obscure the fundamental issues in the election in the hope of seeing the return of the Menzies Government. The Government faces defeat in the election and it desperately needed a diversion from both its home and foreign policies, including its moves toward involving Australia in the war in Indo-China. To put over its war policy, the Menzies Government required frenzy and hatred among the people against the Soviet Union and Communism. Hence the McCarthyism, hence the Petrov provocation, said Mr Dixon. BLANK CHEQUE Mr Dixon warned that legislation passed in Canberra with ALP leadership support, gave the government a blank cheque on the Royal Commission terms of reference, thus leaving the way open for attacks on wide sections of patriotic Australians-Communists, ALP members, intellectuals and genuine liberals. The Canberra McCarthyites would set out to smear and intimidate, to drive people from public life by innuendo, they would create blacklists for employers. They would use frame-ups against both Communists and non-Communists. There is nothing furtive or secret about the Communist Partys policy, Mr Dixon said. The CPA stands for the noblest and most patriotic causes peace, Australian independence and security, a better life, Socialism. DEFEAT MENZIES Unlike the parties of Capitalism, the CPA openly and honestly declares its policy. It does not use deception and trickery to achieve its policy, it seeks by selfless activity to win the majority of the working class and its allies for the liberation of our country from capitalism. The Communist leaflet distributed over the weekend says that with his spy scare, Menzies is now trying to do what he failed to do with his Communist Party Dissolution Bill which was rejected by the Australian people in the 1951 Referendum. Dont be misled by concocted spy stories! Unite against the real enemy the Menzies Government! Defeat Menzies on May 29! * Vladimir Petrov was a Soviet diplomat who defected in April 1954. This article originally appeared in Tribune April, 1954. This article is part of the On Tech newsletter. You can sign up here to receive it weekdays. My colleague Kevin Roose excels at explaining how our behavior is shaped by the companies behind our favorite online hangouts. In the first episode of Kevins new audio series, called Rabbit Hole, he tells us how Caleb Cain, a college dropout in West Virginia, found himself watching ever more extreme YouTube videos. Caleb said he started to believe the racism, misogyny and conspiracy theories he absorbed. People believe in fringe ideas for complex reasons. But Kevin points some blame at YouTube and its feature that recommends one video after another. This can push people from relatively mainstream videos toward dangerous ideas. Our conversation about this, and more: Arent most of us on YouTube for cooking videos and kittens, not conspiracies? Kevin: People watch more than a billion hours of YouTube videos daily. While we cant know how much of that is disturbing or dangerous, its inevitably a huge amount. And for a long time, people like Alex Jones and propaganda networks like RT had millions of subscribers and hundreds of millions of views. 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. Firefighters tackle grass fire Firefighters were called to tackle a grass fire in the early hours of this morning. Crews responded to the fire near to the Schollag Road. Fire officers says it was contained to small area and extinguished. Last week, the Manx Government appealed for people to support their neighbours as well as the emergency services by not lighting bonfires during the COVID-19 pandemic. Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki says the state government has spent well over N1billion to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. The governor said this in Benin during a live briefing on the virus by the State Response Team on Sunday, while he also reiterated his administrations commitment to bringing an end to pandemic in the state. The government of Edo State is leading this battle from the front. We have already spent over N1billion of our limited resources so far on this fight. We have constituted the Edo State Fund-Raising Committee which is made up of our sons and daughters who are captains of industries, religious leaders, traditional rulers to help us galvanise efforts at mobilizing resources to beef up the state governments response to this pandemic, he said. Read Also: Governor Obaseki Tests Negative For Coronavirus He stated also that the state government decided to review the partial lockdown imposed on residents after reviewing the COVID-19 tests carried out on suspects. He urged people of the state to support his administrations efforts in fighting the virus, and called for donations by spirited individuals and groups. Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday expressed his gratitude to the Indian leadership for providing 500,000 tablets of in-demand Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), 100,000 tablets of paracetamol and 75,000 metric tonnes of wheat in the first consignment that will reach the country in a day. Taking to Twitter, Ghani thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his commitment to supply more items including medicines and equipment as availability increases in India. "In the difficult times of COVID-19, closer cooperation between allies and friends will prepare us better to fight this menace and save our people," President Ghani added. Thank you my friend Prime Minister @narendramodi , and thank you India for providing 500K tablets of hydroxychloroquine, 100K tablets of paracetamol, and 75,000 metric tons of wheat that the first consignment of it (5,000) will reach AFG in a day or so, for the Afghan people. Ashraf Ghani (@ashrafghani) April 20, 2020 READ | US Expresses 'Deep Concern' About Safety Of Sikhs In Afghanistan; Issues Statement PM Modi: Will Combat COVID Together Responding to the Afghanistan President, Prime Minister Modi tweeted that India and Afghanistan share a special friendship, based on ties of history, geography and culture. He assured Ghani that Indian and Afghanistan will combat COVID-19 together, with 'solidarity and shared resolve.' India and Afghanistan share a special friendship, based on ties of history, geography, and culture. For long, we have fought jointly against the scourge of terrorism. We will similarly combat COVID-19 together, with solidarity and shared resolve. @ashrafghani https://t.co/du6Rw0jvPV Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 20, 2020 READ | Sikhs In US Urge India To Help In Resettlement Of Sikhs & Hindus 'trapped' In Afghanistan Touted as a 'potential game-changer' in battling COVID-19 by US President Donald Trump, the demand for Hydroxychloroquine has shot up with several nations trying to procure the drug. With several resources at its disposal to manufacture HCQ in large quantities, India after imposing a ban on its export had recently lifted the ban. The Ministry of External Affairs had stated that India will licence paracetamol and Hydroxychloroquine in appropriate quantities to all neighbouring countries who are dependent on India's capabilities. READ | India Sends 1 Lakh Paracetamol, 5 Lakh Hydroxychloroquine Tablets To Afghanistan The drug, however, has shown no proven results in battling the Coronavirus. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has authorized the usage of HCQ in India to only those groups who are prone to contract the virus most as a precautionary measure and has urged citizens to not take HCQ without doctor's consultation. Earlier on Wednesday, the United Kingdom thanked India for its approval for sending Paracetamol units which will be reaching them in the next two weeks. Soon after India approved the shipment of nearly three million paracetamol units for the UK, the British government praised the Indian government for helping them at a crucial time. READ | India Ships 'first-of-many' 5000-tonne Wheat Consignment To Covid-shackled Afghanistan India send wheat to Afghanistan Earlier, India shipped the first consignment of 5,022 metric tonnes (MT) of wheat approximately 251 containers to Afghanistan and plans to ship more in the days to follow. The move comes to strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries and ensure food security during the pandemic. The shipment reached Chabahar Port on 15 April carrying a portion of the total 75,000 MT supplement of wheat and is now on the way to Afghanistan. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The family of 75-year-old Nick Bellani held a socially-distant birthday party for the Grasmere resident on Sunday, with family members from across the world joining in the celebration via Zoom and the NYPD stopping by to make the day an even more memorable one. Bellani, who moved to New York City in 1970 from Mumbai, India with literally nothing in his pockets," later owned a mens clothing business, and has been a borough resident since 1970, said his daughter, Sherrina Navani. About 15 family members from across the world joined a zoom call to wish Bellani a happy birthday, and the NYPD even briefly stopped by to help cap-off the celebration. Other family members, including Navanis family, followed recommended social distancing procedures and stayed over six feet away from Bellani during the special party. He is a great guy who is generous kind hearted and funny, said Navani. It was great, she said of the celebration. Authorities sealed off a small town and an adjacent village in Armenias northwestern Shirak province on Sunday after 18 employees of a local hospital tested positive for coronavirus. Two local residents died from COVID-19, a respiratory disease caused by the virus, after the Armenian police set up roadblocks around the town of Maralik and the village of Dzorakap in the morning. The head of the provincial administrations healthcare department, Leyli Aslanian, told RFE/RLs Armenian service on Monday that one of them, a 90-year-old man, was the father of an infected nurse working at the Maralik hospital. Aslanian said that the old man was diagnosed with coronavirus just hours before his death. His family declined offers to hospitalize him even though he had a fever for almost a week, she said. The Maralik hospital was temporarily shut down on Saturday after the 18 coronavirus cases were confirmed among its 61-member staff. Shiraks governor, Tigran Petrosian, said the infected medical personnel were taken to a hospital in the provincial capital Gyumri while their colleages were placed under quarantine. The authorities also ordered more than 40 relatives and friends of the infected medics to self-isolate, he said. Local officials did not disclose the suspected source of the infections. Another Maralik resident died from coronavirus early this month. The 68-year-old man was reportedly taken to the local medical center before being hospitalized in Gyumri. The latest fatalties brought Armenias death toll from COVID-19 to 22. The Armenian Ministry of Health reported on Monday morning that the total number of coronavirus cases in the country rose by 48 to 1,339 in the past day. Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinian, who oversees the enforcement of a coronavirus-related state of emergency in Armenia, announced his decision to lock down Maralik and Dzorakap on Saturday evening. Avinian ordered the police to ensure that people can enter or leave the two adjacent communities only in cases of extreme necessity or for the purpose of agricultural work until April 25. The ban also does not cover trucks supplying food, fuel and medicine to the town of 5,000 residents located about 100 kilometers northwest of Yerevan. All roads leading to Maralik were blocked by police checkpoints on Monday. We only let through people with special permissions, a policeman manning one of those checkpoints told RFE/RLs Armenian service. The trick was shared on Facebook by Brisbane sales assistant Taylah Jordan An amateur cook has shown a simple way to build homemade burrito bowls An amateur cook experimenting in the kitchen during isolation has discovered how to build burrito bowls out of tortilla wraps. Brisbane sales assistant Taylah Jordan shared her trick in a Facebook cookery group on Saturday, showing how to make the bowls using cooking oil, a packet of plain white flour wraps and an air fryer. Ms Jordan sprayed each wrap with oil and layered it over the bottom of a small bowl, before covering with tinfoil and cooking in an air fryer for 10 minutes at 200 degrees until the wrap becomes golden and crispy enough to hold the shape of the bowl. She filled the tortilla 'bowls' with a blend of slow-cooked spicy chicken, sweetcorn, black beans and brown rice, adding lettuce, grated cheese and a dollop of sour cream. The edible shells can be broken and dipped in the filling like corn chips. Scroll down for video Brisbane retail assistant Taylah Jordan made her own edible burrito bowls by frying tortilla wraps in an air fryer until golden and crispy The bowls can be filled with spicy chicken, beans, sweetcorn kernels, lettuce, cheese and a dollop of source cream Her recipe has been 'liked' over 3,500 times by Australians eager to improve their culinary skills in lockdown, many of whom said the bowls tasted better than Mexican restaurant takeaways. Before frying the wraps, Ms Jordan followed a Pinterest recipe to make a spicy chicken filling for the bowls. She loaded 400 grams of boneless chicken breast, brown rice, one cup of sweetcorn, one can of black beans and one tin of tomatoes into a slow cooker, before pouring a cup of chicken stock and a pinch of chilli, salt and cumin on top and leaving to marinate for about three hours. Once fully cooked, she assembled the tortilla 'bowls' and filled each with a generous portion of the mixture, stuffing the sides with lettuce, grated cheese and sour cream and sprinkling finely chopped spring onion over the top for decoration. How to make DIY burrito bowls Ingredients Cooking oil spray $2.20 White tortilla wraps $4 (per 15 pack) One can of black beans $1.30 One cup of sweetcorn kernels $2.85 400 grams of chicken breast $9 One tin of tomatoes $1.80 One cup of brown rice $2.80 One cup of chicken stock $2 Teaspoon of chilli powder Teaspoon of salt Appliances Air fryer $69 (from Kmart) Slow cooker $25 (also from Kmart) Method For the bowls Spray a plain tortilla wrap with a generous amount of cooking oil. Fold a well-oiled wrap over the bottom of a small bowl and cover with tinfoil. Place the bowl inside an air fryer and cook at 200 degrees for roughly 10 minutes, until the wrap is golden and crispy and hard enough to hold the shape of the bowl. For the filling Add 400 grams of boneless chicken breast, one cup of brown rice, one cup of sweetcorn, one can of black beans and one tin of tomatoes into a slow cooker. Pour a cup of chicken stock and a pinch of chilli, salt and cumin on top and leave to marinate for about three hours. Once fully cooked, fill each tortilla bowl with a generous portion of the mixture. Stuff the sides with lettuce and sour cream and sprinkle finely chopped spring onion over the top for decoration. Source: Kmart Air Fryer Recipes Australia and Pinterest Advertisement More than a thousand people replied to Ms Jordan's recipe, thanking her for giving them something to try as Australia braces itself for a continuation of lockdown for at least another four weeks. 'How cool is this? I did this a few weeks ago and the kids thought it was the best thing ever,' one mother said. 'That's hectic, what a great concept for the bowls! Definitely trying this tonight,' said another. Many tagged their housemates and suggested making the bowls for a 'Mexican night-in' in isolation. After six weeks on the lam, it was Susan and William Harris dog who did them in, a fitting police collar for the Albuquerque couple who bilked vulnerable Ayudando Guardians Inc. clients of $11 million. The Harrises were captured Wednesday in Shawnee, Oklahoma, after their Chihuahua left their apartment for a bathroom break alone and then returned inside. After the couple fled New Mexico in late February, law enforcement officials searched their upscale home in the gated Tanoan community and found photos of the Chihuahua, which was also missing from the home. A U.S. Marshals Service-led task force, which included the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office, tracked the couple to the Shawnee apartment complex but wasnt quite sure if they were inside the apartment. Seeing the dog cinched it, says a spokesman for the Marshals Service in Albuquerque. Harris and her husband had been free pending sentencing after both pleaded guilty last year to multiple charges of money laundering and fraud. They were supposed to appear in federal court in Albuquerque on March 2 for sentencing. William Harris was facing seven years in prison under a plea deal, while his wife was facing 30-years-to-life as the ringleader of the nonprofit financial company that ripped off about 1,000 people, including veterans and disabled clients. Their thievery was among many guardianship cases examined by Journal investigative reporter Colleen Heild and syndicated columnist Diane Dimond beginning in 2016, and the extensive news coverage helped spur the state Legislature to make important reforms in 2018 and 2019. Rather than face many of their victims who were waiting to testify, the Harrises instead fled and robbed them of their day in court along with their life savings. Now, their days of lavish living are over. It was a case that cried out for justice. While its unclear where the Chihuahua is now residing, three cheers to law enforcement for tracking down these notorious pariahs, and a Milk-Bone for the final hero of this sordid tale of greed. 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. The Lagos State government says there is no policy against releasing dead coronavirus (COVID-19) patients to their families. This was made known by the Commissioner for Health in the state, Professor Akin Abayomi, during a briefing on Sunday. Responding to a question about the controversy surrounding the release of the body of the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, for burial, Abayomi said protocol was followed. There is no policy against the release of the diseased with COVID-19 in terms of release for burial. If you demise from any condition, there is a protocol to manage any scenario, Professor Abayomi said. He explained, The protocol for managing death from COVID-19 is that the body is decontaminated, and now placed in a special body bag. We put them in two body bags and then place within a coffin, then the coffin is sealed. The family is then given the opportunity to collect the body and be taken for burial. Read Also: Those Not Well Kitted At Kyaris Burial Already In Isolation, Will Be Tested: FCTA Abayomi further explained that the only restriction on burial is that those who can attend must not be more than 25 people, including the religious members of the ceremony and the grave-diggers should not exceed 25. He stated also that family members of dead COVID-19 patients would be allowed to conduct a private burial for their loved ones after proper protocol for decontaminating the body and ensuring that it was sealed in body bags and further sealed in a coffin is carried out. So, there is no current policy that bars us from handing over the deceased to their family members. It just has to be done in a way that does not expose family members or does not break the current law around the number of people to be aggregated in one place, Professor Abayomi insisted. Developed for the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF), Boeing's F-15QA Eagle fighter aircraft showed its high manoeuvrability by demonstrating the 'Viking takeoff' and pulling in nine Gs during its first flight a few days back. The most advanced variant of the reliable F-15 Eagle jet family was in the air for 90 minutes after taking off from Lambert International Airport in St. Louis (USA) on April 13, 2020, with Boeing Chief Test Pilot Matt Giese in the cockpit. Boeing has named the fighter jet F-15QA where QA stands for Qatar Advanced. " Boeing successfully completed the first flight of the F-15QA fighter, the most advanced version of the jet ever manufactured. Developed for the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF), the jet demonstrated its next-generation capabilities during its 90-minute mission. The flight took off and landed from Lambert International Airport in St. Louis," the aviation major said in a statement. Watch the F-15QA demonstrate a Viking takeoff during its first flight for the @MOD_Qatars Qatar Emiri Air Force. The advanced version of the #F15 took to the air for the first time this week. pic.twitter.com/5NPLvj1BJq The Boeing Company (@Boeing) April 15, 2020 QEAF F-15 Wing commander Colonel Ahmed Al Mansoori witnessed the maiden flight of the F-15QA and expressed his satisfaction. "We are very proud of this accomplishment and looking forward with great excitement to the continued successes of this program. This successful first flight is an important milestone that brings our squadrons one step closer to flying this incredible aircraft over the skies of Qatar." In the air, the F-15QA fighter pulled nine Gs with the company also stating that the combat jet successfully tested avionics and radar. The F-15QA has taken flight for the first time. This fighter is the most advanced version of the undefeated #F15 and was built for @MOD_Qatars Qatar Emiri Air Force. RELEASE: https://t.co/Yx75XTWxMp pic.twitter.com/pIIuebwcCY Boeing Defense (@BoeingDefense) April 14, 2020 "This successful first flight is an important step in providing the QEAF an aircraft with best-in-class range and payload. The advanced F-15QA not only offers game changing capabilities but is also built using advanced manufacturing processes which make the jet more efficient to manufacture. In the field, the F-15 costs half the cost per flight hour of similar fighter aircraft and delivers far more payload at far greater ranges. Thats success for the warfighter," asserted," said Boeing vice president and F-15 program manager Prat Kumar. Boeing was awarded a $6.2 billion contract in 2017 contract in 2017 by the US Department of Defense to manufacture and supply 36 F-15 fighters to the QEAF. The deliveries of the fighters will start in 2021. A Viking takeoff is an unrestricted climb after takeoff. During the Viking takeoff, the pilot of a fighter jet climbs at an extremely high angle with full afterburner to rapidly gain altitude. Lucknow, April 20 : The Islamic Centre of India has formed a 15-member "Qabristan Sewa Samiti" to facilitate the last rites of persons dying of coronavirus in Lucknow district. The committee will follow the safety protocol set by the health department, in keeping with the tenets of Islam. The 15-member committee comprises private doctors, clerics and social workers. Till date, the city has reported one death due to the coronavirus infection -- that of a 64-year-old patient who died here on Wednesday. The local people did not allow the burial of the deceased in the Aishbagh burial ground and the deceased was later buried elsewhere under tight police security. Well known Sunni cleric, Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Mahali, who heads the Islamic Centre of India and is also Imam of the Aishbagh Eidgah, said that the need for formation of such a committee arose after locals did not allow burial of an elderly patient in the public graveyard of Aishbagh. "The Aishbagh incident is highly condemnable. This happened due to misconceptions about performing the last rites of a person who dies due to a contagious disease," he said. A fatwa was issued after the incident, by Darul Uloom Firangi Mahali based Darul Ifta for the burial of Muslims, who have died of COVID-19, as per the Islamic and WHO protocols. "After the fatwa, we started receiving hundreds of phone calls from people who were not clear about the proper method for last rites in such cases. We realised that definite guidelines were needed in the matter. It was then that we decided to form a committee and also asked clerics in other districts to do the same," said the Maulana. The Congressional Black Caucus PAC has endorsed Joe Biden for US president. The announcement follows the endorsement of Mr Biden from 38 out of 54 members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including Democratic congressman for Georgia, John Lewis. Civil rights leader, Mr Lewis, who is well known for his civil rights activism in the 1960s, endorsed the former vice president earlier in the month and urged him to choose a woman of colour as his running mate. It would be good to have a woman of colour as the US vice president, Mr Lewis told reporters at the endorsement announcement. The Political Action Committee is the separate campaign arm of the caucus, and in an interview with the Associated Press, its chairman, Democratic congressman Gregory Meeks, said that Mr Biden is the leader the US needs. Recommended Choosing black woman running mate could boost Biden popularity Theres no question that Joe Biden is badly needed by this country, he said. His leadership, his experience, his understanding on how to get things done and his ability to work and pull people together is needed now more than ever. We need someone that is a healer and not a divider, and thats Joe Biden. The congressman noted: Theres no question in my mind that there needs to be an agenda that pushes forward black America. He said Mr Biden is the leader to do that, as he has a vision to bring us together and have an agenda of significant importance for the black community. Last month, in a poll conducted for the advocacy group BlackPAC, by Politico, more than half of black voters, in eight states, said they would be more enthusiastic or more likely to vote for Joe Biden if he picked a black woman as his running mate. The poll concerned the key battleground states of Michigan, Florida, Georgia, Minnesota, Nevada, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. The research found that 38 per cent of black voters who already plan to vote for Mr Biden would be more enthusiastic about voting for him if he picked a black woman as his running mate. Another 17 per cent per cent said that Mr Biden choosing a black woman as his running mate would make them more likely to vote for him. The Scottish government has demanded Boris Johnson ask the EU to extend the Brexit transition period by the maximum permitted time of two years because of the coronavirus outbreak. Holyrood's Constitution Secretary Mike Russell said pushing back the deadline for trade talks to conclude beyond the end of this year is necessary because of the global pandemic. He said delaying the end of the 'standstill' transition period would allow both Britain and the bloc to focus on fighting the deadly disease together. However, Downing Street remains adamant that it will not be seeking an extension. The Brexit transition period is due to finish on December 31, 2020, but there are growing calls for an extension due to coronavirus disruption The terms of the Brexit divorce deal which took the UK out of the EU on January 31 allow the length of the transition period to be increased - but only if both sides agree to such a course of action by the end of June this year. The divorce accord also states that the extension can be up to two years in length but no longer. The transition period, during which the UK must abide by EU rules, was designed to allow the two sides time to hammer out the terms of their future relationship. Senior EU figures said they did not believe the current transition period was long enough to get everything done even before the coronavirus outbreak. But Number 10 is refusing to budge on its insistence that the December 31 deadline must be stuck to. Trade talks have already been disrupted by coronavirus and there are growing concerns that if the transition period is not extended then the two sides could go their separate ways at the end of 2020 without a comprehensive deal in place. Critics argue that could cause both Britain and Brussels economic harm at a time when their economies have already been battered by coronavirus. Mr Russell has today called for a joint meeting involving ministers from the four Home Nations to discuss the UK government's approach to Brexit talks. He said: 'Instead of its reckless decision to pursue a hard Brexit in the middle of this unprecedented crisis, the UK government should today be asking the EU for the maximum two year extension to the transition period. 'The benefits of co-ordinated European action have never been clearer. An extended transition will keep the UK as close as possible to the EU and provide an opportunity to rethink the future relationship. The Scottish government's Constitution Secretary Mike Russell has urged Downing Street to seek a two year extension to Brexit trade talks - the maximum allowed under the terms of the Brexit divorce deal 'The UK government is pressing ahead with negotiations without properly involving the Scottish government or taking account of our views.' Mr Russell said the Scottish economy 'cannot afford the double hit of Covid-19 and the growing likelihood of a No Deal or at best a hard Brexit deal in less than nine months' time'. A UK government spokeswoman said: 'Our top priority as a government is to slow the spread of the coronavirus, protect the NHS and keep people safe - we are working around the clock to do so, with all four nations together providing unprecedented financial support for businesses, workers and the self-employed. 'We remain fully committed to the negotiations and the second round is taking place by video conference this week. 'The transition period ends on 31 December 2020, as enshrined in UK law, which the Prime Minister has made clear he has no intention of changing.' The National Lottery has announced that Saturday night's 9,772,175 Lotto jackpot was won in Kerry. Lotto bosses appealed to all players in the county to check their tickets after one lucky player scooped the jackpot. The winning numbers are: 04, 09, 15, 27, 29, 34 and bonus number is 17. This jackpot was close to being shared by three more players from Carlow, Dublin and Galway who fell just one number short, matching five numbers and the bonus ball. These three lucky players will win 36,453 each, sharing the 109,359 Lotto Match 5 + Bonus prize. These tickets were sold at Flynns Spar Garage in Tullow, Carlow, News N Choose in Loughrea, Galway and the Spar store in Drimnagh, Dublin 12. A National Lottery spokesperson said it hopes to reveal the name of the winning store in the next couple of days. The spokesperson said: "With a jackpot win of this amount, it is important that we take some time to inform the winning retailer and of course to give the winning ticketholder the time and space they need to let this amazing win to sink in so we will be announcing the winning store in the coming days. "We encourage all of our Lotto players who purchased a ticket for Saturdays Lotto draw to check their tickets carefully. "If you are one of the lucky winners of any of last nights big prizes, please sign the back of the ticket and contact our prize claims team on 1800 666 222 or email claims@lottery.ie, and we will make arrangements for you to collect your prize when it is safe to do so." With so many Irish winners in last nights EuroMillions draw, the National Lottery has reminded players that it has extended the period of time that lucky winners can collect prizes to encourage people to stay at home and not require them to make any unnecessary journeys during the current public health emergency. Any lucky winners of Lotto and Lotto Plus, Lotto 54321, EuroMillions and EuroMillions Plus, Telly Bingo, Daily Millions and Daily Millions Plus draws from January 9 2020 until draws in the week of July 5 2020 will have an extra three months in which they can claim their prize. The prize claims extension applies to winners who purchased their tickets and scratch card games in-store, online at www.lottery.ie and via the National Lottery App. The Morrison government is facing demands from the business sector to overhaul key parts of its $130 billion JobKeeper program as firms face impossible decisions to take on large debts to pay staff or even break up long-lasting partnerships. Just the way businesses are structured could leave some small firms with access to generous government support or shut off from tens of thousands of dollars in assistance as issues in the program, rushed through Federal Parliament, become apparent. Lauren Woodall and Julia Challenor must decide who will go on JobKeeper and who will take up JobSeeker due to restrictions that form part of the government's assistance program. Credit:Edwina Pickles Lauren Woodall and Julia Challenor have run the Kiss the Sky graphic design business for the past 15 years. They have structured the NSW-based business, which has suffered an 80 per cent drop in turnover, as a partnership. But the JobKeeper program explicitly denies JobKeeper payments to more than one partner. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) announced April 13 that kids fishing day events at the states trout parks have been cancelled this year amid concerns over the coronavirus (COVID-19). The kids fishing day events cancelled include: May 2 at Montauk State Park near Licking and Bennett Spring State Park in Lebanon and May 16 at Roaring River State Park near Cassville and Maramec Spring Park in St. James. To protect the public amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, MDC has extended the temporary closures of its facilities and cancellations of all public events and programs through May 3. Closures include regional offices, department headquarters in Jefferson City, staffed shooting ranges, nature centers, visitor centers, and education centers. MDC has also temporarily cancelled public events and programs, including hunter education classes, nature center programs and events, shooting range programs and events, and landowner workshops. All conservation areas, nature center trails, and boat accesses remain open to the public. Additionally, MDC had temporarily waived fishing permits through April 15. Anglers will now need to have a fishing permit, unless exempt. Trout anglers will also need required fishing permits but will not need a daily trout tag at the three open trout parks until further notice. Trout anglers fishing other areas around the state, including lakes and streams not at a trout park, will need both a fishing permit and trout permit. Only three Missouri trout parks remain open for day use and fishing: Bennett Spring State Park in Lebanon, Montauk State Park near Licking, and Roaring River State Park near Cassville. All seasons, dates, methods, and limits will continue to apply and be enforced. Learn more at mdc.mo.gov/newsroom/mdc-temporarily-waive-fishing-permits-starting-friday. To read the latest responses and actions taken by MDC during the COVID-19 pandemic, visit https://mdc.mo.gov/about-us/mdc-covid-19-response. MDC reminds the public to enjoy responsible recreation by continuing to maintain physical distance in the outdoors and avoid popular areas where people may congregate. Additionally, continue handwashing and sanitizing and travel in a group of 10 people or less. For more information on best practices to keep you and others safe, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html. A cross-section of the public have expressed their support for efforts being made by government to control the spread of COVID-19 in the country. As Ghanaians await an address from the President of the Republic later today, many are of the view that there should be an extension of the partial lockdown till the pandemic is brought under control. Ms Naa Owoo, a student, told the Ghana News Agency that the partial lockdown has limited the community spread of the virus and since the curve of recorded cases has not yet flattened, there is no need to revoke the lockdown. She said it is important extend the lockdown so that extra mechanisms would be put in place by government to completely rid society of the pandemic. She urged all to stay home and not trivialize issues concerning the pandemic. Mr Smith Bortey, a health worker, told GNA that allowing movements in the country may lead to a faster spread of the virus and advised that, We probably need more than partial lockdown, since the numbers are not coming down. A two-weeks complete lockdown can cause a significant fall of the number of cases. Ms Priscilla Bortey, a retailer, said there is the need an intensification of the social spacing message and urged all citizens to adhere to this particular directive even in their homes. In case the President declares an extension of the lockdown, lets all agree and obey since it would be necessary for the preservation of our lives. We need to be strict and limit the spread of the virus, whether there is a lifting of lockdown or not, she said. Mr P K Coffie, a resident of Madina, said the lockdown was implemented alongside the introduction of other precautionary measures like the regular washing of hands or the use of hand sanitizers, covering the mouth or nose when coughing or sneezing, avoiding handshakes and crowded places and maintaining social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus. I am of the view, he added, that this should be maintained at all times. 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. Featured Video Egypt's Cairo University decided to refer a student to an internal investigation panel after she had posted videos on social media platforms that challenge public morality, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported on Monday. The student, who has about one million followers on TikTok, posted a video calling upon ladies to go live on online applications for short videos called "likee" and make friends "decently" in return for payment. The video stirred anger on social media over the last couple of days. Cairo University President Mohamed Othman El-Khesht said he had received several messages that a student in Cairo University was calling upon females to shoot "inappropriate" videos in return for money. He stressed that the university will impose the maximum penalty against the student, and may even expel her for acting against the university's values and traditions. Search Keywords: Short link: Many media comments about how quickly Canada and the world will return to normal after this crisis reflect a nostalgia for those times. As often with nostalgia it aint what it used to be. The world we would go back to is an ugly, unjust one for much of the worlds population and for the future of the planet. Our normal included the dominance of neo-liberal ideas that see competition as key, free markets as the best way to allocate resources and inequality of income as a virtue, reflecting our worth in the economy. Governments, at the behest of the corporate elite, shrunk the state by lowering taxes, especially on the wealthy. This weakened social safety nets, re-allocated wealth into the pockets of corporations and their CEOs while workers real wages stagnated for decades. Neo-liberal international trade and finance rules were imposed on countries in the Global South, which were forced to open markets, ensure corporate capital mobility and shrink the state. Capital mobility without labour mobility led to outsourcing of production to low-wage economies and the hollowing out of the manufacturing sector. What did normal look like in Canada on the eve of the pandemic? About 79 per cent of the GDP and a similar per cent of employment was in services. The economy was sustained largely by consumer spending and export of a few commodities, in the extractive and agricultural sectors, that were vulnerable to the vagaries of global markets. The services sector is not a pretty picture. While we have software developers and bankers, the majority work in retail, hospitality and tourism and had low paid, precarious jobs with few benefits. Even worse was the emergence of the gig economy where services are provided by turning workers into fake independent contractors whose situation is even more precarious. It is only in health and education services, both publicly funded, that workers enjoy decent pay and benefits and these have been under attack and vulnerable to cuts. We were sitting on a stool with only two legs a sudden shock and the stool tips over. Not long ago we had a global financial crisis. What did we learn from it not a lot. Those responsible were never held accountable and ordinary tax payers and workers paid the price. Income inequality continued to increase, becoming so high as to draw the attention of media and economists after the Occupy Wall Street protests. But by and large neo-liberalism was unbowed. Why, despite disasters, did it march on? One reason is that disasters, for those in positions of power within the global economy, can be used to advance their interests. Naomi Klein in her book The Shock Doctrine,described how disaster capitalism works. In the midst of natural (hurricanes) or man-made disasters (e.g. the U.S. lraq invasion) corporations and allied governments use the crisis to re-engineer economies and policies in a neo-liberal direction. We are already seeing a push by big corporations to delay, defer or abandon measures and government regulations. What pay increases have been given to our front line workers, in food retail, are temporary. Most of the policy measures put in place to weather the storm are short term. Dependence on global supply chains and the lack of local production to meet needs have been brought home to us. In the areas of food, drugs and health care, neo-liberalism has put us in this position of being dependent on imports, being subject to stringent patent rules pushed by pharmaceutical corporations in trade agreements, and having inadequate capacity in our health care systems to deal with the crisis despite the heroic efforts of health care workers. Neo-liberalism created an industrial scale global food system, which in itself, many argue, is conducive to emerging pandemics. Neo-liberalism left us with many Canadians in precarious, low-wage jobs with no benefits and no sick leave. Many have lost their jobs or been forced to work on the front lines in jobs that are now dangerous. Meanwhile some corporate CEOs demand to be bailed out after having increased shareholder dividends, bumped up share prices and cashed in for a windfall, even as they take out advertisements thanking essential workers. When the stool tipped over those on the bottom got hurt, low income, women, racialized and other minorities and the elderly. The crisis revealed our economies are fragile and not resilient. If there is good news it is in the response of ordinary people around the world, as George Monbiot noted in a recent Guardian article, who have worked in solidarity and community, rediscovering what he calls the Commons. They have not descended into self-seeking, competitive behavior. A few governments, such Spains, recognize the economy is broken and begun to look at a guaranteed basic income, which even progressive Canadian conservatives like Hugh Segal have long advocated. We must not return to normal. We must be vigilant and call out governments and corporations trying to use this disaster to shore up their position. We must challenge them to abandon the old normal that has wrought so much damage on ordinary people and the planet on which we all live. SAN FRANCISCO On the morning of March 15, as Italy became the epicenter of the global coronavirus pandemic, a half dozen high-ranking California health officials held an emergency conference call to discuss efforts to contain the spread of the virus in the San Francisco Bay Area. The tight-knit group of Bay Area doctors organized the call to discuss a consistent policy on public gatherings for the regions 7 million people, which then had fewer than 280 cases and just three deaths. Soon, though, the conversation focused on the potentially catastrophic emergency on their hands and how stay-at-home orders could slow the advance of the virus. Many factors have fueled the speed of the disease spread throughout the world. But that three-hour call and the bold decisions to come out of it were central to helping California avoid the kind of devastation the virus wrought in parts of Europe and New York City, experts say. It was obviously spreading like wildfire under our noses and literally every minute we did not take aggressive action was going to mean more and more death, said Dr. Scott Morrow, health director for San Mateo County, just south of San Francisco and home to Facebook. The doctors who met that day are members of the Association of Bay Area Health Officers, a group born out of the AIDS epidemic that ravaged San Francisco in the 1980s. The group usually meets a half-dozen times a year and has tackled other global threats such as Ebola and swine flu. By mid-March, group members were alarmed by the spread of the virus since an initial case in the state was confirmed Jan. 26. Dr. Sara Cody, the top doctor in Santa Clara County, home to 2 million residents and the headquarters of Apple and Google, told her peers that COVID-19 cases were doubling every three days. In neighboring San Mateo County, every test conducted was coming back positive, shared Morrow. Across the bay in Alameda County, Dr. Erica Pan reported that cases were rising in areas bordering Santa Clara County. A day later, the San Francisco Bay Area became the first place in the nation to order residents to stay home. At least 20 other California counties adopted the Bay Area order within hours. Two days later, Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered all 40 million Californians to stay home unless they had essential jobs. Its impossible to quantify how much those orders helped or truly compare states or countries because of other potential factors such as population density, international travel and the number of tests being conducted in each place. However, experts in disease control say the Bay Areas early intervention clearly played a significant role in slowing the speed of infection throughout California. On March 15, California reported 335 cases and six deaths. As of Sunday morning, the state had confirmed more than 30,800 cases and nearly 1,150 deaths. The slowing rate of infection, at 73 per 100,000 residents as of Friday, and deaths is one one of the reasons Newsom says the state can contemplate reopening businesses. The area is now reaping the benefit of putting stringent recommendations in place very, very early, said Robyn Gershon, a clinical professor of epidemiology at New York Universitys School of Global Public Health. In New York, by the time social distancing came we already had many, many people sick. Without tests, without a vaccine, your only tool is having people not contact each other, Gershon said. Just a few days after Californias order, with the number of infections above 15,000 in New York state and more than 100 dead, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered businesses and workplaces to shut down. Most people recover from the new coronavirus with 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 January, the group in California began holding twice weekly phone calls to prepare for coronavirus, initially discussing how to monitor Americans returning from China, where the virus began, or how to disinfect ambulances that had transported COVID-19 patients. But on March 15, the call focused on extreme social distancing. Marin County Public Health Director Dr. Matt Willis wondered whether such a radical measure was needed in his county, which at the time had only 10 cases. But with no federal or state guidance, he soon agreed an aggressive approach to a shelter-in-place policy was really the one lever that we had. Cody, who has been credited by many for driving the urgency during that call and whose county was the first to declare a state of emergency in California, told colleagues of increasing hospitalization rates there, sharing early data from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention community survey that found about one in 10 of those seeking medical care for flu-like symptoms at public clinics had coronavirus. We realized we were not that far behind what was happening in Italy, the Santa Clara County health director said. On March 15, Italys hospitals were already overwhelmed, with more than 1,800 having died. Less than a week earlier, officials had imposed countrywide, strict stay-at-home orders after they failed to contain the outbreak in the hard-hit north. The death toll has now climbed to nearly 23,000. The European country had confirmed its first two cases on Jan. 31. Officials have contemplated why San Francisco Bay Area residents have largely complied. Californians were already seeing daily images of a cruise ship off Californias coast with at least 21 confirmed coronavirus infections aboard before it docked on March 9, so the virus was front-of-mind. Tech conferences that typically bring international travelers to the Bay Area each spring were being canceled and tech companies from Silicon Valley to San Francisco began telling employees to work from home. Its also the makeup of the Bay Area, officials say, including people with connections around the country and world. San Francisco residents generally are willing to comply with such things when shown the science, when shown the data about what can be accomplished, said Dr. Susan Philip, director of disease prevention and control at the San Francisco Department of Public Health. In the month since, Bay Area residents have largely continued to heed the mandate, quickly understanding the concept of flattening the curve to slow the rate of infection and avoid overwhelming hospitals. The timing of instituting the stay-at-home order is very, very critical in blunting the epidemic, said Lee Riley, a professor of epidemiology and infectious diseases at the University of California Berkeley. He warned, though, that complacency could ruin any initial success, noting we need to remain vigilant. Still, a challenge looms for the Bay Area doctors who continue to talk to each other twice a week: How to lift the shelter-in-place orders without creating a second surge. Were going to be relying on the same kind of partnership that we relied upon for the first stage of this to help us through, Willis said. ___ Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report. Coronavirus: Assad says crisis shows failure of West Syrian president meets Iranian minister in Damascus (ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, APRIL 20 - The coronavirus crisis "has laid bare the failure of the systems and values of Western countries" said Syrian President Bashar al Assad on Monday in Damascus, where he received Iranian Foreign Minister Javvad Zarif. Cited by government news agency Sana, Assad said the pandemic "has shown that these systems serve particular interests and aren't in the service of the people". Syrian authorities have registered 39 cases of coronavirus in the country thus far, and three deaths. However, after nine years of war the Syrian health system is unable to carry out a sufficient number of tests. During their meeting, Assad and Zarif were shown by Syrian and Iranian government media wearing face masks. Iran has been a strategic ally of Syria for about 40 years. (ANSAmed). A n RAF flight has left to collect a consignment of protective gowns for healthcare workers on the coronavirus frontline. The Ministry of Defence confirmed the aircraft, expected to be the first of three in total, set off this evening. They will collect 84 tonnes of personal protective equipment in total, including 400,000 urgently needed gowns. The products had been set to arrive in the UK on Sunday though this was delayed. It comes amid fierce criticism over dwindling protective supplies for frontline workers. Chancellor Rishi Sunak today insisted the Government was doing all it could to get the necessary equipment to those that need it. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, has said trusts are being forced into hand-to-mouth workarounds. These actions include washing single-use gowns and restricting stocks to key areas. While palliative care doctor Rachel Clarke said NHS workers and those in social care are being told to wear a skimpy, plastic pinny. Mr Sunak told reporters at the Number 10 press briefing that work was ongoing to find more PPE. He said: Were improving our sourcing internationally and domestically to make sure we can get the PPE we need in what is a very challenging international context. But people on the front line can rest assured that were doing absolutely everything we can and straining everything we can to get the equipment they need. He also said that today 140,000 gowns had arrived from Mynamar as ministers strained everything to get supplies. Guardians of students, who are eligible for mid-day meals but confined to their homes due to the lockdown, have been asked to collect rice and potatoes on behalf of their wards from April 20 across West Bengal, a school education department official said on Sunday. The respective school authorities will inform the parents through WhatsApp or SMS about the exact date and time of the distribution which will continue till April 30, the official said. It has to be ensured that students do not accompany the guardians during the distribution and parents do not come without wearing masks, he said. Action will be taken if there is violation of the order. District inspectors in different zones will ask the school authorities to maintain social distancing, hygiene and other precautionary measures while distributing the materials, he said. Each school has been asked to allot separate time, staggered over 10 days, to guardians of different classes so that there is no overcrowding, he said. To a question, the official said, if the headmaster is unable to reach school due to the ongoing lockdown, the teaching and non-teaching employees, living nearby, will be deployed for the work. This will be the first such initiative during the lockdown period, he said. Earlier on March 23, 3 kg of rice and 3 kg of potatoes were given to parents of students, who are eligible for mid-day meals. During the March 23 distribution programme, there were some reports of students accompanying their parents to the school compound, triggering controversy. Headmasters of two south Kolkata schools were transferred for allowing guardians, who were accompanied by their children. The Philadelphia Zoo has invited the public to help with naming the new sloth bear cub that was born at the zoo on December 11. The cubs keepers have developed a list of potential names from the Hindi language, which is spoke in the lowland forests of India and Sri Lanka, where sloth bears are native. Voters can choose from these names: Keematee, which means Precious; Rahi, which means Bringer of Spring or Traveler; Kelani, a river in Sri Lanka that means The Heavens; and Kali, a river in Nepal that means Terrific. Voting, as many times as you want, is open at the Philadelphia Zoo website through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, April 23. When creating the list of names keepers had a lot to consider including choosing names that are not gender-specific, are meaningful and fitting for the cub. At this stage, determining the sex of an infant sloth bear cub isnt as easy as it sounds. Typically, keepers take a hands-off approach, leaving mom to care for the baby, unless there is a situation that warrants interference. Combined with current social distancing between staff and carnivores including bears tht has prevented keepers in confirming the sex of the cub. Best guess is that the cub is male, but keepers are not committing yet. There has been an overwhelming amount of enthusiasm around the birth of this cub, inside and outside the zoo, said Andy Baker, the zoos chief operating officer. Because of the excitement and support, we are asking our community to participate in helping choose a name. This birth is significant for the Zoo as well as the overall sloth bear population in the U.S., and highlights the wonderful animal care and other work happening at Philadelphia Zoo each and every day." Sloth bears are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with populations declining dramatically in recent decades due to habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict and poaching. Philadelphia Zoo is home to three sloth bears in addition to the cub: 6-year-old dad Bhalu, 7-year-old mom Kayla and 13- year-old Balawat. 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. Contact Marcus Schneck at mschneck@pennlive.com. One of the many cruelties inflicted by the coronavirus is that many of its victims have died alone in sterile hospital rooms, with health care workers calling family members who cant be at their bedsides. A month into the pandemic, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center has come up with a system for allowing in-person visits so that relatives can say goodbye to their loved ones in the flesh. 'Its horrendous': Louisiana coronavirus patients' final moments are often without loved ones In the hurried minutes before a coronavirus patient is intubated, sedated and placed on a ventilator, nurses are rushing to set-up phone calls Influxes of COVID-19 patients have created many challenges for hospitals across the country, as hospital workers try to balance caring for a patient with stopping the spread of a highly contagious disease. Coronavirus patients are treated in isolation, health care workers must limit their in-person contact with patients, and hospitals are turning away visitors to prevent treatment sites from becoming breeding grounds for the virus. But as coronavirus has become more common in Louisiana hospitals, some are changing their approach to end-of-life care. In the early weeks of Baton Rouges outbreak where 1,534 people have tested positive thus far health care workers and palliative care specialists at Our Lady of the Lake would spend time calling and Facetiming patients family members so that they might feel less alone. But for patients who would never make it home, relatives often never got the chance to say goodbye in person. In some cases, coronavirus patients declined so rapidly that their family members didnt even receive phone calls in time. We realized theres really no way to replace the ability of a family member to be at the bedside when someone is in their final minutes and hours, said Dr. Mary Raven, a palliative care physician for Our Lady of the Lake. +15 Inside the coronavirus battle at Our Lady of the Lake: the fight of their lives Dr. Jonathan Richards tapped on a square of glass as the blue-gowned people he was watching called out for sedatives and started to move more It often fell to Raven to first tell a family that their loved one looked unlikely to survive, and secondly, to call or videoconference a family so that they could say goodbye over the phone. But now, family members should be able to say goodbye in the flesh in most cases. Over the past week, Heart of Hospice also opened a unit for dying coronavirus patients inside of Metairie's East Jefferson General Hospital that family members will also be able to visit. Our Lady of the Lake is allowing two family members to visit terminal patients for 30 minutes. Family visitors are screened for fever and other symptoms when they enter the hospital, and theyre required to wear masks, gloves and gowns, provided by the hospital. For family members who cant make it before a loved one dies, they can visit within one hour of a patients death if the patient was in an intensive care unit, or two hours of death if the patient was in a medical/surgical unit. +3 Editor Peter Kovacs: Have you read this? A story about medical professionals that makes us proud Thanks to the great coronavirus plague, the spring of 2020 will be remembered darkly, as a time of dread and dislocation and death. 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 The same rules will apply for patients dying in the hospital of other ailments, though family members in those instances will not have to wear protective equipment. Really, theyre just so grateful to have the opportunity to stand close, hold a hand, touch a face, Raven said. Its just the closeness that cant be duplicated with technology. Several health care workers have spoken out in recent weeks about the difficulty of comforting patients whose family members can't be with them at the end of their lives. Morgan Babin, a nurse working with coronavirus patients at Our Lady of the Lake, recently explained how much it pained her to take care of an elderly patient who declined to be put on a ventilator and who couldnt seem to get comfortable, regardless of the care Babin gave her. Babin prayed with the patient when her family members couldnt be there as she slipped away. It was an honor and a privilege for me, and Ill never forget her, Babin told an Advocate | Times-Picayune reporter at the hospital. +8 What was it like to report inside Our Lady of the Lake's coronavirus battle? Replay our discussion Andrea Gallo and David Grunfeld, a pair of Advocate and Times-Picayune staffers who got a first-hand look inside Our Lady of Lake Regional Med Raven said coronavirus patients now receiving end-of-life visits from family include those who opted against being intubated and those who have been on ventilators but haven't improved. Dina Dent, Our Lady of the Lakes vice president of nursing, said the visits give family members the chance to see what kind of environment their loved ones have been in and to meet the staffers who have been treating them. Some aspects of end-of-life care remain different because of coronavirus. Raven who used to meet with families for an hour at a time around a conference table to discuss a prognosis said she still must have such conversations over the phone. And for patients on their deathbeds hoping for last rites and the anointing of the sick sacrament, priests and chaplains are administering them from afar rather than anointing a forehead with oil as they normally would, said Coletta Barrett, Our Lady of the Lakes vice president of mission. Only a priest can take someones confession or do anointing of the sick, but in extraordinary times, there are other ways that the church allows that to happen, Barrett said. Editor's note: This story has been updated to explain that Heart of Hospice is operating the new hospice unit for coronavirus patients inside of East Jefferson General Hospital. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 23:16:08|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close by Xinhua writers Fu Min and Zhao Wencai XIAMEN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Sounding a long whistle, a train carrying 50 containers of goods including electronic devices and clothes as well as anti-virus supplies left Xiamen in eastern China for Hamburg, Germany. 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. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the service remained a reliable transportation channel. "We missed the scheduled date to deliver goods by sea due to COVID-19. Thanks to the stable operation of China-Europe cargo trains, our goods arrived in Europe on time," said Wang Weidi, manager of the logistics department of TPV Display Technology (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. The company had exported a total of 483 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) of electronic products through the cargo train service in the first quarter this year, up 19.6 percent year on year, according to Wang. In the first three months of 2020, a total of 67 China-Europe cargo trains had departed Xiamen in Fujian Province, transporting 6,106 TEUs of goods, up 160 percent year on year, according to the China Railway Nanchang Group Co. Ltd. Zhong Lei, business manager of the Xiamen International Railway Service. Co., Ltd., said the company had increased the weekly number of China-Europe freight trains in operation from four to seven to meet the customers' needs since March. Nationwide, the China-Europe freight trains made a total of 1,941 trips and transported 174,000 TEUs of freight in the first quarter of this year, up 15 percent and 18 percent year on year, respectively, data from the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. showed. The spread of COVID-19 has incurred global traffic restrictions. Under the circumstances that transportation is restricted at harbors and airports, China-Europe freight trains have carried anti-epidemic supplies such as masks, protective suits and ventilators to European countries. From the first train carrying epidemic control supplies departing on March 21 to the end of March, China-Europe freight trains sent 333,800 pieces of supplies totaling 494 tonnes to Europe. Most of the trips were bound to Italy, Germany, Spain, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and the Netherlands. In early April, the Ministry of Commerce issued a circular encouraging better use of China-Europe freight trains to promote trade and consumption. Ding Changfa, an economist of the Xiamen University, said China-Europe freight trains rumble across many countries as they have limited influence from the pandemic thanks to their segmented transport model and contactless services. He believes that China-Europe freight trains will have great potential in the post-epidemic economic recovery, both driven by the global demands and China's accelerated domestic work resumption. Enditem The South Korean Justice Ministry said it has ordered three Vietnamese students and one Malaysian student in the southwestern city of Gunsan to leave the country Friday for breaking their two-week self isolation period to venture outside on April 3. To avoid GPS tracking by authorities, they left their phones behind, but were caught after officials called their landline and got no answer. The three Vietnamese students had tested negative for the Covid-19 virus after arriving in South Korea between March 28 and April 1, and authorities asked them to quarantine themselves at home for 14 days. The ministry said it had issued a deportation order rather than forcing the violators to leave immediately, considering unstable flight schedules, the Yonhap news agency reported. This means the students will have to leave the country as soon as flight schedules are resolved. Until then, they will remain under the custody of the immigration office. Another three Vietnamese nationals a married couple in the southeastern city of Gimhae whod left their registered address in Seoul, and another person who went out fishing - have also received deportation orders for breaking quarantine guidelines. It was not clear if these Vietnamese citizens have left South Korea or not. All overseas arrivals to South Korea, including Korean nationals and foreigners alike are required to undergo a mandatory two-week quarantine starting April 1 as concerns rose over imported novel coronavirus infections. Violators face fines of up to 10 million won ($8,186) or up to one year in jail. Vietnams Foreign Affairs Ministry estimates around 200,000 Vietnamese nationals live in South Korea. Of these, thousands, mostly students, have flown back to Vietnam since February after South Korea became one of the countries hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic. The country has reported more than 10,000 infection cases and 236 deaths. Meanwhile, Vietnam has recorded no new infections for the last four days. Of the 268 patients diagnosed in Vietnam so far, 61 are still active and the remaining 207 have been discharged. No deaths have been recorded to date. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with more than 165,000 deaths reported so far. By Hamid Shaaban Working on the front lines in a hospital in Newark, one of the heartbreaking realities that Ive confronted is the ruthless way COVID-19 attacks people of color. In my experience, the virus seems to be disproportionately killing more African Americans who contract the disease than other racial and ethnic groups. However, this is just based on my anecdotal experience. It may be that cities like Newark simply have more essential workers who happen to also be Black. Maybe the plight of diseases like diabetes and hypertension may be more critical here. Maybe the problem lies in the high poverty rate. Or maybe it has something to do with the heavy reliance on public transportation. That is why I believe it is important for Gov. Phil Murphy to sign into law bipartisan legislation requiring hospitals to report demographic data to the New Jersey Department of Health about their COVID-19 patients. Since the outbreak of this viral pandemic, the Health Department has done a phenomenal job of providing daily statistics about the number of cases of COVID-19, deaths as a result of the virus and, more recently, hospital admissions, number of patients in intensive care and other important data. I applaud the states openness and transparency because having more data gives us a sharper understanding of how this virus is impacting our states population. But whats missing from the data is demographic information. We need to know whether the virus negatively impacts certain racial or ethnic groups more than others. The legislation (S2357), sponsored by Sen. Ron Rice, would give us the data we need to have a more detailed and comprehensive astuteness of how COVID-19 is impacting these different demographic groups. While there is much to learn about this novel coronavirus, it is becoming increasingly clear to me that our states most vulnerable residents are at greatest risk from COVID-19. The viral pandemic is layered upon an existing health epidemic that has plagued cities like Newark for many years: obesity, poverty, homelessness and untreated chronic diseases, including diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, high blood pressure is most common in non-Hispanic Black adults (54%), and Black people have the highest mortality rate from heart disease. We also know that African-American patients are more likely than white patients to have diabetes. The risk of diabetes, according to statistics presented by the 2015 National Medical Association Scientific Assembly in Detroit, Michigan, is approximately 77% higher among African Americans than among non-Hispanic white Americans. African Americans with diabetes were also more likely to be hospitalized and more likely to die from diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. Add a novel coronavirus into the mix, and you end up with what we are facing at our hospital young African-American patients getting sick and unfortunately dying at alarming rates. In Newark, many younger COVID-19 patients did not realize they were at greater risk because they werent aware of their respective underlying health conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes. And this is an abject failure of our healthcare system. At Saint Michaels Medical Center, where I am chief medical officer, we have a Primary and Specialty Center in Saint Michaels Medical Center that provides high-quality care to patients who otherwise would not have access to a primary care physician in a private setting. Newark also has a number of federally qualified healthcare centers that provide excellent healthcare. Yet, despite our nations and states attempts to expand access to healthcare, there are still far too many residents in Newark who dont have regular contact with a healthcare provider, one who can effectively detect and treat chronic illnesses. Many are African-American, Hispanic, undocumented and homeless and these are the people at greatest risk of death when they are infected by COVID-19. While S2357 doesnt address the underlying issues of healthcare access for the underserved population, it will at the very least shed light on how COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted these groups. Thats why I am urging Gov. Murphy to sign the legislation. My hope is that when we finally defeat this viral pandemic, we will redouble our efforts to further expand healthcare access for our underserved residents. Dr. Hamid Shaaban MD is the chief medical officer at Saint Michaels Medical Center in Newark. 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. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 18:16:57 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 944 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LONDON, ENGLAND / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / The biggest source of worries many startup founders go through is how to source for funds, this shouldn't come as a surprise as the marketing landscape is daily becoming more savvy and competitive and you need enough funds to cope up with the advancements and innovations. When the world became a global village, the scope of marketing changed drastically, it became borderless, and the competition was heightened.To meet up with the changing dynamics in marketing, most emerging startups sourcing for funds had to resort to venture capitalists (VCs) as their best alternatives. After all, their conditionalities for releasing funds were not as stringent as those of banks, who talk collaterals and all the other documentation processes.While this may be the true position of things for some startup founders, unpalatable stories are emerging from others even to the extent of some suffering from mental illness as a result of their startup failures, stress, anxiety, and depression that are associated with it.The findings by WHO that one in four people in the world will be affected by mental or neurological disorders at some point in their lives and that around 450 million people currently suffer from such conditions, is a serious cause for concern especially as it relates to startup founders and their immediate family members.The result of the interview conducted by the National, Comorbidity Survey Replication on a representative sample of 9,282 English-speaking American adults to determine the lifetime and 12-month prevalence of mental health conditions was quite revealing.This study revealed that there is a 46 percent lifetime occurrence of any mental health condition as well as an 18.3 percent lifetime occurrence of one mental health condition. Also, you have a 27.7 percent lifetime occurrence of two or more conditions and a 17.3 percent lifetime occurrence of three or more conditions.The study concluded that entrepreneurs are 50 percent more likely to report having a mental health condition and those founders, are more readily to be found with the following conditions:2X more readily to suffer from depression6X more readily to suffer from ADHD3X more readily to suffer from substance abuse10X more readily to suffer from bipolar disorder2X more readily to have psychiatric hospitalization2X more readily to have suicidal thoughtsWhy would the founders of startups have to face these aggravated situations?As a condition for the release of funds, VCs usually demand a percentage of equity ownership of the company, which ranges between 25 to 55 percent, a level of control over its strategic outlining, and payment of varying fees. Apart from these, the VCs will request board involvement in return for the investment that they are making in your company.This board involvement is of two folds, where one will be the board of director seat in which they participate in major decisions of the company, the other level of board involvement is a board observer, where the representing member will have an open invitation to attend meetings but will not vote. Notwithstanding how you want to view it, the simple truth is that they still have a lot of influence.With these two board involvements breathing down your neck, there is no way a founder will not be expected to be constantly tensed and having sleepless nights which are precursors for mental illness.Below is an image from the Forbes Magazine that compares directors and observers.Therapeutic SolutionsThe fact that we don't have mentally deranged people flocking the streets of major cities in the world as a result of mental illness due to venture capitalists'-backed startups is due to the availability of therapeutic solutions.Approaches to psychotherapy fall into five main divisions:Psychoanalysis and psychodynamic therapies. This approach focuses on changing problematic behaviors, emotions, and perceptions by exploring their unconscious meanings and motivations.Behavior therapy. Here, the learning's role in developing both normal and abnormal behaviors is focused on.Cognitive therapy. Cognitive therapy emphasizes what people think rather than their actions.Humanistic therapy. This approach highlights people's capability to make rational judgments and develop to their greatest potential.Integrative or holistic therapy. Some therapists refuse to be fixated to only one approach. They rather combine factors from different strategies and tailor their medication according to each client's needs.Online TherapyA click affords you the opportunity of having access to online therapy, Web therapy, telepsychology, e-therapy, distance therapy, or internet therapy to have instant and inexpensive access to a therapist. This means of therapy has taken psychotherapy out of the therapist's office and to even remote areas inasmuch as you are connected to the Internet.Using the internet addresses the inconvenience people who cannot at every appointment present themselves at the therapist's office have to undergo. However, before signing up for online therapy, you must consider the following:Notwithstanding the inherent benefits, psychotherapists are of the view that e-therapy may not be the best choice for everyone or every situation in need of professional support. Here are a few points you must consider before signing up:Is this the right tool to help you?Is the therapist licensed?Is the psychologist licensed in the state you live in?Is the site or app secure?How do you intend to pay for the service?For psychologists and patients, it's a win-win situation. Where online sites and apps are being explored by the former, more patients are eager to use them.The American Psychological Association (APA), says that some technological tools can help when used in conjunction with in-office therapy.Web-conferencing and streaming in real-time are meant to offer continuity when a patient is on vacation or not able to make a regular session. However, it's advised tha The apparently reciprocal moves come four weeks after Turkish prosecutors indicted 20 Saudis over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, a killing that soured relations between Ankara and Riyadh. Turkish authorities blocked Saudi and United Arab Emirates news websites on Sunday, days after the sites of Turkey's state broadcaster and news agency were blocked in Saudi Arabia. Internet users in Turkey trying to access the sites of Saudi news agency SPA, the UAE's WAM news agency and more than a dozen other sites saw a message saying that they were blocked under a law governing internet publications in Turkey. A spokesman at Turkey's Justice Ministry declined to comment on the actions and Saudi Arabia's government media office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Turkish website of the U.K.-based Independent newspaper, which is operated by a Saudi company, was one of the sites to blocked on Sunday, in a move that its editor said reflected political tensions between Saudi Arabia and Turkey. "We believe the tensions between Saudi Arabia and Turkey reflected on us," editor Nevzat Cicek told Reuters. Sunday's decision appeared to be "retaliation against Saudi Arabia," he said. Saudi Arabia had blocked access to several Turkish media websites a week earlier, including state broadcaster TRT and the state-owned Anadolu agency. Residents in the United Arab Emirates, a close ally of Saudi Arabia, said the Turkish websites were accessible on Sunday. Tensions between Turkey and Saudi Arabia escalated sharply after Saudi agents killed Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Last month Istanbul prosecutors indicted one of the prince's close aides and a former deputy head of Saudi general intelligence on charges of instigating Khashoggi's killing, as well as 18 men it said carried out the operation. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the killing was ordered at the "highest levels" of the Saudi government. Prince Mohammed has denied ordering the killing but said he bore ultimate responsibility as the kingdom's de facto leader. The Salvation Army cares for the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people each day. At times of disasters, it is no different. Since the Easter Tornadoes swept through the Tennessee Valley, the Salvation Army has served 13,505 meals, 5,610 drinks, 4,890 snacks, and provided 468 emotional and spiritual care in Catoosa, Hamilton and Bradley counties. The Salvation Army has been feeding those housed by the American Red Cross in area hotels as well as feeding emergency relief workers at command posts and serving neighbors as they continue clean-up efforts. We have emergency teams in town who are from all over the states of Tennessee and Kentucky, say Major Stephen Story. Many of these same individuals just finished serving in the Nashville region for their tornadoes earlier in March. The Salvation Army has moved from Middle Tennessee disaster relief, to COVID-19 relief, right into the Easter Tornado Relief in our own area. The Salvation Armys budget is tighter than its ever been, said Major Mark Smith, area commander for the Greater Chattanooga Salvation Army. We have faith that God will carry us financially through the remainder of the fiscal year but not without our generous community's support. In addition to tornado disaster efforts, the Salvation Army will continue to provide ongoing care in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, to the un-housed community and meet needs through its social services office with food and utility assistance. To contribute to The Salvation Armys efforts visit csarmy.org. As West Bengal on Monday reported 54 fresh coronavirus cases, the highest on a single day, the Centre despatched a team to the state to assess the "serious" COVID-19 situation, provoking anger of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who made clear her unwillingness to cooperate with it. She shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi where she voiced her displeasure at the state government having been kept in dark about the visit in violation of the established protocol. West Bengal has so far reported 330 cases, including 12 deaths, and has been accused by the Centre of allowing gradual dilution of the lockdown regulations. Reacting to the Centre's letter last week, Banerjee had said the Union government was only interested in "extra vigilance in some specific areas". The Union home ministry said on Monday morning the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and that the violation of lockdown measures risk the spread of the novel coronavirus. The places mentioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs include Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. The central government has constituted six Inter- Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to make an on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal -- for redress. Two of these teams have landed in Kolkata. The teams will submit their report to the central government in the larger interest of the general public, the ministry said. "The IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures as per guidelines, the supply of essential commodities, social distancing, the preparedness of health infrastructure, the safety of health professionals and conditions of relief camps for labourers and poor people," a home ministry spokesperson said. A miffed Banerjee shot off a letter to Modi complaining that she was informed by the Union Home Minister Amit Shah late in the afternoon, whereas the central teams have already landed in Bengal in the morning hours before the telephonic conversation. Calling it a breach of established protocol, Banerjee said, The central teams kept the state government in dark and had approached BSF for logistic support and was moving in the field without informing the state government. Earlier in the afternoon, the feisty TMC leader expressed her displeasure in a series of tweets and sought to know the rationale behind the formation of central teams to visit the states. She urged Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Shah to share with her the criteria to be followed by them for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". "We welcome all constructive support & suggestions, especially from the Central Govt in negating the #Covid19 crisis. However, the basis on which Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including few in WB under Disaster Mgmt Act 2005 is unclear, Banerjee tweeted. "I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," she added. Echoing Banerjee, West Bengal Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha came down heavily on the Centre for sending the teams to the state without following the "laid-down norms". Later in the evening, the central teams were seen arriving at Nabanna, the state secretariat, to discuss the situation with the chief secretary. The development also set off a political duel in Bengal with the BJP backing the Centre and the states ruling TMC and opposition CPI(M) accusing the Modi government of violating the federal structure. The central government did the right thing by sending its teams. They will surely find out how the lockdown norms are being violated and how the state government is trying to hide the real picture. The state government, in order to hide figures and facts, is pushing the people towards a much more dangerous situation, West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said. Senior TMC leader and Minister Partha Chatterjee said the Centre, instead of fighting the pandemic, is trying to score political brownie points over the TMC government by blatantly violating the federal structure. Senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty shared Chatterjees view and said it is not the time for petty centralstate and everybody has to work unitedly to fight the pandemic. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rivers state government has released 22 ExxonMobil workers who they arrested for violating a lock down order issued by the state governor Nyesom Wike. The ExxonMobil workers who were detained at the state isolation centre at Yakubu Gowon Stadium in Port Harcourt, were arrested after entering the Rivers state from Akwa Ibom. Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Rivers State, Professor Zaccheus Adangor said the oil workers were released without any charge following the intervention of well-meaning Nigerians. This is coming after the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) asked its members to shut operations and all activities at the nations oil rigs and export terminals from Sunday midnight. Members of the group were also directed to withdraw all forms of services relating to crude oil production, refining, distribution and supplies after the Rivers State Government insisted on prosecuting the oil workers. By PTI PESHAWAR: At least five militants were killed in an exchange of fire with Pakistani security forces in the country's restive North Waziristan tribal district, bordering Afghanistan, an official said on Monday. The heavily-armed terrorists carried out a raid on security force's check-post late last night, about 10 kms west of Miranshah in North Waziristan. During the exchange of fire, five militants and a soldier were killed while three security personnel were also injured, Army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. The victims were airlifted to a hospital in Miranshah. The area was cordoned off and a search operation was conducted. By AFP MADRID: Spain's economy is likely to crash by between 6.6 per cent and 13.6 per cent in 2020 as a result of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the Bank of Spain warned on Monday. The estimated contraction would be "unprecedented in recent history" even if the figures were subject to "huge uncertainty" depending on how long the current lockdown lasts, the central bank said in a statement. Spain imposed a tight lockdown on March 14 to slow the spread of the virus which has so far killed more than 20,800 people, the third-highest number of deaths in the world after the United States and Italy. The Bank of Spain said the estimates were "provisional" and would likely be modified in the coming months in line with the evolution of the pandemic, envisaging a number of different scenarios. If the lockdown was limited to just eight weeks, ending on May 9 in line with the current government directive, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would contract by between 6.6 per cent and 8.7 per cent. But that could reach as high as 13.6 per cent if the period of confinement was to last 12 weeks and economic activity did not get back to normal until the year's end, notably in the key tourism sector. The main factors likely to trigger recession would be "the pronounced contraction of internal demand" due to the disruption of economic activity and the explosion in unemployment, the central bank said. It also pointed to "a profound weakening of demand for goods and services from the rest of the world" and the collapse of tourist arrivals, affecting two pillars of the Spanish economy. "Towards 2021, there is hope that the Spanish economy will recover a significant part, but not all, of its activity and employment levels as expected before the pandemic," the central bank said. It did not make any predictions for 2021. Last week, the International Monetary Fund said Spain's economy would contract by 8.0 per cent and that its unemployment rate could soar this year to 20.8 per cent, up from 13.8 per cent, which is already the highest rate in the eurozone after Greece. Nearly 3.9 million workers have been temporarily laid off as a result of the lockdown measures, while nearly a million self-employed have also stopped working. Spain is heavily reliant on tourism, which accounts for around 12 per cent of its economic output. Last year, it received a record 84 million visitors, making it the world's second-most visited country after France. Sahara chief Subrata Roy has assured full support to all workers, customers and investors of his group in dealing with coronavirus pandemic and has urged everyone to strictly follow the government guidelines on the nationwide lockdown as individual soldiers in this fight. In a video message for an estimated 14 lakh workers as also over 9 crore customers and investors, Roy said battling coronavirus is not just the responsibility of the government, but every Indian has an equal responsibility to defeat this global pandemic. The Sahara chief said coronavirus pandemic has pushed the entire world into a dark tunnel of uncertainty. "In our country too, all the social and commercial activities have been halted. We too are impacted by the situation. At the moment, we can't do much though we very much want to, but Sahara India Pariwar is founded on strong trust and beautiful emotions and at this moment of crisis, your Sahara India Pariwar wholeheartedly stands by you," he said. He said no member of the Sahara family should feel that they are alone in this period of crisis and if any member is in some difficulty, the other members should immediately provide the help as per their capacity. "We should keep our unity strong for a decisive victory over this pandemic. Soon, this crisis will be over and we will start our work with a new enthusiasm," he said. Earlier in February when the COVID-19 crisis was yet to engulf India in such a big way, Roy had told all Sahara investors that his group, which has been battling a long-drawn legal and regulatory battle over thousands of crores collected through certain bonds issued by two companies, would see all its problems getting resolved this year. He had said that two large foreign investors have been roped in for real estate as well as city development businesses, and nearly Rs 22,000 crore deposited with regulator Sebi will also eventually come back to the group. He had assured all Sahara investors that they would get their invested amount with full interest and an additional interest would be paid even for a day's delay. Since then, virtually every sector has got hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis and the subsequent lockdown, which is now in place for almost a month. In his message, Roy said, "We must follow social distancing, but we should never allow emotional distancing to happen. We should keep communicating with our nearest and dearest through telephone and internet. "Emotions are our great strength. So, all the people of our great nation should be emotionally united with one another. When we have finally defeated the Corona, we will make a new beginning. We will stand together and make our country stronger than ever before." Roy said the fight against the deadly coronavirus is "a war of the whole of mankind and in this war, every single person is a soldier". "If we assume that whatever is to be done is to be done by the government, by hospitals and doctors, by police and administration, then believe me, we will lose our war against coronavirus." He said the coronavirus pandemic has shaken the whole world, with millions having been infected and over one lakh having died. Roy said the second phase of the lockdown is very crucial for India and everyone most follow it strictly, irrespective of their religion, community and faith. "If the lockdown had not been imposed, the situation would have been far worse. During the lockdown, stay at home and religiously follow whatever guidelines are issued by the government. "Doctors, nurses, police and administration personnel are fighting the coronavirus at the front. They are risking their lives to save our lives. So, cooperate with them wholeheartedly in every possible way," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India on Sunday trashed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's comments alleging targeting of Muslims in the country in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the "bizarre comments" by the Pakistani leadership was an attempt to shift focus from the "abysmal handling" of that country's internal affairs. In a tweet, Khan accused the Indian government of deliberately targeting the Muslim community against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis. The deliberate & violent targeting of Muslims in India by Modi Govt to divert the backlash over its COVID19 policy, which has left thousands stranded & hungry, is akin to what Nazis did to Jews in Gerrmany. Yet more proof of the racist Hindutva Supremacist ideology of Modi Govt. Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 19, 2020 "Instead of concentrating on fighting COVID19, they are making baseless allegations against their neighbours," the MEA spokesperson said. He was responding to media queries on Khan's remarks. "On the subject of minorities, they (Pakistani leadership) would be well advised to address the concerns of their own dwindling minority communities, which have been truly discriminated against," Srivastava said. Today, Raiwind has been quarantined. However, it might be too late. Coronavirus carriers, who attended the Ijtema in Pakistan, are now actively spreading it as far as Gaza. The Middle East Eye reported that 'at least two Palestinian who attended the ijtema were the first confirmed cases of Corona virus in Gaza'. (MEE, 4, April 2020). Meanwhile the Pakistan government claim that they are tracing thousands of Tablighi Jamat members who attended the annual event and managed to escape the quarantine and have returned to their cities, towns and villages. Pakistan, it appears is fighting a losing battle. The failed state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan lacks a modern healthcare infrastructure that could cope with Coronavirus crisis or screen vast majority of her population. Popular demand to lockdown the country fell on deaf ears. Prime minister Imran Khan has been defiant and continuously refuses to issue a national lockdown order. For this criminal negligence and delay in issuing a ban on air travel by Pakistan the world especially Hindustan might have to pay dearly. It was not until after the Pakistan military establishment intervened that voluntary lockdown policy enforced by Sindh province earned itself a political and tactical acceptance.New York Times in its report on the spread of Coronavirus in Pakistan had warned on March 26 that 'Prime minister Imran Khan played down (Coronavirus) dangers. Pakistan bragged that the country was Virus-free, but little was being done to set up testing anywhere'. On April 4, Arab News reported that 'the number of those affected by Corona Virus had reached 224'. Hundreds of Indian Muslims returning from Nizamuddin Manzil in Delhi after attending a Tablighi congregation have also contracted Corona Virus and are posing a serious threat to our population. Their stubborn refusal to avoid saying prayers in mosques should be treated as an act of war against the healthy population of Hindustan and should be dealt with the same coin. Tablighis are no friend of Hindustan. Mass arrests of Tablighi should be on the table of the Security Chief of Hindustan.In Delhi, as a result of the congregation of Tablighi Jamat at Nizamuddin Markaz, hundreds are now infected with Coronavirus and are now also responsible for spreading it as far as Telangana! Tablighi in Pakistan as well in Hindustan continue to defy the lockdown by forcing their way into the mosques. The Muslim clergy is busy delivering provocative sermons and making demands that Muslims should attend the Friday congregation all over the subcontinents.Tablighi Jamat is the initial recruiting ground for the future jihadists. Terrorist organisations such as Taliban IS, Daesh, Al-Qaida all were set up by those who were initially indoctrinated by a poisonous robotic religiously Islamic fanatic mind-set. Acclaimed Canada-based Pakistani author and Islamic scholar Tariq Fateh in his regular weekly column in published in the Toronto Sun titled India now faces Virus Jihad exposes the love of knowledge of the Tablighi Jamat. He informs us that 'The Indian district of Mewat, where they are headquartered for a 100 years, has a female literacy rate of just 2%' (Toronto Sun, April 8, 2020).Pakistan is directly responsible for the wide-scale spread of Coronavirus across Hindustan and the rest of the world since Muslim clerics from Malaysia to Mumbai and from Australia to United Kingdom and America not least from the Middle East and Africa who participated in the Tablighi event in Raiwind are fittingly facilitating the spread of Corona Virus across the globe. Pakistan has now become a partner of China in the crime of exporting of a deadly pandemic that requires a collective effort by governments not only to eliminate the threat of spread of Corona Virus but to tackle the menace of Tablighi Jamat simultaneously.(Disclaimer: The views and ideas expressed in this Opinion Column are those of the author, Dr Amjad Ayub Mirza who is a human rights activist from PoK, living in exile in the United Kingdom. ANI, in any way, is not responsible/ liable for the views or ideas expressed by the author) (ANI) Boris Johnson is resisting pressure to ease the U.K.'s coronavirus lockdown too soon, fearing a second wave of the pandemic could hit the country, a person familiar with the matter said. The prime minister, who is yet to return to work after being struck by the virus himself, spoke with colleagues including his deputy, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, late on Friday to express caution, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the conversations were private. The government is facing calls to lift restrictions on movement that have brought the U.K. economy to a near halt and triggered a surge in furloughs and welfare applications. On April 16 Raab extended the lockdown for three weeks amid signs the outbreak is near or at its peak, but there is now an open debate in government about how and when to ease. "The big concern is a second peak," Johnson's spokesman James Slack said on a call with reporters on Monday. "If you move too quickly, the virus could begin to spread exponentially again." Slack said Johnson is focusing on his recovery at Chequers, his country residence, and while he is receiving daily updates, he is not doing government work. The government is also under increasing pressure to explain elements of its response, including delays in getting vital equipment and on testing health workers and others for the virus. On Sunday, the government issued a furious defense of Johnson's handling of the crisis. After a report in the Financial Times criticizing the procurement of ventilators and a Sunday Times story which suggested Johnson failed to take the virus seriously in its early stages, the government published two separate rebuttals, one 2,900 words long and the other 2,100 words long. "This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government," the response to the Sunday Times began. It went on to question several of the assertions in the piece. Since Johnson declared at the end of February that the virus was the government's top priority, ministers have struggled to deliver on their own targets, with shortages of tests and protective equipment for health workers. By Sunday afternoon, 16,060 people with coronavirus had died in hospitals. The numbers who have died elsewhere, particularly in care homes, are still being counted. Some parts of the government's response are still coming. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak is set on Monday to launch a 1.25 billion-pound ($1.56 billion) support package for companies focused on research. It's made up of a 500 million-pound loan fund for high-growth companies, where the government will match private investments with loans that convert to equity if they're not repaid, and 750 million pounds of grants and loans for smaller firms. Monday will also mark the moment companies can apply for support paying their staff through the Treasury's furlough plan. The Resolution Foundation think tank estimated the plan would cover 8 million people. It said it expected almost half of workers in the hospitality and retail sectors will be furloughed. Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, one of those leading the response while Johnson recovers from his Covid-19 infection, said the government will continue to refer to the five tests set out by Raab on April 16 before deciding to lift restrictions. There are signs that the number of deaths is leveling off, but officials say it's too early to call the peak of the virus. Sunday saw newspaper reports that the government had drawn up a three-stage plan for ending the lockdown that could see schools reopen as soon as May 11. "That is not true, we have not made that decision," Gove told the BBC. But Gove confirmed the idea of a staged easing of the lockdown when it does come, saying the hospitality industry would be "among the last" to exit. He said that a contact-tracing phone app, which would help Britain resume public life by enabling the government to see who people with the virus might have passed it to, was in beta testing. England's Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries said it was too early to say whether the U.K. had responded well or badly to the virus compared to other countries, because the final totals of deaths weren't yet known. She also hinted at frustration with the discussions about personal protective equipment (PPE), calling for a "more adult and more detailed conversation" about the issue. She said there had been unprecedented demand and that supply had nevertheless been maintained. On Monday, Slack said 12 million items of PPE had been delivered yesterday, bringing the total to date to 1 billion items. The government has also put the Royal Air Force on standby to speed up a shipment of supplies from Turkey which has been delayed. DAR ES SALAAM Eighty-Four (84) new coronavirus infections have been recorded in Tanzania, raising the total number of positive cases to 254, health minister Ummy Mwalimu has said on, Monday, April 20. Ms. Mwalimu said that on the same day, three people had succumbed to the virus in Dar es Salaam. The health minister further confirmed that 16 of the new cases were from Zanzibar as announced earlier on in the day by Zanzibars health minister. Ms. Ummy Mwalimu also said that the patients from Tanzania Mainland are all admitted and that they are all doing well except four that require specialized care. Meanwhile, the Parliament of Tanzania has confirmed that one Member of Parliament has contracted the novel coronavirus after he traveled to Dar es Salaam. The revelation by the countrys Deputy speaker Dr. Tulia Ackson while postponing the houses activities. The MP is receiving treatment and is doing well, deputy speaker was quoted in local media. Related Constance Hotels & Resorts has appointed Henri Arnulphy as the new general manager of Constance Moofushi in the Maldives. He took up his new responsibilities on March 14 in a very challenging time for the travel and tourism sector, as the world is facing the coronavirus crisis. Henri has 13 years of professional background in the hospitality industry with previous experiences and knowledge gained in Mauritius at the beginning of his career, followed by Australia, China, UAE, and onboard a luxury yacht. In January 2015, he joined Constance Hotels & Resorts, where he was resort manager of Constance Tsarabanjina, Madagascar, for three years. He then went to Constance Moofushi where he has been resident manager for the last year. - TradeArabia News Service A little more than a decade ago, a new influenza virus emerged in California and spread across the United States; it travelled across the globe and became a pandemic, with children and young adults suffering the most. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (632 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A little more than a decade ago, a new influenza virus emerged in California and spread across the United States; it travelled across the globe and became a pandemic, with children and young adults suffering the most. In 2009, the H1N1 influenza virus hit the world in waves, pediatric emergency physician Terry Klassen said, and not unlike the current coronavirus pandemic, researchers around the globe mobilized to study the outbreak. MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Dr. Lauren Kelly (left) and Dr. Terry Klassen say the medical community needs to find fast answers to a lot of questions. That year, Klassen on sabbatical from the University of Alberta had founded the Pediatric Emergency Research Networks (PERN) to create a framework for national pediatric research organizations to collaborate on international issues. The networks rapidly developed a study to collect data on risk factors for kids with severe cases of H1N1 at sites across the world. "We had no research funding at the time; people just went back and did it on their volunteer time, and the next thing we had this study that was really important," Klassen said. "It provided the research networks a chance to work together and to start to form those types of relationships that are important for research collaboration." Klassen, who had received his medical degree from the University of Manitoba, later returned to Manitoba. He has spent the last 10 years with the Childrens Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM) as chief executive officer and scientific director. The grandfather of four is now a co-investigator for a multinational study thats examining COVID-19 infections in children. The research is happening in 19 countries using the PERN framework Klassen built in 2009. It will look at risk factors for the disease, long-term outcomes for children infected with SARS-CoV-2, potential chronic conditions and the effect of regional policies on childrens health. PERN was already in the midst of a worldwide pneumonia study when an opportunity for COVID-19 research funding was offered by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Klassen explained. "We rapidly pivoted and used that other study as the backbone for the data-sharing and research ethics, and then made the application to study SARS-CoV-2," Klassen said. "This is a particular virus that when it comes to children, there simply wouldnt be enough at any one site to really get a large enough sample that would give you meaningful results. So you need an international entity that can recruit the number of children in meaningful numbers." The study is led by Dr. Stephen Freedman of the Alberta Childrens Hospital Research Institute. Its steering committee is composed of experts connected to PERN, including Klassen. The participant pool will include 12,500 children and data will be collected on childrens experiences for 90 days, travel history, exposures and symptoms, lab tests, X-rays, treatment and outcomes. Children in Manitoba are not part of the study, Klassen said, but that could change as it progresses. The findings of the study will be shared through Translating Emergency Knowledge for Kids a Manitoba-based research resource portal to health care providers and clinicians, Klassen said. "With this, especially an entity that we know so little about, our learning curve has been so steep, and I would say painful. I think its really important that Manitoba can be right in there and have access to the best knowledge," he said. Local researchers with CHRIM are on the frontline of developing treatments for the novel coronavirus in the short term, in both pediatric and acute-care settings. Dr. Lauren Kelly is one of the principal investigators with the Manitoba-arm of the World Health Organizations Solidarity study. The Solidarity study will be the largest adult clinical trial in the world, Kelly said, with 83 countries participating and three participant sites in Winnipeg: Grace Hospital, Health Sciences Centre and St. Boniface Hospital. We need fast answers about a lot of questions, and I think thats where this global platform were looking to recruit more than 10,000 patients globally is really an exciting opportunity for Manitoba to be a player in a global effort. Dr. Lauren Kelly "Every single day in the news, theres someone suggesting that something is working better than something else. So we need to be flexible in how we look at trials," said Kelly, who is a clinical trials expert at CHRIM. The Solidarity study is still waiting for approval in Manitoba but is expected to begin recruiting participants in three weeks, she said. "We need fast answers about a lot of questions, and I think thats where this global platform were looking to recruit more than 10,000 patients globally is really an exciting opportunity for Manitoba to be a player in a global effort," she 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. Kelly is also contributing to the suite of adult clinical trials led by Dr. Ryan Zarychanski of the U of M, where she is an assistant professor in the department of pediatrics and child health. Seven trials are in various stages, Kelly said, with the first clinical trial for those hospitalized with COVID-19 expected to begin shortly. While shes happy to step in to offer her expertise on clinical trial research to advance potential therapeutics for adults, Kelly continues to focus on testing treatment options for children infected with COVID-19. CHRIM is considering two additional pediatric trials to be run through the research support unit, Kelly said. Both trials are in the design phase and one will look at a variety of therapeutics for COVID-19 while the other is a convalescent plasma study. "Of course were all hoping we dont have a lot of hospitalized children with COVID. We still feel from an equitable perspective we want to be able to have trials to offer them," she said. "You hope the trials arent going to be needed, but you also hope you have answers for next time." danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca Transferring the body of an older man who had died of COVID-19 last week, funeral director Nick Maurer was determined to arrange a normal send-off despite the abnormal circumstances. To reduce the chance of funeral workers contracting the virus, the deceased had been "double bagged" for the trip from a Sydney hospital to the Maurer Family Funerals home in the north shore suburb of Chatswood. The body was wrapped in two leak-proof bags with labels saying "COVID-19 handle with care". Funeral workers transfer the body of a man who died in the past week of COVID-19 into a funeral home. Credit:James Brickwood Because of fear or ignorance, some funeral homes have refused to provide some services to the families of those who have died with the virus, including a viewing of the body, said Andrew Pinder, president of the Australian Funeral Directors Association. NSW Health says there is no evidence a funeral director will contract the virus from transporting someone who has died with COVID-19. The greatest risk is from family members who may attend the funeral, or come to the funeral home to make arrangements, said Mr Pinder, who is also managing director of Ern Jensen Funerals in St Albans and Preston in Victoria. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- If you have a question, complaint, or compliment for the New York City public school decision-making body -- the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP) -- you can participate in a meeting on Wednesday, April 29, via teleconference. The meeting was originally scheduled for this week. The citywide Panel for Educational Policy, headed by the NYC schools chancellor, rescheduled its April meeting and will now be held on April 29 at 6 p.m. It was originally scheduled for April 22. Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the meeting of the citywide PEP, headed by NYC Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza, will not be held in-person, but instead via teleconference. It will begin at 6 p.m. You can access the meeting via computer at https://learndoe.org/pep/apr29, or via phone by calling 800-719-6100 and entering meeting ID number PIN 113-9174 #. Details on how to sign up for public comment will be provided when you join the meeting. Speaker sign-up for public comment will run until 6:15 p.m. the night of the meeting. Each speaker will be allowed two minutes to speak during the public comment period. In accordance with City Council legislation, panel meetings are live-streamed. Registration will remain open until the meetings adjournment. A recording and transcription are posted to the PEP website following the meeting. If you choose to attend the meeting, your image or voice, or the image or voice of your child, may appear in the live-stream footage or the recording posted to the PEP website. During the April meeting, the panel will vote on various items, including: various contracts; the proposed 2020-2024 Five Year Capital Plan; the 2020-2021 formulas used to allocate revenue among community school districts and schools; proposed changes in school utilization. A general public comment period will follow. You can view all the documents for the April 29 meeting here. 38 Life on lockdown: Coronavirus in NYC FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. That sharp decline came a day after the May contract which expired on Tuesday went to an actual negative price, meaning traders would pay for someone to take the oil off their hands. The bizarre move had to do with the fact that because of the coronavirus shutdowns, big buyers of oil like refineries don't need any more oil because their tanks are nearly filled. That May contract clawed back into the black on Tuesday. Traders were focused on the strange happenings with oil futures once again, which raised concern about deep losses for the energy industry hitting the U.S. economy even further. The June contract for West Texas Intermediate cratered 43.4% to $11.57 per barrel on Tuesday. U.S. stocks fell sharply once again on Tuesday as oil prices continued their unprecedented wipeout , further denting market sentiment and dampening the global economic outlook. "If we ever needed a reminder for the extent of the abrupt decline in global economic activity, it is the fact that WTI oil futures saw a negative price," said Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat Global Adivsors, in a note. "But oil is a residual issue of the broader global 'stay at home' and this situation will not change until Western nations and US states begin opening up. And they cannot open up until each jurisdiction feels they have a handle on the healthcare crisis." The United States Oil Fund, an exchange-traded security for the retail investors which buys oil futures, tanked 25.33% to just $2.80 as the fun changed structure to stave off a collapse. Marathon Petroleum and ConocoPhillips were among the biggest decliners in the S&P 500 energy sector, falling more than 3% each. President Donald Trump tweeted that he instructed the Energy and Treasury departments to "formulate a plan which will make funds available so that these very important companies and jobs will be secured long into the future." Tweet Not helping sentiment were shares of IBM, which slipped 3% after the company reported a 3.4% decline in revenue in the first quarter from a year ago amid the spread of coronavirus. Salesforce and Oracle both fell more than 4% after IBM said its software and global business segments suffered from strong headwinds in the last two weeks of March due to the virus. "Fundamentals on the equity side have pretty much become impossible to judge," said David Pursell, CEO at Core Alternative Capital. "You look at the CFOs, and they're pulling next quarter's estimates because they really have no idea what demand's going to look like." Trading on Tuesday stabilized slightly after the Senate struck a deal on a $484 billion relief package for small businesses, hospitals and testing. Stocks dropped on Monday to start another volatile week, with the Dow falling nearly 600 points, as an unprecedented plunge in oil prices weighed on investor sentiment. Investors continued to monitor the coronavirus pandemic and the country's plan to reopen the economy. Signs have emerged that New York is past the worst of its outbreak. Georgia on Monday rolled out aggressive plans to reopen the state's economy, calling for many businesses to reopen their doors as early as Friday. Stocks enjoyed their first back-to-back weekly gains since early February last week as investors grew more optimistic that the pandemic is easing off. The S&P 500 is now about 19% from its record high on Feb. 19, cutting about half of its losses during the coronavirus sell-off. File picture Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke with Maldivian President Ibrahim Solih on the health and economic challenges the COVID-19 pandemic poses for the island nation. "The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together," the prime minister tweeted. India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time, he said. NEW ORLEANS - Ten years after a well blew wild under a BP platform in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 men and touching off the nations worst offshore oil spill, gulf waters sparkle in the sunlight, its fish are safe to eat, and thick, black oil no longer visibly stains the beaches and estuaries. Brown pelicans, a symbol of the spills ecological damage because so many dived after fish and came up coated with oil, are doing well. But scientists who spent the decade studying the Deepwater Horizon spill still worry about its effects on dolphins, whales, sea turtles, small fish vital to the food chain, and ancient corals in the cold, dark depths. The gulfs ecosystem is so complex and interconnected that its impossible to take any single part as a measure of its overall health, said Rita Colwell, who has led the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative. BP put up $500 million for the independent GoMRI program soon after the spill, part of more than $69 billion it says it has spent overall, including spill response, cleanup, settlements, restoration and other costs. Some scientists say the recovery has been remarkable since those dark spring days in 2010, when oil billowing from the sea floor began killing wildlife and blackening marshes and beaches from Texas to Florida. Ed Overton, a Louisiana State University chemist who has studied oil dispersal since the 1970s, said todays visitors to Louisianas marshes would have to know just where to look to find damage: So theres still oil there 10 years later. Is it significant compared to what we saw in 2010? And the answer is not only no, but hell no. But major concerns remain. Steven A. Murawski, chief scientist of the National Marine Fisheries Service when the well blew, said, We will see environmental impacts from this for the rest of our lifetimes. Heres a look at how some key aspects of the ecosystem are doing. DOLPHINS AND WHALES Initially, industry experts were saying, The dolphins and the whales, theyre smart. Theyre not going to swim into oiled areas, recalled Nancy Kinner, co-director of the Coastal Response Research Center and Center for Spills and Environmental Hazards at the University of New Hampshire. But cetaceans must surface to breathe, rising through oil that spread across more than 15,300 square miles (40,000 square kilometres) - nearly as big as Switzerland. Each exhalation vaporized oil and gas into minuscule droplets, which they then inhaled, Kinner said. Lung disease and other ailments caused by the spill killed more than 1,000 bottlenose dolphins over several years, many of them in Louisianas hard-hit Barataria Bay, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported. More than one-fifth were aborted, stillborn or died soon after birth. Pregnant Barataria and Mississippi Sound dolphins still give birth far more rarely than in healthy populations. Health checks of Barataria Bay dolphins in 2018 found that lung problems in some cases ... may be even getting worse, said Lori Schwacke of the National Marine Mammal Foundation. Whales almost certainly suffered similar oil-caused ailments but cant be safely examined, Schwacke said. NOAA estimated the spill killed 17 per cent of the gulfs Brydes whales, declared endangered in 2019 after their population dwindled to fewer than 100. Other whales are suffering, too. The toothed whales, sperm whales, Brydes whales, right whales ... these populations which were somewhat in jeopardy prior to the oil spill have been declining 5 or 10% a year ever since the oil spill, said Ian MacDonald of Florida State University. Going forward, some BP money will go toward improving conditions for dolphins and whales. These include studies on reducing effects of human-produced noise, such as seismic airguns and ship propellers, on whales and dolphins, which communicate and navigate by sound. FISH How fisheries would survive was hard to fathom while slicks fouled estuaries where many fish spawn, but scientists havent found any widespread species die-offs, said Chuck Wilson, chief science officer for GoMRI. Fisheries in the marshes where the oil came on shore have continued to flourish. Recreational fishing continues to be productive and a very popular activity even in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, where the highest oil impact was, he said. Its a different story farther out and deeper down, where small fish feed top food and sport fish such as tuna or grouper, as well as whales. Murawski, now a professor at the University of South Florida and director of a GoMRI consortium, said small fish that live about 660 to 3,300 feet (200 to 1,000 metres) deep seemed to be doing well a year after the spill, but then their numbers plummeted by 60 to 80 per cent, and havent returned. Because they hadnt been surveyed before the spill, theres no way to say whether the drop was caused by the spill or 2011 was an exceptional year and numbers are back to normal, he said. Laboratory research has found that oil damaged fish larvaes developing hearts and bones, MacDonald said. Future restoration projects include plans to get anglers to use equipment that would slowly lower reef fish they dont keep, rather than simply tossing them back. Another project aims to find the best escape hatches for bycatch hauled up in shrimp nets, and persuade shrimpers to use them. MARSHES The oil turned tall marsh grass as black as cinders and sank into the muck across Louisianas coastal marshes, a nursery for an array of birds and fish. Once all the roots and so on disintegrate, the whole marsh surface, all the soil, is lost. Given the fact that there is rapid sea-level rise and the land is sinking, its almost impossible to recover, said University of Maryland marine scientist Donald Boesch. Oiled marsh shorelines that werent lost immediately were more likely to wash away later. GoMRI surveys found birds, snails and crabs back at pre-spill densities, Wilson said. But the insects worry Louisiana State University researcher Linda Hooper-Bui. She found that most insect and spider species were back to 68% to 72% of pre-spill populations by 2016, and she was expecting to tell a story of insect recovery on the 10th anniversary. Then her funding dried up, but in August 2019, she collected one last round of samples and found surprisingly few insects. Something is going on right now, and its deeply affected, she said, but she cant tell what caused it. The vast majority of oiled wetlands were in Louisiana, where officials expect to use more than $7 billion in oil spill money to restore the coast, including marshes and barrier islands. DEEP CORAL AND SEA BOTTOM Far below the surface, deep-sea corals can live hundreds of years, creating habitats for multitudes of creatures near the bottom of the food web. Because of the BP spill, we also know how they can die. Swaths of such coral were killed, and they grow so slowly only a few millimeters a year that its hard to imagine how they could be replaced, Boesch said. Researchers found that seven years later, affected but surviving coral were less healthy than unoiled reefs. Before the spill, scientists didnt know that deep-sea corals were severely hurt by oil dispersing in a plume far below the surface. They discovered that rising oil interacts with plankton and then snows down from the surface and eventually lands, changing the chemical biology of the sea bed, MacDonald said. So these are things weve learned. And none of these are good things, MacDonald said. Scientists plan to study these deep habitats more extensively, including mapping the gulfs seafloor. To protect the fragile corals, money is being spent to develop techniques for growing and transplanting corals and installing buoys in some places to alert trawlers to the corals underwater presence. April 20, 2020 -- Gender-based violence has been shown to increase during global emergencies. In a paper just published by Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, researchers report that according to early evidence it is the same for the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings are online in the journal Bioethics. Early results from China suggest that domestic violence has dramatically increased. For example, a police station in China's Hubei Province recorded a tripling of domestic violence reports in February 2020 during the COVID?19 quarantine. Other reports suggest that police have been reluctant to intervene and detain perpetrators due to COVID?19 outbreaks in prisons. "Gender norms and roles relegating women to the realm of care work puts them on the frontlines in times of crisis, resulting in greater risk of exposure while excluding them from developing the response," said Terry McGovern, chair of the Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health at Columbia Mailman School, director of the Program on Global Health Justice and Governance, and senior author of the study. For example: Globally women perform three?quarters of unpaid care work, including household disease prevention and care for sick relatives, and there is not a country in the world where men provide an equal share of unpaid care work. in China's Hubei province 90% of frontline healthcare workers are women as in many other parts of the world. However, the researchers make the point that it is not too late to include the voices of women in tackling COVID-19: Governments can incorporate gender considerations into their response. Technology can be leveraged to ensure women continue to receive essential services when they need them most. For example, emergency services and victim support can be maintained via text, phone, and online services. Telemedicine should be considered an alternative and secure way to provide women and girls access to contraceptives and abortion medication. "Recognizing, valuing, supporting women's roles and giving them a voice in global health governance can go a long way in avoiding unintended consequences, building resilient healthcare systems, and reducing intersectional inequalities and vulnerabilities across gender, race, class and geography," noted Neetu John, first author and assistant professor in Columbia Mailman School's Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health, and the co-authors. ### Co-authors are: Sara Casey, Columbia Mailman School; and Giselle Carino, International Planned Parenthood Federation. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health Founded in 1922, the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting New Yorkers, the nation and the world. The Columbia Mailman School is the seventh largest recipient of NIH grants among schools of public health. Its nearly 300 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as preventing infectious and chronic diseases, environmental health, maternal and child health, health policy, climate change and health, and public health preparedness. It is a leader in public health education with more than 1,300 graduate students from 55 nations pursuing a variety of master's and doctoral degree programs. The Columbia Mailman School is also home to numerous world-renowned research centers, including ICAP and the Center for Infection and Immunity. For more information, please visit http://www.mailman.columbia.edu. Governors in Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina have announced plans to ease their coronavirus lockdowns. The latest: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) announced plans on Monday to allow some nonessential businesses to reopen on Friday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The state's shelter-in-place order will remain active until April 30. But indoor facilities including gyms, bowling alleys and salons will be allowed to reopen as long as they maintain social distancing requirements and abide by other safety rules. Restaurants will also be allowed to reopen on April 27 as long as they meet guidelines that are set to be released this week. The "medically fragile" are being encouraged to remain home until May 13. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) also announced on Monday that he will not be extending the state's stay-at-home order past April 30 and that businesses will be permitted to reopen next week, per the Tennessean. But some local restrictions could remain in place, particularly in the state's larger cities. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) said on Monday that some retail shopping facilities will be permitted to reopen that had previously been deemed "nonessential," per The State. Stores will still be required to abide by social distancing rules and tightened occupancy limits. Facilities that involve close human contact including salons and gyms will remain closed. The big picture: President Trump has encouraged governors of states with "beautifully low" numbers to reopen their economies. Trump's "slow the spread" policies only extend at the federal level until May 1. Their paths have crossed many a times, especially when Vijay Mallya joined Naresh Goyal in the aviation sector with the launch of Kingfisher Airlines in 2005. Perhaps there is a chance for one more, in the offices of the Enforcement Directorate, or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The possibility has increased after a UK court on April 20 dismissed fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallyas plea against an earlier order clearing his extradition to India. Mallya, the self-proclaimed king of good times, is wanted in India under charges of financial fraud worth around Rs 9,000 crore that was borrowed by Kingfisher Airlines from several Indian banks. The airline ceased operations in 2012. Vijay Mallya's extradition: Revisiting his Arthur Road jail cell details Goyal finds himself in similar circumstances. It's been just over a year since his Jet Airways suspended operations, and chances of a revival, by all means, has evaporated because of the disruption wrecked by novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, on the aviation sector. The airline, once the toast of the industry, owes banks nearly Rs 9,000 crore. Goyal himself faces investigations from several central and state agencies, mainly on money laundering allegations. Interestingly, if he had been able to pull off his plans, Goyal would have very well been in London today. In July last year, he was detained at the Mumbai international airport while trying to leave the country. Despite the similar situation both entrepreneurs find themselves in, their careers were a contrast. Naresh Goyal, Jet Airways (Image: Reuters) The two businessmen came from different worlds. One was an inheritor who ably shouldered the family business after the untimely death of his father and built it into the largest liquor business in the country. And Kingfisher Airlines, after its launch in 2005, seemed like a successful diversification. Goyal, who was now wary of Jet's fast-growing competitor, was an antithesis of Mallya. Instead of models, Goyal loved to be photographed with ministers and politicians and hosted them in Jet Airways' latest aircraft. His easy access to the power corridors helped Goyal see off many a competition, including the grounding of Tata Sons' aviation dream in the 1990s. While Mallya lived his life under public glare, especially after becoming a Member of Parliament, Goyal, a former travel agent, was away in London, after having turned an NRI. Even as he networked with the who's who of global aviation industry, Goyal preferred to let the professionals in the company brief the media or address analysts. Ironically, downfall of both the entrepreneurs has a similar trajectory. Bad acquisitions (Kingfisher Airlines bought Air Deccan and Jet Airways acquired Air Sahara) and a few poor decisions led to both their companies piling on debt. And then a combination of high fuel prices and a weaker rupee squeezed the two companies of their last penny. For a moment though, in 2019, it looked like Goyal may have managed to rescue Jet Airways after banks allowed a two month's grace period for the airline to get a new owner. And Goyal was allowed to retain a stake. The rescue deal, not surprisingly, infuriated Mallya. In a series of tweets, the former liquor baron criticised banks for 'double standards' and said, "Only wish the same was done for Kingfisher." The deal hasn't come to much. Perhaps in the coming days, if they do cross each other's path, they may share a not or two, on what they could have done differently. By ANI ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh Police has arrested 492 people for defying the COVID-19 lockdown orders. "Arunachal Police is implementing the lockdown seriously for the safety of people. 1,669 violators of lockdown have been booked. 492 persons have been arrested. 750 vehicles have been seized. Total FIRs registered are 161 and total fine imposed is Rs 6,47,650," read a post on the official Twitter handle of Arunachal Pradesh DGP RP Upadhyaya. FOLLOW COVID-19 LIVE UPDATES HERE Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on March 24 announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19. He later announced the extension of lockdown till May 3. According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Arunachal Pradesh has one COVID-19 case. Actor Priyanka Chopra on Monday lauded the World Health Organisation, Global Citizen and musician Lady Gaga for the success of the virtual concert One World: Together At Home and for being able to raise $127 million for Covid-19 relief. Im honored to have been a part of One World #TogetherAtHome last night. Thank you @glblctzn and @ladygaga for your creativity and humanity, and congratulations on raising $127.9M for Covid-19 relief, she tweeted. To all the healthcare workers out there, essential workers and everyone who is working through this...thank you for fighting for us every single day. Thank you, thank you, thank you...humanity will forever be indebted, she added. The actor also took to twitter and posted a video of her performance and also posted the video some of the other performances that she liked. Unlike many others who joined the musical event, Chopra spoke about the coronavirus and its impact. She highlighted the problems being faced by the people in refugee camps across the globe and how containing the spread of the highly contagious virus is even more challenging in such areas. So, there is no question the impact COVID-19 has had across the globe. It has been unimaginable for all of us. There are 17 million people displaced in camps and shelters around the world including facilities here in the US, that impact is particularly devastating, said Quantico actor said. I have witnessed first-hand, some of the overcrowded, and unliveable conditions in refugee camps. Social distancing there is simply not an option. In order to curb the spread of COVID-19 in these specific communities, the needs are basic - healthcare, clean water, sanitation, she added. The 37-year-old actor ended the speech by lauding World Health Organisation and Global Citizen for their endeavours. Global Citizen and the World Health Organisation are two organisations that I am personally very proud of to stand alongside to fight against COVID-19. In the fight and this crisis, we truly cannot afford to leave them, she said. Besides her performance the posted videos of several other performers like musicians Elton John and Lady Gaga. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and Global Citizen organised a show which was kickstarted by musician Lady Gaga. Over 70 artists and celebrities from across the globe had joined the initiative of the online concert to thank and celebrate the healthcare workers fighting the pandemic. Also read: Taapsee Pannu shares pic of when she dressed up as a bride for Manmarziyaan, reveals what was on her mind Some of the artists that were a part of the show are Elton John, Lizzo, Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Priyanka Chopra, Shah Rukh Khan, Celine Dion, and the Rolling Stone. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the virtual concert raised over $127 million for the relief efforts of Covid-19. The show was hosted by the most popular hosts Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, and Stephen Colbert. Follow @htshowbiz for more The Cooper Union's Foundation Building in Lower Manhattan was completed in 1859. This large six-story brownstone building of Anglo-Italianate style featuring heavy, ornate, round-arched windows was the first building in the world that was designed to accommodate an elevatorfour years before such an invention became available for passenger use. At that time, New York was growing vertically and Peter Cooper, the founder of Cooper Union for the Advancement of Scienceone of Americas leading private college todaybelieved that soon people would need elevators to reach the higher floors. Indeed, the development of skyscrapers would not have been possible without elevators. Many architects and engineers of the time must have felt the same, but Peter Cooperan inventor himselfwas one of the first to act. The Cooper Union's Foundation Building. Photo: el_cigarrito / Shutterstock.com Cooper instructed his architect, Fred A. Petersen, to build a hollow shaft running the entire height of the building, accessible by doors on each level. The design might have appeared unsafe to many, but Cooper was confident that sooner or later someone would make a functioning elevator. Cooper definitely had foresight, but he was not prophetic. Elevators have been around for a long long time, used to hoist goods and cargoes onto ships and up tall buildings. They were just not safe enough for hauling passengers yet. Winches failed regularly and cables snapped sending the load crashing to the ground. What was needed was a safety mechanism that would arrest the fall of the elevator if the cable was to break. Such a demonstration was made by Elisha Otis in 1854a year after the Cooper Union's Foundation Building broke groundat the Exhibition of Industry of All Nations in New York. Peter Cooper Otis installed a platform on guide rails on which he hoisted himself into the air before the onlookers. When the platform had risen to its maximum height, Otis severed the suspension cable. The crowd gasped, but the platform fell only a few inches before stopping securely in place. All safe, gentlemen, all safe, Otis assured the shocked spectators, and then explained how the safety brakes worked. In the years that followed, the Otis Elevator Company was swamped by orders for freight elevators. Elisha Otis demonstrating his safety system, Crystal Palace, 1854. Although Coopers prediction came true, and in a very short time, he didnt get the shape right. Coopers elevator shaft was circular, because he felt that circle would enable the maximum loading capacity. But Otis's elevators were rectangular. So despite already having an elevator shaft, Cooper Union did not become the first building to get a passenger elevator. That would be the Haughwout Building at 488 Broadway, where the first passenger elevator was installed on March 23, 1857. A few years later, Coopers son came to his rescue. Edward Cooper designed a round steam-powered elevator to fit in the shaft. This elevator functioned for forty years before it was replaced by an Otis electrically powered box-shaped elevator. It wasnt until 1972, when architect John Hejduk created a special, round model for the building. A view of the round elevator shaft. References: # The Institution of Engineering and Technology, https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2019/03/the-eccentric-engineer-how-the-elevator-shaft-came-before-the-elevator/ # POP Matters, http://www.popmatters.com/feature/178128-lifted-a-cultural-history-of-the-elevator/ # Cooper Archives, http://library.cooper.edu/archive/symbol/symbol5.html # NY Times, https://www.nytimes.com/1972/12/20/archives/1859-cooper-union-building-shut-for-2year-renovation.html The Delhi Police have said that they will allow central government officials to go to their offices in the national capital on the basis of their ID cards. The order has been issued by Additional Commissioner of Police, Special Branch. The Delhi government has said that it wont allow any relaxation for at least a week as the coronavirus spread appears to have gained pace. According to a bulletin issued by the Delhi health department on Sunday, 110 fresh cases were reported, taking the tally in the national capital to 2,003. With two deaths, the fatalities jumped to 45. But, all the central government employees will be allowed to come to the national capital where their offices are located. The order by the Delhi Police issued on Sunday said, Central government employees above the rank of Deputy Secretary will be attending their offices 100% and the lower level staff 30%. Since it is not possible to gauge who are within the 30%, all central government employees are permitted on the basis of their identity cards. It also asked all the district DCSPs, ACSPs and SHOs to thoroughly and repeatedly brief the ground level staff. It may be noted that several officers of the central government commute in hired taxis. Therefore, such vehicles carrying the officers be allowed on the basis of their identity cards, the order further said. The Delhi government has started rapid testing in 78 Covid-19 containment zones and acquired 42,000 rapid-test kits. In a containment zone in south Delhis Tughlakabad Extension, 35 more people have tested positive for the virus, authorities said, making it possibly one of the largest such zones in the national capital in terms of number of cases. At a press briefing on Sunday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal cited last months Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Nizamuddin area, and the large inflow of travellers from other countries to the national capital as reasons for the spread of the virus, and said Delhi was fighting a difficult battle. As the new coronavirus continues to cripple the travel industry, consumers are clamoring to get their money back for the unused airline tickets, lodging, tours, car rentals and cruises booked before their plans were hijacked by a pandemic. For some, recouping what they spent has been straightforward and simple, or they're content to accept credits for future travel in lieu of cash. Others have found that in a world without sports, getting refunds is the new national pastime. They've spent countless hours on hold, ping-ponged between travel providers passing the buck and struggled to make sense of companies' shape-shifting refund policies. "Every stakeholder in travel is frustrated," said Kurt Ebenhoch, executive director of Travel Fairness Now, a consumer advocacy group based in suburban Lake Villa, Ill. "There's never been this kind of volume of refund activity. It's a confusing, difficult time for consumers, especially when the rules aren't being adhered to." There's no one-size-fits-all solution for getting cash back on travel plans derailed by the health crisis. Some people, try as they might, will simply be out of luck depending on the fine print of their contracts, among other variables. But for many consumers, there are ways to bolster the chances of a refund. Here are some tips and advice on how to do that. ___ A HOTLINE AND OTHER HELP One of the biggest battles for cash has been the fight between airlines and passengers over canceled and delayed flights. When an airline nixes a flight or makes a significant schedule change, the U.S. Department of Transportation says consumers are entitled to their money back, even on cheaper, nonrefundable tickets. "During the coronavirus, the airlines started ignoring this rule," said FlyersRights.org President Paul Hudson, a member of the Federal Aviation Administration's rulemaking advisory committee. Multiple carriers changed their policies during the pandemic to make refunds more restrictive and leave people with seemingly little choice other than to accept a voucher for future travel. The nonprofit group has a hotline, 877-FLYERS6, to help people navigate these sticky situations. The air travel assistance company Cranky Concierge recently launched a new offering called Refund Hunter to help airline customers figure out their options for postponing or getting a refund on a particular flight. Once the customer decides what to do, the company tells them how to handle that request with their airline or travel agent. The service costs $30 per reservation, no matter how many flights or passengers. It's been in high demand, said the company's president, Brett Snyder. "Airline policies are changing all the time, and it's really hard for the layperson to keep up," Snyder said. "We help them cut through the clutter." Consumer advocates recommend filing complaints online with the U.S. Department of Transportation to pressure the agency to hold airlines accountable for refunds. Under DOT rules, customers with nonrefundable tickets who choose not to travel during the pandemic aren't eligible for cash refunds. This rankles a lot of people who feel they're being penalized for following health orders to avoid nonessential travel to stop the spread of COVID-19. "There is some legal argument to be made that travel restrictions and government orders are defenses against the airline not giving your money back," said Hudson, a lawyer. "But that could potentially require litigation." ___ 'THE NUCLEAR OPTION' The fight over coronavirus-related airline refunds has already moved into the courthouse. "It's the nuclear option, and I think we're there," said William McGee, who works in the advocacy division of Consumer Reports. The nonprofit group's website started soliciting people's airline refund stories last week and already has more than 1,800 entries. "Consumer anger is at an all-time high." Proposed class-action lawsuits over denied refunds have been filed in federal court against several airlines, including United, Southwest and Spirit. Chicago attorney William Sweetnam predicts it is just the beginning. "You'll see a lot more cases," said Sweetnam, who recently filed one in Chicago against low-cost carrier Volaris. The lawsuit alleges the Mexico-based airline refused his client, Chicago resident Samantha Levey, a full refund for her flight the airline canceled in March. "I've tried so many times to get a hold of them," Levey said about Volaris. "They were hanging up on calls as soon as you were placed on hold. I sent an email and tried reaching out on social. I just want my money back. There are a lot of people in my situation. I don't think it's right." She paid $636.57 for a round-trip ticket to Guanajuato, Mexico. "We're asking that money be returned to not only Samantha but also to (refund) other class members," Sweetnam said. "I imagine you're talking about several thousand, if not tens of thousands, of affected consumers." Volaris said the airline hasn't been notified of the lawsuit. ___ TIMING IS EVERYTHING A key lesson: Passengers wanting cash back shouldn't be in a rush to cancel their flights. "Wait and let the airline cancel first," said Ebenhoch of Travel Fairness Now. "That puts you in a much better position for a refund." Patience can pay off in other travel-related areas too. The home-sharing and rental site Airbnb initially offered full refunds on reservations with check-in dates between March 14 and April 14. It later extended the window for COVID-19-related refunds to May 31. The refund offer isn't retroactive, so guests with trips in late April or May who canceled before Airbnb extended the deadline aren't covered by the updated policy. One of Airbnb's competitors, Vrbo, has taken a lot of heat over the way it's handled refunds during the coronavirus crisis. The company has essentially left it up to guests and hosts to hash it out. That meant Aurora, Ill., resident Drew Nicholson was on the hook for about $2,500 for a couple of homes he rented in Brownsburg, Ind., to house 36 people in late March, when both states were under stay-at-home orders. Nicholson wants his money back but the host refuses, offering a credit instead. Nicholson is disputing the charge with his credit card company, a route many consumers are taking in the wake of coronavirus cancellations. He called the number on the back of his Amazon Visa issued by Chase Bank. After several hours on hold, he talked to an agent and made his case. Nicholson then got a letter from Chase saying the money has been temporarily credited back to his account while the claim is being investigated over the next two billing cycles. Credit card disputes are by no means a slam dunk, but they're worth a shot, said Ted Rossman, industry analyst at CreditCards.com. "Always try to resolve it with the merchant first," Rossman said. "If you've exhausted those avenues, bring in the credit card company. Phone waits are long these days, so it's best to do it online. Log onto the website or the app, pick the specific transaction and dispute it from there." ___ DEALING WITH THE MIDDLEMAN Vacation packages, flights and hotels booked through Expedia, Orbitz and other online travel agencies have added an extra layer of hassle for many refund seekers, particularly with airline tickets. So where should customers go to get back their money: the online travel agency or the airline? United spokeswoman Leslie Scott said that if a vacation package was bought through an agency where airfare was bundled with a hotel stay, for example, the agency should handle the request because the airline doesn't know how much the ticket cost. But if it's just an airline ticket purchased through an agency, the customer can work with either party. "A simple way to tell would be to go to their credit card statement," Scott said in an email. "If the charge says 'Expedia' or some other OTA (online travel agency), they must go back to the OTA for processing. If the charge says 'United Airlines,' they can go to the OTA or to our website." Customers flying with low-cost carriers need to make their requests directly with the airlines. For an April trip to Hawaii, Darris Lee Harris used Chicago-based Orbitz to reserve some of his flights - one on American Airlines and one on United. When the pandemic prompted airlines to slash service, Harris' flights were canceled. Orbitz emailed the Chicago photographer saying there was no need to call, he'd been issued flight credits. But Harris did call, several times, because he didn't want credits. He wanted a refund. Because his now-canceled flights were more than 72 hours away, he kept getting disconnected after entering his reservation number. Harris eventually got through to an Orbitz agent who continued to push a credit for the United flight. "I know people want to rage on them, but I just stayed nice and explained that I'm not working right now and these refunds are like relief checks for me," said Harris, who was on the phone with Orbitz for nearly three hours. "I quoted some language from the DOT guidelines about being owed a refund and I think that might have tipped the scale. He put me on hold again and came back and said United is offering the refund." Orbitz spokeswoman Mel Dohmen said companies such as Orbitz, which is owned by Expedia Group, generally follow the refund and cancellation policies of their travel partners - in this case, the airlines. She added that many international carriers have blocked online travel agencies from processing refunds in an automated way, "which adds complexity for our agents and clearly presents a blocker to providing the level of service we would like to help our customers in a timely fashion." As infuriating as it can be for customers to languish on hold for hours on end, people should be prepared to make repeated phone calls if they're getting the runaround, said Cranky Concierge's Snyder. "The vaunted HUCA strategy - Hang Up, Call Again - is a good idea if you think someone isn't giving you the right information," he said. McGee, of Consumer Reports, encourages people to have their trip details at their fingertips before they pick up the phone. "Have your flight numbers ready, your dates and times, your record locator number," he said. "If you speak to someone, write down their name and what they said. Keep records. It's basic stuff, but you'd be surprised how many people don't do it." Make noise on social media, McGee added. "Airlines are tone deaf and they're not afraid of much," he said, "but we have found that social media shaming can have an effect." Lastly, be persistent. "If you want a refund," he said, "I'm sorry to say you're probably going to have to work for it." Visit the Chicago Tribune at www.chicagotribune.com Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The NCCN Guidelines for Patients address disease types accounting for approximately 94% of all cancer diagnoses in the United States, including breast, colon, pancreatic, prostate, plus topics like supportive care and prevention. They are updated and expanded on a regular basis and have been translated into nine different languages. PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A recently-published study from researchers in Australia and South Africa found the NCCN Guidelines for Patients to be among the most trustworthy resources for patients and caregivers seeking information online about prostate cancer. The independent, peer-reviewed international study published in Current Urology1 examined the top 90 English-language Google results for medical information on prostate cancer, and measured reliability and transparency according to Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmarks and DISCERN criteria from the Division of Public Health and Primary Care at Oxford University. The NCCN Guidelines for Patients received highest rankings in both. "We publish the NCCN Guidelines for Patients so people with cancer and their caregivers have access to the same information as their doctors, including the latest evidence and expert consensus on the best ways to manage their cancer," said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. "This knowledge is intended to empower people with cancer to take an active role in shared decision-making, ensuring their treatment plan is truly patient-centered." The NCCN Guidelines for Patients are based on the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines), which are the recognized standard for clinical direction and policy in cancer management and the most thorough and frequently-updated clinical practice guidelines available in any area of medicine. The patient guidelines are written in an easy-to-learn format and include a glossary of medical terms and suggested questions to ask during appointments. The books are available for free digital download at NCCN.org/patients or via the NCCN Patient Guides for Cancer App, with printed versions available for a nominal fee at Amazon.com. Funding for the NCCN Guidelines for Patients comes from the NCCN Foundation and its generous donors. The NCCN Foundation also collaborates with more than 100 patient advocacy groups to help deliver this vital information to patients and families. "The NCCN Guidelines for Patients: Prostate Cancer outlines essential information about diagnosis and treatment in a comprehensible format. It serves as a foundation of knowledge as patients and families begin to discuss options with their health care provider," according to the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF), one of ten organizations to endorse the book, along with California Prostate Cancer Coalition (CPCC), Malecare Cancer Support, National Alliance of State Prostate Cancer Coalitions (NASPCC), National Prostate Cancer Awareness Foundation (PCaAware), Prostate Health Education Network (PHEN), Urology Care Foundation, Us TOO International Prostate Cancer Education and Support Network, Veterans Prostate Cancer Awareness, and ZERO The End of Prostate Cancer. In the Current Urology study, the researchers found NCCN's patient information site met all four criteria for validating the quality of information it contained according to the JAMA benchmarksone of only 15 websites to do so. Additionally, the evaluation based on the DISCERN criteria gave NCCN a score of 76 out of 80, making it the highest ranked site of the first 90 Google search results. "These patient guidelines are intended to augment, but not replace the information patients get from their physician," said Marcie Reeder, MPH, Executive Director, NCCN Foundation. "It can be difficult to understand complicated medical details at any time, and especially when your mind is reeling after getting a cancer diagnosis. These books give people the opportunity to absorb what's happening to them and mentally prepare at their own pace. With so many people relying on the internet for health information, we're proud to offer something that's been independently validated as reliable and trustworthy. No matter where people receive their care, they can advocate for the latest and best options currently available." In response to the ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, NCCN is also helping to share essential information from NCCN Member Institutions on how to continue providing safe, optimal cancer care under current conditions. Visit NCCN.org/covid-19 for a growing list of free, downloadable resources for patients, providers, and caregivers, including a factsheet for cancer patients and tips for self-care and stress management. The patient guidelines site had approximately 900,000 unique visitors from all over the world in 2019. Visit NCCN.org/patients to learn more or make a donation to the NCCN Foundation to support essential resources for people with cancer. About the NCCN Foundation The NCCN Foundation was founded by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) to empower people with cancer and advance oncology innovation. The NCCN Foundation empowers people with cancer and their caregivers by delivering unbiased expert guidance from the world's leading cancer experts through the library of NCCN Guidelines for Patients and other patient education resources. The NCCN Foundation is also committed to advancing cancer treatment by funding the nation's promising young investigators at the forefront of cancer research. For more information about the NCCN Foundation, visit NCCN.org/patients. About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) is a not-for-profit alliance of 30 leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education. NCCN is dedicated to improving and facilitating quality, effective, efficient, and accessible cancer care so patients can live better lives. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. By defining and advancing high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers around the world. Clinicians, visit NCCN.org. Patients and caregivers, visit NCCN.org/patients. Media, visit NCCN.org/news. Follow NCCN on Twitter @NCCN, Facebook @NCCNorg, and Instagram @NCCNorg. 1 The full study can be found on the Current Urology website (doi.org/10.1159/000499271). It includes a third criteria, the Switzerland-based HONcode certification, which NCCN has never applied for. Media Contact: Rachel Darwin 267-622-6624 [email protected] Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/441768/NCCN_Logo.jpg Related Links http://www.nccn.org/ SOURCE National Comprehensive Cancer Network by Vladimir Rozanskij Not all churches throughout Russia were empty: at the Lavra of the SS. Trinity of St. Sergius 70 km from Moscow, there was a large number of faithful. Varying stance among Russias more than 300 bishops (for 200 dioceses and 800 monasteries). "Virtual prayer" communities independent of the ecclesiastical hierarchy also born. Moscow (AsiaNews) - Easter in Russia - which was yesterday for the Orthodox fell amid the gathering storm of the coronavirus surge: on the eve of the feast new cases exceeded six thousand, with over fifty deaths. The liturgies of the Easter Vigil, in most churches, were held behind closed doors, with only the celebrants and some ministrants, and very few faithful. Moscow Patriarch Kirill (Gundjaev) temporarily left isolation in his villa in Peredelkino to celebrate the night liturgy in the Church of the Most Holy Savoir next to the Kremlin (photo 1), live on television, but without the presence of President Vladimir Putin and other state leaders, usually lined up next to the altar. Beside the patriarch, selected and verified through special metal detectors, there were a few dozen people, including priests, monks and members of the security service. Kirill himself stressed the impressive silence that reigned in the church, where "usually there is a buzz coming from the crowd that awaits the start of the celebration". Even the solemn procession of the blessing of the fire and the initial procession with candles took place inside the church, and not the traditional procession along the banks of the Moskva River and the walls of the Kremlin. However, not all Russian churches remained empty. In the main Russian monastery, the Lavra of the Most Holy Trinity of St. Sergius 70 km from Moscow, the live stream on Instagram revealed the presence of a large number of faithful. Indeed, there was no absolute directive on the closure of churches on Easter night, either by the patriarchate or the government. Quarantine measures, which have gradually strengthened in recent days, have focused on spring outings and barbecues, turning a blind eye to activities in churches. In any case, from 13 April in Moscow the decree of the director of the city's health service, Dr. Elena Andreeva, ordered a "temporary interruption to public visits to territories entrusted to the jurisdiction of the patriarchate of Moscow in the city of Moscow", with only "altar servers" allowed to enter churches and monasteries, also "to guarantee the online broadcast of the celebrations". Police surveillance has also been established around many churches. The parish priest of the church of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, Aleksandr Borisov, one of the best-known disciples of Father Aleksandr Men ', the "spiritual father of dissent", closed the parish in central Moscow, to stream everything online. "It is obvious that in times of epidemic one must protect oneself, and not tempt the Lord, but not everyone understands this", said Father Aleksandr, adding that his parishioners did not protest for the closure, "because they trust their parish priest and of their patriarch ". Father Borisov also assured that "there is no shortage of spectators for online liturgies". However, there are varying positions among the more than 300 bishops (for 200 dioceses and 800 monasteries) of the Russian Church. The most organized appeared the Metropolitan of Pskov Tikhon (Sevkunov), very close to President Putin, who ordered the closure of all churches and the streaming of all celebrations. The bishop of Kamensk Mefodij (Kondratev) instead complained about the low influx of the faithful in the churches left open throughout the diocese. Governors and health inspectors often had to provide for the closure of churches, even against the advice of local bishops. The ex-patriarchate spokesman, Sergei Chaplin, noted that "the position of our Church has been rather contradictory, unlike the churches of other countries, which have supported the decisions of their governments. Both President Putin and Patriarch Kirill have washed their hands, avoiding taking responsibility for unpopular decisions ". Many faithful tried to organize themselves, creating communities of "virtual prayer" independent of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which could remain a significant phenomenon even in post-quarantine Russia. Hoakhoivietnam.vn scored 48 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 2.5/5.0 Stars by Social Team This CoolSocial report was updated on 10 Dec 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want. The total number of people who shared the hoakhoivietnam homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the hoakhoivietnam homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if hoakhoivietnam has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the hoakhoivietnam homepage on StumbleUpon. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the hoakhoivietnam homepage on Twitter + the total number of hoakhoivietnam followers (if hoakhoivietnam has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the hoakhoivietnam homepage on Delicious. Basic Information PAGE TITLE Ton vinh sac ep phu nu Viet Nam DESCRIPTION Ton vinh sac ep phu nu Viet Nam KEYWORDS Ton vinh sac ep phu nu Viet Nam OTHER KEYWORDS nguyn, phm th qunh trang, chn nh t, nguyn th chin, nguyn minh thu, phm th qunh, th qunh trang CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The title found in the head section of the homepage. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. Domain and Server DOCTYPE HTML 5.0 CHARSET AND LANGUAGE UTF-8 SERVER Apache/2.2.3 (CentOS) (PHP/5.2.17) OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux The language of hoakhoivietnam.vn as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Character set and language of the site. Operative System running on the server. Type of server and offered services. Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world. Referring domains for hoakhoivietnam.vn by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines. Facebook link FACEBOOK PAGE LINK NOT FOUND The type of Facebook page. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users. The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. The total number of people who like website Facebook page. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. The URL of the found Facebook page. Twitter account link TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND Jason Kempin/Getty Images for the National Museum of African American MusicIt's been recently reported that the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately affecting communities of color, with African Americans consisting of a high number of deaths despite only making up about 12 percent of the U.S. population. Because of the scary statistics, Doug E. Fresh has launched a new campaign to educate black youth about the pandemic and teach them how to properly wash their hands. In order to do that, he teamed up with Dr. Olajide Williams, the Chief of Staff at at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. "At a time where misinformation is rampant, we understand how critical it is to create free, engaging, research-based and culturally-relevant educational materials to help save lives," Fresh wrote. He also tapped about 40 celebrity friends like Ashanti and Charlamagne Tha God to be featured in his "20 Seconds or More" PSA video, that features a new song penned by Fresh, Artie Green and Gerry Gunn just for the campaign. The song teaches not only how to properly wash one's hands, but also reiterates social distancing rules while working to dispel some of the misinformation plaguing the African American community. Fresh also sings about the tell-tale symptoms of COVID-19 and that, should anyone experience them, to call their doctor because "doctor knows best." "Don't go running to the hospital because you could be a threat," he cautions. "Virus is contagious." Fresh hopes his message spreads to those who need to hear it and, to encourage those to share the video, will feature those who use the hashtag #20SecondsOrMore and tag @HHPHorg on social media. Copyright 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved. New Delhi, April 20 : In a major statement on alleged hoarding and price hike of essential commodities during lockdown, Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that government agencies are strictly monitoring the market and no, essential items are priced higher than its MRP. "We are even monitoring vegetables from tomatoes to potatoes or grains such as rice, wheat or pulses. I assure the nation that during lockdown or beyond, all essential commodities would be available across the country," Ram Vilas Paswan told IANS in an exclusive interview. On the issue of the hike of prices of vegetables and fruits in some parts of the country, the Minister said that vegetables like potatoes, onions or tomatoes are in ample stocks, so there is nothing to worry about. "There is no shortage of vegetables. If in any part of the country, there is an issue of rise in the prices, it could be at the consumption centres due to transportation issues. "Let me clarify again that there is no scarcity of food, vegetables or grain. Prices of essential commodities including grain are well under control," said Ram Vilas Paswan, one of the senior most ministers in the Modi government. When asked that opposition parties have raised the demand of opening up all government warehouses(of food grains) for the people, Paswan said that grains are being distributed free of cost to beneficiaries of Public Distribution System (PDS) across the country during the lockdown. "Few states, including West Bengal had not lifted grains from Food Corporation of India(FCI) godowns. But I spoke to the Bengal minister on this issue, and now the Bengal government has started lifting the grains from central godowns for free distribution. "All employees of the FCI are working round the clock to provide ration to the 81 crore beneficiaries of the PDS in the countrythe ," Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister added. To ensure that free ration reaches to the remotest of the villages, particularly in the far off Northeast (NE) states, FCI provided 2.16 lakh tonnes of essential commodities to Assam, 17,000 tonnes to Arunachal Pradesh, 38,000 tonnes to Meghalaya, 18,000 tonnes to Manipur, 33,000 tonnes to Tripura and sufficient quantity of grains and food to Nagaland and Mizoram. "Providing essential items to these states was my first priority as this region has limited access to the railway network. I asked the FCI officials to ensure that our NE brothers and sisters should be given their due share. "In the past 25 days 4.42 lakh MT tonnes of food grains reached NE states, out of which 1.74 lakh MT tonnes of grains have been distributed free under PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojna(PMGKAY)," said Ram Vilas Paswan, who is everyday in his Krishi Bhawan Office in New Delhi, to review countrywide PDS operations during lockdown. Apprehending difficulties faced by the common man during the lockdown, the Centre announced 5 kg of wheat or rice per month free of cost to nearly 81 crore ration card holders in India. For this mammoth scheme of free distribution of ration, the government required around 40 lakh tonnes of grain. As of now nearly 35 lakh tonnes of grain has been lifted from FCI warehouses, and remaining would be lifted in the coming few days. "The Modi government is dedicated to serving the people. All workers of FCI and our Ministry are working 24x7 to provide food to the countrymen," assured Paswan, who is heading one of the crucial departments in the Central government during the unprecedented pandemic-induced lockdown. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Oil prices crashed into negative territory Monday after coronavirus lockdowns around the globe squelched demand, as US demonstrators rallied in more state capitals demanding the reopening of the world's biggest economy. The question of when to lift stay-at-home orders -- and thus help mitigate the devastating economic effects of the global virus crisis -- has been at the forefront for many countries. Germany and other parts of Europe took tentative steps to ease lockdown measures as coronavirus death rates fell in some nations, but in the United States, some believe governors are not moving quickly enough. The unprecedented collapse of oil prices, which traded in negative territory for the first time ever, is sure to fuel calls for a quicker unshackling of the global economy. With billions of people forced to stay home to curb the spread of the deadly virus, and top producers Saudi Arabia and Russia in a price war, an oil glut pushed prices for US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for May delivery down to -$37.63 per barrel. "The problem is nobody is driving a car anywhere in the world essentially," US President Donald Trump said. The dive prompted more selling on Wall Street, and the Dow closed down 2.4 percent. Thousands of Americans concerned about their economic bottom line have been protesting across the country for days, and on Monday, the focal point was Pennsylvania and its capital Harrisburg. There, hundreds of people -- many not wearing face masks -- argued that government regulations intended to halt the spread of COVID-19 limit individual freedoms and are hurting the economy. "Our new normal does not mean we will sacrifice our freedoms for the safety of our country," state lawmaker Aaron Bernstine said to chants of "USA! USA!" Demonstrators also rallied in the California capital Sacramento. Trump has cheered on the protests, even as health officials warn that a too-rapid reopening could risk a resurgence of deadly outbreaks. The highly contagious virus has now killed more than 42,000 people in the United States, the country with the highest death toll. Amid pressure to reopen their communities and economies, several US governors have stressed that coronavirus testing first must be ramped up dramatically, with federal help. But Trump has insisted there has been adequate testing and the federal government is doing its job. He also expressed confidence Monday that virus indicators were trending in the right direction. "Many areas hardest hit by the virus appear to have turned the corner," he said, citing substantial death toll drops in metropolitan areas like New York, Detroit and New Orleans. The United States has recorded 1,433 deaths in the past 24 hours through Monday evening, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University -- the lowest daily total in two weeks. - Far from 'out of the woods' - In Europe, Spain recorded its lowest death toll in weeks Monday, Britain saw its lowest in a fortnight and Italy recorded its first drop in the number of cases since its first infection was confirmed in February. The encouraging news came as tight restrictions in place for weeks were lifted in parts of the continent -- some shops reopened in Germany and Denmark, and parents dropped their children off at nurseries in Norway. Germany, which has been hailed for keeping fatalities low despite a significant number of cases, allowed smaller shops to reopen in some regions. Larger stores and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to normal that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Hopes were tempered by fears of new waves of infections and deep economic concerns -- but for many, even the smallest return to regularity was welcome. In the German city of Leipzig, fashion store owner Manuela Fischer said she was "incredibly happy" to be welcoming shoppers again. Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to stay disciplined, warning the county was "still a long way from being out of the woods." Denmark reopened some small businesses, including hair salons, tattoo parlors and dental practices, while Italy allowed bookshops to open their doors. In Norway, Silje Skifjell dropped off her boys Isaak and Kasper at a nursery in the capital Oslo. "I almost cried, he was so happy to see his friends," she said of four-year-old Isaak, her eldest. - WHO, China reject criticism - Trump, under fire for his response to the crisis as he seeks re-election in November, has lashed out at the WHO for its early handling of the outbreak and cut US funding for the global health body. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus responded Monday, saying the agency had dutifully sounded the alarm. "We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight," he said, adding that "there is nothing hidden from the US" about the pandemic. China also hit back at US criticism -- foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said they disrespected "the Chinese people's tremendous efforts and sacrifices" in fighting the contagion. Nearly 2.5 million coronavirus cases have been confirmed globally, and the death toll has risen to 169,900, with nearly two-thirds of the victims in Europe, according to an AFP tally. In France, deaths surpassed 20,000. It is now the fourth country at that level, along with the US, Italy and Spain. burs-mm/mlm/sst Hundreds of protesters take part in a "Reopen Pennsylvania" demonstration against coronavirus-related lockdowns in the state capital Harrisburg Anti-lockdown demonstrations in the US over the weekend drew hundreds of people in states including Colorado, Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio US President Donald Trump says the country is heading in the right direction in terms of the evolution of the coronavirus crisis Germany has allowed some small shops to open Nurseries in Norway reopened Monday Health care workers in Madrid wearing protective suits examine a man who has fallen ill at home -- Spain is one of the countries worst hit by the coronavirus crisis World map showing official number of coronavirus deaths per country, as of April 20 at 1900 GMT After three elections within the last year, Israel finally has a government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of the conservative Likud Party, has struck a deal with his political rival and chief challenger Benny Gantz, who heads the center-right Blue and White faction. In a joint statement, the two said they reached "an agreement for the establishment of a national emergency government." The exact terms haven't been announced yet, but reports from Israel suggest it's a three year deal, in which Netanyahu and Gantz will serve as prime minister for the first and second half of that span, respectively. A coalition between the two parties was long seen as the clearest path to avoiding a fourth election, but there were numerous obstacles, including Gantz's past refusal to forge a unity government under Netanyahu's leadership while he was under indictment for corruption. But it appears the efforts to solve the gridlock was expedited in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. More stories from theweek.com The Navajo Nation outbreak reveals an ugly truth behind America's coronavirus experience Gretchen Whitmer's pandemic competence is a mirage What do animals think? Advertisement The prospects of an early end to the crippling coronavirus lockdown receded today as Boris Johnson is understood to be prioritising staving off a second wave of infections. The Prime Minister has told colleagues his 'overriding concern' is to avoid a second peak in the pandemic that would plunge the country back into turmoil. Mr Johnson is still recuperating from the disease at Chequers, but conveyed his views during a two-hour meeting on Friday with foreign secretary Dominic Raab, senior adviser Dominic Cummings, communications director Lee Cain, and cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill. In a round of interviews this morning, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: 'The PM is very concerned about a second peak if we lift the restrictions too soon.' Government sources have also been frantically playing down the idea circulated by senior Tories over the weekend that schools could be reopened by mid-May, suggesting early June is more likely. The timetable emerged amid signs of Cabinet splits over how quickly to ease the draconian curbs, with fears the economic damage will kill more people than the virus itself. Mr Johnson seems to be taking a more cautious stance than Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove. Hawks in government point out the NHS has some spare capacity to treat patients, and should be allowed to 'run hot' to stop millions of jobs being destroyed. On another day of coronavirus chaos: Another 596 patients died of the virus, the lowest toll in a fortnight; A vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients; The daily number of those tested languished at 21,600 with just ten days to go to hit the Government's 100,000 target; The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, reached at least 80; Michael Gove attacked 'grotesque' claims Boris Johnson was 'missing in action' at the start of the crisis after he missed five meetings of the emergency Cobra committee; More than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to be told to wear homemade face masks when they leave the house; Chancellor Rishi Sunak was urged to boost his business bailout schemes amid warnings that up to 11.7million could be furloughed or left jobless over the next three months; Analysis suggests that more than 2,500 elderly patients are dying of coronavirus in care homes every week. Mr Johnson recording a video message on Easter Sunday at Number 10 after his release from the hospital, before leaving for Chequers to recover from his illness Fury as vital PPE kit from Turkey is delayed AGAIN Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Advertisement Some ministers have been pushing a blueprint that would see restrictions start being eased as early as May 11, when the current lockdown period ends. The 'traffic light' proposals suggest reopening schools part-time, and gradually allowing non-essential shops to get up and running again in an 'amber' phase. Pubs and restaurants, and the over-70s would face many months more on a 'red signal' in isolation until a vaccine can be found or the outbreak fades altogether. However, Health secretary Matt Hancock has been stressing that before easing restrictions the government should suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate dwindles. MailOnline understands Mr Johnson is also cautious about the consequences of lifting the curbs too early, with his priority being to avoid a second peak. A government source told the Times: 'The idea that we will be rushing to lift measures is a non-starter. 'If the transmission rate rises significantly we will have to do a harder lockdown again.' The wrangling comes amid a growing backlash over the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Mr Johnson has been accused of 'skipping' five Cobra meetings in January and February as the pandemic emerged. A devastating Sunday Times article claimed ministers 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan. A Whitehall source said the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment) during a vital period before the outbreak took hold in Britain. The government also shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China despite warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. But in an extraordinary detailed response last night the government insisted the report contained 'falsehoods' and distorted the picture of its actions. Earlier, Mr Gove confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but described the idea this amounted to neglect as 'grotesque'. 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' He said the UK had sent PPE to China in the initial phase of the crisis, but stressed it was not from the core pandemic stockpile, and Beijing had sent far more back since. Number 10 insisted Mr Johnson, who is currently recovering from coronavirus at Chequers after spending several nights in intensive care last week, 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Revelations of Mr Johnson's concerns come as it emerged pubs and restaurants could remain closed until the winter, as Michael Gove (pictured) said hospitality would be 'among the last to exit the lockdown'. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak (right) wants to minimise the damage of the lockdown to businesses. Matt Hancock (left) - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care - argued that before easing restrictions the government should try to suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate becomes much lower. A senior Downing Street adviser told the investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. As his more junior colleagues took the reins on virus mitigation, Mr Johnson's personal life reportedly commanded his attention, namely how to break the news of Carrie Symonds' pregnancy to his family. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. It also emerged the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News yesterday that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. But asked at the daily No10 press briefing about Mr Johnson's absence from Cobra meetings until the beginning of March, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: 'The Prime Minister from the moment that it became clear that there were challenges in terms of coronavirus developing in China has absolutely been leading our nation's effort to combat the coronavirus, making sure that resources or money is not a concern for any department, especially the health service.' He added that 'many Cobra meetings' are led by the departmental minister. He said: 'The focus the Prime Minister was putting on this and has continued to put on this has meant that this is the whole Government effort.' Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak is facing mounting pressure to boost his business bailout so that the Government increases its guarantee on loans to struggling firms to 100 per cent. The Treasury will today announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit as the virus lockdown causes the economy to stutter to a halt. It will include a 500million loans fund for high-growth companies and 750million in loans and grants for small firms focused on research and development. 'At a very basic level, this is wrong': Government hits back at claims Boris Johnson 'skipped' Cobra meetings and ministers dragged their feet and 'lacked grip' over COVID-19 response in lengthy 14-point rebuttal Downing Street has hit back at newspaper reports that Boris Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of 'falsehoods' and 'errors' after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment). The article also claimed the Johnson administration 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan, China. The government confirmed the prime minister missed five Cobra meetings in January and February as the outbreak began to take hold in other countries. A senior Downing Street adviser told the bombshell investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' at Chequers underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. But last night, the Government pushed back on the claims, saying in a six-page rebuttal published online that it was 'guided at all times by the best scientific advice'. It comes after Michael Gove admitted that Boris Johnson was not present at the meetings, but claimed 'most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them' Gavin Williamson also insisted that Boris Johnson was 'driving' the government's coronavirus response despite 'skipping' five Cobra meetings at the start of the outbreak. The very first point in the government's rebuttal says 'at a very basic level, this is wrong' in response to allegations that ministers brushed aside the dangers of coronavirus in mid-January. A government spokesman said: 'This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressing the nation from 10 Downing Street as he announces the lockdown on March 23 The Government's full 14-point response to claims that ministers dragged their feet over coronavirus response Claim On the third Friday in January Coronavirus was already spreading around the world but the government brushed aside the threat in an hour-long COBR meeting and said the risk to the UK public was low. Response At a very basic level, this is wrong. The meeting was on the fourth Friday in January. The article also misrepresents the Governments awareness of Covid 19, and the action we took before this point. Health Secretary Matt Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The governments scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Mr Hancock instituted daily coronavirus meetings. He updated Parliament as soon as possible, on January 23rd. The risk level was set to Low because at the time our scientific advice was that the risk level to the UK public at that point was low. The first UK case was not until 31 January. The specific meaning of public health risk refers to the risk there is to the public at precisely that point. The risk was also higher than it had been before - two days earlier it had been increased Very Low to Low in line with clinical guidance from the Chief Medical Officer. The WHO did not formally declare that coronavirus was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) until 30 January, and only characterised it as a global pandemic more than a month later, on 11 March. The UK was taking action and working to improve its preparedness from early January. Claim - This was despite the publication that day of an alarming study by Chinese doctors in the medical journal The Lancet. It assessed the lethal potential of the virus, for the first time suggesting it was comparable to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed up to 50 million people.' Response - The editor of the Lancet, on exactly the same day 23 January - called for caution and accused the media of escalating anxiety by talking of a killer virus and growing fears. He wrote: In truth, from what we currently know, 2019-nCoV has moderate transmissibility and relatively low pathogenicity. There is no reason to foster panic with exaggerated language. The Sunday Times is suggesting that there was a scientific consensus around the fact that this was going to be a pandemic that is plainly untrue. Claim - It was unusual for the Prime Minister to be absent from COBR and is normally chaired by the Prime Minister. Response - This is wrong. It is entirely normal and proper for COBR to be chaired by the relevant Secretary of State. Then Health Secretary Alan Johnson chaired COBR in 2009 during H1N1. Michael Gove chaired COBR as part of No Deal planning. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps chaired COBR during the collapse of Thomas Cook. Mr Hancock was in constant communication with the PM throughout this period. At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared COVID19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and only did so only 30 January. Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the COBR meeting. Examples of scientific commentary from the time: Prof Martin Hibberd, Professor of Emerging Infectious Disease, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: This announcement is not surprising as more evidence may be needed to make the case of announcing a PHEIC. WHO were criticised after announcing the pandemic strain of novel H1N1_2009, when the virus was eventually realised to have similar characteristics to seasonal influenza and is perhaps trying to avoid making the same mistake here with this novel coronavirus. To estimate the true severity of this new disease requires identifying mild or asymptomatic cases, if there are any, while determining the human to human transmission rate might require more evidence. Dr Adam Kamradt-Scott, Senior Lecturer in International Security Studies, University of Sydney, said: Based on the information we have to date, the WHO Director-Generals decision to not declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern is not especially surprising. While we have seen international spread of the virus, which is one of the criteria for declaring a PHEIC, the cases in those countries do not appear to have seeded further local outbreaks. If that was to start to occur, it would constitute a greater concern but at the moment the outbreak is largely contained within China. Claim - 'Imperials Ferguson was already working on his own estimate putting infectivity at 2.6 and possibly as high as 3.5 which he sent to ministers and officials in a report on the day of the Cobra meeting on January 24. The Spanish flu had an estimated infectivity rate of between 2.0 and 3.0, so Fergusons finding was shocking. Response - Infectivity on its own simply reveals how quickly a disease spreads, and not its health impact. For that, it is necessary to know about data such as associated mortality/morbidity. It is sloppy and unscientific to use this number alone to compare to Spanish flu. Claim - No10 played down the looming threat from Coronavirus and displayed an almost nonchalant attitudefor more than a month. Response - The suggestion that the governments attitude was nonchalant is wrong. Extensive and detailed work was going on in government because of Coronavirus, as shown above. Claim - By the time the Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on March 2 the virus had sneaked into our airports, our trains, our workplaces and our homes. Britain was on course for one of the worst infections of the most insidious virus to have hit the world in a century.' Response - This virus has hit countries across the world. It is ridiculous to suggest that coronavirus only reached the UK because the Health Secretary and not the PM chaired a COBR meeting. Claim - 'Failure of leadership' by anonymous senior advisor to Downing Street. Response - The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the Government response to Covid 19, providing the leadership to steer his Ministerial team through a hugely challenging period for the whole nation. This anonymous source is variously described as a senior adviser to Downing Street and a senior Downing Street adviser. The two things are not the same. One suggests an adviser employed by the government in No10. The other someone who provides ad hoc advice. Which is it? Claim - The government sent 279,000 items of its depleted stockpile of protective equipment to China during this period in response to a request for help from the authorities there. Response - The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China. Claim - Little was done to equip the National Health Service for the coming crisis in this period. Response - This is wrong. The NHS has responded well to Coronavirus, and has provided treatment to everyone in critical need. We have constructed the new Nightingale hospitals and extended intensive care capacity in other hospitals. Claim - Among the key points likely to be explored are why it took so long to recognise an urgent need for a massive boost in supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers; ventilators to treat acute respiratory symptoms; and tests to detect the infection. Response - The Department for Health began work on boosting PPE stocks in January, before the first confirmed UK case. Discussions on PPE supply for COVID-19 began w/c 27 January (as part of Medical Devices and Clinical Consumables), with the first supply chain kick-off meeting on 31 January. The first additional orders of PPE was placed on 30 January via NHS Supply Chains just-in-time contracts. BAU orders of PPE were ramped up around the same date. Friday, 7 February, the department held a webinar for suppliers trading from or via China and the European Union. Over 700 delegates joined and heard the Departments requests to carry out full supply chain risk assessments and hold onto EU exit stockpiles where they had been retained. Monday, 10 February, the department spoke with the major patient groups and charities to update them on the situation regarding the outbreak and to update them on the steps it was taking to protect supplies. Tuesday, 11 February, the department wrote to all suppliers in scope of the Covid 19 supply response work those trading from or via China or the EU repeating the messages from the webinar and updating suppliers on the current situation relating to novel coronavirus. The NHS has spare ventilator capacity and we are investing in further capacity. Claim - Suggestion that lack of grip had the knock-on effect of the national lockdown being introduced days or even weeks too late, causing many thousands more unnecessary deaths. Response - The government started to act as soon as it was alerted to a potential outbreak. Mr Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The governments scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Hancock instituted daily meetings to grip the emerging threat. We have taken the right steps at the right time guided by the scientific evidence. Claim - Scientists said the threat from the coming storm was clear and one of the governments key advisory committees was given a dire warning a month earlier than has previously been admitted about the prospect of having to deal with mass casualties. Response - The government followed scientific advice at all times. The WHO only determined that COVID 19 would be a global pandemic on 11 March. Claiming that there was scientific consensus on this is just wrong. Sage met on January 22 but the first NERVTAG meeting was held on 13 January (NERVTAG is the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group see here https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/new-and-emerging-respiratory-virus-threats-advisory-group ). Claim - The last rehearsal for a pandemic was a 2016 exercise codenamed Cygnus, which predicted the health service would collapse and highlighted a long list of shortcomings including, presciently, a lack of PPE and intensive care ventilators. Response - The Government has been extremely proactive in implementing lessons learnt around pandemic preparedness, including from Exercise Cygnus. This includes being ready with legislative proposals that could rapidly be tailored to what became the Coronavirus Act, plans to strengthen excess death planning, planning for recruitment and deployment of retired staff and volunteers, and guidance for stakeholders and sectors across government. Claim - By February 21 the virus had already infected 76,000 people, had caused 2,300 deaths in China and was taking a foothold in Europe, with Italy recording 51 cases and two deaths the following day. Nonetheless NERVTAG, one of the key government advisory committees, decided to keep the threat level at moderate. Response - This is a misrepresentation of what the threat level is. This is about the current public health danger and on February 21, when the UK had about a dozen confirmed cases, out of a population of over 66 million, the actual threat to individuals was moderate. In terms of the potential threat, the government was clear on 10 February the Secretary of State declared that the incidence or transmission of novel Coronavirus constituted a serious and imminent threat to public health. Advertisement 'This is an unprecedented global pandemic and we have taken the right steps at the right time to combat it, guided at all times by the best scientific advice. 'The Government has been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect our NHS and save lives. 'Our response has ensured that the NHS has been given all the support it needs to ensure everyone requiring treatment has received it, as well as providing protection to businesses and reassurance to workers. 'The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the response to this, providing leadership during this hugely challenging period for the whole nation.' The tone of the statement, posted on the official gov.uk website, was much more aggressive than that used by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove on Sunday morning TV appearances when he described the article as 'off beam'. Mr Gove had confirmed the Sunday Times report that the PM had not attended five meetings of the key Government committee Cobra in the run-up to the crisis, but insisted this was not unusual. He confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but added: 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' Number 10 also insisted Mr Johnson 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Speaking earlier today, Mr Gove said the accusation the PM purposefully sidestepped these five meetings was 'grotesque'. He had earlier told Sky News's Sophy Ridge: 'The idea that the Prime Minister skipped meetings that were vital to our response to the coronavirus, I think is grotesque.' That stance was echoed by the Government spokesman who said: 'It is entirely normal and proper for Cobra to be chaired by the relevant secretary of state. 'At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared Covid-19 a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern', and only did so only on January 30. 'Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the Cobr meeting.' In reference to the report that the UK sent 279,000 items of protective equipment to China earlier this year, the Government spokesman said: 'The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. 'We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China.' Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth told Sky News: 'There are serious questions as to why the Prime Minister skipped five Cobra meetings throughout February, when the whole world could see how serious this was becoming. 'And we know that serious mistakes have been made, we know that our frontline NHS staff don't have the PPE, that they've been told this weekend that they won't necessarily have the gowns which are vital to keep them safe. 'We know that our testing capacity is not at the level that is needed. 'We know that the ventilators that many hospitals have received are the wrong types of ventilators and there are big questions as to whether we went into this lockdown too slowly, and now we hear the Prime Minister missed five meetings at the start of this outbreak. It suggests that early on he was missing in action.' Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News today that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. He told Sky News: 'What really is emphasised in that piece is the fact that the government ministers had their eye off the ball. 'They were totally focused on other issues such as Brexit, and the celebration of us emerging from Europe. 'The Prime Minister had other things on his mind, and we're fully aware of this, but apparently he didn't attend five Cobra meetings on this issue. 'And when Michael Gove says 'but prime ministers don't attend all Cobra meetings', I cannot recall a Cobra meeting when it was called with Blair or Brown as prime minister when the prime minister wasn't in the chair.' Damian Green, former de facto deputy prime minister under Theresa May, told Sky News it was 'not unusual' for the Prime Minister to miss Cobra meetings. He said: 'Cobra meets more often than people think. 'Cobra meets quite a lot and quite often it's not chaired by the Prime Minister. 'There are times when the PM has to be there to chair it, when big decisions need to be made. 'It's perfectly sensible to be chaired by the Health Secretary.' It also emerged today that the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Medial care staff have expressed alarm as surgeons are being advised 'not to risk their health' by working without adequate PPE amid fears that hospitals could run out of supplies. The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS) said it was 'deeply disturbed' that medics could be asked to reuse items or wear different kit when treating Covid-19 patients. Healthcare staff treating positive patients have been given guidance that they should wear long-sleeved disposable fluid-repellent gowns but, because of shortages, they have just been advised they could be asked to reuse PPE or wear aprons. The fear from medics comes as more than 15,000 patients have now died in hospital after testing positive for the disease in the UK, with thousands more deaths expected in care homes. At the Can Gio Covid-19 Hospital, a 34-year-old Briton was declared negative for the coronavirus while the other two are Brazilian nationals who were treated at the Cu Chi Field Hospital. They will continue to be kept in quarantine for 14 days. In Hanoi, the capital city authorities conducted rapid testing for hundreds of small traders at terminal markets to assess the spread of the coronavirus in the city. * On April 16, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines operated a flight to repatriate 50 Italian nationals and transport four tonnes of medical supplies donated by the Vietnamese government. It was the first time that Vietnam Airlines had operated a direct flight to Italy with a total route length of nearly 10,000 kilometres and 12.5 hours flying time. By Deepak Chopra, MD Social isolation gives us time to examine our lives in a new light, suddenly faced with economic collapse, empty streets, current panic and future uncertainty, and death appearing out of nowherein other words, the conditions that confronted every person on a daily basis during the lifetime of Shakespeare. What feels horribly abnormal to us was routinely normal for him and every member of the human race in the 16th century. In statistical terms, Shakespeare is just another survivor. Unlike his son, Hamnet, who died at 11, Shakespeare didnt die as a child, nor did his mother die giving birth to him. He also escaped the plague. Ever since the Black Death swept across the globe in the 14th century, bubonic plague remained a threat, killing on average one to three people in every house where it struck. In Shakespeares lifetime, there were four plague years, 1582, 1592, 1603, and 1607, when London, including its theaters, shut down because of the disease. Syphilis had arrived in Europe from the New World in 1495, first appearing in a French garrison outside Naples, and it quickly infected every level of society. But Shakespeare didnt die of it, either, or of smallpox. He wasnt murdered in the street even though there was no London police force. He couldnt have been executed as a witch, not being a woman, although the practice was not only current but growing. Finally, unlike his father, John Shakespeare, Wills life and reputation werent ruined overnight due to charges brought against him by Queen Elizabeths huge network of internal spies. As a survivor, Shakespeare stands out because of his genius, but the horrible conditions surrounding him persisted more or less unchanged until the middle of the 19th century. The causes of plague syphilis, and deaths in childbirth started to emerge, and more mundane but equally life-saving advances occurred in public health, like the first sewer system in America, which was built in Chicago in the late 1850s. If humans were simply higher primates with very big brains, survival would be the beginning and end of our story. The Darwinian model for survival requires only getting enough food and finding a willing mate so that you didnt starve before you were able to pass on your genes to the next generation. Nothing much mattered after that momentous event. Evolutionists persist in seeing Homo sapiens through the lens of basic survival, but we do all kinds of things to deliberately imperil our survival, from taking care of our weak and sick instead of abandoning them, to stockpiling nuclear warheads, just to make sure that total war can erupt if we feel like it. War, crime, and violence do nothing to improve human genes and in fact work against simple survival. But if you put Shakespeare and the plague together, something mysterious emerges. Despite every threat of disease and death, crime, poverty, political oppression, and religious fanaticism (the Puritans in Shakespeares day railed against the London theaters as ungodly, but luckily they didnt shut them down until 1642, 26 years after his death), not to mention widespread illiteracy, no public sanitation, and no police force, these horrendous circumstances didnt wipe out creativity, discovery, love, compassion, and a vision of a higher ideals. Homo sapiens is the only species that liberated itself from natural evolution, and this unprecedented achievement involved one thing only: going beyond. Not our higher brain but human nature envisioned life independent of physical circumstances. Miraculously, if you peer at the oldest cave paintings in Europe, such as those in Chauvet-Pont dArc, France, you dont see primitive scratching from 30,000 years ago. You see art. The animals depicted are done with confident, artistic lines that are also scientifically accurate, depicting a wide range of Paleolithic creatures precisely enough that they can be identified by species. No one knows why sophisticated cave paintings suddenly appeared. The Chauvet depictions lie deep in the darkest heart of the caves. No sunlight penetrated, so the painters worked by the quavering light of torches. In addition, since the animals were not right before them, they worked from memory of how each one looked. This act of going beyond exemplifies a trait that belongs to the human condition, the trait of creativity for its own sake. In fact, even though the modern world owes everything to discoveries that improved life, the rise of technology and all the practical benefits it has brought, going beyond has always happened in here before anything could happen out there. Before the first primitive flint blades could be hacked out, the concept of tool and weapon had to come first. And before a concept can be born, there has to be a mind capable of concepts. My point is that you and I, like our ancestors, are the product not of genetic evolution but the evolution of consciousness. We were liberated from the Darwinian scheme by self-awareness. In other words, we said to ourselves, I just thought of what Id like to do, and with the combination of awareness, vision, and desire, we evolved into the human condition. The Greek word for beyond is meta, and we should apply it to ourselves more often. To be human is an expression of the metahuman. Shakespeare was a meta-genius, but everyday people are just as meta in their own way. Parents sacrifice for their children, even die for them, because they go beyond their own selfish needs. Any creative hobby is meta, because it has nothing to do with surviving. The higher your vision, the more meta you are. Buddha was extraordinarily meta, but his followers, seeing the worth of his vision, had to be meta or Buddha would have preached in the wilderness. Likewise, without metahumans among Jesuss disciples, Christianity would have perished on the cross. The COVID virus has put everyday life in peril for countless people, but it has actually risen the level of self-sacrifice, service, sharing, cooperating for the common good, laying down political antagonisms, seeking a global solution, and reflecting upon what really matters. Those are all meta qualities; they are perfect examples of going beyond. The fact that we can see a future past the devastation of the pandemic is a meta trait of huge importance. We arent human without being metahuman. For me, this is the lasting lesson and the deeper meaning to be taken away form a terrible time. DEEPAK CHOPRA MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a non-profit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a modern-day health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 89 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. His 90th book, Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential, unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. TIME magazine has described Dr. Chopra as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century. Mike Bloomberg has been hit with a class action lawsuit from a former campaign organizer, claiming the billionaire terminated thousands of staffers during the coronavirus crisis despite ensuring them they would be paid until November. Grette Fernandez filed the suit on Monday in the Southern District of New York, claiming she uprooted her life from Washington D.C. to Pennsylvania in February to work as an organizer for Bloomberg's 2020 presidential campaign. She claims Bloomberg's campaign promised that she would have her $6,000-a-month job through the general election, which is in November. However, Bloomberg 'publicly breached its agreements' after the former New York City mayor 'under performed in the Democratic primaries' and ended his campaign on March 4, going on to terminate thousands of staffers, the suit states. Now Fernandez said she is left with no job, no income and no health insurance 'during the worst global pandemic since 1918', noting Bloomberg's estimated net worth of $55 million. Fernandez is seeking a trial by jury in the class action suit, claiming Bloomberg's campaign broke both an oral and unilateral contract and is seeking upwards of $5 million in damages. Mike Bloomberg has been hit with a class action lawsuit from a former campaign organizer, claiming the billionaire terminated thousands of staffers during the coronavirus crisis despite ensuring them they would be paid until November Grette Fernandez (pictured) filed the suit on Monday in the Southern District of New York, claiming she uprooted her life from Washington D.C. to Pennsylvania in February to work as an organizer for Bloomberg's 2020 presidential campaign Included in the lawsuit is a snippet of what is described as an 'Interview Notes Template', which Bloomberg campaign hiring managers allegedly used when conducting interviews. Among the points were 'Employment through November 2020 with Team Bloomberg', noting that the location could change This is the third class action lawsuit against Bloomberg, after two other field organizers filed suit against him in New York last month. The suit states: 'Plaintiff seeks to hold Defendant accountable for the promises that it made and thereby protect the economic security of over 2,000 working families and individuals at a uniquely precarious time in the nation's history.' Included in the lawsuit is a snippet of what is described as an 'Interview Notes Template', which Bloomberg campaign hiring managers allegedly used when conducting interviews. It lists five bullet points for hiring manager to emphasize when discussing the benefits of working for the campaign while interviewing applicants. Among the points were 'Employment through November 2020 with Team Bloomberg', however, noting the location of the position could change. Other bullets included a $6,000 a month salary, a $5,000 relocation stipend, full health, dental and vision benefits and travel reimbursement. The suit claims Bloomberg's campaign needed to promise applicants they'd be employed through November to get them to sign on because everyone 'knew that Mr. Bloomberg's path to the nomination was a moon shot.' Now Fernandez said she is left with no job, no income and no health insurance 'during the worst global pandemic since 1918', noting Bloomberg's estimated net worth of $55 million Fernandez is seeking a trial by jury in the class action suit that seeks upwards of $5 million. This is the third class action lawsuit against Bloomberg, after two other field organizers filed suit against him in New York in March 'It was imperative that the Bloomberg Campaign quickly build a robust campaign staff throughout the country,' the lawsuit reads. 'The Bloomberg Campaign went on an aggressive hiring spree, promising applicants that it would employ Bloomberg staffers (which include field organizers, deputy field organizers, and regional organizing directors) through the Democratic primary process and the general election to be held on November 3, 2020.' After a disastrous Super Tuesday on March 4, Bloomberg announced he was dropping out of the race and endorsing former Vice President Joe Biden. The suit claims that on the same day, Kevin Sheekey, the campaign manager of the Bloomberg Campaign, held a phone meeting with staffers telling them 'nothing would change with respect to the Campaigns efforts to defeat President Trump in November...' However, 'in the days following Mr. Bloombergs announcement, Plaintiff and other Class members would come to learn that Defendant had no intention of keeping its promises of employment for a definite period,' court papers claim. 'Specifically, the Bloomberg Campaign began to hold ''termination calls'' during which staffers were told that their positions at the Campaign were terminated, and that they would no longer receive a paycheck or health insurance coverage come April 1.' Fernandez claims she was 'taken aback' by Bloomberg's campaign's 'blatant breach of terms' and found herself 'unemployed and uninsured at the beginning of the worst public health crisis in at least a century.' The ICAI last month rescheduled Chartered Accountant examinations initially scheduled from 2 May to 18 May in view of the coronavirus outbreak. In order to help students revise the syllabus for the forthcoming examination in June, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is starting live revision classes from 22 April. The ICAI has taken this decision in view of the coroanvirus lockdown. Students of intermediate and final level will benefit from the live revision classes, which will be free for all. One can avail of these classes on mobile phones or laptops. The classes will run from 7 am to 10 am and 7 pm to 9 pm. Students will get notes of the classes and practice questions. A notification by the ICAI says, Besides, the subject related sessions, there will be special and motivational sessions by eminent speakers like CA Girish Ahuja, Padma Shree CA TN Manoharan and CA Amarjeet Chopra. The central council members will be summarising and sharing their thoughts in the starting of each session. There will also be question-answer session for each subject by the Board of Studies after the live revision classes are over. Follow LIVE updates on the coronavirus outbreak here The ICAI last month rescheduled Chartered Accountant examinations initially scheduled from 2 May to 18 May in view of the coronavirus outbreak. The exam will now be held from 19 June to 4 July. ICAI has pledged to contribute Rs 21 crore to Prime Ministers Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) and Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) in the fight against the pandemic. So far, so good. Now, near the films end, Widmark finds a clue to patient zero. He was a merchant seaman. The only way to locate him is through the records of the ship he has just left. The ship has sailed and is in international waters. Widmark, as I recall, takes a helicopter out to the ship and tells the captain to return to quarantine. Ha ha, the captain says, you have no jurisdiction over me. Men, prevent this fellow from coming to the bridge to interfere with my lawful operations. Chris Lewis and his dog Jet are self-isolating on a Shetland island in Scotland. (PA Images) A former soldier is self-isolating on an uninhabited Scottish island after coronavirus lockdown measures were introduced while he was on a fundraising walk along the UKs coastline. Ex-paratrooper Chris Lewis, 39, has walked 12,000 miles since setting off from Llangennith beach on the Gower Peninsula, near his home city of Swansea, south Wales, in August 2017. He was sleeping in a tent on mainland Shetland when the UK government announced lockdown restrictions on 23 March to limit the spread of the virus. Chris Lewis is self-isolating on a cabin on uninhabited Shetland island of Hildasay. (PA Images) Lewis and his dog Jet were taken to Hildasay, a 108-hectare island off the west coast of the Shetland mainland, by boat and have remained there ever since. They have been given permission to live in the one house on Hildasay, a former shepherds hut without running water, heating or electricity. After lockdown restrictions are lifted, Lewis and Jet will continue their journey around the UK coastline to raise money for SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity with donations reaching past 100,000. Ive mainly been in isolation for the past two years due to the nature of the places weve been walking, said Lewis. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how COVID-19 is spreading When I heard there was going to be a lockdown, I was kindly given a boat to get over to Hildasay, which is an uninhabited island. I thought it would be better if I wasnt on the mainland I didnt want to be in the way. Ex-soldier Chris Lewis is in the middle of a fundraising walk around the UK's coastline. (PA Images) Chris Lewis is on the Shetland island of Hildasay during the coronavirus lockdown. (PA Images) There is one house on the island and the family of the man that used to live there heard I was camping and offered me the keys. Everybody is in isolation at the moment its the one thing I can do. This will be over for me when its over for everyone else. Watch the video below The keys were brought over by boat, along with drops of coal, water and food when the weather allows. These drops are done by contactless delivery with the items being placed on the islands pier and Lewis walking the 600 metres from the house to retrieve them. Story continues He collects driftwood, forages and fishes for his food, and always makes sure he has a three-week supply of dog food for Jet. Hildasay has been uninhabited since the late 19th century Lewis and Jet share the island with only 15 sheep and thousands of birds. It has really given me a chance to enjoy the island, he said. Im able to reflect on the walk so far, just realising what this has done to help me personally and the amount of amazing people there are in the UK. Im the happiest Ive ever been. Coronavirus: what happened today 'The fight against COVID-19 is not a hospital fight.' 'It's a community level fight.' 'If your community level measures are good, you can decrease the number of people coming to hospitals, or flatten it.' IMAGE: Doctors brief a lady who tested negative for COVID-19 in Hyderabad, April 16, 2020. Photograph: PTI "If we did not have the lockdown, the number of cases would have been much higher. Five or ten times higher," Dr Randeep Guleria, director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, tells Rediff.com Senior Contributor Sheela Bhatt in the first part of an exclusive interview. What is your view of the medical infrastructure today if compared to pre-COVID-19 days? If you look at the medical sector, there are two things. One is, in terms of trying to prepare for a pandemic or an outbreak, which the government and a lot of institutes started, way back in January and February. Seeing the number of cases, and what was happening in China. Starting from the government screening people, testing -- realising that that would be the need, a lot of things were done. One is at a national level, to build more and more labs, for testing. So, initially there were very few labs doing viral testing. That was damn tough. It then became more than a hundred labs. We have now crossed more than 200, 220 labs which can do testing for COVID-19. Government and institutions also realised that there is need for training. So a lot of training workshops were held during this time. And also planning for what we will do in case there is an increasing number of cases. So, from management to equipment to human resources, how can we move human resources from one area to the other? For doctors who are not in this area, but in other areas. For example, in surgery or in gynacology, how can they help? All that planning was done. And as the cases started coming in and we had the lockdown, how to make dedicated facilities for COVID-19. So AIIMS has made one dedicated COVID-19 hospital which is our trauma centre. The trauma centre we have shifted to the other hospital. We've also built another centre in Jhajjar, Haryana. We have currently about 150 COVID-19 positive patients there. At our trauma centre, we have now currently seven patients in the ICU. Italy, Spain and America, even China, have better health infrastructure than India. How do you look at this current event where India is showing better results? The issue to remember here is that the fight against COVID-19 is not a hospital fight. It's a community level fight. If you don't do good community level measures, you will have more patients coming into hospitals. If your community level measures are good, you can decrease the number of people coming to hospitals, or flatten it, thereby the health resources are not going to be strained. What India did very quickly was start contact tracing, screening and got the lockdown in place very early. Many countries in Europe and in the US didn't have a lockdown. Many parts of US still don't have a lockdown. So when official meetings take place where India's scientific brains had to advise government for a lockdown, all of you collectively did not think of this huge population that may go hungry? The decision that has to be taken is dependent upon us, what we will decide, from a medical point of view. We have to think of how we can prevent the chain of transmission, how we can prevent a large number of cases coming into hospitals. Second, it has to be done in a manner where it does not defeat the idea behind it. So if you want to say that we will do a lockdown in five days's time, then within those five days there will be such a lot of movement that the whole purpose of s lockdown will be defeated. IMAGE: A BMC staffer sprays disinfectant on another staffer's shoes after visiting a COVID-19 positive patient's home in Colaba, south Mumbai. Photograph: Arun Patil That would give time to migrant labour to return to their villages... Then the whole purpose of a lockdown would be lost. How? Could you explain? So if you have someone who is carrying the infection, and you say that we will have a lockdown within five days, and in those five days he goes to his village, say from Bombay, which is a hotspot, or from areas where there were a lot of cases. He/she will carry the infection because he/she is asymptomatic right now. And, eventually, give it to a large number of people in his/her village. So the lockdown has to be done in an aggressive and immediate manner. What it means is that those who are there at one place will have to stay there. If I say I will do a lockdown in two weeks's time, and everyone goes all over the place in the country, then already mixing has happened. The idea is to cut the chain. If not done, then the lockdown is of no use. This is what has happened in the US to a large extent. The US has done a lockdown in a very slow manner. That is why, from New York, cases have now spread to so many other states. Because they allowed travel, they allowed people to go. So they (federal and state governments in the US) said you stay at home as one policy, but you can still travel. If you have to have a lockdown it has to be drastic. That's why drastically international flights were stopped. I do agree that it is causing a lot of suffering to a number of people, especially to the lower economic strata. But think of it from the point of view of if we had a large number of patients which would have poor people too, people who were carriers would have suffered too. Taking this disease to the villages, you would have a huge number of cases. I will give you another indirect example which will make you understand. We have a spike of cases because of one community going all over. They were just in one area, Nizamuddin (in New Delhi), and then they went to large parts of India, and there were a huge number of cases. Many of them were all positive, and they went... And there was a huge number of cases in different parts of the country wherever they went. Now imagine if you had people who were of not a particular community, but general who suddenly started going to their villages or home towns, and were also positive, you would have a huge number of cases throughout the country. IMAGE: Dr Randeep Guleria, Director, AIIMS-Delhi. Photograph: ANI Photo Why then is there a spike in the number of patients after 21 days plus of the lockdown? So, if we did not have the lockdown, the number of cases would have been much higher. Five or ten times higher. So if you were to look at the doubling time -- how quickly are cases doubling -- there is a graph that the Government of India has issued, it showed that before the lockdown, cases were doubling every third day. Currently, cases are doubling almost six to seven days. So if you look at the graph when we were at 500 cases, how long did it take us to reach 1,000 cases? You will see it has almost taken us a week, almost ten days. That means we have been able to slow the curve. If you look at what has happened in Italy, and what has happened in New York, how quickly have the cases gone from 1,000 to 2,000, from 2,000 to 4,000, from 4,000 to 8,000. You will understand that doubling time over there is much more rapid than what has happened in India. So that is the success of the lockdown. Lockdown will never make cases 0. It will flatten the curve so that the number of cases flattens. Over a sustained period of time, the numbers will start stabilising and then gradually start coming down. It's not an on-off switch. After the lockdown, you will continue to have some cases in the community who will escape from the lockdown and will continue to have some spread. We could have had a better effect of the lockdown if we did not have a group (members of the Tabligi Jamaat) which went around and caused a large number of cases which is being corrected now because a large number of people had to be traced and quarantined. That led to a spike. But I think that is now stabilising. IMAGE: A COVID-19 patient who recovered from the disease is discharged from the Kalamassery Medical Collage Hospital in Kochi, April 16, 2020. Photograph: PTI Photo How do you look at this fear that, if and when the lockdown is lifted, a surge can be expected? So that is a possibility. That's why the exit strategy of how do we come out of the lockdown, how do we do it in a graded manner, how do we do it from areas which are not hotspots compared to areas which are hotspots need to be worked out. And that plan has to be put in place. But, again, that will depend on different parts of the country, how different parts behave and what strategy we can have for different parts. I don't think you can have one strategy for the whole country. There were many districts where there are hardly any cases. And we have some districts or some areas where there are a huge number of cases. So in a hotspot, or what we call red zones, is there community transmission? No, I don't think there is enough evidence to suggest there is community transmission. Hotspots are areas that need a very aggressive lockdown because there there is a chance of community transmission starting. Currently, you can always trace it to one index case. Because contact tracing is being done aggressively. But if you have a huge number of cases occurring in one hotspot, as happened in say a slum (Dharavi in Mumbai) area, you are always worried that there will be a large number of transmissions happening, and you have to prevent it from going to another area. So what do you do? You do an aggressive lockdown in that area, total containment of even asymptomatic people. So that they cannot go out and the disease does not spread beyond that area. And once the cases in that area start coming down, then you start assessing, can we do some graded movement? And this is what China has done. There is a whole study that has come out of China, of showing how the lockdown actually brought the cases down. They looked at hotspots, they did a total quarantine, people were not even allowed to go out even if they were asymptomatic. And in those hotspots, gradually over a period of time -- and there is data from January to February, 15-15 days -- showing the effect of this aggressive lockdown, how the cases dramatically came down. We are trying to do that, but there has to be a lot of community participation. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has applauded Ghanas scientific community for successfully sequencing the genomes of the novel coronavirus responsible the global COVID-19 pandemic. The development, carried out by scientists at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) and the West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens at the University of Ghana, has led to expose of the genetic composition of viral strains of 15 of the confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country. This is a significant milestone in Ghanas response to the pandemic, as it will strengthen surveillance for tracking mutations of the virus, and aid in the tracing of the sources of community infections in people with no known contact with confirmed cases, the President said in a televised broadcast on Sunday to give an update on enhanced measures to curb the spread of the pandemic in the country. The Ghanaian scientific community is to be warmly applauded for this advance and contribution to global knowledge. Their work makes us proud to be Ghanaian, and, who knows, God may work through them to discover a vaccine. What a triumph that would be! President Akufo-Addo noted that the genomic characterization of African Coronaviruses by our own scientists, illustrated the need to establish the enabling framework for sustainable vaccine manufacturing in Africa. He stressed the need to advance African-led partnerships to drive scientific innovations for the control of viral diseases by vaccination, stating that Ghana would lend support to the African Vaccine Manufacturing Initiative (AVMI), to promote the agenda for vaccine development and manufacturing in Africa by Africans for the world. The AVMI, a co-ordinating consortium of companies, institutions, international organizations and individuals, chaired by Prof. William Ampofo of the NMIMR, is a continental enterprise to strengthen Africas capacity to develop and manufacture vaccines. The President in the address, lifted the three-week old restriction on movements of persons in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and Kasoa, and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and its contiguous districts, with effect from 0100 Hours, Monday April 20, 2020. However, all other enhanced measures and protocols, including closure of borders, ban on social and religious gathering, and the strict adherence to social and physical distancing, are still in force to halt spread of the COVID-19 in the country. President Akufo-Addo explained that even though Ghanas case count had increased over the past three weeks to 1,042 persons from test results of 68,591 contacts, and with 67,549 of that number testing negative for the virus, the decision to lift the restriction on movement was backed by data and science. He pointed out that the main reason the country had witnessed an increase in the number of confirmed cases over the period of movements restrictions due to the aggressive tracing and testing of contacts of infected persons, which has enabled us to identify and isolate infected persons, protect the population from further infections, and contain better the spread of the virus. Thus, In view of our ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing of infected persons, the enhancement of our capacity to test, the expansion in the numbers of our treatment and isolation centres, our better understanding of the dynamism of the virus, the ramping up of our domestic capacity to produce our own personal protective equipment, sanitisers and medicines, the modest successes chalked at containing the spread of the virus in Accra and Kumasi, and the severe impact on the poor and vulnerable, necessitated the lifting of the restriction on the movement of persons, the President held. The President noted that though the country would continue to record new cases of infections, particularly with the policy of aggressive tracing and testing, but assured that Government had put in place the appropriate measures to isolate and treat them. Should there be an unexpected outburst in infections within a community, I have put the health workers and the security services, including the Police Service and the Armed Forces, on standby, to co-ordinate a rapid response of human and logistical resources, if necessary, to cordon, impose a curfew, trace, test, and treat infected persons in the affected community. Indeed, the focus of Governments policy and action will be based on the implementation of the 3Ts, i.e. tracing, testing and treating. In any event, stay at home, unless it is absolutely essential, he stated. Our success in defeating the virus is largely within our control. That means each and every one of us must exercise, at all times, during this period without the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi, a strong sense of selflessness, self-control and self-discipline. It is important to stress strongly that coming out of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi does not mean we are out of the pandemic. We will continue to monitor closely events in some hotspots in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area like Weija Gbawe, Ga East, and Ayawaso East Municipalities, and Tema Metropolis, and in the Eastern Region, like Asuoygaman and Lower Manya Krobo Districts. Whenever the situation so warrants, a community in which the virus is identified as becoming prevalent will be locked-down, until there is a clear understanding of the trajectory of the virus that will allow us to contain it. We must obey the measures still in place, including the new ones, because we know our survival depends on them, and, the harder we are on ourselves in obeying them, the quicker and more enduring will be the victory, he said. President Akufo-Addo was not happy about the continued deliberate dissemination of fake news, disinformation and outright lies by some unpatriotic citizens about the spread of the virus since its outbreak in the country, asking those involed in the act to put a stop to it. These acts are being orchestrated by those who hope to benefit by seeking to sow the seeds of panic and confusion amongst the populace at this time of national crisis. I have an unequivocal message for those involved in these despicable acts put an immediate stop to it, or be held accountable for your actions. The President also condemned the stigmatization of persons who had recovered from the COVID-19, saying, This is not right, as it will rather drive people away from getting screened, tested and treated. He said the disease was not a death sentence, thus, the stigmatization of recovered persons must stop, because if the virus did not end their lives and livelihoods, the stigma from members of their communities should not. 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. Featured Video Rare footage has shown scientists carrying out research works at a Wuhan virus laboratory as the head of the team claimed 'there's no way' the novel coronavirus originated there. The Wuhan Institute of Virology, which keeps more than 1,500 strains of deadly viruses, has become the centre of controversy amid the global crisis. Startling theories claim that the virus was leaked from the establishment, which has China's only lab with the highest biosafety level of P4. Scroll down for video A video released by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV in February shows virologists donning spacesuit-like protective gears as they work in the P4 lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology The lab is said to have three testing rooms, two animal storage rooms, one virus bank and one animal-dissection room. Twenty-four scientists can work there at the same time, CCTV said The Wuhan Institute of Virology (pictured) is affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Sciences A video released by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV in February provides a glimpse into the institute. The 34million lab is affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It was completed in 2015 and officially opened in 2018. In the clip, one researcher, named Zhang Huajun, demonstrates how he and one colleague put on two layers of protective suits and pass five air-tight chambers before entering the core part of the lab. One researcher, named Zhang Huajun (in orange), demonstrates he and one colleague putting on two layers of protective suits and passing five air-tight chambers before entering the lab Researcher Zhang said the lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology was designed in such a way that air can only flow into the lab from the outside, not the other way around, to prevent leaks The lab is said to have three testing rooms, two animal storage rooms, one virus bank and one animal-dissection room. Twenty-four scientists can work there at the same time. Researcher Zhang said the building was designed in such a way that air can only flow into the lab from the outside, not the other way around, to prevent leaks. US President Donald Trump said last week that Washington was investigating if the coronavirus first crossed to humans accidentally during experiments with bats at the lab. China insisted that the WHO has found no evidence the novel coronavirus was man-made. Dr Yuan Zhiming, the deputy head of the Wuhan Institute of Virology, hit back at the accusations in an interview with state media over the weekend. 'There's no way this virus came from us,' Dr Yuan told CGTN, the English-language arm of CCTV. 'I know it's impossible,' he added. Dr Yuan Zhiming (pictured), the deputy head of the Wuhan Institute of Virology, told CGTN 'there's no way this virus came from us'. He also refuted claims that the virus was man-made Shi Zhengli (pictured working in the lab), a deputy director at the institute, told the press in February that she 'guaranteed with her own life' that the outbreak was not related to the lab Dr Yuan said that a man-made coronavirus would be beyond human intelligence as he rejected claims that the virus was artificially engineered. Wuhan virus lab researchers warned of SARS-like coronavirus outbreaks A lead virologist and her team at a Wuhan lab warned of the possibility of SARS-like coronavirus outbreaks in China 11 months before the novel coronavirus epidemic ravaged the city. The ominous prediction came from a study carried out by Shi Zhengli and her colleagues at the Wuhan Institute of Virology when they stressed the importance of conducting investigations of viruses from bats. Shi, nicknamed the 'Bat Woman', allegedly sequenced the genes of the new coronavirus in three days after the epidemic emerged, but was silenced by her boss. In the article from in January, 2019, Shi and her the team highlighted the likelihood of another coronavirus epidemic in China by analysing three large-scale outbreaks caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and Swine Acute Diarrhea Syndrome (SADS) respectively. The article said that all three pathogens were coronaviruses and could be traced back to bats, and two of them had originated in China. The researchers urged: 'Thus, it is highly likely that future SARS- or MERS-like coronavirus outbreaks will originate from bats, and there is an increased probability that this will occur in China. 'Therefore, the investigation of bat coronaviruses becomes an urgent issue for the detection of early warning signs, which in turn minimizes the impact of such future outbreaks in China.' Advertisement 'Some scientists believe that to synthesise a virus requires extraordinary intelligence or workload, so I have never believed that we humans have the capabilities at this time to create such a virus,' he explained. Dr Yuan attributed the theories to the fact that the institute and the P4 lab are in Wuhan, so 'people can't help but make associations which I think is understandable'. But he criticised people who 'are deliberately trying to mislead people'. He blamed US senator Tom Cotton and the Washington Post for promoting such claims. 'They have no evidence or knowledge. This is entirely based on speculation,' he denounced. 'Part of the purpose is to confuse people, to interfere with our entire epidemic activities or our scientific activities.' Although scientists believe that the virus jumped to humans from wild animals sold as food in a market about 10 miles from the lab, conspiracy theorists promote different assumptions. Some people claim that the virus, formally known as SARS-CoV-2, could be a biological warfare weapon engineered there. Others suspect that it escaped from the lab. Shi Zhengli, a deputy director at the institute, told the press in February that she 'guaranteed with her own life' that the outbreak was not related to the lab. The institute also refuted reports which named Huang Yanling, a researcher at the Institute of Virology, as 'patient zero' the first person to be infected. 'I can tell you for sure that none of our students, retirees or any of our staff has been infected,' Dr Yuan said. American intelligence services have reportedly launched a full-scale investigation into the lab over claims that scientists there allowed the novel coronavirus to escape as part of a botched experiment, leading to a global pandemic. Sources said American analysts will present their findings 'in the near term' to Trump, who will then huddle with aides to determine how to hold China accountable for the pandemic China has denied speculation that the pathogen originated inside the Wuhan Institute of Virology lab, though US government agencies are now said to be piecing together a timeline of what authorities in Beijing knew to 'create an accurate picture of what happened'. Sources told Fox News on Friday that American analysts will present their findings 'in the near term' to President Trump, who will then huddle with aides to determine how to hold China accountable for the pandemic. The American intelligence sources told Fox News that analysts in Washington have ruled out the theory that the coronavirus was engineered by Chinese scientists as a bioweapon. Experts note that the genome mapping of the virus indicates that there were no genetic alterations made to it. Scientists believe that the virus jumped to humans from wild animals sold as food in a market about 10 miles from the lab, but conspiracy theorists are promoting different assumptions US sources told Fox News they believe that 'patient zero' became infected with coronavirus as it was being studied inside the lab. The infected person then is believed to have spread the virus throughout the city and onwards. While the exact origin of the virus remains unknown, the broad scientific consensus holds that SARS-CoV-2 came from bats. COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, has killed more than 165,000 people and infected over 2.4 million worldwide since the pandemic began in Wuhan last December. Haiti - Covid-19 : The distribution of 5 million masks has started Sunday, Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe informed that 5 million masks were available in Haiti and that distribution had already started at the level of public markets. He announced that the Government would work with other regional authorities to prevent these masks from being hijacked and sold by certain ill-intentioned individuals. Jouthe congratulated the population for their ingenuity in the manufacture of artisan masks. The Prime Minister said that he really wanted to fight the pandemic through prevention and awareness-raising and asked the population to continue practicing hygiene measures to avoid in Haiti a situation where there would be a lot of infected people, whose some of whom will require use of artificial respirators. In addition, Jouthe affirmed that his government respects the rules of procurement in the process of purchasing materials within the framework of the COVID-19 pandemic specifying that the amounts granted in donations recently to fight the coronavirus will not be managed directly by the Haitian state but by institutions and NGOs. HL/ HaitiLibre Separately, Lightfoot and Wilson disagreed on whether the businessman had tried to sell the city millions of dollars worth of masks with the requirement that the money be paid upfront and in cash. Lightfoot said the notion gave her pause and Wilson said he asked to be paid upfront for the deal that did not materialize, but did not want to be paid in cash. Viruses are part of the human experience throughout our lives. They cause lots of different illnesses with the current coronavirus pandemic as just one example. While a vaccine does provide effective protection from viral infections, vaccines are only available for a select number of viruses. This is why antiviral drugs need to be found that can prevent or treat a viral infection. One successful strategy involves special molecules to block viral proteins that would otherwise help the virus to attach to the host cell. Once a virus has attached to the cell surface, it can infect the cell with its genome and reprogram the cell for its own uses. However, many antiviral drugs lose their effect over time, as viruses mutate very quickly and thus often adapt to the medication/antiviral used. The research team led by HHU Prof. Dr. Laura Hartmann from the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry and Munster-based Prof. Dr. Mario Schelhaas from the Institute of Cellular Virology working together with Prof. Dr. Nicole Snyder from Davidson College in North Carolina, USA has used the approach of suppressing the initial contact between the virus and the cell in order to stop infection at the onset. Viruses frequently use special proteins to bind to sugar molecules on the cell surface. Among others, these sugars include long-chain glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), which are strongly negatively charged. One of these GAGs is heparan sulfate. Researchers already knew that GAGs can reduce virus infections if they are added externally. However, natural polysaccharides may have side-effects that are attributed to their own biological function in the organism or to impurities. The research team is now using the benefits of the GAGs but deactivates their disadvantages. The idea is to use molecules produced artificially and in a controlled fashion, so called 'glycomimetics', that are developed at HHU. They comprise a long synthetic scaffold with side chains with small sugar molecules attached. In Dusseldorf, both shorter chains with up to ten lateral sugars (known as 'oligomers') and long chains with up to 80 sugars (called 'glycopolymers') have been created. In order to simulate the highly charged state of natural GAGs, the chemists coupled sulfate groups to the sugars. Prof. Schelhaas then used cell cultures to test the antiviral properties of these 'candy canes' of varying length at University Hospital Munster. Initially, his team used them against Human Papillomaviruses, which can trigger diseases such as cervical cancer. They discovered that both, the short and long-chain synthetic molecules, have an antiviral effect, but their mode of action is different. As expected, the more effective, long-chain molecules prevented the virus from attaching to cells. In contrast, the short-chain molecules displayed antiviral activity after attachment to the cell, giving rise to the assumption that these molecules are active in the organism for longer. This is what Prof. Schelhaas has to say: "It is very likely that the long-chain molecules occupy the binding sites of the virus to the cell and thus block those sites. The short-chain molecules apparently do not block these sites. The next step is to test our hypothesis that these molecules prevent the redistribution of proteins in the virus particle so that the viruses cannot infect the cell." Effectiveness was also confirmed for the Papillomaviruses in an animal model. The compounds were also active against four other viruses, including Herpes viruses, which can cause cold sores and encephalitis, and Influenza viruses, which cause the flu. Prof. Hartmann explains: "Glycomimetics are thus promising compound molecules that could potentially be used in the fight against a large number of different viruses. The next thing to do is to examine the precise way in which the glycomimetics work and how they can be further optimised." Prof. Schelhaas adds: "Further research will focus on how fast viruses may adapt to this new class of compounds. With the short-chain molecules in particular, we are hopeful that viruses will find it harder to launch a counterattack." ### The project was supported by the German Research Foundation within the framework of funding the Virocarb Research Unit and by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of funding for the European Infect-ERA consortium HPV-MOTIVA. In addition, the Heine Research Academies (HeRA) at HHU funded the exchange programme with Prof. Snyder's group. Original publication Laura Soria-Martinez, Sebastian Bauer, Markus Giesler, Sonja Schelhaas, Jennifer Materlik, Kevin Janus, Patrick Pierzyna, Miriam Becker, Nicole L. Snyder, Laura Hartmann and Mario Schelhaas, Prophylactic Antiviral Activity of Sulfated Glycomimetic Oligomers and Polymers, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, 142, 11, 5252-5265 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.9b13484 A long-term care facility in midtown Toronto is reporting eight more deaths in the last two days from COVID-19. Salvation Army spokesperson Maj. Robert Kerr told the Star on Monday that 18 residents have died overall at the 168-bed Meighen Manor, near Yonge Street and Davisville Avenue. This is a sharp increase from the 10 deaths that were reported by the Salvation Army on Saturday in a letter sent to family members. In addition, 14 staff members have also tested positive for the virus. The staff members are self-isolating at home and have not returned to work since their diagnosis. Our deepest sympathies, thoughts and prayers are with the family members who have lost their loved ones, Kerr said in an email to the Star. The Salvation Army has been working with Sunnybrook Hospital to conduct testing. Those who have tested positive are isolating in their rooms. Kerr also told reporters at a news conference that staff at the Salvation Armys long-term care facilities have only been working at one facility since April 4 and are no longer working at multiple homes. Jacksonville Beach Police(JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) -- A fugitive wanted to for murder tried to get some sun on one of Florida's recently reopened beaches this weekend. But he ended up behind bars instead. Jacksonville Beach Police said they apprehended Mario Matthew Gatti, 30, who has been on the loose since January after he allegedly shot a man in western Pennsylvania after they found him loitering near a sand dune Sunday morning. Gatti was wearing a T-shirt, a sleeveless hoodie and a large pair of stars-and-stripes shorts when he was arrested, according to a photo released by police. On Jan. 16, Gatti allegedly shot and killed Michael Coover, Jr., 33, at an apartment building in Arnold, Pa., just west of Pittsburgh. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis allowed local beaches to open last weekend. Crowds flocked to some beaches including Jacksonville Beach, in droves despite some of the calls for precaution on mass gatherings. Jacksonville Beach Police charged Gatti with several criminal counts, including giving false information to a law enforcement officer and drug possession, the police said. Attorney information wasn't immediately available. Copyright 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved. PSKOV, Russia A Russian court has ordered a delay in the trial of journalist Svetlana Prokopyeva, who faces terrorism-related charges for publishing an online commentary that linked a suicide bombing with the countrys political climate. The Pskov court on April 20 ordered the trial postponed due to the coronavirus epidemic now sweeping through Russia, until the normalization of the sanitary and epidemiologic situation in the country. Prokopyeva, a freelance contributor to RFE/RLs Russian Service, called the decision correct, because what we need is an open trial accessible to all. Her lawyer, Vitaly Cherkasov, said it was impossible to say exactly when the trial may start due to the coronavirus restrictions imposed by the government. The charges of "justifying terrorism" stem from a November 2018 commentary published by the Pskov affiliate of Ekho Moskvy radio in which she discussed a bombing outside the Federal Security Service offices in the northern city of Arkhangelsk. Russian media reported that the suspected bomber, who died in the explosion, had posted statements on social media accusing the security service of falsifying criminal cases. In her commentary, Prokopyeva linked the teenager's statements to the political climate under President Vladimir Putin. She suggested that political activism in the country was severely restricted, leading people to despair. Prokopyeva has described the case against her as an attempt to murder the freedom of speech in Russia. If found guilty, she faces up to seven years in prison. The case has drawn criticism from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and media rights groups like Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and the European Federation of Journalists. RFE/RL President Jamie Fly called the charges a cynical effort to silence an independent journalist. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 06:07:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Staff conduct disinfection at a protective gear workshop in Ain Zara, south of Tripoli, Libya on April 21, 2020. Libya's National Center for Disease Control on Monday announced three new COVID-19 recovery cases in the country. (Photo by Amru Salahuddien/Xinhua) TRIPOLI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Libya's National Center for Disease Control on Monday announced three new COVID-19 recovery cases in the country. In a statement later Monday, the center also said it received 58 COVID-19 suspected samples, all of which were negative. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Libya has reached 51, including 14 recoveries and 1 death. On April 17, the UN-backed government imposed a 24-hour curfew for 10 days in the country to fight COVID-19 pandemic. The Libyan authorities have taken a series of measures against COVID-19, including closing airports, border crossings, mosques and educational institutions, and banning mass gatherings and movements among cities. Libya reported its first COVID-19 case on March 24. Enditem Experts say coronavirus is unlikely to lead to martial law in the U.S. because civilian governors have remained in control of their territories and local and federal governments are coordinating efforts. "What we have here is a public health emergency with civilian agencies taking the lead and the charge. And we must maintain going forward measures based on health and science in accordance with our health, safety and civil rights," Hina Shamsi, director of the National Security Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, told CNBC. Martial law is colloquially understood as when the military, and not the judicial system, acts as the supreme power and armed forces control all aspects of government. In instances of martial law, the military takes over the police powers of a local government. The military would have command of civilian governments. While not a cause or effect of martial law, the suspension of habeas corpus is often spoken of in tandem with martial law. A writ of habeas corpus is used to bring a prisoner to court to determine if the person's imprisonment or detention is lawful, according to according to Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institute. Legally, the suspension of habeas corpus is only constitutional in situations of insurrection or invasion. During the coronavirus pandemic, many courts are choosing to hold sessions via video conference so they remain in operation. This protects people's ability to bring a habeas corpus petition to a judge. Habeas corpus petitions via video conferencing have been used by the detainees at Guantanamo Bay for over a decade, according to Michel Paradis, military and constitutional law professor at Columbia University. "I think advances in technology probably make the need to suspend habeas corpus far less than it ever was when you literally had to go out and literally carry the body into a courtroom that was open," he said. "But it also may challenge the basic rules the courts have laid out in habeas corpus cases to understanding when we're in martial law and when martial law is actually truly justified." Watch the video to find out why experts do not expect martial law to be declared in response to the coronavirus outbreak. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 Trend: Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 30 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry on April 20. The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles. (Photo : Roscosmos/Handout via REUTERS) The Soyuz MS-16 spacecraft carrying the crew formed of Chris Cassidy of NASA, Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner of the Russian space agency Roscosmos blasts off to the International Space Station (ISS) from the launchpad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan April 9, 2020. Russian space agency (Photo : NASA Goddard/Wikimedia Commons) This super-resolution view of asteroid Bennu was created using eight images obtained by NASAs OSIRIS-REx spacecraft on Oct. 29, 2018 from a distance of about 205 miles (330 km). The spacecraft was moving as it captured the images with the PolyCam camera, and Bennu rotated 1.2 degrees during the nearly one minute that elapsed between the first and the last snapshot. The team used a super-resolution algorithm to combine the eight images and produce a higher resolution view of the asteroid. Bennu occupies about 100 pixels and is oriented with its north pole at the top of the image. A team of engineers has recently monitored a spacecraft maneuver around a rocky asteroid more than 140 million miles from Earth. Instead of meeting up in the Colorado mission center, most of them checked in for the event from their home. The event was an important dress rehearsal, which has been in the works for over a decade since OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was launched in 2016. The rehearsal went through operations the spacecraft will do in August when it would grab a tiny sample of rock from asteroid's surface. In an interview with The Verge, Mike Moreau, the mission's deputy project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said that it was different from their original plan. The mission center only had a small skeleton crew operating for the event while more than three-quarters of the team are monitoring remotely from home. "We were all going to be there together in the mission operations area, and we actually had rehearsed that even before this checkpoint rehearsal; we had done a simulation," Dante Lauretta, NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission principal investigator at the University of Arizona. Although nothing happened as planned as they were all in remote work conditions, the show must go on. Despite the added challenges, the rehearsal went off without a hitch. During the practice session, OSIRIS-REx got closer to Bennu than ever before. It was a key maneuver that paves the way for OSIRIS-REx to get right next to Bennu's surface in August and scoop up 60 grams of rocks from a crater called Nightingale. The engineers are thrilled with the result. READ ALSO: COVID-19 Update: Coronavirus Vaccine Makers Ask Government's Help to Make Millions of Doses by September Work from Home Engineers Like millions of people worldwide who scuffle with how to work from home, engineers who operate spacecraft share the same struggles. While all NASA centers have introduced mandatory telework policies, these do not include essential personnel who are tasked with calculating commands for interplanetary space probes and navigating rovers through harsh terrains on other worlds. For some, the transition was awkward at first since operating a spacecraft often relies on numerous in-person communications. That is the case for Carrie Bridge, who works as a liaison between scientists and engineers operating NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars. Every day, she talks with different scientists nationwide about how they would like the rover to accomplish, which she then relays to the engineers who actually navigate the robot. Normally, she just walks over to the engineering team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, to coordinate the rover's movements. Now, since everything is done online, she has about 15 to 20 chat rooms open for all the engineers and rover planners, aside from the teleconferences with different scientists across the country. "The level of intensity has gone up," she said. Matt Gildner is one of the lead rover planners that Bridge talks to. He also coordinated all commands for Curiosity from his apartment in Los Angeles. "I'm at home now... I have a nice desk set up, and I've got all my houseplants around me, dual monitors, and a good keyboard and mouse headset stand. And this is working out just fine," Gildner said. Completely Remote Access Although someone needs to be at the JPL mission control to send the commands that Gildner and his team have developed to the Deep Space Network, other spacecraft operators have figured out a way to send commands to their spacecraft even without having someone in the control center. The Space Dynamics Laboratory in Utah operates two small NASA satellites, HARP and CIRiS. However, just before the lockdown, operators at this lab come up with a run around to actually send commands from their laptops at home. "We were preparing and testing out our working from home techniques right before the pandemic hit," Ryan Martineau, an SDL engineer and spacecraft operator. Martineau and his colleagues essentially took the software they use at their mission control centers allowing them to connect with the Virginia ground station, and they put it in their local computers. "We run a [virtual] Linux machine inside of our Windows laptop that has all the software we need to run the spacecraft," he says. Thanks to this arrangement, Martineau can control the spacecraft around Earth from his home. Read also: How Can You Cope With The Pandemic? Here Are The 5 Things Mentally Strong People Do 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An inmate at a Michigan prison, who turned down a chance for parole earlier this year, has died from complications caused by the coronavirus. William Garrison could have left prison weeks ago after serving a 44-year sentence, but decided to wait until September when he would be eligible for release without parole supervision. The Associated Press reported that Mr Garrison changed his stance when the coronavirus outbreak hit. The parole board approved his application in March, but he died on Monday during the mandatory 28-day waiting period before release. Mr Garrison was found gasping for air by his cellmate at Macomb Correctional Facility. Chris Gautz, a spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Corrections, said that Mr Garrison hadnt previously complained to staff about his health. Staff performed CPR on Mr Garrison and he was transported to hospital where he was pronounced dead. A postmortem test confirmed he was positive for Covid-19. Mr Gautz described the situation as unfortunate all the way around. We came back to him and told him we would still like to parole him given his age and our concern with him getting the virus, said Mr Gautz. Mr Garrison agreed to be paroled and the Department of Corrections asked prosecutors to waive the waiting period. They did not respond before his death on 13 April. We did everything we could to get him out, Mr Gautz said. Mr Garrison was sentenced to life in prison for killing a man during a 1976 robbery when he was just 16 years old. His sentence was reduced to 40 years in January as a result of US Supreme Court decisions making juvenile lifers eligible for release. He was a zealous advocate for himself and for other incarcerated persons. He often helped other individuals with their legal matters, said attorney Becky Hahn, who helped Garrison get the reduced sentence. The Detroit Free Press reports that more than 520 prisoners have tested positive for Covid-19, 78 out of them at Macomb. A total of 805 prisoners have been tested. Michigan has 38,000 prisoners under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections. As of Monday, Michigan has 31,424 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and 2,391 recorded deaths. To date, it is one of the worst affected states fifth in total number of cases and third in recorded deaths. PORTLAND, Ore. (KGW) -- Oregon high schoolers will be graded with a pass or incomplete for the rest of the school year. A big group of parents and students from around the state don't support that plan and started a petition a few days ago. As of Monday morning, it has more than 2,800 signatures. They want a choice in how high schoolers are graded this semester; they want the option of either a letter grade or a pass or incomplete assessment. Jenni Tan is one of those parents who opposes the plan. Her daughter is a sophomore at West Linn High School in Clackamas County. "For my daughter, when she learned that, she felt the work that she had done was somewhat lost. She also worried about applying for colleges in the future as well as for merit-based scholarships," Tan said. "There's currently other states offering the choice for grades as well as private schools offering grades. So she's just wondering how she would compare." West Linn High School freshman Audrey Lippert said she was disappointed when she learned of the Oregon Department of Education's spring 2020 Distance Learning For All guidance on pass/incomplete grades. She said she worked hard all quarter to keep her grades in the A range. "My grade is now equivalent to a D and I worked hard to get everything to an A and now it's kind of for nothing. And it's worse especially when you find out people in other states are getting grades and I'm like, why can't we do that in Oregon?" Lippert said. ODE said it has to safeguard against unintended consequences as freshmen through juniors work toward graduation and pursue higher education. Many colleges including Oregon public universities said students won't be at a disadvantage for having pass/incomplete transcripts this semester because of the coronavirus outbreak. The Oregon School Boards Association threw their support behind the state's plan, saying it ensures equity for all students of all backgrounds. Opponents say they recognize equity issues are heightened through distance learning with a lot of kids lacking access to technology. Priyanka Chopra spoke about the challenges faced by the refugee camps all over the world, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra Jonas urged people to fight the the coronavirus pandemic with unity, as they joined artistes from around the world for a virtual event to support healthcare workers who are battling it out against COVID-19. Curated by pop star Lady Gaga, the One World: Together At Home virtual concert was organised on Saturday by the World Health Organization (WHO) and international advocacy organisation Global Citizen. In a one-minute video clip, Shah Rukh said India is facing "one of its greatest challenges in our history" and with a population of over a billion citizens, COVID-19 is "bound to have a negative impact on the country". " Like it is impacting the rest of the world too. Battling this crisis is going to take its toll, and this is the time to take action. "Right now, I'm working with a team of people to provide protective equipment, quarantine centres, food and essentials to patients, hospitals and homes. But to beat this worldwide pandemic, the world has to, must come together," he said. The Fan star said it's important for people to contact world and private sector leaders, and ask them to continue to contribute to WHO's Solidarity Response Fund. "So they can help to continue the hardest of areas and people who desperately need it. India, planet earth, we are one world. I love you, stay strong," the actor added. (Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak) Priyanka said the impact of COVID-19 across the globe has been "unimaginable", but its effect is "particularly devastating" for the 70 million people displaced in camps and shelters around the world, including facilities in the US. Im honored to have been a part of One World #TogetherAtHome last night. To watch so much talent and so many real life heroes stories brought together from every corner of the world for one cause was unprecedented and awe inspiring. pic.twitter.com/m8WEhyOtrf PRIYANKA (@priyankachopra) April 19, 2020 "I have witnessed first hand some of the overcrowded and unlivable conditions in refugee camps. Social distancing there is simply not an option. In order to curb the spread of COVID-19 in these specific communities, the needs are basic: health care, clean water and sanitation. "Global Citizen and WHO are two organisations that I'm personally very proud to stand alongside to fight against COVID-19. In the fight to end this crisis, we truly can't affort to lose anyone behind," the actor, who is in Los Angeles, said. The star-studded line-up also included the likes of Adam Lambert, Billie Joe Armstrong, Camila Cabello, Chris Martin, David and Victoria Beckham, Ellen DeGeneres, Idris and Sabrina Elba, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Hudson, Lilly Singh, Oprah Winfrey, Paul McCartney, Taylor Swift, Vishal Mishra among others. (With inputs from agencies) The Ekiti State Government on Monday announced that 70 out of the 73 people the states third coronavirus index case had contacts with had been traced. The state Commissioner for Health, Mojisola Yaya-Kolade, told a news conference in Ado Ekiti that the people were identified through an aggressive contact-tracing carried out by the government. Out of the 73 people, we have traced 70 of them and they are currently being monitored. We have advised them to be in self-isolation for 14 days, while the secondary contacts are being traced with the aid of our district surveillance officers. Some of the people who do not have homes to perform self-isolation have been given accommodations by the government. The commissioner disclosed that 42 blood samples had been taken to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and that 39 of them had been done without any confirmed case. The commissioner explained that the 29-year-old pregnant woman, who tested positive for COVID- 19 on April 17, was gradually stabilising and responding to treatment. On April 18, Governor Kayode Fayemi had while confirming the news of the third index case in Ekiti, explained that the woman, a health officer in Lagos State, sneaked into Ekiti and went into coma after being operated upon at a private clinic during labour. READ ALSO: Also speaking at the new conference, the Governors Special Adviser on Security, Ebenezer Ogundana, said the government had beefed up security at the states boundary communities to check the influx of COVID-19 carriers. Mr Ogundana, a retired brigadier general, said traditional rulers and youth in the communities had also been enlisted to check unauthorised movements into the state from neighbouring states. (NAN) T he company behind Mr Kipling has seen sales do exceedingly well as other brands have battled the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Premier Foods, which also makes Bisto gravy and Ambrosia custard, revealed that sales surged by around 15 per cent in March, with UK sales rising 7.3 per cent in the first three months of the year. The food group said that during this challenging time, its manufacturing and distribution are working at maximum capacity and demand continues to be high. It has given each factory worker two additional days of annual leave and a 250 cash bonus in recognition. The news comes after many shops, restaurants, hotels and other service industries in the UK have found themselves with no customers after being forced to close amid the pandemic, and many other firms have had work cancelled. In an announcement, Premier Foods also revealed a major shake-up of its pension schemes, following a year-long strategic review at the business. It said this will involve a merger of its three separate pension schemes and will reduce the cash contributions from the group, as Premier looks to save money. Cakes being produced at a Mr Kipling factory / PA The debt-laden business has come under fire from activist investors in recent years, resulting in a leadership shake-up last year. The company added: Volumes have started to reduce from the exceptional levels seen in March, although are still expected to continue to be higher than average patterns of demand. This reflects more meals being eaten at home than usual due to recent measures set out by the Government, and hence increased demand for the groups product ranges. It comes on the back of surging supermarket sales over the past month , as shoppers have stocked up on essentials. Loading.... The announcement comes one day after the hospital was designated an isolation hospital for Cairo University medical, teaching and administrative staff infected by coronavirus At least 17 hospital staff members have tested positive for coronavirus at Egypts Kasr El-Aini Hospital, a Cairo University official said, one day after the hospital was designated an isolation hospital for university medical, teaching and administrative staff infected by the virus. Hala Salah Eldin, dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Cairo University, which manages the hospital, said in TV statements on the privately-owned MBC Masr channel that at least 17 tested positive for the virus after 900 swab tests were done. She added that not all detected cases were from the hospitals medical staff. Some [of the cases] are not from the nursing staff or doctors. This means we have reached a peak of the community spread, she said. On Friday, the prominent hospital was designated an isolation hospital for Cairo University staff upon the recommendation of the Higher Committee for Combating Coronavirus. Mahmoud Alam El-Din, Cairo University spokesman, said in televised statements Friday that patients have been referred to Al-Manial Specialised Hospital for treatment following the evacuation of Kasr El-Aini Hospital. He refuted media reports on the detection of around 200 cases in the hospital, stressing that no cases were detected after "tests were carried out" on all patients at the hospital. Several healthcare facilities in Egypt have detected cases among their doctors and nurses in the past few days, triggering fears that the outbreak would hit the countrys overwhelmed healthcare sector. Last week, Cairos El-Zeitoun Specialised Hospital was closed for 14 days after detecting coronavirus cases among the hospitals medical staff. An official infection toll at the hospital was not announced, but media reports set the tally at around 23 cases among doctors, nurses and visitors. Earlier in April, at least 17 doctors and nurses at Egypts National Cancer Institute (NCI) tested positive for coronavirus, according to Cairo University, which manages the countrys main cancer hospital. Search Keywords: Short link: A man has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the deaths of 39 migrants found in a refrigerated lorry container in Essex. Ronan Hughes, of Co Armagh in Northern Ireland, is due to appear at Dublin's High Court on Tuesday charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, as well as immigration offences, Essex Police said. The 40-year-old was detained on Monday following the execution of a European arrest warrant in Ireland. The 39 Vietnamese nationals were found in a lorry container parked on an industrial estate in Grays on October 23 last year. Police forensics officers working on lorry, found to be containing 39 dead bodies, at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, Essex, last October Ten teenagers, including two 15-year-old boys, were among those found dead. Meanwhile, Eamonn Harrison, of Mayobridge, Northern Ireland, has been granted permission to appeal against his extradition to the UK under the terms of a European arrest warrant issued by Essex Police. The 22-year-old is facing 39 manslaughter charges, one of human trafficking and one of assisting unlawful immigration. A further hearing will be held in Dublin on Thursday May 7, Essex Police said. Officers secure and investigate a lorry the bodies of 39 were found inside after it was parked in Essex last October Assistant Chief Constable Tim Smith, head of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: 'Our investigation into these matters is ongoing, and we would urge members of the public not to speculate as everyone involved has the right to a fair judicial process. 'This investigation is one of the largest in Essex Police history and we are working tirelessly to piece together the events leading up to the 23 October 2019 for the sake of the victims and their loved ones. 'We have worked closely with the National Crime Agency and Crown Prosecution Service as well as police and prosecutors in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Germany and Vietnam. Forensics officers work on the lorry, found to be containing 39 dead bodies, in Essex last year 'We are immensely grateful for the ongoing support for the investigation, and the victims and their families continue to be at the forefront of our thoughts.' Gazmir Nuzi, 42, of Tottenham, north London, was arrested in the capital last Friday and charged with conspiracy to facilitate a breach of UK immigration law. Gheorghe Nica, 43, of Langdon Hills, Essex, was arrested in Frankfurt Airport in January and was charged with 39 counts of manslaughter and one count of conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration. Last week Maurice Robinson from Craigavon, Co Amragh, pleaded guilty to 39 counts of manslaughter at the Old Bailey. He previously admitted conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and acquiring criminal property at the same court on Monday 25 November. The 25-year-old will be sentenced at a later date. Reports to the UKs leading anti-stalking charity have surged during the coronavirus crisis, with contact from stalking victims doubling during the lockdown. Paladin, which successfully campaigned for stalking to become a criminal offence back in 2012, had an average of 120 stalking victims getting in touch each week ahead of the coronavirus outbreak but this has risen to 254 per week in the wake of the lockdown. The national stalking advocacy service, which works with police forces around the country, said stalking victims are increasingly fearful due to the Covid-19 emergency. Zoe Dronfield, a Paladin trustee who was stalked by her abusive ex-partner, told The Independent the charity currently has 140 high-risk cases open that involve stalking victims it deems to be at risk of serious harm or death. Ms Dronfield said stalking victims are struggling in the wake of the coronavirus emergency due to their perpetrators now knowing where they are at all times, and argued the lockdown would not stop stalkers from tracking their victims. She said data show restrictions on stalkers movements have very little impact with perpetrators routinely flouting restraining orders or bail conditions. Ms Dronfield added: Incidents of stalking are creeping up. It is national stalking awareness week this week so we are worried it is going to spike afterwards. It is very frightening. Stalking is about fixation and obsession. Victims say they feel like sitting ducks. They say they are waiting for something to happen. They have often come off social media because they are being stalked. They are now at home and even more isolated than before. Many victims arent going out for daily exercise because they are too scared. People are also less likely to contact the police because they think they are busy doing Covid stuff. Charities are bursting at the seams. We are really struggling. People are furloughed. We have had fundraising events cancelled due to Covid. Realistically we need the police to do more. Stalking still isnt taken seriously by police. They completely minimise the pattern. These incidents can seem unremarkable in isolation. Ms Dronfield, a mother-of-two from Coventry, almost died when her former partner attacked her with a meat cleaver. She spent weeks in hospital recovering from bleeding to the brain, a stab wound to her neck and a broken right arm inflicted during an eight-hour ordeal at the hands of her former partner Jason Smith, who was subsequently jailed for 10 years, with a further four on licence, in March 2015. Ms Dronfield, who lives with her two young children, said she would be terrified if she was still being subjected to her ex-partners stalking during the governments lockdown measures. The police werent taking it seriously before lockdown, she added. They said just turn your phone off and you need to find yourself a nice boyfriend. And they would be less likely to deal with it during lockdown. Ms Dronfield previously told The Independent she was left fearing for her life after her ex was moved to a jail designed for prisoners deemed to be a low risk to the public. She also discussed the stalking she suffered at his hands. She said: He started stalking me after I broke up with him the phone would be constantly ringing. He contacted me via WhatsApp, Facebook, calling, texting, and just turning up. I had to park my car a few streets away so he didnt know I was in, but he would still bang on the door. Zoe Dronfield was subjected to the eight-hour attack by Jason Smith in 2014 (Zoe Dronfield) Stalking is one of the most frequently experienced forms of abuse, with official figures showing one in five women and one in 10 men will be stalked in their lifetime. A stalking victim, who chose to remain anonymous, said she was more anxious in the wake of the Covid-19 emergency. On my daily walk I feel scared, as there are less people around and no places open that I could turn to for help, so I often dont go out, she said. Paladin, which carries out risk assessments on stalking victims before advocating on their behalf to the police, said its funding was at risk and this was affecting its ability to cope with the growing demand for its services. The organisation, which has launched a fundraising campaign to raise money, is offering support for stalking victims via an online clinic. It is calling for people not to forget about loved ones who are at risk of stalking, arguing many wrongly assume the lockdown will stop stalkers. Paladin is also urging the government to introduce a national register of serial stalkers and domestic violence perpetrators arguing domestic abuse is rarely a one-off isolated incident and perpetrators often continue committing similar attacks. A study by the University of Gloucestershire on the relationship between stalking and homicide involving a female victim and male perpetrator, found that in 71 per cent of cases the victim and perpetrator were in, or had previously had, an intimate relationship. It found stalking was identified in the run-up to 94 per cent of the 358 criminal homicides examined. Syracuse, N.Y. Every day for the past 42 days, except for Easter, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon has gone in front of cameras to deliver lengthy briefings on the fight against coronavirus. He has shopped for ventilators, shut down malls, closed schools and opened a medical test site. The virus has consumed McMahon 24/7 for more than a month. There is no end in sight. We asked him to pause briefly and reflect on the battle thus far. Heres what he told us. When it sank in that this was a war County officials started meeting to prepare for the arrival of coronavirus in February. But it wasnt until McMahon attended a conference in early March in Washington, D.C., that he appreciated how swift and lethal the menace was. McMahon was one of hundreds of county executives at a legislative conference of the National Association of Counties. President Trump addressed the group. But this also happened: McMahon appeared on a panel March 1 to discuss county efforts to promote early childhood education. Dow Constantine, the county executive from King County, Wash., was on the panel. But soon after arriving in D.C. Constantine had to rush back home when a nursing home resident in his county died after testing positive for COVID-19, McMahon said. The Life Care Center nursing home in Kirkland, Wash., quickly became the nations first coronavirus hotspot. Some 37 deaths were tied to the facility. I realized that all we need to be doing is this fight, and preparing for this fight, McMahon said. Everything became all about COVID at that point. Onondaga Countys designated survivors McMahon and some of his top aides go into the office every day. But others have been told to stay home. Mary Beth Primo, the deputy county executive for physical services, is among those who work exclusively from home. If McMahon gets sick, shes one of his designated survivors, he said. If anyone in McMahons office group comes down with COVID-19, he anticipates that they would all have to enter quarantine together. McMahons office staff works closely enough that they would probably be considered akin to a household, requiring all to be quarantined if one is sick. Even though we're taking all the same precautions that everybody else is, theres no way if I am in a quarantine that these folks arent, McMahon said. So we're not going to be split up. We're going to be quarantining together. McMahons plan: They would isolate themselves somewhere, in a makeshift emergency operations center, and continue running the county from quarantine. At that point, Primo would start working from the office to provide boots on the ground, McMahon said. Plugging a giant hole in the system McMahons proudest achievement thus far has been establishing a drive-through coronavirus test site that has handled as many as 300 patients a day and kept all those patients from flooding local emergency rooms in search of a test. County officials announced the test site at Syracuse Community Health Center before there was a single confirmed case. Because it was able to process hundreds of people a day, Onondaga County has tested more people per capita than most other large Upstate counties (north of Westchester), according to statistics tracked by the state health department. Some counties have been forced to restrict testing to people with the most severe symptoms. In Erie County, for example, 24% of people who have been tested for COVID-19 have the disease. In Onondaga County, 7% of tests come back positive. Early in March, before the new test site opened, the absence of testing infrastructure threatened to let the virus spread undetected. Doctors were telling their patients to get tested at hospital emergency rooms. Hospitals were telling patients to stay away for fear of spreading infections. The Syracuse health center started testing March 16. If you look at everything we did, that decision I think helped boost our medical infrastructure more than anything else we did, McMahon said. If you had to say, what was the best thing you've done? I think that one certainly was. It didnt go smoothly at first. The company hired to process the tests, Quest Diagnostics, was flooded with samples from around the country and took up to nine days to provide results to the first patients. The following week, the county hired a new lab and reduced the wait times. Calls, calls, emails and calls McMahons sees his role as communicator in chief. Each day, he holds a live news conference at 3 p.m. that often runs nearly an hour. After he wakes up each morning, McMahon said, he spends an hour or so responding to emails from the night before. McMahon said he gets dozens of emails daily from county residents. Complaints. Questions. Atta-boys. He said he tries to answer all. After he gets to the office, McMahon usually gets a briefing on new developments from deputy executives Ann Rooney and Brian Donnelly or other staff. Then he begins the conference calls. Wednesday, for example, McMahon had a conference call with local supermarkets for an update on their efforts to stay supplied and to reduce crowding in stores. He had another call with town supervisors. In a third call he talked with Quest Diagnostics and Walmart about their plans for a new drive-through test site in East Syracuse. By early afternoon each day, the health department has new data on COVID-19 cases for him to review. After his daily news conference, he returns to the office and more phone calls. Beside the immediate goal of stopping the spread of coronavirus, McMahon is planning for the day non-essential businesses start to reopen. And hes dealing with a looming cash crunch in county finances caused by the virus. Often, after he gets home in the evening, McMahon is still on the phone lobbying state and federal legislators to help the county get more money. The day usually ends where it began, answering emails. McMahon, a natural politician, said the thing he misses most is mingling with people. When you finally sit down at night on the couch, you're emailing and then eventually you fall asleep for a little bit, he said. But thats when you're the most lonely, when it's just you and your thoughts. The long war Just two months ago, on Feb. 10, in a world that looked different, McMahon laid out an agenda for 2020 in his State of the County Address. He outlined big ambitions for economic development and new county programs. Not a word about fighting a pandemic. But for the past month McMahon has focused only on coronavirus. It will dominate his work through the year, he said. Even if the virus subsides soon, there will be massive efforts needed to the repair county finances and restart the local economy. Unfortunately, this virus is going to define our 2020 agenda, McMahon said. This is our 2020 agenda, this fight. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Weve flattened the CNY coronavirus curve, but what now? (Where we stand) Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Updated: See our newest list of CNY restaurants offering takeout and/or delivery Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com While some countries have postponed debt repayments and created swap lines to increase lending, it is a far cry from the $2.5 trillion the United Nations estimates is needed to respond to the coronavirus pandemic in the developing world. Some hope the International Monetary Fund will step in, calling for it to provide liquidity by dramatically expanding its special drawing rights, perhaps by a factor of four. Thats a good idea, but it will be too little, too late. The United States, with veto power over such a move, opposes the idea, which would give all countries more liquidity. It prefers the alternative: having countries seek help one by one from the I.M.F. or Federal Reserve, which can then pick the beneficiaries of their largesse. More important, the I.M.F. makes loans, not grants. But in this crisis, the developing world needs direct and immediate transfers, rather than ways to merely spread costs over time. I.M.F. loan packages would take too long to put in place in all of the countries in need. Such loans would also be too small in magnitude, especially for insolvent countries that already worry creditors. Moreover, grants directly improve solvency and thus do more to restore investor confidence and curb capital flight. Saddling emerging markets with more debt now would also discourage future investment and stifle the global recovery. Some officials mostly in creditor nations warn that grants create moral hazard and encourage profligacy. That may be true in normal times, but it is absurd to suggest that helping countries in a pandemic will lead them to take pandemics less seriously in the future. The truth is, the I.M.F. is ill equipped to rapidly transfer resources earmarked for the pandemic response. What the world needs now is on the order of the Marshall Plan: a fund to transfer resources immediately to the developing world on a massive scale. We like to call it a Global Solidarity Fund. Italy has refused to take in saved migrants due to the coronavirus epidemic, saying the outbreak, which has killed over 23,000 people, meant it could no longer be considered a port of safety. Some 180 migrants rescued at sea will be held in isolation on an Italian ferry off the coast of Sicily, the coast guard said Sunday. Thirty-four people pulled to safety by Spanish NGO rescue vessel Aita Mari were being transferred Sunday to the Rubattino ferry, which is anchored outside the port of Palermo and staffed by 22 Red Cross volunteers. They join 146 migrants who were transferred to the ferry on Friday from the The Alan Kurdi rescue vessel, run by the German NGO Sea Eye. They will be tested for the virus and redistributed among EU countries once the 14-day isolation period is up, according to Italian media reports. The 180-m long Tirrenia ferry can carry 1,471 passengers, and has 289 cabins, a medical center, restaurant, bars, and a children's play area. It was not clear whether the migrants would be confined to individual cabins. China Development Bank (CDB) Financial Leasing Co announced on Monday it had agreed with Boeing Co (BA) to cancel the purchase of 29 undelivered 737 MAX jets in the latest blow to the aerospace company. The move comes after the grounding of 737 MAX aircraft by aviation authorities worldwide and the suspension of 737 MAX aircraft deliveries by Boeing. Following the cancellation CDB Financial Leasing still has a total order of 70 undelivered Boeing 737 MAX jets under various purchase agreements. In addition, the two parties agreed that all Boeing 737 MAX 10 aircraft will be converted to Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft and that the delivery of another 20 undelivered jets will be deferred to dates in 2024, 2025 and 2026. In light of evolving aviation market dynamics, weve been working together with Boeing over many months to re-calibrate our MAX orderbook to be in line with our long-term view of the market and related opportunities, Xuedong Wang, chairman of CDB Financial unit CDB Aviation, said in a statement. The cancellation comes after General Electrics (GE) aircraft leasing company GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) said on Friday it agreed with Boeing to scrap the order of 69 undelivered 737 MAX aircraft from GECAS orderbook. Following the agreement, GECAS maintains 29 MAX aircraft in its fleet and 82 on order, making it among Boeings largest lessor customers for this family of aircraft. [The] agreement will help GECAS better align our available fleet with the needs of our global customer base, GECAS President and CEO Greg Conlon said in a statement. We remain fully committed to the 737 MAX program and our valuable, long-term partnership with Boeing. Boeing shares advanced 15% on Friday to close at $154 as it said it plans this week to resume production at its Philadelphia plant, as well as, restart manufacturing of its commercial planes in Washington state. Read more: Boeing Plans to Resume Production Next Week TipRanks data shows that Wall Street analysts, have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on Boeings stock based on 13 Holds and 6 Buys. The $187.11 average price target foresees a 22% upside potential for Boeing shares in the next 12 months. (See Boeings stock analysis on TipRanks). Story continues Related News: Boeing Shares Spike 15% on Plans to Resume Production Next Week United Airlines to Sell 22 Planes to Bank of China Aviation General Motors Secures $1.95 Billion Revolving Credit Line More recent articles from Smarter Analyst: FDW Employer? 5 Things You Must Know During the COVID-19 Crisis Due to the circuit breaker and previous social distancing measures, many Singaporeans have switched to working from home or have unfortunately lost their jobs. However, there are segments of the population who are as busy as ever. This includes foreign domestic workers (FDWs), who are currently playing an integral role in keeping many Singaporean households clean and families taken care of. Unfortunately, domestic workers are also one of the most vulnerable working segment, due to a combination of a lack of awareness and having to engage in risky errands for their employers. To help reduce COVID-19 spread among domestic workers, there are new guidelines that employers and workers must follow. Below, we compiled a mix of tips and current government guidelines to help employers keep themselves and their helper healthy and safe. New Hires Must Follow the Stay-Home Notice If you are working from home and need extra help with household chores and caretaking, you can still hire an FDW. However, the MOM advises that you employ a domestic worker who is currently in Singapore, as the as the chances of approval for bringing in a worker from abroad are very slim. If you did manage to get a new domestic helper who is currently not in Singapore, then she will be subject to a 14-day Stay Home Notice (SHN). This is a 14-day quarantine period that requires your new worker to stay indoors at a dormitory, hostel or hotel before she'll be allowed to start working at your house. If you need help finding accommodations for your new worker, you can reach out to the MOM or enlist the help of an employment agency. Settling-In Programme and Medical Exams Must Still Be Completed If you have recently hired a domestic worker, she must still undergo both the Settling-in Programme (SIP) and the medical examination (6ME). To alleviate any anxiety about doing the SIP, the MOM has stated that all FDWs who attend the SIP would have completed their 14 day Stay-Home Notice. There are also precautionary measures, such as temperature checks, to ensure the safety and health of everyone participating in the programme. Story continues Cost of Home-Based Medical Packages Provided by Doctor Anywhere This table shows the cost of home-based medical examination packages provided by Doctor Anywhere, where the cost of a standard FDW 6ME is S$40 Your worker may also be due for her 6ME. In this case, you can opt for the home-based 6ME service, provided by Doctor Anywhere, instead of taking your worker to a GP. This can help alleviate stress about exposing your worker to COVID-19 in a medical environment. You'll need to accommodate at least 10 working days between the date stated on your worker's 6ME form and the screening date. A staff member will call after 2 days to schedule the appointment. If this serivce appeals to you, you should note that the home-based medical service isn't just for the 6ME. You can also use it if you want to get your worker or your family vaccinated against the flu. You will not have to go to a clinic to pick up the test results as they'll be available to you when they're ready. Medical Expenses Will Be Covered If Your FDW Contracts COVID-19 Typically, if your domestic worker falls ill, you will need to pay for her recovery. Because of this, many FDW employers are concerned that they would need to pay for their worker's hospitalisation if they get infected with COVID 19. Dont' worry, the government will pay for treatment at any public hospital, provided your FDW did not travel after March 27th. If your worker gets sick with COVID 19, she should go to the hospital with her MOM-issued work pass and any other relevant documents, since she won't be eligible for the free treatment without them. All other medical emergencies or accidents will be covered by your maid insurance. Encourage Your Worker to Stay Home on Her Rest Days According to the Ministry of Manpower, it is strongly advised that your FDW stay at home during her rest day. Since your domestic worker may need to run essential errands, you can consider changing her rest day to a weekday. This ensures that she'll be running those errands when there are less people outside. Furthermore, you should ensure that you educate her on keeping a safe distance from people, not shaking hands and not congregating in crowded areas like Lucky Plaza, City Plaza and Peninsula Plaza. Temasek Foundation will also be sending masks to the residential addresses of domestic helpers starting late May, which can help replenish low stocks of supplies you and your worker may be facing. However, keeping your domestic helper at home on her rest day doesn't mean that this is a chance for her to continue working. You should let her rest and consider including her in any fun family activities as she most likely misses her friends and family during this period. If she does need to work during her rest day, then she should be paid accordingly for the full day. Arrange for Alternate Travel Dates for Non-Essential Home Leave Unfortunately, now is not the best time for your domestic worker to travel back home. First, if you worker travels during this advisory period and gets sick with COVID-19, the government will not pay for her hospital treatment. Second, it puts everyone at risk, from you and your family to her and her family back home. Instead, you should discuss postponing your worker's home leave to a time in the future. If your worker has to go home for emergency reasons, then she should be well versed in proper safety precautions and monitor herself for symptoms. Upon return, your worker will also be issued a 14-day Stay Home Notice. She can serve this mandatory 14-day quarantine either at your residence or in an alternative location. If she stays at your residence she will be permitted to work. If she stays in an alternative accommodation, you will have to keep an open line of communication with her and continue to pay her COVID-19 FAQ. However, she will have to pay for any alternative accommodations herself. Keeping Your FDW Healthy Is a Priority for the Safety of Your Home Your domestic worker is responsible for taking care of some of the most vulnerable people in your household. She is also the one who will be responsible for keeping your home sanitary. Because of her crucial role in taking care of your household, you should do whatever you can to keep her healthy. This ranges from proper education on hygiene and social distancing to finding alternatives to typical errands that can put her at risk. For instance, instead of sending your worker to a grocery store, consider getting grocery delivery instead. You should also supply her with masks so she can safely venture outside if there are essential errands to run. Lastly, while it may make sense to ramp up cleaning and disinfecting efforts, you have to be mindful of your domestic worker's workload. During this time, it's imperative to educate, bring awareness and teach your FDW to work smarternot harderto mitigate additional stress and anxiety. The article FDW Employer? 6 Things You Must Know During the COVID-19 Crisis originally appeared on originally appeared on ValueChampion's blog. ValueChampion helps you find the most relevant information to optimise your personal finances. Like us on our Facebook page to keep up to date with our latest news and articles. More From ValueChampion: Meghan Markle gushed over elephants and how she 'understands them' in a never-before-seen interview that was taped last summer and aired on Good Morning America on Monday, a day after she and Prince Harry said they would no longer talk to four British newspapers. In the interview, Meghan said she was 'grateful' to have been involved in the Disney+ documentary Elephant which she hopes will teach people how similar humans are to elephants and how 'connected' we are. The film is her passion project and marks her return to showbiz after shunning royal life. On Monday, Disney - which owns ABC, the network GMA is aired on - released the interview along with footage from the documentary in which Meghan can be heard narrating. Her lines include commentary on the families of elephants like 'Shani has already lost track of Jomo. THERE he is!' and, over a shot of an elephant playing in water, 'What is he doing? It's time for a pool party!' Scroll down for video Meghan Markle in a never-before-seen interview that was taped last summer but aired on Monday on Good Morning America after being released by Disney to promote her elephant documentary In a different moment in the film, the herd is approached by lions, at which Meghan says seriously: 'This... is unsettling. 'Gaia must show her family is strong. The predators shouldn't waste their time.' It streamed on April 3 on Disney+, the company's newly launched streaming service. It is unclear how many views the film has had so far, or why Disney released the year-old interview with Meghan on Monday. 'I'm really grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of bringing a story about elephants to life. 'I've been very lucky to be able to have hands-on experience with elephants in their natural habitat. 'When you spend time with connecting with them and the other wildlife, you really understand we have a role to play in their preservation and their safety,' Meghan says in her interview. She goes on: 'These creatures are so majestic and at the same time they are so sensitive and so connected. 'We see in this film just how remarkable they are; their memories are amazing, the close connection of the herd, the protectiveness of their young. GMA also aired parts of the documentary. In this image, as a young elephant splashes in water, Meghan narrates: 'The older elephants all know this could be the last easy water for many months, so they're going to make the most of it' Meghan narrates scenes with comments like 'This is a side of elephants we rarely see' 'Shani has already lost track of Jomo. THERE he is!' is another one of her lines As a lion approaches the herd of elephants, Meghan narrates: 'This... is unsettling. 'Gaia must show her family is strong. The predators shouldn't waste their time.' Meghan says she hoped the film made people realize how 'connected we all are' Harry and Meghan measuring an elephant in an Instagram picture shared on Sussex Royal 'I think they're a lot more like us than they are different.' The duchess continued that she hopes when people see the film, they 'realize how connected we all are'. 'If we had more of an awareness about the obstacles we are facing, I think we'd take care of each other, this planet and animals in a very different way,' she says. Meghan's involvement in the documentary is her first showbiz job since she and Harry shunned royal life. The couple moved from the UK to Canada and have now settled in Los Angeles. The proceeds from the Disney documentary will be donated to an elephant preservation charity. On Sunday, Harry and Meghan told newspaper executives at four publications they wouldn't 'engage' any longer with them unless it was through a lawyer. Their message was sent from an official Sussex Royal email, despite the Queen banning them from using the title and them saying they plan to use Archewell. They emailed the editors of these popular publications: the Daily Mail, the Daily Mirror, the Sun and the Daily Express. It came hours after Prince Harry caused outrage by suggesting the coronavirus crisis sweeping Britain was 'better than we are led to believe through certain corners of the media'. Duchess Meghan Markle talks about Disneynature film 'Elephant' in exclusive 1st look that features an interview with producers from last summer. https://t.co/mzu6P496cg pic.twitter.com/F3eaXQuAne Good Morning America (@GMA) April 20, 2020 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have announced they will no longer cooperate with many of the UKs tabloid newspapers. In a letter to editors of The Sun, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail and Daily Express, the couple have criticised the tabloid press and said they refuse to offer themselves up as currency for an economy of click-bait and distortion. Instead, there will be a policy of zero engagement meaning representatives for the couple will no longer respond to requests from the aforementioned publications. The letter, which was written by a representative for both Harry and Meghan, accused the four publications of writing distorted, false or invasive stories about them. It states: It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. The representative goes on to highlight the real human cost to the publication of what they describe as salacious gossip. Addressing the editors directly, the letter adds: With that said, please note that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. There will be no corroboration and zero engagement. This is also a policy being instated for their communications team, in order to protect that team from the side of the industry that readers never see. It continues that this new policy is not about avoiding criticism. World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Show all 24 1 /24 World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Italy World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Argentina World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Belgiam World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Brazil World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Chile World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Belgiam World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK The media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex good or bad. But it cant be based on a lie, the letter concludes. Its not the first time Meghan and Harry have taken aim at the tabloid press. Both have previously taken legal action against British media titles. This week, a court hearing will take place with regards to a case brought by Meghan against the publisher of the Mail on Sunday regarding the publication of a letter written by her to her father. Meghan and Harry recently relocated to California after quitting their roles in the royal family. You can read more about what lies ahead for the couple here. Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello has revealed the state is yet to test anyone for the coronavirus (COVID-19) disease which has infected over 600 persons across the country. Governor Bello, who disclosed this on Sunday on Channels Television, said his government is using an unnamed app to check the virus in Kogi. The governor, however, assured that the states sensitisation programme was working since nobody has shown any symptoms of the COVID-19 in the state. When asked how many people have his government tested for the virus, Governor Bello said: So far so good, we have launched an app and if nobody shows any cause for test, we wouldnt go out there to catch any human being to say we want to do test because there is adequate sensitisation of our citizens. Governor Bello admitted that the state doesnt have a test centre, but sounded relieved that there was a test centre in Abuja among other neighbouring states. But we have test kits that we have on our own purchased in the event that there is a need to collect any sample. But nobody has come up with any issue, and there is no reported case, what are we going to collect? he asked. So far so good, I think our sensitisation programme is working excellently well. Our people are following our instructions and we are good for it. Bello had once disclaimed rumours he tested positive for COVID-19. He said he was fit as a fiddle and challenged his detractors to a bout. Watch the video below: The world is in 2020 but Yahaya Bello and Kogi State are living in 2025 ????? pic.twitter.com/BrLpa3T9cv ? Fuk (@BL_Capitol) April 19, 2020 Meanwhile, Nigeria has recorded 627 cases of the coronavirus, 170 of which have been discharged, while 21 have died. MasterChef Australia is known for its wholesome take on competitive cooking. But it appears there is a lot more drama going on behind the scenes that viewers are not made aware of. From shock arrests to diva demands, here are the secrets and scandals Channel 10 doesn't want you to know about. Diva demands, big salaries and a shock arrest: The secrets and scandals from MasterChef Australia you WON'T see on television MasterChef: Back to Win follows 24 past contestants as they compete for ultimate redemption and a cash prize of $250,000. The biggest scandal this season occurred when fan favourite Ben Ungermann was arrested over a 'personal matter' during filming. Executives called the show's editors into an 'emergency meeting' last month and told them to 'cut him out the best you can', according to New Idea. Ben himself has acknowledged his infrequent appearances on screen, saying 'it's up to MasterChef' what happens to him in the editing suite. The incident apparently came as a shock to network bosses, with a source saying: 'No one could have imagined something like that would ever happen.' Unexpected: The biggest scandal this season occurred when fan favourite Ben Ungermann (pictured) was arrested over a 'personal matter' during filming Edited out: Executives called the show's editors into an 'emergency meeting' last month and told them to 'cut [Ben] out the best you can'. Pictured left in a trailer for MasterChef In terms of editing, a production insider also claimed that some competitors made diva demands when it came to how they were portrayed. 'Many of them know how the industry works, so they have no problem in making demands around filming,' the source said. In addition to making special requests, such as asking for hotel rooms and time off, the cast also worked together to get better salaries. 'They have no problem making demands': In terms of editing, a production insider told New Idea that some competitors made diva demands when it came to how they were portrayed Big money: Season one runner-up Poh Ling Yeow (left) and season three fan favourite Hayden Quinn (right) were reportedly both paid $40,000, according to New Idea New Idea's insider also lifted the lid on the salaries of the hosts, guest judges and contestants. According to the magazine, the returning competitors were able to negotiate deals worth tens of thousands of dollars each. Season one runner-up Poh Ling Yeow and season three fan favourite Hayden Quinn were reportedly both paid $40,000. The biggest payday was reserved for celebrity guest judge Katy Perry, who secured an estimated $100,000 for her brief appearance. Not bad for a day's work! The biggest payday was reportedly reserved for celebrity guest judge Katy Perry (centre left), who secured an estimated $100,000 for her appearance. Pictured with hosts Andy Allen (left), Melissa Leong (centre right) and Jock Zonfrillo (right) Gone! MasterChef Australia's long-running judges Gary Mehigan (left), Matt Preston (centre) and George Calombaris (right) quit the show last year over a salary dispute Bizarre: George Calombaris said in 2015 that the dishes are actually served cold because it takes so long to film the judges' feedback. Pictured: the new judges with Gordon Ramsay While MasterChef has been a ratings hit for for more than a decade, there are still some secrets of the popular franchise that even longtime fans may not know. Former MasterChef judge George Calombaris revealed some of these 'tricks of the trade' in an interview with Daily Mail Australia in 2015. He said that it takes many hours to film the judges' feedback, which means the dishes are usually stone cold when it's time to taste them. Trade secrets: 'It has always been cold and it always will be cold, but we taste everything hot off camera,' George said at the time. Pictured: 2020 judge Melissa Leong 'It has always been cold and it always will be cold, but we taste everything hot off camera,' George said at the time. 'So at the end of the cook, [viewers] don't see that - no one sees that apart from the three of us and the executive producer. We will go around the room and the three of us will taste everything hot out of the contestants' pots first.' He added: 'It looks sexy on TV, but it takes time to film. So when you see us tasting at the end, it's cold. But I've already made the decision. I know what it tastes like.' MasterChef Australia: Back to Win continues Monday at 7:30pm on Channel 10 Subrata Pati, who is in Ahanda village in West Bengal's Bankura district, climbs atop a neem tree each day to receive uninterrupted signal on his cell phone, which he uses to teach his pupils with. IMAGE: Subrata Pati atop the neem tree in his village of Ahanda teaching his students history. Photograph: PTI Photo Prosperity is a great teacher, adversity even greater. And adversity in times of the lockdown has brought out the best in Subrata Pati who, unlike most other professionals, isn't working from home. Perched atop a neem tree in his village, the history teacher is giving lessons to his students in Kolkata on events of seminal importance that shaped civilisations and obliterated them, conquests by kings and generals, and horrors of war and pestilence in the coronavirus era. Taking classes online is a battle Pati, who teaches at two educational institutes in Kolkata, is fighting from his native Ahanda village in West Bengal's Bankura district, where his cell phone screen blipped to life one moment and lay dead frozen the next. Exasperated, just as he was about to give up, he was struck by the thought of climbing a tree to see if getting a few yards closer to sky made any difference. And it did. Now, every morning, the 35-year-old man climbs up the neem tree next to his house and parks himself on a makeshift wooden platform tied to its branches and receives uninterrupted signals on his cell phone he uses to teach his pupils with. Having set up the DIY (do-it-yourself) marvel with some help from his friends, the history teacher at Adamas University and RICE Education in the city doesn't find the chore tiring. "I have temporarily shifted from my Kolkata residence to Ahanda, which is a part of the state's Jangalmalal area, to be with my family in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. That done, I couldn't have shrugged off my responsibility as a teacher. The internet network here is mostly patchy, so I had to look for a solution," he said. Pati takes food and water with him to the tree-top platform, made of bamboo, gunny sacks and hay, on days when he has to conduct two to three classes at a stretch. "Sometimes the heat and the urge to pee bother me, but I am trying to adjust... sometimes storms and thundershower damage the platform, but I try and fix it the next day. Under no circumstances I would want my students to be inconvenienced," he said. The attendance is usually high for his classes, said Pati with a broad smile. "The students keep boosting my confidence. They have always been very supportive. They assured me that they would put in their best efforts to score well in my paper," he said. Buddhadeb Maity, one of his students at RICE Education, said Pati was an inspiration for him. "What he does for his students is exemplary. I never miss his classes, nor do my friends. In fact, he takes time out to answer our queries too. Attendance for his classes is usually 90 per cent," he said. Asked how he chanced upon the idea of setting up the bamboo structure, Pati explained that villagers often build 'machan' (makeshift watchtower) on tree-tops during the harvest season to keep an eye on elephants straying into their fields. "It is a common practice here. I sought help from some of my friends and together we set up the bamboo platform for my classes," he said. Samit Ray, the chancellor of Adamas University, said the institute was proud of Pati. "He has been very sincere about his work from the start. He is a shining example of how to surmount obstacles with hard work and willpower," he added. New York: Oil prices have plunged below zero, the latest never-before-seen number to come out of the economic coma caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Stocks and Treasury yields also dropped on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 down 1.8 per cent, but the markets most dramatic action by far was in oil, where the cost to have a barrel of US crude delivered in May plummeted to minus $US37.63 ($59.37). It was at roughly $US60 at the start of the year. Traders are still paying $US20.43 for a barrel of US oil to be delivered in June, which analysts consider to be closer to the "true" price of oil. Crude to be delivered next month, meanwhile, is running up against a stark problem: traders are running out of places to keep it, with storage tanks close to full amid a collapse in demand as factories, automobiles and airplanes sit idled around the world. Tanks at a key energy hub in Oklahoma could hit their limits within three weeks, according to Chris Midgley, head of analytics at S&P Global Platts. Because of that, traders are willing to pay others to take that oil for delivery in May off their hands, so long as they also take the burden of figuring out where to keep it. Full text of State broadcast by Governor Zulum. Fellow Citizens, Last night, the National Centre for Disease Control confirmed an index case of Covid-19, otherwise known as corona virus, in our dear state which took the live of one of us. Until his unfortunate death, the late health worker dedicated himself to providing humanitarian healthcare services to fellow citizens that were critically affected by the boko haram insurgency. Borno state will forever be grateful for his services. We are also profoundly grateful to all healthcare service providers, whose dedication to saving lives, will now be needed more than we ever did. All over the world, healthcare workers are now adored more than before. And this is because, they are putting their lives on the line in trying to save others. We hold our health workers very dearly and for this reason, I am worried about the manner in which the index Covid-19 case in Borno State, was handled. In the handling of that case, we have been confronted with not only losing a healthcare service provider but also exposing at least 100 persons to risk of infection. I am certain that with the manner in which the deceased gave commitment to humanitarian services, it could never have been his will to expose citizens, he worked hard to protect. I am setting up a panel to investigate the circumstances surrounding the outbreak and handling of the index case in Borno State. It is my considered view that government owes this duty to both those exposed to risk of infection and the deceased, whose values were against the spread of infection. May the Almighty Allah grant mercy to the deceased and all Nigerians who died in this pandemic. Of particular note, is Malam Abba Kyari, late chief of staff to the President, who died of Covid-19 in Lagos, on Friday. Fellow citizens, our index case, as confirmed by the NCDC, has brought to us, a strong and dangerous warning. Covid-19 is real and it has reached us in Borno State. With our 11-year burden of dealing with the bokohuman insurgency and its mortal impacts, the coming of Covid-19 amounts to having fresh pepper on fresh injury. However, notwithstanding the dangers posed by Covid-19, it has three solutions and these solutions have the same word: Prevention! Prevention! And again, Prevention! Fellow citizens, Covid-19 is deadly and it has no cure. It can only be prevented and we all have a shared obligation to ensure this disease does not spread in Borno State. As part of measures, the states High powered team has traced 97 persons that believed to have made contacts with our index case. 35 of them were traced in Pulka town of Gwoza local government area and 64 in Maiduguri. A surveillance and case management team has also been deployed to Pulkawhile an organization, to which the index case had association, is to quarantine all persons who had contact with the index case. The state's high powered team is ensuring this standard procedure is strictly complied with. I will like to clarify that tracing 97 interest persons does not amount to having 97 cases of Corona virus. We however await results from samples collected from these contacts, hoping we get good results. Fellow citizens, as we have seen from the wild-fire effects of Corona virus, one index case is enough reason for very serious concern. We are taking far reaching measures to ensure the virus does not take any more or health concern in any part of Borno State. In the exercise of the powers conferred on me, I have signed an executive order, declaring Covid-19 a dangerous disease. For this, I am hereby directing a lockdown that will require cessation of all movements in Borno State for an initial period of 14 days with effect from 10:30pm on Wednesday, 22nd of April, 2020. All citizens in Borno State are to stay in their homes. This means all public gatherings are restricted while offices and businesses in Borno State are to be fully closed during this period. Security and intelligence agencies have been briefed for enforcement. Government will use this period of restriction to accelerate the tracing and isolation of persons who have been in contact with the index case. However, the restriction will not apply to providers of essential services, which the high powered team for prevention and control of Covid-19 in Borno State will make public. The high powered team under His Excellency, the Deputy Governor, has been directed to as from tomorrow, Tuesday, commence a daily centralized media briefing at 4pm. Location for the daily briefing will be announced by the team for the access of journalists who will be among those to be given permission on essential services. The high powered team will on daily basis provide citizens with timely updates and information on access to essential needs such as food, medical services and automated banking services. Government will continue to observe developments as we hope to make progresses in concerted efforts to contain spread of the deadly virus. Fellow citizens, we are very much aware of the peculiar challenges we face in Borno State. We intend to be very particular about Internally Displaced Persons. We will continue to support them We shall as time passes, consider social interventions for vulnerable citizens. We recognize that the decision to impose restriction will cause difficulties and alter the plans we make differently. However, as Covid-19 has reminded us, health comes ahead of everything we seek. We have taken necessary measures with the determination and hope to secure the lives of citizens in Borno State. We pray and hope that these measures, amongst other steps we are adopting, will contribute significantly in controlling the spread of Corona virus in Borno State. Please stay safe and may God bless Borno State and the federal Republic of Nigeria. I would say its possible for users to agree to provide this data. Some of the things that Google does telling you how long your route home is likely to take can be useful. I think an important factor for my personal interest in participating was that this is a public health crisis, and this data could help illuminate some of the inequalities involved. Thats it for this briefing. See you next time. Chris Thank you To Melissa Clark for the recipe, and to Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the rest of the break from the news. Alex Traub conducted the interview for the Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com. P.S. Were listening to The Daily. Todays episode is about what the U.S. might look like after states lift coronavirus-related lockdowns. Heres todays Mini Crossword, and a clue: Drink that comes from the Russian for water (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here. The Times has introduced Rabbit Hole, a narrative audio series about what the internet is doing to us, anchored by our tech columnist Kevin Roose. Any hope that the British economy would instantly bounce-back from the coronavirus pandemic have been dashed by the Treasury's own assessment. The internal report, which circulated among ministers last week, warned that the economy could take years to recover from the impact of the outbreak. It made far more pessimistic reading than models issued earlier in the week by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). Any hope that the British economy would instantly bounce-back from the coronavirus pandemic have been dashed by the Treasury's own assessment. Pictured: Chancellor Rishi Sunak The OBR had previously suggested that the economic recovery would take the form of a V-shape. It indicated that GDP would drop by 35 per cent in the second quarter of the year but would bounce back next year to similar levels seen before the outbreak. But according to The Times, the Treasury's own analysis has warned that there will be permanent damage to the economy as a result of the lockdown period. Officials are thought to have examined a variety of different scenarios but it appears that the situation will only worsen the longer it continues. Speaking to the newspaper, one source said: 'The Treasury's analysis is far bleaker than the OBR's. It's not going to be a V-shape. 'It asks whether we can even get to a narrow U or could we be looking in the worst case at a W if there is a second lockdown.' In the event of a U-shaped recovery the economy would take longer to rally. Similarly a W-shaped recovery is likely to occur in the event of a second imposed lockdown before the virus is fully contained. It comes as Chancellor Rishi Sunak is facing mounting pressure to boost his business bailout so that the Government increases its guarantee on loans to struggling firms to 100 per cent. The Treasury is set to announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit as the coronavirus lockdown causes the economy to stutter to a halt. It will include a 500million loans fund for high-growth companies and 750million in loans and grants for small firms focused on research and development. But thousands of companies are already struggling to claim state aid under the Government's existing 330billion of coronavirus schemes. The lockdown is pushing many firms to the brink of collapse, with one report warning today that up to 11.7million people could be furloughed or left jobless in the three months to the end of June. Smaller businesses especially have encountered huge obstacles when trying to obtain vital Government-backed loans under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans Scheme (CBILS). Former Labour leader Ed Miliband (pictured in 2015) said the Chancellor needed to move to a 100 per cent guarantee of loans for smaller businesses These loans, handed out by high street banks, can give businesses up to 5million to keep them afloat. And to incentivise the lenders, the Government will take on 80 per cent of any losses they suffer. But because banks will still have to bear 20 per cent of the risk, they have been asking for detailed financial information and forecasts which firms are simply unable to provide fast enough. And for any businesses which were already struggling before the lockdown began, Government-backed loans are near impossible to come by. MPs and City grandees have called on the Government to increase its guarantee on the loans to 100 per cent, as in Switzerland and Germany, to speed up the process. Former Labour leader Ed Miliband said: 'The Chancellor must move to a 100 per cent guarantee of loans for smaller businesses. In the coming days, businesses are facing critical decisions about their future.' Meanwhile, a paper by think-tank the Resolution Foundation predicts that unemployment could hit 3.4million in the three months to the end of June with a further 8.3million workers furloughed. Employees in the lowest-paying hospitality and retail sectors are most likely to be hit. The foundation said: 'As many as 3.1million employees (46 per cent) in these sectors could be furloughed, with an additional 800,000 workers in this part of the economy becoming unemployed.' From today employers can start applying to the Treasury for financial help under its Job Retention Scheme, which will see the Government paying up to 80 per cent of furloughed workers' salaries up to 2,500 per month. The deaths came as firefighters worked through storms to contain a blaze at the main music building at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Authorities havent determined the cause of the fire, but it happened while strong storms with lightning were in the area. - The priest had convened a church service despite the government directive on avoidance of social gatherings - The clergyman was nabbed, together with 12 faithful and will be arraigned for defying government's protocol - In a separate incident, 39 Somali women were arrested after attending a friend's wedding at Komarock, Nairobi - The 39 suspects were quarantined at KMTC at their own cost for 14 days for contravening the social distance directive A Catholic priest and 12 worshippers have been arrested for holding a church service in Mbololo, Taita Taveta in contrary to the government's directive on avoidance of social gatherings. Law enforcers stormed the chapel on Sunday, April 19, and apprehended Father Ronald Wafula of St Joseph Mukasa Catholic and his congregants for defying the law. READ ALSO: Ebola in Congo: Fear, confusion after patient escapes from hospital File photo of a Catholic priest. The Catholic priest was holding a church service when the police raided his church. Photo: UGC. Source: UGC READ ALSO: SportPesa: Latest activity on firm's website hints at possible comeback According to Daily Nation, Voi sub-county police commander Berstain Shari said the suspects were locked up in their police cells and were awaiting arraignment on Monday, April 20. "We raided the church after a tip-off from the public and we currently have them in our cells," Shari said. READ ALSO: Mtu mmoja aaga dunia katika makabiliano ya risasi kati ya polisi na Samburu Moran File photo. The women were arrested by police officers for attending a wedding. Photo: National Police Service. Source: UGC In a separate story, 39 Somali women were arrested after attending a friend's wedding in Komarock Estate Nairobi. Kayole OCPD Wilson Kosgey said the women were quarantined at the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) at their own costs for 14 days. 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 Mulamwah and his girlfriend speak out for the first time after he quit comedy | Tuko TV Source: TUKO.co.ke Three weeks ago, Michael Lucidonio almost died. Lucidonio, the son of famed Philadelphia cheesesteak restaurateur Tony Luke, found himself intubated and in a medically-induced coma at the age of just 35. Like so many other New Jersey residents, Lucidonio was fighting the coronavirus, and ten days after symptoms developed Lucidonio was sicker than hed ever been. Now, a month after he first became symptomatic, Lucidonio is home in South Jersey and out of isolation, and on his way to a total recovery. He wants to share the story of his fight back from deaths door to show that there is hope for those sickened with COVID-19. This is not a death sentence if you can catch it early, but dont be macho, and say, I can fight it at home the second you feel shortness of breath, go to the hospital, Lucidonio says. The sooner you catch it, the better. Lucidonios symptoms started out like a flu or a cold, with a fever on March 20. By the fourth day he had developed gastrointestinal symptoms, he said, but at that point stomach problems werent considered a symptom of the coronavirus. (Experts now say COVID-19 can cause nausea and diarrhea in some patients.) It wasnt until the eighth day of feeling nauseous, feverish and achy that Lucidonio began to develop a slight cough. It was just once an hour or so, but that marked the start of a downhill slide for Lucidonio. Just two days later, he developed shortness of breath severe enough to send him to the emergency room of Jefferson Washington Township Hospital in his Gloucester County hometown. Lucidonio has no other health conditions, and was healthy up until his coronavirus diagnosis, he says. When his wife, Michelle Lucidonio, dropped him off at the hospital, he was so out of breath he wasnt even able to say his own name. It took less than an hour for doctors to decide his lungs were bad enough and oxygen levels low enough that he needed to be intubated. But first, he needed to call his wife. Lucidonio says he remembers telling the doctors, I cant go in a coma and not tell her, shell kill me!" CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Michelle Lucidonio reacted like a rock star, Lucidonio said. She said, Youre gonna be fine, its not a big deal, but unbeknownst to me, when we hung up she collapsed on the dining room floor, Lucidonio said. The timing of his admittance was eerie, he says. Lucidonio was admitted to the hospital exactly three years and four days after his brother Tony Lucidonio, III. died. And he was the same age. That made it more surreal and scary. I thought, Is this just the clock the universe has for me, same as my brother? Lucidonio said. I remember looking up at the doctor crying like, I dont want to die, and he was like, Dont worry about, I got you." Michael Lucidonio, center, survived the coronavirus. He is pictured with his brothers, Joey, left, and Tony Jr., right. Tony Luke said he was painfully aware of the timing too, having just visited his eldest sons grave days earlier. Compounding the pain, Luke was unable to support his daughter-in-law and granddaughter as his son fought for his life in the hospital because they had been placed in quarantine. All I did from the time he went in (to the hospital) to the time that he came home, all I did 24/7 was pray and say the rosary, Luke said. But Michael Lucidonios clock would not run out that day, same as his brothers. He spent about two and a half days on a ventilator, as doctors and nurses at Jefferson Washington Township Hospital worked around the clock to save his life. He doesnt remember anything during the 60 hours he spent in a coma. Nurses said at one point he started to wake up and reached for his phone to text his wife, but he doesnt remember that. (The nurse sent the text for him, he says.) When he called me (after waking up from the coma), I remember hanging up the phone and I got on my knees and cried and cried, happy tears, Luke says. After another five days in the hospital off the ventilators, Lucidonio was finally able to come home on April 7. That wouldnt be the end of his recovery: Lucidonio was required to isolate from his wife and 14-year-old daughter for another five days. He was finally free to break isolation on Easter Sunday. The first thing he did was make himself breakfast, and throw his sheets in the wash. Then, he says, he took a nap. Lucidonio has already started supporting other people battling COVID-19, after a Facebook post detailing his experience gained attention. He says hes spoken to about five people, looking to give them hope and a first-hand perspective on surviving the virus. Michael Lucidonio pictured with his wife, Michelle, and daughter, Gianna. Despite a recovery that Luke calls miraculous, Lucidonio is still not fully symptom-free. When Lucidonio spoke to NJ Advance Media on Sunday afternoon, he said he was feeling pretty good, but still had some soreness in his throat, weakness and fatigue. He can do about 30 minutes of everyday activities, like checking the mail or switching the laundry, before he needs to take a break. Its frustrating, but I keep reminding myself three weeks ago I almost died, Lucidonio said. Im appreciative of still being above ground. He credits acting quickly and getting to the hospital as soon as his shortness of breath became bad with saving his life. If I showed up even a few days later I would have died, he said, cautioning others that the disease can go from manageable to an emergency in the blink of an eye. When it decides it wants to kick it into the next gear, it does it very, very quickly, he said. Surviving the coronavirus has been a family affair, Lucidonio said. Both Lucidonio and Luke say younger son Joey Lucidonio was instrumental in helping them navigate having a family member inches from death and not being able to visit. Joey was an absolute rock star, Lucidonio said, while Luke referred to him as the calming factor. A nursing student, Joey Lucidonio helped Luke and Michelle Lucidonio understand the doctors updates, and guide the family in what questions to ask next. Friends and family dropped off groceries and cleaning supplies almost daily, Lucidonio says, supporting his wife and daughter while he was sick. Hundreds of people came together for daily Zoom prayer sessions, Luke says, and well-wishes were almost never-ending. To me, just to be able to see how much love there was, was a blessing in itself, Luke says. The first thing Lucidonio plans on doing when he is fully recovered is to hug all the people who helped him pull through. He knows that support, paired with quickly receiving medical help and the care from doctors and nurses at Jefferson Washington Township Hospital, was key in beating the coronavirus, calling it a perfect storm for a recovery. It was a dream scenario for the worst possible thing thats happened to me so far, Lucidonio says. 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. Katie Kausch may be reached at kkausch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieKausch. 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. A woman photojournalist working in Kashmir was on Monday booked for allegedly posting anti-national content on social media with the intention to incite the youth and promote offences against tranquillity, police said. The development comes close on the heels of police summoning senior journalist Peerzada Ashiq, working for a national daily, over a story he had filed recently. A case has been registered against Masrat Zahra for uploading anti-national posts with criminal intention to induce the youth and promote offences against tranquillity, a police official said. The police officials, however, refused to comment any further on the FIR registered against the photojournalist or the summoning of senior journalist Peerzada Ashiq. Ashiq was summoned by the police on Sunday in two different districts of Kashmir within a span of six hours to explain his position regarding one of his reports. The press bodies and other journalists, however, took to social media to lodge their protest against the action. "Masarat Zehra, a professional photojournalist has honestly told stories of Kashmir in 4-year career. Invoking UAPA (unlawful activities prevention act) is outrageous. In solidarity with our colleague, we demand FIR (be) withdrawn. Journalism is not crime. Intimidation/censorship won't silence Kashmir's journalists," Moazum Mohammad, vice president of Kashmir Press Club, said in a tweet. The press club, in a statement, also asked Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor G C Murmu to issue directions for putting an end to harassment of journalists in the Union Territory. It said there have been instances wherein scribes were harassed for travelling to report stories. "The Jammu and Kashmir government, especially the police, needs to understand that there is a vast difference between journalism and cyber crime," the press club said in reference to the Cyber police station summoning both the journalists. While Ashiq was summoned on Sunday before being directed to appear before police in Anantnag district in late evening hours, Zahra was summoned to the Cyber police station on Saturday. Meanwhile, the Twitterati and journalists in Kashmir started the hashtag #IStandWithMasratZahra in support of the woman journalist. PDP president Mehbooba Mufti'a daughter Iltija Mufti said intimidating and harassing journalists in Jammu and Kashmir to stifle reportage has become the norm. "Masarat Zahra, a photojournalist was booked under draconian UAPA for allegedly 'uploading anti national posts'. In J&K using VPNs or social media is now seen as a threat to public order," Iltija tweeted from her mother's handle. In another tweet, she said, "Predominantly media in the country is largely pliable. The ones that have any credibility left are hounded & punished. It's worse for journalists from J&K who report at the cost of their lives. TOI reporter Samiya Latief was bullied & trolled on twitter." The action against the two journalists comes amidst a crackdown by police, including its cyber wing, on internet users peddling fake or uploading anti-national content on the virtual platform. According to police sources, at least five persons, including a policeman, have been arrested over the past one month for posting anti-national or inflammatory content on social media and circulating fake (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Canberra, April 20 : More than 170 economists on Monday asked the Australian government to maintain the social restriction measures imposed to stop the spread of COVID-19 despite the effects it has on the local economy. Health authorities have so far confirmed more than 6,600 infections of COVID-19, with 71 deaths, although new infections have dropped to below 50 a day for a week, reports Efe news. The economists said in their letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, dated Sunday and published on Monday, that it was not possible to make the economy work unless the public health crisis was first addressed, adding that the measures imposed have placed Australia in an enviable position in comparison to other countries. Economists at the country's top universities believe social distancing measures should be maintained until infections are low, testing capacity is expanded, and technology is available to track the contacts of those infected. The economists said in their letter that a second wave of outbreaks would be extremely damaging to the economy, in addition to the unnecessary loss of life. The letter was written after Morrison said that the restrictions imposed by the pandemic would last for four weeks, while the economic ones will continue for half a year, without ruling out that measures of social distance between people could last for a year. Morrison also announced last week that his government is working on an exit plan for the economic crisis following the pandemic. In total, the Australian government has set aside A$320 billion ($203 billion) in plans to support the economy. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Of nearly 65,000 people tested for the virus in the state more than 11,000 have tested positive. About 89% of Indianas deaths have been among people ages 60 and older, but demographic information on the agencys website shows that at least one person in their 20s has died with a coronavirus infection. We cannot wait longer now: SC to hear Vijay Mallyas contempt case in January for final disposal Vijay Mallyas appeal against extradition to India rejected by UK High Court India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: Former liquor baron, Vijay Mallya has lost his High Court appeal against his extradition order to India. Mallya had appeared to the High Court against his extradition to India at a hearing in February this year. Mallya is wanted in India on alleged fraud and money laundering charges. He had challenged his extradition from the UK to India in the High Court. His appeal was heard by Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing. The two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the case rejected the appeal. The verdict was handed down remotely due to the current coronavirus situation. The "court ruled, "we consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India." India and Afghanistan have fought the scourge of terrorism together and will similarly take on COVID-19 with solidarity and shared resolve, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday. Responding to a tweet by Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani thanking India for the supply of wheat and medicines, Modi said New Delhi and Kabul share a special friendship based on ties of history, geography, and culture. "For long, we have fought jointly against the scourge of terrorism," Modi tweeted. "We will similarly combat COVID-19 together, with solidarity and shared resolve," he said. In his Twitter post, Ghani said, "Thank you my friend Prime Minister @narendramodi , and thank you India for providing 500K (5 lakh) tablets of hydroxychloroquine, 100K (10 lakh) tablets of paracetamol, and 75,000 metric tons of wheat that the first consignment of it (5,000) will reach AFG (Afghanistan) in a day or so, for the Afghan people. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 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. One more person tested positive for COVID-19 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Monday, taking the total number of coronavirus cases to 16, officials said. The new patient is a colleague of a government employee, a resident of the Bambooflat area in South Andaman, who tested positive for the infection last week, said Avijit Roy, the nodal officer of the disease here. The total number of active cases in the Union Territory is five at present with reporting of the new case, he added. Three family members of the 49-year-old government employee, including his wife, tested positive over the past two days. They are all undergoing treatment at the GB Pant Hospital here. South Andaman has been declared a clustural hotspot zone, officials said. The other eleven persons have already recovered. Ten of them are linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, while the other patient travelled with them in the same flight from Kolkata to Port Blair. Meanwhile, state-run BSNL is set to operationalise high- speed internet service in Port Blair to help students, who are attending online sessions of their course work, besides aiding the public amid the lockdown, officials said. Nicobar district Deputy Commissioner Monika Priyadarshini said the local tribes are making 10,000 masks to aid the fight against the virus. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Editor's note: Kent Sepkowitz is a CNN medical analyst and a physician and infection control expert at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion at CNN. (CNN) As the relentless rise of Covid-19 cases and deaths continues unabated, treatment options have begun to occupy center stage. The politically charged rush to hydroxychloroquine initially clouded people's judgment, but the current data is not confusing. The benefit, if any, may be quite modest, and the risk of toxicity is still real. A second drug, remdesivir, has made a splash and raised hopes, though in the new drug arena, early enthusiasm is common while actual advance is not. I am one of many specialists who consider one dose of convalescent plasma as the most promising treatment right now. The way it works might seem like a corny World War II movie designed to stir the guys and gals back home: Recovered Covid patients make their way to a medical station and donate their plasma (and its protective antibodies) to help a sick patient. The reports thus far are promising, yet lack control arms and adequate numbers to celebrate. Strangest and most miraculous of all, convalescent plasma treatment is cheap no drug company, villainous hedge-fund mover and shaker or insurance company is getting a cut. Rather, plasma uses altruistic donors, an existing network of blood banks and routine hospital processes for collection and delivery. For now. But before following the non-money, a quick primer on medical terms. Blood is about half cells (reds, whites and platelets) and half fluid; the latter is called plasma and includes various proteins and other useful molecules. Among plasma proteins is the target of interest: antibody. This might also be referred to as immunoglobulin, gamma-globulin, or IVIG. To get the antibodies out of the donor's blood, whole blood is drawn at a blood bank (free-standing or in-hospital) and separated into parts. The red blood cells are then infused back into the donor to avoid the anemia that can occur after regular blood donation. Once the antibodies from the previously infected donor are collected, the product enters the usual process for administering this sort of treatment. Hospitals and clinics administer antibodies (immunoglobulins) routinely for an array of non-Covid-19 conditions. A pharmacist reviews and approves, then a nurse connects the ill patient to an IV and the treatment, full of antibodies against Covid-19, begins to drip in. The current plasma treatment approach is perhaps the only example of vertical integration in healthcare. So, what's the cost of the program? The blood bank staff, the pharmacy staff, and the nurses are part of the fixed cost of healthcare, so there is no incremental cost. Dr. Louis Katz, former Chief Medical Officer of America's Blood Centers and now Chief Medical Office of the Mississippi Regional Blood Center in Davenport, Iowa, where he grew up, has said that under normal circumstances, the cost of a unit of plasma is about $60. But this is not a normal circumstance. The hubbub to assure speed, safety and high titers against a pressing deadline has upped the ante. "Blood bankers are currently working with the Feds to model cost and I am guessing it will end up in the range of $800 or less [per treatment]," Katz explained, "not counting the zillion hours spent by blood banks and hospitals building a new process in the middle of chaos." In other words, the one-time treatment, as currently configured, costs a fraction of one night in an American ICU, which can cost about $6,000. But don't celebrate yet. There may be a shift away from this Mom-and-Pop, let's-all-help-each-other approach. It is possible that an alternative approach is gathering strength in the distance. Meet the plasma fractionation companies, a series of multinationals in the business of collecting, processing, and distributing plasma products for decades. Specific antibodies have been given for diseases like hepatitis B or for rabies prevention, as well as rare conditions such as infants with certain blood mismatches. This business is not small potatoes. According to an analysis from biomed trade publication Medgadget, "the global plasma fractionation market size was worth $ 24.1 billion in 2018 and is expected to gain a compound annual growth rate of 7.1% during the forecast period (2019-2026)." As ever, healthcare for profit has some pluses (efficiency, research and development) and many minuses (cost, cost, and cost, as well as the unsettling notion of "growing markets" of certain diseases). Perhaps if the plasma fractionators enter this field, they will be altruistic and provide the convalescent plasma pro bono. Perhaps. Ditto their fleet of paid donors who give blood to earn money (and perhaps to help the world as well). But the chilling story of the 1990s epidemic of HIV in China shadows this endeavor. A different time and a different place and a very different regulatory climate, but a tragedy of historic proportions. About 25 years ago, blood collecting services appeared in small towns and villages in Henan province, in China's interior. Their offer was irresistible. During the near-starvation days of winter, the company would pay a farmer or his wife for their plasma. After blood collections, they would pool the donations from the entire village, siphon off the plasma then return a portion of the pooled red blood cells to each donor so that they could be strong enough to donate again in a week or two. The problem is that no HIV (or hepatitis) screening was done, so the infection of one person in the town spread to all other donors, their spouses and, for those pregnant, their babies. In addition, products sold to hospitals were transfused into patients where virus spread further. At least 100,000 people -- and perhaps as high as 500,000 -- in China contracted HIV in this manner. Furthermore, the two physician whistleblowers, Dr. Gao Yaojie and Dr. Shuping Wang, were reportedly intimidated and marginalized so extensively that each left the country. Since then collecting and administering blood has become decidedly safer in China, as plasma collection sites were shut down and then reopened with routine HIV testing. A disaster of this magnitude is extremely unlikely to recur during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the combination of desperation and a company willing to cut corners should give pause to any country considering this treatment approach. And it bears pointing out that similar stories, though smaller in scale, continue both in China and Pakistan. The latter is particularly pertinent as HIV was spread to 900 children not by contaminated product, but rather contaminated needles a key piece of the patient-to-patient convalescent plasma program. The shift from our current local donor to local patient approach likely will be conducted safely, and the cost may not become an issue. But a change to the for-profit model would remove a crucial element: satisfaction, the remarkable feeling of one person helping the next. And it is exactly this feeling that is required to get the world past the ongoing threat of the pandemic, be it as a commitment to social distancing, assurance of adequate food and lodging for all, or, if necessary, volunteer donation of potentially life-saving plasma. This story was first published on CNN.com 'Plasma may be the best option in the fight against Covid-19, but don't celebrate just yet' Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, April 20 : Upset with Kerala government's decision to allow relaxation in lockdown rules, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed the state to fix its guidelines in line with the one issued by the Centre without any dilution. Expressing ire of the Centre in a letter to Kerala Chief Secretary Tom Jose, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla instructed him to ensure strict compliance of the Centre's lockdown measures issued in fresh consolidated guidelines issued on April 15-16 after the nationwide restriction was extended till May 3. Referring to Kerala government's April 17 guidelines, Bhalla said the state revised the lockdown norms and circulated it to all departments, District Collectors, Superintendent of Police and other heads of departments of the state allowing them to open activities which are prohibited in MHA's guidelines. In the letter served to Kerala on Sunday night, Bhalla mentioned that the additional activities allowed by the Kerala government amounts to "dilution" and "violation" of MHA's April 15 guidelines issued under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. "I would urge you to rectify the guidelines of the government of Kerala in line with the consolidated revised guideline dated April 15 and April 16 without any dilution and to ensure strict compliance of lockdown measures," the letter mentions. The additional activities allowed by Kerala government includes opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, bookstores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in the cities and towns for shorter distance (upto 60 km), two passengers in back seat of four wheeler, pillion riding on scooters. The Home Secretary mentioned that violation of Centre's lockdown measures posed a serious health hazard to the public and risk for spread of novel coronavirus pandemic. Citing Supreme Court's order dated March 31, 2020, Bhalla also reminded the Kerala government that the apex court had observed that "we trust and expect that all concerned viz state governments, public authorities and citizens of this country will faithfully comply with the directive and orders issued by the Union of India in letter and spirit in the interest of public safety". "The observations, must be treated as directions of the apex court, were conveyed in my DO letter dated April 1 to all state and UT governments." Bhalla also mentioned that these guidelines shall not be diluted by the states and UTs in any manner and shall strictly enforce and impose as per requirement of the local areas. The Home Ministry issued fresh consolidated guidelines a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 announced extension of lockdown for another 19 days. The fresh consolidated guidelines were issued by the Home Ministry to fulfill the purpose of lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 disease which so far killed 543 people in India. Incidentally after the letter was received by Kerala government, the state Chief Secretary subsequently announced relaxation will be permitted in 88 hotspots. However, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is holding a meeting on Monday to discuss this issue and the reply to Bhalla's letter would be given. But maintaining a position that there will be no violation in guidelines, State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said perhaps there was some misunderstanding and the state will abide by the central guidelines, and issues if any, would be resolved. The state government based on the Covid-19 spread had divided the Idukki and Kottayam districts -- classified as Green Zone -- to witness routine life, subject to the Centre's directives.The Orange B zone includes Alappuzha, Thiruvananthapuram, Palakkad, Thrissur and Wayanad where also normal activities will be allowed. In both these zones, shops, hotels, offices will open, but with no crowding at all. Participation in marriages and funerals would be restricted to not more than 20 persons. Inter-district passage would not be allowed in both these zones. For vehicular movement, the government has decided to implement the 'odd and even' formula, but vehicles driven by women have been exempted.In the case of Pathanamthitta, Ernakulam and Kollam districts -- classified under Orange A zone -- restrictions would be in force, as of now, till April 23. The districts like Kasargod, Kannur, Malappuram and Kozhikode in the Red category would continue with the lockdown. -- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed Prominent Liberal MP Andrew Hastie is calling for a "push back" against the activities of China in Australia as the coronavirus pandemic exposes the costs of "relying too heavily on an authoritarian regime" for our prosperity and economic security. Mr Hastie, who is the chairman of Parliament's intelligence and security committee, posted a petition on his website calling for people to "take action on Australian sovereignty". WA Liberal MP Andrew Hastie says Australia faces deep uncertainty as the CCP's influence grows. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen "Although few will admit it, the Chinese Communist Party seeks to reshape the global order and Australia's position in it through foreign interference, ownership of strategic assets and influence operations," he wrote. "Australian institutions, universities, and assets are now contested; our sovereignty and independence will be diminished if we dont continue to push back." Capt. Audrey Atwell is an active-duty Army Engineer Officer and a masters degree student in the Eisenhower Leadership Development Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Capt. Kyle Atwell is an active-duty Army Officer and a Ph.D. student in Public Affairs at Princeton University. Capt. Nadege Benoit is an active-duty Army Adjutant General Officer and a masters degree student in the Eisenhower Leadership Development Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Capt. Julia Means is an active-duty Army Military Police Officer and a masters degree student in the Eisenhower Leadership Development Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. The Army just announced its next generation of battalion commanders, and the number of women selected is concerning. A snapshot of Operations Division branches (formally known as combat arms) highlights the disparity: 1/31 Engineer, 3/42 Aviation, 2/15 Military Police, 2/5 Chemical, and 0/11 Air Defense Artillery. Altogether, women represent 8% of the selected population in these five branches, a drop from 15% two years ago. Battalion command is a pivotal milestone in an Army officers career, and an important step on the path to becoming a general officer. Why were so few women selected this year? Is this year an exception, or part of a broader trend? Most importantly, what signal do these numbers send about the chances of career advancement to junior female officers? The Army has made a lot of positive changes to its talent management systems over the past two decades. It is an exciting time to serve in the organization we love. In 2003, Heidi Brown became the first woman to command a brigade into combat. In 2013, the military lifted a ban previously preventing females from serving in combat roles, although women had already been serving in combat for years in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2015, women were allowed to attend Ranger School for the first time, a key discriminator in operations branches. Perhaps most significantly, in 2016 women began to integrate into combat arms units such as the Infantry and Combat Engineers where they were previously not allowed to serve. While there are several plausible explanations for the data were seeing, which we will discuss in detail below, all point to a need for the Army to communicate why so few women were selected this year. The Army has clearly decided to provide equal opportunities for women to serve, and many have pursued those opportunities. Nonetheless, the low number of women selected for battalion command may lead to the perception that a womans prospects for career advancement into senior leadership remain uneven. If unaddressed, some promising young officers may choose to get out early. We have a personal stake in learning why so few women were selected. Three of us are female Army officers (Audrey, Julia, and Nadege) who will be eligible to compete for Battalion Command in the next five years. Two of us (Audrey and Kyle) are married and raising a teenage daughter whose goal is to attend the United States Military Academy and become an Army officer. We believe women from across the Army will initially view these numbers with concern and will want an explanation. In fact, there are multiple potential explanations for why so few women were selected; some of which would indicate the system is biased against them, while others would suggest a more promising outlook for those who choose to stay in. The variance in these explanations and their implications for women currently serving make it a critical talent management initiative to not only understand why so few women were selected this year, but also to communicate that reason to junior officers. One explanation may be that many women get out long before being considered for battalion command, which does not occur until about the 15th year of service. Women may be more inclined to get out early for family reasons. Also, it is not hard to imagine some ambitious women, seeing few successful females ahead of them, choose to pursue promising opportunities outside of the military. If this is the case, it could feed a pernicious cycle where women get out because they see few women above them selected for command meaning fewer competitive women are available for future looks at those same positions. A second potential explanation is that talented women stayed in, but did not have the same qualifications as their male counterparts. The cohort of women who competed this year would not have been able to attend Ranger School or command the combat units that are often reserved for the most promising young leaders; they were junior officers before these opportunities were open to women. In this scenario, the women who competed did not have the same opportunities as their male counterparts, even when they were as talented. If this is the case there is a silver lining: over the next five to ten years, we should see women competing for battalion command who had equal opportunities to build their credentials thanks to the recent policy changes discussed above. Promising junior female officers should keep optimistic that their prospects have improved, but it may take years for that to translate to a strong cohort of senior female leaders rising. But how can the Army ensure its junior officers know this is the case? What can the Army do to prevent the cycle of female talent drain that is likely if women lose faith that they have an equal shot at success? It may take a deliberate communication effort to convince a promising young woman that, even though she sees few examples of success before her, things might change in her time. A third explanation may lie in the battalion commander selection process itself. This year, the Army completely revamped its promotion process through the new Battalion Commander Assessment Program (BCAP). This was the first cohort that underwent the new selection process. We are optimistic about the BCAP, which provides a more holistic consideration of who is chosen to command battalions compared to the previous system. However, there is a possibility that the novel BCAP itself explains the low female numbers and the decline in females from previous years if it either directly or inadvertently discriminates against women. There are multiple steps in the BCAP where bias may have influenced a candidates ranking. Where in previous years battalion commanders were selected through a review of their digital file, the BCAP adds to this an additional four days of in-person assessments at Fort Benning, Georgia. Over these four days, candidates go through a series of physical and non-physical assessments, subordinate and peer feedback is reviewed, and they attend a blind panel interview. The assessments are scored and an order-of-merit list by branch is produced. How were biases controlled for at each of these gates? Our initial research suggests the BCAP deliberately sought to mitigate gender (and other) biases throughout the process; the pertinent question is whether these efforts were successful. We do not have enough data to determine why so few women were selected this year for the critical career milestone of battalion command. Our initial impression is that the first two explanations are likely correct: this years cohort of females were junior officers before equal opportunity for career advancement existed. This may have resulted in fewer females choosing to stay in over the past 15 years, and those who stayed in having fewer opportunities to become competitive for command. However, we cannot discount that there may have been bias in the selection process as well. We believe further research will be beneficial for Army talent management. Each possible explanation implies its own policy solutions to ensure the Army retains the broadest pool of talent to compete for command and senior leadership positions. We also suspect that without a deliberate communications effort from the Army, some talented junior female officers who see the low number of female Battalion Commanders selected this year might lose faith that they will have an equal opportunity to command, and may choose to get out early. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not reflect the position of the Department of the Army or the Department of Defense. -- The opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Military.com. If you would like to submit your own commentary, please send your article to opinions@military.com for consideration. BEER-SHEVA, Israel...April 20, 2020 - A team of Israeli researchers is using AI to develop an algorithm-based test that can speed COVID-19 testing eightfold and help locate asymptomatic carriers, funded by a grant from the Ben-Gurion University Covid-19 Effort. The research team, which is using a laboratory robot to conduct the tests includes Prof. Angel Porgador and Dr. Tomer Hertz from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's (BGU) Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics and the National Institute of Biotechnology; Prof. Yonat Shemer-Avni, head of Soroka University Medical Center's Virology Lab, and Dr. Noam Shental from the Open University's Department of Computer Science. Click here to see the lab robot conduct testing. Prof. Porgador, who is also the BGU deputy vice president of R&D for BGU says, "The initial results are very promising, and we are validating the method. Experience shows us that the way to slow down the spread of the pandemic is to increase the number of tests and break the chain of infection. Our method should enable a widespread operation in the near future to detect the virus in the general population, which is not quarantined, but which could threaten the public more than the patients currently under observation." According to Dr. Hertz, "In light of the mounting evidence of the importance of asymptomatic carriers in spreading COVID-19, it is critical to locate these carriers as quickly as possible, to isolate them and thus slow the infection rate in high-risk groups. We believe that our method will help do so by dramatically speeding up testing." They determined that the key is to divide the samples into different pools. "The planning and constructing of the pools and the way we mix the individual samples enables us to identify and follow up with those found positive for COVID-19 after far fewer tests than the norm," explains Dr. Shental. "The next stage of the experiment is to test the medical services personnel at Soroka hospital in conjunction with the Infectious Disease Unit headed by Dr. Lior Nesher." "The sooner we can located asymptomatic carriers, the sooner we can return to a more normal life, so this innovation holds promising potential," says Doug Seserman, chief executive officer of the New York City-based American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. "We have a number of tests in development as a result of the fast mobilization of our researchers to address the pandemic." The new test is just one of more than 50 initiatives underway as part of the BGU COVID-19 Response Effort. These each require financial support, and AABGU has announced its commitment to raise emergency funds, enabling BGU to participate fully in the world's efforts at mitigation and containment. Contributions can be made online at http://www.aabgu.org/donate-covid-19 ### American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) plays a vital role in sustaining David Ben-Gurion's vision: creating a world-class institution of education and research in the Israeli desert, nurturing the Negev community and sharing the University's expertise locally and around the globe. As Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) turns 50 this year, AABGU imagines a future that goes beyond the walls of academia. It is a future where BGU invents a new world and inspires a vision for a stronger Israel and its next generation of leaders. Together with supporters, AABGU will help the University foster excellence in teaching, research and outreach to the communities of the Negev for the next 50 years and beyond. Visit vision.aabgu.org to learn more. AABGU, headquartered in Manhattan, has nine regional offices throughout the United States. For more information visit http://www.aabgu.org. The Albuquerque Public Schools Hall of Honor, now an annual recognition, has inducted Helen Fox and Ruthie Owens. The APS Education Foundation again received a new record number of nominations. Nominees must have served the district for at least 15 years and shown a deep and lasting district-wide impact. A volunteer APS Hall of Honor Selection Committee made up of current and retired APS employees thoroughly reviewed all nominations and letters of recommendation before arriving at their decision for the 2020 induction. Their plaques will be displayed in the APS Hall of Honor located on the first floor of the APS administration building (Bruce and Alice King Educational Complex), located on 6400 Uptown Blvd NE. The APS Education Foundation is proud to announce this years inductees. Helen Fox began as a Resource Teacher in the Special Education Department. In 1994, she was tasked to lead the Homeless and Migrant Program in order to administer a small grant aimed at identifying homeless children in Albuquerque and providing support so they could enroll in school. At the time, the belief was that Ms. Fox and just one other employee would serve approximately 100 children. They quickly found the need was much greater. Today, the Title I Homeless Project serves between 3,500 and 4,000 students and their families identified as homeless each and every year. The staff of two has grown to a staff of nearly 20. The expansion of services did not happen overnight, but it took the determination and fierce leadership of Ms. Fox to locate homeless youth and provide critical resources so they could attend school and create brighter futures. As she began her search for students needing a classroom, Ms. Fox drove up and down Central Avenue, visiting motels and offering transportation. She championed a preschool called Alphabet Alley and took our citys youngest and most underserved learners to an environment in which they could thrive and prepare for kindergarten. She worked with the Central United Methodist Church to engage volunteers in donating and assembling snack packs for students who would not have food to eat when not at school. She created strong partnerships that proved as catalysts to reaching more families needing help in enrollment and ensuring their students had transportation to school once enrolled. There are schools proud to claim Ruthie Owens, including Washington Middle School, Kit Carson Elementary School, Duranes Elementary School and Lyndon B. Johnson Middle School. She started in 1969 as an education assistant and retired in 1995 as a principal. Her 34-year career in education not only provided hard won professional achievements for Ms. Owens, but for countless educators she mentored and counseled. Her direct impact on students is immeasurable, as she knew early on the important role both the school and outside community play in pushing for success in academics and in life. She brought together several stakeholders to support each student. Even when students had moved on to higher grade levels, higher education and careers, she never stopped encouraging them. For her staff and faculty, Ms. Owens never stopped pushing for excellence, encouraging her staff to learn through professional development opportunities to better their practice. She was relentless in advocating for career advancements for teachers with the potential to lead, mentor and guide others in the field. Ms. Owens was also a great leader and mentor of leaders because of her deep understanding of the importance of ensuring that all students had the opportunity to learn in more than one language of many different cultures, including their own. Her leadership style is exemplified in her legacy leading the way for single track year-round schools in New Mexico. Both Helen Fox and Ruthie Owens continue to serve as examples to all those working in Albuquerque Public Schools. They are both described as fearless, never wary of learning and embracing truths. Their unrelenting dedication meant they were unafraid to champion innovative approaches to better the lives of the students they served. April is set to be the warmest on record, but the government is reminding people to stay at home and not venture out to beauty spots. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) England is set to see the warmest April since records began, and the driest. Met Office forecasters have told Yahoo News UK that apart from a few isolated showers on Tuesday, the current dry spell is expected to last until the end of the month. With people being asked to stay at home to maintain social distancing measures due to the coronavirus pandemic, experts are predicting the UK will be warmer than islands like Crete (15C) and Ibiza (20C) on Thursday, with highs of 24C. Forecasters also believe this month's overall average will beat the 10.7C (51.3F) seen in 2011, becoming the warmest April in England since records began in 1659. Sunseekers are being warned they must stay at home until movement restrictions are relaxed. (Jo Hale/Getty Images) Meteorologist Bonnie Diamond from the Met Office told Yahoo News UK: We still have ten days left of the month but already rainfall is just 17% of the average rainfall for April, so with no rain forecase we could be looking at just one fifth of a usual April. The current average temperature for this month is 13.9C which is 2.4 degrees higher than expected for April, so with the next five days expected to be particularly warm we expect to see this rise higher. The warm weather follows the record-breaking Easter weekend temperature of 26C thought to be Britain's hottest Easter for 70 years. Two years ago on 19 April, 2018, temperatures rose to 29C in London, making it the warmest April day for nearly 70 years. But this years predicted record is based on the average temperature throughout the month. Read more from Yahoo News UK: Coronavirus: Vaccines 'are long shots', warns chief scientific adviser Downing Street Twitter account's picture sparks amusement over mystery 'third arm' Medical advisers 'lying to support government with collapsing credibility', says Lancet editor Diamond added: The warmest days this week will be Thursday and Friday with temperatures up to around 24C on both days, but there will be plenty of warm weather before then. "We expect it to be clear, sunny and increasingly warm for most by day, and clear but chilly by night. Story continues The Met Office website warns of occasional isolated thunderstorms, and warns of more unsettled weather at May begins. ---Watch the latest videos from Yahoo UK--- The first investors in the platforms inaugural fund are Finlands Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Clean Technology Fund, the Nordic Development Fund, and the Republic of Koreas Ministry of Economy and Finance. Source: Internet ADB Ventures was established in January this year to support and invest in technology-driven businesses with significant potential to scale and deliver impact, while helping ADBs developing member countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Its inaugural ADB Ventures Investment Fund 1 has a 17-year fund life and supports early-stage and growth-stage cleantech, agricultural technology, fintech, and health technology businesses. Its focus will be on companies with solutions that can address climate change and empower women. Finlands Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari said: ADB Ventures underlines Finlands longstanding support for clean technology investments in emerging markets. It provides a new mechanism to leverage best-in-class clean technologies, including many from the Nordics, for climate and gender impact. Nordic Development Fund Manager Aleksi Lumijarvi said: Nordic Development Fund is pleased to expand our Asian Development Bank partnership to private sector operations. We have supported this innovative facility from the early concept design phase because we believe it will unlock exciting new avenues for progress on climate, gender, and the Sustainable Development Goals. Director General Il Young Park from the Development Finance Bureau of the Republic of Koreas Ministry of Economy and Finance said: The Government of the Republic of Korea has developed a virtuous cycle of venture ecosystems as the core axis of innovative growth. I hope that the launch of ADB Ventures will also lead the region to achieve innovative and sustainable growth by enhancing partnerships with innovative players in the Republic of Korea. ADB Director General for Private Sector Operations Mike Barrow said: These commitments by some of the worlds most forward-thinking development donors will be catalytic in achieving ADBs vision to convene one of the regions largest impact venture platforms. As the world battles the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe that our patient-capital venture fund will be a timely shot in the arm for early-stage impact investment in Asia and the Pacific./. John Vorster Square in central Johannesburg is a building as cold and formidable as the man it was named after: South Africas prime minister from 1966 to 1978. Created as a detention centre for mainly political prisoners, the forbidding grey-and-blue, 10-storey cement building, now known as the Johannesburg Central Police Station, was described in 1971 as the last word in security by the liberal South African newspaper, the Rand Daily Mail. In his book, Timol: A Quest for Justice, Imtiaz Cajee, nephew of anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Timol, wrote of the paranoia of its turnstiles clamping together like metal teeth. To Cajee, whose uncle died at John Vorster Square, it was the ultimate symbol of the bureaucratisation of fear and horror under apartheid. Former Minister of Health and of Public Enterprises Barbara Hogan, who as the first South African woman to be found guilty of high treason was detained there, described it as an iconic institution that symbolised the reign of the mad forces. The ninth and 10th floors of the building were where the headquarters of the Security Branch was located. They could be accessed by two special lifts that ran straight from the basement to the headquarters. The Security Branch offices contained special soundproof rooms. Direct-line telephones were connected to the Security Branch headquarters in the capital, Pretoria. The detainee cells were on the lower floors. The Johannesburg Central Police Station, formerly known as John Vorster Square, was the site of the death of political activist and detainee Ahmed Timol [GULSHAN KHAN/AFP] Detention without trial John Vorster Square was one of the architectural symbols of apartheid. But the real pillars of apartheid were the draconian security legislation passed to segregate and intimidate. One of the most chilling laws passed during Vorsters leadership was the Terrorism Act of 1967 which allowed the police to detain indefinitely and in solitary confinement anyone suspected of terrorism defined as anyone who might endanger the maintenance of law and order or having information about terrorism. No court could intervene, and no one had access to the detainees. According to George Bizos, a celebrated human rights lawyer who represented many families of apartheid-era detainees, John Vorsters name became associated with detention without trial. The name John Vorster inspired fears among detainees, said Bizos. One of the most common methods of torture used in John Vorster Square was standing torture, during which detainees were prevented from sleeping or sitting down for many hours on end. At least 73 political activists are thought to have died in South African police detention between 1963 and 1990 eight of them during or as a result of their detention at John Vorster Square. In spite of the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) between 1996 and 1999, most of these cases remained shrouded in secrecy. That was until inquests into the deaths began to be reopened in 2017, in large part thanks to the tireless efforts of Imtiaz Cajee. Imtiaz has been waging a long campaign for truth and justice, said Howard Varney, lawyer for the Timol family. The first inquest to be reopened was that of Ahmed Timol, the first activist who died at John Vorster Square. Ahmed Timol Born in 1941, Ahmed Timol, who was of Indian heritage, was a teacher at Roodepoort Indian High School and a political activist. He was also an underground member of the then-banned South African Communist Party (SACP) and Umkhonto weSizwe, the military wing of the African National Congress (ANC). Soft-spoken and engaging, Timol interrupted his teaching career in 1967 to travel abroad. He spent two years in London with fellow South African exiles, before going to the Soviet Union in 1969 to undergo training in Marxist-Leninist ideology at the International Lenin School. He followed that with four weeks of training in London before returning to South Africa in 1970. According to Timols friend and fellow activist, retired academic Salim Essop, Timols visit to the Soviet Union was the highlight of his life. Essop remembers his friend as being highly committed to the liberation cause and disciplined. Upon returning to South Africa, he set up underground cells of the SACP and, together with Essop, distributed leaflets about the ANCs activities. On the night of October 22, 1971, Timol and Essop were arrested at a roadblock in Johannesburg. Banned literature was found in the back of their car. Both were taken to John Vorster Square. To the 10th floor. A few days later, Timol was dead. Part of the cover-up The police claimed that Timol had committed suicide. In 1971, an official inquest into his death concluded the same. The inquests held during apartheid were part of the cover-up, explained Yasmin Sooka, the director of the NGO Foundation for Human Rights and one of the former TRC commissioners. The magistrates at the time would usually find a suicide. Police officers would later joke that Indians cant fly. On October 30, 1971, the Saturday Star newspaper reported from Timols funeral at Roodepoort Muslim cemetery: Impatient motorists leaned on their hooters as a seemingly endless stream of white-capped Indians held up traffic for more than a dozen blocks at a time in Roodepoort. Schoolgirls pressing handkerchiefs to their faces, T-shirted whites engaging in serious talk with immaculately dressed Muslims they all formed part of the 1500 mourners following the hearse of Ahmed Timol. Plunged to his death The second detainee to die in John Vorster Square was Wellington Tshazibane, found hanging in his cell on December 11, 1976. He had been arrested four days earlier for alleged complicity in an explosion at the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg. An official inquest exonerated the police of any wrongdoing. Elmon Malele, arrested in 1977, was made to stand for six hours while being interrogated at night. He lost his balance, hit his head against the corner of a table and died of a brain haemorrhage. The subsequent inquest found that he had died of natural causes. On February 15, 1977, detainee Matthews Mabelane plunged to his death from the 10th floor. The police claimed that he had climbed out onto a window ledge in an attempt to escape and had slipped and fallen to his death. An inquest in April 1977 found the cause of death to be accidental. He was 23 years old. Reopened inquests Ahmed Timols inquest was reopened on June 26, 2017. I attended the proceedings in the High Court in Johannesburg. The atmosphere in the packed court felt heavy with history. The case was about more than Timols death. It was about the countless victims of gross human rights violations committed in the name of apartheid. A protest by Kulumani Support Group outside the High Court in Johannesburg during the inquest into Ahmed Timols death [Mia Swart/Al Jazeera] The two main suspects in the case, Security Branch officers Johannes Gloy and Johannes van Niekerk died before the reopened inquest. Joao Rodrigues, a former policeman who was with Timol at around the time of his death, was the key witness. Rodrigues, who was 78 in 2017, claimed repeatedly that he could not remember the events of that day. At the original inquest, Rodrigues claimed to have seen Timol jump out of a window, but said he could not stop him because he tripped over a chair. In his new book, The Murder of Ahmed Timol: My Search for Truth, Cajee wrote that a significant amount of evidence relating to his uncles case has gone missing, including a page of Rodrigues sworn statement. A crucial part of his version of what happened when Timol fell from the building has disappeared, Cajee explained. The court heard testimony from Essop, who described the use of torture, including electric shock treatments, at John Vorster Square. A retired academic who now lives in the UK, Essop told Al Jazeera: The security police engaged in systematic torture. I was tortured in a vault at John Vorster Square by 15 different policemen to the point where I lost consciousness. Essop is convinced that Timol was also tortured. In his judgment, Judge Billy Mothle found that Timol was either pushed from the 10th floor or from the rooftop of the building. The ruling has been seen as a vindication of the efforts of Timols family and friends to have the apartheid security forces lies about his final days exposed. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is currently prosecuting Rodrigues for murder and defeating the ends of justice. Joao Rodrigues in the High Court in Johannesburg, 2017 [Photo courtesy of: www.ahmedtimol.co.za] Explaining the significance of the reopened inquests, Varney, the lawyer, explained: The perpetrators had an opportunity to come forward to the TRC and disclose the truth and claim amnesty. They spurned this offer. They must now face justice. Neil Aggett The second case to be reopened was that of Neil Aggett, the first white activist who died in detention during apartheid. The inquest into his case began earlier this year. Born in Kenya in 1953, Aggetts family moved to South Africa in 1964. Aggett became a medical doctor and trade union organiser. His internships in Mthatha General Hospital and in Tembisa Hospital, which were located in poor Black areas of the Eastern Cape and the old Transvaal province, contributed to his social consciousness. Aggett was convinced that the healing of illness must be accompanied by improving the conditions in which Black South Africans lived. Jill Burger, Aggetts sister, told Al Jazeera that his work in these hospitals influenced his political views. That, as a result of his experiences, he was willing to re-evaluate his principles and values was unique for someone of his background, she explained. Aggett was arrested on November 27, 1981, detained under the Terrorism Act, and taken to John Vorster Square, where he was repeatedly interrogated and tortured by Special Branch officers. Seventy days later, on February 5, 1982, he was found dead in his cell, having allegedly hung himself with a kikoi scarf, a scarf made of African fabric. He was 28. At the reopened inquest, Aggetts fellow anti-apartheid activist Keith Coleman described him as a person of great integrity, little ego and very committed. Neil Agget was 28 when he died in 1982 [Photo used with the permission of the Aggett family] Although a high-profile inquest in 1982 showed how an 80-hour interrogation in the days before his death contributed to it, the security police were cleared of any wrongdoing, and his death was ruled a suicide. The TRCs final five-volume report, handed to then-president Nelson Mandela in 1998, found the apartheid state, its minister of police, its commissioner of police and the head of the Security Branch responsible for Aggetts death. At the reopened inquest, fellow anti-apartheid activist Jabu Ngwenya, who was imprisoned with Aggett at John Vorster Square, said he believes Aggetts body was moved to a cell to make it look as if he had hung himself. He had died on the 10th floor, said Ngwenya. The remaining hearings in the Aggett inquest have been postponed until June. Unfinished business The Timol and Aggett cases resurrect many of the questions raised during the TRC and can, perhaps, be understood as a way of completing, in the words of former TRC commissioner Dumisa Ntsebeza, the TRCs unfinished business. One of the features of the TRC that was both praised and criticised was that amnesty could be granted to those who fully disclosed their actions. While the conditional amnesty model was lauded as innovative and reconciliation-building, there were crucial gaps, most notably the fact that those who were refused amnesty were never prosecuted. In the two decades since the work of the TRC was concluded, there have been only a handful of prosecutions. Indeed, the failure to prosecute those who did not receive amnesty renders the amnesty process entirely meaningless, Varney explained. It may as well have been a de facto blanket amnesty for all. Sooka believes that one of the problems with the amnesty scheme was that it was mostly the foot soldiers who applied for amnesty and not the politicians and security force commanders who issued the orders. Those who created this milieu , by and large, the politicians, in a sense got away with it, she said. Political interference So, why did it take so long for the NPA to reopen the apartheid-era inquests? Imtiaz Cajee first applied for his uncles case to be reopened in 2003. They were asking me to do their work, said Cajee of the NPA. The cops involved in my uncles matter were alive, and they failed to interview them. It was embarrassing that the NPA asked me to get additional information. It was what they were mandated to do. As Lukhanyo Calata, son of murdered activist Fort Calata who was one of the Cradock Four killed in 1985, stated in an affidavit to the Commission of Inquiry or Zondo Commission into state capture: Had [Timols death] been investigated, the main perpetrators would have been held to account, since the last suspect only died in 2012. This amounts to a travesty of justice. In their efforts to get the inquests reopened, the Timol and Aggett families said they received no help from the state. They had to conduct investigations themselves and rely on the support offered by pro bono lawyers, such as Howard Varney, who represents both families. According to Motheba Mohapi, the daughter of slain activist Mapetla Mohapi, the resource implications of this could inhibit families from applying for inquests to be reopened. Some have argued that not only has there been a lack of political will to prosecute perpetrators of apartheid crimes, but that there has been active political interference, pressuring the NPA not to. The TRC made adverse findings against all the main role players, including the ANC, said Varney. The ANC did not want these cases pursued to protect its own. In former police chief Jackie Selebis words put to former Director of Public Prosecutions Vusi Pikoli: If you go after the apartheid generals, then you open the door to cases against us, and that was not acceptable. So, to the ANC, the solution was to stop all cases. Jessie Duarte, the deputy secretary-general of the ANC, told Al Jazeera that she strongly disagrees with the suggestion that there was political interference, adding that: The ANC supports the reopening of the cases. Yasmin Sooka believes the onus has been on families to fight for cases to be reopened. If there is progress in TRC matters, it is usually because of pressure by the victims families or civil society. In this sense, all decisions by the NPA are very reactive there is no proactivity in pursuing the TRC cases. How does the NPA decide which cases to prioritise? Typically, the priority is given to cases in which families are willing to pursue the matter and evidence is available a luxury given the amount of time that has lapsed, said Sooka. Closure for families For many families of anti-apartheid activists murdered by the security forces, the past decades have been shrouded in uncertainty. According to Cajee, the reopening of inquests opened a door for many families. They now live in hope again that the inquests of their loved ones might be reopened. The case of Motheba Mohapis father, Mapetla Mohapi, has not yet been reopened. One of the activists supporting the Black Consciousness Movement, Mapetla worked closely with Steve Biko and was also active in the South African Students Organisation. Mapetla was detained without charge on July 16, 1976. Twenty days later, he died in police custody. The police said he had hanged himself with a pair of jeans. Motheba Mohapi was two-and-a-half years old when her father died. In 2017, she and her family tried to visit the cell where he died. I went there with members of my family, she said. But they were not granted access. She was finally granted it in 2019, and described the experience as both emotional and joyful. There is a special connection when you try to imagine the person in that space, she explained. When she heard of the reopened inquests, the hope and desire opened up that this might be possible for us as well. The post-apartheid government conferred The Order of Luthuli on Mapetla for his struggle for a democratic South Africa. But what is most important to Mohapi is a public acknowledgement of the injustice and the suffering of the family and the correction of history. Thembi Nkadimeng, the mayor of Polokwane, wants the inquest into the 1983 disappearance of her sister, anti-apartheid activist Nokuthla Simelane, reopened. What my family wants is my sisters remains, said Nkadimeng. The death of activist Fort Calata was the subject of two inquests, in 1987 and 1992. The first found that no one is to blame. At the 1992 inquest, the judge found the state to be responsible for the killing, but nobody was named, and no prosecution followed. His son, Lukhanyo Calata, journalist and author of the book, My Father Died For This, said the family is not interested in another inquest. What we want is for the ANC to create the society that my father gave his life for, he said. For now, most families only have the official version of the truth. A poem, In Detention by Chris van Wyk, captures the absurdity of that: He fell from the ninth floor He hanged himself He slipped on a piece of soap while washing He hanged himself He slipped on a piece of soap while washing He fell from the ninth floor He hanged himself while washing He slipped from the ninth floor He hung from the ninth floor He slipped from the ninth floor while washing He fell from a piece of soap while slipping He hung from the ninth floor He washed from the ninth floor while slipping He hung from a piece of soap while washing Nigerian actor, Mike Ezuronye has expressed his admiration for the Ghanas Dancehall artiste Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jnr, popularly known as Shatta Wale. He noted that the controversial musician earned his love because he is real and true to life. I like Shatta Wale because he is real, I like him because hes true to life, he says. Speaking in an interview with Angel TV, the Nigerian movie producer also revealed his admiration for the Ghanaian songstress Becca. According to him, Becca is influencing people with her music world wide and not only in Ghana. I like Becca because she tries as much as possible to take her music out of her comfort zone which is Ghana, he said. Watch the video below 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. Featured Video Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) shareholders are no doubt pleased to see that the share price has bounced 33% in the last month alone, although it is still down 16% over the last quarter. But shareholders may not all be feeling jubilant, since the share price is still down 11% in the last year. Assuming no other changes, a sharply higher share price makes a stock less 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). The implication here is that deep value investors might steer clear when expectations of a company are too high. 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 Rockwell Automation How Does Rockwell Automation's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers? Rockwell Automation's P/E of 21.34 indicates some degree of optimism towards the stock. The image below shows that Rockwell Automation has a higher P/E than the average (15.4) P/E for companies in the electrical industry. NYSE:ROK Price Estimation Relative to Market April 20th 2020 Rockwell Automation's P/E tells us that market participants think the company will perform better than its industry peers, going forward. Shareholders are clearly optimistic, but the future is always uncertain. So further research is always essential. I often monitor director buying and selling. How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios Probably the most important factor in determining what P/E a company trades on is the earnings growth. Earnings growth means that in the future the 'E' will be higher. And in that case, the P/E ratio itself will drop rather quickly. Then, a lower P/E should attract more buyers, pushing the share price up. Most would be impressed by Rockwell Automation earnings growth of 15% in the last year. And its annual EPS growth rate over 5 years is 5.2%. So one might expect an above average P/E ratio. Story continues A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank It's important to note that the P/E ratio considers the market capitalization, not the enterprise value. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. Hypothetically, a company could reduce its future P/E ratio by spending its cash (or taking on debt) to achieve higher earnings. 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 Rockwell Automation's Balance Sheet Tell Us? Rockwell Automation's net debt is 6.9% of its market cap. It would probably trade on a higher P/E ratio if it had a lot of cash, but I doubt it is having a big impact. The Bottom Line On Rockwell Automation's P/E Ratio Rockwell Automation has a P/E of 21.3. That's higher than the average in its market, which is 13.6. While the company does use modest debt, its recent earnings growth is very good. Therefore, it's not particularly surprising that it has a above average P/E ratio. What we know for sure is that investors have become much more excited about Rockwell Automation recently, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 16.1 to 21.3 over the last month. If you like to buy stocks that have recently impressed the market, then this one might be a candidate; but if you prefer to invest when there is 'blood in the streets', then you may feel the opportunity has passed. Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. If the reality for a company is better than it expects, you can make money by buying and holding for the long term. So this free visual report on analyst forecasts could hold the key to an excellent investment decision. But note: Rockwell Automation 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. Zipline, a Silicon Valley-based drone delivery service, is helping government officials in the African country of Ghana monitor the spread of the coronavirus by delivering test samples collected in rural areas to medical laboratories in two major cities. Why it matters: It's the first time that autonomous drones have been used to make regular long-range deliveries into densely populated urban areas, and it's the first time that drones have been used to deliver COVID-19 test samples. How it works: The service began April 17, when 51 COVID-19 test samples collected from patients at rural health facilities were transported to Zipline's distribution center in Omenako, Ghana. The 51 samples were packed according to World Health Organization guidelines inside the belly of four Zipline drones, which flew more than 70 miles round trip to Accra, the capital city, for testing and analysis. The packages were dropped via parachute to waiting medical personnel at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research. Zipline is also delivering samples from another distribution center in Ghana to Kumasi, the country's second-largest city. Drone delivery allows medical officials to sharply reduce the amount of time it takes to obtain test samples from hard-to-reach rural areas. Instead of waiting several days for a batch of samples to be transported by truck, a single test from a rural area can be delivered for analysis in less than an hour. Zipline is also delivering masks and other personal protective gear, as well as medicine and blood, to medical facilities in Ghana and Rwanda during the coronavirus outbreak. "Zipline is dedicated to helping Ghana in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic," said CEO Keller Rinaudo in a statement. "Using contactless drone delivery to transport COVID-19 test samples will allow the government to respond to the pandemic and help save lives more quickly." What to watch: Zipline, which had planned a U.S. launch this fall, says it is in talks with the Federal Aviation Administration to begin "emergency humanitarian operations" here as soon as possible. The Cambodian Ministry of Health has reported no new cases of novel coronavirus for the last eight days, a development the World Health Organization said was really great news but still warned that the country was likely in the early stage of the pandemic. In a press conference Monday, Or Vandine, a Health Ministry spokesperson, said the viral respiratory disease can spread very fast, calling on people to continue to be vigilant despite no new cases found. We should be careful as always, she said. World Health Organization (WHO) country representative, Dr. Li Ailan, said Cambodia has to be prepared for community transmission despite the really great news of zero cases in recent days. The COVID-19 pandemic will not be over in any country until it is over in all countries, she added. As of Monday morning, there are 122 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 107 recoveries - representing more than 85 percent of the total cases. Ministry figures also showed that 9,792 tests had been conducted since the start of the pandemic, up from the 8,909 tests reported last week. This shows that officials conducted only 883 tests last week, despite having the capacity to conduct up to 600 tests a day. Ly Sovann, a spokesperson of Health Ministry, said the numbers of tests decreased in recent days because contract tracing and testing reduced because there were no new cases. Before, we did more than test than that, he said. We cant say when will we stop doing tests or not. Dr. Laurence Baril, with the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge, clarified that little less than 6,000 individuals have been tested for the novel coronavirus. So, in terms of people, it is a little bit less than 6,000 individuals tested and that represents over 9000 tests, Dr. Baril said in the press conference. Another ministry spokesperson, York Sambath, chimed in adding that for a positive case it took around 10 to 11 tests from diagnosis to recovery. Cambodia health officials say more than 10,000 workers who just come back from hometown after Khmer New Year will be health checked and quarantined for 14 days before allowing to work. In the press conference, Health Minister, Mam Bunheng, said the ministry is working with the Ministry of Labor, medical workers, and local authorities are now working on the case, which he cant give comments on whether workers are suspected with the virus or not. The workers will be checked with temperature and their health and tests will be conducted only if the workers display symptoms. Additionally, Ly Sovann said that more than 90,000 migrant workers had returned to Cambodia but only around 400 had been tested. Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray told a news conference on Sunday that some activity would be permitted in the least-affected parts of the state. New Delhi/Mumbai: Maharashtra, Indias largest regional economy, will allow a limited number of sectors to resume business on Monday, after a weeks-long shutdown to slow the spread of coronavirus left millions out of work. Maharashtra, home to financial centre Mumbai, has the biggest share of Indias caseload of 15,713 infections, including a large number now ripping through its densely-packed slums. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray told a news conference on Sunday that some activity would be permitted in the least-affected parts of the state while observing a strict lockdown in the red zones that have the maximum number of cases. We need to start the economic wheels again. We are giving selective permissions from tomorrow, especially in orange zones and green zones, he said, referring to areas with lower levels of infection. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has extended the nationwide lockdown that began late last month until 3 May, but the Union government has allowed states to restart activity amid economic distress in rural areas. Farming, highway construction and manufacturing will be allowed in hinterland areas not heavily affected by the virus this week, the federal government said. Thousands of migrant workers fled the big cities for their homes in the countryside, unable to pay for rent or food after the shutdown went into force. But Delhis chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, said there would be no easing of rules in the capital, which accounts for over a third of cases. Follow LIVE updates on the coronavirus outbreak here Currently, lockdown is necessary. No relaxations should be given in the hotspots in the city, he told a press conference, adding he would review the situation later in the month. There are fears that South Asia, home to a fifth of the worlds population, could become a major new front in the global war against COVID-19. A big outbreak would overwhelm poorly funded health systems across the region. On Sunday, the Indian government also revoked permission for e-commerce firms like Flipkart and Amazon.com Inc to supply non-essential goods during the lockdown. The decision came after the Confederation of All India Traders, which represents millions of small brick-and-mortar businesses, said allowing online firms to deliver non-essential products would give them an unfair advantage. Trade Minister Piyush Goyal welcomed the federal governments decision. This will create a level playing field for small retailers, he said. One by one, 85 ambulances and firetrucks trickled down the narrow street in a somber procession, snaking their way through the Port Monmouth section of Middletown. As the first responders rolled past the forest green house, they each blared their sirens to honor one of their own. Robert Weber, a Middletown First Aid and Rescue Squad volunteer and firefighter, was only 44 when he died April 15 from complications of the coronavirus. One of his five siblings recorded the caravan of emergency vehicles that came a day later to salute her brother. Choked up from watching the memorial drive-by, Jennifer Weber could only shake her head at the irony. Robert was running after firetrucks and ambulances since he was 5 years old," she said. Hed be chasing after their sirens if he was here." The scene that unfolded on a brisk Thursday evening was just one of more than a dozen memorials that have occurred in New Jersey communities this month. Thirteen EMS providers from around the state have died from complications of COVID-19 since March 31, according to the New Jersey EMS Task Force and multiple first-aid squads. And hundreds of other EMS workers have fallen sick with COVID-19 symptoms in recent weeks, causing a strain on rescue units, nearly a dozen members of the emergency response community told NJ Advance Media. The number of coronavirus cases within their ranks and concern for older volunteers with underlying medical conditions have led to staff shortages, forcing some squads to temporarily drop service. You havent seen this number of first responders die as a result of line-of-duty death since Sept. 11," said Mike Bascom, team leader for the NJ EMS Task Force. And probably never before that. First-aid squads have been pressed into duty like never before, receiving the first call to action in a coronavirus pandemic that has resulted in 85,301 cases and 4,202 deaths in the state since the beginning of March. The call volume around the state has been overwhelming especially in North Jersey, Bascom said. The strain the highly contagious virus has put on the EMS community has caused at least two rescue squads to temporarily suspend service. Officials in both Cedar Grove and Mine Hill said the decision to stop taking calls was made to protect members of their all-volunteer squads. It doesnt mean they cant handle things, but at some point you have to recognize what your capabilities are and allow somebody who can handle it to handle it," Bascom said. Many first-aid squads rely on volunteers like Weber, a plumber and father who also juggled EMS and volunteer firefighting duties. He responded to a fire the day before he was admitted to the hospital, said his oldest brother, Richard. Those men and women continue to volunteer despite the risk coronavirus poses to their health. Standing next to dozens of ambulances lined up at the Port Monmouth firehouse prior to the drive-by for Weber, Middletown Mayor Tony Perry said first responders encounter danger 365 days a year, 24/7." But the coronavirus has presented new challenges for his first responders. Theres really no words that you can say to define the heroism of these emergency responders who continue to go out and protect people like me and the 68,000 residents in Middletown," he said. I met Rob Weber a few times. He was a man of absolute integrity, somebody who dedicated his life to this community, whether it was as a firefighter or with our emergency services unit." CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Bil Rosen, chief of Neptune EMS, before the start of a memorial drive-by for Robert Weber. He was an active member of the Middletown Township First Aid & Rescue Squad and died from COVID-19. Mary Iuvone | For NJ Advance Med Manpower shortages EMS squads usually receive the first call. When an emergency happens. When someone is in crisis. When a pandemic emerges. Last week, two Sussex County rescue squads were called when the Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center was overwhelmed with more than a dozen bodies. The two units removed the coronavirus victims. It was a joint effort between us and the Lakeland Emergency Squad," said John-Paul Couce, captain of Newtons all-volunteer squad. They provided a trailer, and our crew moved the bodies." As emergency calls swamp squads across New Jersey, Cedar Grove and Mine Hill are hardly alone in facing manpower issues. EMS squads from many of the states largest cities have suffered staffing shortages due to increased call volume during the pandemic, according to Christopher Neuwirth, a state health department assistant commissioner. Several Monmouth County squads are also facing shortages, according to Bil Rosen, the Neptune EMS manager. But he said his volunteer squad will continue answering calls. Its been hectic," Rosen said. Its been exhausting. Our call volume has been up, like many other EMS squads. But were getting through. What Ive heard is not so much that other squads picking and choosing calls, but some agencies discussing shutting their doors until this is over." Not long after Cedar Grove suspended operations, Couce took to social media to assure the Newton community that his first-aid unit wouldnt be standing down" during the crisis. I know within the EMS community," Couce said, "there has definitely been a negative response to these services that have elected to shut down.'' But Couce isnt being critical of those squads. As a paramedic professional, he is fairly familiar with both the Mine Hill and Cedar Grove squads, he said. The median age of their volunteers is definitely a lot older than ours, he added. I dont think its wrong for volunteer squads with older members, who may have co-morbidities, to reflect on whether its the best position to stay active with the increased risk relative to some of the younger squads out there, Couce said. Our membership is comprised of mostly younger volunteers, so everyone was interested in continuing to do this. Bascom cautioned that only a few agencies have closed or suspended services. In each case, mutual-aid resources or career EMS squads will cover those communities. I dont think the public should be concerned because whats happening is before these entities close up, they come up with a plan to make sure that theyre going to have coverage," Bascom said. Its happened (in other towns) beyond those that have been publicized throughout the state." Emergency vehicles line up at the Port Monmouth Fire Department. A memorial drive-by was held for Robert Weber, an active member of the Middletown Township First Aid & Rescue Squad. Weber's death is attributed to COVID-19. Mary Iuvone | For NJ Advance Med Taking a toll There are 439 EMS agencies in New Jersey, a spokesperson from the states department of health told NJ Advance Media last week. There are 239 volunteer agencies registered, according to the EMS Council of N.J. (some squads have a mixture of paid and volunteer staff, state officials said). With many experiencing staff shortages, the state recently activated its contract with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to receive responders from other states. On April 10, 200 emergency responders from 75 ambulatory services arrived at the Meadowlands to assist the N.J. EMS Task Force. Those 75 will leave after two weeks, so the state called for another 100 ambulances to help provide 24/7 service. In all, state officials said 450 EMTs and paramedics will be in New Jersey by Monday. Our members have worked around the clock (and) have willingly sacrificed time from their loved ones to do whatever they can to assure the people of the state are getting the best care possible," said Bascom, the N.J. EMS Task Force leader. Bascom conceded all the sickness and death have taken a toll on the emergency response community. But they are experienced in helping those in crisis and coping with the emotional burden that comes with it. EMTs are used to working under stress," he said. Theyre used to seeing death. They have ways they manage with it. A lot of people talk it out with their partners. They use gallows humor to break the tension." Bascom said hes also encouraged that the men and women on the front lines are reaching out to the states Disaster Response Crisis Counselors. Just having someone to talk to who can recognize when youre stressed and can lighten the mood and give you some things to do to get things off your chest, thats helpful," he said. I see some of that stress going up, but in general the morale is excellent." Mackenzie Shevlin, of Port Monmouth, attends a memorial drive-by last week for her late uncle, Robert Weber. He was an active member of the Middletown Township First Aid & Rescue Squad and died from COVID-19. Mary Iuvone | For NJ Advance Med A guardian angel As she watched the ambulances line up in the staging area, Mackenzie Shevlin understood she wouldnt have been in this position without her Uncle Robert." Hes the one who got me into this," said Shevlin, a volunteer with the Port Monmouth First Aid Squad. I always saw him with (an EMS) radio by his side. My heart is so heavy right now, but I know I have a guardian angel with me when I go on calls." Weber left behind his wife, Danielle; a 12-year old daughter, Alexa; his father, James; and five siblings. Gov. Phil Murphy honored Weber on Friday during his daily media briefing, just as he has done with several other first responders who have died during the crisis. To his wife Danielle, with whom I spoke (Friday) morning, and needless to say, she is incredibly brokenhearted," the governor said. It probably wasnt a surprise that he chose this line of work, as Robs family has retold their memories of him as a child chasing after firetrucks. Not everyone gets to live their dream, but Rob obviously did his." Robert Weber was a 15-year veteran firefighter with the Port Monmouth Fire Company in Middletown. He served as a member of both the Middletown First Aid and Rescue Squad and the Middletown Fire Department's Air Unit. We will not forget him and his service to his community. pic.twitter.com/xJAuau5zGE Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) April 17, 2020 Weber would routinely work a 12-hour shift as a plumber and then respond to emergencies at night. Its a story not unlike the thousands of first responders who volunteer to help their communities. Hed be dog-tired," his youngest brother, Anthony, said. But when that radio went off, he was showing up." 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. Sign up for text message alerts from NJ.com on coronavirus in New Jersey: Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Rain-slicked roads and poor visibility may have been a factor in a deadly two-vehicle crash Sunday afternoon in Conroe that left one person dead. Conroe Fire Department officials arrived at the intersection of Montgomery Park Boulevard and North Loop 336 just after 1 p.m. The driver of a sedan had turned onto North Loop 336 from Montgomery Park when a truck driving westbound collided with the car. YEREVAN. The Public Television of Armenia and the press service of the head of government are responsible for the leakage of the off-air footage before Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyans TV message to the nation. Opposition Prosperous Armenia faction MP Mikayel Melkumyan said this during the traditional briefing in the National Assembly on Monday. However, according to the politician, there is no need to make a big story out of all this. Melkumyan stressed that this incident once again proves that there is a problem of providing quality work in the public administration system of Armenia. "The level of training of employees and specialists in our country is falling year by year," the MP said, "and we have talked about this issue many times." To note, the off-air footage of the PM's preparing for his live broadcast appeared on the Internet, and his spokesperson and the state-funded Public Television made mutual accusations in this regard. Another Prosperous Armenia MP, Naira Zohrabyan, said this was unacceptable. "Whatever the reason, everyone should be held accountable, including the Prime Minister's press service, since they should have overseen the whole process," Zohrabyan concluded. The Conversation Africa is an independent source of news and views from the academic and research community. Its aim is to promote better understanding of current affairs and complex issues, and allow for a better quality of public discourse and conversation.Go to: https://theconversation.com/africa Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) will introduce the Stop China-Originated Viral Infectious Diseases (COVID) Act to ensure the Chinese Communist Party faces consequences for its role in spreading the coronavirus. The Stop COVID Act will empower Americans to sue China in U.S. court and seek compensation for the devastating harm the deadly virus has caused to the economy and human life, said officials. Chinas Communist Party must face consequences for its role in the origin and spread of the coronavirus, said Senator Blackburn. The costs are devastating: trillions of dollars in economic damage, more than 22 million American jobs lost, and over 150,000 deaths worldwide and counting. Business owners and families who have lost loved ones deserve justice. Under this legislation, Americans will have the opportunity to take China to court in the U.S. and demand accountability for their lies and deceit. The Chinese government must be held accountable for the pain its inflicted across the United States, Senator McSally said. Our legislation to allow Americans to file lawsuits against the Chinese Communist Party for its role in perpetuating the global spread of the coronavirus will give the U.S. a piece of justice. Rep. Lance Gooden (TX-05) is leading companion legislation in the House of Representatives. Right now, the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act is a shield for the Chinese Communist Party to hide behind. We need to change that, said Rep. Gooden. The leadership of Senators Blackburn and McSally will be invaluable in our effort to do just that. The Stop COVID Act will make China legally and financially liable for unleashing the COVID-19 infection on our country. Americans will have the legal tools to sue China in the U.S. federal court system for creating and worsening this worldwide pandemic. The legislation builds on existing law in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and eliminates sovereign immunity for states that spread biological agents. As the coronavirus death toll and financial losses mount, China should be forced to pay the costs of these damages to the American people, said officials. Today, Senator Blackburn and Rep. Gooden wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner on the importance of passing the Stop COVID Act. It reads, in part: "The Chinese Communist Party has repeatedly demonstrated their willingness to lie to the world about this deadly and costly outbreak We cannot rely on the Chinese government to be honest, which means we cannot afford to accept the narrative the CCP wants us to believe. The mainstream media has supported the CCPs arguments so long as they have differed from those made by President Trump. The only path forward is to enable an independent investigation of the facts. "How we choose to treat the Chinese government in the wake of this crisis will define foreign relations in the post-coronavirus era. If we grow to understand how the COVID-19 crisis escalated from a regional outbreak into a global tragedy, we may be able to prevent the disastrous consequences of future pandemics. By unleashing the investigatory power of our legal system, we can discover the truth, prepare for the future, and ensure the American people get the answers they deserve." The bill text for the Stop COVID Act may be found here. A series of publications from microbiologist Fitnat Yildiz's lab provides new understanding of cholera biofilms and why the bacteria in biofilms are so highly infectious Free-swimming cholera bacteria are much less infectious than bacteria in biofilms, aggregates of bacterial cells embedded in a sticky matrix that form on surfaces. This accounts for the surprising effectiveness of filtering water through cloth, such as a folded sari, which can reduce infections dramatically in places where the disease is endemic, despite the fact that individual cholera bacteria easily pass through such a filter. A new study led by researchers at UC Santa Cruz goes a long way toward explaining the hyperinfectivity of cholera biofilms. The study, published the week of April 20 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), is one of several new papers on cholera biofilms from the laboratory of UCSC microbiologist Fitnat Yildiz. "We've been working on this for so long, it is a significant body of work that is now being published, focusing on the mechanisms of biofilm formation and what makes the biofilm more infectious," said Yildiz, a professor of microbiology and environmental toxicology. Biofilms are important not only in causing infections, but also in the survival of cholera bacteria (Vibrio cholerae) in the environment. In regions where cholera is endemic, the bacteria live in aquatic environments, typically in brackish water, causing periodic, seasonal outbreaks when sources of drinking water become contaminated. A surprising finding in the PNAS paper is that bacteria growing in biofilms have already activated the genes for virulence factors such as toxin production, before they have even infected a host. "Two of the main virulence factors are the toxin co-regulated pilus, which allows the bacteria to adhere to the intestine, and the cholera toxin which enters intestinal cells and makes people really sick," said Jennifer Teschler, a postdoctoral researcher in the Yildiz lab and a co-first author of the paper. "These virulence factors are more highly expressed in biofilm cells, so they are already primed for causing infections." The study also showed differences in the colonization patterns of free-swimming ("planktonic") and biofilm-grown cholera cells in the intestines of infected mice. The researchers used a new imaging technique to make intestinal tissue transparent while preserving the spatial integrity of the infected intestines. This enabled them to see where the cholera bacteria had adhered to the villi, the finger-like projections that line the small intestine. "Being able to see where the infections are in three dimensions is an important tool for studying intestinal pathogens," Teschler said. "In mice infected with planktonic cells, the cells were typically at the bottom of the villi, whereas biofilm cells attached at the top of the villi, closer to the lumen. We speculate that biofilm cells adhere more strongly to the villi, so they are better able to resist being swept away by the flow in the lumen of the intestine." Two other papers, published March 25 in Nature Communications and March 16 in PLOS Genetics, focus on how free-swimming cholera bacteria attach to surfaces and initiate biofilm formation. "The bacterium has to attach to a surface, stop swimming, and start building a matrix," Yildiz said. "Understanding the mechanisms involved in biofilm formation, as well as the role of biofilms in the overall biology of Vibrio cholerae, will pave the way for developing strategies to predict and control cholera epidemics. It may also help in identification of novel drug targets for inhibiting biofilm formation during infection." The Nature Communications paper explores the cellular signaling pathways that control the attachment process through the regulation of hair-like appendages called pili that grow out from the cell surface. "Attachment is the initiating step of biofilm formation," explained first author Kyle Floyd, a postdoctoral researcher in the Yildiz lab. "As a swimming cell nears a surface, the pilus will bind to the surface, and retraction of the pilus helps pull the cell closer to the surface. The cell then makes more pili to anchor it down to the surface." There are different classes and subclasses of bacterial pili, and the one required for biofilm formation in many Vibrio cholerae strains (the type IV MSHA pilus) is regulated by a signaling molecule called c-di-GMP. The new study showed that the MSHA pilus is a dynamic system that extends and retracts and is directly controlled by c-di-GMP. The study showed how pilus activity is modulated by the interactions of c-di-GMP with other components of the pilus system. The PLOS Genetics paper further elucidates the c-di-GMP signaling pathways that promote biofilm formation. In particular, the study looked at the role of the flagellum, a whip-like appendage the bacteria use to swim, in c-di-GMP signaling. The researchers found that loss of the flagellum leads to elevated levels of c-di-GMP in the cell and increased expression of biofilm genes. "It required powerful and elegant genetics to work out the connections between flagellum assembly, production of pili on the cell surface, biofilm matrix production, and c-di-GMP signaling," Yildiz said. "There are different steps where this signaling molecule can control the transition to biofilm formation." ### All three papers involved extensive collaboration with researchers at other institutions. The coauthors of the PNAS paper, in addition to Yildiz and Teschler, include co-first authors Ana Gallego-Hernandez and Jinhwan Park at UCSC and William DePas at the California Institute of Technology; Raimo Hartmann, Hannah Jeckel, and Knut Drescher at the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Germany; Sinem Beyhan at the J. Craig Venter Institute; and Dianne Newman at Caltech. This work was funded by the National Institutes of Health. At least 30 new positive coronavirus cases have been reported in the past 24 hours in Afghanistan, taking the total to 1,026 on Monday, health authorities were quoted by Tolo News. Fifteen new positive coronavirus cases were reported in Kabul, 6 in Herat, 4 in Laghman and Kunar each, while one in Nangarhar province in the past 24 hours, Wahidullah Mayar, a spokesman for the Health Ministry, said at a press conference. The official also confirmed that the head of Shinozada hospital in Kabul has died after contracting the contagion. The hospital was closed several days ago after the first COVID-19 case was confirmed, he said. Regarding the lack of testing kits in Kabul and other provinces, Mayar said: We will receive 5,000 kits today from the UN, adding that more will be bought to solve the problem. The number of deaths from the COVID-19 disease globally is more than 165,238, and more than 2.4 million have been infected with the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University. Over the past fortnight, $750 stimulus cheques started to arrive in the bank accounts of 6.5 million Australians. Using real-time economic data, we can already rate the success of the stimulus in fighting the economic downturn. The short answer is that the cash handouts did their job at boosting consumer spending quite well, but we may need more support for households before this crisis is over. Economic stimulus packages are scored on three criteria: quality, impact and speed. The art is in managing the trade-offs among these objectives. Scott Morrison announced stimulus measures to help keep the economy moving. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen In a perfect world, stimulus funds would be spent on high-quality projects that improve the nation over the long term, like roads, rail lines, schools and other infrastructure. The problem with these worthy projects is that they take a long time to get started. P rince Philip came out of retirement today to thank key workers for their vital and urgent efforts in the battle against Coronavirus. In his first major statement since retiring from royal duties three years ago, The Duke of Edinburgh praised those on the front-line during this difficult time. He thanked all key workers from the scientists trying to find a vaccine to the bin men removing our rubbish, keeping our every day life going. The Duke, 98, said: As we approach World Immunisation Week, I wanted to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic; by those in the medical and scientific professions, at universities and research institutions, all, united in working to protect us from Covid-19. On behalf of those of us who remain safe and at home, I also wanted to thank all the key workers who ensure the infrastructure of our life continues; the staff and volunteers working in food production and distribution, those keeping postal and delivery services goings, and those ensuring the rubbish continues to be collected. The Duke, who will be 99 in June and is the longest serving royal consort in history, retired from his royal duties on August2, 2017. He famously raised his bowler hat as the band of the Royal Marines played For Hes A Jolly Good Fellow in his final solo public engagement at Buckingham Palace, aged 96. Since 1952 he completed 22,219 solo engagements. At the time of his retirement the then Prime Minister Theresa May thanked him for a remarkable lifetime of service. Since then he has spent most of the time quietly and out of the public eye living at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate. He was last seen on March 19 arriving at Windsor Castle where he joined the Queen over the Easter period. The royal couple are now self isolating there amid the coronavirus pandemic. Philip, whose message will go up on the royal channel, also paid tribute to his patronages helping during the pandemic. They are TORONTO (AP) --- Canadian police say a gunman disguised as a police officer has killed 16 people in a shooting rampage across the province of Nova Scotia. It was the deadliest attack in Canadian history. Police said the suspect is also dead. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapique. Officials said bodies were also found at other locations. Police said several homes in the area were set on fire as well. Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokesman Daniel Brien confirmed Sunday that 16 people have been killed in addition to the shooter. The British government defended the continuation of its near-lockdown on Monday against calls to publish an exit strategy, saying it fears a second peak of COVID-19 infections if it eases the lockdown too soon. At this stage of the crisis we are absolutely focused on sticking to the guidance, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak told reporters. We are not there yet and it is very clear that, for now, what we should focus on is following the guidance, staying home to protect the (National Health Service), Mr Sunak said when asked about how far the government was from meeting its criteria for relaxing the lockdown. Anything else that people might be speculating on is wrong. We are crystal clear on that message, he said. Experts at Oxford University said Britain could have already passed its first peak of deaths linked to infections with the virus, after health authorities reported a fall in the daily total of recorded deaths to 449 across the four nations of the United Kingdom. The NHS in England, where most of Britains 16,509 deaths in hospitals have been reported, added 429 deaths to its total on Monday. Consistent with previous analyses, the peak day of deaths was April 8, said Jason Oke and Carl Heneghan of Oxfords Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (CEBN). The structure of the data is similar across the regions, with the peak in London on April 4, four days ahead of the rest of the country, Oke and Heneghan wrote in a blog post, noting that NHS England reported 36-per-cent fewer hospital deaths on Monday than a week earlier. A spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnsons office told reporters earlier that the governments big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy. If you move too quickly, then the virus could begin to spread exponentially again, the spokesman said. He added that the government aimed to meet the public expectation that it should do everything (it) can to stop the spread of the virus and protect lives. Britain has reported the worlds fifth-highest total of deaths per capita linked to COVID-19 infections, behind Belgium, Spain, Italandand France. Many health experts, opposition politicians and media commentators have accused the government of a slow response to the crisis, and criticised Britains low level of testing and the poor provision of intensive care beds, ventilators and protective equipment. Responding to a highly critical Sunday Times article, Downing Street insisted the government had been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect (the National Health Service) and save lives. The government has ordered everyone to stay at home except for trips for food shopping, medical needs, or one form of exercise per day. Schools, pubs and restaurants are closed, and people are encouraged to work at home and avoid public transport. (dpa/NAN) Nearly 3,000 migrant workers were provided with food-kits by Denmark-headquartered Grundfos in association with non-governmental organisations here, a senior official said on Monday. Grundfos India general manager Saravanan Panneer Selvam said the company has been working closely with local authorities to provide food kits to migrant workers in this kind of an unprecedented time. "We are also donating towards other food distribution efforts in the city.We realise the critical support that our healthcare and medical staff require," he said in a statement. The company said its Bjerringbro facility in Denmark was delivering 5,000 face shields to serve the frontline health workers in the fight against coronavirus. The delivery of such shields was also in countries where the company has production facility, it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mumbai, April 20 : From theatre to television, cinema to digital platforms, veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah is constantly proving his relevance as a performing artist. Although there is nothing to prove as far as his skill as an actor goes, he dsays that he wakes up every day to the new sun with the belief that he has "something to give" to the audience. "I think it is the suspicion that I still have function left to fulfil, I am not done yet as an actor. I still have something to give (to the audience) and I am lucky that people still want to watch me. I am lucky, and also the fact that I love my work, I love acting. There is something about performing. I can't explain the excitement, and I haven't got over it. I think I am obsessed with acting. I think when I wake up tomorrow morning if I am unable to perform, I probably will commit suicide. What is there in life without it?" the 70-year-old actor told IANS. Shah is one of the most revered faces of parallel cinema and has also tasted commercial success. Over the years, he has worked with the biggest of filmmakers across genres, and he says he has always been supportive of debutant filmmakers. "When I interact with newcomer I have the example of people like Habib Tanvir, Girish Karnad, Om Puri, Shyam Benegal, Satyadev Dubey. When I was a youngster, they were ideals for me. When one struggles, encouragement is needed, and these people always guided us. Perhaps it is because of them, even in our darkest days, we stayed hopeful and continued our struggle to become the actor we are. So when I work with new actors and film directors, I try and encourage the story that is worth telling," he said. Asked if the politics of an on-screen characters matters to him when he agrees to do a film, Shah said: " It is not always the character but what the intention behind telling the story is that matters the most." Citing an example, the actor elaborates: " If the film 'Khuda Kay Liye' were about glorifying the Taliban I would have not come on board to be part of the story. Coming from a very orthodox Muslim family, as a child I was told that Islam is the greatest religion and all non-Muslims are 'kaafirs'. But those thoughts used to disturb me as a growing adult. I was like, 'but my friend KC Singh is such a nice fellow, it was not his decision to born a Hindu, so why would he go to hell?' We do not choose our parents and the religion we are born into'. Why should music be banned? All those questions were addressed in 'Khuda Kay Liye'. So, as an actor, I had to agree with the ideology that the story was showing, not necessarily the character that I was portraying." (Arundhuti Banerjee can be contacted at arundhuti.b@ians.in) People must risk criminal prosecution in order to challenge fines for alleged lockdown breaches, the justice secretary has said. Police have so far issued more than 3,200 fines under new coronavirus laws that make leaving home without reasonable excuse an offence. A lawyer told The Independent of concerns that penalties had been handed out incorrectly amid confusion over differences between the law and government guidance. But the justice secretary told a parliamentary committee that the only way to challenge the new fines is by refusing to pay and risking prosecution. Speaking at a remote hearing of the Joint Committee on Human Rights on Monday, Robert Buckland said: If the individual doesnt accept that notice the matter will then, on the discretion of a prosecutor, proceed to court. Then we have the due process. Mr Buckland argued that people would then be able to challenge the allegation and have a fair trial in line with human rights and common law. When asked why an alternative route of appeal had not been created, he insisted that the government had struck the right balance. Fines under the Health Protection Regulations are set at a default of 60 reduced to 30 if paid promptly but can be increased to a maximum of 960 for repeat offences. If a fine is paid, no criminal offence is recorded because the law states that the person has discharged any liability to conviction for the offence. But if the fine is not paid within 28 days, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) can charge them with committing the alleged crime, making them attend a magistrates court and face receiving both a higher fine and a criminal record if convicted. Some police may have gone too far in enforcing lockdown, senior Tory admits There are fears that the coronavirus pandemic will make people even more unwilling to attend court to defend themselves because of caring responsibilities and the potential risk of infection. Last week, police leaders admitted that 39 fines had unlawfully been given to children, who cannot be punished under the Health Protection Regulations. Several forces have apologised for officers actions and statements that appeared to overstep the regulations, which are different from government guidance. The law does not limit how many times people can exercise outside a day, has no exhaustive list of reasonable excuses to leave home, does not ban driving into the countryside for a walk or define essential travel. Thomas Sherrington, a barrister who specialises in crime and regulatory work, told The Independent anecdotal reports suggest the misuse of police powers. If some people receiving fines took it to court they would probably successfully defend themselves, but many will avoid the prosecution and pay 30, he added. I suspect many people have just paid up. Mr Sherrington, of St Johns Buildings, said it was impossible to know how many of the thousands of fines handed out so far were justified because of the lack of public proceedings. You cant possibly know how many of those are accurate, he added. I dont criticise the police so much in this because the legislation was drafted at pace, but there is an overeagerness and lack of understanding about what the powers are and how far they go. The Joint Committee on Human Rights previously raised concern that police were punishing people without any legal basis. Chair Harriet Harman said widespread confusion as to what people are and are not permitted to do was leading to violations of fundamental freedoms, with people being questioned, fined and even arrested when they have not broken the law. Welcome to lockdown Britain Show all 20 1 /20 Welcome to lockdown Britain Welcome to lockdown Britain Westminster Bridge stands deserted on the morning after Boris Johnson announced the UK was in lockdonw PA Welcome to lockdown Britain The clock tower in Leicester on the day after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown PA Welcome to lockdown Britain The A23 north of Brighton is relatively empty on the morning after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown AFP/Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain The Bullring in Birmingham on the day after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown PA Welcome to lockdown Britain A sign informing residents that bingo is cancelled for the forseeable future in Eyam, Derbyshire AFP/Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Empty streets in Skegness the day after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown PA Welcome to lockdown Britain Reverend Paul Unsworth prepares food parcels for the homeless in London Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Streets of Windsor are deserted on the morning after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown AP Welcome to lockdown Britain The Greyfriars Bobby statue in Edinburgh after Boris Johnson urged the public to stay indoors Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Gallowtree Gate in Leicester on the day after the prime minister put the UK in lockdown PA Welcome to lockdown Britain An isolated couple watch the prime minister's announcement that the UK is to be put in lockdown in Weybridge, Surrey Reuters Welcome to lockdown Britain People jog in Battersea Park in London the morning after the prime minister announced the UK is going into lockdown with people only allowed outside for essentials and daily exercise Reuters Welcome to lockdown Britain McDonald's on High Wycombe High Street High Street displays a sign for takeaway only shortly before closing indefinitely as the prime minister announced that the UK is tto be put in lockdown Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Deserted streets of Bristol after Boris Johnson urged people to stay indoors Tom Wren/SWNS Welcome to lockdown Britain Kathryn Hadley and her husband David who are in self-isolation in their home in Clutton, Somerset. David has terminal cancer and Kathryn is in a wheelchair Tom Wren/SWNS Welcome to lockdown Britain Residents of Marsden, West Yorkshire head home from the shops on the day Boris Johnson urged the public to stay indoors AFP/Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Dennis's kebab van remains open for business in a deserted High Wycombe High Street as the prime minister announces that the UK is to enter lockdown Getty Welcome to lockdown Britain Drawings of rainbows stuck on a tree in Davenham, Cheshire Reuters Welcome to lockdown Britain Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport in London after the prime minister announced the UK is to enter lockdown PA Welcome to lockdown Britain Deserted streets of Bristol after Boris Johnson urged people to stay indoors SWNS Mr Buckland said the government was attempting to strike the right balance between human rights and slowing the spread of coronavirus. He admitted that the lockdown does represent an infringement with regard to human rights because of the measures needed. The measures have the ultimate function and purpose of upholding a fundamental human right the right to life, Mr Buckland added, saying all government departments had sought legal advice. The justice secretary admitted that difficulty was arising from the differences and contradictions between the regulations and the guidance set out by the government. But he argued that the law deals with need and the guidance illustrates the way in which you go about it. Following the exposure of several wrongful convictions under the Coronavirus Act, which was intended to allow police to enforce potential testing and quarantine measures that were not imposed, Mr Buckland said there had been deeply unfortunate cases. He claimed the judiciary would make the necessary rulings to correct errors where police had made interpretations that go beyond what we would say is reasonable. Policing by consent principles should apply if were in an emergency or not, Mr Buckland said, calling for the 43 forces in England and Wales to publish regional guidance on coronavirus. Officers have already been given several sets of national guidance aiming to improve consistency in the application of new laws, including examples of reasonable excuses to be outside drawn up by the CPS. The authority has told prosecutors to consider the coronavirus pandemic when deciding whether it is in the public interest to charge suspects with an offence, as backlogs mount following the closure of more than half of the courts in England and Wales. Mr Buckland said the criminal justice system was facing an unprecedented challenge and that courts were attempting to use more telephone and video hearings. While the effects are going to be felt for some time in the system, we are doing everything we can to operate it and the judiciary are planning for what the recovery might look like, he added. Around 2,500 protesters gathered at the Washington state capitol on April 19 to demonstrate against the ongoing stay-at-home orders despite coronavirus threat. The protesters not only defied the ban on gatherings of 50 people or more but many of them were reportedly present there without wearing masks. Governor Jay Inslee slammed Republican legislators for claiming the social distancing measures as a deep state plot and inciting people to defy stay-at-home orders. Taking to Twitter, Inslee said that radical statements by Republican lawmakers are irresponsible and could lead to the spread of the deadly virus. I support free speech. But crowd counts or speeches wont determine our course. This isnt about politics. It can only be about doing what is best for the health of all Washingtonians. Governor Jay Inslee (@GovInslee) April 19, 2020 Read: COVID-19: Donald Trump Calls Social Distancing Protesters 'great People' Inslee said that he has been hearing from people who want to reopen their businesses and go back to work but they are staying home to accomplish it as soon as possible. Calling it difficult and frustrating times, the Washington governor added that he understands the urgency of the crisis but it is not the time to halt the progress. 'Great people' However, US President Donald Trump called people protesting against their governors social distancing measures as great people. In a series of tweets, Trump had called for liberation of the states as the protesters continued to demand the reopening of businesses and end stay-at-home orders. LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020 Read: North Korea Denies Sending Letter To Donald Trump Recently: Report Meanwhile, Inslee has agreed with California Governor Gavin Newsom and Oregon Governor Kate Brown on a shared vision for reopening the economies and controlling the pandemic. In a joint statement, the governors said that the West Coast will flip the script on COVID-19 with states acting in close coordination. Read: Trump Explodes At China; Wants To Send Investigators To Wuhan To Find Covid 'plague' Truth Read: COVID-19: Donald Trump Claims 'total Authority' Over Decision To Lift Lockdown (Image source: AP) A mother who spent six days on a ventiltor after contracting the coronavirus has thanked the NHS staff whose 'second to none' care saved her life. Ruth Andrews, from East Sussex, who was put into an induced coma for nearly a week while battling the virus, appeared on Good Morning Britain today with her husband Craig, where she was surprised by the hospital staff who treated her. The mum-of-two told that she was 'incredibly overwhelmed' by her treatment and said 'thank you will never be enough' for allowing her the opportunity to see her husband and children again. Ruth Andrews (pictured left with husband Craig) , from East Sussex, appeared on Good Morning Britain today,where she was surprised by the hospital staff who treated her with coronavirus After seeing staff nurses Kim Heiser and April Tolentino , sister Sadie Williams, physiotherapist Lara Gomez and senior sister Rose Singson appearing from the Hastings hospital she was treated, she said: 'I'm incredibly overwhelmed'. 'Thank you will never, ever be enough. You have given me a new opportunity of everything. The chance to see my daughter dance and being with my husband.' Ruth explained that not only had her medical care been 'amazing', but praised the emotional support she received on a 'human level', which allowed her to 'get back home'. The mum-of-two told that she was 'incredibly overwhelmed' by her treatment and said 'thank you will never be enough' (L-R) Staff nurses Kim Heiser and April Tolentino , sister Sadie Williams, physiotherapist Lara Gomez and senior sister Rose Singson appeared from the Hastings hospital Ruth was treated in 'Your care is second to none, not only medically amazing but that human level. 'Giving me the company and the support and encouragement and care to get back home, you are wonderful people. Thank you so much.' Staff nurse Kim told that she was 'in tears' when Ruth was able to come off her ventilator. She said: 'I was fortunate enough to be on duty when Ruth came off the ventilator. I cried, she had done so well.' The governments decision to insist on regulatory oversight of Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) is an attempt to ring-fence Indias capital hungry startup and tech trailblazers being swallowed up by cash rich investors from the dragon country, many of which may enjoy tacit state support. Over the weekend (April 18), the department of promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) tweaked rules, making FDI by any entity of a country, which shares land border with India subject to government approval. The move may impact investments from countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Bhutan and more importantly China. Not surprisingly, Beijing is the only country to have responded to the Indian decision, describing it discriminatory. Ji Rong, the spokesperson for the Chinese embassy asked India to revise discriminatory practices and treat investments from different countries equally. Until now, a non-resident entity or a foreign investor could invest in India, subject to FDI rules, except in sectors/activities which are prohibited. However, countries such as Bangladesh and Pakistan could invest only after government approvals and only in select sectors. Also Watch | Chinese threat amid Covid impact: Why India changed FDI rules But the Covid-19 crisis has dramatically transformed the business landscape across the world, with many Indian startups and tech companies seeing their valuations slump. This raised concerns about companies selling off stake at a discount as they scramble to stay afloat in an uncertain economic environment. The influence of Chinese investment in Indias startups have been growing. The statistics are telling. According to a recent study by Gateway House: Indian Council on Global Relations, a foreign policy think-tank, 18 of the 30 Indian unicorns (companies valued at more than $1 billion) have a Chinese investor. This means that China is embedded in Indian society, the economy, and the technology ecosystem that influences it, the report said. Unlike a port or a railway line, these are invisible assets in small sizes rarely over $100 million and made by the private sector, which doesnt cause immediate alarm. Gateway House has identified over 75 companies, with Chinese investors concentrated in e-commerce, fintech, media/social media, aggregation services and logistics. A majority more than half of Indias 30 Indian unicorns (start-ups with valuation of over $1 billion) have a Chinese investor. These include storied names such as PayTM, Oyo, BigBasket, Ola, PolicyBazaar and Delhivery among others. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval has been flagging concerns over Chinese dominance in Indias booming tech space over the last few years, particularly pointing out worrying possibilities of Beijings state-funded apparatus controlling startups here through opaque corporate structures. Top government sources told Hindustan Times that the national security planners believed that firewalls were needed as India and China had many outstanding disputes and legacy issues. These primarily related to the unresolved 3,488 kilometre-long boundary dispute apart from Beijing using Islamabad as a proxy to hit at New Delhi on all fronts including keeping Jammu and Kashmir on a permanent boil. Until the spread of Covid-19, Raisina Hill was not warm to the idea of government oversight on Chinese FDI, with a strand of thought dominating that such a move could affect FDI inflows into India. Besides, it was felt that it could unsettle the fragile equilibrium in India-China bilateral relations, sources pointed out. The institutional knowledge of economic affairs, commerce and industry as well as ministry of external affairs relegated such a policy proposal change to the back burner. The Covid-19 outbreak provided an opportunity to Modi 2.0 to operationalize the FDI changes, with the proposal now enjoying bi-partisan support within Indias security and policy brainstrust. The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Modi cleared the policy on April 17 with total support from Home Minister Amit Shah. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. That this was an idea whose time had come hit home on February 1, when the government realised that there was hardly any Indian company that was manufacturing either personal protective equipment, ventilators or masks that the whole world is shopping for in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. Concessions to Chinese imports had also virtually pushed manufacturing out of the country including production of the much-needed critical active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). There have also been concerns within the government that its signature Make in India initiative, first launched in 2014 to turn India into a manufacturing powerhouse, was being severely impacted by the allowances that had been extended to China. China is Indias largest bilateral merchandise trading partner, but the balance of trade is heavily tilted in favour of Beijing. Total India-China bilateral trade stood at USD 95.7 billion in 2019, with a deficit of USD 58 billion in favour of Beijing. The total Chinese FDI investment as per industry is USD 6.2 billion in India. The latest move is part of a series of steps that the government has taken since the start of this week after Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd (HDFC) said that Peoples Bank of China (PBOC) had raised its stake in the home lender from 0.8% to 1.01% in the March quarter through open market purchases. This led many to voice concerns that Indias systemically-important companies could be vulnerable to creeping take over from foreign investors, aided by dropping valuations. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 13:43:51|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Healthcare workers wheel a patient to a triage tent at the Maimonides Medical Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York, the United States, April 19, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States topped 750,000 Sunday evening, reaching 759,086 as of 8:00 p.m. (0000 GMT on Monday), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University. A total of 40,661 people have died of the disease in the country, according to the CSSE. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Xinhua) WASHINGTON, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Confirmed infections of COVID-19 in the United States exceeded 750,000 with over 40,000 deaths recorded as of Sunday while federal and state leaders are making an increasingly hard choice between ensuring public health safety and reopening the battered economy. The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached 759,086 as of 8:00 p.m. Sunday evening (0000 GMT on Monday) and a total of 40,661 people have died, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University. The state of New York suffered the most cases of 247,815, as well as the highest death toll of 18,298 while New Jersey recorded 85,301 cases and 4,362 deaths, the CSSE tally showed. Other states with over 30,000 cases include Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, California, Michigan and Illinois. Data indicated that New York was "past the high point" of the outbreak, but "any plan that is going to start to reopen the economy has to be based on data and that means it has to be based on testing," New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said on Sunday. New York plans to roll out antibody testing this week to determine who has been infected with the virus, which will be the "largest survey of any state population that has been done," Cuomo said. Researchers at Harvard University have estimated that it will take nearly 500,000 to 700,000 tests a day to reopen the economy by mid-May. Data showed that the United States conducted an average of less than 150,000 tests a day in the last week. U.S. President Donald Trump has issued three-phase guidelines for states on when to reopen businesses and put the nation's economy back on track. More than 22 million Americans, or around 14 percent of the U.S. workforce, have filed jobless claims since mid-March, when most restrictions began to be imposed across the country, according to the latest report from Labor Department. Multiple governors of the East Coast, West Coast and the Midwest of the United States have announced regional pacts to come up with a plan to re-engage economies. Over the weekend, rallies against stay-at-home orders broke out in states such as Michigan, Virginia, California, Kentucky, Minnesota, Ohio, North Carolina, Colorado, Utah, Washington and Maryland. However, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found the majority of Americans are worried that social distancing restrictions will be lifted too early. Another survey by the Pew Research Center in April showed that nearly six in 10 in the survey said they were concerned that the country would move too fast and loosen restrictions aimed at slowing the outbreak, while around three in 10 expressed their greater worries about the economic impact. Enditem An inmate at the California Institution for Men in Southern California died from what appears to be complications from COVID-19, prison officials said Sunday, marking the states first coronavirus fatality among its 120,000 prisoners. Hours earlier, San Francisco Sheriff Paul Miyamoto announced that a second inmate at a San Francisco jail has tested positive for the coronavirus. The news comes three days after another inmate was the first to test positive. Neither is showing symptoms of the virus and both were being isolated in County Jail #2. The troubling milestones come as jails and prisons continue to adopt increasingly sweeping measures to beat back what could be disastrous outbreaks inside the tight confines of incarceration. Miyamoto said Sunday that new protocol to test every inmate for the virus, at booking, may have helped stave off further spread. Jail Health Services, a section of the Department of Public Health, started the policy April 12. This enables Jail Health Services to identify asymptomatic people who are carrying the virus and keep them isolated from the general population until they test negative or are released from jail, Miyamoto said. Both inmates are isolated and housed in a dedicated pod in County Jail #2, which can hold up to 21% of the in-custody population. The Sheriff's Office has been isolating newly arrested people in the facility since March 18, a day after San Francisco issued the shelter-in-place health order. State prison officials say they have taken unprecedented steps to slow the spread of the coronavirus at their facilities, including reducing the prison population by more than 6,000 people and moving hundreds more from dormitories to vacant spaces. Still, two sizable outbreaks flared up at Southern California facilities, with 59 confirmed cases at California Institution for Men in Chino (San Bernardino County) including the man who died and 50 confirmed cases at the Los Angeles County prison. As of Sunday evening, there were 115 prisoners who had tested positive for the virus at the states 35 facilities. Bay Area jails also have taken major steps to reduce jail populations to slow the spread of the virus. San Franciscos jail population was at a historic low Sunday with 725 people in custody, down 36% from the average population in January. 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. Across the bay, a spike in coronavirus cases at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin appears to be leveling off. There have been 31 inmates who tested positive for the virus, 15 of whom have recovered and one who has been released, according to the Alameda County Sheriffs Office. By Sunday afternoon, there were no new cases reported in the previous 24 hours. Judicial officials in Alameda County have also released hundreds of people in the past few weeks to stave off an outbreak in closely confined quarters. The Santa Rita Jail population fell by more than 800 in the past several weeks, from 2,597 on March 1 to 1,763 on Sunday. Public defenders in both San Francisco and Alameda counties have pointed to the coronavirus cases behind bars as grounds to release inmates. Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a High Court appeal in the UK against his extradition order to India. In February 2019, the 64-year old businessman had appealed to the UK High Court against his extradition. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," news agency PTI reported the judges' ruling. A bankruptcy order was sought against Vijay Mallya by a consortium of the Indian public sector banks led by State Bank of India (SBI). The consortium seeks to recover nearly Rs 9,000 crore of unpaid loans from the embattled liquor baron. Vijay Mallya was chairman of United Breweries (UB) Group which has diverse interests in brewing, distilling, real estate, biotechnology and information technology. He fled India in March 2016 and has been living in the UK since then.In March, the Supreme Court adjourned a plea filed by Mallya, requesting a stay on proceedings initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to declare him as a fugitive economic offender and confiscate his assets amounting to Rs 9,000 crore.Vijay Mallya last month tweeted that he had made repeated offers to pay 100 per cent of the amount Kingfisher Airlines had borrowed from the banks. He said, "Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks." Vijay Mallya also wished that the Finance Minister would listen to him in times of this crisis."Indian Government has done what was unthinkable in locking down the entire Country. We respect that. All my Companies have effectively ceased operations. All manufacturing is closed as well. Yet we are not sending employees home and paying the idle cost. The has to help" , he also tweeted. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: No curfew relief in Delhi; review meet on April 27; tally-2,003 Also read: Coronavirus lockdown: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs Having survived a civil war, Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu camps say they are prepared to battle coronavirus crisis: 'Covid is only a new dimension to our suffering. We will not allow it to defeat us. Three decades ago, a then eight-year-old Sukumaran* landed on the shores of Tamil Nadu, fleeing war-torn Sri Lanka. Since then, the Sri Lankan refugee camp in Madurai has been his home. I lost my mother here, my sisters got married here and so did I. This is where my roots are, he says. Sukumaran is among the many refugees in camps across Tamil Nadu who hope the government will someday grant them citizenship so they can live with a little more freedom on the same land. Since the end of civil war in Sri Lanka in 2009, about 15,000 refugees have already returned to the island nation. But for others like Sukumaran, Tamil Nadu is their home. We grew up here. We have an entire generation that has no idea what Sri Lanka looks like. It scares us to imagine an entirely new life in Sri Lanka. We might have to start from the scratch and not all of us are prepared for it, he notes. At least 54,000 Sri Lankan Tamils live as refugees in 107 camps across the state, including a special camp in Tiruchy. About 32,000 Sri Lankan Tamils live outside of camps. Follow LIVE updates on the coronavirus outbreak here. Having spent a major portion of their lives in the congested lanes and closely located houses in the camps, these Sri Lankan Tamil refugees have probably seen it all until the coronavirus outbreak, that is. It has jolted our somewhat settled lives, says Sukumaran. Most homes share a wall, and toilets are common, making physical isolation and quarantining challenging. But from raising awareness to using disinfectants, to raising funds for the community and for contributions to relief efforts, these refugees are finding various ways to tide over or survive the crisis. Like many refugees in the camps, Sukumaran takes on painting jobs to sustain his livelihood. That is the only job where you dont need any kind of investment, so you can see many painters in any Sri Lankan camp, he explains. But with the nationwide coronavirus-related lockdown, jobs are scarce for Sukumaran and many others, forcing them to survive on the limited provisions disbursed by the government. This is just one part of the problem though. There are 72 families at Minnur camp near Vellore, says a resident, Murugan*. Some who had gone to other districts and states for work have come back now, but they have not been screened. The 10X10 houses at the refugee camps do not offer the luxury of isolation or quarantine for the residents who have returned. The registered members of the camps do get some provisions from the government but Murugan says those not registered needed to be taken care of too, adding: Also, we need to definitely have health checkups o screenings in our camps, considering that there are many people who have come back from other districts and states. At present, no covid-19 positive cases have been reported from the refugee camps. However, in the Madurai camp, each family lives so close to the other that containing the spread of the virus, should it occur, would be difficult, says Sukumaran. While the government has many priorities, some focus on the camps is also needed as they must realise the potential danger of the spread of covid-19 in a place like a refugee camp. For those who have experienced a civil war, the coronavirus outbreak could prove less challenging. We are in mortal fear yes, but that has not stopped us from doing our bit, says Santhosh*, a resident at a camp in Thoothukudi. Refugees at many camps have set up action committees to address issues as best they can. At Madurai, besides disinfecting the roads and toilets on regular basis, the committee also distributed Kabasurakudineer a decoction that purportedly boosts immunity. The Thoothukudi camp has come up with music videos to create awareness around the coronavirus and emphasising the need for social isolation. Registered members of the various camps have also been raising money to support those without registration and therefore ineligible for government relief. Difficult times notwithstanding, refugees at the camp in Namakkal have raised Rs 10,000 to contribute to the states coronavirus relief fund. Says one of the camp residents, Yes, we struggle more now, but we cannot remain idle when there is such a crisis. The Tamil Nadu government has helped us, now it is our turn to give back however little. An outlier in this narrative is the Tiruchy special camp, which is meant to house offender, and currently counts about 54 Sri Lankan Tamils and 20 refugees from other countries among its residents. Our offence was that we had either procured a duplicate passport or tried to leave India by boat both illegal, says Suresh*, a 59-year-old Sri Lankan Tamil refugee. We were arrested, lodged in prison, and after being released on bail, brought to the Tiruchy camp. The residents of this camp are now demanding that they be released and allowed to join their families living elsewhere. From 15 April, some 21 residents of the camp have been on hunger strike to press for their demand. The camps conditions are not really good; some people have used their own money to improve conditions, but this is not the kind of place you would want to live in during a crisis like this. Our place is not disinfected, we are not screened medically, Suresh says. The residents have written to the Chief Minister and other political leaders seeking their intervention to facilitate their release. The residents also think it is imperative that they be allowed to live with their families when there is a global crisis ongoing. Suresh, for instance, says he is constantly worried about his family, who live in Madippakkam in Chennai. Vanni Arasu, deputy general secretary of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (an Ambedkarite party in Tamil Nadu that has consistently voiced its concern for Sri Lankan Tamil refugees), says those at the special camp should be immediately and unconditionally released. Arasu also says the government should come forward to release more relief material for the refugees in camps: Not all refugees get financial assistance and relief material. The government should not discriminate during a crisis like this. Those in the camps continue to hope that they will pull through the present crisis. We have survived a war, crossed seas and are living a refugee life, says Sukumaran. Covid is only a new dimension to our suffering. We will not allow it to defeat us. *Names of refugees have been changed to protect identity - President Jair Bolsonaro called on Brazilians to reject stay-indoor-orders that were being implemented by state governments - On Sunday, April 19, Bolsonaro joined civilians in protesting against the orders saying they will affect the economy - Recently, the president reportedly sacked his health minister for asking citizens to observe social distancing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has joined demonstrators in protesting against lockdown orders that were being implemented by state governments. On Sunday, April 19, the head of state joined hundreds of demonstrators outside army headquarters in the capital Brasilia to protest stay-at-home orders. READ ALSO: Coronavirus update: 8 more people test positive, national tally stands at 270 Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro when he joined protesters oustide the army headquarters. Photo: France 24 Source: UGC READ ALSO: Homa Bay family insists burial was real, says relatives bought coffin in Nairobi According to a report by Vox News, Bolsonaro also appeared to suggest the army should intervene in handling of the coronavirus pandemic and demanded the closure of Congress. "I am here because I believe in you and you are here because you believe in Brazil," the president told the crowd from the back of a pick-up truck. Bolsonaro had been vehemently opposed to the partial quarantine measures implemented by the governors, including those in charge of the country's most populous states, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. READ ALSO: Landilodi mkarimu atoa msaada wa chakula kwa wapangaji wake baada ya kuwaondolea kodi Although the president did not respond directly to the crowd's call for military intervention nor the demand to close Congress, he encouraged them to fight for their country. "You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro told the protesters. On Friday, April 17, the president reportedly sacked his Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta for supporting the lockdown which according to him was damaging the economy. READ ALSO: Kenyan newspapers review for April 20: Nigeria to rely on DCI findings during probe into death of Ruth Matete's husband Bolsonaro has consistently downplayed the virus, calling it a little flu and arguing that Brazilians were well-suited for it because they could be dunked in sewage and dont catch a thing. The president has also frequently defied social distancing guidelines from his own administration and opposed lockdowns initiated by governors of states, accusing them of exploiting the pandemic for political gain. By Monday, April 20, Brazil with a population of more than 200 million, had reported the most COVID-19 cases in Latin America with 38,654 infections and 2,462 deaths. 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. Source: TUKO.co.ke We are taking extra precautions to make sure that our community stays safe during this outbreak. Everyone including our staff, patients and their family members wear masks while in the facility. We also enforce hand hygiene for everyone. SignatureCare Emergency Center has announced that four of its 17 emergency room locations have begun screening all patients to the ER for coronavirus (COVID-19) infection. To ensure the safety of patients, their families and the ER staff, the company has set up outside tents to screen all visitors to its Stafford, Midland, Killeen, and TC Jester (Houston Heights), TX emergency rooms. SignatureCare Emergency Center announced that it is also collecting samples from patents for COVID-19 laboratory testing at the tents. SignatureCare Emergency Center said the purpose of the outside screening is to ensure minimal community transmission of the coronavirus pandemic and to keep the community safe. It's all about safety for the community. The goal is to limit the number of potential transmissions for our patients when they and their families visit our emergency centers, said Dr. Hashibul Hannan, a board-certified emergency room physician and managing partner at SignatureCare Emergency Center. We know COVID-19 is highly contagious and can be transmitted even when you are asymptomatic, so this is just one of the critical steps we are taking to protect the community and our staff, he added. Besides these screenings, the company has taken other steps including enforcing wearing of masks for everyone in the emergency centers, equipping all centers with HEPA air filtration, and complete sanitization of furniture and equipment after each patient use. We are taking extra precautions to make sure that our community stays safe during this outbreak. Everyone including our staff, patients and their family members wear masks while in the facility. We also enforce hand hygiene for everyone. All our facilities are equipped with HEPA air filtration and every room, and furniture is sanitized before patients enter the rooms, Dr. Hannan said. He added that all linens in all emergency rooms are changed for every new patient. We also have a negative pressure isolation room available in each facility should one be needed. At SignatureCare Emergency Center, we go beyond the minimum standard required for the safety of our patients and staff. On other steps taken by SignatureCare Emergency Center locations to protect patients and their families, Dr. Hannan said that as soon as patients arrive, they are taken directly to private rooms with minimal contact with other patients and visitors. We know that hospital waiting rooms are crowded with possible COVID-19 patients. We, however, take you directly to a private room, to minimize contact with others and protect your health, he said. Dr. Hannan advised all patients to call the emergency center before arriving at the ER if they suspect they might have COVID-19 infection. If you have fever, cough, or shortness of breath, please call ahead so that we can escort you in through our ambulance bay to minimize the spread of COVID-19 to others. We are also able to provide diagnostic testing and treatment of major and minor injuries or illnesses, he added. About SignatureCare Emergency Center SignatureCare Emergency Center owns 24-hour emergency centers throughout Texas including nine locations in the Houston area (Montrose, Houston Heights, Cypress/FM 1960, Copperfield, Memorial City, Westchase, Bellaire, Mission Bend/Sugar Land and Stafford), Killeen, Austin, College Station, Paris, Midland, Odessa, Texarkana and our newest location in Lewisville, TX. Additional information is on our website at https://ercare24.com. While the whole world is dealing with the wrath of COVID-19, the whole ordeal has been more terrible for doctors and medical practitioners in the front line who are risking their lives while trying to treat people with the novel coronavirus. Reuters And a recent report by PTI has revealed how several Indian origin doctors in the US have sacrificed their lives to the novel coronavirus. This has been brought to light by the Indian-American community leaders who state that a considerable number of Indian-origin doctors have gotten infected during this pandemic. One of them was 61-year old Dr Madhvi Aya, who contracted COVID-19 in New York. The report describes her final days spent communicating with her family via text messages before succumbing to the deadly coronavirus. Pic Credits: Minnoli Aya/ Anisha Khanna Sharma Early this week, Indian American nephrologist Priya Khanna, 43, passed away in a New Jersey hospital. Her father Satyendra Khanna (78), a general surgeon, is still fighting his battle against COVID-19 and is said to be in a critical condition in the intensive care unit in the same hospital. Another doctor was treating a COVID-19 patient in New Jersey earlier this month, when the patient threw up, which hit his face. The doctor fell sick and eventually didnt survive the coronavirus. Ravi Kolli, secretary of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) said in a conversation with PTI, There are at least 10 (Indian American doctors) who are critically ill. One of the largest doctors' organisations of its kind, the AAPI represents more than 80,000 Indian-American doctors, who constitute the largest ethnic group of physicians in the US. He further added, AAPI members, as a group, are over-represented in all the hotspot areas, as well as caring for underserved populations. PTI According to the USs Centre For Disease Control and Prevention, Asian Americans aren't as adversely impacted by COVID-19 compared to other ethnic groups. CDC data has recently revealed that they account for around 4.4 percent of the total infected cases. Kolli concluded stating, They are bravely leading the enormous challenge of fighting COVID 19 pandemic at their own personal risk without a second thought, which speaks volumes for their compassion, commitment and sense of duty. Hours after Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) wrote a letter to Kerala government taking strong objection to the latter's decision to open restaurants, bus travel for shorter distances, allow private vehicles on an odd-even during the lockdown, the Pinarayi Vijayan-led government in the state said on Monday (April 21) that the state will reconsider relaxation of lockdown. "Kerala has received a letter from the Centre regarding the dilution of lockdown guidelines. We are discussing what can be done. If needed, necessary modifications will be made, said Kerala Chief Secretary Tom Jose Kerala Minister Kadakampally Surendran said the relaxations were announced by the state government as per the directions issued by Centre and the Centre may have sought an explanation, due to some misunderstanding. "Once we give an explanation, I hope the issue will be solved. We followed all norms set by the Centre," added Surendran. Earlier, the MHA had written a letter to the Kerala government, saying the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. Such additional activities allowed by the government of Kerala, include opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheeler and pillion riding on scooters, added the letter. According to MHA, this amounts to dilution of guidelines and violation of the order issued by the MHA on April 15 under the Disaster Management Act 2005. The U.N. Human Rights Office reports scores of civilians are being killed, wounded and abducted in worsening Inter-ethnic violence between the Hema and Lendu in eastern Democratic Republic of Congos Ituri Province. More than 150 people have been killed in Djugu and Mahagi territories in Ituri province since early March, raising the number of civilian deaths this year to more than 200. In addition, the U.N. Human Rights Office reports scores of other civilians have been wounded and abducted in this inter-ethnic conflict. The agency says attacks by CODECO fighters, a militia tied to the Lendu ethnic group, have escalated against the Hema people after their commander was killed on March 25 by the DRC Military. U.N. human rights spokesman, Rupert Colville, says 23 civilians were killed in the latest attack last week in the village of Koli. The brutality of the attacks with perpetrators using machetes to kill women and children, raping, looting property, destroying houses, killing livestock, suggests the aim is to inflict lasting trauma on the affected populations, forcing them to flee, and so gain control over the territory, which is rich in natural resources. The Lendu, who are mainly farmers and Hema, a herding and trading people, have been fighting sporadically for decades over valuable resources in their gold mining and oil rich province. Tens of thousands of people have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced. After a decade-long lull, fighting between the two groups re-emerged in late 2017. A U.N. report published January, found that widespread systematic attacks by the Lendu against the Hema civilian population may constitute crimes against humanity. Colville says the current leaders of the Lendu community have largely distanced themselves from the attackers. And, he notes the Hema and other ethnic groups in the area generally have shown restraint. But we are worried that if the attacks continue without a decisive response from the security forces to defend the civilian population, those communities may form self-defense militias and that would increase the likelihood of a descent into all out inter-communal violence, which would be absolutely catastrophic. The U.N. Human Rights Office is calling on the authorities to strengthen the presence of security forces in the region. It is urging officials to thoroughly investigate alleged abuses and human rights violations and to hold the perpetrators to account. South Sudan refugees in Kenya display their cultural heritage. Bishop Kussala calls on the govt to ensure the return of all exiles South Sudans Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro Kussala has urged his country to stay the course of peace, particularly after the establishment of the Transitional Government of National Unity. Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA Nairobi, Kenya Jesus first words to his Apostles after his resurrection were Peace be with you. This is the message which should take root in our nation which is thirsty for peace more than ever, the Bishop of Tombura-Yambio Diocese said. S.Sudan needs a full government to fight COVID-19 Barani Kussala acknowledged the progress made by the South Sudanese government in appointing national ministers. He described the incomplete formation of the government delaying the countrys advancement. I appreciate the formation of the presidency and appointment of the national ministers. However, the incomplete formation of the government has halted progress and left people in suspense. Everything seems to be at a standstill, he said. COVID-19 is the bigger enemy Coupled with this is the fact that, just as we were combining efforts to put in place a government of national unity, the pandemic of coronavirus came up, the Bishop said. He added, We have now at hand a bigger enemy which threatens us all. That being the case, we cannot afford any further hostilities, he emphasised. Let us embrace the ideals of independence The Bishop reminded his compatriots of the independence ideals they set for themselves. During years of struggle for independence and political freedoms, the country crafted a noble goal, namely the justice, liberty and prosperity for South Sudan. The prelate continued, Let us all work towards making this ideal a reality for every South Sudanese, for we have no other country but South Sudan where we ought to live and achieve the full potential of human aspirationsWe all must learn to live as brothers, sisters and friends because that is what we are, he said. Govt should expedite the return of exiles Barani Kussala further outlined recommendations which would be helpful to the leadership in entrenching peace in the country. I recommend speedy dialogue to find solutions to the remaining issues so as to give South Sudan and its citizenry true peace so that so many of our compatriots held up in suffering and exile enjoy the ideals for which our nation exists. Barani Kussala also encouraged those in government leadership to make painful compromises to complete the formation of government in view of promoting the common good of all. The international community should help S. Sudan with COVID-19 The Bishop also appreciated the contribution of the international community towards peace in South Sudan. He prayed that the international community would assist South Sudan to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Hair stylists in Massachusetts are asking the governor to make an exception to his executive order shutting down non-essential businesses until May 4, calling for a soft opening of salons. The petition, created Wednesday on MoveOn.org, calls for a soft opening of salons on April 27, more than a week before the non-essential business order is expected to lift. The petition asks the governor to let licensed cosmetologists and beauty professionals work privately with one client in the salon per stylist at a time. Since last week, the petition has garnered more than 4,500 signatures, according to the website. The petition states that these workers would follow all necessary precautions and sanitation protocols imposed by the state and the local boards of health, according to the website. Yet it is unclear what that would look like for hair salons with five or more employees, who could quickly surpass the restrictions on public gatherings if all employees are in a salon taking customers. Our industry needed to be recognized and deemed as an essential business so we can better serve our community, surviving one client at a time while wearing a mask and leaving time in between clients to clean and wipe all surfaces," the petition states. Dawn Desrosiers, who is listed as the creator of the petition, did not respond to an email seeking comment. Gov. Charlie Baker first issued an executive order shutting down non-essential businesses to the public in mid-March. At the end of the month, he extended it to May 4, citing concerns about an uptick in cases. There are exemptions for workers who are deemed essential. In recent weeks, Baker said models suggest a peak of cases will hit Massachusetts between April 10 and April 20. He did say that timeline could change, especially if people let up too early and violate social distancing measures. Baker was not available to respond to questions about the petition, but his office noted that the essential businesses order is meant to limit the number of workplaces open during the state of emergency to lower the chances that people will be out and transmitting the coronavirus to each other. The essential services list was based on a series of federal guidance issued earlier this month, with no exemptions for gun retailers and other tweaks that are specific to the states economy. It is unclear how soon Massachusetts will return to normal life. Baker has not yet announced a decision on when K-12 schools will reopen or if that could happen safely before September. But Baker said any plan to reopen the state will involve coordination with neighboring states. Last week, he joined a multi-state council with six other state leaders to restore the economy. The Massachusetts representatives include Kristen Lepore, Bakers chief of staff; Michael Kennealy, secretary of the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development; and Lauren Peters, undersecretary at the Executive Office of Health and Human Services. Related Content: Tata Motors Ltd is quoting at Rs 81.4, up 5.92% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The stock is down 65.34% in last one year as compared to a 20.16% fall in NIFTY and a 36.36% fall in the Nifty Auto index. Tata Motors Ltd rose for a third straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 81.4, up 5.92% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 0.11% on the day, quoting at 9256.9. The Sensex is at 31573.29, down 0.05%. Tata Motors Ltd has added around 22.96% in last one month. Meanwhile, Nifty Auto index of which Tata Motors Ltd is a constituent, has added around 21.25% in last one month and is currently quoting at 5668.9, down 1.05% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 913.3 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 571.11 lakh shares in last one month. The benchmark April futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 81.15, up 5.12% on the day. Tata Motors Ltd is down 65.34% in last one year as compared to a 20.16% fall in NIFTY and a 36.36% fall in the Nifty Auto index. The PE of the stock is 0 based on TTM earnings ending December 19. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) East China's Shanghai plans to build more than 100 unmanned factories, production lines and workshops, focusing on new manufacturing methods such as flexible and cloud manufacturing, according to an action plan released by the city on April 8. An automated workshop of Bao Steel in Shanghai. (Photo/Wenhuibao) Specifically, Shanghai will build exemplary unmanned factories by harnessing the power of the new generation of information technologies such as artificial intelligence, 5G, industrial internet, blockchain and big data, so as to boost smart manufacturing. The city aims to build 10 world-class intelligent manufacturing factories in sectors including chemical engineering and new materials. By 2021, the value of the intelligent manufacturing equipment sector in the city is expected to exceed 130 billion yuan, one of the highest in the country. The metropolis will also support the development of system integrators for intelligent manufacturing. It plans to support two such companies' listing on China's science and technology innovation board, and to build 10 world-class system integrators for intelligent manufacturing by 2021. According to the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the metropolis has preliminarily built 14 national intelligent manufacturing factories and 80 municipal ones, contributing to intelligent transformation of more than 500 large companies. The Lagos State government has said that out of the 14 deaths from COVID-19 the state has recorded, only two died in its facilities, while others died in private hospitals and also on their way to the state facilities. The state Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, disclosed this Sunday, April 19, while providing update on efforts by the state government to contain the pandemic. He said the state government was being proactive because it was better to be over-prepared than to be under-prepared. Abayomi also said that new isolation centres were being built to add more bed spaces aside the hotel facilities that had been provided by the state government that would be converted to isolation centres. He implored residents that have symptoms of COVID-19 not to stay at home, as it complicates issues. The commissioner added that only three of the 20 local councils in Lagos State have not recorded a single case of Coronavirus. He said there were no cases of the virus in Ojo, Epe and Ajeromi-Ifelodun local councils while Eti-Osa, Lagos Mainland and Ikeja were the three local councils with the highest cases of COVID-19. Post Views: 8 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Weekend Unlimited Industries Inc. ("Weekend" or the "Company") (CSE:POT)(FSE:0OS1)(OTCQB:WKULF) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with a creditor of the Company and pursuant to the agreement, the Company has agreed to issue an aggregate of 3,348,147 common shares in the capital of the Company to settle $301,333 of outstanding debt. For further information, please contact: Mr. Chris Backus, President & CEO, Director Telephone: 1(236) 317-2812 E-mail: IR@weekendunlimited.com About Weekend Unlimited Industries Inc. Weekend Unlimited is a lifestyle-based recreational cannabis and CBD wellness company. We are developing and launching premium cannabis and CBD brands to deliver life's highs - any- time, anywhere. Our CBD products are available online and at a retailer near you. Weekend Unlimited is well-positioned to launch and scale the brands that will define cannabis and CBD. Learn more at www.weekendunlimited.com Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the poli- cies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward Looking Statements Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward- looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding future financial position, business strategy, use of proceeds, corporate vision, proposed acquisitions, partnerships, joint-ventures and strategic alliances and co-operations, budgets, cost and plans and objectives of or involving the Company. Such forward-looking infor- mation reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to management. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by state- ments to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. A number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause the actual results or performance to materially differ from any future results or performance expressed or implied by the forward- looking information. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company including, but not limited to, the impact of general economic condi- tions, industry conditions and dependence upon regulatory approvals. 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 forward-looking statements. The Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new in- formation, future events, or otherwise, except as required by securities laws. SOURCE: Weekend Unlimited Industries Inc. View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/585963/Weekend-Unlimited-Finalizes-Debt-Settlement-Agreement As India continues to put up a strong fight against the COVID-19 outbreak, it is all thanks to the medical staff and police personnel working on the frontlines that most of us have been able to afford to sleep peacefully every night. In Indias fight against this invisible enemy, medical professionals and the police force are indeed the biggest warriors. Most of these individuals, bound by their sense of duty and honour, continue to face the possibility of death every minute in order to ensure that the general public is safe at home. Twitter - Rajkuma88966572 However, just like in the case of a literal war, casualties are to be found in this battle as well. Recently, a young police officer, Devendra Kumar Chadravanshi laid down his life in the fight against Coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh. Kumar was responsible for keeping things in order in his assigned area in Indore, which has now emerged as the other COVID-19 hotspot after Maharashtra. Here are 11 things we know about the braveheart police officer Devendra Kumar, who literally died fighting in the face of death: 1. Devendra Kumar hailed from the small town of Shajapur in Madhya Pradesh. He had joined the Madhya Pradesh Police Force in 2007 as a Sub-Inspector. 2. Kumar was last stationed at the Juni Police Station in Indore as the Station Head Officer. Twitter - ipspankajnain 3. He contracted the infection while on-duty amid the outbreak in the state, and had been fighting the infection at the Aurobindo Hospital for the past 20 days. 4. Kumar was laid to rest with complete state honours and the funeral attended by his seniors and colleagues who paid heartfelt tributes to their fallen comrade. 5. MP CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan declared that Kumar will be awarded the Karamveer Samman posthumously by the State on 15th August. Twitter - Pooja_Tripathii 6. Kumar is survived by his two daughters and widow Sushma. 7. CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan has promised 50 lakh compensation to the family and announced that Kumars wife will be joining the department as a Sub-Inspector. 8. Even while in the hospital, Kumar was constantly in touch with his team and kept taking updates on the situation on the ground. It was only after constant requests from his seniors that Kumar finally handed over his phone. Twitter - IRS Association 9. After a long fight, Kumar had been recovering and even tested negative twice. Doctors were planning to discharge him soon. However, he suddenly succumbed to COVID-19 on Sunday morning. 10. The cause of death is said to be due to pulmonary embolism - a condition in which one or more arteries in the lungs become blocked by a blood clot. Kumars attending doctor Dr Vinod Bhandari from Aurobindo Hospital believes COVID-19 could have been the root cause. 11. At the age of 45, Kumar is said to be the youngest police officer in India and the first officer in MP to have succumbed to the deadly virus. Admir Isufaj (above) pleaded guilty to causing the death of Steven Duval while having no driving licence or insurance A deported illegal immigrant sneaked back into the UK before causing the death of a motorcyclist father-of-two in a road accident. Admir Isufaj, 26, pleaded guilty to causing the death of Steven Duval from Braunstone in a collision while having no driving licence or insurance. The incident occurred at a crossroads in Wistow, near Kibworth in Leicestershire on September 26 in 2019. Leicester Crown Court heard that 55-year-old experienced biker, Mr Duval, and a motorcyclist friend were both travelling towards Market Harborough to meet a fellow rider when the tragedy happened on the crossroads of Kilby Road, Kibworth Road and Leicester Road at 11.15am. Isufaj was driving a Mini One from Fleckney towards Wigston and failed to give way at the crossroads, despite clear road signs, and drove into the path of Mr Duval, who had been riding his Suzuki 'perfectly properly'. He was then seen getting out of his vehicle and walking away from the scene with a limp, departing before the arrival of emergency services. Despite Mr Duval's friend and other road users being quick on the scene to assist, he sadly later passed away after being taken to a hospital in Coventry by air ambulance. Isufaj was arrested the following month while travelling to Belfast, Northern Ireland having produced a false Bulgarian driving licence. Mr Duval was flown to hospital following the collision but sadly passed away having suffered head and pelvic injuries Earlier last year he was released from prison and deported to Albania but 'quickly returned' to the UK before purchasing the Mini in July. Judge Nicholas Dean QC said: 'In September last year you had not long been released from prison after serving a sentence for drug related offending, but also for not having a driving licence or insurance. 'You were deported to Albania but returned. At no time have you been lawfully permitted to drive in this country. 'Mr Duval was thrown from his motorbike and was conscious for a time and able to speak to those at the scene. He was taken to hospital and sadly died of pelvic and head injuries you inflicted.' Isufaj's guilty plea meant he was jailed for two years and four months and banned from driving for seven years. Mr Duval's family released a statement after the incident, describing him as a loving husband and father, and saying: 'Everyone who knew Steve will miss him dearly and cherish their memories of him.' Neil Bannister, prosecuting, added: 'She felt scared about what the future would hold, having been with her husband and best friend for 36 years. She felt angry about the actions of the driver, who left the scene.' Jeremy Fleming and his team at Stagekings were hard at work in Melbourne when the virus lockdown stole their livelihoods. They design, engineer and build elaborate stages for major arts and sporting events such as the Edinburgh Tattoo. In early March the Sydney-based company was in Melbourne, building an elaborate stage for Robbie Williams and Miley Cyrus at the grand prix. Jeremy Fleming's company Stagekings is now making desks, not stages. Credit:Louise Kennerley We all know what happened next. That was the beginning of the end of everything, Fleming recalls. Within 48 hours, everything was cancelled and we were staring down the barrel of nothing for the foreseeable future. MIUI 12 is expected to launch in the coming few days. Leaks out of China claim MIUI 12 will launch by the end of April or beginning of May. Xiaomi company executive Xu Jieyun has already teased the launch of MIUI 12 through a post on Weibo. We probably got our first look at MIUI 12 through the beta version of the Settings app. Xiaomi regularly releases beta versions of its apps to the MIUI Community forums and the latest addition is the Mi Settings app APK that was released a few days ago. The app features a revamped user interface giving us a good look at the design aesthetics of the upcoming update to the popular user interface. Leaks out of China also claim MIUI 12 will launch by the end of April or beginning of May. The app was first spotted by a member from the XDA-Developer forums who also collected a few screenshots of the app. Xiaomi has since pulled the app down, so we cant be 100 percent sure what we are seeing is indeed MIUI 12. The upgraded Settings app show a new design and new options. For one, there is a new refresh rate menu which lets you choose between 60Hz and 120Hz with illustration to make you see the difference. There is also a new screen time week view but in a graph instead of a bar chart. The new app also shows a Focus Mode that will seemingly silent all incoming notifications to let you concentrate. Going by the Settings app, we can expect some minor design upgrades. So far, the change in aesthetics are in highlighting the menu option with an elliptical highlight box, and lots of roundish boxes. MIUI 12 officially teased Furthermore, Xiaomi company executive Xu Jieyun has already teased the launch of MIUI 12 through a post on Weibo. According to the post, MIUI 12 is already in development and will soon be available in the market. The UI is expected to be based on Android 10 since MIUI 11 already works with devices running on Android 8 and Android 9. MIUI 12 could also get an Android 11 version. You can expect more features (going by what other custom interfaces have released this year) that includes a better dark mode, more control over ads, enhanced notification system, a new camera UI and gestures. None of these features are confirmed, however. Rumours state MIUI 12 could launch in the next 10 days While there's no official release date, a well known Chinese tipster posted a screenshot on Weibo that shows the Chinese Mi Community app with a dedicated section for MIUI 12 along with a mesage at the bottom saying 'pre-registrations for MIUI will begin in 11 days', indicating that Xiaomi could announce the UI by the end of April or beginning of May. More reports out of China states the new UI launch will coincide with the launch of the Redmi Note 9 series in China where Xiaomi is expected to launch a 5G-powered Redmi Note 9 powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 800 SoC. A woman in a protective face mask walks through Brixton Market in south London. (Victoria Jones/PA) Three-quarters of Britons blame the Chinese government for allowing coronavirus to spread to the UK, research published today reveals. Data from a Survation poll showed that 74% of British adults believe the Chinese government is to blame for allowing COVID-19 to spread, while 19% said they do not believe it is to blame. Of 1,001 adults polled on behalf of the Henry Jackson Society, a neoconservative think-tank, 83% said that the British government should demand an international inquiry into the response of the Chinese government to the COVID-19 crisis. Last week a YouGov poll showed that a majority of Britons believe COVID-19 originated in a live animal market in China, and that such animal markets should be banned. While Britons blame the Chinese government for the coronavirus outbreak, support for Boris Johnson has surged during the crisis. (Aaron Chown/PA Images via Getty Images) The research revealed that a clear majority (70%) of the British public think that its at least probably true that the source of COVID-19 was a live animal market in China, and of those people, 17% consider the theory to be definitely true. The findings come as scientists continue to look for the exact source of the virus, with some pointing to the live animal markets as the key origin. Public opinion of how the British government has handled the crisis is also split: even as prominent figures such as Tony Blair have criticised the governments handling of the crisis, Boris Johnson has seen a surge in popularity. The majority of people (51%) now have a favourable opinion of the prime minister, up 17 percentage points from early March before lockdown measures were enacted, according to Ipsos MORI. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how coronavirus is spreading The Ipsos MORI study was conducted between 10 April and 13 April, as Johnson was discharged from St Thomas Hospital and travelled to his country residence of Chequers to recuperate, with 1,069 participants taking part. Story continues The public have also become more favourable towards the Tories since last month, the poll suggests, with the Conservative Partys popularity increasing by seven percentage points. The coronavirus is believed by 70% of Britons to have been born in stalls selling live game in Wuhan late last year. (Hector Retamal/AFP) Dr Alan Mendoza, co-author of the Henry Jackson Societys Coronavirus Compensation? report, released earlier this month, spoke to Yahoo News UK about the surveys findings. He said: When we at the Henry Jackson Society issued our landmark report outlining possible legal actions to be taken against China over the spread of coronavirus, we did so from the perspective of seeking justice. The British public clearly agrees this should be a priority. It's now up to the government to act on its promise this week that there will be no 'business as usual' with China post-pandemic, and that it's listening to the British people's views about who is to blame and how they can be held responsible." When asked who was to blame for COVID-19 reaching Britain, 45% of respondents said they believe that the Chinese government is mainly to blame for the damage caused in the UK by coronavirus, 15% said the UK government is mainly to blame, and 31% believe that the UK and Chinese governments are equally to blame. Coronavirus deaths in the UK had risen 449 to 16,509 by Monday lunchtime. Coronavirus: what happened today Gov. Noem lauds state economy, but big legislative fights are coming Noems speech flowed between business and economic development, lifestyle issues and social issues that were united by their conservative themes. "These types of cases reflect the continued negligence by church leaders, said Romanucci. In this specific case, however, we are appreciative that the Archdiocese of Chicago recognized how horrific this incident was and the everlasting impact it would have on our client, which finally led to the resolution of the case. [April 20, 2020] Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy Files Lawsuit on Behalf of South San Francisco Unified School District Against Juul Labs, Inc. Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP filed a lawsuit on behalf of South San Francisco Unified School District against Juul Labs, Inc. over Juul's marketing strategy, advertising, and product design, which have targeted minors, especially preteens and teenagers, resulting in increased use of electronic cigarettes by youth in San Mateo County and increased costs for local schools. According to the most recent California Student Tobacco Survey, a shocking 20.8 percent of teens in San Mateo County used e-cigarettes in 2018, up from 11.8 percent in 2017, and much higher than the state average of 10.9 percent. Even use by middle school students is sharply rising. The use of nicotine and e-cigarettes impacts learning, memory, and attention. San Mateo schools, like schools around the country, are struggling to ban use on campus and keep students focused on learning. As alleged inthe Complaint, SSFUSD has experienced increased tobacco related suspension rates and has had to incur costs to educate students about the risks of vaping. "As the coronavirus sweeps the Bay Area, it is clearer than ever that vaping poses a serious health risk to our students," said SSFUSD Superintendent Shawnterra Moore. "Vaping makes students more susceptible to diseases like COVID-19 and a host of other health problems. We refuse to sit idle while the children we serve are misled by these predatory marketing tactics." "In South San Francisco, we have seen the results of this predatory marketing take effect as more of our students begin vaping," said SSFUSD School Board President Patricia Murray. "It's time to act to protect the health of the children we serve." Anne Marie Murphy, of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, said that "as a resident of South San Francisco and a parent, this case has particular meaning for me-it is heartening that our local school districts are leading the fight against the rising rates of vaping among school age children." The lawsuit has been filed by Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP, based in Burlingame, and co-counsel at the Renne Public Law Group; Migliaccio & Rathod, LLP; Wagstaff & Cartmell, LLP; and the San Mateo County Counsel's Office to challenge Juul and big tobacco. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005923/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] "Serving in the military changes you. The shades and degrees of change vary for everyone, but no one is ever the same as... Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 16:36:38|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Workers observe the progress at a construction site of a project undertaken by the China Construction Third Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, March 26, 2020. (Xinhua/Cheng Min) Chinese authorities said that the operations of centrally-administered state-owned enterprises have shown positive signs of improvement despite the plunge in revenues during the first quarter due to multiple factors. BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) saw profits and revenues dive during the first quarter, due to multiple downward factors including the novel coronavirus epidemic and slumping oil prices, the country's state asset regulator said Monday. Revenues fell 11.8 percent year on year to 6 trillion yuan (about 857 billion U.S. dollars) during the first quarter, while profits plunged 58.8 percent year on year to 130.4 billion yuan, Peng Huagang, spokesman for the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, told a press conference. Over 80 percent of central SOEs reported falling revenues during the period, he said. It was a "hard-earned result," as the central SOEs have faced unprecedented challenges such as the coronavirus epidemic and slumping oil prices, Peng said. The profit and revenue declines will be "short-lived and can be reversed" through effective measures and hard work, he said. POSITIVE SIGNS Noting that the country's economic and social order is steadily returning to normal, Peng said the operations of central SOEs have shown positive signs of improvement. Technicians work at a shale gas platform of China Petrochemical Corporation in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Feb. 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Chan) During the first quarter, the output of crude oil and raw coal produced by central SOEs maintained growth. The value of new contracts signed by construction enterprises increased 3.7 percent year on year, with those of overseas deals surging 18 percent from a year earlier. Investment in key industries has kept steady growth in the first quarter. Fixed-asset investment of petrochemical SOEs jumped 12.4 percent year on year, while that of telecommunications SOEs and electricity SOEs grew 12.3 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Most central SOEs fared better in March as the epidemic waned, and they revved up work resumption. Their revenues reached 2.2 trillion yuan last month, recovering to the January level. A worker works at the construction site of a cross-lake bridge in Anqing, east China's Anhui Province, April 13, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Junxi) So far, 99.4 percent of central SOEs have resumed production. Data also showed that the overall solvency of central SOEs remained stable in the first three months. The average debt-to-asset ratio of central SOEs stood at 65.6 percent by the end of March, down 0.1 percentage point year on year. Central SOEs will endeavor to stabilize operations, bolster supply chains, as well as prevent bankruptcies, dramatic pay cuts and layoffs over the rest of the year, Peng said. China currently has 97 central SOEs. President Hassan Rouhani's Chief of Staff Mahmoud Vaezi has joined voices with other members of the cabinet to slam Iran's Supreme Audit Court (SAC) for a report last week that said $4.8 billion provided to importers disappeared. In a new response to SAC's annual report, Vaezi lambasted the court for keeping mum about the financial activities of other branches of power and state-controlled institutions. The Supreme Audit Court of Iran (SAC) is an agency of the Islamic Republic, supervised by Majles (the Iranian Parliament) and dates back to 1906. Every year, SAC publishes a monitoring report on the governments performance, providing information on financial flows and the implementation of government programs against the goals and targets set in the country's budget law. The report on fiscal 2018-19 was submitted to Majles by SAC Director Adel Azar on Tuesday, April 14. Once again, Vaezi dismissed the report as "inaccurate" and "biased", insisting that its publication was also "one-sided". In his annual report last Tuesday, Adel Azar had disclosed that almost five billion dollars of the Islamic Republics money is missing. Based on the official rate of 42,000 rials for one U.S. dollar, the Islamic Republic government distributed billions of cheap dollars among local importers to buy essential goods from overseas. Many of these importers are politically well-connected individuals. The SAC report said $4.8 billion of the import appropriations went missing as no goods were imported by the recipients of the subsidized dollars. A day later, speaking on the Iranian state TV, an angry Rouhani asked why similar auditing is not done about the financial performance of military organizations, revolutionary institutions and the Judiciary (all close allies of the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei). Furthermore, several members of the cabinet also stepped in, echoed their boss comments on SAC, lambasting the report as "one hundred percent wrong". They insisted that, contrary to the report, not "a single dollar" has been lost. Firing back, Adel Azar maintained on April 18 that Hassan Rouhani had seen the report before its publication, but neither challenged the content nor questioned the figures. Nevertheless, Vaezi dismissed Adel Azar's remarks as unfounded. "Immediately after receiving the report, President Rouhani called for a review, and further investigations. Nonetheless, SAC hastily decided to publish its 'incomplete' and 'one-sided' report", Vaezi asserted. Meanwhile, Vaezi echoed Rouhanis complaint about the "exemption" of other state-run entities from SAC's scrutiny. Although Vaezi did not name those institutions, he was implicitly referring to the entities directly or indirectly supervised by Ayatollah Khamenei. These entities, including the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, and numerous so-called charity foundations in the clergy-dominated Iran are not accountable to any regulatory body and do not report on their financial performance. According to local news outlets, the director and prosecutor of the Supreme Audit Court are scheduled to attend parliament's session on Tuesday to discuss SAC's recent report. In the meantime, the head of the Islamic Republic Judiciary has also ordered an investigation into SAC's controversial report. Amitabh Bachchan recently celebrated 12 years of his online blog. On Sunday, the veteran actor said he misses meeting his fans outside his house. For those who don't know, on very Sunday, Amitabh Bachchan waves to a huge crowd of fans from all over the country who worshipped him and gather outside his house. But the practice has come to a halt amid the nationwide lockdown due to the pandemic. Big B called off the meet-and-greet sessions with fans at his house Jalsa in Juhu, last month. He had urged fans not to gather outside his house in wake of the outbreak. In his recent blog post, he recalled the anticipation of greeting fans on Sunday morning and said, "The Sunday does not mean the same as before. Waiting for the time to arrive, the security in place, that familiar sound of the step board being dragged into position, that familiar scream of the well-wishers at the gate as each domestic entrant enters and leaves premises... of the knowing that 'he' comes." Bachchan said he remembers fans asking for autographs and sending him gifts. He talked about the "ecstatic wild faces and mobiles recording" the moment he greeted his fans. "The ones on the buildings ahead, precariously positioned at vantage points. The cheer and laments, the letters of recommendations, the out of the country guests... Return wave at the opposite balcony as you walk in the front door and its done." "A while more and the pages for the autograph, pictures writings etc, all done with the care with which they have remained so sincere and long, arrives. Their personal equation with the maestro intact they leave after this minuscule formality. The heart of the Ef (extended family) be of subtle grace and that done, they leave, as do I, inside the secure home and the gifts that arrive kept away to be stored and valued. But none of that for the day today. Just the thoughts and the reminders by the Ef on other platforms," he added. With regard to work, Amitabh Bachchan will next be seen in Ayan Mukerji's Brahmastra, alongside Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, Mouni Roy and more. He will also be seen in Jhund, Gulabo Sitabo with Ayushmann Khurrana and Chehere with Emraan Hashmi. Amitabh Bachchan To Provide Monthly Ration To 1 Lakh Daily Wage Workers When Jaya Bachchan Invited Rekha For Dinner In Amitabh's Absence To Say: I Will Never Leave Amit Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 06:16:07|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Staff members unload medical supplies from a charter plane at the Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina, April 20, 2020. Argentina has received a 14-ton shipment of medical supplies from China to help combat the novel coronavirus pandemic, the office of the nation's president announced Monday. (Transportation Ministry of Argentina/Handout via Xinhua) BUENOS AIRES, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Argentina has received a 14-ton shipment of medical supplies from China to help combat the novel coronavirus pandemic, the office of the nation's president announced Monday. The cargo arrived at the Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires, two days after an initial flight had delivered 13 tons of medical equipment. Health Minister Gines Gonzalez Garcia and Transportation Minister Mario Meoni welcomed the plane, along with the head of the airline, Pablo Ceriani. The shipment came from Shanghai, aboard an Airbus 330-200 whose cargo capacity had been increased by 84 percent. Argentina and China set up the first ever air bridge between them over the weekend to supply the South American country with much-needed medical supplies amid the COVID-19 outbreak, including vital personal protective equipment for health care workers. More deliveries are scheduled in the coming weeks. "We are very happy about how the operation is unfolding, without delays. The Chinese government is making the whole operation very smooth for us," said Ceriani. As of Monday morning, Argentina had 2,941 COVID-19 cases, including 136 deaths. Hyderabad, April 20 : The Telangana Police have so far seized 1.21 lakh vehicles across the state for violation of lockdown norms. Director General of Police Mahender Reddy told reporters on Monday that after the lifting of the lockdown, the vehicles will be deposited in the courts and the vehicle owners may collect their vehicles from courts. Majority of the vehicles were seized in Greater Hyderabad. Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi recently demanded the police to frame a policy and release the vehicles as the poor people would need them. Owaisi had made the demand in the wake of Kerala High Court orders, which directed authorities in Kerala to release all vehicles seized for lockdown violation on personal bond of owners. The DGP on Monday, however, made it clear that the vehicles have to be collected from courts after the lifting of the lockdown. He revealed the figures of seized vehicles at a news conference, where he announced that the lockdown would be strictly enforced from Tuesday. The police have decided to act tough against the motorists roaming unnecessarily on roads. It has also people to approach nearest hospitals for minor ailments. Only those with serious health problems will be allowed to go to hospital at distant locations and that too on showing the reference documents. Such people also have to carry proof of residence. The Telangana government on Sunday decided to extend the lockdown till May 7. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr.20 By Leman Zeynalova - Trend: The so-called "presidential election" in Armenian-occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh is a clear violation of the constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the norms and principles of international law, Professor Naciye Selin Senocak, the head of the cultural diplomacy department at the Institute for European Studies in Brussels and head of the center for Diplomatic and Strategic Studies (CEDS) in Paris, told Trend. Armenia committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the massacre in Khojaly in 1992, which is a genocide. The international community has shamefully kept silent about this genocide. By pursuing its military build-up in the occupied territories, illegally changing demography through illegal settlement policy, altering the centuries-old toponyms, destroying cultural heritage in the occupied lands and organizing so-called election, Armenia tries to "legitimize" its presence in the occupied territories, she said. This proves Armenia is not interested in seeking diplomatic settlement of the armed conflict, added Senocak. In order to restore the peace and stability in the Caucasus region, the international community must demand Armenia cease the illegal occupation of Azerbaijan's territories, withdraw its troops from all seized lands and engage constructively in the conflict settlement process in the spirit and language of the adopted resolutions and norms and principles of international law. This conflict has serious security implications throughout Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East, she noted. 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. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn WITH the rise of numerous donations and charity programs extending help during this time of Covid-19 pandemic, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has warned the public of fake charities and beneficiaries. The BSP said the public should remain vigilant and discerning over the donation drives they are interested in supporting. Cybercriminals are on the move to make false charities and beneficiaries to deceive those who are interested to donate, the central bank said. The BSP said the cybercriminals may try to ask for personal information from the banking public, such as internet and mobile banking username or passwords, and spread malicious links to phishing websites or malicious attachments on malware. The central bank said hackers are also spreading false advertisements creating public anxiety and an artificial need to require personal protective equipment (PPE) meant for frontliners. These scams may include the sale of face masks, alcohol, PPE, testing kits, health insurance and others, the BSP said in its advisory. Another modus operandi are fake health advisories containing phishing text or emails on news updates, bulletin or health tips regarding Covid-19. Most of the information were allegedly from the government or health authorities, the BSP said. Because of this, the central bank encouraged the scrutiny of any donation drives before sending money. This is for the public to avoid sending their hard-earned money to hackers. The Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) earlier said banks will never request for any personal information, account number or any one-time passwords. One should also protect their passwords either by changing it regularly, or creating strong passwords to deter potential hackers from compromising their account. The public should also avoid using a shared network or a shared computer since these may be traced back or attract nearby hackers, and ensure that their internet is secured. As an added layer of protection, banks have incorporated two-factor authentication among other safety measures on all bank account-related transactions online, the BAP said. "We are working together with our partners to determine how to respond to the urgent needs for the most vulnerable populations, whether it be food supply, medical equipment, best practices for physical distancing, hygiene or other critical supplies, said Nagulan Nesiah, Senior Program Officer. Episcopal Relief & Development is providing financial and technical support to partner organizations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The organization continues to be in close contact with partners in 44 countries, including the United States, to provide assistance for communities affected by the novel coronavirus. The coronavirus pandemic has adversely impacted communities all over the world, said Nagulan Nesiah, Senior Program Officer, Disaster Response & Risk Reduction for Episcopal Relief & Development. We are working together with our partners to determine how to respond to the urgent needs for the most vulnerable populations, whether it be food supply, medical equipment, best practices for physical distancing, hygiene or other critical supplies. In the Philippines, Episcopal Relief & Development is partnering with the E-CARE Foundation in the production of personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical staff. As in many countries, hospitals are experiencing a shortage of critical PPE. At least one medical center, the Lung Center of the Philippines temporarily stopped accepting new patients as a result. E-CARE partners such as KASALIKA, a local community group of women organized by E-CARE, and other smaller groups will produce approximately 6,000 face masks and 1,000 gowns which will be donated primarily to hospitals in Quezon City, where there is a concentration of coronavirus treatment centers. Other partners such as Fellowship of Middle East Evangelical Churches, the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and the Church of Bangladesh are also providing PPE, hygiene kits and essential medical supplies. through partners. These critical supplies will help medical staff safely treat coronavirus patients and will help slow the spread of the disease through improved sanitation practices. With the support of Episcopal Relief & Development, the Anglican Diocese of Guinea is coordinating with local governing officials to launch an educational campaign about the importance of hygiene in slowing down the transmission of the virus. The diocese plans to serve over 300 families through hygiene and sanitation kits. Episcopal Relief & Developments International Program staff is also providing guidance and expertise in Sri Lanka. The Dioceses of Colombo and Kurunegala is distributing food, while following best practices for physical distancing, to plantation and day workers who have lost income due to the virus and shutdowns. Program staff are in close contact with other partners as they determine how best to respond to needs in their communities. Domestically, the US Disaster Program is holding weekly partner coordination calls and public webinars to offer support to Episcopal dioceses, churches, individuals and other groups. Resources for a faith-based response to epidemics and pandemics are available here. One of the great strengths of Episcopal Relief & Development is our communities of practice in the areas of women, children and climate, said Tammi Mott, Vice President, International Program Operations, Episcopal Relief & Development. Weekly we virtually bring together our networks of partners to exchange their experiences, knowledge and mutual support. These networks are critical for identifying both immediate responses and longer-term program adaptations in the face of the novel coronavirus. Donations to Episcopal Relief & Developments COVID-19 Pandemic Response Fund will continue to support partners around the world and in the United States in responding to the coronavirus. About Episcopal Relief & Development: For over 75 years, Episcopal Relief & Development has been working together with supporters and partners for lasting change around the world. Each year the organization facilitates healthier, more fulfilling lives for more than 3 million people struggling with hunger, poverty, disaster and disease. Inspired by Jesus words in Matthew 25, Episcopal Relief & Development leverages the expertise and resources of Anglican and other partners to deliver measurable and sustainable change in three signature program areas: Women, Children and Climate. Most of us won't be venturing into the great outdoors on Wednesday (April 22), but you can still celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day in style. NASA, the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City and a number of other organizations are offering online activities that will teach you more about our planet Earth and drive home the need to protect its plants, animals and wide-open spaces. The space agency has combined a variety of educational resources into a 50th anniversary toolkit, which is designed to get conservation messages across to young people and the rest of us as well. NASA has also launched an #EarthDayAtHome campaign to help the public celebrate. Related: Earth science is more important than ever (op-ed) A NASA camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite caught this view of Africa and the entire sunlit side of Earth on July 9, 2015. NASA released the image July 29. (Image credit: NASA/NOAA) "Fifty years ago, people around the world celebrated the first Earth Day (April 22, 1970). Organizers selected dates and planned activities specifically to engage young people in the growing environmental awareness movement," NASA officials wrote in a statement on the toolkit's home page . "As we plan for Earth Day 2020, NASA continues that outreach to young people and their mentors by pulling together various resources from across the agency into this online Earth Day Toolkit," they added. "All the resources here are free and available to teachers and students, parents, civic leaders, museums and anyone else to use and enjoy." The space agency will also host a special Earth Day edition of "NASA Science Live" on Wednesday at 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT). The webcast will feature agency chief Jim Bridenstine, who will talk about how NASA tech is helping scientists learn about Earth and its many interconnected systems. The AMNH, meanwhile, will air an all-day " Earthfest " on Wednesday. One of the livestreamed events, a "watch party" at 6 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT) hosted by AMNH planetary geologist Martha Gilmore, will compare our planet to its cosmic neighbors, putting Earth in a larger context and shifting our perspective. "Hop aboard a live flight to unveil the mysteries of Earths toxic twin, Venus, and the dynamic nature of our planetary neighbors," AMNH officials wrote in a statement . "What can Venus and Mars teach us about climate change and the unique conditions that support life on Earth?" These activities are just the tip of the Earth Day iceberg. You can find the right online Earth Day event for you via a search tool produced by the Earth Day Network . Happy hunting, and happy Earth Day! 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 . AirAsia India has cut the April salary of its staff by up to 20 per cent to tackle the airline's finances amid the suspension of all commercial services till May 3 due to the lockdown, a source has said. Those drawing Rs 50,000 per month or less have been spared from the wage cut. The Bengaluru-headquartered budget carrier is the latest to join the other domestic airlines such as IndiGo, SpiceJet and Vistara, who have already taken similar measures to cut fixed cost amid grounding of their fleet. "AirAsia India has cut the April salary of its employees by up to 20 per cent. The senior management will take a pay cut of 20 per cent while the wages of the executives falling in others categories have been reduced by 17 per cent, 13 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively," the source who is privy to the development told PTI. However, employees who are earning Rs 50,000 per month or less have not been given any pay cut as of now, he said. AirAsia India spokesperson refused to comment on the developments when contacted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) He believed that the decision was based on data available to President Akufo-Addo and the COVID-19 Response Team and, thus, entreated the public to exercise restraint in their criticisms. He, however, underscored the need for the Information Minister, Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, to provide further explanations and breakdown of what the lifting meant to the average Ghanaian. "If you look at the public jubilations and what's happening in town now, it's like all the safety precautions have been relaxed, but we're not out of the woods yet," he noted. Dr Oduro-Osae said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Monday following the lifting of the three-week ban on the stay home' directive of Greater Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi by the President effective Monday, April 20, at 0100 hours. The reason for the ban lifting, the President said, was Ghana's ability to undertake aggressive contact tracing, enhanced testing, expansion of the number of treatment and isolation centres as well as the economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the poor and vulnerable in the affected areas. Dr Oduro-Osae said there should be more public education on the implication of the lifting of restriction on movements whilst security personnel remained at the checkpoints to enforce the safety and social distancing directives. The Local Government Expert urged the various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies and Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development to enforce the social distancing and hygiene protocols at the various markets to avoid possible community spread of the virus. "My greatest disappointment is the low arrest and prosecution of persons who breached the lockdown directives. I believe those who break such directives must be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others," Dr Oduro-Osae added. Ghana's case count for COVID-19 now stands at 1,042 as at Sunday, April 19, with nine deaths and 99 persons fully recovering, after 68,591 test results were received. ---GNA Kathmandu: The outbreak of Corona, which has been continuously increasing for the past several days, has now spread all over the world. Every day Corona's terror is increasing among the people due to new cases. Every person is afraid of the havoc of this virus. Every day, due to the grip of this virus, millions of people are getting infected. And don't know how many innocent lives are being wasted. Not only this, the outbreak of this virus is gradually taking the form of a huge epidemic, where today the food shortage is increasing with the people living in many houses and pavements all over the world. 12 Indian citizens hiding in a mosque in Nepal have been infected with the corona virus. The test of a 65-year-old local elder living with him has also come positive. After this, the number of infected in Nepal has increased to 31. Basudev Pandey, an official associated with the Health Ministry of Nepal, told on Sunday that the local citizen living in the mosque in Triyug in Udaipur district test positive for corona. Also Read: Pregnant woman dies due to starvation amid lockdown in Pakistan China opened secret of Corona, told what had happened in Wuhan Whole world is helpless in front of Corona, death toll crosses 1.5 lakh Earthquake in East coast of Japan, may increase disaster As a generation of jazz elders leaves our world some hastened by the pandemic their faces as photographed by Santa Istvan Csaba become even more luminous, haunting, iconic. Guiseppi Logan, multi-instrumentalist (May 1935 April 2020) Henry Grimes, bassist (Nov 1935 April 2020) Pianists Geri Allen (June 1957 June 2017) and McCoy Tyner (Dec 1938 March 2020) Wallace Roney, trumpeter (May 1960 March 2020) Lee Konitz, alto saxophonist, improviser (Oct 1927 April 2020) Bucky Pizzarelli, guitarist (Jan 1926 April 2020) Originally from Transylvania and currently living in Turin, the northern Italian area with heaviest covid-19 infections, Santa reports that he is healthy, employed at the reception desk of a nearby school, and has recently been honored with a Hungarian Press Photo Award. However, with the lockdown, that Awards ceremony has been indefinitely postponed. Technavio has been monitoring the reservoir analysis market and it is poised to grow by USD 2.49 bn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of over 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/20200420005497/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Reservoir Analysis 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. ALS Ltd., Baker Hughes, a GE Co. LLC, Halliburton Co., Schlumberger Ltd., and Weatherford International Plc, 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 focus on mature oil and gas fields has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Reservoir Analysis Market 2019-2023: Segmentation Reservoir Analysis Market is segmented as below: Application Onshore Offshore Geographic Landscape APAC Europe Middle East And Africa North America South America 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=IRTNTR31230 Reservoir Analysis 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 reservoir analysis market report covers the following areas: Reservoir Analysis Market Size Reservoir Analysis Market Trends Reservoir Analysis Market Industry Analysis This study identifies technical advances in reservoir modeling as one of the prime reasons driving the reservoir analysis market growth during the next few years. Reservoir Analysis Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the reservoir analysis market, including some of the vendors such as ALS Ltd., Baker Hughes, a GE Co. LLC, Halliburton Co., Schlumberger Ltd., and Weatherford International Plc. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the reservoir analysis 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 Reservoir Analysis Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023 Detailed information on factors that will assist reservoir analysis market growth during the next five years Estimation of the reservoir analysis market size and its contribution to the parent market Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior The growth of the reservoir analysis market Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of reservoir analysis market vendors Table Of Contents : PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT 2.1 Preface 2.2 Preface 2.3 .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 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 North America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Middle East and Africa Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Europe Market size and forecast 2018-2023 APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023 South America Market size and forecast 2018-2023 Key leading countries Market opportunity PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES Market drivers Market challenges PART 10: MARKET TRENDS Introduction of Big Data analytics Technical advances in reservoir modeling Exploring unconventional reservoirs PART 11: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview Landscape disruption Competitive scenario PART 12: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors ALS Ltd. Baker Hughes, a GE Co. LLC Halliburton Co. Schlumberger Ltd. Weatherford International Plc PART 13: APPENDIX Research methodology List of abbreviations Definition of vendors classification PART 14: 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/20200420005497/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: media@technavio.com Website: www.technavio.com/ The following paper presents the explorative calculations undertaken by the RECOVid-Team, a group of scientists from various Luxembourgish research institutions. The socio-economic aspects of the pending crisis are of upmost importance to society. Epidemiologists and virologists have advised a general lockdown with home isolation to slow down the spread of the virus and flatten the curve of new infections. These measures of "social distancing" have been been considered essential to prevent an overburdening of hospital capacities, which could result in tragical and ethical despair. The lockdown will most likely trigger a recession, as employees can no longer carry out their daily work and consumer consumption decreases. Nonetheless, a majority of economists, who often draw criticism for their dehumanising models, have unanimously agreed to the current safety measures. The containment of the pandemic needs to be humanity's foremost priority. A group of scientists residing in Luxembourg has come together to render the various economic challenges of the Covid-19 crisis legible and ultimately propose strategies and measures to limit the damage on the Luxembourgish market. At this moment in the pandemic, there is still a lack of predicative data that would allow to accurately forecast the parameters of the aftermath. Nonetheless, the RECOVid-Team has generated an explorative draft, released 6 April 2020, presenting ongoing and potential research studies that inquire the "immediate" economic consequences resulting out of the health crisis and conceive of appropriate political reactions. The team analyses the forces most threatening to the integrity of the global economic network and examines the political options decision makers can consider to counter short-term costs and the risk of a systemic economic collapse. The document presented by the RECOVid-team emphasises that people constitute the true wealth of the nation and that therefore all efforts should be directed at saving human lives. If you are interested in a structured overview of various potential scenarios compiled by the RECOVid-team, please consider the homepage of the Luxembourg Institute for Socio-Economic Research (LISER). What could be the most "immediate" consequences for the Luxembourgish economy after Covid-19? What can be done to increase the probability of a quick recovery? How many Luxembourgish families will be affected? What can be done to minimise the impacts on equality, poverty, and welfare? What can be expected from exit strategies out of the lockdown? How likely is a systemic breakdown and how can this threat be minimised? What do potential long-term socio-economic consequences, threats, and chances look like? Which areas could future socio-economic inquires focus on? Original author: RECOVid team Editor: Michele Weber (FNR) Sooner or later, most cancer patients develop resistance to the very chemotherapy drugs designed to kill their cancer, forcing oncologists to seek alternatives. Even more problematic, once a patient's tumor is resistant to one type of chemotherapy, it is much more likely to be resistant to other chemotherapies as well, a conundrum long known as multidrug resistance. Once patients reach this point, the prognosis is often poor, and for the last 35 years scientists have attempted to understand and block multidrug resistance in cancer by using experimental medicines. A new study from scientists at Scripps Research in Florida raises red flags about this strategy. Inhibiting the key gene involved in cancer drug resistance has unintended side effects on specialized immune system cells called CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), the team found. This could dull anti-cancer immune responses, and potentially increase vulnerability to infection, since CTLs are "killer" T cells, essential in the fight against both viral and bacterial infections and tumors, says lead author Mark Sundrud, PhD, associate professor of Immunology and Microbiology at Scripps Research. Several genes are now recognized for contributing to multidrug resistance in cancer, but the first and most prominent of these is called multidrug resistance-1 (MDR1). Its discovery more than three decades ago set off a race to develop drugs that would inhibit expression of MDR1. But those MDR1 inhibitor drugs have consistently disappointed in clinical trials. The reasons behind these failures have remained enigmatic. In a new study published Thursday in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, Sundrud and colleagues including Scripps Research immunologist Matthew Pipkin, PhD, suggest that the repeated failure of MDR1 inhibitors in human cancer trials may be due to a previously unrecognized -- and essential -- function of the MDR1 gene in CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Using new genetic approaches to visualize and functionally assess MDR1 expression in mouse cells, the team found that CTLs were unique in their constant and high-level expression of MDR1. In addition, preventing MDR1 expression in CTLs, or blocking its function using inhibitors previously tested in human cancer trials, sets off a chain reaction of CTL dysfunction, ultimately disabling these cells from fighting off viral or bacterial infections. Considering that these cells are also necessary for warding off most cancerous tumors, blocking MDR1 with existing inhibitors could also cripple natural immune responses to cancers, Sundrud says. advertisement "With the help of our collaborators at New York University Medical Center, we looked at mouse immune cells from five major lymphoid and nonlymphoid tissues: bone marrow, thymus, spleen, lung, and small intestine," Sundrud says. "It became clear that the types of cells that are key to fighting infections and cancers, are among those most sensitive to blocking MDR1 function." It has been known for decades that CTLs, as well as "natural killer" cells, a type of white blood cell, express high levels of the MDR1 gene. But because MDR1 has historically been viewed only through the lens of creating multidrug resistance in cancer cells, few researchers thought to ask what MDR1 does during normal immune responses; those that did found confusing and often contradictory results, Sundrud says, likely due to the use of non-specific animal model systems. Convinced that MDR1 might impact natural immune responses, Sundrud and colleagues sought to devise more specific mouse models to directly visualize and functionally characterize MDR1 expression in vivo. Additional experiments revealed that blocking MDR1 function hampered the earliest stages of the CTL response to infections, when these cells multiply rapidly to reach the numbers needed to kill all viral and bacterial invaders. In line with this result, MDR1 inhibition also affected long-lived immunity to infections that have been previously seen and eradicated. It also affected the cells' energy organelles, called mitochondria. "We think that MDR1 plays a special role in helping mitochondria provide energy to growing cells" Sundrud says. "So, if you take this away, it makes sense that these cells can't support the metabolic demand of cell division, and that they ultimately die." On one hand, Sundrud says, the research raises questions about the safety and utility of using systemic MDR1 inhibitors as cancer therapies. At the same time, the work reveals important new mechanisms that determine how the immune system fights off infections and develops long-lived memory. "These insights become all the more pertinent today, given all the questions and concerns related to immunity against the pandemic coronavirus that causes COVID-19," Sundrud says. The team is now looking to use this new knowledge to finally nail down a unifying function of MDR1 in all cells, whether it is in CTLs responding to infections, or cancer cells trying to deal with chemotherapeutic agents. In the shorter term, Sundrud and colleagues plan to explore new approaches to re-design existing MDR1 inhibitors to specifically target only cancer cells. "This way you might be able to prevent multidrug resistance in cancer cells, without affecting the immune cells that are trying to fight off the tumor," Sundrud says. CLEVELAND, Ohio An 41-year-old man is charged in connection with the deadly beating of a 94-year-old man in the citys Old Brooklyn neighborhood. Michael Dudas of Cleveland is charged with aggravated murder in the death of Charles Vonderau. Dudas is being held in the Cuyahoga County Jail until a preliminary hearing on Tuesday. Officers with the U.S. Marshals Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested Dudas about 11 a.m. Saturday on Pearl Road near Henninger Road, according to police. A motive for the slaying has not been released. Vonderau used a wheelchair and suffered from preexisting medical conditions, police said. Family members on Wednesday asked police to check on Vonderau after they were unable to reach him. Officers found Vonderau dead facedown and on his side and covered in blood inside his home on Plymouth Road, near West 11th Street and Harmody Park. An officer wrote in a police report that he found nothing unusual inside or outside the home, and that an EMS medic said the blood could have been because of Vonderaus pre-existing medical condition. Investigators with the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiners Office arrived at the home and found suspicious gashes on Vonderaus head and left hand, according to police reports. The medical examiner investigators also thought a blood trail from the side door leading to where Vonderau was found was also suspicious, according to police reports. The investigators told police they considered Vonderaus cause of death undetermined until they completed an autopsy. The medical examiner on Friday ruled Vonderaus death a homicide from blunt force trauma to his head. Dudas is also wanted by Stow and Brooklyn police on separate misdemeanor theft warrants, court records say. Read more from cleveland.com: 94-year-old beaten to death in Cleveland One man dead, Willoughby Hills police officer burned after fiery crash following pursuit of speeding sports car Two dead, children uninjured in drive-by shooting in Clevelands Clark-Fulton neighborhood The hotels and hospitality sector in India has declined sharply in the first quarter of 2020, as the COVID-19 outbreak impacts various segments of the sector, according to global real estate consultant JLL. Coming off a high performance base in 2019, the COVID-19 outbreak and the containment measures introduced by the government have resulted in a severe drop in foreign and domestic travel, across both the tourism and business traveller segments, the report 'India Hospitality Industry Review 2019' has said. "In the third week of March 2020, at an all-India level, the hotels sector witnessed a decline of more than 65 per cent in occupancy levels as compared to the same period of the previous year," it added. As travel restrictions around the world intensified further, second and third quarters of 2020 are likely to be similarly impacted, it added. At least 30 per cent of hotel and hospitality industry revenue could be impacted if situation doesn't improve by the end of June 2020. With more than 60 per cent of organised hotels in India already shut and several others operational with single digit occupancies, a recovery will be gradual, the report said. Industry estimates indicate that in India, branded and organised hotels annual revenue is Rs 38,000 crore, it added. "As the sector navigates turbulent times through the pandemic, growth and development of hotels in India is also likely to be impacted in the next two years. Any dry powder that is available today will focus more on buying operating assets rather than building new ones," JLL India CEO and Country Head Ramesh Nair said. The strong performance of the office sector was the key to robust hotel market performance across the top 7 business cities of India, the report said. "There are several macro factors that play favorably to India's hotel and hospitality industry. First and foremost, the massive domestic sector, which has also become travel savvy over the years, will likely drive the rebound as travelers extend their average length of stay at a certain destination," JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group MD Jaideep Dang said. Secondly, India may get an increased share of manufacturing and logistics business that may bring back business travelers to the country in the medium term, he added. Focus on development could shift towards Tier 1 cities, which are fundamentally stronger business-driven markets, the report said. On debt side, new hotel development will be impacted as there will be limited lender appetite, particularly in more volatile resort markets. Investors led by private equity funds will be looking out for stressed assets as the working capital pain and reduced revenues will impact yields for existing hotel owners, it added. "2020 started with a strong deal pipeline estimated at about USD 1 billion worth of tradeable assets. Investment action will likely get deferred as the sector rebuilds itself after containment of COVID-19, however, we estimate that more assets may fall in the ring for sale in the latter half of the year, the report said. Growth and development is likely to slow down in the next two years. Projects under development will likely get delayed and raising development finance will also become more challenging, it added. Depending upon an early containment of the pandemic, green shoots on transaction activity will likely appear towards third quarter of 2020, the report said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Riyadh, April 20 : Saudi Arabias top Islamic authority has called on all Muslims around the world to perform prayers at home during the Muslim holy month of Ramazan in accordance with health guidelines to fend off the spread of the novel coronavirus. The lunar fasting month, set to begin next week, is marked by intense worshipping, but most Muslim countries have closed mosques and banned mass prayers to contain the respiratory illness, reports Efe news. "Muslims must avoid gatherings, given that the gathering is considered the main cause of the spread of infection, according to relevant medical reports," said the Saudi Senior Scholars' Council, according to state-run Saudi news agency SPA. Among the significant features of Ramadan is a special nightly prayer called "taraweeh" usually performed congregationally at mosques. The council added that Muslims should perform communal prayers, including taraweeh, at home if authorities in their respective countries advise it. The council continued to advise against group meals during Ramadan and stressed the importance of preserving life in Islam. During Ramazan, observant Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking from dawn to dusk. Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam, has suspended congregational prayers in mosques and temporarily halted pilgrimage to holy Islamic sites as part of restrictive measures against the outbreak of the pandemic. The kingdom has so far reported 8,274 COVID-19 confirmed cases, the highest among the Arab countries, with a death toll standing at 92. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 04/20/2020 ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade. : Before the 90 Days star Darcey Silva insists she didn't cry watching her breakup with Tom Brooks back on TV and did the right thing by ending their relationship.During an April 17 appearance on the Tamron Hall show, Darcey videochatted with Tamron Hall and revealed what it was like to relive her breakup with Tom on Season 4 of : Before the 90 Days, which currently airs on Sunday nights on TLC."I didn't cry," Darcey said, which may surprise viewers since she's best known in the franchise for being extremely emotional and vulnerable."Actually I didn't. I was just like feeling my own sense of worth and power, and I was like, 'You know what? I'm glad I stood up for myself.'""I looked back and just knew for myself I did the right thing," she added.In an episode of : Before the 90 Days that aired earlier this month, Darcey from Connecticut and Tom from England met in a New York City restaurant to hash out their issues after spending a lot of time apart with little communication.Darcey thought she and Tom were going to work on their relationship, but the conversation essentially turned out to be an opportunity for the businessman to dump Darcey in-person.Darcey therefore stood her ground and informed Tom that she had known for quite some time about his romance with another woman, a blonde named Shannon whom Tom had spent time with in Milan."I met someone who loves me the way I wanted to be loved," Tom told Darcey, later adding, "I love you in a different way. I love you like you're my sister... or a friend."Darcey griped in reply, "You should have told me that before we got in the sack... Move on with your life. I don't want anything to do with you. You are nothing to me right now... I have bigger and better coming.""I am glad. And try not to ruin the next [relationship]... Did you put weight on? " Tom countered.Tamron asked Darcey if she's really done with Tom, but Darcey played coy -- presumably because Tom is going to apologize and try to win her back in the next : Before the 90 Days episode, based on a preview that aired following Sunday night's broadcast on TLC."Tom, I've always been very open with and trusting. I've really always had a really good connection with him, and you know, I just wear my heart on my sleeve and I don't want to be treated like a fool or taken advantage of," Darcey explained."So on that note, I'm healing right now. Whether we're together or not, you'll have to wait and see."Darcey went on to tell Tamron, "I just want love in the end, and I deserve that respect mutually... So, you know what? It's been a journey nonetheless and I'm excited to see where my future goes and my life. But I'm staying strong for myself and will never give my power away in any situation, to any person or any man."When Tamron asked if Darcey still loves Tom, Darcey replied, "I've always had a special feeling for Tom. It's always been a really deep connection; [it's] soulful."Darcey, however, said she just loves love."I don't ever regret anything in life, especially when it comes to love. You learn from your experiences, and my heart is always open," Darcey shared.Darcey joined the franchise when she starred on Seasons 1 and 2 of : Before the 90 Days with her now-ex Jesse Meester On Season 3 of : Before the 90 Days, Darcey was shown traveling to England to pursue what she believed would be a fairy-tale romance with Tom, and the pair fell in love during her trip.However, Darcey and Tom's flame quickly fizzled out once Darcey returned to the United States and attempted to make a long-distance relationship with Tom work.Darcey, who occasionally appears on : Pillow Talk, will be one of over 40 stars from the franchise to star on TLC's new spinoff, : Self-Quarantined, which premieres Monday, April 20.Darcey revealed she's been self-isolating with her two daughters, twin sister Stacey Silva, and her father, who recently flew in from China."We're all here isolated [in Connecticut], staying safe and strong. I will stay strong and empowered for myself... I'll always keep my eye on the prize," Darcey noted.After Tom and Darcey split, Darcey stayed in a New York City hotel so she could compose herself before returning home. Darcey wanted to put on a good face and set a solid example for her kids.Darcey said she also blocked Tom's phone number and social media accounts from contacting her, but Tom told the cameras he felt sorry for the way he had treated Darcey and it would be "a real shame" for their relationship to end so badly.In the preview for the upcoming April 26 broadcast of : Before the 90 Days, Tom tells the cameras, "I'm heading to Connecticut this morning. I'm still in love with Darcey, and she needs to hear what I want to say to her. I don't know what is going to happen."Want more spoilers or couples updates? Click here to visit our homepage! After six years in a regime prison, Abdul Hamid al-Haj Ali looked unrecognisable to his friend and family when he returned home to Daraa writes Zaman Al-Wasl. Syrian activists have revealed a photo for a newly-released Syrian prisoner, showing the shocking physical conditions he was subjected to during his six years in the regimes security chambers. When Abdul Hamid al-Haj Ali arrived back in his hometown in southern Daraa province, most of his family, relatives and neighbors were all shocked to see that the young man has turned into an elderly man. His hair was grey and the face was tired and flabby with wrinkles caused by the constant state of fear and torture. The Syrian opposition says that more than 500,000 prisoners are still inside the prisons of the Syrian regime. About 1.2 million Syrian citizens have been arrested and detained at some point in the regimes detention centers, including 130,000 individuals who are still detained or forcibly disappeared by the Syrian regime, since the revolution erupted in March 2011, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights. Last November, the Detainees Association of Sednaya Prison released the testimonies of torture survivors of the notorious detention facility. According to the report, 100 percent of the detainees had been tortured physically and 97.8 percent had been tortured psychologically. 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. Frances nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle arrived at its home port in Toulon a week ago with 50 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on board. After more testing, the Defense Ministry announced that 1,081 sailors were infected with the coronavirus out of 2,010 sailors tested on the carrier and its escorting fleet. Currently, 24 sailors are hospitalized with one in critical condition, and 545 sailors are presenting symptoms. Since January 21, the Charles de Gaulle had been operating in the Mediterranean as part of Operation Chammal targeting Syria and Iraq, and then the North Atlantic for a mission slated to end on April 23. In the North Atlantic, according to the Navy, it was tasked with deepening knowledge of the areas traversed and contributing to stabilizing the Euro-Mediterranean and Euro-Atlantic regions. Its escorts included German, Belgian, Spanish and Portuguese frigates. There is growing anger among the carriers crew, whose commander was refused permission to end the mission as the ship arrived at the Atlantic port of Brest on March 13 with confirmed coronavirus cases aboard. A month before arriving at Brest, the carrier had put in at a port in Cyprus. Initial reports suggested the first cases could have emerged after a five-to-eight-day incubation period and spread very rapidly. Charles De Gaulle nuclear-powered aircraft carrier (Image credit: U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Joshua Smith) One sailor anonymously told the press, The armed forces played with our health and our lives. It is impossible to respect social distancing measures aboard an aircraft carrier. The infected sailors are victims of the imperialist war drive in the Middle East threatening Iran, Russia and China. Like Washington, Paris is sabre rattling against Russia in the Mediterranean, where Moscow backs the Syrian regime against NATO, and in the Euro-Atlantic area. Putting its imperialist geostrategic interests first, including above all intensifying war threats against Russia and China, President Emmanuel Macrons government acted with contempt for the sailors health with its refusal to allow the sailors to disembark to safety. The disaster on the Charles de Gaulle follows the outbreak aboard the US aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, whose captain was sacked after asking for authorization to evacuate the vessel as COVID-19 tore through the crew. US Defense Secretary Mark Esper refused to grant authorization to the crew to leave the ship, as the Trump administration insisted that the carrier be ready for war in the Pacific despite the many of the crew falling ill. Since then, several hundred American sailors have tested positive due to Washingtons insistence on continuing its threats against China in the Pacific. The US sailors are currently being treated at the US military base on Guam. Similarly, the mass infection of three-fifths of the Charles de Gaulles crew took place after the French Navy refused an urgent appeal from its commander for an emergency evacuation. LExpress reported, as early as March 13, the pashathis is how the ships captain is calledreportedly sent a message to his superiors asking to halt the ships mission. As it was preparing to enter in Brest harbor for a three-day stop, cases of COVID-19, or at least suspected as such, had emerged aboard. Ship captain Guillaume Pinget was concerned and therefore asked to scrap the aircraft carrier battle groups moves northwards to instead return to Toulon, its home base, to confine the entire crew to try to avert the worst. Now, the French armed forces are undertaking a disembarkation operation to place 1,900 sailors in quarantine. The spokeswoman for the maritime prefecture of Toulon, Christine Ribbe, said: Our objective is to protect all our sailors but also their families and the French people by deploying an unprecedented operation to greet them that will be as humane, as coordinated, as concerted but also as effective as possible. The disembarkation of the crew required a heavy logistical operation. Sailors were evacuated by ship as well as by buses, trucks and other vehicles to avoid all contact with the exterior and thus limit the risks of further infections. An operation to decontaminate the carrier as well as its complement of warplanes began last Tuesday so that they can recover as soon as possible their full operational capacity, the Defense Ministry stated. The sailors who tested positive and those presenting symptoms, it added, are being transferred to dedicated locations in accord with the armed forces health services and the Saint-Anne military hospital in Toulon. It is only after the health quarantine and further testing that the carriers crew will be allowed to return to their families. Ribbe stressed that Everyone will be tested. The sailors, including the roughly 1,700 serving aboard the Charles de Gaulle and over 200 aboard an escorting frigate, are to be confined for a two-week period without contact with their families, on military installations of the Var region and surrounding areas. Celyne Flandrin, the wife of an infected sailor, spoke to the press about the dismay of the sailors families. They maintained hygienic measures and tried to enforce social distancing, she said, including the same restrictions that we know on land due to the shelter-at-home order, with the ships bar and other non-essential services being closed. However, she noted, as in all aircraft carriers, the size of common areas and installations is quite narrow, everyone is packed in. On Friday, French Navy spokesman Captain Eric Lavault insisted that all precautionary measures applicable in France had been respected aboard the vessel. Lavault also denied the reports in LExpress that Pinget had requested to halt the ships mission and disembark, instead telling RTL: Very officially, I deny this report. It is erroneous. Lavault immediately admitted, however, that many are asking questions about the decisions taken at the time of the Brest port call and demanded incoherently that the public refrain from asking about the causes of the disaster: I think we must avoid formulating hypotheses, as I see now that some people are doing. Indeed, we are all thinking about the port call at Brest, but there probably will be some other hypotheses and an epidemiological investigation will give answers. Last Wednesday, journalist Justine Brabant reported for the Mediapart news site on further errors in the handling of the epidemic aboard. Fourteen days after the March 13-16 port call in Brest, the armed services reportedly relaxed social distancing orders among the crew. As the sailors themselves are saying, this event has exposed that the Navy brass and the Macron government treat them as cannon fodderjust like workers, whom Macron is ordering back to work in the middle of the pandemic, endangering countless thousands of lives. Israel, like most western countries afflicted with the coronavirus, is now groping toward a partial exit strategy from the severe government measures imposed on the public. Only the debate there is more fraught because of the growing disparity between the economic toll and that inflicted by the virus itself. On March 25, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a state of national emergency and essentially shut down the country. The speech came four days after Israel recorded its first covid-19 death. The victim was an 88- year-old man; the fact that he was a Holocaust survivor added emotional impact. So did Netanyahu's rhetoric. "Citizens of Israel," he said, "the coronavirus joins the deadly epidemics that have hit humanity - the Black Death, cholera and the Spanish flu early in the last century." Later, officials of the Health Ministry put numbers to his warning: Tens of thousands of Israeli could die. That number set the tone for what came next - the imposition of a strict, nationwide shutdown of schools, businesses and gatherings of any sort. Since then, 150 Israelis have died of the virus or its complications, substantially lower than that of most European countries and many American cities. The most recent polling shows a large majority of Israelis support Netanyahu's policies. If elections were held today, his party and its allies would win an easy majority. They credit him for the low death total. But this cause and effect thesis was challenged this week by Professor Isaac Ben-Israel. Calculating the growth in reported case around the world, he argues (in a paper published in Hebrew) that the virus follows a predictable eight week cycle from start to finish; and that this cycle is largely independent of government action. He also accused the government of sacrificing the national economy in what was, at best, an overreaction. In an English version of the paper, Ben-Israel writes: "It is possible to lift the restrictions that are not only causing monetary losses, but are leading to a higher amount of deaths (unrelated to the coronavirus). At the same time, it is possible to keep cost-efficient measures (as in: wearing masks, expanding the testing, especially to specific populations, restricting mass gathering, etc.)." He recommends that of April 19, 50% of the workforce returns to work, with the rest returning a week to 10 days later (apart from a small number of groups where contagion growth needs to be monitored). His paper suggests that social isolation measures can be useful and also backs the expansion of testing. Ben-Israel is a physicist and mathematician who heads two prestigious academic think tanks at Tel Aviv University. A retired major general in the Israeli Defense Forces, he commanded air force intelligence and the Israeli Administration for the Development of Weapons and Infrastructure. In civilian life, he led Israel's National Cyber Initiative, is the chairman of the Israel Space Agency and co-chairs the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative. Despite his formidable reputation, Ben-Israel's research was greeted with derision by the former or current public health officials who dominate prime time commentary on Israel's three major television networks. Dr. Gabi Barbash, the former head of Tel Aviv's largest hospital, spoke for the consensus. "We're going to be living with the coronavirus for the next year," he asserted after a TV appearance by Ben-Israel. "I strongly urge that we not let mathematicians - who know nothing about biology - determine when we lift the shutdown." But even if Ben-Israel's thesis is an outlier, he is not alone in thinking that the "war on the coronavirus" does not justify an open-ended national lockdown. On April 6, 25 of Israel's leading medical scientists and economists sent a public letter to the Prime Minister, asserting that the virus has been sufficiently contained and the country should be allowed to return to normality. Signatories included the deans of several medical schools, two former heads of the Ministry of Health, a roster of senior professors and Nobel Prize Laureate bio-chemist Aaron Ciechanover. The letter didn't dispute that government action had been effective but mainly concerned the horrific economic and social price of the shutdown. In just a few weeks unemployment has risen from 4% to 25%. Entire industries have been destroyed. The Treasury estimated (as of April 1) that the cost of the government rescue package will be 5.7% of GDP. The Israeli ethos frowns on discussions of money in a time of national emergency. "Human life comes first," is the slogan. But realism is also a strong force in Israeli thinking and realists see the war against the coronavirus in broader context. "Every year, about 4,200, mostly elderly patients with underlying diseases, die from respiratory complications not unlike corona," says Professor Arie Bass, a longtime member of Israel Medical Association's Board of Ethics. "That's probably many more than will die from the effects of this virus. Has anyone ever suggested that we close down the country over it? " On Sunday, the cabinet is scheduled to decide on planned first steps in relaxing restrictions. The meeting is a formality. By design, there are no independent thinkers among Netanyahu's ministers, and there is no serious political opposition in the Knesset. In the tug of war between safety-at all-costs pessimists and back-to-work optimists, Netanyahu holds both ends of the rope. So far, he has sided mostly with the former. This fits both his cautious temperament and his bias toward accumulating and using power. The "war on coronavirus" has given him unprecedented control of the country. Early on, he ordered the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, to use cyber technology to track virus carriers. A terrified public accepted this departure from normal procedure as a limited emergency measure. But now Netanyahu proposes to widen the circle of surveillance to an unknown degree (perhaps beyond the "contact-tracing" being contemplated in other countries). He also seeks, understandably but also conveniently, to limit the size of public demonstrations. Netanyahu's supporters regard this as a simple exercise of wartime power. Cynics think it is less innocent. His intentions were there in his speech to the national in March. "I know there is considerable unrest in all parts of the people," he said at the time. "We must put an end to this. The order of the day is unity." He didn't mention the price. - - - This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners. Chafets is a journalist and author of 14 books. He was a senior aide to Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and the founding managing editor of the Jerusalem Report Magazine. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper gave himself a bald spot after using the wrong level of hair clipper grade during a DIY haircut at home. Cooper, who is well known for his silvery-white hair, explained to viewers on his show AC360 how he wanted to give himself a trim during the coronavirus lockdown. Hairdressers in the New York City are part of the businesses affected by the statewide lockdown which means they have been forced to close until at least May 15. Anderson Cooper had revealed on-air that with barbershops and hair salons closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, he attempted to give himself a haircut Cooper decided pointed out the area on his head where he had inadvertently scalped himself Cooper decided to take matters into his own hands, but soon wished he hadn't. He ended up picking up a grade 5 blade to give himself a short back and sides, but thought he had grabbed a grade 7 blade, which would have allowed for much greater length to remain. 'Last night I took a razor and buzzed my head and gave myself a bald spot,' he told viewers. 'I thought it was a grade 7 but it was a 5 and I've been walking around all day with my hand over my head,' Cooper fretted while chuckling to himself. 'It's fine if I'm looking at the camera straight-on, but as soon as a turn my head, it all gives it away,' he said as he showed viewers a noticeably thinner patch of hair. Cooper has been isolating, broadcasting from his New York home amid the virus and said that he had been walking around with his hand over his head for much of the day Dr. Sanjay Gupta reassured Cooper that his hair would eventually grow back and not to worry Luckily, CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta was already being interviewed by Cooper and had some reassuring words for the 52-year-old anchor. 'I hope that grows back Anderson, I think it will!' he said. Later in the broadcast, Cooper was joined by fellow CNN broadcaster Chris Cuomo who has been quarantined at home after being diagnosed with coronavirus several weeks ago. Cooper offered to give Cuomo a haircut at some point. 'I have a little experience now,' Cooper said showing off his patch once again 'So, when you're better, come by.' 'Anderson, now you will make that popular,' Cuomo said. 'And I would probably shave a hole in the side of my hair. I'd call it 'The Coop,"' he joked. Later in the broadcast, Cooper was joined by fellow CNN broadcaster Chris Cuomo who has been quarantined at home after being diagnosed with coronavirus several weeks ago A trio of far-right, pro-gun provocateurs is behind some of the largest Facebook groups calling for anti-quarantine protests around the country, offering the latest illustration that some seemingly organic demonstrations are being engineered by a network of conservative activists. The Facebook groups target Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, and they appear to be the work of Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights, and his siblings, Christopher and Aaron. By Sunday, the groups had roughly 200,000 members combined, and they continued to expand quickly, days after President Trump endorsed such protests by suggesting citizens should liberate their states. The online activity instigated by the brothers helps cement the impression that opposition to the restrictions is more widespread than polling suggests. Nearly 70 percent of Republicans said they supported a national stay-at-home order, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll. Ninety-five percent of Democrats backed such a measure in the survey. (Washington Post) Featured stories President Donald Trump speaks Sunday during a coronavirus task force briefing at the White House in Washington. (Patrick Semansky, Associated Press)AP Delusional, absolutely false: Governors cry foul on Trump testing claims (NBC News) 70 died at a nursing home as body bags piled up. This is what went wrong (New York Times) Gottlieb says U.S. not yet out of the woods of coronavirus pandemic (CBS News) 16 dead, including police officer, in deadliest shooting in Canadian history (ABC News) National news Trump wont say whether he will pardon Manafort and Stone, calls FBI investigators human scum (CNN) Lawsuit alleges Wells Fargo unfairly shuffled Paycheck Protection Program applications (USA Today) Shake Shack returning $10 million government loan meant for small businesses (NBC News) Michigan Gov. Whitmer says her strict stay home orders are working (Detroit Free Press) Ex-mayor in California who quit after criticizing Trump dies in plane crash (NBC News) Ten years after Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Trump administration weakens regulations (Washington Post) Tuskegee always looms in our minds: Some fear black Americans, hardest hit by coronavirus, may not get vaccine (USA Today) Gunman dead after hijacking DART bus, leading authorities on chase from Richardson to Rockwall (Dallas Morning News) World news Europe reaches grim milestone, surpasses 100,000 coronavirus deaths (NBC News) Coronavirus: Boris Johnson fears second peak from relaxing lockdown (BBC) Putin says coronavirus crisis under full control despite record rise in cases (Reuters) China, South Korea report fewest new coronavirus cases in weeks (The Hill) Brazils Bolsonaro attacks coronavirus lockdowns as supporters take to streets (Reuters) Harry and Meghan tell UK tabloids they will no longer deal with them (The Guardian) U.S. factories in Mexico are still open. As the coronavirus spreads, workers are dying (San Diego Union-Tribune) remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. U.S. President Donald Trump said he would be willing to provide aid to Iran to help deal with the coronavirus pandemic if Tehran requested it. This is reported by Reuters. If Iran needed aid on this, I would be willing to do so, Trump said at a White House briefing. Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Sunday warned the United States of intensifying its military activities in the Persian Gulf. Reuters reports that, with the reference to the Iranian military. We advise Americans to follow international rules and maritime protocols in the Persian and Omani Gulfs and to refrain from any adventures or false stories. They must be sure that the fleet of the Revolutionary Guard and the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran see the dangerous actions of foreigners in the region as a threat national security," the statement said. The Iranian military warned of their readiness to respond to any red line crossing or a mistake by the US in the region. Prior to this, on Wednesday, the US military said that 11 naval ships of the Revolutionary Guard approached their fleet and coast guard ships. The US Army called the actions of the Iranian Navy "dangerous and provocative." Such incidents occurred several years ago, but eventually ceased. However, tensions between the two states soared this year after the United States killed the head of the Iranian military elite, the IRGC commander Kassem Suleimani, in January. As we reported before, the Government of Iran has sent a draft memorandum of understanding to the Ukraines Foreign Ministry: it obliges Ukraine and the families of the victims to drop the right to sue in the case of the UIA plane crash in Tehran, thereby acknowledging the fact of "human error". Sen. Lindsey Graham's Democratic opponent in this fall's U.S. Senate election in South Carolina has enlisted a crew of heavy-hitting bundlers to raise large amounts of cash. Jaime Harrison, the former chairman of the state's Democratic Party, has the backing of several big-dollar fundraisers as he seeks to unseat the powerful Republican lawmaker and ally of President Donald Trump, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter. These people declined to be named as the decisions have yet to be made public by the campaign. According to the people, Harrison's list of bundlers includes Jon Henes, a senior partner at legal juggernaut Kirkland & Ellis; Brian Mathis, a founding partner at investment firm Pine Street; Mike Kempner, the CEO of public relations juggernaut MWWPR; Melissa Prober, a senior associate counsel at the New York Genome Project; Sarah Min, a digital media consultant, and Jonathan Klein, a partner at DLA Piper. Bundlers often help arrange fundraising events and reach out to prospective donors to encourage them to give to the campaigns they're supporting. The development comes as Harrison's campaign reported outraising Graham in the first quarter of 2020, $7.3 million to $5.5 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Graham, however, has slightly more cash on hand, with $12 million compared with Harrison's $8 million. The Senate race in South Carolina is still labeled as "safe Republican" by Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball. Harrison has been running on lowering the cost of health care, expanding the child care tax credit and supporting paid family and sick leave. A spokesman for Harrison and most of the party donors did not return repeated requests for comment. Min could not be reached. All campaigns have been forced to go virtual, and Harrison has been one of the candidates leading the way for Democrats with town halls over Facebook. These fundraisers for Harrison assisted Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., when she was running for president. Henes was Harris' national finance chair during her campaign. Henes' efforts for Harrison include a memo sent to his donor network, imploring donors to tune in to a virtual meet and greet featuring Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., which is scheduled to take place on Tuesday. "This video call is an opportunity to meet and get to know a rising star in national Democratic politics as he takes on Senator Lindsey Graham," Henes wrote in the note, which also gave potential supporters a glimpse into Harrison's upbringing and career in politics. Booker and Harris are two of only three black members of the Senate. The other is Tim Scott, a Republican of South Carolina. Harrison is also black. Harris featured Harrison in one of her "Meet the Candidates" episodes, which allowed her to introduce him to many of her supporters and donors. The meeting took place over Zoom in early April and some of Harris' previous bundlers were inspired to sign on to back Harrison in the wake of the call, a person familiar with the efforts said. Beyond Harris, most of these donors have helped raised money for Joe Biden, the apparent Democratic nominee for president, who recently endorsed Harrison's candidacy, and former President Barack Obama. Harrison has ties to leaders in the party. He was once an aide to South Carolina kingmaker and U.S. Rep. James Clyburn. Harrison also once ran to be the chairman of the Democratic National Committee but eventually dropped out of the race to later endorse Tom Perez. Pennsylvanias Gov. Tom Wolf, as expected, vetoed legislation that would allow more businesses to reopen provided they comply with certain COVID-19 safety standards. In a veto message, Wolf said, This is not an easy decision but it is the right course for Pennsylvania. Reopening tens of thousands of businesses too early will only increase the spread of the virus, place more lives at risk, increase the death tolls, and extend the length of the economic hardship created by the pandemic. The bill passed both chambers with not a single Democratic vote. That signals that not enough votes exist in the GOP-controlled General Assembly to override the governors veto. The vetoed measure would have required the Democratic governor to develop a plan using federal Homeland Securitys Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency guidelines, along with Centers for Disease Control and Preventions COVID-19 mitigation strategies, in determining which businesses can be open during the coronavirus emergency disaster. While it would still have left some businesses unable to open, some, including state Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine, suggested it would lead to many more industries as well as more retail outlets reopening. In a call on Thursday with reporters, Wolf said, Its not a time to take our feet off the brakes. We need to keep people safe. We are seeing some real progress but I dont think its time to declare victory. He pointed out Cargill meat processing plant in Luzerne County temporarily closed because workers chose not to show up for work after testing positive for the virus or to trying to protect themselves from contracting it. Wolf said those who want to reopen businesses are ignoring concerns of employees who like Cargills who feel it is unsafe to return to work as well as their customers. I think we ought to stay the course right now, Wolf told reporters. This is hard. It is devastating the economy, no question about it. But letting this virus overwhelm the health care system and the ability of Pennsylvanians to resist it would be even worse for the economy. Republicans pushed the legislation out of frustration with the Wolf Administrations list of life-sustaining businesses that were permitted to remain open and the accompanying waiver process that allowed businesses to seek an exemption from the governors March 19 business closure order. The GOP lawmakers said the waiver process lacked transparency and clarity and left many business still waiting to receive a response. According to the state Department of Community and Economic Development, it received 42,380 requests from businesses sought waivers to the governors business closure by the time the waiver process ended on April 3. As of Wednesday, the department approved 7,837 requests for a waiver, rejected 18,746, found 14,471 didnt require one for the activity they wanted to perform. The remainder are still being processed, said department spokeswoman Casey Smith. The Republican legislators also argued it has led to Pennsylvania being among the highest states with the number of unemployed workers filing for jobless benefits. Further, they said it went overboard by not allowing small businesses that employ people living in the same household to be open as well as lacked consistency by not allowing small businesses to be open that offer the same products as are sold in big box stores, which are open. Using the CISA list would more clearly define what is considered an essential business. they said. And by requiring businesses to follow CDC guidance, it would have provided clarity on the steps that need to be taken to protect the health and safety of customers and employees. On Wednesday, Levine issued an order that spells out mitigation strategies that businesses that are open must follow. They include limiting the number of customers in a store at one time, requiring employees and customers to wear masks, and having employees maintain social distancing by being at least six feet apart, among others. The governors veto of this bill doesnt appear to be last attempt the GOP-controlled Legislature will try to send to the governor to get him to ease up on his business closure order that currently extends to the end of the month. Other bills targeted to specific industries, including construction, auto sales, and liquor, are making their way through the legislative process and could see action as soon as next week. Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy. 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. A visit by 20 Ukrainian medical volunteers to Italy for the assistance during fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak was prolonged until April 25, Health Minister of Ukraine Maksym Stepanov has said. "Their visit was supposed to last for two weeks, but the Italian side has asked to prolong the stay of our medical workers in Italy by one more week, until April 25. After consultations with our specialists, we prolonged the visit. So, they will return on April 25," he told a press briefing on Monday. As reported, 20 Ukrainian doctors went to Italy on April 4. Interior Minister of Ukraine Arsen Avakov said that there are anesthetists, resuscitators, infectious disease specialists, therapists, and also nurses among the Ukrainian doctors who work in Italy for two weeks. Avakov said that the Ukrainian side will provide the doctors with personal protective means, while Italy will provide them with work and accommodation. Deputy Interior Minister of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko, in turn, said on Facebook that the Ukrainian doctors should learn the experience of combating COVID-19 in Italy and conduct training broadcasts through Zoom for thousands of Ukrainian infectious disease doctors and epidemiologists. Pakistan says it will repatriate thousands more citizens from the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), which had threatened to review labor relations if countries did not take back their nationals from the Gulf state due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Aisha Farooqui said on April 19 that a third phase of repatriations would begin between April 20 and 28. Fourteen flights are scheduled to take Pakistani nationals from the U.A.E. during this period, the Foreign Ministry said. Six other flights are planned to repatriate Pakistani nationals from other countries, including Bahrain and Malaysia. The first Pakistan International Airlines flight carrying 227 "stranded passengers" from Dubai and other emirates left for Islamabad on the evening of April 18, Pakistan's consulate-general in Dubai said in a Twitter post. More than 40,000 Pakistani nationals have registered with the Dubai consulate to return home, the U.A.E. newspaper The National reported. Pakistan is a major labor supplier to the U.A.E., with more than 1 million Pakistanis living and working in the country. The U.A.E. said earlier in April it would review labor relations with states refusing to evacuate citizens as thousands of migrant laborers lost jobs or did not receive salaries from employers due to lockdowns imposed over the coronavirus pandemic. In March, the U.A.E. suspended all passenger flights, leaving migrants stranded in the country as authorities demanded foreign governments take their citizens. The U.A.E. and other Gulf states reliant on foreign labor have reported increased coronavirus infections among low-income migrant workers who often live in crowded conditions. Pakistan has warned it has limited quarantine and testing facilities to handle repatriated nationals, raising concerns laborers could become a vector for the spread of the virus. The pandemic is likely to impact the remittances Pakistani workers send home. With reporting by Reuters Tanishq, Indias leading and most trusted jewellery brand from the house of Tata today announced its plans of taking Akshaya Tritiya online this year. Tanishq will start its Akshaya Tritiya Offer from 18th -27th April 2020 on its e-commerce platform; www.tanishq.co.in . Once the situation returns to normalcy and services resume, the customers can either opt to go to the store and pick up their jewellery or get it delivered to their doorstep. Akshaya Tritiya is also a traditional anchor for a lot of Tanishqs customers, nearly 54% of its regular Akshaya Tritiya buyers expressed their interest to pursue the tradition of bringing gold as a harbinger of good times. Customers can choose from a wide range of gold coins to gold studded and diamond jewellery in rings, earrings, necklaces, bangles offering the best-in-class designer jewellery to customers, including its latest wedding collection. Speaking on the importance of the occasion, Mr. Ajoy Chawla, CEO, Jewellery Division at Titan Company Limited, saysWe decided to celebrate e Akshaya Tritiya this year in a unique way. Not only it celebrates the promise of prosperity, it also celebrates resilience, courage, & strength in these uncertain times. We are reaching out to customers to put out collective belief and hope in the tradition for a new beginning, and usher in a brighter tomorrow. He further adds, Gold is always a safe haven as compared to other instruments. For Indians, gold is beyond an adornment metal. It is a symbol of security. So it symbolises beauty with the purpose of appreciating returns. Akshaya Tritiya is the time when a lot of customers buy wedding jewellery and we want those customers to consider us as their trusted wedding jeweller In his conclusion, Contactless shopping experience throughout will be a new experience for us and for our customers as well. We have trained our retail team in the process. They are prepared to deal with our customers in the virtual world. We have launched new technology initiatives such as video calling feature, live assisted chat on our website and setting up of a remote war room to resolve any customer query in real-time to name a few. Creating unique experiences and superior customer services for our customers are at the heart of Tanishq. This Akshaya Tritiya Tanishq is offering Up To 25% off* on Making Charges of Gold and on Diamond Jewellery Value. Tanishq is also bringing a Gold Rate protection scheme, where customers can purchase gold coins at the prevailing gold rate and by doing so, they are entitled to exchange the coins at any store without any loss on making charges of coins for Jewellery purchase during the redemption period until end Nov 2020. Customers can visit http://www.tanishq.co.in/ offers for detailed offers. Christopher Aluka Berry/Getty Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced on Monday that gyms, hair salons, nail salons, barbershops, and bowling alleys will be allowed to reopen in the Peach State on Fridayeven as the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise. During an afternoon press conference, Kemp said that the statewide shelter-in-place order will expire on April 30, however he urged the medically fragile to continue to hunker down until May 13. The governor, who cited the pandemics heavy toll on the states economy, said that some restaurants and movie theaters can reopen on Monday as long as they adhere to social-distancing guidelines. Bars and nightclubs will remain closed. He also gave the green light to churches to hold in-person services. You Might Get a Coronavirus Vaccine Shot in 2021If Youre Lucky The announcement comes even as top health officials maintain that the best way to prevent further spread of the virus at this stage of the pandemic is to continue enforced social distancing. The governors of two other Southern states, South Carolina and Tennessee, moved to ease restrictions on businesses shortly after Kemps announcement. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced that retail stores, including department stores and flea markets, will be allowed to reopen on Monday at 5 p.m. with social distancing requirements. McMasters orderwhich also lifted closures of public beaches, piers, and docksrequires stores to operate at 20 percent capacity or less and customers to stand six feet apart. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said that most businesses will be allowed to reopen on Monday, saying that as we open up our economy it will be more important than ever that we keep social distancing as lives and livelihoods depend on it. As of Monday, Georgia has recorded over 18,301 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and at least 637 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University tracker. Savannah Mayor Van R. Johnson told The Daily Beast that he is beyond disappointed in Kemps order, which he called premature, irresponsible, and places the lives of Savannahians at risk. Story continues The science has been clear that expanded and comprehensive testing, combined with decelerated infections rates and reduced hospitalizations are the prerequisites to any phased re-openings or relaxation of emergency order, he added. It is not clear to me that all of these boxes have been checked. Kemp said his primary concern is Georgians going broke worried about whether they can feed their children and make the mortgage payment. These are tough moments in our state and our nation. I hear the concerns of those that Im honored to serve, Kemp said. I am confident that together we will emerge victorious from this war we have been fighting. The order requires businesses to meet a set of 20 guidelines to reopen, including screening employees for symptoms of COVID-19, ramping up sanitation procedures, and making people stay six feet apart. Just last week, Kemp insisted that his main focus was to increase testing capacity in the state and said it was ultimately too early to determine whether he would relax restrictions in place to control the spread of the virus, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The governor has faced criticism for his delayed response to the outbreak, finally issuing a shelter-in-place order weeks after the first reported infections in the state. As he defended that decision, he claimed on April 2 that he had only just found out that the virus could be transmitted by asymptomatic carriers. Those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didnt know that until the last 24 hours, the governor said, as he announced the statewide order. The governors revelation, which he called a game-changer, shocked health officials who had been warning for weeks of the risk of those who could spread the disease without exhibiting any symptoms. Dr. Sanjay Gupta called his remarks inexcusable in an interview with CNN, adding, Weve known this for a long time. To say that weve just found out in the last 24 hours and thats why were doing this, this is just not right. Last week, President Donald Trump said that governors can call their own shots on reopening their states and relaxing social distancing guidelines. Kemps order comes amid conservative protests against shelter-in-place orders across the country, demanding that state governors end enforced social distancing. Read more at The Daily Beast. Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more. A 26-year-old Birmingham man has been charged in connection with a deadly shooting Friday at Birminghams Southtown public housing community. Montrel Austin is charged with capital murder in the shooting death of 23-year-old Emilio Elliot Jr. The shooting happened at 11:47 a.m. Birmingham police Sgt. Rod Mauldin said officers from the Community Safety Partnership were on patrol in the area when they heard multiple shots ring out. They found Elliot lying unresponsive near a running vehicle in the area of the 2400 block of Ninth Avenue South. Elliot was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6:26 p.m. Friday. Mauldin said the investigation shows that Elliot and Austin met at the location and Elliot was robbed by Austin. No additional information was released Detectives presented the initial information gathered on the case to the Jefferson County District Attorneys Office for review. Following the assessment, a Capital Murder warrant was obtained with no bond. Montrel Austin is currently being held in the custody of the Jefferson County Jail. Austin was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 5 p.m. Sunday. He is also facing a failure to appear charge and is being held without bond. Telangana has the highest number of fatalities from the infection, followed by neighbour Andhra With Andhra Pradesh implementing the relaxation of rules effective Monday as decreed by the Union Home Ministry, the state seems to have recorded the maximum number of novel coronavirus, COVID-19, cases in the last 24 hours. According to latest data from the Andhra Pradesh government, 722 cases have been recorded in the state with 20 deaths, the second-highest among states in South India. Neighbouring Telangana tops the charts with the death toll rising to 21 till Sunday night. Telangana, unlike Andhra, has imposed strict lockdown measures till May 7, 2020, a few days more than May 3, the date on which the second lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi ends. Further, there are chances that the Telangana government may extend the lockdown in the state even beyond May 7 depending on the number of cases in the state. Also Read: UP CM Yogi Adityanath condoles death of his father Anand Singh Bisht, says will be forced to miss last rites due to states fight against coronavirus Following the Centres recommendations, the Andhra Pradesh government eased lockdown rules allowing private companies and government firms involved in the manufacture of 25 items deemed essential to resume work. These include agriculture-based industries, e-commerce, aqua industries, mills, dairy items and poultry industries can enjoy the relaxations. E-commerce companies like Amazon, Flipkart, Walmart with warehousing and cold storage at ports, airports, railway stations, container depots, individual units and other links in the logistics chain have also been permitted to re-open in Andhra Pradesh. Moreover, many companies with 50 percent of staff are also permitted to work. Many experts said the relaxations might lead to a spike in positive cases in Andhra Pradesh. The government said strict lockdown measures will be implemented in the red zones of the state in districts like Kurnool and Guntur, which has recorded maximum coronavirus cases. The district collector of Kurnool said that with the help of police and mandal officers, the lockdown will be implemented in 27 red zones in the district and there will not be any relaxation. For all the latest National News, download NewsX App Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced 11 new cases of coronavirus patients in Kenya (PHOTO/Courtesy)NAIROBI Kenya has announced that 11 individuals had tested positive for COVID-19, on Monday April 20, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 281. Of the 11 new cases, seven are from Mombasa while the other four Nairobi. None have a history of travel. The seven are from our quarantine centres while the four were picked by surveillance teams in Ruaka, Health Minister Mutabi Kagwe is quoted as saying. He said that the ages of the new individuals ranged between 11 and 80 years. CS Kagwe also reported that two patients have recovered adding that one of the two is a doctor. This now brings the number of recoveries to 69 while the number of deaths remains at 14. Speaking to reporters, Mr. Kagwe announced that Kenya had now adopted the COVID-19 global mantra of testing, isolating, treating and tracing. Our success in treatment is highly dependent on our ability to protect our frontline workers in this fight. We have distributed 4,759 Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) & 237 assorted components. We have trained over 30,000 health workers & the training is still ongoing, he announced He also revealed that there had been two more recoveries, bringing the total tally of recovered individuals to 69. Related Libya's UN-recognized GNA forces down UAE combat drone Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 2:35 PM Libya's UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) says its forces have managed to down a United Arab Emirates (UAE) combat drone in the skies of the northern parts of the country. "Our forces successfully shot down an Emirati drone south of Misrata city", some 187 kilometers to the east of Tripoli, Turkey's state Anadolu news agency quoted Mohammad Gununu, the spokesman for the GNA-led Burkan al-Ghadab Operation (Volcano of Rage), as saying on Sunday, adding the drone was "equipped with guided missiles." The all-out operation, part of the larger Operation Peace Storm, was launched by GNA forces on Saturday to liberate Tarhuna city, which is Haftar's main foothold in west Libya. Abu Dhabi, one of the key allies of the rebel forces, has not yet commented on the development. Earlier this month, the GNA said that Emirati drones, which are conducting airstrikes against the government's positions, had twice raided al-Washka area, west of Sirte, which is located south of the Gulf of Sirte, between Tripoli and Benghazi. A flight-tracking data provider revealed last month that the UAE had sent more than 100 shipments of arms to Libya by air since mid-January, despite a UN arms embargo against the war-torn country. However, the airstrikes near Sirte marked the first time that the UAE is operating drones to support the rebels. According to a report by the Guardian last month, most of the suspect Emirati flights leave military bases in the UAE, while some others depart from a UAE-run base in Eritrea, where a dictatorial regime is in charge and there is almost no international monitoring. The report by the British daily newspaper also said that these shipments might contain heavier artillery plus other arms and ammunition. The LNA had in February pounded the center of Tripoli with shelling from long-range artillery. Since 2014, two rival seats of power have emerged in the North African country, namely the internationally-recognized government of Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, known as the GNA, and another group based in the eastern city of Tobruk, supported militarily by rebel forces, collectively known as the so-called Libyan National Army (LNA), under the command of renegade General Khalifa Haftar. The rebel leader, who is primarily supported by the UAE, Egypt, and Jordan, launched a deadly offensive to capture the capital Tripoli, the seat of the GNA, in April last year. Despite fierce fighting, he has so far failed to achieve his objective of ousting the GNA, and the offensive has stalled outside the city. Numerous international attempts to bring about peace between the two warring sides have failed. On Saturday, the GNA announced that the Libyan army troops had launched an all-out military operation early in the day and advanced toward the strategic town of Tarhuna, about 65 kilometers southeast of Tripoli, seizing several towns and capturing dozens of rebels on the way. The government forces overran a rebel camp in al-Hawatim area near Tarhouna, killed more than a dozen rebels, and captured over 100 others. They also managed to seize a number of armored vehicles, tanks, and mortar launchers. The Libyan army has in recent days liberated a string of strategic cities located west of Tripoli, including Sabratha, Surman, and al-Ajaylat from the grips of Haftar's forces. Fresh clashes around Tripoli intensified after the rebels breached a March 21 humanitarian ceasefire aimed at facilitating efforts to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the war-torn country. As of Sunday, 49 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and one individual has died of the disease in the Arab country, Libya's official figures say. Libya plunged into chaos in 2011 when a popular uprising and a NATO intervention led to the ouster of long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address OFF THE COAST OF NORWAY There could hardly have been a more terrifying place to fight a fire than in the belly of the Losharik, a mysterious deep-diving Russian submarine. Something, it appears, had gone terribly wrong in the battery compartment as the sub made its way through Russian waters 250 miles north of the Arctic Circle on the First of July. A fire on any submarine may be a mariners worst nightmare, but a fire on the Losharik was a threat of another order altogether. The vessel is able to dive far deeper than almost any other sub, but the feats of engineering that allow it do so may have helped seal the fate of the 14 sailors killed in the disaster. The only thing more mysterious than what exactly went wrong that day is what the sub was doing in a thousand feet of water just 60 nautical miles east of Norway in the first place. Oilfield services behemoth Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) pledged to cut its 2020 spending by 50% and reduce other expenses by $1 billion after it announced a billion dollar net loss in Q1 2020. Low oil prices have hurt demand for Halliburton's services as oil producers cut back on spending. In early March, OPEC+ members Russia and Saudi Arabia flooded the market with cheap crude, cutting oil prices nearly in half. Meanwhile, travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic caused demand to plummet. On Monday, U.S. oil prices had crashed below $11/barrel, a 34-year low. Drastic action "We have been through downturns before," said Halliburton CEO Jeff Miller in a statement released Monday morning. "We know what to do and will execute based on that experience. We are taking swift actions to reduce overhead and other costs by approximately $1 billion, lower capital expenditures to $800 million, and improve working capital. We will take further actions as necessary to adjust to evolving market conditions." Halliburton's shares opened about 10% lower Monday morning, on news of the huge net loss. However, they moved higher throughout the morning as Wall Street digested the company's massive cost-cutting plan, and by noon were up about 6% over Friday's close. Impairment charges The company's massive net loss was primarily the result of non-cash asset impairments. In total, Halliburton booked $1.1 billion in total pre-tax charges, and another $310 million in after-tax charges. That more than offset the company's $345 million in operating income, which was down 6% from Q1 2019. Halliburton's woes should be a warning sign to energy investors that the turmoil in the oil industry is far from over. HOUSTON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Western Midstream Partners, LP (NYSE: WES) ("WES" or the "Partnership") announced that the board of directors of its general partner declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.311 per unit for the first quarter of 2020, which represents a 50-percent decrease from the fourth-quarter 2019 per-unit distribution. This distribution decrease was undertaken to protect, restore, and strengthen WES's balance sheet as the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic, declining economic activity and energy demand, and depressed commodity prices continue to underpin broad-based market uncertainty. WES's first-quarter 2020 distribution is payable May 14, 2020, to unitholders of record at the close of business May 1, 2020. "In recent weeks, WES implemented a number of initiatives to protect the health and safety of our employees, their families, our customers, and the communities in which we live and operate during this worldwide pandemic," said Chief Executive Officer, Michael Ure. "General economic uncertainty and sharp declines in commodity prices and producer activity mandated a meaningful reduction to our quarterly distribution. Cutting our quarterly distribution and significantly reducing our 2020 cash capital, operating, and other costs will allow WES to generate free cash flow after distributions in this most-challenging environment. Our enhanced financial profile is supported by a best-in-class asset portfolio which we expect will continue generating attractive and durable asset-based returns, which in turn enables us to maintain focus on prioritizing leverage reduction to increase our balance sheet strength. Management will monitor 2020 and 2021 producer activity continually and reassess future distribution levels with WES's board, should producer activity deviate significantly from current expectations." 2020 GUIDANCE UPDATE WES's previously announced guidance is withdrawn, except as follows: WES expects 2020 capital expenditures between $450 - $550 million , representing a 45-percent reduction to prior guidance. This reduction results from deferred producer activity in all basins and the elimination of associated capital expenditures, other than those expenditures that are necessary to support proper maintenance and long-term asset integrity. - , representing a 45-percent reduction to prior guidance. This reduction results from deferred producer activity in all basins and the elimination of associated capital expenditures, other than those expenditures that are necessary to support proper maintenance and long-term asset integrity. WES expects to achieve other cost reductions of approximately $75 million through operating and maintenance and general and administrative expense cost-saving initiatives. These cost reductions include savings attributable to Mr. Ure's voluntarily election to reduce his 2020 year-over-year cash compensation by at least 45 percent. "The announced distribution cut and anticipated cash-cost reductions decrease our 2020 aggregate cash outflows by approximately $1.0 billion, which positions us to generate meaningful free cash flow after distributions in 2020. Pivoting in this manner underscores our continued focus on capital efficiency, our commitment to transition rapidly to a free-cash-flow-generating enterprise, and our ability to moderate spending during cyclical downturns," said Chief Financial Officer, Mike Pearl. "Creating and sustaining long-term value for all of our stakeholders requires that free-cash-flow generation and debt reduction remain priorities so that we are positioned to manage through the cycle from a financial-flexibility standpoint while safely and responsibly operating as a premier midstream provider. Additional 2020 guidance details will be disclosed with our first-quarter 2020 results, which we expect will be consistent with our pre-COVID-19 expectations. Our current-quarter distribution cut takes into account our expectations regarding the limited impact of COVID-19 on our first-quarter 2020 results and our expectations for producer activity throughout the balance of 2020 and into 2021." WES's enhanced liquidity profile, including its largely undrawn $2.0 billion revolving credit facility maturing in 2025, coupled with the successful execution of a $3.5 billion bond offering in January 2020 results in no near-term need for WES to access the capital markets. "As WES's largest unitholder, Occidental commends the WES board for its decisive action during such a challenging time for the entire industry," said Vicki Hollub, President and CEO of Occidental. "We continue to see long-term value from our ownership interest in WES and will continue to collaborate with WES to drive value-enhancing opportunities for both companies." The Partnership plans to report its first-quarter 2020 results after market close Tuesday, May 5, 2020. Management will host a conference call Wednesday, May 6, 2020, at 1 p.m. CDT (2 p.m. EDT) to discuss WES's quarterly results and to provide additional 2020-guidance updates. The full text of the release announcing the results will be available on the Partnership's website at www.westernmidstream.com. First-Quarter 2020 Results Wednesday, May 6, 2020 1 p.m. CDT (2 p.m. EDT) Dial-in number: 877-883-0383 International dial-in number: 412-902-6506 Participant access code: 2731323 To participate in WES's scheduled first-quarter earnings call, refer to the above-listed dial-in number and participant access code. To access the live audio webcast of the conference call, please visit the investor relations section of the Partnership's website at www.westernmidstream.com. A replay of the conference call also will be available on the website for two weeks following the call. ABOUT WESTERN MIDSTREAM Western Midstream Partners, LP ("WES") is a Delaware master limited partnership formed to acquire, own, develop, and operate midstream assets. With midstream assets located in the Rocky Mountains, North-central Pennsylvania, Texas, and New Mexico, WES is engaged in the business of gathering, compressing, treating, processing, and transporting natural gas; gathering, stabilizing, and transporting condensate, NGLs, and crude oil; and gathering and disposing of produced water for its customers. In addition, in its capacity as a processor of natural gas, WES also buys and sells natural gas, NGLs, and condensate on behalf of itself and as agent for its customers under certain of its contracts. For more information about Western Midstream Partners, LP and Western Midstream Flash Feed updates, please visit www.westernmidstream.com. This news release contains forward-looking statements. WES's management believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions. No assurance, however, can be given that such expectations will prove correct. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the projections, anticipated results, or other expectations expressed in this news release. These factors include the ultimate impact of efforts to fight COVID-19 on the global economy and the timeline for a recovery in commodity demand and prices; our ability to meet financial guidance or distribution-growth expectations; our ability to safely and efficiently operate WES's assets; our ability to meet projected in-service dates for capital-growth projects; construction costs or capital expenditures exceeding estimated or budgeted costs or expenditures; and the other factors described in the "Risk Factors" section of WES's most-recent Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and other public filings and press releases. WES undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. Note regarding Non-United States Investors: This release is intended to be a qualified notice under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Brokers and nominees should treat one hundred percent (100.0%) of Western Midstream Partners, LP's distributions to non-U.S. investors as being attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, Western Midstream Partners, LP's distributions to non-U.S. investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest applicable effective tax rate. WESTERN MIDSTREAM CONTACTS Kristen Shults Vice President, Investor Relations and Communications [email protected] 832.636.6000 Abby Dempsey Investor Relations [email protected] 832.636.6000 SOURCE Western Midstream Partners, LP Related Links http://www.westernmidstream.com Peter Weber's Bachelor babes teamed up to send a sassy message to the reality star via a cheeky TikTok on Sunday. Finalist Madison Prewett invited fellow contestants Tammy Ly, Mykenna Dorn, Kelsey Weier, Kiarra Norman, and Deandra Kanu to the platform for a bit where they passed a makeup brush from screen to screen while they got glam. Tammy made her opinion of Peter known as she reposted the video on her own TikTok, with the caption: 'Featuring: women who are too good for Peter lol.' Exes unite: Peter Weber's Bachelor babes teamed up to send a sassy message to the reality star with a post to finalist Madison Prewett's TikTok Maddie offered a little less attitude, captioning her post: 'Bach Girls get ready - quarantine style' with the tags '#tiktokcovers,' '#slay,' '#girlpower,' and of course, '#bachelor.' But she didn't hold back in her comments section once one fan asked about Kelley Flanagan - their former co-star who is now getting quite cozy with Peter as they quarantine together. Asked where she was, Prewett wrote: 'With our ex lol.' The girls also threw shade at their mutual ex and their former castmate by backing the video with the song Take Your Man by Mahogany LOX. Peter was The Bachelor on season 24 of the show, where Maddie finished in 2nd place Makeover: Madison Prewett captioned the post 'Bach Girls get ready - quarantine style' Shade: Tammy made her opinion of Peter known as she reposted the video on her own TikTok, with the caption: 'Featuring: women who are too good for Peter lol' Pointed: Deandra Kanu and the girls also threw shade at their mutual ex and their former castmate by backing the video with the song Take Your Man by Mahogany LOX Pretty: Kiarra Norman was all dressed up with nowhere to go Pout about it: Kelsey Weier looked like a 10 Transformation: Mykenna Dorn went from bed head to beach day Weber denied anything was going on with Flanagan while appearing on former Bachelor Nick Viall's podcast The Viall Files earlier this month. He told Nick: 'Are we dating? No. Do I love spending time with her? Absolutely. We're not dating. Could I see that in the future? Yeah, of course. I'd be extremely lucky and very happy if that happened.' The pilot admitted that after his failed romances with other Bachelor contestants Hannah Ann Sluss and Madison Prewett, he wants to slow things down. 'Of anyone, I'm the last person that needs to rush into any kind of relationship. I just had an engagement that didn't work out. I just was trying to pursue things with another woman that didn't work out. That's why right now, I'm just taking it really, really slow.' MIA: One fan asked about Kelley Flanagan - their former co-star who is now getting quite cozy with Peter as they quarantine together. Prewett wrote back: 'With our ex lol.' Opening up: Peter broke his silence on his relationship status with Kelley Flanagan plus his recent breakups and regrets during Nick Viall's podcast earlier this month Peter and Kelley are quarantining with pal Dustin Kendrick and he revealed it happened naturally after he went to Chicago to spend some time with Kelley and the lockdowns started to happen. 'It kind of just became a thing where we've always gotten along really well, and had really good chemistry. We just enjoy each other's company. I just decided to quarantine up here with Dustin as well.' The reality star also revealed their friendship blossomed after he kept bumping into Kelley by chance, which lead to them reconnecting and getting closer. 'There's a lot of stuff that people don't know. My relationship with Kelley has been... serendipitous. You go all the way back to the very beginning - us running into each other before any of this stuff started. 'We're not dating. Could I see that in the future? Yeah, of course. I'd be extremely lucky and very happy if that happened.' Peter explained of his relationship with Kelley 'Obviously, the show happened and it didn't work out for us. Over the Super Bowl, I was in Miami and I had the opportunity to go to the Super Bowl with my brother, and I ran into her on the Saturday night before the Super Bowl. 'Within our relationship on the show, it didn't really play out in the best way for us. It just wasn't gonna work on the show.' Peter revealed they bumped into each other once again during a night out with mutual friends in Los Angeles. 'We chat, we end up hanging out and that's when I got her number. We started to communicate and just stay in touch.' Peter also reflected on his split from Hannah Ann, who he proposed to on the finale of The Bachelor. They split shortly after when Peter realized he still had feelings for runner-up Madison. 'Watching that breakup with Hannah Ann was brutal for me. I just felt so bad about the situation. I felt I let down so many people, Hannah Ann being number one, and myself. It's a weird thing to breakup with someone and have it be so public. I was 100 percent in the wrong with Hannah Ann and with that relationship.' Close friendship: The duo are quarantining in Chicago with Dustin Kendrick 'Within our relationship on the show, it didn't really play out in the best way for us. It just wasn't gonna work on the show' said of their stint on The Bachelor where Kelley was a contestant On his brief relationship with Madison, Peter reflected on how it was difficult to be reunited on stage during After The Final Rose after not spending any time together post-Bachelor. 'Right now, from the horse's mouth, none of that was fake. None of that was staged, put on by the show, making it seem like I was into Madi, 'Looking back on it, I feel like we should've tried to see each other before we showed up on stage together.' 'That was tough, we left the stage together, we were supposed to do some press. We just couldn't do it, we just weren't in the right headspace. I remember going to her hotel... it was super sad. For probably six hours, we stayed on her bed there, we laughed, we cried, we hugged each other... it was rough.' 'I was 100 percent in the wrong with Hannah Ann and with that relationship.' Peter said of his failed engagement to Hannah Ann Sluss. He split with her shortly after proposing to her on the finale of The Bachelor The COVID-19 pandemic is still spreading around the world and affecting nearly 2.4 million people, with over 164,000 dead so far. With neither vaccine nor proven therapeutic drug being available so far, the need of the hour is for effective treatment. Now, a new study reports the potential usefulness of a combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment in mild cases of COVID-19 infection and urges the need for further evaluation and widespread use if its findings are confirmed. Why do we need a COVID-19 cure? COVID-19 began in December 2019, caused by a novel coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2, in Wuhan city, Hubei province, in China. It rapidly spread to over 185 countries and territories and was declared a pandemic on the 12th of March, 2020. The overall case fatality rate is about 2.3%, but in older people, this is 8% and 15% in those aged 70-79 years and 80-plus years, respectively. The fact that up to 80% of cases are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic means that the actual fatality rate may be much less. Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2: This scanning electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2 (round gold objects) emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. SARS-CoV-2, also known as 2019-nCoV, is the virus that causes COVID-19. The virus shown was isolated from a patient in the U.S. Credit: NIAID-RML However, the need remains to contain the spread of the virus, which can be done by limiting the duration of virus carriage. Repurposing older drugs for use against the virus is a highly regarded strategy because these drugs are already approved for use in humans. Their safety, tolerability side effects, and drug interactions are established. Among these drugs, antibiotics similar to azithromycin, and the immunomodulatory drug hydroxychloroquine, have gained widespread attention. Over a third of physicians already prescribe or believe they should prescribe hydroxychloroquine or azithromycin for COVID-19 infections. This makes it urgent to find out if these are indeed effective. Preclinical studies have shown that chloroquine phosphate and hydroxychloroquine sulfate inhibit viral activity in vitro. The current study authors report that another of their studies show a synergistic effect when both azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine are used on cells infected with the SARS-CoV-2, at levels similar to the probable concentrations in humans dosed with these drugs. Some studies have also shown that chloroquine reduces fever and leads to an improvement in the CT signs on imaging, as well as delaying the progression of symptoms. This has led some Chinese researchers to recommend a chloroquine-based treatment for COVID-19, of all severities. The virus is shed for a median of 20 days in survivors (8-37 days), but until death in fatal cases. Treatment is thus required to shorten this period and produce clinical cure without a progression to severe symptoms. The current study A small pilot study on 20 cases showed a 100% resolution with hydroxychloroquine 600 mg per day. On day 6, the viral carriage was reduced, and nasopharyngeal swabs were negative in 70% of cases, in contrast to 12.5%. Another study failed to show any significant difference, but this study tested several other drugs as well. The current study is an uncontrolled observational study in 80 COVID-19 patients with mild infection. All were treated with the two drugs, hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin for three or more days. The researchers assessed the clinical outcome, the degree of transmissibility as measured by the PCR and viral culture, and the period of patient stay in the infectious disease unit. What did the study show? The median age of the 80 patients with confirmed COVID-19 was 52 years. 57% of them had one or more chronic medical conditions, which are considered a risk factor for severe COVID-19. Patients were hospitalized five days on average from the onset of symptoms. The most common symptoms were lower respiratory in 54%, and upper respiratory symptoms in 41%. Fever was present in only 15%. 92% of them were assessed as low-risk for progression. About 54% had CT findings suggestive of pneumonia. Most patients started treatment either on the day of admission or the next day. Almost all of them were treated daily for a maximum of 10 days. One patient stopped treatment early due to the risk of drug interaction with another medication. Safety and tolerability were acceptable. In 65 patients, that is, 81%, patients were discharged with a good clinical outcome. Oxygen therapy was required for 15% during their hospital stay. Intensive care admission was required for three patients, of whom two improved and returned to the ward. One patient died in the ward, and one was still in the ICU. Did the hydroxychloroquine-azithromycin combo work? The administration of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin brought about an improvement in all but one patient (who was elderly, had severe symptoms, and had an irreversible disease). The improvement appeared to be better than that described in other hospitalized cohorts. PCR and culture results show reduced transmissibility The viral load in the nasopharynx reduced rapidly as per qPCR, with 83% and 93% of patients having a negative swab by day seven and day eight, respectively. The number of contagious patients was two by ten days, and zero by day 12, but had declined markedly by day 6. In over 97% of patients, respiratory swabs proved negative on culture by day 5. Only two cultures were still positive after day 5, one by day 8 and none by day 9. Most patients stayed in hospital for five days on average before being discharged. What can be inferred about the drug combination? The researchers emphasize the need to treat the condition effectively to avoid progressive worsening of the lung symptoms, typically around the 10th day, which may end in acute respiratory distress syndrome, of poor prognosis, especially in older people. The researchers point to the rapid symptomatic improvement, with the parallel reduction in viral DNA load, both by PCR and by culture, as evidence for the potential of these drugs to produce a favorable outcome. The safety of these drugs is not in question, at the recommended doses, but ECG monitoring is recommended since hydroxychloroquine has occasionally been reported to cause heart block in patients with underlying heart conditions. Careful monitoring of high-risk patients by ECG and watching for possible drug interactions should be sufficient to avoid this complication. The researchers are planning a larger trial in their institution to validate their early findings. They summarize, We have provided evidence of a beneficial effect of co-administration of hydroxychloroquine with azithromycin in the treatment of COVID-19 and its potential effectiveness in the early reduction of contagiousness. Given the urgent therapeutic need, and the negligible cost of both hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, we believe that there is an urgent need to evaluate this strategy further. by Sumon Corraya Many who continue to work are not paid. The country is the second largest textile manufacturer in the world; the sector employs 4 million people. Without orders from abroad, the factory owners fire or do not pay the staff. Unions and Catholic Church: protect workers. Dhaka (AsiaNews) - In Bangladesh, 15,000 workers in the textile industry have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus. Of those who have kept their jobs, many are not being paid. The pandemic crisis is hitting the populous country's economy hard. At the moment there are 1572 cases of contagion and 60 deaths. Dhaka authorities have imposed quarantine, and restrictions on movement, but some textile companies continue production. After China, Bangladesh is the world's leading manufacturer and export of clothing items. The industry in the sector - the flagship of national production - employs more than 4 million people, mostly women. The problem is the drop in demand. Without orders from abroad, especially from Europe, producers cut staff or do not pay workers. After the economic lockdown decided by the government, I isolated in my house for a few days. On April 5, I went back to the factory, discovering that I had been fired", Amana Akter tells AsiaNews. The woman lives in Savar, a district of the capital. For her, as for many Bangladeshi, it will be difficult to survive without a job: I don't know if I will be able to find another job. I can't even move and reach my village in the north of the country. " Thousands of stories in Bangladesh are similar to that of Amana. Another textile worker, Rashidul Islam, says he hasn't received a salary for two months. The factory where he works cannot sell enough and its owner has blocked payments to staff. Rashidul lives in Ashulia, near Dhaka, and is the father of two children. Without money he will not be able to feed the family and pay the rent. In order to survive, he is forced to borrow money. Babul Akhtar, secretary general of the national union of textile workers, asked industry owners to pay wages and stop layoffs. The owners of the companies - he says - should help the workers. It's a question of justice, but it's also in their interest. " Akhtar then invites foreign buyers not to cancel orders. Liton Hubert Gomes, secretary of the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace, is of the same idea. He concludes the government must carefully monitor the situation in textile factories and ensure that workers are treated fairly. Hong Kong on April 20 for the first time in nearly two months reported zero new cases of coronavirus. The Department of Health and Hospital Authority has decided to not hold their daily press briefings that they have been conducting every day at 4:30 pm since late January. Even though the Chinese autonomous region has not recorded any new infection on Monday, the risk of imported cases still remains huge in the city. Read: Australia Calls For Review Of Circumstances That Led To Start Of COVID-19 Pandemic According to reports, Hong Kong reported its first coronavirus case on January 23, the day China shut down the epicentre Wuhan in the mainland. The COVID-19 cases rose rapidly in Hong Kong after residents started returning from abroad, mainly from countries like the United Kingdom, the United States and other European nations. But the cases slowly started to dip and Hong Kong has recorded a single-digit rise for more than a week. Read: UN Urges Countries To Protect LGBT+ People Against Discrimination Amid COVID-19 Crisis What's surprising is that Hong Kong, despite being one of the densely populated cities in the world, has managed to bend its curve without any lockdown. Although, authorities in the region put restrictions on travel, quarantined cases and their contacts and urged people to practice social distancing while in public places. According to data by worldometer, Hong Kong has recorded 1,026 confirmed cases as of April 20, of which four people have lost their lives. There are currently 392 active cases in the region, with eight of them under critical condition. Read: Ireland To Quadruple Its Contributions To WHO After Trump Halts US Funding Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus outbreak has infected over 2.42 million people globally and has killed nearly 1,65,000 patients since it first broke out in December 2019. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the initial epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. The United States, Italy, Spain, France, Iran and the United Kingdom are currently the most affected countries in the world. Read: Saudi-led Coalition Continue To Bomb Yemen Despite Declaring Ceasefire A Week Ago (Image Credit: AP) The bodies of seven teenagers were discovered in a church in Ethiopias eastern Oromia region, police officials said on Monday. The teenagers were inside a room at the St Joseph Church which housed a generator, Aschalew Alemu, spokesman for the East Shewa Zone police station, told the state news agency ENA. Alemu said six males and one female under the age of 20 had been discovered at about 3 am (0000 GMT) on Sunday, shortly before the country was due to celebrate Easter. Ethiopia, which has the largest Orthodox Christian population outside Europe, marked Easter on April 19. READ ALSO: We are now investigating if suffocation from the generator is the cause of the death, he said, adding that 11 people had been arrested in connection with the deaths. It is not yet clear how the teenagers managed to get inside the church. State-of-emergency regulations due to the coronavirus pandemic were put in place on April 10. The regulations have restricted worshippers from attending large church services to curb the spread of the virus. Security officers have been deployed around churches to implement these regulations. (dpa/NAN) WASHINGTON - Setting aside their differences for at least an afternoon, President Donald Trump and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed in an Oval Office meeting Tuesday to work to double coronavirus testing in the hard-hit state over the next few weeks. We will work together to help them secure additional tests, Trump said. And we hope that this model will work with the other states as well. Flicking at the hot-and-cold relationship between the two politicians, Cuomo said of their meeting: It ends the whole back-and-forth and the finger-pointing in a very fair and smart way. The meeting marked a sharp shift in rhetoric from just days earlier, when Trump had called on Cuomo to work harder to secure testing material for his state and the Democratic governor had pushed back that the president should turn off his television and get back to work. Cuomo, who described the meeting as effective and functional, said he told Trump a rapid increase in testing was a crucial benchmark that his state and others need before they can safely reopen their economies and help communities return to a semblance of normalcy. Trump and Cuomo have parried through the media throughout the pandemic, a routine that has included insults, sharply contrasting views on the role of the federal government and some moments of mutual admiration. The meeting Tuesday was their first face-to-face interaction since the global crisis began. New York, with more than 14,000 deaths, has been the hardest-hit state in the country. Before their meeting, Cuomo told reporters that Trump was right in saying that states should take the lead on testing, but that the federal government needs to manage the flow of supplies from abroad while governors are trying to put together their testing protocol in their state. I think in many ways were talking past each other, Cuomo said. Despite well-documented shortages of testing supplies, Trump and White House aides have insisted that states have enough test capacity to move ahead with the first phase of efforts to reopen their economies. For all the past drama, though, Trump said Tuesday that New York officials had been terrific to work with. He added that he and Cuomo agreed that the 1,000-bed U.S. naval hospital ship that had been dispatched to alleviate stress on the citys hospitals was no longer needed in New York. We have a very good understanding, Trump said. Cuomo suggested they put aside past hard feelings. The president is communicative of his feelings, and Im communicative of what I think, Cuomo told MSNBC shortly after his meeting with Trump. But, look, I think for the president and for myself, this is not about anyones emotions about anyone else. I mean, who cares, right, what I feel, what he feels. We have a tremendous job we have to get done. Through daily briefings and scores of media appearances, Cuomo has in many ways emerged as the Democratic face of the response to the pandemic. With the partys likely presidential nominee, Joe Biden, largely sidelined at his Delaware home, Cuomo has become one of several governors thrust into the spotlight as the pandemic has forced a reordering of American life. As Cuomo conducts briefings from New York, he has vacillated between being Trumps foil and his unlikely ally. The two Queens natives they grew up just a few neighbourhoods apart have traded barbs on Twitter but have also consulted in late-night phone calls. Asked if hes had to walk a fine line in dealing with the president, Cuomo said: Life is a fine line. He has no problem telling me when he disagrees, Cuomo told reporters Tuesday before departing for Washington. And he tells me when he agrees. I have no problem telling him when I disagree and when I agree. Cuomo, according to aides, has deliberately used both the carrot and the stick in dealing with a president who is extremely sensitive about his media image and how governors respond to him. At times, he has made a point of thanking Trump resulting in video clips that the president has eagerly showed off in the White House briefing room in recent days. But at other moments, Cuomo has shown no hesitation to lace into the president, including during a recent monologue in which he urged Trump to stop watching television and to get back to work safeguarding American lives during the pandemic. Trump often catches at least some of Cuomos daily briefings and has expressed annoyance to aides at the positive press that the governor has received, according to advisers. He has reveled in the bits of praise he has received from Cuomo and other Democratic governors. Cuomo and other governors are also pushing for $500 billion in unrestricted aid from the federal government for states to offset revenue shortfalls resulting from the outbreak. The Senate on Tuesday approved a nearly $500 billion coronavirus aid package for small businesses, including additional help for hospitals and virus testing. Cuomo said that he was disappointed it didnt include direct aid for states but that Trump seemed very open and understanding on the need to include more aid for states in the next round of assistance. ___ Lemire reported from New York and Villeneuve from Albany. Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Chicago contributed to this article. ___ Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak New York Mayor Bill De Blasio says Donald Trump is lying about the availability of tests for coronavirus after the president claimed states are "complaining" that the federal government has not provided equipment. "The president is simply lying about the availability of all those components of testing, the swabs and everything," the mayor told MSNBC on Monday. "You can't get those things. You cannot get them." On Sunday, the president claimed that the states "don't want to use all of the capacity that we've created" and blamed Democrat governors for "complaining" during the public health crisis. But Democrat and Republican officials in several states have reported significant testing supplies as an impatient president continues to pressure local governments to lift quarantine measures intended to curb the spread of Covid-19. The White House "guidelines" for local governments to begin "reopening" requires tests be performed Dr Anthony Fauci, the top health official in the White House coronavirus task force, has also confirmed the lack of national testing capacity. The mayor said the city would need to perform "hundreds of thousands" of tests to meet the guideline criteria. His latest remarks follow his message to the president on Sunday, during which he asked at a press conference: "Mr President, are you going to save New York City or are you telling New York City to drop dead?" The mayor demanded the president support aid legislation for local governments proposed in a congressional stimulus package and accused the president of "turning his back" on his hometown. He said: "What's going on, cat got your tongue? You're usually really talkative. You usually have an opinion on everything. How on earth do you not have an opinion on aid to America's cities and states?" The mayor invoked a famous New York Daily News headline ("Ford to city: Drop Dead") referencing criticisms lobbed at former president Gerald Ford during the 1970s financial crisis. Mayor De Blasio condemned the president's calls to "liberate" three states with Democrat governments as right-wing protests attacked stay-at-home measures across the US. He called on the president to "liberate" New York with Covid-19 tests: "How about liberating New York City? ... Right now, you could liberate us by sending test kits. You could liberate us by sending us stimulus aid to make up for our vast budget gap." Despite the president's claims that anyone who wanted a coronavirus test could get one, only 1 per cent of the US was tested in recent weeks as local governments across the US reported test shortages while under pressure from the White House to begin "reopening" the economy. Vice President Mike Pence claimed on Friday that the US has enough tests for states to begin "phase one" of the president's reopening guidelines, but the plan does not have a national testing strategy. Its criteria says states should have a "downward trajectory" in cases and flu-like symptoms over a two-week period. On 6 March, the president said that "anyone" who wanted to get a test could get one. By then, the US had tested fewer than 20,000 people. But he also has repeatedly blamed his predecessor Barack Obama and his administration about testing shortfalls, though it was Mr Trump's administration that was responsible for the developing the tests. He also has claimed that the federal government isn't responsible for "standing on street corners" to perform tests. On Friday, Admiral Brett Giroir says the US would need to perform 4.5 million tests a month to meet the criteria for a "phase one" of the White House plan to begin reopening states. The mayor also announced the cancellations of three major events in June, including the National Puerto Rican Day Parade, the Celebrate Israel parade, and the Pride parade on its 50th anniversary. The Fire She Set tells the story of a familys loss, the journey to find the truth and the powerful bond between sisters. The Fire She Set is the collaborative result by published authors Leigh Overton Boyd (her first book) with Emily Adams as ghostwriter; and Lisa Overton, author. Leigh shares, She believed her sister set fire to their home and killed their parents. The sisters grew up knowing they had secrets to keep. They did not talk about their moms extended absences or why their dad put Scotch tape on the backdoor frame. To cover up the chaos, they kept their clothes neat and got good grades. But when they were teenagers, an arson fire destroyed their home and killed their parents. Rumors were thick that summer that smart, angry, fourteen-year-old Lisa set the blaze. Then, adult powers they did not understand squelched the investigation. As teenagers accustomed to keeping silent, they packed up and moved on. Finally, with one son dead and her daughter away in college, Leigh, the oldest, decided it was time to find out if Lisa really did kill their parents, or if it wasnt Lisa, who was it? She obtained copies of the police and fire investigations and began unwrapping the past. Specifically, a memoir containing elements of mystery and narrative, this book will engage you from the first page. It is the story of Leighs investigation as she tried to piece together the truth, but found more lies instead. With the help of her sisters, Leigh was able to reconstruct much of what happened to them in the beach towns around Atlantic City in the early 1970s. After the fire, one sister turned to heroin and another to alcohol; Leigh became Miss Atlantic City. Then, one by one, they each moved to California and shut the door on their past, even though they privately wondered whether one of them killed Frank and Nancy Overton. Its funny. They never wondered whether one of their parents was trying to kill them. Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Leigh Overton Boyds new book is a profound story which details life of a family that deals with heartbreak, loss, and addiction after the fire that broke them apart. Through perseverance, Leighs journey strengthened the family bonds. This memoir also sheds some light on modern day fire forensics and investigations. View a synopsis of The Fire She Set on YouTube. Consumers can purchaseThe Fire She Set at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble. For additional information or inquiries about The Fire She Set, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919. Web Toolbar by Wibiya The process of self-publishing a book can be a daunting task. However, it is a rewarding venture. Spiritually it is very fulfilling. And, if you do it right, it can also be commercially rewarding. That is why I offer my services to you as a book publisher today. Contact me via Skype for all your questions. There's no time like the present as they say. I will give you free tips designed to help you both save money and make money. I have been a book publisher since 1997 with a degree from the University of Toronto along with a Ph.D background. I have taught at the university / community college level. One of my favourite articles on book self-publishing was published by CNET's David Carnoy. In that article, Mr Carnoy focuses on the vital importance of quality control for authors who seek to sell well. However, my major piece of advice is to avoid AI-driven and low-end companies like Amazon's KDP. Such companies will take your money and have no concerns about the quality of the book you self-publish. KDP is great for keeping costs down but not for quality. Watch the above video for more information. AgoraPublishing.com is a not-for-profit organization which provides the kind of support to authors that you deserve. Do you have access to Skype? Then, add AgoraCosmopolitan to your Skype contact list for live chat.Are you seeking a website hosting company for your new blog?If you're seeking a free website hosting option, I recommend that you try THIS ONE If you're a "pro", and you're serious about promoting your book, I recommend THIS SITE for WordPress hosting.That's because it's one of the oldest web hosts started in 1996. That's long before Google and Facebook.They are an official WordPress recommended hosting provider. Supposedly, you never have to worry about your website being slow even when there is a lot of traffic. I have had no bad experience with this company.And try to get a good domain name for better SEO. Velocity Urgent Care x-ray technician and medical assistant Britni Chavis prepares to test a patient for the novel coronavirus in Woodbridge, Va., April 15, 2020. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) US to Reopen Healthcare System in Regions With Few COVID-19 Cases New guidelines have been released for the reopening of the U.S. healthcare system, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on Sunday. Seema Verma, CMS administrator, said during a press briefing with the White House Coronavirus Task Force that updated guidelines (pdf) have been released to gradually allow the healthcare system to restart elective surgeries and procedures in regions with low incidences of COVID-19. The reality is not everything can be addressed by telehealth, Verma said. Maybe a woman who needs surgery for breast cancer. Somebody who has cataracts in their eyes, and sometimes the doctor needs to be able to listen to their patients heart. You heard from the Vice President that there are many places in the country where theyre seeing a decline in cases, and hospitals are reporting that they have unused capacity, she said. And so as part of our opening up America, were issuing guidelines today about how we can reopen the healthcare systems, so these recommendations around phase one. Todays recommendations for re-starting non-COVID care, for communities w/o significant cases of #COVID19, require providers to coordinate w/ local & state officials, & review the availability of PPE, supplies, workforce availability, facility considerations, & testing capacity. Administrator Seema Verma (@SeemaCMS) April 20, 2020 Verma added that before reopening, every state and local official would have to assess the situation on the ground. As part of the guidelines, state and local officials, for example, must be able to ensure that they can address surges in cases of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. They must also make sure that they have adequate supplies and a plan for conserving supplies. Screening of patients and healthcare workers for COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus, must also be ensured so that that patients feel safe in seeking healthcare services, with routine checks on patients and staff for temperature and COVID-19 symptoms. The recommendations are NOT meant to be implemented by every state, county, or city at this time. Facilities & providers that are in areas still seeing high numbers of #COVID19 cases are encouraged to continue following the recommendations made by CMS last month. Administrator Seema Verma (@SeemaCMS) April 20, 2020 Facilities must be appropriately cleaned, and social distancing must be observed inside the healthcare facilities, Verma said. The guidelines recommended that healthcare providers and staff wear surgical facemasks at all times, and patients wear a cloth face covering. This isnt going to be like a light switch. This is more like a sunrise where its going to be a gradual process, and healthcare officials across the country and healthcare systems need to decide what should be made available. Ultimately, doctors and patients need to make decisions about their healthcare services, she explained. We want to make sure that systems are reopening so that they can stay open and doing that in a very measured way. The CMS in a press release published Sunday said that the new guidelines specifically target communities with low incidence or relatively low and stable incidence of COVID-19 cases who will move to Phase 1 of the Trump administrations guidelines to Opening Up America Again. This requires states or regions to pass gating criteria regarding symptoms, cases, and hospitals. Many parts of the country have a low, or relatively low and stable incidence of COVID-19, and it is important to allow flexibility to provide non-COVID-19 healthcare, the CMS said. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Recommendations Re-opening Facilities to Provide Non-emergent Non-COVID-19 Healthcare https://t.co/a3piFwm9de AssocAmerPhys&Surg (@AAPSonline) April 20, 2020 Nursing Homes Verma also said at the evening White House briefing that nursing homes in the United States will now be required to report cases of the CCP virus directly to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and to patients and their families. Prior to the announcement, the CDC had not officially tracked the number of CCP virus cases inside nursing homes. As we reopen the United States, our surveillance effort around the COVID virus will also begin in nursing homes, Verma said. This will support CDCs efforts to have surveillance around the country and to support efforts around contact tracing involving care facilities, the CMS administrator added. At least 1,100 nursing home and adult care facility residents in New York State have died from the CCP virus since the start of the outbreak, according to data (pdf) released by the states department of health on Wednesday. Nationwide, the number of COVID-19 cases surpassed 759,000 with 40,677 deaths, according to a tracking map by Johns Hopkins University, which collates official government data. MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI The Muskegon County Sheriffs pitch for coronavirus hazard pay for deputies and corrections staff was rejected without even getting to a vote by the Muskegon County Board of Commissioners. The motion didnt receive a second, but that didnt stop discussion on the issue brought to the board last week by Muskegon County Sheriff Michael Poulin. Poulin had asked that certain staff members receive $125 per week in hazard pay from March 16 until June 1, or whenever Gov. Gretchen Whitmers stay-at-home order is lifted. He told commissioners during their April 14 virtual meeting that because of salary savings, he had room in his budget for the hazard pay. Law enforcement staff, whether in the jail or on road patrol, dont have the benefit of social distancing when they do their jobs, Poulin noted. These are individuals that if theyre not there to help you, somebody can die, he said. Board Chairwoman Susie Hughes said she couldnt justify paying sheriff staff more when other employees, such as those in the IT department and clerks office, have also dealt with members of the public. There are hundreds of employees who put themselves on the line with COVID every day, Hughes said. I dont think we can single out one department thats more valuable than any other. The motion to provide hazard pay was supported by Commissioner Rillastine Wilkins. But the lack of a second meant it never was brought for a vote. Commissioners at the same meeting discussed the possible need for imposing Muskegon County employee furloughs or layoffs during the government shutdown. Commissioner Marcia Hovey-Wright said, under the current circumstances, I dont think (sheriff hazard pay) makes sense or is fair. We dont know how many people are involved, we dont know the total costs, Hovey-Wright said. Poulin experienced technical difficulties and was not able to participate in the video meeting when the hazard pay motion was introduced. He later joined the meeting and told commissioners that 95 employees would qualify for the $125 per week hazard pay for an estimated 11 weeks, and that the total would be about $130,000. This is no impact on the budget -- no additional impact on the budget, Poulin said. I have the money in my budget for this to help these individuals out. He talked about the dangers surrounding COVID-19 that law enforcement officials face when dealing with the public, especially the risk of taking the virus home and passing it onto family members. As a result, some are not sleeping at home, he said. He noted that other departments have given hazard pay to staff, including the Michigan State Police, Michigan Department of Corrections, Muskegon Police Department and Detroit Police Department. There are my heroes I stand by these people, Poulin said of his staff, later adding they deserve the support of this commission. In response, Hughes told Poulin your department is not the only one that deserves the support of the commission. We do support all of our employees, Hughes said. Youre not the only department that deals with the publicEverybody is doing their part, but no one department is more important than others right now. 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: Timeline of coronavirus in Muskegon County: How we got here Volunteer grocery shopping for seniors, frontline workers launched in Muskegon Prizes offered in this weeks socially distant Earth Week cleanup in Muskegon Businessman and philanthropist, Alhaji Seidu Agongo, is supporting widows, single mothers and other underprivileged persons with mobile money transfers to cope with the financial challenges of the novel Coronavirus disease. His intervention has since benefited more than 4,600 widows, single mothers and other less privileged people in the Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions since it was launched in early April. Alhaji Agongo, who said helping the poor makes him feel human, explained that although his initial target was to support 600 people through the intervention, he had since revised the figure upwards after noticing that many people were going through financial difficulties as a result of the partial lockdown. He said he reached this conclusion after the radio stations that were advertising the support scheme were inundated with calls far beyond the numbers that wrre projected. As a result, he said he was now hoping to support about 10,000 people with funds to help alleviate the suffering that the COVID-19 was having on them. Criteria He said the support programme was christened the CMG Momo for Lockdown and being implemented in association with the Class Media Group (CMG), which he owns. He said people who were disadvantaged were encouraged to call telephone numbers advertised on the group's 10 radio stations, a television station and an online portal in Accra, Kumasi, Tamale, Takoradi and Ho to give their personal and mobile money details and their economic conditions. He said a group of people would then vet the information and those found to be authentic would be sent the money. He said the amount sent to beneficiaries varied from person to person, taking into consideration the individual's situation and the number of children, among others. So far, Alhaji Agongo said the initiative had been smooth with beneficiaries calling to confirm receipt of their funds. Why MOMO Explaining why he chose to undertake cash transfers to the vulnerable, he said the financial support enabled the beneficiaries to decide how to spend the money. He said while it was true that the lockdown had made it difficult for people to access food, essential commodities such as medicine and other products and services were still needed hence the decision to support people with money to access such stuff. He said although he was passionate about supporting people, he was more inclined to helping women, children and the disabled due to their vulnerable nature in society. In 2018, Alhaji Agongo built a GH870,000 block for the Child Emergency Unit of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. He also takes care of the education needs of hundreds of children throughout the country. The businessman and philanthropist said he was hopeful that such support would make impacts in the lives of people. What matters in life is the impact you make in peoples' lives. Different people are making impact in different ways but everybody and his choice; mine choice is the widows, the single mothers, the underprivileged children and also to create employment, he said. Essence of giving He said he also saw philanthropy as a way to share the blessings of God with those in need. Islam teaches about giving but I go beyond Islam. What I believe is that life has realities and be it the Bible or the Quran, the holy books tell us that you will be judged according to your own deeds. So, I believe that whatever blessings God has blessed me with, God knows why He has blessed me with that and, of course, God will also know the fact that the blessing he gave me, I did not utilise the blessing alone; I also tried to bless others, he explained. Alhaji Agongo was the significant shareholder of the Heritage Bank Limited, which was collapsed in 2019. What to clean and how: Clean surfaces and items your child has touched especially those that come into contact with your childs saliva, such as eating utensils and toys while he is symptomatic and afterward. You can clean plush toys in a washing machine; hard toys can be washed by hand with soap and water, in the top rack of the dishwasher or wiped with all-purpose cleaner and rinsed. Head lice What it is: Head lice are small, parasitic bugs that can infest the head, eyebrows and eyelashes, and feast on human blood. Adult lice can lay and attach their eggs (or nits) to the base of the hair shaft. Typical symptoms: Itching is the most common symptom of head lice, typically on the head, behind the ears and at the back of the neck. Itching can persist even after the infestation has been treated and the lice are gone. How to contain it: Head lice can spread easily from child to child with direct head-to-head contact or via anything that has touched an infected persons hair (such as towels, pillowcases, brushes, combs, hats, bandanas, headbands, ribbons and barrettes). Therefore these things should not be shared. If theres a lice outbreak at your childs school and he or she has long hair, its a good idea to style it in an updo or braid to minimize contact with other childrens infested hair. Examine all members of your household for nits or lice and treat any infestations with over-the-counter shampoos that kill lice. Because some lice are resistant to insecticides, using the comb-out method in conjunction with prescribed medication may also be necessary. What to clean and how: First, some good news for parents who hear the word lice and have visions of boiling all of their childs belongings: According to Dr. Audrey Brewer, M.D., a pediatrician at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Childrens Hospital of Chicago, extreme environmental clean-up does not appear to lessen the spread of lice. Items that come in direct contact with hair, however, should be cleaned. Combs and brushes can be soaked in hot water (130 degrees Fahrenheit) for 5 to 10 minutes; and sheets, pillow cases, clothing and towels should be laundered in hot water and dried using the highest heat setting on the dryer. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry-cleaned or sealed in a plastic bag for two weeks. Pinkeye What it is: Conjunctivitis, more commonly known as pinkeye, is an inflammation of the mucous membrane covering the white part of the eye. Its typically caused by viruses, bacteria or environmental irritants. Typical symptoms: Symptoms include pink or red, itchy, burning and watery eyes. Bacterial conjunctivitis, which can be especially painful, can cause a thick green or yellow discharge. Ten years after a well blew wild under a BP platform in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 men and touching off the nation's worst offshore oil spill, gulf waters sparkle in the sunlight, its fish are safe to eat, and thick, black oil no longer visibly stains the beaches and estuaries. Brown pelicans, a symbol of the spill's ecological damage because so many dived after fish and came up coated with oil, are doing well. But scientists who spent the decade studying the Deepwater Horizon spill still worry about its effects on dolphins, whales, sea turtles, small fish vital to the food chain, and ancient corals in the cold, dark depths. The gulf's ecosystem is so complex and interconnected that it's impossible to take any single part as a measure of its overall health, said Rita Colwell, who has led the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative. (Top) operations to contain the oil spill from Deepwater Horizon, in June 2010. (Bottom) people enjoying the same beach, in March 2020 In this March 2020 photo, people walk on a pier with their fishing poles at dawn in Orange Beach, Alabama Clearer scenes at Orange Beach, Alabama, March 2020 A US Coast Guard picture showing the scale of the fire aboard the offshore oil drilling unit Deepwater Horizon at the time Chandeleur Sound, between mainland Louisiana and the Chandeleur Islands in Saint Bernard Parish, 2010 - a plume of oil pollutes the sea water A dead turtle floating on a pool of rust-colored oil spilled in Barataria Bay, in 2010 BP put up $500 million for the independent GoMRI program soon after the spill, part of more than $69 billion it says it has spent overall, including spill response, cleanup, settlements, restoration and other costs. Some scientists say the recovery has been remarkable since those dark spring days in 2010, when oil billowing from the sea floor began killing wildlife and blackening marshes and beaches from Texas to Florida. Ed Overton, a Louisiana State University chemist who has studied oil dispersal since the 1970s, said today's visitors to Louisiana's marshes would have to know just where to look to find damage: 'So there's still oil there 10 years later. Is it significant compared to what we saw in 2010? And the answer is not only no, but hell no.' But major concerns remain. Steven A. Murawski, chief scientist of the National Marine Fisheries Service when the well blew, said: 'We will see environmental impacts from this for the rest of our lifetimes.' Here's a look at how some key aspects of the ecosystem are doing. DOLPHINS AND WHALES 'Initially, industry experts were saying, "The dolphins and the whales, they're smart. They're not going to swim into oiled areas,'' recalled Nancy Kinner, co-director of the Coastal Response Research Center and Center for Spills and Environmental Hazards at the University of New Hampshire. But cetaceans must surface to breathe, rising through oil that spread across more than 15,300 square miles (40,000 square kilometers) - nearly as big as Switzerland. Each exhalation vaporized oil and gas into minuscule droplets, which they then inhaled, Kinner said. A dolphin swimming through oil from Deepwater Horizon, just off East Grand Terre Island, where the Gulf of Mexico meets Barataria Bay A dead dolphin washes ashore in the Gulf of Mexico on Grand Isle A pelican covered in thick oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill Yet another pelican absolutely mired in thick oil from the spill Lung disease and other ailments caused by the spill killed more than 1,000 bottlenose dolphins over several years, many of them in Louisiana's hard-hit Barataria Bay, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported. More than one-fifth were aborted, stillborn or died soon after birth. Pregnant Barataria and Mississippi Sound dolphins still give birth far more rarely than in healthy populations. Health checks of Barataria Bay dolphins in 2018 found that lung problems 'in some cases ... may be even getting worse,' said Lori Schwacke of the National Marine Mammal Foundation. Whales almost certainly suffered similar oil-caused ailments but can't be safely examined, Schwacke said. NOAA estimated the spill killed 17 percent of the gulf's Bryde's whales, declared endangered in 2019 after their population dwindled to fewer than 100. Other whales are suffering, too. 'The toothed whales, sperm whales, Bryde's whales, right whales ... these populations which were somewhat in jeopardy prior to the oil spill have been declining 5 or 10% a year ever since the oil spill,' said Ian MacDonald of Florida State University. Going forward, some BP money will go toward improving conditions for dolphins and whales. These include studies on reducing effects of human-produced noise, such as seismic airguns and ship propellers, on whales and dolphins, which communicate and navigate by sound. FISH How fisheries would survive was hard to fathom while slicks fouled estuaries where many fish spawn, but scientists haven't found any widespread species die-offs, said Chuck Wilson, chief science officer for GoMRI. 'Fisheries in the marshes where the oil came on shore have continued to flourish. Recreational fishing continues to be productive and a very popular activity even in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, where the highest oil impact was,' he said. It's a different story farther out and deeper down, where small fish feed top food and sport fish such as tuna or grouper, as well as whales. Murawski, now a professor at the University of South Florida and director of a GoMRI consortium, said small fish that live about 660 to 3,300 feet (200 to 1,000 meters) deep seemed to be doing well a year after the spill, but then their numbers plummeted by 60 to 80 percent, and haven't returned. Because they hadn't been surveyed before the spill, there's no way to say whether the drop was caused by the spill or 2011 was an exceptional year and numbers are back to normal, he said. Laboratory research has found that oil damaged fish larvae's developing hearts and bones, MacDonald said. Future restoration projects include plans to get anglers to use equipment that would slowly lower reef fish they don't keep, rather than simply tossing them back. Another project aims to find the best escape hatches for 'bycatch' hauled up in shrimp nets, and persuade shrimpers to use them. MARSHES The oil turned tall marsh grass as black as cinders and sank into the muck across Louisiana's coastal marshes, a nursery for an array of birds and fish. 'Once all the roots and so on disintegrate, the whole marsh surface, all the soil, is lost. Given the fact that there is rapid sea-level rise and the land is sinking, it's almost impossible to recover,' said marine scientist Boesch. Oiled marsh shorelines that weren't lost immediately were more likely to wash away later. But the insects worry Louisiana State University researcher Linda Hooper-Bui A dragonfly stuck to marsh grass tries to clean itself, oil in its wings GoMRI surveys found birds, snails and crabs back at pre-spill densities, Wilson said. But the insects worry Louisiana State University researcher Linda Hooper-Bui. She found that most insect and spider species were back to 68% to 72% of pre-spill populations by 2016, and she was expecting to tell a story of insect recovery on the 10th anniversary. Then her funding dried up, but in August 2019, she collected one last round of samples and found surprisingly few insects. 'Something is going on right now, and it's deeply affected,' she said, but she can't tell what caused it. The vast majority of oiled wetlands were in Louisiana, where officials expect to use more than $7 billion in oil spill money to restore the coast, including marshes and barrier islands. DEEP CORAL AND SEA BOTTOM Far below the surface, deep-sea corals can live hundreds of years, creating habitats for multitudes of creatures near the bottom of the food web. Because of the BP spill, we also know how they can die. Swaths of such coral were killed, and they grow so slowly - only a few millimeters a year - that it's hard to imagine how they could be replaced, Boesch said. Researchers found that seven years later, affected but surviving coral were less healthy than unoiled reefs. Coral community damaged in the oil spill A sea turtle released back into the Gulf of Mexico, previously impacted by the oil spill Before the spill, scientists didn't know that deep-sea corals were severely hurt by oil dispersing in a plume far below the surface. They discovered that rising oil interacts with plankton and then 'snows down from the surface and eventually lands,' changing the chemical biology of the sea bed, MacDonald said. 'So these are things we've learned. And none of these are good things,' MacDonald said. Scientists plan to study these deep habitats more extensively, including mapping the gulf's seafloor. To protect the fragile corals, money is being spent to develop techniques for growing and transplanting corals and installing buoys in some places to alert trawlers to the corals' underwater presence. As coronavirus infections tore across the U.S. in early March, a Silicon Valley executive called the survival shelter manufacturer Rising S Co. He wanted to know how to open the secret door to his multimillion-dollar bunker 11 feet underground in New Zealand. The tech chief had never used the bunker and couldnt remember how to unlock it, said Gary Lynch, general manager of Texas-based Rising S Co. He wanted to verify the combination for the door and was asking questions about the power and the hot water heater and whether he needed to take extra water or air filters," Lynch said. The businessman runs a company in the Bay Area but lives in New York, which was fast becoming the worlds coronavirus epicenter. He went out to New Zealand to escape everything thats happening," Lynch said, declining to identify the bunker owner because he keeps his client lists private. And as far as I know, hes still there." For years, New Zealand has featured prominently in the doomsday survival plans of wealthy Americans worried that, say, a killer germ might paralyze the world. Isolated at the edge of the earth, more than 1,000 miles off the southern coast of Australia, New Zealand is home to about 4.9 million people, about a fifth as many as the New York metro area. The clean, green, island nation is known for its natural beauty, laid-back politicians and premier health facilities. In recent weeks, the country has been lauded for its response to the pandemic. It enforced a four-week lockdown early, and today has more recoveries than cases. Only 12 people have died from the disease. The U.S. death toll stands at more than 39,000, meaning that countrys death rate per capita is about 50 times higher. The underground global shelter network Vivos already has installed a 300-person bunker in the South Island, north of Christchurch, said Robert Vicino, the founder of the California-based company. Hes fielded two calls in the past week from prospective clients eager to build additional shelters on the island. In the U.S., two dozen families have moved into a 5,000-person Vivos shelter in South Dakota, he said, where theyre occupying a bunker on a former military base thats about three-quarters the size of Manhattan. Vivos has also built an 80-person bunker in Indiana, and is developing a 1000-person shelter in Germany. Rising S Co. has planted about 10 private bunkers in New Zealand over the past several years. The average cost is $3 million for a shelter weighing about 150 tons, but it can easily go as high as $8 million with additional features like luxury bathrooms, game rooms, shooting ranges, gyms, theaters and surgical beds. Some Silicon Valley denizens have already made the move to New Zealand as the pandemic has escalated. On March 12, Mihai Dinulescu decided to pull the plug on the cryptocurrency startup he was launching to flee to the remote country. My fear was it was now or never as I thought they might start closing borders," said Dinulescu, 34. I had this very gripping feeling that we needed to go." Dinulescu packed his bags and left his furniture, television, paintings and other belongings with friends. He bought the earliest plane ticket available and within 12 hours the Harvard University alum and his wife were on a 7 a.m. flight bound for Auckland. In San Francisco, the entire international section of the airport was emptyexcept for one flight to New Zealand," Dinulescu said. In a time when pretty much all planes were running on a third occupancy, this thing was booked solid." Four days later, New Zealand closed its borders to foreign travelers, which could thwart some refugee travel plans. Dinulescu said he has connected with about 10 people in New Zealand who made the jump before the shutdown, but a lot of venture capital people I know were not afraid enough in time for the border close," Dinulescu said. And now they cant get in." After the shutdown was announced, however, local press reported a slight increase in private plane landings in the country. Dinulescu is now working for Ao Air, a small startup that's designing an air filtration mask to rival the N95. Its co-founder, New Zealander Dan Bowden, said hes fielded inquiries from about a dozen hopeful employees from the U.S. tech industry since the start of the pandemic, but that generally hes wary of these requests. 'Some people are scared and reaching out just because they want a visa,' Bowden said. One potential U.S.-based investor even asked if he would be eligible for New Zealand residency if he boosted his investment in the startup. Notably, New Zealand does offer an investor visa for about $6 million for three years. The current travel restrictions complement another order, passed in August 2018, banning foreigners from buying Kiwi homes, partly in response to Americans gobbling up swaths of the country's prime real estate. Thats been a hurdle for New Zealand luxury real estate agent Graham Wall, who said that in recent weeks hes gotten about half a dozen calls from wealthy Americans hoping to buy up properties on the island. 'They have all said it looks like the safest place to be is New Zealand right now," he said. Thats been a theory since before Covid-19." Over the years, the moneyed North Americans who have managed to wrangle properties there include hedge-fund pioneer Julian Robertson, Hollywood film director James Cameron and PayPal Holdings Inc. co-founder Peter Thiel, who has two estates in New Zealand, one of which features views of snow-capped mountains and has a safe room. Though not in a mansion, Dinulescu has no plans to return to the Valley until the pandemic recedes. He is now holed up on Waiheke Island with his wife in a two-floor, three-bedroom house with ocean views for $2,400 a monthmore than a third less than what they were paying for their two-bedroom apartment in San Francisco. The couple chose Waiheke, with a population of about 9,000, for the proximity to its other elite residents. Dubbed the Hamptons of New Zealand," the island is home to epic cliff-top mansions and world-class wineries. Sir Graham Henry, former coach of the All Blacks rugby team, owns a home there, as does the packaging tycoon Graeme Hart. Frankly, we were billionaire hunting," Dinulescu said. We wanted to figure out where all the other Silicon Valley people would be." So far, he said he hasnt rubbed shoulders with any tech elite: Everyone has been in self-isolation." Perrin Molloy, a local builder who has lived on the island since he was 11, described Waiheke as a billionaires playground." Molloy is often called to do repair jobs inside mega-mansions on the island, many of which are empty almost year-round. These homes are designed to be a sanctuary for wealthy billionaires when they need to get away from whats happening in the rest of the world," he said. On Waiheke, its common for builders to not know the identities of the homeowners theyre working for, Molloy said, and doomsday-related renovations are fairly routine. One of Molloys colleagues helped build a $12 million house in a private bay that had an air tunnel" marked in the foundation plans that could easily fit four people walking shoulder-to-shoulder. It was quite obviously an escape tunnel in the basement," he said. The virus is likely only to fuel the disaster preparedness industry in New Zealand and beyond. Obviously the coronavirus is making people realize how vulnerable we all are, but what people are really concerned about is the aftermath," said Vicino, the Vivos founder, who believes the wealthy fear an economic collapse or global depression could lead to uprisings against the top 1%. They don't want to have to defend their homes when the gangs of looters or marauders show up." Former Prime Minister John Key was often approached about the countrys popularity as a doomsday location while in office. Ive had a lot of people say to me that they would like to own a property in New Zealand if the world goes to hell in a handbasket, Key said in an interview with Bloomberg in 2018. Sam Altman, former president of Silicon Valley startup incubator Y Combinator and chief executive officer of OpenAI, has helped boost New Zealands reputation as a respite, previously telling the New Yorker that in the event of a pandemic he planned to escape there with Thiel. However, in an interview last week he said, Its a very lovely place, but I dont know anyone who has run away to New Zealand." Some fellow entrepreneurs have headed up to Napa Valley, but Altman says he hasnt heard of any peers escaping internationally because of the virus. Instead, Altman is sheltering in place in his San Francisco apartment, he said. Currently, like so many others, hes growing his facial hair and watching Tiger King on Netflix. This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now!! Topics Families face an unprecedented threat from cyber criminals seeking to exploit the coronavirus pandemic, a spy chief warns today. Jeremy Fleming, the director of GCHQ, urged the public to be more vigilant than ever about online fraud at a time when we are spending more and more hours on our computers and devices. Launching a campaign for us all to become more 'Cyber Aware', he called on Britons to join the fight against online crime by taking simple steps to improve our security, such as updating passwords and reporting any suspicious emails. The threats from online scammers are 'constantly evolving' as millions of us switch to working from home and turn to the internet to support our family, friends and neighbours. Jeremy Fleming, the director of GCHQ, urged the public to be more vigilant than ever about online fraud at a time when we are spending more and more hours on our computers and devices Conmen are preying on fears about the virus by setting up bogus online stores selling items such as face masks and hand sanitiser and sending scam emails claiming to offer medical updates. Every week, more than 500 malicious sites related to coronavirus are being taken down by GCHQ's cyber-security arm. Writing in the Daily Mail, Mr Fleming said: 'There is no doubt this crisis is changing the world very fast, and the same goes for the online world. The speed and scale of activity among opportunistic cyber criminals seeking to profit from the virus should concern us all.' In rare public comments, he said Britons needed to play their role in protecting the nation online, adding: 'Now, more than ever, we need your help.' It came as: The UK death toll rose by 449, the lowest daily total since April 6; Nurses in some hospitals were forced to wear cagoules instead of their normal protective equipment amid farcical wrangling over a shipment of vital supplies from Turkey; Downing Street has set a target for schools to reopen partially at the start of June amid warnings that easing the lockdown too early could cause a 'second peak' of infections; Britain languished near the bottom of an international league table of the proportion of the population tested for the virus; Some 140,000 companies applied for government financial assistance to pay the wages of more than a million workers as the official furlough scheme was launched; The UK's budget deficit will hit 300billion this year, driven by huge spending to deal with the crisis, a think-tank warned; The Duke of Edinburgh, 98, issued a rare statement in which he praised scientists and medical staff tackling the pandemic, and the workers keeping essential services running; Oil prices crashed into negative territory for the first time ever, with US crude falling below $0 a barrel, meaning producers were paying buyers to take it off their hands. GCHQ (Government Communication Headquarters), the UK's eavesdropping intelligence agency, launches a new cyber-awareness campaign today. In an article for the Mail, Mr Fleming warned: 'Life has fundamentally changed and with it the balance of threats we are seeing. The threats faced by the UK are constantly evolving. To protect ourselves and our livelihoods from cyber attacks, fraud and theft we all need to improve our security online.' The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which is part of GCHQ, today publishes six top tips to stay 'Cyber Aware'. They include turning on two-factor authentication for important accounts which uses a second step such as a text to a mobile phone to allow users access choosing random words as passwords, keeping email passwords different to others, saving passwords in your web browser, updating software and apps regularly, and backing up data. He called on Britons to join the fight against online crime by taking simple steps to improve our security, such as updating passwords and reporting any suspicious emails (Pictured: GCHQ in Cheltenham) NCSC has also launched a service for the public to report suspicious emails. Its chief executive Ciaran Martin said cyber security was 'more important than ever'. Many of those being targeted are elderly people who are less familiar with the internet but now need it to order shopping and keep in contact. A number of consumer organisations and agencies have warned of an increase in cyber criminals looking to take advantage of fears around Covid-19. A recent survey by TSB suggested 42 per cent believe they have been targeted by a bogus email since the outbreak began. Britain is the most heavily targeted country, with research by cyber-security firm Trend Micro finding 20.8 per cent of global malicious coronavirus spam is sent to UK email addresses. Security Minister James Brokenshire said: 'It's despicable that criminals are using the coronavirus outbreak as cover to try to scam and steal from people in their homes. We all have a part to play in seeing they don't succeed.' Latest coronavirus video news, views and expert advice at mailplus.co.uk/coronavirus Don't let web thieves cash in on coronavirus, writes GCHQ director JEREMY FLEMING For the past 100 years we here at GCHQ have used cutting-edge technology to disrupt security threats posed to the UK. We are used to working in secret to help keep the country safe. The intelligence we collect and analyse has been used to shorten wars, thwart terrorist attacks and apprehend serious criminals. But now, more than ever, we need your help. The restrictions on us all mean that many of you will be spending more time in front of a computer. Whether that's running your business from home, helping your children learn or assisting vulnerable relatives to order food and essential services, you'll be using more digital services to support family, colleagues and friends in the current climate. For the past 100 years we here at GCHQ have used cutting-edge technology to disrupt security threats posed to the UK, writes Jeremy Fleming A part of GCHQ, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is charged with making the UK the safest place online to live and do business. We can't do this alone. The threats faced by the UK are constantly evolving. To protect ourselves and our livelihoods from cyber attacks, fraud and theft we all need to improve our security online. This is particularly true now during this coronavirus crisis. Life has fundamentally changed and with it the balance of threats we are seeing. Technology is playing a vital role in bringing people together virtually and offering everyday services online. It is part of the way through this crisis, so long as we use it securely. The good news is that the UK has become a global cyber power. This is in part because of our ability to protect our citizens, businesses and institutions online. For us to retain this position and to continue to be a prominent force for good in the world, we all need to step up to improve our collective cyber security. Most common scams - and how to avoid them DOORSTEP SCAMS Fraudsters are gaining access to homes by offering to take residents' temperatures or selling anti-virus tests, face masks and hand sanitiser. Criminals are also posing as charity workers volunteering to do vulnerable people's shopping. National Trading Standards says you should always ask for identification. ONLINE SCAMS Action Fraud has seen emails mimicking official health bodies which trick recipients into downloading viruses or giving away passwords. Holidaymakers are also being told to be wary of fake sites offering refunds on cancelled trips. INVESTMENT SCAMS Savers have been urged to avoid making rash pension decisions as criminals look to exploit fears over market turmoil, especially if an offer was in an email. Financial scams often come in the form of mass phishing emails. Many claim to offer sky-high returns which should set alarm bells ringing. BUSINESS SCAMS Criminals are targeting cash-strapped businesses applying for emergency funds by sending out fake emails claiming to be from HMRC. Fraudsters are also posing as police and issuing fines via email to businesses they claim are 'trading unlawfully' during lockdown. Advertisement The NCSC is doing a great job stopping attacks getting through in the past month we have taken down over 2,000 malicious sites designed to trick people looking for coronavirus-related services, including hundreds of fake online shops. But to protect the digital homeland, especially at this time of national challenge, everybody has a role to play. That's why I'm proud that the NCSC is today launching the cross-governmental Cyber Aware campaign to encourage everyone yes, including you to take simple steps to protect your own (and the nation's) online security. This advice will protect you from the vast majority of cyber threats. More details on how to do this are available at www.ncsc.gov.uk/cyberaware. You can also help by using our new Suspicious Email Reporting Service, which allows people to forward potential scam emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. If they are found to be fraudulent messages, the linked malicious websites can be blocked or taken down quickly, protecting everyone else. Those who flag suspicious emails will be helping in the fight against cyber criminals. This reporting service has been created in partnership with the police, who will be able to investigate those identified. For GCHQ, dealing with threats like these whether from states intending to harm the UK or from criminals is all part of our usual remit. But there is no doubt this crisis is changing the world very fast, and the same goes for the online world. Although overall levels of cyber crime look stable, the speed and scale of activity among opportunistic cyber criminals seeking to profit from the virus should concern us all. We have seen a sharp increase in malware with coronavirus themes. These include reports of emails sent with malicious links claiming to offer personalised medical updates. If you report your suspicious emails, you can help protect others from becoming victims, making it safer for us all to be online. Like many of you, I've been joining in with my neighbours to clap for carers on a Thursday evening. The applause ringing out across the country in support of our NHS and other key workers is a wonderful expression of unity. It gives us all a chance to gain strength from feeling part of the wider community. The health and social care sectors deserve our protection and admiration at this critical time. Behind the scenes, we and many others in the public and private sectors have been helping to keep vital IT systems safe from cyber attack. Our aim is to maximise the benefits technology can bring us. But at this time of national challenge, we need to be more vigilant than ever against cyber criminals who seek to exploit human or security vulnerabilities in order to steal passwords, data or money. At GCHQ, through our NCSC we'll keep working to make the UK the safest place in the world to live and do business online, even in these extraordinary times. But we cannot hope to achieve the highest standard of cyber safety for the country on our own. We need you, too. It might sound daunting, but it doesn't have to be. Become Cyber Aware. Take a few minutes to follow the six steps the next time you use your devices, and play your part in keeping the country safe. A black market in coronavirus test kits is flourishing in Nigeria, spurred in part by negligible faith in the country's health system to defeat an emerging threat. Testing is a crucial weapon in combatting COVID-19. It not only identifies where the stealthy virus has invaded -- it also helps to prevent frontline workers, in health care and the economy, from falling sick in turn. Every country is struggling to carry out sufficient testing, but in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, the situation is dire. Just 7,100 tests have officially been carried out in a population of around 200 million people. By comparison, neighbouring Ghana, which has a population of 30 million, has carried out 68,000 tests, while South Africa, with 58 million people, has conducted nearly 114,000. Right now, Nigeria's 36 states have 12 official coronavirus labs, which together have a capacity to test 1,500 people per day. "We have no idea of the status of propagation of COVID-19 in Nigeria," a representative of a private medical lab told AFP. The lab is awaiting government approval to purchase thousands of test kits and a machine able to carry out several hundred tests per hour. But "demand for these tests on the black market is off the scale, off the scale," the source said. Lacking the equipment, the lab had to turn away a request from a foreign embassy to carry out tests for its citizens. Nigeria's extreme need and its dextrous entrepreneurs have unsurprisingly combined to create an instant black market. Aware of the danger that this represents, the government has warned Nigerians against fake do-it-yourself kits that are emerging online. Mistrust The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is carrying out doorstep testing in Abuja and the state of Lagos -- the epicentres of the country's 627 infections, of which 21 have been fatal. The authorities are also putting boots on the ground, in the form of neighbourhood virus tracers, and opening brand-new quarantine centres in their show of diligence. But they are facing a deep lack of faith in a public health system left crippled by decades of neglect. Nearly four of every five public health facilities across Nigeria do not even have running water, Dr Francis Faduyile, president of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), said last month. Thousands of Nigerian doctors work in Europe's well-funded health services but at home, there are just 0.4 physicians per 1,000 people. A coronavirus isolation centre, built at the Sani Abacha stadium in Kano, northwest Nigeria. By AMINU ABUBAKAR (AFP) Mistrust of the public health system is such that many patients are terrified of being declared to the NCDC, a physician in a private medical clinic said. "My patients don't want to come to the hospital, they think we are the NCDC police who will take them to Yaba," the source said, referring to a government-run facility for COVID-19 patients. "They tell me on the phone, 'If we come, you don't send us to Yaba!!!'" The doctor recounted that, at the start of the month, he had already seen half a dozen patients with coronavirus. Just one of them consented to being tested, which entailed notification to the NCDC. The authorities carried out the test, but the exercise was a waste of time. The test was eventually carried out more than two weeks after the doctor alerted the NCDC -- a period longer than the virus's incubation period. Since then, the doctor has gone through back channels to procure around 20 test kits for his patients. Official testing is "too slow", said Zouera Issoufou, head of the Dangote Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Aliko Dangote, Africa's wealthiest man. The foundation has partnered with the government in the fight against coronavirus and ordered 250,000 test kits. But world demand for the kits has exploded, Issoufou said. "They are arriving in dribs and drabs." Stigma Richard Banda, a doctor with the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) in Nigeria, said the use of dubious virus test kits was not the only problem. Many tests are being done privately, and their results are not being shared with the authorities, he said -- which means that cases may not be properly traced and isolated. Countries planning to ease coronavirus lockdowns need a strong system of testing and tracing to avoid a rebound of the disease, say experts. By PIUS UTOMI EKPEI (AFP) "The biggest challenge we face in the fight against COVID in Nigeria is that people are not giving accurate information in the traceability process," he said. "There is still an issue of stigma." A doctor at Lagos University Teaching Hospital told AFP that a patient had been admitted there at the end of March with coronavirus symptoms, but his relatives lied about his condition, omitting to say that he had already tested positive. "They were afraid that we wouldn't admit him if we knew he was positive," the source said. The patient eventually died -- and four doctors who had been unwittingly exposed to the virus he was carrying had to be placed in quarantine. New Delhi: Superstar Salman Khan on Monday dropped his latest song based on the ongoing coronavirus crisis. The actor took to Instagram to announce the release of the song and also posted a link to the audio version of the song in his bio. "Emotionally pass raho aur physically duurr raho na #PyaarKarona, audio out now!" he wrote on Instagram. "Pyaar karona, Etihaad karona, khayal karona, madad karona, sabr karona, fikr karona, pyaar karona aitbaar karona," Khan is heard singing in the song. He can also be heard rapping in the song. Through his rap, the actor is throwing light on different precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the highly contagious virus. The rap revolves around, working from home, staying at home but at a distance from everyone, not wandering out in the streets unnecessarily and other important measures to fight COVID-19. The 54-year-old actor also urged people to use leisure time during the lockdown to work on their hobbies like playing the guitar, writing poetry and practising other artwork. "Doctors, Police ko salute karona," Khan is heard singing as he urged people to respect the frontline workers. In some instances in the song, the 'Sultan' actor is also heard singing "Saare Jahaan se achha Hindustan humara." The song has been composed by Sajid-Wajid and lyrics have been penned by Salman and Hussain Dalal. The unofficial holiday celebrating all things cannabis arrives Monday as the nation's emerging legal marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis, with many consumers reducing spending or going underground for deals. It was supposed to be a long weekend of festivals and music culminating on April 20, or 4/20, the code for marijuana's high holiday. Instead, it has been reduced to an online replica because of stay-at-home orders to curb the pandemic. Virtual parties and video chats are replacing vast outdoor smoking sessions to mark the rise of legalization and celebrate cannabis culture. The origins of the annual celebration are believed tied to a group of Northern California high school friends, who used the code as slang for smoking pot in the early 1970s. "Stay home, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, said bluntly. San Francisco Mayor London Breed threatened arrests: We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year." For businesses, 4/20 is usually their once-a-year Black Friday, when sales soar. Instead, they are reporting up-and-down buying and pondering an uncertain future. The pandemic means the world economy could face its worst year since the Great Depression in the 1930s. In a sign of what's to come, US retail sales overall dropped nearly 9 per cent in March a record. Millions are out of work. As for the holiday, "there's a somber feeling to this one, said Jordan Lams, CEO of Pure CA, which specializes in marijuana extracts and does business as Moxie brand products. Before the outbreak, it was going to be the biggest 4/20 in history," Lams said. Steve White, CEO of Arizona-based Harvest Health & Recreation, said he's watching to see if consumers treat marijuana more like beer or toilet paper when money runs short. When the economy tumbles, beer sales traditionally spike. With toilet paper, panic-buying might empty shelves but people do not use more of it. They just buy less later. It will be a telling year, because no one in the relatively new industry knows if sales will plunge, stay flat or even rise. Do people buy less cannabis, or does it become more ingrained as part of their daily life? White said. The uncertainty in the market poses the latest challenge for an industry that's expanded in some form to all but a handful of states. The risks are spotlighted in California, where businesses contend with hefty taxes, an illicit market that still dwarfs the legal one and a tourism-reliant economy that's crippled by virus restrictions. Because cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, most banks don't want to do business with pot companies and they aren't included in the coronavirus rescue package that will help other businesses. Before the virus, we were already teetering on ... an edge of a cannabis collapse, said Los Angeles dispensary owner Jerred Kiloh, who heads the United Cannabis Business Association. It's going to be very difficult for cannabis businesses to make it through this pandemic. That's despite the onset of stay-at-home orders in March that sent marijuana sales rocketing; some businesses reported single-day records as customers stocked up. New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles were among the cities that labeled dispensaries essential businesses that could remain open. But since then, business generally has flattened or tapered off, even with deliveries and curbside pickups growing to reduce health risks. Marijuana data trackers BDS Analytics documented sales surges through much of March, but then consumers pulled back in late March and early April, with sales mostly below average. In Oregon, cannabis retailers saw a huge spike last month a 30 per cent increase in average sales per retailer compared with March 2019. Sales increases mid-month were even larger. However, the peak has leveled off and customers are coming in less frequently but buying more, said David Alport, who owns two Bridge City Collective stores in Portland. He's hired three more employees to handle home deliveries. In Illinois, marijuana businesses can keep operating under Gov. J.B. Pritzker's stay-at-home order. Companies made sweeping changes that included appointment-only sales and online ordering. The Mission dispensary on Chicago's South Side saw an initial spike in purchases before the lockdown took effect, but that's leveled off. We've never faced an economic downturn when cannabis was legal, said Kris Krane, president of Mission dispensaries. This is completely unprecedented. Some customers could be especially vulnerable during an economic downturn. Among cannabis users in states where its legal, 32 per cent have incomes below USD 35,000 and only 54 per cent have full-time employment, according to BDS Analytics. Anyone on a tight budget might be more apt to avoid taxes that go with legal purchases and buy from illicit market dealers. Steve DeAngelo, co-founder of Harborside dispensaries in California, said it's difficult to predict what's next, with no template for how cannabis consumers will react in a deep economic downturn. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on April 20 said social activities can be relaxed, given the improved situation of COVID-19. However, he still stressed the need to maintain control appropriately over and remain vigilant against the pandemic. At the Cabinet meeting However, a decree would only be decided on Wednesday, he said while asking for the continued implementation of measures agreed at a previous meeting on April 15. He warned that risks remained high, so the political system and localities as well as citizens must continue following prevention measures, including social distancing, to stem the virus. The PM also agreed with the Ministry of Healths proposal to increase exports of face masks as the nation had sufficient reserves. Regarding the repatriation of Vietnamese citizens, the PM assigned the ministries of health, foreign affairs, transport and defense to decide on the number of flights carrying nationals home based on the developments of the COVID-19 pandemic, the requests of Vietnamese citizens, and domestic quarantine capacity. He tasked heads of provincial Peoples Committees to ensure proper containment measures in accordance with the levels of virus infection risks. At a meeting earlier the same day, the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control said Viet Nam has "basically" met the demand for confirmatory testing for COVID-19. Across the country, 111 laboratories are now capable of diagnosing the novel coronavirus by using real-time RT-PCR technology. Among them, 39 have been given the go-ahead to conduct confirmation tests, including 22 central-level healthcare establishments and hospitals, 14 centres for disease control (CDCs), and three other units outside the health sector. Their maximum capacity is 13,000 samples per day. The committee said the World Health Organisation (WHO) has provided Viet Nam with about 10,000 test kits, and is considering the provision of 40,000 real-time RT-PCR kits made in Germany. Meanwhile, domestic firm Viet A has distributed more than 70,000 test kits to labs. The Ministry of Health has also allocated 40 rapid testing machines and over 30,000 accompanying kits, along with 140,000 biological products produced by Viet A for real-time RT-PCR tests. No new COVID-19 cases reported The number of COVID-19 cases in Viet Nam remained at 268 at 6pm yesterday, with 54 active cases, 214 recovered and zero deaths, the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control has announced. Among 54 active cases, 14 tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 for the first time and another seven cases have tested negative for coronavirus twice. Patient 188 a 44-year-old woman working for Truong Sinh Company, which provides logistics services for Bach Mai Hospital once again tested negative for SARS-CoV-2, the test was conducted at the National Tropical Diseases Hospital. She is now under quarantine at the hospital. Earlier, a test by Ha Noi Diseases Control Centre on Sunday showed that she relapsed two days after her discharge from hospital. By late afternoon yesterday, over 51,000 people in Viet Nam are being quarantined nationwide at hospitals, quarantine camps, or in home isolation. According to the Ministry of Health, by yesterday afternoon, 2,419,724 COVID-19 cases were confirmed all over the world with 1,620,477 active cases, 633,448 recovered and 165,799 deaths. VNS Russias patent authority cancels protection of Yandex brand on Rambler petition RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov 17:50 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) The Chamber for Patent Disputes of Russias Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent) has met a request of Afisha company, a structure of Rambler Group, seeking to annul legal protection of Yandex Afisha brand owned by OOO Yandex, according to the bodys materials. The claimant is the owner of Afisha word trademark and believes Yandex Afisha brand to be confusingly similar to it. Moreover, the claimant says it owns a range of brands such as Afisha.RU, Mobilnaya Afisha and so on, what, Afisha company insists, is an additional argument in its favor. After having examined the arguments presented by the parties, when Yandex challenged the position sustained by claimant on the basis that Yandex component of the brand prevents it to be confusingly similar with the claimants trademark, the Chamber ruled in the favor of Afisha company. Russias Intellectual Property Court (IP Court) is yet to hear four petitions of OOO Yandex seeking early cancellation of legal protection of word trademarks owned by Afisha company; the Federal Service for Intellectual Property is to be a third party in the dispute. The dissolution of the Blue and White Party in Israel was expected because of its very fragile common denominator, but even those who were skeptical about its political life expectancy were astonished that it happened so quickly. Collecting and associating some people from the right and other people from the left doesn't mold a centrist party together, especially if its only aim is to replace the prime minister and does not have a clue about handling the many other issues on the public agenda. Once Blue and White leader Benny Gantz breached his main promise to his voters that he would not sit in a government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, it became impossible for him to keep his party together. Thus the party split into three Knesset fractions. The collapse of Blue and White and the demise of the Labor Party in recent public opinion polls (today, it has only three Knesset members, two of whom have agreed to serve under Netanyahu while the third preferred to remain in the opposition) leaves a vacuum. It offers political space for the establishment of a new party with a much longer life span than other parties before it. The voters are out there. While the Zionist center-right consists of about 40% of the voting public and cannot win elections without non-Zionist ultra-Orthodox support, the center-left consists of about 40% of voters and cannot win elections without the support of the non- or anti-Zionist Arab List. Election results and the sizes of the blocs have varied little in recent years. In the past four decades, the number of swing votes was traditionally small few voters switch alliances from one bloc to the other. This means that victory or defeat hangs on a partys ability to attract first-time voters and to reignite the enthusiasm of veteran supporters. New parties on both sides of the political spectrum have proved themselves quite efficient in fulfilling these functions, and even in moving small numbers of voters from one bloc to another. Most of these parties, however, have suffered from short life spans due to a lack of sustainability. Some 2,000 people went out into the streets of Tel Aviv on April 16 to protest what they describe as the erosion of Israeli democracy under Netanyahus leadership. Lacking true leadership to face the coronavirus crisis and also lacking a strong alternative, Israelis have been left with few political options. This means that there is an urgent need now to build a new political entity on the rubble of Blue and White and Labor that can be a home for liberals, reformists, secular people and religious voters who support a separation between the state and religion, pragmatic citizens who are worried about the development of a one-state reality where a minority of Jews rule over a majority of non-Jews and for many other people who cannot accept the social gap between various groups in Israeli society. If such a new party is not created, votes might shift from left to right but not necessarily. We could also witness a situation where many center-left voters simply choose to remain at home on election day. This would certainly offer the right a clear-cut victory. Whatever happens in the coming days, it seems that Gantz (especially after his surrender on the issue of the Jordan Valley annexation) will not be perceived as a leader of the liberal side of the spectrum. Given his failed leadership, the liberal camp needs an alternative. Gantz revealed his true colors from the beginning in various ways. These range from the name of his party Blue and White which refers to the colors of the Israeli flag, to the party's slogan ("Israel first") all the way to the repulsive promise (breached later on) not to consider the Arab Joint List's support even as a part of his bloc to block Netanyahu. Clearly, someone who thinks like that, or says such things only because he believes it is popular to say so, cannot be a leader of a liberal bloc.The most important aim of the a new liberal leadership must be returning to the negotiating table with the PLO on the basis of previous agreements and plans, with the aim of preserving Israel as a Jewish and democratic country living side by side with a Palestinian independent and non-militarized state. This can be achieved directly or under an umbrella of a Palestinian-Israeli confederation. The second aim especially considering the phenomenon of the coronavirus should be guaranteeing a sound and reliable social safety net that would allow the lower middle class and weak strata of Israel's society to meet the challenges of crises. Universal social services in fields such as health, education and social allowances should be rendered to the citizens and financed by the taxpayers. The government should be bigger not in the number of its ministers but in the scope of its services. This new political entity should fight for the independence of the courts, and against any attempts to limit their authority using the false argument that judges are not elected while politicians are. There should be a very clear commitment to enact laws that will enshrine the powers of the "gatekeepers." Israel is the only democracy in the world in which religious matrimonial laws constitute the states recognized matrimonial laws (for Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze). There is no justification for the continuation of this shameful reality, and the new party should hoist this flag of civil marriages as one of its most important commitments. Securing human rights and promoting them should be encouraged and monitored by a government special authority, headed by a commissioner for human rights. Israel committed itself more than 20 years ago to establish such a body, but never fulfilled that promise. It is of utmost importance for Israel's liberal leaders to promise to establish such an authority in the near future amid the controversies surrounding various human rights in Israel. The negative precedents of having political leaders who came from the army or from other important fields of life and who have found themselves all of a sudden as the head of a party or even as head of state should teach us a lesson about the inherent dangers involved in an unnatural leadership pushed forward. On the other hand, there are people in the political arena who can lead the new party. One of them is retired Maj. Gen. Yair Golan, a former deputy chief of staff in the Israel Defense Forces who is employing his time as a Knesset member to thoroughly study politics and its challenges. Another excellent candidate would be former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, the former leader of Kadima and then Hatnua who is now out of politics; the political arena misses her. Advertisement The poignant childhood scrapbook of the only man to be awarded two Victoria Crosses in the First World War has been acquired for 7,000 by his former Oxford school after it disappeared for nearly 120 years. Captain Noel Chavasse, a medic in the British Army who was fatally injured in Belgium in 1917, compiled the remarkable 209-page notebook with his twin brother Christopher as teenagers. The scrapbook, which contains more than 100 sketches and watercolours depicting scenes from the Battle of Waterloo and chivalrous acts by medieval knights in shining armour, has now been acquired by his former school. Magdalen College School, an independent day school for boys aged between seven and 18 and girls in the Sixth Form, made the purchase after a teacher spotted the scrapbook on television show History Hunters. The notebook, which was titled 'Snow Flakes' by Captain Chavasse and dates back to 1900 and 1901, also contains fictitious accounts of soldiers fighting in wars alongside pages declaring simply 'duty at all costs'. It has been bought by the school alongside Second World War bravery medals of another member of the Chavasse family from antique dealers War and Son in Leominster, Herefordshire. The items have fetched 6,995 with the help of an unnamed donor. It will be delivered by post. Steve Nuwar of War and Son told MailOnline: 'We are delighted that the Chavasse childhood storybook and family medals have found their way back "home" to join other related artefacts at Magdalen College School.' The poignant childhood scrapbook of the only man to be awarded two Victoria Crosses in the First World War has been acquired for 7,000 by his former Oxford school after it disappeared for nearly 120 years Captain Noel Chavasse (left) titled the book 'Snow Flakes' (right), and included pages explaining how snowflakes are formed 'It is a sweet and fitting final chapter for the Chavasse twins' delicate childhood creation, as they, themselves, schooled there,' he continued, before adding: 'We have no doubt that, more than 100 years later, a new passage will begin as the artefacts will be enjoyed by pupils for generations to come.' Headmaster Helen Pike of Magdalen College School told MailOnline: 'The scrapbook looks back on the Chavasse twins' time at Magdalen College School, so I could not be more delighted that it is now returning to Oxford to be treasured by us. We have benefited from the generosity of a distinguished Old Waynflete donor who himself lost a brother while at school. So the Chavasse brothers' scrapbook could not be more resonant for us or him.' Captain Chavasse, a doctor and Olympic athlete who was born in Oxford, is one of only three men to win the Victoria Cross twice since it became the highest award for gallantry in 1856. The captain, who also fought in the Battle of the Somme, was first awarded the medal in October 1916 when he 'tended to the wounded in the open all day under heavy fire' during the Battle of Guillemont. He was said to have displayed 'courage and self sacrifice beyond praise' for saving 20 badly wounded men over three days, some in a shell hole just 25 yards from the German trenches. The scrapbook contains more than 100 sketches and watercolours depicting scenes from the Battle of Waterloo and chivalrous acts by medieval knights in shining armour A page in the scrapbook containing a sketch depicting a scene from the Battle of Waterloo and a story titled 'Under Fire' Noel created the illustrations for the notebook and his brother Christopher wrote the stories which accompanied them Captain Chavasse, who served in the Royal Army Medical Corps, was posthumously awarded his second Victoria Cross for bravery shortly after he died aged 32 in August 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele. The medic carried an injured solider to a nearby Dressing Station and refused to leave his post despite being 'severely wounded early in the action.' He continued to 'perform his duties' and 'went out repeatedly under heavy fire to search for and attend to the wounded who were lying out'. Captain Chavasse, described as an 'inspiring example' in a London Gazette report in September 1917, later died of his wounds and was awarded the Victoria Cross posthumously. His twin brother, Christopher, sometimes known as Claude, served as an army chaplain in the war and was awarded the Military Cross and Croix De Guerre for his gallant effort to bring in the wounded. Christopher, who also competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics in London and later became the Bishop of Rochester, went on to name his son Noel as a tribute to his lost brother. Pictured: The Chavasse family seen in 1904 with twins Christopher and Noel seen standing up at the back of the photograph The extraordinary scrapbook also included a set of riddles (left) and an explanation of how snowflakes are formed (right) Captain Chavasse, a doctor and Olympic athlete who was born in Oxford, is one of only three men to win the Victoria Cross twice since it became the highest award for gallantry in 1856 The pair were born in Oxford and later attended university there after moving to Liverpool with their father (pictured, Oxford) A watercolour painting of Oxford seen from Godstow which was also included in the fascinating scrapbook (pictured) The captain, who also fought in the Battle of the Somme, was first awarded the medal in October 1916 when he 'tended to the wounded in the open all day under heavy fire' during the Battle of Guillemont A hunting scene 'for Easter eggs' created by 'Christopher Noel' which one drawing found inside the notebook (pictured) Captain Chavasse, who served in the Royal Army Medical Corps, was posthumously awarded his second Victoria Cross for bravery shortly after he died aged 32 in August 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele Christopher, who also competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics in London and later became the Bishop of Rochester, went on to name his son Noel as a tribute to his lost brother The twins, who were 16 when they made their scrapbook, were brought up in Oxford, before moving to Liverpool when their father, the Reverend Francis Chavasse, was appointed Bishop of Liverpool. Their notebook reads like a love letter to Oxford, where they both attended university, and Captain Chavasse sketched various scenes of the historic city including Magdalen Bridge and the River Thames at Godstow. The archive had belonged to a private collector who was unaware of its significance, thinking it was compiled by the younger Noel, not the double Victoria Cross recipient. Christopher's son Noel was awarded a Military Cross during the Second World War for his efforts in providing progress reports in hostile conditions during the Italian Campaign of 1943. Mr Nuwar, of War and Son, called the find 'extraordinary and breathtaking'. He added: 'When you read Noel's words 'to do one duty', it is especially poignant considering his actions 16 years later. To carry on tending to those wounded troops knowing he was dying himself, you can scarcely believe the level of bravery. 'Noel was fond of drawing snowflakes, and it is interesting that the book carries that title. But he could never be considered a snowflake in today's sense, as he was one of the bravest men in the war.' The archive had belonged to a private collector who was unaware of its significance, thinking it was compiled by the younger Noel, not the double Victoria Cross recipient A page in the notebook (pictured) explaining the scrapbook had been edited by Christopher and illustrated by Noel The founder of HOPe Africa, Mr. Francis John has renounced the statement of Melinda Gates Covid-19 outcome, Africans will be dying and throwing dead bodies on the streets. See the source statement and video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSVse07y2O4&feature=youtu.be Watching and listening attentively; these are racist comments without proffering solutions and they never had, as such African Nations, governments and the populace must begin to censor such statements and hold folks accountable for their actions. Restrictive censoring is also applicable to Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube. Over the years, history, confessions and ignorance has made it possible in the unveiling when and how Africans are treated as second-class citizens, and vaccines guinea pigs, recently proclaimed by 2 top French doctors on live TV that coronavirus vaccines should be tested on poor Africans, leaving viewers horrified - atfer all most herbs turned into medicine are from Africa https://youtu.be/Jo4SmnKLQLw and renounced by Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, https://twitter.com/malonebarry/status/1247275945632968705 The Chinese inclusiveness in racism is getting out of hand: Chinese Attack Africans In China, Blame Them for Return of Covid-19 https://youtu.be/ver1cZUKdYA. Pending comments from African Governments. It should be clear to the black populace, whatever contributions from foreign governments, philanthropist like the Bill Gates Foundation is a peanut, as to the continues damages incurred by the blacks regardless of their locations. Posterity is alive and will not forget the consistent promotion of hidden agendas, donations, products or services. Behind all these are terrible consequences. Some tips for Africans independence are: Africans must start cutting down accepting donations, using products and services from racist personalities and corporations. Step up patronizing each other and begin to build its own products and services using its locally available human resources and mineral resources. Start manually and develop on mistakes. Reduce substandard goods. Commence an Africans Innovation Center and or task engineering departments in Africa universities and polytechnics with a number of projects to leverage from itself from the continuous colonization. African Diaspora are encouraged to complement each other in all capacity. As such, Diaspora Africans, needs to heed to the clarion calls of the likes of: 1. Kenya activist and scholar of law, Professor Patrick Lumumba calls for an end to rivalry among Africans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF6vzs5PWE0 and 2. Femi Fani-Kayode reacted after Melinda Gates, the wife of billionaire Bill Gates in an interview with CNN warned that if the world does not move quickly enough, there will be dead bodies on Africa's streets https://twitter.com/i/status/1249655326070181895; https://www.instagram.com/tv/B-7NBrNj_QY/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading Africans are being restricted or dominated by the powers that be, for the fear of attaining developed status. Coupled with the fact African leaders are bought out for their selfish interest. Otherwise, African Union, governments and stakeholders must renounce Melinda Gates statements and ask the Bill Gates Foundation to provide evidences for their forecast. In not doing so, good exemplary precedence is not imbedded in African leadership structures. The must challenge events and activities proactively to show true love for its populace, without missing words, by so doing African Americans will complement the continent with overwhelming expertise. In fact, African governments must be seen in the forefront of forming alliances with African Americans and African Diaspora to bring up the continent to its rightful position. Invariably, if this generation fails, the youths and generations unborn will stand shoulder to shoulder to defend the African continent, regardless of intimidation. Its imperative to remember and reiterate the statement of Late Jack Oshe, a Sainsbury Manager London in the early 90s, they have milked the cow, the cow needs its milk back I foresee the black folks standing shoulder to shoulder in the city of London challenging for compensation for human and natural resources, equal rights and justice. If in all honesty we need each other as such No man is an island! Penalties for derogatory statements and actions at Africans, slowly stop buying Microsoft products and start developing indigenous software, Apps such as Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, etc. Bill Gates vaccines to Africa must be tested verified by indigenous African Scientist and made open to the entire public. Its not only a government decision, engage the general populace, stakeholders across the continent. By suggesting these, this article is likely to be censored, restricted and limited to sharing. This is the 21st century, no place for racism. Francis John HOPe Africa Kansas City, Missouri. [email protected] Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required. Your Full Name: (optional) Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required. President Akufo-Addo has announced that some social gatherings will remain suspended even as the partial lockdown of the country is lifted on Monday, April 20, 2020. In a televised address on Sunday night, President Akufo-Addo advocated for greater adherence to the ban on social gatherings as well as social distancing protocols first announced on Wednesday, March 15. The President said those measures which include a suspension on all public gatherings are still in force and have not been relaxed. "In here, I am referring to the suspension of all public gatherings, including conferences, workshops, funerals, parties, nightclubs, drinking spots, beaches, festivals, political rallies, religious activities and sporting events. All educational facilities, private and public, are to remain closed," the President said. The public gatherings that are still suspended as announced by the President are; Conferences Workshops Funerals Parties Nightclubs Drinking spots Beaches Festivals Funerals Political rallies Religious activities Sporting events All educational facilities - private and public remain closed Businesses The President explained that businesses and other workplaces can continue to operate, observing staff management and workplace protocols, with the view to achieving social distancing and hygiene protocols. Public transport Operators of public transport services are also to continue observing social distancing and hygiene protocols. He said: "Operators of public transport including our buses, trotros and taxis are to continue to run with the minimum number of passengers as they have been doing for the last three weeks in maintaining social distancing. "They must also continue to ensure the maintenance of enhanced hygienic conditions in all vehicles and terminals by providing amongst others hand sanitisers, running water and soap for washing your hands. Domestic airlines are required to adhere to the same protocols". Social distancing in Markets President Akufo-Addo further directed the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to continue to implement measures to enhance conditions of hygiene in markets and expand the policy of alternate days for alternate products to improve social distancing in all markets. "The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, together with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies will continue to implement measures to enhance conditions of hygiene in markets and expand the policy of alternate days for alternate products to improve social distancing in all markets," he said. The President encouraged all Ghanaians to wear face masks and also implored bereaved persons to conduct private burials of their loved ones with not more than 25 persons in attendance. 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. Featured Video Today is the birthday of Mamta Kulkarni, who is famous in Bollywood for her cuteness and her strong acting. Mamta is known for her excellent acting. Mamta is celebrating her 48th birthday today. People love Mamta fiercely. Mamta Kulkarni was born on 20 April 1972 in a Marathi family and after the publication of Topless Pictures in Stardust magazine in 1993, she was in a lot of controversies and since then, the controversy has surrounded her. Mamta has been known for her bold style. She played many excellent characters in films and at one time people used to be her big fans. Raveena Tandon takes dig at this actor's marriage during lockdown Mamta started her film career in 1992 with the film 'Tiranga' and after that, with about two dozen films, Mamta gave seven big hits. In 2000, something happened that she suddenly disappeared from the industry. She was in love with the drugs mafia Vicky Goswami and she said goodbye to Bollywood and settled in Dubai to get Vicky out of the prison in Dubai. These days Mamta is again in the news about the non-bailable warrant in the drug smuggling case. In 2014, Vicky and Mamta were detained by Kenyan authorities on charges of smuggling drugs. Amitabh gives funny answer when fan asked, 'Ever wanted to become the PM of the country' Vicky was earlier sentenced to 25 years in prison for drug trafficking by the United Arab Emirates in 1997 but was released from prison in 2012 due to good behaviour. Vicky married Mamta in the year 2013 and both currently live in Mombasa, Kenya. Vicky is also said to be Mamta's business partner. She had earned a lot of name by working with top stars like Salman, Shahrukh, Aamir, Saif Ali Khan, Akshay Kumar and Govinda. This action scene of Prabhas sets new record Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is pledging to more than double the rate of coronavirus COVID-19 testing in Michigan, which many experts say is key to getting control of the outbreak and getting the economy back on track. We want to get more people tested," Whitmer said during her April 17 press briefing. We need to get people tested in Michigan. But Whitmers target numbers are still short of what some experts recommend, and even reaching the goal set by the governor may be easier said than done. Michigan already is below the national average in per-capita testing of COVID-19, and the state faces multiple challenges in its plans to ramp up. Those challenges include getting more test kits and test supplies in the face of skyrocketing demand and disrupted supply chains, and the need to bolster Michigans health-care infrastructure to support a massive testing program that includes contact tracing to identify those potentially exposed to the disease. Scaling up a whole new system of testing for whatever is always going to be a big challenge, said Dr. Matt Longjohn, a public-health physician on the faculty of the Western Michigan University medical school. But the rapidity and the scale at which we have to react right now is completely unprecedented." Ruthanne Sudderth, spokeswoman for the Michigan Health and Hospital Association, agrees that a major increase in testing is both a top priority and a formidable challenge. Broad community testing is one thing we know can help us get back to some degree of of normal life," Sudderth said. But, she added, its going to take a change in the infrastructure and investment in the infrastructure to support that kind of operation. It will take more people, more supplies, more funding, more tests, and its going to take a lot of cooperation between state government, our federal agencies, our health-care systems, our communities and our local governments," Sudderth said. Expansion of coronavirus testing is imperative for several reasons. Weeks into the pandemic, limited testing means Michigan -- and the United States as a whole -- still doesnt have a good handle on the true extent the spread of coronavirus. Going forward, government and health officials need test data to better hone their response and the general public needs the data to understand their own personal risk as the economy reopens. For the first month after coronavirus cases were confirmed in Michigan, a nationwide shortage of test kits and supplies meant that testing was largely limited to those hospitalized or health-care workers or first-responders showing serious symptoms. Last week, Whitmer announced the number of testing sites has been expanded and the criteria to qualify for a test has been broadened to include more front-line health-care workers and people in the general public with more mild symptoms. Ideally, the state eventually would like to test all individuals with coronavirus symptoms and asymptomatic individuals with potential exposure, as well as a sampling of asymptomatic individuals with no known exposure to monitor for potential spread of the disease, said Lynn Sutfin, spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Between April 11-17, an average of 4,300 coronavirus tests were conducted a day in Michigan. Whitmer has said shes like get that number to 10,000 to 12,000 a day. [3:43 PM] Scott W. Levin Sorry, but your browser does not support frames. However, experts at the Harvard Global Health Institute are recommending a minimum of 152 tests per 100,000 residents per day between now and mid-May. That equates to about 15,140 daily tests in Michigan. Harvard also says the percentage of positive tests should be no more than 10%, a number they say indicates the testing program is adequately capturing the infected population. Between April 11 and April 17, about 24% of the Michigan tests were positive. While the Harvard experts say states shouldnt be reopening until adequate testing programs are in place, Longjohn said thats not going to happen. Were not going to be able to wait that long, said Longjohn, who was U.S. Rep. Fred Uptons Democratic opponent in the 2018 election. It will take us too long to ramp up our testing system, scale up contact tracing and really get ahead of community spread, which is still happening every day. Were going to introduce new risks as we open up our economy. People will die as a result, he said. And thats going to happen because we dont currently have the testing capacity we need to outline all these risks. But the pressures are rising as more and more economic hardship is felt. Testing an issue from Day 1 Shortage of coronavirus testing has been a problem in the United States from the start. One reason why I think the disease has spread fairly rapidly and widely here in the United States is that weve had inadequate testing from Day 1, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters said. We should have started aggressive testing back in January, he said. The standard practice when youre dealing with an infectious disease is to aggressively test, identify who are sick and then try to trace others who came in contact with the person whos sick. That did not happen early enough in the United States, he said. "The CDC didnt want did not want to use the World Health Organization test that has been used in 60 countries. They wanted to design their own test, and that took some time. Then when they did get the test developed, it didnt work and they had to go back to the drawing board. And so, there was a lag in testing," Peters said. "As a result of that, the disease was able to spread far more widely than if we would have been more aggressive in testing and isolating people early. As an example of the impact of early testing, Peters and others have compared the U.S. to South Korea. Both countries had their first coronavirus case around the same day in January. South Korea -- a county with one-sixth of the population of the U.S. -- tested about 80,000 citizens for coronavirus by the end of February compared to about 1,000 tested in the U.S. As of April 17, South Korea has had 10,653 cases of coronavirus and 232 deaths, compared to more than 700,000 coronavirus cases and 37,000 deaths in the U.S. The U.S. is now about the same as South Korea in terms of per-capita testing. But it was a hugely costly delay, Peters said. Were trying to play catch up, and every week that goes by that were not testing aggressively, the problem become bigger. The numbers in Michigan In Michigan, only 39 residents had been tested for coronavirus by the time the state confirmed its first two cases on March 10. At that point, the nationwide shortage of tests led to a very strict criteria of who could be tested: The person had to show serious symptoms and have had either known exposure to someone with coronavirus or traveled to a place such as China or Italy where an outbreak was occurring. By the end of March, Michigan reported about 35,100 tests. This month, another 79,000 tests were reported as of Friday, April 17. Thats a total of about 113,000 tests, about 1.3% of the state population. The interactive map below shows per-capita testing for COVID-19 in each of the states eight public-health regions; the darker the shade, the higher the testing rate per 10,000 residents. Readers can put their cursor over a region to see the underlying data. No areas of the state are close to meeting the Harvard recommendation of 152 tests per 100,000 residents per day, although the Upper Penninsula is below the benchmark of 10% positive tests, which indicates coronavirus may not be widespread in that region. Southeast Michigan has the highest rate of testing per capita, but also the highest percentage of positive tests. In Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw, Monroe and St. Clair counties, an average of 2,753 tests were conducted daily between April 11-17; that compares to a recommended average of 6,944. About 33% tested positive, compared to the benchmark of 10% that indicates adequate testing is in place. The northern Lower Peninsula has the lowest rate of per capita testing, state data shows. About 43 tests a day were conducted between April 11-17 compared to the recommended average of 675 tests. About 12% of the tests were positive. There also are questions about why Michigan remains slightly below the U.S. average of per-capita testing, even though Michigan ranks sixth among the 50 states in total number of coronavirus cases. For instance, Michigan has about the same number of coronavirus cases as Pennsylvania and California, yet Pennsylvania has tested almost 159,000 and California more than 247,000 compared to 114,000 in Michigan, based on April 19 numbers. Several factors are likely at work, experts say. Sutfin, the MDHHS spokeswoman, said that labs may not be recording all the negative results and the states adherance to federal guidelines on who should be tested have likely limited the number of tests performed. Sudderth said shes also heard about lag times in entering test results, especially negative tests. A lot of work goes into reporting those test numbers and right now it has to be done manually, like one by one," she said. "I think weve got more negative tests than we realize right now because of some of these reporting challenges. Coronavirus test kits were originally distributed based on anticipated need, Longjohn said. This is the danger of flying blind. Assumptions were made about where the risks were going to be greatest, and Michigan wasnt on the list of the top places to send tests." Region 1 includes Ingham, Jackson, Clinton, Eaton, Livingston, Shiawasee, Gratiot, Hillsdale and Lenawee counties. Region 2S: Wayne, Washtenaw and Monroe counties. Region 2N: Oakland, Macomb and St. Clair counties. Region 3: Genesee, Saginaw, Bay, Lapeer, Midland, Gladwin, Arenac, Ogemaw, Alcona, Oscoda, Iosco and The Thumb. Region 5: Kalamazoo, Calhoun, Berrien, Van Buren, Allegan, Barry, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch. Region 6: Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, Ionia, Montcalm, Isabella, Clare, Mecosta, Newagyo, Oceana, Mason, Lake and Osceola. Region 7: Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Kalkaska, Roscommon, Antrim, Charlevoix, Emmet, Otego, Cheboygan, Presque Isle, Montmorency and Alpena. Region 8: The Upper Peninsula. Shortage of tests and test supplies But easily the biggest immediate issue has been the shortage of test kits and test supplies such as nasal swabs. The shortage is a result of high demand and the fact many of the supplies are made overseas and the pandemic has disrupted supply chains. The high-need items tend to change on a weekly basis, Sudderth said, saying the nasal swabs as well the reagent and medium needed to process the test have been in short supply at different points. Theres also a global shortage of masks and gowns that are needed for those taking the samples. Its a bit of a game of whack-a-mole, Sudderth said. Just when we think were in a better place, we realize were running short on something else. Peters, the ranking Democrat on the Senates Homeland Security committee that oversees the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said his biggest priority right now is helping to figure out how to ramp up production here in the United States for this critical, critical equipment," including test supplies and masks. Both of those have to be ramped up dramatically from where they are right now, and we have to do it, Peters said. Were going to have to manufacture those in the United States, because the demand is so great around the world right now. Im constantly thinking about, how do we do that? How do we incentivize that? he said. Governors from both parties have been calling on President Trump for more help in producing and obtaining testing supplies, saying the federal government has capabilities states do not. On Sunday, Trump said he might use the Defense Production Act to direct companies to increase production of testing swabs, something the president previously declined to do. Considering that expansion of testing is critical to a successful reopening of the economy, Longjohn said he is baffled at Trumps reluctance to take the lead on this issue. We need nationalization of a lot of this stuff, Longjohn said about producing and obtaining tests and test supplies. I dont understand why we dont have a national testing system. Infrastructure issues More long term are the challenges in creating a health-care infrastructure that can support a massive testing program. Michigans current public-health system already is running at full capacity when it comes to coronavirus testing, Martin said. That systems resources need to increase significantly to achieve Whitmers goal of 10,000 to 12,000 tests a day. Were talking about running more tests than the system has ever run before, Martin said. So were talking about things like lab personnel and people to collect the tests -- all that kind of stuff needs to be expanded." That expansion of infrastructure needs to occur on almost single every level. Youre scaling up a test and youre talking about millions of tests," Peter said. We just dont have enough manufacturers producing enough testing kits and we dont have enough labs. Meanwhile, even things like the system for entering lab results is now getting overwhelmed, Sudderth said. Some of the databases arent necessarily built for this kind of scale," she said, which means labs are having challenges right now with getting mass uploads of data into the system. Longjohn said its not just about the ability to conduct more tests; its also about expanding the infrastructure to respond to the test data. We cant just think about how do we do more tests, he said. We also have to be thinking about, what do we do with the positive results?" That includes the ability to conduct contact tracing on each coronavirus patient, to figure out where they might have been infected and who else the patient might have exposed. But contact tracing is time-consuming and normally performed by county health departments, which have been steadily defunded. Ive seen reports that county health departments have had a 35% to 40% reduction in their workforce over the past decade as weve cut public-health funding, Longjohn said. Were going to have to reverse that. Some are estimating well need 100,000 new public-health workers, some are estimating 300,000, who need to come online very rapidly across the country to be doing all this public-health work," he said. The good news is that workforce can be mobilized quickly because you dont need two years of training to do contact tracing. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services already has been working to increase lab capacity, testing sites and the number of people who can do contact tracing, Sutfin said. At this point, nearly 30 hospital and commercial labs are processing coronavirus tests, she said, and the states Bureau of Laboratories has gone from processing about 140 specimens a day at least 9,500. The state is looking to add more labs and further expand its capacity at the MDHHS lab, Sutfin added. The state also announced 13 new or expanded COVID-19 drive-thru testing sites as part of its efforts to increase testing. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Michigans chief medical officer, talked about contact tracing at Fridays press briefing Contact tracing is something obviously thats very important, Khaldun said. Weve already sent out a team of contract tracers to southeast Michigan. Were already training hundreds if not thousands of contact tracers to be able to roll out tracing across the state. So absolutely, were ramping up our contact-tracing capacity." Moving forward Right now, Michigan is in mitigation mode, which means officials are trying to reduce the severity of the coronavirus outbreak. Some say reopening the economy should be contingent on a shift to containment mode, which means halting spread of infection through testing and contact tracing. Its the difference between trying to keep a wildfire from getting worse compared to extinguishing the blaze. But we are going to be in a mitigation phase for just too long to wait for that to end before we reopen our economy, Longjohn said. That ship has sailed. That horse has left the barn." However, the hope among public-health experts and government officials is that a major expansion of testing will allow better control of the outbreak until a vaccine is discovered. "We think testing is going to be a very important aspect of getting Michigan up and running again, " Sudderth said. We want to know who is safe and healthy to return to work. We want to know who is safe and healthy to help care for their family or friends. We want to know who is safe and healthy to open their business and serve those in their communities. In time, Longjohn said, he can imagine that the widespread coronavirus testing could generate data allowing local officials and ordinary citizens to calibrate the risks on a daily basis, much like reports on local air quality. We have to give our policymakers, our business leaders, our consumers, all the information that they need to be able to look at the numbers and say, OK, its a risk I can manage today, he said. Its going to be a question of how we manage the risks that come with opening the economy in a less-than-ideal situation." 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 5 things that need to happen for Michigan to reopen its economy after the coronavirus crisis Medical experts say Michigans coronavirus death count isnt accurate. But is it too high or too low? Gov. Whitmer hints at how Michigan will start reopening, come May 1 Michigan Senate Republicans unveil plan for reopening economy during coronavirus pandemic The three main types of interactions within an e-government are government-to-customer (G2C), government-to-business (G2B), and government-to-government (G2G). Within the G2G interaction, the relationship of a government to its employees (G2E) can be further separated (see Figure 1). The effective implementation of e-government procedures at national and local levels will not only improve the economys competitiveness but also enhance citizens confidence in the governments fight against corruption. Especially, e-governments can improve the state budget substantially and reduce opportunity costs, among other benefits specified (see Figure 2). For example, the national public service portal alone, launched last December, is expected to save over VND4.2 trillion ($182 million) per year. This also means that the delay of e-government implementation since the late 2000s would have cost the state trillions of VND. It is noteworthy that this amount does not take into account other lost opportunities due to the possible failure to attract sizable investment. E-government and business Recent reports published by the United Nations and the World Bank show that countries with high e-government indexes are usually associated with high business environment indexes (see Figures 3 and 4). A good business environment will attract high-quality investors, creating positive spillover effects such as better technology transfer, modern management practices, and positive impact on the environment. That is why e-government in Vietnam should be a priority. An improvement in e-government implementations would result in improvements in other areas such as reducing business corruption and enhancing transparency. Policymakers in Vietnam can learn from successful e-government models of Asian peers such as South Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia examples in which one of the outcomes of this push towards e-government was an increased closeness between government and citizens. Early and consistent efforts of the leadership of these countries in developing e-government initiatives have greatly contributed to improving their respective business environments. South Korea and Singapore have dominated the top rankings of business environments. Meanwhile, despite the governments recent efforts, Vietnam remains at a fairly average position in the global scale compared to other countries in the region. Vietnams e-government development index ranked 88th out of 193 countries in 2018, up one place compared to 2016 but down five places compared to 2012. While the top five ASEAN countries have improved or remained unchanged like Indonesia between 2019 and 2020, Vietnam dropped by one place in the latest ranking of the World Bank. Similarly, at the local level, e-government is believed to heighten provincial competitiveness. Leaders of local governments usually pay attention to their position in the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the United States Agency for International Development. However, attention should now focus more on how to improve their e-government initiatives. Effective implementation of e-government initiatives is likely to result in improved provincial competitiveness. For instance, nine out of the top 15 provinces in the latest PCI report are also leaders in the countrys ICT Index led by the Ministry of Information and Communication to evaluate and rank the readiness for IT development and application in Vietnam. Implementation keys Leadership awareness of the critical roles of e-government is one of the first steps towards an effective e-government. This is because implementing e-government initiatives requires a huge amount of resources, and the process takes time. Lessons from other countries show that the common factors influencing the success of e-government initiatives include governance capacity, ICT infrastructure, human resources, and socio-economic attributes (see Figure 5). Apart from ICT, the human factor within a government is more important in the implementation of e-government initiatives. In the case of Vietnam, there have been some positive signs. The governments great efforts in building and implementing e-government initiatives have been recognised by experts and citizens alike. In August 2018, the government set up the National Committee on E-government of which the prime minister is the chairman. In March last year, Resolution No.17/NQ-CP was issued to cover key tasks and solutions for e-government development in 2019 and 2020, with a view to 2025. More recently, this February, the government organised a national online conference of the National Committee on E-government together with the e-government steering committees of ministries, industries, and local governments. Major projects include the E-cabinet launched in June 2019 and the national online public service portal launched in December. In order to create competitive advantages and improve Vietnams business environment, governments at all levels must make more efforts and commit more resources for e-government development. The failure of e-government initiatives in the 2000s might have discouraged many leaders, but this is an important and urgent task that requires strong focus if the country wants to achieve goals of prosperity, creativity, equity, and democracy as specified in the Vietnam 2035 Report by the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the World Bank. This is now an even more pressing issue because the government needs rapid solutions to stimulate economic development during and after the pandemic. In this context, the successful development of e-government should be seen as a key priority. A successful e-government will spur quick improvements in other areas, saving resources for society and increasing the overall competitiveness of the economy. * Dr. Nguyen Quang Trung has a history of successful teaching and leadership at RMIT Vietnam. Prior to his position at RMIT, he worked at FPT Corporation and Open University in Ho Chi Minh City. Trung has a PhD degree in management from Monash University in Australia, a master of arts in economics of development, and a bachelors in foreign trade. His research interests encompass public management, international business, and development economics. His research has been published in books, journals, conference proceedings, and the media. * Tran Pham Khanh Toan is a PhD candidate and an official in the Peoples Committee of District 10 in Ho Chi Minh City. He worked at the citys Department of Industry and Trade for nine years. He obtained his masters degree in economics from Open University in Ho Chi Minh City, and a bachelors in public administration from the National Academy of Public Administration. His research interests include public governance, development economics, and digital transformation management. A convenience store employee takes the temperature of a customer in Bangkok on April 10. (Photo: AFP) No new deaths were reported for the third consecutive day, according to the countrys centre for COVID-19 situation administration. Thailand has so far had a total of 47 fatalities, with 1,999 patients fully recovering. Last week, Thai Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the country is still on top of the situation, with the government on high alert despite a stabilising trend in the number of new cases reported each day, in order to prevent any new clusters appearing. In my life, now, I wrote recently to someone I had once been close to, about the end of our friendship, which occurred a few years ago, I magnify little things as if they were operatic events such as that sudden arrival of wine from your home in seasons past. This great solitude effaces grudges, irritations, misunderstandings. As for the disruptions, ultimately, they had proved inconsequential. What was large and memorable, and enduring, was love During quarantine, self-reflection prompted me to write to friends I might have wronged to clear any foul air between us, to apologise for past errors and to seek forgiveness. My friend responded to my note warmly, fairly, with poise. We did not communicate further. An apology is complete in itself; it does not insist on the recommencement of a friendship that both of us had outgrown. In these long, hot, secluded days in rural Goa, I see how an expression of remorse is not always invitation to restart a relationship; sometimes, it simply pays tribute to what has come to pass, while rejoicing in past hours spent in mirth and discovery. Graham Greene wrote If only it were possible to love without injury and the answer is that it is not, although his question might have been only rhetorical. Perhaps part of our job in being human is to take stock of the injuries we have caused, and injuries we have borne, in that ridiculous and deep pursuit of love. Yes, its a bit like taking a karmic inventory. A cousin from whom I was estranged responded sharply to my apology we hadnt spoken in years. The issue between us had never been directly addressed, we had simply fallen apart after a spat. I was reminded of Julian Barnes writing in The Sense of an Ending: And no, it wasnt shame I now felt, or guilt, but something rarer in my life and stronger than both: remorse Whose chief characteristic is that nothing can be done about it; too much time has passed, too much damage has been done, for amends to be made. Later, after recovering from the severity of her note, a penny dropped: there had been a reason for our estrangement. Her response reconfirmed that, perhaps, it was a good idea for us not to be in contact. An apology can also remind you that its alright to have gone your separate ways. Around a year ago, I wrote to a writer who lived in Goa when I heard she was dying. She had been cross with me after I refused to launch her book of poems, a hostility that amplified after I retreated from our friendship. A few weeks before her death I emailed her to say I appreciated her unique, brash, lovely mind, and had learned from her passion for art and of criticism. She responded promptly. The profundity of her incipient death was the ruling god in our exchange we looked at each other as wounded lions, both mortal and, therefore, mortally flawed. I was apologising because, although I had not been obligated to launch a book, I could see how this might have felt like a rejection to her. I did not mind saying sorry never made me lesser for it. Ahead of her death, we saw the friendship as something small and fine, a source of occasional joy, true in its term. We never wrote again although this memory, now, reminded me that I was lucky to have set aside our life work together on an even note. Toward the end of Disgrace, Coetzees Booker decorated novel about the sexual and moral breaches of a professor, the author writes that if we are going to be kind to each other let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution. Author Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi (Courtesy HarperCollins) The somewhat American idea that an apology must lead up to closure is selfish, implying that once you apologise, the matter is fixed. An apology is only ever meaningful when substantiated by reformed conduct otherwise, its a sort of an ethical dressage exercise to make one person feel better while the other must be forced to watch. While acting as a gateway to personal transformation, an apology must hold both persons in balance, the one who must say sorry as well as the one who must accept (or not) the apology. Both roles rely on grace, and graciousness. I chose this period of isolation to reach out and make amends, an apt and conducive time for anyone to consider past affairs. Meanwhile, an awareness that not all of us will come out of this pandemic alive emphasized reconciliation over resentment. At Mukti Bhavan, a hospice in Benaras, the founder, Bhairav Nath Shukla, has witnessed over 12,000 deaths. Guests check in, when death is imminent, to pass away by the Ganges. But when one boarder did not pass away as expected the cause was suspected to be a long-standing quarrel with his brother. When the brother was summoned to Benaras, at the deathbed of a man he had not spoken to in 40 years, the final exchange between the brothers was so emotional and powerful that the ailing man passed away mid-sentence. The knot, finally, untangled. The man was free to die. This is why I am writing these notes, to be, in my own way, free; and to remind my friends that inches behind the hurt had been a lot of love. While the world feels likes its burning down, hold on to the love. Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvis memoir, Loss, is forthcoming from HarperCollins in fall 2020. A law firm in Scottsdale, Arizona, tested employees who hoped, with the prick of a finger, to learn if they might be immune. In Laredo, Texas, community leaders secured 20,000 of the new tests to gauge how many residents had been infected. In Chicago, a hospital screened firefighters to help determine whether they could safely stay on the job. In recent weeks, the United States has seen the first rollout of blood tests for coronavirus antibodies, widely heralded as crucial tools to assess the reach of the pandemic in the United States, restart the economy and reintegrate society. But for all their promise, the tests intended to signal whether people may have built immunity to the virus are already raising alarms. Officials fear the effort may prove as problematic as the earlier launch of diagnostic tests that failed to monitor which Americans, and how many, had been infected or developed the disease the virus causes. Criticized for a tragically slow and rigid oversight of those tests months ago, the federal government is now faulted by public health officials and scientists for greenlighting the antibody tests too quickly and without adequate scrutiny. The Food and Drug Administration has allowed about 90 companies, many based in China, to sell tests that have not gotten government vetting, saying the pandemic warrants an urgent response. But the agency has since warned that some of those businesses are making false claims about their products; health officials, like their counterparts overseas, have found others deeply flawed. Tests of "frankly dubious quality" have flooded the U.S. market, said Scott Becker, executive director of the Association of Public Health Laboratories. Many of them, akin to home pregnancy tests, are easy to take and promise rapid results. And the federal guidance that does exist is so confusing that health care providers are administering certain tests unaware that they may not be authorized to do so. Some are misusing antibody test results to diagnose the disease, not realizing that they can miss the early stages of infection. "People don't understand how dangerous this test is," said Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota. "We sacrificed quality for speed, and in the end, when it's people's lives that are hanging in the balance, safety has to take precedence over speed." Even as government agencies, companies and academic researchers scramble to validate existing tests and create better ones, there are doubts they can deliver as promised. Most tests now available mistakenly flag at least some people as having antibodies when they do not, which could foster a dangerously false belief that those people have immunity. And even if the tests do improve, their availability could be hampered by the same manufacturing shortages that have prevented the COVID-19 diagnostic tests from scaling up adequately. As President Donald Trump presses to reopen the country and several states are considering lifting lockdowns in the next few weeks, widespread screening is considered critical. On Friday, Trump cheered the FDA's emergency approval of some antibody tests, saying they would support efforts to get Americans back to work "by showing us who might have developed the wonderful, beautiful immunity." Epidemiologists are testing for antibodies in hot spots to better measure the extent of the outbreaks, and government officials intend to use those results to help decide when and how to return residents to daily life. But many scientists and political leaders say the country is nowhere close to deploying enough diagnostic and antibody tests at the speed and volume required. "The more testing, the more open the economy," Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said Wednesday. He has pushed for the production of antibody tests as a central cog in plans to ease stay-at-home restrictions, saying that New York would eventually screen 100,000 people a day. Recent testing around the country demonstrates the challenges of using the new products. At the Chicago hospital, for example, the city's Public Health Department intervened, warning that it should not use antibody tests to determine whether emergency workers were actively infected. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Soon after it helped screen the Rose Law Group, the firm in Arizona, a lab stopped providing rapid tests to other clients, fearing they might not comply with federal guidelines, and switched to more sophisticated lab-based tests. In Laredo, officials discovered the tests they received were woefully inadequate. The local health department found them to have a reliability of about 20%, far from the 93% to 97% the company had claimed. A police investigation led to a federal seizure of the tests. "The city was disappointed, but during a time of crisis, we are doing everything possible to scour the earth to have tests available for the public," said Rafael Benavides, the city's public information officer. "It's a real mess," Osterholm said. "This is the wild, wild West in terms of testing, and at a time when we need real definition of what these tests mean." More than 90 companies have jumped into the market since the FDA eased its rules and allowed antibody tests to be sold without formal federal review or approval. Some of those companies are startups; others have established records. In a federal guidance document on March 16, the FDA required them to validate their results on their own and notify the agency that they had done so. Their products vary. Some test only for a transient antibody that spikes while the body is in the throes of an active infection. An antibody that peaks about four weeks after infection and marks longer-term immunity is a separate target. In public lectures, North Korean authorities have disclosed to the public that there were confirmed cases of coronavirus in the country as early as the end of March. The news comes following initial denials by dictator Kim Jong-un, who has claimed in official statements from the capital Pyongyang that the communist state do not have any confirmed outbreaks of the deadly virus. This also happens amidst rumors about the alleged execution of the first person with coronavirus, as a mitigating measure to stop virus spread. On Friday, Radio Free Asia made a detailed report speaking to organizations, and neighborhood watch groups, saying there were cases in the country, citing two different sources one in Pyongyang and the other in Ryanggang province. However, the actual number of COVID-19 cases in the country was unknown. RFA reported that the lecturers said the confirmed cases were in Pyongyang as well as in South Hwanghae province, and North Hamgyong province and follows on from early denials by the North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. North Hamgyong is in the northeast region, while South Hwanghae is in the southeast region of the country. This showed how widespread the virus is in the country. Whilst the country had denied it has cases of COVID-19 it still implemented checks and restrictions. In early March, dozens of diplomats flew out of the country since Pyongyang had reinforced border checks and ordered foreigners from countries with reported cases of COVID-19 to spend 30 days in quarantine. KCNA, state media, said on Saturday that North Korean authorities are looking into if there is still possible space for the coronavirus to enter, in line with the absolute blockade of borders, airspace, and territorial water until the coronavirus pandemic is under control. As reported, North Korea, the secretive state, had been working to build new hospital faster and better than planned, regardless of continued denial that COVID-19 had entered its territory. Read also: Wuhan Lab Exposed for Poor Condition, Could Be Source of Coronavirus Leak With a 200-day deadline completion set by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, work on the new Pyongyang General Hospital has begun under a month ago. However, he appeared to de-emphasize any link to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic at the time, making no reference to it at the groundbreaking ceremony and instead of linking the completion to a national holiday. On Tuesday, North Korea has caused the rising of tension amid the coronavirus pandemic after firing several suspected cruise missiles off its east coast. South Korea's military has confirmed the action, that North Korea launched the latest in a slew of weapons despite the ongoing global fears of the spreading coronavirus. On the eve of the 108th birthday of North Korea's late founder, Kum II Sung, the grandfather of the current dictator Kim Jong-un the launches came. It was also the day ahead of the parliamentary elections of South Korea. At the end of last month, it has been reported that more than 100 North Korean smuggling ships were lying standby offshore over fears that they may bring in the country the coronavirus. As Pyongyang continued to claim that it had no confirmed cases of COVID-19, satellite photos captured a huge ghost fleet sitting off the coast. Aerial pictures of "unprecedented number" of ships anchored off the coast around the ports of Nampo and Chinghin in particular. Experts commented that the new measures were likely to be a reaction to the global outbreak of the coronavirus. Related article: Makeshift Mortuary Built in Bristol as Dead Bodies Pile Up @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The six French warehouses of American online vendor Amazon will stay closed until Wednesday. By then the retailer hopes to successfully appeal a court order restricting its activities. The extended closure comes after a stand-off with unions over sanitary conditions amid the coronavirus outbreak. Workers had earlier raised concerns over the risks of contagion while fielding shipments and union representatives took the firm to court, saying its health protocols were not good enough. A French court last week ordered Amazon to restrict its deliveries to bare essentials such as groceries and medical supplies while it makes thorough safety checks. Amazon however suspended activity in all of its sites, saying that the definition of essential goods was not clear and it could not risk being fined. Instead, it lodged a court appeal now due on 21 April. One million euro fines too risky "We're waiting with interest for our appeal to be heard," the company said on Sunday, adding that warehouse employees would have to stay at home until at least 22 April. Amazon had previously said the closures would apply until at least 20 April. A spokesperson for the trade union 'Sud' which put forward the original complaint said Amazon should've started with this closure prior to putting health and safety standards into place. It was reported that hand sanitizers and face masks were only delivered at the beginning of April after the workplace inspection was carried out. Social distancing not respected The court in Nanterre near Paris pointed out in its ruling on 14 April that several aspects did not meet correct social distancing criteria to prevent the transmission of the virus. The entrance turnstyles were said to create crowds of people when they arrived at the building, as did the changing rooms and the areas where packages were passed between colleagues. The company employs nearly 10,000 people across the six sites and all have been paid full salary since the shut down. Online ordering still open for business In the absence of employees, the company said it will fully sanitize all of its warehouses and carry out a covid-19 risk assessment before staff are allowed back. The US firm has encouraged shoppers to keep ordering, and taken out advertisements in French newspapers saying it will try to minimise disruptions by using their network of other warehouses in Europe. Some shoppers said they had already been warned of delays of up to four weeks to receive their goods. Facebook and Google should be made to pay for news content generated by the UK media to avoid the 'death of the industry', ministers were told today. Ex-Culture Committee chair Damian Collins is urging the government to follow the example of Australia, where new rules are being brought in to help prop up publications amid coronavirus turmoil. News organisations have been hammered by plummeting ad revenues and falling sales after the country went into lockdown to A slew of titles have already folded or furloughed large numbers of staff. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is fast-tracking a mandatory code that will include enforcement, penalties and ways to deal with disagreements between the global platforms and local media companies. Prices for content or the nature of commercial agreements would need to be negotiated but remedies would be put in place to force tech companies to fall into line. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is fast-tracking a mandatory code that will include enforcement, penalties and ways to deal with disagreements between global platforms such as Google and local media companies (file picture) Australian finance minister Josh Frydenberg said: 'As the technology of the digital platforms has evolved, so too has their market dominance. 'By creating a mandatory code, were seeking to be the first country in the world that successfully requires these social media giants to pay for original news content.' Tory MP and former Culture Committee chair Damian Collins told MailOnline the Australian plan was a 'very good one' and should be emulated here. 'I think the approach taken by the Australian government is something that would should think about following,' he said. Tory MP and former Culture Committee chair Damian Collins told MailOnline the Australian plan was a 'very good one' and should be emulated here 'I think there does need to be a level playing field for news companies dealing with social media platforms. 'I think the idea of having some pricing structure that is fixed, that news companies are given more notice and are consulted on changes to the social media algorithm, because that can affect their business. 'And I think data sharing too. The news companies don't get any data back from the tech companies about their content that is shared on the platform. 'That data is obviously incredibly valuable in understanding customer behaviour.' Mr Collins said there had been too much delay on moves to support the media, pointing to recommendations in last year's Cairncross review on public funding and tax reliefs. He said it was 'critical' to get action before it is too late. 'We have seen any kind of advertising-funded news organisation is under massive pressure,' Mr Collins said. 'The current economic shutdown caused by coronavirus has just accelerated that and has obviously forced titles out of print. 'That could get a lot worse. If we don't fix this it could be the death of the news industry in many parts of the country, certainly at the regional end. And it will massively affect national titles as well. 'We need to do more faster on this. We have been talking about all of these issues around safeguarding the news industry in the digital age, combating disinformation, combating harmful content we need to start doing things not just debating.' On April 6, 2020, the Huntington Beach City Council voted to give pay raises to city employees, including police officers. The estimated cost of these raises is $5 million over the next three years. Huntington Beach reported general revenues of $188 million in the fiscal year ended June 2019 and also reported total revenues exceeding expenses by $25 million for that same year. Chicken feed, right? FYE June 30, 2019, the city collected $89.1 million in property taxes, $47.4 million in sales taxes, $18.8 million in utility taxes, and $14.0 million in transient occupancy taxes. What will these revenues look like over the next few years? No one voted on these raises just one bureaucrat giving another bureaucrat a raise with other people's money entrusted to their care. The city of Riverside is proposing floating a bond issue to cover the exorbitant costs of public servants' pensions. Bonds are a double tax you must pay interest on the bond and then pay the bond back. A recent study by Stanford University found CalPERS underfunded by $1.4 trillion. April 16, 2020, 22 million Americans filed for unemployment due to the catastrophic slowdown caused by the Wuhan virus. This same week, California governor Gavin Newsom proposed giving all illegal aliens $500 for assistance in taking our jobs. Two weeks ago, the government added 16,000 to the tax-funded payroll and increased the number of H-1B visas. Just whom are our "public servants" working for? California highway patrolmen routinely retire on $100K-plus pensions, California sheriffs and deputies retire on over $200K, firemen well over $100K. Mark Yudoff, chancellor of the U.C. system, just retired with a tax-funded pension of $337,000 after seven grueling years. How long do you have to work to get your $300K-plus pension? Keep those tuition payments coming! U.C. chancellor Janet Napolitano plans to retire this year, again after seven years (this must be the magic number for exploiting the taxpayer), and her pension should exceed $400K, as she is paid over $500K now. In 2016, Napolitano outsourced 100 tech jobs to India and laid off 100 UCSF I.T. workers. The president of UCSD is paid $441K plus benefits. In 2018, Curtis Ishil, head of the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), stepped down. Today, he draws $418,608 per year, the largest of more than 700,000 pension checks issued last year. Some 35,598 worth $100,000 or more were issued last year according to data from TransparantCalifornia.com. The average American makes $60,000 per year and most of the time with no benefits. Are you getting the idea here? Don't live in California? Not your problem? Think again: the State of California spent over $320 billion last year, and $106 billion of that comes from the federal government. How did we allow our "public servants" to become so much more equal than the rest of us? The hogs are truly in the farmhouse. The people we hire and elect to ensure our equality and protect our rights are the same people who are depriving us of equal treatment and our rights. They have become elitists and have placed themselves above the fluctuations of the economy we have entrusted them with. Until they are forced to live by the same laws, rules, and regulations they impose on "we the people," we will never return to a representative form of government. Our "public servants" have turned into greedy, self-serving tax parasites. Are we still a constitutional republic as our Founders intended, or have we become a progressive socialist state? Hello, Venezuela. She announced her split from celebrity chef Shannon Bennett in September 2018. And it seems Neighbours actress Madeleine West, 39, has finally found happiness again as she was spotted enjoying a date with environmentalist Maximo Bottaro, earlier this month. The pair were seen passionately kissing and cuddling in the shallows of a secluded Byron Bay beach. Steamy! Mother-of-six Madeleine West showed off her incredible figure in a tiny bikini as she kissed her hunky environmentalist Maximo Bottaro in Byron Bay earlier this month... after split from celebrity chef Shannon Bennett Showing off her incredible figure in a tiny black bikini, mother-of-six Madeleine wrapped her arms around Maximo's neck and drew him in close. Muscle-bound Maximo meanwhile wrapped his hands around her petite waist and shoulders during the clinch. He displayed his bulging biceps in a button-down vest and completed his look with a pair of black boardshorts. Packing on the PDA: The pair were seen passionately kissing and cuddling in the shallows Not an inch to pinch! The mother-of-six showed off her slender figure in a tiny black bikini Clinch! Muscle-bound Maximo meanwhile wrapped his hands around her petite waist and shoulders, while placing kiss after kiss upon her puckered lips After their beach date, Madeleine and Maximo set off for a stroll around Byron Bay's leafy suburban streets. The couple enjoyed a light-hearted conversation while walking arm-in-arm. Madeline covered up in a pair of denim shorts, and eventually threw on a plain white T-shirt. Welcome to muscle beach! He displayed his bulging biceps in a button-down vest and completed his look with a pair of black boardshorts Sweet moment: Madeleine hugged Maximo from behind as he stared wistfully into the distance Cheeky! The brunette slid her hands underneath Maximo's shirt at one stage She wore a pair of flat sandals and carried her belongings in a leather cross-body bag. Maximo has been an environmental activist for the past two decades, having previously worked for Greenpeace, one of the largest environmental organisations in the world. He co-founded his own environmental conservation organisation, ReForest Now, in 2018. Activist: Maximo has been an environmental activist for the past two decades, having previously worked for Greenpeace, one of the largest environmental organisations in the world Accomplished: He co-founded his own environmental conservation organisation, ReForest Now, in 2018 They have so much in common! Madeleine has worked with ReForest Now on various projects since January Helping hand: Last month, ReForest Now shared a photo to Instagram of Madeleine helping to plant trees, and thanked her for her continued support Madeleine has worked with ReForest Now on various projects since January. Last month, ReForest Now shared a photo to Instagram of Madeleine helping to plant trees, and thanked her for her continued support. 'Madeline has been supporting ReForest Now through promoting our work and inviting community to our plantings and to contribute to the funding of reforestation,' the post read. Lovers' lane! After their beach trip, Madeleine and Maximo set off for a stroll around Byron Bay's leafy suburban streets Her main squeeze! At one stage, the soap actress playfully squeezed Maximo's bottom Daring to bare! Madeline covered up in a pair of denim shorts, and eventually threw on a plain white T-shirt Carefree! The duo enjoyed a light-hearted conversation while walking arm-in-arm Just a year after her split from Shannon, Madeleine said she was unlikely to ever get back together with the father of her six children, whom she had dated between 2005 and 2018. She told The Kyle and Jackie O Show in October their needs no longer aligned after more than a decade together. 'I'm a big believer that everything in life has a season. We change. We evolve,' she said. Handsy: Maximo also placed a hand on Madeleine's bottom at they strolled arm-in-arm together 'At some point we go, 'Well, I have certain needs I want to have met and you've got certain needs and if the two don't combine and cross in the middle, why fight it and be miserable?' 'I don't think that's fair to the children either to see two parents that are constantly across purposes.' She brushed off questions about a potential 'love interest' at the time and joked that she was living 'like a monk'. Hell for leather! She wore a pair of flat sandals and carried her belongings in a leather cross-body bag No chance: Just a year after her split from Shannon, Madeleine said she was unlikely to ever get back together with the father of her six children, whom she had dated between 2005 and 2018 Making it work: Madeleine previously told Stellar magazine in 2018 that she and Shannon were 'striving to reconnect as friends and parents' Madeleine previously told Stellar magazine in 2018 that she and Shannon were 'striving to reconnect as friends and parents'. She said that having six children and 'two high-pressure careers' had put a strain on their relationship. The former couple, who never married despite being together for 13 years, share six children: Phoenix, Hendrix, Xascha, Xanthe, Xahlia and Margaux. Despite their break-up, they relocated with their children to Byron Bay last year after selling their marital home in Toorak, Melbourne, for $16million. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 16:04:17|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A staff member checks the body temperature of a student at the No. 87 Middle School in Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, April 20, 2020. Over 56,000 students in their final year of junior high school returned to school in Changchun on Monday. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) A man wearing a protective face mask walks past the emergency department of the Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster, B.C., on April 3, 2020. (The Canadian Press/Jonathan Hayward) BC Authorizes Police to Issue $2K Fine for Price Gouging, Reselling Medical Supplies British Columbia has authorized the provincial police and other law enforcement officers to issue $2,000 fines to those engaged in price gouging and the reselling of essential medical supplies and personal protection equipment. B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth announced the measure on April 19 in response to the growing number of public complaints made to Consumer Protection B.C. amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Enforcement staff across the province, such as municipal bylaw officers, liquor and cannabis inspectors, gaming inspectors, and park rangers will also be granted power to issue tickets. [T]here are always those who seek to take advantage of peoples fears, and those who prey on the collective anxieties of our communities, Farnworth said. He condemned such actions, citing the story of an immunocompromised civilian who paid 10 times the regular price for an N95 mask, and business owners seeking personal protection equipment for their workforces having to pay grossly inflated prices. In the past month, many of us have heard cases of price gouging or someone selling essential supplies illegally, he said. I can assure you we will not allow these practices to continue. The new measures are also applicable to returning travellers who refuse to comply with the requirement to self-isolate for 14 days under the Federal Quarantine Act. The B.C. government has partnered with Consumer Protection B.C., which is now the first and primary point of contact for all cases of price gouging and reselling of essential medical goods and supplies. This is a difficult time for consumers and businesses alike and weve been working to help people navigate this confusing new landscape, Rob Gialloreto, the president and CEO of Consumer Protection B.C., said in a press release. We encourage compassion and understanding for each otherand theres no place for people to take advantage of each other and that includes price gouging. According to Gialloreto, the organization has received nearly 1,500 reports of price gouging since it began accepting complaints from the public in early March. Over the past month, new regulations to counter price gouging and other related misconduct have been announced in provinces across the country. In most provinces, individuals and business owners who raised prices significantly on medical supplies needed during the pandemic may face fines and jail time. Nurses were denied protective gear and virus testing at their own hospitals, union says. One nurse said her boss told her to come to work even though she had reported having symptoms consistent with the coronavirus. Another said she was denied virus testing at her own hospital. Other nurses said they had received only one N95 mask to use for a week. The claims, by nurses in New York, were included in lawsuits filed on Monday accusing the state Health Department and two hospital systems of failing to equip nurses with adequate protective gear and of exposing them to unsafe working conditions amid the virus outbreak. The lawsuits, filed in state and federal court in New York by the largest nurses union in New York, were one of the largest collective legal actions taken against hospitals since the pandemic began. In addition to the state Health Department, the defendants were Montefiore Medical Center and Westchester Medical Center. The union, the New York State Nurses Association, said that at least eight nurses had died in New York State after contracting the virus at work, and at least 84 had been hospitalized. The union has more than 42,000 members. Another accusation leveled by the union was that some nurses who had tested positive for the virus were required to return to work after seven days, half the 14-day quarantine period recommended by health officials. In one of the suits, the union asks the court to issue an order directing state health officials to ensure the immediate provision of sufficient PPE to nurses and health care personnel, referring to personal protective equipment like masks and impermeable gowns. A Montefiore spokeswoman said union leaders had chosen to attack a system, and the commitment of thousands of their colleagues, who have followed the governors emergency orders and are selflessly doing all they can to fight Covid-19 and save lives. Oregons U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden wants the Federal Bureau of Prisons to explain how its prison in Sheridan is handling social distancing, whether it has enough personal protective equipment and how it will ensure adequate staffing if a coronavirus outbreak occurs. Wyden sent the letter Monday to the bureaus director but asked for information specific to Oregons sole federal prison. Wydens letter follows repeated concerns raised by Oregon Federal Public Defender Lisa Hay. The senator noted his office had received numerous alarming reports from staff and family members of inmates at Sheridan, alleging that the prison isnt following proper precautions to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. This crisis must be met with the strictest commitment to the health and safety of everyone, whether incarcerated or not," Wyden wrote. Everyone in federal prisons, from staff to inmates, deserves a safe environment, and I am eager to hear how the BOP is acting to create one. He submitted a list of questions and asked for a response no later than May 1. He said his office personally reached out to the prison in Sheridan on March 27 about hadnt heard back from anyone. According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, 22 federal inmates have died from the virus. There are 497 inmates and 319 staff across the country who have tested positive for COVID-19. No one in the Sheridan prison is known to have tested positive. The Federal Bureau of Prisons last week extended a lockdown for all its prisons through May 18 to try to stem the spread of the virus. Last week, Hay said she feared an inmates suicide by hanging and other reports shes received of inmates harming themselves stem in part from the continued coronavirus lockdown at the federal prison in Sheridan. Though Hay said she didnt know exactly why the inmates chose to hurt themselves, she said the prisoners face unprecedented strain from having to stay in their cells with no visits from family or friends or their attorneys. Sheridans population has fallen by 17 inmates from 1,804 to 1,787 since Attorney General William Barr on April 3 ordered the Bureau of Prisons to review all at-risk inmates for consideration for early release, according to Hay. Hay has argued thats not enough and has called on the warden at Sheridan to alert the U.S. District Court that inmates over 65 who face a higher risk of contracting the coronavirus are eligible for compassionate release. The bureau said it has cut down on inmate transfers and suspended all social visits and legal visits for inmates. Its website also notes that the prisons are screening all new inmates for COVID-19 risk factors and symptoms, quarantining asymptomatic inmates with higher-risk exposure factors and isolating inmates with symptoms. Federal Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carajal, in a videotaped message last week, urged all prison wardens to identify areas in their prisons for potential quarantine of inmates with symptoms and plan for severe staffing shortages. He said federal prisons have moved more than 1,119 high-risk inmates out of prison and has placed them on home confinement across the country as a result of the attorney generals order. Hay has complained that shes heard from inmates and others that inmates are arriving at the federal prison in Sheridan from the Columbia County Jail or from a detention center in Pahrump, Nevada, and then quarantined for 14 days but in cells where the air vents to the general population. -- Maxine Bernstein Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212 Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian Subscribe to Facebook page Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter Some of the players operating in the sex toys market are Reckitt Benckiser Group plc., LELO, LifeStyles Healthcare Pte Ltd, Lovehoney Group Ltd PUNE, India, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- While most businesses are suffering lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the online media has seen a rise in sales in most of the developing and developed countries. The sales rate of the sex toys are growing virtually. There are distributions and e-commerce companies who are delivering products amidst the international and national lockdown. People are at home and they have more free time on their hands. Mostly, people are with their partners or alone and need fun in their daily lives when it comes to being intimate in their partners or primarily when they are living alone. Six online sex toy shops in Colombia have seen a rise in their revenue since the quarantine began. They are meant to be at home until the government pulls back the lockdown criteria, except for buying food and medicine and bank visits. Sex toys are meant to keep up their spirits during this lockdown fever. Other countries are also witnessing a similar phenomenon. Denmark sex toys sales have doubled in the recent past. On the other hand, the British lingerie chain named Ann Summers reported sex toy sales upto 30% till first of April. Request for Sample Copy of This Report@ https://www.absolutemarketsinsights.com/request_sample.php?id=547 One of the biggest sex toy seller in Nordics named Sinful reported the rise in sales of 110% in Denmark region, wherein according to the estimates figured out, the company accounts more than three-quarters of the total market. The country's sex toy review website named Eroti.dk reported that the traffic has more than tripled during the lock-down phase as compared to last year sales trend. There are retailers that ship their packages to online customers in Norway, Denmark, Finland and Sweden. The detailed research study provides qualitative and quantitative analysis of sex toys market. The market has been analyzed from demand as well as supply side. The demand side analysis covers market revenue across regions and further across all the major countries. The supply side analysis covers the major market players and their regional and global presence and strategies. The geographical analysis done emphasizes on each of the major countries across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and Latin America. Enquiry Before Buying @ https://www.absolutemarketsinsights.com/request_sample.php?id=547 Key Findings of the Report: In terms of revenue, the women sex toys segment is expected to witness the highest growth rate over the forecast period. Individuals are focusing more on enhancing physical pleasure. They are using sex toys to enjoy intimate relationship with their partners. The sales are mostly through online platforms owing to the taboo and stigma attached in buying these products openly displayed in wellness departments. Asia Pacific region is expected to witness the fastest growth rate over the next eight years. The popularity of products such as dildos and penile rings amongst other has increased during this quarantine period and is expected to continue the same trend over the forecast period. region is expected to witness the fastest growth rate over the next eight years. The popularity of products such as dildos and penile rings amongst other has increased during this quarantine period and is expected to continue the same trend over the forecast period. Some of the players operating in the sex toys market are Reckitt Benckiser Group plc., LELO, LifeStyles Healthcare Pte Ltd, Lovehoney Group Ltd;, Doc Johnson Enterprises, BMS Factory and other market participants Request for Customization@ https://www.absolutemarketsinsights.com/request_for_customization.php?id=547 Sex Toys Market: By Offerings Anal Toys Vibrators Dildos Cock Rings Strokers Other Adult Products By Distribution Channel Online Offline Specialty Stores Mass Merchandizers By Type Male Sex Toys Female Sex Toys Sex Toys for Couples Others (Romantic Accessories, etc.) By Geography North America U.S Canada Mexico Rest of North America Europe France The UK Spain Germany Italy Nordic Countries Denmark Finland Iceland Sweden Norway Benelux Union Belgium The Netherlands Luxembourg Rest of Europe Asia Pacific China Japan India New Zealand Australia South Korea Southeast Asia Indonesia Thailand Malaysia Singapore Rest of Southeast Asia Rest of Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa and Saudi Arabia UAE Egypt Kuwait South Africa Rest of Middle East & Africa & Latin America Brazil Argentina Rest of Latin America Get Full Information of this premium report@ https://www.absolutemarketsinsights.com/reports/Sex-Toys-Market-2019-2027-547 About Us: Absolute Markets Insights assists in providing accurate and latest trends related to consumer demand, consumer behavior, sales, and growth opportunities, for the better understanding of the market, thus helping in product designing, featuring, and demanding forecasts. Our experts provide you the end-products that can provide transparency, actionable data, cross-channel deployment program, performance, accurate testing capabilities and the ability to promote ongoing optimization. From the in-depth analysis and segregation, we serve our clients to fulfill their immediate as well as ongoing research requirements. Minute analysis impact large decisions and thereby the source of business intelligence (BI) plays an important role, which keeps us upgraded with current and upcoming market scenarios. Contact Us: Company: Absolute Markets Insights Email id: sales@absolutemarketsinsights.com Phone: +91-740-024-2424 Contact Name: Shreyas Tanna The Work Lab, Model Colony, Shivajinagar, Pune, MH, 411016 Website: https://www.absolutemarketsinsights.com/ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/831667/Absolute_Market_Insights_Logo.jpg Myanmar shipped hundreds of recently released Rohingya inmates back to the country's restive western borderlands on Monday after fears that its overcrowded prisons could become hotbeds for runaway coronavirus outbreaks. Men, women and children belonging to the stateless and long-persecuted Muslim minority were among nearly 25,000 prisoners freed last week by a presidential pardon to mark the country's April New Year celebrations. A Navy vessel transported the group from Yangon to western Rakhine state, where most Rohingya live under tight movement restrictions and in conditions Amnesty International has condemned as "apartheid". More than 600 disembarked near state capital Sittwe, while another 200 were taken further north to townships on the border with Bangladesh, said state immigration department chief Soe Lwin. "They will be quarantined," he added, without giving further details. Myanmar's biggest prisoner release in years came as coronavirus fears gripped the country, with calls for low-risk inmates to be released from what Human Rights Watch describes as Myanmar's "horribly overcrowded and unsanitary" jails. The World Health Organization has also warned that prison populations are particularly vulnerable to the spread of the disease. Myanmar has only 111 confirmed COVID-19 cases but experts fear the real number is many times higher because of the low numbers tested and the country's chronically underfunded healthcare system. Pressure is also on Myanmar to improve its treatment of the Rohingya, after a bloody military crackdown in 2017 sent around 750,000 civilians fleeing into Bangladesh and prompted genocide charges at the UN's top court. The country must report back to the International Court of Justice next month, to outline the efforts it was taking to protect the minority. Hundreds of Rohingya have been arrested and charged with immigration offences in recent years after trying to flee Rakhine state and seek refuge in other countries. But the Rohingya garner little sympathy within Myanmar, where they are widely viewed as illegal immigrants even though many trace their roots in the country back generations. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 17:05:14|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's agricultural products will continue to rise in quality this year as production stabilizes and supply is secured for important products such as grains and pigs, according to a report on Monday. The China Agricultural Outlook (2020-2029) released by the China Agricultural Outlook Conference 2020 summarized and reviewed the market situation of 18 major products in 2019, made projections on production, consumption, trade and prices in the next 10 years, and analyzed existing uncertainties. It said China's capacity to effectively supply major agricultural products and ensure their quality will continue to improve. Crop pattern will continue to be optimized and the varieties of rice and wheat will improve. The total cropped area will be reduced accordingly, with the area of food grains at 800 million mu (about 53.33 million hectares), according to the report. The yields of rice, wheat and corn in China in 2020 are expected to reach 209 million tonnes, 134 million tonnes and 267 million tonnes respectively. The dairy industry will experience significant improvements in quality and efficiency, and aquaculture will rapidly develop, and the supply of green, high-quality and safe products will increase, the report said. The China Agricultural Outlook Conference, organized by the Agricultural Information Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, has issued the China Agricultural Outlook report for six consecutive years. The report updates agricultural monitoring information, and guides the production and market adjustment of agricultural products. Enditem Slovakia is a country located in the continent of Europe, which is surrounded by land from all four sides, that is, there is no sea or ocean on its border. Surrounded by Poland in the north, Hungary in the south, Ukraine in the east and the Czech Republic and Austria in the west, the country was formed in 1993 after being separated from Czechoslovakia. Today we are going to tell you many such interesting things related to this country, about which very few people know. There are such special things related to Slovakia, knowing that you will also be surprised. The second-longest river of the European continent, the 'Danube', passes through Slovakia. The 2850 km long river flows in 10 countries. Apart from the Nile, there is hardly any river in the world that will flow through so many countries. 2600 years old Buddhist temple is another tourist attraction Generally, any country wants to keep its capital in the middle of the country because it is good in terms of security, but Slovakia's capital Bratislava is the only capital in the world, which is bordering the two countries. Bratislava touches the border of Austria and Hungary. Slovakia is a parliamentary republic with 150 members in the National Council. These members are elected by a general election every four years. Till 2002, MPs in this country used to elect the President, but later the constitution was amended here. Now the President is elected by general elections here. Spider-man helps neighbours with essential items Slovakia is a country that does not consider Islam a religion. Here the name of Islam has been removed from the list of religion. In 2016, the government passed a law regarding this. There is a Muslim population of around 5000, but there is not a single mosque in the whole country. This person adopted unique way to protect his family from Corona Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 08:47:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WARSAW, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The legendary Bayern Munich forward Giovane Elber described Robert Lewandowski as the "best number nine in the world" and advised the Pole to end his career at the Allianz Arena. Bayern fans have chosen Lewandowski as the best striker to represent the team in the 21st century in the plebiscite which was organized by German TV Sky Sports. The Polish player sits on the top of the Bundesliga top scorer classification with 25 goals, four more than the second-placed Timo Werner from RB Leipzig. "I agree that in this century Bayern haven't had a better forward than Lewandowski. He is a great player and he seems to be the most complete nine in the world. It's a great pleasure for me to watch him play," Elber was quoted as saying by Polish media on Sunday. The Brazilian compared Lewandowski to himself. "I played in completely different times. In my period Robert would be a different player too, it's about training methods. Today training is more accurate and specialized than when I performed. However, we definitely have the same strong points, like playing effectively with both legs, positioning in the penalty area, feeling the ball. He also scored a lot of goals by head, as I did," commented Elber. The 47-year-old hoped that Lewandowski will play in Munich until the end of his career. "I would like to see him in Bayern as long as possible. It's important not only for the club but also for the Bundesliga. The league needs great players. Robert is undoubtedly one of them," concluded the former attacker. Enditem Radiation levels on the territory of the Chornobyl exclusion zone, in Kyiv region and in Kyiv are within the norm, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine has said. "Radiation levels in the city of Kyiv, in Kyiv region, and in the exclusion zone are within natural background levels," Director of the State Emergency Service's Emergency Response Department Volodymyr Demchuk said during an online briefing on Monday. One of four fire beds has been contained in the Chornobyl zone as of this morning, Demchuk said. "The most difficult fire bed is located near the village of Rudky, where all possible measures are being taken to prevent the fire from spreading to the territory of the Republic of Belarus," he said. The other two fire beds in the exclusion zone, near the village of Rosokhach and Kryva Hora, pose no threat to the forests and other territories in the exclusion zone, Demchuk said. "The Confinement facility, the spent nuclear fuel storage facility and the other facilities of the state agency managing the exclusion zone are functioning normally, he said. The Ukrainian State Emergency Service is maintaining contact with the Belarusian Emergency Situations Ministry as concerns joint firefighting measures, Demchuk said. LOS ANGELES - The unofficial holiday celebrating all things cannabis arrives Monday as the nations emerging legal marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis, with many consumers reducing spending or going underground for deals. It was supposed to be a long weekend of festivals and music culminating on April 20, or 4/20, the code for marijuanas high holiday. Instead, it has been reduced to an online replica because of stay-at-home orders to curb the pandemic. Virtual parties and video chats are replacing vast outdoor smoking sessions to mark the rise of legalization and celebrate cannabis culture. The origins of the annual celebration are believed tied to a group of Northern California high school friends, who used the code as slang for smoking pot in the early 1970s. Stay home, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, said bluntly. San Francisco Mayor London Breed threatened arrests: We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year. For businesses, 4/20 is usually their once-a-year Black Friday, when sales soar. Instead, they are reporting up-and-down buying and pondering an uncertain future. The pandemic means the world economy could face its worst year since the Great Depression in the 1930s. In a sign of whats to come, U.S. retail sales overall dropped nearly nine per cent in March a record. Millions are out of work. As for the holiday, theres a sombre feeling to this one, said Jordan Lams, CEO of Pure CA, which specializes in marijuana extracts and does business as Moxie brand products. Before the outbreak, it was going to be the biggest 4/20 in history, Lams said. Steve White, CEO of Arizona-based Harvest Health & Recreation, said hes watching to see if consumers treat marijuana more like beer or toilet paper when money runs short. When the economy tumbles, beer sales traditionally spike. With toilet paper, panic-buying might empty shelves but people do not use more of it. They just buy less later. It will be a telling year, because no one in the relatively new industry knows if sales will plunge, stay flat or even rise. Do people buy less cannabis, or does it become more ingrained as part of their daily life? White said. The uncertainty in the market poses the latest challenge for an industry thats expanded in some form to all but a handful of states. The risks are spotlighted in California, where businesses contend with hefty taxes, an illicit market that still dwarfs the legal one and a tourism-reliant economy thats crippled by virus restrictions. Because cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, most banks dont want to do business with pot companies and they arent included in the coronavirus rescue package that will help other businesses. Before the virus, we were already teetering on ... an edge of a cannabis collapse, said Los Angeles dispensary owner Jerred Kiloh, who heads the United Cannabis Business Association. Its going to be very difficult for cannabis businesses to make it through this pandemic. Thats despite the onset of stay-at-home orders in March that sent marijuana sales rocketing; some businesses reported single-day records as customers stocked up. New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles were among the cities that labeled dispensaries essential businesses that could remain open. But since then, business generally has flattened or tapered off, even with deliveries and curbside pickups growing to reduce health risks. Marijuana data trackers BDS Analytics documented sales surges through much of March, but then consumers pulled back in late March and early April, with sales mostly below average. In Oregon, cannabis retailers saw a huge spike last month a 30 per cent increase in average sales per retailer compared with March 2019. Sales increases mid-month were even larger. However, the peak has levelled off and customers are coming in less frequently but buying more, said David Alport, who owns two Bridge City Collective stores in Portland. Hes hired three more employees to handle home deliveries. In Illinois, marijuana businesses can keep operating under Gov. J.B. Pritzkers stay-at-home order. Companies made sweeping changes that included appointment-only sales and online ordering. The Mission dispensary on Chicagos South Side saw an initial spike in purchases before the lockdown took effect, but thats levelled off. Weve never faced an economic downturn when cannabis was legal, said Kris Krane, president of Mission dispensaries. This is completely unprecedented. Some customers could be especially vulnerable during an economic downturn. Among cannabis users in states where its legal, 32 per cent have incomes below $35,000 (U.S.) and only 54 per cent have full-time employment, according to BDS Analytics. Anyone on a tight budget might be more apt to avoid taxes that go with legal purchases and buy from illicit market dealers. Steve DeAngelo, co-founder of Harbourside dispensaries in California, said its difficult to predict whats next, with no template for how cannabis consumers will react in a deep economic downturn. Still, he notes that the industry has endured for years through times good and bad, even when consumers had only one option illegal purchases. Consumers who see marijuana as part of their daily routine will keep coming back, he predicted. But, for businesses, there will be a sorting out, DeAngelo said. Companies with strong brands and cash reserves are likely to fare better in a poor economy; those saddled with heavy debt who made too-rosy promises to investors will face challenges. There is not going to be an extinction moment, DeAngelo said. Its going to prove more resilient than many, many other industries. ___ Associated Press writers Gillian Flaccus in Portland, Oregon, and Kathleen Foody in Chicago contributed. Blood, Flaccus and Foody are members of APs marijuana beat team. Under the agreement, approximately 24,000 accounts, including an estimated $140 million in deposits, will transition from State Farm Bank to HSA Bank, the nation's leading bank administrator and depository of HSAs. Expected closing is in the second or third quarter of 2020. No other terms of the transaction are being disclosed. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions. "We look forward to welcoming State Farm Bank HSA accountholders to HSA Bank," said Chad Wilkins, President of HSA Bank. "We are excited that State Farm selected HSA Bank as the HSA custodian of choice, and are well-equipped to help accountholders make healthcare financial decisions that are best for them in every stage of life." Joe Monk, President and CEO of State Farm Bank added, "State Farm and HSA Bank share a common goal to help people live confidently. HSA Bank is well positioned to help accountholders save and plan for healthcare expenses today and in retirement, and we believe it is a positive move for customers." Current State Farm Bank HSA accountholders do not need to take any action. Accountholders will receive communications in advance of the transition. Barclays Capital Inc. advised State Farm in connection with this transaction. About HSA Bank HSA Bank is a trusted leader in consumer-directed healthcare (CDH), focusing on Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) for over two decades and serving as both the bank and administrator. Discover how we can support your benefits strategy with our comprehensive account-based health benefit solutions that include HSAs, Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs), Commuter Benefits, COBRA Administration, and HSA investment solutions such as HSAdvisor+. With a reputation for outstanding service and thought leadership in the CDH space, we offer one platform and one portal for all of our members. HSA Bank inspires 3 million members and more than 35,000 employer groups to "own your health" by making it easy to access, understand, and afford healthcare. As of December 31, 2019, HSA Bank has $8.5 billion in total footings (assets) comprising $6.4 billion in deposit balances and $2.1 billion in assets under administration through linked investment accounts, and is a division of Webster Bank, N.A., Member FDIC. About State Farm The mission of State Farm is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their dreams. State Farm and its affiliates are the largest providers of auto and home insurance in the United States. Its nearly 19,000 agents and approximately 58,000 employees serve approximately 84 million policies and accounts over 81 million auto, fire, life, health and commercial policies and over 2 million bank and investment planning services accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 36 on the 2019 Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com. Media Contact: Alice Ferreira Webster Bank (203) 578-2610 [email protected] Media Contact: Jennifer Dean HSA Bank (920) 453-5286 [email protected] Media Contact: Roszell Gadson State Farm (770) 243-9049 [email protected] SOURCE HSA Bank Related Links http://www.hsabank.com The market has drifted into uncharted waters with the global pandemic creating an unprecedented level of ambiguity. High yielding stocks with the balance sheet health and/or cash-flows to maintain their dividend may be a safe place to put some of your cash to work. Today, I am going to take a look at the oil industry, where maintaining dividends is the highest priority. The S&P 500 has had a wild 2 months with a 35% market crash followed swiftly by a 25%+ recovery, catalyzed by the unprecedented level of monetary support the Federal Reserve has provided. This support has artificially propping up the asset markets. Now the market is bracing itself for a wave of atrocious Q1 earnings reports and more pandemic headlines that will fuel the market. May crude oil futures plummeted below $10 per barrel today for the first time since the 90s, as inventory spikes and storage becomes a central issue. The oil supply glut is maxing out the capacity of oil storage facilities, and producers are being forced to substantially reduce production. Crude futures for June and the following months are trading at more than double Mays price as traders and hedgers price in the possibility of the economy opening back up resurging oil demand. The Oil Dividend Oil companies are doing everything in their power to maintain their robust dividend yields, which have surged into the high single-digits and even double-digits as share prices plunge. The largest energy companies are liquid enough to maintain their dividend without turning a profit for quite some time. Below are the financial profiles of my favorite publicly traded oil enterprises. Look for upcoming earnings among these companies for clarity about each firms plan to mitigate risk and capitalize on the adverse environment in which they are operating. Bankruptcies and consolidation in this industry is likely over the next 12 months and well-capitalized firms will have the opportunity to expand their operations. Story continues British Petroleum (BP) 11% yield BP is currently holding $26.8 billion in cash & equivalents combined with a $10 billion line of credit, which gives the firm roughly $37 billion in liquidity. BP is the most liquid of its competitors, with its liquidity more than covering its debts through 2022. BPs cash flow sensitivity to oil price is $340m for $1/bbl, according to Jefferies Equity Research. BP is the most hedged of its competitors, with crude price changes impacting its cash-flows the least. Next earnings report: May 5th (after close) Chevron (CVX) 6.1% yield Chevron has a $5.75 billion in cash & equivalents combined with a $9.75 billion line of credit, giving the company $15.5 billion in liquidity. CVXs liquidity covers 80% of its debts through 2022. Chevrons cash flow sensitivity to oil price is $500m for $1/bbl, according to Jefferies Equity Research. Next earnings report: May 1st (before the bell) ExxonMobil (XOM) 8.5% yield Exxon has $3.1 billion in cash & equivalents but issued $8.5 billion in bonds last week, bringing its cash levels up to $11.6 billion. XOMs liquidity covers roughly 75% of its debts through 2022. Exxons cash flow sensitivity to oil price is $600m for $1/bbl, according to Jefferies Equity Research. Next earnings report: May 1st (before the bell) The Opportunity The stocks discussed above have seen massive declines since the beginning of the year, though they have seen a rebound since their lows in late March. The newfound optimism can be attributed to the Feds liquidity, a potential deal with OPEC+, and a perceived bottom in oil demand. This, combined with the massive dividend yields, has pushed my favorite oil stocks off their lows. For long-term investors not needing to time the market perfectly, I wouldnt hold back on buying one of these stocks to lock in the juicy dividend yield. I believe that all three of these stocks will recover due to their size & liquidity. These stocks have yielded robust dividends for decades (over a half century for some), and they are not going to let their investors down now. I am confident that the dividend is not at risk for these larger oil players. I am personally waiting for another leg down before purchasing any of these oil giants. I think the optimism is a bit overplayed, and I believe the supply glut will remain for longer than these stocks have currently priced in. If these Energy earnings in the first week of May will provide us with more color on the sectors direction. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Click to get this free report Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Chevron Corporation (CVX) : Free Stock Analysis Report BP p.l.c. (BP) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Photo: Thinkstock This pandemic is dramatically affecting each of our lives, and I wish you health and strength as we work together to get through this. I want to thank everyone who has been reaching out to me, including our business owners. I appreciate hearing all your individual situations and how we need to act quickly so small business owners dont lose their lifes work and savings. Future employment opportunities are lost if many businesses cannot survive. My team and I are working non-stop day and night to respond to the volume of correspondence we are receiving, in particular since Service Canada closed their physical offices. Most incoming inquires have been about assisting people getting home from other countries, helping with EI and CRA issues, and responding to all the inquiries from businesses and not for profits. We are also hearing from residents who are in all stages of life including students and seniors. Daily announcements without details have created uncertainty for many people and we assist as we can. Last week, I released a statement, alongside our transport critic, to ask the government to ensure our supply chains stay open across the country with a plan for long-haul truckers to have adequate stops. As a member of the Official Opposition, I have been participating in virtual meetings and conversations every day with my colleagues, and I am bringing forth your concerns. In particular, being a member of the Shadow Cabinet helps me elevate your voice. Our Shadow Cabinet discusses and researches ideas to ensure Canadians arent falling through the cracks, and make recommendations to the government every day. Please continue to reach out so I can hear your individual situations. Parliament sat on Saturday, April 11, to vote on legislation to enact changes, in particular with the Income Tax Act, which needed to occur in order to properly implement the governments programs. It was also tabled and agreed by unanimous consent (meaning all political parties agreed) to have the government to look at gaps in the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). Work will have to be done to determine what these amendments look like. We are anticipating the House of Commons to sit in some form next week. The best place to look for anything federally related to COVID-19, whether health or economic: canada.ca. Here are some of the recent recommendations we, as the Official Opposition, have made to government: Refund small businesses the GST they paid over the last year to put cash flow immediately in business owners hands Lift the $40,000 cap on CERB that banks and credit unions are delivering so businesses can borrow to get the cash needed now and pay CRA back once they deposit the wage subsidy Amend the various qualifying rules for programs, and allow more flexibility for people who want to work part time Declare the Agriculture Sector as Critical Infrastructure Scrap planned tax hikes (this includes taxes like federal Carbon Tax and Excise Tax, on items like liquor) Increase the Charitable Donation Tax Credit and remove capital gains tax on donations for the 2020 year As isolation can be tough on many people, maybe call some friends or family you havent talked with in a while. And, remember that many charities and not-for-profits have cancelled fundraising events, so support your favourite groups if you are able. We are seeing the human spirit shine. Please stay healthy and safe. The men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), on Monday, nabbed seven commercial vehicles who were passing through Ilorin, in Kwara State from Lagos State. According to the report which was confirmed to newsmen on Monday by the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of NSCDC Kwara Command, Mr Ayeni Olasunkanmi, the seven vehicles, fully loaded were stopped while passing through Ilorin for violating the Coronavirus lockdown order issued by the state government. Also Read: Lagos Hospital Shuts Down As Two Staff Test Positive For COVID-19 Speaking on the intercept of the vehicles coming from Lagos State, Ayeni said, The drivers and passengers were arrested for violating the stay-at-home restriction by the government. He said that NSCDC operatives took all the arrested persons to Sango Magistrates Court, Ilorin, for proper prosecution. The Prominent Civil Rights Advocacy group HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has advocated what it calls a national unified response to the rampaging Covid-19 disease in Nigeria with a view to finding local and indigenous panacea to the health emergency and begin to open up the Country to some forms of limited economic activities to stave off IMMINENT national economic collapse should the total shutdown continues unabated. Besides, the Rights group said it was unjust, inhumane, wicked, outrageous and Illegal for the President to supervise the ongoing lopsided re-distribution of the palliatives and reliefs made available by the Nigerian state for the benefit of all poor income families in Nigeria which ought to have been re-distributed equitably and equally just as the Rights group said the disclosure by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs that the North West alone cornered more of the components of the National conditional cash transfer approved by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to ameliorate the hardships faced by millions of poor households than the South East and South South of Nigeria is another form of apartheid policy and discriminatory. The Rights group said the minister of Humanitarian Affairs must be called to order to stop the use of highly suspicious and unscientific indices to determine the rightful beneficiaries of the conditional cash transfer from the coffers of the Nigerian government to the Nigerian people. HURIWA also called for the forensic fibsncial crimes INVESTIGATIONS of the disbursement of the conditional cash transfer by the National office coordinating the Social investment programme which is under the ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and SOCIAL Development. HURIWA dismissed the model adopted by the Humanitarian Affairs minister as follows: "It is superficial and UNSCIENTIFIC for the Humanitarian Affairs minister to say that only those citizens with only N5,000 in their bank accounts or those who load just N100 call cards that will be paid. This is highly outrageous because there are very many poor people that have recently received assistance from kind-hearted Nigerians and may have even received recharge cards of above one thousand Naira as donations from some good spirited individuals who are aware of their precarious financial predicament.. So how do you judge or assess that poor family as comfortable only because such a bread winner of the family received some gifts that may not even last them more than two days if it is the case of families with over 5 children in a given household or even more children?" HURIWA submitted that government at the center must be told that the best approach is to adopt the measures used by either the Independent National Electoral commission or the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria in doing registration of voters or dropping and collecting payments for services rendered to Nigerians. "The Federal government needs to liaise with the states and the local councils and reach out to the wards and even the traditional institutions of autonomous communities and to be assisted by community based, Religious leaders and important stakeholders who would jointly compile the credible lists of poor Nigerians and distribute the cash through their confirmed BVN and account numbers or the Central Bank of Nigeria can work out a modality for those with no bank accounts to open their accounts using their mobile telephone numbers. The process of generating the data of poor families can well be derived directly from the ward level all across the nation Nigeria and the payments must be made through their accounts and then publicised for vetting by Nigerians. This is how to promote transparency and accountability ". HURIWA said thus: " We believe just like most reputable scholars have affirmed to the effect that averagely, it is estimated that 62.6 percent of Nigerians live below the international poverty line (PPP US$1.25 per day). This translates to about 100 million Nigerians. In view of this sad reality the President Muhsmmadu Buhari administration it would be recalled decidedly inaugurated what it called the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) in 2016 to tackle the countrys high rate of poverty and vulnerability. The programme comprises: the N-Power designed to assist young graduates to acquire and develop life-long skills; the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) for the support of those within the lowest poverty brackets; the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) which is a microlending intervention for traders, farmers, women, etc., and the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSF) which aims to deliver school meals to young children.: HURIWA recalled that at the inception of the CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC IN NIGERIA, the government decided to integrate the provisions of palliatives to the poor as part of the larger programme of the Social investment programme. However this component and even the modality for arriving at the lists of the beneficiaries is hobbled by accusations of corruption with a ranking Senator Ali Ndume categorically accusing the officials of the Presidency responsible for the disbursement of the conditional cash transfer of manufacturing fake lists of beneficiaries. HURIWA added thus: "Also there are empirical evidence to show that the North West where the President comes from cornered substantial percentage of the re-distributed cash from the coffers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is unconstitutional going by section 42(1) of the Nigerian constitution which Provides thus: "A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:- (a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; or (b) be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions. HURIWA alleged that from a publication made available online by the Presidency the North West (Nigeria) dominated in the conditional cash transfer as follows: Jigawa. ; Has 168,542 Households and 656,757 individuals;Kaduna. ; 90,794 Households and 358,486 Individuals ;Kano. ; 151,315 Households and 763,919 Individuals ;Katsina. ; 176,724 Households and 807,200;Kebbi. 219,102 Households and 932,460;Sokoto. ; 3,347 Households and 18,435 Individuals :Zamfara. 291,629 Households and 1,341,153 Individuals whereas SOUTH EAST NIGERIA got the least of the transfers as follows:Abia.; Has 41,246 Households and 152,605 Individuals ;Anambra.; 43,146 Households and 121,539 Individuals ;Enugu.; 6,886 Households and 27,013 Individuals ;Imo .; 24,426 Households and 82,216 Individuals even as Ebonyi state is left out. HURIWA has also asked the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control to mobilize and harness the local talents and resources of indigenous Scientists in Nigeria with a view to evolving a local solution to COVID-19 AILMENT so Nigeria can progressively open up her economic activities to avoid imminent collapse. The Rights group said most advanced societies in the West are already opening up their economies bit by bit because such Countries meticulously follow through their home made national response mechanism to COVID-19 AILMENT but lamented that the Nigerian Government engages in copying other nation's models which are not working ehich is why the cases are growing exponentially. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems market worldwide is projected to grow by US$7.8 Billion, driven by a compounded growth of 10.3%. Insulin Delivery, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 12.1%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market. Poised to reach over US$6 Billion by the year 2025, Insulin Delivery will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910454/?utm_source=PRN - Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 8.9% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$313.6 Million to the region's size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$249.5 Million worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Insulin Delivery will reach a market size of US$258.8 Million by the close of the analysis period. As the world's second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 13.5% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$1.9 Billion in terms of addressable opportunity for the picking by aspiring businesses and their astute leaders. Presented in visually rich graphics are these and many more need-to-know quantitative data important in ensuring quality of strategy decisions, be it entry into new markets or allocation of resources within a portfolio. Several macroeconomic factors and internal market forces will shape growth and development of demand patterns in emerging countries in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. All research viewpoints presented are based on validated engagements from influencers in the market, whose opinions supersede all other research methodologies. - Competitors identified in this market include, among others, AKRA Dermojet Crossject SA D'Antonio Consultants International, Inc. Medical International Technologies, Inc. National Medical Products, Inc. PharmaJet Zogenix, Inc. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910454/?utm_source=PRN I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. MARKET OVERVIEW Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems: An Overview Recent Market Activity Needle-Free Drug Delivery Systems: An Overview Brief Glance of Needle-Free Drug Delivery Systems Advantages Disadvantages Needle-Free Drug Injection System: Market Dynamics Drivers and Barriers of Needle-free Drug Injection Systems Market Increasing Geriatric Population to Drive Market Improving Healthcare Expenditure to Foster Growth Increasing Incidence of Cancer Bodes Well for Needle-free Drug Injection Systems Global Cancer Prevalence Statistics - Opportunity Indicators Expanding Therapeutic Applications to Generate Growth Opportunities Competitive Scenario Needle-free Jet Injections: Future Burning Bright Growth Factors Next Generation Needle-free Jet Technologies Advantageous to Different Stakeholders Applications Formulation Challenges Current Development Status The Road Ahead Innovations in Needle-Free Drug Injection System Technology Needle-free Arterial Non-Injectable Connector Pulsed Micro Jets Global Competitor Market Shares Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2020 & 2029 2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS AKRA Dermojet (France) Crossject SA (France) D?Antonio Consultants International, Inc. (USA) Medical International Technologies, Inc. (Canada) National Medical Products, Inc. (USA) PharmaJet (USA) Zogenix, Inc. (USA) 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE Table 1: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 2: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 3: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 4: Insulin Delivery (Application) Global Opportunity Assessment in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 5: Insulin Delivery (Application) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 6: Insulin Delivery (Application) Percentage Share Breakdown of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 7: Pain Management (Application) Worldwide Sales in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 8: Pain Management (Application) Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 9: Pain Management (Application) Market Share Shift across Key Geographies: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 10: Vaccine Delivery (Application) Global Market Estimates & Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 11: Vaccine Delivery (Application) Retrospective Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 12: Vaccine Delivery (Application) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 13: Pediatric Injections (Application) Demand Potential Worldwide in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 14: Pediatric Injections (Application) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 15: Pediatric Injections (Application) Share Breakdown Review by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 16: Other Applications (Application) Worldwide Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 17: Other Applications (Application) Global Historic Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 18: Other Applications (Application) Distribution of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 III. MARKET ANALYSIS GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share (in %) by Company: 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 19: United States Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 20: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Demand Patterns in the United States by Application in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 21: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown in the United States by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CANADA Table 22: Canadian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 23: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Canada: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2009-2017 Table 24: Canadian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 JAPAN Table 25: Japanese Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 26: Japanese Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 27: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift in Japan by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CHINA Table 28: Chinese Demand for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 29: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Review in China in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 30: Chinese Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 31: European Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 32: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 33: European Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 34: European Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 35: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2009-2017 Table 36: European Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 FRANCE Table 37: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Quantitative Demand Analysis in France in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 38: French Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 39: French Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2009, 2019, and 2025 GERMANY Table 40: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Germany: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 41: German Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 42: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in Germany by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ITALY Table 43: Italian Demand for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 44: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Review in Italy in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 45: Italian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 UNITED KINGDOM Table 46: United Kingdom Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 47: United Kingdom Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 48: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift in the United Kingdom by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SPAIN Table 49: Spanish Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 50: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Spain: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2009-2017 Table 51: Spanish Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 RUSSIA Table 52: Russian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 53: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Demand Patterns in Russia by Application in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 54: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown in Russia by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF EUROPE Table 55: Rest of Europe Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 56: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Rest of Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2009-2017 Table 57: Rest of Europe Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 58: Asia-Pacific Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 59: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 60: Asia-Pacific Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 61: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Quantitative Demand Analysis in Asia-Pacific in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 62: Asia-Pacific Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 63: Asia-Pacific Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2009, 2019, and 2025 AUSTRALIA Table 64: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Australia: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 65: Australian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 66: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in Australia by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 INDIA Table 67: Indian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 68: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in India: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2009-2017 Table 69: Indian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SOUTH KOREA Table 70: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 71: South Korean Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 72: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 73: Rest of Asia-Pacific Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 74: Rest of Asia-Pacific Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 75: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift in Rest of Asia-Pacific by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 LATIN AMERICA Table 76: Latin American Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 77: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2009-2017 Table 78: Latin American Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 79: Latin American Demand for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 80: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Review in Latin America in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 81: Latin American Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ARGENTINA Table 82: Argentinean Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 83: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Argentina: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2009-2017 Table 84: Argentinean Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 BRAZIL Table 85: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Quantitative Demand Analysis in Brazil in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 86: Brazilian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 87: Brazilian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2009, 2019, and 2025 MEXICO Table 88: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Mexico: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 89: Mexican Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 90: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in Mexico by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 91: Rest of Latin America Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 92: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Demand Patterns in Rest of Latin America by Application in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 93: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown in Rest of Latin America by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 MIDDLE EAST Table 94: The Middle East Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 95: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 96: The Middle East Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 97: The Middle East Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 98: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in the Middle East: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2009-2017 Table 99: The Middle East Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 IRAN Table 100: Iranian Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 101: Iranian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 102: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Shift in Iran by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ISRAEL Table 103: Israeli Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2018-2025 Table 104: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Israel: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2009-2017 Table 105: Israeli Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Analysis by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SAUDI ARABIA Table 106: Saudi Arabian Demand for Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 107: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Review in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 108: Saudi Arabian Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 109: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 110: United Arab Emirates Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 111: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 112: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Rest of Middle East: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2018-2025 Table 113: Rest of Middle East Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2009-2017 Table 114: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Distribution in Rest of Middle East by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AFRICA Table 115: African Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2018 to 2025 Table 116: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Historic Demand Patterns in Africa by Application in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 117: Needle-Free Drug Injection Systems Market Share Breakdown in Africa by Application: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 IV. COMPETITION Total Companies Profiled: 62 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910454/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com The Covid-19 epidemics figures are still increasing in Hungary, Cecilia Muller, the chief medical officer, has said, but noted that 80% of those infected will have very mild symptoms only. There is no reason for those contracting the virus to despair, she said. A spokesman for the operative board coordinating national efforts against the epidemic said that people tended to violate curfew rules more at weekends than on weekdays. Tibor Lakatos said that the police had fined 496 violators and initiated legal proceedings in 425 cases during the past 24 hours. People go out more easily, breaking the rules, at weekends, he said. MTI Photo: Tamas Kovacs A privately-owned Bombardier Global XRS will undergo a partial cabin interior refurbishment, an ADSB-Out installation and an avionics upgrade to Primus Elite. The Bombardier Global XRS arrived at the end of February at AMAC Aerospace in Basel, Switzerland. AMAC will conduct a 120-month inspection and carry out a partial cabin interior refurbishment as well as an avionics upgrade to Primus Elite and an ADSB-Out installation. The refurbishment will comprise the re-work of the seats, divans and carpet according to the customers requirements. We are very proud to have received this project and are eager to prove once more our dedication to the details in our workshops. We look forward to bringing to life the concept of our customer by using fine materials and installing the latest technologies, said Christian Hackhausen, senior supervisor aircraft maintenance and supervisor of the project. AMAC was able to sign a new contract with an Airbus ACJ318. The Middle East customer will bring the aircraft by the end of this summer. Despite the challenging times we are all going through, be it the logistical or man-power issues, we are working hard to implement all our customers requests and to deliver the running projects with as much a short ground time, as possible. Currently, we receive many requests for aircraft disinfection, mostly on short notice, which we are happy to carry out for our customers and partners, said Alexis Ott, director maintenance sales & key account management. AMAC has also been awarded new maintenance projects on two Airbus ACJ319 aircraft. A privately-owned Airbus ACJ319 will enter AMACs hangar doors in April to undergo a 6-, 12- and 24-month check. A second privately-owned Airbus ACJ319 will undergo a 6- and 12-month check including an ADSB-Out installation in April as well. In addition, a Ka-Band system for an incomparable on-board connectivity will be installed by AMACs skilled technicians. A Bombardier Global 6000 will arrive in Basel in April for a 15- and 30-month check. Within a 1000h check AMAC will carry out Service Bulletins tasks (SBs) on the privately-owned aircraft of the new client. [April 20, 2020] Amobee Names Jack Bamberger Chief Commercial Officer Amobee, a global advertising technology company, today announced the appointment of Jack Bamberger as Chief Commercial Officer. In this newly expanded role, based in New York City, Bamberger will lead enterprise platform, television, social and email sales; marketing; business development; data and analytics as well as solutions specialists and report to Chief Executive Officer, Samba Natarajan. Bamberger joins Amobee from Verizon (News - Alert) Media, where he most recently served as Vice President of Global Partnerships, leading all global agency partnerships, global investment partnerships as well as global solutions and global accounts. In that capacity, Bamberger was responsible for strategically driving growth with the largest enterprise customers through global and regional technology, data, media and content partnerships. "We are fortunate to have a leader with Jack's experience and unique mix of deep digital and traditional media expertise as we move into the next, important chapter of growth for Amobee (News - Alert)," says Samba Natarajan, Chief Executive Officer at Amobee. "With his meaningful senior relationships at top media and technology companies, global brands and agencies and social media innovators, Jack will help take Amobee to new heights globally." "I strongly believe that the advertising and agency industry is hungry for game-changing solutions which can transform their businesses, while at the same time dramatically improving efficiencies to drive better business outcomes," said Bamberger. "The more time I spent with the Amobee team, the more impressed I was with Amobee's product offering and vision as well as with the depth, breadth and value of its comprehensive data-driven capabilities-from linear and connected TV to social, mobile and desktop-all on a single platform. I truly can't wait to begin having discussions about how Amobee can help provide value in transforming the industry while improving marketing effectiveness wih the best and most innovative marketing and agency leaders across the globe." Prior to joining Verizon Media / AOL, Bamberger served as President of Digital, North America at MEC (WPP / GroupM), leading the company across digital, social, search, mobile and emerging platforms. Additionally, he has held leadership roles at Dentsu, Meredith Corporation, Time Warner (News - Alert) and Interpublic Group. In addition, Bamberger currently serves on the boards of EFFIE Worldwide and New York Theatre Workshop, and previously served on the boards of the Ad Council, American Advertising Federation, the IAB Digital Video Center of Excellence, as a Founding Board Member of the IAB Digital Content NewFronts and NATPE (News - Alert). Bamberger graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Amobee has been working closely with media owners, advertisers, agencies, partners and prospects to help them navigate the many challenges the situation presents, from adapting their current spend to planning for the day when social distancing rules are eased. From its Brand Intelligence tool, which reveals consumer sentiment about brands and products, to its Dynamic Allocation solution, which tells brands when their products are out of stock in various regions, Amobee provides sophisticated solutions and offers strategic, consultative assistance that help advertisers adapt their strategies and develop new best practices for the new reality at hand. In addition, Amobee is dedicated to keeping the public informed during the global pandemic to the measures they can take to help prevent the spread of the virus and has partnered with a wide swath of industry players to launch a PSA campaign directing the public to the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control for factual news and information. Amobee also remains committed to hiring and retaining the best talent in the industry. The company is actively recruiting for key sales, account management, product and engineering roles. To learn more about career opportunities and employee benefits, please visit Amobee's careers page. Recognized as a Leader in the Forrester (News - Alert) New Wave: Cross-Channel Video Advertising Platforms report, Amobee provides clients with solutions to drive results in any format across any screen to better reach desired audiences and business results. Amobee unifies TV and digital to provide agencies and leading brands with advanced data management and media planning capabilities as well as actionable, real-time market research and proprietary audience data. Amobee works to enable media companies with sophisticated audience-based planning technology that helps meet the goals of marketers most efficiently while allowing media companies to manage the new business and technical complexities they face in a converging world. About Amobee The world's leading independent advertising platform, Amobee empowers brands, agencies and broadcasters with advertising solutions for the converging world. Amobee's platform provides end-to-end campaign planning, management and optimization across TV, digital and social media. Through the application of prescriptive AI, proprietary data and advanced analytics, advertisers can now seamlessly orchestrate the consumer journey across converged media and all devices, and eliminate the media overlap and waste which come from traditional media silos. Amobee is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singtel, one of the largest communications technology companies in the world, which reaches more than 675 million mobile subscribers. The company operates across North America, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia. For more information, visit amobee.com or follow @amobee. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005137/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] TDT | Manama Al Fateh Mosque will be opened for Isha (Evening) and Taraweeh (Special prayers performed after Isha prayers in Ramadan) throughout the Holy Month, the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments has said, stressing that the decision was endorsed by His Majesty the King. The announcement was made one day after the Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments said that Al Fateh would re-open for Friday prayers. However, the Friday, Isha and Taraweeh prayers will be limited to the imam and to five people, with the obligation to wear masks while under the supervision of the competent health authorities. The aim is to broadcast the Friday sermon and the Ramadan Isha and Taraweeh prayers through audio-visual media and for the benefit of listeners and viewers. Under the decision to re-open the mosque, the strict rules adopted by Bahrain regarding gatherings (no more than five people), social distancing (at least two meters) and wearing facemasks as it combats the coronavirus pandemic will be applied. The ongoing circumstances suspended Friday and group prayers and gatherings, which led people to pray at home. Last month, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs said there was no objection to suspending prayers in mosques. If a virus spreads among people God forbid and becomes an epidemic, and human gatherings are a sure cause of infection, it is permissible to prevent Friday prayers, group prayers and gatherings, and people must commit to praying in their homes until the epidemic virus is eliminated, the Council said. When your tomato plants won't bear fruit during the dog days of summer, a team of Wake Forest researchers led by Gloria Muday will be in the lab, trying to find a plant that thrives despite the heat. A $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation will help determine why most tomato plants fail to pollinate when summer temperatures sit at 93.2 Fahrenheit for more than a few hours. The goal: develop more heat-tolerant tomatoes for future crops. The grant supports a coalition of scientists including Muday, the university's Charles M. Allen Professor of Biology and director of its Center for Molecular Signaling; pollen expert Mark Johnson of Brown University, who was an undergraduate student of Muday's at Wake Forest; James Pease, an assistant professor of biology at Wake Forest; Ann Loraine of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte; and Ravishankar Palanivelu of the University of Arizona. Tomatoes make the perfect study subject because the plant has varieties that can reproduce under heat stress. The aim is to map out how the reproductive genes work in these heat-tolerant varieties, insight that can help with breeding or engineering varieties that yield dependable crops even as global temperatures rise. 'Looking at the data over the last few hundred years, the average temperature is going up, there are higher nighttime temperatures, and short bursts of elevated temperature that are sufficient to prevent plant reproduction," said Muday. That heat causes the tomato blossom's pollen tube to explode before fertilization, preventing the pollen from reaching the plant ovary and making those juicy red tomatoes. Pease, who leads an evolutionary genetics lab at Wake Forest, will be looking for which genes foster heat tolerance in some tomato varieties. Pease has published papers on the evolutionary history of wild tomatoes, which originated as a desert plant in the Andes of South America. Their rapid adaptability has helped make tomatoes one of the largest cash crops for food in the world. "Tomatoes have an interesting biological story, and they're really important to the global food supply," Pease said. "We have this context where species are spread out across various habitats. Do these domesticated varieties have any genetic similarities to their distant relatives in extremely hot places?" The NSF grant also includes funding to expand a science outreach program to local high schools that Muday started with her students about a decade ago. The researchers and their students will be trained to teach plant genetics and the science of plant breeding and genetic engineering, focusing on the effects of temperature stress. Muday's program has reached more than 1,000 ninth-graders in North Carolina, and has resulted in published research showing that college students who learn about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and teach the science behind them to high school students are more likely to support the use of GMOs in our food supply. "Genomic analysis of heat stress tolerance during tomato pollination" (NSF award number 1939255) runs through February 2024. ### Since contracting the virus himself, of course, Johnson has clearly been absent. He announced Britains version of a lockdown on March 23 later than many countries in continental Europe. Since then, he has spent 26 days away from his duties, first sick and in self-isolation, then in a hospital ward and an intensive care unit, and now in recovery at the prime ministers official countryside retreat, where aides say he is not working. New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal along with Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Health Minister Satyendar Jain, holds a video conference with all AAP MLAs, in New Delhi on Apr 3, 2020. (Photo: IANS) Image Source: IANS New Delhi, April 20 : Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday addressed more than 300 heads of private schools in Delhi and said he is happy to see that these schools are following Happiness Classes being streamed everyday. Sisodia, who also holds the Education portfolio, discussed fee payments, online classes and teaching learning strategies in lockdown with the head of schools. "Happy to see that private schools are following Happiness Classes being streamed everyday. Our focus should be on ensuring well being of students and helping them cope with such unusual times," he said. In a statement, the Education Department said Sisodia held the meeting with the school heads in the presence of Deputy Director of Education, Private School Branch. Asking the principals to refrain from barring any students from online classes, even if their parents have failed to pay the fees, Sisodia said the students should not suffer. "Considering the unusual times that we all are going through today, the students should not be allowed to suffer because of this. We need to take utmost care while dealing with this issue. So let the students attend the online classes, even if their parents are unable to pay their fees," he said. The school heads also shared their own strategies of supporting the studies of their students using online devices. Powerfulhosting.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 This CoolSocial report was updated on 8 Jan 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want. The total number of people who shared the powerfulhosting homepage on Delicious. The total number of people who shared the powerfulhosting homepage on StumbleUpon. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the powerfulhosting homepage on Twitter + the total number of powerfulhosting followers (if powerfulhosting has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the powerfulhosting homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the powerfulhosting homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if powerfulhosting has a Facebook fan page). Basic Information PAGE TITLE Poweful Hosting - Web Hosting, e-Commerce, Online Menu Ordering DESCRIPTION Web hosting and hosted applications for the restaurant and online retail industries. KEYWORDS ecommerce, e-commerce, storebuilder, store builder, web hosting, hosting, online menu ordering, web design OTHER KEYWORDS The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The title found in the head section of the homepage. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. Domain and Server DOCTYPE CHARSET AND LANGUAGE DETECTED LANGUAGE English English SERVER Apache/1.3.41 (Unix) PHP/4.4.7 mod_auth_passthrough/1.8 mod_log_bytes/1.2 mod_bwlimited/1.4 FrontPage/5.0.2.2635 mod_ssl/2.8.31 OpenSSL/0.9.8e-fips-rhel5 (PHP/4.4.7) OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux Type of server and offered services. Character set and language of the site. Operative System running on the server. The language of powerfulhosting.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world. Referring domains for powerfulhosting.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines. Facebook link FACEBOOK PAGE LINK NOT FOUND The total number of people who like website Facebook page. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users. The URL of the found Facebook page. The type of Facebook page. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file. The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. Twitter account link TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND The school year reopens today with a digital divide leaving thousands of students unable or struggling to sign up for online teaching because of lack of internet connectivity or a laptop. Almost one in five second-level pupils don't have access to reliable broadband, and one in five have only limited access to a device, according to a survey published last week by National Parents' Council Post Primary. There is no rapid solution to the broadband issue, but frantic efforts are under way to address other technology gaps, with initiatives focusing mainly on disadvantaged and Leaving Cert students. Three major technology companies - IBM, Cisco and Apple - are collaborating with the Department of Education on the free rollout of the business video-conferencing platform Webex to schools with little or no experience of running a virtual classroom. Originally targeted at schools in the department's Deis scheme for disadvantaged communities, it has been extended. By the end of last week, 48 post-primary schools had signed up with another 100 showing interest. It is also being offered to primary schools. Employees of the companies are volunteering to install the software and provide training and ongoing guidance. The initiative began in Italy in response to the government's call for companies to support schools as they closed and has expanded to over 18 countries in Europe, including Ireland. Another survey, conducted on behalf of the post-primary school management bodies, shows that since the Covid-19 shutdown on March 12, schools have been struggling to engage students with special educational needs and students from disadvantaged backgrounds. In many cases, when schools followed up with disadvantaged families, they found the lack of a laptop or similar device was the reason. At Mercy Secondary School, a Deis school in Inchicore, Dublin, principal Michelle O'Kelly discovered that none of her 26 Leaving Cert students had a laptop, and so could not connect to a virtual classroom. The school and its pupils set high educational expectations, with a typical transfer rate to higher education hitting 68pc. When post-Leaving Cert courses are added, the progression rate last year was 90pc. This week, the school will be among the first to benefit from the Tech2Students appeal seeking disused laptops for Leaving Cert students in Deis schools. Within days, 100 laptops had been donated or committed, along with more than 100,000 in cash, but Brendan Tangney, of Trinity College Dublin's Access programme, one of the partners in the campaign, said they needed 1,000 laptops to meet needs in Dublin, and 10,000 to meet needs nationwide. Meanwhile, Fianna Fail education spokesman Thomas Byrne has called on the Department of Education to clarify if it has done its own research on the number of students without access to broadband or equipment such as laptops or tablets. "If no such research has been conducted this should be done immediately. I have no doubt right now there are students without the proper facilities to study at home through no fault of their own. The department needs to step up and support these students during this time," he said. Photo: Santi Visalli/Getty Images Restaurateur and titan of the gilded age of fine dining Sirio Maccioni has died, according to a report in Italian newspaper la Repubblica. He was 88. Born in 1932 in Montecatini Terme, Italy, Maccioni got his start on the New York City restaurant scene working at Delmonicos before becoming the maitre d at cafe society icon The Colony, where he welcomed guests like Dick Cavett, Frank Sinatra, and Grace Kelly. But Maccioni is best remembered for opening his restaurant Le Cirque in March 1974, which, as Helen Rosner wrote in The New Yorker, was one of those restaurants where titans of industry and well-preserved A-listers triple-kiss the dapper European stationed at the lectern. During its 43-year run, including two moves and a temporary renaming as Le Cirque 2000, the restaurant employed the likes of Daniel Boulud, Andrew Carmellini, Jacques Torres, and other chefs that would go on to great acclaim. The restaurants reputation for snobbery eventually caught up with the Maccioni family, however, and most famously in a review from former New York Times critic Ruth Reichl, who dined at the restaurant as both a commoner and a powerful restaurant critic and experienced two very different meals. Reichl ultimately downgraded the restaurant from four to three stars for service that was sometimes extraordinarily professional, caring, sophisticated; at others, brusque to the point of rudeness. In the years leading up to its 2017 closure, the restaurant would face bankruptcy filings, class-action and sexual-harassment lawsuits, and more negative reviews, including a one-star treatment from critic Pete Wells. Still, the Maccioni family wielded the restaurants fame to great effect, using their name and prestige to open doors and new locations in Las Vegas, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Abu Dhabi, and in 2014, Sirio Maccioni received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the James Beard Foundation. And the Maccioni family seems to believe that the legacy established by their patriarch has staying power. Theyre planning a fourth run of Le Cirque in New York for late 2020, even as similarly exclusive and storied restaurants like The Four Seasons and Gotham Bar & Grill close their doors. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkey's export of chemical products to Kyrgyzstan increased by 47.08 percent from January 2020 through March 2020 and amounted to $8.8 million, Trend reports with reference to the Turkish Trade Ministry. In March 2020, Turkey's export of chemical products to Kyrgyzstan amounted to $3.6 million, showing an increase of 44.14 percent compared to March 2019. In 1Q2020, Turkeys export of chemicals to world markets dropped by 5.1 percent compared to the same period of 2019, and amounted to $4.7 billion. Meanwhile, Turkeys export of chemicals amounted to 11.1 percent of the country's total export. In March 2020, Turkey exported chemicals worth $1.5 billion to world markets, which is 15.4 percent less compared to the same month of 2019. Turkeys chemicals export amounted to 11.6 percent of the country's total exports. From March 2019 through March 2020, Turkey exported chemical products in the amount of $20.3 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Montgomery County confirmed 16 new cases Monday from the countys last update Saturday, which pushed the countys total COVID-19 case total to 393. It is important that all Montgomery County residents are abiding by the statewide stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Greg Abbott, a release from the Montgomery County Hospital District said. As testing becomes more available, we expect to see a continued rise in COVID-19 cases. Despite this message from the hospital district, Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough ended the local stay-at-home order Friday, but said the county will remain under orders and guidelines of the state. Keough also lifted the curfew placed on residents. In a video statement Friday, Keough said his decision to terminate the local order and follow the states orders means nothing will be standing in the way locally as Abbott works to roll out a phased plan to reopen businesses. As of Monday, 43 people have been hospitalized, 103 have recovered, 2,400 are in social isolation, and seven people have died from COVID-19 in Montgomery County. We have received some tests, were getting more tests in, and were coming up with a plan on how to implement that on a mass scale, said Misti Willingham, public information officer for the Montgomery County Hospital District. Details of the plan for more testing are still being worked out, Willingham said, but details will hopefully be available by the end of the week. Most of the latest cases are still under investigation as to how transmission occurred, but the majority of all active cases have been determined to be caused by community spread. Of the 393 cases, 243 were determined to be transmitted through community spread. Willingham said that while she has seen residents practicing many of the suggested restrictions and guidelines for social distancing and safety, she thinks it would be good to see more people wearing masks while out in public. A week ago, on April 13, the county reported 266 cases. Two weeks ago, on April 6, the county was reporting 161 cases, less than half of the number of current confirmed cases. The county has created a website for COVID-19 updates, including graphics showing the number of cases reported each day, except for Sunday. Find more information at https://coronavirus-response-moco.hub.arcgis.com/. Details on Montgomery County cases can be found at https://mcphd-tx.org/coronavirus-covid-19/confirmed-cases/. jamie.swinnerton@chron.com I consider the biggest achievement of my two years as Prime Minister is that I have not given in for a second to that logic of "sharing," and that is why the dissatisfaction is spreading. Armenias Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said this on Facebook livestream. "Deep down, great disappointment is occurring in Armenia because a division of a share is not taking place [any longer in the country]," he said. "Businessmen very often tell me, 'How can we be useful?' I say, 'Work, pay the taxes." According to the Prime Minister, the time has come for real cleansing to take place in current halls of power in Armenia. "There will be no personnel massacre," he said. "But he who has abused the 'velvet' must be thrown out." As per Pashinyan, two years after the revolution, many accuse him of "velvet" and of not subjecting the workers of the former corrupt system to personnel massacre. "But those accusers forget that this is the ideology of our revolution, that there will be no personnel massacre, there will be no vendetta, and that everyone will have a chance to change," he said. "That mandate was given to us by the people." According to Pashinyan, many people think that this is not possible, but this is a pessimistic approach. "What happened in 2018 was an emotional revolution, and now a real revolution is taking place, when we need to understand to what extent each and everyone has changed," the PM said. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 By Fidan Babayeva - Trend: Kristall Plus CJSC with the support of Azerbaijan's Agency for the Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) continues production of medical alcohol, Chairman of the company Ali Huseynov told Trend. Huseynov said that 189,620 liters of medical alcohol have been produced since March 25, 2020, and this product will be manufactured as long as there is demand for it. Medical alcohol manufactured by Kristall Plus CJSC is packed in containers of various volumes. The capacity of the enterprise is 20,000 liters per day. Products are made from domestic raw materials. The company has the latest equipment from world manufacturers, including equipment in the workshop for the preparation and filtration of water-alcohol mixtures, which allows us to meet the growing demand for our products. The bottling shop is equipped with three lines, which allow to quickly and efficiently pour products into bottles of various capacities, he stressed. Touching upon the issue on export of products in the first quarter of 2020, Huseynov noted that with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, export shipment has now been temporarily suspended around the world, therefore, sales growth in foreign markets compared with 2019 has not yet been observed. We have been exporting our products to Ukraine, the UK and India for two years. We are going to increase the volume of export of alcoholic beverages after the pandemic," he said. Kristall Plus CSJC that has been operating since 2004, specializes in the production of various wines and spirits. --- Follow the author on Twitter: Fidan_Babaeva A young man is found dead, negative coronavirus tests in northern Syria, a relaxation of the curfew for Ramadan, US-backed fighters killed and Turkey sets up new observation point. Catch up on everything that happened over the weekend. 1. On Saturday, people found the body of a young man who was killed by unknown persons in the city of Azaz, 46 kilometers north of the city of Aleppo, northern Syria. Local sources reported to Smart News that people from Azaz found the body of Suheil Taj al-Din al-Hamoud, who is from the town of Maar Shurin in southern Idleb. Sources said that unknown persons killed the young man, without knowing the reasons behind the incident. 2. The Health Ministry of the Syrian Interim Government said that the test results of patients, who were suspected of having COVID-19 in northern Syria, were confirmed negative, Smart News reported. In a statement, the Ministry added that the total number of tests conducted until Apr. 17, 2020, reached 197, and all of them were confirmed negative. On Friday, the Syrian Interim Government issued new precautionary procedures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in northern Syria. 3. Al-Watan reported that the government announced it will shorten curfew hours by 90 minutes a day and allow some shops and small businesses to open on alternate days of the week during the holy month of Ramadan, which starts next week. Mosques will remain closed to communal prayers until at least May 2, 2020. Syria, considered a high-risk country by WHO, has only recorded 38 infections and two deaths in government-controlled areas. 4. Two US-backed fighters and a displaced child were killed by an improvised explosive device in eastern Deir ez-Zor province, local activists said Saturday, according to Zaman Al-Wasl. The IED targeted a military vehicle of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the town of Sweidan east of Deir ez-Zor city. The YPG-led forces say Islamic State sleeper cells are still active in Deir ez-Zor, claiming that tens of families are still receiving salaries from the ultra-hardline Sunni militant group. 5. A new Turkish observation point was set in the Jabal al-Zawiyah region on Sunday, making a total of 57, as reinforcements keep pouring into the last opposition stronghold in northern Idleb province. According to a Zaman al-Wasl correspondent, the military point was constructed in the village of Bsamis south of Idleb city. Also, two Turkish military convoys entered western Idleb, carrying tanks, ammunition and fuel. 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. KAMPALA The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has turned down an offer by Kyadondo East MP Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine to repatriate stuck in China. On April 15, Bobi Wine wrote to Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, saying said he has partnered with an American media owner and businessman Neil Nelson to evacuate 285 people from China including Ugandans and other black Africans. Bobi Wine said they have secured a privately chartered Quantam Jet Airbus A330-200 to repatriate the people and urged government to allow them into the country. But State minister for Foreign Affairs Henry Oryem Okello told URN that the responsibility of protecting the Ugandans abroad lies with the Head of State. If any Ugandan succeeds and achieves, its the responsibility of the President of Uganda, if any Uganda dies abroad, this is also the responsibility of the President of Uganda. Does he have the capacity to be held responsible for all of this, no? This is a foreign policy issue that you do not just wake up to do, Oryem is quoted by URN as saying. According to Oryem, the government is currently registering Ugandans abroad, in America, the United Kingdom and other parts of the world. Oryem questioned if Kyagulanyi will meet the quarantine costs. Oryem also wondered if Kyagulanyi will also transport Ugandans stuck in other parts of the world. Joel Ssenyonyi the Spokesperson People Power says that Kyagulanyi and his partners will cater for all of the costs, including the quarantine and feeding. He says the government should not ignore its citizens suffering abroad. Related To relieve Americans from the stress brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration implemented the CARES Act, also known as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. The bill entitles taxpayers to receive a one-time direct cash payment. It also includes insurance, incentives, and loans for employees. For an adult with a gross income of $75,000 per year, the amount can be up to $1,200, while a married couple with a combined income of $150,000 may receive up to $2,400, and if they have children, they will get $500 more for each child. Why give away the stimulus checks? However, some people who receive the payment are giving it away. When coronavirus patients pass away, the money instead must go to their relatives. A lot of them are opposed to the idea of keeping the money that was intended to be for their now-deceased loved ones. Jeanne Siracuse, whose mother passed away from coronavirus last year, said they didn't want it, adding, "It's not who this stimulus was supposed to benefit." In Texas, there has been a shortage of food distribution from a San Antonio Food Bank relief operation, where families by the thousands waited in their cars for hours. It was to this food giveaway program that Toi Cudworth decided to donate $950 of her stimulus payment. She said, "It's America. People shouldn't be hungry." Apart from the San Antonio Food Bank, other nonprofit groups that engage in relief programs include small businesses in New York, Seattle, and some are from the initiative of teachers in Philadelphia. A campaign on the Internet called Pledge My Stimulus was initiated to donate to causes like the Main Access Immigrant Network and other nonprofit organizations all over the United States. Campaign organizer Wendy Blackwell-Moore insisted that the money belongs to the people. "We need to make sure we get it into the right hands." Check these out! Coronavirus crisis Because of the decline of the U.S. economy, Americans are provided the cash relief to reimburse failing businesses and to bring emphasis to social distancing. Part of the repercussions of this move is that people are now either unemployed or are employed and paid for working fewer hours. To receive the stimulus check, one must own a Social Security number, which means the individual must be a taxpayer. The stimulus package from the government amounts up to $2.2 trillion in total for people whose income comes with benefit programs, such as Social Security. People are expecting theirs to arrive in the middle of April, but the money may not even be enough to sustain much of the low-income population. At this time, people are panicking to save for food and other resources while the quarantine is directing them to stay home rather than work. And although significant corporations are offering programs by feeding and assisting them, there is simply not enough to go around. For instance, even relief operations initiated by corporations are overwhelmed by the sheer number of Americans who require assistance. The San Antonio Food Bank holds an occasional mega drive-thru food giveaway that prepares food for thousands of families in a day. According to President and CEO Eric Cooper, the operation had become more inclusive, but volunteers could not keep up with the demand. The food distribution was only good for 120,000 people in a week. Because the program is nonprofit, they are imploring financial aid from the state so that their distribution would be able to meet the needs of the hungry in the counties. MARY Immaculate College has teamed up with TG4 and production company Fibin to produce a new programme for children who are at home due to the closure of schools. The half hour programme, which is particularly aimed at Gaeltacht and Gaelscoileanna primary school students, will be broadcast from Scoil na bhForbacha in the Connemara Gaeltacht with daily lessons being led by teachers Caitriona Ni Chualain and Fiachra O Dubhghaill. There will also be additional lessons from teachers and other facilitators throughout the country, using a range of dialects. The first episode of Cula4 ar Scoil was broadcast at 10am this Monday and each week the programme will focus on a specific theme consistent with the learning outcomes of the primary curriculum. Core curriculum subjects such as Irish, Maths, History and Geography will be covered, but there will also be an emphasis on creativity and oral arts, as well as health and wellbeing. As with RTEs Home School Hub initiative, MIC will provide support to the teachers and the shows producers, Darach O Tuairisc and Ethel Burke. Im delighted to be lending my support and expertise to this programme. We find ourselves in unprecedented times and this programme aims to support the ongoing home- schooling efforts of Irish speaking parents throughout Ireland. Children will be given the opportunity to engage in interactive content that will ensure they can continue learning outside the classroom, said Dr Conchur O Brolchain, lecturer in the Department of Language and Literacy Education at MIC, who is volunteering his time to the initiative. Dr O Brolchains experience as a primary school teacher and his research on bilingual and multilingual education will help to inform the programmes daily content so that engaging, relevant and interactive content can be delivered to children in homes throughout Ireland. Professor Emer Ring, Dean of Education at MIC, commended Dr O Brolchain. The Faculty of Education at MIC is exceptionally proud and privileged to be associated with this wonderful initiative, which highlight the extraordinary investment in and commitment to education that we all have as a society in Ireland, even in these challenging and unprecedented times. As well as being broadcast on TG4 at 10am each weekday, the content will also be available online at cula4.com and on Cula4s YouTube channel. UAE-based Leminar Air Conditioning Industries, a leading manufacturer of HVAC ductwork and sheet metal products, successfully tested and certified its Flame Safe non-coated duct systems for fire performance at Applus+ Laboratory in Spain. A member of the Al Shirawi Group of companies and an ISO 9001:2015-certified company, Leminar Air Conditioning Industries was established in 2000 to meet the growing requirements of the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) industry and to provide industrial clients in the area with professional and reliable materials. Flame Safe, which is designed and developed entirely by Leminar, is a cost-effective fire-rated duct system. It was introduced to the market in early 2016, making Leminar the leading manufacturer in the Middle East to produce both coated as well as non-coated type of fire-rated ducts (two hours and four hours rating with EN compliance) within the same facility. The recent test results have confirmed the products strict compliance with the technical specifications required by British Standard 476 part 24 (ISO 6944) four hours fire rating, EN-1366-1 with E-60 classification rating (highest classification as per EN 13501 Part 3 for Type A and Type B un-insulated ducts) that relates to a ductworks ability to resist the spread of fire. Flame Safe meets and exceeds the stability, integrity and insulation criteria set forth under this framework. The results also validate Flame Safes superior quality and Leminars credible manufacturing practices in the region. Sanjeev Mathur, the general manager, said: "Leminar continues to excel in the HVAC industry with its innovative products and extraordinary services. Throughout time, we have opted for voluntary tests by independent authorities to ensure the quality of the products is maintained." "The tests conducted by Applus+ support to increase the reliability and quality of the product with maximum lifetime," he noted. Applus+ is an independent testing, inspection and certification company that is in the business of ensuring that products meet environmental, quality, health and safety standards and regulations. Leminar Air Conditioning Industries is one of the largest manufacturer of high-quality HVAC ducts and duct accessories ranging from sheet metal GI ducts with CGF 1 type Integral flange system, fire-rated ducts (both coated and non-coated type), spiral round ducts, sound attenuators, acoustic louvres, volume control dampers, VAV boxes, fire dampers and other accessories. Leminar currently has international tie-ups with Spiro of Switzerland as well as Fenland Fire Rated Duct system and Galloway Acoustics, both from the UK. With three offices and state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in the UAE, including the regions largest ductwork manufacturing facility in Dubai, Leminar Industries manufactures sheet metal products that meet the needs of the HVAC contractors.-TradeArabia News Service [The stream is slated to start at 2 p.m. ET. Please refresh the page if you do not see a player above at that time.] New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is holding his daily press conference on the Covid-19 outbreak, which has infected more than 85,300 people in the state as of Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. On Thursday, Murphy said he asked New Jersey's attorney general to open an investigation into nursing home deaths across the state after officials discovered 17 bodies piled into a makeshift morgue and more than 100 residents infected with Covid-19 at a long-term care facility. The state is working to alleviate the overloaded mortuary system. It ordered 20 refrigerated trucks to serve as temporary mortuaries a few weeks ago and has set up an additional location in central New Jersey that will serve as "temporary storage" for the deceased, said Col. Pat Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, on Thursday. The coronavirus has infected more than 761,900 people in the U.S. and has killed at least 40,724, the highest death toll of any country. Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 2.4 million people and has killed at least 166,794, according to JHU data. Read CNBC's live updates to see the latest news on the COVID-19 outbreak. Police fought running battles in two of Paris' northern suburbs overnight on Sunday, with residents accusing officers of using heavy-handed tactics to enforce France's strict coronavirus lockdown. Residents burnt cars and shot fireworks at police, who responded with rubber bullets and tear gas in the suburbs of Villeneuve-la-Garenne and Aulnay-sous-Bois, witnesses and police said on Monday. The violence began on Saturday when a motorcyclist was injured during a police check in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, prompting a crowd to gather. A police statement said the group targeted officers with "projectiles" in a near two-hour standoff. The motorcyclist crashed into the open door of a police car, suffering a broken leg and undergoing surgery. Residents allege the door was opened deliberately so that the rider would smash into it. The 30-year-old will lodge a complaint against the officers, his family and a lawyer told AFP, while prosecutors have opened an investigation. By Monday morning, calm had returned to Villeneuve-la-Garenne after a second night of riots, fires and explosions, according to an AFP journalist. The trouble also spread to nearby Aulnay-sous-Bois, where police claimed they were "ambushed" by residents in a district of dense, high-rise social housing of mainly immigrant occupants. Police said they arrested four people after being targeted by residents using fireworks as projectiles. Across Ile-de-France -- the region that includes the capital and its nearby suburbs -- roughly 15 cars and some 50 rubbish bins were burnt out and seven people were arrested. After the motorcyclist was injured on Saturday, rights group SOS Racisme called for full details of the incident to be released and urged police to use restraint "in this time of confinement and tensions". Earlier this month, prosecutors opened an investigation into the death in detention of a 33-year-old man arrested for allegedly violating the home confinement measures imposed by the government to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Police said the man resisted arrest. According to his sister, he had suffered from schizophrenia. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday police had carried out 13.5 million checks since the lockdown started on March 17. More than 800,000 people were written up for violations of the order, which allows people to leave their homes only for essential purposes. Several complaints were lodged against French police during recent months of pension reform protests and "yellow vest" anti-government rallies. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported on Monday that a Nigerian nurse in Borno state died from Covid-19, raising concerns that the contagious virus is now present in the northeastern region. He had no travel history outside of Borno State and made the ultimate sacrifice, said UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria Edward Kallon. The nurse had been treating the vulnerable and internally displaced people (IDPs) within the restive region. Aid organisations and national and regional government officials are trying to conduct contact tracing in the area to prevent the spread of the virus to IDPs and other communities in Borno state. Nigeria has locked down Lagos, Abuja and Ogun state in an effort to try and prevent the spread of the virusbut not Borno state. The National Centre for Disease Control has recorded more than 625 cases across the country, the majority in Lagos. Tanzania resisting lockdown As people around the world are on lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19, Tanzanias President John Magufuli called for people to hold three days of prayer from Friday instead of stay at home. Only schools and universities are shut; transportation, markets, and shops are still open for business. Magufuli claimed that God would protect Tanzanians from Covid-19. He did, however, caution them to avoid unnecessary gatherings. Opposition leader Zitto Kabwe of the ACT Wazalendo party is calling for a partial lockdown of Dar es Salaam, the economic capital, Dodoma, the capital, and large cities Arusha and Mwanza. He also wants Zanzibar, the island popular with tourists, to close as well. Tanzania has 171 confirmed cases and seven deaths, a tiny portion of the 2.4 million cases worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Globally, some 165,216 people have died. Story continues On the African continent, 1,126 people have died, while 22,513 have contracted Covid-19, and 5,534 have recovered. According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the tiny kingdom of Lesotho, landlocked by South Africa, and the island country of Comoros in the Indian Ocean have no cases. Meanwhile, South Africa has the most cases on the continent, with 3,158, and 54 deaths. In Ghana, President Akuffo-Addo ended a three-week lockdown in and around Accra, the capital, and big city Kumasi. While Europe, which is the hardest-hit continent so far, with Italy leading the death toll with 23,660 fatalities, countries like Germany, which offered vigorous coronavirus testing, is gradually rolling back its lockdown. Denmark and Norway are also opening businesses and schools, respectively. Meanwhile, Hubei, the Chinese province where the epidemic started, will reopen on 6 May for students in their final year of classes. Outrage in Kashmir as photojournalist Masrat Zahra, 26, is booked under stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Pulwama, Indian-administered Kashmir Police in Indian-administered Kashmir have booked a female photojournalist under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for indulging in anti-national activities on social media. Masrat Zahra, a 26-year-old photojournalist from the regions main city of Srinagar, is accused of uploading anti-national posts [on Facebook] with criminal intentions to induce the youth. A statement by Srinagars Cyber Police Station on Saturday said it received information through reliable sources that one Facebook user namely Masrat Zahra is uploading anti-national posts with criminal intention. The Facebook user is also believed to be uploading photographs which can provoke the public to disturb law and order. The user is also uploading posts that tantamount to glorify the anti-national activities and dent the image of law enforcing agencies besides causing disaffection against the country, it said. Police said a first information report (FIR) was filed on Saturday and an investigation is on. She has been summoned before the police on Tuesday. The UAPA allows the government to proscribe individuals as terrorists and empowers the federal National Investigation Agency to probe such cases. A person charged under the law can be jailed for up to seven years. Masarat zehra, a professional photojournalist, has honestly told stories of Kashmir in 4-year career. Invoking UAPA is outrageous. In solidarity with our colleague, we demand FIR withdrawn. Journalism isnt crime. Intimidation/ censorship wont silence Kashmirs journalists. Muzamil Jaleel (@MuzamilJALEEL) April 20, 2020 Zahra on Monday told Al Jazeera over the telephone that the police and government are trying to muzzle the voices of journalists in Kashmir. Police has nowhere mentioned that I am a journalist. They have said that I am a Facebook user, she said. Zahra said she had been charged for posting her already-published works over the years, calling the allegations shocking. I have been sharing my archival images which have already been published in different Indian and international organisations on social media for which Im being booked, she said. Zahras work has appeared in several publications including The Washington Post, The New Humanitarian, TRT World, Al Jazeera, The Caravan and others. Gags against media Meanwhile, journalists from the region have reacted strongly to the charges against Zahra. In a statement released on Monday, the Kashmir Press Club condemned the charges against her and other journalists from the region, and demanded intervention by Indias Home Minister Amit Shah. It is very unfortunate that when the world is in a grip of pandemic and when we need to stand together to combat the COVID-19, police has started filing cases against journalists and harassing them, it said. This is unacceptable for journalists of Kashmir who are well within their rights to seek freedom of expression and speech as guaranteed under the constitution like other parts of the country. Kashmiri journalist Gowhar Geelani told Al Jazeera that invoking stringent provisions of a draconian law against Zahra speaks volumes about the gags against media to silence journalists, to control the narratives by use of force, and to contain the Kashmir story with lawlessness. Muzamil Jaleel, deputy editor of New Delhi-based The Indian Express newspaper, tweeted that Zahra has honestly told stories of Kashmir in a four-year career. Invoking UAPA is outrageous. In solidarity with our colleague, we demand FIR withdrawn. Journalism isnt crime. Intimidation/censorship wont silence Kashmirs journalists, he posted. Kyles experience as a CPA expert witness and concentration in investigative accounting and litigation support will benefit our clients greatly. We are proud to welcome Kyle as an effective leader and important member of our executive team. Globally-recognized forensic accounting firm, Lowers Forensics International, continues its expansion with the opening of an Atlanta office and hiring of Kyle Aldridge, CPA, CFF. Kyle will lead client engagement in and around the Atlanta area and will contribute to client engagement throughout the southern U.S. through the companys Miami, Dallas, and Houston offices. The Atlanta office represents the 11th new office opening for Lowers Forensics International since the summer of 2018. Marc Johnson, President of Lowers Forensics International, remarks, Kyles experience as a CPA expert witness and concentration in investigative accounting and litigation support will benefit our clients greatly. We are proud to welcome Kyle as an effective leader and important member of our executive team. Prior to joining Lowers Forensics International, Aldridge amassed more than 20 years of experience in the evaluation, analysis, and settlement of insurance claims, forensic accounting, and litigation support. His client work has included major property insurance companies, law firms, and corporations. Aldridge specializes in the evaluation of damages and has handled a wide range of files related to property damage or theft, including business interruption, out-of-site and in-site inventory (stock) losses, and employee dishonesty. He has handled a wide range of business interruption engagements spanning across multiple industries. At Lowers Forensics International, Aldridge will focus his efforts on ensuring excellence in customer engagement and service delivery stemming from the new Atlanta office. To reach Kyle Aldridge call (678) 784-4119 or visit lowersforensics.com. About Lowers Forensics International, LLC Lowers Forensics International is a financial forensics firm offering expertise in insurance claims accounting, litigation support, investigative services, and expert testimony to support organizations worldwide. The company maintains offices across the globe to serve the needs of insurance companies, attorneys, and private and public entities in order to transform complex financial information into clear evidence. For more information about Lowers Forensics International, visit lowersforensics.com. In times of crisis, politicians want to look like theyre doing something, and dont want to hear about limits on their authority. In times of crisis, people want someone to do something, and dont want to hear about tradeoffs. This is the breeding ground for grand policies driven by the mantra, if it saves just one life. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo invoked this idea to defend closure policies. The mantra has echoed across the country from county councils to mayors to school boards to police to clergy as justification for closures, curfews, and enforced social distancing. Rational people understand this isnt how the world works. Regardless of whether we acknowledge them, tradeoffs exist. And acknowledging tradeoffs is an important part of constructing sound policy. Unfortunately, even mentioning tradeoffs in a time of crisis brings the accusation that only heartless beasts would balance human lives against dollars. But each one of us balances human lives against dollars, and any number of other things, every day. Five thousand Americans die each year from choking on solid food. We could save every one of those lives by mandating that all meals be pureed. Pureed food isnt appetizing, but if it saves just one life, it must be worth doing. Your chance of dying while driving a car is almost double your chance of dying while driving an SUV. We could save lives by mandating that everyone drive bigger cars. SUVs are more expensive and worse for the environment, but if it saves just one life, it must be worth doing. Heart disease kills almost 650,000 Americans each year. We could reduce the incidence of heart disease by 14 percent by mandating that everyone exercise daily. Many wont want to exercise every day, but if it saves just one life, it must be worth doing. READ MORE: Unprecedented job losses infuriate Pa. workers as unemployment benefits cant keep up: We are getting desperate Legislating any of these things would be ridiculous, and most sane people acknowledge as much. How do we know? Because each of us makes choices like these every day that increase the chances of our dying. We do so because there are limits on what were willing to give up to improve our chances of staying alive. Our daily actions prove that none of us believes if it saves just one life is a fail-proof basis for making decisions. Yet, when a threat like the coronavirus emerges, we go looking for an imaginary cure that will save lives without tradeoffs. The President of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis estimated that our current politician-induced shutdown will yield 30% unemployment and a 50% reduction in GDP in the second quarter of this year. Thats a $2.6 trillion price tag just in the second quarter. Before the social distancing, the CDCs worst-case projection for the U.S. was 1.7 million deaths. Even under this worst-case scenario, and even if the cost were only a 50 percent reduction in GDP for only one quarter, the shutdown will have cost us $1.5 million per life saved. If the actual deaths are fewer and the cost of the shutdown greater, the cost per life saved could be much, much more. The tired counterargument is that we should, tell this to families who have lost loved ones to the virus. But that cuts both ways, because we can also tell it to families who will lose loved ones to the poverty, depression, suicide, and domestic violence that will accompany a 30% unemployment rate. In the U.S. each year, there are an estimated 10 million cases of domestic abuse and over 47,000 suicides. The shutdown will increase these numbers, adding to the $1.5 million cost per life saved. Calls to mental health hotlines in the U.S. have increased almost 900% since the shutdown. READ MORE: All Pa. businesses must require employees and customers to wear masks amid coronavirus pandemic The uncomfortable truth is that no policy right now can save lives; it can only trade lives. Good policies result in a net positive tradeoff. But we have no idea whether any tradeoff is a net positive until we take a sober look at the cost of saving lives. And we cant do that until we stop with if it saves just one life nonsense. We dont know the virus mortality rate because we havent conducted randomized testing. We dont know the cost of the economic shutdown because weve never shut down our economy like this before. What we do know is that policies designed to stop the spread of the virus at all costs are designed out of fear, not focused concern for saving lives. Its time we took a sober look at what this shutdown is costing us. Antony Davies is associate professor of economics at Duquesne University. James R. Harrigan is managing director of the Center for the Philosophy of Freedom at the University of Arizona. They host the weekly podcast, Words & Numbers. "By offering our PPC ad fraud protection for free, we want to make it easier for businesses of all sizes to get the transparency they need to fight fraud to protect their advertising, said Luke Taylor, founder and COO of TrafficGuard. Leading ad fraud prevention specialist, TrafficGuard, announced today the launch of its free pay-per-click (PPC) protection. With the launch of their free ad fraud protection, TrafficGuard is committed to helping businesses ensure their ad spend generates real advertising engagement. The free version of TrafficGuards award-winning fraud protection gives businesses the transparency they need to protect themselves from ad fraud, both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses lose up to 30 percent of their budgets to ad fraud from fraudster tactics like bots and click fraud. In the U.S. alone, the daily cost of ad fraud is expected to surpass $100 million by 2023. TrafficGuard believes that with the power of transparency, businesses can stem that loss so their advertising delivers a better return on investment. The COVID-19 crisis has also taken a heavy toll on ad budgets in the United States. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has forecasted a 33 percent decrease in digital ad spend from March to June of this year. Their recent survey also revealed that 70 percent of advertisers have already adjusted or paused their advertising efforts. For small and medium sized businesses who rely on digital advertising to get customers, it will be vital to mitigate losses to ad fraud. "Ad budgets are getting slashed and ad fraud is continuing to reduce them even further. By offering our PPC ad fraud protection for free, we want to make it easier for businesses of all sizes to get the transparency they need to fight fraud to protect their advertising, said Luke Taylor, founder and COO of TrafficGuard. "At TrafficGuard we have been working hard, from home, to get our free solution ready for businesses now, when they need it most. As a demonstration of our commitment to building a stronger digital advertising ecosystem, we have decided our free solution is here to stay. This is a really challenging time for many businesses and we want to help alleviate some of that pressure on businesses. In addition to our free offering, our premium PPC solution is now pay-as-you-go, allowing our larger customers more flexibility in tough times." As part of the launch, TrafficGuard is introducing pay-as-you-go pricing, a characteristic untypical of anti-fraud software. This offer gives advertisers greater flexibility to use TrafficGuards premium PPC protection in a time when ad spend may be fluctuating. TrafficGuards mission is to drive trust and transparency in the digital advertising ecosystem. By equipping marketers with the tools to protect their ad spend, it will become harder for fraudsters to sustain their operations, strengthening the whole digital advertising ecosystem. With a more accessible ad fraud prevention solution, TrafficGuard hopes transparency will one day reign in the ad ecosystem. Only when individual businesses of all sizes can afford to protect themselves against ad fraud will the industry be able to rid itself of this relentless budget-draining issue. When everyone is better equipped to protect their own ad spend, it increases the difficulty of ad fraud perpetrators to make money and survive. To learn more about TrafficGuards free PPC protection, visit: https://www.trafficguard.ai/. About TrafficGuard TrafficGuard detects, mitigates and reports on digital ad fraud before it hits your advertising budget. Sitting within the advertising journey, TrafficGuard analyses impressions, clicks, conversions and events to mitigate ad fraud at its earliest reliable detection. Our proactive approach keeps ad performance data clean, and helps you scale and optimise advertising confidently. TrafficGuard is trusted to protect ad spend of both small businesses and the worlds largest companies including super-apps Rappi and GoJek; major game developer, Glu Mobile; mobile ad agency, MUV; and eCommerce giants Bukalapak and Centauro. Founded in 2015, TrafficGuard is a subsidiary of Australian Securities Exchange listed, Adveritas Limited (ASX: AV1) with global operations. Learn more about TrafficGuards comprehensive ad fraud protection at trafficguard.ai. A euro on the price of a pint and a 10 Covid supplement for a meal could be the way out of the economic crisis for many pubs and restaurants and for the tens of thousands of people they employ, according to economics professor Alan Ahearne, who is an adviser to the Central Bank. Mr Aherane said economists are grappling with ways for businesses like pubs and restaurants to start re-employing thousands of their laid-off staff, as it seems unlikely there will be a big bang lifting of social distancing and the public health advice will likely be for a gradual, sector-by-sector re-opening of the economy. In some sectors, employment growth will be quite quick. Like in construction, if those restrictions are lifted in the next few weeks, people can get back to work there quite quickly, said Mr Ahearne, who was until recently a member of the Central Bank commission and is still the chair of its risk committee. But on the other extreme, tourism. When will we start seeing either domestic tourists or tourists from abroad coming back here? That will be a long time, he said. Mr Ahearne was the adviser to the late finance minister Brian Lenihan when he joined the Department of Finance in 2009, as the State was hurtling towards the bailout from the troika. It does look like social distancing will be with us for a very, very, long time until the vaccine arrives, he said. And it may be possible for restaurants to adopt different business models by taking tables out and surcharge an extra 1 a pint or a Covid surcharge of 10 a meal to compensate for lower sales and to make up some of the losses made during the crisis, Mr Ahearne said. His comments come as official figures last week showed almost 1m of the labour force of 2.3m people were claiming some sort of unemployment or Covid-19 payment. Mr Ahearne also said the Government will almost certainly have to guarantee ultra-cheap loans for Irish banks to pump into businesses if many small firms are to survive the Covid-19 economic storm. He said the State can afford any such guarantees because it can borrow at close to zero rates. Meanwhile, Europe will need at least another 500bn from the EU institutions to finance economic recovery after the pandemic, on top of the agreed 500bn package, said Klaus Regling, the head of the eurozone bailout fund ESM. Congressional and White House negotiators were working late Sunday night to finalize a fourth coronavirus rescue package, with a goal of getting it approved by Congress on Wednesday. The package, currently worth about $470 billion, is focused on adding $310 billion to the tapped-out Paycheck Protection Program, bank-issued government loans aimed at keeping small businesses afloat and staffed. Democrats also won $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for testing, and there is another $60 billion for another drained emergency lending program for small businesses. The bailout package will not include $150 billion for state and local governments, another Democratic priority, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told Senate Republicans on Sunday afternoon, Senate GOP aides told Politico and Axios. McConnell noted the deal has not yet been finalized. "The thinking among some Trump administration officials is that many states should be reopening their governments soon and that additional funding could deter them from doing so," reports Axios' Alayna Treene. Politico adds: "The White House and Trump administration have been holding out because, in part, they believe if Congress keeps cutting checks for state and local governments, they will be disincentivized to open up their economies." States and cities have taken steep hits to their budgets from the coronavirus outbreak. "It's important for the feds to support our efforts to fund the stuff we do," Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R-Mass.) said on CBS News. "If we're laying off tens of thousands of people at exactly the time when they want to reopen the economy, we're going to be swimming against the current they're trying to create." Trump said Sunday evening he supports backstopping states and local governments at "another time." White House officials tell Axios they envision such a package weeks or months from now. The White House reiterated Sunday on Twitter that, as far as they see it, "the success of the phased approach will rely on preparedness and planning by states safe and efficient screening, sufficient PPE supplies, and the ability to mitigate any rebound." More stories from theweek.com What do animals think? A parade that killed thousands? 21 million Americans watched the 'One World: Together at Home' mega-concert on network TV Instacarts plans to give shoppers masks and sanitizer during the COVID-19 pandemic are proceeding slower than many employees would like, and thats partly on purpose. In response to workers concerns, the company told Wired in a statement that it had capped orders for the safety gear (which goes through the company store) to thousands per day. It needed to slow the rate of fulfillment to make sure each order was coming from a real shopper. The problem, though, is that the process appears to be fraught with issues. Theres no queue, so workers have to check every day for stock and supplies may only be available for minutes before they run out. The company reportedly hasnt said much about how to place orders or when, either. The lack of info has led to shoppers relying on unofficial communities to get details. While Instacart is likely constrained by supply (masks and other equipment are in high demand worldwide), this bottleneck creates problems for both shoppers and customers. Workers either have to scramble to buy protective items separately or accept the risk of infection. That, in turn, could lead to unwanted days off, customers waiting longer for food and the risk of spreading the virus to others. Andhra Pradesh continues to report a sharp increase in the number of Covid-19 cases with every passing day despite a strict lockdown in force. In the last 24 hours, the state registered three deaths and 75 new cases of Covid-19, taking the death toll to 20 and total number of infections to 722, an official bulletin from the state medical and health department on Monday afternoon said. It is the highest number of positive cases in a 24-hoiur span in the state. The three casualties were spread across Anantapur, Kurnool and Krishna. Earlier, too, there was a death reported from Kurnool on Saturday night. Follow coronavirus latest updates here. Among the 75 new cases that were reported in the last 24 hours, 25 cases were reported from Chittoor, 20 from Guntur and 16 from Kurnool, besides five from Krishna, four from Anantapur, three from Kadapa and two from East Godavari. The bulletin claimed that so far 92 people have been discharged from hospitals after they were completely cured of Covid-19. Setting aside 20 deaths, there are at present 610 active cases in the state, the bulletin said. Telangana also reported three deaths and 18 new cases as on Sunday night. At last count, the state had reported 858 positive cases. Though health department officials have not disclosed any details of the deceased, one of them is said to be an infant less than two months old. An official familiar with the development said the baby boy, who was born on February 23 in a shepherds family of Renivatla village of Maddur block in Narayanpet district, was brought to Niloufer Hospital in Hyderabad with high fever and cold on April 11. After the boy tested positive for Covid-19, he was immediately shifted to Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad where he died on Sunday. The infants parents, who did not have any primary contacts with any Covid-19 patient till now, have been kept in quarantine. The staff and the doctors who had treated the baby at the Niloufer hospital have also been quarantined for precaution. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON While I miss the chance to visit with friends in the Studio Store, the online store has introduced us to many new friends. Robin Nidelcheff Artist Robin Nidelcheff announced this week that she will host a Grand Opening of her newest studio store location, online at http://www.RobinNidelcheffStudio.com. With new site opening, Robin has created new versions of her popular Comfort Bird. The Comfort Bird is a popular item with Mrs. Nidelcheffs private collectors and corporate customers. A hand size piece shaped like a small bird is perfect to hold and stroke as your thoughts drift off to your favorite seashore, forest or open field location, listening to the songbirds and relaxing in the warming breeze of a spring day. Mrs. Nidelcheff has a residence on Lake Michigan and has attended several West Michigan art shows over the last three summer seasons. With many spring shows canceled, Robin decided to add her studio inventory to her online site from the North Muskegon studio. Robin Nidelcheff hopes to see you at art events and shows soon when it is safe. Until that time, enjoy shopping online and have a fine piece of art from Robins studio shipped to your home and enjoy today. As you shop the Comfort Birds or many of the other studio pieces in the online store, dont forget to sign-up for the mailing list at the bottom of the page. You will get a promotion code and receive a 10% discount at check-out of the Northside Clay and Canvas online store. About Robin Nidelcheff- Robin Nidelcheff has been producing works of art for over twenty years in Hand Built and Wheel thrown Pottery. Robin creates her pieces in her studios, in Eastern Pennsylvania and along the Lake Michigan shoreline in the new Robin Nidelcheff Studio, Northside Clay and Canvas. Her training in Southern California in the early 1990s exposed Robin to artistic forms of pottery from throughout the world. Some favorites vary from beach pit firing and Raku techniques to the hand built and wheel thrown methods that she favors today. Robin creates clay reflections of nature, to love and live with you in your home or office Gulf Stevedoring Contracting Company (GSCCO), part of the Gulftainer group of companies, has welcomed Contship Ono, the first container vessel of the new service from CMA CGMs recently-launched Jeddex service, at its King Fahad Industrial Port in Yanbu (KFIP). This marks the first new container call at KFIP since GSCCO was assigned the management and operations of the port in 2019. The maiden vessel call at KFIP successfully handled a combination of import and export shipping consignments, the company said. The newly launched Jeddex service links the rapidly growing markets in Saudi Arabia (KSA) and East Africa by connecting KFIP directly to Mogadishu and Mombasa, via Jeddah, to CMA CGMs global network. This service enables end-users to benefit from direct weekly calls at KFIP with the following port rotation schedule through four dedicated ships on a weekly basis: Yanbu Mogadishu Mombasa Jeddah Yanbu. It has opened up direct routes for import and export of products further boosting the trade ties between East Africa and KSA. Speaking on the new service call, Jason French, Group Managing Director of GSCCO, said: We are delighted to welcome the first call of CMA CGMs new JEDDEX service at Yanbu. This service is the first to call Yanbu since we took over operations, and we look forward to additional services providing further connectivity to the exciting regional markets of the Red Sea and East Africa. The port is strategically located in Yanbu Industrial City, which is home to over 200 major exporters. Approximately 80 per cent of the industrial output of the West Coast of Saudi Arabia originates in Yanbu, and the city is home to companies manufacturing a wide variety of products, including petrochemicals, industrial products, ceramics, plastics, edible oils, sugar and building materials. GSCCO handles all types of cargo at KFIP, including containers, breakbulk cargo, vehicles and bulk cargo. To support operations at the port, the company has invested in significant amounts of new equipment to ensure it can deliver its award-winning levels of operational excellence and turn KFIP into another jewel in the crown of Saudi Arabias growing maritime presence. This year, GSCCO celebrated its 35th year of operating ports in Saudi Arabia. The company was founded in 1985, as a company specialising in the management, operation and maintenance of seaports. In June 2013, through a 51 per cent acquisition, GSCCO became a part of the Gulftainer group of companies. - TradeArabia News Service (CNN) A group of US officials working at the World Health Organization headquarters transmitted real-time information about the novel coronavirus directly to the Trump administration, US and international officials told the Washington Post. The reported line of communication undercuts US President Donald Trump's assertion that the virus' spread in the US largely stems from a lack of communication from WHO. A spokesperson for the US Department of Health and Human Services, Caitlin Oakley, confirmed to CNN on Sunday that 17 staff members from HHS were working at WHO in the outbreak's early days. In January 2020, she said, HHS had 17 staffers at WHO -- including 16 from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some of these "embedded" experts, but not all of them, were working on Covid-19, Oakley said. She pushed back on the Washington Post reporting, however, calling it "misleading." Oakley said that the Americans at WHO "were not the decision makers" and appeared to suggest that WHO leadership was withholding information from US technical experts -- or providing inaccurate information, sourced from China. "I'd add that just because you have Americans embedded in WHO providing technical assistance does not change the information you are getting from WHO leadership," she said. "We have learned now that WHO information was incorrect and relied too heavily on China," she added. WHO officials, however, have pointed out that the agency must rely on information from member nations. Dr. David Nabarro, a WHO special envoy, told NBC's "Meet the Press" last weekend that "we really do have to work with the information we get." "We don't have, in the World Health Organization, the power to go and inspect beyond what countries tell us," Nabarro said. News of the presence of a bloc of US officials at the WHO comes after Trump announced he is halting funding to the organization earlier this month while a review is conducted. Amid swirling questions about whether he downplayed the crisis or ignored warnings from members of his administration, the President said the review would cover WHO's "role in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of coronavirus." The US funds $400 million to $500 million to WHO each year, Trump said while announcing the funding freeze, noting that China "contributes roughly $40 million." "Had WHO done its job to get medical experts into China to objectively assess the situation on the ground and to call out China's lack of transparency, the outbreak could have been contained at its source with very little death," he said. Democrats, however, see the move to yank funding from WHO as a mistake motivated by the administration's desire to find a scapegoat for the pandemic's spread. "WHO is not perfect. But right now we need to work with them in the field, it is our only good option," a Democratic congressional aide previously told CNN. "The administration is using WHO as a scapegoat. It is obvious." April 3 At 10:43 p.m., officers took a report of a theft that already occurred. The officer spoke with the victim over the phone, and discovered that an unknown person had walked up to the victims front door, and proceeded to steal a package from the front step. A report for theft was generated. April 4 At 4:34 a.m., officers were dispatched to the 6500 block of Westchester in regards to a disturbance. The disturbance was settled at the scene and an information report was generated. April 8 At 7 a.m., an officer was dispatched to a residence in the 2700 block of Barbara Ln. in regard to a burglary of a motor vehicle that had already occurred. Upon arrival, it was discovered that an unknown person/s had broken into a vehicle that was parked on the street, and had stolen several items from inside. A report for burglary of a motor vehicle was generated. At 7:14 a.m., an officer was in the 2700 block of Barbara Lane assisting another officer with a Burglary of a Motor Vehicle that had already occurred. While there, the officer observed other vehicles with a broken window. The vehicle did not appear to be rummaged through and the owners stated that no items were missing. Criminal mischief reports were generated. April 9 At 11:55 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the intersection of the 6400 block of Annapolis and the 2600 block of Carolina Way in regards to a Burglary of a Motor Vehicle that had already occurred. It was reported that an unknown person had reached into the bed of a pickup truck and removed items without the victims consent. A BMV report was generated. April 10 At 9:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 3900 block of Northwestern St. in regards to a Burglary of a Motor Vehicle that already occurred. It was reported that an unknown person(s) entered an unsecured vehicle and removed items without the victims effective consent. A BMV report was generated. At 10:30 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the 4200 block of Ruskin for a report of a burglary of a building. The victim said that unknown suspects took 20 windows from a construction site during the night. At 6:09 a.m., officers were dispatched to the 2600 block Bissonnet in regards to a burglary alarm. Upon arrival and through investigation, it was discovered an unknown suspect forced entry into the building and took items without consent. At 11:58 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 2600 block of Pittsburg in reference to a suspicious person/trespasser. Upon further investigation, the same suspect was believed to have committed a burglary at the same location two days prior. An offense report was generated for Burglary of a Building. The suspect was not located at the time of the report. April 14 At 9:26 a.m., a report was taken over the phone for a criminal mischief that occurred on 03/28/2020 at the Bank of Texas located in the 5500 block of Kirby. The bank reported that a subject swinging a stick damaged a banner that was located by the ATM machine. At 11:27 a.m., an officer was dispatched to the police station in regards to an auto theft had already occurred. It was reported that an unknown person/s had stolen the victims vehicle from the 6500 block of Westchester without the owners consent. A theft of vehicle report was generated. At 8:13 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 5800 block of Fordham in regards to Welfare Check. Upon further investigation it was discovered the sole occupant of the residence was deceased upon arrival. A report was generated. April 16 At 6:55 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 3000 block of Sunset in reference to a Failure to Stop and Give Information incident. The suspect vehicle struck an unattended vehicle and the driver left the scene without providing the information required by state law. The driver of the suspect vehicle was contacted and returned to the scene, providing the required information. A crash report was generated and the incident was documented in this information report. The Supreme Courts Monday decision in Ramos v. Louisiana is unalloyed good news: A majority held that the Constitution requires conviction by a unanimous jury in both state and federal court. From here on out, every juror must find a defendant guilty to convict him, meaning a single vote for acquittal will thwart a conviction. In Oregon and Louisiana, the last two states to allow split verdicts, nonunanimous juries were rooted in white supremacy and designed to discriminate against marginalized groups. Ramos will void thousands of unconstitutional convictions, and it corrects a grievous injustice too long tolerated by the court. So far, so good. Advertisement But scratch beneath this shiny surface and you will find that Ramos is a mess of epic proportions. Technically, on the big question, the court divided 63, seemingly in a rare cross-ideological consensus of liberal and conservative justices in the majority. On a slew of important side questions, however, the court splintered hopelessly: It split 31113 on thorny disputes over precedent, constitutional interpretation, the Bill of Rights protections for noncitizens, and the contemporary relevance of a laws racist roots. The justices used Ramos to shadowbox over long-running debates, including abortion, giving every court watcher some tea leaves to obsess over. In doing so, they proved once again that the Supreme Court has never been more dividedand that these simmering debates will soon rupture into full public view. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The first-order question in Ramos is an easy one: Must a jury vote unanimously to convict a defendant, whether hes being tried in state or federal court? SCOTUS has long held that, in federal court, the Sixth Amendment compels unanimity. But what about in state court? Although most states follow the federal rule, Oregon allows convictions by a 102 vote, meaning a defendant will be found guilty even if one juror votes to acquit. Louisiana allowed 102 splits until voters approved an amendment to the state constitution abolishing the Jim Crowera practice starting in January 2019. But nonunanimous convictions were still allowed for crimes committed before 2019. On a slew of important side questions, the court splintered hopelessly. The Supreme Courts decision revolved around 1972s Apodaca v. Oregon, a messy precedent that approved nonunanimous juries in state courts. The Apodaca court split 414: Four justices said unanimous verdicts are required in state and federal court, four said theyre required in neither, and one justice, Lewis Powell, said unanimity is required in federal court but not state court. Because it rested on the narrowest grounds, Powells opinion became the law of the land. Powells position was based on an idiosyncratic theory that liberties protected in the Bill of Rights may be weaker when applied to the states as opposed to the federal government. The 14th Amendment, he acknowledged, applies most of these liberties to the statesbut gives states more flexibility to violate them. The court has since fully abandoned this theory, so it is pretty odd that Powells eccentric concurrence remained the law until Monday morning. Advertisement Advertisement In Ramos, SCOTUS finally buried Apodaca for good. Justice Neil Gorsuch, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Brett Kavanaugh, held that a felony conviction requires unanimity in state court, formally abolishing Oregons scheme, voiding hundreds or perhaps thousands of convictions there as well as at least 44 convictions in Louisiana. Justice Clarence Thomas reached the same result through very different reasoning. Then the most ambitious crossover event in history got even weirder when Justice Samuel Alito dissented, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Elena Kagan. WaitAlito, Roberts, and Kagan? Advertisement Advertisement It turns out that the justices could not resist transforming Ramos into yet another quarrel over stare decisis, or respect for precedent. Gorsuch, Ginsburg, and Breyer say Powells concurrence has no precedential force because its just one mans opinion, based on a theory thats no longer good law. Sotomayor and Kavanaugh seem to think it is real precedent but should still be overruled. Thomas never cared about precedent and still doesnt. Meanwhile, Alito, Roberts, and Kagan accused the majority of cavalierly overturning an entrenched precedent with no plausible justification, subjecting Oregon and Louisiana to a potential tsunami of litigation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This contretemps over precedent is really just another skirmish in the courts endless war over abortion rights. The five conservative justices have made clear they dont think the Constitution protects the right to terminate a pregnancy. The real question is whether any of them will still stand by the courts abortion precedents out of a duty to stare decisis. Kagan, the courts most faithful observer of stare decisis, joined Alitos dissent because she has been hammering the conservatives for trashing precedent when it suits them. She doesnt want to be a hypocrite and abandon her principles just because she prefers a certain outcome. If the conservative justices overturn Roe v. Wade, Kagan can pillory them for flouting a principle she holds dear. Advertisement Sotomayor, too, was frustrated by Gorsuchs dismissive approach to precedent. She penned a brief concurrence declaring that stare decisis, while generally important, is at its nadir in criminal procedure cases that implicate fundamental constitutional protections. Kavanaugh, by contrast, wrote a cryptic concurrence setting out his own test for stare decisis that seems tailored to justify overturning Roe on the grounds that it is grievously or egregiously wrong. Advertisement But if Gorsuch, Sotomayor, and Kavanaugh disagree about a unified theory of stare decisis, they all agree on one thing: Oregon and Louisianas split verdict laws are rooted in racism, and that history matters. As all three justices note, Louisiana enacted its law as a Jim Crow measure to prevent one or two black jurors from having an impact on the verdict. Oregon also enacted its law during the rise of the Ku Klux Klan to dilute the influence of racial, ethnic, and religious minorities. Each justice asserted that these racist origins undermined Apodacas precedential value and gave the court another good reason to outlaw Louisiana and Oregons schemes. Advertisement Advertisement These explorations of racist history sent Alito into a tizzy. Too much public discourse today, he huffed, is sullied by ad hominem rhetoric, that is, attempts to discredit an argument not by proving that it is unsound but by attacking the character or motives of the arguments proponents. The majority regrettably succumbs to this trend. Alito insisted that the majoritys recitation of this sordid history is irrelevant because Louisiana and Oregon later reenacted their split verdict laws, magically cleansing them of racism. We should set an example of rational and civil discourse, Alito concluded, instead of contributing to the worst current trends. It is difficult to understand why Kagan joined this portion of his dissent, since she is willing to pierce pretext and examine bigoted motives in other contexts. Advertisement Defending racism is usually Clarence Thomas job. But in Ramos, the justice was too busy promoting a pet project to engage with the racial element. For years, Thomas has argued for a narrower interpretation of noncitizens liberties. He believes the Constitution applies the Bill of Rights to citizens, not persons, giving states greater leeway to mistreat immigrants. Thomas reiterated this argument in Ramosbut nobody joined him, indicating a cross-ideological lack of enthusiasm for restricting noncitizens civil rights. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement None of this ideological bickering between the justices changes the fact that, as of Monday, Oregon and Louisiana may no longer let split juries convict people. But the full scope of the courts decision will remain unclear for some time. The obvious follow-up question is whether Ramos applies retroactivelythat is, whether it nullifies verdicts handed down before Monday. Heres the good news: The decision undoubtedly applies in cases still on direct review, meaning the defendant hasnt yet exhausted all appeals. But what about everyone else? Theres a whole different set of rules that apply here, and the court will have to decide if they all get new trials in a future case. But Gorsuch hinted that they wont, and Kavanaugh said it outright, raising the strong possibility that the countless defendants convicted by split juries whove already used up their appeals cant cite Ramos to get a new trial. Retroactivity, like precedent and racism and the privileges of citizenship, badly divides the Supreme Court. It is almost miraculous that, at the end of the day, a majority was able to come together and lay down a clear rule in Ramos given the justices many grievances with their colleagues jurisprudence. Nothing in the ruling tells us much about how the court will decide cases down the road, including blockbusters involving abortion and discrimination. It only reminds us that even when the justices agree on the big stuff, they are still sharpening their swords for the battles ahead. President Donald Trump and his allies in conservative media have subtly scaled down their hyping of hydroxychloroquine as a potential cure for the coronavirus, according to a POLITICO review of White House briefings and cable news coverage. Although Trump had repeatedly promoted the decades-old malaria drug since the early days of the diseases outbreak in the United States, his public statements regarding hydroxychloroquine have diminished significantly over the past week for reasons that remain unclear. His most recent mention of the drug at the White Houses daily coronavirus news conferences came last Tuesday, when the president announced his administration had deployed roughly 28 million doses of hydroxychloroquine from the federal governments Strategic National Stockpile. Earlier at that same briefing, though, the president also trumpeted remdesivir, another experimental treatment developed by the biopharmaceutical company Gilead, and spoke positively of its promising results. Trump invoked hydroxychloroquine at a separate White House event Tuesday, when he met with a group of Americans who had recovered from Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, and pressed some of the guests on whether they or their family members had used the drug. So you took the hydroxy? he asked one of the former patients, later following up: Why did you take the hydroxy? Why did you do that? You saw it on television? Trump has frequently advocated on behalf of hydroxychloroquine from the podium of the White House briefing room, and Fox News hosts have touted the drug in numerous on-air segments. Its a very strong, powerful medicine. But it doesnt kill people. We have some very good results and some very good tests, Trump told reporters earlier this month, adding: What really do we have to lose? While hydroxychloroquine is effective at treating conditions such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, the drug can be dangerous for people with certain heart conditions. Story continues Apart from the presidents two public appearances Tuesday, Trump scarcely mentioned hydroxychloroquine last week if at all and refrained entirely from invoking the drug during White House briefings on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The White House declined to comment for this story. References to hydroxychloroquine on the presidents preferred social media feed have been similarly sparse. He retweeted a story Saturday by the conservative legal group Judicial Watch, which asserted that Trumps bold gamble on hydroxychloroquine (HC) appears to be paying off. However, prior to his sharing of that post, Trumps last mention of the drug came in another retweet on April 10 of a Fox News report stating that French President Emmanuel Macron was under greater pressure to authorize wider use of hydroxychloroquine in his country. Meanwhile, the popular hosts of Fox News prime-time lineup, whose weeknight broadcasts often align closely with the White Houses political objectives, have followed the presidents lead in curtailing their commentary on hydroxychloroquine. Last Monday, Laura Ingraham heralded the results of a study by a controversial French microbiologist who has championed hydroxychloroquine, and whose findings Dr. Anthony Fauci, Americas top infectious disease expert, has dismissed as anecdotal evidence. I dont know how Dr. Fauci and ... others could go forward and just dismiss these as all anecdotal when you have hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin used early. Early is key in these Covid patients, Ingraham said. But Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity did not mention hydroxychloroquine in their shows Monday, and none of the three hosts spoke of the drug again during their broadcasts on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Carlson did make a passing reference to hydroxychloroquine Friday, but only to set up a segment attesting to how remdesivir is now showing promising results. Stat News recently reported that a clinical trial of remdesivir conducted at the University of Chicago was showing promising, but very preliminary results. Jeanine Pirro and Jesse Watters, two other Fox News personalities favored by the president who host shows Saturday night, also made no mention of hydroxychloroquine over the weekend. Spokespeople for Fox News declined to comment for this story. The dwindling references to the drug at the White House and on Fox News come as the administration and its outside supporters have seized upon signs of optimism amid the public health crisis, including metrics showing the effectiveness of federal social distancing guidance and a lower projected death toll than some models initially anticipated. Although there is no evidence yet that the president has shifted his views, his decision to reduce the frequency of his remarks about hydroxychloroquine represents a conspicuous break with his past attempts to amplify the drug in a bid to gin up confidence among a beleaguered American public. The Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine in March, allowing the drugs to be donated to the Strategic National Stockpile to be distributed and prescribed by doctors to hospitalized teen and adult patients with COVID-19, as appropriate, when a clinical trial is not available or feasible. Still, the FDA advises that hydroxychloroquine not be used by patients with heart problems because it can worsen them, while studies also show that chloroquine can react badly with diabetes medicines. Some countries such as France have cautioned against its use because of heart risks. On Monday, the drugmaker Novartis won FDA approval to conduct a randomized trial of hydroxychloroquine, one of dozens underway around the world that feature the drug in various combinations and treatment regimens. Results from an ongoing clinical trial in New York, expected to deliver clearer answers on whether the drug is effective, could land within days. So far, senior health officials have said there exists limited clinical proof to justify hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for Covid-19 and warned that it requires further trials. Some Republicans have kept up their advocacy. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) has organized messages from doctors to the president intended to give patients the right to try the treatment. Even though its perfectly legal for them to have off-label usage of the hydroxychloroquine, until you have some further encouragement from the FDA and CDC, from the federal government, patients dont have the right to try hydroxychloroquine, Johnson said in an interview last week. Its a safe drug. Let doctors be doctors. The schism between administration officials over hydroxychloroquine produced at least one high-profile clash in the White House Situation Room two weeks ago, when White House trade adviser Peter Navarro sparred with Fauci about the drugs efficacy. Fauci has previously said the data surrounding hydroxychloroquine are really just, at best, suggestive, concluding: I think, in terms of science, I dont think we could definitively say it works. Another tense moment unfolded at a White House briefing earlier this month when Fauci was asked his opinion of hydroxychloroquine, but the president interjected before the career immunologist could respond to reporters. Do you know how many times hes answered that question? Maybe 15 times, Trump said. You dont have to ask the question. Burgess Everett and Sarah Owermohle contributed to this report. Whether you live in a state where marijuana use is legal or illegal, you may be aware that today is a holiday in the cannabis community. It is April 20 aka 420 or 4/20 and the date is recognized as a symbol for weed-related activities and gatherings around the world. According to Time magazine, the roots of 420 are connected to a set of high school kids from California who smoked marijuana together in the 70s. They met up at a certain spot on campus at 4:20 in the afternoon to avoid getting caught and used the term 420 as a code. 420 was born. Since live events are canceled, celebrities and companies are finding new ways to tap into 420 vibes. If youre looking for content to stream this year, were listing TV series, live-streaming events, and music releases (from today or the past) that have to do with weed. And yes, you can count on Snoop Dogg to be present. Snoop Dogg | Harmony Gerber/WireImage/Getty Images Cooked with Cannabis Released on Netflix on 4/20, this cooking series elevates the edibles game by having three chefs go toe-to-toe in a marijuana-infused competition with three-course meals. Hosted by Kelis and featuring celebrity taste-testers/judges, the show includes THC-laced food, giggles, and a cash prize. Like the Netflix description says, its like Chopped meets Bong Appetit. Bong Appetit In keeping with the food and munchies theme, Bong Appetit is available to stream on multiple platforms. The Vice cooking/educational series has three seasons that can be watched on Hulu, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Fubo, Philo, or via your cable provider. Grass is Greener If youre in the mood for a documentary, Netflixs Grass is Greener explores the history of marijuana in America and its connection to music. Fab Five Freddy hosts this 2019 film. The Chronic is now streaming Dr. Dres 1992 debut solo album, The Chronic, is listed in the annals of hip-hop history as one of the genres greatest. Beginning on 4/20/20, it will be available on all music streaming platforms for the first time. Snoop Doggs live DJ set for 420 To celebrate The Chronics move to streaming, marijuana connoisseur and entrepreneur Snoop Dogg is dee-jaying a live set on 4/20 at 4:20 p.m. PST dubbed A 420 Smoke-In. Hes doing it in partnership with Merry Jane and details for the Instagram Live party can be found on their Instagram page. Weedmaps virtual concert Weedmaps has an extensive lineup for its Higher Together: Sessions from Home concert. Viewers who are 21 and older can live-stream the set from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. PST. Guests include Billy Ray Cyrus, Wiz Khalifa, Ari Lennox, Dave East, Berner, Stephen Marley, Erykah Badu, The Alchemist, Camron, Mike Tyson, and a host of comedians and chefs. Click here to watch. Willie Nelson is hosting an online show too Nelson, a world-famous weed advocate, is entertaining the masses at 4:20 p.m. CST on 4/20 with a variety show. Titled Come and Toke It, the live-stream event will include appearances from Tobey Keith, Kacey Musgraves, Jeff Bridges, Ziggy Marley, and many more. Nelson is teaming up with Luck Reunion for the cannabis culture soiree that promises to bring four hours and 20 minutes worth of quarantine-friendly festivities via Twitch and Facebook. To learn more, visit Luck Reunions website. New York schools and hospitals could see a 20 per cent decrease in funding without federal assistance, the governor warned. Governor Andrew Cuomo has put pressure on President Donald Trump and the federal government in recent days because of the assistance his state desperately needed in order to properly fight the coronavirus. If they exclude state government again, our state forecast will project without any federal funds you cant spend what you dont have if you were to do allocate the shortfall relatively on a flat basis across need, you would be cutting schools 20 per cent, local governments 20 per cent and hospitals 20 percent and this is the worst time to do this, Mr Cuomo said during his press briefing on Monday. You shouldnt make us choose between small businesses, and big businesses, and people working on the frontlines, he added. Congress has battled in recent days in passing more money for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which would go towards small businesses. But this funding does not include more money for the state governments, and Mr Cuomo said that was a serious problem. Democrats have reportedly been fighting for more funding for states, but Republicans, and the Trump administration, were not eager to give additional money at this time. Well be saving that for a later date, Mr Trump said on Sunday. If the deal with Congress was passed as is, Secretary of Treasury Steven Mnuchin said a majority of funding would go towards the PPP, but there would also be money for testing and hospitals. Mr Cuomo said frontline workers should be prioritised in the stimulus package, which was why more money needed to go towards the states. Dont forget teachers and police officers and healthcare workers and transit workers that is who I fund, he said. Our frontline workers are our heroes. They are the ones carrying us through this crisis. Hazard pay was recommended by the governor to be included in the stimulus package for the workers on the frontlines who are consistently going out amid the pandemic while other people stay home. "When you are home with your doors locked dealing with cabin fever, they were out there dealing with the coronavirus. That's why they are more infected. Pay them what they deserve. I would say hazard pay, give them a 50 per cent bonus," Mr Cuomo said. He also mentioned that 41 per cent of frontline workers were people of colour, a demographic that has been hit harder by Covid-19 in areas across the US. "Thanks is nice, but recognition of their efforts and their sacrifice is also appropriate," he said. "They're the ones that's carrying us through this crisis." Not only was the governor pushing for more federal funding to give to the frontline workers, but he said it was essential in order for New York state to reopen its economy. "If you want us to reopen, we need funding," Mr Cuomo said. The state needed assistance to increase its testing capacity, but the president was unwilling to put testing on the federal government. "States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done," Mr Trump wrote in a tweet while accusing governors of playing a "political game". The opposition Congress in Mizoram wrote to Governor PS Sreedharan Pillai, seeking his intervention to get assistance from the Centre for stranded residents of the state elsewhere, and aid the fight against the coronavirus outbreak here. In a memorandum, Congress legislature party leader Zodintluanga Ralte said the state government is currently grappling with a financial crunch amid the outbreak. He said Chief Minister Zoramthanga, his cabinet colleagues and other legislators were helping the people from their own resources. Apart from them, churches, NGOs and village and local-level task forces were helping the poor with their own money and from public contribution. All these developments reveal that the state government is running out of money to fight the spread of novel coronavirus in the state, Ralte said. He alleged that the state government has not disbursed any financial assistance to the needy apart from the Rs 3,000 per person assistance disbursed to beneficiaries under the construction workers' welfare board. I urge you to find any possible help from the Centre to fight the spread of novel coronavirus in Mizoram, Ralte said in the memorandum said. He also asked the governor to take measures so that people of the state stranded in different parts of the country get financial assistance. He pointed out that most Northeastern states such as Manipur, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya were extending financial help to their residents who are stuck in other parts of the country. Officials said the state government is making efforts to help the stranded residents. The stranded people are provided food and shelter at Mizoram houses free of cost, they added. On Saturday, different Mizo welfare committees from various parts of the country wrote to chief secretary Lalnunmawia Chuaungo seeking, assistance from the state government. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Negative prices signal traders would pay to have oil taken off their hands as supply glut tests storage capacity. United States oil futures turned negative for the first time in history on Monday with traders dumping May contracts as analysts warn that crude storage will fill to the brim by next month, and US shale firms weigh the real possibility of shutting down production. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for May delivery crashed more than 300 percent on Monday, deep into negative territory, touching -$40.32 before clawing back to settle at -$37.63. The speed and swiftness of the May contracts death spiral took even seasoned oil veterans by surprise. Wow. Prices needed to fall given the rapid decrease in demand and storage filling quickly. But I did not expect them to fall so fast, Samantha Gross, an energy and climate fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Al Jazeera. We have never seen companies paying to have their oil taken away. It cant stay this way for long it is the market signalling that storage is filling rapidly and that more production isnt needed. By turning negative, prices are signalling that traders are actually paying to have oil taken off their hands. WTI doesnt have anywhere to go, Louise Dickson, oil markets analyst at Rystad Energy, told Al Jazeera. Traders have had a whole month to sit on this oil and decide what to do with it, and tomorrow is the last day they could sell it. April 21 is the last day to trade May 2020 WTI on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). And US shale oil finds itself in a major bind with limited storage options. WTI for June delivery was holding above $21 a barrel on Monday. Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, is trading around $26 a barrel, having plummeted by as much as 70 percent since the start of January as coronavirus lockdowns have destroyed global demand in crude. The US Energy Information Administration last week reported a record 19.3 million-barrel crude stock build [File: Richard Carson/Reuters] The US Energy Information Administration last week reported a record 19.3 million-barrel crude stock build. There is currently a remaining 21 million barrels of storage available at the Cushing hub in Cushing, Oklahoma. But that will fill up to the brim by mid-to-late May, Rystad Energy predicts. The tsunami of supply has battered the US shale market, where many firms need crude to fetch between $48 and $54 a barrel to break even, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Oil prices were already weighed down by oversupply going into 2020, and were further pressured by coronavirus containment measures that have obliterated demand. But crude prices went into free fall last month after Saudi Arabia initiated an oil price war in retaliation for Russia not agreeing to deep output cuts to offset the blow from COVID-19 disruptions. With US shale oil producers getting hammered by the oil price war, US President Donald Trump appealed directly to Saudi Arabias de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin to set aside their differences and stabilize oil markets. Those efforts culminated in an historic agreement on April 12 between Saudi-led OPEC and its allies led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+, to cut output by 9.7 million barrels per day. But oil market analysts say even those record-breaking curbs are simply not enough to salvage a market in unprecedented distress. Even before the OPEC+ deal struck among the top oil producers earlier, analysts anticipated storage to run out in mid-May. Now, compliance with that deal is proving to be a big challenge. Dickson said oil filling up in May is tantamount to a doomsday scenario, adding: Countries had 15 days to cut 9.7 million barrels in production. Its not a realistic amount of oil to cut. Now, hundreds, maybe thousands, of producers in the Permian Basin in the southwestern US are at risk of shutting down production as oil storage tanks at the Cushing near capacity. When Cushing gets full, the midstream operators will say you cannot buy oil. Then Pioneer, Chevron and the other big companies will have to make the decision to shut in meaning close a well or try to sell their oil at an extreme loss, Dickson said. Some companies would rather lose a lot of money in the short term, rather than close an oil well because a shut-in is extremely expensive. Still, Rystad predicts more shut-ins to come in Wyoming, Colorado, and North Dakota, which already announced a 170,000-barrels-per-day shut-in back in March. Market prices are showing that oil is all but worthless now, said Jim Krane, a fellow in energy studies at Rice Universitys Baker Institute for Public Policy. Its going to take a long time to draw down the huge supply overhang, he told Al Jazeera. There are some creative measures that could provide a modicum of relief, say analysts. Producers can work with midstream companies to move shale to the Gulf Coast and store it offshore. But Dickson says that there can only be so many tankers in the Gulf, and offshore storage can get quite expensive. Another possible workaround is to buy crude stockpiles for the USs Strategic Petroleum Reserve. But instead of physically transporting the oil, the US government could pay the producer to store oil in the ground effectively creating a remote strategic reserve. This helps the administration save the shale players and accomplishes two good things: getting supply off the market and giving shale some money, and US government buying oil at a market discount, said Dickson. We already see a bit of a correction in the June contract, but traders have another month or so to dump these holdings, she added. And right now, I think there is a wait and see attitude from traders to see if the OPEC+ cuts result in any meaningful supply relief. NO FACE-TO-FACE TEACHING IS SAFE The federal and NSW governments launched a coordinated and organised campaign in the first week of the school holidays to prepare the ground for restarting face-to-face teaching in mid-May. The government campaign appeared to be a deliberate strategy to soften community and teacher opposition to any early return to the classroom. The Queensland Teachers Union was quick to refuse support for any proposal that put its members at risk by returning them to face to face teaching and significantly raised the risk of community spread of COVID-19. MORE CONFUSION AND CONTRADICTION The community lockdown is in place until the end of June, and quite possibly much longer, to stop COVID-19 spreading. Even the decision-making processes of parliament are on hold. There is no plan to open parliament before the rest of the community. The message is once again confused and contradictory. It is clear COVID-19 is disproportionately adding to the disadvantage already being experienced by vulnerable and disadvantaged families and communities across Australia. While true, this cannot be a reason to ignore the health risks of exposing teachers and students to unsafe school environments. This is particularly so as restarting face-to-face classrooms is not addressing the needs of disadvantaged students. TEACHERS TO SUPERVISE DISADVANTAGED AND VULNERABLE Before COVID-19, the NSW and federal governments did little to tackle the inequity in education. In fact, both governments pursued policies which further disadvantaged public schools and their students including freezing capital works programs in the public schools, stripping the NSW Department of Education of qualified consultants and support staff, and underfunding public education. They actively supported the creation of a two-tier education system underwritten by large taxpayer grants and subsidies to private and independent schools. The NSW and federal governments are now anxious that government-driven inequity does not become a political issue. Restarting face-to-face teaching as soon as possible will give the appearance that governments are really concerned about inequity and disadvantaged students despite their longstanding actions to the contrary, but it will not address the substance of the issues it is claiming will be fixed by sending children back to classrooms. It may provide supervision for students who do return to school and free up some parents to work. DOUBLE THE WORKLOAD Delivering equitable teaching and learning will continue to be impossible as it is likely many families will continue to keep children at home. This is because a significant number of families will continue to consider sending their children to school is an unacceptable risk and the government and health experts messages are still confused. If schools return to face-to-face teaching in this situation teachers workload will double as they will be expected to provide classroom lessons and online lessons. At the same time, no plan has been announced to protect teachers and students from COVID-19 with temperature checks, gloves, masks, and provisions of adequate soap and hand sanitisers. Schools are not safe places. Teachers and students travel to school across suburbs. Public schools are not equipped to ensure hygiene practices are in place and consistently adhered to. Children are still learning to self-regulate. WINTER IS COLD AND FLU SEASON We are heading into winter when children are often ill with colds and flu and other respiratory illnesses, including asthma. The public health system cannot cope with the extra pressures of illnesses spread through schools at this time. Teachers and students should not be put at risk of COVID-19 when the rest of the community is expected to physically distance and stay at home. Lost education can be caught up through various strategies when its safe again. Public schools can be funded to reduce class sizes, employ interventionist and specialist literacy and numeracy staff to catch up disadvantaged students and schools when the health crisis passes. If Virgin Airlines can ask and receive Australian government handouts and private childcare can be supported by large rescue packages, then so can our disadvantaged and vulnerable students and schools. DANBURY For people have been displaced following a Monday morning two-alarm fire at the Beaver Street Cooperative. Emergency personnel responded to a report of a structure fire at the Bells Place housing complex around 9 a.m., and found flames and smoke coming from the rear of a two-story multi-family building. On a day the Centre sent two teams to Bengal to review allegations of violation of lockdown orders, a government-aided school in Murshidabad district on Monday allegedly called hundreds of students to distribute rice and potatoes in lieu of their regular mid-day meals. This happened even as reports of more Covid-19 cases were being reported from different parts of the state. To ensure the safety of children, the government had earlier asked all schools to give the food items to their guardians. All schools in Bengal are closed. The Lalnagar High School in the districts Hariharpara community block allegedly violated the orders and distributed 3 kg of rice and potatoes to each of the hundreds of students most of whom came in uniform. Only a few guardians came to collect the midday meal. Photos and videos of the incident went viral in the region. Follow coronavirus latest updates here. The school authorities had announced on public address system that on Monday, they would distribute rice and potatoes. When I reached the school to collect them on behalf of my son, who studies in class 7, I found hundreds of students standing in queue, said a villager who did not wish to be named. Most of the students appeared to be completely unaware of social distancing norms. They were standing close to each other and some were even playing in the field. I did not see any school official asking them to go home and send their guardians instead, he said. The father of another student said, I was told by the school authorities that only students will be given the food items. The headmaster, Sarwardi Biswas, claimed no midday meal was handed over to students. He said, I was instructed to give midday meal items only to guardians and I carried out the order. Not a single student was given the food. There are 547 students in my school who were entitled to receive the rice and potatoes today. In all, 533 guardians came to the school to take it on behalf of the children, he said. The headmaster also rubbished an allegation that students were given food in smaller quantities. He said, The rice and potatoes were weight in front of the guardians. I dont know why they are alleging that they got less than three kg of each item. An assistant teacher of the school, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, We told the headmaster that students were not supposed to be in the school but he asked us to keep mum. Hariharpara block development officer Purnendu Sanyal said, We instructed the schools to distribute the midday meal only among the guardians. I was not aware that Lalnagar High School flouted our direction. I am looking into it. By Laman Ismayilova Famous for spectacular performances, Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater has entered the TOP 10 opera houses in the CIS. The list was prepared by TurStat Agency for the International Day of Culture to mark the adoption of the Roerich Pact "on the Protection of Artistic and Scientific Institutions and Historical Monuments (1935)". The ranking also included the Bolshoi State Academic Theater, the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus, the Kazakh State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, the Astana Opera State Opera and Ballet Theater and other opera houses. The State Opera and Ballet Theater has played an important role in shaping the Azerbaijani opera. The theater was built at the request of magnate Daniel Mailov and funded by magnate Zeynalabdin Taghiyev. "Leyli and Majnun" by Uzeyir Hajibeyli, the first opera of the entire East, was first performed here in 1908. Today, the theater successfully hosts ballets, operas, and other theatrical performances. --- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The highest number of Saudi oil shipments in years are making their way to the United States this month, threatening to make an already dire situation in the U.S. oil industry even worse. With oil demand crashing in the lockdown and storage capacity filling up fast, more Saudi oil imports is the last thing the U.S. oil market needs right now. In times of lockdowns and social distancing, inventories in the U.S. are soaring, storage capacity is stretching thin in many areas, producers are idling rigs and curtailing production, and some regional grades are priced so low that they could soon turn negative. In other words, producers may have to pay their customers to help them get rid of the oil they have pumped. As if this wasnt enough to depress U.S. benchmark oil prices, a wave of Saudi oil is making its way onto tankers, headed for America this month, various tanker-tracking data estimates show. In early April, tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg showed that Saudi Arabia the worlds top oil exporter was making good on its promise to flood the world with oil even as demand collapses, with a surge in tankers carrying Saudi crude to the United States. Last week, The Wall Street Journal reported that the volume of Saudi crude en route to the United States is seven times higher than the typical monthly intake of Saudi oil in 2019. The tankers were loaded before OPEC+ struck a new agreement to take 9.7 million bpd off the market in May and June when Saudi Arabia had embarked on an aggressive price war for market share after the previous OPEC+ deal collapsed in early March. Premium: Irans Plan To Lure The U.S. Into War On April 1, when the previous agreement expired, Saudi Aramco boasted that it was breaking records to supply 15 tankers with over 18.8 million barrels of oil, As the world demands economic stability, Aramco remains committed to supplying the world with energy. However, three weeks later, the world demands anything but more oildemand is crashing by 30 million barrels per day (bpd), and even the new production reduction agreement cant do anything to erase the glut in April and the coming weeks. Saudi Arabia more than doubled its shipments to the U.S. in Marchto 829,540 bpd from 366,000 in February, according to TankerTrackers, which tracks oil flows via satellite images. In the first two weeks of April, Saudi Arabia sent 1.46 million bpd to the U.S., TankerTrackers data showed, as cited by CNBC. An unnamed Saudi official, however, refuted the March and April data. The Saudi official told CNBC that the Kingdom was targeting 600,000 bpd in exports to the U.S. in April. Saudi Aramco owns the 600,000-bpd Motiva refinery in Port Arthur, Texasthe largest U.S. refinery in terms of crude oil processing capacity. According to tanker tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, Saudi Arabia had loaded seven supertankers for the U.S. in the first week of April, but just two more tankers since then. But even 600,000 bpd of Saudi oil flows to the U.S. in April would be more than a year-high, as per EIA data. After June last year, U.S. crude oil imports from Saudi Arabia had not exceeded 500,000 bpd, as per the latest available data updated to January 2020. The increased Saudi shipments in April come at the worst possible time for the U.S. oil industry. With plunging consumption and growing global glut, everyone in the industry is suffering We are seeing fast and furious gasoline demand destruction. The latest data reveals demand levels not seen since spring of 1968, AAA spokesperson Jeanette Casselano said at the beginning of last week. Premium: The Oil Sector That Will Suffer The Most U.S.refineries are reducing production, although gasoline prices are the cheapest in years, leading to record-breaking inventory builds in recent weeks, and to shrinking storage capacity in America. Prices of some grades in Texas are nearing negative territory, with customers bidding to pay only $2 per barrel for South Texas Sour and $4.12 a barrel Upper Texas Gulf Coast last week, Bloomberg reported, citing pricing bulletins. The pressure on storage capacity in North America is becoming intense, with the tanks at Cushing, Oklahoma, set to reach effective limits by the end of next month; companies are running out of places to put the unwanted oil that they are producing. In the physical crude markets many US blends are selling at deep discounts to WTI futures, Ed Crooks, Vice-Chair, Americas, at Wood Mackenzie, wrote last week. More Saudi oil will aggravate this already dire market situation, potentially speeding up additional and deeper forced production curtailments in the U.S. shale patch in the coming months. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Tamaulipas state officials say migrant deported from Texas entered the shelter without knowing that he had coronavirus. Sixteen migrants and asylum seekers from several countries have tested positive for coronavirus in Mexicos northern border state of Tamaulipas, the state government said Monday. Fourteen of the infected migrants from Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, Cuba and Cameroon were staying at a migrant shelter in the city of Nuevo Laredo, across the border from Laredo, Texas. They are in isolation. The Tamaulipas state government said a migrant deported from Houston, Texas had entered the same shelter without knowing that he had coronavirus. Migrants now make up about 10 percent of the states 193 coronavirus cases. The state government, foreseeing the situation of multiple contagions of COVID-19 among the migrant population, has asked the federal government through official channels to transfer out of Tamaulipas the migrants who are stranded on the border, the state said in a statement. A medical staff member of Global Response Management takes the temperature of a migrant patient at a migrant encampment in Matamoros, Mexico, where more than 2,000 people live while seeking asylum in the US [Daniel Becerril/Reuters] Hundreds of migrants and asylum seekers remain in Nuevo Laredo, and in the Tamaulipas border city of Matamoro, an estimated 2,000 people live in a squalid tent camp, waiting for their court hearings a short distance away in Brownsville, Texas. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) says that more than 100 migrants at 25 detention centres have tested positive for COVID-19. Mexicos federal government has so far officially recognised only one case of coronavirus infection in a migrant, at the church-run shelter in Nuevo Laredo. The federal National Immigration Institute did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Catholic-run shelter is expected to release the results of further tests on the migrants. Tamaulipas also said another migrant who was deported from Atlanta, Georgia and who had not gone to the shelter tested positive after being detected at a border checkpoint. He has been returned to his home state of Michoacan for care. The US government said Monday it will continue to quickly expel migrants it encounters along the border for at least another month in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. The move has been slammed by immigrant rights groups. An order issued by the US Department of Health and Human Services said the policy should be kept in place for another 30 days to help reduce the spread of the virus in detention centres. The new order extends the policy until May 20. US officials last month launched the new policy, saying it would be dangerous for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to detain people because of the potential spread of the virus. As a result, CBP has been turning away thousands of migrants and asylum seekers. Deported Guatemalans test positive In recent weeks, concerns have mounted about the spread of the highly contagious virus through deportation proceedings. Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei said on Sunday that a total of 50 migrants deported by the US to the Central American country had tested positive for coronavirus. The country has temporarily suspended the flights. Guatemalan migrants walking towards a bus after being deported from the US in Guatemala City, Guatemala [Fabricio Alonso/Reuters] Just 400 detainees in the US out of more than 32,000 had been tested as of last week, according to testimony that Matthew Albence, the acting director of ICE, gave Friday to a US congressional committee. The House Committee on Oversight and Reform said that Albence also confirmed that ICE does not routinely test detainees before deporting them. More than 1,600 people deported from the US to Guatemala over the last month were allowed to go home and into voluntary, unenforced quarantine. Fears are rising that it may have seeded the Central American nation with an untold number of undetected cases, increasing its vulnerability to the pandemic. The commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps unveiled a handheld device on Wednesday that he said could detect coronavirus almost instantly, but Iranian scientists have rejected the claim and other government officials have distanced themselves. "This new achievement is an emerging and unique technology that was fully developed by IRGC's Basij forces after the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the country," said the IRGC's Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami as he presented the purported detection tool at a ceremony. "A sample of the virus is placed within the device and as the device scans the perimeter it looks for a match, once it finds one it pinpoints it and tells us," said Salami. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officers present what they say is a device capable of detecting coronavirus, April 15, 2020. (Iran State TV) According to Salami, the device, which resembles a handheld electric drill with an antenna, can detect a contaminated person or area in five seconds within a radius of 100 meters thanks to a "magnetic system of resonance." Shortly after the unveiling, at a Health Ministry press conference, a reporter for a Turkish news agency asked a Health Ministry spokesman about the device touted by Salami. The spokesman, Kianoush Jahanpour, said the device had not been licensed by the countrys equivalent of the Food & Drug Administration. Later the same day, Hesameddin Ashena, an adviser to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, took to Twitter to ask state television networks to avoid broadcasting any "false advertisements for vaccines, drugs, or innovative detection kits" that had not been approved by the Health Ministry. The day after Salami's presentation, the Iranian Physics Society described the claims made for the device as "quasi-science" on its website. "Human knowledge at this point cannot reveal or detect particles with dimensions of 100 nanometers. Such a claim is unbelievable and it's an imaginary science," said the group. Coronavirus detector being showcased in a hospital in Iran. Screenshot taken from a video posted by the spokesperson of a military hospital in Tehran. (@Hadizoheiri) At several points in the past dozen years, the Iranian media has reported on handheld devices that have been promoted as able to detect fuel smugglers, copper deposits, bombs, liquids, and underground solids, all linked to the same inventor. Story continues In 2009 a man named Kambiz Golshani marketed a device that he said could detect copper deposits. Golshani presented himself as the creator of the device and the CEO of a company named Pouyan Kavosh Urmia Company. Three years later, Golshani showed journalists in Western Iran a device that he said could detect landmines or bombs. Golshani said the device was "unique in its technology and not seen anywhere else in the world." Kambiz Golshani holds one of his devices in a documentary on iron work aired in 2019 on IRGC owned OFOGH TV. (OFOGH TV) In 2015, Golshani said a device called the "PK8" could be used in inclement weather to detect liquids and solids underground. In 2017, an official with the National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company said an offshoot of the company was going to help Golshanis produce devices to detect fuel smuggling. The official said in a press release that the devices could detect fuel and would be used in a pilot program to catch smugglers at border stations. A photo of the yellow handheld device was included in the press release sent to Shana, an outlet focused on covering national Iranian oil news. NBC News was unable to find any follow up reports about the pilot programs. An Iranian website sells multiple identical devices marketed as capable of detecting everything from oil to wood to corpses. (via NBC News) One year later, a local news station shot footage of Golshani presenting several devices that he said were able to detect various liquids, solids and a virus. NBC News found a website associated with Golshani's company where one can inquire about purchasing devices capable of detecting oil, water, wood, airplanes, and even corpses. The majority of the devices on the website are virtually identical in appearance. Golshani did not respond to an emailed request for comment. The governor of Edo, southern Nigeria, Godwin Obaseki, says the state government has spent over N1billion to curtail the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Naija News reports that the Edo State Governor made the statement in Benin City during a live briefing on the virus by the State Response Team on Sunday, April 19. Governor Obaseki reiterated his administrations commitment to ending the scourge of coronavirus in Edo state. His words: The government of Edo State is leading this battle from the front. We have already spent over N1billion of our limited resources so far on this fight. We have constituted the Edo State Fund-Raising Committee which is made up of our sons and daughters who are captains of industries, religious leaders, traditional rulers to help us galvanise efforts at mobilizing resources to beef up the state governments response to this pandemic, he said. The governor said the decision of the state government to review the partial lockdown imposed on residents was borne after reviewing the COVID-19 tests carried out on suspects. Governor Obaseki appealed for donations by spirited individuals and groups while calling on residents of the state to support his administrations efforts in fighting the virus. Also, Governor Obaseki wants the people to reach out to what he described as the most vulnerable in the state, so as to cushion the hardship that may arise from the lockdown order. The governor believes that doing so will prevent a catastrophe in the society, while maintaining the dignity of those affected. Obaseki noted that the state is on the verge of conducting 1,000 cases arising from the coronavirus. Governor Obaseki believes that for the state to win the battle against the virus, the people should regularly wear their face masks. The state government also asked the citizens to maintain regular washing of hands and maintain social distancing always. Share this post with your Friends on Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-19 23:00:25|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Residents from Shanglin county in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region sing local folk songs during a livestreaming activity to sell local farm goods on March 24, 2020. (Xinhua/Lu Boan) As China has tailored policy toolkits to help spur growth at home, many grassroots level officials have recently turned to video-promoting local farm products in a bid to gain a rebound in consumption. NANNING, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Holding a tin of jasmine tea, Hong Ben worked very hard in front of the camera. Through a livestreaming app on his mobile phone, Hong introduced the quality and flavor of the tea. Hong is not an ordinary livestreamer, but the deputy head of Hengxian County in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Apart from jasmine tea, Hong also promoted other local specialties like papaya pickles and potted live jasmine, as well as the unique ethnic culture and natural scenery of Hengxian County. As China has tailored policy toolkits to help spur growth at home, many grassroots level officials have recently turned to video-promoting local farm products in a bid to gain a rebound in consumption. For county chiefs, it was an unconventional yet practical means to promote online, in that ordering and delivery services had become a pillar of daily supplies for city dwellers during the COVID-19 epidemic. Hong said that a tag of "sold out" always gives him the greatest delight, adding "it means that our products have been accepted and welcomed all over the country and have a good market." Residents from Shanglin county in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region talk about local farm goods during a livestreaming activity on March 24, 2020. (Xinhua/Lu Boan) Fifty-four counties in Guangxi have joined the live sales hosted by government officials and attracted over 30 million viewers in early April, according to the regional commerce department. Among those who recently joined the trend, Wu Juan, deputy mayor of Guangxi's capital city Nanning, tasted and recommended local delicacies in front of a cellphone camera and performed folk songs and dances to boost sales. "The epidemic hit many enterprises hard, especially the catering business," Wu said. "One of my duties is to help them. And I've been more than happy to recommend our best and safest items via livestreaming platforms," Wu added. These officials, mostly middle-aged, picked up buzzwords and internet slangs popular among younger netizens in a bid to attract more viewers. "Let's countdown -- three, two, one, here comes the (product) link!" "Send in the screenshot, sweetheart, and y'all get a discount," said Hou Gang, deputy mayor of the city of Liuzhou who kept using catchy touting expressions, turning far-flung viewers into frequenters. During a two-hour livestreaming, Hou sold more than 3 million yuan (about 424,000 U.S. dollars) worth of products, including 43 Liuzhou-produced electric vehicles. Local entrepreneurs also praised the officials for selling local produce. Qin Lijun, the assistant general manager of a Guangxi-based fresh food brand, told Xinhua that the live shows gained more attention from consumers and led to real sales growth. Qin Xia, CEO of a tea enterprise in Hengxian County, said that Hong's hit show provided the company an opportunity to run the brick-and-mortar store and explore the online market simultaneously. SAGINAW, MI - There is no longer anything to vote on in Saginaw, Bay or Midland counties for the next election on May 5. All ballot proposals originally scheduled for a vote then have been postponed, clerks in Saginaw, Bay and Midland counties confirmed. Schools boards behind most of the ballot questions met Wednesday, March 18, which is when most decisions to postpone the ballot proposals were made, said Kyle Bostwick, Saginaw County chief deputy clerk. Freeland and Merrill Community Schools had ballot proposals scheduled but decided to postpone them, Bostwick said. We dont have a Saginaw County ballot for the upcoming election," Bostwick said. Districts are given the opportunity to move proposals to either August or November elections under an executive order from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Freeland and Merrill have not responded to Bostwick to reschedule a voting date yet, he said. Bay County voters were set to decide on a proposal by Bay City Public Schools and some would also vote on the Freeland schools proposal, county Clerk Cynthia Luczak said. We anticipate both questions will be on the August ballot, Luczak said. The state is willing to reimburse counties for work done so far for these elections, she said. Absentee ballots will not be sent to those who requested them, she said. If they have not already done so, voters must request another ballot for the August election. John Keefer, chief deputy clerk for Midland County, said proposals for Freeland, Merrill and Breckenridge schools were slated to appear on some voters May 5 ballot. Breckenridge Community Schools also postponed its proposal, he said. Though COVID-19 continues to spread through the state, Michigan has not officially canceled the May 5 elections. Whitmers executive order tweaks election rules to promote absentee voting for the next cycle, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced all voters will receive absentee ballot applications. Read more: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says dont go to the polls, vote absentee in May 5 election, slow the coronavirus Michigan sending absentee ballot applications to all May 5 election voters because of coronavirus outbreak Demise of coal-burning power means toxic ash landfills forever on Great Lakes State shores A judge has jailed a recovering drug addict for four years for a spree of robberies after saying he didn't think the man was very good at crime. Judge Martin Nolan noted that Keith McCarthy (44) had previously worked for some time as a drug counsellor for a number of different agencies after successfully dealing with his addiction. He carried out three robberies and an attempted robbery to get cash to pay off a drug debt following his relapse. I am impressed that he is not the worst individual in the world, Judge Nolan said before he jailed him for four years and disqualified him from driving for four years having heard that McCarthy twice drove without insurance. Bernard Condon SC, defending, told Judge Nolan there is no criminal genius here after he read out a letter written by McCarthy's mother who said her son was driven to robbery out of desperation. McCarthy of Windmill Terrace, Clonsilla, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to twice robbing Eddie Rocket's in Finglas on June 25 and July 9, 2019. He also pleaded guilty to robbery of BoyleSports on Main Street in Donabate and attempted robbery of Ladbrokes in Mulhuddart, both on July 20, 2019. He further admitted two charges of driving without insurance on July 20 and July 23, 2019. McCarthy's 38 previous convictions include 30 for road traffic offences, along with criminal damage, possession of firearms, theft and a four year suspended sentence for robbery handed down in June 2015. Judge Nolan said I don't think he is very good at crime. He needed money for a drug debt and this is what he thought he needed to do to get the money. He accepted evidence that McCarthy was a good father and a caring son and took into account his pleas of guilty, co-operation with the garda investigation and his expression of remorse. There is every hope of reform but he must rid himself of his addictive habits, Judge Nolan said before he added I am impressed that he is not the worst individual in the world. Garda Hayley Robinson told Kieran Kelly BL, prosecuting, that the same woman was working on each occasion that McCarthy robbed the Eddie Rockets in Finglas while armed with an imitation firearm. She said on each occasion he wore a scarf over his face and demanded money from the safe in the back office. During the second incident he dropped something from his gun which was later handed into the gardai and found to be a plastic magazine. The gardai then believed that it was an imitation firearm used in both raids. McCarthy robbed just under 2,000 from Eddie Rockets during the raids. During the attempted robbery of Ladbrokes, the cashier he approached immediately noticed that it was an imitation gun and asked McCarthy Is this a joke?. McCarthy laughed and left the shop without taking anything. Later that same day he robbed BoyleSports in Donabate of 5,000 after holding the imitation gun on a counter and demanding cash. McCarthy later made full admissions following his arrest. He said he was concerned for the safety of his partner and her child because of the drug debt he owed. He apologised and said he had not meant to hurt anyone. Mr Condon said his client had had a long standing drug addiction but managed to get clean, study drug addiction and then become a drug counsellor for three different agencies. He later relapsed into drug addiction and built up this debt. Counsel said he returned to crime as a last resort and in desperation. When desperation re-visited he returned back to his old habits. The demons he conquered before he now needs to conquer again, Mr Condon submitted. He has previously shown that he can turn his life around and I ask the court to give him that opportunity again, counsel continued. Other donations to the UNHCR Refugee Zakat Fund were from individuals, institutional partners and philanthropists. These donations have helped provide lifesaving assistance to a total of 191,497 vulnerable families (1,025,014 individuals). On March 25th, UNHCR appealed for $255 million for its urgent push to curb the risk and lessen the impact of COVID-19 outbreaks on vulnerable communities. Funds are critical to urgently support preparedness and response in situations of forced displacement over the next nine months. "Imagine trying to cope with this (the coronavirus pandemic) crisis with no access to soap and water to wash your hands. No hope of isolating yourself because of overcrowded conditions. No shelter to stay safely inside. Imagine having to do this after already having been forced by war to flee your home and your family. This is the tragic reality today for far too many refugees and displaced families around the world," said Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in a video statement. The Refugee Zakat Fund was launched by UNHCR in 2019, as a trusted, compliant and effective distributor harnessing the power of Zakat to transform the lives of the most vulnerable refugee and IDPs. Since its first year of inception in 2019, the fund has assisted more than one million vulnerable beneficiaries worldwide. MEDIA CONTACT: Raefah Makki Campaign and Advocacy Officer, UNHCR MENA [email protected] SOURCE UNHCR Related Links https://www.unhcr.org/en-us Republicans are moving 'full steam ahead' in planning their August convention to nominate President Donald Trump for a second term after Democrats delayed their gathering due to the coronavirus. 'We are full steam ahead planning a traditional convention, working with our team on the ground, (2020 Convention CEO) Marcia Lee Kelly, to conduct a traditional convention,' Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told reporters on a briefing call Monday, according to CNN. We do not think at this time we have to switch to an alternative plan, but of course, we will monitor circumstances and adjust accordingly,' she noted. Republicans are moving 'full steam ahead' in planning their August convention to nominate President Donald Trump for a second term 'We are full steam ahead planning a traditional convention,' Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told reporters McDaniel said full work on setting up the convention didn't begin until July, which gave the party time to make alternative arrangements if social distancing guidelines were still in place. 'We don't build out our convention until July. So I think we have at least until the end of June or early July to make a decision if we have to switch from a traditional convention to something scaled back. But we will have to have an in-person convention. Those are the bylaws of the RNC and so currently, going forward, we're planning on a full-scale convention,' she said. The Republican National Convention is scheduled for August 24-27 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Democrats announced in early April they would delay their convention by a month - to begin on August 17. It will remain in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it was originally expected to take place the third week of July. The date change put the Democrats' gathering one week ahead of the Republican meeting. Additionally, McDaniel had no word on when campaign rallies will begin again, saying there 'were no plans right now' and nothing is on the schedule. 'We're going to take into account the three phases of opening the government and make sure that everybody's safety is in place and we're following the guidelines with the federal government, the state government, the local governments are laying out. Hopefully we can rally again, hopefully we'll get to a place where we can campaign again,' she said. Trump on Friday admitted he's looking forward to getting back on the campaign trail although he didn't give a date as to when and complained he's been locked up in the White House for 'months.' 'I've been in the White House for months. I don't know what it is but it's been months,' he said at his daily press briefing. 'Other than I did leave to, to say goodbye to a beautiful ship,' he said referring to his trip to Norfolk, Virginia, on March 28 to watch the USNS Comfort leave for New York. The president returned from a weekend at Mar-a-Lago on Monday, March 9, and has been in Washington D.C. ever since dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Democrats delayed their convention, where Joe Biden will be nominated, by a month to now start August 17 He said he is ready to campaign for re-election and argued rallies are 'great' for the country. 'We can do rallies. It's great for the country,' he said. His last campaign rally was Monday, March 2, in Charlotte, N.C. 'If you look at our success rate we've had tremendous success - we win where we have rallies,' he said. 'So I certainly hope we can have rallies. We'll find out,' he noted. Image credit: Briam Cute (Pixabay) The global hysteria over COVID-19 is nearing its peak. And the contours of a future reality for the diamond market are turning more and more visible. Frankly speaking, the prospects look hardly bright. Before describing the gloomy prospects, I think it necessary to explain my position on the issue - whether the current crisis will remain a spontaneous phenomenon or it will be given a project character. The industry site format does not imply a serious discussion, since the numerous arguments of the supporters and opponents lie far beyond the diamond industry. Nevertheless, I have to provide a link to one of the latest Fox News materials - this mouthpiece of the Republicans in the USA. The article is funny in itself with the citations from sources of sorts, references from classified materials and the ones that are publicly available. It was mentioned above that COVID-19 was not a biological weapon, but nevertheless, a human-induced viral host shift from a bat to humans took place at the Wuhan laboratory and this was a conscious action of China against the USA. What for? This can be read in the publication. In this regard, I recalled my article Diamonds and U.S. National debt published here by Rough&Polished exactly ten years ago, in April 2010. The main thesis of the article can be summarized as follows - The economy of the issuer of the only world reserve currency cannot develop without a continuous increase in the Fed balance required to decrease the entropy of the financial markets. Injecting new money necessarily requires the permanent creation of economic miracles - Japan, Four Asian tigers, China, which, as a result of pumping technology and liquidity into them, have consistently turned into export-oriented economies No. 2 and become the largest holders of the US government debt placed among foreign creditors. However, as soon as the new world economic leader reaches a certain level in crediting the budget of its creator, there should be a planned stop in the development of the economic miracle to prevent the moderators possible risks (including the political ones) from exceeding reasonable levels. In 2017, China set a record in crediting the USA. The quota for this economic miracle seems to be over, and the current US administration with all its republican frankness declares this in words and active actions. No matter how cynical it sounds, COVID-19 may turn out to be a successful crisis - it happened at the right time, one can try to solve two of the most pressing problems in one fell swoop: deflate the bubbles in the stock markets and bring the Chinese economic miracle into a permanent recession like it was with the Japanese one. As always, the Fed injected a bumper dose of liquidity into the economy and fixed a weakness. What will secure this liquidity appeared out of thin air? Next in turn is a new economic miracle - in five to seven years, we will see another economy No. 2, perhaps, with the capital in New Delhi, which, of course, will quickly turn into the USAs largest creditor. So, the author tends to believe that there will be attempts to redesign the current crisis, even if bats caused it, to solve the above problems. Accusations of using the conspiracy theory, of course, are inevitable, but there is no difference what the name of an effective theory is? If the proposed scheme describes the reality adequately, the following prospects loom over the diamond industry. 1. Hopes for recovery and for a growing demand for rough and polished diamonds in China are not justified. The Chinese economy, at best, will be at 75-80% of the pre-crisis level and this will continue for many years. 2. The pattern of demand for rough diamonds that developed at the peak of the crisis sharply exacerbated the trend emerged in the recent years - large-scale high-quality rough diamonds will be in demand on the market and their price will rise; small-sized rough diamonds will quickly turn into useless goods. Given that the small-sized rough diamonds account for more than 80% of some major diamond miners production, in the very near future, the companies may face the challenges requiring most energetic solutions. 3. Just as happened on the coloured stone market, the synthetics will determine the price level of small-sized rough diamonds, and this level will continuously (and possibly, quickly) decline due to the development of technologies and the reduction in the cost of synthesis. 4. A sharp drop in demand for rough and polished diamonds and the dubious prospects for its recovery will put an end to the investment diamonds, diamond-backed derivative securities, diamond-backed cryptocurrencies and similar risky undertakings, which, undoubtedly, can be attributed to a few positive effects of the crisis on the diamond industry. 5. The unprecedented cash injections by the Fed into the US economy may revive the demand for a diamond jewellery in the largest market in the future, but this will happen not earlier than in a year or even two, and is unlikely to fully compensate for the failure in the Chinas market, especially given the difference in quality and price of the polished diamonds preferred by the American and Chinese consumers. The above circumstances coupled with the possible aggressive marketing by luxury manufacturers, hotels, travel destinations - all those who will have to struggle tooth and nail for the consumers flattened wallet after the quarantine is over, are likely to result in structural changes in the diamond mining industry bringing serious consequences (including the social ones). De Beers has every chance to significantly strengthen its positions in its negotiations with Botswana. The Indian diamond cutting and polishing industry, of course, will try to exert maximum pressure on the prices asked by the producers, but without preferential loans from the state banks, it will be in a very difficult position. ALROSA will traditionally make an arrangement with Gokhran on the purchase of its rough diamonds, citing a precedent during the 2008-2009 crisis. However, the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil did not fall below $ 41.58 at that time and the Russian budget looked much more stable than today. Second-tier companies that were forced to minimize their costs, invest in low impact technologies allowing the increase in quantity of large undamaged stones during their beneficiation, and sell goods as efficiently as possible before COVID-19, may be lucky and show the decline by 15 percent only. Actually, the 2009 crisis showed approximately the same. The decline shown at that time by large producers was almost by half, and that of the second-tier companies showed a maximum 15% increase. In any case, this summer will show. Sergey Goryainov, Rough&Polished US Secretaty of State Mike Pompeo has thanked Indian multinational conglomerate, Mahindra Group, for manufacturing "life-saving equipment" in Detroit, Michigan. Mahindra's American unit, Mahindra Ag North America, or MAgNA, recently started manufacturing collapsible aerosol boxes at its facility in Auburn Hills, Detroit. The company's facility was already manufacturing other protective medical equipment such as face masks and shields. Michigan-based news portal The Detroit News said that Mahindra Group was joining the "arsenal of health" efforts spearheaded by Ford and GM, which was promptly acknowledged by Secretary Pompeo in tweet that reas: "Thank you to the Mahindra Group for rising to the occasion and using your facilities to manufacture life-saving equipment." Thank you to the Mahindra Group for rising to the occasion and using your facilities to manufacture life-saving equipment. https://t.co/890KEcF1R8 Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) April 20, 2020 Chairman of Mahindra Group, Anand Mahindra had earlier tweeted about the aerosol box designed by MAgNA which protects health workers while they're intubating patients. The OEM is manufacturing these aspiration boxes out of the polycarbonate material used in windshields. The Detroit-desgined boxes are also being manufactured in India at Mahindra's Nashik plant. Dr Pawan Goenka, MD and CEO at M&M said that the company has supplied close to 80,000 face shields to medical staff across the country. He added that the company was currently testing AMBU bag respirators, called AIR100. Mahindra's US headquarters is working closely with the State of Michigan to identify other products and services that can be rolled out by "re-tooling" its auto manufacturing forces to aid the state's COVID-19 response efforts. Additionally, the company has started a door-step delivery programme for dealers of its off-road vehicle ROXOR, which is based on the iconic Thar that the company makes in India. US President Donald Trump had issued strict orders to US-based auto giants Ford and General Motors to manufacture ventilators at their plants under the Defence Production Act. When Michigan residents lay their heads down at night, about 28% of them are worrying about how theyll be able to put food on the table, or pay their rents and mortgages, the results of a recent survey indicate. The statewide poll, conducted by The Glengariff Group and commissioned by the Detroit Regional Chamber, surveyed 600 residents on the current economic and public health climate amid the coronavirus outbreak. Results of the survey were published Monday morning, April 20. They will be shared with state and federal policymakers, as well as the states business community, the chamber announced. We were trying to paint a picture of whats really happening in households across the state," said Richard Czuba, founder of Glengariff Group Inc. Czuba said hes been polling since 1983 and hes never seen numbers as dramatic as those in this survey. He said the number of residents who are worried about putting food on their table is a very concerning data point. I think theres some very sobering numbers here about what residents in the state are dealing with," he said. The resident survey, conducted April 15-16, found that 29% of respondents reported being laid off, furloughed or unable to work. That means Aprils unemployment rate could go beyond record-breaking and into the realm of breathtaking, said Sandy Baruah, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber. The dual-threat of navigating our greatest public health crisis, coupled with our greatest economic crisis has placed a hereto unknown strain on Michigan families," Baruah said. About 47% of respondents said the financial impact theyre feeling is either major or catastrophic. While 12% of all respondents said the financial impact was catastrophic, it was worse for those younger than 30, with 21% classifying the impact as catastrophic. Many Michiganders have turned to state and federal unemployment benefits to help them through the current economic crisis. Of those respondents who are out of work, 64% said theyve filed for unemployment and 36% havent. The states unemployment system has been inundated with claims in recent weeks and Department of Labor officials have asked for patience in getting through the system. Nearly a quarter of Michigan workers have filed for unemployment Of those surveyed who have filed for unemployment, 48% have been successful filing for unemployment, 37% have not been successful and 15% said they werent sure if they had been successful in filing. COVID-19 has infected 32,000 Michigan residents and has been associated with more than 2,468 deaths statewide. Of those surveyed, 9% said they believe theyve been infected by the virus, whether theyve been tested or not. That total was higher (18%) among respondents whose jobs have not been affected by the virus and Gov. Gretchen Whitmers stay-at-home order. The 18% who are working as normal and believe they have COVID-19, from a public health standpoint, I find that to be a fairly stunning number, Baruah said. Below are some additional findings from the survey: Of the total respondents, 28% are worried about being able to put food on the their table or pay their rent or mortgage. That number is higher for furloughed or laid-off residents (54%), for African Americans (54 %) and for residents ages 18 to 29 (45%) and 30 to 29 (40%). Residents optimism about how long it will take Michigans economy to return to normal varied. While only 18% said it would be back to normal within one month, 39% said it would take 1-6 months compared to 36% who said itd take a year or more. About 50% of residents believe Michigan is already in a recession, while 27 % believe the state is not in a recession and 23% are not sure. Regarding financial recovery, 46% of respondents said their finances would return to normal within one month of the stay-at-home order being lifted. About 23% said it would take a couple months, while 15% said it would take a year and 14% said their financial situation had not changed. Of those who have been furloughed, laid off or cannot work, 41% said their finances would return to normal within one month of the order being lifted. About 35% said it would take a couple months, and 21% said it would take a year. When its time to return to work, 61% of respondents said they would feel safe to return to work, compared to 32% who would not feel safe. About 20% would feel very safe, while 41% would feel somewhat safe, 25% would feel somewhat unsafe and 7% would feel very unsafe. Czuba said approval rates for how President Donald Trump has handled the public health crisis are similar in Michigan to how respondents have rated him throughout his presidency. Republicans approve of his handling by a margin of 88%-9%. Democrats disapprove of his handling by a margin of 6%-86%. Independent voters disapprove of his handling by a margin of 40%-52%. As for Gov. Whitmer, respondents approved of her handling of COVID-19 by a margin of 57% to 37%. Czuba said its been a long time since Ive seen a Michigan governor with those kinds of numbers. She received approval ratings from approximately one in four Republicans. Democrats approve of her handling by a margin of 89%-8%. Republicans disapprove of her handling by a margin of 22%-70%. Independent voters approve of her handing by a margin of 56%-35%. Were in a rally around the flag moment, Czuba said. Clearly, the governor, her performance has benefited from that rally around the flag but the president has not benefited from the rally around the flag. In analyzing the results, Baruah said there isnt a clear winner in the debate between returning to work quicker versus furthering the restrictions from Whitmers stay-at-home order. We want to see smart back-to-work steps that do not jeopardize public health, Baruah said. "We also represent health care providers and healthcare systems. One of the things they tell us is theyre essentially at max capacity and that capacity isnt necessarily going to grow. It has less to do with bed space and more to do with human capital. their human capital has been running max out for six weeks. We have to ensure that whatever we do, our healthcare system has to be able to manage. At the same time though, we believe there are some smart things we can and should be doing to bring back more employees, more businesses in a very safe way. The Glengariff Group said the resident survey has a 95% level of confidence. Half of the residents were contacted via automatic dialing, landline telephone, and the other half of respondents were contacted via cellphone text messages. To view the full survey results, visit the chambers website, here. 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: These are not normal times: Judge moves filing deadline, cuts signature requirements for primary candidates Medical experts say Michigans coronavirus death count isnt accurate. But is it too high or too low? Michigan lawmakers express concern at lack of federal help for states small businesses Whitmer anxious to re-engage economy but wants to avoid second wave of coronavirus A top military conference, chaired by the defence minister, has been postponed amid the coronavirus outbreak, a senior government officer said on Monday. The Unified Commanders Conference (UCC) was supposed to take place on April 22-23. The UCC was to be chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh and attended by national security adviser Ajit Doval, chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat, the three service chiefs and a battery of senior officers of the armed forces and the ministry. Fresh dates are yet to be announced. The army had earlier indefinitely deferred a conference of its top commanders that was scheduled to take place in Delhi from April 13 to April 18. Such top conferences covers key issues such as the countrys security dynamics, emerging security scenarios, enhancing operational capability, taking steps to stay prepared for all challenges and budgetary aspects. Issues related to theaterisation would have also been discussed but the coronavirus outbreak has put many things on hold. The conferences were to take place at a time when there has been an unusual spike in ceasefire violations on the Line of Control by the Pakistan army to help infiltrators sneak into Jammu and Kashmir. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said the army was carrying out targeted strikes on terror launch pads along the LoC and eliminating the Pakistani infiltrators before they cross over to the Indian side. Singh, in an interview to PTI, said the armed forces are not lowering their guard at all while playing a significant role in the countrys overall fight to defeat the coronavirus pandemic. Delhi to ease restrictions, if Covid cases come down in next 2-3 days: Health Minister Lata Mangeshkar health update: Doctor says,'She in ICU with Covid-19 and pneumonia, will be under observation' West Bengal govt accuses ICMR-NICED for providing defective COVID-19 test kits India oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P Kolkata, Apr 20: Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government has accused the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (ICMR-NICED) of providing it with defective COVID-19 test kits. Taking to Twitter, the state health department said, "The apparently defective test kits supplied by ICMR-NICED, Kolkata, are resulting in a high number of repeat / confirmatory tests and causing delays and other attendant problems at a time when we are battling a pandemic." West Bengal recorded its first coronavirus positive case on March 17, but it was only last week that the administration began to 'seal' some areas after identifying them as 'high-risk spots'. Experts have alleged that the West Bengal may have woken up late. Coronavirus outbreak: Karnataka govt to extend its lockdown till April 21 midnight In a report, senior cardiologist Kunal Sarkar said that identification of such 'micro-spots' would be of no use if the frequency of testing does not increase in time. He further said that sample testing in India is quite low. And West Bengal has witnessed the sample testing exceptionally low. He also said that it is not a competition of low numbers. COVID-19: Check full list of containment zones in Bengaluru On an average the state has been testing about 200 samples per day. Shanta Dutta, the director of the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED)- ICMR, said that the state government was not sending enough samples for testing. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The Department of Interior and Local Government said it will file charges against former Congressman Ariel Casilao and six volunteers who went to distribute relief goods in Norzagaray, Bulacan on Sunday in violation of quarantine rules. In a statement, DILG Spokesman Jonathan Malaya said Casilao, who represented the Anakpawis Party-list in the 17th Congress, will be charged for violating provisions of the Bayanihan to Heal as One law that sets strict stay-at-home protocols for residents of Luzon. "We wish to remind Anakpawis that the virus cannot spread by itself," Malaya said in a statement on Monday. "It has no legs. It is people that spread the virus. You give us no choice but to file charges against you." "Wala po tayong special treatment kahit may congressman kayo," he also said. "Ang lahat ng pasaway, kakasuhan [We don't give special treatment even if you have a congressman with you. We will sue all violators]." Casilao and his team of volunteers from Tulong Anakpawis and Sagip Kanayunan said they were blocked and apprehended by cops on Sunday morning but were not informed of their violations. The left-leaning group said it was plain harassment, as several groups called for their immediate release. The relief goods were eventually distributed to the intended recipients in Barangay Bigte after they were turned over to local authorities, the DILG said. The DILG took the gesture as an "unauthorized travel outside of Metro Manila," and accused Casilao's team of attempting to organize a mass gathering in the community in the guise of distributing relief goods. Malaya claimed the jeepney that ferried the group and the goods also carried tarpaulins, pamphlets and other "propaganda materials." He added that the materials were confiscated by local police to be used as evidence in court. "Kung tunay ngang relief operation ang kailangang gawin, bakit 'di sila nakipag-ugnayan sa IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force), NTF (National Task Force) COVID or kahit man lang sana sa local government unit ng Norzagaray, Bulacan? [If they were really conducting relief operations, why didn't they coordiate with IATF, NTF, or even with the local government unit of Norzagaray, Bulacan?]," Malaya said. "Maari naman silang payagan kung 'yon ang tunay nilang layunin [They would have been allowed if that's really their purpose for visiting], he added. The DILG identified the volunteers as Karl Mae San Juan, Marlon Lester Gueta, Robero Medel, Eriberto Pena Jr., Raymar Guaves, and Tobi Estrada. They will be charged for violating provisions of the Bayanihan law, among them for non-cooperation and resistance and disobedience to a person of authority, while Casilao will face raps for usurpation of authority. The DILG claimed the vehicle used an unauthorized food pass and that the team namedropped Casilao to get past checkpoints before they were accosted. The Communist Party of the Philippines denounced the arrest, saying it "shows the Duterte regimes perverse priorities even amid the pandemic." "Instead of focusing on efforts to ensure the welfare of the people suffering under the restrictive lockdown, it has intensified the fascist clampdown against activists even when they are conducting relief work," the CPP said. The group will undergo inquest proceedings Monday for the charges. The Reserve Bank of India on Monday announced the calendar of the meetings of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for the current financial year, and decision of the first meet will be announced on 5 June Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India on Monday announced the calendar of the meetings of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for the current financial year, and decision of the first meet will be announced on 5 June. The RBI governor-headed committee will meet for five times during the financial year 2020-21. The previous MPC meeting was advanced in view of the COVID-19 outbreak to 24, 26 and 27 March from originally scheduled for 31 March, 1 and 3 April. The MPC in the previous meeting decided to sharply cut the repo rate by 75 basis points as the coronavirus outbreak led to the lockdown in the country adversely affecting economic activities. The six-member MPC has met for 22 times. The first meeting was held in October 2016. As per the schedule announced by the RBI, the next Monetary Policy Committee meeting will take place during 3 to 5 June. The MPC decision is announced on the last day of the meeting. The other meetings will take place on 4 to 6 August, 2020; 29-30 September and 1 October, 2020; 2 to 4 December, 2020; and 3 to 5 February, 2021. According to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the central bank is required to organise at least four meetings of the MPC in a year. By ANI NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephone conversation with President of the Maldives, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, on Monday and assured that India will stand by its neighbour during ongoing 'challenging time' to ensure minimal impact of the COVID-19 situation on its health and economic sector. "Spoke on phone with H.E. President @ibusolih about the COVID-19 pandemic, and the health and economic challenges it poses for the Maldives," the Prime Minister tweeted. He also said that the special bond between India and Maldives strengthens "our resolve to fight this common enemy together". "India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time," he added. During the phone call, the leaders also updated each other about the current state of COVID-19 infections in their countries. They expressed satisfaction that the coordination modalities agreed between SAARC countries were being implemented actively. The Prime Minister was happy to hear that the Indian medical team deployed earlier to Maldives, and the essential medicines gifted by India had contributed towards controlling the spread of the infection in the islands. The two leaders agreed that their officials would remain in touch on issues arising out of the present health crisis, as well as other aspects of bilateral cooperation. This comes a day after President of Kazakhstan, Qasym-Jomart Toqayev, thanked India and PM Modi "for the donation of medical supplies to Kazakhstan to contain the coronavirus". "Sincerely thank the Government of India and personally Prime Minister @NarendraModi for the donation of medical supplies to Kazakhstan to contain the coronavirus. This high mark of friendship & solidarity is made even at a time when India banned export of drugs abroad," Toqayev said. PM Modi replied in a tweet, "India and Kazakhstan are strategic partners and cooperation and demonstration of solidarity during such challenging times further strengthens the bond of friendship between the two countries". India's total number of coronavirus positive cases rose to 17,265 on Monday including 14,175 active cases, 2,546 cured/discharged/migrated and 543 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Shelter-in-place orders are an effective means to slowing the spread of the coronavirus, yet millions of Americans have no choice but to leave home to go to work every day. Deemed essential for their jobs in manufacturing, grocery stores, pharmacies, warehouses, retailing and restaurants, they face daily risks by working alongside colleagues and customers who may be carriers of the coronavirus. At grocery stores and sprawling warehouses, workers say not enough is being done to protect them from exposure. Walmart employees, for instance, say they lack sufficient sanitizing supplies and protective gear and are forced to congregate in spaces that put them well within a six-foot radius of co-workers. At meat processing plants, where production lines often require working shoulder to shoulder, the risks are particularly acute. And mass-transit workers say they havent been provided masks or personal cleaning supplies. When their shifts end, they go home to their families, putting more people at risk. Weeks into the pandemic, its apparent that not nearly enough is being done to protect these front-line workers, even as their continued labor ensures that a semblance of normality endures for their fellow Americans. The Department of Labors primary worker safety enforcement arm, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has taken a largely hands-off approach to the pandemic. Only last week did OSHA put a priority on investigating health care facilities for complaints about coronavirus safety procedures, while effectively giving a free pass to some of the nations largest employers. Without a clear set of rules to follow, employers are making them up as they go. Pot Luck explores the unique trials and tribulations of cannabis legalization, mostly centered on Colorados legalization process. The documentary explores the unique careers that people have established in the industry. This includes running stores down the block, to the executives throwing around some heavy weight in the industry. Marijuana plants grow at the LivWell Enlightened Health cultivation facility on January 13, 2020, in Denver, Colorado |Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images The film dives into the perspectives and experiences of both the advocates and detractors of cannabis legalization in Colorado. This isnt another pro-pot film For anyone looking for an unbridled flurry of pro-pot rhetoric, it might be time to look elsewhere. While there are glowing testimonies from those involved in the Colorado cannabis industry, there is certainly no shortage of less than enthusiastic comments regarding the fundamental role cannabis now plays in daily Colorado life. Which is now a constitutional right in Colorado. However, this causes fervent discourse on both sides. Which is shown at length in the film. Beyond growers and buyers, the documentarian, Jane Wells, went above and beyond to gather testimonies from budtenders and customers alike and how they have received the wave of legalization. Many would expect a cannabis documentary centered in Colorado would create a tapestry of glowing reviews. But Wells created a more holistic presentation of the discourse surrounding the situation from the perspective of Colorado residents. Most notably, Wells interviews those in professions from addiction recovery consultants to law enforcement. One of the most salient points the film makes is that of the gentrification aspects that the cannabis industry has brought to some neighborhoods in Colorado. Wells digs inside the industry Even those who are invested in the industry seem to agree there was certainly some short-sightedness involved in the planning of the proliferation of this industry. Testimonies raise valid concerns from those concerned for the low-income neighborhoods of color where dispensaries are concentrated. These concerns focus on the changes theyve seen, often for the worse. One cannabis investor discusses that they are being blamed for bringing in an influx of substances. And aspects of gentrification into these neighborhoods are far more complex regarding the way these businesses were zoned in the cities to only allow them in these areas. This opens the door for a larger discussion about environmental justice. Wells tries to present both sides of the argument Pot Lucks dive into the fray of cannabis legalization is a worthwhile watch. Especially for those who have any express interest in the debate. One of the oldest reasons for the long-standing cannabis prohibition was that there was little data to understand the effects so that positive change could be imparted. However, thanks to filmmakers like Wells, now there are. Giant Pictures released Pot Luck on April 14, 2020, on all digital platforms including, Apple TV, Prime Video, Xbox / Microsoft Store, Vimeo On Demand, Google Play, Vudu, and Hoopla, plus DVD nationwide. LOS ANGELESWhen Stirling Cooper arrived in the adult industry in 2017, he made an immediate impact with his positive energy and can-do attitude. So when his career began to rise, he wanted to share his knowledge and experience with others trying to find their own path in the adult industry and for men looking to improve their sex life. With his newly-published book How I Grew My Penis and Other Porn Secrets, Cooper, who is represented by ATMLA, offers readers tips on growing a bigger unit while offering a look at his unique journey from a small town in Australia to the adult industry. The original inspiration came from wanting to get into porn, I was under 6 inches and you don't hear of many porn stars with dicks shorter than 6 inches so I thought I'd better find a way to make this thing longer if I'm going to have any chance, Cooper said. After my career had kicked off I started to accumulate a lot of knowledge, from my peers and through personal trial and error, on things like lasting longer in bed, getting a bigger cumshot and achieving stronger, longer-lasting erections. So that was when I decided I would put together all this knowledge in a kind of choose your own adventure book for men's sexual health. Thanks to his technique, Cooper went from 5.4 inches in length in January 2017 to 6.6 inches by May 2017. The girth also increased, going from 5.62 inches to 5.94 inches during the same period. To order the book, click here and for a photographic size comparison, click here. Although there are many products and medical techniques to grow a larger penis, Cooper said he realized that none of them worked. In his book, Cooper wrote that there are two basic ways to lengthen the penisby lengthening the ligaments that attach the penis to the pubic bone and by lengthening the shaft of the penis itself. Coopers technique uses tension to cause micro tears in the penis shaft which will then heal and cause the length of the shaft to increase. Its a similar principle to that used by the Kayan Lahwi tribe of Myanmar where women elongate their necks over time by applying rings to them, Cooper said. Another way to lengthen the penis is by stretching the ligaments that attach the penis to the pubic bone, not severing them like they do in surgical "enlargement. To increase the girth of the penis Cooper recommends applying pressure to engorge it with blood, which gradually creates micro tears in the cells of the penile tissue thus increasing the overall volume of the penis when they heal. I view the body as a machine that I can tinker with and adjust as I see fit, once you change your body in such a radical way contrary to what everyone says is possible it really opens up your eyes, said Cooper, who has almost 200 performing credits since 2017. You start thinking, what else is within my realm of control but I just don't realize it? I had taken a break from working on it over the last year as I focused more on building up my career, but I'll continue doing it because I really want to see how far I can push this, it's exciting. As for those who feel undersized, Cooper said: Realize that you can change it. If you're not happy with your dick size, your weight, your fitness etc then do something about it. Don't sit there feeling sorry for yourself, take action instead and watch your life improve. Having goals to strive for gives meaning to our lives, so get excited about improving yourself. Meanwhile, Cooper is looking past the current COVID-19 crisis and looks forward to developing instructional videos on each of the different chapters in his book, such as stronger erections, bigger cumshot, lasting longer in bed and more, with an element of porn thrown in order to be educational and entertaining as well. After that I'll be working on two more books, the first of which is going to be a guide on how to get into the industry as a guy, he said. and more importantly how to stay in the industry and make a career out of this. For more information follow Cooper on Twitter at @stirlingcooperx or visit gumroad.com/stirlingcooper. Big isnt always better, but Samsung thinks otherwise. Its Galaxy S20 Ultra is a phone that takes big very seriously it has the biggest screen, it has the biggest camera module and one of the biggest batteries. While doing it also has Samsungs fastest processor and also the highest amount of RAM found on a smartphone. But does big mean better? No. Not unless youre a geek. The problem is compounded by Samsungs own Galaxy S20+ which maintains the balance between big but not being uncontrollably so. If the S20+ didnt exist, then the Ultra wouldve been the go-to top tier Android phone for most people, but now it is reserved to being a niche toy for the geek brigade. There is something very impressive about the S20 Ultra, yet its clearly not for everyone. One of the reasons the Galaxy S20 Ultra gets its Ultra moniker is because it pushes the concept of a smartphone to its extremes. This phone gets a humongous 6.9-inch panel. This is basically the largest screen you can get on a modern smartphone. This equates to a massive phone thats potentially going to be a pain to carry for most people. It is heavy, doesnt fit a standard jean pocket easily and doesnt lay flat on any surface thanks to its chunky camera hump. At the same time, its build quality is immaculate sturdy thanks to a glass and metal sandwich thats further secured by IP68 water and dust resistance. It also feels more premium than the S20+. However, for most people, Samsungs Galaxy S20+ will be better. Now that there are options like the OnePlus 8 Pro incoming, one even has affordable choices, but for the few who want that massive real estate, there are life changing benefits to be had. For me, the big wide canvas afforded the perfect screen to write. I usually dont write on the phone. It is an activity mostly reserved for smaller articles, but anything thats going to be more than 1500 words, is usually written on the iPad or MacBook. The Galaxy S20 Ultra changes that. Google Docs is a delight to use coupled with the really reactive haptic system which makes typing longform fun. Writers try it. Also Read: Why Apples iPad Pro is the best tool for video calls in the COVID19 work from home era Samsung even preloads Microsofts Office applications alongside the My phone app, so this becomes an even better productivity beast if your PC is based on Windows. This was something that I was unable to enjoy as Im a through and through Mac user. Oh, by the way, this screen is sinfully good. At least, at the time of writing this, it is the best smartphone panel Ive come across. Its incredible for gaming, playing Netflix for which it is optimised and generally superb for consuming and creating alike. Its 120Hz refresh rate ensures everything is so fluid. For anyone concerned about the reduced pixel density at the 6.9-inch size Id say dont, unless of course, you have a microscope fetish. With such gargantuan size, comes a gargantuan battery. The 5,000mAh battery on this phone converts to highly decent battery life. Its not much better than the Galaxy S20+ but there are improvements to be had, if you are such a hectic user. It helps that this phone gets 25-watt charging out of the box which can scale to 45-watts via USB-PD. This phone also does 15-watt wireless charging and 3-watt reverse wireless charging. Chances are that rarely you will run out of juice on this phone. This is the fastest Samsung phone Ive ever tested. While that should be standard issue on whats the first mainstream flagship phone of the year, what Im getting at is how fast it feels as compared to a new iPhone which usually tends to be considerably faster than a new Samsung Galaxy S. Id say the combination of the 120Hz screen with the 240Hz touch sampling coupled with the new Exynos 990 chip, LPDDR5 RAM, all 8GB of it, with UFS 3.0 storage make this phone FEEL faster than Apples iPhone 11s for most users. Thats never happened. But thats also a function of the Galaxy S20 series having these new high-refresh rate panels and the iPhones being stuck on 60Hz screens. That will likely change later this year when there is a new iPhone 12, but for the time being this phone will feel faster even if it is not the fastest around. However, roll that comparison over to some of the competitor Android phones that are incoming, the Galaxy S20 Ultra doesnt seem as appetising. The OnePlus 8 Pro for instance, could possibly have a better screen as noted by Display Mate, and also faster performance considering the gulf in the Samsungs Exynos processors and Qualcomms Snapdragon 865 which is going to be there on most Android flagships in 2020. It is not a massive delta but for those who care, this may become everything as it underpins everything in the minutest ways possible. From the quality of graphics, the fluidity of multitasking and the battery life everything should be better on the OnePlus 8 Pro. It is a small handicap that Samsung never used to have till 2-3 years ago. But regardless, this phone is fiendishly fast for most people, even geeks. The performance isnt what grants its Ultra moniker, but beastly technologies that push the limits of physics on a smartphone. The camera module on the S20 Ultra does that so more so than any phone in the market. This is the first phone in India to get a 108-megapixel primary camera sensor. This is basically the largest sensor thats ever been on a smartphone. It is further reinforced with a 48-megapixel telephoto camera that does 5x optical zoom, 10x hybrid zoom and up to 100x digital zoom. There is also a wide-angle camera and a time of flight (ToF) sensor which does depth sensing for portrait mode shots. This is also the first phone in the world to have the ability to shoot 8K video. On paper, this camera array indeed is ultra which is why it forms such a huge hump on the back of the phone. Without getting into the technical details of what Samsung is doing with this camera system I can tell you a couple of things The 108-megapixel resolution really converts to massive levels of detail. Especially, when you trigger pro mode and just shoot directly in that mode, in editing software like Snapseed, you will be able to pull out so much detail which will just not happen on a normal sensor. The hype around the zoom is real. For example, I have a driving distance of 3.6km and a walking distance of 2.6km between the Lotus temple and my house. At 5x zoom Im able to take relatively usable shots of the Lotus temple from my terrace. Its insane that one can do that on a phone. This zoom comes in more handy if youre into shooting birds or animals around and about you without startling them by going close. For me, as Ive 14 dogs, this was lovely. But most people dont need this. This camera system struggles in low-light. The zoom becomes quite useless and its an area where phones like the Huawei P30 Pro pull ahead with zoom. The zoom on the S20 Ultra is also very sensitive to movements so only a trained hand can use it properly. As good as the zoom is, the regular camera struggles in some basic scenarios. For instance, the focussing distance is problematic as close up shots are blurred from the edges. The phone doesnt also lock focus consistently. The 8K video thing is a bit of a gimmick as firstly the footage is janky, and then it consumes too much space. Instead use 4K video at 60 frames per second. It has the best video output of any Android phone. I dont expect that to change with the Ultra retaining its supremacy over newer phones like the OnePlus 8 Pro. For most uses, this is a very good camera. It also gets a very solid night-mode which is now almost as good as the iPhone and Google Pixel. The portrait mode is also highly improved while the wide-angle camera is amongst the best Ive seen on a smartphone. This is a great camera phone, for some people even the ultimate one, but for most people its sibling the Galaxy S20+ or the iPhone 11 will be better. What hurteles the S20 Ultra back even further is its software. It all starts from the camera app which is packed with features yet has a complex user interface. You really need to know whats going on and adapt to the quirks of the phone to extract the most out of it. Its meant for someone with the technical know-how and patience. This complexity flows through Samsungs OneUI interface. Even though it is highly improved, it comes with multiple layers of redundancies like three email apps Gmail, Outlook and Samsung Mail. Samsung is also known to be slow with software updates, but that seems to be changing with this phone as Ive received 2 updates in a month. It gets tons of useful preloaded software which is also deeply integrated like Microsoft applications, Spotify, YouTube Premium and Netflix but its UI isnt the best for the lack of a better word. Most people will find the incoming OnePlus 8 Pro simpler and nicer to use software wise, though Samsung is closer to its competitors than ever before in its own complicated way. There is no getting around the fact that Samsungs Galaxy S20 Ultra isnt for everyone. It is a complicated beast. For some, there will be nothing better than it, but for most, phones like the OnePlus 8 Pro and its own sibling the S20+ will be better especially when you do the math on the price. Those phones are just much better value while not being necessarily inferior. For all the latest Gadgets News, download NewsX App Asante Berko 20.04.2020 LISTEN The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) is asking President Akufo-Addo, to institute a probe into the alleged bribery allegations against the resigned Managing Director of Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Asante Berko. GII made the appeal in an open letter addressed to the President, saying it is incumbent on public officials, paid with public resources to demonstrate the highest standards of integrity in the performance of their duties. Mr. Berko resigned from TOR last week following allegations by US regulators, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that he arranged a $4.5 million bribes on behalf of Turkish power company for Ghanaian Government officials. Mr Berko tendered in his resignation to President Akufo-Addo on Wednesday, April 15, two days after the allegations came public. A statement issued by the Director of Communications at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin, says President Akufo-Addo has accepted Mr Asante Berko's resignation, and duly notified the Board of Directors of TOR of this development. The President wished him well in his future endeavors, it says, revealing that Mr Berko submitted his resignation letter on April 15. It would be recalled that in a statement, US regulators had accused Mr Berko of facilitating the bribes. But Mr Berko in a statement denied the bribery claims that while serving as an official of Goldman Sachs, he arranged a $4.5 million for a Turkish company to bribe Ghanaian government officials. Rather he said he only got $2million as arrangee fee. The Turkish IPP agreed to pay me fee of $2million (1.3% of the capital raise) as I have spent the bulk of two years working on this transaction, he stated in a statement issued yesterday. According to him, while it is true that the Securities and Exchange Commission this week issued such proceedings against him, the allegations that government officials and members of parliament were bribed by him, are completely false. I am therefore compelled to set the record straight. US Regulators had in a lawsuit accused Mr Berko, of arranging a $4.5 million in bribes to government officials in Ghana. The amount, say the US regulators, was aimed at helping a Turkish company to secure a power contract in Ghana. From approximately 2015 through at least 2016 (the relevant period), while employed at the Subsidiary, Berko schemed to bribe various government officials in the Republic of Ghana (Ghana) so that a client of the Subsidiary, a Turkish Energy Company (the Energy Company), would win a contract (the Power Purchase Agreement) to build and operate an electrical power plant in Ghana and sell the power to the Ghanaian government (the Power Plant Project or Project), according to SEC in its lawsuit. To effect the corrupt scheme, Berko arranged for the Energy Company to funnel between $3 million to $4.5 million to a Ghana-based company (the Intermediary Company) to bribe various government officials responsible for approving the Power Plant Project. The Energy Company transferred at least $2.5 million of the planned $3 million to $4.5 million to the Intermediary Company, all or most of which was used to bribe Ghanaian government officials. But Mr Berko insists the allegations are not true. Below is the GII open letter to the president: Open Letter: GII Demands Probe Into Former TOR Boss Bribery Scandal Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) has learnt with extreme concern allegations of bribery involving Mr. Asante K. Berko, former Chief Executive Officer of Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States of America. In the suit sighted by GII, the U.S. SEC alleged that: From approximately 2015 through at least to 2016 (the relevant period), while employed at the Subsidiary, Berko schemed to bribe various Government Officials in the Republic of Ghana (Ghana) so that a client of the Subsidiary, a Turkish Energy Company (the Energy Company), would win a contract (the Power Purchase Agreement) to build and operate an electrical power plant in Ghana and sell the power to the Ghanaian government (the Power Plant Project or Project). To effect the corrupt scheme, Berko arranged for the Energy Company to funnel between $3 million to $4.5 million to a Ghana-based company (the Intermediary Company) to bribe various Government Officials responsible for approving the Power Plant Project. The Energy Company transferred at least $2.5 million of the planned $3 million to $4.5 million to the Intermediary Company, all or most of which was used to bribe Ghanaian Government Officials. GII is also aware that, Mr. Berko in a statement has denied any wrongdoing on his part as far as his involvement in the Power Plant Project was concerned. In Mr. Berko's statement, he indicated that: While it is true that just this week, the SEC has issued such proceedings against me, the allegations that Government Officials and members of Parliament were bribed by me are completely false. Subsequently, GII has learnt in a statement signed by Mr. Eugene Arhin, the Communication Director at the Presidency of Government's acceptance of Mr. Berko's resignation. Dear Mr. President, Mr. President, GII is not oblivious to the fact that you are preoccupied with the fight against COVID-19, the ruthless pandemic. However, we want to respectfully bring Government's attention to the fact that, if conscious effort is not made, there is the high tendency and risk of Government's attention being shifted from addressing anti-corruption issues resulting in these allegations being swept under the carpet. Mr. President, GII is of the opinion that, it is incumbent on public officials, paid with public resources to demonstrate the highest standards of integrity in the performance of their duties and it is in line with this belief that GII calls on your high office to: authorize a thorough independent investigations by the appropriate state institution into the allegations of corruption involving the former TOR Boss, Members of Parliament and Government Officials and if any official is found culpable, the appropriate sanctions be meted out without fear or favour; commit to ensure, in the spirit of transparency and accountability, that government will publish the findings of the investigations to assist public officials and politicians to recognise and desist from similar incidences of corruption (i.e. if anything untoward is found) in the future Mr. President, it is important to note that, the implications of these allegations on Ghana's international image, governance, the country's national anti-corruption agenda and your government's commitment to the fight against corruption are dire and the people of Ghana look up to your unalloyed leadership in this matter. We also take this opportunity to commend Mr. President for the urgency and importance government attached to the Airbus saga and the swift action taken in referring the matter to the appropriate state institution for investigations and request that same alacrity is given to this matter. Yours Faithfully, SIGNED Ghana Integrity Initiative ---Daily Guide CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa Roberta Maas was thinking about her mothers funeral. About two weeks ago, when her mom took a turn for the worse while fighting an infection of COVID-19, Maas gathered some documents on her mothers final wishes so she would have them at the ready, just in case. I really didnt think she was going to make it for several days, Maas told The Gazette. Unita Schliemann, an 85-year-old resident of Heritage Specialty Care in Cedar Rapids, tested positive April 5 for the novel coronavirus. By the end of that week, she had lost her appetite, couldnt concentrate and was so exhausted she couldnt get out of bed. Schliemann was moved into the isolation ward and Maas visited her the only way she could from outside a window, the closest she could get after the facility barred visitors for the foreseeable future. When the visit was over, she walked away in tears. Other families, too, have endured similar experiences since Heritage Specialty Care, a 201-certified bed skilled nursing facility in southwest Cedar Rapids, became the site of the worst coronavirus outbreak at a long-term care facility in Iowa. More than 100 of its residents and staff have tested positive for COVID-19 since March 24. Eighteen residents have died as a result of the virus as of Thursday, according to Linn County Public Health. West Des Moines-based Care Initiatives owns Heritage Specialty Care, home to 86 residents as of Thursday. According to state officials, Heritage is one of nine long-term care facilities in Iowa that have reported outbreaks of coronavirus among residents and staff, making up nearly half of all coronavirus-related deaths in the state and accounting for about 10 percent of all positive cases. These facilities, which house the most medically frail individuals, are at high risk for spread of an infectious disease, said Heather Meador, Linn County Public Health clinical services branch supervisor. Unfortunately, a nursing home is almost like a breeding ground for something like this to happen because of the individuals that are there, Meador said. This virus spreads very quickly, so unfortunately the virus had probably spread before we realized what was going on. In the weeks leading up to the first positive case, staff followed federal and state public health guidelines in preparation for exposure, Care Initiatives wrote in an emailed statement to The Gazette. Before and during this outbreak, we have continued to implement CDC and IDPH guidelines for patient care and infection control, reads the statement, referring to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Iowa Department of Public Health. Nonetheless, state inspection records show that Heritage Specialty Care, 200 Clive Drive SW, has had infection control issues in the past. According to records from the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals, the facility has faced a number of infection control violations, some occurring as recently as this past year and others dating back more than a decade. One report from April 2015 stated that Heritage workers failed to put on all required personal protective equipment and failed to employ infection control techniques in accordance with facility policy. Other inspection reports include instances of staff not sanitizing or adequately cleaning medical equipment after patients use. The most recent report, dated April 2019, recounts a state inspectors observations made on two occasions of tubing for residents catheters dragging on the floor. In one instance, a residents urinary bag dragged on the carpet floor, approximately 8 to 10 feet. Heritage Specialty Care has a 3-star health inspections rating, out of 5 possible, and has had seven total health citations, according to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The average number of health citations in the state is six, according to centers. State public health officials would not say whether guidance or special consideration was given for those facilities with poor infection control inspections in the past. When asked, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Public Health said that we work closely with any facilities that are experiencing COVID-19 cases, and especially those with outbreaks of three or more residents with confirmed cases). Our Heritage staff has been using best practices for infection control and PPE use, to keep our well residents well, and nursing our sick residents back to health, according to a statement. We mourn those weve lost, and our heart breaks for the families. State officials have released the names of long-term care facilities once an outbreak is confirmed, but Iowa Long-Term Care Ombudsman Cynthia Pederson believes the public should be made aware of any cases in the facilities. In my interaction with other states, the issue of information sharing in a timely manner continues to be of concern, Pederson wrote in an email to The Gazette. It would be beneficial if the names of nursing facilities and assisted living programs could be released, if they have had positive COVID-19 test results for staff or residents and tenants after the first positive test result is confirmed to IDPH, she said. This would allow the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman to provide concentrated advocacy efforts to those residents and tenants early in the throes of the infection. Linn County Public Health conducts a daily survey of every long-term care facility in the county to assess the number of people experiencing illness. Once a facility reaches an outbreak level, Meador said, the agency calls officials there daily to discuss illness progression, offer guidance on best cleaning practices and ensure the staff have enough personal protective equipment. Its a lot of stress theyre going through, she said. They care very much for the residents they take care of, so were there to help provide support for them and for the residents. But Meador noted that the facilities also were having staffing issues with so many out sick with COVID-19. Care Initiatives officials say they believe our staffing levels have been sufficient throughout to meet resident needs, while noting that about 20 staff members have been deemed recovered after a self-quarantine period. While many family members of residents praise Heritage Specialty Care for its efforts, some fear the staff is overwhelmed and unable to keep them informed on the conditions of their loved ones. Im getting updates on (my moms) condition because I call three times a day, Maas said. The last time I called, I had to call four times. Id let the phone ring until it quit and called back. On the fourth attempt, someone answered. If thats not understaffed, then I dont know what is. Tom Vondracek, of Cedar Rapids, told The Gazette someone at the facility phoned him on April 7 to give him an update on his 86-year-old mother, Barbara, assuming he knew she had acquired the virus. But he had never been notified. Vondracek said she had tested positive the week before. When news broke that Heritage workers had tested positive for COVID-19, Vondracek said he was told the facility would give family members updates only if their loved ones had tested positive. He said that never happened. Thats the thing, he said. They would call me once a week that she stubbed her toe, or that she needed her nails cut. Stuff like that. But then this happens, and they assume I already know. I am a pretty calm guy, but once I get loaded, I am not a happy guy. He said he and his family understand the difficulty of the situation for Heritage. He said facility employees phoned him just hours before news broke of two workers testing COVID-19 positive, telling him his mother had a fever of between 100 and 101 but that it had gone down. He believes that was a sign she had acquired the virus. Care Initiatives said it is policy to communicate with designated family members of a resident when the resident has had a change in his or her condition. When asked about Vondraceks case, officials said were not aware of any particular situation where a family member wasnt notified of a change of condition or of a positive test. If this did occur, it would have been unintentional and we would certainly want to apologize to that family. Nearly 30 residents at Heritage Specialty Care who have tested positive for the coronavirus have recovered including Schliemann, who was moved from isolation back into her old room. Maas, her daughter, believes that a regiment of Z-Pak and hydroxychloroquine, a drug used to treat malaria, made a difference. Its hard to tell, being on the outside, but it looks like they did good work, Maas said. Jeff Johnson of The Gazette contributed to this report. (Photo : NSW Police via REUTERS) NSW Police personnel gear up in personal protective equipment for the Strike Force Bast raid of the Ruby Princess cruise ship at Port Kembla, New South Wales, Australia, April 8, 2020, in this still image from video. Video taken April 8, 2020. Australia recently called for an "independent worldwide" research into China's control of the coronavirus outbreak and the start of the pandemic. The country joined the United States in coronavirus probe. Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne has doubled down on similar calls by U.S. President Donald Trump in evaluating China's integrity. Payne, according to Fox News, pronounced that Australia "will absolutely insist" on international research. ALSO READ: Coronavirus Cure: Australian Scientists Find Drug that 'Completely Stops' COVID-19 From Replicating--But It's Originally for Head Lice! Payne, over the weekend, said that her concern about China's transparency was "at a totally excessive point." The Australian Foreign Minister told ABC the problems around the coronavirus are for independent review, and she believes doing so is essential. Payne said her trust in China is predicated in the long-term. "My concern is around transparency and ensuring that we [can] engage openly." Australia's investigation comes as the United States officials take full-scale research into whether COVID-19 escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China --- in contrary to claims that the virus originated in a nearby "wet market." WHO should play no part with the investigation, Payne said The Australian Foreign Minister said the World Health Organization (WHO) should play no part in the country's investigation. "[Fundamentally,] we determine an independent review mechanism... in which the international community can have faith," she told ABC Insiders. Payne said WHO should be involved in the investigation, given the health agency's proximity to the crisis up until this point. "I'm not sure you can have the health organization responsible for disseminating much of the international communications material and doing much of the early investigative work' conducting the inquiry," she told DailyMail. Nations must conduct a review, too Payne said nations throughout the world ought to come together to decide the high-quality manner to conduct a review. 'There will be a path through, but it will need countries to come to the table with a willingness to be transparent and engage in that process,' she said. According to Payne, the key going ahead of the investigation is transparency from China most certainly. However, she said all countries should additionally be part of any review. ALSO READ: All of Us Are Vulnerable to Coronavirus: Australian Health Experts Say No One is Safe from COVID-19 Even the Young Adults and Babies Payne struggled to admit whether she relied on China going forward, but stated she was hoping to keep relations between the two countries. She said relationships all around the world will change in some form. What is really important now, according to Payne, is how the world comes together now to rebuild. In particular, Payne said the review has to study the origin of the virus, international approaches to managing and addressing COVID-19. The openness with which information was shared and about interactions with the WHO should be included as well, she added. She additionally admitted her political counterpart in China told her the sickness was both 'preventable and curable' at some point in verbal exchange in late January. Globally, more than 2 million people were infected with the disease, and at least 160,000 human beings have died from the virus. However, China rejected Australia's call for a probe examining the worldwide response to the coronavirus pandemic - inclusive of Beijing's early handling of the outbreak. Washington and numerous allies have accused China of failing to adequately respond to the viral disorder threat in the weeks after it was first detected in Wuhan last year. Chinese overseas ministry spokesman Geng Shuang stated the accusations disrespected "the Chinese people's remarkable efforts and sacrifices" in combating the contagion. "Any question about China's transparency in the prevention and control of [the pandemic] situation is not in line with facts," Geng told reporters in a press briefing. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Business Secretary who led the privatisation of Royal Mail has urged the postal service to cut fat-cat pay in response to the coronavirus crisis. Sir Vince Cable oversaw the listing in 2013, and said a reduction to executive pay was the socially-responsible thing to do after bosses axed the dividend last month. Top fund managers have already urged boardrooms to 'share the pain' if investors and staff are asked to make sacrifices during the pandemic. Sir Vince Cable oversaw the listing in 2013, and said a reduction to executive pay at Royal Mail was the socially-responsible thing to do after bosses axed the dividend last month The issue has been highlighted by the Mail's Time To End Fat Cat Pay campaign. Cable said: 'I think Royal Mail should certainly be considering executive pay cuts. 'The company is privately owned but it clearly still has social responsibilities and that should be reflected in the way they approach this pandemic.' The comments will pile further pressure on Royal Mail to slash executive pay following its decision to cancel its final dividend to conserve cash just over three weeks ago. Royal Mail has yet to commit to any reduction in pay, saying only that its pay committee will look at the issue in 'the normal way'. Rico Back, chief executive, is also under fire after the Mail revealed he is running the company from his 2.3million home in Switzerland while the UK's lockdown continues. Operating chief Achim Dunnwald is also working from his native Germany. Critics have called on Back, 66, to return to the UK, where Royal Mail is grappling with unprecedented pressure because of the pandemic, or resign. Postal workers have claimed that demand in some areas is outstripping levels seen at Christmas, with staff from around the UK being asked to work overtime at the most overrun centres in the North East. The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has called for the company to drop deliveries if advertising mail a key source of revenue to ease the pressure. A union spokesman said: 'The backlog across the UK is building up. Meanwhile our members are being forced by the company to continue to deliver advertising mail as Royal Mail put profit before people. 'It is also not right that our members are dealing with the fall out of this crisis whilst the two most senior managers in the business live and work abroad. Postal workers and the British public deserve better.' A Royal Mail spokesman said: 'Executive remuneration matters will be considered by the remuneration committee in the normal way as part of our year end process. 'We are aware of the position adopted by various shareholder representation groups.' Six new cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday, bringing the state's total to 2968. One more case has been recorded at the Anglicare Newmarch House aged care facility in the western Sydney suburb of Caddens, where a cluster of cases has emerged. It brings the total number of cases at the facility to 42 14 staff and 28 residents. Two residents have died after contracting coronavirus at the aged care home. NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said there were 249 COVID-19 cases being treated by NSW Health including 21 people being treated in intensive care units, 17 of whom required ventilators. Russians are grabbing all the hard cash they can during the country's COVID-19 mounting restrictions. According to a report by Bloomberg, Russian central banks report that 1 trillion rubles ($13.6 billion) have been withdrawn from banks and cash machines in March. An analyst speculated that Russians are worried their savings would be inaccessible during the quarantine. As of Sunday Russian authorities report 42,853 cases of COVID-19 with deaths at 313. For comparison, UKs official death toll surpassed 16,000. Today Russian premier Vladimir Putin said the coronavirus in Russia is completely under control during a televised address. Last month a liquidity crunch forced the Russian central bank to halt gold purchases. Virgin Australia poised to enter voluntary administration: sources FILE PHOTO: Travelers stand at a Virgin Australia Airlines counter at Kingsford Smith International Airport in Sydney By Jamie Freed SYDNEY (Reuters) - Virgin Australia is poised to enter voluntary administration, two sources close to the matter said on Monday, with the cash-strapped airline unable to weather the coronavirus crisis because of its A$5 billion ($3.2 billion) of debt. Australia's second-biggest carrier, which has about 10,000 employees, last week suspended trading in its shares to continue talks on financial aid and restructuring alternatives. It had requested a loan of A$1.4 billion from the government and entered debt-restructuring talks with creditors. The company, which had reported annual losses for seven consecutive years before the pandemic, is expected to appoint Deloitte as its administrator, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to speak to the media. A formal announcement is expected on Tuesday, the sources said, confirming earlier local media reports. One of the sources said the airline's board had met on Monday and determined there was only enough cash on hand to keep operating for about four to six weeks, necessitating a restructuring. Options available under Australia's voluntary administration regime include asset sales, an agreement with creditors, debt write-offs or a winding up of the company. The airline is expected to keep flying government-subsidised routes after entering administration, the sources said. Virgin Australia and Deloitte declined to comment. Estimated global airline losses from the coronavirus pandemic have climbed to $314 billion and led to industry warnings that carriers will collapse without sufficient government aid. More than 90% of Virgin Australia's shares are controlled by a group of investors including Singapore Airlines , Etihad Airways, Chinese conglomerate HNA Group and Richard Branson's Virgin Group, which have all suffered a sharp deterioration in revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic. Story continues HNA declined to comment. Singapore Airlines and Etihad Airways did not respond immediately to requests for comment. BRANSON HOPEFUL In a blog post on Monday, Branson said he was hopeful that Virgin Australia could emerge "stronger than ever, as a more sustainable, financially viable airline". "If Virgin Australia disappears, Qantas would effectively have a monopoly of the Australian skies," he said. Virgin Australia had posted an A$88.6 million net loss for the six months to Dec. 31 before, due in part to heavy losses at its small international division. The former budget carrier moved upmarket to compete against larger rival Qantas Airways for business travellers under the leadership of long-time Chief Executive John Borghetti but racked up losses. Paul Scurrah, who took over from Borghetti in March 2019, has been cutting costs and reducing the size of the airline's workforce and fleet in an effort to restore profitability. The airline, however, took on additional debt under Scurrah to fund the A$700 million buyback of a 35% stake in the frequent flyer programme it had sold to a private equity group when Borghetti was in charge. After the coronavirus outbreak and imposition of strict travel restrictions, Virgin Australia grounded all international flights with the exception of government charters, drastically reduced its domestic flying and put the bulk of its staff on leave to preserve cash. Moody's downgraded Virgin Australia's credit rating on Friday, citing an assumption that any outcome was likely to result a debt haircut for bondholders. Its Australian-listed bonds last changed hands at about 37% of face value. (Reporting by Jamie Freed; Additional reporting by Paulina Duran; Editing by David Goodman) (Natural News) The Constitutions First Amendment guarantees a right to peaceably assemble and protest virtually anything, but especially government policies and actions. The founders put that provision in the Constitutions very first amendment for a reason: It was extremely important. Back then, colonists who were British subjects, by the way could not protest the Crown, at least, not in any significant way. King Georges rule was nearly absolute and if you didnt like one of his edicts, you were pretty much out of luck. In the 250-odd years since, America has seen may periods of protest. Its a birthright, same as free speech, the ability to worship who and what we please, when we please, the right to speak freely and exchange ideas, and so forth. But today the right to peaceably assemble and hold government leaders accountable is in real danger of being taken away from us for good. As lawyer and libertarian activist John Whitehead notes, the Rutherford Institute, which he founded, has filed an amicus brief in a case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court that, if left to stand, would allow police officers to hold even non-violent protesters financially liable if the officer is injured while performing duties during protests. Whitehead writes: In filing an amicus curiae brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in Mckesson v. Doe, Rutherford Institute attorneys are challenging a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that allows law enforcement officials to hold protest organizers financially liable when officers get hurt (accidental or otherwise) while carrying out their duties at a constitutionally-protected demonstration, even when the organizers themselves did nothing to cause the injury. Mind you, the First Amendments clauses protecting speech and the rights to assemble and redress government do not contain additional passages noting that protesters must incur the expenses of law enforcement officers, so it is difficult to understand how federal judges on the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans could even reach such a ruling. Federal judges arent there to make law but to interpret whether laws passed or laws on the books comport with the Constitutions various amendments and passages. Police have mastered the art of the double standard This is like virtually every single gun law currently on the books; every one of them, if you read the Second Amendment as it was designed to be read and interpreted, violates the Amendments infringement clause in some form or another. (Related: Government tyranny is FAR more dangerous than covid-19 we must not slide into socialism or communism as we attempt to survive the coronavirus.) Incredibly, the lower court reasoned that organizers of a protest should be held responsible for engaging in activity that merely has the potential to involve police or require their presence, thereby exposing them to possible injuries, Whitehead notes. The case arose from a Black Lives Matter protest organized by former school administration-turned-activist DeRay Mckesson. The group was protesting against police brutality in front of a police station when one of the officers dispatched to monitor the crowd was struck by an object thrown by an unknown demonstrator. The cop sued Mckesson because he was the organizer for more than $75,000, even though the activist did not himself engage in any violence and did not encourage anyone else to become violent, either. Police have mastered the art of the double standard: They dont want to be held accountable for their own misconduct or that of their fellow officers, but they want to throw the book at anyone who peacefully engages in constitutionally protected activities if that person is nearby when a cop gets hurt on the job, Whitehead said. This is yet another Machiavellian attempt by the government to prevent Americans from exercising their First Amendment right to peacefully speak truth to power, he added. The initial suit was dismissed by a lower federal court, but reinstated by the appeals court, which claimed that Mckesson should have known officers would be called in to respond. But thats asinine: Sending police to demonstrations also isnt a constitutional requirement. How this case turns out will have a dramatic impact on the First Amendment either way. Sources include: TheWashingtonStandard.com NaturalNews.com LONDON - The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have announced they will no longer co-operate with several British tabloid newspapers because of what they call distorted, false or invasive stories. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. LONDON - The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have announced they will no longer co-operate with several British tabloid newspapers because of what they call distorted, false or invasive stories. Meghan and Prince Harry told the editors of The Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Daily Mirror in a letter that they wont offer themselves up as currency for an economy of click bait and distortion. The couple's representative released a copy of the letter on Monday. FILE - In this Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020 file photo, Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex leave after visiting Canada House in London. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they will no longer cooperate with several British tabloid newspapers because of what they call distorted, false or invasive stories. Meghan and Harry have written to the editors of The Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Daily Mirror saying they wont offer themselves up as currency for an economy of click bait and distortion. They say stories based on salacious gossip have upended the lives of acquaintances and strangers alike. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File) Harry and Meghan wrote that previous stories the newspapers published based on salacious gossip had upended the lives of acquaintances and strangers alike. They said they would have zero engagement with the publications going forward but believe that a free press is a cornerstone to any democracy. Harry, who is a grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and sixth in line to the British throne, married the American actress Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle in May 2018. The televised ceremony was watched around the world. The couple later said they found the scrutiny they received from the British media as tipping into harassment and intolerable. FILE - In this Oct. 31, 2018 file photo, Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex greet members of the public during their visit to Te Papaiouru Marae in Rotorua, New Zealand. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are ending their lives as senior members of BritainAos royal family and starting an uncertain new chapter as international celebrities and charity patrons. In January the couple shocked Britain by announcing that they would step down from official duties, give up public funding, seek financial independence and swap the U.K. for North America. The split becomes official on March 31. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, file) Their decision to freeze out the tabloids came as court papers revealed how Meghan and Harry pleaded with her father, Thomas Markle, to stop talking to the press in the days before their wedding. The pair warned him that speaking to the media would backfire and tried to help him, according to text messages filed in Meghan's lawsuit against the Daily Mails publisher, Associated Newspapers. She is suing for invasion of privacy over a 2018 article that included portions of a letter she had written to her father. A hearing in the case is due to be held Friday in a London court. Associated Newspapers denies infringing on Meghans privacy. Thomas Markle was scheduled to walk his daughter down the aisle at the wedding, but pulled out at the last minute, citing heart problems. The former television lighting director has given occasional interviews to the media, complaining in December 2018 that hed been ghosted by Meghan after the wedding. The court documents included texts in which Harry tried to smooth over a family embarrassment after a Mail on Sunday story revealed that the prince's future father-in-law helped stage paparazzi pictures of himself preparing for the wedding. Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. U do not need to apologize (sic), we understand the circumstances but going public will only make the situation worse, Harry texted on May 15. If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which dont involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks, he wrote. Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1. Markle did not reply, but issued a statement through the U.S. celebrity news website TMZ saying he had been admitted to the hospital after suffering a heart attack. The court documents suggest Meghan was not aware he was hospitalized before TMZ reported it. Ive been reaching out to you all weekend but youre not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts she texted her father on May 15. Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you dont respondDo you need help? Can we send the security team down again? Im very sorry to hear youre in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us.What hospital are you at? Markle refused the offer of security, but said he was OK, according to the legal filing. Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Meghan said her phone received a missed call at 4.57 a.m. on the morning of her wedding and that she did not speak with him again except in writing. Harry has long had an uncomfortable relationship with the media, which he blames for the death of his mother, Princess Diana. She died in a car crash in Paris in 1997 while being pursued by paparazzi. Harrys unhappiness with the media increased after he began dating Markle, the star of the TV legal drama Suits. In 2016, he accused the media of harassing his then-girlfriend, and criticized racial undertones in some coverage of the biracial Markle. In January, they announced they planned to quit as senior royals, seek financial independence and move to North America. The split became official at the end of March, and the couple are currently in California, where Meghan was raised. But Ian Murray, executive director of Britains Society of Editors, said there is no escaping their actions here amount to censorship and they are setting an unfortunate example. By appearing to dictate which media they will work with and which they will ignore they, no doubt unintentionally, give succor to the rich and powerful everywhere to use their example as an excuse to attack the media when it suits them, he said. Green Acres star Tom Lester has passed away at age 81 after suffering complications from Parkinson's disease. The actor died at the Nashville home of his fiancee and longtime caregiver, Jackie, on Monday morning, TMZ reports. From 1965 to 1971, Lester played farmhand Eb Dawson on the hit sitcom Green Acres. Green Acres star Tom Lester has passed away at age 81 following complications from Parkinson's disease Lester was the last surviving regular cast member of Green Acres, which followed a couple moving from New York City and onto a farm. On top of Green Acres, Lester played Eb in the Petticoat Junction and The Beverly Hillbillies. In addition to his long-time role on Green Acres, Lester made appearances on a number of other hit shows including Little House on the Prairie, Knight Rider, and the soap opera Santa Barbara. Lester was also on the big screen. He played Riley in Benji, the film about the heroic stray dog, and also appeared in the 1994 comedy about a talking pig, Gordy. Hit show: From 1965 to 1971, Lester played farmhand Eb Dawson on the sitcom Green Acres More recently he starred in the 2014 film Campin' Buddies, which follows the antics of two 'backwoods amigos.' Lester became a born-again Christian at age 10 and continued enjoying life on the farm in his later years, even winning Wildlife Farmer of the Year in 1997, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Originally from Laurel, Mississippi, where he was raised on his grandfather's farm, Lester had big dreams for Hollywood. But not everyone in town thought he could make it. Legacy: Lester was the last surviving regular cast member of Green Acres, which followed a couple moving from New York City and onto a farm 'I told them I was going out to Hollywood to become an actor and they all said, "Youre crazy,"' he remembered in an interview with Faith Forward. 'Youll never be able to do that. Youre too tall, too skinny, too ugly. Youve got a Southern accent and youll never make it in the motion picture business. You dont look like Rock Hudson.' The criticism discouraged him from heading to Los Angeles. Making it big: Lester ultimately moved to Los Angeles and beat out 400 other actors for the role of Eb on Green acres He set aside his acting dreams and attended college, with a goal of becoming a doctor. Lester was finally persuaded to follow his dreams after reading an article on Don Knotts, who didn't let his looks get in the way of a showbiz career. 'I read an article once where they asked Don Knotts who was Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show, "How in the world did you ever get into movies?" Because he didnt look anything at all like Rock Hudson. And he said, "I figure everybody in Hollywood was good-looking and had a good physique. I figure they needed somebody a little different." And he was,' he said. Lester ultimately moved to Los Angeles and beat out 400 other actors for the role of Eb on Green acres. War has always brought chaos, and with it an opportunity for pillage and plunder. This was especially true during World War II, when countless pieces of priceless art, artifacts and other treasure were destroyed and spirited away from both Europe and the Asia Pacific. History.com reports in its article 6 Legendary Lost Treasures of World War II that Nazis, in particular, systematically looted cultural property from museums, private homes and royal palaces, some of it to help Adolf Hitler build his proposed Fuhrermuseum, but other armies carried away their own spoils as well. When the war ended, tales of real and imagined lost treasures blended together, especially when it came to rumors of stolen Nazi gold. Some of the items on this list are more verifiable than others, but all of them have motivated treasure hunters to seek them out. 1. Yamashitas Gold Yamashita Tomoyuki was a general in the Japanese Empire who defended Japans occupation of the Philippines in 1944 and 1945. According to legend, he also carried out orders from Emperor Hirohito to hide gold and treasure in tunnels in the Philippines, booby-trapped with trip mines, gas canisters and the like. The plan, apparently, was to use the treasure to rebuild Japan after the war. Since then, there have been many claims about where the gold ended up. In a United States court case, a Filipino locksmith named Rogelio Roxas claimed he discovered some of the hidden gold in the 1970s and that Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos later sent strongmen to steal it from him. The legend has also prompted treasure hunts for Yamashitas gold in the Philippines that continue to this day. 2. The Amber Room Designed in the early 18th century, the Amber Room was an ornate set of floor-to-ceiling wall panels decorated with fossilized amber, semi-precious stones and backed with gold leaf. In 1716, Prussian King Frederick William I gifted the panels, designed to cover 180 square feet, to Russian Emperor Peter the Great as a symbol of Prussia and Russias alliance against Sweden. When the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa in 1941, the Amber Room occupied a chamber at the Catherine Palace in the Russian town of Pushkin. Believing the room to be German art that rightfully belonged to them, the Nazis disassembled the room and shipped it to a castle museum in Konigsberg, Germany (now Kaliningrad, Russia). In 1944, allied bombing destroyed the city, the castle museum and likely the Amber Room as wellbut that hasnt stopped treasure hunters from trying to locate the lost room. 3. Rommels Gold One of the most mythologized types of WWII treasures is stolen Nazi gold. In 1943, during the German occupation of Tunisia, Nazis reportedly stole a large amount of gold from Jewish people on the island of Djerba. They shipped the gold to Corsica, an island between the coasts of France and Italy, but it allegedly sank on its trip from Corsica to Germany. This rumored treasure is often known as Rommels gold after Erwin Rommel, a Nazi general who led campaigns of terror against Jewish people in in North Africa, even though Rommel probably wasnt involved with this particular theft. In any case, the legend has motivated both real and fictional treasure hunters. In Ian Flemings 1963 James Bond novel On Her Majesty's Secret Service, two divers are supposedly killed while searching for Rommel's treasure. 4. Peking Man Fossils Not all lost WWII treasures are man-made. In September 1941, China sent 200 early human fossils to the U.S. to keep them safe in case Japan invaded. Yet these Peking Man fossils, as they were known, never arrived. Some have speculated the fossils were destroyed, but others have hope that theyre still around. In 2012, researchers suggested they may have been buried at a former U.S. Marine base in China and covered by an asphalt parking lot. Fortunately, Chinese researchers made casts of the fossils before they disappeared, so scientists can still study them today. 5. Raphaels 'Portrait of a Young Man' The Nazis stole a lot of paintings during WWII, but one of the most famous and historically important ones to go missing is Portrait of a Young Man by the revered Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. The Nazis filched the painting from the Prince Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, Poland in 1939. At first, the painting went to Hans Frank, who ran the Nazi General Government in Poland. During the war, it traveled to Berlin, Dresden and Linz before returning to Krakow, where Frank hung it in Wawel Castle. Yet when U.S. troops arrested Frank at the castle that year, the paintingalong with more than 800 other artifactswas missing. Seventy-five years later, there is still no trace of the lost masterpiece. 6. S.S. Minden On its way from Rio de Janeiro to Germany in 1939, the Nazi ship S.S. Minden ran into a British ship off the coast of Iceland. Supposedly, the Nazis sank their own ship to avoid the British finding their cargo, which legend says was a hoard of gold. In 2017 and 2018, a company based in the United Kingdom attempted to locate the sunken ship and its reputed gold stash. Mapping by the Marine and Freshwater Research Institute has located the possible site of the shipwreck, but so far no one has been able to locate any treasure there. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 12:30:50 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 992 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Toron Inc. (OTC PINK:TRON), is a Nevada corporation that has recently changed its corporate focus to acquire brands that provide disruptive technology for mobile device and for telecommunications and fintech services & solutions, internet, mobile analytics & apps and billing service platforms. The Company is currently developing applications and partnerships with distribution companies for strategic growth of owned and partner brands.Toron Inc. gives Notice of Material Events taking place within its corporate structure. On December 16, 2019, Mr. Massimo Travagli was issued 2,500,000 shares of Series A Preferred Shares in exchange of the execution and completion of transactions with certain of his controlled corporate entities which commenced in July 2019. Each Series A Preferred Share that is issued and outstanding has voting rights equal to 500 common shares. As a result, the issuance of the aforementioned Series A Preferred Shares resulted in a change in control of the Company. Subsequently, on January 9, 2020, Renato de Campos Gloria Braga resigned his positions as Chief Financial Officer of the Company, and Mr. Massimo Travagli accepted the appointment of Chief Financial Officer.The Company has filed an application with FINRA to change the name of the Company, complete a 200 to 1 reverse split (for every 200 common shares that are issued, the shareholder will receive one new common share), and to obtain a new symbol for the Company. The Company has decided to change its name to more accurately reflect the business it is currently engaged in, and to effect a split of the issued and outstanding shares to eliminate dilutive shares issued in prior periods where adequate consideration has been difficult to ascertain and to provide legitimate shareholders and investors share ownership commensurate with the value of their investments and/or assets being acquired.None of the previous management or current 5% (or more) owners of Common Shares of the Company, other than our CFO, Mr. Travagli, are in a position to influence or control the actions of the Company. Current management is moving forward with its plans to complete the above-referenced corporate actions and acquire additional operating business targets.The FINRA application has not yet been processed; the application is under review with FINRA and we hope to hear soon the status of the application.Aside from the recently completed acquisition agreements relative to our first project acquisition from Mr. Travagli, we are currently in discussions with an identified corporate entity to engage in a multistage acquisition. Further, management expects to engage in discussions with more target companies in the upcoming weeks and months to acquire complementary business operations that will fit seamlessly into the business model currently being followed by our new management, and expand the Company's footprint globally.Attached to this Notice of Material Events is a press release which has also been published as of today's date with respect to the aforementioned events.FINANCIAL STATEMENTSThe Company's Annual Information and Disclosure Statement including Unaudited Management Prepared Financial Statements are due on April 30, 2020; the Company will be filing these on or before that date.REVERSE SPLITToron Inc. announced that on January 17, 2020, its Board of Directors, along with the written consent of its majority shareholder, approved a reverse stock split of the Company's issued and outstanding common shares at a ratio of 200 to 1; i.e. for every 200 shares of issued and outstanding common stock, the shareholder shall receive 1 new share of common stock.The reverse share split will uniformly affect all issued and outstanding TRON common shares. No fractional shares will be issued in connection with the reverse share split and the Company will round up any fractional shares resulting from the reverse split. The par value of TRON common shares will remain unchanged at $0.001 per share following the reverse share split. The number of authorized, and issued and outstanding shares of preferred stock will not be affected by the reverse split.NAME CHANGEToron Inc. concurrently changed its name to All Things Mobile Analytic, Inc. ( A.T.M.A )in order to more accurately reflect its branding, and future business plans. Although the Company has filed the change of name with the State of Nevada, and the State has returned a filed, State stamped document to the Company. Toron is waiting for FINRA to process its application before using the new name.COVID-19 Pandemic: The recent COVID-19 pandemic could have an adverse impact on the Company going forward. COVID-19 has caused significant disruptions to the global financial markets, which severely impacts the Company's ability to raise additional capital and to pursue certain contracts. The Company may be required to substantially reduce operations or cease operations if it is unable to finance our operations. The full impact of the COVID-19 outbreak continues to evolve as of the date of this report, and is highly uncertain and subject to change. Management is actively monitoring the situation but given the daily evolution of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Company is not able to estimate the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on its operations or financial condition in the next 12 months.Forward-Looking-StatementsMatters 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. These statements are not guaranties of future performance, and actual results may differ materially from those forecasted.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. Th The grieving granddaughter of a west Belfast woman who died in a Dunmurry nursing home of Covid-19 at the weekend has spoken of how her family kept a vigil in the car park as her grandmother passed away. Teresa Brady, who had her 94th birthday last Wednesday, had been in the Kilwee Care Home in Dunmurry for the past three years. Her granddaughter Carla Hughes spoke to the Belfast Telegraph last night about how the virus claimed the life of the granny she loved. "Granny took ill on the 31st of March," Carla said. "She was taken to the Mater - but the hospital did not test her. "They sent her straight back to the home. "At that time, they were not testing people unless their symptoms were severe. "She was isolated when she went back to the home, but it was very difficult for us not knowing if she had Covid-19 or not. "After a wee while she rallied a bit, but on the 16th we were told that she had very rapidly gone downhill." The care home summoned an ambulance for Mrs Brady, but, said Carla, the paramedics felt she would be better looked after by staying where she was. "The paramedics were just amazing," Carla said last night. "They recommended that she should stay at the care home because they thought she would get better care there." But things took a turn for the worse on Saturday as Mrs Brady's condition deteriorated. "We got a message to say she had tested positive for coronavirus, and that she probably wasn't going to last much longer." Mrs Brady's life had centred around her family, Carla said. "She had five daughters, 19 grandchildren and lots of great grandchildren, she was always surrounded by family her whole life. That's why we found comfort in being the closest we could be to her - even though that was out in the care home car park." All the family members stayed in their separate cars, socially distancing from each other during their vigil for their cherished relative. "Sometimes there was just one or two of us, but last night there must have been around 15 to 20 of us in the car park for her. "She deserved to have her family as close to her as they could be." Paying tribute to the care home staff who had looked after her grandmother, Carla said: "We can't speak highly enough of them. They cared for granny when we couldn't. "They came out and gave us wee updates on how granny was doing. "We said to them at one point, 'Can you open the window whenever she passes away so that her soul can get out'. "They were so loving, so dedicated - we will never be able to repay them. "And while we were sitting in the car park, we saw the window being opened. That's how we knew she was gone." It had been a tough few weeks, Carla added. "But being in the car park was the closest we could get to granny." Some shops and businesses opened in rural India on Monday as part of a staggered exit from a weeks-long lockdown that has left millions out of work and short of food, while coronavirus infections rose by more than 1,500 over the previous day. India's 1.3 billion population has been under one of the world's toughest lockdowns with people forbidden from stepping out of their homes except for food and medicines until May 3. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government said some activities, including factories and farming, would be allowed from Monday in the hinterland which has been less-hard hit by COVID-19. Small businesses reopened in the rural parts of most populous Uttar Pradesh after the lockdown in late March but police were deployed to ensure people maintained social distancing. Ramkumar Sharma, a carpenter on the outskirts of Lucknow, the state capital, said he had opened up for business again and that he would take precautions going forward. "This is a great relief to be able to work," he said. A small group of construction workers showed up a labour centre nearby hoping to get hired for day jobs, only to be dispersed by police. Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers fled the big cities for their homes in the villages, unable to pay for food and rent, after Modi announced a 21-day lockdown last month which he extended by another 19 days. Even before the pandemic, India's $2.9 trillion economy was growing at its weakest pace in over a decade, but now it is expected to slow to even zero growth in the fiscal year that began on April 1, private economists say, putting further pressure on jobs. "The focus is on select industries and farming, and rural employment guarantee programme," said Punya Salila Srivastava, a joint secretary at the home ministry which is managing the re-start of the economy. India had 17,264 cases of coronavirus infections as of Monday and more than 60 percent of these were from five of India's 28 states. Such an uneven spread allows health officials to focus their efforts on the top affected areas, or red zones, such as Delhi and Mumbai, while allowing other states to re-start activities, another official said. Around 4,000 factories resumed operations in western Gujarat, one of the country's most industrialised regions, the chief minister's office said. These included small, medium and big firms in sectors such as chemicals, engineering, textiles, plastics, packaging and automobiles, said Ashwani Kumar, Secretary to the Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani. Modi's critics have said he should have better planned the lockdown to lessen the impact on the economy and that India had no choice but to ramp up its testing for the coronavirus. "The one-size-fit-all lockdown has brought untold misery & suffering to millions of farmers, migrant labourers, daily wagers & business owners," said Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress, said in a tweet last week. "It needs a 'smart' upgrade, using mass testing to isolate virus hotspots & allowing businesses in other areas to gradually reopen." On Sunday, India tested 27,824 samples, the highest so far, but still some way off the target of 40,000 a day which officials want to eventually raise to 100,000. Here are official government figures on the spread of the coronavirus in South Asia: India has reported 17,264 cases, including 543 deaths Pakistan has reported 7,638 cases, including 143 deaths Afghanistan has reported 933 cases, including 30 deaths Sri Lanka has reported 248 cases, including seven deaths Bangladesh has reported 2,144 cases, including 84 deaths Maldives has reported 34 cases and no deaths Nepal has reported 30 cases and no deaths Bhutan has reported five cases and no deaths Also Read: Bring 'implementable' ideas to make India manufacturing hub: FinMin to industry Also Read: China fumes over India's FDI move to block takeover of companies; calls it WTO violation Angela Bamford, one of the three TV personalities who hosted the now defunct show Arena on Kwese TV, has joined Ghone TV. She now reads the business news on Business Brief on the TV station, a member of the EIB Group. News on GHOne TV is unparalleled and authentic. Get up to the minute updates of trends across the globe and in Ghana on @ghonenews with @angelabamfordgh, the channel announced on Instagram. Business Brief with Angela Bamford, first time reading the news, Angela also announced on Instagram when she shared a video of herself reading the business news to her followers. She adds to the list of broadcasters on Ghone. Angela is described as a hard working young TV personality who loves what she does. She started creative arts career at an early age, from singing with the group D3, modelling at Exopa Model Agency and acting to now hosting shows on TV. From her humble beginnings at the Akosombo International School, she went on to graduate with Diploma in Liberal Arts from North Hunterdon High School in the US. She continued her education at the Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) where she read communications and then to Rutgers University. She had worked as a lead presenter at 4syte TV before moving to Econet Medias Kwese TV and now Ghone. 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. Featured Video SpaceX's Starlink project has made a very visible appearance above much of western Europe, startling sky-gazers. A string of bright lights appeared to march uniformly across the sky last night, with photographers capturing the event and sharing footage on Twitter. Prominent comedian, science communicator and physicist Dara O'Briain took to Twitter to bemoan the man-made constellation, saying 'there goes the night sky'. The string of lights could be seen travelling through the sky across western Europe Picture of Elon Musk's Starlink satellites passing over Essex last night by amateur photographer James Newman. Britons were left amazed and confused as Elon Musk's Starlink satellites lit up the night's sky A computer-generated image from several long-exposure images shows Starlink satellites in the sky above the concrete base of a former heating plant in Hungary Prominent comedian, science communicator and physician Dara O'Briain took to Twitter to bemoan the man-made constellation, saying 'there goes the night sky' (pictured) People unfamiliar with maverick billionaire Elon Musk's plans to send up thousands of satellites into space to beam down internet were befuddled by the sight. Suggestions trying to explain its appearance ranged from UFOs and aliens to Santa and his reindeer. The string of bright lights seen across Britain and Europe was actually a procession of Starlink satellites in orbit. The satellites are designed to provide broadband coverage across the world and each one weighs 575lbs (260kg). They form a constellation which will eventually create a network encompassing all of Earth orbiting 341 miles above the surface. Videos and images on Twitter were met with incredulity and outrage, including from Mr O' Briain. In response to a user asking him for an explanation to the sight, Mr O'Briain tweeted: Yep, just saw them too. It's the Starlink satellite network, and Elon Musk wants to put a 1000 of them up. There goes the night sky.' His posted garnered more than 150 replies from others who shared his disdain. Elon Musk created Starlink, which is the informal name for Musk's Space X's project. It plans to create a constellation of thousands of low-orbit small satellites to improve internet service The consensus among Twitter users was that the Starlink initiative is a harbinger of doom for future observations of the cosmos beyond our planet. Amateur and professional astronomers alike have condemned the project since the first launch in May 2019, saying it will make scientific research more difficult. SpaceX has so far launched 362 Starlink satellites into orbit, and is experimenting with dimming them. The US-based company is testing a dark, anti-reflective coating to see how it alters the reflection from the crafts. During the launch of the last batch, on March 18, SpaceX's live broadcast presenter claimed early indications suggest the coating is working. 'Preliminary results show a notable reduction,' said Jessica Anderson, one of the hosts of the webcast. She added that the company had 'a couple of other ideas that we think could reduce the reflectivity even further,' Space News reports. Independent research published on pre-print site arXiv indicates the so-called DarkSat is around 55 per cent dimmer than the ordinary Starlink satellite. University of Alabama astronomer Bill Keel has previously told the AFP that the sighting of the first Starlink satellite train had experts trying to extrapolate what effect artificial constellations of such steady brightness might have as they grow in number. Fears developed, he said, that 'in 20 years or less, for a good part the night anywhere in the world, the human eye would see more satellites than stars.' However, SpaceX believes this project will do more good than harm, as 'Starlink will provide fast, reliable internet to locations where access has been unreliable, expensive, or completely unavailable,' the company writes in its mission description. Some Twitter users were excited about Elon Musk's string of satellites and said how amazing it was to see it. Others compared the event to Christmas and seeing Santa Claus in the sky Another Twitter user said it was a 'total blot on the skyline' while another expressed his sympathy for astronomers who have said the satellites are interfering with their work Washington: The global virus coronavirus has caused a kind of awe in the world. America is constantly blaming China for this epidemic and President Donald Trump appears to be in the mood for a cross-border battle. Now the United States wants to send some of its experts to China to investigate this epidemic, so that it can investigate the yield of this disease. Pregnant woman dies due to starvation amid lockdown in Pakistan Donald Trump warned during a press conference at the White House that China would suffer the consequences. US President Trump said that we had talked to Chinese officials long ago, but we want to go inside. We want to see what is happening in Wuhan, what is going on. But they are not ready to welcome us. 12 corona infected Indians are in Nepal's mosque Regarding China, Trump said, "I was very happy when there was a trade deal with China, but then this epidemic came from China, now the subject has become a matter of concern. The United States has started investigating the virus at its level, America is discovering the truth of whether the coronavirus was born from a laboratory in Wuhan." Britain's heritage also hit by corona, life of artisans in danger Wolf vetoed Senate Bill 613, which would have allowed more Pennsylvania businesses to reopen. Read more Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and PennLive/Patriot-News. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter. HARRISBURG Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday vetoed legislation that would have allowed more Pennsylvania businesses to reopen over the objections of the states top health official, hours after hundreds gathered at the Capitol to protest the coronavirus-driven closures. The measure was approved in the General Assembly along party lines, with Democrats saying the bill was premature and unsafe, as the state lacks sufficient testing for COVID-19 and personal protective equipment for health-care workers. Republicans, meanwhile, claimed more businesses could reopen safely if they adhered to federal standards for social distancing and infection prevention. In March, Wolf ordered all but life-sustaining businesses to close their physical operations. While public health experts say such closures are necessary to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed, theyve also hit the economy hard. As of Monday, 1.5 million Pennsylvanians had filed for unemployment benefits. The legislation would have redefined essential businesses and provided a road map for employers to reopen as long as they took certain safety precautions as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. GOP lawmakers do not have enough votes to override Wolfs veto. This is not an easy decision, but it is the right course for Pennsylvania, Wolf said in his veto message. Reopening tens of thousands of businesses too early will only increase the spread of the virus, place more lives at risk, increase the death tolls, and extend the length of the economic hardships created by the pandemic. Hours before Wolf vetoed the measure, hundreds of protesters gathered at the Capitol, calling on the governor to reopen the state. At the same time, Wolf announced he would extend the stay-at-home order to May 8, but also allow some sectors to begin reopening at that time. One of the speakers at the protest, state Rep. Russ Diamond (R., Lebanon), said Wolf could help the economy and turn this all around today by rescinding or modifying the orders. You could sign Senate Bill 613 into law right now, so every business and employer has a chance to comply with social distancing, elevated hygiene, and disinfection protocols just like the ones youve put in place for so-called life-sustaining businesses, Diamond said at the protest. Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R., Jefferson) and Majority Leader Jake Corman (R., Centre) condemned the governors veto in a joint statement Monday. It is disappointing that Governor Wolf rejected this common-sense approach that provided a path forward, while at the same time protected the lives of vulnerable Pennsylvanians without sacrificing the livelihoods of more than a million workers," the lawmakers said in a statement. [I]t is very troubling that he vetoed a proposal to create a public mitigation plan that would have allowed employers to operate safely during the current emergency declaration. Though there is no longer an exponential growth in coronavirus cases, Wolf said in his veto message the state must reopen in a measured and staggered approach. This approach needs to include not only a decline in the spread of the virus, but also an integrated approach for how and when to open businesses and what additional measures are needed to ensure our businesses are safe and our health-care system can support us, he said. 100% ESSENTIAL: Spotlight PA relies on funding from foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. If you value this reporting, please give a gift today at spotlightpa.org/donate. By Chris Bragg, Times Union, Albany Albany, N.Y. In the wake of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo declaring a state of emergency on March 7, the Department of Heath spent $686 million for medical supplies amid a fierce global competition to obtain them, according to a Times Union review of available state records. The extraordinary expenditures, which have greatly exceeded the state's needs, were made as Cuomo warned that the state's medical supply could reach a breaking point due to the rapid spread of COVID-19. That prompted public agencies to suspend normal protocols and take understandable if unpleasant risks in an effort to save lives spending huge sums at a time the state is facing dire fiscal problems. "We have a terrible economic deficit," Cuomo told reporters in Albany on Friday. "We're spending money every day we never dreamed of spending." In an extreme sellers market for masks, gowns and ventilators, far-flung companies demanded payment upfront. But with hospitalization figures much lower than Cuomo had first predicted, many of the supplies purchased may never be needed. The Cuomo administration is now considering its options, including seeking to recoup hundreds-of-millions of dollars already paid. As hospitals, states and other nations simultaneously competed for masks and ventilators, the companies had promised they could deliver quickly, ranging from a handful of Chinese importing and exporting firms, to several New York fashion companies that re-purposed their production lines. Some have delivered, but several of the highest-paid have not. The Cuomo administration took steps to vet the sellers, including requiring evidence of government certifications for products and detailed delivery information. But competitive bidding was suspended for the emergency contracts, which was not ideal: Most of the $686 million went to a diverse array of little-known companies which had never done business with the state, according to spending records maintained by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's office. Online records dating to 2012 indicate 22 of the 25 largest payees the past five weeks had not been paid before by New Yorks government. The crisis also prompted Cuomo to issue an executive order last month suspending the normal independent review of state contracts by DiNapoli's office in order to hasten purchases. Before issuing a payment to a contractor, DiNapoli's office would normally demand at least some information that services were being delivered as promised, according to spokeswoman Jennifer Freeman, but that step has also been suspended. The shifting situation makes exact state spending totals difficult to pinpoint. As of last Tuesday, state agencies collectively reported paying companies nearly $800 million for medical supplies, with the vast majority appearing related to the states coronavirus response. By Friday, the amount was $718 million, largely because two firms originally listed as being paid $88 million had disappeared from state records. The Cuomo administration confirmed the two contracts worth $88 million had been canceled. And $56 million more, which still appeared in the comptrollers records as of Sunday, has also been returned to the state, the administration said. It's not yet clear how much of the spending will result in equipment and materials in the hands of healthcare workers. Cuomo senior adviser Richard Azzopardi said states were forced to fend for themselves to purchase the life-saving supplies. He also pointed to Centers for Disease Control and White House task force modeling, which predicted a more severe spread of the virus and far more hospitalizations and fatalities than ended up occurring. "We had no choice but to overturn every rock to find ventilators and other needed equipment," Azzopardi said. "We were able to bend the curve and purchase adequate supplies to meet current needs and amid these extraordinary circumstances, contracts have been continuously re-evaluated. Some shipments we'll be accepting to handle the ongoing public health crisis and prepare for future emergencies and other agreements will be modified or canceled with money refunded to the state." The top 25 largest payees: DOME INTERNATIONAL INC$115,877,063 YARON OREN PINES$69,102,000 TRINITY PARTNERS LLC$56,148,750 SUNRISE GROUP CANADA INC$40,875,000 DTM HEALTHCARE INC$36,062,500 PREMIER ORTHOPEDIC SOLUTIONS INC$32,304,800 JCD DISTRIBUTION INC$21,600,000 JINAN DONGYUE INTERNATIONAL TRAD CO LTD$20,800,000 ZINNTEX LLC$19,750,000 SUUCHI INC$17,400,000 BESPOKE FASHION LLC$16,718,750 NEW YORK MICROSCOPE COMPANY INC$13,845,000 ETL RESPONSE LLC$13,680,000 SISLOY LLC$13,250,952 PLEASE ME LLC$12,500,000 HANGZHOU SUOYIN IMPORT & EXPORT CO LTD$11,810,000 NEW YORK IMAGING SERVICE INC$9,935,250 ZHEJIANG XINHONGZHOU TRADING CO LTD$9,500,000 MIDWEST BIOMEDICAL RESOURCES INC$9,387,900 STACI SNIDER DESIGNER$9,337,500 DESIGNERKORNER INC$9,000,000 THREAD COUNSEL INC$7,700,000 HILL-ROM COMPANY INC$7,580,904 HIGH HOPE GROUP JIANGSU TONGTAI CO LTD$7,475,000 NEW FORTUNE INC$7,172,000 Source: OpenBookNewYork.com Some of the largest contracts have run into difficulties. The biggest beneficiary of the supplies boom was Dome International, a small company based in Brooklyn that sells ventilators and was paid $116 million. The state ordered 5,700 ventilators from the company, but the contract now is being reevaluated, according to the Cuomo administration. The administration declined to say whether the $116 million would now be returned by the company to the state, since negotiations with the Dome International were ongoing. The companys vice-president, David Chait, declined to comment. The second-biggest payee is not a business, but a California businessman: "Yaron Oren Pines," who was issued a single payment of $69 million by the Department of Health. The Cuomo administration expects "partial delivery" of 1,450 ventilators next week. Oren-Pines declined to comment. The third largest payee, Trinity Partners LLC, was paid $56 million for 750 ventilators, but that contract has now been "canceled," according to the Cuomo administration. The $56 million has been returned to the state, the administration said. The governor's office said there has been a "high level of cooperation with the companies thus far." "We have legal recourses if it comes to that," Azzopardi said. The fifth largest payee at $36 million, DTM Healthcare, delivered 5.7 million masks to New York, Azzopardi said. On April 2, as the crisis neared its apex and Cuomo said help from the federal government was not enough, he encouraged businesses to pitch the state with products. If you have the capacity to make these products, we will purchase them, and we will pay a premium, and we will pay to convert or transition your manufacturing facility to a facility that can do this, Cuomo said. But, we need it, like, now, you know. We're not talking about two months, three months, four months. We need these materials now. Please contact us, Cuomo said. We'll work with you, we'll work with you quickly, there'll be no bureaucracy, no red tape. Cuomo also told reporters that day that the state projected exhausting its supply of ventilators in six days. Cuomo said he did not want to buy more ventilators than necessary, which was a possibility. But he believed he had no choice. They are very expensive and the state is broke, so I have no desire to buy more ventilators than we need, the governor said. 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. The ventilator purchases were made after President Donald J. Trump's administration declined to provide the tens-of-thousands Cuomo was requesting from a national stockpile, which prompted New York to look to the private marketplace. Trump had said New York would not need as many as Cuomo predicted, and the president has since noted "we were right." The health department purchases include about $9.4 million paid to a small Illinois ventilator broker, Midwest Biomedical Resources Inc. When company President Bill Rosas was approached by New Yorks government in mid-March, they quickly struck a deal for his company to supply 200 ventilators via a manufacturing company in Sweden that Rosas brokerage had long used. The price was about $6,900 each, he said. Rosas declined to front the money for buying the 200 medical devices, insisting that New York pay the up-front price tag. It proved a savvy business decision and one Rosas described as a no-brainer in the uncertain fiscal environment. Indeed, as of mid-April, the Swedish supplier was inundated by requests and still had not delivered the 200 ventilators to the United States. By that time, New York no longer seemed to them. On the week of April 6, in a phone call with the Midwest Biomedical sales team, Cuomo administration officials floated other options for the $9.4 million purchase, including sending the ventilators to another state in greater need, Rosas said. Rosas company also has tried to donate 40 of its own ventilators to relief efforts, although those also may be unnecessary in New York. Ive been in this business 30 years, and this is the craziest thing that Ive ever seen in my life, Rosas said. In other states that acted similarly in response to the crisis, stories of alleged graft have emerged. The Los Angeles Times reported that a powerful California union, which claimed to have discovered 39 million masks for healthcare workers, was duped in an elaborate scam uncovered by FBI investigators involving a broker in Australia and a supplier in Kuwait, who are now both targets of an investigation. No money was exchanged before the deal unraveled. On the federal level, a Georgia man faces wire fraud charges for trying to sell the government 125 million non-existent respirator masks that would have been worth more than $750 million. For companies using New York's online portal, they were required to provide certifications from entities like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Brokers serving as middlemen were required to provide an official pricing quote and an estimated production schedule. Manufacturers looking to retool had to be willing to seek required approvals. New York would only provide assistance in retooling facilities with New York-based production, the site noted. Azzopardi said 25 state officials vetted the contractors and over 60 more worked on vendor outreach, negotiation and management, the emergency team often working 18-hour days, including weekends. The vetting included employees of the state inspector general's office, as well as outside law firms. At least one member of the team worked while recovering from COVID-19. Most winning contractors went through the state's official portal, Azzorpardi said, and were picked for their ability to deliver needed products in a timely manner and at "best value" amid ever-changing market conditions. The state also got referrals from the federal government, the Chinese ambassador to the United States, and regional Chinese Departments of Commence with which the state had long-term relationships. Only about 10 percent of offers were pursued. Online information maintained by DiNapoli's office lists vendors' names, payment amounts, and the fact that they are providing medical supplies or medical and dental acquisition. But it's difficult for the general public to identify who is behind many of the companies or the specific work they're doing, as there's nothing online about where they're located, the items they're meant to deliver, or the status of the orders. The Cuomo administration's retraction of $88 million in state spending originally reported to DiNapoli's office included striking out a $46 million payment to The Blue Marble Group Inc. The Cuomo administration on Saturday said the state and company mutually agreed to cancel the contract after supply chain issues emerged, with the state recouping the $46 million. Before that occurred, DiNapoli's office had already taken some preliminary steps to pay $46 million to Blue Marble Group, although there was some confusion about the identity of the low-profile firm. Teddy George, a businessman in Massachusetts, recently got a phone call from an employee of DiNapolis office, who requested Georges employer identification number. But Georges firm, Blue Marble Group, is a real estate company that sells homes and had nothing to do with the relief efforts. When the DiNapoli official read off part of the correct company's employer ID number, George relayed that his was not the correct firm. "Wed love to be $46 million richer, George told the Times Union, laughing. But were just your honest, local real estate company. As part of a routine independent verification process, Freeman said, the comptroller's office conducts Google searches of firms receiving state payments and calls the companies when multiple have similar names. She believed the correct Blue Marble Group is located in California and said there were multiple safeguards to ensure the wrong company isn't paid. A company based in China, Bleam Group Limited, was also until recently listed as being paid $42 million by the Department of Health, but has also disappeared from state records. The Cuomo administration said the contract was canceled and money returned. The company did not have a comment last week. A company that did speak to the Times Union, Snider Fashion, was among the manufacturers that heeded Cuomos call to repurpose. Staci Snider, a native of Saratoga Springs who has a store on Congress St., typically produces high-end fashion products that are sold in stores across the country. Her company quickly revamped to produce medical gowns, winning the business by applying through the state portal. The process of revamping simply required a different cut but was mostly seamless, Snider said. Her company was paid $9.3 million, which included the cost of materials. Many items bought by the state, such as masks, infusion pumps, and X-ray machines, cost a premium as states and counties competed for them. Cuomo has said for weeks that the state was paying in certain instances $7.50 for a mask, about 15 times the usual price. The biggest challenge is that we are in this position at all, Azzopardi told the Times Union. Either the federal government needs to reassert itself, or there needs to be a consortium of states to avoid every state government from competing for the same scarce resources and artificially increasing the price. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay He has designated survivors. Ryan McMahon digs in for a long war against coronavirus Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com The latest evidence is that most people have no risk of dying from Covid-19. However, the bad news is the virus probably wont be eliminated by the lockdown. Doctors are now saying the findings so far suggest theres more we can all do to reduce the risk of Covid-19 causing us serious illness. The latest figures, published last week, show that in more than nine in ten cases, the people who died from Covid-19 had been approaching the end of their life and had caught the virus on top of chronic life-threatening conditions such as heart or lung disease, or dementia. However, it is now emerging that these statistics conceal a significant but little-discussed risk factor. That is weight and obesity. Being overweight is the second biggest risk factor for serious illness, behind age. (Stock) Weight is rated according to body mass index (BMI) a BMI of under 25 is considered healthy while 25 to 29 is classed as overweight and 30 or above, obese. Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre (ICNARC) data has shown three-quarters of critically ill UK Covid-19 patients were overweight or obese. Similarly, a study of 4,103 seriously ill Covid-19 patients by New York University, showed while age is the biggest single risk factor for serious illness, obesity is a close second. With around two-thirds of British adults overweight or obese, Dr Matt Capehorn, clinical manager of the Rotherham Institute for Obesity, a specialist centre for weight management, suggests officials should be alerting the public to this. We have daily health briefings on TV if they said something along these lines and even if half the population took that on board, it would make a difference, he says. For even if the UK lockdown ends next month, evidence from Japan and elsewhere in Asia indicates we should expect a second wave in the autumn. Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist and professor of mathematical biology at Imperial College London also advised people to take responsibility for their own health: We need to assess our risks from a personal perspective, including getting fit and losing weight, he said. Three-quarters of critically ill people in UK hospitals are overweight, data has revealed. Pictured above is a morbidly obese man (stock image) Rob Andrews, an associate professor of diabetes and endocrinology at Exeter University, told Good Health that a small weight gain during the lockdown would make limited difference. But he warned: For future health we would recommend these individuals dont gain more weight and that they take regular exercise. What I wish I'd known: Those affected by Covid-19 share their insights This week: Gastric symptoms were an early sign. Isla Haslam, 29, a PR consultant, lives in Balham, South London. She says: When I developed mild stomach cramps a few days after a family get-together six weeks ago, I thought it might be just the effects of some beans Id eaten in a vegan meal. Because I had never heard gastric trouble mentioned as a symptom of Covid-19, I didnt self isolate in fact, I went to the theatre in the West End. But the next day I became severely unwell with a sore throat and overwhelming fatigue and realised I had the virus. A few days later my mum tested positive for it when she was hospitalised but she had different symptoms, mainly a cough and shortness of breath I now know they vary between sufferers. I was also under the impression that as I was young all Id have was cold-like symptoms it was definitely a lot nastier than that. I had to stay in bed for a good week or so. Advertisement Excess weight makes it harder for the diaphragm and lungs to expand, which reduces oxygen supply to vital organs. There is also a risk of bacteria and fungi growing undisturbed in the lungs, leading to pneumonia. As your weight goes up there is less ventilation of the lungs and more risk of lung disease in particular asthma, and increased risk of heart disease and diabetes, says Professor Andrews. Dr Capehorn says overweight people already suffering from sleep apnoea should be made aware of their Covid-19 risk. Sleep apnoea halts breathing for short periods, as the airway collapses temporarily. This is often caused by fat round the neck area. It is most common in overweight men aged over 40 with a shirt collar size over 16 inches. When it comes to treatment, overweight people have more difficulty getting enough oxygen because of the weight of extra fat on their airways and are more likely to require extra help breathing with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or mechanical ventilation, Dr Capehorn told Good Health. Those put on CPAP where pressurised air is gently forced into the airway via a mask may suffer other respiratory problems because of the difficulty of breathing out against the machine; mechanical ventilation where a tube is inserted into the airway raises the risk of acute lung damage. The connection between weight and increased risk of severe or fatal infection with flu-like viruses, was first identified during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, which killed 284,000 worldwide. The U.S. has the worlds worst obesity problem but Scotland is close behind: more than 20 per cent of Europes swine flu deaths occurred there. By contrast, Japan, where just 2 per cent of adults are obese, experienced no deaths. Medics transport a patient suffering from coronavirus at the Royal London Hospital Professor Barry Popkin, of the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina, told Good Health last week obesity and excessive weight reduce ones immune response and ability to fight Covid-19. U.S. research published last year has also found vaccines operate less effectively in overweight people. Meanwhile, Italian doctors found the complications of Covid-19 experienced by overweight people can be reduced by nursing them face down. Top Tip! Remember to clean your hands before and after going to the shops, says hygiene expert Professor Sally Bloomfield. Dont take a paper receipt and use your car key to punch numbers into a chip and pin machine, she adds. Then use hand sanitise Advertisement As Fredrik Karpe, a metabolic medicine professor at the University of Oxford, explained in The Sunday Times last week: If you have a big belly when you lie down, the weight pushes your diaphragm upwards reducing lung volume. This virus is all about lung function. However Professor Andrews says suitable beds are not always available. Despite the ICNARC statistics, a spokesman for Public Health England insisted: We dont know if this [correlation] is due to obesity alone or because people who are living with obesity are more likely to have co-morbidities such as type-2 diabetes, heart disease or respiratory diseases. Dr Capehorn is, however, quite clear. He says: It seems [Covid-19] is with us to stay and the lockdown is a precious opportunity to find ways to improve our health while we are able. A man created quite a ruckus at a Delhi hospital for a few hours on Sunday, claiming he was infected with coronavirus and would infect anyone who dared to approach him with his blood. The drama unfolded at the Safdarjung Hospital in the afternoon, with the man somehow reaching the third-floor balcony of Ward Number 29, Delhi Fire Service Director Atul Garg told IANS. Garg said the fire brigade got a call around 3.45 p.m. about the man who threatening that if anyone tried to approach him, he would infect them with his blood by inflicting cuts on his hand. Confusion went on for around two-and-a-half hours before the man was brought down safe by the fire brigade personnel and handed over to the police. The man, whose identity could not be known, was said to be aged around 44 and is a native of West Bengal. Police said it was still a mystery how the man managed to climb up the hospital building even though security guards provided by a private firm are deployed 25X7 at the premises. Police said the man seemed mentally unstable. Mike Ashley was hours away from confirming the 300million sale of Newcastle United last week only for the Saudi owners in-waiting to insist on a delay, sources have told Sportsmail. Those close to the deal - being brokered by Amanda Staveley - say the Saudi business custom is to wait until full completion before making a formal announcement. That would explain why there has been no statement from the club explaining that an agreement has been reached and that the proposed takeover is now in the hands of the Premier League. Mike Ashley was hours away from confirming the 300m sale of Newcastle before a delay The absence of such continues to make some supporters cautious but insiders insist Ashley is fully committed to selling the club and expect no last-minute complications, pending the League's approval. They say Ashley was ready to break his silence and tell fans that his 13-year reign is all but over last week. However, it is now likely that any public statements will only be made when the takeover is given the green light by the Premier League, and that looks set to be within the next three weeks at the latest. Some Nigerians have expressed disappointment in Ghana after President Akufo-Addo lifted the ban on the restriction of movement in Accra, Kumasi and Tema. According to them, the nation could be in great trouble when people from the hot spot areas begin to live their normal life. They said although the President ask Ghanaians should be wearing nose masks and observe other protocols, people continue to disregard those safety measures as if they don't care. The Nigerians expressed grief about government actions, indicating that the move could worsen the situation in the country, while others said otherwise. Abdulfata Muhammed, one of the Nigerians bemoaned that the number of figures announced by the President during his televised address was high which calls for more stricter measures. I dont think it is a good idea, considering the data you presented before us. I pray God does not allow what Melinda Gates said about Africa to come to pass, he added. Mr Muhammed regretted that government did not work to bring down the number of cases before lifting the lockdown. Boluoa mentioned that the action by the government does not portend well for Ghanaiansn and called on the country to pray in order not to experience a second wave of the deadly bug. Ecuador situation, another Nigerian, Babatunde observed was loading in Ghana with the unnecessary lifting of lockdown and urged Nigerian government to keep the border closed. Others also commended the government for the rapid testing and called on the Nigerian government to learn from the good works of the President. They said Nana Akufo-Addos actions could have been triggered by the number of population of the country and the number of contacts they have traced so far from the enhanced surveillance project. Sure, he has some post-lockdown measures too, Awujo, another Nigerian stated. BY JOYCELINE NATALLY CUDJOE https://www.spotonnews.net/ SAO PAULO, April 20 (Reuters) - The board of AES Tiete has rejected a merger offer from Eneva SA, the Brazilian power company said in a filing late on Sunday. The board said the price in the hostile bid was lower than shareholders expected and that a merger with Eneva would make no sense, since Eneva owns thermoelectrical plants that use coal or natural gas, and AES owns hydroelectric dams. AES added Eneva did not present any financing for the bid. (Reporting by Tatiana Bautzer; editing by Jason Neely) Istanbul deaths suggest a wider outbreak than Turkey admits. Turkey has surpassed China in its number of confirmed coronavirus cases, as the tally rose to more than 90,000 by Monday, with deaths reaching at least 2,140, according to official government figures. But the true death toll may be much higher. Data compiled by The New York Times from records of deaths in Istanbul indicate that Turkey is grappling with a far bigger calamity from the coronavirus than official figures and statements indicate. The city alone recorded about 2,100 more deaths than expected from March 9 to April 12, based on weekly averages from the last two years, far more than officials reported for the whole of Turkey during that time. While not all those deaths are necessarily directly attributable to the coronavirus, the numbers indicate a striking jump in fatalities that has coincided with the onset of the outbreak, a preliminary indicator that is being used by researchers to cut through the fog of the pandemic and assess its full toll in real time. The government maintains that it acted swiftly, stopping flights and border crossings from five of the most affected countries in February and closing schools, restaurants and bars in mid-March when the first case of infection was confirmed. I think I would say to all of those folks who legitimately want to get back to work that I do too, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said at his daily briefing. I want people to get back to work, I want people to go back to school. And I want us to have a great summer. And so Im looking for all of the best ways to make that happen. But were in the middle of an emergency, a pandemic." Mumbai: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday sought to know who was stopping Maharashtra Governor B K Koshyari from approving the state Cabinet's recommendation to nominate Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray as MLC from the governor's quota. Raut said Koshyari's affiliation with the BJP is not a secret, but this is not the time to indulge in politics. Thackeray is not a member of either of the two Houses of the state legislature. He was sworn in as chief minister on November 28 last year, and completes six months in office on May 28. As per the Constitution, a minister or a chief minister who is not a member of either of the houses has to be elected to either of the Houses within six months of being sworn into the post, failing which the person must resign. Raut expressed confidence that Thackeray will remain chief minister of the state even after May 27. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar recently held a Cabinet meeting which suggested Thackeray's name as governor-nominated member of the Legislative Council (MLC). "The Maharashtra Cabinet has recommended Uddhav Thackeray's name as member of the Legislative Council from the governor's quota. There is vacancy as well. "Then who is stopping him (Koshyari) from approving the recommendation?" Raut wondered while speaking to a Marathi news channel. This is not the time to indulge in any kind of politics, the Rajya Sabha member said. "There is nothing to hide about Koshyaris BJP affiliation. But, I would like to make one thing clear that Uddhav Thackeray is going to be the chief minister of Maharashtra even after May 27," he said. Raut on Sunday also attacked Koshyari by posting a tweet, saying, "Raj bhavan, governor's house shouldn't become center for political conspiracy. Remember! history doesn't spare those who behave unconstitutionally. @maha_governor." The Shiv Sena parted ways with long-term ally BJP after the state Assembly elections last year over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. Sena president Thackeray later joined hands with the NCP and Congress to form the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government. [April 20, 2020] Gallup International Association (GIA) & Impetus Research COVID-19 Snap Poll Wave 2 Finds Rise in Global Concern About the Spread of Coronavirus Majorities stay supportive of their governments; Indians in favour of extended Lockdown NEW DELHI, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- India ranks highest with 91% believe Indian Government is fighting against the disease well and over 79% 'Strongly Agree' that extended Lockdown is the right step to contain the outbreak. These are some of the conclusions from the second 'snap poll' held by the world's longest running global polling network, Gallup International Association. The survey was carried out in 18 countries around the world including Germany, India, Italy, Russia, USA, etc. The first wave was in March 2020. Over the last few weeks, fear of catching the Coronavirus has increased in almost all of the surveyed countries. For instance, with the spread of the virus in the USA, the share of those who express their worries that they or a member of their family may actually catch the Coronavirus has increased by 25 points. More people are afraid now in Thailand, Switzerland, Argentina, Austria, Japan while 70% people in India fear of the infection of themselves or their families. On the contrary, population in Italy has become more accustomed to the situation, with their share of concerns about catching the virus has decreased by 9 points. People in India and Malaysia strongly believe that their government is handling the situation well, Austria (86%), Pakistan (82%), Philippines (80% up from 70%), Germany (75% significantly up from 47%) seem to be very satisfied with the way in which their Governments are handling the crisis. The highest share of dissatisfaction with the authorities in regard to the COVID-19 situation is registered again in Thailand - 81% disagree that their government is doing well with the current situation. Negative sentiment has increased by 5 points within a few weeks. The second place in terms of dissatisfaction remains Japan - 69% disagree that the authorities are handling the situation well (increase by 7 points). Public opinion in USA is rather divided - 48% are satisfied with the state measures and 48% are not. With a global spread of the virus and corresponding government measures, the survey shows that more and more people accept the threat is real. Globally, about two-thirds (63%, up from 59%) of respondents around the world do not think that the threat of the Coronavirus is exaggerated, India (71% up from 43% in March). The increased threat has impacted willingness to sacrifice some of the human rights if this helps to prevent the spread of the infection. In March, 75% of the population surveyed were willing to sacrifice their human rights until the threat from COVID-19 has gone. This share now equals 80% globally. The highest levels of readiness are reported in Iraq and Pakistan (92%), India and Thailand (91%), but also in Austria (86%), Germany(89%), Italy (85%), Switzerland (86%). What comes after the crisis? When asked about what will happen to the world when the pandemic is over, 49% people in India feel that major changes can be expected with almost entirely new world. At the International level, Public opinion is yet not clear. 41% of the population in the surveyed countries (India 35%) are expecting the world to return more or less to its pre-crisis state. However, 45% globally think that there will be major change with an almost entirely new world after the Coronavirus crisis is over. 14% cannot answer. Half of the population of the surveyed countries expect relations between the major world powers to become more cooperative. 28% express the opposite opinion (India 24%) - that relations will become more confrontational. The remaining 22% globally are unsure. Democratic principles show signs of endurance in these difficult times. In countries including Austria, Argentina, Germany, Kazakhstan, Switzerland and India more than 90% of respondents disagree that democracy is not effective in the current crisis, re-affirming faith in the democracy. 17% globally share the opinion that democracy is not effective in the current crisis. The highest levels of approval for this provocative statement are registered in Pakistan (49%), Malaysia (43%) and Russia (32%). The current crisis also has a serious impact on economic life. Right now 36% globally (India 29%) claim that they have lost a serious part of their income (especially in Pakistan 84%, Indonesia 61%, Thailand 63%), 28% say that they have temporarily stopped working (mostly in India 45%, Pakistan 45%, Malaysia 51% and Philippines 55%), 15% worldwide claim to have lost their jobs Pakistan 68% reported highest loss of jobs while India reported 5%. (Pakistan, Philippines, Malaysia) and 12% say that they now work part time. One-third however say that the crisis has not impacted their lives so far in terms of jobs and income. The largest shares in this regard are registered in Austria, Germany and Japan. While people around the world are reeling under the crisis, Indians are much more optimistic (75% up from 60%) with a strong believe that we are over the worst of it and things will begin to improve. When further explored on who do you think is responsible for the spread of this deadly virus, a majority 69% feel that a foreign power is deliberately causing the spread of Coronavirus and on the domestic front 66% believe that 'A religious community is deliberately causing the sudden spike in the spread of Coronavirus' in India. "This panic we see, unprecedented in modern times, is a culmination of a series of mass fears on a global scale in the last two decades. The underlying reasons of that mass psychosis are founded in the essence of the consumerist societies and the way the elites are servicing them. The situation now resembles 'suicide of a civilization' so convincingly described by Arnold Toynbee. The way out of the horror film we live in requires a happy end - in this case a vaccine. But the major problem is that by the time the vaccine is widely available the economic devastation could be of such magnitude that a much bigger real tragedy might occur," says Kancho Stoychev, President of Gallup International Association. In India, Impetus-Research, the exclusive representative of Gallup International Association, conducted a survey over Phone and online mode in the past 2 weeks, amongst a randomly selected population of India with a realized sample of n=1050. The official press release highlighting key findings from around the globe can be accessed here, while tables can be found here. Methodology: The second wave of the unique Global snap poll held by the world's leading Gallup International Association with exclusive India Partner - Impetus Research in the context of the COVID-19 situation. Wave 1 which involved more than 22,000 people in 26 countries around the world was executed in March 2020 and the second wave consisting of 17,789 participants across 18 major countries was executed in first week of April 2020. In India, the sample size was 1050 interviewed over Phone/Web/Emails in the 1st week of April, 2020. In each country a representative sample of men and women was interviewed via telephone or online. The margin of error for the survey is between +3-5% at 95% confidence level. About Impetus Research Impetus Research is a New Delhi based leading social and public opinion poll, marketing research agency known for reliable data collection and MR Support Services and Data Analysis. The company is an active member of Gallup International Association and follows ESOMAR code of conduct for marketing research organizations. For further details: www.impetus-research.com About Gallup International Gallup International Association (GIA) is the leading global independent association in market research and polling. For over 70 years Gallup International Members have demonstrated their expert ability to conduct multi-country surveys on a comparable basis and deliver the highest quality. Our more than 100 Members and partners are leading national institutes with a profound local knowledge of research methods and techniques, statistical sources, customs and culture differences of its own country and carefully selected by the Association Board. With only one Member agency per country, Members work together on a daily basis to share knowledge, new research techniques and tools, as well as to provide the most appropriate solutions to international research projects and service our clients to the best of our abilities. For further details see website: www.gallup-international.com Disclaimer: Gallup International Association or its members are not related to Gallup Inc., headquartered in Washington D.C. which is no longer a member of Gallup International Association. Gallup International Association does not accept responsibility for opinion polling other than its own. We require that our surveys be credited fully as Gallup International (not Gallup or Gallup Poll). PDF: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1157138/Impetus_Gallup_COVID_19_Poll_Wave_2.pdf [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] India has at least 3 million medical professionals and roughly 8 million others who can be drafted for disease containment work such as contact tracing, according to the Union governments stocktaking of human resources that can be deployed if the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak grows. The exercise comes amid worries that a runaway epidemic could overwhelm Indias health care system, much like it has in the United States and parts of Europe, prompting experts and authorities to consider an all-hands-on-deck scenario. India has one doctors for every 1,457 of its population, which is lower than 1:1,000 ratio recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The US has an average of 2.54 doctors for every 1,000 of its population. The resources in addition to the health staff will be deployed for tasks such as supervising quarantine facilities, surveillance of contacts, and to help authorities implement lockdown measures. We dont just need doctors, but also non-medical professionals who can be quickly trained to manage other aspects of the Covid-19 situation. There is need for manpower to manage the lockdown effectively, and now that there is relaxation of curbs, local authorities will require people to maintain social distancing in banks, ration shops, check on people whether they are observing infection control practices publicly, etc, said Arun Panda, secretary, ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), who heads the special group of bureaucrats responsible for augmenting human resources and capacities. The civic bodies will also need people to manage movement of people and other things. This is an attempt to have everything at the click of a mouse for the convenience of everyone, Panda added. A dashboard, available on covidwarriors.gov.in, accounts for doctors and nurses as well as dentists, auxiliary health staff, Ayush practitioners, Asha and Anganwadi workers and those that belong to the uniformed youth groups such as NSS and NCC. For the exercise, the government collaborated with several ministries, councils, NGOs and civil society groups to gather details. The idea behind a dashboard was for people to quickly figure out where the need was to deploy people, and which was the nearest place where manpower was in excess that could be transported to the other place where it was required more. You can see it all in real time, said Panda. The data on the website lists resources by state. For quick training of these personnel, the MSME ministry has also come up with about 105 training modules that can be readily accessed at anytime. There are web modules created to teach, for example, bio-medical waste management, how to dispose personal protection equipment, infection control and hygiene practices, etc. These have been created in a quick, easy-to-learn format, the secretary said. We have gone as granular as we could be and it is a work in progress because it will be updated on a regular basis and can be utilised even after the outbreak has subsided. These are people who are willing to work, and can be utilised later on as well, he added. Experts in the field say it helps to have an exact knowledge of manpower at hand in an outbreak situation so that the workforce can be accordingly deployed. Doctors, nurses and paramedics are one part of it but the other, and more important, part is to ensure preventive measures are put in place effectively so that cases do not go up. At such places we need volunteers, who can go to villages and towns to help local administrations in ensuring people strictly follow the government directive. There is a large number of people who would want to work, and to have an exact idea about them is great, said Dr KK Talwar, former head of PGI Chandigarh. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rhythma Kaul Rhythma Kaul works as an assistant editor at Hindustan Times. She covers health and related topics, including ministry of health and family welfare, government of India. ...view detail Scientists have discovered a new Earth-sized planet in a stars habitable zonethe region where liquid water could exist on its surface. The discovery was made using data from the now-retired Kepler Space Telescope. Out of all the exoplanets found by Kepler, this new worldlocated 300 light-years from Earthis most similar to Earth in size and estimated temperature. Learn why and how we study exoplanets, and how you can get involved. Pictured: An artists depiction of the surface of the newly discovered exoplanet. Image credit: NASA/Ames Research Center/Daniel Rutter NASA announced that Masten Space Systems will fly a small lander to the Moons south pole in 2022, carrying instruments and technology demonstrations that will help prepare for human landings in 2024. Masten may be especially familiar to Planetary Society members: the company flew our PlanetVac sample collection experiment on its Xodiac rocket in 2018. NASAs OSIRIS-REx spacecraft completed a sample collection rehearsal at asteroid Bennu, coming just 75 meters from the surface before backing away as planned. The probe is scheduled to touch down on Bennu in August, grabbing a small sample of regolith that will be returned to Earth in 2023. The samples could shed light on the connection between asteroids and the formation of our solar system, as well as the role asteroids played in bringing water to Earth. Engineers at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida attached the small Mars helicopter to the belly of NASAs Perseverance rover, which is scheduled to launch this summer. Once on Mars, Perseverance will lower the helicopter to the surface and move 100 meters away. After engineers perform extensive system checks, the helicopter will embark on a 30-day flight-test campaign to explore the rovers surroundings. NASA astronauts Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir, as well as Russias Oleg Skripochka, should have returned to Earth from the International Space Station Friday, just after The Downlink published. The station now has a crew of just 3 astronauts, until the planned May arrival of NASAs Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. Engineers at NASA and the German Aerospace Center continue to make progress in their efforts to save the heat-flow probe known as the mole aboard the Mars InSight lander. The self-hammering instrument, known as the mole, has unsuccessfully been trying to bury itself since March 2019. InSight is using its robotic scoop to press down on the mole while it hammers. Its hard to imagine an industry more poorly prepared for the arrival of a global pandemic than the media business. Even before coronavirus became a household word, the industry was already reeling from a series of body blows, most of them delivered by Google and Facebook and their dominance of the advertising market. Since 2008, nearly half of US newspaper journalism jobs have disappeared, according to the LA Times, leaving fewer than 38,000 reporters, photographers, and editors. Waves of layoffs have become the norm, not just for large chains like Gannett and McClatchy but for smaller papers, and even for digital giants like BuzzFeed and Vox, who at one time were seen as the future of online media. Then along came COVID-19, and with it the unprecedented shutdown of entire cities, and the erasure of huge swaths of the advertising business. For many outlets, it will likely become what media analyst Ken Doctor calls an extinction event. For some it already is. The LA Times profiled one example of this sad trend. Jeff VonKaenel, 69, owner of the Sacramento News & Review and sister publications in Chico and Reno, has been running weekly newspapers for almost 50 years, and has survived wildfires, recessions, and being sued by a mayor. But the extinguishing of almost all his advertising in the wake of COVID-19 left him no other choice: four days after the virus was defined as a pandemic, VonKaenel shut down his presses for the last time and laid off all 40 members of his staff. This could be the death knell, not only for us but for the dailies that we compete with, he said. VonKaenel told the Times he is still trying to come up with a way to continue serving the community, possibly by partnering with a non-profit. But he could no longer cover the $45,000 a week it took to run the paper (last year, he and his wife borrowed against their home to keep it afloat). A similar story has played out across big and small publications over the past month. The Jewish Chronicle, first published in 1841, and Jewish News in the UK recently shut down and liquidated all of their assets. Alternative weeklies across the US and Canada have cut back on printing and laid off staff. Meanwhile, a broad range of large and medium-sized publishers and news outlets have implemented cost-saving plans that consist of both paid and unpaid leave for significant numbers of staff and reduced salaries for others. According to a recent estimate by the New York Times, roughly 33,000 workers at news companies in the US have been laid off, been furloughed, or had their pay reduced in the past month. Schneps Media a local news publisher that recently acquired the free newspapers amNewYork and Metro New York, has laid off or given paid leave to about 30 employees at its roughly 50 community publications, or about 20 percent of its workforce. ICYMI: China, conspiracy theories, and the murky coronavirus origin story The LA Times, which was bought by local biomedical billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong in 2018 along with the San Diego Union-Tribune, spent 18 months rebuilding its newsroom and expanding its coverage, only to get hit by the virus downturn. Advertising revenue has nearly been eliminated, the president of the holding company that owns both titles told staff in a memo last week. Salaries for senior management are going to be reduced, and about 40 staff were told they were being put on leave for 16 weeks leave that may turn into outright layoffs, the company said. Tribune Publishing, the company that owns The Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, and The New York Daily News said it will permanently reduce the salaries of those making more than $67,000 by between 2 percent and 10 percent, and will offer an undisclosed number of buyouts. Some executives will also take pay cuts. The list goes on. Conde Nast, publisher of Vogue, Vanity Fair and The New Yorker says it is cutting pay by 10 to 20 percent for those making more than $100,000 (a little over half its work force), for five months starting in May, including senior executives such as artistic director Anna Wintour. Its very likely our advertising clients, consumers and therefore our company will be operating under significant financial pressure for some time, CEO Roger Lynch said in an April 13 memo (he is cutting his salary in half). Fortune magazine is laying off 35 people, or 10 percent of its staff, and CEO Alan Murray will take a 50 percent pay cut (other executives will have their salaries reduced by 30 percent). Gannett, publisher of USA Today, The Detroit Free Press and more than 250 other daily newspapers, has ordered the majority of its 24,000 employees to take five days off per month without pay in April, May and June. Sign up for CJR 's daily email Many of the publishers making these announcements are saying they are short-term responses to the pandemic, and that they are hopeful that laid off staff may be rehired, or that paid leave wont turn into layoffs. But is that a realistic hope? In many cases, it may not be. The media industry wasnt exactly known for having excess cash flow even before the virus arrived, which means many outlets were already living on borrowed time. COVID-19 has only sped up their inevitable demise. What comes next remains unknown. Heres more on the struggles of the media industry: What to do? On CJRs Galley discussion platform this week , well be speaking with a number of media industry observers, analysts, and other experts about what kind of response there should be from governments and others to the unprecedented decline of ad revenue and the resulting layoffs and closures, especially among smaller outlets. Among others, well talk with Victor Pickard of the University of Pennsylvania, Craig Aaron from Free Press, David Chavern from the News Media Alliance, and Anne Nelson from Columbia. Now its pouring : Vice Media is halting 401K matches and freezing promotions, in addition to enforcing pay cuts for top employees. CEO Nancy Dubuc is taking a 50% pay reduction . We organized a union with @WGAEast to have a seat at the table, especially during rainy days. Well, now its pouring, the Vox Media union said on Twitter . The union said it got management to agree to the full cost of health insurance paid for, with co-pays and deductibles reimbursed, during furlough, a buyout option that adds four weeks of severance to the CBA-guaranteed severance, and a guarantee that they will not be replaced by contractors Financial ruin : National newspapers in the UK could close unless the government finds a way to support the industry, according to the general secretary of the National Union of Journalists, Michelle Stanistreet, who has said many outlets are facing financial ruin as a result of coronavirus. The NUJ is calling for an immediate windfall tax on tech companies to help support the journalism industry through the crisis, with the money provided on the condition that large publishers rethink how the industry operates. Stanistreet told the Guardian : Many, many local titles and some national titles will go to the wall if nothing is done. I think we will see national newspaper titles being casualties. Platform help : Facebook and Google have both announced attempts to help the media industry. In late March, Facebook announced $25 million in emergency funding for local news through its Facebook Journalism Project. The news industry is working under extraordinary conditions to keep people informed during the COVID-19 pandemic. At a time when journalism is needed more than ever, ad revenues are declining, the company said, adding that it would also spend $75 million to buy newspaper ads. Last week, Google announced its own $100 million journalism fund to deliver urgent aid to thousands of small, medium and local news publishers globally. Other notable stories: Covering Climate Now, the global journalism collaborative co-founded by CJR and The Nation , kicks off its second week of coordinated coverage this week, focused on solutions to the climate crisis. Covering Climate Now has 400 partner media organizations, reaching an audience of 2 billion people around the world, with the aim of improving the quality and quantity of climate coverage. In a note about the coverage that will come this week, Kyle Pope, CJRs editor and publisher, and Mark Hertsgaard, the collaboratives executive director, say: The overlaps between the coronavirus crisis and the climate crisis are many, and the same best practices when it comes to reporting are needed. Here, too, newsrooms must let facts, especially scientific facts, be our guide. Facebook and Google will be forced to share advertising revenue with Australian media companies after the Australian government instructed the competition watchdog to develop a mandatory code of conduct for the digital giants amid a steep decline in advertising brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. In its response to a digital platforms inquiry in December, the federal government asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to develop a code between media companies and digital platforms including Google and Facebook. Facebook said in a blog post that its going to start showing messages in the News Feed to people who have liked, reacted or commented on harmful misinformation about COVID-19 that we have since removed. The messages will connect people to myths that have been debunked by the World Health Organization, including ones that Facebook removed from its platform because they might lead to imminent physical harm. The company said that the messages should start appearing in peoples feeds over the next few weeks. Quartz has taken over stewardship of the Political Ad Collector, an effort to analyze the behavior of Facebooks political advertising machine by getting users to submit the ads that they see. The project was originally started by ProPublica. Facebook ads were a mess during the 2016 US election. And in the 2018 midterms. And they still are a mess, Quartz said. The social media site maintains its trying to clean up the disinformation and shenanigans, but questionable schemes run rampant and influence peddlers often hide their identities. So were redoubling our efforts to watch whats happening. A tweet calling for Muslims and journalists to be lined up and shot stayed on Twitter for nearly a day before the platform permanently suspended the account that tweeted it. The tweet, which falsely blamed Muslims for spreading the coronavirus in India, was posted from the verified account of Rangoli Chandel, manager and sister of popular Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut, on Wednesday morning. f***k the history they may call us nazis who cares, the tweet said. The tweet was retweeted more than 2,000 times and received over 8,000 likes. Washington Post media columnist Margaret Sullivan says the Trump administration is muzzling government scientists, and argues that its essential to let them speak candidly to the press again. Were now at a moment when experts must be free to share their knowledge and front-line workers must be free to tell their stories without being muzzled or threatened and certainly without being fired, she writes. Its no exaggeration to say that lives depend on it. The Corporation for Public Broadcastings board of directors unanimously approved a plan to divide the corporations $75 million in federal emergency relief funds between public television and radio stations. In a memo sent to GMs Thursday, CPB President Pat Harrison reported that federal funds will be evenly split into two pools of $37.5 million each for television and radio. Each pool will provide additional funds to stations that meet CPBs criteria as small and rural stations. The 158 public TV stations in its Community Service Grant program will receive $200,000 in stimulus funds, according to the memo. Slate is launching Gerrymander Puzzles , a new feature that includes a weekly puzzle highlighting the worst and weirdest gerrymanders in the country. The idea is to find out how quickly you can put these states back together while learning everything thats at stake in the next round of redistricting, Slate says, noting that the puzzles will show just how crazy some of the states have drawn districts based on partisan lines. The new feature is part of Slates Who Counts? initiative that was launched in September of last year to analyze election coverage. CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin wrote a personal essay about her fight with COVID-19, and how it taught her about the gift of connection. Baldwin said her battle with the virus took her to some very dark places, especially at night. Evenings would bring on an eerie melancholy, which was particularly odd for me a glass-half-full/chemically blessed kind of gal. But under the influence of coronavirus, as each day came to a close, I would often cry, unable to stave off the sense of dread and isolation I felt about what was to come. ICYMI: Chinas expulsion of American journalists also affects Chinese staffand the future of reporting in China Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today 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. The Apple/Google collaboration can help that effort, though its utility is confined to the pool of users of iPhones and Android phones who have installed the app, and who consent to share data with public health officials. On the privacy front, state and local health officials need to ensure that such an app isnt abused as a means to track citizens. And once the crisis ends, theres the risk that government wont want to relinquish access to the data, and that police departments and other law enforcement agencies could see a need for information the app gathers. Patton Village officer recovers Regarding Patton Village officer fights COVID-19 and wins, (A1, April 16): Lt. Chris Hernandezs story seriously needed telling. It certainly belonged on the front page today. And you did a wonderful job of telling his story. Congrats! And we all pray that we never have the need to follow his example; but should that ever happen, we hope we can! George Bigham, Houston Ode to Houston Regarding Ode to the city, things we miss, (A1, April 12): Thank you for the essay by Andrew Dansby. Yes, it belonged on the front page for its artistry alone. You have some amazing writers on staff, but I have never read anything more beautiful. It evokes reactions many of us may have, but it takes an unusual writer to dress them up into a stream of consciousness. Ione Moran, Houston Thank you, grocery workers Regarding Grocery workers are going the extra mile for community, (A1, March 27): I have always felt that the little guy matters. Im a U.S. Navy Vietnam-era veteran so yesterday on my first-in-two-weeks shopping trip at Kroger I looked the cashier in the eye and said, Im a veteran but now Im turning the tables. Thank you for your service. Her obviously weary face cracked a bit of a smile as she muttered a thank you. It is highly unlikely that the pandemic will result in a large-scale redistribution of wealth to the little guys of this world, but wouldnt it be neat if it did lead to some small redistribution of pride? Larry E. Vecera, Houston Thank you, readers I was a Houston Chronicle paper boy in the 1950s, then an assistant distributor and always a full-time reader. Love your opinion pieces and your word craft. Keep it up. John Farra, Missouri City On faith Kudos to the staff and writers of our Houston Chronicle; you have acknowledged that Houston still has faith! In late February, COVID-19 rocked our world. Suddenly, we were reckoning with an enemy which we had not faced in modern times. Leaders in governments, world, national and local health agencies were overwhelmed. Employers sent all but non-essential employees home and schools closed. Jobs were lost. Where do we turn in times of trouble? Mayor Sylvester Turner asked Houstonians to pause at noon on April 9 for a time of prayer or silent meditation, asking God, in their own way, to heal our land. Seems some Houstonians do still have faith. Thankfully, the Chronicle has recently acknowledged that folks in our area do still believe and are practicing those diverse faiths in big ways, albeit apart from one another. Articles from writers Lindsey Peyton, Greg Morago, Andrew Dansby, Joy Sewing, Robert Downen, Raj Mankad and the editorial on April 12 all highlight that we are strengthened by our faith, especially in times of trouble. (Apologies to those writers on faith who were were not acknowledged in this letter.) Thank you to all at the Houston Chronicle for bringing back articles on our diverse city of faith. You have restored this reader's faith in our great newspaper. B. Arnold, Houston ATLANTA, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Verde Leaf is pleased to announce that the Company has entered a Joint Venture Distribution deal with The Alpine Hemp Group, LLC, to promote and sell Verde Leaf's high-quality CBD products. The distribution deal allows Verde Leaf and The Alpine Hemp Group to distribute co-branded lines of consumables, non-consumables, premium flavored pre-rolls, and other cutting-edge hemp based tobacco substitute products. The Alpine Hemp Group, LLC has a distribution network of relationships that span decades, and has for over 46,000 retailers across North America, with some of the key retailers being: Circle K Stores, Core-Mark, G&B Wholesalers, BLSA, Ltd, Stewart Distributors, ACC Wholesalers, Blue Ridge Wholesale, and Citgo Stores just time name a few. "We are pleased to partner with The Alpine Hemp Group's team and are excited to have them expedite our US sales efforts. This deal allows Verde Leaf access to mainstream sales channels that truly benefit the tireless work our farmers have been investing," said Dr. Jackson Garth, President, and CEO of Verde Leaf. ABOUT VERDE LEAF Verde Leaf is one of the hemp industry's first vertically integrated hemp companies, that created solutions for the farmer, business owners, and consumers. We solve some of the key challenges in the emerging hemp industry by assisting farmers with license acquisition, hemp cultivation and processing, and filling the knowledge gap with our network of seasoned hemp farmers and specialists across the Southeast. Moreover, by securing exclusive contracts with farmers, Verde Leaf ensures that hemp product sold to consumers have unprecedented clarity, consistency, and data available for products they are purchasing. By controlling our supply chain seed-to-sell, Verde Leaf gives customers assurance and confidence in the superior quality of our consumable and non-consumable product lines. The Alpine Hemp Group, LLC The Alpine Hemp Group is committed to creating the highest quality hemp pre-roll products on the market. Having decades of experience in the tobacco industry, their skillset and knowledge of hemp transfers into making high quality products that are healthier for consumers. They believe in full Spectrum whole plant extracts which benefit the entire body and mind. The Alpine Hemp Group, LLC holds themselves to the highest standard of transparency and accuracy in a new and ever-growing Hemp marketplace. Their business encompasses multiple aspects of the Hemp industry, bringing cutting edge hemp based (tobacco substitute) products. SOURCE Verde Leaf Related Links http://www.verdeleafgroup.com Those holding Wynnstay Group (LON:WYN) shares must be pleased that the share price has rebounded 27% in the last thirty days. But unfortunately, the stock is still down by 6.8% over a quarter. But shareholders may not all be feeling jubilant, since the share price is still down 26% in the last year. All else being equal, a sharp share price increase should make a stock less attractive to potential investors. 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 some would prefer to hold off buying when there is a lot of optimism towards a stock. 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. Check out our latest analysis for Wynnstay Group Does Wynnstay Group Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry? Wynnstay Group's P/E of 8.80 indicates relatively low sentiment towards the stock. The image below shows that Wynnstay Group has a lower P/E than the average (12.4) P/E for companies in the food industry. AIM:WYN Price Estimation Relative to Market April 20th 2020 This suggests that market participants think Wynnstay Group will underperform other companies in its industry. Since the market seems unimpressed with Wynnstay Group, it's quite possible it could surprise on the upside. You should delve deeper. I like to check if company insiders have been buying or selling. How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios P/E ratios primarily reflect market expectations around earnings growth rates. Earnings growth means that in the future the 'E' will be higher. That means even if the current P/E is high, it will reduce over time if the share price stays flat. So while a stock may look expensive based on past earnings, it could be cheap based on future earnings. Story continues Wynnstay Group's earnings per share fell by 21% in the last twelve months. But EPS is up 1.4% over the last 3 years. And EPS is down 2.6% a year, over the last 5 years. This growth rate might warrant a below average P/E ratio. A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank The 'Price' in P/E reflects the market capitalization of the company. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. Hypothetically, a company could reduce its future P/E ratio by spending its cash (or taking on debt) to achieve higher earnings. 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 Wynnstay Group's Balance Sheet Tell Us? Wynnstay Group has net cash of UK7.6m. This is fairly high at 14% of its market capitalization. That might mean balance sheet strength is important to the business, but should also help push the P/E a bit higher than it would otherwise be. The Verdict On Wynnstay Group's P/E Ratio Wynnstay Group's P/E is 8.8 which is below average (13.5) in the GB market. The recent drop in earnings per share would almost certainly temper expectations, but the net cash position means the company has time to improve: if so, the low P/E could be an opportunity. What we know for sure is that investors are becoming less uncomfortable about Wynnstay Group's prospects, since they have pushed its P/E ratio from 6.9 to 8.8 over the last month. If you like to buy stocks that could be turnaround opportunities, then this one might be a candidate; but if you're more sensitive to price, then you may feel the opportunity has passed. When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. If it is underestimating a company, investors can make money by buying and holding the shares until the market corrects itself. So this free visual report on analyst forecasts could hold the key to an excellent investment decision. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E 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. Advertisement Australian travellers including a frail man with a heavily taped arm have been rushed off a mercy flight from India and into waiting ambulances. Ambulance crew wearing masks and gowns could be seen wheeling the man onto a waiting ambulance at Adelaide Airport after 374 Australian citizens arrived on a Lion Air repatriation flight from Chennai via Denpasar in Indonesia on Monday morning. Another woman was pictured strapped into a stretcher and being taken by health workers to an ambulance in front of the airport. A South Australia Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia passengers were treated for pre-existing medical conditions which were unrelated to the coronavirus. Authorities said one female passenger had a chronic illness but did not show any symptoms of COVID-19. About six passengers are understood to be being taken to hospital for reasons not related to the virus, The Adelaide Advertiser reported. An Australian traveller from a repatriation flight carrying 374 Australians which arrived into Adelaide from India on Monday morning is taken on a stretcher to a waiting ambulance Ambulance crew wearing masks and gowns could be seen wheeling the man to the ambulance in front of the airport Those on-board will be quarantined at the Pullman Hotel in the city's CBD for 14 days and tested for the coronavirus. Another flight carrying about 400 passengers, which is expected to leave from the Indian city of Mumbai, will arrive in Adelaide on Tuesday at 8am. SA chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier said the arrivals would be tested after they disembarked and monitored daily for symptoms. 'We will not be risking the health and wellbeing of our population,' she said. Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said about 45 officers would monitor the building to ensure people don't leave prematurely. 'Given the excellent results we've seen in terms of limiting the spread of the virus in South Australia, we're taking the security of these people extremely seriously,' Mr Stevens said. South Australia Police said passengers were treated for pre-existing medical conditions which were unrelated to the coronavirus Another woman was pictured strapped into a stretcher and being taken by masked health workers to an ambulance in front of the airport The female passenger is wheeled in front of buses waiting to take travellers to the Pullman Hotel in Adelaide's CBD as part of the government's restrictions requiring all overseas arrivals isolate in hotel quarantine for 14 days Travellers leave Adelaide Airport and board buses after the repatriation flight landed in the South Australian capital on Monday morning 'I think we can say we're not losing the war,' Professor Spurrier said. 'We're in a really good place in South Australia. 'We've got very, very high testing rates and that's partly because of SA Pathology being able to provide it but also because South Australians are coming forward and getting tested at the right time.' South Australian police commissioner Grant Stevens said staff providing food to quarantined travellers would be wearing protective equipment. A group of travellers use hand sanitiser before boarding waiting buses to take them to the Pullman Hotel in Adelaide's CBD The arrival of the repatriation flight on Monday was part of an interstate operation to bring home Australians stranded overseas during the coronavirus pandemic Those quarantined meanwhile will have to stay in their rooms for the duration of their 14-day stay - many of whom have arrived in Adelaide from interstate. The arrival of the repatriation flight on Monday was part of an interstate operation to bring home Australians stranded overseas during the coronavirus pandemic. It comes as Australia's falling coronavirus infection rate sparks calls for a loosening of lockdown rules, but experts warn restrictions must stay until after winter. Police officers wearing face masks oversaw the arrivals from the flight into Adelaide on Monday The new arrivals into Australia - who will be given their meals by staff in protective clothing - will be monitored by 45 police officers at the CBD hotel South Australia, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory all reported no new cases of coronavirus over the weekend. Queensland also reported no new diagnoses of COVID-19 for the first time in more than two months on Monday. SA Health Minister Stephen Wade said it was too soon to remove border controls but other restrictions would ease in the next few weeks, including for elective surgery. 'The border control will not be the first wave of restrictions eased. We're going to be very cautious as we ease back on these restrictions,' he told ABC News on Sunday. A traveller wearing a face mask is seen on a bus at Adelaide Airport waiting to be taken into hotel quarantine for 14 days SA chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier said the arrivals would be tested after they disembarked and monitored daily for symptoms For Queensland it is the first time in 81 days that there are no new cases and leaves the state's total at 1019. Just 20 people are in hospital in the sunshine state, with seven of them in intensive care on ventilators. The Northern Territory, with a population of 245,600, had just 28 cases as of Sunday and no deaths. 'The Northern Territory is in a unique position, it's one of the safest places in the world we want to keep it that way,' Health Minister Natasha Fyles said. Australian Medical Association NT president Rob Parker praised the NT Government for swiftly shutting the borders. Shopify transcosmos, in partnership with transcosmos research and development, will offer all the functions for e-commerce businesses at one-stop: e-commerce system development and website operations, marketing, order and inventory management, fulfillment, and customer support. transcosmos inc. released e-commerce one-stop services based on Shopify, the world's top share e-commerce platform, on April 14, 2020. To offer the services, transcosmos has set up a dedicated Shopify team and fully prepared a support framework to assist businesses in implementing Shopify or migrating to the platform from their existing websites. In addition, by combining Shopify services with various existing transcosmos services, transcosmos will provide a broader range of support services such as launching and operating e-commerce business as well as solving challenges clients may face. Shopify, a SaaS e-commerce platform with a robust and scalable infrastructure, empowers over one million active stores across 175 countries. Shopify not only offers features necessary to launch and operate e-commerce business, but also provides different plans for businesses to choose from based on their budget and business objectives, and customization options for them that include enterprise level features. Its distinctive features also include abilities to integrate with various systems and social networking services. Certified as "Shopify Plus" official partner transcosmos and transcosmos research & development are two of the only five official partners in Japan that are certified by Shopify for achieving excellent results with "Shopify Plus," an enterprise level of Shopify (as of April 2020). transcosmos, in partnership with transcosmos research and development, Inc., a certified official partner of the Shopify enterprise level platform "Shopify Plus," will help businesses implement Shopify. At the same time, the two companies will offer functions required to run e-commerce businesses at one-stop that include e-commerce system development, e-commerce website operations, marketing, order and inventory management, fulfillment and customer support. Distinctive features of Shopify, the multi-channel commerce platform Online and offline store integration (omni-channel POS) Shopify POS application allows businesses to manage their entire online and physical store information using a unified platform. Social media integration Shopify plugins enable businesses to integrate their platform with various social networking services. By selling their products directly on Instagram, Facebook and more, businesses can increase their sales channels that will result in additional revenues. Cross-border e-commerce tools Shopify offers all kinds of payment options that are essential to drive cross-border business. In addition, Shopify offers multi-language translation and multi-currency converter features that support global expansion. Dashboard Shopify dashboard visualizes basic store performance data such as sales, orders, traffic as well as all user insight data across all sales channels that are essential for businesses to run successful marketing campaigns. About Shopify Plus Shopify Plus is an enterprise multi-channel commerce platform specifically designed for large enterprises and global brands that seek highly reliable commerce solutions. With its robust infrastructure that can process over 10,000 orders per minute, Shopify Plus provides large brands with multi-channel sales solutions including online, offline, B2B wholesale and more. Shopify Plus, the cloud-based platform with simple and user-friendly administration tools and flexibility supports 7,000+ large hyper-growth enterprises across the globe. To release Shopify-based e-commerce one-stop services, transcosmos has set up a dedicated Shopify team in its E-commerce Customer Experience (ECX) Division. With the team in place, transcosmos will promote Shopify implementations to clients. By leveraging its collective power, transcosmos delivers Shopify one-stop services from implementation to operations, thereby contributing to clients in expanding their sales. About Shopify Inc. Founded in 2006, Shopify Inc. is a leading global commerce company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Shopify Inc. makes commerce better for everyone with "Shopify," the multi-channel commerce platform that offers a wide variety of features including design customization, multi-sales channels that are linked to social network services, and back-office functions such as marketing, inventory management, accounting, customer support and more. Shopify powers over one million businesses in more than 175 countries and is trusted by many brands. *Visit Shopify here: https://www.shopify.com/ About transcosmos e-commerce services Along with the growth of the e-commerce market, transcosmos has been providing global e-commerce one-stop services to deliver our clients' superior products and services to consumers in 48 countries/regions around the world. We help clients in various ways that best match each client's needs by offering operational services including e-commerce website development and operations, fulfillment (receipt of goods, picking, packaging, shipping), customer service, web marketing, analysis and more for clients to sell their products and services globally. With our services, clients can either launch their e-commerce business by themselves, operate cross-border e-commerce business to sell products and services from Japan to the global market, or sell their products via our e-commerce sales channels. transcosmos provides strong support for clients to sell their products globally by leveraging global sales channels that we have developed including the prominent e-commerce shopping malls, leading e-commerce websites, major retailers worldwide as well as our partnerships with prominent local e-commerce outsourcing businesses in each country. transcosmos will continue to deliver our clients' products and services into the hands of consumers in Japan, Europe, China, Taiwan, South Korea, India, Central and South America and more. transcosmos is a trademark or registered trademark of transcosmos inc. In Japan and other countries. Other company names and product or services names used here are trademarks or registered trademarks of respective companies. About transcosmos inc. transcosmos launched its operations in 1966. Since then, we have combined superior "people" with up-to-date "technology" to enhance the competitive strength of our clients by providing them with superior and valuable services. transcosmos currently offers services that support clients' business processes focusing on both sales expansion and cost optimization through our 171 bases across 30 countries/regions with a focus on Asia, while continuously pursuing Operational Excellence. Furthermore, following the expansion of e-commerce market on the global scale, transcosmos provides a comprehensive One-Stop Global E-Commerce services to deliver our clients' excellent products and services in 48 countries/regions around the globe. transcosmos aims to be the "Global Digital Transformation Partner" of our clients, supporting the clients' transformation by leveraging digital technology, responding to the ever-changing business environment. https://www.trans-cosmos.co.jp/english/ A group of more than 140 Bay Area elected leaders and immigration advocates called for state action Monday to include undocumented residents in the state's social safety net programs during the novel coronavirus pandemic. The coalition, which includes San Jose City Councilwoman Sylvia Arenas, Oakland City Councilwoman Nikki Fortunato Bas and San Francisco Supervisor Hillary Ronen, sent a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom, urging the state to support California's more than 3 million undocumented residents and immigrants, who are not eligible for federal assistance. The letter echoes calls from the state Assembly's Latino Caucus by asking Newsom to establish a disaster relief fund for undocumented residents unable to work due to the pandemic. "For immigrant communities in San Francisco, survival in the most expensive city in the country was a challenge and a battle, even before COVID-19 hit our communities," Ronen said. "Now, you can imagine, with people having lost their jobs ... making ends meet, having enough food on the table, making rent each month is not possible, it's not possible in the city." The letter also asks Newsom to remove the state's prohibition on immigrants qualifying for the earned income and young child tax credits, allow immigrants to receive Medi-Cal benefits and establish a permanent income replacement program for residents who don't qualify for unemployment benefits but are unemployed through no fault of their own. Newsom has taken measured steps to support the state's immigrant communities, most notably last week when he announced the establishment of a $125 million fund to offer one-time $500 payments to undocumented residents. Immigration activists have said that the fund is a good first step but will not be enough going forward. "Now is our chance to show the nation that support for our undocumented community is not only possible but will strengthen our entire community of public health, our economic well-being," Arenas said. "Our undocumented community are the extra set of hands for California but they're also the heart of our state." 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. Picking out the best SUVs can be quite hard with the many choices out there but if you're looking for something that is both compact but is still very much functional, these are probably the best SUVs for you. Picking out a SUV has become harder and harder as the many options are competing with each other and if you do not have a preferred brand, you might have a hard time. When it comes to size, bigger SUVs do not always mean that there is more room inside which is why it is very important that you check out the SUV before buying. Other features are important as well aside from just the space, although the list goes on and on, there are a few key things to look for that you can stick to in order to pick out the perfect SUV. Here's a list of the best compact SUVs of 2020: Jeep Cherokee If you enjoy something a little more unorthodox, check out the 2019 Jeep Cherokee! After receiving an update for its new fifth generation back in 2019, the Cherokee now offers you a newly added 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder that's finally available on all trim levels that include the Latitude, Latitude Plus, Overland, Limited, and also the Trailhawk. The Cherokee Jeep also includes Bi-LED headlamps which improve visibility, independent suspension, 27 cubic feet of space for you, your friends, and your family, Uconnect infotainment system to help you out, along with a Backup camera. Volvo XC60 If you evenly care about both form and function, the new 2019 Volvo XC60 might be the perfect fit for you. With its clean, eye-catching style, this SUV is easily an ideal candidate. This current model previously debuted back in 2018 and can also be found in three different well-equipped trims namely the base Momentum, the premium Inscription, and the sporty R-Design. Other features include the dual-zone climate control which is really useful for trips to different temperatures, a panoramic sunroof for you and your family or friends to enjoy a little bit of sun, a leatherette upholstery to give you the internal comfort and style you deserve, power driver seat with memory to make sure that the driver is comfortable, and finally, a leather steering wheel as the cherry on the cake. Kia Sportage The Kia Sportage is a bit older than the previous SUVs but has received a redesign back in 2017 that makes up for it. The third generation Kia Sportage is actually bound to turn heads when you drive on thanks to its recognizable signature tiger-nose grille. The 2017 and newer base as well as mid-tier LX and EX go for a shiny polished appearance which utilize touches of chrome. The SX Turbo on the other hand gets a little more aggressive by using LED fog lamps for the 19-inch alloy wheels. The Kia Sportage uses a 2.4L four-cylinder motor which is a clear display of power along with a five-inch touchscreen display. The SUV is also Bluetooth connectable with a certain rearview camera along with a banging 160-watt six-speaker studio. Global Directory Of Relief Funds Available To Artists And Music Industry The entire world has been impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic, and artists and music industry professionals alike are struggling to make ends meet the world over. Here we look at a glossary of organizations across the globe providing much needed relief to those in need. Guest post by Shannon Silver from The Orchards The Daily Rind Across the globe, individuals, companies, and families are feeling the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Confusion and frustration are universal feelings at the moment, but luckily as a response, many organizations and states have established relief funds for the self-employed freelancers and small businesses in the cultural and creative sector. Below you can find a breakdown of how regions across the world are providing relief support for those in the music industry. We will continue updating this list as more aid is announced. Africa South Africa Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture Asia Hong Kong Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC) Emergency Grants Singapore Arts Resource Hub Singapore South Korea Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Record Label Industry Association Of Korea Korea Arts Management Service Australia/New Zealand Australia The Sound of Silence I Lost My Gig Australia Australian Independent Record Labels Association Phonographic Performance Company of Australia PPCA Arts South Australia Covid-19 Grants (For South Australia based) ACT Government Support Aid (For Canberra based artists) Tasmania Cultural Sector Grants (For Tasmania based) Arts U-15k Grant Program (For Western Australian Individuals and Organizations) City of Sydney COVID-19 Business, Arts and Creative Support Package (For Residents of Sydney) City of Melbourne Assistance for Creatives During COVID-19 (For Melbourne Residents) Australia Council For The Arts 2020 RESILIENCE FUND: SURVIVE (For Australian individuals, groups and organizations to offset or recoup money lost due to cancelled activity) Australia Council For The Arts 2020 Resilience Fund: Adapt (For Australian individuals, groups and organizations to adapt their arts practice and explore new ways of working) Australia Council For The Arts 2020 Resilience Fund: Create ( For Australian individuals, groups and organizations to continue to create artistic work and/or develop creative responses in this time of disruption) New Zealand COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme Creative New Zealand Emergency Response Package (Opening April 14) Europe Austria Label LSG: Emergency Aid Fund AKM & AUME: Cultural Disaster Fund OESTIG Cultural Disaster Fund For Musicians (Intended for Interpreters) Hardship Fund Municipality of Vienna / MA 7 Coronavirus Artist Grant (Deadline April 29) Support Fund in the Artists Social Insurance Fund (KSVF) Belgium Wallonia-Brussels Federation Covid-19 Emergency Cash Fund Flanders Agency for Innovation & Entrepreneurship Financial Support for Self-Employed Croatia The Ministry of Culture Emergency Aid for Artists & Freelancers Finland Business Finland Financial Services for small/medium businesses in the creative industry. France France National Music Center COVID-19 Music and Variety Relief Fund SACEM Relief Fund Ministere de la Culture: Support For Those In the Cultural Sector ONDA Aid Following Covid-19 Cancellations Germany Kreative Deutschland Resources The Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB) Coronavirus Grant GEMA Emergency Relief Fund (For GEMA Members) Emergency Aid for Self-Employed and Small Companies Hamburg Corona Emergency Aid (HCS) (For Hamburg-based small companies and self-employed individuals) Hessen Emergency Aid (For Hessen-based small companies and self-employed individuals) Landes Forder Institute Emergency Coronavirus Aid North Rhine-Westphalia Emergency Aid (For NRW-based small companies and self-employed individuals) Investment and Structural Bank RLP (ISB) Emergency Aid (For self-employed and small companies) Italy SIAE (Italian Copyright Collecting Agency) Ireland Ireland Artist Relief Fund Malta Covid Wage Supplement Norway Fond For Utvende Kunstnere (FFUK) About the Fund for Performing Arts: Poland MKIDN: The Anti-Crisis Shield Portugal Emergency Support Line Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Emergency Fund Covid-19 Spain The Ministry of Culture and Sports SGAE Emergency Aid (For SGAE Members) Sweden Svensk Jazz Crisis Fund (Swedish Jazz Organization) United Kingdom PRS Emergency Relief Fund (For PRS Members) Arts Council England Covid-19 Support Help Musicians Coronavirus Hardship Fund MU Coronavirus Hardship Fund AIM Covid-10 Crisis Fund Creative Scotland Open Fund: Sustaining Creative Development Creative Scotland Bridging Bursary BPI Covid-19: Useful Information North America Canada Factor SOCAN Emergency Fund (For SOCAN Members) The National Arts Centre Canada x Facebook Canada Will Pay Livestreaming Musicians Ontario Arts Council Covid-19 Grant TOArtist COVID Response Fund Mexico Musica Mexico United States MusiCares Covid-19 Relief Fund ACM Lifting Lives Fund Artist Relief Tree Arts Leaders of Color Emergency Fund Audio Assemble Academy of Country Music Lifting Lives Response Fund Jazz Foundation of America Covid19 Musicians Emergency Fund Music Health Alliance Covid-19 & Tornado Relief (Music Health Alliance is an organization for healthcare solutions and access in the music community) New Music Solidarity Fund (American Organization for New Contemporary Music) NYC Employee Retention Grant Program (New York only) Local 802 Emergency Relief Fund (The Local 802 Musicians Emergency Relief Fund is a non-profit with the mission to provide Local 802s 8,000+ professional musician members with reliable assistance in times of trouble and dire need) Local 47 AFM Musicians Emergency Relief Fund (For Los Angeles Musicians) Sound Royalties No-Cost Funding Program SoundGirls CoronaVirus Relief (Relief Fund for production techs) The Equal Sound Corona Relief Fund (Non-profit music organization) AGMA Relief Fund (For AGMA Members) Sweet Relief Musicians Fund Boston Artist Relief Fund (For Boston-based artists) Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grants The International Bluegrass Music Association Emergency Fund Freelancer COVID-19 Emergency Fund CERF+ Emergency Assistance Gospel Music Trust Fund Paetreon Covid-19 Artist Grant SAG-AFTRA Covid-19 Relief Fund (For SAG-AFTRA Members) Anonymous Was A Woman Emergency Relief Grant (For Women artists over 40) AGMA Relief Fund Musicians Foundation CV19 Emergency Relief Aid Grant Program (Foundation supporting the interests and advance the condition and social welfare of professional musicians) The Personal Emergency Relief Fund (For Minnesota Artists) Crew Nation Global Relief Fund (For tour crew members) Artist Relief Project New Orleans Creative Creative Response Relief Fund (For New Orleans based) New Orleans Brass Band Musician Relief Fund (For New Orleans based brass band musicians) YoungArts Relief Grants South America Brazil Brazilian Association of Independent Music Share on: The number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in India is doubling every 7.5 days (based on analysis till April 19), with that in 18 states doubling even slower, the health ministry said in a briefing on Monday. In Delhi, the state with the second highest number of cases, the number of cases were doubling every 8.5 days and in Kerala, new cases had slowed to such an extent that the number will double in 72.2 days, the ministry added. The ministrys analysis and an accompanying statement were silent on Maharashtra, the state with the most cases in the country, and Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. According to HTs dashboard, the number of cases in Maharashtra is doubling every 4.9 days, Gujarat, 3.18 days, and Madhya Pradesh, 4.22 days. In Rajasthan, the number of cases is doubling every 4.97 days. At a national level, the 7.5 days is a significant achievement because the number of cases was doubling every 3.4 days before the nationwide lockdown was enforced on March 25, the ministry said. We are calculating case doubling rate in intervals and in last seven days we have found Indias doubling rate to be 7.5 days, and considering this as a national average we found till April 19 that about 18 states had a doubling rate of more than 7.5 days, highlighting the effect of effective implementation of containment measures in these states, said Lav Agarwal, joint secretary, health, Union health ministry. The ministry also announced that Goa now has no active cases with all people who tested positive recovering. Three districts, Mahe (Puducherry), Kodaggu (Karnataka) and Pauri Garhwal (Uttrakhand) have also not reported any fresh cases during the past 28 days, Agarwal said. That takes the number of districts which have not reported new cases in the past 28 days to three. There are now 59 districts from 23 States and UTs that have not reported any fresh cases during the last 14 days. The six new districts that have been included in this list are Dungarpur and Pali in Rajasthan, Jamnagar and Morbi in Gujarat, North Goa in Goa and Gomati in Tripura, he added. Meanwhile, the home ministry said in the briefing that cities and districts that are high on the priority list to review containment measures include Jaipur in Rajasthan, Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, and Kolkata, Howrah, 24 Parganas North, East Midnapur, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Kalimpong in West Bengal. These are areas where the situation is either worse or is likely to get worse in coming days, so a need was felt to send special teams to aid the local administration, said Punya Salila Srivastava, joint secretary, ministry of home affairs. Six interministerial teams have been sent to assist the state government in all these high disease burden states in managing the situation. These teams not only have senior people from the field of public health but also experts from disaster management, and administrative officials. These experts will look into varied areas, from medical infrastructure, lockdown measures, migrant worker shelter, essential supplies etc, said Srivastava. A total of 17,265 confirmed cases have been reported for Covid-19 in the country so far, the health ministry said.A total of 543 people have died of the viral disease, it added. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON KEY HIGHLIGHTS 1,000 foreign firms are planning to shift manufacturing to India; in talks with authorities 300 actively pursuing production plans in mobiles, electronics, medical devices, textiles Proposals are at various levels -- central government departments, Indian missions abroad, state industry departments Government is making all-out attempt to hard-sell India as a manufacturing hub Cost difference between India and South East Asia is 10-12 per cent Also Read: Coronavirus India Lockdown Live Updates: Maharashtra records 552 new COVID-19 cases, state's tally past 5,000 Amid chances of China possibly losing its tag of preferred manufacturing hub following coronavirus, around 1,000 foreign companies are engaged in discussions at various levels with the Indian authorities. At least 300 of these companies are actively pursuing production plans in sectors such as mobiles, electronics, medical devices, textiles and synthetic fabric, according to top government sources. These companies see India as an alternate manufacturing hub and have taken up their proposals across various levels of the government, including central government departments, Indian missions abroad and state industry departments. "About 1,000-odd companies are currently engaged in discussion at various levels such as investment promotion cell, central government departments and state governments. Out of these companies, we are targeting 300-odd companies," the official said. "We are hopeful that once coronavirus is in control, a lot of things will fructify into actual relocation. And India will emerge as an alternate manufacturing destination. Many countries like Japan, US and South Korea are over-dependent on China and that is now very apparent," he added. In a major push to domestic manufacturing, the Centre had in September last year slashed corporate tax to 25.17 per cent. For new manufacturers, the applicable tax was brought down to 17 per cent making it the lowest in South East Asia. Together with reduced tax rate and the roll-out of goods and services tax (GST), India hopes to attract sizeable foreign investment in the manufacturing sector. It has now directed its focus on reducing the cost of production. With China in the firing line over its way of handling the deadly virus outbreak, major countries are expected to nudge their corporations to relocate production units out of China or set up new units at alternative locations. Also read: Coronavirus: India plugs loophole in Chinese 'opportunistic takeover' of firms; govt nod must In what appears to be early signs of possible changes in geopolitics, US President Donald Trump has questioned China over its response to the outbreak of the deadly virus. China had strongly protested Trump's "China virus" remark but the American President has been lashing out at the country unabated. On Saturday, the US President said during a White House briefing that the virus "could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasn't, and the whole world is suffering because of it." Meanwhile, Japan has announced $2 billion financial aid for its companies to shift production out of China. Many more countries could follow Japan, which is expected to benefit India. "Now the world is rethinking its strategy of putting all eggs in one basket. A lot of interest is being shown by companies towards India," says Guruprasad Mohapatra, Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). "India is generally considered an attractive destination because of its market size and also India being a possible hub for exports in the region. That's the reason FDI has been recording very impressive growth in the last 5-6 years," he added. While government is making all-out attempt to hard-sell India as a manufacturing hub it may find it an uphill task given that the production cost difference between India and South East Asian countries is about 10-12 per cent. The government, however, sees large market size of India as a big plus for manufacturers. "If you manufacture mobiles in Vietnam, what do you do with them? You have to essentially export. You can't sell there as there is no local market," an official involved with the government's Make-in-India initiative said. He explained giving an example of mobile phones. "There is a huge market in India for mobile phones that cost less than $100. For mobiles costing $200 or more there is huge potential of export. So, from the 10-12 per cent (percentage cost difference between India and South East Asia), almost 6-7 per cent is negated or adjusted by India's market itself. For the remaining 5-6%, a combination of state incentives and central incentives are there," he added. AVON LAKE, Ohio -- The City of Avon Lakes Job Growth Incentive Program (JGIP) is awarding 72 businesses with almost $87,000. The JGIP began in 2012. It is a business retention program that sometimes acts as a business incentive, according to Avon Lake Economic Development Director Ted Esborn. Each spring, the city looks at the businesses income tax -- withholding tax -- for every business in Avon Lake. Every business that has a year-over-year increase in income tax receives a grant award from the city in the amount of 25 percent of the increase, (this year) with a maximum award of $50,000 and a minimum award of $25. Esborn said the city is especially grateful this year to be able to offer the program to business owners. During this coronavirus crisis, we are able to send checks to some of our businesses. We wish we could send them to all our businesses, and we wish that all the grants were large enough to cover some actual costs," he said. "But we are grateful still, because the timing of this program is allowing us to get desperately needed funds out there to our businesses at a time of great need. Seventy-two Avon Lake businesses qualified for a 2020 award. The total amount was $86,943, down from an unexpected high of $122,000 last year. The largest award -- a $50,000 maximum -- went to the Ford Motor Company. Other large-award recipients included Discount Drug Mart, Lubrizol, Performance Health, Thogus Products and Chemtron. Mayor Greg Zilka noted that some businesses continue to qualify year after year. We have seen several small businesses qualify for a check each year. This is a testament to their hard work and business acumen," he said. "Other businesses produce a product that is more cyclical in demand by its very nature. This program also provides an opportunity for them to earn a refund as the years pass. "We appreciate your presence in our community. We congratulate them all. Esborn said there are no restrictions on how businesses use this money. The city sees (the awards) as a simple token of appreciation for what businesses contribute to Avon Lake, he said. To qualify for a grant award, Esborn said, Eligible organizations are for-profit businesses that have a substantial part of their operation occurring at a commercial property site in Avon Lake. The grant checks are going out to recipients this week. The other grant awards went to the following Avon Lake businesses: Southwire (Watteredge) Alumalloy Design Engineering Inc. Penske Truck Rental National Fleet Rykon Plating Fontaine Modification Northern Hammerworks McClain Painting Health Express Urgent Care Eyring Movers Hinkley Lighting VIP Management Sweet Kiddles Busch Funeral Home Goddard School Read more from the Sun Sentinel. Mrs Petrov chooses Australia "Mrs Evdokina Petrov decided in Darwin yesterday morning not to return to Russia, but to stay in Australia. She has been granted political asylum and will rejoin her husband, Mr. Vladimir Petrov, who is 'somewhere in Australia' awaiting the Royal Commission into Soviet espionage in Australia. Until she telephoned him from Darwin, she did not know her husband was still alive." Teeth survey Do Australians have poor teeth? The Institute of Dental Research set out to find the answer. With the help of a 4500 grant "it has started a survey of the dental health of some 5000 NSW school children, who will be chosen for their age, sex, and geographical distribution in such a way that by the end of the year an accurate statement on dental caries (decay) among children, at least, will have been made." Rush for produce Airports Council International (ACI) Asia-Pacific has released preliminary traffic data from 18 airports in major aviation markets across the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East regions, which show that year-over-year passenger traffic decline hit -95% by the middle of April. However, it is not all bad news, as ACI says initial signals of recovery were reported from China, with a gradual resumption of its domestic traffic, as well as from South Korea, to a lesser extent. ACI Asia-Pacific is one of the five regions of the Airports Council International (ACI), is based in Hong Kong and represents 113 members operating 602 airports in 49 countries/ territories in Asia-Pacific and the Middle-East. ACI reports that airports in the region have made significant adjustments to operations to manage the impact as cautious preparations for resumption of services begin. As airports prepare for the post-Covid-19 period, a coordinated approach between governments, regulators, health authorities and aviation stakeholders to implement sustainable and effective health measures is needed now, says the organisation. Passenger traffic in Asia-Pacific region has reached rock bottom. Airports have been forced to make difficult operational decisions, including full or partial closure of terminals and runways and reduction of front-line employees, stated Stefano Baronci, director general of ACI Asia-Pacific. These drastic measures take time to reverse. Returning to full operational status will not happen overnight. Since the beginning of the outbreak, airports have stepped up health and hygiene measures to contain the spread of the virus and to protect passengers and employees. With some signals of stabilisation, and efforts towards recovery cautiously starting up, governments and regulators, along with the national health authorities, need to work with the aviation industry to develop a coordinated approach so that airports can prepare the appropriate infrastructure, facilities and processes in support of health measures. At a global level, ICAO and WHO have an important role to play in providing guidance and coordinating joint efforts between governments and industry, adds ACI in a statement. The freedom of movement will have to co-exist with the virus, until a vaccine against Covid-19 is available at a global scale. Airport operators will need to balance a safe travel experience for passengers with recovering connectivity to boost the economy, Baronci added. This cannot be done in isolation and requires the engagement of all aviation stakeholders. The support of States is required to reset and rebuild the sector, given its strategic role for the relaunch of the economy and its social relevance in terms of job creation. The virus has imposed a new normal of living on us. A united industry needs to create a new normal for travelling. The coronavirus pandemic continues to impact every aspect of life across the world, and has infected 120,067 people in the UK, with over 16,000 deaths. Here is your morning briefing of everything you may have missed overnight. Gavin Williamson issued an apology to the nations pupils after admitting there is no date set for schools to be reopened amid the coronavirus pandemic. The government must pass five tests to prove the virus is waning before schools can reopen, he said. There were also no plans to restart lessons over the summer holidays. Mr Williamson said at the daily Downing Street press briefing: Of course, I want nothing more than to see schools back, get them back to normal, make sure the children are sat around, learning and experiencing the joy of being at school. But I cant give you a date. Because before we do, we need to meet five tests. To any young people watching, I wanted to say to you how sorry I am that youve had your education disrupted in this way, he added. I know how hard it must be, and Id like to thank you for making the adjustments that youve had to make. The five test include protecting the ability of the NHS to cope, seeing the daily death rates come down, and having reliable data that shows the rate of infection is decreasing to manageable levels. Britains deputy chief medical officer has said the coronavirus outbreak is beginning to plateau, with the latest figures showing the spread of the virus was heading in the right direction. Speaking at the governments daily press conference, Dr Jenny Harries said: There is some very good news. Today the UK deaths were down to 596, from 888 yesterday. It is fair to say that we do know from the hospital data that we are now starting to plateau. She stopped short of agreeing with Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of medical research charity Wellcome Trust, who said the country may be past the peak of the virus. Dr Harries said it was not fair to say the peak was over and urged the government to be extremely guarded. She added that if the public did not continue social distancing, we will create a second peak and then we definitely wont be past it. Majority of the British public would rather see the government extend its Brexit deadline than deal with negotiations during the coronavirus pandemic, a poll has suggested. The poll, conducted by Focaldata for Best for Britain and Hope Not Hate suggested most of the public would prefer it if officials prioritised the crisis at hand, with two-thirds saying the government should focus all its energy on dealing with Covid-19 for the rest of the year. Officials in Westminster and Brussels have insisted on continuing to negotiate the terms of the UKs future relationship with the EU. This is despite coronavirus claiming the lives of over 100,000 people across Europe. Just 34 per cent of all respondents believed ministers could balance dealing with the coronavirus outbreak whilst also giving necessary time to negotiate a full trade deal with the EU before the end of the year. 49 per cent of Leave voters supported pushing the end of the transition period past New Years Eve, as well as 48 per cent of Conservative voters and 45 per cent of those who previously backed the Brexit Party. High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Show all 18 1 /18 High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Najaf, Iraq A man holds a pocket watch at noon, at an almost empty market near the Imam Ali shrine Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Bangkok, Thailand Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (The Temple of the Emerald Buddha, part of The Grand Palace) Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Prague, Czech Republic An empty street leading to the historic Old Town Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Washington DC, US Lawn stretching towards the Capitol, home of Congress Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Jerusalem's Old City A watch showing the time in front of Damascus Gate Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world London, UK The Houses of Parliament seen from Westminster Bridge Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Wuhan, China Empty lanes in the city that saw the first outbreak of disease Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Havana, Cuba The Malecon road and esplanade winds along the city's seafront Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Cairo, Egypt A little busier than elsewhere: midday traffic in Tahrir Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Berlin, Germany The Brandenburg Gate, the only surviving city gate in the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Caracas, Venezuela Bolivar Avenue, opened in 1949 and the site of many demonstrations and rallies Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Moscow, Russia Spasskaya Tower (left) on the eastern wall of the Kremlin, and St Basil's Cathedral Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Istanbul,Turkey The harbourside Eminonu district is usually buzzing with activity Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New Delhi, India Rajpath, a ceremonial boulevard that runs through the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Amman, Jordan The Roman amphitheatre that dates back to the 2nd century AD Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New York City, US The main concourse of Grand Central station in Manhattan Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Kiev, Ukraine Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the site of many political protests since the end of the Soviet era Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Accra, Ghana The odd walker out in the midday sun on Ring Road Central Reuters Iranian president Hassan Rouhani announced on Sunday the country would allow shopping malls and bazaars to reopen this week in a scheme to dramatically restart business activity despite warnings by health officials that doing so may undo any efforts made to contain Covid-19. He said businesses located in roofed places, including bazaars and shops inside complexes, are medium-risk and will be allowed to reopen from 20 April. Recommended Iran to begin reopening for business despite warnings Iran is the country hardest hit by coronavirus in the Middle East, with at least 5,118 people killed by the virus and 82,000 confirmed infections. The authorities imposed strict quarantine measures to contain the virus, shuttering public and commercial life, but the measures have further damaged an economy already in deep recession. Health experts called the move premature. Arin Balalian, an epidemiologist of Iranian descent at Columbia University, said: It carries a substantial risk for the disease to come back. You are going to have shoppers and labourers, and all of them are going to use public transport, which increases the risk of transmission. Police must be prepared to deal with a more volatile and agitated society in life after the lockdown, a senior officer has warned. The president of the Police Superintendents Association (PSA) called for leaders to prepare for the effects of unemployment, mental health issues, abuse inside homes and a general need for release. Chief Superintendent Paul Griffiths told The Independent on Sunday: Theres not been much debate at the moment about what the future looks like because were all in the present. But weve got to look at the social and economic impact there are going to be people who are out of work, businesses that have not been able to sustain themselves, and the impact on society will start to come through. If there are challenges economically, there is sometimes a rise in crime and disorder. Restrictions on daily life due to coronavirus have been extended in the UK until at least 7 May. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 08:11:38|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close OTTAWA, April 19 (Xinhua) -- At least 13 people were killed in a 12-hour shooting rampage in several communities in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). At a press conference in Dartmouth of the province Sunday evening, Nova Scotia RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather confirmed there were at least 13 people killed in several locations across the province, including a RCMP officer. Leather said that there may be more victims who have not been discovered yet and their investigation is continuing. The gunman was identified as Gabriel Wortman, 51. His shooting rampage began late Saturday night in Portapique, about 130 kilometers north of Halifax, the capital city of Nova Scotia. Police first responded to a firearms complaint at a residence after receiving several 911 calls. They rushed to the residence, finding "several casualties" inside and outside of the home."This was a very quickly evolving situation and a chaotic scene," said Leather. Calling on residents to remain in their homes with their doors locked, police secured the area in Portapique and started searching for the gunman in several sites in the area, including structures that were on fire. Police began to chase the gunman and gunfire was exchanged between the police and the gunman. A female police officer was killed and a policeman injured. The chase ended near a gas station about 35 kilometers north of Halifax around 12 a.m. Sunday local time when the gunman was killed. "The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather said. Leather said some of the victims did not appear to know the gunman. In a statement, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered his condolences. "My heart goes out to everyone affected in what is a terrible situation. I want to thank the police for their hard work and people for cooperating with authorities." Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil expressed his shock to the horrific incident. "This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history." "Our hearts are heavy with grief and sadness today as we have lost one of our own. Our thoughts go out to our member's family and friends," said Brian Sauve, president of Canadian National Police Federation union, in a statement. Enditem MIAMI Herminio Rodriguez could not send money to his family in Guatemala this month, after the Miami Beach restaurant where he was working closed several weeks ago. Now Rodriguez, 41, worries about his parents and his son back home, who depend on the monthly remittance he sends to buy food and medicine. I couldnt even pay rent this month, Rodriguez said, and we need to keep a little bit of reserves so we can eat. The economic part is affecting us both here and there, he said. As Latinos throughout the U.S. grapple with job losses and lockdowns, many are no longer able to provide for relatives back home. The sudden end in remittances sent to Latin America each year is affecting the well being of families and crippling the economies of developing countries. Many of those who send remittances often work in the service industry and have been let go or furloughed from their jobs in hotels, restaurants or cleaning companies, without pay. Those who are undocumented cannot apply for unemployment. News According to the World Bank, global remittances reached a record high in 2018, the last year for which figures are available. The flow of money to Latin America and the Caribbean grew by 10 percent to $88 billion in 2018, mostly due to the strong U.S. economy, where most of the money originates. In many countries, remittances account for a significant portion of their gross domestic product. In Nicaragua and Guatemala they account for around 12 percent, and in El Salvador and Honduras, around 20 percent. Mexico receives the most remittances in the region, with about $36 billion in 2018, up 11 percent from the previous year. 'How are we going to do this?' Mexico's president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, asked Mexicans in the United States not to stop supporting their relatives back home. He said February set a record in remittances to Mexico. Tell your countrymen to not stop sending help to their families in Mexico, who are also going through a difficult situation, he said at a recent news conference. Story continues In Miami, Edmundo Tarin, who emigrated from Mexico, heard about Lopez Obradors statements and said: How are we going to do this? I cant even pay my rent. Tarin has always sent money to his brother, who depends on the monthly stipend to pay rent and buy food in Mexico City, where he lives. Image: Guatemala (Moises Castillo / AP) This situation has limited us. Were doing bad, very badly, Tarin said, who was laid off from his job as a cook in a restaurant. Manuel Orozco, an economist with the Inter-American Dialogue, said the drop in remittances is not only from the U.S., but from other Latin American countries as well. "The distinction is important because in the past four to five years, we have seen significant growth in Latin American migration to other Latin American countries," he said. 'I am everything to my parents, and it's my responsibility' The Caribbean and Latin American countries that have seen the most emigration are Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. The dependence on remittances is highest in these countries, which have more fragile economies. Orozco said there could be a speedier economic recovery than from the 2008 financial crisis and that by June 2021, U.S. immigrant workers may remit similar amounts to February's total. But for now, Lesbia Granados, 35, is worried after not being able to send money to her parents in Honduras last month. They depend on her to pay for electricity, food, medicine and doctors visits. But the Miami Beach hotel where she worked is closed. I am everything to my parents, and its my responsibility to take care of them, after they did so much for me," she said. Granados said she's hoping her coronavirus stimulus check arrives soon. Until then, Im trying to survive with the little I have saved, she said. Follow NBC Latino on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. WASHINGTON As the GOP tries to take back the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives in November and prove it can still win in the suburbs its homing in on a west Houston district Republicans lost in 2018 for the first time since the 1960s. The party is going all in on Wesley Hunt, an Army veteran challenging freshman Democrat U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, as Houstons newly blue seventh congressional district emerges as one of Republicans top targets in the nation. TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox Hunt is the first Texas Republican that the Congressional Leadership Fund has announced plans to buy ads for at least $3 million, a big chunk of the $43 million in ads the group has so far reserved nationwide. The National Republican Congressional Committee, meanwhile, added Hunt to its list of top contenders and will likely back Hunt with even more spending in the district, which includes much of Houstons wealthy western suburbs and the Energy Corridor. Democrats, who also view the district as priority and will likely spend heavily there, say Republicans are grasping and the district has shifted away from them as suburban voters revolted against President Donald Trump in 2018. Fletcher has already stockpiled $2.7 million to fend off Hunt, who emerged from a primary fight with just more than $432,000 to spend, despite being one of Republicans best non-incumbent congressional fundraisers. The stakes are high for the GOP: A win in the district which Republicans held for 60 years, starting with George H.W. Bush would show the party can still compete in the suburbs, even with Trump on the ticket. Its one of two congressional districts in suburban Texas where Republicans are going on the offensive, as Democrats emboldened after the midterms target a half-dozen seats. If were going to take back the majority, this is the kind of place were going to need to win, said Bob Salera, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee. Its a traditionally Republican suburban district that has moved as its population has grown, its moved toward being more of a swing district. But, Salera said: The fact is Republicans are still able to win here. CAMPAIGNING AMID COVID-19: Coronavirus has boosted Sen. John Cornyns re-election chances. But is he blowing it? While voters in Congressional District 7 picked Hillary Clinton over Trump in 2016 and two years later rejected U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz who lives in the district, yet lost it to Beto ORourke by seven points several Republicans carried it in 2018, including Gov. Greg Abbott, Comptroller Glenn Hegar, Land Commissioner George P. Bush and Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick. Its a purple district that leans ever so slightly pink, said Mark P. Jones, a political scientist at Rice University. If you had to look for the vestiges of country club Republicans youd find them in CD7, Jones said. But its a very well-educated district and therefore its voters tend to be more likely to split their ticket between candidates from different parties. Its one of the districts least likely to have pure partisan voting. Biden, Trump and the s-word Fletcher, an energy attorney, has tried to walk a tight balance during her first term in office especially in areas like oil and gas, where shes forcefully pushed back against Democrats most progressive proposals such as the Green New Deal and a ban on fracking. Shes often worked with Republicans as well, including on legislation to speed disaster recovery funding to Houston. And with former Vice President Joe Biden at the top of ticket, it will be harder for Republicans to paint Fletcher as a socialist than it would have been if U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders had nabbed the nomination, Jones said. Biden had an 8 percentage point lead over Trump among college educated whites in a Wall Street Journal and NBC News poll released this week. Congressional District 7 has the second highest share of college-educated voters in the state. ITS A DEMOCRATIC TRAGEDY: Coronavirus threatens Texas voter registration efforts Democrats, meanwhile, will likely do all they can to tie Hunt to Trump, who endorsed him in the primary. Trump lost the district by 1.4 points in 2016. Congresswoman Fletcher campaigned on bringing Houstons voice to Washington, and since being sworn in to Congress, she has done so, said Erin Mincberg, a senior adviser to Fletchers campaign. Baseless, partisan attacks will ring hollow to Houston voters, who witness daily the congresswomans thoughtful approach to her job building on Houstons role as the energy capital of the world to address the dual challenge for our energy future, protecting and expanding our access to health care and fighting to secure the federal support our community and our country need in the wake of COVID-19. Still, Republicans say Fletcher has rarely gone against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi including voting to impeach the president, a vote the NRCC said destroys any chance she has for re-election just minutes after she cast it. Hunt throughout the campaign has sought to brand Fletcher as too progressive for the district. People here want a representative thats going to represent them not the priorities Pelosi and the Squad and the other liberals in the Democratic Party are pushing, said Jim Hilk, who runs Hunts campaign. The NRCC says Hunt a graduate of the U.S. military academy at West Point who spent eight years in the Army as an Aviation Branch Officer and helicopter pilot is one of their best recruits of the cycle. FOR SUBSCRIBERS: Endangered Texas Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher had an eventful first year Hunt has proven to be a prolific fundraiser, which will matter in one of the most expensive media markets in the nation. The Congressional Leadership Fund spent nearly $4 million there in 2018 trying to defend former U.S. Rep. John Culberson, the Republican Fletcher unseated whose campaign spent another nearly $2 million on ads, according to media tracking services reviewed by Hearst Newspapers. Hunt raised a massive $920,000 in the first quarter of the year, the most of any of Republican challenger in the nation during that quarter, Salera said. Fletcher outpaced him by more than $100,000, but the fundraising will help Hunt make the race competitive. Beyond that, Hunt, who is black, is a very attractive candidate for a Republican Party that is desperately in need of more diversity, Jones said. U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, a West Texas Republican, is the only black Republican in the House, and hes retiring at the end of the year. Hes a dynamic candidate, Salera said. He has a great background West Point grad, Army veteran, hes really the whole package were looking for. ben.wermund@chron.com BANGKOK (AP) India and Singapore announced their biggest single-day spikes in new coronavirus cases on Monday, as the crisis intensifies in parts of Asia. India's spike came after the government eased one of the worlds strictest lockdowns to allow some manufacturing and agricultural activity to resume. An additional 1,553 cases were reported over 24 hours in India, raising its total past 17,000. At least 543 people have died in the country, and epidemiologists forecast the peak may not be reached before June. India's shelter-in-place orders imposed on March 24 halted all but essential services, sparking an exodus of migrant workers and daily laborers out of Indias cities to their home villages. Starting Monday, limited industry and farming are allowed to resume where employers can meet social distancing and hygiene standards, and migrant workers are allowed to travel within states to factories, farms and other work sites. Singapores confirmed cases shot to 8,014 after 1,426 new infections were reported Monday, a single-day high for the tiny Southeast Asian city-state. Singapore now has the highest number of cases in Southeast Asia, a massive surge from just 200 on March 15. Authorities say most of the new cases were again linked to foreign workers. More than 200,000 low-wage workers from Asia live in tightly packed dormitories that became virus hotspots after they were overlooked earlier by the government. Officials have said that cases are expected to rise as testing at the dorms continues, but are hoping that a partial lockdown until May 4, mandatory wearing of masks and strict social distancing will help curb the virus. In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region: NO NEW CASES IN HONG KONG: Hong Kong reported no new cases on Monday for the first time in nearly seven weeks. Prior to Monday, the city had eight consecutive days of single-digit infections, dwindling from a surge in March as overseas residents flocked home amid outbreaks in the U.S. and Europe. Hong Kongs current tally is 1,026 cases, including four deaths. Story continues SRI LANKA PARTIALLY LIFTS CURFEW: Sri Lankas government has partially lifted a monthlong curfew, with the top health official declaring that the virus is under control. Sri Lanka had been under a 24-hour curfew since March 20. It was lifted during daytime hours in more than two-thirds of the country on Monday and will continue in the remaining districts including the capital, Colombo, until Wednesday. The curfew will remain in effect from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. until further notice. Sri Lanka had confirmed 271 cases and seven deaths as of Sunday. NEW ZEALAND'S LOCKDOWN EXTENDED: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that New Zealand's lockdown will last another week. For nearly four weeks, nonessential workers have been able to leave their homes only to buy groceries or to exercise. Starting next week, construction and manufacturing can resume, and some schools will reopen, although home-learning will be encouraged. SOUTH KOREA'S INFECTIONS WANE: South Korea reported 13 new virus cases Monday as infections continue to wane in the hardest-hit city of Daegu. The new figure brought the national total to 10,674 cases and 236 deaths. With its caseload slowing, South Korea has relaxed some of its social distancing guidelines, including administrative orders that advised churches, gyms and bars to close. JAPANESE EXPORTS SINK: Japanese exports sank 11.7% in March as the pandemic slammed auto shipments to the U.S. The Finance Ministry said exports to the U.S. fell 16.5%, while those to China declined 8.7%. Trade has slowed precipitously, and the International Monetary Fund forecasts that the world economy is heading into its worst slowdown since the Great Depression in the 1930s. JAPAN TULIPS RAZED: Tens of thousands of tulips in full bloom were razed at a Japanese park to prevent crowds from gathering. The flowers were the centerpiece of a popular annual festival in Sakura city, east of Tokyo, that was canceled this year. People still gathered to admire the flowers, however, making social distancing difficult. We, of course, wish for many people to see our flowers, but this situation is now about human life. It was a heart-wrenching decision, but we had to do it, said Takahiro Kogo, a city official overseeing the park. BANGKOK EXTENDS ALCOHOL BAN: Thailand's capital, Bangkok, has extended a ban on the sale of alcoholic beverages to the end of April as efforts continue to contain the coronavirus. The ban was originally imposed for April 10-20, when Thais would normally celebrate the Songkran New Year festival with drink-fueled merrymaking at large public gatherings. Celebrations of the holiday were also postponed. Alcohol sales bans were separately ordered in all 76 of Thailands provinces, which are also likely to be extended. A Bangkok official said people with alcohol dependency problems could receive free treatment at the citys medical facilities. AUSTRALIAN SOAP OPERA RESUMES: The long-running Australian soap opera Neighbours returned from a three-week production break on Monday and plans to resume full production next week with new coronavirus safeguards. Neighbours" production company Fremantle Australia said it is one of the few TV dramas in the English-speaking world to resume production during the pandemic. Neighbours first screened in 1985. It has been sold to more than 60 countries and has a larger following in Britain than Australia. Its Melbourne studio will be separated into three scene areas with no crews allowed to cross between the areas, Fremantle said. ___ This story corrects the total number of Singapore cases to 8,014. Rights group accuses troops from the West African country of killing 31 detainees from the Fulani ethnic group. Burkina Fasos security forces have allegedly executed 31 unarmed detainees in a northern town, Human Rights Watch said, calling for an immediate investigation. The men, all from the Fulani ethnic group, were allegedly killed just hours after being arrested on April 9 during a government counterterrorism operation, the New York-based rights group said on Monday. More: The incident took place in Djibo, about 200km (120 miles) north of the capital Ouagadougou. After hearing gunfire, local people found the bodies of 31 men, last seen in the custody of the security forces, said HRW. Several had had their eyes or hands bound. None of the witnesses saw any of the arrested men with a firearm. Security forces made a brutal mockery of a counterterrorism operation, that may amount to a war crime and could fuel further atrocities, said Corinne Dufka, HRWs director for the Sahel region. HRW interviewed 17 people over the killings, including 12 witnesses to the arrests and later burial of the victims, a statement said. Local people speculated the ethnic Fulani victims were targeted because of the recent presence of some armed fighters around Djibo. They said dozens of security personnel were involved in the operation, which lasted several hours, HRW said. The victims were taken away in a convoy of about 10 military vehicles including pick-up trucks, an armoured vehicle, and motorcycles. Burkina Faso, one of the worlds poorest countries, has battled an armed uprising since 2015. The conflict has provoked attacks on Fulani herders, whom other communities accuse of supporting rebels. HRW said it sent its findings to the Burkinabe government, but its statement did not include any response from the authorities. OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - International advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday that it believed security forces in Burkina Faso had summarily executed 31 unarmed detainees earlier this month during operations against Islamist militants. The bullet-riddled bodies of the men from the Fulani ethnic group were discovered in the northern town of Djibo on April 9, shortly after they had been arrested by security forces and taken away in a convoy, 17 witnesses and people with knowledge of the situation told HRW. A government spokesman did not respond to repeated requests from Reuters for comment about the incident, including questions on Monday about HRW's report. The day after the incident, a researcher from Amnesty International tweeted that, according to multiple witnesses, security forces had executed 29 men in Djibo. The government is struggling to contain jihadist groups in northern Burkina Faso who have stoked ethnic conflict by closely associating themselves with Fulani herders. As a result, Fulani civilians have borne the brunt of reprisals by soldiers and vigilantes, rights groups say. Since 2017, armed Islamist groups, some with ties to al Qaeda and Islamic State, have killed more than 300 civilians in Burkina Faso, while the government has killed several hundred men for their alleged support of these groups, according to HRW. Burkinabe officials have promised to investigate such allegations in the past but rights group say the government has not done enough to hold perpetrators accountable. "The Burkinabe security forces apparently executed 31 men in a brutal mockery of a counter-terrorism operation that may amount to a war crime and could fuel further atrocities," said Corinne Dufka, HRW's director for the conflict-hit Sahel region in West Africa. "The government should stop the abuse, fully investigate this terrible incident, and commit to a rights-respecting counterterrorism strategy," Dufka said in the report. Last year was Burkina Faso's deadliest in recent memory, and the violence has continued unabated this year. Two attacks in northern regions in January killed 36 and 39 people, respectively, while at least 43 people were killed in raids on northern villages by unidentified assailants in March. (Reporting by Henry Wilkins; Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Aaron Ross) A zone stretching from Texas and Louisiana and across the southern parts of Mississippi, Alabama and into Georgia will be at greatest risk of severe weather and tornadoes, the national Storm Prediction Center projected. The area has more than 5 million people and includes Jackson, Miss.; Montgomery, Ala.; and Macon, Ga. A Hong Kong court has jailed the first non-resident for leaving their quarantine site without permission during the coronavirus pandemic. Deepak Kumar, 31, was sentenced to four weeks behind bars on Monday after he pleaded guilty to one count of leaving the place of quarantine without the permission given by an authorised officer. Kwun Tong Court heard the Indian businessman arrived in Hong Kong from Turkey on March 21, and was placed under a written quarantine order to stay in isolation at Mojo Nomad Aberdeen Harbour Hotel in Aberdeen, for 14 days. But immigration officers found him trying to leave Hong Kong via Shenzhen Bay Control Point without permission the following day and intercepted him. Deepak Kumar tried to leave Hong Kong via Shenzhen Bay port the day after he arrived in the city. Photo: Felix Wong He was subsequently sent to a quarantine centre and brought to court on April 4 after the isolation period had ended. Kumar told investigators he had called the Home Affairs Department for guidance as he did not have enough money to stay at the hotel for 14 days, but that he had accommodation on the mainland. The department officers, however, told prosecutors that they had never granted Kumar the permission to leave the hotel. One officer said he suggested Kumar to seek permission from the Department of Health, but its emergency hotline centre never received his phone call. His defence lawyer said the offence was committed out of misunderstanding, as he claimed to have received general information on how to go to China from the Home Affairs Department and mistook it as permission to leave Hong Kong. He pleaded guilty to indicate his remorse, the lawyer said in mitigation. Hes sorry for the trouble he made. Acting principal magistrate Ivy Chui Yee-mei adopted a starting point of sentence at six weeks, and reduced it by one-third to credit Kumars guilty plea and clear record. The case was the first breach of the Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation, which since March 19 has required all arrivals from outside China to undergo 14 days of compulsory quarantine. Story continues Offenders face six months in prison and a maximum fine of HK$25,000. Hong Kong has closed its airport indefinitely to non-residents in a bid to combat the global outbreak. On Monday, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the city was 1,025. Returning residents must continue to spend 14 days in isolation at home, while everyone coming from mainland China, Macau or Taiwan, including Hongkongers, will be quarantined in hotels or at home. People coming from those three places who have travelled to other countries in the previous 14 days will be denied entry, except residents of Hong Kong. All transit flight services remain suspended and the rules would be in place until further notice, the government said. Three men have already been jailed for between 10 days and three months for flouting a similar quarantine regulation, which targets arrivals from mainland China. A government spokesman welcomed the judgment and said compliance with quarantine orders was of paramount importance in Hong Kongs fight against Covid-19. The sentence sends a clear message to the community that breaching quarantine orders is a criminal offence and that the government will not tolerate such action, he said. This article Coronavirus: Indian businessman jailed in Hong Kong for breaking quarantine laws first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020. Agartala, April 20 : Five people, including two ailing women, from two families reached Tripura from Chennai by road in an ambulance, travelling over 3,700 km amid the nationwide lockdown in place to check the spread of coronavirus. Former Deputy Director of Tripura government, Chanchal Majumder, along with his wife Asima Biswas and Sukumar Bhowmik, a police officer, accompanied by his wife Nandini Bhowmik and a relative went to Tamil Nadu on March 20 for their wives' treatment at a private hospital in Chennai. "Two days before the lockdown started on March 25, we completed the treatment. But we were stranded in Chennai when after Kolkata-bound flight got cancelled," Majumder told IANS on Monday over phone from a quarantine centre in Udaipur in Gomati district headquarters. He said: "As my only daughter's marriage is scheduled on May 8 and after finding no other alternatives, we, the two families, hired an ambulance at a charge of over Rs one lakh. After spending over Rs 1.40 lakh, we left Chenai on April 15 and reached Agartala after Sunday midnight." As per the health protocols in place for the coronavirus pandemic, Majumder and his wife are now under institutional quarantine in Udaipur in southern Tripura, while the Bhowmik family has been kept in home quarantine at Mohanpur in western Tripura. Majumder said that during their five-day trip from Chennai to Tripura, they underwent medical screening at more than 10 inter-state borders and security checks at more than 50 places. "Police, medical and civil officials and common people cooperated with us a lot and provided various aids when we passed through the roads of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha , Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal (twice), Assam (twice) and Meghalaya before finally reaching Tripura," he said. The ex-Tripura government official said that during their journey through the 9-10 states, they witnessed that thousands of people from Tripura and other northeastern states, who went to various states for numerous reasons, were stranded in different states. "Many of the stranded people are in distress as they don't have sufficient money, proper accommodation and food," he pointed out. UPDATE: The briefing is now scheduled to start at 2:15 p.m. Gov. Phil Murphy and other top state officials will hold a 2 p.m. press conference on Monday to provide another update on the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 4,000 people in New Jersey in the past six weeks. It will be streamed lived on the governors YouTube channel. State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli, communicable disease service medical director Dr. Edward Lifshitz and State Police Superintendent Colonel Pat Callahan will join the governor at the Trenton War Memorials George Washington Ballroom. The governor will release the latest coronavirus numbers and all four officials will take questions from the media in a gathering that figures to run for about 90 minutes. More than 85,000 people statewide have tested positive for COVID-19 since officials announced the first infection on March 4. Thousands have recovered but an exact number is not known. Officials have said about 80 to 85 percent of cases involve mild or moderate symptoms. Murphys other media appearance on Monday will be on the The Daily Show with Trevor Noah on Comedy Central. The show airs at 11 p.m. 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. 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. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. RENTON, Wash., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Providence, one of the largest health care systems in the nation, shared with PBS FRONTLINE its account as the hospital system that treated the first COVID-19 patient in the United States. The FRONTLINE Coronavirus Pandemic documentary, airing on PBS Tuesday, April 21, will include the perspectives of health care leaders from across the Providence health system. Amy Compton-Phillips, M.D., chief clinical officer at Providence, and George Diaz, M.D., infectious disease specialist at Providence Regional Medical Center Everett, were among the first voices in the nation to speak about COVID-19 and the need to take decisive steps to slow its spread. Ryan Keay, M.D., a doctor serving in the emergency department at Providence Regional Medical Center Everett, also shared her experience caring for the influx of patients that arrived shortly after the first one. "Our hospital system was ground zero of the pandemic when it reached the United States," said Dr. Compton-Phillips. "We treated Patient One, and we felt the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) ahead of the curve," she said. As shortages of PPE grew dire, Providence launched the 100 Million Mask Challenge to ensure health care workers had access to personal protective equipment (PPE). "We forged a collaboration with Kaas Tailored, a local furniture manufacturer that is now producing much needed PPE for our caregivers, along with other new partners, such as Nordstrom, that stepped up to help us keep health care workers safe," she said. The 100 Million Mask Challenge that will be highlighted in the FRONTLINE documentary is now being scaled across the U.S. by the American Hospital Association, including through direct matches between PPE donors and providers in-need on the newly-launched HealthEquip app. The FRONTLINE special report will reflect on the critical first few weeks after the virus arrived in the U.S., and the groundwork that had been done ahead of time. Dr. Diaz and his colleagues had a plan in place before receiving the first patient. Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Wash., conducted a comprehensive pandemic training simulation less than three weeks before the first patient arrived at the hospital. Dr. Diaz and the Providence team were closely watching developments in Wuhan, China, and were prepared to act when the virus made its first appearance in the U.S. Their work to respond to the outbreak continues. "We are collaborating across our health system and working with companies to gather data on potential treatments. The pandemic has put our work to innovate new therapies and technologies on the fast track," Dr. Diaz said. FRONTLINE Coronavirus Pandemic premieres Tues., April 21 at 9:00 P.M. (EDT) on your local PBS station. Visit FRONTLINE online for more ways to watch or listen, including a podcast. About Providence Providence is a national, not-for-profit Catholic health system comprising a diverse family of organizations and driven by a belief that health is a human right. With 51 hospitals, 1,085 physician clinics, senior services, supportive housing and many other health and educational services, the health system and its partners employ more than 119,000 caregivers serving communities across Alaska, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, and Washington, with system offices in Renton, Wash., and Irvine, Calif. Learn about our vision of health for a better world at Providence.org. SOURCE Providence Related Links http://www.providence.org The number of daily coronavirus deaths registered in Spain fell to 399 on Monday, according to the latest figures supplied by the Health Ministry. That is the lowest figure seen since March 22, when there were 394. The latest data follows the significant fall in daily fatalities recorded on Sunday, when the number of deaths went from 565 to 410, the biggest drop in daily deaths since the crisis began. However, the data should be viewed with some caution, given that there has been regular underreporting of coronavirus statistics from Spains 17 regions at weekends and on public holidays due to lower levels of personnel. Health official Fernando Simon said todays figures were very promising There have been a total of 20,852 Covid-19-related fatalities since the pandemic hit Spain, with confirmed infections now reaching 200,210. More than 80,000 patients have recovered from the illness and have been discharged from hospital. There were 4,266 new cases on Monday, the lowest daily rise since March 17. Speaking at the governments daily press conference on Monday, Fernando Simon, the director of the Health Ministrys Coordination Center for Health Alerts, said that the figures on the number of hospitalizations and intensive care admissions were very promising. Today is the first time we have fallen below 400 [daily fatalities], with a 2% increase compared to yesterday, he added. Simon also explained that Spain had significantly increased PCR testing, which is the most reliable detector of the coronavirus. We have gone from 200,000 [tests] to 700,000 [in a week]. We are doing nearly four times as many PCR tests, but the infection rate is falling a lot, even more than what we thought. In the first week of testing, 26.8% of those tested were found to be positive for Covid-19, compared to 3.1% last week, which indicates the outbreak is slowing, said Simon. Fernando Simon, the director of the Health Ministrys Coordination Center for Health Alerts, during a press conference earlier this week. JOSE MARIA CUADRADO JIMENEZ (AFP) I think the figures from the previous days should make us happy and content, he said. On the governments decision to allow children to leave the home under controlled circumstances from April 27, Simon said: Children can be transmitters of the disease, but we have been under confinement orders for a month and a week. The chances that children are now infected is very low. After reaching a peak of 950 fatalities on April 2, the number of daily coronavirus-related deaths began a slow descent. The figures last week, however, plateaued, with 565 on Saturday, 585 on Friday, 551 on Thursday, 523 on Wednesday and 567 on Tuesday. There are also variations in the data this week given that the Health Ministry is updating the historical series, after the government issued an order to the 17 regions in a bid to homogenize the different reporting of the data. Civil Guard controversy Jose Manuel Santiago, the chief of staff of the Civil Guard, at the governments press conference on the coronavirus crisis. Moncloa (Europa Press) A political storm erupted on Sunday in response to statements made by Jose Manuel Santiago, the chief of staff of the Civil Guard. Speaking at the governments daily press conference on the coronavirus crisis, Santiago said that the Civil Guard was working to stop disinformation on the one hand, to avoid the social stress that these hoaxes cause, and on the other, to minimize the negative climate toward the governments handling of the crisis. The comments sparked a wave of criticism from opposition parties, who accused the government of seeking to restrict freedom of speech. In a message on Twitter, Pablo Casado, the leader of the conservative Popular Party (PP), wrote: The Civil Guard is not there to minimize the negative climate toward the governments handling of the crisis. [Prime Minister Pedro] Sanchez must explain if he has ordered the security forces to restrict citizens freedom of expression on social media to cover up their mistakes. It would be very serious. The PP and the center-right Ciudadanos (Citizens) have called on Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska to appear in Congress to explain the statements made by Santiago. When asked about the issue on Sunday afternoon, Grande-Marlaska said he hadnt heard the generals comments, and argued that they constituted a slip of the tongue. Vox member accused of spreading disinformation This photo of the coffins from the 2013 shipwreck in Lampedusa in Italy has been used to spread misinformation about the coronavirus crisis in Spain. EFE The political party Unidas Podemos, which is a junior partner in the Spanish coalition government, has filed two reports with the public prosecutor against the spread of misinformation regarding the coronavirus crisis on social media. The first case involves a video filmed inside a warehouse, allegedly in Spain, that showed stacks of boxes of medical supplies. According to the person in the recording, these boxes were to be exported to France, despite the shortage of supplies in Spain. In actual fact, the warehouse was in Italy, and the boxes were filled with sheets of paper. The report accuses a National Police officer from a Madrid precinct, a worker from Palos city council in the southwestern province of Huelva, and Roberto Romero, a Vox coordinator in the Valencian city of Torrent, of spreading the misleading video, according to a document to which EL PAIS has had access. The second case involves the mass dissemination of fake and manipulated messages against the government. According to Unidas Podemos, an alleged criminal organization has been sharing a range of hoaxes on social media and instant messaging services. It cites two specific cases of messages that falsely claimed images of coffins and bodies in bags were taken in Spain, when they were in fact from Italy and Ecuador. Government to set price of medical supplies A pharmacist in Barcelona puts up a sign with the message we have face masks. Cristobal Castro The Spanish government has issued a new ministerial order to combat the price gouging of medical supplies during the coronavirus crisis. The order, published on Sunday in the Official State Gazette (BOE), aims to ensure that all citizens can purchase supplies, such as face masks, gloves and hand-sanitizer gel, in an informed way and under non abusive economic conditions. According to the BOE, the objective of this order is to establish the process to fix the maximum public sale price of medical products, and those products that are needed to protect the health of the population against Covid-19. The exact details of the order will be finalized within two days, after Sanchez holds a video conference with the Interministerial Commission on Medicine Prices, which will be responsible for proposing what price should be set on health products. Online scams jump 70% during quarantine A police officer investigates online crime. Europa Press The number of criminal online scams has risen by at least 70% during Spains coronavirus lockdown, according to sources from the Civil Guard. These sources explain that fraudsters have been taking advantage of the coronavirus crisis to sell pirated health products. The National Police and Civil Guard warn that many of these product are not certified and have entered the European market via Romania and Bulgaria where requirements are laxer. In some cases, customers have made advance payments for products that have yet to arrive. According to Civil Guard sources, seniors have been targeted by the scams. The desperation to protect themselves, the shortage of the necessary elements to do so, and the lack of contact and experience dealing with providers, leads them to the fraudsters, these sources explain. Poll: 85% believe the government could have acted earlier Some 84.7% of Spaniards believe that the government could have acted earlier, according to a new poll by research company 40 dB, commissioned by EL PAIS. More than half (54%) of the respondents also said that the government had made more more misses than hits in its management of the crisis. However, 32% replied that the Popular Party would have handled the crisis the same way if it were in power, and 30% said the conservative group would have performed worse. The poll also showed Spaniards have become increasingly concerned about the coronavirus crisis. The survey, taken between April 14 and 16, found that 96% of those surveyed were very (58.5%) or quite (38%) worried about the coronavirus crisis compared to 92.3% in March. With reporting by Patricia Ortega Dolz, Miguel Angel Medina and Oscar Lopez-Fonesca. English version by Melissa Kitson. This obituary is part of a series about people who have died in the coronavirus pandemic. Many Americans seek professional reinvention as a way to animate their lives. For Beryl Bernay, her life was defined by it. Ms. Bernay an actor, fashion designer, photographer, journalist, painter and amateur anthropologist died on March 29 in Manhattan. She was 94. The cause was complications of the coronavirus, her niece, Carol Gonzalez, said. Beryl Bernstein was born on March 2, 1926, in Brooklyn to Russian emigre parents. Her father, Barney, who changed the family name to Berney when she was a child, was a garment worker and her mother, Sade Berney, sold stockings and taught kindergarten. (Their daughter began spelling her name Bernay in adulthood.) She graduated from George Washington High School in Manhattan at 15. Too young to attend college, she worked at Franklin Simon & Company as a draper and designer for teen and preteen fashions, Ms. Gonzalez said. She went on to attend Pennsylvania State University. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya on Sunday managed to kick off a social media storm after a tweet by him dated 2015 went massively viral across the platform and widely panned by netizens. "95% Arab women have never had an orgasm in the last few hundred years! Every mother has produced kids as act of sex and not love:@TarekFatah," the tweet by MP read. The 5-year-old deeply controversial and misogynistic tweet became the outrage point on the microblogging site. It was later deleted by the BJP MP after online furore. "The ball is now in @narendramodis court. @Tejasvi_Surya has done an unpardonable offense and now things are getting out of hand. It ll be a matter of shame for 130 crore Indians if #tejasvisurya isnt sacked from parliament & made to apologize for his sinful remarks n debauchery,(sic)" a Twitter user wrote. Mejbel Al Sharika, a Kuwaiti lawyer and Director of International Human Rights, shared the screenshot of the tweet and wrote: "Dear @Twitter, this Indian politicians @Tejasvi_Surya has racially slurred Arab women, I wonder how is his account still active? Is it not against Twitter's official policy? Please act as Arab sentiment has been badly wounded." Dear @Twitter , this Indian politicians @Tejasvi_Surya has racially slurred Arab women, I wonder how is his account still active? Is it not against Twitter's official policy? Please act as Arab sentiment has been badly wounded. pic.twitter.com/JAM3hnDEjN (@MJALSHRIKA) April 19, 2020 Similar sentiments were shared by Abdur Rahman Nassar, an intellectual from Kuwait, who tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi while criticising the tweet. "The Indian Member of Parliament appeals to Arab women, and we demand that the Arabs drop his membership immediately .. We hope to request the cancellation of his membership," a rough Google translation of the tweet read. .. ..@narendramodi@PMOIndia pic.twitter.com/lbcq4duusz (@alnassar_kw) April 19, 2020 The screenshot of the tweet was widely circulated on Twitter and cries of sacking the BJP MP were at large. Just heard criticism of @Tejasvi_Surya recent tweet. So the polemic point is, if unveiling the monstrous reality of blatant disdain of dignity & sexual ethics by man is cheap/bigot/misogynistic then what unilateral divorce, polygamy, Nikah halala & patriarchal dominance means? pic.twitter.com/7y4Xe2Joxb Shubham Saxena (@dshubham_saxena) April 19, 2020 The treatment for Bhakts & hate mongers lies in the Arab lands . Tejasvi bigot thought he can insult their women too including Indian women.I pity women in their house .@narendramodi what a disgrace this MP @Tejasvi_Surya is .Why worried about their sex & orgasm . Pathetic ! pic.twitter.com/SFT4TkeqKm Dr Jwala Gurunath (@DrJwalaG) April 19, 2020 Notably, the (deleted) tweet by the politician was a quote by Pakistani-Canadian journalist and author Tarek Fatah in an interview with Swarajya titled: Tarek Fatah: Breaking Down Jihadi Terror. In the interview dated March 2015, Fatah spoke about "Islamofascism", 'Jihadi terrorism' and how Saudi Arabia was the greatest threat to global security among other things. "Ninety five percent of the Arab women have never had an orgasm in the last few hundred years! Every mother has produced kids as an act of sex and not love. Womens genitals have been cut for thousands of years. What sort of a society are you creating with only one category of people?" Fateh responded to a question on democracy in the Middle East. This was pointed out in a tweet by economist and researcher Rupa Subramanya. Background:2015 tweet by @Tejasvi_Surya 4 years before he became an MP.Hes quoting Tarek Fatah from 2015 @SwarajyaMag interview: 95% of Arab women have never had an orgasm last few hundred years!Every mother has produced kids as act of sex and not love. https://t.co/MwpH2KzwRV https://t.co/CfwamD38t6 Rupa Subramanya (@rupasubramanya) April 19, 2020 This is the full quote by fake news peddler Tarek Fatah which @Tejasvi_Surya quoted in his now deleted 2015 tweet. The quote is from an interview Fatah did with @SwarajyaMag . pic.twitter.com/Z22TWxkznA Rupa Subramanya (@rupasubramanya) April 19, 2020 Responding to Subramanya's tweet, journalist Mohammed Zubair pointed out that Surya, while quoting Fatah, had "agreed" with him. The process to send home West Bengal labourers stranded in various districts due to the lockdown would start this week after a review meeting on the present COVID-19 situation, Labour Minister Purnendu Basu said on Monday. The state government had last week said it would allow such labourer to return to their respective districts on condition that they would be in quarantine at home for 14 days. "A review of the coronavirus situation will be conducted very soon. During the meeting, we shall assess the ground-level situation in all the districts, and a separate roadmap would be created for areas that have been declared micro-spots. Then, we would start the process of sending home these labourers," Basu said. According to state government sources, thousands of labourers had left their homes in February for harvesting activities and were stranded due to the sudden nationwide lockdown. "Special police vans would be arranged to ferry the labourers back to their native districts. Once they reach, medical screening would be conducted and if required, they would be taken to government quarantine centres or advised home quarantine for two weeks," an official said. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had earlier said her government will provide assistance to labourers from West Bengal who are stuck in other states. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 'I would like to reassure the general populace that your government, both Centre and state and the city councils are working at an accelerated pace.' IMAGE: Doctors check a resident at a slum in Worli, south central Mumbai, April 17, 2020. Photograph: PTI Photo Dr Sanjay Oak heads the nine-member medical task force for Maharashtra that was very recently instituted to help Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his government conquer COVID-19. "We are all working eventually for the betterment of the city and the state, because all of us love our city and love our people," Dr Oak tells Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel in the concluding segment of a two-part interview. Part 1: 8 Mumbai measures to defeat coronavirus The main problem that Mumbai and Maharashtra faces is density of population. So, how will this catch up game with testing happen? As we speak today (April 17) we have the good news that China sent a huge consignment of those test kits now to India. So, I think, Delhi received it yesterday. I would expect that they would distribute it, as per the caseloads and the need, all across the states. We will have an extra number of kits that we need to further augment our testing. The second thing is that we have now put down the guidelines and rules as to when the tests are to be done, to whom it has to be done and at what interval it may or may not be repeated. Once these things are in place -- which are already in place now -- I suppose the picture will be far better. I spoke to an infectious disease specialist from Kerala and he was talking about morbidity in his state. With regard to morbidity, does Mumbai have a higher morbidity for any reason or no? Kerala and Maharashtra have two basic differences. The first important difference is the population density. If you consider a ten by ten square feet space on practical terms, like how many people would stay (in that space) in Kerala and how many more would stay in Maharashtra. Secondly, as you know Mumbai and Maharashtra is an industry capital and Kerala is a very educated state of ours. So the IEC (Information, Education, Communicate and Counselling) situation is far better in Kerala, as compared to Maharashtra. Second thing about Maharashtra is the age and the comorbidities that people have -- if you have diabetes, if you have hypertension, if you have asthma and other things. So we do have more? I wouldn't say Kerala doesn't have. But the density of the comorbidity in the population is definitely very high in Maharashtra. What are your words of reassurance or hope as head of the task force, you can offer to the people of Maharashtra, during this time, as COVID-19 cases and deaths rise and the situation looks frightening? I would like to reassure the general populace that your government, both Centre and state and the city councils are working at an accelerated pace. We are all working together. We are all working eventually for the betterment of the city and the state, because all of us love our city and love our people. They have to help us. We normally say we help others. This is the time, when I say, we have to help ourselves. And how do we help? We help it by social distancing, staying indoors, and following the norms and rules that we are proposing to them. That's all that I have to say. Vietnamese automobile manufacturers are cherishing the dream of entering the world market. The first batch of 15 buses with Thaco brand has been exported to the Philippines. Thaco, the manufacturer, and Auto Delta, the importer, have also signed a contract on selling another 200 products in 2020. The 15 buses belong to the product line with completely new design. They have a localization ratio of 45 percent, use an engine meeting Euro 5 emission standard, and are energy saving and friendly to the environment. In 2019, Thaco exported 186 CBU (complete built unit) automobiles to ASEAN and the US, including 120 Kia Cerato to Myanmar. The manufacturer plans to export 1,000 products this year. Together with Kia Motors, Thaco will for the first time export Kia Sedona, the large-size SUV model to Thailand, one of the regions leading automobile manufacturing center. Analysts say that Thacos products are competitive in the region because the assembling cost in Vietnam is lower than Thailand. Meanwhile, the baht continues appreciating, which brings competitiveness to Vietnams products in the Thai market. Analysts say that Thacos products are competitive in the region because the assembling cost in Vietnam is lower than Thailand. Meanwhile, the baht continues appreciating, which brings competitiveness to Vietnams products in the Thai market. Besides Thaco, VinFast also puts high hopes on exports. The young manufacturer is planning to export electric cars to the US by 2021. Russia, Europe and ASEAN are also being eyed by VinFast. The domestic market is too small, a senior executive of VinFast said, explaining why VinFast wants to export cars. Besides, selling products abroad is the key to profit" Vietnamese automobile manufacturers not only want to export CBUs, but car parts as well. In 2019, Thaco exported a considerable amount of automobile parts to South Korea and Malaysia, worth $14.5 million. This is a modest figure, but Thaco believes that the export consignment will pave the way for Vietnam to join the global value chain. However, Vietnamese manufacturers understand that they will face big challenges in the world market. The technical barriers set by importing countries are very big. To prepare for export to the US and Japan, Thaco had to spend onr year to have its products examined and to get certificates. The time was six months for Thai market and 4.5 months for the Philippines, said Thacos president Tran Ba Duong. Exporters also have to set up maintenance service systems and develop customer care service overseas. After all, the quality of products must be high to conquer the heart of consumers, especially in choosy markets such as the US and Europe. According to Michael Dunne, CEO of ZoZo Go LLC, a consultancy firm, Vietnam needs to manufacture at least 100,000 products a year at competitive prices, develop a global brand, and establish a network of supporting services to be able to penetrate the world market. Thanh Lich When will the Vietnamese automobile dream come true? Vietnam still has to import car parts for domestic assembling. As a result, the production cost is high and domestically made products remain less competitive than imports. AVON, Ohio -- A Heroes Fund has been launched as a team effort in Avon and Avon Lake. The cities, school districts and community services departments call the joint effort the Covid-19 Heroes Fund. The fund was created to support our front-line workers who are todays heroes and work tirelessly to protect our residents, said Avon Lake Economic Development Director Ted Esborn. The Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals and Mercy Health are partnering with our two communities to show their gratitude toward the hospitals caregivers by receiving donations to the Heroes Fund, which will run until May 8, he said. Donations can be made to the Heroes Fund in three ways and can support the communities healthcare workers, as well as Avon and Avon Lake businesses. To make a donation: Buy a gift card from an Avon or Avon Lake restaurant and donate it to the fund Donate personal protective equipment (PPE) Make a monetary donation. Following are the drop-off locations for the donations. When you arrive, you will be asked to fill out a donation form: Avon City Hall, 36080 Chester Road Avon Lake City Hall, 150 Avon Belden Road Avon/Avon Lake Community Resource Services, 33479 Lake Road, C, in Avon Lake Cleveland Clinic, 33300 Cleveland Clinic Boulevard in Avon Mercy Health, 1813 Nagel Road, Suite 500 in Avon University Hospitals main lobby, 29000 Center Ridge Road in Westlake For questions or more information, contact any of the following: City of Avon, Pam Fechter, Economic Development Director. Call 440-937-7826 or email pfechter@cityofavon.com City of Avon Lake, Ted Esborn, Economic Development Director. Call 440-930-4167 or email tesborn@avonlake.org Cleveland Clinic. Call 800-999-2744 or email giving@ccf.org University Hospitals. Email UHGiving@UHhospitals.org Remember, said Esborn, Your donation will make a difference in someones life. Please donate by May 8. Read more from the Sun Sentinel. With additional reporting by Kevin Abourezk One tribal leader is "out for blood." Another calls it a "MAJOR breach" of the federal government's trust and treaty responsibilities. A third compares it to a long history of "broken promises" by the United States. One believes it will lead to "lasting impact and damage" to Indian Country As tribal leaders and their citizens work day and night to protect their vulnerable communities from the coronavirus , they are enduring yet another shock to their system. After spending an entire week battling the Trump administration over an $8 billion COVID-19 relief fund , they discovered that their own government, the one that has charged itself with moral obligations of the highest responsibility and trust , engaged in such shoddy document handling practices that their sensitive data, containing information about their people and their finances, landed in the hands of outsiders on Friday. "The unlawful release of information is evidence that those broken promises by the federal government continue to this day": The Southern Ute Tribe is demanding an investigation into the leak of sensitive #CARESAct data by Trump administration. #COVID19 https://t.co/K5ykUGzvOg indianz.com (@indianz) April 19, 2020 The serious breach, fresh off the bruising policy fight that has landed in the pages of national news outlets and has attracted the interest of powerful members of Congress -- some of them with strong connections to the White House -- has been such a jolt that many tribal leaders are still struggling to understand how it might have happened in the first place. And, perhaps just as importantly, why. "I don't know if that's a way of somebody trying to get back at the tribes or what," said Chairman Roger Trudell of the Santee Sioux Nation. The tribe's private information, which had to be submitted under threat of federal prosecution, was among those exposed by the Trump administration. "It's hard to tell right now," Trudell told Indianz.Com on Saturday. "I worry about the lasting impact and damage to our Tribal Nations by this leak. I echo the call for an immediate investigation into the matter: Chairman Coly Brown of Winnebago Tribe condemns leak of sensitive #CARESAct data by Trump administration. https://t.co/lqhgHovend indianz.com (@indianz) April 19, 2020 With tribes demanding investigations and weighing legal action, including a potential class action, the leak comes after nearly every Indian nation in the lower 48 expressed a lack of confidence in the government official who is supposed to prevent these kinds of intrusions. Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Sweeney has taken a prominent role in decisions affecting the $8 billion coronavirus relief fund, so much so that the Department of the Interior admitted that her agency had its eyes all over the information that got out. In our consultation efforts with the Department of the Treasury regarding CARES Act funding, we have been asked to verify for accuracy some of the non-financial information submitted by tribes to Treasury, and we have not been provided any confidential banking information," a spokesperson said in a statement . When asked by Indianz.Com on Saturday whether an investigation was underway into the breach, the spokesperson declined to answer. But Sweeney and her staff aren't the only ones with direct ties to the leak. The White House also had its hands on the data, according to information obtained by Indianz.Com during an investigation of the mishap. In fact, a key official at the White House was among the first people who received the tribal CARES Act data that got out. Tyler Fish, a senior policy advisor and tribal liaison at the White House, and Doug Hoelscher, a deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, are seen on the steps of the U.S. Capitol following an event for missing and murdered Indigenous women on September 24, 2019. Photo by Indianz.Com (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) On Friday morning, a mere three minutes after the Department of the Treasury generated a document containing sensitive information of nearly 700 tribes and Native entities, it was emailed to Tyler Fish , the senior policy advisor and tribal liaison to President Donald Trump. Fish, who is of Muscogee (Creek) and Cherokee ancestry, has positioned himself as a key player and eager promoter of the Trump administration's coronavirus response efforts. During a conference call last Thursday with tribal leaders, he praised the "positive results" being seen as a result of those measures, according to participants, even though the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise across Indian Country , with some communities experiencing a disproportionate impact from the deadly disease But while Interior and Treasury can claim a direct role in the handling of the $8 billion, the reasons for the White House's need to receive private tribal information are less clear. The two agencies are required by the bipartisan Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act , also known as the CARES Act , to work together on the fund. The law doesn't say anything about the White House. Fish, who is technically employed by Interior and is only on a government detail to the Executive Office of the President , did not respond to a request for comment over the weekend. A spokesperson for the White House, however, said Fish received the sensitive data as part of the Trump administration's "all-of-government approach" to the health pandemic. The Coronavirus response is an all-of-government approach, which includes the White House tribal liaisons efforts to ensure timely guidance for tribal leaders to best support their needs in this unprecedented times, including ensuring followup with tribal leaders to submit information before key deadlines," the spokesperson told Indianz.Com on Sunday. Daniel Kowalski, Counselor to the Secretary @USTreasury: "Opportunity Zones can restore prosperity to people and communities that have been left behind." According to Kowalski, about 366 designated Opportunity Zones nationwide overlap tribal lands. #ECWS19 pic.twitter.com/3guEB852nM NCAI (@NCAI1944) February 12, 2019 Tribal leaders are incensed. Some struggled with the CARES Act portal set up by Treasury but persevered with the hope of securing a share of an $8 billion fund promised to help their governments recover from the social, cultural, economic and other impacts of the global health pandemic. Tribes do not like to share their data but in order to access these critical funds to protect the health and safety of our members under the CARES Act, we did," Chairman Coly Brown of the Winnebago Tribe said in a statement to Indianz.Com on Saturday. "Now, our worst fears are confirmed and there has been a leak of that data. I worry about the lasting impact and damage to our Tribal Nations by this leak." "I echo the call for an immediate investigation into the matter," Brown added For Chairman Christine Sage of the Southern Ute Tribe , the leak was so egregious that she had to inform her people about it. She noted that critical information, including bank account numbers, was submitted to the "secure" portal set up by Treasury. "The history of relations between the United States and tribal nations is replete with broken promises," Sage said on Saturday. "The unlawful release of information is evidence that those broken promises by the federal government continue to this day." Posted by Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska on Thursday, April 16, 2020 "Last week it was the Alaska corporate raid on the funds," Hoskin said on social media on Saturday. "Now it appears the feds breached the trust of tribes with a disclosure of tribal data." "Outrageous," said Hoskin, who is the leader of one of the two largest in the United States More troubling revelations about the feds handling of the #CARESAct fund for tribal governments. Last week it was the Alaska corporate raid on the funds. Now it appears the feds breached the trust of tribes with a disclosure of tribal data. Outrageous. https://t.co/QFfKSsGNK4 Chuck Hoskin, Jr. (@ChuckHoskin_Jr) April 19, 2020 Indian law experts contacted by Indianz.Com said the breach raises significant liability issues for the Trump administration, especially Secretary Mnuchin, who is already being sued by six tribes for his handling of the $8 billion fund. They believe it gives the plaintiffs in the case, which seeks a judgment barring Alaska Native for-profit entities from receiving a share of the money, some ammunition that hadn't been available when the complaint was filed Thursday evening, just hours before the leak took place. The mere existence of the leaked data, which contains information on population, land base, employees and expenditures for nearly 700 tribes and Native entities, has generated intense interest and heated discussion in Indian law and policy circles . With more lawsuits in development, including one that is expected to be filed as soon as Monday, it's only a matter of time before the leaked document shows up in court, these practitioners said. Tribal leaders and advocates alike also noted the deep inequities of the incident. In order to seek a share of the $8 billion fund, Indian nations were warned they could face criminal prosecution for uploading "false" information to the CARES Act portal. A similar threat was not made of states and local governments , who are in line for far more coronavirus relief money than tribes. NCAI is extremely disappointed and disturbed by the release of sensitive information that tribal governments and other entities submitted to the @USTreasury related to #CARESAct #Coronavirus Relief Funds. Read full statement here: https://t.co/AIh7weAeuR NCAI (@NCAI1944) April 18, 2020 Now it turns out that someone, or perhaps multiple people within the government, and maybe even those outside of it, are the ones who might face legal problems in connection with the leak "This release of sensitive information comes at a time when tribal governments are in dire need of resources to respond to and recover from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic," the National Congress of American Indians said in a statement on Saturday. "NCAI demands a full and swift investigation into the source of the data breach," the largest inter-tribal organization in the U.S. said. Join the Conversation Related Stories However, Google's dominant business as an advertising company that uses customer data to target ads has created negative publicity and stalled some past initiatives in the health space. Google is currently the third largest cloud tech provider, behind Amazon and Microsoft . Health care systems could warm to the technology, known as the Google Healthcare API, as new government mandates loom that will require them to make it easier for patients to see and use their health data. Google is announcing the general availability of technology that, if widely adopted, could make it easier for patients to access their own health information via third-party apps. Google's rival Microsoft Azure also has a similar health care API, which is designed to help its health care customers connect to sources, like electronic health records. As of Monday, health care providers can build new systems using the new Google Healthcare API to translate and convert data stored in different types of systems, from imaging systems to medical records software. Although the documentation says that the Healthcare API is meant for "storing and accessing healthcare data in Google Cloud, providing a critical bridge between existing care systems and applications hosted on Google Cloud," Google said that customers aren't required to store the data in Google Cloud. Health care companies are increasingly being forced to share health information with their patients, as well as the health apps they choose to use. The Department of Health and Human Services released a set of rules earlier this year to prevent health care companies from so-called "information blocking." The practice, which had been going on for years, makes it challenging for people to access their own medical information at the hospital or doctor's office. Some health systems tell patients they'll have to pay for their records, or that the information would only available via a printed PDF or CD-Rom. "Hospitals and vendors have two years to comply with new rules," noted Aneesh Chopra, the first chief technology officer of the White House and the president of Care Journey, a health analytics company, in an interview with CNBC. "This could help them move faster, and it should increase the marketplace of applications that are physician facing, patient facing and potentially health plan facing, so individuals can get their health information that would have been locked up." There have also been well-documented challenges for patients in sharing information between hospitals, particularly those that rely on different medical record vendors. Google Cloud, in a blog post written by Joe Corkery, a doctor and its director of product, and Aashima Gupta, its director of health solutions, notes that it can be a "Herculean effort" for health systems to access a unified view of data from various sources. Google Cloud's health care leaders note that the Covid-19 pandemic shows again why health data interoperability is important. It can help support the kinds of efforts that are already underway, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new app that aims to share information from electronic health records with public health departments. That app will launch in May. "Covid-19 is really bringing the entire (health data) interoperability conversation to the forefront," said Gupta, via a virtual call. "It's becoming really crucial from a patient standpoint." "People are now recognizing that there's only way to get though this period and that is to collaborate," added John Halamka, president of Mayo Clinic Platform. Mayo Clinic is a major cloud customer for Google, which has a team of people working nearby out of Rochester, Minnesota. "What's important is that this API is a toolset provided by Google that makes it easier for the doctors and the hospitals to share data. But it's not about sending the data to Google." A Christian health care sharing ministry sold inherently unfair and deceptive health plans to Missouri residents and failed to provide them with coverage, a class action lawsuit alleges. The federal lawsuit against Aliera Companies and Trinity Healthshare comes as millions of people who are unable to afford private insurance are attracted to the low prices offered by health care sharing ministries, KCUR-FM reports. A health care sharing ministry is a group of people with common ethical or religious beliefs who share health care costs. Many of the plans offer none of the protections of the Affordable Care Act. Aliera said in a statement that its marketing materials make clear that their programs are absolutely not health insurance. Any assertions to the contrary are simply incorrect. We will continue to vigorously defend against false claims about the services our company provides its clients, it said. Last month, California insurance regulators barred Aliera and Trinity from doing business in the state, saying the two companies used deceptive marketing tactics to mislead consumers. At least half a dozen other states have launched probes. George Tom Kelly III told KCUR he was looking for health insurance options back in 2018, so when his insurance agent recommended a health care sharing ministry, he signed up with Aliera. Kelly, who has a lawn care business, first suspected hed been duped when Aliera refused to cover his claims for some routine medical expenses. Then it denied him coverage for hernia surgery he needed. Kelly filed a federal lawsuit in Missouri against Aliera and Trinity, the health sharing ministry for whom Aliera marketed its products. Health sharing ministries are exempt from the requirements of the Affordable Care Act as long as they meet certain requirements. They must be tax exempt, have existed since Dec. 31, 1999, and must have continuously shared medical expenses among members who share common ethical or religious beliefs. But Kellys lawsuit alleges Trinity didnt exist until 2018, didnt limit its membership to those of similar faith and siphoned off members payments for exorbitant fees and commissions. On the one hand, these guys state, in small letters sometimes, that theyre not insurance, but they convey the impression that they are insurance, said former Missouri Insurance Commissioner Jay Angoff, now an attorney in Washington, D.C., who represents Kelly. They do that so they can sell what is de facto insurance, but its crummy insurance that violates the Affordable Care Act. It doesnt cover preexisting conditions and it has very low annual and lifetime limits. Because theyre not technically insurance providers, health care sharing ministries are not subject to the same regulations as insurance companies. Its not known how many Missourians are enrolled in Trinitys plans. Carrie Couch, director of the consumer affairs division of the Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance, said the division had received several complaints against Aliera and Trinity. Before founding Aliera, Timothy Moses headed International BioChemical Industries Inc., which filed for bankruptcy in 2004 after Moses was charged with securities fraud and perjury. A jury convicted Moses and he was sentenced to more than six years in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $1.65 million. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Missouri A man has been charged with manslaughter after the bodies of 39 migrants were found in a refrigerated lorry trailer in Grays, Essex, last year. The Vietnamese nationals were discovered in the container, which had been parked in an industrial estate on 23 October last year. Ten teenagers were among the dead, including two fifteen year old boys. The deaths, which a coroner ruled were caused by suffocation and overheating, triggered an international manhunt to clamp down on those who may have been involved in the alleged trafficking of the deceased, who mostly originated from the Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces in north-central Vietnam. Now Ronan Hughes, of Co Armagh in Northern Ireland, is due to appear at Dublin's High Court on Tuesday charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, as well as immigration offences, Essex Police said. The 40-year-old was detained on Monday after authorities executed a European arrest warrant in Ireland. 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Show all 15 1 /15 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Thirty-nine bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex, police have said PA 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex The discovery of 38 adults and one teenager was made at an industrial estate in Thurrock Reuter TV 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Police said they believed the lorry had come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead, in Wales, on Saturday. Getty 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Essex Police said it had launched a murder investigation after its officers were called to Waterglade Industrial Park, in Grays, in the early hours of Wednesday morning Reuter TV 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex A 25-year-old-man from Northern Ireland has been arrested on suspicion of murder PA 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex In a statement, Chief Superintendent Andrew Mariner said: This is a tragic incident where a large number of people have lost their lives. Our enquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened. We are in the process of identifying the victims, however I anticipate that this could be a lengthy process. Reuter TV 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Getty 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Getty 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex PA 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Getty 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Reuter TV 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex PA 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex PA 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Reuters 39 bodies found in lorry container in Essex Reuters It comes after 25-year old truck driver Maurice Robinson pleaded guilty to counts of 39 manslaughter at the Old Bailey in London, having already admitted to conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and acquiring criminal property. Recommended Driver pleads guilty to manslaughter of 39 people found dead in Essex He is due to be sentenced at a later date. Meanwhile, in February, Eamonn Harrison, of Mayobridge, Northern Ireland, was granted permission to appeal against his extradition to the UK under the terms of a European arrest warrant issued by Essex Police. The 22-year-old is facing 39 manslaughter charges, one of human trafficking and one of assisting unlawful immigration. A further hearing will be held in Dublin on Thursday May 7, Essex Police said. Additional reporting by PA. A Woolworths customer allegedly punched and spat on a security guard after yelling at fellow shoppers for not practising social distancing. Peter Tatai, 27, allegedly became became 'verbally abusive towards customers' at Woolworths Merrylands, in Sydney's west, on Sunday. Mr Tatai then allegedly attacked a security guard who asked him to leave the store. 'When store security asked the man to leave, it is alleged he spat at the security officer before punching him to the face and knocking him to the ground,' NSW Police said. Mr Tatai was chased by other workers through the Stockland Merrylands Shopping Centre, tackled to the ground and arrested. Peter Tatai (in white), 27, allegedly became became 'verbally abusive towards customers' in Woolworths Merrylands, in Sydney's west, on Sunday When workers asked Mr Tatai to leave, he allegedly spat at the security officer before punching him to the face and knocking him to the ground, according to police But Mr Tatai won't be charged under new coronavirus laws, where spitting on all essential workers carries an on-the-spot fine of $5,000. The alleged incident happened at 3pm yesterday, seven hours before the law came into effect at midnight. He was charged with two counts of common assault and one of recklessly causing grievous bodily harm. The security guard, who is too traumatised by the alleged attack to reveal his name, was taken to Westmead Hospital to get stitches for his badly split lip. 'I was just unconscious afterwards,' he told Nine News. 'It's just hurting too much. I'm speaking very slowly because I'm not able to speak properly.' The security guard, who is too terrified to reveal his name, was taken to Westmead Hospital to get stitches for his badly split lip The two employees were treated at the scene for minor injuries. Health Minister Brad Hazzard condemned Australians who have spat at emergency services and other essential workers during the coronavirus pandemic. 'I'm repulsed by what some people have done by spitting and couching on workers. I think they're pretty lucky to just get a $5,000 fine,' MrHazzard told reporters. Mr Tatai, who is from Kingsford in Sydney's east, was granted bail and will face Fairfield Local Court on June 27. Woolworths described the alleged attack as 'appalling' and said it is 'taking steps to have the customer banned' from the store. Police are now be able to fine people who target workers including cleaners, midwifes, police, border force and retail workers, not just those in emergency services or healthcare. Those found guilty face six months in jail. The retail workers' union said its members had 'borne the brunt of a huge upsurge in customer abuse' during the pandemic. 'The reports of supermarket and other retail workers being coughed and spat on over the past weeks are becoming disturbingly common,' Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees,' Association NSW/ACT Secretary Bernie Smith said in a statement on Sunday. It comes after a drunk motorcyclist was fined for coughing and spitting at police officers on Friday afternoon. The man was stopped by police in Beverly Hills in Sydney's south when he was spotted not wearing a helmet. After being pulled over, the 31-year-old then allegedly coughed and spat at the police. Earlier this month a Coles manager was spat on and had her eyes gouged by a customer after she confronted her for ignoring social distancing rules in the store. Footage showed customer service boss Sharon Herringe, 49, being attacked in Coles in Vincentia, on the NSW south coast, when she stopped a customer from entering the store through the exit. She said she was spat on and was left with scratches and a gouged eye. CARTERVILLE (AP) Lori Longueville, director of Child Care Resource and Referral at John A. Logan College, and her staff have been busy. We have been working nonstop since the governors shelter-in-place order to be able to assist families with their childcare needs, Longueville said. The order allowed early learning centers and childcare homes to be licensed as emergency providers of childcare. Emergency providers care for the children of essential workers. Sixteen centers in 15 counties are providing emergency care. Forty-three licensed homes are operating as exempt, Longueville said. Basically, the state of Illinois suspended all childcare licenses as of March 23. Centers had to apply for a special license to offer care to the children of essential workers. Homes had to apply to be exempt homes. There are specific protocols centers need to follow, Longueville said. Those protocols include limiting the number of people coming in to the centers, screening staff and children for fevers and staggering drop-off time and pickup times. Although the CCR&Rs office is closed to the public, its staff members are working every day to support working families and the providers that serve them. Longueville said most of the staff is working remotely, but someone is answering the phones from 8 a.m. to noon each day. A statewide dedicated help line has been created so Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies can help connect essential worker families to emergency childcare. The helpline is available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday to answer calls, but callers will be able to leave a message 24 hours a day. Its amazing to me that in 10 days, all systems were created to help, even though we are in uncharted waters, Longueville said. CCR&R staff has seen an upswing in requests. Longueville said they have a new clientele parents needing care for school-aged children. The children were in school and only needed after-school care. Now, they need care all day. In addition to finding provides, CCR&R can help parents and guardians apply for childcare assistance. Our goal is to be here to help families in whatever way we can, Longueville said. She stressed that emergency childcare should be a last resort. But, parents who cannot stay home should have safe places for their children. Childcare providers have really stepped up to care for children. I hope everyone remembers how essential they are not only now but every day, Longueville said. Tourists clean their hands as they leave Trinity College following the announcement that Trinity College will close many tourist attractions within the college in Dublin, Ireland, on March 12, 2020. Lorraine O'Sullivan/File Photo/Reuters Ireland and England's responses to the coronavirus crisis have been very different. England wound up with a far higher death rate and death toll. England's death rate out of total cases is 13.4%. Ireland's is 3.8%. Ireland's early, proactive social-distancing measures helped the country avoid overwhelming its healthcare system to the extent that England has. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. England and Ireland are facing very different coronavirus crises. Whereas England has nearly 109,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, Ireland has about 14,000. In England, 14,576 people have died, while Ireland's death toll is 530. That means that in England, the death rate out of total cases is 13.4%. Ireland's is 3.8%. England's death rate is about 3.5 times more than Ireland's. The difference is likely due to Ireland's early, proactive steps to build up its healthcare system and implement social-distancing measures. Ireland shut down schools banned mass gatherings, and encouraged work from home on March 12. England issued a full country-wide lockdown on March 23, and Ireland followed suit on March 24. Because the average person with the coronavirus passes it to at least two others, it spreads exponentially, which means every day matters in taking action to prevent more cases and Ireland's decisive action prevented sharp surges in COVID-19 patients. DataTicker - Covid 19 Global and US England's early cases and delayed response England saw its first coronavirus cases on January 29: two Chinese nationals from the same family became sick in York. More cases were reported through early February, most of which were travel-related. An English man who went to Singapore for a conference in early February infected five others at an Alpine ski resort, and five British nationals aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship tested positive. Story continues England's Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, told the BBC on February 13 that the government's strategy involved four tactical aims: "The first one is to contain; the second of these is to delay; the third of these is to do the science and the research; and the fourth is to mitigate so we can brace the NHS [National Health Service]." UK ambulance NHS coronavirus REUTERS/Matthew Childs Containment requires isolating anyone who tests positive, tracing who they had contact with, then testing those contacts, asking them to self-isolate, and repeating the process. But once the first case of community spread in England was reported on February 28, it was an indication that containment might be impossible. Still, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government did not implement social-distancing guidance until March 16. Even then, it simply urged citizens to avoid social gatherings and non-essential travel. Before that, anyone with symptoms was just encouraged to stay home, and people over 70 were told to avoid cruises. Mass gatherings still took place, including the four-day Cheltenham Festival from March 10-13, which drew almost 70,000 people. Both the Times of London newspaper and Buzzfeed News reported that the slow response was due to a belief within the UK government that the coronavirus could be mitigated in the country, rather than suppressed, through a so-called "herd immunity" strategy. But officials changed course on March 16 after simulations from Imperial College London showed that scenario would lead to high rates of hospitalizations, straining the health service. Boris Johnson Reuters A full lockdown came on March 23, once the country had already confirmed 13,063 and 422 deaths. Johnson himself tested positive for COVID-19 on March 27. England was at risk of a dangerous coronavirus outbreak, given that the country is roughly 83% urban, which means it has a higher level of density. It also has a relatively high proportion of elderly people, who are at a much higher risk of severe cases. About 18% of England's population is above 65. Even now, experts think England's death toll could be far higher than the official count. England's Office for National Statistics said 5,979 people in England had died of COVID-19 as of April 3, including at-home and nursing-home deaths. That's 15% more than the numbers published by the health service at that time. Meanwhile, England's lockdown has been extended until at least May 7. Ireland's quick action Ireland reported its first coronavirus case on February 29: a traveler who returned from Italy. The country identified its first patient who'd gotten sick via community spread on March 5. A few days later, on March 9, Ireland announced that its St. Patrick's Day festival a gathering of about 250,000 people would not happen. The government also began to restrict visiting hospitals and long term care settings and began to build up its contact tracing and surveillance programs. Deserted streets due to the coronavirus restrictions in Belfast city centre, Northern Ireland, March, 30, 2020. Associated Press On March 12, Ireland closed schools, colleges, and childcare facilities an important step, because some children can be asymptomatic carriers of the virus. In addition, indoor gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 500 people were canceled. Businesses were encouraged to have workers work from home if possible. Pubs closed on March 15. An official stay-at-home order was issued March 24, when the country had 1,329 cases and seven deaths. It also helps, however, that Ireland is overall a younger and more rural country than England about 69% of the Irish population lives in urban areas, and about 13% of the population is over 65. Every day and every test counts for countries fighting the virus Over and over again, researchers have found that the best practices for preventing the spread of the coronavirus (and other infectious diseases) are strict social-distancing measures and mass testing. A combination of these strategies could prove effective for both England and Ireland which are both facing more time in lockdown if the growth of new cases doesn't slow down. In terms of testing, both countries are looking to ramp up their testing capacities. But England still lags behind. According to Our World in Data, as of April 17 (the latest reported numbers), England has tested 341,551 people which comes out to about 5.07 per thousand people. As of 14 April 2020, Ireland confirmed that it tested 90,646 people in total about 18.55 per thousand. Still, England's Whitty said on April 16 that the country believes it is reaching the peak of its crisis. "On the issue of the peak, our view is that it is probably reaching the peak overall and that is what the flattening shows," Whitty said at England's daily government news briefing. Read the original article on Business Insider Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan held a meeting of National Biofuel Coordination Committee, keeping the social distancing in mind, and churn on measures that may power India in fight against COVID-19. Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan held a meeting of the National Biofuel Coordination Committee on Monday, April 20, abiding by the norms of social distancing. In the meeting, Minister Pradhan discussed ways in which the biofuel industry can assist the country in stepping-up the fight against Covid-19. Reports said the committee took the important decision to allow conversion of a small fraction of excess food grains into ethanol for utilisation in making alcohol-based hand-sanitizers and also for further augmenting the Ethanol Blending Program in India. The National Policy on Biofuels, 2018 under Para 5.3 inter-alia envisages that during an agriculture crop year when there is projected over supply of food grains as anticipated by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, the policy will allow conversion of these surplus quantities of food grains to ethanol, based on the approval of National Biofuel Coordination Committee (NBCC). A meeting of NBCC was held on 20.04.2020 under the Chairmanship of Honble Minister, Petroleum & Natural Gas, wherein it was approved that the surplus rice available with Food Corporation of India (FCI) may be converted to ethanol for utilization in making alcohol-based hand-sanitizers and in blending for Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) programme. For all the latest National News, download NewsX App Irans Foreign Minister is due in Damascus, where he will meet with President Assad and Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, and discuss the Russia-Turkish Idleb agreement reports Baladi News. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will begin an official visit today to the Syrian capital Damascus, where he is set to meet with President Bashar al-Assad and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, according to Iranian media. Zarif will discuss bilateral relations, regional developments and the latest political and field developments to fight terrorism in Syria, according to an Iranian Foreign Ministry statement published on Sunday. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu visited Syria on Mar. 23, 2020, meeting with Assad and discussing the Russian-Turkish Idleb agreement, as well as mechanisms for implementing it. Zarifs scheduled visit for Monday coincides with the arrival of a large number of reinforcements of Iranian militias to rural Idleb and Aleppo governorates, and an attempt to strike a Turkish-Russian deal in any form and push the process to the brink of ending, according to opposition figures who spoke with Baladi News. Regarding the escalation, and the possibility of militias resorting to opening a new battle in Idleb, Captain Naji Mustafa, leader of the pro-opposition Jaysh al-Nasr group, told Baladi News that, the new breaches by Iranian forces, and the bombing of opposition-held sites, as well as the martyrdom of one of the fighters and the targeting of a number of villages in the al-Ghab Plain area, is a new breach of the agreement, which was limited to artillery and machine gun fire. Mustafa pointed out that the opposition factions responded by targeting sites belonging to the Iranian militias, as well as preparing for all possibilities and anticipated scenarios in light of this mobilization and movement by the Assad regime and Iranian militias. He added that there are significant military preparations underway by opposition factions, including setting up a number of military camps and preparing fighters and defensive lines as well as a number of attack lines in accordance with battle scenarios, should regime forces and Iranian militias attempt an advance from the frontlines. On the importance of those sites witnessing a military buildup, Muhammad Howeish, an activist and member of the Hama Media Office told Baladi news that, The Iranian militias chose the Jourein and Jabal Shahsho areas for three main reasons. First, most residents in this area of rural western Hama belong to the Alawite sect that cooperated with the regime in the suppressing of the Syrian revolution. This area extends from Jabal al-Ahmar through Jourein to Masyaf. Most of its youth were involved in local pro-Iranian militias in their military camps, and fought in battles on the side of Iranian militias. The area of Jabal al-Zawiyeh and Jourein also crosses a strategic depth protecting Iranian military camps and missile factories on the outskirts of Masyaf in western Hama, Howeish added. These forces are stationed from Kabina to Jourein to spearhead a defense from any opposition advances, and to prevent rebel forces from reaching the most important Iranian sites in Syria, near Masyaf. The third reason is the Iranians superiority in urban, mountain and guerilla warfare, according to Howeish. The areas mountainous terrain is the best field for the Iranians to carry out both attack and defensive operations, unlike the Russian army, which depends on the classic Soviet system of regular armies and fighting battles on plains. 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. I n an alternative London, the one which existed before coronavirus, this would be the first day of the summer school term. As it is, this is the moment lockdown really begins to bite on eduction. Exams are cancelled. For some children, there may be no school until September. Early efforts at home learning before the Easter break will have to become the new normal. So parents and pupils need to know two things. When will it end? And how can they make the best of things in the meantime? There is no clear answer to the first question. Mixed messages from the Government have not helped. Over the weekend we heard reports that some classes might be back in three weeks, only for these reports to be denied. The Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, says that he wants schools back as soon as possible but that bringing them back early could risk a second wave of infection. Trying to open them rapidly could backfire if parents kept their children away, or some teachers refused to work until they knew it was safe to do so. But when the lockdown is eased, schools will be among the first things to reopen. In Denmark, some classes are back. In France, President Emmanuel Macron says they could begin to return from May 11, although that date seems to have been plucked from the air. In Britain, it is hard to imagine schools reopening before June, and even then only some classes would take place. Primary schools may reopen, and lessons could begin for pupils in years 10 and 12, who are set to take GCSEs and A-levels next year. It will be the autumn before anything approaching familiar school life returns. So that makes online learning vital. It would compound the disaster of coronavirus if some children were able to press on with their education while others were left behind. But thats whats happening. A survey by the Sutton Trust charity suggests only a third of children have taken part in online classes and that private school pupils are much more likely to do so than ones in state schools. Thats why we welcome the launch today of the Oak National Academy, the first online UK classroom. Its backed up with plans to give laptops, tablets and 4G access to families who dont have them. The BBC is providing a new education service too. It wont be the same as school. But while classrooms are closed, learning doesnt have to stop. Keeping London moving On Easter Sunday, fewer people used the Underground than on any day since the 19th century when most of the network hadnt even been built and bits of it still used steam trains. Some bus routes are no longer charging passengers, to limit social contact. Staff, keeping the city moving for key workers, have lost their lives to coronavirus. Now Transport for London is having to put some of its staff on furlough. For a transport system set up to cope with massive demand and pressure for growth, it is an extraordinary shock. London needs its system to survive, which means working out how to pay the bills when no one is paying fares. Transport bosses are in talks with the Treasury: but Sadiq Khan, facing re-election next year, will need to make some tough choices and justify them in person. London also needs a system which keeps people safe, as normal life returns. That will take social distancing and perhaps face masks. Allowing the Tube to go bust is unimaginable: but there is not yet light at the end of the tunnel. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Hirsts rainbow of hope Damien Hirst, Butterfly Heart, 2020 / Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2020 Today we have published a new rainbow poster of hope, drawn by the leading artist Damien Hirst. You can download it HERE to print out at home. Its a chance to put another eye-catching artwork in your window, after our first rainbow from pop artist Sir Peter Blake. Erwin Rommel entered France in 1940 in command of a panzer division, moving around the Maginot Line with the bulk of German attackers and slamming into the French defenses from behind. He would go on to lead troops in North Africa as Hitler's favored general. But the bloom was off the rose in 1944 when Hitler made Rommel kill himself. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and senior officers in France. (German Bundesarchiv Bild) The Desert Fox made his legend in France, and then fought in the African desert in 1941. His troops there loved him, and he fought tooth and nail to hold the oil fields and ports in that part of the world. With limited numbers and supplies, he bloodied the nose of British forces and their French and American allies over and over again. The British tried to kidnap him. They tried to kill him. But mostly, they tried to beat him. And, eventually, with the crushing weight of American armor at their back, they did. Rommel evacuated north with his surviving forces, and he was put in command of the Atlantic Wall, the bulwark of Fortress Europe. He was brilliant in the role, predicting that the Allies would try to land somewhere other than a deepwater port, and suspecting portions of Normandy beaches in particular. He pushed his men to build defenses, and he pushed the government to send him more supplies. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and his staff in North Africa. (German Bundesarchiv Bild) But all the while, from North Africa to the Atlantic Coast, he was lamenting the clear resource advantage that America had given the Allies. He worried that the war was lost and that further fighting would just cost German blood and weaken its place at the bargaining table. In 1943, while preparing those defenses in Normandy, he began to see signs that the anti-war movement was right, that Germany was conducting heinous acts besides just prosecuting the war. He could stomach battles, but he was unsettled when he ran into evidence of the rumored death camps, especially when was given an apartment that had, until that very morning, been the property of a Jewish family. And so he whispered more and more about how Hitler wasn't to be trusted, about how the war was bad for Germany, and about how the Third Reich couldn't possibly survive what was coming. When the Allies hit the beaches in June 1944, Rommel's pessimism became too much to bear. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's command tank in World War II. (German Bundesarchiv Bild) And so, when an attempt to assassinate Hitler in July 1944 failed, it didn't matter that there was no strong evidence linking him to the plot. The perpetrators had all been senior military officers, so it was easy to pin a little blame on Rommel, especially since both his chief of staff and his commanding officer were implicated and executed. Rommel was popular, though. So, he couldn't just be dragged out back and shot like many of the Valkyrie plotters. Instead, Third Reich officers were sent to Rommel's home on October 14, 1944. He was there, healing from wounds sustained in a July 17 attack by a British aircraft. As his son remembered it, his father knew that two other German generals were coming to visit him. 'At twelve o'clock to-day two Generals are coming to discuss my future employment,' my father started the conversation. 'So today will decide what is planned for me; whether a People's Court or a new command in the East.' Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (German Bundesarchiv Bild) Despite Rommel's worries about Germany's aggression, he believed that a Soviet conquest of Europe would be devastating for all the rest of Europe, worse than any outcome under Germany. And so he told his son that he would take a command in the Eastern Front, if it was offered. But that was not what the officers were coming to offer him. And they were not going to put him in front of the People's Courts either. Instead, after Rommel met with the men for a short time, he went upstairs, and Manfred Rommel, his 15-year-old son, followed him upstairs. 'I have just had to tell your mother,' he began slowly, 'that I shall be dead in a quarter of an hour.' He was calm as he continued: 'To die by the hand of one's own people is hard. But the house is surrounded and Hitler is charging me with high treason. ' "In view of my services in Africa," ' he quoted sarcastically, 'I am to have the chance of dying by poison. The two generals have brought it with them. It's fatal in three seconds. If I accept, none of the usual steps will be taken against my family, that is against you. They will also leave my staff alone.' And so that was the deal that Rommel accepted. His family would be made safe. His staff would be made safe. But he would have to drink a fast-acting poison. Manfred briefly pitched the idea of fighting free, but his father was certain they lacked the numbers or ammunition to be successful. So Rommel left. He carried his field marshal's baton to the car, shook the hands of his son and his aide, and got in the car of the two generals. They drove a few hundred yards into an open space in the woods and Rommel drank. He was given a state funeral just four days later. Hitler would follow him into death the following May. But where Rommel committed suicide to save his family, Hitler did it to escape judgment for that and thousand of other actions. MORE POSTS FROM WE ARE THE MIGHTY: Why Sweden is low-key one of the greatest superpowers 7 craziest commando missions of World War II That time the British tried to assassinate Erwin Rommel We Are The Mighty (WATM) celebrates service with stories that inspire. WATM is made in Hollywood by veterans. It's military life presented like never before. Check it out at We Are the Mighty. German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday urged China to be as transparent as possible about the coronavirus outbreak as debate swirls about how the deadly pandemic started. "I believe the more transparent China is about the origin story of the virus, the better it is for everyone in the world in order to learn from it," she told reporters here. Subscriber content preview ALBANY, Ore. (AP) The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has fined a manufacturer of parts for the aerospace industry near Albany more than $70,000 for citations related to its mishandling of hazardous waste materials. A Selmet company spokesman did not return an email seeking comment, The Albany Democrat-Herald reported. . . . NEW YORK- April 18, 2020 - An American adviser to Ethiopia's democracy revolution called publicly today for Lady Gaga to stop praising World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom. Gaga partnered with Dr. Tedros, who goes by his forename, and Global Citizen to launch the virtual festival April 18. The event was described on Global Citizen's website as "a historic, cross-platform global special that will celebrate and support healthcare workers and As the world continues to turn (albeit it very slowly, how is it not April 59th right now...), we come again to the unofficial National Marijuana Day 420. This year, the holiday is void of its typical celebrants. There are no college students spread out on picnic blankets with bongs and endless snacks, no pot-themed parties across the country, and not a single person will be celebrating anywhere outside of their immediate home unit (hopefully, please stay inside). Though there won't be any public partying this year, in some states, budtenders (people who work at cannabis stores) are considered essential workers. Perhaps not an obvious necessity, budtenders still go to work every day to provide medicinal cannabis for those who need it, and in places like California, those who just want it to get through quarantine. Ahead, we spoke with budtenders across the country about what their jobs are really like. National Marijuana Day budtenders (people who work at cannabis stores) are considered essential workers and in places like California, Interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Victoria (Vjack) Jackson, Budtender at From The Earth in Los Angeles, CA What is the day to day of a budtender like? "As a budtender and advocate for cannabis, I aim to educate the consumers and share at least one more thing about cannabis they didnt know before coming into the store. In return, I learn something as well because it helps me to understand different perspectives on how and why they use cannabis." What is your salary (or the average salary/hourly wage at your shop)? "On average Id say your budtender makes $14/hr. Remember to always tip your budtender!" How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "From my experience, being raised in a Black and Latinx community, the stigmatization of cannabis negatively affected my peers. Its use was discouraged, mainly due to the unsuccessful and harmful campaign for the war on drugs. So, once I did my research, I immediately decided to advocate for cannabis and educate people." What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "The weirdest part about my job is that Im involved in a business that was highly illegal just a few years ago." What's the hardest part about your job? "As a budtender, the toughest part is seeing consumers still being denied access to medicate." What's the best part? "The best part about being in the industry is knowing I am a part of something bigger than myself. Budtending gives you a front-row seat to see how many people cannabis has helped. I also enjoy getting the chance to work to destigmatize cannabis." What is it like being a woman in the cannabis space? "As a black woman in this industry, I definitely shine a light on the cannabis industrys inclusivity problem. It is deeper than advocating for just cannabis legalization, but advocating for social equity for people of color in the industry." Kaylyn Smith, Senior Patient Consultant at Beyond/Hello in Philadelphia, PA What is the day to day of a budtender like? "The day to day life of a budtender starts by waking up to smell the flower! Haha well, in some states...Pennsylvania has very strict laws when it comes to flower. Everything is prepackaged here, so you really have to go off of lineage, terpenes, and word of mouth/personal experience with each strain. It's fun to compare favorites, talk to folks about which products are helping them most, and waiting for new stuff to come in! Other than that, its mostly just keeping busy taking orders, keeping things up to date on your menus, and trying to keep up with your cannabis knowledge!" What is your salary (or the average salary/hourly wage at your shop)? "The starting wage at Beyond/Hello is $15. I'm paid hourly at $16 as a Senior Patient Consultant and there is room for growth!" How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "I was lucky enough to get into the cannabis industry after making a move from Maine to Pennsylvania. I was a regular cannabis user before moving and saw the position posted online. You don't have to have any kind of special experience with cannabis to get into the cannabis space, just a passion to learn about the science of the plant and wanting to help others. All it took for me to become a patient consultant was honestly sharing my prior experiences with cannabis while applying for the job!" What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "The most unexpected part of my job is probably when you have an older patient walk in and dive straight into talking about high THC concentrates like they've been doing it since they were born." What's the hardest part about your job? "The hardest part about my job is definitely working through the trial and error period a lot of people find themselves in when looking for a product that works best for their pain. Sometimes it takes a few attempts and a few different products to find the best match. " What's the best part? "The best part of my job is definitely the opposite end of that spectrum and helping people find the product that does work best for them. To see the 180 that can take place with someone after getting the relief they've been waiting for. The stigma against cannabis is still very apparent. Its really rewarding to see someone who comes in completely intimidated by the thought of cannabis use at first come back after a few months as a cannabis pro!" What is it like being a minority in the cannabis space? "I identify as non-binary trans and use they/them and I find working in a cannabis space as a trans person to be really rewarding! I think cannabis, in general, makes people more prone to be able to talk to one another and it induces some deep thinking in a lot of us. I'm lucky enough to be working in a store right in the gayborhood of Philadelphia, so there's definitely a vibe of understanding. People are still working on getting pronouns right all the time but Beyond/Hello offers pronouns stickers to make it a bit easier for folks to be gendered correctly and that helps a lot." Is there anything else you'd like to share? "If you are passionate about cannabis, I would definitely recommend applying to work at a dispensary if you ever have the opportunity. I had always dreamed of working with cannabis and it has been an amazing experience. Through this job, I've had the opportunity to meet folks who are truly dedicated to the wellbeing of others." Kristine Cajucom, Budtender and Sales Lead at Harborside in San Jose, CA What is the day to day of a budtender like? "The day to day for a budtender would be servicing our community and building relationships with our customers so that they feel a sense of comfort when coming into our shop. We build strong relationships with individuals so they can trust our recommendations. The day to day for a budtender is ultimately giving genuinely great service, genuine being the keyword." What is your salary (or the average salary/hourly wage at your company)? "I am personally an hourly employee, and the average wage for regular budtenders at my shop is $18/hour." How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "Cannabis has always been something I have been interested in, from the sweet and pungent aromas of each strain to the thousands and thousands of different strains being crossed with different genetics out there to try. My interest in cannabis has only evolved as the industry itself has evolved. I first got introduced to the industry by one of my best friends who was working at a dispensary. At first, it was just a job to help me get through college expenses, but soon enough became a full-time job and I've been in the industry since then." What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "I think with part of having a good understanding of who I am dealing with in terms of customers, I just have to know how to approach each individual. There are no right or wrong questions that can be asked, therefore I feel like the only odd part of my job would be customers assuming we (budtenders) are some kind of doctor and demanding to see our credentials. Again, top recommendations are all we can suggest, but in no way shape or form are we doctors prescribing medications. But I would say that would be the strangest part of the job." What's the hardest part about your job? "The hardest part about my job would be trying to please everyone. Once cannabis became recreational, San Jose Harborside got rid of some programs that customers would rely on. As times and regulations are changing, it makes it difficult for some customers to understand how things work when they are so used to being able to get their discount cannabis. Having to be the person to explain to them why they can no longer receive certain products at a great discount is such a bummer." What's the best part? "The best part about my job is knowing that we are servicing a community that is also my home. Knowing that we are an honest, hardworking business doing our best to give our community what they need is something that I take great pride in. I also think one of the best things about being a budtender is building relationships with customers. Harborside San Jose is like a family and to me, family is everything. What's better than working with reliable, confident individuals that you consider like family and serving great people? It makes work a great place to be!" What is it like being a woman in the cannabis space? "Working in the cannabis industry, as a woman and also being lesbian, is great. I truly do not have any complaints about being a woman in the cannabis world. This is one job where I have not felt discriminated against. I have yet to have any encounters where a customer said anything about me being a woman and not being able to understand something." Do you have any great customer stories? If so, can you share? "I have built a relationship with an older gentleman who would come in and give me little smoking gifts that he would make just to make sure I had all that I needed to have a successful smoke session his words, not mine. One time he made me a care package full of essential tools that would help my day to day smoke sessions and I thought that was super sweet of him to do. To this day he keeps me updated with his health status and all; he definitely became someone I would look forward to seeing whenever he would come in. And that within itself is one of the biggest reasons why I love being in this industry." Stacia Woodcock, PharmaD, Cannabis Pharmacist at Curaleaf in New York What is the day to day of a budtender like? "I am not your "typical" budtender in that I am a licensed pharmacist. There are five states that currently require pharmacists to lead medical dispensaries and we call ourselves cannabis pharmacists. I spend the majority of my time in the dispensary with patients providing consultations, product recommendations, and answering their many questions as to how medical cannabis works and how they can best utilize it for their needs. It makes patients comfortable to know they are speaking with someone with an advanced clinical degree who can evaluate their complex disease states and medication lists. When I am not in patient consultations, I am usually on the phone with practitioners, counting inventory, or helping at the registers or on the phones to make sure our patients are getting the best possible care and service. I also spend time training our dispensary associates to make sure they have the most up-to-date clinical information regarding medical cannabis and ensure they have the resources they need to help our patients." How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "I have always been interested in the use of cannabis as medicine. I remember in pharmacy school, one of the first electives I signed up for was a Chemical Dependency course that discussed the risks and benefits of illicit substances, and it opened my eyes to the potential of cannabis as medicine. A former colleague of mine was working for Curaleaf in New York and he reached out to me about an opening for a pharmacist he thought I would be great for. This created a really unique opportunity for me to use my clinical expertise to be involved in the cannabis industry in a meaningful way and to help grow and develop the program in New York. I am forever thankful to him for opening that door for me." What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "The most unexpected part of the job for me is the way our patients create such a sense of community when they are in the dispensaries. We have a large patient population over the age of 50, and many of them have no experience with cannabis at all. I am amazed at how many times I will see a younger, more cannabis-experienced patient sitting on a bench, chatting away with an older patient, helping to explain the different products and how they work, telling them what to avoid and what they might like to try. I have seen patients who were incredibly nervous and even embarrassed to be in the dispensary welcomed by regular patients who recognize their trepidation and want to make them feel welcome. It's truly such an unexpected bonus to see these relationships build every day, and I am proud of the Curaleaf community we are creating." What's the hardest part about your job? "The stigma surrounding medical cannabis, and cannabis in general, is still incredibly challenging to navigate. As a healthcare professional, I often get judgment and negativity from both my peers in the medical community as well as in my personal life when discussing what I do for a living. I am proud of what I am doing every day to help people, but it can definitely be very hard to accept that the pervasive ignorance surrounding cannabis causes people to judge me unfairly at times." What's the best part? "First and foremost, I love helping people feel better, but the next-best part for me is when I can have a conversation with a doctor or other healthcare professional and open their eyes to the role medical cannabis can play for their patients. It is an amazing feeling to use my education to change minds, and know that getting one practitioner to open their minds has the potential to positively impact hundreds of patients." What is it like being a woman in the cannabis space? "I love seeing how many women are dominating in the cannabis space, and I am proud to be one of them! Pharmacy has long been a woman-dominated field and I would love to see that trend in the cannabis space as well, especially as more states pass legislation and more companies hire their leadership. I also have a background in Women's Health/Fertility, so I have a personal passion for the way women can utilize cannabis to help with symptoms that are often overlooked or under-treated in traditional medicine. " Do you have any great customer stories? "I will never forget my first week training in the dispensaries when a patient approached, walking slowly using a cane. When she entered the location, she started smiling ear to ear and the dispensary staff erupted into applause. I was amazed to find out that this patient had been in a wheelchair on her first visit...The staff felt personally invested in her success, and it was incredibly heartwarming to be present for such a powerful moment." Sabrina Tafoya, Store Manager at Seed & Smith in Denver, CO What is the day to day of a budtender like? The day-to-day as a store manager differs every day. The focus is to make sure we educate and provide excellent customer service to our patients. My role is to make sure the dispensary is running well, and we are getting customers what they need, along with typical day-to-day duties, from making sure employees are taken care of to ensuring the money count is correct. I also am the purchasing manager for third-party products to make sure we carry the best products for customers. I also oversee the staff to ensure we follow rules and regulations throughout the day. What is your salary (or the average salary/hourly wage at your shop)? I am an hourly employee making $18.38 an hour. Seed & Smith is all about helping employees grow and learn more within the company. How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "I have always loved marijuana and the potential it holds for helping people in a lot of different ways. I am passionate about this industry because of the way cannabis has helped me as medicine, and I believe it can help a lot of people." What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "The strangest, most unexpected part of my job would have to be how far the marijuana movement has progressed. Now that it is legal in most states, to think that some people can go to jail for possessing something I work with every day is very odd. Especially coming from Colorado, were used to the new normal." What's the hardest part about your job? "The hardest part of my job would have to be dealing with employees! They all differ which can be very difficult some days. Managing a team always comes with its own set of challenges." What's the best part? "The best part of my job would definitely have to be the perks when you can suggest something that worked for you to a customer and help them is when I know I do my job properly." What is it like being a woman in the cannabis space? Being a woman in the cannabis space differs at every company you join. My experience has not always been the best a lot of male owners can be sexist. I think there is so much potential for women in this industry, from technology to education. Working for Seed & Smith has changed my outlook on being a woman in the industry, especially as a store manager. They have supported employees and provide the opportunity to grow based on hard work and knowledge, not on gender. Casey Gilbert, Member Consultant at SPARC in San Francisco, CA What is the day to day of a budtender like? "It can truly run the gamut! From consulting with customers about cannabis products to learning about new strains, maintaining a clean and orderly environment to dispense the cannabis, as well as developing ones overall knowledge regarding the plant, the job offers a ton of variety. In my opinion, the budtender or member consultant acts as a liaison between the plant and its healing potential. We are working with people with a wide range of knowledge when it comes to cannabis." How did you get into budtending/the cannabis space? "I entered the industry as a member consultant over six years ago after graduating from UCSB with a degree in Psychology/Feminist Studies. At the time SPARC was operating as a non-profit. This was a perfect fit for me. Over the years as I transitioned from budtending into management. I was able to become involved in many additional aspects of such a unique industry that I know I will be a part of for the rest of my life!" What is the strangest/most unexpected part of your job? "I think the most unexpected part of the job is simply how challenging it can be at times, which might come as a surprise to people who might think it is an easy job. I believe most peoples ideas about working in a cannabis dispensary would be quickly challenged if they knew the amount of hard work, knowledge, and adaptability it requires for someone to thrive. Since working in cannabis, one of my goals has been to push back on societys stereotype of what it means to be a cannabis professional or enthusiast and I think as the industry matures the professionals working in it will be more legitimized as exactly what we are, professionals." What's the hardest part about your job? "Without a doubt, the hardest part of my job is having to destroy usable cannabis due to new regulations. According to California state law, any returns or smell jars, for example, must be destroyed. Although I know these rules were put in place for consumer safety and are important, there is just something about having to destroy usable cannabis that is simply heartbreaking." What's the best part? "I would have to say that the sense of fulfillment that I get from helping others." What is it like being a minority in the cannabis space? "Honestly, it has been great! Being that SPARC is gay-owned, the company culture has always been extremely accepting and supportive. I think that being a gay man in the cannabis industry can be at times challenging since I believe overall cannabis culture can sometimes be seen as one that is not entirely inclusive. After working in the industry for so many years I have found that there are not only a ton of hardworking passionate LGBTQ cannabis professionals but people from every single background that are drawn to the industry simply because of their love for the plant. That common love of cannabis has made the industry one that I find is much more accepting than one would believe looking at overall cannabis culture as a whole." Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here? Cannabis Scents That Don't Smell Like A Head Shop How Much Do You Spend On Weed? Want To Work In Cannabis? These 8 Women Say How Miami Marlins CEO Derek Jeter is forgoing his reported $5 million salary indefinitely during the coronavirus outbreak, multiple outlets reported Monday. Miama-area radio host Craig Mish first reported the news and said that other members of the Marlins' organization have taken pay cuts. Mish reported that Jeter informed the baseball operations staff during a conference call on Monday that they will receive their current pay through at least May 31. Jeter said the organization is still evaluating the impact on the team's business side. Spring training was suspended March 12. Major League Baseball is in a holding pattern as to when it might be able to start the season or if it will be played at all. Jeter, the former New York Yankees star and longtime captain, became part-owner of the Marlins in 2017. He was a 14-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner in a career that ran from 1995-2014. His 3,465 career hits rank sixth in baseball history. He had a .310 career average and 260 homers, 1,923 runs, 1,311 RBIs, 544 doubles, 66 triples and 358 stolen bases. Jeter, 45, is slated to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., in July. The ceremony could be postponed. --Field Level Media Ontarians on social assistance who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 will be allowed to keep a portion of federal income support being offered to most other Canadian workers struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic. These are unprecedented, and uncertain times, especially for individuals receiving social assistance, Todd Smith, provincial minister for children, families and social assistance, said in an email to the Star on Monday. Following a productive conversation with federal Minister (Carla) Qualtrough on Friday, our government provided new direction to Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) and Ontario Works (OW) staff to ensure individuals on social assistance keep much more of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) than they would have under current rules, he said. Ontario and other provinces typically deduct most federal benefits such as EI and CPP-Disability dollar-for-dollar from social assistance. Qualtrough, federal minister for employment, workforce development and disability inclusion, urged all provinces April 13 to exempt CERB payments from social assistance clawbacks to ensure vulnerable Canadians do not fall behind. Smith met Ottawa halfway by treating the $2,000 monthly CERB as earned income, which allows people to keep a portion of their earnings, said a government official, speaking on background. It means people on social assistance who are eligible for the emergency federal cash will be allowed to keep $1,100 on top of their regular monthly provincial benefits of up to $733 for a single person on OW and up to $1,169 for an individual on ODSP. They will also be able to continue to receive health and other benefits, and no one will be kicked out of the system for exceeding income thresholds, Smith added. On April 7, a coalition of more than 130 health care and anti-poverty groups released an open letter asking Minister Todd Smith not to claw back CERB payments and to boost social assistance benefits during the health crisis that is impacting lowest-income Canadians the most. More than 960,000 Ontarians rely on social assistance, but only about 75,000 report earned income, according to provincial data. Ottawa began issuing CERB payments April 6 for workers who lost their jobs or are earning less than $1,000 a month due to the pandemic and have earned at least $5,000 in the past 12 months. Payments are expected to continue for four months. By clawing back a portion of the CERB for people on social assistance, Ontario will be able to invest that money immediately into programs to help others on OW and ODSP who are not eligible for the federal cash and may need additional support during these difficult times, Smith said. The clawback is estimated to be worth about $30 million a month, according to a provincial government official. Karen Andrews, a Sault Ste. Marie mother whose 27-year-old son was kicked off ODSP last week when he reported $2,000 in CERB payments, was pleased with Ontarios decision. Hell be getting a little more than what he usually received when he was working, said Andrews, whose sons ODSP benefits were reinstated Monday. But most importantly, he wont lose his drug card. Toronto social policy expert John Stapleton, who has criticized the province for providing no direction to caseworkers on how to treat CERB payments, said Mondays decision is a step in the right direction. Although I would like to have seen no clawbacks, the province is going a long way, he said. And any clawbacks they do make will be plowed right back into social assistance to help others. Ontario is currently providing a one-time emergency assistance payment of $100 for singles and $200 for families on social assistance who arent eligible for the CERB and who request help. Kyle Vose, co-chair of the ODSP Action Coalition, said Smiths decision is going to help a lot of people who were working on ODSP. Our concern still is for those who have no ties to the workforce, he said. They are still going to be left behind if they cant apply for this benefit. To date, B.C. is the only province that is following the federal recommendation to allow people to keep CERB payments without having social assistance clawed back. A spokesperson for Qualtrough said the governments position on the matter has not changed. Correction - April 21, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said Ontario is providing monthly emergency assistance payments for people on social assistance who dont qualify for federal relief. In fact, it is a one-time payment. The creator of the UK's very first pirate radio station Ronan O'Rahilly who revolutionised the world of British broadcasting forever has died at the age of 79. The Irish businessman, who went on to launch one of the most famous offshore pirate stations during the 'swinging 60's', Radio Caroline, died at 2pm today at a nursing home in Ireland following a battle with advanced vascular dementia. Born on May 21, 1940, in Ireland, O'Rahilly, who was described as an individual with 'rebellion and independence of thought in his blood', went on to fuel a cultural phenomenon that would in turn give birth to the host of popular radio stations seen today. The founder and visionary of Radio Caroline, who remained a figurehead of the station that broadcast from a ship anchored in the North Sea after its launch in Easter 1964, was the third of five children. Ronan O'Rahilly (pictured in 1966), who revolutionised the world of British broadcasting forever, has died at the age of 79 in Ireland The Irish businessman went on to become the founder of Radio Caroline in the North Sea, off the coast of Essex in England, after its launch in Easter 1964 The visionary (pictured with Allan Crawford left), who was the third of five children, bought a Baltic ferry in the swinging 60s His grandfather Michael O'Reilly, was one of the Irish rebels who was shot dead by British soldiers in Dublin during the easter uprising in April 1916, while his father Aodhogan O'Rahilly, was a businessman who owned the port of Greenore in County Louth, Republic of Ireland. During his teenage years, O'Rahilly, moved to Chelsea in the bustling city of London and became involved in running the Scene Club in Great Windmill Street in the Soho district. It was here that he became an agent for pop singers and actors and began promoting records for the Ric Gunnel Agency and managing groups such as Blues Incorporated. However in July 1961, after a government commission on broadcasting, which was chaired by Sir Harry Pilkington, ruled that the British public did not want commercial radio, O'Rahilly decided to formulate a plan that would allow illicit radio broadcasts to reach thousands across the country. In an audio documentary shared by Radio Caroline and created by Peter Philips, O'Rahilly is heard saying at the time: 'The government report was just complete and absolute hogwash. They were 110 per cent wrong. 'Which if that is carried across the whole field of government, if all the committees that are set up are even half as wrong as that committee was we're in bad shape.' In Europe, Denmark had the first known radio station in the world to broadcast commercial radio from a vessel in international waters without permission from the authorities in the country that it broadcast to. The station was named Radio Mercur and began transmission on August 2, 1958. In the Danish newspapers it was soon called a 'pirate radio'. Encouraged by Scandinavian and Dutch pirates, in February 1964, O'Rahilly obtained the 702-ton former Danish passenger ferry, named Fredericia, and transported it to his father's port in Ireland where he had the boat fitted with transmitters, studios and a 180ft mast before renaming the boat Caroline. He went on to found the station in the same year in the hopes of competing with the BBC which held sole control of radio at the time and reflect new musical trends. Speaking at the time about the name of his boat, the man who would go on to change the scene of British music forever, said the name of the vessel had been inspired by a picture of President John F. Kennedy's daughter Caroline in Life Magazine. The founder of Caroline Radio (with Dj Tony Prince Of Radio Caroline) decided to purchase his own ship and begin his own radio station O'Rahilly (left and right with fellow crew members onboard the boat Radio Caroline) obtained the 702-ton former Danish passenger ferry, named Fredericia, and renamed the boat Caroline The visionary (pictured inside the offshore radio station) transported the boat to his father's port in Ireland and fitted it with transmitters, studios and a 180ft mast He said: 'I was very plugged into the Kennedy's, big big fan of the Kennedy's. And I remember travelling across to the states to buy the transmitter gear and I remember having this Life magazine and there was a picture of Caroline Kennedy disrupting government. 'She was in the cabinet room or something, there was a meeting going on and she sort of climbed out from underneath the desk and disrupted everything. 'Instead of Jack Kennedy having one of his aides get rid of her amid an important meeting he got involved with her leaving all these serious powerful men sitting around twiddling their thumbs. That was the story behind that. 'The photograph was of her climbing out from under the desk with all smiles and the and it was the whole image really. I said bang that's it'. The Irish musician, manager and businessman started Radio Caroline after he failed to obtain airplay on Radio Luxembourg for keyboard player Georgie Fame's records because it was committed to sponsored programmes promoting major record labels - EMI, Decca, Pye and Philips. As the ship set sail across the sea and delivered radio shows to the masses, O'Rahilly was able to ignite a cultural phenomenon that would in turn inspire the commercial radio stations to come. The businessman said the name of the boat had been inspired by a picture of the Kennedy's in Life Magazine Unlicensed by any government for most of its early life, the ship was a pirate radio station that never actually became illegal, although after the Marine Offences Act (1967), which was introduced by Harold Wilsons Labour government, it became illegal for a British subject to associate with it. Following the act, the station was forced to leave UK ports and suffered a huge loss of revenue. However in 1983, after purchasing the ship Ross Revenge, Radio Caroline once again set sail until the boat was shipwrecked off the Kent coast in 1991. Since 19 August 2000, Radio Caroline has broadcast 24 hours a day via the internet and by the occasional restricted service licence. The remarkable life of Ronan O'Rahilly Ronan O'Rahilly was able to ignite a cultural phenomenon Ronan O'Rahilly was born on May 21 in 1940 His grandfather Michael O'Reilly, was one of the Irish rebels who was shot dead by British soldiers in Dublin during the easter uprising in April 1916 His father Aodhogan O'Rahilly, was a businessman who owned the port of Greenore in County Louth, Republic of Ireland During his teenage years, O'Rahilly, moved to the bustling city of London He began running the Scene Club in Great Windmill Street in the Soho district He later decided to create his own radio station and purchased a baltic ferry Speaking at the time about the name of his boat he said the name had been inspired by a picture of the Kennedy's in Life Magazine As the ship set sail across the sea and delivered radio shows to the masses, O'Rahilly was able to ignite a cultural phenomenon that would in turn inspire the radio statins to come Unlicensed by any government for most of its early life, the ship was a pirate radio station that never actually became illegal, although after the Marine Offences Act (1967) it became illegal for a British subject to associate with it Following the act, the station suffered a huge loss of revenue He later moved back to Ireland in 2013 after being diagnosed with dementia Advertisement Among its famous alumni are Tony Blackburn, Sir Roger Gale and DJ Johnnie Walker. Over his lifespan, the mastermind of pirate radio also went on to become the manager of Australian actor and former James Bond, George Lazenby. He also managed the musicians Georgie Fame and Alex Korner. O'Rahilly, whose life also inspired the Richard Curtis film The Boat that Rocked, later moved back to Ireland in 2013 after being diagnosed with dementia. Today friend and radio colleague Peter Moore said in a statement: 'For a man who lived on his wits, dementia was the cruellest blow. Deserting his traditional home turf of Chelsea for Ireland, he moved first to Dublin where his grandfather fought the British in the 1916 uprising. 'At length he settled in Dundalk across from Greenore where the Caroline adventure started 56 years before. A clever man, sometimes verging on genius. Eccentric of course, sometimes unscrupulous, but suddenly kind and warm hearted. 'A rogue maybe, but a charismatic and loveable rogue. He will be missed.' A message on Radio Caroline's website read: 'In a pastime populated by unusual people, Ronan was more unusual than all of them combined. 'In a world where we all follow rules created by others and imposed on us, Ronan had no rules other than his own. He said he was in the business of ''why not?''.' Following O'Rahilly's death, famous faces have taken to social media to offer their condolences. Actor George Lazenby wrote: 'It's kind of bittersweet to hear Ronan O'Rahilly has passed away... He was the man behind Radio Caroline, the pirate radio station which helped kick off the Swinging Sixties in London. 'I remember those days well. He was very influential on me giving up the role of James Bond back in 1969. 'While I was shooting On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Ronan convinced me Bond was all over. Why get tied to one image when I could do a range of roles. I guess he appealed to the times. 'He convinced me to not stay on as Bond - I'd be in danger of becoming part of the Establishment. Something he rebelled against. Easy Rider was supposed to be the way forward and I could do three or four of those type of movies for every Bond. 'I wanted to be a free spirit, make love, not war. Ronan wouldn't let me sign the Bond contract - kept sending it back. He was executive producer on my movie Universal Soldier. Who knows what would have happened had Ronan not got a hold of my brain? But I don't regret a day of my life. Not a single day. And I still have a great life. Rest well, Ronan. Love George xx' While Johnnie Walker wrote: 'Farewell to Radio Caroline founder Ronan ORahilly, The man who made the impossible possible and changed radio forever. 'Thanks Ronan for the incredible experience of being a Caroline deejay and to challenge the Government in 1967. You were an amazing man.' Meanwhile hypnotist Paul McKenna added: 'I am very sad at the passing of my friend the great Ronan O'Rahilly, founder of Radio Caroline. He was such an important person in influencing world events. 'A personal inspiration and a dear friend, he is definitely someone who changed the world for the better. Rest in peace...' New coronavirus test that is eight times faster can help locate asymptomatic carriers BEER-SHEVA, Israel...April 20, 2020 - A team of Israeli researchers is using AI to develop an algorithm-based test that can speed COVID-19 testing eightfold and help locate asymptomatic carriers, funded by a grant from the Ben-Gurion University Covid-19 Effort. The research team, which is using a laboratory robot to conduct the tests includes Prof. Angel Porgador and Dr. Tomer Hertz from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's (BGU) Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics and the National Institute of Biotechnology; Prof. Yonat Shemer-Avni, head of Soroka University Medical Center's Virology Lab, and Dr. Noam Shental from the Open University's Department of Computer Science. Click here to see the lab robot conduct testing. Prof. Porgador, who is also the BGU deputy vice president of R&D for BGU says, "The initial results are very promising, and we are validating the method. Experience shows us that the way to slow down the spread of the pandemic is to increase the number of tests and break the chain of infection. Our method should enable a widespread operation in the near future to detect the virus in the general population, which is not quarantined, but which could threaten the public more than the patients currently under observation." According to Dr. Hertz, "In light of the mounting evidence of the importance of asymptomatic carriers in spreading COVID-19, it is critical to locate these carriers as quickly as possible, to isolate them and thus slow the infection rate in high-risk groups. We believe that our method will help do so by dramatically speeding up testing." They determined that the key is to divide the samples into different pools. "The planning and constructing of the pools and the way we mix the individual samples enables us to identify and follow up with those found positive for COVID-19 after far fewer tests than the norm," explains Dr. Shental. "The next stage of the experiment is to test the medical services personnel at Soroka hospital in conjunction with the Infectious Disease Unit headed by Dr. Lior Nesher." "The sooner we can located asymptomatic carriers, the sooner we can return to a more normal life, so this innovation holds promising potential," says Doug Seserman, chief executive officer of the New York City-based American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. "We have a number of tests in development as a result of the fast mobilization of our researchers to address the pandemic." The new test is just one of more than 50 initiatives underway as part of the BGU COVID-19 Response Effort. These each require financial support, and AABGU has announced its commitment to raise emergency funds, enabling BGU to participate fully in the world's efforts at mitigation and containment. Contributions can be made online at http://www. aabgu. org/ donate-covid-19 ### American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) plays a vital role in sustaining David Ben-Gurion's vision: creating a world-class institution of education and research in the Israeli desert, nurturing the Negev community and sharing the University's expertise locally and around the globe. As Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) turns 50 this year, AABGU imagines a future that goes beyond the walls of academia. It is a future where BGU invents a new world and inspires a vision for a stronger Israel and its next generation of leaders. Together with supporters, AABGU will help the University foster excellence in teaching, research and outreach to the communities of the Negev for the next 50 years and beyond. Visit vision.aabgu.org to learn more. AABGU, headquartered in Manhattan, has nine regional offices throughout the United States. For more information visit http://www. aabgu. org . This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Courts in both Louisiana and Oregon have frankly acknowledged that race was a motivating factor in the adoption of their states respective non-unanimity rules, Justice Gorsuch wrote. In dissent, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., joined by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and, for the most part, Justice Elena Kagan, said the majoritys discussion of race was part of a trend in too much public discourse today that attempts to discredit an argument not by proving that it is unsound but by attacking the character or motives of the arguments proponents. Justice Alito wrote that the Apodaca decision deserved respect and that overruling it would lead to a potential tsunami of litigation. In Oregon alone, he wrote, more than 1,000 defendants with pending appeals may be able to challenge their convictions, to say nothing of post-conviction challenges that may be available in both Louisiana and Oregon. Justice Gorsuch said that burden, whatever its magnitude, was not a good enough reason to keep the Louisiana and Oregon laws in place. The dissent would have us discard a Sixth Amendment right in perpetuity rather than ask two states to retry a slice of their prior criminal cases, he wrote. Whether that slice turns out to be large or small, it cannot outweigh the interest we all share in the preservation of our constitutionally promised liberties. The clashing opinions were mostly a debate over respect for precedent, a topic that has recently consumed and divided the justices as they prepare to confront a potential case on the fate of the constitutional right to abortion established in 1973 in Roe v. Wade. The upshot was a remarkably tangled set of opinions. As summarized by Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in a concurring opinion, it appeared that six justices treat the result on Apodaca as a precedent and a different group of six justices concludes that Apodaca should be and is overruled. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen G. Breyer joined all of Justice Gorsuchs opinion, including a passage that said the Apodaca decision was not entitled to be treated as precedent. In addition to Justice Kavanaugh, Justices Clarence Thomas and Sonia Sotomayor each filed separate concurring opinions. Bengaluru, April 20 : Stranded due to lockdown extension and worried over their families back home, about 4,000 migrant workers from 4-5 northern states have reconciled to stay put after the Karnataka government assured them of wages and ration till normalcy returns, an official said on Monday. "The migrant labourers, camping near 2-3 construction sites in and around the city, agreed to endure the lockdown after state Labour Minister Shivaram Hebbar on Sunday assured them of wages, ration and stay till normalcy is back," the official told IANS. Though the workers, mostly from Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, are desperate to go home, as their families were worried about them and their jobs, assurance of wages, job continuity, food and shelter during the lockdown by Hebbar calmed their nerves. About 3,270 workers are camping at Devanahalli near the airport where its second terminal is under construction for capacity expansion. "As the sudden lockdown since March 25 with no trains and buses forced the workers to stay back, they could not send money to their families, as the contractor is yet to pay them the wages of March fully," the official said on the condition of anonymity. Devanahalli is 40km north of Bengaluru on the national highway (NH 4) towards Hyderabad. Hebbar directed state labour commissioner K.G. Shantaram to ensure the contractor not only paid them full wages for March and April, but also retained them till the project work was completed. The minister also inspected the place where the workers are staying, their living condition and enquired if they were getting water and power supplies besides food. "The minister directed the department officials to supply ration kits, masks and sanitisers to the workers and advised them to maintain hygiene and keep social distancing," recalled the official who was present at the spot. On an impromptu visit to a huge residential complex under construction in the city's northeast suburb, Hebbar interacted with about 600 workers from the northern states at their site camp. "When the workers asked the minister to arrange a special train to go back home as they were stuck in the city without work and wages, Hebbar calmed them by explaining the grave situation and how it was necessary for them to stay put till the lockdown was lifted to avoid being infected by the virus," said the official. The minister also summoned the workers' contractor and directed him to supply masks, sanitisers and more space to maintain physical distance at the site. "Hebbar also advised the contractor to ensure his workers get the ration kits so that they can cook at the site and avoid going out during the lockdown," the official pointed out. At another construction site in the city centre where the state-run power distributor (Karnataka Power Transmission Company Ltd) is building a residential-cum-office complex, Hebbar interacted with about 140 workers who are also stuck since the lockdown began and enquired about their welfare. "The construction company - JMC India Ltd -- is taking care of the stranded workers with the help of an NGO (non-government organisation) as they are also from northern states and have no place to shift. The stranded workers told Hebbar to ensure trains resume on May 4 so that they could first go home and spend some days with their families before returning to work in the city," noted the official. The workers at all the three sites also sought assurance from the minster that their contractors would pay them wages and retain them to complete the job as they had to earn enough to live in the city and save as much to send home. "Hebbar directed the labour commissioner to ensure the contractors paid wages to the workers and retained them for the project work as notified by the Centre," added the official. According to the state labour department, a whopping 80,000 people, including migrant workers, daily wagers, hawkers, street vendors and homeless are staying in about 1,200 relief camps across the city under the supervision of the city civic body, which also coordinates supplies of ration kits, food, water and medicines with NGOs and civic agencies. Iranian missiles blast a civilian passenger plane out of the sky, killing all 176 aboard. And you ask yourself, how did we get here? A helicopter crash kills Kobe Bryant, his beautiful 13-year-old daughter Gianna, seven others. And you think to yourself, what a cruel world of random tragedies. A lethal virus emerges from Wuhan in China to ravage the planet. And you wonder to yourself, are we all going to die? The president of America explicitly promotes insurrection by residents of states where governors refuse to lift lockdown measures advised by public health authorities. And you rage to yourself: someone must arrest this man for inciting violence, for reckless stupidity, cuff and drag him out of the White House. His motivation not yet known, a nobody denturist in Nova Scotia unleashes unprecedented mayhem, burning down the houses, worst mass murder in Canadian history. And you ask yourself, how much more can we take? Same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was. Letting the days go by, same as it ever was. Same as 2020 ever was, to paraphrase the Talking Heads. Has there ever been a more ghastly year, in our lifetime? And its scarcely a quarter done. The old and feeble are dying alone where they lie in nursing homes. Funerals are forbidden. Crematoriums burn bodies around the clock. Cities fall so quiet you can hear the flapping of a birds wing. Mortality charts spiking, infection graphs soaring. No cure, no vaccine. The economy craters, millions of jobs lost, savings wiped out. What have we done to deserve this? Nothing. And everything. Theres no one to blame for a pandemic born of an invisible galloping pathogen. But many to blame for a helter-skelter response, for unpreparedness, for safety directives that change week to week, day to day. Masks, no masks. Closing borders is unwarranted, closing borders is mandatory. Banning international flights is xenophobic and ineffective, banning international flights is imperative and prudent. For weeks and months, weve been tumbling inside the maelstrom of the novel coronavirus, well past novel now. Sheltering, cowering, inside our homes. But COVID-19 steals behind our doors, seeps in microbe droplets through protective medical shields and latex gloves and surgical gowns. Waits patiently on surfaces a doorknob, a credit card machine, a grocery store counter for up to several days. Cant swat it, fire-flame it. I only went to the store one time, whispers a hospital patient wracked with infection. The virus continues to stalk us in this otherworldly year. And you ask yourself: How long? COVID-19 has lapped itself globally, reappearing in Wuhan, maybe re-infecting even the recovered. Epidemiologists wring their hands about a second wave in the fall, amidst flu season. Warmer weather is coming. Cabin fever will drive people outside because we are fundamentally social beings, we yearn for un-distancing, liberation, even just a patina of normalcy. Herd immunity may be the only strategy at hand, yet the human herd will be further culled first. At some point we cover our ears to everything except what we choose to hear. Who do you trust? The World Health Organization has frittered away much of its credibility by accepting the pretenses of mendacious China, but is still the best weve got for uniform guidance. Last year, the WHO repeatedly declined to call a growing spread of Ebola in the Congo 10th and worst outbreak of the hemorrhagic disease in that country a global health emergency, and then basically used hundreds of thousands of people as guinea pigs with an insufficiently tested vaccine. So much ingenuity has been expended finding ways to kill one another instead of saving one another high-tech munitions, bioterrorism, weaponized plagues. And sometimes all it takes is the malice of a people-hunter with a makeshift RCMP cruiser and an unfathomable mission to kill. Sometimes all it takes is incorrigible preachers defying orders against gathering in large numbers to praise the Lord. The vanity of the pious. It should say so on their tombstones: I put my faith in religion hard-boiled and deep-fried. Sometimes all it takes is blowing on the embers of disgruntlement for political gain. On Monday in Pittsburgh, merely the latest eruption of mindlessness, protesters some paradoxically wearing masks gathered downtown to call up Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen businesses. Cars, pickups, industrial trucks honking their horns in unison with demonstrators who held aloft signs. Liberate PA! and IMPEACH WOLF! Last Friday, President Donald Trump 24 hours after issuing guidelines for unshackling the country, deferring the decision to state governors, as per the constitution manic-tweeted: LIBERATE MINNESOTA!, LIBERATE MICHIGAN!, LIBERATE VIRGINIA! Gravely endangering lives in doing so, rallying his reactionary base because he really has his eye on the November election and not the 42,000 COVID deaths so far, the tens of thousands more expected to die before the pandemic is ever brought to heel. Armed protests surrounding the state capital building in Lansing, Mich., hollering LOCK HER UP! after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer extended the states stay-at-home order. An offshoot of the national buttoning down that Trump wants undone: March was the first month since 2002 without a single school shooting because the schools were closed. Yet on Sunday Trump ranted at his media briefing that Virginia is using the pandemic to take away the right of Americans to own firearms. And you think to yourself, has everyone gone mad? It is almost with pitiful gratitude that Ontario turns querying eyes to a business-worshipping premier who nevertheless has remained stalwart about health-first mandates. This virus remains a clear and present danger, Doug Ford told reporters Monday. Gradual, measured and safe reopening of the province, based on the data, Ford stressed. That framework must have strict criteria and key benchmarks that must be met before lifting or easing restrictions. This framework will be informed by the opening, ongoing, monitoring of the trends; by the advice of our chief medical officer of health, by our business community and by our municipal partners. And above all the health and safety of each and every person in this province must remain the number one priority. This is the perverse normal of spring, 2020. Probably summer 2020, too. Maybe autumn. Perhaps an entire year or more wiped out of our lives, measured in teaspoons of hours. We will continue marching to the tune of two metres distant. But these are not the end of days, only the end of certitude about our exceptionality and invulnerability to historical plagues. Its the oxymoron of modern medievalism. And we ask ourselves, how did we get here? Letting the days go by, same as it ever was. Same as it ever was. Rosie DiManno is a columnist based in Toronto covering sports and current affairs. Follow her on Twitter: @rdimanno Read more about: President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has lifted the ban on restricted movement in some parts of the country including Greater Accra region and Kumasi. According to the President, the decision to enforce the three-week lockdown was taken to give government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and quarantine those who tested positive and isolate them for treatment. After the announcement, the news seems to have been met with a mix reaction from all quarters of the country. Check some out: Prez Akufo-Addo decision to lift coronavirus lockdown be bad move Ghanaians react https://t.co/D5N8SCi5GI BBC Pidgin (@bbcnewspidgin) April 20, 2020 Since last night, Ive read some of you joke or perhaps express through jokes your belief that Akufo-Addo wants us to die. Basically, there is a tendency to think that lifting the lockdown was a bigger calculable risk thing than locking down things. Im not sure thats it. Hornsby (@ybsnroh) April 20, 2020 How can Akufo Addo lift this ban on lockdown whilst the number still increases,oh God help Ghana pic.twitter.com/Dxz67U9LAu SPIDERMAN GH (@gh_spiderman) April 20, 2020 Shatta Wale Pleads With Mahama To Give Prez. Akufo-Addo 4 More Years#SikazFyla#MyShowbizHub#LimeLightEnt TurnUpPrincess Sika (@Sika4real3) April 20, 2020 Reaction of some Ghanaians after President Akufo-Addo lifted #thelockdown of Accra and Kumasi #COVID19Ghana #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/LgxZkNfGvr Radio Univers 105.7FM (@univers1057fm) April 20, 2020 Congratulations to President Akufo-Addo on successful completion of his 3 Week course on how to bring people back to life. The Electoral Commission is grateful, Sir pic.twitter.com/sYKTG7oYes Nat G. Tetteh (@NatTettehGhana) April 20, 2020 President Akufo-Addo : STAY HOME Ghanaians : We are hungry, we will die of hunger . President Akufo-Addo : NOW YOU CAN GO OUT. Ghanaians : Does he know what he is doing, the coro coro numbers will increase ohhh. Me: So what would you have him do? novisi dzitrie (@novisid) April 20, 2020 Wow, congratulations to my Ghanaian friends here cus Thats a big progress. Nana Akufo-Addo pic.twitter.com/cJ4hCxsnjO Mo Of Lagos (@Mobamz_) April 19, 2020 This doesnt look good at all. It puts us at risk but they say the experts knows better so we watching them. #JoySMS https://t.co/0p1IoFw3VE Dep. Min. Energy (@shikome_1) April 20, 2020 My only fear is the community spread cos many people will move to the villages especially with the fear of a possible future lockdown and if they happen to be asymptomatic, theyll get to spread the virus before everyone gets to know.#JoySMS SARK + NANAABA = (@DeBoyRex) April 20, 2020 Dear Mr President @NAkufoAddo , pls I hope you were NOT pressured to lift #TheLockdown ? The science you referred to must prove effective, lest youve just sent us to the slaughter house ! May God be with us #JoyNews #joysms @EmefaApawu a.nimako (@aknimako) April 19, 2020 Damn, its scary not being able to trust anyone. Whats a world without trust Source: social media 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. Featured Video A coalition of women groups has called for the prosecution of Bello, son of Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, for allegedly threatening to r3pe someones mother on Twitter. The demand by the activists came barely 48 hours after a public apology was tendered by the younger El-Rufai. El-Rufais son had rained expletives on a young man who disagreed with him and also insulted his ethnicity. The younger El-Rufai had tweeted: Tell your mother Im passing her to my friends tonight. No Igbo sounds please! Tueh. However, the women organisations, in a petition to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), dated April 16, 2020 and obtained by reporters in Abuja yesterday, called for the investigation and prosecution of Bello. The document titled: Request to investigate and prosecute the threats of sexual violence and gang-rape by Mr. Bello El-Rufai, was signed on behalf of 67 groups by the Executive Director of Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre, Dr. Abiola Akiyode Afolabi and Convener of Women in Politics Forum, Ebere Ifendu. It reads: We, the undersigned women-led and women-focused non-governmental organisations, activists and scholars write to request you to use your position as the Chief Law Officer of Nigeria to direct immediate action to investigate and prosecute Mr. Bello El Rufai (who incidentally is the son of the incumbent Governor of Kaduna State), over threats of sexual violence and gang-rape he made against the mother of another Nigerian online via series of tweets last week. According to the information we obtained from the Internet and which we verily believe was posted by Mr. Bello El-Rufai and which he has not disavowed so far, he bullied and intimidated a man who reportedly called him daddys boy in the course of online interactions between them by offering a series of threats and making grossly offensive statements. The threats, intimidation and offensive statements are contained in his online chats. With due respect, we believe that Mr. Bello El-Rufais conduct by written speech posted online committed crimes prohibited under Cybercrimes (Prohibition) Act, 2015 and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015. P ermit us to refer you specifically to Section 24 of the Cybercrime which criminalises cyberstalking in its different manifestations, including the following: oknowingly or intentionally sending a message by means of computer systems or network grossly offensive, pornographic or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character or o knowingly or intentionally transmitting or causing to be transmitted any communication through a computer system or network to bully, threaten or harass another person where such communication places another person in fear of death, violence or bodily harm. Permit us also to refer you to Section 26 of the Cybercrimes Act which criminalises racist and xenophobic offences, where the scope of such offences extends to ethnic origin as the basis of differentiation. And finally, we refer you to Section 18 of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP Act) which criminalises intimidation of another person; and intimidation is defined in Section 46 as the uttering or conveying of a threat or causing any person to receive a threat, which induces fear, anxiety and or discomfort. We must point out that this case is, indeed, very telling of how womens rights are readily violated in Nigeria and why there is an urgent need for committed action by the state to deal with egregious crimes of gender-based violence as this case presents. For emphasis, we note that this was a case of a dispute between two men on perceptions of the adequacy of the quality of political leadership offered by men, how did it come to be that Mr. El Rufai considered that the best way to settle the score was to threaten such egregious acts of sexual violence against a woman (representing other women) who was not a part of the dispute. From all the above, it is clear that the threats of violence, intimidation, grossly offensive and obscene statements made by Mr. Bello El Rufai via his tweets posted online fall squarely within the genre of reprehensible acts that the National Assembly as the custodians of Nigerias corporate morality has deemed right to prohibit as crimes. Noting that the statements by Mr. Bello El Rufai threatening sexual violence and gang-rape as well as xenophobic attacks have been widely shared on social media platforms, with world-wide reach and noting also that the conduct violates the laws of Nigeria, it can be expected that it is not only Nigerians who are now looking to your office for justice but the whole world. Furthermore, against the backdrop of incessant and brazen acts of gender-based violence perpetrated by highly placed public officials even in the public sphere, we dare say that there is no better time than now for the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to take effective steps to affirm unequivocally before the whole world that Nigeria is a state governed by the Rule of Law and assure Nigerians that they can expect that laws enacted by the legislature will be upheld through prosecution, where there is clear evidence of breach; that no-one is above the law; and that all Nigerians regardless of gender, ethnicity and age will be made secure in their person and property through effective enforcement of the law designed to protect them. Indeed, we are hopeful that this request be given immediate attention as it will dawn a new day in the quest for gender justice in Nigeria. While we await your kind response, please accept the assurance of our highest regard. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Press Release April 20, 2020 Intensify mass testing prior lifting or modification of ECQ - Hontiveros urges DOH "Whether the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) is extended or modified, we cannot proceed without devoting more efforts towards mass testing of Filipinos. Kung mabilis ang pagkalat ng COVID-19, dapat ay mas mabilis ang pagtest at paggamot natin sa ating mga kababayan." This was the remark of Senator Risa Hontiveros, who urged government anew to double its efforts towards mass testing for the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19), as the government considers modification or extension of the Luzon-wide ECQ. "I hope the Department of Health (DOH) takes heed of the ever-growing calls of our health experts, advocates and local officials on the ground for urgent, free and widespread testing in our communities. Quarantines and social distancing, while important, are clearly only part of the solution. We can only end this pandemic if we identify, isolate and treat every person infected with COVID-19," she said. The senator made the statement after testing operations in Valenzuela City, and Sitio Zapatera in Cebu City, recently revealed that a number of individuals had been infected with COVID-19 but were 'asymptomatic,' or showed no symptoms of the disease. This has led local leaders like Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian and Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto to call for mass testing of all persons to improve government efforts against the pandemic. Test asymptomatic cases, too "Malinaw na hindi dapat limitado sa mga taong may malalang sintomas ng COVID-19 ang ginagawang testing ng pamahalaan para matigil ang pagkalat ng sakit na ito. Our testing protocols need to be updated to adapt to emerging realities on the ground, especially if the ECQ is extended to May. Our testing objectives must be expanded to service entire communities, frontliners, the elderly and immunocompromised persons," she said. "Given what we now know, government should not be prevented from testing asymptomatic persons, since it is clear that even people without symptoms of COVID-19 can carry and spread the disease among their families and communities. We have to test as many people as we can, as soon as we can," she added. At least 10,000 tests a day To make mass testing possible, Hontiveros said she hopes that government is "inching closer" to its previously stated goal of conducting 10,000 tests per day by the end of April, since the DOH had announced last April 14 that it had been conducting 3,000 tests per day. "Mass testing requires ramped up local production of testing kits and capacitated regional testing centers in the Visayas and Mindanao," the Senator detailed. Capacitate regional testing centers "Everyday, government should be expanding our testing capacity, especially our regional testing centers servicing suspected COVID-19 cases outside of Metro Manila. Now that more cases are being reported in the Visayas and Mindanao, we should prepare and anticipate the increased demand for tests," she further explained. She also urged government to closely monitor, and test if possible, people in emerging "disease hotspots" such as prisons, markets and urban poor communities. "Kapag nagkaroon ng kaso ng COVID-19 sa mga kulungan, palengke, masisikip at matataong lugar kung saan nakatira ang marami nating mahihirap na kababayan, mabilis ang pagkalat ng sakit dahil dikit-dikit ang mga tao. We should stop the disease at the onset by closing in on early cases so that they can be isolated and treated to prevent further transmission," she said. Photo: RCMP RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson There is an outpouring of grief across Nova Scotia today as the names of victims of a weekend mass killing begin to emerge, ranging from a nurse to a teacher to an RCMP officer. The president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union expressed his sadness at the loss of "one of our own" after obituaries were posted for Lisa McCully, a teacher at Debert Elementary School. Paul Wozney referred to McCully as "a victim of the senseless violence" that started in Portapique, N.S., a community about 40 kilometres west of Truro, late Saturday. He said she was known as a passionate teacher and "as a shining love" in the lives of her friends and family. The union also noted the loss of Const. Heidi Stevenson, an "exemplary 23 year RCMP veteran who laid down her life responding to the call." Wozney noted Stevenson is the wife of Dean Stevenson, who teaches at Cole Harbour District High School, and loving mother to two children. "There are no words to capture the loss Nova Scotia has suffered today. This is a devastating time for all communities affected across our province," Wozney wrote. "Lets reach out to those in our circle who have seen loved ones lost or injured and offer our love and support." Investigators are continuing to piece together one of Canada's deadliest mass killings, which saw a man who at one point donned a police uniform slay 16 people as he travelled across northern Nova Scotia over the weekend. Investigators have said the shooter, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was killed after police intercepted him at a gas station in Enfield, N.S. Darcy Dobson posted on Facebook that her mother Heather O'Brien, a nurse from Truro, N.S., was among the dead. "The pain comes and goes in waves. I feel like I'm outside of my own body. This can't be real," Dobson wrote on Facebook. "At 9:59 am she sent her last text message to our family group chat. By 10:15 she was gone. She drove down the same street in the same town she drives through every single day," she said. "She was kind. She was beautiful. She didn't deserve any of this. To every single person suffering from this senseless tragedy please feel free to reach out as we are all forever connected in this horrible mess." She pleaded with friends and family not to let the shooting define her mother but to recall her qualities. "This will be hard but it will not be Heather OBrien's defining moment! I want everyone to remember how kind she was. How much she loved being a nurse," she wrote. "The way her eyes sparkled when she talked to her grandchildren and the way she just loved Christmas. Let those things define her. Not the horrible way she died." Aid may include up to $450bn to boost a small-business loan programme that has run out of money, add funds to hospitals. The Trump administration and Congress expect an agreement on Monday on an aid package of up to $450bn to boost a small business loan programme that has run out of money and add funds for hospitals and COVID-19 testing. As talks continued, President Donald Trump said theres a good chance of reaching a bipartisan agreement with Democrats. We are very close to a deal, Trump said on Sunday at the White House. Along with the small business boost, Trump said the negotiators were looking at helping our hospitals, particularly hard-hit rural healthcare providers. The Republican-controlled Senate is scheduled for a pro forma session on Monday, but no vote has been set. The Democratic-led House of Representatives announced it could meet as soon as Wednesday for a vote on the spending package, according to a schedule update from Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. With small business owners reeling during a coronavirus outbreak that has shuttered much economic activity, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he was hopeful of a deal that could pass Congress quickly and get the Small Business Administration programme back up by midweek. Im hopeful that we can get that done, Mnuchin said Sunday. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, also said he believed a deal could be reached. We still have a few more details to deal with, he said. Funding for hospitals, testing The emerging accord links the administrations effort to replenish small business with Democrats demands for more money for hospitals and virus testing. It would provide $300bn for the small business payroll programme, and $50bn would be available for the small business disaster fund. Additionally, it would bring $75bn for hospitals and $25bn for testing, according to those involved in the talks. On a conference call on Sunday afternoon that included Trump, Mnuchin and Republican senators, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated the only remaining item for discussion involved the money for testing, according to a Senate Republican leadership aide who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a private call. But Democrats have been insisting on boosting funding to cash-strapped states and local governments whose revenues have cratered. In weekend talks, they had proposed $150bn for the effort. We are pushing hard, Schumer said. But Mnuchin and McConnell reiterated on the call with senators that money for state and local governments as well as food stamps would not be included in the package, according to the Republican aide. The president is willing to consider that in the next bill, but wants to get this over the finish line with a focus on small businesses, hospitals and testing, Mnuchin said. He said he has been in touch with Republican leaders including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and all are on board with the same plan. The top Democrat in the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, predicted an agreement would be reached soon. Under the emerging deal, the governments Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses would get roughly $30bn, according to Mnuchin. The Small Business Administration programme has been swamped by companies applying for loans and reached its appropriations limit last Thursday after approving nearly 1.7m loans. That left thousands of small businesses in limbo as they sought help. An additional $50bn in the evolving deal would go for disaster loans. About $75bn would go to US hospitals, for those straining under a ballooning coronavirus caseload as well as those struggling to stay financially afloat after suspending elective surgeries during the pandemic. About $25bn would be added for COVID-19 testing, something states have said was urgently needed. Republican Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, who leads the National Governors Association, said he and other governors believe that aid for state and local government is desperately needed, but that it may not be an issue worth fighting over for now. Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said states needed money from the federal government to ramp up testing, and he blasted legislation that would not provide it. You have the president saying 15 times, Its up to the governors, its up to the governors, its up to the governors, he said. And then theyre going to pass a piece of legislation that gives you know what to states: zero, zilch, nada, niente. Whatever language you want to say it, nothing. The SBA loans, based on a companys payroll costs, offer owners forgiveness if they retain workers or rehire those who have been laid off. The law provides for forgiveness for companies in any industry even businesses like hedge funds and law firms. There is a limit of $100,000 on the amount of employees compensation that can be considered when loan forgiveness is calculated. Mnuchin, Schumer and Hogan appeared on CNNs State of the Union, and Clark spoke on CBSs Face the Nation. A coalition of 67 women groups have added a fresh twist to the threat by Bello Nasir El-Rufai, son of governor Ahmad Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, saying he should be prosecuted for threatening violence and gang-rape of a woman on Twitter. The demand by the women group of activists came barely 48 hours after a public apology tendered by him. The women organisations bared their minds in a petition of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), dated April 16 2020 and obtained by journalists in Abuja on Sunday. The document which was entitled: Request to investigate and prosecute the threats of sexual violence and gang-rape by Mr. Bello El-Rufai. was signed on behalf of the 67 groups by the Executive Director of Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre, Dr. Abiola Akiyode Afolabi and Convener of Women in Politics Forum, Ebere Ifendu. Details Below*** 16 April 2020 Hon. Abubakar Malami The Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister for Justice Justice Headquarters, Shehu Shagari Way Central District, Maitama, Abuja, Nigeria. Dear Sir, REQUEST TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE THE THREATS OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE AND GANG-RAPE BY MR. BELLO EL RUFAI We, the undersigned women-led and women-focused non-governmental organizations, activists and scholars write to request you to use your position as the Chief Law Officer of Nigeria to direct immediate action to investigate and prosecute one Mr. Bello El Rufai (who incidentally is the son of the incumbent Governor of Kaduna State), over threats of sexual violence and gang-rape he made against the mother of another Nigerian online via series of tweets last week. According to the information we obtained from the internet and which we verily believe was posted by Mr. Bello El-Rufai and which he has not disavowed so far, he bullied and intimidated a man who reportedly called him daddys boy in the course of online interactions between them by offering a series of threats and making grossly offensive statements. The threats, intimidation, offensive statements are contained in his online chats and read in part as follows: Oh and tell your mother Im passing her to my friends tonight. No Igbo sounds please! tueh (12th April,2020). (The online conversation is herewith attached as Annexure 1) With due respect, we believe that Mr. Bello El-Rufais conduct by written speech posted online committed crimes prohibited under Cybercrimes (Prohibition) Act, 2015 and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015. Permit us to refer you specifically to section 24 of the Cybercrime which criminalises cyberstalking in its different manifestations including the following: knowingly or intentionally sending a message by means of computer systems or network grossly offensive, pornographic or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character or knowingly or intentionally transmitting or causing to be transmitted any communication through a computer system or network to bully, threaten or harass another person where such communication places another person in fear of death, violence or bodily harm. Permit us also to refer you to section 26 of the Cybercrimes Act which criminalizes racist and xenophobic offences, where the scope of such offences extends to ethnic origin as the basis of differentiation. And finally, we refer you to section 18 of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP Act) which criminalizes intimidation of another person; and intimidation is defined in section 46 as the uttering or conveying of a threat or causing any person to receive a threat, which induces fear, anxiety and or discomfort. We must point out that this case is, indeed, very telling of how womens rights are readily violated in Nigeria and why there is an urgent need for committed action by the State to deal with egregious crimes of gender-based violence as this case presents. For emphasis, we note that this was a case of a dispute between two men on perceptions of the adequacy of the quality of political leadership offered by men, how did it come to be that Mr. El Rufai considered that the best way to settle the score was to threaten such egregious acts of sexual violence against a woman (representing other women) who was not a part of the dispute. From all the above, it is clear that the threats of violence, intimidation, grossly offensive and obscene statements made by Mr. Bello El Rufai via his tweets posted online fall squarely within the genre of reprehensible acts that the National Assembly as the custodians of Nigerias corporate morality has deemed right to prohibit as crimes. Noting that the statements by Mr. Bello El Rufai threatening sexual violence and gang-rape as well as xenophobic attacks have been widely shared on social media platforms, with world-wide reach and noting also that the conduct violates the laws of Nigeria, it can be expected that it is not only Nigerians who are now looking to your office for justice but the whole world. Furthermore, against the backdrop of incessant and brazen acts of gender-based violence perpetrated by highly placed public officials even in the public sphere, we dare say that there is no better time than now for the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to take effective steps to affirm unequivocally before the whole world that Nigeria is a state governed by the Rule of Law and assure Nigerian citizens that they can expect that laws enacted by the legislature will be upheld through prosecution, where there is clear evidence of breach; that no-one is above the law; and that all Nigerians regardless of gender, ethnicity and age will be made secure in their person and property through effective enforcement of the law designed to protect them. Indeed, we are hopeful that this request be given immediate attention as it will dawn a new day in the quest for gender justice in Nigeria. While we await your kind response, please accept the assurance of our highest regard. Yours Faithfully, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi Signed for and on behalf of Individuals, Women groups and Organizations listed below 1. 9jafeminista 2. Aanu Rotimi 3. Abiodun Essiet Initiative for Girls 4. ActionAid Nigeria 5. ACTS Generation GBV 6. ADEM Community and Human Development Foundation 7. African Womens Initiative 8. Africawomannig 9. Alliances for Africa 10. Amazing Grace Inspirations 11. Arise Nigerian Women Foundation 12. Barr. Ebere Ifendu 13. BraveHeart Initiative for Youth & Women, Edo State 14. CEE-HOPE Nigeria 15. Centa for Organisational Development 16. Center for Advancement of Development Rights (CEADER) 17. Center for Nonviolence and Gender Advocacy in Nigeria55. Gender Equality, Peace and Development Center 18. Centre for Economic Empowerment and Gender Activities (CEEGa) 19. Community Education Advancement of Peace and Development Initiative (CEAPDI) 20. Community Partners for Development 21. Courageous People Health and Development Initiative (CPHDL) 22. Development in Practice, Gender and Entrepreneurial Initiative (DIPGEI) 23. Dinidari Foundation 24. Dorothy Njemanze Foundation 25. Emerge Women 26. Equality Through Education Foundation (ETE) 27. Equity Advocates 28. FAME Foundation 29. FEMBUD 30. First Future Leadership 31. Gender Development Initiative 32. Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria 33. Joy Onyesoh Foundation 34. Kabetkache Women Development and Resource Centre 35. League of Queens International Empowerment 36. Learning through Skills Acquisition Initiative ((LETSAI) 37. Nde Oduko Foundation (NDOF) 38. NoMore234NG 39. Oge Pep Empowerment Initiative 40. Onomese Foundation 41. Ovie Brume Foundation 42. Partners West Africa-Nigeria 43. Partnership for Justice 44. Peasants Dragnet 45. Peyi Soyinka Airewele 46. Proactive Gender Initiative 47. Prof. Mojubaolu Olufunke Okome 48. Project Alert on Violence against Women 49. Rays of Hope Community Foundation 50. Sesor Empowerment Foundation 51. She Forum Africa 52. Shout Global Health 53. Stand to End Rape Initiative (STER) 54. Take a Cue Development Initiative, Edo State 55. UTO Foundation 56. Vision Spring Initiatives Lagos. 57. WANEP Nigeria 58. WILPF Nigeria 59. WLDCN 60. Women Advocacy on HIV & Aids Prevention and Other Diseases 61. Women Advocates Research and Documentation Center (WARDC) 62. Women Foundation of Nigeria 63. Women in Politics Forum 64. Women Information Network (WINET) 65. Women, Infants and Children Care Initiative 66. Women, Youth and Children Advancement Program (WOYCAP) 67. Womens Rights and Health Project (WRAHP) (Photo : Screenshot from: Unsplash Official Website) Scientists are now saying that molecules in camelids blood can serve as a useful therapy for coronavirus patients. Antibodies from llamas have already proved effective against other diseases such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in the past. It has also been identified that ferrets, when infected with COVID-19, have a response similar to humans. Read Also: Smartwatches Combat COVID-19: Samsung, Google, And Fitbit Join Forces to Remind Public of the Importance of Proper Hygiene Llama antibodies could help neutralize COVID-19; Discovered in Brussels back in 1989 A new study from the Vlaams Institutes if Biotechnology in Ghent, Belgium, has reported that antibodies obtained from the blood of llamas can help fight the coronavirus. American and Belgian scientists told the Sunday Times that "These molecules may serve as useful therapeutics during coronavirus outbreaks, The feasibility of using [llama antibodies] merits further investigation." has tipped off some researches to the peculiar properties of antibodies found in llama blood, camels and alpacas--which are all members of the camelid family. In 1989, an accidental discovery in a Univerity laboratory in Brussels It was originally used in HIV studies and has proved to be effective in fighting a wide range of diseases and viruses which include the recent outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). When compared to those of humans, camelid antibodies are smaller which has opened the door to what is known as a nanobody technology. This is the use of microscopic molecules to deliver drugs that can target viruses even more effectively. Read Also: Social Distancing Not Working? Video Shows Coronavirus-Infected Sneeze Sprays Droplets Up to 27 Feet Away! Drug producers and laboratories often choose llamas for research According to the Sunday Times, "There was further good news from the animal world in a South Korean-led study of the new coronavirus's effect on ferrets. The domestic or European ferret (Mustela putorius furo) has long been used in biomedical research, particularly in the study of human flu." This South Korean study was published in the journal Cell Host and Microbe. It reported that ferrets that have been infected with COVID-19 respond the same way as humans--and the same may be true with hamsters. Their responses to a coronavirus infection closely resemble the upper and lower respiratory tract infections in humans, according to Hong Kong University researchers. Reports from Science magazine have also said that for "eight hamsters, the animals lost weight, became lethargic, and developed ruffled fur, a hunched posture, and rapid breathing. High levels of SARS-CoV-2 were found in the hamsters' lungs and intestines, tissues studded with the virus' target, a protein receptor called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)." These findings "closely resemble the manifestations of upper and lower respiratory tract infection in humans," Chan and co-authors wrote in a 26 March paper in Clinical Infectious Diseases." Read Also: Coronavirus: Scientists Claim Current Measures to Disinfect COVID-19 Research Labs Are Ineffective, Here's Why 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. China on Monday firmly rejected US President Donald Trump's demand to allow an American team into Wuhan to investigate the origins of the novel coronavirus, saying it was also a "victim and not a culprit" of the COVID-19. Describing the novel coronavirus as a plague, Trump on Sunday said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province. "We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want to see what's going on. And we weren't exactly invited, I can tell you that," Trump told reporters. The US has launched an investigation into whether the deadly virus "escaped" from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Reacting to Trump's comments, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a media briefing here that "the virus is the common enemy for all mankind". "It may appear at anytime anywhere in the world. Like any other country, China is attacked by this virus. China is a victim instead of the culprit. We are not co-worker for this virus," he said in a hard-hitting response to Trump's plan to send a US probe team. As the COVID-19 death toll in US crossed 41,000 and the total infections more than 764,000, highest in the world, Trump and several US politicians pressed for action against China for not sharing enough details of the virus early on, when it first emerged in Wuhan. The overall death toll in China as of Sunday stood at 4,632 after its recent revision of figures of fatalities in Wuhan by 50 per cent. Geng said, "since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has been acting in an open, transparent and responsible manner with the most thorough and strong measures to stop the spread of the COVID-19". He said China's efforts to contain the virus has provided valuable experience for the international community to deal with the outbreak in their own countries. "This is also part of our important contribution. The international community appreciated China for doing this," he said. Countering US politicians' assertions that China should be sued for so many deaths in the world, Geng said, "I don't remember there are any precedence for such a prosecution." Pointing to H1N1 influenza which was detected in US 2009 as well as HIV/AIDS and the 2008 financial crisis in America which turned into global economic crisis, Geng asked, "did anyone ask US accountability?" He also turned down Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne's call for an international inquiry into coronavirus including its origins in China. Payne said there should be a global inquiry without the involvement of the World Health Organisation (WHO) which has been accused by America of siding with China. Geng said, "the remarks by FM of Australia are totally groundless. We express grave concern and firmly reject that". He said China's performance in containing the virus is "well recognised. Any doubt of transparency is not in line with the facts and also disrespects the arduous efforts and huge scarifies made by Chinese people". About allegations that the virus originated in Wuhan, Geng said, "The origin of virus is a serious scientific issue, which requires an assessment from scientists. We hope Australia (will) look at the issue in objective and meticulous manner." On French Nobel prize winning scientist Luc Montagnier's remarks that the COVID-19 virus came from a lab, and is the result of an attempt to manufacture a vaccine against the HIV/AIDS, Geng said a number of scientists and the WHO said there is no evidence for such an allegation. Citing the interview of Yuan Zhiming, of the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), Geng said he denied that the COVID-19 has escaped from the lab. Yuan said such allegations are "entirely based on speculation. Part of the purpose is to confuse people and interfere with our anti-epidemic and scientific activities." Geng also refuted Trump's economic advisor Peter Navarro's allegations that China is hoarding vital medical gear required in hospitals to treat coronavirus patients. "It is misleading to say China is hoarding PPEs (personal protection equipment)," he said. Geng said that from March 1 to April 17, China has provided 1.64 billion masks, 29.19 million surgical protective suits, 156 invasive ventilators and 4254 non-invasive ventilators. "Navarro should stop slandering and focus more on containing the spread of COVID-19 in US," Geng said. The coronavirus, which emerged in China in December last year, has killed over 160,000 and infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. Press Freedom Group Warns of Chinas Pandemic Disinformation Campaign Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a nonprofit that advocates for press freedom, is warning people to beware of Chinas continued global disinformation campaign in connection with the CCP virus. On the pretext of setting the record straight about the coronavirus, Beijing is pumping out lies and imprecisions designed to discredit journalists work and sow doubt about what they are reporting, said Cedric Alviani, head of RSFs East Asia bureau, in a statement published on April 18. Alviani added: It is important that the public is not taken in by the Chinese propaganda and gives preference to reporting by media outlets that respect journalistic principles. The statement explained that Chinas disinformation campaign is designed to drown out critics who blame Beijing for the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. Media outlets have pointed to Chinese authorities decision to censor early warnings, such as silencing eight doctors, among them ophthalmologist Li Wenliang, for posting on Chinese social media about a new form of pneumonia in late December. Meanwhile, Chinese citizen journalists have gone missing, including Fang Bin, for reporting on the ground in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak in China. RSF pointed to the example of Chinese officials claiming that the United States army brought the epidemic to Wuhan. In late March, China Global Television Network (CGTN), the international arm of Chinas state-run broadcaster CCTV, also distorted statements made by the director of an Italian pharmacological research institute, Giuseppe Remuzzi, to U.S. public radio broadcaster NPR. [CGTN was] implying that he [Remuzzi] was saying that the coronavirus epidemic had begun in Italy a month before its appearance in China, according to the RSF statement. Since February, Chinese ambassadors have been attacking international media over its critical coverage of Beijings response to the pandemic. Most recently, on April 14, Chinese ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, was summoned by the French foreign ministry over posts on the embassy website and Twitter account defaming French healthcare personnel and a French parliamentary coalition, according to RSF. Certain publicly voiced opinions by representatives of the Chinese embassy in France are not in line with the quality of the bilateral relation between our two countries, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement about his meeting with Lu, according to Reuters. On April 12, the Chinese embassy in France published an article titled, Restoring distorted factsObservations of a Chinese diplomat posted to Paris. The article cited an unnamed diplomat, who suggested that caretakers at nursing homes in France had abandoned their jobs, leaving residents to die of hunger and COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. The article was published just days after France raised its virus death toll from 8,911 to 10,328 in a single day, according to local media France 24, with a steep rise in deaths occurring at nursing homes. The Chinese article also accused French and Taiwanese authorities of attacking Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO). The Taiwanese authorities, supported by more than 80 French parliamentarians in a co-signed declaration, even used the word negro to attack him. I still do not understand what could have gone through the heads of all these French elected representatives, the article stated. Taiwans Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement issued on April 15, said the article, which was tweeted by the official account belonging to the Chinese embassy in France, was a false accusation. In an article, Reuters wrote that it could not find any evidence that French lawmakers backed such a declaration, nor that Taiwanese authorities used this word to insult Tedros. Together, Chinese ambassadors and Chinas hawkish state-run newspaper Global Times have been waging a crusade against western journalists, accusing them of lying systematically in order to blame China for the pandemic, according to RSF. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 03:18:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A passenger wearing a face mask is seen at a subway station in Mexico City, Mexico, March 19, 2020. (Photo by Francisco Canedo/Xinhua) Peru is ranked the second in the region in the number of infections, only behind Brazil. MEXICO CITY, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Latin America has registered more than 100,000 cases of COVID-19 as the pandemic spreads through the region, with Brazil and Peru together accounting for over half of the caseload. Brazil reported 38,654 cases and 2,462 deaths as of Sunday after 115 patients died of the virus in the past 24 hours, registering a mortality rate of 6.4 percent, the Health Ministry said. The worst-hit region in Brazil was Sao Paulo, the richest and most populous state, which has seen 1,015 deaths and 14,267 cases. Peru reported 1,208 new cases on Sunday, bringing its total caseload to 15,628, with 400 fatalities. The country is ranked the second in the region in the number of infections, only behind Brazil, Peru's Ministry of Health said. Among the infected people in Peru, 1,349 have been hospitalized, with 167 in intensive care units. In Chile, the number of confirmed cases reached 10,088, up by 358 from a day earlier, the Ministry of Health said Sunday. The death toll increased by seven to 133 in the past 24 hours, and all the new deaths were in central parts of the country, including the capital Santiago and its metropolitan areas Valparaiso and Nuble. Chile is conducting an average of 4,000 tests a day and has 570 respirators available throughout its public and private healthcare system, said Deputy Health Minister Paula Daza, adding that 54 percent of the patients in intensive care units are aged over 60. Some 4,338 patients have recovered and are now eligible to receive a "discharge card" that exempts them from further social distancing measures, said Daza. The government recently made it compulsory to wear a face mask in elevators and public spaces which more than 10 people may enter, such as supermarkets. Since strict stay-at-home measures were taken, residents are permitted to go grocery shopping twice a week, with all other non-essential commercial businesses closed. Ecuador has registered 9,468 cases and 474 deaths, with 446 new infections and 18 deaths reported in the past 24 hours. An additional 817 deaths are likely to have been caused by the virus but have not been verified, health authorities said. The Dominican Republic has registered 4,680 infections and 226 deaths caused by the virus. The Cuban government on Sunday reported 49 new cases and two deaths, bringing the island's total caseload and its death toll to 1,035 and 34, respectively. Of the 49 new cases, 41 had contact with infected people, while the source of infection for the other eight remains unknown. Cuban experts expect the pandemic to reach its peak on the island in mid-May. In Mexico, where 8,261 people have tested positive and 686 people have died, health authorities on Sunday denounced an increase in attacks against medics, which were presumably provoked by fear and ignorance regarding the pandemic. In an online video, Health Minister Jorge Alcocer and Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell explained that healthcare workers were not a risk of infection. "The virus is going around throughout the country and the people who are taking care of the patients are not the source of infection. On the contrary, these health professionals ... are saving lives," Lopez-Gatell said. Click here to read the full article. Even in an era of hip-hop that saw future classics released on an almost monthly basis, Mobb Deeps The Infamous, released 25 years ago this week, has always had a special aura. Notorious B.I.G. might have had bigger hits; Nas might have had more dazzling technique; the Wu-Tang Clan might have had a more distinctive aesthetic. But no single album from that golden age of 1990s New York rap sums up its time and place quite like The Infamous. To mark its quarter century anniversary, RCA Records is releasing an expanded version of the album on Friday (April 24), complete with outtakes and bonus tracks previously unavailable digitally. Its hard to listen to the album today and imagine that its two creators were still in their teens when they started working on it and even harder to believe is that it was essentially a last-ditch comeback effort. Albert Prodigy Johnson and Kejuan Havoc Muchita met while students at Manhattans High School of Art and Design as legend has it, the two first spent time together shortly after Prodigy witnessed a bare-handed Havoc punch out a knife-wielding classmate in an after-school fight and released their first album, Juvenile Hell, in 1993. Juvenile Hell had its moments, but it failed to gain serious traction. While the duo was still struggling to get their music heard, a kid named Nasir Jones (who had grown up with Havoc in New Yorks Queensbridge housing projects) dropped a neutron bomb of an album titled Illmatic, and Mobb Deep knew their debut had just been consigned to the footnotes of hip-hop history. Shortly after that, they were dropped from their label. More from Variety Rather than dwell on the southward turn their nascent careers had taken, Havoc and Prodigy regrouped, and resolved to take matters into their own hands. Havoc, who had produced a few songs on Mobb Deeps debut without much distinction, took on the role of lead producer, digging through mountains of obscure LPs and constructing an entirely new sound. After the two cut a demo of fresh material, Steve Rifkinds ascendant Loud Records guided by young A&Rs Schott Free Jacobs and Matteo Matty C Capoluongo offered them another shot, and the duo spent the next several months split between Prodigys mothers home in Long Island and Havocs place in Queensbridge, recording tirelessly. Story continues The result was a genuine masterpiece of pulp art that evokes the novels of Mickey Spillane and the films of Sam Pekinpah. On The Infamous, the two rappers reinvented themselves entirely, with Prodigy in particular forging a style of almost monastic menace, eschewing showy wordplay and gimmicks for a laconic vernacular laced with tragedy, threats and regret. Meanwhile, Havocs production took the dusty samples and shotgun snares of the RZAs early work with Wu-Tang and imbued them with a sense of ghostly cinematic grandeur. From the wintry wind chimes of The Start of Your Ending (41st Side) to the noirish horns on Cradle to the Grave and the Quincy Jones sample manhandled into a buzzsaw alarm squeal at the start of Shook Ones (Pt. II), this was music that lowered room temperatures when it came through the speakers an album whose brutally unsentimental worldview both reflected the bleakness of post-Reagan-era urban life and recast it as a sort of primal myth. There hasnt been anything quite like it since. Mobb Deeps decades-long partnership came to a tragic end three years ago, when Prodigy died after a lifelong battle with sickle cell anemia. But Havoc continues to produce, having lent his talents to tracks for Kanye West, Eminem and 50 Cent over the last decade, and he hopes to try his hand at film scoring in the near future. Reached on the phone from his home in Westchester County, the 45-year-old Havoc discussed the albums genesis, and what the coming years have in store. How does it feel to think about The Infamous being a quarter century old? To be honest with you, it feels surreal. When you think of 25 years, just objectively, you think of that as a long time. But [The Infamous] is one of those things where I can remember it like it was yesterday, so it kinda bugs me out a little bit. It really puts a lot of things about my life into perspective. Can you identify a time when The Infamous really started to take shape? Well, wed come out with Juvenile Hell and obviously it didnt do that well, but we didnt let that get our spirits down. We just knew we had to make a lot of changes. So the first thing we did was make a new demo in hopes of getting a new record deal, and [through that] we got hooked up with Steve Rifkind. We had a meeting with him at his little cubicle at RCA Records where he worked at the time, and when he started moving to sign us, we took that as, okay, this is our second chance right here. So once we signed those contracts and got a little budget to do the album and get into the studio, it really made us go, We cant f this up. This might be our last chance. That was probably the moment. We didnt have no fear, though, we just started making the music that was in our hearts. Obviously, one of the biggest changes there was the fact that you two were doing everything yourselves. How long did it take you to feel confident as a producer? To be honest, it was Shook Ones. When I was creating it, I wasnt all high on myself. I was still trying to find myself as a producer. But then when I made it, all my friends and the cats around the neighborhood were like, Yo, this sh is crazy. I didnt necessarily trust their judgment all that much [laughs], but if they like it, thats the first battle. And then we played it for the record company, or at least for Steve and the A&Rs and Matty C, and they liked it. Then we put it out and the world started liking it. And that was the moment where I thought, maybe I can actually do this. And that gave me the confidence I needed to go make the rest of those beats. Prodigy once said you werent always crazy about a lot of those beats youd made at first. I think he said that about Survival of the Fittest See, its hard to gauge if something is dope when youre a new producer. You need that feedback. You can make something and think I like this, but youre always thinking, What if its just me that likes it? And honestly, it wasnt that I didnt like that beat. [Laughs.] Sometimes stories kind of take on a life of their own, and its like a chain letter until it gets to Havoc didnt like the Survival of the Fittest beat. Nah, thats not really it. But for whatever reason I just let that story rock. I mean, its not too far off, even if its not 100% the truth. Speaking of that beat in particular, how long did it take you to dig out a sample like that? Whats the feeling like when you finally hear that one bar out of hundreds of records that you know you can use? Ill put it like this: Its like when you go to a store or a bodega and they have those scratch-off lottery tickets that say you can win $10,000 a week for life, and youre scratching it off and all the sudden you get a winning number. And its probably not the $10,000 a week at first, right, but maybe you get a $500 prize or something and you go, This is kinda dope, let me keep getting these scratch-offs. Because when you find the kind of sample that you know you can use and it could take anywhere from five seconds to 30 days its the same kind of adrenaline rush. Youre looking through these piles of records and then you finally find something, your heart starts beating fast and you just know, Oh sh, I think I got something. Im curious what a day in the life of making The Infamous looked like. Was it mostly you two together experimenting? Did you have a crowd around you all the time? Thinking back to that time I think about me and Prodigy together in Long Island, kind of in solitary confinement, making stuff but not knowing if its dope enough. Then finally I got the notion to say you know what, I think we need a bit of that Queensbridge hood vibe. Cause we was in Hempstead starting it off, and I just wasnt feeling it, you know? The houses were a little too nice, it was a pretty decent neighborhood, there wasnt nobody hanging on the corners or anything there wasnt that vibe. So I said, We gotta pack up the equipment and everything and take this to my place in Queensbridge. And now weve got the atmosphere going. But even there, my crib wasnt crowded with people listening to me make beats. Because they didnt know yet. Theyre not completely on board until I start to paint the pictures, right? So Im sitting there making these beats, and after I played Shook Ones thats when people started wanting to come to the crib to hear more and more and more. Which is what builds that vibe to help you create even better. Because you can create by yourself, and some people like to do it like that. But sometimes you need to have that other energy around you. Thats why when youll see a lot of producers early on, with a bunch of their friends all in the studio, theyre kind of helping the producer produce a little bit. They might not be touching any buttons or anything like that, but theyll give you that little head nod, like, Yeah man, that sh right there. Or Nah, cut out that part. And as the producer youre like, okay cool, I got it. It can be a recipe for success sometimes. Did you and Prodigy have any big disagreements making that record? Never. I cant remember a single instance. It was almost like I couldve made anything and Prodigy couldve figured out how to rap to it. Sometimes when I would try to produce for people outside of Mobb Deep, people might not like a beat I gave them; but then as soon as I would give it to Prodigy to rap on, theyd be like, Yo, I want a beat like that. It was just one of those weird things about the two of us. How about the label? When you turned in that album, did you get anyone listening to it and going Wheres the single? or Damn, this is dark? No, there was never any pressure to make any singles at that point. It was just, Make whatever you want to make, and were gonna make people like it. Not that they had to make people like it [laughs], but we werent going in there thinking we need a radio hit. We just went in, spilled our guts out, gave ourselves to the record, and that was that. Matty C and Schott Free really gave us free range to do what we wanted to do. They were actually really encouraging, and they even supplied us a sample or two every now and then. What was the philosophy behind the sequencing? It has a really effective and subtle narrative arc. See heres the thing: after cooking in the kitchen for hours, I dont wanna be the one setting the table. You understand what Im saying? After producing these records over however many months, I didnt want any part of picking what song went where. I left that to Prodigy and Matty C and Schott Free, and they did a magnificent job of giving that album a story. All credit to them. The Infamous had a pretty immediate impact on hip-hop, especially the New York side of things. [Raekwons] Only Built 4 Cuban Linx comes out later that year, [Jay-Zs] Reasonable Doubt the next year the influence on both was already pretty obvious. When did you start noticing it? Maybe a couple months afterward. But I just attributed it to the era, you know what Im saying? I didnt try to immediately take credit for anything Look at what we did, then look what other people did It was just the era. Those were the kind of albums we were into making, and those were the albums we wanted to hear, whether it be Rae or [Ghostface] or Nas or whomever. I tried not to think about whether we had an effect on other people, I tried to be a little more humble than that. A lot of other people did kinda tell me like Yo, yall ushered in kind of a new era, youre pioneers or whatever. But to me, I never felt like we were doing anything groundbreaking at the time. But even years later, things you produced keep showing up in samples, in freestyles. Eminem rapping over Shook Ones in 8 Mile, Black Thought doing that insane freestyle over Burn on Funk Flex You know, its easy to be really big-headed about things. Yeah, theyre using my beat. Look what I did. I dont feel like that, but I do feel validated that I really did make some ill beats that surpassed a lot of other really dope beats. Theres a million hip-hop beats to pick from to freestyle over. Literally. But for some reason, my tracks keep coming up in freestyles. That makes me proud, and I dont take it for granted. It helps me moving forward too, like look what I created, thats all in me. And its inspiring to me especially now because as a producer, you dont have to be any certain age. When youre the artist, people always want to make it out to be a young persons sport, but as a producer you dont have to be seen you dont have to be onstage. And thats still all in me. So where do you go forward from here? What are you aiming for over the next 5 or 10 years? I always ask myself that question. Can I still create something great like I did in the past? And I say to myself, yes I can. Currently now, Im studying film scoring and film composition to try to do something even more ill with that. So when people look back at my story someone can say, Hey thats that guy, maybe he made a couple of gold and platinum albums that Ive never really heard of, but hes a great composer. I want that to be part of my story. Because its all music, right? Did you guys ever feel like the legacy of The Infamous was a burden? I know Nas has talked about how, for all of the records hes done throughout his career, people always want to come back and talk about Illmatic. Do you ever have those moments? Yeah, I do. Sometimes when Im producing people still ask me, Hey, can you make me a Shook Ones? So its like Im still living in that shadow. And the thing is you can never make another Shook Ones, just like they could never make another you. Sometimes you do have the burden of living in that shadow, but trust me when I say there could be a lot worse burdens. So I dont complain about that. How much do you think about your role as a guardian of Prodigys legacy? I think about that all the time, and it gives me a really great sense of responsibility. I think a lot about how I have to control our narrative going forward because hes not here to assist me. So I have to be really careful, very mindful, and try to steer my story along with his as best I can do, to make it something he would approve of if he was still here. Best of Variety Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Thousands of accused criminals in Victoria wont have to physically report to police stations while on bail in a major change due to the coronavirus crisis. Victoria Police confirmed reporting on bail will be temporarily suspended from Friday during state of emergency directions. Roberta Williams after leaving the Magistrates Court on Monday, where she successfully argued for her requirement to report to police station four times a week to be removed. Credit:Nine News This will impact 3000 people who are currently on bail for a range of offences including murder, theft and drug crime, and are required to report to police stations often multiple times a week. A Victoria Police spokeswoman said there were on average 10,000 bail report visits to police each week. NBFC sector leader Bajaj Finance has surpassed country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) in terms of market capitalisation. On BSE, market cap of SBI stood at Rs 1.69 lakh crore in early trade lower than the market cap of Bajaj Finance which rose to Rs 1.75 lakh crore today. The rise in market cap of Bajaj Finance comes after the large cap stock rose up to 3.74% to Rs 2,948 against previous close of Rs 2,841.85 on BSE. The stock which is the sole representative of NBFC sector on Sensex has gained 23% in last six sessions. It opened with a gain of 2.05% today. The stock trades higher than 5 day, 20 day and 50 day moving averages but lower than 100 day and 200 day moving averages. Bajaj Finance share has gained 53.34% in last one month. On May 22, the stock closed at Rs 1896 on BSE. Of this, over 50% gains were recorded after Modi government allowed offices to open from June 1 with precautions to contain the spread of coronavirus cases in the country. The resumption of business and industrial activities has infused life into the stock of firm whose loan book comprises mostly of unsecured loans. Fitch revises outlook of SBI, PNB, ICICI Bank to negative; affirms long-term ratings On May 19, the stock closed at Rs 1,952. It hit an intra day high of Rs 2,948 today clocking 51% gain in June. On May 27, the stock hit a fresh 52 week low of Rs 1,783 on BSE. Since then, the stock has gained 65% till date. The NBFC reported a 19.38 per cent year-on-year (YoY) fall in net profit at Rs 948.10 crore for the quarter ended March 31.The firm which engages in giving loans made a contingency provision of Rs 900 crore for Covid-19 in Q4. Without Covid provision, the firm would have logged over Rs 1,800 crore in net profit in last quarter against Rs 1,176 crore net profit in Q4 of 2018-19. Meanwhile, SBI share was trading 1,49% higher at Rs 190.55 on BSE. Share Market LIVE: Sensex gains 100 points, Nifty at 10,340; Berger Paints, Asian Paints, BoB results today MSME credit guarantee scheme suffers as banks fear NPAs The CEO of China Lilang Limited (HKG:1234) is Liang Xing Wang. First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. And finally - as a second measure of performance - we will look at the returns shareholders have received over the last few years. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid. Check out our latest analysis for China Lilang How Does Liang Xing Wang's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies? According to our data, China Lilang Limited has a market capitalization of HK$5.6b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth CN1.3m over the year to December 2019. It is worth noting that the CEO compensation consists almost entirely of the salary, worth CN1.3m. As part of our analysis we looked at companies in the same jurisdiction, with market capitalizations of CN2.8b to CN11b. The median total CEO compensation was CN3.6m. Now let's take a look at the pay mix on an industry and company level to gain a better understanding of where China Lilang stands. Talking in terms of the sector, salary represented approximately 87% of total compensation out of all the companies we analysed, while other remuneration made up 13% of the pie. Investors will find it interesting that China Lilang pays the bulk of its rewards through a traditional salary, instead of non-salary benefits. At first glance this seems like a real positive for shareholders, since Liang Xing Wang is paid less than the average total compensation paid by similar sized companies. While this is a good thing, you'll need to understand the business better before you can form an opinion. The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at China Lilang has changed from year to year. SEHK:1234 CEO Compensation April 20th 2020 Is China Lilang Limited Growing? China Lilang Limited has seen earnings per share (EPS) move positively by an average of 16% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is up 15% over last year. Story continues This shows that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Good news for shareholders. It's also good to see decent revenue growth in the last year, suggesting the business is healthy and growing. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future. Has China Lilang Limited Been A Good Investment? China Lilang Limited has generated a total shareholder return of 9.4% over three years, so most shareholders wouldn't be too disappointed. But they probably don't want to see the CEO paid more than is normal for companies around the same size. In Summary... It appears that China Lilang Limited remunerates its CEO below most similar sized companies. Considering the underlying business is growing earnings, this would suggest the pay is modest. While returns over the last few years haven't been top notch, there is nothing to suggest to us that Liang Xing Wang is overcompensated. It's great to see a company that pays its CEO reasonably, even while growing. But for me, it's even better if insiders are also buying shares with their own cold, hard, cash. On another note, we've spotted 2 warning signs for China Lilang that investors should look into moving forward. Important note: China Lilang may not be the best stock to buy. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with 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. Also, please keep in mind that your job now is to get through this, taking steps as small as you need them to be, and finding as much time as possible with people you love. It will all happen whether you do an A-plus job of it or a D-minus, and no ones grading you anyway, so dont feel as if its all on you. Its just life and you manage the best you can. And you may have to acknowledge the worst-case scenario. So it might be like, Mom, youre living in Florida, and youre going to the beach. I cannot stop you. But if you get sick, I cant come see you. And if you die, you may die alone, and I wont be there. This may sound harsh, but its true. Let them sit with the real possibility of what may happen. The Philippines Graphic website was hacked by unidentified parties on Saturday, April 18. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) condemn the digital attack and call on authorities to investigate the hacking. The website for the magazine, The Philippines Graphic postedon its Facebook page on April 18 that their website was hacked and directing readers to pornographic sites. The newsroom asked readers to refrain from using the website. The website was restored by April 20. On the alert published by IFJs affiliate, the National Union of the Journalists of the Philippines on Saturday, April 18, Joel Pablo Salud, the editor in chief of The Philippines Graphic magazine, said they knew of the hack after a client alerted the advertising team. Salud condemned the perpetrators behind the hacking for disregarding free speech. The hacking of the website occurred a day after Pasig City mayor, Vico Sotto said the Twitter account of their Public Information Office was hacked, in a similar incident involving pornographic material. IFJ said: Online attacks have increased in frequency as media has transferred to online platforms. The IFJ condemns the digital attack against the media outlet and urge authorities to immediately launch an investigation. To the Editor: Pandemic Temps Leaders to Seize Sweeping Powers (front page, March 31) does not reflect the emergency situation in Thailand regarding the coronavirus. First, disseminating false or distorted news and information that may instigate fear among the public is prohibited. This temporary measure is in accordance with existing Thai law and Thailands obligations under international law. It is not a restriction on freedom of expression, and is limited only to news stories including false or distorted information about the virus outbreak, which could cause unwarranted distress and risks during a public health crisis. Any responsible journalists should understand the adverse consequences of unethical reporting upon the public, which is already in a state of anxiety. Second, any lawsuit against journalists during this time would be purely due to their act of disseminating information, not because of any criticism against the government. In any case, no journalist has been charged with such an offense yet. Toll collection on National Highways across the country resumed on Monday in line with government directives, a move which is being opposed by transporters. The central government on March 25, had announced temporary suspension of toll collection following directives by the Ministry of Home Affairs in the wake of coronavirus pandemic. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as well as highway developers resumed collection at toll plazas. Highways developer IRB Infrastructure Developers said all its Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) "have resumed their toll collection from 00.00 hours today" in line with the NHAI directives. A spokesperson of IRB Infrastructure Developers said, we are pleased to have the directives from nodal agencies to resume toll operations. This seems to be a positive sign for the sector, with an indication leaning towards restoration of normalcy in phased manners for the nation. IRB Infra's projects SPVs collectively operate 50 toll plazas across India and all have now fully resumed their operations from Monday. In line with NHAI guidelines, all Project SPVs will be taking necessary precautions and care at toll plazas for highway users and employees manning the toll plazas. For this, the company has provided adequate masks, sanitizers, hand gloves, etc. to employees manning the toll plazas. However, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), protested against resumption of toll on national highways and said it will adversely affect rabi crop procurement, adding that over 85 per cent transporters are cash-starved small operators who will not able to sustain toll fee. AIMTC, the apex body for transporters that represents about 95 lakh truckers and transport entities, has sought suspension of toll till May 3. "As per inputs received from across the country, procurement of rabi crop will be disturbed, as more than 85 per cent, finance-starved small operators can't sustain toll burden starting April 20. Tolls must be suspended at least till May 3," AIMTC President Kultaran Singh Atwal has said seeking the Prime Minister's Office's intervention. Atwal has said that more than 85 per cent of the transport fraternity have one to five vehicles and about 65 per cent of them are self-employed owner-drivers. AIMTC Secretary General Naveen Gupta said: "Only 15 per cent of the transporters own big fleets but they are also helpless... some have vehicles transporting essential goods while others are facing shortages of drivers." He said the transport fraternity is financially broken and does not have finance for operations and bringing back drivers, which is a big challenge. AIMTC has sought a relief package from the government that includes Rs 15,000 per driver per month besides insurance cover to drivers and supporting staff. Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training (IFTRT) Coordinator S P Singh said in the past 21 days, the benefit of toll fee not being levied was hardly being passed on in the form of any reduction in truck rentals across the country. On March, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had announced: "In view of COVID-19, it has been ordered to temporarily suspend the collection of toll at all toll plazas across India." This will not only reduce inconvenience to emergency services but also save critical time, he had said. The minister had also said that maintenance of roads and availability of emergency resources at toll plazas will continue as usual. Earlier, the road transport and highways ministry advised the NHAI to follow the home ministry's guidelines about toll plaza operations following the lockdown. The prevailing condition may be treated as 'Force Majeure' for concession or contract agreement in terms of the finance ministry, it had said. The NHAI had rolled out the electronic toll collection programme across India in December on its over 500 toll plazas while doubling toll charges from the vehicles entering FASTag lanes without the tag. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Click here to read the full article. The next shoe is purportedly set to drop at Neiman Marcus. The Dallas-based high-end department store, which operates its namesake banner, as well as Last Call, MyTheresa and Bergdorf Goodman, is years removed from its glory days and waist-deep in debt. More from Footwear News Now, as it is said to be days away from pulling the trigger on a Chapter 11 filing, some reports have suggested such a move could be precipitated by the coronavirus crisis, which has decimated retail and the larger global economy. While the pandemic could very well be the straw to break the camels back, Neiman Marcus downfall has been years in the making and likely started when it took on a hefty debt load via a private equity buyout in 2013, noted Eric Snyder, partner at New York-based law firm Wilk Auslander and chairman of the firms bankruptcy department. (Neiman Marcus was saddled with about $6 billion in debt after the 2013 buyout by Ares Management and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.) We know retail [generally] has been challenged, but luxury brands have been doing well theres no issue with luxury, said Snyder of Neiman Marcus, whose debt load currently sits at about $4 billion. The problem is the debt. You cant do much of anything with that much debt. In retail, especially in New York, where Bergdorf Goodman is, the profit margins are too small and the rent is too high. So if youre [over-levered], you just cant [win]. Around 2016, Neiman Marcus made headlines when it reported a blockbuster 80% drop in profits for Q3, a decline that then-CEO Karen Katz blamed on a confluence of factors, including persistently low oil prices, which she said hindered spending for the stores high-end clientele, whose earnings are attached to the Texas energy industry. Katz also blamed election-year anxiety and currency fluctuations for the retailers struggles. Story continues Still, with those factors in the rearview (and CEO Katz out of the picture), the companys issues have been unrelenting and it has faced numerous other setbacks in its quest for profitability. In August 2018, Neiman Marcus announced a four-year transformation plan that entailed investing in omnichannel and supply chain technology. Last year, the company even embraced the growing resale trend by taking a minority stake in consignment company Fashionphile. And in 2019, it managed to reach a deal with creditors to rework some debt and avoid a bankruptcy filing at the time. It has looked into strategies for raising capital, including the potential sale or IPO of its MyTheresa e-commerce site. The company revealed in March it would wind down its Last Call discount business, a perhaps surprising move since off-price has been one of the retail sectors few bright spots in recent years. The department store chain said it would close the majority of its Last Call stores, leading to 750 lost jobs. The company noted that the cuts did not represent a workforce reduction because Last Call workers may be transferred to other positions within the Neiman Marcus group, and those who are laid off will be eligible for severance and outplacement services. Now, with the escalating coronavirus pandemic forcing the company to shutter its Neiman, Last Call and Bergdorf Goodman banners over the past few weeks, the company is once again teetering, and insiders say its odds for a successful rebound without Chapter 11 protection are waning. Last week, the firm reportedly skipped out on a bond payment that had come due and received a letter from hedge fund Marble Ridge Capital LP, the bondholder it owes, which warned Neiman Marcus that it would take necessary actions to protect its rights. (The retailers reported decision not to pay the interest loan puts it in default with its creditors.) That, noted Snyder, is a sign that a bankruptcy filing and restructuring may be necessary to give the company a chance to save itself. You cant begin to default on payments for two reasons: Its [bad] for the company [itself], and then other companies will become [aware that] you default on your payments, he explained. You have to confront whats in front of you. And in some ways, now may be as good a time as ever for troubled companies to tap the bankruptcy route to rein in debt. James Thomson, partner with Buy Box Experts and former business head of Amazon Services, told FN early this month that he expects the coronavirus to speed up the restructuring process for such firms. If Im an executive of a retailer thats slowly dying, in some ways this is a blessing in disguise. It allows me to make big cuts quickly, he explained. And if I have to close half my stores or have to lay off, and keep laid off, more than half my employees, I can do that without there being a lot of negative PR [because of the coronavirus threat]. At the same time, noted Snyder, creditors could be more likely to work out a deal with a bankrupt firm as other options like liquidation (as seen with Modells) are near impossible to execute amid the pandemic. The market is completely frozen supply and demand are completely frozen, he explained. Neiman Marcus is not going to be able to liquidate when no stores are open. That means, if they file right now, theyll have an agreement with creditors, debtor-in-possession financing and everything they need to stay in business for a couple of months until things are finalized. Sign up for FN's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You may know him from the Mel Gibson directed The Passion of the Christ film. Actor Jim Caviezel starred in the film, playing the role of Jesus Christ. The film captures Jesus final hours and crucifixion in a way that many moviegoers had never seen before. His acting was moving and helped people develop a new appreciation for Jesus love and courage on His path to the cross. What you may not know is that Caviezel is a devout Christian who isnt afraid to share his faith on and off the screen. Caviezel is strong in his Catholic faith and this faith has helped him navigate through Hollywood. In an interview with People, Caviezel said that he is drawn to roles that enable him to be the light. The light is much brighter in the darkest of places. In those darkest of places, I want to be the center of it. I was drawn to that, Caviezel said. He stands behind his faith so much that he has refused to play certain roles or scenes if it compromised his faith or beliefs. Out of respect to his wife, Caviezel refused to do nude love scenes in the movies Angel Eyes with Jennifer Lopez and High Crimes with Ashley Judd, ChurchLeaders.com reports. As a devout Catholic, he opposes abortion. He has used his position as an actor to speak out for pro-life causes. He also used his platform to challenge the church to not lose the faith. Caviezel and his wife have adopted three children from China who were battling cancer. They felt a sense of calling to them. Two of them had brain tumors and one had cancer sarcoma. Their chance of survival wasnt great, but I wanted to helpThey make me want to be a better man. Love is a decision. He also credits God not only his talent but also his successes to God. He told Faithwire during a Facebook Live appearance that his gift is from God. It was a gift given to me. I didnt give it to myself, he said. When Caviezel feels a special calling to a play a role, he follows through. During the filming of The Passion of the Christ, he almost died during filming. I thought I would put the makeup on and prepare the same way and we would shoot it in studio and suddenly I realized I was in a fight for my life. It was very cold and I got hypothermia. The makeup burned my skin and I caught pneumonia in both lungs. I was struck by lightning and eventually had two heart surgeries including open-heart. Despite major health setbacks, he was committed to completing this role. He felt like playing Jesus in the film was an important part of his faith journey. I need him every day. I feel the lack of love in the world and in myself at times and Im looking for purpose like everyone else. In this business that doesnt suffer fools, when the world kicks you, I know that I have my personal Savior right there with me and he feels the pain that I feel. While he is best known for his role as Jesus in The Passion of the Christ, he also played the evangelist Luke in the film Paul, Apostle of Christ. In the film, he visits Paul (James Faulkner) in prison to put the apostles story and teaching in writing for distribution to Christians in Rome and abroad. Those writings would late become the book of Acts in the Bible. Caviezel looks for stories that have great redemptive qualities because thats the truth that he knows, he said in an interview. When I read this, I thought this is more of what Im supposed to do, Caviezel said. I just look for redeemable qualities in it. I think you walk away from a movie like this affected in a lot of ways. While Caviezel is known for his biblical roles, playing Paul was quite different than other characters hes played. What he found most fascinating in his research of Luke was not only his background, but also the way Christ worked through him. Youve got Matthew, youve got Mark, youve got Luke and heres a guy whos a pagan thats writing one of the gospels, Caviezel. Our Lords message is universal and it can hit anybody, but we all have an emptiness in our heart. He knows that there is a lot that viewers can take away from his roles, even those who may not have known Christ. I had a friend of mine watch the movie who likes me as a person but doesnt come from any faith and he watched the movie and was simply blown away, Caviezel said. He said, Jim, the writer of this is brilliant and I said, why so, and he said, That line To live as Christ, to die is gain, is truly brilliant, and I said, That was written by Paul. A couple days later, Caviezels friend asked if he could see his Passion of the Christ movie. He was right on the edge, and it planted a seed and thats a big change but he felt loved in the movie and he felt home, Caviezel said. Thats all I wanted to convey to people is that our Lord wants them to feel home with Him. He loves them and wants to give them the life they were meant to have. Caviezel has also said in a number of interviews that he will once again play Jesus in the much-anticipated Mel Gibson directed, The Resurrection of the Christ. Caviezel believes that the sequel to The Passion of the Christ will be the single biggest film in history. Its a huge responsibility, Caviezel said. Our industry, often times when they get a film that is biblical, they change it in many ways when you start doing that and taking liberties like that it loses its value. DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Door-knocking? Over. Local party activity? Some Facebook traffic, if that. Across an arc of vital swing states, the coronavirus has put politics on an uneasy pause. Instead, political fights among state leaders from Iowa to Pennsylvania over the handling of the pandemics impact are raging as it spreads over this electoral heartland. Protecting public health versus restarting the economy, along with arguments over the limits of executive authority, have taken the place of the national political debate typical of presidential campaigns at this point. They reflect, unlike the political armistice that followed the 2001 terrorist attacks, a willingness to politicize this crisis. Its one more clear measure of a polarized era. Yes, politicos and pols will always have November on their mind, said Iowa GOP strategist John Stineman. But, in my mind, what we are seeing right now is more about each base criticizing the other side for being wrong, a product of the political environment we have allowed to take root. Iowa, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where Democratic nominees had won regularly for more than 30 years, tipped to Trump in 2016, sealing his victory with their combined 52 electoral votes. While politics have slipped to an afterthought for most Americans behind a toll of mounting coronavirus deaths, lost wages and closed schools, the campaign buzz of a little more than a month ago has silenced. In swing-voting Bay County, Michigan, Democratic activity had been humming, as it was statewide before the March 10 presidential primary, when participation jumped by 32% over 2016. A week later, Bay Citys St. Patricks Day parade the states largest and a Democratic tradition was canceled. So was the countys Democratic fundraising dinner, which was set to feature Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. I see chatter on social media. But as far as activity, its pretty much down to nothing, said Bay County Democratic Chairwoman Karen Tighe. Iowa canceled Democratic conventions in its 99 counties, a setback after 2018 Statehouse and congressional gains and a yearlong parade of presidential candidates vying for support in the February caucuses. Republican Ron Forsell canceled plans for his fundraiser in Dallas County, Iowa, an emerging suburban battlefront. Politics is going to be there again, he said. But raising money now just doesnt feel right. Democratic organizer Angela Langs door-to-door canvassing in struggling north Milwaukee had to shut down in late March, hurting her ability to reach this pivotal African American bloc before Wisconsins April 7 primary. I think for most Americans, politics is taking a major back seat to survival for some and the adjustment to this new normal for most of us, said former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack, a Democrat. Even as the virus raged in Pennsylvania, Republicans in Harrisburg pushed through legislation aimed at reversing the shutdown edicts of Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, painting him as unconcerned with struggling families. During debate last week, Republican state Sen. John DiSanto said Wolf had forced 1.3 million Pennsylvanians out of work so far, put businesses at risk of permanent closure and imperiled the long-term health of Pennsylvania residents and our economy. Democrats said that Republicans were trying to throw workers back into the pandemics path. Let the world know whose lives are we willing to sacrifice, Democratic Rep. Jordan Harris of Philadelphia said. In Iowa, Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand has questioned the data Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds is using to justify allowing more freedom of movement than in neighboring states. Reynolds aides were quick to point out public affirmation from Dr. Anthony Fauci after the federal governments top infectious-disease expert praised Reynolds actions during a White House event this month. The tension is most pronounced in Michigan, where the outbreak is far worse than in any of the other northern political battlegrounds. Two weeks ago, Republicans sharply trimmed the emergency order Whitmer hoped to extend to June. Michigans recovery will take much longer and its economic impact will be much more devastating than it needed to be, Republican House Speaker Lee Chatfield said. Democrats accused Republicans of racial bias for floating plans to open regions outside the predominantly African American Detroit area. Its an us-versus-them thing with the rest of the state versus Detroit, said Amy Chapman, an informal Whitmer adviser. Thats another dog whistle of sorts. More than 1,900 people had died in Wayne, Macomb and Oakland counties, the heart of metro Detroit, as of Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University. Whitmers criticism of the federal response in Michigan devolved into a public tiff with President Donald Trump, who responded by suggesting Vice President Mike Pence, his coronavirus task force leader, not call the woman from Michigan. Michigan Democrats echoed Whitmers criticism of the federal response to Detroits crisis, while GOP figures urged Trump to deescalate tension with the swing-state governor. Meanwhile, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has built little campaign structure across the region. Trump is relying on state GOP headquarters for his operations, though they, too, have been largely empty. Pro- and anti-Trump groups unaffiliated with the candidates have carried what little presidential campaigning has gone on here. Democrat-backed groups Priorities USA and American Bridge have aired millions of dollars in advertising savaging Trumps handling of the crisis. Only the die-hards are paying attention to election politics, Vilsack said. However, opinions have formed and will continue to form on politics of how the administration is handling the situation. The Government's coronavirus furlough scheme website opened for applications today - receiving 67,000 claims in the first 30 minutes. Employers are expected to claim for millions of workers put on temporary leave because of the crisis, and the furlough system has been given a capacity of up to 450,000 employee claims per hour. Under HMRC's job retention scheme, the government will cover 80 per cent of a workers wages, up to 2,500 a month, if they are not working but are kept on the payroll. Chancellor Rishi Sunak has also announced a 1.25 billion package to aid companies in the innovation sector. The lockdown is pressuring a number of British businesses, with one report warning that as many as 11.7million people could be furloughed or left jobless in the three months to the end of June. But Jim Harra, chief executive of HM Revenue & Customs, said his organisation is 'very confident' the system running the coronavirus job retention scheme would work after it had been 'tested at volume'. He revealed the Coronavirus Job Retention scheme system had been tested at 'up to 450,000 claims per hour', and insisted that if employers are patient while using the Government website in the next few days, they will be paid by April 30. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: 'Of course, there is a limit to the capacity of the system, so if every employer tries to use it at 8 o'clock this morning some will be asked to queue or come back later, that doesn't mean the system has crashed, it simply means that it's full. The scheme for workers who have been furloughed - given a temporary leave of absence - opened today and Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a 1.25 billion package to aid companies in the innovation sector Jim Harra, chief executive of HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), said his organisation is 'very confident' the system running the coronavirus job retention scheme would work after it had been 'tested at volume' 'But employers can claim any time over the few days, between now and Wednesday, and we will have the money in their bank account by April 30.' He added: 'I'm confident that if employers are patient, use the system, it's available 24/7, and as I say, if your payroll date is April 30 you can claim any time today, tomorrow or Wednesday and we will get that money into your account.' What does it mean to be furloughed? 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".' Advertisement Up to half of Britain's companies are expecting to furlough most of their staff at a cost of up to 40billion to the Treasury. The Government initially thought around 10% of companies would take up the job retention scheme, at a cost of around 10billion, but around a fifth of smaller firms plan to furlough all of their staff and 50% are taking up the scheme for some of their employees, the BBC reports. It comes as a report by an independent think tank suggested as many as 11.7 million people could be furloughed or unemployed over the next three months. Employees in the lowest-paying hospitality and retail sectors are most likely, 50% more than average, to be affected, a paper by the Resolution Foundation has found. Analysing the differing impact of the Covid-19 crisis within the labour market, the report states: 'As many as 3.1 million employees (46%) in these sectors could be furloughed, with an additional 800,000 workers in this part of the economy becoming unemployed. 'In contrast, only 4% of those working in the highest-paid sector, finance and insurance, are likely to be furloughed.' It comes as the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS) launched on Monday. The report entitled Launching An Economic Lifeboat: The Impact Of The Job Retention Scheme warned of the possible extent of joblessness, but pointed to the mitigation impact of the scheme. It said: 'Although we estimate that non-working could increase by as much as 11.7 million in Q2 2020, this is heavily tilted towards use of the JRS (8.3 million employees). 'Unemployment could still rise sharply to 3.4 million (10%) in Q2 2020, but because of the JRS it will not reach catastrophic levels.' Google trends showing the popularity of search terms 'furlough' (in blue), 'universal credit' (yellow) and 'coronavirus symptoms' (red) over the past 90 days It added that the Job Retention Scheme 'may well have the largest fiscal cost of any intervention' adding the Government needs to provide 'regular updates on scheme take-up' and there was a 'strong case for extending the scheme to cover shorter hours working'. Daniel Tomlinson, economist at the Resolution Foundation said: 'The Government's welcome Job Retention Scheme is what stands between Britain experiencing high unemployment over the coming months, and catastrophic depression-era levels of long-term joblessness. 'It is proving particularly essential in big, low-paying sectors like hospitality and retail, where around half the workforce are no longer working. 'The priority from today is for the Government to process claims as quickly as possible so that the millions of firms relying on it get the financial support they need. 'Given the scheme's central role in both providing a safety net and restarting economic activity, the Government should provide regular updates on take-up and payments, and extend it to allow shorter-hours working.' Multiple groups are organizing protests in Denver against Colorado's stay-at-home order, which Democratic Gov. Jared Polis issued due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Colorado Joint Information Center (JIC) acknowledged that people are frustrated, but reminded the public that the stay-at-home order is meant to protect the safety of the entire community, ahead of protests planned for Sunday. The JIC issued a statement reminding the public it is illegal to willfully block a public right-of-way: "We understand people are frustrated with our current situation, but the stay-at-home order protects the health, safety and welfare of our entire community," JIC said." Operation Gridlock would be a wholly irresponsible and reckless way to express those frustrations." "The city must enforce the stay-at-home order to protect the public during the COVID-19 pandemic, which we know the vast majority of our community understands," said Erika Martinez with Denver Joint Information. "Enforcement is a last resort, but is necessary if we, as a community, are going to stop the spread of the virus." Related: -Three words will define our lives in the coming weeks: test, trace, isolate | Vince Bzdek -Coronavirus now a leading cause of death in Colorado -PHOTOS: Documenting COVID-19 in the Pikes Peak region Colorado State Patrol said that no permits have been filed for Sunday's protests. "This would be an un-permitted event like many of the pop up events or marches that occur in Denver," CSP said. At least two groups, ReOpen Colorado and the Colorado Libertarian Party, are organizing protests outside of the Colorado State Capitol in downtown Denver. Read more from 9News here. Overseas investors have revoked VND12.2 trillion ($530.43 million) or 2 per cent of their stock value from the Vietnamese stock exchange After dozens of consecutive net selling sessions, overseas investors have revoked VND12.2 trillion ($530.43 million) or 2 per cent of their stock value in the market since early this year. The latest five sessions saw more than VND1 trillion ($43.48 million) withdrawn from the securities market. Nevertheless, in comparison with regional countries, the number is relatively modest as the year-to-date figure in Thailand is nearly $3.6 billion, as much as seven times Vietnams. In Malaysia, the number is six times as much as in the local market. According to Yuanta Vietnam, about 76 per cent of the sum stems from mutual funds, followed by exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with a rate of 11.5 per cent. The rest are foreign investment organisations and individuals with 9.1 and 3.2 per cent, respectively. Along with Vietnam, Asian stock markets have been experiencing great burdens. Japan was hit the worst, with the total funds withdrawn of nearly $50 billion, while the numbers at Taiwan and South Korea are $17.9 billion and $16 billion. Securities experts estimated that foreign investors in the market have suffered losses of 29 per cent from selling stocks during the health crisis. However, KB Securities Vietnam in a daily report reminds that mutual funds are notoriously flighty in their race to catch up with market trends. Thanks to that, the stock exchange will be warmer towards late June, when the epidemic is forecast to be brought under control. Urgent stimulus from the Government is needed to ward off a collapse in the UK's housing market, experts have warned. Lockdown will result in the loss of 526,000 home sales this year if there is no intervention starving the economy of at least 14.3 billion in DIY and renovation spending, stamp duty and VAT, according to research by the property consultancy Knight Frank. It wants the Government to implement a stamp duty holiday and expand the Help To Buy scheme. Warning: Lockdown will result in the loss of 526,000 home sales this year if there is no intervention Without this, it estimates there will be 38 per cent fewer home sales this year than in 2019, even if the lockdown ends in May, while 350,000 fewer mortgages would be approved by banks. Tom Bill, head of London residential research at Knight Frank, said: 'Moving house has a clear multiplier effect for the economy. Different sized businesses in all areas of the economy feel these benefits, which is something the Government will take into account when drawing up its post-lockdown stimulus plan.' How bad will the recession be - and what will the recovery look like? The economic destruction of the coronavirus crash was laid bare in a report from the Office of Budget Responsibility this week. But although the OBR forecast an astonishing 35% slump in UK output in the second quarter of this year - with a three-month lockdown - the other side of its chart showed a substantial bounce-back. What will we need to do for that recovery to happen and what will it look like? On this podcast, Simon Lambert and Georgie Frost look at the reports on the economic impact of Covid-19 and at the potential bounce back, along with which sectors and businesses could seize the day when it comes. 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. From porters to doctors, at least 65 NHS workers are now confirmed to have died during the coronavirus pandemic. The Department of Health has identified 43 NHS workers in England who have died after contracting Covid-19. However, this is only a partial picture, with the true total thought to be significantly greater, as local NHS trusts and loved ones pay tribute to healthcare workers. The PA news agency has verified 65 deaths since March 25, with over a dozen more yet to be confirmed. These are the names of health service workers known to have died. Gerallt Davies, emergency consultant On April 20, the 51-year-old from Swansea became the first paramedic in Wales to die after contacting coronavirus. He had worked for the Welsh Ambulance Service for 26 years. Expand Close of paramedic Gerallt Davies was based at Cwmbwrla Station in Swansea (Welsh Ambulances Services NHS Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp of paramedic Gerallt Davies was based at Cwmbwrla Station in Swansea (Welsh Ambulances Services NHS Trust/PA) Manjeet Singh Riyat, emergency consultant Mr Riyat, the first Sikh to work as an A&E consultant in the UK, died on April 20. He was known by his colleagues at the Royal Derby Hospital as the father of the emergency department. Expand Close Manjeet Riyat (University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Manjeet Riyat (University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Trust/PA) Joanne Klenczon, domestic supervisor A 34-year-old domestic supervisor from Northampton General Hospital (NGH), Ms Klenzons death was announced by the trust on April 20. Dr Sonia Swart, chief executive at the trust, said: Joanna Klenczon touched the lives of so many people at NGH and she will be missed by everyone who knew or worked with her. We are offering our support to our staff during this difficult time whilst we all mourn the loss of one of our team members. We would ask that the privacy of Joannas family, friends and colleagues is respected at this time. Chrissie Emerson, healthcare assistant Ms Emerson was working at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Kings Lynn in Norfolk when she died after testing positive for Covid-19. In a joint statement issued on April 20, chief executive Caroline Shaw and chairman Professor Steve Barnett, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Kings Lynn, said: The whole family at QEH is deeply saddened at losing Chrissie Emerson, who was such a valued colleague, and much-loved wife to Michael and cherished mother and grandmother. We have been in touch with Chrissies family to extend our condolences on behalf of everyone at QEH and to offer appropriate support. We have informed our staff about this upsetting news and offered support to those who knew and worked closely with Chrissie. We have a range of support and counselling services available to our staff to support them during this incredibly difficult time during which we continue to focus on delivering safe care to our patients and maximising support for our staff who are working in conditions that are difficult and challenging for everyone. Grace Kungwengwe, healthcare worker The frontline worker is described as a dedicated NHS worker, who loved her job and was actively working until she tested positive (for) Covid-19 on a fundraising page set up in her memory. Expand Close A fundraising page has been set up in Ms Kungwengwes memory. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A fundraising page has been set up in Ms Kungwengwes memory. It said: She was loved by many and her dedication and care for others was second to none. She leaves behind two sons and grandchildren. Rajesh Kalraiya, community paediatrician and Mamoona Rana, trainee registrar in psychiatry The North East London Foundation Trust (NELFT) confirmed the death or Drs Kalraiya and Rana, describing them as two highly valued and respected colleagues. Dr Kalraiya was 68 and was working as a locum in Romford. Dr Rana was 49. Both died last week. Local media in India reported Dr Kalraiya had died after contracting Covid-19 but the NELFT was unable to confirm if either had tested positive for the virus. Professor Oliver Shanley, chief executive at the trust, said: We have shared our deepest condolences with their families and are giving them all the support possible. They were very highly-regarded, enormously-valued, professional and committed doctors who will be hugely missed by their colleagues. As well as their families, with whom we are working closely, I would like to offer my deepest condolences to their friends and work colleagues. We are ensuring they are supported through this difficult time and I would like to thank colleagues for the commitment, dedication and compassion they have shown. Margaret Tapley, healthcare assistant The auxiliary nurse was still working night shifts when she died on April 19, at the age of 84. Her grandson, Tom Wood, paid tribute to her and said she had inspired him to become a nurse himself. He said: This phenomenal, committed, kind-hearted fighter was my grandmother and I am so hugely proud of her. Expand Close Margaret Taplow was still working when she died. (Family handout) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Margaret Taplow was still working when she died. (Family handout) She was my inspiration and a huge reason as to why I am a nurse today. She took huge pride in her work but was so humble. She embodied the nursing spirit. For anyone who worked with her or knew her, that spirit that we all saw and felt lives on in us. Grandma may have been called home in what feels all too early for us left behind but the values, spirit and giving nature that she brought to the world is carried on in us that were touched by her life. Patrick McManus, nurse Mr McManus had worked as a nurse for more than 40 years in Staffordshire. The 60-year-old was described as an exceptional leader and a lovable character and had worked at Staffordshire Royal Infirmary and the County Hospital in Stafford. Paying tribute to Mr McManus, Tracy Bullock, UHNM chief executive, said: We are deeply saddened to confirm that a member of staff has passed away due to Covid-19. He was a lovable character and brought kindness and compassion to all his patients which was acknowledged by the number of compliments and thank you messages he received. He was an exceptional leader and took staff and students under his wing. His big Irish personality will be sorely missed by his friends and colleagues at UHNM. Our deepest sympathies are with his family at this very sad time and we thank him for his many years of invaluable service to the trust, to his colleagues and to the patients and families he served. Unnamed paramedic for North West Ambulance Service The paramedic was married with children and had worked for the trust for a considerable number of years. The trusts chief executive Daren Mochrie said the death will deeply affect many people within the trust. Jenelyn Carter, healthcare assistant Ms Carter worked on the admissions ward at Morriston Hospital and was well-loved by all her colleagues and patients, Swansea Bay University Health Board said. Mark Madams, Morriston Hospitals nurse director, said: Jenelyn would go the extra mile for anyone, and was a lovely, caring person inside and out, with a heart of gold. Michael Allieu, staff nurse Homerton University Hospital NHS Trust confirmed that staff nurse Michael Allieu died on April 18 at Homerton Hospital. Homerton chief executive Tracey Fletcher said: Michael was a vibrant, larger-than-life character on our acute care unit, and was well known and very well liked throughout the hospital. Linda Clarke, community midwife Wigan Today reported the death of Linda Clarke, a 66-year-old community midwife at Royal Albert Edward Infirmary. According to the news outlet, Silas Nicholls, chief executive at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust, said she died on April 17. Linda was 66 and worked in our maternity service for 30 years, bringing many new lives into our borough and caring for expectant mums in our community, the chief executive is reported to have said. Ruben Munoz, nursing assistant Ruben Munoz, a father of two and nursing assistant at Surrey and Sussex NHS Trust for a decade, died on April 17. His family said: Ruben is a good son, a beloved husband and an amazing father to his two children. He was so proud of his NHS and Woodland Ward family. Expand Close Ruben Munoz, a father of two and nursing assistant at Surrey and Sussex NHS Trust (SASH), passed away on Friday after contracting coronavirus. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ruben Munoz, a father of two and nursing assistant at Surrey and Sussex NHS Trust (SASH), passed away on Friday after contracting coronavirus. Simon Guest, radiographer A radiographer at Furness General Hospital, Mr Guest died on the evening of April 15. His wife Nicky described him as special, a true gentleman and a great role model to all. Jane Murphy, clinical support worker Aged 73, Ms Murphy worked at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for almost 30 years, first as a cleaner before being retrained as a clinical support worker. Jane would help anybody out, but would tell you if you were wrong, a friend said. Dr Krishan Arora, GP Dr Krishan Arora was a senior partner at Violet Lane Medical Practice, and had been a GP in Croydon for 27 years. He died on April 15 after testing positive for the virus. The 57-year-old had followed national guidance and self-isolated at home when he developed symptoms and was not in work at the time of his death. Expand Close Dr Krishan Arora is the 50th confirmed healthcare worker to have died. (Family handout) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dr Krishan Arora is the 50th confirmed healthcare worker to have died. (Family handout) His death was confirmed by the South West London Clinical Commissioning Group. Colleague Dr Agnelo Fernandes said: We are all greatly saddened by the death of Dr Krishan Arora. Krish was extremely well-liked and worked tirelessly to care for his patients and improve services for everyone in Croydon. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with Krishs family, friends and close colleagues at this difficult time. We will miss him. Gladys Mujajati, mental health nurse Expand Close Gladys Mujajati (Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Gladys Mujajati (Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust/PA) The 46-year-old, who worked to support people in Derby, has been described as precious by science minister Amanda Solloway, and much-loved, warm and caring by her colleagues. Ms Mujajati, who had an underlying health condition and had stepped away from work in recent weeks, died in hospital, the Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said. Lourdes Campbell, healthcare assistant Known as Des to her colleagues, the healthcare assistant was remembered as diligent and compassionate by the Bolton NHS Foundation Trust. In a statement on April 16, chief executive of the trust Fiona Noden said Ms Campbell died in the critical care unit at Royal Bolton Hospital after contracting the virus. -Amrik Bamotra, radiology support worker Expand Close Amrik Bamotra, 63, a radiology support worker at King George Hospital in London (PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Amrik Bamotra, 63, a radiology support worker at King George Hospital in London (PA) Mr Bamotra, known to colleagues as Bob, was said to have treated everyone like his own family, and leaves behind a wife, daughter and son. The 63-year-old had worked at the King George Hospital in Ilford, east London, for four years, and is suspected to have died from coronavirus. His death was announced on April 15. Andy Treble, theatre assistant Expand Close Andy Treble, right, died on April 15 (Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Andy Treble, right, died on April 15 (Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board/PA) The 57-year-old, a theatre assistant at the Wrexham Maelor Hospital in North Wales, died on April 15 after testing positive for the disease. His sister, Maria Molloy, described her brother who had worked at the hospital for almost 40 years as a kind man who dedicated his life to his profession and always had a smile on his face. Linnette Cruz, dental nurse The 51-year-old senior head nurse at the Brynteg dental practice in Sketty died on April 14 having been admitted with Covid-19 in March, according to NHS Wales. Expand Close Linnette Cruz, 51, who passed away on April 14 (NHS Wales) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Linnette Cruz, 51, who passed away on April 14 (NHS Wales) Brynteg practice owner Nik Patel said: She brought love, light and joy to everyone around her and will be sadly missed by all. Josiane Zauma Ebonja Ekoli, nurse Aged 55, the mother of five was an agency nurse who lived in Leeds and worked at Harrogate Hospital. She died on April 13. Expand Close Josiane Zauma Ebonja Ekoli, an agency nurse at Harrogate District Hospital, died after contracting Covid-19 (Family handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Josiane Zauma Ebonja Ekoli, an agency nurse at Harrogate District Hospital, died after contracting Covid-19 (Family handout/PA) Her daughter said: It meant everything to be a nurse, shes been doing it for as long as I remember more than 30 years. Dr Peter Tun, associate specialist Expand Close Dr Peter Tun was remembered as a superhero dad by his children (Family handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dr Peter Tun was remembered as a superhero dad by his children (Family handout/PA) The father of two worked as an associate specialist in neurorehabilitation at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading for more than 21 years. The 62-year-old, who died in the intensive care unit at the hospital on April 12, was called a superhero dad by his two sons in a tribute. To us, he was simply the best human we know and we will miss him every day, they said. Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong, nurse Expand Close Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong, a pregnant NHS nurse who died from Covid-19 (GoFundMe/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong, a pregnant NHS nurse who died from Covid-19 (GoFundMe/PA) Mary Agyeiwaa Agyapong died on April 12 after testing positive for Covid-19 earlier in the month. David Carter, chief executive at Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: Mary worked here for five years and was a highly valued and loved member of our team, a fantastic nurse and a great example of what we stand for in this trust. Cheryl Williams, ward housekeeper Expand Close Housekeeper Cheryl Williams, who died after contracting Covid-19 (Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust/Handout) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Housekeeper Cheryl Williams, who died after contracting Covid-19 (Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust/Handout) North Middlesex University Hospital said Ms Williams would be remembered as a much-loved colleague. Ms Williams, who worked as a housekeeper on an elderly patient ward at the hospital in Edmonton, north London, died on April 12. Maureen Ellington, healthcare assistant Grandmother Mrs Ellington, who was in her early 60s, worked at Southmead Hospital in Bristol and died on April 12. She had worked for the NHS for more than 25 years at both Frenchay and Southmead hospitals. It is with great sadness that we have to announce that Maureen Ellington, a much-loved Healthcare Assistant at Southmead Hospital, has passed away. Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this difficult time. https://t.co/YOd7UrguKa pic.twitter.com/eR9DtN987N North Bristol NHS (@NorthBristolNHS) April 14, 2020 Her family said: She would light up any room she entered. She will always be in our hearts. Leilani Medel, nurse Mrs Medel, who worked as an agency nurse in South Wales, was described as a wonderful and caring person. Her employers, Cardiff-based Hoop Recruitment, said: The nursing profession has lost a warm-natured and beautiful nurse who cared for so many vulnerable people during her nursing career. Amarante Dias, hospital worker Amarante Dias, who worked at the Weston General Hospital in north Somerset, was described as a valued and much-loved colleague and would be greatly missed. Melujean Ballesteros, nurse The dedicated and very caring Filipino nurse, 60, died at St Marys Hospital in Paddington, London, on April 12, just two days after being admitted. Kevin Smith, plaster technician Expand Close Plaster technician Kevin Smith, who died after contracting Covid-19 (Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Plaster technician Kevin Smith, who died after contracting Covid-19 (Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust/PA) Doncaster Royal Infirmary confirmed the death of plaster technician Kevin Smith on April 12, following a brief, but courageous, battle with Covid-19. He worked at the hospital for more than 35 years and was renowned for his warm personality, diligence and compassion, the trust said. Oscar King Jr, hospital porter Aged 45, Oscar King Jr, a Filipino porter at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, died on April 11. He was said to have worked for the hospital for more than a decade, always doing his job with great enthusiasm and joy. Elbert Rico, hospital porter A colleague of Mr King Jr at John Radcliffe, Mr Rico worked as a porter there since moving to the UK from the Philippines in 2004 and loved the work that he did, according to a fundraising page published by his family. Gareth Roberts, nurse The death of the extremely popular Mr Roberts, who came out of retirement in 2015 having worked since the 1980s, was confirmed by Cardiff and Vale University Health Board on April 11. It is with great sadness that we announce the sad passing of our nursing colleague Gareth Roberts to COVID 19. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues at this sad time. pic.twitter.com/4eOeWbRlgD Cardiff & Vale UHB (@CV_UHB) April 11, 2020 Donna Campbell, healthcare support worker Expand Close Donna Campbell, who worked at the Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff (Velindre University NHS Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Donna Campbell, who worked at the Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff (Velindre University NHS Trust/PA) Described by colleagues as beautiful and kind-hearted, the healthcare support worker from the Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff died at the University Hospital of Wales on April 10. Sara Dee Trollope, nurse A 51-year-old matron for older adult mental health services in Hillingdon, west London, Mrs Trollope died at Watford General Hospital on April 10 after testing positive for the virus. The mother of four was described as an example to every one of us by her daughter. Expand Close Mrs Trollope with Prime Minister Boris Johnson (Family handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mrs Trollope with Prime Minister Boris Johnson (Family handout/PA) Brian Darlington, porter Mr Darlington, a porter with Mid Cheshire Hospitals, was known for handing out sweets to his colleagues. He died on April 10 aged 68. His wife of 46 years, Ava, said: He was dedicated to the trust, and as a family we are grateful for and appreciative of all of the kind words and messages we have seen and received. Expand Close Brian Darlington was a porter for Mid Cheshire Hospitals (Mid Cheshire Hospitals Foundation Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Brian Darlington was a porter for Mid Cheshire Hospitals (Mid Cheshire Hospitals Foundation Trust/PA) Julie Omar, nurse Aged 52, the trauma and orthopaedics nurse at Redditchs Alexandra Hospital in Worcestershire, died at home while self-isolating with symptoms on April 10. Amor Gatinao, nurse The nurse is reported to have died on the morning of April 10, having worked at St Charles Hospital, west London. Aimee ORourke, nurse Aged 39, the nurse and mother died at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate, Kent, where she worked, on April 9. Dr Abdul Mabud Chowdhury, consultant urologist The 53-year-old wrote a Facebook post asking Prime Minister Boris Johnson to urgently provide every NHS worker with personal protective equipment just five days before he died on the night of April 8. Expand Close Doctor Abdul Mabud Chowdhury (Golam Rahat Khan) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Doctor Abdul Mabud Chowdhury (Golam Rahat Khan) Dr Edmond Adedeji, doctor The 62-year-old worked as a locum registrar in the emergency department of Great Western Hospital in Swindon, Wiltshire, and died doing a job he loved on April 8. Fayez Ayache, GP Expand Close Dr Fayez Ayache, who died at Ipswich Hospital on April 8 (East Anglian Daily Times/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dr Fayez Ayache, who died at Ipswich Hospital on April 8 (East Anglian Daily Times/PA) The 76-year-old general practitioner and grandfather died in Ipswich Hospital on April 8, having been diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia and coronavirus. Elsie Sazuze, care home nurse Mrs Sazuze, who worked for Wolverhampton-based agency Totallycare, died on April 7 at Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield, according to the BBC, who spoke to her husband Ken. Leilani Dayrit, nurse Expand Close Leilani Dayrit, a nurse at St Cross Hospital in Rugby (Handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Leilani Dayrit, a nurse at St Cross Hospital in Rugby (Handout/PA) Described as a ray of sunshine, Ms Dayrit, a Filipino nurse who worked at St Cross Hospital in Rugby, died on April 7. Donald Suelto, nurse The 51-year-old, who worked at Hammersmith Hospital in west London, died on April 7 after going into self-isolation with coronavirus symptoms. Alice Kit Tak Ong, nurse The 70-year-old, originally from Hong Kong, died on April 7 after 44 years of working for the NHS. She was described by her daughter Melissa as generous to everyone else before herself. Expand Close Alice Ong with her daughter Melissa (Courtesy of Melissa Ong) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Alice Ong with her daughter Melissa (Courtesy of Melissa Ong) Janice Graham, nurse The 58-year-old healthcare support worker from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde became the first nurse in Scotland to die as a result of the coronavirus pandemic on April 6. Syed Haider, GP The family doctor worked in Dagenham, east London, and died in hospital on April 6 after it is believed he developed coronavirus symptoms. Barbara Moore, patient discharge planner Expand Close Barbara Moore, 54, a patient discharge planner at Aintree University Hospital (Liverpool University Hospitals/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Barbara Moore, 54, a patient discharge planner at Aintree University Hospital (Liverpool University Hospitals/PA) Described as an unsung hero, the 54-year-old grandmother died on April 6, the Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said. Dr Alfa Saadu, doctor The 68-year-old, who had returned to work from retirement, died on April 6 at the Whittington Hospital in north London. Jitendra Rathod, surgeon A highly regarded associate specialist in cardiothoracic surgery at the University Hospital of Wales, Mr Rathod died on the morning of April 6. Expand Close Jitendra Rathod, a surgeon who died in Cardiff after testing positive for Covid-19 (Cardiff and Vale University Health Board) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jitendra Rathod, a surgeon who died in Cardiff after testing positive for Covid-19 (Cardiff and Vale University Health Board) Lynsay Coventry, midwife Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, announced the death of the 54-year-old the first involving a serving NHS midwife after testing positive for the virus on April 5. Emily Perugia, care worker A care co-ordinator in Hillingdon, north-west London, Ms Perugia was aged just 29 at the time of her death, which was confirmed on April 5. She was described by a colleague as a lovely woman, who never said no to any requests. Her mother, sister, brother and fiance all work for the same NHS trust she represented. Glen Corbin, nurse The 59-year-old had worked at the Park Royal Centre for Mental Health in Harlesden, north-west London, for more than 25 years and his Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust announced his death on April 4. Rebecca Mack, nurse Expand Close Rebecca Mack, left, 29, with friend Sarah Bredin-Kemp (Sarah Bredin Kemp/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rebecca Mack, left, 29, with friend Sarah Bredin-Kemp (Sarah Bredin Kemp/PA) The 29-year-old died on April 5, after going into self-isolation with symptoms. Her friend Sarah Bredin-Kemp said she was an incredible nurse. Liz Glanister, nurse Expand Close Staff nurse Liz Glanister (Family handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Staff nurse Liz Glanister (Family handout/PA) Aintree University Hospital said the staff nurse died on April 3, with her family describing the loss as simply beyond words. Dr Anton Sebastianpillai, consultant Expand Close Consultant geriatrician Anton Sebastianpillai (Handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Consultant geriatrician Anton Sebastianpillai (Handout/PA) The consultant geriatrician died on April 4, four days after being admitted to the intensive care unit and two weeks after completing his final shift on March 20, according to Kingston Hospital in south-west London. John Alagos, nurse The Mail On Sunday reported that the 27-year-old nurse, who treated coronavirus patients at Watford General Hospital, died after a shift on April 3. Areema Nasreen, nurse Aged 36, Ms Nasreen died on April 2 in intensive care at Walsall Manor Hospital in the West Midlands where she had worked for 16 years. Professor Mohamed Sami Shousha, researcher The professor, 79, who had worked at UK cancer research laboratories at Londons Hammersmith and Charing Cross hospitals since 1978, died on April 2. His nephew, Abdelrahman Shousha, said his uncle returned to work to help fight the virus despite his old age, adding: My uncle was characterised by his humbleness, virtue and his adamancy to help and serve, whether it be his family, friends, his colleagues or his students. Thomas Harvey, nurse Expand Close Thomas Harveys family said the Government had questions to answer over the lack of PPE for NHS staff (Handout/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Thomas Harveys family said the Government had questions to answer over the lack of PPE for NHS staff (Handout/PA) The healthcare assistant, 57, a father of seven who worked at Goodmayes Hospital in Ilford, east London, died at home on March 29. Dr Amged El-Hawrani, consultant Expand Close Amged El-Hawrani, was the first frontline NHS hospital worker to die after testing positive for coronavirus, according to NHS England (University Hospitals Derby and Burton) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Amged El-Hawrani, was the first frontline NHS hospital worker to die after testing positive for coronavirus, according to NHS England (University Hospitals Derby and Burton) An ear, nose and throat consultant with University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, the 55-year-old died at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester on March 28. Pooja Sharma, pharmacist Expand Close Pharmacist Pooja Sharma (East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Pharmacist Pooja Sharma (East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust/PA) Ms Sharma, a pharmacist at Eastbourne District General Hospital, died unexpectedly on March 26 according to a JustGiving page created in her memory. Dr Habib Zaidi, doctor Expand Close Dr Habib Zaidi, 76, was a GP in Leigh-on-Sea for more than 47 years (NHS Southend/PA) PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dr Habib Zaidi, 76, was a GP in Leigh-on-Sea for more than 47 years (NHS Southend/PA) The GP in Leigh-on-Sea died in intensive care at Southend Hospital, Essex, on March 25, aged 76. Dr Adil El Tayar, transplant surgeon The 63-year-old died at West Middlesex University Hospital in Isleworth, west London, on March 25, working as a locum surgeon before his death. Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Jung Eun-kyeong walks into a room to attend a coronavirus-related meeting hosted by Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Monday. Yonhap By Park Si-soo Another large-scale outbreak of coronavirus could take place in winter, South Korea's top health official has warned, asking people not to let their guard down until a vaccine and effective treatment are developed. Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Jung Eun-kyeong issued the warning at a Monday briefing, citing the patterns of surge-flattened-resurgence in bygone pandemics and many facets of virus information that are still left in the dark. "COVID-19 shows its ups and downs when it comes to infection power" Jung said. "Cold air normally provides a favorable environment for viruses to flourish, while people spend more time indoors in winter. If these happen at the same time, in the worst-case scenario, it could lead to a second outbreak of a coronavirus pandemic." Jung called this a "precaution scenario," saying many things were still unknown and with the existing data, it's hard to predict how the situation would unfold. "There were many cases in which patients only suffered light symptoms and recovered and also there were many who tested positive without any symptom," the director said. "We still don't know how many patients earned immunity to coronavirus after recovery, how strong it is and how long the immunity will last." She underscored the ongoing pandemic would be a "long-term game" that could last "for years to come" unless nations braced for a possible resurgence in winter and were thoroughly prepared. African Union flag The following is a statement of the African Union (AU) Labour Migration Advisory Committee (LMAC) on COVID-19 and conditions for African migrant workers. ED. The outbreak, in late 2019, of the novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), now labeled a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), is redefining humanity in ways we can only know after the virus is successfully defeated. The virus has disregarded status, class, race, religion, nationality, gender, creed and location and businesses, government operations. In addition, the world of work as well as individual and communal lives have been affected in profound and dire ways. Thousands have succumbed to the virus, and, on behalf of all members of the African Union (AU) Labour Migration Advisory Committee (LMAC), we extend our profound condolences to the families and nations in Africa and the world that have lost citizens and loved ones. We acknowledge and commend the important support and coordination of the efforts of member states by the Africa Center for Disease Control (Africa CDC) and the measures being taken by the Ministries of Labour of member states, the African Union Commission and RECs to address COVID-19 in the workplace. The AU LMAC is extremely concerned about the welfare of African migrant workers, refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) caught in the cross-fire of this current global health crisis. As countries increasingly adopt sweeping measures, thousands of vulnerable African labour migrants have become stranded in their different countries of work. Some are likely to fall victim to hardship, exploitation, and extortion in their desperate effort to return to their homes and families before the intensification of the on-going global containment measures. We are also concerned that the majority of migrant workers are most exposed to the possibility of infection, owing to squalid living conditions, inadequate workplace health and safety protection, and little or no social protection coverage. Domestic workers in particular, face a higher level of exposure to the contagion. Many workers across sectors and industries also survive on daily wages and will suffer huge wage losses due to the stoppage of economic activities. Families and dependents and countries are projected to equally suffer as remittances are hard hit. Recipient families are in dire need of remittances in these COVID-19 hard times, as they help in social expenditures of beneficiaries, in particular their healthcare costs. The coronavirus pandemic has also adversely affected many business operations in Africa. There are real threats to the collapse of some businesses and the risk of job losses, including those of migrant workers. It is noticed that the majority of migrant workers are found in the informal economy, most of the time as self-employed offering jobs to nationals in the country of destination, or in agriculture as seasonal workers. Women Cross Border Traders play a significant role in promoting intra-African trade, contributing significantly to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Given that the social security system does not cover workers in these sectors, migrant workers are left to their own devices in facing COVID-19's impact. The AU LMAC, therefore, calls upon the AUC, RECs, member states, social partners' organizations and the international community to strategically consider and implement measures to mitigate against businesses collapse, jobs and income losses. In the near future, member states are encouraged to put in place unemployment insurance plans and to extend social security to workers in the informal economy and rural sectors. Whilst we are very much encouraged by statements and measures taken so far by several regional economic communities and member states within the continent to this pandemic, it should be noted, however, that most do not comprehensively take into account the millions of migrants, refugees and IDPs in Africa. Countries can craft strategies on how to incorporate migrants within their COVID-19 responses, using the interim guidance released by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee. Further, we call on African governments in the post-COVID-19 era to carefully look at and renegotiate the different Labour Migration Agreements that they may have signed, with the view of ensuring the enjoyment by migrant workers of adequate health and safety, social protection and portability, and other human and labour rights protections. Parliaments are essential in framing the right legislative response needed to address the social and economic impact of the COVID-19, including facilitation measures to support workers, employers and the post-COVID-19 economic recovery. We recognize the engagement of civil society organizations, workers and employers organizations in complementing the efforts of the governments. Accordingly, therefore, the AU LMAC calls for the pursuit of coordinated and coherent mitigation and recovery measures at the global level. Whilst we note and commend the initiatives by various governments, countries, regions and social partners' organizations, the failure to adopt a robust and comprehensive global approach may lead to short-term outcomes that may create and exacerbate the vulnerability of many migrant workers. This is the time for the expression of genuine and practical global compassion and solidarity. ECOWAS through the West African Health Organization (WAHO) is providing technical and financial support to member states from its own resources, in addition to assistance from international partners. We commend all other RECs efforts in providing essential support to their respective member states to prevent and mitigate the effects of the pandemic. Finally, we urge all persons, especially IDPs, refugees and migrant workers to observe and comply with the standard public health guidelines for the containment of COVID-19 and other progressive measures by governments. Importantly, we appeal to everyone to avoid fear but to embrace caution. The charges against Masarat Zahra, a woman photojournalist from Kashmir, under the Unlawful (Activites )Prevention, Act have attracted strong criticism from journalists and activists, who have alleged that registering the case amounts to intimidation and silencing of the press. The charges against Masarat Zahra, a woman photojournalist from Kashmir, under the Unlawful (Activites )Prevention, Act have attracted strong criticism from journalists and activists, who have alleged that registering the case amounts to intimidation and silencing of the press. Zahra was booked under the UAPA for uploading anti-national posts with criminal intention to induce the youth and promote offence against public tranquillity, reported The Indian Express. According to the report, a statement issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Police on Monday said that a case has been registered against Masrat Zahra under section of 13 UA(P) Act and 505-IPC in Cyber Police Station, Kashmir Zone. "Cyber Police Station received information through reliable sources that one Facebook user namely Masrat Zahra is uploading anti-national posts with criminal intention to induce the youth and to promote offences against public tranquillity, said the statement The Facebook user is also believed to be uploading photographs which can provoke the public to disturb law and order. The user is also uploading posts that tantamount to glorify the anti-national activities and dent the image of law enforcing agencies besides causing disaffection against the country," it added. Zahra's work, which focuses on women and children in conflict areas, has previously appeared in publications such as Al Jazeera, the Quint and Washington Post and received accolades. In a piece she wrote for Al Jazeera in January this year, Zahra says that her work is driven by a desire to document the conflict in Kashmir through a woman's perspective - her own and that of the women around her. This is one of Masrat Zahras most striking photographs. Great work. A woman protestor applied salt on her face, to protect herself from the teargas smoke during a clashes that erupted after Friday prayers in Kashmir. November, 2019. pic.twitter.com/zF4xKoOmyc Mirza Waheed (@MirzaWaheed) April 20, 2020 "I think all my pictures reflect day-to-day life in my homeland. In a conflict zone like ours, every picture in its own way, even in this beautiful Himalayan landscape, describes the tragedy of Kashmir. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict, most of them civilians," she wrote in Al Jazeera. While police haven't specified which post of hers has attracted the charges, a report in ThePrint quoted police officials citing a picture post she tweeted from her 2019 article in The New Humanitarian. Arifa Jan suffers frequent panic attacks nearly 2 decades after her husband was gunned down by Indian army in 2000,she can still hear the gunshots and sees her husbands blood-soaked body when she thinks of him,There were 18 bullet holes and I still remember how deep they were." pic.twitter.com/QOw2wHzllU Masrat Zahra (@Masratzahra) April 17, 2020 Zahra told Scroll that she was summoned to the Cyber Police Station on Saturday but was not informed of the charges against her. Since there was a lockdown and I didnt have a curfew pass, I told them (the police) that I cannot come immediately, Zahra said. They pressurised me to come but I didnt go. They didnt mention a first information report. The journalist added that she had come to know about the FIR through social media posts on Monday.Early today (Monday) morning, I saw some tweets doing rounds that a woman journalist has been booked under UAPA, she said. The police didnt call me directly to inform me about the FIR. I came to know about it from my colleagues," she said. She told The Print that the case was an attempt to silence her as she has been working to bring out the stories which are sought to be hidden. I am among the very few female photojournalists in Kashmir and have been working really hard to learn and to create my space for the past four years. They (police) want to silence me. They want to suppress me as I bring out the repressed voices and stories of Kashmir, she said. According to a report in The Indian Express, Zahra isn't the first journalist in Kashmir to be booked under the UAPA. Asif Sultan, an assistant editor with the Kashmir Narrator was booked and arrested under the draconian law in 2018 for a story on slain Hizbul Mujaheedin commander Burhan Wani, for which he had interviewed Wani's associates. According to the report, Sultan was booked for allegedly providing logistical support to a banned militant organisation and is still under detention. However, an amendment to the UAPA last year widened the scope of the Act to allow the government to designate both individuals and organisations as terrorists and gave the NIA powers to seize the properties of individuals booked under the Act. Persons charged under the Act can be imprisoned for a period of seven years. The amendments to the Act raised fears that the it would give the ruling dispensation unfettered powers to curb the right to dissent and pleas challenging the amendment on the grounds that it violates Article 14 of the Constitution were filed in the Supreme Court. Subsequently, social media users in Kashmir who used Virtual Private Networks to circumvent the ban on social media sites in the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370, were also booked under the Act for "misusing social media". Journalists and activists have taken to Twitter to condemn the framing of charges against the photojournalist under the stringent Act, which has also been previously used against human rights activists such Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde, who were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection to the Elgaar Praishad case. Stay strong @Masratzahra and continue the good work. JKP Cyber Crime is headed by an over-enthusiastic cop who wants to get noticed by the Centre. More power to you. And may this attack give your work more visibility and recognition.https://t.co/daH0C4yDMD Shehla Rashid (@Shehla_Rashid) April 20, 2020 Kashmir -based journalists have condemned the charged under the anti-terrorism law, calling them outrageous and expressed solidarity withe their colleague. Masrat Zahra, a professional photojournalist, has honestly told stories of Kashmir in 4-year career. Invoking UAPA is outrageous. In solidarity with our colleague, we demand FIR withdrawn. Journalism isnt crime. Censorship wont silence Kashmirs journalists.#standwithmasrat pic.twitter.com/BW6QWXAztx Azaan Javaid (@AzaanJavaid) April 20, 2020 Masrat Zahra, a Kashmiri photojournalist, has told stories of strife in valley for years. Notice her working, among her male colleagues, you will feel proud. Police in Kashmir has invoked UAPA against her for posting a picture. This is outrageous. https://t.co/t0hFjVgBTd pic.twitter.com/OCabr73GQu Sameer Yasir (@sameeryasir) April 20, 2020 The Network of Women in Media, India has called for the withdrawal of the FIR against the photojournalist, saying that they amount amount to "rank intimidation of a journalist." "Her special sensitivity towards the plight of women living under conflict in one of the most highly militarised zones in the world has been featured in both national and international publications of repute. Even a cursory look at Masrat Zahras Facebook account reveal that her stories and photographs are deeply empathetic and accurate reports of the ground reality. Photographs do not lie but her exceptional work as a photojournalist obviously causes discomfort among the powers that be," said a statement issued by the NWMI. The Kashmir Press Club has released a statement condemning the charges against Zahra and other incidents of intimidation of journalists in Kashmir and has asked for Home Minsiter Amit Shah to intervene. The Kashmir Press Club statement on FIR against @Masratzahra and summons to @peerashiq. pic.twitter.com/THSf2R4Yfa Ishfaq Tantry (@ishfaqtantry) April 20, 2020 "It is very unfortunate that when the world is in a grip of pandemic and when we need to stand together to combat the COVID-19, police has started filing cases against journalists and harassing them," it said. "This is unacceptable for journalists of Kashmir who are well within their rights to seek freedom of expression and speech as guaranteed under the constitution like other parts of the country." These poignant images are the closest British father Mark Templeton gets to see his newborn baby - after his girlfriend gave birth 1,750 miles away during the coronavirus lockdown. Mark's partner Valerie, 34, lives in the former Soviet republic of Moldova and went into labour when he was due to visit her for the birth of their child. Now the 47-year old father is unable to hold his son Luke for the first time due to coronavirus travel restrictions. Mark is a director of communications for a housing organisation in Northfleet, Kent, and has to settle for virtual Zoom meetings to see his baby. British father Mark Templeton, 47, is forced to bond with his newborn son Luke over Zoom as his partner Valerie, 34, gave birth 1,750 miles away in Moldova Mark, whose son was born on April 14, said: 'My baby is stuck in Moldova and I really cannot wait to hold him for the very fist time. 'Valerie lives over there. I met her when she lived over here for two years. She moved back out there when here visa expired, but nine months ago we didn't even think we would be in a situation like this. 'I had a flight lined up and then all of a sudden the Moldovan government announced they were banning all international flights. 'I just couldn't get a flight in. That was in mid-March. 'I had a look at various options, whether I could get there on the train, whether I could get there by road even, which would have been a three or four day journey but I was quite willing to do that - but they shut all their borders.' 'Thank god for video technology': Valerie gave birth to her son in Moldova on April 14. Mr Templeton tried to get a flight over there but couldn't get in any way he tried The expectant mother had to give birth on her own as the hospital was on lockdown but neither Valerie or the baby contracted coronavirus. He said: 'The baby was delivered OK, but my girlfriend had to deliver the baby on her own - she couldn't even take her mum in with her because the hospital is on lockdown. 'It was all fine, she was home within 24 hours and tested negative for coronavirus when she was at hospital. 'The baby hasn't got it either so we are grateful for that. 'It's absolutely horrible - thank god for video technology these days! 'If this was even 10 or 15 years ago we would have been doing it by letter or something with printed pictures, so thank god for that.' He booked another flight for mid-May but does not know if the flight will be cancelled, stopping him from seeing his baby for even longer. Mark, from Northfleet, Kent, misses holding his newborn son and can only see him in mid-May, when he has a flight booked, due to the state of emergency in Moldova Moldova is in a state of emergency and closed everything down as soon as it had its first few confirmed cases. Moldova now has 2,548 confirmed cases, 478 recovered and 68 deaths. Valerie was working in Moldova as a translator for an American company but is on maternity leave with her newborn baby. Mark said: 'I miss holding him and not being able to touch him and seeing him. 'I can see him pretty well on video but it is not the same as that human contact. 'We get by, we video maybe five, six, seven times a day and talk, but it's just not the same. 'I've got no criticism of the lockdown at all, I don't blame the Moldovan government for what they are doing and I don't blame our government for what they are doing.' Luke is Mark's second child as he also has a seven-year old boy. Valerie also has a seven-year old and Mark said the two brothers 'get on like a house on fire'. Mark and Valerie were due to get married in March but had to cancel their intimate plans after Mark could not get a flight out. They want to get married 'as soon as possible' this year He said: 'It sounds awful but there are far worse stories than ours out there. 'People are dying, you've got to put it in perspective. 'No one in our family has died, we are all safe and that's the main thing you know. 'The fact I can't see him is awful for me but that's just a very personal thing.' In other coronavirus news: The coronavirus death toll has gone down again from 596 to 450, the lowest toll in a fortnight Prince Philip issued a statement saying 'I want to recognise the vital and urgent work being done by so many to tackle the pandemic', thanking medical workers, scientists, key workers and volunteers Rishi Sunak said more than 140,000 companies employing more than one million people applied for emergency Government aid to pay workers wages in just eight hours today Oxford University Professor Carl Heneghan said the UK's outbreak peaked back in March but ministers had 'lost sight' of the scientific evidence and panicked about lockdown. He hailed Sweden for 'holding its nerve' - the country has stayed open for business as usual Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has defended his decision to argue the four-day Cheltenham Festival should have gone ahead MPs could be able to vote on new laws without setting foot in the House of Commons for the first time under coronavirus measures being planned for the return of Parliament this week. Mark and Valerie were due to get married in March, but their wedding was also cancelled when Mark was unable to get to Moldova. They had planned a small wedding with close family and still plan to get married 'as soon as possible' this year. He said: 'It's awful for both me and my girlfriend, because we were due to get married as well in March but that had to be cancelled as well. 'We did all the stuff you had to do over here which was register it in a registry office and all that, we got all the paperwork ready, and she got it translated and then it was just a no go because I couldn't make it out there. 'It's not like we've gone to great expense or anything it was just a case of paying for the public hall. 'We wanted to get it all tidied up before the little one came along but it's one of those things. It can't happen. 'But there's far worse - all those people that lost their lives you just feel so sorry for them. I just feel like my story is quite small in comparison.' A life science software company in Belfast has won funding which it said will help it boost product development and grow customer numbers in Europe and the US. Overwatch, which is based on Ormeau Avenue, has closed a funding round in which it's won investment, led by Techstart Ventures and other private investors in the Halo Business Angel Network. And it's claimed the success of the funding round demonstrated the attraction of high-potential start-ups despite economic uncertainty. Overwatch specialises in software to make drug development processes easier for pharmaceutical companies by reducing errors and inefficiencies. The company says its work can help address the high rate of failure of clinical trials. It offers a complete software package which it says can free up scientists from spreadsheets, and enable them to produce reliable data to inform the drug discovery process. Overwatch has a portfolio of customers and partnerships on both sides of the Atlantic, helping pharmaceutical companies develop drugs for some of the world's most prominent diseases including cancer and Alzheimer's. Overwatch chief executive, Dr Chris Armstrong, said: "We are delighted to close this investment round and look forward to pursuing ambitious targets relating to both product and sales. "We are especially thankful to both Techstart and our private investors for supporting us during this unprecedented time of economic uncertainty. "This funding will enable us to develop our relationship with current customers and establish new professional partnerships within the pharmaceutical and contract research industries." John Murray, Techstart Ventures' investment director, said: "The Overwatch solution solves problems confronting researchers and was borne out of Chris' own experience as a cancer researcher. "Chris and his co-founders, Paul and Graham Wilsdon, have built a world-class product that is now being used in both Europe and the USA to help researchers ultimately find cures for disease. We're delighted to support the Overwatch team as they enter an exciting new growth phase." HBAN representative, Chris Trotter, said: "Overwatch attracted significant interest among our investor group who recognised the potential for innovative software in the drug development process. The team have an exciting journey ahead as they execute an ambitious international growth plan." BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend: The total number of coronavirus infected people in Uzbekistan rose to 1543, Trend reports on April 20 with reference to the Ministry of Health. To date, 225 people in the country have fully recovered from the coronavirus infection, five have died. Since April 1, Uzbekistan announced a self-isolation regime in Tashkent, the capital, as well as in Nukus and other regional centers. Citizens over 65 are categorically prohibited from leaving their homes. They can go out only to visit pharmacies and shops near their respective places of residence. The first case of coronavirus infection in Uzbekistan was detected on March 15 in the laboratory of the Research Institute of Virology; it was an Uzbek woman who returned from France. The Ministry of Health later announced that her son, daughter, husband and grandson also tested coronavirus-positive. The outbreak of the coronavirus began in the Chinese city of Wuhan (an international transport hub), at a fish market in late December 2019. The number of people killed by the disease has surpassed 165,000. Over 2.4 million people have been confirmed as infected, over 624,000 have reportedly recovered. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019. --- Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini Seychelles, Sri Lanka to discuss illegal fishing after third vessel is intercepted by Daniel Laurence April 20,2020 | Source: Seychelles News Agency The Seychelles Fisheries Authority (SFA) is discussing new approaches to deter illegal fishing in its waters after a third Sri Lankan vessel was intercepted last week, said a top official. "The new approach will see the government of both countries discussing common ground to deter these illegal activities from taking place in the Seychelles' waters," SFA's interim chief executive, Cyril Bonnelame, told SNA on Thursday. Bonnelame said that discussions started in the past but nothing came out of it and now that "these activities are becoming more frequent, we need to put something together to take action." The Sri Lankan High Commission in Seychelles told SNA it was not immediately in a position to comment in more details about the discussions. Three Sri Lankan-registered fishing boats have been intercepted by the Seychelles Coast Guard on suspicion of illegal fishing this year. The third vessel was intercepted earlier this week as a result of coordinated maritime operations which have been stepped up as part of the national plan to combat the spread of COVID-19. Bonnelame said that the cases of two previous vessels are still in court. The illegal activities are also having a financial impact on Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean. "All these procedures of going to court, giving the detainees food and repatriating them are very costly for the country. Therefore, we need to find ways to deter the activity from happening in the first place if we do not want to incur the cost that comes with it," he said. Seychelles has a vast Exclusive Economic Zone of 1.4 million square kilometres which presents a challenge when it comes to the monitoring of illegal activities in its waters. Seychelles News Agency, 2020 Theme(s): Fishing Craft, Gear and Fishing Methods. Pune, Apr 20 ( UNI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said the Palghar mob lynching incident in which two saints and their driver were killed, was not communal and warned of strict action against those giving it a communal colour. I am saying this with complete humility and with full responsibility that there is no communal incident in his. It happened due to a misunderstanding.' Referring to criticism of his government's handling of the situation, Mr Thackeray said that such incidents had happened earlier in Maharashtra too. People are asking what action have we taken in this incident. We have taken action. We are not sitting idle. We have arrested 100 people, nine of them are minors. We have arrested the five prime accused. Rest assured, we will not spare any of them. The Chief Minister also hinted that the Dadra Nagar Haveli under the Centres administration should bear some blame for the incident as the men were going to Gujarat and were turned away from Dadra Nagar Haveli. The Dadar Nagar Haveli authorities perhaps should not have turned them away and should have in stead kept them or sent them home during the day break, there should have been co ordination, he said. He said the state government would not tolerate any attempt to give the incident a communal colour and said that that the government is keeping a watch on those who "are trying to light a communal fire" to this incident. The CM said he had spoken to Home Minister Amit Shah who "agrees that there was nothing communal" in the incident. He said his UP counterpart Yogi Adityanath had also called him up to inquire about the incident. UNI SP SB 1707 ABC News Tennis world No. 1 Novak Djokovic is apologizing for an "error of judgement" related to an in-person interview he conducted last month after being exposed to COVID-19 as he continues to fight to stay in Australia and compete in the first major of the year. Djokovic, who is tied for first all time with 20 major wins, released a new statement Wednesday midday local time in Melbourne explaining the timeline of several public appearances around when he tested positive for COVID in December -- which he says should allow him to compete in the Australian Open despite apparently not being vaccinated. "I want to address the continuing misinformation about my activities and attendance at events in December leading up to my positive PCR COVID test result," he wrote in an Instagram post. In South Korea, the government went further, opting to lift closure advisories related to high-risk venues such as churches, bars and sporting facilities. South Koreas death toll from the coronavirus stood at 236 Monday evening, making its fatality rate one of the lowest among countries with major outbreaks. The number of new infections in South Korea was below 100 for the 19th day in a row on Monday. WTI oil price tumbled to their lowest level in more than two decades as the global demand hit from the coronavirus pandemic raised concerns the world is becoming awash with crude that it does not have enough room to store. Analysts said the latest fall in prices, which came ahead of the imminent expiry of a heavily traded futures contract, could put fresh pressure on producers to further reduce supply, The FT reported. In Asian trading on Monday, West Texas Intermediate plunged as much as 21% to $14.47 a barrel, its lowest level since 1999. It later pared some of those losses, trading down 18.6% at $14.87. Oil prices have plummeted this year on the possibility that the coronavirus outbreak will cause a deep global recession. The number of Covid-19 infections worldwide topped 2.4m as of Monday, according to Johns Hopkins data, with more than 165,000 dead. Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump sparred with state governors over plans to reopen the worlds largest economy. The deepening fall in oil prices has come despite an Opec-backed deal to cut roughly 10% of global crude supply. Reductions of varying magnitude are planned to run until April 2022 as part of efforts to stabilise prices. Mondays fall was driven by the imminent expiration of the WTI futures contract for May delivery. Contracts for WTI delivery in June by comparison were down by a smaller 6.1% at $23.51. Signs of curtailed U.S. supply have done little to boost prices. Baker Hughes data on Friday showed that the number of oil rigs in the U.S. has dropped by more than a third over the past month. Brent crude was down 3% at $27.23 a barrel on Monday in Asia. We recently reported on Vijay Sethupathi walking out of Allu Arjun's Pushpa. Citing date issue, the makers had roped in Sandalwood actor Dhananjay to essay the role, which was earlier bestowed to the Tamil actor. Well as per a new rumour, Vijay was not happy with the Telugu movie getting a release in the Tamil language. Known for playing lead roles in Kollywood, the actor was doubtful whether the movie would affect his rousing career after playing the villain in the Allu Arjun starrer. It is also said that Vijay was not aware of the poster release of Pushpa in 5 different languages- Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada, and Tamil on the occasion of the Stylish Star's birthday. Vijay is said to have asked the makers to drop him from the Tamil version of the movie, but Allu Arjun was persistent for the release, which eventually vexed the Tamil actor, giving him no other option than quitting the film.Talking about the film, the highly awaited film Pushpa is being directed by Rangasthalam director Sukumar. Touted to be a full-blown entertainer, the movie will have south diva Rashmika Mandanna essaying the female lead. The movie will revolve around the story of sandalwood smuggling wherein Allu Arjun will essay the role of a smuggler and also a lorry driver.The thriller will also feature Prakash Raj, Suniel Shetty, Jagapati Babu, Harish Uthaman, Vennela Kishore, and Anasuya Bharadwaj in pivotal roles. Bankrolled by Mythri Movie Makers, the thriller has music composed by Devi Sri Prasad. Not Vijay Sethupathi, This Sandalwood Actor Will Essay A Crucial Role In Allu Arjun's Pushpa Over the past week, the International Youth and Students for Social Equality has spoken with numbers of international students across Australia about the dire circumstances they confront amid the coronavirus pandemic and unprecedented economic slump. The state and federal governments have refused to provide the estimated half a million international students in the country with any support. Instead Prime Minister Scott Morrison told them to go home. Many have said that they are effectively trapped in Australia and face the prospect of homelessness and abject poverty. A Pakistani student at Victoria University in Melbourne, explained: I work at Uber eats. I survive on very little money, you wouldnt believe it. I might get $300 per week. It fluctuates a lot. Friday, Saturday and Sunday used to be the busiest days, now it has changed. He spoke on the conditions of international students in shared accommodation. I live in a house with five other people. I know some students that are Indian in different areas. Four or five live together and they are all working cash-in-hand jobs. They are offered $10 an hour when the minimum wage is supposed to be $20. The student said university authorities had done nothing to assist them: Victoria University just sent a message saying they value us, after Scott Morrisons announcement that we should go home. We sell everything before coming here; we work; we think it will be a dream. We are only allowed to work 20 hours. If you have mental health issues you might get sent back. We come from third world countries and the amount we have to spend is not small. We are treated as cash cows and we dont have any rights. It was my dream to have a software start-up but even if they like my idea they wont take it on because I am not a permanent resident. So we just get stuck working as taxi drivers forever. Pakistani education consultants mislead you and misinform you. They tell me that if you sell your land and come here, you will live the dream. They lie and you only realise when you get here what its really like, but then it is too late. Speaking on the lack of access for medical and health services for international students he stated: I have international insurance, which you need to get as a student. I got sick not long ago, with cluster headaches. The ambulance took me two or three kilometres and they charged me $2,000. A recently graduated Information Systems student at the University of Melbourne, and originally from China, said the Australian government, will not help international students. If they dont have money, it is better to go home, according to Morrison. She said that the only help that she had received from the Chinese government was a pack from the embassy. It included a mask and several other basic household and food items, but no financial assistance. The student explained that she had held two casual jobs as a barista and a cashier, but has had no shifts since both the cafe and shop at which she worked shut. After graduation she had begun looking for full-time work in Australia. She said she was looking at some graduate programs with big companies, but they are no longer hiring because they are cutting their staff. In response to Morrisons call for international students to go home she explained that one of my friends looked at flights to China and found that the next available flight is at the end of May because the Chinese government is restricting flights from overseas. A lot of Chinese people want to go back home because they dont have a positive future where they are and want to go home. But they cant because of the restrictions. The IYSSE also spoke with a Masters student in Architecture at the University of Melbourne, who was also from China and wished to remain anonymous. He explained that he has received no financial assistance from the Chinese government and explained, Because I am not in China Ive not received anything. If I were in China, Id be getting assistance. He said Morrison telling international students to go home was the typical reaction from the Australian governments. The government was already complaining that there are too many international studentsespecially from Chinain this country, so they dont care. On the targeting of Chinese students, he said: It used to be the most right-wing media [in Australia], but recently even the ABC [Australian Broadcasting Corporation] really started to target Chinese students. He said there was minimal health care support for students, but I dont knowif I contract COVID-19 and have to go to hospitalhow much money I will have to pay. I dont know if my insurance will cover this cost. A University of Melbourne commerce student from India said that she has not been helped by the Australian or Indian governments. She works at the Subway chain, which has not closed its restaurants, but has not had a shift in over two weeks. The student said that without work, her financial situation is not good. I do have some money saved up, but with no income I am spending my savings on regular expensesgroceries, rent, etc. Now, I will not have any money after I use up my savings. She explained that Indian citizens can still return to India if they choose but are forced to undergo 14-day quarantining upon arrival. Even if we go back, it will disrupt our studies. They [the university] are not doing anything about the assessments. They expect us to do all of the assignments and assessments but that becomes impossible if we have to go back. The university has a special payment where you can receive a small amount, she continued, but you have to show that you are currently facing problems financially. If I approached them now [because of her savings] I wouldnt get it. She added: We [international students] are just as much a part of the university as the domestic students and they should keep our interests in mind as well. I didnt pay five times the domestic students fees to listen to online lectures which are disrupted, in which the professors voice is crackling and where Im not able to listen to what is being said. They have to do something about this. Its fine if it goes online but there has to be a certain quality standard. Hosseini, a researcher studying Mechanical Engineering at Newcastle University said: I have a contract position at the university but I know many friends and fellow students from Iran who have lost their casual jobs and it is a big problem. They cant go back, they cant find a job to get paid, plus they dont get support from the government because they are foreign students. The prime minister has said openly that there will be no support for international students! Families back home cant help either because the currency has dropped 400 percent due to American sanctions. Even if family members back home are working on a salary, their income is not enough to support people living in Australia. A student from Zimbabwe studying engineering at Newcastle University said: Im talking to friends in the US and the UK about whats happening here and about what the government is doing to international students and its happening there as well. Asked whether he is receiving financial support he said: We are getting no assistance from the government and nothing is coming from Zimbabwe either. Im lucky enough to have a family which can provide for me, though most people dont have this. Many people I know have lost their jobs, their main source of income. They havent received any substitute whatsoever. There are very few who are wealthy enough to properly support themselves at university. Entire families have had to spend their whole entire savings to send their children here. The courses for us can cost up to $130,000 to 150,000. Commenting on the cost of returning home, he said, The government has done nothing, we havent received any compensation or concession for plane tickets so that we can afford it. I know students who have spent their entire savings just to go back home, plane tickets are like double the price. Its ridiculous that the [universities] get billions from international students and then turn around and say we cant support you. This could have been prevented, that is the truth. Governments are providing billions and even trillions of dollars to the banks and corporations. Why nothing for us? Cinemas from all over the world have joined the crowdfunding campaign to save Cineciutat in Palma. They include: Loft in Tucson, Arizona; Kino Movimento in Berlin, Picture House at Hebden Bridge, UK; Cinema Galleries in Brussels; CinemaItalia in Belluno; Numax Cinema in Santiago and many others who are now part of Salvem CineCiutat with some making financial contributions and others promoting the campaign in their communities. New Rewards for Participants A Spokesperson for Cineciutat says they're "overwhelmed with gratitude" particularly by the actions taken by Duplex Cinema, in Ferrol, in Galicia and Cinemes Girona and Zumzeig Cine-Cooperativa in Barcelona who have given CineCiutat a series of annual bonuses in the form of rewards, which were added to the crowdfunding campaign on Monday. There are a bunch of benefits for anyone who buys the rewards in Ferrol for 35 euros or in Barcelona for either 50 or 59 euros, to help save CineCiutat. Duplex has offered two units which include; an annual subscription for the project with cinema tickets for four euros, a free welcome ticket, a free ticket for every ten visits, a reduced ticket at Numax; a tote bag; and their name on the list of thanks for saving CineCiutat, all for 35 euros. Zumzeig is providing two units which include; an annual 'Friend of Zumzeig' Card, six tickets for the cinema and discounts on other tickets, promotions and discounts at the bar and related entities, membership of the Assembly of Friends of the Zumzeig; a tote bag and their name on the list of thanks for saving CineCiutat, all for 50 euros. Cinemes Girona is offering two units which include; an annual subscription 'El Club' until July 31, 2021, premieres for 5.50 euros, Casa Asia screenings for one euro, discounts for opera and ballet tickets; a tote bag and their name on the list of thanks for saving CineCiutat, all for 59 euros. Kevin Magnussen says he is "completely open" to returning to McLaren or Renault. The Dane currently races for Haas, whose owner Gene Haas was already thinking about pulling out of Formula 1 even before the coronavirus crisis. Magnussen told BT newspaper that he knows his chances of moving to a top three team are low, but the teams below them - McLaren and Renault - he knows well. The 27-year-old made his F1 debut for McLaren in 2014, but was sidelined for 2015. The following year, he drove for Renault before switching to Haas. "My history with those two teams doesn't scare me," Magnussen said. "I am completely open to all possibilities. "Although I had some tough times with Renault and McLaren, I have great respect for both of them. "I was put on the bench at McLaren and it was really tough, but it's the team that gave me my chance in Formula 1, and I'm still very grateful for that." And although his stay at Renault was also short-lived, Magnussen said he still has great respect for the French team. "Renault was the one that gave me another chance when I was actually smoked out of Formula 1, so I can't thank them enough," he insisted. "What happened? It is what it is. But for my part, there are no burned bridges to McLaren or Renault, and I think it's the same from their side too. In both cases, the leadership of the teams has changed anyway," Magnussen added. Alfa Romeo might be another potential new team for Magnussen. "Fred Vasseur was the boss when I drove at Renault when the atmosphere was quite tense, but today we meet with high fives everywhere," he said. (GMM) A photographer has created a hilarious series of 'hound the world' holidays from his pet portraits as lockdown keeps us all stuck indoors and unable to travel. Mark Taylor's company Warren Photographic is usually busy providing portraits for animal owners at his studios in Guildford. But with current government measures to aid the country's fight against Covid-19 , Mark has been unable to work as normal as his subjects are confined to their homes. So Mark decided to combine his love of travel with his life work, and created an uplifting portfolio showing pets 'visiting' famous locations around the world. British pet photographer Mark Taylor combined his love of travel with his life work, and created an uplifting portfolio showing pets 'visiting' iconic locations around the world. Pictured: a dog taking a lockdown world tour of Stonehenge in England Another of Mark's images shows a dog taking a lockdown world tour of the Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park, USA This sweet image shows a Yorkshire Terrier taking a lockdown world tour of Angkor Wat in Cambodia From a trip to Kitty-manjaro to walkies at Bone-henge, Mark's pictures feature popular landmarks from around the world. He explained: 'I love travelling, but now, like everyone else, I won't be doing that for a while. 'With my white background photography I like to experiment, and I thought why not bring the world to the studio and give people something fun to look at during lockdown? 'I've tried to use some of the most iconic places around the world people love to visit. Mark's pictures feature popular landmarks from around the world. Pictured: a cat enjoying a lockdown tour of the Pyramids in Egypt This jolly little Jack Russell is seen 'visiting' the iconic Machu Picchu in South America This furry puss was treated to a lockdown trip to Mount Rushmore, USA - and possibly treated to a makeshift wig, too Another of Mark's amusing shots shows a cool cat enjoying a lockdown session on Ipanema Beach in Brazil 'For me one I really like is Angkor Wat, or in this case "Angkor Mutt", because I've been there with my partner and daughter and we had a lovely time. 'The Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park is also a wonderful place I've been, so that would be up there as a favourite. 'I've not been to Easter Island, but I do like the way the rabbit photo I've used works with statues on that image. And of course, it's Easter. 'There are lots of locations that are probably on my bucket list of places to go.' This adorable puppy was treated to a lockdown trip to the Sydney Opera House in Australia Cats on tour! Mark used active shots of cats from his archive to create hilarious images showing them 'snowboarding' and 'wind surfing' in exotic locations For this Golden Retriever puppy, the logical choice for its lockdown holiday was the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco It's Kitty-majaro! Mark used a backdrop of the majestic mountain in Tanzania for this sweet shot of a kitten Next up on this pup's lockdown 'hound the world' tour was the Statue of Liberty in New York Egypts Ministry of Religious Endowments suspended its official spokesperson Ahmed El-Kady on Sunday after he agreed to a proposal made by TV presenter Ahmed Moussa that the ministry would study a suggestion to allow the holding of prayers in mosques during Ramadan without the attendance of worshippers The spokesman made the comments in a phone interview with Moussa during his night talk show on Sada El-Balad channel. Moussa suggested that Egypt follow in the footsteps of Saudi Arabia, which will allow Taraweeh prayers without the attendance of worshippers during Ramadan in Mecca and Medina, which are under lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. The spokesperson explained that although the ministry welcomes the idea, such a decision cannot be taken without first being studied. The TV host pushed for the implementation of the decision, saying that hearing the prayers from their homes would allow citizens to feel the spirit of the holy month. The spokesperson was relieved of duty immediately after his phone statements with Moussa while the show was still on the air. In a statement, Minister of Endowments Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa said that the spokespersons statements are not reflective of the ministrys stance. Egypt ordered the closure of mosques and churches on 21 March for two weeks in a move aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus. The closure was extended indefinitely at the end of March. Egyptian authorities have said that all congregational religious activities, including communal prayers in mosques, will continue to be suspended during Ramadan. Gaber Tayei, the head of the Ministrys Religious Affairs Department, said in phone statements to another Egyptian talk show that the spokespersons statements are completely false and do not represent the ministry, adding that the ministry has not even discussed such a possibility. Such statements are embarrassing. We [religious authorities] are the most keen on having mosques return to operating regularly and with the attendance of worshippers, but only under the suitable health conditions, which in this case would be after the virus recedes and the safety of worshippers is guaranteed, Tayei said. Tayei also questioned the benefit of having imams perform prayers at mosques without the attendance of worshippers. The spokesperson has been immediately relieved of duty for not checking with the ministry and making statements that could create confusion, he said. Egypt has registered 3,144 coronavirus cases and 239 fatalities since the first coronavirus case was discovered in mid-February. Over 1,000 of the cases were registered over the past week alone. Egypts Dar Al-Ifta also warned on Sunday against calls on social media to hold the Ramadan mass evening prayers, or Taraweeh, on roofs amid the coronavirus pandemic. Dar Al-Ifta, the body responsible for issuing religious edicts, called on Muslims to perform the Taraweeh prayers at home. Search Keywords: Short link: Some beaches in North Carolina have started to reopen, reported the News Observer, Raleigh, N.C. Although a few beaches in the state remained open, the decision to close or limit access to many of the states beaches was done in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. Related: Outer Banks beaches are being overrun - not with tourists but seashells: reports While North Carolinas statewide stay-at-home order is still in place, some towns have decided to reopen their beaches for area residents -- with restrictions. Surf City -- All 36 public -- All 36 public beach accesses reopened in Surf City on Saturday. Because Gov. Roy Coopers stay-at-home order is still in effect, public restrooms and public parking will stay closed, and short-term rentals are also still banned until May 15 (unless rescinded). Beach goers must still adhere to social distancing guidelines, and beach patrol will be present. Emerald Isle -- The town of Emerald Isle said Thursday it has -- The town of Emerald Isle said Thursday it has lifted restrictions on beach access to residents. Residents and property owners are allowed to go to the beach for normal activities, but must follow social distancing guidelines. Tourists are strongly discouraged from coming to the area. All public parking and restrooms will remain closed, and all short-term rental restrictions are still in place. Atlantic Beach -- Water and ocean access in Atlantic Beach -- Water and ocean access in Atlantic Beach reopened Friday for town residents and property owners, as well as residents of Carteret County. Visitors are still not allowed on beaches. Beachgoers must practice social distancing, groups larger than 10 are prohibited, parking lots and bath houses are closed, vacation rentals are prohibited until the end of April, and travel to Atlantic Beach from outside Carteret County is not allowed. New Hanover County -- New Hanover County has only -- New Hanover County has only reopened public and private boat ramps and marinas , but not its beaches. 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. Read more: NEW YORK (AP) As residents at a nursing home in Kirkland, Washington, began dying in late February from a coronavirus outbreak that would eventually take 43 lives, there was little sign of trouble at the Cobble Hill Health Center, a 360-bed facility in an upscale section of Brooklyn. Its Facebook page posted a cheerful story encouraging relatives to quiz their aging loved ones about their lives, and photos of smiling third graders at a nearby school making flower arrangements for residents. RETURNED FUNDING: Shake Shack to return $10 million loan intended for small businesses That quickly changed. By the middle of March, the CEO began sending increasingly alarmed emails about banning visitors, screening staff, confining residents, wiping down all surfaces, and having all-hands-on-deck meetings to prepare everyone for the coming coronavirus freight train." Ill be darned if Im not going to do everything in my power to protect them, Donny Tuchman wrote before things got worse. More than 100 staffers, nearly a third of the workforce, went out sick. Those left began wearing garbage bags because of a shortage of protective gear. Not a single resident has been able to get tested for the virus to this day. Now listed with 55 deaths it can only assume were caused by COVID-19, among the most of any such facility in the country, Cobble Hill Health Center has become yet another glaring example of the nations struggle to control the rapid spread of the coronavirus in nursing homes that care for the most frail and vulnerable. Cobble Hills grim toll surpasses not only Kirkland's but the 49 deaths at a home outside of Richmond, Virginia, 48 dead at a veterans home in Holyoke, Mass., and five other homes in outer boroughs of New York City that have at least 40 deaths each. Out of an Associated Press tally of 8,003 nursing home deaths nationwide, a third of them are in New York state. AP interviews with friends and relatives who have visited the Cobble Hill Health Center in recent weeks, as well as the homes own statements, paint a picture of a facility overwhelmed and unequipped to deal with its coronavirus outbreak, with shortages of staff, personal protective equipment and the availability of reliable testing. They were under siege, said Daniel Arbeeny, who brought his ailing 88-year-old father from a hospital to the home in late March. They were doing the best they could, as far as we could tell at arms length, under siege. Tuchman told the AP on Sunday that he believes many other homes have more deaths than Cobble Hill but his has been singled out for its honesty. He said it responded to the states voluntary survey with cases in which it was possible COVID-19 could be a factor, since his home wasnt able to test any due to the lack of available kits. He also said he reported 50 deaths, not 55, though the state repeated that tally Sunday. REOPENING TEXAS: Governor Abbott names members of Strike Force to Reopen Texas Theres been a lot of lip service about how vulnerable nursing homes have been, and everyone has the best intentions, but it didnt materialize, Tuchman said. The PPE didnt materialize, the staffing surge didnt materialize, the testing didnt materialize. ... How did we expect this not to spread?" Though Tuchman doesnt know for sure how the virus got into Cobble Hill, he noted there has been a parade of paramedics and staffers allowed into the building each day who were screened with health questions and temperature checks, not enough to keep out those who are sick but not showing symptoms. Soon after news broke of Cobble Hill's death toll, Steven Vince went there to talk to administrators about his recently passed uncle, whose death certificate listed him possibly having COVID. An administrator told him they were confident his uncle did not have the virus. Its very surprising because I dont think anyone from the facility contacted us to tell us anything like this or basically bring this to our attention in any way, he said. Eva Buchmuller, a New York City artist whose best friend has lived in Cobble Hill with Alzheimers for three years, said she wasnt that surprised the virus spread in the nursing homes cramped quarters, with small rooms tightly packed along narrow corridors and residents not allowed to open windows. She believes it's highly likely her friend is infected. How could you avoid not getting the virus?" she said, adding it's always, always filled up. Built in a stately brick building that once was a 19th-century hospital, Cobble Hill was most recently rated three out of five stars by the federal government for overall quality and the facility has a complaint rate thats half that of the statewide average for nursing homes. Its beds are in high demand it has 98 percent occupancy, according to the state in a city that has seen closures in nursing homes that developers have eyed for apartments. Over the years, its shown signs of innovation. It has, at various points, taught massage therapy to nursing assistants, housed a small alternative public high school, brought local artists in to teach residents dance, offered music therapy and was at the forefront of nursing homes setting up Alzheimer's units and cutting reliance on antipsychotics that can leave residents with dementia. In early 2018, Cobble Hill boasted on its website that it was hosting a delegation of 18 physicians and hospital administrators from Hubei Province, China which would become the global epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak "to see best practices first hand. DRUGS, INTERRUPTED: Cartels scramble as virus snarls global drug trade Earlier this month, Daniel Arbeeny and his family decided to move his elderly father who was not believed to have COVID-19 from the Cobble Hill facility to the family's home on a nearby block. After he left, the family helped coordinate a donation of face shields and doesn't blame the nursing home for the outbreak or its outcome. To me, its just a bad situation," he said. "They were dealt a bad set of cards. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday on MSNBC's Morning Joethat the situation at Cobble Hill and other nursing homes in the city shows that you cannot pretend that this ferocious disease is simply going to walk away at one point or just flick a switch and its gone. ___ AP reporters Candice Choi, Jim Mustian, David R. Martin, Anthony Izaguirre and investigative news researcher Randy R. Herschaft contributed to this report. File image One would think that a pandemic would make all nations want to put their skirmishes and mudslinging aside to focus their energies and resources entirely on healthcare provisions. When India has been struggling to contain the number of coronavirus cases in the country, shelling and ceasefire violations along its border with Pakistan are being reported every day, along with intel reports on increased insurgency. For LIVE updates on coronavirus, click here That is not all. Pakistan has been continuing with its propaganda to vilify India on global platforms, alleging cases of rampant discrimination against Muslims taking place in India. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan even drew a parallel between the atrocities that Jews in Nazi Germany were subject to and the plight of Indian Muslims. 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 has, however, foiled the propaganda plans of the antagonistic neighbour each time during the COVID-19 crisis with sassy responses and hard-hitting facts. Let us take a look at five such instances that took place recently, where India dissed Pakistans smear campaign. April 19: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) slammed Imran Khan for accusing the Centre of discriminating against Indian Muslims. MEA hit back saying the statement was just Khans attempt to divert attention from the abysmal way in which Islamabad is handling the COVID-19 crisis back home. In Charts | Economic impact of lockdown on Centre and states April 17: Commenting on reports of Pakistani terrorists crossing borders to infiltrate into India, Army Chief General MM Naravane said, while India is busy exporting medicines to help other nations tide over the COVID-19 outbreak, Pakistan is exporting terror. He further said: It is unfortunate that while the world has got together to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, our neighbour has resorted to firing heavy calibre artillery and killing of innocent people, including an eight-year-old boy to garner international attention. Here's a list of apps launched by Centre and state governments to tackle COVID-19 crisis April 10: New Delhi took potshots at Pakistan for opposing Indias leadership in dealing with the coronavirus crisis in the SAARC region. After Pakistan boycotted a SAARC video conference meet because it was spearheaded by India instead of a SAARC secretariat, New Delhi said one can gauge how seriously each nation is fighting the outbreak by their behaviour. April 4: After Imran Khan criticised India for introducing new laws in Jammu and Kashmir, New Delhi lashed out at the Pakistan Prime Minister for interfering in Indias internal affairs once again. MEA clarified that Pakistan lacks any locus standi on the matter or any other subject pertaining to the Kashmir issue. March 16: MEA tore down Pakistan for raising the Kashmir issue during a virtual meeting of all SAARC nations to discuss ways to deal with the deadly pandemic. India slammed Islamabad for politicising a humanitarian issue by raising the Kashmir issue during the video conference. This marks the first year that the count, taken every 10 years, is available online, and a vast majority of households have completed it that way, according to the census website. Responses via mail and phone account for around 1% of each municipalitys response turnout. UK businesses driving innovation and development will be helped through the coronavirus outbreak with a 1.25 billion pounds government support package, UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced on Monday. The latest set of measures include a new 500 million pounds loan scheme for high-growth firms, called the Future Fund, and 750 million pounds of targeted support for small and medium sized businesses focusing on research and development. Britain is a global leader when it comes to innovation. Our start-ups and businesses driving research and development are one of our great economic strengths, and will help power our growth out of the coronavirus crisis, Sunak said. This new, world-leading fund will mean they can access the capital they need at this difficult time, ensuring dynamic, fast-growing firms across all sectors will be able to continue to create new ideas and spread prosperity, he said. The Indian-origin finance minister, who has been leading the UK government's economic response to the pandemic, said the latest targeted and tailored help would ensure firms in some of the most dynamic sectors of the UK economy ranging from tech to life sciences are protected through the crisis so they can continue to develop innovative new products and help power UK growth. Addressing the daily 10 Downing Street briefing, the minister also revealed that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme he had unveiled last month has gone live on Monday and already attracted 140,000 companies reaching out for financial support, which would help save nearly 1 million jobs. The scheme allows employers to claim a cash grant of up to 80 per cent of a furloughed, or forced leave, employees' wages, capped at GBP 2,500 a month. Our unprecedented job retention scheme will protect millions of jobs across the country and is now up and running. It's vital that our economy gets up and running again as soon as it's safe and this scheme will allow that to happen, said Sunak. Giving the daily figures of those affected by COVID-19 in the country, the Cabinet minister said that 16,509 had died from the deadly virus an increase of 449 on the day before. The number of people who are in London's hospitals with coronavirus has fallen for a seventh consecutive day, which was described as an encouraging sign. Sunak was also asked repeatedly about the acute shortage of surgical gowns and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for doctors and nurses across the National Health Service (NHS) hospitals and he admitted it was an "international supply challenge" the government was working to resolve. We are very much determined to do everything we can to support those NHS workers," said Sunak, as he confirmed a shipment of PPE is expected from Turkey and Myanmar soon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) April Misloski, with her new pet, an 11-year-old Dachshund-mix from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Los Angeles. (Courtesy of April Misloski) Adopting Petsa Pandemic Trend Helping Raise Spirits ORANGE, Calif.While people are sheltering in place during this time of crisis, many Californians are seeking comfort and companionshipanimal shelters have been a good place to find it. People have been opening their homes and volunteering to be fosters. Weve also gotten a lot of adoptions, said Mary Jacobs, president of the Our Cats Save People (OCSP) Cat Rescue, in an interview with The Epoch Times. Some people have told her they long wanted to adopt, and now they have more time to get to know their new pets. Some people are looking for the emotional support an animal can provide, and some just want to do something helpful during tough times. A dog named Bogart from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (SPCALA) shelter finds a new human friend. (Courtesy of the SPCALA) Jacobss no-kill rescue focuses on saving cats from high-kill shelters, and its volunteer-run. Its been encouraging for her to see a significant uptick in adoptions during the past month. Typically, she expects about 300 adoptions annually. But since the COVID-19 outbreak, her shelter is on track for well over 400 adoptions this year. Callie and Her Kittens Ladera Ranch resident Nicole Hopkins, 47, went to the OCSP Cat Rescue because she wanted an emotional support animal for her two daughters, ages 11 and 14. I think that this is hard for adults, but its really hard on the kids, she told The Epoch Times. Its such a massive lifestyle change. So Im trying to make this stay-at-home experience a positive one, and I really thought that an animal would be an important piece of that. Hopkins also saw an opportunity to teach her girls about responsibility and providing a helpful service during a crisis. I felt like theres no better time to foster an animal [than] now because the kids are home full-time, she said. Hopkins said the cat, Callie, brought a lot of light to our household. Shes super loving and sweet. She only planned to foster, not adopt. But she made a surprising discovery within days of taking Callie home. Callie was pregnant. The last thing I was going to do was send her off to another home when she was just getting acclimated to ours, she said. I knew that we could offer her the love that she needed. Im not a cat doula or a cat midwife, but hey, I guess Im gonna add that to my resume for COVID-19. Callie, a cat from the Our Cats Save People Cat Rescue, in her new home as the pet of Nicole Hopkins in Ladera Ranch, Calif. (Courtesy of Nicole Hopkins) Little Miss Millicent The circumstances of sheltering in place also led Lake Forest resident Bob Lynch, 52, to contact OCSP Cat Rescue. He decided to foster Millicent, a seven-year-old Russian Blue cat. My wife is working from home now and [my] daughter is a high school senior and she is now, of course, doing school from home, Lynch told The Epoch Times. My wife said itd be nice to have a cat kind of hanging around to keep her company. But like Callie, Millicent quickly grew on the Lynch family. After having Little Miss Millicent for a couple weeks, of course you grow attached, he said. I think she [was] bounced around a little bit, so I couldnt see putting her through that again. The experience has been fantastic, he added. I think shes very happy now. Millicent the cat enjoys her new home with Bob Lynch and his wife, Karen, and daughter, Lauren. (Courtesy of Bob Lynch) Jacobs, whos been involved in rescuing cats since 2005, said she focuses on matching the right cat with the right person. I guess you could say thats what makes us special, she said. If [someone] wants a small kitten, and they have small kids, we usually say, maybe you want to get a four- or five-month-old cat, because theyre a little bit more sturdy and they can get away from kids if they need to. If someone wants a low energy cat thats just going to sit on their lap, we have cats like that, too. OCSP Cat Rescue isnt the only shelter that has experienced a surge in adoptions and fostering. Many Shelters Getting Help Orange County Animal Care in Tustin has had 182 adoptions since March 15, said outreach manager Jessica J. Novillo. Whether its adopting, fostering, donating, or helping our special needs animals so many have stepped up to make sure our shelter pets and our staff have the support they need, she told The Epoch Times. Fostering or adopting is a win-win for everyone, especially in such challenging times, she said. She highlighted that bonding with pets can help alleviate stress, anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Gilbert the cat finds a new familyTerry and Joyce Yung and their children, Becky and Barnabasat the Our Cats Save People (OCSP) Cat Rescue. (Courtesy of the OCSP Cat Rescue) The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (SPCALA) has also seen a lot of help. Its had 60 adoptions since March 18, said the organizations vice president, Miriam Davenport. Theres a lot of hope with us, Davenport told The Epoch Times. There are a lot of people who are really willing to step up to the plate and who are really finding their quality friends for life. This pandemic isnt the first crisis SPCALA has been through. Weve been serving Southern California since 1877, Davenport said. We went through the Spanish Flu in 1918. We went through two world wars, the Great Depression, the Great Recessiona lot of different things. And its only ever been because of the support of our community that were able to continue to serve. Its so important and Im so grateful that we have such an amazing community here in Los Angeles who are really able to help us. One particular adoption that really sort of struck my heartstrings, Davenport said, was that of an 11-year-old Dachshund-mix named Schnitzel who has vision and hearing problems. Schnitzel April Misloski, 37, was feeling a little lost and finding myself in fear-mode, she told The Epoch Times via email. There have been several news articles about death, loss and pain in extreme amounts; articles about people abandoning their animals during the crisis. As an empath, it [was] really weighing on my soul, she said. Misloski, who lives in Los Angeles with her three children, wasnt looking to adopt a pet, at first. But she wanted to do something selfless and sponsor an animal in need by making a small donation. She visited the SPCALA website, and thats where she found Schnitzel. [I was] looking for a specific animal to donate to and I came across a photo of a particular pup, she said. He was small and black and adorable, and he had a big goofy smile on his face. I knew at that moment I had to have him. Schnitzelwhose name has since been changed to Spellman, although he doesnt know the difference because hes so old he cant hear anywayshas been in Misloskis care for several weeks now. April Misloski, with her new pet, Spellman (formerly known as Schnitzel). (Courtesy of April Misloski) He has brought so much happiness and joy in such a short amount of time! she wrote. Im a certified massage therapist, so he is getting lots of doggie massages and cuddles. It has made Davenport happy to see Schnitzel, like many other SPCALA animals, find loving homes during this time. Now hes just having the best life, she said. Paul Biya archives Estimated to cost FCFA 2 billion, the Special Gifts from the Head of State, President Paul Biya is destined for the vulnerable masses throughout the countrys 360 subdivisions as government scales up efforts to contain the novel coronavirus COVID-19. In a press release Monday, April 20, 2020, the Minister of Territorial Administration, Atanga Nji Paul said the fresh donation is unrelated to the FCFA 1 billion lodged by President Biya into the Special National Solidarity Fund for the fight against the novel Coronavirus. The Minister of Territorial Administration is pleased to inform the national and international community that within the framework of reinforcing measures aimed at containing the spread of COVID-19 among the population in Cameroon, the President of the Republic, H.E. Paul Biya, has decided to offer a Special Gift to the 360 Subdivisions of the country, Atanga Nji said. This Special Gift should not be mistaken for actions of the Special Solidarity Fund created by the Head of State on the sidelines of this pandemic. According to Atanga Nji, the Special Gift of the Head of State that comprises hygienic products and medical kits evaluated to the tune of FCFA 02 (two) billion includes: 50,000 cartons of laundry soap, that is four million pieces of soap; One million five hundred thousand facemasks for the population; Fifty thousand surgical masks for health personnel; Seventy-five thousand buckets for household use; Forty thousand 30-litre hand-washing cans; Rapid screening test kits; Respiratory devices for hospitals. In about ten days, the Minister says the hygienic products and medical kits, Special Gifts from the Head of State to the Cameroonian people, will be transported from the Yaounde City Council by a hundred heavy-duty trucks to the ten regions and will be received by the various regional Governors. Hear him: Each regional governor will be charged with the responsibility of channeling the Special Gifts of the Head of State to the Divisions and Subdivisions of his region of command. The distribution will be overseen at the level of the Region by the Governor, at the Division by the Senior Divisional Officer and at the level of the Subdivision by the Subdivisional Officer. The Head of State, H.E. President Paul Biya, insists on local distribution so that the assistance reaches the main beneficiaries, especially the vulnerable population wherever they are found within the national territory. Similarly, the Minister of Territorial Administration underlines that the Head of State has prescribed the intensification of sensitization campaign against the COVID-19 pandemic in all ten regions of the country. As such, administrative authorities at all levels absolutely need to fully get involved in this campaign and in so doing, insist on governments combat measures as communicated by the Prime Minister, Head of Government. Administrative Authorities have to focus on barrier measures like the regular washing of hands with soap and running water, compulsory wearing of facemasks in all public spaces and social distancing in markets, churches, mosques, schools etc. The teams of the Department of Civil Protection of the Ministry of Territorial Administration will be dispatched to the 10 regions to assist the administrative authorities in this awareness campaign and the distribution of the Special Gift from the Head of State. With 1017 known positive cases of COVID-19, Cameroon has recorded 305 recoveries, 42 deaths, 176 currently hospitalized and 33 on oxygen. Palghar mob lynching: Union Home Minister Amit Shah has asked Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to submit a report on Palghar mob lynching case. About 100 people have been arrested and 2 policemen have been suspended in the case so far. In the Palghar mob incident, Home Minister Amit Shah has asked Maharastra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to submit a report. Addressing the situation at hand, Uddhav Thackeray briefed the media today that 2 policemen have been suspended and ADG CID Crime Atul Kulkarni has been appointed to investigate the case. About 100 people have been arrested, including 5 main accused. Denying the reports of a communal angle, Thackeray confirmed that he had a word with Home Minister Amit Shah today morning. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has also requested Maharastra CM Uddhav Thackeray to take strict action against culprits. In a few videos that are now going viral, a mob of villagers can be seen beating 3 men with sticks, stones and other objects while police is seen running to ensure their own safety. The incident took place on Friday, April 17 and the deceased have been identified have been identified as two Sadhus named Kalpush Giri and Chikne Maharaj, who were accompanied by their driver Nilesh Telgade, while on their way to Surat to attend a funeral. The villagers allegedly stopped their car on the way and unleashed their fury on the 3 men, mistaking them to be thieves. Also Read: Indias revised FDI guidelines against WTOs principle of non-discrimination and general trend of liberalisation, says China Ministry of Home Affairs seeks report from Maharashtra government over Palghar incident. https://t.co/ieISDMERmg ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 We've suspended 2 policemen&appointed ADG CID Crime Atulchandra Kulkarni to investigate the matter. Over 100 persons arrested incl 5 main accused. There is nothing communal in this whole incident. I have spoken to Amit Shah ji this morning: Maharashtra CM on Palghar incident https://t.co/ONKnhXzD0s ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 After an uproar on social media against the incident, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray had tweeted that the Palghar incident has been acted upon. All those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and police personnel were arrested on the day of crime itself. He added that the culprits of this heinous and shameful act will not be spared and justice will be guaranteed in strongest way possible. Also Read: UP CM Yogi Adityanaths father Anand Singh Bisht passes away in Delhis AIIMS Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible. CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) April 19, 2020 Meanwhile, State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh had earlier shared on Twitter that he has ordered on a high level inquiry on this matter. He further warned against instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media. In the tweet, he said that the ones who attacked and those who died were not from different religions. He has ordered Maharashtra police and the states cyber cell to take action against miscreants. / @MahaCyber1 #LawAndOrderAboveAll ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) April 19, 2020 Also Read: UP CM Yogi Adityanath condoles death of his father Anand Singh Bisht, says will be forced to miss last rites due to states fight against coronavirus For all the latest National News, download NewsX App Bus.com branded bus on the road The Bus.com Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Maxie Lafleur as CEO and Board Member. Ms. Lafleur joined Bus.com, a bus rental platform and group transportation provider as CFO in July 2019. The Board has made this appointment upon the resignation of former CEO and cofounder Kyle Boulay who remains an important shareholder of the company. This change comes as the company sets its eyes on accelerating the development of disruptive technology, strengthening its scaling abilities and considers making potential acquisitions. Ms. Lafleur is a young and talented business leader who has quickly climbed the professional ladder with extensive experience in the digitalization, scaling, and transformation of businesses that were primarily B2B. She also comes with robust expertise in M&A and business expansion through joint ventures within large international companies. Most recently, she has been instrumental in her capacity as CFO at Bus.com, helping improve the companys unit economics and redefine the way that Bus.com positions itself in the marketplace. Her experience working abroad in Europe and Asia position the company well for expansion in new countries. Maxie is the right person to lead Bus.com into the future, given her strong command of our business and proven ability to drive results, said Josh Breinlinger, Board Member of Bus.com and Managing Director at Jackson Square Ventures, which invested in the companys last round. Speaking on behalf of the Board, we look forward to working closely with Maxie as Chief Executive Officer. I am honored to lead Bus.com as Chief Executive Officer, said Ms. Lafleur. I look forward to continuing to work closely with our exceptional senior leadership team. We feel confident the bus charter industry will recover and rebound. From this set back, we will emerge more resilient through the advancements of our technology and the tough and strategic decisions we have made and will continue to make. Seen as the leading digital marketplace that is modernizing and building the connective tissue of the fragmented bus charter and group travel industry across North America, Bus.com comes off of a series B round in 2019 that saw Bus.com raise $15M USD, enabling the company to add seasoned professionals to the overall team. Bus.com launches the Bus Angels Program. Bus.com is also announcing an initiative to support its bus partners across North America called the Bus Angels Program. We are sensitive to the challenges our bus partners across North America are facing. They are in most part small operators that risk losing their livelihood because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, we have been compelled to act and have shifted a significant portion of our resources to actively support their families and them by providing advice, information and guidance as they take difficult decisions, renegotiate their financial obligations and navigate the many government programs and subsidies, said co-founder and COO Wolf Kohlberg. I am also very optimistic for the future of this industry and to work on the next chapter with Maxie. About Bus.com Bus.com is changing the way that groups travel by making it easier than ever to book a bus online. Through its unique technology, Bus.com is modernizing the charter bus industry to provide service across North America that is safe, easy, and affordable. T he Felix Project, our Food For London Now appeal partner, has quadrupled its supply of food to vulnerable Londoners to 42 tonnes the equivalent of 100,000 meals a day. In the four weeks since lockdown, they have delivered 565 tonnes a staggering 1.35 million meals. This extraordinary humanitarian effort carried out with 22 delivery vans manned by a small army of volunteers comes in the wake of rising food poverty and worrying new research on unemployment. The Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex estimated at the weekend that at least 6.5 million jobs could be lost, a fifth of the national total, with the duration of the lockdown being critical as to whether job losses will be short-lived. It comes on top of a YouGov poll for The Food Foundation revealing that eight million people in Britain face food insecurity and that three million have already experienced hunger. As Felix scrambles to respond to the deepening distress with no government support, donations are crucial to fund their fast-expanding operation. Today we can report a hugely generous donation from the Garfield Weston Foundation, who agreed an emergency grant of 500,000 to be shared equally between The Felix Project and FareShare, Londons two biggest food surplus distributors, for their work supporting the most vulnerable families in the wake of the coronavirus. Philippa Charles, director of the Garfield Weston Foundation, said: Alongside significant grants to the National Emergency Trust among others, our trustees are keen to ensure that those most vulnerable and affected by this crisis receive the immediate support they need. We are delighted to support this partnership between two effective charities with which we have had long-standing relationships. Another donor to our appeal, which is approaching 2 million and is being run in association with The Independent, was the Oso Foundation, whose trustee Karen Jankel said: Doing the weekly grocery shop may have its challenges for most of us, but at least we can afford to put food on the table. The ethos behind The Felix Project appeals to us as we hate the idea of waste and so by giving them our donation, we feel as though were making a small difference twice over. On Friday, Felix delivered 16 truckloads of nutritious food to community hubs in eight boroughs Barnet, Enfield, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Islington, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest and a further 26 truckloads to 75 charities, schools and holiday clubs. All in all, this is the daily equivalent tonnage of three-and-a-half double-decker Routemaster buses. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast With more borough hubs set to come on stream in the coming days, demand for their services is set to rise yet further. Donate at virginmoneygiving.com/fund/FoodforLondonNOW Residents in retirement homes will from Monday be able to receive visits from relatives, France's health minister has said. Guests were barred last month to protect vulnerable lodgers from Covid-19, but the prolonged ban has made them isolated. The French government has told care home providers they can allow residents to see their families again from Monday but under "very limited conditions." Health minister Olivier Veran said the visits would be limited to no more than two family members at a time and that touching was strictly prohibited. Visits will be carried out "at the resident's request," Veran told reporters Sunday, adding that it was up to each care home for the elderly, known in French as "EHPAD" (Etablissement d'hebergement pour personnes agees dependantes), to determine with families whether a visit was absolutely necessary. "A ban on physical contact is still in place, however there will be a visual contact," Veran said. The decision to ease the ban on family visits in retirement homes comes amid increasing concerns of isolation felt by residents. Ticking time bomb Isolated in their rooms, with their families kept at bay, some elderly occupants have struggled to come to terms with their new reality, with health experts warning that the lockdown measures could be making their physical and mental health worse. In March, French President Emmanuel Macron urged citizens to avoid visiting their relatives in retirement homes to prevent exposing them to possible coronavirus infection. With elderly people especially vulnerable to Covid-19, France's more than 7,000 state-funded EHPAD care homes have been described as ticking time bombs. As of Saturday, 7,481 people had died at the facilities, accounting for nearly 40 percent of the deaths linked to the virus in the country. Josh Frydenberg Australias government says it will start forcing Google and Facebook to pay for news content. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission had been working to reach a voluntary agreement with the platforms to pay traditional media for their content, but Australian treasurer Josh Frydenberg said that those negotiations have resulted in no meaningful progress. According to an op-ed Frydenberg wrote in the Australian, the code will include provisions for revenue sharing, transparency of ranking algorithms and access to user data, as well as sanctions and penalties for non-compliance. A draft of the mandatory code is expected to be ready by the end of July, with the final text to be agreed upon by the Australian government soon after that. A report in the Guardian says that dozens of regional newspapers have stopped printing since the onset of the coronavirus crisis due to declines in advertising revenue. - A man in South Africa and his lover were arrested after attempting to sneak over provincial lines without the relevant permits - The man had no permit and had hidden his girlfriend in the car boot as they passed police roadblocks - South Africa is currently on lockdown and only essential service providers are allowed to move around 'Unlucky in love' has a new meaning after a man from Gauteng, South Africa, was caught red-handed trying to smuggle his girlfriend over provincial lines. Member of the executive council in Gauteng province, Faith Mazibuko, said the man had been stopped at a roadblock on Friday, April 17, when police officers asked to search his boot. READ ALSO: Cheer as Drake recognises orphaned Ugandan dancers who gracefully danced to Toosie slide READ ALSO: 30 people who had contact with fake Homa Bay mourners placed under mandatory quarantine With no travel permit, the man was already in trouble but when the officers found out that his girlfriend was hiding in the trunk, the situation escalated. The two who were trying to travel to Mpumalanga instead earned themselves a vacay in jail for their efforts. In other news, a man who had missed his girlfriend so much tried to trick police into believing that his grandmother had died when they stopped him at a roadblock in Johannesburg. READ ALSO: Video of conductor 'caught' by police in traffic dancing to Utawezana goes viral Upon further investigation, he told the officers the truth that he was on his way to see his girlfriend. The long arm of the law hugged him on the spot instead of the warm arms of his girlfriend that he was looking forward to. South Africa which has 3,158 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 54 deaths is currently on lockdown. Do you have an inspirational story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Follow us on Telegram: Tuko news Source: TUKO.co.ke Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced New Zealand's lockdown will last another week. For nearly four weeks, nonessential workers have been able to leave their homes only to buy groceries or get exercise. From next week, workers at some businesses such as construction and manufacturing will be able to resume their jobs, and some schools will reopen, although parents will be encouraged to continue having their children learn from home. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government may pay the provident fund (PF) contribution of both employers and employees at companies with over 100 staff, according to a report by The Economic Times. The plan, an attempt to reduce layoffs, might be included in the government's second economic package to tackle the COVID-19 outbreak, the report said. Follow LIVE updates on the COVID-19 pandemic here Moneycontrol could not independently verify the story. On March 27, the finance ministry said the government will cover the PF contribution of both employers and employees (together 24 percent) for companies with a staff of up to 100 where 90 percent earn less than Rs 15,000 a month. 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 Also read: Coronavirus pandemic: How to withdraw EPF money Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the proposal as a part of Rs 1.7 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojana. The outgo on covering PF for three months was estimated at Rs 4,800 crore. The government may widen this net to cover more subscribers and organisations under the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). "this cap of 100 employees may go altogether or substantially raised to cover more and more establishments," an official told The Economic Times. The labour ministry has asked the EPFO and ESIC to collect data on salary cuts and layoffs, which will be shared with the Prime Minister's office, CNBC-TV18 reported on April 17. The nationwide lockdown has forced several companies to halt operations, making it difficult to clear employees' salaries for March and April. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 05:13:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TUNIS, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Tunisian Prime Minister Elyes Fakhfakh announced on Sunday evening that the general confinement across the country will be extended until May 3, as part of the preventive measures to confront the spread of the new coronavirus. "The curfew will be carried out from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. to allow more flexibility for Tunisians during the holy month of Ramadan, the month of fasting in the Islamic calendar, which will start from April 24," Fakhfakh said in his speech broadcast in the state television channel Watanya. Earlier, Tunisian Health Minister Abdellatif Mekki said, while speaking on the private radio station Radio Med, that Tunisia has so far overcome the worst scenario in its fight against COVID-19. "Continued efforts are required to stop the spread of the virus in the country," Mekki stressed. On March 20, Tunisian President Kais Saied decided to impose a general confinement across the country in order to confront the spread of COVID-19, and on March 31, Tunisian National Security Council decided to extend the general confinement for two more weeks starting from April 5. Enditem live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is unhappy with banks being selective and cherry-picking its instructions on the issue of extending loan moratorium facility to non-banking finance companies (NBFCs). The RBI is of the view that it has never prohibited banks from doing so. There is an ongoing tug-of-war between the banks and NBFCs on this matter. On March 27, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das permitted all lending institutions to temporarily defer equated monthly installments (EMI) of all borrowers with respect to term loans to help them tide over the COVID-19 lockdown phase. On account of the prolonged lockdown, most economic activities have come to a halt, impacting the cash flows of borrowers. While NBFCs, including NBFC-MFIs, followed RBI's instruction in letter and spirit by deferring EMIs for all borrowers, the NBFCs did not get the same treatment from commercial banks from whom they borrow funds. Banks want to have their cake and eat it too. Selective/cherry-picking instructions. How come banks have clarity on what they want to do but look for excuses for things they dont want to do? (sic), said a senior RBI official on condition of anonymity. We have not prohibited (banks from extending moratorium to NBFCs). So for every decision of theirs (banks), why should RBI need to clarify? the official asked. According to the data from the RBI, outstanding loans to the entire NBFC sector from banks stand at Rs 7 lakh crore. On a year-on-year basis, this exposure has grown by 22 percent. That is a significant exposure. NBFCs fear this disparity in treatment on moratorium will create short-term liquidity issues for them. In a meeting of Indian Banks Association (IBA) last Saturday, there was no consensus among banks on the moratorium issue. While some banks in principle agreed to the idea, some banks including State Bank of India (SBI) didnt favour moratorium for all NBFCs, according to industry officials. To give a perspective, the RBI circular, on March 27, didnt say anything specifically on the NBFC moratorium issue. It was an FAQ from the industry lobby later that said financial intermediaries are not being considered for the moratorium. These entities can avail funds under the targeted long-term repo operation (TLTRO), the IBA said. So, essentially, it was IBA circular, not the one from the RBI, which set the rule for banks regarding moratorium extension for NBFCs. In other words, denying moratorium to NBFCs was a result of IBA interpretation of the RBI circular, not the RBIs specific directive. With no consensus in IBA meeting, the industry lobby is likely to move back to the RBI seeking clarity. But, the RBIs view is that it never had any objection to banks giving moratorium facility to NBFCs and hence, further clarity on this issue isnt required, the official said. Why TLTRO is not a big option for small NBFCs/MFIs NBFCs borrow from banks at 9-12 percent. The rate of interest differs depending on the rating of the institution and size of the loan. While the IBA suggested TLTRO for NBFCs as an option to get funds, NBFCs werent happy about this suggestion because banks preferred to deploy a good chunk of the money borrowed under the TLTRO window in big, top-rated companies rather than small firms. The RBI has already conducted Rs 1,00,000 crore worth TLTRO and has announced another Rs 50,000 TLTRO 2.0. In the first round, much of the benefit has gone to big companies like NTPC, NHB and Reliance. In his second presser to announce COVID-19 measures, the RBI governor announced a few more liquidity measures for NBFCs. Under TLTRO 2.0 to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore, banks will have to deploy half of the funds in small NBFCs and MFIs. While this is a good move, the detailed guidelines on allocation of money yet again put small NBFCs/MFIs at a disadvantageous position. According to RBI circular, of the 50 percent earmarked for small companies, 10 percent should be invested in the securities/instruments issued by MFIs, the RBI said. A further 15 percent in securities/instruments issued by NBFCs with asset size of Rs 500 crore and below and 25 percent in securities issued by NBFCs with assets size between Rs 500 crore and Rs 5,000 crore, the RBI said. In other words, companies will receive a share of this money according to their size. But, again, the problem here is that in earlier rounds some of the big NBFCs, those with assets above Rs 500 crore, have already managed to get some funds from banks. Survival capital is not a big problem for large NBFCs. It was the smaller ones that were left out. In this round too, the big companies are allocated 25 percent of the 50 percent TLTRO funds. This means, once again, small MFIs and NBFCs will have to struggle to get funds. Banks typically prefer bigger firms with better ratings while investing money. MFIs in bad shape The crisis is deeper for NBFC-MFIs. In a note released on Monday, India ratings and research said the crisis will impact these companies in a big way. India Ratings and Research expects MFIs and small finance banks (SFBs) to face severe asset quality issues in the short term, as near-term collections would see unprecedented disruptions on account of the COVID-19 linked nation-wide lockdown, the agency said. There are 54 NBFC-MFIs in the country with about 5.6 crore microfinance borrowers. Indian microlenders have a total loan book of Rs2.16 crore out of which NBFC-MFIs have Rs 73,000 crore. The average loan ticket size is Rs 31,000 crore. The COVID-19 lockdown may erode up to 25 percent of the annual collections of NBFC-MFIs, the industry fears. This is significant for microlenders since the average loan tenure of NBFC-MFI borrowers is just 18-24 months. For banks, this is much longer. The liquidity vacuum thus created will hit these companies hard. MFIs borrow money at about 10-12 percent from banks and charge about 23 percent interest rate from borrowers. These entities collect payments in cash. Borsa Italiana non ha responsabilita per il contenuto del sito a cui sta per accedere e non ha responsabilita per le informazioni contenute. Accedendo a questo link, Borsa Italiana non intende sollecitare acquisti o offerte in alcun paese da parte di nessuno. Sarai automaticamente diretto al link in cinque secondi. Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has said the government would henceforth isolate for the mandatory 14 days any residents of the state returning from either Lagos or Kano states. Mr Sule said this while addressing traditional rulers and some religious leaders on Monday at a meeting held at the Government House, Lafia, the state capital. He said the measure became necessary because of the alarming increase in the spread of the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic and the need to protect the residents. He expressed concern that the virus was spreading fast instead of subsiding, with Katsina and Kano states also under total lockdown The governor said his major source of concern for the state was the increasing number of persons that tested positive for the virus in Abuja. He appealed to traditional rulers, led by the Chairman of the State Traditional Rulers Council and Emir of Lafia, Sidi Bage, to ensure that returnees from the two states were isolated. He disclosed that already, 43 persons returning from Lagos were intercepted at Akwanga on their way to Shendam, in Plateau State. READ ALSO: He explained that having got in touch with his counterpart in Plateau State, the returnees were escorted to Jos, the capital, where they were isolated. He said five of the travellers escaped into the bush after their vehicle stopped in the forest on their way to Jos. He added that 13 others, who claimed to come from Nasarawa State, were on their way back to Lafia, where they will go into isolation on their arrival. Even if they are our relations, as long as they are returning home from Lagos or Kano, we will go ahead and isolate them and test them, Mr Sule said. The governor had earlier in a meeting with council chairmen sought their cooperation to ensure that returnees from Lagos and Kano were isolated before being allowed into the larger society. (NAN) : The Tamil Nadu health department is preparing a list of donors for the convalescent plasma therapy to treat COVID-19 patients, even as the government is awaiting the final nod from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to commence the trials. The health authorities have already identified five people who have expressed their willingness to donate and the process of 'motivating' others is on, officials said. "Five among the 13 people who were recently discharged from Kilpauk Government Medical College Hospital here, after being successfully treated for COVID-19, have agreed to donate their plasma while four others do not meet the criteria for donation," said Dr P Vasantha, Dean KMC. "We are motivating others to donate," she added. Further, over 23 people, including eight women, who were admitted with symptoms of Coronavirus were treated and discharged in two batches from the KMC. According to the dean, those who were discharged have been strictly advised extended home quarantine for 14 days and not to mingle with their family members for now. "Since we have their phone numbers we enquire about their health conditions on a daily basis. Those who are willing could donate their plasma, she added. As to the treatment at the hospital, she said apart from the regular dose of medicines, they were given food, did yoga and meditation. Individuials who were cured of the deadly virus fondly recalled the care shown to them by the doctors. "The doctors checked us daily and personally verified if we had cough or sneezing. The medical team took good care of us. We got our tea, food and sundal (protein-rich supplement) on time and they encouraged us with kind words," said city resident Mohamed Nazir, who was admitted to KMC on April 1 and discharged two weeks later after two successive negative tests. "I got the feeling that my end is imminent in a week or two when doctors said I had Coronavirus. Though I did not show any symptoms, doctors who tested me twice said I was positive on April 1," says Shaik Mohmmed, one of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation attendees in Delhi who volunteered for testing. "Others (who attended the conference) were taken to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital for treatment," he said and added "140 people were already at the GH when I got myself admitted." The doctors and nurses were very empathetic to COVID-19 patients and encouraged them with soothing words that they would be discharged if they tested negative twice, he said. "They allowed me to recite from the Quran, meditate,read online newspapers and checked my health conditions daily. Finally, after two negative results, I was discharged on April 16," he said. The approach by the doctors and nurses and their kind words gave him confidence to regain health, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By PTI MANGALURU: Dakshina Kannada police have warned of stringent legal action against people who share photos of the cornavirus victims in the district and other patients on social websites. District Superintendent of Police B M Laxmi Prasad in a release, warned the people that strict legal action will be taken against those who flout rules. Police have noted that the photo of the woman COVID-19 victim is being shared on social media. Providing any information about coronavirus-infected patients or victims publicly is a punishable offence, he said. The police are putting together information about the people who shared the photo and other information about the COVID-19 in the district and have initiated legal action. A 50-year old woman from Bantwal had died of Covid-19 at the Wenlock hospital here on Sunday. She is the first coronavirus victim in the district. As protests against stay-at-home orders across the United States continue to grow, The View co-host Meghan McCain urged empathy for those on the picket lines. McCain revealed that shes split on the protests and defended protesters, noting that nobody on the Hot Topics panel was in fear of losing their job. We are all lucky and need to check our privilege that we can work from home from a computer and were all gainfully employed, said McCain. Nobody on this show has to worry about how were going to feed our family, if were going to continue working, she added. McCain continued, There are a lot of people in this country who are in pain, who are out of work, who are losing their homes, and I think that when people are scared and are in pain they start to panic. There are a lot of people in this country who are in pain, who are out of work, who are losing their homes, @MeghanMcCain says reacting to protests. When people are scared and they are in pain, they start to panic. There has to be some kind of balance. pic.twitter.com/uLHQHZheRi The View (@TheView) April 20, 2020 Viewers of McCains comments took to Twitter with their reactions, and some said they dont agree: She is just given a pass to them cuz they are conservative. She has been complaining about the people at Spring break in Florida. She can also keep her rant about coastal elites being alarmed about people being armed at the protests. Anita Paul (@apawlh) April 20, 2020 But others said McCain had a good point: Watching @TheView and I gotta say @MeghanMcCain hit the nail on the head about the protest (dont 100% agree about the gun part). The rest are really only thinking about it from the privilege bubble right now. People get its serious but are scared and need there income!! Taj (@vontaj91) April 20, 2020 Watch Sunny Hostin say Joe Bidens running mate should be an African American woman: Story continues 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 CDCs and WHOs resource guides. Read more from Yahoo Entertainment: Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 03:21:36|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close OTTAWA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The death toll has risen to 18 in the wake of mass shooting in the Canadian province Nova Scotia, the worst of its kind in the country's history, according the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Monday afternoon. The gunman was also killed, bringing the total deaths to 19. Police have identified him as Gabriel Wortman, a 51-year-old denturist in the province. Among the dead is a policewoman named Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force, and mother of two. A policeman injured in the attack is now recovering at home from gunshot wounds. Last night, RCMP said that at least 16 people were killed in the shooting. Nova Scotia RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told a press conference Monday afternoon that there are no additional suspects. However, Leather said that police could find more victims as they are still conducting searches at 16 crime scenes around the northern portion of Nova Scotia. Leather said there were five structure fires and so far they have been unable to fully examine these crime scenes, as most of them are residences and there may be victims still in those homes which have been burned to the ground. During the bloody 12-hour killing rampage, Leather said the gunman's ability to move around the province undetected was greatly benefited by the fact he had a car resembling an RCMP vehicle. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his condolences to the loved ones of the victims on Monday afternoon. "Such a tragedy should never have occurred," Trudeau said. "We stand with you, and we grieve with you, and you can count on our government's full support during this incredibly painful time." Enditem Ex-Bigg Boss contestant, Sofia Hayat landed herself in trouble as she shared a nude picture on Instagram. Recently, the model-actress had shared a butt-naked picture of herself posing in front of an OM painting, which was criticised by many. Not just that, she even called herself 'the naked Goddess'. A resident of Mumbai filed a complaint at the Cyber Crime Cell against her for hurting the religious sentiments with her post. The person also requested the officials to take strict action against her. Now, the actress has reacted to the complaint. Sofia told TOI that such people (who have complaint against her) are just seeking publicity using her name. The ex-Bigg Boss contestant said that people started abusing and issuing threats after she shared the picture. If you notice, the actress has disabled comments on that particular post. Sofia revealed that she is planning to report each and every one, who had used explicit language and threatened her, to Mumbai Police. The actress was quoted by the leading daily as saying, "If you Google Kali Maa, you will find hundreds of pictures of her, nak*d...I took one of those pictures. A lot of people across the world follow me on social media and individuals who file such complaints are going to convey the message that Indians are backward and unintelligent. These people have no respect for Hinduism...they are just seeking publicity using my name. They don't report hardcore pornography, but have an issue with my devotion." She further added, "People seek publicity only if they are looking for work in showbiz. I have been out of the industry for five years. What am I seeking publicity for? I don't want to work in Bollywood." Also Read: Ex-Bigg Boss Contestant Sofia Hayat Slammed For Posting Naked Picture; Complaint Filed Against Her Since she stepped on the scene in the Real Housewives of Atlanta, Kenya Moore has certainly been able to stir up some drama. The stunning former beauty queen hasnt had a lot of luck when it comes to love, and just when we thought she found her true happiness with businessman Marc Daley, it has all appeared to collapse in on itself. During Season 12 of RHOA, fans witnessed just how fractured Moores relationship is with Daley The only thing that seems to be holding the pair together is their 1-year-old daughter, Brooklyn. Moore has also found herself in the midst of some tensions between some of her castmates. Still, the businesswoman looks flawless despite all of this because of her top beauty secret. Inside Kenya Moores career before the Real Housewives of Atlanta Though most of us were introduced to Kenya Moore through RHOA, she had an extensive career as a businesswoman, actress, and beauty queen long before she stepped in front of Bravos cameras. After earning a degree in psychology from Wayne State University, Moore went on to become crowned Miss Michigan and eventually winning Miss USA 1993. At the time, Moore was only the second Black woman to earn the title in the entire history of the pageant. Using her success as a beauty queen and a model, Moore went on to have small roles in TV series like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The Parent Hood, Living Single, and Girlfriends. She also appeared in the films, Waiting to Exhale and Deliver Us from Eva. In 2012, Moore garnered a whole new audience when she was cast on the RHOA. Though she is currently dealing with some drama between her castmates and her estranged husband, Marc Daley, Moore seems focused on her daughter, Brooklyn. Kenya Moores life has been full of drama recently Though many of us witnessed the demise of Moore and Daleys marriage, things might be turning around for the couple. Hes in New York and since this show started airing actually no after Brooklyns birthday, which was in November, things just turned around, Moore said during an appearance on Fox Souls Out Loud with Claudia Jordan. He has been very kind, very respectful, very loving, and he wants his family to stay together. And I dont know what the end result will be but hes definitely working on the marriage. In addition to her marriage, Moore has also come to blows with Nene Leakes this season. It even appeared that Leakes spit on Moore at one point. After Leakes blatantly took Daleys side during several arguments, Moore got fed up. Nene has very few friends, she told TMZ. Shes absolutely a bully. I dont take any kind of advice from Nene definitely, not about wigs. Kenya Moores top beauty secret tips Despite the drama in her personal and professional life, Moore has managed to continue looking ageless. Though the 49-year-old swears by Ocean Remedies Krill Oil, her top beauty secret is actually much simpler than you would think. To start with, obviously hydration its really important during this time to stay hydrated and healthy, Moore explained to Hollywood Life. So I think just keeping your skin hydrated, working out and trying to try to eat as healthy as you possibly canbut hydration, I would say, is number one. Also, while the former USA adores glam for work and the show, makeup is not an everyday thing for her. I just dont really wear makeup, she revealed. Unless Im just feeling bored one day and Im like, Oh, I want to you know, treat myself to a face today. [I keep my skin] clean. I make sure that I dont sleep in makeup, that I do a thorough cleansing and moisturizing before I go to bed. So, you know, keep it simple. The CEO of Jarvis Securities plc (LON:JIM) is Andrew Grant. This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. Next, we'll consider growth that the business demonstrates. 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 Jarvis Securities How Does Andrew Grant's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies? According to our data, Jarvis Securities plc has a market capitalization of UK47m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth UK354k over the year to December 2019. That's actually a decrease on the year before. It is worth noting that the CEO compensation consists almost entirely of the salary, worth UK354k. We looked at a group of companies with market capitalizations under UK160m, and the median CEO total compensation was UK265k. Now let's take a look at the pay mix on an industry and company level to gain a better understanding of where Jarvis Securities stands. Speaking on an industry level, we can see that nearly 67% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 33% is other remuneration. It's interesting to note that Jarvis Securities pays out a greater portion of remuneration through salary, in comparison to the wider industry. Thus we can conclude that Andrew Grant receives more in total compensation than the median of a group of companies in the same market, and of similar size to Jarvis Securities plc. However, this doesn't necessarily mean the pay is too high. We can get a better idea of how generous the pay is by looking at the performance of the underlying business. You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Jarvis Securities has changed over time. AIM:JIM CEO Compensation April 20th 2020 Is Jarvis Securities plc Growing? Story continues Jarvis Securities plc has seen earnings per share (EPS) move positively by an average of 6.8% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 4.6% over the last year. I'm not particularly impressed by the revenue growth, but I'm happy with the modest EPS growth. It's clear the performance has been quite decent, but it it falls short of outstanding,based on this information. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings. Has Jarvis Securities plc Been A Good Investment? Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Jarvis Securities plc for providing a total return of 41% over three years. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size. In Summary... We examined the amount Jarvis Securities plc pays its CEO, and compared it to the amount paid by similar sized companies. We found that it pays well over the median amount paid in the benchmark group. Over the last three years returns to investors have been great, though we might have liked stronger business growth. Considering this fine result for investors, we daresay the CEO compensation might be apt. Shifting gears from CEO pay for a second, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Jarvis Securities that investors should be aware of in a dynamic business environment. Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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. 'Now Mr Modi has been offered a more real but different kind of war, which he has likened to the Mahabharat,' notes T N Ninan. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi addresses the nation, April 14, 2020. Photograph: Press Information Bureau The COVID-19 epidemic has come just in time to save the first year of Narendra Damodardas Modi's second term. The year had begun in a strong economic headwind; growth of the non-government part of the economy had been reduced to just over 3 per cent in two quarters till December. Politically, Mr Modi had walked into a cul-de-sac with his amended citizenship law, which sparked extended protest sit-ins by citizens, provoked firm push-backs from state governments and state assemblies, and risked the decennial Census. How the narrative has changed in a few weeks! The protestors against the citizenship law have dispersed, state governments are queuing up for desperately-needed financial support, and all economic problems can be laid safely at the door of COVID-19. The prime minister, not seen in Parliament during some key debates, is now on national television every few days with avuncular homilies while imposing a lockdown without notice, demonetisation style. He is on the world stage too, getting public thanks from the US and Brazilian presidents for emergency supply of pharmaceuticals. The Opposition is stumped. It has to show itself as part of the national effort to deal with a crisis, though criticise it must. Meanwhile, Mr Modi is too smart a politician to miss the opportunity in a crisis, and is using it to bolster his own image (,strong>PM-CARES,/strong>, for instance). This is not very different from how effectively Donald J Trump has used COVID to push his challenger, Joe Biden, off TV screens. Mistakes are being made, of course, but it is easy to ride out criticism when the nation is rallying round the leader. Mr Trump has brushed aside criticism of his delayed and bungled response to COVID-19 by lashing out at China, the World Health Organisation, and anyone else in sight. Mr Modi's response to the graphically reported migrants's crisis was different, he apologised while saying that he knew the people would forgive him. Countries like Bangladesh and Singapore gave people enough notice before a lockdown, but Mr Modi believes in surgical strikes. War-time leaders invariably gain in popularity, especially if they are great orators. Churchill bungled his way through World War II (and dreamt up a disastrous military expedition in World War I as well), but he made great speeches. The US economy emerged from the Great Depression (1929-1933) only with the launch of the war production effort a decade later, but Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal that came in between has got the credit. George W Bush won re-election on the back of the 'war on terror'. It has ended badly, but Mr Bush is safely back on his ranch. Our own Lal Bahadur Shastri emerged a hero because he fought Pakistan to a draw and did not get thrashed, as Nehru had been by the Chinese. Mr Modi itches to present himself as a war-time prime minister. The Balakot air attack was used brilliantly to swing the election narrative his way last year, despite the loss of an aircraft, which showed up defence deficiencies (out-dated aircraft, out-ranged missile) against a much weaker neighbour. Before that, the Uri terrorist attack in 2016 was countered with a 'surgical strike', so questions about the security failures there too fell away. Now Mr Modi has been offered a more real but different kind of war, which he has likened to the Mahabharat. If you want to anticipate his next move, recall his comment at a media event back in 2007, on how Gandhi had been able to convert the freedom struggle into a 'Jan Andolan' (people's movement). He said he hoped to do the same for development tasks. That would explain initiatives like the 'give it up' campaign on subsidised cooking gas. It is the same Jan Andolan goal that Mr Modi now seeks to emulate with his Janata Curfew, banging of utensils, and lighting of candles. These fall somewhat short of the Dandi March, but Mr Modi isn't done yet and COVID-19 still has legs. The difference with Gandhi is that today's initiatives have an implicitly coercive element -- don't go along and you might get beaten up. Meanwhile, the further marginalising of Muslims has also developed into a Jan Andolan. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on Monday to discuss regional developments in light of the novel coronavirus. On his first official meeting with Zarif in a year, Assad expressed condolences to Iran, the regional epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic with 5,209 deaths from COVID-19. The Islamic republic says it has recorded 83,505 infections, while Syria has declared 39 cases, including three deaths. Assad criticised the United States for keeping economic sanctions in place on countries like Syria and Iran "despite these exceptional humanitarian conditions", the Syrian presidency said in a statement. A photo released by the presidency showed the visiting foreign minister and Syrian president sitting opposite each other, both in face masks. Zarif also wore light blue plastic gloves. Assad condemned "ongoing encroachments by Turkey on the sovereignty and territory of Syria," in the country's north where Ankara has deployed troops, set up military posts and backed rebels battling the government. Zarif said that "the US real agenda in not lifting its cruel sanctions on countries fighting this disease has now become clear", a statement from Tehran said. Earlier on Monday, Zarif met with his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem, the foreign ministry in Damascus said. They stressed "the importance of continued coordination and the exchange of information and expertise between... the two countries to enhance their ability to confront" the pandemic and "secure the necessary needs and requirements for prevention, diagnosis and treatment". Iran, along with Russia, is one of the Syrian government's main allies in a nine-year war that has killed more than 380,000 people and forced more than half of the country's pre-war population from their homes. Zarif last met with Assad during a visit to Damascus in April last year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has teamed up with the Financial Education Network (FEN) to run the #MyDuitStory challenge. The challenge, which was launched on 1 April 2020, has a simple goal: to generate positivity and to encourage Malaysians to share inspiring money management tips during this MCO period. Whether its tapping into online promotions, making bulk purchases, or any other innovative methods to save more, FEN wants you to share them with other Malaysians and maybe even learn from you! Heres how you can join your fellow Malaysians in this fun. Use the following template to share your financial tip/story on Instagram or Facebook. You can also tag five (or more!) family members or friends to encourage them to participate as well. Template Bank Negara Malaysia, together with other Financial Education Network members are calling for all Malaysians to spread positivity. Empower and inspire Malaysians by sharing your story on how you manage your finances from home so that we can learn from each other. Is there any new financial-related thing you learned while staying at home? Or give Malaysians some tips on innovative ways to spend wisely, spend less or earn money during this MCO. Step 1: Begin with #MyDuitStory Challenge Accepted Step 2: Post your story on your Facebook / Instagram profile (Be sure to set your post to public so others can benefit from your story) and attach a picture or video Step 3: Nominate at least 5 friends to take on this challenge Step 4: Copy and paste the text in this post and pass the message along #FinancialEducationNetwork #DuitTogether #DudukRumahDiamDiam #BijakWang #KitaJagaKita *** The #MyDuitStory challenge is your chance to empower and inspire your countrymen as we stand together in solidarity to overcome this difficult time. After all, what are we as a nation if not united and resilient? 0 0 votes Article Rating SHARE A slew of advanced technologies has been applied in Chinas agriculture sector, driving the development of the countrys smart agriculture. Agricultural technician Zhou Xiaomao checks the growth of rice seedlings in an automatic rice seedling center in Laoqiao town, Jishui county in Jian, east Chinas Jiangxi province, April 12. (Photo by Luo Jianrong/Peoples Daily Online) Zhao Zhendong, a tractor driver from Taishang village of Laixi city in east Chinas Shandong province, swears by smart agricultural machinery. In late March, he used his four large smart tractors, equipped with self-driving technology based on the Beidou navigation system, to plough his fields. About 10 hectares of farmland can be ploughed in one day, said Zhao, adding that the Beidou system has significantly improved the efficiency of spring farming. Furthermore, the supply and marketing cooperative in Bishan town of Liangping district in southwest Chinas Chongqing purchased three spraying drones for more than 133 hectares of rice paddies. The drones are not subject to terrain conditions and can improve sowing efficiency, said Jiang Liying, head of the cooperative. Data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs shows that over 30,000 spraying drones have been used across the country for this years spring farming, and the amount of intelligent equipment, including automatic plowing tractors used in farming, assisted by the Beidou navigation system surpassed 20,000 units. Technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G have also been applied in the sector. Song Changjiang, a farmer from north Chinas Hebei province, is one of many who have benefited from IoT technology. Song has been planting melons for over 30 years. Last year, the output of melons from his four smart greenhouses doubled. I had to go to check on the greenhouses when there was a change in the weather in the past, but now I can adjust air inlets, temperature and humidity of the greenhouses through my smartphone, Song said. The IoT-based remote monitoring and control system installed in the greenhouses can monitor temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide concentration in real time, said Xu Xiaoyan, a manager from Hebei Guanzhi Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd., which provides such services, adding that farmers can control these environmental parameters via an app so that crops can grow better. Airice, a modern agricultural company in Guangzhou in south Chinas Guangdong province, has full 5G signal coverage over its rice paddies, through which real-time data including sunlight, pH value and fertility of soil collected by the farmland data collection station in the rice paddies can be transmitted to a terminal. After cloud computing and big data analysis is carried out, a report on the rice paddies is automatically generated, which will help farmers rice cultivation. Meanwhile, Chinese e-commerce platforms are also leveraging their strengths to help sell agricultural products and promote the penetration of the internet into the agricultural sector. The market value of smart agriculture in China is predicted to reach 200 billion yuan in 2020, according to a report on the development of digital technologies in the countrys rural areas. That could affect Apple's upcoming iPhone 12 and phones like the recently released iPhone SE (pictured) which has a 4.7-inch screen and physical home button. This is quite huge and there were speculations that Apple is either paving way for the iPhone 12 or it is now battling with sales. Qualcomm was lowered to sell from neutral with a $61 target and Goldman initiated HP (HPQ) at sell with an $11 target. Goldman said it does not expect the company to launch the upcoming iPhone models until early November. Goldman Sachs, an global investment bank that cooperated with the United States technology giant Apple for the Apple Card initiative, which was presented to users a year ago, drew a rather pessimistic picture about its partner. The coronavirus is poised to cause a massive drop in iPhone sales this year, according to Goldman Sachs. This is as a result of the economic development arising from the coronavirus pandemic. "We also assume some lingering ASP (average selling price) weakness as consumers look to economize similar to what we have seen in prior downturns", the firm wrote in a note to clients Friday, reported by MarketWatch. Apple no longer announces the sales of its smartphones. A smaller consensus of 3 analysts signals a 27 per cent drop from previous year. Shares of Apple have gained almost 40% since printing the 18-month low of $212.61 in March. According to Apple employees who attended an online meeting this Thursday, CEO Tim Cook is optimistic about the company's outlook after the outbreak. There are reports that Apple plans to reopen its retail store in South Korea. In February, Apple said it didn't expect to meet revenue guidance for the March quarter because manufacturing sites in China that were closed during the pandemic had been slow to ramp up output while demand for its products in China was dampened as stores were closed. Apple will release its fiscal second-quarter earnings on April 30. For the second Sunday in a row that continued into early Monday, an outbreak of severe weather struck the south, including widespread damaging winds, several tornadoes, hail and torrential rainfall. Multiple waves of severe thunderstorms barreled across the South from Texas to South Carolina as a strong storm system rolled across the area. Flash flooding accompanied violent storms in some areas. More than 45,000 customers were without power in Mississippi and Alabama Monday morning where the largest concentration of damaging winds occurred. In southern Mississippi, a large and damaging tornado was confirmed just 30 miles from where the largest twister in state history had struck one week before. While most of the intense storms had moved off the East Coast Monday morning, strong to severe storms were pushing south across the northern and central Florida Peninsula, where a tornado watch and a severe thunderstorm watch were in effect through 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. eastern, respectively. In anticipation of the storm outbreak on Sunday, the National Weather Service Storm Prediction placed much of the region in elevated risks zones for severe weather. Storms began to break out across the South Sunday morning and peaked in coverage and intensity in the evening hours. Notably, at 7:23 p.m. central time, the Weather Service warned of "a confirmed large and extremely dangerous tornado" just 30 miles south-southwest of the 2.25-mile-wide tornado that struck southern Mississippi one week ago. At 7:44 p.m., the twister was heading east at 55 mph on a path to pass close to the city of Purvis around 7:50 p.m., about 15 miles south-southwest of Hattiesburg. The Weather Service warned "this is a particularly dangerous situation" extending the tornado warning through 8:15 p.m for areas just east of Purvis. Based on doppler radar, the tornado then passed close to the southeast part of Hattiesburg, very near its municipal airport. The Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center wrote in a statement that this tornado was likely at least an EF3 on its 0 to 5 scale for twister intensity, with winds of at least 136 mph. The tornado warning was extended again through 9 p.m. central time, with the storm expected to pass between the towns of Richton and Beaumont in southeast Mississippi, and then again through 9:15 p.m. mainly over rural areas. Damage was reported from the twister in Marion and Lamar counties. Tornado warnings were issued for the same storm as it traveled into southern Alabama. Many of the same areas affected by tornado activity in southern Mississippi and southern Alabama were also under flash flood warnings at times, with high water rescues reported in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Tornado warnings continued to be issued for storms in southern Alabama, the Florida Panhandle, and southwest Georgia late into Sunday night, including some for twisters which had been confirmed by either radar or storm spotters. Earlier Sunday, storms struck the Dallas-Ft. Worth with large hail while storms west of Galveston and Houston also produced large hail as well as a tornado. The outbreak came exactly a week after more than 130 tornadoes tore up much of the South and Southeast amid a deadly severe weather event. With a preliminary tally of 69 deaths, 2020 is the nation's deadliest year for tornadoes since 2012 - and it's only mid-April. The repeated threat of dangerous storms underscored the challenge of living in storm-prone areas during the springtime, particularly at the same time as the coronavirus pandemic. It also demonstrated the importance of having a severe weather plan in place to know what to do when the time comes. "I think Alabamians are tired of dealing with covid-19, and after last Sunday, tired of dealing with severe weather," James Spann, the chief meteorologist for the ABC affiliate in Birmingham, wrote in a Facebook post outlining Sunday's severe weather threat. "We don't do this to scare anyone, or make them more anxious, but at the same time we have to let you know there is a risk of severe thunderstorms. ... We will get through the day together." Spann and other meteorologists emphasized the importance of having a way to be notified of any warnings issued. A battery-backup NOAA weather radio is ideal while you ensure wireless emergency alerts are activated on your phone and the "do not disturb" mode is disabled. --- The storms stemmed from a pocket of spinning upper-level cold that was digging south off the California coast as late as Saturday morning. It then swung across the Four Corners region toward the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, where it started the day early Sunday. Ahead of this axis of "vorticity," or spinning air, an influx of Gulf of Mexico air overspread much of the South. That approaching area of spin fostered rising motion ahead of it, kindling the development of strong to severe thunderstorms. Meanwhile, a surface stationary front draped essentially parallel and just to the north of Interstate 20 between East Texas and South Carolina served as a focal mechanism for storms. To the north, a chillier air mass lended itself to nonsevere storms and heavy rain, while severe weather flourished in the milder air to the south. That upper-level pocket of cold and spin was cradled in a dip of the jet stream; ahead of it, a zone of fast-moving air surged northward. That boosted the amount of "wind shear" present, or a change in wind speed/direction with height. That increased the chance of rotating storms. Another round of storminess is possible from Wednesday into Friday from the Southern Plains into the Southeast, though details remain uncertain at this time. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Equifax Inc. (EFX) said the company is not providing guidance for the second quarter of 2020, and withdrawing its guidance for full year 2020, due to the continued uncertainties resulting from COVID-19. At March 31, 2020, the company had approximately $370 million in cash and $1.2 billion available under its revolving credit facility, which matures in September 2023, and its receivables funding facility, which matures in December 2022. For the first quarter, adjusted EPS attributable to Equifax was $1.40, up 16 percent from last year. Revenue was $957.9 million, up 13 percent from a year ago and up 15 percent on a local currency basis. 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 retired Winnipeg military officer is suing the federal government, after he was publicly accused last year of a decades-old sexual assault only to have the charge dropped a week later. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A retired Winnipeg military officer is suing the federal government, after he was publicly accused last year of a decades-old sexual assault only to have the charge dropped a week later. In a statement of claim filed last week, Duncan Colin Stewart alleges the Canadian military issued a news release Sept. 9, 2019, announcing his arrest "with the full knowledge (it) had charged the wrong person." In addition to the federal government, the lawsuit names six individual military members as defendants. In a news release issued Sept. 18, 2019 the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service announced the sexual-assault charge had been withdrawn and Stewart was "no longer considered a suspect, or person of interest, in relation to this offence." "The refusal of the CFNIS to issue a press release acknowledging their error and stating that (Stewart) was simply the wrong person named by virtue of an egregious and outrageous mistake further complicated and exacerbated the damages suffered," the lawsuit alleges. Stewart was a chief warrant officer with the Royal Canadian Air Force and stationed at 17 Wing in Winnipeg in November 2017, when investigators requested an interview into allegations he had sexually assaulted a military member in 1996 in Kingston, Ont. On the advice of a military lawyer, Stewart did not agree to be interviewed, the lawsuit says. Over the next several months, Stewart made repeated requests for details of the allegations against him, says the lawsuit. "This request was repeatedly refused, and (Stewart) was advised he would learn the details upon being charged." Stewart was formally charged Aug. 29, 2019, and a senior officer appointed as a support was provided with a disclosure package detailing the case against him. Less than an hour later, the officer alerted Stewart the "proper target of the investigation" was a non-commissioned officer who shared Stewarts last and middle names. The officer notified senior command of the error that same day, but no move was made to correct it, the lawsuit alleges. On Sept. 9, the CFNIS issued a news release publicly identifying Stewart as the accused in connection to the alleged assault. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. On Sept. 13, officials notified Stewart he was no longer a suspect, but it was another three days before notice of his arrest was removed from the Canadian Armed Forces website, and five days before the news was made public, says the lawsuit. A Canadian Armed Forces database contains photos of every member, but Stewarts picture was not shown to the alleged assault victim, says the lawsuit. "None of (the defendants) bothered to check with the alleged complainant whether (Stewart) was the person who assaulted her." Stewart retired in December, after 36 years in the military, "As the foregoing events have forever soiled his image and reputation within the RCAF," says the lawsuit. The allegations have not been proven in court. A military spokesperson could not be reached for comment. A statement of defence has not been filed. dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca ABUJA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Key leaders of the Boko Haram group were recently killed following multiple airstrikes by the Nigerian military in the country's northeast region, said the defense headquarters in Abuja on Monday. In a statement made available to Xinhua, the defense headquarters said the operation, which came on the heels of credible intelligence, took place on April 17 at the town of Durbada in the northeastern state of Borno. Some structures which served as hideouts for the Boko Haram group were also destroyed during the air operation, said the defense headquarters. The official statement declined to give the exact number of Boko Haram leaders killed during the airstrikes but said the fighter jets dispatched for the operation had scored "accurate hits within the target area which resulted in the death of some of the terrorists." "Others, who were seen attempting to flee the area, were taken out in follow-on attacks," added the defense headquarters. Boko Haram has posed enormous security and humanitarian challenges in the Lake Chad basin, including Chad, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger, besides Nigeria, according to the United Nations. Martha Stewart likes hot dogs. In 2017, she told Bon Apetit Magazine that a hot dog is her go-to late night meal. It's a treat she has relished (pun intended) since childhood, she said. And one of her favorite hot dog joints is Rawley's in Fairfield, Conn. "Once [she] moved to Connecticut, everything changed," the magazine article said. "You see, the CT-style dog has a unique version of 'the works': mustard, sauerkraut, bacon, and relish. Rawley's Drive-In in Fairfield is her all-time favorite." She even featured Rawley's on her show, The Martha Stewart Show. But on April 19, Stewart was left craving her favorite dog. She posted a photo of herself on Instagram posing in front of Rawley's with the caption "Rawleys hot dog stand on the post rd in Fairfield Best best best hot dogs! Closed!!" Stewart, who was a longtime Westport resident, now lives in Westchester County N.Y., where she is neighbors with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, according to another of her Instagram posts: "@vancityreynolds and @blakelively dropped off a smalll supply of @aviationgin last night (They are good neighbors) and they have gin!!! I have wine @marthawineco . Wine or gin? What do you think??????" Stewart made headlines this month thanks to her Instagram activity. The Internet was excited when she left a tipsy, incoherent comment on a friend's photo of baby chicks that read: "M as me sure you feed and wAter them daily And keep the heat lss as no BK in s as Nd when you can finally come back to nyc who is going to care for them??" Approaching the faux-pas with a sense of humor, she later commented back "What a mess, I have been drinking" with a laughing emoji. Popular Instagram account Comments by Celebrities highlighted the post, and it was covered by multiple news outlets from Page Six to Cosmopolitan, The Daily Mail and Fox Business. The number of people with coronavirus symptoms has plummeted by 75 per cent since the beginning of April, a data-tracking app shows. Latest analysis from the King's College COVID Symptom Tracker app estimates that there are now around 462,700 people with symptoms of the killer infection. It's a drop of more than three quarters since the 1.9million on April 1 and a staggering 93 per cent since March 23 - when app began to track Britain's outbreak. While London appears to have overcome the worst of its outbreak, researchers have highlighted two new 'hotspots' - Blackpool and Barrow-in-Furness. Health chiefs now believe cases are now plateauing - but there are still thousands of Britons infected with the deadly bug, scientists warn. The Government has come under increasing pressure to release its lockdown exit plans because of claims the outbreak has peaked. Prime Minister Boris Johnson today moved to snuff out Cabinet pressure for an early easing of lockdown, making clear that a second peak is the UK's biggest threat. The number of people with coronavirus symptoms has plummeted by 75 per cent since the beginning of April, going from 1.9million to 462,700 The COVID Symptom Tracker works by taking people through a questionnaire about how they are feeling and whether they have the typical symptoms of coronavirus Developed by researchers at Kings College London and company, ZOE, the COVID Symptom Tracker is helping predict the scale of the coronavirus outbreak in the UK. The public are encouraged to download the app and fill out forms which describe their health and ask about possible coronavirus symptoms. Healthy people, those who think they might have COVID-19, and those who have been officially diagnosed are all able to take part. The first set of data was released on March 26. It suggested around one in 10 people were ill with, or had already had, COVID-19. When applied to the whole of the UK population, it meant an estimated 6.6million people had the virus in the third week of March. Following that, the team have used data from people who have logged in for seven days in a row to extrapolate to the overall UK population. Since March 23 people have been confined to their homes under lockdown, and the symptom tracker has shown cases falling as a result. On April 1 there were 1.9million cases in the UK, mathematical modelling shows, and 1.4million on April 8. Between April 8 and April 16 cases fell dramatically to 582,640 and even further still to a record low of 462,700 today. The figures would not detect people who carry the virus but do not show symptoms - it can take up to a week for the tell-tale cough and fever to appear. Scientists know a portion of those who have fought the disease never knew they had it - but it's not clear how many yet. The app has also uncovered that there is now no clear difference between cities and the countryside when it comes to predicted COVID cases, as new hotspots appear London is no longer a key hotspot for predicted cases, as all boroughs have less than two per cent of symptomatics in the population AREAS OF ETHNIC MINORITIES ARE COVID-19 HOTSPOTS Areas with large ethnic minority populations make up more than three quarters of England's coronavirus hotspots, a report has revealed. But numbers coming from Muslim communities in areas which could be expected to be hard-hit are low, and cultural habits may be protecting England's Muslims from the fast-spreading disease. That's according to a report by Professor Richard Webber, from Newcastle University, and writer and former Labour Party politician, Trevor Phillips. The report points out that while areas with high proportions of non-white people make up most of the UK's coronavirus hotspots, Asian Muslim areas, largely, do not. Blackburn, Bradford, Luton, Rochdale and Rotherham, Mr Philips said, are 'conspicuous by their absence' on the list of worst-hit places by the coronavirus as both non-white and poor areas. He suggests that regular hand-washing before prayer, a young average age and fewer than one in three Muslim women being in work may offer the population ongoing protection from COVID-19. The report comes as Public Health England launches an inquiry into why non-white people appear to be worse affected by the disease - intensive care reports show that 34.5 per cent of critically ill patients come from ethnic minority groups, despite only making up around 14 per cent of the population. Scientists say black and Asian people may be at greater risk of catching the disease because they're more likely to live in densely-populated cities and work in people-facing jobs such as public transport or the NHS. Advertisement The app has also uncovered that there is now no clear difference between cities and the countryside when it comes to predicted COVID cases. London is no longer a key hotspot for predicted cases, as all boroughs have less than two per cent of symptomatic people in the population. Now, hotspots are spread out across England, Wales and Scotland, and they change daily. The two current hotspots or areas that have not reduced as fast, as of today, are Blackpool, with an estimated 2.9 per cent of people with symptoms of COVID-19, and nearby Barrow-in-Furness with 2.8 per cent. By region, the North West has the highest percentage of symptomatic people, at 1.61 per cent, followed by London with 1.58 per cent. Lead researcher Professor Tim Spector said although the steady decline in cases is 'very reassuring', the deaths are still high. 'This is definitely not the time for complacency,' he said. Professor Spector is against the lifting of lockdown restrictions in the immediate future, after ministers extended it for a further three weeks on Thursday, until May 7. He said: 'What the data tell us is that there is still a large number of infectious people in the UK with mild symptoms, so to quickly lift the lockdown would not be appropriate. 'We are working closely with NHS Wales and NHS Scotland to explore how the app can be used to speed up and guide the lockdown lift. 'It can work as an early alert, before hospital testing, flagging up any particular spikes in new symptom cases.' Some 2.3million people in the UK have used the app so far, but the data becomes more accurate the more people sign up. It was the research team at Kings College London that discovered loss of smell or taste is common and an even stronger predictor of being tested positive for COVID-19 than fever. The figures come after a weekend of hopes the coronavirus crisis is easing, with the lowest number of deaths on Sunday for a fortnight. The PM has told colleagues his 'overriding concern' about lifting draconian measures is to avoid a second peak. In a round of interviews this morning, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: 'The PM is very concerned about a second peak if we lift the restrictions too soon.' Government sources have also been frantically playing down the idea circulated by senior Tories over the weekend that schools could be reopened by mid-May, suggesting early June is more likely. The timetable emerged amid signs of Cabinet splits over how quickly to ease the lockdown, with fears the economic damage will kill more people than the virus itself. Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye leads the state Judicial Council, which on April 6 reduced required bail to $0 for defendants accused of designated crimes during the coronavirus pandemic emergency. (Jeff Chiu / Associated Press) Californias judicial leaders acted wisely when they reset bail amounts temporarily to $0 for people accused of misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies. The decision prevents the dangerous and unnecessary incarceration of defendants who by right ought to be free before their trials, but who instead have been jailed solely because they can't afford to buy their release on bail. Such needless detention is manifestly unjust in normal times but now is potentially fatal, because inmates by definition cannot be safer at home or practice the social distancing and other measures that slow the spread of the coronavirus. The Judicial Councils order also offers a marginal level of protection to the inmates who must remain locked up. They are still in grave danger of contracting COVID-19, but the reduced jail population makes some measure of social distancing behind bars more feasible. Refusing to jail people accused but not convicted of lower-level crimes could yet stave off the horrific scenes now playing out in places such as Chicagos Cook County jail, which has the largest concentration of infected Americans; New Yorks Rikers Island, where more than 300 are infected; and Washington, Kansas and other states where frightened inmates have rioted over officials unconscionable failure to protect them from the deadly virus. Its maddening that New York, in the midst of the pandemic, has moved in the opposite direction from California. New York previously adopted a bail reform law that looks in many respects like Californias emergency order, eliminating money bail for people accused of lower-level crimes. But New Yorks Legislature rolled back reforms in its recent budget bill, and the state is now keeping in its disease-ridden jails many defendants who have not been convicted of anything unless they have money for bail. The move will not only cause needless suffering, it may turn a stint at Rikers Island or other New York jails into a death sentence, even for inmates charged with only low-level crimes, and even if they have not been convicted. Story continues By contrast, the California Judicial Council's emergency order expands on the dramatic but disputed bail reforms the state Legislature passed in 2018. That legislation, although signed into law, is currently suspended pending a Nov. 3 voter referendum. Unlike the courts' order, the California bill SB 10 would allow pretrial detention to continue, based no longer on the size of the defendants bank account but instead on various risk factors as determined by algorithms. The idea of tying pretrial release to an objective measure of the risk posed by the defendant makes some sense, but the details matter. Criminal justice reformers warn that the algorithms could be poorly constructed or misused in such a way as to perpetuate discrimination based on race or social circumstances, including poverty. Still, SB 10 remains a worthy law, even if it leaves the important move toward better pretrial justice incomplete. If voters approve it, California will have finally eliminated wealth and poverty as factors determining whether a defendant goes to jail or remains free. New Yorks more sweeping but perhaps less thoughtful law does less good now that it has been sharply scaled back. Meanwhile, the California emergency order is being attacked by many law enforcement officials and prosecutors. They dont like $0 bail because of the blanket release from custody of potentially thousands of inmates, in the words of an April 11 letter from the California State Sheriffs Assn. Critics conveniently forget that California law has always allowed the release of these inmates if they have money. In theory, and as provided for by law, bail is set so defendants can pay it, go home, return to their families and their jobs and help prepare their defense, and get their money back when they show up for trial. But if law enforcement officers, prosecutors and judges are honest about it, they will acknowledge that they often ask for or set bail just high enough that defendants cannot pay it and will be held in jail before trial. Thats simply not permitted by law. Nor should it be. The Judicial Council order temporarily moves the practice in the right direction. Voters will decide in November whether to move forward permanently, albeit less completely. And there will remain plenty of work to be done to fix pretrial detention. Consul generals of African countries in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, said they support the local measures against COVID-19 and believe the novel coronavirus will eventually be defeated through strengthened communication and joint efforts. The various measures have shown the importance Guangdong has attached to African residents, and a communication mechanism has been established between the African consulate generals and Guangdong and Guangzhou authorities, Alima Danfakha Gakou, consul general of Mali in Guangzhou, told media Saturday. "The friendly cooperation relations between China and Africa are unremitting. All parties are expected to join hands together to prevent the common risks brought by the virus and protect the health and safety of ourselves and others," said Gakou, also dean of the African Consulate Corps in Guangzhou. She said the foreign affairs office of Guangdong updates them on the latest information and epidemic prevention measures every day, and the consulate general will timely translate the updated entry policy and notify Mali people. Gakou said she was impressed that China had taken effective measures to contain the spread of the epidemic and saved numerous lives, including building two makeshift hospitals in around 10 days, which was astonishing and admirable. She also said while fighting against the virus domestically, China kept assisting African countries, which received abundant aids from the Chinese government and companies. Guangdong Province and Guangzhou City have taken multiple moves to protect the rights and interests of African expatriates, Gakou said, adding they maintained close communication with the provincial and city foreign affairs departments. By the end of Wednesday, Guangzhou had reported 39 confirmed COVID-19 cases who were foreigners. A total of 102 asymptomatic cases were identified among the foreigners in Guangzhou, according to the Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission. On Saturday, the foreign affairs office of the province issued an open letter, calling for joint efforts in the fight against COVID-19, which was welcomed by the diplomats from Africa. Adam Yousif, consul general of Sudan in Guangzhou, said the open letter showed the clear attitude of the provincial government, especially its opposition to any discriminatory remarks or acts against specific individuals or groups. He said African expatriates in Guangdong are willing to strictly abide by local anti-virus guidelines and regulations to ensure the safety of the lives and health of residents. Ethiopian Consul General in Guangzhou Teferi Melesse Desta said they would continue to work together with local governments to promote mutual understanding. He said Guangdong has taken many effective measures and African communities here obey the instructions. "The measures taken by the Guangdong government to prevent the virus are very helpful and we talk about it with great pleasure," he said, adding that a platform has been set up for strengthened communication, which he said was a precise and targeted measure. "Now our common enemy is the virus. We should work together to defeat the virus," he said. London, April 20 : Fugitive tycoon Vijay Mallya on Monday lost his appeal in an UK court against an extradition order to India on charges of fraud and money laundering to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore. The High Court in London upheld a 2018 ruling to send him back to India on grounds that Mallya made a number of misrepresentations leading to the 2012 collapse of his company, Kingfisher Airlines The former liquor tycoon had appealed to the High Court against his extradition to India at a hearing in February this year. Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing at the Royal Courts of Justice in London dismissed the appeal in a judgment handed down remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," the judges ruled. Mallya is wanted in India on alleged fraud of the banks and money laundering charges amounting to an estimated Rs 9,000 crore. Emmanuel Macron has seen a boost in his popularity during the coronavirus pandemic, with polls showing his highest approval rating in two years. More than 40 per cent of French people were happy with the president in March and April, a level he has not seen since two summers ago, according to one survey. The poll conducted by Le Journal du Dimanche and Ifop found his approval rating jumped after last weeks speech to the nation, during which he reflected on the crisis. Mr Macron not only admitted France was not well-prepared enough to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak, but he said now was the time to make changes including for himself. It was a welcome deviation from the messages of wartime analogy, Dr Helen Drake, the chair in French and European Studies at Loughborough University London, told The Independent. The president said the country was effectively at war last month as he sent France into lockdown, telling people they must stay at home unless it is essential, in order to tackle the pandemic. He is not rigid or fixed, Dr Drake said. He is able to change his approach. March was Mr Macrons best month for popularity in more than two years, with 44 per cent of people having a positive opinion of him, according to a separate poll by Ipsos and Le Point. The French president had faced a new wave of protests over controversial pension reforms in the months before the crisis, following on from the yellow vest protests that started over a hike to fuel tax, but spiralled into a movement against the countrys leader and his economic reforms. Only 20 per cent of the population had a favourable opinion of Mr Macron in December 2018 while demonstrations swept the nation, according to the Ipsos-LePoint poll. When asked about Mr Macrons recent surge in popularity, Dr Paul Smith from the University of Nottingham told The Independent it was not unusual for presidents to see their approval ratings spike during times of crises. He said Francois Hollandes popularity rose after the Charlie Hebdo terror attack in Paris in 2015, and Nicolas Sarkozys approval rating also jumped during his handling of the 2008 financial crisis. I think the important thing is to contextualise this in terms of what happens in crises, the associate professor in French and Francophone Studies said. Dr Drake from Loughborough University London said the spike in Mr Macrons popularity was likely linked to the role of the president in France, who is expected to become a national figure. He is very articulate, literate, dramatic, the director of the Institute for Diplomacy and International Governance said. He is able to articulate the sort of solemn message expected out of the presidency rather well. In a speech to the nation last week, Mr Macron offered a reflective view on the crisis, saying it was time to take a new path, leave behind ideologies and reinvent ourselves. Me, before anyone else. This crisis offers a chance to bring us closer together. Dr Drake also said the French president is also constitutionally and historically is seen as more of a father figure than the British prime minister, who tends to be viewed as more of a partisan figure. [Mr Macron] has managed to invest his role with a certain gravitas and authority that is associated with traditional paternal authority, she said. In Mondays address, the president announced France would be extending its nationwide lockdown, which has kept people to stay indoors it is necessary for example to get medicine or buy food in a bid to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak. France has been one of the worst-hit countries in the world by the pandemic, with more than 152,000 confirmed infections to date. The death toll stood at 19,718 on Monday, according to a Reuters global count. Ultimately, Trumps advisers said, most of his team is aware that it can try to drive down Bidens poll numbers, but that no matter what tactics it deploys now, the presidents future will most likely depend on whether the economy is improving in the fall and whether the viruss spread has been mitigated. Those things will remain unknown for months. Suspected criminals arrested for serious offences are being let back onto the streets on bail due to coronavirus shortages, a source has claimed today. A number of offenders in Scotland charged with knife offences and violent assaults have been bailed to appear in court several months down the line - when they normally would have gone before a judge the next day. A legal source told the Greenock Telegraph that a man arrested on suspicion of a knife offence and two counts of breach of the peace last Thursday was allowed to walk free from the town's police station. But Police Scotland hit back saying it is keeping people in custody 'when appropriate' and those on bail are subject to strict checks. A number of offenders in Scotland charged with knife offences and violent assaults have been bailed to appear in court several months down the line - when they normally would have gone before a judge the next day. File image of police custody suite used Commenting on the case of the man on April 17 in Greenock, the source told the newspaper: 'This individual would, under normal circumstances, have been held in custody to appear in court the following day. 'It is likely that he would appear on petition with bail being opposed by the Crown and him being remanded in custody. 'But in the current circumstances he has been released on an undertaking and taken on trust to appear at court in July.' The local court Sheriff Court in Greenock, Inverclyde, is currently closed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. All cases from there, Dumbarton and West Dumbartonshire are now being held at Paisley Sheriff Court 15 miles away. On Friday, a van full of armed police officers swooped on a house in nearby Port Glasgow, Inverclyde. They arrested a 37-year-old man for alleged assault and animal cruelty charges but later released him. The source claims that no one in custody at Greenock appeared in court at Paisley last week. They described the slow speed at calling defends to court as 'alarming'. Many court cases are being held by videolink to avoid the spread of coronavirus. Visiting has also been suspended at jails across England, Wales and Scotland to stem the spread of the infection. The Scottish Prison Service today announced it would be giving current inmates mobile phones to make up for the lack of visits. Prisoners will not be able to text, receive incoming calls or browse the internet on the phones - only make a limited number to family and friends. Commenting on the claims that criminals are being increasingly let free amid coronavirus shortages, Chief superintendent Alan Murray said lawbreakers are being 'dealt with appropriately'. He said: 'Police Scotland is working closely with partners in criminal justice to ensure that people breaking the law will be dealt with appropriately, including being kept in custody when appropriate and taking into account specific circumstances surrounding individual incidents. 'Police Scotland will continue to deal effectively with criminality and report cases to the procurator fiscal in the usual way. 'Where people are released on undertaking, they will be subject to rigorous conditions to ensure the public is kept safe from risk and harm.' Four inmates of the central jail in Indore in Madhya Pradesh tested positive for the novel coronavirus, taking the total number of COVID-19 prisoners in the city to six, a senior official said on Monday. They were admitted in MY Hospital on April 17, Central Jail Superintendent Rakesh Kumar Bhangre told PTI. "They are in the 28-34 age group. The number of prisoners infected with coronavirus here is now six. All inmates who came in contact are being shifted to a temporary jail to be examined by medical staff," he said. Bhangre said the jail holds 2,220 inmates against a sanctioned capacity of 1,230. "The prison barracks have been divided into seven zones and the municipal corporation has disinfected them. The inmates have been given masks," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Stimulus bills cover the costs of diagnosing and testing for COVID-19 and will pay for a vaccine once one is developed, but Botts said those bills do not address the costs of treating the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. Botts said current estimates for outpatient COVID-19 treatment range from $10,000 to $20,000, while treatment that requires hospitalization runs in excess of $70,000. Theres no federal requirement for insurers to cover this, or federal money to cover it, but a handful of states have required coverage, or partial coverage for treatment, without cost-sharing, and some insurance companies have, Botts said. He added that the AHIP.org website hosts a list of insurance companies and the levels of cost-sharing they will provide. That assumes you have insurance, said Botts. If youre terminated and let go, and lose your health insurance, you have three options: You can go to COBRA, which is not a meaningful option because the premiums are too high; you can go to either Medicaid or the Marketplace; or you can do nothing and hope the federal government will have a treatment option in the third bill. HOUSTON - (April 20, 2020) - If you're on skis, you want to avoid avalanches. But when the right kind happen in your brain, you shouldn't worry. You won't feel them. They're probably to your benefit. Scientists at Rice University's Center for Theoretical Biological Physics (CTBP) have simulated the mechanics of a complex network that helps give neurons their ever-changing structures. They found the complex, Arp2/3, may be largely responsible for the "avalanches" observed in the cells' cytoskeletal networks. The finding, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, provides another clue to how the brain forms and retains memories. It follows a study last year that detailed the interactions that allow neurons to accept the electrical signals that remodel their structures. An earlier study suggested actin filaments that control the shape of neurons may be the key to the formation and storage of long-term memories. The new study led by Rice biophysicist Peter Wolynes, University of Houston physicist Margaret Cheung and Northeastern University biophysicist Herbert Levine suggests cytoskeletal avalanches within the neurons' dendritic spines may be one way they retain new information. Much about the cytoskeleton in every cell remains a mystery, but neurons are particularly interesting to the research team that studies how they acquire information and store it for later use. Lego-like actin proteins assemble to form these spidery filaments that allow motor proteins to carry nutrients and other cargoes across cells. They also give cells the ability to move and divide. Sometimes, these filaments form branched actomyosin networks that have been observed to collapse. The simulations revealed the presence of Arp2/3 is key to nucleating branched actin networks that occasionally convulse and release strain in the network. (Arp stands for actin-related protein.) When Arp2/3 was present, the simulations showed branched networks tended to relax significantly more slowly than unbranched networks do. "There's an analogy I use," Wolynes said. "With memory, you have to have something that changes, then it has to remain relatively permanent, but then perhaps be able to change again. "Suppose you have a pillow made up of a random array of feathers," he said. "They're basically rods, similar to the branched structure of actin. If you put your head on the pillow, you crush it down, and when you get up later it still has that same crushed shape. Another time, it could have a different shape. So it has memory." Actin networks retain memory in somewhat the same way, Wolynes said. "Like your pillow, the rods in the network reconfigure when you put stress on them, in this case, an electrochemical signal input. When signaled, they undergo a series of avalanches that change the shape of the dendritic spine." "These are also similar to earthquakes in a sense," Levine added. "In an earthquake, the ground is static for a long time and then you have a dramatic event that reconfigures things. This new configuration lasts for a long time. "The novelty of what's being done here is that we're not just focusing on individual molecules, as we've often done in the past," he said. "We're figuring out how individual molecules and their properties can modulate structures at larger length scales." The models showed branched actomyosin networks do not destabilize at specific concentrations, but that the avalanches depend on the initial configuration of the network as well as the history of past avalanches. "Like your pillow, how flexible the network is depends on how often it has been compressed in the past," Wolynes said. Cheung, whose lab continues to run three-dimensional MEDYAN models that combine mechanics and chemistry to study actomyosin dynamics, said many additional proteins are involved and are being studied by the team in order to understand memory. The team hopes to tie its new findings to the earlier study led by Wolynes on how actin filaments exert force to stabilize long-term memories in prionlike fibers. "One of the ways in which memory becomes more lasting is to change the global shape of the dendritic spine," Levine said. "That's not currently in our modeling framework, and it will be an extensive effort to get it to work, but I'm interested in how to extend these models to calculate how the shapes change." Rice graduate student James Liman is lead author of the paper. Co-authors are Rice graduate student Carlos Bueno, University of Houston graduate student Yossi Eliaz, Rice academic visitor Nicholas Schafer and Neal Waxham, the William M. Wheless III Professor in Biomedical Sciences and a professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston's McGovern Medical School. ### Cheung is the Moores Professor of Physics, of Chemistry and of Computer Science at the University of Houston. Wolynes is the D.R. Bullard-Welch Foundation Professor of Science, Professor of Chemistry, BioSciences, and Physics and Astronomy at Rice and co-director of the CTBP. The National Science Foundation supported the research. Read the abstract at http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1922494117. This news release can be found online at https://news.rice.edu/2020/04/20/actin-avalanches-may-make-memories-stick/ Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews. Related materials: Scientists advance search for memory's molecular roots: https://news.rice.edu/2019/08/26/scientists-advance-search-for-memorys-molecular-roots/ Thanks, actin, for the memories: http://news.rice.edu/2016/04/18/thanks-actin-for-the-memories-2/ Wolynes Research Lab: http://wolynes.rice.edu/node/129 Cheung Group: https://sites.google.com/nsm.uh.edu/cheung Herbert Levine: https://cos.northeastern.edu/people/herbie-levine/ Center for Theoretical Biological Physics: https://ctbp.rice.edu Wiess School of Natural Sciences: http://natsci.rice.edu Images for download: https://news-network.rice.edu/news/files/2020/04/0420_ACTO-2-WEB.jpg These snapshots of actin filaments, motors and linkers show how a branched network changes during an avalanche as tension in the system, indicated by color, is released over 10 seconds. The blue squares at top left highlight concentrated high-tension regions that become low-tension areas (top right) after the event. Researchers suspect avalanches in the actomyosin networks in neuronal cells are one possible mechanism by which the brain preserves memories. (Credit: Memory/Plasticity Group at CTBP/Rice University) https://news-network.rice.edu/news/files/2020/04/0420_ACTO-3-ANIM.gif An animated model shows the release of tension in a branched actomyosin network. Researchers suspect such avalanches are one possible mechanism by which the brain's neurons preserve memories. (Credit: Memory/Plasticity Group at CTBP/Rice University) Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,962 undergraduates and 3,027 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 4 for quality of life by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance. Jeff Falk 713-348-6775 jfalk@rice.edu Mike Williams 713-348-6728 mikewilliams@rice.edu Lynton Tapp was the first returning contestant to be eliminated from MasterChef: Back to Win on Sunday night. Speaking to Hit Network's radio duo Krysti & Bodge on Monday, the 32-year-old chef defended his 'creative' dish after failing to woo over the new judges. 'In restaurants where I trained and worked we're creative,' he said. 'I was being creative': MasterChef star Lynton Tapp (pictured) has defended his 'creative' dish after he was the first chef to be eliminated from the rebooted series on Sunday night Lynton continued: 'We push the boundaries and that's how you get to new and exciting food, which Australian diners love.' 'Unfortunately, last night the judges didn't recognise that, but I'm extremely proud of what I did.' The ousted chef went on to say, should he be faced with his time all over, he would create the same thing all over again. Speaking to Hit Network's radio duo Krysti & Bodge on Monday, the 32-year-old chef defended his 'creative' dish after failing to woo over the new judges 'I would refine it, but I would refine any dish that I cooked, whether it's on MasterChef or in my restaurant or our home,' he concluded. The married father-of-one, who made it to the top three last week, shocked viewers when he was sent home after failing to impress in a two-round challenge. In his exit interview with 10 daily, Lynton couldn't hide his disappointment as he felt he was 'just warming up'. Vocal: Judge Jock Zonfrillo (pictured) said of his blue swimmer crab dish: 'Lynton, Lynton, Lynton. It's quite a dull, textureless dish. There's nothing going on there' 'Of course I have a massive pang of disappointment for leaving so early,' Lynton admitted. 'To be completely honest I felt like I was just warming up.' Lynton added that his elimination makes for 'great TV', having made it to the top three alongside Callum Hann and Sarah Clare last week. He first plated up a pickled mussels and fish dish with a lime and ginger dressing, followed by blue swimmer crab with buckwheat and grilled asparagus. The Channel 10 star was sent home by the judges, leaving Rose Adam safe. MasterChef continues Monday at 7.30pm on Channel 10 Hundreds of people defied social distancing recommendations in Russia's Northern Caucasus Monday to protest against coronavirus restrictions and economic hardship, in one of the first major lockdown protests in the country. Protesters -- including some who have lost their jobs during the lockdown -- gathered in Vladikavkaz, the capital of North Ossetia in Russia's turbulent North Caucasus region. Many called for the resignation of local governor Vyacheslav Bitarov. "Resign! Resign!" the crowd chanted, in footage posted on social media. "Companies have been closed, and people have lost their source of income," one protester, Indira Gabolayeva, told AFP. "They don't know how to go on living. They fear hunger more than some infection," she added. Gabolayeva said the lockdown had exacerbated existing social and economic problems, including the weakening of the ruble due to low oil prices. Most of the protesters wore no face masks and ignored social distancing recommendations. Gabolayeva said many protesters doubted the seriousness of the coronavirus and questioned the need for the lockdown. Authorities deployed riot police and several protesters including top activists were detained, said OVD-Info which tracks opposition rallies. There was no immediate comment from the regional administration or police. But Bitarov, the regional head, went to speak to the protesters who were invited to nominate representatives for talks with authorities, local television reported. The protest came amid simmering anger at what many Russians say is a lack of adequate support for ordinary people and for small and medium-sized businesses during the epidemic. President Vladimir Putin urged Russians to stay at home and told their employers to continue paying their salaries but gave the companies little tangible support. Russia has reported 47,121 cases of the coronavirus, more than half of them in Moscow, and 405 fatalities. North Ossetia has registered 145 cases and two deaths. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) LANSING, MI -- As Michiganders get their stimulus checks from the federal government, state Attorney General Dana Nessel says its important to be mindful of the potential for exploitation. With the widespread knowledge that these relief payments are being dispersed, many who care for or have access to a vulnerable adult may see this as an opportunity to misuse those funds, Nessel said in a press release. At a time when its much more difficult to check on our loved ones in person, we must remain diligent and resourceful. Nessel recommends checking in with older family members or vulnerable adults and their caregivers to ensure the money is being used properly. Millions of Americans have begun receiving checks from the federal government as part of the national stimulus plan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most checks are for $1,200 per adult for those who meet income qualifications. The checks began arriving in bank accounts last week. Nessels office began warning Michigan residents last month of potential scams as news spread of the checks being sent out. Nessel warned of people posing as banking employees who ask for personal information, PayPal accounts and more. If you suspect an elderly person or vulnerable adult is being abused, exploited or neglected, you can contact the Michigan Department Health and Human Services at 1-855-444-3911 to report the case. For more information on elder abuse, visit the state website. 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 Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus 5 things that need to happen for Michigan to reopen its economy after the coronavirus crisis Medical experts say Michigans coronavirus death count isnt accurate. But is it too high or too low? Gov. Whitmer hints at how Michigan will start reopening, come May 1 Michigan Senate Republicans unveil plan for reopening economy during coronavirus pandemic Coronavirus: over 130 refugees positive in Lisbon hostel Put in quarantine, said mayor's office (ANSAmed) - LISBON, APRIL 20 - More than 130 refugees out of 180 being hosted in a youth hostel in Lisbon have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and been placed in quarantine, said the mayor's office of the Portoghese capital. The hostel was evacuated on Sunday after it was reported that a man had been hospitalised, Deputy Mayor Carlos Costa told reporters. Mohamed Abed, an official with a mosque in Lisbon, told public television that the migrants are "young people from Egypt, the Ivory Coast, and other regions of the world". The hostel, situated in the centre of Lisbon, was disinfected by city police and the refugees who tested negative were able to return. Portugal's state of emergency, in place since March 19, has been extended until May 2 as part of measures aimed at slowing the spread of the pandemic. Migrants who are waiting for their documents to be legalised and asylum seekers are also guaranteed access to health care.(ANSAmed). Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro appears at a protest asking for military intervention in front the army's headquarters during the new coronavirus pandemic, in Brasilia, Brazil, Sunday. AP Photo Sao Paulo: Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro on Sunday joined hundreds of demonstrators outside army headquarters in the capital Brasilia protesting stay-at-home orders issued by state governors. The crowd of around 600 called on the army to intervene in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and demanded the closure of Congress. Some held up posters declaring "Military intervention with Bolsonaro". "I am here because I believe in you and you are here because you believe in Brazil," the president told the crowd from the back of a pick-up truck. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, has constantly criticized partial quarantine measures adopted by governors, including those in charge of the country's most populous states, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, to halt the spread of the coronavirus. On Friday, he sacked his health minister, who supported the restrictions that Bolsonaro says are damaging the economy. Brazil, with a population of more than 200 million, has the most COVID-19 cases in Latin America -- more than 38,000 as of Sunday, with more than 2,400 deaths. During his address, which was interspersed with fits of coughing, the president made no response to the crowd's call for military intervention nor the demand to close Congress. "You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro said. The most populous states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro on Friday extended partial quarantine measures. A majority of Brazilians approve the government's confinement regulations despite its impact on the economy, according to a poll published Saturday. Now that former Vice President Joe Biden has locked up the Democratic presidential nomination, myriad advocacy and lobbying groups are vying for his ear as he fleshes out his foreign policy platform. And to get Bidens ear, they need to go through his advisers. Biden has already staked out drastically different positions from President Donald Trump with vows to reassess US-Saudi relations and reenter the Iran nuclear deal as well as his opposition to Israel annexing the West Bank. But as always, the devil is in the details. Will Biden fully undo the decades-long US-Saudi security partnership? What about the troubled US-Turkish alliance? To what extent and at what pace is he willing to move to lift Iran sanctions? How will he stop Israel from annexing the West Bank without using military aid restrictions as a pressure point? The man tasked with calibrating the answers to these questions is Tony Blinken, Bidens former national security adviser who has been in the vice presidents orbit for the better part of 18 years. Blinken now oversees a growing cadre of familiar faces from the center-left of Washingtons foreign policy establishment who are tasked with advising the campaign both formally and informally. That network includes several of Bidens other national security advisers during his tenure at the White House. Jake Sullivan, who helped oversee President Barack Obamas Iran nuclear negotiations, is advising Biden after coordinating foreign policy for Secretary of State Hillary Clintons failed 2016 presidential campaign. Another former national security adviser, Colin Kahl, has become the de facto point person for the Biden campaign on all Iran-related issues. Brian McKeon, Jeffrey Prescott and Julianne Smith, three of the vice presidents former deputy national security advisers under Blinken, are also advising the campaign. Notably, Prescott went on to serve as Obamas senior adviser for Iran, Iraq, Syria and the Gulf states after working for Biden. Ely Ratner, who served as Bidens deputy adviser under Kahl and is currently the executive vice president at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), is also providing informal outside counsel. Elizabeth Rosenberg, a senior fellow with CNAS energy, economics and security program, is also involved in hammering out the campaigns Iran policies. As a senior Treasury Department adviser under Obama, Rosenberg helped tighten sanctions on Iran in the lead-up to the nuclear deal negotiations while implementing sanctions on Syria and Libya. Bidens team of Obama alumni also includes one prominent foreign policy hand from the George W. Bush administration: Nicholas Burns, a career foreign service officer who supported the Iraq war and became the undersecretary of state for political affairs in 2005. Neither the Biden campaign nor any of his advisers made themselves available for interviews. Many of Bidens foreign policy gurus sit on the advisory boards for both Foreign Policy for America and National Security Action, two advocacy groups founded to push back against Trumps foreign policy. Many of them also worked at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, which the vice president established after leaving office. A fourth major haven for exiled Obama administration officials under the Trump presidency is WestExec Advisers, a geopolitical consulting firm co-founded by Blinken. Blinken first served on President Bill Clintons National Security Council before signing on in 2002 as the foreign policy adviser for Biden, who as a senator served as chairman and top Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee through 2008. Blinkens star rapidly rose after following his boss to the White House, where he eventually became Obamas deputy national security adviser and then deputy secretary of state under John Kerry who endorsed Bidens 2020 presidential bid all the way back in December. Like many of Bidens campaign advisers, Blinken was instrumental in crafting the Iran nuclear deal. The vice president has vowed to re-enter the accord, which would necessitate lifting the broad sectoral sanctions on Iran that have formed the crux of Trumps "maximum pressure" campaign. Even Burns called for a very strong effort to get to the negotiating table with Iran shortly after leaving the Bush administration in 2008. But Kahl and Rosenberg have taken a cautious approach to crafting the vice presidents sanctions messaging. After Bidens former primary opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and 33 other progressive lawmakers called on Trump to fully lift all financial sanctions on Iran during the COVID-19 pandemic, the vice president put out a statement that simply called for more humanitarian leeway in the current sanctions regime. For her part, Rosenberg largely maintained a neutral tone while moderating a CNAS panel on sanctions last week. But at one point she did refer to Iran as a rogue regime a common refrain echoed throughout Washingtons tight-knit foreign policy establishment for the last several decades. Speaking at a Capitol Hill panel hosted by Foreign Policy magazine and the dovish Quincy Institute in February, Smith cautioned, Theres tremendous uncertainty about the degree to which the next president can come in and get everyone back around the table and recommit to the deal, strengthen it and continue to address Irans nefarious activities throughout the region. And while Bidens advisers are still wary of Tehrans proxies throughout the region, the vice president has been in lockstep with the rest of his party in condemning Trumps January strike on Maj. Gen Qasem Soleimani, the former leader of Irans expeditionary Quds Force, while he visited Iraq. Following the strike, Prescott argued in a Foreign Policy op-ed, Many of the ideological architects of one of the United States most disastrous foreign-policy decisions the 2003 invasion of Iraq are spinning a tale to support the presidents most dangerous move to date. Still, Blinken also advised Biden when he voted to authorize Bush to invade Iraq in 2002, a specter that has loomed over Bidens modern political career. That vote dogged him in his 2008 campaign for president, and Trump mercilessly wielded Clintons Iraq war authorization vote as a cudgel against her in the 2016 campaign. Blinken was also with Biden at the White House when Obama put the vice president in charge of the Iraq portfolio. During that time, they were unable to conclude a status of forces agreement with the Nouri al-Maliki government, leading to the withdrawal of US troops. When the Islamic State rampaged throughout Iraq and Syria, Blinken was serving as Obamas deputy national security adviser and helped design the US strategy to dismantle the caliphate. Two weeks after leaving the Obama administration, Blinken penned a New York Times op-ed urging Trump to arm the Syrian Kurds despite Turkeys objections. He argued at the time that keeping the Kurds focused on Raqqa keeps [them] away from the Turkish-Syrian border and any effort by Syrian Kurds to join the area they control in a contiguous Kurdish region or state. He added that Trump should clearly reiterate US opposition to a Kurdish state. Trump ultimately did arm the Kurds, who were indeed integral in the US-backed effort to dismantle the caliphate. But he sparked bipartisan backlash last year when he withdrew US troops from the Turkish-Syrian border, paving the way for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans ongoing offensive against them. Biden quickly joined the chorus of critics condemning the move as a betrayal of a close US partner. Bidens future approach to Turkey remains unclear, but he has clearly promised to reconfigure US-Saudi relations. Specifically, he has vowed to end US support for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmans war in Yemen and impose consequences for his role in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Blinken was already criticizing Trumps Gulf policy in 2017, when he wrote another New York Times op-ed criticizing Trump for siding with the Saudis after they spearheaded a regional blockade against neighboring Qatar that is still in place today despite gradually loosening restrictions. Ironically, it was Blinken and Bidens other advisers who initially urged Obama to back Saudi Arabias aerial campaign against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, largely to placate the kingdoms outrage over the nuclear deal with Tehran. In Blinkens op-ed on the Qatar blockade, he noted that he was the first senior American official to meet the crown prince after he intervened in Yemen. Blinken recounted that he asked the crown prince Saudi Arabias end objective in Yemen. The answer: to remove every last vestige of Iranian influence. Minister for health Simon Harris during a press conference at the Department of Health in Dublin to speak about mental health supports during the Covid-19 outbreak (Brian Lawless/PA) Health Minister Simon Harris has warned that allowing complacency to set in among the public in the fight against Covid-19 could be disastrous. A further 39 people diagnosed with Covid-19 in the Republic died on Sunday. There are now a total of 15,251 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the Republic. In a video message on Twitter on Sunday night, the minister said the progress made by the Irish people risks being undone if people become complacent. Mr Harris warned progress made so far was fragile. He said: Theres an air of complacency creeping in in relation to Irelands battle against Covid-19 and we have to push back against it. Were at a very delicate moment and it would not take much for that to be reversed. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) Im hearing stories of people beginning to somewhat relax their interpretation of the phrase stay at home or the 2km rule, and I really need to appeal to you not to do that. Do not allow complacency to set in. Do not allow us to say: Ah sure, were going well in Ireland and I can let the foot off the pedal. That would be disastrous. It could potentially be fatal. Testing of staff and residents in nursing homes will continue this week as the focus remains on extinguishing and preventing outbreaks in long term residential care. Testing of staff and residents in all nursing homes will continue this week, with some 4,000 tests carried out over the weekend. Mr Harris will speak with his European counterparts by teleconference later on Monday to share updates on how efforts to tackle the virus are going across the European Union. For the first time in two months, Western Australia has recorded no new COVID-19 cases in a 24 hour period. In the last week the state only recorded 28 new cases, with more than half attributable to cruise ship passengers and crew. To date there has been little evidence of community spread. On Monday, South Australia and Queensland also reported no new cases in the past 24 hours. April 20 (Reuters) - Civil aviation training company CAE said on Monday it would recall all its employees in Canada who were furloughed in response to the coronavirus pandemic. About 1,500 employees will be back on the payroll this week, the company said. It also said it had signed a contract with the Government of Canada to make 10,000 ventilators, as part of the effort to battle the pandemic. (Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli) Some doctors and nurses at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital in Borno state are currently under quarantine. This is as... Some doctors and nurses at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital in Borno state are currently under quarantine. Babangida Buba, a retired nurse who reportedly passed on after displaying symptoms of COVID-19. This is as a result of the death of oneBabangida Buba, a retired nurse who reportedly passed on after displaying symptoms of COVID-19. The deceased, who joined a humanitarian organisation after retirement, was said to have been admitted to the hospital two days ago. A nurse, who did not disclose her identity, said she and some of her colleagues had raised the alarm that the late health worker should be moved to the intensive care unit of the hospital but they were ignored. He died Friday morning in our hands this morning. We are the once that dressed his corpse we were all quarantined after we returned from our homes early this morning. They said they must conduct test on all of us before we go home, she said in an audio obtained by TheCable. Another health worker said not all measures were put in place while attending to the patient, adding that there could be crisis if the result of the test is COVID-19 positive. The health worker said it is possible that those on duty when the deceased was admitted were not at alert because he had been managed at the hospital before. The late nurse had a case of pneumonia and he had been admitted to the hospital before. I guess that was why they were not on high alert; they felt he had not travelled out of the country recently and he might have not contacted an infected persons, since he was brought in from a rural area, the health worker said. He added that the result of the test would clear all doubts on the nature of the death of Buba. There are reports that one of the sons of Buba is currently displaying symptoms of COVID-19. TheCable could not independently verify this at the time this report was filed. Umar Kadafur, deputy governor of Borno, said it is too early to state the cause of the death of the late health worker. You are supposed to run a test and their is a lot of process involved. So, if you are not a member of the COVID-19 team, you cannot preempt a result without official confirmation, he told reporters earlier on Friday. What we are saying now is that we have a patient who has passed away and that patient has been tested but the result sent to NCDC for official confirmation. It is the Nigeria Center for Disease Control that has been mandated to make a statement on that. But as a committee, we are working and reviewing things. So for now, I can assure you that if there is anything from the NCDC, we will make it public. Researchers are putting out the call for COVID-19 survivors across the country who can donate plasma to patients battling the disease, as a major clinical trial to study whether that could save lives gets Health Canada approval. The trial, which will be overseen by doctors at several major universities and will involve 40 to 60 hospitals, cleared the hurdle at the end of last week. Dr. Jeannie Callum, a professor at the University of Toronto and transfusion medicine specialist at Sunnybrook hospital, said they hope to have their first donor in front of them within a week. Thats an unbelievable speed considering it normally takes two years just to plan a trial. People are working every day, 12-hour days, to make this happen, she said. Its amazing. Delphine Denis, spokesperson for Canadian Blood Services, said their approval for the collection of plasma is still under review and they are expecting its approval in the next few days. Its equivalent, Hema-Quebec, will also be collecting donations. Potential donors can fill out an online screening form at https://blood.ca/en/convalescentplasma and someone will get back to them about when and where to go. Convalescent plasma therapy the practice of putting the clear, straw-coloured part of blood from recovered patients into the very sick is an old idea. It was first used to treat a German child with diphtheria in the late 1800s, and also helped save lives during the Spanish flu. The plasma of survivors is full of antibodies that can bind to a virus and neutralize it, giving an immune boost. Its been used successfully to treat SARS, Ebola, and many other viral infections. But theres not enough science to show if it works for COVID-19, because the disease is only a few months old. It has shown promise in two small Chinese studies. The Canadian one would be much bigger, and is being done in conjunction with similar studies in several countries including France, the U.K. and South Korea. The team is looking for 800 donors and 1,200 patients. They will reassess at the halfway mark when they get to 600 recipients, to see how many they actually need, and are trying to complete the trial by years end. To be eligible donors need to be under age 67, have tested positive for COVID-19, and be fully recovered with no symptoms for 28 days. The study will start with men, Callum said, because they are less complicated, without the possibility of pregnancy. For women we have to do extra blood testing on them, and that will slow us down, so were ramping up just with the men, and then well move to the women. Given the issues with access to testing, many people whove had coronavirus will not have a positive test result. Callum said theyd love to include them but just dont have the time. The plasma will be tested to determine the strength of the antibodies, which vary from person to person. Some plasma could be screened out if it doesnt have strong enough antibodies. While donors will volunteer, all patients at participating hospitals not on a ventilator will get screened for the study. For every three people in the trial, two will get the plasma and one will get regular care, Callum said. Who gets what will be determined randomly. Once all of the global trials are completed, results can be compared with other countries. Callum said there has already been a heartwarming response from potential donors, including entire families who got COVID-19, and groups of friends who got it on the same vacation. Canadians are so nice. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 10:11:40|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CAIRO, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research received on Sunday a batch of anti-coronavirus materials donated by China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. According to the Chinese Embassy in Egypt, the materials include 100,000 surgical masks, 15,000 N95 masks, 1,000 protective suits and 1,200 testing kits. When receiving the materials in the Chinese Embassy, Egyptian Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdel Ghaffar expressed his gratitude, calling China's handling of the coronavirus a great success. "These materials will relieve pressure on the hospitals affiliated to Egyptian universities that are under the supervision of the ministry and will help cure more coronavirus cases in Egypt," said Ghaffar. Chinese Ambassador Liao Liqiang expressed appreciation for the help the ministry provided for the Chinese students in Egypt, adding that Egyptian students in China are safe and sound. "The donation of the materials reflects the deep relations between the two countries and there are solid reasons that the bilateral relations will go deeper after COVID-19," said Liao. On the same day, the Chinese Embassy in Egypt held the seventh online press conference on COVID-19, in which Liao briefed the anti-coronavirus situation in China and cooperation between the countries in this regard. Another batch of anti-coronavirus materials is scheduled to arrive in Egypt next Tuesday, and a third batch is under coordination between the two sides, Liao said. "The impacts of the coronavirus on the major bilateral cooperation projects in Egypt are limited and there will be no change in the investments policy by the Chinese side in the future," Liao added. Enditem Following a 40-day suspension, Egypts parliament the House of Representatives will meet on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss a number of legislative amendments necessary to contain the negative impact of the outbreak of the coronavirus. The amendment of the law regulating the state of emergency will feature prominently on the agenda of the discussion. According to a parliamentary report, four articles of the emergency law (162/1958) will be amended to give the president new powers necessary to handle critical health situations such as the outbreak of the coronavirus. "The powers, which were not part of the law when it was issued for the first time in 1958, include giving the president the right to suspend the school and university year and postpone the payment of taxes and electricity and water bills, etc," said the report. The amendments were approved by the legislative and constitutional affairs committee in an urgent meeting on Saturday. Parliament is also expected to renew the extension of the state of emergency for another three months, beginning on 27 April. In economic terms, parliament will discuss and vote on eight laws aiming to contain the negative financial impact of the coronavirus. The list will include a seven-article law on the financial measures necessary to contain the negative impact of the virus on the state's economic, production and service sectors. The law gives the cabinet the right to intervene to postpone the payment of certain taxes and social insurance to help businesses provided that they do not fire workers or cut their salaries. The house will also amend four articles of the income tax law 991/2005) to give new exemptions to low and limited-income brackets. The real estate and property tax law (196/2008) will be also amended to relieve businesses of some tax burdens imposed on their affiliated lands. The amendment of four articles of the current state budget 2019/20 will also be discussed to procure an allocation of EGP 10 billion necessary to mitigate the financial cost of the coronavirus and stimulate the national economy at the same time. The House will also take a vote on legislative amendments aiming to increase pensions by 80 percent, and give bonuses to state employees that will increase their salaries by 12 percent. The legislative agenda this week also includes discussing a new 113-article law drafted to regulate small, micro and medium-scale productive enterprises in order to boost their contribution to the national economy. The House will also discuss a 19-article law on regulating the performance of psychiatrists and the professionals who care for psychologically troubled patients. The House is also expected to take a final vote on two laws that were discussed in January and February. The first is a 22-artice law on Central Depository and Registration (93/2000), and the second is a new four-article law regulating the performance of deputy provincial governors. Parliament took this week a number of strict anti-coronavirus measures. MPs and parliamentary reporters will be allowed to enter the House's building only after they test negative for the coronavirus and pass through glass self-sterilisation chambers. Guests and visitors will not be allowed to enter parliament. Parliament's secretary-general Mahmoud Fawzi indicated in a statement on Sunday that parliament's decision to reconvene this week sends a message that its meetings will continue while at the same time taking the necessary anti-coronavirus precautionary measures. He revealed that the Ministry of Military Production has provided parliament with all the necessary sterilisation equipment and material necessary to prevent the infiltration of the virus. "Parliament speaker Ali Abdel-Aal has expressed deep thanks to Minister of Military Production Mohamed Al-Assar and to his ministry for producing high-quality sterilisation equipment and material in record time," Fawzi said. Search Keywords: Short link: A federal judge on Sunday ordered the District of Columbia jail to immediately change health, sanitation and social-distancing measures for 1,400 prisoners in the nation's capital to combat climbing infection rates of the novel coronavirus, while stopping short of ordering further inmate releases. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of Washington acknowledged the "unprecedented challenge" facing D.C. authorities but ruled that a D.C. Public Defender Service and American Civil Liberties Union of D.C. lawsuit was likely to prove that corrections officials have shown a "deliberate indifference" to inmates' health "by failing to take comprehensive, timely, and proper steps to stem the spread of the virus." In a sweeping emergency order, Kollar-Kotelly demanded that D.C. officials improve more than a dozen medical and safety measures to protect inmates and workers, citing a climbing rate of infection that has put 60% of inmates under quarantine and knocked one-quarter of D.C. Department of Corrections workers out of action in five weeks since emergency declarations were ordered. "The risks of contracting COVID-19 are very real for those both inside and outside DOC facilities," Kollar-Kotelly wrote in a 31-page opinion, referencing the disease caused by the coronavirus. "However, Plaintiffs have produced evidence that inadequate precautionary measures at DOC facilities have increased their risk of contracting COVID-19 and facing serious health consequences, including death. "Given the gravity of Plaintiffs' asserted injury, as well as the permanence of death, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have satisfied the requirement of facing irreparable harm unless injunctive relief is granted." As of Saturday, the confirmed infection rate per capita for inmates behind bars at D.C. jail facilities was 14 times greater than for the city's population as a whole. The infection rate for corrections employees was six times greater than for the population as a whole. D.C. reported that 82 inmates had tested positive for the virus and that 880 were in isolation or quarantined with symptoms or suspected of exposure. Among corrections personnel, 26 had tested positive and 152 were out or in quarantine. One prisoner and one worker have died of the virus. As of Thursday, 281 out of 949 (30%) funded department positions were unavailable for duty, a factor court-ordered inspectors singled out as rendering D.C. jail facilities unsafe despite written government procedures in place. "Understaffing during a crisis situation such as the COVID-19 pandemic makes it difficult to enact and enforce the necessary precautionary measures," Kollar-Kotelly wrote. "Having a written policy in place but not fully implemented cannot protect Defendants from a finding of deliberate indifference." Kollar-Kotelly mandated immediate changes in screening, tracking and delivering prompt medical care for those showing symptoms; keeping inmates and staff six feet apart per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines; restoring and maintaining prisoners' right of access to confidential legal calls while jail visitors are banned; and halting "punitive conditions of isolation" that she wrote make it more likely that inmates hide symptoms and infect others. In an interview, ACLU of D.C. legal director Scott Michelman said: "We're very pleased that the judge has recognized the urgency of the situation and the grave deficiencies of the D.C. Jail. . . . The judge rightly found that the expert report corroborates what jail staff and detainees have been saying over the last few weeks." Michael Hannon, attorney for the union that represents D.C. corrections officers, case managers and nonmanagement workers - which has filed its own lawsuit against the agency in D.C. Superior Court and a friend-of-the-court brief in the prisoners' case - added, "We have no reason to rejoice, because DOC has persistently lied to us." Hannon continued: "We support the inmates, because the Jail leaders have engaged in conscious disregard for our safety too. And if Jail officials do not work with and listen to us now, their efforts to comply with Judge Kollar-Kotelly's order will fail, just like their empty promises of the past." The office of D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, a Democrat, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The legal action comes as prisoner advocates nationwide have pressed local, state and federal jails and prisons to release prisoners deemed at low risk of flight or public dangerousness but at higher vulnerability of dying of the coronavirus because of age or underlying medical conditions. Advocates call prisons "tinderboxes" for viral spread in communities - combining the risks of cruise ships and nursing homes by confining large populations of sicker and older occupants together, magnified by poor medical and sanitary conditions and high turnover or "churn" into the general public by the release of detainees charged with or sentenced of lower-level crimes, as well as the daily coming and going of big worker populations. Kollar-Kotelly's ruling relied on findings of inspectors Grace Lopes and Mark Jordan from three days of unannounced visits April 10-12. Inspectors found that the D.C. jail system is housing 22% fewer inmates than a month ago but is making "no effort to enforce" stated social distancing rules or other procedures because it has too few workers and supervisors, with one guard monitoring up to 45 prisoners. Many inmates are using "tattered and soiled" rags made from tearing towels or T-shirts to try to clean cells and communal areas; workers and staff are living in "fear" and uninformed about when, how and why to wear protective masks or gloves or how to use cleaning chemicals. Inmates who test positive for the virus are placed in isolation units and not permitted to shower, clean their cells, contact family or attorneys or change soiled clothes, linens or masks for the duration of the illness, inspectors said. Kollar-Kotelly called it "critical" for jail facilities to strengthen environmental health and safety conditions by hiring a registered sanitarian, overseeing new training for inmates and workers to use cleaning tools and protective gear, and supporting security staff "on a unit-by-unit basis" to enforce social distancing. The Tarkwa Nsuem Municipal Health Director has asked residents of the area not to be afraid of the Covid-19. He advises them to be mindful of it and seriously adhere to the preventive measures to avoid contracting it. Mr. Emmanuel Afelkum said, all of us should not be afraid of the situation, but just be mindful of the fact that, the basic precautionary measures that have been prescribed for us would be followed. So I am happy today, all of us are in masks because we always want to work ahead of the virus. He said this at a short ceremony at Tarkwa, Friday, April 17, 2020 when his outfit was receiving Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) from Gold Fields Ghana Limited (GGL) Tarkwa Mine, to help fight the Covid-19. The items donated by Gold Fields were 35,700 pairs of hand gloves, 20,000 pieces of pocket-sized hand sanitizers, 1,200 large bottles of hand sanitizers, 8,000 pieces of surgical masks and 7,000 pieces of N95 masks. They also included 1,500 pieces of protective gowns, 800 pieces of sample collection kits, 180 pairs of surgical wellington boots, 80 pieces of safety goggles, 60, pieces of Macintosh aprons, 70 handheld non-contact infra-red thermometers and 50 big sized veronica buckets. Mr. Afelkum in his speech stated that, since Ghana recorded its first case of the disease in March 2020, the municipal health directorate has positioned itself to respond to all calls that had come to their notice and have acted accordingly. He added, the two major health facilities in Tarkwa, the Municipal Hospital and the Apinto Hospital have been prepared to hold and manage cases that are reported there. It is as a result of this and the activeness of the response team that have resulted in no record of the disease in the Tarkwa Nsuem. The Health Director revealed that so far we have picked 32 samples that have been taken to Noguchi for further analysis. We have received a total of 25 of the samples which have turned to be negative. Remaining are yet to be received. Mr. Afelkum thanked the mining firm, for their consistent support to the health service and promised to distribute the PPE to all health facilities, including the private ones, for a collective fight against Covid 19 in the Tarkwa Nsuem Municipality. In his address, the General Manager for Gold Fields Tarkwa Mine, Mr. Stephen Osei Bimpeh disclosed, the mine is purchasing two ambulances to support the municipality to fight the disease apart from the PPE the company has already provided. The Mine will also provide two ambulances for the new Government Hospital and the Apinto Hospital in Tarkwa, he said. Mr. Osei Bimpeh further stated, there is the need for Gold Fields to work closely with the Municipal Health Directorate to prevent the spread of the virus within the Tarkwa Nsuem Municipality, hence providing the PPE and the ambulances. The PPEs, the General Manager explained, was provided from the $400, 000 the company has set aside to fight the disease in the Damang and Tarkwa Mines host communities. This is a separate one from the $433, 000 it has donated to the Government of Ghana. He mentioned that the Tarkwa mine is spending its portion of the amount to purchase Covid -19 prevention equipment to support the efforts aimed at preventing infections and spread of the virus in the municipality and other host communities. Same is expected to be done in the Prestea Huni Valley Municipality. Mr. Osei Bimpeh was positive that, the contribution by the company will boost the preparedness of the Municipality and ensure the area does not record any coronavirus case. On his part, the Municipal Chief Executive for Tarkwa Nsuem Municipal Assembly Hon. Gilbert Ken Asmah, thanked Gold Fields Ghana for always rising to the occasion. Vishal Yadav, serving life term for the murder of Nitish Katara, has moved the Delhi High Court seeking parole citing risk of COVID-19 or TB infection due to overcrowding and poor sanitation in the prison. Vishal claimed he suffered from tuberculosis (TB) earlier and if he gets infected again it could be fatal. His plea stated that due to his prolonged TB infection, his immune system is weak and coupled with the poor sanitation facilities in prison, he would be vulnerable to coronavirus. The matter came up for hearing before Justice V Kameswar Rao on Monday and he listed it for Wednesday so that the victim's mother, Neelam Katara, and a witness in the case - Ajay Katara - can be served with the petition, Delhi government additional standing counsel Rajesh Mahajan said. Mahajan also said that the state opposed the parole plea of Vishal during the brief hearing held via video conferencing. On October 3, 2016, the Supreme Court had awarded a 25-year jail term without any benefit of remission to Vikas Yadav and his cousin Vishal for their role in the sensational kidnapping and killing of Katara. Another co-convict Sukhdev Pehalwan was also handed down a 20-year jail term in the case. Prior to this, the Delhi High Court, while upholding the life imprisonment awarded to Vikas and Vishal Yadav by the trial court, had specified a 30-year sentence, without any remission, to both of them. It had awarded a 25-year jail term to third convict Pehalwan. All three were convicted and sentenced for kidnapping Nitish Katara from a marriage party on the intervening night of February 16-17, 2002 and then killing him for his alleged affair with Bharti Yadav, the sister of Vikas. Bharti is the daughter of Uttar Pradesh politician D P Yadav who is in jail in connection with another murder case. Katara was murdered as Vishal and Vikas did not approve of his affair with Bharti because they belonged to different castes. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As small businesses around the country await funds from the landmark Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES ) Act, indie publishers and booksellers are having mixed experiences trying to secure this financial lifeline. We keep telling our members to apply. Dont wait too long and have the money disappear, said Angela Bole, the CEO of the Independent Book Publishers Association which is based in California. Some seem to have sailed through the application process, but many are finding it difficult to interpret as the application requirements seemed to shift in real-time over the first few days of availability. Red Hen Press was one of those indie publishers who struggled with the process. I dont know anyone in the arts world who has got this CARES funding, said cofounder Kate Gale, stressing how important these funds are for the future of the 25 year old press. The biggest expenses for any publisher are payroll and printing, and we need our staff to keep their jobs if we can keep publishing, she said. Red Hen publisher Mark E. Cull had an appointment at the Bank of America on the very first day applications were accepted for CARES funds, but was turned away, even though Red Hen had held an account with the bank for a quarter century. The rejection was based on the fact that the business didnt have a current loan with the bank, a policy that has since been changed. After the policy adjustment, Red Hen immediately reapplied, but the press had lost its spot in the metaphorical line for funds. Our application is so far down the queue we are pretty certain the money is already gone, said Cull. Funds have since run out, though Congress is expected to pass new legislation for additional funding this week. Separate from the paycheck program, the Small Business Administration (SBA) expanded its Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, which is supposed to provide up to $2 million in emergency loans for small businesses affected by the Covid-19 crisis. That program quickly became overwhelmed by applicants and is no longer accepting applications. Red Hen received $9,000 as a grant advance from the SBAs program$1,000 per employee. Still, the press needs more emergency funds to continue operations. That was supposed help pay our staff through June, Gale said, referring to the publishers pending applications for aid. That was going to give us some breathing space to gather our board and talk to our donors. The funds have been slow to arrive, or slower than promised, said Bole, the CEO of IBPA. I dont think its conspiracy. They passed a $2.5 trillion stimulus act in 90 hours into a society thats not used to this. Its going to take longer than they thought, she said. Meanwhile, Maggie Langrick, publisher of LifeTree Media, has been in the process of transitioning her nonfiction press from Vancouver to California. The company is still technically a Canadian corporation and have not fully migrated operations to the United States, so the indie press doesn't qualify for the CARES Act support. Instead, the publisher has applied for support from the Canadian government. The application process was super easy, said Langrick. It only took about five minutes. She expects to get a wage subsidy, comparable to the U.S.s Payroll Protection Program. Canada's program will cover 75% of an employee's wages, up to an annual salary of about C$58,000, she said. This benefit runs for 12 weeks, but I expect they'll extend it if the shutdown is still in place past June. She has also applied for an interest-free C$40,000 loan to survive this difficult period. It's going to help a lot, she said. Indie booksellers have largely sought support from the CARES Act Payroll Protection Program. Nina Barrett, owner of Bookends and Beginnings in Evanston, Ill. participated in an American Booksellers Association training with more than 100 fellow booksellers on how to apply for payroll support. Only one person had gotten it, Barrett said. A 30-year customer of Chase, Barrett said the process of applying left her in despair. Dates for the initial application form were changed and the documents she was told to prepare when entering the banks online portal were not the ones she needed once she went on the site, which eventually crashed when she submitted on behalf of herself and three employees. I felt like a racehorse that has been prepping for the Kentucky Derby and been standing there at the starting gate and then the gun goes off and then theres a thing in your path that trips you as take your first step out of the gate, and youre just staring up at the sky wondering what happened, Barrett said. Like other independent booksellers who spoke with PW the process left Barrett with little faith that the program will be administered well, and suspicions about how the funds will be distributed if Congress passes supplemental funding. I dont think the queue is randomized, Barrett said. I think theyre taking their biggest customers and making sure that they get served, because no one I know who owns a small bookstore or a small business in Evanston has gotten a loan. Claire Kirch contributed reporting to this article. The jute mills in West Bengal, which were anxiously awaiting to resume operations on Monday to meet the huge pending order for packaging materials, could not start functioning as they did not receive any official communication from the state government, industry sources said. India Jute Mills Association (IJMA) said around 60 units in West Bengal, most of which are located in North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Hooghly and Howrah districts, are awaiting official communication from the state government for restarting operations. Officials of state government did not respond on the issue when contacted. The Centre has been urging the state government to allow the jute mills to operate to avert any crisis of packaging materials for foodgrains. The state government on April 15 said all jute mills can reopen but will operate with only 15 per cent of the workforce and in strict adherence to social distancing norms and subject to approvals. However, IJMA president Raghav Gupta said the jute mills are yet to get any official order regarding this. Even as the Centre announced a relaxation of restrictions in certain sectors, virtually no major manufacturing activities resumed in West Bengal. Some units in Falta Special Economic Zone in South 24 Parganas district received permission to start operations but with limited manpower, sources said. A few units in Bantala Leather Complex near Kolkata also got approval to start functioning, they said. Steel TMT bar makers in the state said they do not want to resume operations until construction activities commence as they are saddled with huge stock. According to the guidelines issued by the Centre on April 15, industrial units operating in rural areas have been permitted to function from April 20 with strict social distancing norms. Manufacturing, industrial units with access control in SEZs, Export Oriented Units, industrial estates, industrial townships have been allowed. However, it will not apply in containment zones, as demarcated by States/ UTs/ district administrations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) MOSCOW, April 20 (Reuters) - Russia will start issuing general licences for miners to export gold bars, a decree showed on Monday, easing restrictions that had previously required miners to secure a permit for each occasion they sought to export bullion. The government decree on licences for ongoing exports was issued after months of lobbying by miners. Russian commercial banks, usually the main bullion buyers, have found it more difficult to export gold as the coronavirus outbreak has grounded passenger flights. Reporting by Polina Devitt and Darya Korsunskaya; Editing by Edmund Blair 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. Blog Archive Apr 2010 (22) May 2010 (25) Jun 2010 (8) Jul 2010 (12) Aug 2010 (18) Sep 2010 (19) Oct 2010 (29) Nov 2010 (30) Dec 2010 (18) Jan 2011 (13) Feb 2011 (21) Mar 2011 (23) Apr 2011 (19) May 2011 (31) Jun 2011 (36) Jul 2011 (46) Aug 2011 (26) Sep 2011 (12) Oct 2011 (15) Nov 2011 (17) Dec 2011 (7) Jan 2012 (18) Feb 2012 (4) Mar 2012 (12) Apr 2012 (18) May 2012 (10) Jun 2012 (21) Jul 2012 (8) Aug 2012 (15) Sep 2012 (7) Oct 2012 (17) Nov 2012 (20) Dec 2012 (10) Jan 2013 (58) Feb 2013 (59) Mar 2013 (60) Apr 2013 (98) May 2013 (135) Jun 2013 (204) Jul 2013 (293) Aug 2013 (351) Sep 2013 (363) Oct 2013 (348) Nov 2013 (374) Dec 2013 (442) Jan 2014 (547) Feb 2014 (476) Mar 2014 (526) Apr 2014 (527) May 2014 (469) Jun 2014 (408) Jul 2014 (472) Aug 2014 (522) Sep 2014 (443) Oct 2014 (472) Nov 2014 (497) Dec 2014 (536) Jan 2015 (539) Feb 2015 (520) Mar 2015 (582) Apr 2015 (658) May 2015 (679) Jun 2015 (673) Jul 2015 (728) Aug 2015 (803) Sep 2015 (923) Oct 2015 (924) Nov 2015 (802) Dec 2015 (791) Jan 2016 (782) Feb 2016 (835) Mar 2016 (929) Apr 2016 (866) May 2016 (947) Jun 2016 (1044) Jul 2016 (882) Aug 2016 (1035) Sep 2016 (967) Oct 2016 (918) Nov 2016 (854) Dec 2016 (885) Jan 2017 (879) Feb 2017 (777) Mar 2017 (896) Apr 2017 (872) May 2017 (850) Jun 2017 (851) Jul 2017 (971) Aug 2017 (1040) Sep 2017 (998) Oct 2017 (1144) Nov 2017 (1046) Dec 2017 (838) Jan 2018 (873) Feb 2018 (769) Mar 2018 (885) Apr 2018 (809) May 2018 (827) Jun 2018 (820) Jul 2018 (840) Aug 2018 (854) Sep 2018 (844) Oct 2018 (851) Nov 2018 (870) Dec 2018 (912) Jan 2019 (919) Feb 2019 (827) Mar 2019 (957) Apr 2019 (913) May 2019 (1007) Jun 2019 (935) Jul 2019 (950) Aug 2019 (936) Sep 2019 (910) Oct 2019 (920) Nov 2019 (874) Dec 2019 (908) Jan 2020 (941) Feb 2020 (849) Mar 2020 (898) Apr 2020 (848) May 2020 (822) Jun 2020 (789) Jul 2020 (819) Aug 2020 (858) Sep 2020 (841) Oct 2020 (873) Nov 2020 (812) Dec 2020 (780) Jan 2021 (765) Feb 2021 (716) Mar 2021 (819) Apr 2021 (805) May 2021 (815) Jun 2021 (824) Jul 2021 (830) Aug 2021 (832) Sep 2021 (791) Oct 2021 (754) Nov 2021 (683) Dec 2021 (693) Jan 2022 (268) MANILA, PHILIPPINESThere were seven nurses in the Buendia family. One of them, Jhoanna Mariel Buendia, got a call from the Philippines on March 28, just before the start of her shift at an intensive care unit in a British hospital. It was her father, with the news that her beloved aunt an ICU nurse in Florida had died of complications from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Buendia, 27, went to work. She suited up, strapping on her N95 mask, face shield, gown and apron and taping down her gloves, too numb to process the fact that her aunt had lost her life doing what she was about to do. It wasnt until a few hours later, as she tended to a patient suspected to have the virus, that it became real and she burst into tears. Nurses from the Philippines and other developing countries have long made up for shortages in wealthier Western nations. They now find themselves risking their lives on the front lines of a pandemic, thousands of miles from home. Buendias aunt, Araceli Buendia Ilagan, 63, was an associate supervisor in the cardiac surgical ICU at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. She was remembered as a nurses nurse, turning down administrative promotions that would have taken her away from patients bedsides. I guarantee you. She was in every single room helping every single nurse with every single patient, said Martha Baker, a registered nurse and president of Jackson Memorials union for doctors and nurses, who had known Ilagan since the 1980s. That was probably her doom, Baker said. To be such a good leader and such a hands-on leader. She exposed herself, perhaps at that time to patients we didnt even know were COVID-positive. According to the World Health Organization, the world has six million fewer nurses than it needs. One result is that nurses in places like the Philippines have long gravitated toward wealthier countries for higher-paying opportunities. Almost 16 per cent of nurses in the United States are immigrants, and nearly a third of those the largest share are Filipinos. Many also come from Nigeria, India, Jamaica and Mexico, among other places. In Britain, Buendia is one of about 18,600 Filipino nurses working for the National Health Service, its second-largest contingent of migrant nurses, after Indians. Like other medical professionals, they are at high risk of exposure. At least seven Filipino employees of the NHS, including nurses, porters and a nurses assistant, have died from COVID-19, according to news reports. In the United States, the virus has claimed the lives of at least five nurses and a doctor from the Philippines. The common denominator is that were all scared, Buendia said of herself and her three housemates, who are also Filipino nurses. They all work at the same hospital in York and have been in England since September. Howard Catton, chief executive of the International Council of Nurses, a federation of national nurse associations, said migrant nurses had been massively important in helping countries like Britain, Spain and Italy fight the virus. But he said the crisis underscored the need for developed countries to train their own nurses rather than relying so heavily on migrants. This month, the Philippines, which says it needs about 300,000 more health-care workers than it has, barred them from leaving the country, citing the need to protect them from infection and to ensure they were available to fight the virus at home. Migration is woven into the Philippines culture. As much as 10 per cent of the population works overseas, sending money home, and nursing is one of the most popular options. On average, 13,000 nurses go abroad each year. Nursing recruitment agencies pave the way for visas and certifications so they can find jobs overseas. Even some Filipino migrants who work in other fields have had training in nursing. Last month in Madrid, the Filipino chief nurse at Hospital Hestia, Edzel Lopez, posted an urgent call on Facebook asking her compatriots to apply for nursing jobs there. Much of the hospitals staff had been infected by the coronavirus, and bureaucratic obstacles to hiring new nurses were being swept away. The Spanish hospital hired John Matthew Eusebio Villapol, a 26-year-old from the city of Tagaytay, who was working as an English teacher but had experience training Philippine army medics and working for private ambulance services. It was a battlefield promotion, so to speak, Villapol said. After a day of training, Villapol said, he was assigned half a floors worth of patients. He planned to report for work on his second day off, knowing they would be short-staffed however many people showed up. Ill work if theyll have me, he said. Buendias family, whose roots are in the northern Philippine city of Baguio, has sent nurses to hospitals in Florida, California, Britain and Saudi Arabia. Buendia joined the profession to follow in her aunts footsteps. Ilagan helped her through college, sending money and guiding her through tough times in nursing school. She mentored Buendia from a distance as the young nurse began her career in Saudi Arabia, later moving to Britain. Ilagan called Buendia late last month, as the gravity of the pandemic was becoming apparent in both of the countries where they worked. Coronavirus cases had begun turning up at their hospitals. It was a conversation of familial concern, couched in the language of their shared profession. They chatted about basic infection protocol. Ilagan gave her niece tips, like how to disconnect patients from tubing in a way that would keep fluids from spattering her. They reassured each other that they were fine. It was the last time they spoke. Soon afterward, Ilagan developed flu-like symptoms and began self-isolating at home. Four days later, her husband found her unconscious and struggling to breathe. He rushed her to the hospital, but she died before they could intubate her. I was so shocked, Buendia said. Since then, her uncle, a nurse in California, has tested positive for the virus and been hospitalized. Buendias parents have been calling her from the Philippines every day, often in tears. They cant sleep at night, she said. I reassure them that Im fine. In truth, she is afraid. But she has no thoughts of giving up the work. Thats the reason why Im here, to be a nurse, she said. Monday, April 20, 2020 The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Alphabet (GOOGL), Gilead Sciences (GILD) and Starbucks (SBUX). These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today. We have also provided here an update on the ongoing Q1 earnings season, which ramps up in a major way way this week, with more than 250 companies reporting results, including 72 S&P 500 members. You can see all of todays analyst reports here >>> Q1 Earnings Season Scorecard Including all of this morning's reports, we now have Q1 results from 50 S&P 500 members. Aggregate net income for these 50 index members are down -30.2% on +2.8% higher revenues, with 70% beating EPS estimates and 68% beating revenue estimates. Relative to other recent periods, this is weaker performance from these 50 index members and reflective of the disruption caused by the pandemic, though admittedly the all-around shelter-in-place policies arrived only in the last three weeks of March. For Q1 as a whole, combining the actual results that have come out with estimates for the still-to-come companies, aggregate net income for the index is expected to drop -14.1% on +1.1% higher revenues. Estimates for the current period (2020 Q2), which is expected to be epicenter of the ongoing downturn, have beeen coming down in a major way, with S&P 500 earnings now expected to be down -27.1% from the same period last year. Estimates for the second half of the year also showing declines now. For full-year 2020, S&P 500 earnings are now expected to be down -15.5% from the 2019 level, which is a decline from the +7.9% growth expected in January 2020. Alphabets shares have outperformed the Zacks Internet Services industry over the past six months (+1.6% vs. +0.5%). The Zacks analyst believes that Alphabet's strengthening cloud unit is aiding substantial revenue growth. Moreover, expanding data centers will continue to bolster its presence in the cloud space. Story continues Further, major updates in its search segment are enhancing the search results, which is a major positive. Moreover, Googles robust mobile search is gaining solid momentum. Additionally, strong focus on innovation of AI techniques and the home automation space should aid business growth in the long term. Further, its deepening focus on wearables category remains a tailwind. However, the companys growing litigation issues and increasing expenses might hurt profitability. Further, the company faces persistent pressure from advertisers to tighten controls on YouTube video service. This remains a concern. (You can read the full research report on Alphabet here >>> ) Shares of Gilead have gained +35.4% over the past year against the Zacks Biotech industrys rise of +6.5%. The Zacks analyst believes that competition is stiffening for the HIV franchise from the likes of Glaxo. Moreover, the uptake of Yescarta hasnt been very impressive and the treatment faces stiff competition from Kymriah. Gilead has shifted focus to the HIV franchise and newer avenues like CAR-T therapy due to a massive decline in HCV franchise sales. The HIV franchise maintains momentum, driven by the strong performance of Biktarvy. Encouraging initial uptake of Descovy for the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) setting also boosted performance. The companys experimental candidate, remdesivir, has shown promise in treating patients with COVID-19 and any positive outcome will significantly boost the stock. (You can read the full research report on Gilead here >>> ) Starbucks shares have lost -17.7% over the past three months against the Zacks Food & Restaurants industrys fall of -16.3%. The Zacks analyst believes that although sales in comparable store sales in China are likely to decline sharply in second-quarter, the company is witnessing recovery in sales trend. In February, China comparable stores sales plunged 78%. The company has trimmed its second-quarter fiscal 2020 guidance due to the pandemic. The companys adjusted earnings in second-quarter fiscal 2020 is estimated to be 32 cents, down sharply from the prior-year quarter adjusted earnings of 60 cents. Of late, estimates for current quarter and year have also witnessed downward revisions. However, enhanced customer experience, and digitalization bode well. The company has a very strong balance sheet, which will help it tide over the coronavirus crisis. (You can read the full research report on Starbucks here >>> ) Other noteworthy reports we are featuring today include Tesla (TSLA), Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) and Intuit (INTU). Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Sheraz Mian Director of Research Note: Sheraz Mian heads the Zacks Equity Research department and is a well-regarded expert of aggregate earnings. He is frequently quoted in the print and electronic media and publishes the weekly Earnings Trends and Earnings Preview reports. If you want an email notification each time Sheraz publishes a new article, please click here>>> Today's Must Read Alphabet (GOOGL) Rides on Diversification; Legal Troubles Ail Coronavirus Candidate Boost Gilead (GILD) Amid Competition Digitalization Aid Starbucks (SBUX), Coronavirus Crisis Hurts Featured Reports Tesla (TSLA) Aided by High Demand for Model 3 Amid Debt Woes While record deliveries of Model 3 are boosting Tesla's revenues, the Zacks analyst remains concerned of elevated leverage and high R&D and SG&A costs, which may in turn dent the firm's profits. Vertex's (VRTX) Triple Combo CF Pill Key to Growth in 2020 Per the Zacks analyst, Vertex's new triple combo cystic fibrosis (CF) pill, Trikafta, should drive 2020 sales growth. Intuit (INTU) Rides on Product Refresh, Higher Subscriptions Per the Zacks analyst, Intuit is benefiting from frequent product refreshes, which help it to gain customers. Asset Growth Aids Blackstone (BX) Top Line, High Costs a Woe Per the Zacks analyst, despite a tough operating backdrop, growth in assets under management will continue to aid Blackstone's revenues. Essentials Items Lift Target's (TGT) Sales, Cost a Concern Per the Zacks analyst, Target reported higher traffic and sales for Essentials and Food & Beverage categories in March month. Merger Synergies Aid L3Harris (LHX), Import Tariff to Hurt Per the Zacks analyst, merger between L3 Technologies and Harris Corp is expected to offer L3Harris improved economies of scale. Customer Additions, Inorganic Growth Aid America Movil (AMX) Per the Zacks analyst, America Movil continues to benefit from mobile postpaid subscriber growth in Brazil, Mexico and Colombia. Also, the buyout of Nextel Brazil will strengthen its market position. New Upgrades Strength Across Outdoor & Fitness Segments Aid Garmin (GRMN) Per the Zacks analyst, Garmin is riding on solid demand for adventure watches and advanced wearables which is driving the performance of its Outdoor and Fitness segments. Moderna's (MRNA) Coronavirus Vaccine Development Encouraging Per the Zacks analyst, Moderna's foray into development of mRNA-based vaccine for coronavirus infection, COVID-19, and rapid progress with it is boosting the company's prospects. Sunlight Buyout, Hawthorne Unit Aid Scotts Miracle-Gro (SMG) Per the Zacks analyst, Scotts Miracle-Gro should gain from the synergies of the Sunlight Supply acquisition and strong growth prospects in its Hawthorne unit. New Downgrades Coronavirus-Hit Upstream Unit Hurts EOG Resources (EOG) The Zacks analyst is concerned about dented global energy demand owing to the coronavirus pandemic. It has been affecting EOG Resources' upstream businesses. Low Copper Prices, High Debt to Hurt Southern Copper (SCCO) The Zacks analyst is concerned that lower copper prices due to the coronavirus pandemic and a weak manufacturing sector as well high debt levels will weigh on Southern Copper's performance. Coronavirus Continues to Hurts Royal Caribbean (RCL) Per the Zacks analyst, the coronavirus pandemic is likely to hurt Royal Caribbean results in 2020. Cruise cancellations are taking a toll on the company. undefined undefined Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) : Free Stock Analysis Report Intuit Inc. (INTU) : Free Stock Analysis Report Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Customers wait for to-go orders outside Shake Shack in South Beach on April 19, 2020 in Miami Beach, Florida. Shake Shack said it will return the small business loan it received from the U.S. government, making it the first major firm to hand back money provided to help businesses ride out the impact of the coronavirus lockdown. The company will immediately return the entire $10 million Small Business Administration (SBA) loan as it was able to raise additional capital, CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said in a blog post on Monday. Last week, it raised about $150 million in an equity offering. Shares of Shake Shack, which raised about $150 million in an equity offering last week, fell about 3% to $42 on Monday morning. The company runs around 189 restaurants in the United States, with about 45 employees in each outlet, and reported nearly $600 million in revenue for 2019. It has closed about half of its 120 locations worldwide, and furloughed or laid off more than 1,000 employees after sales fell 28.5% in March, the company said in a filing on April 17. Low-paid workers in the retail, restaurant, and hotel industries have been among the hardest-hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Of the $342 billion small business bailout fund, the combined industry was allocated 18% of the total fund. SBA, which is a key part of the government's $2.2 trillion aid package, is aimed at helping small companies keep paying their employees and their basic bills during the shutdowns so that they are able to reopen quickly when public health allows. More than 25% of the $350 billion already allocated went to fewer than 2% of the firms that got relief, and they included publicly traded companies with thousands of employees, highly paid executives and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual sales. This led to a backlash from smaller establishments and mom-and-pop restaurants, one of the hardest-hit sectors as diners stay at home due to lockdowns. Ruth Hospitality Group, Potbelly and Fiesta Restaurant Group's Texas Taco Cabana are among the chains that have borrowed money. Several franchises of McDonald's and Dunkin' Brands are also said to have applied for the loan. "If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding?" Garutti and Meyer wrote. Shake Shack said the money it received could be reallocated to the independent restaurants "who need it most, (and) haven't gotten any assistance." Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a tweet said he was "glad to see" that Shake Shack would return the loan. Mnuchin told CNN on Sunday that a deal being discussed with Congress would include $300 billion more for the Paycheck Protection Program loan program for small businesses. On Sunday, President Donald Trump defended restaurant chains, hotel operators, and hedge funds accessing funding meant for small businesses. U.S. Democrats and Republicans are nearing an agreement on extra money to help small businesses, Trump said on Sunday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on CNN the deal being discussed with Congress would include $300 billion more for the Paycheck Protection Program loan program for small businesses. KABUL - A wave of Taliban attacks on checkpoints across Afghanistan has killed 29 members of the security forces, officials said Monday. In northern Takhar province, 19 security personnel were killed in a battle Sunday night in the district of Khwaja Ghor, according to Jawad Hajri, spokesman for the provincial governor. The Taliban fled the scene after reinforcement arrived, Hajri added. Meanwhile, in northern Balkh province, a Taliban attack on Sunday morning in the Sholgara district killed seven, according to Adil Shah Adil, spokesman for the provincial police chief. A child was caught in the crossfire and wounded during the attack, which also killed five Taliban, he added. And in western Badghis province, the Taliban struck an army checkpoint early on Sunday morning, killing three soldiers and wounding 10, said Tahsel Haideri, spokesman for the provincial police chief. The Taliban, who have not claimed responsibility for the attacks, and President Ashraf Ghanis government in Kabul are in the process of exchanging prisoners as part of a peace deal signed by the U.S. and the Taliban at the end of February in Doha, Qatar. The release of up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners and 1,000 government officials held captive by the insurgents ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations is a condition of the U.S.-Taliban deal. At the heart of most of the talks, say Taliban and U.S. officials, is the demand for a reduction of violence. The Taliban have not been attacking U.S. and NATO troops since the agreement was signed but have struck Afghan forces in outlying areas. Washington wants a reduction in those attacks. Scammers are targeting vulnerable people in the North by offering to collect church envelopes containing money, the Catholic Church has warned. The Diocese of Down and Connor said it has become aware of the fraudulent scam targeting vulnerable people within its parishes. In a statement, a spokesman said that unscrupulous individuals are calling with vulnerable people and offering to take their weekly parish envelopes to the church and also offering to do their shopping but demanding cash up-front. In a statement a spokesman for the Diocese said: These fraudulent scams are criminal and have been reported by the diocese to the PSNI. The Diocese of Down and Connor would encourage all people, and particularly families of vulnerable adults, to be vigilant to such criminal activity. All such unsolicited approaches should be reported to the PSNI. In line with the Governments stay at home and social distancing policies, parish envelopes will not be collected at this time. Parishioners who choose to use their weekly envelopes as normal, should retain their envelopes and, once Government policy allows, the parish will arrange to safely collect them. Today, the Public Health Agency said that another person has died with coronavirus in Northern Ireland in the past day. It brings the total number of confirmed deaths in hospital settings there to 194. The total number of people who have tested positive for the virus in Northern Ireland is now 2,645, a rise of 159. 804 people diagnosed with Covid-19 are now known to have died on the island of Ireland. The full death toll is likely to be higher after official statistics published on Friday showed the figures are around a third higher than previously reported. The disparity is due to differences in how the statistics are gathered. Meanwhile, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said recent reports over the UK Governments handling of Covid-19 raise very serious questions. The MP for Foyle said complacency will cost lives and cannot be replicated in Northern Ireland. He said: The response to the coronavirus crisis isnt a sectarian political issue. It isnt a matter of scoring points, its about saving lives. Reports about the British Governments complacency, however, leave very serious questions about crisis coordination across these islands. The SDLP is committed to constructively working with all parties in the Executive as well as the British and Irish Governments to manage our response to Covid-19 and save as many lives as possible. That is not a blank cheque for anyone to operate free from scrutiny when the stakes are so high. There is simply no margin for error. He added: The SDLP, working closely with the other Westminster opposition parties, will hold the British Government to account. In the Executive, we will work hard to make the case for a bespoke strategy for testing and tracing on this island that avoids the mistakes other administrations have made. Our primary focus remains preventing transmission of this virus and saving lives. Whatever hes doing to his political standing, though, Trump is clearly making the task of the nations governors and public health officials much more difficult. He has begun lobbying for restarting the economy by May 1 or even earlier, despite warnings from Fauci and other scientists that reopening too soon would risk inviting a new wave of infections, hospitalizations and deaths that likely would mean yet another shutdown. New Delhi: Actor Deepika Padukone on Sunday announced of her teaming up with Dr Tedros, Director-General of World Health Organization (WHO) and announced an Instagram live to discuss the importance of mental health during the coronavirus crises. The 34-year-old actor made the announcement on Twitter where she shared the details about Instagram live. For the purpose to prioritize mental health during these trying times, the actor along with Dr. Tedros announced an Instagram live on Thursday, 23 April, at 7:30 PM IST. The `Chhapaak` actor also hopped on to Instagram stories to put a questionnaire column for her followers and asked them to put forth any questions related to mental health. Earlier, actor Priyanka Chopra too had collaborated with top personnel of the WHO in an attempt to provide authentic information and also to raise awareness about the coronavirus. Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind on Monday appealed to Muslims to adhere to the lockdown guidelines and perform all religious rituals during Ramzan, starting later this week, staying inside their homes. IMAGE: Muslims wearing protective masks offer prayers amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease in Mumbai. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind president Maulana Arshad Madani urged Muslims to offer prayers, including special 'Taraweeh' prayers, during Ramzan at home rather than in mosques. "In view of deadly COVID-19 that has caused death and destruction all over the world, medical experts have suggested that social distancing is only option to break the chain of spread of this dangerous virus," Madani said. Gathering of people at religious places or at any other venue is harmful and can spread the contagious virus, he said. Madani said earlier also appeal had been made to Muslims not to gather in mosques for their daily five prayers. "Even Taraweeh prayers need to be offered at homes. There should not be a gathering of more than three worshippers and that too it is necessary for them to maintain reasonable distance," he said. 'Taraweeh' prayers are additional prayers offered during Ramzan late evening. He also appealed that priority should be given to the help of the poor and the needy. Earlier, Jamiat general secretary Mahmood Madani had also appealed to the community to adhere to lockdown and social distancing guidelines during Ramzan. He had also urged Muslims to help the poor and ensure 'sehri' (meal before start of fasting) and 'iftar' (meal at breaking of fast) is made available for the needy. The nationwide lockdown, which was from March 25 till April 14, has been extended to May 3 by the government to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi last Thursday had directed state WAQF boards to ensure strict implementation of the lockdown and social distancing guidelines during the holy month of Ramzan. "We should cooperate with health workers, security forces, administrative officers, sanitation workers. They are working for our safety and well-being even putting their own lives at risk in this coronavirus pandemic," Naqvi had said. "We should also demolish rumours and misinformation being spread about quarantine and isolation centres by creating awareness among people that such centres are only meant to protect people, their families and the society from the pandemic," the minister had said. Consider this: Freelancers are expected to become the U.S. workforce majority in the near future. That means we can expect to see more and more freelancing job boards appear. That's not to say we need them. Take a look at the Google search results for freelance jobs. Youll find hundreds of websites that can connect you with prospective clients. The problem, however, is that not all job boards are created equal. Some are a bit suspicious, causing both freelancers and businesses to question their legitimacy. Others are meant only for seasoned veterans. There are also boards capable of finding work quickly for freelancers, but they wont get paid very much. Consider it the "price of entry" to the freelance realm. These obstacles make finding freelance work more complicated than it has to be. Thats why Ive put together a list of 18 freelance sites to help entrepreneurs find their next gig. Each of these sites is reputable and can be used by freelancers of all experience levels, empowering people to make the most of their skills in a shaky economy. Related: Become Your Own Boss and Start a Freelance Career in 2020 If youre a freelancer designer, developer, financial expert, product manager or project manager, you can find hourly, part-time or full-time work at Toptal. The catch is that Toptal has a rigorous screening process, meaning typically only the top 3 percent of freelance talent that applies is accepted. This is better suited for talented freelancers who have some previous experience under their belt. However, if you're accepted, you can be certain that youll receive competitive compensation. There are a couple of things that make Fiverr stand out from other leading freelance marketplaces. Users get to list the specific jobs where they excel. When I started podcasting, I hired someone on Fiverr to design my cover and another person to create the intro. When I had trouble getting the podcast listed on iTunes, I enlisted another expert to help solve the mystery. Secondly, because most gigs start at $5, this is a great place to launch your freelancing career. After you land some clients and build up your portfolio, you can start charging more for your services. For more than a decade, PeoplePerHour has been helping freelancers land web-based projects. This site has areas like marketing, SEO and software engineering. What makes it so appealing is that it streamlines the process of signing up. Client communication, project management and payments are all handled in one dashboard. You can send 15 proposals to clients before having to sign up for the paid plan. However, you can still browse listings and get notified of new openings, even if you dont sign up for the paid plan. Upwork has been around in some form for years. Elance and oDesk were formed in 1999 and 2003, respectively, and merged to found Upwork. Today, Upwork is one of the largest freelance marketplaces in the world, hosting millions of freelancers in industries like design, development, accounting, marketing, writing and customer service. Like Toptal, freelancers can find short-term tasks, recurring projects and even full-time contract work. Upwork is good for both entry-level and experienced freelancers because of the variety of work listed. Freelancer states that its the the worlds largest outsourcing marketplace, connecting more than 30 million employees and freelancers across 247 countries. With Freelancer, you can a find a couple of different ways to work. The first way is by creating a profile that highlights your freelancing skills. When a client needs your specific skills, he can chat with you in real time. The other way is by browsing for work and placing bids on projects that match your talents and interests. When your work is complete, youll receive a secure payment via the sites Milestone Payment System. SimplyHired is a job search engine that helps people find remote or local work in 12 different countries. SimplyHired contains more than 100 job boards, meaning you'll have access to millions of job openings ranging from marketing to customer service. You can even find nursing and warehouse work. You can also search for both part-time and full-time work, making SimplyHired a great platform to quickly land a job. It produces a blog that contains helpful advice on how to make yourself more attractive to recruiters. 99designs should be your go-to marketplace if youre designer. Anyone truly skilled in creating logos and web and app design can find a home here. Creative freelancers can search for jobs where clients need someone to create marketing materials, packaging or merchandise like T-shirts. The site also provides numerous resources to assist designers in enhancing their skills. These resources include how-to tips, tutorials, tool kits, e-books and even interviews with seasoned designers. Are you a creative professional or a digital marketing expert? If so, you can land your next gig through Aquent. The site gives freelancers the chance to find remote or on-site work in the U.S. You can also find work in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Netherlands, Australia or Japan. Whats most appealing about Aquent is that its Gymnasium offers free online courses that can help you strengthen your existing talent. The Creative Group is part of the large Robert Half staffing agency. The site is meant for individuals in creative fields like art, copywriting, photography, graphic design and marketing. You can find temporary, project-based or full-time work. Simply upload your resume to the site or share your LinkedIn profile. Robert Half's specialists find the right job for your specific expertise and preferences from there. Envato Studio was established by designers, developers and creatives. This studio can help you land short-term or long-term projects. When a client needs your unique skill set, he browses the site to compare portfolios and pricing. You'll receive recommendations from the Envato Studio community. Once you're hired, Envato Studio holds the payment until the job is completed and the client is satisfied with the work. Throughout the course of the project, the platform gives you a chance to receive real-time feedback from the client. You can be certain youre on the right track with this direct communication. Founded by Sara Sutton, who previously founded FlexJobs, this site has been a leading virtual team site for more than a decade. Remote.co is a great platform for anyone who wants to work remotely. Whether youre a designer, developer, customer service rep, writer, recruiter or sales professional, Remote.co can help anyone whos ever dreamed of becoming a digital nomad. If youre new to remote work, theres also a handy blog that can help you get started on the right foot. DesignCrowd has dubbed itself the No. 1 custom design marketplace in the world. Similar to 99designs, this site lets designers find work. You can design logos, website, business cards, T-shirts and even tattoos. Clients can select short deadline submissions, such as three to five days. Project turnover is incredibly quick. If you need some extra cash, you can also enter design contests through the site. This site has more than 50 different career categories for freelancers, virtual workers and full-time employees. FlexJobs is a popular platform for anyone searching for remote or flexible work. All open positions are screened in advance, so you can rest assured that the jobs that have been posted are legitimate. You have to pay to join, with plans starting at $14.95 per month. You can also participate in skill tests, attend webinars and read up on tips to help your job search. Best of all, you have access to exclusive discounts through partnering websites. Krop is a job board solely for creatives, like copywriters, photographers and designers. On top of creating a profile to showcase your experience, you can use Krop to build and host your portfolio. Another perk of using Krop it that it's a site that promotes freelancers to clients searching for new team members. Since 2005, Authentic Jobs has been connecting creative and web professionals to find freelancers. You can contract or moonlight on the job with companies like Apple, Facebook, ESPN or The Motley Fool for free. If you're a freelancer interested in working with these companies, start browsing listings for everything from content strategists to back-end developers to project managers. Because compensation can range anywhere from under $29,000 to more than $100,000 annually, its a nice platform for freelancers of all experience levels. Related: How to Build Your Own Career as a Freelancer Recently acquired by Communo, LocalSolo is unlike other freelance marketplaces. It's a localized freelance job board where you can find gigs in your neck of the woods. Its free to use, and it doesnt charge commission fees; it also lets you customize your profile. When you and a client connect, you communicate directly. This way, you can discuss the scope of the project, rates and contracts. As a member of LocalSolo, you also receive discounts from partners like Shopify, FreshBooks, Adobe and DreamHost. Working Nomads sends you a curated list of remote jobs in areas like development, management, marketing, design, sales and education. You have the option to receive these notices daily or weekly. You also have the option to find temporary projects or regular employment. Just keep in mind that not every gig is 100 percent remote; some jobs may require you to train on-site or work part-time from home. Chances are high that you already have a LinkedIn profile. Why not get the most out of it? LinkedIn is used by more than 420 million members in some 200 countries, making LinkedIn one of the best resources for connecting professionals. LinkedIn has more recently decided to get into the freelance game with ProFinder. This gives small business owners and other professionals a chance to hire freelance accountants, bookkeepers, designers, marketers and copywriters. ProFinder also offers career coaches. Your personal coach will review your resume and prepare you for interviews to help advance your freelance career. Now or at any other time, it's easy to feel overwhelmed and unable to move forward with your entrepreneurial goals. But these sites can empower you to find opportunities that will maximize your skills and allow you to grow your side work into something bigger. Related: Looking for Business Opportunities Ahead of the Economic Fallout 3 Survival Traits for Any Leader 3 Actions You Must Take In Times Of Uncertainty Copyright 2020 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved Whenever U.S. stores, restaurants and theaters reopen from coronavirus shutdowns, they may face an unexpected problem: lawsuits from sick patrons and workers. Business owners hit hard by Covid-19 are eager to get back to work as the outbreak shows signs of slowing and the Trump administration pushes for a quick restart of the nations economy. But with no vaccine for the easily transmitted virus, companies opening too soon could be blamed if more people get sick. Walmart Inc. and Carnival Corp. are among those already defending lawsuits by employees or customers. A wave of personal-injury cases could bankrupt businesses, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which is recommending government protections. And though it may be difficult to prove that any one company was responsible for spreading Covid-19, legal experts say a surge in such claims could strain the court system. The liability concern is a real issue, said Harold Kim, president of the Chambers Institute for Legal Reform. Right now theyre asking: how do we protect ourselves against risk. The worst-case scenario is that companies will not want to open their doors because the liability risk is so great. The scope of the pandemic is creating uncertainty about how the courts will apply standard legal principles, similar to how the system was tested by lawsuits over asbestos, said David Boies, managing partner of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP in New York. Even so, the greater risk will probably come from workers, because they wont have to prove negligence in courts, he said. Greatest Risk There will likely be many workman compensation claims because of the ease of filing, there is no requirement to prove negligence, and for many people their greatest contact with others, and hence the greatest chance of contracting the virus, is at work, said Boies, whose clients include numerous large companies. The coronavirus has infected about 650,000 Americans and killed more than 31,000, forcing business shutdowns nationwide and leaving the economy in shambles. State governors say they will coordinate the slow return of non-essential businesses across regions once the virus appears to be contained. Even then, many encourage common-sense measures like social distancing and face masks for the foreseeable future. On Thursday, President Donald Trump unveiled broad guidelines states can use to determine when and who can reopen. But following the advice of public-health officials may not be enough to limit the spread of the virus or liability for companies, said Heidi Li Feldman, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington. Human Lives Until theres a vaccine or cure, its not going to be advisable for businesses to say theyre risking human lives to restore the economy, Feldman said. For those that reopen before eradication, there is an increased risk that customers will claim they got sick and suffered due to the companys negligence, said John Goldberg, a professor at Harvard Law School and an expert in tort law. Plaintiffs must show, among other things, that the business breached a duty of care owed to the customers and that its actions caused them harm, Goldberg said. In the case of Carnival, where thousands of cruise-goers were confined on a ship for more than a week, the plaintiffs claim the company put them at risk by disregarding outbreaks in February to start other voyages in March, resulting in passengers and crew getting sick. Princess declined to comment on pending litigation, but said, Our response throughout this process has focused on the well-being of our guests and crew within the parameters dictated to us by the government agencies involved and the evolving medical understanding of this new illness. For customers of millions of public shops and restaurants, where people come and go, it will be much harder to prove that a businesss actions are responsible for their sickness. It may be easy to claim that there was undue exposure in a particular store, but very difficult to prove that that the person with Covid-19 contracted it because of exposure in any particular place, said Mike Steenson, who teaches at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in Saint Paul, Minnesota. To prevail, an infected customer must show he or she didnt have the virus before visiting the business, said Benjamin Zipursky, a law professor at Fordham University. A plaintiff also would have to prove they had no contact with anyone or any shared spaces from the time they left home to the time they reached the business, or on the way back a tall order. Most plaintiffs arent going to be anywhere near being able to prove all those things, Zipursky said. Long Incubation Complicating matters is the long incubation period for the virus, which can last two weeks, said Nicholas Rozansky, an attorney with Brutzkus Gubner in Los Angeles, whose clients include retailers in the toy and apparel industry. How can you prove with a preponderance of evidence that you got it at a particular location its already difficult to do that with food poisoning, which happens a lot quicker, Rozansky said. While proving personal injury cases will be difficult, juries may still question whether companies went far enough to protect customers, like cleaning surfaces regularly, keeping patrons far apart and checking workers for virus symptoms. Legal experts said businesses that relax enforcement measures could find themselves on the hook even if evidence doesnt show they had a direct link to the plaintiff getting sick, although businesses might then prevail on appeal. Many companies are urging Congress to grant them limited immunity from litigation that arises from coronavirus-related issues, except in cases of gross negligence. There are things that we can and should do to provide a greater degree of certainty, and relieve the economy and business of unnecessary financial burden, said Evan Greenberg, chief executive of insurer Chubb Ltd. Im not talking about giving immunity to insurance companies. Im talking about business and corporate America and nonprofits. Workers Compensation Unlike customers, employees who get the virus have fewer legal options, with most cases confined to workers compensation claims that dont go through the court system, said Gregory Keating, a law professor at the University of Southern California. With such claims, employees can get compensated for work-related injuries without proving an employer was negligent. Its a lesser burden than making the case to a judge or jury, but damages are likely lower than in personal-injury lawsuits. Still, some have taking their cases to court, including a manufacturing plant worker in Michigan who says he was fired after getting sick with coronavirus-like symptoms and the family of a Walmart employee who allegedly died after contracting Covid-19 at work. Companies that take reasonable precautions as they resume operations should get favorable treatment from judges, their lawyers say. The courts should not impose a standard of liability that results in businesses not being able to operate, Boies said. That is as damaging to the economy as an edict that says you cant open. With assistance from Katherine Chiglinsky. Photo: A pedestrian wearing a protective face mask walks past a boarded up shop in California. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg Copyright 2022 Bloomberg. Topics Lawsuits PORTLAND, Ore. Oregon public health officials have identified 47 new cases of the new coronavirus in the state as of 8:00 a.m. on Monday, April 20, as well as one more death attributed to the virus. The latest deaths bring the state total up to 75. We want to keep you informed about #COVID19 in #Oregon. Data are provisional and change frequently. For more information, visit https://t.co/HOiXqGkygF pic.twitter.com/50d04skPdR OR Health Authority (@OHAOregon) April 17, 2020 The Oregon Health Authority said that there are now a total of 1,956 people in the state who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 through a positive test. RELATED: Josephine County reports no new COVID-19 cases for fifth day straight OHA reported new cases in the following counties: Benton (1), Clackamas (10), Douglas (1), Klamath (1), Lincoln (1), Linn (2), Marion (13), Multnomah (6), Polk (1), Umatilla (1), Washington (9), and Yamhill (1). Samples for 38,089 people have tested negative for COVID-19 in the state so far. Examples of people who have recovered fully after testing positive for the coronavirus have been reported only sporadically by local health officials thus far, and the state has yet to report a count of a total across the state. OHA has a partial, but incomplete count of how many people in the state have been hospitalized from the virus. According to that data, at least 465 Oregonians have been hospitalized since the outbreak began, about 24 percent of the total cases. State numbers still vary widely. While the state lists only 131 COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized, that number rises to 303 when suspected COVID-19 patients are included indicating that many still have not received results from a completed test. Of the confirmed patients, 26 are on ventilators. SPECIAL SECTION: Coronavirus Watch OHA gave the following information about each of the new fatalities in the state: Oregons 75th COVID-19 death is a 45-year-old man in Marion County, who tested positive on April 14 and died on April 18 at his residence. He had underlying medical conditions. OHA: Modeling report shows 'physical distancing measures are working' On Friday OHA released an update to its epidemic modeling report, intended to help Oregons leaders understand the progression and the projections for the COVID-19 outbreak. "Todays modeling update tells us that statewide mitigation efforts are keeping the caseload and hospitalizations well below the numbers we would have seen absent our efforts as a state," said state epidemiologist Dean Sidelinger, MD. "We are encouraged by the continued success of our mitigation efforts, which are allowing us to begin planning for suppression strategies for when the statewide measure can begin to be lifted." A fact that is indisputable is that in terms of demography, the youngsters who are in their 40s or less are in the majority statistically when a computational headcount of Nigerians are drawn up. These huge numbers of contemporary Nigerians who have graduated from college and are working in both the private and public sectors have not witnessed any war. The first real experience they are having is the terrorists attacks by Boko haram terrorists. The war on terror has cost this age group a lot because they are mostly the foot soldiers executing the war at the war fronts. So if there is one problem the clear majority of Nigerians would want it to disappear over night then it is the consistently well coordinated violent attacks on the infrastructures and people of Nigeria by the armed Islamists known as Boko Haram terrorists. The knowledge that the armed terrorists are still pulling strings of vicious attacks targeting mostly civilian populations and destroying communities and livelihoods of millions of Nigerians in the North East of Nigeria is a huge nightmare not just for those who live in that expansive landmass but for the rest of Nigeria. The reason for drawing this conclusion is that the continuous deployment of massive numbers of armed soldiers to confront the terrorists cost the nation a lot of human and material resources and to make it worst this war on terror has gone on for ten Years now and it was beginning to appear like a lost cause before the unthinkable happened and this scenario that would have far reaching implications has been widely reported by international news channels just as the action has elicited varying degrees of debates. This development I chose to classify as unthinkable is so because it was simply out of the blues then came the wonderful news to the effect that the Chadian army has killed 1,000 fighters during an operation against the Boko Haram armed group in the Lake Chad border region. The Chadian Army equally gained a lot of media mileage from international news organizations going by the fact that the boko haram terrorists and other Islamic State's affiliated terror gangs waging war on Nigeria and a few other African nations have managed to enter the Guiness book of World's record as the third deadliest terrorists and mass murderers in the global community. It follows therefore that developments springing up around the theatre of the war on terror would normally be widely reported in the Western media. It was in that light that the Chadian Army spokesman Colonel Azem Bermendoa Agouna told the AFP news agency that 52 troops died during the operation, which was launched on March 31. "A thousand terrorists have been killed, 50 motorised canoes have been destroyed," the colonel said, referring to a large boat also called a pirogue. Agouna said the operation, which was launched after nearly 100 soldiers were killed in a Boko Haram attack last month, ended on Wednesday after the armed fighters were forced out of the country. The news reporter stated that it is the first official snapshot of the outcome of Operation Bohoma Anger, launched after at least 92 soldiers were killed on March 23 in the deadliest-ever attack by Boko Haram on the country's military forces. The armed group had mounted a seven-hour assault on a Chadian army base at Bohoma. Reporting from the Nigerian capital, Abuja, Al Jazeeras Ahmed Idris said: "The country is trying to help other regional powers and regional forces under a group called the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) to finally defeat the Boko Haram." "A similar operation was conducted five years ago, in 2015, that decimated the Boko Haram population. They have regrouped since then, and attacked and killed several thousands in the process and regional armies in the Lake Chad area have been struggling to deal with the problem," Idris added. Lake Chad is a vast, marshy body of water where the borders of Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon meet. There is also a trending topic that the Army of Chad has shouldered all the responsibilities of combating the boko haram insurgency. I doubted this side of the information but a report actually quoted the President of Chad of making that statement which may not represent the exact facts and figures behind this war on terror which usually is not fought by just one nation going by the obvious facts that the terrorists had since expanded their attacks to virtually all West African nations neighbouring Nigeria from the Northern flanks. All the same we read that the Chadian leader said his nation is doing more than its fair share of the war on terror. "Chad is alone in shouldering all the burden of the war against Boko Haram," President Idriss Deby reported said to the media last weekend. The same news reporter then asserted that: "It is not clear if this will be the end or the beginning of the end of Boko Haram in the region. Many experts the news channel said, believe it is going to be very difficult to say that Boko Haram is defeated or will be defeated anytime soon because this is an ideology that has taken foothold for more than a decade in Nigeria which is spilling into its neighbours". Towards the conclusion of this reflection, we will address this issue of whether terrorism can be defeated or not drawing inspiration from what some thinker stated about the experiences of the United States of America in the fight against terrorism. As i had stated earlier, I do not believe that Chad is alone in this effort to end the reign of terrorism in West AFRICA. This is because the same news channel that quoted the President of Chad as saying that his nation shoulders the counter terror war effort alone also reported that Niger Republic also contributed to the latest rounds of massive counter terror battles launched against boko haram terrorists. The news channel stated that Separately, in Niger, the defence ministry in Niamey said its armed forces, in a joint operation with Chad, had inflicted "heavy losses" on Boko Haram in the lake region. "Arms caches, logistical points and several boats were destroyed" and islands used as rear bases in the lake's marshland were "bombarded from the air," it said. Reportedly, landlocked Niger is facing attacks by armed group on opposite ends of the country - fighting that has spilled over from neighbouring Mali, and raids in the Lake Chad region by Boko Haram fighters. Boko Haram's 11-year-old campaign has claimed tens of thousands of lives in northeast Nigeria and driven nearly two million people from their homes says Aljazeera. This estimate is low. Interestingly, few days after the Chadian soldiers launched a successful military campaign around the Lake Chad area targeting boko haram terrorists, the Nigerian Army Chief immediately relocated to the North East of Nigeria to personally coordinate what he calls the final phase in the war on terror. Don't forget that the last time the multinational Joint military taskforce attacked boko haram terrorists in 2015, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai who is now Nigeria's Army Chief was the commander of that Multinational military taskforce based in Chad. It is therefore a little bit of an exaggeration to think that the Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai was simply mimicking the President of Chad and then claim that this is the reason he has relocated to the theatre of war in the North East of Nigeria. Far from it. He is a vastly experienced war General who leads from the battlegrounds. Also it would be recalled that Before the Army of Chad performed the superlative military objective of decimating over 1000 boko haram terrorists, the Nigerian Chief of Army Staff saw it coming when he continuously told newsman that the end of boko haram terrorists is imminent. Soon after Chad struck, the Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai has landed in the North East of Nigeria and as can be seen from information filtering out of the battlegrounds, the Nigerian Army is having the upper hand and these successes have compelled the framing of the question whether the end has come for Nigeria's most challenging nightmare since the last 60 years which is the boko haram terrorists attacks which have killed well over 30,000 CIVILIANS and destroyed the livelihoods of over 3 million Nigerian citizens who are now internally and externally displaced and refugees. Few hours back, our eyes were delighted with the wonderful story that key boko haram terrorists and their leaders have been decimated including nearly 105 elements of the TERROR group. The media reported that several key Boko Haram Terrorists/ISWAP leaders have been killed in multiple air strikes conducted by the Air Task Force of Operation Lafiya Dole at Durbada in Borno, the Defence Headquarters has said. The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. John Enenche, in a statement on Monday in Abuja, added that structures belonging to the terrorists were also destroyed. Enenche disclosed that the operation, which was executed on April 17, came on the heels of credible human intelligence reports. He said that the intelligence was confirmed by series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions and indicated that the settlement was one of the locations where some of the terrorists hierarchy often hibernate. According to him, the fighter jets dispatched by the Air Task Force took turns in attacking the location scoring accurate hits within the target area which resulted in the death of some of the terrorists. Others, who were seen attempting to flee the area were taken out in follow-on attacks. The Armed Forces of Nigeria, in furtherance of the objective of restoring peace and security in the North East, will sustain the offensive against the enemies of our nation, he said. (NAN). As citizens who in the last eleven years have passed through nightmarish attacks and blood cuddling violence of the TERROR gangsters, I think our major concern should not be the wasting of energy in speculating whether it was the Chadian President that ended the reign of the terrorists or the Nigerian Army. What should be our preoccupation is to show positive solidarity with the Nigerian Army to come out victorious in no distant time so the era of uncertainty caused by the massive terror campaign can be said to be over and is over. We will turn our attention to the question if the terrorists and terrorism in the North East of Nigeria can be defeated. But first, let us debunk a fallacy that has trended for some times now in the grapevine that some Military Generals in Nigeria have commercialised the war on terror. It is practically impossible to create the impression that the current Army Chief who has introduced a lot of innovations and built many giant projects for the institution of the Army including the University sited in Borno state will not want the boko haram insurgency to come to an end because of some pecuniary reasons. This is perhaps the most outrageous conspiracy to come from the pit of hell to think that someone who has spent over three decades fighting to make Nigeria great and has earned one of the most prestigious professional rank could descend so low as not to want a war that has costs Nigeria several fighters or combatants and billions of dollars to end and more so when this same person is from a place considered as the frontline of this TERROR attacks which means that his people are directly the most affected victims of this ten year old war. This fake news is as ridiculous as it can ever be. We will conclude by looking at what winning a war on terror should mean. Philip H.Gordon writing on the theme: "Can the war on terror be won? How to fight the right war, published in www.foreignaffairs.com thus: "Almost entirely missing from this debate is a concept of what "victory" in the war on terror would actually look like. The traditional notion of winning a war is fairly clear: defeating an enemy on the battlefield and forcing it to accept political terms. But what does victory -- or defeat -- mean in a war on terror? Will this kind of war ever end? How long will it take? Would we see victory coming? Would we recognize it when it came? He then afformed that: "It is essential to start thinking seriously about these questions, because it is impossible to win a war without knowing what its goal is. Considering possible outcomes of the war on terror makes clear that it can indeed be won, but only with the recognition that this is a new and different kind of war." Victory he said will come not when foreign leaders accept certain terms but when political changes erode and ultimately undermine support for the ideology and strategy of those determined to destroy the United States. "It will come not when Washington and its allies kill or capture all terrorists or potential terrorists but when the ideology the terrorists espouse is discredited, when their tactics are seen to have failed, and when they come to find more promising paths to the dignity, respect, and opportunities they crave. It will mean not the complete elimination of any possible terrorist threat -- pursuing that goal will almost certainly lead to more terrorism, not less -- but rather the reduction of the risk of terrorism to such a level that it does not significantly affect average citizens' daily lives, preoccupy their thoughts, or provoke overreaction". At that point, as aforementioned he reasoned that even the terrorists will realize their violence is futile. Keeping this vision of victory in mind will not only avert considerable pain, expense, and trouble; it will also guide leaders toward the policies that will bring such a victory about. I will recommend the above scenarios to the Nigerian political establishments. Also the other angle of bringing justice to the victims of the war by prosecuting and punishing mass murderers must be approached holistically. This is where i think we need to copy the model used in Chad in dealing with the terrorists. Chad has had to use the instrumentality of the law to bring the boko haram terrorists they arrested to face the capital punishment. Nigeria must not convey the impression that it is profitable to wage relentless TERROR war on Nigeria. There should be no negotiations with terrorists. Emmanuel Onwubiko is the Head of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria [email protected] ; www.emmanuelonwubikocom; www.thenigerianinsidernews.com ; [email protected] State Confirms First Hill County COVID-19 Death The Department of State Health Services has confirmed the first death from COVID-19 in Hill County. According to information released by County Judge Justin Lewis Thursday, April 16, a male over the age of 80 who tested positive for the virus Thursday, April 9, has died as a result of the illness. As of the latest numbers available Friday, April 17, the total number of Hill County cases confirmed to date remains at 10. Lewis said Thursday that the state had released additional information about the individuals who have tested positive locally, and he passed that on in his daily update. The judge said that the first positive test result was confirmed March 29, and the second was March 30. Both individuals, a female in her fifties and a male in his forties, have reportedly recovered. A male and female, both in their sixties, who tested positive on April 1 and 3 have been hospitalized with the illness, Lewis said. A male in his sixties who tested positive on April 3, and a female in her 30s, first reported positive on April 7, have not been hospitalized. The remaining cases reported to the county involve a male in his twenties, who was confirmed to have COVID-19 on April 9, and a female in her eighties, who was reported positive on April 15. Lewis said that they are in the early stages of fighting the illness, and it was unclear if hospitalization would be required. Lewis said that in addition to the patient information provided by the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), Hill County officials have been gathering testing numbers from local health care providers. The numbers show that 110 tests have been administered in the county, with at least five still pending results as of Friday. It should be noted that numbers published by the state often lag behind numbers available at the county level. As we receive more information, we are able to create a clearer picture of our county situation, said Lewis. Our numbers are holding steady at this point, which tells us people are adhering to the social distancing guidelines and staying apart as much as possible." Lewis pointed out that it remains important to continue those efforts. "Our neighbors to the south in McLennan County are anticipating the virus outbreak will not peak there until the end of April or beginning of May, so that means we are still at risk of exposure and cannot relax our standards, yet. Statewide, Texas was reporting 17,371 cases as of Friday, with 428 fatalities, 4,190 patients recovered and 1,522 currently hospitalized. Overall, the state had performed 169,536 tests as of Friday. Governor Greg Abbott was expected to make an announcement Friday, April 17, to detail his plan for reopening the Texas economy. While awaiting the details Thursday, Lewis said, Officials across the state are waiting to learn the details of Governor Abbotts plan. Once we know the parameters the state is going to allow us to operate in, we will be able to craft a local plan to help everyone get back to work in a safe and steady manner." He added, "Hill County is strong, and we will get through this together. Our normal may be different for a while, but when we come through to the other side, we will be more resilient than ever." Vietnam has only 268 COVID-19 cases and no deaths. The secret of its success lies in the speed of intervention. Like Chinas, Vietnams communist regime has used its vast surveillance system. The country's economy is among the few that will grow in 2020. Multinationals are leaving China. Hanoi (AsiaNews/Agencies) Vietnam is winning the war against the COVID-19 virus. So far, it has 268 confirmed cases with no deaths. According to experts, its secret lies in the speed of its intervention. On 1 February, the authorities suspended air links with China and shut down all schools and universities. Then they quarantined Vinh Phuc province, home to many migrants who worked in Wuhan (Hubei), the epicentre of the pandemic. They also imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine on anyone arriving in the country from a risk area. Unlike South Korea and Taiwan, two other successful examples of the fight against coronavirus, Vietnam is not in a position to carry out mass testing since its healthcare system is not well developed. For instance, Deutsche Welle reports that Ho Chi Minh City (ex Saigon), a metropolis of eight million inhabitants, has only 900 intensive care beds. Its approach is closer to Chinas draconian method, with the Communist Party controlling the whole decision-making process and implementing the measures military style. To this end, the regime relies on an extensive surveillance system to contain the pandemic, imposing severe penalties on offenders. However, as with its Chinese neighbour, Vietnams data need to be viewed with some caution. Vietnam has one of the most dynamic economies in the world. According to the World Economic Forum, 45 million Vietnamese came out of poverty between 2002 and 2018. Per capita GDP is 2,500 dollars; life expectancy went from 71 years in 1990 to 76 in 2015. It has eight doctors per 10,000 people. Although the pandemic has hit the economy hard, especially the tourism sector hard; the country appears to have absorbed the recessionary effects of the crisis better than many others. The International Monetary Fund estimates that its GDP will grow 7 per cent in 2021, but this year, it will be limited to 2.7 per cent, a sharp drop over 2019 (7,02 per cent), but the best result in the region. By comparison, Philippines and Indonesia are expected to grow by 0.6 and 0.5 per cent respectively; Malaysia and Thailand are in a recession. Much of Vietnam's future success will depend on the "great escape" from China. Thanks to the incentives of their governments, some US, Japanese, South Korean and European companies are moving production from mainland China to other countries that offer a cheaper labour force. Among these, Vietnam appears to be the best placed to welcome companies leaving China. China Briefing notes that this process had already started 15 years ago. It then took greater importance with the onset of the trade war between China and the United States. Samsung for example has moved part of its operations to Vietnam; Google and Nintendo have started doing the same, like many other large multinationals. The Perspective Atlanta, Georgia April 20, 2020 The mother of three kids cried aloud on my phone last Friday when she called me via messenger. According to her, she has no one to fight for her 3 girls. She said her kids were being denied justice after they were severely hit on March 1, 2020, by the Deputy Minister of Justice, Cllr. Nyenati Tuan, as a result of reckless driving. I felt guilty and thought to act without any further delay. I lifted this story on April 13, 2020, on my Facebook page. I engaged several law firms and prominent lawyers to represent the legal interest of Ms. Jamesetta Taylor and her three daughters in Court. Finally, one of Liberias renowned lawyers, Cllr. Dr. Jallah A. Barbu, along with his legal team from the Public Interest Law Firm, has agreed to represent the legal interest of Ms. Taylor and her hospitalized daughters. Background: The Deputy Minister for Codification at the Ministry of Justice. Tuan was charged for violating the traffic law. He failed to yield to The Right-of-Way ordinance. According to the traffic police, his reckless driving resulted in severe injuries and damage to properties. The incident took place on March 1, 2020, at 10:00 A.M. around Rehab, Paynesville City. The three (3) kids in these photos are victims of Tuans reckless driving, which he does not want to take responsibility for even though the Monrovia Traffic Court has summoned him through His Honor Judge Jomah S. Jallah. The kids were en route from Church, Winner Chapel GSA branch, on Sunday, March 1, 2020. The mother of these kids is Jamesetta Taylor. Ms. Taylor has been fighting for justice on behalf of her kids, but Deputy Minister Tuan has taken advantage of his status in government to abuse power and escape justice. Ms. Jamesetta Taylor cannot fight this blatant injustice alone. For more than one month now since March 1, 2020, this minister is yet to take responsibility for his inhumane action. This is so pathetic but very unacceptable. The mother of these kids has been struggling to provide livelihood and medication for them while Deputy Minister Nyenati Tuan parades with impunity. The Travesty of Justice is prevalent in Liberia. No justice for THE POOR and underprivileged. The higher-ups and big-shots are made to get away with gross human rights violations. Tuan must fully account for his action. His action unbecoming of a public official also violates the 2014 Code of Conduct Law. I am taking up this matter as of today. Tuan has 48 hours to take full responsibility for reckless action against those innocent kids. Or else, I will begin a regular publication of articles and granting of interviews about his inhumane posture and abuse. International media and human rights groups will soon get to know about this blatant injustice. Here is information on these kids: 1) Angel Johnson 13 years 2) Christiana Cephas 10 years 3) Princes Mulbah 5 years The cruelty of this Deputy Justice Minister will not go unnoticed. The World is about to hear this. The World is about to hear how a Deputy Justice Minister is abusing power and taking advantage of his portfolio to violate the rights of innocent Liberian children. This is a cause for national and international alarm. As an activist, my work is to protect the weak, the poor, the underprivileged, and the marginalized against all forms of abuse. The kids of Ms. Taylor MUST get justice. I empathize with Jamesetta as her kids undergo this painful moment. I call on all feminists, rights advocates, and champions of justice to join this fight. According to Ms. Taylor, Cllr. Tuan has shown no sign of remorse and empathy since he hit these kids with his car. In case these kids had died (God forbid)? I am on this case and we will reach to the end. Those who know Deputy Minister Nyenati Tuan, PLEASE warn him. The World is about to know about this human rights record. The kids are being denied justice because they are not Tuan's children. But we will fight for them. I rest my case for now. For more details and to provide needed support in this worthy pursuit, please contact Ms. Jamesetta Taylor via this local number: +231 0775994351. As I speak to you, we are currently in Court. Cllr. Jallah Barbu, Sr. is providing this legal representation free of charge. We appreciate him for his kindness and thoughtfulness toward humanity. The kids will and must get justice. Deputy Minister Nyenati Tuan must be made to account for such cruelty against poor Liberians especially innocent children. We are still engaging more lawyers and human rights organizations to join this fight for justice on behalf of Ms. Jamesetta Taylor and her daughters. As of Wednesday, I will begin running key highlights and articles about this story in local and international media. Our work is to protect the weak, the poor, the underprivileged, the marginalized, and the vulnerable. Like we are doing for Jamesetta, we can do for anyone of you, especially when you are taken advantage of by big-shots and higher-ups. The pursuit of justice is an indispensable vocation and a greater task. Photos and Proofs: I have attached photos, court documents, and a guarantee note to prove my case against Cllr. Nyenati Tuan. Stay home to stay safe. Watch out and Wise up against COVID-19. Stay alive through prevention and precaution. Liberia shall rise above COVID-19. If convicted under the Infectious Diseases Act and its Regulations, each of three accused may be jailed up to six months, fined up to $10,000, or both. (PHOTO: Getty Images) SINGAPORE Two Singaporeans and an American man will be charged in court on Tuesday (21 April) for breaching their Stay-Home Notices (SHN), said the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) on Monday. The Singaporeans are 48-year-old Chong Chun Wah and 25-year-old Siti Wan SuAidah Samsuri, while the American is 44-year-old Brian Dugan Yeargan, a commercial pilot. Case 1 Yeargan arrived in Singapore from Australia on 3 April and was issued a short-term visit pass valid for 30 days, along with an SHN from 3 to 17 April. He stayed at Crowne Plaza Changi Airport, but left his accommodation on 5 April to take a train from Changi Airport MRT Station to City Hall MRT Station. He then allegedly walked to Chinatown Point to buy personal items, spending some three hours outside. Yeargan faces a charge under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. Case 2 Chong is said to have arrived in Singapore from Indonesia on 17 March and served with an SHN until 31 March. However, he left his flat at Bukit Batok three times during this period, said ICA. On 24 March, he allegedly took a bus to Jurong East to buy food and spent one-and-a-half hours outside. On 28 March, he allegedly left his residence for some five minutes to check his mail at the ground floor of his block. The next day, he supposedly went to a coffeeshop in Bukit Batok to purchase food and spent some 30 to 45 minutes outside. Chong will be charged for offences under Section 21A of the Infectious Diseases Act and the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. Case 3 Siti returned from Australia on 25 March and was served with an SHN lasting till 8 April. On 30 March, she allegedly left her Woodlands residence and walked to Vista Point to buy groceries and cigarettes. She then failed to respond to multiple calls by ICA as part of enforcement checks. She spent some 15 to 20 minutes outside, according to ICA. Siti will be charged for violating the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 Stay Orders) Regulations 2020 and the Infectious Diseases (Measures to Prevent Spread of COVID-19) Regulations 2020. Story continues With effect from 11.59pm on 16 March, the authorities had imposed SHNs on all residents, long-term and short-term pass holders entering Singapore with a travel history to any ASEAN country within the last 14 days. An SHN means that the recipient must remain in their residence at all times for two weeks. The SHN requirement was extended to all who enter Singapore from 11.59pm on 9 April and they are required to serve their SHN at dedicated facilities. The SHNs were put in place to control imported cases of COVID-19. If convicted under the Infectious Diseases Act and its Regulations, each of three accused may be jailed up to six months, fined up to $10,000, or both. Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore Related stories: COVID-19: McDonald's to temporarily suspend all restaurant operations in Singapore COVID-19: Singapore confirms 942 cases, record high; 14 are Singaporeans, PRs COMMENT: No need to be a rat in this pandemic COVID-19: 12 reports of abuse so far of enforcement officers, ambassadors police COVID-19: Kranji Lodge 1 becomes 13th dorm to be declared isolation area COVID-19: NGOs delivering meals, essential items to foreign workers at dormitories At least 20 employees at Afghanistan's presidential palace have tested positive for COVID-19, according to a senior government official who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to comment on the subject. It wasn't clear whether President Ashraf Ghani had been in contact with any of the employees or whether he had been tested himself. The presidential palace has refused to comment. Ghani has reportedly been self-isolating, although he still meets daily with some senior officials. At 70 and a cancer survivor, Ghani is considered in the higher risk category. Afghanistan has reported only 993 positive cases even as the International Office of Migration, which monitors the movement of refugees, says more than 200,000 Afghans have returned from Iran in the last two months. Iran is one of the hardest-hit countries in the region with more than 82,000 confirmed cases and over 5,000 deaths. Many of the returning refugees scattered throughout Afghanistan without testing, generating widespread fears of an outbreak of cases that could overwhelm the country's war-ravaged health care facilities. The United Nations has called for cease fires to conflicts around the world but, still the war goes on in Afghanistan as both sides in the conflict the Taliban and the Afghan administration squabble over details in an agreement signed between the United States and the Taliban in February. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hyundai Motor India on Monday said it has donated Rs 7 crore to the PM CARES Fund to fight the Covid-19 crisis. "Our contribution to the PM CARES Fund stands testament to solidarity we hold with the people of India, amidst this crisis," Hyundai Motor India MD and CEO SS Kim said in a statement. In challenging times such as these, the company will continue giving back to help India defeat this adversity, he added. The South Korean automaker had earlier pledged Rs 5 crore to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Relief Fund. It has also donated imported diagnostic kits worth Rs 4 crore which can cater to testing requirements of over 25,000 individuals. The company said it is distributing personal protective equipments, masks and other safety kits in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Haryana. Besides, it is also giving dry rations in Delhi and Tamil Nadu to adversely impacted sections of society, the company added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) PORTLAND, Ore., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northwest Natural Holding Company (NWN) (NW Natural Holdings) announced today it will issue its first quarter 2020 earnings release and conduct an analyst conference call and webcast to review results at 8 a.m. Pacific Time (11 a.m. Eastern Time) on Friday, May 8, 2020. To hear the conference by webcast, log on to NW Natural Holdings corporate website at nwnaturalholdings.com . To hear the conference call by phone, please dial 1-866-267-6789 within the United States and 1-855-669-9657 from Canada. International callers can dial 1-412-902-4110. To access the conference replay, please call 1-877-344-7529 within the United States and enter the conference identification pass code 10141985. To hear the replay from Canada, please dial 1-855-669-9658 and from international locations, please dial 1-412-317-0088. About NW Natural Holdings Northwest Natural Holding Company, (NWN) (NW Natural Holdings), is headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and through its subsidiaries has been doing business for more than 160 years. It owns NW Natural Gas Company (NW Natural), NW Natural Water Company (NW Natural Water), and other business interests and activities. NW Natural is a local distribution company that currently provides natural gas service to approximately 2.5 million people in more than 140 communities through more than 760,000 meters in Oregon and Southwest Washington with one of the most modern pipeline systems in the nation. NW Natural consistently leads the industry with high J.D. Power & Associates customer satisfaction scores. NW Natural Holdings subsidiaries own and operate 35 Bcf of underground gas storage capacity with NW Natural operating 20 Bcf in Oregon. NW Natural Water provides water distribution and wastewater services to communities throughout the Pacific Northwest and Texas. NW Natural Water currently serves approximately 61,000 people through about 25,000 connections. Learn more about our water business at nwnaturalwater.com . Story continues Additional information is available at nwnaturalholdings.com . Investor Contact: Nikki Sparley Phone: 503-721-2530 Email: nikki.sparley@nwnatural.com By Jun Ji-hye The number of traffic accidents and casualties caused by drunk driving nationwide has begun rising after police stopped breathalyzer tests in their crackdown on drunk drivers due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19, according to officials Monday. This has led police to develop a new contactless device to detect drunk driving without breathalyzing drivers. In a bid to improve the crackdown on drunk drivers, police began a week-long trial of the device, Monday, and will use it for random roadside sobriety tests nationwide. Police stopped using breathalyzers Jan. 28. and instead have selectively checked those suspected of drunk driving. As a result, drunk driving accidents and casualties have increased by 24.4 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively, during January-March from last year. Police said they have taken the increase seriously, considering that many people have been working from home and have been asked to refrain from drinking outside. The new device will be held about 30 centimeters away from drivers and measure their breath for five seconds, police said, noting that the device would issue a warning sound when alcohol is detected. "We will put disposable covers on the devices and disinfect their rods frequently to prevent respiratory droplets," a National Police Agency official said. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said Monday that it had detected 13 more infections and that there had been two more deaths, Sunday, bringing the nation's total cases to 10,674 and the death toll to 236. The daily number of new cases had fallen to a single digit for the first time in about 60 days with eight on Saturday, but the number rose again slightly to double digits. In Busan, a daughter and father tested positive for the virus, provoking concern among residents in the southern port city. The daughter is a Busan Medical Center nurse who has cared for COVID-19 patients, while her father is an administrative employee at a high school in the city. Health authorities confirmed that the father had attended Easter service at a local church. Following confirmation of their infections, a hospital ward, school and church have been closed, while hundreds of people including medical staff, teachers and church members have quarantined themselves. The Armed Forces Daejeon Hospital has also been temporarily closed after four medical staff showed symptoms associated with the coronavirus, according to the Ministry of National Defense. KCDC Director Jung Eun-kyeong told a press briefing, "The entire medical staff there, including the four, have gone through coronavirus tests, and some are being rechecked." Meanwhile, the government has ordered the deportation of seven foreigners including three Vietnamese students who went outside without permission despite being under two-week self-isolation, according to the Ministry of Justice. The Bihar State Child Rights Protection Commission (BSCPCR) directed private schools across the state not to take tuition fees, including transportation charge, for the months of March and April. The BSCPCR chairperson Dr Pramila Kumari on Sunday said, We asked all private schools not to demand monthly fees on the human grounds for March and April...The guardians are under tremendous psychological and financial pressures due to coronavirus lockdown. People need respite. She added, Notice in this connection has been issued to the schools on April 15. The school authorities have been warned of strict action if they fail to comply with the order during the lockdown period. We. however, know the concern of school authorities who have to pay salaries to their teachers and non-teaching staff. We will discuss with parents as well as the school authorities in this regard after the lockdown period is over, she said. Last week, the Patna district administration had also instructed all the private schools in the state capital not to force parents to pay fees for more than a month during the coronavirus lockdown period. Nreeraj Kumar, an official from education department, said that the district administration already directed private schools not to charge three months fees at one time. Even if one is not able to pay that amount, the child will not punished for non clearance of dues, he said. Amita Sinha, a housewife, Patna, said, It makes little difference. After all, one has to clear the dues sooner or later. It the schools exempt two months, then one can it is a relief. Its a known fact things are not going to improve much in the near future and after a couple of months, we will have to pall all fees. DK Singh, president of Bihar Public School and Children Welfare Association, said that private schools, We will not charge monthly tuition fees for March and April if the government provides financial support to the private schools. He said that a huge amount of money, which is provided by education department to private schools under the RTE (Right to Education) for poor children, too has been due for the last several months. It must not be less than Rs 40 crore. We want the government to make the payments to the schools and we will exempt guardians from monthly tuition fees, he said. Private schools should be allowed to open for a few hours for some days for distribution of books, said Prem Ranjan, secretary of the association. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Citing incidents of protests by locals against burial of COVID-19 victims in their area over fears of spread of coronavirus, a PIL was filed in the Madras High on Monday seeking to invoke provisions of the stringent Goondas Act against those indulging in such inhuman acts. A decent burial/cremation was a fundamental right of every citizen of this country guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution and it cannot be denied under the garb of protests, petitioner A P Suryaprakasam, an advocate, said. Authorities were prevented by residents of a locality in Kilpauk here on Sunday from cremating the body of a neurologist who died of COVID-19 infection, he said in the public interest litigation petition, likely to be taken up for hearing this week. The ambulance in which the body was taken and its driver were attacked, he said adding such people have not only violated law, but also committed a grave crime against humanity. The failure on part of the police to register an FIR and arrest such people have emboldened them to deprive the victims of COVID-19 a decent burial, he added. He pleaded the court to direct the Chennai police Commissioner to invoke provisions of the Goondas Act against those preventing burial of people who die of coronavirus and provide adequate police protection. Earlier this month, when a doctor from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh died of COVID-19, his cremation was delayed after residents of a city area objected to it. The body had to be taken back to the hospital mortuary and later cremated in another locality. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The unprecedented nature of the impact of Covid-19 has been felt right across society, and local students have been no exception. With many asking questions about what will happen before the end of term, the Democrat spoke to Dr Michael Mulvey, President of DkIT, about how the institute is dealing with the closure and what the future holds for the institute's current and prospective students. David Lynch: Can you describe how difficult the last number of weeks have been at DkIT? Dr Mulvey: Like all higher education institutes across Ireland and abroad, DkIT has faced unprecedented challenges over recent weeks due to the Covid-19 health emergency. From the outset, our number one priority has always been ensuring the health and wellbeing of our students and staff. On March 12, 2020 we took the extraordinary decision to close our campus in line with guidance issued by the Government. Preparations immediately began to develop new ways of delivering teaching and learning and continuing our organisational operations through remote or digital means. As an institute we are highly resilient and are fortunate to have a highly talented workforce that has been able to pull together to navigate this emergency in the interest of our students and our region. DL: What planning have you been able to put in place for the future? DM: At the beginning of this emergency, the institute established a Covid-19 TaskForce which comprises managers from across all areas of the institute to oversee our response to the Covid-19 emergency. The taskforce meets regularly and is able to swiftly respond to the evolving situation, making decisions in an efficient and informed manner. During the initial weeks of campus closure, our focus centred on ensuring the academic continuity of all programmes including the move to remote delivery of all teaching modules, developing alternative assessments for students and ensuring that staff and students had the tools and resources they needed to continue their work. In line with the Governments most recent announcement, we can confirm that the campus remains closed to students and staff until May 5. We are aware that there is a possibility that this closure could be extended and contingency plans have been established to ensure that all students can complete this academic semester without disruption through remote means, if this is required. We continue to carefully monitor this situation and further updates will be provided as necessary. DL: Do you have a message to prospective students? DM: As we look forward to the next academic year, we want to provide reassurance to prospective students that we are committed to assisting their smooth transition to becoming DkIT students at undergraduate, part-time or postgraduate level. In light of recent announcements in relation to state examinations, it is likely that there will be changes to admissions schedules and we continue to work closely with the Central Applications Office to ensure we are working in line with all adjustments. Our unique location on the border means we continue to receive a significant number of applications from prospective students in Northern Ireland, as well as the Republic of Ireland. We remain committed to ensuring that applicants will continue to have equal access to quality higher education from all jurisdictions. Our international office have also been actively engaged with applicants from abroad and are supporting them throughout this period of uncertainty. In order to support prospective students at this time, we have organised a number of Virtual Open Days to answer any questions about admissions procedures or DkIT courses that they have at this time. The first of these events take place on the 21st April and 6th May for undergraduate applicants and registration is available via: https://virtualopenday.dkit.ie/. Over the coming weeks, we will be announcing further virtual events for mature applicants, part-time, postgraduate and international applicants. DL: How have the staff responded to the situation? DM: The innovation and ingenuity exhibited by our staff in response to this challenge has been truly remarkable. Within just one week, we were able to resume classes via remote delivery thanks to the swift efforts by personnel across the institute. Our research centres, staff and postgraduate students continue to remain active by working remotely and all functional areas developed contingency plans to ensure that essential services were uninterrupted (where possible) during this time. DL: Can you describe the feeling of being in an empty institute right now? DM: These are undoubtedly strange and uncertain times for us all and witnessing our campus without students at this time of the year is certainly a stark reminder of that fact. However, the health and wellbeing of our students and staff remains our utmost priority. We know that it is vital that we all maintain our social distancing by staying at home and continue to adhere to Government guidelines to help reduce the pressure on our critical health services and to flatten the curve of this pandemic. This is a message that we continually convey to our students and staff and they understand this. I am comforted that we are able to provide some support to the national effort by redeploying parts of our campus to support the HSEs regional testing operation and provide facilities for training purposes. We have also been able to offer up our buildings for use by the An Garda Siochana. I am also immensely proud of our fourth year nursing and midwifery students who are working at the frontline of this pandemic as they complete as part of their final clinical internship. They are joined by thousands of our former graduates from a variety of programmes that we know are also playing a critical role as frontline workers. We are grateful for their vital contribution to their community at this time. DL: What would you like to say to current students? DM: We are acutely aware that our students have been deeply impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and I would personally like to thank each of them for their patience and cooperation throughout this period of adjustment. We remain committed to ensuring that no DkIT student faces any form of academic disadvantage as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak. Our academic teams have been working closely with our Centre of Learning & Teaching (CELT), Academic Affairs and Students Union to ensure that decision-making around assessments is fair and student-centred while also preserving the academic integrity of results awarded. Considerations around mode of assessment, academic integrity, quality, fairness to our students, additional support for students with a disability and compliance with regulatory bodies have all been reviewed. In an effort to reassure students during this rapidly evolving situation, we have increased our communications by developing an online information portal for students relating to Covid-19 developments, in addition to a weekly newsletter with updates on student issues, institute news and the latest guidance from the Government and the HSE. In early April, we also conducted an institute-wide student survey to identify areas where we can improve support for our students at this time and gather their feedback on the current arrangements. Critical student services such as counselling, pastoral care, student finance and careers guidance remain in high demand by our students via remote delivery. We also recognise that this an unsettling period for our international students as they remain separated from their families and friends at home. In addition to continuing pastoral care services, our International office has been contacting each student individually each week to assess their individual needs and offer additional supports. The families of these students have been most appreciative of this added-level of care. DL: From a personal point of view, can you see the current academic year being completed successfully? DM: All plans that have been prioritised to date have been established to ensure that DkIT students can progress to their next academic year or enable graduation as appropriate. DL: Have the department of education been giving clear and timely information? DM: The Government is dealing with an unprecedented national emergency, the impact of which is all-encompassing for us as a society and deeply complex. I believe the Department of Education & Skills continues to provide clear and timely information as this situation evolves and we continue to work closely with the Department and our associative body, THEA to prioritise the welfare of our students and staff whilst also maintaining the quality of our teaching & learning, research and business impact. There is undoubtedly a lot of uncertainty for the future as developments continue to unfold but I am confident that we can rise to this challenge both as an institute and as a nation with the support of our Government agencies. DL: What does this situation mean for the pressing Technological University question? DM: Over the coming weeks, we will officially launch our new Strategic Plan 2020-22 which clearly articulates our ambition to become a Technology University in the near future. We are currently evaluating options for our most suitable partners from within the sector and discussions continue with colleagues in the institute and across the sector in this regard. We look forward to making an announcement on this in due course. Keep it classified Back in my Air Force days, we had a reporting system called FORSTAT, for status of forces. It was a matrix of elements that showed our readiness. It was classified at a minimum of secret. Capt. Brett Crozier should have classified his letter about coronavirus on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, as it affected the readiness of his carrier, and sent it directly up the chain of command. If you dont have confidence in the upward chain of command, they wont have confidence in you down the chain of command. Dont even get me started on Alexander Vindman. Greg Shean Total authority? During a coronavirus briefing, President Donald Trump said he has total authority. This means that, among other things, the Bill of Rights, congressional oversight, advice and consent of the Senate, and Supreme Court decisions are no longer relevant. Total authority? That sounds pretty sweet. I think Ill run for president. Billy Tassos On ExpressNews.com: Trump claims total authority, over govs, to reopen economy Donate to Food Bank The consequences of closed hotels, malls, restaurants and small businesses are apparent. I went online to the San Antonio Food Bank and made a donation. I encourage those who are able: Do the same. Richard Olivarez Im not sure, but I think Armenian Times daily newspaper has been one of the largest taxpayers in the history of the Third Republic of Armenia. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said live on Facebook today. I believe this is a great occasion for the newspapers administration to issue a statement and give a report starting from its last day and the day of its re-establishment. Its clear that presses have planned their future for the upcoming ten years and have failed and that the authorities currently dont have control over presses and dont pay them, but this issue has been on the governments agenda ever since I took office, and the issue is how the government has to create guarantees for the freedom of presses, the Prime Minister said, stating that the National Assembly is currently considering a bill in regard to this issue. According to Pashinyan, there is a large group of media outlets that are still funded by the former authorities, but they are disappointed since they understand that this cant go on for a long time. On Apr 17, Walmart, Inc. WMT announced that it will be hiring 50,000 more workers at it stores and warehouses and distribution centers. The move is in a bid to meet sustained demand for groceries and household staples due to the coronavirus pandemic. This is the second time in two months that the retail giant has announced plans of expanding its workforce. Retailers across the country have been witnessing a surge in demand for household essentials and groceries from customers stockpiling during the coronavirus outbreak. Not only Walmart, other major retailers too have been on a hiring spree over the past month. Walmart Expands Workforce This is the second time in less than a month that Walmart has announced plans of expanding its workforce. The company on Friday said that it has already fulfilled its target of hiring 150,000 workers, which it had announced in March. The brick-and-mortar giant said that it reached this target six weeks ahead of schedule. Walmart hired 5,000 employees per day on average at a time when millions of companies, battered by the pandemic, are going for layoffs and furloughs. The retailer worked with 70 companies that recently furloughed workers to fulfill its previous 150,000 vacancies. Walmart carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 3.7%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Retailers Continue to Hire An increasing number of people are ordering groceries and household items online and stockpiling them due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This has seen retailers struggling to meet the surge in demand. Given this scenario, retailers too have started hiring to speed up deliveries. Growing demand for face masks, toilet paper, hand sanitizers and other household products has seen retailers like Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN, Kroger Company KR and Target Corporation TGT hiring thousands of temporary and permanent workers. Story continues Last week, Amazon said it will be hiring 75,000 more heads for positions ranging from warehouse staff to delivery drivers. The move is in a bid to ramp up delivery services and meet the growing demand for online orders. Amazon has a Zacks Rank #3. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 21.2%. Low-cost retailer Dollar General Corporation DG plans to double its typical hiring rate and add 50,000 workers by the end of April. Target too has around 9,000 jobs listed currently on its website. In March, Kroger said that it will add 20,000 more workers to its workforce to meet demand for groceries and other supplies sparked off by the coronavirus crisis. Dollar General, Target and Kroger each carries a Zacks Rank #3 and has expected earnings growth rate of 11%, 2.7% and 9.6%, respectively, for the current year. Retailers across the United States are closing down stores in a bid to help the government contain the spread of the virus. Also, some unions and elected officials have called on supermarket chains and retailers to close warehouses and stores. However, retailers, particularly supermarket chains, discount stores and departmental stores with a strong online presence seem to be among the few that are still managing to survive the coronavirus bloodbath and are on a hiring spree. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Target Corporation (TGT) : Free Stock Analysis Report Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Walmart Inc. (WMT) : Free Stock Analysis Report Dollar General Corporation (DG) : Free Stock Analysis Report The Kroger Co. (KR) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Thirty students, who were brought to Uttar Pradesh from Kota in buses sent by the state government, have reached their homes here, amid the nationwide lockdown imposed to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. They reached Muzaffarnagar on Sunday evening and were sent into home quarantine, District Magistrate Amit Singh said. The students underwent checkups for COVID-19 after reaching the state, he said. The Uttar Pradesh government had sent 250 buses to Kota in Rajasthan on Friday to bring students from the state, who were in that city to prepare for engineering and medical competitive exams. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather said. He added that police believe he acted alone. Leather said they would investigate whether the attack had anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic but no link has been found thus far. At one point, there was an exchange of gunfire between the suspect and police, he said. Late Sunday morning, there were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of the gas station where the suspect died. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-colored SUV was being investigated. Cpl. Lisa Croteau, a spokeswoman with the provincial force, said police received a call about "a person with firearms" late Saturday night, and the investigation "evolved into an active shooting investigation." Christine Mills, a resident of the area, said it had been a frightening night for the small town, with armed officers patrolling the streets. In the morning, helicopters flew overhead searching for the suspect. "It's nerve-wracking because you don't know if somebody has lost their mind and is going to beat in your front door," she said. Web Toolbar by Wibiya When choosing a website hosting there are many factors to consider as confirmed by Forbes Here are my top five considerations: 1 - Online chat system In my view, having an online chat system is the most important consideration which separates the great website hosting companies from the crappy ones. A great website hosting provider will try to make themselves available as easy as possible. I will ignore any website hosting provider which relies on email. Also, try to avoid web site hosting providers which purely use AI chatbots. 2 - Overall friendliness / Responsiveness Try to pick website hosting companies that reply back to you in a friendly and helpful way. Try to avoid website hosting companies that seem to be "bureaucratic" and unfriendly when you try to chat with them online. 3 - Telephone customer service It is good to see website hosting companies that have local or preferably toll-free numbers. But in my view, online chat is way more important. That is because often such phone lines either have long waiting periods or set-hours. Very few website hosting providers offer 24 hour service. GoDaddy does. But I wouldn't recommend their website hosting services. GoDaddy has developed a great reputation for domain name registration but a poor one when it comes to website hosting services. 4 - Online reviews It's always a good idea to check and read online reviews before confirming your website hosting decision. Try to avoid companies that have universally bad reviews. Your website hosting provider doesn't need to five-star but the reviews should at least be decent. Avoid website hosting companies which have only a small handful of reviews. Those review may look all excellent but those reviews might also have been from hired freelancers. 5 - Shared and dedicated hosting options Try to pick a website hosting provide which offers a range of different hardware options which can also ensure that your site is securely backed-up without any hassle. If you want to see which website hosting service that I pick, If you want to see which website hosting service that I pick, GO HERE Lou Diamond Phillips, who played Ritchie Valens in the 1987 film "La Bamba," is proud of Mayor Ron Nirenberg's work in San Antonio. Phillips, who was raised in Corpus Christi, shared kudos for the Alamo City mayor on Saturday in response to a video Nirenberg posted, challenging his friends to perform a random act of kindness. Phillips accepted. READ MORE: The latest news and features about coronavirus in San Antonio "On it, My friend," he replied. "Proud of how you serve San Antonio. Keep fighting the good fight." About a year ago, Phillips met up with Nirenberg and his wife, Erika Prosper, at a special screening of the Ritchie Valens biopic at the Tobin Center. Phillips said he was proud of the couple then too. "So proud of how these two continue to serve the community," he said in March 2019 on Twitter. "Honored to be their friend." A year later, Nirenberg is connecting with friends virtually. He posted the video in response to Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner's challenge to help out during the coronavirus pandemic. Nirenberg thanked those who donated to his birthday fundraiser to raise money for the San Antonio Food Bank. He kept the goodwill chain going by challenging District 5 Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales and El Paso Mayor Dee Margo. It's unclear how Phillips is planning on upholding his part of the challenge, but he has been active on Twitter, interacting with fans of "Prodigal Son," a Fox show he's now starring in. Madalyn Mendoza covers news and puro pop culture for MySA.com | mmendoza@mysa.com | @maddyskye PORTAPIQUE, Nova Scotia -- A gunman who at one point masqueraded as a policeman killed at least 16 people in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia during a 12-hour rampage, authorities said on Sunday, in what was the countrys worst modern-era mass shooting. Among the victims of the shooting spree that spread across part of the Atlantic Canadian province was RCMP officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force with two children. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who worked as a denturist, appeared at one stage to have been wearing part of a police uniform. He had also painstakingly disguised his car to look like a police cruiser. Police added they had ended the threat posed by Wortman, who was dead, but would not confirm a report by the CTV network that the RCMP had shot him. Wortman shot people in several locations in Nova Scotia, the RCMP told a briefing. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp the police knew of at least 16 victims, besides the shooter. She added there was no indication at this time that the killings were terrorism-related. Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) monitor the TransCanada Highway while searching for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, near Fort Lawrence, Nova Scotia, Canada April 19, 2020. Photo: Reuters Police said there was no apparent link between Wortman and at least some of his victims. They said they had no idea what his motivation might have been. Today is a devastating day for Nova Scotia, and it will remain etched in the minds for many years to come, said Lee Bergerman, commanding officer of the RCMP in Nova Scotia. The death toll exceeded that of a Montreal massacre in 1989 when a gunman killed 15 women. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has tighter gun control laws than the United States. Nova Scotia, like the rest of Canada, is under a stay-at-home order because of the coronavirus pandemic. Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) members pack up after the search for Gabriel Wortman in Great Village, Nova Scotia, Canada April 19, 2020. Photo: Reuters Police discovered the killings late on Saturday after multiple reports of shots at a house in the small coastal town of Portapique, about 130 kilometers north of the provincial capital, Halifax. When police arrived on the scene, members located several casualties inside and outside of the home, said Chris Leather, the Nova Scotia RCMPs criminal operations officer. Several buildings in the town were ablaze and police exchanged gunfire at one point with Wortman. Probes subsequently disclosed he had also killed people in several other locations. Were not fully aware of what [the] total might be, said Leather. At one point on Saturday evening, Wortman appears to have been wearing - if not all - then a portion of a police uniform, Leather said. But he did not specify whether the suspect had been disguised as an officer when the killings occurred. The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, Leather said. A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer returns a dog to an individual since the road is shut down after a manhunt for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, in Portapique, Nova Scotia, Canada April 19, 2020. Photo: Reuters 'We heard gunshots' According to the websites of the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia and the provinces Better Business Bureau, Wortman operated a denture clinic in Dartmouth, close to Halifax. In response to a question, Leather said police would look at a possible link to the coronavirus outbreak, which has forced the closure of non-essential businesses. A local resident said she had come across two burning police vehicles while out driving on Sunday. There was one officer we could see on scene and then all of a sudden, he went running toward one of the burning vehicles, Darcy Sack told the CBC. We heard gunshots, she added. Television footage from Portapique showed two burned-out vehicles on a road. A Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) SUV pulls up to the end of Portapique Beach Road while an officer speaks with a man after the police finished their search for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, in Portapique, Nova Scotia, Canada April 19, 2020. Photo: Reuters Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil decried what he called senseless act of violence. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would help Nova Scotians as they heal from this tragedy. The killings do not represent the largest act of murder in the countrys history, given that 268 Canadians were among the 329 people who died in 1985 when a bomb brought down an Air India jet over the Atlantic. In new court filings published Monday, and seen by ITV, Meghans lawyers also say that Associated Newspapers, in its defense documents, does not accurately portray the communications between the couple and Thomas Markle in the days before the wedding. The lawyers say Harry and Meghans attempts to reach out to her father largely went ignored. Vatican City, April 20 : Pope Francis said the process of exiting the coronavirus pandemic was a chance to eliminate inequalities and the "virus" of selfishness. On Sunday, the Pope held a mass without an audience at the Vatican City on the occasion of Mercy Sunday in the Christian calendar, reports Efe news. "Now, as we start to think about a slow and arduous recovery from the pandemic, we risk this danger: forgetting what we leave being. Selfish indifference is a worse crisis than the pandemic," the pontiff said. He said that the virus of egoism spread through society when individuals assumed that only their lives, and not those of others, were going well. "We are all fragile, equal and valuable. Let what is happening shake us inside. It is time to eliminate inequalities, to repair the injustice that undermines the health of humanity." He said the earlier Christian communities "lived united and had everything in common: they sold possessions and goods and distributed them between everyone, depending on their needs". "It's not ideology, it's Christianity." He lamented that modern society reassembled the opposite of that notion, with some people advancing and others being left behind. Francis said people would start planning for tomorrow's world. "Let's not think only in our own interest, in personal interests. Let's take advantage of this as an opportunity to prepare a tomorrow for everyone." Sunday's mass took place without a congregation due to the restrictions on gatherings in place for during the coronavirus pandemic. Asymptomatic patients who have tested positive for coronavirus in the national capital will be kept in COVID care centres, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Monday. The number of coronavirus cases in the national capital till Sunday stood at 2,003, including 45 deaths. Many cases in Delhi are coming up where people are not showing symptoms but have tested positive for infection. "We have three levels of facilities -- COVID care centre, dedicated COVID health centre and dedicated COVID hospital. Accordingly, we will admit them in different facilities. If a patient is asymptomatic, then they will be admitted in a COVID care centre, Jain told reporters. He also said that after the trail run, coronavirus tests using rapid antibody test kits have begun in some of the containment zones across the city as per the central government protocols. Till Sunday, the number of containment zones in Delhi stood at 78. Recently, 31 members of an extended family, including children, living in an area, marked as a containment zone in Jahangirpuri here, had tested positive for COVID-19. However, all of them were found asymptomatic. The Centre had recently classified COVID-related health facilities into three categories -- COVID care centre, dedicated COVID health centre and dedicated COVID hospital. COVID care centres are only for cases that have been clinically assigned as mild or very mild or as suspect cases. These centres can be makeshift facilities and can be set up in hostels, hotels, schools, stadiums, lodges, among other places, both public and private. If the need be, existing quarantine facilities can also be converted into COVID care centres, according to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) outlined by the Union government recently. Functional hospitals like community health centres (CHCs), which can handle regular non-COVID cases should be designated as COVID care centres as a last resort. This is important as essential non-COVID medical services for pregnant women and newborns are to be maintained, it said. Every COVID care centre must also have a dedicated basic life support ambulance (BLSA) equipped with sufficient oxygen support round-the-clock for ensuring safe transport of a case to dedicated higher facilities if the symptoms progress from mild to moderate or severe, the SOPs said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 24-year-old woman has become the eighth person charged over her alleged role in a Sydney drug ring linked to the seizure of nearly $130 million worth of cocaine. Police said the woman was arrested at a Warwick Farm home in western Sydney on April 16 and charged with taking part in the supply of a large quantity of drugs. Seven other people are before the courts after a string of arrests last week and in March, and the seizure of more than 420kg of cocaine worth nearly $130 million. The woman is due to appear in the Liverpool Local Court on Monday. Sydney Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 05:44:03|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SARAJEVO, April 19 (Xinhua) -- A batch of medical protection equipment donated by the Chinese city of Shanghai to the city of Sarajevo has arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), state-own media Fena reported on Sunday. According to Fena, the equipment that arrived on Saturday evening included six respirators and 420,000 pieces of various medical and protective equipment for BiH medical workers. Some of the equipment was purchased from China by a local company to donate to medical facilities in BiH, but no details as to the specific amount was given. Johann Sattler, European Union (EU) ambassador and special representative in BiH; and Sefik Dzaferovic, chairman of the BiH Presidency, welcomed on Saturday evening the plane from Shanghai which brought over medical equipment. The EU financed the transportation of the equipment from China to ensure its delivery in the shortest possible time and help respond to the urgent needs of health institutions across the country. "I am very happy that the European Union was able to contribute to the fight against the common enemy -- the coronavirus -- and financed the costs of the flight transporting equipment for entire BiH," Sattler noted. So far, BiH has recorded a total of 1,260 confirmed cases, with 49 deaths and 347 recoveries. Enditem COVID-19 has taken over our world today, and authorities both in our nation and across the world are trying their best to contain the spreading of the novel coronavirus. Reuters While were lucky being locked down in a city where we are not very far away from getting medical attention in case something went wrong, however, not everyones that lucky. Sometimes, people are living in secluded locations that dont have access to modern healthcare and necessary equipment or personnel to take care of patients there. For bringing such patients in remote areas, Indian Navy has developed a smart evacuation pod. ANI Reported first by PTI, the pod has been indigenously designed by the Indian navy. Called the Air Evacuation Pod or AEP. it is essentially a sealed glass capsule that can accommodate one patient at a time and prevent not contracting anybody else in transit. Since the patient isnt really out of the capsule, neither are the pilots or co-passengers in danger of getting infected nor the need to disinfect the aircraft arises, thus cutting costs as well as saving time for conducting more evacs. The AEP is designed under the guidance of Principal Medical Officer of the naval air station INS Garuda while consulting with naval hospital INHS Sanjivani and Southern Naval Command headquarters. ANI The whole contraption is made with the help of aluminium, nitrile rubber and perspex. The entire unit weighs just 32 kilograms costs just Rs 50,000 -- whereas a similar imported unit costs Rs 59 lakhs, according to the spokesperson in conversation with PTI. The spokesperson further stated, "Trials of patients inside AEP were undertaken onboard Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and Dornier aircraft of Indian Navy at Southern Naval Command and successfully completed on April 8. Twelve AEPs are planned for distribution across Southern, Western, Eastern and Andaman and NicobarNaval commands." : The total number of COVID-19 infections breached the 400 mark in Karnataka, with 18 cases being confirmed on Monday even as the state cabinet decided to continue the lockdown measures till May 3 without any relaxation. Cumulatively 408 coronavirus have been confirmed in the state, which includes 16 deaths and 12 discharges, the health department said in a bulletin. Of the 280 active cases, 278 patients (including a pregnant woman) are in isolation at designated hospitals and are stable, while two are in Intensive Care Units. Minister S Suresh Kumar, spokesperson for COVID-19 in Karnataka, told reporters that the government planned to identify cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) and Influenza like Illness (ILI) in all districts to control the fatality rate. He said action was being taken against hospitals that are not reporting about such vulnerable cases. "Out of 16 deaths that have occurred in the state, 80 per cent are those aged above 60 years, 11 of them are with SARI history. The minister also appealed to those developing any symptoms to immediately go to designated hospitals and said most of the deaths had occurred as people approached hospitals at a very late stage. He also said the number of SARI cases tested positive as of date was 29 and ILI, 2. Kumar said all 18 cases reported on Monday, nine of them men and an equal number of women, were contacts of patients who had already tested positive. Contact tracing has been initiated and was in progress for all the cases, the health department said. Nine out of total of 408 cases detected and confirmed in Karnataka so far are transit passengers of Kerala. Bengaluru urban tops the state with 89 cases, followed by Mysuru 84 and Belagavi 42. Of the total of 112 patients discharged so far, the maximum of 45 was from Bengaluru, while Mysuru accounted for 24 and 11 were fromfrom Dakshina Kannada, the bulletin said. Among the deceased, four are from Bengaluru urban, three from Kalaburagi, two each from Chikkaballapura and Vijayapura, and one each from Belagavi, Bagalkote, Gadag, Dakshina Kannada and Tumakuru The Minister said as on date there are 10 COVID free districts -- Chamarajanagara, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Haveri, Kolar, Koppal, Raichur, Ramanagara, Shivamogga and Yadgir. He said not a single positive case was reported from Kodagu in the last 32 days and from Chitradurge in the last 26 days. Davangere had not reported any positive case in the last 25 days and Udupi in 22 days, he said. The minister said a total of 23,460 samples had been tested so far, of which 2,093 were on Monday alone. So far 19,497 samples had reported negative, of which 1,835 were on Monday alone. Sharing details about Nanjanagudu in Mysuru district, which has one of the larger clusters in the state, Kumar said 2,098 people were quarantined, of whom 1,960 were tested. Sixty nine among them tested positive, 1,891 were negative and results of 138 others are awaited, he said. Of the total number tested, 1,483 were employees of Jubilant Pharma company and 477 were their family members Out of total 84 positive cases in Mysuru district, 69 were from the pharma company, 10 were linked with the Tablighi Jamaat and the others were those who returned from abroad. On Tablighi Jamaat related cases in the state, Kumar said direct infections after returning from Delhi was 20, while 103 of their contacts tested positive. Meanwhile, the Karnataka cabinet on Monday decided to continue the COVID-19 lockdown measures currently in force in the state till May 3 without any relaxation. However, leaving a window open, it authorised Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and the COVID-19 Task Force to meet in three or four days to review and take further decision about any relaxation, the minister told reporters here. The Cabinet also decided to promulgate an ordinance, giving it special powers to control the spread of COVID-19, including providing protection to frontline health workers and making non- cooperation with government a punishable offence. The government did this after going through similar ordinances of the Kerala and Uttar Pradesh governments. Kumar said, as on date 19 containment zones have been identified in BBMP (Bengaluru civic body) area based on COVID-19 cases. Among them eight are in Bengaluru south, East 4, West 3, Rajarajeshwri Nagar and Bommanahalli one each and Mahadevapura 2. Containment measures will be strictly followed in these containment zones, the minister said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has published the 2019 provisional matriculation list of admitted candidates on its official website. The board also advised candidates who are yet to accept their offers of admission on the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) to do so or risk forfeiting the offers. According to the board, the list of admitted candidates in all the tertiary institutions in the country has been published on the JAMB website. For ease of checking, candidates can visit: www.jamb.gov.ng, proceed to the menu titled STUDENTS+, select the submenu CHECK MATRICULATION LIST 2019 option and search for their names by entering their 10-digit JAMB Registration Number. In its weekly bulletin on Monday, the spokesperson of the board, Fabian Benjamin, said a large number of candidates have been offered provisional admission but are yet to accept the admission. A list containing their names is also on display on the boards website and such candidates are to immediately accept such offers by using the CAPS Mobile App downloaded from the Google Play Store. With the App successfully installed and accessed on their devices, candidates do not need to visit any CBT centre or cyber cafe as doing so would be a violation of the work-from-home/stay-at-home order in place in most parts of the country. The board said failure to accept such offers of admission on the CAPS platform would result in the forfeiture of such admissions. Candidates are also to note that acceptance of admission on any website other than CAPS is not a valid acceptance as any admission not processed and accepted through CAPS is not known to JAMB. Alternatively, affected candidates who are not sure of their 2019 admission status can check for such from their phones by sending STATUS 2019 to 55019. However, in the event of any challenges, candidates are to lodge their complaints immediately by using the online ticketing platform at support.jamb.gov.ng under 2019 Admission List Issue, he said. He said only those who had accepted their offers of admissions on CAPS and whose names appear on the list are recognised as bonafide students of the various institutions. By implication, if a candidates name is not on this published list which will be sent to all tertiary institutions, NYSC and other stakeholders, his/her application for mobilisation in the NYSC scheme, employment, among others, would be declined, the exam body said. Exam malpractices The board also released a list of 195 candidates caught perpetrating examination malpractices during the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). The board said it was able to establish prima facie cases of examination misconduct against the listed candidates. Some of the infractions established against the candidates included connivance to cheat, an examination by proxy, unruly behaviour, smuggled mobile phone into the exam hall, attempt to cheat, smuggled electronic device into the examination hall, double registration among others. It also showed that nine Computer Based Test (CBT) centres in Abia, Enugu, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos Nassarawa, Ogun, Oyo and Kano states were delisted based on technical deficiency and alleged connivance with candidates to cheat. According to the bulletin, this years UTME had the highest number of registered candidates in the history of the board since its establishment in 1978. Over 1.9 million candidates took the 2020 UTME held between March 14 and April 4 across the nation. An official of the Iranian Agriculture Ministry on Monday said a huge new wave of locusts is expected to invade the southern provinces of Iran in two weeks. In late February and early March massive swarms of desert locusts (Schistocerca gregaria) invaded the southern regions of Iran. The locusts that destroy all crops along their way have been wreaking havoc in various African countries including Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda in the past few weeks. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) desert locusts are a serious threat to food safety in these countries. FAO has requested nearly $140 million dollars to combat the locust threat across the affected areas. In view of the impending arrival of locust swarms in Iran FAO has increased its Emergency Technical Cooperation project (TCP) to help battle the swarms of locusts and will grant Iran a total of $500,000 for urgent action to control desert locust infestation. The plan will help enhance the country's technical capacity for early warning, monitoring and management of the destructive pest. Keith Cressman, the executive secretary of FAO Commission for Controlling the Desert Locust in Southwest Asia (SWAC), has said that widespread rains over the last couple of months in East Africa and Southwest Asia, including southern Iran, provided a conducive environment for the desert locusts to breed. FAO has implemented similar projects in Pakistan, Yemen and East African nations, all aimed at supporting its member states in managing the threat posed by the desert locust, he was quoted on Sunday by Financial Tribune as saying. The Iranian government has so far allocated 250 billion rials (nearly $6 million) to combat the locust threat in one million hectares of agricultural land, particularly in the south of the country where the worst affected regions lie. According to Mohammad-Reza Dargahi, Chief of the Plant Preservation Organization of the Ministry of Agriculture, an additional 300 billion ($6.12 million) is to be allocated to combat the locust. The pest has been confronted chemically using different methods from land and air. The provinces of Sistan-Baluchestan, Hormozgan, Bushehr, Fars, Khuzestan and southern Kerman have been so far infected, Mehr News Agency reported him as saying. In April 2019 locusts destroyed crops in at least 200,000 hectares of Iran's agricultural lands. The worst ever was in 1961 when locusts infected and damaged crops in about 2.5 million hectares of land. Five more policemen posted at Chandni Mahal police station of central Delhi were tested positive for the novel coronavirus, police said on Monday. In total, eight policemen from the police station have tested positive for COVID-19, they said. "On Sunday late night, we received test reports of the five policemen. They have been hospitalised today," a senior officer said. Earlier, three more personnel of the police station tested positive for the virus. A total of 80 police personnel had undergone test. Four of the eight personnel are being treated at Max Hospital in Saket and the rest at RML Hospital, the senior police officer said. However, most of the positive patients are asymptomatic, he said. Around 35 police personnel who came in contact with the COVID-19 positive men have been quarantined at Chandni Mahal police station, he added. The SHO of Chandni Mahal, who came in contact with the policemen, has tested negative for the infection. However, he will undergo further tests as per medical procedure, he said. As a part of the force is under quarantine, the Chandni Mahal police station is in the process of mobilising man power from other police stations of the district, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A gunman who dressed as a policeman killed at least 16 people in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia during a 12-hour rampage in what was the countrys worst modern-era mass shooting, media reports said. The gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who worked as a denturist, had also disguised his car to look like a police cruiser, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were quoted as saying in a Reuters report. The rampage ended in a car chase, which saw the attacker dead, reported BBC. Residents in the rural town of Portapique had been advised to lock themselves indoors after the attack began on Saturday. The gunman shot people in several locations across Nova Scotia which meant authorities were still trying to establish the final death toll, police said on Sunday, warning that that there may be more victims. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described it as "a terrible situation", the BBC report said. LOVE will be in the air at this weekends Ballyhoura Walking Festival. A new singles walk takes place on Saturday, April 29 but men have been a tad sedentary in signing up. Currently there are five females for every one male so men need to get a move on or possibly miss meeting the love of their lives. It is a 7km walk along the Keale river which goes onto Ballyorgan and includes a visit to two pubs. Ballyhoura Development officer, Amanda Slattery said the idea is to bring single people together in a fun and relaxed way. While also bringing people on a lovely walk by the Keale river and allowing them to experience the flora, fauna and stunning views along the way, said Amanda. Leader of the walk, Mike Noonan, from Ballyhoura Beo, added that they hope people will support the event, as it is something different and a unique way to meet like-minded new people. Men are in short supply for this, and we encourage everyone not to be shy and come out and bring a friend for a great fun afternoon! said Mike. There has been an excellent sign-up from a broad age range but a few more men would be most welcome. If you are single and looking to mingle, in a fun and relaxed environment, then call 063 91300 or email reception@ballyhoura.org, said Mike. The singles walk starts with pre-registration at 2pm on Saturday, April 29, then a bus from the Ballyhoura office in Kilfinane, a drink in Dalys pub at the start, then the walk by the River Keale and a drink and refreshments in Nuala Mees pub in Ballyorgan. It is just one of a range of walks from Friday, April 28 to Bank Holiday Monday, May 1. Now in its 24th year, the festival has guides from the Ballyhoura Bears Walking Club, Ballyhoura Beo and local communities, leading a packed programme for all abilities from the hardy hiker to gentle ramblers enjoying the company of local experts in the fields of heritage, archaeology, history, flora and fauna. This year, lots of new walks and events have been added to ensure something for everyone. These include a film screening of Journey to the Centre of the Earth in the Church of Ireland Kilfinane; a trad session; moon lit walk; Slieve Felim walk; nature walk and scavenger hunt; introduction to Geocaching; mindfulness walk on the Canon Sheehan Loop and a mystical walk at Lough Gur, to name but a few. A very special charity walk will take place to Galtymore on April 29, in aid of the Carebright Dementia Hub the first of its kind in Ireland. Throughout the festival, there are walks graded A very experienced hill climbers; B experienced walkers able for a moderate pace and C - special interest suitable for families. They take in all areas of Ballyhoura country. These are true gems, and we would love to see everyone get up and active this May Bank Holiday weekend. The festival is set to be the biggest and brightest one yet, with a stellar line-up of events taking place in the shadows of the Ballyhoura mountains. said Mike. As well as Limerick, visitors are travelling from all over Munster and abroad. For more information, visit www.visitballyhoura.com and click on the festival link, which brings you through each days line-up or call 063 91300 or email reception@ballyhoura.org 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 20 April 2020 Announcement no. 16-2020 North Media A/S has signed a deal to sell North Media Aviser A/S to Jysk Fynske Medier. Closing is expected on 30 April 2020 with takeover as per 1 May 2020. North Media Aviser is the publisher of Helsingr Dagblad, Lokalavisen Nordsjlland, eight local newspapers in the Greater Copenhagen area, and the news site kbhLIV.dk as well as other media. With the divestment, the North Media Group will cease to publish newspapers. Newspaper publishing has been a core activity at North Media A/S since 1978, but the newspaper publishing market is facing challenges, and we believe that market consolidation is a good solution. We are therefore pleased to sell our newspapers to Jysk Fynske Medier, who is a strong industrial player with the size and capacity to ensure the continued operation of the newspapers said Kare Wigh, Group Executive Director & CFO. The takeover includes all employees of Hovedstadens Mediehus, Helsingr Dagblad, and Lokalavisen Nordsjlland. In 2019, North Media Aviser generated revenue of DKK 93.8 million and an operating loss (EBIT) before special items of DKK 5.6 million. At the beginning of 2020, North Media Aviser was expected to generate revenue of DKK 87-91 million and an operating loss before special items in the DKK 8-12 million range for 2020. However, in connection with the Corona pandemic the guidance was suspended as per company announcement no. 12-2020 of 18 March 2020. Taken separately, the divestment of North Media Aviser will improve the 2020 profit (EBIT) of North Media A/S by some DKK 15 million relative to the guidance announced at the beginning of the year. The agreement with Jysk Fynske Medier is final and unconditional, and the transfer of North Media Aviser A/S to Jysk Fynske Medier is expected to be carried out as a share transaction with closing at 30 April 2020 and takeover as per 1 May 2020. Changes to the Executive Board of North Media As a result of the divestment, Lasse Wulff Hansen will step down as CEO of North Media Aviser as of 30 April 2020 but continues his position in North Media as Group Executive in charge of business development at North Media. Story continues Following these changes, the Executive Board of North Media will consist of Kare Staus Wigh, Group Executive Director & CFO, Lasse Ingemann Brodt, CEO of FK Distribution, Henrik Lvig Jensen, CEO of North Media Online, Jannik Bray Christensen, CEO of BEKEY, and Lasse Wulff Hansen, Group Executive in charge of business development. The North Media Groups strategy remains unchanged Following the divestment, the activities of the North Media Group will consist of three business areas: FK Distribution distributes advertising material to consumer letter boxes and mail boxes. FK Distribution is Denmarks leading door-to-door distributor of retail information. North Media Online runs portals for rental housing, jobs and loans via the platforms BoligPortal, Ofir and 50%-owned LeadSupply. BoligPortal.dk is Denmarks leading rental housing portal. BEKEY provides distribution companies, home carers and others with access to, e.g., locked stairways. BEKEY is Denmarks leading provider of cloud-based key solutions and access control systems. North Media remains strategically focused on activities where we can act as a liaison between businesses and consumers and thereby deliver customers to our customers. All the Groups business areas invest in solutions optimisation, digitalisation and innovation on a continuing basis. The interim report for Q1 2020 to be released on 7 May 2020 is expected to include the Groups guidance for full-year 2020. For further information, please contact: Kare Wigh, Group Executive Director & CFO, tel. +45 25 65 21 45 This document is an unofficial translation of the Danish original. In the event of any inconsistencies, the Danish version shall apply. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 05:34:27|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Saudi Health Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah attends the G20 health ministers virtual meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on April 19, 2020. Health ministers of the Group 20 (G20) reviewed on Sunday the importance of utilizing digital solutions in current and future pandemics. During a virtual meeting, the officials discussed further coordinate efforts in combating COVID-19 and the role of digital solutions, a statement by the G20 Saudi Presidency highlighted. (G20 Saudi Arabia/Handout via Xinhua) RIYADH, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Health ministers of the Group 20 (G20) reviewed on Sunday the importance of utilizing digital solutions in current and future pandemics. During a virtual meeting, the officials discussed further coordinate efforts in combating COVID-19 and the role of digital solutions, a statement by the G20 Saudi Presidency highlighted. The ministers stressed that people's health and well-being are at the heart of all decisions taken to protect lives and alleviate the socio-economic impacts resulting from the virus. They also shared experiences and preventative measures to contain the pandemic. The officials recognized that the virus revealed the systemic weaknesses in health systems, and the vulnerabilities in the global community's ability to prevent and respond to pandemic threats. G20 health ministers will take further actions that may be required to contain the pandemic and will reconvene again as necessary, the statement added. By Online Desk Over 2.5 million people have been confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus worldwide, with 80 per cent of cases in Europe and the United States. While in India, cases breached the 1800-mark, according to the figures released by the health ministry on Tuesday evening. There are 15,122 active COVID-19 cases in the country, 603 people have died of the disease while 3,259 have recovered. Following complaints by the Rajasthan government over faulty rapid antibody test kits showing inaccurate results, the ICMR on Tuesday advised the states to not use the test kits for the next two days. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra govt has cancelled the lockdown relaxation given earlier from April 20. Up north, the Noida border with Delhi has been completely sealed a preventive measure against the spread of COVID-19, the DM of Gautam Budh Nagar announced. As a silver lining amidst the tumultuous times, Oxford University will begin a human trial of a potential COVID-19 candidate vaccine from Thursday. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) also pitched for the Oxford vaccine, saying 'ChAdOX1' is the frontrunner in the race to take on the deadly COVID-19 virus. Wuhan, where the coronavirus first emerged in December last year and spread to the world like wildfire, has been classified as low-risk area. Beijing/Wuhan: China has classified the coronavirus epicentre Wuhan as a low-risk area, days after it revised the city's death toll by 50 percent, even as 16 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the country, health officials said on Sunday. According to the risk criteria defined in a guideline issued by China's State Council, cities, counties and districts with no newly confirmed cases in the last 14 days are categorised as low-risk areas. Those with fewer than 50 cases or those with over 50 but without a concentrated outbreak are classified as mid-risk areas, and those with over 50 cases as well as a concentrated outbreak are classified as high-risk areas. China's National Health Commission (NHC) said on Sunday that 16 new confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported in the country on Saturday, with nine imported cases and seven local transmissions. The death toll remained at 4,632 as no new fatalities were reported on Saturday, it said. The overall confirmed cases in China had reached 82,735 by Saturday, including 1,041 patients who were still being treated, 77,062 people who were discharged after recovery, and 4,632 people who died of the disease. The NHC said the total number of imported cases climbed to 1,575. Another 44 new asymptomatic cases were reported on Saturday, the NHC said, adding that 999 asymptomatic cases, including 186 from abroad, were still under medical observation. Asymptomatic cases refer to people who are tested positive for the coronavirus but develop no symptoms such as fever, cough or sore throat. They are infectious and pose a risk of spreading to others. Wuhan, where the coronavirus first emerged in December last year and spread to the world like wildfire, has been classified as low-risk area, 12 days after lifting the lockdown over the city of 11 million people, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The Wuhan municipal authorities on Friday revised the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and casualties abruptly amid criticism from the US and several other countries for its alleged cover-up and under-reporting of the cases. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday denied any cover up and accused the US of attempting to divert public attention. "I want to emphasise that the revision of the data regarding infectious disease is an internationally accepted practice," Zhao Lijian told a media briefing, defending the sharply upward revision of figures. Follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak here He said in the early stage of the outbreak there were some late reports, omissions, and inaccurate information. "But there has never been any concealment, and we'll never allow any concealment," Zhao said. As of 16 April, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Wuhan was increased by 325 to 50,333 and the number of fatalities up by 1,290 to 3,869 and national death toll to 4,632 people. The low risk classification also followed as the virus cases and deaths abated in the city as per official notifications. While declaring Wuhan as a low-risk area China has strengthened nucleic acid testing to detect coronavirus for people leaving Wuhan. The test is required before people resume work, production or study elsewhere, it said. Those who are set to work as teachers, medical workers or service providers at public places after leaving Wuhan should all undergo nucleic acid testing before leaving, which is free of charge, noted the circular issued by a State Council inter-agency task force. Others leaving Wuhan are encouraged to take nucleic acid testing on a voluntary basis and pay testing fees, the report said. By the end of Friday, the central province of Hubei, which administers Wuhan, had 76 low-risk cities and counties and none with high risk or medium risk, Xinhua report said. Hubei with over 56 million population remained under lockdown along with Wuhan from January 23. On Friday, Hubei reported 33 asymptomatic cases but newly confirmed COVID-19 infections. I just realised that, since I filled my tank on my way back home five Saturdays ago from a funeral, my vehicle has not moved out of the house. My rack of clothes has also been intact and gathering dust, as I have not worn any of them for five weeks. Indeed my dress code in the house has been from pyjamas to shorts. When I shed my overnight pyjamas in the morning for a shower, I go into my shorts for the day. Heat Because of the heat, I have no need for a shirt with all the sweating. Indeed, throughout the day, I go bare-chested. Since I neither visit nor receive visitors because of the COVID -19 STAY AT HOME directive, I am able to do free range walking about at home in my shorts only. Punishing Routine Chatting with a friend, he confessed that, bad as the pandemic is, probably an unintended positive consequence has been that, for the first time in his working life, he has had proper rest. The usual excuse of I am busy. I dont have time has evaporated! He stated that the rat race of daily punishing schedules of one meeting after the other has suddenly stopped. To beat the traffic build up, he has to leave home around 5.30 am daily. After work at 5pm, in order not to spend over two hours in traffic, he leaves the office late to get home around 8pm. Weekends We continued our chat saying the weekends are no better. Sometimes weekend routines are more punishing than weekdays. In some cases, we travel outside Accra for funerals on Fridays and return on Sunday evenings. Indeed, some return on Monday morning to start a new week already tired. On the few occasions when there are no weekend funerals, weddings, naming ceremonies and other social activities quickly fill in the gap. Lesson With the lock down, we have suddenly realised that, we do not have to drive daily to a particular location in the centre of town we call office to work. Indeed, work can in some cases, be done online from home. I am not oblivious of the problems of working online from home though. So, the question is how come all these years we have wasted as much as four hours daily in traffic going to the office and back home late at night. A sadder aspect is the effect our routine has on our little children who join the parents rat race in their cars to school and back at night when the parents close. Working from home In some countries, employees are encouraged to work from home. Some drive to the office only three days a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. So, how come we have maintained the Monday to Friday 8am 5pm routine bequeathed us at independence over sixty years ago? Vehicles When I spoke about my vehicle not having been driven for five weeks, we again went into a discussion on the number of vehicles one needs. Like me, there are two vehicles in his house for Madam and him. Apart from going to market on Saturdays, my wifes car has virtually been on a holiday by courtesy of the lock down. In some homes however, there are as many as six top of the range high-powered vehicles. Why? Silver lining We also discussed what has been described by a journalist as a silver lining of COVID-19 in Zimbabwe. For many African countries, some top officials fly out regularly to European hospitals while allowing hospitals in their countries to rot. The example is given of a hospital in Zimbabwe which was allowed to degenerate for five years. Somehow, with the arrival of the pandemic, the hospital has been rehabilitated and bounced back to life. Oversea treatment We further hoped that, the routine of flying out regularly ostensibly for medical checks would be a thing of the past once the pandemic is over. Any big man who manages not to die at home during the period has no moral right flying out of the country after the coronavirus for any check up! They must rather spend the money to improve our medical infrastructure and conditions for our gallant health practitioners who put their lives on the line so we may live. Conclusion COVID-19 has been described as a leveler with no respect for status killing many all over the world. Among others, it has exposed the vanity in most of the material things we crave and yearn for. Big cars and buildings, private jets and huge egos have been reduced to nothing. It is our health workers who have risked their lives to save all of us, rich or poor. Indiscipline Unfortunately, some Ghanaians have displayed gross indiscipline by violating the basic protocols of hygiene, social distancing and the Stay At Home order. We concluded that, hopefully, life must change for the better with us becoming more human and humane after COVID-19. After all, in the heat of the pandemic, all I needed was FROM PYJAMAS TO SHORTS! Source: Brig Gen Dan Frimpong (Rtd) 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. Featured Video After the extension of the national lockdown to May 3, school books publishers in the state are staring at big loses as the peak season for textbook and study material publication is hit. With the lockdown in place, publishers have not been able to print and distribute textbooks, notebooks and other reference material thus losing out on the biggest chunk of their yearly business. Many publishers have requested the government to consider allowing them to operate as an essential service. Narendra Nandu, president, Bombay Booksellers and Publishers Association said, We are all staring at big losses as our peak business happens during March-May. During this time, we print textbooks, reference material and notebooks for the new academic year that begins in June. With the lockdown however, there s nothing we can do. This is going to be a big loss for the entire fraternity. We are going to formally request the government to come up with some solution. He added that a medium publisher is likely to lose nearly 50 lakh due to this. Publishers said that with online publishers allowed to operate, print publications are getting an unfair treatment . Students will resort to online resources if books are not printed. The government is also planning to allow the delivery of non essentials on e commerce websites. This would completely kill our business, said a publisher. Deepak Sheth, director, Sheth Publishers said that even if the government permits printing, all the other permissions need to be taken care of. Our staff wont be able to come if transport is not available. Hence, all these things need to be considered before taking any decision, he added. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON TOKYOJapan boosted its new economic stimulus package on Monday to a record $1.1 trillion to expand cash payouts to its citizens, as the fallout from the CCP virus pandemic threatens to push the worlds third-largest economy deeper into recession. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe formally decided the new stimulus less than two weeks after his cabinet approved an earlier plan to spend 108.2 trillion yen ($1 trillion), which had detailed payouts of 300,000 yen to households with sharp drops in income. Abe has caved into pressure from within his own ruling bloc to boost the help with a payment of 100,000 yen for every citizen, instead of 300,000 yen for a limited number of households, analysts say, casting doubt about his leadership amid falling support. The new amount triples the cost from what the government had originally planned to 12 trillion yen. I understand the 100,000 yen payout scheme was decided with the aim of encouraging every citizen to help with each other to overcome this crisis as one, Finance Minister Taro Aso said. The finance ministry will do the utmost to have this enacted quickly so that the payouts and other support will be delivered to the people as early as possible. Expansion of the scheme may support private consumption that accounts for more than half of the economy, some analysts said, though many others believe most of the payouts would end up in savings rather than spending to shore up the economy. Recipients of the payouts include the rich and the people whose incomes are not suffering, so savings will also rise, said Ryutaro Kono, chef economist at BNP Paribas Securities. Even considering more people will suffer economic pain this time than during the 2009 financial crisis, the proportion of the payouts that will be spent is estimated at about 40%. As such, it would push up GDP only by 0.3 percentage points. The upsized package will total 117.1 trillion yen ($1.086 trillion), with fiscal measures making up less than half of it, the Ministry of Finance said. To help fund the stimulus spending, the government compiled a record supplementary budget worth 25.7 trillion yen for the fiscal year from April 1, to be funded entirely by additional bond issuance, the ministry said. It compared with an initial extra budget worth 16.8 trillion yen. Reuters was the first to report the stimulus budget and bond issuance plans ahead of the official announcement. Monetary, Fiscal Policy Mix While the government boosts fiscal stimulus, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) has also joined other central banks to roll out stimulus to stave off the risk of a global recession. The BOJ eased monetary policy last month by pledging to boost risky asset purchases and create a new loan scheme to pump more money into firms hit by slumping sales. The central bank will discuss further steps to ease corporate funding strains at this months rate review as the impact hits profits. The government on the other hand will raise the market issuance of government bonds by 5.8 trillion yen to 152.8 trillion yen in the fiscal year to March 2021. The extra borrowing will add to the industrial worlds heaviest public debt burden, which is more than twice the size of Japans $5 trillion economy. It is rare for the government to compile an extra budget at the start of a new fiscal year, and it is even rarer to revise a budget draft that has been approved by the cabinet after coordinating closely with the ruling coalition. Last week, the prime minister, who has been criticised by some over his handling of the pandemic, apologised for confusion over a plan to start distributing Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus relief payments next month. The government is expected to submit the extra budget to parliament early next week, with the aim of gaining approval by the Golden Week holidays early May. More than 200 people have died from the virus in Japan, which has reported more than 11,000 infections, of which more than a quarter are in Tokyo. By Takaya Yamaguchi and Tetsushi Kajimoto Epoch Times staff contributed to this report. About 13 cattle have strangely died while others are on the verge in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region. The animals were on Sunday morning found dead and others were left struggling in a village in Winkogo in the Talensi district without any signs or symptoms. Mr. Jacob Abeka, a farmer in an interview with ModernGhana News at Winkogo said, he has never witnessed such happening throughout his seven years of dry-season farming in the area and hence, believed the cattle might have died after grazing on wild red guinea-corn. He said last week one of his cattle died as a result of grazing the "wild red Guinea corn plant". The Talensi District Veterinary Officer, Robert Bayuo, said, the cause of the animals death is a strange indicating that the team is yet to establish the cause of the death however samples has been obtained from the dead animals for a laboratory test. He added that researchers at the department of agriculture will soon come out with the test results for the next step. Mr. Bayou cautioned residents or cattle owners to stay away and avoid touching the dead animals in order to avoid any outbreak. Mr. Bayuo, tasked his officers on the ground to immediately trace and treat any animals showing any abnormal signs of the disease in the district. The Assemblymember for Winkogo Electoral Area, Edward Azuah Akolgo, urged residents to abide by the advice given to them by the veterinary officer. Although its very painful to lose your property which is like your lifetime savings your lives are even far more important, he stated. Meanwhile, all the dead animals have since been buried by officials of the Talensi District and Officers of the Ministry of Agriculture in the District Assembly to avoid any infection. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday announced that there will be no relaxation in the coronavirus lockdown from Monday as the number of cases continues to rise in the national capital, adding the state government will review its decision after a week. "As per the instructions of the Central government, some restrictions of the lockdown can be lifted from Monday, especially in areas that have not been severely impacted by coronavirus. We have to deliberate on which restrictions should be relaxed," the Chief Minister said while addressing the media. "As per the instructions of the Central government, some restrictions of the lockdown can be lifted from Monday, especially in areas that have not been severely impacted by coronavirus. We have to deliberate on which restrictions should be relaxed," the Chief Minister said while addressing the media. He said the Central government has also said that restrictions should not be relaxed in the hotspot areas or containment zones. "There are containment zones in all the 11 districts in Delhi. The Delhi government has done its assessment in consultation with various experts and departments. In the last few days, there has been a considerable rise in the number of COVID-19 positive cases in Delhi. We have also increased our testing capacity." He said the government has decided to not relax any restrictions in Delhi for now. "We will have discussions with experts and the concerned departments again after a week and will review our decision," he added. According to an order, issued by Delhi Chief Secretary Vijay Dev, the government will have a comprehensive assessment on lockdown on April 27. Speaking to media, Kejriwal said Delhi currently has the second-highest number of cases after Maharashtra. "On Saturday, we obtained reports on 736 tests, out of which 186 or approximately 25 per cent cases were tested positive. All the 186 COVID-19 positive cases that were reported on Saturday were asymptomatic -- they didn't know they had Coronavirus. This is more dangerous and worrying because these people were living their normal routine, and they must have infected more and more people in the meantime," he added. Kejriwal said he interacted with one of the patients, and it was found out that the person had been distributing food in a designated food centre of the Delhi government. "I have instructed that rapid testing of all the staff and the people who have visited the food centre be done. This means that COVID-19 has been spreading in Delhi." So far, Delhi has 77 containment zones that have been sealed to control the spread of the disease. "We did random testing in the containment zones, and it was observed that no cases were reported in the areas where containment protocol was strictly followed, but a surge in cases was observed where the protocol was not followed and people defied the norms of social distancing and lockdown." For instance, he said, in Jahangirpuri, 26 people were tested positive for COVID-19 because they did not observe the containment protocol. Kejriwal said that even though coronavirus is spreading in Delhi, the situation is under control, and there is no need to panic. "There are 1,893 COVID-19 cases in Delhi, out of which 26 are in ICU, and 6 are on ventilators. As many as 46 people have lost their lives due to COVID-19." He said if the lockdown had not been imposed, "we would have been on par with other nations where the numbers are quite high". "What if 3,000 people would require the ICUs and 2,500 people would require ventilators? We have observed a similar pattern in Italy, Spain and the US, where the ICUs, ventilators and the entire healthcare system were not sufficient in treating all the patients. Our country would be suffering from a similar fate if the lockdown had not been imposed." He asserted that even though Delhi accounts for 2 per cent of India's population, the cases account for 12 per cent of the total cases in the country. "It is because Delhi is the capital of the country and it has to fight the hardest battle against COVID-19. Maximum people who came from abroad landed in Delhi, and they brought COVID-19 with them. Delhi had to suffer the brunt of it, along with the Markaz (Nizamuddin) event that happened a few days back." However, no new cases from the Markaz have been reported in the last four days. In early February, in the minds of most of us, COVID-19 was still a China-specific problem. Yet, the strict lockdown imposed early in China generated rapidly unprecedented chaos in global supply chains. Julien Brun Managing partner CEL Consulting We realised how weak these global networks were, and how much every economy is dependent on Chinas manufacturing sector. Chinese supply of goods stopped abruptly or were significantly delayed. Available inventories dried up quickly and shortages began to happen all over the planet. Everybody outside of China was urging to find alternative production and/or transport capacity to serve customers orders. In a recent survey conducted by CEL Consulting at the end of March, 83 per cent of companies in the physical value chain (retailers, transport, traders, manufacturers) in Vietnam had suffered from supply issues over the past two months. Nearly half (47 per cent) had issues specifically with Chinese supplies and a large majority of what came missing were raw materials. Delays started to accumulate and even though some would eventually find a new supplier, planes slowly got forced to the ground and import/export flows were slowed down due to the lack of manpower to run operations on the floor. From the perspective of early April, things have drastically changed. The pandemic is affecting nearly every country regardless of the level of development. Nearly one million people are officially infected, with almost 100,000 new cases every day. Over three billion people are undergoing a lockdown or social distancing, and consumption has almost frozen in the Europe and the United States, or significantly dropped in most markets. In Vietnam, the demand clearly surged in some categories, such as packaged food, dairy, and in personal care. Shop baskets got significantly more full as people started to visit markets and stores less frequently. This surge in demand on specific items looked like more of a just in case purchase decision, and not a healthy increase of consumption. It is obvious that some lucky companies in specific sub-sectors are still trying to cope with much bigger orders than what they can deliver. But this rush on basic consumer commodities toilet paper being a global symbol now had skewed our perception. Most companies in other sectors were initially in a wait-and-see mode, hoping for China to recover and hope for a quick recovery. Two months later, the sky is darker for these businesses. Currently, the reality is that the actual demand (volume of order) is at a low. Sales in beverages, fashion, electronics, vehicles, agriculture, furniture, footwear, and many other categories have vanished both locally and globally, and the consumer is missing out. As we speak, in Vietnam and elsewhere, manufacturers and retailers current sales volumes are too low to absorb fixed costs, leaving thousands of businesses with negative margins and thin reserves of cash. Export-dependent companies are seeing orders cancelled every day, particularly from the EU and the US. As a consequence, the global transport sector is also being affected and freight forwarders in Vietnam are seeing their volume drop by up to 70 per cent. A number of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have already declared bankruptcy and for others the impact on human resources, the main adjustment variable, is being felt strongly and unemployment is threatening multiple industries. Further pressure is also made on rents as retailers cash erodes and the real estate and construction sectors are under stress. Government measures are expected to release such immediate tension as the end of the crisis is still yet not clearly visible. As we stand today, we are put in front of a hard yet simple reality: despite recent noise around digital transformation, consumers and workers remain at the heart of the modern economy. Lock them up and things start to shake. Channel shift As people spend more time at home, household spend has both reduced and shifted. Consumers are generally more cautious spending given the lack of visibility on the mid-long term future. Business-to-consumer product companies are generally selling less of their goods. CEL Consulting found that companies operating in retail, distribution, and logistics services (excluding e-commerce and last mile delivery) report a loss of revenue against the target of 25 per cent in 2020s first quarter and dont expect to recover this loss this year. But as confinement becomes a more pressing reality, urban consumers seek convenient and safe shopping alternatives for their daily family needs. E-commerce and home delivery services have become central to this evolution. It allows people to get what they need and want but also helps small businesses and restaurants to maintain a certain activity as their physical outlet is closed to the public. Figures are still not officially published in Vietnam, but Lazada reported a 300 per cent increase in the number of orders in Singapore and Grab delivery surged by 200 per cent in Bangkok. We can assume that comparable growth is being seen in the main cities in Vietnam. So overall, a large amount of volumes have shifted from offline to online distribution channels and last mile delivery companies are barely able to cope with the surge of delivery orders. One of the main challenges that this shift creates in the domestic distribution is the ability to transfer goods over long distances, for example between north and south Vietnam as airfreight and rail transport are constrained. Long haul trucks become scarce and lack of transport capacity generate delays and extra disruptions. As people start to be accustomed to more systematic online purchase and home deliveries, it is likely that this becomes a habit and it is likely that the post crisis situation will still benefit the e-commerce and delivery sector while the offline retail sector will slowly recover. This is certainly a fundamental new trend in the consumer goods industry that we have to keep in mind. The crisis will also further accelerate the e-government initiative allowing the population to fulfil administrative duties online and thus avoiding long physical queues. Once the crisis ends, it is likely that the implementation of digital solutions for consumers and citizens will spur drastically. Outlook As the global demand crisis deepens, we start seeing economies with promising results in their fight against mass contagion, namely South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and China. However now, it appears that the EU will still face lockdown at least until June-July to, in the best-case scenario, recover slowly over the second half of the year. On the other side, the US has been hesitant in taking clear containment measures and the pandemic is spreading faster and faster every day in the American population. First estimates predict hundreds of thousands of deaths in the US only. It is now pretty clear that the US will be under massive tension for the next two quarters at least. The stock markets are erratic, and despite a massive injection of cash from the Fed to support the real economy, experts and economists seriously worry about a global economic crisis. Regardless how fast other nations tend to recover, if the US is affected, the global economy will face severe challenges in the months to come. Currently, American consumers are already reducing expenditures in shoes, phones, appliances, clothes, cars, and tools, most of which are made in Asia and for a large portion in Vietnam. Practically today, orders are being cancelled from the grocery store in Spain to the red wine trader in the US, from the fashion brand in Italy to the garment manufacturer in Vietnam, from the retail chain in the US to the shoes factory in India, from trader of coffee in the UK to the farmer cooperative in Ethiopia. And despite remaining disruption in the supply of goods globally, we are now entering into a consumer demand crisis. More than ever, for companies, cash is king without cash, the story ends. And to survive with very tight demand volume decision-makers have already initiated rationalising their product portfolio, developing complete new services for their remaining customers, conducting massive promotion campaigns, and cutting unessential costs. The CEL Consulting survey shows that 80 per cent of businesses have already or are considering launching special promotion programmes to ensure a minimum of sales, and 60 per cent of them have already made changes in their product range. We are in a phase where companies need to innovate and realign themselves with new demand volumes, patterns, and trends. A Darwinist effect that will let on the side the businesses that were not able to adapt fast enough. Even if its early to predict how the world will be post-pandemic, our global economy and global supply chains will certainly have to evolve significantly. A few trends start to emerge: * Online ordering becomes a more common habit of consumers and the prevalence of e-commerce channels in the long run should be confirmed, including for the grocery category; * Mature markets will develop autonomy with localised and renationalised supply chains and thus reduce their dependency to export markets. Free trade agreements may be challenged. Consumers will put higher preference to local products versus imported ones, also for environmental reasons; * Consumers will increase expectation for transparency leading to tighter control on the origin of goods and compliance to hygienic standards. More quality controls will be required earlier in the chains; * SMEs in the chain would have suffered a lot or even disappeared, leaving holes in the chains and forcing companies to find other, more resilient partners; * Faster deployment of digital solutions to allow better visibility on business performance and more interconnected value chain partners; and * Further acceleration of outsourced services such as logistics and manufacturing for companies to lighten their asset base and become more agile against uncertainty. Regardless of our level of anxiety or optimism, it is important to remind ourselves that the weakest among us are going to suffer most. People living on daily wages in the streets of Lagos, Alger, Manila, Hanoi, and Santiago, for example, are the most exposed to very hard times to come. As businesspeople, we may be worried, but we are still comfortable. We still can feed our beloved ones, and we still can enjoy quality time with our families. That is not a detail these days, and one must remember that some will need more support than others to cope collectively with this dire period to come. Solidarity is what we have left to emerge stronger together once the tsunami has passed. VIR Julien Brun Supply chains in Vietnam disrupted by Covid-19 Eighty-three per cent of companies in the physical value chain in Vietnam have been suffering from supply issues over the past two months due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, After the US and Taliban signed the peace deal, the militant group has shared a list of at least 50 attacks carried by American troops and Afghan forces accusing them of 'violating' the terms in the treaty. Taliban shared a three-page document only with TOLO News on April 19 to back their claims with substantial information. The Taliban political office in Doha has claimed that at least 33 drone attacks have been directed by the US against the targets of the extremist group in 19 provinces between March 9 and April 10. According to reports, the document by the Taliban also included an additional list of nine attacks that involved rockets and mortar shellings and eight night-raids. Overall, at least 17 US strikes have killed 35 fighters of the group according to the Taliban and they even hold American forces accountable for the death of 65 civilians in 33 other incidents. This is apparently also the first time that the Taliban provided numbers to back their accusations on the United States, adding yet another turn to the complicated relations between both the sides. Read - Taliban Set To Release 20 Afghan Prisoners As Part Of A Peace Deal Read - Pak Court Orders Investigating Agency To Submit Details Of Slain Taliban Chief's Properties All sides must reduce violence While reacting to the claims by Taliban, top US general in Afghanistan, Gen Scott Miller told an international news outlet that all sides, but especially Taliban must reduce violence in a bid to attain full ceasefire. US officials have reportedly also claimed that they remain committed to the peace deal signed with the Taliban. Reports have even suggested that the Taliban apparently carried out over 2,000 attacks since February 22, when the one-week reduction of violence had begun. Meanwhile, Afghan Defense Minister Assadullah Khalid has also told an international news outlet that Afghanistan is acting defensive only to give the peace treaty a chance. Even though the momentous peace deal between the US and Taliban was signed in February, the progress on negotiations with Afghanistan and the militant group has been delayed by the feud among countrys politicians. Some other reasons for the delay were also the disagreements between the Taliban and government over preconditions for talks included in the US-Taliban deal stating the release of groups prisoners in Afghanistan. Read - Taliban Meet With US General Amid Tensions Over Peace Deal Read - Afghan Official: Taliban Kill 7 Civilians In Country's North During the holy month of fasting and prayer, the faithful will not be able to access the Noble Sanctuary. The council governing Muslim holy places calls on the faithful to "pray at home". Archbishop Marcuzzo notes that Christians, Jews and Muslims "united and determined" in the fight against the novel coronavirus. The emergency has highlighted of the role of the family and of the domestic Church. Jerusalem (AsiaNews) The al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem will be closed to Muslim worshippers during Ramadan. No one will be able to access the site to pray. This follows the closure of the citys businesses and places of worship, including the Holy Sepulchre, during last weeks Easter break in an attempt to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic. During the holy month of fasting and prayer, tens of thousands of Muslims come to the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock every day for evening prayers (Tarawih). According to tradition, the prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven from here. The Haram esh-Sharif (The Noble Sanctuary), known to Jews as the Temple Mount, is the third holiest site in Islam. Yesterday afternoon the Jordanian-appointed council of clerics that oversees al-Aqsa announced the decision to extend the lockdown, which it had first imposed on 23 March, at the start of the pandemic. In a statement the Council noted that closing off the area was "painful" but "in line with legal fatwas (clerical opinions) and medical advice. Given the circumstances, Muslims must therefore "perform prayers in their homes during the month of Ramadan, to preserve their safety". During the Easter and Passover celebrations, Christians and Muslims took precautions and implemented restrictions to stem the COVID-19 pandemic. Even Muslims are ready to respect the directives of the authorities, said Mgr Giacinto-Boulos Marcuzzo, auxiliary bishop and patriarchal vicar of Jerusalem. We are all united and determined, he noted. Although Israel and Palestine have not been overwhelmed by the virus, this is perhaps one of the most positive aspects of this emergency situation. But we must remain vigilant. The atmosphere is still festive because we have not had drastic restrictions, he explained. Still, like Christians "Muslims too will celebrate Ramadan at home, without festivities and Iftar dinners with friends and acquaintances, including some time Christians. This Easter was something special, out of the ordinary" with few participants. "We worked with media, computers, social media. Many clergymen did a great job, "tirelessly visiting families, especially those with seniors, and the sick, to bring them communion, make confession, hand out olive branches on Palm Sunday. The coronavirus outbreak has made people more aware about their precariousness and weakness"; however, it also boosted their inner self and highlighted the role played by the family and domestic church as the original centre of the faith at a time of large gatherings. Israel has reported so far about 13,000 cases of the novel coronavirus with 148 deaths. The Gaza Strip, where fear of the contagion is high given its devastated healthcare, and the West Bank have reported about 300 cases and two deaths, but the actual figure is very likely higher. Since 25 March mosques and other places of worship have been closed in Gaza, since 14 March in the West Bank. [April 20, 2020] Pixability Is Selected To Be Part Of Expanded YouTube Measurement Program (YTMP) BOSTON, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pixability, the leading provider of software and insights for video advertising on YouTube, YouTube on TV and Connected TV, today announced its selection for the expanded YouTube Measurement Program (YTMP). Pixability was the first company to be certified as a YTMP member in 2016. This expanded version of the YTMP will include verified partners across three specializations: brand suitability & contextual targeting, brand safety reporting, and content insights. Pixability will be a verified partner for brand suitability & contextual targeting, and content insights and partners directly with DoubleVerify and IAS on brand safety reporting. As part of the expanded program, YouTube will be providing YTMP partners with training and resources, technical support and product tools to help enhance their platforms. "The Google/YouTube teams have been a fantastic partner to us over the years and we're proud that they have once again recognized the unique value we provide advertisers on their platform," said David George, CEO of Pixability. "The additional support from the new YTMP program will accelerate our technology and data innovation for the benefit of brands and their agencies advertising o YouTube." Pixability has been a leading partner for Google for over 10 years, running optimized YouTube campaigns for brands and agencies. The PixabilityONE platform leverages data directly from YouTube in combination with historical campaign data from Pixability-run campaigns to reach the best combinations of content and audiences on YouTube. The platform then auto-optimizes campaigns to maximize performance beyond what a human alone could do, and delivers deep customized reporting on results to inform future campaigns. The company has two technology patents around identifying and targeting brand-suitable, high-performing inventory on YouTube. "Pixability has been a critical partner for KIND as we have shaped and grown our presence on YouTube," said Victoria Belinsky, Senior Manager, Digital and Social Media at KIND. "Their platform helps us reach the right audiences with both organic and paid efforts on YouTube." In addition to managing campaigns as a brand suitability and contextual targeting partner for Google, Pixability has also become a leading content and audience insights partner for advertisers. Pixability has a long history of delivering in-depth YouTube audience insights studies to advertisers and, in February 2020, launched BrandTrack, a YouTube insights software solution for advertisers. About Pixability Pixability is a video advertising software company that uses data science to optimize large, complex campaigns across YouTube and Connected TV. The companys industry-leading optimization and insights solutions are independently verified by the YouTube Measurement Program, Oracle Data Clouds Moat Measurement, DoubleVerify, Integral Ad Science and other third parties. Pixabilitys suite of solutions are used by the top media agencies and brands including Dentsu-Aegis, Havas, Interpublic Group, Omnicom, Publicis, and GroupM, as well as Swatch, Bose, KIND, LOreal, and Puma. For more information about Pixability, please visit www.pixability.com . Contact Information: Matt Duffy CMO, Pixability [email protected] (508) 259-6342 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] WASHINGTON - Brett Giroir, the federal official overseeing coronavirus testing efforts, says that his experience working on vaccine development projects at Texas A&M University helped prepare him for this historic moment. He once said that his vaccine effort was so vital that "the fate of 50 million people will rely on us getting this done." But after eight years of work on several vaccine projects, Giroir was told in 2015 he had 30 minutes to resign or he would be fired. His annual performance evaluation at Texas A&M, the local newspaper reported, said he was "more interested in promoting yourself" than the health science center where he worked. He got low marks on being a "team player." Now President Donald Trump has given Giroir the crucial task of ending the massive shortfall of tests for the novel coronavirus. Some governors have blasted the lack of federal help on testing, which they say is necessary to enact Trump's plan for reopening the economy. That criticism has focused attention on Giroir and whether he can deliver results under pressure. His years as director of the Texas vaccine project illustrate his operating style, which includes sweeping statements about the impact of his work, not all of which turned out as some had hoped. During two recent interviews with The Washington Post, Giroir blamed his ouster on internal politics at the university, not on any problems with the project. "If you're not familiar with academic politics, it makes politics in Washington look like a minor league scrimmage," he said. He said he was "heartbroken" to leave the position before his work was done, but he said that the vaccine projects have proved valuable - and might contribute to the development of a coronavirus vaccine. As for the evaluation, Giroir, 59, said, "I'm a team player. But not to people who act inappropriately, who are misogynistic and who are abusive to other people. I don't have a loyalty to that. I have a loyalty to my faculty and my students. And that's what I care about. . . . It's better to be independent and stand your ethical ground." Asked to explain his comment, he said, "I'll just leave it at that." The combative response is classic Giroir, according to those who have worked with him over the years. Robin Robinson, who as the director of the federal Biological Advanced Research and Development Authority oversaw a major grant for the Texas vaccine project, said in an interview that Giroir "over-promised and under-delivered." He said, "I always had a good relationship with Brett. I know he has a temper and he sometimes has a very difficult time controlling it." Still, Robinson, like other former associates interviewed for this report, said that he has confidence in Giroir and praised Trump's decision to pick Giroir for the job informally known as the nation's virus testing czar. "He does get things done," Robinson said. "Sometimes it's a little different than what one might expect. But I feel confident that he will do the job where he is right now." Giroir serves as the assistant secretary for health in the Department of Health and Human Services, making him the top medical and science adviser to HHS Secretary Alex Azar. He oversees the U.S. Public Health Service Commission Corps, which has 6,200 members and is playing a major role in fighting covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. On March 13, a week after Trump said falsely that "anybody that wants a test can get a test," Giroir was given the responsibility of coordinating the federal government's widely criticized virus testing programs, which initially included a faulty product from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While he is not a formal member of the White House coronavirus task force, he is a regular presence at its meetings and often confers with Trump and Vice President Pence. Although testing has increased since Giroir took over, some state officials continue to complain that the federal government lacks a coherent plan. Illinois Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker said on NPR last week that "the truth is that the federal government has really been more of a hindrance than a help in most of the testing issues. . . . We got very little help from the federal government." New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday on brother Chris Cuomo's CNN show that he wasn't familiar with Giroir. Asked by his brother about the man "in charge of the most important component" of dealing with the virus, the governor responded: "I'll take your word that he exists, but I wouldn't know otherwise." A Giroir spokeswoman said he has been on task-force calls to governors. A spokesman for the New York governor did not respond to a request for comment. As for the complaints from some governors that they still lack testing capabilities, Giroir said in the interview that anyone who "needs a test" can get one. "That does not mean at this point in time that anyone who wants a test gets a test," Giroir said. "There may be tens of millions of people who want a test, but they really have no indication [of the virus] for that test." Giroir said testing must be increased to ensure that the virus does not resurge. He said the current capability of 3.5 million tests per month needs to increase to 6 million to 8 million for a "gradual reopening" of the economy to occur, and he said such capacity is growing quickly. Separately, Giroir promised that "tens of millions" of serology tests will be available within a few weeks that enable people to determine whether they have had the virus. Publicly, Giroir has been in sync with Trump, appearing alongside him at briefings in the admiral's uniform he is entitled to wear as director of the public health corps. In private, Giroir said, he has no hesitation about being blunt with the president. "His scientific advisers, including me, provide him very frank advice every single day," Giroir said. "Any thought that does not happen, or he does not listen, is blatantly false. . . . It's one of the most productive working environments at a senior level I've been involved in." Giroir, born in Louisiana and educated at Harvard University and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, began his career as a pediatrician and became chief medical officer at Children's Medical Center in Dallas. He grew interested in how to develop new technologies, and in 2004 he joined the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, where he oversaw efforts such as the development of a ventilator that could be carried onto battlefields. He wanted to find new ways to fight deadly pandemics, whether a virus occurred naturally or as a weapon of war. He concluded that new technology was needed to quickly make massive amounts of vaccines. "I realized the challenges were not just biological but engineering," Giroir said. Giroir returned to Texas in 2008 and eventually became vice chancellor at Texas A&M University, vowing to transform the region into one of the world's hubs for vaccine development. He pushed the idea of creating mobile labs that could produce vaccines where they were most needed, and promoted a facility that would enable a pharmaceutical partner to quickly produce millions of doses of vaccine for a crisis such as an influenza pandemic. "My job is to facilitate transformational projects that benefit lots of people," Giroir said at the time. "I would like to be part of something that can save millions of lives worldwide." He told the Houston Chronicle in 2010 that "If this works, we'll have a billion-dose-per-month vaccine facility in Texas, which would be by far the largest and most capable center in the world." In 2012, Giroir played a major role in obtaining a federal grant that enabled the university to become one of several U.S. centers that would be prepared to quickly produce vaccines in a pandemic. "Once it's implemented, it really will solve the pandemic crisis," he said at the time. The university partnered with GlaxoSmithKline, a leading vaccine manufacturer. In a 2013 news release, Giroir said the company's cell-based vaccine program was "the most promising near term influenza vaccine technology" to improve upon the traditional methodology of using eggs. When there was fear of an outbreak of Ebola virus cases in Texas, then-Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican, in 2014 appointed Giroir as chairman of a task force overseeing an effort to fight the disease. In mid-2015, a new president, Michael Young, arrived at Texas A&M. Young asked some senior officials at the university to resign, while offering to keep them in their jobs for at least a year, Giroir told The Post. Giroir said he refused to sign the letter. Giroir was summoned to a meeting at which he said he was told he had 30 minutes to resign or he would be fired. Declaring himself "heartbroken" over having failed to complete his mission, he resigned. Young, who is still university president, declined to comment. Giroir, in response to questions about his ouster, sent The Post an editorial published at the time in the local newspaper, the Bryan Eagle. The editorial chastised Young for having forced out Giroir, saying Giroir had increased federal research grants to the university's Health Science Center by 65 percent and was "treated badly" by the school. Separately, the Eagle reported that the university said in a statement, "It is inaccurate and disingenuous at best to attribute growth in this area solely to Dr. Giroir." The Eagle, which obtained Giroir's evaluation, said that while Giroir had a grade of 4 or 5 for his management and related skills, on a scale in which 5 is the highest mark, he had a 2 or 3 in areas of "loyalty/commitment" and "team player." The vaccine manufacturing center was completed after Giroir's departure, but his prediction that it would enable GlaxoSmithKline to produce a groundbreaking vaccine did not pan out. The company said in a statement that the "research underpinning the Texas A&M project did not prove fruitful," leading federal authorities to halt funding. The facility was acquired by a U.S. subsidiary of a Japanese company, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, which has agreed to respond promptly if there is a federal request to develop a vaccine. John White, who as chairman of the Board of Regents recruited Giroir to the university, said in an interview, "Brett was the architect of all these wonderful things we had put in place." Asked to assess Giroir's impact, he said, "It is just difficult to sum it up because the journey continues. . . . Do I wish everything would have gone faster with more tangible results? Sure, but I'm not disappointed at all where it's been and where it's going." Giroir defended the projects. He said the Fujifilm facility is available to rapidly produce a vaccine if one is requested by the federal government, just as originally envisioned, and he said his work has laid the foundation for such work, possibly including a vaccine for covid-19. Of his vaccine work in Texas, he said, "It's not entirely responsible for where we are by any means. But the work has really led to our ability to get a vaccine up to scale potentially in a year or a year and a half instead of five or seven years." Giroir also noted that a separate facility he helped develop, which uses plant-based technology to produce vaccines, is working on a possible product for the coronavirus. "It may work, it may not work," he said. "But if you want a billion doses in a short time, plant-based is the only way to get it done." Giroir, after being ousted from Texas A&M, took a variety of positions, including chairing a commission that reviewed the health-care system at Veterans Affairs. With Trump's election, Giroir found a new opportunity. Trump nominated him in 2017 to be assistant secretary for health at HHS. The nomination languished for months as some Democrats questioned Giroir's commitment to women's health issues, but he was confirmed. Trump named Giroir as acting commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration in late 2019, a position he held for two months while a new leader awaited confirmation. Until now, some of Giroir's most prominent work in the administration revolved around fetal stem cell tissue research, which some scientists think could be needed to find a treatment for the coronavirus. Some conservatives have urged a ban on the use of fetal tissue. Giroir said during a 2018 meeting at the National Institutes of Health that an alternative must be as reliable as fetal tissue. But HHS later announced restrictions on the ability of some researchers to get federal funding for fetal tissue research, saying the importance of "promoting the dignity of life from conception to natural death is one of the very top priorities of President Trump's administration." The announcement pleased Trump's political advisers but dismayed scientists. Giroir's views on the issue appear to put him at odds with White House policy. "I think it's very clear that we don't have models that completely recapitulate what the fetal tissue does," Giroir told The Post. "And I just mean this honestly, what I advise the president, or what happens, that's executive privilege. And I think it was widely reported that this was the president's decision on the way to go. This was a presidential decision. And he's the president; he gets to make those decisions." - - - The Washington Post's Alice Crites contributed to this report. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 00:57:40|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MACAO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Chief Executive of China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) Ho Iat Seng delivered his policy address at the Macao SAR Legislative Assembly for fiscal year 2020 on Monday afternoon, focusing on social welfare, job creation and institutional reform. Ho, who took office on Dec. 20, 2019, gave his first policy address titled "Forging Ahead Towards New Horizons". He said year 2020 saw the start of the fifth-term Macao SAR government, and the country and Macao residents have new expectations and requirements for the SAR government. The chief executive vowed to firmly implement the policy of "one country, two systems" and "Macao people governing Macao" with a high degree of autonomy, safeguard the authority of the country's Constitution and the Basic Law of the Macao SAR as well as the central government's overall jurisdiction over the Macao SAR. Ho said the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought severe challenges to the Macao SAR government and society, and the SAR government has given top priority to the safety and health of Macao residents and taken a series of measures to prevent and control the spread of the disease. He called on the SAR government and all sectors of the society to have stronger confidence and maintain strategic focus so as to cope with the existing difficulties and challenges. This year would see a deficit in the public budget, the first such occasion since the establishment of the Macao SAR, because the SAR government will spend over 50 billion patacas (about 6.26 billion U.S. dollars) to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, he added. He said the SAR government will put forward a series of measures, such as reducing taxes and fees, implementing public and infrastructure programs, and supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, to ensure sufficient supply for people's livelihood and employment, and stabilize the economy. The public and infrastructure programs include the fourth Macao-Taipa cross-sea route, the expansion of light rail transit system, public housing projects, and the integration of Taipa ferry terminal into the second passenger terminal of Macao International Airport. The chief executive said Macao would launch tourism incentives and organize festive events once the COVID-19 pandemic was under control. The Macao Government Tourism Office would report to the Secretary for Economy and Finance to create synergy between tourism and other economic activities. He said the SAR government would provide greater support to investors such as enterprises from the mainland aiming to explore international markets, and help them establish headquarters in Macao. Ho noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had posed great challenges to local small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the government would launch a number of relief measures to help them overcome the challenges. He said this year would witness institutional reforms to establish a service-orientated modern government with integrity and efficiency, improve the cooperation between public departments and optimize their structure. Ho said the SAR government would push forward measures related to housing, transportation, healthcare, social security and other social welfare issues. A press conference was held at the SAR government headquarters after the policy address, when Ho answered questions from the media. The chief executive will also attend a plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday to explain the policy address and answer questions from members of the Legislative Assembly. The five secretaries of the SAR government will present their 2020 policy guidelines to the Legislative Assembly in the following weeks. Enditem Aerial snapshots of people flocking to a reopened beach in Jacksonville, Florida, made waves on the Internet on Saturday. Local news aired photos and videos of Florida's shoreline dotted with people, closer than six feet apart, spurring #FloridaMorons to trend on Twitter after Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, gave the go-ahead for local beachfront governments to decide whether to reopen their beaches during a news briefing Friday. Duval and St. Johns counties have reopened their beaches, while Miami-Dade County officials said they are considering following suit. On the same day that Florida reported 58 deaths from the coronavirus - its highest daily toll since the pandemic began - DeSantis told reporters that it's essential that Floridians get exercise outdoors. "I get a kick out of somebody jogging on the beach in California, like all by his lonesome, and you have a fleet of cops go out there," he said. "He's just jogging. Going forward, I think we've got to be promoting people to get exercise." While DeSantis never ordered statewide closures of beaches, his comment Friday gave the green light to local officials such as Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, a Republican, who announced that Duval County's beaches would reopen Friday. Curry banned certain items, including towels and chairs, and limited hours to 6 to 11 a.m. and 5 to 8 p.m. to deter people from gathering for a long time. "This can be the beginning of the pathway back to normal life," Curry said. "Please respect and follow these limitations. Stay within the guidelines for your safety as well as for the safety of your neighbors." The droves that showed up at Jacksonville's beach largely ignored Curry's restrictions. "People were seen swimming, biking, surfing running and fishing," CNN reported. Curry didn't immediately respond to The Post's request for comment about the crowds, but he retweeted another city leader who shared a photo of a near-empty section of a beach. St. Johns County, where St. Augustine is, said its beaches would reopen for physical activity from 6 a.m. to noon. Miami-Dade's mayor said during a Saturday news conference that his county would also move forward with reopening beaches, although he didn't specify when. The governor's office said he left the beach reopening decision for local authorities because "Florida is not a state where a cookie-cutter solution works." "Governor DeSantis does not oppose the prudent opening of beaches with restrictions," DeSantis spokesperson Helen Ferre said. DeSantis refused to close beaches at the height of the spring break rush, saying visitors could maintain social distancing, despite photos and videos from beaches across the state indicating that people were not doing so. Dozens of college students who had vacationed in Miami and other party spots have tested positive for the virus since returning to their home states of Texas, Florida and Wisconsin. DeSantis has said he will follow President Donald Trump's lead on closures, although Trump has shifted positions and indicated that he will leave those decisions to the states. Florida's stay-at-home order is in effect through April 30. On Saturday, he stressed the importance of reopening and getting people back to work, adding that he will share the names of who he's appointed for a task force focused on reopening Monday. This comes as other states are making their own preparations to restart business. South Carolina announced that it was reopening beaches Saturday. If anyone could recreate Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs shocking 2018 upset, it would be Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas. Like Ocasio-Cortez before her, Gonzalez-Rojas is a Latina challenging an older, moderate white man who took office years ago. Assemblyman Michael DenDekker, this races Joe Crowley, is a six-term Democrat representing Queens neighborhoods like Jackson Heights that lie entirely within what is now AOCs district. Gonzalez-Rojas has sharp branding, nabbed an endorsement from the Working Families Party and nearly matched DenDekkers fundraising. Heck, Gonzalez-Rojas and Ocasio-Cortez are even alumnae of the same school, Boston University. And of course, JGR has her own three-letter nickname. To some, a primary victory might have seemed preordained. Then the pandemic hit. In a district that has suffered some of the worst effects from the coronavirus, Gonzalez-Rojas, the former executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, had to retool her campaign for our new, socially distanced reality. Shes focusing almost exclusively on the health crisis and has hosted frequent webinars. Instead of calling to ask for votes, shes calling voters to ask how the campaign can help them. Her transition to digital campaigning was quick, but it hasnt gone off without a hitch, Gonzalez-Rojas told City & State. Relying on Zoom for virtual events does come with its own set of security concerns, though the campaign has luckily avoided any Zoom bombings so far. Then theres the matter of the digital divide, and the fact that many lower-income voters in the district lack access to the internet. As a candidate who wants to hear peoples story one on one and engage with folks and really elevate those experiences as part of the solutions I want to bring to Albany, it is hard to not be able to knock on doors, Gonzalez-Rojas said. As a candidate who wants to hear peoples story one on one ... it is hard to not be able to knock on doors. Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assembly candidate Despite the rising death toll and the sputtering economy in New York, which has seen more COVID-19 cases then anywhere else in the country, the state is still scheduled to hold primary elections on Tuesday, June 23. Voting is more important than ever, Gonzalez-Rojas said, but in some ways youre competing with the urgency of the virus. People may not be as attentive to the election. Thats a serious issue when youre trying to introduce yourself to voters for the first time. And Gonzalez-Rojas is not alone not in the state, and not even in her own primary race, in which two other Democrats are also challenging DenDekker. Thats just one splash of New Yorks influx of primary challenges to House members and state legislators. [[{"fid":"10989","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres"},"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres"}},"attributes":{"alt":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres","title":"State Sen. Diane Savino; Assembly candidate Brandon Patterson; Assemblywoman and congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis; state Sen. Anna Kaplan; Queens Borough President candidate Elizabeth Crowley; Assemblywoman YuhLine Niou; Assemblyman and congres","style":"float: left; height: 300px; width: 300px;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"1"}}]]Indeed, progressives were hoping to build on a string of stunning upsets in the previous election cycle not only Ocasio-Cortezs victory over Crowley, but the ouster of a number of moderate state Senate Democrats with an influx of House hopefuls and challengers targeting middle-of-the-road incumbents in the Assembly. Yet early on, there were signs that incumbents would fare better this year. For one thing, they wouldnt be taken by surprise the way Crowley was. For another thing, increasingly crowded primaries were likely to reduce the chance of an individual challenger capturing enough votes to unseat an incumbent. But now, the most significant factor protecting sitting lawmakers and hobbling inexperienced newcomers is the coronavirus. The pandemic has altered almost everything about running for office. As campaigns go fully digital and as anxious constituents turn to elected officials for assistance, many of the changes from crowded ballots to fundraising shortfalls to not being able to knock on doors are bolstering the ability of incumbents to hold onto power. As Steve Kramer, a political consultant whose clients include both incumbents and challengers in dozens of federal and state races, put it: The establishment is back. Before March, candidates would talk about housing, taxes, public safety, you name it. Now, the coronavirus isnt just one thing to talk about its the only thing. Its COVID all day every day, Rep. Yvette Clarke told City & State. Clarke recalled her first time running for the New York City Council, when the primary day was on Sept. 11, 2001. The city rescheduled the election for two weeks after the terrorist attacks, but in the meantime, everything about the campaign changed. Its the same way now. People are not as focused on Who am I going to vote for right now, Clarke said. Theyre focused on How do I contact my congresswoman to make sure that my family member who has been overseas for over a month now can get back to the United States? People are not as focused on Who am I going to vote for right now. Theyre focused on How do I contact my congresswoman to make sure that my family member can get back to the United States? Rep. Yvette Clarke That helps incumbents like Clarke, who are much better positioned to help voters than candidates who dont have a government office, staff, money and connections. Aggressive challengers can try to attack incumbents for not doing enough, but polling suggests that voters have largely been happy with the response to the crisis, at least at the state government level. A Monmouth University poll found that 72% of respondents thought their states governor was doing a good job. And while Congress approval rating is always low, it has gone up by more than 10 percentage points in the past two months. [[{"fid":"10997","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento"},"type":"media","field_deltas":{"3":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento"}},"attributes":{"alt":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento","title":"New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides, New York City Council candidate Darma Diaz, New York City Councilman Donovan Richards, Rep. Eliot Engel, state Senate candidate Iggy Terranova, Assembly candidate Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, Assemblyman Joe Lento","style":"height: 300px; width: 300px; float: left;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"3"}}]]The coronavirus only amplifies the built-in advantages officeholders have in providing services to constituents. Take Assemblyman Michael Miller, a Queens Democrat who has been reelected five times is facing a primary against two opponents, including the well-funded Jenifer Rajkumar, who used to work for Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Were not campaigning, Miller said. Were just out there making phone calls to our constituents, seeing if theres anything they need. When asked if this was just another way to win over voters, Miller said it wasnt his campaign team doing the work, but his government staff. Were not asking for votes, he said. Were not mailing stuff, handing stuff out. Were just making calls and trying to help as best we can. Rajkumar isnt an elected official, but shes trying to make her team look like one. On March 15, my canvassing team came back from door-knocking, she told City & State. That night I told campaign staff, dont come back tomorrow. And then overnight, we revamped the campaign operation into a 24/7 coronavirus hotline and response team for South Queens. Rajkumar said anybody can call the number, which is routed to her phone and to two staffers, and get quickly connected to somebody to respond in any of seven languages English, Spanish, Bengali, Punjabi, Hindi, Albanian or Polish. The 24/7 nature has come under question from a Yahoo News reporter who claimed to call and get an answering machine at 2:21 a.m., but Rajkumar said her team has taken more than 100 calls in the past few weeks, including one from a family in Ozone Park who was going hungry. That night, the campaign delivered food to the familys doorstep and connected them with government resources for the long term, Rajkumar said. Maybe if I was an incumbent, I would have some extra resources at my disposal, she said, but even though Im not elected yet, theres a lot I can still do. Rajkumar also sparked an online controversy by seeking to remove another Democratic rival, Joey De Jesus, from the ballot by knocking on the doors of some people who signed his petitions, even after the state had issued a stay-at-home order. Rajkumars team didnt ultimately file an objection. We did not want to endanger (city Board of Elections) workers or campaign staff, she said. While candidates like Rajkumar are responding in relatively low-tech ways, others are embracing digital solutions to get their message across and connect with voters. Emails, videos and social media arent anything new on the campaign trail, but in the age of the coronavirus, digital outreach and digital advertisements have become imperative. With door-to-door campaigning and subway stop flyering all but impossible, one of the only options to reach voters is to do it online. Digital campaigning now is not an accessory to campaigns its the campaign, said Andrew Bleeker, founder and president at the consulting firm Bully Pulpit Interactive. Were seeing fundraisers on Zoom; were seeing press conferences on Zoom. Were seeing, basically, town halls and Q&As, and not just from kids. Its really made it fairly mainstream. Bleekers firm, which is based in Washington, D.C., worked on Cuomos 2018 reelection campaign, but he isnt working for any New York candidates this cycle. Digital campaigning now is not an accessory to campaigns its the campaign. Andrew Bleeker, founder and president of Bully Pulpit Interactive In the weeks since New York went into lockdown on March 22, campaigns have largely been shifting to video teleconferencing forums and virtual town halls. Candidates are also leaning more heavily on methods they were already utilizing, like Facebook posts and texting phone banks. Long before the pandemic, a small number of younger candidates for office in New York had even started seeking viral fame on TikTok, the social media app beloved by Gen Z. While incumbents have the upper hand in any election, some new candidates may have an edge when it comes to digital campaigning. Primary challengers are typically younger and more comfortable online compared to incumbents, which could be a real boon during the quarantine. Andom Ghebreghiorgis, a 34-year-old former special education teacher who is one of four Democrats challenging 73-year-old Rep. Eliot Engel, has started whats essentially a nightly talk show livestreamed on Facebook and Instagram covering topics as varied as monetary theory and Caribbean history. Lindsey Boylan, a 36-year-old former adviser to Cuomo who is one of four Democrats taking on Rep. Jerry Nadler, who is 72, has been posting short selfie videos on Twitter and Instagram. One video in which Boylan called on the federal government to give small businesses grants (rather than loans) was viewed more than 68,000 times. And for newcomer candidates, theres no cheaper or quicker way to get your name out there than a well-timed, fiery, viral tweet. [[{"fid":"10990","view_mode":"default","fields":{"alt":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","title":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","style":"height: 221px; width: 300px; float: left;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"2","format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office."},"type":"media","field_deltas":{"2":{"alt":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","title":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","style":"height: 221px; width: 300px; float: left;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"2","format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office."}},"attributes":{"alt":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","title":"A Zoom call featuring several lawmakers and candidates for office.","style":"height: 221px; width: 300px; float: left;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"2"}}]]The campaigns that have relied on innovative uses of digital campaigning and found success have generally had younger, more agile candidates facing off against older, more experienced candidates. Take Barack Obamas digital grassroots organizing in 2008 or the social media powerhouse that is Ocasio-Cortez. Of course, few insurgents can wield a social media account as effectively as Ocasio-Cortez, whose campaign playbook many set out to replicate this cycle. Whats more, incumbency has its own advantages in digital campaigning. Current elected officials are likely to start off with a larger online following, Bleeker noted, and for challengers with fewer volunteers and less campaign cash on hand, investing in cultivating the campaigns social media presence through promoted posts or ads, for example might not be the top priority. And its not like the internet is some secret puzzle only younger candidates can unlock. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont may not know how to code, but his presidential campaign had a passionate, vocal base of online supporters. In New York, 74-year-old Rep. Carolyn Maloneys political team switched to all-remote campaigning using phone banking and the text banking app ThruText, online town halls and virtual internship programs, a spokesperson for the campaign said. And for kicks, Maloney even posted a photo on Instagram of her exercising indoors to a vintage Jane Fonda workout video. Its unclear whether these changes are resonating with voters, but her pivot demonstrates that incumbents arent ceding the digital domain to 20- or 30-something candidates. Raising enough money has always been a concern for little-known candidates, and the coronavirus has only made it more difficult. The pandemic has hobbled the economy and caused nearly 1.2 million New Yorkers to file for unemployment. Everyone is having trouble raising money, said Kramer, the president of the political consulting group Get Out the Vote. But its hurting insurgents who rely on lots of low-dollar donations much more than incumbents cashing checks from deep-pocketed business leaders and industry groups. People who give $5 or $25 have been impacted, economically speaking, more so than people who are giving $250 checks, Kramer said. And many elected officials, especially those who havent faced serious challenges in recent cycles, have had years to amass campaign war chests, while challengers must start from scratch. While some challengers have been competitive on fundraising, most races play out like the congressional primary on the North Shore of Long Island. Through the most recent fundraising deadline at the end of March, Rep. Tom Suozzi had more than $2 million on hand, for example. His nearest primary opponent, first-time candidate Melanie DArrigo, had just $59,776 less than 3% of the incumbents total. New Yorks congressional and state legislative primaries remain scheduled for June 23, and while Cuomo has shown commitment to that date and has expanded absentee voting to all voters, other election details are up in the air with two months to go. Will ballots be mailed to all registered Democrats, or will voters have to print them out? Will polls open at all? An election entirely by mail would be a first for New York, but Oregon has been doing it since the 1980s and it has tended to increase turnout. There are too many complex factors and unanswered questions to know how it will play out this cycle, but one things for sure: Incumbents, especially (those aligned with) political party machines tend to be very good at being able to turn out that absentee ballot vote, Kramer said. Just look at Melinda Katzs 2019 primary win over Tiffany Caban for Queens district attorney. Caban declared victory on primary night, but Katz, who had the county Democratic organizations endorsement, eked out a victory after the absentee ballots were counted. Many New Yorkers who consistently vote absentee are older, and prefer establishment candidates. In 2020, Kramer said, The winning side will be the one who gets those absentee ballots. Many of those ballots, whether submitted by mail or filled out at a polling site, are going to have more names on them than ever. There are already more candidates challenging incumbents than in any cycle in recent memory. Now, the pandemic has made it easier for them to actually get their names on the ballot. The disease hit the state right in the middle of petitioning season, and Cuomo cut the number of signatures candidates needed to gather to make the ballot by 70%. In normal times, many of these insurgents would have had their petitions challenged and would have gotten booted off the ballot, but such challenges have been limited this year. Since the process of challenging a candidates petitions requires some in-person interaction at a board of elections office, there have been growing calls to end challenges this year. Even the Queens Democratic Party, notorious for kicking challengers off the ballot, signed on. Obviously things are different, said Rep. Greg Meeks, the Queens Democratic leader. What Ive got to consider first and foremost is the health of human beings. Of course, that concern for health happens to be good politics. Facing one strong challenger could be a problem for an incumbent. (Just ask Crowley, the former Queens party boss.) But multiple challengers, who could split the anti-establishment vote? Thats a relief for incumbents. What this all means is that even in a high-drama time, its likely to be a ho-hum primary night. But Assembly incumbents like Miller, who is facing Rajkumar and De Jesus, arent declaring victory. Yes, they could split all the people that dont like Mike Miller, the incumbent assemblyman said, but the challengers are also trying to peel off support for him. People say theres an advantage? Miller asked. Well find out June 23. Virtual teaching is beneficial only to an extent Virtual or online learning provides various channels such as mail, online chat and video conferences, through which students and instructors can interact with each other. In the classroom, there is only one channel to communicate with each other. Many students have a visual memory and seem to learn more willingly and are interested in online modes of teaching. Virtual learning is opted these days due to the shutdown of schools and institutions. It is beneficial to an extent because it does not require waking up early, there is no fear of getting scolded and one can study in a comfortable manner. But, a teacher-student relationship can be best established in a classroom only. The interaction and the questions a student asks the instructor in the class cannot happen in an online interaction. Virtual learning offers a good substitute to classroom learning in the time of emergency but it cannot replace the classroom. Classroom learning still remains the main option as discipline can be taught through it and it is a better mode of imparting education and knowledge. Sanskriti Verma, via email Classroom teaches life skills I agree with the fact that it is the need of the hour to conduct virtual classes as the situation calls for it. But, in my opinion, classroom teaching will always be preferred over virtual classes as juniors or young adolescents learn much more. Daily interactions with teachers and peers improve their skills to deal with and teach them how to live in a society. Moreover, schools organise competitions and exams which result in the formation of skills required in day-to-day life. Harleen Kaur, via email Technology has proven its merits In this situation of a global health crisis, the virtual system of learning has proved its merits. As the technology advances, this system is here to stay. But, accepting the virtual method doesnt mean rejecting the traditional classroom pedagogy. The convenience and low-cost model of virtual learning cannot replace the experiential learning of human values and character development of the classroom setting. Gurkirat Singh, Model Town Extension Both forms have their own place Both virtual learning and classroom lessons have their own importance. In these times of pandemic, virtual learning is more important so that the education of children is not hindered. Classrooms are important as the children sit together and concentrate on a particular topic. They are able to learn new skills in such an environment and the teacher has their full attention. Thus, both forms of teachings have their own place. Srishty, via email Many distractions in online learning Online education is a necessity these days. Although it gives a student an opportunity to learn, it also distracts them. Once the educational lessons are done, they start surfing other things. Hence, the impact of learning is uncertain and not always optimum. Education is not limited to the syllabus only; it also includes discipline, manners, morals and interaction with other students and teachers. These traits are difficult to inject through online teaching. In fact, I am of the opinion that the education system in schools should not be much inclined towards smart classes. Rather, in every school, some time should be devoted to teach moral values and discipline. Moreover, access to online platforms is not healthy for the students as their ability to remember and retain information diminishes. Neeraj Kumar Bhatt, BRS Nagar Virtual learning is the only option right now The students are left with no option other than virtual learning due to the coronavirus pandemic. The teachers are trying their best to teach the children online and have also asked them to contact whenever they face any difficulty in studying. Despite that, classroom learning is better than virtual learning and understanding concepts in the class is easier. Manisha Baria, via email Maybe not perfect, but serves the purpose In such times when desperate measures are being taken, virtual learning has proven to be a shred of hope for the students and teachers. I am undertaking six months of industrial training via virtual classes. We can outline that this method has its pros and cons. For instance, in this virus outbreak, many software solutions and applications such Zoom, Webex, Amazon Chime, and Microsoft team allow video conferencing. Technical resources and facilities to aid the learning process can be shared, but we can only interact virtually, whereas classroom learning involves direct interaction between the students and the instructor. We also need to take care of the fact that the software or application used for the virtual classroom is secure. Moreover, virtual classrooms have some requirements, like a steady internet connection and an interface such as laptop/computer or a mobile phone. Hence, virtual learning may not be a convenient option for the economically weaker section. Virtual learning may not be as perfect as classroom learning, but in a pandemic, it serves the purpose. Raghu Mahendru, via email Not everyone has access to internet In current times, most of the institutes have switched to online classes. But it has a drawback that not everyone can access online education. In remote areas, many people dont own Android phones or gadgets, which is a harsh reality. Also, there are some who have these gadgets but are unable to pay the price of the data packs. Though the teachers send assignments in WhatsApp groups, but the students are experiencing difficulties as there is no direct contact or interaction with the teacher. Sometimes, the signal is lost and the class is missed. Virtual learning is useful but not successful. One of the reasons is the lack of preparedness for it. The other is the unavailability of the books as the new session had to begin and students didnt have the material for their next class. Aliza, via email Something is better than nothing Virtual learning by no means can be a replacement for classroom learning. But it can be used effectively to enhance the learning process. Due to the lockdown, many schools and colleges have started online classes but things like understanding the concepts, clearing doubts, interaction with the teacher are not possible in online classes. The environment of a classroom is quite different and it itself makes learning effective. But as something is better than nothing, its good to have virtual classes in this period. Rajni Matta, Vishwakarma Town Online teaching can harm the eyes of the students Online teaching is a good platform but it is not for everyone. It has some requirements like a good internet connection and an interface, but not every student can afford these things. Lack of accreditation and low quality is another problem. Moreover, the blue screen of these gadgets can affect the eyes of the students if one continues to look at the screen for a long duration. There is another drawback that a teacher cannot monitor the body language of the students and ensure their focus. Vishali Kalra, via email Classroom teaching is the clear winner Irrespective of the technology available, classroom teaching is the clear winner. No amount of virtual learning can match the environment that you one gets in the classroom. Studies suggest that children learn better through face-to-face interaction and group study also helps in developing the communication skills. Moreover, some students who are from rural backgrounds do not have access to the internet or the required electronic gadgets. Khushboo Singla, via email Virtual learning is the only solution Covid-19 is a pandemic which has turned the world upside down and it will take time for things to be normal again. It is not possible for the government to find a substitute for all the normal lifestyle activities which we were involved in. Virtual learning is a good substitute to classroom learning. Its true that it may not clear our doubts completely and we wont be able to interact with our teachers and professors. However, to avoid the lag in our lives in terms of education and to save the time, virtual learning is the only solution. It will help students to get back on track once we get out of this pandemic. Nidhi Jain, via email Make the most of technology Virtual teaching is not the perfect substitute to the classroom setting, but there is no better alternative for now. Learning should never stop and technology is the best channel for that. Teachers should make videos and share them with the students through WhatsApp, YouTube or school homework applications. There should also be some provision for clearing the doubts. Besides, the students should utilise this time and learn life skills. In any case, there is an ocean of videos on every topic on YouTube, which the students can access for free. Inderpal Singh, Dugri Digital learning is inevitable Owing to the lockdown, the education system has shifted from classroom teaching to virtual teaching to avoid learning gap. This was inevitable as we cant step out of our houses. College and university students can adapt to this mode easily as they have their own smart phones. Early learners can gain access to digital learning with the help of their parents. This in no way will ever substitute the need of a teacher though. Loveleen Sarao, via email Classroom learning better than virtual learning Amid the lockdown, we have no other option but to opt for virtual learning. Thats why most of the institutions are holding virtual classes. If compared, classroom learning is better than virtual learning because the latter involves many technical problems. Teachers give lessons online but are not able to keep a check on the students. Virtual learning is good but only if it is clubbed with classroom learning. Diya Baria, via email Online teaching: Best way to impart education right now All educational institutions are shut owing to the lockdown because of which students are unable to go for classroom learning and have to instead opt for online classes. Online learning is an interesting medium as students can attend classes taught by teachers from across the world. If one doesnt understand a concept taught by one teacher, he/she can refer to another one. We can even get a three-dimensional view of objects online which helps us understand certain scientific concepts better. Amid such critical times, online teaching is the best way to impart education. Sneha Pathak, via email Collective effort important In India, we dont have a lot of experience in digital learning but we had to resort to it as finding a substitute for classroom teaching was the need of the hour. The concept of online classes is not new but amid the COVID-19 lockdown, it has become our only option. Digital classes are managed through app management systems. Regular feedback from parents plays a major role. A collective effort of teachers, students and parents is important to ensure that students education is not affected by the pandemic. Mehak Arora, via email Students dont take online classes seriously Though virtual learning is a good initiative taken to continue to educate children during the COVID-19 lockdown, classroom learning is definitely better. Classroom learning facilitates a better understanding of concepts. No one takes online classes as seriously. It is difficult to cover the entire syllabus through digital mode of learning. Swarika Garg, via email Virtual learning is the best option Instead of halting the process of education, virtual learning is the best option amid lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. Though the online platform is not as convenient as classroom teaching, but it is still very effective in educating students during these difficult times. Teachers have been using new tools and technologies to teach pupils. The e-learning platform is the only and the best substitute to classroom learning for now. Besides, it is more innovative and makes learning interesting and creative for students. Therefore, it is important that we support teachers and educators in their endeavors to educate students from home. Laveena Sharma, Haibowal Kalan Classroom learning more effective Classroom learning is always better than virtual learning as it is more effective and engaging. For attending online classes, students require technology, which might not be affordable and available to those living in rural areas. Besides, virtual learning requires prolonged exposure to mobile phones, which might cause strain to eyes and ears on overuse. The classroom setup provides students a platform to engage themselves in group discussions and boost their overall self confidence. It also helps them establish a rapport with teachers. Ishita Katyal, via email Classrooms have less distractions For me, classroom learning is anytime better than virtual learning and has many advantages. A classroom set-up is more engaging with less distractions for students. Besides, it is dynamic and provides more opportunities for group interaction among children. It also promotes kinesthetic learning among students as they are not just restricted to their phone screens and technology. Jassica Goyal, via email Each mode of learning has its own pros and cons With the coronavirus outbreak, the whole world has changed drastically. In the sphere of education, shifting to online learning was the only option left for students and teachers. Both the teaching methods, online and offline, are accompanied with their own set of pros and cons. While the working students and professionals prefer online mode, others like to opt for offline mode. However, presently, there is no choice but to go for virtual learning and embrace the changes with a positive mindset. Right now, our main motive should be to get education and not complain about the circumstances. Taranjot Singh, BRS Nagar Online learning follows social distancing Online mode of learning is the best choice during the pandemic as it adheres to the norms of social distancing as laid down by the government as a precautionary measure against the spread of the virus. However, it does have a few backdrops, including lack of technical awareness among students and network issues during online sessions. Also, under regular circumstances, classroom learning is a better choice as a teacher has full control over the class and there is much better communication among teacher and students. Harshpreet Kaur, Haibowal Kalan Students now using gadgets for study purposes Each mode of learning has its own merits and demerits. In these times when people have to stay at home, online learning has had a great impact on students education. Prior to the lockdown, children used to kill their time playing games on mobile phones, but now they are using the gadgets for study purposes. Despite its advantages, online learning has negatives too. During online classes, a teacher cannot pay attention on every student. Also, there is a lack of understanding between a teacher and students at times. Jasleen Kaur, via email Online classes will help students complete syllabus Switching onto online learning is a great step taken by education institutions amid lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. E-learning will enable students utilise their time and cover the syllabus on time. This method will ensure that students spend their time productively during the tough times. Its important that we appreciate the efforts of institutions and teachers who are working recklessly towards betterment of students. Vivek Marwaha, via email E-learning saves time, money and energy Technology has narrowed the bridge between virtual and classroom learning in the modern world. Unlike traditional mode of learning, e-learning saves times, money and energy. It is the most preferred method that promotes knowledge enhancement among students while they are in their comfort zone. On the other hand, classroom lessons are good for primary students as they learn to become disciplined and follow a daily routine. In classrooms, students learn about their weakness and strengths besides focusing on social interaction as a means to boost self confidence. Pawan Kumar, via email Repeat recorded lectures to understand concepts Teaching and learning in a virtual classroom is a unique experience both for teachers and students. Online classes are more effective as compared to the offline ones as these save students time and money. In a virtual set-up, students only need to go through a video to understand the topic instead of spending hours at school as in a classroom set-up. The best part about online learning is that the students can watch recorded lectures as many time as they want to understand a concept better, which is not possible in regular classrooms. Ishmanpreet Kaur, via email No substitute to classroom learning There is no substitute to classroom learning. Though teachers are doing their best to help children in all ways, but it is not possible to handle so many students on a virtually platform. Online learning is helpful to complete written work only. It is not effective in getting an individuals doubts cleared. Besides, its biggest drawback is that it makes students more prone to using gadgets, which thus affects their health. Simranjeet Kaur, Dugri Effective in times of crisis Online learning is an effective mode in times of crisis. However, it is not as impactful as classroom learning in general. Studying requires coordination between a teacher and students, which is possible when the two are in a face-to-face set-up. In classrooms, students can learn about concepts better and get their doubts cleared easily. Shagun Mahajan, via email Classrooms teach real essence of learning Due to the closure of schools and academic institutions, teachers have switched to taking classes on virtual platform. Online video interactions, concept videos and PDF files have enabled educators to continue with the teaching and learning process amid the lockdown. However, this new mode cannot take over the traditional mode of learning as it is the classrooms that teach the real essence of learning to students. Mohit Raghav, via email Virtual classrooms are boring Online studies not only affect students health but also impact their learning as they find virtual classrooms boring. Students learn the best in a group or a collective environment with their friends. Moreover, classroom lessons help children form many cheerful and carefree memories. To get education via online mode, students also need smart phones, laptops and computers, which are not affordable for all. Presently, teachers are going for online mode as there is no other option available to them in these tough circumstances. Gurvir Kaur, via email Communication is better in classrooms Some students feel that classroom lessons are more effective as compared to virtual learning. In classrooms, students can interact with their teachers and ask them questions. However, during online classes, communication is hindered as students and teachers are sitting remotely at their homes. The biggest disadvantages of learning through e-platform is that it requires technology and gadgets that not every student can afford. Tanya Bajaj, New Janta Nagar Virtual learning is a bliss Virtual learning is a bliss if students and teachers have easy access to technology and internet. The platform enable students to attend lectures while being in the comforts of their home. Students can also ask questions and clear their doubts instantly. The only hindrance to online learning is poor internet and lack of technological awareness among students. Apart from this, online mode of education is highly beneficial. Manmohan Kaur, via email A leading pharmaceuticals executive on Monday reassured the public his industry is working as rapidly as possible to find a cure for Covid-19. Haseeb Ahmad, president of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry and managing director of Novartis UK, said clinical trials and regulatory approvals are being fast-tracked at record breaking rates. Business secretary Alok Sharma last week set up a taskforce to find a vaccine. The University of Oxford will begin vaccine trials this week and said they should have one million doses ready by September. Most scientists still believe a vaccine will take 12 to 18 months to develop and manufacture. Ahmad told the Standard: Its a really emotive topic, the timelines on vaccines. The main focus needs to be on identifying a vaccine which is safe and effective, medicines and vaccines dont grow on trees so we do need robust clinical evidence. Whatever the base case is today, everyone is doing everything they can to reduce the time it takes to get a vaccine to patients so whatever forecast or whatever speculation exists were trying to beat those forecasts. Ahmad, who runs the British arm of the 217 billion Swiss pharma giant, said the industry is currently studying around 100 treatments to see whether they can be repurposed to fight the virus. Novartis has three unnamed medicines being examined. There are three we are looking at potentially investigating in clinical trials. These medicines are not licensed yet for Covid-19, the very first thing to do is to ensure we can have randomised clinical trials to make sure theyre effective. Ahmad said that recruiting for trials had been simpler than normal with large numbers of willing patients in hospital with the virus. When you do studies you have set up protocols, you need scientific advisers, lots of paperwork, there are very clear processes for getting these trials approved. These are now getting approved in record breaking time, he said. The ability for willing patients to participate in trials is there so weve been able to move really really quickly and within the last month we already have trials up and running in the UK as an industry. Novartis UK moved its UK headquarters to London from Surrey earlier this year and its staff are now working from home, with staff still on site at its Grimsby factory. The company, which largely focuses on treatments to sell into the healthcare system rather than everyday drugs, has focused its Covid-19 efforts on supporting the NHS through volunteering, aiding the hunt for a vaccine and ensuring the supply of other non-Covid-19 related medicines. Ahmad said the supply chain of the 12,000 medicines used in the UK was robust and in good shape. Manufacturing capacity threatens to be another big issue in the race to find and distribute a potential vaccine. Vaccines and medicines supply chains are global, and the UK must be a voice for global cooperation and fair distribution of any Covid-19 vaccine around the world, said Ahmad. Those who can bring home their work share jokes and complaints on Twitter about meetings on Zoom. However, some people are not given the privilege of bringing home their work. In a Tweet on March 20 by the United Farm Workers of America, it was stressed that farmers "can't pick strawberries remotely." This signifies that the limitation of farmers to bring home their work. According to the labor organization, farmworkers who work to produce food for the people who are unable to telecommute. This is a statement by the organization in the middle of March as the country implements changes to its policies for migrant workers. It had affected a minimum of 2 million migrant farm workers. Food Suppliers Despite the shortage of toilet papers in the supermarkets of the U.S., the country's food supply produced by farmworkers in the country, the majority of which are migrants, remains in good condition thanks to these workers. Yet a majority of them work without any necessary protection, says one of their supporters. The migrant workers continue to keep the food supply in the country in good condition despite the presence of insufficient health care or wage and issues of immigration involving the country's H-2A visa program. They are being considered essential right now, but in fact, they have always been relevant to the lives of every American, says the director and founder of the Border Agricultural Workers Center in El Paso, Texas named Carlos Marentes during an interview. Check these out: Easing Temporary Immigration Regulations Migrant workers are not being considered essential. On April 15, the Department of Homeland Security in the U.S. announced a temporary easing of immigration policies. This measure allows businesses to employ foreign workers faster and employ them for a more extended period than before. According to a statement given by the Department of Agriculture of the United States, the non-permanent changes will assist U.S. farmers who employ migrant farmworkers. This will help prevent disruptions in employment and support the food supply chain of the country. Historical Abandonment of Farm Workers Regardless of their importance to the country, there has always been a historical abandonment for farmworkers in the United States, says Marentes. This is a period to surpass 'sentimental blackmail,' which constitutes giving out praise for the significant contribution of farmworkers but not giving out protection for their rights, as Marentes stated. One of the potential threats for farmworkers is the possibility of lowering their salaries during the crisis. The H-2A visa program is a guest worker campaign in the United States. It permits agricultural employers to hire migrant workers from different countries, especially from Mexico, to work in their farms in the United States, says the director of policy at the Migration and Refugee Services of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Mumbai, April 20 : Maharashtra registered nine deaths and 466 new Covid-19 cases, including two staffers of the BMC Disaster Control, officials said here on Monday. The two infected staffers and others have been isolated in the BMC premises itself and the entire building was sanitised as a precaution. Incidentally, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had visited the BMC Disaster Control room on April 1, followed by Health Minister Rajesh Tope a few days later. Also at least 53 media persons in the city working for various electronic media have tested positive and have been quarantined in a private hotel in Goregaon suburb. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar has gone into self-isolation since she had reportedly come in contact with some of them recently, though officials declined to comment on the issue. Tope reiterated his appeal to the people not to suppress any Covid-19 related symptoms and to voluntarily come forth for tests. Mumbai also witnessed three major fishing areas - Worli Koliwada, Mahim Fishermen Colony and Versova Fishermen Village - going under lockdown after over a dozen positive cases were reported there. While Worli Koliwada has been in quarantine for over a week, the other two have been isolated since Sunday. With the latest deaths, the total fatalities in the state shot up from 223 to 232, and the number of positive cases surpassed 4,200 to touch 4,666. Among the deaths, 7 were recorded in Mumbai and two from Malegaon in Nashik district. For the second consecutive day, Pune - another worst-hit Covid-19 hub, did not report any deaths. Among the fatalities on Monday, there were 3 women and 6 men, and a majority had other serious ailments like diabetes, hypertension, heart problems, asthma, etc. Monday's jump in new positive cases is the second highest after the previous high of 552 notched on Sunday, creating concerns in different quarters. As per the Health Department bulletin, of the new cases, Mumbai alone accounted for 308 over Sunday's figures, though the BMC has stated 155 new cases. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region continued to cause worries with 155 Covid-19 deaths and 3,608 positive cases till date. Pune Division follows at a distant second slot with 55 dead and 697 patients. The next is Nashik Division with 12 deaths and 129 positive cases, followed by Nagpur Division with one dead and 73 patients. On the positive side, 65 fully cured patients returned home today, taking the number of those discharged to 572 till date. The number of people in home quarantine shot up from 87,254 to touch 93,655, and those in institutional quarantine increased from 6,743 to 6,879 on Monday, and the state currently has 364 containment zones. Anaida and her husband immigrated to Canada from Albania in 2002, joining family in Toronto. Having interrupted her dental studies to make the move, she visited the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Toronto, hoping to find a way to continue. I left that meeting crying, says Anaida. Where I had come from, the system to become a dentist was different. There werent as many levels of education you needed to complete, and the tuition was so much less. But the people here gave me some information on being a hygienist, and I decided that I had a choice; I could keep crying, or I could find another way to deal with it. Dealing with it meant a lot of hard work, but a decade later, Anaida is not only a registered dental hygienist, but is also the owner and CEO of DentalX, a full-service dental clinic in Torontos inner suburb of North York. The business has 11 staff members and serves some 2,500 patients in total. We try to take our time, because some are nervous about dentists, says Anaida. I was 7 when I first went to a dentist in Albania, and I didnt go again until I was 19. Ive never forgotten my own feelings of dental phobia and understand how stressful it can be for some people. Beyond building a successful business, Anaida has founded Mission KIND (Kids in Need of Dental Care), an ongoing program to provide free dental care to youth from families facing financial hardship. In 2017 and 2018, DentalX partnered with local charities to hold Giving Back Smiles, a campaign to provide cleaning services, fluoride treatments, x-rays and emergency treatments to their clients. Two organizations that benefitted from this were the Red Door Family Shelter and Jessie's Centre, which helps pregnant teenagers, young parents and their children. Sinead Dunphy of Jessies Centre says she knows where to find free dental care for children, but has a harder time finding it for young adults. Without insurance, dental care is just not a priority for people, and thats a problem, she says. We need to be able to say to them, heres a dental partner, lets make an appointment, because you need to go now. Howard Ma, a hygienist with DentalX, says the companys efforts to support vulnerable people go right back to Anaida. Last year, he nominated her for a Superhero award from the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association. Anaida has made it her mission to educate patients on the importance of dental health, he noted in the nomination. She loves to help people who have financial difficulties, as she knows the struggle and how hard it is. Despite the challenges she has witnessed as a newcomer, Anaida is passionate about the opportunities that exist in Canada, and she remains committed to making her own contributions to the entire community, one smile at a time. Calif. county facing backlash for banning singing for online church services Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A California county is being criticized for banning church choir members from meeting together to record songs for online worship services as officials carry out the state's stay-at-home order. The Mendocino County order stipulates that only four individuals are permitted to record from one place and "no singing or use of wind instruments, harmonicas or other instruments that could spread COVID-19 through projected droplets shall be permitted unless the recording of the event is done at ones residence." The order, which went into effect on Good Friday, will continue to be enforced through May 10, Fox News reported. In addition to churches, Mendocino County's order extends to other public venues such as concert halls, auditoriums, temples, and playhouses. Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, posted a commentary on his website about such policies that restrict religious worship. "To be clear, authorities can and should require that churches respect and maintain physical distancing between all the very limited participants in a streamed worship service," Mohler said. "It is an entirely different matter, however, to tell Christians that they cannot sing in praise and honor of God. "Indeed, these orders came out just days before Resurrection Sunday orders saying that Christians, on the day where they celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, are prohibited from singing." As a result of the coronavirus outbreak, state and local governments mandated social distancing guidelines and orders prohibiting large gatherings deemed "non-essential," which have often included church services, though some measures have proven to be more burdensome than others. As The Christian Post reported earlier this week, Legacy Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, filed a lawsuit against the state, arguing that the way in which Democrat Gov. Michelle Lynn Lujan Grisham's order was carried out was sinister in that it was issued on Good Friday and limited gatherings to no more than five people. The church said it needed around 30 people to conduct its online streaming efforts. The ongoing pandemic has accentuated tensions between the government's responsibility to safeguard the public and the preservation of protected freedoms set forth in the U.S. Constitution, particularly regarding religious liberty. U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr recently voiced support for Temple Baptist Church in Greenville, Mississippi, after police issued $500 tickets to people who refused to leave a drive-in church service in which they followed social distancing guidelines from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Last week the city's Democrat Mayor Errick D. Simmons issued an executive order barring such services until the shelter-in-place order is lifted, though the ticket fees were waived. However, the mayor ended the ban after the Justice Department intervened. '...If people follow the lockdown well.' IMAGE: Doctors take swabs samples during a COVID-19 testing drive in Mahim, north central Mumbai, April 17, 2020. Photograph: ANI Photo "When a spurt starts in such an outbreak, when you have an incubation period of about two weeks, you should expect that for the next three weeks you are bound to find more number of cases," Dr Raman Gangakhedkar, Head Scientist of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases at the Indian Council of Medical Research, tells Rediff.com Senior Contributor Sheela Bhatt in the second segment of an exclusive three-part interview. So many doctors and experts had been saying that India must test, test, test. ICMR enforced such a protocol that the number of tests remained low. Is it because we did not have enough number of test kits? Please remember our testing criteria is similar to what you adopt in any country. I can't say we were restrictive in terms of doing that. Now, initially you could have said we had less number of virus research diagnostic labs which were offering tests. But if you recall, we jumped straightaway from 31 to 60 labs, from 60 to 100 plus, far faster than you can imagine. If you look at roping in private labs, we have even done that part. So essentially, what does that mean? We have a huge network where we could provide access to patients. We have a sufficient amount of kits because I am repeatedly saying that even if the testing increases, we are sure that for the next 6 to 8 weeks we won't have any shortage whatsoever. But then people ask why are we not testing more? See, if you have given the access and still people are not coming to you, with those criteria that have been laid down, then I cannot be blamed for that. Basically, we have done everything. See it's like saying I have opened up a shop and people are not coming. So, in other words, you are saying we didn't have actual COVID-19 patients. Yes, at that point in time, because otherwise I cannot explain why people did not come. Or it is possible that the stigma is so high that people don't feel like coming to labs or showing it to a doctor. Even after the lockdown the cases double every 5 days. The lockdown should have reduced the number of patients, but it is doubling. All of us know there were some minor hiccups that we had in between which led to a spurt of cases. When a spurt starts in such an outbreak, when you have an incubation period of about two weeks, you should expect that for the next three weeks you are bound to find more number of cases. Because, you are now going for a quality contact tracing, to find out who all could have probably acquired infections. And that person, till the time you detect, is likely to be spreading infection elsewhere. So numbers are bound to be higher. The numbers of patients will come down only after, to my mind, they should start stabilising sometime around 25th of April, if people follow the lockdown well. The Mumbai incident was also another hiccup that we had. So basically it's up to us as individuals to control the spread of the disease. How stringently we follow is the key. If we do that, I don't see why we cannot become Wuhan as one place where infection was controlled well. IMAGE: A health worker checks the temperature of a child at a relief camp in Prayagraj, April 17, 2020. Photograph: PTI Photo Why is the death toll high in Maharashtra? I wouldn't be able to comment because we have not got the complete data for Maharashtra itself. But it is possible, since I come from Maharashtra, that the lifestyle and the age groups may be factors. There may be people who may be having higher proportion chronic morbidities like diabetes and hypertension and that's the reason this must be happening. Otherwise, if you ask me, Maharashtra tends to provide far good care, whether it is intensive care or whatever. I don't think it is an issue related to the provision of healthcare. Can we say that community transmission is present in Mumbai now? See, we think what we are doing now, is thinking of community transmission as some kind of a severe threat. There are two things that we have to understand. When we say cluster is present, cluster is present in the community. A single case that occurs is present in the community. There, fear of spread is largely restricted to whatever contacts that I have amongst whoever I know. Now if there are more number of clusters you will find they will have their own spheres. As long as these circles are not crossing, it is managable. People could have had acquired infection from any other source. No, you shouldn't be worried. We are trying to be prepared for any eventuality at this juncture. And if we are today prepared for eventuality, why should we be worried if one is classified as one or the other stage of infections? New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian addresses the media during a press conference to update on COVID-19, at NSW Parliament House on March 17, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images) Federal Opposition Taps In As States Fight Over Virgin Australia Queensland and New South Wales are fighting over struggling airline Virgin Australia, as it seeks debt funding to stay afloat amid the economic downturn caused by the CCP virus. Battle lines were drawn when NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said her government would consider all options, including luring Virgin and its subsidiary Tiger Airways to Sydneydespite the upset to Queensland-based employees. Were thinking about what we can do to keep as many jobs going now, but also how we can actually start recovering the economy during this time as well, she told reporters. If that means encouraging businesses to set up shop in NSW, if it means bringing jobs to our state, well of course consider all those things. She said her governments responsibility is to NSW. I dont apologise for that, she said. Queensland minister Cameron Dick is just as serious about protecting Queenslands share of Virgins 15,000 employees. He warned NSW to back off on stealing Virgin, saying we will stop at nothing to keep the carrier based in Brisbane. New South Wales might want to bring a pea-shooter to the fight; we will bring a bazooka and were not afraid to use it, he said. At a time when their jobs hang in the balance, the 1,200 Queensland families who depend on those head office jobs should not have to face the threat of being forced to move to Sydney, said Dick. Brisbane has been home to Virgins headquarters ever since former Labor Premier Peter Beattie provided $11 million in incentives for the airline to set up shop back in 2000. Federal Perspective The Morrison government has remained firm on its position that Virgins commercial discussions are for its board and management, and not for the government to interfere. But federal shadow opposition treasurer Labors Jim Chalmers suggested to reporters that the federal treasurer was ignoring the plight of Virgins employees. [Unemployment lines will] be longer than necessary because the government refuses to step up and support 15,000 workers at Virgin airlines who are going through a very uncertain period while the government leaves them hanging, he said on April 20. Earlier that day, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told Sunrise on Seven Network that he wanted to see Virgin continue to survive, but that the Australian government doesnt want to own an airline. He pointed out that former Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating sold Qantas Airways back in 1993. We believe that [Virgins] been hit, like many other businesses, by the global pandemic, but it also has some shareholders with very deep pockets. As you know Etihad, Singapore Airlines, Chinese-related companies, and of course Virgin International. Lets see what those major shareholders do, but we do want to see Virgin continue to operate, said Frydenberg. Back in March, Virgin sought a federal loan for $1.4 billion (US$890 million). When the global pandemic hit, Virgin was already carrying about $5 billion (US$3.17 billion) in debt. In a bid to protect thousands of jobs in the state, Queenslands Labor government has offered $200 million (US$126 million) to help rescue Virgin, but only if it keeps its Brisbane headquarters. Their decision to bail out the airline comes during an election year for Queensland. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Arya Dipa (The Jakarta Post) Bandung Mon, April 20, 2020 19:06 631 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd31b1dc 1 National COVID-19,Bandung-raya,Greater-Bandung,ridwan-kamil,social-assistance-funds,social-aid Free West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil has decided to distribute social assistance to thousands of families in Greater Bandung before officially implementing large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) in the area amid efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19. Starting on Sunday, the governor distributed staple food aid worth Rp 350,000 (US$22.50) and Rp 150,000 in cash to 5,492 families in Bandung and Cimahi, West Java. "The sooner [we give the aid] the better. We decided to distribute the funds to residents, while we're continuously collecting data on more beneficiaries," Ridwan said in the Central Processing Office of state-owned postal company PT Pos Bandung on Sunday. Ridwan said his administration would distribute monthly assistance for the next four months. "There are 4,668 beneficiaries in Bandung and 824 beneficiaries in Cimahi," Ridwan said. He also said the administrations would hand out similar aid to around 18,000 families in West Bandung regency gradually. "Our target is to distribute the funds in the first 10 days of every month. So some residents will receive the funds on the fifth day of the month while others will get it on the 10th," Ridwan said. The administration cooperated with Pos Bandung to distribute the aid packages as well as online-based motorcycle taxi drivers. He said he had asked all regents and mayors who were planning to implement PSBB to renew their beneficiaries data. Read also: Govt expands social aid for poor to prevent Idul Fitri mudik The social assistance funds from West Java administrations is only one of eight financial aid programs aimed to ease the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Greater Bandung, which consists of Bandung and Cimahi cities, as well as Bandung, West Bandung and Sumedang regencies, will impose the PSBB policy for 14 days starting on Wednesday, following approval from Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto to ramp up efforts in the fight against COVID-19. The area will join other regions in West Java, namely Bogor, Bekasi and Depok cities, as well as Bogor and Bekasi regencies all satellite areas of Jakarta commonly referred to as Bodebek in imposing the PSBB. Ridwan had previously said that Greater Bandung and Bodebek metropolitan areas had around two-thirds of COVID-19 cases in West Java. Prior to distribution, the central government had also set up the family hope program, staple food card, pre-employment card, and village funds assistance for families hardest-hit by the COVID-19 outbreak. President Joko Jokowi Widodo and the Social Affairs Ministry had also distributed monthly cash funds worth Rp 600,000 to thousands of residents for the next three months. Bandung administration economy and development assistant Eric Mohamad Atthauriq said he welcomed the West Java administrations' initiative to distribute cash funds to Bandung residents. Eric explained there were around 137,000 families in Bandung registered in the Data of Social Welfare (DTKS) database. Some 60,000 of them had received assistance through the family hope program and staple food aid program from the central government. "The Bandung administration is ready to distribute cash aid to the remaining 77,000 families minus the 4,668 families that have received assistance from West Java administrations," he said. The West Java Industry and Trade Agency has also prepared 12,000 canned food packages for the residents in addition to the staple food and cash aid. (nal) FILE PHOTO: Hong Kong politician Martin Lee and Founder of Next Media Jimmy Lai march during a protest to demand authorities scrap a proposed extradition bill with China, in Hong Kong By Scott Murdoch HONG KONG (Reuters) - Suppressing Hong Kong's democracy movement is a priority for China, even in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, a top pro-democracy leader said on Sunday, a day after police arrested him and 14 others in a surprise crackdown. The United States and others criticised the arrest of the 15 on charges of organising and participating in anti-government protests last year, the biggest crackdown on the pro-democracy movement since the outbreak of the protests almost a year ago. "This is all happening while we are in midst of a pandemic," pro-democracy activist Avery Ng told Reuters by telephone. "The world is dealing with this virus, but this signals that Beijing still sees a political crackdown in Hong Kong is a top priority." Those arrested included Democratic Party founder and barrister Martin Lee, 81, millionaire publishing tycoon Jimmy Lai, 71, and former lawmaker and barrister Margaret Ng, 72. Police said those arrested were charged with organising and participating in unlawful assemblies on Aug. 18 and Oct. 1 and 20 last year. Major and often violent demonstrations broke out across the former British colony on those days. They were due to appear in court on May 18. Police said more arrests were possible. Avery Ng and some of the others arrested were released on bail late on Saturday. The arrests prompted criticism from the United States and Britain, which both called for Hong Kong's rule of law to be maintained. "The United States condemns the arrest of pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong," U.S Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. "Beijing and its representatives in Hong Kong continue to take actions inconsistent with commitments made under the Sino-British Joint Declaration that include transparency, the rule of law, and guarantees that Hong Kong will continue to 'enjoy a high degree of autonomy'," he said. Hong Kong returned to Beijing in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" formula that guarantees it broad freedoms not seen in mainland China, and a high degree of autonomy. Story continues China rejected the U.S. criticism. "It serves as another evidence of their collusion with the local troublemakers, which deserves condemnation by the entire international community," a spokesman for Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong said a statement. 'HAWKISH' In Britain, a Foreign Office representative said the government expected any arrests and court procedures to be "conducted in a fair and transparent manner". The right to peaceful protest was "fundamental to Hong Kong's way of life" and authorities should avoid inflaming tension and "focus on rebuilding trust through a process of meaningful political dialogue". The Hong Kong government defended the arrests. The city's Security Bureau said were carried out in line with the law. Hong Kong's protest campaign has gone quiet as the coronavirus threat has grown. There have been no major demonstrations in the city since Jan. 1. But nevertheless, Ng said he believed Beijing would not compromise and more activists were likely to be arrested. "It is a very significant political decision and shows the direction that Beijing will take in dealing with Hong Kong," he said. "They will be very hawkish ... we can expect there will be more crackdowns." In another sign of the growing power of Beijing over the city, Beijing's Liaison Office, the Chinese government's top representative office in the city, announced on Friday that it was not bound by a law that restricts interference by other mainland Chinese bodies. The city government backed the announcement drawing the condemnation of 22 opposition members of the city's legislature who accused Chief Executive Carrie Lams government of "betraying" Hong Kong by its "capitulation". The International Bar Association condemned the arrests of Lee and Margaret Ng, who have been active human rights and rule of law campaigners during their careers. It was vital that justice was applied transparently in Hong Kong, especially while the world is gripped by the coronavirus pandemic, it said. (Reporting by Scott Murdoch; additional reporting Greg Torode, Judy Hua; Editing by Robert Birsel) We now not only know that the South African regulator has released emergency spectrum to a number of service providers, as requested by the government, but we also know who those service providers are. According to local news reports MTN Group, Vodacom and Telkom have all been granted additional mobile spectrum, while Liquid Telecom and Rain Networks were also granted additional spectrum for their fixed wireless access services. The temporary licences grant emergency access to additional spectrum to ease congestion for the duration of the nationwide lockdown that is now in force to limit the spread of the coronavirus. A surge in connectivity has been the result of many South Africans working from home or simply using the internet more often while unable to go out. The licences were released late last week by South Africas telecoms regulatory body, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), to both mobile network providers and internet service providers. These licenses were granted at no cost to the operators. However, they do come with a few conditions attached. Firstly, operators are obliged to facilitate access to remote learning initiatives and virtual classrooms. In addition they must not charge their subscribers for access to health-related websites specifically identified by the countrys Department of Health. And, of course, as has been stated more than once, this is a stopgap measure. The additional spectrum will be only be available to operators on a temporary basis. The country aims to auction off permanent licences for the spectrum later this year. Areas with large ethnic minority populations make up more than three quarters of England's coronavirus hotspots, a report has revealed. But numbers coming from Muslim communities in areas which could be expected to be hard-hit are low, and cultural habits may be protecting England's Muslims from the fast-spreading disease. That's according to a report by Professor Richard Webber, from Newcastle University, and writer and former Labour Party politician, Trevor Phillips. The report points out that while areas with high proportions of non-white people make up most of the UK's coronavirus hotspots, Asian Muslim areas, largely, do not. Blackburn, Bradford, Luton, Rochdale and Rotherham, Mr Philips said, are 'conspicuous by their absence' on the list of worst-hit places by the coronavirus as both non-white and poor areas. He suggests that regular hand-washing before prayer, a young average age and fewer than one in three Muslim women being in work may offer the population ongoing protection from COVID-19. The report comes as Public Health England launches an inquiry into why non-white people appear to be worse affected by the disease - intensive care reports show that 34.5 per cent of critically ill patients come from ethnic minority groups, despite only making up around 14 per cent of the population. Scientists say black and Asian people may be at greater risk of catching the disease because they're more likely to live in densely-populated cities and work in people-facing jobs such as public transport or the NHS. Areas with large ethnic minority populations make up more than three quarters of England's coronavirus hotspots, a report has revealed Research shows that the majority (13 out of 17) areas of England with higher-than-average levels of COVID-19 also have large ethnic minority populations. The England average for ethnic minority is 14 per cent, according to 2011 Census data Trevor Phillips wrote in an editorial accompanying the report: 'Maybe there is a revelation to be had here; if one key to stopping transmission of the virus is hand washing, might a faith community many of whose members ritually wash before five-times-a-day prayers have something to teach the rest of us?' In an opinion article in The Times today, Mr Phillips wrote: 'Were poverty the key determinant, we would expect the virus to be running rampant among Britains Pakistani and Bangladeshi Muslim communities.' He gives the example of Tower Hamlets, in central London, which is more than a third Muslim and surrounded by coronavirus hotspots but appears cocooned from it. Tower Hamlets has, so far, recorded 548 cases of COVID-19, compared to 859 in neighbouring Newham, and 1,075 in Southwark across the river. Both boroughs have high proportions of ethnic minority people but fewer Muslims than Tower Hamlets. Statistics show that only four of the areas with the highest Muslim populations also appear on the list of COVID-19 hotspots. These are Newham, Birmingham, Brent and Ealing. More than a dozen others with large numbers of Muslim citizens and also in inner city or urban areas, putting them at risk of the virus spreading rapidly, do not appear on the list. These include various boroughs of London and Manchester, Luton, Bradford, Slough and Leicester. Mr Phillips added: 'Maybe there is a revelation to be had here; if one key to stopping transmission of the virus is hand washing, might a faith community many of whose members ritually wash before five-times-a-day prayers have something to teach the rest of us? 'And does an ethnic group where almost 40 per cent are economically inactive - and therefore not regularly using public transport, for example - merely underline the protective value of social isolation?' Despite his claims the Muslim lifestyle might protect its followers from COVID-19, his research finds that ethnic minorities in general appear to be at higher risk. More likely to live in large households with multiple generations, and more likely to work in people-facing jobs, non-white people may be more likely to catch the virus. Data in the pair's report, titled 'Some observations on COVID-19 and Minorities in the UK', showed high levels of minority ethnic populations in England's worst-hit areas. AREAS OF ENGLAND WITH THE LARGEST MUSLIM POPULATIONS According to a report by the Muslim Council of Britain, based on data from the most recent census (2011), 4.8 per cent of the population in England and Wales is comprised of Muslim people - a population of 2.7million at that time. The Webber Phillips report shows that of 17 coronavirus hotspots in Britain - three quarters of which have large minority populations - Muslim areas are 'conspicuous by their absence'. Here are the areas of England with the highest populations of Muslims. Those highlighted in bold also feature in the list of coronavirus hotspots. Tower Hamlets (34.5%) Newham (32%) Blackburn with Darwen (27%) Bradford (24.7%) Luton (24.6%) Redbridge (23.3%) Slough (23.3%) Waltham Forest (21.9%) Birmingham (21.8%) Leicester (18.6%) Brent (18.6%) Westminster (18.3%) Oldham (17.7%) Pendle (17.4%) Enfield (16.7%) Manchester (15.8%) Ealing (15.7%) Advertisement AREAS OF ENGLAND WITH THE HIGHEST RATES OF COVID-19 INFECTION Data in the report by Professor Richard Webber and Trevor Phillips, shows that areas with high proportions of ethnic minorities make up 13 out of the 17 areas of England with higher-than-average COVID-19 infection rates. England's average is 155.5 officially diagnosed cases of the coronavirus per 100,000 people, and 14 per cent of people in an ethnic minority (BAME) group. Here are the data from the report, ranked by cases per 100,000 people. Those in bold also have bigger than average ethnic minority populations. Brent (345.8 cases/ 63.7% BAME) Southwark (324.8 cases/ 45.8%) Lambeth (302.8 cases/ 42.9%) Harrow (297.9 cases/ 57.8% BAME) Croydon (294.1 cases/ 44.9% BAME) Cumbria (285.9 cases/ 1.5% BAME) Barnet (264.0 cases/ 35.9% BAME) Sheffield (263.3 cases/ 16.3%) Ealing (261.9 cases/ 51.0% BAME) Lewisham (248.2 cases/ 46.5%) Wandsworth (244.3 cases/ 28.6%) Newham (234.6 cases/ 71.0%) Bromley (218.7 cases/ 15.7% BAME) Liverpool (212.8 cases/ 11.1% BAME) B irmingham (185.0 cases/ 42.1%) Oxfordshire (159.7 cases/ 9.1%) Lancashire (156.8 cases/ 7.7% BAME) Advertisement In Brent, for example, where there have been 345.8 infections per 100,000 people - the highest rate in the country - almost two thirds of people are non-white (63.7 per cent). Filling out the five worst-affected areas were the London boroughs of Southwark (45.8 per cent non-white), Lambeth (42.9 per cent), Harrow (57.8 per cent) and Croydon (44.9 per cent). INQUIRY LAUNCHED INTO 'DISPROPORTIONATE' EFFECT ON NON-WHITE PEOPLE Public Health England and the NHS have launched an inquiry into why ethnic minority citizens have been 'disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 epidemic. At least 17 per cent of people who have died of the coronavirus in NHS hospitals have been non-white, along with 34.5 per cent of intensive care patients. However, minorities only make up around 14 per cent of the population of England. The first 10 doctors to die in the UK from COVID-19 were all from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds - with ancestry from regions including Asia, the Middle East and Africa, a figure Labour described as 'deeply disturbing'. BAME staff make up 44 per cent of medical personnel and Labour and the British Medical Association were among those calling for an inquiry. Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said last week: It is absolutely critical that we find out which groups are most at risk so we can help to protect them.' He said that while it was clear age, male gender and having other health problems were clear risk factors, the evidence for ethnicity was 'less clear'. 'I have had discussions with scientists about this in terms of trying to tease this apart today - also looking very specifically at healthcare workers with leaders of the NHS and across the medical and nursing professions,' he told a daily news conference. 'This is something we are very keen to get extremely clear. We have asked PHE to look at this in some detail and then what we really want is if we see any signal at all we want to then next know what we can do about it to minimise risk.' Advertisement Next on the list of 17 hotspots was an outlier - Cumbria, where 98.5 per cent of people are white. But it was alone with Liverpool, Oxfordshire and Lancashire in that it had above average rates of infection but below average numbers of ethnic minorities. The report by Mr Phillips and Professor Webber suggests that reasons for higher rates of severe COVID-19 among ethnic minorities might include a greater likelihood of young people, who are likely to have only mild infections, passing it onto elderly relatives in the same household. White British households are less likely to have multiple generations living under the same roof. And greater numbers of non-white people working in public-facing jobs may increase their risk. 44 per cent of NHS medical workers, for example, are racial minorities, and the Webber Phillips report suggests 'black transport and security workers'. Muslim women, however, may be protected and contribute to lower rates among their communities because so few of them have jobs - a report by the Young Foundation shows just 29 per cent of British Muslim women are employed. The racial disparity also shows through in statistics from NHS intensive care units. The most recent report by ICNARC (Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre) showed just 65.5 per cent of patients were white. Nationally, 86 per cent of the population is white, according to Census data from 2011. Asians made up 14.9 per cent of the 4,873 patients in the intensive care report, but 7.5 per cent of the population, and black people 11.2 per cent (3.3 per cent population). A total of 8.4 per cent of the patients were mixed race or 'other'. Death data from NHS England is slightly less damning - of the 13,918 people deaths recorded by Sunday, April 19, 17 per cent were among minorities (2,349). This is closer to the 14 per cent of the population ethnic minorities made up in 2011, but still disproportionate, and 10 per cent of the deaths were still uncategorised. Scientists are not certain whether people in non-white groups are more likely to get seriously ill because of their any biological difference attributed to their race, or because of inequality leading to higher rates of long-term illnesses and poverty. Cardiologist at University College London, Dr Riyaz Patel, said: 'The observational data so far do seem to suggest that Black and Asian patients are at greater risk of more severe illness from COVID-19. 'As others have suggested, this could be because of socioeconomic factors, with BME [black and minority ethnic] patients more likely to live in densely populated areas, multi-generational families in the same household and having more public facing jobs, all of which makes the likelihood and duration of exposure to the virus more likely. 'Another explanation is that the virus has so far hit densely populated areas like London first, where BME populations are high. ARE NON-WHITE PEOPLE AT HIGHER RISK OF SEVERE COVID-19? Although data shows people in black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups are dying at a higher rate than white people, scientists are not clear whether this is a result of genetic differences or living conditions. Professor Kamlesh Khunti, a diabetes and heart disease expert at the University of Leicester, said: 'The exact reasons for this are not known but may be due to a number of reasons including higher prevalence of diseases that have been shown to have worse outcomes in people with COVID-19 including [heart] disease, [high blood pressure] and diabetes. 'There may also be socio-economic reasons in view of BME populations living in more deprived areas and also cultural reasons including BME populations living with extended families which may make it difficult to socially distance and self isolate.' Professor Nishi Chaturvedi, from University College London, added: 'Risks of diabetes, and of stroke, are several fold higher in people of South Asian and of African Caribbean descent. 'In addition, South Asian people are also at risk of heart disease. 'All these conditions occur at a much younger age in these ethnic minority groups than in the general white European population. The explanations for these excess risks are not clear. 'There have been many efforts to find a genetic explanation, but so far, nothing convincing has been reported. Note that both ethnic minority groups, at least in the age group at risk, are generally less likely to smoke than white Europeans (the key exception is Bangaldeshi men). 'Socioeconomic factors are likely to play a strong role. Its worth noting that ethnic minority groups are much more likely to live in densely populated cities, where risks of transmission are high, and ability to properly social distance are relatively low.' Advertisement 'Most of the data from the ITUs so far comes from big London centres. As such, as time goes on we may see a levelling off of the racial disparity as the rest of the country is affected. 'Nonetheless, there could be biological reasons for the difference which we can speculate on. 'One thing very visible to us in London ITUs now is how diabetes, high blood pressure and possibly being a little overweight, seem to be such potent risk factors for having a severe lung illness, perhaps even more so than having an existing lung disease which you would think would be a greater risk. 'All of these risk factors are more common in Black and Asian patients, so there could be a link here which needs further exploration.' Public Health England and the NHS have launched an inquiry into why ethnic minority citizens have been 'disproportionately' affected by the COVID-19 epidemic. The first 10 doctors to die in the UK from COVID-19 were all from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds - with ancestry from regions including Asia, the Middle East and Africa, a figure the Labour Party described as 'deeply disturbing'. BAME staff make up 44 per cent of medical personnel and Labour and the British Medical Association were among those calling for an inquiry. Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said last week: It is absolutely critical that we find out which groups are most at risk so we can help to protect them.' He said that while it was clear age, male gender and having other health problems were clear risk factors, the evidence for ethnicity was 'less clear'. 'I have had discussions with scientists about this in terms of trying to tease this apart today - also looking very specifically at healthcare workers with leaders of the NHS and across the medical and nursing professions,' he told a daily news conference. 'This is something we are very keen to get extremely clear. We have asked PHE to look at this in some detail and then what we really want is if we see any signal at all we want to then next know what we can do about it to minimise risk.' Bahrain's Cabinet has decided to reduce the operational expenses budget for ministries and government by 30% unless public interests require otherwise. A Cabinet meeting today (April 20), chaired by His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and attended by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier, also agreed to reschedule a number of construction and consulting projects in order to absorb the emergency expenses devoted to limiting the spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), said a Bahrain News Agency (BNA) report. This is done within the ceiling of the general expenses budget for the fiscal year 2020, as recommended by the Ministerial Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs and Fiscal Balance in the memorandum presented by Deputy Premier and the committee chairman. The session was informed, through a memorandum submitted by the Minister of Finance and National Economy, on the amounts spent from the emergency funds allocated by the Cabinet for dealing with the challenges created by the Covid-19 pandemic so far. This is in line with Article 11 of the Decree-Law on the Budget which stipulates that the minister shall provide a detailed report to the Cabinet on the emergency funds one month after their spending, the report said. Meanwhile, HRH the Prime Minister ordered to include taxi drivers in the beneficiaries of the government economic stimulus package in order to support their living needs amid the exceptional circumstances resulting from the pandemic. HRH Premier requested the Ministry of Finance and National Economy to coordinate with the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications, and take the necessary procedures. HRH Premier affirmed that upon directives of His Majesty the King, the government is keen on directing all its ministries and departments to adopt measures that facilitate the citizens living matters and meet their service needs, stressing that the government will continue this approach despite all challenges. The Premier also requested the Ministerial Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs and Fiscal Balance to study the postponement of the collection of some citizens dues to the government, and to submit a report on the moves financial impacts, in addition to the implementation mechanism, the BNA report said. New York schools and hospitals could see a 20 per cent decrease in funding without federal assistance, the governor warned. Governor Andrew Cuomo has put pressure on President Donald Trump and the federal government in recent days because of the assistance his state desperately needed in order to properly fight the coronavirus. To further put pressure on Washington, Mr Cuomo announced on Monday schools, hospitals, and local governments could see a 20 per cent decrease in budget unless the next stimulus packaged included unrestricted funding for states. "You shouldn't make us choose between small businesses, and big businesses, and people working on the front lines," he said. More follows WARREN, MI A Michigan man is dead after he was beaten and run over by a vehicle in Warren. The Warren Police Department is looking for two suspects involved in the assault, which occurred on Cyman Avenue north of Toepfer Road at 9:45 p.m. on April 16. According to police, the victim was walking along the street when reacted to a white Ford Crown Victoria that was traveling at a high rate of speed. The vehicle pulled a U-turn and the pedestrian approached the vehicle, police said. An African-American man described as being between 6 1 and 6 3 wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, light colored pants and white gym shoes with a black sole then exited the passenger door, approached the pedestrian and began punching him repeatedly, police said. He then returned to the vehicle, but the victim walked into the roadway in front of the car, according to police. The Ford then accelerated toward the man, striking him and causing him to flip over the vehicle and land in the street. The man later died of his injuries at a local hospital, police said. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Warren Police Department at 586-574-4877. Police say the gunman, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, appeared at one stage to have been wearing part of a police uniform. A man disguised as a police officer went on a shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, killing at least 18 people, in the worst such attack in the country in 30 years. A police officer was among those killed. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapique, about 100km (60 miles) north of Halifax what police called the first scene. Bodies were also found at other locations and buildings set on fire. The suspected gunman is also dead. This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history, said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. The dead officer was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and a 23-year veteran of the force. Another officer was also wounded. An undated photograph of a police cruiser, altered by the RCMP to point out the cars unique number, is shown in an appeal to the public after they say multiple-victim shooting suspect Gabriel Wortman could be driving the car and wearing an RCMP uniform near Portapique [RCMP Nova Scotia/Handout via Reuters] Police identified the man believed to be the shooter as Gabriel Wortman, 51, who was thought to live part of the time in Portapique. Authorities said he wore a police uniform at one point and made his car look like a RCMP vehicle. Authorities believe he may have deliberately singled out his first victims before he began attacking randomly. Police said they had no indication of a motive and the killer had acted alone. The search for the suspect ended this morning when the suspect was located and I can confirm that he is deceased, RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told a press conference. Leather said the gunman had exchanged fire with police at one point. Our officers were involved in terminating the threat, he said, adding the independent Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT), which probes incidents involving the provinces police, was now handling that part of the investigation. SiRT said in a statement a confrontation had occurred in Enfield, which is near Halifax airport, resulting in officers discharging their firearms. The suspect was found to be deceased at the scene. There were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of the gas station where the suspect died. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-coloured four-wheel drive was being investigated. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada. The country overhauled its gun-control laws after its worst mass shooting in 1989, when gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreals Ecole Polytechnique college. It is illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. Purchasing a weapon requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks. As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a statement. The National Post newspaper quoted Tom Taggart, a councilor who represents Portapique in the Municipality of Colchester, as saying the community was devastated. He described the community as a subdivision in the woods where people have acre lots along the shore, and where Wortman owned three properties. Its absolutely unbelievable this could happen in our community. I never dreamt this would happen here, Taggart said. MasterChef star Courtney Roulston revealed she has a same-sex fiancee, Sophie King, during Sunday night's episode. And while doing so, she drew attention to her stunning engagement ring. The 39-year-old's prized bling, by Fowler and Oldfield Ltd Diamond Merchants, features a vintage cushion-cut emerald stone, surrounded by halo diamonds. Simply stunning! MasterChef star Courtney Roulston (pictured), 39, showed off her vintage emerald engagement ring during Sunday night's episode A thin band also allows the gemstone and diamonds to take centre stage. Courtney first announced her engagement to long-term partner Sophie in 2014. Sophie popped the question while on a trip in Byron Bay, New South Wales. Same-sex fiancee: Courtney got engaged to Sophie King (right) in 2014, while on a trip in Byron Bay, New South Wales Prized bling: The ring, by Fowler and Oldfield Ltd Diamond Merchants, features a thin band and a vintage cushion-cut emerald stone surrounded by halo diamonds However, during Sunday night's episode of MasterChef: Back To Win, many viewers were unaware that Courtney is in a same-sex relationship. While the judges were appraising her dish, the Sydney Swans AFL Team Chef said: 'I've been tinkering with the idea of opening up a wine bar with my partner, Sophie.' Fans of the show were delighted with her comment, with one person Tweeting: 'I didn't know Courtney has a fiancee, I heckin stan!' Another wrote: 'Courtney mentioning her partner was super cute and not something that would have happened when MasterChef first aired in 2009!' Fans rejoice: While the judges were appraising her dish on Sunday night, Courtney said: 'I've been tinkering with the idea of opening up a wine bar with my partner, Sophie' So happy: Viewers of the show were delighted with her comment, with one person Tweeting: 'I didn't know Courtney has a fiancee, I heckin stan!' Someone else chimed in: Courtney's gay?! I LOVE HER MORE!!' while another wrote: 'OH MY GOD I FORGOT SHE WAS GAY OK LETS GO COURTNEY!!!' Another Tweeted: 'Courtney is a lesbian omg yessss I'm rooting for her from now on.' 'Omgggggggg Courtney is queer like me??!! ONE OF USSSSS,' rejoiced someone else from home. Soon to wed: Last week, Courtney discussed her wedding plans in an interview with The Daily Telegraph Last week, Courtney discussed her wedding plans in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. The caterer revealed she wanted a 'big party' for her special day, having never dreamed of an 'elaborate' wedding. She explained: 'I want something that is enjoyable, some really good food and some good friends. A wedding should just be a big party. 'I don't want a $20,000 wedding dress or any of that stuff. I am pretty old school.' MasterChef: Back to Win continues Monday at 7.30pm on Channel Ten Commercial drivers in the US were facing the beginnings of an economic downturn at the start of 2020, but that changed quickly with the eruption of the COVID 19 pandemic. Freight drivers and logistics workers were called upon to make heavy sacrifices to meet the increased demands for grocery and medical supply as lockdowns were implemented in areas across the US. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which oversees working conditions for commercial drivers, relaxed the limitations on drivers hours for those hauling essential goods, mainly food and medical supplies. These drivers now face long hours with limited options to stop for food since many rest areas are closed due to state lockdowns. In comments made to kold.com, owner-operator Cassandra Fowler described the conditions truck drivers face: I cant even get bottles of water because people are buying out the stores and going to the truck stops because they know [the stops] have it, UPS worker Stacy, a driver who commented on Overdrive.com, pointed to some of the issues drivers are encountering. I know of three truck drivers who deliver to New York City that are now back in Ontario, Canada sick with COVID-19. One was told that his wife and daughter got COVID-19 from him. Stacy demanded that workers should have universal health care. We need better protection and health coverage for all essential workers in Canada and the US. The ATA and the CTA [American Trucking Association and Canadian Trucking Association] fought against requiring them to pay for hotel rooms for truck drivers to self isolate, or get a shower and clean up in high-risk parts of the US and Canada. In 2018, according to the ATA, 70.2 percent of all freight in the US was transported by commercial truck. The US trucking industry had $700.1 billion in annual revenue in 2017, with 1.8 million tractor-trailer drivers in the US. According to the OwnerOperator Independent Driver Association (OOIDA) trade group, in the US there are approximately 350,000 to 400,000 owner-operators. On April 3 the OOIDA, issued a plea to the Trump administration for personal protective equipment, rapid-result testing, and access to treatment. The vast majority of US trucking companies, or 94 percent of carriers, have fewer than 20 trucks in their fleets. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) act was intended to cover two and a half months worth of payroll for companies with fewer than 500 employees, and some trucking companies were hesitant about applying for the aid when there was still significant volume. This April 14, The Commercial Carriers Journal released the results of their survey of 270 US fleets, and of those that responded, 60 percent said they had seen a decline in freight volume. They also reported that many smaller owner-operators were pulling their trucks off the road; the main stated reasons being that rates were too low, the risk of coronavirus and the sharp fall in demand due to the economic collapse. US transportation industry workers have an average age of 55 years, according to US Bureau of Labor Statistics, and are often in poor physical condition due to the punishing nature of their work and having few choices for healthy food. This is an area of concern and likely a cause of many injuries and fatalities, as well as increasing drivers vulnerability to COVID-19. Drivers are twice as likely as the general population to be suffering from underlying conditions like diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Drivers at large freight companies, including those whose employees are covered under a Teamster union contract, such as ABF, YRC and United Parcel Service, face conditions similar to those experienced by owner-operators. Another key section of essential workers involved in the supply chain are logistics workers, such as those employed at UPS. These workers have faced a sharp increase in the volume of small packages since the outbreak of the pandemic. The second UPS employee in six days died of COVID-19 at the giant Worldport in Louisville, Kentucky on Friday, April 10. According to a memo obtained by WHAS-11 News he had worked in the Day 2 hub, wing B. On April 13 the Teamsters announced the death of the unnamed worker, and reported that the worker had been out sick since April. In a statement on Teamsters Local 89 Facebook page, union officials claimed they were withholding the workers name because We do not wish to bring any further stress to an already grieving family, so out of respect for them we will not publicize this members name. This past Thursday, another UPS worker death was reported at the companys hub in Greensboro, North Carolina. UPS officials and the Teamsters are not releasing the name of the worker or the specific cause of death. They said, however, the facility would undergo cleaning, indicating the presence of COVID 19. Teamsters Local 391 posted the news of the death of the UPS workers on its Facebook page. One relative posted a comment complaining of the atmosphere of secrecy maintained by UPS relating to coronavirus. How do we know if our guys havent been exposed or already brought it home. they [UPS] have to be more transparent. For its part, the Teamsters is offering management its collaboration in keeping production moving in order to maintain the flow of profits, meanwhile suppressing worker opposition to inadequate or non-existent safety measures. The measures employed by UPS to meet the threat of COVID-19 infection are largely window dressing, and in any event designed to cost the company the least money and effort. These include temperature checks and social distancing. However, due to the fact that COVID-19 is highly contagious in its pre-symptomatic period, and the close quarters that workers face, these measures are largely ineffective. Throughout the crisis workers have not been given proper safety gear such as facemasks and rubber gloves. Management has also withheld vital information about those who have been infected at UPS facilities due to alleged concerns over privacy. A UPS worker near Boston, Massachusetts, where three workers tested positive for COVID-19, reacted on Facebook to managements policy of withholding information: The company handed out letters basically saying regardless of whats going on UPS is over the law, and we have to keep working as we wont get any incentives for risking our lives during this. As usual were just another body and number to the company. Bob, a pre-loader at a hub in Sunnyvale, California, told the World Socialist Web Site that a coworker tested positive for COVID-19, but management didnt report it. So many people in my hub are saying that [the work] is not worth their lives, he said. Theyve been extremely angry. Some are talking about just quitting. He explained that the situation was already bad for workers before the coronavirus, and now its even worse. You either have to live with your parents, putting them at risk of contracting the virus and maybe dying, or you have to work multiple jobs to live on your own and put yourself at risk. Dylan, a UPS worker at a warehouse near Fremont, California, explained that management provided masks, gloves, and sanitary supplies for the first time only about one week ago. We only get one N95 mask, if we sign a waiver, along with a small bottle of hand sanitizer. But were already a month in, so it feels a little too late. He explained that in the beginning, management never explained the risks of the virus. It was business as usual, he said. One of my coworkers had to take his son to the hospital to get tested, then he self-quarantined for two weeks. Im not 100 percent sure if he had the coronavirus, but when I brought this up to one of our supervisors, he told us not to even talk about it. Everybody is mad, all the workers. But I havent seen anyone from the union come into our hub. Nothing has really been said about this thing. These conditions raise the urgent life-and-death question of establishing workers control over health and safety. This cannot be left in the hands of management or the company-controlled unions, but requires the formation of independent rank-and-file workplace committees. Advertisement Donald Trump has furiously defended his response to combating the coronavirus, showing clips of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo praising him and yelling at reporters who questioned his record. In a briefing that stretched an hour and 31 minutes Sunday, the president also held up a Wall Street Journal op-ed that approved of his response. 'What I'm doing is I'm standing up for the men and women that have done such an incredible job,' he said when a CNN reporter asked why he was devoting so much time to showcasing praise with more than 40,000 Americans now dead. 'Nothing is about me,' the president insisted. 'You're never going to treat me fairly, many of you. And I understand that. I got here with the worst, most unfair press treatment they say in the history of the United States for a president,' Trump complained. 'They did say Abraham Lincoln had very bad treatment too.' New York's Andrew Cuomo, who has consistently locked heads with the president in recent weeks, unloaded on Trump on live television Friday, mocking his demand for gratitude for federal help and saying: 'Thank you for doing your job'. Cuomo followed this up with another swipe in his Saturday briefing where he recited Lincoln's famous quote - 'a house divided itself cannot stand' - and said there is 'no time for politics'. Trump showed clips of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo praising the federal response during Sunday's White House briefing Trump had trouble playing the first clip of Cuomo's Sunday press conference, as it cut off before it got to the 'good part' The president also showed off a positive op-ed in the Wall Street Journal to the reporters gathered in the room Congress nears deal on small business aid The Trump administration and Congress expect an agreement Monday on an aid package of up to $450 billion to boost a small-business loan program that has run out of money and add funds for hospitals and COVID-19 testing. As talks continued, President Donald Trump said there's a 'good chance' of reaching a bipartisan agreement with Democrats. 'We are very close to a deal,' Trump said Sunday at the White House. Along with the small business boost, Trump said the negotiators were looking at 'helping our hospitals,' particularly hard-hit rural health care providers. Advertisement Trump made some news at the briefing - he said negotiations with Capitol Hill were 'getting close' to adds funds to the Paycheck Protection Program. He also said he would utilize the Defense Production Act in order to increase the production of swabs. The president then held up a swab and pulled it out of the packaging so the photographers in the room could get good visuals. He then handed it off to Vice President Mike Pence, saying he could give it to his wife, Karen. But Trump mostly used visuals in the briefing room Sunday to promote his own record. After pulling out the positive Wall Street Journal op-ed he then began reading it to the room. Trump also played clips of Cuomo twice, complaining that in the first clip 'they left out the good part'. The video segments were from a press conference the New York governor held Sunday morning. 'The federal government stepped up and was a great partner,' Cuomo said in the first clip shown at the White House. 'I'm the first one to say it. We needed help, and they were there.' The United States has by far the world's largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 750,000 infections and over 40,000 deaths. Cuomo said of Trump Friday: 'First of all, if he's sitting home watching TV, maybe he should get up and go to work, right. Second, let's keep emotion and politics out of this and personal ego if we can because this is about the people and our job and let's try to focus on that. 'The president doesnt want to help on testing. I said 11 times, I said the one issue we need help with is testing. He said 11 times: "I dont want to get involved in testing, its too complicated, its too hard". I know its too complicated and too hard. Thats why we need help. I cant do an international supply chain.' Walter Shaub, former director of the Office of Government Ethics, tweeted: 'Beyond being another taxpayer-funded campaign ad, this video clip also makes Trump look exceedingly weak. The video casts Cuomo as Trump's boss giving him a performance appraisal. (If only!).' The president also told one reporter to 'keep your voice down, please'. Spokesman Judd Deere gave Trump a note that said the other clip of Cuomo praising him was ready to be played President Trump made some news at the briefing, saying he would use the Defense Production Act to have more swabs made Trump hints at pardons for Paul Manafort and Roger Stone President Trump hinted that pardons for his associates Paul Manafort and Roger Stone could be on the table. 'You'll find out what I'm going to do,' Trump said at Sunday's press briefing when asked by DailyMail.com if he would free the two men amid coronavirus concerns. 'I'm not going to say what I'm going to do. But the whole thing turned out to be a scam', he added. On Friday night, Stone appeared on Fox News Channel and told host Tucker Carlson that serving time during the pandemic could kill him. Last week, lawyers for Manafort, who is serving a seven-year sentence at a federal facility in Loretto, Pennsylvania for bank fraud and tax evasion, asked the Bureau of Prisons director if he could serve his sentence at home 'for the duration of the on-going COVID-19 pandemic,' according to a letter obtained by CBS News. Advertisement Later, spokesman Judd Deere passed along a note to the president informing him the second clip was ready to roll. 'I just think it's so good for people because it's bipartisan,' Trump said. 'This is not about Democrats, Republicans,' he continued. This is about a thing that hit our country, the likes of which has never happened to us before.' In the second Cuomo clip, the New York governor talked about how the state ended up having the supplies they needed. Cuomo had long feared about bed capacity and ventilators and in those areas the federal government had stepped in. 'We saved everyone? No. But have we lost anyone because we didn't have a bed or we didn't have a ventilator or we didn't have healthcare staff? No,' Cuomo said Sunday. 'The people we lost are the people we couldn't save, not for lack of trying and not for lack of doing everything we could do as a society, not only as a government and as a healthcare system.' Trump had previously taken to Twitter to accuse Cuomo of 'complaining' and suggested Cuomo failed to take advantage of federal help. 'We built you thousands of hospital beds that you didn't need or use,' Trump fumed. Cuomo responded in an extended monologue during his daily press conference Friday: 'Show gratitude. How any times do you want me to say thank you? I'm saying 'thank you' for doing your job.' 'This was your role as president, okay?' he said. 'We are going to be looking at it': Trump says HIS hotels should get government bailout because coronavirus has been 'devastating' for them as he urges governors to let them open up again 'relatively quickly' Donald Trump on Sunday pledged to look into helping hotels left 'devastated' by closures in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The president - who himself owns a number of hotels across the country - was asked about whether they will be offered help at his daily briefing. After mentioning his 'wonderful place' in Doral, Florida, Trump said the closure of hotels 'is a big problem'. Asked about whether the small business relief would cover hotels, Trump replied: 'Even if it is owned by a big chain, that is devastating. 'If they have 200 hotels in the country and they are closed. We are going to be looking at it. It is a big problem. It is a lot of people employed.' The entrance to the Trump National Doral resort is shown in Doral, Fla. Trump on Sunday pledged to look into helping hotels left 'devastated' by closures in the wake of COVID-19 The Trump International Hotel and Tower on Columbus Circle in New York City. After mentioning his 'wonderful place' in Doral, Florida , Trump said the closure of hotels 'is a big problem'. Asked about whether the small business relief would cover hotels, Trump replied: 'Even if it is owned by a big chain, that is devastating' Democrats and Republicans are near agreement on approving extra money to help small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic and could seal a deal as early as Monday, Trump said Sunday. An agreement on help for small businesses would end a stalemate over Trump's request to add $250 billion to a small-business loan program established last month as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus economic relief plan. That fund has already been exhausted. Trump said Sunday: 'You have hotels that are massive buildings but if you have no income coming in...they have to be closed down. It is a terrible thing. 'I don't know that they are working on that specific problem but it is a problem they should be talking about.' Discussing owners who go from 'having a successful hotel' with thousands of employees 'to all of a sudden closing it down', Trump added: 'Hopefully they will be able to open up relatively quickly.' The Trump International Hotel is seen in Washington. The president - who himself owns a number of hotels across the country - was asked about whether they will be offered help 'I Had My Tears And Moments Of Self-Doubt' Reveals Ayushmann Khurrana On Completion of 8 Years In Bollywood Businesses in Georgia and Tennessee will soon reopen as governors in the states peel back orders issued to curb the spread of coronavirus. In Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp said gyms, hair and nail salons, tattoo parlors, barbers, bowling alleys and massage services can reopen Friday, April 24. Theaters, private social clubs and restaurants will be allowed to reopen April 27. Businesses will be required to stagger shifts, keep work spaces six feet apart and screen workers for illnesses. Employees will also be required to wear masks and gloves when appropriate. "By taking this measured action, we will get Georgians back to work safely without undermining the progress we all have made in this battle against COVID-19," Kemp said. Bars, nightclubs, amuse parks and live performance venues will remain closed. Georgias shelter in place order is set to expire April 30 at 11:59 p.m. The state has 18,947 cases of coronavirus with 733 deaths. Due to favorable data & more testing, gyms, fitness centers, bowling alleys, body art studios, barbers, cosmetologists, hair designers, nail care artists, estheticians, their respective schools & massage therapists can reopen Friday, April 24 with Minimum Basic Operations. #gapol Governor Brian P. Kemp (@GovKemp) April 20, 2020 In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee said he is not extending the states Safer at Home Order, past April 30, a move that will allow the vast majority of businesses in 89 of the states 95 counties to reopen May 1. Restrictions will continue in Shelby, Madison, Davidson, Hamilton, Knox and Sullivan counties, though Lee said he is working on plans to safely reopen those areas. While I am not extending the safer at home order past the end of April, we are working directly with our major metropolitan areas to ensure they are in a position to reopen as soon and safely as possible, Lee said. Social distancing works, and as we open up our economy it will be more important than ever that we keep social distancing as lives and livelihoods depend on it. Tennessee currently has 7,238 cases of coronavirus with 152 deaths. NEW: Tennessee Begins Phased Reopening Next Week Our Economic Recovery Group is working with industry leaders around the clock so that some businesses can open as soon as April 27. Read more: https://t.co/mWA9rZjyq9 Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) April 20, 2020 Elsewhere, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced the states beaches and some non-essential businesses will be opening. Beaches can open April 21 at noon, though that decision will be up to local officials. Retailers such as clothing, sporting goods, crafts stores can reopen today with limited occupancy. JFO HQ reports six enemy attacks in Donbas, no casualties among Ukrainian servicemen in past 24 hours Illegal armed groups violated the ceasefire regime in Donbas six times over the past 24 hours, no casualties were reported among Ukrainian servicemen, the press service of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters has said. "Despite the comprehensive and sustainable ceasefire regime in Donbas, the Russia-occupation forces mounted six attacks on the positions of the Joint Forces Operation on [Orthodox] Easter. No casualties were reported among Ukrainian servicemen over the past 24 hours," the JFO headquarters said on its Facebook page on Monday morning. The enemy mounted the majority of attacks in the area of responsibility of the Skhid (East) task force: near Pisky using 82 mortars, near Maryinka using grenade launchers of various types, near Shyrokyne using hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers and small arms, and sniper activities were noticed near Pavlopil. In the area of responsibility of the Pivnich (North) task force, the enemy attacked the Ukrainian positions near Luhanske using grenade launchers of various types, heavy machine guns and small arms. According to the Ukrainian intelligence data, two members of illegal armed groups were killed and two wounded on April 19. The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has been supplying water to over 2,000 households in 50 communities in the Ashanti Region in support of governments efforts at ensuring that within the space of three months April to June, all would have access to free potable water. The beneficiary areas include Bremang, Ejisu, Manhyia, Fomena, Nyinahin, Offinso, Nkawie, Tepa, New Edubiase, Manso-Nkwanta, Ejura and Konongo. Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO) Joshua Nguah, the Ashanti Regional Fire Officer, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that, their water tankers had so far supplied the people with 18,000 litres of water. He added that more communities were going to be covered to bring relief to those struggling with safe water challenges. He said a worrying observation they had, however, made was that, many in the communities were not respecting the social distancing protocol. It was therefore important for the assembly members and the unit communities to lead the public education campaign, to help everybody to adhere to safety precautions. The government as part of measures to provide some relief to Ghanaians amid the struggle to contain and stop the spread of the flu-like coronavirus pandemic, is providing them with free water, free electricity to lifeline consumers and absorbed 50 per cent of the electricity bill of all other consumers, for three months. 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. Featured Video DAMASCUS, Syria - Irans foreign minister used a meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad Monday to call on the U.S. to lift sanctions imposed on both countries, during his first visit to the war-ravaged country in a year. Iran has been a close ally of Assad in Syrias long and bloody nine-year-long civil war, lending his government in Damascus vital military and economic support. The remarks made by Mohammad Javad Zarif during the meeting with Assad were reported by Syrias state-run news agency SANA. Zarif said America had shown its inhumane face to the world by refusing to lift sanctions during the pandemic. A photo of the meeting released by SANA showed Assad wearing a face mask while Zarif had also put on a mask and blue gloves. Iran is facing one the worst outbreaks in the Middle East with 83,500 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and more than 5,200 deaths from the Covid-19 illness it causes. Syria has reported only 39 cases of the virus and two deaths. Iran began Monday a gradual easing of its lockdown to stimulate its sanctions-choked economy, gambling that it has brought under control its coronavirus outbreak. Assad expressed his condolences to Iran over the deaths caused by coronavirus during the meeting Monday. The Syrian leader said that the pandemic was being used for political exploitation by the U.S. and its allies, according to SANA. Syria and Iran are both under American sanctions that they both say are affecting their fight against the virus by limiting some humanitarian imports. Irans Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that Zarif will discuss with Assad and other Syrian officials bilateral relations and developments in the region. Russia, Iran and Turkey, who back rival groups in Syrias conflict, have been sponsoring talks in Kazakhstan to try to end the conflict that has killed nearly half a million people. ___ Associated Press writer Basem Mroue contributed reporting from Beirut. With the work of COVID-19 prevention and control being conducted steadily and positively across China, most centrally administered State-owned enterprises reported better profitability since this March, the country's top State assets regulator said. In March, the operating revenue of central SOEs reached 2.2 trillion yuan ($310.75 billion), returning to the same level as January, according to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. A total of 11 central SOEs saw a year-on-year growth in profit growth between January and March. In March, the profitability of 43 central SOEs returned to average growth levels in 2019, while 37 central SOEs saw the rate of profit decline narrow by more than 10 percentage points from the first two months of this year. The SASAC said the fixed asset investment of central SOEs in the first quarter amounted to 364.76 billion yuan, falling 4.5 percent year-on-year. However, such investment grew 4.1 percent on a yearly basis in March, according to SASAC. In terms of key industries, the fixed-asset investment of central SOEs in petroleum and petrochemical, power and telecommunications sectors surged 12.4 percent, 2 percent and 12.3 percent on a yearly basis respectively in the first quarter of this year. HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA - APRIL 17: A big number of Trump supporters rally on Main Street against business closure due to COVID-19 pandemic. Huntington Beach, CA. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) (Irfan Khan/Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times) Over the last three days, protesters have converged in Huntington Beach, San Diego, San Clemente and Encinitas, calling for the end to California's stay-at-home orders, which have helped slow the spread of the coronavirus. They cite the devastating toll the shutdown has had on the economy. Some claim that coronavirus fears have been overblown and that social distancing is not needed, which goes against what public health officials and experts have said. I think at [this] point, people have had enough, and they want to get back to work again, said retired Point Loma resident Darla Clark at a San Diego protest, noting that many of her friends have lost their jobs. This is definitely where the cure is going to be worse than the disease. Its time that California opens back up, Orange County resident Lisa Collins said at the Huntington Beach protest. We cant [complain] about our freedoms and liberties being taken away if we arent willing to do something. Will these protests influence lawmakers' decisions about when to ease the rules? Here is what we know: Newsom urges patience Gov. Gavin Newsom said Saturday he would not be swayed by public protests in deciding when to reopen the state. We are going to do the right thing, not judge by politics, not judge by protests, but by science, Newsom said. I just want to encourage people that when you practice your free speech which I dont [just] embrace, I celebrate just do so safely. This virus knows no political ideology. It doesnt know if you are Republican or Democrat, supporting the president, opposing the president, so practice physical distancing. California has seen far fewer deaths than have other hot spots, including New York, and officials believe early social distancing is one reason why. What the governor says must happen The administration highlighted six key indicators for altering his stay-at-home mandate and said the state must develop guidelines for when to ask Californians to stay home again if the governor modified the order and the virus were to surge. Story continues Newsom did not offer any firm timetable for when stay-at-home orders could be modified but provided some general goals that must be met to move forward. Experts have said that lifting social distancing rules will be a long and deliberate process, with some businesses coming back before others. For example, restaurants might be able to reopen with strict social distancing, but big events would be harder to restart anytime soon. Here are the six factors outlined by Newsom: We must be able to monitor and protect communities through testing, tracing of contacts, and isolating and supporting those who are positive or exposed to the virus. How prepared is our state to test everyone who is symptomatic? Do we have the ability to identify contacts of those who are positive to reduce further transmission? We need to have the ability to prevent infection in people who are at higher risk. Are older Californians and the medically vulnerable living in their own homes supported so they can continue appropriate physical distancing? Have we developed a plan to quickly identify and contain outbreaks in facilities housing older Californians; those living with disabilities; those currently incarcerated; and those with co-morbidities, or multiple, chronic conditions? Hospital and health systems must be able to handle surges of COVID-19 patients. Do we have adequate bed capacity, staff and supplies such as ventilators and masks? Can our healthcare system adequately address COVID-19 and other critical healthcare needs? We must be able to develop therapeutics to meet demand. Have we built a coalition of private, public and academic partners to accelerate the development of therapeutics? Have we identified potential therapeutics that have shown promise? Businesses, schools and child-care facilities need to be able to support physical distancing. Have we worked with businesses to support physical distancing practices and introduced guidelines to provide health checks when employees or the general public enter the premises? Do we have supplies and equipment to keep the workforce and customers safe? We have to be able to determine when to re-institute certain measures, such as stay-at-home orders, if necessary. Are we tracking the right data to provide us an early warning system? Do we have the ability to quickly communicate the need to reinstate these measures? Polls show support for restrictions Ninety-five percent A Quinnipiac University poll released last week also showed wide support for stay-at-home orders on a national level. While most states have issued their own stay-at-home orders, 81% of voters say they would support a stay-at-home order on a national level, the pollsters said. A Politico/Morning Consult poll found that the vast majority of Americans would prefer to keep stay-at-home rules if the alternative meant more spread of the coronavirus. Experts say social distancing is working waiting for a surge The initial success of the unprecedented shutdown of schools, businesses and other institutions has pleased experts and public health officials, prompting calls to keep the restrictions in place at least into May to help cement the progress. Social distancing will be a critical factor. Lifting restrictions too early would likely lead to dangerous new jumps in cases. During the 1918 flu pandemic, more than 20 U.S. cities that relaxed physical distancing orders too quickly even as the flu virus was still circulating soon saw a new rise in cases. There will continue to be a threat of the coronavirus being reintroduced in areas where the outbreak has eased. Times staff writers Campa and Wigglesworth wrote from Los Angeles and McGreevy from Sacramento. Figueroa writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune. WSU Sets Date for Spring 2020 Commencement April 20, 2020 OGDEN, Utah Weber State University has selected Aug. 29, 2020 to host its 155th Commencement, originally scheduled for April 24. The university estimates the class of 2019-20 to total more than 5,727 graduates; more than 3,000 have applied for spring semester graduation. Weber State holds two graduation events each year, following fall and spring semesters. We're excited to confirm plans, conditions permitting, for commencement exercises to celebrate the class of 2020, said WSU President Brad Mortensen. We appreciate the patience and support of the campus community -- particularly graduates -- as we navigate this time together to keep each other safe and promote the educational pursuits of our students. Graduates are able to reserve a free cap, gown, tassel, diploma cover and cords through Weber States Wildcat Store. The last day to reserve the graduation packet will be May 8, 2020. The Graduation Office will continue processing diplomas as normal. Diplomas will arrive in the mail once final grades have been submitted and degrees processed. Weather permitting, on the evening of April 24, Weber State plans to highlight its pride for the historic class of 2020 by lighting the W on the hillside east of Stewart Stadium. Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 19) Six new COVID-19 infections were recorded in Albay and Catanduanes on Sunday, bringing the number of cases to a total of 25 in Bicol Region. The Department of Health-Bicol reported in the morning that the 20th to 24th positive cases were from Albay province. DOH Director Ernie Vera said in a statement that the 20th confirmed case is a 54-year old male from Albay who had a travel history from Marikina City in Metro Manila. He is currently confined at the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital. A 50-year old female from Albay is the 21st who had a history of exposure to a confirmed positive case. The 22nd case is a 28-year old female from Albay who consulted at BRTTH last April 17. A 36-year old female from Albay is the 23rd whose exposure history is still being established. The 24th case is a 57-year old female from Albay who had a history of exposure to a confirmed positive case. Meanwhile, a 63-year old female from Catanduanes is the first confirmed case in the province and the 25th case in the region. She had a travel history from Japan and was admitted last March 12 at Eastern Bicol Medical Center in Virac. To date, Albay has 19 total cases, 13 of which have gotten well. Meanwhile, Camarines Sur earlier recorded five cases. Of this number, one died and three recovered from the virus. CNN Philippines Stringer Rosas Olarte contributed to this report. TUESDAY Miriams Big Fat Adventure (premiere) ABC, 9.30pm Miriam's Big Fat Adventure addresses the actor's body issues. Now well into her 70s, actress Miriam Margolyes sometimes needs a walking stick to get around, but she doesnt appear to have slowed down. In addition to recent acting gigs (Call the Midwife) and regular appearances on Graham Nortons red couch, shes developed a specialty in documentaries where she goes off to investigate a subject. So far, shes applied her curious mind, keen eye and impishly disarming candour to America and different ways of approaching death. Now she takes on a topic thats painfully close to her heart: obesity. Its hard being fat, she says sadly near the start of the two-part series. Its a miserable fate. She intends to investigate the causes of weight gain, societys view of it and what various people do about it. So she attends a weight-loss boot camp, discusses obesity with a behavioural psychologist and talks to body positive advocates. She attends a dance class for generously proportioned women who are proud of their bodies. She considers how society judges people who are overweight as lazy and lacking self-control, and the impact of that dismissive assessment. Its a personal and often moving exploration, and also one that has wider application. DE WEDNESDAY Reprisal (premiere) SBS, 8.30pm Reprisal starring Abigail Spencer. Shot in North Carolina, creator, writer and executive producer Josh Corbins female revenge thriller is set in a cold, hard world. As it opens, Katherine (Abigail Spencer) is locked in a showdown with her brother, Burt (Rory Cochrane), at the scene of a mass killing. The confrontation does not end well. I will see you again, she vows as he exacts his bloody revenge. Cut to years later and Katherine is now Doris, a blonde and bespectacled middle-class wife, married to an ailing husband whose restaurant is an object of desire for his nasty family. More threats and violence ensue. Meanwhile, a plotline is developing involving a new initiate to the brutal Banished Brawlers gang and, yes, theres more violence. A lot of menacing men in this harsh drama seem to be perpetually itching for a fight, so perhaps part of the premise is that they need a gutsy woman to show them whos boss. Certainly in this seedy world of strip clubs, drug trades, drag races, gang wars, bullies and baddies, that seems to be the narrative thrust. DE Elementary Ten, 10.40pm Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Watson in the US TV series Elementary. Theres an awful lot of talking in Elementary. The crime show about a modern-day New York-based Sherlock Holmes is loaded with exposition: characters continually explain things to each other with thick chunks of dialogue. Sometimes these globs are so heavy as to be virtually indecipherable. Maybe this is a consequence of so much of the crime-solving occurring within the fertile and febrile mind of the eccentric Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller, who also directs this episode). So he and his sidekick, Dr Joan Watson (Lucy Liu), frequently have to explain what theyre thinking, to each other, to other characters in the show, and to us, the viewers. But its not especially interesting or satisfying. The impulse is to tune it out, go with the flow and hope that it starts to make sense as events unfold. Here, theres a lot of explanation required as the investigation of an accident involving a truck, a van and an explosion spirals out to take on theories about El Salvadorean gangs, terrorist plots, the FBI and real-estate developers. DE THURSDAY Jimmy Shus Taste of the Territory SBS Food, 8.30pm Market state: Jimmy Shu's Taste of the Territory. With his enthusiasm for the tastes of the Top End, chef, restaurateur and self-described passionate foodie Jimmy Shu is an ideal ambassador for the Northern Territory. Which is probably one of the reasons that Screen Territory helped to develop and produce this eight-part series that showcases the assets of a region that Shu describes as a cultural and culinary melting pot: one of Australias best-kept secrets. Extolling the benefits of the Indigenous and Asian influences and the tropical climate, Shu visits the Rapid Creek Market, relishing the range of herbs, fruits and vegetables. Cambodian-born produce grower Muy Keav demonstrates how to make green mango salad; Sri Lankan Karunika Pemarathne, a hands-on home cook, makes a jackfruit curry; and UK immigrant Martin Wildman displays the cuisine created in his beachside food truck. DE Greys Anatomy 7Flix, 8.30pm Grey's Anatomy with Ellen Pompeo as Merediuth Grey. This hospital series from producer Shonda Rhimes (Scandal, How to Get Away With Murder) has proved a stayer. Now into its 16th season, the medical drama has stuck to its original recipe of combining the romantic entanglements of the staff with the challenges arising from their cases. The doctors are impossibly attractive and the patients often present with baffling symptoms, which are sometimes the consequence of bizarre activities. Here, theres a guy who partly swallowed a fish that he extracted from a fish-tank on a dare from his drunken mates in a bar. Now the fish is stuck in his throat. Theres also a teen athlete coughing up blood and a recently widowed wife and mother whos not recovering as hoped after surgery. Meanwhile an engagement ring is lost, a relationship involving a pregnancy falters and theres a handsome new doctor in the building. Its business as usual at Grey Sloan Memorial. DE FRIDAY Neighbours 10Peach, 6.30pm Loading A great thing about Neighbours is its status as both a proving ground for young Australian talent and a haven for veterans. This means that when we watch the show we see an array of local legends at both ends of their careers. Not that the older generation of Ramsay Street denizens seem to have any intention of stopping in the foreseeable future: the likes of Colette Mann and Jackie Woodburne continue to be forces of nature with a vitality that frequently puts their younger colleagues to shame. Though the most important element of Neighbours is simply the soothing reassurance we get from knowing that it still exists. It puts everything in perspective that no matter what else has changed since 1985, that hasnt. If Erinsborough contains a higher risk of mad bombers and murder mysteries than it did in Kylie and Jasons day, thats the price of progress: the main thing is its there. Thats enough, for now. BP SATURDAY Reverie 9Now Reverie starring Sarah Shahi as Mara Kint, Dennis Haysbert as Charlie Ventana. A former hostage negotiator takes a job retrieving people who are lost in a virtual reality program: rarely has any shows premise been better calculated to make viewers say, what? That confusion may have contributed to this show being cancelled after just 10 episodes in the US, but thats no reason not to give it a go although it is a reason not to get excited about the slow-burning revelation of the protagonists character arc. That protagonist is Mara Kint, who uses her expertise in human behaviour to rescue the virtually imprisoned. Its kind of like a Red Dwarf episode, only elongated, given a bigger budget and stripped of any sense of humour. However, those who fret that ex-hostage negotiator retrieves people lost in virtual reality isnt too appealing should take this into account: she is VERY attractive. Apart from that, its basically a police procedural with extra science-y words thrown in, so if that floats your boatBP SUNDAY FBI: Most Wanted Ten, 9.10pm FBI: Most Wanted starring Julian McMahon as Jess, LeCroix, Roxy Sternberg as Sheryll Barnes, and Willie Carpenter as Glanville Tyson. The 360 shows you diverse perspectives on the days top stories and debates. Whats happening President Trump last week called for the U.S. to withhold funding for the World Health Organization over what he claimed were missteps that perpetuated the coronavirus pandemic. The reality is that the WHO failed to adequately obtain and share information in a timely and transparent fashion, Trump said. The WHO is an agency within the United Nations established after World War II to promote health and fight disease around the globe. The U.S. provides the WHO with more than $400 million a year, the most of any nation. Trump called for a halt in those funds while a review of the WHOs handling of the pandemic is conducted. Trump has accused the WHO of uncritically parroting misinformation pushed by the Chinese government that underplayed the risks posed by the virus during the early weeks of the outbreak. The organizations deference to China allowed the virus to spread internationally, resulting in thousands of unnecessary deaths, he said. The WHOs director-general defended the agency in response to Trumps criticism. This is a time for all of us to be united, he said. When we are divided, the virus exposes the cracks between us. Why theres debate Trump isnt alone in critiquing the WHOs handling of coronavirus. Infectious disease experts have been critical of the agencys failure to challenge Chinas optimistic claims about the virus, most crucially doubting evidence from Taiwan in mid-January that it could be transmitted from human to human. For this and other perceived mistakes, the presidents attacks on the WHO have been echoed by his Republican lawmakers and conservative media figures. GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham accused the agency of severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus. Supporters of the decision to defund the WHO say the move is necessary to force change in an organization that is too mired in politics to complete its mission. Story continues Trumps critics say hes using the WHO as a scapegoat for his administrations own mismanagement of the crisis. The agencys mistakes are in no way an excuse for the governments inability to properly prepare for the viruss inevitable emergence in the U.S., they argue. The choice to defund the WHO has received especially pointed criticism. For all its flaws, the WHO still plays a critical role in protecting the world from a long list of dangerous health risks. Denying the agency a major source of funding will cause unnecessary deaths, some experts say. Whats next Trump didnt provide details on how the funding freeze would be carried out. Theres some question about whether its within his authority to do so, since the money is appropriated by Congress. Its also unclear when a review of the WHOs actions might begin or how that process might be carried out. Perspectives Fair Criticism The WHO should carry most of the blame for the severity of the pandemic As the death toll climbs above 100,000, the global economy remains in crisis, and billions of lives are disrupted, it's important to remember that if the World Health Organization had done its job, the nightmare we're living through might not have happened at all. Zach Weissmueller, Reason The WHO is part of a broken system that needs to be fixed The presidents action is the first step needed to spark meaningful reform of the United Nations organization and the global health architecture. Gordon G. Chang, Fox News The U.S. has a right to investigate the WHOs mistakes The question is: Why? Why is the WHO so willing to look the other way with regard to Chinas faults, even though it is plainly obvious that the regimes communist leaders bear primary responsibility for this pandemic? This is a question that demands an answer, and Trump is right to pursue it. Kaylee McGhee, Washington Examiner Trump is attacking the WHO because he cant be as aggressive with China Trump is correct that the WHO has failed to perform one of its most important functions: Serving as the worlds early-warning system for new infectious diseases. But his anger is misdirected. It is China that is still not being fully transparent about the outbreak. The problem is that Trump has fewer options and less leverage with China. Eli Lake, Bloomberg Trumps mistakes shouldnt shield the WHO from criticism Its no secret that the White House got off to a late start in combating the coronavirus. but this obviously doesnt vindicate the World Health Organization. Editorial, National Review The WHO should have countered Chinas lies In effect, China and the WHO worked together to expose the rest of the world to the virus, at the same time they downplayed its dangers. China acted as youd expect. Countries that run gulags arent typically noted for their good governance and transparency. The WHO is supposed to be different. Rich Lowry, New York Post Scapegoating Trump is trying to find someone else to blame for his mistakes None of this exonerates the WHO of its early errors, which were real and serious. But in calling out these missteps, Trump is not acting in good faith in the least: Hes solely doing it to deflect blame from his own catastrophic failures. Greg Sargent, Washington Post The WHO is the perfect kind of scapegoat for the Trump era The WHO ticks all the boxes of a perfect scapegoat. Big multilateral bureaucracy based in Switzerland? Check. Friendly to China? Double check. Receives large U.S. donations? Yep. Even if Trump missed all of those signs, which he never would, Republican Senators have been vigorously pointing them out. Therese Raphael, Bloomberg Trump is trying to change the subject to something other than the administrations errors When Trump is ensnared in controversy, when he is being asked straightforward, damning questions and his inquisitors do not stop asking them, he says or does something outrageous to change the subject. It works every time. It is working now. Graeme Wood, Atlantic Defunding the WHO will make the pandemic worse Trumps announcement that he is halting American funding for the W.H.O. just as the world is facing a raging pandemic is a dangerous attempt to find a scapegoat for his own failings. It is like taking away a fire departments trucks in the middle of a blaze. Nicholas Kristof, New York Times Is there a topic youd like to see covered in The 360? Send your suggestions to the360@yahoonews.com. Read more 360s Photo illustration: Yahoo News; photos: AP India has responded sharply to Pakistan governments allegations of discrimination against Muslims, insisting that it was the Imran Khan governments effort to divert attention from Islamabads poor way of handling its internal affairs. This isnt the first time that India has panned Pakistan during the humanitarian crisis due to Covid-19 that has killed more than 1.5 lakh people across the world and infected over two million. In recent weeks, India has also noted renewed attempts by Pakistan-backed terrorists groups to infiltrate into India. Here are five such incidents during the Covid-19 crisis: April 19, 2020: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) slammed the remarks made by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan where he accused the government in India of discriminating against the Muslims. The MEA said such remarks were an attempt to shift focus from Islamabads abysmal handling of its internal affairs. Khan had compared the Indian governments treatment of Muslims to what Nazis did to Jews in Germany. April 17, 2020: Army Chief General MM Naravane said that during such time when India is sending is medical teams and exporting medicines to the world to battle coronavirus, Pakistan is exporting terror. It is unfortunate that while the world has got together to fight the Covid-19 pandemic, our neighbour has resorted to firing heavy calibre artillery and killing of innocent people, including an eight-year-old boy to garner international attention, he said during his visit to the forward posts in Jammu and Kashmir. His remarks came after a series of ceasefire violation incidents, especially in the Keran sector of the union territory in which eight civilians and five soldiers were killed in two weeks. April 10, 2020: India took a jibe at Pakistan over its opposition to New Delhis leadership in dealing with the crisis in SAARC region. New Delhi said the degree of seriousness of each member nation of the SAARC in collectively fighting the coronavirus pandemic can be gauged by their behaviour. The reaction came a day after Pakistan pledged to contribute US $3 million to the SAARC Coronavirus Emergency Fund as proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi but demanded that any initiative to deal with the situation must be brought under the blocs framework. April 4, 2020: India once against hit out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for commenting on domicile rules for Kammu and Kashmir, saying repeated attempts to interfere in Indias internal affairs will not make its untenable claims acceptable. In its response, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that Pakistan has no locus standi whatsoever on any aspect pertaining to it. Khan had criticised Indias new domicile rules for Jammu and Kashmir, calling them an attempt to alter the demography of the union territory. March 16, 2020: India slammed Pakistan for raising the Kashmir issue during a video conference between SAARC countries to discuss ways to tackle the deadly coronavirus disease Covid-19. The government said that Pakistans attempts to politicise a humanitarian issue by its unwarranted statement on Kashmir during the video conference on coronavirus reflected very poorly on it. Speaking further on the SAARC emergency fund, the MEA said: Where India is concerned, the commitment made by the Prime Minister is today in an advanced stage of implementation. Assistance in material and services has been extended to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka. These SAARC countries have also made early commitments to the fund. RICHMOND HEIGHTS On Sunday, SSM Health St. Marys Hospital celebrated the release of its 100th COVID-19 patient. His name was Maurice Cooley. I want everybody to be aware and look out for each other, Cooley, 58, told reporters from a wheelchair, adding: I didnt know if I was going to make it or not. Though nurses and other health-care professionals cheered him out the front door, that didnt mean he was in the clear. Hes still not completely COVID-free, Dr. Ankit Nahata, director of the intensive care unit at St. Marys, said in a telephone interview. Hes just stable enough that he doesnt need to be in the hospital. Hes still contagious. On Sunday, there were still 36 confirmed COVID-19 patients at St. Marys, including nine in intensive care and an additional 11 patients of interest for whom test results were not back. Nahata said most people with COVID-19 are recovering in the community. A UK court on April 20 dismissed fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallyas extradition plea. Mallya had appealed against a 2018 decision that allowed his extradition to India. He is wanted in India under charges of financial fraud worth around Rs 9,000 crore in borrowings by his Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) from several Indian banks. The case followed the collapse of his defunct Kingfisher Airlines. The Indian government wants to bring back the 64-year-old embattled businessman, who has denied wrongdoing in recent months and has said that he intends to repay those loans. Mallya had tweeted on March 31, saying, "I have made repeated offers to pay 100 percent of the amount borrowed by KFA to the Banks. Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks. I wish the FM would listen in this time of crisis." In April 2017, Mallya was arrested in London on India's request for extradition and was granted bail shortly after. He was again arrested in London in October that same year, following an Enforcement Directorate (ED) affidavit. It was in December 2018 that a UK court ordered the extradition of Vijay Mallya. This was followed by a special PMLA court in India declaring Vijay Mallya a fugitive economic offender. Two new deaths have been recorded from coronavirus in Akwa Ibom and Borno states on Sunday. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control made this known on its website. According to data from the NCDC, with the two new fatalities, no fewer than 21 persons have died from coronavirus-related complications in Nigeria. Other states that have recorded fatalities from COVID-19 are Lagos 13, one each in Edo, Katsina, Kano, and Delta, and Abuja two. The NCDC added, On the 19th of April 2020, 86 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 were recorded in Nigeria. Till date, 627 cases have been confirmed, 170 cases have been discharged and twenty-one deaths have been recorded in Nigeria The 86 new cases are reported from seven states- Lagos (70), FCT (seven), Akwa Ibom (three), Katsina (three), Borno (one), Bauchi (one), Jigawa (one). A multi-sectoral national emergency operations centre, activated at Level three, continues to coordinate the national response activities. Before the NCDCS announcement, the Borno State Government said it was expecting the test result of a dead nurse working with MSF in Pulka, Gwoza Local Government Area. News Direct reports that Abba Kyari, the Chief of staff to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), is one of the 21 deaths of COVID-19 recorded in Nigeria. The late CoS had tested positive to the ravaging COVID-19 and moved to a private facility in Lagos, where he died on Friday, April 17. Kyari tested positive for coronavirus in late March after visiting Germany, forcing a string of top Nigerian officials, including governors who had been in contact with him to self-isolate. Kyari, 67, is the highest-profile COVID-19 death in Nigeria, The PUNCH reports. There has been no official confirmation on whether Buhari took a test, but the president had imposed a lockdown on Lagos, Ogun and Abuja. Governors have also introduced several measures in their states to curb the spread of the virus. Post Views: 2 A pregnant woman has died of starvation in Pakistan's Sindh province amid the coronavirus lockdown imposed in the country, according to media reports. Sughra Bibi, 30, died in Jhudo town of Sindh's Mirpur Khas district last week, reported the "Daily Express" newspaper. Bibi's husband Allah Baksh said he is a daily wager and due to the lockdown could not find work and was facing problems in feeding his family, which includes six children. Baksh claimed he did not even have money to bury his wife. Local residents raised money through donations for Bibi's burial, the report said. The Sindh government announced that they were investigation the starvation-related death. "The Mirpur Khas administration has been asked to submit a report immediately as the government made arrangements for distributing free ration and cash to the poor in rural areas of Sindh," a government spokesperson said. "The report says the woman was buried after the local residents raised money for the last rites. Couldn't they provide the money for some rations to this family?" the spokesperson said. Pakistan is under lockdown for over a month now to check the spread of coronavirus which has claimed 176 lives and infected nearly 8,500 people in the country. The government has unveiled a number of schemes for daily wager earners who are the worst hit economically in this curfew period. However, there have been reports of discrimination in the distribution of ration. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Staff and cadets at the Michigan Youth Challenge Academy (MYCA) -- including local cadets Aalexis Harris-Lewis of Sanford and Gage Bohnow of Midland -- have mobilized to produce fabric face masks to fight the spread of COVID-19 in the local community and fulfill one of the program's eight core component requirements, service to community. The project was spearheaded by academy counselors Yolandra Jones and Karen Gonser, nurse Cathy Seppa, and cadre Janet Dadow. Cadets are gaining valuable life skills as they learn to sew and continue to appreciate the importance of attention to detail. "Our cadets have really had a lesson in life coping skills through the COVID-19 pandemic, just as we all have," said counselor Karen Gonser. "They've missed out on opportunities to get out to the communities and participate in service projects, as well as parent and mentor visits and field trips. They've been tested more than most of us, not having any change of scenery since this all started." Local businesses donated fabric and other supplies for the project. Industrial sewing machines were purchased by the MYCA, and staff with sewing experience are providing instruction. Academy Director Mike Gillum said the current hardship only amplifies the adaptability of the entire organization. "The cadets are seeing how solutions can be put together on the fly, and how working together can benefit everyone," said Gillum. "Seeing how everyone, staff and cadets alike, has come together has really been a testament to the strength of our program. And the resilience of the cadets continues to amaze us all." While the masks are no substitute for medical-grade personal protection equipment, the Centers for Disease Control have recommended homemade cloth masks to curb the spread among the general public, and also help to preserve PPE for medical staff. The first order of 65 masks will be supplied to the Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center in Battle Creek. MYCA continues to exercise restrictive measures and safety precautions as directed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Adjutant General of the Michigan National Guard as well as the National Guard Bureau to protect the health and safety of cadets as they continue to push toward program completion. The Michigan Youth Challenge Academy applies the military model to alternative education for at-risk youth ages 16-18. It is a 22-week residential program that is free of cost to participants. The next cycle begins in July. For more information, visit www.michigan.gov/MYCA -- Processed by Victoria Ritter, vritter@mdn.net Hong Kong: Oil prices collapsed to more than two-decade lows Monday as traders grow concerned that storage facilities are reaching their limits, while signs that the coronavirus may have peaked in Europe and the United States were unable to help Asian equities extend their recent advances. US crude benchmark West Texas Intermediate briefly plunged almost 20 percent to below $14.50 its lowest since 1999 as stockpiles continue to build owing to a crash in demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysts said this month's agreement between top producers to slash output by 10 million barrels a day was having little impact on the oil crisis because of lockdowns and travel restrictions that are keeping billions of people at home. WTI was hit particularly hard as its main US storage facilities in Cushing, Oklahoma, were filling up, with Trifecta Consultants analyst Sukrit Vijayakar saying refineries were not processing crude fast enough. There are also plenty of supplies from the Middle East with no buyers as "freight costs are high", he told AFP. "I think we will see a test of the 1998 lows at $11 sooner rather than later," OANDA senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley told AFP. And AxiCorp's Stephen Innes added: "It's a dump at all cost as no one... wants delivery of oil, with Cushing storage facilities filling by the minute. "It hasn't taken long for the market to recognise that the OPEC+ deal will not, in its present form, be enough to balance oil markets." Stock markets were mostly lower despite governments starting to consider how and when to ease lockdowns that have crippled the global economy. Italy, Spain, France and Britain reported drops in daily death tolls and slowing infection rates, while Germany began allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarted nurseries. President Donald Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the COVID-19 pandemic on Sunday as the coronavirus rapidly spreads through both countries. President Trump and President Erdogan discussed the latest efforts to defeat the coronavirus pandemic and reopen global economies, the White House said in a statement. The leaders also discussed critical regional and bilateral issues. Why it matters: Turkey recently surpassed China in recorded coronavirus cases, with more than 86,000 confirmed infections and some 2,000 deaths as of Monday. The United States and Turkey have the first and seventh most infections in the world, respectively. While certain Turkish institutions such as schools remain closed, Erdogans government has avoided implementing a total lockdown so far. Turkey has instated weekend curfews, but even that measure was not without incident as Interior Minister Suleyman Soylus last-minute announcement earlier this month prompted panicked Turks to throng the streets to buy last-minute emergency items, likely accelerating the virus spread. (Erdogan refused to accept Soylus resignation after the incident.) Whats next: The Turkish economy was already struggling before the pandemic, which has exacerbated the crisis. Ankara has ruled out an International Monetary Fund loan. But Reuters reported earlier this month that Turkey has initiated talks with the United States to secure a currency swap line with the Federal Reserve. Know more: Erdogan is also using the pandemic to crack down on the opposition Republican Peoples Party (CHP). Senior correspondent Amberin Zaman reports that Turkeys Interior Ministry has launched an investigation into CHP Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of Istanbul over his fundraising initiative to aid in the COVID-19 response. But the treatment we are receiving in the midst of this pandemic appears to be the proverbial straw. Going into the huge workload we have would take me too much time and invite the trolls so I wont bother defending my profession, however, I want to say that if you continue to treat us like lambs to the slaughter, eventually we will break. Loading The mother of two said the government and many community members had it wrong, school wasnt important but rather learning was, and that didnt need to be done within the confines of four walls. Despite overwhelming research into what makes for effective teaching and learning, you seem to be hanging on to the style of schooling that was created in the Industrial Revolution to make us all compliant, happy little factory workers sitting at our assembly lines, she wrote. But that is not what kids today need. We are teaching them for jobs that dont yet exist so to assume that learning in four walls, in one-hour blocks, in separate subjects (again, I use the high school context) is ridiculous. The secondary teacher, who comes into contact with about 180 students (some of them adults themselves) a day, said she had never felt so forgotten in comparison to other essential workers. When I go to my local grocery store and see them count us in so there are no more than 100 patrons in store at a time, see them spraying trolleys and serving behind a face shield, you cant blame us for wondering why we are somehow exempt from this level of protection, she wrote. Of course, if we were provided with hand sanitiser, like other essential workers are, it would help out, but according to you and Ms Ellery, PPE for teachers is not necessary. A suggestion from the AHPPC as to how schools and teachers could meet social distancing measures was to stagger start and finish times, recess, lunch breaks and other key transition times, when mixing may occur between classes and year levels. With two young children and elderly parents, the teacher said her only option to get to work on time and for her children to get to their respective classes was to drop them at before- and after school care. I did not have children for someone else to raise them and that is what I feel would be happening if they are in care and school from 7am to 5pm every day, she wrote. Loading I already said I would not risk the health of my parents and in-laws, however, sending them [my children] to before-school care and to their regular school means I am contributing to the risk of their teachers and carers who also have families whom they do not want to risk. Another teacher who contacted WAtoday said it was absurd to think social distancing at school was physically possible but should be followed everywhere else. I cannot have more than one person over my house at a time, but I can spend hours in a small room with 32 teenagers, one teacher said. Teachers have their own very young babies to worry about, their elderly mum or dads, immune compromised people, and just want to protect those they love. Schools being 'closed' in term 1, meant that social distancing became a little easier and doable, and so protecting those they live with was a little easier. The primary school teacher said educators werent upset because they were lazy or whingers, but because they were overwhelmed by the task ahead, frustrated at the nonsensical rules, exhausted ... and scared because they dont have a choice but to put those they love at risk. Teachers want to work, she said. Most do the job because they love it. They are however now being asked to do two jobs, when our first job was bloody time consuming and overwhelming as it was. We are having to up-skill ourselves, adapt and transform what we do at a rapid rate, with little guidance or precedent. The teacher said delivering both online and face-to-face learning was a mammoth daily task that included, but wasnt limited to, responding to over 30 emails and requests for help and guidance from students and parents, up to two hours of online conferencing with students, up to five hours of teaching in person, and about two hours of lesson planning and marking. National principles for school education agreed to by national cabinet: Our education systems are based on the recognition that education is best delivered by professional teachers to students in the classroom on a school campus. It is accepted that during the COVID-19 crisis, alternative flexible, remote delivery of education services may be needed Our schools must be healthy and safe environments for students, teachers and other staff to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of education to students. State and Territory Governments and non-government sector authorities are responsible for managing and making operational decisions for their school systems respectively, subject to compliance with relevant funding agreements with the Commonwealth. Decisions regarding the response to COVID-19 in the schooling sector must continue to be informed by expert, official, national and state-based public health and education advice, consistent with these national principles. All students must continue to be supported by their school to ensure participation in quality education during the COVID 19 crisis. Attendance at a school campus for education represents a very low health risk to students. The advice also notes that appropriate practices must be employed at schools, like at other workplaces, to provide a safe working environment for school staff, including teachers. Teachers want to do their jobs, she said. They know they need to do their job. They just cant do these two jobs at once. Education Minister Sue Ellery disagreed and on Friday said it was possible to do both. The Jharkhand government wrote to the railways over reports of some "passengers" travelling in a special train meant for transportation of medical supplies here for hospitals from West Bengal, but Ranchi Rail Division on Monday denied the charge and asserted that those onboard were its staff. According to media reports about 30 passengers reached their destinations at different railway stations en route West Bengal to Ranchi on Friday, even as train services across the country remained suspended following the lockdown imposed to fight the spread of coronavirus. The state Transport Department had sent a missive to the railways seeking clarification on the issue. "Those onboard are our staff," Divisional Rail Manager of the Ranchi Rail Division Neeraj Ambast told PTI. The DRM said that some people had come to unload medical equipment from the freight train before leaving by the same special train. "Some persons had come to unload the medical equipment and returned, while others were our staff and crew," Ambast said, adding no passenger travelled by the special train. He said they will reply to the state government accordingly. Ranchi Rail division comes under South Eastern Railway zone whose headquarters is in Kolkata. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pelosi Defends Promotion of Tourism She Made as Virus Spread House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) defended her promotion of tourism as the CCP virus spread around the world, claiming it wasnt the same as President Donald Trump allegedly downplaying the illness. Pelosi visited San Franciscos Chinatown on Feb. 24, urging people to frequent restaurants and other businesses in the area. We want to be vigilant about what might be on the horizonwhat is out there in other places. We want to be careful how we deal with it, she said, referring to the the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus. But we do want to say to people, come to Chinatown. Here we are, again, careful, safe, and come join us. Video footage showed a crowd of business owners, local officials, and others walking with Pelosi as she toured the neighborhood. The lawmaker told reporters in Washington a few days later that she wanted to instill confidence, not fear, in terms of the virus. Pelosi has in recent weeks criticized Trump, saying he acted late on the virus and tried downplaying the illness. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (C) (D-Calif.) tours San Franciscos Chinatown on February 24, 2020. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) During her first appearance on Fox News Sunday in years, Pelosi on April 19 was challenged to explain her promotion of tourism in Chinatown. If the president underplayed the threat in the early days, Speaker Pelosi, didnt you as well? host Chris Wallace asked. No. What were trying to do is to end the discrimination, the stigma, that was going out against the Asian-American community, she answered. In fact, if you will look the record will show that our Chinatown has been a model of containing andand preventing the virus. The trip was made several weeks before San Francisco Mayor London Breed ordered a lockdown but several weeks after Trump ordered most travel from China to be halted. The president has faced criticism for continuing to attend rallies and other public events into March. COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on March 11. Pelosi said she visited Chinatown and asked people to follow her lead to offset some of the things that the president and others were saying about Asian-Americans and making them a target. Some lawmakers have claimed Trump referring to the virus as the Chinese virus was racist and invited reprisals against Asians. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) (C) prepares to have a dim sum lunch as she tours San Franciscos Chinatown on Feb. 24, 2020. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Wallace noted that Pelosi had no protective gear on as she toured Chinatown, such as a mask. Werent you also adding to this perception that there wasnt such a threat generally? he asked. No. I was saying that you should not discriminate against Chinese-Americans as some in our administration were doing by the way they were labeling the flu and that, no indeed, Pelosi said. She urged Wallace to check the record, adding: our Chinatown has been a model in all of this. Breed announced the lockdown on San Francisco on March 17, one of the first of such orders in the nation. California Gov. Gavin Newsom followed suit later in the month. Both lockdowns remain in place. San Francisco has 1,157 confirmed COVID-19 cases and just 20 deaths have been attributed to the disease, out of a population of some 883,000. Pelosi said twice during the interview that Trump shouldnt seek to blame outside parties amid the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump and administration officials have repeatedly pointed to the Chinese Communist Party covering up details about the virus. Internal documents obtained by The Epoch Times show party officials manipulated figures, including cases and deaths. L-President Donald Trump. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images); R-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images) The president has also paused funding to the World Health Organization, a United Nations group closely linked with China. And so, what were saying, look to them for answers, Pelosi said. Dont look to them to place blame. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A federal judge on Monday said Gov. Mike DeWines administration has a legal right to close nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, ruling against a Columbus bridal shops lawsuit seeking to force the state to offer appeals hearings to closed businesses. Chief U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley said that Gilded Social: The Fancy Occasion shop had not been singled out by not being offered a way to contest being ruled nonessential immediately. Marbley said the state has a legitimate justification for its business restrictions. Marbley declined to issue a temporary restraining order that would have taken effect immediately. He set a May 11 hearing to make a more permanent ruling called a preliminary injunction. But his comments seemed supportive of Health Department Director Dr. Amy Actons general legal right to close nonessential businesses, as long as the rules were universally applied and explained. It would be a virtual impossibility for every business shut down to be afforded a post-deprivation hearing under these circumstances because every business that would be considered nonessential could conceivably come in and attempt to make the argument how that business was an exception, Marbley said Monday during a virtual court hearing. ...That is not practical and would fly in the face of the government being able to adequately protect the citizens, due to all the resources would be diverted to having hearings throughout the states for every business to come in to make that argument. Tanya Rutner Hartman, the owner of Gilded Social, sued Ohio Health Department Director Dr. Amy Acton last Thursday in federal court in Columbus. The case was brought by a group of attorneys known for conservative legal activism, including the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law in Columbus. "We are pleased with Judge Marbleys ruling as the Director of Healths order is legal and constitutional its designed to save lives during this pandemic, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in a statement Monday. Maurice Thompson, executive director of the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law, argued Monday the state illegally failed to adequately set up a process through which businesses can challenge the order as it applies to them. The stay-at-home order has built-in a dispute resolution panel, but only for situations in which similar businesses were treated differently by different counties or health districts. But Ohio Assistant Attorney General Katherine Bockbrader said ordering hearings for every business affected by the closures would be logistically impossible, particularly before May 1, when the current stay at home order expires, and when DeWine has said he plans to start rolling back some of the closures. She also argued Ohioans have the means to push back against the orders through protest and other forms of political pressure. If you were to say we have to give the plaintiffs a hearing, thats one thing, but its not going to be possible to give hearings to every business in the State of Ohio, Bockbrader said. If we cant enforce the law without doing that, youre basically saying we cant restrict nonessential businesses, and they can operate as they want to. The health director and Gov. Mike DeWine have said the order is meant to prevent further spread of the virus in Ohio, where as of Sunday, 471 had died, and 11,602 have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, according to state health department officials. Some conservative lawmakers have urged DeWine to ease restrictions as the economic fallout continues, and the governor during a televised address on Thursday spoke of a plan to re-open parts of the state starting May 1. Read more: Ohio Health Department responds to libertarian lawsuit over non-essential business closures Bridal shop owner, libertarian law firm sue Ohio Health Department Director Dr. Amy Acton over stay-at-home order Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine says Ohio will begin to reopen after coronavirus May 1 Gov. Mike DeWine facing increasing pressure from state lawmakers to roll back coronavirus closures Gov. Mike DeWine extends Ohios stay-at-home order until May 1 Dividend paying stocks like Park Aerospace Corp. (NYSE:PKE) tend to be popular with investors, and for good reason - some research suggests a significant amount of all stock market returns come from reinvested dividends. Unfortunately, it's common for investors to be enticed in by the seemingly attractive yield, and lose money when the company has to cut its dividend payments. A 3.0% yield is nothing to get excited about, but investors probably think the long payment history suggests Park Aerospace has some staying power. Some simple research can reduce the risk of buying Park Aerospace for its dividend - read on to learn more. Explore this interactive chart for our latest analysis on Park Aerospace! NYSE:PKE Historical Dividend Yield April 20th 2020 Payout ratios Dividends are usually paid out of company earnings. If a company is paying more than it earns, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. As a result, we should always investigate whether a company can afford its dividend, measured as a percentage of a company's net income after tax. In the last year, Park Aerospace paid out 89% of its profit as dividends. Paying out a majority of its earnings limits the amount that can be reinvested in the business. This may indicate a commitment to paying a dividend, or a dearth of investment opportunities. We also measure dividends paid against a company's levered free cash flow, to see if enough cash was generated to cover the dividend. Unfortunately, while Park Aerospace pays a dividend, it also reported negative free cash flow last year. While there may be a good reason for this, it's not ideal from a dividend perspective. With a strong net cash balance, Park Aerospace investors may not have much to worry about in the near term from a dividend perspective. We update our data on Park Aerospace every 24 hours, so you can always get our latest analysis of its financial health, here. Dividend Volatility From the perspective of an income investor who wants to earn dividends for many years, there is not much point buying a stock if its dividend is regularly cut or is not reliable. For the purpose of this article, we only scrutinise the last decade of Park Aerospace's dividend payments. Its dividend payments have declined on at least one occasion over the past ten years. During the past ten-year period, the first annual payment was US$0.32 in 2010, compared to US$0.40 last year. Dividends per share have grown at approximately 2.3% per year over this time. Park Aerospace's dividend payments have fluctuated, so it hasn't grown 2.3% every year, but the CAGR is a useful rule of thumb for approximating the historical growth. Story continues We're glad to see the dividend has risen, but with a limited rate of growth and fluctuations in the payments, we don't think this is an attractive combination. Dividend Growth Potential Given that the dividend has been cut in the past, we need to check if earnings are growing and if that might lead to stronger dividends in the future. It's good to see Park Aerospace has been growing its earnings per share at 13% a year over the past five years. Earnings per share are growing nicely, but the company is paying out most of its earnings as dividends. This might be sustainable, but we wonder why Park Aerospace is not retaining those earnings to reinvest in growth. Conclusion When we look at a dividend stock, we need to form a judgement on whether the dividend will grow, if the company is able to maintain it in a wide range of economic circumstances, and if the dividend payout is sustainable. First, the company has a payout ratio that was within an average range for most dividend stocks, but it paid out virtually all of its generated cash flow. We were also glad to see it growing earnings, but it was concerning to see the dividend has been cut at least once in the past. Ultimately, Park Aerospace comes up short on our dividend analysis. It's not that we think it is a bad company - just that there are likely more appealing dividend prospects out there on this analysis. Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. However, there are other things to consider for investors when analysing stock performance. Just as an example, we've come accross 4 warning signs for Park Aerospace you should be aware of, and 1 of them is a bit unpleasant. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our curated list of dividend stocks with a yield above 3%. 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 worst night came on April 13th, Rynda Scholwinski said. Her husband, Raymond Scholwinski, had been in the hospital two weeks, one of thousands of Harris County residents to contract the new coronavirus. The 70-year-old sergeant at the Harris County Sheriffs Office had already spent days on a ventilator, gravely ill. Then his blood pressure cratered. And his blood cells filled with dangerous amounts of carbon dioxide. We were afraid we were going to lose him, Rynda said, on Sunday. He fell ill in late March. Rynda drove him to the hospital on March 29, watching helplessly as doctors rushed him inside. On April 2, doctors transferred him to the ICU. CHRONICLE EXCLUSIVE: As Harris County deputy battles coronavirus, his wife tries to save him from afar Raymond made it through that night. And the next. And the one after that, too. For the last five days, he has remained in critical, but stable, condition. It marks a significant improvement over when he first entered the hospital, his wife said. Prior to Tuesday, he was never stable for even a whole day, she said. We'd take one step forward and two back. She watched as the story of her husbands struggle spread across the city and then around the globe. Her family received notes of encouragement from scores of Houstonians and others across America. A person in England even reached out. The sheriffs office held a prayer vigil for him, and check on her constantly, she said. My family is blown away, she said. She took heart after doctors approved her husband for convalescent plasma therapy an experimental therapy where doctors inject critically ill patients with the blood plasma of COVID-19 survivors. He received the blood plasma on April 14. PLEA FOR HELP: Wife of Harris County deputy hospitalized with COVID-19 seeks plasma donations In the days since, doctors have weaned him off some medications, she said. His fever has broken, and his blood pressure stabilized. And hospital officials arranged for her to be able to check on him via video conferencing, to see him and his progress a huge blessing, she said, since she hadnt been able to see him since the day they wheeled him into the hospital. That first time, she cried with relief. He looked healthier than she expected, though his whiskers were wild. Shes talked to him almost every day since. He has a long way to go still. Hes still in critical condition. Hes still on the ventilator. Hes still asleep. She asks Houston to continue to pray for him. Theres no way we can thank people for all the prayers we've received, she said. There are no words, but we are most grateful. st.john.smith@chron.com Indian startup MedCords through its Aayu & Sehat Sathi app is helping deal with the Covid-19 pandemic. Rajasthan government has exclusively partnered with MedCords Aayu and Sehat Saathi Apps to help over 68 million population (Rajasthan) to consult doctors online and place orders for their medicine requirement in the wake of a lockdown due to Covid-19. Apart from Rajasthan Govt successful Bhilwara model where they prevented the spread of corona , the authorities are also trying to cater Regular and Chronic patients with the help of Aayu app. It is fully adopted in districts Kota, Udaipur, Shri Ganganagar, Bikaner, Ajmer, Pali, Jaipur and will be rolling out to complete state within a week. The app is currently able to help 10000+ patients per day with consultations and also provide fast delivery of medicines through its sehat sathi network. The technology is provided free of cost by the startup. We are committed to ensuring that no individuals health suffers due to a lack of public transportation during the lockdown in Kota. We are confident and positive with our association with MedCords that will enable us to penetrate rural and remote areas and provide effective healthcare delivery during the lockdown. They have been excellent so far managed to resolve both the issues of consultations and medicine delivery to doorstep. said Shri Om Kasera, District Collector , Kota In Ganganagar, Even the Government doctors were enabled on their doctor portal so maximum people can be benefitte said Shiv Prasad Nakate, District collector Sri ganganagar. The biggest benefit of the solution is that it takes almost no time to implement across the district and is so easy to use. With its integrated healthcare ecosystem, Aayu & Sehat Sathi (Enabling Physical Medical store to Digital) (by MedCords) is helping millions of Indians families consult with qualified doctors and order necessary medicines, irrespective of their geographical limitations. The startups integrated healthcare solution is being extraordinarily helpful for dependents such as the elderly and people with disabilities whose movement is restricted during the government-imposed lockdown. The Covid-19 pandemic is indeed a testing time for the country. The ban on public transport due to lockdown has restricted common people from accessing medical help. The pandemic has also led to a shortage of doctors in the rural areas & small towns, adding to the woes of crores of Indians. Our integrated solution through our two apps Aayu & Sehat Sathi, is an endeavour to bridge this gap and bring an effective healthcare ecosystem for every citizen of Bharat, on their fingertips. Currently 50% of the cases especially from the grassroots are coming from outside Rajasthan, and we will.be more than happy to support with our technology to every state to help them contain corona virus and help people get essential things easily. It hardly takes us a day to roll out a state. says Shreyans Mehta, Co-founder and CEO of MedCords. MedCords is right at the forefront in war against Corona. Its solution of comprehensive contactless healthcare delivery is especially effective in ensuring millions of patients who would otherwise need to go to an OPD can be attended to at their home. This aids in keeping both the healthcare workers and patients stay protected from unnecessary exposure to a potentially Corona affected person. We build this system to help Bharat, today we are proud to be able to make impact in fight this huge healthcare crisis said Dhanavath, Co-Founder, MedCords Our apps Aayu & Sehat Sathi, have made quality healthcare accessible for everyone, on their fingertips. Our apps and helpline number can be used in Hindi & English, making it easy for Indians to use it, says Mehta. The startup aims at redressing disparity between accessibility to quality healthcare in urban and rural India. Using Aayu, customers can consult specialist doctors, secure their medical history quickly and order medicines from their nearby medical stores from anywhere across the country. The app also has a built-in comprehensive coronavirus guide for users to clear their myths and check their symptoms. Both apps are available on Google play store. A person who is not a smartphone user can call 7816811111 to receive consultations from doctors from anywhere in India. For now, the company is extensively focusing on helping India to tackle the coronavirus crisis using technology. Each and every person of the country must have access to the right information, qualified doctors and complete closure to their problem. And thats what we at MedCords provide, says Nikhil Baheti, Co-founder of MedCords. MedCords, the company behind Aayu & Sehat Saathi app, was founded in 2017 by Shreyans Mehta, Nikhil Baheti and Saida Dhanavath and is backed by leading investors like InfoEdge, Ashish Jain WaterBridge Ventures, Astarc Ventures, CIIE and Istart programme of Government of Rajasthan amongst others. Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. Last month the Federal Reserve tapped BlackRock, the worlds largest asset manager, to facilitate billions of dollars of purchases of securities authorized under the coronavirus economic rescue package. As the Fed has begun to implement its CARES Actrelated stimulus efforts, though, it and BlackRock have sparked a partisan battle at the intersection of climate change and finance. Senate Republicans are worried that BlackRock could take climate changerelated financial risks into account in making its securities purchase recommendations, as the firm has pledged to do when shaping its own investment strategies. Concerned that this approach would block fossil fuel energy and airline companies from their share of the financial rescue, Republicans are seeking to bar BlackRock from considering these risks in CARES Act purchasing. If BlackRock is going to make the best decisions for American taxpayers, it must be allowed to assess these climate risks as it does for other clients. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As the pandemic itself has demonstrated, failing to properly assess risks can lead to disastrous outcomes. That is just what BlackRock is being asked to do, though. Earlier this month, 17 Republican senators sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell (the secretary of energy was also CC-ed) expressing concerns related to BlackRocks implementation of CARES Act programs. Shortly after the passage of the economic rescue bill, the Fed announced that BlackRock would administer three of the CARES Acts security purchasing programs, facilitating billions of dollars of Fed purchases of corporate bonds and commercial mortgage-backed securities. The senators letter pointed to the headline-dominating news from January that BlackRock intends to include the assessment of climate-related risks in its investment strategies going forward. Larry Fink, BlackRocks CEO, wrote that climate risk is investment risk, a fact that markets to date have been slower to reflect. BlackRocks new strategy includes many measures across the asset managers sprawling array of investment products, with the most immediate move being the divestment of thermal coal from all its active fundsabout $1.8 trillion worth of equities. Advertisement Advertisement Finks letter echoed the growing concern that investors will be left holding the bag once markets adjust to reflect the reality of fossil fuels unprofitable future. This risk, that companies and their investors might be left with stranded (i.e., unprofitable) assets is only one type of climate-related risk, often referred to as transition risk. A second type of investor-relevant climate risk is physical risk: the risk that markets have poorly forecasted the increased likelihood that business operations will be disrupted by changes to the planets physical climate. Last year BlackRock released its investigation into the pricing of physical climate risks in several types of assets: municipal bonds, commercial mortgage-backed securities, and equities of electric utilities. The research was conducted alongside the climate-risk consultant Rhodium Group and concluded that for each asset type, climate-related risks were underassessed and underpriced. Analysis showed that the market was failing to price in the exposure of these assets to the predictable increase in severe weather events and rising seas. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While Republicans are concerned that BlackRock will bring these insights to its management of security purchases for the Fed, the American people should be concerned that it wont. The asset manager found that the median risk of a building that backs a [commercial mortgage-backed securities] bond being hit by a Category 4 or 5 hurricane today has risen by 137 percent since 1980. And that economic impacts of a warming climate could lead to rising CMBS loan loss rates over time. BlackRock similarly calculated the climate risk exposure of hundreds of publicly listed U.S. utilities. Its conclusion: The risks are underpriced. The senators, however, want the Fed to emphasize that, in carrying out its fiduciary duties BlackRock must act without regard to [climate-related divestment] or other investment policies BlackRock has adopted for its own funds. This requirement may help secure extra financial support for fossil fuel companies. It will also likely harm the countrys financial standing. Advertisement Advertisement In truth, the letter is probably unnecessary. It is unlikely that BlackRock will implement climate risk screening tools in its short-term Fed program contract when its only just beginning to roll them out for its own specialized products. Advertisement Advertisement But this letter is just the latest in a string of partisan measures aimed at the intersection of climate and finance. As private investors are belatedly waking up to the economic realities of a changing climate, politicians with ties to fossil fuel executives are trying to use their power to slow the inevitable market realignment. Over the past year, the Trump administration has moved to prevent retirement funds from considering material risks related to climate change. Last April, the president issued an executive order on Promoting Energy Infrastructure that directs the Department of Labor to investigate discernible trends regarding retirement funds investment in the energy sector and to issue guidance clarifying fund managers fiduciary duties with respect to the use of environmental criteria. This was after the Department of Labor had already issued guidance discouraging investment manager engagement with companies on environmental issues. In 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission allowed companies to exclude 45 percent of all climate-related shareholder proposals from the proxy voting process. This meant that proposals at Exxon, Duke Energy, and Chevron requesting the disclosure of emissions reduction targets never made it in front of shareholders. Advertisement Advertisement These partisan measures are all based on a false framing of a trade-off between sustainable investments and making money. But if the objective is to accurately price financial risks from climate change, no such trade-off exists. The president of the San Francisco Fed, Mary Daly, has said that the consideration of climate risk is essential to achieving the central banks mission of promoting a stable economy. As Congress and the Fed roll out further support for corporate America, they would do well to keep in mind that many financial assets were already riskier than their sticker price suggested, long before the coronavirus. For more on the impact of COVID-19, listen to Mondays What Next. Nine pro-Iranian militiamen were killed when Israeli planes fired several missiles in central Syria, according to a group monitoring the Syrian conflict. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes late on April 21 targeted "military posts for Iranian militias" in the Palmyra desert in Homs Province. The Israeli military declined to comment. The slain militiamen included three Syrian nationals and six foreigners of unknown nationalities, the observatory said, adding that the dead included some fighters loyal to the Lebanese militant group Hizballah. Syrian state news agency SANA reported that the country's air defenses "confronted an Israeli missile aggression" and "shot down a number of the hostile missiles before reaching their targets." Syrian state media regularly overstates the success of the country's defenses against Israeli air strikes. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria in recent years targeting Iranian forces, Syrian government positions, and allied militias. Western and Israeli intelligence say Iranian forces and allied militias use the eastern Syrian desert bordering Iraq to transfer fighters and advanced weapons systems to support the Syrian government and the Hizballah group. Last week, an Israeli drone fired two missiles at a vehicle carrying Hizballah members in Syria close to the border with Lebanon. The Shi'ite militant group said its members escaped. The strikes on April 20 came as Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Along with Russia, Tehran has provided crucial military support to Assad during the country's civil war, which entered its 10th year last month. More than 400,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict began with a crackdown on anti-government protesters in March 2011. With reporting by AFP, AP, SANA, Reuters, and dpa CHICAGO, April 20 (Reuters) - JBS USA said on Monday it would indefinitely shut a Minnesota hog slaughterhouse that produces about 5% of the country's pork, in the latest disruption to the U.S. food supply chain from the coronavirus pandemic. The closure limits the amount of meat the United States can produce for consumers during the outbreak and adds stress on farmers who are losing a market for their pigs. JBS is closing a pork production facility in Worthington, Minnesota, that employs more than 2,000 workers and processes 20,000 hogs per day, according to a statement. It advised plant employees to follow a state order to stay at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, until the facility in Nobles County reopens. "It is clear that the disease is far more widespread across the U.S. and in our county than official estimates indicate based on limited testing," said Bob Krebs, president of JBS USA Pork. The U.S. government has deemed agricultural workers to be essential during the pandemic because they are responsible for maintaining the country's food supply. The Worthington facility will wind down operations over the next two days with a reduced staff so pork that is already in the facility can be "used to support the food supply," Brazilian-owned JBS said. Rivals Tyson Foods Inc and WH Group Ltd's Smithfield Foods have already closed pork plants due to outbreaks of the contagious respiratory virus among employees. JBS and National Beef Packing Company have shut beef plants. Meat companies have struggled as workers have stayed home out of fear of contracting the virus at plants. Processors are taking employees' temperatures before they enter facilities and have installed dividers between workers in an attempt to promote social distancing. "When COVID-19 is prevalent in the community, fear is heightened, absenteeism rises and the challenge of keeping the virus out becomes greater," JBS said. "When absenteeism levels become too high, facilities cannot safely operate." (Reporting by Tom Polansek; Editing by Tom Brown) New Delhi: BMW Group President and CEO Rudratej Singh passed away on Monday (April 20) morning due to a massive cardiac arrest, PTI reported. The automaker informed about the demise in a statement this morning. "BMW Group India, with profound sorrow, announces the demise of Rudratej Singh (46), President and Chief Executive Officer on April 20, 2020," the automaker said in the statement. "Our prayers are with his family and loved ones during this difficult period. He will always be remembered as an inspiring and compassionate human being," BMW Group India said in the statement. His transformational vision and strategic orientation played a crucial role in navigation of BMW Group India in a challenging business environment, it further read. His demise comes at a crucial junction when the company was in midst of implementing strategic measures for strengthening the dealer network across India, the automaker said. The German auto major had appointed Singh as head of India operations with effect from August 1, 2019. Rudy, as he was popularly called, was the first Indian to head the BMW India operations. Singh had more than 25 years of experience and held multiple leadership positions both in the automotive and non-automotive industry. In his last assignment, Singh was the Global President at Royal Enfield and before that he worked with Unilever in India and international markets for over 16 years. Parts of Europe hit hard by the deadly coronavirus pandemic took tentative steps towards resuming normal lives on Monday, with Germany allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarting nurseries. Governments across the world are debating how and when to ease the lockdowns that have kept more than half of humanity -- 4.5 billion people -- confined to their homes and crippled the global economy. After emerging in the industrial central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, the respiratory virus has claimed roughly 165,000 lives, with nearly two thirds of the victims in Europe. But there were encouraging signs over the weekend in Europe with daily death tolls dropping in Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open on Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Adding another flicker of hope in Europe, Norway allowed children to go back to nurseries on Monday, although some parents expressed reservations over the decision. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month, and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". Authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. In the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the outbreak was "on the descent". Cuomo cautioned that it was "no time to get cocky", although the warmer weather lured New Yorkers out of their homes and into parks over the weekend. "I feel a little guilty being here, at the same time for my own mental sanity this is probably what I need," said real estate agent Taylor Henderson at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Across the other side of the world, New Zealand announced Monday that it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." Iran, which has the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, also allowed some "low-risk" businesses to reopen Saturday. Bleak Ramadan But after Christians around the world marked Easter with subdued ceremonies, Muslims in the Middle East and beyond are preparing for a bleak Ramadan -- the holiest month in the Islamic calendar -- which begins later this week. Mosque prayers have been suspended for Ramadan and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. By Mohamed el-Shahed (AFP) Mosque prayers have been suspended and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. Several countries' religious authorities, including Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Abdulaziz al-Sheikh, have ruled that prayers during Ramadan and Eid be performed at home. "Our hearts are crying," said Ali Mullah, the prayer leader at the Grand Mosque in Mecca. "We are used to seeing the holy mosque crowded with people during the day, night, all the time... I feel pain deep inside." Anti-lockdown protests In the United States, which has the more than 759,000 confirmed infections and nearly 41,000 deaths, some are increasingly chafing under stay-at-home orders and are taking to the streets to protest. Anti-lockdown demonstrations over the weekend drew hundreds of people in states including Colorado, Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio. Many waved American flags, and some carried weapons. But others stayed in their cars or wore protective masks. President Donald Trump fuelled another bout of fury over the weekend by lending support to the protests against the lockdown restrictions -- which medical experts say save countless lives. In Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro -- who has repeatedly claimed the virus threat is overblown -- joined hundreds of protesters in Brasilia who objected to state governors' stay-home orders. US Navy sailors aboard the hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) treat patients in the ship's intensive care unit in New York -- the vessel cares for critical and non-critical patients without regard to their COVID-19 status. By Scott BIGLEY (US NAVY/AFP) Brazil has the most infections in Latin America, a region where an AFP tally on Sunday showed total cases had surpassed 100,000 with nearly 5,000 deaths. "Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro told the protesters in an address that was interspersed with fits of coughing. burs-qan/kma Boris Johnson is resisting pressure to ease the UKs coronavirus lockdown too soon, fearing a second wave of the pandemic could hit the country, a person familiar with the matter said. The prime minister, who is yet to return to work after being struck by the virus himself, spoke with colleagues including his deputy, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, late on Friday to express caution, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the conversations were private. The government is facing calls to lift restrictions on movement that have brought the UK economy to a near halt and triggered a surge in furloughs and welfare applications. On April 16 Raab extended the lockdown for three weeks amid signs the outbreak is near or at its peak, but there is now an open debate in government about how and when to ease. The big concern is a second peak, Johnsons spokesman James Slack said on a call with reporters on Monday. If you move too quickly, the virus could begin to spread exponentially again. Slack said Johnson is focusing on his recovery at Chequers, his country residence, and while he is receiving daily updates, he is not doing government work. The government is also under increasing pressure to explain elements of its response, including delays in getting vital equipment and on testing health workers and others for the virus. On Sunday, the government issued a furious defense of Johnsons handling of the crisis. Furious Rebuttal After a report in the Financial Times criticizing the procurement of ventilators and a Sunday Times story which suggested Johnson failed to take the virus seriously in its early stages, the government published two separate rebuttals, one 2,900 words long and the other 2,100 words long. This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government, the response to the Sunday Times began. It went on to question several of the assertions in the piece. Since Johnson declared at the end of February that the virus was the governments top priority, ministers have struggled to deliver on their own targets, with shortages of tests and protective equipment for health workers. By Sunday afternoon, 16,060 people with coronavirus had died in hospitals. The numbers who have died elsewhere, particularly in care homes, are still being counted. UK Reports 5,850 New Coronavirus Cases, 596 Deaths Some parts of the governments response are still coming. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak will on Monday launch a 1.25 billion-pound ($1.56 billion) support package for companies focused on research. Its made up of a 500 million-pound loan fund for high-growth companies, where the government will match private investments with loans that convert to equity if theyre not repaid, and 750 million pounds of grants and loans for smaller firms. Five Tests Monday will also mark the moment companies can apply for support paying their staff through the Treasurys furlough plan. The Resolution Foundation think tank estimated the plan would cover 8 million people. It said it expected almost half of workers in the hospitality and retail sectors will be furloughed. Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, one of those leading the response while Johnson recovers from his Covid-19 infection, said the government will continue to refer to the five tests set out by Raab on April 16 before deciding to lift restrictions. There are signs that the number of deaths is leveling off, but officials say its too early to call the peak of the virus. Sunday saw newspaper reports that the government had drawn up a three-stage plan for ending the lockdown that could see schools reopen as soon as May 11. That is not true, we have not made that decision, Gove told the BBC. But Gove confirmed the idea of a staged easing of the lockdown when it does come, saying the hospitality industry would be among the last to exit. He said that a contact-tracing phone app, which would help Britain resume public life by enabling the government to see who people with the virus might have passed it to, was in beta testing. Too Early Englands Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries said it was too early to say whether the UK had responded well or badly to the virus compared to other countries, because the final totals of deaths werent yet known. She also hinted at frustration with the discussions about personal protective equipment (PPE), calling for a more adult and more detailed conversation about the issue. She said there had been unprecedented demand and that supply had nevertheless been maintained. On Monday, Slack said 12 million items of PPE had been delivered yesterday, bringing the total to date to 1 billion items. The government has also put the Royal Air Force on standby to speed up a shipment of supplies from Turkey which has been delayed. Argentine capital faced backlash after initially saying those 70 years and older had to get permission to leave home. Buenos Aires, Argentina The city of Buenos Aires relaxed a plan on Monday to keep elderly people inside their homes during the coronavirus pandemic, following heavy criticism that the initial restrictions were offensive and discriminatory. Argentina has been under mandatory lockdown since March 20, with most activities, outside of going to the grocery store, the pharmacy or bank, off limits. Buenos Aires officials wanted to require those 70 years and older to get permission to leave their homes, but following a backlash from the community, government sources say obtaining a permit is no longer mandatory. The government now advises elderly residents to call a toll-free number to say that they need to go out, during which the main goal will be to convince them to remain indoors by offering to have the task completed by a volunteer. The citys resolution states that the city will record notice if the person decides to proceed with the outing, and that the notice lasts for 48 hours. But sources told Al Jazeera there will be no penalties for individuals who leave home without giving notice. City officials say the plan is designed to protect the group most at risk of dying from the novel coronavirus. I dont pick who the pandemic attacks, Horacio Rodriguez Larreta, mayor of the city of Buenos Aires, said at a Monday morning news conference. All of the decisions have a single criteria, which is to look after the lives of the residents of this city. A medical worker injects an elderly woman with a flu vaccine inside a church as part of a government vaccination campaign in Buenos Aires, Argentina [Natacha Pisarenko/Reuters] While the mandatory lockdown remains, the national government has been gradually lifting restrictions for certain tasks, leading to a noticeable increase in movement on the streets of Buenos Aires. If you consider that you have to go out, give us the opportunity to speak with you, Fernan Quiros, the citys health minister, pleaded with older people. If you do not like what we are offering you, and if you think that it is not valid, you have all the freedom to carry out the activity that you want, he said at the news conference. Larreta said the measure is guided by statistics: 80 percent of COVID-19 deaths worldwide have been people over the age of 70. In Argentina, with more than 2,900 cases and 136 deaths, the average age of the deceased is 71. Backlash The original proposal, which had the backing of President Alberto Fernandez, generated fierce controversy in the capital city of Argentina, with a population of 3 million, including around 400,000 people over the age of 70. Officials had originally considered fining violators, or requiring community service, but reversed course amid the public outcry. Critics called it unconstitutional, discriminatory and a form of imprisonment. And even after the backpedalling, many said it was confusing and they had a hard time getting through to the line. We think its an inadequate and unacceptable measure because it generates a sense of handicap that relates to age, Eugenio Semino, the ombudsman for seniors in Argentina, told Al Jazeera of the original plan. Older people are not suicidal, and simply need the same explanations as other people about how to protect themselves. Our great fear is not, as is sometimes assumed, the mystery of death, but rather its fear of the loss of autonomy. The loss of freedom, he added. It is a debate that has also been playing out in Europe. In France, President Emmanuel Macrons warning that elderly people will have to remain in quarantine longer than the rest of the population stoked such a backlash that his government backtracked, saying it will not discriminate. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has also come out against isolating elderly people in order to return to normalcy, calling it ethically unacceptable. In Argentina, prominent writers, journalists and thinkers had voiced their strong opposition. Among them is Argentine intellectual and art historian Jose Emilio Burucua, who expressed his outrage last week in an email to friends, in which he suggested people start wearing a yellow Star of David, with +70 written inside. The 76-year-old included a photo of himself, wearing the star. His comparison to the Nazi treatment of Jews drew condemnation from the Delegation of Argentine Jewish Associations, which spoke out against the banalisation of great suffering. Burucua has since admitted he may have gone too far, but said there is nothing banal about discrimination and a loss of constitutional liberties. An elderly man walks near a coffee shop sign announcing it complies with hygiene standards against the new coronavirus in Buenos Aires, Argentina [Juan Mabromata/AFP] We know our fragility, but prohibitions wont help you take care of us, Graciela Fernandez Meijide, an Argentine human rights activist, wrote in a column in Clarin newspaper last week. Maria Rosa Fernandez agreed the permit proposal was absurd. The responsibility of my life is mine, said the 87-year-old, leaning up against the windowsill of one of her favourite coffee shops in the neighbourhood of Chacarita on Saturday. She lamented its closure, and the coffees she has been missing. The fresh air keeps her sane. And while she agrees that the government should look after the elderly, there are limits. You cant infringe on someones liberty. If I have to stay at home all day, I will die, she said. The Skellig Star Hotel in Cahersiveen, County Kerry where an outbreak of COVID-19 has been confirmed. Photo: Don MacMonagle There has been an outbreak of the coronavirus at a hotel used to house more than 100 asylum seekers. Local community representatives in Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, have been told four residents of the Skellig Star were diagnosed early last week as having Covid-19 and that they had since been transferred to Cork. Read More Jack Fitzpatrick, chairman of the Cahersiveen Community and Business Alliance, said representatives from the town's pharmacies and supermarkets met with management of the hotel on Saturday night. They were told that, as of yesterday, residents would be confined to the hotel and its grounds. Local businesses will make deliveries to the door of the hotel. It is understood that the 56 bedrooms are being shared by around 100 residents. "Three weeks ago, the HSE promised us they would contact us immediately if there was any change. Last night, after we approached management, the hotel confirmed four residents had tested positive and had been moved to Cork," Mr Fitzpatrick said. "At the very minimum, supermarkets should have been informed to protect our frontline staff." The Department of Justice has said the decision to transfer residents of Dublin hotels to the Skellig Star last month was part of its emergency response to Covid-19. Commenting yesterday, the department said it had a range of measures to address cases of Covid-19 in direct provision centres should they arise, including provision for self-isolation facilities. It said it also had a number of off-site isolation centres around the country. A vehicle was damaged in a late night garage fire Sunday night in northeast Rochester after overhead power lines fell onto it from the heat exposure, according to the Rochester Fire Department. Firefighters were called about 10:50 p.m. to the 800 block of 12th Avenue Northeast for a report of a detached garage on fire, according to the fire department. Crews arrived to find the garage on fire and downed electrical lines that ignited a nearby passenger vehicle. Residents of a nearby home were able to evacuate themselves without incident. Crews were able to knock down the main body of fire, but had to stay at bay until Rochester Public Utilities arrived to kill power to the downed lines. No one was injured. The fire caused damage to the garage, but a partition wall prevented it from spreading to the entire structure. The Olmsted County Sheriffs Office is investigating a report of shots fired in Cascade Township. Deputies were called to the 700 block of 55th Street Northeast about 11:30 p.m. Sunday. A white car was found with a "significant number of bullet holes in the back of it," according to Capt. Scott Behrns. The owner of the vehicle was asleep at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported. The incident is under investigation. Two Rochester residents were arrested in Georgia last week in a vehicle that was stolen in Stewartville, according to Rochester Police Capt. Casey Moilanen. An 18-year-old Stewartville resident reported on April 2 that a 24-year-old Rochester woman and a 23-year-old Rochester man stole a vehicle the Stewartille woman had borrowed from a relative. On April 17, Rochester police learned that the vehicle was stopped in Thomson, Ga., and law enforcement there arrested the Rochester pair. [April 20, 2020] Clarivate Enhances Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence with New Site Selection Analytics Clinical trial planning platform enables researchers to pinpoint best sites to support trial protocols and patient recruitment needs LONDON and PHILADELPHIA, April 20, 2020 /CNW/ -- Clarivate Analytics Plc (NYSE:CCC) a global leader in providing trusted insights and analytics to accelerate the pace of innovation, today announced that Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence has been enhanced with new site selection analytics. Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence is a powerful and user-friendly resource to plan clinical trials, helping to accelerate clinical trial development decisions, select trial sites, inform portfolio strategy and provide key competitive intelligence. The enhanced solution allows clinical development and operations professionals to make more confident decisions around trial design, site selection and validation with a single point of access to continuously updated and curated protocol, biomarker, patient segmentation, endpoint, and site data. Clinical operations professionals can better position trials for success leveraging intuitive analytics, simple search capabilities, targeted data filters and content indexing. In addition, Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence is designed to seamlessly integrate with the broader Cortellis suite of life science solutions to enable data-driven decisions across the entire development and commercialization lifecycle. Keith Collier, Vice President of Product Management, Clarivate said: "There is significant risk and complexity in planning a successful clinical trial. Clinical operations teams are tasked with evaluating and selecting experienced and reliable sites to fully recruit patients and support overall trial success. They risk spending significant time and money working with sites that can't deliver. The new sites content in Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence addresses those challenges, helps to reduce the risks and enables more confident clinical planning decisions - all within a single source of comprehensive clinical development and operations data. Tese enhancements coupled with the granular clinical design and protocol information - including patient segmentation, biomarker validation, endpoint selection, and more - allow clinical professionals to position studies for greater success from Day 1." According to The Centre for Medicines Research (CMR) International, nearly 58% of total R&D expenditure is spent on clinical testing. The average time it takes to initiate 100% of sites involved in a Phase III trial is 348 days. Throughout all trial phases (I-III), 53% of trial protocols needed to be amended after initiation and 26% of Phase III trials involved at least one site that enrolled low numbers of patients - two or less. These dynamics reinforce the challenges faced by trial sponsors to identify patients, recruit patients to experienced sites and pair them with appropriate investigators. All of this points to the need for more efficient clinical trial planning to increase chances of trial success ultimately getting treatments to patients as quickly as possible. Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence is comprised of data spanning 380,000+ clinical trials, 2,900+ diseases, 35+ clinical trial registries, 2.6M+ literature citations, 84K+ conference presentations, 425,000+ press releases, and more. Additional analytics and content - including the integration of epidemiology data - will continue to be added throughout 2020 and beyond to further aid clinical operations with investigator identification and provide accurate incidence and prevalence data to help clinical professionals select the right countries for trials. To learn more about Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence, visit www.clarivate.com/trialsintelligence. About Cortellis Cortellis, a Clarivate solution, gives life to science by unlocking the hidden insights in data by curating broad and deep sources of intelligence to enable precise, actionable answers to specific questions across the R&D lifecycle from discovery and clinical development through regulatory submission and commercialization. By supporting data-driven decisions, Cortellis helps pharmaceutical companies, biotech and medical device/diagnostic firms accelerate innovation. Over the past year, 80% of U.S. companies filing NMEs, 91% of companies achieving breakthrough therapy status and 70% of the top licensing deals were informed by Cortellis intelligence. For more information, please visit clarivate.com/cortellis. About Clarivate Clarivate is a global leader in providing trusted insights and analytics to accelerate the pace of innovation. We have built some of the most trusted brands across the innovation lifecycle, including Web of Science, Cortellis, Derwent, CompuMark, MarkMonitor and Techstreet. Today, Clarivate is on a bold entrepreneurial mission to help customers reduce the time from new ideas to life-changing innovations. For more information, please visit clarivate.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release and oral statements included herein may contain forward-looking statements regarding Clarivate. Forward-looking statements provide Clarivate's current expectations or forecasts of future events and may include statements regarding results, anticipated synergies and other future expectations. These statements involve risks and uncertainties including factors outside of Clarivate's control that may cause actual results to differ materially. Clarivate undertakes no obligation to update or revise the statements made herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/clarivate-enhances-cortellis-clinical-trials-intelligence-with-new-site-selection-analytics-301043344.html SOURCE Clarivate Analytics Plc [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Pune recorded 65 new coronavirus positive cases in the last 24 hours ending on Monday, taking the total number of the affected people to 734 in the district, a Health official said. On the second consecutive day, no death was reported in Pune district. The death toll so far is 51. "With 65 new cases, the total number of cases in Pune municipal limits rose to 625. In neighbouring Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), the total number of cases is 58 while rural areas account for 51 cases," the official said. Meanwhile, a team of senior officials from Union Health department reached Pune and took stock of the situation, he said. Earlier in the day, the Centre termed the COVID-19 situation as "especially serious" in Mumbai and Pune among few other cities in some states. "An additional secretary rank officer, an official from civil supply as well as other officials visited Pune and reviewed the situation," he said. During the meeting, they sought information on the COVID-19 cases and the measures being undertaken to contain the situation, a Pune civic official said. The team will remain stationed in Pune for the next two-three days, during which they might visit some facilities in the city. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) From Mount St. Helens to Baker City to the Willamette and Siuslaw national forests, Gloria Brown came to know and cherish the Pacific Northwests forests, mountains, rivers and public lands during her decades with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. By the time Brown retired in 2007, shed achieved numerous accolades and could list accomplishments that included becoming the first black woman supervisor of a U.S. national forest. Her new memoir, Black Woman in Green: Gloria Brown and the Unmarked Trail to Forest Service Leadership (Oregon State University Press, 208 pages, $19.95), written with Washington State University-Vancouver historian Donna L. Sinclair, is both an inspiring personal story of a black womans determination to excel in a white mans world and an intriguing look at the recent history and evolution of one of the most influential agencies in the Pacific Northwest. Gloria Brown (left), Donna L. Sinclair and "Black Woman in Green," Brown's memoir, co-authored with Sinclair.Courtesy of Oregon State University Press Brown, who lives in Lake Oswego, never thought shed become a forester. A native of Washington, D.C., she saw her office position with the U.S. Forest Service primarily as a good government job that paid well. But in 1981, when she was a 30-year-old mother of three working as a transcriptionist by day and taking broadcast journalism classes by night, her husband was fatally injured by a drunken driver who crashed his vehicle into the Browns car. Brown decided she could no longer afford to start over in a new field and instead set her sights on moving up through the Forest Service ranks. She finished her journalism degree and leveraged it into an information specialist position. She also sought out mentors, who advised her that the road to advancement led away from the capital and sent her on a two-week field trip to the Forest Services Region 6 the Pacific Northwest Region, headquartered in Portland. The food was good, the scenery fantastic, and it was the cleanest place I had ever been, Brown recalls in Black Woman in Green. The highlight of my trip was a black bear running across Highway 101 near Cape Perpetua. She went home deeply impressed by the West. But she also concluded that Oregon might be a little too wild and was definitely way too white for us. A better fit, she thought, might be Region 8, headquartered in Atlanta. The first job she got outside D.C. was a public affairs position in Region 1 headquarters Missoula, Montana. Browns 1987 arrival in Montana coincided with what she describes as the Forest Services height of efforts to create what top leadership called a multicultural organization. One of 11 black people and three women among the regions 3,000 Forest Service workers, Brown was tapped to provide diversity training in the field. This is where I came face-to-face with the true character of the Forest Service I had joined. She took up the challenge with gusto, but the prejudice her children encountered at school finally led her to acknowledge that they needed to leave. I had been naive about Montana, she concedes in the book. [B]ut Id also learned that if I set my mind to it, I could do just about anything. I had ridden a horse, set up camp, cooked outdoors, learned to fight fire, made new friends in an all-white community, helped other women, and begun to focus on civil rights. That mix of realism and resilience permeates Black Woman in Green. A blend of oral history and autobiography, the book strikes a conversational tone that serves readers well, especially when Brown discusses issues such as the long-running standoff over logging in the Siuslaw National Forest. As forest supervisor there, she was lauded in 2004 for brokering what The Oregonian called an exceptional combination of community backing, rapidly growing forests and innovative policies resulting in a national forest that works. At the time, Brown told The Oregonian that her strategy consisted of investing in relationships. We taught line officials all about trees and soils and fires and ecosystems, but we never taught them about people, she said. People bring their own complexities to the table; Brown encountered support, skepticism, opposition and outright bewilderment as she climbed the Forest Service ladder, often finding herself the only black woman for literally miles in the wilderness. Nevertheless, she persisted, demonstrating not only an indomitable will to succeed but also why representation and inclusion matter even or especially atop Mount St. Helens. Her story is an invaluable addition to the story of the Forest Service. awang@oregonian.com; Twitter: @ORAmyW Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. YEREVAN. Those at fault for the leakage of the off-air footage of the Prime Minister's video message must be held accountable. Lilit Makunts, head of the majority My Step faction, said this during the traditional briefing in the National Assembly of Armenia on Monday. She noted that the My Step bloc considers what happened unacceptable. According to her, this incident may have various explanations, but the matter is firstly about information security. "At the time when the prime minister did not know about the live broadcast, important information could have been voiced that was not intended for a wide audience," Makunts said. "People who are responsible for this incident must be held accountable. If this does not happen, the bloc will turn to the National Commission on Television and Radio demanding that not only an explanation be given and that such incidents be ruled out in the future, but also that those guilty be held accountable. Makunts added that she did not consider Mane Gevorgyan, the prime minister's spokesperson, accountable in this regard, as "the technical details of the live broadcast do not fall within her responsibilities." To note, the off-air footage of PM Nikol Pashinyan preparing for his live broadcast had appeared on the Internet, and his spokesperson and the state-funded Public Television have made mutual accusations in this regard. A fatal crash in Macon, Georgia has killed a 3-year-old boy who was ejected from a vehicle. At 2 p.m. Sunday, a 29-year-old man from Dothan, Alabama, lost control of a Pontiac G6 at the Interstate 475 split near Hartley Bridge Road, the Bibb County (Georgia) Sheriffs Office said. The vehicle hit a guardrail on the on-ramp and overturned, ejecting a 3-year-old boy and a 4-year-old boy. The 3-year-old was pronounced dead at Navicent Medical Center. The 4-year-old is in stable condition along with the driver and their mother, a 31-year-old Macon woman, who was also in the vehicle. The roadway was closed for a brief time while the crash was cleared, but it is back open. Anyone with more information is urged to contact the Bibb Sheriffs Office at 478-751-7500. 2020 The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Ga.) Visit The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Ga.) at www.macon.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Cronkite News PHOENIX The Navajo Nation has the countrys third-highest rate of COVID-19 infections, but it has had to watch as funds go to less hard-hit areas in a very slow federal aid process, Navajo President Jonathan Nez said Friday. Nez was one of several tribal leaders from around the country participating in a virtual House Natural Resources Committee session on the federal response to coronavirus in Indian Country and their consensus was that the response has not been good. Tribal nations are the first citizens of this country, but sometimes we feel that we are pushed aside and that we are bidding against each other, Nez said on the videoconference that included state and tribal leaders from Minnesota, New Mexico, the Great Plains and Alaska. All these tribal leaders on the panel, we are all bidding against each other for these finite resources of gloves, of masks, of gowns, face shields, Nez said. We are even bidding against governors and it seems like the person with the most money gets the resources. Don't forget to tune in! Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Arizona), chairman of House Committee on Natural Resources, is hosting virtual roundtable with Native leaders on Trump administrations response to #Coronavirus pandemic in Indian Country. @NRDems #COVID19 https://t.co/nVzNx1lMDj indianz.com (@indianz) April 17, 2020 Officials on the videoconference said they appreciate the $8 billion in aid set aside for tribes in the $2 trillion federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, Act, but that it is taking too long for the funds to reach Indian Country. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Tucson, and chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, convened the session to profile and bring to attention, what is going on and what is not going on in Indian Country. This virus doesnt see Democrat or Republican and it shouldnt rely on political patronage to provide resources to the neediest and the hot spots, Grijalva said. The Indian Health Service did not respond directly to complaints raised in the online session, but said in a statement Friday that it is working hard with partner agencies to deal with a rapidly evolving situation. The potential public health threat posed by COVID-19 is very high, the statement said. We must be vigilant in our efforts to slow the spread of infections among our patients and within the communities we serve. LIVE NOW: Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez: "Federal funds should not go to for-profit corporations...Half of this $8 billion might not even go directly into tribal communities." #CARESAct #Coronavirus #CoronavirusReliefFund @NRDems @NNPrezNez https://t.co/nVzNx1lMDj indianz.com (@indianz) April 17, 2020 The committee session came as Nez said the Navajo Nation saw the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases rise to 1,042 on Friday, 122 more than Wednesdays total. The number of deaths from the virus rose to 41, he said. Even though that is the third-highest number of cases per capita, outside of New York and New Jersey, Nez said federal funds are not being sent to the hardest-hit areas, like his. Allocation is being made instead by population, he said. Beyond the immediate health concerns, speakers said the COVID-19 pandemic is as much of an economic catastrophe in Indian Country as it is in the rest of the U.S. Many tribal communities have found their entire revenue snapped off overnight. These tribal leaders are making impossible decisions, said Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, a citizen of the White Earth Nation of Ojibwe. With many tribal areas already struggling with poverty and high unemployment, Flanagan said, its even more important for Indian Country to pull together in the face of the pandemic. When it comes to COVID-19, we are all in this together, she said. During good times, we are often erased and forgotten, so during a time of crisis I find myself kicking and screaming and doing everything I need to do to make sure our people are seen. Speakers in the event raised a long-standing complaint about the federal governments lack of respect for tribal sovereignty. Nez said tribes are being forced to apply for grants, which slows the process. Tribal leaders have been advocating for direct funding to tribal governments for a very, very long time, Nez said. And this is an emergency, and so you would think the money would go directly into tribal communities but chairman, it has been very slow. LIVE NOW: Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez: "Federal funds should not go to for-profit corporations...Half of this $8 billion might not even go directly into tribal communities." #CARESAct #Coronavirus #CoronavirusReliefFund @NRDems @NNPrezNez https://t.co/nVzNx1lMDj indianz.com (@indianz) April 17, 2020 Michael Chavarria, governor of the Pueblo Santa Clara Tribe in New Mexico, said tribes cannot get the help they need if they are not part of the conversation, but that no one in the federal government is consulting them. He said he was glad to hear that the Interior Department might pause its development of scores of policies. We urge the department to take the next step, which is to suspend any of these policy decisions and focus on addressing the response of this COVID-19 effort, Chavarria said. Our relationship with the federal government is not race-based. It is based upon the political status of us as sovereign political governments, he said. Nez said the Navajo recently received rapid test kits from the government, but it can take many tests to calibrate the machines correctly and his tribe is only getting a finite number of tests. But Nez said he is hopeful that Congress will get things right with tribal funding in an expected fourth stimulus package, and leaders at Fridays event optimistic in general about the near future. A couple weeks ago, we were told that coronavirus would wipe us all out. But I want to tell all our listeners today that Native American people are resilient. We are overcomers, and we will get through this together, Nez said. Times are tough right now but Navajo people, and Indian country, have been through a lot and we will also get through this, he said. We are a strong and resilient people and we will get through this together. Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News and is published via a Creative Commons license . Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University Join the Conversation The coronavirus pandemic has forced some restaurants to close temporarily. Others remain open, but with a fraction of the staff they once employed. Tips, which make up a large portion of compensation for those in the restaurant industry, can be difficult to come by. Polar Seltzer is looking to change that this week. The Worcester-based company is offering a $500 tip to servers, chefs, dishwashers, hosts, bartenders or anyone in the restaurant industry this week as part of a #PolarTips campaign. The contest will highlight local restaurants and the top items on their menus. To be eligible for the $500, employees need to tag the restaurant where they work on the April 19 Polar Seltzer Instagram post along with the best thing to order at the establishment. Posts within the Instagram page can range from best food or drink orders to the best off-the-menu items. Participants must have worked at the restaurant or bar within the last two months. Each day, Polar Seltzer will be awarding a $500 tip to five people. The campaign runs through April 26. The five winners will be announced at 5 p.m. daily. Related Content: Doctors have responded with fury to the Deputy Chief Medical Officer's claim that people are not being 'adult' about PPE supplies amid growing calls for a public inquiry into NHS equipment shortages. Dr Jenny Harries slapped down critics of the government's efforts to make sure frontline workers have access to the gowns, gloves and masks they need to protect against coronavirus. She said there needed to be a 'more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies' as she insisted the UK was an 'international exemplar in preparedness'. Her comments sparked anger among healthcare chiefs who said they had been 'sounding the alarm' on the apparent lack of PPE available in some settings 'for months'. The government is now facing increasing pressure to launch a formal probe into the supply of PPE. Ministers are today facing fresh criticism on the issue after a vital shipment of protective equipment from Turkey looks set to be delayed again. The delay in the arrival of the 84-tonne delivery, which includes 400,000 protective gowns, comes amid reports that some hospitals could be on the verge of running out of some equipment. Medical bodies said shortages meant doctors and nurses would effectively have to choose between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Dr Jenny Harries (pictured) said 'we could perhaps have a more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies' as the government comes under fire over its efforts to protect NHS staff from coronavirus Responding to Dr Harries' comments about PPE, Dr Rinesh Parmar of The Doctors' Association UK told The Guardian: 'Doctors have indeed been having both "adult and detailed conversations" about the sheer lack of personal protective equipment for months, all of which have fallen on deaf ears. 'Since late February the Doctors' Association UK and frontline doctors have been sounding the alarm about potential shortages, which have been met with misplaced reassurances that the UK has sufficient supplies.' Dr Parmar is now leading demands for a public inquiry, telling LBC Radio: 'We have been collecting signatures on a petition calling for a full and frank public inquiry into what's happening with PPE to commence after all this is over with Covid-19 and we've had a chance to recover.' Palliative care doctor Rachel Clarke told ITV's Good Morning Britain programme that her phone had 'exploded with messages' after her colleagues heard Dr Harries' remarks. Dr Clarke said: 'When we all heard those words from Jenny Harries, I know how people reacted because my phone exploded with messages from people. Dr Jenny Harries under pressure over testing comments Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Jenny Harries has appeared to question whether greater coronavirus testing would save lives. While acknowledging it is important to investigate the link between more tests and reduced death rate, she said: I think the actual mechanism between the two is still not clear. Former World Health Organisation official Professor Anthony Costello wrote on Twitter that Dr Harries should resign if that was her belief. Infectious diseases expert Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust, said the Government had been too slow to increase its testing programme. If you look at what has happened in Korea and Singapore and indeed in Germany, there was a much quicker ramping up of testing, he added. Testing will be critical as we come out of this epidemic. Advertisement 'Take the last month, the official PHE advice on PPE has changed three times and the most profound of those has been a downgrade on standards of PPE. 'We all know it's not based on the best science - science hasn't changed three times in the last month. So they have downgraded the level of PPE.' Dr Clarke also raised concerns about an apparent lack of PPE for care workers as she said they had been 'completely forgotten by this government'. 'We are using a pinny essentially - a skimpy, plastic pinny,' she said. 'And even now, as the government focuses on the problem of gowns, we can't even get the pinnies everywhere they need to be in the country.' Speaking at yesterday's daily coronavirus press conference in 10 Downing Street, Dr Harries said: 'I think we have had, if I might say from my own professional perspective, we could perhaps have a more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies. 'For example, quite rightly, the conversation at the moment is very much focused on gown supplies. Earlier, in earlier weeks, I'm very aware of consideration of eye-wear for example, in goggles and masks.' There have been reports of healthcare staff re-using single-use PPE because of shortages. Asked if she would be comfortable treating Covid-19 patients in such a position, Dr Harries said: 'If I happened to be working on the frontline today I have a responsibility to look after patients to the best of my ability, to protect my colleagues and my staff and to manage my practice safely. 'All of those in the current climate will mean that I need to understand the agreed guidance on PPE .. and to implement that whenever I can.' She said it was 'very easy to make a throwaway comment about single-use PPE' but the situation was 'actually quite complex'. Sewage from a 30-inch sewer line is leaking into the bay off Atlantic City Sunday evening, the city announced. In a statement released Sunday night, Atlantic City officials announced that a main sewer line was found leaking Sunday morning in an area near the former Bader Field airport. There was no immediate word as to how much sewage has leaked into the water. Recreational fishermen primarily use the bay location of the leak, and the city is in the process of contacting marinas, private dock owners, and bait shops. The city said it is asking residents and businesses to conserve water to reduce the amount of water that goes through the main. A new bypass system will be installed Monday as part of a plan to repair the leak. The line services the Chelsea Heights section of the city, as well as Margate, Ventnor, Longport, and the Seaview Harbor Marina in Egg Harbor Township. The citys health and emergency management departments are working in conjunction with the citys water company, the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA), and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) to monitor and repair the situation. Chris Franklin can be reached at cfranklin@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @cfranklinnews or on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. One of Australia's most prominent investment outfits, Regal Funds Management, has posted a shock 59 per cent slide in its high-performance hedge fund during March, leaving some investors fuming. The ASX 200 fell more than 20 per cent and Wall Street slid 18 per cent in March. Credit:AAP Regal's chief investment officer Phil King told clients in a note distributed late last week that he had "underestimated the speed and scale" of the coronavirus pandemic, leaving a portfolio of stocks owned by the company's Atlantic Absolute Returns Fund exposed to savage share price falls. March was a difficult month for investors, with the ASX 200 falling more than 20 per cent and Wall Street sliding 18 per cent. But Regal's performance was significantly worse than some of Mr King's competitors, with local hedge fund VGI Partners posting a 1.4 per cent return and Totus Capital's Alpha Fund rising 10.4 per cent. Caledonia Investments, which manages money for a number of wealthy families, declined 22.5 per cent in March. Its notable how many of the victims were helpers by trade: A 23-year veteran of the RCMP. A passionate teacher. A retired firefighter who was quick to assist others. At least 19 people had been killed in this weekends massacre in Nova Scotia, as the RCMP worked to retrace the shooters violent path. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki said Monday that the investigation of this unprecedented crime will be long and complicated. RCMP in Nova Scotia say they are contending with at least 16 different crime scenes. Our focus must and will be to put names to the victims, to the heroes, to the people who serve their community, Lucki said. Heres what we know about the lives lost so far. RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson is shown in an RCMP handout photo. There is an outpouring of grief across Nova Scotia today as the names of victims of a weekend mass killing begin to emerge, ranging from a nurse to a teacher to an RCMP officer. RCMP Heidi Stevenson RCMP constable Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and mother of two, was killed in the line of duty while responding to the shooting. A second officer was shot, but survived. Stevenson was admired, respected and beloved by her colleagues and her community, said Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair on Monday. Our hearts are heavy with grief and sadness today as we have lost one of our own, said Brian Sauve, president of the union representing RCMP officers. Paul Wozney, president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union, noted that Const. Heidi Stevenson, an exemplary 23 year RCMP veteran who laid down her life responding to the call, was the wife of Dean Stevenson, who teaches at Cole Harbour District High School. Lisa McCully was identified by the Nova Scotia Teachers Union as a victim of the massacre. Facebook Lisa McCully Teacher Lisa McCully was teaching a Grade 3-4 split classroom at Debert Elementary, about 20 minutes east of Portapique, according to principal Scott Armstrong. She had previously been a vice-principal at another school, but decided she missed teaching and joined Debert five years ago, he said. Thats where her heart was. McCully was a single-mother to two school-aged children and was always seen around town taking her son and daughter to extracurricular activities. Her world revolved around them, Armstrong said, adding that she brought her love for her kids into the classroom where she routinely incorporated her appreciation of music and art into her lessons. When the coronavirus outbreak forced schools to shut down, she immediately worked to develop online learning plans for students even for other kids in the neighbourhood, Armstrong said. She was able to master the distribution side of it quickly, he said. That shows the type of teacher she was. Teaching surrounded everything she did. Armstrong said he spoke to McCullys mother in the aftermath of the shooting. Like her teaching colleagues, the family is at a loss as to why she would be targeted by Wortman, who lived across the street from her. This seems like a bad dream. Gina Goulet was a denturist eager to get back to her work amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Facebook Gina Goulet Denturist Gina Goulet was a denturist who worked in Shubenacadie, N.S. Her daughter, Amelia Butler, said Goulet was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2016. Goulet was warned that her prospects didnt look good, but she beat the odds. Goulet was diagnosed with cancer a second time late last year, and had almost fully recovered when she died. She fought so hard for her life, Butler said. Butler said her mother was an avid angler and would often retreat to her cottage with her two dogs to go bass fishing. Goulet was also a salsa dancer who would travel to Cuba whenever she got the chance. That was the place where she was the happiest. Goulet enjoyed her work, and posted to Facebook two days before the shooting that she was missing her arts and crafts and wished to get back to dentury soon, when COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Heather OBrien was a licensed practical nurse, as well as a mother and grandmother. Facebook Heather OBrien Nurse Heather OBrien was a licensed practical nurse, as well as a mother and grandmother. The pain comes and goes in waves. I feel like Im outside of my own body. This cant be real, OBriens daughter, Darcy Dobson, wrote on Facebook. She was kind. She was beautiful. She didnt deserve any of this. To every single person suffering from this senseless tragedy please feel free to reach out as we are all forever connected in this horrible mess. Portapique resident Lucille Adams said she knew OBrien, who would always lend a hand. She has so much compassion for the people she worked for and her family, she says. She was a very loving person. She was always out there to help somebody. Its a tragedy that her family has to deal with this. Jamie Blair (left) and Greg Blair are shown in a family handout photo. Handout Greg Blair and Jamie Blair Parents Married couple Greg and Jamie Blair were parents of four with many shared passions and hobbies. Victoria Lomond posted a tribute to the couple on Facebook Monday. I have never known a love as strong and pure as Jamie and Gregs, Lomond wrote. It would be hard to determine who loved the other more, although I am sure Greg would have an answer for that. They loved fishing, cooking, being outdoors and time with their family, Lomond wrote. Alanna Jenkins worked at the Nova Institution for Women in Truro and Sean McLeod worked at the Springhill Institution for more than 20 years. Supplied Sean McLeod and Alanna Jenkins Correctional officers The Wentworth, N.S., couple were correctional officers. Sean McLeods daughter, Taylor McLeod, said Alanna Jenkins worked at the Nova Institution for Women in Truro and McLeod worked at the Springhill Institution for more than 20 years. McLeods daughter said the couple deeply loved and cared for her, her little sister and Taylors daughter. They would have done anything for anybody and they always made sure people were welcome in their home. Emily Tuck, Jolene Oliver and Aaron (Friar) Tuck died together. They were keeping high spirits staying together during the COVID-19 lockdown. Facebook Jolene Oliver, Aaron Tuck, Emily Tuck On April 6, in the middle of widespread COVID-19 shutdowns, Jolene Oliver and husband Aaron Tuck kept it light making a video from their living room reciting the now-famous phrase stay the blazes home and encouraging friends to appreciate the time spent with families. Less than two weeks later, both parents and their daughter, Emily Tuck, died in the shooting massacre. Olivers sister Tammy Oliver-McCurdie posted on social media to express her shock and sadness. At least they were together, Oliver-McCurdie wrote. Dont know who I will call to chat for hours, solve world problems and laugh at crazy stuff, the post goes on. From afar Jolene, even through the tough times, we were always close and loved one another. Will be terribly missed. Kristen Beaton was a young wife and mother who worked as a continuing care assistant for the Victorian Order of Nurses (VON) Canada, a national home care non-profit. Facebook Kristen Beaton Continuing Care Assistant Kristen Beaton was a young wife and mother who worked as a continuing care assistant for the Victorian Order of Nurses (VON) Canada, a national home care non-profit. In a statement posted to their website, VON President Jo-Anne Poirier said Beaton was a caring and compassionate member of the team who had worked for the company for almost six years. Both Beaton and Heather OBrien were VON employees, according to the VON website. We mourn their loss, and we mourn for their families, the statement said. Bonnie Craig, a former co-worker, said Beaton had been building a great life for herself with a husband and small child. She was very kind, and would do anything to help anyone. Tom Bagley was a retired firefighter who was always eager to help anyone he could, his nephew, Jeff Flanagan, wrote on Facebook Monday Facebook Tom Bagley Retired firefighter Tom Bagley was a retired firefighter who was always eager to help anyone he could, his nephew, Jeff Flanagan, wrote on Facebook Monday. He said his uncle will be remembered for his kindness, caring and skill as a storyteller. Tom will be greatly missed by anyone who had the privilege of knowing him, Flanagan wrote. This beautiful soul was taken from me yesterday, Bagleys daughter, Charlene Bagley, wrote on Facebook Monday. He died trying to help, which if you knew him, you knew that was just who he was. Corrie Ellison lived in Truro, N.S., but was visiting his father in Portapique when he was killed. Facebook Corrie Ellison Corrie Ellison, 42, was remembered Monday as a thoughtful, kind friend who went out of his way to help others. Hes the type of person that I dont think anybody would want to see that happen to him, his father Richard Ellison said. Ellison lived in Truro, N.S., but was visiting his father in Portapique when he was killed. Richard Ellison declined to comment on how his son died. Ashley Fennell says she was good friends with Ellison for almost a decade. She describes him as a beautiful soul. Ellison was on disability support because of an old injury. He had no children of his own, but he loved kids, Fennell said. He would join Fennell and her son swimming in the summer and last Christmas, he offered some money to help pay for her sons gifts. He once paid for Fennell to take her son on a trip to a water park when she was struggling. I would call him, and it didnt matter what he was doing, he would jump for me, she said. He had texted her about picking up a cigarette roller about a week ago, but the two never arranged a time with the ongoing pandemic. Fennell didnt know it would be the last time she talked to her friend. I didnt text him back right away and now Im regretting all this, she said. He was just such a nice guy. Frank Gulenchyn and Dawn Madsen were a married couple and longtime residents of Oshawa, Ont. before moving to Nova Scotia. Handout Dawn Madsen, Frank Gulenchyn Retired couple Married couple Dawn Madsen and Frank Gulenchyn were longtime residents of Oshawa, Ontario before moving to Nova Scotia. Gulenchyn was a stepfather to Madsens two sons, who both posted pictures of the couple to Facebook Sunday with messages of love. The regional chair of Durham Region posted a tribute to the couple Monday. Madsen retired from her work at Oshawas Hillsdale Terraces long-term-care home in 2019. This tragedy hits especially close to home, reads a portion of the statement by chair John Henry. Our hearts go out to their family and all families affected by this senseless tragedy. Other media outlets reported that Lillian Hyslop was killed during the shooting while out for a walk near the Wentworth Provincial Park on Sunday Facebook Lillian Hyslop Other media outlets reported that Lillian Hyslop was killed during the shooting while out for a walk near the Wentworth Provincial Park on Sunday. The Star reached out to family and friends of Hyslops, but didnt received a response in time for publication. The Halifax Chronicle-Herald reported that she was an avid walker and that shed been out for one of her regular strolls that morning. The outlet said shed moved to the area in recent years, and that prior to moving to Nova Scotia, her husband had worked for the Yukon government. John Zahl and Elizabeth Joanne Thomas. Facebook John Zahl and Elizabeth Joanne Thomas Retirees who had come to Portapique from New Mexico, John Zahl and Elizabeth Joanne Thomas lived in a home immediately next to Gabriel Wortmans largest property. Both were volunteers at a local church. According to the couples son, Justin Zahl, Wortman burned down his parents house one of five structural fires that the RCMP reported from Saturday night into Sunday morning. A fundraising webpage on behalf of the family described them as missing but presumed dead. In a Facebook post, Justin Zahl said that it could take over a week for the police to identify the bodies. Joey Webber had gone on a family errand toward the Shubenacadie, N.S., area, about 50 kilometres northwest of Halifax, when he was killed. Facebook Joey Webber Joey Webber had gone on a family errand toward the Shubenacadie, N.S., area, about 50 kilometres northwest of Halifax, when he was killed. Coun. Steve Streatch, who lives four houses away from Webber in the rural community of Antrim, said he was a fine young man who lived in the community of the Musquodoboit Valley, and its a tragic loss. Peter and Joy Bond Multiple social media accounts, including postings by relatives and a New Brunswick church, shared sadness at the news that Peter and Joy Bond, a couple who were loved by their family, friends and community, are among the dead. The couple lived in Portapique, N.S., and had two sons, according to a fundraising page set up for their family. Bradley Monks wrote on April 20 that he had received word that the attacks were on his sisters street, and the couple had not been heard from. God please let them be OK, Monks wrote. Later in the week he shared photos in their memory. On April 20, granddaughter Tiffany wrote, No words can describe how I feel at the moment, and shared a photo of Joy and Peter. I have lots of memories to hold onto. I know you both will be looking over us and your family, she wrote. Correction - April 24, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version to update an incorrect photo caption. The victims are identified clockwise from the left, not from the right. With files from The Canadian Press, Douglas Quan, Ted Fraser and Kieran Leavitt Read more about: People living in one of Irelands few communities not to suffer any cases of Covid-19 have vowed to keep the virus out. Arranmore Island off the coast of Donegal, which has a population of around 500 people, have shut themselves off from the mainland. Islanders declared a lockdown on the island as far back as March 15 when they actively discouraged visitors from making the five kilometre ferry boat trip to their island. Jerry Early, who runs the popular Earlys Bar and hostel said they believe they made the right decision if only one life is saved. He admits that the tourism industry on the island will be decimated this summer but he said they are will to pay that price for the health of the islands community. He said We made the decision to lockdown early because we could see no other way of keeping the virus out. Yes, were going through tough times like everyone else. We depend on the tourism season each summer and that is all but gone now unless things change drastically. But do you know what.Id swap ten bumper tourism seasons on Arranmore to make sure that nobody becomes a victim of Coronavirus and we all get through it. He paid tribute to the operators of the two ferry companies which service the island for their strict policy of vetting everyone visiting the island. Mr Early has been the unofficial spokesman on the island for many years. He can be seen and heard most nights across sitting rooms in Ireland in the Three television advert for broadband on the island. Last April the communications giant helped set up a digital hub on the island called Modem is a bid to entice people to the island to live but with excellent connectivity. Jerry said the campaign has been a huge success even though his children make fun of him when the advert comes on. People, including my own children are sick of the advert. It gets a lot of plays on the television but it has been great for the island. I really think we were looking forward to a great summer on the island thanks in part of the advert campaign but thats all probably gone now, he said. A decision to cancel the Irish summer colleges across the country means that 600 pupils who stay on the island annually between June and July will now not be coming. Early estimates the revenue from the students was worth close on 1m to the island including the 30 families who took in the students for the six week period. Life on the island is similar to that on the mainland with the elderly population cocooning while the students from the one secondary school and two primary schools being home-schooled. Locals are taking walks on the island and the traditional ways of setting potatoes, turf and cutting lawns are all ways people are keeping busy. Jerry thinks the Government are doing a good job in general especially on the financial side although he thinks the Minister for the Marine could respond more to the needs of fishermen. I think theyre doing a good job in general in the circumstances. We have no real industry on Arranmore and we are dependant on the tourism industry and thats probably gone, he said. He has five siblings around the world and he doesnt know when hes going to meet them again. The population of the island swelled by around 50 to 60 when news of the pandemic and the lockdown began to filter through. Whoever is here is staying here, he said. The islanders are lucky that they are well-serviced on many fronts on basic needs. Their health is looked after on a daily basis by two doctors and a public health nurse who come to the island each day and the two ferries bring across all the necessary food and other supplies to the local shop. Like many Jerry is hoping the pandemic will change things for the better for future generations. I think we had to change and I think we will change. Money will mean an awful lot less after all this and thats a good thing. Values will change, he said. And despite being on lockdown on an island that is cut off from the mainland, Jerry said the people of Arranmore are content - for the moment. Were doing okay but I do worry a little about peoples mental health long-term if some of the measures arent eased. We need to get back to a bit of normality again at some stage and there has to be an end point. A friend said the last day that Ireland is the best place to live with this pandemic and that Arranmore is the best place to live with it in Ireland. I cant disagree with that, said Jerry. Joint Statement on the 150th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin The Communist Party of Aotearoa (NCPA) and the Communist Party of Australia (CPA) jointly commemorate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, leader of the Great October Socialist Revolution and founder of the first socialist state. Lenin and the Bolshevik Party developed and extended Marxism into the modern era against the revisionism and social-chauvinism of the Second International with new thought on imperialism, colonialism, the state, dialectical materialism, socialist revolution and construction. Lenins contribution to Marxism and the advent of the Great October Socialist Revolution brought Marxism to the Asia-Pacific for the first time and inspired progressive forces all over the Asia-Pacific from Chinese youth to Vietnamese patriots, Australian workers and New Zealand miners to hold the red banner of socialism high in their own struggles. Despite the tragic disappearance of the Land of Soviets nearly three decades ago, the theoretical legacy of Lenin still guides the Communist and Workers Parties of the Asia-Pacific region. Guided by Leninism and analysis of the specific national conditions, our Parties construct a better, socialist future for the working people of our countries, and collectively, the region as a whole and in both Australia and New Zealand. At the beginning of the new decade facing both new challenges and new opportunities, and during one of the greatest public health challenges the world has faced in living memory, it is important that we Communist and Workers Parties of the Asia-Pacific region take the time to commemorate the impact of Lenin on both Marxism and the development of our region. We stand for socialism in our respective countries and the region. Long Live Vladimir Ilyich Lenin! Long Live Socialism! Signatories: Communist Party of Australia New Communist Party of Aotearoa The immediate past Kano State Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural Development, Engr Muazu Magaji, who was relieved of his appointment following alleged unguarded utterances he made against the person of the late Chief of Staff to the President, Malam Abba Kyari, has finally cleared the air of what he actually meant. The former commissioner in a statement he issued on Sunday, said he did not celebrate Kyaris death but people misunderstood what he meant. Governor Abdullahi Ganduje had through the state Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, in a statement said the Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural Development, Engr. Muazu Magaji removed from office following his unguarded utterances against the person of the late Chief of Staff to the President, Malam Abba Kyari. He explained, I want to sincerely clear up what a lot of people may have misunderstood and set the record straight. As a Muslim and a patriotic Nigerian, I was only misunderstood by people to think that I celebrated Kyaris death, the truth is I did not. The former Commissioner added, Not only that, I made several posts mourning Kyaris death on my same Facebook account and through my special assistants, but the general public couldnt commend such, rather tend to capitalize on a phrase post that was given another set of definition and direction as well as negativity in other to tarnish my reputable image as a member of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje administration and his loyalist and that of our national party, APC. The use of win win phrase was basically an attempt to explain the Islamic Promise on the people that died as a result of any kind of pandemic. The late Mallam Abba Kyari was privileged to die as a result of COVID-19, making him among the beneficiaries in Islam. He is conferred with the automatic privilege of martyrdom. Our Rasul S. A. W assured on the path of martyrdom in Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Jihad wal-Siyar. Even Sheik Isah Ali Pantami has taken time to explain more of this. By this, the death of Mallam Abba Kyari is a big win for him, which is almost the dream of every Muslim. On the other hand, Nigeria equally has the opportunity to restructure the office of the Chief of Staff, where I called Mr. President to ensure that we can utilize the pandemic challenges into more strengths, by disintegrating the power of the office for a rapid administrative flow, which over and above anything, our constitutional democracy is meant to achieve and function so often. Engr. Muazu Magaji said, ln an emotional reaction to my posting, agents around the office of the late Chief of Staff misunderstood my whole meaning, infuriated from the loss of their benefactor, as such petitioned my principal, His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the Governor of Kano State, they twisted the narrative with explanation completely out of context and lacing it with religious and cultural connotations that made it necessary for our Principal the Executive Governor to show leadership and solidarity with the dead by relieving me off my position in Kano State as his Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural. The former Commissioner said he is confident that the Governor must make such a difficult decision as a conditional sacrifice to appease the aggrieved individuals who were bereaved, especially from their loss. I understand the difficulty of the circumstances, both from misunderstanding my post, to the Governors decision and in general the pains of people in Abuja. l understand perfectly well. Wholeheartedly, I want to use this opportunity to reiterate that as a devout Muslim, I could not have celebrated the death of any human being; because its against my culture, social civilization and most importantly the teaching of my religion. I equally want to appeal to all people, especially those in Kano to give people the benefit of doubts by accepting their explanation on what they actually and truly mean by themselves, he explained. He apologised for any misunderstood action, reaction and inactions, adding, We are all in a difficult time that anxiety, worries and depression make understanding and misunderstanding very difficult. I am so sorry for any pain I might have caused both the families of the late chief of staff and my boss, His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. I am forever loyal to my boss; the Governor of Kano State and indebted to all the people of Kano state. I want to plentifully remain grateful to His Excellency for the opportunity he gave me to serve my state under his administration and am pleased to leave not on account of fraud, insubordination, dishonesty, treachery, disloyalty, betrayal, act of incompetence or undermining the government or the people of Kano; but due to this unfortunate misunderstanding and miscommunication of my Facebook post. I assure you that everyone will calmly understand my meaning by revisiting everything Ive said. I am only human; perfection is never part of our creation. I pray for Allah to grant the late Chief of Staff eternal rest in AlJannah Firdaus and give his family and associate the fortitude to bear his loss. May Allah continue to help the people and government of Kano State to achieve higher advancements. Post Views: 20 Last week, the Harvard School of Public Health held an online forum entitled Coronavirus, social distancing, and acute insomnia: How to avoid chronic sleep problems before they get started. The forums featured speaker was Don Posner, a president of Sleepwell Consultants, and adjunct clinical associate professor at Stanford University School of Medicine. Posner explained that the COVID-19 crisis is a perfect storm for sleep problems. The actions that were taking to protect ourselves [right now] can not only precipitate problems with sleep, but lead to chronic problems with sleep, Posner said. Good sleep doesnt necessarily mean more sleep. It refers to uninterrupted sleep, relied on as part of a consistent, familiar routine that requires virtually no effort or thought on the part of the sleeper. Good sleepers dont struggle to fall asleep, or wake up two hours before their alarms to stare up at the ceiling fan. They dont need naps throughout the day (which Posner likens to snacking) and they dont rely on the weekends to catch up on shut-eye a practice which can actually exacerbate existing issues. But in the age of COVID-19, practices generally relied on for good sleep are under attack. Disruption reigns supreme as employees adapt to workdays without commutes or, alternatively, manage commutes that could put their life and the lives of those they love in peril. In a country where nearly 35% of the population suffers from sleep issues during normal days, a sever collective uptick in anxiety isnt helping matters. Even those reaching deep R.E.M. sleep cant quite escape the hour; according to psychologist Deirdre Barrett, crazy dreams heavy on nightmarish metaphors are spiking across America. Tart cherries are high in sleep-cycle regulator melatonin. (Abigail Miller/Unsplash) Good sleep is too important, though, to give up on. A lack of it can set a dark tone for these already dark days, resulting in everything from minor irritability to an inability to overcome depression. Its also essential to muscle growth and recovery, necessary for stiff-arming heart diseases and dementia, and highly supportive of immune system strength, a bodily function weve all had to think about quite a bit lately. Posner dropped a couple tips on how to encourage good sleeping habits going forward, including the need for a reliable routine (even if your day has shifted back a couple hours thats OK, just keep it consistent), taking daily walks, and avoiding sleep inhibitors like blue light or caffeine before bed. On the very last point: caffeinated beverages, of course, are infamous for facilitating a poor nights sleep. Alcohol is also in that club: once metabolized (which often occurs a couple hours after hitting the pillow), it can cause frequent wake-ups. Research surrounding food and sleep, though, has been illuminating in recent years. Together, the two can turn the wheels of a cruel, self-defeatist cycle. Consider the work of Dr. Marie-Pierre St-Onge. She published a study in 2016 that sleep-deprived people chose foods the next day higher in fat or carbohydrates to make up energy. These foods are prime culprits for micro-awakenings the following night of sleep, which leads to exhaustion yet again, which leads to poor choices, which leads to you get it. Kiwi contain high levels of serotonin, and aid in sleep quality. (Ashish Vyas/Unsplash) One way to combat that cycle is an optimized eating schedule. Medical officials like Dr. Youlan Tang, a physician in the BronxCare Health System, recommend giving the body time to digest hours before getting tucked in. In a recent piece published by The Wall Street Journal, Dr. Tang recommended compressing eating hours (a similar tenet to intermittent fasting) and closing the day with a light dinner. But you can hack your way to better sleep by going a step further and proactively seeking out snooze-friendly ingredients. In his latest book, Boundless: Upgrade Your Brain, Optimize Your Body & Defy Aging, wellness pioneer Ben Greenfield even outlined a grocery list of specific foods that help with restful sleep. Two items on his list are actually fruits kiwi and tart cherries and have been corroborated as potential sleep-aids by numerous studies over the years. Kiwifruit contains the mood-boosting hormone serotonin, which aids in the production of sleep-cycle regulator melatonin. A study published way back in 2011 assessed sleep quality after doze-deprived adults consumed two pieces of the fruit, one hour before bed, for a full month. Across the board, participants waking time after sleep onset scores were down a hefty 28.9%. Total sleep time increased by 13.4%. Meanwhile, a study from 2012 showed that the juice of tart Montmorency cherries contains high levels of photochemicals, including melatonin, that can directly increase melatonin levels in humans, along with time in bed, total sleep time and sleep efficiency. Dubbing the practice cherry juice supplementation, the researchers concluded that consumption of a tart cherry juice can help in the fight against sleep disturbance. Your marching orders, then: two pieces of kiwifruit as dessert after dinner, preferably an hour or two before bed. And tart cherry juice, taken as a drink, close to the end of the day, or even as a vinaigrette over a salad or chicken for your last meal. (Go easy on the second one, or youll get sick of it fast.) More research needs to be done to determine the optimal time windows and quantities for consuming these fruits, but each represents a welcome, all-natural answer for addressing difficult sleep during a difficult time. Not to mention the additional benefits higher fiber intake, antioxidants, copious vitamins and minerals, better brain health would be worth it even without the sleep-aid knowledge. Keep an eye out next time youre in the produce aisle, and sleep well. Subscribe here for our free daily newsletter. The post Start Eating These Two Fruits for a Better Night's Sleep appeared first on InsideHook. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke with Maldivian President Ibrahim MohamedSolih on the "health and economic challenges" the COVID-19 pandemic poses for the island nation. "The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together," the prime minister tweeted. India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time, he said. Noting the special challenges that the pandemic poses for a tourism-dependent economy like the Maldives, the prime minister assured the Maldivian President of continued Indian support for minimising the health and economic impact of COVID-19, an official statement later said. The leaders updated each other about the current state of COVID-19 infections in their countries. They expressed satisfaction that the coordination modalities agreed among SAARC countries were being implemented actively. Prime Minister Modi was happy to hear that the Indian medical team sent earlier to Maldives, and the essential medicines gifted by India, had contributed towards controlling the spread of the infection in the islands. The two leaders agreed that their officials would remain in touch on issues arising out of the present health crisis, as well as other aspects of bilateral cooperation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Centre has asked states and union territories to strictly comply with the lockdown measures announced to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic and not to dilute them at any level. IMAGE: Vehicles wait in various lanes at the Vashi Toll Plaza in Navi Mumbai during ongoing COVID-19 lockdown. Photograph: PTI Photo In a communication to chief secretaries of state governments and union territory administrations, Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla said some states and UTs are issuing orders allowing activities which have not been allowed as per the guidelines issued by the home ministry under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. "I would again urge you to ensure compliance of the revised consolidated guidelines, and direct all authorities concerned for their strict implementation in letter and spirit without any dilution and to ensure strict compliance of lockdown measures," he said. The consolidated revised guidelines on the measures to be taken by central ministries and departments, and state and union territory governments were issued on April 15 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 3. The lockdown was earlier from March 25 to April 14. The home ministry has sought strict implementation of the guidelines in all parts of the country to contain the spread of COVID-19. The home secretary also drew the attention of the chief secretaries to the guidelines which categorically say that state and union territory governments will not dilute them in any manner and strictly enforce the same. They can, however, impose stricter measures than the guidelines as per the requirement of local areas. Bhalla also pointed out to a recent Supreme Court observation that all state governments, public authorities and citizens will faithfully comply with the directives and orders issued by the Union of India in letter and spirit in the interest of public safety. The observations, which must be treated as the directions of the apex court, was conveyed in "my letter dated April 1 to all states and UTs (union territories)", he said. YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says he has been tested again for the coronavirus and the results came back negative. He was speaking about the leaked video showing edited images of him preparing to address the nation live. Pashinyan said many people were worried about him coughing in the video. I was being advised by my colleagues in the past days to get tested. On April 19 I got tested for already the third time. I was tested twice in the beginning, and once again the results came back negative unfortunately for some and fortunately for me, he said. Speaking about the leaked video, he said he is surprised by the reactions over it. In Soviet years, children were thinking that their teachers dont eat, dont go to the restroom and so on. And some of these reactions give this kind of an impression. A very bad thing happened, but this bad thing is about those responsible for it, not about the content of the video, he said, adding that the video simply shows technical behind-the-scenes preparations for the live broadcast. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan Does God control the weather, and does he decide where lethal tornadoes touch down? If you say yes, youre left with the problem of tornadoes killing blameless people seemingly at random. Surely a loving and merciful God wouldnt do that. If you say no, youre left with the problem of denying that God is all knowing and all powerful. Peter J. Thuesen, professor of religious studies at Indiana UniversityPurdue University Indianapolis, cant bring himself to answer either yes or no. In his fascinating new book, Tornado God: American Religion and Violent Weather, he explores how American Christians have historically thought about those puzzling questions. Thuesen begins with the colonial-era Puritans, who appealed to passages like Isaiah 66:15: See, the Lord is coming with fire, and his chariots are like a whirlwind; he will bring down his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. Cotton Mather, the famous Puritan preacher, explained violent storms as special providences, divine responses to particular sinful acts. But, he cautioned, they might also be tests of faith, akin to those God inflicted on Job. During one of Mathers sermons, a breathless messenger rushed inside with news that lightning had damaged the preachers house. Scarcely pausing, Mather reassured his congregation that this was Gods reminder not to become too attached to worldly things. As the Puritans saw it, history appeared to supplement Scripture in confirming Gods direct control of the weather. Colonial-era Americans, who still thought of themselves as English, recalled two dramatic events when the Protestant wind blew to save England from Catholic ... 1 You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe now. Subscribers have full digital access. Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here. Five people including three children have been killed after a Chadian military jet accidentally fired a missile which then hit a senior commander's house. Shocking footage shows the jet - a Russian-made Sukhoi Su-25 - firing the missile at Adji Kossei air base on Friday as it was preparing to take off. The projectile pierces a fuel tank before veering off the runway disappearing off camera - where it slammed into the house of General Mahamat Salah Brahim, commander of the presidential guard. Four people - two adults and two children - were initially reported dead before a third child, a young girl, died later in hospital according to local reports. Five people including three children were killed after a Chadian military jet accidentally fired a missile while sitting on the runway at Adji Kossei air base The general is not thought to be among those killed. Observers said it appears the fuel tank was empty, which is why it didn't explode when the missile struck it. 'This Friday around 12 noon local time, a shell accidentally fired from a military plane which was about to take off from the Adji Kossei military base in N'Djamena,' chief of staff of the armies of Chad, General Abakar Abdelkarim Daoud said. 'The shell fired unfortunately went to stay in the city where military families live in the Farcha Garan Goso district not far from the military airport. 'The residence of the deputy commander of the presidential guard, General Mahamat Salah Brahim, was affected causing the deaths of at least four people including two children and two adults, and causing injuries.' Adji Kossei air base also houses French troops from Operation Barkhane, an anti-Jihadist mission in the Sahel region of Africa. Video shows the missile pierce an empty fuel tank before veering off the runway - where it slammed into the house of a senior commander Footage shows what appears to be the left wing of a French C-130 Hercules transport plane which was almost struck by the missile before it veered off-course. After the explosion, the French embassy in Chad issued a statement saying: 'Following the accidental explosion of a rocket that occurred in the morning from a ground device of the Chadian Air Force, which caused several victims near the Kossei Base, the French soldiers of the Barkhane force are immediately intervened in support of the Chadian security services to provide assistance to the victims. 'Lifting, excavation and medical transport equipment, as well as several dozen Barkhane force personnel, including firefighters and medical personnel, were mobilized for rapid clearance of the affected area. 'Three wounded were taken into emergency care at the hospital of the French military base. The house belonged to General Mahamat Salah Brahim, head of the presidential guard and a close ally of Preisdent Idriss Deby (pictured centre) The Chadian military has been involved in heavy clashes with Boko Haram militants around Lake Chad in recent months (pictured in the area in December last year) 'The French Embassy in N'Djamena offers its deepest condolences to the families of the victims.' The explosion is believed to have hit just a few meters from the French headquarters of Operation Barkhane. Youssouf Tom, public prosecutor for N'Djamena, said an investigation into the incident has been launched. The Chadian military has been heavily involved in fighting against Boko Haram jihadists in the Lake Chad area in recent months. A recent attack by militants on an army outpost in the region left 100 soldiers dead in what President Idriss Deby called the worst attack the military had suffered. Earlier this month he announced the start of an operation called Wrath of Boma - named after the island where the attack took place - against Boko Haram. It is thought the jets at the Adji Kossei base had been taking part in the operation before the accident happened. Representative Image live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More While the Centres call for a nationwide lockdown is punching a hole of Rs 1,200 crore per day in the coffers of the auto component industry, smaller establishments are staring at a wipeout situation with every passing day. Suppliers of raw materials such as plastic or metal from Tier 3 companies are worst hit due to the shutdown. This is a highly-fragmented segment involving several small players who are engaged in assembly parts. Many of such establishments that typically employ 10-15 people have been facing the brunt of the slowdown since the past three quarters. All suppliers are not necessarily strong. From a cash-flow point of view, there are some suppliers who are in pretty bad shape and they are bound to disappear. Our biggest worry right now is the financial health of these small entities because if they disappear then vehicle production will get impacted which means business loss for us too, said a western Maharashtra-based Tier 1 supplier whose clients include Tata Motors, Honda and Maruti Suzuki. Tier 1 suppliers are those which supply directly to vehicle makers while Tier 2 players supply to Tier 1. Tier 3 are the last in the chain and supply to Tier 2. Production came to a stand-still almost a month ago when the Center directed a shutdown of every factory and office in a desperate attempt to arrest the spread of the deadly coronavirus. This led to a cascading delay in payments to suppliers across the tiers. We have had bad times earlier too but with zero production there is nowhere to hide. Employees understand the severity of the situation and therefore have accepted a delay in their salaries. There needs an urgent government intervention, said a Tier 3 supplier on the condition of anonymity. More than five million people are employed in the auto-parts industry as per the Auto Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA). In 2018-19, the turnover of the industry stood at $57 billion with $15 billion in exports. ACMA has asked for relaxation of borrowing norms and statutory payments for meeting working capital needs. Deepak Jain, President - ACMA said, Nil revenues in the auto component industry in the lockdown period has deepened the state of crisis in the industry and several enterprises are staring at insolvency. We urge the government to urgently infuse financial stimulus, based on our recommendations, to ensure that the industry has safe and sustainable operations post the lockdown. While there have been news of unusual delay in payments to the auto-parts manufacturing companies some vehicle makers like Hero MotoCorp and Volvo Eicher have started to release payments. Volvo Eicher has been very proactive in their communication but their payments have been delayed. Payments are still coming in from Maruti Suzuki and Ford after some delays. The OEMs are aware that any problems to us will mean problems to them, said another supplier based in the north of India. Carmakers also agree that there is an urgent need to look after the smaller parts manufacturing players to avoid a disruption within the larger ecosystem. Rajeev Chaba, the president and managing director of MG Motor India, said, It is really harsh on them and even on big players like us who are scrambling for cash management and managing the cost structure with an appropriate revised revenue stream. In the next few months, I think it is going to be extremely tough on the Tier 2 and Tier 3 suppliers. We have a big team called the community support program team which is working with the dealers and suppliers. We have made all the outstanding payments to the suppliers. Many banks are posting optimistic business results as the full force of the disruptions of the global COVID-19 pandemic are not felt in their operations yet. VPBank reports encouraging business results in the first quarter in credit growth, revenue, and consolidated profit Nguyen Duc Vinh, CEO of VPBank has just sent a letter to shareholders, detailing the unprecedented adverse impacts the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has cast across the board. Vinh noted in the letter that despite the pandemic, VPBank has managed to post encouraging business outcomes in the first quarter of this year in credit growth, revenue, and consolidated profit. However, he warned that as the pandemic remains a significant and unpredictable variable, reaching the full-year business targets would be a challenging task for the bank and that he expects COVID-19 to be contained in the second quarter. Do Anh Tuan, deputy chairman of Techcombank, another privately-held bank, disclosed that despite COVID-19, the bank has been honing on quarterly projections. Tuan said that the pandemic began in February and the bank saw fair credit growth in January by virtue of soaring customer demand ahead of the traditional Lunar New Year, and this would make up for the remaining months of the first quarter. Techcombank posted nearly VND13 trillion ($565.2 million) in pre-tax profit last year. However, it will not diclose its profit targets for 2020 until its annual general shareholders' meeting which was delayed to June 2020 instead of the proposed late March. Leveraging the recently-released banking sector perfomance assessment report by SSI Research, a subsidiary of SSI Securities Corporation, TPBanks pre-tax profit in the first quarter was forecast at about VND1 trillion ($43.48 million), a 17.3 per cent jump on-year which came by virtue of raising credit and deposit by 9 and 6 per cent, respectively, compared to early 2020. Meanwhile, also according to SSI Research, the pre-tax profit of state-owned Vietcombank was forecast to reach VND6.1 trillion ($265.2 million), up 3 per cent on-year, after gaining 3 and 2 per cent in credit and deposit volumes compared to early 2020. Taking the lead with a forecast 30 per cent on-year growth in first-quarter pre-tax profit is privately-held Vietnam International Bank (VIB), surpassing VND1 trillion ($43.48 million). Meanwhile, with fair credit growth of nearly 6 per cent in the first quarter and earnings from its bond investment portfolio in the first two months of this year, VPBank is expected to post double-digit profit growth in the first quarter. SSI Rearch has also estimated the pre-tax profit in the period of Ho Chi Minh City-based commercial lender ACB at about VND1.8 trillion ($78.26 million), up 5 per cent on-year. For Military Bank (MB Bank), SSI Research forecast an increase in provisioning in the first quarter this year to create a safe buffer for operations in the subsequent quarters. This would lead to 30-35 per cent hike in provisioning. The banks pre-tax profit in the period, therefore, is foreast to remain almost unchanged or see a slight decrease of 0.5-0.7 per cent compared to the corresponsing period last year. Banks are expected to deliver their official reports on first-quarter business results later this month or at their upcoming annual general shareholders' meetings which might include new business indexes to supersede ones which were established at the beginning of the year when the COVID-19 situation was not too critical. According to Nguyen Quoc Hung, head of the Credit Department of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), the banking sectors credit expanded by 1.3 per cent as of March 31, 2020. Earlier, the sectors credit growth was just 0.06 per cent, a six-year record low due to the COVID-19. According to the SBV's preliminary assessment, as COVID-19 disruptions unfolded in full from mid-March, its impacts on the performance of most banks will not be felt in the first quarter. SSI Researchs update report on the implications of COVID-19 on the banking sector has revised the pre-tax profit prospects of 10 large-scale banks in a negative direction. Along with this, in the base scenario, if the pandemic was brought under control late in the second quarter, the pre-tax profits of these banks would jump 7.2 per cent on-year, and in the worst scenario that the pandemic remains out of control until the end of the year, the growth level would be 0.8 per cent only. VIR Van Thuy Vietnamese banks' rating outlooks lowered on COVID-19 impact Fitch Ratings has revised the outlook on the long-term issuer default ratings (IDRs) of two State-owned banks and a wholly foreign-owned bank in Vietnam to Stable from Positive, More than 11 million Britons have been furloughed or left unemployed by the economic shutdown due to coronavirus. Shocking new figures reveal that nearly a third of British workers have been affected by the downturn that has seen many businesses shuttered and employees unable to work. The lockdown is pushing many firms to the brink of collapse, with one report warning today that up to 11.7million people could be furloughed or left jobless in the three months to the end of June. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is facing mounting pressure to boost his business bailout so that the Government increases its guarantee on loans to struggling firms to 100 per cent. The Treasury will today announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit as the coronavirus lockdown causes the economy to stutter to a halt. It will include a 500million loans fund for high-growth companies and 750million in loans and grants for small firms focused on research and development. Chancellor Rishi Sunak (pictured in March) will today announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit by the coronavirus lockdown But thousands of companies are already struggling to claim state aid under the Government's existing 330billion of coronavirus schemes. Smaller businesses especially have encountered huge obstacles when trying to obtain vital Government-backed loans under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans Scheme (CBILS). These loans, handed out by high street banks, can give businesses up to 5million to keep them afloat. And to incentivise the lenders, the Government will take on 80 per cent of any losses they suffer. But because banks will still have to bear 20 per cent of the risk, they have been asking for detailed financial information and forecasts which firms are simply unable to provide fast enough. And for any businesses which were already struggling before the lockdown began, Government-backed loans are near impossible to come by. Former Labour leader Ed Miliband (pictured in 2015) said the Chancellor needed to move to a 100 per cent guarantee of loans for smaller businesses MPs and City grandees have called on the Government to increase its guarantee on the loans to 100 per cent, as in Switzerland and Germany, to speed up the process. Former Labour leader Ed Miliband said: 'The Chancellor must move to a 100 per cent guarantee of loans for smaller businesses. In the coming days, businesses are facing critical decisions about their future.' Meanwhile, a paper by think-tank the Resolution Foundation predicts that unemployment could hit 3.4million in the three months to the end of June with a further 8.3million workers furloughed. Employees in the lowest-paying hospitality and retail sectors are most likely to be hit. The foundation said: 'As many as 3.1million employees (46 per cent) in these sectors could be furloughed, with an additional 800,000 workers in this part of the economy becoming unemployed.' From today employers can start applying to the Treasury for financial help under its Job Retention Scheme, which will see the Government paying up to 80 per cent of furloughed workers' salaries up to 2,500 per month. Latest coronavirus video news, views and expert advice at mailplus.co.uk/coronavirus Rescue cash is a feeble trickle by Ruth Sunderland for The Daily Mail Politicians, particularly Conservatives, often refer to the UK's near six million small firms as the backbone of the economy. No doubt, they are sincere. But however well-meaning, efforts so far to help these businesses in the pandemic have fallen woefully short. Just compare the tidal wave of money that has flowed to US firms with the feeble trickle that we are seeing here. In the States, banks have made 1.6million loans worth around $340billion (270billion) to companies through special Covid-19 schemes. As of last week, UK banks had made a paltry 6,000 loans worth just 1.1billion. The figures speak for themselves. In the States, banks have made 1.6million loans worth around $340billion (270billion) to companies through special Covid-19 schemes (file image) Indeed, in the US, so much money has been handed out in such a short space of time that the funds have temporarily run out, though congressional leaders are expected to agree a deal to provide more and soon. As a consequence, millions of American businesses and jobs are being saved. So why are we doing so abysmally in comparison? One reason is that the Small Business Administration, which is running the scheme in the US, is highly efficient. The same, sadly, cannot be said for the British Business Bank, which performs the equivalent function here. The most important difference between the UK and the US is an intangible one: attitude. The American government and the banks there have approached the Covid-19 loans crisis with a positive, can-do spirit, while our own banks have been their usual dead-hand, nay-saying selves. The US approach has been to do whatever it takes to save their firms, so their scheme is being fully underwritten by the American taxpayer. The mentality here is one of avoiding losses. Therefore, loans are only 80pc guaranteed by the British government (ie the taxpayer) and the banks are forced to do stringent credit checks. Andrew Bailey, the new governor of the Bank of England, has said we should shift to 100 per cent underwriting here. He is right. Yet not even an existential threat to our entire economy is enough to shake the big banks out of their habitual negative torpor. Oddly enough, it is RBS, the biggest villain in the credit crisis, that's doing best so far. Under its new boss Alison Rose, it singlehandedly accounts for around half of the total Covid-19 loans, which suggests Barclays, Lloyds and HSBC are dragging their feet. Thousands of entrepreneurs remain embittered and distrustful of the high street lenders after being betrayed during the credit crunch. They have turned to the banks in the pandemic with sinking hearts and trepidation. If politicians and bankers do not act quickly their worst fears will be confirmed. We must find a way to offer our struggling firms a lifeline in time, otherwise the backbone of the economy will buckle and break. A top marketing expert believes the coronavirus pandemic will accelerate the disruption of U.S. higher education that's been "drunk on exclusivity" and creating a "caste system." The worldwide COVID-19 crisis has added fuel to a furious debate about colleges and universities. The crisis forced institutions of higher learning around the country to shut campuses, and engage in distance learning and virtual commencement. It stoked a debate about whether students and parents will be inclined to continue paying top dollar for virtual campus life, especially with the fall session up in the air. "No industry, other than health care, has raised its prices faster than education, and I'm part of the problem. We have become drunk on exclusivity," Scott Galloway, a business professor at NYUs Stern School of Business, told Yahoo Finance in a wide-ranging interview on Monday. He added: "When you have the head of Harvard admissions saying that he could double the freshman class at Harvard without sacrificing any quality, the correct question is, 'Well, with a $37 billion budget, why wouldn't you?'" The NYU professor has predicted a disruption in education for several years. With COVID-19 resulting in students sheltering-in-place and finishing semesters online, the professor argues the current circumstances will accelerate the pace of change. "[What] we're about to see in education is the disruption that we've been predicting for decades, as parents see via Zoom classes that paying $68,000 for their tuition, and what is actually going on in universities is no longer worth it, according to Galloway. You're going to see a massive consolidation of the most powerful players, aided by big technology, and you're going to see an incredible destruction among the second and third-tier universities who have benefited from the cartel that is education," he added. Scott Galloway, lecturer in Marketing at New York University, speaking at the DLD (Digital-Life-Design) conference in Munich, Germany, 18 January 2016. For three days, guest speakers discuss trends and developments in digitalisation at the innovation conference. PHOTO: TOBIAS HASE/dpa | usage worldwide (Photo by Tobias Hase/picture alliance via Getty Images) He also predicted that a lot of universities will not reopen campuses this fall because of COVID-19 and some of them will never reopen. He chided schools for fashioning themselves as luxury brands...as opposed to public servants. With the pandemic causing a rethink of many aspects of society, Galloway said exclusive schools like Massachusetts Institute of Technology would welcome vastly smaller classes within ten years. Story continues That will cause tremendous price pressure and disruption, and it couldn't happen to a nicer group of people," he added. The problem, Galloway argued, is what people are really paying for five-figures a year in tuition is not an education, but a "certification" that accelerates some "into the upper echelons of what is a caste system that is largely dictated by your college degree." Boston College students Evan Otero, left, and Emaad Ali view a work station at the school's virtual reality lab in Boston. College students in Boston are developing a virtual reality game based on James Joyces ponderous tome Ulysses. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) And instead of expanding the number of students we've decided we want to create a set of luxury brands, such that we can continue to offer more to the children of rich people. The current dynamic will hasten change, the academic stated. Galloway also slammed colleges and universities that have "preyed on the hopes and dreams of middle-class parents." "We need to begin taxing endowments that don't grow their freshman class faster than population. They're not public servants. They shouldn't get tax deductions. They're luxury brands. We need to abolish tenure. We need a class trader. I work with one of the best faculties in the world. A third of them should be put on an ice flow," Galloway said. He said this "incompetence" in higher education has led to debt-laden young people who delay or avoid getting married, forming a household, or taking a business risk. "One of the moral bankrupt parts of our society is how much we are charging young people. It is time we massively, massively, a Marshall Act kind of expansion of freshmen admittees and similar to Germany and Canada. Great kids get a chance to go to good schools, but we don't have a casting with luxury brand schools, and everybody else fights over mediocre education at a ridiculous price." Julia La Roche is a Correspondent at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organised on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook," said Andy Stone, a spokesman for the company. None of the Dorr brothers responded to calls and emails on Sunday. Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine was created on Wednesday by Ben Dorr. His brother Christopher is the creator of Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine, as well as Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine. A third brother, Aaron, is the creator of New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine. The online coordination offered additional clues about how the protest activity is spreading nationwide, capturing the imagination of the President and of Fox News even though it represents the views of a small minority of Americans. Trump himself tied the protests to gun rights - a major cause for the Dorr brothers - in telling Virginians that the Second Amendment was "under siege" as he urged them to "liberate" the state. On the ground, pro-Trump figures - including some who act as surrogates for his campaign - as well as groups affiliated with prominent conservative donors have helped organise and promote the demonstrations. Some of the most vehement protest activity, in Michigan, has been organised by the Michigan Conservative Coalition. Its founders are a Republican state lawmaker and his wife, Meshawn Maddock, who sits on the Trump campaign's advisory board and is a prominent figure in the Women for Trump coalition. Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News host and avid Trump supporter, interviewed Maddock on her show on Saturday, telling her, "Keep going. Thank you". The Dorr brothers manage a slew of pro-gun groups across a wide range of states, from Iowa to Minnesota to New York, and seek primarily to discredit organisations such as the National Rifle Association as being too compromising on gun safety. Minnesota Gun Rights, for which Ben Dorr serves as political director, describes itself as the state's "no-compromise gun rights organisation." In numerous states, they have bypassed rules requiring them to register as lobbyists by arguing that they are instead involved in "pro-gun grassroots mobilisation," as "Ohio Gun Owners" whose board Chris Dorr directs, describes its work. Loading A now-retired state legislator in Iowa, who in 2017 sought to close a loophole allowing the brothers to skirt lobbying rules, said he was not surprised that the Dorr brothers were involved in fomenting resistance to the public health precautions. "The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel," said the former state legislator, Republican Clel Baudler. Nearly 97,000 people had joined Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine by Sunday afternoon, a Facebook group whose posts are visible only to members that said Democratic Governor Tony Evers has been on a "power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses" and "forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!" In the group, some members speculated that Evers closed most state businesses and shuttered schools to appease pharmaceutical giants - not because of data showing that the novel coronavirus is highly contagious and deadly, infecting more than 4300 in the state and killing 220. At some protests, people help signs promoting QAnon a complex conspiracy theory started by an anonymous online message board participant who claimed to have classified information involving the Trump administration and a supposed secret coup against the "deep state". A demonstrator holds a QAnon sign as he walks at a protest opposing Washington state's stay-home order. Credit:AP The group, along with Ben Dorr, created an event on Facebook for an April 24 "drive-in rally" at the Capitol that has attracted hundreds of pledged participants. They also seek to steer visitors to a website for the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition, where people can enter their names, email addresses and other contact information and share their views with the state's governor. In doing so, they encourage visitors who are not "already a member of the Wisconsin Firearms Coalition" to "join us." A page asking users to join the Minnesota group offered several rates for membership, from $US35 to $US1000. Initiative promoter and gubernatorial candidate Tim Eyman disregards social distancing guidelines as he leans in to place a sticker on a child's back at a protest opposing Washington state's stay-home order on Sunday. Credit:AP Another private Facebook group focused on Pennsylvania, gaining more than 63,000 members by Sunday. Many questioned the wisdom of wearing masks publicly, contrary to recommendations by state and federal officials, and linked to a similar website catering to Pennsylvania gun owners. Still another targeting New York had become a forum for about 23,000 members to question whether the coronavirus is really that bad - despite the fact New York City has become the epicentre of the US outbreak. "While seizing power at a breathtaking pace," the group's description began, "Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral!" Dozens of other Facebook pages, groups and events similarly promote protests targeting stay-home orders in state capitals nationwide. Permitting some of this content - including coordinated efforts on the part of conservative activists - marks a break with Facebook's strict new rules governing content about the pandemic. Demonstrators disregard social distancing guidelines as they crowd together at a protest in Olympia, Washington. Credit:AP Since the outbreak began, the tech giant has barred a wide array of false or misleading posts, photos and videos, including those promoting cures that do not exist. The company also has deployed its fact checkers to debunk dangerous myths about the pandemic and its origins, and it has warned people about their interactions with online misinformation. Guiding Facebook's approach - more aggressive than it typically takes even against known falsehoods - is a belief that it must stop the spread of dangerous mistruths on the platform amid a global health crisis. Many governors, however, have decried protests to open up the country as precisely that - potentially harmful to the people who attend the demonstrations and to the many more who are following guidelines and staying at home. "I don't think it's helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the President's own policy," Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, a Republican, said this weekend. "It just doesn't make any sense." Representatives for the governors of New York, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania did not respond to requests for comment. A spokeswoman for Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said he has "acknowledged that the protesters have a First Amendment right to free speech," adding: "He just asks that they practise social distancing." Alex Stamos, director of the Stanford Internet Observatory and Facebook's former chief security officer, said the groups constitute a form of domestic disinformation because they were being operated by users with financial and political motivations to sway public debate in unauthentic ways. He was especially alarmed by the possibility that the group's creators were deriving personal benefit by stoking online anger about the public health measures. "It's always scams that drive the most ingenuity," Stamos said. Zachary Elwood, a software engineer in Portland, Oregon, who blogs about disinformation and tracked some activity by the Dorr brothers, urged Facebook to crack down on small clusters of users coordinating seemingly disparate activity, especially when the activity involved harmful untruths. ALBANY Seven months ago, Jeff Buell and I stood on a North Pearl Street sidewalk and talked about the bright future of cities. Buell was, and is, a principal at Redburn Development, which has been remaking North Pearl and surrounding blocks with new apartments, retail spaces and more. The company has done similar work in Troy and Schenectady. Buell told me then that he was optimistic about the region's downtowns. People want to be in the centers of our cities, he said. They want the restaurants and the beauty and the vitality and the But that was before a pandemic that has thrown shade on much that makes city life appealing. Suddenly, density is a bad thing. Crowds and human contact are feared. Most stores and many restaurants are closed; some may never reopen. Construction and renovation projects are on hold. Want more from Chris Churchill? Sign up for his weekly newsletter. That makes me worry that the urban renaissance happening across the country one that had belatedly made its way to upstate New York could be in jeopardy. When the coronavirus has passed, will people look at cities differently? Will there be a new anxiety about crowds? Will trends that had been slowing the migration of people and money to suburbia subside? Understand, please, that these aren't just questions with implications for people of privilege. In much of the country, COVID-19 is ravishing the poorest urban neighborhoods most of all. If the pandemic brings a new flight from cities, poor neighborhoods will grow even more isolated and desperate. So on Monday I talked to Buell again, by telephone, and asked if his optimism about the demand for urban life has dimmed. An important caveat: Buell cautioned that because predictions are nearly impossible, we can't know what the pandemic will bring. If the virus knock, knock, knock on wood peters out soon and life quickly gets back to some semblance of normal, that would mean something very different for cities than if the virus lingers or ultimately returns with a vengeance. But Buell remains optimistic, cautiously, that the urban revival happening in these parts will continue. In part, thats because our cities are not like the bigger cities where, so far, the coronavirus's impact has been most severe. Troy, Schenectady and Albany (and don't forget Saratoga Springs!) just aren't that dense and crowded. We have an urban lifestyle without having to feel that youre on top of people, Buell said. OK, but some of the demand for new downtown apartments has come from suburban empty-nesters looking for a walkable lifestyle and hoping to ditch the lawn mower. Given that older people are most at risk from COVID-19, its logical to think city living might lose its allure among the retired. Meanwhile, the walkable lifestyle is largely on hold. At midday on Monday, the sidewalks of downtown Albany were chillingly deserted. Here and in cities around the country, weekdays are like the Sundays Morrissey crooned about "silent and gray. Many of us miss what we may have taken for granted. The comfort of a warm restaurant. The amazing human diversity of a bustling sidewalk. The familiar faces in our coffee shops and stores. The crowded energy of concerts and ball games. The balm of togetherness. People are missing experiences, and its our cities that provide experiences, Buell said. I feel like if we come out of this in a quick enough time period, people are going to lean even more heavily into the city experience, once they have the comfort that they're not going to get sick. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. I think hes onto something, in part because my mind in recent weeks keeps drifting back to a day my family experienced in early February, not long before the coronavirus took hold. It was a relatively warm winter day, so my wife, six-year-old daughter and I went to the Bronx Zoo. We spent the day walking and observing the fauna, animal and human alike. Gorillas strutted, as did guys trying to impress their girlfriends. We watched lions roar and children squeal. Afterward, we went out to dinner in nearby Morris Park, jamming ourselves around a small table in a loud restaurant, eating pizza and pasta in the convivial company of strangers thrown together in a big-city neighborhood. It was a day that's impossible now, the kind of experience COVID-19 has stolen. How many of those will we lose before the pandemic passes? In Albany, the citys grandest parade, for St. Patricks Day, was canceled and its biggest festival, Tulip Fest, has been postponed. Alive at Five concerts are in jeopardy, too. So many moments of joy, so many common experiences, so many potential memories, are slipping away. Those losses are nothing compared to the terrible human toll of COVID-19, certainly. They are losses nonetheless. cchurchill@timesunion.com 518-454-5442 @chris_churchill The Member of Parliament (MP) for Atiwa-East, Hon Abena Osei-Asare over the weekend supplied 16 electoral areas with 300 complete streetlight bulbs. The gesture was to ensure that all communities within the constituencies are lightened up. Speaking to the media at the presentation ceremony, Hon Osei-Asare said the street lights would help to provide visibility in the constituency at night. She noted the communities look dark in the evenings, adding it was necessary to help provide light for the people so that they could conveniently carry out their legitimate activities at sunset. After a careful observation at the 16 electoral areas I realised visibility needed to be improved so that at sunset residents and traders could carry out their legitimate activities without being overcome by darkness, the MP noted. Hon Abena Osei-Asare with some of the Assembly members in Atiwa-East constituency INITIATIVES: Hon Osei-Asare said she was committed to ensuring that the communities in the constituency do not lack in terms of basic social amenities. The street lighting project, she disclosed was part of an initiative to make the constituency a lighted one. Hon Osei-Asare who also doubles as the Deputy Minister of Finance said the aim of her office is to provide quality health care for residents as well as ensure top-notch security for residents. She advised constituents to stay home and stay safe as the nation battles the COVID 19 outbreak. Some of the street light bulbs As MP for this constituency my priority is the welfare of the people and I am committed to doing the same. The provision of these 300 street light bulbs is only a testament of my resolve, Hon Osei-Asare intimated. BENEFICIARY COMMUNITIES: The 16 communities that benefited from the lighting project were Asamang-Tamfoe, Moseaso, Donkrom-Anyinam, Gyeduahenease-Anyinam, Adasawase, Enyiresi, New Jejeti, and Awosoase. The others were Akyem-Sekyere, DankwaAnkaase, Abakoase, Subrisu, Aworensua, Akutuase, Kadewaso and Tiawia-Subrisu. Present at the brief handing over ceremony in Atiwa-East were the 16 assembly members including George Asare, Obaa Akua Amponsah, Ampofo Agyapong, William Boateng, Godfred Gyasi, Obeng Asamoah and Vida Appiah as well as the others. Hon Vida Appiah expressed appreciation to the MP for the gesture and said the bulbs would help improve visibility in the communities in the famous constituency. In this article: The LEGO Batman Movie, Hotel Mumbai, Napoleon Dynamite. Deeply insightful gallows humour, nostalgic northern soul and island-bound psychological horror all feature today as TopFilmTip brings you the best films on TV for Sunday, 19 April. Some films may require a Sky subscription. Johnny Depp explores alienation, drenditic utensils and dirty dog grooming in Tim Burton's gothically iconic Edward Scissorhands 11am Film4 Wholly unique, hilarious, kitsch, endlessly quotable and profanity free fun as unknowingly uncool teen learns Rex Kwon Do, self actualises and gets the geek girl in Napoleon Dynamite 11:30am Comedy Central Head-banging classic rock, nutty ex-GFs, geeky friends, puerile puns and guitar worship in catchphrase comedy rhapsody in Waynes World 1:30pm Comedy Central The Towering Inferno, poster, top: Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, bottom l-r: William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, Susan Blakely, Richard Chamberlain, Jennifer Jones, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner on poster art, 1974. (Photo by LMPC via Getty Images) Sky-scraping party-goers and residents face death at every turn when a health and safety mishap leads to a disastrous The Towering Inferno 1:35pm ITV4 Bill Paxton, Philip Seymour Hoffman and their eccentric friends chase cattle bemusing, father murdering tornadoes in meteorological fun Twister 12:50pm ITV 1 Read more: The best 4K TV deals Wry, rage fuelled relationship avoider incorporates accidental adoptee in transdimensional villain vamoosement The Lego Batman Movie 4:30pm ITV 2 Chinese sheriff and American gigolo prat fall, kung fu and pillow fight around London in anachronistic action comedy Shanghai Knights 4:35pm Sony Movies Clint Eastwood joins an operation to raid a nazi strong hold as plans within plans start to unravel in Where Eagles Dare 5:45pm ITV 4 Michael Tucci, Barry Pearl, Jeff Conaway, John Travolta and others dance in a scene from the film 'Grease', 1978. (Photo by Paramount/Getty Images) Fast food, rude boys, gang fights, black tights, car races, girl chases, musical parley and a flying finale in Grease 5:50pm Channel 4 Dwayne The Rock Johnson rescues gangster's son from Christopher Walken's gold mine in toxic fruit-feeding, rebel-rousing fun Welcome To The Jungle 9pm Comedy Central Amid island isolation and global pandemic, fraying miscarried marriage endures test of trust under yoke of menacing captor Retreat 9pm Horror Channel Hundreds of guests and hotel staff endure long night's malevolent, unimpeded onslaught of violence and terror in brutally unflinching true story Hotel Mumbai 9:00pm Sky Atlantic Story continues Musically mused oedipal getaway kid defies his killer colleagues in deviously deft, funk-fuelled frenetic wheel spinner Baby Driver 9pm Sony Movies Flaky drunk and cloistered mum inflict inadvertent reign of murderous chaos upon Colombian kidnappers in undignified comedy Snatched 9pm Film4 Pregnant policewoman tracks Minnesota murderers as a belittled son-in-law's simple plan unravels in the Coen brothers flawless film Fargo 10pm ITV 4 Close knit small town friend's lives are eviscerated by traumas of war in Russian rouletting, unsettling drama The Deer Hunter 11:30pm BBC 1 American actors John Cazale, Chuck Aspegren, Christopher Walken, Robert de Niro and John Savage on the set of The Deer Hunter, written and directed by Michael Cimino. (Photo by Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images) Jewish comedians explore how holocaust humour originated in the darkest of places to provide ultimate psychological revenge in taboo treading documentary The Last Laugh 00:00am Sky Arts 1 Admitted to psych-ward, disillusioned misfit free-loving 1960s teen befriends rebellious charismatic misanthrope Girl, Interrupted 1:10am Sony Movies Lancashire lads chase dream of discovering rare Motown records in amphetamine-fuelled test of loyalty and friendship Northern Soul 00:25am Channel 4 Aspiring documentarian and her pubescent rap brother spend unsettling week with scuttling grandparents in Jungian creepfest The Visit 2:05am Film4 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 Everything coming to Disney+ in April Follow TopFilmTip on Twitter for daily film recommendations. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have told four tabloids in the UK they will no longer work with them, as Meghan prepares for her court battle with the Mail On Sunday. The couple sent a letter to the editors of the Daily Mail, the Daily Mirror, The Sun and the Daily Express to cease co-operation with them over distorted, false or invasive stories. Harry and Meghan worked with the papers as senior royals through a system called the royal rota. In a letter to the four tabloids, they said: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know as well as complete strangers have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue. The letter also states the couple believe in the free press, and do not intend to avoid criticism. Read more: Meghan Markle gives support to food delivery service run by Grenfell survivors Harry and Meghan have said they won't work with the tabloids any more. (Getty Images) It adds: Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it cant be based on a lie. It comes as Meghan prepares for the first day of her hearing in the High Court in a case again the Mail On Sunday, who she is suing after it printed excerpts of a personal letter to her father. According to The Guardian, the treatment applies to the four newspapers, their online editions, and the Sunday papers. However its not clear if other papers owned by the same groups are included. For example, the Daily Star has not been named, but is owned by Reach Plc, who also owns the Daily Mirror. The BBC said the shift means the couples PR team will not take calls from the four papers. Harry, 35, and Meghan, 37, are starting a new chapter of their life in Los Angeles, having previously been linked with Canada. They have been seen helping to deliver food parcels for Project Angel Food in LA, a charity which supports those with serious illness. Read more: Princess Anne cautions younger royals against 'new ways' as Harry and Meghan begin new life Story continues Final engagements for the couple included the Commonwealth Day service. (Getty Images) The decision by the duke and duchess to put out the letter has been met with criticism from some. Mail On Sunday showbiz editor Katie Hind shared an article she wrote in November 2019 which recalled a 2013 meeting, with Meghan determined to raise her profile. Piers Morgan tweeted: Imagine announcing this in the middle of a global pandemic? Imagine thinking anyone cares about their hurt little me-me-me egos as health workers around the world are dying at work? What a pair of repulsive, deluded narcissistic tools. However some have praised their decision. Producer Lex Croucher wrote love your work on Twitter next to the couples statement. When the Sussexes returned to the UK for their final engagements in March there was a shift in the way their events were covered, with some select media invited to the Duchess of Sussexs last meetings with Commonwealth leaders in Buckingham Palace. Read more: Prince Harry video calls families of sick children from LA home The duke called families of sick children who are supported by WellChild. (WellChild) They also used a specific photographer for several events, which they put out on their Instagram account after they happened. Many engagements were never listed in the Court Circular despite the couple still being senior royals when they were carried out. When Harry and Meghan were dating, the prince released a powerful statement about the treatment of his then-girlfriend, speaking about abuse and harassment and racial undertones particularly by trolls online. He was 12 when his mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a car crash in Paris when she was being pursued by paparazzi. They both spoke about media intrusion in a documentary filmed during what turned out to be their final royal tour abroad in South Africa in October 2019. Watch the latest episode from Yahoo UK's The Royal Story Wuhan authority reacted quickly, says doctor who first reported COVID-19 cases Global Times Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 12:53:40 Zhang Jixian, the first doctor to report COVID-19 cases to Wuhan authorities on December 27, said she had not expected the disease to be so infectious or serious, while noting that local authorities reacted promptly after receiving her report. Zhang, director of the department of respiratory and critical care medicine at the Hubei Provincial Hospital of Integrated Chinese & Western Medicine, showed records of a medical consultation on December 29, 2019, of seven COVID-19 patients the hospital treated at the early stage of the outbreak in an interview with CGTN on Saturday. According to the record, a vendor at the Huanan Seafood Market who was sent to the hospital on December 27, 2019 showed the severest symptoms among the seven. CT results showed infecting lesions and ground-glass opacity in his lungs. All the seven patients were admitted around December 27 and showed features of cluster transmissions. Five of the seven were in critical condition with possible threat to life, read the consultation conclusion. The hospital could not define the source of infection due to limited conditions, and suggested the district, the Wuhan and Hubei provincial CDC to organize more expert consultations on the cases, the conclusion said. According to the timeline of China's reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak, on December 27, 2019, Zhang first reported three suspicious cases she had treated to the district disease control and prevention center. "I reported to the district at noon, and they came to conduct an epidemiological survey that afternoon and collected patients' blood samples and throat swabs," Zhang told CGTN. The result of the consultation on December 29 was also reported to the district, who sent experts to the hospital again that day collecting patients' blood and asking questions about patients' medical history. "They reacted quite quickly," Zhang noted. On January 3, just days after Zhang's report, China formally began to take the initiative to report the situation to the World Health Organization and other countries, including the US. "I speculated that it may be a kind of infectious disease, but did not expect it to spread like this, so infectious and so serious, and affecting so many areas," she said. As to questions over why experts and authorities did not notify the public that the disease could spread from person to person, Zhang said that a process is required to learn about a disease and experts could not say too much to the public before they understood the issue. "If I am a scientist, how should I inform the public before I reach any conclusion? We should have a rigorous attitude," she said. Renowned Chinese respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan first confirmed human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus on January 20 during a live interview with China Central Television. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mickey, Goofy and Minnie were out of jobs Monday as Disney furloughed 100,000 theme park and hotel workers, including cast members who play the beloved Walt Disney characters in Florida and elsewhere, because of the coronavirus crisis. Hardest hit was Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, where 70,000 workers will now have to rely on the state's much-criticized Unemployment Assistance program, which pays just $275 a week for 12 weeks, among the lowest rates in the U.S., UNITE HERE labor union officials said. Image: Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse (Jeff Daly / Getty Images file) About 26,000 of those workers are members of UNITE HERE, and thanks to an agreement worked out with Disney before the layoffs, they will automatically be enrolled in the unemployment program, the union said in a statement. "Disney's announcement that they have reached an Agreement with the state of Florida for Cast members to be auto-enrolled into the Unemployment Assistance program is terrific news!" the UNITE HERE statement said. Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak Unlike thousands of other Floridians, they won't be forced to navigate a system that has shut down several times because of the sheer volume of unemployment applications being filed. It was not working at all over the weekend, sources said. "The Governor should do the same for any employer that wants to participate," the UNITE HERE statement said. "Just like eliminating the requirement to look for work to receive benefits, or reaffirm the need for benefits every two weeks, these are small fixes to a massive problem." Disney World employs 75,000 people, making it the biggest single-site employer in the country. Both it and Disneyland in Anaheim, California, shut down five weeks ago. A total of 100,000 workers roughly half the Disney theme park and resort workforce have now been furloughed in a move that could save Disney about $500 million a month in salaries as it tries to ride out the coronavirus crisis, The Financial Times reported. Story continues A Disney spokesperson declined to confirm how many people were being furloughed. The FT also reported that Disney Chairman Bob Iger has given up the rest of his $3 million salary for the rest of the year and that Chief Executive Bob Chapek "will forgo half" of his $2.5 million base salary. "The COVID-19 pandemic is having a devastating impact on our world with untold suffering and loss, and has required all of us to make sacrifices," the company said in a statement. "Over the last few weeks, mandatory decrees from government officials have shut down a majority of our businesses." Download the NBC News app for full coverage and alerts about the coronavirus outbreak Reps. Stephanie Murphy and Lois Frankel, both D-Fla., called on Gov. Ron DeSantis this month "to utilize federal funding recently provided by Congress to make swift improvements to the state's unemployment insurance system." Murphy has also called for a federal investigation into "years of misuse by the State of Florida of federal funds that were meant to sustain and strengthen the system." "As the COVID-19 pandemic has painfully revealed, Florida's UC program is deficient in comparison to the UC programs in other states," Murphy said, referring to unemployment compensation. "This is the result of years of deliberate policy choices by Florida's elected leaders designed to make it difficult for residents to access earned benefits, combined with indifference to the human consequences of those choices." The Bible, as a Protestant, canon consists of 66 books and 1,189 chapters. However, some versions contain extra material. For example, the Catholic Bible, instead, consists of 73 books, and added chapters in other books. The story of Bel and Dragon, or more properly, The History of the Destruction of Bel and the Dragon, is such a tale that is included in Catholic versions and certain apocryphal Bibles. Though the book of Daniel originally ends after chapter 12, other versions add more chapters. It is in chapter 14 that we find the dramatic tale. What Is the Story of Bel and the Dragon? There are three parts to the story of Bel and the Dragon. They all take place under the rule of the Persian king Cyrus. The Story of Bel: The first part concerns Bel. King Cyrus honors Daniel above all others but asks why Daniel doesnt worship the statue of Bel. Daniel says he doesnt worship false gods made by human hands, only the living God. However, Cyrus claims Bel is real because the food offered to him disappears every night, presumably eaten by Bel. Daniel still says God is superior. Cyrus then sets up a face-off between Daniel and the priests of Bel. If they cant prove Bel eats the food, they will be executed, whereas if Daniel cant prove someone else is eating it, he will be executed. Food is placed in front of the idol of Bel, then the room is sealed overnight. However, without telling the priests, Daniel has scattered ashes across the floor. The next morning, the food has been eaten. Cyrus begins to praise Bel, until Daniel points out footprints in the ashes, leading to a secret door in the wall. The priests and their families have been sneaking in to eat the food. Cyrus orders the priests and their families killed and hands the idol over to Daniel to be destroyed. The Story of the Dragon: In the second part, Cyrus tells Daniel to worship an actual dragon (also translated as serpent). According to Cyrus, since the dragon is alive, its superior to Bel and should be worshiped. However, Daniel says he will only worship God and says he can kill the dragon without weapons. Cyrus agrees to let him try. Daniel then poisons the dragon with a mixture of tar, hair, and fat, and it splits open, proving it to be an inferior being and not a god. The Story of the Lions Den, Part Two: The final part is a tale of Daniel being thrown into the lions den, this time by Cyrus, not Darius, as in Daniel 6. Daniel 14:28-29 (USCCB) says, When the Babylonians heard this, they were angry and turned against the king. The king has become a Jew, they said; he has destroyed Bel, killed the dragon, and put the priests to death. They went to the king and demanded: Hand Daniel over to us, or we will kill you and your family. According to the story, Cyrus gives in, and the people throw Daniel in the lions den. These lions were usually fed two corpses and two sheep a day, but they are denied this, left with only Daniel for six days. However, God provides for Daniel through the prophet Habakkuk, whom he picks up by his hair and carries from Judea to Babylon to give Daniel bread and stew. On the seventh day, Daniel is still alive and well, so Cyrus praises God, releases Daniel, and instead throws in Daniels accusers, who are immediately eaten. What Translations Include Bel and the Dragon? Bel and the Dragon was probably not included in the original version of Daniel, but rather in translations. Some scholars believe it was written in the late second century BC (Note that Daniel lived during the sixth century BC). The first 12 chapters are generally believed to have been written in the sixth century BC, a few hundred years before the addition of Bel and the Dragon. Bel and the Dragon is included in the Greek Septuagint. However, it is not included in the Hebrew Bible. Why is it excluded? According to scholar Dr. Israel Drazin, It is possible that they were excluded because (1) they were composed after the time when books that the Jews set for canonical books, or (2) because the books sound so much like fairy tales (a) similar to legends in their own and other cultures; a similar one was even told about the patriarch Abraham, and (b) has the number seven used often in such sagas repeated often, and (c) included an angel to save Daniel, which also appeared in other fables, and (d) added an unnecessary miraculous flight of a prophet from Judea to Babylon common in such imaginary yarns. (Full article here.) In short, the late date, questionable historicity, and fairytale-esque nature of Bel and the Dragon led to its exclusion from the canon. What Can We Learn from Bel and the Dragon? The tales of Bel and the Dragon may just be fun stories, but theyre similar to other historical accounts. For example, though Daniel may have not proved the falsity of Bel, he and his companions did show the power of God by refusing to eat meat sacrificed to idols and subsisting on only vegetables and water (Daniel 1:8-16). They proved to be healthier and better nourished than those who ate the kings sacrificed food. Daniel may not have killed a dragon, but his three friends refused to bow to an idol and were tossed in a fiery furnace. They miraculously survived, demonstrating the power of the true God (Daniel 3). Finally, Daniel really was thrown in a lions den and survived through the protection of the Lord (Daniel 6). iStock/Getty Images Plus/kirstypargeter Alyssa Roat studied writing, theology, and the Bible at Taylor University. She is a literary agent at C.Y.L.E., the publicity manager at Mountain Brook Ink, and a freelance editor with Sherpa Editing Services. She is the co-author of Dear Hero and has 200+ bylines in publications ranging from The Christian Communicator to Keys for Kids. Find out more about her here and on social media @alyssawrote. CHICAGO, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago (FHLBank Chicago) today announced it is providing approximately $30 million for a COVID-19 Relief Program to support all of its member institutions and the communities they serve in Illinois and Wisconsin. "Supporting our members is our highest priority," President and CEO Matt Feldman said. "We are committed to helping our members help their customers and communities, and that is particularly true in times like these." The COVID-19 Relief Program opens on Monday, April 27, with funding available through Friday, May 22. The program provides FHLBank Chicago member and associate member financial institutions with a 1-year zero-rate advance up to $4 million to help meet their immediate liquidity needs. The COVID-19 Relief Program also offers a grant up to $20,000 for each FHLBank Chicago member and associate member to assist small businesses and nonprofit organizations in their communities directly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the COVID-19 Relief Program, FHLBank Chicago increased the available funding through its Community First Capacity-Building Grant Program from $250,000 to $500,000 and extended the application deadline to Friday, May 22, to accommodate heightened demand. The Community First Capacity-Building Grant Program assists nonprofit lenders by helping to strengthen their financial position, increase operational efficiency, and grow human capital. "Times such as these require us all to do whatever we can to help," Feldman added. "We hope that this Relief Program, in addition to the regular sources of funding we already provide to our members, will have a positive impact in communities throughout Illinois and Wisconsin." About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago The mission of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago is to partner with our member institutions in Illinois and Wisconsin to provide them competitively priced funding, a reasonable return on their investment in the Bank, and support for community investment activities. FHLBank Chicago is one of 11 Federal Home Loan Banks chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932 to promote homeownership. Our members include banks, thrifts, credit unions, insurance companies, and community development financial institutions throughout our district. To learn more about FHLBank Chicago and its full range of products and programs, visit fhlbc.com or follow us on Twitter @FHLBC. "Community First" is a registered trademark of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago. SOURCE Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago Related Links http://www.fhlbc.com Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:24:19|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday launched the international version of online learning platform XuetangX, which was among the first batch of platforms offering global students education provided by Chinese universities and colleges. Courses on the platform will be available for free to all across the world during the epidemic, Wu Yan, a higher education official from the Ministry of Education (MOE), said at the launching ceremony in Beijing. Wang Shuaiguo, president of XuetangX, said the platform aims at pooling high-quality courses from home and abroad and offers various forms of online education including massive open online courses (MOOC), live-streaming courses and more. A total of 109 courses have gone online in Chinese and English, and more curricula are scheduled to be added in multiple languages. The decision on building international online education platforms was made earlier during a video conference held by the MOE, in a bid to share with the world China's high-quality educational resources. Enditem New Delhi, April 20 : The Delhi government on Monday asked the hospitals in the national capital to form a media cell to monitor the social media and news. The direction from the Delhi Health Department came on Monday after there were reports that there are a large number of social media messages regarding the functioning of state-run hospitals. "The concerned hospital needs to either rebut the information or take corrective action to avoid reoccurrence of such incidences," the order said. The Health Department directed the Medical Superintendent, Medical Directors and Director of all hospitals of the Delhi government "create a media cell, who should monitor social media, news media and immediately react to such news or information so that the correct position is presented before people". House GOP Probes CIAs Role in 2016 Trump-Russia Investigation, Rep. Nunes Says House Republicans are trying to find out more about the role the CIA played in the investigation the FBI started in 2016 into alleged ties between Russia and the campaign of then-candidate Donald Trump. The GOP investigators are focused on information related to the Trump-Russia probe the CIA provided to the FBI, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) told Fox and Friends on April 19. We need to know exactly what did the CIA give to the FBI in 2016, he said. Thats what our investigation is now focusing on. The investigation, taken over in May 2017 by a special counsel, former FBI Director Robert Mueller, couldnt establish any coordinated meddling in the 2016 election by the Trump campaign and Russia. The probe, however, involved extensive spying on the Trump team, including the use of multiple informants who were sent to snoop on campaign staff. The Justice Departments Inspector General (IG) reported in December 2019 that he found more than a dozen problems in a FISA warrant used by the FBI to justify its probe to surveil former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. The FBI has since acknowledged that the resulting year-long surveillance was illegal, at least for the last six months. The warrant was centered around information from the Steele dossier, a collection of unsubstantiated allegations about Trump-Russia collusion put together by former British spy Christopher Steele, who was paid for the job through intermediaries by the Democratic National Committee and the 2016 campaign of former State Secretary Hillary Clinton. The IG report shows that the FBI gradually collected exculpatory information, including from Steeles sources, but included almost none of it in the warrant application when it was submitted to the secret FISA court every three months for renewal. In mid-January 2017, the bureau learned that a part of the dossier was polluted by disinformationlies intentionally spread by Moscow, according to recently declassified parts of the IG report. The report indicated this assessment was provided by a U.S. intelligence agency, said the office of Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who requested the declassification together with Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.). The Russia probe is now itself the target of an investigation by U.S. Attorney John Durham. The CIA has been among the targets of the investigation, The New York Times reported on Feb. 13, using unnamed sources. GOP investigators have long questioned what led the FBI to open the Russia investigation in the first place. The IG concluded that the FBI was in its right to open the probe, given the low bar its internal regulations set for predicating investigations. He also said he didnt find any documentary or testimonial evidence that the investigation was motivated by political bias. Durham, however, said in a rare statement he disagreed with the IG on the matter of predication. Former CIA Director John Brennan has publicly acknowledged that the agency provided the FBI some information about supposed Trump-Russia contacts that was then used to start the probe. Its not clear, though, what specifically was provided. I was aware of intelligence and information about contacts between Russian officials and U.S. persons that raised concerns in my mind about whether or not those individuals were cooperating with the Russians, either in a witting or unwitting fashion, and it served as the basis for the FBI investigation to determine whether such collusion [or] cooperation occurred, Brennan said in his May 23, 2017, congressional testimony. The FBI probe was opened on July 31, 2016. In August 2016, Brennan gave a briefing of then-Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who then sent a letter to the FBI urging it to investigate Pages supposed meeting with high-ranking Russians who were under U.S. sanctions. This accusation against Page has only been publicly spread through the Steele dossier. He has denied any such meeting and there has been no evidence of it having taken place. Brennan has claimed that he didnt see the dossier until later in 2016. Barr highlighted the seriousness of Durhams investigation in a recent interview with Fox News Laura Ingraham. My own view is that the evidence shows that were not dealing with just mistakes or sloppines, he said. There was something far more troubling here. And were going to get to the bottom of it. And if people broke that law and we can establish that with the evidence, they will be prosecuted. Barr said that the FBI had no basis for starting the Russia probe and that President Trump has had every right to be frustrated about it. I think what happened to him has been one of the greatest travesties in American history. Without any basis, they started this investigation of his campaign. And even more concerning, actually, is what happened after the campaign, a whole pattern of events while he was president to sabotage the presidency. or at least had the effect of sabotaging the presidency, he said. Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly indicated a paraphrase of what Rep. Devin Nunes told Fox and Friends was a direct quote. The Epoch Times regrets the error. When Wisconsin voters and officials sought to adapt the states spring elections to better observe social distancing guidelines, the U.S. Supreme Court refused. One of the changes state officials had asked for was extra time so voters could cast their ballots by mail. The coronavirus outbreak is set to last for months or even years. What will that mean for the elections including the presidential one in November that are on the way? Calls have come from many quarters, both Democratic and Republican, to let all Americans vote by mail. The Constitution gives the states the primary responsibility for running elections. Some states are more ready for mail-in voting than others though congressional action could resolve the matter nationwide. 5 states are already there; many more are close Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah already have full vote-by-mail systems. In the weeks before an election, election officials mail a ballot to every registered voter. Voters can choose to vote in person if they wish, but the vast majority vote remotely by either mailing in or dropping off their ballots. Three states California, Nebraska and North Dakota let individual counties set up vote-by-mail systems, but have not adopted that approach statewide. And 28 states and the District of Columbia allow what is called no-excuse absentee voting. Under this rule, any registered voter can request an absentee ballot be mailed to them ahead of Election Day. Most states allow voters to apply for them online or by mail. Voters receive the ballots by mail, along with a self-addressed, pre-stamped return envelope. They then fill out the ballot and mail it back, or drop it off, to election officials, who then tally the ballots as if they had been cast in person. None of these places would need to change their laws so that every voter could cast a ballot by mail in November. But in Washington, D.C., and the 28 no-excuse states where voters have to apply for absentee ballots, election officials would have to prepare to handle a much larger number of applications and to process the ballots once theyre sent back. This would likely mean purchasing more blank ballots and envelopes, as well as buying or relocating vote-counting equipment, and assigning more staff to handle the paperwork involved. Some states have strict rules There are 17 states that restrict who can get an absentee ballot. They typically require voters to sign a statement certifying that they are ill or elderly, will be out of town, or will otherwise be unable to cast a ballot in person. At least nine of those states Alabama, Delaware, Indiana, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Virginia and West Virginia have already loosened their rules to accommodate the public desire to follow social distancing recommendations, at least for upcoming state, local and primary elections. It is not yet clear whether those eased restrictions will continue to apply for the November election. The other eight states in this group could loosen their rules too, by an order from the governor or the states top election official, or through a legislative change, depending on their situations. A Texas court has recently ordered such a change in that state, though the states Republican attorney general has said he will appeal. However, most states have suspended their legislative sessions in the face of the outbreak. They might need to reassemble or devise a means for passing legislation remotely to make those changes. A national plan? Despite all these state differences, it is possible that the coronavirus pandemic will prompt Congress to create a set of rules that apply nationwide. Congress has done this in the past regarding the scheduling of federal elections, voter registration rules and other aspects of election processes. Thats because Congress has the constitutional authority to impose its own regulations for the conduct of federal elections. Members of Congress have already been discussing legislation that would require all states to allow vote-from-home solutions for this Novembers federal elections. One such bill, introduced by Democratic Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Ron Wyden, would require every state to allow no-excuse absentee balloting by mail for federal elections. Although a Democratic bill, vote-by-mail has support among Republicans too, and is in use in red states as well as blue ones. Despite claims to the contrary by some, there is no evidence that vote by mail would substantially favor either political party. Federal laws would not require states to conduct state or local elections by mail, but most states would likely follow suit because it would be much easier to conduct the concurrent state and local elections by the same processes. That would allow more people to decide for themselves how to best protect their health, while also participating in the most fundamental part of a democracy an election. This article was first posted on The Conversation. A 28-year-old man died of cardiac failure when he was allegedly beaten up by the police for violating the lockdown in Sattenapalli town of Andhra Pradeshs Guntur district on Monday morning, his family members said. The deceased was identified as Mohammad Ghouse, and had been suffering from cardio-vascular disease. He went out to get medicines from a nearby medical shop, when the police stopped him at the local check post and thrashed him on his back. He collapsed immediately, his father Md Adeem told reporters. The police themselves shifted him to the local government hospital, where he succumbed while undergoing treatment. Guntur range Inspector General of police K Prabhakar Rao announced suspension of Sattenapalli town sub-inspector of police Ramesh Babu. A case of death under unnatural circumstances (Section 174 of Indian Penal Code) was registered in the incident. The IG also ordered a magisterial inquiry into the allegations of high-handed behaviour of the SI. Rao, however, said according to preliminary inquiries, the SI had not beaten Ghouse, but only asked the latter to show a prescription since he was going to the medical shop. Even as the SI was questioning him, Ghouse developed palpitation and collapsed there itself. He was taken to the nearby hospital, where the paramedical staff tried to resuscitate him, but he succumbed within minutes, the IG said.. The death of the Muslim youth led to a tense atmosphere in Sattenapalli town. Hundreds of his relatives and local Muslim organisations staged a demonstration in front of the police station demanding justice for the family and action against police officials who allegedly beat him up. Senior police officials led by Guntur rural SP Vijaya Rao rushed to the town to bring the situation under control. The police officials also assured the family of adequate compensation. The IG said as many as 21 cases of lockdown violations were registered in the last two days in Narsaraopet town hence police were strictly enforcing the lockdown. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON By PTI LUCKNOW: The Saharanpur administration issued a second pass to the aunt of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after she was reportedly denied entry to Uttarakhand to attend the last rites of his father Anand Bisht. Saroj Devi, who is the maternal aunt of the UP chief minister, is a resident of Saharanpur's Naveen Nagar. Saharanpur District Magistrate Akhilesh Singh told PTI, "A pass was issued today itself. We have coordinated with the Uttarakhand authorities and she can go there. From Saharanpur, two persons can go. The problem has been resolved." Earlier speaking to reporters, Saroj Devi had said, "We showed the pass issued by the district magistrate, but they (Uttarakhand authorities) denied (entry). "We also asked our relatives to speak to them but the phone was not attended. We were told that only brothers and sisters can go. I was told to return." The chief minister's father Anand Bisht died at the Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences on Monday. His last rites will take place in Uttarakhand's Haridwar on April 21, Media Advisor to UP Chief Minister Mrityunjay Kumar said. Workers wearing personal protective gear get ready to bury the dead body of a coronavirus victim. (Image: Shome Basu) A father and daughter wearing protective masks at a market in Delhi. (Image: Shome Basu) A healthcare worker fixes his personal protective equipment before touching the body of a coronavirus victim. (Image: Shome Basu) A provision store in Dariyaganj maintains social distancing. Only a few people are seen at this usually crowded vegetable market in Delhi. (Image: Shome Basu) Mourners at a burial ground in central Delhi. (Image: Shome Basu) Many garbage collectors have been working during the lockdown paying no attention to safety instructions. (Image: Shome Basu) People queue up at a milk booth. (Image: Shome Basu) People wearing masks outside a hospital. (Image: Shome Basu) A policeman on duty at Urdu Bazar scolds a man for venturing out without a mask. (Image: Shome Basu) Rickshaw pullers without work now depend on community kitchens for food. (Image: Shome Basu) A man and a woman dressed in scrubs and face masks stood in counter-protest in front of a line of vehicles filled with people campaigning against the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders in Denver, Colorado, on April 19. In this video, filmed in Denver, a woman leaning out of the window of a pickup truck can be heard yelling at a man dressed in scrubs and others: Land of the free! Go to China if you want communism. Go to China. We want to open up and go to work. You go to work, why cant I go to work? Photos and video showed the man and woman in scrubs blocking vehicles from continuing down Grant Street near the capitol building. Storyful could not confirm if the man and woman in scrubs are healthcare workers. Hundreds of protesters gathered in person and in vehicles at the Colorado State Capitol in Denver on Sunday for Operation Shutdown to protest against coronavirus lockdown measures and for the reopening of local and national economies, reports said. Protests against lockdowns and social distancing measures have cropped up across the United States in April, including in California, Texas, Wisconsin, Nevada, Maryland, Idaho, Michigan, and Minnesota. Credit: Marc Zenn via Storyful Social media was flooded with posts from Mancunians who were mystified with unidentified lights dancing around in the sky. Some residents stared with bewilderment while some expressed their concern, stating the lights were seemingly 'unnatural'---which is correct. The seemingly extraterrestrial visuals were the latest launch of SpaceX's Starlink Satellites with its CEO Elon Musk. The satellites have been launched several times by SpaceX since May of last year as the company gets clearance to launch 12,000 spacecraft. The constellations are set to be increased further. Starlink satellites cause a brief surprise for residents Facebook users who reside in Great Manchester shared mixed emotions with regards to the display of lights. One Carmen Speakman posted she watched it with her kids, and they thought it was terrific. Another user, Andy Flanagan, counted what she saw and found 42 of them one after another. Some users didn't share the excitement, as they expressed their thoughts of the' constellation' as 'eerie.' As the purpose of the endeavor continues to be developed, it currently aims to provide global and more accessible internet service. The company has been approved to launch 12,000 satellites by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as part of the task, and it could quickly rise to 30,000. Read Also: SpaceX Continues Launch Of Satellites To Support Globally Accessible Broadband Internet Ways for you to monitor the satellites The Starlink satellites will reportedly brighten the night sky over the United Kingdom until April 24, stated by findstarlink.com. The site also features a system where you can find out what dates the satellites will be visible from where you are. You input your location, and the site will show you exactly when to keep your eyes out to spot the light show. There is also a Starlink app provided that can help you track the whereabouts of the spacecraft. It automatically calculates the time the spacecraft group is expected to be most visible above your area. You select the number of the satellite you wish to track, and the app will do the hard work for you and show the available times you should look out for. The information the app shows you consists of the start and end time of the sighting, how long it will last, the directions they will be going at, and several other nifty things to know. And if you wish to avoid missing out on the event, it also features a 'remind me' set up to notify you when the satellites are about to hover overhead. The endeavor by Musk was set out to have a system of satellites hovering in low-orbit to provide an interconnected and seamless broadband internet service. The task would become a globally accessible and efficient internet provider. SpaceX has been consistently launching their spacecraft into space to aid in completing the task, and several more are planned to be conducted this year. Some of the older generations of Starlink, however, have been decommissioned due to technical issues and will be replaced by future satellites. Read Also: Amazon To Become 'Incubator' Of Massive Coronavirus Infection If Left Untreated Says Workers Right Group Bauchi, Nigeria: Gunmen killed 47 people in attacks on villages in the north-western Nigerian state of Katsina in the early hours of Saturday, local police said. "Armed bandits", some of whom wielded AK 47 guns, carried out the attacks, Katsina police said in a statement on Sunday. Hundreds of people have been killed in the last year by criminal gangs carrying out robberies and kidnappings in north-west Nigeria. Such attacks have added to security challenges in Africa's most populous country, which is already struggling to contain Islamist insurgencies in the northeast and communal violence over grazing rights in central states. Gunmen, some with AK 47 guns, carried out the attacks in three local government authorities in the state in the early hours of Saturday between 12.30am and around 3am, Katsina police said in its statement. Molecules found in tarantula venom could be used as an alternative to opioid pain killers for those seeking chronic pain relief, suggest a recent study. They have come up with a novel tarantula venom mini-protein that can potentially relieve severe pain without addiction. This study was published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry. University of Queensland Dr Christina Schroeder from UQs Institute for Molecular Bioscience said the current global opioid crisis meant urgent alternatives to morphine and morphine-like drugs, such as fentanyl and oxycodone, were desperately needed. Although opioids are effective in producing pain relief, they come with unwanted side-effects like nausea, constipation and the risk of addiction, placing a huge burden on society, Dr Schroeder said. Our study found that a mini-protein in tarantula venom from the Chinese bird spider, known as Huwentoxin-IV, binds to pain receptors in the body, Schroeder added. By using a three-pronged approach in our drug design that incorporates the mini-protein, its receptor and the surrounding membrane from the spider venom, weve altered this mini-protein resulting in greater potency and specificity for specific pain receptors. This ensures that just the right amount of the mini-protein attaches itself to the receptor and the cell membrane surrounding the pain receptors, Schroeder added. Dr Schroeder said the mini-protein had been tested in mouse models and shown to work effectively. Our findings could potentially lead to an alternative method of treating pain without the side-effects and reduce many individuals reliance on opioids for pain relief, she said. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. ) Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Monday sought to know who was stopping Maharashtra Governor B K Koshyari from approving the state Cabinet's recommendation to nominate Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray as MLC from the governor's quota. Raut said Koshyari's affiliation with the BJP is not a secret, but this is not the time to indulge in Thackeray is not a member of either of the two Houses of the state legislature. He was sworn in as chief minister on November 28 last year, and completes six months in office on May 28. As per the Constitution, a minister or a chief minister who is not a member of either of the houses has to be elected to either of the Houses within six months of being sworn into the post, failing which the person must resign. Raut expressed confidence that Thackeray will remain chief minister of the state even after May 27. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar recently held a Cabinet meeting which suggested Thackeray's name as governor-nominated member of the Legislative Council (MLC). "The Maharashtra Cabinet has recommended Uddhav Thackeray's name as member of the Legislative Council from the governor's quota. There is vacancy as well. Then who is stopping him (Koshyari) from approving the recommendation? Raut wondered while speaking to a Marathi channel. This is not the time to indulge in any kind of politics, the Rajya Sabha member said. "There is nothing to hide about Koshyaris BJP affiliation. But, I would like to make one thing clear that Uddhav Thackeray is going to be the chief minister of Maharashtra even after May 27," he said. Raut on Sunday also attacked Koshyari by posting a tweet, saying, "Raj bhavan, governor's house shouldn't become center for political conspiracy. Remember! history doesn't spare those who behave unconstitutionally. @maha_governor." The Shiv Sena parted ways with long-term ally BJP after the state Assembly elections last year over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. Sena president Thackeray later joined hands with the NCP and Congress to form the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Oxford scientists leading Britain's coronavirus vaccine race has urged the Government to help produce millions of doses before it has proven to be effective. Professor Sarah Gilbert said her team needed help manufacturing the jabs, warning the UK did not have the facilities to do it alone. Professor Sarah Gilbert, who is leading Britain's coronavirus vaccine race, has urged the Government to help produce millions of doses before it has proven to be effective The Government's scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance has said ramping up production capacity will be 'challenging'. He has cautioned people not to rely on a vaccine as an end game for the coronavirus pandemic because vaccines are a 'long shot'. But Professor Gilbert said his comments did not pour cold water over her work - and has previously said she has 80 per cent confidence in the vaccine. Her team at the Jenner Institute plan to get clinical trials underway by the end of this week with the help of 510 volunteers. If they prove effective in the next stages - which would involve the elderly - they believe the vaccine could be given to the general public by September. Professor Gilbert said Sir Patrick's comments did not pour cold water over her work - and has previously said she has 80 per cent confidence in the vaccine The Government's scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance has said ramping up production capacity in this country will be 'challenging' Clinical teams at the Oxford University's Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group began developing the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine in January. The team have gone through stages of vaccine development that usually take five years in just four months. They were a step ahead of other groups because they already had a base vaccine for similar coronaviruses. WHAT IS THE OXFORD VACCINE AND WHO CAN GET ONE? The vaccine is called ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 and is made from a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) from chimpanzees that has been genetically changed so it is impossible for it to grow in humans. This has been combined with genes that make proteins from the COVID-19 virus (SARS-CoV-2) called spike glycoprotein, which play an essential role in the infection pathway of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Clinical teams at the Oxford University's Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group began developing the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine in January. The team have gone through stages of vaccine development that usually take five years in just four months. They were a step ahead of other groups because they already had a base vaccine for similar coronaviruses. The intellectual rights to its vaccine are owned by the University of Oxford and a spin-out company called Vaccitech. The first part of the trial - hoped to start at the end of this week - will involve 510 health volunteers aged between 18 and 55. Then the trial will move into older age groups, looking at the safety and immune response to the vaccine. Half of all the trial volunteers will get the new coronavirus vaccine and the other half will get a vaccine licensed to protect against meningitis. Volunteers will not know what they are given. Andrew Pollard, who is part of the Oxford team, said there may be hurdles when testing the vaccine on older people. 'For most vaccines the immune system in older adults, particularly those over 70, doesn't make such good responses,' he said. 'If we did see weaker responses in older adults we also have in our plan that we would look at giving additional doses in that age group to try and improve the immune response.' According to the World Health Organisation, more than 70 Covid-19 vaccines are in development worldwide but the UK now joins only the United States - two studies - and China in beginning human trials. Advertisement Sarah Gilbert, a professor of vaccinology of Oxford University's Jenner Institute, said: 'What we need from Government is support to help us accelerate the manufacturing.' Speaking on BBC's Andrew Marr show, she said: 'There aren't any manufacturing facilities in this country that at the moment can make very large amounts of the vaccine.' Sir Patrick Vallance, chief scientific advisor to the Government, said today upscaling production is not a 'trivial task'. Writing in The Guardian today, he said: 'Ideally, we would have one ready to take off the shelf and roll out yesterday. One that could be delivered at scale. 'Work must and will be taking place to build the manufacturing capacity needed to take any vaccine from lab to jab; producing the millions or potentially billions of doses that will be needed. 'This sort of scaling of a vaccine can be done but is not a trivial task.' Sir Vallance has said expectations for a vaccine must be tempered after hopes were raised at the news last week of Oxford's imminent trial. He said: 'All new vaccines that come into development are long shots; only some end up being successful, and the whole process requires experimentation.' Professor Gilbert said Sir Vallance's comments that all vaccines were 'long shots' did not pour cold water over her work. She added: 'We have always said this will not be the only vaccine. 'We think multiple vaccines can be successful, but there now I think about 140 different vaccines in development and not all of them will be successful by any means.' Professor Gilbert has previously said she was 80 per cent confident of the vaccine's success, adding: 'Personally, I have a high degree of confidence. 'This is my view, because I've worked with this technology a lot, and I've worked on the MERS vaccine trials, and I've seen what that can do.' Professor Gilbert said her team hopes to begin clinical trials towards the end of this week - not next week. Her team is currently waiting for final safety tests and final approvals for clinical trials to start. The 510 or so healthy volunteers, between 18 and 55, are currently being recruited and having health checks. Half of all the trial volunteers will get the new coronavirus vaccine and the other half will get a vaccine licensed to protect against meningitis. Volunteers will not know what they are given. How a vaccine is made: Researchers racing to find a cure extract the virus' genetic code and inject part of the DNA sequence into animals to produce antibodies, which fight off diseases. These antibodies - which recognise COVID-19 and know how to beat it - are given to humans Clinical teams at the Oxford University's Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group began developing the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine in January (pictured) Sir Jeremy Farrar, a member of the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said vaccines will need to be produced in billions to help the world fight the virus pandemic. Pictured: A scientist at the Clinical Biomanufacturing Facility (CBF) in Oxford The institute aims to have a million doses by September because they are confident the jab will work in trials. Vaccine vials undergoing quality control at the Clinical Biomanufacturing Facility (CBF) in Oxford GOVERNMENT TASKFORCE CREATED TO FIND VACCINE The hunt for a coronavirus vaccine - which normally takes one to two years - has been given a boost by the launch of a new Government taskforce. Led by chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, and deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan van Tam, it will support efforts to rapidly develop a vaccine as soon as possible. As well as providing industry and research institutions with the resources and support, the group will review regulations to allow quick and safe vaccine trials. It will also scale up manufacturing, so that when a vaccine becomes available, it can be produced quickly and in mass quantities. Twenty-one new research projects combating coronavirus will receive Government funding from a 14million investment. This included a trial at Imperial College London for a vaccine. This follows the Government's 250million pledge to develop a vaccine. Representatives from Government, academia and industry will form the taskforce, including Government life sciences champion Sir John Bell, as well as AstraZeneca, and the Wellcome Trust. Mr Sharma, who announced the taskforce at the daily Downing Street press conference on Friday, said: 'UK scientists are working as fast as they can to find a vaccine that fights coronavirus, saving and protecting people's lives. 'We stand firmly behind them in their efforts. 'The vaccine taskforce is key to co-ordinating efforts to rapidly accelerate the development and manufacture of a potential new vaccine, so we can make sure it is widely available to patients as soon as possible.' The group will focus on five strands of activity including supporting the discovery of potential coronavirus vaccines and preparing the UK for clinical vaccine testing and manufacturing. It is also working with the Bioindustry Association, which has set up an industry-led group, to accelerate vaccine development and manufacturing. Sir Vallance said: 'The taskforce will ensure that any potential coronavirus vaccine, when available, can be produced quickly and at scale so it can be made available to the public as quickly as possible.' Advertisement Professor Gilbert said there is a plant at Oxford University that can make small amounts of doses, which will be used for the first clinical trials. But if the vaccine proves effective, Professor Gilbert said, but this 'needs to go to a much bigger scale'. Companies involved in manufacturing the vaccine will need to have trained staff and new equipment, she added. 'And all of that can happen but the companies that we're going to be working with are going to need to stop doing what they would normally do and make this vaccine instead. 'So we need support for them all to make sure that that's done in a fair way while they're trying to do something that's really very important.' The UK now joins only the United States - two studies - and China in beginning human trials for a vaccine. Scientists at the University of Oxford said previously they believed a vaccine could be available for use by the general public in September. The institute aims to have a million doses by September because they are confident the jab will work in trials. Hundreds of millions could be possible by the end of the year. It is not clear, however, how these doses would be used. Asked whether doses produced in Britain would be used here, Adrian Hill, director of the Jenner, said: 'It's not as simple as that. We're very concerned that no one country tries to own all the vaccine, because it's going to be needed internationally. 'It links to the funding question who has funded the vaccine development and the particular batch that is being made.' Sir Jeremy Farrar, a member of the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said vaccines will need to be produced in billions to help the world fight the virus pandemic. He said he was 'optimistic' about finding a vaccine but that finding a safe and effective treatment for the latest strain was 'not a given'. He told Sky News's Sophy Ridge On Sunday: 'I hope we would have a vaccine towards the end of this year - but that's a vaccine in a vial, it's a vaccine that we believe to be safe, a vaccine we think might be effective. 'I think it's crucial to realise having a vaccine in itself, in say a million doses, which you know to be safe and you believe to be effective. That is not the end game. 'The end game is making sure that it is truly effective. It's effective in the elderly, effective in young children, effective right across the age group in all populations. 'And then you have to manufacture that in billions of doses to administer them to the world.' Scientists have asked people not to pin their hopes on a vaccine. However, it's believed that vaccines are the only way for high-risk people, such as the elderly, will be able to mingle in society in the future. Over-70s may potentially have to wait for a vaccine before going back to normal life, according to lockdown exit plans reported by the Sunday Times yesterday. Amaravati April 20 : The Andhra Pradesh government on Monday dismissed the opposition allegations of a scam in the purchase of one lakh rapid test kits, claiming that the deal was transparent and fair. Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said though the test kits were badly needed, the Centre could not provide them and asked the states to purchase them on their own from any country for coronavirus testing. The state Health Department placed an order with a company approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which fixed Rs 795 price for each kit. However, the state quoted Rs 65 less than the fixed price, he said. "It was clearly mentioned in the terms (of the sale) that if the company sells kits at a lower price, we too will pay the same price," the CM said in a statement. Reddy said so far only 25 per cent of the payment had been made without any scope for corruption. The kits were being manufactured only in foreign countries when the order was placed by the government. But now the same company is manufacturing the kits in India for which the ICMR has given permission. Earlier, Minister for Health Alla Nani told reporters that the state entered into an agreement with a South Korean company for one lakh kits at Rs 730 per unit whereas the ICMR fixed the purchase price at Rs 795 per unit. He said Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state chief Kanna Lakshmi Narayana have been levelling "false allegations" on the issue. Both the opposition parties alleged that there was corruption in the deal as the same were purchased by other states at lower prices. TDP leader K. Atchan Naidu claimed that Chhattisgarh purchased the kit for Rs 337 each while Andhra Pradesh purchased it for Rs 817 from the same company. According to him, the basic price of the test kit was Rs 730 and with 12 per cent GST the price worked out to Rs 817. He alleged that Jagan Mohan Reddy and others received kickbacks of Rs 8 crore in this deal. BJP's state unit chief Kanna Lakshmi Narayana also alleged corruption in the deal. He posted a tweet of a Cabinet Minister of Chhattisgarh. "We are procuring 75,000 high quality rapid testing kits at a benchmark price of Rs 337 + GST from a South Korean company based in India, which has proven to be the lowest bidder. The rate we have been able to close at is the lowest in India," tweeted T.S. Singh Deo. The American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend you place a mask on a child any younger than 2 years and be cautious masking kids between 2 and 4 simply because most masks are placed with an elastic band or with tied strings to the back of the head, said Mark Butterly, vice chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Advocate Childrens Hospital in Oak Lawn. The six insurers are Aspen American Insurance, Auto-Owners Insurance, Lloyds of London, Society Insurance, Oregon Mutual Insurance, and Topa Insurance Company. Plaintiffs for the lawsuit include a restaurant/nightclub in San Diego, CA; a bridal retailer in Cleveland, OH; a Madison, WI-based bakery; a chain of restaurants/bars in Minnesota; a St. Paul, MN-based dental practice; a restaurant in Portland, OR; and an NY-based restaurant group and pizzeria. Each of the plaintiffs are represented by lawyers from the three aforementioned law firms. The law firms said that each of the lawsuits claim that the business purchased special property insurance coverage to protect against business interruptions, or disruptions outside of their control. These policies included business income coverage. The firms also noted that all of these coverages either included or did not expressly exclude losses caused by viral infections such as COVID-19. But despite all this, the law firms said that the insurers refused to uphold their contractual responsibilities for losses suffered due to COVID-19, as well as losses caused by executive orders by civil authorities and any efforts to prevent further property damage or to minimize the suspension of business and continue operations. Businesses nationwide have, for years, purchased expensive insurance policies to protect them from losses exactly like those they are currently enduring, said Adam Levitt, plaintiff co-counsel and partner at DiCello Levitt Gutzler. For many small business owners trying to provide for their families and employees, this type of insurance coverage was an additional expense that they would have preferred not to carry but felt a responsibility to do so. For insurers to now tell them, in the most challenging of times, that the joke was on them and their policies were worthless, is unethical and abhorrent. The law firms release noted that most property insurance policies sold in the US including those sold by the defendants are all-risk property damage policies. Insurers will deny almost every claim even the most legitimate ones because thats just how they operate, said Mark Lanier, plaintiff co-counsel and founder of The Lanier Law Firm. But at the end of the day, this really is a straightforward issue about honoring their agreements. As our nation emerges from this horrific pandemic, businesses of all sizes will be critical to restarting the economy. In playing their usual claim-denial games, these insurers are threatening the welfare of not only small-business owners and their families, but the entire US economy. Countless businesses across the United States are pinning their hopes of reopening and rehiring laid-off or furloughed employees on proceeds from insurance, added Timothy Burns, partner at Burns Bowen Bair. Burns also commented that insurers thrive by selling protection against all sorts of maladies, pocketing profits when material events are avoided, but must honor policies on the occasion those incidents occur. By refusing to do so, they are not running a business at all, but a large-scale rigged carnival game where no matter the scenario, the customer always loses, Burns remarked. Its just not right, and we will do everything in our power to ensure that these businesses are made whole. Chennai, April 20 : Forty-three persons tested positive for coronovirus in Tamil Nadu over the past 24 hours, taking the total number of cases in the state to 1,520, Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar said on Monday. While condemning the people who protested against the burial of a doctor who died due to Covid-19, Vijayabaskar was also critical of DMK President M.K. Stalin, saying it is not the time to do politics. Speaking to reporters here, Vijayabaskar said 43 persons tested positive out of 6,109 samples tested, which is a good sign showing that there is no community spread of coronavirus. He said the tests are being done on a focused manner looking at the possibility of a person who might have the chance of getting infected. Vijayabaskar said 46 Covid-19 patients were discharged on Monday, taking the total number of cured persons in the state to 457. He also said that two persons have died over the past 24 hours, taking the Covid-19 death toll in the state to 17. According to the Health Minister, Pudukottai has recorded its first Covid-19 case as the relative of a person who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi last month has tested positive for coronavirus. Condemning the protest by people against the burial of a doctor, Vijayabaskar said an official group has been formed with representatives from the police and other departments so that such incidents do not occur again. He said the bodies of Covid-19 victims are properly packed and disinfectants are sprayed and there is no possibility of coronavirus spread, whether the body is buried or burnt. On the price of rapid testing kits procured from a Chinese company, Vijayabaskar said the state bought them at the price fixed by the Central government and from the company approved by the Centre. Vijayabaskar said Andhra Pradesh has bought rapid testing kits at a price higher than that of Tamil Nadu, but the opposition there has welcomed the decision to purchase the test kits. He also added that Chhattisgarh, which has ordered rapid testing kits at a price lower than that of Tamil Nadu, is yet to receive them. Referring to the demand of Stalin to provide Rs1 crore compensation to the family members of Covidf-19 victims, Vijayabaskar wondered whether saving a life was important or providing compensation. He said Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami had stated that each life was important and must be saved. He also said the state will soon introduce another kind of test to find out infection of coronavirus. The test result will be known in about 60 minutes. - Jay Short, a nurse in the UK, has packed out of her house so as to keep her family safe from infection possibilities - The only contacts she has with them after moving in with her mother, also a medical official, are through the window - Jay said that she does not want to wallow in the agony of losing her loved ones and that was why the temporary separation is important Jay Short, a mother of three, has reflected great human kindness as she sacrificed everything to be at the frontline, treating coronavirus patients. The 32-year-old woman had to move out of her house, leaving behind her three children and husband, so she does not expose them to coronavirus infection from her contacts with patients, Daily Mail reports. After moving from Ashington, Northumberland, she now stays with her mother, Judith, who is also a medical official. Jay was really scared she would infect sons, Logan and Tommy, and one-year-old daughter, Lottie, who has had medical complications on several occasions in the past. The nurse said people must know that the present lockdown is not a leisure holiday. Photo source: Daily Mail Source: UGC In an emotional message on her Facebook page, the woman said she had to take that drastic and rather unconventional action to keep her family safe. Moving out was something I felt I needed to do for my family to survive. I wanted to break the chain before it could even start, so I knew I had to take myself out of the equation. I'm absolutely heartbroken the only relationship I can have with my children for the next few months is through the window, she said. Jay said after witnessing the pain that people go through after losing their loved ones, she decided against needlessly putting her family at risk. Though the nurse does not know how long she will be staying away from her family, she will be following NHIS updates. The mother of three also said that she is always angry whenever she sees people outside putting themselves in great danger, saying that this is not a holiday but that there is a virus that is killing people. PAY ATTENTION: Download our mobile app to enjoy the latest news Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that Linas Beliunas, a fintech expert, shared the photo of a couple on his LinkedIn on Monday, April 13, to show how they placed people's needs over theirs. The said couple who were supposed to be married dumped their plans for that and resumed work to attend to the increasing number of coronavirus cases. In a romantic photoshoot, the couple kissed and held cardboards that read: "We should be getting married today but instead we went to work for you. So, stay at home for us." NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: We have upgraded to serve you better Coronavirus: Why I came back to Nigeria - UK returnee | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan today chaired a consultation discussing the draft five-year development strategy of the healthcare system, the PMs Office told Armenpress. Minister of Healthcare Arsen Torosyan introduced the strategic principles of the draft, its main goals, the problems in the healthcare sector and the strategic directions. It was reported that among the priorities of the draft are going to be raising the level of public health, average life expectancy, reducing the causes of child and maternal mortality, populations mortality, preventing more widespread diseases, ensuring high-quality medical care, etc. The consultation participants exchanged views on the draft, discussed the problems in the field and the possible steps to solve them. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said the actions envisaged by the draft should be more specified and the importance of solving the problems for ensuring maternity and child health should be highlighted. The strategy should be human-centered, and our strategic task is to ensure public health. With our actions we must maximally promote birth, reveal health problems based on ages, carry out respective actions to solve them and contribute to peoples longevity and ability to work, he said. The PM tasked to amend the draft, present action plan and a concrete timetable for the expected actions. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan Two surges in coronavirus cases are expected in Ukraine soon late in April and early in May. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal says Ukraine's government is set to extend the coronavirus quarantine, however, there will be some easing in certain spheres. Shmyhal, in particular, cited recent estimates received by the Cabinet of Ministers from the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, according to which two peaks of incidence are expected, according to the RBC Ukraine news agency. Read alsoUkraine's police open criminal cases over lockdown violations by Moscow Patriarchate church members "Tentatively, it's late in April and between May 3 and May 8," he said. "At a Cabinet meeting, we will most likely extend the quarantine based on these estimates. But we plan to ease some activities in two or three spheres this week," he added. As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier announced certain quarantine restrictions might be eased after April 24 if the situation with COVID-19 in the country does not worsen significantly. Coronavirus: What you need to read Coronavirus maps: Cases and deaths in the U.S. | Cases and deaths worldwide Vaccines: Tracker by state | Booster shots | For kids 5 to 11 | Guidance for vaccinated people | How long does immunity last? | County-level vaccine data What you need to know: Omicron variant | Breakthrough infections | Symptoms guide | Masks FAQ | Delta variant | Other variants | Follow all of our coverage and sign up for our free newsletter Impact of the pandemic: Supply chain | Education | Housing Got a pandemic question? We answer one every day in our coronavirus newsletter Angela Merkel has become the latest world leader to hint that China has misled the world over coronavirus. The German Chancellor urged Beijing to be transparent about the origin and initial transmission of the virus. 'I believe the more transparent China is about the origin story of the virus, the better it is for everyone in the world in order to learn from it.' With 4,648 deaths, Germany has suffered almost the exact same number of casualties as China - with 4,636 - but has confirmed almost 62,000 more infections. Merkel spoke out after French President Emmanuel Macron said there were 'clearly things that happened that we don't know about' when asked about China's death and infection figures. Angela Merkel has become the latest world leader to cast doubt on China's account of its coronavirus crisis, urging Beijing to be 'more transparent' Globally, coronavirus has infected more than 2million people. China accounts for some 88,000 cases - far below many countries with smaller populations, causing doubt Meanwhile Donald Trump and senior Republican figures in the US have also cast doubt over China's infection data. Chancellor Merkel spoke out as Germany began relaxing its coronavirus lockdown, allowing small shops and businesses to reopen provided they adhered to social distancing measures. Shops up to 800 sq metres, as well as car and bicycle dealers and bookstores, are allowed to reopen this week. Schools are set to reopen in two weeks. However, Merkel called for caution as measures are relaxed - saying the country will be forced back into full lockdown if coronavirus cases begin rising steeply again. Children also returned to nurseries in Norway on Monday, Denmark has already re-opened some of its schools and Switzerland has set a date of May 11 to do the same. Germany reported just 110 deaths from the virus on Monday, the fewest since April 6, while new cases also rose by just 1,775, the lowest since mid-March. China's official figures paint a picture of astonishing success in slowing the outbreak, but there has been widespread scepticism about their accuracy. To add to the growing doubts, China this week revised the death toll in Wuhan upwards by more than 50 per cent. French President Emmanuel Macron has also cast doubt on Beijing's account, saying it would be 'naive' to believe everything the regime has said In a social media post, the city government added 1,290 deaths to the tally in Wuhan, bringing the toll to 3,869. Officials claimed that many fatal cases were 'mistakenly reported' or missed entirely. The revision means that China's total death toll has also increased sharply, because Wuhan was by far the hardest-hit city. The new figure is 4,632 rather than 3,342. Macron said there could be no comparison between countries where the truth was suppressed and nations where information flowed freely and citizens could criticise their governments. Frictions between China and France came to light earlier this week when the Chinese ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry over a provocative article on the embassy website. The article quoted an unnamed diplomat criticising the West's response to the coronavirus outbreak. The diplomat accused workers at nursing homes of 'abandoning their posts overnight... and leaving their residents to die of hunger and disease'. That comment sparked fury across the political spectrum in France, with people leaping to the defence of nursing home workers. Medical staff in Wuhan are seen removing the body of a person suspected to have died from coronavirus. China has increased the death toll in Wuhan by more than 1,000 Germany reopened small shops on Monday after new cases and deaths both started falling Foreign ministry officials summoned the Chinese ambassador in Paris over the article, which French lawmakers have called 'fake news'. China has since denied criticising France, saying there had been 'misunderstandings'. 'China has never issued negative comments on the way France has handled the epidemic,' foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular press briefing. 'To the contrary, we share the concerns of France, which today faces the serious challenges brought by this epidemic.' Britain and the United States have also declined to hail China's apparent success in containing the outbreak. UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said today there would be 'hard questions about how it came about and how it couldn't have been stopped earlier'. Donald Trump's administration says it does not rule out that the virus could have come from a laboratory researching bats in China. Trump says the US is 'doing a very thorough investigation' after hearing 'more and more' rumours of a laboratory accident. Chinese scientists have said the virus was likely transmitted to humans late last year at a Wuhan 'wet market'. Trump also regards the World Health Organization as too close to China, accusing it of initially advising against travel bans out of 'political correctness'. Dogs Trust, Ireland's largest dog welfare charity, understands that frontline workers may be concerned about their own capacity to look after their dogs as their workloads increase due to the Covid-19 outbreak. To help alleviate any worry they may have that their dog might not be receiving their usual levels of exercise and human interaction, the charity is offering essential workers a free "Dogs Trust Frontline Foster Care" card which will allow them to sign up to a special temporary fostering programme that they can avail of at any time during this unprecedented pandemic. Nurse Annie Mathews said: "This is a fantastic initiative for frontline workers like me, its a relief to know this service is available and that my dog would be well looked after for a few weeks if I need it." The charity has adapted their current Canine Care Card to be able to help people on the frontline, especially those who are worried about looking after their dogs while they carry out their essential and in some cases life-saving roles. Becky Bristow, Executive Director, Dogs Trust Ireland said: "Its so important at a time like this, that we all pull together. Many people are at home right now and want to be able to support frontline workers in some way. "The amount of offers we have received to foster dogs has been truly uplifting for us in these worrying times and we are delighted to now expand our teams services to assist essential workers. "We want to help lighten the load of Irelands frontline workers who are facing one of the biggest challenges of our lifetime. "They are doing everything they can to keep us safe, healthy and food and supplies on shelves so its the least we can do to take some pressure off them by offering to care for their dogs." If you are an essential worker and need your dog fostered for a period of two weeks or more, please sign up to receive a Dogs Trust Frontline Foster Care card at www.DogsTrust.ie/Frontline. The last three cruise ships still at sea all made port on Monday as the industry shuts down amid the coronavirus pandemic. The MSC Magnifica docked in the south of France in the early hours after calling off its round-the-world voyage six weeks ago in New Zealand, when passengers were last allowed freely off the ship. Meanwhile the Costa Deliziosa also made port in Barcelona after sailing for 35 continuous days from Perth with no direct contact with the outside world. Finally, the Pacific Princess was due into port in Los Angeles in the early hours of Monday having sailed from Fremantle, Australia, where it last made port on March 21. The MSC Magnifica pictured in port in Marseille on Monday morning, six weeks after passengers were last allowed off in New Zealand to avoid bringing coronavirus on board The Costa Deliziosa pictured in port in Barcelona, its first stop since Perth on March 16. The ship's last port of call will be Genoa, Italy, where it is due on Wednesday After today, the Deliziosa will be the only cruise vessel at sea anywhere in the world as it makes a final journey to Genoa, where it will come to rest on Wednesday. All three vessels were taking part in round-the-world trips that began the first week of January when coronavirus was first emerging in China. As they set off - two on January 4 and the third on January 5 - the disease wasn't even known as a coronavirus. It was simply 'pneumonia of unknown origin'. In the time they have been at sea the virus has swept across the globe - infecting some 2.4million people and killing 166,000. Yet, despite cruise ships being among the early hotbeds of the virus, none of the three ships docking today had a single confirmed infection on board. That means passengers have been free to mingle, dine together, and use facilities such as cinemas and gyms while the rest of the world went into lockdown. They now face returning to countries with strict social distancing measures in place, where many of the comforts they have continued to enjoy are banned. Carlos Paya, a Spanish traveller on board the Deliziosa, described his decision to go on the cruise as 'a stroke of good luck'. 168 passengers were allowed off the Deliziosa in Barcelona on Wednesday, their first contact with the outside world for 35 days Deliziosa passengers - who had previously been allowed full use of the ship due to no coronavirus cases being on board - now return to a country in full lockdown 'Of course, for those of us who have children in Spain, we would have preferred to return," Paya said. 'Other passengers, on the other hand, given their old age wanted to stay on board knowing that the boat was safe and secure.' Paya was thought to be among 168 of the boat's 1,831 passengers and 898 crew who were allowed to disembark in Barcelona on Monday. The remainder will come ashore in Genoa on Wednesday. French authorities had denied the ship permission to dock in Marseille, where the MSC Magnifica made port on Monday morning. That ship disembarked all of its 1,760 passengers, six weeks after Captain Roberto Leotta - from Italy - decided to call off the voyage. The Magnifica last made a scheduled stop in New Zealand on March 11, before sailing to Tasmania where it was due to dock on March 14. But seeing the virus spread, Captain Leotta decided to keep people on board the ship and set sail for Sydney, the BBC reported. The Pacific Princess (pictured in Melbourne on April 3) is also due to arrive in Los Angeles on Monday, after sailing for 30 days from Fremantle, in Australia It was there that he decided to abandon the voyage and chart a course home. A few passengers were allowed off the ship in Sydney and at another stop in Melbourne on March 19 on strict conditions. Another stop in Sri Lanka saw one crew member allowed to leave and a German woman evacuated because of non-coronavirus conditions - who later died. Otherwise, passengers have not set foot on dry land for 40 days. Speaking about the incredible voyage, Captain Leotta said: 'We found ourselves in a situation where Covid-19 has been isolating people, and distancing people. 'Here was the opposite. We became like a family - our guests and our crew together. The spirit has been beautiful.' Meanwhile the Pacific Princess was due to dock in Los Angeles around 7.30am local time, a spokesman for the cruise line said. Since the ships began their voyage, coronavirus has gone from a small batch of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, China, to a global pandemic that has infected more than 2million A majority of the ship's passengers had already disembarked at Fremantle, in Australia, during the ship's last port call on March 21. However, 115 people remained on board due to non-coronavirus health conditions which meant they couldn't disembark. They will be allowed off the ship once it makes port. With the arrival of the three ships on Monday, the cruise industry is now on hiatus until it is deemed safe to restart. Speaking about when that might be last week, Carnival Cruises CEO Arnold Donald said it is unlikely the whole industry will be allowed to resume at once. 'It will be to certain destinations, certain locations and certain times,' he said. He also admitted that people may be put off cruises for a period of time because of the negative press around the industry generated by coronavirus. But he added: 'People are booking for 2021 we have some even booking for this summer. There is [still] demand.' Two tractor trailers filled with nearly 8,000 gallons of milk will pull into the Solar Street parking lot of Destiny USA Wednesday to distribute free milk to area families in need. The drive-through distribution was organized by Dairy Farmers of America, American Dairy Association North East and Dean Foods to respond to record numbers of people filing unemployment and increasing food insecurity. The event will run from 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday in the East Side lot off Solar Street, while supplies last. Receive FREE MILK in Syracuse, NY! Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), has teamed up with Dean Foods processing plants... Posted by American Dairy Association North East on Friday, April 17, 2020 Similar drive-through distributions at SUNY Morrisville over the past two weeks have drawn hundreds of families. Knowing that millions of Americans are struggling right now to make ends meet and with food banks being a critical local resource to help feed those families, we knew that we had to figure out a solution," said Jennifer Huson of Dairy Farmers of America. To keep contact to a minimum and practice social distancing, all participants in the drive-through must remain in their vehicles during the event. When it is a participants turn to receive milk, they will be prompted to open their trunk or window. Walk ups are not allowed. Volunteers from United Way of Central New York and the Office of the Onondaga County Executive will help at the event. Destiny USA, United Renal, OnSite Facility Services and the Syracuse Police Department have also volunteered services. The drive-through is an effort to support families and farmers who may be experiencing unemployment and food insecurity. We are seeing people who have never before sought help come to food pantries, community organizations, and churches because they cannot provide for their families, said Nancy Kern Eaton, president of the United Way of Central New York. We are proud to partner in this wonderful effort to distribute milk to families and we are grateful for the incredible generosity of the dairy farmers. THE DETAILS What: Free milk distribution at Destiny USA When: 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 22, while supplies last. Directions: Signage for the event will be posted near Destiny USA. To keep contact to a minimum and practice social distancing, all participants in the drive-through must remain in their vehicles during the event. When it is a participants turn to receive milk, they will be prompted to open their trunk or window. Walk ups are not allowed. If coming from Route 81 South Bound, take exit 22-23 A & B (I690 W/Bear Street) and use the right lane to continue onto Hiawatha Boulevard. Turn right on Hiawatha Boulevard, then left onto Solar Street. If coming from Route 81 Northbound, take exit 22 toward NY 298. Keep left at the fork toward NY-298 and turn left onto Bear Street. Turn right onto Solar Street, then turn left into parking lot and look for signage for the event. If coming from Western Syracuse, exit 690 East to Exit 8 Hiawatha Boulevard. Turn left onto Hiawatha Boulevard to Solar Street, then turn right onto Solar Street. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources Weve flattened the CNY coronavirus curve, but what now? (Where we stand) Coronavirus shutdown drops a bomb on Central New York workers: I am terrified Updated: See our newest list of CNY restaurants offering takeout and/or delivery Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Monday called upon people living along the India-Bangladesh border to launch ''Janata patrolling'' alongside the BSF to ensure that no person from the neighbouring country sneaks into India amid the coronavirus outbreak. Deb, who also holds the Home portfolio, said in a video message: "Bangladesh is a friendly state. But, we came to know from media that social distancing is not being maintained there. So, we have to resist the spread of coronavirus across the border to save our own people. "It is possible that you might have your relatives there who would like to seek help for treatment in India. I am not against humanitarianism. But I want to assert that a humanitarian approach should not become our weakness. I request everyone to make sure that no one enters Tripura from Bangladesh," he said. The BSF and the state police have already been put on alert to intensify patrolling along the unfenced stretches of the border, especially in Sonamura, Boalkhali and Gandacherra areas, a statement issued by the Chief Minister''s Office said. Deb also said that his government has come in contact with 2,000 people from Tripura stranded in other parts of the country due to the nationwide lockdown. The state government has sent financial aid to a large number of the stranded persons and urged them to be constant touch with their families over the phone, he added. Amid outbreaks of COVID-19 reported at nursing homes and other senior care facilities across the country, federal regulators have ordered homes to notify residents and their families within 12 hours of the first positive test for the disease. The order took effect immediately and also requires homes to report COVID-19 cases directly to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, rather than just state and local health departments as they had been, according to a memo released Sunday by the the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The agency oversees health and safety standards at the nations nursing homes, and maintains ratings for all of them. Nursing homes have been ground zero for COVID-19. Todays action supports CMS longstanding commitment to providing transparent and timely information to residents and their families, CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement that accompanied the memo. Nursing home reporting to the CDC is a critical component of the go-forward national COVID-19 surveillance system and to efforts to reopen America. The new directive comes as nursing homes throughout Connecticut have reported more than 1,700 cases and hundreds of deaths among residents, according to data released by Gov. Ned Lamonts office. Also, updates to residents and their representatives must be provided weekly, or each subsequent time a confirmed infection of COVID-19 is identified, or when three or more people develop respiratory issues, the memo said. Nursing homes have been required to inform state or local health departments within 72 hours if they have a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19. But that data has not been collected either CMS, the CDC, or the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the memo. The lack of centralized data has led to patchwork public reporting on the number of cases and deaths at specific homes. Connecticut, like neighboring Rhode Island, has released data showing the amount of cases and deaths at each nursing home, but other states have declined to make the data public. In Connecticut, elderly and recovering residents at nursing homes have been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Across the state, 108 nursing homes have reported cases of COVID-19, as of April 16, the most recent data available. Among residents, 1,713 have gotten sick with the disease, and 375 have died. The deaths have spurred at least one investigation into a nursing home. At Golden Hill Rehab Pavilion, state health officials are investigating after a 91-year-old mans death certificate was changed to reflect his death was likely due to COVID-19. At least 67 residents there have tested positive for the disease, and nine have died after getting sick, the nursing home data shows. On Sunday, Lamont announced his administration would boost Medicaid payments to nursing homes by 5 percent, on top of the 10 percent already promised. In a letter sent to the governors office Saturday, an end-of-life care group indicated they were in favor of the bump in payments. These individuals have a magnitude of comorbidities that make them easy targets for this merciless virus, said Dr. Allison Alison Kris, vice president of the Connecticut Coalition To Improve End-Of-Life Care. The letter was co-signed by Dr. Sheila Molony, a professor of nursing at Quinnipiac University. Outbreaks at other nursing homes around the country have also made headlines. In Washington, 37 coronavirus-related deaths have been linked to the Life Care Center of Kirkland. In Brooklyn, 55 people have died at the Cobble Hill Health Center, a nursing home run out of a 19th century New York City building. And in New Jersey, investigators uncovered 18 bodies in a makeshift morgue at the Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center in Andover Township. Even proponents of the measure are calling it an attempt at political bribery by the ruling elite. Beirut, Lebanon Lebanons parliament is set to vote on legislation this week that would pardon thousands arrested or wanted for non-violent crimes and also reduce prison sentences. Two separate laws are up for a vote at a three-day legislative session that begins on Tuesday, though they will likely be compiled into a single piece of legislation. The vote would see thousands of people arrested or wanted for misdemeanours and criminal offences including drug use, cannabis production and celebratory gunfire, among other crimes set free. Families of detainees and those wanted for crimes have called for such legislation to be endorsed for over a decade. Member of Parliament (MP) Michel Moussa, the co-sponsor of one of the bills, said that fears the coronavirus would spread through Lebanons massively overcrowded prisons gave an added sense of urgency. The Lebanese state has failed to solve the overcrowding problem for a long time. Prisoners are not being afforded their rights as citizens, and we cant let them pay a very high price for the failure of successive governments, Moussa told Al Jazeera. This is a humanitarian issue. Longtime proponents of an amnesty say that the timing of the bill has much more to do with a crisis of confidence in the countrys establishment than a sudden humanitarian urge. 200417222253896 The amnesty would mainly affect people from impoverished rural areas of Lebanon such as the Bekaa Valley where the bulk of Lebanons cannabis is grown illegally and Tripoli and Akkar, where many stand accused of being affiliated with extremists. These are the traditional support bases for establishment parties, most of which are led by former warlords who were allowed to enter politics after a 1991 general amnesty for all those who took part in the countrys 15-year civil war. In October 2019, those sectarian parties were rattled by the biggest uprising in the country since its independence in 1943, with hundreds of thousands filling streets to call for the fall of a political class. Moussas amnesty bill was submitted to the parliament on October 30, two weeks after the uprising broke out. Moussa is a member of the parliamentary bloc led by Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri. Berri was a main target of the protesters, who see the octogenarian warlord-turned-politician as a cornerstone of corruption in the country. The political class needs the amnesty because it is reeling from the blows of the October 17 revolution. Its an attempted political bribe, Hasan Mazloum, founder of a committee that has advocated for an amnesty since 2004, told Al Jazeera. If they cared about humanitarian issues, they wouldnt have plundered this country and left the Lebanese to beg, go hungry and be forced into illegal [activities], he said. All prisoners affected The legislation would still be a huge event in the country, affecting all of Lebanons roughly 9,000 detainees. It would also affect a big percentage of the tens of thousands of outstanding arrest warrants in the country. Both pieces of legislation would reduce all prison sentences by either half or two-thirds, and convert death sentences to hard labour for 25 years. Only prisoners convicted of a small number of crimes are eligible for release. However, anyone who killed or kidnapped soldiers or civilians, produced, transported or used explosives or poisonous materials, or recruited or trained terrorists or funded terrorism will not be eligible for a release. Both laws also exempt crimes of money laundering, trading in artefacts, human trafficking, illicit enrichment and crimes involving public money or property. Only one of the bills, submitted by MP Bahia Hariri, also exempts environmental crimes and crimes covered by Lebanons 2014 domestic violence law. But instead of naming specific crimes subject to pardon, both bills seek to exempt all crimes and then delimit the extent of the amnesty via exceptions, leaving dangerous gaps. Herein lies one of the main issues, according to Nizar Saghieh, a leading Lebanese legal expert. 200407181016398 Notably, Moussas proposed law would not pardon those who committed environmental crimes of all kinds, in addition to financial crimes in a country that is suffering from its worst-ever financial crisis, a result of decades of corruption and mismanagement, Saghieh said. He said Hariris bill was better but pardons those who have illegally occupied public maritime property, worth millions of dollars. It also does not grant a pardon to people accused of theft which is strange if your goal is to help poor people, Saghieh, who is also founder of the non-governmental organisation The Legal Agenda, said. Both bills seek to pardon all prisoners who have served their sentences but remain in prison because they have not paid outstanding fines. Anyone pardoned would see their release overturned if they commit a similar crime again, with Hariris law setting a five-year probation period for criminal offences and two years for misdemeanours. Moussa said that even if the bill became law, judges would review each case, a process that would take several months given the large numbers of people involved. Opposite of accountability For Saghieh, the amnesty bills enshrine the opposite of accountability while doing little in the way of reforms to change the circumstances that led to these crimes. If the issue is the poverty and lack of development in rural areas that led people to enter illicit activities, those must be addressed first, he said. Otherwise, the same crimes will be committed again, and you will be sending a clear message: Dont fear, the laws are only here for appearances, and every few years well have a new amnesty. Mazloum, a longtime pro-amnesty campaigner, agreed that without deeper reform, those who receive pardons would have little hope of starting afresh, especially during this crisis that has seen tens of thousands losing their jobs as half the population falls under the poverty line. These prisoners will come out to a world of social crisis no life, no work, no bread, Mazloum said. They will come out and either join the protests on the streets or be forced to do something wrong again. By PTI NEW DELHI: Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has appealed to Muslims to adhere to all the guidelines of the lockdown and perform all religious rituals during Ramzan, starting later this week, staying inside their homes. Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind general secretary Mahmood Madani also appealed to the community to help the poor and ensure 'sehri' (meal before start of fasting) and 'iftar' (meal at breaking of fast) is made available for the needy. "It is an appeal to the Muslims in India that they adhere to the lockdown guidelines completely. They should not leave their homes without reason," the Jamiat appeal said. ALSO READ | COVID-19: Tamil Nadu government bans preparation of gruel in mosques this Ramzan It also asked Muslims to perform prayers and other religious rituals inside their homes and adhere to the lockdown guidelines during Ramzan which is to start from April 24 or 25. The nationwide lockdown, which was from March 25 till April 14, has been extended to May 3 by the government to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Thursday had directed state waqf boards to ensure strict implementation of the lockdown and social distancing guidelines during the holy month of Ramzan. "We should cooperate with health workers, security forces, administrative officers, sanitation workers. They are working for our safety and well-being even putting their own lives at risk in this coronavirus pandemic," Naqvi had said "We should also demolish rumours and misinformation being spread about quarantine and isolation centres by creating awareness among people that such centres are only meant to protect people, their families and the society from the pandemic," the minister had said. The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Portal has gone live today - allowing businesses to claim up to 80% of each affected employees salary, to a cap of 2,500 per month. The opening of the scheme, accessible to all UK businesses, is an important milestone for firms impacted by the spread of Covid-19. Around two-thirds of companies have furloughed some portion of their workforce, according to research by the British Chambers of Commerce. In order to apply, employees must have been designated as furloughed for a minimum of three weeks and have been on the companys payroll on or before 19 March 2020 with this status agreed with the employee, accountants Saffery Champness explains. Employers must be enrolled for PAYE. The scheme has been set up to run for at least 3 months starting from 1 March. If an employee was made redundant or stopped working for their employer prior to 19 March 2020 but was employed as of 28 February 2020 and was on the payroll they can also qualify for the scheme if their employer has re-employed them and put them on furlough. David Chismon, partner of Saffery Champness, says: We hope that this will mean that some of the support promised to businesses, many of whom have slimmed down or mothballed their operations by furloughing staff, will start to come through. If the lockdown is extended further, then we would hope that the scheme would be extended also. What do I need to make a claim? To claim, the employer will need: Their employer PAYE reference number the number of employees being furloughed National Insurance numbers for the furloughed employees Names of the furloughed employees Payroll/employee number for the furloughed employees (optional) their self-assessment unique taxpayer reference or corporation tax unique taxpayer reference or company registration number the claim period (start and end date) the amount claimed (per the minimum length of furloughing of 3 consecutive weeks) their bank account number and sort code their contact name and phone number Employers will need to calculate the amount being claimed and HMRC will retain the right to retrospectively audit all aspects of any claim, Saffery Champness adds. For fewer than 100 furloughed staff employers will be asked to enter details of each employee being claimed for directly into the system including their name, NI number, claim period and claim amount. Burma Myanmars Shan State Imposes COVID-19 Curfew Muse in northern Shan State on the Chinese border in February 2020. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy A curfew has been imposed in Shan State, following the example of Yangon, Mandalay and Bago regions and Karen State, to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Shan State government said the order across 48 townships would prevent further infections from coronavirus, help control the virus and allow treatment. Shan State contains 55 townships. The 10 pm to 4 am curfew will not include townships in the self-administrative zones of Wa, Mong La and Kokang. Four townships are under the control of the United Wa State Army and Mongla is held by the National Democratic Alliance Army. In the two townships in Kokang, the authorities imposed martial law in 2015 after the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army attacked Laukkai. The one-month curfew will begin tonight at 10 pm and is due to last until May 19. The state has four coronavirus patients and 4,008 people who have been in quarantine centers and 5,138 under isolation at home. No one is allowed out at night but trucks will still be allowed to transport commodities. Shan State, which has a long border with China, has long been on COVID-19 alert. Many Shan residents work in China and have returned after work dried up as coronavirus spread. A case of COVID-19 was found in southern Shan State, followed by another in Kengtung in the east of the state and then Lashio in the north. A doctor in Tachileik was the latest case announced on April 19. U Chan Myae Saw, a township administrator in Tachileik, told The Irrawaddy that the patient was transferred to Kengtung on Sunday. The township authorities enforced home quarantine on 21 doctors and nurses from the hospital in Tachileik, which meant the hospital had insufficient staff. We made them home quarantine. They have been tested and we are waiting for the results, said U Chan Myae Saw. Medics from Kengtung, Mandalay and the military were being transferred to the public hospital in the meantime. Myanmar now has 111 COVID-19 patients, with 91 in Yangon. You may also like these stories: Doctor Who Treated COVID-19 Patient Tests Positive in Myanmar In Myanmar, Its Time to Stop the Senseless War and Fight COVID-19 She recently hit out at a follower after she was warned about her eating. And Emily Atack looked radiant as ever as she shared a snap of herself sunbathing at her home amid the ongoing coronavirus lockdown. The former Inbetweeners star, 30, showed off her bronzed glow as she donned a white bikini top with a patterned print while she also wore a pair of blue trousers. Stunning: Emily Atack, 30, looked radiant as ever as she shared a snap of herself sunbathing at her home amid the ongoing coronavirus lockdown Emily struck a sultry pose for the camera as she also wore a pair of large black sunglasses and small, gold earrings. Alongside the snap, the Extra Camp presenter wrote: 'Verified Mainly this today '. Emily also shared other snaps to her Instagram Stories as she sipped on a beverage while enjoying the sunshine. The star completed her look for the day by letting her brunette locks fall loose down her shoulders. Firing back: Emily recently back at fat-shamers once more as she shared a throwback #MeAt20 snap (pictured in March 2010) It comers after Emily hit back at fat-shamers once more as she shared a throwback #MeAt20 snap on Friday. The actress posted a snap of herself in 2010 when she was at the height of her fame in The Inbetweeners, with the star sporting blonde locks and a chic LBD. Giving an insight into the trolling she faced as a rising star, she wrote: '#MeAt20 with my melon head and tiny little body, that was criticised for being too fat even then. Ending on an empowering note, she added: 'You will never please everybody. So have that Easter egg for breakfast and relax.' Fun in the sun: Emily also shared other snaps to her Instagram Stories as she sipped on a beverage while enjoying the sunshine The star was inundated with compliments from fans with one writing: 'Lovely then and now' while another typed: 'You were beautiful then & are still beautiful now Emily. Us ladies need to stick up for ourselves & each other a lot more.' The tweet comes after Emily lashed out at a follower who warned that she would 'put on weight' if she continued with her culinary treats. The star slammed the commenter and revealed she had lost a stone. The comedian penned: 'I've lost a stone in the last 3 months because I'm cooking like this and eating cleaner. So you are incorrect'. Warning: Emily's tweet comes after Emily lashed out at a follower who warned that she would 'put on weight' if she continued with her culinary treats (pictured last year) Emily has been keeping her fans up to speed and in her latest post she shared the image of the delicious looking steak before revealing her weight loss journey. The previous day, she shared a stunning bikini throwback snap to mark a pal's birthday - yet assured fans the snap was old and she was not breaking lockdown. Prior to her Instagram post, Emily shared thoughts about being single in lockdown in a column for Grazia magazine. She lamented not being able to indulge in her usual wine and cheese-filled Sunday routine with pals and that those conveying 'Instagram-perfect isolation' are not being truthful to their followers. Shocker: Emily has been keeping her fans up to speed and in her latest post she shared the image of the delicious looking steak before revealing her weight loss journey Insisting that she can't complain about having to 'sit around', Emily also added that she is missing human contact and is allowing herself to feel sad when she feels alone. 'It has been three weeks since I have physically touched another human being. I am isolating alone in the London flat I recently moved into... 'Like so many, I have been in shock,' she recounted. 'I've woken up in the middle of the night with crushing anxiety like I've never experienced before. My internal monologue is already knackered.' 'Being alone has always been my number one fear!' Prior to her Instagram post, Emily shared thoughts about being single in lockdown in a column for Grazia magazine Emily admitted that 'there have been good days and bad days', but that she tries to call them 'moments'. She went on: 'Being alone has always been my number one fear. And yet here I am. In the middle of a pandemic, completely isolated from everyone and everything I know and love.' Emily is very close to her mother - actress Kate Robbins, who is also alone in lockdown - and revealed that she is sure to video chat her to pass the time, as well as 'take little swipes at an online dating app I've rejoined out of sheer boredom'. Honest: Emily admitted that 'there have been good days and bad days', but that she tries to call them 'moments' The star also admitted she feels guilty at feeling sad and is 'scared to vocalise a bad moment especially on social media with the fear of the reaction I'll receive from those who insist my life is perfect'. She concluded: 'I am learning it's OK to feel sad right now, it's OK to admit you're a bit alone, and it's OK to feel s**t. Especially if you suffer with mental health issues. Give yourself a break. Instagram-perfect isolation is not a reality.' The actress spoke to Lorraine Kelly last week on Good Morning Britain where she also revealed that getting glammed up for the supermarket makes her 'feel better'. She went on: 'Being alone has always been my number one fear. And yet here I am. In the middle of a pandemic, completely isolated from everyone and everything I know and love' Emily said about coping with the lockdown alone: 'I'm a very strong person, there's definitely been some difficult moments being on your own.... 'I'm the least lonely person in the world, surrounded by family and friends in real life. 'It's [the pandemic] so awful, we have to look at the positives in life. If we've got our health it's the most important thing in the world. Everything is so difficult, but if you have your health, friends and family, it's good.' Sun-kissed: Emily was sure to use the sunny weather as a reason to get outside amid lockdown over the weekend, showing off her freckles on Instagram She said: 'Make sure your dressing gown doesn't become your depressing down! There's definitely days that I don't want to put make-up on. It makes me feel better. 'I now get glammed up to go to the local supermarket. I queue outside and stand the 2 metres. It's like queuing up for a bar! I do get glammed up for the supermarket, it makes me feel better.' Sharing the first thing she will do after the pandemic, Emily joked: 'I'm going to the nearest pub! Obviously, I should say I want to hug my friends and family, but we can do that in the pub!' 'Difficult': Emily recently admitted that she's had some 'difficult moments' while self-isolating alone during the coronavirus pandemic 'Strong person': Emily said about coping with the lockdown alone - 'I'm a very strong person, there's definitely been some difficult moments being on your own' Although the star importantly added that the NHS also needs credit, she said: 'I think the first thing we all want to do is give the NHS a big hug, and say we couldn't have got through this without them!' It comes after Emily admitted she feels lonely while self-isolating and would 'give anything to have a row with a husband right now'. The actress told Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 5 Live that the current situation around the coronavirus pandemic is 'bleak and miserable and awful'. She said: 'I'm just trying to use it all as another way of showing myself that I can cope and that I am capable and I am brave and strong. 'I think at times like this you've got to appreciate everything you have, but you know, I'd give anything to have a row with a husband right now.' The national market can still provide some impetus for home price growth despite declining sales, according to Royal Bank of Canada Senior Economist Robert Hogue. Prices are determined by both demand and supply. What we saw in March is that supply came down quite a bit as well, Hogue said in the April 15 edition of the 10 Minute-Take podcast by RBC Economics. Sellers in this kind of turbulent environment have decided to wait it out, or maybe they have changed their minds, because they might not get the full value of their property under these conditions. Robustness as a fundamental feature of the housing sector was also observed by Royal LePage. Hogue said that while the market couldnt conduct business as usual due to the pandemic, there were still some notable bright spots. Over the weekend, Egyptian religious authorities urged that any charity be given to the poor before Ramadan starts because the traditional charity tables will be barred. Also banned is the Itikaf ritual in which Muslims spend the last 10 days of Ramadan in mosques to pray and meditate. Egypts mosques have been shuttered since last month to prevent the spread of the virus. Most Americans say they are concerned that coronavirus stay-at-home orders will be lifted too soon. At least two Colorado healthcare workers dressed in full scrubs with masks stood silently with their arms crossed on Sunday as they blocked a line of vehicles full of protesters honking their horns and screaming, This is the land of the free. You go to work. Why cant I go to work! a protester can be heard shouting at the medical worker from her truck in the city of Denver. The silent protest countered the loud demonstration of those rallying against stay-at-home orders in the US state. They were blocking the roads until the police force stepped in, Alyssa McClaran, the photojournalist who captured the standoff, was quoted by the New York Times as saying. People were putting their cars right up against them. The healthcare workers are being lauded as heroes for facing off with protesters [Alyson McClaran/Reuters] The healthcare workers are being described as heroes online after photos of the standoff went viral. This nurse blocking anti-lockdown protesters in #Denver, #Colorado is my hero of the day! tweeted one Twitter user. The day the healthcare workers had enough. American heroes! Denver nurses block right-wing protesters! <3! h/t David McNally Photos by Alyson McClaran. pic.twitter.com/9GiH0KSsJY Megan (@masterfulwriter) April 20, 2020 The standoff came amid a wave of protests, promoted by some far-right groups and prominent conspiracy theorists, against coronavirus lockdown measures in the United States. President Donald Trump appeared to support the protests last week, saying LIBERATE MINNESOTA and LIBERATE MICHIGAN in tweets Washington state Governor Jay Inslee said fomented domestic rebellion. While some protested from their vehicles, many others defied social distancing guidelines as they rallied on state capitol buildings and in front of governors homes in several states including, Michigan, Kentucky, Washington, Minnesota, Virginia and Colorado. Shutting down businesses by picking winners and losers in which there are essential and non-essential are violations of the state and federal constitution, Washington state rally organiser Tyler Miller, 39, an engineer from Bremerton, Washington, told Reuters news agency. Healthcare workers held a counter protest in Colorado as #StayAtHome orders to curb #coronavirus spark demonstrations across the US. pic.twitter.com/9OHyK6uzNJ Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) April 20, 2020 Stay-at-home measures, which experts say are essential to slow the spread of the virus, have battered the US economy and more than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Shutdowns have disrupted economic, social, cultural and religious life, and plunged the world into an economic slump unseen since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Most Americans worry orders will be lifted too early While the anti-lockdown protests have captured headlines across the US, most Americans are abiding by stay-at-home orders and agree that such measures need to be in place to stem the spread of the coronavirus. A new Pew survey, published last week, found that 73 percent of those surveyed said they believed that the worst is still to come from the pandemic, which has so far infected at least 760,000 across the US and killed more than 40,700. A healthcare worker stands in the street to block hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colorado [Alyson McClaran/Reuters] About twice as many Americans said their greater concern is that state governments will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly as those who said it could not happen quickly enough. New York has borne the brunt of the virus, which has killed more than 18,000 people in the state, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. On Sunday, there were 507 new deaths from COVID-19, down from a high of more than 700 a day. Hospitalisations also continued to decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. But the region of Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC, is still seeing increasing cases. New Jersey reported on Sunday that its new cases rose by nearly 3,900, the most in more than two weeks. The cities in Boston and Chicago are also emerging hotspots with recent surges in cases and deaths. Healthcare workers stand in the street in a counterprotest against hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colorado [Alyson McClaran/Reuters] Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to see businesses reopen quickly. His administration unveiled new guidelines to reopen the economy, recommending that a state record 14 days of declining case numbers before gradually lifting restrictions. Some states last week took some of the countrys first, small steps towards loosening restrictions. In Florida, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis gave the green light for municipalities to reopen beaches and parks if they could do so safely. In Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott said stores could begin selling items curbside, non-essential surgery could resume and state parks could reopen. But governors of both parties in other states on Friday suggested they would be cautious in returning to normal, with some warning that they would not be able to do so do without help from Washington to expand testing. michael barbaro From The New York Times, Im Michael Barbaro. This is The Daily. [music] Today: The Supreme Court begins rolling out a series of major rulings on the jury system, immigration, abortion rights and presidential power. Adam Liptak on the high court in the middle of the pandemic. Its Tuesday, April 21. adam liptak Here we go. michael barbaro Adam. adam liptak Hello, Michael. [birds chirping] michael barbaro Is it you who has the birds chirping, Adam? adam liptak Oh maybe I can close the window. I have a window thats cracked open a bit, and I bet I could de-chirperize it. OK. Here I go. michael barbaro OK. Thank you. Thank you for turning off your birds. adam liptak Least I can do. michael barbaro Adam, we usually talk to you after you spend a morning over at the Supreme Court, in the chamber watching the justices, and I have to imagine that the routines of the court have completely changed. adam liptak The Supreme Court is turned invisible to me. I cover the court now from my home office, whereas on days like this, when the court issues decisions, you typically have a packed press room and people listening to the justices announce the decisions from the bench. But theyve postponed two sets of arguments and just recently have decided to hear 10 arguments by telephone which is a brand new experience for all concerned and will let the public listen in on those arguments, which is also a brand new experience of live audio from the Supreme Court. So a lot is changing. michael barbaro So as different as everything is for the justices and for you covering them, there was a major ruling that was handed down on Monday. So tell us about this case. adam liptak Well, so Im sitting at my desk hitting the refresh button right before 10 oclock and the case comes up. Its called Ramos vs. Louisiana. It involves Evangelista Ramos, who in 2016 was convicted of murder by a Louisiana jury, but only 10 of the 12 jurors agreed that he was guilty. And it presents a really significant question: Can states let juries convict people when theyre not unanimous? michael barbaro And just so Im clear, the man at the center of this case, Ramos, was charged with murder in Louisiana, and he was convicted of that charge even though only 10 of the 12 jurors believed that he was guilty. adam liptak Thats right. Two states, Louisiana and Oregon, allow non-unanimous juries. Louisianas recently changed its constitution, so going forward, even Louisiana doesnt have this rule anymore. But that only applies going forward. So Mr. Ramos was still on the hook for this, and lots of other defendants and prisoners have been convicted in Louisiana by non-unanimous juries. So the case is quite consequential for perhaps thousands of people in those two states. michael barbaro And on what grounds do his lawyers make a case that somehow gets up to the Supreme Court? adam liptak Well, they have what would seem to be a pretty strong case. The Supreme Court has said that where federal juries are concerned, the Sixth Amendment, which guarantees your right to a fair trial, requires that juries be unanimous. And in general, the Bill of Rights applies to the states just as it does to the federal government. So you would think that if you have this right in federal court, you ought to have it in state court, too, and thats the basic point Ramoss lawyers pressed. michael barbaro And so how does this case unfold before the justices? adam liptak Well, one fascinating aspect of the case, Michael, is that the history of these non-unanimous jury laws were deeply tainted by racism. Louisiana used to require unanimous juries, but after the Civil War and after a Supreme Court decision that said that Louisiana and other states couldnt exclude blacks from juries, they held a Constitutional Convention, the stated purpose of which was to ensure white supremacy. michael barbaro Wow. adam liptak And one upshot of it was to say, OK, maybe we can have a couple blacks serve on juries, but we want to make sure that they will be powerless to alter the conclusion. michael barbaro And how does a non-unanimous jury verdict disempower black jurors? adam liptak Well, lets assume youre a black defendant, and lets assume youre in the deep south where an all-white jury might be predisposed against you. michael barbaro Mm-hmm. adam liptak But if you have a black juror or two on that jury who might be more willing to hear your story and might be more willing to give you the benefit of a reasonable doubt, that could end up in a hung jury, and it would prevent what would otherwise be an all-white jury from railroading you. That would be the theory of it. archived recording (chief justice john g. roberts) Well hear argument next in Case 18-5924, Ramos vs. Louisiana. Mr. Fisher. michael barbaro And how does this racial history come up in the oral arguments? archived recording (jeffrey fisher) Mr. Chief Justice, and may it please the court. adam liptak Well, Ramoss lawyer makes clear that the presence of all sorts of minority voices on a jury deserve to be considered and heard, and shouldnt be shut out. archived recording (jeffrey fisher) which is if you have one or two members of a minority on a jury it could be a racial minority, it could be a political minority, it could be a religious minority are we really prepared to say that those one or two votes can be utterly canceled out? adam liptak The idea of the American jury system is that everyone gets a vote, and the community, as a community, is meant to reach consensus, not for 10 people to outvote two people. michael barbaro And how did the justices approach this question of race? adam liptak Well, nobody seriously disputes that the roots of these laws were ugly. archived recording (brett kavanaugh) that the rule in question here is rooted in racism. adam liptak Justice Kavanaugh went on about the ugly history of Louisianas requirements. archived recording (brett kavanaugh) rooted in a desire, apparently, to diminish the voices of black jurors in the late 1890s. adam liptak So there was no real dispute that, obviously, racially warped jury systems are bad. But at least some of the justices thought that what was true in the 1890s is not a reason in 2020, necessarily, to strike down these laws. michael barbaro Hmm. And which justices made that argument? adam liptak Well, the leading and to my mind most surprising proponent of the argument was Justice Elena Kagan, an Obama appointee, a liberal. But she said, listen, some states do it one way, some states do it another way. Weve been doing it this way for a long time, and theres no reason to reverse course at this point. michael barbaro Hmm. And what did you make of that? adam liptak I think that if Justice Kagan were writing on a blank slate, she would surely be on the other side. But shes the courts leading proponent of respect for precedent, and theres a precedent in play in this case. In 1972, the court, in a fractured decision, allowed these kinds of laws. archived recording (elena kagan) This is an outlier in our incorporation doctrine. Theres no question that it is. But its been an outlier for 50 years. Its been completely administrable. Its been completely clear. States have had every right to rely on this for 50 years. It doesnt matter whether it was wrong, because overruling something requires more than just that a decision be wrong. Its been there. States have relied on it. Theres no reason to change it. The end. adam liptak And for Justice Kagan, its more important to stick to that precedent than to drive herself to the result she might otherwise want. Shes playing a long game, and that long game includes the day when a challenge to Roe v. Wade the 1973 decision establishing a constitutional right to abortion reaches the court. And she wants to have as much firepower as possible to insist that the court respect precedent in that setting, and shes willing to make the argument in every setting because she thinks the stakes are high enough. michael barbaro Hmm. So shes making a larger point about the need for the court to remain faithful to precedent. adam liptak Thats right. I think shes nervous that this new conservative majority on the Supreme Court is poised to undo all sorts of precedents. And in particular shes nervous about abortion rights, and shes nervous that the court will take up a challenge to Roe v. Wade. And so she is trying to marshal as much evidence and as many arguments for adherence to precedent, and its importance to the rule of law and stability and respect for the court, as she can. michael barbaro OK. So with that in mind, how did the justices, including Justice Kagan, end up ruling on Monday in this Louisiana case? adam liptak So the vote is six to three to strike down the Louisiana law, and its a really scrambled lineup. Its a very unusual lineup. Justice Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, and he was joined by all of Justice Kagans usual liberal allies Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor, and also in large part by Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Justice Thomas wrote his opinion all for himself but agreed on the bottom line, that the laws were no good. And on the other side, you have two conservative justices, Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito joined by Justice Kagan, the liberal, and their dissent is completely focused on respect for precedent. I have no reason to think they think this Louisiana law is a good idea, but they also say that lowering the bar for overruling our precedents is a bad idea. And I think the audience Justice Kagan was speaking to was not her liberal colleagues, but her conservative ones, saying, Ill come along with you, Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito, on this one. And Im hopeful that when the day comes that we confront this same issue in a setting where your policy instincts might go in a different direction, you too will respect precedent. michael barbaro Hmm. In other words, shes saying, Ill come with you on this case, and I hope youll come with me when Roe v. Wade is challenged, or when theres a major abortion case. adam liptak Thats right. Yeah. michael barbaro And of course, that day may be coming up quite soon. adam liptak We may have, in an abortion case the Court will almost certainly decide by June, a very quick answer to the question of whether Justice Kagan got anything for her vote in this jury case. [music] michael barbaro Well be right back. Adam, we have talked with you about this case on the show before, but remind us of this abortion case that Justice Kagan seems to be eyeing so closely. adam liptak Well, its one of several big cases in whats shaping up to be a blockbuster term, but its the one that most pointedly gets at this question of respect for precedent. It involves a Louisiana law that requires doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. And it probably will drive the number of clinics in Louisiana down to one, and the number of doctors able to perform abortions at that clinic also to one. So it would drastically reduce the availability of abortions in Louisiana. I say that this picks up on precedent, because just a few years ago in 2016, the court struck down as unconstitutional an essentially identical Texas law. So just a few years later, its coming back to decide the same basic legal question in a different state, and its going to give us a very strong sense of where the court stands on the power of precedent. michael barbaro Right. And it almost feels like an ideal test of whether Justice Kagan can say to her conservative colleagues, I will do you a solid on precedent, now its time for you to do one for me, and this would be the perfect case. adam liptak Thats right. michael barbaro OK. So whats the next major decision that will be coming in the next few months? adam liptak Were also waiting to hear a set of cases argued very early in the term, which present the very consequential question of whether a landmark federal civil rights law protects gay and transgender people from job discrimination. The law says you cant discriminate based on sex, and the question of what those words mean whether sex applies to sexual orientation discrimination and transgender status discrimination will matter to millions of Americans who are, in most of the country, not protected from job discrimination. michael barbaro Right. And Adam, we spoke to you about this case and about the plaintiff, who worked for a funeral home and says she was fired after telling her boss that she was transitioning from male to female. adam liptak Right. And her experience is emblematic of what is a very important case, because Justice Anthony Kennedy, who wrote all four of the courts major gay rights decisions, has left the court, replaced by the more conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh. So this will give us a real insight into this courts commitment to gay rights and transgender rights. michael barbaro Hmm. adam liptak Were also going to get a major constitutional showdown on presidential power. It involves subpoenas from Congress and from prosecutors seeking President Trumps tax records. So that case, which has echoes of the Nixon tapes case, in which President Nixon was made to turn over evidence in the Watergate scandal, to Clinton against Jones in which President Clinton was made to give a deposition in a sexual harassment case. All of that involves a real confrontation between executive power and the rule of law, and the ability of prosecutors and Congress to get access to evidence. And its really going to put the court to a test, given that those earlier decisions were both of them unanimous, and both of them involved appointees of the president in question. It will be very interesting to see how Trumps appointees, Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, rule in a case involving him. michael barbaro Right. And correct me if Im wrong, Adam, those two previous cases involving both Nixon and Clinton ended with the Supreme Court saying, Mr. President, you must turn these documents these tapes over. adam liptak Yeah. In both of them, the president had to submit evidence. Thats right. And unanimously, and including justices that he appointed to the court. So thats an instance, also weve been talking about precedent, where precedent will probably have some gravitational pull over what the court does. Theyre not precisely identical issues, but theyre certainly very similar. michael barbaro So in the next few weeks, the court is going to be ruling on the future of abortion, on whether a civil rights law protects gay and transgender Americans in the workplace, and whether the president can keep something as important as his tax records from congressional investigators. Thats a pretty good session. adam liptak Oh, theres more. Were also waiting to hear on a case that will affect some 700,000 young immigrants known as Dreamers brought to the United States as children, and whether the Trump administration can roll back a program meant to protect them from deportation and allow them to work. michael barbaro Hmm. And where does that case stand? adam liptak That case is awaiting decision, but just on Monday there was a development a small development, but a telling one where the court allowed some of these Dreamers lawyers for some of these Dreamers to submit an additional brief making the point that the coronavirus pandemic should figure in the case. And thats not immediately obvious, but once you think about it, it is obvious. Some 27,000 of these Dreamers work in the health care industry. Some are doctors, some are nurses, some are emergency medical technicians, some work in other parts of hospitals and so on. And if the Court were to decide the Trump administration can shut down this program in the midst of the pandemic, it could do real damage to societys ability to respond to the pandemic, because they would be forbidden from being able to work. michael barbaro Hmm. I wonder, Adam, if you think an argument like that could possibly sway the justices, given that it is such a practical rationale for ruling one way rather than a kind of legal one. It seems to have to do almost exclusively with the on-the-ground consequences, rather than a kind of larger legal theory. adam liptak So two points. The justices dont always admit it, but of course they take account of what the real world consequences of their decisions are going to be. In the transgender case we talked about a second ago, everyone went on and on, you know, what would happen to our bathrooms if we rule in favor of transgender people? Thats not a question about what the law requires, thats a question about consequences on the ground. But the other is that there is a way to make this a legal argument. The question in the case was whether the administration had given adequate consideration to the costs and benefits of its move. And this might be one place where they didnt give adequate consideration to the consequences of their move. michael barbaro And the crisis is now revealing those consequences. adam liptak Thats right. [music] michael barbaro It sounds like youre saying that, although justices may not explicitly say it, this pandemic could very well influence how they rule in a case like DACA. adam liptak Oh, I feel certain that on some level they take account of it, and it reminds me of a famous statement by Justice Felix Frankfurter, who said, There comes a point where this court should not be ignorant as judges of what we know as men. michael barbaro Hmm. In other words, the real world intrudes. adam liptak Yeah. And the real world has to intrude, and it would be foolish to think otherwise. We were talking about precedent earlier, Michael. michael barbaro Mm-hmm. adam liptak And of course, respect for precedent is important. Its an aspect of the rule of law. But the court has to balance all kinds of things practical considerations, the societal consequences of its decisions, the publics respect for the authority of the court and getting that mix right is what makes that job to be a Supreme Court justice so very hard. michael barbaro Well, Adam, thank you very much. adam liptak Thank you, Michael. michael barbaro Well be right back. Heres what else you need to know today. On Monday, several states in the American South announced plans to begin reopening their economies, despite evidence that the coronavirus is still spreading across the country. archived recording (bill lee) For the good of our state, social distancing must continue, but our economic shutdown cannot. michael barbaro South Carolina is allowing shops, ranging from department stores to flea markets, to resume operations immediately. Georgia said that residents could return to gyms and salons as of Friday, and dine at restaurants starting Monday. And in Tennessee, Governor Bill Lee said that most businesses will be allowed to reopen on May 1. archived recording (bill lee) While we continue to emphasize social distancing for Tennesseans, I will not extend the safer at home order past April 30th. michael barbaro Businesses that have suspended operations due to COVID-19 but continue to pay employees who are at home but not working will not have to include the payroll paid to these employees in the calculation of their workers compensation premium. The National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) is preparing a reporting code that will be filed for approval by state regulators. The organization hopes to file it this week. NCCI, the industrys largest workers compensation data and rating organization, will file the change in the 36 states where it is the official rating bureau. Weve had a meeting already with the insurance regulators telling them that its coming and sharing some information with them so that theyre ready for it and we hope that theyll do a quick approval, Jeff Eddinger, senior division executive, Regulatory Business Management, for NCCI told Insurance Journal. Californias rating bureau has already announced its own rule that this payroll paid during the shutdown will be excluded from reportable payroll. Other states with their own rating bureaus or monopolistic state funds are expected to follow suit. Citing a desire for consistency across states, the North Carolina Rate Bureau told Insurance Journal it is waiting to see the NCCI rule change and will likely file that language for use in North Carolina. Indianas rating bureau said it plans to do the same. The rule change is for payroll for people who cant do their normal jobs from home, but are still getting paid. Without this rule change, that payroll would be included in calculating the employers workers comp premium. A workers comp premium is based on payroll. The rule change is going to basically take the payroll for that period of time where the workers furloughed and remove it from the calculation, said Eddinger, You can make an argument that while theyre not doing their job, they dont need workers comp coverage so the employers dont need to pay the premium for that time. The trade-off is that a company that excludes an employees payroll cant report any claims for that employee, Eddinger added. The rule will be retroactive, most likely to March 1. How long the code will remain available will depend on how long shutdowns are in effect. He said NCCI considered using an existing code for idle workers but determined a new rule would be better. In another change, NCCI will also begin tracking COVID-19 related claims. Eddinger does not think the payroll rule change will have a material impact on workers compensation carriers. Its like hitting the pause button so youre not charging premiums, but you also dont expect any claims so in the end you think that its just going to be a wash, he said. Its similar to the situation with auto insurers giving discounts on premiums for certain months, knowing that there will be less traffic and thus fewer claims. Here is how NCCIs explains the move on its website: NCCI recognizes that circumstances around COVID 19 are extraordinary and warrant an expedited rule change to address the question of payroll for employees who are being paid but are not working as it relates to the basis of premium. If approved, this rule change will be distinct from idle time under our current Basic Manual rules (Rule 2-F-1), and a corresponding statistical code 0012 will be created for reporting this payroll. This payroll will not be used in the calculation of premium. NCCI has a COVID Resource Center on its website that includes answers to frequently asked questions and a new analysis of the economics impact of coronavirus on the workers compensation industry. Topics Workers' Compensation Commercial Lines Business Insurance Gene Deitch, an American Oscar-winning illustrator, animator, film director and producer has died. He was 95. His Czech publisher, Petr Himmel, told The Associated Press Deitch died unexpectedly during the night from Thursday to Friday in his apartment in Prague's Little Quarter neighborhood. No further details were given. Deitch's movie "Munro" won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1960. He was also nominated for the same award twice in 1964 for "Here's Nudnik" and "How to Avoid Friendship." Earlier, he had created the "Tom Terrific" series, while the "Sidney's Family Tree," which he co-produced was nominated for an Academy Award in 1958. Born Aug. 8, 1924, in Chicago, Deitch arrived in Prague in 1959 intending to stay for 10 days, but fell in love with his future wife, Zdenka, and stayed in the Czechoslovakian capital. Working from behind the Iron Curtain, he directed 13 episodes of "Tom and Jerry" and also some of the "Popeye the Sailor" series. He captured life in communist Czechoslovakia and later in the Czech Republic after the 1989 anti-communist Velvet Revolution in his memoirs "For the Love of Prague." In 2004, he received the Winsor McCay Award for his lifelong contribution to animation. Deitch is survived by his wife and by three sons from his first marriage, all of whom are cartoonists and illustrators. The Hong Kong stock market finished session with small losses on Monday, 20 April 2020, as investors elected to book recent profit amid expectations of disappointing corporate earnings reports. However, market losses capped as a key Chinese lending rate was cut for the second time this year to shore up the coronavirus-hit economy. At closing bell, the benchmark Hang Seng Index declined 0.21%, or 49.98 points, to 24,330.02. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index rose 0.09%, or 9.22 points, to 9,824.42. Market sentiments were downbeat on caution ahead of the start of Hong Kong companies results for the first quarter, with most of them expected to record relatively big losses. The People's Bank of China cut its benchmark lending rate as expected to reduce borrowing costs for companies and prop up the economy, after it contracted for the first time in decades. The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) was lowered by 20 basis points (bps) to 3.85% from 4.05% previously, while the five-year LPR was cut by 10 bps to 4.65% from 4.75%. Most new and outstanding loans are based on the LPR, while the five-year rate influences the pricing of mortgages. The LPR is a lending reference rate set monthly by 18 banks. The move was the second cut to the lending benchmark rate this year, and the latest reduction in one of China's key lending rates. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests flared in parts of the United States against stay-at-home orders while governors disputed President Donald Trumps claim they have enough tests for the coronavirus and should quickly reopen their economies. An estimated 2,500 people rallied at the Washington state capitol in Olympia on Sunday to show their opposition to Democratic Governor Jay Inslees stay-at-home order, in defiance of a ban on gatherings of 50 or more people. Despite pleas from rally organisers to wear face coverings or masks as recommended by public health authorities, many did not. Shutting down businesses by picking winners and losers in which there are essential and non-essential are violations of the state and federal constitution, rally organiser Tyler Miller, 39, an engineer from Bremerton, Washington, told Reuters news agency. You go to work. Why cant I go to work! This is getting ugly. Anti-lockdown protesters berate nurses blocking them in the street in Denver. Vis: @marczenn pic.twitter.com/xPrqo5UjFQ Ashlee Mullany (@AshleeMullany) April 20, 2020 In Denver, hundreds of people gathered at the state capitol to demand the end to Colorados shutdown. As protesters clogged streets with cars, healthcare workers in scrubs and face masks stood at intersections in a counter protest. The medical workers were greeted with insults, honking horns, and placards waved by hundreds of motorists saying End the virus, not the economy and Fear is the real virus. Police were called in after several motorists threatened to run the healthcare workers over. You can go to work why cant I go to work? one woman asked. Many people expressed concerns that their personal freedoms and constitutional rights were being curtailed in the fight to contain the pandemic. Stay-at-home measures, which experts say are essential to slow the spread of the virus, have battered the US economy and more than 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits in the past month. Shutdowns have disrupted economic, social, cultural and religious life and plunged the world into an economic slump unseen since the Great Depression in the 1930s. The International Monetary Fund expects the global economy to contract three percent this year. Tens of millions of workers have lost their jobs and millions more fear they will be next. The protesters in Olympia, Washington defied a ban on gatherings of 50 people or more [Lindsey Wasson/Reuters] Demonstrations to demand an end to lockdown measures have previously erupted in cities in Texas, Wisconsin, and the capitals of Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. These people love our country, Trump, who has touted a thriving economy as the best case for his re-election in November, told a briefing in Washington, DC. They want to get back to work. Most Americans, by two-to-one, disagree with the protesters, however. A new Pew survey found most were more concerned about ending home confinement too soon rather than too late. The US has by far the worlds largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with more than 750,000 diagnosed with the disease and more than 40,500 deaths. New York has borne the brunt of the virus, which has killed more than 18,000 people in the state, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. On Sunday, there were 507 new deaths from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus, down from a high of more than 700 a day. Hospitalisations also continued to decline to 16,000 from a high of 18,000, and the number of patients being kept alive by ventilators also fell. The region of Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC is still seeing increasing cases. New Jersey reported on Sunday that its new cases rose by nearly 3,900, the most in more than two weeks. The cities in Boston and Chicago are also emerging hotspots with recent surges in cases and deaths. Trumps guidelines to reopen the economy recommend a state record 14 days of declining case numbers before gradually lifting restrictions. Yet the Republican president appeared to encourage protesters who want the measures removed sooner with a series of Twitter posts on Friday calling for them to LIBERATE Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, all run by Democratic governors. Washingtons Inslee stepped up his attacks on Trumps call to liberate states, saying the president was encouraging people to violate state laws on self-isolating. These orders actually are the law of these states, he said. To have an American president encourage people to violate the law, I cant remember any time during my time in America where we have seen such a thing. Virus testing rates have also emerged as a point of contention between Trump and state governors. Experts also say extensive testing is crucial to a safe reopening of the economy, but some state governors said testing capacity fell far below the levels needed to avoid sparking new outbreaks of the virus. During a CNN interview, Republican Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland said claims by Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that states have plenty of tests were just absolutely false. Democratic Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia said the idea there were enough tests was delusional. Our president, obviously, has been unable to deliver on tests. Now he has chosen to focus on protests, Northam told CNNs State of the Union. The governors of Michigan and Ohio said they could double or triple their testing capacity if the federal government helped them acquire more swabs and reagents, chemicals needed as part of the testing process. In New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo urged residents to continue social distancing. If the data holds and if this trend holds, we are past the high point and all indications at this point are that we are on a descent, he said, referring to declining death and hospitalisation rates. Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do, but right now were on the descent, he said, adding that its no time to get cocky and its no time to get arrogant. Several states, including Ohio, Texas and Florida, have said they aim to reopen parts of their economies, perhaps by May 1 or even sooner. US legislators are nearing an agreement on approving extra money to help small businesses hurt by the coronavirus pandemic and could seal a deal as early as Sunday, congressional and Trump administration officials said. Congress established the programme last month as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus economic relief plan, but it has already run out of money. The Venice Film Festival will go ahead with 2020 edition in its usual early September slot, according to Venice Biennale president Roberto Cicutto. Cicutto said the 77th edition of the festival will take place from September 2-12, Variety reported quoting Italian agency ANSA. He downplayed the possibility of collaboration between Venice and Cannes. Cannes organizers recently said that it would be difficult to hold the festival in its original form due to the coronavirus pandemic but they continued to explore options. Cannes director Thierry Fremaux in an interview with Variety had mentioned that they were looking at the possibility of doing something together if Cannes was cancelled. We're continuing to discuss it, he had said. But Cicutto said they were going ahead with their festival. With Cannes, everything is possible, but I find it disconcerting that Thierry Fremaux keeps saying he is continuing to examine the situation and does not say what he wants to do. We are going forward with our program, and if Cannes is still thinking (about their course of action) then there is no dialogue, Cicutto said. He specified there is currently no hypothesis on the table for a joint Venice-Cannes initiative. Cicutto said he expected a lower foreign attendance this year compared to last editions of the festival. The Biennale has given itself an end of May deadline to sort out more details of the upcoming edition's modalities, he added. Italy is one of the worst hit European countries from the pandemic with over 23,000 deaths. The country continues to be in a lockdown but there is some hope that the crisis with subside there sooner. Cicutto said as far as using cinemas for the festival is concerned, he is expecting Italian authorities to grant Venice special status. It's one thing to manage six or seven circumscribed movie theaters, as opposed to thousands of movie theaters across the country, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) COVID-19: What you need to know now A 425-Pound Tiger Living in a Harlem Apartment? Yes, It Happened NYT How did insects get their colours? Crystal-covered beetle discovery sheds light Conversation Harry and Meghan tell UK tabloids they will no longer deal with them Guardian. Hmm. Doesnt seem to be the time for this; are they really that unaware of whats going on in the world? Is fungus the answer to climate change? Student who grew a mushroom canoe says yes. NBC News (Dan K) Pig leads police officers on 45-minute pursuit before capture Fox 5 NY/ BC: Looks exhausting. I bet all involved will sleep well tonight. #COVID-19 Why some people dont wash their hands BBC. Not NC readers, surely. The four contests that will shape the post-Covid-19 world New Statesman David Miliband Inside the Troubled Nursing Home Where 70 Died and Body Bags Piled UpNYT. This happened in Andover, a small town next to the one where I grew up. Patients with heart attacks, strokes and even appendicitis vanish from hospitals WaPo Is the cruise industry finally out of its depth? Guardian Automobiles Seeded the Massive Coronavirus Epidemic in New York City Market Urbanism Dan K: Valuable insight or data froth? Is the low rate of testing skewing these kinds of analyses? Do Furths findings merely reflect preferential factors in testing? The differences in method and tone between the article and the Harris 2020 paper is kind of striking. Harris comes in with a hypothesis and seeks to demonstrate it in a rambling and somewhat haphazard way; Furth takes large datasets and looks for correlations, finds some and chases them a bit, ends with some hypothesis. Neither of these is conclusive and contact/movement tracing, Furth is frankly conjectural, but Furths correlations and trends are strong enough for followup with more test coverage and carrier/contact tracing. Moi: They need to say Ubers otherwise, people will think they mean regular passenger cars which some of us who live in the outer boroughs, do keep, especially if we have a schedule that allows us to obey alternate side of the street parking rules.Underying Harris 2020 paper (not yet peer reviewed): THE SUBWAYS SEEDED THE MASSIVE CORONAVIRUS EPIDEMIC IN NEW YORK CITY NYT Blames Maduro for Healthcare Horror, Downplays US Role FAIR (UserFriendly) White House orders Maine company to make swabs under Defense Production Act CNN (The Rev Kev) 2bn phones cannot use Google and Apple contact-tracing tech FT. The deck: System developed by Silicon Valley relies on technology missing from older handsets. Oopsie. Consider what Kerala was able to do, maying old-fashioned legwork with some technology. Saudi Arabia's Human Resources Development Fund (HADAF) has urged private sector establishments to register their Saudi employees in the Employment Support Program through the National Labor Gateway (TAQAT). The Employment Support Program is part of government support initiatives to help establishments and ensure their stability and business development in light of the current exceptional economic situation and the impact of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19), said a Saudi Press Agency report. The program also supports the wages of Saudis who were employed in various private sector establishments starting from 30% to 50% of the employees' monthly wages for two years, provided that the employees' wages range between SR4000 and SR15,000. Establishments get 10% additional support when employing women, persons with disabilities, employing in non-major cities, and in small and medium enterprises for each of the categories mentioned, provided that the maximum support does not exceed 50% of the employee's monthly wage, or SR3000, whichever less, it said. Prison bosses sent letters to dozens of dead officers to ask them to return to work during the coronavirus crisis. Their grieving families were shocked to receive the letters after their loved ones died while still working in jails. The letter was sent by the Director General Prisons on April 14. The mistake was realised when families received the letter on Friday. The letter offers temporary contracts, which can be worked on a full or part-time basis, for three, six or nine months. Kerry Jelfs (right), 40, from Evesham, Worcestershire, received one of the letters from the prison service and said it left her 'traumatised'. Her husband Mike died in December 2018 after being diagnosed with leukaemia in 2017 The POA's Andy Baxter said letters were also sent to staff who had left their jobs on medical grounds. He said an officer with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was asked to return. Kerry Jelfs, 40, from Evesham, Worcestershire, received one of the letters from the prison service, The Sun reported. Her husband Mike died in December 2018 after being diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia in July 2017. Mrs Jelfs, who was diagnosed with PTSD, was suffering flashbacks and nightmares and said receiving the letters has made them worse Mrs Jelfs receives a widows pension from the Prison Service and doesn't understand how this happened because they've acknowledged Mr Jelfs's death. He was a prison officer working at HMP Hewell in Worcestershire at the time. She told The Sun: 'Receiving the letter has brought back traumatic memories and I am having nightmares. Mr Jelfs was a prison officer working at HMP Hewell in Worcestershire (pictured) at the time. A letter offering temporary contracts to officers who had died was sent on April 14 from Director General Prisons 'I couldn't believe it when I opened the letter. It has really knocked me at a terrible time.' Mrs Jelfs, who was diagnosed with PTSD, was suffering flashbacks and nightmares and said receiving the letters has made them worse. The Ministry of Justice apologised for any distress caused and said they had called in former staff at short notice due to the unprecedented nature of the coronavirus pandemic. It comes after the government announced 4,000 prisoners would be granted early release to slow the spread of coronavirus in prisons. Out of the 117 prisons in England and Wales, 60 have cases of coronavirus with 232 prisoners testing positive, data from the Ministry of Justice revealed last Thursday. - Masaka Kids Africana decided to be part of Drake's viral challenge dubbed the Toosie Slide challenge - The orphaned Ugandan children had no idea luck would knock on their door sooner than they had expected thanks to their electric performance - The simple yet entertaining clip they shared on Instagram was reposted by Drake and the rapper added a bunch of love hearts to the clip too Masaka Kids Africana, a group of talented orphaned dancers from Uganda, is smiling all the way after US rapper Drake noticed their flawless Toosie Slide routine. The song that has been ringing in everyones mind since its release had people participating in a Toosie challenge that had them doing the left foot up, right foot slide routine like pros. READ ALSO: Zari Hassan refuses to cook for grown sons, urges mums to be selfish once in a while READ ALSO: Familia ya dereva aliyesafirisha jeneza tupu Homa Bay yadai mazishi yalikuwa ya kweli Drake who was reposting some of the thousands of videos on his Instagram came across an iconic viral clip by the Masaka kids and could not help but show it to the rest of the world. He reposted the clip to his Instastory and the young dancers were over the moon when they noticed. READ ALSO: Gorgeous woman claiming to be Joho's ex shares loved-up photos of Mombasa governor Their hearts were palpitating so fast and the talented children knew for sure they were headed for greater and bigger things thanks to their skills. Their loyal fans celebrated their big step to freedom and reminded the talented children they were worth every recognition they got. Unlike most videos posted on Instagram, Masaka dancers took a different turn when reliving Drakes new dance. They added some African spice to the choreography and came up with a new, hip, unique and electric dance. The group of orphans spiced it up by attaching a couple of traditional moves that set them apart from most of their contenders. Anyone who watches the video and fails to smile or light up is definitely not fun and has no taste in art. Sorry, not sorry. Masaka kids did it again and this time, they did not come to play. Drake brought the internet to a standstill when Toosie Slide made its debut on YouTube. The musician used the song to show off his massive mansion in Canada and everyone marveled at how everything looked sparkly and expensive. 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. Mulamwah and his girlfriend speak out for the first time after he quit comedy | Tuko TV Source: TUKO.co.ke Muslims in the Oti Region have offered a bull to Allah as a sacrifice in a bid to stem the spread of the novel Coronavirus disease. Alhaji Arimiyao Issah Baarey, Chairman of the Oti Regional Council of Zongo Chiefs, said Allah was the only person who could deliver the world from the pandemic, thus the sacrifice for Him to have mercy on the world and heal it. He said, Allah is the healer and with prayers, he will listen to his people and guide them from all sorts of demonic disease and heal them". Alhaji Baarey told Ghana News Agency in an interview that the world needed divine intervention to be able to overcome the novel coronavirus, therefore it was important for all to turn to God and seek His intervention. The coronavirus pandemic has cut its gloomy, painful shadow over the entire world and it appears there is no light at the end of the dark tunnel that the world finds itself in," he noted. Alhaji Baarey reminded all Muslims to intensify prayers to Allah as the world was not in normal times and urged mankind to repent. 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. Featured Video Rangoli Chandel, manager and sister of Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut, posted a controversial tweet against the Tablighi Jamaat group (whose gathering at Nizamuddin in Delhi mid-March has got a lot of flak for presumably spreading the COVID-19 across the country). After a severe backlash from followers and fearing communal violence, Twitter suspended her account. Hours later, wrestler-turned-politician Babita Phogat defended Rangolis comments on her Twitter page saying, Twitterati doesnt like people who speak frankly. Despite getting hate messages and a section of social media demanding Twitter to suspend Babitas account for her controversial post, the Commonwealth Games gold medallist would not back off from her comment. We all have freedom of expression, but shouldnt people be more responsible in such volatile situations? Humanity vital, not religion On the lines of Rangloi Chandel, actress and model Asmita Sood also faced the music for her tweets against people who she says (read Muslims) are spreading coronavirus. In one of her tweets, the actress even stated that the police should have been given a free hand to shoot at sight the #TablighiJamaat idiots, after which she categorised them as such a liability on our country. Asmita was let off by Twitter with a warning after they deleted her controversial tweets. But the defiant Asmita states that she only spoke honestly being the responsible citizen she is and posted comments against those spreading the dreaded virus. Twitter management has deleted my tweets and even cautioned me of posting matters related to communal violence. I did not write anything anti-religious, but it is important on my part to speak up against something that is wrong. My tweet was against people who have assaulted doctors; it was regarding humanity and morality which was significant, and not religion, says Asmita. Pointing out how her right to freedom of expression was being violated despite our democratic setup, Asmita further states that if Muslims felt her tweets were directed at them, then its their perception problem. I got severe backlash on social media, but why should I fear? Perhaps Twitter is trying to be politically correct by deleting my tweets, but if not on Twitter where else should I express? the actress retorts. Perceptions, a different kind of truth The advent of social media has been transforming social interactions, behavioural approach and societal patterns. Despite and probably because of the emotional distances innate to these platforms, the social media knits the world a little closely, leaving it vulnerable to sporadic outbursts. So also, and especially given the circumstance, even though celebs claim their tweets are made in national interest and not intended to target a specific community, there is a natural apprehension that their words, left behind for thousands to see and share, could instigate and spread communal hatred. Being influencers, arent celebs supposed to be more conscious and mindful? What makes them want to leave such comments in critical times? Or do we lay too much responsibility on celebs to be right every time? Samira Gupta, a leading image management consultant, believes how you say something is more important than what you say. Stating that celebs are either ignorant about what they are posting or that they dont care about the repercussions, Samira adds that celebs being mindful stems from how they want to be perceived by the others. Sometimes, perceptions are stronger than truth, so even though people may not know the intention of what is being said, theyll still follow what celebs write. Hence, it is important that to avoid facing public wrath or humiliation on the social media, celebs think through and convey their intended meaning properly before they leave those imprints on online forums forever, explains Samira. [April 20, 2020] University Hospitals Expands Use of TempTraq System Wide to Support Frontline Care Workers in the Fight Against COVID-19 To protect health care workers, patients and families, and help flatten the curve of COVID-19's progression, University Hospitals (UH), one of the largest health care systems in Ohio, will begin to expand the use of TempTraq from Blue Spark Technologies to specific areas within the UH health system. "This technology was originally introduced to University Hospitals in 2016 by the UH Ventures and Innovation group, as Blue Spark was looking to validate the use of the TempTraq patches in the clinical setting. It's worked very well at UH Seidman Cancer Center and we realized it could have an even bigger impact in the battle against COVID-19 if we started using in targeted University Hospitals locations and departments," said David Sylvan, President of UH Ventures. This single-use, disposable, wireless patch will continuously monitor the temperature of University Hospitals caregivers who are exposed to or caring for COVID-19 patients and opt into the program. The soft, comfortable patch monitors, records and wirelessly transmits real-time data for up to 72 hours. UH can remotely monitor caregivers' temperatures through a dashboard with little-to-no direct contact, so medical professionals and support staff can deliver critical care to patients quickly, without interruption. "Those delivering close-contact aid and medical treatment to patients experiencing COVID-19 symptoms are on the frontlines," says Theodoros N. Teknos, M.D., President and Scientific Director, UH Seidman Cancer Center. "If they fall ill with COVID-19 symptoms, we face losing an essential line of defense against this disease and also risk infecting others, further perpetuating the problem. By continuously monitoring our health care workers' temperatures rather than intermittently, we are better positioned to intervene quickly to ensure the safety and health of our caregivers and our patients." Caregivers caring for COVID-19 positive patients or those who have a high risk of exposure or known exposure will have the option to wear a TempTraq monitor. As soon as a fever is detected, the caregiver will be removed from common areas immediately. They will then report to a supervisor who will call an internal COVID-19 hotline to determine next steps of action. "We are immensely thankful for the men and women who are working tirelessly to care for those inflicted with COVID-19," says John Gannon, Blue Spark President and CEO. "An we're grateful to be able to do our small part to protect them during such a difficult, uncertain time." TempTraq is supported by both patient- and clinician-facing mobile apps with data centrally stored on TempTraq connect, a HIPAA-compliant cloud service. Data monitoring is also available on the TempTraq Clinician web portal or routed directly to hospital EMRs. The TempTraq system is scalable and can support a single hospital or a multi-hospital/physician group healthcare system. TempTraq is currently being used and implemented in hospitals across the US, Europe and Australia. For more information about TempTraq, visit https://temptraq.healthcare. About TempTraq TempTraq, Blue Spark Technologies' patented innovation, is the only Bluetooth, wearable temperature monitor in the form of a soft, comfortable patch that continuously, safely and comfortably monitors body temperature for up to 72 hours and sends alerts to Apple or Android compatible mobile devices. TempTraq Connect is the HIPAA-compliant cloud service supported by Google (News - Alert) Healthcare Cloud Platform that enables patients and caregivers to monitor body temperature from anywhere. It can also directly integrate with healthcare provider electronic medical record (EMR) systems and nurse monitoring stations, providing a secure method of storing patient healthcare data. The system is FDA, CE and TGA cleared. TempTraq has shown proven efficacy in the most demanding environments, including the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center and Cincinnati Children's Hospital, as well as several other leading hospitals. The TempTraq system is scalable and can support a single hospital or a multi-hospital/physician group healthcare system. Headquartered in Westlake, Ohio, Blue Spark Technologies, Inc. is an innovator in wearable, medical device solutions. About University Hospitals / Cleveland, Ohio Founded in 1866, University Hospitals serves the needs of patients through an integrated network of 18 hospitals, more than 50 health centers and outpatient facilities, and 200 physician offices in 16 counties throughout northern Ohio. The system's flagship academic medical center, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, located in Cleveland's University Circle, is affiliated with Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. The main campus also includes University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, ranked among the top children's hospitals in the nation; University Hospitals MacDonald Women's Hospital, Ohio's only hospital for women; University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, a high-volume national referral center for complex cardiovascular procedures; and University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, part of the NCI-designated Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. UH is home to some of the most prestigious clinical and research programs in the nation, including cancer, pediatrics, women's health, orthopedics, radiology, neuroscience, cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, digestive health, transplantation and urology. UH Cleveland Medical Center is perennially among the highest performers in national ranking surveys, including "America's Best Hospitals" from U.S. News & World Report. UH is also home to Harrington Discovery Institute at University Hospitals - part of The Harrington Project for Discovery & Development. UH is one of the largest employers in Northeast Ohio with 28,000 physicians and employees. Advancing the Science of Health and the Art of Compassion is UH's vision for benefitting its patients into the future, and the organization's unwavering mission is To Heal. To Teach. To Discover. Follow UH on Facebook (News - Alert) @UniversityHospitals and Twitter @UHhospitals. For more information, visit UHhospitals.org View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005795/en/ [ Back To www.mobilitytechzone.com\LTE's Homepage ] Its clear that celebrities live in some very impressive houses. With millions of dollars in the bank, they often can afford to live in gigantic mansions that most people can only dream about. However, once in a while, some fans are disappointed by the celebritys choice in where they choose to live. Justin Bieber has been subjected to social medias mockery recently when people discovered that he used to reside in a house with an unusual aesthetic. While it seems like the house is open to being leased, it does not seem like many people are on board for that. Justin Bieber | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images Justin Bieber once lived in a glass house in Beverly Hills Justin Biebers house looks like a cross between Apples spaceship HQ in Sunnyvale and my first molded plastic fake aluminum look CD boombox. pic.twitter.com/Lo3ui2fEXa Paul Myers (@pulmyears) April 13, 2020 Back in 2015, Bieber rented out a house in Beverly Hills for $60,000 a month. The house in question is located on Loma Linda Drive. It has six bedrooms, six-and-a-half bathrooms, an elevator, an infinity pool, and a garage that can fit six cars. Its most prominent feature is the fact that it is covered by a lot of glass windows. The place was designed by architect Ed Niles and built in 2009. Bieber reportedly lived there for about two months before moving out because the glass windows did little to keep him protected from paparazzi and fans. Aside from the house being known for its association with Bieber, it was also the backdrop for Jake Pauls famous Its Everyday Bro music video, which was released in 2017 and has since garnered over 260 million views. According to Zillow, the house is not for sale. However, reports say that it was previously on the market for $15 million. People are not impressed by the aesthetic of Justin Biebers former house JUATIN BIEBERS HOUSE.I HAVE NEVER SEEN A HOUSE UGLIER pic.twitter.com/zNz6ZIFQtI izzy (@izzyhollandx) March 31, 2020 Although it is not for sale, Biebers former residence is reportedly up for rent. However, given the reactions on the internet, it does not look like many people are clamoring to take up that offer. Social media has exploded with memes comparing the houses unusual design to various things, such as a salad spinner, a blender, a community college, and the BBC Television Centre. One person even said: Justin Biebers house looks like a funky CD storage unit which everyone would spend 250 on at Argos in about 1997 but would turn out to scratch all your discs. Fans are definitely not holding back, with some even calling it ugly. Where is Justin Bieber living now? Bieber has moved to quite a few places after his stint at the infamous glass house. He once rented a house in Toluca Lake, California, and stayed at Pharrells home in New York. These days, he seems to split his time between Beverly Hills and his home province of Ontario, Canada. He and his wife, Hailey, have a Beverly Hills home, but it looks like they are also trying to sell it for $8.5 million. Meanwhile, their Canadian home is located on an 101-acre estate with a rustic, farmhouse feel. The couple are currently social distancing in Ontario, and Hailey has shared that it has been a relaxing time for them. Ive been happier than I felt in months just from being able to be low-key and just hang, and not have things on a schedule, she said in an Instagram Live video. I feel really reconnected with myself and thats unexpectedly made me really happy We have a place out here and were super lucky we have a lot of space to kind of just walk around and move around. I swear I feel like Ive gotten so much more done in this quarantine than I have in, like, a year. In this article: T2: Trainspotting, The Frighteners, Time Bandits. A lesser-known British drama, a time-travelling fantasy and some long-awaited sequels are all on offer as TopFilmTip brings you the best films on UK TV for Monday, 20 April. Ignored boy joins thriving band of smelly tree designing time travellers in Terry Gilliam's giant drugging, treasure plundering, dark comedy fantasy fable Time Bandits 11am Film4 In cloistered military world, two officers clash in psychological battle of intimidation and power play in Alec Guinness' Tunes Of Glory 4:55pm Sony Movies Action Opportunistic thieves plot plan to rob millions from substandardly secured Boston bank. in William Friedkin's ludicrously true crime comedy The Brinks Job 5:55pm Talking Pictures Alec Guinness listens as Dennis Price talks to him in a scene from the film 'Tunes Of Glory', 1960. (Photo by United Artists/Getty Images) An exorcism con artist gets in over his head on encountering malevolent force in Peter Jackson's charismatic comedy The Frighteners 9pm Horror Channel Read more: The best 4K TV deals Ancient Arnie and inept underlings face criminal army in big gunning, muscle car ragging, bad guy blasting shoot-em-up The Last Stand 9pm Film4 Sly Stallone discovers best jogging song ever made, falls in love and pulverises frozen cattle in Oscar winning punch 'em up Rocky 10pm ITV4 Timid chap becomes axe-wielding gore-soaked deadite destroyer in wrist-chewing, flesh-possessing demonic blood bath The Evil Dead 11:10pm Horror Channel Return of life-choosing friend-finagler prompts chaos of Orangemen, fraud, grievous grudges and reconciliation in T2: Trainspotting 11:10pm Film4 Framed by crime king, Leeds lad orchestrates master plan of poetic justice in innovative, phenomenal British heist treat The Rise 1:30am Film4 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 Everything coming to Disney+ in April Follow TopFilmTip on Twitter for daily film recommendations. Sen. Kamala Harris said oversight is needed to ensure the CARES Act doesn't become "something that is only about helping the president's buddies, to the loss of working families." (Bill Clark / CQ Roll Call) Oversight systems are still largely dormant for the $2 trillion in coronavirus economic relief passed by Congress last month, leaving gaping holes in accountability just as the Treasury Department prepares to give hundreds of billions of dollars in aid to corporations. The coronavirus response package was the largest in U.S. history, and lawmakers wanted to ensure adequate checks and supervision of the massive funding. But with no less than four oversight bodies now struggling to get up and running, and Congress functioning remotely because of the pandemic, lawmakers acknowledge the deficiency. "Oversight is occurring; it's just not occurring as effectively as it would be if we could have committee hearings with administration testimony," said House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.). The ideal, of course, is to get back into session, have hearings [and] call witnesses. Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine), who has emerged as one of Congress fiercest questioners, says oversight needs to start immediately because an early foot in the door means watchdogs can shape the way the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act is implemented. The biggest area of concern for Porter and other Democrats is the nearly $500-billion fund that the Treasury Department with significant control by Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin will use to buoy corporations. Because that $500 billion has not yet been scooped out by Treasury and delivered to industry, we have the ability to do oversight in real time, Porter said in an interview. In addition, watchdogs can engage in a meaningful, productive way with the Treasury secretary about what the terms and conditions of this assistance should be, making sure it will help the economy by keeping workers on payroll and with health benefits. The law put into place three oversight bodies, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) has proposed a fourth: The laws five-person Congressional Oversight Commission which will oversee the corporate fund had only one member until Friday, when three additional members were named. With the Capitol and congressional office buildings largely shut down, the first appointee, Bharat Ramamurti, a former staffer for Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), has so far tried to do the bodys work from his Twitter account and through public comments and op-eds. The post of special inspector general for pandemic recovery created under the legislation is vacant. President Trumps nomination of White House lawyer Brian Miller to the job has raised questions about Millers independence, putting his Senate confirmation in doubt. Another group of inspectors general tasked by the law to oversee the entire act, the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, lost its first leader Defense Department acting Inspector General Glenn Fine when Trump fired him this month. And, finally, the committee Pelosi wants to set up cant get to work until Congress approves the groups existence through a vote. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) said the panel was redundant, suggesting Republicans may block any move to approve it by unanimous consent. That would mean Pelosi would have to wait until Congress is back in session. Story continues Complicating matters is Trump, who said as he signed the CARES Act into law that he would not abide by some of the oversight rules. In a signing statement, the White House said the laws requirement that the special inspector general inform Congress if the administration didn't share some information might be unconstitutional. Skeptics say the White House's frequent past refusals to respond to congressional inquiries make the oversight bodies work all the more important. The president is not burdened with the need to be consistent or accurate or tell the truth, said Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.). So it will be oversights responsibility, she said, to ensure the CARES Act doesnt become something that is only about helping the presidents buddies, to the loss of working families who desperately need aid and relief. The administrations reluctance to work with inspectors general will make the Congressional Oversight Commissions role the only oversight mechanism with teeth, said Porter, who wanted to serve on the panel. Trump administration officials can "thumb their nose" at the inspectors general assigned to supervise implementation of the law because they are executive branch employees, Porter said. Which means that this congressional panel, for this president, is going to be the only game in town overseeing that $500 billion. It does not appear that Treasury or the Federal Reserve have written any checks out of the fund, Ramamurti said. But hes not confident that the rules as written now would require the agencies to reveal that information immediately. Treasury did not respond to several requests for comment. The agencies have earmarked how they plan to spend $195 billion of the fund. The Federal Reserve said this month that it would use that money to boost the Main Street Lending Program, which helps small and midsize businesses, and expand the scope of other programs. Ramamurti, who doesnt yet have a budget, is already concerned about how the money could be spent. He said the Federal Reserve's criteria for cities and counties that can access federal loans excludes the 35 American cities with the highest proportion of black residents. "These are all extremely consequential decisions," he said of the Federal Reserve's and Treasury's authority to determine what entities got money. "The goal of the [congressional] oversight commission is to scrutinize decisions as they are made, in as close to real time as possible, because there's an opportunity to adjust this stuff on the fly in ways that can make a real difference for people." Republicans on Friday appointed Sen. Patrick J. Toomey of Pennsylvania and Rep. French Hill of Arkansas to the panel. Pelosi selected Rep. Donna Shalala (D-Fla.), a former Health and Human Services secretary. The panel will be led by a chair to be appointed jointly by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Pelosi. Individual lawmakers and congressional committees are trying to provide oversight as well. McConnell said Friday that Sen. Michael D. Crapo (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, would take the lead on oversight in the Senate. The CARES Act is the biggest rescue package in the history of Congress, McConnell said. Appropriate, objective and nonpartisan oversight will be key to ensuring its dollars and programs find their mark. But lawmakers, too, are at a disadvantage. With Congress out of session, they cant use their most effective oversight tool: a congressional hearing conducted on television and under oath. Instead, theyre sending a flurry of letters and phone calls to administration officials, demanding answers to questions about implementation of the programs. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), chair of the House Energy and Commerce oversight subcommittee which oversees several health agencies and has held nearly a dozen hearings on pandemic preparedness over 15 years is laying the groundwork now for hearings the panel hopes to hold as soon as Congress is back in session. Her panel is already investigating the distribution of the Strategic National Stockpile and the backlog of testing, among other questions. This is not an optimal situation, she said of Congress working remotely. But I believe we will be able to lay the groundwork through these investigations and letters that were doing now to have the actual hearings later this spring or even early in the summer. Lawmakers are also considering whether they can meet virtually for congressional hearings. House rules require lawmakers to physically meet for a hearing, a requirement adopted to prevent lawmakers from trying to mark themselves present for a hearing when they are not, DeGette said. The rules would have to be updated to allow for a virtual hearing. Its unclear whether Congress would try to hold oversight hearings with administration officials remotely. Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have protested the committees use of Zoom for video briefings after the panel held two in recent weeks: one with the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction and another with the postmaster general. That has raised questions about whether administration officials would participate in virtual public hearings with lawmakers. Republicans said the meeting with the special inspector general was Zoom-bombed accessed without authorization three times. But Democrats said it was not. While displaying his chiseled chest and washboard abs on Instagram, Brody Jenner encouraged his followers to stay productive. The youngest son of Caitlyn Jenner urged his 3.2 million Instagram followers to try and 'accomplish something' they've 'always wanted, but never had the time' on Sunday. 'Dont waste it,' 36-year-old reality star wrote under a shirtless Instagram of himself on a hike, before revising his caption not to include 'Quarantine = No Days Off.' Controversial: While displaying his chiseled chest and washboard abs on Instagram, Brody Jenner shared a tone-deaf Instagram caption about staying productive under quarantine For his scenic outing, Jenner wore a pair of black shorts and matching trainers, while shooting a 'shaka' hand sign and sitting on a bench. The Los Angeles native, who did not clarify if the image was a throwback, shared the image on an empty walking path, despite the city closing more than 75,000 acres of parks and trails amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last month, Los Angeles County decision came after trails remained too crowded to maintain social distancing. 'Dont waste it,' The Hills alum wrote under a shirtless Instagram of himself on a hike about the quarantine, before revising his caption not to include 'Quarantine = No Days Off' Doting dog dad: Last month he gushed about social distancing at home with furry 'little angel' He is currently pandemic partnering with girlfriend Daisy Keech, 20, who is 16 years his junior. Jenner's budding relationship comes just a few months after he was seen out with model Allison Mason and a slew of dates with supermodel Jose Canseco's daughter Josie, 23 and Daniella Grace, 29, who he brought Sundance Film Festival. In August, the MTV star spilt from ex 'wife' Kaitlynn Carter, 31, who had a brief fling with Miley Cyrus, 27. Moving on: He is currently pandemic partnering with girlfriend Daisy Keech , 20, who is 16 years his junior, after spilting from ex 'wife' Kaitlynn Carter Just two months ago, he and Carter fueled rumors they'd rekindled their romance by flying back to Los Angeles together after vacationing together in Bali, which was the destination of their lavish nuptials two years ago. He was first spotted with Keech on a grocery run to Erewhon Market three weeks ago. While the pair did not engage in any PDA, the co-founder of The Hype House posted a cheeky selfie on her Instagram Story, acknowledging they had been photographed together. Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday urged the people of Pakistan to show "self discipline" and refrain from going outside to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has killed 176 people and infected 8,516 others in the country. Prime Minister Khan's remarks came days after he cautioned that Pakistan may see an increase in the number of coronavirus cases from mid-May and the healthcare system could come under significant pressure. "My message for people is to stay home as much as possible during this pandemic. The more people show self-discipline, the easier it will be for us to manage the COVID-19 plus ease the lockdown gradually," he said in a tweet. According to health officials, Punjab has registered 3,822 COVID-19 cases, while 2,544 infections have been reported in Sindh, 1,235 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 432 in Balochistan, 263 in Gilgit-Baltistan, 171 in Islamabad and 49 in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. The Prime Minister's Advisor on Health, Dr Zafar Mirza, said on Monday that 17 more people died in one day, taking the total death toll to 176. "The data shows that 83 per cent people who died had pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes, cancer and heart issues, he said. He said that out of total deaths, 74 per cent of the fatalities were of men and 82 per cent who died were more than 50 years of age. Mirza said that the coronavirus crisis will eventually decline but it was important to learn lessons from the pandemic. "In the future, we should invest in our public health sectors so that we can deal with such outbreaks more efficiently," he said. Mirza said it was important to ensure that mosques in the country do not become coronavirus hotspots. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan endorsed the government's strategy of social distancing as was agreed in a 20-point agreement with clerics which was reached after a meeting with President Arif Alvi. Prime Minister Khan met with a group of clerics and urged them to avoid big gatherings in mosques during the month of Ramzan. Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri later told the media that Khan was hopeful that those attending prayers in mosques would follow official guidelines. Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said that 227 more COVID-19 cases were reported in the province in the last 24 hours and 115 children below the age of 10 were among them. What is more worrisome for the Sindh government is that 62 positive cases have been detected in the last 24 hours in Karachi's densely populated Lyari area which comprises mostly of slum dwellings and narrow lanes. Shah admitted that the high number of positive cases emerging in Lyari was a matter of concern for the government and the situation demanded strong measures from the authorities. As the number of cases continue to rise, Planning Minister Asad Umar chaired the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) meeting on late Sunday on how the virus can be controlled by creating awareness amon people. He said the best way to tackle the pandemic was to practise social distancing and follow other policy measures such as not going out of home without an emergency. The NCOC prepared a 48-day strategy, which has pre-Ramzan, Ramzan, and post-Ramzan components, all of which aim at educating and informing the public about the potential risks, advocating adherence to social distancing practices and other containment measures, preparing the people for observance during the holy month under the special circumstances, and ultimately preventing the spread of the disease, the Dawn reported. The NCOC's campaign, which has already gone into the execution phase over the past couple of days, is titled "Zindagi Rawan, Zara Fasla Mehrban". The NCOC had earlier recommended targeted lockdown and easing of restrictions. Prime Minister Khan on Tuesday announced the reopening of 'low-risk industries'. The restrictions on religious congregations was maintained. The coronavirus outbreak is likely to create a constitutional crisis as the lawmakers have to decide how the National Assembly's budget session would be held. The session is held in May and June to announce annual budget before the end of financial year on June 30. Earlier, the Parliament House building was closed for three days (Friday to Sunday) as a precautionary measure after the two staff members contracted the virus. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The National Democratic Congress (NDC) COVID-19 Technical Advisory Team has lamented the manner and way the government is distributing food to the less privileged in some parts of the country amidst the outbreak of the coronavirus. Following the Coronavirus outbreak in Ghana, the government has banned public gatherings and imposed a partial lockdown on the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan areas in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. The government then decided to support the vulnerable in these areas by distributing food to them with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Cynthia Morrison even announcing free food hotlines for to ensure equitable distribution of food to these vulnerable groups. But on the back of this, there have been several complaints from the public after videos showing huge crowds of people rushing for food began circulating on social media. The NDC COVID-19 Team in a statement said, The scenes reported at food distribution points in Accra and Kumasi over the course of the lockdown have been alarming, and threaten to defeat the underlying point of the social distancing protocols that have occasioned their necessity. The congested cues for cooked food, and its distribution in limited and overcrowded spaces, makes them a potential hub for COVID-19 transmission. They are therefore asking for the immediate cessation of the distribution of cooked foods to these people, saying that the government should rather resort to unprepared and nonperishable items. Giving reasons for this, the Team said, It reduces the number of times persons must congregate to collect food, and reduces the number of members of a household that must be involved in the collection itself. This, in turn, reduces overall contacts during the lockdown period and opportunities for transmission. They said it also allows households greater agency to manage their consumption and reduces wastage as a consequence of the inability to properly store excess cooked food. This has been a regular complaint by the target households, which we do not believe should be dismissed as ingratitude. Cooked food also presents a relatively higher risk of food poisoning or contamination if the food distribution chain is not properly managed and overseen. The NDC COVID-19 team also proposed that the government must focus on giving children in these areas foods targeted with nutrition supplements in order to stave off the risks of malnutrition and stunting. Click here to read full statement. Distribution done on political grounds Already, some people have complained about the lack of transparency in the distribution of the food. One of such people is the Member of Parliament for the Klottey Korley Constituency, Dr. Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings. There has been an ongoing banter on the veracity of an allegation made by Dr. Zanetor who claimed that some persons in charge of the distribution of food including the Minister responsible for Gender and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison have been sharing food to only persons aligned to the governing New Patriotic Party. She then called on President Akufo-Addo to institute a credible investigation into the alleged partisan distribution of food in some areas observing the lockdown including the Klottey-Korle constituency. Dr. Zanetors allegations have also been backed by the Member of Parliament for the Odododiodoo constituency, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye. Later on Saturdays edition of The Big Issue, he said the only way to avoid the partisanship is by allowing the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies MMDAs to do the distribution . But in a press release, the Gender Minister, Mrs. Morrison has debunked these claims and reiterated the ministry's impartial distribution of food to the kayayei and other people in need of it. citinewsroom As the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll on the U.S. economy, a new survey from the National Restaurant Association lays out how dire the situation is for the industry. More than two-thirds of the restaurant workforce, or 8 million employees, have lost their jobs as shelter-in-place orders and mandatory closures have severely impacted the industry's ability to conduct business. What's more, 60% of restaurant owners say that existing federal relief programs, including the CARES Act, which allocated some $350 billion in relief for small businesses under the Paycheck Protection Program, won't be enough to keep employees on payroll during the downturn. Restaurants reported $30 billion in losses in March, a projected $50 billion in losses in April, and are teeing up for a $240 billion Covid-19-related loss nationwide by the end of the year. Prior to Covid-19, the industry had been projecting $899 billion in sales this year, with 15.6 million employees, the association said. In a letter to Congress sent Monday, the group is asking lawmakers to provide targeted relief for the sector, as it says four in 10 restaurants have closed their doors, some with no hope of reopening. Part of its "Blueprint for Recovery" includes a $240 billion Restaurant and Foodservice Industry Recovery Fund. "The restaurant industry has been the hardest hit by the coronavirus mandates suffering more sales and job losses than any other industry in the country," Sean Kennedy, the group's executive vice president of public affairs, wrote to Democratic and Republican congressional leaders. "On March 18, we wrote you warning of a bleak outlook for the restaurant industry ... as the pandemic was unfolding. One month later, we have a clearer picture of the severe challenges that lie ahead, and ask for a focused solution on behalf of an industry that is a vital part of every community." One avenue of support for the industry, the Paycheck Protection Program loans under the CARES Act, quickly evaporated, with $350 billion in funding being allocated to just 1.6 million loans in less than two weeks. The Small Business Administration said there are some 30 million small businesses in America. To meet the sector's needs, funding of as much as $1.8 trillion may be needed, according to some estimates. Targeting new funding Congress is working on an additional round of funding, and advocacy groups such as the National Federation of Independent Business are asking for no less than $200 billion to be allocated for loans for small businesses with 20 or fewer employees. It was recently revealed that big companies such as Ruth's Chris Steakhouse and Shake Shack were able to access loans under PPP. Shake Shack announced Monday it would return its loan in the hopes that funding would reach businesses in need after it was able to tap $150 million in equity funding. But a senior administration official told CNBC that while the $10 million Shake Shack returned would go back to the PPP fund, loans can't be made against the funds until Congress allocates more capital to PPP. An employee of Carmelina's in the North End of Boston tapes up paper in the windows of the restaurant, which is temporarily closing during the coronavirus pandemic, on March 25, 2020. David L. Ryan | The Boston Globe via Getty Images New data from the NFIB show that three-quarters of small businesses have submitted applications for PPP funding as of April 17, the day after the program reached its funding ceiling. Just 20% had been fully processed with funds deposited in the borrower's account, while nearly 80% were still waiting, not knowing where they are in the process. Of the 40% who had successfully submitted an application for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan through the SBA website, 77% requested the emergency grant of up to $10,000. Of those who had requested the emergency grant, about 10% received the funding. A separate survey from the National Small Business Association finds that just 5% of small business respondents that applied for an EIDL loan have received any money so far, while a quarter of businesses say they've received PPP funding. More than 980 small business owners were polled online from April 15-18 for the NSBA survey. Two-thirds of these business owners are now anticipating a recession within the next 12 months compared with just 14% in January, and nearly half of small businesses are not confident in the future of their business, according to the survey. In the NFIB survey, a quarter of small business owners expect it to take until 2022 or later for the economy to return to normal. 'Exasperated' at loan process The Indian Army has decided to classify all its personnel reporting back from leave, temporary duties and training courses into three categories of 'green, yellow and red' as part of measures to check the spread of coronavirus, official sources said on Monday. Under a fresh set of instructions, the Army headquarters also placed all ranks of the operationally-critical Northern Command and personnel belonging to Army Medical Corps, Army Dental Corps and Military Nursing Service under "top priority" bracket. A sizeable number of personnel from the Army Medical Corps, Army Dental Corps and Military Nursing Service have been part of various teams deployed to treat infected people. Personnel placed under top priority bracket also included the soldiers whose units/stations are within 500 km from their place of leave by road. In the directives to all its bases, establishments and formations, the Army said all personnel requiring a quarantine period of 14 days after resuming duties will be categorised as 'yellow' The personnel, after completing 14 days quarantine, will be classified as 'green' and those found symptomatic of the infection and requiring isolation will be put under 'red' category, the sources said. In the last few weeks, the Army headquarters issued a series of directives with an aim to insulate the 13 lakh strong force from the coronavirus which has killed over 540 people and infected over 17,000 in India so far. The Army has reported eight cases of the infection. "All personnel reporting back from leave, temporary duty and courses will be classified as 'yellow' and will undergo 14 days quarantine period at the reporting station/unit. These personnel will subsequently be moved from reporting station to duty station /unit in Army vehicles/special trains," according to the fresh guidelines. In case such personnel do not move under supervision of military authorities, they will be considered 'yellow' again and will have to undergo 14 days of quarantine again. The second highest priority has been accorded to all ranks of Eastern Command and officers and key appointments of other commands as decided by respective commands, according to the instructions. The Army aid personnel will be allowed to rejoin only on receipt of specific instructions from units/formations/establishment which granted leave and temporary duty to them. "Any individual whose leave station is within 500 kms of unit/duty station is allowed to directly report to unit using private transport only. "Individuals who do not fall within the 500 kms criteria will report to nearest unit/station headquarters in private vehicle only," cited the instructions. According to the directives, Army personnel from Nepal who are on leave should remain at their home stations till the situation in Nepal stabilises and the government opens the border. The Army clarified that the instructions will not apply to those in hotspots/containment zones', saying they will have to comply with earlier instruction of 'no movement' till the areas are de-notified. "The leave granting authorities will decide on the use of the exception of areas officially declared as 'hotspots/ containment zones' by the central/state governments," according to the instructions. India went under a total shutdown of 21 days from March 25 to April 14 to fight the coronavirus pandemic. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced extending the lockdown till May 3. However, the government announced allowing certain sectors to resume activities from April 20. Last week, the Indian Army directed all its military establishments, cantonments, formation headquarters and field units to totally restrict movement of forces till April 19 in view of the government's fresh lockdown related guidelines. The order also mentioned that offices in Army headquarters, command headquarters and formation headquarters would start functioning with 50 per cent manpower from April 19 to May 3. It said all training activities and temporary duties will remain suspended till May 3, adding directions on actions to be taken post the lockdown period will be issued on receipt of fresh orders from the government. Last month, Army Chief Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane issued instructions to insulate the the Army from the coronavirus pandemic. Gen Naravane also conveyed to the families of soldiers guarding India's borders with Pakistan and China that the Army is taking care of its personnel serving the country in this difficult time. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More AirAsia India has closed bookings until further notice, the joint venture airline between Tata Sons and AirAsia Berhad stated. It is the first private airline to completely comply with the orders issued by industry regulator DGCA, which had asked carriers to stop bookings till further notice. "AirAsia India has complied with the order issued by DGCA on April 19," an AirAsia India spokesperson told Moneycontrol. Executives from the industry added that the low-cost carrier will now open bookings only after hearing from the industry regulator. Government-owned Air India has also stopped bookings, news agency PTI reported. But it is not clear if the airline, like AirAsia India, will now open bookings only after it receives orders from DGCA. 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 While other airlines, including IndiGo and SpiceJet, are not accepting bookings for travel from May 4 - as they had done earlier - the carriers have opened counters for travel on further dates. While IndiGo and Vistara have opened their online counters for booking from June 1, customers travelling by SpiceJet and GoAir can book tickets for travel from May 16. The issue had risen after airlines, despite the lockdown, accepted bookings. They continued to do so, even after the lockdown was extended to May 3. Customers also took to social media platforms, complaining about refunds, or the lack of them. As the COVID-19 pandemic wreaks havoc on supply chains globally, logistics firms in Vietnam have experienced decline in revenue but are mustering the strength to overcome the challenges ahead. Logistics groups roll out schemes to avert doldrums, illustration photo Bee Logistics, one of Vietnams leading international service providers in the field, has seen a 10 per cent fall in the number of services providing for customers in the first quarter. In the second quarter the dip may reach 50 per cent or even more. With representative offices in eight countries, including Vietnams major trading markets of China and South Korea, the pandemic has significantly delayed Bees plan to expand networks, and harmed the business results of its representative offices abroad. According to the latest survey by the Vietnam Logistics Association (VLA), around 15 per cent of logistics firms have experienced a 50 per cent decline in revenue against 2019. Also, half of them reported a 10-30 per cent decline in logistics services in local and foreign markets so far compared to last year. Chun How Loh, general director of APL Logistics Vietnam Co., Ltd., said that all sectors of the economy are being impacted including retail and consumer goods, which are some of the key exports of Vietnam. As necessary measures are taken to combat the virus we expect to see a major downturn, and are preparing to weather the impacts of such downturn for the foreseeable future, Loh said. The supply chain impact is uneven across the various industry segments. To mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, logistics firms have led several initiatives to overcome the tough times. APL Logistics is actively rolling out and accelerating process digitisation to support work from home for all functions except those critical for maintaining operations at its facilities. APL Logistics was an early adopter of e-invoicing when Vietnam was pushing for it. Currently the company is accelerating other digital solutions, including a remodelling of its operating systems to support these unprecedented times. For its clients, APL Logistics is also rolling out flow management programmes to help them slow down or speed up their supply chains as needed. Dinh Huu Thanh, CEO of Bee Logistics, told VIR that to mitigate possible losses from COVID-19, the company has focused on diversifying services and increase its professionalism since the beginning of this year, while strengthening customer networks and improving quality of staff, services, and IT applications to increase labour productivity. According to Thanh, Bee Logistics has made efforts to improve connectivity among kinds of logistics services, for instance, co-ordination among railway, sea freight, and road logistics services. The company not only offers solutions at cross-border gates to ease risks for customers from changes in the policies, but also solutions for air freight service amid cut of flights, Thanh said. Meanwhile, the company keeps updating information and giving consultancy for customers about the markets and import-export procedures. It is also developing bulk cargo services, gauge cargo transportation, and other domestic services. Bee Logistics expects the government to use financial tools to support businesses such as relaxing times for tax and social insurance payments, reducing cost of bank loans, and creating a healthy business environment in general. Other measures may include formulating supporting policies for private companies to develop services abroad; developing and performing policies more efficiently; facilitating trade procedures; and studying the advantages of geographical location to develop Vietnam into one of leading logistics transshipment hubs in the region. Last week, the Ministry of Transport asked the government to assign the Ministry of Finance to consider reducing several taxes for transport businesses. For the civil aviation industry, the ministry has asked the government to exempt import and environmental protection taxes on flight fuel from January 23 to December 31. In case of difficulties balancing the budget, the ministry expects the government to cut half of these taxes and allow businesses to delay tax payments and budget contributions. Furthermore, the ministry also asked for reduced or suspended payments for corporate income, personal income and foreign contractor taxes over the same time frame. Businesses are expected to enjoy cuts to VAT on domestic transport over three years. VIR Thanh Van EVFTA expected to create great pressure on domestic logistics firms The expected execution of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement in 2020 will create great pressure on Vietnamese logistics businesses, insiders said. (Photo : accessiBe Is Helping Digital Agencies and Site Owners Avoid ADA Lawsuits Using AI) Majority of people with disabilities struggle to use the World Wide Web due to poor accessibility of many websites. A study for 10 million web pages by web accessibility platform accessiBe reveals that most websites simply aren't designed or developed to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities. Dissatisfied by the slow changes, certain parties are now fighting back. Previously, regulations, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that aims to give equal access to basic services, were understood to only apply to physical establishments. However, recent court rulings have made it clear that the ADA also applies to websites that offer products and services online, thus prompting site owners to make their websites more accessible. In 2018, there were as many as 2,258 web accessibility lawsuits filed in federal court. Experts expect that the number of ADA lawsuits will only continue to increase. To make websites ADA-compliant, site owners must adhere to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), a set of technical standards that must be applied to websites to ensure compatibility with assistive technologies. However, adhering to the WCAG can be a challenge. Compliance typically requires technical expertise and financial resources that not all site owners have. Fortunately, web accessibility solutions such as accessiBe now leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to automate performing modifications and testing to quickly make websites accessible. Compliance isn't easy For websites to become accessible, site owners must do a comprehensive website review that covers all WCAG provisions. This can be a tedious process when done manually. Site owners must then also modify their codebases to fix accessibility issues and comply with accessibility standards. To meet the standards of the WCAG and achieve ADA compliance, websites must be: Perceivable. Websites must offer interfaces and information that are easy to perceive. They must provide text alternatives for all non-text content so that they can be changed into other forms based on the needs of the person with disability. Media content must also always come with transcripts and captions. Operable. All components of the websites must be easy to use. Websites must also provide support for alternative keyboards. They must be navigable without using a mouse. Websites must also ensure that their content won't trigger seizures. Understandable. Websites must use simple language and offer assistance to find definitions for unfamiliar words and abbreviations. Their content must be easy to read and understand. Websites can also offer simplified versions of technical articles. Robust. Websites must be robust enough to be compatible with assistive technologies. They must contain web pages that have parsed data. Site owners must also perform comprehensive tests to ensure that their sites pass the WCAG success criteria. This requires advanced technical knowledge and significant financial resources, which can be prohibitive for smaller site owners. Even larger websites, which can have thousands of pages of content may struggle going through each page and applying the necessary modifications for compliance. AI to the rescue To overcome these challenges, site owners can adopt web accessibility platforms such as accessiBe. accessiBe uses AI to automate the review and remediation processes for ADA and WCAG compliance. Site owners only have to install a single line of Javascript code to enable the platform. accessiBe's AI then scans and parses the site to identify all issues and applies the necessary changes to make the site compliant all within 48 hours. The platform also adds an accessibility panel that allows users to do visual customizations to the site. accessiBe ensures that websites will cater to people with various disabilities including: Visually impaired. accessiBe enables people with visual impairments to adjust visual aspects of the website based on their needs. The platform also provides accurate alt text descriptions for screen readers to describe images to the visually impaired. People with motor impairments. Alternative keyboards are supported to help people who struggle with using a physical input device like mice and touchpads. The platform ensures that websites are navigable using the TAB key and elements are clickable using ENTER. People with epilepsy. accessiBe allows people with epilepsy to disable all types of animations such as CSS, GIFs, and videos that can trigger seizures. Cognitively impaired. The tool offers a built-in dictionary to help people with cognitive impairments understand unfamiliar words and expressions when reading web content. Doing the right thing Compliance with the WCAG and ADA helps site owners avoid potential lawsuits and hefty fines that can cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars. But regardless of the consequences, it is only right that site owners ensure that their websites are accessible. With the emergence of web accessibility solutions, it's high time for site owners to do the right thing and help in creating an inclusive internet so that everyone, including persons with disabilities, can enjoy the full benefits of using the web. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. More than a million furloughed workers will get taxpayer-funded wage subsidies after a huge claims rush by firms. More than 2,200 applications per minute flooded in when the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme opened at 8am yesterday. By 4pm, 140,000 had been received. Chancellor Rishi Sunak praised thousands of staff at HM Revenue and Customs and the Treasury, many of whom came out of retirement, for working around the clock at kitchen tables and in spare rooms to get the system working. Fears that HMRCs website would be overwhelmed were unfounded and most businesses reported on social media that they could apply without a hitch. Chancellor Rishi Sunak praised thousands of staff at HM Revenue and Customs and the Treasury At last nights Downing Street briefing, Mr Sunak said: Exactly a month ago today I stood at this lectern and said we would step in and help pay peoples wages. We promised the support would be available by the end of April and today we deliver our promise. He vowed that firms would receive their cash in six working days. The grants theyll receive will help pay the wages of more than a million people a million people who if they hadnt been furloughed would have been at risk of losing their job, he added. Dan Tomlinson, an economist at the Resolution Foundation, said: The sheer scale of applications for the Governments Job Retention Scheme on its opening day shows just how badly the scheme is needed. Commuters Travel on London's underground network this morning. April 20 2020, amid the coronavirus lockdown Without firms having the option to furlough staff, Britain could be facing the prospect of totally unprecedented numbers of people being unemployed. The claims made today alone are set to cost at least 4.2billion if staff are furloughed for three months. The scheme pays employees 80 per cent of wages up to 2,500 a month. Some nine million people 30 per cent of the private sector workforce are expected to benefit at a cost of 42billion up to the end of June. Experts fear the bill could top 60billion if the scheme runs for even longer. The Resolution Foundation predicts up to 11.7million people could be furloughed or lose their jobs in the next three months. There is concern that the scheme is being exploited by wealthy individuals and profitable firms who could afford to keep on staff on hold without taxpayer help. Amid reports that Victoria Beckham had furloughed up to 30 staff at her loss-making fashion house, TV presenter and Mail Online columnist Piers Morgan slammed the former Spice Girl as disgraceful for using the scheme when she and her husband David are collectively worth 335million. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden, dragged into the row on ITVs Good Morning Britain yesterday, said: I think each person and each company should ask themselves, do they have to rely on the tax bed, because the scheme is meant to be if youre about to make someone redundant and you havent got the money to continue to employ them. Hundreds of thousands of staff have already been furloughed by big companies which will be among those making claims.. Deputy Chief Scientific Adviser Angela MacLean, Chancellor Rishi Sunak and PHE Medical Director Yvonne Doyle during a media briefing in Downing Street, London, April 20, 2020 Work continues at a drive-through coronavirus testing facility which is to open at Twickenham Stadium, in south west London, as part of the Government's UK-wide drive. April 20 Many, such as British Airways and McDonalds, are highly profitable, while others such as Sir Richard Bransons Virgin Atlantic and Sir Philip Greens retail empire, have billionaire owners. Mr Sunak also revealed that the number of emergency business interruption loans approved had doubled over the last week to 12,000. But he was not persuaded by calls to increase government guarantees on these loans from 80 per cent to 100 per cent. Britains banks have been heavily criticised for routinely rejecting applications from desperate companies and for making the application process too time- consuming and laborious. Genial Rishi's gowns from Myanmar? It sounded more like an Arthur Daley Wheeze... By Henry Deedes for The Daily Mail Yesterday was Rishi Sunaks turn to host the Downing Street press briefing. Ugh. What a way to start the week. Forgive the mope, but just seeing the Chancellor nowadays is enough to make you groan in despair, like running into a traffic warden or those men on the beach who pop up out of nowhere to charge you for a sun lounger. Nothing unpleasant about Rishi of course, quite the reverse. Hes the most genial Chancellor weve had since Ken Clarke. Its just that his economic news during the crisis usually makes you want to crawl back into bed and pull the duvet over your head. Rishi was here to discuss the Governments furloughing scheme, which he hopes will save over a million jobs. NHS chiefs say supplies of gowns are 'critically low', and they need around 150,000 a day. Pictured: Medical staff are seen putting on PPE at a testing centre in Rochdale, Greater Manchester Some 140,000 firms had already applied for the emergency cash since the Treasurys phone lines opened at 8am that morning. Thats around 40billion pouring from the Treasury coffers every three months. Terrifying. He also announced he would be signing off another 500million in funds to help struggling start-up companies. With his scheme now up and running, Rishi might have afforded himself a little strut at the lectern but for the embarrassing issue of NHS protection equipment shortages. The Chancellor admitted this had been an international challenge but he insisted the Government was now getting on top of it. With his scheme now up and running, Rishi might have afforded himself a little strut at the lectern but for the embarrassing issue of NHS protection equipment shortages Apparently 140,000 protective gowns had just arrived from Myanmar and were making their way to the front line. Protective gowns procured from Myanmar? It sounded like one of Arthur Daleys business wheezes. Guest medicos for the day were the Ministry of Defences Chief Scientific Adviser Angela McLean and Yvonne Doyle. Dame Angela offered us a slide showing that the number of people being admitted to hospital in London had fallen for the seventh day in a row. Encouraging news, though deadpan McLean didnt sound very excited by it. Its possible she doesnt do excited. Guest medicos for the day were the Ministry of Defences Chief Scientific Adviser Angela McLean Media questions dragged on too long, but the punchiest query came from the BBCs Hugh Pym who asked if the Government was ashamed about sending medical workers on to the front line without proper protective gear. Rishi deftly palmed the question on to Professor Doyle. She admitted concern that some health workers felt they werent getting the gear they needed. Its possible any NHS staff tuning in between frantic shifts wont have found the profs answer particularly reassuring. Elsewhere, it had been at least a week since Tony Blair last spoke out, so naturally when his modestly-titled think-tank the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change published its five-point plan to tackle coronavirus, Britains media outlets cleared their morning schedules to allow him to have his say. Mr Blair appeared via videolink perched in front of an exposed brick wall and a swirly modern artwork, presumably from somewhere inside his luxury Buckinghamshire schloss. As ever with Blair, nothing about this scene looked entirely natural. You wonder whether the backdrop had been decided on the night before by an advisory committee. Hes looking haggard now, the old boy. His thinning locks are silver, the face so lined you could take a brass rubbing from it. He wore a white shirt with a collar so generous it would not have looked amiss at a 1970s roller-skate disco. Blair was sympathetic to the Government. The virus was the most difficult challenge he had ever seen in politics. From an ex-PM who endured ten years of being undermined by his own Chancellor, this was no small statement. Still, Blair felt Boris has been behind the curve at the beginning of the crisis. It was at this point that the words If I were back in government passed ruefully from his lips. Then he launched into an explanation of how he would have done things differently. But by that point, Im afraid I was too busy scrabbling around for the remote control to have heard what it was. Boris Johnson snuffs out Cabinet calls for early easing of lockdown: PM intervenes from Chequers rehab to insist a second peak of coronavirus outbreak not economic misery is the biggest danger Boris Johnson intervened from Cheuqers to say avoiding second coronavirus peak is the biggest priority Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove thought to be keen to ease restrictions soon Health secretary Matt Hancock has argued that the virus should be suppressed before the lockdown is lifted Government sources are pouring cold water on prospects of schools being reopened before the end of May Some ministers have been pushing 'traffic light' plan for the draconian curbs to be eased to protect economy By James Tapsfield, political editor for MailOnline Boris Johnson today moved to snuff out Cabinet pressure for an early easing of lockdown, making clear that a second peak in the coronavirus outbreak is the biggest threat to the country. The PM has intervened from his recuperation at Chequers to warn there must not be any let-up in the draconian curbs until scientists are sure the disease will not flare up again. Mr Johnson has told First Secretary Dominic Raab and senior aides that 'moving too quickly' would be the worst outcome for both the economy and public health. The premier's stance emerged amid signs of Cabinet splits over how quickly to ease the restrictions, with fears the crippling impact of lockdown on business and jobs will kill more people than the virus itself. Hawks in government have been pointing out the NHS now has some spare capacity to treat patients, and suggesting that it should be allowed to 'run hot' to revive the economy after the current lockdown period ends on May 11. Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove are thought to be among those pushing for an earlier release. But Mr Sunak fell into line this evening, insisting the best way to bolster the economy was to protect public health. 'We must continue to slow the spread of the virus to make sure fewer people need hospital treatment at any one time,' he told the daily Downing Street briefing. Government sources have also been frantically playing down a 'traffic light' exit strategy circulated by senior Tories over the weekend, which could see schools partly reopened by mid-May. Early June is said to be more likely. The PM's official spokesman fuelled speculation that Mr Johnson will be back sooner rather than later today, briefing political journalists that he is getting 'daily updates' at Chequers - although stressing that he is not yet doing any 'official work'. Asked for Mr Johnson's stance on the timing of lockdown, the spokesman said: 'The big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy. If you move too quickly the virus could begin to spread exponentially again.' On another day of coronavirus chaos: The UK has today announced 449 more coronavirus deaths - the fewest for a fortnight - taking Britain's total death toll to 16,509; England declared 429 deaths and a further 20 were confirmed across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. And 4,676 more people have tested positive for the virus, taking the total number of patients to 124,743; Nicola Sturgeon said she will publish a 'framework' for decisions on the lockdown this week, but warned that social distancing will be needed for some time to come; A vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients; The daily number of those tested languished at 21,600 with just ten days to go to hit the Government's 100,000 target; The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, reached at least 80; Michael Gove attacked 'grotesque' claims Boris Johnson was 'missing in action' at the start of the crisis after he missed five meetings of the emergency Cobra committee; More than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to be told to wear homemade face masks when they leave the house; Chancellor Rishi Sunak was urged to boost his business bailout schemes amid warnings that up to 11.7million could be furloughed or left jobless over the next three months; Analysis suggests that more than 2,500 elderly patients are dying of coronavirus in care homes every week. Mr Johnson recording a video message on Easter Sunday at Number 10 after his release from the hospital, before leaving for Chequers to recover from his illness Chancellor Rishi Sunak held the line on the need to keep the lockdown in place this evening, telling the Downing Street briefing that the best way to bolster the economy is to protect public health Some ministers have been pushing a blueprint that would see restrictions start being eased as early as May 11, when the current lockdown period ends. Fury as vital PPE kit from Turkey is delayed AGAIN Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Advertisement The 'traffic light' proposals suggest reopening schools part-time, and gradually allowing non-essential shops to get up and running again in an 'amber' phase. Pubs and restaurants, and the over-70s would face many months more on a 'red signal' in isolation until a vaccine can be found or the outbreak fades altogether. However, Health secretary Matt Hancock has been stressing that before easing restrictions the government should suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate dwindles. And Mr Sunak said of the prospects of lifting restrictions tonight: 'We are not there yet.' 'At this stage of the crisis we are absolutely focused on sticking to the guidance,' he said. Referring to the Government's five tests for lifting the lockdown, he said: 'We are not there yet and it is very clear that, for now, what we should focus on is following the guidance, staying home to protect the NHS. 'Anything else that people might be speculating on is wrong, we are crystal clear on that message.' A government source told the Times: 'The idea that we will be rushing to lift measures is a non-starter. 'If the transmission rate rises significantly we will have to do a harder lockdown again.' Downing Street has signalled that there will not be any movement on releasing an 'exit strategy' until the end of the month. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she will publish a 'framework' on how decisions will be taken about the curbs later this week. 'The initial version of this work will not set out what measures will be lifted and when,' she told the daily Scotland briefing. 'We are simply not yet in the position to take those decisions in a properly informed way.' She added: 'It will also be clear in the work we set out later in the week that living with this virus, as we will need to learn to do, is likely to mean some restrictions on everyday life in the form of social distancing for some time to come.' The wrangling comes amid a growing backlash over the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Mr Johnson has been accused of 'skipping' five Cobra meetings in January and February as the pandemic emerged. A devastating Sunday Times article claimed ministers 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan. A Whitehall source said the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment) during a vital period before the outbreak took hold in Britain. The government also shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China despite warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. But in an extraordinary detailed response last night the government insisted the report contained 'falsehoods' and distorted the picture of its actions. Earlier, Mr Gove confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but described the idea this amounted to neglect as 'grotesque'. 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' He said the UK had sent PPE to China in the initial phase of the crisis, but stressed it was not from the core pandemic stockpile, and Beijing had sent far more back since. Number 10 insisted Mr Johnson, who is currently recovering from coronavirus at Chequers after spending several nights in intensive care last week, 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Revelations of Mr Johnson's concerns come as it emerged pubs and restaurants could remain closed until the winter, as Michael Gove (pictured) said hospitality would be 'among the last to exit the lockdown'. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak (right) wants to minimise the damage of the lockdown to businesses. Matt Hancock (left) - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care - argued that before easing restrictions the government should try to suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate becomes much lower. A senior Downing Street adviser told the investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. As his more junior colleagues took the reins on virus mitigation, Mr Johnson's personal life reportedly commanded his attention, namely how to break the news of Carrie Symonds' pregnancy to his family. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. It also emerged the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News yesterday that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. But asked at the daily No10 press briefing about Mr Johnson's absence from Cobra meetings until the beginning of March, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: 'The Prime Minister from the moment that it became clear that there were challenges in terms of coronavirus developing in China has absolutely been leading our nation's effort to combat the coronavirus, making sure that resources or money is not a concern for any department, especially the health service.' He added that 'many Cobra meetings' are led by the departmental minister. He said: 'The focus the Prime Minister was putting on this and has continued to put on this has meant that this is the whole Government effort.' Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak is facing mounting pressure to boost his business bailout so that the Government increases its guarantee on loans to struggling firms to 100 per cent. The Treasury will today announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit as the virus lockdown causes the economy to stutter to a halt. It will include a 500million loans fund for high-growth companies and 750million in loans and grants for small firms focused on research and development. 'At a very basic level, this is wrong': Government hits back at claims Boris Johnson 'skipped' Cobra meetings and ministers dragged their feet and 'lacked grip' over COVID-19 response in lengthy 14-point rebuttal Downing Street has hit back at newspaper reports that Boris Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of 'falsehoods' and 'errors' after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment). The article also claimed the Johnson administration 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan, China. The government confirmed the prime minister missed five Cobra meetings in January and February as the outbreak began to take hold in other countries. A senior Downing Street adviser told the bombshell investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' at Chequers underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. But last night, the Government pushed back on the claims, saying in a six-page rebuttal published online that it was 'guided at all times by the best scientific advice'. It comes after Michael Gove admitted that Boris Johnson was not present at the meetings, but claimed 'most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them' Gavin Williamson also insisted that Boris Johnson was 'driving' the government's coronavirus response despite 'skipping' five Cobra meetings at the start of the outbreak. The very first point in the government's rebuttal says 'at a very basic level, this is wrong' in response to allegations that ministers brushed aside the dangers of coronavirus in mid-January. A government spokesman said: 'This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressing the nation from 10 Downing Street as he announces the lockdown on March 23 The Government's full 14-point response to claims that ministers dragged their feet over coronavirus response Claim On the third Friday in January Coronavirus was already spreading around the world but the government 'brushed aside' the threat in an hour-long COBR meeting and said the risk to the UK public was 'low'. Response At a very basic level, this is wrong. The meeting was on the fourth Friday in January. The article also misrepresents the Government's awareness of Covid 19, and the action we took before this point. Health Secretary Matt Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The government's scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Mr Hancock instituted daily coronavirus meetings. He updated Parliament as soon as possible, on January 23rd. The risk level was set to 'Low' because at the time our scientific advice was that the risk level to the UK public at that point was low. The first UK case was not until 31 January. The specific meaning of 'public health risk' refers to the risk there is to the public at precisely that point. The risk was also higher than it had been before - two days earlier it had been increased 'Very Low' to 'Low' in line with clinical guidance from the Chief Medical Officer. The WHO did not formally declare that coronavirus was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) until 30 January, and only characterised it as a global pandemic more than a month later, on 11 March. The UK was taking action and working to improve its preparedness from early January. Claim - 'This was despite the publication that day of an alarming study by Chinese doctors in the medical journal The Lancet. It assessed the lethal potential of the virus, for the first time suggesting it was comparable to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed up to 50 million people.' Response - The editor of the Lancet, on exactly the same day 23 January - called for 'caution' and accused the media of 'escalating anxiety by talking of a 'killer virus' and 'growing fears'. He wrote: 'In truth, from what we currently know, 2019-nCoV has moderate transmissibility and relatively low pathogenicity. There is no reason to foster panic with exaggerated language.' The Sunday Times is suggesting that there was a scientific consensus around the fact that this was going to be a pandemic that is plainly untrue. Claim - It was unusual for the Prime Minister to be absent from COBR and is normally chaired by the Prime Minister. Response - This is wrong. It is entirely normal and proper for COBR to be chaired by the relevant Secretary of State. Then Health Secretary Alan Johnson chaired COBR in 2009 during H1N1. Michael Gove chaired COBR as part of No Deal planning. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps chaired COBR during the collapse of Thomas Cook. Mr Hancock was in constant communication with the PM throughout this period. At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared COVID19 a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern', and only did so only 30 January. Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the COBR meeting. Examples of scientific commentary from the time: Prof Martin Hibberd, Professor of Emerging Infectious Disease, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: 'This announcement is not surprising as more evidence may be needed to make the case of announcing a PHEIC. WHO were criticised after announcing the pandemic strain of novel H1N1_2009, when the virus was eventually realised to have similar characteristics to seasonal influenza and is perhaps trying to avoid making the same mistake here with this novel coronavirus. To estimate the true severity of this new disease requires identifying mild or asymptomatic cases, if there are any, while determining the human to human transmission rate might require more evidence.' Dr Adam Kamradt-Scott, Senior Lecturer in International Security Studies, University of Sydney, said: 'Based on the information we have to date, the WHO Director-General's decision to not declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern is not especially surprising. While we have seen international spread of the virus, which is one of the criteria for declaring a PHEIC, the cases in those countries do not appear to have seeded further local outbreaks. If that was to start to occur, it would constitute a greater concern but at the moment the outbreak is largely contained within China.' Claim - 'Imperial's Ferguson was already working on his own estimate putting infectivity at 2.6 and possibly as high as 3.5 which he sent to ministers and officials in a report on the day of the Cobra meeting on January 24. The Spanish flu had an estimated infectivity rate of between 2.0 and 3.0, so Ferguson's finding was shocking.' Response - Infectivity on its own simply reveals how quickly a disease spreads, and not its health impact. For that, it is necessary to know about data such as associated mortality/morbidity. It is sloppy and unscientific to use this number alone to compare to Spanish flu. Claim - No10 'played down the looming threat' from Coronavirus and displayed an 'almost nonchalant attitudefor more than a month.' Response - The suggestion that the government's attitude was nonchalant is wrong. Extensive and detailed work was going on in government because of Coronavirus, as shown above. Claim - By the time the Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on March 2 'the virus had sneaked into our airports, our trains, our workplaces and our homes. Britain was on course for one of the worst infections of the most insidious virus to have hit the world in a century.' Response - This virus has hit countries across the world. It is ridiculous to suggest that coronavirus only reached the UK because the Health Secretary and not the PM chaired a COBR meeting. Claim - 'Failure of leadership' by anonymous senior advisor to Downing Street. Response - The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the Government response to Covid 19, providing the leadership to steer his Ministerial team through a hugely challenging period for the whole nation. This anonymous source is variously described as a 'senior adviser to Downing Street' and a 'senior Downing Street adviser'. The two things are not the same. One suggests an adviser employed by the government in No10. The other someone who provides ad hoc advice. Which is it? Claim - The government sent 279,000 items of its depleted stockpile of protective equipment to China during this period in response to a request for help from the authorities there. Response - The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China. Claim - Little was done to equip the National Health Service for the coming crisis in this period. Response - This is wrong. The NHS has responded well to Coronavirus, and has provided treatment to everyone in critical need. We have constructed the new Nightingale hospitals and extended intensive care capacity in other hospitals. Claim - Among the key points likely to be explored are why it took so long to recognise an urgent need for a massive boost in supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers; ventilators to treat acute respiratory symptoms; and tests to detect the infection. Response - The Department for Health began work on boosting PPE stocks in January, before the first confirmed UK case. Discussions on PPE supply for COVID-19 began w/c 27 January (as part of Medical Devices and Clinical Consumables), with the first supply chain kick-off meeting on 31 January. The first additional orders of PPE was placed on 30 January via NHS Supply Chain's 'just-in-time contracts'. BAU orders of PPE were ramped up around the same date. Friday, 7 February, the department held a webinar for suppliers trading from or via China and the European Union. Over 700 delegates joined and heard the Department's requests to carry out full supply chain risk assessments and hold onto EU exit stockpiles where they had been retained. Monday, 10 February, the department spoke with the major patient groups and charities to update them on the situation regarding the outbreak and to update them on the steps it was taking to protect supplies. Tuesday, 11 February, the department wrote to all suppliers in scope of the Covid 19 supply response work those trading from or via China or the EU repeating the messages from the webinar and updating suppliers on the current situation relating to novel coronavirus. The NHS has spare ventilator capacity and we are investing in further capacity. Claim - Suggestion that 'lack of grip' had the knock-on effect of the national lockdown being introduced days or even weeks too late, causing many thousands more unnecessary deaths. Response - The government started to act as soon as it was alerted to a potential outbreak. Mr Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The government's scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Hancock instituted daily meetings to grip the emerging threat. We have taken the right steps at the right time guided by the scientific evidence. Claim - Scientists said the threat from the coming storm was clear and one of the government's key advisory committees was given a dire warning a month earlier than has previously been admitted about the prospect of having to deal with mass casualties. Response - The government followed scientific advice at all times. The WHO only determined that COVID 19 would be a global pandemic on 11 March. Claiming that there was scientific consensus on this is just wrong. Sage met on January 22 but the first NERVTAG meeting was held on 13 January (NERVTAG is the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group see here https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/new-and-emerging-respiratory-virus-threats-advisory-group ). Claim - The last rehearsal for a pandemic was a 2016 exercise codenamed Cygnus, which predicted the health service would collapse and highlighted a long list of shortcomings including, presciently, a lack of PPE and intensive care ventilators. Response - The Government has been extremely proactive in implementing lessons learnt around pandemic preparedness, including from Exercise Cygnus. This includes being ready with legislative proposals that could rapidly be tailored to what became the Coronavirus Act, plans to strengthen excess death planning, planning for recruitment and deployment of retired staff and volunteers, and guidance for stakeholders and sectors across government. Claim - By February 21 the virus had already infected 76,000 people, had caused 2,300 deaths in China and was taking a foothold in Europe, with Italy recording 51 cases and two deaths the following day. Nonetheless NERVTAG, one of the key government advisory committees, decided to keep the threat level at 'moderate'. Response - This is a misrepresentation of what the threat level is. This is about the current public health danger and on February 21, when the UK had about a dozen confirmed cases, out of a population of over 66 million, the actual threat to individuals was moderate. In terms of the potential threat, the government was clear on 10 February the Secretary of State declared that 'the incidence or transmission of novel Coronavirus constituted a serious and imminent threat to public health'. Advertisement 'This is an unprecedented global pandemic and we have taken the right steps at the right time to combat it, guided at all times by the best scientific advice. 'The Government has been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect our NHS and save lives. 'Our response has ensured that the NHS has been given all the support it needs to ensure everyone requiring treatment has received it, as well as providing protection to businesses and reassurance to workers. 'The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the response to this, providing leadership during this hugely challenging period for the whole nation.' The tone of the statement, posted on the official gov.uk website, was much more aggressive than that used by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove on Sunday morning TV appearances when he described the article as 'off beam'. Mr Gove had confirmed the Sunday Times report that the PM had not attended five meetings of the key Government committee Cobra in the run-up to the crisis, but insisted this was not unusual. He confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but added: 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' Number 10 also insisted Mr Johnson 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Speaking earlier today, Mr Gove said the accusation the PM purposefully sidestepped these five meetings was 'grotesque'. He had earlier told Sky News's Sophy Ridge: 'The idea that the Prime Minister skipped meetings that were vital to our response to the coronavirus, I think is grotesque.' That stance was echoed by the Government spokesman who said: 'It is entirely normal and proper for Cobra to be chaired by the relevant secretary of state. 'At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared Covid-19 a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern', and only did so only on January 30. 'Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the Cobr meeting.' In reference to the report that the UK sent 279,000 items of protective equipment to China earlier this year, the Government spokesman said: 'The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. 'We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China.' Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth told Sky News: 'There are serious questions as to why the Prime Minister skipped five Cobra meetings throughout February, when the whole world could see how serious this was becoming. 'And we know that serious mistakes have been made, we know that our frontline NHS staff don't have the PPE, that they've been told this weekend that they won't necessarily have the gowns which are vital to keep them safe. 'We know that our testing capacity is not at the level that is needed. 'We know that the ventilators that many hospitals have received are the wrong types of ventilators and there are big questions as to whether we went into this lockdown too slowly, and now we hear the Prime Minister missed five meetings at the start of this outbreak. It suggests that early on he was missing in action.' Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News today that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. He told Sky News: 'What really is emphasised in that piece is the fact that the government ministers had their eye off the ball. 'They were totally focused on other issues such as Brexit, and the celebration of us emerging from Europe. 'The Prime Minister had other things on his mind, and we're fully aware of this, but apparently he didn't attend five Cobra meetings on this issue. 'And when Michael Gove says 'but prime ministers don't attend all Cobra meetings', I cannot recall a Cobra meeting when it was called with Blair or Brown as prime minister when the prime minister wasn't in the chair.' Damian Green, former de facto deputy prime minister under Theresa May, told Sky News it was 'not unusual' for the Prime Minister to miss Cobra meetings. He said: 'Cobra meets more often than people think. 'Cobra meets quite a lot and quite often it's not chaired by the Prime Minister. 'There are times when the PM has to be there to chair it, when big decisions need to be made. 'It's perfectly sensible to be chaired by the Health Secretary.' It also emerged today that the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Medial care staff have expressed alarm as surgeons are being advised 'not to risk their health' by working without adequate PPE amid fears that hospitals could run out of supplies. The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS) said it was 'deeply disturbed' that medics could be asked to reuse items or wear different kit when treating Covid-19 patients. Healthcare staff treating positive patients have been given guidance that they should wear long-sleeved disposable fluid-repellent gowns but, because of shortages, they have just been advised they could be asked to reuse PPE or wear aprons. The fear from medics comes as more than 15,000 patients have now died in hospital after testing positive for the disease in the UK, with thousands more deaths expected in care homes. President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday expressed gratitude to police forces for ensuring the ongoing lockdown to combat the coronavirus with sensitivity and professionalism. Kovind took to Twitter to thank fellow citizens, NGOs, social workers, religious and charitable organisations, Red Cross and many others who are serving the nation in different ways. "I commend their spirit. I am confident of their sustained contribution in ensuring victory against COVID-19," he said. The president said, "My thoughts are with all those serving the nation in the fight against COVID-19, despite grave risks to themselves and their families" and asked all to express gratitude to our police, armed forces and security personnel for their courage and determination. "Internally, police forces are ensuring lockdown with sensitivity and professionalism. Armed and Paramilitary Forces are securing us against cross-border terrorism," he tweeted. The lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic. It was further extended till May 3. PTI AKV http://ptinews.com/images/pti.jpg We bring the World to you"Disclaimer : This e-mail message may contain proprietary, confidential or legally privileged information for the sole use of the person or entity to whom this message was originally addressed. Please delete this e-mail, if it is not meant for you. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The state plans to test all employees in social care facilities and the suburban bus operator increases the number of bus connections. Read the overview of news from the weekend. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled This is your overview of news from April 18-19. For all news about the coronavirus in Slovakia click here. Read more about the measures currently in place in Slovakia. Our paywall policy: The Slovak Spectator has decided to make all the articles on the special measures, statistics and basic information about the coronavirus available to everyone. If you appreciate our work and would like to support good journalism, please buy our subscription. We believe this is an issue where accurate and fact-based information is important for people to cope. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Coronavirus in Slovakia (updates) - The cross-border workers, so-called pendlers, will possibly not have to prove they have tested negative for coronavirus when crossing the borders for now. Back on April 17, chief hygienist Jan Mikas said that they will be required to prove they are COVID-19 free with a test no older than 30 days. However, PM Igor Matovic (OLaNO) told the private news channel TA3 on April 19 that the pendlers should wait with the testing paid from their own pockets for a few days. If the morbidity compared with other countries is the same, the measure loses its sense, he added. Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister Ivan Korcok (SaS nominee) said that the measure was to prevent the risk of the coronavirus from spreading. Mobility, including the cross-border type, increases the risk of spreading the infection, Korcok told the private broadcaster TV Markiza, adding Slovakia cannot negate the increased infection rate in the country where pendlers live. He also assured that they will monitor the situation closely and step in if the measure proves problematic. - The state is planning across-the-board checks of all 40,000 employees of the social care facilities, PM Igor Matovic (OLaNO) said. This is a response to the high number of people infected with the coronavirus there. Moreover, seven clients of the retirement home in Pezinok have already died of the disease. The so-called quick tests will be used for the testing and at the places where problems occur, other tests will be carried out, said Labour Minister Milan Krajniak (Sme Rodina) during the political talk show O 5 Minut 12 (Five to Twelve) broadcast by the public-service RTVS. - A crisis manager took over the leading post in the retirement home in Pezinok. The facility has been in quarantine for more than a week after dozens of its clients have been positively diagnosed with the coronavirus, and some have died. Meanwhile, the police secured computers and documents from the retirement home, which will now undergo a thorough decontamination so that they can check them within the ongoing investigation. - The total capacity of quarantine facilities in Slovakia where people coming from abroad after April 6 are placed is currently 4,800 beds. Currently, there are nearly 2,700 people, which means about more than one half of available beds has been occupied. Coronavirus measures in Slovakia - The operator of suburban bus transport in Bratislava Region increased the number of bus connections as of Sunday, April 19, following an analysis and requests from passengers. The aim is to secure safe and reliable transport for those who need to commute to work. - The Health Ministry has published a protocol concerning the launch of some planned surgeries, specifying the conditions under which they can be performed. - The State Institute for Drug Control has informed that several over-the-counter medicines containing Paracetamol, Ibuprofen and acetylsalicylic acid have been missing on the Slovak market. This is due to the increased demand from patients who have been purchasing them en masse. - Trnava-based carmaker Groupe PSA Slovakia suspended its production on March 19 due to the coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, it introduced several sanitary measures to protect its staff, such as measuring body temperature when entering the building, drawing necessary distances on the pavement, and pre-prepared lunch packages. Although the carmaker remains closed for now, it invited journalists to see their premises and introduced measures. Events cancelled due to the coronavirus - One of the biggest folklore festivals in Slovakia, the Folklore Fest under Polana held in Detva (Banska Bystrica Region), has been cancelled. Originally, the organisers considered postponing it to another term, but they had to reassess their decision due to the current situation. (TASR) - The Transport Ministry has postponed the traditional Do Prace na Bicykli (To Work on Bicycle) campaign from May to September. Minister Andrej Dolezal (Sme Rodina) sees a certain symbolism in the change, adding that another traditional event, European Mobility Week, is being held this month in several European cities. By Trend Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 30 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry on April 20. The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles. 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. Subscriber content preview MOUNT VERNON (AP) The U.S. Navy has announced plans to monitor jet noise around Naval Air Station Whidbey Island and also at a base in California. The Navy submitted the plan to Congress on March 19, outlining a general timeline and the terms for monitoring, including the use of 10 or more sound level monitors in the vicinity of usual flight paths, the Skagit Valley Herald reported. . . . Travel and travel planning are being disrupted by the worldwide spread of the coronavirus. For the latest updates, read The New York Timess Covid-19 coverage here. The hotelier Phil Hospod has spent the last two years building The Wayfinder, a boutique hotel in Newport, R.I. And despite the pandemic, he is still planning to open in mid-May. The hotel, which will have an outdoor pool deck, an on-site restaurant serving coastal cuisine and seersucker-inspired rooms, was nearing completion when Gov. Gina M. Raimondo of Rhode Island issued a strict stay-at-home order on March 28, banning all gatherings of more than five people. Were really close, which is kind of exciting, but also the painful part, Mr. Hospod said. But hes plowing ahead and says that once the government gives the green light, he could open his doors within two weeks. He has had to make some adjustments: Covid-19 has stalled deliveries his mattresses are stuck in New York, his art in Ohio and a lobby fireplace in California. So he has begun relying more on local suppliers, and has also set up sanitation stations across the site for his construction crew (who are allowed to work). Unable to conduct job interviews in person, hes interviewing front desk staff, bartenders, cleaning crews and more via videoconferencing. Mamata Banerjee upset after not being allowed to speak during PMs meet PM, Amit Shah must explain: Mamata Banerjee on COVID-19 teams in Bengal India oi-Deepika S Kolkata, Apr 20: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday sought to know the rationale behind the formation of six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to assess the enforcement of lockdown norms in states. "We welcome all constructive support and suggestions, especially from the central government in negating the Covid-19 crisis. However, the basis on which centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs (Inter Ministerial Central Teams) in select districts across India, including a few in West Bengal is unclear," Mamata Banerjee tweeted on Monday. Bengal also on same page as PM over extending lockdown till April 30: Mamata Banerjee "I urge both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to share the criterion used for this. Until then, I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," she said. Six central inter-ministerial teams have been mandated to ensure compliance of lockdown guidelines such as social distancing norms, the central government says. The teams have been assigned to visit is to visit Kolkata, Howrah, Midnapore East, 24 Parganas North, Kalimpong, Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri. The teams will assess the situation on the ground, issue necessary directions for remedy and submit a report to the central government. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, April 20, 2020, 19:29 [IST] By Express News Service CHENNAI: The Chennai Corona Warriors (CCW) have raised donations to the tune of `7 lakh after Express highlighted their efforts. Comprising more than 500 college students, CCW is engaged in helping daily wage workers and people with disabilities (PwD) in the city. Some people reached out to us directly, while others donated through a crowdfunding platform. Also, lot of people contacted us for help. We have helped 473 families so far and are planning to reach 1,000 families by next week. This was a much-needed push for the whole team, said Arun Bhaskar, founder, CCW. The requests received at the helpline of the Commissionerate for the Welfare of Disabled, are also redirected to CCW. Once a request is received, CCW purchases the provisions and upload the bills and beneficiary details online. This is to ensure transparency, so that the donors know their money is being put to right use, said the organisers. They can be contacted at 9940402225. College students Most of the volunteers are students of MCC, SRM, Hindustan University, Ethiraj, Dr Ambedkar Law University and SNDB Vaishnava among others. NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday that New York City has a sufficient supply of N95 masks and ventilators, but called on the federal government to urgently send the city more surgical gowns. Theres been a growing problem, and this problem we have not found a solution to yet, that is the surgical gowns and these are crucial because they protect our healthcare workers when theyre doing some of the most sensitive work, the mayor told reporters during a press conference. He said White House Trade Advisor Peter Navarro had already sent New York City enough fabric to make 400,000 surgical gowns, which would be ready by May 23, but would need more. There are now eight companies in Brooklyn manufacturing 240,000 face shields a week and another five companies producing 30,000 surgical gowns a week. By the end of next week, he said those companies will be able to produce at least 465,000 face shields and 100,000 surgical gowns a week. Last month, the mayor said New York City would need 3 million N95 face masks, 50 million surgical masks, 15,000 ventilators, and 25 million each of surgical gowns, coveralls, gloves and face masks. There are currently at least 5,800 ventilators across all hospitals in the city, City Hall said. City Hall provided the Advance with a glimpse for the first time last week of the number of supplies it has sent to the Islands hospitals to date during the coronavirus outbreak. So far, the city has sent Richmond University Medical Center: 52,240 N95 masks; 146,000 face masks; 4,772 eyewear; 3,472 gloves; 70 ventilators and 400 other miscellaneous personal protective equipment. All of the supplies Staten Island University Hospital receives from the city go through its parent company Northwell Hospitals distribution hub first, which then decides where supplies are needed the most within its hospital system. City Hall said it has given the Northwell system: 1.3 million face masks; 365,280 N95 masks; 47,018 eyewear; 452,700 gloves; 14,226 gowns; and 500 ventilators. SIUH has been unable to say which supplies it has received from the city. FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON TWITTER. *** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK *** WINNIPEG - The Manitoba government is asking its Crown corporations, universities and other publicly funded bodies to map out temporary workforce cuts of up to 30 per cent. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. WINNIPEG - The Manitoba government is asking its Crown corporations, universities and other publicly funded bodies to map out temporary workforce cuts of up to 30 per cent. 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. The province sent a memo last week to various agencies asking that they cut spending to free up money for health care and the battle against COVID-19. The memo asks each group to lay out three different scenarios for workforce reductions in the next four months 10 per cent, 20 per cent and 30 per cent. Those plans are due this week, and Premier Brian Pallister says the province will discuss what changes can be realistically achieved. The Progressive Conservative government has already asked non-front-line civil servants to agree to reduced work weeks to help free up money. The University of Winnipeg says it has already laid off recreation staff and others who provide services that require students to be physically on campus. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020 A Vietnamese businessman has invented a machine that provides free rice for people out of work during the coronavirus crisis.The device operates 24 hours a day, just like a bank money machine, or ATM. Businessman Hoang Tuan Anh set up his first rice machine in Ho Chi Minh City. I refer to this machine as a rice ATM because people can withdraw rice from it, assured that there are still good people out there who want to give them a second chance, Anh said. Vietnam is under a nationwide stay-at-home order to help stop the spread of COVID-19. During the order, many small businesses have been forced to close. This has left thousands of people unable to work. Nguyen Thi Ly is a 34-year-old mother of three. Her husband is unemployed because of the coronavirus restrictions. She said, This rice ATM has been helpful. With this one bag of rice, we can have enough for one day. She added, Now, we only need other food. Our neighbors sometimes give us some leftover food, or we have instant noodles. The machine releases 1.5 kilograms of rice from a small container to waiting workers. Many of those waiting in line are street sellers. Others earn a living from direct paying jobs like house cleaning. Before creating the rice machine, Hoang Tuan Anh had donated smart doorbells to hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City to help with virus-fighting efforts. But then he decided to use his technological experience to find a new solution to get free food to the public. State media in Vietnam reports that similar rice ATMs have been set up in other big cities like Hanoi, Hue and Danang. Anh said he wanted people to feel like they still could still get food and resources, even with worsening economic conditions. Many people in the Communist-ruled nation depend on government financial help during such difficult times. Vietnam has also approved economic assistance measures to help some of those hurt by the current situation. But some workers who earn a living from street businesses like Nguyen Thi Ly and her family say they have not received enough support. She told Reuters reporters that her family does not have enough money to pay for housing and other necessary things. I read about this rice ATM on the internet. I came to check it out, and couldnt believe it came out for real, Ly said. I really hope the sponsors would keep doing this until the end of the pandemic. Im Bryan Lynn. Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story refer v. to talk about someone or something assure v. to tell someone that something is true, especially so that they do not worry instant adj. happening immediately noodles n. thin pieces of pasta used in Chinese cooking sponsor n. an arrangement in which someone gives money to support something pandemic n. an illness that spreads around the world LAS VEGAS, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nevada elected leaders and public health experts will join hundreds of constituents from across Nevada for a virtual town hall hosted by the Recovery Advocacy Project to address addiction and mental health concerns during and post COVID-19. Recovery Advocacy Project The current COVID-19 health crisis in Nevada has presented a wide-range of challenges to people in and those seeking recovery from addiction and mental health disorders. Given the current CDC guidelines and Governor Sisolak's stay-at-home order, mutual aid groups that provide life-saving support services have moved onlineand many are fortunate enough to have the access to the supports needed to sustain their pathways to wellness. However, many Nevadans are still unable to access the services needed to enter and maintain their personal recovery. In the spirit of community collaboration and learning, the Recovery Advocacy Project will be hosting a virtual town hall for the recovery community, families, allies, and policymakers on Thursday, April 23 from 6-7:30 p.m. PDT. The purpose of the town hall will be to discuss the COVID-19 response, supporting those in and seeking recovery, and the impact of this pandemic on the demand for these needed services and supports. The town hall is also an opportunity for citizens of Nevada to learn more and provide input on the community funding needs to combat the state's addiction and mental health crisis. Confirmed panelists include: Senator Julia Ratti , State Senator, District 13 , Senator Joe Hardy , State Senator, District 12 , Assemblyman Steve Yeager , Assemblyman, District 9 , Assemblywoman Jill Tolles , Assemblywoman, District 25 , Mayor Hillary Schieve , Mayor, City of Reno , Mayor Pro Tem Michele Fiore , Las Vegas Councilwoman, Ward 6 Councilwoman Victoria Seaman , Las Vegas Councilwoman, Ward 2 , Stephanie Woodard , DHHS Senior Advisor on Behavioral Health , Terry Kerns , Substance Abuse Law Enforcement Coordinator, Office of the Attorney General , Valerie Cauhape , Rural Regional Behavioral Health Policy Board , Dorothy Edwards & Frankie Lemus , Washoe Regional Behavioral Health Policy Board , Jenny Gratzke , Southern Nevada Health District , Dona Dmitrovic , Executive Director, Foundation for Recovery Ryan Hampton , Organizing Director, Recovery Advocacy Project Registration is free and open to all interested Nevada residents by visiting this link: https://www.recoveryvoices.com/covid-townhall/ This event is OPEN PRESS. For more information, please contact Ryan Hampton at 310.569.3755 or [email protected]. SOURCE Recovery Advocacy Project Related Links http://www.recoveryvoices.com Parts of Europe hit hard by the deadly coronavirus pandemic took tentative steps towards resuming normal lives on Monday, with Germany allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarting nurseries. Governments across the world are debating how and when to ease the lockdowns that have kept more than half of humanity -- 4.5 billion people -- confined to their homes and crippled the global economy. After emerging in the industrial central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, the respiratory virus has claimed roughly 165,000 lives, with nearly two thirds of the victims in Europe. But there were encouraging signs over the weekend in Europe with daily death tolls dropping in Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open on Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Adding another flicker of hope in Europe, Norway allowed children to go back to nurseries on Monday, although some parents expressed reservations over the decision. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month, and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". Authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. In the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the outbreak was "on the descent". Cuomo cautioned that it was "no time to get cocky", although the warmer weather lured New Yorkers out of their homes and into parks over the weekend. "I feel a little guilty being here, at the same time for my own mental sanity this is probably what I need," said real estate agent Taylor Henderson at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Across the other side of the world, New Zealand announced Monday that it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." Iran, which has the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, also allowed some "low-risk" businesses to reopen Saturday. - Bleak Ramadan - But after Christians around the world marked Easter with subdued ceremonies, Muslims in the Middle East and beyond are preparing for a bleak Ramadan -- the holiest month in the Islamic calendar -- which begins later this week. Mosque prayers have been suspended and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. Several countries' religious authorities, including Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Abdulaziz al-Sheikh, have ruled that prayers during Ramadan and Eid be performed at home. Mosque prayers have been suspended and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. "Our hearts are crying," said Ali Mullah, the prayer leader at the Grand Mosque in Mecca. "We are used to seeing the holy mosque crowded with people during the day, night, all the time... I feel pain deep inside." - Anti-lockdown protests - In the United States, which has the more than 759,000 confirmed infections and nearly 41,000 deaths, some are increasingly chafing under stay-at-home orders and are taking to the streets to protest. Anti-lockdown demonstrations over the weekend drew hundreds of people in states including Colorado, Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio. Many waved American flags, and some carried weapons. But others stayed in their cars or wore protective masks. President Donald Trump fuelled another bout of fury over the weekend by lending support to the protests against the lockdown restrictions -- which medical experts say save countless lives. In Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro -- who has repeatedly claimed the virus threat is overblown -- joined hundreds of protesters in Brasilia who objected to state governors' stay-home orders. Brazil has the most infections in Latin America, a region where an AFP tally on Sunday showed total cases had surpassed 100,000 with nearly 5,000 deaths. "Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro told the protesters in an address that was interspersed with fits of coughing. burs-qan/kma The government has said migrant labourers can return to their jobs if their place of work is in the same state where they are stranded. The government has also listed a safety protocol for the workers who want to start working again. "(If)...migrants wish to return to their place of work, within the state where they are presently located, they would be screened and those asymptomatic would be transported to their respective places of work," the Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines said. Those who are looking for jobs will be registered with local authorities who will carry out their "skill-mapping" to make it easy to find suitable work. Notably, the government had issued guidelines on the relaxation of the lockdown norms from April 20, keeping in mind the problems faced by poor, migrants, labourers and those living in rural areas. About 10 lakh workers are living across 26,476 various relief camps in India. The Labour Ministry data suggests around 6 lakh walked home after the lockdown announcement, while the rest stayed back in relief camps. The government, however, has clarified there will be no movement of labour outside states where they are currently located. The government guidelines come after industries flagged the shortage of labour as one of the big concerns amid the lockdown. To make labour available to industries, the government has allowed movement of migrants to their places of work. "The local authorities shall also provide for food and water for the duration of their journey," the ministry guidelines said. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown 2.0: Does your district fall in 'red zone' hotspots? Check out full list here KEY GUIDELINES The migrant labourers currently residing in relief/shelter camps should be registered with the concerned local authority Their skill mapping be carried out to find out suitability for various kinds of works. A group of migrants wish to return to places of work within the state, where they are presently located, will be screened and those who are asymptomatic will be transported to respective places of work. There will be no movement of labour outside the state/UT where they are currently located. Safe social distancing norms should be followed and buses used for transport should be senitised. Local authorities will also provide for food and water etc., for the duration of their journey. Certain government and private industrial establishments will start opening from today. Industries operating from rural areas, i.e. outside the limits of municipal corporations and municipalities; and industrial units in special economic zones and export-oriented units, industrial estates and townships will resume work. However, they will have to ensure workers stay in premises or adjacent buildings. The companies will also be responsible for the transportation of workers to the campuses while ensuring all social distancing norms are followed. India reported 36 more COVID-19 deaths in past 24 hours taking the toll to 543 while, the total number of confirmed cases have crossed the 17,000 mark. According to latest data by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are 17,265 confirmed coronavirus cases in India currently including 14,175 active cases, while 2,546 have been cured and discharged and 1 migrated. Also Read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: MHA warns states against curfew violations; cases tally-17,265 Resident Evil stunt performer Olivia Jackson has won a legal battle after an accident on set of the film left her partially paralysed and needing her arm amputated. Olivia Jackson was standing in for Milla Jovovich while shooting for Resident Evil: The Final Chapter in Cape Town in 2015 when a motorcycle she was riding at high speed was involved in a collision with a crane-mounted camera vehicle. Jackson, who is based in the UK, was left with a twisted spine, dislocated shoulder, severed thumb, punctured lungs and broken ribs and was in a coma for 17 days. Her left arm had to be amputated above the elbow and the top left quarter of her body including her neck was paralysed, with Jackson still suffering lasting nerve damage and facial scarring. Now, over a year since first filing a lawsuit in September 2019, a court in South Africa ruled in favour of Jackson, agreeing that the local company Bickers Actions SA had been negligent in their planning and execution of the stunt. Additionally, the judge dismissed the defendants allegations that it was poor driving on Jacksons part that had caused the accident. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jackson said of the ruling: I miss my old face. I miss my old body. I miss my old life. At least I now finally have a court judgment that proves this stunt was badly planned and that it was not my fault. Jacksons counsel Julian Chamberlayne of Stewarts added: This judgment is an important recognition that stunt performers are not themselves inherently responsible, nor willing but disposable volunteers when something goes wrong. Like all workers they are owed a duty of care by those responsible for the safest possible performance of the stunt. (Alliance News) - Former top Home Office civil servant Philip Rutnam has formally launched legal action against Priti Patel, according to his union representatives. The department's ex-permanent secretary is claiming "constructive dismissal" in the claim submitted to an employment tribunal on Monday morning, civil servants' union the FDA said. Rutnam quit his post in February amid allegations of bullying behaviour by Home Secretary Patel. The news of the latest move in his legal case comes as the Cabinet Office is expected to conclude an inquiry into claims that the minister clashed with senior officials and belittled colleagues. In a statement, FDA general secretary Dave Penman said: "On February 29 2020, Philip Rutnam resigned as permanent secretary of the Home Office, indicating that he intended to pursue a claim of constructive dismissal. "Following his resignation, the FDA instructed Gavin Mansfield QC, head of Littleton Chambers and employment law specialist, as counsel to advise Philip, supported by Clive Howard, senior principal lawyer, employment and partnership at Slater and Gordon. "This morning, Philip, with the support of his legal team and the FDA, submitted a claim to the employment tribunal for unfair (constructive) dismissal and whistleblowing against the Home Secretary. "Philip will not be making any further comment at this time." It is understood the papers have been lodged at the Central London Employment Tribunal. When Rutnam quit his post earlier this year, he launched a blistering attack on Patel, claiming he had been the target of a "vicious and orchestrated briefing campaign" which he accused her of orchestrating, and said the decision to resign was with "great regret after a career of 33 years". In a statement released by his lawyers at that time, he said: "The Home Secretary categorically denied any involvement in this campaign to the Cabinet Office. "I regret I do not believe her. She has not made the effort I would expect to dissociate herself from the comments." He went on to claim that despite his efforts at reconciliation, Patel "made no effort to engage with me to discuss this", adding: "I believe these events give me very strong grounds to claim constructive, unfair dismissal and I will be pursuing that claim in the courts." Reports of feuding at the top of the Home Office prompted the head of the Civil Service, Cabinet Secretary Mark Sedwill, to tell all civil servants a week earlier that advice they provide for ministers and "any debates" around it should remain "private". One report suggested Patel had tried to move Rutnam from her department after they had a series of rows. It was also claimed in various reports that the Home Secretary was distrusted by intelligence chiefs a which the government denied. Patel expressed concern at the "false" claims, while allies described her as a "demanding" boss but not a bully. By Flora Thompson, PA Home Affairs Correspondent source: PA Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. A 21-year-old woman who was allegedly caught on video bashing two Chinese students in racially motivated attack cried in court on Sunday night when told she could be jailed. Shortly after, however, Jakkara Brigham was seen laughing and joking with guards as she was released on bail, being told she had narrowly avoided a jail stint, according to 9News. The young woman appeared in Melbourne Magistrates Court charged with recklessly causing injury after video appeared online of two female Chinese university students being verbally and physically attacked. Video appeared online of two female Chinese university students being attacked in the Melbourne CBD Jakkara Brigham, 21, was released on bail after appearing in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday over the incident The two students were attacked on Elizabeth Street in the Melbourne CBD about 5.30pm on Wednesday, suffering non-serious injuries. Ms Brigham sobbed in court as the magistrate warned her she could be waiting 12 months in custody for a hearing, saying she behaved 'appallingly' and calling her an 'unguided missile.' Police are still searching for a second woman shown in the video that they say can help with their inquiries. She is described as about 20-years-old and Caucasian, with a skinny build and shoulder-length blonde hair. She was wearing a pink jacket on the night of the attack. A bystander stepped in to help the two Chinese students after the alleged attack Police are searching for a second woman they say can help with their inquiries The two Chinese students previously spoke out about the attack saying they were taunted about coronavirus before being punched and kicked. 'She started saying get the f*** out of our country - you don't belong here,' one of the students said. 'I'm really scared they think it's OK to do to other people,' the other student added. A bystander holding a dog stepped in to help the student after she hit the ground and the attacker began to kick her. 'You're a f***ing imbecile,' the attacker can be heard yelling after the bystander stops her. She then apologised to the man before walking away. Both students sustained non-serious injuries. The video first began circling on the Korean Kakaotalk group chat but was then posted on other sites. The caption on the video also suggested the attack was fueled by racism. 'Two white Australian girls were following two Asian girls, constantly swearing. Finally when they turned back to [ask] them to stop they started to assault them,' the caption on the video read. A few years after World War II, 20-year-old Betty Beck wasnt old enough to drink or vote, but she was of age to serve her country. Young and intrepid, she left behind her home in San Saba, and joined the Army as one of its first physical therapists in the Army Medical Specialist Corps. As the Korean conflict ended, she was stationed in Korea, where she met medical supply officer 1st Lt. William Beck. They married, raised two sons and lived at several stateside bases after he transferred to the Air Force. He retired as a lieutenant colonel after 28 years of service. For the past five years, shes lived at Kaulbach Assisted Living senior living community where family members would visit her each week. But since the beginning of March, theres been a void in her life thats the last time a relative was able to be in the same room with her. It bothers me a lot, Beck, 95, said via a video call from her apartment decorated with family photos and miniature American flags. Im not used to being without them around. On ExpressNews.com: Food distributor continues fathers legacy of charity across San Antonio Beck is one of hundreds of residents at the Morningside at the Meadows campus who are isolated from loved ones to reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus. Her son Bruce Beck, 69, and his wife, Patricia, 68, have kept in contact with her via FaceTime on her iPad twice a week or more often. Morningside Ministries staff are planning to install a new in-room television channel to help residents stay connected with each other, family members and friends. Beck last saw her family in person at the beginning of March for their monthly Duck Night, where the family gathers for the Peking Duck dinner at Kim Wah Chinese BBQ on Bandera Road. While he misses his mother, Bruce Beck said he appreciates the strenuous efforts in place to keep his mother and all residents safe. Considering how isolated she is, shes in good spirits, he said. She understands how dangerous it is. All we can do is live day by day, until its over. We are at the whims of a lot of others decisions. A retired lawyer, he recalled stories his parents told him about serving in the military. After physical therapy training in Utah and military boot camp in Georgia, his mother boarded a ship in Seattle, bound for Korea. She learned the war had ended en route to the embattled country. While stationed at the Korean base, she cared for patients who were amputees, helping them learn to walk again. On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio health care administrator reflects on storied 43-year nursing career Among the framed memories in her apartment is a photo, yellowed with age, of herself in a white nurse uniform and black shoes, standing beside a uniformed William Beck holding a puppy in a desolate yard. After a yearlong courtship, they were wed in her familys San Saba home, after a slight hitch. Im not sure Im ready for this, she whispered as the couple walked toward the living room crowded with family and guests. Thats OK, he replied, willing to call it off if thats what she wanted, then added: But thats your family that youll have to explain it to. Taking the biggest step of her young life, she breathed in and recited her wedding vows. After she separated from the military, she volunteered to help children and patients with cerebral palsy at her husbands duty assignments, which included Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston and Columbus, Miss. Bruce Beck said after his father died in 1989, his mother was quite wise about planning finances for the future. She set up a long-term care insurance policy thats allowed her to have her current health care plan. Recently, when home health care caregiver Adriana Hernandez and Meadows executive director Wes Wells visited Beck, she was upbeat and happy that there are people in the community who visit her. Being stationed in Korea after the war was much harder, Beck said. Thats the military part of you, Wells said. Im proud of you being so strong. On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio pastor ministers to those in need at East Side church Beck watches television and was a regular at exercise class, but its her faith and fellowship with her congregation that kept her in good spirits. Now, the only drawback to the order is not being able to attend services at Northwood Presbyterian Church off Pike Road, south of Loop 410. Phone calls and video chats from family members have brightened the residents days said Dion Muniz, assisted living director at Kaulbach. All of the residents look out for Beck, who he said in return watches out for their best interests. This, too, shall pass, said Muniz, but we have to do everything we can do to protect our elderly, our vulnerable population. We owe it to them; they deserve the best we can give them. Theyre the ones who are going to suffer if we dont. When the stay-at-home order is lifted and Beck is no longer isolated from the world, the first thing she wants to do is embrace her loved ones. After her reunion, she plans to go outside, stop beneath the sprawling tree branches and breathe in the fresh air. Vincent T. Davis is a reporter in the Greater San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Vincent, become a subscriber. vtdavis@express-news.net | Twitter: @vincentdavis Crowds gathered at the Swamis Beach parking area in Encinitas, California, on Sunday, April 19, to protest the closure of area beaches, surf areas, and trails due to COVID-19 restrictions. Protesters chanted open our beach and carried signs, some written on surf boards, with slogans such as salt water is safe, and surfing is not a crime. News reports said the City of Encinitas ordered the closure of area beaches and trails on April 15 in order to help enforce social distancing. Protests against lockdowns and social distancing measures have cropped up across the United States in April, including in Texas, Wisconsin, Nevada, Maryland, Idaho, Michigan, and Minnesota. Credit: @alex_hope_kane via Storyful PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 17:31:05 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS The shareholders of Active Biotech AB (publ) are invited to the Annual General Meeting of shareholders to be held on Tuesday, May 19, 2020, at 5 p.m. in the Companys offices, Scheelevagen 22 in Lund, Sweden. INFORMATION RELATING TO THE CORONA VIRUS As a result of the Corona virus, Active Biotech kindly asks the shareholders not to participate in this years Annual General Meeting in person. Instead, Active Biotech encourages shareholders to carefully consider the possibility of participating in the meeting by way of proxy or advance voting (see below). Any questions to be raised by shareholders at the Meeting can be sent to the Company by e-mail to susanne.jonsson@activebiotech.com in advance of the Meeting. Written answers to the questions raised will be posted on the Companys website after the Meeting. ENTITLEMENT TO PARTICIPATE Shareholders who wish to participate in the Meeting must (i) be recorded in the register of shareholders maintained by Euroclear Sweden AB on Wednesday, May 13, 2020, and (ii) notify the Company of their intention to participate in the Meeting not later than on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Shareholders who have trustee-registered their shares must register the shares in their own name to be entitled to participate in the Meeting. Such registration, which may be temporary, must be completed on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Accordingly, shareholders must inform the trustee of this request in ample time prior to this date. There are 145,236,480 shares and votes in Active Biotech. The Company holds no treasury shares. NOTICE OF PARTICIPATION Notice of participation in the Meeting can be made in writing to Active Biotech AB (publ), Attn: Susanne Jonsson, P.O. Box 724, SE-220 07 Lund, Sweden, by telephone +46 (0)46-19 20 00 or by e-mail to susanne.jonsson@activebiotech.com. The notice shall include name, personal/corporate identity number, number of shares held, daytime telephone number and, if applicable, the number of advisors (not more than two) that will accompany the shareholder at the Meeting. Shareholders represented by proxy shall issue a dated and signed power of attorney for the proxy. If the power of attorney is issued on behalf of a legal entity, a certified copy of a registration certificate or corresponding document indicating the authorized signatories of the legal entity shall be appended. The original power of attorney and, where applicable, the certificate should be submitted to the Company at the address indicated above well in advance of the Meeting. Proxy forms are provided at the Companys website, www.activebiotech.com, and sent to shareholders that so request. ADVANCE VOTING The shareholders may exercise their voting rights at the Annual General Meeting by voting in advance. Active Biotech encourages all shareholders to use this opportunity in order to minimise the number of participants attending the Meeting in person and thus reduce the spread of the Corona virus. A special form shall be used for advance voting. The form is available on Active Biotechs website, www.activebiotech.com. A shareholder exercising its voting right through advance voting do not need to notify the Company of its attendance to the Meeting. The advance voting form is considered as the notification of attendance to the Meeting. The completed voting form must be submitted to Active Biotech so it is received no later than Wednesday, May 13, 2020. The completed and signed form shall be sent to the postal address or e-mail address stated under the section Notice of participation above. If the shareholder is a legal entity or is voting in advance by proxy, a certificate of incorporation or a corresponding document shall be enclosed to the form. The shareholder may not qualify the advance vote with special instructions or conditions. If so, the vote is invalid. Further instructions and conditions is included in the form for advance voting. PROPOSED AGENDA Opening of the Meeting Election of Chairman of the Meeting Preparation and approval of the voting list Election of one or two persons to verify the minutes Approval of the agenda for the Meeting Determination of whether the Meeting has been duly convened Presentation of the Annual Report and the Auditors Report, and the Consolidated Accounts and the Auditors Report for the Group Resolution concerning the adoption of the Income Statement and the Balance Sheet, and the Consolidated Income Statement and the Consolidated Balance Sheet Resolution concerning the disposition of the Companys results pursuant to the adopted Balance Sheet Resolution on discharge from liability of the members of the Board of Directors and the CEO Determination of the number of members and alternate members of the Board of Directors and the number of auditors and alternate auditors Determination of fees payable to the Board of Directors and auditor Election of the Board of Directors, Chairman of the Board and auditor a) re-election of Michael Shalmi, b) re-election of Uli Hacksell, c) re-election of Peter Thelin, d) new election of Axel Glasmacher, e) new election of Aleksandar Danilovski, f) new election of Elaine Sullivan, g) re-election of Michael Shalmi as Chairman of the Board, and h) re-election of KPMG AB as auditor of the Company. Resolution concerning Election Committee The Board of Directors proposal regarding guidelines for remuneration of senior executives The Board of Directors proposal regarding amendment of the Articles of Association The Board of Directors proposal regarding implementation of a long-term performance-based incentive program for the Companys employees MGA Holding ABs proposal regarding implementation of a long-term performance-based incentive program for Board members The Board of Directors proposal regarding share issue authorization Closing of the Meeting For full notice of Active Biotech's Annual General Meeting on May 19, including proposed resolutions, see attached PDF or www.activebiotech.com . DOCUMENTATION, ETC. The Annual Report and other supporting resolution documentation will be held available at the Companys premises at Scheelevagen 22 in Lund, Sweden, and on the Companys website, www.activebiotech.com, not later than three weeks prior to the Meeting. The documents will be sent to shareholders who request a copy and specify their postal address. Shareholders are reminded of their right to request information under Chapter 7, Section 32 of the Swedish Companies Act. For information about the processing of your personal data, please refer to https://www.euroclear.com/dam/ESw/Legal/Privacy-notice-bolagsstammor-engelska.pdf. Active Biotechs corporate registration number is 556223-9227 and its registered office is in Lund, Sweden. Lund, April 2020 The Board of Directors of Active Biotech AB (publ) Attachment Mr Powell has moved onto the two grey polyester fibres found in Ciara's hair mass known as VW1. The state alleges the fibres originate from the seat inserts of a 1996 Holden Commodore VS Series 1 station wagon - the same make and model driven by Mr Edwards at the time of the murders. The fibres are considered part of the 'grey polyester, group 1' which also includes 20 fibres found in Jane's hair. Mr Powell said the two fibres from Ciara's hair were each compared against three fibres taken from different areas of Mr Edwards' former car and deemed to correspond. They were also compared against two grey polyester fibres recovered from Jane's hair and found to match. By PTI DUBAI: The UAE government on Monday announced to operate special repatriation flights from four Indian cities to bring back its nationals stuck in the country due to the restrictions on air travel amidst the coronavirus pandemic, media reports said. Sharjah-headquartered budget carrier Air Arabia will operate the repatriation flights from Mumbai, Delhi, Kochi and Hyderabad, Khaleej Times reported. While the special flights from Mumbai and Delhi will operate on Monday, those from Cochin and Hyderabad will operate on Tuesday, it said. "Air Arabia remains committed to bring stranded citizens back home as well as supporting requests to operate repatriation flights and is working closely with UAE authorities in this regard. ALSO READ | 160 British nationals repatriated in UK government's chartered flight The airline announced earlier that it's operating a mix of repatriation flights as well as cargo flights during the month of April to multiple destinations," it said in a statement on Monday. Further information about the repatriation and cargo flights is available on the website or can be obtained by contacting the Air Arabia call centre on 06 5580000, it said. Last week, the airline announced new passenger repatriation as well as cargo flights to nine countries -- Afghanistan, Iran, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Sudan, Egypt, India and Nepal -- from Sharjah International Airport. The Indian government has banned all domestic as well as international air travel until May 3 in view of the coronavirus pandemic which has killed over 160,000 people globally. A 40-year-old COVID-19 patient, who had fled from an isolation centre in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city last week along with seven others, has been caught, police said on Monday. He was among eight COVID-19-infected persons who had fled from the isolation centre. The seven others have already been caught from different places in the state. Kishanganj police station in-charge Shashikant Chaurasia told PTI on Monday that the 40-year-old COVID-19- infected man was caught on Sunday at a toll booth on the Agra-Mumbai Highway during a routine checking. Police were intercepting people trying to move out of Indore district in violation of the coronavirus-enforced lockdown, he said. "The COVID-19 patient, who had fled from an isolation centre in Indore, took lift from a motorcycle rider and was going towards the Manpur area. "He told the motorcycle rider he came to Indore to raise fund for a madarsa before the implementation of the nationwide lockdown and got stuck here," Chaurasia said. "Initially, the COVID-19-infected person did not tell us the truth. Later he confessed that he was among the eight people who fled on Wednesday last from an isolation centre in Indore. According to his Aadhaar card, he hails from Lucknow," the police officer said. Chaurasia said, "The person told us that he and others had fled from the isolation centre out of fear." The police officer said the motorcycle rider, a resident of Manpur, was allowed to go home after he produced medical documents so show he had gone to a doctor for psychiatric treatment. He said samples of the motorcycle rider and his family members will be collected and tested for coronavirus. According to police officials, three of the escapees were caught in Indore and admitted to a private hospital. Four others were apprehended on Thursday in Morena district, about 550km from Indore. The officials said all these people originally hail from Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and had come to Indore for business purpose before the nationwide lockdown was announced late last month. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Global Village, a multicultural festival park in Dubai, is celebrating everyday heroes around the world by taking part in #LightItBlue, a worldwide campaign to show support for healthcare professionals and essential workers in the fight against Covid-19. Global Village is one of several global landmarks invited to participate in the #LightItBlue initiative and shine a beacon of support. Following last Thursday's tribute, Global Village will continue to show its support as part of #LightItBlue every Thursday evening at 8pm to encourage further regions to participate in the campaign. #LightItBlue began in the UK in March as a way to pay tribute to the country's National Health Service (NHS). Landmark buildings, venues and communities were lit blue in tribute to those battling the coronavirus pandemic. It has since been adopted in other regions around the world, and last Thursday marked the initiative's appearance in the Middle East. - TradeArabia News Service The Congress on Monday accused the BJP of playing politics on the Palghar incident in which three persons were lynched by a violent mob on the suspicion that they were thieves. "I think the BJP is playing politics at a very very disturbing moment in our society's history," senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, commenting on the incident of lynching. On the night of April 16, three Mumbai residents who were on their way to Surat in Gujarat were lynched by local residents in Gadakchinchale village in Maharashtra's Palghar district on the suspicion that they were thieves. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Schuylerville Dave Cummings helped put on the first Earth Day at the University at Albany 50 years ago. It was an in-person affair. A member of student government at the time, Cummings remembers the meetings, the speakers and the trash cleanup in Washington Park which the late Albany Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd participated in. Then, the mayor spoke to the students. The political and environmental impact of Earth Day occurred as the federal government created the EPA, made key amendments to the Clean Air and Clean Water acts as well as the Endangered Species Act. This Wednesday marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day but the celebration is being muted by the coronavirus pandemic. The use of social distance to slow the spread of the diseased moved the commemorations, celebrations and informational talks online. Hear more about our environmental coverage around on Earth Day episode of The Eagle: A Times Union Podcast Rather than events, concerts, gatherings and marches, a full menu of online events is planned for the anniversary. Many will focus on climate change and its role in possibly aggravating the COVID-19 pandemic through warmer temperatures and pollution which can impact peoples health and leave them vulnerable to other health problems. The coronavirus pandemic does not shut us down. Instead, it reminds us of whats at stake in our fight for the planet. If we dont demand change to transform our planet and meet our climate crisis, our current state will become the new normal a world where pandemics and extreme weather events span the globe, reads part of the website for earthday.org which will feature a day of online talks, question-and-answer forums and even performances focused on climate change. Participants will include former presidential candidates John Kerry and Al Gore, diplomat Christina Figueres, actor Zac Efron and model Arizona Muse. Actor Ed Begley Jr. and writer Bill McKibben are also participating in the day-long event. Another online event, earthdaylive2020.org, will feature three days of web-based activism starting Wednesday. Speakers will include Joaquin Phoenix, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Questlove, Patricia Arquette, and Rachael Ray. The event, which looks like a wide-ranging e-conference on environmental activism, is put on by the US Climate Strike and Stop the Money Pipeline coalitions. Climate Strike is a coalition of student climate strikers and others while Stop the Money Pipeline aims to eliminate the use of fossil fuels. Specific to the Capital Region, People of Albany United for Safe Energy are offering up a buy local, grow local proposal for the city of Albany. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Additionally, a coalition of New York environmental groups are planning teleconferences to push for continued support of the states Clean Water Infrastructure Act, the Environmental Protection Fund, and ensuring the Restore Mother Nature Bond Act reaches voters in November. Some individuals are putting on their own on-line events. Schodack resident Carol Morley is taking to Zoom to organize discussions around Earth Day. She is planning a talk with members of the North Chatham United Methodist Church and another one with her sisters pre-school class at Hunter-Tannersville Central school in Greene County. Among the pre-school topics: Why the surrounding Catskill park is a special place, and the late Gov. Mario Cuomos childrens book, "The Blue Spruce." She also plans to be on the front lawn, celebrating with neighbors at a safe distance. More for you 50th anniversary of Earth Day tinged by pandemic Alas, Cummings may not be able to partake in all of these online events. He lives in a rural area of Saratoga County that lacks broadband service, relying instead on his smart phone for connectivity. rkarlin@timesunion.com 518 454 5758 @RickKarlinTU PHILADELPHIA (April 20, 2020) - Sitting a baby in front of a tablet or television, as well as less parent-child play time, are associated with developing greater autism spectrum disorder (ASD)-like symptoms later in childhood. These findings, from the first prospective study on the subject, are published today in JAMA Pediatrics from researchers at Drexel University's College of Medicine and Dornsife School of Public Health. The authors suggest that these findings come at a critical time during this coronavirus pandemic with many children at home all day and parents juggling working from home or other new responsibilities while watching their children. "The literature is rich with studies showing the benefits of parent-infant interaction on later child development, as well as the association of greater screen viewing with developmental delays," said lead author Karen F. Heffler, MD, a researcher in the College of Medicine. Our study expands on this previous research by associating early social and screen media experiences with later ASD-like symptoms." During babies' 12- and 18-months well visits, their caregivers were asked about how often their baby is exposed to screens or books, and how often they play with their child. Following this group of 2,152 children from the National Children's Study the team examined how watching television or videos, as well as social play time and reading together, were associated with ASD risk and ASD-like symptoms at two years of age as measured by the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT). While toddlers generally are interested in interacting with others, those with ASD-like symptoms are less likely to show these social behaviors. Controlling for gender, race, maternal age, and prematurity, the team found that viewing screens at 12 months of age was associated with four percent greater ASD-like symptoms, and daily play time with a parent compared to less than daily play time was associated with nine percent less ASD-like symptoms. The findings back recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics which discourages screen time in children younger than 18 months, unless it is used for video chatting. One in 54 children has ASD, a condition four times more prevalent in boys than in girls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Previous studies report that about 50 to 80 percent of overall autism risk is genetic, yet non-genetic contributors are poorly understood. "These findings strengthen our understanding of the importance of play time between parents and children relative to screen time," said senior author David S. Bennett, PhD, a professor of Psychiatry in the College of Medicine. "There is a great opportunity for public health campaigns and pediatricians to educate and empower parents to possibly minimize their child's risk of ASD symptoms, which may include increasing social interaction and limiting screens at an early age." The authors note that their study did not find an association with ASD risk, but rather with ASD-like symptoms. Future studies should explore whether this relationship is determined by children predisposed to ASD being drawn to the screens or screens contributing to ASD-like symptoms. In the meantime, the authors suggest that parents adhere to the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation to avoid screen time in children younger than 18 months and limit screens to one hour daily through age 5 years, co-viewed to help children understand what they are seeing. The paper also provides additional evidence associating prematurity, minority race or ethnicity, as well as lower income with higher risk of ASD and ASD-like symptoms. ### In addition to Heffler and Bennett, additional authors on this paper include Danielle M. Sienko, MS, who completed the work while at Drexel's Dornsife School of Public Health, Keshab Subedi, MS, MSc, of ChristianaCare Health System, and Kathleen A. McCann, M Phil, of Social & Scientific Systems, Inc. Photo credit: Hardy et al. From Popular Mechanics A paper published in Scientific Reports studied plant fibers, refashioned into string, that were discovered as part of an ancient flint tool. This new evidence suggests human ancestors were more intelligent than previously thought. The string is between 41,000 and 52,000 years old, making it the oldest string in the world. A cave in southern France has been home to a small treasure for thousands of yearsa tool used by Neanderthals. This simple toolwhose function remains unknown but could have been part of any number of items such as a basket or snareprovides evidence that our ancestors understood the math behind pairs, sets, and numbers. The Abri du Maras excavation sitewhere the tool was foundhas previously revealed other fibers that led to the hypothesis of Neanderthal string production in the past, but conclusive evidence was lacking, according to the paper. Bruce Hardy, a paleoanthropologist and one of the paper authors, was studying the stone tool when he noticed there were little bits of white embedded within the stones surface. It was a mass of twisted fibers, Hardy told NPR. Adding that as soon as he saw the fibers, it was clear that we had something. Archeologists dug up the tool approximately 10 feet under the surface, which was then analyzed using light microscopy. Photo credit: M.-H. Moncel The light microscope revealed that Hardy found a three-ply cord fragment derived from the interior bark of an unidentified evergreen. Marie-Helene Moncel, another paper author and research team member, told NPR that the fragment was intentionally placed on the stone to create a working tool. Moncel is certain that due to the location where the find was made in conjunction with previous discoveries at the Abri du Maras site, the tool was created by a Neanderthal. Still, some in the scientific community believe that the possibility exists that early Homo sapiens may have forged the tool using the tree fibers to create the string. Paleoanthropologist John Shea told NPR that just because Neanderthal remains have been found in the area, that doesnt preclude the presence of early man inhabiting the same space at the same time as well. Story continues You have to keep an open mind, he said. Source: NPR You Might Also Like SEATTLE, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Proton therapy is a radiation therapy that uses protons rather than x-rays for the treatment of various types of cancer such as uveal melanoma, liver cancer, prostate cancer, choroidal melanoma, nasal cavity and paranasal sinus cancer, nasopharyngeal cancers, chordoma, chondrosarcoma, malignant meningioma lung cancer, spinal and pelvic sarcomas, and non-cancerous brain tumors. Statistics: The global proton therapy market is estimated to account for US$ 1,549.7 Mn in terms of value by the end of 2027. Request for Sample PDF copy @ https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-sample/3672 Market Drivers: Increasing prevalence of cancer is expected to propel growth of the global proton therapy market over the forecast period. For instance, according to the American Cancer Society, in 2019, there will be an estimated 1,762,450 new cancer cases diagnosed and 606,880 cancer deaths in the U.S. Increasing funding for cancer research is also expected to aid in growth of the market. For instance, in April 2020, the state government of Kansas (U.S) awarded The University of Kansas Cancer Center with an additional US$ 5 million grant for cancer research. Market Opportunities: R&D in proton therapy is expected to offer lucrative growth opportunities for players in the global proton therapy market. For instance, in April 2020, researchers from Samsung Medical Center, South Korea, reported investigating the targeting of checkpoint kinase 1 as a promising strategy to potentiate proton therapy in human triple-negative breast cancer cells. Moreover, use of proton therapy in combination with of other therapies is also expected to aid in growth of the market. For instance, in September 2019, researchers from Southern Tohoku Proton Therapy Center, Japan, reported that proton therapy combined with intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy was useful in establishing control of the primary tumor and maintaining the patients quality of life in the treatment of stage IV adenoid cystic carcinoma of the base of the tongue. Story continues Read Report Summary @ https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/market-insight/proton-therapy-market-3672 Key Takeaways: The global proton therapy market was valued at US$ 1,058.1 Mn in 2019 and is forecast to reach US$ 1,549.8 Mn by 2027 at a CAGR of 4.7% between 2020 and 2027. Increasing prevalence of cancer is expected to propel growth of the global proton therapy market over the forecast period. Full Ring PET Scanner segment held dominant position in the global proton therapy market in 2019, accounting for 84.3% share in terms of value, followed by Partial Ring PET Scanner, respectively. Increasing research and development in proton therapy is expected to drive the growth of the segment during the forecast period. Oncology segment held dominant position in the global proton therapy market in 2019, accounting for 85.6% share in terms of value, followed by cardiology and neurology, respectively. Increasing adoption of radiopharmaceuticals for treatment of cancer in developed and developing economies is expected to assist the growth of oncology segment during the forecast period. Market Trends In North America, increasing prevalence of lung cancer is expected to propel growth of the market. For instance, according to The American Cancer Society, the U.S. is expected to record around 228,820 new cases of lung cancer and around 135,720 deaths due to the disease. Competitive Landscape Major players operating in the global proton therapy market include, Hitachi Ltd., Ion Beam Applications SA, Mevion Medical Systems, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, ProNova Solutions, LLC, ProTom International, Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd., and Varian Medical Systems. Buy this Research Report @ https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/buy-now/3672 Taxonomy (Scope, segments) Global Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Market, By Product Type: Full Ring PET Scanner Partial Ring PET Scanner Global Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Market, By Application: Oncology Cardiology Neurology Others Global Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Market, By Detector Type: Bismuth Germanium Oxide (BGO) Lutetium Oxyorthosilicate (LSO) Gadolinium Oxyorthosilicate (GSO) Lutetium Fine Silicate (LFS) Lutetium Yttrium Orthosilicate Global Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Market, By End User: Hospitals Diagnostic Centres PET Centres Research Institutes Global Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Market, By Geography: North America By Country: U.S. Canada Europe By Country: U.K. Germany Italy France Spain Russia Rest of Europe Asia Pacific By Country: China India Japan ASEAN Australia South Korea Rest of Asia Pacific Latin America By Country: Brazil Mexico Argentina Rest of Latin America Middle East: By Country: GCC Israel Rest of Middle East Africa By Country/Region: Central Africa South Africa North Africa Mr. Shah Coherent Market Insights 1001 4th Ave. #3200 Seattle, WA 98154 Tel: +1-206-701-6702 Email: sales@coherentmarketinsights.com London, April 20 : In yet another study linking air pollution with high rate of coronavirus mortality, German researchers have found that elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air may be associated with a high number of deaths from novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Nitrogen dioxide is an air pollutant that damages the human respiratory tract. For many years it has been known to cause many types of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in humans. The study, published in the journal Hypertension, combines satellite data on air pollution and air currents with confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 and reveals that regions with permanently high levels of pollution have significantly more deaths than other regions. "Since the novel coronavirus also affects the respiratory tract, it is reasonable to assume that there might be a correlation between air pollution and the number of deaths from COVID-19," said study researcher Dr Yaron Ogen from the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) in Germany. In his latest study, the geoscientist combined three sets of data. This included the levels of regional nitrogen dioxide pollution measured by the European Space Agency's (ESA) Sentinel 5P satellite, which continuously monitors air pollution on earth. Based on this data, the researchers produced a global overview for regions with high and prolonged amounts of nitrogen dioxide pollution. "I looked at the values for January and February of this year, before the corona outbreaks in Europe began," explained Ogen. He combined this data with data from the US weather agency NOAA on vertical airflows. His premise: If air is in motion, the pollutants near the ground are also more disseminated. However, if the air tends to stay near the ground, this will also apply to the pollutants in the air, which are then more likely be inhaled by humans in greater amounts and thus lead to health problems. Using this data, the researcher was able to identify hotspots around the world with high levels of air pollution and simultaneously low levels of air movement. He then compared these with the data on deaths related to COVID-19, specifically analysing the data from Italy, France, Spain and Germany. It turned out that the regions with a high number of deaths also had particularly high levels of nitrogen dioxide and a particularly low amount of vertical air exchange. "When we look at Northern Italy, the area around Madrid, and Hubei Provence in China, for example, they all have something in common: they are surrounded by mountains. This makes it even more likely that the air in these regions is stable and pollution levels are higher," Ogen said. The geoscientist suspects that this persistent air pollution in the affected regions could have led to overall poorer health in the people living there, making them particularly susceptible to the virus. Earlier, researchers at Harvard University in the US found that even a small increase in long-term exposure to PM2.5, or particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, can lead to a large increase in the death rate from COVID-19. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) NAPA VALLEY, CA UnemployedCalifornians wont be the only ones struggling to pay their bills in the comingmonths. Most, if not all,of the states 1,037 K-12 school districts, which rely heavily on money from thestates general fund, will likely have to rework their own spending plans forthe new school year. Although anexecutive order signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last month guarantees schooldistricts will continue to receive revenues budgeted for the current schoolyear, its the coming school year that concerns school administrators. With state taxrevenues and other sources of income expected to plunge, school boards willlikely be forced to redraft their fiscal year 2020-21 spending plans that werealready well along toward being finalized when the coronavirus forcedclassrooms to close in March. We dont knowanything; its as simple as that, says Mike Fine, chief executive officer ofthe Financial Crisis & Management Assistance Team (FCMAT), a state-funded organizationcreated in 1992 to provide school districts with financial and managementadvice on a voluntary basis. This is looking a lot like 2008. Fine said schooldistricts should be running different financial scenarios, if they haventbegun already, because nobody knows what the new school year will bring. Hebelieves school districts will be faced with extraordinary expenses requiredfor distance learning and other services provided by districts such as feedingstudents and child care. For Fine and hisstaff at FCMAT, business may soon be booming. On the Brink Troy Flint, of theCalifornia School Boards Association which represents nearly every district inthe state, said schools are in a worse financial position now than they were inthe great recession of 2009. Were on afinancial precipice where many districts will be in a precarious position and othersmay end up in receivership if theres a prolonged recession, he told Patch.Whats uncertain is just how far the state will go in providing financialassistance beyond its broad assurances that school districts will be taken careof. Story continues State and localsources provide most of the annual revenue for California schools, althoughfederal funds contribute. In addition to a share of local property taxes amounting to about 30% of each countys one percent tax levy schools relymost heavily on state funding derived from a portion of the states personalincome tax, sales tax and corporate and insurance tax collections. StateLottery proceeds also provide school districts with additional revenue. With millions ofCalifornians out of work, businesses shuttered and tax deadlines extended, anaccurate picture of revenues from income and sales taxes probably wont emergeuntil mid-summer, after the June 30 deadline for approval of school budgets,although a hint of revenue shortfalls will come in Mays state budget revisionand school districts will have a better picture of just how bad things mightbe. Complex Process An annual ritualalmost incomprehensible to the average taxpayer, the process of constructing aschool district budget is in large part dependent upon navigating a maze ofcalculations projecting how much state aid will be received under the LocalControl Funding Formula, a K-12 financing system implemented in 2013 replacingan even more confusing school funding method utilized for nearly 40 years. If youre asking how any revenue shortfall will affect state governmentin terms of the timing [when revenues are received] that will be an assessmentmade as we finalize our updated forecasts for the May Revision, H.D. Palmer,deputy director of the states finance department, told Patch. Palmer said its important to note that compared to the financial crisisof 2008-09, the states cash position is much better today than it was then. The Governors January budget proposal for FY 2020-21 projected anextremely healthy financial condition, Palmer said, but the states cashposition will be reassessed as part of the budget revision next month. Newsoms proposed budget, submitted to the state legislature Jan. 10increased state general fund spending for basic K-12 education to $61.6billion which included $3.15 billion to help reduce school districts annualcontributions to the state Teachers and Public Employees Retirement Funds andpay down the unfunded portion of those pension funds. Billions Short Yet a report issued by CaliforniasLegislative Analysts Office on April 5, predicted that revenues are likely tobe at least several billions of dollars lower than anticipated in January, althoughcompared to prior recessions the state enters this period of economicuncertainty with significant reserves. But the LAO warned that any decline instate revenues, as the state is likely to experience in response to thecoronavirus emergency, is likely to reduce school funding. According to the LAO, in February the statehad about $17.5 billion in reserves -- $16.5 in the Budget StabilizationAccount and $900 million in Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties. There wasanother $377 million in a special state reserve account specifically forschools. In addition, the LAO estimated the statesschool districts themselves had a total of $12.8 billion in reserves that couldbe spent for any purpose, an amount that would cover expenses for about twomonths. Whatever happensin May, the most pressing problem for school districts as they reconsiderbudgets in such uncertain times will be that of cash flow: How much theyll actuallyreceive from the state and, more importantly, when theyll get it. Until a betterrevenue picture emerges, its expected school districts will use at least partof what theyve squirreled away to make ends meet. Every district isrequired to set aside money for emergencies based on a percentage of theirprevious years expenditures. Many districts set aside only the minimumrequired while others budget more, with larger districts frequently reportingreserves substantially in excess of whats required. According to Napa Valley Unified School District financial statements, the district had nearly $10.3 million in total reserves as of June 2019. Over and abovethese required reserves, other sources of money may also be available to somedistricts. Funds budgeted in two other categories committed and assignedcould be redirected by school boards or district administrators if necessary. Where schoolboards have committed funds for specific purposes, such as equipment purchases,this money can be used for something else if a resolution is approved to changethe purpose. Funds assigned by administrators for particular expenses can alsobe redirected if necessary. Flint says thatabout half of the districts were already dipping into their reserves before thecoronavirus shut down schools, forcing school officials to begin operating inan uncommon environment. Reserves Required School districtsare required by state law to continue providing services in a time of crisisregardless of the costs, Flint said. Its the unanticipated costs created bythe health emergency that will make budgeting difficult for school officialsbecause they still have employee payrolls and benefit expenses which comprise80% or more of district budgets. Those expenseswill continue, albeit at reduced levels, until classrooms reopen. Although mostfull-time teachers will continue to receive paychecks because of labor contractrequirements, many districts have already furloughed scores of classifiedemployees, such as teacher aides, custodians and food service workers. Since benefitcontributions are based upon percentages of payroll, most notably to theCalifornia State Teachers Retirement Fund (CalSTRS) and the California PublicEmployees Retirement System (CalPERS) which provides pensions to classifiedemployees, these are expected to be temporarily reduced. Yet these giantcreditors, who themselves have been taking a short-term bath on investments,expect to be paid regardless, although they recognize everybodys hurting. Spokespersons forboth CalSTRS and CalPERS told Patch the pension funds will be working withschool districts on a case-by-case basis if they experience financial hardshipsand this includes potential waivers of penalties for late payments. However, retireeswill continue receiving monthly pension checks on time. While itsuncertain what will happen with the states May budget revision, a hint ofwhats in store may be the State Lottery, which last year contributed $1.5billion to K-12 school districts. Lottery distributions are estimated toaccount for as much as 2% of many districts revenue. Weveconcluded the current coronavirus public health emergency has negativelyimpacted sales by an estimated 25-30%, Lottery spokesman Jorge DeLaCruz toldPatch. As of April 9, DeLaCruz said some 900 Lottery dealers confirmedthey were closed due to the coronavirus about 4% of the states 22,154 retailoutlets selling Lottery products. According to thelatest data available, during the first half of the current fiscal year Lotterypayments to school districts totaled $617.1 million. Just how much thosepayments will drop wont be known until distributions are calculated for thesecond half of the current fiscal year in September. Whatever happens,Flint says the coronavirus pandemic presents an opportunity to remakeCalifornia public schools by encouraging a comprehensive approach to educationrather and a piecemeal approach. If nothing else,Flint said, the public is getting a better idea of how much schools are a hubof community and what happens when classrooms are closed. This article originally appeared on the Napa Valley Patch As coronavirus upends tradition, ministers could soon be social distancing and answering questions on video conferences. London, United Kingdom As they return to work from an Easter break, legislators in the United Kingdom will vote on holding Parliament virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 16,000 people in the country. If they approve the measures on Tuesday, the House of Commons will sit remotely for the first time in its 700-year history and MPs will be able to quiz government ministers via Zoom. I do not want Members and House staff putting themselves at risk. By working virtually, this is our contribution to the guidance of stay home, protect the NHS and save lives, said Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons who is behind the proposal. Under the plan, up to 50 legislators will be allowed in the chamber at any one time under strict social distancing rules, with another 120 able to participate virtually using Zoom. Screens will be placed around the Commons to allow those present in the chamber to communicate with others joining remotely. The virtual sittings will be in place for the first two hours of each days parliamentary business questions to ministers, plus their responses. Prime Ministers Questions at midday on Wednesday could be the first event to use what Hoyle has described as a hybrid [system] to keep democracy going during the coronavirus crisis. Once up and running, the system will be extended to cover debates and legislation, the House of Commons Commission said. No decision has yet been made on remote voting. Currently, MPs crowd into small rooms known as division lobbies to cast their votes in person. Parliaments unelected House of Lords is also scheduled to hold remote sittings from Wednesday using Microsoft systems, the upper chamber said last week. Hannah White, deputy director of the Institute for Government think tank, said the moves would ensure officials were held to account for major decisions at a moment of national emergency. The government have taken sweeping powers and is asking people to do really dramatic things in terms of their lives, White told Al Jazeera. They have got to maintain public trust in that; that theyre not just acting in an authoritarian way, but are accountable. Parliament plays a really important role in that. Questions over testing, PPE The return of Parliament comes as the ruling Conservative Party government faces mounting pressure over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Critics say Prime Minister Boris Johnsons administration is too slow in mass testing and has failed in providing healthcare workers with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE). Johnson is recovering from the coronavirus infection and has left Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, in charge. 200419072616077 The main opposition Labour Party, headed by Keir Starmer, is expected to press the government for answers. The UK remains under lockdown, a period of strict physical distancing measures that the government recently extended by three weeks. I think we will also see Starmer once again press this demand for some kind of discussion of an exit from lockdown, Tim Bale, a politics professor at Londons Queen Mary University, told Al Jazeera. He seems to think that it is very important, but the government [regards] that as risking a dilution of the main public health message. Policy at the moment is being driven less by public opinion and scrutiny and more by the advice they [the government] are getting from scientists. Four Lebanon organizations will received a total of $400,000 in donations from the Portland-based Heatherington Foundation for Innovation and Education in Health Care. The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Greater Santiam has been awarded $300,000. Lebanon Community Schools received $70,000, the Lebanon Soup Kitchen $20,000 and BeUndivided was granted $10,000 to assist its contributions to the food backpack program operated by Lebanon Community Schools. The Heatherington Foundation, which is affiliated with FamilyCare Health, has announced $2 million in total grants, including the $400,000 allotted for Lebanon. Dr. Bob Richardson, chair of the FamilyCare Board, explained the Lebanon connection in a press release. Lebanon has a special place in our hearts. This community opened its doors to help bring the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific to Lebanon. The college was founded in Lebanon in 2011, and thrives here today, Richardson stated. Richardson added, The coronavirus epidemic has presented all of us with unique challenges that will continue for some time. Our recovery from this virus depends on the strength of the community organizations that are serving our most vulnerable population. The donation comes at an opportune time for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Greater Santiam. The organization has stepped up to assist with the food delivery programs in Lebanon and Sweet Home and is offering child care for health care workers, first responders and other qualified essential workers at no cost to those families. The social restrictions imposed as a response to COVID-19 have also disrupted the Boys & Girls Clubs fundraising schedule, causing the postponement of several events. Jared Cornell, president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Greater Santiam Board of Directors, said this gift will help cover that gap. The announcement of these gifts to the Club and to the other Lebanon based organizations is amazing. The $300,000 investment helps to replace income that would have normally have been generated at the Annual Spring Auction (originally scheduled to be held on May 2). This investment will allow us to continue to provide the services families have come to expect in the short term, and to be here for the community for years to come, Cornell stated in a press release issued by the organization. Kris Latimer, the executive director for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Greater Santiam, pledged to make the best use of this donation. This has been a particularly trying time for so many in our community, including the Boys & Girls Club and our staff. We plan to carefully utilize this generous gift in order to increase the long-term stability of the organization, in the hope that Club is not in such a precarious position ever again. Wed also like to thank all the champions of children in our community that answered our appeal for support and stepped up over the past few weeks, helping us to make ends meet. We plan to make the very best of their investments, together with these funds graciously given by the Heatherington Foundation and FamilyCare, to create a positive impact for the future, Latimer stated. Bo Yates, the superintendent of Lebanon Community Schools, also expressed his appreciation for the donation, which will be used to help provide school internet access. This generous donation to our community will help serve our must vulnerable population in Lebanon. Families and individuals in need will benefit greatly from this tremendous act of giving, Yates stated. Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. As protesters across the country voice their objections to statewide stay-home orders and federal guidelines to curb the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus, the countrys top infectious disease expert has a message, the Associated Press reports. If states reopen their economies too quickly, its going to backfire, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, during an appearance on Good Morning America. Fauci is director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Unless the virus is under control, economic recovery wont be able to happen, he said. If states reopen prematurely, there will be another big spike in coronavirus cases and youre going to set yourself back. Some protesters are also calling for Fauci to be fired over the federal guidelines he has crafted regarding the virus. Last week, protesters executed Operation Gridlock around the Michigan Capitol in Lansing to protest Gov. Gretchen Whitmers updated stay home order that is in effect through April 30. As of Sunday, the total COVID-19 cases in Michigan were 31,424, with 2,391 total deaths. 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 CORONAVIRUS Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources How Cornell alum Dr. Anthony Fauci became a trusted voice during the COVID-19 crisis Coronavirus: How we might restart the CNY economy while keeping the virus at bay Coronavirus antibody testing taking place at 5 Wegmans locations, including in Syracuse Royal Canadian Mounted Police A denture-maker went on a rampage in a small town in Nova Scotiakilling at least 18 people, including a police officer, and sparking a 12-hour manhunt that ended with his death in a standoff at a gas station. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police identified the suspect as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, who owns denture clinics in Dartmouth and Halifax, and who apparently dressed as a police officer as he sowed terror across 55 miles. Authorities initially said he had killed 10 people, but the toll rose through the night as more victims were found, making it the deadliest attack in Canadas history. This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history, Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil said. The orgy of violence began late Saturday night in rural Portapique, where Wortman has property, when officers responded to 911 calls about gunfire. When police arrived at the scene, member located several casualties inside and outside the home, Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said at a news conference on Sunday evening. They did not, however, locate the suspect. Police swarmed the area and began hunting for Wortman, who set several buildings on fire before leaving the quiet seaside town of 1,600 and heading toward the port city of Halifax. This was a very quickly evolving situation and a chaotic scene, Leather said. Wortman made his way through several towns over the course of Sunday morning, with police tweeting out warnings to residents by the hour. At one point during his escape bid, police said it was possible Wortman was in a vehicle made to look like a police car and wearing a police uniform. An hour later they tweeted he was believed to be in a small silver SUV, suggesting he had switched vehicles. Catherine Harrop was working in a cider bar in Elmsdale when police swept through looking for Wortman. Two of the armored SWAT vehicles pulled up out front, and a bunch of armed officers in camo got out, Harrop told The Chronicle Herald. Two of them came into the Sobeys [food market] and some of the others walked through the parking lot. The ones that came inside told everyone to go into lockdown, lock all the doors, turn off all the lights and stay away from the windows until they gave us the go-ahead to open up again. Story continues Police apparently cornered the suspect at the Irving gas station and Big Stop restaurant in Enfield. A truck driver there told CTV News he heard a gas station employee shouting. She goes, Oh my God, lock the doors, hes here! And I peek out of the window and I saw some RCMP vehicles and there was four or five uniforms with guns, the driver said. Another witness, Glen Hines, said, All I could hear was gunshots and my wife, I thought I was going to call 911, because she was going into panic, it scared her so bad. Paula Hanrahan told The Chronicle Herald she was driving home when she saw the commotion. I could see the back end of a silver SUV and, oh my dear, there were more men than I could count in full gear with police on the back and assault rifles in their hands, Hanrahan said. All you could hear were the dogs growling, clawing at the pavement to get to this vehicle, and men yelling. Other witnesses said that after gunshot rang out, they saw a body on the ground. Soon after, police said the suspect was in custody. CTV News reported that Wortman was killed. Many details of the incident were still unclear, including what sparked the initial paroxysm of violence and why police believe Wortman was in a phony police car. Assistant Commissioner Lee Bergerman identified the slain officer as Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year police veteran and mother of two, though he did not provide details about when and where she was shot. I met with Heidis family and there are no words to describe their pain, Bergerman said. Countless families are in mourning today. Wortman has been in the news before. In 2014, he responded to a CTV story about a cancer survivor who lost her teeth and could not afford replacements. He offered to make new ones for free. My heart went out to her, Wortman said then. Theres so many ways for people to get dentures, but it seems like the people who really need them are the people who are getting left behind. TV host Candy Palmater told The Chronicle Herald that she and Wortman were close in college. I knew right from the beginning that this guy needed a friend, so I befriended him, she said. Most of my friends didnt like him, but I didnt care. He met my parents and members of my family, and we were inseparable for that whole year. I always felt like he wasnt quite comfortable in his own skin, but I thought as he matured, he would grow into himself. She added, Gabriel always had a sadness about him, but I was so shocked to hear that hed hurt other people. I dont know what his later adult life was like, but I can tell you that at university, people werent nice to him. He was a little bit different, like Im a little bit different, but he was beautiful and he had a really deep heart, but he was the brunt of everybodys jokes. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more. After his recovery from the dreaded coronavirus, two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks opened up about his experience battling the diseas and living in isolation with his wife Rita Wilson. In his recent interview with the National Defense Radio Show, the "Cast Away" star revealed that "Rita went through a tougher time" compared to him. Tom Hanks Details Wife's Ordeal "She had a much higher fever. She had lost her sense of taste and sense of smell. I had some bad body aches and was very fatigued, and that's how the COVID-19 went through us," Hanks shared about his wife's struggle with the deadly and infectious disease. The 63-year-old actor also mentioned that his wife was "so nauseous" and fragile that she needed to "crawl on the floor from the bed to the facilities." On Early Detection Hanks and Wilson announced that they have been diagnosed with coronavirus in the second week of March while in Australia. They were initially quarantined for three days. "It was relatively early in Australia's response to the coronavirus, and they wanted us to not give it to anyone else. That's why we were in lockdown," Tom explained. As much as possible, the "Forrest Gump" star wanted to do his daily activities -- staying fit while undergoing treatment. However, he admitted that he did not have the stamina to finish his exercise and "was wiped" 12 minutes into a 30-minute set." According to the World Health Organization (WHO), patients with mild to moderate symptoms may experience body aches, sore throat, headache and fever, as well as a respiratory illness. Rita Wilson Reveals "Extreme" Side Effects Of Chloroquine Before Tom Hanks' revelation, Rita detailed the "extreme" side effects of the controversial coronavirus drug called chloroquine in her first post-coronavirus interview with Gayle King on CBS This Morning. "I was very tired. I felt extremely achy," Rita shared. "Uncomfortable, didn't want to be touched and then the fever started. Chills like I've never had before. Looking back, I realize I was also losing my sense of taste and smell which I didn't realize at the time." Moreover, the actress and mom-of-two also warned the public to be "very considerate about this drug" since WHO claimed that there is still no solid evidence that chloroquine can be utilized for coronavirus treatment. US President Trump Promotes Chloroquine The said controversial drug gained popularity after U.S. President Donald Trump promoted the anti-malarial drug as a cure to COVID-19. Trump even described it as "one of the biggest game-changers in the history of medicine" which has shown "very, very encouraging results." Although the said drug is highly promising, infectious disease experts and scientists believe that Trump's claims may be premature as it needs further tests to determine whether the drugs are truly effective in combating coronavirus. While experts in the medical field seek a solution to fight COVID-19, European countries and the USA grapple to contain the increasing number of positive cases and fatalities across the nation. Reach key decision makers with sales-ready leads that shorten your sales process. Move the needle by delivering funnel qualified leads to your sales team. Learn more Apple users wondering if theyve caught COVID-19 now can ask digital assistant Siri for advice. The company on Saturday rolled out a self-screening feature that allows users to ask, Hey Siri, do I have the coronavirus? Siri then takes them through a questionnaire prepared by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and U.S. Public Health Service to determine if theyre exhibiting symptoms of the disease, such as fever, dry cough, and shortness of breath or if theyve had contact with someone with the virus. If users indicate their symptoms arent extremely life-threatening, Siri instructs them to stay at home and avoid contact with other people, wash their hands frequently and thoroughly, and maintain social distancing that is, a separation of six feet between people. If the symptoms persist, theyre advised to contact a physician. For extreme and life-threatening cases, Siri recommends a call to 911. The app doesnt delve into the realm of diagnoses. There are a number of symptoms that could be COVID-19 or something else, explained Seth Martin, MD, MHS, an associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. The only way to make a real diagnosis is to have testing performed to determine if those symptoms are actually due to COVID-19, he told TechNewsWorld. An app cant do that. In addition to the questionnaire and advice, Siri provides App Store links to telehealth applications that could include virtual consultations with medical professionals. Team CDC and Microsoft Also on Saturday, the CDC announced its Coronavirus Self-Checker, which is powered by Microsofts Healthcare Bot service. The chatbot is designed to screen Americans unsure about seeking medical care for COVID-19. In addition to asking questions based on CDC guidelines, the bot provides links to information and local health department contacts. However, it does not have information about coronavirus testing sites or treatment recommendations, other than to stay at home and take care of yourself and in severe cases, dial 911. This is most useful for the worried well,' said Catherine Troisi, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the UTHealth School of Public Health in Houston. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Those are people who are not sick but concerned that they may be, she told TechNewsWorld. It lets them if theyre not running a fever, dont have a dry cough, no shortness of breath release some of their anxiety. The Healthcare Bot service is designed to address some of the critical needs of frontline responders to the COVID-19 pandemic, noted Hadas Bitran, group manager at Microsoft Healthcare Israel, and Jean Gabarra, general manager at Microsofts Health AI, in an online post. In particular, the need to screen patients with any number of cold or flu-like symptoms to determine who has high enough risk factors to need access to limited medical resources and which people may more safely care for themselves at home is a bottleneck that threatens to overwhelm health systems coping with the crisis, they wrote. Microsofts Healthcare Bot service uses artificial intelligence to screen patients and free up medical personnel to provide critical care to those who need it, Bitran and Gabarra explained. The bot, which runs in Microsofts Azure public cloud, can be customized for the needs of individual organizations. In addition to the CDC, healthcare providers using the service include Providence, which serves seven Western states; Novant Health, serving four states in the Southeast; and Virginia Mason Health System, which serves the pacific Northwest. Watch Your Privacy Symptom checkers can benefit both the medical system and consumers, noted Michael Arrigo, a HIPAA expert witness with No World Borders. The tools can gather valuable epidemiology data about an epidemic. However, data collected by a checker needs to be stripped of identifying information so it cant be traced back to individual patients, he cautioned. For consumers, the checkers can be a convenient way to obtain data for their personal symptom logs, as well as a useful diagnostic for a layperson with limited medical knowledge. Convenience and education are great benefits of these checkers, Arrigo said. While potentially beneficial, Arrigo recommended that both Apple and the CDC give consumers more information about the apps before they start using them. A D V E R T I S E M E N T The apps are well-intentioned, but they could have the unintentional consequence of disintermediating the patient from their physician, who is the best source for information, he said. Because the prevailing opinions are that symptoms can take several days to appear in an infected person, these apps are not too useful at identifying some infected contagious people and could lead to a false sense of security, Arrigo added. If the intent is to relieve a potentially overwhelmed primary care front line of defense, a big disclosure needs to go up front, stating that a consumer should check their symptoms multiple times because symptoms can take several days to appear, he said. In the interim, you could be unwittingly be exposing others during that incubation period. Data gathered by the symptom checkers represents personal health records under federal law, which are subject to regulation by the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, noted Arrigo. The CDC does not share any of the personal information submitted to the Coronavirus Self Checker with Microsoft, reported Nextgov, a publication that covers government and technology. Microsoft provides the bot, but the CDC owns and maintains the checking tool. Use Common Sense Some consumers are creating their own symptom checkers based on information theyre gathering online, noted Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute, a public policy think tank in Washington, D.C. Symptom trackers from authoritative sources give consumers a better alternative to the do-it-yourself approach. Done properly, they can lessen peoples fears, suggest constructive actions people can take, perform at-home triage, and relieve the strain on the health sector, Cannon told TechNewsWorld. As always, people should only take health advice from sources who know their stuff, like the infectious disease experts at major health systems or government public health agencies, he cautioned. Like Dr. Seuss said, Do a lot of spitting out the hot air, and be careful what you swallow,' Cannon added. People should also use common sense, said UTHealths Troisi. If someone in your house has been diagnosed with coronavirus and you start having symptoms, and the symptom checker says you dont need to be tested, it might be a good idea to ignore that advice. I think a considerable number of people could die. But that wont be disclosed to the outside world because the North is not even able to diagnose patients with (the coronavirus), said Kim Sin-gon, a professor at Korea University College of Medicine in Seoul. He said North Korea is struggling to treat seriously ill patients, and noted U.N. reports that about 40% of its 24 million people are undernourished. Prince Harry allegedly did not tell his father Prince Charles that he and Meghan would be launching an unprecedented boycott of sections of the British Press in a protest over the way their lives have been covered. In a move that stunned Buckingham Palace courtiers and prompted allegations of 'censorship', the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have decided to withdraw all forms of co-operation from many of the country's most popular titles, including the Daily Mail. Last night one Palace insider said: 'We have been left stunned. They have not taken any of our advice.' The Duke of Sussex also did not tell his father Prince Charles before they took the action, reported The Times. A source told the newspaper that he called the Queen from his new home in Los Angeles at the weekend to discuss his plans - but 'did not go into specific details'. Those close to the Queen were angered that the couple chose to release details of their new media policy on the eve of her birthday today and at a time when Britain remains in the grip of the coronavirus crisis. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are pictured posing inside the grounds of Kensington Palace in November 2017 after announcing their engagement At the weekend, the duke even claimed that the coronavirus situation in the UK was 'better than we are led to believe from certain corners of the media'. Hours later the couple released a lengthy statement explaining their decision to no longer deal with The Sun, the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday, the Express and the Mirror as well as their online outlets. Yesterday Ian Murray, of the Society of Editors, said the decision was a 'clear attempt to undermine certain sections of the UK media who often ask uncomfortable questions'. He added: 'Although the duke and duchess say they support a free press, there is no escaping their actions here amount to censorship and they are setting an unfortunate example. The couple are pictured delivering food to vulnerable residents in Los Angeles, where they are living in a rented property 'By appearing to dictate which media they will work with and which they will ignore they, no doubt unintentionally, give succour to the rich and powerful everywhere to use their example as an excuse to attack the media when it suits them.' He noted that many of the news outlets had produced a 'huge amount' of positive coverage about the couple, and warned that 'the answer should never be to shun individual titles and their millions of readers'. Harry and Meghan have moved to the duchess's American home town of Los Angeles with their son Archie after stepping down as senior working royals in pursuit of commercial careers. They issued their letter on Sunday night. Notably, only British publications were targeted and the move was timed for maximum publicity yesterday when the duchess was appearing on Good Morning America to publicise the Disney nature film Elephant, which she has narrated. Harry and Meghan are pictured attending the Endeavour Fund Awards in London on March 5 In their letter, Harry and Meghan said they believe a free press is a cornerstone of any democracy, 'shining a light on dark places'. But they maintained that sections of the media had not wielded their power responsibly and there was a 'human cost'. The pair believe Meghan has been treated unfairly by the British press. The prince also smarted at criticism of their jet-setting lifestyle while preaching an environmental message. Their letter told the newspapers the couple will no longer talk to them. 'There will be no corroboration and zero engagement,' it added. 'This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. 'Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. 'But it can't be based on a lie. What they won't do is offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion.' It came after Harry was condemned for criticising UK news outlets at the weekend over their coronavirus coverage. Reacting to their letter, political broadcaster Andrew Neil said on Twitter: 'As the world grapples with Covid-19, do they really think people care what media they deal with? Their solipsism is amazing. Can't they just consign themselves to oblivion for a while?' The couple are pictured outside Canada House in London on January 7 Former royal press secretary Dickie Arbiter said the couple's 'timing seems horribly crass', adding: 'In current circumstances people are having to make sacrifices, they are dealing with losing loved ones without having the opportunity to say goodbye to them.... this is not what people are worrying about.' Even the Queen had been subject to scrutiny and 'criticism' but had always accepted that came as part of the Royal Family's position as public figures, he said. He added: '[Harry] seems to be very ill-advised by all these Hollywood types. To issue a blanket non-engagement about any story is actually very self-defeating. And it won't improve their press.' One royal source said the 'incredibly thin-skinned' couple had 'lost sight of the bigger picture', adding that their decision was 'foolish and, some might say, undemocratic'. Former Sun editor David Yelland told Radio 4's Today programme: 'It's one of the worst pieces of communications I have ever seen It will have no positive effects whatsoever.' Last night Labour peer Lord Falconer, a member of Tony Blair's government at the time of Princess Diana's death, said: 'It's very obvious that Harry feels the tabloid press and middle market press behaved very, very badly towards his mother. One can understand why he feels like it.' The Cayuga County Health Department reported one new confirmed case of the coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the total number positive test results for county residents to 45. The health department said the new case is a woman in her 30s who is a city of Auburn resident. Officials have completed the process of tracing contacts this person has had and providing any necessary notifications. People who have had contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 case are placed in a mandatory quarantine, which includes monitoring by the health department. As of Sunday, there are 36 people in mandatory quarantine in Cayuga County, down from 38 the day before. The health department also reported that a person who had been hospitalized with the coronavirus for the past few days has been released from the hospital, so there are no active cases involving hospitalizations in Cayuga County. The county has reported one death from COVID-19. Among the 45 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Cayuga County, 31 have been discharged from mandatory isolation because they met the criteria for a recovery. There are 13 people currently in mandatory isolation, which also requires health department monitoring. The county has now received results from 718 coronavius tests, which have been conducted by the health department, physicians, health care facilities and licensed clinical laboratories. Eight test results are pending as of Sunday afternoon. In Onondaga County, 13 news coronavirus cases were reported Sunday, raising the total there to 637. One new death from COVID-19 also took place in Onondaga County, bringing the total to 19. Coronavirus numbers for Onondaga County towns that border Cayuga remained the same on Sunday, with Lysander at 18, Skaneateles at 13 and Elbridge and Spafford both with two. Among other counties that border Cayuga, only Oswego County has posted updated numbers as of 5 p.m. Sunday. The total confirmed case figure there is now at 54. Tompkins County had reported total confirmed cases at 121 as of Saturday afternoon. Wayne (53 cases), Cortland (32) and Seneca (31) counties last posted figures on Friday. More than 20 patients have died. Dozens more are still hospitalized. And residents who had already been sent back to a nursing home in Gallatin, Tennessee, have turned up with new cases of COVID-19. An investigation finds that the facility downplayed the outbreak to first responders on 911 calls in late March. But the nursing home administrator told WPLN News that the coronavirus was unstoppable in Tennessee's largest outbreak yet. Dawn Cochran, the administrator of the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing, said department heads were summoned to a Saturday night meeting within 20 minutes of learning a staff member had tested positive for the coronavirus. And all employees were notified on March 21, a full week before a mass evacuation began. But COVID-19 was not a concern expressed in multiple 911 calls made on behalf of patients being sent to the hospital with trouble breathing in the days following that staffer's positive test, WPLN News learned through recordings obtained from an open-records request. Nursing homes are quickly becoming the deadliest battleground in this pandemic, with more than 3,600 deaths, according to the Associated Press. Nearly every resident is in poor health already, and, even under normal circumstances, infection control is difficult with so many older adults living in tight quarters. Most states are tracking only overall death counts at nursing homes, not individual outbreaks, according to the AP, which is relying on state health departments and press accounts to keep tabs on the scope of the problem. First responders not informed of cases As the Gallatin Center found residents needing more care than it could provide to help with breathing, it began to call 911 to transport patients to the hospital, recorded calls show. "Do you know if she's been in contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus?" the dispatcher asked on March 25. "No," the nurse responded, after a pause. Staffers did not warn 911 dispatchers, who asked specific screening questions so first responders could take precautions and wear protective gear. Another patient needed to go to the hospital the next day, March 26, after several employees had already tested positive and multiple patients were being tested. "Do you know if she's been around anybody who has traveled to the airport or on an airplane or been confirmed with coronavirus?" "No," the caller said, cutting off the question. And on March 27, just hours before a mass evacuation would begin, another patient was short of breath and unconscious. "Do you know if he's been in contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus?" the dispatcher asked. "We don't know. We have no clue," the caller said. That weekend, every patient and staff member would be tested. Nearly 100 residents had positive tests along with 33 staff members, most of whom had no symptoms. As of Friday, the Gallatin Center outbreak remained the largest in Tennessee, with at least 20 of the states 142 deaths. A deadly front in the war on coronavirus The guidance from federal regulators changes by the week, but the nursing home with the country's first deadly outbreak, in Washington state, was faulted by regulators for not moving rapidly enough to identify and manage ill residents. In Gallatin, federal surveyors told WPLN News they have completed their review but won't release their list of deficiencies until later this month. Patient families expect flaws to be identified. "I think a lot of it could have been prevented," said Tammy Howell. Her mother lives at the Gallatin nursing home and spent three weeks at the nearby Sumner Regional Medical Center, which took nearly all the COVID-19-positive patients. She had to test negative twice before returning to the nursing home. Howell and other family members said the nursing home dismissed ailments that turned out to be COVID-19. "Don't tell me that you've got a couple of cases and tell me my mom doesn't, and she has some of the symptoms, just because you want to cover your butt," she said. Howell said the hospital gave her more information than the nursing home ever did. The home has already been put on notice that some families intend to file lawsuits. They accuse the facility of making nurses work even though they weren't feeling well and failing to make everyone wear masks and gloves. Local officials have been displeased with the response, as well. "We were being told at first that basically they had this situation under control," Sumner County Mayor Anthony Holt said. "And it wasn't under control. It was completely out of control." Holt said the nursing home continued to ignore the advice of local officials who wanted patients to stay in area hospitals longer. Those who tested negative had been transported to neighboring counties so Sumner Regional hospital could focus on the patients who tested positive for COVID-19. After everyone was moved out of the nursing home and it was deep-cleaned, the nursing home started moving people back immediately which was the plan, endorsed by state regulators, all along. But Sumner County emergency management chief Greg Miller doubted the Gallatin Center had enough nurses who hadn't been exposed. "We thought they were rushing the decision to move them back in," he said. "We just weren't getting many answers." In the following days, after supposedly negative residents were moved back to Gallatin Center, at least three more residents fell ill and were moved to the hospital. On those 911 calls, though, staffers were more direct with dispatchers. "Have you obviously been in contact with anyone who has tested positive for the coronavirus?" one asked a caller from the nursing home on April 6. "Oh yeah, everybody here has," she said with a laugh. "I'm sorry. I just have to say that and laugh because that's all I can do." 'You cannot stop it' The nursing home's administrator has also become more open about the experience. In an interview with WPLN News, Dawn Cochran acknowledged she was overrun, even though she didn't think so at first. "Once you get one sick patient, it's a tidal wave. You cannot stop it," she said in an April 7 interview. Cochran said she was doing everything the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recommended, often ahead of schedule, like screening employees for symptoms. In recent years, though, CMS has cited the 200-bed Gallatin nursing home for deficiencies in infection control. They're minor lapses people sticking their hands in the community ice machine or poor management of bed linens. But they've resulted in below-average ratings. New Jersey-based Care Rite Centers purchased the nursing home in 2016 and owns nine facilities in the Nashville area. Cochran has a long career as a nursing home administrator but has been in the Gallatin facility only since early March. She said she could speak only for the time since she took over. As for the 911 calls without disclosing COVID-19 concerns, she said nurses were genuinely confused. "What appears to be COVID-like symptoms wasn't in two residents we had tested," she said. "So we just don't always know." Cochran said she has cooperated with state health officials from the beginning and saw them as a partner in planning the evacuation. Even as they await the federal findings, state officials have said they find the nursing home's response to be "perfectly adequate." "I'm hoping everybody can learn from it," Cochran said. "But at the same time, I don't know what we could have done better at the time I don't." At least 16 other Tennessee nursing homes also have multiple confirmed cases. Whether those get out of hand will shed light on whether an outbreak is truly inevitable. This story is part of a partnership that includes WPLN, NPR and Kaiser Health News. Mumbai, April 20 : Actress Mandana Karimi is distributing food among the needy from her cloud kitchen in the time of COVID-19 pandemic. "Well, I wanted to be able to reach out to people who need help. There are a few friends of mine in Bandra who are doing lot to help people in need of food . I got in touch with them and sent them the food and whatever was there at my place from my cloud kitchen Mandana' kitchen," she said. Mandana hopes no one "goes to bed empty stomach and everyone has shelter during such times". "The lockdown means different to different sectors of people. And we are all in it together to fight this pandemic. We are not going to relent back from helping. Let's stay home, stay safe and fight this epidemic," she said. Mandana started her career in Bollywood with a guest appearance in the film "Roy" She was later seen in "Bhaag Johnny", "Main Aur Charles", and "Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3". In an annual letter to shareholders published Thursday, Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, the worlds wealthiest man, sought to present himself and his company as selfless corporate do-gooders, concerned only with the highest ideals of serving the public amid the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed over 150,000 lives globally. The letter, addressed to our shareowners, comes amid a growing insurrection of Amazon workers demanding safe working conditions, paid medical leave, and personal protective equipment. Walkouts and strikes of Amazon workers have already taken place in Illinois, Michigan and New York, as well as Italy and Spain. Workers have been kept at their stations amid the pandemic with minimal and inadequate safety precautions and have fallen ill at a majority of the corporations United States-based warehouses. The company has treated the lives and well-being of its workforce in an openly callous manner, and now it is attempting to mitigate the damage to its image. One thing weve learned from the COVID-19 crisis is how important Amazon has become to our customers, Bezos letter begins. We want you to know we take this responsibility seriously, and we're proud of the work our teams are doing to help customers through this difficult time. The work of helping customers during the pandemic has been very profitable for the worlds richest man, who has recently gotten a lot richer. While workers risked their lives to keep the deliveries going, with many falling ill in the absence of adequate safety precautions, Bezoss wealth increased by a staggering $24 billion since January. As for Bezoss pride in the work our teams are doing, the companys callous treatment of its workforce is a reality that cannot be covered up with a few empty phrases. Prior to the pandemic, to cite just one example, the International Amazon Workers Voice uncovered a warehouse in Texas where hundreds of Amazon workers were being seriously injured every year. Workers reported abysmal conditions in warehouses around the country, including South Carolina, Texas, Maryland and California. Internationally, workers from Spain, Morocco, India, the United Kingdom and Australia denounced the conditions inside the companys warehouses. Since the pandemic, workers have spoken to the IAWV about abuses in facilities in Texas, South Carolina and Pennsylvania. Workers described working without adequate safety gear, cosmetic and meaningless safety precautions, and the company reneging on promises to provide two weeks paid leave to workers who were quarantined. Bezos thinks this all this can simply be papered over with a single letter written by his public relations staff. We are focused on the safety of our employees and contractors around the world, the multibillionaire writes, we are deeply grateful for their heroic work and are committed to their health and well-being Weve distributed face masks and implemented temperature checks at sites around the world to help protect employees and support staff. Left out of his self-serving account is the fact that these largely cosmetic safety measures were implemented piecemeal and after substantial delay. Workers waited for weeks for protective equipment after the deadly outbreak was labeled a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. Meanwhile, the temperature checks will fail to detect asymptomatic workers, who play a large role in spreading the virus. For workers who already have a fever as a result of the deadly virus, it may already be too late. In addition, what few cosmetic safety precautions Amazon has implemented were only a response to a wave of mutinies breaking out in its workforce, including walkouts staged by Whole Foods and Amazon warehouse workers. Bezoss letter may make Amazons wealthy investors feel better about themselves, but it will not fool workers, who have before their eyes dozens of cases of workers falling victim to COVID-19 at warehouses around the country, management denying sick leave to quarantined workers, the absence of safety equipment, and workers who speak out against the abusive policies of the company being harassed and fired. Sensitive to exposures of the companys practices of gouging customers for essential goods during previous crises, the CEO proudly states the company is now: acting aggressively to protect our customers from bad actors looking to exploit the crisis. We've removed over half a million offers from our stores due to COVID-based price gouging, and we've suspended more than 6,000 selling accounts globally for violating our fair-pricing policies. The company that risks the lives of hundreds of thousands of workers in order to boost profits, denies workers basic safety protections, and refuses to pay sick leave for quarantined workers is the biggest bad actor of them all, making the would-be price gougers seem like small potatoes by comparison. According to MSN, the letter offers a rare window into the thinking of the worlds richest man and his plans for the company he founded. Bezos in recent years has rarely done media interviews or commented publicly on events. Noting the woeful lack of testing for COVID-19 available to the population, Bezos proposes a team of Amazonians dedicated to work on this initiative A next step in protecting our employees might be regular testing of all Amazonians, including those showing no symptoms, he states, acknowledging that regular testing on a global scale, across all industries, would both help keep people safe and help get the economy back up and running. Bezos says more than perhaps he meant to say. He writes that he might, out of the goodness of his heart, provide testing for the workers who risk their lives every day to keep the billions pouring into his pockets. But what was intended as a charitable sentiment only reveals his callousness. He does not explain why a company sitting on a cash hoard worth tens of billions (or for that matter, the worlds richest man himself), did not attempt to implement regular testing months ago. At this point, one has no reason to doubt that any testing program that Bezos has in mind is motivated by the business and profit-making opportunities presented by positioning the Amazon conglomerate in front of a massive global demand for tests. In an effort to patch up Amazons battered corporate image, the Bezos letter spends an inordinate amount of time describing the companys charity and environmental work. Readers reminded of Amazons first signatory status to the Climate Pledge and his companys assistance to various state and governmental organizations. On the contrary, Amazons entire business model is built on extorting handouts from others. The company demands and receives billions in handouts from the federal and state governments in the US in return for creating jobs. As for climate change, on April 10 the company fired user experience designers Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, both of whom had been outspoken critics of the companies policies in relation to climate change. As John Adams famously observed, Facts are stubborn things. No matter how much Bezos spends on public relations campaigns, his reputation and the reputation of the company itself have been irreparably damaged in the eyes of hundreds of thousands of workers. Bezoss passages regarding the companys alleged charitable activities only underscore the fact that the Amazon conglomerate generates billions of dollars in profit, which are disposed of according to the whims of a single billionaire. Amazons conduct throughout the pandemic demonstrates the necessity of expropriating and transforming this essential infrastructure into a global public utility. In addition, whether or not Amazon workers have adequate safety precautions, testing and equipment cannot be left to the say-so of a single mega-billionaire, based on what he might (or might not) decide he wants to do. Rather than allowing Bezos to expand his exploitative corporate model into every corner of the global economy, the worlds working class must organize to exercise control over the distribution centers, logistics hubs, sorting warehouses and other essential components of the Amazon infrastructure, to direct the movement of commodities according to most pressing social needs, not private profit. Brian McFarland had been aching to get out of the Multi-Service Center South homeless shelter for weeks. His cot was just a few feet from his neighbors, his diabetes made him vulnerable to coronavirus and fear of infection rattled him constantly. It wasnt until the city put him in a hotel room on April 6 that he started to relax. Now, two weeks later, he has what he thinks might be pneumonia and flinches every time he hears anyone cough. So far, hes tested negative for COVID-19 and hes not panicking, being street-tough after decades of off-and-on homelessness. But hes pretty fed up, like a lot of homeless people in San Francisco. Believe me, I am grateful for the hotel room. Its really nice, said McFarland, 47. But its insane that they didnt get on this problem sooner. I mean, really, I was saying for two weeks before I left MSC that they werent doing enough to solve the issue not doing the distancing thing and now a lot of my friends have coronavirus. Why didnt they? The answer is a tangled lesson in logistics and money. Homeless people and their advocates for weeks have called for the city to lease enough hotel rooms to take in the vast majority of the citys 8,000-strong homeless population to check the spread of the coronavirus. But the people who make that happen say its dizzyingly more complicated than just booking rooms and writing checks. The city has proceeded at a methodical pace since mid-March, lining up roughly 2,500 spots in 16 hotels for homeless people and first responders. At first, there were very few coronavirus cases in the indigent population but then came the revelation on April 10 that the biggest cluster of coronavirus cases among homeless people in the western United States, 68, had been found at MSC South, the shelter where McFarland had stayed. That number soon grew to 98. Since then, the city finished thinning out its 2,000-plus shelter beds by about half to widen the spaces around residents, and accelerated its program so that it has now moved about 900 homeless people into hotels. Its a logistical puzzle that no one in city government has ever put together before. Its all in flux, and its going to be that way for a while, said Steve Good, executive director of Five Keys, one of the nonprofits helping to manage the hotels. This is a hodgepodge of people trying to do the best they can. Brian McFarland That flux can be seen in how the vision for using private hotels has changed radically since March 19, when owners were asked about their interest in leasing blocs of rooms to the city. The number of rooms being sought then was 4,500, compared with the 7,000 that Mayor London Breed and her staff now say are needed and the 8,250 that the Board of Supervisors have called on Breed to lease by Sunday. The intent is to house homeless people who are sick, elderly or at higher risk of contracting the coronavirus, plus hundreds of frontline crisis workers and residents of crowded SROs. The cost will be around $30 million a month. Two days after the request went out, hotels containing more than 11,000 rooms total provided the city with quotes. But turning that interest into signed leases has proved daunting, even with three city attorneys focused on the details. Some local hotel operators who showed interest were vetoed by distant owners wary of homeless guests settling in for weeks or months. There were also concerns about liability and insurance. The city will lease only entire hotels, not individual rooms. Once that agreement is signed, several days are needed to bring in the supplies necessary for a population that given the need for quarantine and self-isolation is largely expected to stay sequestered in individual rooms. Nick Otto / Special to The Chronicle Just getting the people to the hotels is a challenge. Shelter residents cant simply pile into a van and be driven to a hotel, for instance even if the city uses a spare Muni bus, passengers must be spaced three rows apart. As for meals, they cant be served cafeteria-style, as they would be at a shelter. So a catering-type operation had to be set up, with food prepared off-site, packed in single servings and delivered separately to each room. The reality is, nobody has ever done this before, said Abigail Stewart-Kahn, interim director of the citys Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. I tell my staff everything is in draft form, because its going to change every day. So far, homeless people seem to be grateful for the rooms. But the massive operation got off to a bumpy start, by all accounts. Cable reception would go on the blink no small glitch for people stuck inside around the clock. The meals were skimpy compared to whats served in the cafeteria line at Glide Memorial Church. A few of the most troubled drug addicts simply walked away from their isolation units, dope-sick and unwilling or unable to take the alternative medications offered them. The first week was filled with scenes where guests bored with isolation would wander out of their rooms without masks or hold room parties. That largely ended as case managers and security workers settled in, advised everyone to knock it off, and started keeping a sharp eye on the premises. 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. From the operations side, staff from Kahns department work with social service nonprofits to oversee supervision of the hotels. Much of the staffing includes city employees who have been designated as disaster service workers during the pandemic a role theyre not used to. But the staffing levels for the hotels is being increased, Kahn said, as is training of the city workers being deployed. And as each hotel fills with residents, it becomes easier to tackle issues like laundry and garbage service, or food quality. Were not going to make everyone happy, but things are starting to settle in, she said. For many homeless people, being in a hotel room is the best theyve had it in years. Jessica Christian / The Chronicle Being in here is a godsend, said Darius Banks, 46, who was moved into a hotel shortly after the citys first homeless coronavirus case was announced April 2 in the Division Circle Navigation Center, where he was sheltered. We get fed, they have TV. The only real complaint is everyones getting cabin fever, except for me, Banks, an Army veteran and unemployed marketer, said last week. And a couple of guys just walked out because they couldnt get their bubbles (methamphetamine hits) thats got to be hard for people who are addicts. Nonprofit and health care workers involved in running the hotels are just as keenly interested as anyone in making sure outbreaks dont occur not just for the homeless, but for the workers helping them. Were not surgeons, not doctors, but were tasked with this responsibility, said Beth Stokes, head of Episcopal Community Services, which runs several shelters and two of the crisis hotels. And some of our employees are afraid, but theyre showing up for work every day. Its what we do. Were trying to save peoples lives, and we take that very seriously. Kevin Fagan and John King are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: kfagan@sfchronicle.com, jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @KevinChron, @johnkingsfchron Keira Knightley has revealed a hitherto unknown talent while taking part in World Health Day's Hope From Home livestream. The celebrated actress is currently adhering to strict social distancing and self-quarantine guidelines as the world combats the growing spread of coronavirus COVID-19. And with plenty of time on her hands, Keira, 35, showed off a rather unique ability to play a tune using only her teeth as the event got underway on April 7th. Who knew? Keira Knightley has revealed a hitherto unknown talent for playing songs with her teeth while taking part in World Health Day's Hope From Home livestream Introducing herself on the event's social media livestream, she told viewers: 'Hello, I'm Keira Knightley and I am here for Hope from Home on World Health Day. 'I made a little sign, and I was trying to think of something entertaining to do and I couldn't think of anything so I'm going to play my teeth, which is my one and only party trick.' The British star proceeded to tap out the instantly recognisable melody to iconic ballad Yesterday, a 1965 hit for The Beatles. Behind closed doors: The celebrated actress is currently adhering to strict social distancing and self-quarantine guidelines as the world combats the growing spread of coronavirus COVID-19 Well done: And with plenty of time on her hands, Keira showed off a rather unique ability to play Tge Beatles' hit Yesterday using only her teeth as the event got underway on April 7th Finishing her party trick, she added: 'Thank you all for watching. Thank you to all the frontline workers and medical teams who are working so hard right now. If you want to donate, that would be great.' While Keira's unusual talent is unknown to many fans, she has previously shown off the skill while appearing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in 2019. Using her fingers to tap the childlike melody to Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head and Luis Fonsi's Despacito, she told the host: 'There was a boy at school when I was about seven or eight and he went on a talent show on TV, so he was like the coolest person ever, and he played his teeth. 'So, everybody at my school was like, thats cool, so everybody from that school can probably play their teeth.' Revelation: 'I made a little sign, and I was trying to think of something entertaining to do and I couldn't think of anything so I'm going to play my teeth, which is my one and only party trick,' she told viewers Keira's playful appearance comes after her PORTER interview in March, where she revealed she has backtracked on her controversial decision to 'ban' daughter Edie, four, from watching fairytales. She said: 'Shes watched all of them now. When we watched Sleeping Beauty, she said, "Its not OK, that man kissed her without her permission!"' The Pirates Of The Caribbean star originally claimed she had 'banned' her daughter from watching Disney films due to their lack of feminist messaging. High praise: The actress also thanked frontline workers and medical teams for their hard work during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic Speaking in 2018, she said: 'Im being very careful about fairytales with my kid because I dont like the message that a lot of them have'. 'So The Little Mermaid has been banned. Cinderella has been banned. I havent looked at Snow White again, but that may be banned, as well.' Keira has been in a relationship with musician James Righton, of Klaxons, since February 2011. They were married on May 4th 2013, in Mazan, Vaucluse. As well as Edie the couple are also parents to daughter Delilah, who was born in September 2019. Pubs across the UK could remain closed until Christmas as the country continues to control the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. The possible lockdown extension on the popular venues comes after cabinet minister Michael Gove warned that pubs and restaurants in the nation would be 'among the last' to see the restrictions placed upon them relaxed. The move comes as another 596 coronavirus deaths were today announced in the UK - bringing the total number of people who have died from the virus in the country to 16,060. Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr show, Gove, said that 'areas of hospitality' would be among the last to exit the government's lockdown restrictions. Pubs across the UK could stay shut until Christmas as the country continues to control the spread of the coronavirus He said: 'The other inference that I draw from your question, which is areas of hospitality will be among the last to exit the lock down, that is true, they will be among the last.' Also speaking to Sky's Sophy Ridge, the cabinet minister tried to dampen any speculation over the government's plan and said it was 'too early' to make decisions about easing the lockdown. Sharing his support for a public debate over the easing of lockdown restrictions, the cabinet minister added: 'Entirely understandable of course that there should be a public debate about how we approach these difficult choices. 'The most important thing to do is to make sure that we proceed in a way that is guided by science and one of the things we need to have are all the facts all the data in front of us to know what would be appropriate to do at what time.' Following the announcement, Frank Maguire from Truman's brewery in London, told The Sun: 'Things are looking pretty dire. At this rate it seems unlikely we will be open again before Christmas. The possible lockdown extension comes as another 596 coronavirus deaths were today announced in the UK Today cabinet minister Michael Gove tried to dampen any speculation over the government's plan and said it was 'too early' to make decision Pictured: The Elm Tree in Burridge, Southampton, displays a sign outside on a chalk board saying 'we will meet again some sunny day' after it is closed due to the coronavirus crisis 'Christmas is about as big as business gets for the pub industry. It will be a huge loss. 'January and February are dead months with- out Christmas to carry us through, we will struggle. It will be a very glum start to 2021.' The possible extension comes as Ireland's health minister, Simon Harris, also cautioned that while they would try to get children back to school as soon as possible, places where people 'can't safely social distance' will likely have to stay closed for some time. The health minister also said that he did not see 'how people can be in packed pubs again as long as this virus is still with us.' Mr Harris told the Irish Independent: 'I'd like to see a situation whereby our schools could come back or at least could come partially back. 'What's not going to come back quickly are scenarios in which we can't safely socially distance. Ireland's health minister Simon Harris said places where people 'can't safely social distance' will likely have to stay closed for some time 'So I can't see how people can be in packed pubs again as long as this virus is still with us and we don't have a vaccine or an effective treatment.' The warning came amid fears many pubs in Ireland - which employ 58,000 people - could go bankrupt before they re-open. The Irish Licensed Vintners Association (LVA) chief executive Donall O'Keeffe said if the lockdown were to continue, many pubs would be out of business. He said: 'If that happens then most pub businesses in this country will be out of business for good. 'The LVA will absolutely support whatever measures are deemed necessary in the interests of public health... but if closing pubs until 2021 is going to be necessary, then it is essential that a specific pub support scheme is introduced. 'Otherwise, there won't be a pub industry in this country by the time a vaccine is found.' Earlier today, Sir Jeremy Farrar, a government scientific adviser, offered encouraging news to Britons in lockdown as he said the country is over the peak - yet warned of future waves if social distancing falls by the wayside. He told Sky's Sophy Ridge: 'I think the probability and what we must be planning for is that there will be further waves of this in the future but for this first wave I think the number of new infections stabilised about a week or two ago and the number of hospitalisations maybe a week or so ago. 'Yes, tragically, there are still far too many people dying but the number of people dying in this country and actually in many countries in the world, is now either stabilising or starting to come down. 'That is good news, we are probably just past the peak in many parts of this country as is true in many parts of the world and we'll come off that and numbers will reduce but that has only happened because of the public's respect for and following the advice around the social distancing and lockdowns. 'If we were to release those lockdowns too soon, whilst the infection rates are still high and there are still people in the community who have got infected, then the epidemic will come back again, it will come back very quickly. 'It would rebound within a few weeks or a couple of months so it is critical that people are - and they are, the public is really respecting the advice and it is that which has led to the change in numbers. 'These things don't happen by chance, they happen because of what we're all doing and the public deserves great thanks and respect for that.' Northern Ireland may have to remain in lockdown until July, according to a Northern Ireland expert in viral epidemics. However, Dr Michael Donnelly said removing social isolation measures slowly and carefully could potentially stop a second surge of the deadly virus. Dr Donnelly, a clinical epidemiologist, said it is imperative that people across Northern Ireland are not complacent when it comes to reducing the spread of coronavirus. He was speaking as figures released on Sunday revealed one further person has died from Covid-19, bringing to 194 the number of people here who have lost their lives during the pandemic. Read More "There is still very much we don't know about this virus," said Dr Donnelly. "There are some people who will become infected who get a temperature and a slight cough and there are other people who it will kill. "We still don't have effective treatments, we can give patients paracetamol and oxygen, but we're finding out that ventilators that we had pinned so much hope on might not be as effective as we first thought. "Research has shown that 43% of patients who are ventilated end up dying. "There are going to be significant measures in place for some time yet, it's important that we don't jump the gun. There will be a very high price to pay if we get it wrong. "We're already looking at what has gone wrong, but I would say the biggest mistake that has been made has been to not take this virus seriously enough. "This isn't a rehearsal, this is real and people are dying. We are beginning to see less people dying, but that doesn't mean we can relax. "It might be inconvenient to have to stay at home, but the choice is very simple. If sitting in the house for a few weeks is the price you have to pay to stay alive, it seems to me to be a fairly good price. You will have the rest of your life to make up for isolating now." While statistics released by the Public Health Agency on Sunday show 194 people in Northern Ireland have now died, the total death toll is likely to be significantly higher. This follows the publication of new figures on Friday, showing Covid-19 deaths were a third higher than originally reported. Another 159 people have tested positive for the virus, bringing the total to 2,645, with a total of 16,490 individuals tested. Dr Donnelly said he believes increasing the number of people being tested for the virus, as well as establishing who has immunity, will play a crucial role in lifting lockdown measures. He said officials should use antigen and antibody tests that have already been developed, despite concerns about their effectiveness. "We don't have the luxury of time to make sure they are perfect," he said. "We have to use what is available to us now." However, he stressed it is vital that a vaccine is safe to use. "If we are rolling this out to millions of people we don't want to find out that it is harmful," he said. Despite this, he said he is optimistic that a vaccine can be found before the end of the year. Although he warned that it may have to be altered each year, similarly to the influenza vaccination. He continued: "If we open everything up gradually, we can stop a second wave. "I would like to think we will be through this by the first week in July and similarly I would like to think that people who are shielding will also be able to begin to return to normal. "The key to this is testing who has the virus and establishing who has had the virus and has some immunity, but it is important that we remove social distancing measures slowly." Officials are coming under increasing pressure to reveal their exit strategy once the predicted surge is over, amid claims the Cabinet is split over whether to risk more deaths to save the plunging economy. Speaking at the daily briefing in London on Sunday, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson dismissed calls to spell out the exit strategy from coronavirus lockdown - despite claims ministers in England want schools to reopen after May 11. Mr Williamson told the daily Downing Street briefing he was sorry that children were having to suffer through the crisis but would not give a date for a return of schools. Meanwhile, the Department of Education has not responded to a similar query over when schools here may reopen, or whether it has ruled out the possibility of pupils returning to classrooms before September. Days after demanding hostel fee waiver in view of the ongoing coronavirus lockdown, Panjab University (PU) students have urged the varsity authorities not to charge fee from the students of economically weaker section (EWS). In an online petition, around 500 students have asked the PU administration to either give relief or concession to such candidates. Nearly 50% students in the university belong to poor and middle classes of the society. As these students do not receive any scholarship, itll become stressful for them to pay their fee, the letter read. The students also said, Due to the lockdown, theres no work, no pay and no surety of the jobs too. VARSITY TO TAKE A CALL LATER National Students Union of India (NSUI) president of PU, Nikhil Narmeta, said, The coronavirus crisis will have a long-term impact on the varsity students financially as most of them belong to middle class and the source of their family income is shut. This will create problem for the students after the university reopens as they will not be in a position to pay their fee. The university authorities have replied positively, saying that they will look into the issue once the lockdown is lifted, he said. PU advisory committee chairman Navdeep Goyal said, Right now, we are tackling the day-to-day issues faced by the students. We can decide on this once the university starts functioning again. In view of the coronavirus outbreak, PU administration had suspended classwork on March 15. Four suspected Al-Qaeda terrorists were arrested for allegedly planning major attacks in Karachi, police said here on Monday. The militants were produced before an anti-terrorism court, which send them to a 10-day police remand. According to Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) in-charge Raja Umar, the four terrorists, arrested on Sunday, were planning attacks on the Karachi Stock Exchange, the police training centre and the city court. They had recently returned from Afghanistan after getting training there and explosives, detonators, hand grenades, weapons, videos, maps and communication devices were recovered from their possession, he said. "Today they were presented in the ATC, which has given us their 10-day remand," Umar said. "They had carried out reconnaissance of the Karachi Stock Exchange, the city court and the police training centre," he said. Umar said the militants -- Umar, Bilal, Aamir and Waseem -- during questioning have revealed that they were led by a high profile terrorist, Muhammad Hanif alias Zarrar, who was operating from Afghanistan. "The four had established a safe house in Karachi and were apparently waiting for the right time to carry out their terror attacks," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Since mid-2019 the balance of combat power has shifted as the government coalition lost a lot of their ground troops. This was because the UAE (United Arab Emirates) withdrew most of its forces in late 2019 because of disagreements with Saudi Arabia over strategy and fears in the UAE that Iran might attack. The UAE has less population and fewer troops than Saudi Arabia. The UAE is also smaller and closer to Iran. The Saudis also lost troop contributions from other Moslem states and have not been able to replace them. This stalled the long, slow, methodical and successful government offensive which had pushed the rebels back. The rebels, encouraged by the steadfast and effective support from Iran, held on. The major weapon the Shia rebels had was Saudi fear of an Iran dominated Yemen. The Saudis have many reasons to fear Iran. Historically the Iranians have always been more effective militarily and that factor is still present. While the Iranians have a tradition of recruiting the most capable men to be officers the Saudis, and Arabs in general, are wary of professional military personnel, especially officers. Its mostly about fear of a military takeover and the Saudis have crippled their own military by valuing loyalty over competence when it comes to officers, and many troops as well. As a result, the Saudis do not have a lot of troops they can trust to do well in a foreign war. Air Force pilots are another matter but you cannot win a ground war from the air. On the ground, the lack of more talented and experienced ground commanders in Yemen has hurt the Saudis in ways they wont admit. The Saudis have a bigger problem with the fact that the rebels are backed by Iran which continues to pay whatever it takes to smuggle in some weapons despite Saudi efforts to tighten the sea, air and ground blockade. Yemen is unique in that it is a nation with a disproportionate number of skilled smugglers, many of them willing to work for whoever will pay. This new situation puts Saudi Arabia in a difficult position. Efforts to negotiate an end of the Yemen war proved unsuccessful as Iranian control over the Shia rebels could not be reduced. The Iranians are determined to maintain their presence in Yemen and on the Saudi border. From there the Iranians can continue to launch attacks on the Saudis, who do not want to commit the ground forces necessary to take control of the adjacent Yemeni provinces that are the homeland of the Shia rebels. The Saudis also have to maintain sufficient forces in northeast Saudi Arabia, where most of the oil is and the Iranian threat has been a problem for decades. At this point, the best thing the Saudis can hope for is that the religious dictatorship that has ruled Iran for decades will collapse and be replaced by a friendlier and less threatening government. The Yemeni rebels continue getting some aid from Iran, but this must be smuggled in. Shia Iran also makes demands. So for over a year, the Shia rebels have been imposing more and more religious restrictions on people living under their control. This includes many Sunni tribes. The rebels have even been shutting down cafes and restaurants that cater to groups of women. These gatherings are considered un-Islamic by religious conservatives. April 17, 2020: In central Yemen (Marib province) the Shia rebels launched a ballistic missile at government held Marib city where it hit areas of the city not occupied by troops or military facilities. The Shia rebels have been trying to retake Marib city and this may have just been a terror attack. The first confirmed case covid19 appeared, in government-controlled territory. There are believed to be cases in rebels territory but the rebels are not talking about it. April 16, 2020: The UN revealed that it would shut down most of its Yemen aid programs by the end of the month because most donors now refuse to provide cash or supplies. The problem is the Shia rebels diverting more and more of the aid to finance their military operations. This is a common problem in the Middle East and Africa and often becomes so extreme that aid donors prefer to send the money to other needy areas where there is a lot less corruption and diversion. The Saudis and UAE still provide aid, but only to areas where there are no Shia rebels. This will cause increased hunger in many rebel occupied areas and the rebels will only provide food to areas that support the rebels. People in anti-rebel areas are encouraged to flee to government-controlled areas where the Saudis will feed them. April 9, 2020: The Saudi and UAE forces agreed to the UN-backed two week truce but the Shia rebels demanded more concessions at the last minute and never observed the ceasefire. The Shia rebels are determined to get the air and sea blockade lifted but the Saudis will not allow that because that will make it easier for Iran to smuggle in ballistic missile components, UAVs and other weapons. The UN urged everyone to accept the truce so that the covid19 pandemic could be tended to. The rebels are apparently not alarmed at the covid19 threat, which is understandable given the number of diseases still active in rural Yemen. So far there have been no verified covid19 cases in Yemen. There is still a belief among many Moslems that Allah will protect the faithful. Iran used to believe that but the massive covid19 casualties in Iran changed minds. The rebels maintain control over hostile populations by controlling things that matter most for all Yemenis; food, safety and disease. Malaria, dengue fever and cholera have long been a threat but are usually kept under control. That changed in 2017 with a cholera epidemic that was never completely suppressed and has revived in 2019 with about 200,000 new cases that year and more in 2020. The original 2017 outbreak got out of control because the Shia rebels refused to allow the UN to fly in half a million doses of vaccine early on. The rebels insisted that they be first supplied with ambulances and other medical equipment their fighting forces needed. This delayed the vaccination program and the rebels continued to tolerate contaminated water supplies in areas they controlled. With the deadlock at Hodeida, the rebels had even fewer resources to deal with the water supply problems and growing poverty in their territory. The resurgence of cholera is a very visible example of the problems in rebel territory. The rebels are less prepared to deal with the epidemic than they were in 2017. Cholera is endemic (always present) in Yemen and gets out of hand when public health services are allowed to deteriorate or are trashed by widespread violence. The rebels allowed the current cholera outbreak to get out of control because the rebels are more desperate than the government. The Shia tribes of the north have always been a minority in a majority Sunni region. For centuries the Shia tribes felt they were outsiders and were frequently persecuted. The Yemeni Shia were often taken advantage of as well and while the Shia rebels see Iran as a powerful and reliable ally, most Yemenis see Iran as taking advantage of the Yemeni Shia and a growing number of Yemeni Shia are quietly agreeing. Saying that out loud while in Shia rebel-controlled territory is not safe. April 5, 2020: Government forces have pushed back Shia rebel advances in the north (Jawf province) and central Yemen (Marib province). The rebels had taken advantage of the Arab coalition manpower shortage after the UAE withdrew most of its troops and a new government in Sudan withdrew the 15,000 mercenaries they had been providing. The coalition still had the airpower advantage and once their ground forces had been redistributed it was possible to stop and reverse the recent Shia gains. This does not discourage the rebels who believe time is now on their side as long as the Iranian support continues. Iran understands this as well and is willing to finance the expensive smuggling effort because of the distress it causes the Saudis. April 4, 2020: In central Yemen (Marib province) Shia rebels are accused of attacking and damaging an oil pipeline pumping station. The rebel offensive into Marib is an effort to recapture oil fields. March 31, 2020: Coalition jets hit fifteen targets in and around the Shia rebels city of Sana. This is the traditional capital of Yemen but has been controlled by the rebels since 2014. March 28, 2020: In Yemen Iran-backed Shia rebels fired two Iranian ballistic missiles, one at the Saudi capital in central Saudi Arabia and the other at the Red Sea port of Jazan near the Yemen border. Saudi air defense intercepted both missiles with Patriot missiles. Two Saudis on the ground were injured by falling missile debris. Both attacks were at night and the explosive interceptions were very visible. March 27, 2020: In southwest Saudi Arabia (Asir province) Shia rebel explosives carrying UAVs were used for an attack on the border cities of Abha and Khamis Mushait. The UAVs were shot down before they could reach their targets. March 24, 2020: In the northwest (south of the Red Sea port of Hodeida) the Shia rebels twice prevented a UN ship, used as neutral ground for peace talks, from leaving the port. The rebels have forces outside the port and able to fire on the harbor. The rebels were showing their dissatisfaction with UN peacemaking efforts. The Shia want the UN to put more pressure on the Saudis to make concessions. March 23, 2020: In the south (Aden) two foreign aid workers who had recently been kidnapped were found dead. No one claimed responsibility for the deaths and it may have been the result of some group pressuring the Red Crescent (the Islamic Red Cross) to cooperate with some form of aid theft. What happened Shares of industrial giant General Electric (NYSE:GE) dropped more than 5% in early trading Monday before rebounding to about a 3.3% loss as of 10:45 a.m. EDT. The initial drop and continuing laggy stock price appear tied to news reports Sunday that some 110 workers at GE's LM Wind Power factory in Grand Forks, North Dakota, have tested positive for COVID-19. So what North Dakota governor Doug Burgum announced these results in a press briefing Sunday, explaining that about half the 900 workers at the plant had recently been tested for the novel coronavirus. Of these, 110 tested positive, implying an infection rate of about 1 in 4 workers. At present, workers from this one single factory account for more than 20% of the infections so far recorded in the state. The governor is ordering the plant closed "for at least two weeks," reports Reuters. A GE spokesman says that it will pay all its workers at the plant during the shutdown, and that it is disinfecting the plant in order to be able to "restart the plant safely" once the shutdown is over. Now what GE's LM Wind Power factory manufactures rotor blades for wind turbines, a crucial part of GE's $15.3 billion-a-year renewable energy business, which accounts for more than 16% of GE's annual revenues, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. According to a GE website, it is one of only two such factories the company has in the continental U.S., and one of only three in all of North America. That being said, the company does have several other wind rotor blade factories scattered around the world, including in Turkey, China, and Brazil. Presumably, those are able to pick up the slack while the North Dakota plant is idled, especially if global demand has been reduced at all by the coronavirus. Therefore, I consider today's news a setback for GE's renewable energy business, not a disaster. The suspected ritualists after they were arrested Six men suspected to be ritualists have been beaten mercilessly after they were arrested at Shogunle and Ladipo on Agege Motor Road near Oshodi in Lagos. According to TheNation, they were said to have been abducting passersby along the road and dragging them into the deep drainage along the road. Eyewitnesses said they were caught while trying to drag a street sweeper into the drainage. The womans shout for help attracted passersby and street boys in Shogunle to the scene. They quickly mobilised to save the woman. Before they got to the scene, the suspected ritualists ran away through the drainage. They were brought out, beaten before handed over to the police. The boys insisted that some of them were still inside the drainage. They chase them from Shogunle and caught two of them at Ladipo Bus Stop. They were handed over to the military men after beaten and stripped naked. Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of Matomy Media Group Ltd. (LON:MTMY) as an investment opportunity by taking the foreast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. I will use 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. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in the Simply Wall St analysis model. Check out our latest analysis for Matomy Media Group The method We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Seeing as no analyst estimates of free cash flow are available to us, we have extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the company's last 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) forecast 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$1.10m US$826.7k US$684.7k US$603.5k US$554.3k US$523.6k US$504.1k US$491.8k US$484.1k US$479.6k Growth Rate Estimate Source Est @ -35.6% Est @ -24.76% Est @ -17.17% Est @ -11.86% Est @ -8.15% Est @ -5.54% Est @ -3.72% Est @ -2.45% Est @ -1.55% Est @ -0.93% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 13% US$1.0 US$0.6 US$0.5 US$0.4 US$0.3 US$0.2 US$0.2 US$0.2 US$0.2 US$0.1 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$3.0m Story continues The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 10-year government bond rate (0.5%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 13%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2029 (1 + g) (r g) = US$480k (1 + 0.5%) 13% 0.5%) = US$3.8m Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$3.8m ( 1 + 13%)10= US$1.1m The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$4.1m. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of UK0.04, 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. LSE:MTMY Intrinsic value April 20th 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 Matomy Media Group 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 13%, which is based on a levered beta of 2.000. 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 Matomy Media Group, We've compiled three pertinent factors you should further examine: Risks: We feel that you should assess the 3 warning signs for Matomy Media Group (2 are a bit unpleasant!) we've flagged before making an investment in the company. 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! Other Environmentally-Friendly Companies: Concerned about the environment and think consumers will buy eco-friendly products more and more? Browse through our interactive list of companies that are thinking about a greener future to discover some stocks you may not have thought of! PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the LSE 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. Ten years on, the call about the Deepwater Horizon explosion is etched in Julian MacQueens memory. It was one of those moments you remember, like where you were on 9/11. I was at a convention in Scottsdale, Arizona and I got a call from my operations manager. We thought, well thats a hundred miles away, its not going to affect us that much, he told The Independent. Like many others in the Gulf of Mexico, for hotelier Mr MacQueen, who has coastal properties in the region, it was a matter of time. Im a pilot so I flew out to the rig and I could see the plumes of oil. It was like that old Fifties movie, The Blob. It was coming and it was going to get you. On April 20, 2010, night had fallen off the coast of Louisiana, when high-pressure methane gas rose to the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig above and exploded into a fireball that could be seen from 40 miles away. The disaster left 11 workers presumed dead, their bodies never found despite a three-day search by the coastguard. Another 17 of the 126 crew onboard were injured. The fire was inextinguishable and two days later, the rig sank. The ultra-deepwater well at BPs Macondo Prospect, where Deepwater Horizon had been drilling, spewed an estimated 134 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico before it was capped. Then-president Barack Obama called it the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced. The fallout was catastrophic: 1,300 miles of coastline from Florida to Texas, was impacted, killing tens of thousands of marine mammals and fish, and decimating livelihoods in the seafood and tourism industries. The cost of the damage ran to tens of billions of dollars. The Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in 2010 (Getty) A decade on, a group of scientists, conservationists and locals spoke to The Independent about the devastating toll of the oil spill and the impacts that are still being felt today. All of them fear that this could happen again. In recent years, President Trumps focus on boosting US oil production has led to an easing of safety rules put in place by the Obama administration after the Deepwater Horizon spill. Professor Tracey Sutton researches the ecology of the Gulf at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His research assessing damage to species in the deepwater column of the ocean began in the months after the disaster. Oil is seen moving past an oil rig in the waters of Chandeleur Sound, Louisiana on May 5, 2010, weeks after the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File) (AP) Oil was in all of the deepwater column at some point, he said. Roughly half made it to the surface and some made it to the bottom. The effects were quite severe. When plants and animals on the ocean surface die and decay, they descend to the sea bed, mixing with other particles including sand and soot to form marine snow, consumed by microbes and zooplankton. The dispersed oil glommed on to marine snow and we think thats one way its persisted in the environment, Professor Sutton said. A lot of those particles with oil could have gotten into the food web and the bottom gets stirred up periodically, resuspending particles back up in the water. We tested the bodies of many deep-sea animals and females eggs. In 2017, we were still finding oil contaminants in the eggs above levels known to be sublethal for animals. We also saw an overall decline in animal numbers. Professor Sutton and his team continue to analyse samples from 2018. Their next research trip begins in August and will assess damage for another five years in the Gulf. Diane Hoskins, campaign director of conservation non-profit, Oceana, said that devastation from the oil spill lingers in the Gulf. A Brown Pelican is mired in oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill on the beach at East Grand Terre Island along the Louisiana coast on June 3, 2010 (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File) (AP) A recent study showed the seafloor near the wellhead is barren of life typically found there. Scientists even described it as a toxic waste dump, she told The Independent. Many marine mammal populations will take decades to recover, if they do. Some wetlands killed by oil will never recover because the plants died and the land washed away with it. Details of one study, published last week, found that all fish in the region suffered from the effects of the pollution. The devastation of the marine ecosystem has had a knock-on effect for those whose lives revolved around the ocean. Daniel Le is branch manager of Boat People SOS in Biloxi, Mississippi. The Vietnamese-American advocacy group, established in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, provided assistance to Vietnamese seafood workers following the oil spill. He told The Independent: It had a devastating impact. About 85% of our Gulf coast members are in the seafood industry. April is the month that the fishing community gets ready for. Its a new season, people are excited and out on the docks, prepping the boats. Back in 2010, he said that they were unprepared for the magnitude of the spill. Within days, the whole fishing industry shut down on the Gulf Coast, Mr Le said. There was a lot of anxiety. A lot of people depended on fishing to eat as well as selling to the local market. For months, people werent able to work. Once the conditions got a little better, people went back out but there were reports of shrimp with oil in their gills. Oil was getting stuck in the nets. A number of shrimp fishermen reported that the catch was significantly reduced and many of the species were dead. A lot of people didnt want to eat Gulf shrimp because of fears of contamination. Fishermen couldnt sell their catch but there wasnt a lot of catch to make a living with anyway. Mr MacQueen, who founded Innisfree Hotels, described the effect that the disaster had on the community of Pensacola, Florida, where his chains Hilton hotel sits directly on the beach. I called my insurance company to see what was available for business interruption and there was nothing. No one had any coverage for this kind of event, he told The Independent. Everyone was completely exposed financially. I spent the next five months essentially shut down. A fish lies dead in oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on Grand Terre Island, Louisiana on June 8, 2010 (REUTERS/Lee Celano/File Photo) (REUTERS) There were no reservations being made. The idea of the oil, more than the oil itself, was what kept everybody away. We were done and there was nothing we could do about it. We made 60% of our revenues during the summer season. Normally at the peak, on Fourth of July, we have several thousand people on the beach. In 2010, there were maybe a dozen people. The ripple effect goes deep into the community. Were the largest, privately-held taxpayer in the area. It trickled down to where the board of education had to lay teachers off because we werent generating the taxes that they depended on. In our area, we determined that for every dollar spent at the hotel, [tourists] spend another $10 in the communities. We laid off hundreds of people. It was devastating for Pensacola and everything that depended on beach tourism. Mr MacQueen believes that it is fallacy to think about when business got back to normal. We look at 2017 as when we felt like we were getting back to normal. It took seven years. However when theres an event that takes you down significantly and you start to build back up to where you were before, what you dont take into account is, what would have happened if that trend before the event had continued? The idea of getting back to where you were, I think, is a false premise. Its almost saying things were less worse. The repercussions are still being felt along the Gulf Coast where the disaster remains deeply-ingrained in the collective psyche. Mr MacQueen said: Its unspoken in many respects but the overall negligence that was displayed, and then further displayed in the movie that came out, built on the psyche of the community. Mr Le said that a hopelessness seeped into the fishing communities. We are ten years removed and people think everything should be back to normal but thats not true at all, he said. For the past two or three years, for the peak fishing season, 50% to 75% of the small fishing fleet were idle because there werent shrimp, crab or oysters to be harvested. The footprint of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill from 2010 (NOAA) It has really taken a toll on the mental health of our community. Some 30% of our members left fishing because its no longer viable. These folks dont have a transferable job skills. Fishing is the only thing they know, so they have to move to different states to find other jobs. The lack of data in the Gulf of Mexico, and in deep-sea research generally, means that it may never truly be known what was lost. Professor Sutton said: Although industry is going deeper for resources, I think whats most important to note is that we havent done the pre-assessment to develop baselines of what a normal condition is in deep sea. Deepwater Horizon highlighted the fact that we had no data whatsoever for what lived at the depths of the Macondo wellhead. You cant really do a damage assessment if you dont have any data. Professor Sutton points to a lesser-known story: That the Deepwater Horizon spill could have been a lot worse due to the Loop Current, a conveyor belt of water that flows between Cuba and the Yucatan peninsula, moving north into the Gulf of Mexico. He said: The Loop Current occasionally reaches far up into the Gulf, into the footprint of the oil spill. It just so happened that in 2010 the Loop Current wasnt that far north. Recommended Discarded coronavirus face masks and gloves rising threat to ocean Had it been, it would have carried oil straight through the Florida Keys and painted the coral reefs. Oil residue was detected in the water at the Keys but it could have wiped them out and those reefs would have never come back. In September 2014, US District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans ruled that BPs operations at Deepwater Horizon were reckless and that willful misconduct and gross negligence led to the disaster. BP was assigned an 67% of the fault. The rest of the responsibility was apportioned to Transocean, which owned the rig, and oil services company, Halliburton, 30 percent and 3 percent, respectively. BP and its partners will have spent more than $50bn in the end, to cover cleanup costs and settlements following the disaster, according to Reuters. Ms Hoskins authored a recent report on the disaster and came to the conclusion that no lessons had been learned. She said: Today, off-shore drilling remains dirty and dangerous and the industrys record is unacceptable. Instead of learning from this disaster, President Trump is proposing to radically expand offshore drilling while dismantling some of the few protections put in place as a result of the catastrophe. The key lesson was that the industry cannot be trusted to self police. In response to the disaster, the Obama administration enacted safeguards. Last year, President Trump drastically gutted them, rolling back the frequency and duration of testing for blowout preventers, the device that failed on Deepwater Horizon. There has also been a weakening of onshore monitoring requirements and reducing government oversight to evaluate industry safety. The ramifications of offshore drilling are horrific and catastrophic when things go wrong. These [safeguards] should be the minimal standard of doing business. All seven members of the bipartisan commission set up in the aftermath of the disaster and to stop another like it happening told The New York Times that many of their recommendations were not taken seriously and the risk of another spill is possible. The number of safety inspection visits by the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, established after the 2010 spill, went down by more than 20% over the past six years in the Gulf, according to a review by the Associated Press. However officials point to an increase in checks of electronic records, safety programmes and individual oil rig components. In a statement, BP said: The Deepwater Horizon accident forever changed BP. We will never forget the 11 people who lost their lives, nor the damage caused. In 2010, we committed to help restore the Gulf region economically and environmentally as well as to become a safer company. The Gulf has recovered well and the lessons we learned and the changes we made from tougher standards to better oversight are the foundation of our culture of care. A decade later, we are proud of how we honoured our commitments but remain keenly aware that we must always put safety first. Mr MacQueen said: Im appalled that there has never been anyone held accountable. Im appalled that there had been no significant oversight changes in how the regulators are working on controlling this in the future. Those who felt the impacts of Deepwater Horizon a decade ago are left with fears that it will happen again. Professor Sutton said: The Gulf of Mexico is incredibly diverse and we now know maybe more about it than any other deep-sea system in the worlds oceans. It just sucks that it took an oil spill is my impolite way of saying it. He added: The majority of US oil comes from ultra-deep wells in the Gulf of Mexico. There are leases all the way down to 3,000 metres. Deepwater Horizon was half that. This is not a problem thats going to go away. Another deepwater spill is still very much a real possibility. As oil companies drill deeper, the risks increase due to ultra-high pressures and oil temperatures that can top 350F. Ms Hoskins said: President Trump has proposed the most radical expansion of offshore drilling that ever been proposed by a president. Under his plan, areas that dont have offshore drilling would open up on the east and west coasts and even closer to Floridas Gulf coast. Its outrageous, especially when you consider all the coastal economies that rely on a clean and healthy ocean. Protecting our ocean can ensure that those industries thrive for decades to come. When the oil runs out, so do the jobs. One hopeful thing is that every governor opposes drilling off their coast. Now its time for President Trump to listen. Mr Le said: People see all these rigs out there but what are they protocols in place to make sure it doesnt happen again? Theres a fear of another disaster if the government doesnt tighten regulations. Mr MacQueen said: I fly back and forth from the panhandle of Florida to New Orleans and on a clear night in the Gulf of Mexico, theres so many oil rigs that on the horizon, you cant tell which is which from the stars in the sky and what appears to be stars on the ocean. I know its going to happen again. The idea that the current administration is re-leasing and planning out leases for the overall industry is completely disgusting. Whats heartening, at least in Florida on both sides of the aisle, theres been unanimous support for not letting that happen. Im hoping that at the federal level we have enough common sense to know that supply of oil and the demand for it are going in opposite directions. In my mind, its extraordinary overreach to go into the pristine waters off the Florida coast to find even more oil that is not necessary at this time. Weve got so many other options in front of us. Associated Press contributed to this report China's deputy public security minister, who was sent by Beijing to supervise the security affairs in Wuhan during the coronavirus epidemic, is being investigated by the country's main anti-corruption body, the authority has said. Sun Lijun is said to be probed for 'serious violations of discipline and the law', a euphemism for corruption. The notice, published late Sunday by China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, did not give details on the alleged wrongdoings. Sun Lijun was being investigated for 'serious violations of discipline and the law' - a euphemism for corruption - according to China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. He is pictured at a press conference for coronavirus operations in Wuhan Security guards are pictured locking the gate of the Forbidden City which remains closed following the new coronavirus outbreak in Beijing yesterday Sun, 51, was last seen in early March in Wuhan, the former centre of the COVID-19 pandemic, the official People's Public Security Daily reported. On March 7, Sun attended an oath ceremony of two female police officers after personally recommending them for party membership, saying he was touched by their hard work during the lockdown. He had also visited Hubei province - where nearly 3,900 have died from COVID-19 in February to encourage frontline police officers, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Sun's official biography also says that he graduated from the University of New South Wales in Australia with a master's degree in public health management. On top of his main role, Sun was appointed director of the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan office under the ministry of public security in December 2017. Hong Kong was shaken by widespread and sometimes violent street protests last year, sparked by a now-abandoned proposal to allow extraditions from the semi-autonomous city to the Chinese mainland. A growing number of Communist Party cadres have been caught in President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign, which critics say has also served as a way to remove the leader's political enemies. A growing number of Communist Party cadres have been caught in President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign, which critics say has also served as a way to remove the leader's political enemies. Xi is pictured at APEC Haus during the 2018 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum On top of his main role, Sun was appointed director of the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan office under the ministry of public security in December 2017. A banner is seen as anti-government demonstrators march in protest against the invocation of the emergency laws in Hong Kong on October 14, 2019 The graft probe targeting Sun follows the high-profile arrest of Meng Hongwei, the former Interpol president who also served as a deputy security minister in China. Meng disappeared during a trip to China from France in September 2018, and was jailed for more than 13 years in January after pleading guilty to abusing his position and taking over $2million (1.6million) in bribes. The Communist Party committee of the public security ministry - an important decision-making body of which Sun was a member - said it 'unanimously expressed its firm support' for the investigation into Sun. 'Sun's investigation on suspicion of serious violations of discipline and law is the inevitable result of his long-term disregard of the party's political discipline and rules, and his failure to observe discipline, disregard rules, ignorance, and wanton behaviour,' the committee said in a statement. NBC's new streaming service Peacock has unveiled the first trailer for its highly-anticipated mini-series Angelyne on Wednesday. And on Sunday, the real Angelyne, played on screen by Emmy Rossum, was snapped picking up coffee to go in Hollywood. The 69-year-old Billboard icon who made a name for herself in 1980s and 90s Los Angeles stepped out in a plunging black and gold mini dress with pink trim and a cropped pink jacket. Icon: Los Angeles billboard icon Angelyne stepped out to pick up coffee to go on Sunday in a plunging black and gold mini dress with pink trim and a cropped pink jacket She wore pink sandal wedges and wrapped a pink patterned scarf around her neck. Angelyne is famous not only for her billboards but also for her pink corvette with signature vanity plate. The mini series is based on a 2017 article published in The Hollywood Reporter titled 'The Mystery of L.A. Billboard Diva Angelyne's Real Identity Is Finally Solved.' The article delved into the background of the bottle blonde who was the first modern day celebrity to become famous for being famous. Pinup: The 69-year-old wrapped a pink patterned scarf around her neck, sported sunglasses and painted in a Cupid's bow with vibrant red lip color Made a name for herself: Angelyne became famous for being famous after erecting billboards of herself across the city in the 1980s and 90s. Her story has been made into a mini series starring Emmy Rossum for NBC streaming service Peacock Rossum brings Angelyne to life in the small screen story that was shot on location around Los Angeles. The trailer also offers glimpses of the supporting cast, including Martin Freeman, whose character works for a billboard company. 'So, what are you advertising?' Freeman's character asks, when approached by Angelyne, at the beginning of the clip. 'Myself, of course,' she responds. He incredulously continues, 'You want to put up posters of yourself, just you, around the city?' She replies, 'Mm-hm, yeah, why not? Nobody's ever done it, why not start now?' as the Angelyne legend is born. Trailer: NBC's new streaming service Peacock unveiled the first trailer for the series titled Angelyne last week Martin: The trailer also offers glimpses of the supporting cast, including Martin Freeman, who is seen first in the trailer, whose character works for a billboard company Legend: She replies, 'Mm-hm, yeah, why not? Nobody's ever done it, why not start now?' as the Angelyne legend is born The next shot shows a man talking to Angelyne, stating, 'I bet people will talk about this 100 years from now,' as her legend continues to grow. The title cards flash reading, 'Before reality TV, before social media,' along with clips of her media appearances as a broadcaster states, 'The mystery of Angelyne has become a media obsession.' An interviewer asks her what she's famous for, and she plainly states, 'I'm famous for being on billboards,' adding, 'I am a bright pink light here to inspire joy.' 100 years: The next shot shows a man talking to Angelyne, stating, 'I bet people will talk about this 100 years from now,' as her legend continues to grow Joy: An interviewer asks her what she's famous for, and she plainly states, 'I'm famous for being on billboards,' adding, 'I am a bright pink light here to inspire joy" Other shots show Angelyne admiring her billboards while others show people flocking to them, as another interviewer asks, 'Why billboards?' 'If you wanna grab people's attention, you have to tease,' she says, while posing next to her iconic hot pink Corvette. The four-episode mini-series is based on The Hollywood Reporter article from 2017 which uncovered her true identity, which she had never revealed. Tease: 'If you wanna grab people's attention, you have to tease,' she says, while posing next to her iconic hot pink Corvette Identity: The four-episode mini-series is based on The Hollywood Reporter article from 2017 which uncovered her true identity, which she had never revealed While Angelyne did act in movies such as Earth Girls are Easy and release albums such as Driven to Fantasy, she's best known for promoting herself through her billboards. She is considered by many to be a pioneer of self-promotion that ultimately paved the way for others like Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian and a generation of 'influencers.' Peacock is slated to debut on July 15, though there is no indication if Angelyne will be available then or at a later date. Billboard: While Angelyne did act in movies such as Earth Girls are Easy and release albums such as Driven to Fantasy, she's best known for promoting herself through her billboards Influencer: She is considered by many to be a pioneer of self-promotion that ultimately paved the way for others like Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian and a generation of 'influencers' The Baylor School / Baylor Swim Club intended to celebrate the college commitments for the 2020 senior class on Tues., April 13th, however, due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, we were not able to do that in the usual in-person party. Therefore we will recognize and celebrate our ten seniors virtually who will be moving on to swim in college. Congratulations to all our student-athletes on their wonderful accomplishments! Noah Althoff Noah Althoff is a four-year boarding student from Fredrick, Maryland. He will be attending and swimming competitively at Kenyon College located in Gambier, Ohio. 2 x State Finalist in 200 IM Multiple Event Jr National Qualifier 2020 All-American in 200 Free Relay Alexander Borisov Alex Borisov is a two-year boarding student from London, England. Borisov will be attending and swimming competitively at Northwestern University located in Evanston, Illinois. 2019 State Champion in 200 IM 2019 Jr National Finalist in 200 Breast All-American in 100 Breast / 200 IM US Swimming Academic All-American Nicholas Brando Nick Brando is a four-year boarding student from Freehold, New Jersey. Brando will be attending and swimming at the University of Rochester located in Rochester, New York. All-American & State Finalist in 200 Medley Relay Heidi Dierig Heidi Dierig is a four-year boarding student from Chattanooga, TN. She will be attending and swimming at the United States Air Force Academy. State Finalist in the 200 IM & 500 Free Multiple Time Junior National Qualifier Jewel Gordon Jewel Gordon is a seven-year day student from Signal Mountain, TN. Gordon will be attending and swimming competitively at the University of Cincinnati located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Member of Fastest 200 medley relay in the country in 2019 Multiple Time State Finalist in 50 Free & 100 Breaststroke Multiple Time Relay All-American & State Champion Multiple Time Junior National Qualifier Cecilia Porter Cecilia Porter is a student at Signal Mountain High School and is from Signal Mountain, TN. She will be attending and swimming competitively at the University of Florida located in Gainseville, FL. 2020 Olympic Trials Qualifier- 100 Breaststroke 18 & Under World Top 50- 100 breaststroke Senior National Qualifier- 200 breaststroke Jr National Finalist- 50 / 100 breaststroke Audrey Rackel Audrey Rackel is a student at Chattanooga State and is from Signal Mountain, TN. Rackel will attend and swim competitively at Nova Southeastern University located in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Southeastern Swimming relay record member Tennessee State Points Scorer Will Tippett Will Tippett is a four-year day student from Signal Mountain, TN. He will attend and swim at Queens University of Charlotte located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Multiple Junior National Qualifier Multiple Relay All-American Multiple Relay State Top 3 Points Scorer Daniel Unhuryan Daniel Unhuryan is a four-year boarding student from Bordentown, New Jersey. Unhuryan will be attending and swimming at Lehigh University located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Multiple Junior National Qualifier Multiple Relay All-American & State Top 3 Multiple Relay State Finalist in 100 Fly & 100 Breaststroke Avery Wilson Avery Wilson is a four-year day student from Chattanooga, Tn. She will attend be attending and swimming competitively at Marshall University located in Huntington, West Virginia. All-American 200 Medley Relay Junior National Qualifier Multiple Relay State Finalist Members of the Oyo State House of Assembly have agreed to a 30 percent slash in their monthly allocation. It was gathered that the s... Members of the Oyo State House of Assembly have agreed to a 30 percent slash in their monthly allocation. It was gathered that the slash in the allocation takes effect from April. The agreement was reached when Governor Seyi Makinde met with the State lawmakers at the government house, weekend. The slash according to the lawmakers is to assist the state government in its bid to pay salaries of workers as Coronavirus bites harder on the global economy. The 30 percent deduction includes both the lawmakers salaries and other monthly allowances accruable to them. At the meeting, Makinde explained that the pandemic had resulted in about 60 percent drop in the federal allocation and it was taking a toll on the states economy. Chairman, Oyo House Committee on Information and Media, Kazeem Olayanju, in a statement on Monday, said the lawmakers agreed to slash their pay in the interest of the smooth running of the state. Our income has been slashed by 30 percent as our support towards COVID-19. The governor brought the idea and we agreed that effective this month, there should be the 30 percent deduction. We were made to understand that the pandemic had greatly affected the economy of the country and the state as well, as that the Federal Government has reduced allocation by 60 per cent. This situation could have affected regular payment of salary of Oyo State civil servants but the governor maintained that irrespective of the economic situation of Oyo State, the salary of civil servants must not be affected. Hence, we agreed that political office holders should make sacrifices. Newly diagnosed cases of the novel coronavirus slowed Monday in East Baton Rouge Parish and the rest of the Capital area for the third consecutive day while deaths in the region jumped by 23 over the weekend to blow past 200 fatalities due to the virus. Cases of coronavirus in the Baton Rouge area hit 3,651 on Monday, up 1.7% from Sunday, while Louisiana as a whole had 24,523 confirmed cases of the virus, the state Department of Health said. Cases in East Baton Rouge went up by 22, bringing the parish total to 1,534. The slowed number of new cases in the 12-parish Baton Rouge area, however, comes as the number of completed tests in the region has dropped by 20% in a week-to-week comparison of the past two weeks. Experts and state officials have pointed out repeatedly that case numbers are sensitive to the dynamics of the testing process. Between April 6 and 13, some 4,430 tests were completed in the Baton Rouge area. Between April 13 and Monday, just 3,535 were finished, creating the 20% decrease compared with the prior week's tally of finished tests. It's not clear why the downturn in completed tests has happened as testing availability has increased in the area, though local officials have complained earlier this month about backlogs from some commercial testing labs. The state Department of Health on Monday also released data for the first time showing the breakdown of confirmed coronavirus cases by census tract, with an area that encompasses Donaldsonville reporting the highest number of cases in the region at 81. Deaths in the Baton Rouge area hit 220 on Monday, primarily on the strength of 19 new East Baton Rouge fatalities from the COVID-19 respiratory illness, the parish Coroner's Office reported. The first COVID-19 death in West Feliciana Parish was also reported Monday, meaning every parish in the Capital area has had at least one death from the viral illness. All of those who died in East Baton Rouge Parish had underlying health conditions and all but one was younger than 60, the coroner said. Officials didn't announce new deaths over the weekend, which in part accounts for the jump reported Monday. But the tally was nonetheless the largest post-weekend rise yet exceeding the 14 reported last Monday and seven the week before that. The new deaths push the total deaths of East Baton Rouge Parish residents from the COVID-19 illness to 98. 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 Across the state, 1,328 people have died from the illness, an increase of 32 from Sunday. The number of people who are hospitalized currently from COVID-19 increased Monday to 1,794, a bump of 2.6% from Sunday after an extended decline in the daily count that had lasted for a week. Of those hospitalized, 332 were ventilators Monday, which is down from Sunday and is part of a continued downward trend in ventilator use statewide since a peak of 571 people on April 4, state data show. Some of that decrease has happened, experts and health officials have said, due to changes in medical practice on the use of ventilators in response to the COVID-19 illness. Health officials and the parish coroner are reporting the following numbers for East Baton Rouge Parish on Monday: Cases: 1,534 Deaths: 98 State tests: 642 Commercial tests: 9,364 Monday's data release included new information from the state on the location of diagnosed coronavirus cases, which can now be pared down to specific census tracts throughout Louisiana. Previously Louisiana had identified such cases by parish. Each of Louisiana's 64 parishes has at least one diagnosed case of coronavirus. Louisiana's total number of deaths "presumed" to be associated with coronavirus will also be included in the state's daily update, in addition to the confirmed total. State health department reporting of deaths has lagged some local coroner's offices and that continued on Monday. The state reported 74 deaths in East Baton Rouge Parish tied to the virus, well behind the 98 reported by the coroner. In West Baton Rouge Parish, the state tally remains at 10, one behind what the coroner says. +2 Weekend jump in East Baton Rouge coronavirus deaths brings parish total to 98, coroner says An additional 19 East Baton Rouge residents died from coronavirus over the past few days, pushing to parish total to 98 deaths since the first See our coronavirus tracking map here. The West African country of Mauritania said that it has become coronavirus free after all infected people recovered or died, authorities said. The country has registered seven coronavirus cases, six left hospital while one person succumbed to the virus, Mauritanian health ministry said. Mauritania has asked people entering its borders to quarantine, which largely contributed to containing the virus in the sparsely populated country. The country has banned international passenger traffic and imposed a curfew stating at 06 p.m. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 12:14:50|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Head of China's National Health Commission Ma Xiaowei attends the Group of 20 (G20) health ministers virtual meeting in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, April 19, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Yuguo) WUHAN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's health authority has called for international cooperation to carry out joint prevention and control in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic. Ma Xiaowei, minister in charge of the National Health Commission, made the call at the Group of 20 (G20) health ministers virtual meeting Sunday evening. Ma said China is willing to implement the consensus reached at the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit on COVID-19, and calls on all parties to continue supporting WHO's leading role in coordinating international cooperation against COVID-19. The official also called for joint efforts to provide help to countries with vulnerable health systems. Ma said that after three months of hard work, the domestic transmission in China has basically been curbed and more people are getting back to normal life and work. "We have been continuously improving our prevention, control and treatment work and sharing our experience with the world." He said the Chinese government has provided or is providing material supplies to 127 countries and four international organizations and has sent expert teams to 15 countries. About 40 people, including health ministers from G20 members and other guest countries as well as leaders of the WHO and some other international organizations, attended Sunday's meeting. Washington, April 20 : An ongoing debate in the US about whether it's time for Governors to lift their stay-at-home orders meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 has highlighted a discord between federal and state governments, fueled by the pandemic and partisan politics. Protesters, some armed, have taken to the streets in a number of states, calling for stay-at-home orders issued by their governors to be ended, despite concerns that it may be still early to loosen social distancing restrictions in the country that currently accounts for the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, reports Xinhua news agency. President Donald Trump has tweeted support for the protesters, calling for "liberating" numerous states, including Michigan and Virginia, claiming that he feels some state orders were "too tough". Speaking to ABC News on Sunday, Washington Governor Jay Inslee said that Trump's tweets were encouraging "people to violate the law". "It is dangerous because it can inspire people to ignore things that actually can save their lives," he said. Washington was an early epicentre of the pandemic in the US. Inslee, a former Democratic presidential contender, has joined governors Gavin Newsom of California and Kate Brown of Oregon in a partnership to develop plans to reopen the West Coast. The debate came days after the White House issued guidelines that defer to states on reopening decisions, but recommended a three-phase approach, as the administration has been eager to put the nation's economy back on track, which has been hit hard by business closures and job losses. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, has announced that the state begins the process of reopening on May 1. In an interview on NBC News on Sunday, DeWine explained the decision that would make Ohio one of the earliest states ending stay-at-home orders. "We're going to do what we think is right, what I think is right, and that is, try to open this economy, but do it very, very carefully so we don't get a lot of people killed, but we have to come back, and that's what we're aiming to do beginning on May 1," DeWine said. According to a tally from Johns Hopkins University, as of Monday, the US has 759,467 coronavirus cases, with 40,677 deaths. New York state, the incumbent epicentre of the pandemic in the US, has 247,815 confirmed cases and 18,298 deaths. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday that they believe the state is "past the peak." "We must tread very carefully now. The worst thing that can happen is for us to go through this hell all over again," the Democrat tweeted. "Social distancing saves lives. Stay Home. Stop the Spread. Save Lives." Nearly 60 per cent of US voters have said that they were more concerned that a relaxation of stay-at-home restrictions would lead to more coronavirus deaths than they are that those restrictions will hurt the nation's economy, according to a new national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released on Sunday. As for the federal government's response to the coronavirus, 50 per cent of voters said they're satisfied with the measures intended to limit the disease's spread, versus 48 per cent who are dissatisfied. But only 34 per cent are satisfied with its efforts in ensuring that there are enough tests to suppress its spread. Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that "testing is the key to opening our economy". Trump and Pelosi have traded barbs over the federal response to the coronavirus crisis as the administration has been scrutinized for downplaying the threat from the coronavirus early on and faulted for delays in testing. Vice President Mike Pence told Fox News on Sunday that there was a need to ramp up coronavirus testing in the nation, where 150,000 tests are currently being performed each day. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. DecisionDatabases recommend a most recent report on the Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment Market based on industry analysis and forecast until 2025 with the estimated the year 2020. This report delivering key insights and offering an economical advantage to the client thought a comprehensive report. The report also covering the latest outbreak of COVID-19 impact analysis on the market. This pandemic has pretentious every phase of life worldwide. This has fetched several changes in the market scenario. The swiftly changing market scenario and impact on future assessments are covered in the report. The report also comprises future opportunities, growth rates, trends on global, regional as well as on country level. The global Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment market report presents a complete research-based study of the industry including details such as company shares, forecast data, in-depth analysis and an outlook of the market on a worldwide platform. The report further highlights the market drivers, restraints and the top manufacturers at the global and regional levels. For a thorough understanding, the report also offers market segmentation and regional analysis for the forecast period from 2020 to 2025. Click here to get a Sample PDF Copy of the Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment Market Research Report @ https://www.decisiondatabases.com/contact/download-sample-39725 According to this study, over the next five years, the Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment market will register an xx% CAGR in terms of revenue, the global market size will reach $ xx million by 2025, from $ xx million in 2020. In particular, this report presents the global market share (sales and revenue) of key companies in the Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment business, shared in Chapter 3. This Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment market report also splits the market by regions: Americas (United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil), APAC (China, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, India, Australia), Europe (Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia, Spain), Middle East & Africa (Egypt, South Africa, Israel, Turkey, GCC Countries). This report presents a comprehensive overview, market shares, and growth opportunities of Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment market by type, application, key manufacturers, key regions, and countries. The key manufacturers covered in this report: Breakdown data in Chapter 3. SKF SPM Instrument GE Emerson Schaeffler AG Rockwell Automation National Instruments Honeywell Meggitt SHINKAWA Electric Fluke(Danaher) Expert RION Instantel Others To inquire about report customization, feel free to reach out to our team of expert analysts @ https://www.decisiondatabases.com/contact/ask-questions-39725 This study considers the Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment value and volume generated from the sales of the following segments: Segmentation by type: breakdown data from 2015 to 2020, in Section 2.3; and forecast to 2025 in section 11.7. Handheld Stand Segmentation by application: breakdown data from 2015 to 2020, in Section 2.4; and forecast to 2025 in section 11.8. Machinery Manufacturing Chemical Industry Vehicle Electric Power Others In addition, this report discusses the key drivers influencing market growth, opportunities, the challenges and the risks faced by key manufacturers and the market as a whole. It also analyzes key emerging trends and their impact on present and future development. Buy Complete Online Vibration Monitoring Equipment Market Research Report @ https://www.decisiondatabases.com/contact/buy-now-39725 About Us: DecisionDatabases.com is a global business research report provider, enriching decision makers and strategists with qualitative statistics. DecisionDatabases.com is proficient in providing syndicated research reports, customized research reports, company profiles and industry databases across multiple domains. Our expert research analysts have been trained to map clients research requirements to the correct research resource leading to a distinctive edge over its competitors. We provide intellectual, precise and meaningful data at a lightning speed. For more details: DecisionDatabases.com E-Mail: sales@decisiondatabases.com Phone: +91 90 28 057900 Web: https://www.decisiondatabases.com/ ALBION TWP., MI Officers tracked and arrested two men seen burglarizing an Albion Township business Sunday afternoon, while a third suspect managed to elude capture, police said. Deputies were called at 2:30 p.m. April 19, to a burglary in progress at a business in the 12000 block of 27 Mile road in Albion Township, after shop employees arriving for work startled the three intruders who then ran into a nearby wooded area, according to the Calhoun County Sheriffs Office. With the assistance of witnesses, one of the men was found and arrested after a short foot pursuit in the 27000 clock of C Drive North, police said. A second man was spotted hopping onto a moped and driving through a field, police said. A sheriffs office K-9 tracked the man to a home in the 26000 block of C Drive North where police found the moped and arrested the suspect without further incident, police said. A second K-9 attempted to track the third suspect, but was unsuccessful, police said. The two men were taken to the Calhoun County Jail to await burglary charges. Several items stolen in the incident were recovered and returned to the business, police said. The Albion Department of Public Safety and Michigan State Police assisted at the scene. More from The Jackson Citizen Patriot: First Responder Parade honors healthcare workers in Jackson 1 new coronavirus death reported in Jackson County, 12 new confirmed cases Sealing treatment for road cracks scheduled at U.S. 12, U.S. 127 intersection Wilson Howard Goldsmith (Sonny) of Hughesville, MD, passed away on Thursday, April 16, 2020, at the age of 80. Born on November 9, 1939, in Hughesville, MD he was the first of 6 children born to the late Wilson (Hart) Goldsmith and Marian (Dyer) Goldsmith. After graduating from La Plata High School, he worked on the family farm in Benedict, MD. After marrying the former Mary Tayman of Brandywine, MD, he continued farming while working as a plumber's apprentice, often commuting into Washington, DC for plumbing jobs and returning later in the day to farm. As his family responsibilities grew, Sonny changed careers and worked over 30 years as a route salesman for Coca-Cola and Asycue Distributing. His next career was with Giant Food, in Waldorf, MD for 20 years, where he warmly greeted and helped customers until he retired in 2016. Sonny had a reputation as an early riser and possessed a work ethic unparalleled to any. He was a humble and generous servant, always putting the needs of others before himself. As a young man, he was blessed to meet and know so many of the individuals who helped shape Charles County and Southern Maryland into what it is today. He was a walking encyclopedia of facts on Southern Maryland and will always be known as a Southern Maryland Monument of a Man. A devoted father, he loved his family, farming, anything John Deere, country music, eating Maryland blue crabs and other seafood, going to Maryland Live to play the slot machines, drinking Coca Cola, eating at McDonalds and being social. He loved being around people and everyone loved being around him. He could light up any room with his infectious smile, sense of humor and joke playing. He was the most loyal, kind, good-hearted and upstanding man one could know. Sonny is survived by his wife of almost 60 years, Mary (Tootsie) Goldsmith; his two daughters Joan Bryan (Mike) of Waldorf, MD and Kathy Perriello (Joe) of Waldorf, MD; and his three grandchildren Pam Snyder, Joseph Perriello Jr. and Julie Perriello of Waldorf, MD. In addition to his parents, Sonny was preceded in death by his sisters Dorothy Nelson and Maryann Goldsmith and brother Richard (Morris) Goldsmith. Burial services will be private. Memorial contributions can be made to St. Mary's Catholic Church in Bryantown at https://stmarysbryantown.com, Building Restoration Fund in memory of Wilson H. Goldsmith. Online condolences and guest book is available at www.raymondfuneralservice.com. HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Sunday extended a lockdown to contain the spread of the new coronavirus by two weeks, but will allow mining companies to get back to work. HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Sunday extended a lockdown to contain the spread of the new coronavirus by two weeks, but will allow mining companies to get back to work. Mnangagwa said the lockdown would continue because the country had not yet met conditions set down by the World Health Organization to lift the measures. Three people have died from the virus out of the 25 confirmed infected in the southern African country, but health experts expect the figures to rise once authorities ramp up testing. "It has been a very hard decision that my government has had to take reluctantly," Mnangagwa said in a live television broadcast. Mnangagwa said the government would allow mining companies, which generate the most foreign currency, to resume full operations while manufacturers would work at limited capacity. Mining companies operating in Zimbabwe include local operations of Impala Platinum Holdings and Anglo American Platinum. Zimbabwe began a 21-day lockdown on March 30, which has confined most people to their homes. But in poor townships, people are venturing out in search of staples like maize meal, leading to long queues at the shops. The lockdown has left many citizens without an income and food at a time the country is grappling with the worst economic crisis in a decade, marked by shortages of foreign exchange, food and medicines. In the capital Harare, city council officials, with the help of police and soldiers, were on Sunday tearing down illegal market stalls used by informal traders in townships. The move was strongly criticised by citizens in the country where more than 80% of the working population have no formal jobs and eke a living from informal markets. City authorities defended the move saying it was necessary to restore order in the city and that informal traders would be relocated to new and better facilities. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; editing by Jane Merriman) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. The Goa government should not rush into declaring the state as "coronavirus free" as only 0.04 per cent of the population has been tested, state Congress chief Girish Chodankar said on Monday. On Sunday, the Pramod Sawant government had announced that all seven COVID-19 patients had recovered and that there were no active cases in the state at present. "Data released by the state government on Sunday showed only 826 samples were sent for testing, out of which reports of 780 patients have been received till date. The state government should not hurry in declaring Goa coronavirus free. This data shows only 0.04 per cent of Goa's 16 lakh people have been tested between March 22 and April 19," said Chodankar. He said the BJP government in the state has claimed that 7,000 staff completed surveying 3.66 lakh houses in 24 hours, adding that "these statistics raise doubts on the authenticity of the health survey". "The state government data shows 1794 persons are home quarantined, 202 are facility quarantined and around 162 are in hospital isolation, which works out to 2158 persons. However only 780 people have been tested in the last 28 days. So the government must explain why all 2158 were not tested," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) COVID-19 is not only negatively affecting the prices and demand for crops, but also making it difficult for a lot of farmers to plant and harvest. In the middle of March, the U.S. State Department postponed the processing of visas for Mexican migrant workers. This news had led to a chaotic life for Joel Anderson, the Snake River Farmers Association's executive director. The Snake River Farmers Association is a not-for-profit organization in Heyburn that provides aid to farmers in need of migrant workers through the H-2A program of the country. Farmers established it in Paul in 1986. Currently, it has 600 members from 15 states in the U.S. Changes in the Suspension Rules The suspension rules changed a few days after its implementation when the U.S. State Department said that the requirements for some in-person interviews would be waived. This will allow some visa applications to be processed. The policies of the U.S. State Department is not only changing every day but sometimes every hour. "It is extraordinary," says Anderson. Since the suspension has been even more relaxed, more H-2A migrant workers will be able to work in the country. However, the requirements for in-person interviews are not exempted from everyone. Currently, it is estimated that 20 percent of the workforce is required to undergo an in-person interview. Arrival in the Country Before the Pandemic Some Magic Valley H-2A migrant workers have already arrived in the country before the COVID-19 pandemic induced the changes to the procedure of visa processing. However, the 20 percent reduction in the workforce can result in significant issues for some U.S. farmers. According to Anderson, some farm operations are threatened due to the changes. There is a considerable number of H-2A workers who work on the same farm for years. Some farms with small operations are at risk of losing their veteran workers with immense experience. Check these out: Migrant Workers in Magic Valley From 2018 to 2019, approximately 1,200 migrant workers with H-2A visas came to Magic Valley, according to the data from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, and the Office of Foreign Labor. The data was collected by Jan Roeser, the regional economist of the Department of Labor in Idaho. Revenue from Magic Valley About half of the agricultural revenue of Idaho is from Magic Valley. The majority of the agricultural revenue of south-central Idaho is from dairy products, which needs employees for the entire year through the H-2A program of the U.S. with the exemption of herding sheep. The H-2A programs help farmers locate seasonal farmers. Alfalfa requires the help of H-2A migrant workers in Magic Valley. The H-2A workers who work there were a quarter of the total migrant workers in the region who worked last year. Corn, sheep, straw, and hay also require hiring H-2A migrant workers. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 14:31:31|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close UNITED NATIONS, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The Group of 77 (G77) and China on Sunday issued a statement expressing their support for the World Health Organization (WHO) in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. "The Group of 77 and China is deeply concerned at the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the most serious public health crises in modern history," the statement said, adding that "the first priority is to save lives." "The group, therefore, acknowledges the leading role of the World Health Organization led by its Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and extends its full support and appreciation for its work in providing information, technical guidance, training and other assistance to developing countries to help them prepare for and efficiently respond to the pandemic," the statement said. The group and China share United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' view that solidarity counts in the international efforts to curb the virus and its shattering consequences, they said. They emphasized that "the international community must unite in its efforts to ensure access to scientific guidance, training, equipment, essential medical supplies, and concrete life-saving services to countries in greatest need and in regions where the full impact is yet to be felt." The statement includes a call on the international community "to maintain and, where possible, increase their support for the WHO, which, by the mandate given to it by member states, has a critical and central role to play in supporting developing countries to confront a crisis of epic scale that threatens to erase the gains made over the past decades." "We reiterate the need to strengthen international solidarity and multilateral cooperation and partnership in the fight against a disease that is our common enemy," according to the statement. Enditem As protesters continued to defy coronavirus quarantine across the country on Monday, Facebook moved to censor groups organising anti-lockdown demonstrations on its platform. Hundreds converged on Harrisburg as part of "Operation Gridlock Pennsylvania" to demonstrate a statewide stay-at-home order. Video footage shows crowds waving flags and honking car horns at the state capital building urging officials to lift the excessive quarantine. The demonstration was organised by the "Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine" Facebook group, which had almost 70,000 members by late Monday. "Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!" the group said on its member page. Armed protesters demonstrate against coronavirus lockdown orders in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (AFP via Getty Images) Pennsylvania is home to a reported 32,991 Covid-19 cases and has seen 1,276 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Last week, Donald Trump used his White House press briefing to defend protesters ignoring social distancing guidelines, saying some state's shutdown orders were "too tough" and Tweeting his support to "LIBERATE" Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia. Rallies have been developing in state capitals across the country, including in Trenton on Friday where attendees shouted: "Open New Jersey Now". Similar messages have been seen in Indiana and Maryland, where members of the group Reopen Maryland blared horns through the streets of Annapolis. The Facebook event Gridlock Buffalo called on residents to circle the two square in cars, trucks and other vehicles on Monday to send a message to New York governor Andrew Cuomo. "WE ARE NOT NEW YORK CITY! Buffalo and W NY are ready to get back to business and work, we are dependent on it for our survival. Stop dictating the Cities policies for the whole state," the group said. Facebook spokesman Andy Stone said the company was consulting with government officials to understand the scope of their stay-at-home orders, which would inform their actions on posts organising protests in California, New Jersey and Nebraska created through their Facebook Events feature. "We reached out to state officials to understand the scope of their orders, not about removing specific protests on Facebook. We remove the posts when gatherings do not follow the health parameters established by the government and are therefore unlawful," a Facebook spokesperson told The independent. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organised on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook." Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 02:30:37|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A volunteer prepares free food for medical workers at the kitchen of the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, France, April 15, 2020. (PSG/Handout via Xinhua) There were signs that pressures on hospitals were easing as the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care dropped for 11 days in a row, said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. PARIS, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The coronavirus pandemic situation is improving "slowly but surely" in France though it is far from over, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday. There were signs that pressures on hospitals were easing as the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care dropped for 11 days in a row, said Philippe at a joint press conference with Health Minister Olivier Veran. A medical worker gets free food from a food truck in Paris, France, April 15, 2020. (PSG/Handout via Xinhua) "We lived in an unprecedented sanitary crisis, which is not over but we have won some points," he said. "After the sanitary crisis, there would be an economic crisis, which would be brutal," he added. France on Sunday reported 395 deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours as the number of new hospitalizations continued a slow decline. The new deaths brought France's total fatalities to 19,718. Volunteers carry food for medical workers to food trucks at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, France, April 15, 2020. (PSG/Handout via Xinhua) Actors Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling attend "The Place Beyond The Pines" premiere during the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival at Princess of Wales Theatre on September 7, 2012 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Sonia Recchia/Getty Images) Eva Mendes is in a high profile celebrity relationship with Hollywood hunk Ryan Gosling, but if you scrolle through her social media you might not be able to tell. The Hollywood actress keeps her accounts purposefully private and talking interacting with followers recently she revealed why. Though the 46-year-old, doesnt like to post photos of her nearest and dearest, she is an active user of Instagram and uses the platform to talk to fans and share positive posts and images. Read more: New Bond girl Ana de Armas on working with Ryan Gosling, Keanu Reeves: 'I've been very lucky' She recently posted a photo of a favourite piece of art which sparked a discussion about the content she posts, and why it rarely, if ever, features material relating to Gosling or their two daughters. On Saturday she posted an image of one of her favourite works of art, Love Is Blind, by Rene Magritte. captioning the image: "During these times, I'm so confused about what to post so I'm going to post things that move me in hopes that they move you as well. Since I don't post my about immediate family, and it feels so wrong to post about work, here you go. She added: "I've always loved this one and it feels especially relevant right now. sending lots of love out there." Responding to a fan who asked in the comments why she doesnt post about her immediate family, Mended said she likes to keep her relationship with Gosling private. She also said her children, aged five and three, and too young to consent to their images being posted online. Read more: Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes Are "Hands-On Parents" Without a Nanny She wrote: I have always had a clear boundary when it comes to my man and my kids. "I'll talk about them of course, with limits, but I won't post pictures of our daily life. And since my children are still so little and don't understand what posting their image really means, I don't have their consent. Story continues And I won't post their image until they're old enough to give me consent. "As far as Ryan and I, it just works for us this way, To stay private. Yesterday (19 April) she posted another work of art, this time a pretty accurate portrait of her drawn by one of her daughters. She captioned it: This is me. By my kid. Its pretty accurate. No I havent become a master baker or a good cook during quarantine. I havent seen a gym in two months. I havent written a novella. Ive just been trying to be a fun mom and not lose my marbles. Actress Diane Kruger stayed safe and stylish while heading out on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles. The 43-year-old German-born actress was spotted stopping at a market in West Hollywood while out by herself. She then stopped by a birthday party where social distancing guidelines were put in place amid the coronavirus outbreak. Safe and stylish: Actress Diane Kruger stayed safe and stylish while heading out on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles The actress stepped out in a royal blue one-piece jumpsuit with the pant legs rolled up slightly. She also stayed safe with a light blue face mask covering her mouth and nose, while putting on latex gloves as she went to the market. She completed her look with a black hat and black platform sandals as she walked to the market. Distancing: She then stopped by a birthday party where social distancing guidelines were put in place amid the coronavirus outbreak She wasn't seen with her longtime boyfriend Norman Reedus, who she's been dating since 2016. The couple first met while filming the movie Sky, and started dating in 2016 after she broke it off with Joshua Jackson, who she had dated from 2006 to 2016. Kruger gave birth to a daughter with Reedus in November 2018, her first child and his second, after his first child Mingus with supermodel Helena Christensen. Diane and Norman: She wasn't seen with her longtime boyfriend Norman Reedus, who she's been dating since 2016 Daughter: Kruger gave birth to a daughter with Reedus in November 2018, her first child and his second, after his first child Mingus with supermodel Helena Christensen Kruger will next be seen in the upcoming series Swimming With Sharks, which is eyeing a release later this year on the Quibi streaming service. The actress plays Joyce, one of the only female studio heads in Hollywood in the series, which doesn't have a premiere date at this time. The show is a, 'contemporary update of George Huang's original film that both celebrates and skewers the Hollywood studio system.' New role: Kruger will next be seen in the upcoming series Swimming With Sharks, which is eyeing a release later this year on the Quibi streaming service While she doesn't have any movies slated for release this year, she does also star in the upcoming action-thriller 355, slated for release on January 15, 2021. The film is described as a spy thriller following a number of different characters who are all international secret agents. She stars alongside Jessica Chastain, Sebastian Stan, Penelope Cruz, Lupita Nyong'o and Edgar Ramirez. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 00:24:38|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close YANGON, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank announced on Monday it has approved 50 million U.S. dollars of loans for the Myanmar COVID-19 Emergency Response Project as part of global emergency support operations through a dedicated fast-track COVID-19 facility. According to World Bank's release, the project mainly will focus on upscaling of Intensive Care Units (ICU) at selected hospitals along with capacity building of health staff and officials as well as community engagement activities throughout the country. The loans will cover eight central level hospitals and 43 Region and State level hospitals across the country with the implementation rolled out in a phased manner starting with the most at-risk areas such as densely populated areas and areas with frequent travel and migration. The emergency response project complements the World Bank-financed Myanmar Essential Health Services Access Project (EHSAP) which since 2015 has been supporting over 12,000 primary health care facilities across the country, the release added. At present, Myanmar has reported 117 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with five deaths so far in the country. Enditem Shea Rhodes 97 CWSL, Director of the Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation (CSE Institute) at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, was recently awarded a 2020-2021 U.S. Fulbright Scholar grant for the Fulbright-Schuman European Union Affairs Program by the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Beginning in fall 2020, Rhodes will conduct research in Austria and Sweden for six months. Each year the Fulbright Scholar Program offers nearly 470 teaching, research or combination teaching/research awards in over 125 countries. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement, as well as a record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields. The Fulbright-Schuman European Union Affairs Program specifically focuses on scholarships for American citizens to conduct research in the European Union with a focus on EU affairs or policy, or the US-EU transatlantic agenda. Shea is an outstanding member of our Villanova Law community who is doing impactful and wide-reaching work with the CSE Institute to combat commercial sexual exploitation, said Mark C. Alexander, The Arthur J. Kania Dean. She is so deserving of this Fulbright Award as she is a passionate advocate for those affected by exploitation and is a leader in creating policies and educating those on the frontlines. I know that she will represent Villanova Law well during her time abroad. Rhodes will use her Fulbright to engage in policy-oriented research on human trafficking with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in Vienna, Austria and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Stockholm, Sweden. Her research, titled, Discouraging the Demand that Drives the Exploitation of Persons that Leads to Human Sex Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation, will look at whether Austria and Sweden have successfully implemented a directive from the United Nations Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children. The Palermo Protocol calls for the discouragement for the demand for commercial sex through policy, law and public awareness. Rhodes also plans to engage with practitioners and stakeholders who work with victims of CSE though workshops and seminars to discuss trauma-informed approaches to work working with survivors. Prostitution is gender-based violence that is driven by the demand for commercial sex, said Rhodes. Austria and Sweden have divergent laws and policies regarding the commercial sex trade. After spending three months in each country, I hope to do a comparison of the two countries and the different ways they fight the supply and demand of the sex trade that is driving and fostering exploitation. These findings will then be used in the United States to inform our ever-changing legislation and policy reforms. Rhodes joined Villanova Law in 2014 as Co-Founder and Director of the CSE Institute where she works with and on behalf of victims and survivors of commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking. Rhodes has dedicated her career to combating violence against women, protecting the rights of those who are oppressed or exploited, and championing human rights. She is a national legal expert on laws and policies related to sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. Prior to her time at Villanova Law, Rhodes served as a Philadelphia Assistant District Attorney for nearly 10 years during which she was on the team that founded Project Dawn Court, a criminal justice diversion program for women with multiple convictions for prostitution. She also developed a Law Enforcement Working Group to facilitate collaborative investigations and prosecutions of human trafficking cases between local, state and federal agencies in the Philadelphia region. Before joining the District Attorneys Office, Rhodes was a staff attorney for the Crime Victims Law Project where she provided legal assistance and advocacy to adult and child victims of rape, sexual assault, and stalking. Rhodes holds a JD from Villanova Law and a BA from the University of Kansas. A Georgia man accused in a deadly crime spree across Alabama over the weekend has now been formally charged with the murder of a Birmingham man. Birmingham detectives on Monday obtained a capital murder warrant during a burglary against 32-year-old Derrick Lee Hightower. He is charged in the Saturday-morning shooting death of 36-year-old Antione Harris inside an east Birmingham home. A no-bond has been issued against Hightower. Hightower and 21-year-old Kentrice Symonee Hill, of Birmingham, already have been charged with capital murder in the Friday morning death of a woman in Auburn. Hill is not charged in Harris slaying. Hightower was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 2:10 p.m. Monday and is being held without bond. Hill is being held without bond in the Lee County Detention Center. Additionally, Hightower is suspected in the slayings of a Dadeville couple of their bodies were discovered in their home Friday night. Both had been shot to death. And, Shelby County sheriffs officials are working to obtain formal warrants against the Columbus man in the Friday robberies of three people inside a Chelsea urgent care office. The first known death is 54-year-old Nancy Nash. Auburn police responded to the Farmville Volunteer Fire Departments call for assistance on a vehicle fire in the 9500 block of U.S. Highway 280 West around 6 a.m. Friday. When officers arrived, they found a white 2005 Chevrolet Silverado truck on fire Nash dead nearby at Creative Habitats Landscaping. Nash worked at the landscaping business and is believed to have been killed while possibly interrupting a burglary. Her vehicle, a black 2019 Nissan Frontier, was discovered missing and later located in Irondale. Assistant Auburn Police Chief Clarence Stewart says he has no idea what prompted the rampage. I just know its awful, Stewart told AL.com Sunday. What possibly has he gone through in his life to lead to this? I believe we are products of our environment and it makes me wonder what brought him to this point. All of these families (of the victims) have been impacted, he said. This has changed everybody. Not just the families, but the Auburn community all the way to Birmingham. Next, Hightower is believed to have been involved in the double murder of a couple in Dadeville Friday evening. It wasnt immediately clear when the couple was killed, but they were found Friday night by a concerned family member, said Dadeville Police Chief Johnathan Floyd. Floyd identified the victims on Saturday as Willie Tidwell, 61, and his wife Barbara, 65. Floyd said they were communicating with Birmingham investigators and Hightower is the suspect, but no charges have yet been filed. In Birmingham, Sgt. Rod Mauldin said officers were notified about 11 p.m. Friday that a vehicle being sought out of Auburn was spotted at the USA Economy Lodge on Crestwood Boulevard. That vehicle, Mauldin said, was taken in Auburn and involved in the homicide there. Mauldin said they had also received reports that the suspect was seen in the area of the motel. A silver sedan was seen leaving the area and Birmingham police tried to stop the vehicle. At that point, Mauldin said, a man got out of the sedan and exchanged gunfire with Birmingham police. Officers lost sight of the suspect after the shooting. Early Saturday morning, as police continued their search, evidence led them to a home in the 100 block of Briar Grove Drive. A resident in the area was letting his dogs out in the backyard to use the restroom when a black male wearing all black appeared seemingly out of nowhere and said, Hey, you got a phone? the resident told AL.com, asking that his name not be used for fear of retribution. The resident said, no, and the man fled on foot toward the area of Briar Grove Road. It was then, investigators believe, that the suspect broke into a home and a man was shot and killed. A nurse and her three children live at the home but were not there when the home invasion and subsequent shooting took place. A man was shot to death Saturday, April 18, 2020 inside this Briar Grove Drive home in east Birmingham. A short time later, the resident who encountered the suspect said, he heard a barrage of gunfire. The next thing he knew, his neighborhood was flooded by SWAT. It is believed he took a vehicle from the house on Briar Grove and was in that vehicle when Birmingham police tried to stop him. He got out of the vehicle and exchanged gunfire with officers before fleeing the scene. It is believed Hightower fled on foot after crashing the stolen car. The police used the tag information on that vehicle to go to the home on Briar Grove Road where they found the slain man. A large perimeter was set up in the Crestwood Boulevard and Montevallo Road areas. About 4 p.m. Saturday, Hightower walked out of the neighborhood that backed up to where police had set up their command post. Birmingham Deputy Chief Scott Praytor said the suspect has no known connection to the man killed in Birmingham and they believe he was the victim of a random home invasion by a suspect on the run. Authorities said all of the victims appeared to be random targets, crimes of opportunity. Many of their stolen belongings were found in Hightowers possession. Little is known about Hightower and what may have prompted the spate of violence in which he is accused. Public records indicate Hightower went to prison in Georgia in 2006 on cocaine charges and again in 2014 on an aggravated assault conviction. He was sentenced to 10 years in the assault case but it wasnt clear how long he actually served. Hightowers grandmother, Pamela Hightower Copeland, spoke with AL.com on Sunday and said she doesnt understand what happened. I dont know what happened. I really dont, Copeland said. Seems like to me hes really got a lot of demons inside of him. I trust in the Lord. I go to church every Sunday. I have been going every Sunday, with the exception of recently because of the pandemic, Copeland said. I love him. Hes my grandson. Hes my blood. Im just putting everything in the hands of the Lord right now, she said. Hes my child, my grandchild. Im hoping whatever hes going through, hell find his way. A woman who spent 15 years trying to conceive has finally given birth aged 48 after going through five rounds of failed IVF, one ectopic pregnancy and even the start of the menopause. Fiona McCluskey, now 49, from Edinburgh, and her husband Darren, 47, began trying for a baby on their honeymoon to Jamaica in 2004 but as the weeks, months and years passed - it became apparent that something was not quite right. The couple had blood and hormone tests and were advised by medics to try IVF, which they spent 50,000 on. After five unsuccessful rounds of IVF - one of which resulted as an ectopic pregnancy - Fiona's chances of becoming a mum becamse increasingly slim when she began experience menopause symptoms aged 45. But she didn't let her hopes and dreams of becoming a mum fade away and received specialist treatment in Barcelona, Spain, which involved a new protocol to start her periods again. The couple were over the moon when their sixth and final round of IVF was a success and they welcomed Ella-Jane in May 2019. Fiona McCluskey, now 49, from Edinburgh, is pictured with her baby girl Ella Jane in May 2019 after 15 years of trying to conceive Fiona was 48 when she gave birth to baby Ella-Jane, pictured. She endured five rounds of failed IVF, one ectopic pregnancy and even the menopause Fiona said: 'We never thought this would happen to us; sometimes I wish I had started trying for a baby sooner, but I am grateful that I finally have my little miracle. 'Darren, who is a key account manager, and I have been on an emotional rollercoaster ever since 2004. It has been so hard especially when friends, family and colleagues had babies and I didn't, but I remained positive and hopeful and never gave up. 'After two years of trying naturally, we went to the doctors who discovered I had a low ovarian reserve and needed IVF - we got the first round free and then paid for another on the NHS but they were both unsuccessful. 'It was devastating, but we were able to pick ourselves back up and continue trying. Fiona, now 49, and her husband Darren, 47, (pictured together) began trying for a baby on their honeymoon to Jamaica in 2004 After several months of trying, the couple had blood and hormone tests and were advised by medics to try IVF, which they spent 50,000 on. 15 years later they welcomed baby Ella-Jane, pictured with Fiona Fiona is pictured at the IVF clinic in Barcelona, she travelled to the Spanish city to try and conceive Fiona is pictured a few weeks before giving birth, she took 15 years to conceive her 'We used our life savings and work bonuses to fund the treatment, but it was all worth it for our bundle of joy.' In 2010, the couple went to a private clinic in Glasgow for Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ISCI) - an assisted reproduction technique used as part of IVF treatment. They went on to have this procedure with every round of IVF to 'boost' their chances of becoming parents. Fiona says the hardest part was juggling a demanding job and appointments, as she feared telling colleagues about her medical appointments as she feels infertility is stigmatised. Newborn Ella Jane is pictured Fiona, pictured the day after giving birth, said she is now sharing her story in the hope to stop the stigma around infertility She said: 'I got "pregnant" which was great news, we were thrilled, but medics discovered it was a biochemical pregnancy which was heartbreaking. 'My body had basically tricked itself into thinking it was pregnant, but I was grateful to see my body works.' Fiona says the hardest part was juggling a demanding job and appointments, because she feared telling colleagues about her medical appointments, feeling that infertility is stigmatised. She is now sharing her story to help break the infertility taboo. WHAT IS THE MENOPAUSE AND HOW CAN YOU DELAY IT? Menopause is defined as the changes a woman goes through just before and after she stops her periods and is no longer able to get pregnant naturally. Some women go through this time with few, if any, symptoms, around 60 percent experience symptoms resulting in behavioural changes and one in four will suffer severely. Common symptoms include hot flushes, night sweats, vaginal dryness leading to discomfort during sex, disrupted sleep, decreased sex drive, problems with memory and concentration and mood swings. Last year, a fertility doctor revealed women can delay the menopause by up to 20 years with a 30-minute operation that tricks their biological clocks into thinking they are much younger than they are. The surgical procedure, devised by the fertility expert who pioneered IVF, sees tissue from the ovaries, thawed, and then transplanted back into the armpit. It also has the potential to extend fertility though doctors say the aim is to postpone the menopause rather than give women the chance to have babies into their 60s. Ovarian grafting, or ovarian tissue cyropreservation, involves taking healthy tissue from a woman's ovaries to delay the onset of menopause. The 30-minute operation, available privately in the UK, sees a surgeon take healthy cells from the woman's ovary and freeze them in conditions of -150C. Whenever the patient wants, they can be thawed and reinserted through the armpit. When the ovarian tissue starts to function it produces hormones that prevent menopause from happening. Advertisement She said: 'I had a very demanding job, in advertising and marketing, with long hours, which kept me very busy throughout the process. In hindsight, I used work as a coping mechanism because I never took time off to dwell on anything I was going through. 'I was a bit of a workaholic, who was up and down the country for meetings and meeting strict deadlines. 'I didn't let my personal life affect my work and kept everything what was happening bottled up by not telling anyone, and occasionally making up excuses when I needed time off for appointments. 'I regret not taking time off when going through so much stress and heartbreak, but I didn't want other people to know.' The couple were forced to put their dreams of becoming a family on hold in 2011 after both being made redundant. But after meeting a Spanish doctor at a fertility event in Glasgow they travelled to a Barcelona IVF clinic in 2014 where they began trying again. Fiona adds: 'During our three year break, I continued to exercise, eat healthily and take vitamins, go to acupuncture - I even went to hypnotherapy sessions but they didn't work. The couple tried several rounds of IVF but were forced to put their dreams of becoming a family on hold in 2011 after both being made redundant After meeting a Spanish doctor at a fertility event in Glasgow they travelled to a Barcelona IVF clinic in 2014 where they began trying again. Fiona is pictured with baby Ella Jane in September 2019 on holiday in Gran Canaria Fiona and Darren met in 1988, they are pictured here on a trip to London in 1989 (left). Fiona and Darren are pictured on their 10 year wedding anniversary in 2014 (right) They began trying to conceive on their honeymoon 10 years earlier In 2015, she endured more heartbreak as another round failed and then she began to experience 'horrible' hot flushes and her GP gave her a menopause diagnosis the following year. Miraculously, she conceived four years later 'Our desire to become parents became stronger and stronger - it was upsetting seeing friends with their children and feeling sad and a bit jealous. 'Once we both settled into new jobs, we began saving again and flew to Spain for another round of IVF and it was successful! 'We couldn't believe it - our dreams had come true but at eight weeks, I had severe cramps during my train journey home from a work appointment in Birmingham. 'When I got back to Scotland, I was bleeding and we went straight to the hospital to be told it was an ectopic pregnancy. 'I was absolutely totally heartbroken, but I found some comfort knowing I could carry a baby.' In 2015, she endured more heartbreak as another round failed and then she began to experience 'horrible' hot flushes, and her GP gave her a menopause diagnosis the following year. She thought 'it was over' but the clinic in Barcelona introduced her to a new protocol and the pill to start her periods again. In 2018, two embryos were transferred and a pregnancy test revealed, following the agonising '14 day wait' Fiona was pregnant aged 47. Fiona said: 'Our desire to become parents became stronger and stronger - it was upsetting seeing friends with their children and feeling sad and a bit jealous'. The couple are pictured on their honeymoon in Jamaica in 2005 Special day: Ella Jane is pictured at her christening with her parents and Fiona's sister Hazel (right) The delighted mother said that Ella-Jane was 'totally worth the wait'. Her parents can't wait to take her to Barcelona, because of its significance in her life story HOW FIONA HALTED THE MENOPAUSE WITH A 'DUMMY CYCLE' PERIOD Fiona was able to slow down the menopause, despite not having a period for over a year, with a form of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) called Progynova and a form of the contraceptive pill called microgynon Her doctor suggested she had a 'a dummy cycle' period in order to make sure that the endometrium - the innermost lining layer of the uterus - responded fine to stimulation before starting the HRT treatment. She then had to take 8mg/day of Progynova 2mg orally and every 8 hours for 7-9 days. Fiona then had scans to measure her thickness of her uterus lining before er IVF treatments began again. Advertisement She said: 'I was absolutely over the moon but still couldn't quite believe it - I was smiling from ear to ear and so was Darren. 'But I couldn't help but feel frightened as I thought something bad might happen and worried a lot during my pregnancy but tried to keep busy and put it out of my mind but it was terrifying at times, thinking the worst but stayed calm and used hypnosis soundtracks at night to switch off. 'My parents were ecstatic as they finally got a grandchild in their late 70s. 'Ella-Jane is a gem, our rainbow baby and she was totally worth the wait - I can't even remember my life before her - it is like she has always been here! 'It can be hard at times as I am not as young as I used to be but I am fit and regularly work out and keep myself healthy. 'Barcelona will always have a special place in our hearts and we can't wait to take Ella-Jane there. 'And we're so very grateful and lucky we met the Doctor from the Barcelona clinic.' MIAMI, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nationally-recognized leader in specialty organic coffee, Mayorga Organics , has opened a 43,000 square foot state-of-the-art organic specialty coffee facility in Miami, FL. This location will operate in conjunction to Mayorga's facility in Rockville, MD to continue to meet national demand for the Mayorga brand of products. Mayorga's famous organic Cafe Cubano made from specialty grade Arabica coffees sourced directly from small producers Mayorga's latest product offering featuring its organic Cafe Cubano. Filter packs to make cold brew coffee at home. Martin Mayorga, Founder and President of Mayorga Organics, states, "when my family immigrated into the U.S., Miami was our first home. It's always had a special place in my heart. I knew I wanted to bring the Mayorga brand here as soon as I launched it." Mayorga began his entrepreneurial endeavors when he partnered with the Plasencia family in Nicaragua to launch Mayorga Cigars in 1994. He incorporated coffee into his business in 1996 and sold Mayorga Cigars in 2001 to maintain his focus on coffee. Since its inception in 1996 to support small coffee farmers in Nicaragua, Mayorga has evolved to work exclusively with small organic farmers throughout Latin America and has launched a crop diversification program to give farmers food stability. "We exist to create market opportunities for our farmers," states Mayorga. "The Miami market is ideal for us to bring our message of sustainability, high quality, and to be unapologetically and proudly Latino. This larger facility will allow us to evolve into other diversified products such as cacao, quinoa, and chia while proudly representing the Latino community through high quality products that are truly sustainable," states Mayorga. Capabilities at Mayorga's Miami facility will include whole bean packaging, ground brick packs, a dedicated area to industrial cold-brewing and canning, as well as packaging grains and beans from the company's producer partners. While Mayorga's plans for tours are on hold indefinitely, the company is re-developing its website and social media strategy to showcase everything from the farming process all the way to preparing a cup at home. "Education and speaking openly about the realities of the agricultural industry in Latin America are hallmarks of the Mayorga philosophy," states Clari Butman, Mayorga's Brand Manager. "We're excited bring a brand into the Miami market that the local community can feel proud of as we continue to grow in the national Hispanic market, offering our people the quality, transparency, and authenticity we deserve as consumers," she continues. The facility, located at 8080 NW 58th in Miami and happens to be the facility where Cafe Bustelo was roasted and packaged before Smuckers purchased the brand and shuttered Miami roasting operations. About Mayorga: Mayorga Organics was founded by Martin Mayorga and operates with the purpose of alleviating systemic poverty through the direct trade of artisanal organic foods. Through its 22 years of being independently owned and operated, Mayorga has built strong relationships with retailers including Amazon, Costco Wholesale, Whole Foods, Giant Foods, and over 2,000 other small to national customers. The company's top selling product is organic Cafe Cubano which Mayorga launched in 2001. While the company focuses on building the Mayorga brand, it also manufactures under private label agreements for various clients on a local to national scale. Learn more at www.mayorgaorganics.com Media Contact: Martin Mayorga 305-542-1333 [email protected] SOURCE Mayorga Organics Related Links http://www.mayorgaorganics.com OTTAWAThe coronavirus pandemic has forced one of Canadas major beef processing plants to shut down, with no estimated date of reopening, as cattle producers warn they could lose $500 million over the coming weeks. The Cargill meat processing plant in High River, Alta. temporarily closed Monday after the operation was linked to more than 350 cases of COVID-19 in the suburban community outside Calgary. About 2,100 people work at the plant, and the company is urging them all to get tested for the novel coronavirus, Cargills North America lead John Nash said in a statement. The company said it typically processes 4,500 cattle per day, which the Canadian Cattlemens Association says represents 36 per cent of the countrys beef production capacity. The company said there is no scheduled date for the facility to resume production, and that workers will continue getting paid according to their collective bargaining agreement. This was a difficult decision for our team who are operating an essential service and are committed to delivering food for local families, access to markets for ranchers, products for our customers shelves and jobs for local employees, Nash said in the companys statement Monday. In a conference call with reporters Monday evening, Canadian Cattlemens Association vice-president Dennis Laycraft said the Cargill closure adds to a processing backlog that will lead to an estimated loss of $500 million for cattle farmers by the end of June. There are plants in eastern Canada that are pretty much at full capacity, he said. The reality is, in the short term, there wont be readily available alternatives. In an emailed statement to the Star, federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau applauded companies taking measures to protect their employees health and safety. She also said Ottawa has created a working group to ensure a national approach on meat and poultry issues during the pandemic, and committed $20 million to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for additional staff and work hours and to share inspection resources with the provinces. During these unprecedented times, the meat industry is adapting to the pressures on the supply chain and ensuring prudent management, including for the welfare of people and animals, she said. Canadians should be proud of the workers across the food supply chain, who are stepping up to feed them in their time of need. The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 401, which represents workers in the plant, had been calling for a shutdown to allow workers to self-isolate and for the plant to be cleaned. Thomas Hesse, the union president, told The Canadian Press that he knows of one worker who is in critical care in the hospital and fighting for his life. The Cargill closure comes as the cattlemens association has warned of possible food supply disruptions as meat processing facilities have slowed production due to the pandemic. On Friday, Canadian Meat Council spokesperson Chris White told the Star this has occurred as some employees have contracted the novel coronavirus and processing plants have instituted safety measures like social distancing that have slowed the pace of production. The Canadian Federation of Agriculture has also warned labour shortages mean farmers may be forced to leave crops to rot in their fields. Bibeau told reporters in Ottawa last week that some products may be scarcer due to the pandemic but that Canadas food system is resilient enough and will adapt. With files from The Canadian Press Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy has said the company respects the government's decision to reverse its previous order that allowed e-commerce companies to deliver non-essential items. In a mail to employees, Krishnamurthy also encouraged them to explore innovative ways to drive value for the ecosystem including sellers, brands, kirana stores and customers. "We respect the decision because the government has many complex scenarios to manage while protecting more than a billion people in the country," Krishnamurthy said. Four days after allowing e-commerce firms to also deliver non-essential items such as electronic goods and readymade garments, the government on Sunday said sale of non-essential items will continue to be prohibited during the lockdown period till May 3. "With this development, changes our plans at the Flipkart group, the entire leadership and the management team is completely aligned and committed to supporting the government's decision...," Krishnamurthy said. He added that the company will continue to deliver groceries and essentials to customers across the nation, adding that it will do so while following the highest standards of hygiene across supply chain and last mile delivery. Krishnamurthy urged employees to focus on "exploring new innovative ways to drive value for our ecosystem of sellers, brands, partners, kiranas and customers" and asserted that there is nothing online or offline. "...there is just one line i.e. to the customer, which means solving for social distancing and providing the products that consumers need at their doorsteps through a safe supply chain," he explained. Under the first phase of the nationwide lockdown between March 24-April 14, the government had only allowed delivery of essential goods through e-commerce platforms. On April 16, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued fresh guidelines for the current lockdown, allowing all e-commerce deliveries and movement of trucks. However, on Sunday, the home ministry issued an order saying the following clause -- "E-commerce companies. Vehicles used by e-commerce operators will be allowed to ply with necessary permissions" -- is excluded from the guidelines issued. The government's U-turn on home delivery of non-essential items will leave consumers disappointed, the world's largest online retailer Amazon had said. Local kirana store body, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) - which had been campaigning hard against allowing e-commerce firms to also commence non-essential deliveries during the lockdown period - called the decision the "most pragmatic". Industry body Nasscom, as well as players like ShopClues and Paytm Mall have urged the government to expand the list of essential items to include products like laptops and routers to facilitate people working from home. Industry body Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has also requested the government to open up e-commerce services. Stating that the debate of online versus offline is an incorrect portrayal of the ground reality. "There are lakhs of sellers from the physical markets across India who also sell online. In fact, it is these medium and small offline enterprises that are powering the online e-commerce in a significant way. This is especially true for products like apparel, footwear, small electronic items and household goods including utensils, etc," IAMAI said. It added that resumption of one part of their business will help them with liquidity and will lead to the larger restoration of demand. "Preservation of consumer demand is of prime importance that will keep the economy chugging along as the country starts the difficult process of economic recovery. This demand needs to be met and nurtured towards restoration rather than being suppressed to a future date," IAMAI President Subho Ray said. Online commerce is a safe and ready choice that is open to all sellers, including those who continue to see it is a threat, he added. "Lakhs of small sellers have embraced online channels and are today equipped to serve the country. Allowing full operations of e-commerce is the first step towards economic revival one that helps buyers, but more importantly, helps small businesses stay alive and start building towards a recovery," Ray said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Noach Dear, who served nearly two decades on the New York City Council as an outlier, advocating on behalf of the conservative agenda of his Orthodox Jewish constituents in Brooklyn while defending himself against accusations of conflicts of interest, died on Sunday in Brooklyn. He was 66. The cause was complications of the coronavirus. His death, at Maimonides Medical Center, was confirmed in a statement by Frank V. Carone, president of the Brooklyn Bar Association. In 1986, Mr. Dear vigorously fought an anti-discrimination bill that gay rights supporters had been seeking for 15 years. Among members of the City Councils General Welfare Committee, his was the lone vote against the bill, which was approved by the full Council, 21 to 14. He was also an opponent of abortion rights. L egal action has been formally launched against Priti Patel following allegations of bullying from a top civil servant. Sir Philip Rutnam, who was the Home Office's permanent secretary, quit in February amid criticism of Ms Patel's alleged behaviour. He is claiming constructive dismissal and submitted a claim to an employment tribunal on Monday morning, civil servants union the FDA said. Ms Patel expressed concern at the false claims against her and allies described her as a demanding boss but not a bully. Sir Philip Rutnam Resigns 'After Clashes With Priti Patel' In a statement, FDA general secretary Dave Penman said: On 29 February 2020, Sir Philip Rutnam resigned as permanent secretary of the Home Office, indicating that he intended to pursue a claim of constructive dismissal. Following his resignation, the FDA instructed Gavin Mansfield QC, head of Littleton Chambers and employment law specialist, as counsel to advise Sir Philip, supported by Clive Howard, senior principal lawyer, employment and partnership at Slater and Gordon. This morning, Sir Philip, with the support of his legal team and the FDA, submitted a claim to the employment tribunal for unfair (constructive) dismissal and whistleblowing against the Home Secretary." It is understood the papers have been lodged at the Central London Employment Tribunal and the latest move in his legal case comes as the Cabinet Office is expected to conclude an inquiry into claims against Ms Patel. She has been accused of clashing with senior officials and belittling colleagues. The increasingly close relationship on multiple levels between Russia and China became obvious to anyone with an interest in such matters last July when the two countries staged their first joint air patrol in the Asia-Pacific region, sending the air and naval defences of the principal U.S. satellite countries in the area Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines into panic mode. At the same time, the two countries continue to push ahead with their game-changing US$400 billion Power of Siberia gas project that will move at least 38 billion cubic metres of gas annually for 30 years from the Chayandinskoye and Kovyktinskoye fields in Eastern Siberia to Northeastern China. Last week saw major announcements from Russia that now that China is apparently past the peak of its coronavirus outbreak, plans for the project are moving quickly ahead and are being expanded in scope and scale. In broad terms, Russian President Vladimir Putin has found a perfectly complementary counterpart in Chinas President Xi Jinping. Xi, like Putin, is a leader who - since taking over as General Secretary of the Communist Party in China in November 2012 and as President of the Peoples Republic of China in March 2013 - has stressed the virtue of self-reliance and, as part of this, the importance of the State extending its influence into all areas of the countrys economic and social fabric. This centralisation ethos of the Chinese Communist Party, was encapsulated in Xis recent statement that: Government, military, civilian, and academic, east, west, south, north, and centre, the [Communist] Party leads everything. Putin tried in his early years to make friendly overtures to the West notably his 25 September 2001 speech in Germanys Bundestag in which he outlined that Russias destiny was in Europe and that the Cold War was definitively over but then drew back, initially because of the Wests censure over the Chechen Wars and then over the annexation of Crimea. Xi, though, has never sought such a relationship with the West and, since taking power, has actively sought to develop limited relationships with global partners to make up for the ending of the constructive engagement with the U.S. and its allies of Chinas previous leaders over the past four decades. Premium: The Oil Sector That Will Suffer The Most As TS Lombards London-based China research team chairman, Jonathan Fenby, told OilPrice.com: This political-economic nexus is set to bring growing divergence from the U.S. as part of the wider agenda of the national strengthening being pursued by Xi Jinping, and Beijing is shifting from being an economic adversary to the U.S. to a geopolitical alternative and this could result in a step change in the nature of the confrontation between the two countries. In both cases, the Power of Siberia project is perhaps the most tangible representation of this increasing economic and political congruence between the two countries. Having already demonstrated its willingness to use its abundant gas resources as a weapon in its numerous suspension and complete shutdowns of supply to Ukraine (and therefore to Europe) since the first major supply cut-off on 1 January 2006, Russia is looking to extend such leverage further in the shape of Nord Stream 2, the undersea Baltic gas pipeline to Germany, and the TurkStream pipeline to Turkey and Southern Europe. The Power of Siberia pipeline project fits into such a mould, although the initial focus is in undermining the U.S.s geopolitical position in the Asia-Pacific, a broad strategic move that is thoroughly in line with Chinas own plans for the area that it regards as its own backyard. With the outbreak of the coronavirus, it is easy to forget that China was fully engaged in an all-out trade war with the U.S., and in this context the Power of Siberia pipeline can be used to edge out the U.S.s gas supplies to the region as and when the need for an extra negotiating weapon arises. It would also add weight to Chinas global geopolitical game-changing strategy implicit in its multi-generational One Belt, One Road programme. Russia, therefore, in the course of the last week, has stated that it is looking to increase both the flows through the Power of Siberia and the overall capacity (including storage) associated with these flows. Currently, the pipeline in its eastern route - supplies gas from the Chayandinskoye field (the key element in the Yakutia gas production centre) to domestic consumers in Russias Far East and then on to China. According to Russias state gas giant, Gazprom, these commercial flows began last December at a rate of around 10 million cubic metres per day (cu m/d) towards an overall target rate of 38 billion cubic metres per year (Bcm/y). Premium: Oil Storage Nears Its Limit To achieve this as quickly as possible, Gazprom stated last week, the Chayandinskoye field discovered in 1983, with B1+B2 reserves of at least 1.2 trillion cubic metres of gas and about 61.6 million tons of oil and gas condensate is now fully back on track following a two-week maintenance programme that was implemented to coincide with the force majeure on some import obligations declared in March by Chinas PetroChina, due to the coronavirus outbreak. This is aimed at achieving the fields annual design output of 25 billion cubic metres of gas ahead of schedule and specifically includes expanding the operating Comprehensive Gas Treatment Unit (CGTU) that feeds gas into the Power of Siberia pipeline and finalising the membrane unit for helium concentrate extraction (expected to come onstream in the next few months). At the same time, Gazprom announced that it will complete the construction of the second compressor station on the Power of Siberia line before the end of 2020 and that it is to bring gas into the pipeline flow from the second major field involved in the project Kovyktinskoye, the focus of the Irkutsk gas production centre as from the end of 2022. Discovered in 1987, the Kovyktinskoye field holds the largest gas reserves in eastern Russia, with C1+C2 reserves across the licensed blocks (Kovyktinsky, Khandinsky, and Chikansky) containing 2.7 trillion cubic metres of gas and 90.6 million tons of gas condensate. Production drilling is now in full swing, according to Gazprom, with seven drilling rigs currently in operation but 18 in total planned for next year. This will allow the company to export to China at least 5 Bcm of gas in the first year of operations through the Power of Siberia before the figure increases to at least 10 Bcm in the second year and the full capacity of 38 Bcm/y as from 2025. Linking the two key sites of Chayandinskoye and Kovyktinskoye will begin in the third quarter of this year with the construction of a new section of the Power of Siberia pipeline. Alongside this, Gazprom is busy building out its storage capacity, last week announcing a target of more than 1 Bcm/d of withdrawal capacity by 2030. From 2010 to now, Gazprom has increased this amount that can be delivered from storage daily by 36 per cent, to 843 million cu m/d but plans to add a further 200 million cu m/d by the beginning of 2030, according to the firm. This will be achieved by expanding exiting storage facilities at the Kaliningradskoye and Volgogradskoye sites and the construction of a new facility at Shatrovskoye and other as yet unspecified sites in Tatarstan and the Northwestern, Siberian, and Far Eastern Federal Districts, Gazprom concluded. By Simon Watkins for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Indias ICICI Bank is seeking the impounding of two vessels operated by Ocean Tankers (Pte) Ltd, a unit of Singapore oil-trading company Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd (HLT), an ICICI source said on Monday. The tankers, Wu Yi San and Chang Bai San, were carrying cargoes financed by ICICI, the source said, adding that the bank had about $100 million exposure to HLT. According to a court filing reviewed by Reuters, HLTs founder and director had directed his firm not to disclose hundreds of millions of dollars in losses over several years. Shares of ICICI Bank fell about 4% after Reuters reported ICICIs exposure to HLT. ICICI, Hin Leong and Ocean Tankers did not immediately respond to Reuters emails seeking comments. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Screen Media has acquired the U.S. distribution rights to The Outpost, a war film starring Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones and Orlando Bloom that is based on Jake Tappers nonfiction book, the distributor announced Monday. Rod Lurie directed the movie that was meant to make its debut as part of the SXSW Film Festival. Screen Media will now release The Outpost around the July 4th weekend. Tappers book The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor details one of the worst of the war in Afghanistan that took place in 2009 at Combat Outpost Keating, just 14 miles from the Pakistani border. There, 53 American soldiers as part of Bravo Troop 3-61 CAV squared off against over 400 Taliban fighters in what was known as The Battle of Kamdesh. Eight U.S. soldiers died, and about two dozen more were wounded, according to The Washington Post. Tapper revealed in his book that later reports from the Pentagon showed the soldiers never needed to be at Outpost Keating in the first place. Also Read: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Crime Thriller 'The Silencing' Gets Release From Saban Films Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson wrote the script based on Tappers book. The film also stars Jack Kesy, Taylor John Smith, Jacob Scipio and Milo Gibson. Three soldiers who fought at Outpost Keating, including Landry Jones character and Medal of Honor recipient Ty Carter, also appear in the film in cameo roles. The Outpost was produced by Millennium Media, with producers Paul Merryman, Marc Frydman, Jeffrey Greenstein, Jonathan Yunger, Paul Tamasy and Les Weldon. The films executive producers are Avi Lerner, Jake Tapper, Trevor Short, Eric Johnson, Boaz Davidson, Robert Van Norden, John Kalafatis, Joanna Kalafatis, Mark Rhino Smith, and Tommy Vlahopoulos. The true story depicted and incredibly executed in The Outpost, is one of the most heroic stories of American triumph. Rod Lurie, the terrific cast and crew did an amazing job bringing Jake Tappers book to life. We couldnt be more honored to be working with everyone involved to bring this film to audiences this summer, Seth Needle and Mike Messina of Screen Media said in a statement. Story continues Also Read: Rod Lurie on 'The Outpost': 'I Will Never, Ever Do Anything as Important as This' I wish upon every director a movie so suited to their emotional needs. It was an honor and a duty to tell the story of my brothers in arms. I can think of no modern story that so beautifully displays the spirit of the American soldier. What we are willing to die for tells us so much more about ourselves than what we are willing to kill for. Youll understand what I mean after you see the film, Lurie said in a statement. Finally, the world will see what these young men came face-to-face with and overcame, Millenniums Jonathan Yunger added. I couldnt be prouder to bring to even wider audiences the story of the selflessness and sacrifice, the courage and determination, of the troops who served at COP Keating, Tapper said in a statement. Rod, the producers, and the actors did an incredible job re-creating the outpost and the battle and perhaps most importantly the essential truths of the experience and the heroes there. Also Read: 'The Jesus Rolls' Trailer: John Turturro's Jesus Quintana Is 'on the Road, Flat Broke, Hanging Loose' (Video) Its been a challenging seven-year journey to bring this important story to the screen and we were always just one RPG away from it not happening. Thankfully, we accomplished the mission and now get to share this story with audiences everywhere, co-writer and producer Paul Tamasy and producer Paul Merryman said in a statement. The deal was negotiated on behalf of Screen Media by Seth Needle, SVP, global acquisitions and co-productions, and Mike Messina, EVP, distribution, with Jonathan Yunger and Jeffrey Greenstein, co-presidents of Millennium Media, on behalf of the filmmakers. Millennium Media is handling foreign sales. Screen Media announced two other acquisitions last month, including the mystery thriller Suicide Tourist starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and the historic drama Robert the Bruce, starring Angus MacFadyen, both for a Spring 2020 release. In addition, production just wrapped on another upcoming Screen Media release, Wallys Wonderland with Nicolas Cage. The distributors most recent release is John Turturros The Jesus Rolls based on The Big Lebowski character. Deadline first reported the news of the deal. Read original story Rod Luries Afghanistan War Film The Outpost With Orlando Bloom Picked Up by Screen Media At TheWrap Most listed corporate entities in the country are in a fix. With the sudden declaration in late March of a nationwide lockdown to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic, the final calculations of their financial results for the year 2019-20 (FY20) are hanging in limbo. Till April 19, only 41 of the 3,947 companies listed on the BSE have managed to finalise the dates for the declaration of their yearly financial results. IMAGE: Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani. The countrys largest business entity said it will intimate the stock exchanges when it decides about the timelines of our board meeting to consider the annual audited results. Photograph: PTI Photo. A leading consumer goods company, which usually notifies the date for declaring its yearly and quarterly results within a fortnight of the end of the period, is clueless about when it would be able to do so this time. Members of its team of internal auditors criss-cross the country at this time of the year to take stock of inventories and audit all its production units. But now they are stuck at their respective homes in Mumbai. Most listed corporate entities in the country are in a similar fix. With the sudden declaration in late March of a nationwide lockdown to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic, the final calculations of their financial results for the year 2019-20 (FY20) are hanging in limbo. Till April 19, only 41 of the 3,947 companies listed on the BSE have managed to finalise the dates for the declaration of their yearly financial results. And only three -- Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and HDFC Bank -- have reported the profit and loss accounts for FY20. The rest, or 99 per cent of the listed companies, are uncertain as to when they will be able to complete this annual financial rite. The countrys largest business entity -- Reliance Industries (RIL) -- is no different. An RIL spokesperson said, As required by regulations, we will intimate the stock exchanges when we decide about the timelines of our board meeting to consider the annual audited results for the year ended March 31. So far, only two group firms -- Reliance Industrial Infrastructure and Hathway Cable & Datacom -- have declared dates. Corporate behemoths like Maruti Suzuki, ITC, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, Nestle India, Marico, Eicher Motors, and Jyothy Laboratories, among others, are undecided, too. While TCS reported its numbers on Thursday, no other Tata Group firm, including the groups second largest, Titan Company, has been able to decide on when to hold their board meetings. An ITC spokesperson said that that the management was continuously monitoring the situation and a final call will be taken based on how things evolve over time. An HUL spokesperson said the firm was unable to answer queries on the matter. According to Lalit Malik, chief financial officer (CFO) at Dabur India, the company will schedule the board meeting date for annual financial results after the lockdown is lifted. Nestle India, one of the top 15 firms on the BSE by market capitalisation, through a special announcement informed its shareholders that it was forced to postpone the 61st annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled for May 8. Considering the unprecedented situation with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and advisories issued by the central government and state governments to keep all offices and business establishments in India under lockdown, it has been decided to postpone the 61st AGM, the book closure, and the payment date intimated earlier. Sushil Batra, CFO at Relaxo Footwears, said while the firm usually holds its annual board meeting in the second week of May, this time it is likely to be postponed to the last week of May, subject to a return to normalcy. In view of the challenges owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has allowed companies to hold their board meetings remotely through videoconferences. It has also extended the date for filing of yearly financial results by a month -- from end of May to June 30. However, unlike companies in the field of information technology or banking, firms that manufacture goods, such as Maruti, Hero, ITC, and HUL and many others, undertake a rigorous physical auditing process that involves scrutinising the inventory at their manufacturing units and warehouses. The process of collating financial numbers from the ground up -- from each sales territory to the all-India level -- has also slowed considerably. Many sales officers have moved back to their native places and are unable to conduct the scrutiny of the distribution channels. With a 40-day lockdown in place, many companies involved in manufacturing activities have not been able to take a count of their stocks. While some might be facing the challenge of consignment stuck in transit, others have not been able to finish the stock audits. However, for services sector companies, the process of finalising the numbers is less cumbersome as the data itself is their product, said Shriram Subramanian, managing director (MD) of proxy advisory firm InGovern. According to J N Gupta, co-founder and MD, Stakeholders Empowerment Services, for firms with large establishments, It is better to be late than report numbers without thorough physical audits, as any lapse may result in loss of face if discrepancies appear later. Other challenges are cropping up too. A zonal manager at a diversified conglomerate said the final assessment of finances and operations under his supervision got delayed by a day as the broadband connection at his residence faltered. With no servicemen available for a quick fix, he had to postpone the videoconference. This is a peculiar situation and it is likely the Sebi may consider extending the dates (for filing numbers and holding mandatory committee meetings) further, said a senior analyst from a leading financial services firm. Overall, it seems unlikely they will be able finish the process before movement normalises, added Subramanian. UK Ministers call in PwC for Loganair funding talks Copyright Andrew Tryon The UK government has drafted in advisers to help decide the terms of a state bailout for Loganair. Sky News has reported that the British Department for Transport (DfT) has retained PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to assist it in negotiations with the regional carrier, which flies from the Isle of Man to Liverpool. The privately owned company has asked employees to cut their working hours by 20% and accept a 20% reduction in salary, or take a period of unpaid leave. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 05:48:07|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close PRAIA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Cape Verde on Monday received an emergency humanitarian donation from the Chinese government to help prevent and control the novel coronavirus in the archipelago, which has recorded 67 confirmed cases. According to Chinese Ambassador to Cape Verde Du Xiaocong, the donation includes 12,000 masks, 2,000 full coveralls, 500 infrared thermometers, 2,000 glasses, 10,000 gloves and 10,000 disposable shoe covers. At a reception ceremony, Du said China and Cape Verde always give priority to communication and cooperation at the highest level in the fight against the pandemic. He noted that the government of Cape Verde "has adopted pragmatic and effective measures to combat COVID-19, and has conducted very strong cooperation with the World Health Organization." The donation was received by Cape Verde's Minister of Health Arlindo do Rosario, who highlighted the contribution of the Chinese government to minimizing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. He said measures of social distancing, lockdown and suspension of flights have had a positive effect on the evolution of the pandemic in the archipelago, but it is still "in its initial phase." Earlier on Monday, the country's Foreign Minister Luis Filipe Tavares said, "In the framework of cooperation with China, we still have materials arriving from the Permanent Secretariat of Forum Macao, with a large number of masks." With the aim of strengthening the means of combating COVID-19, the government of Cape Verde has ordered medical equipment from China, including ventilators and tests. This week, Cape Verde will also receive a second donation of medical supplies from the Jack Ma and Alibaba foundations. Enditem RTHK: Merkel calls for transparency on virus from China German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday urged China to be as transparent as possible about the coronavirus outbreak, as Beijing faces mounting pressure over its management of the crisis. Critics have accused China of downplaying the scale and scope of the outbreak when it first emerged late last year, while conspiracy theories have swirled in the US the virus could have been leaked from a lab. Merkel urged for more information about the early days of the outbreak, which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. "I believe the more transparent China is about the origin story of the virus, the better it is for everyone in the world in order to learn from it," Merkel told reporters in Berlin on Monday. Chinese scientists say the virus was likely first transmitted to humans at a wet market where wild animals were sold. Unproven theories that the virus came from a maximum-security virology lab in Wuhan have been raised by US officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who has said an investigation was under way into how the virus "got out into the world". The Wuhan Institute of Virology has strongly rejected claims it could be the source of the outbreak, calling it "impossible". Chinese authorities have been accused of initially downplaying the outbreak and last week authorities in Wuhan admitted mistakes in counting their death toll and revised the figure up by 50 percent. French President Emmanuel Macron last week told the Financial Times it would be "naive" to think China had handled the pandemic well, adding: "There are clearly things that have happened that we don't know about." In Britain, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said China will face "hard questions" about the coronavirus outbreak, namely "how it came about and how it couldn't have been stopped earlier". Australia meanwhile has called for an independent investigation into the global response to the pandemic, including the World Health Organisation's handling of the crisis. Its foreign minister has said the country would "insist" on a review that would probe, in part, China's response to the outbreak. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. (Newser) President Trump said Saturday that he had recently gotten "a nice note" from Kim Jong Un, but by the following day, North Korea was denying its leader had sent any such thing. "There was no letter," Pyongyang's Foreign Ministry said, per the New York Times and Fox News. "The relations between the top leaders of (North Korea) and the US are not an issue to be taken up just for diversion nor it should be misused for meeting selfish purposes." In his comments, Trump also said the US and North Korea would be at war were it not for his election. Trump also recently told South Korean President Moon Jae-in he had gotten a "warm letter" from Kim, Moon's aides told reporters Sunday. story continues below But, per the North, "We cannot know for sure whether the US president reminisced about past correspondence, but our leadership did not send any letter to the US president recently." The country added, "We are about to look into the matter to see if the US leadership seeks anything in feeding the ungrounded story into the media." Trump and Kim have exchanged letters in the past, and last month Trump sent a letter to Kim offering to help his country fight the coronavirus. North Korea claims it has zero COVID-19 cases, but experts and defectors tell the AP that's unlikely. They suspect the virus is in fact circulating in the country. (Kim hasn't been seen in public for a while.) A new laboratory with the capacity to perform 2,000 coronavirus tests per day was opened on Monday at Serbia's "Fire Eye" Clinical Center with the assistance of China, the Serbian government said in a press release MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th April, 2020) A new laboratory with the capacity to perform 2,000 coronavirus tests per day was opened on Monday at Serbia's "Fire Eye" Clinical Center with the assistance of China, the Serbian government said in a press release. "Prime Minister Ana Brnabic attended the opening of a new laboratory today at the Clinic of the Clinical Centre of Serbia 'Fire Eye,' with a capacity of 2,000 coronavirus tests per day," the government said. According to the press release, the lab opening ceremony was also attended by Health Minister Zlatibor Loncar, Director of the Clinic for Infectious and Tropical Diseases Goran Stevanovic, Belgrade Mayor Zoran Radojicic, Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Chen Bo and Chinese experts based in Serbia. Forty microbiologists will work in the new laboratory around the clock. The second lab, which is due to open in the south-eastern Serbian city of Nis, will have a daily capacity of 1,000 tests. "Our country is now testing between 3,000 and 3,500 people a day, and thanks to new labs in Belgrade and in Nis, which is under construction and also with the support of Chinese companies BGI and Zi Jin, those capacities to be doubled," Brnabic was quoted as saying. She was further quoted as describing the Chinese-donated laboratories as a "state-of-the-art" and a "significant aid for Serbia in the fight against coronavirus, but also an important basis for further strengthening the Serbian health system." With the new labs, Serbia will become the second Eastern European country with the highest number of COVID-19 tests performed per day, according to the press release. As of Monday, Serbia has reported 6,630 cumulative coronavirus infection cases, including 125 fatalities and 870 recoveries. Wherever you're able to sit, there are some basic principles to keep in mind, Loesing said. Your hands should be on your keyboard, with your forearms basically flat and elbows bent at a right angle. Your back should be supported ("If you're not sitting at the back of the chair for support, it's like you're holding a weight all day long," she said) and slightly reclined around 15 degrees from straight. Your feet should be resting on the ground, with your knees bent as close to 90 degrees as possible. This may not be easy at the kitchen table in a wooden chair, so do what you can with pillows, boxes, plastic storage containers or books. "Don't sit on a stabilisation ball," Loesing said. "Those are for gyms." Then there's your screen. "Your whole entire posture is going to be related to where your monitor is," Loesing said. If your monitor is too low, you'll slump forward and, sooner or later, be in pain. "If you're looking straight ahead, you want to be about 10 centimetres below the top of screen," she said. If your monitor is too low, you'll slump forward and, sooner or later, be in pain. To achieve this setup, place your laptop on a stack of books and connect a keyboard, which should sit on your work surface. (External keyboards are still widely available and affordable if you must order one.) If your work involves papers, note that commercial document holders are intended to sit between your keyboard and screen. You can use a clipboard or a thin book leaned against the bottom of an external monitor to create this effect. (If you have access to an external display and don't discount using your television for this, whether over Wi-Fi, with a feature like Apple AirPlay, or by using a cable you can turn your laptop's screen into a document holder.) Loesing said that many of her clients are enthusiastic about switching to standing desks. "They've read all this material about how sitting is the new smoking," she said. "They're excited. It's a novelty." Do it if you want the same guidelines for your monitor and arms apply, although you should be careful when stacking boxes to get your laptop 5 or 6 feet off the ground but don't expect to stand all day. Maybe 20 per cent or 30 per cent of the time, Loesing said. Try not to lock your knees. Throw a book on the floor to lift up one foot at a time this can help ward off discomfort and keep you aware of your posture. You may be surprised at how quickly standing in place becomes uncomfortable. Walking for hours may feel fine; the discomfort of standing in place, even for much shorter times, can sneak up on you. When your workspace stops feeling good, the best thing you can do, Loesing said, is move around. Take breaks. Sit somewhere else for a few minutes. Look out the window frequently, and remind yourself that this won't go on forever. Create boundaries Real offices are designed according to all sorts of theories and principles: correct values for density, plans for lighting and acoustics, flow. The emergency home office, in contrast, was most likely designed for something else: eating, sleeping or storage. George Evageliou, president of Urban Homecraft, a custom furniture company, suggests taking a moment to visualise the office you want, even if it's out of reach. "Look for the ideal, understanding that you're not going to get it," said Evageliou, who is currently locked down in a 250-square-foot studio apartment. "Whatever you get is going to be better for it." This exercise, in the moment, may feel extreme. Ideal: an office with a door, a space to work, a clearer line between the stresses of home and the stresses related to work. Improved reality: a table in a kitchen or living room, cleared off, where nothing can happen but work. If space is your problem, that's fine. "Try to create delineations within a room," Evageliou said. (He spoke to me from a desk installed underneath a lofted bed.) A clear workspace of any sort a few square feet surrounded by an invisible fence can help maintain mental boundaries, too. Knowing that you're not redesigning your home, or signing up to do this forever, can recast otherwise less-than-appealing prospects as reasonable concessions to a need for privacy, space and emotional separation. "A closet is an ideal place for a desk," Evageliou said. Yes, it's a closet. But it's also, he said, "a great spot to eliminate distractions and focus." Loading Having a truly separate space in which to work, no matter how small, can pay off in other ways. "It makes it much more pleasurable to return to the dinner table, or to sit down on the couch and watch TV," Evageliou said. Maybe most of your home has become a borderless, chaotic work/child care/storage/food preparation zone. A tiny quadrant for thinking and dealing with the outside world will help. So can its inverse: Pick a truly work-free space, even if it's just your bed, and keep it sacred. Should you travel around the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic? The short answer: It's up to you. Of course, the real answer is more complicated. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention usually doesn't give travel advice and restrictions, but the agency's website devotes an entire page of questions and factors to consider before you go anywhere. First and foremost, you need to weigh whether you are putting yourself or others at risk. Are you sick or do you have underlying health conditions? You probably shouldn't be traveling and increasing your risk of getting the disease. Then ask yourself: Is your travel urgent? Every U.S. state has confirmed cases of COVID-19. Currently 97% of the U.S. population is under stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidelines. "This whole (novel coronavirus) problem is evolving. Look where we were two months ago," said Dr. Robert Winters, an infectious disease specialist in Santa Monica, Calif. Bottom line: We don't know what we don't know about the novel coronavirus. Some studies have shown that as many as 25% of people who have COVID-19 are asymptomatic. "I think it's a hard lesson to learn that you were capable of transmitting this rather ugly virus to somebody you care about," Winters said. "Unnecessary travel is a mistake." And the stakes are high, even for those who think they are taking proper precautions. "We talk about (how) the curve may be flattening, but there is a major concern that if we start lessening social controls, you're going to have a spike back up." If you must see someone such as an elderly parent "wear a mask and gloves," he said. Winters worries, he said, about flying as well because you could be sitting next to someone who is asymptomatic but capable of transmitting the virus. A decision to travel, he said, "comes down to a lot of personal and social responsibility." "I think the CDC site is a wonderful site to refer people to," he said. "I think it's very, very solid." Last week, California extended its stay-at-home order until May 15. The order asks residents to go out only for food, medicine and other essential activities. Neighboring states - Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington - have similar stay-at-home orders. Nevada, where casinos and hotels have been closed since mid-March, asks travelers and returning residents to self-quarantine for 14 days. Arizona asks the same of travelers from hard-hit areas such as New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Food takeout or delivery services are available in these states, though in-dining restaurants are closed. Seven states have not issued stay-at-home orders: Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming and Arkansas. But that doesn't mean you can go there to party. Those states have instructed residents to follow social distancing and public health guidelines, such as washing your hands frequently and avoiding touching your face. And some states, Texas, Delaware, Florida and Rhode Island, are "stopping drivers with out-of-state license plates and ordering them to quarantine for two weeks, if they intend to stay in the state," The Associated Press reports. States can't prohibit residents of another state from entering, but they can require quarantines or statements of purpose, the story also said. Back to those CDC online guidelines. Here are a few of the considerations the country's top health agency wants you to think about before you take a trip: - Is the virus spreading in the area where you're going? "If COVID-19 is spreading at your destination, but not where you live, you may be more likely to get infected if you travel there than if you stay home. If you have questions about your destination, you should check your destination's local health department website for more information." - Do you live with someone who is older or has a serious, chronic medical condition? "If you get sick ... upon your return from travel, your household contacts may be at risk of infection. Household contacts who are older adults or persons of any age with severe chronic medical conditions are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19." - Could you be spreading the virus when you return? You may be exposing others to the virus from your travels, even if you don't think you're sick. "If your symptoms are mild or you don't have a fever, you may not realize you are infectious," the CDC writes. ___ (Los Angeles Times staff writer Catharine Hamm contributed to this report.) Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 [April 20, 2020] Pricefx Applauds Winners of Pricing Competition at University of Rochester Pricefx, the global leader in native cloud pricing software, announced the winners of the 2020 Simon Pricing Club Case Competition at the University of Rochester. As the leading sponsor of the event, Pricefx worked with the Simon Business School and customer Iron Mountain, the leading storage and information management services company, to produce a real-world business problem for student teams to solve using Pricefx pricing software. The judges from Pricefx, Iron Mountain (News - Alert) and Simon Business School named the winners based on depth and quality of analysis, recommendations, visualization and presentation. Out of a field of 18 teams, the team comprised of Andy Lin, Milar Liu, Kaila Tan, Yuhen Xiong and Echo Zhong won the competition. "The business problem was interesting and also one of the most common pricing problems global companies face -- finding a standardized pricing strategy when you have different price sensitivities in different regions," said Varshini Jyothi, 2020 MBA candidate and President of the Pricing Club board. "Having sufficient data to understand the intricacies in each region and a tool to synthesize the data to identify clear patterns is crucial and Pricefx really made that possible by having different data synthesis options to help find the right solution." "This competition was an excellent opportunity to practice and enhance my analytica skills not only in pricing analytics but also in data visualization," said Jiangcheng Lin, a graduate student at Simon Business School who participated in the competition. "It was a good hands-on experience as we got a chance on work on software as well as see a real business problem. We learned how to use new software and used it to create data visualization. We discovered how different services could be affected by location and customer size. From this case competition, we learned new software to use and how to design the analytical work and how to set up the work division with a team." "We at Iron Mountain were excited about the level of interest and engagement from the Simon Pricing Club students on this competition," said Kate Gladziszewski, Senior Manager, Pricing Strategy and Revenue Management at Iron Mountain and competition judge. "This experience gave us a chance to gain inspiration and fresh ideas from the next generation of pricing professionals and to further strengthen our relationship with Pricefx." "I was impressed by the level of engagement and depth of analysis in a short period of time using real world data and a software platform that was new to them," said Gabriel Smith, Chief Evangelist for Pricefx and competition judge. "It was refreshing to see so many different approaches, types of analysis, perspectives and recommendations come from the participating groups. The use of data science techniques, in addition to descriptive analytics and visualizations, was particularly noteworthy and ultimately led the judges to selecting the winner. We extend our thanks to Iron Mountain and the Simon Business School for allowing us to be a part of this event." "The case problem was a perfect mix between analytics and strategy, said Jharna Narang, MBA candidate and member of the Pricing Club board. "Teams had the opportunity to tackle business issues relating to pricing using the Pricefx software for various types of analysis. Pricefx combines the benefits of different data analytics techniques into one tool. This makes the analysis more comprehensive, consistent and easier. The interface is also very user-friendly, making it simple to understand and navigate." This was the first implementation of Pricefx Next Gen, a program designed to support the real-world applications of pricing in educational settings. The velocity of innovation and change in business today requires students to master current technology, adapt quickly, think critically, and work in diverse teams. Universities play an important role in preparing students for success in the workforce and meeting the needs of today's businesses. This program is focused on putting real-world technology in the hands of students in order to better prepare them for careers with businesses who are using modern, digital approaches to compete. The Simon Business School is a world-class business school located on the campus of the University of Rochester. Rooted in quantitative analysis, Simon offers a distinct advantage in today's data-driven economy. Simon offers full-time and part-time MBA programs, as well as MS programs. The school was also the first business school to offer specializations in Pricing within its STEM-designated MBA and MS Analytics graduate programs. About Pricefx Established in 2011 in Germany, Pricefx is the global leader in SaaS (News - Alert) pricing software, offering a comprehensive suite of solutions that are fast to implement, flexible to configure and customize, and friendly to learn and use. Pricefx delivers a complete price optimization and management platform based on native cloud architecture, providing industry leading time to value and total cost of ownership advantages to customers. Their innovative solution works for both B2B and B2C enterprises of any size, in any industry, in any part of the world. Pricefx's business model is entirely based on the satisfaction and loyalty of its customers. Today, Pricefx delivers Passion for Pricing to more than 100 customers in more than 37 countries worldwide. For more information, please visit www.pricefx.com. ### View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005072/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Sexual health interventions are effective at increasing both abstinence and condom use in Black adolescents, according to research from North Carolina State University evaluating dozens of studies on interventions and outcomes in Black youth. The new paper, published in JAMA Pediatrics, draws on data from 29 studies that reported on a total of 11,918 Black adolescents. Sexual health interventions range from school-based health classes to programs offered by community organizations. "We focused on Black adolescents because they face greater health disparities when it comes to the risk of unplanned pregnancy and contracting sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) compared to other adolescents," says Reina Evans, first author of the paper and a Ph.D. student at NC State. "This disparity stems, in large part, from the context in which Black teens make decisions about their health. For example, stress from racism and discrimination, as well as unequal access to health care can impact the health of Black teens. We wanted to see whether sexual health interventions can be a valuable tool in addressing this disparity." The researchers found that young people were slightly more likely to abstain from sex if they took part in one of these programs - particularly if the intervention occurred at school. The researchers also found a modest increase in condom use for adolescents who took part in an intervention. "When we considered if youth who completed these programs had lower rates of unintended pregnancy or STIs, we did not see any effect - positive or negative - from the programs," Evans says. "However, only 4 of the 29 studies investigated these important outcomes, so these findings should be considered preliminary. It is likely that offering a sexual health program to youth could be one component of the puzzle of preventing teen pregnancy and STIs, and other components are also needed - like increasing access to contraception and STI testing and addressing racism in healthcare in the United States." The study also showed that interventions made Black adolescents more knowledgeable about sexual health and more confident that they could and would make safe sexual decisions in the future. In addition, researchers found that the effects were similar regardless of whether interventions were coeducational or aimed at a specific gender, and regardless of the target age range for an intervention. "These findings highlight that sexual health interventions make a positive difference for many Black adolescents," Evans says. "Important next steps include finding ways to disseminate interventions more broadly to teens, ensuring the interventions are accessible, and encouraging participation and engagement. "What's more, there's an urgent need to address disparities in access to long-term, high-quality reproductive healthcare, which could have a significant effect on health outcomes for Black teens." ### The paper, "Sexual health interventions for Black adolescents: A meta-analysis," was co-authored by Laura Widman, an associate professor of psychology at NC State; Elan Hope, an assistant professor of psychology at NC State; and McKenzie Stokes, Hannah Javidi and Julia Brasileiro, Ph.D. students at NC State. The work was done with support from a Doug Kirby Adolescent Sexual Health Research Grant from the Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington; and from the Center for Family and Community Engagement at NC State. An anti-malaria drug which has been promoted by Donald Trump as a cure for coronavirus has been given the go ahead for US trials. The Swiss drugmaker Novartis has reached an agreement with US regulators to hold a randomized trial of the drug hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 disease in 440 hospitalized patients, it was announced today. The trial will begin within weeks at more than a dozen US sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. The decades-old medicine has received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) emergency use authorization for coronavirus disease, but so far there is no scientific proof it helps those afflicted. An anti-malaria drug which has been promoted by Trump as a cure for coronavirus has been given the go ahead for US trials 'We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease,' said John Tsai, Novartis's top drug developer. 'We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study,' he added. The drug, also used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has been promoted by President Trump - who described it as a 'game changer' earlier this month. But some are worried the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine for COVID-19 has short-circuited the oversight process. Donald Trump has been criticised for endorsing the drug despite a lack of evidence of its effectiveness. 'What have you got to lose? Take it,' he said earlier this month Trump has repeatedly talked up the drug's potential benefits, while downplaying potential side effects, such as causing irregular heartbeats in some patients. There are several additional studies of hydroxychloroquine underway, including at the University of Washington and University of Minnesota, as well as work by the National Institutes of Health in the United States. Trump has been touting the drug for weeks, and says millions of doses have been procured for the national stockpile, as hospitals around the country continue to clamor for medical equipment. 'You not going to die from this pill. There could be some side effects but the side effects is more so from the Z pack,' he said last week, talking up a combination therapy with antibiotic Azithromycin. Trump also vented that if anyone besides himself were touting the drug, it would be popular. 'You know, what do you have to lose?' he said about the drug recently. Companies such as Novartis, Roche and Gilead Sciences are testing older medicines developed to treat other diseases, for signs they could be repurposed to tackle the coronavirus epidemic. Gilead just expanded a trial of its Ebola drug remdesivir. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan has said the medicine is one of his biggest hopes against the viral epidemic. However the antimalarial drug did not speed up coronavirus patients' recovery in a trial in China, scientists revealed earlier this week. In a disappointing blow for the promising drug, doctors said it did not work as a cure. Patients who were taking it suffered fewer symptoms than others who were treated alongside them without the medication but their recovery time was the same. It was the second setback in a week for the medication, after a clinical trial in Brazil had to be stopped because patients developed heart problems. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- According to a new study, coronavirus may be able to survive higher temperatures than initially thought. The report, titled Evaluation of heating and chemical protocols for inactivating SARS-CoV-2," was completed by researchers at the University of Aix-Marsielle in France, and was posted to the pre-print server bioRxiv. Researchers attempted to kill the virus by subjecting it to high temperatures. To test their theory, they placed infected cells from an African green money into a 140 degree Fahrenheit room. The test was unsuccessful, the study said. The virus only could be killed once it was exposed to 15 minutes of 197.6 degree temperatures, according to the researchers. Researchers are hopeful, however, that patients may have some luck with lower heat levels. A majority of patients have lower viral loads than what they tested, the report explained. ** CLICK HERE FOR FULL COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ** In March, Trump made several claims that that the virus could wash through in warmer weather, but reports since then have dictated otherwise. In the beginning of April, a public report was sent to the White House by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine that came to the same conclusion: summer weather wont interfere with the spread of the coronavirus. Sri Lanka banned a wide range of imports Sunday as the local currency is hammered by a monthlong lockdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The three-month ban on imports will apply to essential raw materials used by local industries, as well as luxury goods -- including cosmetics, chocolates and foreign liquor -- a government notice said Sunday. The Sri Lanka rupee has lost nearly 10 per cent of its value against the US dollar in the past two months as tourism -- a key foreign exchange earner for the country has collapsed, and a sharp fall in expatriate worker remittances. In March, the government banned the import of cars and luxury vehicles for three months as part of efforts to save foreign reserves, as authorities urged international lenders for a debt repayment moratorium. : The Madras High Court on Monday issued notice to Tamil Nadu government and the DGP returnable by April 28 on a petition seeking to invoke Goondas Act on those who indulged in inhumane acts preventing the burial of a doctor who died of COVID-19. A decent burial/cremation was a fundamental right of every citizen of is country guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution and it cannot be denied under the garb of protests, petitioner A P Suryaprakasam, an advocate, said. Authorities were prevented by residents of a locality here on Sunday from cremating the body of a neurologist who died of COVID-19 infection, he said in the public interest litigation plea likely to be taken up for hearing this week. The ambulance in which the body was taken and its driver were attacked, he said adding such people have not only violated law, but also committed a grave crime against humanity. The failure on part of the police to register an FIR and arrest such people have emboldened them to deprive the victims of COVID-19 a decent burial, he added. He pleaded with the court to direct the City police Commissioner to invoke provisions of the Goondas Act against those preventing burial of people who die of coronavirus and provide adequate police protection. Earlier this month, when a doctor from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh died of COVID-19, his cremation was delayed after residents of a city area objected to it. The body had to be taken back to the hospital mortuary and later cremated in another locality. Making it clear that right to have a decent burial is a constitutional right, the High Court took cognizance of the incident. Though the PIL was filed by advocate, the Special Division Bench comprising Justice M. Sathynarayanan and Justice M. Nirmal Kumar took up the matter on its own on the basis of a media report. "It prima facie appears that as a consequence of the alleged acts (of Kilpauk residents), a person who practised a noble profession as a doctor and breathed his last, has been deprived of his right, to have a burial, in a cemetery earmarked for that purpose.. ....that apart, on account of law and order and public order problem created, the officials who have performed their duties, appeared to have sustained grievous injuries,"the bench said. It said the citizens are not expected to take law and order into their own hands which would definitely lead to anarchy and there is every likelihood of continuation of similar incidents in future. Therefore, the bench issued notices to the State government and the DGP returnable by April 28. The court came to know about the incident through a report on April 19 that a medical doctor who had already had health problems suffered heart attack due to complications developed on account of COVID-19 infection. The body of the doctor was taken to a Christian cemetery at Kilpauk. The residents of the area assembled in large numbers and oppose the burial. As a consequence, the body was taken to Velangadu and buried. In the process, the ambulance in which the body was taken and the people accompanying the body was attacked. There was a law and order and public order problem on account of the act and as a consequence, some public servants were also injured, the court said. Passing the interim order, the bench also said it is taking judicial note of the fact that the information relating to guidelines to be followed in respect of COVID-19 cases are available in public domain at the instance of the Central and the state government as well as through social media and the people are expected to be aware of the said guidelines issued from time to time. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Advertisement An RAF plane is currently en route to Turkey to collect essential PPE supplies after the British government blamed 'challenges at the Turkish end' for the delayed arrival of the kit. The 84 tonnes of life-saving equipment set to be used in the NHS's fight against coronavirus, had been due to arrive in Britain last night but it failed to be delivered with RAF planes now being tasked with going to get it. However, only one of the three RAF planes earmarked for the job has now left RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, to collect the PPE (personal protective equipment) which means it is unlikely to arrive before tomorrow. Ministers faced fury today after it emerged that the PPE in Turkey was yet to be shipped to Britain, with some hospitals resorting to washing medical gowns for reuse due to shortages. Only one of the three RAF planes earmarked for the job has now left RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, to collect the PPE which means it is unlikely to arrive before tomorrow. Pictured: Military C-17 aircraft sitting at RAF Brize Norton The government has suggested the fault lies with Turkey, while the PM's official spokesman has insisted the UK is 'working with other countries around the world and with domestic producers' to boost supply. But Turkish officials claimed to Sky News that the UK had only submitted a formal request for the equipment on Sunday as they dismissed the suggestion that domestic problems had caused the delay. The officials said there was never a problem from Turkish authorities and all permissions have been issued very swiftly' in comments which will pile the pressure on the UK government. Chancellor Rishi Sunak tried to use the daily Downing Street coronavirus press conference this evening to dampen the anger of health care bosses as he insisted the government is pursuing 'every possible option' around the world in order to secure more PPE. The 84 tonnes of life-saving equipment set to be used in the NHS's fight against coronavirus, had been due to arrive in Britain last night but it failed to be delivered with RAF planes now being tasked with going to get it. Pictured: RAF Brize Norton Ministers faced fury today after it emerged that the PPE in Turkey was yet to be shipped to Britain, with some hospitals resorting to washing medical gowns for reuse due to shortages. Pictured: Military C-17 aircraft sitting at RAF Brize Norton Mr Sunak said the UK and other countries are facing an 'international challenge' to source the equipment and that ministers are 'working hard to get the PPE our frontline NHS and social care staff need'. He said Britain is still 'working to resolve the Turkish shipment of PPE as soon as possible' but was unable to say when it will arrive. He did reveal a shipment of 140,000 gowns from Myanmar was unloaded in the UK today. The hold-ups come with hospitals warning they are close to running out of some items, and medical bodies saying doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said there is 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive today. And he raised concerns that the situation was now 'hand to mouth' in many clinical settings. 'There's one trust that's discovered that if you launder those gowns at 60 degrees, what they've found is that there's probably up to three times you can do that and the gowns appear to still be capable of being fully fluid repellent,' he told the BBC. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. In another tumultuous day of coronavirus developments: England, Scotland and Wales have announced 450 more deaths from the coronavirus today, taking the UK's total death toll to 16,510; The number is a fall on the 596 fatalities announced yesterday, Sunday, and half as many as were confirmed the day before that (888); A vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients; The daily number of those tested languished at 21,600 with just ten days to go to hit the Government's 100,000 target; The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, reached at least 80; Michael Gove attacked 'grotesque' claims Boris Johnson was 'missing in action' at the start of the crisis after he missed five meetings of the emergency Cobra committee; More than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to be told to wear homemade face masks when they leave the house; Chancellor Rishi Sunak was urged to boost his business bailout schemes amid warnings that up to 11.7million could be furloughed or left jobless over the next three months; Analysis suggests that more than 2,500 elderly patients are dying of coronavirus in care homes every week. The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, has now reached at least 80. Pictured (left to right): Habib Zaidi, 76, GP from Essex; Adil El Tayar, 63, Hereford doctor; Pooja Sharma, 33, Sussex pharmacist; Amged El-Hawrani ENT expert, Burton Pictured (left to right): Thomas Harvey, 57, London nurse; Alfa Saadu, 68, Essex doctor; Mohamed Shousha 79, London medic; Lynsay Coventry, 54, Essex midwife Pictured (left to right): Aimee O'Rourke, 39, Kent nurse; Liz Glanister, 68, Liverpool nurse; Areema Nasreen, 36, Walsall nurse; Consultant Anton Sebastianpillai Pictured (left to right): John Alagos, 23, Watford nurse; Glen Corbin, 59, from London; Rebecca Mack, 29, nurse, Morpeth; Janice Graham, 58, nurse, Scotland Pictured (left to right): Rahima Sidhanee, 68, London nurse; Josiane Ekoli, 55, Harrogate nurse; Cheryl Williams, ward housekeeper; Ade Raymond, London nurse Chancellor Rishi Sunak, pictured at today's Downing Street press conference said Britain is still 'working to resolve the Turkish shipment of PPE as soon as possible' but was unable to say when it will arrive The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment from Turkey - enough to keep the NHS supplied for several days - was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Doctors blast Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries after she claims people are not being 'adult' about coronavirus PPE supplies Dr Jenny Harries (pictured) said 'we could perhaps have a more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies' as the government comes under fire over its efforts to protect NHS staff from coronavirus Doctors have responded with fury to the Deputy Chief Medical Officer's claim that people are not being 'adult' about PPE supplies amid growing calls for a public inquiry into NHS equipment shortages. Dr Jenny Harries slapped down critics of the government's efforts to make sure frontline workers have access to the gowns, gloves and masks they need to protect against coronavirus. She said there needed to be a 'more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies' as she insisted the UK was an 'international exemplar in preparedness'. Her comments sparked anger among healthcare chiefs who said they had been 'sounding the alarm' on the apparent lack of PPE available in some settings 'for months'. The government is now facing increasing pressure to launch a formal probe into the supply of PPE. Advertisement Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden had predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. Mr Dowden told BBC One's Breakfast show there had been 'challenges' in acquiring the consignment, which includes 400,000 gowns. 'We are very hopeful that later today that flight will take off and we will get those gowns,' the Cabinet minister said. 'We are working very hard to resolve this, there have been challenges at the Turkish end. 'I don't want to start making more and more promises but I understand that that flight will take off this afternoon and they will be delivered.' Another 25 million gowns from China had been procured and the UK would be 'getting those shortly as well', he confirmed. Doctors have responded with fury after the Deputy Chief Medical Officer claimed last night that people are not being 'adult' about PPE supplies. Dr Jenny Harries slapped down critics of the government's efforts to make sure frontline workers have access to the gowns, gloves and masks they need to protect against coronavirus. She said there needed to be a 'more adult, and more detailed conversation about PPE supplies' as she insisted the UK was an 'international exemplar in preparedness'. Her comments sparked anger among healthcare chiefs who said they had been 'sounding the alarm' on the apparent lack of PPE available in some settings 'for months'. Responding to Dr Harries' comments about PPE, Dr Rinesh Parmar of The Doctors' Association UK told The Guardian: 'Doctors have indeed been having both 'adult and detailed conversations' about the sheer lack of personal protective equipment for months, all of which have fallen on deaf ears. 'Since late February the Doctors' Association UK and frontline doctors have been sounding the alarm about potential shortages, which have been met with misplaced reassurances that the UK has sufficient supplies.' Dr Parmar is now leading demands for a public inquiry, telling LBC Radio: 'We have been collecting signatures on a petition calling for a full and frank public inquiry into what's happening with PPE to commence after all this is over with Covid-19 and we've had a chance to recover.' Palliative care doctor Rachel Clarke told ITV's Good Morning Britain programme that her phone had 'exploded with messages' after her colleagues heard Dr Harries' remarks. Dr Clarke said: 'When we all heard those words from Jenny Harries, I know how people reacted because my phone exploded with messages from people. Organisations representing intensive care doctors have said their members are facing 'increasingly difficult decisions'. They pledged to support any doctors who feel they have to down their tools due to inadequate PPE. The British Medical Association said the delay was 'devastating' and that shortages could force doctors to consider 'withdrawing from the frontline'. Chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: 'Given the Health Secretary's warning of the possibility of full-sleeved gowns running out altogether in some hospitals this weekend, doctors were banking on the Government's announcement of imminent extra supplies of PPE from overseas. Pictured (left to right): Maureen Ellington, Bristol nurse; Gladys Nyemba, Nottingham nurse; Andy Treble, 57, Wrexham hospital; Lourdes Campbell, 54, Bolton NHS Pictured (left to right): Amrik Bamotra, 63, Ilford hospital; Brian Darlington, 63, Crewe porter; Julianne Cadby, 49, NHS manager; Linnette Cruz, 51, dental nurse Pictured (left to right): London GP Syed Zishan Haider, 79; Jitendra Rathod, 58, surgeon, Cardiff; Alice Kit Tak Ong, 70, London nurse; Leilani Dayrit, 47, Rugby nurse Pictured (left to right): Barbara Moore, 54, Liverpool; Edmond Adedeji, 62, locum, Wiltshire; Fayez Ayache, 76, GP in Ipswich; Carol Jamabo, 56, carer in Bury Pictured (left to right): Carer Catherine Sweeney, 64; Donald Suelto, London nurse; Urologist Abdul Chowdhury, 53; Julie Omar, 52, nurse in Redditch Pictured (left to right): Elsie Sazuze, 44, carer, Cannock; Gareth Roberts, 63, Cardiff nurse; Sara Trollope, 51, London matron; Amor Gatinao, 50, London nurse Pictured (left to right): Donna Campbell, 54, from Cardiff; Elbert Rico, 52, porter in Oxford; Oscar King Jr, 45, porter in Oxford; Elvira Bucu, 50, care worker Pictured (left to right): Nurse Melujean Ballesteros, 60; Technician Kevin Smith, Doncaster; Leilani Medel, 41, nurse in Cardiff; Amarante Dias, 54, nurse in Somerset Pictured (left to right): Gladys Mujajati, 46, Derby nurse; Care assistant Stephen Agyapong; Patricia Crowhurst, 54, Teesside care; Jane Murphy, 73, Edinburgh A&E Pictured (left to right): Barbara Sage, 68, Bromley, London; Dr Krishan Arora, 57, London; Sonya Kaygan, 26, care worker; Jenelyn Carter, 41, Swansea nurse Pictured (left to right): Michael Allieu, London nurse; Radiographer Simon Guest; Wilma Banaag, 63, Watford hospital; Gilbert Barnedo, 48, London nurse Pictured (left to right): Rajesh Kalraiya, 69, consultant, Romford; Steven Pearson, 51, nurse, Cumbria; Linda Clarke, 66, Wigan midwife; Emily Perugia, 29, carer, London Pictured (left to right): Barry England, 999 paramedic; Gordon Ballard, manager, London; Mandy Siddorn, 61, technician, Chester; Unnamed at family's request Pictured (left to right): Carer Ruben Junior Munoz, Surrey; Andy Stamp, 65, IT admin, Liverpool; Margaret Tapley, 84, NHS nurse; Charles Tanor, 39, carer, West Mids 'Healthcare workers desperately need proper and effective protection now by whatever means possible. This really is a matter of life and death. Doctors and healthcare staff... are left fearful for their own health and safety this is shameful.' He added: 'They are treating their own colleagues in intensive care on ventilators and tragically see some of them not survive.' Professor Neil Mortensen, president elect of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: 'Like all doctors, surgeons are committed to saving lives. If the gowns run out they will be left between a rock and a very hard place. 'Do they put themselves, their colleagues and their families in the firing line, or do they take the risk of a patient dying on their watch for want of an operation?' Mr Hopson of NHS Providers took a swipe at the government for trumpeting the delivery from Turkey before it had arrived. He told Sky News yesterday: 'It's been rather unhelpful to focus on a single individual consignment. We have learnt from very bitter experience over the past two to three weeks that you can't guarantee gowns are going to arrive until they have physically arrived in the UK, the boxes have been unpacked and they have actually been tested. 'What we have found with other consignments coming in from other countries the boxes have been mislabelled and when you've opened them up they have actually got masks in not gowns, we know that several consignments have actually failed safety tests.' At least 50 NHS workers have now died after contracting coronavirus. NHS chiefs say supplies of gowns are 'critically low', and they need around 150,000 a day. On Friday PPE shortages forced Public Health England to issue new guidance saying doctors and nurses can treat coronavirus patients wearing only plastic aprons. Previous guidance required full-length waterproof surgical gowns for high-risk procedures. Yesterday a joint statement from the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, Intensive Care Society, Association of Anaesthetists and Royal College of Anaesthetists said members should 'carefully evaluate the risks' when deciding whether or not to treat patients. NHS chiefs say supplies of gowns are 'critically low', and they need around 150,000 a day. Pictured: Medical staff are seen putting on PPE at a testing centre in Rochdale, Greater Manchester It said: 'If shortages continue or worsen, our members will face increasingly difficult decisions. [We] will support those of their members who... decide against exposing themselves to significant risks of Covid-19 infection when PPE is clearly inadequate.' The Government is under fire for failing to adequately stockpile PPE in January and February, as the crisis loomed. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove was yesterday forced to defend the decision to send 273,000 items to China in February. He said: 'We did sent protective equipment to China but we've received far more from China ... than we've given.' Lord Deighton, who led planning for the 2012 London Olympics, has been appointed to co-ordinate a 'national effort' to make life-saving gowns, gloves and masks. The Government has issued a 'call to arms' for British industry to make essential PPE items, with Burberry, Rolls-Royce and McLaren already producing equipment. However, other British manufacturers claim their offers of help are being ignored. Labour said the Government is 'not taking advantage of the huge desire within British manufacturing to help'. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson (left) told yesterday's Downing Street press conference that the 400,000 gowns could arrive from Turkey today. Lord Deighton (right), who led planning for the 2012 London Olympics, has been appointed to co-ordinate a 'national effort' to make life-saving gowns, gloves and masks Help India! By TCN News Resident Doctors Association of AIIMS Delhi has written a letter to the Minister of Health, Dr Harsh Vardhan expressing their disappointment against the inaction of authorities over caste and gender based harassment of a resident doctor by faculty at Delhi. Support TwoCircles The letter states that a serious event of caste and gender based discrimination of a Senior Resident of CDER at New Delhi AIIMS has been continuously ignored by the institute despite repeated appeals to the Department, Director and Administration of the center. The resident had also written to Womens Grievance Cell and SC-ST Welfare Cell at New Delhi AIIMS but no appropriate action has been taken. Desperate for help, she also wrote to the National SC-ST Commission but to no avail. In the light of the above, the letter appeals the administration to extend their support and make sure something similar does not happen again. The President of Resident Doctors Association, Dr Adarsh P Singh, along with Vice Presidents and governing body have expressed that the matter coming from the countrys top medical institute during a global pandemic has become a serious blot and the inaction of authorities has furthered the residents extreme decision inflicting self harm. In this regard, the President of Resident Doctors Association has appealed the Ministry to expedite this process of inquiry and resultant action so that justice can prevail. ALBANY Robin Battista fell ill with a severe bout of pneumonia in February that left her out of work and on her back for eight days. It was before coronavirus dominated news headlines around the clock, and before New York had its first confirmed case of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the bug. She got tested for the flu, she said, and it came back negative. Now, more than a month later, Battista still doesnt feel quite right. Shes coughing more than usual and feels short of breath at times. She works as a nurse in the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Peters Hospital in Albany, and said she worries about bringing something home to her three kids. Thats why, when she got a text on Monday from a work friend who said testing for coronavirus antibodies was being conducted at the Price Chopper in Albanys Westgate Plaza, she dropped what she was doing, donned a mask, and left to get tested. If I have some antibodies, I would feel much more comfortable with my family, she told the Times Union after a state health official pricked her finger and collected a small blood sample. Theres so much unknown. Its hard. Im not usually an anxious person, but I find myself more anxious lately and I think knowing if I had it would make me and my kids feel better. Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Full coronavirus coverage It was the second day in a row that the New York State Department of Health swept into a local Price Chopper to conduct random antibody testing. The state is trying to determine how many people have had coronavirus and didnt know it, and has decided to collect 3,000 blood samples from willing customers at 20 grocery stores statewide this week to serve as a representative sample of whos had the virus and who hasnt. Blood samples will be tested for an antibody that develops in response to SARS-CoV-2, the official name for the novel coronavirus. After initial exposure to a virus, the body develops an antibody called immunoglobulin M, or IgM, which helps to fight off infection. Another antibody called immunoglobulin G, or IgG, develops in the final stage of infection and can remain in the blood for a long time afterward, enabling scientists to determine whether someone had the virus, even if they didnt know it. While it remains unclear whether a person who has developed the IgG antibody is immune to reinfection, its believed that the presence of the antibody can at least lower a persons risk, said Brad Hutton, deputy commissioner of the state Department of Healths Office of Public Health. We dont know what the risk of reinfection is until we go weeks and months further into the epidemic, and we also dont know the duration of ones immunity, he said. So the more people we can test initially and do these studies, the more answers well have in the future. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has held up antibody testing as key to assessing whether its safe to reopen segments of the economy and society. The state is currently on lockdown until at least May 15. Some public health experts have expressed concern with the quality of antibody tests, however, as some are registering false positives. Hutton said thats because the tests are detecting another kind of coronavirus the one that causes the common cold. He said that hasnt been and wont be an issue with New Yorks test, which was developed by the state-run Wadsworth Laboratory in Albany and has been validated for accuracy. Wadsworth's test is very sensitive and very specific, he said. Hear more about antibody testing on an episode of The Eagle: A Times Union Podcast Safety concerns The rollout of antibody testing was met with criticism by some who were taken aback by the apparent lack of notice and distancing at stores. Just hours after the governor announced Sunday that testing would begin Monday, reports of testing already underway began to crop up in the Capital Region. Testing operations were set up within at least three area Price Choppers one on Eastern Parkway in Schenectady, another on Kendall Way in Malta, and another on the Columbia Turnpike in East Greenbush. Local government leaders said they werent notified until after the operations had already been set up in their jurisdictions. Schenectady County was notified about random antibody testing being conducted at the Eastern Parkway Price Chopper site today by the New York State Department of Health after it had begun, county Legislature Chairman Anthony Jasenski said in a statement released Sunday night. The Saratoga County Office of Emergency Services said it was notified after-the-fact, as well. At 4:08 p.m. Sunday, the office announced on Facebook that it had been made aware of the antibody testing in Malta, which was scheduled to end at 7 p.m., and said it had no input on the matter. The post was flooded with comments from people who were confused why local government wouldnt be notified beforehand, and who reported crowded lines at the store as a result of the testing operation. DOH needs to move this outside, or do drive-up testing, one commenter wrote. Way too many people are standing way too close together for me. Until they figure a way to do this that doesn't involve packing people into the front of a grocery store, count me out. Rensselaer County was notified right as testing began, said Rich Crist, the county's operations director. He said it caused "a lot of problems" because shoppers walking into the scene believed the line of people waiting to get tested were there for diagnostic testing and potentially sick. "Now everybody's calling us up wondering how do they get in," he said. "They all think it's some kind of diagnostic test." Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Cuomo senior advisor Rich Azzopardi responded to criticism of the rollout on Twitter Sunday night, tweeting a Daily Gazette reporter who had shared Jasenskis statement. This is for a specific study, as we made clear today and they have our phone number, Azzopardi tweeted. Dont be small. Saratoga Springs Supervisor Tara Gaston replied to the comment, tweeting: Its not small to want a little notice, esp. to 150+ ppl showing up to the inside of an open grocery in our community (as same notice happened in #SaratogaCounty). Glad to host it - determining prevalence is needed - but so is our job keeping people safe. You have our # too. Hutton claimed Monday that local elected officials in each of the testing locations Sunday were notified ahead of time, but said the general public was not because state officials are trying to get a true representative sample that is not skewed by a disproportionate number of people who believe they had the virus. Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy said Monday that he was notified by state officials of antibody testing coming to the area. If they announce where theyre gonna be, theyll probably be overrun by everyone trying to get this testing done, he said. Indeed, even without public notice of the Westgate operation, Battista was able to learn of the setup through word of mouth and get over to the site in time to get tested. She described the experience as organized and efficient. The process The state Department of Health invited media to the scene to observe it themselves. A Price Chopper employee wearing a mask and fluorescent vest with the message Please stay six feet apart stood inside the entrance to notify customers of testing and advise them where to line up if interested. She monitored the scene Monday afternoon to ensure people were lining up six feet apart and could be heard cautioning people who were getting too close to keep their distance. The Westgate Price Chopper had room enough for a long snaking line of masked people who were able to keep their distance, and testing stations were set up in an empty cafe in a corner of the store not far from the entrance. At tables equipped with hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes, state health workers asked individuals to answer a few brief questions and to provide their contact information before directing them to another station for the finger-prick test. Officials pricked the ring finger of individuals and allowed a drop of blood to fall on a paper card that will be shipped to the state-run Wadsworth Laboratory for testing. The test subjects will be notified of their results. Results should come back in a few days, Hutton said. Were aiming to collect 3,000 samples statewide because that's the number that we think will give us a good estimate of the underlying rate of infection in the population in New York state, he said. The state had already collected about half that on Sunday alone, department spokesman Gary Holmes said. Operations were expected to wrap up in the early part of the week, he said. About three to four antibody testing sites were operational in the Capital Region on Monday, he said. Rensselaer County confirmed that the Price Chopper on Vandenburgh Avenue in Troy also hosted testing Monday. Sites were open elsewhere across upstate New York, New York City and Long Island, Holmes said. From what Im hearing from the other sites theyre coming along pretty good, he said. So I dont anticipate well have an issue meeting our goal. Authorities of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly have ordered the closure of the Kumasi Central market hours after President Akufo-Addo ordered the opening of the lockdown areas. The closure was necessitated by the refusal of the traders to observe social distancing protocols. There are many people at the market, they are not wearing gloves and masks and no social distancing, newsmen reported from the Central Market monday. President Akufo-Addo on Sunday announced the lifting the 3-week lockdown on Greater Accra and Kumasi, with effect from Monday, April 20. Addressing the Nation on Sunday, April 19, 2020, the President, however, stated all other social distancing measures are still in place. Churches, Schools both Public and Private, will still remain shut. According to President, the decision to enforce the 3-week lockdown was taken to give Government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and quarantine those who tested positive and isolate them for treatment. Source: starrfm.com.gh 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. Featured Video A pregnant Indian-origin doctor has staged a protest outside British prime minister's office at 10 Downing Street against the persistent shortage of personal protective equipment, mainly surgical gowns, for the UK's National Health Service medics amid the coronavirus lockdown. Dr Meenal Viz, who is six months pregnant, dressed in hospital scrubs and a surgical face mask held a placard reading "Protect Healthcare Workers" at the gates of Downing Street on Sunday as the critically short supply of the personal protective equipment (PPE) for the National Health Service (NHS) workers fighting the COVID-19 outbreak have caused widespread concern. "The government has to take responsibility," said the London-based 27-year-old junior clinical fellow within the NHS. Her protest came as the British Medical Association (BMA), the leading doctors' union, enhanced its ongoing campaign to raise concerns around doctors and nurses in many NHS Trusts facing a severe lack of PPE as the government admitted a crucial delivery from Turkey expected over the weekend has been delayed. For doctors and healthcare staff working on the front line now and in the coming days, the announcement that the expected arrival of PPE from Turkey has been delayed for an indefinite time is extremely concerning," said Dr Chaand Nagpaul, BMA Council Chair. Healthcare workers desperately need proper and effective protection now by whatever means possible. Far too many doctors are already placing themselves at considerable risk by simply doing their job of caring for patients, as a recent survey by the BMA worryingly found that significant numbers are still without the equipment they need, he said, adding that the issue really is a matter of life and death. The consignment of PPE from Turkey is expected to include 400,000 gowns, as Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, revealed that some hospital trusts already had shortages of the gowns, a critical piece of clothing to protect the doctors and the coronavirus patients they treat. "Bitter experience over the last few weeks has shown until a consignment of gowns has actually landed that the boxes have been checked and the equipment's been tested the NHS simply can't count on the gowns being available at the frontline," said Hopson, who revealed that often boxes have been mis-labelled and left Trusts short of specific equipment despite deliveries coming in. Meanwhile, Public Health England had changed its advice recently to allow the NHS to reuse gowns if stocks are running low, saying "some compromise" was needed "in times of extreme shortages". It asked staff to reuse "(washable) surgical gowns or coveralls or similar suitable clothing (for example, long-sleeved laboratory coat, long-sleeved patient gown or industrial coverall) with a disposable plastic apron for AGPs (aerosol-generating procedures) and high-risk settings with forearm washing once gown or coverall is removed". The guidance also said hospitals could reserve the gowns for surgical operations and procedures, which were likely to transmit respiratory pathogens. However, doctors' and nurses' groups had raised concerns that the new guidance had been issued without proper consultation. The UK government has said there is an enormous strain on the supply system for PPE but that every resource of government is being deployed to expand supplies. British doctors and health workers have continuously raised the alarm about a lack of sufficient protective kit to treat potential coronavirus patients, potentially exposing themselves and putting vulnerable patients at risk. The total number of confirmed cases in the UK have reached 1,20,067 and 16,060 people have died. Globally, more than 165,000 people have died and over 2.4 million people have been infected by the coronavirus, according to data maintained by Johns Hopkins University. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) University Challenge fans were treated to a clash of the titans when Brandon 'The Scowler' Blackwell of Imperial College London triumphed over Ian 'Grandmaster Wang' of Corpus Christi Cambridge in last night's hotly-anticipated final. Both teams made it to the final without losing a single one of their match-ups - but it was the dazzling team from Imperial who emerged as the series champions, beating Corpus Christi 275-105. Quiz fans threw their support behind either Blackwell, 26, or Wang, 21, who have distinguished themselves from their peers thanks to their particularly impressive breadth of knowledge - and unusually animated performance styles. However both somewhat failed to live up to their reputations last night. Blackwell's knowledge was dwarfed by that of his team captain, Caleb Rich, who hardly seemed to miss a beat in answering questions on everything from classical architecture to mathematicians. Meanwhile fans felt Wang and his team faded into the background compared to Imperial, with dozens of viewers taking to Twitter to ask: 'Where's Wang?' Scroll down to try your hand at the questions Imperial College London have won the final of University Challenge against Corpus Christi of Cambridge, scoring 275 points while their opponents managed just 105. The win was led by Brandon Blackwell, 26, known as the 'The Scowler', who viewers hailed 'for president' Meanwhile 'Grandmaster' Wang, an English student from Sale, Greater Manchester, had been responsible for 319 of Corpus Christi's 1,190. On tonight's episode he fell notably silent, with his team falling shockingly behind. Fans were shocked by Wang's performance, with one asking: 'Wang's gone all Ronaldo in 98!', while others asked 'What's happened to Wang?' and 'Where's Wang'. Now it's YOUR turn to try: Tricky tarter For Ten questions from the University Challenge final Here are the Starter For Ten questions asked during last night's final. Do you have what it takes to answer them correctly? The answers are at the bottom of the story - along with a selection of the bonus questions for you to try... The Tang Dynasty author Lu Yu wrote an early work concerning the cultivation and preparation of what? The opening words describe a magnificent tree growing in the south, it's shape resembling that of other chemellia. Flamboyant and curved linear are alternative names for what phase of English Gothic architecture, characterised by ball-flowers and elaborate tracery, it began in the later 13th century. (Both teams answered this question incorrectly) The Kirkwood gaps are regions of low population on graphs showing the distribution of what objects, plotted against their semi major orbital axis? The name of which country is contained within the name of each of the following? The Nobel Laureate who wrote Six Characters In Search of an Author Named after a french mathematician which special case of the mean value theorem states that if a function is differentiable over some defined interval, and for which the function returns the same value at each end of the interval. Give the three word title of the Gothic novel of 1820 by Charles Maturin about a man who has sold his sold to the devil. Informing a novel of 2018 by Sarah Perry, it also gave Oscar Wilde his pseudonymous name on his release from prison? (Both teams failed to answer this question) In total, how many human figures appear in the following two paintings: Henri Matisse's 1910 version of The Dance and The Young Ladies of Avignon by Pablo Picasso What letter links these place names: the county towns of Tyrone and Rutland? In Physics, which Greek letter is used for all of these: in uppercase, a baryon with strangeness -1; in lowercase Pauli spin matrices 1960 and 1980 saw successful military coups in which Mediterranean country? The former resulting in the execution of the Prime Minister Adnan Menderes. A failed coup in July 2016 led to constitutional amendments. Advertisement Viewers also noted that it was yet another all-male final of the quiz show, which has long faced questions over its lack of diversity. On Imperial College's team, with an average age of 23, Richard Brooks from Stockton on Teese studies Mechanical Engineering, Caleb Rich from Lewisham is studying Quantum Dynamics, and Conor McMeel from Dublin is studying Computer Science. With an average age of 21 on the losing team, Alexander Russell from Bristol is undergoing studies in Japanese, while Will Stewart from Peterborough is studying the history of art and Alex Gunasekera from Oxford studying chemistry. Ahead of the final, Blackwell, a computing student from Queens, New York, had scored 482 of his team's 1,170 points so far this series. Meanwhile Wang, an English student from Sale, Greater Manchester, had been responsible for 319 of Corpus Christi's 1,190. On tonight's episode he fell notably silent, with his team falling shockingly behind. Fans were shocked by Wang's performance, with one asking: 'Wang's gone all Ronaldo in 98!', while others asked 'What's happened to Wang?' and 'Where's Wang'. On Imperial College's team, (bottom left to right) with an average age of 23, Richard Brooks from Stockton on Teese studies Mechanical Engineering, Caleb Rich from Lewisham is studying Quantum Dynamics, and Conor McMeel from Dublin is studying Computer Science. With an average age of 21 on the losing team, (top left to right) Alexander Russell from Bristol is undergoing studies in Japanese, while Will Stewart from Peterborough is studying the history of art and Alex Gunasekera from Oxford studying chemistry. Brandon, who has been branded The Scowler by fans, put in a great performance tonight, answering several of the team's questions. Fans shared their support online The teams blazed through questions on topics ranging from Mathematicians to classical architecture and post-colonial theory to pop music. The gong sounded at 275 to 105, sounding Imperial college into a clear win. Corpus Christi of Cambridge took the loss in good humour, smiling as Jeremy Paxman acknowledged they made it to the final. Meanwhile a calm and collected Imperial College hardly broke a sweat as they gave a cool nod to celebrate their win. Corpus Christi of Cambridge took the loss in good humour, smiling as Jeremy Paxman (seen) acknowledged they made it to the final Elsewhere another viewer one added a GIF, adding: 'Me looking for Wang'. In stark contrast viewers hailed Brandon's appearance, with many tweeting: 'Brandon for president!'. Sir Andrew John Wiles, an English mathematician and a Royal Society Research Professor at the University of Oxford, best known for proving Fermat's Last Theorem, presented the award. 'I was really impressed with them, they were really brilliant', he said. 'There was a lot of mathematics in there and one question intrigued me "who said Maths is a young man's game?"'. He quipped: 'I'd say University Challenge is a young man's game!', presenting team captain Caleb Rich with the coveted prize.' Sir Andrew John Wiles, right, an English mathematician and a Royal Society Research Professor at the University of Oxford, best known for proving Fermat's Last Theorem, presented the award Sir Andrew quipped: 'I'd say University Challenge is a young man's game!', presenting team captain Caleb Rich with the coveted prize. Starter For Ten answers: How many did you get right? Tea (Imperial correct) Decorated Asteroids (Imperial correct) Iran (Imperial correct) Rolle's theorem (Imperial correct) Melmoth the Wanderer 10 (Corpus Christi correct) 'O' (Imperial correct) Sigma (Imperial correct) Turkey (Imperial correct) Advertisement Brandon combines his studies with being a career quiz show contestant, which he started aged 14, when he won 8,000 ($9, 950) on a teen version of the US quiz show Jeopardy. The brainbox, who breaks the show's convention by using only his first name , gained his epithet because of his exaggerated facial expressions. Four years later, the 'grimacing' and 'brash' American bagged 34,600 ($43, 033) on the US version of Who Wants to Be A Millionaire? and 12 months later, he scooped 272,700 ($219, 255) on Million Second Quiz - bringing his grand total to a whopping 315, 300 ($468,652). English graduate Wang had been given the nickname 'Grandmaster Wang' by fans after correctly identifying a song by hip-hop pioneers Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Wang has posted songs on YouTube under the name Ghost In A Sundress and now works for the National Audit Office, is self-effacing, but some viewers have called him a 'twerp' for boasting about the thought process behind his answers. At university, he was regarded as a firebrand 'post-colonial warrior' who led protests to 'decolonise' the English faculty. He has also spoken of the 'anguish' of his British-Chinese identity, saying: 'To be ChineseBritish is to be alienated at some point in your life, especially in a society that prioritises whiteness.' Despite his success, Mr Wang has railed against University Challenge, saying it rewards 'the same forms of old, white male hierarchies'. This piece, which was originally published as part of The Independents That Summer series, has been revised by the author. Find out more about it here. Mount Mulanje, in southern Malawi, is a beast of a mountain: two metres over the 3,000m mark with one of the highest peaks in southern Africa. But from what I remember of my ascent in the summer of 79, it is more of a strenuous hike than a climb. I was a young teenager when my parents were living in Malawis capital, Lilongwe. That summer I had been released from a miserable English boarding school to enjoy a couple of months of expatriate privilege by swimming pools, Lake Malawi and, occasionally, visiting a game park. My familys exploration of a country tended to be relatively tame, with comfort being a priority. We were not hardy, we didnt have kit such as sleeping bags or rucksacks and we never camped or stayed anywhere for long that didnt have air conditioning. So when a couple of more robust families invited my brother and me to join an expedition up Mount Mulanje, at the time it sounded very alternative. Our fellow climbers were British High Commission families: Mr and Ms Wilson and their four teenagers; and Ms Collins and her four, plus their German foreign exchange student. (Bit of a coup, that, getting an exchange to southern Africa rather than Surrey). I dont remember knowing the families well, I had probably bumped into their children on an end-of-term flight out to what was called post, or met them at the High Commission club during a holiday. There was no social media to ease the coming together of 10 pasty-faced British teenagers on an expedition up an African mountain. The organisation by the other families was impressive. A travel itinerary and a list of what to pack was given to each person. Which clothes to take was the biggest challenge for me. In 1979, Malawi was a one party state under the dictatorial rule of president-for-life Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda. He allowed no opposition or dissent; those who put their heads above the parapet were imprisoned or killed. The draconian laws he imposed on his country, one of the poorest in the world, were repressive, harsh and bizarre. At the bizarre end of this totalitarian spectrum was Dr Bandas big hang-up about 70s fashion. Men were not allowed to wear flared trousers or have long hair; it had to be cut above the collar. Women were not allowed to wear mini-skirts, shorts or trousers, only below-knee length dresses and skirts were permitted. This posed a real problem on my first mountaineering expedition: how many people have you seen climbing mountains in below-the-knee A-line skirts? Bandas dictates did nothing to help a self-conscious teenagers agony over which T-shirt would go with which sartorially tragic skirt. Looking cool: the writer and her brother taking a rest from the climb (Siobhan Mulholland) The only way to reach Mulanje from Lilongwe was by road, via the M1. Unlike its letter-and-numbersake in Britain, this was a badly pot-holed single lane, running from the north of the country to the south. What you didnt want to do is what we did: get stuck behind a lorry for most of the way and have to sit in the back of a 1970s British Leyland Land Rover. They dont make them as uncomfortable as that anymore. Recommended How to visit Paris without leaving home We stopped several times: to let cattle cross, change a tyre, look at wood carvings being sold at the roadside, and allow a couple of funeral processions to pass. Wherever we pulled over, even if there were no village or huts in sight, Malawian children would appear and wave. You couldnt rush a trip like this; we were an amiable country with a slow pace of life and our drive reflected this. My brother and I met the others at a tea-planters house at the base of the mountain, which is where we were introduced to our porters, who were friendly and keen to help. From here, we were taken to our starting point in the back of a lorry. What followed was a surprising and memorable five days. Mulanje is a big mountain, covering an area of 600 sq km bigger than the Isle of Man. Its steep, rising dramatically from an undulating plain below. Malawians call their mountain Island in the Sky because its peaks soar up above the clouds. The highest peak is Sapitwa at 3,002 metres. However, for beginners Mulanje is a treat of a mountain; you dont need to be a rock climber to reach most summits and you can walk from one side to the other. Wild south: a long walk through Malawi (Siobhan Mulholland) It took five days to cross the Mulanje Massif. Only day one was arduous: a four-hour ascent to the plateau. Any views to be had were covered in mist, drizzle dampened our spirits and clothes, and my feet hurt in my borrowed boots. But once on the plateau, the weather cleared, the sun came out and from then on we had perfect hiking weather: cool, clear and sunny. We visited in the middle of Malawis dry season when the countrys climate is kind to hikers. The elemental beauty of Mulanje has always stayed with me: deep valleys, gentle plateaus, waterfalls, rock pools and the extreme contrasts of barren rock and lush vegetation. The light is brighter and clearer that high up, far away from contamination. Recommended Why Malawi should be your next safari destination I dont remember there being much of a wind during our hike, more of a breeze and a very blue sky with occasional drifting clouds. The only hint that anyone had been there before us was the network of winding footpaths, there was no rubbish anywhere in this most pristine of landscapes. Each day, we walked three to six hours to a different rest house. It was a gentle trek; the porters did the hard work. Our party tended to split in two, with the eager, competitive personalities striding ahead and those, who were less interested in winning, brought up the rear. If the distance between the two groups became too much Ms Wilson would yodel coo-eee across the mountain; an incongruous sound in such African isolation. The rest houses we slept in were basic and clean; wooden huts with bunks, benches and open fires. In the evenings, Ms Wilson and Ms Collins took it in turns to organise a supper of stew or curry. This was followed by a tin cup of Malawi brandy. Maybe it was the altitude, maybe the tiredness, maybe my inexperience at drinking brandy, but I found the Wilsons German exchange student particularly interesting after one of these nightcaps. Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Show all 20 1 /20 Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Edinburgh Festival Fringe Edinburgh Festival Fringe David Monteith Hodge Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Giant's Causeway Giant's Causeway Stuart Stevenson photography/Ge Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Stonehenge Stonehenge William Toti/500px Lonely Planet's UK Travelist British Museum British Museum Chaokai Shen/500px Lonely Planet's UK Travelist St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral Mark Chilvers/Lonely Planet Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Borough Market Borough Market Circle Creative Studio/Shutters Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Hadrian's Wall Hadrian's Wall Dave Head/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Lake Windermere Lake Windermere Daniel_Kay/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Yorkshire Dales Yorkshire Dales ravellight/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Glencoe Glencoe Helen Hotson/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Punting in Cambridge Punting in Cambridge Premier Photo/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Bath Bath alice-photo/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Tate Modern Tate Modern chrisdorney/Shutterstock Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon Royal Shakespeare Theatre River Festival Lonely Planet's UK Travelist The Scilly Isles The Scilly Isles Julian Love/Lonely Planet Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Glastonbury Glastonbury Jason Bryant Lonely Planet's UK Travelist South Bank South Bank Tony C French/Getty Images Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Michael Roberts/Getty Images Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Pub roast Pub roast Diana Miller/Getty Images Lonely Planet's UK Travelist Arthur's Seat Arthur's Seat Martin McCarthy/Getty Images Traversing Mulanje will always be a standout memory for me, for reasons both universal and particular: the panoramas are still surprising clear, the exhilaration of making it to the peak likewise stays with me as do the feelings of awkwardness of travelling with people you dont really know. That said, I knew then and I especially know now how special those few days were. Ive promised myself I will return to Malawi, and to Mount Mulanje. Its true that when I holidayed there, in the late 70s, it was arguably an easier time for the country; exports of tobacco and tea were doing well, the war in neighbouring Mozambique had not begun, and Aids was yet to decimate. But for the tourist, Im told that Malawi is still a paradise to visit, and Mulanje a magical mountain to climb. While national news media outlets have sought to focus on the handful of right-wing protests which have called for a re-opening of the United States economy, a social catastrophe for the working population continues to develop in neighborhoods and communities across the country. On Friday, hundreds of people from Maryland and Virginia lined up outside of local MegaMart supermarkets with the hope of obtaining free baskets of groceries to feed their families. The giveaways, held at four of the Latino-owned stores in the Washington, D.C. area, led to massively long lines which wound around the buildings and disrupted traffic. Yoni Lopez, owner of the local supermarket chain, told press outlets that his stores quickly ran out of to-go food baskets. Lopez explained that staff began handing out $35 gift coupons to people in line. Anarel Mejia, who was waiting in line, told Fox News: I dont want to come out because I worry. I take care of my life. I take care of my son, thats why hes not with me but I need food now I think everybody needs help. Mejia is also an employee of the store. Like food pantries all across the country, Washington, D.C.-area food banks have reported a sharp increase in demand. According to the local CBS affiliate, the Capital Area Food Bank, which is the largest regional hub for food distribution to the needy, reports a 30%-400% increase in demand for assistance. The food bank relies on shipments from local supermarkets. Since the onset of the pandemic it has seen a 75 percent drop in such deliveries. News media outlets were quick to leap on store-goers for violating social distancing procedures. Such acts of desperation, repeatedly seen in cities throughout the country, are an indictment of capitalisms failure to properly care for the fundamental needs of working people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Likewise, those suggesting that such conditions indicate the need for a speedy re-opening of the US economy, without proper protections in place for workers in grocery stores and other essential locations, will only hasten the spread of COVID-19. According to Fox, over 400 people showed up Friday morning at MegaMarts Takoma Park location. The working class suburb is situated on the northeast border of Washington, D.C. and houses a sizable immigrant population. The Washington Post wrote last week that the pandemic is proving to be particularly devastating in neighboring Langley Park, which has an 80 percent-immigrant population, a large number of whom are undocumented. Here, countless cooks, construction workers and cleaners are suddenly out of a job without any chance of unemployment benefits or federal stimulus checks. Those who still work often do so in close quarters and at high risk of infection, the Post states. The publication cites a note given to leasers in a local apartment complex, informing them that, although the coronavirus had closed the leasing office, it had not canceled rent payments, which should be dropped through a slot in a metal box. Other nearby jurisdictions, such as neighboring Washington, D.C., have also excluded undocumented and informal workers from receiving rent assistance and other basic help during the pandemic. While the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region and its surrounding jurisdictions have reported lower numbers than other major population centers in the US, it is expected that the capital area will see a spike in coronavirus infections in the coming weeks. According to the University of Virginia, it is predicted that the commonwealth will see a surge in infections in late April or early May, reports WUSA9 . The Post reported that known COVID-19 cases in the Washington region doubled from around 10,000 to over 20,000 in the week ending Friday. Maryland, which on Friday surpassed 10,000 known cases of the virus, Sunday reported that it had 12,830 confirmed cases and 23 deaths overnight. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:36:52|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NEW YORK, April 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. oil prices plummeted almost 40 percent on Monday to nearly 11 U.S. dollars per barrel, the lowest level since 1998. As the last settlement day of the May contract, investors rushed to close out their trade positions on Monday, pressing down prices. The June contract was down 11.9 percent at 22.06 dollars. The havoc COVID-19 pandemic wrecked across the world has translated into plunging oil prices. Traders are also becoming increasingly concerned that oil storage facilities are reaching their limits as stockpiles continue to build owing to the falling demand caused by the surging number of confirmed cases. Worldwide, stock markets remained mostly lower despite governments trying to inject liquidity into the markets to ease lending so businesses can survive. To save their economies from a further crunch, many governments including Germany and Israel started to loosen lockdowns. The daily death tally in Italy, Spain, France and Britain have reportedly dropped amid slowing infection rates. However, analysts say a financial recovery might take longer than initially thought even if the pandemic is soon contained. Enditem JERUSALEM Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and his former challenger, Benny Gantz, agreed Monday night to establish a unity government, a deal that finally breaks a yearlong political impasse and keeps Mr. Netanyahu in office as he faces trial on corruption charges. After three inconclusive elections in the past year, the creation of the new government forestalls what had appeared to be an inevitable fourth election and offers a deeply divided Israel a chance for national healing as it battles the coronavirus pandemic. For Mr. Netanyahu, the agreement buys him time to try to resolve two contentious issues central to his legacy: to sidestep his prosecution or at least prevent it from driving him from power, and to extend Israeli sovereignty over occupied territory. The deal, announced by both mens political parties at 7:15 p.m., adds to Mr. Netanyahus tenure as Israels longest-serving leader and, coming after his conservative coalition failed to win a majority, cements his reputation as a canny political survivor who can never be counted out. MasterChef fans are already starting to turn on Poh Ling Yeow after the return contestant emerged as an early favourite to win this year's show. In a Facebook fan group, Masterchef Australia 2020, many viewers branded this year's series 'The Poh Show'. 'Is this the Poh show?' asked one fan, while another commented, 'It always was the Poh show, even when she was with Julie [Goodwin] it was still the Poh show. Just over it.' Frontrunner: MasterChef fans are already starting to turn on Poh Ling Yeow (pictured) after the return contestant emerged as an early favourite to win this year's show The 47-year-old first appeared on MasterChef back in 2009, and placed runner-up behind Julie Goodwin, before appearing as a mentor on last year's season. Added another: 'Oh riveting... The Poh Show keeps on rolling! So staged!!!' Someone else accused the chef and artist of thinking she's a better cook than she actually is: 'Looks lik [sic] Poh is not as good as she thinks she is'. Stealing the show: In a Facebook fan group, Masterchef Australia 2020, many viewers branded this year's series 'The Poh Show' 'Is this the Poh show?' asked one fan, while another commented, 'It always was the Poh show, even when she was with Julie [Goodwin] it was still the Poh show. Just over it' Making a comeback: The 47-year-old first appeared on MasterChef back in 2009, and placed runner-up behind Julie Goodwin, before appearing as a mentor on last year's season Others blamed the show, claiming MasterChef had framed Poh as this year's standout contender. 'Please MasterChef Australia, I know you can't alter the pre recorded episodes but when you catch up, PLEASE don't put so much attention on Poe [sic], she is not the most important person there,' wrote one fan. Another added: 'Honestly. Headline for tonights show "Pohs [sic] Riskiest Move" is she the only cook tonight?' 'Please MasterChef Australia... PLEASE don't put so much attention on Poe [sic], she is not the most important person there,' wrote one fan Fed up: One viewer claimed they were already 'over' Poh after a little more than a week into the new season In the edit: Others blamed the show, claiming MasterChef had framed Poh as this year's standout contender 'Honestly. Headline for tonights show "Pohs [sic] Riskiest Move" is she the only cook tonight?' added another One viewer claimed they were already 'over' Poh after a little more than a week into the new season. 'I am a bit over Poh already. If she wins after being told she is the favourite...' they wrote. Another commented: 'Poh had more lives than a cat in the first series. Hopefully, this series will be fairer to all contestants.' Fan favourite: Other fans were quick to defend the judges' favourite, with one viewer labelling her 'the best'. Pictured with fellow contestants Tessa Boersma (left) and Khanh Ong (centre) But other fans were quick to defend the judges' favourite, with one viewer labelling her 'the best'. 'I can't understand why everyone hates Pho [sic]! I think she's funny, self depreciating [sic] and not up herself at all,' wrote one fan. 'Yes the camera follows her a lot. But I don't blame her for that. I really like her.' The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has directed the COA Herbal Centre to recall its product, COA-FS, an immune support food supplement, from the market. It said a contamination caused by the presence of excessive microbial, mold and yeast as well as Escherichia Coli (E. Coli), was detected when the FDA conducted a laboratory analysis on samples picked from the market and the manufacturing facility of COA Herbal Centre in Wusorkrom near Cape Coast. A statement signed by Mrs Delese Darko, the Chief Executive Officer of FDA and copied to the Ghana News Agency on Sunday, explained that E. Coli, was a disease causing bacteria that was not supposed to be present in any medicinal product. Among the serious health implications, it could cause to consumers are diarrhoea, gastroenteritis, abdominal pains, nausea and vomiting. It said exposure of children and older adults to E. Coli contamination could result in serious health implications like hemolytic uremic syndrome that could lead to kidney failures. Moreover, individuals with weakened immune systems such as HIV patients could become seriously ill due to the ingestion of products contaminated with E. Coli, the statement said. It, therefore, entreated individuals who are in possession of the product to return them to the manufacturer, place of purchase or any of the FDA offices across the country. The FDA wants to assure the general public that it will always uphold the health and safety of Ghanaians as mandated by the Public Health Act, 2012, Act 851. Furthermore, the Ghanaian public is assured that FDA officers in the regions are working to ensure that this contaminated product (COA-FS) is removed from the market, the statement said. The statement urged members of the public to direct all concerns and questions arising out of this publication and any other FDA regulated product, to the FDA on the following contacts; 0299802933, 0546469711, and via Whatsapp lines, 0206973065. 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. Featured Video For many, hearing officials discuss reopening the country comes as a relief. It means there's a light at the end of the tunnel, that after weeks of staying home, the world will eventually return to normal -- even if "normal" looks a little different than it used to. But there are both risks and benefits to having these discussions now, especially when there is so much left to be done: A vaccine is a long way off. Testing is still not where it needs to be. Contact tracing to identify and track cases needs to ramp up. As officials discuss the merits of reopening the country, experts say it's important they manage the expectations of the public, clearly communicate the risks and be wary of giving people a false sense of security. "I think it runs the risk of being premature and giving people false hope that we can quickly change into the next phases," Dr. Lucy Wilson, an infectious disease physician and professor of emergency health services at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, said of discussions to reopen. "But I also think it's necessary to include the public," she added, "because we're asking so much of them at this time." The risks need to be communicated ... Talking about reopening could lead the public to believe the country can quickly and easily return to normal, when in reality, many officials have warned a return to normal will take place gradually. "Public discussions have the potential to raise the public's expectations of reopening and create a false sense of security that the disease is controlled in the United States," Wilson said. Wilson told CNN it's natural for people to anticipate a relaxing of restrictions as we see the positive impacts of social distancing. "However, Americans must be made aware of the likelihood the country will have a resurgence in heightened levels of disease activity and death and this will necessitate returning to earlier stages of strict social distancing." "Managing these expectations is crucial for prevention of future Covid-19 surges," she said. Officials across the country have repeatedly urged caution, emphasizing that lifting restrictions too early could lead to another wave of infections and perhaps prompt another round of restrictions. "We all need to understand this will be a gradual process," Montana Gov. Steve Bullock told residents of his state this week. "Because once we begin to reopen, we want to be able to stay open." Wilson warned that the country should expect to see more infections and more deaths. "And no matter what we do we are going to have additional cases, and we probably will have additional waves of infection that are significant enough that we need to retrace our steps and revert to earlier phases of our control plan." Many US governors have been clear that the path toward reopening their states involves effective infrastructure for testing, tracking and treating the coronavirus. "We have to have something in place that is efficient and that we can rely on," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, told the Associated Press earlier this week, "and we're not there yet." ... but discussions can provide hope Stephen Wu, a professor of economics at Hamilton College, said he doesn't see much danger in talking about reopening at this stage, though he believes it best to "err on the side of caution and not rush to open things up." But early discussions of reopening the country could have some benefits, like giving people some hope at a dark time. "While some may feel it is premature to talk about reopening the economy," Wu said, "there are also plenty of people who are looking for some light at the end of the tunnel, particularly people who are furloughed, unemployed or seeing their small businesses suffer from the shutdown." "Having some preliminary discussions about ways to cautiously and gradually allow businesses to open may provide people with a sense of hope," Wu said. "There really is a tricky balance in providing some optimism to the public, while not wanting to lull people into a sense of false security." But there could be some positive economic impacts to discussing the reopening, Wu said, as opposed to letting people think we'll be stuck in our homes indefinitely. A bit of "cautious optimism" could help consumer confidence. People may make or begin planning purchases they wouldn't make otherwise, Wu said. It could also potentially help markets, he said. "I think that's why having some talk of it -- no promises -- but I think that could be helpful for the economy in the sense that there's some optimism about the future." It's also good for the public to hear from officials that they're planning for a return to normal, Wilson said. "We have asked the public to engage in a way that often they haven't been able to engage in public policy or interventions like this," she said. "They're part of the process." By publicly discussing plans and keeping the public engaged, officials indicate they're aware of the sacrifices people have made, she said, and are working to come up with a plan. "I think that's a positive," she said. It will take 'tremendous effort' It's clear people are anxious to resume normal life. Protests have popped up around the country in recent days as residents rebelled against stay-home restrictions, and an Ohio racetrack owner vowed to open, despite social distancing measures. In some cases, officials have taken steps in that direction. Beaches in Jacksonville, Florida, were flooded by people after reopening Friday afternoon, though Mayor Lenny Curry said, "This is not a return to normal life yet, but a way to responsibly include limited outdoor exercise." But opening up will be gradual -- officials have spoken about opening up in phases, and some states or regions may be ready before others. "This is not a light switch that we can just flick on and everything goes back to normal," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said earlier this week, adding, "we have to come up with a smart, consistent strategy to restart the systems we shut down and get people back to work." Officials should be clear about what metrics they will use to decide when to move to the next phase, Wilson said. She pointed to benchmarks unveiled in the White House's approach to reopening, like seeing a sustained decrease in cases over 14 days. People need to understand the steps to reopening and be told about the "the tremendous effort " it will take to get there, she said. "I think there needs to be very clear communication with these discussions that these are explorations of reopening," Wilson said. Before we can reopen, "certain measures" have to be in place. Pyongyang says no letter recently sent by North's leader Kim Jong-un to Trump Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 5:17 PM North Korea has denied that its leader, Kim Jong-un, has recently sent a letter to US President Donald Trump. The American president on Saturday said during a press conference that he had recently received a "nice note" from Kim, stressing that Washington was "doing just fine with North Korea." However, the press chief of North Korea's Foreign Ministry on Sunday dismissed the claim as "ungrounded" in a statement carried by the country's state-run news agency, KCNA, stressing, "Our Supreme Leadership in recent days never sent the US president any letters." The statement further accused Trump of exploiting the two leaders' relations for political purposes. "The relations between the top leaders of the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) and the US are not an issue to be taken up just for diversion, nor should it be misused for meeting selfish purposes," the official added, who was cited as a Foreign Ministry press chief but whose name was not mentioned. The two leaders, once each other's arch-enemies, have in the past exchanged several letters, the latest of which was by Trump to Kim last month, in which he hailed the the North Korean leader's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and reportedly "expressed his intent" to cooperate on the matter. That March letter was first reported by KCNA, with Pyongyang calling it a sign of "special and very firm personal relations" between Trump and Kim, despite recent friction. Elsewhere in the statement, the North Korean official spoke of a US media report and said that Trump "could have referred to the personal letters that had been exchanged in the past, we are not sure." Separately on Sunday, Reuters quoted an unnamed official from South Korea's presidential office that the American president mentioned the claimed letter to South Korean President Moon Jae-in during a phone call with him a day earlier. Trump has attempted to de-escalate tensions with Pyongyang, and although he has met with Kim three times, he has refused to relieve any of the harsh sanctions on the North over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and that has in turn hampered demilitarization efforts. In December last year, Kim ended a moratorium on North Korea's missile tests, because the country had been offered no sanctions relief. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address California Gov. Gavin Newsom discusses what it will take to lift coronavirus restrictions during a news conference on April 14. Newsom has committed the state to a $990-million agreement with a China-based electric car company to produce 200 million protective masks. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Gov. Gavin Newsom's decision to spend almost $1 billion in taxpayer funds to buy protective masks drew national attention as an aggressive move by California to solve one of the most nagging problems of the coronavirus crisis. But almost two weeks after he announced the deal during a cable TV interview, very few details have been disclosed. The governor's advisors have so far declined requests for information about the agreement with BYD, the Chinese electric car manufacturer hired to produce the masks, though the state has already wired the company the first installment of $495 million. Newsom, who has been praised for his efforts to slow the spread of the disease, bristled on Saturday at suggestions that his administration has been too slow to explain a deal that will cost California taxpayers 30% more than his January budget would spend on infectious disease prevention for an entire fiscal year. "I'm for outcome here," Newsom shot back when asked by a reporter about withholding the contract's details. "Some are consumed by process, personality, intrigue. Who's up, who's down. We are for actually solving a major, major problem not only for the state but potentially a template for the country." But a bipartisan chorus of concerns has emerged in the Legislature. Lawmakers have grown increasingly frustrated that the governor's advisors have asked only for expedited approval to spend money without briefing them on what has been agreed to. "I must emphasize, that's a big deal," state Sen. Jim Nielsen (R-Gerber) said of the agreement during a legislative oversight hearing on Thursday. "And what is in the contract that ensures the deliverability timely is going to be really, really important. At the least, we cannot be just throwing out a false hope to people." BYD, a Shenzhen-based company whose initials stand for "Build Your Dreams," has staked its reputation on building electric vehicles. It has a U.S. subsidiary based in Los Angeles, with a vehicle manufacturing facility in Lancaster. The company currently employs about 1,000 people in California, a company spokesman said. Story continues Exactly how BYD has converted some of its manufacturing efforts in China to begin producing protective masks is unclear. On March 13, it touted the creation of "the worlds largest mass-produced face masks plant" in a news release posted on the company's website. The company announced that it would make 5 million masks a day far surpassing the 100 million masks a month promised by 3M, the company best known for producing N95 masks, used to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. A spokesman for BYD referred all questions about negotiations over the purchase of masks to Newsom's office. Newsom and other top officials have described the gambit as straightforward: Leverage the state government's purchasing power, backed up by a multibillion-dollar cash surplus, to buy 200 million masks a month. The masks would then be distributed to healthcare and emergency workers across California, a supply chain that would continue through the end of June. Administration officials have said that each monthly shipment from BYD will contain 150 million N95 masks and 50 million surgical masks. "We made a big, bold bet on a new strategy, and it is bearing fruit," Newsom said on April 8. That same day, The Times asked for a copy of the contract to purchase the masks. On Monday, the Governors Office of Emergency Services delayed responding to the request until May 4. BYD is well known in California government circles. In 2013, then-Gov. Jerry Brown announced the company's decision to build electric buses in Southern California during a trade mission to China. It was a key component of the state's efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, he said. I think its very important that we start replacing the bus fleet with electric buses," Brown said during a tour of BYD's Shenzhen facility. But there were criticisms of BYD's work in California. Problems with some of the company's electric buses were chronicled in a Times investigation in 2018. The former chief counsel of a competing company said in a 2013 letter to Long Beach officials that BYD had "a history of overpromising and underdelivering." Workplace conditions have also come under scrutiny. California safety officials investigated the BYD facility four times between the summer of 2014 and last spring, according to records reviewed by The Times, alleging 20 different workplace violations. Among the violations alleged at the Lancaster electric car plant last year were errors in the proper use of respirators safety masks for its employees. A company spokesman declined to comment on any of the workplace citations because of pending legal action. In the years since it set up shop in California, BYD has quietly but steadily ramped up its governmental and political presence. The company has spent more than $1 million lobbying state officials since 2014 and made a $50,000 contribution to the 2018 ballot measure campaign to keep in place California's new taxes on gas and diesel sales. In 2015, the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development awarded BYD a $3-million tax credit to expand its manufacturing in California to other kinds of electric vehicles. But the company forfeited more than $1 million of the incentive. "The tax credit was based on an optimistic business forecast that was ultimately revised," company spokesman Frank Girardot said in an email. The announcement of new mask production by BYD leadership in China came at just the right moment for California, as the Newsom administration scrambled for protective gear while cases of the novel coronavirus began to mount. "Look, we've been competing against other states, against other nations, against our own federal government" for safety equipment, Newsom told MSNBC host Rachel Maddow on April 7. "We're not waiting around any longer." The next day, the governor's director of emergency services, Mark Ghilarducci, told reporters that BYD's California-based subsidiary was key to the $990-million deal. "This is an organization that has a manufacturing capability that is specifically designed to meet this need," Ghilarducci said, citing BYD's operations in China. But almost immediately, lawmakers wondered why the Newsom administration wouldn't allow them to review the contract before asking for the first payment to BYD. "We would never approve a budget this way," Assemblyman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, said in an interview on April 9, two days after the deal was announced. "The whole reason we dont do a budget one request at a time is we want to know the big picture." That same day, a letter from the Joint Legislative Budget Committee demanded details, including the performance standards expected of BYD, the price per mask and delivery timelines. But none of those specifics have, so far, been provided to legislators. On April 13, three days after the initial $495-million payment, Ghilarducci said that the state was still "in the final negotiation phases" and that the agreement would be kept private until that process was complete. Three days later, Newsom advisors offered a different explanation. During testimony before a special state Senate budget hearing examining the pandemic's impact on California's economy and government finances, lawmakers were told that revealing the contract's details too soon could mean someone else not California might get the masks. Similar problems have arisen in other states, including seizures of supplies by the federal government. "We have concerns about releasing too many details of it because, again, our goal is to get the supply into California for the people who need it," said Tina Curry, deputy director of the Governor's Office of Emergency Services. "There are a lot of things that could come into play to disrupt that, to influence that or interfere with that in some way." During a taped appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" that aired on Friday, Newsom voiced similar concerns. "We haven't yet seen the benefits of those efforts," he said of the mask purchase. "I'm not holding my breath. We have backups to that backup." On Saturday, while visiting Santa Clara County to discuss efforts to help COVID-19 patients who are homeless, Newsom insisted the BYD contract is complete and that he's revealed an "appropriate" amount of information given the difficulty in actually getting protective gear to its final destination. "I recognize everybody's desire to have everything out there tomorrow," he said. "And we look forward to all those details becoming public very, very shortly." Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The country, together with the rest of the world, has been facing a dark time due to the new coronavirus pandemic. Amid this global health crisis, a social innovator has decided to bring hope to COVID-19 donors through solar messaging. Illac Diaz, co-convener of the Good Light Campaign, has been creating messages of hope together with his team, to ease donor fatigue for people who have been helping out in COVID-19 efforts. They have raised around 250,000 through these solar messages. We are encouraging people to keep on giving. We will spend the afternoon lighting up the garage to inspire them, so people can see that people are generous, Diaz told CNN Philippines Monday night. The Good Light Campaign is partnering with Good News Pilipinas. People can send their proof of donation to any COVID-19 relief efforts, and his team will make a 15 to 20 characters of message of light for the donors. Theres brightness in this darkness that we are all facing, and that is very important for a lot of people feeling insecure in this depression and uncertainty, Diaz said. He added that they wanted some positivity to come out of this depressing situation. The solar lamps they are using for the light graffitis are for select Mangyan communities, but Diaz thought it can be used for something inspirational for the meantime. We wanted the voice of the people to come out. We hear so much negative and we wanted to hear what the people are saying and there are positive voices out there. Diaz said that they hope to encourage people to keep on helping and giving. Also, we want to shine a light on their contribution. So as long as they donate, we will make a 15 to 20 characters of message of light, he added. As a result, the Obama administration developed new rules for each stage of the drilling process from rig design to spill response including tougher standards for well design and for vital equipment like the blowout preventers. The administration also took aim at a long-standing and very cozy relationship between the oil companies and their overseers in the Interior Department. For years, safety issues had been the province of Interiors Minerals Management Service, an agency with a dubious history of self-dealing that also collected royalties from offshore oil production, which gave it as much an interest in production as it did in responsible behavior. Recognizing a clear conflict of interest, the Obama administration broke the service into two parts, one of which would focus entirely on enforcement and environmental protection. This article is part of our continuing Fast Forward series, which examines technological, economic, social and cultural shifts that happen as businesses evolve. The nudge came in an email in early March from an Italian friend alarmed by how fast the deadly coronavirus was spreading in his country. A shortage of ventilators, he told Scott Cohen and Marcel Botha, was a critical problem in Italy, and he warned that it soon would be in the United States, too. He urged the pair to apply their skills to the ventilator challenge. Both Mr. Cohen, co-founder of a technology center for researchers and start-ups, and Mr. Botha, chief executive of a product design and development company, were skeptical. A standard ventilator, with thousands of parts requiring a complex global supply chain, was hardly a device that could be manufactured quickly and affordably. The ITBP is conducting a search operation to trace a farmer who was hit by a snow avalanche in Himachal Pradesh's tribal Lahaul-Spiti district, officials said on Monday. The 42-year-old farmer, Rajendra, was buried under snow when the avalanche hit Bargul village in Lahaul's Mooling gram panchayat on April 13, the locals said. He was removing fountain pipes in his field when the incident happened, they added. The Indo Tibetan Border Police was providing every possible help to the district administration to trace the farmer, ITBP Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Prem Singh told PTI. A team from the second battalion in Kullu was conducting the search, he added. Earlier, people from Bargul, Mooling and Shipting tried to rescue the farmer as soon as they got the information of the avalanche. ITBP, disaster management team, police, revenue and PWD men reached the spot after being informed by the villagers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Narsinghpur : , April 20 (IANS) Narsinghpur police on Monday re-arrested Javed Khan, a coronavirus-infected NSA detainee, who had escaped from the Jabalpur Medical College Hospital a day earlier. Javed was caught while stealing a bike around 6.30 am at Madanpur checkpost under Tendukheda police station of Narsihpur district of Madhya Pradesh. District Superintendent of Police Gurkaran Singh confirmed the arrest. Javed had hitched a ride in a truck from Jabalpur and got off outside the town's municipal limits. Then he tried to travel further by stealing a bike from the Madanpur checkpost when the police caught him. Trainee DSP Ashish Jain said that a scuffle ensued during Javed's arrest and police personnel who handled him have since been quarantined as a precautionary measure pending medical examination. Javed was detained under National Security Act for pelting stones at the health staff in Indore. After he tested positive for coronavirus, he was admitted to corona care ward in the Jabalpur hospital. Four policemen were suspended, and two police personnel booked under the Indian Penal Code and Disaster Management Act after his escape. Jabalpur Inspector General of Police announced an award of Rs 25,000 for his arrest while Jabalpur Superintendent of Police announced award of Rs 10,000. Sixteen people, who tested negative for Covid-19 after coming in contact with an infected delivery person in Delhi, will have to remain under quarantine, an official said on Monday. BM Mishra, South Delhis district magistrate, said they will be released from the government facility at Chhatarpur only after they finish their quarantine and test negative for Covid-19 at the end of their quarantine. We had identified the 16 high-risk persons linked to the delivery person from Malviya Nagar and kept them under institutional quarantine. The test results of all the 16 persons, including the owner of the food joint where the delivery boy worked, have come negative, Mishra said. Also, none of the 72 low-risk contacts to whom the infected person had delivered food over the past one month have shown any Covid-19 symptoms so far. But, they will continue to be under home quarantine and are being strictly monitored, he said. The delivery person, who tested positive on April 14, is being treated at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality hospital in Tahirpur. According to police, the delivery person was an employee of Box 8, and the pizza was from the kitchen of the adjoining restaurant MOJO Pizza, also located in the same building. Police said that apart from serving its own menu, Box 8 has a tie-up with multiple food chains. Mishra said the delivery person was not feeling well for nearly a month and had visited several hospitals. He had a cough but some hospitals had dismissed it as common flu. But when he didnt recover, he went to Safdarjung Hospital for a check-up from where he was referred to RML, he said. Box 8 had issued a statement on its Twitter account on April 16. After all precautions and vigilance, in an unfortunate turn of events, a delivery partner of our Malviya Nagar kitchen in south Delhi has tested COVID positive yesterday, Box 8 had said. The delivery partner has been keeping well and getting the required medical attention. All his co-workers have been quarantined and we have shut down the Malviya Nagar kitchen in South Delhi for the next 14 days, it said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Fraudsters may have stolen tens of millions of euros earmarked for German COVID-19 financial aid after a province failed to properly check the identity of applicants, according to Handelsblatt. The cybercriminals used a classic phishing scheme: First, they created a copy of the official website used by the North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) province to distribute coronavirus aid to businesses and self-employed folks. Then they launched an email campaign to lure users to the phony website and steal their credentials. Finally, the scammers requested financial aid on behalf of those individuals while using their own bank accounts. The scheme went on for around three weeks until April 9th, when the local government temporarily suspended payments and took its site offline. In the meantime, police received 576 official fraud reports, with payments varying from 9,000 to 25,000. That means the government may have lost between 31 to 100 million (around $34 to $109 million). The problem apparently happened because the NRW government unlike other German state governments failed to request scanned identity documents. Rather, applicants merely had to fill out forms on the website with no additional verification. The government has now put its coronavirus funding website back on line (with additional ID verification in place) and will only honor previous funding requests if if the applicants bank account was already on record. A programmer in Cologne told ZDNet that he might have fallen for the scam too, as the NRW government created an all-new and unfamiliar website. "This was a new site that nobody had seen before and we wouldn't have been able to tell if it was the real one or not, the unnamed person said. It explains why so many fell for it and entered personal data. [April 20, 2020] Aegea Biotechnologies, Inc. Expands its Platforms for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Testing under the Collaboration Agreement with Tauriga Sciences, Inc. NEW YORK, NY and SAN DIEGO, CA, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE As previously announced, Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: TAUG) (Tauriga) and Aegea Biotechnologies, Inc. (Aegea) have entered into a collaboration agreement to develop COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus) assays. Aegea has now informed Tauriga Sciences that in addition to the high sensitivity, high specificity COVID-19 assay under development (the SARS-CoV-2 Test), Aegea is undertaking to use another of its patented technologies to further expand COVID-19 testing to very simple devices appropriate to point-of-care testing. The patent being applied is core to a follow-on assay designed to use isothermal amplification as covered by US Patent 10,174,352 for METHODS FOR AMPLIFICATION OF NUCLEIC ACIDS ON SOLID SUPPORT. This methodology combines the capture of nucleic acid targets of interest, together with isothermal amplification on solid surfaces. Due to the fact that this method works at a single uniform temperature, it can be used with very simple devices applicable to point-of-care and point-of-testing. This includes simplistic lateral flow devices. Additionally, it works directly with RNA targets, like that used in COVID-19 testing, in that the genome of coronavirus is a single stranded RNA. We are pleased to make available another of Aegeas patented technologies in the testing for COVID-19. This methodology can assist in more global testing for this virus as the current pandemic continues or as it recurs. It can also be used for future epidemics or pandemics when they occur, said Lyle Arnold Ph.D., CEO and Founder for Aegea Biotechnologies. Dr. Arnold continued, To further accelerate the development of this simplified assay, Aegea is in discussion with external resources, including foundations and federal agencies. Dr. Arnold is an inventor or co-inventor on 54 issued US patents and more than 200 issued and pending patents world-wide, which in aggregate have been core to products that have generated billions of dollars in revenue. Dr. Arnold is a co-inventor of the isothermal solid phase technology described here. Taurigas CEO, Mr. Seth Shaw, states, The breadth of Aegeas intellectual property portfolio enables us to address COVID-19 testing in multiple important ways. We are pleased to be collaborating with Aegea and can confirm that Tauriga has already contributed its first tranche of captal (pursuant to April 3rd Agreement). The Company plans to increase its contributions to help expedite the commercialization of these important technologies that have the potential to help the global community. ABOUT TAURIGA SCIENCES, INC. Tauriga Sciences, Inc. (TAUG) is a revenue generating, diversified life sciences company, engaged in several major business activities and initiatives. The company manufactures and distributes several proprietary retail products and product lines, mainly focused on the Cannabidiol (CBD) and Cannabigerol (CBG) Edibles market segment. The Companys commercialization strategy consists of a broad array of retail customers, distributors, and a fast-growing E-Commerce business segment (E-Commerce website: www.taurigum.com). Please visit our corporate website, for additional information, as well as inquiries, at www.tauriga.com Complimentary to the Companys retail business, are its two ongoing biotechnology initiatives. The first one relates to the development of a Pharmaceutical grade version of Tauri-Gum, for nausea regulation (specifically designed to help patients that are subjected to ongoing chemotherapy treatment). On March 18, 2020, the Company announced that it filed a provisional U.S. patent application covering its pharmaceutical grade version of Tauri-Gum. The Patent, filed with the U.S.P.T.O. is Titled MEDICATED CBD COMPOSITIONS, METHODS OF MANUFACTURING, AND METHODS OF TREATMENT. The second one relates to a collaboration agreement with Aegea Biotechnologies Inc. for the co-development of a rapid, multiplexed, Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) test with superior sensitivity and selectivity. The Company is headquartered in New York City and operates a regional office in Barcelona, Spain. In addition, the Company operates a full-time E-Commerce fulfillment center located in LaGrangeville, New York. ABOUT AEGEA BIOTECHNOLOGIES, INC. Aegea Biotechnologies, Inc., is a privately held core technology company based in San Diego, CA. Aegea has an extensive intellectual property portfolio, with a total of 10 issued US patents related to nucleic acid technologies, plus foreign equivalents. The company is developing a highly sensitive and specific test for SARS-CoV-2 (novel coronavirus, COVID-19), as well as a series of reagents, research kits and in-vitro diagnostic (IVD) products for molecular analysis based on innovative, patented and proprietary nucleic acid chemistries and methodologies. AEGEA's offerings are designed to deliver assay and test results with superior sensitivity and specificity--quickly and using established assay formats, and associated instrumentation. In addition, AEGEA offers custom solutions, including assay development and adaptation of its technologies for different platforms, and various types of businesses, including pharmaceutical, biotech, diagnostic, and DNA sequencing companies, as well as others. Aegeas Selector Technology patent and related recently published, peer-reviewed scientific papers can be found in the Patented Technology section of Aegeas corporate website: www.aegeabiotech.com. DISCLAIMER -- Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 which represent managements beliefs and assumptions concerning future events. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release, and Tauriga assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. NON SOLICITATION: This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any of these securities, nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted. CONTACT INFORMATION: Tauriga Sciences, Inc. 555 Madison Avenue, 5th Floor New York, NY 10022 Chief Executive Officer Mr. Seth M. Shaw Email: [email protected] cell # (917) 796 9926 Instagram: @tauri_gum Twitter: @SethMShaw Corp. Website: www.tauriga.com E-Commerce Website: www.taurigum.com [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] A man from Northern Ireland has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the deaths of 39 migrants found in a refrigerated lorry container in Essex. Ronan Hughes, of Co Armagh, is due to appear at Dublin's High Court on Tuesday charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, as well as immigration offences, Essex Police said. The 40-year-old was detained on Monday following the execution of a European arrest warrant in Ireland. The 39 Vietnamese nationals were found in a lorry container parked on an industrial estate in Grays on October 23 last year. Expand Close The container lorry in which 39 people were found dead (Aaron Chown/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The container lorry in which 39 people were found dead (Aaron Chown/PA) Ten teenagers, including two 15-year-old boys, were among those found dead. Meanwhile, Eamonn Harrison, of Mayobridge, Northern Ireland, has been granted permission to appeal against his extradition to the UK under the terms of a European arrest warrant issued by Essex Police. The 22-year-old is facing 39 manslaughter charges, one of human trafficking and one of assisting unlawful immigration. A further hearing will be held in Dublin on Thursday May 7, Essex Police said. A Chinese academic has accused Australia of joining the US on a 'crusade' against China after foreign minister Marise Payne called for an investigation into how coronavirus started. On Thursday US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo demanded that China 'come clean' after unsubstantiated reports that coronavirus may have originated in a lab in Wuhan. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton on Friday demanded that China 'answer those questions' before Ms Payne on Sunday called for an independent inquiry. A Chinese academic has accused Australia of joining the US on a 'crusade' against China. Pictured: An employee spraying disinfectant at a factory in Wuhan on 25 March People crowd to buy meat and fish at Khlong Toei wet market in Thailand. The virus is thought to have begun in Wuhan's wet market and there are calls for wet markets to be banned Chen Hong, director of the Australian Studies Centre at the East China Normal University, said Australian politicians were engaged in a 'smear campaign' against China. 'It is deplorable that Australia is joining this anti-China crusade that will further damage the bilateral relations, a consequence that we in both countries don't want to see,' he told the AFR. 'At a time when countries in the world are collaborating in the global combat against the COVID-19 pandemic, when what we need most is unity and solidarity, Australia has teamed up with Washington in the smear campaign against China based on red herrings deviating from truth and facts.' Beijing has not officially responded to Ms Payne's calls for an inquiry but Communist Party politicians normally approve academics' comments before they are released. As well as calling for an independent inquiry into the origins of the virus, Ms Payne was critical of the World Health Organisation. Ms Payne (pictured) on Sunday called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the virus Chinese President President Xi Jinping is pictured wearing a mask on 10 March The WHO was slow to label coronavirus a pandemic, argued against border closures and appeared to support China's handling of the crisis, leading President Trump to call it 'China-centric' and halt funding. Ms Payne told ABC show Insiders: 'We share some of the concerns the United States have identified in regards to the World Health Organisation.' Australia, with a population of nearly 25 million, paid the UN agency AUD$54.5 million in 2018 - the eighth biggest voluntary contribution of 71 member countries. China, the world's most populous country and home to almost 1.4 billion people, paid $9.83million in voluntary donations. Australia's is the eighth biggest donor to the World Health Organisation by voluntary contributions, while China is 21st, 2018 financial figures show Workers are seen next to a cage with mice (right) at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in a file photo The Wuhan Institute of Virology is China's only bio-safety level four (BSL-4) facility 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 China has refuted claims that the virus may have originated in a laboratory near the city of Wuhan where contagious samples were being stored. Scientists in Australia have said there is 'no evidence' the virus started in the lab. A bat virus named RaTG13 was stored at the Wuhan institute - but it would take 20 years to mutate into the coronavirus, according Professor Edward Holmes of the University of Sydney. He said the disease most likely jumped from animals to humans. 'Coronaviruses are commonly found in wildlife species and frequently jump to new hosts. This is also the most likely explanation for the origin of SARS-CoV-2,' he said. Associate Professor Hassan Vally of La Trobe University added: 'There is no substance to this claim and other conspiracy theories about the origin of COVID-19'. Asked about the lab theory at a White House press conference on Wednesday, Trump replied cryptically: 'More and more, we're hearing the story.' 'We are doing a very thorough examination of this horrible situation that happened,' Trump said. Mr Pompeo said in an interview with Fox News that 'one of the best ways they [China] could find to cooperate would be to let the world in and to let the world's scientists know exactly how this came to be; exactly how this virus began to spread.' '[There were] a lot of cases [and] a lot of movement; a lot of travel around the world before the Chinese Communist Party came clean about what really transpired there,' the secretary of state continued. 'These are the kinds of things that open governments [and] democracies don't do. It's why there's such risk associated with the absence of transparency. We need it still today.' The Wuhan lab is China's only bio-safety level four (BSL-4) facility. Members of the hospitality union Unite Here protesting investment plans by the Convention Center last year. The union is leading a coalition demanding the center allot more money for hospitality sector workers struggling to cope during the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Kevin Litten, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune) (Photo : Screenshot from: Unsplash Official Website) Aside from exploring the universe, The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has also been collecting data using a wide variety of tools to try and identify, protect, and classify coral reefs, which are known to be one of the most unique life forms in the planet. NASA has now streamlined the entire mapping of reefs so that massive amounts of data can be processed with ease. Read Also: Scientists Say that Extended Space Missions May Cause Permanent Damage and Changes to the Brain Volume NASA creates Gameg that can map out coral reefs globally with the help of drones Of the many unique creatures that we have living in the ocean, perhaps the most exceptional and remarkable among all these are the coral reefs that sustain marine life. However, because of global warming and climate change, these coral reefs have begun to diminish. There have already been several projects by scientists aimed at trying to save these coral reefs which are now endangered. But due to the vast coral ecosystem under the ocean, it is not easy to map and identify all corals in the world. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has therefore decided to meet this objective using their innovative technology. Read Also: COMFY! NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover is Being Operated by Its Team From the Comfort of Their Homes Mapping the ocean's corals using NEMO-Net NASA has now developed and created a system to document coral ecosystems all over the world with the help of aircraft-connected sensors, drones, and other equipment. These devices are capable of gathering huge amounts of information. However, these must first be classified and defined for the data to be used in various research. To do this, NASA developed a game called NEMO-Net. Through the game, a lot of players can help the space agency to try and identify coral reefs based on the data collected using drones. Ved Chiriayath, a researcher on the project, told Somag News that "Everyone, even a primary school student can play this game and extract this data to help us map one of the most beautiful life forms we know. In the game, you take a virtual boat and dive deep into the ocean and define coral ecosystems. The game also guides you by providing you with various information about life in the ocean and coral ecosystems." NEMO-Net can be played on devices where augmented reality is supported. The data are then sent to NASA's Pleiades supercomputer which will analyze and define the data to try and asses the health status of all coral reeds around the globe. With players' help, NASA hopes they will be able to analyze massive amounts of data in a very short period of time. Read Also: Exoplanet TOI-849b Not A Planet But An Inner Core of A Giant Gas Planet, After All, Scientists Say 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Kurt Bayertz, a German philosopher, had once said that "solidarity" comes from society's need to stick together to protect their own interests. He further explained that communities and societies tend to act on behalf of those in need. Today, the world is struggling to fight one of its deadliest battles against the novel coronavirus. Even as the crisis deepens with every passing day, solidarity is blooming, both offline and online. While medical professionals around the world scurry to find a solution to Covid-19 and devise a vaccine that can protect future generations, people (nay, bravehearts) are hitting the streets to help out those who have been left to fend for themselves with no means to do so. In India, where more than 20 percent of the country is below the poverty line, the poor have been hit the hardest as the Indian government tries to save lives by putting the country under a lockdown till May 3. With most industries shut and more than half the population suddenly finding themselves unemployed, the economy has come to a standstill and the damage is insurmountable. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his address on April 14, acknowledged the toll the lockdown has taken on the economy but also specified how saving lives was far more important at this stage. India also has a vast population of daily wage workers who live hand to mouth even before the coronavirus lockdown in the country snatched away their only sources of income without a warning. That is precisely why Ambica and Arjun Kapoor of Gurgaon, who run a community kitchen by the name of Shanghai Surprise, came up with an initiative to feed the underprivileged families living in the slums of Nathupur. "Along with our volunteers, Rachana and Rasika, we've been trying to help out the daily wage labourers who've been left without an income in Nathupur through our campaign, Janta Rasoi," said Ambica Kapoor. Janta Rasoi, so far, has helped over 1.5 lakh people and is providing at least 2500 meals per day. Both Ambika and Arjun, along with their team of dedicated volunteers, head to Nathupur twice a day to ensure that families there do not starve. Kapoor said that people there were initially apprehensive and only women and children welcomed the initiative but now everyone has actively taken part in the campaign. Photo: Ambica Kapoor She also said that due to a limited supply of raw material, the menu has mostly been restricted to basics like khichdi or rajma chawal but she ensures that the meals are nutritious and wholesome. The Kapoors have also reached out to the Jeevan Sadhna Charitable Trust in order to help their initiative. If someone wishes to donate, they can drop an email on rasoijanta@gmail.com. Anchal Sharma, a cancer survivor and founder of the Meals of Happiness Charitable Trust (MOH), also had a similar idea. Sharma, who was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 32, initially began with distribution of meals to poor kids living on the streets. 11 months later when she recovered from cancer, Sharma started MOH because she believes it gives a sense of purpose to her life. "We had been delivering around 4000 cooked meals every day since 2019 even before the lockdown was announced. From the very first day of the lockdown, we've been trying to reach out to migrant workers, daily wagers and other people who have been left without an income," said Sharma. MOH has been operating in and around the Delhi-NCR region and has been helping out people in Vasant Kunj, Chhatarpur, Nathupur in Guargaon and so on. Sharma's NGO often receives calls that people in slums haven't been able to get their hands on food for days. She rushes to such areas with volunteers to deliver food to people in need. Photo: Anchal Sharma She said that there are thousands of people in Delhi who are struggling to make ends meet as they have no income or savings. She has also been delivering ration to people who have the option to cook in their homes. She also added that the Delhi Police has been immensely helpful in the last few days. However, Sharma believes that there are still others who can barely afford one meal a day and needs your support to keep up her campaign. To donate, one can transfer money to her by paytm or visit www.mealsofhappiness.org. For Mahita Nagaraj in Bangalore, it was the misery of senior citizens living alone in cities which made her start Caremongers India. "Even before the lockdown, several of my friends who were living outside Bangalore reached out to me and asked if I could help out their parents. Soon, I put up a post on Facebook which went viral. It was after that that I decided to start Caremongers," said Nagaraj. She said that Caremongers has now expanded to practically every state and there are volunteers ready to help out the elderly in cities around the country. She said that till date, Caremongers has helped out over five thousand people. All people have to do is sign up or call the helpline number, 9591168886, in order to speak to volunteers. There is also an open group on Facebook where people can post their queries and ask for help. "A few days ago, there was 75-year-old in Kolkata who had just returned home from the United States who reached out to us. Although he had been cleared by the doctors and had tested negative for Covid-19, his neighbours had ostracized him and even locked him from outside. Since he had been gone a long time, he didn't even have water or food to survive alone. He called our helpline and one of our volunteers drove down to him with basic essentials and water to help him out," said Nagaraj. On the other hand, Delhi resident and activist, Mariya Salim and Ayesha Mualla have started an online campaign to gather funds to procure PPEs and protective gear for health care professionals and relief workers. "We are both part of online groups which have been discussing about and arranging for relief and food to migrants, daily wage earners and others affected by the lockdown. We saw photos of relief workers with little or no protective gear, working tirelessly to make sure prior had meals. Given how contagious civid-19 is, this means risk for both them and the communities that they are helping," said Salim. She also said that the relief workers she had interacted with had little care for their own safety and were willing to risk it even though they had no protective gear whatsoever. She said that a few days ago a doctor she had been in contact with reached out to her and asked if it was possible to get some PPEs. Her campaign managed to yield Rs 1 lakh in three days and has seen a good response so far. For those wishing to donate to the campaign, you can click here. In India, at least 10 million women work as commercial prostitutes. Although it is illegal, sex work continues to thrive in the narrow lanes and corners of cities around the country. Thousands of sex workers in Kolkata have been left without income during the lockdown lockdown. Arjun Sengupta, a government employee working with the labour department, has his union office in Harkata Gali, a well-known red light area in North Kolkata. After the lockdown was announced, Sengupta says he knew that the sex workers would be the worst-hit in the pandemic. "The society won't even care to look at them," he says, emphasizing how sex workers have always been ostracized from the mainstream society. Sengupta, along with his colleagues and friends, started a social media campaign to help out sex workers. His son also helped him gather funds. "Our campaign helped us acquire 1.5 lakh INR in 72 hours. Using that, we bought 400 kilograms of rice, 200 kilograms of potatoes, sanitary napkins and other essentials which we then distributed among the women," he says. Photo: Arjun Sengupta Sengupta also said that next on his list was healthcare professionals and transgenders. He was planning to crowdsource funds for doctors and nurses and essential commodities for transgender communities in the upcoming days. Another initiative has been taken up by the Rotaract Club in Kolkata, in association with Durbar Mahila Samity, to crowdsource funds to help women living in red light areas. Bishal Modak, a member of the club, says that they have been trying their best to raise funds which can help Durbar buy essentials for the women during the crisis period. Navamita Chandra of Kolkata has also started a unique initiative along with her friends and acquaintances. "When the lockdown was announced, I knew that people would rush to stock up on essential items like food and ration. I also knew that women wouldn't give a second thought to items that they specifically need, like sanitary napkins," said Chandra. Hence, Chandra and her friends decided to reach out NGOs who were already distributing food and ration to underprivileged families and arranged kits of their own where they included items like sanitary napkins, soaps and sattu (which is extremely nutritious). She also said that the group had distributed some hundred kits of sanitary napkins in red light areas of Kolkata as well. The battle against Covid-19 is long and arduous. But the battle isn't the same for everyone. While some of us have a roof over our heads and are fortunate enough to afford three square meals a day, thousands others have been left homeless and helpless, without any income or savings. Thousands of migrant workers are stranded in foreign lands, with no way back home. For them, death by hunger seems a far more imminent danger as compared to the virus. Big Impact on Georgians Federal Help (TNS) The Great Recession forced state governments across the country to lay off or furlough millions of workers and cut services to everything from schools to parks, but some warn the coronavirus pandemic could cause even more economic pain.Predictions are that states could combine to face up to a $500 billion shortfall over the next few years without more federal aid as unemployment remains high and businesses shutter or struggle to regain their footing.In Georgia, collections from income and sales taxes which provide most of the revenue that pays for the salaries of 200,000 teachers, university staffers and state employees, and to fund billions of dollars worth of services are expected to plummet and likely remain well below what the state originally projected in the likely recession ahead.Georgia got a head start on holding down spending, freezing hiring for thousands of open jobs last fall when Gov. Brian Kemp ordered spending cuts, a move that had nothing to do with the pandemic but now appears prescient. Georgia also has hefty reserves about $2.7 billion to help pad state finances during the downturn.But some experts predict that wont be enough here and across the country, where officials say they will have to consider furloughs and layoffs. Some states are already predicting major shortfalls for fiscal 2021, which begins in Georgia on July 1, and they are already cutting spending for universities and other areas of government. All at a time when states health care costs thanks to the coronavirus and more people becoming eligible for Medicaid are rising.Richard Ravtich, a former lieutenant governor of New York and a board member of the Volker Alliance public policy group, said Americans have a special relationship with state and local governments not found in many other countries. That relationship may be tested in coming months.There is such a significant difference in the relationship in city and state expenditures and federal expenditures that doesnt exist in the rest of the world, he said. Most essential services that the public benefits from are paid for by state and local governments.Its not terribly easy to reduce the level of expenditures without having dramatic impact on the nature of services the public is dependent on.Through Georgias states budget, taxpayers help educate 2 million children, provide health care to more than 2 million Georgians, build roads and bridges, manage parks, investigate crimes and incarcerate criminals, and regulate insurance firms and utilities, along with dozens of professions. The state issues drivers licenses and helps pay for nursing home care for the elderly.The state is a major provider of basic medical coverage and treatment for mental health and drug addiction, and it helps fund public health programs that are fighting the pandemic.Besides paying salaries, it also helps make sure that hundreds of thousands of ex-teachers, university staffers and state employees receive pensions and health care.State officials say its too early to determine how much income and sales taxes will fall, or how austere the budget for fiscal 2021 will be.Lawmakers suspended the 2020 session in March due to the pandemic, but they will have to return before the end of June to pass a budget.Kelly Farr, the governors budget director, said Georgia traditionally is late to go into a recession and late to come out. The was true in 2008, when the Great Recession had been going on for months before Georgia tax revenue tanked enough for officials to notice and act.Over the course of three or four years lawmakers cut everything, some areas more severely than others. School and college funding was deeply reduced, teachers and other employees were furloughed, the school year was cut back in some districts, and the budgets of some agencies have only recently begun to approach 2007 levels.But this time there may be no lag because much of the nation shut down at the same time. And some early estimates are painting a grim picture of what lies ahead.Georgia State University fiscal researchers came out with a report last week saying the state and local governments could see up to a $1.27 billion loss in sales tax revenue from a few key sectors of the economy this year because of the coronavirus shutdown and its aftermath.University System of Georgia Chancellor Steve Wrigley said last week that financial losses are accumulating from an abrupt systemwide closing of campuses that triggered $200 million in reimbursements in student housing and dining hall costs.That revenue loss will climb to $340 million to $350 million through the summer as other funding sources dry up, including income from canceled camps, professional learning programs and study abroad courses, he said.I expect that the state is experiencing a decline in revenues that likely will result in a major reduction in funding for all of public higher education, Georgia State University President Mark Becker said in a letter to faculty and staff.During the Great Recession that meant tuition hikes, but this time around the Board of Regents has held those costs to students in check.The most detailed overall analysis so far is coming out Monday from the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute think tank, which estimates a likely $1 billion shortfall this fiscal year and possibly a $3 billion shortfall in fiscal 2021. Thats more than 10 percent of the current state budget.The $2 trillion federal coronavirus relief program is expected to help the state pay for skyrocketing costs associated with the pandemic. However, that money cant be used to make up for the downhill slide of tax revenue to pay to keep state government running and pay salaries.Matt Fabian, a partner and head of market and credit research at Municipal Market Analytics, a Massachusetts-based research firm, said the federal government is also offering short-term borrowing to be paid off in a few years to help states get over short-term revenue shocks.One shock comes from the decision to move the deadline for filing income tax returns from April 15 to July 15. That change while great for some taxpayers means theyll be paying what they owe in the next fiscal year, leaving a hole in state finances for the fiscal year that ends June 30.State and city groups have said while federal aid so far is appreciated, it doesnt go nearly far enough to mitigate the impact of the shutdown and likely recession ahead, and they are lobbying hard for more.The National Governors Association, for instance, has asked Congress for $500 billion in additional funding to fight the tax revenue decline. Unions and left-leaning groups have echoed those calls.Some states have already passed fiscal 2021 budgets and are projecting massive shortfalls. New York expects tax revenue to drop by $10 billion, Colorado about $3 billion, Arizona more than $1 billion.With oil prices low, energy-revenue-dependent states in the West and Southwest could be hit even harder.No one is going to escape the impact of this recession, said Elizabeth McNichol, a senior fellow with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank.The group said the federal help states have received so far and their reserves wont be nearly enough to allow them to continue providing the same level of services. If the recession persists and is as deep as some economists predict, states could see a bigger decline in revenue in the upcoming fiscal year than they did during the worst year of the Great Recession, it said.Susan Wachter, a professor of finance and real estate and co-director of the Penn Institute for Urban Research at the University of Pennsylvania, said massive state and local government layoffs and cutbacks would prolong the recession, creating a kind of second-wave downturn.But Ravtich said governments also may spend the next several months examining what they are spending money on, and whether they need or can afford it, a kind of review Georgia budget leaders say they already do.During the Great Recession, for instance, the Georgia Senate held hearings in between legislative sessions to more closely go over how state agencies were spending taxpayer money.There has not been a lot of talk (nationally) about whether to re-examine what government should do, Ravtich said. Thats an issue that has to be raised and discussed. Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], April 20 (ANI): West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday said that free ration supplies should be distributed amongst the poor in the state under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojna. "High time to give FREE RATION under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojna @PMOIndia. Urged State Food Minister and Principal Secretary @MamataOfficial for urgent update in view of CS response and UOI/FCI inputs. Hope to have way forward interaction with Minister and Secretary," Governor Dhankhar tweeted. India is under a nation-wide lockdown that was imposed on March 25 to stem the spread of coronavirus which has claimed over 500 lives in the country. In his address to the nation on April 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of the lockdown till May 3. (ANI) Two residents of Russias Altai Krai fined for breaching quaranting after trip abroad RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov 10:57 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) A court in Russias Barnaul has fined two local men 15,000 rubles ($200) each for violating the 14-day quarantine after their return from abroad, the press service of the Interior Ministrys Altai Krai Main Directorate reports. According to case papers, in early April, road police stopped a car driven by a 29-year man. During the check it was found the the citizen was on the list of people, who had come from countries with a bad COVID-19 epidemic situation. According to the order of the Russian chief sanitary officer, he was to be at home for 14 days from the date he had arrived. Another violator, born 1984, left his home without without reasonable excuse, thus failing to comply with the self-isolation requirements from the date he came from abroad. Good morning. (Heres the sign-up, if you dont already get California Today delivered to your inbox.) A few weeks ago, we asked readers to send us stories of people helping one another during the pandemic. From the responses, its clear that across the state, acts of generosity and resilience are happening every day. In Van Nuys, Nicole Gregory attended a dance party on her street organized by a neighbor, a dancer. She wrote: My 22-year-old son set up his drums and played them, several adults banged on pans in the same beat, and danced in place (safely distanced from each other of course)! Seeing acts of kindness inspired others to act, too. In Goleta, Susie Naughton watched as her neighbors handed a truck driver a large case of toilet paper. I thought, what can I give them? she wrote. I picked a handful of oranges and gave them to the driver when he reached our house. New Delhi: The central government on Monday (April 20) released the April instalment of states' share in central taxes amounting to over Rs 46,000 crore. The move is seen as an attempt to assist states effectively address situation arising out of coronavirus COVID-19, The money has been released ahead of schedule and as a special dispensation to meet immediate funding needs of the state governments looking to restore economic activity and minimise losses to its citizens due to disruptions caused by lockdowns. "Ministry of Finance has issued sanctions for April instalment of Devolution of States` Share in Central Taxes and Duties amounting to Rs 46,038.10 cr today.," the Finance Ministry said in a tweet. "The inter-se share is as per the recommendations of the XV Finance Commission," it added. The Budget had projected the share of the states in taxes at Rs 7.84 lakh crore for 2020-21. The highest share of central taxes for April has gone to Uttar Pradesh with a net transfer of Rs 8,255.19 crore. This is followed by Bihar at Rs 4,631.96 crore. West Bengal has got Rs 3,461.65 crore while Madhaya Pradesh has got Rs 3,630.60. Maharashtra share has been lower at Rs 2,824.47 crore. Goa and Sikkim have got the least from central pool of taxes at Rs 177.72 crore and Rs 178.64 crore respectively. In its interim report for FY21, the 15th Finance Commission has reduced the share of states in the divisible pool of central taxes by one percentage point to 41 per cent, factoring in the conversion of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union territories. The report, tabled in Parliament in February, has also changed the criteria and weights under which funds are allocated to states. It assigned 15 per cent weight to the population of a state, down from the 17.5 per cent allocated by the 14th Finance Commission, but raised the weight under demographic performance from 10 per cent to 12.5 per cent. The 14th Finance Commission had recommended the states be given 42 per cent share in taxes. The FFC report has also introduced "tax effect", for states, with 2.5 per cent weightage, while significantly reducing the weight for income distance from 50 per cent to 45 per cent. (With PTI inputs) Gubernatorial candidate and anti-tax activist, Tim Eyman, speaks during a 'Hazardous Liberty! Defend the Constitution!' rally to protest the stay-at-home order, at the Capitol building in Olympia, Wash., on April 19, 2020. (Karen Ducey/Getty Images) Facebook Removing Some Pages Organizing Protests of Stay-at-Home Orders Facebook is removing some pages used to organize protests of quarantine measures implemented by governors across the nation. Thousands of people have joined protests in recent days against executive orders mandating that people largely stay at home, many of which have been in place since last month. A Facebook spokesperson told The Epoch Times on April 20 that the company will let organizers use Facebook to organize events if they follow social distancing guidelines but will remove pages that dont. Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy governments guidance on social distancing arent allowed on Facebook, the spokesperson said in an email. Event organizers are required to clearly tell attendees that relevant social distancing guidance should be followed. State officials can contact Facebook to let the company know about social distancing guidance in their state. The spokesperson said Facebook has removed pages planning protests in several states. She declined to name the states. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also said on April 20 that pages organizing protests in violation of social distancing measures will be removed from the technology platform. A page organizing a protest in Pennsylvania. (Screenshot/Facebook) How do you deal with the fact that Facebook is now being used to organize a lot of these protests to defy social distancing guidelines in states? George Stephanopoulos, former Bill Clinton aide and current ABC anchor, asked Zuckerberg on Good Morning America. If somebody trying to organize something like that, does that qualify as harmful misinformation? We do classify that as harmful misinformation, and we take that down, Zuckerberg said. At the same time, its important that people can debate policies, so theres a line on this, you know, more than normal political discourse. I think a lot of the stuff that people are saying that is false around a health emergency like this can be classified as harmful misinformation. Social distancing mandates contributed to millions of Americans losing their jobs, and many protesters cited unemployment or economic fears as the main impetus for protesting, along with concerns of rights violations. Most governors havent yet outlined firm reopening plans; some instead extended the measures into May. Texas, Ohio, and South Carolina are among the few states confirming dates for phased reopenings. People take part in a protest for Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing, Mich., on April 15, 2020. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images) Targeting Misinformation Facebook has been widely targeting articles, posts, and events during the pandemic, trying to position itself as a neutral arbiter of misinformation. In March, Facebook displayed warnings to users on 40 million posts, removing hundreds of thousands it deemed harmful. The company said last week it would start notifying people who interacted with harmful claims about the pandemic from China, utilizing the World Health Organization, which has been linked to the Chinese Communist Party, as a source. The Epoch Times has faced censorship on reporting about a laboratory in Wuhan, based on an article written by a researcher who worked there. Facebook has promised $1 million in grants to organizations that do so-called fact checks as well as $100 million in investments to support journalists. Twitter, Google, and other technology platforms have taken similar steps as Facebook, worrying some experts. As a matter of public health, these moves are entirely prudent. But as a matter of free speech, the platforms unconstrained power to change the rules virtually overnight is deeply disconcerting, Evelyn Douek, an affiliate at Harvard Universitys Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, wrote in an article for The Atlantic. Unlike most countries emergency constitutions, those of major platforms have no checks or constraints. Are these emergency powers temporary? Will there be any oversight to ensure these powers are being exercised proportionately and evenhandedly? Are data being collected to assess the effectiveness of these measures or their cost to society, and will those data be available to independent researchers? The nationwide lockdown, imposed since March 25 to control coronavirus outbreak, has affected housing demand badly, but sales have not come to a grinding halt and brokerage firms are able to close some transactions digitally with the help of freebies offered by developers. Home-grown property brokerage firm Anarock on Monday said in a statement that it has sold properties worth Rs 252 crore since lockdown through digital transactions. "Despite the coronavirus-induced nationwide lockdown and all on-ground activity halted since March 25, the Anarock group has successfully closed the digital sale of 240 homes worth Rs 214.6 crore and 62 office spaces collectively worth Rs 37 crore," it said in a statement. Of the total number of housing sales closed post lockdown, at least 49 per cent (approx 117 units) worth over Rs 85 crore were sold in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). "The first 10 days of the lockdown were a struggle to align sales, but Anarock quickly took up the slack and homed in on the emerging opportunity. Many of these sales were in the final leg of the deal and others were open but were all closed virtually," Anarock Chairman Anuj Puri said. Noida-based property broker Investors Clinic, too, said in a statement that it "sold properties worth Rs 400 crore during the lockdown period in the month of March". During the lockdown, the company has launched a campaign "Walk in Nahi, Log in Karona" for consumers to book homes digitally just by paying Rs 1 lakh. Separately, brokerage firm 360 Realtors said it has sold more than 112 units during the lockdown having a Gross Transaction Value (GTV) of more than Rs 105 crore through online bookings. Ankit Kansal, MD, 360 Realtors, said, "The sector is showing resilience as most of the companies are working from home & trying to engage with customers through alternative mediums such as telephonic calls, video chats, online meeting platforms, etc." "Old funnel got converted and many of these deals were from the NRIs who are contributing in bigger numbers than the domestic buyers. Many expats are trying to leverage dip in the value of rupee. The closure of the financial year has also helped in pushing ahead," Kansal said. Earlier this month, property brokerage firm Square Yards, which is backed by Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and Times Group, had said it sold over 400 housing units worth more than Rs 200 crore in the last 10 days of March despite the lockdown. Anarock has recently said that India''s residential real estate has been severely hit by nationwide lockdown and sales could fall by up to 35 per cent across seven major cities during the 2020 calendar year following the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AZINCOURT ENERGY CORP. (Azincourt or the Company; TSXV: AAZ) is pleased to announce that it has completed a non-brokered private placement of 3,000,000 Units (Units) of the Company at a price of C$0.05 per Unit for gross proceeds of C$150,000 (the Offering). Each Unit is comprised of one common share and one common share purchase warrant (a Warrant). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional common share until April 20, 2025 at a price of C$0.07 per common share. In accordance with securities legislation, all securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a four month hold period expiring on August 21, 2020. Azincourt will apply the gross proceeds of the Offering to advance the Companys projects and for general working capital purposes. Final closing of this Offering is subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals including that of the TSX Venture Exchange. About Azincourt Energy Corp. Azincourt Energy is a Canadian-based resource company specializing in the strategic acquisition, exploration and development of alternative energy/fuel projects, including uranium, lithium, and other critical clean energy elements. The Company is currently active at its joint venture East Preston uranium project in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada, and the Escalera Group uranium-lithium project located on the Picotani Plateau in southeastern Peru. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF AZINCOURT ENERGY CORP. Alex Klenman Alex Klenman, President & CEO Tel: 604-638-8063 info@azincourtenergy.com www.azincourtenergy.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. The US Supreme Court has ruled that the constitutional guarantee of trial by jury requires a unanimous verdict in serious crimes, paving the way for potentially hundreds of defendants found guilty by divided juries to receive new trials. The 6-3 vote overturned the conviction of Evangelisto Ramos who is serving a life sentence in Louisiana for killing a woman after a jury voted 10-2 to convict him in 2016. The justices concluded that the US Constitution's Sixth Amendment, which guarantees the right to an impartial trial, requires that jurors be unanimous to convict in serious criminal cases. Oregon is the only other state that allows for non-unanimous convictions for some crimes and on Monday conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that the non-unanimous verdict requirement in both states traced back to past racist policies intended to reduce the power of non-white jurors to influence the outcome of trials. 'In fact, no one before us contests any of this; courts in both Louisiana and Oregon have frankly acknowledged that race was a motivating factor in the adoption of their States respective nonunanimity rules,' Gorsuch wrote. In this March 16, 2020 photo, people walk outside the Supreme Court in Washington. US Supreme Court ruled Monday that the constitutional guarantee of trial by jury requires a unanimous verdict in serious crimes The 6-3 vote overturned the conviction of Evangelisto Ramos (left) who is serving a life sentence in Louisiana for killing Trinece Fedison after a jury voted 10-2 to convict him in 2016 Gorsuch wrote for the court that the practice is inconsistent with the Constitution's right to a jury trial and that it should be discarded as a vestige of Jim Crow laws in Louisiana and racial, ethnic and religious bigotry that led to its adoption in Oregon in the 1930s. Louisiana updated its law to prohibit non-unanimous verdicts starting last year but that change did not apply retroactively. Louisiana voters changed the law for crimes committed beginning in 2019. Now the same rules will apply in all 50 states and in the federal system: Juries must vote unanimously for conviction. The outcome will affect defendants who are still appealing their convictions. But for defendants whose cases are final, it will take another round of lawsuits to figure out whether the high court ruling applies to them. The Supreme Court last took up the issue in 1972, when it ruled that nothing in the Constitution bars states from allowing some convictions by non-unanimous verdicts, even as it said that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimous verdicts in federal criminal cases. The case turned on the vote of Justice Lewis Powell. 'There can be no question either that the Sixth Amendment's unanimity requirement applies to state and federal criminal trials equally,' Gorsuch wrote Monday. The ruling, overturning a 1972 Supreme Court precedent, means that Louisiana man Evangelisto Ramos is likely to get a new murder trial. Ramos, found guilty in the 2014 New Orleans murder of a woman named Trinece Fedison whose body was found in a trash can, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Supreme Court justices pose for their group portrait at the Supreme Court in Washington, U.S., November 30, 2018. Seated (L-R): Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Associate Justice Samuel Alito, Jr. Standing behind (L-R): Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Elena Kagan and Associate Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh The ruling could benefit hundreds of inmates convicted with non-unanimous verdicts in Louisiana and Oregon by leading to new trials. 'We are heartened that the court has held, once and for all, that the promise of the Sixth Amendment fully applies in Louisiana, rejecting any concept of second-class justice,' said Ben Cohen, a lawyer for Ramos. 'In light of the COVID-19 crisis, it is essential that prisoners who are wrongfully incarcerated be given the chance for release as soon as possible.' Gorsuch said there is evidence that when the Sixth Amendment was enacted, it was assumed there must be a unanimous verdict. 'This court has repeatedly and over many years recognized that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimity,' Gorsuch wrote. A 1972 Supreme Court ruling that state court juries did not have to be unanimous drove the divisions among the justices in the case. The majority voted to overrule that precedent, but the three dissenting justices said there was not a compelling reason to overturn it. The decision produced an unusual lineup of justices, with liberals Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor and conservatives Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas and Gorsuch supporting Ramos. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, two conservatives, were in dissent along with liberal Justice Elena Kagan. That's because a key part of the case was whether to jettison the 1972 decision, and overturning precedent is a fraught issue on the current court, principally because the additions of Gorsuch and Kavanaugh have made the court more conservative and, perhaps, more likely to undermine landmark abortion rights rulings. Conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that the non-unanimous verdict requirement in Louisiana and Oregon traced back to past racist policies intended to reduce the power of non-white jurors to influence the outcome of trials Gorsuch, Sotomayor, Kavanaugh, Thomas and Alito addressed the issue of precedent in majority, dissenting and concurring opinions. Kavanaugh has said that prior decisions must be not just wrong but egregiously so. The 1972 decision, he wrote Monday, 'is egregiously wrong'. Sotomayor said the old case was wrong both on the Sixth Amendment and in its ignorance of the bigoted roots of allowing non-unanimous verdicts. The case, she wrote, represents a 'universe of one - an opinion uniquely irreconcilable with not just one, but two, strands of constitutional precedent well established both before and after the decision'. Writing in dissent, conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the ruling 'imposes a potentially crushing burden on the courts and criminal justice systems' in Louisiana and Oregon. Alito noted that some justices in Monday's majority might find it more difficult to complain about abandoning other precedents. 'I assume that those in the majority will apply the same standard in future cases,' he wrote. The Oregon District Attorneys' Association said in a statement 'that a change to unanimous verdicts could make criminal convictions more difficult. However, it is a hallmark of our justice system that it should be difficult to take someone's liberty. ' The 1972 decision left the jury trial right as one of the few rights guaranteed by the first 10 amendments to the Constitution that does not apply uniformly to the states as well as the federal government. Last year, the court held that the Constitution's ban on excessive fines applies to the states and the federal government alike. How the court addresses overturning its own precedents is a topic of contention, with high stakes for abortion rights. Abortion rights activists fear that the court's 5-4 conservative majority may seek to undermine or overturn its landmark 1973 ruling that legalized the procedure nationwide. The court is currently weighing a challenge to Louisiana abortion restrictions that could indicate which way it is heading, with a ruling due by the end of June. The N.C. Supreme Court hears oral arguments on Aug. 27, 2019. | Photo: WRAL.com While much of North Carolina has shut down for business, the N.C. Supreme Court continues to issue opinions. Its lone Republican has found more opportunities to distinguish his legal views from those of his colleagues.Justice Paul Newby's divergence from the rest of the seven-member court could have an impact this fall. Voters will make choices then about three Supreme Court seats, including the top job of chief justice.Newby dissented in five of 17 cases decided earlier this month. Some involved issues with more than just technical legal significance. Two, in particular, should interest taxpayers.In New Hanover Cty. Bd. of Educ. v. Stein, the court ruled 6-1 that N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein could continue to oversee an environmental grant program funded by Smithfield Foods. The money flows from a $50 million deal Smithfield made in 2000 with then-A.G. Mike Easley. Critics have labeled the grant program a " slush fund ."The school board representing southeastern North Carolina's largest district had argued in court that the $50 million resulted from a legal settlement between Smithfield and the attorney general. Money linked to the settlement represented a penalty against Smithfield. State law requires legal penalties to head to N.C. schools.Stein and those responsible for the 20-year-old deal countered that Smithfield had made a gift to the state. That gift had no bearing on legal complaints involving the company's hog farm operations in North Carolina.Six members of the N.C. Supreme Court accepted the state's argument. Not Newby.Newby wrote.Newby added.Even if the original agreement between Smithfield and the attorney general does not constitute a legal settlement, it remains problematic for Newby.In other words, the majority decision appears to permit the next N.C.. labor commissioner to accept multimillion-dollar gifts from employers who want to avoid regulatory scrutiny. What would stop the agriculture commissioner from accepting similar gifts from farmers and business owners he regulates?Newby's dissent suggests that his high-court colleagues have left the door open for that type of abuse. second case , Cabarrus County Bd. of Educ. v. Dept' of State Treasurer, focused on state lawmakers' efforts to rein in the practice of pension spiking for high-paid government executives. A 2014 state law aimed to cut off the practice. As applied to the case of a retiring Cabarrus school superintendent, the law could have cost the local school system $208,000.But the school board went to court. It challenged the process the state retirement system used in developing a formula for pension-spiking penalties.Six members of the N.C. Supreme Court agreed that the state had followed the wrong procedure. Once again, Newby stood alone in dissent.He described the 2014 anti-spiking law as the General Assembly's attempt to addressNewby wrote.Newby noted.The majority decision thwarts that legislative intent, according to the one dissenting justice.Most N.C. Supreme Court decisions are still unanimous. Thirty-two of 43 opinions (74%) handed down this year have had no dissenters. But in this relatively collegial atmosphere, Newby stands out from the six Democrats.Chief Justice Cheri Beasley is the only member of the court to side with the majority in every case this year (disregarding one unresolved case that ended in a 3-3 deadlock.) Three other justices have dissented just once. Justices Anita Earls and Michael Morgan have dissented three times apiece.Newby has dissented seven times, giving him the lowest rate (84%) of voting with the majority. He also has the lowest agreement rates with fellow justices. He and Earls have the lowest rate of agreement (33 of 43 cases, or 77%) among any pair of justices.Pick any justice on the court, and that justice has agreed with other colleagues more often than with Newby this year. The one exception is Morgan, who has agreed with Newby as often as he as agreed with Earls.This divergence between the one Republican and the six Democrats could help voters make choices as they head to the polls in November. Newby is challenging Beasley in the race for chief justice of the N.C. Supreme Court. Newby's seat as associate justice is open, and Justice Mark Davis is trying to win a full term after gaining an appointment to the high court.It's unlikely that Beasley and Newby will engage in public, campaign-style policy debates. Voters will have to gather clues about their different legal views from their disagreements on the bench. Those disagreements include the recent hog farm "slush fund" and pension-spiking cases. The restrictions on public transport in the wake of the COVID-19 still holds, President Nana Akufo-Addo stated in his seventh nation address on the pandemic. Updating Ghanaians on Sunday, April 19, 2020, the President lifted the 3-week partial lockdown in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and Kasoa, and the Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area and its contiguous districts. The lifting of the lockdown took effect from 1 am on Monday, 20th April, 2020. Although human and vehicular movements in Accra and Kumasi and other areas are possible in view of the new order by the President, operators of public transport including trotros and taxis are still under restrictions not to take more than the minimum number of passengers issued during the lockdown period. Public transport operators are obliged to ensure social distancing in the buses as well as adhere to all the safety precautions to prevent the spread of the COVID-19. ''Operators of public transport, including our buses, trotros and taxis, are to continue to run with a minimum number of passengers, as they have been doing for the last three weeks in maintaining social distancing. They must also continue to ensure the maintenance of enhanced hygienic conditions in all vehicles and terminals, by providing, amongst others, hand sanitizers, running water and soap for washing of hands. Domestic airlines are required to adhere to the same protocols'', the President directed. Source: 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. Featured Video TAMPA, Fla. - More than a week after Easter, theres still one mythical creature hopping around a Florida neighbourhood trying to spread happiness. Corey Jurgensen, 40, donned a 7-foot (2-meter) -tall inflatable unicorn costume to jog, jump and dance around the streets near her Tampa home last week in an effort to cheer up neighbours stuck indoors amid the coronavirus pandemic, The Tampa Bay Times reported. Jurgensen originally purchased the inflatable for Halloween, but gave it a new life on March 21 when a friend from Washington saw a similar act on social media and challenged Jurgensen to suit up and show hers off. Since then, Jurgensen told the newspaper she has galloped around streets within a mile (kilometre) radius of her home multiple times drawing honks from passing cars, claps from families standing on porches and many, many photos posted to social media. Though the massage therapist has not been able to work her regular job in weeks, she said her new calling is providing a temporary distraction. There is nothing better than being a unicorn, Jurgensen told the Tampa Bay Times. Everyone smiles when they see a unicorn. Sixteen people including the Balotra unit president of the BJP were arrested on Monday for allegedly violating prohibitory orders and holding a protest during the ongoing lockdown, police said. The protest was against the municipal council for alleged discrimination in ration distribution. "Despite the fact that Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) is imposed and lockdown is there, they held a protest in front of the municipal corporation office," Station House Officer (SHO) of Balotra Police Station Niranjan Pratap Singh said. They have been arrested, the SHO added. Those who were arrested include the Balotra unit president of the BJP, Mahesh Chauhan. They protesters were accusing the municipal council officers of discrimination in the ration distribution to the needy. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Research News UB seeks those who have recovered from COVID-19 to help sickest patients By ELLEN GOLDBAUM To the health care workers who care for them, people who are hospitalized with COVID-19 are an extremely disconcerting patient population. There is no proven treatment, and while the most extreme critical care measures will help some recover fully, in other cases, they, tragically, have no effect. Its no wonder, then, that when health care workers, who themselves were infected with COVID-19 and have now recovered, see an opportunity to participate in the search for a treatment, they jump at the chance. On April 10, the Clinical Research Office in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB launched the local program of the National COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Project, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved as an Emergency Investigational New Drug (EIND). The national effort is being coordinated by the Mayo Clinic. The premise is that people who have recovered from COVID-19 have developed antibodies against the disease that could help speed recovery if administered to a currently infected person. Within just a few days of UB and its affiliated teaching hospitals making the announcement, more than 230 community members, many of them health workers, who have recovered from COVID-19 entered the screening process to see if they could participate. Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle, who formally stepped back as frontline UK Royals to settle down in the US this month, have issued a sharply-worded letter cutting all ties with four major British tabloids and declared "zero engagement" with them going forward. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who are now living in Los Angeles, sent a letter to the editors of The Sun', The Mail', The Mirror' and 'the Express' which condemns reports about the couple in the past as distorted and false" and declares that they refuse to be clickbait for these publications in the future. The total ban, which comes into immediate effect, also applies to the Sunday editions of the newspapers and their associated websites. It is gravely concerning that an influential slice of the media, over many years, has sought to insulate themselves from taking accountability for what they say or print even when they know it to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. When power is enjoyed without responsibility, the trust we all place in this much-needed industry is degraded, reads the letter, issued on behalf of the couple. There is a real human cost to this way of doing business and it affects every corner of society. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have watched people they know as well as complete strangers have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason, other than the fact that salacious gossip boosts advertising revenue, it notes. Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38, who began their financially-independent lives outside the UK with 11-month-old son Archie from April 1, said they are happy to engage with other outlets, especially grassroots and new media outlets, to spotlight issues and causes that matter to them. What they won't do is offer themselves up as currency for an economy of clickbait and distortion, notes the letter. Addressing the editors directly, the letter states that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with the outlets, including no corroboration and zero engagement. It adds: This is also a policy being instated for their communications team, in order to protect that team from the side of the industry that readers never see. This policy is not about avoiding criticism. It's not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. Media have every right to report on and indeed have an opinion on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it can't be based on a lie. The new media relations policy set out in the letter comes as Meghan Markle's legal case against the Mail on Sunday' owner, Associated Newspapers, comes up for a hearing in the High Court in London this week over the publication of a letter written to Meghan Markle by her estranged father, Thomas Markle. In recent days, photographs of the couple delivering food to vulnerable people in Los Angeles have been published by two of the newspapers on the receiving end of the letter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New Delhi: IT major Infosys on Monday (April 20) reported a net profit of Rs 4,335 crore for the quarter ended March 2020, up 6.3 per cent from Rs 4,078 crore in the corresponding period of previous fiscal, according to the company's regulatory filing with the BSE. The IT major, however, suspended the standard practice of giving revenue outlook citing business uncertainty amid COVID-19's global economic impact. The firm also announced a final dividend of Rs 9.50 per share. Revenue during Q4 FY20 stood at Rs 23,267 crore as compared to Rs 21,539 crore in Q4 FY19, clocking a growth of 8 per cent year-on-year and 0.8 per cent quarter-on-quarter. The operating profit was Rs 4,927 crore, showing an increase of 6.7 per cent year-on-year but a decrease of 2.7 per cent quarter-on-quarter. The company said considering the business uncertainty emanating from COVID-19, it is unable to provide guidance on revenues and margins for FY 21 at this stage. It will provide guidance after visibility improves. Infosys' Managing Director and CEO Salil Parekh, "We had an exceptional year in the financial year 2020 with the growth of 9.8 per cent and operating margin of 21.3 per cent," adding "While the immediate short-term will be challenging, looking ahead, we can see that there is a strong interest to consolidate with partners with high-quality and agile service delivery and strong financial resilience. I am confident we will emerge from this stronger." Infosys said its Q4 20 digital revenues at 1.34 billion (41.9 per cent of total revenues) marked year-on-year growth of 31.7 per cent and sequential growth of 2.6 per cent in constant currency. Chief Operating Officer Pravin Rao said, "We demonstrated what a `Live Enterprise` truly is by improving the infrastructure and technology enablement for our employees in a short time span and ensuring business continuity for clients." Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Nilanjan Roy said: "We continue to remain focused on execution excellence in a period of high uncertainty. Our relentless focus on liquidity will be supported by our strong balance sheet of 3.6 billion dollars cash, backed by accelerated cost take-outs and operational rigour." Infosys also announced the appointment of Uri Levine as an independent director of the company from today. The appointment is for a period of three years and is subject to the approval of shareholders. Key Highlights - FY 20 revenues grew by 9.8% in INR; 9.8% in constant currency - FY 20 operating margin at 21.3% - FY 20 Free Cash Flow at Rs 15,250 crore; Free Cash Flow to net profit conversion at 92% - Q4 20 revenues grew year-on-year by 8.0% in INR; 6.4% in constant currency - Q4 20 revenues grew sequentially by 0.8% in INR; declined 0.8% in constant currency - Q4 20 Digital revenues at $1,341 million (41.9% of total revenues), year-on-year growth of 31.7% and sequential growth of 2.6% in constant currency - Announces final dividend of Rs 9.50 per share - Considering the business uncertainty emanating from COVID-19, the company is unable to provide guidance on revenues and margins for FY 21 at this stage. The company will provide guidance after visibility improves The US on Monday expressed concern over reports about Chinese human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang's declining physical and mental health and called on China to grant him freedom of movement, including the ability to join his family in Beijing. Wang, who was detained along with more than 300 others in a notorious crackdown on Chinese activists in 2015, was released from detention on April 4. He had defended political campaigners and victims of land seizures. "We remain very concerned about reports of his declining physical and mental health, and of his mistreatment in prison, State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said. In a statement, Ortagus also called for the release of all of those unjustly detained, such as Li Yuhan and Yu Wensheng, as well as other Chinese citizens who are in detention simply for exercising their human rights and fundamental freedoms in pursuit of a more equitable and just society, governed by the rule of law. The US remains concerned by China's weak rule of law, arbitrary detentions, torture in custody, and continued violations and abuses of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals inside its borders, she said and urged China to uphold its international human rights commitments and promises made in its own constitution. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Here are some of the deadliest mass killings in recent Canadian history: April 19, 2020: Seventeen people are killed after a man who at one point wore a police uniform and drove a mock-up cruiser travelled across northern Nova Scotia. An RCMP officer is among the dead. Police say the suspected shooter, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was killed after being intercepted by officers in Enfield, N.S. Aug. 10, 2018: A gunman opens fire in Fredericton, N.B., killing two municipal police officers and two civilians: Const. Sara Burns, Const. Robb Costello, Donnie Robichaud and Bobbie Lee Wright. Matthew Raymond is arrested and charged with four counts of first-degree murder. April 23, 2018: Alek Minassian drives a white van along a crowded Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and seriously injuring 16 others. Minassian later admits in court to carrying out the attack in retribution for years of sexual rejection and ridicule by women. Hes awaiting trial on 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 of attempted murder. The judge has said the case will turn on Minassians state of mind at the time of the attack, not whether he did it. Jan. 29, 2017: Six people are killed and eight injured when a man goes on a shooting rampage at a Quebec City mosque. University student Alexandre Bissonnette, who had taken far-right political positions on social media, pleads guilty. Dec. 29, 2014: In the worst mass shooting in Edmonton, a man suspected of domestic violence shoots and kills six adults and two young children in two different homes. Phu Lam then killed himself in a restaurant where he worked. June 4, 2014: A man uses a semi-automatic rifle to fatally shoot three RCMP officers and wound two others in Moncton, N.B. The rampage by Justin Bourque was the deadliest attack on the RCMP since four officers were killed by a gunman in Alberta in 2005. April 15, 2014: Matthew de Grood kills five people at a house party in northwest Calgary. A judge in 2016 found de Grood not criminally responsible for the killings because he was suffering from schizophrenia at the time. March 3, 2005: James Roszko shoots and kills four RCMP officers near Mayerthorpe, Alta., before turning the gun on himself. Constables Anthony Gordon, Peter Schiemann, Leo Johnston and Brock Myrol were ambushed by Roszko, 46, at Roszkos farm northwest of Edmonton. April 5, 1996: Angered by his wifes divorce action, Mark Chahal kills her and eight other members of her family in Vernon, B.C., before shooting himself. Sept. 18, 1992: A bomb kills nine strikebreaking workers at the Giant Yellowknife gold mine in the Northwest Territories. Dec. 6, 1989: A man with a semi-automatic rifle storms into an engineering classroom at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal, asks men to leave and then kills 14 women before turning the gun on himself. Gunman Marc Lepine says he was fighting against feminists he blamed for his troubles. Sept. 1, 1972: An arson attack on a downtown Montreal night club kills 37 people and injures 64. Gasoline was spread on the stairway of the Blue Bird Cafe and then ignited. Most of the deaths occurred in the Wagon Wheel country-western bar upstairs. Three young men from Montreal who had earlier been denied entry for drunkenness were convicted and sentenced to life in prison. US President Donald Trump holds up swabs as he speaks during a Coronavirus Task Force press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on April 19, 2020. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he plans to use the Defense Production Act to increase the nation's swab production by at least 20 million per month for coronavirus tests. Trump said the administration is close to finalizing a partnership with one manufacturer to produce an additional 10 million swabs per month for coronavirus test kits, which are used to collect specimens from a patient's throat or nose. Trump said he is preparing to use the Defense Production Act on another manufacturer to increase its swab production by over 20 million per month. Trump did not disclose the names of the manufacturer. A FEMA spokesperson was not immediately available for comment. The president previously enacted the Defense Production Act on companies like General Motors and General Electric to manufacturer additional ventilators, although many had already ramped up production. "We've had a little difficulty with one so we're calling in, as in the past you know, we're calling in the Defense Production Act and we'll be getting swabs very easily," Trump said. "Swabs are easy. Ventilators are hard." Trump's announcement comes after some governors cited a lack of swabs and reagents as hampering their ability to conduct more coronavirus tests. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday that her state could triple the number of tests conducted if the key components were made available. Whitmer called on the Trump administration to enact the Defense Production Act to ramp up swab and reagent production. "We don't even have enough swabs believe it or not and we're ramping that up," Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, told CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday. "But, for the national level to say that we have what we need and really to have no guidance to the state levels is just irresponsible because we're not there yet." At the White House press briefing Sunday, Trump said that the swabs were previously shipped to the states but some of them "don't know where they are." "We have them coming by the tens of millions. We have them coming at a level that you'll have so many swabs you won't know what to do with them," Trump said. Earlier on Sunday, Vice President Mike Pence said the administration has "laid a strong foundation for testing for phase one." He said that there are enough tests for any governor who meets the 14-day criteria of declining case numbers outlined by the White House to move into phase one and begin reopening their state's economy. Experts have warned, however, against opening the country before widespread testing is available. Some say that as many as 20 to 30 million people per day will need tested before the nation can return to a semblance of economic normality. There are currently more than 150,000 tests being conducted per day, Pence said, but that number could "double" once laboratories across the country are activated. Although Gov. Phil Murphy has often said nearly all non-essential businesses have obeyed orders to stay closed during the coronavirus pandemic, occasional offenders continue to crop up including a club in Plainfield officials say was caught on Saturday serving alcohol to customers. The owner of the Tequila Club claimed he thought patrons waiting for take-out orders were permitted to order booze, according to the state Attorney Generals Office. When cops entered the business Saturday night, they said they found three people drinking at the bar and others seated at tables. The governor last month ordered bars and restaurants to close for all but take-out or delivery as part of sweeping statewide restrictions to slow the spread of the virus. Murphy has repeatedly referred to those who violate the near-lockdown orders as knuckleheads," but said they are the exception as most residents have observed the rules. On Sunday, officials announced 3,915 new positive COVID-19 tests and 132 additional deaths to push the state totals to 85,301 and 4,202. Thousands have recovered thought an exact number is not known. The state had 7,495 patients hospitalized for coronavirus or suspected of having the virus as of 10 p.m. Saturday, down from a high of 8,293 on Tuesday. Of those hospitalized, 1,940 are in critical or intensive care and 1,628 are on ventilators. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Heres the latest coronavirus news: Farm says state shut down drive-thru tulip festival due to coronavirus gathering rules: Officials on Sunday shut down a 99-acre tulip farm after the South Jersey attraction opened for drive-thru visits amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the business. Dalton Farms, in Swedesboro, said it was ordered to close at 7 p.m. Sunday. The farm had welcomed visitors in cars to take in the more than 252,000 tulips in peak bloom. President Trump, Congress expecting deal Monday to boost small business and provide hospital aid: The Trump administration and Congress expect an agreement Monday on an aid package of up to $450 billion to boost a small-business loan program that has run out of money and add funds for hospitals and COVID-19 testing. As talks continued, President Donald Trump said theres a good chance of reaching a bipartisan agreement with Democrats. Nobody calls you back. For families, no answers from N.J. nursing home where 38 died from coronavirus: Family members of residents at the troubled Andover nursing home where the continuing coronavirus outbreak took the lives of at least 38 residents say they arent getting phone calls returned even as many more continue to be stricken by the coronavirus. State officials have their own questions, in the wake of last weeks startling disclosures that nursing home administrators stored at least 17 bodies in rooms set up as temporary morgues. Two staff members have also died. Nursing homes ordered to report coronavirus cases to patients, families and the federal government: The nations nursing home operators were told Sunday to let patients and their families know if there are cases of the coronavirus within their walls. The order announced by Seema Verma, administrator of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, also requires the nursing homes to report such cases to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Man who threatened to spit on Wawa clerk among latest coronavirus violators, cops say: A 35-year-old Lindenwold man was arrested Saturday after he allegedly threatened to spit on a Somerdale Wawa store clerk, telling her he had the coronavirus and hoped she would get it and die, according to authorities. The man, who was already barred from the store from a previous incident, was charged with second-degree terroristic threats during an emergency. Sick N.J. corrections officer had to get coronavirus test on his own. Why arent prisons testing more?: A growing number of people connected to the states prison system say many are being denied testing for COVID-19, despite hundreds of employees and dozens of inmates that have already tested positive. Next coronavirus bill wont include more money for the states, treasury secretary says: The bill would include $300 billion to replenish the paycheck protection program, which offers low-interest forgivable loans to small businesses who keep paying their employees despite being closed, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Sunday on CNNs State of the Union. Worldwide coronavirus cases: About 166,000 of the almost 2.4 million people who have been infected with the coronavirus have died as of 7 a.m. Monday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. More than 632,000 have recovered. U.S. coronavirus cases: More than 35,000 of the approximately 762,000 to test positive have died, the center says. About 70,000 are reported to have recovered. Sign up for text message alerts from NJ.com on coronavirus in New Jersey: 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. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. The Associated Press and NJ Advance Media staff writers Matt Arco, Joe Atmonavage, Noah Cohen, Blake Nelson, Jonathan D. Salant and Ted Sherman contributed to this report. Being forced to pause our hectic lives has brought us a chance to reconnect and re-evaluate Its eerily quiet on a Sunday in New York. Pandemics have that effect, Im learning. Were in the midst of the most disruptive infectious pandemic in generations. Many of us are facing unspeakable loss and pain. I am a cardiologist with 25 years of experience. I would be lying if I said I wasnt worried. My patients are immune-compromised. They are the survivors of heart surgery, the ones living with myocarditis, battling heart failure. The people I treat are most vulnerable to dying from COVID-19. So you may be surprised when I tell you that I remain optimistic. There is evidence all around us of a silver lining to this global threat to human health. In the face of death, our priorities shift. We choose not to let petty nonsense, unnecessary conflicts, and hatred interfere with our precious time together. As only essential workers leave their homes to work, we now have the legitimate excuse to get off the fast train of commuting, meetings, gym workouts, chauffeuring kids, and getting up at dawn to do it all over again. Instead, we are reconnecting with loved ones: at the dinner table, via video chats, on walks (staying six feet apart). Were reminded why we love them. We appreciate what we share in common. Were talking more than tweeting. Hugging our pets. Checking in on neighbors. On a hike the other day, I noticed families pointing out the wonders of the nearby forests: the oak trees, the daffodils, and star-shaped glories-of-the-snow. I saw still-spotted fawns and swarms of tadpoles in the mountain streams. Children were tuned into the waterfalls and winter-worn trails, experiencing real life, not virtual, eyes wide with wonder. Many of my patients are infants. Their mothers are terrified. Is it safe to nurse? Is it OK to cuddle? What if they get sick? I explain breastfeeding is beneficial to the immune system. Their milk provides important immune factors including disease-fighting antibodies to defend against respiratory and intestinal viruses. La Leche League and the World Health Organization encourage all mothers to breastfeed. When we return to nature, we are again amazed by what it has to offer. Is it worth it? Neighbors, colleagues, and patients want to know. Theyre overwhelmed by social distancing, isolation, and helplessness. They feel the immensity of the situation, disheartened by the idea that they have no real control over the sociopolitical aspects of their lives. I tell them not to panic, to stay the course, to breathe. Even if we fail to flatten the curve successfully, it is the very essence of trying that actually matters. We are giving testimony that our social contract with each other still has value to us. This reaffirmation is priceless. My oldest friend is a nurse administrator for elder-care facilities. He had to notify families that, to prevent the unintentional spread of the coronavirus to the nursing homes, they could no longer visit the elders. Not wanting to be isolated, many residents went home to their families. Anecdotal evidence suggests the elderly living amongst their loved ones have been faring better than those who have remained in nursing homes. They have more mobility and better appetites. Theyre taking fewer antidepressants, requiring fewer doctor visits. He foresees significant restructuring of older adults living arrangements, an architectural transformation modeled after countries in Asia. Another silver lining of lockdown: Older adults experience a higher quality of life when we share the same household with extended family. There are more upsides: As we undergo this forced natural experiment, our air, water, and land are clearing up. Decreased human activity is resulting in less human-generated pollutant levels. With clearer skies, our breathing problems improve and we understand the power we have as a collective. Instead of returning to smog and pollution, we can make changes to keep the environment clean and healthy. International collaboration has become necessary. To fight this common enemy, we are sharing medical and public health data between Asia, Europe, and the United States. Together we are more empowered than in isolation. Scientists from diverse countries are combining their brainpower to find a cure and develop a safe and effective vaccine. Once they have done so, together we will apply these discoveries responsibly and appropriately to quell the current pandemic and diminish the future potency of the virus. Best of all, we are all becoming humbler. Our humility is our strength. With pride gone, we can be open to powerful and creative solutions to the health and socioeconomic problems we all share right now. The importance of community, family, and the natural world. If we learn these lessons together, we will promote not just prosperity for some, but survival for all. Dr. Eric Fethke is a pediatric cardiologist, author, and legal advisor who has been practicing in New York for 22 years. He received his BA from Princeton University and his MD from Columbia University. He has taught medical students and residents at Columbia, Albert Einstein, and now Touro universities. One should head to actor Kartik Aaryan's social media accounts to get entertained amid the ongoing lockdown period. From posting hilarious pictures to making goofy videos and conducting interactive sessions, Kartik has been doing his best to lighten up the mood of people. And now on Sunday, he is back with another goofy video, which he has made with his sister. In the video, the "Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety" actor can be seen taking a bit of his chapati and clearly hates it. He then moved towards his sister, held her braid and turned her around. "No compromise on food quality," he captioned the video. View this post on Instagram A post shared by KARTIK AARYAN (@kartikaaryan) on Apr 19, 2020 at 4:34am PDT The siblings' video has left netizens in splits. A user commented: "Hahahaa." Another one wrote: "Thank you for making us laugh." On the film front, Kartik will be next seen in "Dostana 2" and "Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2". The Rolling Stones came together to pull off a unique virtual performance of You Can't Always Get What You Want during Global Citizen's One World: Together At Home concert amid the coronavirus crisis. But, as the performance aired in both the US and the UK, fans were left in hysterics by band member Charlie Watts as he appeared to be playing the air drums. Joining Mick Jagger, 76, Keith Richards, 75, Ronnie Wood, 72, Charlie, 78, amused viewers as he masterfully substituted his drums for a couple of boxes and imaginary cymbals while performing in his music studio. Hilarious: Fans were left in hysterics after seeing Charlie Watts play the air drums during The Rolling Stones performance on the One World: Together At Home broadcast Fans couldn't help but notice Charlie's lack of musical equipment as his bandmates Mick and Keith played acoustic guitar, while Ronnie was on electric guitar. Taking to Twitter in their droves, fans were left raving about Charlie's performance, with some pinpointing it as the highlight of lockdown so far. They wrote: 'The stones showing everyone how it's done. You might be cool but are you Charlie Watts smashing Air Drums at 78 cool? No you're not. '#ICYMI Charlie Watts air drumming on #OneWorldTogetherAtHome set a high bar for best live television moment of the decade. #RollingStones Iconic: He had joined Mick Jagger, Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards to perform You Can't Always Get What You Want on the star-studded show 'Charlie Watts playing air drums is the kind of positivity we all need right now. #TogetherAtHome '#charliewatts you had me in bits! What a dude! Who gives a crap that you're on telly with your air drums, he doesn't, he's having a great time! That was the thing I didn't know I needed. I feel inspired! '....my daughter was watching it and I did laugh at the Charlie Watts playing air drums.' Others joked: 'In your day to day action, remember that the only thing youll remember from #coronavirus times is the kindness you and your friends sent into the world. That and Charlie Watts air drumming. 'All he wanted was a drum kit': Charlie's air drums left viewers highly amused as they took to Twitter in their droves to poke fun at the rocker's performance 'Going into every meeting from now on as prepared as Charlie Watts was for Together at Home. 'Charlie Watts proving you can't always get what you want. All he wanted was a drum kit. 'Still thinking about this a day later: I think the quarantine lifestyle has clearly gotten to Charlie Watts #OneWorldTogetherAtHome. Talented: The Rolling Stones gave a sensational performance as a band at the One World: Together At Home concert, despite all being apart in four separate locations The Rolling Stones came together via video link from four separate locations to play for viewers at home, with Keith enjoying a pint of beer as he delivered the 1968 classic. It came after the iconic band revealed they have been forced to postpone their 'No Filter' summer tour due to the current coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown measures in place across the globe. Showing their support for health care workers battling to save lives on the frontline during the COVID-19 crisis, The Rolling Stones joined a slew of other stars in the eight-hour long YouTube extravaganza. That was condensed into a two-hour long primetime show that over in the US via multiple channels on Saturday night. Highlights were repeated on Sunday night during BBC's broadcast for their UK edition of the concert. Skills: Mick Jagger, 76, and Keith Richards, 76, played acoustic guitars, while Ronnie Wood, 72, was seen on an electric guitar All together: The Rolling Stones joined a slew of artists performing on the night including Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift It repeated sensational performances from the night before, with Little Mix, Tom Jones, Rag'n'Bone Man and Jess Glynne joining the lineup and adding their own virtual performances. The TV special celebrated community health care workers and support the WHO's global fight to end COVID-19, with the BBC's broadcast showing its appreciation for the NHS. Dermot O'Leary, Claudia Winkleman and Clara Amfo hosted proceedings, with Harry Potter star Rupert Grint surprising an NHS midwife, who's been forced to self-isolate away from her family. Dermot was seen pulling a few strings to pull off a wedding surprise for one fan, who's wife is an NHS worker, after the couple were forced to cancel their wedding just weeks before it was due to take place because of the pandemic. Two Covid-19 patients (L and R) pose with a relative and doctors of the Cau Treo Border Area General Hospital in Ha Tinh Province upon their discharge, April 20, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Gia Han. Three Covid-19 patients two from Ha Tinh and another from Ninh Binh were discharged Monday, bringing Vietnams active cases tally down to 61. Two of them, "Patient 238" and "Patient 210," were discharged from Cau Treo Border Area General Hospital in Ha Tinh. They are friends who worked in the same bar in Thailand before returning to the central province of Ha Tinh that borders Laos last month. "Patient 210" is a 26-year-old woman from Ha Tinh's Can Loc District. She returned to Vietnam on March 20 and was confirmed positive on April 1. "Patient 238" is a 17-year-old girl from Ha Tinh's Thach Ha District who returned to Vietnam on March 18 and was confirmed positive on April 4. The third discharge, "Patient 228," was made by the Nho Quan District General Hospital in the northern province of Ninh Binh. He is a 29-year-old man from the northern province of Bac Giang who returned to Vietnam from abroad on March 20 and was confirmed positive on April 3. Monday saw five Covid-19 patients being discharged in total, including a Brazilian man and a British woman in related to the Buddha Bar & Grill, a major outbreak site in Saigon. Vietnam has confirmed 268 Covid-19 cases in total, of which 207 have been discharged. The country has recorded no new infection in the last four days. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with over 165,100 deaths reported so far. President of the Republic of Ghana, H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has condemned persons stigmatizing COVID-19 patients in the country. Delivering a nation address on Sunday, April, 19, 2020, President Akufo-Addo noted with deep concern the attitude of some communities treating people infected by the Coronavirus with contempt. A father of four named Frederick Drah who recovered from the novel coronavirus infection reportedly faced this problem in his community at Mataheko, near Afienya. Giving an account of how his community was treating him following his full recovery, Mr. Drah reportedly stated that he longs for the days he was at the treatment centre at the Ga East Municipal Hospital where he was discharged. I even wish, maybe, I could go back to the [quarantine] camp again, he lamented in an interview with Citi News. There have been other reports of people placed under quarantine or in isolation centers due to the transmission of the virus who when fully recovered or test negative for the virus and allowed to go home are confronted by the challenge of stigmatization. Adressing the issue, President Nana Akufo-Addo emphasized that the ''stigmatization of recovered persons must stop''. ''I have noticed, with great concern, the stories of some persons, who have recovered from the virus, now being confronted with another problem, i.e. stigmatization. This is not right, as it will rather drive people away from getting screened, tested and treated. The stigmatization of recovered persons must stop, because if the virus did not end their lives and livelihoods, the stigma from members of their communities should not'', he stressed. Source: 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. Featured Video PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 14:01:28 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 427 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Program Allows Channel Factory to Deliver Actionable YouTube Measurement Data to ClientsHOLLYWOOD, CA / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Channel Factory, a global technology and data platform that maximizes performance efficiency and brand suitability on YouTube, today announced that the company has joined the YouTube Measurement Program as a brand suitability and contextual targeting partner."We are very excited to partner with YouTube to create innovative solutions that will help advertisers drive maximum business outcome through brand suitability, contextual alignment, and cost efficiencies" says Tony Chen, CEO and Founder, Channel Factory.About the Program:The YouTube Measurement Program (YTMP) was created to offer advertisers trusted solutions for driving and measuring marketing performance on YouTube. For marketers, reaching audiences and measuring the results of campaigns is a growing challenge. To help advertisers better optimize and understand performance on YouTube, YTMP has expanded its scope.The YTMP partner Channel Factory will work closely with YouTube to ensure that its measurement solutions provide accurate data to its customers. As part of the expanded program, Google will be providing Channel Factory with training and resources, technical support and product tools to help enhance its platform, ViewIQ.With trust and transparency at its foundation, YTMP provides quality and choice when it comes to optimizing and measuring performance and helping marketers to better understand and reach their customers on YouTube. Alongside Channel Factory, YouTube will keep working to establish industry accepted standards and advanced solutions that help raise the bar for brands and advertisers.About Channel Factory:Channel Factory is a global technology and data platform that maximizes both performance efficiency and brand suitability, turning YouTube's 5 billion videos and 500 hours per minute of new content into brand suitable, efficient advertising opportunities. Channel Factory's mission is to create a suitable video ecosystem that connects creators, brands, and consumers - by enabling advertisers access to the most relevant videos, channels and creators.Through their proprietary platform that harnesses the power of the deepest YouTube dataset in the industry, Channel Factory has enabled advanced brand suitability, customized content targeting, and maximum performance for the world's biggest brands. Channel Factory's algorithm ensures not only that advertisers run against content that aligns to their brand, but also delivers outcomes by optimizing campaigns using active and historical campaign performance data.Channel Factory works with 300+ global advertisers and has offices across the USA and is present in over 30 countries worldwide including the United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Spain, Ukraine, Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore.Contact:Lauren DouglassSVP Global MarketingLauren@ ChannelFactory.com SOURCE: Channel Factory The Indian government signed an agreement with a South Korean company on Monday for acquiring 500,000 testing kits to prevent and control the spread of Covid-19, with the first lot expected to be delivered on April 30. The deal marks the first purchase agreement signed by the Indian embassy in Seoul and the testing kits will be supplied to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which is playing a key role in shaping Indias efforts to contain the Coronavirus. The kits will be delivered to India by the South Korean firm, Humasis Ltd, in four lots from April 30, said a statement from the Indian embassy in Seoul. The agreement was signed in the presence of Indian ambassador Sripriya Ranganathan. Humasis Ltd, whose factory is located at Gyeongi-do in South Korea, is sourcing raw materials for production of these diagnostic testing kits from India, the statement said. This collaboration forms an important part of efforts to augment Indias testing capacity in the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, it added. Over the past few weeks, Indias Central and state government agencies and private companies have sourced 450,000 tests (both reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction or RT-PCR and antibody tests) from different Korean companies. This cooperation is in keeping with the special strategic partnership between India and [South Korea] and the shared commitment of our leaders to pursuing a people-first approach, the statement said. The cooperation is also in keeping with the assurance by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Moon Jae-in that the two countries will continue to consult and support each other and share experiences in the common fight against Covid-19, it added. India has turned to a wide range of countries, from the US to China, to source medical supplies and equipment needed to counter the spread of the Coronavirus. Indian missions around the world have played a key role in the sourcing of these supplies, arranging clearances from local authorities and coordinating with airlines to transport the goods to India. These supplies have included RT-PCR testing kits, rapid antibody tests and personal protective equipment (PPE) kits. Last week, Chinese firms supplied 650,000 testing kits received in two cargo flights. Officials had then said Chinese companies have been contracted for nearly 15 million PPE kits and 1.5 million rapid testing kits by the government and private firms. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rezaul H Laskar Rezaul H Laskar is the Foreign Affairs Editor at Hindustan Times. His interests include movies and music. ...view detail Reporter: It appears the president is also watching this press conference. He tweeted 13 minutes ago. 'Governor Cuomo should spend more time doing and less time complaining. Get out there and get the job done. Stop talking! We built you thousands of hospital beds that you didn't need or use, gave large numbers of Ventilators that you should have had, and helped you with testing that you should be doing.' It goes on a little bit more. So wondering if you could respond to that and also the question about the overwhelmed ICUs. Cuomo: Good. Let's respond to the President. First of all, if he's sitting home watching TV, maybe he should get up and go to work, right. Seoncd, let's keep emotion and politics out of this and personal ego if we can because this is about the people and our job and let's try to focus on that. I have said repeatedly that when we were fighting for the additional capacity for our hospital system, that the president moved very quicky and I applauded him for it and he brought the Army Corps of Engineers and he brought them up to build the Javits Center capacity. Twenty-five hundred beds. He's wrong it hasn't been used. About 800 people have gone through Javits. To dismiss 800 people is disrespectful, but we didn't use 2,500 beds because we didn't reach the capacity. When he says 'well we built it, we didn't need it' it sounds like, the suggestion is, well it was request by the state that wasn't valid. If he didn't really believe 2,500 beds was necessary, I dont believe the federal government would have built the 2,500 beds. And the number came from a projection from him. Him. So he should read the reports he issues. The White House coronavirus task force had enormous, projected in the millions of people. The CDC - which is the president - projected in the millions of people. So the projections were high. They were the president's projections. So for him to say to anyone, well you relied on projections and the projections were wrong, they're your projections, Mr. president. So were we foolish for relying on your projections Mr. President? CDC? Coronavirus task force? That's you. We relied on your projections. OK, shouldn't have relied on your projections. Actually, I think the president has a better argument: yes we should have built 2,500 beds because the projection said it could get that bad and because we worked together, we flattened the curve and we didn't hit the projection which is actually what happened. But don't suggest that anyone made a mistake relying on your projections, or on Cornell, Columbia, McKinsey, etc. Second, I have said on a number of times I don't know, what am I supposed to do, send a bouquet of flowers? - they were very helpful on Javits, they were very helpful sending US Navy Ship Comfort, they were on very helpful in intervening with China and getting PPE equipment out of China. They were very helpful in helping us find ventilators. I said 'thank you, thank you, thank you.' Now, going forward, we're still in the midst of it. The president doesn't want to help on testing. I said eleven times, I said the one issue we need help with is testing. He said 11 times i dont want to get involved in testing, it's too complicated, it's too hard. I know it's too complicated and too hard. That's why we need help. I can't do an international supply chain. He wants to say: 'Well I did enough.' Yeah, none of us have done enough. We haven't, because it's not over. So yes, thank you for the Javits, thank you for the US Navy Ship Comfort. But it's not over. We have a lot more to do and no one can do the posture of 'just say thank you for what Ive done, and I'm now out, I'm not doing anything else. [Rubs hands] I've done my part.' [Holds up hands] What if I said to the people of my state, OK, I'm done. By the way, I've saved hundreds of thousands of lives, I've flattened the curve, I've created more hospital beds than anyone imagined, I'm done. I'm going home, I'm going to go see my mother, spend time with my kids and I'm going to go out fishing - in Connecticut, because their marinas are open. That's it, I'm done. What if I said that? That's what he's saying: 'I'm done, I don't want to help on testing, testing is too hard.' And then the only thing he's doing, let's be honest, is 'it's up to the states to do reopening.' By the way, it was always up to the states. What, are you going to grant me what the Constitution gave me before you were born? It's called the 10th Amendment. I dont need the president of the United States to tell me that I am governor and I don't need the president of the United States to tell to me the powers of a state. People did that: Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison they are the ones who gave me the power. And I don't need the president of the United States to read the Constiution for me. Maybe he should have read the Constitution before he said he had the power to open the states. Where he did a very graceful 180 and many people allowed him to do the graceful 180, but. So he now says it's up to the governors, which he said repeatedly now - yesterday, version of yesterday and now it's up to the governors to reopen. OK I get it, and you don't want to help on testing, which is a national problem and replicates the same chaos that you created with medical supplies because FEMA wasn't ready. By the way I needed a stockpile? Where was your stockpile? 10,000 ventilators for the nation? That was your stockpile? Where your projections, the federal projections said they would need double the hospital capacity of this nation. Think about that. The CDC says double the hospital capacity of the nation. The minimum projection was 2.4 million hospital beds. You know how many hospital beds we have in this nation? 900,000. His projection says 2.4 million hospital beds, the whole hospital system is only 900 and his stockpile has 10,000 ventilators. You were ready with your stockpile? Didn't you read your own CDC projection? Didn't you read your own coronavirus projection? So thank you again Mr. President for the Javits, thank you again for the U.S. Navy Ship Comfort, which by the way, is just doing your job as president, it's not really thank you like you wrote a check yourself, but thank you for that. We're not out of the woods, we have to go forward, we need help on testing and we need funding. It's up to the governors, it's up to the states well then, provide the funding. No. They only want to pass a bill that funds their small business program for PPP, their small business program. You need to fund the small business program. You're going to say, after saying this monumental task is up to the individual governors and the individual states, you're going to say, you're going to say I'm providing no help, no assistance, no financial money. I understand why small businesses need the funding. By the way, I know that airlines need a bailout - but not the states. Why don't you show as much consideration to states as you did to your big businesses and airlines? Right. Reporter: Did you guys speak yesterday or this morning after he asked, announced the May 1st reopening of.. Cuomo: No. He didn't announce anything. He said it's up to the states, and if you say it's up to the states and you just hold up a big microphone that can listen to all the governors, you'll hear some governors say I can start to reopen right away, because some governors are in places where they don't have a serious problem. They never did. By the way some states never closed down. So if you're in a state that has a de minimus issue, yeah, then you can open up faster, you can open up tomorrow, or you can stat opening up tomorrow. He's doing nothing. He said it's up to the states. It's up to the governors which is what it always was because it's always been the governors' power. Then he says 'it's a 50-piece puzzle.' It's called the map of the United States. It's not a puzzle. And those lines are called states. And those states have constitutional power. Remember the way this whole thing starts, the colonies create the federal, government, not the other way sound. So, introduction to constitutional theory and policy. The states have the power to open. The states are opening on their own timelines. We're trying to coordinate with our neighboring states. Western states are co-ordinating. Middle states are coordinating. All he's doing is walking in front of the parade but he has nothing to do with the timing of the parade, right. The governors are going to open when they think they should open. All I'm saying is there's two things they need help from. They need help from the federal government, two things: help on testing because they can't do that and I don't want to redo the mayhem of the PPE debacle, second point we need funding to do it. The way you love talking about how you funded everything; big businesses are getting bailed out, airlines are getting bailed out, bail out, bail out, bailout, all with taxpayers' money. State governments, which are the only ones which are doing this whole reopening, theyre going to need funding, right. And, well, show gratitude. How many times do you want me to say thank you? And I'm saying thank you for doing your job. This was your role as president, OK. SO that's the honest statement of fact without politics I'm not running for anything so I have no agenda but delivering for the people of this state - and without ego. You want me to say thank you? Thank you for doing your job in helping build Javits and sending the U.S. Navy Ship Comfort. Thank you for participating in a modicum of federal responsibility in a national crisis which you know is a national crisis because he declared a federal emergency. So thank you for having the federal government participate in a federal emergency and thank you for your help building Javits, 2,500 beds, pursuant to your projection. Your projection. And if you don't agree with your projection fire the head of the CDC, fire the White House coronavirus task force people, because they did the projections. In case he forgot, or didn't read his CDC report, just to be precise, March 13, March 13, so we're well into it, CDC says 160 to 214 million Americans infected. That's over half the population . CDC. 2.4 million to 21 million Americans hospitalized. 2.4 million. Bottom number 21 million Americans hospitalized. March 13th. The CDC. March. 2.4. Let's take their low number, which is a hell of a differential either 2.4 or 10 times 2.4. Thank you for that great projection, but anyway, let's take their minimum number. How many hospitals beds do you have? 900, let's call it a million. So it's two and a half times what your capacity is, right? We're the state of New York, we have a 50,000 bed capacity, but by their projections what do we need? 150,000 beds. By the way, what did McKinsey say that we needed? 140,000 beds. They got it from the CDC, as it says on the screen [shows CDC projections slide]. That's why we built 2,500 beds at Javits, because we listened to you, Mr. President. And if we were following for listening to you, then shame on us. But read your own report next time before criticizing us. [Reporter asks question about state funding and is answered by another official] Can you pull up the White House coronavirus projection, just so the president can read what he said? [Reporter asks about PPE shortages and nursing homes another official answers] Cuomo: Excuse me one second. You saw the CDC projections. This is the White House coronavirus task force, January, February, March 31st, of the projections. 1.5 million to 2.2 million deaths without the mitigation, 100 to 240 best case scenario. That's the president's projections. So Mr. President, if you want to point fingers, which I think is a mistake, you're in the middle of the game, it's only half-time, don't be a Monday morning quarterback at half-time, never works out well, and if you want to point fingers, we built more beds than we needed, our only mistake was in believing your numbers and believing your projections If that was a mistake then I'm guilty but I thought New York state relying on what you said would have been a safe assumption. I won't make that mistake again and it was your CDC and your White House coronavirus task force that made those projections. [Reporter asks about other states reopening. Cuomo speaks about reopening in parts of the state] Can you put up the Navarro memo, just for kicks, just to make sure? CDC, coronavirus task force and Mr Peter Navarro's memo to the president which the president said he never read. Peter Navarro says 100million Americans can be infected, as many as one to 2 million souls can be lost. SO whose projections were wrong? Head of the CDC, Peter Navarro and head of the White House corona task force. Fire them all, that's what I say. Fire them. You know the show when the president did- you're fired? If he wants to fire someone for projections, retake his TV career, those are the three. Documented. If he wants to blame someone for the projections, blame the CDC, Peter Navarro, and whoever is on the coronavirus task force, because it's their projections. Peter Navarro you can fire. [Reporter: why has this got under your skin] It's what he said. Well this is an important moment, he's saying he doesn't want to provide funding to the states and he doesn't want to provide help on testing. And I can tell you the states can't do it otherwise and if this testing doesn't work, that's a serious problem. I don't care about his politics, but if we don't have federal help on testing, that's a real problem and I'm not going to go through the chaos that was created last time on PPE where people that were genuine heroes couldn't get PPE, because there was a lack of coordination and because everything was made in China. We're looking at that situation again, I can tell you that, I know enough to know that. On the night of April 17, Anit Thapa, chairman of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration that administers the hill region in north Bengal announced, Today officially Kalimpong is a zero Covid district and I would like to thank the people of GTA region, the hospital nurses and doctors, the respiratory therapists who helped all of us to fight this pandemic. The reason he was able to make this declaration was because all members of the Singh family that had tested positive for Covid-19 on April 3, were finally discharged on Friday evening. Nine members and a domestic help were admitted to the hospital, turning the hill district of Kalimpong into a Covid-19 hotspot. The Singhs 12 of them lived across three homes in Siliguri and Kalimpong, 65 kilometres away. On March 30, a 49-year-old woman died due to Covid-19 at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital, two days after she was detected as being positive for coronavirus. This alerted the authorities to test the other members of her family: nine of them tested positive, including the womans husband, son, daughter, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, and two toddler grand-nieces. Five were released earlier in the week, while the remaining four were discharged on Friday. The domestic help of the family was discharged as well. All the 41 persons who had been sent to quarantine centres after coming into contact with the family and the domestic help have been released. The 49-year-old had returned from Chennai accompanied by her 20-year-old daughter, who studies mass communication and journalism in the southern capital. They landed at Bagdogra airport, paid a visit to the Siliguri residence of her nephew, and then travelled home to their Kalimpong residence where five other members of the family, including the womans husband and son reside. Sneha, a second-year college student in Chennai, said her mother was the only one who showed severe symptoms. In reality, all the family members, except for my mother, showed very little symptoms. The first thing I did after receiving the news of my aunt-in-laws death was to go to the room of her son and daughter and tell them that I was their mother from that day, Julie Singh, a family member, recalled. Within hours of the 49-year-old womans death, the administration took all other members of the family, and the domestic helps, who were already in home quarantine at that time, to a government centre. Three days later, on April 3, all members of the family, except Julie and her husband, Ajay, tested positive. However, Julies three-year-old daughter had tested positive, so Julie accompanied all the members of the family to the private hospital, where they were kept. We all uninstalled Facebook from our phones to shut ourselves from the outside world. We watched movies and listened to music on YouTube, said Sneha. We had to accept whatever had happened as the law of nature, she added. You can imagine the situation, Ajay, the nephew of the deceased, and who lived with her, said. My aunt had just died and nine members of the family landed in hospital. My daughter is three-year-old and my niece is six months older than she is. My father is a patient of kidney transplant. My mother was shell-shocked with the news of my aunts death. My cousins had just lost their mother. One of them is still a minor. Whom could I not attend to? And how could I attend to so many of them while myself being in quarantine? he said. Julie, his wife, would meet the other members of her family in the hospital wearing Personal Protective Equipment, as she herself was not infected with the virus, but was staying there to look after her young daughter, who was infected. She shared Buddhist chants with her family members. For most of the time in the hospital, I meditated, she said. My husband also asked all our relatives and family members to keep calling my parents to keep them engaged and motivated. I kept receiving calls from family friends throughout the day. They also shared on WhatsApp different news of peoples recovery. All these mattered in those times, as I was really worried about my husband and the two grandnieces, Manju Devi Singh, Ajays mother who was also hospitalised, said. With all members of the family now discharged, finally, we are happy that the storm is over and the family is united all over again, Sneha said. By PTI KOLKATA: Taking umbrage at the Centre for sending teams to assess the "serious" COVID-19 situation in the state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, underscoring the "unilateral" and "undesirable" action, keeping her government in the dark. The Union home ministry said on Monday the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and that violation of lockdown measures may facilitate the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Union government has formed six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) for an on-the-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal. While one central team arrived in Kolkata, another reached Jalpaiguri district on Monday. Claiming that she was informed by "Union Home Minister Amit Shah late in the afternoon, whereas the central teams already landed in the state in the morning hours", the feisty Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said this was a breach of established protocols. "The central teams kept the state in the dark, approached the BSF for logistic support and were moving in the field without informing the West Bengal government," she wrote to Modi. The places mentioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs include Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism. (2/2) Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 20, 2020 "I am sure you will kindly agree that such unilateral action on the part of the central government is not desirable at all, especially when both the central and state governments are working together relentlessly round the clock to contain the COVID-19 crisis," the chief minister said. Earlier in the afternoon, in a series of tweets, Banerjee sought to know the rationale behind the formation of the IMCTs and urged the prime minister and home minister to share the criterion for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha, too, criticised the Centre's move to send teams to the state. State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chatterjee said the Centre is "pursuing politics" to demean the efforts of the TMC government in containing the infection. His views were echoed by senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty, who said this was not the time for "petty Centre-state politics" as everybody has to work unitedly in the fight against the pandemic. "It is true that the state is faulting on some aspects, but this is not the time for the Centre to play politics in order to score political points," Chakraborty said. West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh voiced support to the Centre's move and said the truth about the "lacklustre attitude" of the state government must be "exposed". "The central government did the right thing by sending teams. They would surely unravel how the lockdown is being violated and the state government is trying to hide the real picture," he said. A 50-year-old farmer who was allegedly beaten up by police four days ago in Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh during the lockdown for the coronavirus outbreak died on Monday, officials said. Six personnel have been suspended for allegedly beating up farmer Bansi Kushwaha (50) in Tilhari locality on April 16, said Additional Superintendent of Police Dr Sanjeev Uike said. Action has been taken against those personnel whose names the farmer took in a video which went viral on social media, Uike informed, adding that an official of the rank of city superintendent of police (CSP) will probe the incident. "Preliminary probe has revealed that the farmer was admitted in a hospital on April 19 for the treatment of an ailment. He did not lodge a complaint with either the local police or higher authorities. His post mortem report is awaited," Uike said. Former chief minister and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath had shared the video, where the farmer is naming police personnel who hit him, on Twitter. The farmer can be heard in the video saying he had gone out looking for his cow. "A 50-year-old farmer named Bansi Kushwaha was brutally beaten up by police of Shivraj government in Jabalpur when he was returning from his fields after feeding and giving water to a cow. The poor farmer died due to this brutal beating," Nath said, and demanded action against the culprits. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) YANGON, Myanmar (AP) The World Bank said Monday it has approved $50 million in emergency financing to help Myanmar improve its hospital system to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. The bank's office in Myanmar said in a statement that the credit would be used mostly to increase the capacity of intensive care units at selected hospitals and to build the skills of hospital staff and officials, in addition to promoting community engagement. Myanmar is one of the poorest countries in Asia and its public health infrastructure is considered weak. The World Bank said the project will cover eight central hospitals and 43 regional and state hospitals around the country, starting with those in areas considered most at risk, such as densely populated areas and places serving as travel hubs. The financing for the Myanmar project is the latest in series of fast-track measures initiated by the bank earlier this month to deal with the pandemic. The first group of projects, totaling $1.9 billion, was to assist 25 countries in the developing world, while the bank prepared packages for 40 more. In an April 2 announcement, the bank said it was working worldwide to redeploy resources in existing World Bank-financed projects worth up to $1.7 billion. The World Bank Group is prepared to deploy up to $160 billion over the next 15 months to support COVID-19 measures that will help countries respond to immediate health consequences of the pandemic and bolster economic recovery, it said. 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. The statement Monday said that funds for an ongoing World Bank-financed Myanmar Essential Health Services Access Project supporting 12,000 primary health care facilities across the country were also being directed to assist capacity building and operational costs to intensify surveillance and testing activities in all states and regions, establish a functioning information and reporting system for all suspected cases and facilitate the flow of information among health professionals and the public. Brazil's far-right president Jair Bolsonaro has today demanded an end to the coronavirus lockdown in a speech he made whilst repeatedly coughing at an anti-quarantine protest. Speaking to supporters in Brasilia, Bolsonaro said he hoped the measures, which much of the country has imposed against his will, would end this week - even though the peak of the epidemic may be weeks away. Bolsonaro has downplayed the virus as a 'little cold' and bemoaned the damage to Brazil's economy, but many regional leaders have ignored him and imposed their own quarantine measures. The 65-year-old caused further anger yesterday by appearing at an anti-quarantine protest and savaging the lockdown in a speech to supporters which was interrupted by his own coughing. Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro appears at a protest in Brasilia yesterday, speaking to supporters who were protesting against the quarantine Despite Bolsonaro's protests, many of Brazil's regional governors have more or less shut down their states in recent weeks. The outbreak in Brazil appears to be a few weeks behind those in Europe and the US, meaning those governors are unlikely to end their lockdowns just yet. 'What a few mayors and governors are doing is a crime. They're destroying Brazil,' Bolsonaro has said. Bolsonaro has also clashed with his own health officials, firing his popular health minister last week after they clashed over social distancing measures. On Friday, Bolsonaro cast doubt on the state of Sao Paulo's official death toll from the outbreak, the highest in the country, accusing the governor of manipulating the numbers for political ends. 'I'm sorry, some people will die, they will die, that's life,' Bolsonaro said in a television interview. Rio de Janeiro's state health secretary Edmar Santos says the peak of the outbreak will hit Rio in May, which would be a 'very, very complicated' time. Bolsonaro coughs during a speech to supporters in Brasilia yesterday, in which he attacked the social distancing measures that much of the country has imposed against his will Santos, who has himself been diagnosed with Covid-19 along with governor Wilson Witzel, said the curve in Rio was not yet flattening despite the measures. 'At the beginning of May the red light will come on for the health system,' he said. Brazil has more virus cases than any other country in Latin America. On Sunday, confirmed cases rose to 38,654 with 2,462 deaths. Yesterday Bolsonaro made an appearance at a protest in front of the army headquarters in Brasilia, which was controversial in itself because of his open admiration for the 1964-85 military dictatorship. Some of the audience held up posters declaring 'Military intervention with Bolsonaro'. Bolsonaro, who was not wearing a face mask, addressed a crowd of a few hundred in a brief address which was punctuated by his own coughing. The president called those in attendance 'patriots' and said they were helping defend individual freedoms that he said are under threat by lockdowns. 'I am here because I believe in you. You are here because you believe in Brazil,' said Bolsonaro, a former army captain. Critics said Bolsonaro had 'crossed the Rubicon' and called the protest 'frightening'. Fourth shipment of medical supplies lands from China Mexico City, Mexico The fourth shipment of medical supplies from China landed in Mexico City Sunday night. The Aeromexico flight landed in Mexico City from Shanghai, China, bringing with it 1,257 boxes of medical supplies that contain 3 million surgical masks as well as 300 boxes of goggles, reported the Secretary of Foreign Relations, Marcelo Ebrard. Today is the fourth scheduled flight of the Mexico-Shanghai airlift with more medical supplies to complement the national supply and protect the health workers who face the Covid-19, he said on social media. According to the Mexican consulate in Shanghai, due to local operational restrictions, the plane could only remain on the tarmac for three hours, leaving airport and logistics personnel to rush unload the plane. Due to sanitary restrictions, the crew did not disembark or have direct contact with Mexican ground staff, except for the health personnel who collected health statements. Photo: ALMO Another 15 flights from different countries with more medical supplies are expected in the following weeks. Ebrard noted that on Tuesday, another flight from China with 200 respirators will arrive in the country to serve patients hospitalized for coronavirus. On Saturday, an Aeromexico Dreamliner plane arrived at the AICM with 192,400 surgical masks for IMSS health personnel. The shipment was received by the director of the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) Zoe Robledo, and Marta Delgado, undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs of the foreign ministry. We are very grateful to the chancellery. This material is uploaded to our trucks to go directly to the states. This goes to entities where there are more confirmed cases, more hospitalized or more suspected cases, Zoe Robledo told the press. Last week, the Asociacion de Gobernadores de Accion Nacional (GOAN) publicly rejected the made in China medical supplies being delivered by the federal government due to their exceptionally poor quality. MECHANICVILLE Expecting the district will cut a dozen from its staff in 2020-21, the city school districts superintendent said the board will not restore busing for 26 district students who attend private school. The Board of Education voted to cut private and parochial school transportation for district students last September for the 2020-21 school year, saving an estimated $126,000. However, after parents of the students affected met with Superintendent Bruce Potter, Potter recommended to the board that they reconsider - and they did. But because of the pandemic, the private school busing for next school year is now canceled. I know this is not the response you were hoping for, Potter told one of the parents in an email shared with the Times Union. As you are aware from the Gov. (Andrew Cuomo)'s briefings, this pandemic is wreaking havoc on the New York state economy and will negatively impact revenue generation well into the future. We have been informed that our aid has been frozen and modest increases that were in the original proposed budget have been stripped away. Previously: Parents seek reversal of Mechanicville school decision on private school buses On Monday, Potter said that the decision on transportation comes at a time when schools could potentially lose 20 percent of state aid mid-year. Therefore, he sees it as prudent to not only keep the transportation cut in place, but to also eliminate 10 to 15 positions. He also said the district has developed a "generous retirement incentive" for district employees age 55 and older, and hopes that the cuts can be made through attrition. "Although, we would prefer to be adding positions to our program, given what is happening we understand the necessity to reduce our budget, just as the surrounding schools are facing," Potter said. While state education law requires central school districts to transport their private school students to their chosen schools, it is not a requirement for city school districts. However, if a city district chooses to bus students to other schools, like many in the area do including Albany, Schenectady, Troy and Saratoga Springs 75 percent of the cost is reimbursed by state aid. In the case of Mechanicville, thats a total of $97,500. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. At a November meeting, parents told Potter that their children were essentially forced to attend private schools because of bullying and students lagging behind academically. Private school transportation for district students will end on July 1. "This is an incredibly difficult time for all New Yorkers, not just us in public education," Potter said. "Mechanicville did not have any fat to cut, these cuts will be felt deep. It's our job to ensure we maintain the integrity of our academic and social-emotional programming for our students." More than one in five Australian children are "developmentally vulnerable" by age five, meaning they are at greater risk of falling behind their classmates at school, a new study shows. Universal monitoring of preschoolers' health and educational development would help early childhood educators detect the warning signs and intervene before children start primary school, the study report argues. Analysis of more than 5400 five-year-olds found a range of influences that are likely to set a child back in the early stages of education. Credit:iStock The research found 22 per cent of Australian children are developmentally vulnerable at age five. Analysis of more than 5400 Tasmanian five-year-olds found a range of influences are likely to set a child back in the early stages of education. President Donald Trump wants sport to be a key part of his 'great American economic revival': AP Mitt Romney, CNN, the top brass at the FBI at the beginning of 2017 these were just some of the targets of a verbal lashing from Donald Trump at the daily White House coronavirus briefing on Sunday. While Mr Trump, the vice president Mike Pence, and other White House coronavirus task force officials spent nearly an hour at the podium mounting a public relations campaign to paint the administrations response to the health crisis in positive colours amid outside criticism from Democrats and health experts, the question-and-answer portion of the briefing turned characteristically chaotic as the president clashed with reporters. When asked to comment on his convicted former campaign adviser Roger Stones imminent imprisonment, Mr Trump labelled former FBI Director James Comey and others at the FBI human scum for pursuing cases against the his former associates, including Mr Stone, former 2016 Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn. "The top of the FBI was scum ... human scum," President Trump said on their treatment of Roger Stone and General Mike Flynn pic.twitter.com/pTcYJ3WQ7q Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) April 19, 2020 The president suggested Mr Stone, Mr Manafort, and Mr Flynn who have all been convicted of felonies since working for Mr Trump were unfairly targeted by law enforcement, though he declined to say whether he would pardon any of them. Mr Manafort is roughly one year into a 7.5-year prison sentence. Mr Stones motion for a new trial on charges of lying to Congress was dismissed last week, setting up a potential prison start-day soon. Mr Flynns sentencing has been postponed indefinitely. At another point in the briefing, Mr Trump confirmed that he purposely snubbed Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, the sole Republican senator out of 53 not to be named to the presidents wide-ranging task force to re-open the economy in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Story continues Asked whether Mr Romneys exclusion indicated the president still held a grudge over the Utah senators vote to convict him during his impeachment trial earlier this year, Mr Trump responded, Yeah, it does. Im not a fan of Mitt Romney. I dont really want his advice, he said, despite Mr Romneys background as a former governor and chairman of the Salt Lake Olympics organising committee. Mr Trumps also directed his ire at the media, with particularly heated clashes with reporters from CBS and CNN. You people are so pathetic at CNN, Mr Trump said in response to a series of questions from CNN reporter Jeremy Diamond about the presidents past praise of his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, near the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak in the US and after Mr Trump and Mr Xi had struck a major trade deal. Thats why your ratings are so bad. Youre pathetic. Your ratings are terrible. Youve got to get back to real news, Mr Trump told the CNN reporter. Read more Trump pans globalists for supply chain woes delaying coronavirus aid Pence ducks questions about Trumps liberate tweets Nancy Pelosi labels Trump a weak leader who avoids responsibility Poll: Americans trust Fauci and Cuomo more than Trump on coronavirus White House and Democrats close in on coronavirus relief deal Chinese companies are expected to send about 20 planeloads of Covid-19-related medical supplies to India over the next one week, a senior government official said. Requests for these flights between April 21 and 27 have been placed with the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the official said. The continuing cooperation is seen as a signal that the two countries are in sync on the Covid-19 battle despite some concerns that led India to impose restrictions on foreign takeover of Indian companies. Over the last two weeks beginning April 4, around 24 flights have taken off from Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xian and Hong Kong to India carrying 390 tonnes of medical supplies. These include RT-PCR test kits, Rapid Antibody tests, thermometers, personal protection equipment. According to information compiled by the external affairs ministry, the major consignees were Imperial Life Sciences, HLL, Matrix Labs, Invex Healthcare, Max and companies of the Reliance, Tata, Adani group. There were four state governments in this list too: Karnataka, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. The consignments from China included the 650,000 testing kits received in two cargo flights last week. Officials had then said that Chinese companies have been contracted for nearly 15 million PPE kits and 1.5 million rapid testing kits by the government and private firms. Indian ambassador to China, Vikram Misri, last week described facilitating Indias imports of Covid-19-related medical equipment and keeping the drug production supply chain open the best signal from China for bilateral ties. India had also sent a plane load of medical equipment to Chinas coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan when the crisis was at its peak in the neighbouring country. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON New Delhi: The National Commission for Women (NCW) has written to the Union Health Ministry asking it to conduct an immediate inquiry into the alleged suicide attempt by a woman doctor at the AIIMS here apparently over caste and gender based discrimination and harassment. The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS had written to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Sunday about the administration's "inaction" on the alleged harassment of the resident doctor on the basis of caste and gender by the faculty at the premier hospital. The female doctor attempted suicide on Friday, one of her colleagues at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here said. Taking cognisance of the matter, the National Commission for Women has written to Preeti Sudan, Secretary, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, for an immediate inquiry and details of the action-taken report to be sent at the earliest to the Commission. The NCW, in a statement, said it was concerned over the matter and "requests that an inquiry shall be done in the alleged harassment, and action be taken to prevent recurrence of such incidents in future". Further, measures should be taken to ensure safety and security of women staff and doctors in all AIIMS departments, it said. Four residents of Northampton Countys Gracedale nursing home have died from COVID-19 and 50 have tested positive. The county released the updated figured about the Upper Nazareth Township county-run nursing home on Monday. Six of the infected residents are recovering in an isolation ward. Twenty-three of Gracedales 700 employees have tested positive for the coronavirus. Five of them have finished their quarantine and returned to work. Gracedale is Pennsylvanias largest nursing home under one roof with more than 600 residents living there. We appreciate the bravery and dedication of Gracedale employees, county Executive Lamont McClure said in a press release. Theyre working tirelessly to keep some of our most vulnerable residents safe during this outbreak. Last week, the county said two residents had died and 24 residents and 18 employees have tested positive for the new virus. The county continues to do everything it can during the COVID-19 pandemic to limit staff and resident exposure at Gracedale, the release states. The coronavirus crisis has killed more than 7,000 people at nursing homes across the country, according to The New York Times. In 12 Northampton County facilities, COVID-19 has killed 19 nursing home residents and infected 214 residents and 48 employees, according to the countys virus tracking dashboard. In Lehigh County, 13 nursing home residents have died while 158 residents and 29 employees at 17 facilities in the county contracted COVID-19. Across Pennsylvania, the virus has claimed the lives of at least 682 long-term care facility residents, accounting for more than 50% of the states total deaths, according to figures released Monday. Pennsylvanias nursing and personal care homes report 4,689 resident cases of COVID-19 and 504 cases among employees across 374 facilities in 35 counties. Nursing homes across the nation have banned visitors and instituted staff temperature checks in hopes of protecting their residents -- the very people who are most susceptible to serious complications from the new virus. COVID-19 causes minor illness in the majority of people who it infects, but for the elderly and frail -- many who have complicating health conditions -- it is proving to be lethal. Experts say nursing home deaths may keep climbing because of chronic staffing shortages that have been made worse by the coronavirus crisis, a shortage of protective supplies and a continued lack of available testing. Infections are continuing to find their way into nursing homes because screenings arent catching people who are infected but asymptomatic. 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. Recruitment flops and lackluster fundraising have weakened Republicans chances in over a dozen competitive House districts, leaving them with an increasingly narrow path back to power. Though GOP strategists feel confident they will see some gains this cycle, the latest fundraising reports out last week painted a bleak picture of their odds of netting the 18 seats needed to recapture the House, particularly with campaigning frozen by a global pandemic. Democrats continue to ride the "green wave" of campaign contributions that propelled them to the majority in the 2018 midterms. Nearly 30 of the most endangered House Democrats have banked $2 million or more in their reelection war chests, offering a layer of protection in otherwise challenging districts. Meanwhile, Republicans have been unable to field strong candidates in key districts in Michigan, New York, Wisconsin and Minnesota that the president carried and the start of primary season has left them hamstrung by weak nominees in some Illinois and California targets. Flipping the House is unlikely at this point. You never say never, but unlikely, said former Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), a moderate who retired in 2018. While Republicans have more offensive opportunities than Democrats in House races this cycle, Republicans are playing more defense than theyd like given retirements, especially in Texas. Republicans thus far are struggling to claw back the seats they lost in the midterms, much of it suburban territory that has moved toward Democrats since the election of President Donald Trump in 2016. Many of the seats where Democrats have fortified their majority are in places like suburban Philadelphia, Detroit and Denver major presidential battlegrounds. Among the other roadblocks: Redistricting in North Carolina turned two Republican districts into safe Democratic territory. And at least half a dozen open and GOP-held seats are on track to be highly competitive, diverting precious resources to defense. Story continues It feels like a status quo year in the House, Dent said. Even in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, endangered Democratic incumbents raised exorbitant sums of money in the first three months of the year. Seven of them cleared $1 million. While incumbents typically have a sizable financial advantage, the Democrats lead is particularly stark. Every one of the 42 members in the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committees protection program for endangered incumbents had at least $1 million in cash on hand at the start of April, and all but two of them have at least twice as much banked as their opponents. Of their challengers, only 11 had more than $500,000 saved by the end of March. House GOP leadership began 2020 by warning candidates that they were facing an all-out fundraising crisis and while they found some bright spots in the first-quarter filings, officials are still sounding alarms. We have success stories, but we still have a long way to go, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer said in a statement. We dont need to match the Democrats dollar for dollar, but each and every candidate needs to be able look in the mirror and be able to say they are doing all they can to carry their own weight. Spotty fundraising is already nudging more than dozen Democratic-held districts to the outer edges of the playing field. The GOPs most glaring recruitment hole is in an Upstate New York seat held by Democratic Rep. Antonio Delgado that is one of a dozen held by Democrats that Trump won with over 50 percent of the vote in 2016. Republicans have also struggled in other Trump-won districts. Democratic Rep. Angie Craig has no opponent with more than $100,000 in the bank vying for her suburban Minneapolis seat. None of the candidates running against Democratic Reps. Ben McAdams (D-Utah) and Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) has more than $300,000 on hand. And all three seats have crowded primaries. "They have very few candidates who are reaching the goals that they should be reaching so they have a map on fire, essentially, said Abby Curran Horrell, the executive director of House Majority PAC, congressional Democrats main outside group. Theres very few places where things look secure." U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., holds a constituent community conversation at Oakland University in Rochester, Mich. After the new member of Congress supported the impeachment of President Donald Trump, she will have to run for re-election in a Trump friendly district. Though she is considered a vulnerable freshman incumbent who ousted a Republican congressman, she maintains robust fundraising and has the strong backing of her party. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) Recruiters have also been stumped in Michigan, a state that will host competitive Senate and presidential contests. Eric Esshaki, a potential challenger to Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, has said he does not have enough signatures to get on the ballot before Tuesday's deadline and has resorted to suing the governor. In a neighboring district, Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin has $3.7 million banked; none of her opponents raised more than $50,000 without self-funding. In California, Democratic Reps. Josh Harder and Katie Porter both have more than 30 times the amount of cash-on-hand as the Republicans who advanced with them from the March all-party primary. We needed to put these seats to bed and be done with them in the off year, and that is what we set out to do, DCCC executive director Lucinda Guinn said. Republican prospects are also dimming in two Chicago-area battlegrounds where the party nominated weaker-than-expected standard-bearers. Democratic Rep. Sean Casten will face Jeanne Ives, who ran a scorched-earth 2018 governor campaign attacking transgender and abortion rights stances that may not endear her to suburban swing voters. To the west, in a seat held by Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood, national Republicans were so eager to block a primary win by GOP state Sen. Jim Oberweis that they dropped over $900,000 in attack ads against him. Oberweis, an immigration hardliner who has made unsuccessful runs for the House, Senate and governors mansion over the past two decades, narrowly won anyway. A dairy magnate, Oberweis is prone to self-funding but Underwood has $2.3 million on hand. Theres an entire super PAC that went in to try to stop Jim Oberweis from becoming the Republican nominee, and now hes their nominee, Guinn said. Hes a perennial loser who Republicans cant afford to bail out in the Chicago media market. Both parties largely agree that a cluster of suburban seats around Denver, Tucson, Minneapolis, Seattle, San Diego and Washington, D.C., that Democrats flipped by wide margins last cycle are not in play because they are trending quickly away from the GOP. As the battlefield crystallizes, there are roughly 25 Democratic-held seats that are on track to be highly competitive though that number could change as the national political environment shifts throughout the summer and fall. More than half lie of in districts that Trump carried in 2016, offering the GOP glimmers of hope. Republicans have landed some impressive and well-funded recruits in some of those districts, but they also face messy primaries in many of their top pickup opportunities. Republicans wont choose a nominee until June to face Reps. Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.), Kendra Horn (D-Okla.) and Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.), who all hold seats Trump carried by double digits. The coronavirus outbreak has upended the GOP primary in Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanbergers central Virginia seat; officials were forced to postpone the nominating convention set for this week, and the campaigns are in limbo. National Republicans hope state Del. Nick Freitas emerges as the nominee, in part because the conservative Club for Growth has signaled it will spend heavily to elect him. But the winner is likely to be chosen by delegates in an unpredictable process. Several Republicans are running, but none has more than $250,000 in the bank. Spanberger has $3.1 million. Meanwhile, the pandemic is certain to cripple fundraising throughout the summer months, meaning Republicans who empty out their accounts to win primaries could seriously struggle to refill the coffers. Still, GOP officials insist that House races are highly susceptible to top-of-the-ticket trends, and that races in red-leaning districts could heat up late in the fall as the presidential race tightens, even if they have middling nominees with insufficient cash. For example, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) has at least 10 times more cash on hand than any of his opponents. But Maine is one of two states that divides electoral votes by congressional district, and national Republicans hope investment by the Trump campaign could help lift Goldens opponent. To widen their net, Republicans are also investing heavily in a handful of seats where the president is less popular. "Were going to maximize our chances not only in Trump country, but also in a group of swing seats that, on the presidential side, we may ultimately lose by a couple points, said Dan Conston, the president of the Congressional Leadership Fund, the House GOPs top super PAC. But we have recruited uniquely strong candidates that can outrun the top of the ticket." Among them: Tom Kean Jr., a New Jersey state Senate minority leader and son of a former governor; Michelle Steel, a supervisor in Orange County, Calif.; former Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.) and Wesley Hunt, an army veteran running in Houston. They are also the rare GOP candidates who raised more than a half a million last quarter. Yet Republicans' hopes could rest heavily on the extent to which they have to play defense. Races for GOP-held seats in Texas, Harrisburg and suburban Atlanta will be heavily contested. Democrats have tried to land well-funded recruits who can force national Republicans to spend to protect otherwise-safe incumbents. While the party has no strong candidate to take GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick in swing Philadelphia seat and is likely to again nominate failed 2018 candidates in New York and Nebraska battlegrounds, it has found formidable contenders in several other districts. More than a half dozen endangered Republican incumbents were outraised by a Democratic challengers last quarter, including Reps. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Jim Hagedorn (R-Minn.), Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.). The nightmare scenario for Republicans is that Democrats have enough money that they can be on offense, said one veteran GOP consultant. A lot of that has to do with how much pressure we can put on Democratic incumbents, and so thats why recruiting failures anywhere are not ideal. Even though they only had mild symptoms, Idris Elba says he and his wife had their lives turned around after contracting the coronavirus, calling the experience definitely scary and unsettling and nervous. "You know, everyones sort of feeling the way we have been feeling, but it has definitely been sort of just a complete upheaval, he told The Associated Press late last week. But the British actor feels that there are life lessons to be learned, and the pandemic serves as a reminder that the world doesnt tick on your time." I think that the world should take a week of quarantine every year just to remember this time. Remember each other. I really do, he said. The British actor and his model wife, Sabrina Dhowre Elba, spoke to the AP as they began a push with the United Nations to lessen the impact of COVID-19 on farmers and food producers in rural areas. People forget that 80 percent of the poor population live in these rural areas. Dhowre Elba said. What we are really worried about at the moment, and why we are launching this fund is that those people are being forgotten. In their new roles as U.N. Goodwill Ambassadors, Elba and his wife, have joined forces with the The actor believes people in rural and poor areas are likely to suffer more in the pandemic. If you imagine being in a village where no one even knows the name of your village or your population, and that you live in a slum where there is one room and six of you live in it," he said. "Social distancing is almost laughable. What we are really worried about at the moment, and why we are launching this fund is that those people are being forgotten, Dhowre Elba said. While health, you know, is so important at the moment ... we dont want people to forget about what comes after that. Both Elba and his wife have roots in Africa; Elbas parents are from Sierra Leone and Ghana, while Dhowre Elba is of Somali descent. The pair went to Sierra Leone in December with the United Nations to see how IFAD has assisted people there. Elba said he was particularly concerned as to what the coronavirus pandemic could do on the continent in countries already suffering economically. We have to think about the forward planning. Whats whats the fallout going to be? he said. The couple have been recovering in New Mexico, where the actor was filming when he became sick, but plan to return to London as soon as they can get a flight. Elba said he had to miss his 6-year-old sons birthday because of the lockdown but hes hoping to see him as soon as I can. Weve been fortunate, he added. We have been staying in a lovely place thats been very comfortable for the time. But were looking forward to going home. Queensland has reported no new diagnoses of COVID-19 for the first time in more than two months. Monday was the first time in in 81 days that no new cases were recorded for the state, leaving the total at 1019. 'This is an absolutely tremendous effort,' Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told reporters on Monday. Queensland has reported no new diagnoses of COVID-19 for the first time in more than two months. Pictured: NSW/QLD border checks 'If we can keep this up over the coming weeks, I'm sure that that's going to mean we will be able to make some changes and ease some of those restrictions on the population.' The premier said she was overjoyed by the result, but has urged Queenslanders to continue to distance themselves socially and wash their hands. Just 20 people are in hospital, with seven of them in intensive care on ventilators in the state's southeast. Of those who have tested positive, 738 patients have recovered, while six Queenslanders have died. 'Of course we've seen in other countries, reductions to near zero levels of cases and then a second wave of infection so we need to be very cautious, we need to keep up our current approach,' Health Minister Steven Miles said. 'But if we can sustain this, then the end is in sight.' The sunshine state is not the only state in Australia that has recorded a falling coronavirus infection rate, with South Australia, the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory all reporting no new cases over the weekend. Monday was the first time in in 81 days that no new cases were recorded for the state, leaving the total at 1019 Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Monday The premier said she was overjoyed by the result, but has urged Queenslanders to continue to distance themselves socially and wash their hands. Pictured: A COVID-19 warning sign is seen at the popular Mooloolaba main beach A COVID-19 signage is seen at a vehicle checkpoint on the Pacific Highway on the Queensland - New South Wales border in Brisbane South Australia, with a population of 1.76 million remained at only 81 confirmed cases as of Sunday evening despite a testing blitz of more than 5000 coronavirus tests across the state during the past two 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 state's last increase was an uptick of one case on Friday. SA Health Minister Stephen Wade said it was too soon to remove border controls but other restrictions would ease in the next few weeks, including for elective surgery. 'The border control will not be the first wave of restrictions eased. We're going to be very cautious as we ease back on these restrictions,' he told ABC News on Sunday. The Northern Territory, with a population of 245,600, had just 28 cases as of Sunday and no deaths. 'The Northern Territory is in a unique position, it's one of the safest places in the world we want to keep it that way,' Health Minister Natasha Fyles said. Australian Medical Association NT president Rob Parker praised the NT Government for swiftly shutting the borders. The ACT, with a population of just over 428,000, has gone six straight days without recording any new cases leaving the number of confirmed infections at 103 on Sunday. The ACT (sign for health workers in Canberra pictured), with a population of just over 428,000, has gone six straight days without recording any new cases NSW Police move people from a park in Sydney's east on Saturday. An infectious diseases expert has said this is biologically unnecessary and too strict as long as people are distancing Infectious diseases expert Professor Peter Collignon tweeted this graph on Sunday morning saying the peak had been reached but restrictions would need to stay Western Australia, with a population of 2.63 million, almost made it through the weekend, marking just one new coronavirus case on Sunday taking the state's total to 545. WA Health Minister Roger Cook said the 60-year-old man was found through contact tracing of a confirmed case and had tested positive in the state's gold fields. There were no new diagnoses in Perth, which joined Adelaide, Canberra and Darwin as cities that saw no confirmed cases over the weekend. New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, Australia's three most populous states, all recorded increases over the weekend, with the national total rising to 6612 cases nationwide on Sunday. Australia's pandemic curve has flattened with lower numbers of new infections, prompting hopes the lockdown restrictions may soon be eased. The rate of new cases has declined after Prime Minister Scott Morrison introduced tough restrictions on travel and gatherings on March 16. The Prime Minister has said Australia needs to meet three criteria before the restrictions can be lifted. Increased tracing and response capabilities and refined testing regimes are among the criteria. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 12:03:41|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LHASA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, has been promoting online systems to improve supervision on pollution-intensive enterprises, according to the local environmental bureau. So far, 61 companies have installed online automatic monitoring equipment, and 48 of them have had their devices connected to the supervision system of the city's environmental bureau. The devices, set up near the pollution sources in the companies, can monitor water and air qualities as well as obtain the real-time view of the sources. Any abnormalities in the monitoring data will trigger an alert, and a text message will be sent to the law enforcement to help improve the supervision and emergency response capabilities, according to the environmental bureau. Air quality remained high in Lhasa last year, with 99.7 percent of all the days having good air quality, and the water was up to standard in all major rivers and lakes and four drinking water sources in the city, according to local statistics. Enditem The curfew which has been in place in parts of Ahmedabad, Surat and Rajkot in Gujarat to curb the spread of coronavirus has been extended till April 24, state DGP Shivanand Jha said on Monday. The curfew was supposed to end on April 21. "During the period of the ongoing curfew, many cases are detected in the areas placed under total restriction in three cities, so it was decided in a high-level meeting held today by chief minister to extend the curfew further," Jha told reporters. The curfew was imposed on different dates. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing with essential medical supplies to combat COVID-19 pandemic. Ghani took to Twitter to express his gratitude towards the government of India and the people of India for providing Afghanistan with hydroxychloroquine tablets, paracetamol tablets, and wheat. He said: "Thank you, my friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and thank you India for providing 500K tablets of hydroxychloroquine, 100K tablets of paracetamol, and 75,000 metric tons of wheat that the first consignment of it (5,000) will reach AFG in a day or so, for the Afghan people." He added: "Thank you also for further commitments to supply more items including medicines and equipment as availability increases in India. In the difficult times of COVID-19, closer cooperation between allies and friends will prepare us better to fight this menace and save our people." Prime Minister Modi replied to Ghani on Twitter and said that both the countries share a special friendship, based on ties of history, geography, and culture. He said: "India and Afghanistan share a special friendship, based on ties of history, geography, and culture. For long, we have fought jointly against the scourge of terrorism. We will similarly combat COVID-19 together, with solidarity and shared resolve. Ashraf Ghani." Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan Vinay Kumar on Sunday handed over the consignments of hydroxychloroquine and paracetamol tablets to Afghan Health Minister Ferozuddin Feroz and Acting Defence Minister Asadullah Khalid as a step towards the collaborative fight against COVID-19. The Indian embassy in Kabul had tweeted on April 19, "Ambassador Vinay Kumar today handed over the consignments of 300,000 tablets of hydroxychloroquine and 70, 000 tablets of paracetamol tablets to the Minister of Public Health Feroz Ferozuddin. CT University (CTU), in coordination with the Cybertrix Club, organized Edit-a-thon as part of the Syberthon 2020, an online event that was focused to address the cyber security challenges in the lockdown imposed due to Covid-19. The participants were given a time slot to submit online Wikipedia articles on cyber security that were reviewed by the experts. The guest speakers were Kala Baskar, former director in-charge, Centre for Cyber Forensics and Information Security University of Madras; Manavpreet Kaur, community relations specialist at Wikimedia Foundation; and Rajeeb Dutta, Google certified software professional. Harsh Sadawarti, vice-chancellor of CTU, inaugurated the event and shared his views on the importance of extracurricular activities during the pandemic. He said, The pandemic has posed risks of increased cyber-attacks in organisations due to high dependency on personal and unsecured networks. Baskar shared information about the new cyber threats and ransomware and suggested precautions that can be taken while working online from home. Similarly, Manavpreet Kaur spoke about the relevance of Wikimedia programme and its importance to reduce the psychological stress of the students who are staying home alone. University Business School, PURC University Business School, Panjab University Regional Centre (PURC), organised a webinar on Covid-19: Economic consequences and future strategies. As many as 110 participants from different states including Madhya Pradesh, Chennai, Jammu and New Delhi participated in it. PURC director Ravi Inder Singh welcomed chief guest RK Singla, dean research, Panjab University (PU), Chandigarh, and all the participants. While introducing the theme of the webinar, he said that mankind is passing through its worst phase of health crisis which is accompanied by an economic crisis. There is lot of anxiety among the people about the economic issues and the basic objective of organising the webinar is to provide a platform to the people wherein they can discuss the important economic issues emerging out of Covid-19, he added. Sandeep Kapur, professor of management and controller of finance, Panjab Agriculture University (PAU), Ludhiana, in his discussion on the theme Vulnerability to black swan: Thoughts on emerging new normals talked about the three types of recession which the world has seen. Harish Anand, economic advisor to Vardhman Group of Industries, in his analysis of the impact of Covid-19 from macro and micro economic perspectives, said, Businesses having clean balance sheets, sufficient liquidity and working on the models of profitability will not find any problem in their survival and revival, but the businesses under debt are going to suffer. Lakhwinder Singh, director of Centre for Development Economics and Innovation, Punjabi University, Patiala, said, Industries will face labour problems post Covid-19 and it will be difficult to attract the labour back. By ANI NEW DELHI: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan dropped his latest song based on the ongoing coronavirus crisis. The actor took to Instagram to announce the release of the song and also posted a link to the audio version of the song in his bio. "Emotionally pass raho aur physically duurr raho na #PyaarKarona, audio out now!" he wrote on Instagram. "Pyaar karona, Etihaad karona, khayal karona, madad karona, sabr karona, fikr karona, pyaar karona aitbaar karona," Khan is heard singing in the song. FOLLOW COVID-19 LIVE UPDATES HERE He can also be heard rapping in the song. Through his rap, the actor is throwing light on different precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the highly contagious virus. The rap revolves around, working from home, staying at home but at a distance from everyone, not wandering out in the streets unnecessarily and other important measures to fight COVID-19. The 54-year-old actor also urged people to use leisure time during the lockdown to work on their hobbies like playing the guitar, writing poetry and practising other artwork. "Doctors, Police ko salute karona," Khan is heard singing as he urged people to respect the frontline workers. In some instances in the song, the 'Sultan' actor is also heard singing "Saare Jahaan se achha Hindustan humara." The song has been composed by Sajid-Wajid and lyrics have been penned by Salman and Hussain Dalal. Iran to respond decisively to any computational error: IRGC ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sun / 19 April 2020 / 16:27 Tehran (ISNA) - The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warned that Iran will give a decisive response to any US provocation or computational error. Pointing to an incident took place in the Persian Gulf on April 15, the IRGC navy said in a statement, "The US' narration of the incident is fake and fictitious. The reality is contrary to the US' claim and we will respond decisively to any US provocation or computational error". "We advise the Americans to follow international regulations and maritime protocols in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and to refrain from any adventurism and false and fake stories," the statement said. "They should be assured that the Revolutionary Guards navy and the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran sees the dangerous actions of foreigners in the region as a threat to national security and its red line and any error in calculation on their part will receive a decisive response," it added. The IRGC' reaction comes after the US said on Wednesday that 11 vessels of the Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy had come too close to US Navy and Coast Guard ships in the Gulf. Washington referred to the move as "dangerous and provocative". End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Seven Council FiresOceti Sakowinof our Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota nations always stand up for our lands and treaties. As Indian nations, we maintain self-government and self-determination. Indian lands are the cornerstone of jurisdiction, and our Tribal government status. Self-defense is the cornerstone of sovereignty. Right now, we must defend ourselves against Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Sweeneys plan to divert funds from Tribal Governments to Alaska Native Corporations (ANC), which are state for-profit corporations. The Federally Recognized Indian Tribes List Act says: "the list of federally recognized tribes which the Secretary publishes should reflect all of the federally recognized Indian tribes in the United States which are eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians." Donovan White serves as chairman of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, an Indian nation with homelands in present-day South Dakota and North Dakota. Courtesy photo On January 30, 2020, ASIA Sweeney, acting on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior, published the Federal governments annual list of federally-recognized Indian Tribes . Alaska Native villages are on the list because they are Indian tribes. . ANCs have 45,000 employees: 27% in Alaska and 73% worldwide. ANC employees in Middle East and Southeast Asia count for Coronavirus Relief Funding under Sweeneys plan. Congress didnt intend that. From the start, ANCs rejected sovereign status as Indian tribes. In the late 1960s, when oil companies sought to build pipelines across Alaska, Interior Secretary Stewart Udall froze oil pipeline construction by requiring settlement of aboriginal land claims. In 1971, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), included $1 Billion cash settlement ($6.4 Billion todays value) and a 45 million acre settlement in fee land subject to state taxation and jurisdiction (worth $45 Billion today). In ANCSA, Congress rejected racially defined institutions of the lower-48 states and our reservation system. The racially defined ethnic institution reference is contrary to the U.S. Constitution and our treaties, and it is an insult to our Native Nations. Congress should strike the reference from U.S. Public Laws, just as it did for the word Oriental, because it is an ethnic slur. ANCSA Regional Association explains: ANCSA extinguished aboriginal land claims in Alaska and mandated a for-profit model with land title under corporate ownership. ANCSA Regional Association board of directors are the presidents and CEOs of ANC regional corporations. The Association states: Unlike in the lower-48 states where the reservation system was the norm, ANCSA departed significantlyit was not based on the reservation system, tribal sovereignty within a reservation, or a government-to-government relationship between a tribe and the federal government. Instead, ANCSAs foundation was in Alaska Native corporate ownership. The ANCs acknowledge that they are not sovereigns and do not have a government-to-government relationship with the United States. They are for-profit corporations. The CARES Act references the definition of Indian tribe in 25 U.S.C. 5304(e). It dates to 1975. ANCs are not federally-recognized Indian tribes under the second-prong of the definition: recognized as eligible for the programs and services that the United States provides to Indian tribes based upon their status as Indians. The same statutory language was also used by Congress for the Federally Recognized Tribe List Act. Sweeney reads the first part of the Indian tribe definition to obscure its meaning. The law also references organized group in the first part of the definition of Indian tribe, but the Secretary only recognizes groups eligible for the special programs provided by the United States to Indians. Otherwise, every state corporation in America would be eligible. To count the ANCs in our State-Local-Tribal Government Coronavirus Relief Fund would bebecause Regional Corporate shareholders are also Native Village Corporate shareholders and also Alaska Native village tribal members. Sweeney seeks to shoehorn ANC corporate fee land into the CARES Act. The Supreme Court held:in Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie, 522 U.S. 502 (1998). To count the ANC corporate fee lands is contrary to law, and again results in double counting. The ANC fee lands are under state authoritythe State of Alaska gets funding from Congress under the Coronavirus Relief Fund for its lands, including ANC fee lands. The Constitution recognizes our Indian nations through the Treaty and Indian Commerce Clauses. Our tribal citizens (members) are recognized in the Constitution as Indians not taxed. By using the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act for funding, Congress can stop Bureau of Indian Affairs' disrespect for Indian nations, our citizens and our Indian lands. Donovan White serves as chairman of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, an Indian nation with homelands in South Dakota and North Dakota. Join the Conversation Madrid, April 20 : The Spanish government on Monday announced plans to ease its coronavirus lockdown measures amid mounting political tensions. The country has been one of the worst affected by the outbreak, with 198,674 officially registered cases, the second highest in the world after the US, and 20,453 deaths, reports Efe news. Spain's daily death rate has been declining, with 410 fatalities reported on Sunday, the lowest figure since March 22. There has also been a downward trend in the number of hospitalisations and patients admitted to intensive care units. Spain has one of the strictest confinement measures in Europe with adults only allowed to leave their homes individually to buy food or medicine, travel to work or walk their dogs. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced over the weekend that the restrictions would be relaxed and children would be allowed to go outside with their parents from April 27. By this time youngsters in the country will have spent seven weeks inside their homes, which in the cities are often small apartments without any outdoor space. The proposed de-escalation came amid growing political tensions, especially between the left-wing coalition government, formed by the Socialist Party (PSOE) and Unidas Podemos, and the conservative opposition Popular Party. Sanchez was due to hold talks with PP leader Pablo Casado on Monday as part of a proposal by the Prime Minister for a national pact to deal with the economic and social fallout from the pandemic. Casado previously refused to meet with Sanchez and said his offer was not "sincere". The Prime Minister has called on all political parties, regional governments and social groups such as unions to take part. His meeting with Casado will end his talks with party leads, apart from the far-right Vox party and pro-Catalan group CUP which declined the invitation. Sanchez plans to meet with regional governments, municipalities, unions and business organisations next. The crisis has already wiped 890,000 jobs from Spain's labour market since the lockdown came into effect. At least 3.9 million workers have been affected by temporary lay-offs, especially in retail and tourism, one of Spain's most important industries. Over 10,000 jobs and 2.2 billion in terms of dairy output could be lost by the milk processing sector as a result of Covid-19. The stark figures are included in an analysis by EY of the dairy industry's exposure to the pandemic. The report, which was commissioned by Dairy Industry Ireland (DII), found that the loss of a small number of 150 key workers across the milk processing industry could lead to major disruption. EY said a 20pc fall in dairy output as a result of the pandemic would result in a 2.2 billion loss for sector and could cost 10,700 jobs. The study also found that a 10-20pc cut in milk prices as a result of the market disturbance would result in a reduction in annual payments to farmers of up to 840 million. Dairy commodity markets have taken a serious hit over the last month as a result of lockdown across Europe due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This has effectively shut down food-service sector demand. Butter and skim milk powder (SMP) prices have collapsed as a result, with butter falling from a high of 3,400/t in early March to 2,550/t this week, while SMP dropped from 2,500/t to 1,850/t. Irish processors pulled milk prices for March by 2c/l as a consequence of the deteriorating market sentiment, and have warned that further cuts will follow unless international demand improves. The EY report found that 550 million could be required by co-ops and dairy companies to cater for increased stockholding and other requirements. DII is now calling for: * Aids to Private Storage to be urgently introduced at EU level to address the market imbalance; * Priority Covid-19 testing for dairy processing staff to allow key technical employees to return to work as quickly as possible; * An extension of the existing export credit insurance coverage so that the Government or EU could help limit the exposures of dairy processors. This is now allowed under EU competition law. Meanwhile, the EU's 27 agriculture ministers have called for a co-ordinated action by the Commission to alleviate the crisis in farming across Europe. It's understood Private Storage Aids and exception aid for farmers could be introduced. Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, said he was hopeful the initiative would lead to "decisive action" by the Commission. After 113 months of nonstop growth, the economic boom that propelled Charlotte from a regional powerhouse to a global economic hub over the past decade is over, struck down by the new coronavirus. Thats the conclusion of a new report from the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, released Monday. The group, which is the chief advocate for businesses in the Charlotte area, estimates that the region lost 71,000 jobs in the first quarter of the year. Thats about 4.8% of total jobs in the area. This quarter, everything changed, wrote Chuck McShane, the groups senior vice president of economic research and the author of the report. The report was released at the groups quarterly investor meeting, held virtually for the first time this year. Growth came to an abrupt stop in mid-March as the effects of the COVID-19 began to ripple through the economy, he said. Hotels saw reservations plummet as conferences and travel were curtailed. Restaurant reservations disappeared as dining rooms across the state were closed under an order from Gov. Roy Cooper. Until a plan is put together to reopen the economy, the scope and scale of the economic devastation is unknown. Every week without revenue stretches businesses further and further, and each week more of them reach their limit. Its been staggering, said Tom Barkin, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, in a talk last Thursday. This is going so fast, the data were getting is almost already obsolete. Economy derailed Its a stark turn for Charlotte, which had seen its growth outpace the national economy for most of the past decade. Corporate relocations and expansions had become regular occurrences, greased by tax breaks and incentives easily obtained from the city, county and state. Population growth followed. Before the pandemic hit North Carolina, it was shaping up to be another great quarter for the areas economy. After 113 months of nonstop growth, the economic boom that propelled Charlotte from a regional powerhouse to a global economic hub is over, a new report found. The paper manufacturer Glatfelter announced it would move its headquarters to Charlotte. General Motors planned a new racing research and development facility in Cabarrus County. Traded-sector companies announced $323 million in investment into the region. Story continues But now, the economic cycle has turned. Much of the economy is simply turned off. And the Alliances report will likely only be the start of ugly data on the state of the regions economy. All the numbers were going to hear this quarter, either this month or next month, are going to be really bad, said Michael Walden, an economics professor at North Carolina State University. Uneven relief Economic relief for businesses and workers, intended to ease the pain of the downturn, has been marred with technical glitches, incomplete coverage and limited capacity. More than 670,000 North Carolinians have filed for unemployment benefits since March 15, and many have reported challenges just in filing their claims, much less receiving benefits. Loan funds, designed to provide bridge financing for local businesses, ran out of money almost immediately, swarmed with demand. A $15 million emergency pandemic relief loan fund from the Golden LEAF Foundation was quickly exhausted. The federal Paycheck Protection Program, a $349 billion stimulus package designed for small businesses, ran out of funds in weeks. Lawmakers are now debating proposals to restock the program with hundreds of billions more in relief. North Carolina firms got $8 billion in funds, enough to cover 53% of the eligible payrolls in the state, according to data from Bloomberg News. That rate was 39th out of 50 states plus the District of Columbia. In the meantime, conservative activists and business owners are clamoring for officials to reopen the states economy. Their complaints are falling on deaf ears in Raleigh, as most public health officials agree that the risk to peoples lives is too high to open up many businesses. Bright spots Mecklenburg County has 1,183 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, as of Monday. And 29 people have died from the disease in the county. Over 6,000 in North Carolina have tested positive for COVID-19. With officials still working through a testing backlog, the full extent of the virus in the state isnt known. Economic data, too, has built-in lag, meaning that the full impact of the pandemic on the areas businesses wont be known for some time. It will be months before the true economic impacts of this shutdown of the U.S. economy will be known, McShane wrote. The report does predict that Charlotte will be less affected than many other areas of the country. Generally, finance hasnt seen a large hit from the virus, with Wells Fargo and Bank of America pledging to not lay people off during the pandemic. Logistics businesses, too, like warehouses and shipping firms, are likely to be less hurt by the downturn. One point for optimism that McShane found was in job postings. At the end of March, full-time job postings were down 3.4% for the Charlotte region, compared to the same quarter last year. Thats far ahead of a national decline in full-time job postings of 21%. Despite the openings, the time to fill jobs increased for both technology and manufacturing, indicating possible hiring freezes. Listen to our daily briefing: Subscribe Here BEIRUT After nine years of war, Syria is broken into three rival parts unable to work together and ill-prepared to cope with the coronavirus, an enemy that knows no conflict lines. Medical personnel in Kurdish-run northeastern Syria have resorted to making protective gear out of garbage bags. The territory has been cut off from outside aid, including U.N. shipments that used to arrive from Iraq but were vetoed by Syrian government ally Russia. In the last opposition-held enclave in Syrias northwest, health officials are cobbling together what little they have to protect 4 million people crammed into a territory buckling under repeated government offensives. Promises by the World Health Organization to deliver ventilators, protection equipment and other supplies have mostly not materialized. President Bashar Assad controls the rest of the country, including the main cities. WHO has steered most of its anti-coronavirus help through his government, forcing the U.N. agency to work with an opaque system that hasnt extended help to non-government areas. Hardin Lang, a former U.N. official and vice president of Refugee International, said the more vulnerable territories should be the priority. He said that working with a government that often distributes aid based on political considerations could be questionable when you have a population that is completely dependent on you and cross-border assistance. Syrian authorities have conducted coronavirus tests only in Damascus central lab, making it hard to track infections. The Kurdish-run northeast, also home to 4 million people, has had to send its samples by plane to the capital. The flaws of the system emerged last week when Kurdish officials found out two weeks after the fact that a death in their area was from COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. The Damascus government did not officially announce it or inform local authorities nor did WHO, prompting accusations by Kurdish authorities of a cover-up. WHO says it is dealing with a global shortage and is working to raise resources for Syria, which it calls a priority area. So far, Syrias official count is 39 infections and two deaths, all in or around Damascus. The civil war has devastated Syrias health system. Advanced countries were unable to isolate such a virus. So imagine a region that has faced a destructive war for nine years, said Ciwan Mustafa, northeasts health director. Hundreds of medical facilities have been bombed, mostly in government airstrikes; half the hospitals and health centers are functioning only partially or not at all, while 70% of the medical personnel have fled the country. More than 80% of the population live in poverty, millions have been displaced and hundreds of thousands are crammed into overcrowded camps. For weeks, government officials denied the danger. Shiite pilgrims from Iran and Iraq continued to visit shrines near Damascus. Fighters, allied with the Syrian military, traveled back and forth from those countries. By early March, restrictions began with a partial closure of borders and shrines. When the first case was announced on March 22, the government enforced a curfew and suspended military conscription. Several towns were isolated and over a dozen quarantine centers set up. WHO is providing the Health Ministry with medical and lab equipment, testing kits, protective gear and training workshops, said Dr. Nima Abid, the agencys acting representative in Damascus. It is setting up testing labs in the regions of Aleppo, Homs and Latakia. Abid cited global shortages when asked about the obstacles to aid reaching non-governmental areas, adding that such deliveries require government permission. Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Syria researcher, said that since the uprising began in 2011, Damascus has had a policy of denying aid to rebel-held areas and to the Kurdish-run northeast, in hopes of weakening the population there. A 2013 polio outbreak was partially blamed on the government denying vaccinations to areas outside its control. So far, WHO airlifted from Damascus 20 tons of supplies, including ventilators and protective gear, mostly to a hospital in a government-controlled pocket in the northeastern city of Qamishli. Those trying to reach the hospital risk arrest as they cross military checkpoints, Tsurkov said. The northeasts medical sector was further crippled by the war against the Islamic State group and Turkeys military campaign, which restricted water supply. Tens of thousands of IS supporters and members are crammed in camps and detention facilities in the area. U.N. aid deliveries from Iraq were halted in early 2020 after Russia vetoed a resolution allowing continued shipments across that border. The pandemic then forced the closure of the Iraqi border to almost everyone. Many aid workers left. Those remaining have negotiated only sporadic border openings with Iraqs northern Kurdish semi-autonomous region, bringing in some supplies, including finally two testing machines. In Syrias rebel-held northwest, authorities have closed schools and mosques and urged people to stay home. Thats a challenge, when nearly 1 million people displaced in the latest government offensive now live in tents or temporary shelters without water or electricity. WHO, consulting with Idlib authorities, drew up a $30 million plan to create 28 isolation units and prepare three new facilities for coronavirus patients. But the agency has yet to bring the supplies. Thirty ventilators are sitting in Turkey, awaiting budget approval. WHO sent Idlib 5,900 test kits, and they are being closely rationed, used only in very suspect cases 197 so far, all negative. The WHO plan is still mere words on paper, the top health official in Idlib, Munzer al-Khalil, wrote in an open letter, accusing the U.N. of discrimination. Even if northwest Syria is not an official state, its citizens are Syrians, first and foremost they are human beings and deserve an adequate response. He said WHO now wants to refit existing hospitals for COVID-19 cases instead of setting up new facilities, a change he feared would strain overstretched resources. Adding to the concerns, the U.N. resolution that allows cross-border aid from Turkey expires in June. Al-Khalil used available resources to set up the only ward in the territory for suspected virus cases. The ward in an Idlib city hospital has only two doctors, four nurses, 32 beds and four ventilators, said hospital director, Dr. Khaled al-Yassin. As al-Yassin spoke to The Associated Press, a father tried to bring in his 10-year-old son, feverish with a chest infection suspected of being coronavirus. Al-Yassin had to turn him away. We dont have isolation wards for children, he told the distraught parent. Al-Khalil said that over the course of the war, he has treated victims of chemical attacks and made life-or-death decisions about evacuating hospitals before a government attack. The virus has brought new levels of stress, he said. This time I feel it is much bigger than us. Fake B S Yediyurappa did not attend Nikhil Kumaraswamys wedding India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Bengaluru, Apr 20: There is a post that has gone viral, claiming that Karnataka Chief Minister, B S Yediyurappa had attended the wedding of former Karnataka CM, H D Kumaraswamy's son. It is said that Yediyurappa had attended the wedding of Nikhil Kumaraswamy on Friday and flouted social distancing norms. The post says that the ruling and opposition sides are together because they are rich. Only the poor have to follow the lockdown norms even if they are dying of hunger, the message also says. The post was also shared on Twitter by one user and it has got nearly 4,000 likes. However, the photograph claiming that Yediyurappa had attended the wedding is fake. When we did a reverse image search on Google, we found that the photograph was shot on February 10, 2020. The Karnataka CM had attended Nikhil Kumaraswamy's engagement and now the photo is being passed as one that was clicked at the wedding. The fact is that Yediyurappa did not attend the wedding that was held last Friday at Ramnagar. However, Kumaraswamy came in for severe criticism for having the wedding without following social distancing norms. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said he will not attend his fathers last rites on Tuesday to ensure the enforcement of coronavirus lockdown, news agency ANI reported. CM Adityanaths father, Anand Singh Bisht, passed away at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi on Monday morning. The chief minister urged that there should be a minimal presence of people during his fathers funeral in view of the ongoing coronavirus lockdown. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanaths father left for his heavenly abode at 10.44 am. Our deepest condolences, State Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish K Awasthi said. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath says he will not take part in the last rites of his father tomorrow, to ensure enforcement of lockdown and to defeat coronavirus pandemic in the state. pic.twitter.com/PPjy9xxLgB ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 20, 2020 Bisht was 89 and retired as a forest ranger in the year 1991. He was undergoing treatment at AIIMS Delhi and died of multi-organ failure, a doctor said on Monday. Bisht, admitted the hospital since March 13, was on ventilator support in the intensive care unit (ICU). He had multiple issues; his kidneys and liver were not working optimally; he was on dialysis and other life-saving measures and was being treated by a multi-disciplinary team of specialists..., said a senior doctor at the hospital, requesting anonymity. He had liver and kidney-related issues, and was admitted to the hospital with an acute liver infection, doctors said. He also suffered from critically low blood pressure, extreme dehydration and severe infection. My heartfelt condolences at the passing away of Anand Singh Bisht ji, father of UP CM Yogi Adityanath ji. May his soul rest in peace. May God give Yogi ji and his family members strength to bear the loss. Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) April 20, 2020 Scores of political leaders and diplomats condoled Bishts death including Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath. My heartfelt condolences at the passing away of Anand Singh Bisht ji, father of UP CM Yogi Adityanath ji. May his soul rest in peace. May God give Yogi ji and his family members strength to bear the loss, Kamal Nath tweeted. Big Flats, N.Y. The Lowes in Big Flats, New York, was ordered to shut down briefly by Chemung County Executive Chris Moss for violating the states social distancing rules during the coronavirus pandemic. According to Spectrum News, Moss authorized the closure of the Lowes at 913 County Route 64 in Big Flats on Sunday, April 19, following continual violations of Governor Andrew Cuomos executive order on social distancing. The store had reportedly received multiple verbal and written warnings. READ MORE: Coronavirus timeline in NY: How Gov. Cuomo has responded to the pandemic since January The closure was extremely brief, and the store was open Monday morning. The Chemung County Health Department required the store to submit a plan to better comply with the rules in the future. A representative from Head of State Government Affairs for the Northern Region for Lowes Companies submitted a plan that was approved on Sunday evening, according to WBNG-TV. The new measures in place at the Lowes include: Posting an associate at the front entrance of the store Utilizing technology to track the amount of customers in the store Limit the store traffic to 4 customers per 1,000 square feet of building space Hire security or off-duty law enforcement to assist with crowd control as soon as feasible Continue to monitor and evaluate all procedures listed Other stores in the area, like Target, Costco and Home Depot, have taken similar measures to promote social distancing within their stores. Moss told WBNG that Chemung County does not wish to pursue such closures or other punitive measures, but that essential businesses must follow guidelines. Earlier in April, Gov. Cuomo hiked social distancing fines to a maximum of $1,000. The localities have the legal right and responsibility to enforce the law," Cuomo said at the time. In the past week, Cuomo and other governors have seen a rise in protests over certain coronavirus-related measures, including stay-at-home orders. On Thursday, a small protest in Albany demanded Cuomo reopen New York State, calling the governor a communist." Then, on Saturday, protestors jammed up a public square in Watertown to demand an end to the stay-at-home order. Signs at the protests challenged Cuomos orders as violations of Constitutional rights. MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE Broadway star Nick Cordero has leg amputated due to coronavirus complications Lenders are raising the credit bar for homebuyers and refinancing CNY Back in Business: Syracuse.com launches campaign to inform and support small businesses 4/20 day: Marijuana industry tested as coronavirus slams economy Trump, Congress near deal on aid for small businesses, hospitals, coronavirus testing (Natural News) A new study has found that summer will not slow down the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the northern hemisphere. Previously, it was believed that an increase in ambient temperatures would slow the viruss spread, as it does with other infectious diseases such as influenza and SARS. However, after comparing transmission rates with weather data, scientists from Fudan University in Shanghai revealed that no such relationship seems to exist for COVID-19. It is premature to count on warmer weather to control COVID-19, states the study. And relying on seasonality to curb this pandemic can be a dangerous line of thought. Ambient temperature does not affect the viruss transmission ability In the study, Dr. Wang Weibing and his colleagues used data from Chinas National Health Commission, together with those from provincial health commissions, to analyze the spread of COVID-19 infections in the country. The team included 224 cities in China, including 17 in Hubei province, where the pandemic began. (Related: Chinas response to COVID-19 is the latest in string of COVER-UPS and suppression.) The team then compared this information with daily weather data, including mean temperature and relative humidity, from the China Meteorological Data Sharing System. They also included data from ultraviolet (UV) radiation, using data from erythemal daily doses (EDD) from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on the NASA Aura satellite. The average of the EDD values from the OMI were matched within city areas and assigned as the daily mean EDD level for the corresponding city. Upon comparing the rates of transmission with the weather data, the team found that changes in the weather did not seem to affect the spread of the virus. They found no significant association between changes in mean temperature and the incidence rate of infections from the virus in cities inside and outside Hubei province. Similarly, fluctuations in UV radiation was also not associated with any fluctuations in the incidence rate. Relative humidity also did not factor into the spread of the virus. This has been observed before with other viruses The coronavirus isnt the first infectious disease to have defied expectations and remained unaffected by the arrival of warmer weather. The researchers noted that the same thing also occurred with MERS, Middle East respiratory syndrome, where the total caseload in the Arabian Peninsula continued to increase even temperatures reached as high as 113 F. Other recently emerged diseases transmitted from animals into humans, such as Ebola and certain pandemic strains of influenza, have also displayed unpredictable patterns of transmission. Swift action, not change in season, is the key to fighting coronavirus With their findings, the team warned against relying on seasonal changes to fight the virus. While previous studies on respiratory diseases have shown that the viruses behind SARS and influenza require certain temperatures to survive, the study shows that the virus behind COVID-19 does not. The researchers note that, while the timeline of the SARS outbreak beginning in November 2002 and ending in July 2003 suggests that it was seasonal, effective case finding, contact tracing and quarantine had as much to do with how it was put under control. Additionally, the researchers also noted that factors such as the lack of school in the summer, keeping children from being clustered together, also helped stymie the spread of that outbreak. Urgent policies or interventions such as community travel bans and school closures are needed to help slow transmission, wrote the researchers. Now the team does admit that the period covered by the study did not represent a whole meteorological pattern associated with the transmissibility of the disease. However, while future studies with longer follow up periods may be needed, the team noted that they did not observe a reduced rate of transmission of COVID-19 in some southern Chinese cities, such as Sanya, Haikou and Danzhou, where average daily temperatures can range from 68 F to over 86 F, supporting the robustness of their findings. Sources include: DailyMail.co.uk ERJ.ERSJournals.com Kaletra, as with many other prescription-only HIV treatments in Russia, is purchased in bulk by the government and distributed to registered HIV patients for free. A black market has developed in Russia for an antiviral HIV drug explored as a possible treatment for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, according to sellers, HIV activists and the head of the drug's main Russian producer. More than 20 trials around the world are testing Kaletra as a COVID-19 treatment or post-exposure prophylaxis, Reuters said. Read alsoUkraine reports 261 new COVID-19 cases in past day Russia's Health Ministry recommended it as a possible treatment for COVID-19 at the end of January after reports from China that it was beneficial, but later added that its efficacy was uncertain. That did not deter speculators who bet that shortages of the drug, also produced as a generic in Russia under the name Kalidavir, might arise as the coronavirus spread. "Three months ago, people were buying Kaletra from us without much enthusiasm for 900 roubles ($12) a box," one online trader of HIV drugs said. "Now, anticipating (supply) interruptions, people are buying between 100 and 700 boxes from us, at 3,800 roubles a box. Mainly, people are buying (Kaletra) with the aim of reselling it for a very high price." Resellers can get 7,000-8,000 roubles per box, the trader said and that frenzy is worrying some HIV-positive people. The number of new coronavirus cases in Russia began rising sharply this month, and on Monday it reported a daily rise of 4,268 cases, bringing the nationwide tally to 47,121. Kaletra, as with many other prescription-only HIV treatments in Russia, is purchased in bulk by the government and distributed to registered HIV patients for free. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. The global automotive camera market was analyzed by Market Research Future (MRFR) and it was projected that an impressive CAGR of 19% will be attained by the market over the forecast period of 2018 to 2023. The valuation of the automotive camera market was further stated to surpass its previous valuation and reach USD 19 billion by the end of the forecast period. Market Segmentation The global automotive camera market has been segmented in terms of camera type, application type, and vehicle type. By camera type, the market includes Thermal, Infrared, and Digital types. By application type, the market comprises Blind Spot Detection, Adaptive Cruise Control, Park Assist System, Lane Departure Warning, Road Sign Recognition, Night Vision, Driver Monitoring, Driver Monitoring, and others. By vehicles types, the market segments heavy vehicles, passenger car, and commercial vehicles. Regional Analysis The global automotive camera market is geographically distributed across the following key regions: Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, and the Rest of the World (RoW). The North American market stands tall in the global automotive camera market with a majority of the share under its name. The regional market is reported by MRFR to maintain its hold over the global standings in the coming years as well. The North American regional market is experiencing increasing growth due to the high living standard of people herein. Europe is another prominent region in the global automotive camera market. The region is expected to showcase massive growth in terms of installing various new safety technologies in automobiles. Herein, major automobile manufacturing nations like the UK, Germany, Italy, and France are expected to massively support the growth of the European automotive camera market over the forecast period. In Asia Pacific, the region holds massive promise in terms of growth and expansion in the forthcoming years. The region is expected to come forward as a major and lucrative automotive camera market by the end of the forecast period. The rising disposable income of the population base residing herein and their improving standard of living are anticipated to boost the growth of the Asia Pacific automotive camera market. Due to the rapid-paced industrialization, the Asia Pacific regional market is forecasted to witness an increasing number of automobile production, especially in countries like Thailand, China, India, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan. Competitive Landscape The global automotive camera market comprises a host of key players. This includes names like ADA-ES Inc. (US), Delhi Automotive PLC (UK), TRW Automotive (US), Allied Vision Technologies (Germany), Robert Bosch GmBH (Germany), Balluf (Germany), Basler AG (Germany), Autoliv, Inc. (Sweden), Valeo S.A. (France), Denso Corporation (Japan), and others. The increasingly competitive nature of the global automotive camera market is expected to witness an impressive growth in the coming years. A major factor influencing this positive surge of the market is the increasing production level in the automotive industry. The global market is completely dependent on the sales volume of automobiles. This highlights the importance the above mentioned organizations have in pushing the market towards a positive direction. Add to this, with an influx of cameras entering the global market, the competitive nature of the global automotive camera market is slated to intensify even further. It has been reported that there has been an increasing number of government regulations across the globe and a booming demand among the consumers for safety and other features in automobiles. The players in the market are capitalizing on this trend to bring-forward new product developments and expand their geographical reach. In the near future, the global market is anticipated to experience constant emergence of innovations and new product developments. Industry Buzz June 2019, The Chassis & Safety BU ADAS launched MFC 500 multifunctional camera. The camera modular and scalable and can be personalized as per individual preferences. The development of the new modular camera platform is indication of how much AI has already come into the driver assistance systems of today. It is planned to expand digital transformation in Petkim petrochemical complex to other group companies in SOCAR Turkeys Refinery and Petrochemical Business Unit, Murad Abdullayev, Deputy General Manager for Digitalization and Technology at SOCAR Turkeys Refinery and Petrochemical Business Unit told Trend. "As you know, additional investments have been made in Petkim since 2008, when it was purchased by SOCAR from the Turkish Privatization Administration for $2.40 billion. In this context, in order to meet the demand in the petrochemical sector with high growth potential, a total of over $1 billion worth additional investments with around $100 million per year were made in Petkim since 2008. In line with our companys vision and strategy, we determined the digital transformation as sine qua non in Petkims modernization process and focused on the ways of applying this approach in all of our company's business processes," he said. Abdullayev noted that for this purpose, the Digitalization and Technology Business Unit was set up in 2018. "And a digitalization team was created under my leadership to complete our vision of digitalization, which is beyond the understanding of classical information technologies. As a first step on the way of digitalization of Petkim, we created Petkim Digital Academy in 2018. We have organized various trainings at the Digital Academy to improve the digital thinking reflexes of our colleagues, that is, to expand their "digital thinking" ability," he added. Abdullayev noted that taking into account all these developments, one can say that 2019 was "the year of digital transformation for Petkim." "Since 2018, we have spread the digitalization culture in all segments of Petkim and implemented more than 20 digitalization projects. Indeed, as a result of our work, Petkim was the only company in Turkey to be included in the Global Lighthouse Network list of the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2020, which provides benchmarking for companies all over the world on innovative and digital applications standard. The list includes 44 companies, which set an example in digital applications in their field. All of these companies are best of all applying Industry 4.0 principles," he added. Abdullayev noted that this outstanding award clearly shows how advanced is Petkim in digital transformation. "Our digital applications are shown as the "best practice" and represent the highest digital application standard in its field. We are proud of this success." "Most of the digitalization projects we started in Petkim since 2018 have been completed and we have started to get positive results of these projects since 2019. We do not settle for this, but always add new ones to our projects, because we think this transformation is a never-ending process that will continue in parallel with global developments and advanced technology. We will continue to develop and implement new digitalization projects to keep pace with global transformation and even to develop applications that will guide the sector," he said. Abdullayev went on to add that Petkim, STAR Refinery, SOCAR Storage (SOCAR Depolama) and SOCAR Distribution (SOCAR Dagitim), which are the integrated value chain of SOCAR Turkey, merged to form SOCAR Turkey Refinery and Petrochemical Business Unit in November 2019. "Now, our goal is to expand this digital transformation we started in Petkim to other group companies in our business unit. In line with this goal, our efforts and investments to digitize our processes will continue in 2020," he said. Abdullayev said that in the Digital Academy, various trainings were organized for more than 300 employees, including senior management, to have competent human resources in digital and analytical fields and to sustain digital transformation in the company. "The training categories are titled as "Digital Awareness", "Advanced Analytical and Data Knowledge", "Process Digitization" and "Internet of Things and Robotics". Applications to be used in Petkim, such as bootcamp, as well as practical trainings, are also being developed in the Digital Academy. Especially, the applications that came out as a result of advanced analytical training have already started to provide added value to Petkim. Thanks to the suggestions of our employees, we developed more efficient production processes within the company. We have analyzed many different scenarios by creating data-based decision making processes and algorithms. The Ethylene Furnace Optimization Model (EFOM) Project that we applied in the Petkim Ethylene Factory is an example. Thanks to this project, 54 billion scenarios can be created every 15 minutes instead of eight furnace operating scenarios once a week. Thus, the most successful scenarios are applied to real processes. We have submitted applications to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office and European Patent Office for this project we are developing. Currently, the applications are under review," he said. As a result of these efforts, Petkim's efficiency, throughput, energy efficiency and product quality is increasing, noted Abdullayev. "I would also like to point out that we cooperate with the world-renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Taking advantage of this institution's vast experience, we have taken our digital transformation process one step further. In addition, we will also continue to implement joint projects with start-ups on production and process development in cooperation with Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Bogazici University and Middle East Technical University. In this context, Petkim supported ITU Big Bang Start-up Challenge of ITU Cekirdek incubation center in 2019, which is the second best in Europe and the third best in the world, and closely followed the projects presented there," he said. Thus, the company also has the opportunity to meet the entrepreneurs who stand out with their projects among thousands of candidates and discover the possibilities of cooperation, said Abdullayev. "Our main goal in digitization is to make Petkim, which is in the leading position in its own field, the most digital company in Azerbaijan and Turkey. Therefore, we uninterruptedly continue our efforts to make our company a digital company with all its employees and culture. Petkim is a company with more than half a century of experience. By combining this experience with new perspectives and technologies, we try to produce maximum value from our vast knowledge. By ensuring Petkim's business efficiency and improving the quality of its products, we contribute to the economic development of Azerbaijan and Turkey," he added. Abdullayev noted that it is also planned to ensure long-term sustainability of the operations safely by using augmented and virtual reality technologies in the support processes such as maintenance and job security. "Thanks to these projects, we have ensured efficiency and improvement not only in production, but also financial, human resources and other sectors of Petkim. As a matter of fact, these improvements more and more positively affect our financial results from year to year. The digitization projects we have realized so far will provide an estimated financial contribution of approximately $43 million to our company in coming years," Abdullayev concluded. COLUMBUS, Ohio Unlike its actions in other states, Facebook has declined to take down pages used to organize anti-quarantine protests at the Ohio Statehouse, based on feedback from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, company officials said Monday. Overnight, Facebook deactivated protest pages in California, Nebraska and New Jersey, citing guidance from the states governors that the protests were prohibited under those states stay-at-home orders, meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But the company decided to keep pages promoting protests in Ohio up, a company official said. Kia Floyd, a different Facebook official, reached out to the Ohio Department of Public Safety on Sunday evening, saying the website was reviewing its content policies and rules on the facilitation of illegal conduct. Specifically, our policies relating to political protests under shelter in place and social distancing mandates. We would appreciate some guidance on this important issue as we are prepared to adjust our policies ASAP to ensure compliance with the law on our platforms, she wrote in the Sunday email to the state, obtained by cleveland.com. DeWines response, according to spokesman Dan Tierney: The Governor values the First Amendment and asks that protesters practice social distancing by standing at least 6 feet apart. Ohio Health Department Director Dr. Amy Actons stay at home order includes an exception for First Amendment protected speech. Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook. For this same reason, events that defy governments guidance on social distancing arent allowed on Facebook, a Facebook spokesperson told cleveland.com in a Monday email. DeWine has made similar comments over the past week when asked about the protests and social distancing, including when theyve become audible on the audio feed for his daily coronavirus briefings at the Ohio Statehouse. The state has increased security measures at the Statehouse during the protests, including moving media and DeWine administration officials into interior rooms, installing physical barriers around the exterior and posting a visible police presence. But DeWine has said the protesters are within their rights to share their displeasure. I know youre shouting, DeWine said on April 9. But dont shout on someone else. Try to get back a little bit. Because it remains dangerous out there. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg, in a Monday interview on ABCs Good Morning America, said the social media platform is monitoring its pages for spreading misinformation about COVID-19, which could include activity on protest organizing pages. Its important that people can debate policy, so theres a line on this. But, you know, more than normal political discourse, I think a lot of the stuff that people are saying that is false around a health emergency like this can be classified as harmful misinformation," he said. Read recent coverage from cleveland.com: Owner of Lakewoods Five OClock Lounge acknowledges misstep in calling for coronavirus restrictions protest Hundreds protest in Columbus against Ohio coronavirus restrictions Gov. Mike DeWine facing increasing pressure from state lawmakers to roll back coronavirus closures Protesters try to disrupt Gov. Mike DeWines daily coronavirus briefing Police have identified the suspect in a mass shooting across the northern part of Nova Scotia province in Canada as 51-year-old denture-maker Gabriel Wortman. Wortman began his shooting spree on Saturday evening at a house in the rural town of Portapique, police said. The gunman was from the area and owned three properties in the town, but authorities have not confirmed if he owned or lived at the home where the attacks started. CBC reported that Wortman also owned three properties in Dartmouth, one of which was a clinic where he worked as a denturist. Initially, people thought Wortman was connected with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police after he wore part of what looked to be a Mountie uniform and drove a patrol car during part of his spree on Saturday into Sunday. Recommended Gunman wearing police uniform kills at least 10 in Canada The RCMP later confirmed the man had no connection to them. But Chief Superintendent Chris Leather did suggest the attack was planned: The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act." In 2014, Wortman was in the news after he responded to a CTV story about a cancer survivor who lost her teeth and could not afford to replace them. He offered to make her a pair for free through his denture business. My heart went out to her, Wortman said at the time. Theres so many ways for people to get dentures, but it seems like the people who really need them are the people who are getting left behind. Police began a search for the gunman on Saturday night that spanned multiple areas of the northern province before it all came to an end at an Enfield gas station. Wortman was confirmed dead by the RCMP after he was arrested. RCMP constable Heidi Stevenson, who was a 23-year veteran with the force, was named among Wortman's victims. She was killed in the line of duty "protecting her community" while responding to the active shooter threat, a commanding officer wrote on Facebook. Police in Wichita, Kansas, on Monday arrested Tanner Leichleiter, 30, (pictured) Authorities in Nebraska revealed this afternoon that two young boys who sparked an Amber Alert after allegedly being abducted by a step-grandfather have been found safe in Kansas. A spokesperson for the Nebraska State Patrol told DailyMail.com that the suspected kidnapper, 30-year-old Tanner Leichleiter, was arrested. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation canceled the Amber Alert for four-year-old Isaac De La Garza and seven-year-old Marco De La Garza, after the pair were tracked down in Wichita, some 340 miles south of their home in Tekamah, Nebraska. More details on the investigation will be released later today. The NSP previously said the siblings were forcibly taken early Monday morning by Leichleiter, who they said was known to carry a handgun. Officials said the children were believed to be in danger and that it was 'not a random abduction.' NSP received information that Leicheiter may have been traveling in his 2009 white Ford Expedition southbound on Highway 81 into Kansas, and contacted KBI asking the agency to issue the Amber Alert for the missing boys. Tekamah Police Chief Dan Jacobs told Lincoln Journal Star Leichleiter was arrested following a police chase. Marco and Isaac were both found safe in his SUV. So far, no charges have been filed against Leichleiter, and police believe the man may have been suffering from a mental health issue. Leichleiter was arested in connection to the kidnapping of his step-grandsons, Marco (left) and Isaac De La Garza (right) Marco, 7, and Isaac, 4, are the sons of Leichleter's wife's grown daughter (pictured) Leichleter, pictured on his wedding day in 2017, is believed to have mental health issues Leichleiter had allegedly taken his wife's grandsons by force from their home in Nebraska and drove them to Kansas Monday The NSP spokesperson did not comment on the exact nature of the relationship between Leichleiter and the two boys, only saying that their family situation was 'complicated.' Social media posts suggest that Leichleiter is Marco and Isaac's grandfather by marriage: he is the husband of the boys' maternal grandmother. Nora Leichleiter has two grown daughters from a previous relationship, one of whom is believed to be the mother of the two young boys. Nora and Tanner have been married since 2017, according to Facebook posts and photos. Dr. Berces Attila, CEO We have an ambitious vision to expand our product portfolio by developing new products in-house, as well as by licensing and acquiring new innovative technologies. Global molecular diagnostics company Omixon, headquartered in Budapest with US offices in Cambridge, MA, announced today that Omixons founder and chairman Dr. Attila Berces returns as CEO. Outgoing CEO Dr. Peter Meintjes led the early commercialisation of Omixons flagship product Holotype HLA since 2014 before stepping into the CEO role in 2017. In concert between the incoming and outgoing CEOs, as well as Omixons Board of Directors, the company has restructured its executive team with Gregory Werner as VP Commercial Operations, Elmar Schilling as CTO, and Judit Kosa as CFO. Gregory Werner joined Omixon from Thermo Fisher where he was responsible for the entire One Lambda portfolio (Transplant Diagnostics) in Europe. Prior to the acquisition by One Lambda, Greg built the European operations for Linkage Biosciences, successfully introducing LinkSeq and dominating the market. Elmar Schilling has joined Omixon from Eurofins Genomics, where he led the NGS Manual Innovation Facility at its DNA Campus near Munich. Judit Kosa, joins Omixon after more than a decade in the pharmaceutical industry including Teva Pharmaceuticals and AMRI and more than a decade in CFO roles. "Together with Zoltan Simon (COO), who has been with the company for over 10 years, Omixon's executive team is ready to take Omixon to a new level," says Dr. Berces. Omixon came to the market with the first HLA genotyping test using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) in 2014 and has grown revenues at a compounded annual rate of 100% for four consecutive years. During the fast pace of market expansion we had failed to listen to some customer requirements. We are now addressing this and will provide laboratories with an improved customer experience. We recently released a software update that solved a serious software performance issue. We are committed to continue with our outstanding customer support. We have an ambitious vision to expand our product portfolio by developing new products in-house, as well as by licensing and acquiring new innovative technologies, says Dr. Berces. Omixons R&D lab continues to operate during the current lock-down. It is an excellent time to gather customer input, improve existing products and develop new ones. The Early Access Program of the 11-locus multiplex Omnitype product is already underway with feedback from 8 labs and while partly interrupted by COVID19, the product versions tested in the second phase of the EAP will incorporate the feedback from those first 8 labs with minimal impact to EAP. We aim to fulfil laboratory expectations and we strive to bring at least one new product on the market every year. Despite the general economic uncertainty of COVID19, Omixons profitability and excellent relationship with its long-term investors allows the company capitalize on growth opportunities with new products in 2020. Contacts at Omixon Gregory Werner VP Commercial Operations gregory.werner@omixon.com +41788606847 Nora Nagy, MBA Market Development Manager nora.nagy@omixon.com +36306333050 About Omixon Omixon is a global molecular diagnostics company, headquartered in Budapest, Hungary, with US offices in Cambridge, MA that commercializes disruptive technologies for clinical and research laboratories. Omixons flagship product, Holotype HLA, is the worlds leading NGS-based HLA genotyping product that delivers the most accurate high-resolution HLA genotyping available, and is used in more than 50 hospitals worldwide. Omixons research software, HLA Explore analyzes data from any sequencing technology and determines HLA genotypes from Whole Exome/Genome Sequencing experiments. Omixon maintains an active grant-funded research program with a product pipeline focused on pre- and post-transplantation, and HLA genotyping applications beyond transplantation. For more information, visit http://www.omixon.com. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 07:23:00|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WASHINGTON, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) have called on countries to keep trade open as the world battles the COVID-19 pandemic, warning that export controls on medical supplies and other essentials could backfire. At a virtual press conference during the just-concluded spring meetings of the two multilateral institutions, IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said that this is not a time to restrict the trade of medical supplies and essential equipment around the world. "It is very important that this does not become a future where we reverse all the gains that we've got from globalization," said Gopinath, in response to a question from Xinhua. Echoing her remarks, Kenneth Kang, deputy director of the Asia and Pacific Department at the IMF, told Xinhua in a recent written interview that countries should avoid trade restrictions on medical and health products to ensure that they go to where they are most needed. "Countries with limited health care capacity and resources will need international aid to prepare for and weather the pandemic," Kang said. "The health emergency is a powerful reminder of the need for policy coordination and solidarity in an interconnected world," he said. The IMF official said that countries should cooperate to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede cross-border trade and investment and to strengthen global supply chains as the recovery takes hold. Zhang Tao, deputy managing director of the IMF, told Xinhua that he hoped these supply chains would work as best as they can to maximize global production and supply, which makes global collaboration "essential." "Today more than ever, the global economy would benefit from a more open, stable, and transparent, rules-based international trade system," Zhang said. World Bank President David Malpass, meanwhile, said at a virtual press conference Friday that big countries need to step forward and pledge not to use the crisis as a reason to close or block the markets. "We should allow markets to function, markets to clear and the supplies to go to those most in need," said Malpass, adding that China is exporting medical supplies to the rest of the world, which is "very welcome." The IMF and World Bank's advocacy for free trade came as protectionist sentiments are growing across the globe amid the pandemic. Some 46 export curbs on medical supplies have been introduced by 54 governments since the beginning of the year, according to a report published on March 23, by Global Trade Alert, a trade policy monitoring initiative. Thirty-three of those export curbs have been announced since the beginning of March, "an indication of just how quickly new trade limits are spreading across the globe," the report showed. Aaditya Mattoo, chief economist for East Asia and the Pacific Region at the World Bank, said it is a bit understandable for countries to impose export restrictions, but these actions are "almost always counterproductive." "If each country imposes restrictions, then the global price increases even more than it would have. And it can end up being a self-defeating policy," Mattoo said at a recent press call, in response to a question from Xinhua. The World Bank economist also noted that such measures would hit those countries who rely on these badly needed medical supplies, especially poor countries, which import a lot of drugs, ventilators and masks. Despite that, Jeffrey Sachs, a renowned economics professor at Columbia University, told Xinhua that he thinks there will be more protectionism in Western countries, both in the United States and the Europe. China will have to work hard to secure long-term supply chains and two-way trade, including with Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Africa and South America, said Sachs, also a senior United Nations advisor. "I believe that China, Japan, (South) Korea, and ASEAN should work hard for a swift recovery and open trade amongst themselves," said Sachs. "East Asia could be back in business because East Asia never lost control of the epidemic." As the global economy is on track to shrink "sharply" by 3 percent this year due to the pandemic, the IMF chief economist highlighted the importance of keeping trade open in global recovery. "The world needs a healthy recovery. It needs a strong recovery. And that will not come about if the world de-globalizes because that would severely reduce productivity in the world," Gopinath said. "And that's the last thing we want at this time." Enditem The Washington Post report last week saying that U.S. Embassy officials in China warned the State Department in Washington as early as January 19, 2018, about inadequate safety at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) lab, in addition to scientists conducting risky research on coronavirus from bats. The U.S. embassy in Beijing had sent U.S. science diplomats to the WIV lab, which had distinguished itself in 2015 as Chinas first laboratory to achieve the highest level of international bio-research safety (known as BSL-4). WIV issued a news release in English about the last of these visits, which occurred on March 27, 2018 Last week, WIV erased that statement from its website, though it remains archived on the Internet. The U.S. officials on the trip were so concerned by what they saw that they sent two diplomatic cables labelled Sensitive But Unclassified back to Washington. The first cable, which was obtained by the Post, also sent red flags about the laboratorys work on bat coronaviruses and more specifically how their potential human transmission represented the risk of a new SARS-like pandemic. The January 19 cable stated: During interactions with scientists at the WIV lab, they noted the new lab has a serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory. The cable also called attention to Shi Zhengli, the head of the research project, who in November 2017 published a paper that showed the horseshoe bats collected from a case in Yunnan province were most likely from the same bat population that had been behind the first SARS coronavirus in 2003. President Donald Trump, when asked about the leaks, communicated that he had no prior kowledge of them: People knew it was happening. And people didnt want to talk about it. I dont know why but were going to get to the bottom of it. Incidentally, this would not be the first time covert operations were initially hidden from a president, such as The Bay of Pigs Invasion with John F. Kennedy or The Iran-Contra Affair with Ronald Reagan. Nor would this be the first time the U.S. State Department officials manipulated sensitive information resulting in the deaths of innocent people. A salient example is when the Department of State, under then-Secretary Hillary Clinton, covered-up the Islamic terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11, 2012, which killed U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith . While Clinton claimed that the surge was unforeseen and was a backlash of an anti-Islamic film, her emails from a private server revealed just the opposite. In fact, as per former House Representative Jason Chaffetzs book The Deep State, while there had been previous attempts by Muslims to breach the compound, the State Department refused to provide even the minimum level of security standard required by the Inman Report -- a 1985 security standard develop after the U.S. embassy in Beirut was attacked in 1983. Are the cable leaks of the COVID-19 a deja vu all over again? Is this another Deep State conspiracy? The fact that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) withheld information about the coronavirus, while horrible, should not surprised us, since Chinese officials only care about maintaining their power, even at the cost of its own people. This was confirmed by the Associated Press last week, which reported that the CCP secretly determined they likely were facing a pandemic from a new coronavirus, the city of Wuhan in the Hubei province at the epicenter of the disease hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people; millions began passing through for Lunar New Year celebrations (January 14-20). General Secretary Xi Jinping only warned the public on the seventh day (Jan. 20). Based on retrospective infection data , more than 3,000 people had been infected during almost a week of public silence, to say nothing of the approximate 430,000 Chinese nationals that flew on direct flights from Wuhan to the U.S. after the CCP disclosed the outbreak of the coronavirus. Taking into account this may be the costliest government cover-up of all time according to one of the sources, it would be disturbing if State Department officials knew about this and said nothing in public, especially after the U.S. National Institutes of Health awarded a $3.7 million grant to the Wuhan Institute of Virology lab. It seems, however, that we are not going to get any straight answers anytime soon. In an interview that Martha MacCallum of Fox News had with Secretary of Sate Mike Pompeo last Wednesday night, MacCallum asked Pompeo for an explanation as to the cable leaks. He said: The mere fact that we dont know the answers, that China hasnt shared the answers, I think is very, very telling. To your point, the President said that there are multiple sources. What we do know is we know that this virus originated in Wuhan, China. We know that there is the Wuhan Institute of Virology just a handful of miles away from where the wet market was. Theres still lots to learn. MacCallum went onto to charge that U.S. officials said that it was highly likely that a pandemic could result from how mishandled everything was there. What happened to those cables? Who received them in the State Department? Who went over them in the State Department two years ago? To which Pompeo cautiously responded: Martha, I appreciate you want to ask about that. I cant comment on the cables tonight. I can say this. This is a laboratory that contained highly contagious materials. We knew that. We knew that they were working on this program. Many countries have programs like this. And in countries that are open and transparent, they have the ability to control and keep them safe and they allow outside observers in to make sure all the processes and procedures are right. I only wish that that had happened in this place. We would know more about it and we would know more about what has transpired there, if anything, today. Antibody tests for coronavirus have been rolled out across the US amid officials' hopes that they'll reveal who can go back to work - but 'we still have a ways to go' before the tests can really tell us that, Dr Anthony Fauci told Good Morning America. 'The assumption that with the tests that are out there, if you have an antibody positivity, youre good to go,' the leading infectious disease specialist said Monday. 'Unless that test has been validated and you can show theres a correlation between the antibody and protection, it is an assumption to say that this is something that we can work with.' He noted that only a handful - four, to be exact - coronavirus antibody tests had been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and there's little clarity to the reliability of others. What's more, scientists haven't had the chance to track enough people who have recovered from coronavirus for long enough to know for sure whether those antibodies provide immunity to reinfection, or for how long. Dr Anthony Fauci warned Monday on Good Morning that antibody testing does not yet reliably indicate who has developed immunity to coronavirus, and that to say someone is protected from the virus by antibodies the test detects would be an 'assumption' 'We don't know how long that protection, if it exists, lasts,' said Dr Fauci. 'Is it one month, three months? Six months? A year?' Dr Fauci has previously admitted that interpreting the results of COVID-19 antibody tests relies on assumptions. 'It's a reasonable assumption that this virus is not changing very much. If we get infected now and it comes back next February or March we think this person is going to be protected,' he said in a JAMA webcast, attended by Stat News. In lieu of a solid base of information about this virus and the antibodies that we develop in response to it: 'Sometimes you have to act on a historical basis,' Dr Fauci says. That historical basis is research on antibodies developed against other coronaviruses, including COVID-19's closest relative, the virus that causes SARS. Humans do develop antibodies that work against these viruses, but the duration of protection varies. Officials are looking to antibody testing to indicate when the US can lift restrictions mid protests to reopen the US For the viruses that cause common colds, immunity is fairy weak and short lived. But against the SARS virus, antibodies develop within a couple of weeks, and may last years. This evidence informs the educated guess that antibodies we develop against COVID-19 will provide some protection - but it's by no means proof. And even the best blood tests for antibodies - or serologic tests - can't tell us that yet. 'Right now, we have no evidence that the use of a serologic test can show that an individual is immune or is protected from reinfection,' the World Health Organiazation's DrMaria Van Kerkhove said at a briefing last week. A Columbia University expert told DailyMail.com it could take years to find an antibody test accurate enough. But they added that scientists are desperately trying to find a blood-based test at 'lightning speed' - within a few months. Dr Susan Whittier said the challenge in making an antibody test lies with identifying the exact antibodies produced by the body to fight the infection. It's important to understand how the virus itself triggers a healthy immune system to start producing antibodies, and scientists are divided on its behaviour. This results in antibody tests with various designs, some of which have failed to work with enough accuracy because they are not specific enough for SARS-CoV-2. Doctors also say it is unclear, at this stage, the level of antibodies in the blood that provide immunity and how long that protection lasts. Some early animal studies suggested that antibodies could block reinfection for at least two weeks. But research on the new coronavirus' closest relative - SARS - shows a patient generates antibodies that last an average of two years. Dr Whittier said the crux of the matter is, 'we don't know what we don't know'. Labs across the US are producing antibody tests for coronavirus in the hopes of determining who has developed immunity - but their accuracy varies widely due to relaxed FDA regulation in the interest of expediting testing. Pictured: drive-thru antibody testing set up by USC HOW DO ANTIBODY TESTS WORK AND WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO MAKE A RELIABLE ONE? The development of an antibody tests require some knowledge of the proteins that form the coat of the virus. Viruses are made up of many proteins, called antigens, of which some are shared with other viruses. Only a few may be unique to the particular virus. The proteins specific to the virus will trigger the production of antibodies that neutralise the virus, stopping it from replicating. 'We have to figure out what part of the virus is going to be really specific for that virus,' Dr Whittier, who heads up Columbia University and New York Presbyterian's microbiology lab, told DailyMail.com. Those sections of the viral protein coat must then be produced in the laboratory, using cell lines, to be tested in an immunoassay. Scientists 'take that protein, put it in the bottom of a plastic well and put the blood serum in it and see if there's something that will stick to it,' said Dr Whittier. That 'something' would be the antibodies in the patients' blood. Anna Petherick, a lecturer in public policy at University of Oxford, said immunoassays will form the basis of home testing kits for people who think they have had COVID-19. WHY IS IT DIFFICULT FOR SCIENTISTS TO MAKE AN ANTIBODY TEST SPECIFIC FOR SARS-COV-2? Coronaviruses invade cells through so-called 'spike' proteins, but those proteins take on different shapes in different coronaviruses. The University of Texas at Austin were able to map the spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2 in mid February - a breakthrough for developing a vaccine. It was also a huge step forward for scientists developing an antibody test. There are questions about which antigens (proteins) are best for an antibody test target, 'although the viral spike protein is universally perceived as the obvious candidate', Anna Petherick, a lecturer in public policy at University of Oxford, wrote in The Lancet. Which part of the spike protein to use is less obvious, and is causing difficulty in creating a reliable antibody test. 'There is a lot hanging on the uniqueness of the spike protein,' Ms Petherick said. 'The more unique it is, the lower the odds of crossreactivity with other coronaviruses false positives resulting from immunity to other coronaviruses. 'The most similar of these is severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), which led to the SARS outbreak of 2002. 'But another four coronaviruses cause the common cold, and ensuring there is no cross-reactivity to these is essential. ' A team at New Yorks Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (NY, USA), has published details of antibody tests that use either the whole spike protein. Others, such as Peng Zho at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, who was part of the team that sequenced SARS-CoV-2s genetic code, have used the nucleocapsid protein and the spike protein. '[The] nucleocapsid protein is the most abundant viral protein, which means its easy to detect. But we also chose spike protein because its very specific,' Dr Zho said. 'Actually, for coronavirus, the most divergent protein is [the] spike protein.' Advertisement 'But their development takes time,' she explained in The Lancet. 'Expressing the protein in the right structure is often the most difficult step. 'In a nonnative system, such as a bacterial cell, the complex protein structures can come out slightly deformed, enough to stop antibodies from recognising them as they would the original viral coat protein. 'There are also questions about which antigens (proteins) are best for this purpose. 'Some diagnostic developers are cagey about giving away too many details, although the viral spike protein is universally perceived as the obvious candidate.' Various labs making antibody tests might not even be testing for exactly the same antibodies. Some tests may confuse antibodies produced in response to the virus that causes COVID-19 to those made for other coronaviruses. 'There are a lot of other coronaviruses, and the issue is you need to find what target is specific for this virus so it's not going to cross-react,' Dr Whittier said. Typically, finding the correct target would 'take months or years, and we're trying to do it in weeks to months,' Dr Whittier said. 'We don't know the specific antigens or targets to look for. 'It seems to the lay public like it's taking a super long time, but from a lab perspective it's happening at lightning speed.' Labs are testing specific antigens by using the blood of patients who have been confirmed to have the infection. It will reveal if the antigen they have identified causes the antigens to stick. If it doesn't, it is not accurate. 'At Columbia, we validated an antibody assay that was developed in Asia and tested lots of our [blood] serum that we had from patients and it turned out it was really specific - it only picked up SARS-CoV-2, which is good,' said Dr Whittier. 'But it was only 50 per cent of patients who should have had antibodies. 'So if it was positive, that was good, they definitely have antibodies'. But if it was negative, 'you might as well be flipping a coin'. Needless to say, Columbia ditched that test. And with FDA guidelines relaxed in an effort to get more tests out more quickly, there's less assurance that validation is done with a comprehensive sample of patients. Dr Whittier says that the package insert for one test she looked at said the company had only tested their test on about five patients. 'That's crazy,' she said. 'Normally that would never happen, but in the middle of a pandemic, you're allowed to push assays out because maybe perfect is the enemy of good.' The blood of someone who's already had coronavirus will react with the strips on the test if they've developed antibodies - but different tests search for an immune response to different components of the virus ANTIBODIES PROVIDE IMMUNITY - BUT HOW MUCH PROTECTION AND HOW LONG IT LASTS VARIES When we contract an infection, the immune system goes to work creating specialized weapons against whatever invader we came into contact with, called antibodies. New Hampshire's test (pictured) looks for the presence of antibodies, but it may not tell what level of antibodies are in a person's blood, and scientists don't know how much is enough to offer protection from reinfection Once we've encountered a pathogen and develop antibodies to it, these proteins sound the alarm when the invader returns and neutralize it. But not all antibodies are created equal, and not everyone develops the same number of antibodies. For example, it's well known that once you get chicken pox, you're almost certainly immune to it and will never be infected again. That's not true for antibodies against other pathogens. Immunity for other infections wears off relatively quickly. Flu is fairly well understood, but the virus has many strains which mutate readily. Antibodies produced against each variation of flu we encounter are quite specific to that unique infection. So when we come into contact with an evolved or different strain of flu the next season, the antibodies we developed the prior year don't do us much good. That's why flu vaccines are 'recombinant' - they're made based on a combinations of several strains of flu, triggering the production of a variety of antibodies to block the strains scientists think we might making their way around the globe that year. The most common coronaviruses - those that cause seasonal colds - trigger fairly weak antibody responses, lasting only a couple of weeks, which is part of the reason you might get multiple colds in a single year. HOW DO 'STRIP' BLOOD TESTS FOR CORONAVIRUS WORK? Simple blood tests for coronavirus, like Premier Biotech's, work much like pregnancy tests. After the sample of blood is collected, a technician injects it into the analysis device - which is about the size of an Apple TV or Roku remote - along with some buffer, and waits about 10 minutes. The blood droplet and buffer soak into the absorbent strip of paper enclosed in the plastic collection device. Blood naturally seeps along the strip, which is dyed at three points: one for each of two types of antibodies, and a third control line. The strip is marked 'IgM' and 'IgG', for immunoglobulins M and G. Each of these are types of antibodies that the body produces in response to a late- or early-stage infection. Along each strip, the antibodies themselves are printed in combination with gold, which react when the either the antigen - or pathogen, in this case, the virus that causes COVID-19 - or the antibody to fight are present. Results are displayed in a similar fashion to those of an at-home pregnancy test. One line - the top, control strip - means negative. Two lines - the top control line and the bottom IgM line - in a spread-out configuration means the sample contains antibodies that the body starts making shortly after infection. Two lines closer - control and IgG - together mean the person is positive for the later-stage antibodies. Three lines mean the patient is positive for both types of antibodies. Advertisement However, research on the new coronavirus's closest relative - SARS - is somewhat more encouraging. By the second week after someone is infected, they've generated antibodies that seems to last an average of two years. But we simply don't know how similarly antibodies for the virus that causes COVID-19 will behave because we've only known it existed for four months. WHAT DOES A POSITIVE CORONAVIRUS ANTIBODY TEST REALLY MEAN? EVEN THE EXPERTS DON'T KNOW... YET Time and volume of people infected are two key crucial ingredients for an antibody test. They tell scientists how many antibodies are enough to make someone immune to reinfection, and how long that immunity lasts. And labs developing antibody tests have neither on their side. 'We can't tell you that, because we don't have a gold standard to compare it to,' Dr Whittier said. The FDA gave emergency use authorization to the first antibody test for coronavirus in the US on April 2 - less than two weeks ago. That's about as long as scientists think that it takes for a patient to mount an antibody response to SARS-CoV-2. Dr Whittier said: 'Twelve to 14 days is when most individuals are having an antibody response, but we don't know if it's protective, and we don't know how long it lasts.' Having the antibody test is the first step to answering those questions. But some people will develop antibodies more quickly than other, and some will develop greater quantities of antibodies than others. It will take following these people and testing them repeatedly to learn what the 'gold standard' for immunity is. What's more, the first antibody tests only returned results about whether antibodies were present. They did not reveal what volume someone's body had produced them. Now, labs are starting to produce 'semi-quantitative' tests, that can tell if someone has 'a little antibody or a lot of antibody,' Dr Whittier said. As more people are tested for levels of antibodies, not just their existence, epidemiologists can study what levels provide protection and for how long. But for now, 'we don't know what we don't know,' Dr Whittier says. State Police have identified the two motorcyclists killed in a crash involving thee bikes Sunday on the New Jersey Turnpike in Middlesex County. Marcus Wood, 30, of Willingboro, and Brayan Portillo-Padilla, 22, of Sayreville, were killed after their motorcycles crashed around 1:20 p.m. in the southbound outer lanes, officials said. The third rider a 29-year-old Morrisville, Pennsylvania man also thrown from his motorcycle when it flipped over near milepost 84.2 suffered injuries authorities described as moderate. The crash, which took place in New Brunswick about a mile north of Exit 9, remains under investigation. State Police couldnt immediately say whether the men were traveling in a group. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. 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. It would appear the governments at both federal and state levels are becoming weak in enforcing the lockdown order of President Muhammadu Buhari in some parts of Nigeria. In Lagos for instance, certain parts of the still have high movement of people during the day, many of whom do not fall into the exemption categories of the government. The Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos recorded high traffic to the point of traffic congestion on Monday afternoon. It was as though the lockdown has been suspended or discontinued by the State and federal governments. Majority of the road users plying Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos were not even on essential duty or going to companies for production purposes. More so, citizens who reside in areas adjacent to takeoff or landing routes to the Ikeja Airport, have in the past four days been noticing arrival of flights in the evening hours before midnight. The flights which have been arriving on daily schedule, some departing the next day after landing in Lagos, are suspected to be foreign flights. All these are happening at a period governments have restricted movement of citizens on the pretence of containing the spread of coronavirus in Nigeria. It is interesting that more new coronavirus cases are being detected, even in higher numbers before the lockdown. Meanwhile, Nigerians are running out of patience. The rising threat of hunger at home is putting pressure on citizen for possible uprising, civil disobedience and social urest. This is more so when the palliatives intervention of the governments are not getting to majority Nigerians. Failing to properly enforce the lockdown and ensure wider compliance is not only weakening governments but also increasing the risk of further lockdown extension. Well bring details of this in subsequent reports. PV: 0 An RCMP officer speaks with a man after the police finished their search for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, in Portapique, Nova Scotia, on April 19, 2020. (REUTERS/John Morris) RCMP Commissioner Says 17 Confirmed Victims in N.S. Shooting Rampage PORTAPIQUE, N.S.RCMP say 17 people are dead, including one of their officers, after a man who at one point wore a police uniform and drove a mock-up cruiser went on a rampage across northern Nova Scotia in one of the deadliest killing sprees in Canadian history. Police said Sunday night the suspected shooter, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was killed after being intercepted by officers in Enfield, N.S. Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and mother of two, was identified as the officer killed. A male officer suffered non-life threatening injuries. Our hearts are heavy with grief and sadness today as we have lost one of our own, said Brian Sauve, president of the union representing RCMP officers. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki confirmed to The Canadian Press late Sunday that the death toll had risen to 17, which surpasses the 14 victims killed in the 1989 Polytechnique massacre in Montreal. RCMP Chief Supt. Chris Leather earlier told an evening news conference that in excess of 10 people had been killed. Leather said it was hard to specify the exact number of victims, because as were standing here, the investigation continues into areas that we have not yet explored across the province. An RCMP officer returns a dog to an individual since the road is shut down after a manhunt for Gabriel Wortman, who they describe as a shooter of multiple victims, in Portapique, Nova Scotia, on April 19, 2020. (John Morris/Reuters) He said the killings appear to be, at least in part, very random in nature. The first reports of an active shooter came from Portapique, a community that shaken residents described as a quiet place to live that attracts cottagers from Halifax in summer months. Lee Bergerman, commanding officer for the RCMP in Nova Scotia, said the days events have left many families in mourning. The impact of this incident will extend from one end of the province to the other, she said. The incident began with a firearms complaint late Saturday night from Portapique, about 40 kilometres west of Truro, where frightened residents witnessed police filling the streets and were advised to lock their homes and stay in their basements. Leather confirmed that officers responded to a multiple 911 calls Saturday night. Upon arrival, they found several casualties inside and outside a Portapique residence, he said, but they could not locate the suspect. He added there were multiple sites in the area including structures that were on fire. By late Sunday morning, the suspect was stopped about 90 kilometres away in Enfield, a scene that was surrounded by a half dozen police vehicles. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-coloured SUV was being investigated by police. A body was seen lying at the gas station. Police would not comment on whether it was Wortman. Premier Stephen McNeil offered condolences to families of the victims and called the incident one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history. I never imagined when I went to bed last night that I would wake up to the horrific news that an active shooter was on the loose in Nova Scotia, McNeil said in Halifax. Words cannot console the families affected by what has transpired over the last 24 hours. Through the morning, police updates about the active shooter investigation included warnings that Wortman was considered dangerous and may have been dressed as an RCMP officer in a lookalike RCMP vehicle. RCMP members pack up after the search for Gabriel Wortman in Great Village, Nova Scotia on April 19, 2020. (John Morris/Reuters) Leather said this detail would be an important part of the investigation. The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, he said. A Gabriel Wortman is listed as a denturist in Dartmouth, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP matches video footage of a man being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014. Some Portapique residents who spoke with the The Canadian Press said they knew him in passing as a part-time resident who divided time between the Halifax area and his properties in the community. David George Crockett, who lives a three-minute drive from Portapique Beach Road, the area where the first 911 calls originated, said Wortman once fixed his teeth at his home in Portapique. Im very surprised, Crockett said in a brief interview outside his rural home as the sun was setting. I never thought he would do something like that. From what I knew of him, he was quiet, gentle and very easy to talk to . He was very nice. He kidded around a little bit. He seemed normal, not like someone who would do something like this. Crockett said the horrific news that more than 10 people had been killed left him feeling overwhelmed, given the stress he and his family was already feeling because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its very depressing to see someone do something like this. A little farther down the rural road, another neighbour said he and Wortman were friends until the two had a falling out over a piece of nearby property. The neighbour, who declined to give his name, said Wortman had burned an old shed that contained some property that belonged to the neighbour. The man said he was too overcome with emotion to say more about his relationship with Wortman or what might have motivated his rampage. Lifelong Portapique resident Peter Hodge, 65, woke up at 1:30 a.m. and saw lights so bright, he thought it was a fire. He then realized that the bright lights were from probably upwards of 14 police cars in the community. Christine Mills, another resident, said it had been a frightening night for the community, which was suddenly filled with armed officers patrolling the streets. In the morning, helicopters flew overhead searching for the suspect. RCMP officers prepare to take a suspect into custody at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia on Sunday April 19, 2020. (Tim Krochak/The Canadian Press via AP) She said she was fearful the shooter might have gone through the woods and attempted to enter her home. Its nerve-wracking because you dont know if somebody has lost their mind and is going to beat in your front door, she said. Tom Taggart, a councillor who represents the Portapique area in the Municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community is in shock. This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community, and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable, Taggart said by phone from his home in Bass River, about three kilometres away from Portapique. Mills said police officers walked through the community with their guns drawn through the night, and helicopters had been flying over homes on Sunday morning. Taggart said he didnt know Wortman well, but spoke to him a few times when he telephoned about municipal issues, and described knowing Wortmans lovely big home on Portapique Beach Road. Police publicly identified Wortman about nine hours after an initial tweet around midnight asking people to avoid the Portapique area and stay indoors as officers responded to a firearms complaint. Cpl. Lisa Croteau, public information officer with the Nova Scotia force, said the police received a call about a person with firearms at around 10:30 p.m. on Saturday and the investigation evolved into an active shooting investigation. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau commented on the situation during his morning press conference focusing on the COVID-19 crisis. My heart goes out to everyone affected in what is a terrible situation, he said. I want to thank the police for their hard work and people for co-operating with authorities. By Michael MacDonald A mining company is opening its quarry to the public, letting runners and joggers delve 600 feet into San Diego Countys only operational hard rock mine on Saturday, Nov. 3. The Quarry Crusher Run began in Columbia, S.C., when the Vulcan Materials Company decided to host a community run in its mine back in 2011. At the core of our business and our culture is giving back to the communities where we operate, said Barbara Goodrich-Welk, manager of Projects and External Affairs at Vulcan. Since then, Vulcan organized similar events in Baltimore, Nashville, Atlanta, and Birmingham. Chula Vistas mine, between the Mattress Firm Amphitheatre and State Route 125, hosted their first Quarry Run last year. Advertisement In each city, Vulcan partners with a local nonprofit to raise money. In Chula Vistas case, that nonprofit was the Chula Vista Firefighters Foundation. Last year, nearly 250 runners raised more than $25,000 for the organization, which supports fire safety, raises money for scholarships and helps families recover from local and regional fires. That money paid for a CPR program that helped nearly 500 people in Chula Vista become CPR certified, said Joshua Sanders, president of the Chula Vista Firefighters Foundation. Thats a program we had been trying to get off the ground for many years now and the fundraiser provided our primary funding for that, Sanders said. The CPR program offers two levels of certification and monthly classes in Chula Vista. This year, organizers expect between 350 and 400 people and they are on track to raise more money than last year, Goodrich-Welk said. Runners and walkers between 12 and 76 years old can sign up for the event online or at the starting line at 2275 Hard Rock Road. Participants have the option to go on a 3.5-mile or 6-mile course. The Quarry Crusher gives people an inside view into an active mine. The course takes runners to some of the deepest parts of the quarry and finishes in one of Chula Vistas tallest points. The course also features a 600-foot elevation change and lots of rocks. I personally think its beautiful, but Im a geologist, Goodrich-Welk said. I think the exciting part is when you get to the top. The reward is that you have beautiful views of downtown San Diego, Chula Vista and the Pacific Ocean. Contact Gustavo Solis via Email or Twitter Anti-vaccination advocates have distributed leaflets in Sydney claiming that the COVID-19 coronavirus is exaggerated and designed to enforce more compulsory vaccinations. The 12-page document was recently found at homes in Ryde, in Sydney's north-west, and called the illness a 'plannedemic'. It said the virus, that has killed at least 165,000 people worldwide as of Monday, was similar to the flu and common cold, and urged people not to get the flu shot or practice social distancing, according to The Herald. Scroll down for video Anti-vaccination advocates dropping leaflets into letter boxes in Sydney designed to spread misinformation about coronavirus. Pictured is another letter discovered last week The author believed the coronavirus panic was being played up to create more vaccines as part of their plan for world domination. It blamed a list of figures including 'Big Pharma', the World Health Organisation, the World Bank along with Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch and Lucy Turnbull. On Friday, NSW Health flagged Ryde, which has a high Chinese population, as a red zone with the potential to greatly increase transmission rates if social distancing rules were not followed. Experts have warned a rise in coronavirus infection rates during the approaching flu season could put strain upon Australia's healthcare system. The author urged people not to get the flu shot or to follow government social distancing rules. Pictured are researchers working on a coronavirus vaccine in Geelong Infectious disease expert Professor Ben Cowie said the conspiracy theory flew in the face of healthcare workers fighting the disease. 'I've had patients with COVID-19 ... and I've got colleagues working in countries where the health system is under extraordinary pressure from COVID-19,' he said. 'The very notion that this is in some way a hoax or conspiracy would mean that every healthcare worker in every country is party to a conspiracy for some reason that defies my understanding. So, no, there is absolutely no truth whatsoever to any sense that this is some sort of hoax or conspiracy.' A similar letter was discovered last week that said the virus was hoax and claimed people were getting sick from the flu The author believed the coronavirus pandemic was a hoax created to enforce world domination through forced vaccines It comes after a similar letter was discovered by a staff member at A Current Affair last week. The letter, which held similar messages to ignore government health advice, was authored by anti vaccination activist Judy Wilyman. Dr Wilyman, who is not a health expert but a PHD graduate, claimed there was no evidence the pandemic existed. 'Do not lock down a healthy population under the guidelines of 'social distancing' for a global pandemic when there is no evidence of that pandemic,' Wilyman states in a video shared to her social media. 'You do not need to be fearful of this outbreak of disease in Australia as yet.' The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has said that it will not use drones to disinfect containment zones in the city and has termed the process useless. Last week a citizen had suggested the BMC to use drones to disinfect those containment zones which were inaccessible, said BMC insecticide officer Rajan Naringrekar. After a discussion with experts on the feasibility, we realised that drones are ineffective in cleansing major touch points which have been identified across the containment clusters, said Naringrekar. Currently, there are more than 720 containment zones across Mumbai, with the maximum ones at Worli, Prabhadevi, Byculla, Girgaum, Mazagaon and Tardeo. The insecticide department had identified five main touch points that citizens in containment zones need to be aware about to control community transmission. These touch points include common toilets, stair handles or railings connecting two or three-storied structures, parapets connecting one settlement to the other, sitting areas such as concrete platforms outside slum structures and door handles. Drones are not in a position to treat these touch points. It will release the disinfectant on rooftops or surfaces where the virus is not present, rendering the activity completely useless, said Naringrekar. These unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are currently being used by the Mumbai Police to monitor the movement of citizens during the lockdown and make announcements in densely-populated containment areas where traversing by foot is difficult, he added. Also, large network of cables in these zones will hinder spraying disinfectants, said Naringrekar. Meanwhile, the confusion over the usage of disinfection chambers continues to prevail among state bodies despite the Centres advisory against its usage. While spraying disinfectants has been recommended for cleaning purposes, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued an advisory on Saturday that spraying disinfectants or using tunnels on individuals or groups was not recommended under any circumstances as it is physically and psychologically harmful. Even if a person is potentially exposed with the Covid-19 virus, spraying the external part of the body does not kill the virus that has entered the body. Also there is no scientific evidence to suggest that they are effective even in disinfecting the outer clothing, the advisory read. But in Maharashtra, disinfection tunnels have been installed across the state and the government plans to install more such chambers across market places, government buildings and railways stations. This is an unscientific process, which can lead to severe skin problems as well health effects, if the sodium hypochlorite solution in the tunnel is inhaled in large quantity. It is best to be avoided, said Dr Jerryl Banait, dermatologist and Supreme Court petitioner in Covid-19 matters. However, the BMC has clarified that it will not be using disinfection chambers. Naringrekar said BMC will continue not to use disinfection chambers. It gives a false impression that a person is cleaned and they will neglect the use of sanitisers or hand washing, he said. Union health ministrys advisory Spraying chemical disinfectants on individuals or groups is not recommended under any circumstances as it is physically and psychologically harmful Even if a person is potentially exposed with the Covid-19 virus, spraying on the external part of the body does not kill the virus that has entered the body Spraying chlorine on individuals can lead to irritation of eyes and skin and potentially gastrointestinal effects such as nausea and vomiting Inhalation of sodium hypochlorite can lead to irritation of mucous membranes to the nose, throat and respiratory tract Use of such measures may lead to a false sense of disinfection, safety and hamper public observance to hand washing and social distancing measures SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Konstantin Vyshkovsky, head of the state debt department at the Russian Finance Ministry, attends an interview with Reuters in Moscow By Darya Korsunskaya MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia plans to raise as much debt at home this year as possible to finance its budget needs amid the coronavirus crisis but not at any price, Konstantin Vyshkovsky, head of the debt department at the finance ministry, told Reuters in an interview. The finance ministry has already set aside around 2.8% of gross domestic product - or nearly 3 trillion roubles ($40 billion) - to soften the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, using a mixture of budget cash, tax breaks and other tools. The state's upper debt ceiling - though not the actual plan - was increased last month to 12.98 trillion roubles in OFZ bonds and $64.4 billion, or its euro equivalent, in hard-currency bonds this year. The current plan to raise 2.3 trillion roubles in OFZ bonds and up to $3 billion in Eurobonds this year so far remains unchanged, Vyshkovsky told Reuters. "If the budget needs an increase we will try to fulfil these needs as much as the market allows. But it should be driven by (market) demand," he said, adding that Russia was ready to offer a "technical premium" of around 5 basis points but not more. "If you know that a good is sold in a shop cheaper and cheaper with every week you probably won't be buying it, this is a dead-end." Vyshkovsky said the new debt ceiling provided flexibility to "react quickly" to negative factors if they arose but said there was no immediate plan to revise the actual state borrowing level this year. Foreigners' share among OFZ holders slipped to 30.9% as of April 10, down from 34.1% in early March but the central bank said last week that the exit of foreigners from the OFZ market had stopped in April. Vyshkovsky said foreigners were selling Russian debt as they needed funds to protect their investments in other emerging markets. He added that the finance ministry aimed to lengthen the maturity of rouble debt and would target paper with 5 to 10-year maturity, avoiding offerings of short-term debt where possible. Story continues Russia had a total of 47,121 confirmed coronavirus cases as of Monday, with 405 deaths. Russian authorities are offering a wide range of financial support to citizens and businesses. ($1 = 74.5847 roubles) (Reporting by Darya Korsunskaya; Writing by Katya Golubkova; Editing by Gareth Jones) The eastern suburbs council responsible for Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte beaches is holding "constructive discussions" with NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard's office about allowing surfers and ocean swimmers in the water as a neighbouring council opened its beaches for exercise. Cooler weather and grey skies prevented droves of Sydneysiders from returning to Coogee, Clovelly and Maroubra beaches on Monday after Randwick City Council announced on Sunday it was allowing people access under strict conditions. Maroubra beach reopened on Monday . Credit:Louise Kennerley Bondi mother Jodie Madsen, who took her daughter Olivia, 8, to Coogee to splash about in the shallows, said the few others along the beach were keeping their distance and respecting the rules. "Feeling the sand between our toes makes us appreciate what we've been missing out on," she said. A 40-year-old man was stabbed to death on Monday allegedly after he informed the owner of a house about some people drinking on his building rooftop in central Delhi's Patel Nagar area, police said. The deceased man has been identified as Krishna Shah, a resident of Prem Nagar in Patel Nagar, they said. On the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, some people were drinking alcohol on the rooftop of a house at Prem Nagar in Patel Nagar, police said. Shah informed the house owner about it. On Monday, the six accused, aged between 16 and 20, came to intimidate Shah and his family with sticks, rod and knife. Two of the accused stabbed Shah and his son. One of them hit the head of Shah's brother-in-law with a rod. Three accused have been apprehended, police said, adding efforts are being made to arrest the others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Homeland Ghana Educational Foundation, an NGO based in the Upper East Region of Ghana has stepped out to show love and to support some families and students in their target regions and communities. The foundation has been reaching out to its students and their families in this month of April. As almost everything is slowly going down and school gates are closed, many students and their families will face problems with childcare, nutrition, and income and thereby forfeit the opportunity to explore voluntary learning at home due to a lack of resources. This particular project falls in line with the global conscious call on us all to support and show love to one another especially in these times where humanity itself is under the burdens of the Covid-19 pandemic. The foundation is extending this support and love to the students and their families gave out items that could support not just the students. This was done to make the students feel the support of the foundation in and out of school. The care packages included: vegetable cooking oil, 5kg bag of rice, 2 packets of spaghetti, salt, matches, and chocolate drink. These were supplemented with 10 bars of soap, 4 months worth pack of sanitary pads, deodorant, ibuprofen medicine and a book titled Hey Black Girl written by an incredible 10-year-old author in the United Kingdom. Homeland Ghana Educational Foundation is an NGO that mainly focuses on improving the quality of education students receive over in and around the Upper East Region of Ghana. The Foundation embarks on projects and partnerships with different schools to provide subject textbooks, school materials such as uniforms and supplies, teaching and learning materials, renovation of classrooms and school libraries among others. A council overseeing Friday Prayer Imams in the Islamic Republic of Iran has accepted the resignation of Iranshahr's prayer leader, Shojauddin Abtahi, Hawza (seminary) news agency reports. On Saturday, April 18, a video was published on social media showing the mid-ranking clergy, Abtahi, sitting in a car, and distributing cash among people seeking a daily job in the poor Sistan and Baluchistan province. Abtahi's driver, who taped the video, had earlier praised the Friday Imam's move as assisting daily workers who had failed to find a job. The circulation of the video triggered a series of negative reactions on social media. Numerous internet users deplored the move as humiliating workers. In a note published in the newspaper on Monday, April 20, the editor-in-chief of daily Jomhuri Eslami, denounced the Friday prayer leaders move as "disrespectful" and "against Sharia", devoid of "moral principles" and far from "human dignity." The daily is owned by the Islamic Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei but its editor, mid-ranking cleric Massih Mohajeri, has established his position as a moderate, supporting President Hassan Rouhani and his so-called reformist allies. Distributing money or cash handouts among the deprived classes of the Iranian society, especially during parliamentary elections, has been common in the country. The move has become so widespread that in August last year, several members of Majles (Islamic parliament) called for the passage of a law banning cash handouts in election campaigns. In his letter of resignation, the Abtahi insisted that he only intended to assist jobless workers. Iranshahr, southeast Iran, where Abtahi served as Ayatollah Khamenei's representative, is a mainly Sunni populated city. A pregnant woman has died of starvation in Pakistans Sindh province amid the coronavirus lockdown imposed in the country, according to media reports. Sughra Bibi, 30, died in Jhudo town of Sindhs Mirpur Khas district last week, reported the Daily Express newspaper. Bibis husband Allah Baksh said he is a daily wager and due to the lockdown could not find work and was facing problems in feeding his family, which includes six children. Baksh claimed he did not even have money to bury his wife. Local residents raised money through donations for Bibis burial, the report said. The Sindh government announced that they were investigating the starvation-related death. Pakistan is under lockdown for over a month now to check the spread of coronavirus which has claimed 176 lives and infected nearly 8,500 people in the country. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates By Luke Johnson San Jose Spotlight San Jose City Council member Raul Peralez fell victim to hackers twice in one week in a new online harassment trend. The trend, known as "Zoombombing" is when videoconferences are interrupted by unwanted visitors, who often display pornography or slurs. It has become so pervasive, the FBI issued a warning about the harassment last month. While many states across the country have ordered residents to stay at home, several schools and businesses have transitioned meetings to online videoconferences with software from San Jose-based company Zoom Video Communications. Peralez was in a videoconference with the Roosevelt Neighborhood Association April 1. It only took five to 10 minutes before the meeting went awry. "All I could hear was, 'N***er, n***er, n***er,'" said Chris Patterson-Simmons, a local business owner who attended the videoconference. After screaming the n-word repeatedly, hackers projected an illustration of male genitalia onto the screen and a video of a couple performing oral sex. Jeff Levine, a neighborhood advocate, hosted the videoconference. He said he has used Zoom for a few years and was able to kick out the first hacker swiftly. "It started with one account, so I was able to block that one, but then it just exploded," Levine said. That was when dozens of accounts logged in and Zoombombed the meeting, Levine said. He couldn't tell if it was a team of Zoombombers or just one hacker generating several accounts. After about five minutes of epithets and obscene images, Levine shut off the videoconference. "They were also saying, 'Raul Peralez is a child molester,'" Patterson-Simmons said. Levine and Peralez said they did not hear a hacker say that, but they're not sure if that means Peralez was targeted, or if a hacker simply read his name on the screen. Peralez said he logged off after two minutes, and perhaps that's why he didn't hear it. "It could have been someone 2,000 miles away or it could have been someone local in San Jose," Levine said. The following day, Peralez participated in another videoconference - this time with the Valley Transportation Authority. After about 15 minutes, he saw multiple accounts log in as "Lan Diep," a fellow council member who was already on the videoconference. Similar to the previous online meeting, hackers shouted racial slurs and displayed pornography. People are drawn to Zoom for its user-friendly and seamless experience, said Ahmed Banafa, a cyber security expert and engineering professor at San Jose State University. But the company can't have both convenience and safety, he warns. "There are some people benefiting off the sudden fame of Zoom, and Zoom isn't ready for this," Banafa said. "They weren't ready to become No.1 in the world when it comes to video conferencing. ... [But] they're trying to catch up with this." Zoom CEO Eric Yuan apologized in a blog post this month for the unwanted interruptions and committed to fixing the problem with new security measures as the company's client base balloons from 10 million users per day to more than 200 million. Last week, the company made it mandatory by default for all videoconferences to require passwords and approval from the host for other accounts to join. The difference between the two videoconferences where Peralez witnessed his first Zoombombings is one was public and the other required authorization. Levine takes the blame for the outcome of the neighborhood meeting. He said by making the videoconference public and sharing the link to social media, it was bound to get Zoombombed. Although the VTA videoconference was viewable to the public, it required account verification for people to access their cameras and microphones to engage in the meeting. Somehow, hackers were able to bypass this step. "The online disruption during VTA's Board of Directors virtual meeting is of great concern, and we regret that it happened," said Brandi Childress, media and public affairs manager for VTA. "While VTA is not unique in having to use technology for solutions, which also increases vulnerabilities, we are tightening our procedures to improve security and other general operational protocols going forward to prevent this from happening in the future." Meanwhile, New York City schools have banned Zoom. Chancellor Richard Carranza announced on Twitter on April 5 that the New York City Department of Education will use Microsoft Teams for online classes instead. In Michigan, lawmakers turned Zoombombing into a federal offense. The U.S. Department of Justice this month published a notice with Michigan's attorney general and the FBI, warning hackers and pranksters of potential legal penalties for Zoombombing, including fines and imprisonment. Those who are Zoombombed may also be at risk for having important documents or confidential information stolen, the agencies warned. This story was originally published by San Jose Spotlight. Please use the original link when sharing: https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-leaders-residents-endure-the-rise-of-zoombombings/ Contact Luke Johnson at 18johnson.luke@gmail.com and follow @Scoop_Johnson on Twitter. 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. LONDON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On April 26, Britain's premier antiquities auction house, Pax Romana, will take collectors on a virtual 5,000-year journey across time, from Ancient Mesopotamia to modern-day China. The expertly curated 337-lot selection allows all collectors, whether novice or advanced, to bid on authentic ancient art and cultural objects backed by trusted provenance and scholarship. All ancient items will convey with a professional Certificate of Authenticity signed by Pax Romana's owner/director, Dr Ivan Bonchev (PhD, University of Oxford). L to R: Lot 622 Large Chinese Ming bronze Guanyin, Ming Dynasty, 16th/17th century, weighs over 6kg, est. 4,000-8,000; Lot 400 Fine Chinese gilt bronze figure of Vajrasattva, circa 1700 or earlier, est. 3,000-5,000; Lot 353 Superbly modeled Chinese gilt bronze figure of Vajrasattva, circa 1700 or earlier, est. 3,000-5,000 Fine and very rare Famille Rose enameled double-gourd-shape glass snuff bottle, Qianlong, Chinese Imperial Palace Workshops, 4-character mark (1736-1780). Similar to example auctioned by Christie's NY in 2006 for $329,600. Est. 50,000-75,000 Featuring antiquities and works of art from China, India, the Holy Lands, Western and Southeast Asia, the auction's Ancient section includes a great variety of artifacts in terracotta, stucco, bronze and stone. A large and finely cast 16th/17th-century Chinese Ming bronze Guanyin from the Ming Dynasty depicts the deity in a seated position on the back of a dragon. Weighing over 6kg (13lbs., 4oz.), it is estimated at 4,000-8,000. Two circa-1700 (or earlier) Chinese gilt bronze figures of Vajrasattva carry individual estimates of 3,000-5,000. Archaic Chinese bronzes of various types and designs from the R. Unger collection include a circa-12th-11th century BC Late Shang dynasty (or later) bronze ritual wine vessel, 3,000-5,000. A most outstanding and extremely rare Famille Rose enameled double-gourd-shape glass snuff bottle, Qianlong, Chinese Imperial Palace Workshops Beijing, bears a 4-character mark from 1736-1780. The bottle is similar to one sold by Christie's NY on March 29, 2006 for a staggering $329,600. Pax Romana's bottle is conservatively estimated at 50,000-75,000. A magnificent collection of fully authenticated (by Ralf Kotalla, Germany) Ancient Chinese objects includes a menagerie of Han and Tang animals. They include a TL-tested circa 618-907AD Tang dynasty terracotta horse, 26in high x 26in long, 6,000-9,000; and an appealing TL-tested Han dynasty pottery guard dog, 5,000-8,000. A stellar array of Gandharan sculptures depicting the Buddha and various scenes includes an important Gandharan grey schist statue of Bodhisattva, circa 300AD, estimated at 2,000-3,000. An extremely rare Gandharan Buddhist shrine panel/stela made of Phyllitic schist, circa 500-600AD, could reach 4,000-8,000. The auction also includes various objects from western Asia and the Holy Lands, rare pots from Persia, Indus Valley idols, Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets and more. A large and rare Sassanian bronze ritual bowl, circa 500-600AD, is expected to reach 3,000-5,000. View the online catalogue and bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers. Online: www.paxromana.auction Media Contact: Dr. Ivan Bonchev +44 7424 994167 [email protected] SOURCE Pax Romana Auctions Related Links https://paxromana.auction Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Colin Packham (Reuters) Sydney, Australia Mon, April 20, 2020 11:12 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2f6217 2 World Australia,coronavirus,coronavirus-prevention,COVID-19,COVID-19-lockdown,COVID-19-quarantine,physical-distancing,social-distancing Free More than 150 Australian economists on Monday warned the government against easing social distancing rules aimed at halting the spread of the new coronavirus even as the rate of infections slowed to a multi-week low. Australia has so far avoided the high numbers of coronavirus casualties reported around the world after closing its borders and imposing restrictions on public movement. While the measures have slowed the growth in new infections to fewer than 40 new cases a day, the restrictions are expected to push unemployment to a 16-year high of about 10%. Australia has now recorded 6,617 cases of coronavirus and 71 deaths since the first case in late January. With growing calls to ease the restrictions, leading Australian economists issued an open letter to call on the government to prioritize containing the spread of coronavirus. "We cannot have a functioning economy unless we first comprehensively address the public health crisis," the group of 157 economists from Australian universities wrote. Australia's government and central bank have said they will inject A$320 billion ($203 billion) into the country's economy to try and cushion the economic blow. Restrictions to remain Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week said there would no easing of Australia's restrictions for at least four weeks, and several state premiers on Monday urged the public to keep to the social distancing rules. "We've all made massive sacrifices, given a lot. We can't give back all the gains made because of sense of frustration gets the better of us," Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters in Melbourne. Any significant easing of the current limitations would not occur until Australia had increased testing capacity, strengthened contact tracing and readied local responses for further outbreaks, Andrews said. Central to the government's strategy is a controversial new mobile phone app that will track users' movements to allow contact tracing in the event of an outbreak of coronavirus. The government said it will need at least 40% of the country's population to be signed up to make it effective. Eradication possible? Australia's three most populated states on Monday recorded just seven new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, stoking hopes that Canberra could even eradicate the virus. While praising Australia's efforts, experts say eradication is unlikely. "You have to look at New Zealand and Taiwan. Both have been very successful in containing the virus but there are still cases popping up," Peter Collignon, an infectious diseases physician and microbiologist at Canberra Hospital, told Reuters. "Australia hasn't taken the same hard-line approach to New Zealand so eradication is very unlikely." The government may ease some minor restrictions when the national Cabinet meets on Tuesday. Morrison said last week the Cabinet would consider ending a ban on elective surgeries, and the Australia's main medical association on Monday said recent deliveries of protection equipment would mean some procedures could restart. "Weve been so successful so far that thats given us the opportunity now to plan a sensible, safe, graduated return into the low-risk procedures which provide clinical benefit to patients," Tony Bartone, the head of Australian Medical Association told Channel 7. The current pandemic is considered by many as something out of the ordinary and unprecedented. However, many centuries ago the world was confronted with something similar. The retired Costa del Sol doctor Janis Beernaerts, who lives in Mijas, has always been interested in pandemics. He believes that history has a tendency to repeat itself. As a result there is much in common between Covid-19 and the Plague of the 14th century. Janis, what do you mean by 'history repeats itself'? History is cyclical. As memory fades, events from the past can become events of the present. That is why some people are panicking nowadays and see the current pandemic as something horrible that has never happened on our planet. But we have to look back and to learn lessons. I would like to draw a parallel to the Plague - better known as the Black Death because it killed over thirty per cent of Europe's population in the fourteenth century. By the way, both Covid-19 and the Plague are infectious diseases and also zoonotic diseases because they were spread from certain animals to humans. Any other similarity? They both originated in China. It is quite curious, that in October 2010, international medical geneticists led by Mark Achtman came to the conclusion that all great waves of the plague had their bacterium "evolved in or near China". The Black Death probably also originated very close to China. From there the disease may have travelled along the Silk Road with Mongol armies and traders. It is known that around the year 1343, the Plague reached Crimea and from there was "transported" to Europe with Genoese traders. As in case with the current Covid-19, the Black Death in Europe also hit the Italians first... It looks like it. The first European cases of the Plague and Covid-19 were reported in Italy. In 1347 the disease reached the southern island of Sicily with twelve Genoese galleys. Then it spread to Genoa, Venice and later Rome and Florence as they were the centres of trade routes. By the middle of 1348, the Black Death had struck Marseille, Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon and even London. HIS VIEW ORIGINS "Both the Plague and Covid-19 originated in China and the first European cases were reported in Italy" CONSEQUENCES "Some changes must happen. We should be aware that not everything depends on us" What about Spain? The Plague raged in Spain in the early weeks of July 1348; almost at the same time as it was spreading in Italy and France. It is believed that it entered through the ports of Barcelona and Valencia. Lots of Spaniards were dying. In Spain, the population fell drastically from six million to 2.5 million. There is no information about Malaga which, as we know, at that time was a part of the Moorish kingdom of Granada. However, it was reported that the epidemic returned to Barcelona five times, in a period of 28 years. At the same time, for example, the majority of the Basque Country avoided the Plague as it was very agricultural and quite isolated. Was isolation also undertaken in the 14th century? The practice of quarantine actually began during the Plague. This is also a similarity. First of all, it was necessary to protect coastal cities from the epidemic. It started in Venice where ships arriving from infected ports were required to sit at anchor for 40 days before landing. Actually, in the beginning the sailors were held on their ships for 30 days and it was called a 'trentino'. I want to emphasise that, because of lack of information, there was much more panic than now. Healthy people tried to do anything to avoid the sick. Moreover, doctors refused to see patients and priests refused to administer last rites. Shopkeepers closed their stores. Many people fled from the cities to the countryside. Did self-isolation help a lot? Yes. The infected and their families were confined to their houses for several weeks. Some efforts were made to provide them with food. More drastic measures were introduced. For example, sometimes those who were sick were banished from towns along with their relatives for at least three months. Their homes were burned to the ground. Only in some towns the infected were allowed to enter to do shopping with some restrictions. In general, vigorous attempts were made to improve hygiene, since many doctors were employed. I actually want people to learn the effectiveness of quarantine from the past. Janis, knowing the history, could you forecast the consequences of the current coronavirus? The main consequence that resulted from the Plague was population decline. Moreover, in most parts of Europe land values declined by almost 40%. I have heard that properties are not expected to largely hold their value. As for the wages, they soared in response to a labour shortage. Landowners faced a great loss and were also pushed to substitute monetary rents for labour services in an effort to keep tenants. At the same time, the price of food dropped. In general, some historians claim, that the Plague weakened feudalism. So I would also expect a kind of similar changes in our society in the near future. I cannot say for sure if the prices will increase a lot but some mental and value changes definitely must happen. It is a good lesson for us that we should remain aware that not everything depends on us and in some moments, like pandemic, we all - regardless of gender, social status, income or wealth, ethnicity, sexual orientation - are totally equal. Prominent U.S. congressmen Representative Adam Schiff (Democrat-California) and Representative Steve Chabot (Republican-Ohio) have addressed a bipartisan letter to Tajik President Emomali Rahmon about "continued threats" and other mistreatment of RFE/RL journalists. The lawmakers urged the Tajik authorities to let RFE/RL's operations "continue unabated." The April 16 letter is a follow-up to a previous appeal made in October. Read the letter below. Dear Mr. President: We are writing to follow up on our October 9, 2019 letter regarding journalists affiliated with Radio Ozodi, the Tajik Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). We recently learned that in addition to experiencing continued threats, several Radio Ozodi journalists press credentials were either denied, placed under review, or extended for a period of time shorter than one year. It is our hope that your government will take swift action to reconsider these decisions and allow Radio Ozodi to continue its important work. We learned that only ten of eighteen RFE/RL journalists recently received press credentials after submitting their applications in February. In particular, we were alarmed to hear that the current Acting Bureau Chief and Bureau Administrators credentials remain under review. Our understanding is that only these two positions are legally permitted to sign documents or submit accreditation applications to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and that the denial of their applications would essentially close Radio Ozodis operations in Tajikistan. We were also concerned to hear that several new journalists applications were denied. As Tajikistan has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), protects freedom of expression in its constitution, and defends media freedoms in its domestic laws, we hope you will agree that upholding freedom of the press remains imperative. We appreciate your concerns regarding Radio Ozodis coverage, a free press often results in coverage that policy makers dislike. This, however, is the nature of independent journalism. At this time of uncertainty and crisis as we confront a global pandemic, trustworthy, reliable, and independent sources of news are at an even greater premium. We therefore urge your government to accredit all Radio Ozodi journalists and allow Radio Ozodis operations to continue unabated. Sincerely, Adam B. Schiff MEMBER OF CONGRESS Steve Chabot MEMBER OF CONGRESS A poll designed to test President Trumps vulnerabilities on foreign policy finds that 56% of voters in 12 battleground states believe he has made America less respected in the world, compared to 31% who say America is now more respected. By the numbers: Among the 16% of voters who remain undecided ahead of Novembers election, 59% agree that Trump is making the U.S. less respected, compared to 16% who say the U.S. is now more respected. The poll was commissioned by National Security Action, a group founded by former Obama administration officials to advise Democrats on foreign policy. Ned Price, the group's director of policy and communications, told Axios that Democrats now need to "connect for voters why the fact that Americas reputation is in the dumpster makes us less safe." Voters were also given 10 possible foreign policy priorities and asked which three were most important to their vote. Data: Hart Research Associates; Graphic: Axios Visuals The top choices were protecting the U.S. from terrorism, on which Trump polls well, and standing up for American values, on which he polls poorly. Standing up to China ranked last, suggesting Trumps recent campaign to brand Joe Biden as soft on China may not resonate strongly. While border security is a top issue for Republicans, independents are more likely to prioritize international cooperation on climate change. The big picture: While a plurality (+6%) believes Trump has done a good job keeping America safe from terrorism, a larger one (+22) says hes increased the likelihood of war. Opinion is deeply polarized. While 81% of Republicans think Trump is making America safer, 81% of Democrats think hes making America less safe. What to watch: Presented with a list of criticisms of Trump's foreign policy, voters expressed the most concern about his unwillingness to listen to facts from experts and advisers a tendency that has gained more scrutiny as the coronavirus crisis has deepened. Worth noting: The poll was conducted March 915 after the coronavirus pandemic arrived in the U.S. but before it became the top issue on every Americans mind. Methodology: 1,204 people were polled across Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Go deeper: Trump's coronavirus self-protection plan Brazil: judge bans missionaries from indigenous reserve over Covid-19 fears by Dom Phillips April 20,2020 | Source: The Guardian A Brazilian judge has banned a group of Christian missionaries from entering a vast Amazon indigenous reserve with the worlds highest concentration of isolated tribes, citing risks from the coronavirus pandemic as one of his reasons. Indigenous leaders and activists hailed the decision as historic and expressed hope that it could prevent a genocide in the Javari valley, a remote reserve the size of Austria on Brazils western borders. The isolated tribes at risk of illness from Amazon missionaries Read more Facing with this new coronavirus pandemic we wanted to guarantee the rights of indigenous people to isolation, said Eliesio Marubo, an indigenous lawyer who sought the ruling on behalf of Javaris indigenous association Univaja. Federal judge Fabiano Verli banned three missionaries, Andrew Tonkin, Josiah McIntyre and Pastor Wilson de Benjamin, from the reserve, along with the controversial missionary group New Tribes Mission of Brazil which recently bought a helicopter to convert isolated peoples in the region. The judge referred to recent articles about isolated groups vulnerability to common diseases that decimated their populations in the past and authorised police and army to expel any of the missionaries found in the reserve. Brazil has so far seen three confirmed Covid-19 deaths among its indigenous population. Specialists from the indigenous agency Funai believe 16 isolated groups could live in the Javari valley. Concerns for their safety soared when a former New Tribes missionary was put in charge of Funais isolated indigenous department. Verli wrote that Tonkin, a North American missionary, had been seen in the reserve and noted clear indications of an attempt at cultural assimilation of an isolated group. Brazils O Globo newspaper said Tonkin was seen last year trying to make contact with an isolated group from the Korubo tribe using a hydroplane and was preparing a new expedition. Tonkin told O Globo the accusation was gossip. New Tribes Mission said the group had removed all its missionaries from indigenous reserves by 23 March and does not work with isolated peoples. Funai said Brazils attorney generals office would analyse the ruling. Every time that rights are threatened in the Javari valley we will go to court, said Beto Marubo, an indigenous leader from the reserve. 2020 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. Theme(s): Communities and Organisations. A Portland 51-year-old on Monday pleaded not guilty to accusations he tried to kill a man with a machete earlier this month. Todd Hike is accused of stabbing Abraham Vinzant in the head, face and eye April 9. He faces attempted murder and first-degree assault charges. Vinzant was critically hurt but was expected to survive. Portland police arrived at the Clark Center on Southeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard after neighbors called to report a fight that evolved into a stabbing, according to a probable cause affidavit. A witness told police he heard someone yelling, Help me, please, help me, and when the witness came out of his room, he saw Hike stabbing Vinzant over and over." The witness said he saw blood everywhere and threw a chair at Hike to try to get him to stop, according to documents. A machete used in an April 9, 2020, incident is pictured in a photo provided by the Portland Police Bureau.Portland Police Bureau Officers found Vinzant lying on the floor with Hike on top of him, court filings said. Hike was holding a machete in his right hand, and Vinzant was holding Hikes right hand with both of his hands while yelling for help, documents say. After telling Hike several times to drop the machete, police started pulling him away from Vinzant, the affidavit said. Hike again swung the machete in an apparent attempt to stab Vinzant, missing his head by about 2 inches, according to the affidavit. But he lost his grip on the machete, the affidavit alleges, and police took the weapon and arrested him. He was taken to a hospital, then to jail. Authorities said the machete has a 13-inch blade. They did not say whether anything happened between Hike and Vinzant leading up to the stabbing. -- 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. Ben Barnes in Gold Digger. (Photo: BBC Studios) Ben Barnes has been doing odd jobs around his house just to, in his words, stay sane while being stuck at home during the global coronavirus pandemic. The English actor spoke with Yahoo Lifestyle SEA recently from his home in Los Angeles to promote his new BBC drama, Gold Digger, which premiered in Singapore last Friday (17 April). The six-episode mini series finished its run in the UK in December last year but is now being released in Asia. I was apologising to Barnes for the drilling noise going on during the telephone interview (I was working from home and my neighbour was renovating). Barnes asked if my neighbour was doing DIY jobs at home like he had been doing. I spent a lot of the last few weeks going around, you know, fixing electrical sockets and locks on doors and changing light bulbs and painting rooms, Barnes said. I like getting on those little projects when you have the time, and obviously this is a good time to do that. So that's how I've been staying sane. Such are the realities of life during the epidemic, in which millions of people around the world are locked down at home or self-isolating to avoid spreading the virus to each other. Barnes got his big break playing Prince Caspian in the Narnia movie series, and has in recent years been seen in HBOs Westworld as Logan Delos and Netflixs The Punisher as Billy Russo. The 38-year-old heart-throb had hoped to catch up with friends after spending six months filming for Netflix series Shadow And Bone, which completed shoots in Budapest in February (more on that later). He didnt anticipate that he would have to meet his friends digitally rather than physically, as he returned to his home in L.A. just as the outbreak hit the United States. I'm having long FaceTimes with people so that I can feel like I'm connected with people, because otherwise I think it does become difficult on your end. In Gold Digger, Barnes plays Benjamin, a mysterious hot young thing who pursues Julia Ormonds character, Julia (yes, the characters are named after the actors!) The two end up falling in love, and family drama ensues as Julias family suspects Ben of chasing Julia merely for her money shes 60 years old, while hes 36. Story continues Ben Barnes and Julia Ormond in Gold Digger. (Photo: BBC Studios) Gold Digger has received mixed reviews in the UK (search online for the reviews if you must.) Barnes says the show makes certain demands of viewers, forcing them to participate in judging the characters and how we feel about this relationship between an older woman and a younger man. I think some people respond well to that, and then other people find it frustrating because they just want to sit back and be told a story. But I like to try things that feel a bit different. Barnes says Gold Digger challenges peoples double standards against men and women regarding big age gaps in romantic relationships. I think we always tend to judge the woman if there's an age gap in the relationship. If there's an older man and a younger woman, you tend to, you know, historically, we've congratulated the man. And if there's an older woman and a younger man, historically, you judge the woman for having a toy boy or whatever. So I think that it's interesting just to kind of address that a little bit and ask why we would judge things in certain ways. So exactly how much older of a woman would Barnes himself be willing to date? The actor, who is currently single, as far as we know, cleverly sidesteps the question by saying that his ideal partner would be someone who is able and willing to become a mother to his children. I would love to have children. I think that it's things like that which are more likely to affect the age of the person that I date rather than any judgment of age for its own sake. I mean, I can't really give you an exact figure but I try to be open to a wide range of people. I turn my questions to the next show that well see Barnes in, Shadow And Bone. Netflix ordered an eight-episode pilot season for the fantasy action series, which was based on a trilogy of novels by Leigh Bardugo. The story is about a girl named Alina who discovers she has magical powers and has to save her kingdom from dark forces. Barnes plays the villain, whos called the Darkling in the books but is called General Kirigan in the TV series. According to Barnes, the whole season of Shadow And Bones was filmed within six months in Budapest, the capital of Hungary. It was definitely the right place to shoot. It's got that lovely old world sort of feel. The show has a sort of very Eastern European, almost Russian kind of feel to it. But it's also definitely not in Russia, its in its own world. So it was a good place to shoot, where we could get really interesting architecture. All six episodes of Gold Digger are now available on BBC First on broadband TV here, as well as streaming app BBC Player. Related stories: Police have registered two separate FIRs over objectionable posts shared on Facebook targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, officials here said on Monday. One of them was lodged against Bhupendra Chaturvedi of Bengali Ghat area based on a complaint filed by Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee secretary Mukesh Dhangar at Kotwali Mathura. The other was registered against Chaudhari Sanket Agrawal based on a complaint by advocate Umesh Sharma, president of Mahanagar Congress Committee, Mathura, the police said. The posts hurt the feelings of numerous Congress workers and maligned the prestige of Rahul Gandhi, the complainants alleged. Cases were filed under provisions of the IT (Amendment) Act, 2008 and section 295 of IPC, the police said, adding that they were searching for both the accused. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three people died in a house fire near Dallas, Ore. early Sunday morning. Another occupant suffered significant injuries. Authorities have not identified any of the victims. The first 911 call came in just after 3 a.m. that a house just outside the Dallas city limits was ablaze. Mark Garton, Polk County Sheriff, said the house was large and the couple that owned it rented out several rooms to tenants. When first responders arrived, they found three people who had made it out of the house. Two were treated at the scene and released. The third suffered burns severe enough that he was taken out by ambulance to a Portland hospital. One of three survivors told authorities that there was another person still inside the house. But by then the fire was too big and hot for anyone to attempt a rescue. It was fully engulfed, Garton said. Multiple fire departments responded. They were pouring water on the charred house until after noon to fully extinguish the blaze. At that point, the house was structurally unsound. Authorities were unable to search for additional victims until an excavator cleared a path through the debris. It was only then that they found the three additional bodies, Garton said. Authorities wont release the identities of the victims until they inform the next of kin. But that is proving difficult as the survivors dont know much about their fellow residents, Garton said. There were so many vehicles and first-responders and spectators at the scene, authorities chose to close Highway 223, one of the main streets through Dallas. It remained closed until 2 p.m., snarling traffic in both directions. The fire caused exterior damage to a neighboring home, which also sustained a broken window. Dallas is located about 15 miles west of Salem. Jeff Manning South Korea on April 20 began returning to normalcy after the government eased some of the lockdown restrictions due to decreasing coronavirus cases. South Koreans are now allowed to return to work and visit restaurants and other public places after a month-long of strict lockdown. Although the government eased some of the restrictions on April 19, the lockdown was extended for another 15 days, until May 6. The latest relaxations mean that churches in the country will no longer have to follow the lockdown and sporting events can continue as normal with audiences. Read: Iran Extends Furloughs For Prisoners For Another Month To Curb COVID-19 Spread In Jails South Korea has become a model for the world in handling the disease outbreak and straightening its curve. South Korea ramped up testing after the first case was reported in the country in early February. It set up testing centres at gas stations to detect cases quickly and treat them accordingly. Last week, the East Asian country became the first nation in the world to hold national elections amid lockdown. South Korea took measures like setting up of separate polling stations for people in quarantine and asking voters to stand three feet apart from each other while casting their ballots. Read: Mumbai Police Use Excerpt From Michael Jackson's Song To Raise Awareness On COVID-19 According to data by worldometer, South Korea has recorded 10,674 confirmed coronavirus cases so far, of which 236 people have lost their lives, with 55 patients still under critical condition. There are currently 2,324 active infections in South Korea, while 8,114 have been treated successfully. Read: UN Urges Countries To Protect LGBT+ People Against Discrimination Amid COVID-19 Crisis Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus outbreak has infected over 2.42 million people globally and has killed nearly 1,66,000 patients since it first broke out in December 2019. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the initial epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. The United States, Italy, Spain, France, Iran and the United Kingdom are currently the most affected countries in the world. Read: Venezuela's Maduro Urges Top Court To Postpone Elections Due To Coronavirus Outbreak (Image Credit: AP) In a poignant incident, an orthopaedic surgeon had to bury his associate, a neurosurgeon who died of COVID-19 here, in the middle of the night using his bare hands and a shovel at a crematorium with the help of just two hospital wardboys after the undertakers fled when a mob, protesting the interment, attacked them. Their opposition was due to a misconception that the contagion may spread in their neighbourhood if the virus victim's burial took place. The windscreens of the ambulance in which the body of the 55-year-old neurosurgeon was brought to the crematorium on Sunday night were smashed and even the casket was not spared. They attacked the undertakers and coroporation sanitation officials, among others, using bricks, stones, bottles and sticks and chased them away. Seven people, including two ambulance drivers were assaulted resulting in severe injuries,police said. The sources said 20 men have been arrested and were remanded to judicial custody. Recounting with grief the attack that unfolded, Dr K Pradeep Kumar, an orthopaedic and arthroscopy surgeon,told PTI, "this must not happen to anyone be it a doctor or a layman. I have seen people dying but I have not buried anyone and doing it was scary amid a fear for our lives." Though the private hospital authorities handed over the body to the sanitation officials last night, the ambulance carrying the remains did not start from there. "When we enquired why, we were told that people were opposing and holding a protest near Kilpauk," Pradeep said. He drove to that locality in his car to assess the situation and found people had gathered in large numbers and were agitated. Later, civic body officials made arrangements for burial at another crematorium at nearby Velangadu, and the ambulance headed there. "It may have been about 15 minutes since the excavator started work to dig a pit, when about 60-70 people armed with stones, bricks and sticks gathered inside the creamatorium and began attacking us. The two ambulance drivers who were shifting the body from the vehicle to the ground sustained severe injuries," Pradeep said. Also, two sanitation officials who were in charge of the burial were injured severely and three others were also attacked, he said. To a question, the doctor said there were no police officials around and the wife of the deceased and his teenage son were also forced to leave the crematorium. "Though injured, the ambulance drivers Dhamu and Anand were brave enough to place the casket again in the vehicle and I asked them to leave the place and I followed them in my car," he said, adding he escaped from attack due to God's grace. The ambulance drivers somehow managed to reach the hospital of the deceased and left the vehicle there. Dr Pradeep said he picked up personal protective equipment, took two wardboys with him for help and drove the ambulance himself to the crematorium again after seeking police help. "Both the drivers suffered deep cuts on their scalp, requiring multiple sutures and had contusion too and I got them admitted to Kilpauk government hospital," he added. When he reached the crematorium again, the orthopaedic surgeon saw police deployment in the periphery though there were still people out milling around. "Only an eerie silence and there were none inside the burial ground. The wardboys and I hurriedly lowered the body into the pit as we were afraid that the violence may be repeated." Though they placed the body on the ground, they had no one to help them to fill the grave with sand. "There was just one shovel which I gave to one of the ward boys and two of us used our hands to fill the about 8-10 feet pit. It took over an hour for us to complete the task and by then it was about 1.30 am (Monday)," he said, adding a policeman lent a helping hand towards the end. "Even policemen were afraid of coming near us." Dr M Arunmozhirajan, a friend of the victim, who had to beat a hasty retreat from the crematorium, said "this is due to ignorance; people need to be educated that a body when buried poses no threat." An assistant professor at a government hospital, he wanted authorities to ensure that such instances do not get repeate. Local Administration Minister S P Velumani said it was inhuman to obstruct the burial of a doctor who worked for the people and assaulting people involved in the burial like corporation workers caused grief. He asserted that tough action will be taken against such elements and added that those involved in the attack have been arrested. Tamil Nadu Government Doctors Association president Dr K Senthil demanded slapping of the stringent Goondas Act on those who unleashed violence. Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said: "Saluatations to Dr..for his exemplary service in the fight against COVID-19. Let us stand by each and every healthcare worker, they are the real heroes." Dr J Amalorpavanathan, formerly convener, Cadaver Transplant Programme, Tamil Nadu government, said "A dead person cannot sneeze or cough or breathe. So all ways of infection spread stops the moment a person dies.Viral replication also stops.Skin may contain viral particles.So long as there is no touch , there is zero percent chance of infection spread. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Initially, the psychological impact of the coronavirus attracted little comment. In so far as there was comment it related to the impact on those infected. Since the restrictions imposed by the Government have taken effect, an increasing bevy of commentary has emerged. Much of the opinion is speculative since the recency of the crisis make definitive conclusions impossible. One approach is to examine what is happening within the mental health services in respect of those currently receiving treatment or being newly referred. Are people presenting to the emergency departments with panic or significant depression or perhaps self-harming in desperation? Are those with pre-existing mental illness requiring more assistance than usual from the community services or from in-patient facilities due to relapses? Are GPs in contact with us psychiatrists about urgent new cases? Those of us at the coalface of psychiatry were deeply worried the draconian measures imposed on those with pre-existing mental health problems, a very vulnerable group, might overwhelm them and us. How wrong could we be! Considering the emergency departments, the numbers presenting with suicidal behaviours, including self-harm such as cutting, overdosing, suicidal thoughts or plans, have plummeted dramatically. This is true across all the hospitals in Dublin, which I have checked. My own hospital, the Mater, sees between 750 and 800 such presentations a year. Now it is a trickle, a few each week. Is it possible people are overdosing and simply sleeping it off in their homes or even dying, unknown to others, as a tragic consequence? Are they presenting to GPs instead? GP practices are very quiet and there is little evidence from those I have spoken to that self-harm is being managed in that setting or there are suicides resulting from untreated overdoses. Serious overdoses would inevitably have to be treated in a general hospital. The likelihood is that suicidal behaviour has dramatically fallen as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. What about those with acute mental illness? Are people relapsing due to the stress of the situation or are there new onsets of illnesses such as severe depression, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder? Those who experience such conditions usually require a period of in-patient treatment. But the anticipated pattern of vulnerable people with mental illness relapsing has not materialised and there is no surge in new cases; the opposite is happening with new referrals also diminishing significantly. For the first time, many of the acute psychiatric units in the general hospitals have empty beds. So the triggers to relapses have abated, and with this, acute mental illness requiring hospitalisation. A new observation by some of my colleagues is that when people now require admission to psychiatric units, the level of disturbance, such as violence and aggression, or premature requests for leave, is much less than heretofore. This is very good news for the most severely ill of our patients and it also reduces the stress levels on staff and on others in the ward. Among the community teams there is telephone contact with patients rather than face-to-face out-patient clinics. Even there, for the most part people are accepting of this arrangement and apart from some with health anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder, most are tolerating the strictures. What is the explanation for this shift from overworked, under-resourced services to one that is receiving fewer people than ever requiring our services? What is even more surprising is that these are not the worried well but people with the most severe and potentially disabling mental illnesses who are now showing resilience. This situation defies simple explanation. The most obvious candidate is the change in the availability of illegal drugs. It is accepted these trigger new psychotic episodes and also destabilise those with pre-existing mental illness. More than 60pc of acute admissions, especially among males, are associated with drug misuse and their impact on mental wellbeing. Drugs play a role in many emergency department cases of suicidal behaviour, depression and psychosis. A further possibility, particularly regarding self-harm, is people are less exposed to the interpersonal problems such as difficulties at work or interpersonal stressors linked with unwanted face-to-face contact. On the other hand when society is bonded against a common enemy the sense of belonging increases. Suicide cases dropped during the world wars. And self-harm is known to drop in the lead into Christmas, due to the bonding and sense of purpose people experience. It is also likely the crisis is having an impact on those who never needed to present urgently, but did so simply because of loneliness and isolation or in some cases for attention. Against this positive picture, I was surprised to learn of a study from Maynooth University last week indicating swathes of the population were adversely affected by clinically significant depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Only time will tell why this disparity exists between the picture from research and from clinical practice. But for us psychiatrists, for now, the news is good. Patricia Casey is consultant psychiatrist in the Mater Hospital and Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry, UCD Yves here. At a high level, drug industry assertions that they need high drug prices to fund drug research that they happen not to be interested in doing have been repeatedly debunked. All you need to do is see that they spend more on marketing than R&D, even with what you can be sure are very creative ideas of what constitutes R&D (such as how corporate overheads are allocated). It is nevertheless very useful to have this claim picked apart in detail with this case study on insulin. To return to the general case, weve also pointed out that the overwhelming majority of FDAnew drug applications are for minor reformulations that extend patent life. And to add insult to injury, a high percentage of the drug R&D that actually does get done is funded by the NIH and other Federal agencies. By Rosie Collington, Junior Researcher, Academic-Industry Research Network. Originally published at the Institute for New Economic Thinking website The coronavirus pandemic has brought drug development processes under the spotlight. But the pitfalls of pharmaceutical company corporate governance models that prioritize value for shareholders over the interests of patients and innovation capabilities are nothing new as the case of insulin shows. The list price of analogue insulin medicines in the United States has soared in recent years. A study published in March found that the list prices of seven branded insulin drugs increased by 262% between 2007-2018. The consequences of list price increases are serious, and potentially affect millions of Americans. Today, approximately 1.25 million adults and children in the United States live with type-1 diabetes, an autoimmune condition that leads to kidney failure, blindness and diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) if left untreated. This means that for type-1 diabetics, inability to access insulin can be fatal, and recent data suggests that some patients are struggling to afford their prescription. In the United States, the amount that individuals pay for their insulin prescription depends on their health insurance plans, whether provided by an employer, individual subscription, Medicaid or Medicare. Although patients covered by insurance plans tend not to pay the full list price for their prescription medicines, increases in list prices of prescription medicines can result in higher costs of insurance coverage in the form of deductibles, co-pays and premiums. Despite an overall reduction in the number of uninsured Americans following the introduction of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010, there remain many individuals who are not covered by an insurance plan. And in most cases, uninsured individuals need to pay out-of-pocket for healthcare costs. In 2018, researchers at Yale found that one in four of the diabetes patients surveyed experienced cost-related insulin underuse. Patient organization T1International details numerous, tragic cases of type-1 diabetes patients dying after attempting to ration an insulin prescription to cut costs. Insulin can also be prescribed as a treatment for type-2 diabetes, a condition that is on the rise in the United States, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reportingthat approximately 34.2 million people across the country had a form of diabetes approximately 10.5% of the population. With the potential consequences of insulin unaffordability so clear for patients, it begs the question: who benefits when the price of insulin soars? How have the rising profits from higher-priced insulin medicines been distributed? My new paper addresses these questions. Cui Bono? Over the past year, William Lazonick and I have studied the flows of profits and payments across the insulin supply chain. This study is continuing, but there is enough data now to draw some important conclusions. Our review of the evidence suggests that contrary to some claims, the three manufacturers that dominate the insulin market Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi have indeed seen higher net revenues from insulin product lines during the past decade as list prices have increased. Data available from financial reports of the companies show that annual net revenue from insulin products was on average 44% higher than 2009 for the years 2010-2018. These data reflect Hernandez et al.s recently published data on net price increases of branded insulin products. Pharmaceutical companies have long argued that high drug prices are needed to augment investment in innovation, and the industry has attributed the growing list prices of many new drugs to rising costs of drug development. In the case of insulin, analysis of the companies cash flows suggests that shareholders of Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi have seen huge gains as the list price of insulin has grown. The companies have collectively distributed a total of $122 billion to shareholders in the form of share buybacks and cash dividends over the period 2009-2018. Alternative Models A retain-and-reinvest model of corporate governance, where profits are invested in research and development, could be conducive to innovation within a pharmaceutical company. In any case, most pharmaceutical companies today do not adopt such an approach. Lazonick and colleagues have shown that most of the largest US pharmaceutical companies in fact use high prices to maximize shareholder value and boost stock prices. And even if the insulin manufacturing companies had directed most of their profits from the sale of insulin into R&D activities, the question remains whether higher prices for existing medicines should be funding investment in future medicines. Alternatively, the cost of subsidizing the development of new medicines could be socialized; with R&D spending no longer contingent at all on the price of drugs, there would be no justification for hiking the prices of life-saving medicines. Fundamentally, if a funding model to develop new medical technologies requires higher list prices that reduce patients access to existing treatments, we have to question to what extent it is worth pursuing or even constitutes innovation at all. A closer examination of the Denmark-based company, Novo Nordisk, illustrates this point. Constituting 66% of its total net revenue between 2009-2018, insulin sales in the United States have been an important source of income for the company. Novo Nordisk traces its roots back to the early years of insulin development in the 1920s, when Professor August Krogh brought the novel discovery of the protein as a treatment for type-1 diabetes back to Denmark from the University of Toronto. Historically, the company has maintained a focus on manufacturing insulin, gradually becoming the world leader and today holding a 45% share of the modern and new-generation insulin market. Like other large companies in Denmark, Novo Nordisk operates on the basis of an industrial foundation model of corporate governance. Control over company decisions is maintained by a non-profit institution, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, which holds 76.1% of votes and 28.1% of capital through its shares in Novo Nordisk. The remaining votes and capital are in shares held by institutional and private shareholders. Studies of industrial foundations suggest that the corporate governance model provides relative stability through the development of long-term capital. The working paper suggests that while this may be true, in the case of Novo Nordisk, the company has an interest in keeping insulin prices high in the United States. Some profits yielded through cash dividends and share repurchasing within the Novo Group have been distributed to what can broadly be considered R&D activities through investments in small and medium enterprise (SME) biotech companies by Novo Holdings. Novo Holdings also holds a portfolio of largely liquid investments, comprised predominantly of equities. However, the development of that long-term capital in recent years has been contingent on the list price increases of insulin medicines in the United States. Financialization in the context of insulin pricing could thus be considered to be in tension with the affordability of products that are on the market now, because higher treatment costs for diabetes patients in the United States are a foundation of the Danish companys long-term capital for future innovation. A Matrix of Intermediaries The final section of the paper addresses value extraction and creation by actors beyond manufacturers in the development, distribution and supply of insulin medicines. Although some attention has been paid to the role of pharmacy benefits managers (PBMs) as value extractors in the insulin supply chain in these discussions, the contribution of the government sector has largely been overlooked. Nonetheless, government-funded research in universities and public research institutions has played a key role throughout the evolution of insulin medicines, which adds further importance to questions about what the role of government should be in the determination of drugs prices and conditions of profits for manufacturers. The analysis presented in the paper suggests that at every stage of the insulin supply chain, the potential profits available to intermediaries are influenced by the list price set by the manufacturer, and the option to use retrospective rebates in negotiations between actors further harnesses interests in maintaining higher list prices. While certain actors can be considered as important logistical intermediaries in the supply of insulin, it is not clear how the activity of PBMs in particular contributes to either patient access or medical innovation processes. The insulin industry holds lessons for the wider pharmaceutical sector and anyone that wants to understand the tensions inherent in drug pricing, innovation, financialization and patient access. Now more than ever, we have no choice but to address these tensions, and new economic thinking is needed to create a system that enables innovation in the development and delivery of safe, effective and affordable drugs to all who need them. Continue Reading Below Advertisement The Muslim world was paralyzed when the small army of al-Ikhwan militants took control of al-Masjid al-Haram. It put Saudi troops in a bind, because it was absolutely forbidden to bear arms or spill blood in the most sacred of sacred places. So during the siege's most crucial moments, soldiers had to wait for a special religious fatwa un-damning their souls before they would even point their guns in the direction of the mosque. By that point, the terrorists, who had spent months smuggling a buttload of weapons, ammo, and food into the catacombs below, were completely entrenched, repelling wave after wave of attacks. It took the army two weeks, waves of artillery strikes and a bunch of poison gas to retake the Grand Mosque, but not before the death of 26 worshippers, 124 soldiers, and about 100 Islamic fundamentals (although some sources place that number far higher). Continue Reading Below Advertisement While one of the largest hostage situations of all time should've been the biggest news of the decade, the story missed something very crucial: white people. The event was buried in the back pages of most global publications because, just days into the attack of the Grand Mosque, the Iran Hostage Crisis kicked off, an incident that lasted almost two years. Soon after, the USSR also invaded Afghanistan, giving both superpowers their own Mideast crises to focus on. But while the siege didn't make an international splash, its ripples are still felt around the world to this day. The attack marked the end of liberalism in Saudi Arabia, allowing the monarchy to start enforcing hardline Sharia Law. Iran's Supreme Leader, Ruhollah Khomeini then accused the US of being behind the attack on Islam's holiest place, leading to riots that resulted in the killing of two Americans and two local staff members at the U.S. embassy in Pakistan. Meanwhile, the success (by terrorist standards) of the siege also inspired many smaller groups of radicals to attempt similar feats, including Osama Bin Laden who happened to be in Mecca at the time of the attack and later cited the bloodshed in Islam's holiest site as one of his reasons he became radicalized. Maybe we should have been paying attention. HARRISBURG Businesses have shut down. Pennsylvanians are under stay-at-home orders until at least May 8. More than a million in the state are unemployed. Its all in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus, which has already infected 33,232 and killed at least 1,204 in Pennsylvania. But in defiance of stay-at-home orders, social distancing and masks, well more than 1,000 gathered at the state Capitol in Harrisburg Monday, and they had one loud message, carried through chants and car horns. Its time to reopen Pennsylvania, they said. The Reopen PA rally started on social media, but it grew quickly, drawing in thousands of people. The rally was held to call on Gov. Tom Wolf to allow businesses to reopen and people to go back to work, but organizers say it was also an exercise in civil liberties, and that they have the right to gather, despite stay-at-home orders. Many arrived several hours before the event started at noon, packing in closer and closer on the Capitol steps. As more and more descended upon downtown Harrisburg, the crowd growing, they waved flags and carried signs while more circled the block, blaring their horns in support of the message. Even Stephen Laspina, who is one of the event organizers from Scranton, was stunned by the turnout. It shows that Pennsylvanians are ready to go back to work, he said. He added the crowed showed up to apply pressure and let our voices be heard in calling for the Wolf to allow the states businesses to reopen to avoid economic disaster. Several Republican legislators spoke at the rally, too, calling for Wolf to either roll back his restrictions or sign the Senate bill that would reopen a significant number of businesses across the state a bill Wolf pledged to veto. Similar protests have occurred in other states. In hearing about the potential for a rally last week, Pennsylvania officials advised against the gathering. If you come to Harrisburg and youre not practicing social distancing, then you are putting all of yourselves at risk, Dr. Rachel Levine, Pennsylvanias health secretary, said Thursday. So if a gathering like that happens and theyre not practicing social distancing then they will be more at risk for contracting the dangerous virus. While the Capitol complex is closed and public gatherings are not authorized, activists argue that is their point, too. Beyond the economy and going back to work, their rights are being violated, protesters said. Laspina said he encouraged everyone who attended to follow the CDC guidelines and the recommendations of health officials to social distance and wear masks but it should also be their choice. People have their individual liberties, and that comes with individual responsibilities, he said. One person was detained after ignoring repeated warnings to leave a secure area. The person was cited and released, an official said. Visitors came from all around the state, like Mercedes and Pete Nebroski, a daughter and father from State College. They sat in lawn chairs in the bed of their truck, waving an American flag. They were pleased to see the gathering crowd. We recognize that COVID-19 has the potential to become a dangerous virus, she said. But we dislike the interference in the economy the government has been inflicting upon us and we worry that the cure may be worse that the disease in this case. She said she knows there is risk involved in gathering, but she said she is also for common sense protections. It is up to her if she wants to assume the risk, she said, and she is prepared to deal with that and take responsibility for her own health. Mercedes and Pete Nebroski, of State College, attended the Reopen PA rally in Harrisburg Monday. Eric Orwig and Cody Rodgers didnt come as far. They traveled from Red Lion, decked out in red, white and blue. Both are temporarily unemployed due to business closures, and they say its time to go back to work. Rodgers works in construction, and he said this would be the prime time to be out there working, which he cannot do now due to the shutdown. We take a risk every day going outside. Let us do that at our own discretion, Rodgers said. They cant shut down the economy. Theyre taking away our livelihoods. I want my civil freedoms back, Orwig added. You can advise us to wear a mask, but you cant tell us what to do if its not breaking the law. Eric Orwig and Cody Rodgers, of Red Lion, attended the Reopen PA rally in Harrisburg Monday. There were at least several thousand protesters by the time the rally started at noon, carrying signs with slogans like Let us work, Stop government tyranny and We are all essential. The speakers included a host of Republican legislators. State Rep. Aaron Bernstine, of Lawrence County, took the stage first. He told the crowd they have given up a lot for the pandemic, but businesses need to reopen. Our new normal does not mean well give up our freedoms for safety, he said, getting a huge cheer from the growing crowd. He called for Wolf to sign the Senate bill to open up businesses, and not just the ones he deems to be essential. Every one of you is essential, state Rep. Russ Diamond, of Lebanon County, told the crowd. Their right to assemble is life-sustaining, too, he added. What is not life-sustaining, though, he said, is the governor arbitrarily picking winners and losers to remain open or close, putting 1.5 million Pennsylvanians out of work. And he said returning to work can be done safely under the bill, approved by the Senate 29-21. It would would require Wolf to develop a plan adhering to federal guidelines and allow certain employers to reopen their businesses and get workers back to work within the next three weeks. State Sen. Doug Matriano, who represents all of Adams County and parts of Cumberland, Franklin and York counties, told the crowd Were going to fight for our freedom and say no to tyranny. He said Pennsylvanians are losing their freedoms in the name of safety with the stay-at-home order and business shutdowns, adding, Gov. Wolf can keep his socialist ideas. We are free people in a free state. State Sen. Judy Ward, who is also a nurse, started her speech by saying she worries about so many people standing so close, shoulder to shoulder and maskless, eliciting loud boos from the crowd. As she tried to speak, telling them she is proud of the cause theyre supporting, their boos drowned her out, turning into chants of USA, USA. She seemed to win them back toward the end, though, saying Please, Gov. Wolf, give us a plan to reopen businesses. The rally wrapped up at 1, but two hours later, cars were still filing out as thousands headed home, blaring their horns, waving flag and calling for the state to reopen. This is the beginning, Laspina told the crowd as the rally came to an end. 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. In this file photo, part time Lyft driver Brittany Cameron sits on the hood of her own vehicle, which she uses to give rides, and which is adorned with Lyft's trademark pink mustache, in downtown Denver. Lyft is a transportation network company whose mobile-phone application facilitates peer-to-peer ride sharing by enabling passengers who need a ride to request one from drivers who have a car. Internet companies like Lyft that connect riders to drivers with a few taps on a cellphone app will be regulated in Colorado with legislation soon to become law, putting the state at the forefront of a push to try to legitimize the flourishing tech startups. BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Turkeys export of ready-made clothing to Turkmenistan dropped by 15.12 percent from January through March 2020 compared to the same period of 2019, exceeding $2.1 million, Turkeys Ministry of Trade told Trend. In March 2020, Turkeys export of ready-made clothing to Turkmenistan also dropped by 37.61 compared to the same month of 2019, amounting to $649,000. In 1Q2020, Turkeys export of ready-made clothing to world markets dropped by 6.1 percent, compared to the same period of 2019, amounting to $4.2 billion. Turkeys export of ready-made clothing amounted to 9.9 percent of the countrys total export. In March 2020, Turkeys export of ready-made clothing to world markets dropped by 27.4 percent compared to the same month of 2019, amounting to 1.2 billion. Meanwhile, Turkeys export of ready-made clothing amounted to 9 percent of the countrys total export. From March 2019 through March 2020, Turkey exported ready-made clothing in the amount of $17.4 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Gardai in Kilkenny are once again urging vigilance from the public with regard to a number of scams doing the rounds. Last week, a woman fell victim to a phishing scam and was conned out of several hundred euro. Gardai in Killenny said they received reports of a scam where a caller purporting to being from Eir gleans bank details. In another, a scam text message purports to come from Bank of Ireland and asks customers to link to a page with the aim of getting access to an account and relieving customers of their savings. At the weekend, Gardai also shared some important information and advices from their colleagues in Europol. Some of these scams are nothing new but people are still getting caught they said. People in Kilkenny and Carlow have reported receiving scam mail regarding PPE equipment and vaccines. Other scam texts and emails have been received purporting to be from broadband companies offering to fix devices, from banks and phone companies looking for redirection payments, and from Netflix looking to set up new accounts. Advice from gardai on how to avoid becoming a victim is as follows: Do not respond to emails texts etc that cold call into your account; Do not click on links that you are unsure of; Never provide your personal or financial details via phone, text or email without fully verifying the authenticity of the person you are dealing with; Ensure your electronic device is properly protected against scam mail. Invest in antivirus and firewall protection. Additionally, be wary of one ring calls to your phone prompting you to call back. This is quite possibly a Wangiri Scam where you will dial back the number to a premium call centre and be charged exorbitant amount ta to listen to a recorded message. Check the Official Garda Website for further fraud advice www.garda.ie. The President was clear in his 7th speech on covid-19, delivered Sunday. He says, the fact that we are lifting the lockdown does not mean we are letting our guard down. Stay home unless it is absolutely necessary to step out, he stresses. He went to great lengths to show that the decision to lift the lockdown was also backed by science and data. The data shows, and the scientists explain, that the dynamics of the virus in Ghana and much of Africa, so far, appear different from what we are seeing elsewhere. The mechanisms by which this virus is transmitted is the same everywhere, whether you are in Accra or Madrid coughing, sneezing, handshaking, being in close contact with an infected person, etc. However, there is evidence across the world that the way it spreads, the speed, pattern and impact of that spread may vary from country to country, community to community. Yet, those who are convinced that lifting the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi now was wrong, may have a point. Only time will tell. But, they will be wrong to think that their opinion is supported by science and data and that of the President not. I will proceed to show why. The truth is that it is harder to impose a lockdown in a developing (poor) country than in a developed (rich) country. But, the President believes, as he showed three weeks ago, that it is better to lockdown, when in doubt, and use that period to gather a deeper understanding of the situation in order to allow you take a decision, based on the information gathered, on what the next step should be. That is exactly what is happening now in Ghana. When to come out of a lockdown is also a judgment call based on several other factors but all such factors only come to play when viewed in the light of the science and data available. It is also important to stress that lockdown is by no means the only effective method of checking the spread of this virus. Some of the countries combating this pandemic more effectively than most countries, are not in a lockdown. They did all the other things we are doing, including aggressive contact tracing and testing and shunned lockdown. We should be careful about being unduly influenced by imported groupthink. We must develop our own groupthink based on our own circumstances and available scientific evidence. Our vociferous social media influencers and middle class opinion leaders, especially those with the eloquence and channels to voice their opinions and the physical and fiscal capacity to endure a lockdown, should please try and be guided more by local evidence, ie from the science, social science and data in Ghana. In a country like ours where we have high death rates from other illnesses, such as malaria, TB and cholera, and where the impact of poverty causes a lot of avoidable deaths, including at childbirth, a lot more has to be considered in the basket of science and data. But, lets look at the data here. Currently, out of the 1,042 confirmed cases in Ghana, only 4 (yes four) are in either critical or moderately ill condition. That is 0.38%! Going by one source alone, www.worldometers.info the global rate is over 3% in critical condition (down from 6% a month ago as nominal figures rise). Also, majority of those infected with covid-19 get a self-limiting infection and will go on to recover. My prediction is that over the next three weeks alone, we are likely to have over 500 cases of recovered cases in Ghana after the mandatory two successful negative tests. So far, the transition from mild to severe or critical cases or death in Ghana is not happening anywhere near the rate that we are seeing in the West. We have only 9 deaths so far. Of course, every death matters. But, that is still 0.86% of all confirmed cases. Globally, according to various credible trackers, about 10% of cases require intensive care unit admission and 6.4% of people confirmed to be infected have now died globally. California alone, for example, has some 1,177 deaths. So far, the trend in Ghana is not following the pattern we are seeing in the West, for example. Our population is also much younger than that of the West and the scientists believe this counts. Over 95% of deaths caused by Coronavirus in Europe affected those over 60 years, with more than 50% of all deaths being people over 80. Furthermore, the warmer climate may also be helping us, (if not the years of chloroquine our bodies have endured!) because the rate of infection among those known to have been in contact with infected persons (and yet were not infected) seems much lower than what we are seeing in the West. The point in all this, is not to be complacent. In any event, not many leaders of the world have taken the kinds of timely, bold and decisive initiatives that President Akufo-Addo has taken since March to combat this virus. It is about how one chooses to read the data. The numbers may frighten you, compared to where we knew we were five weeks ago, but the numbers represent more than panic. For example, 49,699 people have been tested directly through contact tracing. Only 544 (1.09%) of them tested positive. Contact tracing simply refers to people who had been in contact with persons carrying this highly infectious Coronavirus. Compare that to the infected persons who brought it from abroad. Out of 2,022 who were quarantined, 115 (5.69%) tested positive. Now, one other basic indicator of actual cases may come from those captured under the headline routine surveillance meaning those who have the symptoms and go to the hospital, get tested and come out positive. Out of 16,870 of them tested, 383 (2.27%) were positive. That puts the total percentage of the 68,591 tested and registering positive results at 1.52% or 1,042. We can all speculate that the actual numbers of infected persons out there in Ghana and undetected could be as high as 30,000 or even higher. But what we cant speculate but can tell for a fact is that there is no evidence as at yet of a spike in sick people showing up in our health facilities nationwide with symptoms. That must count for something. Surely? The data has been quite robust over the last three weeks. 98.5% of people tested continue to be negative. That must count for something. And, it is all about science and data. And, when you have such numbers you must weigh your options with both common sense and analytics. The same way the decision to lockdown and the nature of that partial lockdown was based on epidemiological and social considerations, the decision to lift it is also based on both. Science also includes social science. Are the 1,042 confirmed cases we have now because of the lockdown? Will they have been higher or lower without the lockdown? If these answers are not known for certain then do we continue letting ordinary people, which means the vast majority of our city dwellers, suffer the impact of the lockdown when the only empirical evidence we have so far is that the rate of infection through contacts with infected persons is, as at now, nowhere near as high as elsewhere? Moreover, should lockdown and the consequences of it be our preferred option when less than 0.5% of those infected get into critical condition as opposed to 4-6% globally? Lockdown may well be once again a preferred option in the future. But, right now, the evidence scantily supports it when probed. The only other thing we know for sure for now is that we detected most of the infected cases because of the aggressive tracing and testing. The trend so far is that for every 10,000 of suspected cases tested, about 1.5% come out positive. Ghana has an aggressive programme of contact tracing that has not started in even many advanced countries, where you have to first fall ill to qualify to be tested. The decision by the President to get even more aggressive with testing should put us in an even better position in the next three weeks to weigh the options further. So far, the data gathered gives us confidence that community spread is low. Ghana leads Africa in testing per capita and Ghana may very well also lead Africa in showing that besides lockdown, we can still check the spread successfully with the remaining measures, backed by greater self-discipline and self-control. We must not be shy in asking the question: should our policy on lockdown be driven largely by the 1.5% who have tested positive? This may require a common sense answer. Will another two or three weeks have made any difference to the trend analysis? Certainly, for those enduring the crude and naked direct impact of the lockdown, which may not necessarily be you and I (since we may be able to afford the inconvenience and the struggle), but, for them, everyday spent under a lockdown may be a struggle for survival and against another disease. In any case, we are even going to ramp up testing and maintain border closures, social distancing, and extensively wear masks, etc. The decision the President took Sunday was based on science and not politics and if it was based on politics then, I dare say that it was based on sound politics, supported by science, social science and data. When all is said and done, the President did say, Should there be an unexpected outburst in infections within a community, I have put the health workers and the security services, including the Police Service and the Armed Forces, on standby, to co-ordinate a rapid response of human and logistical resources, if necessary, to cordon, impose a curfew, trace, test and treat infected persons in the affected community. He says it all the time, the situation is constantly under review, adding as he did this time, he wont be afraid to even impose a curfew if that is what will be required later. Nana Addo has done his bit. You do your bit. Wear a mask. Work from home if you dont have to show up at work to do your work. Be a responsible citizen and not just a responsive critic. Stay well! Source: Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko/facebook 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. Featured Video It warms all our hearts at Valley Community Healthcare, that the employees of Birch Gold voted to donate their bonuses to us, a local community health center on the front lines of fighting COVID and devoted to protecting the health of those most vulnerable. There can be no higher accolade. Birch Gold Group, a national dealer of physical precious metals, announced today that it has made a donation to Valley Community Healthcare, a non-profit organization in its community that focuses on providing health services to low-income and otherwise marginalized individuals. The business now joins the ranks of the non-profit's Corporate Partners. The decision from Birch Gold, along with its choice of the beneficiary, comes as a result of the unique situation that the coronavirus pandemic has created. Due to the severe financial turmoil that the unprecedented crisis has brought on, investors around the globe have fled to safe-haven assets, with gold and silver being among the first choices for many. By the end of March, Birch Gold Group had processed the highest amount of monthly sales since the company opened its doors in 2003. For many companies, the best month in its history might result in a bonus for its employees, but given the circumstances, Birch Gold Group opted for a different route. Instead of receiving their bonuses, employees voted that the money be given to an organization in their community to help bolster the crisis-fighting efforts. After an exhaustive search of various non-profits, Valley Community Healthcare was selected as a clear-cut choice. While the coronavirus has affected most of the world's population in some way, those who normally struggle to obtain basic medical services have been hit especially hard, as hospitals become crowded and the health care industry's resources grow thin. Andy Klein, Marketing Director at Birch Gold Group, said of the choice, "We identified a number of deserving organizations, but we were especially drawn to Valley Community Healthcare due to its roots in our community and its organized response to this crisis. We are thrilled to provide financial backing to help them take on this new challenge." With its network of health centers spread throughout the San Fernando Valley area, Valley Community Healthcare provides mental and physical health care to those who have little to no way of obtaining it, even in non-crisis times. Established in 1970, the organization serves more than 20,000 people annually, including children and seniors. Given the organization's experience, purpose and dedication, Birch Gold Group has no doubt that its contribution will make the exact kind of difference needed in these troubled times. Valley Community Healthcare was thrilled to become the recipient of the donation, not just because it will provide much-needed funds but also due to it being a testament to the importance of their work. Judi Rose, VP of Valley Community Healthcare, said, "It warms all our hearts at Valley Community Healthcare, that the employees of Birch Gold voted to donate their bonuses to us, a local community health center on the front lines of fighting COVID and devoted to protecting the health of those most vulnerable. There can be no higher accolade." ABOUT BIRCH GOLD GROUP In business since 2003, Birch Gold Group is one of the top dealers of physical precious metals in the United States. The company sells gold, silver, platinum and palladium for physical possession. It's also a leader in Precious Metals IRAs, which allow retirement savers to diversify their IRA or old 401(k) into precious metals. To date, Birch Gold has helped over 7,000 customers and maintains an A+ Rating with the Better Business Bureau. You are here: Business An online trade fair assembling 100 medical supply manufacturers in east China's Zhejiang Province and more than 80 Italian medical institutions, multinational firms and business associations was launched Friday. Scheduled to conclude on April 22, the fair is expected to help meet the urgent demand for anti-epidemic supplies in Italy. It will also hold two targeted procurement sessions for Italian private businesses and for an Italian hospital respectively. Han Jie, deputy head of the Zhejiang provincial department of commerce, which launched the fair, said Zhejiang has planned over 50 online fairs targeting various overseas trading partners in the first half of 2020. Anger is rising among academics and other education workers across Australia over secret talks initiated by the National Tertiary Education (NTEU) with employers to cut jobs, wages and conditions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The alarm among university staff was heightened last Friday when the Guardian reported the text of some of the resolutions adopted by the NTEU national executive on April 3 to commence a national level negotiation with the university managements. The national executive resolved that concessions may be made, including concessions on pay, which could include a pay freeze, deferral of increments, or in extreme circumstances, temporary general reductions in Agreement rates. Fearing a revolt by its members over this pay-cutting plan, the NTEU executive said the resolutions must be kept internal, or for confidential, limited sharing. Even before this damning news was published, opposition had erupted to the NTEUs email announcement, delayed until April 8, informing members that it was already conducting such talks quickly and cooperatively. That email declared that, without any authorisation by members, the union was offering the employers measures that we would never normally consider. But that email covered up the true extent of the concessions the NTEU is offering, in particular the pay cuts. Amid the furious response to the email, a meeting of NTEU members at the University of Sydney voted 117 to 2 to censure the national executive for commencing negotiations on significant concessions. NTEU branch committees at the University of Melbourne, RMIT, Flinders University and Victoria University adopted similar resolutions. After the Guardian report, it is now even clearer that while claiming to be trying to save jobs, the NTEU is paving the way for an historic reversal of university workers' conditions, as well as for the destruction of thousands of more jobs on top of the thousands already lost, especially casuals. The unions cynical cover-up of its plans was on display last Thursday, the day before the Guardian report. About 600 mostly outraged NTEU members participated in a New South Wales statewide online meeting, only to find they were barred from speaking or moving motions to oppose the unions plans. Members of the NTEU national executive ran the webinar but made no mention of pay cuts. Instead, they said the NTEU was seeking salary-related cost saving measures, including reduction of leave balances and fractional reductions in employment. Giving the opening report, NTEU state secretary Michael Thomson, who is a member of the national executive, defended entering the talks behind the backs of union members. We do this all the time, he said, referring to negotiations with university managements. Thomsons remark unwittingly revealed that the NTEU sellout being prepared is not an aberration, but a continuation, in a more naked form, of what it has done for decades. The NTEU has a long record of drawing up enterprise agreements with managements that have allowed the universities to substantially casualise their workforces and carry out frequent restructuring cuts to jobs. This flows from the whole perspective of trade unionism, which is to tie workers to the profit-making requirements of their employers. The same hand-in-glove relationship with business was articulated by the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) secretary Sally McManus when vowed on Insiders, a national television program, on April 5 that the unions would give employers everything you want in response to the pandemic. Thomson claimed that we havent reached any agreement with management. He said members could vote on any deals during branch meetings at individual universities. But the unions clear intent is to foist a national framework on university workers as a fait accompli. Despite the webinar format, a barrage of comments in the chat field showed widespread hostility to the discussions the NTEU is conducting. Among the responses were: Concessions never save jobs. History has shown this, Why are you blocking debate at this meeting? Why cant we move resolutions opposing what the union is doing? and Why has the union gone behind our backs to go into these talks? In an attempt to defend the unauthorised negotiations, Damien Cahill, another NTEU national executive member, told the webinar that the university managements can do whatever they want and have enormous prerogative at the moment under the Fair Work Act. He argued that the union therefore had no choice but to seek deals with the managements. Yet the universities only have a virtual free hand to impose job cuts because of the NTEUs enterprise bargaining agreements (EBAs), which allow redundancies for operational reasons. Cahill also warned against illegal industrial action by NTEU members to fight cuts to jobs and conditions. Such action is only illegal because the Fair Work Act bans industrial action, except during EBA negotiating periods. All the unions, including the NTEU, supported the introduction of that legislation by the last Labor Party government. In response to the chat condemnations, the NTEU officials insisted that we are not selling out, we are protecting jobs. Yet they admitted that tens of thousands of casuals have already lost their employment and other staff members are being forced to take part-time, fractional jobs. The COVID-19 crisis has brought to a devastating new level the chronic government under-funding of universities. Primarily because of the loss of full fee-paying international students, total university incomes this year are expected to fall by up to $5 billion. The current Liberal-National governments refusal to rescue the universities comes on top of the $7 billion cut by successive governments over the past decade, starting with the minority Gillard Labor government, kept in power by the Greens. This poses the necessity for a political struggle against the capitalist ruling elite itself. Members of the Committee for Public Education (CFPE) and the Socialist Equality Party contributed to the chat discussion at Thursdays webinar, seeking to expose the role of the NTEU and advocating an alternative socialist perspective. CFPE members posed questions such as: Why have your EBAs allowed managements to destroy so many jobs? Why are you trying to impose a national framework on us? Why not demand the diversion of funds from the wealthy or military spending to fund universities? Not one of these questions was answered. By contrast, supporters of pseudo-left groups promoted the illusion that the same union that was pursuing this monumental betrayal could be pressured into leading a fight against the universities and the government. They posted links to a petition that declares: We deserve betterand if our union fights we can win it. The petition advises the union: If we want to maintain and grow the membership, the NTEU cannot be seen to be bargaining away our pay and conditions, it has to fight for them. In chat comments, CFPE members posed the obvious question: Why ask this same national executive to lead a struggle? They also posted links to the CFPE Facebook site and a WSWS article denouncing the NTEUs backroom talks. As that article explains, the crisis provoked by COVID-19 has exposed the true pro-management nature of the NTEU. It shows the necessity for university workers to break from the NTEU entirely and build new rank-and-file organisations based on a fight against the profit-driven capitalist system itself. West Bengal Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha on Monday came down heavily on the Centre for sending teams to the state without following "laid-down norms" and said the members deployed have been roaming several areas, but the administration here has not been kept in the loop. Sinha, the state's top bureaucrat, said the Centre did not consult the West Bengal government before sending the inter-ministerial teams. "Laid-down norms have not been followed by the central teams. They are visiting the areas, without taking the state government into confidence," Sinha told reporters. The ICMT teams arrived just minutes after an official communication from the central government was received, he said. "Once they arrived at the airport, they, along with BSF and SSB personnel, started visiting various areas on their own. This is completely unacceptable," Sinha added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mitt Romney, CNN, the top brass at the FBI at the beginning of 2017 these were just some of the targets of a verbal lashing from Donald Trump at the daily White House coronavirus briefing on Sunday. While Mr Trump, the vice president Mike Pence, and other White House coronavirus task force officials spent nearly an hour at the podium mounting a public relations campaign to paint the administrations response to the health crisis in positive colours amid outside criticism from Democrats and health experts, the question-and-answer portion of the briefing turned characteristically chaotic as the president clashed with reporters. When asked to comment on his convicted former campaign adviser Roger Stones imminent imprisonment, Mr Trump labelled former FBI Director James Comey and others at the FBI human scum for pursuing cases against the his former associates, including Mr Stone, former 2016 Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn. The president suggested Mr Stone, Mr Manafort, and Mr Flynn who have all been convicted of felonies since working for Mr Trump were unfairly targeted by law enforcement, though he declined to say whether he would pardon any of them. Mr Manafort is roughly one year into a 7.5-year prison sentence. Mr Stones motion for a new trial on charges of lying to Congress was dismissed last week, setting up a potential prison start-day soon. Mr Flynns sentencing has been postponed indefinitely. At another point in the briefing, Mr Trump confirmed that he purposely snubbed Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, the sole Republican senator out of 53 not to be named to the presidents wide-ranging task force to re-open the economy in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Asked whether Mr Romneys exclusion indicated the president still held a grudge over the Utah senators vote to convict him during his impeachment trial earlier this year, Mr Trump responded, Yeah, it does. Im not a fan of Mitt Romney. I dont really want his advice, he said, despite Mr Romneys background as a former governor and chairman of the Salt Lake Olympics organising committee. Mr Trumps also directed his ire at the media, with particularly heated clashes with reporters from CBS and CNN. You people are so pathetic at CNN, Mr Trump said in response to a series of questions from CNN reporter Jeremy Diamond about the presidents past praise of his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, near the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak in the US and after Mr Trump and Mr Xi had struck a major trade deal. Thats why your ratings are so bad. Youre pathetic. Your ratings are terrible. Youve got to get back to real news, Mr Trump told the CNN reporter. Two policemen were suspended on Monday for alleged dereliction of duty in the wake of lynching of three men in Maharashtra's Palghar district, an official said. The incident took place on April 16 when the three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. Palghar Collector Dr Kailas Shinde earlier said the role of police on the day of the incident was being probed, and it was also being examined how the three men travelled from Mumbai during the lockdown. Following the probe, Palghar Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh ordered suspension of Kasa police station's assistant police inspector Anandrao Kale and sub-inspector Sudhir Katare for alleged dereliction of duty, a police source said. The Kasa police have registered three FIRs in connection with the incident and arrested 101 people, who havebeen remanded in police custody till April 30, a police spokesperson said. Nine juveniles have also been taken into custody and sent to a remand home at Bhiwandi in neighbouring Thane district, he said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said stern action will be taken against those involved in the lynching of the three men. The state government has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Advertisement Healthcare workers clashed with anti lockdown protesters in Colorado on Sunday, defiantly standing in front of the cars of demonstrators who flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders. Protests against state lockdowns implemented to combat the novel coronavirus outbreak continued nationwide this afternoon, as a fervent disdain for the restrictions that have shut down much of the country's economy continues to slowly spread across the US. Titled 'Operation Gridlock', the day's largest demonstration took place in Denver, where hundreds of protesters ignored social distancing guidelines to huddle together on the lawn of the state Capitol, waving flags emblazoned with slogans such as 'Your "health" does not supersede my right', 'Freedom over fear', and 'I would rather risk coronavirus than socialism'. Mobilized by a number of groups on social media, the protesters called Gov. Polis a tyrant and insisted the ongoing economic cost of the shutdown was no longer worth the few lives it would save. But the protesters' efforts weren't met without resistance. A group of healthcare workers stood in the street, clad in their scrubs and facemasks, to counter-protest the calls for re-opening, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards the Capitol. Scroll down for video You shall not pass: A group of healthcare workers stood in the street to counter-protest the calls for re-opening, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards the Capitol, dressed in scrubs and facemasks Photographs captured the nurses standing in front of a number of vehicles staring back at the drivers with their arms crossed, refusing to move under a cacophony of horns and heckles The nurse refuses to move despite the protester attempting to engage in a verbal altercation with him One incensed protester stepped out from his SUV to confront a male healthcare worker The driver was seen angrily approaching the nurse, ordering him to move out of the way, but the healthcare worker remained unmoved, opting simply to look in the other direction The immovable force: cars are forced to drive around the counter-protester who refused to move out of the road Demonstrators flocked to the state Capitol in their hundreds to urge Gov. Jared Polis to lift COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders Protesters walk the sidewalk in front of the State Capitol and wave placards during a protest against the stay-at-home order issued by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis Traffic backs up along Lincoln Avenue at 14th Street as protesters in cars augment the demonstration with a cacophony of honks and chants, from a distance Photographs captured the nurses standing in front of a number of vehicles, staring back at the drivers with their arms crossed, refusing to move under a cacophony of horns and heckles. PRESIDENT TRUMP PRAISES PROTESTERS President Trump appeared to praise the actions of the protesters during his Sunday White House briefing, despite the demonstrations defying state stay-at-home orders. 'I've seen the people. I've seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump said. 'They've got cabin fever. They want their lives back.' The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats. 'No, I am not. I've never seen so many American flags,' Trump said. 'These people love our country. They want to get back to work.' Advertisement One incensed protester stepped out from his SUV to confront a male healthcare worker. The driver was seen angrily approaching the nurse, ordering him to move out of the way, but the healthcare worker remained unmoved, opting simply to look in the other direction. 'No all heroes wear capes,' one Twitter user wrote in support of the healthcare workers. Another wrote: 'Colorado health care workers, who have been putting their lives on the line to save others, stand in the street in counter-protest. The selfishness and ignorance of todays protest is peak privilege. #ThisIsAmerica' A video captured a woman hurling racists remarks at the same nurse as she leaned out of the window of her car holding a 'Land of the Free' sign. 'This is a free country. Land of the free,' she yelled at him, pulling out a homemade poster displaying those very words. 'Go to China if you want communism. Go to China.' That video, posted to Twitter by Marc Zenn, has been viewed more than eight million times. By Monday morning, 'Go to China' was trending on Twitter in the US as users expressed disgust over the woman's remarks and said they illustrate a growing rift between healthcare workers and protesters who want to reopen the country immediately. For those who made it through the blockade, the vast majority of those outside the Capitol were not wearing masks or gloves, stood in large groups just inches apart, and some even brought their children along for the occasion. Many protesters wore hats and t-shirts in support of President Trump. One man even rode a horse up and down the street, with an American flag draped over his shoulder. 'Pot shops are open, abortion clinics are open and my church is closed,' protester Mary Conley told the Denver Post. Death is a part of life and its time to start living again.' Another protester, Jim Fenimore, told the outlet he decided to attend because he believes the drastic national response to the coronavirus has all been a political ruse to make the economy crash and cause Trump to lose support ahead of the impending election. One man even rode a horse up and down the street, with an American flag draped over his shoulder For those who made it through the blockade, the vast majority of those outside the Capitol were not wearing masks or gloves, stood in large groups just inches apart, and some even brought their children along for the occasion Many protesters wore hats and t-shirts in support of President Trump Free Colorado: passengers waves a placards and flags out of convertible cars during a car protest against the stay-at-home order Gov. Polis acknowledged last week that the current level of social distancing and other restrictions is not sustainable for the long term, but said any reopening would need to happen gradually, with some precautions in place for several months As of Sunday evening, Colorado has 9,433 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 411 recorded deaths Fenimore demanded Colorado lift its stay-at-home order 'before the scheduled 26 reopening'. Denver's order is actually set to lift on April 30. 'Every day that goes by is hurting the state,' he said. 'I dont want anyone to see anyone die, but there are far more deaths for other reasons.' As of Sunday evening, Colorado has 9,433 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 411 recorded deaths. The pandemic and stay-at-home orders have wreaked havoc on the state's economy with more than 232,000 people filing or unemployment in the last four weeks. Gov. Polis acknowledged last week that the current level of social distancing and other restrictions is not sustainable for the long term, but said any reopening would need to happen gradually, with some precautions in place for several months. A spokesperson from Polis office said the governor respects citizens right to protest but that 'those participating are only endangering themselves.' Other similar demonstrations were held in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State earlier today. Though the each of the protests were relatively small in size, they signify a growing sentiment among aggrieved workers across the US that the country must resume its economic activity sooner rather than later - albeit with measures in place to prevent a 'second wave' of coronavirus infections. President Trump appeared to praise the actions of the protesters during his Sunday White House briefing, despite the demonstrations defying state stay-at-home orders. 'I've seen the people. I've seen interviews of the people. These are great people, Trump said. 'They've got cabin fever. They want their lives back.' The president rejected the assertion that he was inciting violence with his words of encouragement, as one reporter pointed out that governors around the country were seeing an uptick in death threats. 'No, I am not. I've never seen so many American flags,' Trump said. 'These people love our country. They want to get back to work.' The reporter then pointed out that some protesters had waved Nazi flags. The president said he was, clearly, against that from happening. Other similar demonstrations were held in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State (above) earlier today Demonstrators crowd together at a protest opposing Washington state's stay-home order to slow the coronavirus outbreak Sunday Justin Bailey, of Tacoma, Wash., holds an assault rifle and a flag as he protests in Washington Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death: Though the each of the protests were relatively small in size, they signify a growing sentiment among aggrieved workers across the US that the country must resume its economic activity sooner rather than later Beranese Nel, left, disregards social distancing guidelines to have her photo taken with Justin Young, holding an assault rifle, at a protest in Olympia, Washington A man wearing a cutout mask gathered with hundreds of others at a 'Hazardous Liberty! Defend the Constitution!' rally in Olympia, WA Flatten the Fear: Waving flags and holding signs, Freedom Rally participants voice their opinions to passing traffic on the Market Street Bridge in Chattanooga, Tenn Heath experts and state governors across the country have continuously countered the cries for immediate reopenings, insisting that any premature return to normalcy would be disastrous, inevitably leading to soaring new numbers of infections and a subsequent sharp increase in deaths. President Donald Trump has signaled support for the protests though. After a public fall-out with several governors over his wrongful claims to have 'absolute power' to reopen the US economy earlier this week, Trump encouraged demonstrators in Michigan, Virginia, Minnesota, to 'liberate' their states, claiming their Second Amendment was 'under siege'. The US is the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis, with 759,204 recorded and 40,276 deaths. Despite the ominous statistics, President Trump cited 'positive signs' in the fight against the pandemic on Saturday, believing the worst is now over. 'We continue to see a lot of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak,' the President said, just days after the White House issued guidelines for the gradual reopening of the country. After a week in what Trump described as an indicator that the worst of the crisis is behind us, the president says he will now shift his focus to kickstarting an economic recovery after four-weeks of lockdowns. Trump said that Texas and Vermont will allow some business to re-open next week, with strict social distancing measures still being enforced. Residents in Florida and other states returned to the beach Saturday despite an increase in COVID-19 deaths and infections. Meanwhile, three Northeastern states reopened boatyards and marinas for personal use only. Give Me Liberty or Give Me COVID-19: The US is the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis, with 759,204 recorded and 40,276 deaths After a week in what Trump described as an indicator that the worst of the crisis is behind us, the president says he will now shift his focus to kickstarting an economic recovery after four-weeks of lockdowns. Protesters in Indianapolis called the coronavirus outbreak a 'Fake Crisis' and said 'Fauci was wrong' My Freedom Doesn't End Where Your Fears Begin: Kristen Holland holds a sign during a Freedom rally on the Market Street Bridge in Chattanooga, Tennessee Residents protest stay-at-home orders involving the closing of beaches and walking paths in Encinitas, California Other states are expected to gradually ease lockdown restrictions while other states, such as New York, have issued no indication that measures will be relaxed any time soon. Nationwide, food banks are reportedly struggling to meet increased demand from out-of-work Americans, while school systems are largely shuttered, with home schooling plans in place. The rollout of CARES Act stimulus checks has provided some temporary relief, but there are still reports of an unemployment system that is overwhelmed by new applications, resulting in workers being unable to register. A man wears a protective mask as he waits to cross a street Monday, April 13, 2020, in St. Louis, where, as in Philadelphia, black residents are dying at a higher rate than other populations. Read more In 2019, black reparations commanded their largest modern spotlight. The pinnacle was the Juneteenth televised House Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill to establish a study commission for reparations to African Americans. Today, attention has receded. The remaining Democratic Party candidate shows little enthusiasm for the policy, and President Donald Trump has dismissed it. Now the COVID-19 crisis threatens to push all other topics off the public table. But it also gives us the opportunity to imagine a better world post-pandemic and highlights the areas that most need fixing. Racial divergence in the impact of COVID-19 which is proving deadliest for black Americans in Philadelphia and beyond powerfully reinforces the importance of reparations. READ MORE: What you need to know about reparations after the first congressional hearing convened on the topic in more than a decade Wealth deprivation places huge burdens on black families even in good times. An important commentary from the Center of American Progress outlined the ways wealth protects against want, and how its absence dooms blacks to destitution. Prior to the pandemic, only 45% of black households could pay a $400 emergency expense and meet bills, as opposed to 60% of white households. The pandemic magnifies that financial vulnerability. Wealthy households have a greater capacity to ride out storms of unexpected adversity, including job loss, medical emergencies, and other income shocks. The wealth gap is entrenched. Black American descendants of persons enslaved in the United States constitute 13% of the nations population but possess 2.6% of its wealth. It would require $10-$12 trillion to raise this groups share of the nations wealth to match its proportion in the population, an average of about $800,000 per household. One striking reality that exemplifies the disparity: Three white billionaires, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffett, hold more wealth than 80% of black Americans. An appropriately designed black reparations initiative will eliminate racial wealth inequality. The vast imbalance in black and white wealth is the most pronounced measure of cumulative economic damages wreaked on African Americans by slavery, legal segregation, white terrorism (consider lynchings during the Jim Crow period), vast overincarceration, and ongoing discrimination in housing, employment, policing, credit markets, and health care. READ MORE: Pa. released figures on the coronavirus and race, but not specific geographic data. Experts say thats a problem. As for homeownership: After the Civil War, free blacks were denied the promised 40-acre land grants while whites received 160-acre grants in the west under the Homestead Acts. The federal government later sanctioned restrictive covenants, redlining, predatory mortgage lending, and the discriminatory application of the G.I. Bill, blocking black acquisition of housing that would help build equity. These old disparities are worsening under the coronavirus. Black workers are overrepresented in socially critical but undervalued sectors like food services, health services, and child-care provisions. These personal contact, personal service jobs are not conducive to maintaining the social distancing now required for health safety. Consequently, blacks discriminately face either a greater risk of continued employment in jobs with high degrees of likelihood of exposure to the coronavirus, or outright job loss. And job loss frequently results in loss of access to health insurance, especially dangerous in the present moment. The national unemployment rate is projected to reach 30%. The black rate, generally twice as high as the white rate, threatens to become the highest on record in U.S. history. READ MORE: As reparations debate continues, the University of Pennsylvania has a role to play | Opinion Meanwhile, more black Americans continue to die in high numbers. As of last week, African Americans alone accounted for more than half of coronavirus deaths in Philadelphia. Theyre dying at high rates across the country, in Milwaukee, Chicago, Louisiana, Michigan. Valid partial explanations for the striking imbalance in black-white mortality centers on the presence of preexisting adverse health conditions that place blacks at greater risk of death after contracting the coronavirus. These include higher rates of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and asthma, as well as a lack of access to medical treatment. But another critical adverse precondition lies at the heart of black-white difference in health outcomes: excess black financial precarity, captured best by the chasm in racial wealth. It is as urgent a time as ever to eliminate the racial wealth gulf and bring the case for black reparations back to center stage. The immediate response to the economic crisis produced by the pandemic demonstrates the federal government can fund reparations. Last months congressional appropriation of the $2.2 trillion economic rescue bill reveals the federal government can rapidly find the money when there is a will and a moral imperative to do so. Acting to bolster falling American incomes is an admirable step. It also does not obviate the 155-year obligation to black America. The debt finally can and must be paid. William A. Darity Jr. is the Samuel DuBois Cook professor of public policy, African and African American studies, and economics at Duke University. A. Kirsten Mullen, the founder of Artefactual, is a folklorist, museum consultant, and lecturer whose work focuses on race, art, history, and politics. Their book, From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the 21st Century, is newly available from the University of North Carolina Press. Some 400 million years ago, animals emerged from the ocean for the first time and began to thrive on land. But after eons of evolutionary experimentation, some lineages peaced out of the terrestrial world and embraced a full-time life at sea again. While whales and dolphins are among the best known marine creatures to follow this path, it turns out some ancient relatives of modern crocodiles, called thalattosuchians, took the same aquatic turn while dinosaurs roamed the planet. According to a study published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, these predatory crocodilians are the only archosaurs the group that also includes birds and dinosaurs known to have shifted from land to a lifestyle spent always in the ocean. Thalattosuchian fossils are scattered across the world, and the researchers believe their transition from land to sea began about 182 million years ago. While they likely breathed through their noses rather than blowholes, these Jurassic animals eventually evolved to have smooth skin and body shapes reminiscent of whales and dolphins today. Cityscape, the regions pre-eminent real estate brand, has launched a new online portal developed to be a central hub of information for real estate. This move meets the need for a curated real estate news aggregation and market insight and, with a legacy of connecting international property with investment over the past two decades, Cityscape is perfectly positioned to bring this to market, said the event organisers. The Cityscape Intelligence platform covers all news impacting the real estate sector and provides exclusive global insights and commentary from a pool of international and local experts. The portal will offer a broad range of information, from market drivers in the residential, commercial and hotel segments to the latest architectural trends and technology shaping the industry, and up-to-date information and news on projects and government initiatives and announcements. High level contributors from market shapers including JLL, Knight Frank, Colliers, RICS, RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects), and CBRE have been involved in initial editorial, with dedicated economist reports from established market research brand, Peninsula, also featuring. Chris Speller, Group Director of Cityscape, Informa Markets, said: "The Cityscape portfolio of events has always acted as facilitator for real-time, in-person interactions between key decision makers for the real estate market." "The Cityscape Intelligence platform is the next logical step in our role as a mediator and will provide a 365-day, 24/7 online access to impactful information and discussions," he stated. The platform launch coincides with Cityscapes fresh new rebrand, designed to reflect the new era of the real estate industry as it focuses on a future of mobility, sustainability and opportunity, he added. Speller said: "By giving access to insights and information digitally, we aim to emulate the experience visitors have at Cityscape events, whether they are investors, brokers, developers or government representatives." "Alongside facilitating new connections, professionals visit the Cityscape events to discover new emerging real estate projects and build their market insight and we aim to cater for these year-round through the Intelligence platform," he added.-TradeArabia News Service There are no more shoplifters at our mall, he said. Another big piece is of what our police do is traffic. There is no more traffic. Our police are doing half the work they were doing and still receiving all the pay. Its not like fire. The police are not fully occupied. Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all. Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe Jobs started to dry up for Eva, a taco maker from Boyle Heights, as germs and fears over the coronavirus traveled through the city. A quinceanera canceled. A company barbeque called off. Then last month, her husband was furloughed from his sewing job at a garment factory. Suddenly, April rent was looking impossible to make. Like more than two million other Californians, both Eva and her husband are in the country illegally -- that's why she doesn't want to use her last name. Without social security numbers, neither can receive unemployment insurance or a federal stimulus check to tide their household over until the pandemic passes. "It just makes me feel very sad that we don't have that [government] support," said Eva, who came to the U.S. from Mexico in 2001. "We pay our taxes and do our part." During a Zoom meeting with other parents, Eva despaired about keeping a roof over the heads of her two teenage kids. Afterward, a community activist on the call from Parent Revolution told her about a newly-created fund. To her joy and relief, Eva got a $500 check in the mail -- nearly a third of the $1,600 she needed to cover April's rent. 'A LITTLE BIT OF HOPE' Across L.A., local leaders and non-profits are identifying holes in the safety net for immigrants without legal status and have created relief funds backed by philanthropists and grassroots donors. The Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance has been delivering food boxes and cash assistance. So has the Pilipino Workers Center. In Malibu, a GoFundMe campaign has been started for the day laborers who clear brush and clean oceanside homes. Boxes of food and goods sit ready to be handed out to by volunteers to immigrants in Chelsea, Mass. (Joseph Preziosa /AFP via Getty Images) The Pasadena-based National Day Laborer Organizing Network has created a "Safety Net" Fund . So far, $10,000 has gone to each of the 10 worker centers in SoCal to award in increments of $250. Some recipients have made videos of appreciation. "The money is not a lot, but you cannot imagine the reaction of workers when they get these resources," said NDLON's executive director, Pablo Alvarado. Eva's check came from the One Family L.A fund, launched just weeks ago by community leaders such as Ana Ponce, the head of Great Public Schools Now. Ponce acknowledged the one-time sums are short-term fixes. "But it does give families a little bit of hope," she said. "It does make families feel like there are some people that care about what's happening to them." Ponce said more than a half-million dollars has been raised and so far 200-plus families have benefited. The goal is to help a total of 4,000 households make it through the pandemic. #RECALLGAVINNEWSOM Efforts such as One Family L.A. are part of a California ethos where the highest levels of government are recognizing the undocumented workers who toil in farms, factories and restaurants -- some continuing to do so as other Californians stay at home. icon DON'T MISS ANY L.A. CORONAVIRUS NEWS Get our daily newsletters for the latest on COVID-19 and other top local headlines. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy On April 14, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti introduced the Angeleno fund to provide debit cards worth $700 to $1,500 to needy households, regardless of immigration status. The next day, Gov. Gavin Newsom rolled out a $125 million relief fund for "undocumented" immigrants -- $75 million in taxpayer dollars and $50 million in philanthropic donations. "We feel a deep sense of gratitude for people that are in fear of deportation, but are still addressing the essential needs of tens of millions of Californians," Newsom said. The governor pointed out that immigrants without legal status -- about one in 10 California workers -- paid more than $2.5 billion dollars in local and state taxes last year. (Immigrants can file taxes using an "Individual Taxpayer Identification Number," which is a commonplace practice.) Soon after the announcement, #RecallGavinNewsom started trending on Twitter as critics of illegal immigration blasted the governor for using taxpayer funds to give qualifying households between $500 to $1,000 each. Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, said that by offering financial assistance to immigrants here illegally, government officials are sanctioning law-breaking. "To essentially pay illegal immigrants to stay in the United States is unconscionable," Krikorian said. "We should be helping them go home. If they lost their jobs, their reason to stay is gone." TIME TO 'DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY' Pablo Alvarado, executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said the debate over whether "undocumented people should be protected [during national crises] is not new." "This is not the moment to say, 'Hey, these are second-class human beings,'" Alvarado said. "This is our moment to do things differently." Alvarado belongs to a camp of immigrant rights supporters pressuring state government to do more than make one-time cash payments that, given limited funds, will only make it to a fraction of the state's million-plus workers without legal status. They support campaigns to implement rent and mortgage forgiveness and to funnel more money to food banks and school districts so they can feed more needy families. Day laborers and their supporters gather April 14 to call on Gov. Gavin Newsom to ensure that undocumented workers benefit from federal CARES Act monies given the state. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images) Another idea is to open up the California Earned Income Tax Credit (CalEITC) program to immigrants who haven't been able to get the rebate in the past because they file taxes using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number rather than a social security number. That's a change advocated for by the likes of the Latino Legislative Caucus and religious leaders with The Industrial Areas Foundation. In addition, the IAF coalition is asking Newsome to authorize pandemic payments of $1,200 to all low-income workers who qualified for the tax credit, regardless of immigration status. That's the amount many individual taxpayers are receiving in federal stimulus checks. "Our immigrants make California a beautiful state," said IAF coalition member Father Arturo Corral, who ministers to parish members without papers in downtown L.A. "We need to always ask [the governor] to do his best." 'A PLACE TO BE SAFE' No one knows when most people can safely get back to work. What's clear is that the current lull means demand for help is outstripping available funds. That's been witnessed with Garcetti's Angeleno fund. The website and phone lines got overloaded as more than 450,000 people rushed over a three-day-period to make the deadline for the first round of applications. Eva, the taco maker from Boyle Heights, applied for the Angeleno card but is not counting on being among those randomly selected. She now trying to figure out how to May rent. Keeping her apartment feels more critical to her than ever before. "Having a home and a place to be safe is really important," Eva said. MORE ON CORONAVIRUS For many years, Netflix has allowed teachers to screen documentaries in their classrooms. However, this isnt possible with schools closed. So at their request, we have made a selection of our documentary features and series available on the Netflix US YouTube channel. See the full list of documentary films and series below.Each title also has educational resources available, which can be used by both students and teachers - and well be doing Q&As with some of the creators behind these projects so that students can hear from them firsthand.We hope this will, in a small way, help teachers around the world.Note these documentaries are currently available in English. Subtitles in more than a dozen languages will be available later this week. Also if you are a parent or teacher, please check the ratings so that you can make informed choices for your students and children.The title of Ava DuVernays extraordinary and galvanizing documentary refers to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which reads, Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States. The progression from that second qualifying clause to the horrors of mass criminalization and the sprawling American prison industry is laid out by DuVernay with bracing lucidity. With a potent mixture of archival footage and testimony from a dazzling array of activists, politicians, historians, and formerly incarcerated women and men, DuVernay creates a work of grand historical synthesis.Abstract: The Art of Design takes you beyond blueprints into the art, science, and philosophy of design. The series goes inside the minds of the worlds greatest designers, showcasing the most inspiring visionaries from a variety of disciplines whose work shapes our culture and future.Filmed over the course of three years, Babies is a landmark series that explores the miracle of the first full year of life through the pioneering work of leading scientists from across the globe. The series examines the epic journey every person embarks on, from helpless new-born to independent toddler. Following the life-changing adventures of 15 international families and featuring the latest research from eminent scientists who share their personal journeys of discovery into the infant mind, the series is filled with the exciting uncertainty of parenting, exploring each major milestone of development like never before. From the first bond a baby shares with its parents, to learning to feed, sleep through the night, crawl across the room, speak their first words, and discover the world around them right up to those first steps of toddlerhood.Chasing Coral taps into the collective will and wisdom of an ad man, a self-proclaimed coral nerd, top-notch camera designers, and renowned marine biologists as they invent the first time-lapse camera to record bleaching events as they happen. Unfortunately, the effort is anything but simple, and the team doggedly battles technical malfunctions and the force of nature in pursuit of their golden fleece: documenting the indisputable and tragic transformation below the waves. With its breathtaking photography, nail-biting suspense, and startling emotion, Chasing Coral is a dramatic revelation that wont have audiences sitting idle for long.In partnership with Vox Media Studios and Vox, this enlightening explainer series will take viewers deep inside a wide range of culturally relevant topics, questions, and ideas. Each episode will explore current events and social trends pulled from the zeitgeist, touching topics across politics, science, history and pop culture -- featuring interviews with some of the most authoritative experts in their respective fields.Four exceptional women mount grassroots campaigns against powerful incumbents in Knock Down the House, a galvanic and inspiring look at the 2018 midterm elections that tipped the balance of power. When tragedy struck her family in the middle of the financial crisis, Bronx-born Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had to work double shifts as a bartender to save her home from foreclosure. After losing a loved one to a preventable medical condition, Amy Vilela didn't know what to do with the anger she felt about America's broken health care system. Cori Bush, a registered nurse and pastor, was drawn to the streets when the police shooting of an unarmed black man brought protests and tanks into her neighborhood. A coal miner's daughter, Paula Jean Swearengin was fed up with watching her friends and family suffer from the environmental effects of the coal industry.Narrated by Sir David Attenborough This eight-part series will explore the unique and precious wonders of our natural world from the creators of the award-winning series Planet Earth. In partnership with World Wildlife Fund, Our Planet combines stunning photography and technology with an unprecedented, never-before-filmed look at the planet's remaining wilderness areas and their animal inhabitants. The ambitious four-year project has been filmed in 50 countries across all the continents of the world, with over 600 members of crew capturing more than three and a half thousand filming days, and will focus on the breadth of the diversity of habitats around the world, from the remote Arctic wilderness and mysterious deep oceans to the vast landscapes of Africa and diverse jungles of South America.In a rural village outside Delhi, India, women lead a quiet revolution. They fight against the deeply rooted stigma of menstruation. Period. End of Sentence. a documentary short directed by Rayka Zehtabchi tells their story. For generations, these women didn't have access to pads, which lead to health problems and girls missing school or dropping out entirely. But when a sanitary pad machine is installed in the village, the women learn to manufacture and market their own pads, empowering the women of their community. They name their brand FLY, because they want women to soar. Their flight is, in part, enabled by the work of high school girls half a world away, in California, who raised the initial money for the machine and began a non-profit called The Pad Project.A Netflix original short documentary, set in Aleppo, Syria and Turkey in early 2016. As the violence intensifies, The White Helmets follows three volunteer rescue workers as they put everything on the line to save civilians affected by the war, all the while wracked with worry about the safety of their own loved ones. Moving and inspiring, The White Helmets (directed by Academy Awardnominated director Orlando von Einsiedel and producer Joanna Natasegara) is both a snapshot of the harrowing realities of life for ordinary Syrians who remain in the country, and a humbling portrait of the power of the human spirit.Zion is a gripping portrait of Zion Clark, a young wrestler born without legs who grew up in foster care. Clark began wrestling in second grade against his able-bodied peers. The physical challenge became a therapeutic outlet and gave him a sense of family. Moving from foster home to foster home, wrestling became the only constant thing in his childhood. The Netflix original documentary short is directed by Floyd Russ. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 02:46:10|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JERUSALEM, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival, Benny Gantz, signed on Monday a deal to form an emergency unity government. The deal, between Netanyahu's rightwing Likud party and Gantz's centrist White and Blue party, ends more than a year of a political stalemate. "We have a national emergency government," Gantz wrote on Twitter. He said the deal has spared Israel a fourth round of elections in about a year, vowing "to fight the coronavirus and serve the entire people of Israel." "I secured a national emergency government that will act to save the lives and the livelihood of the citizens of Israel," Netanyahu said in a separate statement issued by his office. Under the power-sharing deal, a copy of which was seen by Xinhua, Netanyahu will serve as prime minister for 18 months before being replaced by Gantz, who will serve the post for another 18 months, as part of a rotation deal that will be bound by law. Before taking the helm, Gantz will serve as defense minister, while Gabi Ashkenazi, a former military chief from Blue and White, will serve as foreign minister. The governing coalition will also include a bloc of Jewish ultra-Orthodox and far-right parties, which sit in Netanyahu's current government. The deal put under question Netanyahu's controversial promise to annex the West Bank's Jordan Valley, which was a major part of U.S. President Donald Trump's so-called peace plan for the Middle East. The deal does not straightforwardly cancel the annexation but states that such a move could be made only if it will not harm regional stability and future prospects for peace. The Palestinians firmly oppose the annexation because the Jordan Valley is part of the West Bank, a territory seized by Israel in a 1967 war, where the Palestinians wish to build their future state. Ayman Odeh, leader of the Arab-Jewish Joint List party, Israel's third-largest party, criticized Gantz for choosing to join forces with "the corruption and racism." The deal "is a slap in the face of the majority of citizens who repeatedly voted to oust Netanyahu," Odeh wrote on Twitter, referring to Gantz's main campaign promise that he will not sit in a government with Netanyahu as a prime minister. The deal comes a day after more than 2,000 Israelis took to Tel Aviv's main plaza, calling for Netanyahu's resignation over a series of criminal cases in which he is involved. The opening session of his trial is scheduled to begin on May 24, where he will face a series of corruption charges. Many lawmakers with the opposition criticized the size of the government and its high costs during the economic crisis inflicted by the coronavirus, with about a quarter of the Israelis becoming unemployed. Under the deal, the government will include up to 36 ministers and 16 deputy ministers, the largest government in the history of Israel. "This is Gantz's and Ashkanzi's only contribution to the war against unemployment," Ofer Shelah, a lawmaker with Yesh Atid, a centrist party and Gantz's former partner, wrote on Twitter. The deal comes after a period of 484 days in which Israel has an interim government in the wake of three rounds of inconclusive elections in about a year. Enditem OKLAHOMA CITY, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Tapstone Energy, LLC ("Tapstone" or the "Company") today announced the Company has concluded a comprehensive financial restructuring plan to recapitalize its balance sheet and fortify its liquidity by significantly reducing long-term debt and interest expense. The Company is now positioned to expand its production base through mergers and acquisitions. Highlights of the out-of-court transaction are as follows: 100% of the Company's existing traditional credit facility lenders agreed to exchange their outstanding secured indebtedness into a combination of a new four-year secured term loan of approximately $145 million and common equity in Tapstone. and common equity in Tapstone. 99.5% of the Company's existing 9.75% 2022 senior noteholders have agreed to exchange their existing unsecured notes into a new four-year unsecured term loan of approximately $5 million and common equity in Tapstone. and common equity in Tapstone. Kennedy Lewis Investment Management, LLC is investing $50 million of new capital in the form of preferred equity in Tapstone to pursue acquisitive growth in the Mid-Continent region. of new capital in the form of preferred equity in Tapstone to pursue acquisitive growth in the Mid-Continent region. By extinguishing approximately $450 million of principle debt, the transaction leaves Tapstone with over $60 million in liquidity, a current mark-to-market hedge book of approximately $55 million , a significantly deleveraged balance sheet, a dedicated team of investors and the flexibility to pursue growth through acquisitions. Steve C. Dixon, Tapstone Energy Chief Executive Officer, commented, "I want to personally thank all our dedicated employees, whose focus during this process enabled us to maintain full flexibility during this period. The outcome of this process establishes Tapstone as an entity ready to consolidate assets in the Mid-Continent. We are eager to turn our focus on acquiring producing properties and evaluating merger candidates." John J. Kilgallon, Tapstone Energy Chief Financial Officer, added, "The success of our restructuring is a significant accomplishment given the current environment in the energy industry and the broader economy. We greatly appreciate the collaboration of all stakeholders to reach this resolution. When including the new investment from Kennedy Lewis and the extinguishment of debt through the restructuring, our net debt has improved by approximately $500 million from start to finish in this process." Darren L. Richman, Kennedy Lewis Founder and Co-Portfolio Manager, commented, "We are excited to partner with the Tapstone team and view the timing of this investment as the perfect opportunity to be acquiring assets as other operators need to raise capital. Very proud we were able to accomplish this transaction out of court, which was enabled by the support and leadership of the agent bank and its steering committee." Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel, Evercore acted as financial advisor and Alvarez & Marsal North America, LLC acted as restructuring advisor to Tapstone. Haynes and Boone, L.L.P. served as legal advisors and FTI Consulting, Inc. served as financial advisor for the credit facility lenders. Akin Gump acted as legal advisors and Houlihan Lokey Capital, Inc. acted as financial advisors for the unsecured noteholders. About Tapstone Energy Tapstone Energy is a growth-oriented, independent oil and natural gas company focused on the acquisition and development of unconventional oil and natural gas reserves in the Mid-Continent region. The Tapstone team is made up of seasoned professionals in all disciplines with substantial experience in all phases of the industry. About Kennedy Lewis Kennedy Lewis is an opportunistic credit manager founded in 2017 by David K. Chene and Darren L. Richman. The Firm pursues event-driven situations in which a catalyst may unlock value. The strategy focuses primarily on the stressed and distressed segments of the corporate and structured credit markets in North America and Europe. Tapstone Contact Information John Kilgallon Chief Financial Officer Phone: 405-702-5022 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Tapstone Energy Cicutto in the interview with ANSA -- the details of which have been confirmed by a Venice spokesman -- downplayed the possibility of a collaboration between Venice and Cannes, which Cannes director Thierry Fremaux mentioned in a recent interview with Variety, noting, Since the beginning of the crisis, we have raised the possibility of doing something together if Cannes was canceled. Were continuing to discuss it. The Australian share market stumbled on Monday, 20 April 2020, with almost all of ASX sectors declined, as investors elected to book profit after sharemarket has improved for four consecutive weeks. Around late afternoon, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index dropped 71.74 points, or 1.31%, to 5,415.80. The broader All Ordinaries fell 70.46 points, or 1.27%, to 5,474.20. Energy stocks were the hardest hit today as crude oil futures slumped amid concerns over plunging demand because of the coronavirus pandemic. Crude oil was trading around an 18-year low despite last week's OPEC+ cut to oil output. Oil prices fell in the afternoon of Asian trading hours, as U. S. crude futures for May plunged 16.91% to $15.18 per barrel. Meanwhile, international benchmark Brent crude futures also slipped 1.14% to $27.76 per barrel. Santos (STO), Woodside (WPL) and Origin (ORG) were all down by around 3%. National Australia Bank (NAB) was down 1.1% after it said that its 1H20 profits will take a A$1.1bn hit due in part to customer-related remediation costs, the $742m impact on profit from some software capitalisation changes and a $214m reduction in the value of its investment in MLC Life. Caltex (CTX) tumbled more than 8% and was one of the worst performers on the market after Canadian company, Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT) decided to not proceed with its takeover proposal. ACT arrived to that decision 'due to the high level of economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Virgin Australia (VAH) remains suspended from official quotation. The company entered voluntary suspension last Thursday ahead of an announcement regarding its ongoing financial assistance and restructuring alternatives. It is expected to make an announcement at some stage this week. CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6355 following turbulent trading last week that saw it rising to levels above $0.64 and falling below $0.63. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) [April 20, 2020] WeWork Special Committee Sets the Record Straight Regarding its Authority to Represent the Best Interests of Minority Shareholders The Special Committee (the "Committee") of the Board of Directors (the "Board") of The We Company ("WeWork") today sent a letter to the Board of WeWork responding to the assertions by SoftBank Group Corp. and SoftBank Vision Fund (AIV M1) (collectively, "SoftBank") that the Committee lacks the authority to represent WeWork and its minority stockholders in the pending litigation against SoftBank. The Committee issued the following statement: SoftBank is once again attempting to use its power as WeWork's controlling stockholder to benefit SoftBank at the expense of WeWork's minority stockholders. SoftBank's latest maneuver attempts to prohibit the Special Committee, which was established and determined to be independent by the full WeWork Board in October 2019 to represent all of the Company's minority stockholders, from enforcing the contract negotiated between SoftBank and the Special Committee last year. SoftBank's ploy attempts to prevent the more than 850 current and former WeWork employees who tendered stock worth over $450 million from obtaining any remedy for SoftBank's wrongful conduct. SoftBank's refusal to consummate the tender offer, combined with its plan to limit or disband the Special Committee, demonstrates that it has no regard for its legal obligations or proper norms of corporate governance. The following is the full text of the Committee's letter to the Board: April 20, 2020 The Board of Directors of The We Company Re: Authority of the Special Committee of The We Company Board of Directors: The We Company v. SoftBank Group Corp., C.A. No. 2020-0258-AGB (Del. Ch.) Members of the Board of Directors of The We Company: I write on behalf of the Special Committee (the "Committee") of the Board of Directors (the "Board") of The We Company (the "Company') in response to Mr. Olson's (News - Alert) letter on behalf of SoftBank Group Corp. ("SoftBank"), dated April 17, 2020. As detailed below, SoftBank's letter ignores the relevant facts and is based upon a fundamental misapprehension of Delaware law as well as core principles of sound corporate governance. Not surprisingly, then, the conclusions reached in that letter are simply wrong in every respect. Should the SoftBank-controlled or affiliated directors on the Company's Board follow the "recommendations" set forth in Mr. Olson's letter, they would risk subjecting themselves and the Company to considerable liability as well as other types of damage. The Committee Is Fully Empowered to Pursue Litigation to Enforce the Terms of the MTA. The Committee was formed for the purpose of evaluating and deciding whether to approve a transaction with SoftBank that eventually was effectuated by the Master Transaction Agreement (the "MTA"). The Board chose Bruce Dunlevie and Lew Frankfort for the Committee because the Board determined that Messrs. Dunlevie and Frankfort were independent of both SoftBank and Adam Neumann. Specifically, the resolutions that the Board adopted to form the Committee (the "Resolutions") stated that the Board: desire[d] to evaluate the advisability of certain transactions proposed by Softbank (News - Alert) Group Corp., Softbank Vision Fund (AIV M1) L.P. or one or more of their respective affiliates (collectively, "SoftBank"),1 including debt financing arrangements, a tender offer by SoftBank for Company equity, an exchange of equity held by SoftBank in the ChinaCo and PacificCo joint ventures with the Company for Company equity, amendments to SoftBank's $1.5 billion warrant agreement with the Company, and changes to the Company's governance . . . which transactions, if fully consummated, would result in SoftBank acquiring majority economic ownership and voting control of the Company . . . (the "SoftBank Transaction"). (emphasis in original). The "SoftBank Transaction" described in the Resolutions refers to the transactions that were later effectuated by the MTA. All elements of the SoftBank Transaction identified at the time the Committee was formed were set forth in the Resolutions creating the Committee. The Board selected Messrs. Dunlevie and Frankfort as the members of the Committee after it "reviewed the background and relationships of Bruce Dunlevie and Lewis Frankfort and [] determined that each of them is free of any material conflict of interest relating to [the SoftBank Transaction], SoftBank and Adam Neumann." Significantly, the Resolutions included the broadest possible language under Delaware law for delegating authority in connection with the MTA. That authority indisputably includes the power to enforce the express terms of the MTA and to do so by litigation if necessary. The Resolutions empower the Committee to, among other things: "exercise all rights and powers of the Board to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law in connection with" the SoftBank Transaction; and "take any and all steps that the Special Committee deems necessary and in the best interests of the Company and the Company's stockholders to preserve for the Company's stockholders the value of the Company . . . ." That authorization grants the Committee the full powers of the Board, allowing it to act as if it were the full Board in connection with the MTA and providing it with approval and veto power over any SoftBank Transaction. Notably, the language of the Resolutions tracks the language of Section 141(c)(2) of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the "DGCL"), which provides that a committee "shall have and may exercise all the powers and authority of the board of directors in management of the business and affairs of the corporation" with very few exceptions, none of which is implicated here. Tellingly, the present version of Section 141(c) of the DGCL was amended to eliminate a longer enumeration of items that are beyond the power of board committees. As commentators noted at the time of that amendment, "all matters" beyond certain identified exceptions-which do not include litigation-"may be placed in the hands of a committee of directors."2 Accordingly, the language in the Resolutions empowering the Committee to "exercise all rights and powers of the Board" to the fullest extent permitted by law is not a meaningless "catch-all." Rather, such language is intentional and is the strongest possible language that a board can use to empower a committee. Consistent with this statutory authority, Delaware case law leaves no doubt that the language used in the Resolutions grants the Committee authorization to take a broad array of actions on behalf of the Company, including bringing suit to enforce the terms of the MTA. See Perlegos v. Atmel (News - Alert) Corp., 2007 WL 475453, at *14 (Del. Ch. Feb. 8, 2007) (observing that where the special committee had authority to take "any action," "[t]he [b]oard's use of the term 'any action' is not ambiguous; it is a broad delegation of power" permitting "possible outcome[s]" of the committee's work); see also In re CBS Corp. Litig., 2018 WL 3414163, at *2 (Del. Ch. July 13, 2018) (noting that board resolutions similar to the Resolutions here "included a broad delegation of authority" to a special committee).3 Notably, the CBS litigation was presided over by the very same judge who is assigned to the lawsuit recently initiated by the Committee and there is no reason to believe he will interpret nearly identical resolutions any differently here. The MTA Provides that the Committee Is Fully Empowered to Pursue Litigation to Enforce the Terms of the MTA. By its terms, the MTA makes clear that the Committee is empowered to enforce that agreement. As an initial matter, Section 11.10 of the MTA expressly includes remedies contemplating litigation, including specific performance. In addition, Section 11.14 of the MTA provides that, until the consummation of the "Debt Financing" and the "Tender Offer," "any action or determination by the Company to exercise rights or enforce remedies" against SoftBank under the MTA "shall require the approval of the Special Committee" and that the Company "shall pay, on behalf of the Special Committee, for any reasonable and documented fees and expenses of professional advisors or other representatives of the Company." The disclosures sent to the Company's stockholders soliciting their approval of the MTA (which approval was a condition of the MTA) further demonstrate the authority of the Committee. For example, the disclosures describe how the Board created the Committee consisting of Messrs. Dunlevie and Frankfort based upon the Board's "determin[ation]" that they were independent of SoftBank. The disclosures then state that Mr. Frankfort will retain his Board seat until the later of "the SoftBank transactions (including the resolution of any litigation or disputes with SoftBank with respect to [the MTA])" and "the consummation . . . of the Tender Offer." There is no way to read these disclosures other than to recognize that the Committee, including Mr. Frankfort, was authorized to enforce or defend the terms of the MTA through the use of litigation if necessary. The Committee needed the authority to enforce the terms of the MTA because the MTA provided benefits to SoftBank months before SoftBank was required to consummate its obligations to the Company and its minority stockholders. Specifically, and as made clear in both the MTA and in the disclosures provided to the Company's stockholders to obtain their approval of the MTA, SoftBank obtained its additional governance and control benefits, as well as repricing of its warrants, soon after the signing of the MTA in October 2019. The benefits to the minority stockholders and the Company under the MTA, including the consummation of the Tender Offer and the additional loan to the Company upon favorable terms, were not scheduled to occur until April 2020. Because the transactions were never scheduled to occur simultaneously, the Committee required the authority to enforce the terms of the MTA in the event that SoftBank decided to take the benefits that it obtained under the MTA and not follow through on its obligations-exactly the situation that has occurred and led to this litigation. As a result, SoftBank must now live with the Board's decision to allow the Committee to have "all rights and powers of the Board to the fullest extent permitted by the [DGCL]" and "to take any and all steps that the . . . Committee deems necessary and in the best interests of the Company and the Company's stockholders"-which necessarily includes protecting the stockholders' interests under the MTA by enforcing its terms. Nothing has Changed Since the Board Determined that the Interests of the Committee Members are Aligned with the Company and its Minority Stockholders. SoftBank's assertions that the Committee members are somehow "conflicted" are frivolous. Only six months ago, the Board concluded that Committee members were "free of any material conflict of interest relating to [the SoftBank Transaction]" and gave the Committee all relevant powers of the Board precisely because they were (and are) independent, and in particular independent of SoftBank (as well as Mr. Neumann). The independence of Messrs. Dunlevie and Frankfort has not changed since that initial determination. What has changed is that SoftBank has gained additional control of the Board as a result of the governance changes it received as part of the MTA and now seeks to use this control of the Board to silence the Committee and eliminate the litigation over SoftBank's failure to abide by its obligations. SoftBank fails to offer a cogent explanation of how the Committee members' interests that were "free of any material conflict" relating to the MTA could transmute into "substantial personal conflicts of interest" in enforcing the Tender Offer and Debt Financing that-as described in the original SoftBank proposal that was ultimately effectuated in the MTA-are part of a cross-conditioned series of transactions that the Committee negotiated for on behalf of the minority stockholders. The Committee members sought to generate benefits for those minority stockholders when negotiating the MTA, and they now seek to enforce those same benefits. The analysis has not changed in the slightest. The contention that the Committee members are conflicted because they are also stockholders is contrary to long-settled and well-established principles of Delaware case law, which makes clear that the interests of stockholder-directors who stand to participate in a transaction in a manner similar to minority stockholders are aligned with the interests of other minority stockholders. See, e.g., Emerald P'rs v. Berlin, 2003 WL 21003437, at *39 (Del. Ch. Apr. 28, 2003) (noting that directors who were also minority stockholders were independent from the controller and that their "economic interests were aligned with the [] minority"); see also Globis Partners, L.P. v. Plumtree Software, Inc., 2007 WL 4292024, at *8 (Del. Ch. Nov. 30, 2007) (holding that directors were not interested in a transaction where they received accelerated vesting of options because their interests were aligned with those of stockholders in obtaining the highest price); Rosenblatt v. Getty Oil Co., 1983 WL 8936 (Del. Ch. Sept. 19, 1983), aff'd sub nom., 483 A.2d 929 (Del. 1985) (finding persuasive in dismissing claims challenging a merger that a director who was a minority stockholder negotiated the merger and determined it to be fair). That the Committee members or their affiliates have large holdings does not alter this principle; to the contrary, the size of their holdings only magnifies their alignment with the Company's minority stockholders. SoftBank's supposed concerns about costs to the Company associated with litigation are a red herring. As independent and experienced directors, the Committee members are fully capable of analyzing the expenses and burdens associated with litigation, including any burdens on management, and proceeding accordingly. It appears to be lost on SoftBank that many corporate decisions are guided by independent directors, who routinely evaluate the costs and benefits of litigation from a company's perspective. In any event, SoftBank's efforts to undermine the Committee's authority will not limit the Company's exposure. To the contrary, those efforts will only result in additional and costly litigation surrounding the Board's authority to take the unprecedented and drastic action that SoftBank is encouraging. SoftBank's Desire to Impede the Committee Evidences a Fundamental Misunderstanding of Delaware Law and Furthers SoftBank's Self-Interests. It is plainly evident that SoftBank questions the authority of the Committee not out of concern for the Company, but because of its own desire to end this litigation and thereby avoid the likelihood of significant liability. SoftBank appears to ignore that the appointment of a committee designed to ensure and vindicate the rights of minority stockholders in the context of an interested transaction reflects principles of good governance counseled by practice and Delaware law. Although it is unsurprising that SoftBank rejects the concept of a fully empowered, independent committee in view of its practice of bullying companies in which it invests, it is quite common for boards to form independent committees for the purposes of overseeing management activities and pursuing litigation on the company's behalf. Independent committees regularly make important decisions on behalf of boards-such as whether to adopt a poison pill or reject a sale of a company-where there is a concern that other directors are conflicted. That SoftBank would seek to limit or disband the Committee evidences that it has no concept of governance best practices. Similarly, SoftBank's assertion that the Committee is somehow improperly focused on the interest of the minority stockholders reflects a complete misunderstanding of Delaware law. Ample Delaware precedent makes clear that this is the precise situation in which minority stockholders need protection: i.e., where a controller engages in an interested transaction with a company.4 It is entirely proper (and indeed expected) that in such situations, a committee of independent directors will be designated for the precise purpose of protecting the minority stockholders.5 SoftBank's suggestion that the SoftBank-controlled Board is better suited to determine whether and how to sue SoftBank than the Committee further reflects its fundamental misconception of Delaware law. SoftBank is clearly seeking to insulate itself from litigation risk and pursue its own interests-rather than those of the Company-by taking the position that the Committee is not a proper plaintiff in the lawsuit. The reality is that the Committee, acting on behalf of the Company, is in the best position to pursue litigation because the Company both is a signatory to the MTA and can efficiently represent the interests of those most damaged by SoftBank's wrongful conduct-more than 850 current and former employees who tendered more stock worth over $450 million under the terms of the Tender Offer. Similarly, the Committee is astounded by the suggestion that the minority stockholders' interests should be handed over to the Board (which is controlled by SoftBank), or that the minority stockholders should be left to fend for themselves (when it is the Company that is a party to the MTA). In sum, it is abundantly clear that SoftBank is intending to benefit itself, and only itself, by questioning the Committee's authority. Any effort to limit the Committee's authority with respect to the lawsuit is not only contrary to well-established Delaware law and the intent of the parties when they entered into the MTA, but also will leave the Company's minority stockholders in a precarious and unprotected position-all for the sole benefit of SoftBank. As SoftBank is a controlling stockholder of the Company, should the Board decide to pursue SoftBank's flawed plan and act to restrict or even eliminate the Committee's ability to pursue litigation, that decision will be subject to the stringent entire fairness standard of review by the Delaware court. As a result, the conflicted directors will be required to demonstrate that their decision is entirely fair not only to the Company, but also to the minority stockholders-which it cannot possibly do. Any effort to limit or disband the Committee will almost certainly be found to be invalid. See Hollinger Intern., Inc. v. Black, 844 A.2d 1022, 1080-82 (Del. Ch. Feb. 26, 2004) (finding that a controller breached his fiduciary duties and acted inequitably in adopting bylaws aimed at disabling an independent committee process), aff'd, 872 A.2d 559 (Del. 2005). Such efforts will expose the Board-and, in particular those directors who are affiliated with SoftBank or who are deemed to lack independence from SoftBank-to the risk of substantial personal liability. We assure you that the Committee is prepared to seek all appropriate legal remedies in that event. Sincerely, WILSON SONSINI GOODRICH & ROSATI, P.C. /S/ David J. Berger David J. Berger cc: Erik J. Olson John B. Quinn Larry W. Sonsini Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation is serving as legal advisor and Perella Weinberg Partners LP is serving as financial advisor to the Special Committee of the WeWork Board of Directors. ______________ 1 Remarkably, even though the contemporaneous minutes and disclosures reflect the reality that SoftBank Vision Fund (AIV M1) L.P. ("Vision Fund") is an affiliate of SoftBank, SoftBank represented to the Delaware Court of Chancery that Vision Fund and SoftBank are two "different" investors in the Company that are wholly independent of one another. 2 See Lewis S. Black, Jr. and Frederick H. Alexander, Analysis of the 1996 Amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law at 312-313 (1996). 3 The resolutions at issue in CBS granted the special committee "the full powers, authorities, duties, rights and responsibilities of the Board with respect to matters relating to, or arising from, any Special Committee Matters including, without limitation, that the Committee shall be authorized and empowered to (a) take such actions as it may deem necessary or desirable to consider, negotiate and oversee the Potential Transaction." 2018 WL 3414163, at *2. 4 Numerous Delaware cases evidence this principle. See, e.g., Kahn v. M & F Worldwide Corp., 88 A.3d 635, 643 (Del. 2014) ("The Court of Chancery rested its holding upon the premise that the common law equitable rule that best protects minority investors is one that encourages controlling stockholders to accord the minority both procedural protections."); In re Cox (News - Alert) Comm'ns, Inc. S'holders Litig., 879 A.2d 604, 618 (Del. Ch. 2004) ("Independent directors have increasingly understood and aggressively undertaken the burdens of acting as a guarantor of the minority's interest, by undertaking a deep examination of the economics of the transactions they confront and developing effective negotiation strategies to extract value for the minority from the controller."); Sealy Mattress Co. of New Jersey, Inc. v. Sealy, Inc., 532 A.2d 1324, 1338 (Del. Ch. 1987) ("[O]nce having assumed the position of directors . . . those [directors] became fiduciaries for the minority shareholders, with a concomitant affirmative duty to protect the interests of the minority . . . ."). 5 SoftBank's citation to Zapata Corp. v. Maldonado, 430 A.2d 779, 786 (Del. 1981) is entirely inapposite and, frankly, underscores SoftBank's apparent lack of understanding of core principles of Delaware law. That case discusses special litigation committees, which are wholly distinct from the type of fully empowered, transaction-related committee here and occupy a specific (and unrelated) niche of Delaware law. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005803/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] You dont have to look hard to find inequality in America. For the past several weeks I have been sheltering with my family in Central New York, where even among the rolling hills and sweeping expanses of farmland, the vast divide between the haves and have-nots is as plainly visible as it is in New York City. Tompkins County, one of the wealthiest in the region, is home to Cornell University and the stunningly beautiful Cayuga Heights village, with stone and Tudor mansions set on the cliffs among gorges and waterfalls overlooking Ithaca. Seen from the bluffs above Ithaca Falls, tightly packed two-story homes downtown give way to commercial streets and strip malls. Behind a Walmart, in a swampy forest of city land known as The Jungle, more than 30 makeshift shelters form a sprawling homeless encampment. Volunteers with Loaves and Fishes, one of the longest-serving food pantries in the city, walk winding paths through tick-infested marshes that are strewn with garbage, broken bicycles and hypodermic needles. Among their clients is 27-year-old Cameron Alexander McCaffery, who just spent his first upstate winter in a one-room shack made from scraps of building materials. Farther north, in Syracuse, Interstate 81 bisects the city with a huge four-lane overpass. Beneath it, on both sides of a highway, are long rows of two-story brick apartment buildings called the Pioneer Homes. They are the oldest public housing projects in New York and are among the first in the nation. On the east side of the highway, residents navigate a strip of sooty industrial wasteland to reach a few small convenience stores, the only businesses within walking distance. As the sun sets over the citys impoverished south side, long-haul trucks barreling through the city cast shadows across the buildings, speeding past doors and windows, and shaking the ground beneath. On a hill above, the modern glass-and-steel buildings of the Upstate and Syracuse University campuses sparkle in the evening light. During the school year, Syracuses vaunted journalism program sends its eager young journalists, some of whom pay upward of $65,000 a year in tuition, down the hill to document the blight. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 06:42:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BRUSSELS, April 19 (Xinhua) -- With continuous drop in the daily numbers of new deaths and new infections in European countries hit hard by COVID-19, the coronavirus pandemic is showing more encouraging signs of abating, bringing hope to this continent. In Europe, over 1.12 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and nearly 100,000 deaths have been reported so far, according to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO). On Sunday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that lifting lockdown restrictions for COVID-19 is not the end of the epidemic, it's just the beginning of the next phase. FEWER DEATHS In Spain, the health ministry on Sunday confirmed that 410 COVID-19 patients had died in the 24-hour period until 21:00 local time (1900 GMT) on Saturday, bringing the death toll to 20,453. The new deaths, a four-week trough, were considerably fewer than the 565 reported on Saturday. The same period saw 4,218 new cases -- lower than the 4,499 cases on Saturday -- pushing the country's total infections to 195,944. Meanwhile, 77,357 patients have recovered in Spain, 2,695 more than on Saturday. Italy also reported a continued fall in daily fatalities. In the past 24 hours, 433 people had died of COVID-19, raising the country's death toll to 23,660, official data showed on Sunday. Sunday's number of new deaths was the smallest in a week, representing the fourth time in five days that the number of COVID-19 victims fell in Italy. According to fresh figures from Italy's Civil Protection Department, the total number of confirmed cases -- combining active infections, fatalities and recoveries -- rose to 178,972, a daily increase of 3,047 against Saturday. Sunday marked the first time since late February that the Italian department did not hold a daily briefing, another sign that the situation is improving. In France, Director General of Health Jerome Salomon confirmed "a slow decline" in the spread of coronavirus, after the updated data on the epidemic indicated decelerating cases in hospitals and fatalities. As of Sunday, the COVID-19 has claimed 19,718 fatalities in France, 395 more compared with the previous day's total. The daily death toll was down from 642 on Saturday and 761 on Friday. The number of hospitalized patients was 30,610, 29 less than Saturday's 30,639. There were signs that pressures on hospitals were easing as the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care have dropped for 11 days in a row, said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe at Sunday's press conference. "SLOWLY BUT SURELY" The coronavirus pandemic situation is improving "slowly but surely" in France though it is far from over, Philippe told the press conference. "We lived in an unprecedented sanitary crisis, which is not over ... We are scoring points against the epidemic. The situation is improving slowly but surely. But we are not out of the health crisis yet," the prime minister said. "After the sanitary crisis, there would be an economic crisis, which would be brutal," Philippe added. A return to normal life is not to be expected for the short term, he said. "Our life from May 11 will not be like our life before, not immediately, and probably not for a long time," said Philippe, adding that "we should learn how to live with the virus." The WHO chief was cautious on Sunday when speaking at the Group of 20 (G20) Health Ministers virtual meeting from Geneva. "We are encouraged that several G20 countries are now starting to plan how to ease social restrictions. It is critical that these measures are a phased process," Tedros said. He said it's vital in this next phase that countries educate, engage and empower their people to prevent and respond rapidly to any resurgence. Enditem PETALUMA, CA UnemployedCalifornians wont be the only ones struggling to pay their bills in the comingmonths. Most, if not all,of the states 1,037 K-12 school districts, which rely heavily on money from thestates general fund, will likely have to rework their own spending plans forthe new school year. Although anexecutive order signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last month guarantees schooldistricts will continue to receive revenues budgeted for the current schoolyear, its the coming school year that concerns school administrators. With state taxrevenues and other sources of income expected to plunge, school boards willlikely be forced to redraft their fiscal year 2020-21 spending plans that werealready well along toward being finalized when the coronavirus forcedclassrooms to close in March. We dont knowanything; its as simple as that, says Mike Fine, chief executive officer ofthe Financial Crisis & Management Assistance Team (FCMAT), a state-funded organizationcreated in 1992 to provide school districts with financial and managementadvice on a voluntary basis. This is looking a lot like 2008. Fine said schooldistricts should be running different financial scenarios, if they haventbegun already, because nobody knows what the new school year will bring. Hebelieves school districts will be faced with extraordinary expenses requiredfor distance learning and other services provided by districts such as feedingstudents and child care. For Fine and hisstaff at FCMAT business may soon be booming. On the Brink Troy Flint, of theCalifornia School Boards Association which represents nearly every district inthe state, said schools are in a worse financial position now than they were inthe great recession of 2009. Were on afinancial precipice where many districts will be in a precarious position and othersmay end up in receivership if theres a prolonged recession, he told Patch.Whats uncertain is just how far the state will go in providing financialassistance beyond its broad assurances that school districts will be taken careof. Story continues State and localsources provide most of the annual revenue for California schools, althoughfederal funds contribute. In addition to a share of local property taxes amounting to about 30% of each countys one percent tax levy schools relymost heavily on state funding derived from a portion of the states personalincome tax, sales tax and corporate and insurance tax collections. StateLottery proceeds also provide school districts with additional revenue. With millions ofCalifornians out of work, businesses shuttered and tax deadlines extended, anaccurate picture of revenues from income and sales taxes probably wont emergeuntil mid-summer, after the June 30 deadline for approval of school budgets,although a hint of revenue shortfalls will come in Mays state budget revisionand school districts will have a better picture of just how bad things mightbe. Complex Process An annual ritualalmost incomprehensible to the average taxpayer, the process of constructing aschool district budget is in large part dependent upon navigating a maze ofcalculations projecting how much state aid will be received under the LocalControl Funding Formula, a K-12 financing system implemented in 2013 replacingan even more confusing school funding method utilized for nearly 40 years. If youre asking how any revenue shortfall will affect state governmentin terms of the timing [when revenues are received] that will be an assessmentmade as we finalize our updated forecasts for the May Revision, H.D. Palmer,deputy director of the states finance department, told Patch. Palmer said its important to note that compared to the financial crisisof 2008-09, the states cash position is much better today than it was then. The Governors January budget proposal for FY 2020-21 projected anextremely healthy financial condition, Palmer said, but the states cashposition will be reassessed as part of the budget revision next month. Newsoms proposed budget, submitted to the state legislature Jan. 10increased state general fund spending for basic K-12 education to $61.6billion which included $3.15 billion to help reduce school districts annualcontributions to the state Teachers and Public Employees Retirement Funds andpay down the unfunded portion of those pension funds. Billions Short Yet a report issued by CaliforniasLegislative Analysts Office on April 5, predicted that revenues are likely tobe at least several billions of dollars lower than anticipated in January, althoughcompared to prior recessions the state enters this period of economicuncertainty with significant reserves. But the LAO warned that any decline instate revenues, as the state is likely to experience in response to thecoronavirus emergency, is likely to reduce school funding. According to the LAO, in February the statehad about $17.5 billion in reserves -- $16.5 in the Budget StabilizationAccount and $900 million in Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties. There wasanother $377 million in a special state reserve account specifically forschools. In addition, the LAO estimated the statesschool districts themselves had a total of $12.8 billion in reserves that couldbe spent for any purpose, an amount that would cover expenses for about twomonths. Whatever happensin May, the most pressing problem for school districts as they reconsiderbudgets in such uncertain times will be that of cash flow: How much theyll actuallyreceive from the state and, more importantly, when theyll get it. Until a betterrevenue picture emerges, its expected school districts will use at least partof what theyve squirreled away to make ends meet. Every district isrequired to set aside money for emergencies based on a percentage of theirprevious years expenditures. Many districts set aside only the minimumrequired while others budget more, with larger districts frequently reportingreserves substantially in excess of whats required. Petaluma City Schools had $7.23 million in total reserves as of June 2019, according to district financial statements. Over and abovethese required reserves, other sources of money may also be available to somedistricts. Funds budgeted in two other categories committed and assigned could be redirected by school boards or district administrators if necessary. Where schoolboards have committed funds for specific purposes, such as equipment purchases,this money can be used for something else if a resolution is approved to changethe purpose. Funds assigned by administrators for particular expenses can alsobe redirected if necessary. Flint says thatabout half of the districts were already dipping into their reserves before thecoronavirus shut down schools, forcing school officials to begin operating inan uncommon environment. Reserves Required School districtsare required by state law to continue providing services in a time of crisisregardless of the costs, Flint said. Its the unanticipated costs created bythe health emergency that will make budgeting difficult for school officialsbecause they still have employee payrolls and benefit expenses which comprise80% or more of district budgets. Those expenseswill continue, albeit at reduced levels, until classrooms reopen. Although mostfull-time teachers will continue to receive paychecks because of labor contractrequirements, many districts have already furloughed scores of classifiedemployees, such as teacher aides, custodians and food service workers. Since benefitcontributions are based upon percentages of payroll, most notably to theCalifornia State Teachers Retirement Fund (CalSTRS) and the California PublicEmployees Retirement System (CalPERS) which provides pensions to classifiedemployees, these are expected to be temporarily reduced. Yet these giantcreditors, who themselves have been taking a short-term bath on investments,expect to be paid regardless, although they recognize everybodys hurting. Spokespersons forboth CalSTRS and CalPERS told Patch the pension funds will be working withschool districts on a case-by-case basis if they experience financial hardshipsand this includes potential waivers of penalties for late payments. However, retireeswill continue receiving monthly pension checks on time. While itsuncertain what will happen with the states May budget revision, a hint ofwhats in store may be the State Lottery, which last year contributed $1.5billion to K-12 school districts. Lottery distributions are estimated toaccount for as much as 2% of many districts revenue. Weveconcluded the current coronavirus public health emergency has negativelyimpacted sales by an estimated 25-30%, Lottery spokesman Jorge DeLaCruz toldPatch. As of April 9, DeLaCruz said some 900 Lottery dealers confirmedthey were closed due to the coronavirus about 4% of the states 22,154 retailoutlets selling Lottery products. According to thelatest data available, during the first half of the current fiscal year Lotterypayments to school districts totaled $617.1 million. Just how much thosepayments will drop wont be known until distributions are calculated for thesecond half of the current fiscal year in September. Whatever happens,Flint says the coronavirus pandemic presents an opportunity to remakeCalifornia public schools by encouraging a comprehensive approach to educationrather and a piecemeal approach. If nothing else,Flint said, the public is getting a better idea of how much schools are a hubof community and what happens when classrooms are closed. This article originally appeared on the Petaluma Patch If It Bleeds By Stephen King Scribner. 436 pp. $30 --- Stephen King's affinity for the novella form goes back to the early stages of his long, prolific career. In 1982, King published "Different Seasons," a quartet of long stories that contained some of his finest work, and eventually led to some memorable film adaptations, among them "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Stand by Me." Since then, at roughly 10-year intervals, King has produced three similar volumes that have allowed him to play with a wide variety of themes, scenes and settings. The latest of these, "If It Bleeds," contains four new, exceptionally compelling novellas that reaffirm his mastery of the form. King, of course, has made good use of virtually every mode of storytelling: short stories, screenplays, novels, multivolume epics and what he referred to as his "novel for television," the miniseries "Storm of the Century." But the mid-length narrative suits his talents particularly well, permitting a degree of expansiveness while maintaining a controlled, disciplined approach to the material at hand. The results are stories that cover a surprising amount of emotional territory but can still be read in a sitting. "Mr. Harrigan's Phone," for example, is yet another reflection of King's sometimes baleful fascination with technology and its effects on our lives. At the heart of the story is the relationship between Craig, the adolescent narrator, and John Harrigan, retired billionaire and borderline Luddite. As their uneven relationship develops, Craig gifts the older man a cellphone. The gift is designed to facilitate "normal" communications, but - this is, after all, a Stephen King story - those communications darken and change, connecting the world of rural Maine to the unknown world beyond. At its deepest level, "Mr. Harrigan's Phone" is about the lasting connections we sometimes make despite seemingly insurmountable differences. "The Life of Chuck" gets my vote as the collection's most original story. It opens on the image of billboards bearing the portrait of a middle-aged accountant named Charles Krantz. Each billboard bears the words: "39 GREAT YEARS! THANKS, CHUCK!" Who is Chuck? And what is the story behind those billboards? In time, we learn a good deal about this character as the story, constructed in three acts, moves backward in time to Chuck's early life. The result is a slightly surreal, wholly engaging narrative about dance, music, mortality and acceptance, and about the bedrock notion that all of us, like Chuck, contain multitudes. "Rat" returns to one of King's recurring subjects: the problematic nature of the writing life. His protagonist, Drew Larson, is a struggling writer who has produced a half-dozen short stories, and has tried and failed three times to finish a novel, each failure bringing with it a greater degree of psychological damage. "Rat" recounts Drew's final desperate attempt to bring a novel to completion. Isolated in a cabin deep in the woods of Northern Maine, he learns once again that art is a double-edged sword, one that can lead to exhilaration, despair and - in extreme moments - madness. An unpredictable, often hallucinatory narrative, this is one of King's definitive explorations of the dark side of the creative impulse. The centerpiece of this volume is the title story. By far the longest story in the book, "If It Bleeds" is a fully developed short novel with multiple ties to King's recent fiction. The protagonist - and true hero - is Holly Gibney, the damaged, savant-like young woman who first appeared in 2014's "Mr. Mercedes," and who played a pivotal role in King's 2018 novel "The Outsider." "If It Bleeds" is, in fact, a direct sequel to "The Outsider," though it contains enough relevant detail to stand on its own. As in "The Outsider," when Holly and a police detective tracked down an ancient vampiric creature, "If It Bleeds" finds her battling a similarly daunting monster. This time, though, she must do so on her own. Watching her overcome obstacles, among them her own fear, her troubled past and the disbelief of others, is one of the central pleasures of this book. Holly is that rarest of creations: a wholly admirable person. King's affection for her is evident on every page and adds a measure of emotional weight to the narrative. Holly has now appeared in five of King's novels, and I fully expect to see her again. Her latest appearance adds a welcome grace note to a collection filled with startling, sometimes unsettling pleasures. In "If It Bleeds," King continues to draw from a rich and varied reservoir of stories. At its best, his work remains deeply empathetic and compulsively readable. May the reservoir never run dry. --- Sheehan is the author of "At the Foot of the Story Tree: An Inquiry into the Fiction of Peter Straub." Actor, television host and producer Raghu Ram has shared adorable photos of his son Rhythm on Instagram. While he has shared pictures earlier too, this is the first time the little ones face is visible. Raghu and his wife Natalie Di Luccio are seen flashing bright smiles as they pose with Rhythm. The caption was a sweet poem describing how a father would always dote on his son and protect him from harm. Teri chhoti si duniya mein, Sabse badaa tera Papa. Teri har museebat ke, Aage khada tera Papa. Teri nanhi si mutthi mein, Samaa jaaye tera Papa. Tu roye toh tu hi bataa, Kahaan jaaye tera Papa?! ...... Meet the apple of our eye, The tune of our song, The Rhythm of our life. #ProudParents #LittleRhythm @nataliediluccio, he wrote. Also read: Vicky Kaushal says he used to run out of the room if a horror movie was on before he did Bhoot Raghu and Natalie, who tied the knot in 2018, welcomed Rhythm on January 6 this year. In an earlier interview with Hindustan Times, he expressed his excitement about his little bundle of joy. Bringing life into this world is such a beautiful and awe-inspiring thing. It is exhausting as well as electrifying, an experience I never thought Ill have and that brought us much closer, he said. The name Rhythm was chosen by Raghu and Natalie as they wanted their child to have a universal name that was beyond nationality or religion. I feel the name is the first thing that starts limiting a human being to a certain religion or nationality. It was important for me to give a name that shouldnt link [my baby] to any religion. It is not just global, its cosmic. Thus, we finalised this name, he said. Raghu was last seen as the host of Skulls and Roses, alongside his twin brother Rajiv Lakshman. The reality show was an Amazon Prime Video original and grabbed eyeballs for its explicit content. Follow @htshowbiz for more Representative image Beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya on April 20 lost his appeal in a UK high court. This development is a shot in the arm for the government, which has been trying to bring him back to the country to face charges in an Indian court. The 64-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines owner is wanted in India on charges of fraud and money laundering to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore. Mallya had left India on March 2016 and has been living in England on bail since his arrest on extradition warrant in April last year. From hereon, Mallya has two choices first, to appeal in the UK Supreme Court within the next 14 days, in which case the UK Home Office will have to wait for the outcome of that appeal to extradite Mallya. The second way forward is that Mallya abides by this order, in which case, he will be formally extradited to India within 28 days as per the UK-India Extradition Treaty, and faces charges in Indian courts. If and when Mallya is back, he will be placed in Mumbai's Arthur Road prison, as was announced when the Westminster Magistrate Court had found him guilty. The prison authorities informed that he will be lodged at barrack 12 of the prison. This high-security barrack is located in a two-storey building inside the prison complex, which also housed 26/11 Mumbai attack terrorist Mohammad Ajmal Kasab. Each cell in Barrack 12 has an attached toilet, a washing area and a courtyard. Usually, prison barracks have Indian-style toilets, but some cells in Barrack 12 have western commodes. Each inmate is given a mattress with a pillow and a bedsheet; a melamine tumbler, plate and two bowls to have water and meals. The inmates are provided melamine dishes so that they cant use them to injure themselves or others. The ceiling fan is placed extremely high so it cannot be reached by a prisoner. The cell is under 24/7 CCTV surveillance and guards are posted inside as well as outside to watch over inmates round the clock. Barrack 12 houses high-profile prisoners who could either pose a threat to others or are perceived to face threats themselves. Other VIPs who have been lodged in the same cell: Former television executive Peter Mukerjea was lodged in Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Prison. He is being tried for the murder of his step-daughter Sheena Bora. President (finance) of Nirav Modis Firestar International, who is in judicial custody for the alleged Rs 13,500 crore PNB scam, has been lodged here. NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal and his nephew Samir Bhujbal are among high profile inmates of Barrack 12. Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt was housed here when he underwent his sentence for his involvement in the 1993 Bombay bomb blast case. Terrorist Ajmal Kasab, who participated in the 26/11 attacks, was also lodged in Barrack 12 briefly, before he was moved to the infamous Anda Cell. Kasabs cell is now occupied by Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jindal, one of the alleged handlers of the 26/11 terrorists. China on Monday rejected Australias call for a probe examining the global response to the coronavirus pandemic -- including Beijings early handling of the outbreak. Washington and several allies have accused China of failing to adequately respond to the viral disease threat in the weeks after it was first detected in the central city of Wuhan late last year. US President Donald Trump also cut funding to the World Health Organization after accusing it of mismanaging the crisis and covering up the seriousness of the initial outbreak before it spread around the world and killed more than 165,000 people. But Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the accusations disrespected the Chinese peoples tremendous efforts and sacrifices in fighting the contagion. Any question about Chinas transparency in the prevention and control of epidemic situation is not in line with facts, Geng told a regular press briefing. He was speaking in response to a question about Australian foreign minister Marise Payne, who a day earlier said her country would insist on the probe into the response by Beijing and the WHO. Authorities in Wuhan initially tried to cover up the outbreak, punishing doctors who had raised the alarm online in December. There were also questions about Chinas recording of COVID-19 infections, as it repeatedly changed its counting criteria at the peak of the outbreak. Chinese scientists have rejected conspiracy theories pushed by some in the US government claiming the virus could have originated at a maximum-security virology lab in Wuhan. But Trump has suggested that China could have been knowingly responsible for spreading the infection and could face consequences as a result. bys/gle 'We need all hands on deck': Canadian farmers struggle with labour shortfall due to COVID-19 The tiny asparagus spears poking out of the soil did not survive the night. It was too cold. Yet, it is a sign that harvest time is getting closer. However, many Canadian farmers are worried that a delay in the arrival of temporary foreign workers because of COVID-19 could result in decreased production, possible food shortages and, in turn, increased prices. "On a good day we can harvest 20,000 pounds of asparagus," says John Jaques of Sunshine Asparagus Farms in Thamesville, Ont. "If we don't have labour and if we aren't capable of getting it out of the field and getting it packed, you know, that could be $40,000 worth of product there." Asparagus is one the first fresh vegetables harvested in Ontario every spring. Jaques, like thousands of other farmers across Canada, relies on temporary foreign workers. He has been hiring workers to help with the harvest for the past 20 years. He was expecting 30 workers to arrive by April 24 from Mexico, ready for harvest the first week of May. Now he is not sure when they will all arrive. "We need all hands on deck to get it out of the field," says Jaques, whose farm has been in the family since 1850. CBC Every year, the Canadian agricultural industry employs about 60,000 temporary foreign workers. When Canada closed its border on March 21 to non-essential travel, it initially included these workers. They have since been granted an exemption due to the labour-intensive nature of Canada's agriculture industry, but even so, it's unclear how many will come this season. Jaques is hoping some of the workers he employs will arrive at his farm next week. But flight schedules to Canada have been erratic, and once workers do arrive in the country they must be quarantined for 14 days. All these factors could delay his harvest further. "One of the things that COVID is doing is it's revealing to us a bunch of areas where our food system is vulnerable, and one of those areas is labour," says Evan Fraser, director of the Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph. Story continues "I think it's going to [create] a whole bunch of disruptions. The fact that we aren't able to get labour in the sort of seamless or frictionless way as we're used to means that planting will be delayed, and that things like pruning apple orchards won't happen with the same level of efficiency." CBC It's not just farmers who are dealing with COVID-19-related uncertainty. Del-Leon Walker arrived in Nova Scotia from Jamaica earlier this week to work on Charles Keddy's strawberry farm for his 14th season. He says it was hard to leave his wife and two children at an unpredictable time. "They were feeling sad, but I sat with them and we talked about it, and they understand what we are going through and it's a pandemic, it's all around. It's here and it's in Jamaica," says Walker. "So we just have to do what we have to do and just be safe." CBC Walker says he also knows of someone who decided not to come to Canada to work on the harvest this year for fear of contracting the virus. "We understand that there are a lot more cases here, but we still made the decision to be here . This is work, and without work we will not survive." He is currently in quarantine in his own room on-site at the farm. Walker is being paid for his time in quarantine, but is anxious to get to work. "We understand this is a serious time," he says. "And we are happy with the work we have done over the years." Back in Ontario, Jaques is renovating the bunkhouses for the workers in order to accommodate for physical distancing. He's also retro-fitting farm equipment so they don't sit so close together on harvest aids, as well as purchasing more to make up the shortfall. CBC "Some farmers are saying I don't have the bunkhouses to house my workers, so I'm only bringing in half as much, we're only going to pick half our crop. So there will be [production issues], I think that supplies will be tight." At his on-site processing facility, where asparagus is bundled as well as pickled and put in jars, fewer workers will be able to work the line in order to accommodate physical distancing, further slowing production. All of which increases Jaques' costs, and may cut into production. And that could mean higher prices at the checkout aisle. "I hope the prices are higher, because in order to cover the extra costs I think we need to have a higher price. But we'll see what happens I don't make those decisions," says Jaques. CBC Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a program offering $1,500 per temporary foreign worker to each farmer to help recoup things like extra housing and equipment costs. But that does nothing to offset the delay in getting people to start work. "Our system is really struggling right now to figure out what to do in the absence of this labour or having this labour come in at a much smaller, slower rate," says Fraser. "Perhaps some items that we used to get from Ontario farms may not be as plentiful this year, and they may be more expensive." But Fraser also says consumers should not worry. "I'm seeing heroic, Herculean efforts by our farmers, our food processors and by government to try to keep the system moving along as effectively as possible." The issues with migrant workers could also be an opportunity for Canadians looking for work. An Instagram account @HelpCanadaGrow and a Facebook page were launched last week to connect local people with farmers to help fill the labour gap. Quebec, expecting a shortfall of 3,000 workers, has also announced a program to recruit 8,500 Quebec workers for the agricultural sector. Jaques has started looking at training local help to fill the gap at his farm, and some nearby families have also offered to help out in those crucial first few weeks of harvest. But he still expects a tough season ahead. "It's still a long road ahead. I think it's going to be a challenge training new workers." He also hopes for a few more cold nights to delay harvest until his workforce is ready. "I'm sure Mother Nature will co-operate. She always does." William Garrison Michigan Department of Corrections William Garrison, 60, died from COVID-19 on April 13. He was serving a life sentence for a fatal shooting that happened when he was 16, in 1976. He had not complained about symptoms to anyone, but a postmortem test revealed he had the virus. Garrison had been offered parole weeks before his death and was set to be released in early May.A Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. A 60-year-old Michigan inmate who was sentenced to life in prison as a juvenile died from COVID-19 weeks before he was set to be released early. William Garrison had spent 44 years in prison on a first-degree murder conviction, connected to a shooting that happened when he was 16, in 1976. Related Video: What Could Be the Fastest Way to End the Coronavirus Crisis? He was set to be released in early May. But he died from COVID-19 on April 13, the Detroit Free Press reported. Garrison had not complained of any symptoms to his family or the prison staff, but a postmortem test confirmed that he had the virus. Chris Gautz, a spokesperson for the Department of Corrections, told CNN that the agency tried to release Garrison on parole earlier this year, but "he refused to leave prison." "He did not want to be on parole, he wanted to wait and just walk out completely free from supervision in September," Gautz said. When the novel coronavirus pandemic started to spread across the United States, the Department of Corrections offered parole to Garrison again, citing his age and concern about the virus. Garrison agreed, and the Department of Corrections asked the prosecutor's office if the mandatory 28-day waiting period for parole could be waived for him. He died before the office responded to the request. More than 520 of the state's 38,000 prisoners have tested positive for COVID-19. Garrison and 16 other inmates have died from the virus. Garrison's sister, Yolanda Peterson, told the Free Press that her brother was going to stay at her home after his release. "My brother shouldn't have died in there like that," she said. "He was trying to get free." Read the original article on Insider Welsh farmers have called on the devolved government to urgently review the eligibility criteria for the Economic Resilience Fund in order to support them amid Covid-19. Stricken farming businesses in Wales have expressed 'dismay' that they are not eligible to access the 500m fund established by the Welsh government. The fund aims to provide extra support to the local economy, businesses and charities experiencing a sharp drop in trading as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. However, with the disruptions in the supply chain following a difficult winter, farmers are now starting to see severe impacts to cashflow, with some businesses 'reaching crisis point', according to NFU Cymru. The union has called on the Welsh government's economy minister to review the Economic Resilience Fund to facilitate the provision of support to farmers. "Farmers are justifiably distressed," NFU Cymru President John Davies said, "Particularly in the absence of bespoke support for farming from Welsh government." Earlier this month, NFU Cymru wrote to the First Minister Mark Drakeford emphasising that support is going to be 'critical' given the Covid-19 impacts felt by the industry, this included access to fund support. But farmers are instead being referred to Farming Connect - the Welsh government's industry support scheme - despite it 'falling significantly short' of the level of support needed. Whilst we recognise the steps the Farming Connect programme have taken to ensure the service can continue in the context of Covid-19, the Farming Connect 'offer' falls significantly short of the type and level of support many farming businesses now need," Mr Davies said. NFU Cymru added that farming cannot be 'furloughed' as it is in the 'national interest' that farms continue to produce food for the nation during the crisis. "We are fully supportive of measures from government to support and underpin the survival of businesses facing unprecedented impacts as a result of Covid-19 this must include farming," Mr Davies said. It is absolutely vital that Welsh government ensures that farm businesses reaching crisis point as a result of Covid-19 are supported so they can continue to fulfil their vital role as food producers underpinning the rural economy. It comes as the UK government temporarily relaxed competition rules to allow the UK dairy industry to address current market challenges. The legislation, which will be laid shortly, would allow the sector to avoid waste and maintain productive capacity to meet future demand. A Russian court has cut the four-year prison term of an opposition activist imprisoned for repeatedly taking part in unsanctioned rallies. The Moscow City Court ruled on April 20 that Konstantin Kotov's term must be lowered by 2 1/2 years. Kotov reiterated at the hearing at the court that he does not consider his participation in the rallies as a crime. "My duty as a human and a citizen is to defend innocent people. I do not shirk [that duty.] This is my third final statement in a courtroom. I am ready to repeat it again and again. As many times as necessary for my acquittal," Kotov said. His lawyer, Maria Eismont, demanded the case against Kotov be closed and the charge dropped. Amnesty International Russias Director Natalia Zviagina called the court decision to uphold Kotovs conviction a profound injustice, saying the activist has spent more than eight months behind bars simply for taking part in peaceful protests. The fact remains that he should never have been detained at all. Konstantin Kotov is a prisoner of conscience, he must be acquitted and freed, Zviagina added. The 35-year-old computer programmer was detained on August 10 for taking part in a rally to demand opposition and independent candidates be put on the ballot for the Moscow City Duma election that was held on September 8. The barring of the would-be candidates sparked a wave of protests in Moscow and elsewhere in Russia last summer, some of which were violently suppressed by police as thousands were briefly detained, sparking international condemnation. Kotov was one of several activists punished with prison following the protests in what has been dubbed the Moscow Case. His conviction and sentencing on September 5 sparked a public outcry in Russia because of its severity. On January 25, amid protests against Kotov's imprisonment, President Vladimir Putin ordered the Prosecutor-General's Office to review the legality of the sentencing. Two days later, Russia's Constitutional Court ruled that case must be reviewed. Based on reporting by Novaya Gazeta and Rapsinews Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:09:35|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close File photo shows the national flags of China (R) and the United States on the Constitution Avenue in Washington, United States.(Xinhua/Bao Dandan) The conspiracy theories peddled by some U.S. individuals can only disrupt scientific research and the cooperation between scientists of the two countries, said a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson while commenting on the claims of some U.S. officials that the COVID-19 virus originated from a Wuhan virology lab. BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Monday urged certain U.S. officials to respect the facts, science and the international consensus, and stop spreading conspiracy theories surrounding the origin of the COVID-19 virus. Spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a press briefing when commenting on the recent claims of some U.S. officials that the virus originated from a Wuhan virology lab. "The origin of COVID-19 is a matter of science, which should depend on scientists and medical experts to find out, but should not be politicized," Geng said. Public health scientists and experts from the World Health Organization and most countries, including the United States, generally believe that there is no evidence to indicate the novel coronavirus originated from a lab, he said. According to Geng, the director of the Wuhan Institute of Virology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences has denied the unsubstantiated and illogical claims of the U.S. side when giving an interview, stressing that the institute has a strict regulatory regime. No staff of the institute was infected with the virus and all members are devoting themselves to the research work, Geng said, citing the director. Geng said the irresponsible conspiracy theories by some U.S. individuals can only disrupt scientific research and damage the cooperation between scientists of the two countries. "These people should realize that their enemy is virus, not China." "Their top priority should be focusing on the domestic prevention and control of the epidemic and strengthening international cooperation, rather than attacking and smearing China or deflecting the blame," Geng said. Nuclear power plants can now implement longer shifts for workers and delay some inspections, raising concerns that as the coronavirus pandemic upends basic operations the industry may bending the rules too far. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is already allowing six U.S. power plants to extend workers' shifts, to as long as 12 hours a day for two weeks, and more may be coming. That's up significantly from current standards that require people to get two-to-three days off a week when pulling shifts that long. Employees can also work as many as 86 hours in a week now, up from 72 hours. To curb transmission of the virus, utilities also say they want to delay inspections that require people to work in close proximity. Environmental groups, though, warn the changes could have disastrous results, and worry they could lead to further deviations from safety rules. "This is a step backward," said Eric Epstein, chairman of Three Mile Island Alert, a Pennsylvania non-profit group. "It's not a good idea to stretch workers and marginalize safety standards." The new rules come as at least 42 construction workers have tested positive for the coronavirus at a nuclear plant in Georgia where Southern Co. is building two new reactors. Last week, the utility and its partners announced they would reduce the 9,000-person workforce by 20% to slow the spread of the virus. Exelon Corp., operator of the biggest U.S. nuclear fleet, says it "can no longer meet the work-hour controls" at four of its reactors, including the Braidwood plant in Illinois. NextEra Energy Inc. said the same thing about its Seabrook power plant in New Hampshire. The companies say that the extended work hours won't have an adverse impact on safety. "The work-hour rule exemption is an important contingency that may be implemented to allow healthy workers to remain on site for more hours, reducing the need to bring in outside travelers and vendors," Exelon spokeswoman Linsey Wisniewski said by email. But watchdog groups are concerned that employees may be overworked, leading to fatigue and potentially errors. "You want an alert workforce," said Paul Gunter, a director at Beyond Nuclear. "You don't do this with bus drivers, but they're saying it's OK for nuclear power plant workers." The NRC is also granting utilities utilities permission to defer some inspections as dozens of reactors go through the annual spring refueling cycle. These projects can involve more than 1,000 people converging on a power plant for a month or more of maintenance and testing. Pinnacle West Capital Corp. also has approval for longer hours and is postponing an inspection of components on the bottom of the reactor vessel at the 3.9-gigawatt Palo Verde nuclear plant in Arizona, the biggest U.S. nuclear plant. The company had initially planned to conduct the evaluation during its refueling outage this spring, but has now pushed that out until the next one, in late 2021. The utility owner determined that the task posed a potential risk of spreading the deadly virus, and could be safely delayed. "Only work that is absolutely required for refueling the unit to safely and reliably operate for the next 18 months is being conducted," Jill Hanks, a spokeswoman, said by email. The plant has not imposed longer shifts, but now has the option to quickly do so if necessary. The NRC is on board with the new reality of operating nuclear plants during a global pandemic and is developing guidance for deferring maintenance work. "There are some ancillary activities during an outage that can be deferred," said Scott Burnell, a spokesman for the agency. Entergy Corp. is planning to defer some leak tests at pipes at its Grand Gulf reactor in Mississippi. The tests typically are due every 11 1/2 years, but will now be rescheduled for the next refueling outage in 18 months. Pushing that period out to 13 years won't affect safety, the company said by email. And at the Indian Point facility north of New York City, Entergy is also seeking permission to postpone annual physical evaluations for firefighters. Nuclear watchdogs are paying close attention to four sites that have requested permission to delay tests on steam generator piping, including Exelon's Braidwood. The agency already approved NextEra's request for its Turkey Point plant in Florida. The pipes carry water at high pressure, allowing it to stay liquid even as temperatures reach 600 degrees Fahrenheit (316 degrees Celsius). They are supposed to be inspected every three years, with the job requiring people working in close proximity. Because of the virus, the operators are seeking to delay this until the next refueling cycle in 18 months. These components have a fraught history. In 1999, Consolidated Edison Inc. sought a similar delay to inspect the generator piping at Indian Point, which it owned at the time. The company was granted a 12-month deferral, but eight months later one of them started to leak. While a small amount of radioactive gas escaped into the air, the incident was quickly contained and the NRC concluded it didn't pose a threat to health. A report by the NRC's Office of the Inspector General later found that the agency's original evaluation, approving the delay, was "not adequate." The NRC's Burnell said the agency has learned a lot about those systems in the past two decades and there's little chance that kind of accident would be repeated now. Requests for delays must be accompanied by significant documentation, and "the NRC will only consider deferring the required inspections if that information clearly shows it's reasonable to expect continued safe operation of the steam generators until the next inspection," Burnell said by email. NextEra said "it would be speculative to compare conditions at Turkey Point to conditions at other nuclear plants," spokeswoman Lindsay Robertson said by email. Beyond Nuclear's Gunter says the Indian Point leak may have been prevented if the inspection had taken place on schedule, and the incident points to the potential risks of extending maintenance reviews. As the coronavirus affects the entire global economy, he's concerned that a wave of extension requests from utilities may lead to other incidents. "It's a gamble," Gunter said. "Our concern is that they're creating the conditions for a perfect storm. There could be a catastrophic incident that results from postponing inspections combined with fatigue from people that are overworked." Image: Reuters GoI to States: Violations to #lockdown measures reported, posing a serious health hazard to public & risk for spread of #COVID19: Incidents of violence on frontline healthcare prof; complete violations of social distancing norms; movement of vehicles in urban areas April 20, 2020 Several media reports have surfaced over the past month about attacks on healthcare workers across India. Condemning such attacks on frontline workers who are risking their lives to help others amid the global health crisis, the Government of India has sent a stern note to the states, asking them to crack down on such anti-social forces. The Centre, in its communication to the state governments, also spoke about frequent violation of social distancing rules, including reports of vehicles plying in the urban reaches, directing them to strictly police such incidents, reported NDTV. For live updates on coronavirus, click here So far, reports of attacks on healthcare professionals have emerged from Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bengaluru, and Bihar. 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 Six inter-ministerial teams have been set up by the Centre to ensure there is strict implementation of the lockdown imposed to control the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus. In a letter addressed to the states, the Union Home Ministry further said on April 20, that these committees will also guarantee there is no dearth of essential items anywhere and also that the safety of no healthcare worker is compromised. Here's a list of apps launched by Centre and state governments to tackle COVID-19 crisis Notably, another letter was written to the states on April 19, clarifying that no individual state or Union Territory is allowed to relax lockdown norms imposed by the Centre arbitrarily. Only activities permitted by the Centre as per the guidelines it has issued will be allowed, the letter stated, referring to the partial relaxations granted by the Government of India in certain sectors to kickstart economic activity. " " A statue of Brigham Young, the second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, stands outside the historic Mormon Salt Lake Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah. George Frey/Getty Images The fast-growing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims more than 16 million members worldwide, yet remains one of the least-understood religions on the planet. Even though the Church outlawed polygamy more than a century ago, many people still think Mormons can have more than one wife. And a lot of folks still confuse Mormons with Jehovah's Witnesses and the Amish. (Which are the ones who don't dance again?) To help set the record straight about Mormon beliefs and practice, we spoke with Matthew Bowman, the chair of Mormon Studies at Claremont Graduate University and the author of "The Mormon People: The Making of an American Faith." Advertisement Myth 1: It's Called the 'Mormon Church' Since the church was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830, the official name has always been The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But Bowman says that from the start, detractors and critics began calling the controversial new sect "Mormons" or "Mormonites," an insult directed at the "Book of Mormon," an ancient book of scripture translated and published by Smith. But what started as a derogatory slur was soon embraced by church leaders like Brigham Young, who said that church members should be proud to be called Mormons. "There's a long history of Christian denominations being tagged with a name by outsiders and then eventually adopting it," says Bowman, including Methodists who were criticized as "overly Methodical" in their piety and Baptists who were ridiculed for their belief in full immersion. In recent decades, though, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has distanced itself from terms like "Mormon," "Mormon Church," "LDS Church" and other nicknames, because it says they detract from Jesus Christ as the true center of Mormon belief. Advertisement Myth 2: Mormons Worship Joseph Smith Without Joseph Smith, there would be no The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and for faithful Mormons, Smith was a prophet on par with Moses. But that doesn't mean that Mormons "worship" him, Bowman says. The history of the Mormon church begins this way: In 1820, when Smith was a 14-year-old farm boy in upstate New York, he retreated to a forest grove to ask God a pressing question: Which was the right church for him to join? To Smith's shock and amazement, his prayer was answered by two angelic figures, who identified themselves as God the Father and Jesus Christ. During this miraculous visitation, known as the First Vision, Smith was told not to join any existing church, but that the true Church of Jesus Christ would be restored through him. After receiving and translating the Book of Mormon, which describes Jesus Christ's ministry to the ancient people of the Americas, Smith was conferred with important priesthood authority that had been lost after the death of the apostles. Smith was the first prophet of what Mormons believe is Jesus Christ's true restored church, which is organized like the ancient church with prophets and apostles. Brigham Young was the second prophet of the restored church and the line of prophets has remained unbroken through today. The current prophet is Russell M. Nelson. Smith was fiercely persecuted for his claims and teachings, and was eventually killed along with his brother by a violent mob when he was only 38 years old. Smith's martyrdom, like those of early Christian apostles and saints, made him an even more beloved and revered figure to the Mormon faithful. "Joseph Smith is important," says Bowman. "He's a prophetic figure who has brought the mechanism of salvation back to humanity through the priesthood and ordinances like baptism, but that's not the same as worshipping him." It took 117 years for the church to grow from 6 members to 1 million (in 1947). But it reached the 2-million member mark just 16 years later and has been growing ever since. Today, you'll find some 16 million Mormons all over the world, not just in the U.S. Advertisement Myth 3: Mormons Aren't Really Christians In the 1980s, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints debuted a new logo with the words "Jesus Christ" in a much larger font. The Book of Mormon was also given a subtitle, "The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ." Both of these moves were in response to the persistent myth that Mormons aren't Christians. Bowman says that at the heart of this misunderstanding is a legitimate question: What does it mean to be a Christian? "The broadest and most inclusive definition of a Christian is someone who believes in Jesus Christ," says Bowman, and by that definition Mormons are clearly Christians. The earthly ministry and eternal role of Jesus Christ as the savior of mankind are the focus of Mormon doctrine and worship, and faithful members strive to cultivate a personal relationship with Christ through scripture study and prayer. " " The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and church leaders gather in the Conference Center and at the start of the 186th annual general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on April 2, 2016 in Salt Lake City, Utah. George Frey/Getty Images But there are also narrower definitions of Christianity where Mormon beliefs can be problematic. In Catholicism and mainline Protestantism, for example, there's the belief of the Trinity as a single Godhead manifested as three persons: God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. In Mormon teachings, based on the Book of Mormon and other revelations and visions received by Joseph Smith, the Godhead is not a Trinity, but rather three separate and distinct beings acting with one will and purpose. Bowman says that some evangelicals also take issue with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because of its teaching that certain sacraments and ordinances are necessary for salvation. "For evangelicals, salvation is less about professing belief or performing ordinances than it is about having a spiritual conversion experience, what's known as being 'born again,'" says Bowman. Another problem some other Christians have with the Mormon church is the fact that it holds the Book of Mormon to be sacred scripture alongside the Bible. The Latter-day Saints response to that is that the Bible itself doesn't say that "all revelations from God would be gathered into a single volume to be forever closed and that no further scriptural revelation could be received." Advertisement Myth 4: Mormons Practice Polygamy Polygamy, also known as plural marriage, was a central practice for Mormons in the 19th century, but the church outlawed it in 1904 and anyone suspected of practicing polygamy today is excommunicated. In 1840, Joseph Smith received a revelation directing church members to reinstate the ancient practice of plural marriage (the biblical King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines) as a way of quickly growing the faith's numbers. Since plural marriage was illegal in the United States, Mormons became an outlaw people and the subject of bitter persecution, driven from place to place until they finally found sanctuary in the wilds of Utah, which wasn't yet a state. In 1890, as Mormons were lobbying Congress to admit Utah as a state, the then-prophet of the church Wilford Woodruff promised to end the practice of plural marriage in the faith. And in 1904, polygamy officially became punishable by excommunication from the church. The ongoing confusion about Mormons and polygamy is that there are splinter sects living in Northern Mexico and rural parts of Arizona and Utah who continue to practice polygamy and call themselves the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. These groups, which often dress in 19th-century garb and live in isolated compounds, are separate and distinct from mainstream Mormons. Advertisement Myth 5: Mormons Can't Drink Caffeinated Beverages Faithful Mormons do their best to live by a set of health and lifestyle rules known as the Word of Wisdom. The original Word of Wisdom was a revelation given to Joseph Smith in 1833 after he prayed about the use of tobacco among church members. The answer Smith received was that men and women should not only avoid tobacco, but also alcohol and "hot drinks," which were interpreted as coffee and tea. Meat was also to be eaten "sparingly," only in times of winter and famine, and then always with thanksgiving. In the original revelation, the Word of Wisdom was less a rule than a "principle with promise" the promise being physical health, wisdom and knowledge to those who follow its guidelines. "For much of the first decades of the church, the Word of Wisdom was considered good advice, something that good saints might do who wanted the promises in the revelation," says Bowman. "But there are instances of members not following it, in part because it wasn't seen as a formal commandment or injunction. The first wagon train that left for Salt Lake City carried coffee with it." In the early 20th century, as polygamy ended, Bowman says that the Word of Wisdom took on a new significance as a way of maintaining social boundaries between the Latter-day Saints and outsiders. Eventually, adherence to the Word of Wisdom's injunctions against alcohol, tobacco, coffee and tea (but not meat) became a prerequisite for full activity in the Church. Over time, both Mormons and non-Mormons alike wondered why coffee and tea had made the no-no list, and the consensus was that it must be the caffeine, which can be an addictive substance. So, it became a cultural norm, at least in Utah, for Mormons to avoid caffeinated soda as well as "hot drinks." While Church leaders haven't exactly given their "blessing" to Coke and Pepsi, they have reiterated that coffee and tea are the only drinks explicitly prohibited by the Word of Wisdom. Even Brigham Young University, the church-owned college, now sells caffeinated sodas in its student dining halls. Advertisement Myth 6: Mormons Wear 'Magic Underwear' This one is only half mythical. Mormons who have gone to an LDS temple do wear special undergarments, but they aren't magical. Large and ornate LDS Temples are different from the smaller, plainer chapels where Mormons hold their Sunday services. At 168 Temples around the world, worthy church members over 18 years old can receive essential ordinances for salvation. When someone goes to the temple for the first time, they receive the temple "garment," which is a pair of special underwear top and bottom with religious significance. For Mormons, the garment is supposed to act as a daily reminder of important covenants made in the temple. It's not supposed to have any magic powers, even though Bowman says Mormon folklore is full of such stories. The hotel magnate Bill Marriott, a member of the church, once told "60 Minutes"that his sacred undergarments had saved his life in a freak boating accident. "The boat was on fire. I was on fire. I was burned. My pants were burned right off me. I was not burned above my knee. Where the garment was, I was not burned," said Marriott. "My undergarments were not singed." Bowman gets why non-Mormons think it's weird to wear special underwear, but in the context of world religions, Mormons aren't odd at all. "Most religious traditions require some sort of special clothing," says Bowman. "Yarmulkes in Judaism, headscarves in Islam, some Hindus have a spot on their forehead, Turbans for Sikhs. Mormons are more typical than not." Now That's Interesting For many people, their first encounter with Mormons might be seeing two guys dressed in white shirts and ties riding bikes around town. The dress code is required by the church for full-time missionary work. But the bikes are just an easy way to get around town. In some places, public transportation or a car may be used instead. Advertisement Originally Published: Apr 20, 2020 (Natural News) During a recent episode of the Thomas Paine Podcast, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. blew the lid on Dr. Anthony Faucis extensive legacy of fraud and coverups throughout his lengthy medical career in the federal government. Kennedy explained that Fauci has been a problematic character all throughout his more than 50-year tenure in public health, during which he operated as a workplace tyrant and ruined the careers of countless physicians and researchers who, unlike himself, were upstanding and honorable individuals. Fauci has been with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 1984 can you say deep state? and hes known among those on the inside as the guy who poisoned an entire generation of Americans, according to Kennedy. In at least one instance, Fauci targeted a whistleblower who was trying to expose the fact that Americas blood supply is tainted with deadly disease strains. Fauci ruined the career of this physician and proceeded to cover up his crucial research on the subject. Kennedy also warned during the program that Fauci has attacked many other good guys whove tried to actually serve the public rather than shill for Big Pharma, Bill Gates, the mainstream media and other deep state assets and mouthpieces of deception and lies. The entire Thomas Paine Podcast episode, which is a little more than two-and-a-half hours long, is available at this link. Also, be sure to check out the following episode of The Health Ranger Report in which Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks about how globalists like Anthony Fauci are using the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis to test how much tyranny Americans are willing to accept: Anthony Fauci owns many, many patents on vaccines, warns Kennedy Fauci is also guilty of abusing his post for financial gain in the form of obtaining lucrative vaccine patents. Doctors and researchers underneath him who developed breakthrough technologies have been fired so that Fauci could assume ownership of their work in order to enrich himself. Tony Fauci has many, many vaccine patents, Kennedy contends, noting that Fauci now owns a patent on a special protein sheet made from HIV that helps to more efficiently deliver vaccine material throughout the body. Fauci didnt develop this protein sheet himself, of course, but rather stole it from someone else who was relieved from duty after creating it. Tony Fauci fired [this person] and he somehow ended up owning that patent, Kennedy says. And that patent is now being used by some of these companies to make vaccines for the coronavirus that company has a 50/50 split with Tony Faucis agency so Faucis agency will collect half the royalties on that vaccine and theres no limit for how much the agency can collect. In other words, this is nothing but a business for people like Fauci, who are profiting off of pandemics like the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) while claiming to be regulating the drug and vaccine industries that respond to them on behalf of the American people. This isnt a captured industry; its a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical industry, Kennedy further warns about how the NIAID, the CDC, and other supposed federal agencies are really just corporations in disguise that work on behalf of Big Pharma to generate massive profits on the backs of sick and dying people. Youll want to listen to the full podcast in its entirety, or at least the second hour-and-a-half of it featuring Robert F. Kennedy Jr., because its a real eye-opener. A second source for listening to the podcast, in case the first one doesnt work, is available at this link. To keep up with the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), be sure to check out Pandemic.news. Sources for this article include: TruePundit.com NaturalNews.com CitadelPoliticss.com The UK has clearly passed the peak of announced hospital deaths in the first wave of coronavirus, an expert has said. Oxford Universitys professor James Naismith, director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute research centre, made his remarks as the UKs death toll rose to 16,509 an increase of 449. Although we have clearly passed the peak of the announced hospital deaths in this first wave, 449 deaths can never be thought of as any other than very sad news, he said. The UK has been one of the hardest hit countries in this first wave and we still have to add in deaths from care homes and wider community. It is urgent that we learn what can be applied here so we do better. There are now also 124,743 cases across the country, a rise of 4,676 from yesterdays total. Globally, there are more than 2.4 million confirmed cases, 166,000 deaths and 635,000 recoveries, according to Johns Hopkins University. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how COVID-19 is spreading A soldier tests for COVID-19 at a drive-through testing centre ahead of the latest announcement of the UK's coronavirus figures. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) Prof Naismith added that he was worried about a simplistic narrative regarding testing which has been focused on as a possible way to release the UKs lockdown more safely. Testing is only one part of an identify, track, trace, test and isolate scheme, he said. This scheme has been very successfully implemented in South Korea. The other components of the scheme are vital to its success. The scheme is complex to implement and simply wishing away this complexity and pretending that the number of tests alone is key, is undesirable. The government has faced criticism from groups representing hospital trusts for delays to the shipping of personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS staff. Chris Hopson, the chief executive of NHS Providers, said there was relatively low confidence that 400,000 surgical gowns from Turkey would make their way into the country on Monday. The shipment was due to arrive on Sunday. Story continues He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that in the past few weeks, some boxes of PPE contained the wrong items and thousands of pieces were missing. So rather than being marched up to the top of the hill and being marched back down again, lets just focus on what we know we can be certain of, he said. Lets not focus on individual consignments, lets try and get as quickly as possible to a sustainable supply of these gowns. Theres no doubt that at the moment, we have now got trusts that have definitely got shortages of gowns. Staff wear personal protective equipment at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital in Liverpool. (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images) Culture secretary Oliver Dowden told BBC News: We are very hopeful that later today that flight will take off and we will get those gowns. We are working very hard to resolve this, there have been challenges at the Turkish end. I dont want to start making more and more promises but I understand that that flight will take off this afternoon and they will be delivered. The governments furlough scheme was flooded with 2,200 applications every minute when it launched on Monday. The chancellor Rishi Sunak announcing the furlough scheme. (PA Images) The scheme was introduced to prevent employers laying off workers as the governments lockdown disrupted the economy. The wage subsidy scheme could see about 8 million jobs protected, although unemployment has risen. Anyone at risk of redundancy from the coronavirus can be paid 80% of their wages up to 2,500 a month. Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, described the launch as an important milestone. Separately, the government has published a 2,000-word blog post rebutting a Sunday Times article that criticised its handling of the crisis. The government took issue with parts of the Sunday Times piece and describes some of it as plainly untrue and ridiculous. The paper said Boris Johnson missed five Cobra meetings and outlined a culture of complacency in Downing Street during January and February. Number 10 said it was taking action and working to improve its preparedness from early January and that it was normal for Cobra not to be chaired by the prime minister. Coronavirus: what happened today Zurich International Life Limited in the Middle East launches a new tele-interview process for new life insurance customers in the UAE. Together with additional measures around payment flexibility, and an invitation for customers to join an online community to share their concerns and needs, the organisation is actively seeking for ways to assist new and existing customers through this challenging time. Conducted by an expert medical practitioner, the tele-interview service offers those customers seeking life insurance as part of their mortgage or facility-linked protection requirements, the opportunity to complete medical screening from home. Subject to policy terms and conditions, Zurich is offering a three-month grace period from the date premium payments are due. Z-One, an online community consisting of the general public and Zurich customers is being opened up to more policyholders, inviting their feedback and on the current COVID-19 pandemic. As the global pandemic COVID-19 continues to unfold, Zurich in the Middle East has expressed its commitment to assist customers. The insurer introduced a new tele-interview process for all new term assurance and decreasing term assurance policies for Mortgage cases during the current COVID-19 period. Taking only 20-30 mins to complete, this screening is conducted by a medical practitioner, over the phone and at a time convenient to the customer. As all medical information is managed in accordance with Zurichs industry leading data commitment and local regulatory standards, customers can rest assured that their data is treated with the highest category of confidentiality. Walter Jopp, CEO of Zurich in the Middle East says: In the current quarantine environment, the health and safety of our customers and employees are our first priority. This telephone health assessment service offers customers in the UAE an opportunity to undergo the life insurance application process from their home without the threat of physical contact and any potential exposure to COVID-19. We are committed to our community and will continue to provide the highest levels of support and service during this challenging time. As part of this commitment, Zurich in the Middle East has offered relief to any customers experiencing financial difficulty. In addition to a 3-month grace period, a number of products entitle the customer to a premium holiday subject to its terms and conditions. Zurich has advised that customers should review the terms and conditions to better understand the impact of altering their policy and recommends discussions with a financial adviser before making any changes. To better understand the impact of the current pandemic on customers and their needs, Zurich is going directly to the source - inviting customers to join the Z-One online community, a discussion forum facilitated by Zurich via an independent third-party provider. Jopp who on numerous occasions has affirmed the companys customer first philosophy adds: It is by listening intently to the ideas and feedback from this forum, in talking directly to our customers, that we can understand what they are going through and what we can to do help. We fully expect to use these insights to inform our decision making. The pandemic is creating a temporary oasis of cleaner skies and waters, but at immense health and economic costs. The big picture: Its an ironic coincidence that this once-in-a-lifetime moment is happening around the 50th anniversary of Earth Day on Wednesday. These glimpses of a cleaner planet illustrate the challenge of cleaning the Earth up for the long haul. You know, longer than were social distancing. I do not want to have success this way. This is not what we celebrate. It may be a wakeup call, but man, I would have preferred a much less direct way to make that wakeup call happen. Gina McCarthy, former Obama EPA administrator, now president of Natural Resources Defense Council Driving the news: Reflecting this rare time in history, this is also a different sort of column. With the help of Axios visual and graphics reporters, were going shorter on words and longer on photos, images and charts illustrative of this moment and the long haul. 1. Carbon emissions historic drop Data: Carbon Brief, IEA and UNEP; Note: Carbon Brief analysis projects COVID-19 impact, IEA shows current emissions pathway, and UNEPs emissions gap report shows needed path for the Paris Agreements goals; Chart: Naema Ahmed/Axios Global carbon emissions are projected to drop an unprecedented 5.5% this year, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief, a website on climate change and energy. But, but, but: Even this staggering drop is less than what the United Nations says is needed to meet the aspirations of the Paris Climate Agreement. That 2015 deal calls to limit a global temperature rise to 1.5C over the coming decades, which would require an annual 7.6% drop in emissions. How it works: Carbon Brief analyzed various sources of data to project that the coronavirus-fueled lockdowns will drive the largest-ever drop in emissions. At the request of Axios, the organization then compared that drop to our current emissions pathway, as calculated annually by the International Energy Agency before the pandemic, and also the pathway scientists say is required to meet the Paris Climate Agreement. Carbon Brief concedes in its analysis that a lot of uncertainty persists in the data, but nonetheless it offers a ballpark for how staggering the drop is likely to be. The bottom line: Even this massive global economic shutdown shows how drastic change is still not aggressive enough to sufficiently reduce emissions as much as scientists say is needed. That shows the depth of political and economic will that will be needed to take big action on the problem. 2. World pollution, before and during COVID-19 Satellite data of nitrogen dioxide pollution: Descartes Lab GIF: Axios The above GIF of satellite data shows the pollution difference a year ago (March 1April 5, 2019) and as the pandemic prompted mass shutdowns around the world (March 1April 5, 2020). 3. Himalayas emerge in shutdown Credit: Manjit K Kang via Twitter. Used with permission The Himalayan mountain range has become visible in India when it's traditionally cloaked in pollution. Twitter user Manjit K. Kang posted photos of the reveal from her family's house in Punjab, India, hundreds of miles away from the mountains. What they're saying: "My husband lived in India for almost 27 years. He recalls seeing them as a young child but for almost last 30 years they could not be seen," Kang told me by Twitter. 4. Pollution reductions among clearest in India Data: University of Chicago; Chart: Naema Ahmed/Axios Particulate matter concentrations in Indian cities which have some of the highest levels of pollution in the world dropped an average of 22.6% during the lockdown (March 24April 4), compared to the average in December 2019, according to pollution data analyzed by University of Chicago experts. "I wonder if this moment, this COVID-19 moment where we have this very large [pollution] reduction that is allowing people to think about the world in a different way in India, if this will, in five years from now, look like their Earth Day." Michael Greenstone, executive director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago The intrigue: Relatively speaking, America has really clean air (like President Trump often says), so detecting a drop in this kind of pollution here is more difficult. "It's hard to detect statistical changes against the low levels that exist currently," Greenstone said. In India, "the change is large enough, it can be detected." 5. Clearer waterways visible from space Image: European Space Agency The waterways of the usually crowded Venice, Italy, are clearer, as seen from this image from the European Space Agency. Anecdotes of cleaner canals abound. 6. Animal kingdom A mountain goat roams outside a closed store during the shutdown in LLandudno, Wales, on March 31. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Animals are feeling freer to roam cities with humans locked down. The New York Times writes on the animal videos surfacing, and here are more animal photos via the Washington Post. But beware of fake animal photos, via National Geographic. here are more animal photos via the Washington Post. But beware of fake animal photos, via National Geographic. This isnt exactly about pollution, but close enough, and its a whimsical note to end on. Go deeper: 10 ways coronavirus is changing energy and climate change A gunman killed at least 10 people in a shooting rampage in a rural community in Nova Scotia, police said on Sunday, in what was among the worst mass killings in recent memory in Canada Montreal: A gunman killed at least 10 people in a shooting rampage in a rural community in Nova Scotia, police said on Sunday, in what was among the worst mass killings in recent memory in Canada. The police said the mass shooting, which began in the town of Portapique on Saturday night, ended about 12 hours later at a gas station about 22 miles away in Enfield, north of Halifax, where the gunman died. The police would not elaborate on how he died, though witnesses told local news outlets that they heard gunfire leading up to his death. A police officer was among those killed, officials said. It was not immediately clear whether the death toll included the gunman, who was identified by authorities as Gabriel Wortman, 51. A motive for the mass shooting was also not immediately clear. The police said that it did not begin as a random act but that the killings became random as the outburst progressed. Officials said Wortman, a denturist from Nova Scotia, had a relationship to some of the victims and was not known to police. They said one line of investigation would be whether the coronavirus pandemic had anything to do with the killing rampage. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that Wortman had two denture clinics and owned real estate in the province. Chief Superintendent Chris Leather, the officer responsible for criminal investigations for the Nova Scotia Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said the episode began Saturday night when police were called to a home, where they discovered dead bodies inside and outside the residence. He said a suspect was nowhere to be found. Over the next 12 hours, police pursued Wortman across the province. Leather said Wortman appeared to be dressed as a police officer and was driving a vehicle made to resemble an RCMP car. Authorities said that Wortman then switched vehicles and was seen driving a silver Chevrolet Tracker in the Milford area. Authorities emphasised that he was not an RCMP employee. The chief said the bodies of victims were discovered in multiple locations and that several structures were set on fire. He said that, as the investigation progressed, the death toll could climb. Lee Bergerman, the assistant commissioner, appearing visibly shaken at a news conference Sunday, said the rampage would haunt Nova Scotia. Today is a devastating day for Nova Scotia and will remain etched in the minds of many for years to come, she said. During the manhunt, authorities warned residents that Wortman was armed and dangerous, and told them to stay inside. Frightened residents locked their doors and many hid in their basements and stayed there overnight as news of the shooting spread through the close-knit community. Among the victims was Heidi Stevenson, a veteran RCMP officer and mother of two with 23 years experience on the force. Another police officer was also among the injured. Stephen McNeil, the premier of Nova Scotia, said it was one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history at a time when the province was already being buffeted by the coronavirus. To the families of the victims and to those still feeling afraid, my heart goes out to you, he said. Know that all Nova Scotians are with you. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada thanked police for their work. Our hearts go out to the people who have lost loved ones, he said. Authorities said the rampage was one of the worst in the provinces history. In July 2018, a man wielding a gun in Toronto walked down a busy street and randomly shot two people and injured 13, before killing himself. One year earlier, in late January, Canada was deeply shaken when a political science student entered a mosque in Quebec City during prayers, killing six people and wounding many more. One of the worst mass shootings in recent Canadian history occurred on 6 December, 1989: Fourteen women were killed in a violent anti-feminist attack at the Ecole Polytechnique engineering school in Montreal. Fourteen others were injured, and the gunman killed himself. In the most recent violence, authorities said they responded to reports of a shooting about 10:30 p.m. Saturday in the area of Portapique Beach Road, Bay Shore Road and Five Houses Road in Portapique, a small rural community about 35 miles from Truro, Nova Scotia. Canadians and residents of Nova Scotia, a province on the Atlantic coast known for its fishing industry, and Halifax, a port city, were shocked by the violence in a small, sleepy, rural area. Tom Taggart, a council member in Colchester, which includes Portapique, lives two miles from the rural community. Its really cottage country, he said Sunday, adding that the community was home to about 50 to 60 residents and as many as 200 during the summer. Like other residents, he said he had heard the updates from police Sunday about a gunman on the loose. It just escalated from there, he said. People live here because it is safe and secure, we think. This stuff is not supposed to happen here. He added: These are real people that just went to bed last night thinking that everything is another day and now things are just I cant imagine. Its tragic. Dan Bilefsky and Johnny Diaz c.2020 The New York Times Company A nurse who had to postpone her wedding because of Covid-19, spent what should have been her wedding day, working on the frontline. Aisling McGarrell and Mark McBride from Monaghan were to marry last Friday the sixth anniversary of their first date and should have been heading to Dubai and the Maldives for their honeymoon today . Instead Aisling will again be working in a job she loves, as a clinical nurse manager in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda. She said the couple, who got engaged at the Galway Christmas markets in December 2018, made the difficult decision to postpone their wedding as restrictions due to Covid-19 began. When the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar started to announce the schools would be closing down and that there would be restricted gatherings of 100 people, we decided that we would not have the wedding we wanted and we would postpone it until a later date. Aisling and Mark, who is a test engineer in CombiLift and a part-time farmer, were worried about putting any of their guests at risk of catching Covid-19. She said: We both have grannies and there would have been elderly people there and we wanted to make sure everybody was safe, we didnt want anybody to catch it or to feel uncomfortable or feel they had to go. It was a difficult decision but we knew it was something we had to do. They were to marry in Aislings local church, the Sacred Heart Church in Lough Egish and then have their reception in Bessmount House, a stately home in county Monaghan with caterers and a marquee. That is all now put on hold. I was asked by my manager if I wanted the day (Friday) off or would I prefer to work. I said I would prefer to work it and at least I wouldnt be home dwelling on things and watching the clock and thinking, I should be doing this now. One of her nursing colleagues put a post on Facebook about how Aisling was working on what should have been her wedding day and it prompted many well wishers to respond and there were donations from people and businesses. Aisling was given flowers, champagne, a hamper and her colleagues also gave her gifts on Friday. Other offers have also been made. We are just overwhelmed by everybodys support, peoples generosity is amazing. People have been so nice, it makes it easier. The couple has yet to set a new date for their marriage. Aisling, although working on the frontline, says she is simply doing her job on the ward in Newgrange 3. I know everybody says I am amazing to go to work and do my job on the frontline, (but) I am just doing my job. I do not feel I am doing anything out of the ordinary I just see it as my job and I love my job. Financiers of poverty, malnutrition and death Part 1 By Paul Driessen The UN Food and Agriculture Organization, anti-development banks, the Agency for International Development (USAID), NGO (non-government organization) pressure groups and other eco-imperialists are properly condemned for using their money, power, and control over trade and lending to keep millions of African, Asian and Latin American families from having access to reliable, affordable energy, pesticides and spatial insect repellants to prevent disease, and modern agricultural technologies. Those outfits perpetuate poverty, disease, malnutrition and death. Yet the eco-manslaughter continues. Too many US, EU and UN government agencies have been captured by neo-colonialist elements in their leadership and ranks, and among the politicians who set their budgets and programs. The NGOs enjoy tax-exempt status and global prestige, because the human and environmental costs of their policies rarely receive more than superficial scrutiny by media, human rights or other watchdogs. But the fact is, few NGOs would even exist without the wealthy foundations that finance them. Indeed, philanthropic foundation support for radical environmentalist groups and campaigns is one of the best kept secrets of modern society. Its time to spotlight some of them and call them to account. Wealthy foundations often created with profits and fortunes made in industry and technology directly and indirectly support some of the most radical anti-energy, anti-technology and agro-ecology activism in America, Europe and the world. Their wealth, direct and indirect aid mechanisms, and inter-locking global network of funders, managers and advisors make them a powerful, callous, oppressive force. They use direct donations and a growing number of clever non-transparent pass-through operations (funds of funds, or foundations of foundations) to consolidate money from multiple donors and direct charitable giving to organizations and projects that support their ideologies and causes. The system also helps insulate the foundations and their patrons and managers from direct association with the most questionable, controversial, and often thuggish and lethal organizations and activists. The funding, in turn, enables the organizations and activists to paint themselves as legitimate, benevolent and popular voices worthy of attention in global and domestic debates over laws, policies and regulations. They have become especially effective in blocking the use of modern, innovative farm technologies like improved pesticides, GM crops (genetically modified, engineered through biotechnology) and even fertilizers, tractors and hybrid seeds under the auspices of what they cleverly call agro-ecology. A big part of the problem is that the World Bank, EU agencies and Euro foundations demand and support primitive subsistence farming, and block food imports from countries that permit biotech farming. The World Banks Global Environment Facility and various European donors support groups like the Route to Food Initiative, Kenya Organic Agriculture Network, Biodiversity and Biosafety Association of Kenya, and Resources Oriented Development Initiatives of Kenya. In fact, virtually every African country is beset by their benevolence, as are India and other countries in Asia and Latin America. All of them promote the supposed benefits of organic farming that bans the use of dangerous, poisonous manmade pesticides but permits the use in organic farming of natural pesticides and other chemicals that are also toxic and dangerous to humans, wildlife, fish and beneficial insects. They stridently oppose all biotech crops including life-saving Golden Rice and have been pressuring Kenyan and other African governments to ban more than 200 pesticides that have been approved as safe in many other countries. Many of the groups even oppose mechanized equipment like tractors. Among the EU funders are BioVision, the Danish Agency for International Development Cooperation, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. They even support newspapers like Britains Guardian, which is often little more than another NGO that runs and supports anti-technology campaigns and seeks donations from readers and major funding from foundations in exchange for stories. Self-proclaimed philanthropic, charitable US foundations are just as guilty. They probably provide far more significant than EU funding, but their secretive networks make that hard to ascertain. Foundation support for the agro-ecology Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa helps illustrate how all this works. AFSA is a pan-African alliance of organizations committed to resisting the corporate industrialization of African agriculture. It claims the use of modern agricultural technologies like pesticides for crop protection, chemical fertilizers, and genetically modified crops for drought and insect resistance and higher yields will result in massive land grabs, destruction of indigenous biodiversity and ecosystems, displacement of indigenous peoples and the destruction of their livelihoods and cultures. AFSAs core members include activist pressure groups that espouse an even broader variety of anti-capitalist, anti-technology, radical environmentalist goals and philosophies. Among the more notable and notorious ones are The African Biodiversity Network, African Center for Biodiversity, GroundSwell International, Friends of the Earth (FOE), and La Via Campensina Africa. These organizations work together to plan and support pro-organic, anti-biotech campaigns, and provide financial management and expertise in furthering AFSA principles. Letting them retain tax-exempt status is a travesty. Core member La Via Campensina Africa (The Peasant Way Africa), for example, is a radical, proponent of anti-technology agro-ecology. It rejects modern farming technologies: crop protection pesticides and herbicides, fertilizers for nutrient-depleted soils, and even biotech replacements for bananas, cassava and other crops that have been all but destroyed by viruses and diseases. It also advocates an anti-free market program of peasant-centric subsistence agriculture that largely limits farmers to backbreaking organic agricultural farming methods, and selling to local markets. Agro-ecology farmers are largely limited to those local markets, in part because they cannot raise enough crops for export to wider markets like Europe while other produce is blocked because many EU nations ban the import of crops that are so much as tainted by glyphosate, neonicotinoids or biotech pollen. The US-based AgroEcology Fund (AEF) helped to launch and continues to support the AFSA. It acts as a pass-through fund of funds to hide sources, and helps to coordinate, direct and manage giving to outfits like AFSA. The AEF also partners with AFSA and other organizations such as the Center for Food Safety (CFS), to battle the industrial model and promote organic farming. The AgroEcology Fund directly gave the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa in 2015 $200,000 and has given it some $500,000 overall (and possibly more via clandestine means). That may not sound like much, but such funds pay for 10-100 times more hourly wages and activism in Africa than they would in USA. In 2017, the AEF and AFSA worked together on a campaign to prevent biotech seed patent protections laws from being enforced in Africa. The AEF was created by three wealthy American foundations, the Christensen Fund, the New Fields Foundation, the Swift Foundation and a donor who remains unknown. AEF programs and funding are overseen by New Venture Fund, which was created to help philanthropists better direct funds to projects and programs in line with their neo-colonialist goals; the NVF is managed by Arabella Advisors. Ironically and perversely, the foundations that funded AEFs creation are rooted in money generated in innovation, industry and technology. Now AEF and its foundation backers battle agricultural innovation and keep African farmers mired in farming practices that can feed few people, and can successfully battle few crop-devouring insect pests, much less protect crops against recurrent locust plagues. Equally perverse, rich countries have abundant food traditional, modern and organic. Meanwhile, poor countries are saddled with barely enough food, no safety net for all those times when droughts or insects destroy crops, and diktats from ultra-wealthy foundations and pressure groups that tell farmers they should be happy to engage in dawn-to-dusk subsistence farming, ox-drawn plowing, stoop labor, banging on metal pans to drive the locust hordes away, and living on the verge of starvation. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (www.CFACT.org) and author of books and articles on energy, environment, climate and human rights issues. Part 2 of this article will address how these funds operate, and how they lock Africa in poverty and malnutrition. President of the Institute for Security, Disaster and Emergency Studies, Dr Ishmael Norman has described as senseless the decision by President Akufo-Addo to leave out universities and churches in the lifting of the lockdown. According to him, tertiary schools and religious organisation could also practice social distancing just as markets and shops which are now allowed to operate. Speaking to Francis Abban on the Morning Starr Monday, Dr. Norman who is also a lecturer, said the President may be wishful thinking in his latest approach in the covid-19 fight. Why do you leave the universities and other institutions out and say the others can go to work? Hotels and universities can also observe social distancing. My worry is that if the virus is evolving then at some point we may get to a situation where we cannot manage it. For now, lets see what happens next, he said. He stressed: It doesnt make sense, with all due respect to the president, that you have released major parts of this country and youre discriminating in the easing of universities, churches and schoolsI think the president is in wishful thinking in the ability of Ghanaians to comply with the protocols. We are in a slippy slope on the dangers that we are likely exposed to. President Akufo-Addo on Sunday announced the lifting the 3-week lockdown on Greater Accra and Kumasi, with effect from Monday, April 20. Addressing the Nation on Sunday, April 19, 2020, the President, however, stated all other social distancing measures are still in place. Churches, Schools both Public and Private, will still remain shut. According to President, the decision to enforce the 3-week lockdown was taken to give Government the opportunity to try to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, and quarantine those who tested positive and isolate them for treatment. ---starrfmonline Queensland's politicians have taken up the latest social media trend to post a photo of themselves at age 20. The nostalgic-photo challenge has taken off on social media with millions of Queenslander stuck at home during the COVID-19 pandemic with not much to do. Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington celebrating a friend's 21st (left) and Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in the Whitsundays. Employment Minister Shannon Fentiman shared a photo of herself taking her role as president of the QUT Student Guild "very seriously" while Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington's photo took us back to a time when it was acceptable to wear shoulder pads. Chatsworth MP Steve Minnikin copped some flak for his photo, taken in Hawaii when he had a bit more hair. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:54:42|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close GUANGZHOU, April 20 (Xinhua) -- After a simple rinse in the morning, Simpara Dianquine, from Mali, opened his hotel room door to pick up his breakfast, which was already waiting at the doorstep. Together with 36 other foreigners, Dianquine, a university student majoring in accounting in south China's Guangzhou, was undergoing a 14-day medical observation at the Shanshui Trends Hotel, Baiyun District of the city. Last month, the Guangzhou municipal government ordered all inbound travelers to undergo nucleic acid testing and a 14-day home observation or concentrated medical observation, measures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic. By the end of Wednesday, Guangzhou had reported 39 confirmed COVID-19 cases among foreign citizens. Another 102 of them were found to be asymptomatic cases, according to the Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission. At the seven-story hotel, 48 medical, hotel and community workers, as well as volunteers in protective gear, are available to assist those under observation around the clock. Yang Qing, an interpreter at the hotel, left her WeChat and phone number with all the foreign guests. She also organized a WeChat group chat for the staff and quarantined guests to maintain interaction. "In the beginning, several people were not used to the Chinese-style food, so we altered the menu to add milk, bread and more fruits," said Yang. Dianquine said he was able to contact the workers via WeChat messages or phone calls whenever he needed help. "I'm satisfied with the life here," he said. Located in one of the busiest blocks in the city, the hotel is surrounded by a variety of dining choices. Some of the foreigners order themselves via their phone, and the service staff will help deliver the food to their doorsteps. "Sometimes, they will ask us for recommendations," Yang said, adding that in addition to Western favorites like burgers and pizza, she recommended local specialties. At 8 a.m. every day, the hotel and community workers disinfect themselves thoroughly before delivering food, collecting garbage and registering the needs of the expatriates. They also assist the medical team in taking temperatures. Zhang Wuqiong, a community worker, said they had to follow strict procedures from the very moment the guests arrived for quarantine to the moment of the guests' departure. Used mops and cleaning cloths will be soaked in disinfectant for 30 minutes, and the surface of personal belongings and furniture need disinfecting twice a day, according to Zhang. "Tiring as it is, we feel fulfilled making contributions to the fight against the virus," she said. At the Relaxed Life Hotel, another designated site for medical observation, forms and documents are translated into English, Korean and French to eliminate communication barriers. As of April 15, the hotel had received 446 inbound travelers, including 285 foreigners. Luo Chunming, deputy chief of the emergency management bureau of Baiyun District, said the procedures were the same for all individuals under medical observation, no matter what their nationalities are. "On one hand, the service workers acknowledge and respect different cultural and social customs of the quarantined people, and on the other hand, they have to make sure that all of them are properly isolated and protected from cross-infection," said Luo. According to Luo, a total of 5,112 Chinese and foreign citizens have undergone medical observation in 17 hotels in the district, including 1,397 who are still being isolated. Guests will receive their nucleic acid testing reports when they check out. After his quarantine ended, Chancel Moushidi, a student from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, filled out some forms with the assistance of the workers, expressed thanks and waved goodbye. Dianquine is also expected to leave soon. He expressed his gratitude to the staff through WeChat messages. He said the proactive anti-epidemic measures taken by the Chinese government were a responsible act and had given him faith in the nation's ability to defeat the virus. "I can see the efforts taken by the public in Guangzhou. Let's join together in the fight against the virus," he said. Enditem A man was found dead outside a booth in Sector 27 on Monday, with multiple stab wounds on his neck and upper body. According to preliminary investigation, police said the man was murdered at some other place and his body was later placed in the corridor. The deceased has been identified as Arjun, who worked at Paul sweets and dhaba in Sector 27. After checking the CCTV camera in the area, we suspect the murder was committed by a co-worker at the dhaba who was found to be missing, said investigating officials, adding that the deceased had been killed with a sharp weapon. Police apprehended the 20-year-old suspect from Sector 28, after tracing his phone location, and interrogated him. A case under Section 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) of Indian Penal Code has been registered against an unidentified person. Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani have been together for four years now, but it looks like theyre just as crazy about each other as ever. But as many people know, having a blended family isnt always easy. Stefani and Shelton appear to be talking seriously about marriage, but is he ready to step into the role of stepdad to her three sons? If a recent driving lesson is any indication, he may just have proved hes the perfect guy for the job. Blake Shelton is a great extra dad Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton | David Crotty/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images Stefani co-parents her three sons, Kingston, 13, Zuma, 11, and Apollo, 5, with her ex-husband, Gavin Rossdale. People reports that while Shelton is respectful of Rossdales place as their father, hes definitely stepped into his own role in their lives. When they have free time, Shelton takes the boys to his ranch in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, where they get to experience a different sort of life than they live in the city. Hes so fun and has shown Gwens kids another side of life filled with adventure, a friend is quoted as saying. The boys have really grown immensely by spending time with Blake. Stefani agrees that her sons have benefited from their time with her boyfriend and admits that his involvement is a boon for her too. He is a good dad, actually, Stefani said. Hes been helping me out a lot. I literally get to the point where Im like, You gotta get homeI need help! Its hard. I got three boys. He took one boy on a muddy adventure One of those rural adventures happened when Kingston was only 11. Stefani posted a video on Instagram Stories of Sheltons black truck, stuck in the icy mud. In the video, you can hear Stefani laughing and asking Shelton what he did. I was teaching Kingston how to drive, Shelton answers. He just took off driving like a maniac into the middle of the frozen pond. But according to Kingston, thats not how it happened at all. I did not drive that in there, he insists in the video. No, I didnt. During the entire video, everyone was laughing and enjoying themselves. Stefani doesnt seem too worried about the idea that Kingston could be learning to drive at such a young age. Maybe its because kids often do learn to drive farm vehicles pretty early on when they live on a ranch, or maybe its because Shelton was just joking. Everything worked out with a little help In the end, everything was fine. Another truck came and pulled the truck out of the mud. Its still not entirely clear if Kingston was to blame for the mishap, or if Shelton was blaming his own wild driving on the boy. In the video, when Stefani presses her beau about what happened, asking if her son really was the one responsible for the truck getting stuck, Shelton seems to admit that it was actually his fault. This aint the first one we blew through, he said. We really dont know if the truck ended up stuck in the mud because of Kingstons shaky driving skills or because Shelton was enjoying himself a little too much as he drove his truck through the countryside. Either way, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Shelton looks like a natural father figure, and Stefanis sons appear to be happy and comfortable with him. Its easy to see that this almost-blended family has a great rapport. And hopefully whoever the driver was on that fateful day, hes learned to be a little more careful in the mud. Apple and Google this month announced a partnership in which it will provide third parties the ability to create apps by this summer that can alert people when they're near someone who has tested positive for Covid-19 or showed symptoms. The tech giants' mobile operating systems, Android and iOS, collectively power more than 99% of the world's smartphones, making their involvement much more significant for the tracking of the coronavirus than individual government efforts. At the time, the companies shared an illustration of how it might work. Easy enough, it seemed. But since then, the effort has shown to be more complicated than initially drawn-up as a familiar concern haunts its plans: trust. The companies say users shouldn't worry about privacy and that they will have to opt in to the apps before it'll collect information. They claim to not share location information with either the company or the people who come into contact with each other. It will also anonymize the data for the highest level of security, they said. However, in a call with reporters this week discussing further details, senior representatives from both companies said their biggest concern is that people won't accept their words and trust them enough to use it, which can hamper the efforts as contact tracing requires significant participation in order to work effectively. That represented the first admittance from the companies' leaders that they have a trust problem on their hands, and that it could prevent their proposed solution. It comes as public health and government officials call contract tracing the best way to stop the spread of the coronavirus, despite needing at least 60% participation to work effectively. Late last week, Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, announced a new "focus" for stopping the virus' spread, saying community surveillance is now considered "critical" to understanding the virus and its spread. "When we see a hotspot, we can surprise it whack it," President Trump added, noting such technology could be a weapon to use in what he called an "invisible war," referring to Covid-19. However days later, on Monday, 300 academics from around the world wrote an open letter about concerns of such tech "solutions," naming Google and Apple. "We are concerned that some 'solutions' to the crisis may, via mission creep, result in systems which would allow unprecedented surveillance of society at large." While both Apple and Google are behind the new technology, critics are scrutinizing Google more given its history of privacy-related concerns. It also faces increasingly common questions from people curious why a company most known for collecting data to inform 85% of its revenue from targeted advertising informed by personal data, can be safely relied on to be the holder of health data. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said last Wednesday in a statement that the company, alongside Apple, has "a lot of work to do to convince a rightfully skeptical public that they are fully serious about the privacy and security of their contact tracing efforts." President Trump praised Apple and Google's initiative on Tuesday, but warned that it would raise "big constitutional problems" for "a lot of people." European officials pressured the company to closely follow Europe's data privacy rules this week. "Contact tracing apps can be useful to limit the spread of the coronavirus. But their development and interoperability need to fully respect our values and privacy," Thierry Breton, the EU's internal market commissioner, said after a video meeting with Google and YouTube CEOs on Wednesday. The company said governments can't force their citizens to use contact tracing technology. But it's a precarious position as it faces pressure from global governments pressing for more information. Europe's national health service, which is working on a contact-tracing app, is currently in a standoff with Google and Apple over data collection limits, reported The Guardian Monday. Google's response to the U.S. government has been inconsistent--especially recently. Last month, it showed its allegiance when it claimed to be on the same page as Trump when he touted a vast, country-wide testing and resource website, which was later found to be exaggerated and not exactly on the same page. The contract tracing effort is just one of several Google-backed coronavirus efforts that face similar trust issues. Weeks before the launch, Google announced it started tracking populations of people in public places and residences across 131 countries as well as individual counties within certain states. While the company spent time trying to say the data would be collected in aggregate rather than an individual level, that didn't stop concerns from flooding almost immediately. Privacy critics and congress members acknowledged questioned whether the company would use the data for anything else. The same questions came in when sister company Verily said Google would have access to its patient data from its Covid-19 screening website. Google's location tracking settings have been a source of confusion over the years -- in April 2019, CNBC's Todd Haselton found that Google had been tracking his location for years without him realizing it, and explained how to turn tracking off. In October 2019, Australian officials accused Google of misleading consumers in 2018 and earlier about the settings necessary to turn off location tracking. The company started facing trust issues again late last year, after it was found to be working on a secret project with hospital network Ascension as it tried to ramp up its health efforts with its cloud business. The Google-Ascension deal was revealed that 150 Google employees already had access to data on tens of millions of patients without their knowledge or consent. That concern bled into 2020 when a major medical records vendor Epic Systems warned customers it will stop working with Google Cloud. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said people staying in disaster relief camps within the state during coronavirus prompted lockdown will get utensils, clothes, milk and other facilities like that given at the time of flood. In addition to providing quality food at the camps to daily wage earners, cart vendors, rickshaw pullers and other needy persons, the government will give them other amenities as given in the flood relief camps, Kumar said in an official release. Kumar gave a direction to this effect at a high level meeting to review measures taken to contain spread of COVID-19 in Bihar. Chief Secretary Deepak Kumar and a host of other senior officials were present during the meeting. Faced with floods frequently, the state government has laid down rules for comfortable stay of victims of inundation in relief camps set up at the time of the calamity. The chief minister took stock of the door-to-door screening campaign for the infection, distribution of Rs 1,000 to ration card holding families and wheat procurement. Kumar instructed officials to increase the number of relief camps in different parts of the state as per requirement. The CM assured those stranded outside the state that they need not worry about their relatives back home as the state government is taking proper care of the people. Over 50 state-funded camps are functioning in Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country for migrants held up during nationwide lockdown. The door-to-door screening on the pattern of pulse polio campaign is underway in the virus affected districts, he said, adding 1386 people had symptoms of general disease like cold, cough and fever out of 36.14 lakh households surveyed so far under the drive. The screening drive should be extended to other parts of the state, Kumar told the officials. The CM said figures related to COVID-19 suggest that enforcement of lockdown has helped a lot in containing the spread of infection besides protecting citizens from other diseases. Kumar gave directions to expedite the wheat procurement through PACS (Primary Agriculture Cooperative Society) so that farmers can get handsome price for their produce. He also asked officials to provide Rs 1000 assistance and other facilities to those whose applications for ration cards have been found valid during the verification. Kumar appealed to the people to be alert and beware of those spreading rumours related to the virus on social media. The social media cell of Bihar police is not only keeping a tab on rumour-mongers but is also taking action against them. The CM said a diligent obedience of social distancing will help overcome challenges of coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, the CM expressed grief at death of a ASHA worker from snake bite in course of door-to-door campaign to indentify virus infectants in Nawada district and gave an instruction to pay Rs 4 lakh ex gratia to the victim's family. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) FLINT, MI -- Flint schools will teach students online and strive to provide every student who needs it access to the internet for free. The plan comes from Flint Community Schools after a leadership change last week. The Flint Community Schools Board of Education voted to suspend Superintendent Derrick Lopez pending conclusion of board investigation at a special board meeting Wednesday, April 15. Lopez was not present at the two meetings prior to his suspension. Assistant Superintendent Anita Steward was named interim superintendent during the same meeting. Flint schools superintendent suspended with pay amid investigation In her superintendent statements at the beginning of the boards regular meeting, which followed the special meeting, Steward said: I am very thankful, humbled and honored to be able to start in this capacity, though it is under very unfortunate circumstances. She presented the board a distance-learning plan to implement while students are out of school for the remainder of the school year under Gov. Gretchen Whitmers executive order. Following the presentation to the board, the plan must be submitted to the Genesee Intermediate School District, then to the state of Michigan and fully implemented by April 28, in accordance with the executive order. Devices will be distributed to all 9th- through 12th-grade students, in order to continue online learning and interaction with teachers through the online platform, email and phone call. The plan takes a three-tier blended learning approach for K-8th grade students. The tiers include: Students who already have an electronic device at home and internet. These students will continue with an online platform they were already using at school. Students who have a device but do not have internet will be encouraged to sign up for free internet for 60 days. The district will work with families to remove barriers to learning. Students who have no device or internet will be provided learning packets. The district will also attempt to provide these students a hotspot for internet and an electronic device. As the situation continues to change, we know that communication is key," Steward said. "Weve been working hard to keep families informed. In recent weeks, we have created parent letters and robocalls with updates on school closures, full lunch distribution plans and a timeline of our distance learning plan. Weve utilized social media and the website to provide updates on the governors executive orders, COVID-19, food distribution, frequently asked questions and employee policies. The board also approved a resolution to accept a hotpot service agreement with Sprint for 1,000 wireless hot spot devices to be disseminated to students who do not have access to internet at home. The agreement is not to exceed $299,880, from Title Funds and the CARES Act. The devices are free of charge but require a service agreement to activate and maintain wireless service. Though the virus is unforgiving, our community is strong, Steward said. We will move forward together. Lukoil, the second-largest oil producer in Russia, plans to slash its crude oil production by 18 percent, or by 290,000 bpd, as part of the new OPEC+ production cut deal, president and chief executive Vagit Alekperov told Russias news agency Interfax on Monday. Lukoil plans to reduce its oil production by 18 percent, or by more than 40,000 tons per day which is equal to more than 290,000 barrels per day Alekperov told Interfax, adding that Lukoil and all other oil firms in Russia would fulfill the quotas as per Russias energy ministry orders. Lukoil expects oil prices to rise to $30 a barrel after the new agreement takes force in May, according to Lukoil. Early on Monday, Brent Crude was trading at around $27 barrel, while the U.S. benchmark price WTI Crude was tumbling by nearly 30 percent at $13 a barrel, due to Tuesdays expiry of the prompt-month May contract and the shrinking storage amid unprecedented demand loss in the U.S. According to Interfax, Russias share of the OPEC+ cuts would be 1.8 million bpd in May and June compared to April. On the face of it, Russia agreed to much deeper cuts in the new deal than those it rejected in early March when Russias refusal to back a collective 1.5 million bpd OPEC+ cut led to the one-month spat and the oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. In reality, cheating with quotas has been an art in Russia since the start of the OPEC+ alliance more than three years ago. In the new deal, which lacks clear mechanisms for compliance observance, Russias target for oil production is 8.5 million bpd in May and June, Vitaly Yermakov, and James Henderson of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies wrote in a paper last week. However, its not clear if condensate is included, which changes Russias overall cut. Including condensate, Russias share of the cuts should be 2.8 million bpd, without condensate, the cut would be around 2 million bpd, according to the authors. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Facebook has started removing certain posts promoting anti-lockdown protests, saying events that violate social distancing guidelines won't be allowed. The social media platform, CNN reported on Monday, is removing some posts on protests against stay-at-home orders in California, New Jersey and Nebraska "after consulting with officials in those states." Protests of this kind against stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus pandemic have recently arisen in some cities, although polls have shown that more Americans are concerned about restrictions being loosened too soon rather than not soon enough. A Facebook spokesperson said Monday events will be banned if they violate a state's social distancing guidelines and are prohibited by the government. "Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook," a spokesperson told CNN. "For this same reason, events that defy government's guidance on social distancing aren't allowed on Facebook." According to CNN, posts specifically made using Facebook Events are being removed, though other posts, such as through Facebook groups, may potentially not be removed. Facebook is reportedly looking into whether anti-lockdown events in Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York are prohibited under the states' social distancing guidelines. As Facebook bans harmful misinformation amid the coronavirus crisis, CEO Mark Zuckerberg was asked in an appearance on Good Morning America on Monday whether posts organizing these stay-at-home protests would qualify when they call for the defiance of social distancing guidelines. "We do classify that as harmful misinformation, and we take that down," Zuckerberg responded. "At the same time, it's important that people can debate policies. So there's a line on this." More stories from theweek.com Georgia's dangerous coronavirus experiment The Navajo Nation outbreak reveals an ugly truth behind America's coronavirus experience Gretchen Whitmer's pandemic competence is a mirage In 2018, the Marvel Cinematic Universe aimed high not only with Avengers: Infinity War. The year brought the first of two game-changing Avengers films, yes, but also Black Panther. The film was the first MCU release led by a person of color. But more than that, the film gambled big on whether audiences would connect with director Ryan Cooglers approach to the material. Of course, audiences loved the film, which stands among the MCUs biggest success stories. Black Panther earned $1.3 billion and remains the highest-grossing solo film in the MCU. Yet, some fans may still not realize the movie also features a secret cameo from none other than The Daily Show host Trevor Noah. Trevor Noah speaks onstage | Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Glamour Black Panther introduces a new ensemble cast to the MCU MCU fans met Chadwick Bosemans TChalla in Captain America: Civil War. But in Black Panther, they finally get a chance to see the technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda. Along with offering a glimpse into the environments and culture in which TChalla was raised, audiences also encounter unforgettable new characters who fill out TChallas circle. In particular, TChalla has the support of several strong female characters. TChallas sister, Shuri (Letitia Wright), is perhaps the most popular of the bunch, thanks to her intellect and their playful relationship. But fans also meet ex-lover Nakia (Oscar winner Lupita Nyongo), personal guard Okoye (Danai Gurira), and mother Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett). But thats not all. Black Panther also brings Daniel Kaluuyas WKabi and Winston Dukes MBaku to the forefront. As TChallas best friend and initial rival to the throne, respectively, both characters help flesh out the intricate society Black Panther brings to the screen. But few fans probably noticed The Daily Show host Trevor Noahs role Yet, for all the talented actors in Black Panther, many fans may have missed out on the uncredited role The Daily Show host Trevor Noah plays. But Noah actually plays a major role in the films climax. Thanks to ComicBook.com, some fans may know where to look for the comedian-turned-TV-host. Noah voices Griot, Shuris A.I., and is most prominently featured late in the film. When Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) offers to aid TChallas side in the impending battle against Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), he remotely pilots a Wakandan ship. Griot a West African term for storyteller helps him prevent Killmongers forces from launching their destructive plans. Marvel has a long history of getting famous voices to contribute to the MCU, especially as A.I. Long before he played Vision, Oscar-nominated actor Paul Bettany was the voice of Tony Starks J.A.R.V.I.S. Then in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Jennifer Connelly played Karen, the A.I. controlling Peter Parkers new Stark-created suit. Black Panther is one of Trevor Noahs only film roles Noah, a native of South Africa, no doubt relished the chance to take part in Marvels first black-led superhero movie. The fact that it is set in an African country even a fictional one likely only sweetened the deal on Noahs part. In fact, he took on Black Panther as one of his only movie roles. Noah has had a long career as a stand-up comedian and now television personality. But prior to Black Panther, Noah only acted in a pair of little-seen South African films, 2011s Taka Takata and 2012s Mad Buddies. But The Daily Show fans will be happy to know Noah is already firmly in the MCU. At this point, its unclear if he will return as Griot in Black Panther II. With any luck, Noah fans might even be able to see the comedian pop up on screen in the MCU at some point. After all, it worked for Bettany. Johnny Diaz makes surgical masks out of spunbond polypropylene fabric using an impulse welder at Polar Shades Sun Control in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images) Trump: Pandemic Shows Globalism Doesnt Work The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the necessity of having domestic supply chains, clashing with the ideals of globalism, President Donald Trump said on April 19. This pandemic has underscored the vital importance of restoring our supply chains and bringing them back into the United States, where they should have never left, Trump told reporters in Washington, saying that people who think otherwise are globalists. What happens if you are in a war, and you have a supply chain where half your supplies are given to you by other countries? It doesnt work. It certainly doesnt work during rough times, bad times, dangerous times. The president has repeatedly denounced globalism, before and after entering office. He has said domestic manufacturing is key to maintaining economic power, and decried the offshoring of production through deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which studies show contributed to thousands of lost jobs. Membership in unelected global bodies such as the United Nations, and participation in global deals such as the Paris climate accord, have also been opposed by Trump, who has withdrawn from some accords and worked on strengthening Americas role in others. Trumps presumed rival for the presidency, Joe Biden, supports reentering the nuclear deal with Iran and the Paris accord. He has harangued Trump for his actions, as have many top Democrats. Trump has increasingly voiced discontent with the World Health Organization (WHO), a United Nations group that is close to the Chinese Communist Party and has been accused of helping the regime cover up the pandemic caused by the CCP virus. Trump also appeared to compare WHO with the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding connections with China. If you look at some of the investigations that are going on in terms of World Health Organizationand Ill take it a step further: the World Trade Organization, too. President Donald Trump takes questions at the daily CCP virus briefing at the White House on April 19, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images) The opening of a World Trade Organization ministerial meeting on the sideline of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos on Jan. 24, 2020. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images) The World Trade Organization, from the day China came in, thats where China bloomed, Trump said. They were mainlining it, and then boom, they were up like a rocket ship, because they took advantage of every little ridiculous clause in the World Trade Organization documents. The president said he was elected likely in part because of the actions of China, noting he campaigned heavily on trade, telling voters the United States was getting ripped off. Trump championed deals hes made with Japan and Mexico, while calling NAFTA one of the worst deals ever made in trade history. The WTO declined to comment on Trumps remarks. The organizations website states that its main function is to make sure trade flows as smoothly, predictably, and freely as possible. Leaders of the group have recently called for countries to refrain from imposing export controls or tariffs, especially on essential goods such as medical supplies. They have promoted the notion that the United States and China should roll back tariff hikes made in recent years, including the United States immediately rolling back the 7.5 percent tariff on Chinese imports. A downside of the pandemic, WTO Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff said in a virtual lecture on April 9, is that governments are limiting exports and demanding that domestic production be reserved for national consumption. Nations should consult with the WTO on such measures and give notice before putting them into place, Wolff said in March. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Editorial Board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 08:09 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2e7e1f 1 Editorial COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,coronavirus,crisis,pandemic,tax Free The governments selection of partners to run programs to contain the COVID-19 pandemic deserves extra attention. Not only is taxpayer money being used to fund the battle against the outbreak, but also to help those who are ill and vulnerable. The big-check spending on health care, social safety net and business rescue programs will only be effective if they are well-targeted and managed by those with capability and integrity. Unfortunately, there are precedents of misappropriation of government aid, especially for the financial industry. These lessons are for the government to learn from and not repeat. Start-ups with links to the State Palace appear triumphant as they dominate partnership to support government initiatives to contain COVID-19. Education start-up Ruangguru, cofounded by President Joko Jokowi Widodos expert staff member Adamas Belva Devara, has been involved in the governments recently launched preemployment card, a social aid and skills training program. Read also: Another day, another blunder: Jokowi's millennial staff mired in controversy Around the same time, another expert staff member, Andi Taufan Garuda Putra, issued an official letter with Cabinet Secretary letterhead asking district heads across Indonesia to support a COVID-19 relief program led by fintech start-up Amartha, which he owns and founded. He later apologized and withdrew the letter. More start-ups listed in government programs include technology giant Gojek, founded by Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim, e-commerce platforms Tokopedia and Bukalapak, e-wallets GoPay, OVO and state-owned LinkAja, as well as telemedicine platform Halodoc among others. The logic behind the direct appointment may appear simple: In a time of crisis, there is no time for red tape to help those in need. However, putting the administration at risk of conflicts of interest undermines governance, which could undercut all of Indonesias efforts for reform. Besides, today is the perfect time to test and develop Indonesias progress on competitiveness. Rules and regulations have been made to avoid conflicts of interest, including the requirement for tender for goods and services related to the state budget such as in Presidential Regulation No. 16/2018. Does Indonesia need a more stringent one similar to the US CARES Act, which prohibits any business directly or indirectly owned by the president, senior executive branch officials or members of congress or their immediate family members from receiving any relief funds? Read also: Explainer: The progress and challenges of sustainable financing in Indonesia The government should not put governance at risk for the sake of speeding up efforts to contain the crisis. This would be like a bus driver driving recklessly fast to save a passengers life, but on the way he is endangering all the passengers. Speeding things up is important to contain the crisis but rushing carelessly would only result in regression that would slow down progress. The government should actively review and monitor the performance of its partner start-ups while opening the door widely for a transparent and red-tape-free tender that provides a level playing field to all. Social entrepreneurship has been cited as the DNA of start-ups and this is the best time for them to prove so and for the government to benefit from a free and fair aid system for all. Boston-based Alexion Pharmaceuticals, which has research and development operations in New Haven, has announced plans to launch a large-scale clinical study to determine whether one of the drugs the company already has approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration can be used to treat COVID-19. Megan Goulart, a company spokeswoman, said Monday that Alexion officials already have approval to begin a Phase 3 study of Ultomiris to treat COVID-19. The study will begin next month and is expected to enroll about 270 patients across countries with high numbers of diagnosed cases, according to Goulart. The study will focus on individuals with COVID-19 who are hospitalized with severe pneumonia or acute respiratory distress syndrome, company officials said. Ultomiris will be evaluated on survival rate, duration of mechanical ventilation, and hospital stay compared to best supportive care. Phase 3 is the last step in the drug development process before FDA officials evaluate a drug candidate for commercial use. Ultomiris was approved by the FDA in late 2018 for use in the treatment of adult patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, which is a rare, acquired, life-threatening disease of the blood. It is characterized by destruction of red blood cells, increased incidents of clots and impaired bone marrow function. Dr. John Orloff, executive vice president and head of research and development at Alexion, said that based on early anecdotal information available from compassionate use cases in multiple countries, we are launching a controlled clinical trial to evaluate the potential of Ultomiris in mitigating the severe pneumonia and lung injury caused by the virus. Ultomiris, with its weight-based dosing, is a good fit to treat COVID-19, according to company officials, who said it can reduce the burden on hospital systems. The drug requires less frequent dosing and can be manufactured at a higher capacity, providing the opportunity to better meet future supply demands. Alexion also has launched efforts in the United States to evaluate another one of the companys FDA-approved drugs, Soliris, for severe cases of COVID-19-related pneumonia. The companys emergency Expanded Access Programs, also known as compassionate use programs, provide expanded access and a potential pathway for a patient with an immediately life-threatening condition to gain access to an investigational medical product, according to the FDA. All requests for a hospital to be included in the expanded acccess programs must be made by a treating physician and can be submitted to the company. luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com They are said to have been inebriated after drinking beer. Vu Van Huy, 30, and Vu Van Phong, 27, will spend nine months each in jail while Nguyen Van Tuyen, 26, and Le Minh Thuc, 32, will do so for six months, the court ruled Saturday. All four were found guilty of "resisting persons in the performance of their official duties," a crime punishable by up to seven years in jail under Vietnams Penal Code. On April 12, Huy, Phong and Tuyen visited Thucs house for a party where they drank beer. On the way back home, the trio drove on a motorbike without helmets and face masks. They were stopped by officers of the Covid-19 task force in Quang Yen Town of the northern province for questioning. Instead of compiling, the trio got aggressive and abused the task force members. Later, they called Thuc to join the fight against the officers. Thuc used his phone to film the fight while holding an officers hands as his accomplices beat and punched that officer, and then he repeatedly shouted that the police were beating residents. In other localities, at least six other people have been jailed for between six months and a year in jail for assaulting Covid-19 task force members. Thousands of people have been fined for violating social distancing norms and leaving homes for "non-essential" reasons. Of Vietnam's 63 provinces and municipalities, 12 have been classified as carrying high risks of spreading the Covid-19 infection, including the major cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City as well as Quang Ninh which borders China. In all the 12 localities, the national social distancing campaign has been extended to April 22. Vietnam has recorded no new cases of the novel coronavirus for the last four days. Of the 268 patients diagnosed in Vietnam so far, 61 are still active and the remaining 207 have been discharged. No deaths have been recorded to date. The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 210 countries and territories, with more than 165,000 deaths recorded so far. The city of Midland Health Department is currently conducting its investigation on one new confirmed case of coronavirus in Midland County, bringing the overall case count to 43, according to a press release from the citys spokeswoman. The 43rd confirmed case is an adolescent female who was tested by a private provider. She is self-isolating at home. The source of exposure is contact to known case. With debate over COVID-19 testing holding up a deal that would boost a maxed-out small business loan program by $450 billion, President Donald Trump on Monday lashed out at Democratic lawmakers and governors, accusing them of playing politics as negotiations dragged on and unemployment rates continued to rise. But Democrats on Capitol Hill, and several governors of both parties, have repeatedly urged the Trump administration to implement a national testing strategy. They argue supplies are short and that testing is nowhere near levels initially predicted by federal officials, nor at a capacity that could help state leaders, businesses and Americans feel safe enough to lift stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidelines which have blunted the spread of a virus thats infected three quarters of a million people and killed 40,000 in just seven weeks. Without preventative measures keeping people at home and at least 6 feet apart when in public, health experts estimated more than 1 million Americans could die from COVID-19, which officials say is at least 10 times more lethal than the flu. But Trump, who has claimed he has ultimate authority over when the nations economy reopens, repeated his argument Monday that testing is for states to manage. The president compared Democrats push for testing with widespread concerns over a lack of ventilators as coronavirus cases were spiking and as health officials including the presidents advisers grew increasingly worried that hospitals would be overrun without social distancing measures and without mobilizing equipment. Last month all you heard from the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats was, Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilators,' Trump tweeted. They screamed it loud & clear, & thought they had us cold, even though it was the States task. But everyone got their Vs, with many to spare. Now they scream, Testing, Testing, Testing, again playing a very dangerous political game. Last month all you heard from the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats was, Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilators. They screamed it loud & clear, & thought they had us cold, even though it was the States task. But everyone got their Vs, with many to spare. Now they scream.... Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 20, 2020 States, not the feds, should be doing the testing, Trump claimed. But we will work with the Governors and get it done, he added. This is easy compared to the fast production of thousands of complex Ventilators! Trump on Sunday declared the U.S. the king of ventilators, but noted he would use the Defense Production Act to get at least one company to produce more cotton swabs, which states say they desperately need to ramp up COVID-19 testing. Democrats are fighting for our $30 billion plan for a comprehensive national testing strategy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York tweeted on Sunday. A major new investment that includes bolstering the supply and manufacturing chain, significantly expanding free testing for all, and expanding reporting and contact tracing. Democrats are fighting for our $30 billion plan for a comprehensive national testing strategy. A major new investment that includes bolstering the supply and manufacturing chain, significantly expanding free testing for all, and expanding reporting and contact tracing. Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) April 19, 2020 Last week, Schumer argued testing is the best tool we have to fight the virus today, to know whos infected and whos not, and to reopen our economy. Trump and several of his advisers, as well as Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have also said that the coronavirus crisis demonstrates the U.S. must strengthen its manufacturing and supply chains, so it is not as reliant on China and other countries for testing materials and medical equipment. Trump administration officials and congressional aides have said a deal to inject funds into the Payroll Protection Program is likely to be signed this week, despite the ongoing dispute over testing. Trump, whose own advisers have urged states not to ease restrictions on movement and social distancing until at least two weeks of declines in new COVID-19 cases, has nevertheless called on multiple states to LIBERATE amid the pandemic. To have an American president to encourage people violate the law, I cant remember any time in my time in America we have seen such a thing," Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said on ABCs This Week on Sunday. Its dangerous, because it could inspire people to ignore things that could save their lives. Related Content: Salman Khan had earlier pledged to financially support 25,000 daily wage workers from the film industry in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. Salman Khan released his new song 'Pyaar Karona', where he asked listeners to maintain social distance during the coronavirus crisis. The actor took to social media to announce the song and also shared an audio link. Co-written by Salman and Hussain Dalal, the song is composed by Sajid-Wajid and sung by the Dabangg 3 star. Here is the song "Emotionally pass rahona aur physically duur rahona (Stay close emotionally, but distance yourself physically)," he wrote on social media before the song's premiere on YouTube. Khan raps in the song, throwing light on the precautionary measures to stop the spread of the highly contagious virus. He urges people to staying and working from home but at a distance from everyone. The 54-year-old actor also asks people to use their leisure time during the lockdown to work on their hobbies like playing the guitar, writing poetry and practising other artwork. According to Hindustan Times, the song was recorded by Khan on his phone during his stay at his Panvel farmhouse and later produced in Mumbai. The actor had earlier pledged to financially support 25,000 daily wage workers from the film industry in the wake of the nationwide lockdown and had recently released a video where he slammed those flouting the rules and attacking the healthcare workers. (With inputs from Asian News International) We do not say that they make no difference whatsoever, Dr. Thernstrom told The New York Times in 1998. We do say that they havent made as much difference as is widely attributed to them, and that they carry with them a very high cost. When it comes to race, the test of any public policy is, Will it bring us together or divide us? Preferences flunk that test. Dr. Thernstrom argued that while she had sung along with Pete Seeger as a girl and in 1972 voted for George McGovern over Richard M. Nixon, she hadnt become a convert from liberalism. (She voted for a Republican for president for the first time in 1992, picking George H.W. Bush over Bill Clinton.) Instead, she said, she had consistently heeded the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s gospel that people should be judged by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin. Reviewing America in Black and White for The Atlantic Monthly, the conservative economist Glenn C. Loury wrote that the Thernstroms exhaustive study tells hard truths unsparingly. But he also said that it lacked an appreciation of irony, and a sense of the tragic. Being right about liberals having been wrong is an accomplishment, to be sure, but it is no longer good enough, Professor Loury wrote, adding that the book contains insights deserving a wide reading, along with unfounded speculations that, in my opinion, are best ignored. Other critics invoked President Lyndon B. Johnsons analogy from 1965 that fairness is not merely taking a person who, for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring him up to the starting line of a race, and then say, You are free to compete with all the others. The political scientist Andrew Hacker also found fault with their argument, telling The Times, Here are two white people who are essentially lecturing black Americans, saying: What are you complaining about? Stop your griping. Here are the data. Youre better off than ever before. There are still just two main types in the U.S. One tells you if you have an active infection with the coronavirus, whether you have symptoms or not. The other checks to see if you were previously infected at some point and fought it off. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 17:48:43|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close DAMASCUS, April 20 (Xinhua) -- As many as 5,300 Turkey-backed Syrian rebels have so far reached Libya to fight alongside the UN-backed Libyan government in its fight against the east-based army led by Khalifa Haftar, a war monitor reported on Monday. Another 2,100 rebels are currently receiving training in Turkish camps, as Turkey is sending the Syrian rebels to Libya, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. As many as 199 rebels have so far been killed in the battles in Libya, said the UK-based watchdog group. The Turkey-backed rebels opened four centers in the northern Syrian city of Afrin to recruit fighters to be sent to Libya. Turkey offers a monthly salary of 2,000 U.S. dollars for those who agree to go to Libya on contracts between three and six months, according to the London-based watchdog. Enditem A 41-year-old man reportedly admitted to killing his girlfriend and cooking her legs after feeling hungry during their drinking party in Ukraine. The cannibal, identified only by his first name of Oleksandr, is said to have been frying and eating his victim's legs when police raided his house in the central city of Kryvyi Rih. According to police, Oleksandr and his 50-year-old girlfriend, who has not been named, were having a home boozy party on April 13. A 41-year-old man (left), identified only as Oleksandr, admitted to killing his girlfriend (pictured) and cooking her legs after feeling hungry during their drinking party in Ukraine During the drinking session, Oleksandr grabbed a kitchen knife and cut the woman's throat open, causing her death, detectives said. After checking on the woman and making sure she was dead, the man reportedly hacked off her legs and stuffed the rest of her body into a sack. At night, he dragged the sack around 1,600 ft (500metres) from his house and hid it among the reeds by the Inhulets river, according to local media. The gruesome remains were spotted the next day by a family who was walking in the area. Father-of-two Mykola said to local media: 'We [he and his children] were looking for a fishing spot when we stumbled upon the sack. He is said to have been frying and eating his victim's legs when police raided his house (pictured) in the central city of Kryvyi Rih According to police, Oleksandr and his 50-year-old girlfriend, who has not been named, were having a home boozy party on April 13. Pictured: The reeds where the woman's body was found 'I saw naked buttocks sticking out of it and realised it was human remains. I called the police.' Locals immediately identified the victim and told the police the address of her boyfriend. Oleksandr was arrested after officers came to his home and found him frying flesh from his girlfriend's leg in a frying pan before eating it. The gruesome remains were spotted the next day by a family who was walking in the area. Father-of-two Mykola (pictured) spotted the remains while out with his children Police spokesman Sergey Lukashov commented: 'The suspect stabbed the woman with a knife causing her death' Local reports said police felt sick after witnessing the scene. He said to polics he 'cooked his girlfriend's legs and ate them after getting hungry', Ukrainian media said. Officers launched a criminal case for premeditated murder against Oleksandr, who later confessed. Police spokesman Sergey Lukashov commented: 'The suspect stabbed the woman with a knife causing her death. 'He hacked the victim's legs off and put the rest of her body into a sack. 'He dragged the sack to the river and left it in the reeds.' Oleksandr was placed into custody and faces up to 15 years in prison if found guilty. The investigation continues. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Wyoming Area Offices forecast for spring snow melt runoff for the North Platte River drainage calls for above-average snow melt runoff. The total runoff April through July in the North Platte River Basin is expected to be 134 percent of the 30-year average, or 1,278,000 acre-feet. The forecast is good news for more than 20 irrigation districts in the North Platte River Valley of western Nebraska and eastern Wyoming, who rely on surface water from the North Platte drainage to irrigate more than 300,000 acres of crops. Much of that irrigation water is stored in the system of main-stem reservoirs in Wyoming, Seminoe, Kortes, Pathfinder, Alcova, Grey Reef, Glendo and Guernsey. The system also provides power generation, flood control and recreation/ Current snowpack on the sub-basin drainages of the North Platte River drainage Upper Platte basin, 106 percent of normal; Sweetwater basin, 82 percent of normal; Lower Platte basin, 120 percent of normal; Laramie River basin, 109 percent of normal. Prince Harry told his wife Meghan Markles father only we can help you in text messages which have emerged because of a High Court battle. Meghan is suing Associated Newspapers, which owns the Mail On Sunday, after it and the MailOnline published extracts of a personal letter she wrote to her father, Thomas Markle. Now the Duchess of Sussex has filed paperwork to the High Court, including a series of text messages in which her then-fiance Harry pleaded with Mr Markle to reply to them before their wedding. The couple claim they only found out he was ill because he released a statement to celebrity website TMZ after suffering a heart attack. Court documents seen by Press Association show texts sent on 14 May, 2018 after calls to Mr Markle, 75, went unanswered, Harry wrote: Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. Harry and Meghan announced their intention to sue while they were in South Africa. (Getty Images) The texts were sent before their wedding. (Getty Images) U do not need to apologize [sic], we understand the circumstances but going public will only make the situation worse. If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which dont involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks. Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1. Read more: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle cut ties with four UK tabloids over 'invasive' stories Mr Markle had a heart attack in May 2018 which prevented him attending the couples wedding. He was meant to be walking Meghan, 38, down the aisle, but the role was instead taken by Prince Charles, after she walked down alone through part of the church. The documents go on to include a text to her father on 15 May, 2018, in which Meghan wrote: Ive been reaching out to you all weekend but youre not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts. Meghan walked down the aisle on her own after her father could not attend. (Getty Images) Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you dont respond. Story continues Do you need help? Can we send the security team down again? Im very sorry to hear youre in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us What hospital are you at? The duchess sent another text about 10 minutes later, saying: Harry and I made a decision earlier today and are dispatching the same security guys you turned away this weekend to be a presence on the ground to make sure youre safe they will be there at your disposal as soon as you need them. Please, please call as soon as you can.. all of this is incredibly concerning but your health is most important. When Mr Markle responded, he said he would be in hospital for a few days and refused the offer of security. Harry, 35, sent details of the security team to Meghans father using her phone. Read more: Meghan Markle gives support to food delivery service run by Grenfell survivors The Hospital General de Rosarito where Thomas Markle, the father of Meghan Markle, had been treated after a heart attack in May 2018. (Getty Images) David Sherborne, the lawyer representing Meghan in her claim against the publisher, said in the documents: The claimants husband pleaded with Mr Markle to let them help him. While Mr Markle responded later that evening to say that he appreciated the offer but did not feel in danger and would instead recover at a motel, the claimant responded 10 minutes later to make a further request for the hospital details so that she would know where he was. The claimant will refer to the fact that the defendants description of this exchange intentionally omits any reference to the claimant or her husband attempting to protect Mr Markle and ensure that he was safe. It was 16 May 2018 when Mr Markle had emergency heart surgery and texted his daughter to let her know he would not be able to attend her wedding. Read more: Princess Anne cautions younger royals against 'new ways' as Harry and Meghan begin new life In defence documents filed by Associated Newspapers, Mr Markle claims Meghan did not ask him about how he was doing after his surgery. The document states: He told the claimant he loved her and wished her the best. He sent a follow-up message asking who would be giving [her] away? and saying that if she really needed him he would come, and that he was sorry about all this. In response, he received a text response signed Love M and H, but which read as if it was from Prince Harry, (amongst other things) admonishing Mr Markle for talking to the press and telling him to stop, and accusing Mr Markle of causing hurt to his daughter. The text did not ask how the surgical procedure had gone or how Mr Markle was or send him good wishes. Mr Markle was deeply hurt and responded with a curt message: Ive done nothing to hurt you Meghan or anyone else I know nothing about 20 phone calls Im sorry my heart attack is there any inconvenience for you, and a couple more short messages. Read more: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle 'volunteer to deliver meals' in LA Sherbourne says the duchess does not believe the message came from her father, as opposed to someone pretending to be him, and they tried to call him several times after receiving the text, but he did not answer. Sherborne continues: As a result of this, and the unpleasant nature of the message she received on May 16, the claimant called Mr Markle a further four times within five minutes of the message being sent, but he declined to pick up. Her husband even texted Mr Markle from the claimants phone to say: Tom, its Harry, please answer your phone. I need to know this is actually you because it doesnt sound like you at all. No response was received. Meghan and Harry have also cut ties with some UK tabloids. (Getty Images) Sherborne said it is admitted and averred that, following the unpleasant message, which Meghan was unsure came from her father, and his failure to respond to calls and messages from the couple, the duchess did not speak to her father before her wedding on 19 May, 2018. Meghan denies any further contact from her father and did not receive a text message from him in November 2018, which according to Associated Newspapers defence read: I want to reach out to you or try to reach out to you one more time. You apparently have just written me off and now its telling me I guess for the rest of my life? The duchess is seeking damages for alleged misuse of private information, copyright infringement and breach of the Data Protection Act. Associated Newspapers wholly denies the allegations particularly the claim that the letter was edited in any way that changed its meaning and says it will hotly contest the case. Yahoo UK has contacted the Mail On Sunday for comment. The messages have emerged as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex informed four UK tabloid papers they would not be working with them again. The couple told the editors of The Sun, the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and the Daily Mirror that they and their communications team, would no longer co-operate with them. Watch the latest episode from Yahoo UK's The Royal Story As all flights remain shut due to the Coronavirus pandemic across the world, there have been evacuation flights being conducted by different countries to bring their citizens back home. One such flight arrived at Kolkata on Sunday to evacuate 160 British nationals, including three infants, back to the UK. This was a part of a massive 12-flight operation that has been undertaken by the British High Commission in India to evacuate its citizens from different parts of the country. Nick Low, British Deputy High Commissioner to Kolkata, said, I am delighted that we have helped repatriate stranded British nationals from the East and Northeast India in a charter flight organised by the UK government. Today we have helped send back 160 British nationals in this charter flight from Kolkata to London via Delhi. I am grateful to the Government of India, state governments and local authorities, Kolkata Airport Authority and Hotel Holiday Inn for assisting the safe passage of our British nationals back to the UK. The UK and India are a force for good in tackling Covid19 together. The British Airways flight was a Boeing B777-200 aircraft with 336 seats and flew from Kolkata to Delhi for a technical stop and then went on its way to the UK via Bahrain. This event also marked the first time a direct flight from Europe has landed in Kolkata since 2009. Also Watch: Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Tesla (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd., the operation entity of Tesla's China business, has moved to Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (SHFTZ), marking that it will enjoy more preferential governmental policies to further facilitate its China trade. The company changed its location to SHFTZ Lin-gang Special Area on April 13, according to the China's National Enterprise Credit Information Public System. Meanwhile, Tesla Shanghai enlarged its line of business by the adding value-added telecommunication business into the licensed business item and the rental & leasing businesses of mechanical equipment, non-residential property and automobile to the general item. In China, the business scope is divided into the licensed and the general business items. The former refers to the item that shall be reported to and subject to the approval of relevant authorities before an enterprise applies for registration. However, the general references to the item that can be applied for by an enterprise itself at its own without getting authoritative approvals. The SHFTZ is the epitome of China's deepened reform and opening-up. Companies located there are provided with a number of facilitation policies. For instance, they are allowed to pay the registered capital in a manner independently agreed on by themselves and obtain business license without paying registered capital. The registration of foreign-invested companies at the SHFTZ adopts the recording system rather than the examination and approval system, largely streamlining the administrative procedures for companies' establishment. Tesla (Shanghai) Co.,Ltd. was founded in May 2018 with a registered capital of RMB4.67 billion. Its business scope extends to cover the production and sale of electric vehicles (EVs), EV-related components, batteries, energy storage facilities and photovoltaic products, pertinent after-sale services and technology developments. (Photo source: Tesla China) On July 10, 2018, the U.S. EV manufacturer signed a cooperative agreement with Shanghai Municipal Government to set up a self-owned EV plant at the Lin-gang Special Area. After a less-than-one-year construction, the plant was put into production at the end of 2019 with initial outputs topping 1,000 vehicles per week. The first batch of the China-built Model 3s were handed over to 15 employees on December 30, 2019, while a larger scale of delivery started around a week later. Earlier this month, the locally-produced Tesla Model 3's Long Range RWD and Performance AWD formally hit the market with respective starting price of RMB339,050 (after subsidy) and RMB419,800 (before subsidy). The EV maker has decided to take advantage of China's thriving online shopping development to expand its business there. It announced on April 16 that it opened its first online flagship store on Tmall, a Chinese leading e-commerce platform owned by Alibaba. Consumers can purchase auto parts and charging services as well as make test drive reservations at the online store. By Express News Service KARIMNAGAR: In a positive trend, the number of fresh COVID-19 cases being reported in Karimnagar seems to have gradually reduced with the district reporting only two active cases on Sunday, as opposed to the earlier 19. The district was on tenterhooks from the time a group of eight Indonesian preachers tested positive, forcing officials to seal many areas and begin primary contact tracing on a war-footing. The situation worsened when four people tested positive at Karimnagar and Huzurabad towns after returning from the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. But, things improved, with all the coronavirus-positive primary contacts cured and those who returned from the Tablighi Jammaat meeting also discharged on Sunday. These patients were in home quarantine for 14 days, District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) Dr G Sujatha said. ALSO READ| COVID-19: Rapid testing must be started with immediate effect in Telangana, feel experts Strict implementation of lockdown Compared to other districts, the number of positive cases being reported in Karimnagar is gradually decreasing. This was because authorities were focusing on social distancing, tracing patients travel history, implementing the lockdown strictly and ensuring people practise self-restriction. Municipal corporation authorities set up vegetable markets at 15 areas and mobile vegetable vans were doing the rounds so that people did not have to commute long distances to buy essentials. Disinfection and special sanitation drives were also being conducted. Cops leave no stone unturned Meanwhile, police were using drone cameras and mobile command control rooms to keep an eye on people gathering in large numbers. They booked several people for violating the lockdown rules. For instance, it booked one person for spitting at Huzurabad. It also booked a Blue Colt personnel on Sunday for not informing the command and control wing about a social distancing violation. The Health department was also surveying containment zones every day to check for any suspected cases. Health screenings were being conducted at markets and check-post areas too. Medical teams were inspecting and enquiring about patients in home quarantine on a daily basis. ALSO READ| Telangana: Poor take to Twitter seeking KTR's help amid coronavirus lockdown Roads connecting Khammam and Suryapet closed KHAMMAM: The people in Khammam district are in grip of fear as the number of positive cases are on a rise in the neighbouring district of Suryapet. Khammam district administration has increased the check posts and closed connecting roads to Suryapet. Police Commissioner Tafseer Iqbal said on Sunday that 36 check posts and 56 police pickets have been arranged at the borders. The police have also increased vigil at Nayakangudem border check post on Khammam-Suryapet main road 6-year-old tests positive for COVID-19 ADILABAD: A six-year-old child was tested positive for coronavirus in Kumrambheem-Asifabad district on Sunday. According to sources, the boy contracted the infection from his grandfather who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event. Meanwhile, a person attempted suicide at a quarantine centre in Asifabad on Sunday fearing that he might have contracted coronavirus. ALSO READ| Untimely rains damage crops in Telangana's Karimnagar district Cooperate with officials: Collector C Narayana Reddy NIZAMBAD: While stating that all deaths in containment areas will be monitored, Collector C Narayana Reddy appealed to the leaders of minority communities to cooperate with officials in fight against coronavirus. He made this request while holding a meeting with Muslim community leaders on Sunday. The recent news that Virginia restaurants and distilleries may now sell mixed drinks to go and for delivery had to raise worst-case scenarios in the minds of at least some who heard about it. Would bar patrons start rolling out onto streets and sidewalks, cocktails in hand? Would delivery drivers now also have to manage precarious trays of mojitos, Manhattans, mai tais and margaritas? Of course not, but still ... Even coming in the wake of other loosened state restrictions on wine and beer sales, the policy change felt like a precedent, albeit one with profits. Allowing them to sell mixed beverages ... will help them augment their revenue streams so they can continue to operate and employ Virginians amid the COVID-19 lockdown, Gov. Ralph Northam said April 8, two days before the move took effect, and about a week before word broke that a record 22 million Americans have applied for unemployment benefits since the crisis began. In the time since, restaurateurs around the Roanoke and New River valleys have acknowledged that, while the changes reveal the scale of their new financial challenges, its still a welcome bandage. It definitely has increased sales this past week, said Stephanie Rogol, who operates restaurants in Blacksburg, Daleville and Radford, all of which have started offering mixed drinks for carry-out and delivery. Before, we werent even close to breaking even, she added. Otherwise, it would be impossible [to] tread water through this. Every little bit seems to help The new changes do not make it legal to consume alcohol in public. Mixed beverages must travel in containers no bigger than 16 ounces, and be sealed with a hole-free lid that requires full removal before the drink can be drunk. Patrons are required to order food with their libations: one meal for every two cocktails, with a maximum of four drinks per take-out or delivery order. Distilleries may deliver two beverages, containing a maximum of 3 ounces of spirits. Drivers must transport the cargo in their trunks, or in part of the vehicle that cant be accessed from the front seat, according to Virginia ABC rules. Restaurants can refuse the sale if the customer doesnt have valid proof of their age. While most area restaurants are no longer staying open past about 9 p.m., mixed drink sales are prohibited between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. On Friday, Thomas Lisk, a lobbyist with the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging and Travel Association, said the new allowances havent come without complications. Little issues, like the fact that most drink lids come with holes for straws, have forced some restaurateurs to get creative, scramble for new supplies, or use more expensive options such as jars. But Lisk, who pushed for the policy changes, said they still represent a positive step, with some small advantages: The mark-up for mixed beverages and spirit-based drinks tends to be larger than for beer or wine, he said. I dont know if its going to make a big difference, but right now in this environment, every little bit seems to help. A boost, not a windfall For most sit-down restaurants, the social component is central to their draw, whether they offer a boutique dining experience or a live music venue. Some Roanoke establishments, unable to pivot to delivery, are now trying the new carry-out and curb-service options. Part of the charm of coming to our restaurants is the atmosphere, said Hunter Johnson, who co-owns and operates a pair of upscale eateries along Kirk Avenue: Lucky and Fortunato. Through the second week of March, we had two restaurants that were having the start of our best year ever, Johnson said. We went from having an incredible business to, theoretically, its gone. His two restaurants used to employ 42 staffers between them. That number is now down to 10, and he estimates business has dropped by 75% to 80%. For us, cocktails are a big part of what we do. Until they announced [the new policies], we were scrambling to figure out what we were going to do, he said. Both establishments now offer meal and drink pick-ups in the afternoons and evenings, Wednesday through Saturday. But Johnson said one of Luckys best-selling items is something of a fluke: The Cube, a frozen block containing ginger root, apples and other ingredients, but no alcohol. Its a cocktail Johnson initially started making because it could be prepared in advance and stored for rushes. In its take-out form, customers must add their own whiskey. As it melts, the drink changes. You have a very different experience from the time you start it until the time you finish, Johnson said. His theory, a week into the new regulations, is that many customers already have alcohol on hand. What they want are signature items they cant get in a store, he said Things that are specific to us, things that we actually make in-house. Last week, for example, Lucky sold nearly 40 Pear Skin Rug cocktail kits and a little more than 500 Cubes. Im making five times the amount than I normally would, he said, and because alcohol is a separate component, The Cube is not bound by restrictions: You could buy a hundred if you wanted to. Conversely, however, he said the movement of actual liquor drinks is seeing reverse momentum. We sold 26 cocktails-for-two last week. Thatd be like 52 individual drinks, Johnson explained. On a Friday, Saturday night, they [his bartenders] probably make like 250 on a busy night. During the week, theyre doing 150. Its a definite drop-off. Meanwhile on First Street, the popular dining room and live music venue Martins Downtown has quieted considerably. It shifted to carry-out with some food delivery weeks ago. Were doing beer, wine, mixed drinks, all to go, said owner Jason Martin. Its a drop in the bucket for what were missing in total alcohol revenue. I think our food sales are down 25 to 30%, but alcohol is down 95%. Martins side venture, the European-style bistro Sidecar, has ceased operations for now; its fare doesnt lend itself to travel, Martin said. In the interim, hes launched Martins Market online, selling raw products like salmon, steaks and salads, which he said requires almost no overhead. Were basically breaking even, covering our costs, which is a lot more than most people can say, Martin said last week. Were paying our bills. I consider thats worth keeping the fight going. Across town, a southwest Roanoke County staple, the Brambleton Deli, offers beer and wine to go but plays it straight when it comes to cocktails. Were not offering a lot. Were just doing highballs and screwdrivers, owner Chip Moore said. It was a nice gesture, the state trying to do everything they can to boost sales for us, he offered, but said, None of it has been a windfall. Moore said his food business of late has nearly doubled from what it was since he had to close the bar and dining room. The last two days, weve done about 50% of our normal sales. Thats pretty good, considering, he said, and although that could indicate the restaurant market is starting to adjust to the lockdown, Moore attributes the increase to two likely factors: boredom and stimulus checks. As long as our overheads not killer, and we dont have a big debt load, we can survive like this for a long time, Moore said. I wouldnt want to. Slinging Long Island iced teas Stephanie Rogol owns and operates two popular bars in two college towns, Sharkeys in both Blacksburg and Radford, for which April and May usually represent two of the most lucrative months. This year, however, food business is down by about 65% and liquor sales are roughly 10% of what they normally are, she said. Her other restaurants in Daleville the Town Center Tap House and Tizzone Woodfire Kitchen have seen similar dips. All four locations are now doing delivery and take-out from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, she said last week. We needed to give our staff the ability to make money. Anybody that wants to work, is, she explained, and said her recent drop in staffing from about 170 employees to approximately 110 was mostly due to those who did not want to work during the pandemic, some who needed to take care of family members, or students who did not return after spring break. But not everybody has disappeared, Rogols informal poll indicates: Weve been moving a ton of Long Island iced teas in Blacksburg. Her primary complaint is that social distancing sours a crucial element of her restaurants function. Its very hard to engage guests when all youre doing is curbside and delivery, she said. For a lot of people, this is their social interaction. A lot of our regulars ... we reach out to them on Facebook and theyre lonely. Rogol is experimenting with ways to branch out socially but safely. Tizzone recently started Unwined, a virtual wine tasting via Zoom. For $60, participants get two bottles of wine, a cheese platter and entry into an online class with Tizzones chef. Twelve people participated in the first virtual get-together Sunday, and Rogol deemed it a success. She now says she hopes to use similar online technology to hold bingo tournaments and trivia nights. I think the best thing thats going to come from this is ... survival of the fittest. And the businesses that survive are going to be the businesses that actually care about their stakeholders. Their employees. Their vendors. Their customers. Everybody thats involved, everybody whose lives they touch. I do really believe the world will become a better place for this. But I am a hopeless optimist, Rogol said. I cant wait til its over. The business news you need Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Monday seeking a direction to all the District Magistrates (DMs) across the country to conduct daily inspection of shelter homes for migrant labourers who had left the cities for their natives places following the nationwide lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. The application said the Centre should direct the DMs to ensure that sufficient food, drinking water, medical aid and proper counselling is provided to migrant labourers in these shelter homes till the lockdown, which has been extended till May 3, continues. It has said that the Centre should direct all the states "to not permit any mass migration of any migrant labourers to their native villages situated within or outside the state, till the present lockdown continues". Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava has filed the application in his pending petition before the apex court in which he has raised the issue of large scale migration of daily wagers and labourers amid the lockdown. Srivastava said the Centre should direct all the DMs to immediately identify moving or stranded migrant workers in their districts and shift them to the nearest shelter homes, where they should be provided sufficient food, water, medicines and counselling during the lockdown. The top court had on March 31 directed the Centre to ensure that migrant workers, who are kept in shelter homes across the country, are given adequate facilities like food, medical aid and assistance of trained counsellors and religious leaders of all faiths be taken to help them overcome their panic. The fresh application, while referring to media reports, has alleged that few state governments are not ensuring strict compliance of the March 31 order of the apex court as well as the directives of the Union Home Ministry. It said that allowing any mass migration of labourers to their native places situated within or outside the state would defeat the purpose of lockdown. "If the said migrant labourers are sent to their native villages without proper COVID-19 testing, then it will be much more dangerous, as the said migrant labourers may carry the coronavirus to their native villages/rural areas, which may give rise to uncontrollable and exponential rise in COVID-19 cases," the application said. It said that in rural India, the doctor-population ratio is far lower than what has been mandated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and thus, it is not advisable to send migrant labourers to their native villages till the lockdown continues. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has expressed concern over the deterioration in the humanitarian situation caused by the intensification of the recent fighting in Tripoli and its nearby zones NSW Police want the Ruby Princess to leave Australian shores on Thursday as final plans are made for the repatriation of crew members to their home countries. The plans for the ship's departure come as Carnival Australia confirmed on Monday it would offer a full refund to guests on the cruise that returned to Sydney on March 19. The Ruby Princess at Port Kembla. Credit:Edwina PIckles NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said police were working with Australian Border Force, NSW Health, cruise operator Carnival and the home countries of about 1100 crew members to determine who would be repatriated. "It is important that we get this right," he said. "There is a window of opportunity now to see those people off the boat. We will be keen to see that go on Thursday." As the most significant health provider in the country, the Mexican Social Security Institute, otherwise known as IMSS, is a vital stakeholder in Mexico's health system and is a representation of much of the revenue in the private sector. So, when this large company is experiencing an internal crisis, the national health system will be affected. As of Friday, more than a hundred IMSS employees are confirmed to have been diagnosed with COVID-19. A considerable number of these infected health workers work in offices at Coahuila, Baja California Sur, and the state, Mexico. The pandemic crisis has recently led hospitals to suspend discretionary medical procedures, furlough some high-risk employees, and recruit more health workers. But for IMSS, their workers are planning to go on strike unless the management presents the provisions that guarantee the safety of the front line workers. Check these out! Money on Medical Materials Just recently, the IMSS administration announced plans to spend over 5 billion Mexican pesos worth of medical equipment. The amount is the roughly US$210 million. According to the contents of the letter sent to the federal Finance Ministry, the immediate procurement of these medical supplies would be spent on the treatment of patients with the coronavirus. Included in the list of the equipment are over 3,477 monitors, over 979 ventilators, 264 X-ray machines, 600 medical carts, 9,000 pulse oximeters, and 126 ultrasound machines. The rest of the funds are to be spent on over 600 beds for patients. Minister for Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard said in an announcement that the Mexican government would provide over 5,000 ventilators subsidized by different countries. The quantity of how many were reserved for IMSS health facilities is yet to be known. Over the past month, the IMSS has been put in a hot seat by its health workers because the company failed to provide materials like personal protective equipment. Some of them have even threatened to go on a strike. Protests Over Lack of Provisions In mid-March, IMSS employees filled the streets to protest the management for poor leadership, inadequate equipment, and delayed response. They were chanting "Queremos material." Dr. Armando Rosales Torres, head of the IMSS employee's union, explained that they were giving IMSS director Zoe Robledo a week to materialize the provisions that were promised to the front line health workers. On another protest on March 24, chaos ensued between medical staff and authorities, resulting in bruises. Nurses and doctors alike raised concerns to local health union leader Sergio Herrera Vazquez. It was explained that the 20 percent salary bonus was not worth risking their lives over if they had no protective equipment. On that same day, Robledo was interviewed on television and acknowledged the concerns of the health workers but insisted that 80 percent of IMSS hospitals had enough supplies to continue treating patients with coronavirus that would last until the following week. President Jair Bolsonaro escalated his campaign for the reopening of the Brazilian economy after he attended a protest against restrictive measures imposed by state governors to slow the coronavirus spread. The Brasilia demonstration on Sunday, similar to others that took place in several Brazilian cities the same day, was organized by his more radical supporters -- some of whom demanded a military intervention in Congress and the Supreme Court, institutions that have mostly sided with the governors. We dont want to negotiate anything, Bolsonaro said in an improvised speech delivered from a flatbed truck, according to videos posted on social media. We want action for Brazil. He had previously shared on Twitter a newspaper report about the growing number of Brazilians unable to pay their bills, saying its not difficult to guess what comes next if lockdown measures remain in place. The far-right president, worried about the impact of a looming recession in Latin Americas largest economy, has defied medical guidance on social distancing, repeatedly mingling with the population and greeting supporters. He has urged Brazilians to resume work even as deaths from Covid-19, which he has called just a little flu, near 2,500. Last week, he fired his health minister after repeatedly clashing with him over the handling of the pandemic. Authoritarianism When leaving his official residence early on Monday, Bolsonaro said that he hopes this is the last week of lockdowns. Meanwhile, health officials say Brazil is probably still weeks away from the peak in Covid-19 cases. The state of Sao Paulo, the epicenter of infections in Brazil, has extended quarantine orders until May 10. Bolsonaro also said Brazil is a democracy, and that he respects the constitution as well as bodies such as Congress and the Supreme Court. My role is to preserve the peoples liberty without chaos, he said. Still, his attendance in a demonstration where participants called for the shutdown of democratic institutions caused outrage among political leaders and members of the top court. The whole world is united against the coronavirus, Lower House Speaker Rodrigo Maia, one of the main targets of Bolsonaro and his supporters, said in a Twitter post. In Brazil, we have to fight against the coronavirus and the virus of authoritarianism. Its a lot of work, but well win. Ben Lambert / Hearst Connecticut Media NEW HAVEN - A 34-year-old man was shot in the hand during a drug deal gone wrong, police said. Police learned of the incident on Sunday, around 6 a.m., when a New Haven man admitted himself to Yale New Haven Hospital with a gunshot wound to the hand. Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday warned of strict action against those trying to give a religious colour to the lynching of three men in Palghar last week. Thackeray said he has spoken to Union home minister Amit Shah and apprised him of the details of the case. Even Amit Shahji knows that the incident had no religious connection as the village in which the incident took place has no such background. I have requested him to take strict action against people trying to spread communal tension using social media, Thackeray said on Facebook Live. We too are taking action against the bid to arouse religious sentiments using the incident, he added. Two sadhus or Hindu ascetics and their driver were lynched to death by a huge mob outside Gadhchinchale village, 110km from Palghar, on April 16 on the suspicion of being child-lifters. Also read: Mistaken for thieves, 3 lynched to death by 200-strong mob in Maharashtras Palghar It later emerged the sadhus70-year-old Swami Kalpvriksha Giri and 35-year-old Sushil Giribelonged to Varanasi-based Juna Akhara and were on their way to Gujarat to attend the last rite of their guru Mahant Shri Ram Giri. Asserting that nobody involved in the Palghar mob lynching incident would be spared, the chief minister announced a high-level probe by Criminal Investigation Departments (CID) chief Atulchandra Kulkarni. The Sena chief also listed the action taken by his government against those accused of being a part of the mob. The police have already arrested more than 100 suspects, including five key accused responsible for the incident. The key accused have been given police custody till April 30, he said. We have suspended two policemen holding them responsible for the incident. Nobody involved in this heinous crime will be spared, he added. He also said the two sadhus had reached Union territory of Dadra Nagar Haveli but were not allowed by local authorities to enter their area and hence were returning through internal roads. The persons killed were sent back from the border of the Dadra Nagar Haveli amid the lockdown restrictions. Had they been given shelter by the authorities or coordinated with us, this could have been averted, he said. Thackeray, who also spoke in Hindi, said he has also spoken to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath over the incident. Adityanath had called Thackeray urging him to take strict action against those involved in the lynching of three men in Palghar district. Taking a potshot at the leaders of the opposition Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), who have attacked the government for the incident, Thackeray reminded them about incidents of mob lynching during the government under Devendra Fadnavis. Jegadeeswari Pandian By Express News Service MADURAI: Life during lockdown may be dreary, filled with fear, uncertainty and boredom. But for those who were under home quarantine, it has been an entirely different battle. Take 45-year-old Arun* for instance. Arun, who lives in Vilangudi in Madurai, had gone to Oman at the end of February and returned on March 9. After clearing the thermal screening at the Chennai International Airport, he reached home and promptly isolated himself from the rest of the family. Though I did not have any symptoms and very few COVID-19 cases had been reported in Oman at that period, I was really nervous and distanced myself from my family members, he said. Still, distancing himself from his children (aged 16 and 11) and caring for his 75-year-old father proved a huge challenge. It was hard to make the children understand initially but they eventually got used to it. After the first 14 days, I started playing cards and board games with my family and helped my wife in the kitchen, Arun shared. Arun is among the more fortunate persons to have endured home quarantine -- he has a three-bedroom apartment and isolated himself in one room. This would not be possible for those living in smaller houses or in joint families, he pointed out. FOLLOW COVID-19 LIVE UPDATES HERE Kumar* from Sivakasi in Virudhunagar had a much harder time. The 33-year-old has a toddler and an infant to consider. Still, Kumar, who had returned from an official trip to South Africa, was fortunate in one aspect. I did not have to worry about going out to buy groceries. My father-in-law lives nearby and helped with the shopping. But, what disturbed Kumar was the suspicious looks his wife and he got from their neighbours every time either of them went out to dispose of the garbage. Those living next door would even call up to check whether I was showing any symptoms, he said. On the other hand, the support from the health department, civic body workers and police department was most welcome. They visit every morning to ask if we had the kabasura kudineer, a Siddha drug given by them. They frequently call up on the phone to check if we are feeling alright. I even got a video call from a senior health department official, which showed their dedication, he said. Forty-year-old Priya,* of Ponnagaram in Madurai, also sang the praises of the health workers. Down with fever and wheezing, I was admitted at the government hospital for three days but the hospital workers who tended to me encouraged me throughout saying nothing was wrong with me and I would get well soon in no time, she shared. Priya had sent her two children to live with their grandmother so she could isolate herself as advised by doctors. It was a tough decision but I regret not quarantining my son to a separate room and using separate utensils for him sooner. He had viral fever and I apparently contracted it from him, she said. Stigmatisation If Kumars neighbours made him fill uncomfortable, his experience was nothing compared to the stigmatisation of people from the Muslim community owing to rumours about the Tablighi Jamaat conference in New Delhi. Forty-two-year-old Anwar*, of Mahaboopalayam, attended the conference and was on the verge of breaking into tears while speaking to Express. All this false propaganda has killed our souls. We are nothing but a walking corpse now, he said. A member of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), requesting anonymity, opined, Even harmless procedures like police escorting the family members of participants to take COVID-19 tests create a stigma against Muslims in the neighbourhood. It is perceived as if they are being arrested for a crime. The government should be careful and more sensitive in such matters, the SDPI member said. Forty-five-year-old Fathima,* of Anna Nagar in Madurai, is also suffering. She was placed under home quarantined after going to a mosque visited by a COVID-19 patient who later died. She has been relying on the help of a 15-year-old Muslim girl, who lives in a nearby slum, to get groceries. The girl is facing so much criticism from people in her slum. Seeing the health workers and police visiting our house frequently, they fear that we have already been affected by the coronavirus and tell the girl not to enter the slum after helping us. Some even went to the extent of saying that Muslims were the root cause for the spread of the virus, Fathima lamented. She said she found it embarrassing when health officials came in a van to collect blood and swab samples from her family. The whole neighbourhood gathered in the streets to watch us. We felt really bad although we understand that it is for our well-being. But people misunderstand and believe we are infected, she said. Lapse in coordination Both Arun and Kumar pointed out a lapse in coordination from local authorities, who reached out to them only a week after they came home. As a result, they have calculated our quarantine period from a week later, forcing us to stay in quarantine for an extra week, Kumar claimed. This one-week lapse may prove dangerous in cases of those who actually had symptoms, they opined. Meanwhile, Priya complained that even three days after being admitted at the government hospital, she was not informed of her COVID-19 test result. I just had to assume that it turned out negative, she said. What to do if you have been home quarantined Maintain at least one-metre distance from your family members. In the case of children make sure they do not get depressed. Play indoor games like chess, snake and ladders or other board games engaging all family members. Elders can tell stories to children to help spend time in a quality manner, said Deputy Director of Health Services (DDHS) Dr P Priya Raj. We also advise home quarantined persons to use separate towels. Utensils used by them should be washed well before being used by other family members, she said. In case of economically disadvantaged persons or senior citizens who may not be able to follow social distancing, we house them in shelters established for this purpose, she added. * Names changed to protect identity Shake Shack, the U.S.-based burger chain, will return its entire $10 million loan from the U.S. government, the company's leaders said in a statement, amid widespread criticism over who got access to the funds aimed at saving small businesses before they were depleted. More than a dozen publicly traded companies with revenue topping $100 million received funds before the program ran out of money, according to a Bloomberg review of regulatory filings. Lawmakers in Congress are said to be near an agreement to top up the loan program, while also providing new funds for hospitals and coronavirus testing. "Shake Shack was fortunate last Friday to be able to access the additional capital we needed to ensure our long term stability through an equity transaction in the public markets," said Chief Executive Officer Randy Garutti and Danny Meyer, the founder and chairman of Shake Shack and CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group. "We're thankful for that and we've decided to immediately return the entire $10 million PPP loan we received last week," the pair said, "so that those restaurants who need it most can get it now." The sight of big companies getting aid while mom-and-pops complained they'd been frozen out of funding has sparked criticism of who was rescued by taxpayer dollars and who wasn't. Asked whether such large, publicly-traded companies should be eligible for PPP funds, President Donald Trump on Sunday spoke about the role of franchisees as small businesses. More for you Opinion: Small business owners face inequality during coronavirus "I don't know much about any of those companies. But a lot of times they're owned by franchisees, where they own one or two places," Trump said at a White House press briefing. "So a lot of that would depend on what the formula is." Certain branches of Potbelly sandwich stores and Ruth's Chris steak houses, which also received PPP funds, are operated as franchises. Shake Shack says on its website that it doesn't franchise. Shake Shack is one of the fastest-growing restaurant companies in America, with $595 million in annual sales as of the end of last year. The burger chain has about 45 workers at each site and nearly 8,000 in total, Garutti and Meyer said. In a statement posted to Garutti's LinkedIn page, and tweeted under his verified Twitter account, the pair said the U.S. program "came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing." Shake Shack faced operating losses more than $1.5 million a week, while the clear language of the legislation allowed restaurant chains to apply for relief. "Late last week, when it was announced that funding for the PPP had been exhausted, businesses across the country were understandably up in arms," Garutti and Meyer said. "If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding? We now know that the first phase of the PPP was underfunded, and many who need it most, haven't gotten any assistance." The U.S. Small Business Administration program, working with almost 5,000 lenders that disburse the loans, approved applications for $342.3 billion in just 13 days, with the rest of the $349 billion going for fees and processing. An earlier statement from the SBA and the Treasury Department said that the "vast majority of these loans -- 74% of them -- were for under $150,000, demonstrating the accessibility of this program to even the smallest of small businesses." But an SBA report showed that about 2% of the firms approved for loans accounted for almost 30% of the funding. For the second Monday in a row, people across the South woke to storm damage caused by extreme winds, hail, and tornadoes. Deadly tornadoes struck the same region on Easter. The area experienced eerily similar conditions on Sunday. There were reports of at least seven tornadoes Sunday night into Monday morning. In addition, there were more than 100 reports of damaging winds and more than 30 reports of hail from Kansas to Florida. One of those strong and potentially large tornadoes tracked just south of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on Sunday night. The Hattiesburg Police Department said on Twitter that trees were downed and vehicles flooded in the wake of the storm. The storms cleared the East Coast by the afternoon hours Monday. There were four tornado reports in Florida, along with about 20 reports of severe wind. There we no reports of severe weather in the Carolinas. The Damage Already Done But the storm already had an impact Sunday. Roughly 27,000 customers were without power Monday evening across Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida, according to PowerOutage.us, down from 90,000 earlier in the day. One Twitter user showed large hail pelting Fort Worth, Texas, on Sunday. In Alabama, Shaina Scott of Alexander City said the hail smashed multiples holes in the side of her house. It was quick, just 20 to 30 minutes, but it was unlike anything Scott had ever experienced, she said. Johnette Lamborne told CNN her family is safe but the hail damaged her home, car and storage shed. This time of the year is primed for storms like these, said CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller. While unusual to see nearly identical-looking threats exactly one week apart, this is the peak time of year for severe weather and tornadoes across the southern US, especially in the area called Dixie Alley, Miller said. Recovering From Last Week This system is like the one that struck the region last week. No two weather patterns are ever the same, but these are very similar, said CNN meteorologist Gene Norman. However, this week does have some differences, Norman said, including a jet stream that is further south. More than 40 tornadoes spanned more than 1,200 miles from Texas to South Carolina last week. The storm system caused the deaths of at least 32 people and destroyed homes before moving to the East Coast. The storms fell over the Easter holiday and during the coronavirus pandemic. Many were left with the decision to follow social distancing protocols or shelter safely from the storms. And once they had passed, some didnt have their homes left to shelter in. Homes destroyed in the storms wont be habitable anytime soon, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said after visiting the damage. Last week, the storms killed at least 11 people in Mississippi, nine in South Carolina, eight in Georgia, two in Tennessee, one in Arkansas and one in North Carolina. The-CNN-Wire & 2020 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. Manx Solidarity Fund now inviting applications for funding The Manx Solidarity Fund is now inviting applications for grant or loan support from Isle of Man businesses, charities and individuals negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. A new online application form is now live and additionally, a JustGiving page has been launched to help facilitate further donations to the Fund. The Manx Solidarity Fund has raised 167,000 so far. Grant and loan support can now be applied for at www.manxsolidarityfund.com/apply. Kolkata, April 20 : Asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to share the criterion for sending Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCT) in select districts including a few in West Bengal amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said till then her government wouldn't be able to move ahead on the matter. Banerjee said without "valid reason", the step to send IMCTs wouldn't be "consistent with the spirit of federalism". In a Twitter post, she said the basis for sending the IMCTs was "unclear". "We welcome all constructive support & suggestions, especially from the Central Govt in negating the #Covid19 crisis. However, the basis on which Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including few in WB under Disaster Mgmt Act 2005 is unclear," she said. "I urge both Honb'le Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism, " she added. Earlier, the Home Ministry said the Centre has formed eight IMCTs to make on-spot assessment of situation, issue necessary directions to state authorities for its redressal and submit their report to it. According to the centre, such a decision was taken in the larger interest of the general public. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Donald Trump repeatedly told a female reported to keep her voice down during a particularly bad-tempered coronavirus press conference. Asked on Sunday by CBS reporter Weijia Jiang why he continued to hold rallies throughout February despite the threat of the looming pandemic, and why he failed to enact social distancing until mid-March, the US president first demanded to know who she worked for. Who are you with, who are you with yeah, who are you with? Mr Trump said, before suggesting his Chinese travel ban in late January was evidence he was on top of the crisis. When Ms Jiang pointed out the ban only applied to Chinese nationals, and not Americans who may have returned with the virus, Mr Trump interrupted. Nice and easy, nice and easy, just relax. We cut it off, people were amazed everybody was amazed that I did it, Mr Trump claimed. When Ms Jiang said Covid-19 had already arrived in the US by the time of the China travel ban, Mr Trump accused her of failing to do her research. How many cases of virus were in the United States when I issued the ban? Do you know the number? he said, adding, No no, you have to do your research, when she did not answer. By the time the US implemented its ban on travel from China on 2 February, there were eight confirmed cases of the virus, though the actual number is likely far higher. Keep your voice down please, keep your voice down, Mr Trump continued when Ms Jiang attempted to interrupt. He then boasted there were no confirmed deaths from coronavirus in the US before the ban, telling Ms Jiang: You should say, Thank you very much for good judgement. By Sunday, the US death toll surpassed 40,000 people with a total of 40,461, according to Johns Hopkins University. DETROIT Health officials in Oakland County on March 23 reported 318 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Two weeks later, the total had skyrocketed to 3,591 cases, an 11-fold increase in 14 days. How did that happen? Thats the question on the minds of millions of people in Michigan as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread throughout the state. While its impossible to know exact moments of infection, Detroit-based start-up Calculated Systems aims to give the public a better idea of where the most likely areas of spread have been, using CDC and cellphone data. Were trying a different way to utilize data for good and make it so were not always chasing the curve, but that were ahead of the curve, said Will Conway, senior vice president of global sales for the company. By comparing data point movement with up-to-date case numbers across the state, Calculated Systems says it can not only predict a hotspot, but also where people who spend a significant amount of time in that hot spot tend to gather after they leave. That could help determine if certain areas are more at risk of potential spread. The company built a program that analyzes billions of data points weekly, collected from mobility data the company obtains from a partner. Calculated Systems executives note that while they are working with mobile data, they are not focused on individuals. Differential privacy allows for collected data to be used to show patterns of data points without sharing personalized information. Each device is assigned a random ID and the data collected is completely anonymous, the company says. Names, phone numbers and other personally identifiable information cannot be accessed through the data. The first model the company produced examined traffic patterns around Henry Ford Hospital, the Detroit Medical Center in Detroit and McLaren Macomb Hospital in Mt. Clemens in the days leading up to Gov. Whitmers stay-at-home order. Data analyzed between March 19-23 shows significant amounts of traffic coming from outside Wayne County and going directly to the two Detroit hospital systems. Whitmers first stay-at-home order went into effect March 23. Bars, restaurants and other social-gathering businesses were closed the week prior. Conway said its notable that data point movement shows a significant slowdown once the order went into effect, except for people going in and out of the hospitals. That number of people coming in and out of the hospitals correlates directly with the jump in cases in Macomb and Oakland counties, according to the Calculated Systems data. The company says thats important because the data shows what mobility patterns look like near hospitals right before a jump in cases takes place. If the mobility patterns (at the hospital) starts increasing, we can begin to track if a hot spot is coming, Conway said. Conway said the company is committed to the data for good movement, which focuses on using social data for positive impacts in communities. There have been other cellphone data analysis efforts exploring travel patterns and social distancing, but not offering predictive insights. Conway said the company has data going back to the start of the year, so analysts are able to look at typical data point patterns prior to COVID-19s spread to develop baselines of normal traffic. All that data allows the company to better understand when theres an actual spike in movement at hospitals and when theres a more modest uptick in people moving in and out of health care centers. By informing the public and government leaders of possible exposure sites, the company can help people understand if they need to self-isolate or seek a COVID-19 test, executives said. This technology is key in helping medical providers mitigate outbreaks before they happen. By mapping areas with high-risk activity, we can proactively deploy cleaning, sanitation and even PPE, said Chris Gambino, co-founder of Calculated Systems. This focused approach enables the already stressed medical system to most effectively deploy their limited resources. The company plans to share some of its findings on social media as it continues to analyze 12 billion data points a week. One of our most exciting tech projects ever! Mapping 9 billion data points showing traffic to and from local hospitals #COVID19 #michigancoronavirus pic.twitter.com/3o4OlnXwvn Calculated Systems (@CalcSys) April 17, 2020 As the Calculated team continues to gather and analyze data, the company says its goal is to work with state and local leaders to combine resources in order to better shape decision making during the ongoing crisis. The company has reached out to government officials, but has not yet confirmed a collaboration, executives said. The company is currently working on models that show the impact social distancing has on slowing the spread of the virus and how quickly gathering in clusters can stretch the potential reach of the virus. 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 Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus Monday, April 20: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan These are not normal times: Judge moves filing deadline, cuts signature requirements for primary candidates New Delhi/Mumbai, April 20 : No sooner than the BJP and the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) pointed fingers at the Left for the horrific mob lynching of three persons in Maharashtras Palghar district last week, the CPI-M accused the saffron outfits of communalising the incident. Two 'sadhus' and their driver, proceeding from Nashik to Surat, were cornered and lynched by a 200-strong mob outside Gadchinchle village in Palghar district on April 16 in the presence of police personnel amid rumours that they were robbers or child kidnappers. Quoting a tweet by BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, CPIM politburo member Mohammend Salim said, "The CPI-M MLA you're talking about has given Rs 10 lakh relief from his MLA fund to help daily wage labourers during this lockdown and I'm sure if he had a MBBS degree, he would have even been volunteering in hospitals instead of communalising a crime on Twitter." It was a dig at Patra, who also is a doctor by profession. Patra had tweeted: "It was in the Dahanu assembly constituency in Maharashtra's Palghar district where the killing of saints took place. This region is the stronghold of the CPI (M). The MLA here is also from the Communist party. NCP also has an alliance with CPI (M) in the region. This murder is the work of Marxist goons and hence the entire Left brigade is silent." The President of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and CPI-M central committee member Ashok Dhawale also hit out at BJP leaders, saying: "Sambit Patra and Sunil Deodhar are not only communalising the incident, but also spreading downright lies. The sarpanch of the Gadachinchle village where the mob lynching took place belongs to the BJP, her name is Chitra Choudhari. Many BJP men have been arrested for killing these sadhus." Earlier, BJP National Secretary Sunil Deodhar had alleged: "No adivasi in India can attack a saffron clad person unless brainwashed over the years." This political mudslinging only got complicated after the Vishva Hindu Parishad too jumped into the fray earlier in the day. VHP Secretary General Milind Parande called the incident an "ambush" against "two venerated saints" and alleged that the incident was part of a "deeper conspiracy". "Many times in the past, there have been incidents of brutal violence inspired by Leftists in this area. The killers and their accomplices should be punished at the earliest after a high-level investigation into their involvement in this brutal incident," Parande said. Parande claimed that "activities of Leftists have been going on in Palghar these days on a high pitch". "Mob lynchings are part of the Left's own action plan. The country has not forgotten the heinous murder of Swami Lakshmanananda," he added. Swami Lakshmanananda was assassinated in August 2008 along with his disciples in Odisha's Kandhamal district. On the night of April 16, an aggressive mob of around 200 villagers flouting all lockdown norms had accosted a vehicle in which the two sadhus were travelling from Nashik to Surat with some relief materials late. Suspecting them to be thieves, the crowd started questioning them before brutally assaulting then with sticks, rods and stones. When the police team reached the spot and took them to their van, the crowd swooped on the police van and continued to assault them. The victims were later identified as Sushilgiri Maharaj, 30, Chikne Maharaj Kalpavriksha Giri, 70, and their driver Nilesh Telwade, 30. As many as 110 people have been rounded up in connection with the case. Iskra Lawrence has given birth to her first child, pictured here at a Golden Globes after party in January 2020. (Getty Images) Iskra Lawrence has welcomed her first baby after giving birth at home during the coronavirus lockdown. The 29-year-old British model revealed she was in awe after confirming the arrival of her baby via home birth, with boyfriend Philip Payne, on Instagram. On Sunday, the body-positive activist told fans she was already feeling super protective over the newborn. I have no idea how to even think right now let alone do an announcement post but I feel so close to so many of you - youve been my online fam for so many years and Im beyond overwhelmed to tell you baby P has arrived, she wrote alongside a series of images of her heavily pregnant. Read more: Could fears over the coronavirus pandemic lead to a rise in home births? Iskra went on to explain that she will be taking some time off from social media to focus on her new addition and settle into new motherhood. When Im ready I cannot wait to share more details with you all on my home birth and this tiny human that we love beyond measure. I cannot thank you all enough of the love and support through this journey. The British model opted not to share a photo of her new baby or share any further details about the arrival, revealing that while she is comfortable being open on social media, sharing her child online is something of a new situation, and something shes going to take time to consider. Thanks for reading all of this, we are all safe and well and just in heaven - its going to be a huge decision to figure out how much to share online with millions of people and as you know most of you have shown nothing but kindness but we also have received death threats and hate so Im feeling super protective and never want my baby to feel like we over exposed them and they never got the choice whether they wanted intimate details or photos shared. So its new territory because Im very open with you all about many aspects of my life and health etc... so thank you again sending you all so so much love., she finished her post. Story continues Read more: Pregnant during the coronavirus outbreak The birth announcement comes after the 29-year-old shared that she was days overdue to give birth. Putting on a fashion show on Instagram, she showed off a series of maternity outfits, making a quip about her situation. Yesssss I know Im STILL pregnantoverdue 2 days now. But it means Ive had time to film my Maternity Must haves, she wrote. The model first revealed she was expecting her first child back in November, but the body-confident advocate admitted pregnancy had caused her some struggles with her body image. The British model, 29, is considered a role model for body positivity, and has featured in a number of unretouched campaigns for American Eagle Outfitters lingerie line, Aerie. The model has previously suffered from body dysmorphia and an eating disorder and in a video shared to Instagram she addressed these struggles, together with the difficulties she has faced during her pregnancy journey. Lawrence explained that she has embraced the changes in her body, which have included acne on her chest and stretch marks around her stomach, and treated it as a positive challenge to continue to love [herself] throughout the journey. Read more: Mum of Britain's biggest family Sue Radford gives birth to baby number 22 Iskra Lawrence and her boyfriend Philip Payne have become parents, pictured here at the NYC's Governors Ball May 2019. (Getty Images) The British model also previously shared an empowering message about her changing body shape during pregnancy and how she learned to love it. Sharing some pictures to her Instagram from between 2015-16, the body positive advocate described how shes recognised that her body may never be the same. Bye old body (pics from 2015-2016 when I worked out 4times a week) its been fun, thank you, I love you, she started her message. Buttttt my new ever changing body I love you too and you will continue to be stronger and more magical than ever, she added. N Korea's Foreign Ministry Denies Pyongyang Sent Letter to Trump Sputnik News 12:49 GMT 19.04.2020(updated 13:30 GMT 19.04.2020) US President Donald Trump said at the Saturday White House coronavirus task force briefing that his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was "fine," adding that the United States would be at war with North Korea if he hadn't won the US presidential election. The North Korean Foreign Ministry denied on Sunday that it has sent a letter to US President Donald Trump. "We cannot know whether the US President is referring to exchanged letters in the past, but our top leadership has never sent any letter to the US President," state news agency KCNA said in the statement. The day before, Trump said that he had received a "nice note" from Kim Jong-un recently. In late March, state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that the US president had sent a letter to Kim Jong-un, in which expressed the desire to cooperate with Pyongyang in the area of epidemic control measures. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 99 Ranch Marketis a Taiwanese-Americansupermarketchain owned byTawa Supermarket Inc., which is based inBuena Park,California. 99 Ranch has 53 stores (as of January 2020), primarily inCalifornia, with other stores inNevada,Oregon,Washington,New Jersey,Texas,Maryland, andMassachusetts.[1]The company also started offering shopping via its website in 2014. Founded in 1984 by Taiwanese immigrant Roger H. Chen, 99 Ranch Market has grown into the largest Asian supermarket chain in the United States.[2] 1. Roger Chen https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-04-27-fi-52939-story.html Tawa Supermarkets, whose flagship 99 Ranch Markets is a favorite of Asian consumers throughout Southern California, got its start because a Taiwanese immigrant named Roger Chen missed the flavors of home. Chen, who moved to Orange County with his family in 1983, found himself driving to Chinatown each weekend to buy Tong I cookies, his favorite brand of soy sauce and the green vegetable tong ho (a must for Chinese hot pot). 2 https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2189231/story-99-ranch-market-largest-asian-supermarket-chain-us The company is still in the hands of the Chen family, including Alice Chen and her brother, Jonson Chen. Like his father, Jonson is a businessman. He has made it his mission to modernise the company from top to bottom, and thanks to his degree from Wharton Business School, is keeping his family business growing and competitive. After school I started in Northern California, getting to know the family business, working through all the levels there, he recalls. My father wanted me to know all the various departments. I even worked at the markets stocking shelves during the summer when I was in high school. When I started in the early 2000s, a lot of the technologies in retail were changing. The first step he took was to computerise the operations, moving the whole system onto what was then frontline technology: Windows Vista. These days, 99 Ranch is a cutting-edge retailer, offering online shopping and hosting a virtual community meeting place for sharing recipes, advertising the stores regular customer contests, and posting about sales and special offers nationwide. Hope rises as coronavirus infection rates fall by one-third in Turkey The rate of infection by the novel coronavirus in Turkey has fallen by over a third from 15% to 9% in the past week, despite rising test numbers, with recoveries surging by more than threefold. In Turkey, COVID-19 has been detected in 13.74% of people tested. In addition, despite the increase in the number of tests over the last week, the daily number of confirmed cases has decreased. Follow the link below for some interesting coronavirus statistics for Turkey: READ: https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/coronavirus-infection-rate-down-by-one-third-in-turkey/news Turkey: Total coronavirus death toll tops 2,000 Turkeys Ministry of Health announced the daily coronavirus numbers on Sunday: 127 more people died from COVID-19 bring the total number of fatalities to 2,017. The total number of registered coronavirus cases stand at 86,306 as 3,977 more people tested positive for the virus So far, a total of 11,976 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals. 1,922 patients are being treated in intensive care units. 35,344 tests were conducted over the past day, with the overall number of tests reaching 634,277. READ: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/latest-on-coronavirus-outbreak/turkey-total-coronavirus-death-toll-tops-2-000/1810807 Turkey ranks seventh in the world for coronavirus testing Testing anyone with a cough or fever for COVID-19, the Health Ministry also ordered anyone who came in contact with a confirmed patient to be tested as well. (AFP Photo) While governments across the globe struggle to increase their testing capabilities after realizing how widespread the COVID-19 pandemic is, Turkey ranked seventh worldwide in carrying out coronavirus tests. READ: https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkey-ranks-7th-worldwide-with-600000-coronavirus-tests/news Turkey may ease restrictions early June According to this report in Hurriyet Daily News, officials are working on devising possible plans to pave the way for easing outbreak restrictions in light of the comments Health Minister Fahrettin Koca made recently when he said cases may plateau soon. Turkey can reach the peak of the coronavirus pandemic in one week or 10 days, Koca said on April 17 following a meeting with the Science Board. READ: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-may-ease-restrictions-early-june-154003 55 people fined for curfew violations Fethiye Gercek reports a total of 55 people were fined for violating the curfew over the weekend. In a statement earlier, District Governor Sahiner said, Gendarmerie and security penalties were imposed on 55 citizens who did not comply with the curfew restrictions. Judicial action is being taken against one person caught ignoring the curfew on the first day. Vefa Social Support Group also responded to 279 calls from citizens. Source: https://gercekfethiye.com/fethiyede-55-kisiye-cezai-islem-uygulandi-/26832/ Massive new Istanbul hospital complex partially unveiled to combat pandemic Built on a square kilometer of land, Basaksehir City Hospital will have a capacity of 2,682 beds. (AA Photo) A new hospital complex partially opened in Istanbul on Monday to assist in Turkeys fight against the COVID-19 outbreak. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the maternity unit and childrens hospital in the complex were now open, adding that both would serve as pandemic hospitals until the outbreak crisis was over. All of the beds at Basaksehir City Hospital can be turned into ICU beds if needed, Koca said, adding that the current units were all equipped with ventilators. READ: Massive new Istanbul hospital complex partially unveiled to combat pandemic Turkey to certificate coronavirus-free tourism destinations According to a report in Hurriyet Daily News, The Turkish government has launched an initiative to certificate coronavirus-free tourism resorts across the country, the culture and tourism minister has said. We have started the certification process to determine the coronavirus-free zones under a system, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy told a private broadcaster on April 18. We will develop it stage by stage. First, we will develop an internationally accepted certification system, he added, saying that a commission including officials from the health, transportation and agriculture ministries, held its first meeting last week with the coordination of the Culture and Tourism Ministry. If things go to plan, the tourism minister also said that he expects domestic tourism traffic to resume in June after a relief from the measures to curb the pandemic towards normalization starts in mid-May. With deals with other countries, we will start flights under airport-based gradual timetables, Ersoy said. At the first stage, Im expecting incomings from the Asian countries. In the second stage, Germany and Austria will recover fast, he added, also saying that tourists from central and northern European countries will follow them. Russian and British tourists, who traditionally choose Turkey for holidays, can face difficulty to come until the end of July, said Ersoy. READ: Turkey to certificate tourism destinations Global statistics There are now 2,428,714 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, of which 636,139 have recovered. The number of fatalities stands at 166,139. Source: Worldometer. Follow Fethiye Times on social media for regular updates. Like us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram Follow us on Twitter Todays featured image: A view across Fethiye by Lyn Ward OTTAWA - The historic closure of the Canada-U.S. border appears to have stopped the flow of asylum seekers into Canada, with fewer than 10 people turned back to the U.S. in the month since the shutdown to all but non-essential traffic went into effect. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair is seen during a news conference in Ottawa, Monday April 20, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld OTTAWA - The historic closure of the Canada-U.S. border appears to have stopped the flow of asylum seekers into Canada, with fewer than 10 people turned back to the U.S. in the month since the shutdown to all but non-essential traffic went into effect. Public Safety Minister Bill Blair provided the update to the House of Commons Monday, the same day the Immigration Department released new figures suggesting prior to the closure the number of asylum-seekers entering Canada was actually higher in the first three months of this year than last. So far in 2020, the RCMP have intercepted 3,035 people crossing between official entry points, up from 2,698 in the first three months of 2019. Last month, the RCMP apprehended 955 people, but were unable to immediately say how many were stopped prior to the March 21 implementation of the unprecedented deal to shut the border. But Blair called the measures in that deal to block the asylum seekers "effective." "Since the time of that agreement, now 30 days ago, there have been fewer than 10 individuals who have crossed the border and been subsequently directed back to the United States," Blair told the House of Commons. Earlier this month, the Canada Border Services Agency said that between March 21 and April 2, six asylum-seekers were directed back to the U.S.; it was not immediately clear whether more have tried to arrive since. Last month, 930 of the 955 intercepted were in Quebec, at the best known among the unofficial openings in the Canada-U.S. border, called Roxham Road. People use unofficial border points to get around Canada's agreement with the U.S. that governs asylum claims. The agreement states that with few exceptions, people aren't allow to request refugee status upon arrival at land border crossings in either country. The agreement is predicated on the belief that those seeking asylum must do so in the first safe country they arrive in, and both Canada and the U.S. have agreed they are each safe and so refugee seekers can file their requests in either. But the Liberal government has been under pressure for years to amend the Safe Third Country Agreement, partially in response to changes in U.S. immigration policy that critics say render that country effectively unsafe for refugees. As a result, some argue asylum-seekers should just be allowed to request refugee status at land border crossings rather than make potentially risky trips, while others say anyone who crosses irregularly shouldn't be allowed to request status at all. As the COVID-19 pandemic began to take hold in North America, opposition parties reiterated those demands, but also began raising questions about whether asylum-seekers were being monitored for health risks in the same way as other travellers coming into Canada. The Liberals originally had planned to screen and then potentially quarantine the border-crossers, a plan no longer required once the border shutdown was put in place. The border was supposed to re-open on Tuesday but the shutdown has been extended for another 30 days. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2020. As the novel coronavirus first emerged in China late last year, more than a dozen U.S. researchers, doctors, and public health officials were working at the World Health Organization's Geneva headquarters, relaying back real-time information on the virus and its spread to the Trump administration, several U.S. and international officials told The Washington Post. President Trump has accused the United Nations' health agency of not clearly communicating early on how big a threat the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic was, in an attempt to protect China. Last week, he said the U.S. will halt funding to the WHO and conduct a review "to assess the WHO's role in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus." Caitlin Oakley, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), confirmed to the Post that in January, 16 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention employees were at the WHO "working on a variety of programs, including COVID-19 and Ebola." She added that "just because you have Americans embedded in WHO providing technical assistance does not change the information you are getting from WHO leadership. We have learned now that WHO information was incorrect and relied too heavily on China." Officials told the Post that from the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak, CDC staffers consulted with their WHO counterparts on the disease, and that CDC Global Disease Detection Operations Center Director Ray Arthur has participated in daily "incident management" calls, sharing information gleaned from WHO officials. That information is sent to HHS via telephone calls and written reports, one official said. Sensitive information, including details on actions the WHO is planning on taking, was shared in a secure facility at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta, the official told the Post, with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar among those receiving updates in the early days of the outbreak. Read more at The Washington Post. More stories from theweek.com What do animals think? A parade that killed thousands? Late night hosts are bemused at Trump's encouragement of the 'virus huggers' flouting his own advice More than 130 refugees housed in a youth hostel in Portugal's capital Lisbon have been infected by the new coronavirus and placed in quarantine, the mayor's office said on Monday. Portugal has granted immigrants awaiting regularisation of their papers and asylum seekers the same rights as residents, in particular access to medical care during a state of emergency decreed last month to curb the coronavirus pandemic. Out of a total of some 180 tenants, 138 tested positive and they were relocated and placed in quarantine, the municipality said. The hostel was evacuated on Sunday after the case of a man who had been hospitalised was reported, Lisbon deputy mayor Carlos Costa told reporters. According to local media, the refugees are all men who have applied for asylum in Portugal. "They are young people from Egypt, Ivory Coast and other regions of the world," Mohamed Abed, an official at a Lisbon mosque, told RTP public television. The establishment located in central Lisbon has been disinfected by firefighters and refugees who tested negative have moved back there. Portugal's state of emergency, in force since March 19, has been extended to May 2 as part of measures to curb the spread of the pandemic. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After the scandal related to the spread of scenes shot before Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyans televised address, nobody has been punished yet, even though there were rumors and some were even demanding that there will be people resigning. It was assumed that members of the administration of Armenian Public Television and employees of the Office of the Prime Minister, particularly Spokesperson Mane Gevorgyan, who was present during the shooting of the televised address, will be among the people who will submit resignation letters. The presses are disseminating news stating that employees of Armenian Public Television are currently discussing the causes and effects of the scandal in a meeting and that the resignations of most people will be most probably announced after the meeting, including the resignations of Executive Director of Armenian Public Television Margarita Grigoryan, Chairman of the Council of Public Television and Radio Ara Shirinyan, Head of News and Political Programs Petros Ghazaryan and Vardan Hakobyan, the person in charge of live broadcasts. These employees dont answer phone calls or turn their phones off. Head of the news service Petros Ghazaryan answered the call from Armenian News-NEWS.am and said he will comment when he has a commentary. COLUMBUS, OhioAll Ohio K-12 schools will be closed through the end of the school year because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday. The governor previously ordered in-person classes to be canceled through May 1. But during his daily briefing, DeWine said remote learning will continue for the last few weeks of the school year to protect Ohio schoolchildren, teachers, and staff. We have flattened the curve, but it remains dangerous, DeWine said, speaking from the Ohio Department of Public Safetys headquarters in Columbus. DeWine also said school officials advised him that, for continuitys sake, it wouldnt be worthwhile to send students back to class for the last few weeks of the school year. The governor said he came to the decision after talking to teachers, parents, administrative staff, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Paolo DeMaria. DeWine said he is not in a position yet to say whether schools will reopen at the start of the next school year in August. However, the governor raised the possibility of blended learning next school year, in which students attend some classes in person and other classes remotely. Each school district is going to be different, DeWine said. DeWine said hes particularly worried about helping children with special development needs, health challenges, limited or no access to the internet, and a home life that isnt supportive of them. Last week, multiple teachers unions urged DeWine to keep schools closed through the end of the school year. It does not seem practical that we can have a safe return to physical classrooms this school year, said Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper in a statement. In a follow-up statement Monday, Cropper said even though distance learning isnt an adequate replacement for classroom instructions, DeWines decision was the right call to make. It protects the health and safety not just for students, staff and teachers, but for everyone in Ohio," Cropper stated. We must remain focused on flattening the curve and slowing the spread of COVID-19 in Ohio. DeWine has kept schools closed since March 16. Since then, many parents have been juggling helping their kids with homeschooling, while trying to work from home. Schools have been providing meals for students out of school, and teachers have been learning to teach using Zoom and other online resources. Read more Ohio coronavirus coverage: Unlike in other states, Facebook declines to take down page promoting Ohio protests against coronavirus closures Almost one in four Ohio coronavirus cases now come from the states prisons Marion County, not Cuyahoga County, now leads Ohio in reported coronavirus cases. Heres why. Hundreds protest in Columbus against Ohio coronavirus restrictions Gov. Mike DeWine commutes sentences of Coingate convict Tom Noe, six others Foreigners can now experience the next best thing to a holiday in Vietnam via an online tool called Stay at Home with Vietnam, which was launched by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) and the Vietnam Tourism Advisory Board. browser not support iframe. He held a working session with the Standing Board of the Hanoi Party Committee to look into the citys socio-economic development in the first quarter of 2020 and the key tasks for the remainder of the year. The Hanoi Peoples Committee has reported that the capital failed to achieve most of its Q1 targets due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Growth was just 3.72 percent in the quarter, or about half of the figure posted in Q1 2019. It noted that the capital has identified three scenarios for growth of 7.5 percent this year. Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue said the capital has been working hard to simultaneously fight the COVID-19 and promote economic growth so that when the pandemic ends, its economy will recover strongly. It has been accelerating the implementation of key projects to step up the disbursement of public investment and city authorities have also held dialogues with businesses to tackle the difficulties faced and facilitate private investment, he noted. Applauding the citys efforts in the fight against the pandemic, PM Phuc said it needs to be an example for the country to follow and post the best results possible in this endeavor. He also asked that it strive to obtain major targets set, including in economic growth, employment, and budget revenues to make a considerable contribution to the country. The PM noted that growth of nearly 4 percent in the first quarter was a positive result but still much lower than the figure in the same period last year. Hanoi needs to take more drastic and concerted actions to boost development which would stimulate growth in the entire capital region. It should seek private sources for infrastructure development, boost the disbursement of public investment, and bolster consumption. Hanoi also needs to promptly prepare development plans for different scenarios so it wont be passive as the economy changes. In the time ahead, it should work to become a healthy city in both material and spiritual terms and a prosperous, civilised, smart, and integrated city. The city also has to make more progress in improving its business climate, especially the development of e-administration, ensure a healthy cultural and social environment, and guarantee political security, defense and social order and safety, PM Phuc added. VNA Since we have community circulation of the virus, nobody is safe in Afghanistan, whether they work for government entities or not, said Wahidullah Mayar, a spokesman for the Afghan Health Ministry. Mayar said he could not comment on the reports of a coronavirus outbreak in the palace, but he said more Afghans need to abide by social distancing guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus. Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis recently announced that they are helping in the coronavirus relief. In the launch of their new wine collection, the couple stepped up and vowed to donate 100% of their wine sales tocoronavirus relief efforts. Making A Generous Donation The "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" actress and "The Ranch" alumnus recently revealed their partnership with Nocking Point Wines to produce what they referred to as Quarantine Wine. It is the new 2018 Pinot Noir blend produced solely for charity. Perhaps what is better news about this new wine release is that 100 percent of all its proceeds will go to four different charity organizations amid the world health crisis. Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are making a generous donation to GiveDirectly, Direct Relief, Frontline Responders Fund, and America's Food Fund. This is in response to the call for the help of frontline workers and families who are in need of assistance at this difficult time. "One hundred percent of the proceeds go to a handful of charities that we have done homework on, due diligence, vetted out to make sure that their overhead is low enough where they actually do the work they're supposed to do," Kunis explained. The couple joined many other celebrities, including Hilary Duff and Reese Witherspoon who have chosen to make unique yet very generous donations for COVID-19 relief. The respiratory illness has wreaked havoc among many nations and has infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. The Wine's Backstory "These are unprecedented times that we're living in," Kutcher said in the opening of a YouTube video. "Unprecedented times call for ..." "More drinking," Kunis said, interrupting her husband. "I was going to say unprecedented measures but you said, 'More drinking,' I like it," Kutcher continued. The 42-year-old actor emphasized how it is still important to be in contact (at least virtually) with friends and family amid the pandemic. "In the evenings, we like to do virtual dates and virtual hangouts with friends, and one of the things that we like to do on those virtual dates is drink, eat, share a glass of wine, hang out, reconnect," Ashton added. The "No Strings Attached" star also hared that one of the other things that he liked to do with his wife is to work hard to help a lot of people through charities. "We've been finding charities that have been focusing on getting PPE [personal protective equipment] into the country, feeding kids, assisting families who've lost their jobs, businesses that are in distress, and Mila came up with the brilliant idea of combining the two things," Kutcher said. The "Guess Who" actor and Kunis continued to explain that Quarantine Wine comes with an interactive label so that people can personalize it with whom they want to toast to. The beverage is available for purchase at the couple's official wine website starting at $50 per bottle. Stephen Hall is accused of burglary at a city centre shop A suspected burglar was caught red-handed at a city centre tourist shop shut during the coronavirus pandemic, it has been alleged. Stephen Hall (43) was found carrying gifts to the shop door when gardai arrived at the scene, a court was told. Judge Bryan Smyth granted him bail and adjourned the case. Mr Hall is charged with entering the Paddywagon gift shop on O'Connell Street with intent to commit a theft. The offence is alleged to have happened last March 25. The prosecuting garda told Dublin District Court the accused replied to the charge: "It wasn't me." Objecting to bail, the garda said it was alleged the accused was "caught in the act" and there was a witness and CCTV footage. Innocent Applying for bail, Mr Hall's lawyer said the accused was presumed innocent and there was no witness in court. The garda said he had been at the scene himself and saw property broken and the accused inside "with property belonging to the shop, making his way to the door". Mr Hall would be able to live at a south city centre hostel if granted bail, his solicitor said. Judge Smyth agreed to grant bail "in the current circumstances", but added: "If circumstances were more normal I might take a different view." Bail was set in Mr Hall's own bond of 200, with no cash lodgement required. He must observe a curfew between 9pm and 7am, give gardai a phone number and stay out of Dublin 1 and 3. The case was adjourned to a date in June. "Thank you, judge," the accused said, to which the judge replied: "It's in the current climate. I won't say any more to you." A total of 36 people have been found positive for coronavirus in Gurugram so far. However, out of these 36 cases, 26 people have now recovered after treatment in hospital. There was also no new case related to coronavirus in Gurugram for nine days between April 8 and 17. Another 20 corona patients have also recovered in Faridabad. On Monday, the number of people infected with coronavirus in Haryana increased to 251. The highest number of coronavirus cases found in Haryana so far is in Nuh. Although the highest number of cases were reported in Gurugram in the initial phase, the situation has improved continuously here. While releasing the bulletin on coronavirus, the state government said that so far a total of 36 cases have been reported in Gurugram, out of which only 10 are active patients. 26 out of 36 people have recovered completely. At the same time, in Faridabad, the number of patients has increased to 42. Out of these, 20 patients have been treated successfully. Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij said The areas which have been declared as the Containment Zones in Haryana have been completely sealed and instructions have been given to provide essential items in these areas so that people can get anything. There should be no problem of any kind. Authorities have been instructed to sanitise daily in the Containment Zones and in the second phase in the entire state under this, sanitisation will be done. Apart from this, the Haryana government has decided that the Health Department teams will go to every house in the state and screen every person to curb the Covid-19 epidemic. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 06:22:41|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close WASHINGTON, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Two top House Democrats said on Monday that they are calling for a review of comments by Attorney General William Barr regarding U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to fire Michael Atkinson, the inspector general of the intelligence community. In a letter to the watchdog of the Department of Justice (DOJ), Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff of California and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler of New York said that they want an investigation into whether recent public statements by Barr regarding Atkinson violated applicable DOJ policies and rules of professional conduct. Schiff and Nadler wrote that, Barr, in an interview with Fox News earlier this month, "blatantly mischaracterized" Atkinson's conduct and the DOJ's own actions relating to the complaint filed last summer by an intelligence community whistleblower and misrepresented the DOJ's legal opinion concerning the whistleblower complaint. "Public confidence in our system of justice depends on the integrity, fairness, and impartiality of DOJ's leadership. It is, therefore, imperative that the Attorney General be held to the same high standard expected of all Department personnel, particularly in matters involving the President's own interests," they added. Trump fired Atkinson earlier this month, citing Atkinson's decision last year to inform Congress of the existence of the whistleblower complaint alleging that he sought to pressure the Ukrainian government to launch investigations that could politically benefit him. The White House and the DOJ blocked Atkinson from sharing the complaint with Congress but public pressure surrounding the episode prompted the administration to share the details with lawmakers in September. A Democratic-led impeachment inquiry into Trump began shortly after that. Barr, in the Fox News interview, said that Atkinson "was obliged to follow the interpretation of the Department of Justice and he ignored it," claiming that "the president was correct in firing him." In Monday's letter, Schiff and Nadler said Barr's recent remarks "are part of a disturbing pattern of misrepresenting facts and falsely alleging misconduct by other government officials in order to defend the President's own misconduct." Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz defended Atkinson's actions surrounding the whistleblower complaint after Trump's decision to remove him. "Inspector General Atkinson is known throughout the Inspector General community for his integrity, professionalism, and commitment to the rule of law and independent oversight," Horowitz said at the time. "That includes his actions in handling the Ukraine whistleblower complaint, which the then Acting Director of National Intelligence stated in congressional testimony was done 'by the book' and consistent with the law." Trump called Atkinson a "disgrace" and argued that he "did a terrible job." Enditem Ruling could pave the way for potentially hundreds of defendants found guilty by divided juries to receive new trials. The United States Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the constitutional guarantee of trial by jury requires a unanimous verdict in serious crimes, siding with a Louisiana man convicted of murder and paving the way for potentially hundreds of defendants found guilty by divided juries to receive new trials. Only two of the 50 states, Louisiana and Oregon, have permitted non-unanimous verdicts. Writing for the court in the 6-3 ruling, conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that the non-unanimous verdict requirement in both states traced back to past racist policies intended to reduce the power of non-white jurors to influence the outcome of trials. The ruling, overturning a 1972 Supreme Court precedent, means that Evangelisto Ramos, who was convicted by a 12-member jury on a 10-2 vote, is likely to get a new trial. Ramos, found guilty in the 2014 New Orleans murder of a woman named Trinece Fedison whose body was found in a garbage can, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The justices concluded that the US Constitutions Sixth Amendment, which guarantees the right to an impartial trial, requires that jurors be unanimous to convict in serious criminal cases. Gorsuch noted that historically some minor crimes do not require a jury trial. Louisiana updated its law to prohibit non-unanimous verdicts starting last year but that change did not apply retroactively. The ruling could benefit hundreds of inmates convicted with non-unanimous verdicts in Louisiana and Oregon by leading to new trials. We are heartened that the court has held, once and for all, that the promise of the Sixth Amendment fully applies in Louisiana, rejecting any concept of second-class justice, said Ben Cohen, a lawyer for Ramos. Gorsuch said there is evidence that when the Sixth Amendment was enacted, it was assumed there must be a unanimous verdict. This court has repeatedly and over many years recognised that the Sixth Amendment requires unanimity, Gorsuch wrote. Two other conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh, joined Gorsuch and three liberal justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor in the majority. A 1972 Supreme Court ruling that state court juries did not have to be unanimous drove the divisions among the justices in the case. The majority voted to overrule that precedent, but the three dissenting justices said there was not a compelling reason to overturn it. Writing in dissent, conservative Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the ruling imposes a potentially crushing burden on the courts and criminal justice systems in Louisiana and Oregon. Liberal Justice Elena Kagan and conservative Chief Justice John Roberts also were in dissent. How the court addresses overturning its own precedents is a topic of contention, with high stakes for abortion rights. Abortion rights activists fear that the courts 5-4 conservative majority may seek to undermine or overturn its landmark 1973 ruling that legalised the procedure nationwide. The court is currently weighing a challenge to Louisiana abortion restrictions that could indicate which way it is heading, with a ruling due by the end of June. ALBANY Potentially thousands of workers who were laid off from small businesses due to the coronavirus pandemic are declining to return to work because the combined income they are receiving from federal stimulus benefits and New York's unemployment system is more than they made at their jobs. The fallout also has hindered the ability of small business owners to meet the conditions attached to federal Payment Protection Plan loans, which may be forgiven if the money is used to maintain employee payrolls. Business owners "have to spend that money on salaries, health care and rent or mortgage. So whats happened is the employees ... are getting more money at home not working than they would be getting paid and returning to work, or paid and staying home," said Kevin Luibrand, an Albany attorney who learned about the situation from clients who are small business owners. "So theres no incentive for employees to want to be returned to the payroll. As a result, the employers arent going to be able to spend down the PPP money." In those instances, instead of having the loans forgiven small business owners may have to pay them back with interest. The Times Union reported last week that roughly 2 percent of small businesses in New York have been approved for loans through the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program. The program was created by a recent federal stimulus bill and launched April 3, and has been overwhelmed by demand. Congress is negotiating more funding for it even as business owners have been reporting the difficulty of getting lower-paid employees to return to work or agree to be placed back on the payroll. Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Looking for ways to help during the pandemic? Join our Facebook group Full coronavirus coverage In an interview last week, Mathew Tully, an attorney at one of Albany's largest law firms, said his business has seen some of the same consequences, and he's also hearing about the issue from clients who own small businesses. "Many businesses have employees coming in and saying 'Can you please furlough me?,'" Tully said. "Its creating a major problem for companies that are in limbo. ... Were not like a restaurant or a diner where were completely shut down." The unemployment stimulus package approved by Congress enable someone collecting state unemployment benefits, which are calculated based on the salary of the job they lost, and an additional $600 a week in unemployment benefits funded by the federal government. Many workers are collecting up to $1,000 a week under the two programs. Tully said a client who owns a business that had about 60 employees had roughly 35 workers demand to be furloughed. An employer can notify the state Department of Labor if an employee refuses to return to their job or the payroll, and the benefits can be rescinded. But that reporting is not mandated, and some employers fear having to rehire an employee who is disgruntled because they lost an opportunity to make more money not working than they would make on a payroll. Employers also must pay higher unemployment insurance rates if they lay off more workers for longer periods. "Whats happened is the employer is going to contact employee and say, 'Im going to offer you your job back,'" Luibrand said. "The employee can say, 'Im making more money not working.'" An employer can force an employee to accept the job return offer by contacting the state, which would stop the unemployment benefits if the employee declined to accept the job offer. "But what kind of employee will an employer have if the employer forces the employee back to work making less pay than (they would make) being at home not working? The answer is a very disgruntled employee," Luibrand said. Tully said the situation could inhibit the ability of businesses to reopen when the economy is restarted for non-essential operations. "The government has motivated people to collect benefits and stay home rather than work, which will keep our unemployment numbers high for months to come," he said. "That is going to hinder my business from growing in a reliable, steady and resolute manner in the coming months. ... We are having numerous employees ask to be laid off because the unemployment benefits are now so generous." WASHINGTON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the National Small Business Association (NSBA) is releasing a new survey on how the coronavirus (COVID-19) is impacting America's small businesses, and whether various government programs are providing enough help. Unfortunately, much-needed assistance appears to be slowed by a backlog in massive applications and the outlook among small businesses is overwhelmingly negative. "Today, nearly half of small businesses are not confident in the future of their own business," stated NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken. "We have been saying from the start: maintaining cash-flow and liquidity is essential to a vibrant small-business community which funds, drives and fosters all of our communities. Our community needs help, and we need it now." The economic fall-out continues to grow: today, 80 percent of small-business owners say they have experienced reduced customer demand, up from 49 percent just four weeks ago, and two-thirds of small-business owners are now anticipating a recession in the coming 12 months compared with just 14 percent in January. The smallest businesses are being disproportionately impacted: according to this survey, among small businesses with 10 or fewer employees, only 18 percent were approved for their PPP applications whereas those businesses with more than 20 employees have a 52 percent approval rate. "Despite some serious delays and confusion in the PPP and EIDL programs--not entirely surprising given their massive scope and minimal turnaround time--they are helping," stated NSBA Chair Marc Amato of Walco Electric Company in Providence, Rhode Island. "Nonetheless Congress and regulators must continue to pursue every avenue possible to fully fund and improve the loan process for America's most devastated small businesses." This poll was conducted online among more than 980 small-business owners April 15-18. Download the complete survey here. Please visit NSBA's COVID-19 resource page for updates, small-business stories and much more. Celebrating more than 80 years in operation, NSBA is a member-driven nonpartisan organization advocating on behalf of America's entrepreneurs. NSBA's 65,000 members represent every state and every industry in the U.S., and we are proud to be the nation's first small-business advocacy organization. Please visit www.nsba.biz. SOURCE National Small Business Association Related Links www.nsba.biz April 20 (Reuters) - Australia's South32 on Monday posted a near 18% rise in third-quarter metallurgical coal output and said it had received approval to restart its South African coal operations during a coronavirus-related lockdown, although at a reduced rate. Production of the steel-making ingredient rose to 1.2 million tonnes during the quarter ended March 31, meeting a UBS forecast, and was higher than the 990,000 tonnes of output a year earlier. South32 also said it had received government approval to restart limited activity at its South African energy coal operations during the lockdown period, albeit at a reduced pace. The unit had been in care and maintenance mode since the government announced a lockdown in late March. "We have acted to protect our strong financial position," Chief Executive Officer Graham Kerr said, referring to a range of measures the company has taken, including suspension of buybacks, slashing capital spending and a separate review expected to control costs from fiscal 2021. While a majority of South32's operations have escaped relatively unscathed from the outbreak, the miner withdrew 2020 guidance for its Colombian and South African operations in March owing to coronavirus-related restrictions. The company on Monday maintained 2020 production guidance for all other operations, with the exception of Australian manganese output which is expected to be about 5% lower due to similar restrictions. (Reporting by Rashmi Ashok and Shruti Sonal in Bengaluru; editing by Richard Pullin) Global storage deficiency and declining demand for crude since the coronavirus outburst have pushed oil prices down to levels not seen in more than two decades. Nevertheless, the drop is a blessing for certain companies as well. Thus, focusing on such stocks at the moment isnt a bad proposition. Oil Slips to 21-Year Low The U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, plummeted as much as 21% to $14.47 per barrel on Apr 19. It later traded around the $15 range, for the first time in 21 years. Comparatively, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark slipped 4.2% to $26.91 per barrel. Key Factor Behind the Drop Oil prices have been under tremendous pressure as initiatives like lockdowns to counter the spread of the deadly coronavirus worldwide hit fuel demand, leaving ample of supplies that countries are finding hard to store. In fact, the Department of Energy is now considering paying domestic oil producers for storing crude in the ground. Meanwhile, the OPEC and its allies have agreed upon a historic deal to cut output, but that has failed to check the drop in oil prices. Group of 20 nations along with OPEC and its allies held several conferences to finally reach an agreement to tackle the damaging impact of the pandemic on oil. OPEC+ has unanimously decided to cut production by 9.7 million barrels a day, slightly below the initial proposal of 10 million. In fact, like central banks taper off bond buying, OPEC will trim the size of the cuts over time. After June till the end of the year, OPEC will be trimming production to 7.6 million barrels a day and then to 5.6 million next year until April of 2022 (read more: Winners & Losers From the Historic OPEC+ Deal to Cut Output). Meanwhile, Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights, summed up by saying that the current prices show that the OPEC+ cuts proved to be a blip, with oil prices at the mercy of the virus once again, and that until we approach a lifting of the lockdowns in the U.S., oil may drift lower or remain range bound around current levels. Story continues Aviation, Refiners Poised to Gain Aviation stocks traditionally have an inverse relationship with the movement of oil prices. So, it isnt surprising that shares of aviation firms will rise after the sharp drop in crude oil prices. After all, fuel costs are major part of the operating costs for aviation firms, thus, rise in oil prices will eat into profit margins. By the way, some may say that the airline stocks have been pretty battered so far this year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Demand for air travel has waned substantially, impacting airlines bottom lines to a massive extent. But in a positive move, the U.S. Treasury Department and major U.S. airlines have reached an agreement on principle aimed at curtailing layoffs, with major airlines agreeing to a $25-billion federal aid. Given this bullishness, an aviation stock to win big is passenger airline Southwest Airlines Co. LUV. Notably, it is now the largest domestic air carrier (measured in terms of the number of domestic originating passengers boarded) in the United States. The Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) companys expected earnings growth rate for the next year is a startling 22,000%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Refineries also stand to gain from the decline in crude oil prices. As refineries buy crude oil as their raw material, their net cash flow increases when crude oil prices fall. Thus, some of the prominent refiners to keep an eye on are Magellan Petroleum Corporation TELL, Murphy USA Inc. MUSA and Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. PARR. Magellan Petroleum currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current quarter is 31.6%. Its projected earnings growth rate for the next five years is 31.1%. Similarly, Murphy USA has a Zacks Rank #2, and its expected earnings growth rate for the current year as well as next five years is 22.6% and 7%, respectively. Separately, Par Pacific has a Zacks Rank #3, and its projected earnings growth rate for the current quarter and year is 35.6% and 5%, respectively. Oil Price Drop a Boon for Emerging Markets Steady drop in oil prices benefits importers like Turkey, South Africa and India. Cheaper black gold will boost their balance of payments and support GDP growth. Capital Economics, a leading independent macroeconomic research firm added that with every $10-per-barrel drop in oil, oil importing emerging economies income rise by 0.5-0.7% of GDP. This certainly calls for investing in fundamentally-sound companies from the aforesaid emerging economies. One of the best ranked companies you may consider is Azure Power Global Limited AZRE, based in New Delhi, India. This Zacks Rank #2 company produces and develops solar energy. Its expected earnings growth rate for the next quarter is a whopping 200% compared with the Solar industrys estimated decline of 44.4%. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Global storage deficiency and declining demand for crude since the coronavirus outburst have pushed oil prices down to levels not seen in more than two decades. Nevertheless, the drop is a blessing for certain companies as well. Thus, focusing on such stocks at the moment isnt a bad proposition. Oil Slips to 21-Year Low The U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, plummeted as much as 21% to $14.47 per barrel on Apr 19. It later traded around the $15 range, for the first time in 21 years. Comparatively, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark slipped 4.2% to $26.91 per barrel. Key Factor Behind the Drop Oil prices have been under tremendous pressure as initiatives like lockdowns to counter the spread of the deadly coronavirus worldwide hit fuel demand, leaving ample of supplies that countries are finding hard to store. In fact, the Department of Energy is now considering paying domestic oil producers for storing crude in the ground. Meanwhile, the OPEC and its allies have agreed upon a historic deal to cut output, but that has failed to check the drop in oil prices. Group of 20 nations along with OPEC and its allies held several conferences to finally reach an agreement to tackle the damaging impact of the pandemic on oil. OPEC+ has unanimously decided to cut production by 9.7 million barrels a day, slightly below the initial proposal of 10 million. In fact, like central banks taper off bond buying, OPEC will trim the size of the cuts over time. After June till the end of the year, OPEC will be trimming production to 7.6 million barrels a day and then to 5.6 million next year until April of 2022 (read more: Winners & Losers From the Historic OPEC+ Deal to Cut Output). Meanwhile, Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights, summed up by saying that the current prices show that the OPEC+ cuts proved to be a blip, with oil prices at the mercy of the virus once again, and that until we approach a lifting of the lockdowns in the U.S., oil may drift lower or remain range bound around current levels. Aviation, Refiners Poised to Gain Aviation stocks traditionally have an inverse relationship with the movement of oil prices. So, it isnt surprising that shares of aviation firms will rise after the sharp drop in crude oil prices. After all, fuel costs are major part of the operating costs for aviation firms, thus, rise in oil prices will eat into profit margins. By the way, some may say that the airline stocks have been pretty battered so far this year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Demand for air travel has waned substantially, impacting airlines bottom lines to a massive extent. But in a positive move, the U.S. Treasury Department and major U.S. airlines have reached an agreement on principle aimed at curtailing layoffs, with major airlines agreeing to a $25-billion federal aid. Given this bullishness, an aviation stock to win big is passenger airline Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV). Notably, it is now the largest domestic air carrier (measured in terms of the number of domestic originating passengers boarded) in the United States. The Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) companys expected earnings growth rate for the next year is a startling 22,000%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Refineries also stand to gain from the decline in crude oil prices. As refineries buy crude oil as their raw material, their net cash flow increases when crude oil prices fall. Thus, some of the prominent refiners to keep an eye on are Magellan Petroleum Corporation (TELL), Murphy USA Inc. (MUSA) and Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (PARR). Magellan Petroleum currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current quarter is 31.6%. Its projected earnings growth rate for the next five years is 31.1%. Similarly, Murphy USA has a Zacks Rank #2, and its expected earnings growth rate for the current year as well as next five years is 22.6% and 7%, respectively. Separately, Par Pacific has a Zacks Rank #3, and its projected earnings growth rate for the current quarter and year is 35.6% and 5%, respectively. Oil Price Drop a Boon for Emerging Markets Steady drop in oil prices benefits importers like Turkey, South Africa and India. Cheaper black gold will boost their balance of payments and support GDP growth. Capital Economics, a leading independent macroeconomic research firm added that with every $10-per-barrel drop in oil, oil importing emerging economies income rise by 0.5-0.7% of GDP. This certainly calls for investing in fundamentally-sound companies from the aforesaid emerging economies. One of the best ranked companies you may consider is Azure Power Global Limited (AZRE), based in New Delhi, India. This Zacks Rank #2 company produces and develops solar energy. Its expected earnings growth rate for the next quarter is a whopping 200% compared with the Solar industrys estimated decline of 44.4%. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) : Free Stock Analysis Report Murphy USA Inc. (MUSA) : Free Stock Analysis Report Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (PARR) : Free Stock Analysis Report Azure Power Global Ltd. (AZRE) : Free Stock Analysis Report Magellan Petroleum Corporation (TELL) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research By Kim Bo-eun Industrial Bank of Korea CEO Yoon Jong-won Claudio Cerasi opened Palazzo Merulana in Rome almost two years ago. Palazzo Merulana, one of Rome's newest and most impressive art museums, has bid farewell to its founder Claudio Cerasi who died last night, 19 April. Announcing the news on its Facebook page, the museum paid tribute to Cerasi as a "modern, kind, generous and determined soul" who realised his dream of offering Rome an "innovative, open and inclusive place." Cerasi died almost two years after he opened the new art museum at the city's long-abandoned health offices on Via Merulana, following a 5 million restoration project. Read also: In addition to funding the three-year renovation of the city-owned building, the entrepreneur filled Palazzo Merulana with the important collection of early 20th-century art that he had assembled privately with his wife, Elena. Under an 88-year lease, the public-private venture entrusted the management of the museum to Coopculture, Italy's largest cooperative in the heritage and cultural activities sector. Cerasi spared no expense in refurbishing the four-storey palazzo, sections of which had been lying in disrepair for 60 years. The Cerasi collection comprises 90 works by Italian artists including Balla, Cambellotti, Casorati, de Chirico, Donghi, Mafai, Pirandello, Schifano and Severini. LANSING Michigan senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow have announced that that veterans currently receiving benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs will automatically receive their $1,200 stimulus checks. Aside from VA beneficiaries, those who also receive Social Security and Supplemental Security Income will automatically receive their stimulus checks too. The IRS and Treasury department have waived the filing requirements, with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin saying the payments will go out to veterans and their families who did not file tax returns for 2018 or 2019. The Treasury, IRS, and VA are working hard to ensure our nations heroes receive these payments quickly and without any additional action or paperwork, Mnuchin said in a statement. The cash assistance is part of the CARES Act passed in March. Veterans should automatically receive their $1,200 stimulus checks plain and simple, said Peters, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, in a statement. It is common sense for the IRS and the VA to coordinate so veterans arent forced to file additional paperwork, and this news means veterans will get relief faster. Our Michigan veterans should not have to wait at the back of any line, said Stabenow in a statement. Im glad to see the IRS and Department of Veterans Affairs working together so that veterans and their beneficiaries will receive their stimulus payments quickly without having to file additional paperwork. Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates. Elaine Thompson/AP Photo Bill Gates has advocated for pandemic preparedness for years and famously gave a TED talk in 2015 that warned of the potentially staggering death toll a worldwide pandemic could create. As the coronavirus pandemic has spread around the world, Gates has pledged $250 million to fight the disease and create a vaccine. Incredibly, it's these two factors that provide the foundation of a new set of conspiracy theories that point to Gates as the origin of coronavirus and those conspiracy theories have rapidly gone from fringe online conspiracy theorists to the mouths of conservative pundits. Here's what we know: In 2015, Bill Gates gave a TED talk titled, "The next outbreak? We're not ready." Bill Gates TED talk, 2015 TED In his 2015 TED talk, Gates examined the ebola outbreak that killed thousands of people in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. He highlighted the factors that kept the disease from spreading worldwide, and warned against the potential for a much more contagious, worldwide pandemic. "The failure to prepare could allow the next epidemic to be dramatically more devastating than ebola," he said. "You can have a virus where people feel well enough while they're infectious that they get on a plane, or they go to a market." Story continues Indeed, that is exactly the case with the novel coronavirus symptoms of the disease don't necessarily manifest for up to 14 days, and potentially longer. You can watch the full TED talk right here: Citing that talk, and the Gates Foundation's $250 million contribution to fight the disease, some right-wing conspiracy theorists claim Gates is the mastermind that created the novel coronavirus. Bill Gates fotopress/Getty Images The conspiracy theories connecting Gates to coronavirus started in late January, according to a recent New York Times investigation, with a "YouTube personality linked to QAnon" who claimed Gates had prior knowledge of the coronavirus pandemic. Days later, the website Infowars the site run by Alex Jones, a conspiracy theorist who claims the Sandy Hook shooting was a hoax published a piece that incorrectly stated the Gates Foundation "co-hosted a pandemic exercise in late 2019 that simulated a global coronavirus outbreak." The Infowars piece attempted to connect the Gates Foundation's ongoing investments in fighting global pandemics to prior knowledge of the coronavirus pandemic. According to a FactCheck.org followup, "There was in fact an exercise (called 'Event 201') that took place in October that was hosted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security which the Gates Foundation participated in that focused on emergency preparedness in the event of a 'very severe pandemic.' But it didn't deal with 2019-nCoV [novel coronavirus], and it didn't make real-life predictions about death tolls." That distinction, however, was ignored by conspiracy theorists. For the next two months, conspiracies that Gates knew of the virus beforehand or was directly responsible for its creation exploded. And now it's reached at least one Fox News host. Two examples of coronavirus-related Bill Gates conspiracy theories online, in shareable meme form, found on Twitter in April. Twitter Mentions of coronavirus-related Bill Gates conspiracy theories have exploded on social media and TV: They were mentioned 1.2 million times in the last two months, according to data provided to the New York Times by the media intelligence firm Zignal Labs. Those conspiracy theories have spread from fringe right-wing conspiracy theorists, like Alex Jones, to conservative pundits like Fox News host Laura Ingraham. "Digitally tracking Americans' every move has been a dream of the globalists for years," Ingraham tweeted in early April. "This health crisis is the perfect vehicle for them to push this." The commentary was attached to another tweet, which linked to an article about Bill Gates on a conspiracy theory website that cites an answer Gates gave during a Reddit AMA earlier this year. Gates spoke of a hypothetical "digital certificate" that would certify if people were vaccinated from coronavirus. According to the piece, "The inevitable mass vaccination campaign to eradicate COVID-19 would be the perfect opportunity to introduce a worldwide digital ID. This system would store a wealth of information about each individual (including vaccination history) and would be used to grant access to rights and services." It baselessly claimed that Gates alongside other rich and powerful people is using the coronavirus pandemic as a means of instilling a worldwide caste system based on a digital ID. Ingraham's followers understood the message: "I will not take a #BillGatesVaccine," one responded. Former Trump staffer Roger Stone, who was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison earlier this year, was more direct than Ingraham. "Whether Bill Gates played some role in the creation and spread of this virus is open for vigorous debate," Stone said in a radio interview, according to a New York Post report. "I have conservative friends who say it's ridiculous and others say absolutely." Why Bill Gates? Why now? Even pandemics are partisan. bill gates Mike Cohen/Getty Images for The New York Times Through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the billions that Gates earned from co-founding Microsoft and turning it into an international powerhouse is being used to fight contagious disease around the world. They've spent millions on the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS, malaria, and polio. Gates also co-founded The Giving Pledge with his friend and fellow billionaire Warren Buffet, a campaign to get billionaires to promise to give away the majority of their fortunes to philanthropic causes. But Gates has also voiced opposition to President Trump's federal coronavirus response. "Halting funding for the World Health Organization during a world health crisis is as dangerous as it sounds," he tweeted on April 15, just after President Trump announced intentions to cut funding for the World Health Organization. "Their work is slowing the spread of COVID-19 and if that work is stopped no other organization can replace them. The world needs @WHO now more than ever." Despite Gates not mentioning the president, responses to his tweet are notably partisan and several challengers accuse Gates, through association with former President Bill Clinton and the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, of being part of an Illuminati-esque cabal. Despite being especially vocal lately, Gates hasn't said much in response to the conspiracies. "It's ironic," he told GCTN in a televised interview. Bill Gates YouTube/Gates Notes Gates declined an interview with the New York Times for its report on coronavirus-related Bill Gates conspiracy theories a rare no from a man who's made numerous press appearances lately in an attempt to get out the message on coronavirus prevention. He did, however, answer a question about those conspiracy theories in a televised interview with Chinese broadcast channel GCTN. "I'd say it's ironic that you take someone who's doing their best to get the world ready and putting, in my case, billions of dollars into these tools for infectious diseases, and really trying to solve broadly infectious diseases including those that cause pandemics," Gates said. "But we're in a crazy situation, so there's going to be crazy rumors." Read the original article on Business Insider Colorado Springs City Council deadlocked Monday over the appointment of Stephannie Fortune to fill Councilman Richard Skorman's seat on the board. Who among the 7 finalists should be appointed? You voted: Washington, April 20 : Washington Governor Jay Inslee said that group protests and radical speeches will not determine the course of the state's battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. "I support free speech. But crowd counts or speeches won't determine our course. This isn't about politics. It can only be about doing what is best for the health of all Washingtonians," Xinhua news agency quoted Inslee as saying in a statement on Sunday. "Comments in the news today by some Republican legislators calling for 'open rebellion,' claiming a 'deep state' plot and other radical statements are irresponsible and could needlessly lead to more people getting sick. "I hope Republican legislative leaders will speak out against such rhetoric from their members," he added. More than 2,000 demonstrators gathered at the Washington state capitol on Sunday to urge the state government to lift the stay-at-home order which was put in place to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The protest echoed similar demonstrations held around the nation, highlighting the partisan divide in how citizens perceive the virus, while polling shows broad support for stay-at-home orders, according to a Seattle Times report. "These are difficult and frustrating times. I understand the urgency of this crisis. However, this is not the time to halt the progress we have made. I encourage everyone in our state to stay home, stay healthy and, if you need to go out, practice adequate physical distancing," said Inslee. The stay-at-home order implemented in Washington state is now scheduled through May 4, with the possibility of an extension. The US has 759,467 COVID-19 cases and 40,677 deaths. Two hundred fifty people a year die from poverty, and the poverty line is getting such that more and more people are going to fall below that because the economy is crashing around us, and theyre doing that because people are dying from the coronavirus. I get that," McGraw said. : As a precautionary measure for doctors and nurses involved in COVID-19 treatment, the Telangana government is mulling keeping them in private hotels at states expenses in case the situation so demands, a senior official said on Monday. Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar has issued orders appointing a committee comprising three senior IAS officers- Neetu Kumari Prasad, Raghunandan Rao and Lokesh Kumar- to work out details such as number of hotel Srooms required, tariff and facilities required. This is being done as a precautionary measure in case of relentlessness of the virus spread. The government is of the opinion that doctors and nurses as frontline personnel treating coronavirus patients need to be put in a safe environment, the official told PTI. "We are preparing a contingency plan.If such a situation arises where we will have a large number of patients, we do not want healthcare people to go home as there will be a risk to their families, the official said. The committee, which has already shortlisted some places to keep the doctors and other paramedical staff, is negotiating with the managements of the hotels, the official added. When contacted, Neetu Kumari Prasad refused to share the details saying, The report is yet to be submitted to the government. Delhi and Uttar Pradesh governments have already announced that doctors and other staff treating COVID-19 patients would be kept in five-star hotels. PTI GDK http://ptinews.com/images/pti. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It is the reason Sydney Observatory was built. The yellow and black cast-iron Time Ball was lifted manually by a rack-and-pinion mechanism to sit atop the Observatory in June 1858. At precisely 1pm the ball would drop two metres, immediately. Before radio, that visual signal was the only way to convey accurate time. The Time Ball has dropped at 1pm almost every day since 1858. Credit:Steven Siewert Ships on the harbour would then set their chronometers and know they had the accurate time for their calculations using celestial navigation. Wars and weather didn't interrupt the routine of more than 160 years. Only maintenance or a technical upgrade could do that. But now the ball is suspended - quite literally - with the Observatory closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Fifty-five-year-old Dr Simon Hercules had devoted his life to treating patients, but when he died on Sunday evening after testing positive for COVID-19, the society this neurosurgeon served for decades failed him big time. Dr Simon, Managing Director of New Hope Medical Centre, could not be given a proper burial due to protests from locals at a crematorium in this metropolis. For latest updates and live news on coronavirus, click here After locals attacked those who gathered at the crematorium in Vellangadu near upscale Anna Nagar to bid goodbye to the doctor with stones, sticks, and glass, a surgeon who worked with the dead doctor took up the job on himself and buried his senior with his bare hands. Doctors are humans too We (doctors) are humans too. This should not happen to anybody. The doctor was buried with nobody around him. Just me and two ward boys from our hospital. It is said that a man who served the society and lived for it went down with just three people around him, Dr K Pradeep Kumar, Orthopaedic and Arthroscopy Surgeon, told DH. Dhamu, a driver of the ambulance that was used to transport Dr Simons body, said people gathered at the crematorium after hearing the sound of an earthmover that was being used to dig the pit to bury the body. Some 300 people gathered and started pelting stones and bottles at us. We had to withstand the attack since I and another driver, Anand, were carrying the body from the vehicle to the ground. We could not have dropped the body on the ground. I drove the vehicle with broken glasses for a few km before going to a government hospital for first aid, Dhamu said, choking every few seconds. Locals did not want the body of the doctor buried in their air due to misconception that COVID-19 could spread from the body. The burial with just three people After the unfortunate incident, Dr Pradeep Kumar went to his hospital wore the PPE and took control of the wheels of the broken ambulance to see-off his boss. When I reached the burial ground, there was nobody there to help us. The police were in good numbers to ensure that nothing untoward takes place again. With just two ward boys, we lowered the casket and began the burial. There was none to push sand into the grave. I did it with my bare hands. I was scared for two reasons one is the fear of the mob arriving again and the other is we need to give him (Dr Simon) a proper burial. He needs to rest in peace, Dr Pradeep Kumar said. Narrating the harrowing experience, Dr Pradeep Kumar said only a few people from the doctors family his daughter has tested positive for COVID-19 had come to the burial ground and everyone, including the body, were subjected to attack from stones and sticks. They (the mob) threw stones and bottles and everyone had to run from the place for their safety. No one had any other choice. We had to disperse, and it was quite a task to get my seniors body back into the ambulance. The ambulance drivers were bleeding, but they were strong and drove it till I took the wheels from one of them, Dr Pradeep Kumar said. A nice soul has gone too soon Dhamu, the ambulance driver who along with Anand, was injured and had to get stitches on their heads, said he began working with Dr Simon a decade ago and left his hospital two years back to drive his own ambulance vehicle. My ambulance was attached to the hospital, thanks to Simon sir. He was such a wonderful human being who had helped several people. I cannot digest people can be so heartless to oppose the burial of a nice soul. He was a doctor after all, who treated people and dedicated his life serving them, Dhamu added. In a moving video, Dr Bagyaraj, a microbiologist with the hospital owned by Dr Simon, asked whether this was what doctors earn for doing service to the people. Track state-wise confirmed coronavirus cases here Is this the price? How will doctors feel safe? We could not save him, but we could have at least given him a proper burial. We could not even do that. Will his soul rest in peace? Without understanding that there was no harm in burying the dead though they have had COVID-19, people protested and made us feel bad about coming into this profession, he said. Health Secretary Dr Beela Rajesh tweeted: Salutations to Dr Simon Hercules for his exemplary service in the fight against Covid19. Let us stand by each and every healthcare worker, they are the real heroes. Meanwhile, Chennai Police have arrested 20 people for indulging in violence at the burial ground on Sunday night. Sentence of participant of illegal Moscow rally Surovtsev upheld RAPSI 15:43 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) The Moscow City Court on Monday dismissed an appeal against a 2.5-year sentence given to participant of the unauthorized rally held in Moscow on July 27 Sergey Surovtsev, the courts press service told RAPSI. In winter, his detention was extended until June. In late December, Surovtsev was convicted of using force against a National Guard officer. The court found that on July 27, Surovtsev beat an officer of the National Guard with a metal guardrail and attempted to block moving of other law enforcement officers in central Moscow. Later, he was lost in the crowd. The defendant pleaded not guilty. Unauthorized rallies in support of candidates seeking to become lawmakers of the Moscow State Duma but refused registration by the Election Commission were held on July 27 and August 3 in central Moscow. Over 1,000 people were arrested for various violations as a result. Following the 27 July rally, the Investigative Committee criminal cases were opened. Investigators believe that the protest action was held with the use of force against representatives of authority. Several activists have been already convicted and sentenced. Prosecution of five defendants has been dropped. New York: Coronavirus is dealing a gut punch to the illegal drug trade, paralysing economies, closing borders and severing supply chains in China that traffickers rely on for the chemicals to make such profitable drugs as methamphetamine and fentanyl. One of the main suppliers that shut down is in Wuhan, the epicentre of the global outbreak. A tunnel connecting south San Diego with a warehouse in Tijuana that was uncovered by the US Border Patrol's San Diego Tunnel Team last month. Credit:AP Interviews with nearly two dozen law enforcement officials and trafficking experts show Mexican and Colombian cartels are still plying their trade as evidenced by recent drug seizures but the lockdowns that have turned cities into ghost towns are disrupting everything from production to transport to sales. Along the 3140-kilometre United States-Mexico border through which the vast majority of the illegal drugs cross into the US, the normally bustling vehicle traffic that smugglers use for cover has slowed to a trickle. Bars, nightclubs and motels across the country that are ordinarily fertile marketplaces for drug dealers have shuttered. And prices for drugs in short supply have soared to gouging levels. Help India! By Murshed H Choudhury, TwoCircles.net When twelve members of Foreigners Tribunal in Assam wrote a letter to the states Health Minister pledging to donate Rs 60,000 collectively toward the governments fund for fighting Covid19, they tagged the charity with a condition: this money cannot be extended to members of violators Tablighi Jamaat, Jihadis and Jahils. To be noted here, the job of this Tribunal is to adjudicate on citizenship of over 1.9 million people excluded from the final NRC list published on August 31, 2019. It might not sound problematic considering the times of heightened communal bigotry we are living in, but this one-line footnote by the Tribunal has granted them red-carpet entry into the ecosystem of extreme Islamophobia which had been building up since Prime Minister Narendra Modi said last December while referring to protestors of anti-CAA, that those who are creating violence can be identified by their clothes. Support TwoCircles State-Sponsored Chauvinism? The poisonous air of Delhi caused by burning of fossil fuels, industrial emissions and agricultural activities seemed so innocuous vis-a-vis the feeling of toxic abhorrence against Muslims en masse preached by BJP leaders and the complicit media, further proliferated by the IT Cell and its unthinking virtual foot soldiers during the Shaheen Bagh days and Delhi election. Indias Home Minister, arguably the second most powerful person in the country, didnt shy away from urging people to vote for his BJP party in the Delhi state assembly elections so Shaheen Bagh, a Muslim dominated neighborhood in Delhi, gets electrocuted. Another central minister Anurag Thakur and his fellow party member from Delhi, Kapil Mishra, shouted the extremely provocative slogan on multiple occasions, desh ke inn gaddaro ko, golimarosaalon ko, asking his supporters to shoot down the traitors of the country. However, when all these communal ploys failed to convince people to vote BJP to power in the state, and the central government saw no end of the anti-CAA protests, Kapil Mishra, who had just lost the election himself, decided to excite people to take law in their hands by vacating a protest site in northeast Delhi. Thus followed waves of savage attacks in mosques, Muslims houses and properties between February 23rd and 25th causing the worst communal riots in the Capital that recorded deaths of more than 50 people, needless to say mostly Muslims. RwaNDA RadioAnchors Then in the first week of March, when the Covid19 started spreading rapidly in the country, this communal tension slowly started taking a back seat. But the anchors of prime-time TV debates quickly got bored of discussing coronavirus, because it is absolutely non-discriminatory and non-communal, to the extent that in one such channel anchors were seen playing antakshari live on air. However, their boredom didnt last too long, thanks mainly to the stubbornness and recklessness of Maulana Saad, the ameer (head) of Tablighi Jamaat. His easily avoidable decision to go ahead with the ijtema or annual congregation of the Jamaat in mid-March, not only aggravated Indias fragile effort to fight corona, but supplied fresh oxygen to right-wing leaders, journalists and social media warriors who were desperately waiting for such an incident to happen. All mainstream news channels peopled with hawkish anchors got so charged up by then as if they had discovered the root cause of the pandemic and invented the cure too. Although Tablighis irresponsible behavior is in no way justifiable (of course a section of Muslims did try to do so by putting blame on police and the government), the rightwing political analysts and politicians went over the top to vilify Muslims and to prove that it is not simply carelessness or ignorance, but the part of a pan-Islamic conspiracy, a corona-jihad. According to a Time magazine article, data provided by the digital human rights group Equality Labs, from March 28 to April 3, tweets with the hashtag #CoronaJihad have appeared nearly 300,000 times and potentially been viewed by 165 million on Twitter only. Ultimately, the poison and prejudice are home delivered to its end users, the naive semi-literate or illiterate Internet users across the country: in villages, small towns as well metros. Arguably Indias loudest (yes, pun intended) Islamophobic journalist Arnab Goswami came up with the statistics, One out of 3 cases in India are directly because of Tablighi Jamaat. His one-man channel in fact blamed Tablighis for Lockdown 2.0 while he tweeted Jo log Markaz ka saath de rahe hain, unko bhi desh ka gaddar kyun na kaha jaye? Poochta hai Bharat (Why shouldnt those who support Markaz be called traitors? Asks India). Deepak Chaurasia minced no words to call Tablighi Jamaat as Talibani Jamaat only to deny it moments later when a Jamaat supporter asked him whether he said so intentionally or it was a mistake. Babita Phogat, the Dangal famed wrestler, took this opportunity to score some brownie points (remember she is a member of the BJP) by abusing Tablighis as suwar (pigs) and jahil who need to gunned down. Who are Bearing the Brunt? The results of these hate campaigns from three quarterspoliticians, mainstream media and social mediaare for the world to witness now. Multiple reports and videos started pouring in from many parts of the country, mainly from the Hindi belt in north India, of Muslim fruit and vegetable vendors being boycotted, beaten up and abused by locals. A pregnant Muslim woman from Bharatpur in Rajasthan was denied admission to a hospital over her religion and referred to a Jaipur hospital. While being taken to the state capital, she delivered her baby in the ambulance, who could not be saved. A Muslim youth named Dilshad Ali was beaten to death in outer North Delhis Bawana area on suspicion of spreading coronavirus among the people in his village. The Wire reported that in Punjab, Muslim herders were allegedly forced by locals to dump hundreds of litres of milk, because they fear the milk might infect them with coronavirus. Indian Express on April 15 reported that Ahmedabad Civil Hospital in the capital of Modis home state, Gujarat, has segregated the 1200 beds dedicated for Covid-19 patients into a Muslim ward and a Hindu ward. When questioned by a reporter, Medical Superintendent Dr Gunvant H Rathod said this is done as per a state government decision, although the state health minister denied any knowledge of it. Silence Means Consent? All these smear campaigns and its consequent violence coupled with discrimination against the minority community are emboldened by cautious silence of the most powerful person in the country. In his April 14 address to the nation, Prime Minister Modi extended the nationwide lockdown till May 3 and thanked the nation for bearing the hardships, especially the poor who are the worst hit by the virus. However, he didnt spare a single word to admonish those who are spreading anti-Muslim rhetoric at a time when the WHO chief Tedros Adhanom reminded countries the perils of resorting to divisive politics by saying, when there is a crack at the national level, between political parties, between religious groups thats when virus gets a crack. Not only did he observe silence regarding massive hate campaign against Muslims, the Prime Minister, who has more than 55.3 million followers on Twitter, didnt post a single tweet either, despite being fully aware of how effective his one tweet is (Dont forget his ideas of banging thalis and lighting candles to fight corona). Modis pindrop silence is regarded as a seal of approval by the hate-mongers who have built their career on it, like Amit Malviya, the BJP IT Cell head, as well as TV anchors who leave no stone unturned to appease the current dispensation. And why shouldnt they, given many motormouths have been rewarded with ministries and seats in parliaments, be it Giriraj Singh, Anant Hegde or Sadhvi Pragya? The Path Forward Scientists around the world are racing against time to invent vaccines and medicines for coronavirus and hopefully within a year or two they will succeed. However, its unfortunate that no sincere efforts are being made neither by the government nor the judiciary or the executive to cure the plague caused by this communal hatred and jingoism. It is time that our intellectuals, social activists, religious leaders, celebrities and artists come out of their comfort zones, stop relying on the system and undertake the task of fighting this menace through aggressive campaigns, both online and offline, by educating and sensitizing people about the role of communal harmony in a democracy to succeed and to achieve meaningful development for all. The journey will be painstaking and perilous, but to win the war we have to lose many battles. During his most recent press briefing, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo doled out some parenting advice to fathers whose children are starting to bring home their significant others. The dad of three daughters has offered plenty of guidance throughout the coronavirus pandemic, but this time, he's giving advice on what to tell your children if they ask what you think about their significant other. His helpful tip? You can't tell your children that you don't like their new boo. Today is Sunday and I come from an Italian-American household where we had a great tradition on Sundays, the family had to come together at the table, he said, starting the discussion on family. Gov. Cuomo explained that his daughter, 25-year-old Mariah Kennedy Cuomo, brought home her boyfriend who would be joining them for dinner. This is where his fatherly advice came in, talking to any parent whose kids have started dating. The boyfriend is very nice and we like the boyfriend, he prefaced his guidance. Advice to fathers: the answer on what you think of the boyfriend is always, I like the boyfriend. Always. Because theres only two options. Either you like the boyfriend, in which case, you say, I like the boyfriend. Or you dont like the boyfriend. But you can never say you dont like the boyfriend. News He continued his explanation, revealing that he had learned this lesson the hard way. Otherwise it triggers NDS, he said. NDS is 'natural defiance syndrome.' Its not documented, but it is a psychological condition where if you say as a father I dont like him, natural defiance syndrome kicks in and then they like the boyfriend more because he is opposed by the father. So the answer has to be I like the boyfriend. Kerry Kennedy-Cuomo, daughter of Ethyl Kennedy and the late (New York Daily News Archive / NY Daily News via Getty Images) Lucky for Mariah, her father admitted to actually liking her current boyfriend so there is no lying involved in this relationship. But even if you dont like the boyfriend the answer can only be that I like the boyfriend, he said. "But were going to be at dinner with the boyfriend and were going to have our spaghetti and our meatballs." Story continues Sunday dinner Cuomo style. pic.twitter.com/sT9HI5rb0z Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) April 19, 2020 And while Gov. Cuomo may have parenting down to a T, one area he may still need to work on are his cooking skills. "They wont eat the spaghetti and the meatballs because when I cook it they just wont eat it," he concluded. "But they move it around the dish and thats all I can ask. Married At First Sight's Michael Goonan isn't as flash as some fans believe he is. After flying from Sydney to Melbourne in a private jet last week, the 29-year-old has come clean about his extravagant lifestyle, confirming the plane isn't his. 'No, it is not my private jet,' Michael told KOTN Media on Sunday, before explaining where he prefers to invest his money. 'It's not mine': Married At First Sight's Michael Goonan (pictured) has confirmed he doesn't own the private jet he travelled from Melbourne to Sydney in last week 'I'm a firm believer in buying assets that appreciate in value,' he said. 'The house that you all seen [on MAFS] is my house, I own that. Assets that go up in value, I own,' he added. The millionaire company director of Adelaide Ice then addressed the backlash he received for chartering the private interstate last week. 'Assets that go up in value, I own': Speaking to KOTN Media on Sunday, Michael said he chooses to charter private jets rather than buy one himself as they do not 'appreciate in value' Business advice: 'The house that you all seen [on MAFS] is my house, I own that. Assets that go up in value, I own,' added Michael. Pictured: Michael's $1.1million Adelaide mansion 'To me, with the private jet I didn't mean any disregard for people that looked at that and thought, "What a d**k head",' he explained. 'At the end of the day, I'd rather fly on a private jet than Tiger [Air]. I've got to be honest - sorry guys. I am not a snobby person that thinks he's better than anyone. If I want to go on a private jet, who gives a f**k. I don't think I'm better than anyone.' The reality star is company director of his family business, Adelaide Ice, which his father founded in 2002 after moving to Australia from Scotland. 'Rather fly on a private jet than Tiger [Air]': Michael also addressed the backlash he received for chartering a flight from Melbourne to Sydney with KC Osborne (pictured) Success: The reality star is the company director of the Goonan family business, Adelaide Ice, which his father founded in 2002 after moving to Australia from Scotland Adelaide Ice is now South Australia's largest ice manufacturing and packaging business, and has offices in Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Michael also co-owns a wine label called Australian Sapphire Enterprises with his friend Calvin Daniels. The duo launched the business in May 2019. He lives in a $1.1million Adelaide mansion which he bought in his early twenties, and rents out on Airbnb for $1,000-per-night as he travels so much for work. According to some websites, Michael currently has a net worth of at least $1 million. However, it is thought to be much more. Irvine, Calif., April 20, 2020 - Though mighty, the Milky Way and galaxies of similar mass are not without scars chronicling turbulent histories. University of California, Irvine astronomers and others have shown that clusters of supernovas can cause the birth of scattered, eccentrically orbiting suns in outer stellar halos, upending commonly held notions of how star systems have formed and evolved over billions of years. Hyper-realistic, cosmologically self-consistent computer simulations from the Feedback in Realistic Environments 2 project enabled the scientists to model the disruptions in otherwise orderly galactic rotations. The team's work is the subject of a study published today in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. "These highly accurate numerical simulations have shown us that it's likely the Milky Way has been launching stars in circumgalactic space in outflows triggered by supernova explosions," said senior author James Bullock, dean of UCI's School of Physical Sciences and a professor of physics & astronomy. "It's fascinating, because when multiple big stars die, the resulting energy can expel gas from the galaxy, which in turn cools, causing new stars to be born." Bullock said the diffuse distribution of stars in the stellar halo that extends far outside the classical disk of a galaxy is where the "archeological record" of the system exists. Astronomers have long assumed that galaxies are assembled over lengthy periods of time as smaller star groupings come in and are dismembered by the larger body, a process that ejects some stars into distant orbits. But the UCI team is proposing "supernova feedback" as a different source for as many as 40 percent of these outer-halo stars. Lead author Sijie Yu, a UCI Ph.D. candidate in physics, said the findings were made possible partly by the availability of a powerful new set of tools. "The FIRE-2 simulations allow us to generate movies that make it seem as though you're observing a real galaxy," she noted. "They show us that as the galaxy center is rotating, a bubble driven by supernova feedback is developing with stars forming at its edge. It looks as though the stars are being kicked out from the center." Bullock said he did not expect to see such an arrangement because stars are such tight, incredibly dense balls that are generally not subject to being moved relative to the background of space. "Instead, what we're witnessing is gas being pushed around," he said, "and that gas subsequently cools and makes stars on its way out." The researchers said that while their conclusions have been drawn from simulations of galaxies forming, growing and evolving to the present day, there is actually a fair amount of observational evidence that stars are forming in outflows from galactic centers to their halos. "In plots that compare data from the European Space Agency's Gaia mission - which provides a 3D velocity chart of stars in the Milky Way - with other maps that show stellar density and metallicity, we can see structures similar to those produced by outflow stars in our simulations," Yu said. Bullock added that mature, heavier, metal-rich stars like our sun rotate around the center of the galaxy at a predictable speed and trajectory. But the low-metallicity stars, which have been subjected to fewer generations of fusion than our sun, can be seen rotating in the opposite direction. He said that over the lifespan of a galaxy, the number of stars produced in supernova bubble outflows is small, around 2 percent. But during the parts of galaxies' histories when starburst events are booming, as many as 20 percent of stars are being formed this way. "There are some current projects looking at galaxies that are considered to be very 'starbursting' right now," Yu said. "Some of the stars in these observations also look suspiciously like they're getting ejected from the center." ### This project - which involved astronomers from UC Davis, UC San Diego, the University of Pennsylvania, the Flatiron Institute, The University of Texas at Austin, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the California Institute of Technology and Northwestern University - was supported by the National Science Foundation and the Heising-Simons Foundation. About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 36,000 students and offers 222 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $5 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www.uci.edu. Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists. U.S. prosecutors did not oppose a request Sunday by former deputy Trump campaign chairman Rick Gates to serve the remainder of his prison term in home confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic. Gates was sentenced in December to 45 days in intermittent federal custody after cooperating in special counsel Robert Muelle's investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. In a four-page court filing entered Sunday, Gates attorney Thomas Green did not make public how many days Gates has served in jail. But Gates, 47, said U.S. prosecutors did not oppose his claim that the health threat posed by the pandemic and related government restrictions marked a change in circumstance for the father of four from Richmond, Virginia, whose wife has cancer. "The massive societal disruptions caused by this pandemic are tragic, and the burdens they have placed on Mr. Gates and his family warrant a modification of the condition on his probation," Green said. "Mr. Gates must now provide additional care for his family for the foreseeable future while his wife continues her treatment for and recovery from cancer." U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson of Washington has the authority to approve or deny any changes to Gates' sentence. Gates is listed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons' online inmate locator as being under the control of the agency's residential reentry management field office in Baltimore. Gates pleaded guilty in February 2018 to lying to the FBI and conspiring to conceal tens of millions of dollars he and Trump 2016 campaign chairman Paul Manafort earned in undisclosed lobbying for a pro-Russian politician in Ukraine. He remained Manafort's right-hand man when Manafort served as campaign chairman until that August. Gates gave Mueller's office "ample basis" to investigate coordination between the campaign and Russia or possible obstruction of justice, Jackson said. She cited in particular his revelation that Manafort that July shared internal Trump campaign polling data and discussed advancing a Ukrainian peace plan backed by Russia with an aide the FBI assessed to have Russian intelligence connections. Manafort lied about those interactions, leading to the collapse of his plea agreement with the special counsel. Gates remained with the Trump campaign after the election, worked for the Republican National Committee and was deputy chairman of the Trump inaugural committee. Separately, Manafort, 71, is awaiting a response to his April 13 request to the Federal Bureau of Prisons for release to home confinement to serve the rest of his 7 1/2-year sentence. His lawyers said his age and health put him at "high risk" of contracting the coronavirus. Manafort is serving a term due to end Nov. 3, 2024, at the Loretto federal prison in central Pennsylvania, a low-security facility with an adjacent minimum-security camp. Manafort was convicted in 2018 of bank and tax fraud, witness tampering and conspiring to defraud the United States. Manafort has high blood pressure and liver disease, his lawyers said. He also contracted influenza and bronchitis in February, and in December, he was hospitalized for several days for a heart condition, his lawyers said. They asked that he be released to live with his wife at their condominium in Virginia "to serve the remainder of his sentence or, alternatively, for the duration of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic." Wuhan, the hardest hit Chinese city by the COVID-19 outbreak, lifted outbound travel restrictions on April 8. This marks a notable turning point in the citys months-long battle with the virus and sending a message of hope to a world grappling with the pandemic. All across China, the situation in beating the COVID-19 pandemic is moving steadily in a positive direction. Life and work are quickly returning to normal. How did China do it? You may wonder. C.H.I.N.A did it, I should say. C: Curbing the transmission Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei Province with a population of over 11 million, is the major transportation hub and the most populous city in Central China. On January 23, the government decided to block off Wuhans transport system or what we refer to as launching the lockdown of the city. Till the lift on April 8, the people in Wuhan had been staying at home for 76 days. The continuous trend for better situation in China proves that the lockdown of Wuhan is a least costly and most effective approach to quarantine the infections and cut off every possible method and channel, containing the pandemic. H: Highest priority On January 25, the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year, President Xi Jinping chaired a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. He heard reports on the prevention and control of the outbreak and decided in the meeting to set up a CPC Central Committee leading group to oversee the work, and also send groups to Hubei Province and other hard-hit regions to direct the work on the ground. On February 3 and 8, the 1000-bed Huoshenshan Hospital and 1500-bed Leishenshan Hospital were put into use respectively. Both of the makeshift hospitals were built in less than 10 days. With the rapid completion of another 16 temporary hospitals, the number of hospital beds in Wuhan rose from 5,000 to 23,000 in a few days. I: International cooperation. China is by no means alone in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. China received strong political support and assistance in various means from the governments and people around the world. By sharing the genome sequencing of the virus at the earliest opportunity as well as the control and treatment experience without reservation, China has won admiration and support from the international community. N: Nationwide efforts By fighting the pandemic with concerted efforts, Hubei and Wuhan, the hardest-hit areas in China, received full-scale support nationwide timely. 43,000 medical workers from over 340 medical teams had been dispatched from all across China to Hubei province, Wuhan in particular, since the outbreak. 4,000 military medics were quickly dispatched to Wuhan. Nineteen provinces paired up with the cities in Hubei to provide one-on-one support. A: All-society mobilization With the perseverance and devotion and in response to the governments call, the Chinese people stayed indoors, all wore masks, kept social distance and sacrificed their normal lives in order to contain the spread of the virus. The outbreak of the pandemic in China has been effectively controlled in less than three months, behind which are the efforts of everyone in the whole society. Major infectious disease is the enemy of all. For now, the COVID-19 outbreak is spreading worldwide, posing enormous threat to life and health. It is imperative for the international community to strengthen confidence, act with unity and work together in a collective response. Manjeet Singh Riyat, an emergency medicine consultant who was hugely respected and much loved by colleagues and patients in Derbyshire, died on Monday after being infected by coronavirus, making him the latest Indian-origin medical professional to fall victim to the virus. Riyat, who got his medical qualifications from the University of Leicester in 1992, was the first Sikh accident and emergency consultant in the National Health Service, and was instrumental in building the emergency medicine service in Derbyshire, his hospital trust said. Gavin Boyle, chief executive of the hospital, said: I want to pay tribute to Mr Manjeet Riyat, who has sadly passed awayHe was an incredibly charming person and he was loved. Manjeet knew so many people here in the hospital, we will all miss him immensely. Riyats colleague, Susie Hewitt, said: In 2003, Manjeet became one of four consultants in Emergency Medicine at the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary...Manjeet was enormously valued and much loved as a colleague, supervisor and mentor. Manjeets passion for teaching and contribution to medical education were constant during his careerhe had many skills, but was most comfortable as an emergency medicine consultant, she added. Riyat has left behind his wife and two sons. Earlier this month, cardio-thoracic surgeon Jitendra Kumar Rathod, who gained his qualifications in India and moved to the UK, passed away in Wales. The Cardiff and Vale University Health Board described him as a greatly respected doctor and colleague. Britains health officials have paid tributes to other Indian-origin medical professionals who passed away in recent days, including Jitendra Kumar Rathod, Vivek Sharma, Rajesh Kalraiya, Krishan Arora, Amrik Bamotra, Sophie Fagan and Pooja Sharma. Initial hospital data suggests that minority non-white people in the UK constitute 35 per cent among those in critical care hospitals, prompting an inquiry. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON 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 YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Finance informs that a total of 972 million and 801 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 3819 payments were made since. Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Singapore Mon, April 20, 2020 09:25 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2eb891 2 Business oil-price,West-Texas-Intermediate,Brent,OPEC,Saudi-Arabia,Russia,COVID-19,coronavirus Free United States crude crashed to below US$15 a barrel on Monday, its lowest level for over two decades, as concerns about a virus-triggered demand shock and lack of storage eclipsed an output cut deal. West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US benchmark, fell more than 19 percent to $14.73 a barrel in early Asian trade, before markets steadied and it clawed back some ground to $15.78 a barrel. International benchmark Brent dropped 4.1 percent to $26.93 a barrel, before rising and stabilizing at $28.11. Oil markets have plunged in recent weeks as lockdowns and travel restrictions to fight the coronavirus around the world batter demand for the commodity. The crisis was compounded after Saudi Arabia, kingpin of exporting group OPEC, launched a price war with non-OPEC member Russia. Riyadh and Moscow drew a line under their dispute earlier this month when they and other countries agreed to cut output by almost 10 million barrels a day to boost virus-hit markets. But prices have continued to fall heavily, with analysts saying the cuts will not be enough to make up for massive falls in demand caused by the pandemic. WTI was hit particularly hard on Monday as analysts said there were concerns that its main storage facilities in the United States were filling up. Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist with CMC Markets, said the plunge in WTI "reflects a glut" at the US facility in Cushing, Oklahoma. The benchmark has now "decoupled" from Brent "with the spread between the two reaching a decade high", he said in a note. ANZ added in a note that "crude oil prices remained under pressure, as projections of weaker demand weigh on sentiment". "Despite the OPEC+ alliance agreeing to an unprecedented cut in output, the physical market is awash with oil," it said, referring to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and non-OPEC partners. "Concern continues to mount that storage facilities in the US will run out of capacity." The US Energy Information Administration said crude inventories in the world's biggest economy rose by 19.25 million barrels last week, adding to the woes of the oversupplied world market. When will our intolerance for despotism go viral? By Greg Strange Do you ever feel like youre living in some kind of alternate reality? How could you not? The United States of America, the most powerful and dynamic country in world history, along with most Western countries, is almost totally shut down because of . . . a virus! Thats right, the country is not shut down because of, say, a foreign invasion, or a large-scale terrorist attack, or an electromagnetic pulse attack. Nor is it shut down because of an asteroid strike, or the eruption of a supervolcano, or even a swarm of anthropogenic global warming-induced hurricanes. No, its shut down because of a virus which almost exclusively kills only the elderly and/or those whose health is already seriously compromised. So, its sort of like with the flu, except somewhat worse. But it is not the bubonic plague or some other killer disease which, if contracted, will almost certainly terminate you. The overwhelming majority will survive just fine and many wont even know they have it. But because of this coronavirus, the greatest country on earth is closed until further notice. If you are not among the zombies who have unquestioningly gone along with all of this, you had to know from the get-go, at least intuitively if not intellectually, that such a shutdown was inconceivable and would only result in a catastrophe far worse than the virus itself. While we are encouraged by overweening authorities to snitch on each other for not adhering to the endless and sometimes ludicrous rules designed to keep us all apart, economic ruination is waiting in the wings to potentially finish off the great American experiment. Then, its Katy bar the door from the leftist authoritarians who will want to save us with socialist solutions. Bolstering the commonsensical notion that the national shutdown was a worse idea than New Coke, a study out of Stanford suggests that far more people may have had the virus than previously thought, which if true, indicates that it is also far less deadly than previously thought. And that would call into question the wisdom of a national shutdown which is going to have its own catastrophic effects which could take years or even decades to get over. Look, if the one and only singular thing that matters is the immediate and near-term death toll, then the shutdown was probably a good idea. But, if any and everything else also matters, then it was possibly the worst idea in history (with the possible exception of Marxism, which, bizarrely, refuses to die). It all begs the question: What kind of an America would shut itself down over a mostly nonlethal virus? And the answer is, an America whose citizenry is so degraded and soft that it would be utterly unrecognizable to the generation of our grandparents. There can be no doubt that widespread affluence and comfort, combined with decades of leftist indoctrination, has brought us to this point. We used to be a mostly hardy people who accepted the difficult vicissitudes of life without undue complaint. But we went from God, guns and guts to nanny state entitlements, therapeutic mollycoddling and everybody gets a participation trophy. Try taming a continent that way! The only things getting pioneered now are previously unheard of genders and new ways to crap on the Constitution and the wisdom of the Founders. So, what passes for leadership now is, for instance, the endlessly televised palaver of New York Governor Cuomo, who said that if everything we do saves just one life, Ill be happy. Really? It was all worth it for one life? If thats where were at, if our tolerance for risk and death is that low, then just go ahead and turn the whole country into one big thumb-sucking, college-style safe space and we can all curl up into the fetal position and cower in fear. And go ahead all you tinhorn, would-be despot governors and mayors. Wield power over us to your hearts content! We bow at your feet! What a pathetic fate for a once great nation. But there is some glimmer of hope as there is starting to be some pushback around the country. There were the recent protests in Michigan, for example, against the governor and her microscopically focused tyranny pertaining to virtually everything in life. Its not exactly heady, revolutionary stuff, but at least its something to indicate that our tolerance for petty authoritarianism has its limits. Even better, the state of Texas has announced it will be reopening for business, albeit in a gradual, carefully phased way, and with all the usual distancing protocols. Another good thing was that in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis recently began the process of slowly reopening some public spaces which included some, but not all, beaches. Even then, those beaches were open only during limited hours with all sorts of rules and prohibitions that were being enforced by police on site. But this lukewarm loosening of what amounts to house arrest for millions of Floridians wasnt viewed in a positive light by some. Take Lake Worth Beach City Commissioner, Omari Hardy, for instance. Appalled by the tiny allowance of freedom, he tweeted this: When a person in power doesnt believe in science, they do dumb things that hurt the public. Is this guy, this Omari, serious? Here are a few things that leftists who claim to "believe in science believe: that a man can become a woman; that a woman can become a man; that there are 57 or more genders; that life does not begin at conception; that fossil fuels can be replaced by windmills and solar panels; that college and healthcare can be free without bankrupting a country; that masculinity is inherently toxic; that whiteness is inherently toxic. So much for the credibility of those who believe in science. The Omaris of the country would keep you locked down and under the boot of government until science cures every conceivable ill if you let them. Untold damage has already been done to the economy and to our national psyche. If any semblance of our former greatness is going to be preserved, the country better be opened back up, and fast. And if the despot wannabes try to drag it out indefinitely, there better be a mass uprising, and fast. The clock is ticking on our economy, on our liberty, on our very viability as a civilization. Greg Strange can be reached at gpstrange30341@yahoo.com. (c) 2020 Greg Strange. Home 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 2.4 million Global deaths: More than 165,200 Most cases reported: United States (759,696), Spain (198,674), Italy (178,972), France (154,098), and Germany (145,742). The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University as of 3:40 p.m. Beijing time. All times below are in Beijing time. 6:07 pm: Putin is distancing himself from Russia's virus outbreak. But it could still damage him politically Russia's handling of the coronavirus epidemic is coming under increasing scrutiny and could potentially damage the credibility and legitimacy of President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin, experts say. Russia was arguably slow to recognize that the coronavirus epidemic was coming to the country, while it was spreading rapidly among its neighbors and the well-established outbreaks in Italy, Spain, Germany and France. On Sunday, Russia saw its largest daily rise in new confirmed cases, with its coronavirus crisis response center reporting 6,060 new cases, bringing the total number of cases to 42,853. The number of reported deaths remains low, however, with total fatalities at 361. Holly Ellyatt 5:37 pm: Spain's confirmed coronavirus cases surpass 200,000, health ministry says The number of people diagnosed with the coronavirus in Spain has now surpassed 200,000, the country's health ministry said on Monday. The ministry said the number of cases rose to 200,210 from 195,944 cases on Sunday. Meanwhile, the total number of deaths has now reached 20,852, up from 20,453 the previous day. Spain has overtaken Italy (that has 178,972 confirmed cases) as the worst-hit country in Europe, and second worst-hit country in the world after the U.S. (with almost 800,000 confirmed cases), according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Holly Ellyatt Health workers wearing protective face masks react during a tribute for their co-worker Esteban, a male nurse that died of the coronavirus disease, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, outside the Severo Ochoa Hospital in Leganes, Spain, April 13, 2020. Susana Vera | Reuters 4:30 pm: Austria calls for suspension of EU rules on state aid amid coronavirus crisis Austria has called for EU rules on state aid to be suspended for countries that have shown solidarity with hard-hit member states like Italy during the coronavirus pandemic, Austrian Finance Minister Gernot Bluemel said on Monday. "This solidarity cannot be a one-way street. We also want to be able to show solidarity with our own companies, and we therefore demand that this crisis be used for solidarity in that we suspend the EU state aid regime for the duration of the crisis," Bluemel told a news conference, Reuters reported. Holly Ellyatt 4:15 pm: Germany is vastly outspending other countries with its coronavirus stimulus Germany is spending much more than countries like the United States, on a relative basis, to mitigate the economic impact from the coronavirus, a data study has shown. The largest European economy has pledged a package which is worth more than half of its gross domestic product last year, and includes immediate fiscal stimulus, deferrals and other liquidity measures. In comparison, the fiscal plan in the United States is, so far, less than 15% of its GDP from 2019. Germany is going to need "as much support as possible" and it has "the fiscal space" to do it, Zsolt Darvas, a senior fellow at the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel and one of the authors of the data study, told CNBC Friday. Silvia Amaro 4:10 pm: Ex-Trump campaign aide Gates asks to serve sentence at home due to coronavirus concerns U.S. President Donald Trump's former deputy campaign chairman Rick Gates has asked to serve his remaining 45-day "intermittent" prison sentence from his home over concerns that he could contract the coronavirus, a court filing reported by Reuters showed. Gates is urging a modification to his probation condition as he fears that he could carry the virus home from the prison, posing a heightened risk to his wife, who is getting treated for cancer. "The gravity of the virus and its potential impact on Mrs. Gates are substantial," Thomas Green, lawyer for Gates said in a filing made on Sunday. Holly Ellyatt 3:30 pm: Coronavirus could push Americans to lobby for a social safety net like Europe's, experts say The coronavirus crisis could be the historical event that sparks a socially-conscious shift in Americans' political priorities, experts told CNBC. The United States has confirmed 759,696 cases of Covid-19 and over 40,000 deaths from the virus to date, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. New York state, which has had 238,831 cases of the coronavirus, now has a higher number of confirmed cases than any country in the world. Chloe Taylor 3:16 pm: Singapore reports more than 1,400 new cases in preliminary update Singapore's health ministry preliminarily confirmed that another 1,426 people tested positive for Covid-19 as of noon local time on Monday. Most of them are linked to infection clusters in dormitories that house foreign workers who are usually men from other Asian countries who carry out labor-intensive construction jobs. More details on the cases would be shared later in the day, according to the health ministry. A day earlier, the city-state had reported 596 new cases, which brought the total number of infections to over 6,000. (see 7:30 a.m. update) If Monday's preliminary numbers hold, Singapore's total cases would exceed 8,000. Saheli Roy Choudhury 2:46 pm: UK announced a $1.6 billion support package to help tech start-ups survive The U.K. government has announced a 1.25 billion ($1.6 billion) support package to help tech start-ups survive the pandemic. Start-ups across the country have been crying out for more financial support after rivals in France and Germany were given access to funds of 4 billion euros ($4.4 billion) and 2 billion euros respectively. Many young tech firms say they haven't been able to access emergency funds set aside for small businesses as the criteria for applying shuts off companies without a history of consistent profits. It's normal for venture capital-backed tech companies to prioritize growth over profitability, with a plan to make money further down the road. Visibly quiet at Piccadilly Circus during the Coronavirus outbreak on 12th March 2020 in London, United Kingdom. Claire Doherty | Getty Images The rescue plan, unveiled by British Finance Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday, is made up of two initiatives. The first is a 500 million "Future Fund" loan scheme for high-growth start-ups, which is aimed primarily at the nation's early-stage start-ups. The remaining 750 million is for small-and-medium-sized firms focusing on research and development. It will be issued as loans and grants by U.K. innovation agency Innovate UK. Sam Shead, Ryan Browne 2:07 pm: Tens of thousands of tulips razed at a Japanese park to prevent crowds Tens of thousands of tulips in full bloom were razed at the Sakura Furusato Square east of Tokyo to prevent crowds from gathering in the middle of the pandemic, the Associated Press reported. The 800,000 tulips have long been a centerpiece for an annual festival at the park in April that attracts about 100,000 people every year, the AP said. It was canceled when Japan declared a state of emergency earlier this month. Tulips were chopped down between April 14 and April 15, according to a city official overseeing the park, who described it as a "heart-wrenching decision," the AP reported. Japan has more than 10,700 confirmed cases of infection and at least 236 people have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Saheli Roy Choudhury 1:29 pm: New Zealand set to ease lockdown restrictions next week New Zealand will move out of its level 4 lockdown at 11:59 p.m. local time on Monday, April 27, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. An alert level 4 means residents are required to stay indoors unless they're providing essential services; all nonessential businesses and public gathering places, including bars and restaurants, are closed and social gatherings are not permitted. The country will stay at alert level 3 for two additional weeks starting April 28 before the government reviews the infection's spread and further decisions to either ease or tighten restrictions are set to come on May 11. In alert level 3, most businesses can start to open but they have to take additional health precautions to keep workers safe. "Those two weeks gives us another cycle of transmission to assess how we are doing. From there, we will move if we can and if we're ready. But only when we're ready, and only when it's safe," Ardern said. New Zealand has 1,440 confirmed and probable cases as of 9 a.m. local time on April 20, and 12 people have died so far, according to the health ministry. Saheli Roy Choudhury 12:50pm: Germany reports 1,775 new infections and 110 deaths Germany on Monday reported 1,775 new cases of the coronavirus, according to the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases. That brought the total of confirmed cases in the country to 141,672. There were 110 deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 4,404. Huileng Tan 12:30 pm: Southeast Asia could be the next coronavirus hot spot The number of coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia has risen quickly in recent weeks, with mounting worries among experts that the region could turn into a hot spot for the fast-spreading disease. The region as a whole has reported more than 28,000 cases as of Sunday, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. Collectively, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore account for 87.9% of total cases reported in Southeast Asia, the data showed. While the region's tally is still far off the hundreds of thousands seen in the U.S. and some European nations, several studies suggest that tens of thousands more infections could be undetected due to the low testing rate in countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines. Meanwhile, in Singapore, cases have spiked dramatically in the last two weeks, with new clusters of infections found among migrant workers living in packed dormitories. Yen Nee Lee 11.45 am: South Korea reports fewer than 20 cases for the third straight day South Korea on Monday reported 13 new cases of the coronavirus the third straight day the country posted fewer than 20 cases of new infections. That brings the country's total infections to 10,674, said the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Sunday, South Korea reported eight new cases of the coronavirus the first time in two months that the country reported single-digit figures. South Korea is one of the hardest hit Asian countries in the pandemic, but has been praised for its efforts to reduce the spread of infection by mass testing its people and adopting strict measures to quarantine and track those who affected. Huileng Tan 10:40 am: Jobs lost to coronavirus could be slow to return, says S&P Unemployment rates in Asia-Pacific could surge by well over 3 percentage points more than twice in an average recession as social distancing measures hit job creation, says S&P Global Ratings in a report published on Monday. "Surging unemployment in Asia-Pacific would mean a shallower recovery once the pandemic is contained and, in some economies, credit stress for leveraged households," said Shaun Roache, Asia-Pacific chief economist at S&P Global Ratings. "Historical data show that jobs lost are not easily won back." The service sector is the most important employer in Asia-Pacific, accounting for 55 in 100 jobs, according to S&P. Many of the new service sector jobs have been created by small- and mid-sized enterprises and they usually have fewer resources to draw on to weather a sudden economic stop, said S&P. Access to finance in particular, is a constant challenge and likely to worsen due to economic uncertainty. "As revenues collapse, to stay alive, these firms will be forced to cut whatever expenses they can. In many cases, their largest expense will be the wage bill," said S&P. Even if workers do hang onto their jobs, they may suffer a cut in their hours and wages, added the ratings agency. Huileng Tan 10:15 am: Farmers could be winners as coffee prices spike and countries hoard during the pandemic Fears over disruptions to supply chains amid the pandemic have led to some degree of hoarding among countries and consumers that's given coffee prices a much-needed boost. A farmer picks coffee beans during harvest time at Karo in North Sumatra, Indonesia, on March 29, 2020. Jefta Images | Barcroft Media via Getty Images It's good news for farmers in key coffee-producing regions, who have been struggling as coffee prices have been slumping in recent years. Since 2016, prices have dropped 30% below the average for the past decade, according to the International Coffee Organization. But prices of Arabica, the world's most commonly produced coffee, rose last month due to concerns over its availability, said the ICO. Weizhen Tan 9:29 am: European CDC says continent has more than 1 million cases The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said there were more than a million confirmed cases of infection in continental Europe as of April 19, with Spain being the worst affected country. That data also included the United Kingdom. The death toll in Europe surpassed 100,000 after the U.K. reported an additional 596 fatalities as of 5 p.m. local time on April 18. Saheli Roy Choudhury 9:03 am: French prime minister warns people need to 'learn to live with the virus' France's Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday that people will need to "learn to live with the virus" after the country lifts its lockdown on May 11, the Associated Press reported. People would likely be required to wear face masks when taking public transport, while those who can work from home should continue to do so, according to Philippe, the AP said, adding that the prime minister warned the economic crisis "will be brutal." France is one of several European countries that has been hit hard by the pandemic, with the total number of cases at more than 154,000 and over 19,700 people have died, data from Johns Hopkins University shows. Saheli Roy Choudhury 8:39 am: China reports 12 new cases, says no additional deaths China's National Health Commission said there were 12 new cases of infection, with eight of them attributed to travelers from overseas. No new deaths were reported but there were 49 additional cases of asymptomatic infection, where a person tested positive for the virus but did not show any of the usual symptoms associated with the illness. There were at least 82,747 cases of infection on the Chinese mainland since the outbreak was first reported in the Hubei province late last year. While China says most of them have been cured, around 4,632 people have died. The death toll climbed last week after Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, revised its figures that raised the death toll by 50%. Saheli Roy Choudhury 7:30 am: Singapore reports 596 new cases, pushing total numbers to over 6,000 Singapore reported 596 new cases of Covid-19 as of noon local time on April 19. Most of them are linked to infection clusters in dormitories that house foreign workers typically men from other Asian countries who carry out labor-intensive construction jobs to support their families back home. General view of the Toh Guan Dormitory, a purpose-built migrant workers dormitory that has been gazetted as an isolation area on April 19, 2020 in Singapore. Ore Huiying | Getty Images Sunday's numbers brought the total cases in the city-state to 6,588, a sharp spike in infections from early March as more people, particularly those living in dormitories, have been tested in recent weeks. Almost all nonessential services in Singapore are temporarily closed while residents have been told to venture outside only for essential tasks, such as buying groceries. The health ministry said 768 people have fully recovered from the infection and have been discharged from hospitals and community isolation facilities while 11 patients have died to-date. Saheli Roy Choudhury 7:24 am: Global reported cases over 2.39 million, death toll rises to more than 164,000 The total number of infections worldwide has risen to 2,394,291 and at least 164,938 people have died from the disease, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University. The United States has most number of reported infections, with 755,533 cases in the country, Hopkins data showed. Spain, Italy, France, and Germany have each reported more than 145,000 cases each. Cases in the United Kingdom climbed to over 121,000 according to Hopkins, and more than 16,000 people there have died. India, which is in an extended period of lockdown until May 3, has reported more than 17,600 cases and 559 deaths, Hopkins data showed. Saheli Roy Choudhury All times below are in Eastern time. 6:31 pm: US tops more than 750,000 cases as Trump says he will use DPA to increase medical swabs The total number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. is currently at 755,533, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The virus has now killed more than 40,000 people in the U.S., nearly a quarter of all deaths from Covid-19 across the globe, according to JHU data. New York, the current epicenter of the outbreak in the U.S., is recording over 500 deaths a day. President Donald Trump said at a press conference that his administration is looking at helping rural hospitals which have been hurt very badly. He also said he was going to use the Defense Production Act to increase swab production at one facility amid coronavirus testing shortage. The president's announcement comes after governors demanded federal help to ramp up testing across the U.S. Riya Bhattacharjee, Noah Higgins-Dunn 4:24 pm: United selling and leasing back 22 planes in bid to conserve cash during coronavirus pandemic Bandsmen and Orange Order members take part in an Orange Order parade in Belfast, as part of the annual Twelfth of July celebrations, marking the victory of King William IIIs victory over James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The Orange Order has purchased an order of PPE to distribute to healthcare workers battling coronavirus around the island of Ireland. The Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland described the consignment as very significant and said it included tens of thousands of masks and aprons and a large volume of hand sanitiser. The institution said it would be divided among its 12 county grand lodges on the island for distribution through 108 district lodges. The Orange Institution has purchased a shipment of PPE and will be distributing a significant amount of hand sanitiser, protective masks and aprons. https://t.co/yAiB0dUlks Orange Order (@OrangeOrder) April 20, 2020 Grand Master of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland Edward Stevenson said: It is our hope that this shipment of personal protective equipment (PPE) will make a real difference to local doctors and nurses, who are at the front line of helping to fight Covid-19, and those providing care and essential services in the community. So much has been reported about the pressure on PPE supplies that we felt it was appropriate that the Orange Institution should try to assist in a practical way. Once a supplier had been sourced, an order was placed, and we were delighted to see it arrive in Northern Ireland. This shipment of products, which includes masks, aprons and hand sanitiser, will be distributed as widely as possible by our membership, many of whom have already been very active themselves in raising money, sharing much-needed supplies and helping older people in their own communities. The Grand Lodge said some local lodges had already undertaken their own initiatives to secure PPE. Expand Close Edward Stevenson (Brian Lawless/PA). PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Edward Stevenson (Brian Lawless/PA). The Orange Order has cancelled its traditional Twelfth of July parades due to the coronavirus outbreak. The abundance of good work being done by lodges and the wider Orange family for the good of the entire community illustrates that there is more to Orangeism than just our annual parades, said Mr Stevenson. The current crisis has highlighted the charitable, benevolent and fraternal elements of the Order which, although always important, are often unseen. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to all key workers who are working so hard to tackle this dreadful disease. It enormously heartening to see the support they are being shown each Thursday evening and I commend everyone who is clapping, playing instruments or doing anything to show their appreciation to the NHS and its staff. While we look forward to the days when we can get out and about again, it is most important that everyone continues to adhere to the Government guidelines in relation to staying at home and, if you must go out, respect the social distancing advice. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with all those affected by Covid-19 and the health professionals as they work to tackle this awful virus. But for all the scientific firepower, theres a hitch. In Maryland and elsewhere, there arent enough basic cotton swabs to take samples from peoples noses and throats. The lack of these supplies may already be limiting the number of tests performed at other labs in Maryland, including one at Johns Hopkins Hospital, and across the country. Independent operations and engineering services company Offshore Design Engineering (ODE) has been awarded a new contract with GASSCO AS to work on the findings of its gas terminals review. The project is the latest in a three-year relationship between London-headquartered ODE and Norwegian operator GASSCO, which is responsible for safe and efficient gas transportation from the Norwegian Continental Shelf to mainland Europe and the UK. GASSCOs infrastructure includes export processing plants, gas receiving terminals and an 8,300km network of pipelines and offshore platforms. A company with an exemplary record in safety performance, GASSCO undertook Barrier Integrity Reviews (BIR) across all its European gas terminals to assess existing facility conditions against its high performance standards. The contract will see ODE work with GASSCO to align solutions and co-ordinate implementation plans based on these initial reviews, and is scheduled to last approximately nine months. Despite the current Covid-19 pandemic impacting operations around the world, ODEs work for GASSCO will commence immediately, with the project being initiated and coordinated while remote working is in effect for ODE employees. With offices in London, Aberdeen and Great Yarmouth, ODE supplies a range of services, including engineering and asset management, to oil and gas and renewables companies around the world. A frame agreement has seen the company provide engineering support to GASSCO since 2017. ODE Project Manager Chris Lomax said: This key contract award is a great opportunity for ODE to once again support and build on our relationship with GASSCO. I am delighted our technical capabilities, asset familiarity, and track record played a part in us securing this latest phase of work with a valued client. The contract demonstrates our clients continued trust and faith in us, our technical skills, and our ability to successfully deliver and complete critical projects to the highest possible standard. GASSCO Project Manager Dag Olav Saeverud said: ODE has been awarded a technical service contract, and this reflects our past working experiences, the companys knowledge of our assets, and its capabilities to meet our expectations. -- Tradearabia News Service When I met Elizabeth Matus at the end of February, she wondered if it was safe to walk alone at night in Oakland. Thats because five months before our meeting, Matus was robbed at gunpoint as she walked home from a friends house. The four-block walk was something shed done regularly. But since the coronavirus stopped Bay Area life in its tracks, Matus hasnt had to worry about walking home after dark. I just havent gone out at night, because theres nowhere to go, she said when we talked last week. A lot of my walking would be walking home after a party, and thats just not happening. Because of the coronavirus, people have mostly stopped partying. And with businesses shuttered and people forced to stay inside, robberies and property crimes have taken a nose dive. But that doesnt mean there are no robberies. Although there is a stay in place order, people have to go out to shop for food and supplies, Lt. Steven Nowak of the Oakland Police Department told me in an email last week. Some have to go to work and some were robbed just going to their vehicles near their home or work. Before six Bay Area counties announced stay-home orders on March 16, Id been tracking robberies in Oakland because the city had a 7% increase in 2019 from 2,588 robberies in 2018 to 2,776 last year. Its not just the increase that was alarming. The way crews are stalking Oaklands streets is just as alarming. They work methodically, taking their time and even making small talk with victims like Matus. The week after the stay-home order, year-to-date robberies were still up 6%, according to police data. But three weeks later, robberies have plummeted. From April 6 to 12, there were 42 robberies, bringing this years total to 734. Thats just 1% more than this time last year, and robberies with firearms have fallen 14%. While auto burglaries are up 3%, overall burglaries are down 1% from last year. And get this: Residential burglary has dropped a whopping 25% from last years pace. If youre reading this at home, Im sure you can guess why. Daniel Nagin, a professor of public policy and statistics at Carnegie Mellon Universitys Heinz College, is studying the impact of the coronavirus on crime and incarceration. Any reduction in crime, he said, could be wiped out once people, including thieves, return to their routines. Its possible because of economic desperation that the short-term reduction might reverse itself, he said. In March, 40 robberies and 86 burglaries were solved, according to police. Matus case remains unsolved. She was about a block from home when she stepped off the curb onto Adeline Street on Sept. 28 just after midnight. A car stopped in front of her, and a man opened the front passenger door. He pointed a gun at her. As Matus took her backpack off, he rummaged her pockets. He took an iPhone and then complained about how old it was. He walked back to the car and brazenly sat in the passenger seat with the door open. Matus, a research coordinator at UCSF and a nursing student, asked if she could grab paperwork in the bag. He said no and closed the door. The pair drove away and ditched the bag. Police returned it the next day. It was so professionally executed, Matus, 28, recalled. It was a really bizarre interaction. It was very transactional. Nowak, the commander of Oaklands robbery unit, said that laptops and cell phones, even if they cant be unlocked, are valuable because the devices can be stripped for parts. Just about everyone has a phone, which means anyone walking alone at night is a potential target. 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. Especially in downtown areas where people are just driving around and theyre looking for an opportunity, Nowak said. Its not just two guys doing it. Its multiple crews or groups of people doing that, because its so easy. Volkan Topalli, a Georgia State University criminal justice professor, said robbers may be emboldened because there are fewer people on the streets now. Fewer people means fewer potential witnesses. This is actually a good time to be engaging in interpersonal crime, because that surveillance capability has been severely reduced by the fact that lots and lots of people are in their homes rather than being outside, he said. I reached out to Topalli, because Im curious about why people steal. Is it because of a drug addiction, financial stress or, simply, because it can be lucrative? Topallis researched robberies for more than two decades, interviewing people in Atlanta, New Orleans and St. Louis who admitted actively committing robberies. No, he doesnt watch them steal, but he does pay them for their time. Most of them once theyve gotten into that life, its very difficult to get out because they usually accrue a certain number of arrests, he said. It makes it difficult to get a job. You cant get a job, you got to get money. The best way is to rob somebody. I wonder, will property crimes spike once our home confinement ends? If there was gonna be a spike, it might not be in robbery, but it could be something like burglary, Topalli said. Right now, burglary is really tough to do because everyones home all the time. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Otis R. Taylor Jr. appears Mondays and Thursdays. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr Coronavirus Lockdown relaxation Latest News: According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases now stand at 17,656 including 14,255 active cases and 559 deaths. Ministry data further shows that a total of 2,841 people have recovered so far in the country. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Monday that the state government has allowed some industrial activity in the green and orange COVID-19 zones. He added that only those industries that can provide accommodation to their workers during the lockdown period will be given food grain supply and will be permitted for raw material from the state. He further said all districts will remain sealed and only essential services movement will be permitted. Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in India with total number of confirmed coronavirus cases at 4,203 with the death toll at 223. India reported 1,553 fresh COVID-19 cases and 36 new deaths in the last 24 hours, the Health Ministry said in its daily briefing on coronavirus on Monday. On Sunday, 31 new deaths were reported in India. Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in the country with the highest death toll at 223, followed by Madhya Pradesh (70), Gujarat (63), Delhi (45) and Telangana (18). Meanwhile, Delhi is the second worst-affected state in terms of number of COVID-19 cases after Maharashtra with 2,003 cases, followed by Gujarat (1,743), Madhya Pradesh (1,407) and Tamil Nadu (1,477). Meanwhile, the global death toll due to novel coronavirus has surpassed 1,65,000 with around 40,000 dead in the United States itself. Nearly 24 lakh people have been infected of the virus worldwide with the highest number of cases being reported in the US. Italy's death toll is past 23,000-mark, followed by Spain. The death toll in France is also nearing the 20,000 mark. Also Read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs Also Read: Coronavirus in India: COVID-19 cases crosses 14,000; check state-wise cases, deaths, list of testing facilities Follow BusinessToday.In for all live updates on coronavirus: 10.41 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi Delhi has reported 78 new COVID-19 cases and 2 more deaths in the past 24 hours, confirmed Delhi Health Department. This takes the total number of cases in te national capital to 2,081 and death toll to 47. There are 1,603 active cases in the cityy, whereas 431 have been cured and discharged. 10.06 pm: Coronavirus in Maharashtra Maharashtra government has allowed liquor shops in the state to function during coronavirus lockdown. State Health Minister, however, emphasised that social distancing measures will have to followed at liquor shops after they are opened. 9.29 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi First COVID-19 patient in Delhi to receive plasma therapy has shown improvement, reported news agency ANI. The treatment was administered on April 14 on request from his family members after he showed no improvement. After receiving fresh plasma, he showed progressive improvement, and was weaned off the ventilator on fourth day, April 18. 9.23 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi: 5 new containment zones demarcated Delhi government has classified five new areas as containment zones, taking the number of such regions to 84. The highest number of containment zones falls in the West Delhi district 9.06 pm: Coronavirus news: Mamata asks Centre to explain deploying inter-ministerial teams across India West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has asked Centre to explain why Inter Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) are being deployed in certain districts across India. In a tweet, Mamata said that while Centre's support and suggestions in controlling coronavirus are welcome, the criterion for deploying ICMTs is not clear. "I urge both Honb'le Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," the West Bengal CM wrote in a tweet. I urge both Honble Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism. (2/2) Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 20, 2020 8.50 pm: Coronavirus news: Turkish govt pays 60% of salaries for 3 months Turkish government is paying 60 per cent of salaries and wages to all establishments for 3 months as part of a stimulus package amid the coronavirus crisis. The remaining 40 per cent is not obligatory and decision to pay it has been left to the employers. 8.45 pm: Delhi Police uses drones to monitor Chandni Mahal area, which has been declared a containment zone #WATCH Delhi: Drones are being used for surveillance by Police in #COVID19 hotspot, Chandni Mahal area which has been declared a 'containment zone'. (Video source: Delhi Police) Till now 8 police personnel from Chandni Mahal Police Station have tested positive for COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/WAWK3AlgPv ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 8.41 pm: Coronavirus in Uttarakhand Uttarakhand reported 2 new COVID-19 cases by 6 pm today, taking the total number of cases in the state to 46. Both cases came from Dehradun, State Health Department confirmed. 8.28 pm: Coronavirus in Maharashtra Maharashtra Health Department confirmed 466 new COVID-19 cases and 9 deaths in the state till 6 PM today, taking total number of cases to 4,666 and deaths to 232. With 65 patients being discharged from hospitals today, total number of cured patients in Maharashtra stands at 572. 8.16 pm: Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh has reported 84 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total tally in the state to 1,184. UP currently has 1,026 active coronavirus cases, whereas 140 patients have been cured and discharged so far. The state has reported 18 deaths due to the contagion, including 6 deaths in Agra, 3 each in Meerut and Moradabad, and 1 each in Basti, Varanasi, Bulandshahar, Kanpur, Lucknow, and Firozabad. 7.31 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi Ayuhsman Bharat office in New Delhi's Connaught Place has been sealed and 25 employees have been sent to quarantine after one staff was tested positive for coronavirus. The office was sealed five days ago and will be opened on April 24. 7.28 pm: Coronavirus inn Maharashtra Thirty new cases of novel coronavirus have been identified in Mumbai's Dharavi area, informed Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. This take the total COVID-19 cases in the region to 168, including 11 deaths. 7.24 pm: Coronavirus in Kerala Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the state is following the lockdown guidelines laid down by the Centre. Barber shops will not be opened and restaurants will only provide online delivery, he further added. 7.11 pm: Coronavirus in India: Make sanitisers, masks GST free, urges Rahul Gandhi Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has asked government to make all equipments needed for fighting coronavirus, including sanitisers, hand wash and mask, GST free. #Covid19 - GST , , , GST #GSTFreeCorona pic.twitter.com/iXLkw7lMxM Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 20, 2020 6.54 pm: Coronavirus in Maharashtra Two employees of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have tested positive for novel coronavirus. They were posted in disaster management department of BMC. 6.45 pm: Check India Coronavirus Tracker by BusinessToday.In for state-wise tally of COVID-19 cases INDIA CORONAVIRUS TRACKER: BusinessToday.In brings you a daily tracker as coronavirus cases continue to spread. Here is the state-wise data on total cases, fatalities and recoveries in one comprehensive graphic 6.23 pm: Coronavirus updates: Arunachal Pradesh disburses Rs 5.20 crore financial assiatance Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu announced that Rs 5.20 crore have been released for 14,859 Arunachalis stranded outside the state. Each beneficiary will get Rs 3,500 as one time financial assistance, he further added. 6.21 pm: Coronavirus in Jharkhand One more case of COVID-19 has emerged in Bokaroo district of Jharkhand, taking the total tally in the state to 42. 6.18 pm: Punjab reports single COVID-19 case on Monday Punjab Health Department informed that only one person hhas tested positive for COVID-19 case in the state today. The latest patient was in contact with one of the previous patients. 6.09 pm: Coronavirus lockdown: FM Sitharama attends NDB board meet via video conferencing Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attended the fifth annual meeting of Board of Governors of New Development Bank (NDB) via video conferencing. Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman attended the 5th Annual Meeting of Board of Governors of New Development Bank (NDB) through video conference in New Delhi today.@nsitharamanoffc@PIB_India@DDNewslive@airnewsalertspic.twitter.com/vzauYewQM9 Ministry of Finance #StayHome #StaySafe (@FinMinIndia) April 20, 2020 6.03 pm: Coronavirus news: Afghan Prez Ashraf Ghani thanks PM Modi for supplying HCQ tablets, other medicines Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has thanked PM Narendra Modi for supply of 500,000 Hydroxychloroquine tablets,100,000 paracetamol tablets, and 7,500 metric tonnes of wheat from India. 5.52 pm: Coronavirus updates: COVID-19 cases rise to 17,656; death toll reaches 559 According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, by 5pm on April 20, the total number of coronavirus cases in India increased to 17,656. This includes 14,255 active cases, 559 deaths, 2,841 cured patients and one patient who has migrated. 5.49 pm: Coronavirus in Mumbai 53 journalists, including reporters, camerapersons and photojournalists, have tested positive for novel coronavirus. Most of the journalists who tested positive were asymptomatic. 5.33 pm: Coronavirus in Karnataka Karnataka reported 18 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking the total tally to 480, according to State Health Department. So far, Karnataka has seen 16 COVID-19 deaths, whereas 112 patients have been discharged. 5.30 pm: India lockdown news: President Kovind thanks NGOs, social workers, religious, charitable organisations for helping in fighting COVID-19 President Ram Nath Kovind took to Twitter on Monday to than the citizens of the country, NGOs, social workers, religious and charitable organisations, Red Cross and many others who are helping in the fight against coronavirus pandemic. "I commend their spirit. I am confident of their sustained contribution in ensuring victory against Covid-19," he tweeted. I must thank all our fellow citizens, NGOs, social workers, religious and charitable organisations, Red Cross and many others who are serving the nation in different ways. I commend their spirit. I am confident of their sustained contribution in ensuring victory against COVID-19. - President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) April 20, 2020 5.25 pm: Lockdown in Haryana news: 1 COVID-19 positive case reported Pataudi in Haryana reported a fresh coronavirus case on Monday. 21 family members of the COVID-19 postive patient have been isolated. 5.23 pm: Tamil Nadu coronavirus lockdown updates 10th standard exams postponed in the state. Tamil Nadu Education Minister K Sengottaiyan said on Monday that the dates and schedule of the exams will be announced after the lockdown ends. Meanwhile, students up to class 9th have been promoted without annual exams in the state. 5.19 pm: Delhi lockdown relaxation news Azadpur Mandi will remain open for 24 hours from Tuesday. Fruits and vegetables will be sold from 6 am till 10 pm, while the truck movement will be permitted from 10 pm to 6 am in and out of the market. Entry of 1,000 people will be allowed every 4 hours. 5.14 pm: Coronavirus India lockdown news Railways distributed over 20 lakh free meals across the country during lockdown 2.0 Service in Times of COVID-19: Following PM @NarendraModi ji's principles, Railways has taken steps to ensure welfare & good health of the people. Safeguarding the needy, Railways has distributed more than 20 lakh free meals across India during lockdown https://t.co/mXihFV03tOpic.twitter.com/wSobQb0g9g - Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) April 20, 2020 5.09 pm: Lockdown in J&K news: 14 new cases reported in Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir reported 14 fresh COVID-19 cases on Monday taking the total count to 368 in the union territory. Out of these, Jammu has 55 cases and Kashmir includes 313 coronavirus cases. 4.59 pm: Lockdown relaxation in Maharashtra: Govt allows some industrial active in green and orange coronavirus zones Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Monday that the state government has allowed some industrial activity in the green and orange COVID-19 zones. He added that only those industries that can provide accommodation to their workers during the lockdown period will be given food grain supply and will be permitted for raw material from the state. He further said all districts will remain sealed and only essential services movement will be permitted. Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in India with total number of confirmed coronavirus cases at 4,203 with the death toll at 223. 4.51 pm: Lockdown in Kerala news Lockdown in Kerala's Ernakulam district will continue till April 24. Police will take action against the violators of the regulations. Also, travel to and from the hotspots will not be permitted. 4.47 pm: Coronavirus in Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1 more person was tested COVID-19 positive in Andaman on Monday, said Chetan Sanghi, Chief Secretary, Andaman and Nicobar Islands adding that the person came in contact with one of the 4 coronavirus positive cases in Andaman and Nicobar. The total count of positive cases now stands at 5. 4.44 pm: Odisha coronavirus updates 10 people, from Bhadrak and Jaipur districts, with travel history to West Bengal have been tested COVID-19 positive in the past 24 hours. Odisha health department has appealed to all those with travel history to West Bengal in the past 24 hours to inform the local Sarpanch, BDO/Tahasildar and isolate themselves at home. 4.37 pm: Uttar Pradesh lockdown latest news COVID-19 count in UP reaches 1,030, said the state government during a presser on Monday adding that if any district doesn't report even a single positive coronavirus case for 28 days, then it will be declared a green zone. 4.32 pm: Uttarakhand Lockdown relaxation news Badrinath temple will open on May 15 at 4:30 pm, said Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat said on Monday. 4.28 pm: Coronavirus news India We are giving additional RT-PCR kits to West Bengal, says Indian Council of Medical Research adding that RT-PCR is a confirmatory test for COVID-19. Disparity between RT-PCR and Anti-body test is natural. 4.25 pm: Health Ministry COVID-19 daily briefing news No coronavirus cases in 59 districts in last 14 days, says Health Ministry. 4.23 pm: Goa coronavirus latest news Health Ministry said in its routine briefing on COVID-19 on Monday that Goa has not coronavirus positive case so far. 4.18 pm: Coronavirus in India news COVID-19 cases' doubling rate in India has improved to 7.5 days, says Health Ministry. 4.14 pm: Coronavirus cases live updates 1,553 fresh COVID-19 cases, 36 new deaths in last 24 hours. 2,546 people recovered so far: Health Ministry 4.11 pm: India lockdown news 6 inter-ministrial committees formed to review coronavirus hotbeds, says Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry. 4.09 pm: Home Ministry on coronavirus outbreak Strict actions being taken aginast lockdown violations, govt monitoring lockdown situation in India, the Home Ministry said in its daily briefing on COVID-19. 4.05 pm: Govt begins daily briefing on coronavirus outbreak The government in its routine briefing on COVID-19 said on Monday that funds have been given to farmers under PM KISAN Yojanaadding that relaxations have been given for farming activities. 4.00 pm: Tamil Nadu lockdown relaxation rules Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) chief Vijayakanth said in a statement on Monday that a part of Andal Azhagar college owned by them will be given for the burial of people who die of coronavirus. Earlier, DMDK had offered its college campus and a part of party office as quarantine facilities for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. 3.45 pm: Coronavirus India updates: Markaz chief releases audio, urges Muslims to do Ibadat for Ramzan from homes Markaz chief Maulana Saad has released another audio message urging Muslims to do Ibadat for Ramzan from their houses while referring to coronavirus as an "illness sent by Khuda". He said in his audio message that the Muslims do not need to go to Masjids for the special prayers of Ramzan. He also urged them to help the administration to enforce lockdown. 3.30 pm: Uttar Pradesh coronavirus news UP CM Yogi Adityanath won't attend his father's funeral to prevent any chances of COVID-19 spreading. His father who was 89-year-old died on Monday morning. 3.15 PM: Congress has submitted a detailed plan for revival of MSMEs, crop procurement and migrant problems to Centre within 1-2 days. "Centre was busy destabilising MP govt, and was caught napping instead of preparing to manage COVID-19 pandemic," says Congress leader Jairam Ramesh. 3.10 PM: IMA demands safe workplaces Our legitimate needs for safe workplaces have to be met. Abuse and violence should stop immediately. White Alert to the nation - All doctors and hospitals to light a candle at 9pm on 22 April, as protest and vigil: Indian Medical Association. Our legitimate needs for safe workplaces have to be met. Abuse and violence should stop immediately. White Alert to the nation - All doctors and hospitals to light a candle at 9pm on 22 April, as protest and vigil: Indian Medical Association. #COVID19pic.twitter.com/GYXByQcoWv ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 2.58 PM: All personnel in the Indian Army will be classified as Green (who have completed 14 days quarantine period), yellow (who need to undergo 14 days quarantine period) and red (symptomatic requiring isolation and further treatment in COVID-19 hospital), says the Indian Army. 2.50 PM: Coronavirus lockdown news: SpiceJet flies 430 flights to carry cargo, emergency supplies SpiceJet B737 freighter carrying medical and emergency supplies from Shanghai arrived in Delhi yesterday. SpiceJet has operated close to 430 cargo flights since lockdown began carrying over 3300 tons of cargo. Of the 430 cargo flights, 130 were international cargo flights. All personnel in the Indian Army will be classified as Green (who have completed 14 days Quarantine period), Yellow (who need to undergo 14 days Quarantine period) and Red (Symptomatic requiring isolation and further treatment in #COVID19 hospital): Indian Army https://t.co/FRkFVKi9RG ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 2.40 pm: Coronavirus news: Doctors demand govt to bring ordinance to protect them from violence Doctors across India have demanded the government to bring an ordinance to protect them from violence and abuse. The Indian Medical Association has said that it will observe April 23 as Black Day if a law is enacted. 2.36 pm: India lockdown news: Flight curbs to be relaxed when COVID-19 is controlled, says govt The government will lift the restrictions on domestic and international flight operations once it is confident that the novel coronavirus spread has been controlled, and poses no danger to Indians, Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Monday amid the reports that some airlines are doing open bookings. The minister added that a directive has been issued to such airlines on April 19 asking to restrain from doing so. 2.29 pm: Andhra Coronavirus cases 75 new COVID-19 cases have been reported from Andhra Pradesh in the past 24 hours, while 3 people died taking the death toll in the state to 20, the health department said on Monday. The department said in a bulletin that with these new cases being reported, the total count jumped to 722 in Andhra Pradesh. 2.25 pm: Coronavirus latest news: India to source 5 lakh testing kits from South Korea The Indian embassy in Seoul, South Korea has signed an agreement with M/S Humasis Ltd, for the supply of 5 lakh rapid testing kits for novel coronavirus to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The testing kits will arrive in India starting April 30 as their delivery will done in 4 lots. 2.18 pm: Pune coronavirus cases news: COVID-19 patient delivers health baby A 25-year-old coronavirus positive woman has given birth to a health baby boy at a Pune hospital. The woman was admitted to the hospital on April 16. Meanwhile, the baby is not infected with the virus and has been kept in a separate ward, according to Sasoon hospital officials. 2.10 pm: Karnataka lockdown relaxation news The Karnataka government said on Sunday that strict lockdown will continue in the state till April 21st midnight. Meanwhile, a source, as quoted by PTI said that the state government was mulling relaxation in lockdown after April 21. Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa on Saturday had withdrawn its decision to permit two-wheelers to ply on roads and IT/BT firms to resume work with 33% strength after April 20. According to Health Ministry, the total number of coronavirus cases in the state now stand at 390 with death toll at 16. 1.54 pm: Coronavirus Lockdown: Will alcohol be available? All alcohol/liquor and tobacco shops will be closed across India as directed by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Family Welfare in its lockdown guidelines issued on April 15. 1.45 pm: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation: Will schools and colleges be open after April 20? All schools and colleges will be shut till May 3 as directed by the Home Ministry in its guidelines issued on April 15 following PM Modi's nationwide address on April 14 to announce an extension in lockdown till May 2. 1.39 pm: Lockdown Relaxation: What will not be allowed until May 3? Education institutions Air, rail and bus travel Metro services Restaurants, hotels, malls, cinema halls Religious places Liquor and tobacco shops E-commerce for non-essential goods will be allowed 1.34 pm: What do we know about the relaxations? The partial lockdown relaxations announced by PM Modi in its nationwide address on April 14 vary from state depending on the current situation regarding the number of cases in respective states. Where Delhi, Punjab, Karnataka, Telangana decided not to give any relaxation in the lockdown, other states such as Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Bihar and West Bengal decided to give conditional relaxations in selected sectors from April 20. 1.22 pm: All high-risk contacts of Delhi pizza delivery executive test COVID-19 negative All 16 high-risk contacts of the pizza delivery boy in South Delhi have negative for novel coronavirus. Last week, a pizza delivery boy in Malviya Nagar tested positive for the virus, after which 72 families that came in contact with the executive were quarantined. 1.16 pm: India's partial lockdown exit plan: Delhi gives no relaxation Delhi's CM Arvind Kejriwal has said that his government will not give any relaxation regarding the lockdown extension for at least a week. The total number of COVID-19 cases crossed the 2000-mark in the national capital on Sunday. The Delhi Police in an advisory has asked its personnel to permit "additional activities" till a comprehensive review is done by the government. 1.08 pm: Kerala govt to reconsider lockdown relaxation rules after Centre's rap Kerala government is reconsidering its decision to lift curbs on certain activities after central government's rap. The Centre wrote to the state government after it allowed lifting of some activities which is in violation of the guidelines issued by the Home Ministry. The Kerala government had on April 17 circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures allowing opening of activities which are prohibited in its order. These include, the opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities/towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheelers, pillion riding on scooters. 12.58 pm: Uttar Pradesh lockdown relaxation news The UP government has relaxed lockdown rules to permit industry operations from Monday. However, Noida SEZ will remain closed in the wake of high COVID-19 outbreak fears in NCR. 12.52 pm: Lockdown relaxation in Telangana Telangana extends lockdown till May 7 as cases rise to 844 and death toll at 18. 12.49 pm: Madhya Pradesh lockdown news 26 districts in Madhya Pradesh open partially. No relaxation in Bhopal and Indore, while Ujjain will also remain under lockdown. 12.46 pm: Lockdown in Maharashtra The Maharashtra government is enforcing strict lockdown in red zones while, the restrictions have been relaxed in green and orange zones. Industrial operations in green zones resume operations. 12.40 pm: Punjab coronavirus lockdown news Harvesting of wheat crop resumes in Amritsar amid extended lockdown. Punjab: Harvesting of wheat crop continues in Amritsar amid extended lockdown. #COVID19pic.twitter.com/ODMzWtZeUr - ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 12.36: Kerala lockdown relaxation news Even as the lockdown restrictions were eased in Kerala, most of the hotels remain closed in Thiruvananthapuram. The curfew limit continue in the city as Thiruvananthapuram Corporation was identified as a hotspot. Situation is no different in the outskirts of the city and most of the hotels are either closed or providing parcel/home delivery of facilities. Police is conducting strict checking at the entry points to Thiruvananthapuram, especially Balarampuram region which is nearer to Kerala-Tamil Nadu border. 12.25 pm: Coronavirus cases live updates: US wants to send expert team to China for investigation, says Trump US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States wants to send a team of experts to China to probe coronavirus. He said it a day after he warned Beijing of "consequences" if China was knowingly responsible for the spread of COVID-19. The virus has claimed more than 1,65,000 lives worldwide, comprising around 40,999 in the US. 12.14 pm: Delhi coronavirus cases latest Delhi on Monday reported 110 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking its total count to 2,003, Delhi Health Minister Saytendar Jain said adding that 38 patients who died were suffering from serious ailments. He also said that rapid test are most likely to start from Monday. 12.04 pm: Karnataka lockdown: Construction activities allowed The Karnataka government has allowed the construction activities to resume from Monday but the clarified that the workers will have to stay at the sites. Meanwhile, the government has not eased the restriction in the hotspots. 11.57 am: Delhi latest coronavirus updates Visuals: Rajya Sabha staff wait for elevators at the secretariat, while standing in marked circles to maintain social distancing. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha secretariat resumed work from Monday after they were closed on March 24 in the view of coronavirus outbreak. Delhi: Rajya Sabha staff wait for elevators at the secretariat, while standing in marked circles, in a bid to maintain #SocialDistancing. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha secretariat resume work from today after they were shut on March 24 in the wake of #COVID19 outbreak. pic.twitter.com/hJEN8slpK4 - ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 11.47 am: Mumbai coronavirus news Some field reporters in Mumbai have been tested COVID-19 positive, official sources told ANI, more details awaited. 11.37 am: Uttar Pradesh lockdown news Moradabad Chief Medical Officer (CMO), DR. MC Garg announced on Monday that a COVID-19 positive doctor, who was undergoing treatment at Teerthanker Mahaveer University (TMU) medical college in Moradabad, died on Sunday night. 11.26 am: Lockdown Kerala news: CM Pinarayi Vijayan chairs review meeting after letter from Centre Kerala government is holding a review meeting at the Chief Minister's Office to take stock of the lockdown situation and discuss its relaxation after a warning letter from the central government. State Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is chairing the meeting with Chief Secretary of the state and Kerala Police chief among other officials. The government is expected to make the required clarifications on the lockdown rules after the central government pulled up Kerala over lifting curbs in the state in violation of the Home Ministry guidelines. 11.16 am: Karnataka lockdown relaxation Karnataka govt on Sunday extended the coronavirus lockdown till April 21 midnight by issuing fresh orders. The government is considering a relaxation in lockdown after April 21 and the state cabinet that will meet on Monday is likely to discuss this, sources told PTI. 11.10 am: Lockdown relaxation in Bihar The departments of Bihar government have resumed functioning from Monday, amid the COVID-19 lockdown. Patna: The departments of Bihar government have resumed functioning from today, amid COVID19 lockdown period. pic.twitter.com/1ue0qhxauJ - ANI (@ANI) April 20, 2020 11.03 am: Spike in Gujarat coronavirus cases 108 fresh COVID-19 cases reported from Gujarat including 91 from Ahmedabad, taking the total tally in the state to 1,851. 10.57 am: Delhi lockdown relaxation No relaxation in curbs as the Kejriwal government will take stock of the situation in its review meeting on April 27. Read more here: Coronavirus: 'No relaxation for Delhi after Apr 20, will review in a week,' says Kejriwal 10.48 am: Manipur lockdown news Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has declared the state free of coronavirus. He said that last two COVID-19 patients have fully recovered and have tested negative. 10.39 am: Lockdown relaxation India: What's open, What's closed: What's open: Cargo, by air rail, air and sea Carrier vehicles (Interstate transport) Movement of migrant labourers within a state Roadside eateries/Dhabas IT services with 50% capacity Electricians, plumbers, motor mechanics, carpentars Private security and facility management services Homes for children, Divyangs and elderly What's shut Education institutions Air, rail and bus travel Metro services Restaurants, hotels, malls, cinema halls Religious places Liquor and tobacco shops E-commerce for non-essential goods will be allowed 10.27 am: Kerala lockdown relaxation: Followed all rules, will explain to Centre, says Kerala ministry Talking about central government's letter to Kerala flouting the lockdown rules, state minister Kadakampally Surendran said on Monday, "we have given relaxations abiding by the directions issued by Centre. Centre may have asked for an explanation due to some misunderstanding." 10.17 am: Lockdown relaxation news: Centre writes to all states asking not to violate orders Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla has to all state governments directing them not to violate the Centre's lockdown orders. This diktat came after Kerala lifted curbs on some activities including restaurants. 10.11 am: Check BusinessToday.In coroanvirus tracker for state-wise tally of cases INDIA CORONAVIRUS TRACKER: BusinessToday.In brings you a daily tracker as coronavirus cases continue to spread. Here is the state-wise data on total cases, fatalities and recoveries in one comprehensive graphic 10.05 am: Relaxation in lockdown: Ease of curbs in non-containment zones from Monday The lockdown restrictions will be relaxed to some extent in parts of India from Monday, as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his April 14 nationwide address. The restrictions will be eased in areas that are not COVID-19 hotspots. The curbs will be lifted for agricultural activities, daily-wage earners, health services and supply of essential goods will continue as usual though. 9.57 am: Coronavirus live updates: US death toll past 40,000-mark The death toll in the United States crossed the 40,000 mark on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University. The running tally by the university showed the number of nationwide deaths at 40,585, including almost of them in New York. 9.52 am: Karnataka latest lockdown news The Karnataka government has said that present lockdown measures will continue till April 21 midnight in the state and no new relaxations will be given till then. The government also said that it will issue a new order regarding the new relaxations before April 21st midnight. 9.45 am: Madhya Pradesh lockdown latest updates After health department, the Bhopal Municipal Corporation in panic as an officer associated with preparing food for the poor tests COVID-19 positive. 9.35 am: India coronavirus cases: Death toll past 500, confirmed cases cross 17,000-mark India reported 36 more COVID-19 deaths in past 24 hours taking the toll to 543 while, the total number of confirmed cases have crossed the 17,000 mark. According to latest date by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are 17,265 confirmed coronavirus cases in India currently including 14,175 active cases, while 2,546 have been cured and discharges and 1 migrated. On Sunday, 31 new deaths were reported in India. 9.24 am: Punjab lockdown latest news Punjab government has allowed sand mining and stone crushing from Monday in an attempt to boost construction industry. Roadside eateries/Dhabas will also be allowed to open in non-containment zones. The government said that the sale of air conditioners, coolers, fans and their repair shops have been brought under the ambit of essential goods services and have been allowed to open. 9.16 am: West Bengal lockdown updates The West Bengal government has issued guidelines for medical workers said that those working in hospitals especially government hospitals will not go home after they finish their respective duties as they will stay in their work headquarters. The circular said that all necessary arrangements have already been made for providing suitable boarding and lodging facilities to frontline medical personnel in the vicinity of their work places, to preclude the need for any daily commuting. The circular added that the workers will work one week and give on week off to enable them to rest and recuperate. 9.05 am: Lockdown in Madhya Pradesh The state government will send buses to Kota, Rajasthan to bring back stranded students of the state back. Sheopur district collector has been tasked to make the required arrangements of the busses as Sehopur borders Rajasthan. The district administration has confirmed that the buses are being arranged, but the exact number of buses will hinge upon the number of students about whom the information is being gathered. 75 students stranded in Kota are from Sheopur alone. Meanwhile, 26 districts will open on Monday but worst affected hotspots will remain shut. 8.58 pm: Kerala lockdown news: Centre slams ease of curbs by Kerala govt The Centre wrote to Kerala government after it allowed lifting of some activities which is in violation of the guidelines issued by the Home Ministry. The Kerala government had on April 17 circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures allowing opening of activities which are prohibited in its order. These include, the opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities/towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four wheelers, pillion riding on scooters. 8.45 am: Pakistan PM targets Modi government; India hits back India has slammed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's allegations of discrimination against Muslims in the country in the wake of coronavirus pandemic. Following Imran Khan's accusation that that the Indian government is deliberately targeting the Muslim community, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said on Monday, said the "Bizarre comments" was an attempt to shift focus from the "abysmal handling' of Pakistan's internal affairs. He added that Pakistan should focus on fighting the pandemic instead of attacking its neighbours. The deliberate & violent targeting of Muslims in India by Modi Govt to divert the backlash over its COVID19 policy, which has left thousands stranded & hungry, is akin to what Nazis did to Jews in Gerrmany. Yet more proof of the racist Hindutva Supremacist ideology of Modi Govt. - Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 19, 2020 8.30 am: India lockdown news US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States has conducted more COVID-19 tests than 10 other countries, including India, taken together. Trump added that the US continued to make steady progress in its war against coronavirus as the country has tested 4.28 million people so far, which is a record anywhere in the world. "We have done more testing than all of these countries combined -- France, United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, India, Austria, Australia, Sweden and Canada," Trump told reporters at a news conference in the White House. The total number of coronavirus deaths in the US have surpassed 40,000. Ratings firm Fitch has added to the misery facing lenders amid the "unprecedented" Covid-19 economic crisis, suggesting it will likely downgrade a large number of western European banks this year. The ratings firm cited the economic fallout from the crisis and the economic contraction squeezing the banks across western Europe means "over 95% of the western European bank ratings reviewed have negative outlooks or were placed on rating watch negative" in recent weeks. It said that governments and central banks across the continent have acted to support their economies but that the costs will be substantial. "Governments and regulators have taken unprecedented steps to support the corporate and household sectors to mitigate the damage from the crisis," the ratings firm said. "Measures to ensure that banks continue to act as a conduit for providing liquidity to the real economy are supportive of banks viability, but their effectiveness will depend on how quickly they are implemented, on how long the crisis lasts and on what form the recovery will take," Fitch said. However Fitch does not believe these measures will fully mitigate the impact. It said it has already downgraded 10 banks, put the outlook for 57 lenders on negative and a further 38 banks on rating watch negative (RWN). Its rating watch negative suggests "a bank entered the crisis from a position of weakness" or is facing a particular exposure. It said a negative outlook can be over a "one-to-two-year time horizon". "The nature and severity of the current crisis is unprecedented and clearly beyond any traditional or even stressed business cycle," it said. This means that there is a heightened likelihood of downgrades, as signalled by the high number of negative outlooks and RWNs. The shares of Irish banks have like many European lenders fallen sharply since the onset of the health and economic crisis. AIB shares and Bank of Ireland have fallen sharply in the past four weeks and are down by up to 78% from year ago. TEHRAN, Iran, April 20 Trend: Miners in Iran's West Azerbaijan Province offered cash and non-cash donations to individuals that got affected by the coronavirus, Deputy Head in the Industry, Mine and Trade Organization in West Azerbaijan Province Parisa Abedpour told Trend. "The miners have donated to support healthcare workers in the province," she said. "After the outbreak of the coronavirus in the province, the miners expressed readiness to support healthcare workers that are fighting the disease at the frontlines," she added. "Miners in Mahabad County have donated 1.2 billion rials (about $29,000) for equipment to the Mahabad Hospital," she said. "Other miners in the counties of the West Azerbaijan Province have also donated supportive food packages for individuals in need while packages of sanitizers, masks and gloves are being distributed spontaneously that indicate people's compassion during crisis," she said. "In total miners in the province have donated more than 6 billion rials (about $142,000) in cash to the province healthcare sector in addition to sanitizer, masks, gloves and food packages," she added. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019. Iran continues to apply strict measures to contain the further spread of the coronavirus. 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. The Syrian Network for Human Rights has reported the number of civilians killed during 2019, and the number of civilians who were forcibly disappeared writes Sowt Al-Asima. The Syrian Network for Human Rights published a report on Apr. 18, 2020, documenting the number of civilians killed and injured by Syrias warring parties since April 2019. The group said in its report that it had recorded 3,334 civilians killed during that period, among them 801 children and 449 women. There were 12,773 civilians injured by warring parties, who now suffer from varying health conditions. The Syrian regime killed 1,523 civilians, including 362 children and 221 women, while Russian forces killed 567 civilians, among them 159 children and 109 women, according to the report. The report documented 40 killings at the hands of Hayat Tahrir a-Sham. Among them were two children and two women. The Turkestan Islamic Party killed four civilians, while the Islamic State was documented as having killed 36 civilians, including five children and three women. According to the report, opposition factions killed 15 civilians, including seven children and one woman. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) killed 119 civilians, among them 29 children and eight women. The International Coalition killed five civilians. The group also noted 1,029 civilians killed at the hands of unnamed groups. The dead included 237 children and 105 women. In its previous report, the Syrian Network for Human Rights documented no less than 156 cases of arbitrary arrest last month. Among those arrested were two children and one woman. Regime forces were responsible for 74 of the arrests, including the arrest of one woman. The SDF arbitrarily detained 35 people, including two children, while 38 of the arrests were at the hands of armed opposition factions. Tahrir a-Sham were behind nine of last months recorded arrests. 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. Last week, members of New Yorks Reclaim Pride Coalition demonstrated outside the Samaritans Purse field hospitals in Central Park. Protesters wielded signs reading Help Not Hate and Hate Wont Heal, as if anyone had ever thought or suggested otherwise. In contrast to their armchair detractors, the volunteers for Samaritans Purse put themselves in harms way, acting as backstops for a municipal hospital system at risk of being overrun with coronavirus patients. The groups Evangelical Christian volunteers expose themselves to infection and disease at no charge to patients, treating the sick without regard to race, religion, sexual orientation, or any of the other identity groups under putative siege in the United States. As a religious organization, Samaritans Purse requires its volunteers to sign a statement of faith affirming the groups Evangelical beliefs on issues ranging from lapsarian theology to the immutability of biological sex. That the RPC or other protest groups disagree with any one of these beliefs should not be noteworthy, much less a reason to revoke the ability of Samaritans Purse to treat COVID-19 patients in New York. Franklin Graham, the son of the famous televangelist Billy Graham and the president of Samaritans Purse, explained his organizations praxis this way: Its true, for 50 years, we have asked our paid staff to subscribe to a Statement of Faith but we have never asked any of the millions of people we have served to subscribe to anything. In other words, as a religious charity, while we lawfully hire staff who share our Christian beliefs, we do not discriminate in who we serve. We have provided billions of dollars of medical care and supplies, food and water, and emergency shelter without any conditions whatsoever. Our Christian faith compels us like the biblical Good Samaritan to love and serve everyone in need, regardless of their faith or background. Pride is a much more triumphalist faith than Grahams Christianity it does not easily abide dissenters. The Reclaim Pride Coalition objected to the presence of Samaritans Purse in the city, because like every small-o orthodox Christian organization in Western history, it has religious beliefs about sexual morality that offend the Coalitions sensibilities. While I would make a good-faith effort to empathize with those sensibilities, I cannot imagine being so petty as to presume that an organizations refusal to pay homage to my sexual preferences would in any way oblige society to prevent that organization from providing desperately needed medical care to sick people in a lethal pandemic. Story continues The objections become more tiresome when you read the comments of the objectors. How was this group ever considered to bring their hatred and their vitriol into our city, Jay W. Walker of RPC asked an NBC reporter, at a time of crisis when our people are fighting a pandemic? That NBC reporter did not ask Jay W. Walker why anyone should care what he thinks about the organization volunteering its time and resources to serve the sick, nor did the reporter ask Walker how, exactly, Samaritans Purse was fomenting hatred and vitriol. As it happens, the hatred and vitriol that Walker insists are being brought into his city are as is often the case in such matters projections of his own incapacity to tolerate dissent or the refusal of approbation. The mere fact that Samaritans Purses refuses to approve and celebrate certain behaviors is itself coded as a species of hatred and proof of the groups vitriol. Meanwhile, Walker is unable to sense how his own myopic insistence on affirmation from strangers has fostered in him a hatred and vitriol so toxic that he has resorted to protesting a charity field hospital in the midst of a pandemic. Remove the plank from your own eye, as the saying begins. It is not just screechy protesters who objected to the work of Samaritans Purse. When New York thought its COVID-19 caseload would exceed its existing hospital capacity fears that were thankfully proven ill-founded Grahams organization considered partnering with the Cathedral of St. John the Divine to add overflow beds in the Episcopal churchs building. The church ultimately turned Samaritans Purse away, citing the declining need for beds and the importance of their cathedral to many different constituencies, including the LGBTQ community. Gothamist reports that the church has a history progressive activism and that it was apparently wary of sullying that reputation unless it was absolutely necessary for it to do so. This, ironically, is a near-perfect inversion of the Good Samaritan story to which that Episcopal church would certainly pledge its allegiance. Instead, it rejects the willing and eager help of an organization that would tend to the sick in the middle of a pandemic because the organization in question happened to believe things about marriage that the Episcopal Church believed until the cosmic equivalent of yesterday. Samaritans Purse is unclean, and on that accord the Episcopal church rejects its help, crossing the street like the priest in the parable, unwilling to defile himself and attend to the sick. Elected officials, too, have harassed Samaritans Purse from the moment its volunteers set foot in the Empire State. New York state senator Brad Hoylman, for instance, said that he fears his state has given Franklin Graham a platform in one of the most famous pieces of public land in the country to spew his hatred of LGBTQ people, and unfortunately at the same time legitimize his homophobia. One similarly regrets that Brad Hoylman has a platform in one of the most populous states in the nation to spew his hatred of Christians, but nevertheless, here we are. Hoylman laments his states having to accept charity from bigots like Franklin Graham, as if the lethal pandemic arresting his city and filling mass graves were a secondary concern to the private opinions of a charitable organization on the moral status of sodomy. Between the protesters, the churchmen, and the legislature, Samaritans Purse has been under unceasing attack from people who cannot abide the thought that the moral tradition of some religious group does not affirm a particular set of behaviors. If you believe, as at least one protester apparently did, that accepting treatment from an Evangelical is akin to accepting help from the Klu Klux Klan [sic], perhaps it is your beliefs that require reexamination, and not the group of volunteers risking life and limb ministering to the sick who happen to disagree with you about gay marriage. More from National Review Goa is now India's first state to be coronavirus free as it has zero positive cases after all seven infected patients were discharged on Sunday. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday said all the seven persons are natives of Goa, but six of them returned to the state from abroad. "The repeat samples of the seven Covid-19 patients have tested negative for the infection. While six of them had been discharged earlier, the last patient was discharged on Sunday," Sawant said, news agency PTI reported. He said that after their recovery, all of them have been shifted ... President Jair Bolsonaro escalated his campaign for the reopening of the Brazilian economy after he attended a protest against restrictive measures imposed by state governors to slow the coronavirus' spread. The Brasilia demonstration on Sunday, similar to others that took place in several Brazilian cities the same day, was organized by his more radical supporters -- some of whom demanded a military intervention in Congress and the Supreme Court, institutions that have mostly sided with the governors. "We don't want to negotiate anything," Bolsonaro said in an improvised speech delivered from a flatbed truck, according to videos posted on social media. "We want action for Brazil." He had previously shared on Twitter a newspaper report about the growing number of Brazilians unable to pay their bills, saying it's not difficult to guess what comes next if lockdown measures remain in place. The far-right president, worried about the impact of a looming recession in Latin America's largest economy, has defied medical guidance on social distancing, repeatedly mingling with the population and greeting supporters. He has urged Brazilians to resume work even as deaths from covid-19, which he has called "just a little flu," near 2,500. Last week, he fired his health minister after repeatedly clashing with him over the handling of the pandemic. When leaving his official residence early on Monday, Bolsonaro said that he hopes this is the last week of lockdowns. Meanwhile, health officials say Brazil is probably still weeks away from the peak in covid-19 cases. The state of Sao Paulo, the epicenter of infections in Brazil, has extended quarantine orders until May 10. Bolsonaro also said Brazil is a democracy, and that he respects the constitution as well as bodies such as Congress and the Supreme Court. "My role is to preserve the people's liberty without chaos," he said. Still, his attendance in a demonstration where participants called for the shutdown of democratic institutions caused outrage among political leaders and members of the top court. "The whole world is united against the coronavirus," Lower House Speaker Rodrigo Maia, one of the main targets of Bolsonaro and his supporters, said in a Twitter post. "In Brazil, we have to fight against the coronavirus and the virus of authoritarianism. It's a lot of work, but we'll win. Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. San Francisco, 20 April 2020: The Report Sarcoma Drugs Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Treatment Type (Chemotherapy, Targeted Therapy), By Major Markets (U.S., U.K., Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Japan), And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2023 The global sarcoma drugs market size is expected to be valued at USD 1.2 billion by 2023, as per a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., progressing at a CAGR of 8.5% during the forecast period. The growth of the market is largely driven by factors such as new product launches, increasing adoption of novel therapeutics, and growing target population. Sarcomas account for less than 1.0% of all adult cancers. Though sarcomas represent a heterogeneous group of over 50 different histological subtypes, the two major subtypes are soft tissue sarcomas (STS) and bone sarcoma. Approximately, 12,000 patients in the U.S. and 28,000 patients in Europe are diagnosed with STS every year. For over 40 years, mainstay of localized sarcoma treatment included surgical resection followed by neoadjuvant or adjuvant radiation or chemotherapy. However, even after complete surgical resection, about 50.0% of patients with intermediate or high grade sarcoma develop metastatic disease. Introduction of targeted therapy has revolutionized treatment paradigm for sarcoma. Targeted therapies and pipeline breakthroughs will continue to play a pivotal role in the growth of the market throughout the forecast period. Access Research Report of Sarcoma Drugs Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/sarcoma-drugs-market Further key findings from the report suggest: EU5 will remain the second largest market with more than 30% share by 2023. The growth of the segment can be attributed to rising incidence of STS, uptake of targeted therapies, and increasing R&D activities Eli Lillys Lartuvo has displaced standard doxorubicin therapy as front-line STS treatment and is anticipated to maintain its prominence in the market over the forecast period Strong unmet needs within the market present a key opportunity to develop breakthrough first-in-class therapies. Out of 45 drugs in the pipeline for sarcoma, seven are in Phase III, 22 in Phase II, two in Phase I/II trials, and the remaining in Phase I and Pre-clinical trials The potential role for use of immuno-oncology agents in sarcomas is currently under evaluation in Phase I/II clinical trials Companies with late-stage pipeline products for sarcoma are likely to enter the market by 2019 and would capture more than 10.0% of the sarcoma market share in 2023 Drugs with novel targets in early-phase development include Novartiss Afinitor (mTOR inhibitor), Tesaros Zejula (PARP inhibitor), Amgens Imlygic (gene therapy), and Pfizers Crizotinib (ALK and MET tyrosine kinases inhibitor) Role of VEGF inhibitors and mTOR inhibitors is under evaluation in multiple early phase trials. However, no statistically significant data has been reported till date Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/pharmaceuticals Grand View Research has segmented the global sarcoma drugs market based on treatment type and region: Sarcoma Drugs Treatment Class Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2023) Chemotherapy Targeted Therapy Sarcoma Drugs Country Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2023) U.S. U.K. Germany France Italy Spain Japan Access Press Release of Sarcoma Drugs Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-sarcoma-drugs-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 We are in the midst of a health care disaster in the U.S. and other developed nations. This is not due primarily to the Wuhan virus, but rather to the fact that non-essential medical treatment has been canceled. In England, concern is growing that the deferral of non-essential health care could ultimately be more damaging than the Wuhan virus. The London Times reports: Its chilling to know that many hospital wards, waiting rooms and car parks are now empty. Before this country was hit, only 800 of the NHSs 4,125 critical care beds were vacant at one time. Now its 2,300. Even with some of the worst fatality rates in Europe, some hospitals now report being half empty since they paused almost all non-emergency work. The same phenomenon is occurring here. Richard Sullivan, a professor of cancer and global health at Kings College London, says: The number of deaths due to the disruption of cancer services is likely to outweigh the number of deaths from the coronavirus itself over the next five years. Cancer screening services have stopped, which means we will miss our chance to catch many cancers when they are treatable and curable. Charles Swanton, Cancer Research UKs chief clinician, says some tumours will become inoperable rather than survivable. The terrifying conclusion must be that there will be a non-Covid health crisis when this pandemic is over. Far more will suffer and die from otherwise treatable conditions as many go undiagnosed and untreated for the next six months. Their families will not forgive or forget. Matt Hancock, the health secretary, refuses to give a figure for the potential non-Covid fatalities from this catastrophe but the cabinet was told it could be up to 150,000 avoidable deaths. Our health care system is better than the NHS, but we too will see an unknown number of preventable deaths due to the suspension of much non-COVID related health care. Those who die because of the shutdown of non-essential care, including a large number of surgeries, will never be counted, and their names will not make headlines. But they represent one more cost of the reactionoverreaction, in my opinionto the Wuhan virus. On Friday, April 3, the U.S. Small Business Administration launched an extraordinary $349 billion capital distribution program to stabilize small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, 1.6 million forgivable loans have been approved by the agency, and the entire fund has been depleted. To put that in perspective, the SBA processed more than 14 years worth of loans in less than 14 days. Paycheck Protection Program disbursements began hitting small business accounts almost immediately, and we expect to make hundreds of thousands of additional disbursements in the next week. The PPP is working, even if it hasnt been glitch-free. A month ago, it would have been unfathomable to imagine that a relatively small federal agency like SBA could erect a loan program the size and scale of PPP in just one week. The dedicated professionals at SBA worked around the clock, almost exclusively from remote locations, to stand up the program three days ahead of the 10-day deadline stipulated in the CARES Act. Since then, the work hasnt stopped. The SBA has been working day and night, seven days a week, to add capacity and to identify and correct technical challenges. We are working with the Treasury Department to provide legal and regulatory guidance to thousands of financial institutions and, most important, to maintain the overall functionality and stability of the program. OUR VIEW: Small business rescue needs not only more money but also fewer rules President Donald Trump and Jovita Carranza, administrator of the Small Business Administration, on April 2, 2020. The SBA created a simple, two-page application for borrowers. The agency rolled back administrative requirements so that more lenders can participate in the program. Two weeks ago, 1,800 financial institutions were authorized to make PPP loans; today, there are nearly 5,000 authorized lenders. The PPP has not been perfect, but thanks to the presidents leadership, the efforts of the Treasury secretary, the support from our nations financial institutions, and the heroic efforts of the men and women of the SBA, it has provided 1.6 million small businesses with the financial certainty they need to remain viable and keep their employees on payroll until this storm passes. Story continues Jovita Carranza is administrator of the Small Business Administration. If you can't see this reader poll, please refresh your page. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SBA: PPP did more than 14 years worth of loans in less than 14 days Russian President Vladimir Putin and Venezuelan leader Nicols Maduro discussed cooperation between the two countries amid the coronavirus pandemic over the phone on Monday, the Kremlin said in a statement. Maduro thanked Putin for the support Moscow is providing to Venezuela during the pandemic, including a shipment of tests for the virus, the statement said. Both presidents hailed the global OPEC+ deal to pump less crude oil in a bid to limit a crash in prices that has been straining some countries' economies, and noted the importance of Putin's idea to create green corridors for supplies of medications, food and equipment that would be free of trade wars and sanctions during the coronavirus crisis. Russia's president proposed this measure during the G-20 summit on March 26. According to the Kremlin, during the call Putin also reiterated Russia's support for Maduro's efforts ... to peacefully resolve domestic dispute with the opposition that has been smoldering in the country since 2019, and pointed out that destructive foreign interference into Venezuelan affairs is unacceptable. Russia and Venezuela have a political, military and economic alliance that was cemented years ago between Putin and Hugo Chvez, Maduro's predecessor. Russia supported Maduro in his 2019 standoff with opposition politician Juan Guaid. The Russians have provided the South American nation with substantial assistance, including an air defense system and help circumventing U.S. sanctions on their oil industry. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The Department of Social Welfare and Development says it is backing a move to make public the names of cash aid beneficiaries for transparency. At a briefing Monday, DSWD Secretary Rolando Bautista said he supported the order Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano made over the weekend of publishing the names and posting them where they can be easily seen. "Sinusuportahan namin ang aksyon na ginawa ng DILG, lalo na ang direktiba ni Kalihim Ano na inutusan niya ang mga LGU na ang ating mga barangay ay maglabas ng listahan ng mga benpisyaryo, yung kanilang amount na ni-receive, at ipaskil ito sa mga conspicuous places," he said. [Translation: We support the action done by the DILG, especially the directive of Secretary Ano who ordered LGUs fopr barangays to release a list of the beneficiaries as well as the amounts they have received and post these in conspicuous places.] Apart from transparency, Bautista said beneficiaries and those who are qualified to receive the cash aid will be identified. On Saturday, the Department of the Interior and Local Government ordered all barangay captains to create a list of social amelioration program beneficiaries for transparency purposes. Ano emphasized the importance of having a master list of SAP beneficiaries, fully disclosed by barangay heads, to give residents a chance to give feedback if they think they should be part of the list. Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto III also pushed for the idea, but said the DSWD should publish on its website a list of individuals who have received cash aid, as well as the area already covered since it started distributing the SAP. Soto said doing so would prove that cash aid has already been given and received by those qualified. READ: DSWD to assess appeals from people who believe they should receive cash aid China on Monday rejected Australias call for a probe examining the global response to the coronavirus pandemic -- including Beijings early handling of the outbreak. Washington and several allies have accused China of failing to adequately respond to the viral disease threat in the weeks after it was first detected in the central city of Wuhan late last year. US President Donald Trump also cut funding to the World Health Organization after accusing it of mismanaging the crisis and covering up the seriousness of the initial outbreak before it spread around the world and killed more than 165,000 people. But Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the accusations disrespected the Chinese peoples tremendous efforts and sacrifices in fighting the contagion. Any question about Chinas transparency in the prevention and control of epidemic situation is not in line with facts, Geng told a regular press briefing. He was speaking in response to a question about Australian foreign minister Marise Payne, who a day earlier said her country would insist on the probe into the response by Beijing and the WHO. Authorities in Wuhan initially tried to cover up the outbreak, punishing doctors who had raised the alarm online in December. There were also questions about Chinas recording of COVID-19 infections, as it repeatedly changed its counting criteria at the peak of the outbreak. Chinese scientists have rejected conspiracy theories pushed by some in the US government claiming the virus could have originated at a maximum-security virology lab in Wuhan. But Trump has suggested that China could have been knowingly responsible for spreading the infection and could face consequences as a result. A Holocaust survivor who escaped from a Nazi 'death march' during World War II has died aged 96 after being infected with coronavirus. Eliezer Grynfeld died in Israel last week, leaving two children, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. As a teenager he was imprisoned in the Lodz Ghetto in occupied Poland in 1940 and later taken to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, before escaping when the prisoners were marched west. After the war he emigrated to Israel and met Pope Francis during a Holocaust remembrance ceremony in 2014. Holocaust survivor Eliezer Grynfeld (pictured) died in Israel last week after being infected with coronavirus, leaving two children, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren The Yad Vashem Holocaust remembrance centre confirmed that Grynfeld had died with coronavirus, the Times of Israel said. Born in Lodz in 1923, Grynfeld was forced to move into the Lodz Ghetto with his mother and grandparents after the German occupation which prompted the war. Both his grandparents died at the ghetto, according to the Yad Vashem centre. The ghetto was closed in 1944, and many of its inhabitants were sent to die in Hitler's concentration camps. Grynfeld was taken with his mother to Sachsenhausen, a concentration camp near Berlin, but they were separated on arrival. The teenage Grynfeld was taken on a death march - the forced evacuation of Nazi prisoners towards the west as the Soviet army closed in on the Eastern front. Thousands of prisoners died during the marches, but Grynfeld escaped and joined the Soviet forces as a translator. Eliezer Grynfeld (pictured right) with his wife Rachel, whom he met at a displaced persons' camp in Germany after World War II After the war, he spent sometime in a displaced persons' camp in Germany, where he met his wife Rachel. She survives him. In 1956 the couple emigrated to Israel, where Grynfeld worked in the military industry and his mother remarried to another Holocaust survivor. Eliezer was one of six Holocaust survivors - representing the six million murdered Jews - who greeted Pope Francis on a visit to Israel in 2014. Israel has 13,491 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 172 deaths, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. Researchers in Israel have warned that the pandemic has sparked a rise in anti-Semitic conspiracy theories blaming Jews for the crisis. The researchers said the conspiracy theories were a continuation of an ancient form of anti-Semitism that involves blaming Jews when 'things go wrong.' Video: IRGC Navy warns off US warships in Persian Gulf Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 6:00 PM A recent video released by Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps shows the IRGC Navy warning off a flotilla of US warships in the Persian Gulf as they try to approach the Iranian territorial waters. In this video, released on Sunday, a personnel of the IRGC Navy warns the vessels to stop inspecting and detaining Iranian fishing or commercial ships in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. He also warns them that they would face consequences according to the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran if they ignore this notice. "In the name of God. This is to notify all vessels belonging to the United States and the coalition forces present in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. I am an IRGC Navy vessel. Hereby, it is announced that detention, inspection or asking questions from Iranian fishing and commercial ships in territorial waters and the economic zone belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran contravenes the interests and rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran and also constitutes clear violation of international regulations and is forbidden," the Iranian side said. "It is evident that those who ignore this maritime notice will be dealt with according to the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Over," it added. Earlier on Sunday, the IRGC Navy released a video showing a recent confrontation between its forces and the US Navy in the Persian Gulf, refuting claims by the US that Iranian forces behaved in an dangerous manner when faced with US Navy vessels. In its statement, the IRGC said the main source of mischief and insecurity in the region was the illegal presence of US terrorist forces in West Asia, reiterating the call for the full withdrawal of all American forces. "They must be sure that the IRGC Navy and the powerful Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran consider the high-risk behavior of foreigners in the region as a threat to their national security and a red line, and will give a decisive response to any miscalculation on their part," the IRGC statement said. Iranian vessels belonging to the IRGC Navy commonly patrol the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman to ensure the security of the vital global energy hub. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address MELBOURNE, Australia The Australian government said on Monday that Google and Facebook would have to pay media outlets for news content in the country, part of an emerging global effort to rescue local publishers by moving to compel tech giants to share their advertising revenue. The decision to mandate compensation for news articles displayed on Facebook pages or in Google search results important drivers of traffic for those platforms comes as the coronavirus pandemic accelerates years of advertising losses at media outlets large and small. In the United States, regional publishers have cut staffs that were already diminished, and newspapers as large as The Los Angeles Times have announced furloughs and pay cuts. In Australia, as in America, dozens of smaller publishers have suspended printing or shuttered completely in recent weeks. We cant deny the importance of creating a level playing field, ensuring a fair go for companies and the appropriate compensation for content, Josh Frydenberg, the countrys treasurer, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, the public broadcaster, on Monday. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced that Ghana has obtained a $500-million dollar freeze in debt and interest repayment for the rest of this year from the World Bank. The move is part of a broader pan-african effort for debt relief due to the negative impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the President said. In his seventh update to the nation on COVID-19, the President said last Friday, African Finance Ministers, led by Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, and his South African counterpart, achieved a nine-month debt standstill from the World Bank for all qualifying members of the International Development Association (IDA), starting from May 1, 2020. The total amount for the beneficiaries on the continent is $44 billion. "In the case of Ghana, this amounts to a freeze in principal and interest payments for the year, amounting to $500 million," he explained. "This will create greater fiscal space to help make the Ghanaian economy much more resilient." President Akufo-Addo lauded Ken Ofori-Atta, who is leading the continent's debt relief efforts for his hard work and outstanding leadership. He urged him to leave no stone unturned to achieve an even greater and comprehensive debt relief programme for Africa. The Government welcomed the three billion Ghana cedis credit and stimulus package from the commercial banks, under the auspices of the Ghana Association of Bankers, with support from the Bank of Ghana, to revitalise Ghanaian industries. The stimulus package is to offer financial relief to especially the pharmaceutical companies. Additionally, the President said, the one billion United States-dollar- Rapid Credit Facility, secured from the International Monetary Fund, without any pre-condition, and approved by Parliament, would be used to help close the financial gap created by the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the Government has allocated a GHc1.2 billion, under the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme, to support households and businesses. Out of that amount, GHc280 million would be used to provide food for the vulnerable and free water for all Ghanaians in April, May and June. A total of GHc323 million is being used to motivate frontline health workers leading the fight against COVID-19, while a GHc600 million assistance package is for micro, small and medium-scale businesses. Additionally, the Government is absorbing the full electricity bills of one million active lifeline customers and granting 50 per cent subsidy to the other categories of power consumers at a total cost of one billion Ghana cedis. The President lifted the ban on the three-week partial lockdown of COVID-19 hotspots areas, including Accra, Tema, Kasoa,Greater Kumasi and its contagious districts. He, however, maintained the other restrictions, including the ban on public gatherings, public funerals, indefinite closure of schools, closure of the border and urged the strict observance of social distancing. Ghana's case count for COVID-19 now stands at 1,042, with nine deaths and 99 persons fully recovered, after 68,591 sample test results were declared. 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. Featured Video Chandigarh, April 20 : Punjab has been one of the first states that sounded an alarm bell regarding possible large-scale COVID-19 outbreak after 94,000 people returned from COVID-19 hotspots, including the US, UK, Spain and Italy. Punjab has almost one NRI in ten households each, making it worse for the northern state. But surprisingly, after initially being overwhelmed with this, Punjab has managed to keep it in check with just 219 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and a comparatively low 31 deaths. It's neighbour Rajasthan has witnessed 183 deaths so far. The state's Special Chief Secretary K.B.S. Sidhu in an interview to IANS, spoke about the challenges, how Punjab overcame it and, of course, how Punjab is dealing with no liquor. He spoke at length on those who chopped off a police personnel's hand and might as well have led to a hostage situation in a Gurdwara. As the Financial Commissioner of the Department of Disaster Management and in-charge of State Disaster Relief Fund, Sidhu is Punjab's face in the fight against COVID-19. Q: One of the first states that sounded corona alert was Punjab, given a large population that came from abroad. Do you think, keeping that in mind, Punjab has been able to contain the spread of the virus, since? A: The large NRI population that came to Punjab was originally estimated to around 90,000. This was indeed a challenge for the State. The data that we initially received from New Delhi was either incomplete or it was not received in a timely manner. Apart from sifting out the duplicates, and accounting for those who had already gone back abroad, there was an extensive problem that the addresses, as contained in the passports, were often old ones and no NRI was found to be residing there. Nevertheless, our field officers, led by the respective Deputy Commissioners, worked very hard to home-quarantine over 56,000 NRIs for a period of 14 days. Not a single case has been found to have been linked directly and conclusively to an infected NRI. On the other hand, the over 600 persons of Tablighi Jamaat (TJ) were generally non-cooperative and it took a lot of effort of the field agencies to trace them. Not less than 16 persons from among them, or their immediate contacts, were found Covid-positive. The profile of the patients detected has also made it possible for us to contain the contagion to the limited geographical areas so as to prevent its spread. The Nawanshehr (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar), which had the original 18 cases, thanks to a UK-returned "ragi" has been able to save and cure 17 patients till now. Q: There is video of a Punjab Police team driving to a toddlers house to wish a birthday that has now gone viral. Do you think such acts that go beyond the call of duty are crucial? A: The basic job of the police was to initially enforce the curfew. Once that was done, since the people by-and-large were cooperative, the police expanded its outreach activities in supplementing the District Administration's efforts to supply dry rations as well as cooked meals ("langar") to the people. In this context, the viral videos like the one referred, have not only kept up the morale of the populace, especially in the relatively poorer localities, but also served to boost the image of the Punjab Police as a force that cares for the people. It was also symbolic of the empathy of the Punjab government, more specially, the Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh) towards all Punjabis, under very difficult circumstances. Q: How tough has it been for the administration to convince residents that there won't be any liquor for sale, given the high consumption of the same in the state?? A: I think the people have been very understanding. One must also say that the entire liquor trade, starting from the big distillers, medium-size bottlers, distributors right down to the liquor vendor contractors, have been with the government and the people in this respect, although they are still suffering huge losses. They have also volunteered to start manufacturing hand-sanitiser in their plants. It must also be mentioned that even the government is going to lose a very substantial part of its revenue, on a proportionate basis, which is budgeted to be Rs 6,000 crores for the full-year 2020-21. The option to open the liquor vends for a limited time-period in the day was discussed and rejected, since it would have gone against the cardinal principle of "stay at home". Q: There has been a rather unfortunate incident where an ASI's hand was chopped off. As the Special Chief Secretary of the state, what was going through your mind when you heard the news? A: To be honest, my instantaneous reaction was one of anger, if not rage. This was quickly replaced by a sense of relief as I realized that there was no loss of life at the place of the original incident. Any firing by the police could have led to loss of lives, including those of the innocent bystanders, and the Punjab Police could have been blamed for over-reaction, in hindsight. Thereafter, the focus was on the capture of the fugitives, who had managed to flee the spot and hide inside a Gurudwara close-by. The expeditious and surgical operation by the Punjab Police, while observing the maryada of the sanctum sanctorum, in capturing and arresting 11 persons, without any loss of life, was both a matter of pride and relief, since a lackadaisical approach could have lead to a potentially hostage-taking situation, since there were quite a few women and children inside the complex. Thoughts and prayers were also with the ASI Harjeet Singh, who had his left hand chopped-off. Kudos to the doctors of the PGI Chandigarh who virtually performed a miracle in restoring his hand after an eight- hour long surgery. Q: Punjab has been one of the first states that announced extension of the lockdown before the Centre did. Do you think a third extension is needed in the state? A: Yes, Punjab was a couple of days ahead of the Central Government to impose a total lockdown. Effective 20th April, 2020, we are gradually allowing the opening of the industry as per the GOI guidelines, with due regard to Red Zones, "Containment Areas", "Buffer Zones", "large outbreak areas' and "clusters" although with additional safeguards. Industries with ten or more workers shall either have to demonstrate adequate facilities to be able to factory-quarantine their labour or provide for their transport, while complying with the social distancing norms. The graduated and calibrated opening of the "mandis" to take care of the wheat procurement is already underway. We are, under the personal supervision of the Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, reviewing the situation literally on an hour-to-hour basis. We do not expect any huge surge in new cases in the days to come. Having said that, we shall have a close look at the figures in the State -- their numbers as well as concentration, quality and distribution -- around the 1st of May and also consider the situation at the national-level. I am optimistic that a total lockdown or curfew beyond 3rd May, 2020 may not be necessary in Punjab, except in a very few and limited pockets in the State. (Anindya Banerjee can be contacted at Anindya.b@ians.in) Advertisement Thousands of Israeli protesters observed coronavirus social distancing during a mass protest as they demanded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu be removed from power. Huge crowds demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Sunday to warn against what they said was a threat to democracy from ongoing coalition talks between Netanyahu and his former rival Benny Gantz. Wearing face masks and keeping two yards apart, some 2,000 activists gathered in Rabin Square following a call launched on Facebook by the 'Black Flag' movement which condemns Netanyahu's continuing rule. Israel's parliament was tasked with forming a government on Thursday after speaker Gantz and Netanyahu missed a deadline to seal an alliance, but negotiations between the sides were ongoing. Israel's deeply divided 120-member parliament has no clear path towards a stable governing coalition, so the move risks prolonging the country's worst-ever political crisis. Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Sunday to warn against what they said was a threat to democracy from ongoing coalition talks between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former rival Benny Gantz Some 2,000 protesters, according to media estimates, gathered in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv after following a call launched on Facebook by the 'Black Flag' movement which condemns Netanyahu's continuing rule Israel's parliament was tasked with forming a government on Thursday after speaker Gantz and Netanyahu missed a deadline to seal an alliance, but negotiations between the sides were ongoing Israel has reported more than 13,000 coronavirus cases and 172 deaths. A partial lockdown has confined most Israelis to their homes, forced businesses to close and sent unemployment to about 26 per cent. Gantz and Netanyahu could still agree on an emergency unity government to help Israel confront the COVID-19 pandemic, prospect the protesters spoke out against. Wearing face masks, waving black flags and keeping two yards apart, the protesters observed social distancing rules in force to fight the coronavirus. Gantz (right) and Netanyahu could still agree on an emergency unity government to help Israel confront the COVID-19 pandemic. Pictured: The pair in September with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin A partial lockdown has confined most Israelis to their homes, forced businesses to close and sent unemployment to about 26 per cent Wearing face masks, waving black flags and keeping two yards apart, the protesters observed social distancing rules in force to fight the coronavirus Pictured: One protester holds a poster reading, 'crime minister' Israel has reported more than 13,000 coronavirus cases and 172 deaths and protesters ensured they kept a safe distance on Sunday 'Let democracy win', said one placard, while some protesters had written 'Minister of Crime' on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahu's upcoming trial for corruption The protesters want Netanyahu to be removed from office. Pictured: Protesters keep their distance from each other 'Let democracy win', said one placard, while some protesters had written 'Minister of Crime' on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahu's upcoming trial for corruption. Many waved black flags as a symbol for threats against Israel's democracy. 'You don't fight corruption from within,' said Yair Lapid, the new opposition leader, of his former ally Gantz. 'If you're inside, you're part of it.' Democracies in 21st Century died because 'good people are silent and weak people surrender', Lapid said. 'You don't fight corruption from within,' said Yair Lapid, the new opposition leader, of his former ally Gantz. 'If you're inside, you're part of it.' Pictured: Protesters wave Israel flags and turn their phone lights on as they safely stand apart The protesters gathered at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv to air their grievances with Israeli prime minister Bejamin Netanyahu Demonstrations are allowed under Israel's coronavirus restrictions, as long as participants maintain distance from each other and wear face masks Under the banner of 'Save the Democracy,' protesters called on Gantz's Blue and White party not to join in a coalition led by a premier charged with corruption Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing, is also under criminal indictment in three corruption cases. Demonstrations are allowed under Israel's coronavirus restrictions, as long as participants maintain distance from each other and wear face masks. Under the banner of 'Save the Democracy,' protesters called on Gantz's Blue and White party not to join in a coalition led by a premier charged with corruption. Gantz has campaigned for clean government, but said that the coronavirus crisis has forced him to go back on his election pledge. London, April 20 : A UK government pay scheme to keep staff on the payroll despite not working due to the coronavirus pandemic went live on Monday. Under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the government will cover 80 per cent of workers' wages, up to 2,500 pounds a month, if they were put on leave, the BBC reported. Millions of workers are expected to be "furloughed" because of the lockdown. Taking of Twitter on Monday, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: "We promised support would be available by the end of April - today, we deliver our promise." The Treasury has said that the system can process up to 450,000 applications an hour. Employers should receive the money within six working days of making an application, it added. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Chief Executive Jim Harra told the BBC that 67,000 claims from employers had been made in the first 30 minutes. "The big payroll date this month is on the 30th, so employers can claim anytime today, tomorrow or on Wednesday, and there's time to get that money into their account for the 30th of April," Harra said. On April 17, Sunak had announced that the wage subsidy scheme would be extended by a further month, until the end of June. The move came after the government confirmed that lockdown restrictions in the UK would continue for "at least" another three weeks. As of Monday, the UK reported 121,173 coronavirus cases with 16,095 deaths. Representative image Agri tech startup Bijak has raised more than Rs 90 crore from multiple investors in its series A round of funding. While the round was led by Moscow-based Ru Net Enterprises, which pumped in Rs 38 crore, it also saw participation of its existing backers Sequoia Surge and Omidyar Network. They have infused Rs 15 crore and Rs 17 crore, respectively. Other investors which participated in this round are AL Trust, Tempo Ventures and Omnivore Partners, as per filings made with the Corporate Affairs ministry accessed from business intelligence platform Tofler. Two sources Moneycontrol spoke to however added that Bijak is in talks with more investors and is looking to raise more than Rs 100 crore in this round. The company did not comment on the funding. Bijak, which was part of Sequoia's accelerator programme Surge 2.0, had raised Rs 20 crore in its seed round. The startup was founded in 2019 by Nikhil Tripathi, Mahesh Jakhotia, Nukul Upadhye and Jitender Bedwal. It currently has a 50 member team which works out of Gurugram. It operates across 22 states and 400 districts. Bijak is trying to digitise and organise the agro procurement market by connecting buyers and sellers through a single platform. It runs a marketplace which offers transparent pricing, easy payments, complete documentation and record keeping for participants in the agro procurement chain. (Bloomberg) -- France is asking Apple Inc. to remove a technical obstacle that it says is delaying a government contact-tracing application designed to contain the coronavirus spread. Apples operating system prevents contact-tracing apps using its Bluetooth technology from running constantly in the background if that data is going to be moved off of the device, a limit designed to protect users privacy. That limitation is standing in the way of the type of app that France wants to build, Digital Minister Cedric O said. The government aims to deploy its app by May 11, which is when France wants to begin to lift restrictions on movement that were imposed in mid-March. Contact-tracing apps are a tool health services can use to more accurately determine who infected people have come into contact with and governments can deploy to help make decisions about how quickly to reopen schools and businesses. Were asking Apple to lift the technical hurdle to allow us to develop a sovereign European health solution that will be tied our health system, O said in an interview with Bloomberg. Ministers have discussed their concerns with Apple, but arent making progress, he said. An Apple spokesman referred to the companys previous joint statement about its partnership with Google, which said the technology would enable Bluetooth-based contact-tracing apps and declined to comment further. Apple and Alphabet Inc.s Google are developing their own technology to help build contact-tracing apps. Their platform should become available to governments and public health authorities everywhere next month, according to an official in the French ministers office. Still, the French are banking on a home-grown solution. Frances conflict with Apple is part of a broader debate about how much data such apps should collect and who should have access to it. Mission Creep The Google-Apple system relies on smartphones Bluetooth connections and will allow users to keep their data on their handsets. However, France and the European Union want to feed the data to a central server, managed by state health services, which would alert users if they come into contact with a person infected by Covid-19. Story continues Any system that sends data to a centralized location is inherently less secure and is vulnerable to mission creep, enabling a form of surveillance on users, according to a letter on Monday from 300 academics in more than two dozen countries, which endorsed Google and Apples approach. Read more: Apple and Google Have a Trustworthy Pandemic Solution: Alex Webb Such a program would catastrophically hamper trust in and acceptance of such an application by society at large, the letter said. It is vital that, in coming out of the current crisis, we do not create a tool that enables large scale data collection on the population, either now or at a later time. The European Union said last week it would scrutinize the Silicon Valley giants technology to ensure it meets the blocs new standards governing the deployment of Covid-19 apps. Apple and Google have defended their systems privacy, saying users names and locations wont be shared or stored. EU Guidelines Mobile apps should be voluntary, approved by national health authorities, preserve users privacy and dismantled as soon as they are no longer needed, the EU said in its new guidelines, which are part of a broader effort to coordinate exit strategies among member states when they slowly lift existing lock-down measures. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton told a French Senate hearing committee on Monday that he plans to discuss Apples project with Google with Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and reiterated that contact-tracing apps in Europe would be implemented on a voluntary basis. Read more: Google, Apple Covid-19 Tracking Tech Faces EU Scrutiny Frances Parliament will discuss the app, which has been developed by Inria, the government entity in charge of technological research, on April 28. Users will download it on a voluntary basis, but further details havent been made public. Members wont get to decide whether to modify its implementation, even though lawmakers from both the Republican and Socialist groups have demanded a vote on text framing the use and technical aspects of the tracking app. While the government hasnt responded, the French privacy watchdog will review the plan for the tracking app this week. The French branch of the Human Rights League has said that any system put in place should be based on information that is easy to read and understand to allow citizens specific free and informed consent, something it says isnt the case given the various technologies currently being debated. (Updates with letter from researchers warning about contract tracing risks starting in ninth paragraph, details on French and EU implementation from 13th) 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. Tracy Collins had minimal airtime on Masterchef Australia: Back To Win last week. But during Tuesday night's episode, the 44-year-old restaurateur finally got her time to shine as she was the appointed leader of the purple team for the BBQ challenge. Many MasterChef viewers were confused by Tracy's sudden appearance and voiced their confusion on Twitter - with some even mistaking her for Courtney Roulston. 'Who the hell is she?' On Monday, MasterChef fans were confused by the appearance of Tracy Collins (pictured) - with many mistaking her for Courtney Roulston 'Who the hell is Tracy on MasterChef Australia? I've never seen her before,' one person wrote. 'Has Tracy been here this whole time?' another person asked. One viewer begged matter of factly: 'Okay, but like who is Tracy? I swear shes hasnt been mentioned once till this ep (episode)' before a fourth quipped, 'Ok I didn't realise Tracy and Courtney were two different people.' 'I dont know who Tracy is but shes doing very well,' commented yet another bamboozled fan. Surprised? Many MasterChef viewers were confused by Tracy's sudden appearance and voiced their confusion on Twitter Same pose, different people! Some viewers confused Tracy (left) with Courtney Roulston (right) Like the rest of the contestants on Back To Win, Tracy appeared on a previous season of MasterChef, having come fifth place on season six in 2014. Prior to going on MasterChef, Tracy was a hairdresser. But after her turn on the Channel Ten series, she started the Harvest Kitchen restaurant in SA's Barossa Valley in 2015. Although many viewers didn't recognise Tracy, keen MasterChef fans instantly recognised her from her previous appearance. Supporters: Although many viewers didn't recognise Tracy, keen MasterChef fans instantly recognised her from her previous appearance 'OMG it's Tracy!' one viewer excitedly wrote. 'People who are confused between Tracy and Courtney... Did you never watch the show?' another person wrote. Meanwhile, one person said: 'We're finally about to see Tracy for more than five seconds and I'm excited! Go team Tracy.' During Monday night's episode of MasterChef, Tracy led the purple team in a BBQ challenge where they had to cook for 1,200 people. Squad: During Monday night's episode of MasterChef, Tracy (right) led the purple team in a BBQ challenge, where they had to cook for 1,200 people The team decided to make a Mexican style BBQ and all of their dishes were praised by the judges except for their corn on the cob, which they said lacked seasoning. In the end, the orange team won the round while the the yellow team came in last place, putting them in tomorrow's pressure round. Luckily for Tracy and her team, they escaped the pressure round by placing second. MasterChef continues Tuesday at 7.30pm on Channel Ten YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Executive Director of the Public Television of Armenia Margarita Grigoryan has submitted a resignation letter, noting that the leak of off-air footage before PM's video message is inadmissible for her and she is sincerely outraged by this third-rate step of violating the partnership and ethical principles, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Public TV. ''Dear compatriots, partners and TV viewers, The leak of off-air footage before PM's video message is inadmissible for me and I am sincerely outraged by this third-rate step of violating the partnership and ethical principles. I have also been subject of media attacks for years and well understand how it feels to be stabbed in the back. I feel very sorry for what has happened. His kind of media vandalism is unforgivable in this important moment in the life of the country, in this stage of the development of the Public TV. I personally have been responsible for numerous public events, festive events and extraordinary events and I shared with my staff words of appreciation. And now I share the responsibility of what has happened and submit my letter of resignation', reads Margarita Grigoryan's letter. Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan Editors Note: Governor Uzodinmas office later got back to PREMIUM TIMES to say that the press statement circulated to journalists did not emanate from his office. We apologise for the error. This is a community calendar. To accommodate demand for the print edition, we ask that items be brief and include time, date, place, address, admission cost and a contact number for publication. Inclusion of items is at the discretion of the newspaper. Further information is available at 541-758-9524 or jane.stoltz@lee.net. Assistance TUESDAY Emergency food boxes, by appointment, North Corvallis Ministry Center, 5050 NE Elliott Circle. Appointments: 541-220-1040. Screenings for Emergency Adult Dental Voucher Program eligibility, 9 a.m. to noon, Benton County Health Center, 530 NW 27th St. For Benton County residents with proof of residency, such as an ID card, piece of mail or utility bill. Information: 541-207-5875. Corvallis Men's Shelter, 211 SE Chapman Place. Now serving men and women in need during the COVID emergency. Food, showers and laundry available from 1 to 6 p.m.; overnight shelter not available. Information: 541-791-6691. Emergency food boxes, 1:30 to 4 p.m., St. Vincent de Paul Society Corvallis Conference Food Pantry, campus of St. Marys Catholic Church, 501 NW 25th St. No appointment needed. A thrift store is in the same building; proceeds help support the pantry. Information: 541-757-1988, Ext. 317. Emergency food boxes, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. by appointment, FISH of Lebanon, 145 Ash St. FISH also offers help with basic expenses such as rent, utilities, water, propane, prescriptions, clothing, identification cards, driver's licenses and other emergency needs. Appointments: 541-259-3200, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Stone Soup dinner, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., First Christian Church, McLean Hall, 602 SW Madison Ave. Free meal for those in need. Classes TUESDAY Free gentle yoga online, 10 a.m. Suitable for all bodies. Go to www.livewellstudio.com. Canceled: Refit group fitness experience, 5:30 p.m. Government TUESDAY Benton County Board of Commissioners work session and meeting, 9 a.m., 1-312-757-3121, access code 115890093; or https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/115890093. Linn County Board of Commissioners, 9:30 a.m., Room 200, courthouse, 300 SW Fourth Ave., Albany. Remain in the hallway until your agenda item is ready to be heard. Those interested can use the teleconferencing number, 541-704-3002, PIN 8442. Opportunities The Oregon Senior Loneliness Line, 503-200-1633, is a volunteer "warm line" available 24/7 with Lines for Life. Trained volunteers offer support and connection at any time for older adults experiencing loneliness and isolation. Support groups TUESDAY Alcoholics Anonymous during the COVID-19 pandemic: Local hotline, 541-967-4252, answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by members of the local AA community. Many local and global AA groups are hosting meetings virtually. You can attend virtual meetings on your computer, smartphone or by dialing in. Attendees will remain anonymous and need only introduce themselves by first name. To access both local and global meetings occurring online 24 hours a day, visit https://aaoregon-district21.org. Al-Anon Care and Share meeting, noon to 1 p.m., community room (enter from parking lot), First Christian Church, 432 Ferry St. SW, Albany. Information: 541-224-6651. Narcotics Anonymous, noon to 1 p.m., 7:30 p.m., Room 11, First Christian Church, 602 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis. Information (24 hours): 877-233-4287 or www.lblna.org. Twelve-step program: Overeaters Anonymous, 6:30 p.m., fellowship hall, back parking lot, Corvallis Seventh-day Adventist Church, 3160 SW Western Blvd. Information: www.oa.org. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 A nurse at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles said she was sent home after refusing to wear a surgical mask instead of a protective respirator to treat COVID-19 patients and that she was denied a coronavirus test even after she began displaying symptoms. A nurse at a hospital in Kentucky said she was reprimanded for insubordination and reassigned for refusing to treat COVID-19 patients when the hospital would not supply her with an N95 mask. A nurse in New Jersey said he was fired after speaking out publicly about the lack of proper protective gear during the pandemic. All three nurses said they believe they are being persecuted for simply trying to protect themselves and others, and some experts agree. "I think it's important to speak up if you see inadequate conditions for patients or yourself," said Arthur Caplan, head of the division of medical ethics at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine. "I think we would expect people to do almost as whistleblowers and get protected not punished." Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak The nurses in Los Angeles and Kentucky both said they spoke directly to managers, not publicly on social media, but were reprimanded for raising concerns. Caplan said that was simply "absurd." "It's even more ridiculous if you're going up the chain of command," he said. "We expect people in health care to take some risk. And the reason is it's in their codes of ethics. Medicine and nursing say, 'Put the patient first, not your own interest,'" he said, referring specifically to the American Nurses Association code of ethics. "That's where it comes from. It's not legal. It's ethical. "So if I say, 'I'm not going to work here unless you give me an N95 mask and an adequate gown and gloves, you can't make me go in there,' I think you're right," Caplan said. "You cannot be forced to take very dangerous risks." Story continues Image: Nurses at UCI Medical Center protest the lack of personal protective equipment available in Orange, Calif., on April 3, 2020. (Chris Carlson / AP file) 'I don't have a choice. Otherwise I won't have any income.' In a phone interview with her attorney on the line, the nurse in Kentucky, who requested anonymity out of fear of retribution, said she has asthma and needs the protection of an N95 mask, which provides a higher level of protection than a surgical mask and has been in short supply. At the start of a shift in late March, she said, she was reprimanded for not wanting to go into a COVID-19 patient's room at Norton Women's and Children's Hospital in Louisville without an N95 mask. "My reprimand was insubordination for not following policy," she said. "They sent me home on the spot." Less than a week before, she said, N95 masks were in abundance on a supply cart with other personal protective equipment, or PPE, that she and her colleagues wore while treating patients battling COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. But the hospital's policy now reserves N95 masks for certain procedures in which the virus could be airborne, such as a respiratory treatment. Kate Eller, a spokeswoman for Norton Healthcare, denied that the nurse was subjected to any disciplinary action, saying, "We found her a position that meets her needs." The new position she has undertaken does not involve caring for patients, however, which the nurse said has left her feeling hopeless. "I don't have a choice. Otherwise I won't have any income," she said. Her attorney said his client was told that "if she doesn't report to this job, they will assume this is a voluntary resignation." She has not taken any formal legal action. Norton Healthcare said it is operating under the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Since the beginning of this pandemic, we have followed CDC guidelines regarding the use of PPE," Eller said. The nurse is welcome to return to a clinical position, Eller said, "as long as she agrees to wear the right mask for the right task per CDC guidelines, which is not always an N95 mask." Image: Nurses and health care workers protest outside of Jacboi Medical Center in the Bronx, N.Y., on April 17, 2020. (Angela Weiss / AFP - Getty Images) 'The CDC policy is built on shortage. It's not built on proven evidence.' The CDC's guidance is a large part of the problem, nurses and experts say. "We know that the CDC policy is built on shortage. It's not built on proven evidence," said Caplan, who has built a career advising doctors on moral issues. "Reusing things, it's a policy that is trying to adapt to the reality of shortage. And so, to say you have to follow CDC guidelines isn't enough in a pandemic." Caplan said that Washington and the CDC are partly to blame for inadequate numbers of tests and amounts of equipment and that he can understand why some health care workers "would be leery of trusting messages about protective gear that come from Washington." Download the NBC News app for full coverage and alerts about the coronavirus outbreak Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, chairman of the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania, said, "It's not like management has control of all the variables." "So I think it's important to recognize that, too," Emanuel said. "You know, if you're a good manager, you say to people: 'Look, here's my situation. How are we going to handle this together?'" Sometimes CDC guidelines aren't even met, N.J. nurse says Adam Witt was fired from Jersey Shore University Medical Center after he said it did not have proper protective gear in a public post on his Facebook page. New Jersey has the second-highest number of coronavirus cases, behind New York. "The CDC has continued to water down the standards of what is appropriate protection to meet supplies versus supporting the science," the post said. "Sometimes we don't even meet their reduced standards." Witt, president of the local nurses' union, said his problems began when he learned that a nurse at the hospital had been disciplined for raising concerns about coronavirus exposure in a post in a private Facebook group. Witt said he told his manager last month that he would be taking a day off to defend the nurse at a disciplinary hearing, a customary responsibility for a union leader. "I've used a union day numerous times for exactly this type of scenario without issue in the past," Witt told NBC News. A week later, on March 31, the hospital said he was being suspended because he took an unauthorized day off. Witt was fired after a disciplinary hearing April 6. The hospital, where he worked in the emergency department, said he was terminated because he abandoned his shift on March 24, "not for the 'reasons' now being suggested by him or his surrogates." "At all times but especially during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis his first responsibility should have been to the JSUMC patients," said Mary Jo Layton, a spokeswoman for Hackensack Meridian Health, which operates the facility. Layton said Witt gave less than 24 hours' notice when he requested off "for what amounted to a 35-minute telephone conference call." "Under these circumstances, Adam's refusal to comply with his leaders' instructions and his refusal to report to work disregarded his responsibility to his patients," Layton said. "As a direct result, his fellow nurses and other dedicated health care workers had to shoulder an additional burden in an extremely challenging situation." Witt said he told his managers verbally and via email that he was using a "union day" and was never denied. "They did not respond to my email, nor did they call or text me on the day they alleged I didn't show up," he said. The hospital said that Witt was advised that his request was denied because of the surge of pandemic patients in the emergency department and that he was directed to report to work as scheduled. He is appealing his firing. Nurses being told not to wear masks to avoid 'paranoia' The nurse at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, who asked not to be named for fear of having her nursing license revoked, said that after she raised concerns with her bosses about potential COVID-19 exposure from patients she had treated, she asked whether she should wear an N95 mask in the hospital. She said she was instructed not to, "as it could cause paranoia," and was told to keep the supply shortage in mind. She said that in a follow-up conversation with her managers in which she questioned whether doctors were being given priority over nurses in the distribution of protective respirators, she received a similar response as the nurse in Kentucky, who was referred to CDC guidance. When she expressed discontent with having to wear a surgical mask to treat COVID-19 patients, a protocol that has been authorized by the CDC but that has come under scrutiny, she said, she was sent home. The nurse also said she was denied a COVID-19 test this month even after she began exhibiting symptoms. She said: "I asked my administrator if I could get a test. And she said: 'What would change? If you got a test, how would your behavior change?' And I said, 'Well, it wouldn't, really.'" The nurse had already been self-isolating outside work. She said her administrator responded: "'So all it would change is, if you were positive, it would prevent you from coming in to work? At this point, we presume all the nurses are positive.'" Cedars-Sinai had also sent nurses guidance on extended use and reuse of N95 masks. In an email dated April 15, provided to NBC News by the nurse, Cedars-Sinai acknowledged that while the "reuse and extended use of PPE is a departure from previous infection control guidance," the process is safe if done properly and "has been endorsed by the CDC" and other health agencies. The email noted that the safety of health care providers was the "top priority." But, as Caplan said, the CDC's policy is not necessarily built on proven evidence. The CDC's website notes that "there is no way of determining the maximum possible number of safe reuses for an N95 respirator as a generic number to be applied in all cases." It says safe reuse is "affected by a number of variables." The website also acknowledges that risks may be involved with the extended use and reuse of respirator masks. "Although extended use and reuse of respirators have the potential benefit of conserving limited supplies of disposable N95 respirators, concerns about these practices have been raised," the website says. Sally Stewart, a spokeswoman for Cedars-Sinai, said April 10 it is following current national and state guidelines, which "call for N95 masks to be used only in aerosol-generating procedures," such as CPR and intubation. "We offer the same standard of protection for doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, environmental health personnel, chaplains and other staff who work in patient areas," Stewart said. In a statement April 17, a spokesman said the hospital currently has an adequate supply of N95 masks to make them available for staff when caring for suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients. "To ensure that we maintain supplies amid a potential surge of patients in the weeks ahead, we are collecting N95 masks for reprocessing," the spokesman said. "However, we are not distributing reprocessed masks at this time." The role of management and of administrators is to protect a very stressed, heroic, sometimes burnt-out workforce, Caplan said. "If people want nurses and doctors ... and first responders to be heroic, then you've got to cut them some slack," he said. "Remember, the CDC guideline is minimal, not the most. Can we pull this boat with the oars going in the same direction, or are we really going to have labor standoffs in the middle of a plague?" Image: Nurses protest in Santa Monica, Calif. (California Nurses Association / National Nurses United) Concerns could push nurses to unionize as protests erupt Nurses across the country have already begun organizing protests. Nurses at DMC Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit staged an hourslong sit-in at the hospital this month. Salah Hadwan, a registered nurse in the emergency department at Sinai-Grace, posted a Facebook Live video on April 5 shortly before midnight. Hadwan said the nurses were eventually asked to leave. "We basically were told to leave because we refuse to accept unsafe patient loads," Hadwan said in the video. Brian Taylor, a spokesman for the Detroit Medical Center, acknowledged in a statement that this is "a very challenging time for caregivers." "Our doctors and nurses continue to demonstrate their commitment and dedication to our patients," he said. "We are disappointed that one evening earlier this month a very small number of nurses at Sinai Grace Hospital staged a work stoppage in the hospital refusing to care for patients. Despite this, our patients continued to receive the care they needed as other dedicated nurses stepped in to provide care." And in California, nurses at Providence St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica held a rally Friday to protest management's putting 10 nurses on paid leave for refusing to treat COVID-19 patients without what they consider proper protective gear. Since April 9, the hospital has suspended 10 nurses, according to the California Nurses Association, a statewide union that represents them. Hospital management announced last week that it had changed the policy and that health care workers throughout the Providence system will be issued N95 masks to wear when treating confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients, the union said. Eight St. John's nurses have tested positive for the coronavirus, including two who worked in the hospital's COVID-19 unit, according to the union. The hospital did not return requests for comment. Caplan predicted that as more friction arises between the workforce and management, one of the fallouts is likely to be more unionization of doctors and nurses. "If you make people feel like they're censored or being pushed around for expressing concern, you are driving them to unionize to protect themselves," he said. "And I don't think that's what management really wants." EL PASO, Texas As Texas took its first steps Sunday toward reopening starting with state parks caveats in the plan popped up in the massive states far western corner, where the spread of coronavirus is showing no signs of slowing. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department opened online reservations for day passes, tours and camping and a message that parks that can reopen Monday will, per Gov. Greg Abbotts orders. But in El Paso, at least, Mayor Dee Margo said two popular sites Franklin Mountains and Hueco Tanks state parks will remain closed. The reopening of El Paso is contingent on the rate of infection and residents complying with the current Stay Home Order, Margo said in a statement. Until we see a consistent decrease in our positive cases, we will not be ready to lift restrictions. El Pasos exceptions hint that future openings of government services and businesses will be complicated, fraught with stipulations based on local conditions in Texas and beyond. At least 18,923 people have tested positive for the new coronavirus, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services, an increase from about 18,200 cases the day before. The number of people who have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, is now at least 477. 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. Future decisions on reopening more of Texas would be guided by testing, Abbott said, and although he assured that testing would go up quite a bit in late April or early May, he did not provide a number. Texas ranks last in the U.S. in coronavirus testing per capita, according to an analysis by The Associated Press of data collected by The COVID Tracking Project. Margo has appeared visibly frustrated in news conferences in recent weeks after reports of residents flouting social distancing guidelines have streamed in, with over 300 reports of social gatherings and unauthorized businesses open over Easter Weekend in the city of about 700,000 residents. And springtime weather doesnt help. In recent weeks, the desert has bloomed with yellow flowers and the usually barren hills of the Franklin Mountains are tinted green. Runners and bike riders want to flock to open spaces there and rock climbing-mecca Hueco Tanks as temperatures sit in the 70s before the scorching summer hits. Dave Strasser, 62, of El Paso, rode a bike near a locked gate at Franklin Mountains on Sunday. I cant just stay at home in my house, man. I got to get out here and purify my soul, Strasser said, adding that he supports social distancing requirements. But he feels that police enforcement of the ban on parks is an overreach. I mean I got a better chance of getting hit by a car then dying from the virus, he said. A few hundred conservative activists demonstrated Saturday to call for an end to social restrictions a day after Abbott announced his plan for easing them. The rally at the state Capitol in Austin was one of several that small-government proponents and supporters of President Donald Trump have held or plan to throughout the country. Trump took to Twitter this week to urge supporters to LIBERATE states led by Democratic governors. Abbott is a Republican. He said this week that more stores can start selling items for curbside pickup and that doctors will be able to begin performing elective surgeries. ___ Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak. After a year and a half of a constitutional and political crisis that drove Israel into three elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White leader Benny Gantz reached a deal for a coronavirus-emergency government, with a rotation agreement between the two politicians. Netanyahu and Gantz signed the deal after weeks of exhausting negotiations, during which Netanyahu seemed to retract from understandings agreed upon by himself and Gantz. Reports on the agreement were limited, even though it constitutes a political drama, since the announcement was made only half an hour before the official opening of Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremonies. "We have prevented a fourth election. We will protect democracy. We will fight coronavirus and care for all of Israel's citizens," Gantz said after signing the deal. According to the deal, the new unity government will last three years. Netanyahu will serve as premier for 18 months, with Gantz serving as defense minister and also appointed deputy prime minister. After 18 months, Gantz will automatically take over the position of premier, with Netanyahu serving as deputy prime minister. Being indicted, Netanyahu wont be able to serve as a minister when Gantz heads the government. It was also agreed that the coalition will advance a law enabling Netanyahu to serve as deputy prime minister despite being charged. Netanyahus trial on charges of bribery and breach of trust is expected to open this May. Thus, the deal signed this evening constitutes a real achievement for Netanyahu. He is now sure to occupy senior positions in the coming three years while at the same time conducting his legal defense. The agreement stipulates that if the Supreme Court disqualifies Netanyahu from serving as prime minister or as deputy prime minister because of the charges against him, fourth elections will be declared. But the chances of that happening are slim. The Supreme Court would likely hesitate to take such a dramatic decision, which would be perceived as interfering with the democratic election process. The agreement reveals that the new Cabinet would be the largest to govern Israel, with 36 ministers, equally distributed between the Likud and Blue and White. The same would be true for the Security Cabinet. Netanyahu and Gantz also agreed to set up a special coronavirus-emergency forum, which they would lead jointly. The deal also offers Gantz several achievements. The justice minister position a role so dear to Netanyahu would now be in Blue and Whites hands, with Avi Nissenkorn as minister. In all, Blue and White will get 16 ministerial portfolios, including foreign affairs, with Blue and Whites No. 2, Gabby Ashkenazi, as minister. Under the terms of the deal, the party will appoint one Arab minister (not party member) within the quota of portfolio allocated to them. Another issue that generated disagreement during the talks, and is now resolved to the satisfaction of the right-wing camp, is annexation. The implementation of Israeli sovereignty over lands of the West Bank will be in accordance with President Donald Trumps plan. Implementation of sovereignty should be possible as of July (after a vote in the Knesset). The next step is for the sides to anchor the coalition agreement legally with amendments in certain laws. According to prevailing estimates, this should be accomplished within two weeks, enabling then to swear in the new government. Netanyahu and Gantz both will be sworn in as prime ministers. The way things look, Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid will serve as chairman of the opposition. Lapid, who has been Gantzs leadership partner since the inception of Blue and White, has now become his rival. The chief the Tablighi Jamaat, Maulana Saad, tells Hindustan Times in an interview through his lawyer that he is willing to cooperate with the police, and that no illegal activity took place at the Markaz building, which is the biggest Covid-19 hot spot in India. Edited excerpts: Is it true that you organised Ijtema without permission? Do not confuse Ijtema with normal day-to-day activities and religious programmes held in Markaz Nizamuddin. Ijtema is generally a large congregation which is held in open public spaces for which proper permissions are taken from the concerned authorities. Follow latest updates on coronavirus here Markaz Nizamuddin is basically a masjid namely Bangle Wali Masjid, where normal religious sermons are given on a daily basis throughout the year. Being a masjid, I dont think there is any requirement to seek permission to give sermons or to have other religious discourses within the building. Is it true that youre not supporting the police investigation? This is completely misplaced. We have always maintained that it is necessary to cooperate in every manner with the authorities; this has been our history of a hundred years. It is out of question that there would be no support to the investigating authorities. So far whatever notices we have received from Delhi Police have been duly replied to. Why are you silent about the accusations against you? As advised by doctors, I was in self-quarantine, with the police aware of the fact and my whereabouts. We are not experts of social media or the optics of building a narrative, so it may not have reached all, but I immediately addressed Tabligh members, wherever they are, to come forward and cooperate with authorities in the measures they are taking to eliminate the Covid risk, whether its quarantine, isolation, or testing. Also read: ED slaps money laundering case against Tablighi Jamaat chief Also Watch | Not absconding: Tablighi Jamaat chiefs lawyer on ED money laundering case What about the alleged unaccounted foreign funding to the Jamaat? ED has registered a case against you in this regard. This is completely baseless and false. We take pride in the fact that no illegal activity has ever happened at Markaz and we shall always keep it that way. We are yet to receive any notice in this regard; all such accusations exist only in the media. I am sure that I will be able to give a satisfactory explanation for any such accusation, but for that, I should first be aware of what is the allegation, if any. Some foreign jamaatis are charged of violation of visa regulations because they travelled on tourist visas. Why did the Markaz allow it to happen? People have been coming to our country in this manner for decades with the same set of permissions, and the authorities have never pointed this out as an issue. We always report the presence of foreigners in Markaz Nizamuddin to police authorities; this has been the practice for decades. In my limited understanding, I fail to see how it would amount to a violation of the visa rule. Markaz neither invites any foreigner nor does it sponsor any visa for foreigners. Is the Markaz responsible for the spread of the disease in India? Its unfortunate that a few members have tested Covid positive, but an overwhelming majority of TJ members have tested negative too; does that make Markaz responsible for the disease? You must also constantly ask this question to yourself -- when was the first Covid case reported in India; and what actions were taken? How many other places saw much larger gatherings during late February and all throughout March, and can they be held responsible for disease? Also read: 2 relatives of Tablighi Jamaat chief Maulana Saad test positive for Covid-19 You knew about Covid; why did you not cancel the event? There was a pre-scheduled event in March for which participants had started arriving from far-off places. Till late February, and even middle March, everything was going on as normal. As soon as the janta curfew took place, we discontinued the programme and evacuated the participants. Several Muslim leaders are demanding a ban on the Jamaat. I dont know about any such demand. I would like to say that Ive been informed that in some cases, where patients who had tested positive for Covid-19, and have since recovered, their plasma can be used for treatment. I urge my friends from TJ who have been successfully treated to donate their plasma to patients of any caste or religion who are still fighting this disease. Click here for complete coronavirus coverage After an advisory on video conferencing app Zoom was issued last Thursday, the government has trained its guns on a number of popular Chinese applications including TikTok, Helo, SHAREit and Kwai for any potential breach of data. "Our data protection bill is still being deliberated but in view of the lockdown that has increased usage of the internet in the country we need to be careful about breach of data," a senior government official told Business Today. "We want to be particularly cautious about data that maybe getting stored in servers in China. So we are monitoring some of the popular Chinese apps like TikTok and Helo." Also read: Coronavirus India Live Updates: 991 new cases, 43 death in 24 hours, says Health Ministry; total count- 14,378 India does not have a data privacy law but a personal data protection bill is pending before the Lok Sabha. It is the country's first attempt at regulating how personal digital data of citizens can be used by the government, enforcement agencies and companies and seeks to provide an iron clad system against any violation. The current level of data protection in India is considered lax and inadequate. On Thursday, the ministry of home affairs issued a circular warning that Zoom app was unsafe. It is an American application that has gained traction after India went into a lockdown to fight the coronavirus pandemic on March 25. It has been used by many corporates to facilitate work from home during this period. "Zoom is not a safe platform," said the Cyber Coordination Centre of the ministry in a 16-page advisory that listed out steps users must take in-case they still wished to use the app. Also read: Coronavirus: Desi Zoom app? Govt plans to create video-conferencing platform The main issue with Zoom is that it routed some calls through servers in China, something the company itself admitted as a breach. Countries like Germany, Taiwan and Singapore have already banned the application. "In our urgency to come to the aid of people around the world during this unprecedented pandemic, we added server capacity and deployed it quickly starting in China, where the outbreak began. In that process, we failed to fully implement our usual geo-fencing best practices. As a result, it is possible certain meetings were allowed to connect to systems in China, where they should not have been able to connect," said Zoom CEO Eric Yuan in a blog post. "We have since corrected this, and would like to use this blog post to explain how our system typically works, where our misstep occurred, and how we will prevent these kinds of problems in the future." Most countries are trying to bring in policies that mandate that data remains stored in servers that are physically present in the same country. That way it is difficult to access from the outside world. However, till such time these regulations are finalised and implemented chances of data being misused remain high. Also read: Zoom is not a safe platform, says govt "Chinese apps are very popular in India. They also command the lion's share of the smartphone market and it is no secret that we have an uneasy relation with them. So we need to be careful," said the official quoted above. "Data is of essence and we cannot afford slip-ups." This is not the first time Indian agencies have picked up Chinese apps as suspicious. In 2017, as many as 42 mobile applications WeChat, UC NEWS and UC browser, SHAREit, Truecaller were listed as spyware or malware. Further back in 2016, the government had also issued an advisory asking people to refrain from using Chinese origin apps and desist from using smartphones made in China entirely. Chinese firms command more than 50 per cent of the smartphone market in India today but the bulk of them are made in the country. Also read: More than 5 lakh hacked Zoom accounts up for sale on Dark Web Also read: 9 video-conferencing apps to use if you're looking for alternatives to Zoom INDIA CORONAVIRUS TRACKER: BusinessToday.In brings you a daily tracker as coronavirus cases continue to spread. Here is the state-wise data on total cases, fatalities and recoveries in one comprehensive graphic. Landlocked and with no visible infrastructure to justify its existence, it is near Geraldton about 500 km north of Perth in an area where sheep, wheat and cattle are the prime produce. The self-proclaimed independent sovereign State of the Hutt River Province in Western Australia occupies an area no larger than a small cattle station. And yet in the 13 years since farmer Leonard Casley, 58, seceded from the Commonwealth of Australia because of a row over his wheat quota the Hutt River Province has gained more than a modicum of international recognition, which makes it an irritation to the Federal Government. Not only has the former farmer taken the title Prince Lenard of Hutt, but his self-proclaimed principality now operates its own radio station and issues its own stamps, in which philatelists throughout the world have taken a particular interest. Even more significantly, Hutt River prints its own banknotes which have a kind of souvenir value, and mints its own coins, including a $100 gold sovereign similar to the coveted South African Kruger Rand. "Lord" John Davies, the first agent General in N.S.W, for the Hutt River Province holds up the province crest and samples of its own money and stamps. Credit:Trevor Dallen Hutt Rivers gold coins could help make the principalitys coinage of more than interest value to overseas bankers. Fatemeh Khishvand, better known as Sahar Tabar, is now quarantined in prison after displaying symptoms of the virus. An Iranian social media star has contracted the coronavirus disease in prison, her lawyer said. Fatemeh Khishvand, better known as Sahar Tabar, became famous after posting her heavily altered face through numerous plastic surgeries on her Instagram page, in the likeness of Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie. Tabar, who has also edited her photos to resemble a zombie, was arrested by Iranian authorities last October, on the orders of Tehrans guidance court, which deals with cultural crimes and social and moral corruption. Among the charges she faced were blasphemy, inciting violence, gaining income through inappropriate means, and encouraging the youth to corruption. The 18-year-olds lawyer, Payam Derafshan, told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) last week that Tabar is currently on a ventilator at Sina Hospital in Tehran after getting infected with coronavirus at the Shahr-e Rey prison. She is now held in a quarantine section of the prison, Derafshan said, according to Tabars mother. We find it unacceptable that this young woman has now caught the coronavirus in these circumstances while her detention order has been extended during all this time in jail, Derafshan said. The director of the prison, Mehdi Mohammadi, denied Tabar had been diagnosed with COVID-19, but Derafshan said it is a habit for authorities to deny everything. It makes no sense to deny this, he said. The prison director should acknowledge the infection and admit she has been hospitalised. The lawyer went on to say although he appealed for the judge in Tabars case, Mohammed Moghiseh, to release her from prison, he is unreachable and could not be found at the court. Last month, Iran temporarily released some 85,000 inmates, including political prisoners, in an attempt to reduce pressure on its prisons system as the country struggles to contain the spread of coronavirus. The death toll from Irans coronavirus outbreak has surpassed 5,000, and there are more than 82,000 cases of infection in the Middle Easts worst-affected country. Egypt's health ministry announced 112 new coronavirus cases and 15 new fatalities on Sunday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 3,144 and the death toll to 239. Thirty-one Egyptians have fully recovered and been discharged from quarantine or hospitals, according to the ministrys bulletin, which brings the total number of recoveries from the virus so far to 732. The number of cases who have retested negative, including the recoveries, has now reached 1,001, ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said. The newly detected cases include one foreigner, the remaining being Egyptians. They were detected through the ministrys investigation and contact tracing protocols, Megahed added. Health Minister Hala Zayed praised the efforts of the medical teams at fever and pulmonology hospitals, according to the ministry statement. Zayed said that 81 fever and pulmonology hospitals across Egypt have provided free medical services to more than 1.5 million patients, including some with the coronavirus, since the emergence of the virus in the country, with a daily frequency of over 25,000 patients. On Saturday, the Coptic Orthodox Churchs Pope Tawadros led an Easter mass service without attendees at the desert monastery of Saint Bishoy in Wadi El-Natroun, part of unprecedented measures undertaken to stem the spread of the coronavirus in the country. This is the first time that Pope Tawadros has held an Easter service at a location other than Cairos Saint Mark's Cathedral, or has held the service without attendants or worshippers. Public transport has been suspended on Monday, the date of the traditional spring festivity of Sham El-Nessim, in a bid to prevent people from celebrating the holiday with the customary family outings to public places. The cabinet has suspended buses, trains and the Cairo metro, and closed shops, malls and public parks. Search Keywords: Short link: Bidding wars: HSE chief executive Paul Reid said the trade in PPE was like 'modern day piracy'. Photo: Gareth Chaney, Collins Personal protective equipment (PPE) is like "gold dust", admitted the head of the HSE, adding that competing countries are paying a "premium price" to secure it. Chief executive of the HSE Paul Reid said buying equipment has become a form of "modern day piracy" as countries have been forced to bid higher in order to fulfil demands in their hospitals. He said securing enough PPE remains the "primary challenge" for the health service in Ireland. "Since the start of this pandemic, availability has been our primary challenge in finding and secure [supply] lines," he said at yesterday's HSE press briefing at UCD. Countries are now attempting to outbid other states in order to secure the equipment in what Mr Reid described as "modern day piracy". "Whether it's for PPE, whether it's for ventilators, whether it's for reagents, as soon as you think you have stocks adorned, somebody somewhere in the world is outbidding you, whether that's at the delivery stage or if it's nearly at the export stage. "There's a lot of piracy, modern day piracy going on," he said. He added that Ireland was quick to place orders and paid a "reasonable amount" for the first batch of PPE, which cost 208m, and a second batch, which cost 67m. "From our perspective, we paid what we believe is a reasonable price at the right point in time, our priority was obviously the protection of our staff and our patients. "There's certainly premium prices being paid there on the market, we did get in early and secure a very significant order of 210m or so," he said. He also added that PPE has now become like "gold dust" and that healthcare workers should be "prudent" when using it. "PPE is now the new gold dust," he said. He said the equipment should be used carefully given the worldwide demand. "I would always ask people to be prudent in terms of the proper use of it but it is worldwide sought, so we would always ask people to be prudent with it," he added. "We want to get significant stock in hand for distribution but we will always ask for people to be prudent, particularly through a world pandemic that we're dealing with," he added. More than one million items of PPE were delivered to nursing homes across Ireland in recent days, said Mr Reid. Health authorities say they have been focusing efforts and resources on long-term residential care facilities, which have been badly affected by coronavirus. Mr Reid said that 1,250 deliveries containing more than one million items of PPE have been made across the State. "It is a very challenging national infrastructure - some of these sites are very small sites located all across Ireland, and we are taking an approach to get to all of those sites," he said. "On Friday, 378 deliveries took place to nursing homes and 750,000 items of PPE were supplied." HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BJs Restaurants, Inc. (BJRI) today announced that it will release its first quarter 2020 results after the market closes on Thursday, May 7, 2020. The slight delay in BJs quarterly reporting is due solely to the evolving situation surrounding the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the related efforts to contain the virus, which have necessitated that accounting personnel and outside advisors work from home. The Company will host an investor conference call at 2:00 p.m. (Pacific) that same day. The conference call will be broadcast live over the Internet. To listen to the conference call, please visit the Investors page of the Companys website located at http://www.bjsrestaurants.com several minutes prior to the start of the call to register and download any necessary audio software. An archive of the presentation will be available for 30 days following the call. BJs Restaurants, Inc. (BJs) is a national brand with brewhouse roots and a menu where craft matters. BJs broad menu with over 140 offerings has something for everyone: slow-roasted entrees, like prime rib, BJs EnLIGHTened Entrees including Cherry Chipotle Glazed Salmon, signature deep dish pizza and the often imitated, but never replicated world-famous Pizookie dessert. BJs has been a pioneer in the craft brewing world since 1996, and takes pride in serving BJs award-winning proprietary handcrafted beers, brewed at its brewing operations in five states and by independent third-party craft brewers. The BJs experience offers high-quality ingredients, bold flavors, moderate prices, sincere service and a cool, contemporary atmosphere. Founded in 1978, BJs owns and operates 209 casual dining restaurants in 29 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington. All restaurants typically offer dine-in, take-out, delivery and large party catering. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, dine-in service is currently not available, menu offerings and hours are limited, and four restaurants have temporarily been closed. For more BJs information, visit http://www.bjsrestaurants.com . Story continues For further information, please contact Greg Levin of BJs Restaurants, Inc. at (714) 500-2400 or JCIR at (212) 835-8500 or at bjri@jcir.com. Criticism is growing of the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) handling of the pandemic in the UK, with several prominent Conservative politicians pushing for a rethink of the UKs relationship with the CCP. In 2015, the former Finance Minister George Osborne, under the Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, declared a so-called Golden Era between the UK and China. The CCP virus pandemic has cast a stark new light on such ties, as a growing chorus of British politicians are voicing their concerns over the UKs relationship with the Chinese communist state. I think all of this is very much going to change the image of China, with many members of Parliament, and there will absolutely be a rethink on our relationship with China, British Conservative politician Owen Paterson told NTD. Last Thursday, UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said there will be hard questions for China. In relationship with China, look, I think absolutely needs to be a very, very deep dive after-the-event review of the lessons, including of the outbreak of the virus. And I dont think we can flinch from that at all, he said. The UKs decision to allow Huawei a role in its 5G network earlier this year sparked concern from the United States, its allies, and politicians from within UK Prime Minister Boris Johnsons Conservative party. Huaweis links with the CCP are well-documented. The UK government has said that Huawei is a high risk vendor but also allowed them a role in the 5G network, capped at 35 percent. I think the governments been misadvised, said Paterson. I hope that events of recent weeks would have really woken them up to the danger of being beholden on a company which is so closely run by the Chinese communist government. Lord Hague, former UK Foreign Secretary, warned during a webinar on Wednesday that the UK cant be reliant on technology from China because the regime doesnt play by our rules. In an interview with NTD Charles Parton, a former British Diplomat in China, said I think the mood in this country, vis-a-vis China, or perhaps one should say vis-a-vis the Chinese communist party, as one shouldnt conflate necessarily the two, is definitely less forgiving than it was. He added, China needs the rest of the world, as much as the rest of the world needs China. So I think we need to look at that Huawei decision again. Washington has repeatedly warning London about Huaweis security risks. A UK government spokesperson told NTD that the UK governments position on Huawei hasnt changed. A vote on Huaweis involvement in the UKs 5G network is expected in the coming months, but a date is yet to be scheduled. A survey, commissioned by the foreign policy think tank Henry Jackson society, found that 40 percent of the British public oppose allowing Huawei into the UKs 5G network. The poll of about 1,000 British adults also found the majority of Brits want China to face an international investigation over the CCP virus outbreak, which emerged from mainland China last year and causes the disease COVID-19. We acknowledge the Sovereignty of the First Nations Peoples. HEALTH, WORKERS RIGHTS, AND SOCIALISM The CPA CC Executive met on the weekend of the 4-5 th of April and issued the following statement, setting out demands to provide campaigning directions for the Party under the current unique and unprecedented circumstances related to Covid-19. The Covid-19 pandemic crisis displays the failure of capitalism and its inadequate health systems even in the most advanced countries. The Australian government spends $100,000,000 a day on the military. It is time this money is spent on the people. The capitalist system has failed society in preventing thousands of deaths world-wide by allowing capital to act under the market and operate as it sees fit in the name of profit to the detriment of our community and social health. The CPA recognises that the only responsible solution is to replace the current system with a socialist system for the health, safety and economic well-being of us all. The class struggle and suppression and exploitation of workers has intensified in these crisis circumstances. The ruling class is opportunistically using this health crisis to break down the wages and conditions of Australian workers while at the same time setting the working class up to pay for their capitalist rescue packages. The CPA will wage the struggle with working class people confronted by this capitalist call to arms. More than ever people must now come together, despite our momentary physical distancing, and work together to fight against the ruling class and their governments plans to make the working class pay for their crisis. The CPA will continue fighting for working class people during this time of crisis and campaigning for workers rights and safety. The CPA doesnt believe workers should be asked to, or need to sacrifice their health and safety for the communities health and to maintain vital supply chains. It is vital to keep the Party functioning and to intensify our struggle now! THE PARTY MUST CAMPAIGN AND KEEP THE PARTY FUNCTIONING Branches must continue their meetings online. Regular branch activities and programs of work must be maintained or intensified. Higher Party Bodies will be available to assist Party organisations to ramp up their work and provide any technical support. Party leadership bodies will continue to meet online and will regularly distribute information about comrades initiatives, actions and campaigns. ACTIVITY What actions can we do to develop new forms of action. The Sydney May 1 Movement had a car cavalcade as an example of physical distancing action. Online campaigns will become more important The Guardian and the party social media sites must play a leadership role in these actions. and the party social media sites must play a leadership role in these actions. The creativity and initiative of comrades will be vital to ensure the voice of the CPA stands out in the online crowd. The online discipline of members is vital, and members are expected to maintain Party discipline at all times. GUARDIAN AND WEBSITE The Guardian is in Online Now Due to Covid-19 the Guardian is only being published online. This is only temporary as an actual physical paper is extremely important to the Party and Guardian readers. The CC Executive does not see this as a backward step but rather as an opportunity to reach out to a whole new range of people. Our challenge is to reach new readers during the current less physically social circumstances. The Party and Our Members Must Find New Ways to Expand the Guardian presence online. Comrades should be reaching out to new people and have all members use the Guardian as a campaigning and organising tool. as a campaigning and organising tool. Comrades should think about and suggest new ways to get the Guardian out or initiate new media outlets. out or initiate new media outlets. Every Party member should actively share the paper and individual articles online through all our social media sites. The Guardian centre pages will become the headline feature of Party, highlighting our activity and campaigning. Our Website The Party website will have a significant update with an increased focus on incorporating local, party and community activity and functional campaigning. The website will become a major active and vibrant source of the Party and political information in adding to the importance of the Guardian . . The Guardian and the website will be integrated tools in Taking the Party to the People. CAMPAIGN DEMANDS CPA demands to protect workers safety and rights. The CPA supports and is actively involved in the struggles for workers rights and safety on the job including the full involvement of workers in implementing the strongest possible measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19. These include the following rights in the workplace: Covid-19 testing for all front-line workers who are forced to work during this crisis. Appropriate PPE including the provision of high-quality face masks. Physical distancing measures decided by workers in workplaces. The best cleaning and hygiene measures to be implemented. Effective cleanliness and provision of cleaning materials proven to deal with Covid-19. Payment for all Covid-19 related absences. Relaxation of all medical certification by employers for personal leave. Workers need to be in control of safety in the workplace. Full rights for unions to represent workers at all times. That all actions by workers related to Covid-19 related issues be considered a right and that no employer warnings, disciplinary sanctions or orders from any government institution or court should apply to any worker or union. CPA political and economic demands to confront the crisis and achieve a real change In addition to social restrictions mass testing must be increased. Workers have a right to be paid 100 per cent of their wage if they are made unemployed due to Covid-19. Workers need to be paid for all Covid-19 related absences. Include all workers in Australia in any relief measures, health and social security. No reduction in social security benefits. Increase public health facilities and budget. Workers must not pay for the crisis or recovery. Reverse all privatisations and public ownership of all major industries: Health and medicines Education Telecommunications Resources & Mining Finance and banks Transport Ships, Ports and wharves Rail Airlines Public transportation Tweet Next article THE VIRUS AND OUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEM Back to index page Margalit Fox: Beard, a New York photographer, artist and naturalist to whom the word wild was roundly applied, both for his death-defying photographs of African wildlife and for his own much-publicized days decades, really as an amorous, bibulous, pharmaceutically inclined man about town, was found dead in the woods on Sunday, almost three weeks after he disappeared from his home in Montauk on the East End of Long Island. The New York Times Two hundred and four deaths since Sunday brought Connecticuts fatality total to 1,331 in the coronavirus pandemic, with a slight increase in net hospitalizations in what Gov. Ned Lamont said was a positive trend. He said that the apparent sharp increase in both infections and deaths reflects new guidelines from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have now been 19,815 cases, up from 17,962 on Sunday. These numbers are bouncing around a little bit and I just thought Id tell you when you see 1,853 positive cases, you go my God thats an awful lot, or 204 fatalities, thats an awful lot, whats going on? In this case the CDC changed their definition in the last few days, both the positive case and somebody who dies from complications related to COVID. There was a net increase of 18 people hospitalized since Sunday. During his afternoon new conference in the State Capitol, Lamont said that cases in Fairfield County seem to have plateaued and possibly started a downward trend. He warned that continued social distancing is important, and if the state can keep up the downward trend for a couple of weeks, it will help the state and regional groups planning the gradual reopening of a new type of normal life. We are beginning to bend the curve, at least in the southern part of the state, Lamont said at about 4:30, shortly before a demonstration was scheduled at the Capitol in attempt to reopen state businesses faster. On Sunday, there were an additional 41 deaths reported, bringing the total fatalities to 1,127, while 59,759 people had been tested. The number of confirmed cases on Sunday increased by 412 to a total of 17,962, while there was a net decrease of 37 people hospitalized. As Vietnam has a fertile consumer finance market, more foreign players are considering joining the bandwagon by tying up with local peers. The consumer finance market grows at an average 30 per cent annually Recently, privately-held Saigon-Hanoi Bank (SHB) announced selling part of its capital at its subsidiary SHB Finance to a foreign strategic partner. Albeit the deal value was not disclosed, the parent company is likely to still retain the bulk of the capital in the subsidiary. Despite its infancy (it has been operating for less than two years), SHB Finance has reached nearly VND3.3 trillion ($143.5 million) in total asset value, 2.75 times as much as in 2018, and total outstanding balance touched VND2.7 trillion ($117 million), up 3.8 times over 2018. After nearly two years, the company posted nearly VND107 billion ($4.65 million) in profit. Selling equity to major foreign partners will help SHB leverage the experience, management expertise, modern and professional distribution channel, as well as access cutting-edge technology to leapfrog in development and vie for a bigger market slice, according to a bank representative. Sharing this mindset, an executive at FE Credit, Vietnams No.1 consumer finance company, said they have been considering joining hands with foreign partners, but the plan has yet to be realised. Early this year, the company was approved to shift from a limited liability into a joint stock company, as well as got the green light to raise its charter capital from VND7.328 trillion ($318.6 million) to VND7.333 trillion ($318.83 million). The company holds more than 50 per cent market share in its field and belongs to privately-held VPBank, one of the top performers in the banking sector. According to industry experts, the shift into the JSC model would pave the way for FE Credit to offload shares in the stock market or sell stakes to outside partners, including foreign investors. Lately, Japans leading retailer AEON has disclosed intentions to jump into Vietnams financial market. Masaki Suzuki, chairman of AEON Financial Service Co., Ltd., at a recent meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue, unveiled that AEON would expand operations into financial investment in Vietnam through acquiring either foreign-backed or state-owned financial firms in the country. Regarding Vietnams consumer finance market, Shibata Kenichi, senior expert at Hitachi Asia (Vietnam) Ltd. assumed that this is a robust segment with growth averaging 30 per cent annually. It is like Japans consumer finance market 30 years ago with its sharp rise in growth year after year, he said. Leaders of diverse consumer finance firms, in a recent talk with local media, agreed that Vietnams consumer finance market will continue its growth momentum albeit at a slower pace due to the implications of the coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) as well as new policy moves. Accordingly, in November 2019, the State Bank of Vietnam enacted Circular No.18/2019 regulating the consumer lending activities of financial companies. The circular, coming into force from January 15, 2020, consists of more stringent requirements on the operation of financial firms. For instance, financial firms must have at least VND500 billion ($21.74 million) in charter capital, and they could not lend to firms that have bad debts. Regarding the policy factor, experts assumed that after seeing the booming development, the new policy aims to ensure the safe and sustainable development of finance companies, avoiding too-fast development that might surpass the management capacity of both state agencies and companies themselves. Slower market growth also means providing opportunities for finance companies, particularly consumer finance firms, to restructure operations for higher efficiency. By the end of last year, the scale of Vietnams consumer finance market came to around VND1 quadrillion ($43.48 billion) from just VND646 trillion ($28 billion) in 2016, accounting for 12 per cent of the countrys total outstanding balance. This figure, according to senior economist Le Xuan Nghia, is just a drop in the bucket compared to that in many countries, regionally and globally. In the US or Europe, consumer finance accounts for 50-70 per cent of banks total balance. Vietnam is currently home to 18 financial companies, including six foreign players. The governments strong commitment to crackdown on shadow banking is expected to propel the markets further development. VIR Hong Thuy Foreign banks start consumer finance boost in Vietnams market Foreign banks have decided to boost consumer finance loans as the business segment is forecast to maintain double digit growth this year. Mumbai, April 20 : Actor Amitabh Bachchan feels a world without smartphones is an improbability, and adds that people are realising its value worldwide amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Drawing comparison with the world before smartphones, Big B said: "In the 90's on a private visit to the BigApple; the city that never sleeps - NYC, New York USA - when the mobile was in its early prevalence, but not in its supreme, the Contact list had an 'h' after the name ... The 'h' was for 'hand'.. the hand phone .. the mobile .. it went wherever your hand went." "In the times of the present that 'h' has lost its importance .. it's understood .. the 10 digits that follow after .. more likely the 'h' needs replacement .. it should be an 's' .. !! 's'.. the smart phone !! Or better still a 'W' .. 'W' for the 'world' .. that is what it has become .. the world .. the world in your hand," he mentioned. Big B continued: "Earlier you left home and never forgot to carry your wallet, your keys of the house, the car, the office wherever .. you leave wherever you are sitting today to move and the hand goes to the 'W' instantly .. A world without that smart phone is an improbability today and never has its value been evaluated more than in the world wide CoViD 19 crisis! "Communication has redefined itself ... it's not about sitting around with the family or a group of friends in a room over a cup of coffee ... it's about sitting around in a room with a cup of coffee with friends .. BUT not together yet together .. that is the marvel of the 'smarty'," he added. The actor feels that smartphones come with smart ways to work while maintaining social distancing. "Shoot a film with 12 artists in different parts of the world making it look as though they were all in one room, was a unique idea and a unique exercise ... everything was controlled, conveyed, communicated and composed with the 'smart'," he noted. The actor added: "Did a poem recitation to music and visual. No sweat. The smart mobile did it all. Sat in front of it and recorded the verse. Sent it through the smart to music composer. Went on to a Con Call with the music partner and the recordist, all in different parts of the city and all at home .. got a final mix of the track, shot the visual and sent it back to the edit for the patch .. got back the final and on to the social media outlets within seconds .. All of it with the latest and most sacred 'invention' of the modern world, after the invention of the 'wheel' .. The Smart Mobile." "What ever will we do without it .. or rather .. how in hell did we ever do without it," he said while concluding his piece for Samsung Newsroom. The actor expressed his views in a special piece authored for Samsung. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have been the focus of attention from the Chinese media, the authors of which recalled that these two post-Soviet republics are located on "originally Chinese lands historically belonging to the Qing Dynasty." Nur-Sultan regarded the publication as a threat to the territorial integrity of the country, a note of protest was presented to the Chinese ambassador to Kazakhstan. In Bishkek, they preferred not to aggravate the situation with a powerful neighbor and asked him for help in difficult times. Publications of articles on Chinese information resources allegedly controlled by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China Why Kazakhstan Should Return to China and Kyrgyzstan was the Land of China provoked indignation in Nur Sultan and Bishkek. The essence of the materials came down to the question of why the republics of the former USSR after gaining independence did not return to the fold of China. In addition to the historical excursion, the article on Kyrgyzstan also contains an analysis of the economic condition of the republic. The author concludes that "Kyrgyzstan lived very richly in China, and now it is the poorest country in the world - the size of GDP per capita does not exceed $ 1,000," Radio Azattyk (the Kyrgyz service of Radio Liberty) quotes the Chinese media. The Ambassador of the People's Republic of China, Zhang Xiao, was invited to the Foreign Ministry of Kazakhstan and announced that the publication of such content did not correspond to the "eternal spirit of a comprehensive strategic partnership reflected in the joint statement of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Peoples Republic of China, which was signed by the heads of state on September 11, 2019." Zhang Xiao, who is usually active on social networks and shares his views there, this time did not comment on the incident. In the structure of the world economy of Kazakhstan, China remains the second power after the United States. Nur-Sultan owes China $ 11 billion, Bishkek - $ 1.7 million. But if Kazakhstan can afford to hand over a note to China, then, as the director of the Bishkek analytical center Prudent Solutions (Intelligent Solutions) Esen Usubaliyev told "Vestnik Kavkaza" Kyrgyzstan should be more correct, since China is not just a neighbor, but also a friendly partner country. Kyrgyzstan does not have such resources - oil and gas, like Kazakhstan and such an airbag. Therefore, in Bishkek, they decided not to pay attention to the publication on a Chinese resource. Moreover, this is not the first time that the topic of the return of lands allegedly belonging to the Dzungar Khanate has been raised in the Chinese segment of the Internet, which causes heated debate in the national-patriotic circles of both countries. However, the appearance of such articles has nothing to do with the change in mood in the Chinese leadership or Chinese society, since the border issue between China and the countries of Central Asia was settled at the time of the formation of the Shanghai Five (the predecessor of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization). of the conditions of establishment of the organization was the settlement of border issues Therefore, China rather successfully closed all territorial disputes, which lasted from the time of the Russian Empire "-. Usubaliev stressed. The expert is convinced that no one is encroaching and is unlikely to encroach on the territory of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. "Chinese resources, although they are credited with being close to power, are not the official point of view of the CPC Central Committee. China and Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan were also unhappy with the conclusion of border agreements. But, I repeat, there is no cause for concern, since the Chinese government does not involved, "said the expert. Moreover, the President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbai Jeenbekov asked China for a delay in the payment of loan arrears. "Given the negative impact of the virus on the macroeconomic situation, President Jeenbekov suggested considering the possibility of facilitating and prolonging payments on the external debt of Kyrgyzstan to China," the press service of the head of Kyrgyzstan said, noting that "President Xi Jinping supported Bishkeks efforts to combat coronavirus infection " It is not yet known whether Beijing will meet Bishkek. But the burden of loan repayments is currently unbearable for the republic. The external debt of the republic is $ 3.7 billion. "China has always said that it is open to discuss issues related to payment of loans. Beijing can make concessions only because the situation in the republic is critical. And we have chances to get help," said Esen Usubaliev. Of course, this is a necessary measure. Due to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, in the last month alone, the Kyrgyz budget received less than 6 billion soms. In total, according to experts, the damage at the end of the year may amount to about 40 billion soms. Kyrgyz parliamentarian and former finance minister Akylbek Zhaparov believes the neighbors will not reject the proposal of the Kyrgyz government: The amount of funds that must be paid abroad is 28 billion soms. If we ask to suspend payments for a year, both China and other countries will agree This money must be left to support the economy. " Oh, yeah, thats definitely not six feet. Photo: Andreas Rentz/Getty Images With festivals, albums, concerts, and more being pushed to the fall or canceled entirely due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Venice Film Festival is sticking to its plans for September. In a recent interview with the Italian wire service ANSA, confirmed by Variety, Venice Biennial president Roberto Cicutto once again confirmed the September 2 12 dates for the 77th Venice Film Festival and downplayed plans for a Venice x Cannes Film Festival collab. Out on another glorious European coast, strict social distancing regulations forced the Cannes Film Festival to postpone this years event, once to mid-July and a second time indefinitely. While Cannes director Thierry Fremaux suggested to Variety that Venice Film Fest and Cannes may combine their efforts, Roberto Cicutto told ANSA that there is no hypothesis for a collaboration at this time. With Cannes, everything is possible, but I find it disconcerting that Thierry Fremaux keeps saying he is continuing to examine the situation and does not say what he wants to do, he said, later adding We are going forward with our program, and if Cannes is still thinking (about their course of action) then there is no dialogue. Meanwhile, Venice is exploring options to make sure its September festival can still happen, including a digital option for foreign press and potentially using cinemas. Theyve given themselves until May to figure all that out, which seems to be the new rule of thumb for all coronavirus-related timelines. Remember back when it was April? As the oldest film festival in the world, Venice may be at a higher risk for the coronavirus, but it is not going down without a fight. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 22:06:00|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic touches elbows with a Serbian expert to greet each other at the opening of the Laboratory for Molecular Detection of Infectious Agents dubbed "Fire Eye" in Belgrade, Serbia, on April 20, 2020. The new COVID-19 testing lab, parts of which were donated by Chinese companies, opened in the Serbian capital on Monday, significantly increasing the country's virus testing capabilities. The lab at the Clinical Center of Serbia in Belgrade, is the first of two laboratories to be installed by the Chinese BGI group in Serbia. (Xinhua) BELGRADE, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A new COVID-19 testing lab, parts of which were donated by Chinese companies, opened in the Serbian capital on Monday, significantly increasing the country's virus testing capabilities. The opening of the Laboratory for Molecular Detection of Infectious Agents dubbed "Fire Eye" at the Clinical Center of Serbia in Belgrade was attended by Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic, Health Minister Zlatibor Loncar, Director of the Clinic for Infectious and Tropical Diseases Goran Stevanovic, Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Chen Bo and medical experts from China. Brnabic said that the new laboratory "brings Serbia among the most efficient countries in this part of Europe" when it comes to diagnosing COVID-19. She said that the laboratory will stay operational after the coronavirus crisis is over and will strengthen Serbia's healthcare system. Serbia will continue talks with the Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) about the establishment of an Institute for Molecular Genomics and Precision Medicine in Serbia. The new fully automated laboratory built and installed in around three weeks will be able to conduct around 2,000 coronavirus tests per day and will employ 40 microbiologists. This is the first of two laboratories to be installed by the Chinese BGI group in Serbia. The project is worth over 700,000 euros (760.700 U.S. dollars), of which around 570,000 euros are to be donated by Chinese companies. The second lab, which will be installed in the city of Nis in the coming weeks, will perform around 1,000 coronavirus tests a day, government said. With these two labs, Serbia's testing capacities will be doubled. Ambassador Chen recalled that the team of Chinese experts has been in Serbia for a month already working alongside their Serbian colleagues, and that the new laboratory is yet another cooperative achievement. There are 6,630 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Serbia. A total of 125 people have died of the disease. To date, the country has performed 41,812 virus tests. (1 euro = 1.09 U.S. dollars) Enditem Protesters upset with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-home order gather at the state Capitol in Lansing on April 15, 2020. (Jeff Kowalsky / AFP/Getty Images) To the editor: President Trump is not always so supportive of "very responsible people" who gather to "express their views." When the Women's March protested the day after the president's inauguration in 2017 (and did so without putting others' lives at risk), he wasn't such a fan. With his tweets saying to "liberate" Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, and his tacit support of people calling for the firing of Dr. Anthony Fauci, Trump continues to demonstrate just what makes him a very irresponsible and dangerous president. If only our country could be liberated from Trump's ignorance and confusion, and instead be guided by a leader with a clear vision and calming manner, we could all breathe a sigh of relief (six feet apart and wearing masks, of course). Erika Wright, Mar Vista .. To the editor: I read with interest about the protests against governors' stay-home orders. Somehow or other, these demonstrators are making a political issue of guidelines to slow the spread of COVID-19, which the president has endorsed. I am proud to say I voted for Trump, but my decision to follow his administration's advice on social distancing and staying home is not a political one. I made this decision because I am not stupid. I recently read about 81 people dying of COVID-19 in a single day in Los Angeles County. Also, I am turning 94 soon and would like to make it to 95 and even 100. I am staying in my house. Barbara Hardesty, Los Angeles .. To the editor: Protesters in Lansing, Mich., opposing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-at-home order marched on the state Capitol's steps, and some brought with them assault rifles and Confederate flags. Why bring assault rifles? Were the demonstrators going to shoot at the coronavirus? Were they going to show the coronavirus what tough hombres they were, therefore scaring the coronavirus into oblivion? And why the Confederate flag? What does that symbol of hate have to do with stay-home orders? Story continues Hugo Pastore, Lomita .. To the editor: A little more than 20 years ago my daughter had cancer. The treatment required 16 rounds of chemotherapy; one treatment was given every 10 days. What would have happened if she had refused her treatment because it was too hard or too scary? She spent days curled up in a fetal position, sometimes vomiting, but she toughed it out, and we now celebrate our grandchildren and our larger family. I am having a hard time understanding the lack of perspective from those who cannot handle the treatment for this disease, which is staying at home. This virus is contagious, cancer is not. What are they thinking? Jeffrey Gerber, Los Angeles Iconic actor cum musician Kwadwo Nkansah Lilwin has donated assorted items to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) and the Ashanti Regional Police Command. Lilwin who is the brand ambassador for Bel-Malt presented over 5000 bottles of Bel products to KATH and the Regional Police Command. The multiple award winning act in media briefing after the donation said, "I want to do my best to ensure frontliners are well taken care of, considering how they aree risking their lives for us and really appreciate their work so far. "They have done tremendously well over the past weeks and I would urge fellow citizens to listen to all guidelines by the various health authorities and stay home to stop the spread." ACP David Agyemang Adjem, Deputy Ashanti Regional Police Commander, who received the items on behalf of the Command was grateful to Lilwin for his kind gesture and support towards ''Operation COVID safety" and also urged the general public to comply with the Presidential directives which is aimed at saving lives. Lilwin also visited some security officials who were at some check points to enforce the restriction of movement in some areas in Greater Kumasi. 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. Featured Video Matthew McConaughey has been sharing McConaughey Takes on his social media. In these videos, the actor discusses some of his most famous roles. On April 20, he discussed his role in The Wolf of Wall Street. He only has a small role in the film, but it was memorable as he pounds his chest over lunch with Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio). L-R: Leonardo DiCaprio and Matthew McConaughey | Paramount Pictures Even for a relatively brief role, McConaughey developed a wealth of background. Belfort was a fraudulent 80s stockbroker and Mark Hanna (McConaughey) set him in motion. Watch the video below or read the highlights of McConaugheys take on The Wolf of Wall Street. Matthew McConaughey sets the scene for The Wolf of Wall Street McConaughey would win an Oscar for his role in Dallas Buyers Club in 2013, the same year The Wolf of Wall Street came out. The former role required him to lose nearly 50 pounds to play Ron Woodroof, and HIV positive man who helped other patients get medication in the 80s.. L-R: Joe Pesci,Jonah Hill,Martin Scorsese and Matthew McConaughey | Dave Allocca/Starpix I was about 30 pounds into losing all the weight for Dallas Buyers Club when I got the call from Martin Scorsese to come in for a couple days and play this guy, Mark Hanna whos sort of the mentor to Leonardos Belfort character, McConaughey said in his video. Its a scene in a restaurant where Im giving him the lay of the land of what this business is and what its not. Matthew McConaughey discovered an encyclopedia on Mark Hanna Many of McConaugheys characters have memorable lines, like I get older, they stay the same age in Dazed and Confused or All right all right all right in everything. Theres more to a memorable line than just quoting it though. They had this one line that was already written in the script, McConaughey continued in his video. I call it a launchpad line. I had one in Dazed and Confused, I had one that Steven Soderbergh gave me in Magic Mike. Sometimes you get a line in a script that the imagination just soars and I can just fly with it. Unpack that line. If this character means that, then theres an encyclopedia on this man. L-R: Matthew McConaughey, Margot Robbie, Jonah Hill and Cristin Milioti | Paramount Pictures Heres the line that opened up an encyclopedia for Mark Hanna in The Wolf of Wall Street. That line with Mark Hanna was hes explaining the secret of this business to Leonardos character, McConaughey said. He says, The secret is cocaine and hookers. I just read that and I was like if this guy really believes that, who the hell is this guy? So I started writing that encyclopedia. The Wolf of Wall Street encyclopedia that Matthew McConaughey wrote McConaughey did as much research and backstory on Mark Hanna as he would if he was playing main character in a film. Thats why his scene is so memorable in The Wolf of Wall Street. Matthew McConaughey | Jim Spellman/WireImage I started talking to all these different brokers that were of that time. I started writing a lot of things down and really whats on screen turned out to be a rap. Leonardo teed me up but Martin Scorsese let me run. I dont think Martin Scorsese gave me any direction in English. He almost talked to me musically. Martin Scorsese loves funny. He would just make these sounds and musical beat sounds so he just let me go and I just went off and did what you see in the movie. Matthew McConaughey, McConaughey Takes 4/20/2020 Leonardo DiCaprio asked him to hum for the movie What most Wolf of Wall Street fans remember about that scene is McConaughey pounding his chest and leading DiCaprio in a hum. That is something that Ill do not only in this film, Ill do it before scenes in a lot of films, McConaughey explained. Ill come up with a different tune and its a relaxation tool for me. Its musical so it gets me out of my head because I dont want to be thinking as an actor. I want to be doing. It also keeps my voice low and keeps my instrument loose. I was doing that before every take. DiCaprio saw McConaughey doing that and thought it would work for the scene. Over the past several days, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his supporters have released campaign ads that seek to outdo President Trump in blaming the coronavirus crisis on China. The ads attack Trump for rolling over to Chinese President Xi and covering up his governments supposed responsibility for allowing the virus to spread to the United States and other countries. According to this concocted narrative, the main culprit for the massive social and economic disaster brought on by the coronavirus is China, not the American oligarchy, which did nothing to prepare for the pandemic and has utilized it to hand trillions of dollars to itself. With these ads, Biden lines up behind Trumps anti-China witch-hunt, meant to divert attention from the indifference of his administration to the health and lives of American workers, and project mounting social anger outward against an external enemy. Biden merely seeks to turn the chauvinist and war-mongering agitation against Trump himself. Screen shot of video from twitter.com/JoeBiden An ad released in battleground states on Friday begins by stating: As I speak, China is censoring research on COVID-19, making it harder for the rest of us to beat the virus. President Trump is not doing enough about it. The uncomfortable truth is that Donald Trump left America exposed and vulnerable to this pandemic. He ignored the warnings of health experts and intelligence agencies and put his trust in Chinas leaders instead. And now, were all paying the price. Biden continues. When Im president, I will put the CDC officials back in China and insist that the Chinese keep their commitment rather than trusting Beijing with the health and safety of the American people. And I will demand an international independent investigation into the circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak and Chinas response. This is accompanied by a clip of an Asian medical technician at work, an appeal to anti-Asian racism. This video was followed on Saturday by arguably an even more hysterical ad sponsored by American Bridge, a Democratic super PAC. It features a clip of Biden telling China on February 25: We are going to need to be in your country. You have to be open, you have to be clear. The narrator then says: But Trump rolled over for the Chinese. He took their word for it. The ad continues: Trump never got a CDC team on the ground in China. And the travel ban he brags about? Trump let in 40,000 travelers from China into America after he signed it. Not exactly air tight. The ad concludes with a shot of Trump holding a joint press conference with Xi. What is one to conclude from this? That tens of millions of Americans are out of work and tens of thousands are already dead because Trump is a patsy of the Chinese Communist Party regime. Biden, in contrast, will take on the Chinese in earnest, presumably by military means if necessary. What this twisted and poisonous narrative ignores are the real reasons for Trumps neglect of the coronavirus threat throughout February and early March. Trump was at that time downplaying the virus because he, along with the entire political, corporate and media establishment, was focused on the threat of the outbreak to the financial markets and the fortunes of the corporate-financial elites. The ruling class was working out how it would use the worsening health crisis to push through an unprecedented bailout of Wall Street and big business. Biden has no principled differences with Trumps refusal to organize a serious effort to save lives and stop the pandemic. He and his fellow Democrats gave virtually unanimous support to the bailout passed last month, and Biden has endorsed the subsequent drive to reopen the economy and force workers back to work without any real protection from the virus, even as infections and deaths continue to rise at record or near-record rates. Biden was vice president in an administration that for eight years did nothing to seriously prepare for a pandemic, despite multiple warnings from public health and medical experts of the inevitable outbreak of a virus that could spread across the world and claim millions of lives. Instead, he helped funnel trillions of dollars to Wall Street following the 2008 financial crash and increase military spending to carry out wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen. Bidens endorsement of the back-to-work drive was followed this past week by groveling endorsements from Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren. The role of Sanders and company, who were joined in endorsing Biden by Obama on Tuesday, is to lend a progressive gloss to Biden and promote the illusion that he can be pressured to the left. But the anti-Chinese ads have already exposed the fraud of such claims. In fact, the line-up of the nominal left of the Democratic Party behind Biden is part of a coordinated campaign to fashion a national unity coalition headed by Biden and spanning the spectrum of official bourgeois politics. Spurred on by the acute social, economic and political crisis of American capitalism sparked by the outbreak of the virus, but already rapidly developing prior to the pandemic, broad sections of the political and corporate establishment consider Trump too discredited and unstable to handle a major social explosion within the US, and not sufficiently competent or reliable to defend US imperialist interests internationally. The dominant theme of the endorsement statements of Sanders and Warren as well as Obama is the need for unity in the face of the coronavirus crisis. Warren, in her statement, declared, In this moment of crisis, its more important than ever that the next president restores Americans faith in good, effective government. Obama said, Right now, we need Americans of good will to unite in a great awakening we need Americans of all political stripes to get involved in our politics and our public life like never before. The New York Times' leading columnist Thomas Friedman laid out the playbook in an April 7 commentary headlined, US Will Need Biden National Unity Cabinet. He called on Biden to name a prospective cabinet in advance of the election that would span Democrats on the Bernie Sanders left to Republicans on the Mitt Romney right. He warned, The societal stress is going to be enormous as people fully absorb their lost savings, businesses and jobs, while defaults mount and worker rehiring happens much slower than the layoffs did If handled on a partisan basis, those issues will rip our country apart. This theme was echoed in an April 16 Washington Post editorial titled, The anti-Trump coalition is forming. The left and right must join. The editorial concluded by invoking the two central themes of a Biden national unity government: militarism and austerity. The editorial stated: Those who care about a strong national defense should worry that he [Trump] has severed ties with close allies and cozied up to foreign strongmen who mean the United States harm. Anyone who has ever worried about the national debt should be horrified at his lack of interest in fixing the governments finances. Right-wing Republican operatives including George Conway (husband of Trump aide Kellyanne Conway), Steve Schmidt (John McCains campaign manager in 2008), Michael Gerson (speechwriter for George W. Bush) and Max Boot (neo-conservative member of the Project for an American Century and advocate of the 2003 invasion of Iraq), published similar columns this past week. The concerns driving the project of assembling a right-wing bipartisan government headed by Biden are made clear in a commentary published last week by Bloomberg, headlined This Pandemic Will Lead to Social Revolutions., The author, Andreas Kluth, debunks the official slogans of unity in the face of the pandemic and writes: In particular, COVID-19 exacerbates preexisting conditions of inequality wherever it arrives. Before long, it will cause social turmoil, up to and including uprisings and revolutions. Noting the surge in mass strikes and protests internationally since 2017, he writes: In time, these passions could become new populist or radical movements, intent on sweeping aside whatever ancient regime they define as the enemy. That the semi-senile near-octogenarian Biden is the choice to head off a revolutionary challenge by the working class is itself an expression of the depths of the political crisis facing the ruling class. But the working class must be warned: the capitalist class is making its counterrevolutionary preparations. The working class must make its own conscious preparations, beginning with a resolute break with the Democratic Party and the building of a politically independent mass revolutionary socialist movement. This is the program being advanced by the candidates of the Socialist Equality Party, Joseph Kishore for president and Norissa Santa Cruz for vice president. Photo: Colin Dacre British Columbias high housing prices are harmful to the public interest, a BC Supreme Court judge stated in a ruling that dismisses an injunction application against the speculation and vacancy tax that aims to address the affordability crisis. In a ruling dated April 16, Justice Janet Winteringham tossed out the joint petition of nine individuals to restrain the provincial government from enforcing the tax. The judge accepted with little hesitation the provincial governments position that the harm to government and the public interest easily outweighs the harm alleged by the petitioners. The judge described the NDP governments public interest argument for the tax as concrete, tangible and compelling. The government posited in court that housing affordability is the most pressing issue facing the 21 municipalities that comprise Metro Vancouver. The government argued, Hundreds of thousands of British Columbians are negatively impacted by the housing affordability crisis. Surveys show that 45% of Metro Vancouver residents are seriously considering leaving Metro Vancouver because of the high cost of home ownership, and that 83% of the renters consider rental prices to be unreasonably high. The government also noted in its submission that vacancy rates have improved since the taxs imposition. The tax also represents an estimated $185 million revenue stream and administrative chaos would ensue if the injunction were granted. The nine petitioners had sought an interlocutory injunction to suspend the tax before challenging the tax on constitutional grounds in a future court proceeding. Hence, the judges remarks on the evidence are considered preliminary. The petitioners needed to establish three things for an injunction: that there was a serious question concerning the constitutionality of the tax; that they would suffer irreparable harm should the injunction be denied; and that the public interest aligns with their own. On the question of public interest, the harm described and the evidentiary record the petitioners present, is largely speculative and based on deficient financial information, ruled Winteringham. In other words, they didnt prove scrapping the tax would be in the public interest, if not only their own interest. The judge suggested the petitioners may have put the horse before the cart in their injunction application, considering they did not yet receive their 2019 tax assessment. With respect to proof of irreparable harm, the petitioners have not yet received their tax assessments under the [tax], although those assessments will be delivered shortly. And, For the most part, the petitioners attest that they cannot afford to pay the Tax but have not provided any evidence regarding their individual financial circumstances, wrote the judge. With respect to there being a serious question over the constitutionality of the tax, I agree with the respondent (government) that the petitioners Charter analysis is flawed, stated the judge. The submissions as framed could very easily be viewed as a claim for protection of economic rights something the drafters of the Charter specifically, and with intention, excluded. I question the strength of the constitutional challenge, as framed and based on the evidence tendered, wrote Winteringham. Addressed were the petitioners claims the tax violated equality rights, indirect taxation, liberty and security of the person and mobility. Winteringham acknowledged the difficulties of assessing the strength of a constitutional case in interlocutory applications, however the weakness of the petitioners case outweighed the risks of granting relief. Notably, the petitioners had argued that the definition of untaxed worldwide earner is discriminatory, but the government responded that the only distinction is based on where the family reports income for a calendar year. The untaxed worldwide earner provisions do not draw a distinction on the basis of sex, or any other protected ground under the Charter, argued the government. The injunction was sought pending a full hearing on the constitutionality of the challenged legislation, and the parties agreed that the full hearing could not be accomplished before the next election. This delay provided even more pause to the judge. Candidly, the petitioners admitted that they were not seeking an immediate hearing date. Rather, they expected to proceed with class certification issues and then take steps to schedule the matter for hearing, wrote Winteringham. In circumstances where the petitioners have not booked hearing dates for the petition or outlined a schedule of steps by which they propose to bring the petition, I have grave concerns about the granting of the extraordinary remedy sought here. Furthermore, if the tax were ever deemed unconstitutional, the judge noted any payments could be refunded. With various exemptions, the tax is largely targeted at owners of unoccupied homes and satellite families who report less than 50% of their worldwide income in Canada. The rate is 2% of a propertys value for foreign owners of homes that are not rented to a primary resident of B.C. as well as for satellite families. Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada who are not members of a satellite family and who do not reside in B.C. but leave their properties unrented for more than half the year are charged 0.5%. The tax also serves to establish a confirmation of residency for tax purposes, which can assist the federal government with reporting of income taxes and/or issuance of social safety net benefits, such as healthcare. The next cycle of tax administration was scheduled to commence in January 2020 with mass mailouts to 1.6 million property owners. The government submitted to court that extensive preparations have been made for the upcoming administration cycle, including entering into a multi-million-dollar contract with a third-party contractor to set up an SVTA-related call centre. Ericsson ERIC is scheduled to report first-quarter 2020 results on Apr 22, before the opening bell. In the last reported quarter, the company reported a negative earnings surprise of 6.3%, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. The Sweden-based telecom gear maker is expected to have recorded higher aggregate revenues on a year-over-year basis, primarily driven by its leadership in 5G technology amid competition. Owing to investments in R&D combined with operational efficiency, Ericsson has the worlds leading patent portfolio in cellular technology, with more than 54,000 granted patents and above 100 signed licensing agreements. Lets discuss the factors that are likely to get reflected in the upcoming quarterly announcement. Factors at Play During the quarter under review, Ericsson was selected by Orange France to deploy its 5G radio access network (RAN) in three major French regions, including Paris, and modernize existing 2G/3G/4G RAN. The company was chosen by Telekom Albania as the sole supplier to modernize the service providers radio and core networks in a break-in deal spanning five years. These are likely to have made an impact on the companys first-quarter performance. The company rolled out 5G RAN and 5G Core for Polish communications service provider Polkomtel, which owns the Plus brand in Poland. Ericsson made its dynamic spectrum sharing solution commercially available, allowing communications service providers to quickly and cost-effectively launch 5G on a nationwide scale. It was selected by the communications service provider from Japan NTT DOCOMO as its AI-based optimization solution vendor for its nationwide RAN. Ericsson and Telenor switched on Norways first commercial 5G services in the city of Trondheim. Ericssons managed services partnership with Omani communication services provider Omantel was renewed and expanded for a further five years. Chunghwa Telecom selected Ericsson for rapid 5G build-out in Taiwan. The companys performance is expected to have benefited from these positives. Ericsson and SmarTone, one of the leading communications service providers in Hong Kong, agreed to a five-year contract for the deployment of 5G. Teracom AB, a state-owned service provider in Sweden, selected Ericsson to be the strategic partner of their nationwide 4G network. Ericsson was selected by Greeces largest mobile communications service provider COSMOTE as its sole 5G RAN vendor under a major network modernization deal. MTN Benin extended its managed services partnership with Ericsson to introduce network managed services provision with a focus on AI, automation and analytics. MTS, Russias largest communications service provider, extended its long-standing partnership with Ericsson to include a large-scale network modernization of its 2G/3G/4G infrastructure over large parts of central Russia. As of Mar 31, Ericsson had 86 commercial 5G agreements and 27 live networks in four continents. For the March quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for total revenues is pegged at $5,545 million that indicates a rise of 4% from the year-ago quarters reported figure. Adjusted earnings per share are pegged at 7 cents, which calls for a decline of 22.2% from the prior-year quarters recorded figure. What Our Model Says Our proven model doesnt conclusively predict an earnings beat for Ericsson this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. But thats not the case here. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Earnings ESP: Ericssons Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is 0.00% as both are pegged at 7 cents. Ericsson Price and EPS Surprise Story continues Ericsson Price and EPS Surprise Ericsson price-eps-surprise | Ericsson Quote Zacks Rank: Ericsson currently has a Zacks Rank #3. Stocks to Consider Here are some companies that you may want to consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter: Ardagh Group S.A. ARD is slated to release quarterly results on Apr 23. It has an Earnings ESP of +8.20% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Eli Lilly and Company LLY is scheduled to release results on Apr 23. The company has an Earnings ESP of +1.67% and carries a Zacks Rank #2. Citrix Systems, Inc. CTXS has an Earnings ESP of +1.58% and carries a Zacks Rank of 2. The company is set to report results on Apr 23. Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. Theyre also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases. Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +50%, +83% and +164% in as little as 2 months. The stocks in this report could perform even better. See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Citrix Systems, Inc. (CTXS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Ericsson (ERIC) : Free Stock Analysis Report Ardagh Group S.A. (ARD) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Brie Larson picked up a bouquet of flowers to brighten up quarantine this Sunday. The Captain Marvel star was ready to shop, wearing a pink mask and gloves during the trip to a local farmers market in LA. The 30-year-old talent picked up some essentials and stowed them away in her reusable shopping bags. In bloom: Brie Larson picked up some flowers from a LA farmers market to brighten up quarantine this Sunday Keeping her look simple, Brie wore black leggings and a windbreaker. The Sacramento, California native showed off her girly side with a pair of Hello Kitty slides. After fetching her things, Larson ran into a homeless person who she gave a package of hummus. Protective: The Captain Marvel star was ready to shop, wearing a pink mask and gloves during the trip to a local farmers market in LA Eco-friendly: The 30-year-old talent picked up some essentials and stowed them away in her reusable shopping bags Brie showed off her mask on Instagram Friday, singing the praises of creator Hedley And Bennett. She looked cheery in the Instagram, donning a floral blouse as she told fans to 'Stay home and stay safe.' The star also encouraged her followers to purchase masks for medical staff in need of supplies. Covered: Brie showed off her mask on Instagram Friday, singing the praises of creator Hedley And Bennett She joked about going a bit quarantine cuckoo on her Twitter recently, writing she changes 'clothes more frequently in [popular video game] Animal Crossing than in real life.' Brie is an ambassador for the Nintendo Switch game. Other than gaming, Larson has been spending her quarantine with boyfriend Elijah Allan-Blitz. The Room star first went public with fellow actor Elijah in August 2019, six months after breaking off her engagement with musician Alex Greenwald. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-19 21:55:41|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A Kuwaiti citizen expresses his joy and greetings after arriving at Kuwait International Airport in Farwaniya Governorate, Kuwait, April 19, 2020. Kuwait launched on Sunday its major airlift to bring home Kuwaitis stranded abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Asad/Xinhua) KUWAIT CITY, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Kuwait launched on Sunday a repatriation plan to bring home its citizens stranded abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic. As part of the plan, 3,940 passengers will arrive on Sunday at Kuwait International Airport in Farwaniya Governorate. According to Kuwait Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the first flights will continue throughout the day, bringing home its citizens from across the Arab world. In a press statement, Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah, DGCA president, said that the Kuwait Civil Aviation has accomplished during the past few days a full plan to receive the stranded Kuwaiti citizens. The passengers will be forced by the Ministry of Health to be under home quarantine for 14 days. On April 4, the Kuwaiti government announced the plan to return the country's citizens from abroad, starting from April 19 to May 7. There are about 50,000 Kuwaiti citizens abroad in various countries of the world. Kuwait on Sunday reported one more death and 164 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total infections to 1,915 and death toll to seven, the health ministry said in a statement. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) Instead of looking into a possible "martial law-type" lockdown, the government should prioritize the implementation of measures to hasten aid distribution to crisis-affected citizens, a lawmaker said Monday. "I think more than a martial law-type crackdown, we have to fast-track the delivery of cash assistance and food packs for our citizens. I think that should be the priority," Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan told CNN Philippines' The Source. Citing data from Malacanang's latest report to Congress, Pangilinan said only 25 percent of targeted beneficiaries have so far received the promised assistance under the government's COVID-19 subsidy program. "You have 75 percent of people who lost their jobs, who are not earning anything today, who are going hungry... Hindi martial law ang sagot sa gutom ng taongbayan. Delivery of cash assistance ang solusyon," Pangilinan added. [Translation: Martial law is not the answer, delivery of cash assistance is.] The Armed Forces of the Philippines earlier confirmed the validity of an internal memo of the Philippine Air Force, which directed the military to "prepare for strict implementation" of the COVID-19 quarantine, after the document made rounds online last week. President Rodrigo Duterte also previously warned of a "takeover" of the military and police, noting the rising number of lockdown violators across regions. The government's current social amelioration program covers only the "poorest of the poor," with the low-income households expected to receive 5,000 to 8,000 worth of monthly assistance. Some local governments, however, revealed they have yet to roll out the downloaded cash aid to citizens as they have been awaiting the final list of beneficiaries from the Social Welfare Department. RELATED: Sotto asks that the names of beneficiaries of gov't cash aid be made public Pangilinan, for his part, said the government and the DSWD may look into possibly tapping the telco industry to help speed up the distribution process. He said there may be a "telco-padala system" which would ensure direct cash assistance for beneficiaries. He likewise proposed that the assistance be managed by the respective local government units. "Pagkakatiwalaan ko 'yung local governments... Kung merong corruption issues, bantayan. Kung merong mga hindi nakakatanggap, i-report. Pero ibigay 'yung pondo," the senator said. [Translation: I would trust the local governments. If there are corruption issues, let's monitor. If there are beneficiaries left out, let's report. But let's distribute the funds.] Calibrated, partial lifting of lockdown? Pangilinan also backed sentiments of extending the quarantine, which will be in place until the end of April. However, he said that essential services may be allowed to resume operations. READ: Duterte adviser bats for gradual reopening of malls, restaurants, public transport after Luzon lockdown The move, however, should be done in line with more mass testing, Pangilinan stressed. The Philippines has recorded 6,259 positive cases of the infectious disease, including 409 fatalities and 572 recoveries as of the Health Department's latest record. After Ludhiana assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Anil Kumar Kohli died of Covid-19, the family members of police personnel in the district are concerned about their safety. The police officials said that they have been receiving calls from their family members every hour reminding them of precautions they should be taking while on duty. They have been asking if we are using sanitiser regulary or not and are curious about our locations, said a police official. The police officials said that though they have lost an ACP, but they are not afraid of coronavirus and they will continue to fight against the disease. Assistant commissioner of police (ACP, east) Davinder Chaudhary said that the department has lost an honest and hardworking officer in the line of duty. We have joined the force to serve the society and the nation. We have worked during militancy, when encounter between militants and police was routine, and never stepped back. We will continue to fight to eradicate this virus, he said, adding that after death of my colleague, I have also started receiving call every hour from my family members checking about my well being. Inspector Jarnail Singh, station house officer (SHO) at police station Division number 8, said that they are frontline warriors and this is their job. They will serve the society in every situation. The SHO said that his family members are supportive of him and encourage him in the fight against Covid-19 pandemic. Though I could not give time to my family in the past one month, but I dont regret it. I am doing what the society and department need from me, he added. Inspector Pawan Kumar, SHO at police station Model Town, also said his family has been very supportive but at the same time they are also worried about my safety. Khanna police pay homage to ACP Kohli Khanna police personnel on Monday paid homage to their colleague ACP Kohli, who succumbed to the virus. The police personnel observed two-minute silence in respect of the departed soul. Khanna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harpreet Singh said that Kohli was a brave officer and he laid his life in the fight against coronavirus. Kohli has served in Khanna police for at least seven years on various posts, including SHO. He also served as SHO at Sadar police station, Payal police station and Machhiwara police station. He had settled in Khanna and bought a house here. After his transfer to Ludhiana as ACP, he has taken his family members along. The SSP said that Kohli served the department honestly and every Khanna police personnel have special regards for him. Superintendent of police (SP, headquarters); Tajinder Singh, SP (Investigation); Jagwinder Singh Cheema, DSP (headquarters); Shamsher Singh, DSP (investigation); Tarlochan Singh, DSP (special Branch); Manjit Singh, DSP (homicide unit); Surjit Singh Dhanoa and DSP (narcotic cell) Satwinder Singh also paid respect to Kohli. The company said with lockdowns effective in several parts of the world, 93 percent of the Infosys global workforce is now working from home. New Delhi: Infosys on Monday said its few employees globally have tested positive for COVID-19, and the company has undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who interacted with them, in order to ensure they are appropriately quarantined. The company -- which announced its Q4 and full year FY20 earnings on Monday but suspended the standard pratice of giving revenue outlook citing business uncertainty -- said it has anticipated a continued slowdown in the near-term influenced by a broad-based global economic recession. "A few Infosys employees across the world have tested positive for COVID-19. The company is in touch with them and their families to provide active and continuous support to help them through the rest and recovery. "Infosys has also undertaken contact tracing measures to identify colleagues, if any, who have interacted with them and ensuring that they are appropriately quarantined," Infosys said in a statement. The company said with lockdowns effective in several parts of the world, 93 percent of the Infosys global workforce is now working from home. Infosys is approaching plans in the weeks ahead "with cautious optimism", while carefully monitoring advisories and adapting tactics to policies and injunctions in the cities, states and countries that it operates in. "Infosys has completed scenario-planning for when its employees, in incremental batches, will return to work out of its global offices, and client offices, while adhering to the social distancing prescriptions for workplaces and strictly as per local regulatory advisories. Employee safety will not be compromised even as the company relies on project requirements to drive the on-premise and remote staffing mix," it said. Infosys said it will honour the job offers it has extended to the markets, in order to enhance the skill-sets it can bring to recovery-focused client environments. David Dayen on Twitter: @DDayen The American Prospect online is at Prospect.org. The American Prospect on Twitter: @TheProspect Purchase David Dayens first book Chain of Title: How Three Ordinary Americans Uncovered Wall Streets Great Foreclosure Fraud HERE. .@monopolizedbook is coming in July, you can order at Indiebound or wherever you get books. https://t.co/k1j3JF5iGR David Dayen (@ddayen) April 18, 2020 David Dayen at The American Prospect: Your Coronavirus Check Is Coming. Your Bank Can Grab It. David Dayen at The American Prospect: Unsanitized: Mnuchin Knew Two Weeks Ago That Financial Predators Could Grab Emergency Coronavirus Checks David Dayen at The American Prospect: USAA Grabs Coronavirus Checks From Military Families David Dayen at The American Prospect: Unsanitized: U.S. Bank, Radius Bank Added to the List of Coronavirus Check-Stealers Paul Waldman at The American Prospect: The U.S. Postal Service Is More Vital Than Ever Nicholas Fandos and Jim Tankersley at The New York Times: Coronavirus Is Threatening One of Governments Steadiest Services: The Mail At The American Prospect: Mapping Corruption: The Interactive Exhibit Progressives Everywhere on Twitter: @Progressives50 Help Progressives Everywhere elect Shea Roberts in Georgias 52nd House District and other progressives everywhere by clicking HERE and to support service workers and artists impacted by the coronavirus epidemic by clicking HERE. From Jordan: Ive started a new newsletter called Pandemic Stories in order to create a living history of this unprecedented time, which I believe will be a watershed moment for our nation (for better or worse). The virus has impacted literally everyone and I want to ensure that we capture and remember as many peoples stories as possible. Americans are great at pushing forward and protecting, but its absolutely essential we remember everything we can; everyones story deserves to be told, and we cant learn from history if we dont record it. There are already a number of sweet (and bittersweet) stories published in the newsletter, which will be sent out several times a week. The stories will make you smile, laugh, feel some real outrage, and connect with people across the country at a time when we feel so isolated. Id be honored if youd subscribe, which you can do by clicking HERE. Progressives Everywheres website: ProgressivesEverywhere.org Support Progressives Everywhere by becoming a Patreon donor HERE. Jordans important project: Election-Calendar.com FLINT WATER CRISIS UPDATE: Jordan Chariton, and Jenn Dize at Vice: Michigans Ex-Gov. Rick Snyder Knew About Flints Toxic Waterand Lied About It Ron Fonger at MLive: Flint water prosecutors say statute of limitations wont stop investigation FLASHBACK TO 2016 via Eclectablog: Snyder administration knew of huge spike in Legionnaires Disease in Flint TEN months before making it public Give us a five-star review at iTunes! The GOTMFV Show Facebook page is HERE! Music clips Intro and transition music: You Dress Like an Asshole by Not The 1s Progressives Everywhere intro/outro: Theyre Everywhere by Jims Big Ego Flint Water Crisis Update intro: Unclaimed by Mike Wagner/Total Strangers Outro music: Complain (from the movie Bob Roberts) by David Robbins & Tim Robbins New Delhi, April 20 : Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Monday asked the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor to ensure adequate availability of blood in the blood banks. In a letter to J&K L-G G.C. Murmu, the Health Minister wrote, "Due to restrictions, it may not be possible to organise blood donation camps. However, at the same time, it is necessary to ensure sufficient availability of blood, especially for people needing regular blood transfusion such as Thalassemia, Sickle Cell Anemia and Hemophilia etc." Harsh Vardhan asked Murmu to make use of the "e-Raktkosh portal" for maintaining records of donors as well as providing real-time information on status of current stocks of each blood group. "The prospective blood donors may be asked to register on the portal. Blood banks in your state may also be directed to update blood availability in the e-Raktkosh portal regularly," Harsha Vardhan said. He further asked Murmu to make necessary arrangements for sending blood collection and transportation vans or any other hired vehicles to maintain adequate availability of blood in an area. "States may adopt flexible timings and may also like to extend the hours of fixed and mobile donor sessions. It may be suggested to donors to come in a staggered manner for blood donation so that social distancing norms are maintained," the Health Minister said. He further asked Murmu to give movement passes and special certificates to the voluntary donors. "Extra safety measures should be taken at the blood donation centres pertaining to infection prevention and personal protection. Assured availability of iron chelating agents and anti-Hemophilia factors at hospitals, where Thalassaemic and Homophilic patients avail the services, may also be ensured," the letter added. Aontu Leader and former Sinn Fein TD, Peadar Toibin says his party is open to joining government with Fianna Fail and Fine Gael. Mr Toibin, who resigned from Mary Lou McDonald's party in 2018 due to his stance on abortion, said although it would be difficult for him to sit down with Fine Gael, the country is facing a "once in a hundred years" crisis. "Everyone has a responsibility to see can they help fix the economic and health crisis that's washing over Ireland," he said. This is obviously not a blank cheque, it cant be business as usual. "We need to really press the reset button as a country and ensure that when we emerge from this crisis, we are really all in this together. "I am open to listening to and negotiating with Fianna Fail and Fine Gael to see if we can achieve these objectives. Mr Toibin, as the only elected TD for his party, is a member of the Regional Group who are meeting with Fianna Fail and Fine Gael today, but as a party leader, he will seek to negotiate with the government separately. It was widely assumed up until this point that Mr Toibin would have been adverse to ever working with Leo Varadkar's party, leaving him out of the government negotiations, as Fianna Fail and Fine Gael seek to make up the 80 seats needed for a majority from their 72 between them, however Mr Toibin notes that we are no longer in normal times. "I would be difficult for us to do, it wouldn't be in our normal political instinct, but we're in the middle of once in a 100 years crisis, and it would be wrong to not at least make an effort to fix the situation," he said. "The big picture really is the Fine Gael led government to date hasn't been a government of; 'We're all in this together', with thousands of people on trolleys, waiting lists and in housing distress. "If we an reach some kind of agreement, housing, healthcare and jobs are priority for us in Aontu, as well as the regional element, this country is a city state, it needs to be far more evenly distributed." The policy document produced last week by the civil war parties has come under criticism as a "wishlist" which will be largely unmanageable due to the economic downturn expected after the Coronavirus pandemic. Aontu agree, and say choices will have to be made about how the new government will be financed with appropriate costings which are not included in the document. "It's much more risky for a small party to sign up to because of the difficulties we're going to be faced with and the policy directions because of that (recession)," Mr Toibin added. "We can't have European public services in an American tax base and that's still reflected in the document, they're promising all things to all people while promising not to increase taxes. "We will have a document ready for them to sit down with, but we're still looking at this with a critical eye, we haven't lost our senses, but it would be illogical not to try." Mr Toibin says both Fianna Fail and Fine Gael are aware of his new stance on negotiating for government and hopes to meet the parties this week. Gettyimagesbank By Anna J. Park Credit card companies have accumulated an enormous amount of big data based on their card holders' payment information. Such information has not only helped the health authorities track exact movements of confirmed COVID-19 patients in the early stages of the pandemic in the country, it has also helped many mom-and-pop stores across the country, which have been directly hit by the global pandemic with the plunging number of customers due to social distancing. Major card companies, including BC, KB Kookmin and Shinhan, have come up with plans to buttress the nation's small businesses by providing their own marketing tools and sales strategies based on big data analysis. BC Card has joined hands with the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Data Agency in supporting a data voucher project, through which the government distributes data vouchers to small businesses and startup companies. Companies with the voucher can receive various categories of big data useful for their businesses. The data includes a vast spectrum of information, from spending patterns according to age or gender, businesses' revenues from card payments according to region or sector, and a fusion of social and public information. BC Card has earned government recognition for its big data analysis know-how. The credit card company is Korea's only company with an expertise in card processing and it is the largest operator of card payments in the nation. It operates on average about 400 million card payment transactions per month of 38 million card holders from its 33 card company clients. It also has 3 million card merchants across the nation, which is the largest number of merchants among card companies. "BC Card's big data that's been accumulated during the past 37 years has earned trust for its technological prowess and excellent quality," said Kim Jin-cheol, executive vice president of the company's marketing group. "The firm will continue to provide quality big data through the government-led data voucher projects, and to actively pursue win-win relationships with small and venture businesses, mom-and-pop stores and startup companies." Shinhan Card is currently providing marketing analysis support for small business owners until the end of June. Dubbed "My Shop Partner," the free service furnishes small businesses with big data analysis, based on the company's 22 million card holders. The service helps the shops provide special offers to selected customers who are able to visit, and the card company will pay for the special discounts. The company also provides weekly big data analysis reports to 123 municipal governments for free. The reports contain each municipality's spending patterns in sectors and the changes, so that the local governments can use the information to support businesses suffering from the pandemic crisis. KB Kookmin Card has also been offering similar big data analysis reports to 17 municipal governments, free of charge, since March. The reports contain various information, such as card payment analyses, each sector's card revenues and card usage patterns according to age and gender. "The firm provides the big data analysis reports, aiming to help local governments draw up measures to effectively support small business owners in overcoming the COVID-19 crisis," an official from KB Kookmin Card said. The company has also launched a big data-based marketing supporting service for small and medium-sized business merchants, through which merchants can reach out to potential customers by offering special discounts, while customers can enjoy various discount information from the areas where they are particularly interested in making purchases. A paedophile primary school teacher who sexually abused kids as young as 10 in his classroom will spend more time behind bars, after admitting to abusing more young students. Shane Andrew Matthews, 34, had a further two years and five months added to his prison sentence last week, after pleading guilty to the indecent assault of a child under 16. The former assistant principal is already serving a minimum of 12 years in jail. The Parramatta District Court heard Matthews horrific sex attacks had led one of his victims to attempt to take his own life - despite being just 15. In a heartbreaking victim impact statement read out by the boy's mother, the court heard how he had been groomed and assaulted at age 10, while a student at Wattle Grove Public School in south-west Sydney. Paedophile primary school teacher Shane Andrew Matthews (pictured) who sexually abused kids as young as 10 in his classroom will spend longer behind bars, after admitting to abusing more young students Matthews lured the children at Wattle Grove Public School (pictured) into one-on-one tutoring sessions by telling their parents they were struggling and needed more assistance. During the tutoring sessions at recess, lunchtime and after school, he would abuse the young boys Over the five years since the boy had turned to drugs and alcohol, struggling to deal with the pain of the abuse. 'This has left him in a deep depression, humiliated and ashamed,' his mother said. 'He is still not sleeping through the night because of nightmares. He has been out of school more times than he has been able to attend. 'He has been forced to grow up and escape his childhood which he should be entitled to all because of the offender's self-gratification which he forced on to our son. 'He does not trust adults and is therefore unwilling to get assistance with his mental health.' A plea deal was struck between Matthews and the Department of Public Prosecution (DPP), leading the paedophile to admit to two counts of indecent assault. In sentencing, Judge Chris Craigie handed down a minimum addition to his jail term of two years and five months. Having previously been eligible for parole in 2028, his earliest possible release date is now May 2029. Matthews abused his students during one-on-one tutoring sessions at lunchtime and recess, which had been agreed to by their parents. Court documents seen by Daily Mail Australia reveal how he would approach parents at pick-up time at Wattle Grove Public School and tell them their son was struggling in class and required additional learning. After leaving the classroom Matthews' would send shocking text messages about his 'child sex fantasies' to other paedophiles, including his ex-boyfriend. Matthews was only caught years after his abuse began, when a former students - by this stage in Year 10 - told another teacher to 'f*** off' after they put their hand on his leg. During a raid on the school teacher's house in 2016, police uncovered text messages between Matthews and a former lover in which they discussed 'how far they would go' with young boys During further exchanges, the man told Matthews he believed he 'should stop looking at them (child pornography videos)'. In response Matthews said: 'Why... it's not hurting anyone?' Matthews asked his former lover to send him child pornography videos via text (pictured) Primary school teacher Shane Matthews (top) was sentenced to a minimum of 12 years in jail on Monday over child sex abuse charges At this point the teacher sent (the student) to the head teacher, with the student told a letter would be sent home to his parents'. When the boy's parents asked him why he had reacted in this way the truth came out and police began to investigate Matthews' history of abuse. During a raid on the school teacher's house in 2016, police uncovered text messages on his phone where Matthews discussed his fantasies over students in his own class. The text exchanges were between the teacher and another man, who he'd previously been involved in a sexual relationship with, the court documents stated. In some text exchanges, Matthews discussed the children he had abused in his class, and in others he demanded his former lover send through child pornography videos. After receiving one video, Matthews even asked: 'Got anything younger?' During further text exchanges, the other man told Matthews he believed he 'should stop looking at them (child pornography videos)'. In response, the teacher said: 'Why... it's not hurting anyone?' Matthews also boasted via text that his ideal age for young boys was 'probably 9/10'. In a 2018 sentencing hearing for his first crimes, Judge Jennifer English claimed that Matthews had acted like a 'predator'. I'm not hurting anyone... Matthews when asked about watching child pornography videos In total, he admitted to sexually abusing 15 students while teaching at the school between 2012 and 2015, he admitted pleaded guilty to sexually abusing 15 of his male students during his time at the school between 2012 and 2015. Judge English's comments were in contrast to the reputation Matthews developed in his three years working at the school. During his trial, the court heard that he was 'considered by the students to be a "cool" teacher and was considered by parents to be a "good teacher". He would regularly hold 'superhero days' where he and the children would dress up, before playing games with his class in the schoolyard. But it was this friendly personality that Matthews used to target the children he wanted to groom. Matthews was regarded as a 'cool' teacher by students and regularly held superhero dress-up days (pictured). He would also offer 'class money' which students could use to buy pencils and other stationery items. Matthews often offered this money to students after he abused them On several occasions the young teacher called parents in for private meetings about the progress of their child. SHANE MATTHEWS' TIMELINE OF ABUSE: 2012-2015: Shane Andrew Matthews abuses 15 male students at Sydney primary school 2015: A former student, now in Year 10, reveals a history of abuse by Matthews 2015: Police investigations uncover 14 other boys had been abused 2016: Matthews charged with 33 counts of child sex abuse May 2018: Matthews pleads guilty to all 33 charges August 2018: Matthews is sentenced to a minimum of 12 years in jail - Before being sentenced, Matthews is hit with new charges relating to abuse of more boys April 2020: Matthews is handed extra four years in prison. He will now be eligible for parole in 2029 Advertisement During these meetings he would often ask to provide additional private tutoring in an effort to help their child's development. But when children stayed behind to go through their studies one-on-one, Matthews would prey on them. Court documents reveal he would often 'kneel down next to the students... (and) put one of his hands on their upper thigh outside their shorts'. 'Are you all right with this?' the teacher would then ask. But even when students replied that they found the behaviour 'distracting' or replied 'no', Matthews would often continue. Some of his victims told police they 'froze' after being touched by their teacher. On multiple occasions during private one-on-one tutoring, Matthews told one boy to 'stand up' and 'pull down his shorts'. The ordeals left one boy so traumatised he lied to his mother about being 'bullied' at school in an attempt to be allowed to stay home. For confidential support call the Lifeline 24-hour crisis support on 13 11 14 The first time I heard a Holocaust survivor recount their experience during the war, I was in the second grade. The private Jewish school I attended regularly invited Holocaust survivors to come into our classes to talk to us. Though unfortunately her name has since slipped my mind, the story she told us never will: about how she was taken in by a Christian family to be sheltered in a little barn in the Hungarian countryside. She was 7 years old when Nazi officers showed up to inspect the barn: she lay scrunched up knees to chest in a hidden compartment atop a wardrobe for eight hours, waiting as the officers tore off sheet of wallpaper after sheet of wallpaper. But they didnt find her. It was a story that deeply touched my entire class: we were a room full of 7-year-olds listening to a first-hand account of what Jewish war-time 7-year-olds had to experience to survive the war. We were running around on the tarmac at recess, trading snacks during lunch-time, going home to our siblings, dogs, and friends, and allowed to celebrate any holiday we chose to. We were all acutely aware that in comparison to ours, her seventh year of life was much different. It was probably the earliest moment of critical identification any of us ever had. We, as human beings, tend to project our own experiences and identities onto the things we learn. Sometimes, this is helpful: identification allows us to empathize and think in horizons broader than what we know in our day-to-day lives. Other times, it can prove to be a misguided effort, as we either willfully or ignorantly misinterpret a lesson in an attempt to have it relate to us. And in trying to parse through our current pandemic, it is clear that many people are becoming reckless with the historical events to which they compare our situation. If you were to search Anne Frank on Twitter and scroll through the tweets some of which have amassed thousands of likes and retweets you would find post after post, jokingly comparing our current quarantine to Anne Frank having to hide in an attic to evade Nazi capture. It sounds egregious but its true. Its easy to joke that youre Anne Frank when all you focus on is that you havent left your neighborhood in a month and a half. That same joke is impossible to pull off when you realize that Anne was in hiding due to a deadly fascist regime, while you are limited to your small square-footage because your government cares about you enough to enact social distancing measures. Oh yeah, also the threat in question is a nondiscriminating virus and not a red arm-band with a swastika. Not only do these tweets display a fundamental misunderstanding of the Holocaust and Anne Franks experience, but they also suggest a misunderstanding of our current pandemic. To be bored during this quarantine is a luxury: it means were not homeless, it means were not essential workers having to cover shifts at the grocery store, it means were not part of the thousands of brave medical workers who put their lives on the line every day. And it also most certainly means that were not in hiding from the Nazis. On Monday, Yom Hashoah, most of the worlds Jewish population will be commemorating the Holocaust. In isolation. Here in Canada, whether youre Jewish or not, take a moment to reflect on the sheer power of social unity: how it is used for bad and how it can be used for good. Anne Frank believed in the inherent goodness of humanity these are the points we should be bringing up in her name these days; not how she spent the final years of her life. Were currently experiencing what will come to be a significant moment in world history. We will be grappling with this pandemic for decades to come: in our literature, films, music, health care, and politics. The language with which we approach this pandemic is important: it will stand to represent our view of our uncertain world. Holocaust comparisons should not be part of that lexicon. TDT | Manama The Feena Khair campaign will expand its efforts and capabilities by including contributions from Bahrains vibrant expatriate population, it was announced yesterday. The campaign is an initiative aimed at supporting national efforts to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19), led by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, and supported by His Majesty the Kings Humanitarian and Youth Affairs representative, National Security Advisor and Royal Humanitarian Fund (RHF) Board of Trustees chairman His Highness Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa. Feena Khair has already received a BD1million contribution from HH Shaikh Nasser and a total of BD29million contributed by various local agencies and individuals. Based on the impressive volume of contributions received, RHF secretary-general Dr. Mustafa Al Sayed announced that the RHF will be holding a special event to be aired on Bahrain Television this coming Friday, during which prominent speakers will take part in efforts to increase awareness of COVID-19 developments and guidelines. Dr. Al Sayed went on to commend the efforts of the Kingdoms expatriate population and noted that expats play a key role in the national economy. Highlighting the Kingdoms strong and diverse social fabric, Dr. Al Sayed noted the importance of the Feena Khair campaign as a means to instill a sense of belonging among Bahrains expatriate community. Dr. Al Sayed added that the support of the expatriate community is integral to national efforts aimed at mitigating the spread of the virus. Dr. Al Sayed also announced that the Feena Khair campaign will be extended to April 30 due to popular demand and to give a chance for the maximum number of people to contribute. Anyone seeking more information can go to rco.gov.bh. Businesses and individuals can donate at the same website or by bank transfer to: National Bank of Bahrain Account Name: MOFNE The National Effort to Combat the Coronavirus COVID 19; IBAN: BH66NBOB00000082109370. In response to its call of duty as the CSR Company of the year and also as part of its social responsibility, Twellium foundation and the Verna changing lives team have donated to the Korle Bu Teaching hospital and some vulnerable persons in the society in the combat against the deadly Pandemic in Ghana. Making the donation, the Chief Marketing Officer of the Twellium Industrial Company, Mr. Ali Ajami expressed optimism that the war against the COVID-19 global pandemic in Ghana will not be lost at any level, adding that the company believes the donation would help enhance quality health care delivery in these tough times. In a short address at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, the Chief Executive Officer Dr. Daniel Asare stated that the donation which included protective gears, food and nutrition, and water are basically the essential items that will fortify your immune system and protect you during this COVID-19 pandemic as well as observing all other outlined protocols by the WHO and the Ministry of Health. In the words of the CEO of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, this is one of the massive donations we have received. Kind words they say do not cost much and encouraging words last a lifetime. During the presentation to the facility, the health workers expressed deep appreciation for the donation and encouraged more institutions to help in the fight against the pandemic. It is against this backdrop that Twellium Foundation and Verna Changing Lives aside the massive donation, decided to leave behind words of encouragement that will last forever. Some of them read on our placards; We appreciate you, Posterity will forever be grateful to you, Not many people can say they have great doctors and nurses like we do, Ghana Loves You and many more. The twellium Industrial company wishes to extend support to the front line health workers at the facility and also to assure them that we stand with them to fight this pandemic to the end. Numerous health and government institutions have already been visited in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and many more to be visited and donated, as well as communities. Twellium Industrial Company through its foundation has a simple motive of appreciating the very citizens of the motherland that have continuously supported and patronized proudly made in Ghana products, in these trying times. They strongly believe that this too shall pass. It can be recalled that prior to this donation, Twellium Industrial Company through its foundation, took a giant step by embarking on a nationwide donation spree as part of its contribution to support the COVID-19 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. Featured Video World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisted on Monday that the UN agency had not hidden from the United States any information it had about the coronavirus pandemic. He said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the WHO headquarters in Geneva "means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one", adding: "There is no secret in WHO". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mock trial is such an amazing activity for all the students involved, and it has a tremendous impact on the students who participate, he said. Mock Trial helps with developing their critical thinking and public speaking skills, and exposing them to law-related careers and professional mentors. My goal is to share this opportunity with more students so they can grow and achieve the things I have seen my students do. A dolphin which was dubbed the 'world's loneliest' after she was discovered at an abandoned Japanese aquarium has died. The animal, named Honey, died alone after spending the last two years of her life in a small pool at the Marine Park Aquarium in the city of Choshi, east of Tokyo. She first made headlines around the world after it emerged she had been abandoned in the aquarium along with 46 penguins since January 2018. Honey and the penguins, along with hundreds of fish and reptiles, were left after the facility was closed, citing a decline in visitors following the 2011 earthquake and Fukushima nuclear crisis. A dolphin which was dubbed the 'world's loneliest' after she was discovered at an abandoned Japanese aquarium has died. Pictured: Honey the dolphin in the tiny pool at the Marine Park Aquarium in the city of Choshi, east of Tokyo The animals were fed by an employee but were otherwise left to fend for themselves and spend their time in dirty water. The female bottlenose dolphin was captured in 2005 near Taiji, a western port town that has become notorious for its annual dolphin hunt that was featured in the Oscar-winning 2009 documentary The Cove. Her death was reported by the US-based animal charity the Dolphin Project. The charity said on their website that they had reached out to try to rescue Honey and the other animals, but were not successful. They said that the dolphin and the aquarium were then sold and so they contacted the new owners to try to buy Honey, so that she could be 'retired in peace and dignity'. She died alone after spending the last two years of her life in the small pool However, the Dolphin Project said the discussions ended in March when it became clear that Honey was not going to survive. The animal then died in her tank on March 29, the charity said. Photos and videos taken two years ago had shown Honey floating in a tiny pool in the eerily empty facility. Dust-covered penguins were also seen perching on a crumbling structure near a pile of debris. News of the abandoned animals spread quickly over social media, with Twitter users posting photos captioned 'Save Honey'. A resort hotel's offer to give them a new home sparked a flood of retweets. She first made headlines around the world after it emerged she had been abandoned in the aquarium along with 46 penguins since January 2018 Honey and the penguins, along with hundreds of fish and reptiles, were left after the facility was closed, citing a decline in visitors following the 2011 earthquake and Fukushima nuclear crisis 'I beg the authorities to get in close contact with each other and push ahead with this,' wrote one Twitter user. The aquarium had an average of three stars out of five on TripAdviser, with many reviewers criticising the park's treatment of the animals. One reviewer from Norfolk wrote: 'I'm disgusted by the captivity of these beautiful animals. They will have been driven in from out at sea with their pods, seen many of them slaughtered in front of them and then forced into venues like this. 'These dolphins will have been caught in Taiji, ask yourself how they got there. Then ask yourself what kind of life they live stuck in a tiny tank. 'These animals should be swimming wild, not swimming in disgusting water no bigger than a bath tub for people's amusement.' Another said: 'Although the staff are very pleasant my heart sake when I seen the conditions the Dolphins were being forced to live in. Not only was the water green in colour, it was cloudy as well.' Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan often shares his nostalgic moments on his blog. On Sunday he reminisced his meeting with the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Read Amitabh Bachchan's blog here. Missing one of his most memorable Sundays, Bachchan wrote about the time when he decided to meet the great boxer Muhammed Ali. It has been a groggy night... had been watching the Greatest Mohammad Ali in his numerous victories... and Tyson... and it just would not leave the attention... became past 4 am... and then suddenly thought of the meeting itself with the MAN..., the actor wrote about the time when he first decided to meet Ali. The actor mentioned about their meeting at the Beverly Hills in Los Angeles at Alis residence. He also informed the readers that director Prakash Mehra wanted to make a film with Ali and Bachchan together, however, it never went beyond the talks and pictures. Funny, but a most humble man who did live in Beverly Hills the elite locality, but was so filled with humility and grace... He threw a couple of punches at me, as his is wont, with all that he met... argued waved about and needed a Lawyer to fight the case... nothing became of it..., wrote the Sholay actor. While Bachchan has worked with director Mehra in movies like Zanjeer, Hera Pheri, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar and Namak Halaal, it would have been a delight to watch the boxer share the screen with the Bollywood star. Follow @News18Movies for more No tolerance should be shown for sex offenders Former DB Group Chairman Kim Jun-ki was released Friday after receiving a suspended sentence for raping his housemaid and sexually assaulting his secretary. The Seoul Central District Court convicted Kim, 75, of the sex offenses but gave him a 30-month prison sentence suspended for four years. The court cited his age and the "forgiveness" of his victims as reasons for the suspended sentence. Kim, who had been accused of sexually assaulting the two women in 2016-17 when he served as chairman of DB Group, a mid-level conglomerate engaged in businesses ranging from construction and steel to finance, mostly admitted to the charges. But it is an undeniable fact that he committed a heinous crime against those in weaker positions, using his higher status as the head of a conglomerate. Just like the court said, he also "forgot his responsibilities as the chairman of a conglomerate who needs to show socially exemplary behavior." What's more, the sexual violence was committed repeatedly, causing prosecutors to seek a five-year prison sentence. Kim, who fled to the United States in July 2017 after news media reported suspicions about the sexual offenses, returned home only after police revoked his passport, put him on an Interpol wanted list and sought his extradition from the U.S. One cannot help but wonder whether this is an example of the country's courts sticking to their old habits of showing leniency to chaebol tycoons and their family members. Legal pundits, in particular, are raising questions about the suspended sentence ruling handed down to the accused, who stayed abroad for over two years to avoid the police investigation. There is a consensus in our society that sex offences should not be tolerated. But the court showed leniency to Kim, using questionable reasoning. It is worrisome that our judicial branch remains numb to the growing calls for harsher punishment of sexual violence. Judges should be more impartial and stricter when it comes to crimes committed by those in power. The Government is to discuss with Belfast about plans to tighten travel restrictions onto the Island of Ireland. Following the Keelings controversy last week, whereby a plane full of eastern European workers were flown in to pick fruit, the matter was discussed at a meeting of the Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19. The sub-committee discussed options to tighten travel restrictions at ports and airports," a government statement said. "Ireland needs to find a balance which allows the airports and ports to stay open, in order to allow the movement of supplies, essential workers, and for Irish citizens to be able to return home, but which also minimises the risk of transmission of the virus, including the requirement for people arriving into Ireland to self-restrict their movements for 14 days. The sub-committee discussed a range of options to see whether there is a better way of achieving those objectives on travel. These will now be discussed further with Cabinet, and with the administration in Northern Ireland, before a final decision is made, the statement added. Earlier, Mr Varadkar said he and the government "never envisaged" that scenario when introducing the lockdown restrictions. "Agricultural workers are deemed essential workers because we do have to bring in the harvest, in order to ensure that we have enough food to eat. So I think we will understand why they are essential workers, he said. Although I have to say when we deemed agriculture workers to be essential workers, I hadn't envisaged hundreds of casual workers coming in from outside of the country. "So I think what we're going to try and do now is to work with the sector to see if we can find an adequate number of Irish people or people residents, he added. At the very least, who will take up those positions. And if not, then we have to make a decision to get out of the crop to fail, which isn't a good thing. "Or do we allow workers to continue to come in from other parts of the European Union, but with very defined a monitored quarantine arrangements to make sure that they don't create a new cluster of the virus," he said. The Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 met today to discuss long-term care facilities, testing and overseas travel. We need to keep our airports, we need to keep our ports open we need supplies to come in and out. We need essential workers to be able to come in and out we also need Irish citizens able to return home, he said. We also need to make sure that it's done in a way that minimises the risk of the transmission of the virus. "And that means asking people to self-isolation to self restrict their movements or 14 days that has been done since the very start this outbreak. What we're looking at now is are there better ways that we can monitor the people are actually doing, he added. Earth is commonly bombarded by solar winds coming from the Sun, but the problem with this is that the solar winds that reach our planet are hotter than they should be. This phenomenon defies the laws of physics that the wind should cool down as it expands through space. Scientists have finally unraveled the mystery behind this as they published their peer-reviewed study "Electron Temperature of the Solar Wind" in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Unraveling the mystery of hotter solar winds hitting on Earth As the Sun's heliosphere expels plasma, the laws of physics demand it to cool down after it expands through space. However, it seems like it is taking its sweet time in doing so, which means that the temperature is cooling down at a slower rate than the models predict. Since its discovery in 1959, people have already been studying the solar wind. But according to physicist Stas Boldyrev from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, some parts of the Sun's plasma is not well understood by scientists. Boldrev, together with his colleagues, physics professor Cary Forest and Jan Edgal from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, have explained this discrepancy in solar wind temperature. They sought the answer in the related field of plasma physics. Using laboratory equipment to study moving plasma, the researchers were able to discover what keeps the solar wind from cooling down before hitting Earth. Turns out, the problem lies in a trapped sea of electrons that just can't seem to escape from the Sun's grip. At first it was thought that the process itself follows the adiabatic laws of physics, which means that the heat energy remains constant; it neither increased nor decreased. The journey of the electron is not simple as it is shoved around at the vast magnetic fields of space and leaves plenty of opportunity for heat to be passed back and forth. Furthermore, due to its tiny mass, the electrons get a good head start over heavier ions as they shoot forth from the Sun's atmosphere. This leaves a largely positive cloud of particles in their wake. In time, the growing attraction between these opposite charges takes over the inertia of those flying electrons. It then results in pulling the particles back to where magnetic fields once again play havoc with their paths. Read Also: Gigantic Exoplanet Might be the Exposed Core of a Giant Gas Planet Mirror Machines Boldyrev and his team likened this phenomenon to an electron ping-pong playing out inside their laboratory which is commonly used to study plasma. It is called a mirror machine, in which although the name suggests it to have mirrors, it is not the shiny type but a different kind. Also known as magnetic mirrors or magnetic traps, these linear fusion devices are long tubes with a bottle-neck at either end which has a reflective nature that is created as streams of plasma passing through a bottle pinch at either end. It alters its surrounding fields in a way that the particles within the stream reflect inside again. Boldyrev said that some particles can go outside the bottle and they stream along expanding magnetic field lines outside the bottle. The researchers wanted to know how the temperature of the electrons that escaped decreases outside this opening to keep the plasma warm. The researchers suggest that the population of trapped electrons that turns back and forth plays a major role in how electrons distribute their heat energy. It changes the typical distributions of particle velocities and temperatures in predictable ways. This model can be used to further understand the mystery of the solar wind. Finding out that mysteries in space can also be studied using this model suggests that there could be more solar phenomena worth studying this way. Read More: New Study Found that Earth's Core Might Be Leaking! What Does That Mean? There are many frightening aspects to the coronavirus pandemic. Among the most frightening is how much we still dont know. We dont know why some cities and areas of the country are seeing higher mortality rates than others. We dont know what percentage of the population is currently infected, and what percentage may have immunity. We dont know when we will have an adequate supply of N95 masks and tests. Amid this uncertainty, one thing is clear: There is something more fatal than the virus, and that is political partisanship. Were not just talking about the way President Donald Trump has often defaulted to partisan swipes and blaming other parties and administrations for the crisis, though that is damaging enough. Were talking about the battles that are firming up along political lines about when it will be safe to reopen the economy and whether safe should even be a criteria. In Pennsylvania, the state legislature last week passed a measure that would reopen the economy for those businesses that adhere to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. SB 613 would effectively overrule Gov. Tom Wolfs closure of nonessential businesses that is set to expire April 30. Wolf says he will veto the bill. Seeing our elected officials playing out the same tired old partisan dramas is disheartening and depressing. They should be doing what the rest of the country is doing from community to community, neighborhood to neighborhood: putting aside differences and figuring out how to offer support and solve problems together. READ MORE: Im asking you to stay the course: Gov. Tom Wolf outlines broad plan for reopening Pennsylvania Of course, the economy is important. People are suffering from its sudden collapse. (Thats in part because of the shaky ground on which it was built, with few safety nets in place.) Businesses need to get back on their feet. But a rational and transparent framework and detailed plan driven by what we do know must be in place before that can happen. That would require both sides of the aisle in Harrisburg to commit themselves to putting a plan together that makes sense for all and for sharing that plan and the thinking underlying it with the rest of the public. That should be the minimum criteria for the reopening of the economy. We have not only seen little evidence of that, but we are still at the point that the publics health depends on crude homemade masks because no one quite knows where the next big supply of medical-grade masks is coming from. READ MORE: All Pa. businesses must require employees and customers to wear masks amid coronavirus pandemic We are also lacking the capacity for the widespread testing that most experts agree is critical to a return to normal. The idea that certain businesses can open, even at a staggered pace, without acknowledging that a plan for schools and day care must also be resolved so parents can actually return to work is also worrisome. This crisis has altered almost every aspect of society. The best-case scenario is that many of them will lead to positive, needed changes in the structure of the economy, for example. If it doesnt alter how our political system operates, prioritizing partisan victories over the public good, then this crisis truly will have been in vain. Advertisement Incredible photos show what life is like in the slums of Bangkok, with children seen playing on railway tracks in poverty-stricken settlements which are home to some of Thailand's poorest people. The pictures were taken by photographer Sam Gregg, 30, in the Klong Toey slums in the country's capital which are home to around 100,000 people. In one photo, a toddler sits in a chair on a makeshift platform which has been fitted to railway tracks, a sign that children have to make do with the play spaces available. In others, prostitutes are seen posing for the photographer as he takes close-up pictures. Criminals are also seen, with one tattoo-covered man pictured lying down. He spent 20 years in prison for dealing drugs to support his family and his inkings are a memento of his time spent inside. Mr Gregg, from London, said: 'Living near the local slum population, I began to immerse myself in their community, often spending my Sundays watching cockfights through a thick haze of cigarette smoke and moonshine. 'I would begin my day by meandering through the local red light district to an opening that hid the beginning of the Klong Toey railway tracks. 'One thing that immediately struck me was the incredible paradox of the slums. There was an uncomfortable balance between the humour and charm of the residents and the matter of fated crime and violence that surrounded their daily lives.' Incredible photos show what life is like in the Klong Toey slums of Bangkok, with people living in poverty-stricken settlements which are home to some of the world's poorest people The pictures, taken by photographer Sam Gregg, 30, from London, were taken in slums in the country's capital which are home to around 100,000 people. Pictured: A young child sits in a play chair which has been fitted to railway tracks which run through the slums Pictured left: A sex worker waits for business in the red light district near Klong Toey. Pictured right: Another tattoo-covered man smokes a cigarette as he casually crouches on the railway tracks to watch a cargo train approaching Yap is a former inmate of Bang Kwang prison, one of the most brutal in the world. He spent 20 years inside for dealing 'Ya ba' - tablets containing a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine - to support his family Children in the slums have to make use of the play spaces available to them. Those pictured above are seen climbing on the skeleton of an abandoned oil tanker. Many of their parents will have come to Bangkok in the hope of a better life, lured by the bright lights and job prospects Mr Gregg was struck by the 'paradox' of the slums. He said that despite the crime and violence which surrounded the daily lives of residents, they still displayed 'humour and charm'. Pictured left: Former prisoner Yap shows off a new tattoo. Pictured right: A sex worker poses for a photo The slum's residents are forced to raise their children in poverty-stricken conditions. Mr Gregg said he did his best to photograph the local people without being critical or taking advantage. Pictured left: A father holds his newborn baby in his arms. Pictured right: One resident looks a little worse for wear after after a few whiskeys Former prisoner Yap caught the photographer's eye because of his 'chiselled cheek bones' and 'tapestry-esque' tattoos. He soon became a close friend of Mr Gregg's because, despite his 'past actions and present addictions' he spoke with 'frank honesty and remorse' The slums are built up on just a single square mile of land but are home to around 100,000 people. Many of the inhabitants lack the skills needed to break away from the vicious cycle of poverty which they are trapped in. Pictured left: One man with striking facial tattoos poses for a picture. Pictured right: A Buddhist monk smokes a cigarette while waiting for a bus Young and old: The slums are home to both the very old and very young. All residents are trapped in poverty and find it very hard to escape. Pictured left: A young girl sits in her home with Thanaka paste on her face. The cream is believed to help promote smooth skin. Pictured right: An elderly woman shops in the market in Klong Toey More than 14million people live in Bangkok and its surrounding areas and the city attracts millions of tourists every year. It is marred by drastic inequalities between rich and poor. Pictured: The lights on the city's Park Hotel light up as dusk falls Mr Gregg said that former prisoner Yap, pictured left, had 'accepted his fate as a casualty of Thailand's broken social and economic policies'. Pictured right: A manual labourer poses for a picture after finishing work Mr Gregg said: 'Living near the local slum population, I began to immerse myself in their community, often spending my Sundays watching cockfights through a thick haze of cigarette smoke and moonshine.' Pictured: Abandoned trains dot the railway tracks which run through Klong Toey Mr Gregg said through the process of photography he was invited by the slum residents to share in moments of their lives. Pictured left: A man with a chick perched on his shoulder. He will either raise the animal to later eat it or to use in cockfighting. Pictured right: A sex-worker hustles for business A Klong Toey local shows off his classic car. Many of the slum's residents live in hope of a better life Corruption is a major problem in Thailand, which sees great wealth set against sometimes extreme poverty Cock fights are very popular in Thailand, although the animals often end up fighting to the death. Pictured: A cockfight in Klong Toey One slum resident sits surrounded by piece of wood and bottles on top of a scrapped truck which has been left to decay One resident holds a pair of scissors as he sits while bathed in the headlights of car When I saw the pallets of supplies, and we tested the masks, I was pretty happy that this could work out, said Dr. Artenstein, who drove several hours to execute the deal. He said he would not disclose the name of his vendor or its location because he did not want to jeopardize his ability to work with the vendor again. Just when he thought he had wrapped up his deal, Dr. Artenstein said, the F.B.I. appeared, checking the shipment of one million masks and seeking to verify Dr. Artensteins credentials. In retrospect, he said, he was glad that F.B.I. agents were there, apparently to ensure that the masks were not going to the black market. But then other federal agencies soon got involved, leading to more than 10 hours of delays, he said. The process ended only after the intervention of the Springfield area congressman, Representative Richard E. Neal, a Democrat and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. A FEMA official declined to comment on the specific case that Dr. Artenstein described. The F.B.I., citing a policy of not confirming or denying specific investigations, declined to comment on the incident but said it had been working to ensure that personal protective equipment is not being unlawfully distributed or hoarded during the coronavirus outbreak. An official from FEMA said that there have been cases where the federal government has redirected supplies away from communities even those with growing outbreaks because it must weigh other variables, including how much equipment a state already has in storage. Dr. Artenstein said he came away believing that the nation was in desperate need of a central clearing house for these supplies. He was forced to go his own way, he said, because what exists now is a zero-sum game, and the cavalry does not appear to be coming. Jennifer Steinhauer, Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Mitch Smith contributed reporting. Following a week in which people in several states ignored social-distancing guidelines and took to the streets in protest of stay-at-home orders, John Oliver slammed conservative media for spreading misinformation about the coronavirus. Some of those at the protests were clearly misinformed, saying that COVID-19 is all hype and that the flu kills more people than the novel coronavirus. Hundreds of people have taken to the streets this week fueled by the kind of misinformation that is rampant in right-wing media, Oliver said. The same right-wing media which then eagerly covered the protests that they helped create. Oliver took aim at two of the biggest names in conservative media: Rush Limbaugh and Fox News. Oliver said that both Limbaugh and Fox News have, for years, been building the narrative that they are the only ones their audience can trust. Limbaugh has spent years pushing his Four Corners of Deceit, which consists of government, academia, science and the media, which unfortunately happen to be the four most important groups to listen to during a public health crisis. And I understand why hed sow that doubt. If you establish your show as the sole outlet worth trusting, that gives you a lot of power, Oliver said. And hes not alone in utilizing that technique. Fox Newss recurrent pitch to its audience has been it will tell you the true story that elites and the mainstream media are trying to hide. Limbaugh has repeatedly made false statements about COVID-19 on his radio show, comparing it to the common cold, and stating that its not uncommon because its the 19th coronavirus. OK, no, Rush. Just no, Oliver said. No to you claiming COVID-19 got its name because its the 19th coronavirus. Thats not true. Its called that because it was first identified in 2019, you gigantic potato. But also, no to the virus being the common cold. No to this being not uncommon. As for Fox News, which is currently being sued over its coronavirus coverage, hosts consistently downplayed the coronavirus, even while taking internal steps to mitigate the effects of the virus on the company and its employees. Story continues Behind the scenes, their own company was suspending non-essential business travel, and encouraging employees to cancel all in-person meetings and summits, and conduct business via Skype or by phone, Oliver said, because, and this is true, they only pretend to believe these things on television for money. Last Week Tonight With John Oliver airs Sundays at 11 p.m. on HBO. Watch American Idol make TV history with its first at-home results show due to Unbelievable circumstances: 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 CDCs and WHOs resource guides. Read more from Yahoo Entertainment: Tell us what you think! Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, or leave your comments below. And check out our host, Kylie Mar, on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. The Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington has just received a significant grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities which will allow the museum to process, and make more readily available, the massive collection of papers, photographs and other artifacts once belonging to aviation pioneer William P. Lear and his wife Moya Olsen Lear. Details of the project are as below SEATTLE, April 17, 2020 The National Endowment for the Humanities has recently awarded The Museum of Flight a $236,000 grant to process and digitize its William P. Lear and Moya Olsen Lear Papers, one of the Museums most important collections. Although best known for revolutionizing business air travel with the Learjet in the early 1960s, Bill Lear was one of Americas most prolific inventors from the 1920s until his death in 1978. The Museums collection includes corporate records from Bill Lears various ventures including the Learjet and LearFan, but also documents some of his earlier inventions such as the Learadio and the 8-track tape cartridge. The NEH grant will allow the Museum to not only to better care for the collection, but to increase its accessibility. The Museum currently displays a 1964 version of his famous jet, the Learjet 23, and a prototype of his last project, the Lear Fan 2100, a radical, two-engine pusher propjet that first flew in 1981. The William P. and Moya Olsen Lear Papers NEH Grant Project The Museum of Flights NEH grant project to arrange and describe the papers of William B. and Moya Olsen Lear will create accessibility to this collection documenting Lears business ventures. 170 cubic feet of archival material spanning the 1920s-1995 will be arranged and described. Approximately 5,000 scans of unique items in the collection, including correspondence, photographs, patent documents, and other business materials will be made available online. In addition, approximately 260 artifacts, including model planes and invention prototypes, will be cataloged and photographed, plus 33 audio recordings and 18 films will be preserved and digitized. The collection will serve as a unique, scholarly resource that illustrates Lears ventures in not only aviation and consumer technology, but navigation, radio, motors, and more. The grant project will be undertaken from September 1st, 2020 through August 31st, 2022. The federal parolee spent the long weekend at his family home with his sister. They continued renovations, did some painting, filled boxes and bags with donations. But on Sunday night he had to report back to the GTA halfway house, to resume spending his weeknights in the small room he shares with a roommate. No more social distancing. Halfway houses are where federal inmates live when they are released on day parole, the first step in re-integrating them back into the community from prison. Some are otherwise homeless, some are elderly and some have substance abuse or mental health issues requiring extra support. The GTA parolee the Star has agreed not to name him because he fears that would impact his parole and the privileges he has earned hasnt been out of prison long after serving time for a non-violent drug offence. He was quickly granted day and weekend passes allowing him to leave the halfway house during the day, until his 10 p.m. curfew, and overnight to go to the family house on weekends. But, despite repeated requests, he has not been allowed to spend his weeknights at home, even with the offer to use an expensive and more restrictive electronic monitoring system or with additional phone check-ins. It just doesnt make sense. The Parole Board deemed us safe to go home, he said. I dont see why you cant be on day parole, except you are at your house. Public Safety Minister Bill Blair has asked the Correctional Service of Canada and the Parole Board of Canada to find ways to release low-risk, non-violent inmates but weeks later there is still no announced plan. Meanwhile, theres still the question: Where are those inmates going to go? Are halfway houses able to handle a new wave of releases especially as they face their own challenges in implementing infection control measures and physical distancing? Are they even able to handle the normal flow of releases? Federal inmates continue to be granted releases on parole or, by law, at their statutory release date at two-thirds of their sentences. Those releases have not stopped; typically, an inmate is first released on day parole to a halfway house and is only much later granted full parole, which can be served in a private home. Since the pandemic began, lawyer Simon Borys has observed an increase in the number of people granted day parole straight to a private residence. But for many inmates, halfway houses remain the only place to go after release. Meanwhile, inmates who have been granted parole over the last few weeks are still waiting for beds to open up at halfway houses. Borys, who is based in Kingston and frequently does parole hearings, has a client who has been waiting for a halfway house bed since the end of February. Long wait times were a problem before the pandemic but the stakes are much higher now that at least 91 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19 at five prisons across the country, he said. Prison inmates are already scared because of the lack of sanitation, inability to physical distance and poor health, he said. Imagine being told you have gotten parole and your risk is manageable in the community that you have behaved, done your programs and worked hard to improve yourself, Borys said. But now you have to just sit tight. It is the kind of thing that leads people into despair, he said. I am very concerned about where this is going to take us if this keeps going. Due to COVID-19 safety measures, the number of available beds in halfway houses has decreased by an estimated 20 per cent across the country, according to Anita Desai, executive director of St. Leonards Canada and chair of a working group looking at the issues halfway houses are facing. Corrections Canada has also said reducing capacity is one of the measures halfway houses are taking to ensure safety of staff and residents. Currently there are no COVID-19 cases in any of the St. Leonards facilities and, as of late last week, very few cases at halfway houses across the board, she said. CSC could not give a number of cases in halfway houses, which they said would be part of local health authority numbers. We are managing well so far, Desai said, thanks in large part to staff at the halfway houses working under an immense amount of pressure with little to no personal protective equipment. Desai says that as far she knows halfway houses are still accepting new cases but they are facing new challenges, including over concerns about the screening when prisons released parolees. One major issue is that inmates typically take public transit from prison to the halfway house, something that is now considered high-risk. Halfway houses have always had a right of refusal they decide if they want to take a particular inmate. This decision is more difficult now, as staff and resources are already spread thin, said Desai. This is why ensuring that prisons are thoroughly screening inmates who are being released is crucial, she said. Prison health is public health. Whoever we are releasing from prison, our halfway houses have to be confident in those intakes, she said, warning that the risk if protocols are not followed is that COVID-19 could be imported from prisons into the halfway houses, themselves a vulnerable setting. It also highlights the need to let halfway house residents move out if they have good supports and a home they can go to, she said. The Parole Board of Canada has said it is looking at efficiencies to expedite those decisions and is working with CSC to allow offenders to move from halfway houses to their homes where that is risk-appropriate, according to a spokesperson. They are also expediting parole by exception hearings for inmates who are terminally ill or who would suffer serious mental or physical damage through continued confinement. The health risk posed to an inmate by the COVID-19 pandemic is one of the criteria the parole board is considering when deciding whether to grant parole, the spokesperson said. The parole board has also allowed area parole supervisors to grant medical leave passes from halfway houses for up to 30 days to residents who are especially vulnerable to COVID-19, allowing them to go home. Ryan Johnson, the executive director of St. Leonards Hamilton, said that rather than having someone take public transit to a halfway house, they have been sending someone to pick inmates up from the prison. As a part of physical distancing measures, they have also made their two-bunk rooms single rooms a reduction of 12 beds out of 50. St. Leonards was fortunate to not be at capacity before the pandemic, so they have not yet had to turn anyone away, he said. Corrections Canada has cancelled in-person group education and programs, but their locations are still offering counselling by phone where possible, and through funding from CSC have stocked up on cleaning supplies and other necessities. The priority is ensuring the safety of residents and staff, Johnson said. Desai said that it has been reassuring that CSC has been in communication with halfway houses and have said they will continue to fund halfway houses at or above their December capacity, even if their current number of residents is below that. Halfway houses obtain funding based on the number of people they have in beds, she explained. A concern at the onset of this was, what if we have to shut down because we cant take anybody, she said. Or what if we cant take as many guys? Being able to maintain funding and get additional money for things like cleaning supplies has been extremely helpful in the short-term, she said. It is also important for people who work at halfway houses to not be overlooked when CSC orders masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment, she added, though she is optimistic that more supplies will be made available when possible. At the GTA parolees halfway house, residents are banned from leaving unless they have jobs or specific permission. Otherwise, they can leave for errands for half an hour a day. There are no more programs, no communal meals and limited communal space, but there are still shared rooms and shared bathrooms. And smokers still congregate outside. He says his roommate has a job at a restaurant and regularly sees his family; he doesnt know what kind of physical distancing he does. At the halfway house, he says there is no screening done for residents returning for the night and, inside the facility, there isnt much physical distancing being done in elevators and the shared spaces that remain. Everyone is stressed, everyone is bored, he said. If they have a home, they want to go home. The suspension of programs and resources at most non-profits and at halfway houses means he has not been able to get help applying for jobs not that there is much work available now, especially with a criminal record. They should be taking steps to see who can be taken out of that house to live somewhere else where they are not creating that community risk and risk to themselves. This is a vulnerable population, his lawyer said. If you have people who can extricate themselves that is what should be happening. The parolees sister looks at the devastating outbreaks in long-term care homes and fears the worst as they continue to wait. We already know what happens if we dont get out ahead of this virus, she said. Powells is Portlands Eiffel Tower. So said Samiya Bashir, a poet and Reed College professor, on PBS NewsHour Weekend on Saturday. When people come to visit Portland, visiting Powells is at the top of the list, Bashir insisted. You know, you go to Paris, you want to see the Eiffel Tower. You go to Portland, you want to go to Powells bookstore. Other Portlanders and leading literary lights also appeared on the nationally broadcast program to praise the iconic independent bookstore, which closed all of its locations last month because of the coronavirus pandemic. Powells CEO Emily Powell has said the companys very existence is at stake. We dont know what the future holds -- none of us does, she wrote in a March 27 message to the Powells community. PBS NewsHours segment made clear that the bookstore shuttering for good would be a disaster for the city, a serious blow to both Portlands retail landscape and sense of self. Literary Arts director Andrew Proctor told NewsHour Weekends Tom Casciato that the impact would stretch well beyond the Rose City, calling Powells one of the most important institutions in American literary life. The Ice Storm author Rick Moody reminisced about the first time he was booked to give a reading at the flagship location, and that amazing experience of coming up Burnside and seeing the marquee. He said every time he visits Portland, he plans the trip around a visit to Powells -- as a customer, not as an author making an appearance. Asked about the possibility of Powells not surviving the coronavirus crisis, Emily Powell said she was tearing up, just thinking about it. But shes staying optimistic, adding that shes been heartened by the surge in online sales coming through Powells.com. Were shipping a lot of classic literature, she said. You know, people need some way to divert themselves from whats happening outside their houses right now. Watch the broadcast. -- Douglas Perry @douglasmperry Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Bamboos are swaying under the sun as Lee Rim (Lee Jung-jin) narrates the story of the ancient Silla dynasty. A mystical myth of a bamboo mystic flute "Manpashikjeok" is under King Sinmun's well-kept treasure in the year 682. The magical possession is a symbol from "Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms." As he explains the tale, he is seated in a secure room, a table, in front of detective officer Jung Tae-Eul (Kim Go-Eun) and her partner Kang Shi-Jae (Kim Kyung-Nam). Lee Rim's face and his suit satins were covered in blood. Rim testified that his actual age is 70 years old and that his birthdate is 1951. He looks young when he gets hold of the half piece of "Manpashikjeok." He confessed that he killed his half-brother, who was the king during his time. The questioning between Lee Rim and officer Tae-Eul happened in the year 2020. The detectives were confused about Rim's words when in their data, he died in 1994. The Kingdom of Corea, 1994 In the Kingdom of Corea, the year 1994, in the winter season, Prince Geum (Lee Rim) invaded the king's palace with his gunned men. He took the ancient "Four Tiger Sword" from its box before heading to the sacred room where King Lee Ho (father of Lee Gon), was standing in front of the "Manpashikjeok" guarded safe glass box. Armed men of Rim shot the guards of the king, overpowering them. Lee Rim reached King Lee Ho and stabbed him with the sword. Rim opened the glass box and took the magic bamboo flute. Silent steps of small feet covered in blood entered the room. The young boy shouted as he saw his father lying on the floor. Anger led the boy to pick up the sword and hit Lee Rim's hand, which cut the magic flute into two. Lee Rim held the other half tightly while the other one fell to the ground. Rim got mad and strangled the boy with the bamboo flute, and created a wound and bled his skin. That young boy was Prince Lee Gon (Lee Min Ho). Amidst the chaos that Lee Rim brought to the king's palace, an armed man entered the room wearing an all-black outfit with a hat and mask on. It was dark, so no one saw his face or identity. He shot each Rim's guard and succeeded in killing most of them. He got near to the Rim when the siren turned on, signaling the outside guards that the palace was under attack. Rim's assistant insisted that they needed to go to avoid getting caught. Rim tried to look for the other half of the flute but was nowhere to be found. He didn't know that the young prince, who was lying on the floor, reached for the bamboo flute and kept it in his grip. Rim released the boy when the shooting happened, the fighter who fought with Lee Rim's men saved his life. As Rim fled the place, the fighter went to Prince Lee Gon and checked his pulse. Knowing that the boy is alive, the fighter left the scene as well. The prince, with his other hand, took hold of the ID as his only source of knowing his savior. The next day, the people of the Kingdom of Corea got news of the king's death. The high court announced Lee Rim as a fugitive and dethroned him. The palace is now making all arrangements for the king's funeral and ceremony for the next heir as king. Meanwhile, Lee Rim, in his struggle to escape the palace, reached the center of the forest in the middle of the bamboo trees and two tombstones. He hears the music of a bamboo flute and lightning at night. As the high rise stones lit, the magic bamboo flute in his grip transported him to another world. The Republic of Korea, the present time In broad daylight, Lee Rim, with his suit full of blood, walked around a new world - the Republic of Korea. He looked around with a puzzled face and tried to recognize the place. He reached a newsstand and read the exact year, the president, and the name of the country. Lee Rim realized he is in a new world and needed to fit in. A restless man bumped and forcibly grabbed Rim's back to face him. Rim recognized his face as his half-brother in the new realm. Rim entered a dark and filthy room looking at a man sitting in a wheelchair. The sick man is Lee Rim's identity in the new world. He twisted the head of the man and killed him instantly. In this way, Rim will take over the life of the man as his own. The door opened and a young boy came in. It was Lee Gon's identity in the new world. The boy looked the dead man in the wheelchair and cried. Rim didn't let the chance pass and killed the boy as well. In his mind, the bloodline of the king's family in the new realm is now disposed of. No one will stop him in his future, wicked deed. Read the Part 2 here. On Oct. 23, 1980, four workers were shot and killed during an early morning robbery at Pope's cafeteria in Des Peres. Here is our original coverage of that event. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 09:33:16|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close TRIPOLI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Libyan National Center for Disease Control on Sunday reported two new COVID-19 cases, raising the total to 51, with 11 recoveries and one death. The center said in a statement that it has tested 25 suspected samples, of which 23 were negative and two were positive. The UN-backed government of Libya on Wednesday declared a 24-hour curfew in the country to fight COVID-19 starting on Friday and lasting for 10 days. Libyan authorities have taken a series of measures against COVID-19, including closing airports, border crossings, mosques and educational institutions, and banning mass gatherings and movements among cities. Libya announced its first COVID-19 case on March 24. Enditem Donald Trump used his bully pulpit at the White House's daily coronavirus briefing on Sunday to rail against "globalists" for the convoluted multi-national supply chains for medical equipment that made it initially difficult for the US to deploy resources in response to the coronavirus pandemic. What happens if youre in a war and you have a supply chain where heavy supplies are given to you by other countries? And who are the people that thought of it? These are globalists. It doesnt work. It certainly doesnt work during rough times, bad times, and dangerous times, Mr Trump said. Weve learned a good lesson," the president said of US companies' outsourcing of medical manufacturing to other countries. The president's comments on Sunday about "reshoring" the medical supply chain were reflective of how the daily press briefings have largely become a nightly public relations campaign to defend his administration's work against outside criticism that he was slow to take the coronavirus seriously. "When they're doing a good job, I want to make people feel good. I want the admiral to feel good. He's worked so hard. Mike has worked so hard," Mr Trump said of Admiral Brett Giroir, the president's assistant secretary of health, and Vice President Mike Pence. He read a paragraph from an editorial in the Wall Street Journal commending the administration's health crisis response. Mr Trump repeated a new favourite line of his that the US is the "king of ventilators," citing comments from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo that no one who needed a ventilator was denied one. At two separate points during the briefing, the president played a video of Mr Cuomo at his own press briefing earlier in the day heaping praise on state health organisers and the federal government for helping New York build out its hospital capacity. When the video abruptly ended the first time, Mr Trump complained that his White House communications team "left out the best part" that is, more direct praise of the federal governments assistance in New York. Mr Trump outlined his plan to deliver Covid-19 testing swabs one of the medical supplies states have said they're most in need of to states, which he reiterated are ultimately responsible for administering widespread testing to get Americans back to work. Swabs are easy. Ventilators are hard," the president said. Mr Trump said he is invoking the Defense Production Act to order a company which he declined to name to begin manufacturing more than 20m swabs per month. States will get so many swabs you wont know what to do with them. Thats easy," Mr Trump said. Earlier in the briefing the president unpackaged and held up a testing swab for the TV cameras and photographers. Not very complicated, he said, holding up the swab. Does it remind you of something? He then reached into an inner pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out two Q-tips. The president noted that the objects testing swabs and Q-tips were, in fact, different. Its very sophisticated actually, he said of testing swabs. After the United Arab Emirates threatened to review labor ties with countries refusing to repatriate their citizens, thousands of stranded Pakistanis are now beginning to return home on special repatriation flights. The first flight carrying more than 200 Pakistanis left for Islamabad on Saturday, the Pakistani Consulate in Dubai announced on Twitter. Citizens will return home on 20 special flights during a third phase of repatriations beginning Monday, said Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aisha Farooqui. More than 40,000 Pakistanis have registered with the consulate to return home from the emirates, which suspended passenger flights out of the country last month. There are roughly 1.6 million Pakistanis living and working in the UAE. Those with expired residencies were given a three-month extension and visa overstay fines for visitors have been waived. Earlier this month, the UAE said it would review labor relations with states refusing to take back their citizens, including migrant laborers who lost their jobs due to the pandemic. Pakistans ambassador to the UAE, Ghulam Dastagir, told Gulf News that a lack of quarantine facilities in Pakistan's airports has slowed the repatriation process. It is not an easy task to repatriate all of them during the current circumstances when the flights are closed and the country is under lockdown, Dastagir told the news outlet on April 11. With 7,265 confirmed cases and 43 deaths announced by the Health Ministry Monday, the United Arab Emirates has the second-highest infection rate in the Gulf region after Saudi Arabia. After grounding all passenger flights in March, the state-owned Emirates airline announced in mid-April plans to resume limited outbound service to Algiers, Tunis, Jakarta, Manila, Taipei, Kabul and Chicago for those wanting to leave the emirates. Emirates is the first air carrier to roll out on-site coronavirus testing. Before boarding, passengers on a Tunisia-bound flight were screened last week with a blood test the Dubai Health Ministry said produced results in under 10 minutes. This is what it looks like when a pandemic collides with the culture wars in America. The mayor of Louisville, Ky., warned churches that holding services on Easter Sunday would defy the citys social distancing guidelines. Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican and Senate majority leader, answered with a stern letter, arguing, Religious people should not be singled out for disfavored treatment. The Democratic governor in Michigan extended bans on certain outdoor activities to include using motorboats. Conservatives called her an authoritarian and caricatured her move as a slap at people who enjoy the outdoors. You cant go fishing, a local activist lamented in an interview on Fox & Friends. And even though firearms stores remain free to do business in most of the country, the National Rifle Association has a stark message for gun owners. They want your guns. They want em all, declared the country music legend Charlie Daniels in a promotional video he recorded for the N.R.A. from quarantine at his home in Tennessee. The new patchwork of state and local policies designed to flatten the spread of the coronavirus is inflaming old passions over some of the most contentious issues in politics. Guns, abortion, voting rights and religious expression concerns that would seem to have little to do with a virus that has likely infected more than a million Americans and killed more than 37,000 have emerged as fault lines in the debate over how government is responding to the crisis. By Tong Kim Democracy is working in South Korea amid the global coronavirus pandemic. The general election for the National Assembly was conducted safely and calmly last week, with meticulously built-in measures against COVID-19. Korea set an example that other countries, including the United States, should consider copying. South Korea is faring well among the infected countries in combating the spread of the virus with aggressive testing, quarantine, self-isolation, social distancing, wearing masks and closing crowded places. Now we are waiting for the development of a vaccine or medicine for the virus. We will get through this pandemic. The Korean elections saw the participation of more than 62 percent of eligible voters, the highest turnout in 16 years. It ended in a landslide win for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea with a whopping gain of three-fifths (180) of the seats over the opposition United Future Party (UFP), which won only 103 seats. The results were caused primarily by the urgency of the menacing COVID-19 pandemic and the dire economic situation, under which all the political issues the opposition had been raising against President Moon were buried. The elections did not turn out as a referendum on the "poor performance" of the Moon government, as the opposition UFP framed it. The opposition party suffered from poor leadership, lacking a clear conservative platform, bickering internally during the selection of electoral candidates and failing to show reform itself. Consequently, the people chose to support Moon and his party to keep fighting COVID-19 and to do the best they can to take care of the economy. The elections also showed that a plurality of the population has moved from conservatives to liberals, while moderate swing voters have increased. The demographic center of gravity has also moved from the older to the younger generations. Two years later, there will be the next presidential election. North Korea was not a critical issue in the elections. Yet, two North Korean defectors were elected as opposition party members, a demonstration of what can happen in the democratic South. The North did little to influence the outcome of the elections, although it fired three cruise missiles a day before the election day of April 15, which was also the birthday of its founder Kim Il-sung. There are indications that COVID-19 is posing a grave threat to the health of the North Korean people and their economy. Kim Jong-un held a special meeting of the political bureau of the Workers' Party central committee on April 12 to facilitate "a nationwide step against the spread of the pandemic." On April 17, the Rodong Sinmun said in an editorial, "Nothing is more precious than the safety of the people. The party's intention is that if any success in socialist construction casts a shadow over the safety of the people and their happy lives, it, in essence, would mean no victory." It is good that North Korea agrees that the first priority of any government is to protect the lives of its people. The North too is going through a medical and economic crisis, although there is no evidence of any existential threat to the political stability of the regime at this point. The North's health care system is poor and weak. Hospitals are poorly equipped, suffering a short supply of medicine. They likely have a shortage of test kits for the coronavirus. With the borders closed, smuggling for private markets is becoming more restricted, which is having a detrimental effect on their role of supplementing the North Korean planned economy. However, one should not underestimate North Korea's resilient ability for survival. The North relies on the isolated, self-sufficient nature of livelihood, particularly in rural areas. Yet, its sustainability will be limited without external assistance. The North knows the South can help it fight the pandemic. The North saw that the Moon government gained a reinforced mandate from the elections. The North knows that the South does not seek a regime collapse in Pyongyang. Seoul seeks to work peacefully together for mutual security guarantees and common prosperity. Both Koreas should rethink their strategies to resume their dialogue and cooperation. Nuclear weapons and missiles do not protect people from a pandemic. The sharing of medical resources and experience will help save lives. Both sides should concentrate on efforts to save lives and to keep the economies from going down. In the meantime, the stalemate on nuclear talks is better than mutual provocations. Yet, we should not lose hope for an eventual peaceful resolution of the ultimate issue of war and peace on the Korean Peninsula. Tong Kim ( ) is a visiting professor with the University of North Korean Studies, a visiting scholar with Korea University, a fellow at the Institute of Corean-American Studies, and a columnist for The Korea Times. For 157 years, scientists have wished they could understand the evolutionary relationships of a curious South American ground beetle that was missing a distinctive feature of the huge family of ground beetles (Carabidae). Could it be that this rare species was indeed lacking a characteristic trait known in over 40,000 species worldwide and how could that be? Was that species assigned to the wrong family from the very beginning? The species, Nototylus fryi, or Fry's strange-combed beetle, is known so far only from a single, damaged specimen found in 1863 in the Brazilian State of Espiritu Santo, which today is kept in the Natural History Museum of London. So rare and unusual, due to its lack of "antennal cleaners" - specialised "combing" structures located on the forelegs and used by carabids to keep their antennae clean, it also prompted the description of its own genus: Nototylus, now colloquially called strange-combed beetles. No mention of the structure was made in the original description of the species, so, at one point, scientists even started to wonder whether the beetle they were looking at was in fact a carabid at all. Because the area where Fry's strange-combed beetle had been found was once Southern Atlantic Forest, but today is mostly sugar cane fields, cacao plantations, and cattle ranches, scientists have feared that additional specimens of strange-combed beetles might never be collected again and that the group was already extinct. Recently, however, a US team of entomologists have reported the discovery of a second specimen, one also representing a second species of strange-combed beetles new to science. Following a careful study of this second, poorly preserved specimen, collected in French Guiana in 2014, the team of Dr Terry Erwin (Smithsonian Institution), Dr David Kavanaugh () and Dr David Maddison (Oregon State University) described the species, Nototylus balli, or Ball's strange-combed beetle, in a paper that they published in the open-access scholarly journal ZooKeys. The entomologists named the species in honour of their academic leader and renowned carabidologist George E. Ball, after presenting it to him in September 2016 around the time of his 90th birthday. Despite its poor, yet relatively better condition, the new specimen shows that probable antennal grooming organs are indeed present in strange-combed beetles. However, they looked nothing like those seen in other genera of ground beetles and they are located on a different part of the front legs. Rather than stout and barely movable, the setae (hair-like structures) in the grooming organs of strange-combed beetles are slender, flexible and very differently shaped, which led the researchers to suggest that the structure had a different role in strange-combed beetles. Judging from the shapes of the setae in the grooming organs, the scientists point out that they are best suited for painting or coating the antennae, rather than scraping or cleaning them. Their hypothesis is that these rare carabids use these grooming structures to cohabitate with ants or termites, where they use them to apply specific substances to their antennae, so that the host colony recognises them as a friendly species, a kind of behaviour already known in some beetles. However, the mystery around the strange-combed beetle remains, as the scientists found no evidence of special secretory structures in the specimen studied. It turns out that the only way to test their hypothesis, as well as to better understand the evolutionary relationships of these beetles with other carabids is finding and observing additional, preferably live, specimens in their natural habitat. Fortunately, this new discovery shows that the continued search for these beetles may yield good results because strange-combed beetles are not extinct. ### Original source: Erwin TL, Kavanaugh DH, Maddison DR (2020) After 157 years, a second specimen and species of the phylogenetically enigmatic and previously monobasic genus Nototylus Gemminger & Harold, 1868 (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Nototylini). ZooKeys 927: 65-74. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.927.49584 The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 559 and the number of cases climbed to 17,656 in the country on Monday, registering an increase of 40 deaths and 1,540 cases since Sunday evening, according to the Union health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 14,255 while 2,841 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the ministry said. The total number of cases includes 77 foreign nationals. A total of 40 deaths were reported since Sunday evening. Twelve fatalities were reported from Maharashtra, nine from Gujarat, five from Andhra Pradesh, four from Madhya Pradesh, three each from Rajasthan and Telangana and two each from Delhi and Karnataka. Of the 559 deaths, the highest number of 223 fatalities were reported from Maharashtra, followed by Madhya Pradesh (74), Gujarat (67), Delhi (45),Telangana (21) and Andhra Pradesh (20). The death toll reached 17 in Uttar Pradesh while Punjab and Karnataka have registered 16 deaths each. Tamil Nadu has reported 15 deaths so far, Rajasthan 14 and West Bengal 12. The disease has claimed five lives in Jammu and Kashmir, while Kerala and Haryana have recorded three COVID-19 deaths each. Jharkhand and Bihar have reported two deaths each, while Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Assam have reported one fatality each, according to the ministry data. However, a PTI tally of the figures reported by various states as on Monday 6:30 pm showed 17,744 cases and 584 deaths in the country. There has been a lag in the Union Health Ministry figures, compared to the number of deaths announced by different states, which officials attribute to procedural delays in assigning the cases to individual states. According to the health ministry's data updated in the evening, the highest number of confirmed cases in the country are from Maharashtra (4,203), followed by Delhi (2,003), Gujarat (1,851), Madhya Pradesh (1,485), Rajasthan (1,478) and Tamil Nadu (1,477). The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 1,176 in Uttar Pradesh, 873 in Telangana, 722 in Andhra Pradesh and 402 in Kerala. The number of cases has risen to 395 in Karnataka, 350 in Jammu and Kashmir, 339 in West Bengal, 233 in Haryana and 219 in Punjab. Bihar has reported 96 coronavirus cases, while Odisha has 68 such cases. Forty-four people have been infected with the virus in Uttarakhand, while Jharkhand has 42 cases. Himachal Pradesh has 39 cases, Chhattisgarh has 36 while Assam has registered 35 infections so far. Chandigarh has 26 COVID-19 cases, Ladakh 18, while 15 cases have been reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Meghalaya has reported 11 cases, while Goa and Puducherry have seven COVID-19 patients each. Manipur and Tripura have two cases each, while Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh have reported a case each. "Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR," the ministry said on its website. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Local board member Janet Fitzgerald sewed herself a poppy over the weekend. With official Anzac Day commemorations off the calendar for the first time ever due to Covid-19, residents are nevertheless finding ways to honour war veterans and those who serve in the armed forces. The NZ Defence Force is encouraging people to make and display poppies, as well as to stand at their front gate at dawn (6am) on Anzac Day, Saturday April 25. On its website, the Defence Force says that even though public Anzac services are unable to go ahead, it does not mean that the tradition of remembering and commemorating veterans and service personnel should be cancelled too. This is a time to pay respect and acknowledge the many thousands of our military people who are serving or have served, who are called upon to support New Zealand in times of war, conflict and disasters, the Defence Force says. Join us at 6am on Saturday, 25 April. Stand at your letterbox, at the front door, in your lounge rooms, balconies, in your driveway. Wherever you are in the world, stand with us and take a moment to remember our fallen but please stay within your bubble. Veterans are encouraged to wear their medals just as they would for the official public gathering. Hibiscus & Bay Local Board member Janet Fitzgerald kicked off the local poppy display initiative at the end of last week. Janets grandfather served in WWI. She worked closely with veterans in her former job as Hibiscus Coast Community RSAs welfare officer, and is currently a support member of the Silverdale Kings Empire Veterans. Janet is encouraging Coast residents to make or draw poppies and put them in their windows, or on fences and letterboxes to create an Anzac display. Janet made her own poppy from fabric and will place it on her letterbox. She says she is amazed at all the poppies being created by the community. Artist Alan Smith did compulsory military training in the NZ Army in the 1960s. He has turned his front lawn in Millwater into a display that includes a white cross and poppies. Alans late father served with the NZ Army in the 19th Armoured Regiment in Casino. Dad treated Anzac Day as the most sacred day of the year, Alan says. Info: www.standatdawn.com Manufacturing units in special economic zones (SEZs) and export oriented units (EOUs) were not able to restart operations from Monday as they did not receive permissions from authorities in their respective states, according to exporters. On April 15, the Home Affairs Ministry issued guidelines stating that manufacturing and other industrial establishments with access control are allowed in SEZs, EoUs, industrial estates and industrial townships after implementation of standard operating protocol for social distancing. Export Promotion Council for SEZ and EOUs (EPCES) Vice Chairman Bhuvnesh Seth said that in most of the states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Telangana and Karnataka, there was complete lockdown. "Today no EOU and SEZ is operational. Units making essential items and agriculture goods are working since day one. Units are facing problems of cash flow," he told PTI adding that there is no hope till May 3. Seth said that as the day passes on Monday, there was complete lockdown in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh. Noida and Greater Noida have been declared hot spots, but he is hopeful for Haryana as majority of areas were in green zone. "Few cases were found near Kundli, Sonepat and Narela, where lockdown was strengthened on April 19. Units can apply but permission will be given in phased manner, as per our discussions with officials," Seth said He added that on April 19, anxiety was there since morning in units as everybody was calling to check status of online portals so that the units can apply for necessary permissions. "We got the information yesterday night from state government officials of industrial department that they will start portals and units can seek permission on April 20," he said. He also said that EoUs and SEZs have lost 50 per cent of their orders and they need to start their factories to execute balance orders, retain clients and protect themselves from losing business to China. He added that industries in Italy, Spain and the UK have started working with minimum workforce. An apparel manufacturer from Madurai said that they have not started operations on Monday as they have not yet get the required permissions. "We all have applied for permissions, but no permission. So we were not able to start operations from Monday," Penguin Apparels Managing Director Anbukani said. He has a unit in an EOU in Madurai industrial estate. Commenting on the situation, Aqeel Ahmed Panaruna, Chairman, Council for Leather Exports said that majority of the leather products and footwear exporters are located in the urban areas and not located in the industrial zones, except few industries. "About 92 per cent of the units in the sector are in the MSME segment. The industry is strictly following guidelines of central and state governments and we will wait for further information on the lockdown, as many countries like USA, UK, Spain and Italy are also under the lockdown," he said. Federation of Indian Export Organisation (FIEO) President Sharad Kumar Saraf said that the protocols made by the government is difficult to implement and it will significantly increase compliance cost for MSME units. FIEO Director General Ajay Sahai said that in the green areas, units have started applying for permissions and are expected to soon get the clearance to commence operations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) OBRIEN Insurance Solutions (OBRIEN), a provider of business solutions specifically designed to modernize and refine an insurance companys printed and digital customer communications, announced today that Alamance Farmers Mutual Insurance (Alamance) has selected OBRIEN as its strategic partner to enable its new document strategy. OBRIEN was selected for its ability to effectively handle Alamances need for critical policyholder communications while offering additional capabilities such as new document design and seamless integration into current communications. Offering both monochrome and full color digital print capabilities, OBRIEN recently completed an API integration with Britecores Policy Administration System. Lisa Snyder, Alamaces CEO, commented on the OBRIEN decision saying, When it comes to meeting the insurance needs of our policyholders, AFM is not content with the status quo. Constant development of systems, processes and procedures, in a rapidly changing industry, is necessary to maintain a competitive advantage. Communications that go beyond the minimum required by regulators is one such way an insurer can set itself apart in the market. OBRIEN has enabled AFM to provide timely communications to its policyholders at minimal cost. By keeping operating expenses in check, AFM is able to pass those savings along in the form of affordable premiums. As a company committed to the financial well-being of its policyholders, AFM is proud to partner with OBRIEN, as it continues to seek new and innovative ways to serve its policyholders with excellence. A critical factor that differentiated OBRIEN is their ability to efficiently and cost effectively incorporate custom deliverables into policy documents. In the past, adding a new document was labor intensive, took weeks to complete, and was cost prohibitive. OBRIENs solution allows Alamance to add new documents and custom deliverables within days by following a few simple guidelines. While Alamances decision to work with OBRIEN was predicated upon expanded capabilities and providing a better customer experience, other benefits include: Robust Business Continuity Planning providing a Disaster Recovery Plan in the case of an unforeseen event; Cost effectively incorporating custom deliverables to futher enhance the policyholders experience; Reduced costs for production and delivery of key customer communications ranging from premium billing to policy issuance and other critical communications; User friendly portal to review, approve, and suppress documents. OBRIENs Director of Sales Ed Benks added, We couldnt be more excited to welcome Alamance to the OBRIEN family of insurance customers. With our recent Britecore implementation, and over 45 years specializing in policyholder communications for the insurance industry, we will be working closely with Lisa and her team to continue delivering critical policyholder documents while expanding capabilities to better serve their policyholders. About Alamance Farmers Mutual Insurance Company: Alamance Farmers Mutual Insurance Company (AFM) has been protecting North Carolinians since 1892. Initially incorporated as the Alamance County Branch of the Farmers Mutual Fire Insurance Association of North Carolina, AFM met the rural insurance needs of central North Carolina as a county mutual insurance company for 116 years. Having served its policyholders in Alamance and the five contiguous counties for over a century, AFM expanded its charter in 2008 enabling it to serve policyholders in all 100 North Carolina counties. About OBRIEN Insurance Solutions: Founded in 1974, OBRIEN Insurance Solutions is a provider of business solutions specifically designed to modernize and refine an insurance companys printed and digital customer communications and improve organizational collaboration, communication and customer experience. OBRIEN recently moved their corporate headquarters to a state-of-the-art production facility located in St. Charles, IL. For additional information visit http://www.obinc.com or call 800-232-9595. http://www.linkedin.com/company/obrieninsurancesolutions Contact: Ed Benks OBRIEN Insurance Solutions Ed_b@obinc.com 800.232.9595 Bilateral economic and trade cooperation between China and Russia remains sound in the long term, despite the pneumonia outbreak temporarily affecting certain industries. A staff member walks past pipelines in a section of the China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline in Heihe, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Nov. 19, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei) The two-way trade volume between China and Russia totaled $25.4 billion in the first quarter of the year, a year-on-year increase of 3.4 percent, according to data from the General Administration of Customs in China. This growth is mainly attributed to a series of large-scale cooperation projects between the two countries, including the China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline, said Oleg Timofeev, associate professor of China Studies at the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. Russia began supplying natural gas to China through this pipeline from the end of 2019, injecting new impetus into the economic and trade cooperation. At full capacity, the pipeline is thought to be able to provide 38 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to China annually. Bilateral cooperation in high-tech industries, such as automobile and aircraft manufacturing, communications and e-commerce, is also promising in the long term, according to Timofeev. At the end of March, the transaction volume on AliExpress Russia, an online retail platform under the Alibaba Group of China and its Russian partners, was nearly double that of February, according to Yandex.Money, a Russian fintech company that offers services for accepting and making payments. Chinese goods such as electronic products, automobile accessories and furniture are very popular in Russia, noted Vitaly Mankevich, president of the Russian-Asian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RAUIE). Timofeev believes that the pandemic will generate more opportunities for China and Russia to cooperate in healthcare. "Many Russian companies have started to produce ventilators and other medical products amid the epidemic," said Mankevich, adding that China, with its strong capabilities in manufacturing medical equipment, will be very helpful in supporting Russian enterprises in this field. Use AARPs calculator to determine if you are eligible for the relief money. If youre expecting a check, here are the security features: 1. Treasury seal The seal says, Bureau of the Fiscal Service. 2. Bleeding ink The Treasury seal, to the right of an image of the Statue of Liberty, has security ink that will run and turn red when moisture is applied to the black ink of the seal. 3. Microprinting Microprinted words are so small they appear as just a line to the naked eye. But when magnified, the words become visible. Microprinting cannot be duplicated by a copier, and when a check is counterfeited it will often show up as a solid line or a series of dots. This U.S. Treasury check has one area on the back where USAUSAUSA appears repeatedly in such tiny print. 4. Watermark All stimulus checks are printed on watermark paper that reads U.S. TREASURY, which can be seen from both the front and the back of the check when it is held up to a light. The watermark is light and cannot be reproduced by a copier. Any check not having the watermark should be suspected of being counterfeit or copied. 5. Ultraviolet overprinting A protective ultraviolet pattern, invisible to the naked eye, consisting of four lines repeating the words FISCAL SERVICE will be bracketed by the Bureau of the Fiscal Service seal on the left and the U.S. seal an eagle on the right. This pattern usually may be found under the payee information and the dollar amount area. The FISCAL SERVICE pattern and seals can be detected under a black light. If the amount box is altered in any way, a space will be created in the ultraviolet area. When exposed to black light, the ink used in the pattern and the seal will glow. This fluorescent quality cannot be photocopied. (Alliance News) - Sherborne Investors (Guernsey) B Ltd on Monday reported a drop in net asset value over 2019 but Sherborne Investors (Guernsey) C Ltd saw a rise in NAV. The funds each were set up with the specific policy of investing in one company, decided by investment manager Sherborne Investors Management LP, the investment vehicle of activist investor Edward Bramson. Sherborne B was set up to acquire an interest in UK trust Electra Private Equity PLC, whereas Sherborne C holds Bramson's interest in FTSE 100-listed lender Barclays PLC. At the end of 2019, Sherborne B held a 29.90% stake in Electra, while Sherborne B controlled a 5.48% stake in Barclays. Electra is in the middle of a managed wind-down and will not be adding any new investments to its portfolio. At the end of 2019, Sherborne B's NAV per share stood at 10.91 pence compared to 11.40p at the same point the year before. Sherborne B's net assets decreased to GBP34.3 million from GBP35.8 million. At March 31, NAV per share had dipped further, falling to 5.52p. Sherborne B declared a 1.5p and 0.65p dividends in 2019, following two special dividends distributed by Electra. The company's C share NAV increased over 2019, rising to 78.04p from 66.96p. Sherborne C's net assets at the end of 2019 were GBP546.3 million compared to GBP468.7 million twelve months earlier. At March 31, Sherbrone C's NAV per share stood at 43.3p, with net assets of GBP303.3 million. In May, Barclays' shareholders voted against adding Bramson to the bank's board, Bramson having previously been rebuffed in late 2018. "The investment manager has advised the board that it believes that addressing the issues it has discussed with Barclays' board could increase Barclays' financial strength and its long-term competitive position, leading to an increase in shareholder value in line with the investment manager's customary return objectives. The investment manager's present intention is to continue its dialogue with Barclays for as long as it appears to be appropriate to do so," Sherborne C said. Looking ahead, Sherborne C said the coronavirus pandemic is "difficult to quantify". "The situation is constantly evolving as governments and businesses continue to combat the impact of the pandemic. As an investment company, for day to day operations the company is ultimately dependent on the investment manager, administrator and company secretary all of whom have robust business continuity plans in place to ensure that they can continue to service the company," the firm added. Shares in Sherborne B were untraded in London on Monday having last closed at 5.00p. Sherborne C was untraded at 30.00p. By Paul McGowan; paulmcgowan@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. In view of surge in the demand for anti-malarial drug Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) amidst the coronavirus pandemic, pharmaceutical companies in Gujarat have stepped up efforts to ramp up its production for domestic as well as global markets, a senior official said on Sunday. Hemant Koshia, Commissioner of Food and Drugs Control Administration (FDCA), Gujarat, told PTI that the government granted 20 product licences to 13 companies recently. The efficacy of HCQ, traditionally used for treating Malaria and rheumatoid arthritis, as a possible treatment for COVID-19 disease is currently being tested. Earlier this month, India, which is the largest producer of HCQ globally, decided to partially lift the ban on its export in sync with its global commitment to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Even before the global rush for HCQ started, a total of 28 companies in Gujarat, a major pharmaceutical hub in the country, were in possession of the licence to manufacture active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and formulations for the drug, Koshia said. "More pharmaceutical companies approached the state government for securing the manufacturing licence, especially after its importance in fight against coronavirus came to light and after India lifted brief ban on its export," he said. Koshia further said the Gujarat FDCA a few days back granted 20 product licences to 13 existing pharmaceuticalcompanies to manufacture both the APIs and formulations for the drug, considering its importance in fight against COVID-19. "Before COVID-19 outbreak, there were 28 companies in Gujarat which are actively engaged in manufacturing of API (3) and formulation (25) for HCQ, both for domestic consumption and exports. "These companies were earlier granted 67 product licences, of which 35 were for export permission and 32 for domestic," Koshia said. He said seven of the 21 product licences granted to 13 companies were for the purpose of export. "A few of these companies have the licence to manufacture both raw materials and formulations," he said. Some of the pharmaceutical companies granted licences to manufacture HCQ are Sun Pharma, Stallion Labs, Ratnamani Healthcare, Merit Organics, Umedica Labs, among others, he added. According to Koshia, Gujarat, which is witnessing a steady rise in coronavirus cases, was probably the first state to place order for one crore HCQ tablets in March. "The state has already received delivery of 50 lakh tablets from Cadila Pharma which will be supplied to government hospitals," Koshia said. At present, India is in the process of supplying HCQ to 55 cronavirus-hit countries. Also read: Coronavirus in US: Our COVID-19 tests more than India, 9 other countries combined, says Trump Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation Live Updates: 543 COVID-19 deaths in India, 36 in one day; tally past 17,000 Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal has sought the Centre's help for sufficient and fair distribution of groceries and financial assistance to the poor in the Union territory during the nationwide lockdown imposed amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter to Ladakh Lt Governor R K Mathur and the Union Home Ministry, Namgyal expressed concerns over the various problems faced by the people in his constituency. He said he was receiving a lot of calls and messages from people seeking evacuation of patients, students, pilgrims and workers of Ladakh stuck in various parts of India and abroad. People are also raising demands of financial assistance to the most needy specially labourers and bread earners of very poor families to pay their room rents, electricity bills, school fees and other expenses, Namgyal said in his letter. Appreciating the collective performance of the administration of Ladakh and district administrations of Leh and Kargil in containing the spread of COVID-19 in the Union territory without any loss of life, the BJP MP said he was "concerned with other issues being faced by people especially those downtrodden whose voices for their rights for basic necessities are going unheard". He also asked the Centre and the LG of Ladakh for consideration of non-ration card holders for availing of ration and vegetable distribution besides consideration of the non-registered needy and deserving natives of Ladakh for various benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY). The BJP parliamentarian from the newly carved Union territory of Ladakh sought the Centre's intervention in distribution of seeds, saplings and other requirements for agricultural and horticultural works. He also raised the issue of "sufficient and fair distribution of groceries including vegetables, fruits, egg and LPG gas, etc. in Ladakh" as well as the issue of wastage of vegetables. "I am very much disheartened. Sharing with you herewith the pictures of wastage of vegetables stored in Leh," the MP said. He emphasised on early setting up of Biosafety Level-2 laboratory in his constituency. "I appreciate if you could kindly initiate your personal intervention in early setting up of Biosafety Level - 2 Laboratory in Ladakh for which I am constantly in touch with all of the concerned officers but still lagging behind of the time," said the Lok Sabha member from Ladakh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) ISIS conscript Ahmed Alsyed (pictured) was let out of jail less than two years into his sentence after planning to travel to Syria A would-be jihadist who trained for terror attacks and planned to join ISIS was handed early release from prison despite Government objections. Parole chiefs cleared ISIS conscript Ahmed Alsyed, 22, to be let out of jail less than two years into his sentence after planning to travel to Syria. The shock decision was made in November, 19 months after Sudan-born Alsyed was convicted of offences of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts, possession of information relating to terrorist offences, and dissemination of a terrorist publication. It has now emerged that a team of professionals, including a psychologist, a terrorist analyst, and an Imam, recommended he should be released. Alsyed was released shortly before the London Bridge atrocity in which two people were killed by Usman Khan, and the Streatham stabbing committed by Sudesh Amman - both also released early. Sudan-born extremist Alsyed (left), from Hounslow, west London, and his brother Yousef (right) used paintballing sessions to build their strength and target practice Newly-published papers show that the Government appealed the decision, claiming it would be 'irrational' to release Alsyed back into society. Justice Secretary Robert Buckland argued that the parole panel had not carried out suitable risk assessments to ensure public safety. He added that they had not taken Alsyed's 'deceptive behaviour' into account. But the appeal to the Parole Board of England and Wales was denied on December 30, just four weeks after the horrendous London Bridge attack. Vice-chair John Saunders upheld the decision of parole chiefs two months before new legislation ended the automatic early release of terrorists. The Terrorist Offenders (Restriction of Early Release) Act 2020 was introduced to the House of Commons a week after the Streatham attack. It forces convicts to spend at least two-thirds of their term behind bars before being eligible for parole. In his written decision, vice-chair John Saunders ruled: 'The assessment of risk is never easy in the case of prisoners convicted of terrorist offences. 'The panel weighed the various factors and reached a conclusion that was a perfectly proper one on the evidence. 'I do not consider that the decision was irrational.' Police at the scene in Streatham High Road, south London after 20-year-old terrorist Sudesh Amman was shot dead by armed officers (pictured, February 2, 2020) Alsyed was released shortly before the London Bridge atrocity in which two people were killed by Usman Khan (left), and the Streatham stabbing committed by Sudesh Amman (right) How a fanatical ISIS conscript slipped through the cracks AFTER the London Bridge attack and two months before the Streatham stabbing November 2019 - Alsyed was automatically released from prison; November 29, 2019 - London Bridge attacker Usman Khan stabbed five people, two fatally, before police officers shot him dead; December 2019 - the UK Government appealed to the Parole Board against the release of Alsyed; December 30, 2019 - the Parole Board threw the Government's appeal out; January 2020 - Streatham stabber Sudesh Amman was automatically released from prison, where he was serving three years and four months for disseminating terrorist material and collecting relevant information; February 2, 2020 - Amman stabbed two people and was shot dead; February 3, 2020 - the UK Government said emergency legislation would be brought forward to prevent the automatic early release of terrorists; February 11, 2020 - the Terrorist Offenders (Restriction of Early Release) Bill 2020 was introduced; February 12, 2020 - the Bill cleared all stages without a Commons vote; February 26, 2020 - the Bill received Royal Assent and became an Act Advertisement Sudan-born extremist Alsyed, from Hounslow, west London, and his brother Yousef used paintballing sessions to build their strength and target practice. The brothers' terror plan was foiled when the younger of the two was referred to police by his school. Both were arrested at Heathrow Airport in August 2016. Both admitted engaging in conduct in preparation of acts of terrorism at Woolwich Crown Court. Alsyed was handed his sentence in April 2018. Alsyed had sent secret messages to Yousef, revealing plans to fight or die fighting for fellow religious extremists, even sharing videos of beheadings. He said in one encrypted message: 'I just want to do martyrdom operations.' Alsyed is one of 74 convicted terrorists let out on licence in the UK under an automatic early release scheme. He was released 11 months after London Bridge attacker Usman Khan and two months after Streatham terrorist Sudesh Amman were automatically released. Khan was serving 16 years for terrorism offences after his 2012 conviction. He had been part of a plot, inspired by al-Qaeda, to establish a terrorist camp on his family's land in Kashmir and bomb the London Stock Exchange. The plot was disrupted by MI5 and the police. Khan was automatically released in December 2018. Last November, he attacked five people, killing two, on London Bridge before he was shot dead. Amman had been sentenced to three years and four months in prison for disseminating terrorist material and collecting information that could prove useful to would-be terrorist. He had shared an al-Qaeda magazine in a family WhatsApp group and told his siblings 'the Islamic State [ISIS] is here to stay'. Amman also told his girlfriend that she should kill her unbelieving parents. Khan was automatically released in December 2018. Last November, he attacked five people, killing two, on London Bridge before he was shot dead (pictured, November 29, 2019) Khan killed Jack Merritt (left), 25, of Cambridgeshire, and Saskia Jones (right), 23, of Stratford Following his release in January 2020, Amman was 'under active counter-terrorism surveillance'. The attacker was 'considered to pose a serious risk, and was well known to the counter-terror authorities, he was also the subject of a live investigation', according to The Guardian. After the Streatham stabbing in February, the Government said legislation would be brought forward to prevent the automatic early release of convicted terrorists. The Terrorist Offenders (Restriction of Early Release) Bill 2020 was introduced on February 11, and had cleared all stages without a Commons vote on February 12. It became an Act of Parliament on February 26. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 18:08:21|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government has mulled allocating an additional quota of 1 trillion yuan (about 141.52 billion U.S. dollars) in advance for the issuance of local government special bonds, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF). The ministry will work to conclude the bond issuance by the end of May in a bid to shore up the economy, MOF official Wang Kebing told a press conference on Monday. The value of new local government bonds issued nationwide had totaled 1.57 trillion yuan as of April 15, accounting for 85 percent of the quota allocated ahead of schedule, Wang said. As of April 15, a total of 1.16 trillion yuan of new special bonds had been issued by local governments, mainly for new and under-construction projects, according to Wang. Infrastructure construction has gathered pace across China as the government ramped up funding to spur investment in the sector, earlier industrial data showed. Enditem Despite the Covid-19 lockdown, the central government is keeping the ball rolling for divestment of its stake in Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL). The Assam government has given a no-objection certificate (NOC) for the sale of 61.65 per cent BPCL stake in Numaligarh Refinery (NRL). The sale of NRL to a state-run entity is seen as a first step towards the divestment process of BPCL. The state has given the NOC to the deal on the condition that another 13.65 per cent stake in NRL will be sold to Assam, increasing its total stake in the project from 12.35 to 26 per cent. ... 25 years ago: Historically low turnout in French presidential election Jacques Chirac On April 23, 1995, the first round of the French presidential election concluded with the lowest-ever voter turnout, demonstrating the vast alienation of the countrys working class from its capitalist political system. Alienation was also demonstrated in the low share of the vote going to the three main candidates. Lionel Jospin, Jacques Chirac, Eduard Balladur together received just 60 percent of the votes. The other 40 percent of voters cast their ballots for parties which had very few deputies in the National Assembly, or none at all. Chirac, the head of the Gaullist RPR (Rassemblement Pour la Republique), overtook Prime Minister Balladur, also of the RPR and the early favorite, to finish second. The French press portrayed the first-place finish by the Socialist Party candidate Jospin as a surprise. In the countrys presidential election seven years earlier, Socialist Party candidate Francois Mitterrand received 10 percent more votes in the first round than Jospin obtained in 1995, though compared to the parliamentary election in 1993 and the European Union elections in 1994, Jospins result showed a certain recovery for the PS. In the runoff two weeks later, however, with Balladur eliminated, Chirac consolidated the vote of the traditional right, winning the presidency by a fairly narrow 53-47 percent margin. The most alarming result of the 1995 election was the advance of the fascists. Combining votes for Jean-Marie Le Pen of the National Front and Philippe de Villiers of the Movement for France, one in five voters who participated in the first round gave their vote to the far right. The National Front was the strongest party among unemployed voters. Approximately one-third of unemployed voted for Le Penmore than the combined vote for the Socialists and the Communist Party. This growth was the product of the betrayals of the Stalinists and social democrats. Since Mitterrands first election 14 years earlier, they supported attacks on the working class and sought to defeat or divert any resistance. On the evening of the election, former Socialist Party Minister of Culture Jack Lang declared that it was entirely natural that many who had voted for Le Pen would go on to support Jospin. 50 years ago: Liberals disband Vietnam Moratorium Committee Vietnam War Protest, New York City The Vietnam Moratorium Committee announced its dissolution of its organization on April 20, 1970, only days after renewed protests against the Vietnam War. Its leaders proclaimed that the project of mobilizing large demonstrations to demand the Nixon administration bring the war to an end had been a failure because there was little prospect of immediate change in the Administrations policy in Vietnam. They called the mass demonstrations of workers and students against the war a political fad that had now passed. The Moratorium Committee had been founded the previous year by David Hawk and Sam Brown, formerly organizers for the failed Democratic Party presidential campaign of Eugene McCarthy and, after McCarthys withdrawal, that of Robert Kennedy. They formed the committee in response to growing popular sentiment against the Vietnam War. The Moratorium Committees aim from the beginning was to limit those opposed to the war to appealing to the Democratic Party, which, under the presidencies of John Kennedy (1961-1963) and Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969), had been primarily responsible for the murderous war in Southeast Asia. In October-November 1969, the Moratorium Committee was able to organize demonstrations against President Richard Nixons escalation of the war that saw numbers of participants reach into the hundreds of thousands. However, the strategy of appealing to the White House and Congress proved fruitless and was increasingly rejected by radicalizing layers of workers and youth. The Moratorium announced it would dissolve in the aftermath of a series of antiwar demonstrations on April 15, 1970. This was the byproduct of an intense political conflict among groups aspiring to lead the antiwar movement, which was actually growing by leaps and bounds, not declining. The Stalinists of the Communist Party USA and the revisionist leaders of the Socialist Workers Party sought to subordinate the antiwar movement to their alliance with the Democratic Party liberals, and deliberately held the April 15 protests as locally dispersed protests rather one or two large-scale mobilizations, in order to diminish their political impact. But the liberals were increasingly focused on the 1970 congressional elections, and regarded the growing antiwar movement as a danger. The Workers League, the Trotskyists in the United States, supporters of the International Committee, who went on to found the Socialist Equality Party, condemned both the capitulation of the liberals to Nixon and the capitulation of the Stalinists and revisionists to the liberals, in an editorial published in the Bulletin, one of the forerunners of the World Socialist Web Site. Citing the demoralized conclusion of the Moratorium leaders, that nothing could be done to advance the struggle against the war, because Nixon said so, the Bulletin editorial declared: This is nothing but a green light to imperialism to continue its wars. This is indeed the perspective of the liberals that the CP and SWP have welcomed so warmly into the antiwar movement, as well as the entire capitalist class. Its interests stand directly opposed to the interests of the workers and peasants in Vietnam and the American working class. The question of struggling against the war in Vietnam is not a matter of choice. Just as Nixon cannot just choose to stop the war, so the struggle against it must go forward. The Workers League is determined to take this fight into the labor movement and among the students despite and against the liberals, with or without their supporters among the revisionists. After folding up the Moratorium Committee, the leaders would continue to find work organizing campaigns of both Republican and Democratic candidates. Immediately after the dissolution of the committee, one of its leaders, Marge Sklencar, would go to work for the Republican Senator Charles E. Goodell. Sam Brown would go on to work in the administrations of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. 75 years ago: Nazi Germany on the brink as Soviet Army enters Berlin Soviet soldiers in Berlin This week in April 1945, it became clear that the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler was being militarily defeated and overthrown, as it suffered a series of catastrophic defeats, and the Soviet offensive against the capital Berlin began. On April 20, Soviet artillery started shelling the suburbs of Berlin, having secured a series of victories over retreating German troops on the approach to the city. The following day, Hitler ordered a final offensive aimed at maintaining control of Berlin, declaring that it must involve the entire remaining military capacity of the Third Reich. The attack was to be led by SS commander Felix Steiner. On April 22, Hitler was told at a military conference he had called in his Berlin bunker that the attack had not been carried out and that divisions of the Soviet army had entered the northern suburbs of the capital. He reportedly declared that this was the result of traitors, and acknowledged for the first time that the German war effort was futile. The dictator declared that he would remain in the capital rather than flee with other Nazi leaders. On April 23, the two Soviet marshals, Georgy Zhukov and Ivan Konev, who had competed to be the first to arrive in Berlin, both marched their armies into the city proper. This was the signal for fierce street fighting and engagements throughout the city. The collapse of Berlins defenses intensified the crisis of the regime, leading Hermann Goring, who had fled the capital, to issue a telegram asking for permission to take leadership of the Third Reich. Hitler responded by demanding his arrest. Over the course of the week, the Nazis lost Nuremberg and a number of other German towns and cities. Fascist forces also suffered major blows in Italy and Eastern Europe. 100 years ago: Poland invades Soviet Ukraine Right-wing nationalists Jozef Pilsudski, left, of Poland, and Symon Petlura of Ukraine during the Polish invasion of the Soviet Union On April 25, 1920, the Polish Army invaded Ukrainian territories that bordered areas under Soviet control and made a push toward the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, which the Poles took on May 6. The nationalist regime of Jozef Pilsudski made an alliance with the exiled Ukrainian leader Symon Petlura, whose anti-Bolshevik Ukrainian Peoples Republic had carried out the worst massacres of Jews in history, until the German invasion of Ukraine in 1941. Pilsudskis immediate aim was to control Polish-speaking parts of Ukraine and to act as a regional overlord to the peoples who inhabited the borderlands with Russia, especially the Ukrainians. The broader geo-strategic goal, however, was to act as a bulwark for the imperialist powers against the Soviet regime. Leon Trotsky, the Soviet Commissar of War noted at the time, By its onslaught upon us the Polish Government has proclaimed that it will not allow the Soviet Ukraine and Soviet Russia to co-exist with bourgeois Poland. Poland had a professional army of approximately 750,000 troops, many of whose officers had served in the German, Austro-Hungarian, and Tsarist armies during the First World War. The Polish advance took by surprise the young Soviet Republic, which had eliminated most of the counterrevolutionary White armies by the spring of 1920. The Red Army initially retreated to avoid being trapped by the Polish forces, but the Soviet counter-offensive was well-coordinated and thorough. By June 12, Kiev was retaken by the Soviets and the Poles were driven back by the brilliant Russian commander, Mikhail Tukhachevsky (later to be murdered along with other leaders of the Red Army by Stalin after a secret trial in 1937). Tukhachevsky chased the Poles 400 miles to the Vistula River in six weeks. The thoughts and feelings of Red Army soldiers and officers as well as the social contradictions of the Red Army in this campaign were the subject of one of the monuments of world literature, Isaac Babels book of short stories, Red Cavalry. PITTSBURGH, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- While innovations in tool manufacturing continue to reduce the amount of manual labor required for general repair and maintenance, accessing those tools can be a challenge in dimly lit work areas. Fortunately, an inventor from Hamilton, N.J., has found a way to solve that problem. He developed TOOL BAG LIGHT to provide better visibility for organizing and finding tools inside toolboxes and tool bags in low lighting or darkness. As such, it saves time and effort searching for needed items, improving both productivity and customer service. Furthermore, this versatile accessory can accommodate a variety of tool carriers. Other appealing features are efficiency, durability, practicality and ease of use. Users will also appreciate its convenience, effectiveness and affordable price. In addition, its simple design minimizes production costs. The inventor's experience working in the military and on the job inspired the idea. "As a building mechanic for over 20 years coupled with 22 years of military maintenance experience," he said "I often had to work in poorly lighted areas where it was difficult to find the tools I needed in my tool bag." The original design was submitted to the New Jersey sales office of InventHelp. It is currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers. For more information, write Dept. 18-NJD-1897, InventHelp, 217 Ninth Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, or call (412) 288-1300 ext. 1368. Learn more about InventHelp's Invention Submission Services at http://www.InventHelp.com. SOURCE InventHelp Related Links http://www.inventhelp.com Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Monday that Maryland has purchased 500,000 tests from South Korea, saying the Trump administration "made it clear over and over again" that states "have to go out and do it ourselves." Testing shortages have stymied the pandemic response across the country, sparking friction between the White House and governors. Over the weekend, Hogan, a Republican, disputed President Donald Trump's assertion that states already had enough tests, calling the White House messaging "just absolutely false." The president struck back during his televised briefing on Monday, saying Hogan "didn't understand" his state's testing capacity, despite efforts by the federal government to provide lists of labs where additional testing could be done. Hogan, asked about that issue, had told reporters that most of the Maryland labs identified by the White House were at federal installations such as the National Institutes of Health and Fort Detrick, and some had not been helpful in assisting with testing. "We already knew where all of the labs were," Hogan said. "We've been pushing to get NIH to help us with testing for more than a month now." He later tweeted: "I'm grateful to President Trump for sending us a list of federal labs and generously offering Maryland use of them for #COVID19 testing. Accessing these federal labs will be critical for utilizing the 500,000 tests we have acquired from South Korea." The $9 million shipment is equivalent to one test for about every 12 Marylanders - a major step toward meeting the state's goal of testing 10,000 a day, Hogan said. As of Monday morning, public and private labs in Maryland had administered 71,397 coronavirus tests. The governor said he wants to double Maryland's daily testing goal to 20,000 and cautioned that the state needs other supplies, such as swabs and reagents. District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser and Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, both Democrats, have also cited broader testing as an important milestone to reach before they and Hogan can consider a coordinated easing of restrictions in the greater Washington region, where the reported coronavirus caseload climbed past 25,000 on Monday. Fatalities in D.C., Maryland and Virginia nearly reached the 1,000 mark. Maryland's deal with South Korea began nearly a month ago, with a Saturday night phone call by Hogan and his wife, Yumi, in the first lady's native tongue. Hogan asked his wife, who was born in rural South Korea, to join him on the line with Lee Soo Hyuck, the Republic of Korea's ambassador to the United States. The couple had visited the ambassador's home in Washington with other governors a few weeks earlier. President Moon Jae-in phoned in via videoconference to say how proud Korea was of Yumi - believed to be the first Korean American first lady in U.S. history. "We made a personal plea, in Korean, asking for their assistance," the governor recalled Monday. "That call set in motion 22 straight days of vetting, testing, negotiations, and protocols between our scientists and doctors, eight Maryland state government agencies and our counterparts in Korea." He said negotiations took place almost nightly, and "sometimes, it seemed like all night." While the chartered Korean Air flight was en route to Baltimore-Washington International Marshall Airport, the state was busy securing last-minute approvals from federal agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, Hogan said. The governor said he was worried the federal government would seize the tests but declined to say the steps he took to make sure that didn't happen. Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden cited Maryland's purchase in a statement about the Trump administration's response to the pandemic, which he called "so slow, and so ineffective, that the Governor of Maryland- a Republican - had to turn to South Korea to get badly-needed tests." In Virginia on Monday, Northam announced he has formed a task force that "will work to increase testing volume and timeliness, to decrease backlogs and keep up with demand." While the state still lacks swabs, chemical reagents and other crucial elements, Northam said state labs, private health systems and colleges and universities have marshaled enough resources to begin creating a systematic approach to testing that will help officials better understand the spread of the disease. Northam said Vice President Mike Pence, in a Monday call with governors, offered federal assistance in testing at nursing homes and other institutions serving the vulnerable. But the governor also complained that the federal government has not followed through on its responsibility to help states get access to supplies. "That was the conversation that we had with the vice president today," Northam said. "I think they understand that, and are working on not only manufacturing more of those swabs but also in dispersing and directing those to states that need it the most." In the District, officials have started deploying rapid coronavirus testing equipment at institutions serving the vulnerable. City officials say their public health lab has the capacity to test up to 500 a day but does not get that many requests. They are encouraging anyone with symptoms to seek tests - not just those in high-risk groups. Officials said the city is also watching for declines in reports of flu-like illnesses, in addition to lab-confirmed coronavirus cases, and monitoring the availability of personal protective equipment for health professionals, as it weighs whether and when to lift restrictions. Under current orders, nonessential businesses will remain closed at least until May 15 in the District, May 10 in Maryland and May 8 in Virginia, where a stay-at-home order is in place until June 10. Maryland late last week extended school closures at least through May 15, while the District and Virginia have closed schools through the end of the academic year. Officials also are monitoring the number of people hospitalized to gauge the progress of the pandemic. Virginia reported 600 new hospitalizations over the past week, while Maryland reported about 1,000. Neither state showed significant declines in the number of daily admissions. More than 400 people were hospitalized with covid-19, the disease the virus causes, in the District as of Monday, with 120 in intensive care units and 59 requiring ventilators. That's an increase from 295 hospitalized as of last Monday, with 94 in intensive care and 31 requiring hospitalizations. Officials say D.C. hospitals are running at about 70% capacity and have not needed the extra hospital beds originally projected to be needed in mid-April. The city is turning its downtown convention center into a care facility for patients with mild covid-19 symptoms. By early May, the center should be able to treat up to 500, officials said. The District, Maryland and Virginia on Monday reported a total of 66 new covid-19 fatalities and more than 1,400 positive test results received. Those results generally reflect tests taken a week ago or more, and infections contracted a week or more before that. The three jurisdictions have reported roughly 60 to 70 deaths daily for the past five days. The District added 134 covid-19 cases and nine new fatalities, pushing the city's death toll to 105. Maryland added 855 new cases, its highest single-day increase in two weeks. More than a quarter of the cases are located in Prince George's County, which leads the state in both infections and deaths. The county added seven deaths, bringing its total fatalities to 112. Neighboring Montgomery County reported 140 new cases and 10 new deaths. In Virginia, there were 453 new infections, nearly half located in the D.C. suburbs. The Fairfax health district, which encompasses Fairfax County, Fairfax City and Falls Church, reported 150 new cases, while Prince William County and Alexandria City added 59 and 38 cases, respectively. There were also 23 new deaths recorded in Virginia, including 11 in Fairfax. While the District has largely avoided protests against social distancing measures, both Annapolis and Richmond have seen small pockets of resistance. A demonstration in Annapolis on Monday attracted fewer people than media inquiries, according to state officials, after a somewhat larger demonstration last week. Maryland legislative leaders announced Monday they would not reconvene in May, weeks after ending their session early for the first time since the Civil War. They cited the danger of covid-19 but did not rule out returning for a special session later this year if necessary. The Republican Party of Virginia, meanwhile, echoed Trump's recent criticism of Virginia's shutdown, in an email that also called for Virginians to "liberate" themselves. The party urged reporters attending Northam's news briefing to "consider asking him if shutting down Virginia is actually for our health." The jabs drew criticism from Northam, who said Republicans - including at the federal level - are sending "mixed messages." On the one hand, the governor said, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is guiding states to look for 14 days of declining infections before reopening. "And two days later we see tweets that say to liberate Virginia," Northam said. "What this has done is, I guess, entitled folks to have protests, not only in Virginia but in other states." "I am just as anxious as anybody else out there to relieve these restrictions," Northam said. "I really don't need people protesting to encourage me to open up our economy any sooner than we can do safely and responsibly." - - - Schneider reported from Richmond. The Washington Post's Rebecca Tan, Laura Vozzella in Richmond and Ovetta Wiggins contributed to this report. ATLANTA - Scrambling to address voting concerns during a pandemic, election officials across the country are eliminating polling places or scaling back opportunities for people to cast ballots in person a move raising concerns among voting rights groups and some Democrats who say some voters could be disenfranchised. In Nevada, election officials will open only one polling place per county for its June primary. In Florida, county officials warn they may have to consolidate polling places across the state. In Ohios primary next week, only the disabled and the homeless will be allowed to vote in person. The closures come as many state officials are encouraging voters to vote by mail and expanding opportunities to do so. Many election officials and health experts see mail-in and absentee voting as the best way to keep voters from spreading the coronavirus and to address a shortage of poll workers who are able to work without risking their health. But advocates say some states are moving so quickly to embrace the shift to mail that they are not doing enough to accommodate certain voters, including the disabled, people who lack regular mail service, groups with little history of absentee voting or those who are simply unable to keep up with last-minute election changes and mail-in deadlines. Not everyone can or should vote by mail, said Stacey Abrams, a former Democratic candidate for Georgia governor who now runs Fair Fight Action, a voting rights group. The concerns over polling places largely have been overlooked in the fight over voting rights, which has so far centred on partisan disputes over mail-in and absentee voting. Democrats and voting rights groups have filed lawsuits seeking to expand mail and absentee voting options and pushed for an extra $2 billion to help states adjust their election systems. National Republicans are fighting those efforts, while President Donald Trump claims without evidence that mail-in voting is vulnerable to fraud. But the challenge of securing in-person voting may prove just as contentious and just as likely to curb voter participation in the upcoming primaries, which are largely viewed as a dry run for November. In the chaotic recent Wisconsin election, where voters waited for hours to cast ballots, one expert estimated that the closure of polling sites in Milwaukee and other cities may have kept as many as 100,000 people from casting ballots. Last week, Democrats sued Nevadas top election official, a Republican, for limiting each county to a single polling location during the states June 9 primary, alleging that will channel 87 per cent of the states voters into only two locations. Democrats, who count on big turnout at the polls in the populous county that contains Las Vegas, sought changes to make mail voting simpler in a state where the overwhelming majority normally vote in person. A conflict is also brewing in swing state Florida, where the nonpartisan county election co-ordinators have asked Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to loosen rules on early voting and allow consolidation of precinct polling stations for elections in August and November. Democrats fear polling places may close in Palm Beach and Broward counties, two dense areas that are their bases. But the rush to eliminate in-person voting can be bipartisan. Democrats party-run primary in Wyoming was conducted exclusively by mail, as was its one in Alaska. Party officials said they took steps like allowing same-day registration that help compensate for lack of in-person options. Kansas Democrats agreed to eliminate polling places for their May primary. Party chairwoman Vicki Hiatt said in-person voting sites were going to be too risky. Ohio, Hawaii, Idaho and New Jersey are also sharply limiting or abolishing in-person voting . Advocates acknowledge election officials are in a difficult position and support an increase in vote by mail for those who want it. But in-person voting, they say, provides an important fail-safe in the event of errors or mail delivery issues. According to a report from the liberal Center for American Progress and the NAACP, African-Americans are particularly reliant on in-person voting. In 2018, only 11 per cent cast a ballot by mail less than half the rate of whites and Latinos. There are going to be people who are going to be disenfranchised by moving entirely to a vote-by-mail system, warned Center for American Progress Danielle Root. Ohios April 28 primary eliminates in-person voting for all but those with disabilities or those without a home address. Anyone who fails to request an absentee ballot before the deadline or whose absentee ballot doesnt arrive in time would not be able to vote in person. That may include Katie Brickner, 39, who lives in a Cleveland suburb. Her absentee ballot application was returned to her last week as undeliverable after water somehow damaged the front of the envelope after she dropped it off with the post office. She immediately mailed another but is worried after hearing reports that its taking a few weeks for applications to be processed. I will have no voice in the election and its really important to me this year, she said. In Maryland, state election officials were poised to cancel in-person voting but decided to keep at least one polling place open in each of the states 24 counties after voting rights groups raised concerns. In Idaho, state election officials said it simply was not safe for voters, election workers or the larger community to hold in-person voting for the May 19 primary. The state is mailing absentee ballot applications to voters who havent requested one and has partnered with local grocery stores who will be providing stamps for those who need them. Still, the decision to eliminate in-person voting could pose a barrier for some tribal members. One county reported the number of absentee ballot requests coming from the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in southeastern Idaho as critically low, said to RandyL Teton, tribal spokeswoman. Teton worries that requesting an absentee ballot may pose a challenge for those used to voting in person. Were going to need to explain this or delegate a family member that can help their grandma or grandpa on how to get through this, Teton said. ___ Associated Press writer Bobby Caina Calvan in Tallahassee, Fla., contributed to this report. Days before the Covid-19 partial lockdown was declared in Ghana, I have been quite restless over the weeks, a nation in distress, panic and pensive mood. My organization had just sent a red-flag message to us to go home, being a proactive organization, it will be in the best interest of management to let all staff work from home as we see danger looms. Accra became choked all of a sudden and I felt Christmas in an atmosphere of uncertainty, such magnitude of heads both young and old only appears prior to a major festive season with a mad rush for anything in the market that is what the Ghanaian spirit is known for, indeed we are not in ordinary times. The elites and the middle class in Ghana had already mobilized their voices on all social media platforms calling for a lockdown. The radio and television stations, as usual, brought in the force of the microphone to mount pressure on the government to lock down the country. The debate was that simple and straight forward, global trends are in favour of a total lockdown as the most effective alternative left to fight a pandemic killing thousands of people. Our elders will say: if you see your neighbour's house burning you better prepare for yours. The more staggering truth is a collapsing health system behind our chicken coop which is already weak and can't be relied on in such trying times. Some had debated the President had been slow in locking down our air, sea and land space. The pundits were expecting a lockdown a month or weeks before the president mounted his authoritative dais and had already blamed the leader and questioned his competence and leadership assertiveness. Corona Virus was in town, this supreme creation of mankind started its journey somewhere in November 2019 from a competing global giant China. Some theorists propound that this virus was created to distort a World's System largely controlled by the ideals of Capitalism and to shake the foundation of the concepts of globalization. COVID19 started to spread like wildfire and exhibited a potential threat of eroding lives within days. The World Health Organization, WHO declared COVID19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 with some criticizing the Organization for their late response towards the pandemic. Are they to be blamed? Haven't they adequately signalled and raised the red-flag to all sovereign States to prepare for the worse and to show solidarity as the pandemic surges? Our elders say, the stick of truth may be overstretched but truth will eventually prevail. We cannot overlook the fact that Africa was asleep and had always been sleeping. A wise man once admonished me that: When the roots of a tree begin to decay, it spreads death to the branches, indeed that had been our situation, when those who feed us with their loans and goodies were experiencing the devastating situation of COVID19 we forgot that in no time this will spread to us. We had the belief that God loved us the most and as such His compassion wouldn't allow this virus to plague us. The ideologists of black power espoused how metallic the African blood and genetic systems were to be affected or induced by this man-made virus from the Western World. There came the philosophers of the sun who believed the gods of the sun and heat will fight this virus and battle for us. Afterall, we have world proclaimed Bishops, Prophets and Pastors who can predict which Presidential Candidate wins an election and can as well, see through their prophetic diadems to declare the number of celebrities or politicians to die. At the other side of the story is the voice of the voiceless, those who by virtue of birth have been neglected on the streets, the homeless, the hawkers, the disabled and the head potters, the young hardworking lass we call Kayaye; I see through their eyes and heart and I sense their agony, the feeling of uncertainty and insecurity. Were they cursed at birth? Or they are just victims of bad governance, corruption, greedy political and economic system? When the middle class and the elites were crying for a lockdown they forgot them, they egotistically, forgot the fact that more than 60% of our population are poor and cannot afford a dignified life, a situation borne out of a country that has over the years failed to put in place a social protection support system for its own citizens crinkled by circumstances of socialization and cultural failure. The street is their home and a place of solace, that is where they make their living, so if you say a country should be under a lockdown it beacons on leadership to find lasting solutions on how they can be protected and treated with some dignity, sharing food to them on the streets and giving them cash-outs shouldn't be the only approach, there must be a social protection strategy during and after the COVID19 pandemic. At this point, may I put on my Development Communication spectacle to analyze the communication and information strategy of those at the frontline battling this pandemic. I can only presume we have a strategy in place and based on that premise better placed to ask if this strategy is working. In this lockdown, we have seen how people have ignored the directives of the President, some to the extent of going to the beach to have epic ecstasy. We have seen how people are defying social distancing to the point of conducting marriage and funeral ceremonies, we still see in times like this vehicle moving around and our markets choked and full to the brim. I was not surprised as I drove in town last week to buy some glossaries, at the point of being served one of the attendants said she was surprised why people were scared about the coronavirus, according to her the virus is only attracted to the rich in society and not to the poor. This misinformation and lack of education persist irrespective of government claims of doing a lot of education on the ground. In my observation, though the Ministry of Information is doing well in their information flow, it suffices to point out that communication goes beyond information dissemination through mass media and press conferences. There must be a shift from the usual methods of information flow to a more comprehensive strategy under the concept of communication for development. This concept of communication is a systematic, planned and evidence-based strategic process aimed at promoting positive and measurable behaviour and social change. This strategy uses Behavioral Change Communication to culminate Information, Education and Communication outcomes. Knowing that majority of Ghanaians are in rural communities, it is imperative for the government to activate community engagements, social mobilization to reach out to our folks in the rural communities. It is also imperative to reach out to the opinion leaders such as traditional rulers and public figures in the various communities to take charge of educating their people on the pandemic. This approach will help to decentralized communication and the messages into the language of the people for effective education. Above all, adopting a participatory approach of communication and community dialogue where all stakeholders are given key roles to play in the messaging and communication process will ensure trust of ownership in the message and can culminate behavioural and social change a key factor needed in fighting the COVID19. As we all muse over this pandemic and this trying moment, I encourage all of us to keep practising the preventive measures and the directives given in fighting this virus. Keep washing your hands with soap under running water. Let us keep showing compassion to the poor and exhibit solidarity to win this fight against the deadly Coronavirus. A teenage boy who murdered 20-year-old college student Cameron Blair by plunging a knife into his neck outside a house party in Cork city has received a life sentence that will be reviewed in 2032. The teenager, now aged 17, will be detained at Oberstown Children Detention Campus until he turns 18 next month when he will be moved to an adult prison. Passing sentence at the Central Criminal Court today, Mr Justice Paul McDermott said that "the deliberate recourse to knives by young men must be deterred and the public must be protected". He said Cameron's life was taken in an act of extreme violence which was clearly deliberate and unanticipated by him. He described the killing of Cameron as "shocking" and "awful" and pointed out that the defendant knew that the student was "not a threat" before he "viciously murdered" him. Referring to Cameron, the judge emphasised that he was a decent and hard-working young man that was held in high regard. He had also demonstrated friendliness and decency in his dealings with others on the night, he said. The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, pleaded guilty last month to murdering Cameron Blair on Bandon Road in Co. Cork on January 16, 2020. Cameron's parents Kathy and Noel Blair and younger brother Alan were supported in the courtroom today by several other extended family members. Mr Justice McDermott addressed the Blair family a number of times, saying on one occasion that the defendant's release from prison in the future may be of little comfort to them for the taking of Cameron's life and his guilty plea may appear to be inadequate for such a dreadful crime. However, it reflected the underlying sentencing laws and principles, he explained. Cameron was a native of Ballinascarthy in west Cork and a second-year chemical engineering student at Cork Institute of Technology (CIT). He died at Cork University Hospital (CUH) on January 16 after being stabbed in the neck while attending a student party at a house in Cork city. At a sentence hearing earlier this month, the court heard that Cameron had told his friend: "Don't worry lads, I don't want to be fighting" moments after the defendant stabbed him with the knife into his neck. The student, who was acting as a peacemaker outside the house party in Cork city, was not aware that he had been stabbed. The court was told that Cameron had "extended the hand of friendship" to his murderer earlier in the night when he suggested the teenager and his two friends be allowed come into the party. Cameron had told them they were "sound", the hearing was told. Cameron had also acted as a "good Samaritan" on the night when he brought a drunk homeless man into the house because he was concerned about him. In a letter of apology to the Blair family, the 17-year-old boy wrote that he was "deeply remorseful" for what he had done saying: "Cameron was nothing but nice to me on the night and did nothing wrong to me. It was never ever my intention for any of this to happen." The court heard that the defendant and his two friends had developed a paranoia as to whether somebody else had a knife at the party. The 17-year-old had "tapped" the kitchen knife on the back of his leg a number of times before he lunged forward in a downward motion and stabbed the student in the neck. Before delivering the sentence today, Mr Justice McDermott noted that the teenager had the intention to kill or cause serious injury to Cameron and there was no evidence of self-defence, which raised his culpability to a much higher level. "The dreadful reality is that the life of Cameron was taken in an act of extreme violence," he said. Mr Justice McDermott said the teenager was fast approaching his 18th birthday and pointed out that if he had taken a trial date it would not have concluded before this. He was not a very young child when he committed the murder and was in a later stage of development, he continued. Furthermore, there was nothing to suggest the teenager suffered from a mental disorder and he understood the nature and consequences of what he did when he stabbed Cameron, he said. Referring to the victim impact statements given by the Blair family, the judge said they were given with enormous dignity and restraint. He said that Cameron's participation in life transcended this awful crime and he was a decent and hard-working young man who was held in high regard. "It is the loss of his valuable life and his social, sporting and working life that is central to this," he added. Furthermore, Mr Justice McDermott said Cameron had demonstrated friendliness and decency in his dealings with others on the night. He explained: His family are bereft in this appalling murder and their suffering will be life-long and nothing I do today will relieve that. The defendant had extinguished Cameron's life by viciously murdering him and what happened on the night was simply awful, he said. "Why if the accused and his friends felt unwelcome at the house party did they not simply leave instead of arming themselves with weapons?" asked the judge. Mr Justice McDermott observed that Cameron had tried to calm down the situation and prevent it from escalating. He said it was clear from the evidence that the teenager and his two friends had behaved in a violent and intimidating manner and they could not be pacified. The defendant was waving a knife about on the night and laughing when he knew Cameron was only a short distance away from him, said the judge. The delivery of the fatal blow was "vicious, deliberate and cowardly" and had been unanticipated by the deceased. The aggravating factors in the case included that the teenager was a guest at the party and for no identifiable reason he had armed himself with a kitchen knife, he said. "He and his friends introduced knives into the situation and this was intended to intimidate and frighten those at the door of the house," he said. He knew Cameron was unarmed, he had invited him into the party and was not a threat to him. Another aggravating factor was the fact that the accused had ran away from the scene without getting any assistance for the student and later disposed of the knife and a pair of gloves. He also lied to gardai initially by trying to suggest that he and Cameron had exchanged punches, said the judge. The court heard that among the mitigating factors were the teenager's guilty plea which saved the Blair family the enormous burden of sitting through a trial, his age and the sorrow he had expressed. The judge said a probation report had been made available to the court in which the defendant said that he had produced the knife as he thought it would scare the deceased. Mr Justice McDermott then sentenced the teenager to detention for life with a review in November 2032 but said he must serve a minimum of 13 years. "The aggravating features require that this review only occur after a substantial period in custody," he said. The judge also emphasised that "the deliberate recourse to knives by young men must be deterred and the public must be protected". Furthermore, he said the teenager's release must be "very carefully considered and supervised". The defendant's earliest release date is January 24, 2033, and this will depend on how he responds in custody and the progress he makes in terms of his alcohol issues and his aggression, said the judge. He directed the preparation of detailed reports during his period of custody with the first report to be submitted in October this year and then one every three years up to the review in 2032. In summary, the judge said it was inevitable that the teenager would be transferred to an adult prison within a relatively short time of being sentenced. The sentence was backdated to January 24, 2020. As COVID-19 takes hold, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are going into lockdown mode to contain the outbreak. As businesses, factories and industries shut down, millions of migrant workers from South Asian countries such as Pakistan, India and Bangladesh have been laid off. Facing a drastic slump in oil prices during the pandemic, Gulf economies have slowed down and expatriate workers may have become an encumbrance. According to the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) projections, except for Egypt and Djibouti, gross domestic product for every country across the Middle East and North Africa region will shrink this year, ranging from negative 1.1% growth for Kuwait to negative 12% for Lebanon to minus 58.7% for Libya. Over the decades, the contribution of South Asian workers has been a major factor in the Gulfs rise and economic success. Making up nearly one-third of the population in Saudi Arabia, and half the population in countries such as Bahrain and Oman, overall there are around 23 million migrant workers in the Gulf at least, until recently. As this workforce decreases, Arab states will have to fill in the employment gap with their local populations. Around 10 million foreign workers have helped construct hotels, malls, sports arenas and airports. They continue to maintain and modernize all this infrastructure for the six GCC countries. Mainly employed in service-based fields such as transportation, health care, hospitality and construction, the South Asians have had a large presence. Nowadays many of them are badly stuck. Some are unable to return home due to travel restrictions and to make matters worse, once they lose their jobs, they also lose their immigration status. Homebound with no pay, those in white-collar jobs face an uncertain future, but it is even worse for the laborers who live in stifling conditions. Some workers remain employed in essential sectors such as construction and energy, and as the number of COVID-19 cases rises in the Arab states, the ones at work have the highest risk of exposure to the coronavirus. This sudden shift is expected to have a long-term impact on the Gulf states and the major South Asian countries. First, there are significant economic setbacks. With so many expats going jobless, most South Asian economies will lose a crucial income source. Meanwhile, the World Bank projects that South Asian countries will most likely record their worst growth in four decades in the wake of this pandemic. Because of lockdowns, the entire region could experience an economic contraction this year, and it could not come at a worse time. Likewise, any decrease in oil and gas demand in these largest South Asian economies directly affects the Middle Eastern energy industry. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are all following similar containment strategies, implementing the worlds largest lockdown on their massive populations and contributing mightily to the drastic drop in energy demand. George Naufal, co-author of Expats and the Labor Force: The Story of the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries, told Bloomberg news that the total amount of money sent home by these migrant workers could be twice as high as the official number of $70 billion to $75 billion annually. Second, the delay in repatriating South Asian workers has created tension as the United Arab Emirates announced it would review labor ties with countries refusing to repatriate their citizens. Apparently, the Indian and Pakistani envoys to Abu Dhabi would not agree to take their citizens back immediately, saying they needed time to prepare for quarantines and treatment. Also, because of the outbreak, there are fewer flights to take migrant workers home. Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari, special assistant to the Pakistani prime minister, told Reuters, Were aware of all of those who have been laid off and their plight. Were just waiting to create the right mechanism so that we dont overburden the system of taking people in here. Delay was unavoidable. In fact, the chief minister of Kerala province in India has been trying to get thousands of Indian workers repatriated from the UAE since he received complaints about inadequate arrangements at quarantine facilities. Out of the 3 million Indian migrants working in the UAE, around 1 million are from Kerala. Meanwhile, Bangladeshi Minister for Expatriate Welfare Imran Ahmed Dhaka was planning to alleviate the hardship of his countrys stranded citizens by sending money to foreign missions so that migrants can be taken care of." Third, repatriated workers may struggle to find jobs in their home countries, as there are many unemployed workers there as well. According to the International Labor Organization, a UN agency, this health emergency could leave nearly 25 million people unemployed. Returnees used to a good standard of living and minimal income tax might find it difficult to adjust. Getting jobs when most economic sectors are affected by lockdowns will be an uphill task. For example, the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown have plunged Pakistan into an economic crisis. Businesses are closed and around 3.78 million local migrants employed in major urban centers in the country could be laid off. According to a report by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics in Islamabad, With the calls for social distancing and lockdown, the COVID-19 outbreak has shut down business operations across the country. As projected, millions of people are facing potential layoffs, but the situation is doubly bad for the internal migrant workers who are staying away from [their] homes to earn a livelihood. Fourth, even though the World Bank has suggested that unemployed migrant workers should be supported monetarily, that doesnt seem likely to happen. Mustafa Qadri, director of the labor rights organization Equidem, told the international business publication Quartz, Historically, when companies are facing financial trouble in the Gulf, they tend not to pay workers. During this pandemic, companies know there will be no consequences or punishment if they delay wages or dont pay workers. However, private sector employees may fare better. Finally, there is the spread of the virus to be considered. According to the Saudi Ministry of Health, more than half of the COVID-19 cases in the kingdom have been foreigners and migrant workers. The main reason for this could be their living conditions. This matter has been raised by rights groups in the past and the pandemic has made matters worse as the workers are being housed in unsanitary dorms as they wait to be repatriated. Therefore, the coronavirus will probably be on the rise as these workers return home. Right now, the pandemic has not peaked in GCC states and South Asia. Lockdowns in those regions could remain in place for a long time yet, causing instability, displacement and a loss of revenue at the very least. F rance faces a brutal economic crisis and will have to learn to live with the virus after the coronavirus lockdown ends, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has warned. As Europes death toll passed the 100,000 mark, Edouard Philippe said the threat posed by Covid-19 in France was receding slowly but surely. The daily tally of lives lost fell to its lowest level in three weeks yesterday. But in a televised address he warned of lasting changes and severe economic damage even after the countrys lockdown ends next month. Our life after May 11 will not be the same as before... and probably not for a long time, he said. Mr Philippe added the economic hit from the virus and accompanying restrictions would be brutal and had only just begun. He said he would soon be setting out a detailed containment plan. He also disclosed that people will probably be told to wear masks on public transport and those who could work from home would be advised to continue doing so. He added that no one should be planning summer holidays far away. Riots broke out in the Paris suburb of Villeneuve-la-Garenne last night, in a possible sign of lockdown tensions. Police fired tear gas while fireworks were set off by protesters after a man was critically injured in a collision involving a police car. Europes death toll rose beyond 100,000, according to Johns Hopkins University in the US, with more than one million cases now confirmed around the continent. But with fatality and infection rates slowing in some of the worst-affected countries, several European nations including Germany, Norway, the Czech Republic and Austria were easing their lockdowns today. In Germany, small shops ranging from florists to fashion outlets were allowed to reopen this morning, while older pupils returned to school. Elsewhere, creches reopened in Norway while the public was allowed back into forests and parks in Poland. Open air markets in the Czech Republic were also opening for the first time since going into lockdown. Loading.... Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Kemp's actions line up pretty clearly with the phase one of reopening seen in the guidelines issued last week by President Donald Trump's administration. Those guidelines call for 14 days of declining COVID-19 cases. Georgia on Monday had six days of declines. If that continued through Friday, it would be 10 days. Kemp said he delayed the reopening of sit-down service in restaurants and theaters until next Monday in part because, I also think that gives us more time to continue to flatten the curve. After 12 years at Hayes and Ashbury streets, boutique yoga studio Bend Yoga (1935 Hayes St.) is closing shop permanently. In an email to clients, owner Heather Charmatz cited the ongoing closure of the studio, due to the COVID-19 shelter-in-place order, as the reason for its demise. "The little money the studio makes has never been substantial, and while that hasnt mattered in past years, its a deal-breaker now," Charmatz wrote in an email to clients. Even if the shelter-in-place lifts, she noted that it "would be incredibly hard to stay afloat," with both teachers and students wary of attending in-person classes given the risk of viral transmission. Photo: Heather C./Yelp As evidence, Charmatz cited a self-conducted study of 477 of the studio's clients over email. A third of them said that they wouldn't be comfortable coming back to the yoga studio within three to six months, while about 30% wouldn't return for more than six months. Even for those who would attend, Charmatz noted that class sizes would have to be reduced in order to keep students six feet apart, further decreasing revenue. Disinfecting everything between classes and insuring herself against liability would significantly raise costs as well. Student survey by Bend Yoga. | Image: Screenshot During its closure, Bend's instructors have still been offering classes online through Zoom, though Charmatz said the revenue isn't enough to keep the studio going. Nonetheless, "my hope is to keep the online classes going for another month or two," Charmatz wrote, adding that she might be offering them longer if theres interest and need. Photo: Heather C./Yelp Charmatz also noted that she hasn't lost hope that Bend will be reborn at some point in the future, "when things shift to a better place in maybe 12 to 18 months," she wrote. "[I'm] holding onto hope we can return to the space someday, but will have to see how things play out in time," she told Hoodline. For now, she sends a "huge shoutout to the teachers supporting our community with Zoom classes," adding that "its been an amazing 12 years and Im so grateful for this community." Goa and Kerala: Fishermen crossing into Karnataka waters, violating ban' April 20,2020 | Source: Daiji World There is ban on deep sea fishing in Karnataka due to the coronavirus pandemic lockdown. However, it has come to light that fishermen from Goa are engaging in deep sea fishing in the northern territorial waters of Karnataka. In addition, it has been alleged that fishermen from Kerala have also been fishing on the southern territorial water area of Karnataka. The fishermen of Karnataka are questioning the administration whether the acts of Goa and Kerala fishermen amount to violation of lockdown rules or not. In Karnataka, only traditional fishing is allowed as of now. However, fishermen from Goa are carrying out light fishing in areas of Gangolli in the taluk for the four or five days during the night, it is alleged. It is also learnt that from the south, fishermen of Kerala are also violating the territorial water boundary and entering the waters of Karnataka. Mohan Karwar, president of Karwar Purse Seine fishermen's association says, "Deep sea fishing is allowed in the state of Goa. I have information about Goa fishermen carrying out banned light fishing in the territorial waters of Karnataka for the past four or five days." Ramesh Kundar, president of Gangolli Purse Seine fishermen's cooperative society questioned the authority saying, "We are aware that the fishermen from Goa and Kerala are entering into territorial waters of Karnataka. Do they not have the restriction that is put on us?" Responding to the issue, R Chethan, SP, Udupi district coastal protection police force said, "We do not have any information of fishermen from Goa and Kerala carrying out fishing in waters of Karnataka. If our fishermen or any other person has information in this regard, they can pass on the same to us. We will investigate the matter. We have nine coastal protection force police stations at Mangaluru, Hejamadi, Malpe, Gangolli, Bhatkal, Honnavar, Kumta, Belekeri and Karwar in the three districts of Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada. Patrolling is carried out everyday in all the places." Checkposts have been opened at inter-district and inter-state borders. People are allowed only if it is really needed, he said. President Donald Trump is fighting back against the public health and economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic in the same way hes navigated other political perils by stoking the nations partisan divide. But the scale of the crisis the US is facing more than 39,000 people dead and tens of millions out of work is bigger than anything Mr Trump has faced. Even some Republican strategists doubt that his standard campaign playbook will work in November. With the rally around the flag effect waning and his poll numbers down, the president abandoned a pretence of bipartisanship on Friday by tweeting that his supporters should liberate Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia three states with Democratic governors and strict stay-at-home orders. Protests in Michigan, whose governor, Gretchen Whitmer, is a possible running mate for Democrat Joe Biden, have been organised by a Trump campaign surrogate. The pivot came just a day after Trump himself outlined a methodical return-to-work policy contingent on states meeting specific benchmarks on testing and Covid-19 cases, and to be determined at state-government level. By egging on the protesters in subtle and not-so-subtle ways on Saturday, Trump referred to social distancing measures taken at US Air Force Academys commencement ceremony as politically correct the president is creating a new flashpoint in Americas culture war. Already the response to the pandemic in the US has split largely along regional and cultural lines, with moderate and liberal governors in the Northeast and on the West Coast taking the earliest and most aggressive steps to flatten the curve of the virus. States with the highest number of cases are blue states, too. Republican governors in the South and West have bristled against the harshest stay-at-home measures, and conservative-leaning critics and media outlets increasingly say government officials have gone too far in telling them how to live their lives. Mr Trumps tweets and off-the-cuff comments show sympathy for protesters whose membership appears to overlap closely with his base even as polling suggests that Mr Trump is misreading the national mood on this issues. I dont know if it will be an effective route for the president to take, to pit himself against any Democratic governor, because at the end of the day the consequences of re-opening the economy too soon will destabilise the strong positioning the president has, said Mattie Duppler, a Republican strategist. Nearly six-in-10 Americans say theyre more concerned that a relaxation of stay-at-home restrictions would leave to more Covid-19 deaths than they are that the measures have gone to far and will hurt the economy, a poll showed on Sunday. Still, responses to the NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll taken April 13-15 fell along predictable partisan lines. Democrats and independents were more worried about the virus than the economy, while Republicans, by 48% to 39 per cent, were more concerned about the economy. Mr Trump has also attacked Mr Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, for his handling of health crises during the Obama administration, and accused the Chinese government of hiding the number of infected citizens all messages that could resonate with his base. On Saturday, Mr Trump, who has already at times used the term Chinese virus, went a step further to embrace a theory put forward by some Republican lawmakers for months, that China may be knowingly responsible for the Covid-19 outbreak and its spread around the globe. If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, yeah, then there should be consequences, the president said at a White House press briefing. Mr Trump and his campaign have been forced to chart a new course for an election thats morphed into a referendum on the presidents management of a national emergency of unprecedented sale. The pandemic, which has sickened more than 700,000 people in the US, has obliterated his best case for re-election the strong economy and decades-low unemployment. Several states crucial to a second Trump term, such as Michigan and Pennsylvania, have seen dramatic spikes in unemployment. Roughly 22 million people have filed for unemployment in the country in the last three weeks alone. Making matters worse for the president, the initial polling bump he received at the outset of the pandemic has evaporated. Almost two-thirds of Americans say Mr Trump was too slow to take major steps to stop the virus when outbreaks were reported in other countries, according to a Pew Research Centre survey. Mr Trumps approval rating in the latest Gallup poll was 43%, down six percentage points from its high point in mid-March when the president first introduced social distancing guidelines. Mr Trumps allies acknowledge the election will be won or lost based on the presidents handling of the pandemic, but argued that he would ultimately prevail if he gradually leads the nation towards a successful re-opening. Ultimately, 2020 is going to be all about the recovery, said Jason Miller, spokesman for Mr Trumps first campaign in 2016. What Trump is going to be judged on is what the recovery looks like; how well we do from our low point until we get to the election in November. And as long as President Trump is able to keep leading us in a positive direction and keep things going, I think hell be rewarded at the ballot box. Mr Trump has hit back at criticism of his virus-response efforts that could damage him politically. He even played a campaign-style video during a White House news conference in response to critical media reports, as the daily briefings, which can stretch beyond two hours, have come to substitute for political rallies. His decision to side with the protesters, even if they are challenging policies his own administration encouraged states to adopt, might help do that. It shows him that theres people who are wanting the economy open, and he can use that as justification for doing it because he sees people who are Trump voters wanting that to happen, said Jennifer Hoewe, a professor of political communication at Purdue University. Mr Trumps political gamble is if he tries to get people back to work, will that then inspire his base to come vote in November, or if he pushes to open too soon and people become sick again that will possibly inspire Democrats to get out and vote. While egging on protesters in Michigan and Minnesota, hes remained silent on Ohio, a battleground state where Republican governor Mike DeWine is facing similar protests against stay-at-home measures. The conservative House Freedom Caucus, which supports Mr Trump, released a letter to the president largely echoing his message minutes after the presidents tweets were published. Some of the measures enacted to combat the virus have wreaked havoc on the American economy, it read. The Tea Party Patriots Action group, which sprung up in opposition to then President Barack Obama, also weighed in, saying that governors in the states Trump urged be liberated are abusing their power. Mr Biden, campaigning from his finished basement in his home in Wilmington, Delaware, has tried to highlight what he sees as Mr Trumps mismanagement. The uncomfortable truth is that this president left America exposed and vulnerable to this pandemic, Mr Biden said in a new digital video released on Friday. He ignored the warnings of health experts and intelligence agencies, and put his trust in Chinas leaders instead. And now were all paying the price. Mr Biden at first tried to avoid politicising the pandemic, urging Mr Trump to adopt his proposals to help the nation and participating in a one-on-one call with the president. Those niceties, however, are disappearing as Mr Biden slams Mr Trumps temper tantrums. The Trump campaign is responding in kind. Mr Trumps campaign spokesman Ken Farnaso said that Mr Bidens big government, socialist policies would create chaos and confusion during the pandemic. In contrast, President Trumps proven record of success ushered in the largest economic renaissance in American history. He did it once and hell do it again in his second term, Mr Farnaso said. Still, the challenge for the Biden campaign remains counter-programming a president who commands the news cycle. Stuck in his new basement studio, Mr Biden is limited in the ways he can sell his message to the American people, and with no policymaking authority theres little he can do to respond to the public health crisis. Therefore, in addition to attacking Mr Trump, the Mr Biden campaign is hoping to emphasise Mr Bidens experience handling crises during his years as vice president, particularly his work overseeing the Recovery Act after the 2008 recession. China's FTC-2000G multirole combat aircraft bags first export contract Global Times By Liu Xuanzun Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 17:52:50 With its first export contract for delivery of the FTC-2000G multirole combat aircraft to an undisclosed Southeast Asian country, Guizhou Aviation Industry Corp can expect a surge in interested customers, aviation experts predicted on Sunday. Local media reports reposted Saturday to the WeChat account of the Guizhou Province-based developer affiliated to the state-owned Aviation Industry Corpof China (AVIC) said the deal was signed in late January, about 15 months after the domestically developed plane's first test flight. The commercial process has been completed and the first batch will be delivered in early 2021, with full delivery expected to finish within two years, the reports said. The reports did not reveal further key details about the deal, such as the cost or the number of aircraft. "It took less than two years for the FTC-2000G from its test to signing its first export contract with a certain Southeast Asian country, which is an unprecedented speed in the history of AVIC's made-for-export warplane development," one report quoted Wang Wenfei, chairman of Guizhou Aviation Industry Corp, as saying. The deal shows the Chinese aircraft convinced the client with its performances, versatility and cost efficiency compared with competitors like the South Korea's T-50, said a Chinese military expert who asked for anonymity on Sunday. It is worth noting that COVID-19 did not hinder the deal, he told the Global Times. Senior military officers from 16 Asian and African countries have visited the Guizhou company to evaluate the FTC-2000G since its maiden flight on September 28, 2018 and its public debut at Airshow China 2018 in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province on November 6, reports said. If the first contract goes smoothly and satisfies the buyer, the product's reputation on the international market will be boosted and likely attract more business opportunities, the expert said. As an independently developed multirole aircraft, the FTC-2000G can serve as an attack aircraft with a large combat radius, strong penetration capability and conduct air-to-ground combat missions like close-in support, air interdiction and in-depth strike. When deployed as a fighter jet, the FTC-2000G has good mobility, situational awareness and high survivability in dogfights, aerial escort and patrol missions. The aircraft can also function as a transonic trainer with high safety and reliability and conduct medium- to advanced-levels of tactical combat training missions, the aircraft's chief designer Hu Jianxing said in the reports. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address However, the Beckhams argued this light would be visible from their own home Under the plans, neighbour wanted to install a light in the roof of his property David Beckham successfully blocked a residents renovations plans, claiming they will spoil the setting of his own home, a 31 million London mansion dubbed 'Beckingham Palace II'. The former England captain, 44, voiced his concerns in an objection submitted to his local council which claims that the plans would spoil the uniqueness of the Beckham family home in Holland Park, west London. Under plans submitted to Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council, Beckham's neighbour Edward Harris intended to reconfigure the interior of his mews property which has just one bedroom, a dressing room, a shower, a garage and an open plan living room and dining area. He also wanted to add new lightwells on the roof to bring in natural light into the property, fit new sliding windows and a new slate roof. An outdoor courtyard and new staircase were also listed in the plans - which were rejected by officials in December. Mr Harris's mews property is located just behind the Beckham's mansion. David Beckham complained that his neighbour's plan would flood light into the Beckham mansion and also spoil the local area in Holland Park, west London. Pictured is the west entrance to Holland Park Mews, where the neighbour's property is located The Beckhams argued that the renovations would spoil the setting of their home, with the neighbouring property just behind the Beckham mansion Under plans submitted to Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council, Beckham's neighbour Edward Harris intended to reconfigure the interior of his mews property (pictured) Shortly after his renovation plans were submitted in October, representatives London Projects Ltd acting on behalf of the Beckham's lodged an objection, citing the plans as being detrimental to their property (pictured) Mr Harris purchased the property for 1.9 million in November 2019, land registry records reveal. But shortly after his renovation plans were submitted in October, representatives London Projects Ltd acting on behalf of the Beckham's lodged an objection. Their letter said: 'My clients have concerns about the damage the proposal would cause to the history of the mews as well as the appearance and potential light spillage from the not insubstantial proposed roof light to the main roof. 'My clients purchased their property because they liked the style and history of the house and the area. 'This application seeks to spoil that with unsympathetic and inappropriate alterations and we would urge you to resist the proposals.' The letter added: 'The introduction of the rather large and protruding roof light to the main roof raises significant concerns for our clients. 'The roof light will be highly visible in views from their property and is likely to light up like a beacon at night.' Mr Harris had wanted to add new lightwells on the roof to bring in natural light into the property, fit new sliding windows and a new slate roof. An outdoor courtyard and new staircase were also planned Mr Harris also wanted to install a skylight at his property - which the Beckham's argued would flood their home with light They continued: 'The proposal to demolish all but the front facade of this listed building would result in substantial harm to the listed building.' Mr Harris' planning agent, Ben Smith Architecture, said: 'We are proposing to reconfigure the ground and first floors with the addition of an external courtyard to the rear, reducing the internal area by 10 sqm. 'The loft space is open, with a reduced area of approximately 20 sqm. The total proposed floor area is approximately 80 per cent of the existing. 'The proposed layout retains the garage and entrance doors and introduces a new staircase and courtyard at the rear. 'The living space upstairs is opened up and the bedroom located on the ground floor.' Mr Harris purchased the property for 1.9 million in November 2019, land registry records reveal Mr Harris' property is at Holland Park Mews, just behind the Beckhams. The council rejected his plans The Beckham's were successful in blocking the extension, after officials ruled against the plans in December. Sue Foster, director of planning and place at Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said: 'The significant loss of the internal arrangement would remove much of the internal floor plan at upper level. 'Furthermore, the loss of the existing roof profile and new roof addition would be detrimental to the original architectural proportions and character of the listed building and will contribute to further piecemeal erosion of the roofscape of the mews houses. 'The special character of the listed building will therefore not be preserved and is contrary to CL4 and CL8 of the Local Plan.' David and Victoria bought their Holland Park home in September 2013 with the grand property dubbed Beckingham Palace II along with an adjacent smaller Mews property. Council officials ruled that, under the plan, 'the special character of the listed building would not be preserved' Shortly after, the multi-millionaire submitted 50 planning applications to renovate their pad and successfully battled one neighbour's objection to installing air conditioning in five rooms. During the building work, the family lived in a rented house on the same road, before finally moving in during summer 2016. The six-bedroom house was built in the mid-19th century, and features six bedrooms, a gym, cinema room, play room and spa room. Meanwhile, a seventh bedroom was converted into a dressing room and beauty room for David and Victoria's extensive wardrobe. The exclusive area has been dubbed a 'millionaire's row' with other famous residents including Elton John and Robbie Williams. It comes after Victoria Beckham was slammed by people on social media for furloughing 30 staff at her struggling fashion label despite her staggering family fortune. Bahrain-based Bank ABC (Arab Banking Corporation BSC) held its annual general shareholders meeting (AGM) virtually on April 19 under the chairmanship of Group chairman Saddek El Kaber. Bahrain-based Bank ABC (Arab Banking Corporation BSC) held its annual general shareholders meeting (AGM) virtually on April 19 under the chairmanship of Group chairman Saddek El Kaber. All resolutions submitted to the vote were adopted by the shareholders. The bank delivered a resilient performance in 2019, despite the challenging market conditions and global slowdown. It recorded a robust 6 per cent growth in headline total operating income, spread across a broad base of its businesses and 4 per cent on an underlying basis. Headline net profits were consequently slightly lower by 4 per cent, but increased by 2 per cent on an underlying basis. The balance sheet remains strong with Tier 1 Capital Ratio at 16.9 per cent, NSFR at 115 per cent and LCR above 300 per cent. The shareholders approved the recommendation of the Board for the appropriation of profits for the financial year ended December 31, 2019; to transfer $19,364,900 to the legal reserve and cash transfer of the remaining balance of $174,284,100 to the retained earnings. The Board withdrew its earlier dividend recommendation proposal to the AGM, as part of the Banks comprehensive action plan in light of the unprecedented and rapidly evolving challenges as a result of Covid-19 outbreak. While the Board recognises the importance of dividends to shareholders, the AGM felt that such a prudent move is sound and necessary to ensure continued balance sheet strength in these times of heightened uncertainty. The AGM also took note that in a bid to safeguard its employees, clients and business, the Bank has been steadfast in enforcing effective measures to minimise the impact of the Covid-19 global outbreak. Although it is early to quantify ultimate financial impact, the Banks funding and capital position is resilient enough to withstand the impact of this crisis, while maintaining the strategic direction with distinct focus on digitization and the transformation of its wholesale bank. Group chairman Saddek El Kaber said: Our platform is strong and can absorb sever stress. We will continue to proactively monitor, respond and prepare to adjust to the headwinds of Covid-19; we have delivered robust results in 2019 and made good progress on our strategic transformation. With the crisis of Covid-19, the wellbeing of our employees and serving the interests of our customers remain front and centre. While the outlook for 2020 is uncertain, we are determined and better prepared than ever to tackle the challenges that lie ahead. TradeArabia News Service A new tool that predicts risk of death and admission to a long-term care facility for patients with dementia may help conversations between health care providers, patients and their families, according to new research in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). The recent tragic outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term care homes highlight the need to have care discussions with residents and their caregivers. "The majority of residents in long-term care homes have been diagnosed with dementia. Our study shows that the survival of many people with dementia is poor. It may be that many would choose care that focuses on comfort care and quality of life should they become acutely ill," says Dr. Peter Tanuseputro, a family physician and researcher with the Bruyere Research Institute, the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and ICES, Ottawa, Ontario. "We have developed a tool that asks simple questions about a person at the time of dementia diagnosis and translates it to the chance of dying and of entering a nursing home over the next 5 years. This information can be used in conversations about what to expect," says Dr. Tanuseputro. "For newly diagnosed dementia patients and their families, personalized information about their trajectory may be helpful to plan for the future, including advance care planning and planning for additional supports." The study used linked data from ICES on more than 108 000 people living in the community in Ontario who were newly diagnosed with dementia from 2010 through 2012. Researchers found that more than half of individuals (55%) died within 5 years -- comparable to many cancers -- and almost half of those who died (28%) lived in institutions. Only 1 in 4 people were still alive and living in the community 5 years after diagnosis. Older age, male sex and presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure and kidney failure at the time of diagnosis of dementia were the most important factors that predicted death and admission to long-term care. The impact of organ failure on prognosis in people with dementia has not been well documented in other studies. The researchers used data from the paper to develop an online dementia calculator https://www.individualizedhealth.ca/dementia-tool. Dementia is a progressive, life-limiting illness, and personalized information about survival and potential transition into long-term care facilities like nursing homes can help patients and care providers with prognosis and planning. This is, however, not always done, perhaps partly because easily accessible tools have not been available. The global prevalence of dementia is increasing and is expected to triple by 2050. "For patients, families and caregivers, these conversations can be difficult and too often they don't happen at all," says Dr. Tanuseputro. "If we can help patients and families understand what is likely to happen to their health, and what the next few years may hold, it can help with planning, perhaps provide some peace of mind, and ensure they maximize the quality of life remaining." A related ICES infographic will be available on publication here https://www.ices.on.ca/Publications/Infographics. "Five-year risk of admission to long-term care home and death for older adults given a new diagnosis of dementia: a population-based retrospective cohort study" is published April 20, 2020. ### Miss England has said she is concerned about the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) available to NHS staff fighting Covid-19 on the frontline. Trained doctor Bhasha Mukherjee, 24, from Lincolnshire, returned from charity work in India earlier this month to help battle against the pandemic at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston. Ms Mukherjee has recorded a video diary in which she details her experience of life back on the frontline, highlighting the "grim" lack of PPE. "I've seen nurses with marks on their face from wearing the mask on the Covid ward. They have very little protection," said Ms Mukherjee in the video diary. Ms Mukherjee added that nurses were not given N95 masks (dispoasble face masks that filter air to an industrial standard) as protection unless they were dealing with coronavirus patients receiving oxygen. She said: "It's unfair, they've got families to go home to, it's just so sad. The nurses have more contact with positive Covid patients, they're changing the fluids and drip stands. "Nurses are constantly in contact and unwittingly the virus can be spread to other parts of the hospital due to this appalling lack of PPE. "I heard of a consultant with asthma who asked for the N95 mask and was refused. He's now seriously ill with Covid. NHS staff are falling like flies." Ms Mukherjee said that only medics working in intensive care units were given access to PPE, while nurse were given basic surgical masks, "a pinny" and gloves. The government has come under increasing attack in recent days over PPE shortages, with many hospital trusts saying they don't have adequate supplies to protect staff. Over the weekend, stocks reached crisis levels in some trusts after ministers admitted they could not guarantee supplies would last the weekend. On Sunday, a vital shipment of PPE for NHS frontline staff failed to arrive from Turkey. The delivery of 84 tons of PPE, including 400,000 gowns, was promised by Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick at Saturday's daily Covid-19 media briefing. Michael Gove later confirmed to the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that the UK had sent 273,000 items of PPE to Wuhan province in China, where the outbreak started, earlier this year. NHS staff expressed their anger at the failure to secure more PPE. Recommended Ellie Goulding surprises NHS nurse with live song during Zoom wedding Doctors were banking on the governments announcement of imminent extra supplies of PPE from overseas," said Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the British Medical Assosication. This really is a matter of life and death. Doctors and healthcare staff are left fearful for their own health and safety this is shameful. At least 27 NHS workers are known to have died after contracting Covid-19, according to health secretary Matt Hancock. The Independent has approached the Department and Health and Social Care for comment. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) Some senators are in favor of extending the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine in areas with more COVID-19 cases and easing it in areas where there are fewer cases. Senate President Vicente Tito Sotto III said unless massive testing is done soon, a quarantine extension is looming in densely populated areas with COVID-19 cases. Senate Committee on Health chairman Christopher Bong Go also favors the extension of the quarantine in Metro Manila, stressing that there is still a need to know first if the country is able to slow down the spread of the virus. Go, however, said he favors a modified quarantine scheme in some provinces. Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto also said a modified quarantine must be enforced in areas with low or no transmission, which would allow people to work, earn and provide for their families, and will help restart the economy. Like Recto, Senator Sherwin Win Gatchalian also favors a modified quarantine in areas with low or no COVID-19 transmission, but only if local government units in those areas have tested all of its probable and suspected COVID-19 cases, and have set up isolation areas for patients who contract the disease. Gatchalian said that in a modified quarantine, more businesses like salons and car wash services may reopen. He also said that he favors stronger military presence in communities to help instill obedience to stay-at-home orders. For Senator Joel Villanueva, the government can reopen industries with major economic contributions like manufacturing and construction. However, he said regular random testing of workers should be done on top of strict social distancing, sanitizing, and the use of face masks. He added that schools and malls should remain closed. As for Senator Sonny Angara, the quarantine should be changed gradually and only after local governments down to the barangay-level are fully prepared. President Rodrigo Duterte is expected to decide this week whether to extend the six-week long Luzon lockdown or shift to a modified quarantine. European nations hard hit by the coronavirus and the US epicenter New York reported headway Sunday in their battle against the deadly pandemic. Governments across the world are now debating how and when to ease lockdowns that have kept more than half of humanity -- 4.5 billion people -- confined to their homes and crippled the global economy. Europe saw encouraging signs Sunday, with Italy, Spain, France and Britain seeing drops in daily death tolls and slowing infection rates. The continent accounts for almost two-thirds of the 160,000 fatalities reported across the globe out of more than 2.3 million declared infections, according to an AFP tally. And in the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- the governor of New York said the outbreak was "on the descent." Mounting evidence suggests that the lockdowns and social distancing are slowing the spread of the virus that first emerged in China last year. Global spread of coronavirus. By Simon MALFATTO (AFP) The tentatively hopeful signs come with the US and China locked in a spat over suggestions by President Donald Trump that a laboratory in the ground zero city of Wuhan may have spawned the pandemic. Ice-rink morgue closing Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". The authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. Spain has extended a nationwide shutdown but said it would soon ease restrictions to allow children time outside. A patchwork of countries on the continent including Switzerland, Denmark and Finland have already begun reopening shops and schools. Germany is set to follow suit Monday with some shops back open after declaring the virus "under control", while Italy -- at one time the European epicenter of the crisis -- was tentatively mulling easing restrictions. A bride poses for a wedding photographer on East Lake in Wuhan, the city where the virus first emerged in December. By Hector RETAMAL (AFP) And France said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit, with death tolls and hospitalizations declining. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, while insisting "we are not out of the health crisis yet". In Britain, the government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- who is himself recovering from the virus -- faced fresh criticism over his early response to the crisis and shortages of protective equipment. 'Past the high point' The US has the highest caseload of any country, with more than 735,000 confirmed infections, and over 39,000 deaths. But in New York state, which has borne the brunt of the virus, Governor Andrew Cuomo was optimistic. Spain reported a sharp drop in its daily virus death toll on Sunday. By JOSE JORDAN (AFP) "We are past the high point, and all indications at this point is that we are on the descent," he told a press conference. Resentment is rising as Americans and others around the world chafe after weeks under stay-at-home orders. New anti-lockdown protests Saturday drew hundreds of people in states including Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio. Many waved American flags and some carried weapons. Hoping to spread cheer to those under lockdown, top musicians -- from the Rolling Stones to Taylor Swift, Stevie Wonder and teen superstar Billie Eilish -- joined forces for a virtual mega-concert. But many of the world's 260 million Orthodox Christians were forced to mark Easter at home Sunday, with church leaders telling worshippers to stay indoors and conducting services online or on television. 'Should be consequences' China meanwhile hit back at Trump after he questioned the origins of the highly contagious disease which Chinese scientists say was probably first transmitted to humans at a Wuhan market where exotic animals were slaughtered. "Was it a mistake that got out of control or was it done deliberately?" Trump said Saturday. "If they were knowingly responsible, yeah, then there should be consequences." Conspiracy theories that the virus came from a maximum-security virology lab have been brought into the mainstream by US government officials. A-listers entertained fans with a six-hour online extravaganza celebrating healthcare workers. By Olivier DOULIERY (AFP) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said an investigation was under way into how the virus "got out into the world". "There's no way this virus came from us," Yuan Zhiming, the head of the P4 laboratory at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which is equipped to handle dangerous viruses, said in an interview with state media. "I know it's impossible." Australia has called for an independent investigation into the global response to the pandemic, including the World Health Organization's handling of the crisis and China's actions. Trump has already withdrawn US funding to the WHO, accusing it of "severely mismanaging and covering up" the spread of the virus. Patriarch Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of the Greek Orthodox Church, led an Easter service behind closed doors in Istanbul. By Ozan KOSE (AFP) With 22 million Americans out of work as businesses closed, families are turning to food banks to get by, waiting hours for donations in long lines of cars. And in poorer and more densely populated parts of the world, many governments are still struggling to enforce restrictions on movement that are piling misery on the needy and spreading hunger. The virus has also thrown the spotlight on care homes, with a UK charity warning the death tolls in such facilities in Britain could be five times higher than the official numbers. Separated from relatives for fear of their spreading infection -- and from neighbours who have already fallen to the outbreak -- some in the care homes fear death from loneliness. "It's gloomy to not be able to see anyone. To be all alone. You fear the worst in moments like these," said Marc Parmentier, 90, a resident at a care home outside Brussels. burs-txw/jh F urniture giant IKEA has made everyones iso-dreams come true today and released the recipe for its cult-favourite Swedish meatballs. The recipe, which has been released to allow fans to make the dish while the UK remains under lockdown , is a replica of the meatballs served hot in IKEAs stores alongside its famous Swedish cream sauce. The recipe has just six steps - and keen cooks will find it takes eight ingredients to make the meatballs and a further eight to make the sauce. IKEAs Country Food Manager, Lorena Lourido, says: We know that some people might be missing our meatballs, which is why weve released an at-home alternative which, using easily accessible ingredients, will help those looking for some inspiration in the kitchen. Staying at home can be hard, but we want to help make everyones lives that little bit easier and more enjoyable. Bon appetit or, smaklig maltid, as we say in Sweden! IKEA Ikea Meatballs at Home Serves 4 Ingredients For the meatballs 500g beef mince 250g pork mince 1 onion, finely chopped 1 clove of garlic (crushed or minced) 100g breadcrumbs 1 egg 5 tablespoons of milk (whole milk) Generous salt and pepper For the cream sauce Dash of oil 40g butter 40g plain flour 150mL vegetable stock 150mL beef stock 150mL thick double cream 2 teaspoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard Method Meatballs: 1. Combine beef and pork mince and mix with your fingers to break up any lumps. Add finely chopped onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg and mix. Add milk and season well with salt and pepper. 2. Shape mixture into small, round balls. Place on a clean plate, cover and store in the fridge for two hours (this will help them hold their shape whilst cooking). 3. In a frying pan, heat oil on medium heat. When hot, gently add meatballs and brown on all sides. 4. When browned, add to an ovenproof dish and cover. Place in a hot oven (180C conventional or 160C fan) and cook for a further 30 minutes. Iconic Swedish cream sauce: 1. Melt 40g butter in a pan. Whisk in 40g of plain flour and stir for two mins. Add 150mL of veg stock and 150mL of beef stock and continue to stir. Add 150mL of double cream, 2 tsp of soy sauce and 1 tsp of Dijon mustard. Bring it to simmer and allow sauce to thicken. By PTI THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala government on Monday said there was some "misunderstanding", due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of the lockdown protocol after the state had allowed the opening of restaurants and MSME industries in municipal areas among others. The Union Home Ministry has taken strong objection to Kerala government's decision to allow the opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it amounts to dilution of its lockdown guidelines. In a letter to the Kerala government, the Home Ministry said the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed the opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran denied there was dilution of the lockdown guidelines. "We have given relaxations in accordance with the Centre's guidelines. I think there is some misunderstanding, based on which the Centre has sought an explanation. Once we give an explanation, it will all be sorted out. The Centre and the state have the same stand with regard to fight the pandemic. There is no contradiction in the stand taken. It's just a misunderstanding we will clear it," Surendran told media persons. He also said the lockdown and easing the protocol was a new thing for the state and the country and the state government will clear the doubts in a few hours. The additional activities allowed by the government of Kerala, include opening of local workshops, barbershops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four-wheelers and pillion riding on scooters. Hundreds ventured into the streets on Monday after the state government diluted the lockdown protocol. This amounts to dilution of guidelines issued by the Home ministry and violation of its April 15 order issued under the Disaster Management Act 2005, the Home Ministry said. The Kerala government has announced relaxation of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in two zones, allowing among others private vehicles movement in an odd-even basis and dine-in services at hotels from Monday. The Left government had colour-coded 14 districts of the state into four zones-- Red, Green, Orange-A and Orange-B, for containing the COVID-19 pandemic. Four-wheelers are permitted to carry two passengers besides the driver and in case of a two-wheeler, only the driver will be allowed while the pillion rider is allowed in case the person is a family member. On dine-in services, a government order said it is allowed at hotels and restaurants until 7 pm in Green and Orange-B zone from Monday and in Orange-A zone from April 24. However, take-away counters can function until 8 PM, the state government had said. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 15:39:38|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Members of the epidemic prevention and control work team for Kyrgyzstan gather at Diwopu International Airport in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, April 20, 2020. An epidemic prevention and control work team departed Monday for Kyrgyzstan from northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to join the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge) URUMQI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- An epidemic prevention and control work team departed Monday for Kyrgyzstan from northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to join the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. The 10-member team, including six medical experts, comes from several hospitals in Xinjiang and the regional disease control and prevention center. They have the expertise of traditional Chinese medicine, nursing, public health and treating respiratory diseases. The work team is expected to provide consultation and advice for Chinese employees, teachers and students in Kyrgyzstan, as well as share and exchange experience in dealing with the novel coronavirus with local governmental departments, disease control departments, hospitals and medical experts. A batch of anti-epidemic supplies donated by Xinjiang will also arrive in Kyrgyzstan along with the work team. Enditem The total number of people affected by coronavirus in Delhi has gone up to 2,081 after 78 new cases on Monday, the government said. According to the Delhi governments health bulletin and testing status released late night, the active number of cases is 1,603. A total of 431 have recovered while 47 of those who had contracted Covid-19 have died. It said 25,900 people in the national capital have been tested so far including 1,513 on Monday. Out of total number, 2,801 have tested positive and 20,712 have tested negative. A total of 2,711 results are pending. The number of tests per million of the population is now 1,282. Delhi continues to be the state with the second largest number of Covid-19 cases in the country after Maharashtra whose number is more than double of the national capitals. The total number infection in the country on Monday rose to 17,656. Earlier Monday, the Union health ministry in its briefing said Delhi was among the states where the rate of doubling of Covid-19 cases is less than 20 days. In another development, the Delhi government has increased the total number of containment zones in the capital to 84, up from the 79 notified Sunday evening to stop coronavirus from spreading to new areas. It also decided to carry out random rapid testing in the hotspots to get a clearer picture of the extent of the spread of the pandemic, particularly given that many people who had tested positive over the weekend did not show any symptoms. To carry out the random testing, the government will send 22 prison vans that have been converted into mobile labs into these containment zones. Washington: The US wants to send a team of experts to China to investigate coronavirus, President Donald Trump has said, a day after he warned Beijing of "consequences" if it was knowingly responsible for the spread of COVID-19 which has killed more than 165,000 people globally, including over 41,000 in America. Describing the coronavirus as a plague, Trump, during his White House news conference on Sunday, said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. "We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want to see what's going on. And we weren't exactly invited, I can tell you that," the President told reporters. "I was very happy with the (trade) deal (with China), very happy with everything and then we found out about the plague and since we found out about that I'm not happy," he said. The US has launched an investigation into whether the deadly virus "escaped" from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. He has repeatedly expressed disappointment over China's handling of the coronavirus disease, alleged non-transparency and initial non-cooperation from Beijing with Washington on dealing with the crisis. "Based on an investigation, we are going to find out," Trump told reporters. A day earlier, he warned China that it should face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the spread of the novel coronavirus, upping the ante on Beijing over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. "If they (China) were knowingly responsible then there should be consequences. You're talking about, you know, potentially lives like nobody's seen since 1917," Trump said on Saturday. The opposition Democratic Party said that Trump has falsely claimed he acted early by restricting travel from China when it was little too late and he continued to downplay the virus throughout February. The number of COVID-19 deaths in the US crossed 41,000 and the total infections were more than 764,000 so far. New York, the epicentre of the deadly COVID-19 in the US, has 2,42,000 cases and over 17,600 fatalities so far. It has registered a 50-percent decline in new cases over an eight-day period. The novel virus, which emerged in China in December last year, has killed over 160,000 and infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. Gal Gadot is one of the most recognizable faces of the DC franchise. She started playing Wonder Woman in 2016 and has since appeared in several DC films as the famed superhero. Although Gadot is known for starring in popular American movies, she is actually from Israel. The 34-year-old actress now lives in Los Angeles, and it seems that she has adjusted to life in California. However, some parts of her heart are still in her home country. In a recent interview with Vogue, Gadot revealed the reason why she sometimes prefers being in Israel over Los Angeles. Gal Gadot was born and raised in Israel Gal Gadot | Theo Wargo/WireImage Gadot was born on April 30, 1985. She spent much of her childhood living near the Israeli capital of Tel Aviv, and Gadot herself admitted that she had a normal life growing up. In 2004, when Gadot was 18, she won the Miss Israel beauty pageant, which allowed her to go on to compete in Miss Universe that same year. The experience gave her a lot of exposure, and Gadot spent the following three years doing modeling work. Afterward, she joined the Israeli Defense Force, where she posed for Maxims controversial Women of the IDF photoshoot in 2007. Gadot served in the Israeli military for two years as a fitness instructor. Gadot is also married to Israeli real estate developer Yaron Varsano. The couple met at a party in 2006 and tied the knot in 2008. Gal Gadot did not like Los Angeles at first when she first moved there Gadots impressive resume caught the attention of a few Hollywood executives. In 2009, she landed a role as Gisele Yashar in the fourth Fast & Furious film. Gadots military background was impressive to director Justin Lin, who allowed her to perform her own stuntwork in the movie. After acting in Fast & Furious, Gadot got to appear in more Hollywood movies, which meant she was spending a lot of time in Los Angeles. Its not clear when Gadot moved to Los Angeles, but a few years ago, she admitted that it took her a while to adjust to living in the city. I didnt like it at all, she said. It felt like everyone was in the industry the waitress is an actress and the guy at the gas station is a producer. It was too much for me. But I made friends, and now I can find myself in LA. Gal Gadot shared what she prefers about Israel over Los Angeles For Gadot, there are still some things about Israel that Los Angeles can never really compete with. For example, she still misses her friends and family back home, as she recently shared in Vogues 73 Questions video. In a cover story with Vogue, she also revealed that living in Israel also has other perks, such as a lot of places being a short distance away. You cant walk anywhere [in Los Angeles], she said. [In Israel] everything is five minutes away. Five minutes walking to the gelato place, five minutes to the beach, five minutes to our cousins house. And all of our neighbors are our friends. Los Angeles is a city with one of the worst traffic jams in the world, so getting around the area tends to be a struggle for everybody. However, Gadot understands that Los Angeles also offers a lot of wonderful opportunities for a career in Hollywood, so she realizes that theres always give-and-take. Aside from working on her acting career in California, Gadot also owns a production company called Pilot Wave with her husband. Pilot Wave currently has 14 projects that are in various stages of development. Trump says some US states to reopen in coming days Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 6:27 AM President Donald Trump says that some US states will begin lifting coronavirus restrictions in coming days while still observing the virus-related precautions. Speaking at a daily briefing on Saturday, Trump said some businesses in Texas and Vermont will be allowed to reopen on Monday and restrictions will be lifted in Montana on Friday. Texas and Vermont "will allow certain business to open on Monday while still requiring appropriate social distancing precautions," he said. Both Republican and Democratic governors "have announced concrete steps to begin a safe and gradual phased opening," he added. "We continue to see a number of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak," Trump told reporters. So far, 738,923 people have been affected and 39,015 have died of the virus across the United States, according to worldometers.info. Meanwhile, hundreds of people flocked to several beaches in Florida on Friday evening as they reopened for "essential activities," despite the state's death toll climbing to 726. In New York, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Saturday that the state had continued to make progress in its battle with a virus. "If you look at the past three days, you could argue we are past the plateau and starting to descend," Cuomo said. "So, we're not at the plateau anymore, but we're still not in a good position." Some state governors, however, have said they will not act prematurely to reopen their businesses until there is more testing for the virus. Business leaders have also told the president that widespread testing was needed before their companies can return to normal operations. On Saturday, Trump said "our testing is getting better and better," but failed to offer any concrete evidence. Protests held in some US cities With encouragement from Trump, hundreds protested Saturday in cities across the country against coronavirus-related lockdowns which have had bad economic impacts. Nearly 400 people held demonstrations in Concord, New Hampshire and while many were on foot others remained in their cars. In Texas, over 250 people walked outside the State Capitol in Austin, demanding that the state be reopened. "It's time to reopen Texas, it's time to let people work, it's time for them to let voluntary interaction and good sense rule the day, not government force," said Justin Greiss, an activist with Young Americans for Liberty. In Maryland, demonstrators stayed in their cars outside the state's colonial-era statehouse in Annapolis and waved signs with messages like "Poverty kills too." In Columbus, Ohio, hundreds of protesters rallied while chanting "We are not sheep". Trump warns China could face consequences for virus outbreak Also on Saturday, Trump warned China that it should face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the coronavirus pandemic. "It could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasn't, and the whole world is suffering because of it," Trump told his White House briefing. "If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, yeah, I mean, then sure there should be consequences," he added. The US president and his senior aides have said China was not transparent about the virus which first emerged in its city of Wuhan late last year. Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo alleged that the novel coronavirus was first made in a lab in Wuhan, an accusation that Beijing vehemently rejected. The World Health Organization (WHO) has said "multiple times there is no evidence the new coronavirus was created in a laboratory. Many well-known medical experts in the world also believe that claims of the so-called laboratory leaks have no scientific basis.," Chinese Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters in Beijing on Thursday. Trump also suspended aid to the World Health Organization, accusing it of being "China-centric." He claimed the agency had failed to disclose or respond to "credible" information in December that suggested the virus could be spread through human-to-human transmission. He also accused the WHO of siding with China and reliance on Chinese data, blaming it for "all sorts of false information about transmission and mortality" that was circulated amid initial reports. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Oil prices are in the dumps thanks to an ugly mix of world events, and the situation is likely to take a long time to resolve. ExxonMobil's (NYSE:XOM) earnings were already under pressure, and now that the oil downturn has deepened the numbers are only going to look that much worse. That's why investors with a long-term view should focus on the things that Exxon can control. And on that front it's doing quite well. Oil prices are always volatile If you listen to an energy industry CEO talk, they are likely to discuss long-term supply and demand fundamentals. Yes, current energy prices are important, but the heads of these companies know that they operate in a highly cyclical industry in which prices can move rapidly and often dramatically. In fact, the heads of Exxon, Chevron, and Royal Dutch Shell have all highlighted that a growing population will lead to increasing long-term demand for all energy sources. Thus, oil, and increasingly natural gas, will be vital. That's why the near-term ups and downs in the industry are less important than the long-term fundamentals that underpin demand. Still, as an investor, it's hard to ignore the negatives today. For one thing, increasing production in the United States has upended long-term industry dynamics and pushed down prices. OPEC had been attempting to manage the industry shifts by cutting production, but the U.S. just filled whatever void was left. Eventually OPEC and Russia got into a tiff over additional cuts, which sent oil prices tumbling anew on fears of an oil price war. Then countries around the world essentially shut down in an attempt to contain the spread of COVID-19, drastically reducing demand for oil at a time when supply was high and expected to go even higher. Although OPEC, Russia, and the United States appear to have brokered a truce in the feared oil price battle, it's likely to be too little, too late. Demand reduction related to the coronavirus has led to a buildup of oil sitting in storage. That oil will have to be worked off before prices can start a sustained rise again. The extra oil, however, won't be worked off in a material way until global economic activity is allowed to start up again following the COVID-19 shut down. So earnings were bad for oil companies like Exxon, and they are likely to stay bad for a while. In fact, companies throughout the industry are pulling back on capital spending plans to save money and further reduce supply. Exxon has pledged to trim spending from roughly $33 billion in 2020 to $23 billion, a 30% drop. It's also looking to cut expenses by around 15%. Long-term investors, however, shouldn't despair. It may take a bit for the industry's supply/demand dynamics to get back in line, but the industry's cutbacks are likely to lead to a situation in which oil prices recover. That's just how it goes in a cyclical industry like energy. Exxon is prepared for it, and making the necessary changes to muddle through -- for example, it has been issuing debt so it has ample cash to fund its business while revenue is cyclically weak. The long-term view So Exxon is doing what it has to do in order to deal with a difficult market environment. Sure, 2019 wasn't a great year on the top or bottom line (once you remove asset sales), and 2020 will likely be worse. But Exxon is rolling with the punches here, as it has many times before. Note that the company has increased its dividend for 37 consecutive years, an impressive track record in a cyclical industry. You don't achieve that kind of dividend history without doing a lot of things right along the way. That's something that investors should focus on at Exxon. Instead of worrying about something that management can't control (oil prices), look at what it can control. And on that front, there's a lot that's going well today. For example, Exxon has been expanding its production in the onshore U.S. space, using its scale and technological expertise to rapidly, and cost-effectively, increase output. Production in the region was up a massive 79% in 2019, living up to the guidance the company has been providing. Admittedly, that kind of growth rate can't continue for too long simply because of the law of large numbers -- and because of the low price of oil today, Exxon is actually looking to pull back in the region. This makes sense given that U.S. unconventional oil wells are relatively easy to develop (compared to offshore oil wells, for example). Thus production can be ramped up and down fairly quickly, making it a prime candidate for moderating production. But the success Exxon has had in the region is a testament to the company's ability to execute on big projects. When oil prices rise again, which is highly likely over time, expect it to ramp up onshore U.S. production again. Getting big projects done is a core competence for Exxon. That really starts to become apparent when you look at its efforts in the waters off of Guyana. It first found oil in the area in 2015, and since that time has identified 16 potential drill sites. The amount of oil it believes it has found has gone from around two billion barrels in 2015 to eight billion. And it's only just getting started on the production front, with its Liza project starting up ahead of schedule. It will produce around 120,000 barrels of oil a day in 2020. Over time the Guyana region could produce as much as 800,000 barrels of oil a day as new drill sites are exploited. Exxon's business spans from the upstream (drilling) to the downstream (chemicals and refining), and it has been working to upgrade its business across the entire spectrum. The goal on the downstream side is to move up the value chain so it can produce more premium products. These projects are generally smaller than building offshore oil rigs, and are often more along the lines of upgrades to existing assets. However, during Exxon's fourth-quarter 2019 earnings conference call, CEO Darren Woods was pleased to note that Exxon had completed three downstream projects and eight in the chemicals business. Although margins in the chemicals and refining space are low today, hampering earnings, the company is successfully repositioning itself for better days. Look at what Exxon can control When Exxon reports first-quarter 2020 earnings, the numbers are going to be dismal. But don't get too caught up on that -- earnings are going to be terrible throughout the energy sector. Focus instead on Exxon's ability to do the things it has said it would do. For the last couple of years it has executed well on that front. And while the pullback in spending driven by low oil prices will slow the company's progress to some degree, when Exxon releases quarterly earnings in 2020, pay more attention to things it can control (successful exploration and project execution) than the things it can't (oil prices). Do that and you're likely to come away with a far more positive view of the situation. General Motors employee Paul Cole on April 17, 2020 at the GM manufacturing facility in Kokomo, Indiana, where GM and Ventec Life Systems are partnering to produce VOCSN critical care ventilators in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by AJ Mast for General Motors Paul Cole smiles and laughs as he discusses the connection between himself and his great-grandfather, a member of the "Arsenal of Democracy" during World War II. Cole, a fourth-generation General Motors worker, is part of what some have called the "arsenal of health" to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and assist in building life-saving ventilators and personal protective equipment for first responders and health-care workers. "About 50 miles down the road, he was doing it during World War II and now I'm doing it during Covid-19," said the GM business manager who typically builds pickups for the automaker in Indiana. "Honestly, thinking about it, my grandmother was very prideful of GM. I've had aunts and uncles, and everybody retire" from GM, he said, adding "I know that they would be proud of the moment." Cole's great-grandfather, Roy Caudell, worked as a supervisor for Delco-Remy, once a division of GM in Anderson, Indiana, which built parts during WWII used for aircrafts and tanks, among other wartime equipment. For weeks, Cole, 42, has been working tirelessly to begin producing critical care ventilators for the U.S. at a closed engineering facility in Kokomo, Indiana. He worked on streamlining production of the devices, specifically the metering valve, which is part of the ventilator that regulates how the patient receives oxygen. About 240 salaried employees outside of GM's Kokomo operations assisted in producing the ventilators with Ventec, according to the automaker. "It's a life-saving measure and our motto here is 'moments matter,'" Cole said. "I knew I could contribute to the cause and hopefully save lives across the country and across the world." New life for a shuttered factory GM started producing and shipping the ventilators last week. At the direction of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the first devices were delivered Friday to two Illinois hospitals. GM says 550 United Auto Workers members are producing ventilators on one shift of eight to 10 hours, seven days a week. A second shift is expected to begin this week at the facility. The 180,000 square-foot building is one of several in GM's Kokomo components complex, which has gone from thousands of workers to hundreds today. General Motors employee Patty Waltman on April 17, 2020 at the GM manufacturing facility in Kokomo, Indiana, where GM and Ventec Life Systems are partnering to produce VOCSN critical care ventilators in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by AJ Mast for General Motors Patty Waltman, a UAW worker at GM's Kokomo complex who was laid off in January, said the work is rewarding as well as needed. "This was my last hope to have a job if I wanted to stay with GM, so I was excited to come back and be a part of this," she said. "To save lives, I think that's just the icing on the cake to be able to do that." Waltman, 62, was a team leader for circuit boards for engine control modules for various vehicles. She's now doing electrical work on the ventilator. "It's really great to be able to see this ventilator and how it actually functions," she said. "To see all the process, to see all the detail that goes into it, It's pretty phenomenal." Waltman hopes the temporary work turns into permanent jobs: "This is just huge for us to be able to be a part of it," she said. "We just hope it expands into something even greater." GM trained the workers, sourced needed materials and updated the three-story facility in under 11 days. While frustrating at times due to the rapidness of the launch, Cole described it as packing "25 pounds into a 5 pound sac to get it done so quickly." GM expects to hire 1,000 UAW members, many of whom have been laid off from the Kokomo operations, for the ventilator work. The automaker signed a deal to build 30,000 ventilators for the national stockpile for $489.4 million under the Defense Production Act, which was invoked last month by President Donald Trump. The order is expected to be fulfilled by the end of August, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. A third shift producing ventilators is expected to begin by June, GM said. General Motors Chairman and CEO Mary Barra (and Ventec Life Systems CEO Chris Kiple talk with a worker while touring the GM manufacturing facility in Kokomo, Indiana on April 14, 2020. GM GM CEO and Chairman Mary Barra said the work that went into producing the ventilators is one of the "proudest moments" of her nearly 40-year career with the automaker. "When I look here and I see all of you here today, volunteering to be here, volunteering to be a part of something that is truly, truly life-saving, it is just overwhelming," she said in a video released by the automaker. "I want to thank you all for everything that you're doing and you're going to do." Barra video tweet Barra toured the facility Tuesday with GM President Mark Reuss and other GM and Ventec executives, including Chris Kiple, CEO of the Washington-based medical device company. "From the very first phone call we had with the General Motors team, it very quickly turned into action," he said. "Literally within minutes we were solving problems together. And as everyone on the floor knows, we haven't stopped working together to solve problems." 'Arsenal of health' As GM's ventilators start arriving in hospitals, Ford Motor is expected to begin production of a different type of ventilator with GE Healthcare this week at one of its Michigan facilities. GE and Ford signed a deal with the U.S. government under the Defense Production Act to produce 50,000 ventilators for $336 million. The ventilators, which are more basic models than the ones being built by GM, are expected to be produced by July 13. A physician who has studied spontaneous remissions for fifteen years claims that the science of self healing could have a profound effect on patients suffering from terminal illnesses. Dr Jeffrey Rediger, a world-leading Harvard medic from Boston, psychiatrist and theologian, has interviews hundreds of patients that have experienced 'medical miracles', including a retiree diagnosed with cancer and given two months to live, and who overcame her cerebral palsy, whilst her sibling did not. Hesitant to classify these instances as 'flukes,' the physician took a deeper look at the lifestyle changes, new habits and attitudes patients had adopted at the time were they seemed to 'cure themselves', in his new book Cured, published by Penguin Random House. In the book he explains that self-confidence, how we perceive ourselves and how other perceive us influences our chances of remission. Dr Jeff Rediger, pictured, a world-leading Harvard medic, psychiatrist and theologian, has interviews hundreds of patients that had experienced these spontaneous remissions, from a retiree who diagnosed with cancer and given two months to live to girl who was able to overcome her cerebral palsy If you perceive yourself as sick or ill or surrounded by people who perceive you this way, how much longer and harder might your road to recovery be, Dr Rediger writes in his chapter You Are Not Your Illness. The chapter follows the case of twins who were born with some form of cerebral palsy which affected their walking. Cerebral palsy is caused by development issues in the womb or oxygen deprivation during birth, and affects the body's muscles, movement and coordination, an is incurable. However, Dr Rediger explains how one twin, Karen, managed to overcome most of the debilitating effects of the condition she was born with, while her sister did not. The twins, two girls from Ohio, had the same symptoms but very different attitude towards their cerebral palsy. Karen had deep difficulties walking due to the fact her heels did not touch the ground, and she struggled to extend her legs. Karen and her sister visited a 'faith healer' named Dr Nemeh, who worked close to their town. There, Karen let the doctor examine and treat her, while her sister refused. 'Over the course of a few visits, she began to experience a shift in how she felt in her body,' Dr Rediger writes in the book. Dr Rediger's book Cured is published by Penguin Random House and available for purchase 'Some people describe feeling overheated or strange after Dr Nemeh lays his hands on their bodies; some vibrate, some faint. 'Karen felt a surge of energy, leaped out of her chair and ran out of the room. She'd never run anywhere in her life before,' he added. Meanwhile, her sister, who was in a wheelchair, had witness all the sessions, but told Rediger she did not feel'worthy' of Dr Nemeh's attention. 'She was certain that any attempt she made to improve would fail,' he writes in the book, 'she felt too defective and, therefore, unworthy.' This is where Dr Rediger explains that the perception of our illness could influence our capacity to heal. 'If other people see you as sick or damaged, it can make you feel sick or damaged,' he writes. He also points out that our emotions also have an influence on how we experience pain. He names studies that have shown that we feel more pain when someone tries to hurt us on purpose than by accident. Can a positive attitude protect against Alzheimer's? Dreading growing old may raise your risk of Alzheimers, according to a 2015 study from Yale School of Public Health. Middle-aged people who view ageing as a handicap are more likely to have dementia-like changes to their brain decades later. It is thought the stress generated by such thoughts and fears eats away at the brain over time. The US researchers said while there has been a lot of focus on how a healthy diet can help keep the mind young, we should also consider the benefits of positive thinking. Dr Becca Levy analysed data 74 men and women collected from when they were middle-aged until they died. All were healthy at the start of the study and aged mainly in their late 50s and early 60s. First, they filled in a survey designed to assess their attitude to ageing. Questions included whether they considered the elderly as absent-minded or grouchy and whether people become less useful as they get older. Twenty years later, they started to have annual scans that measured the size of the hippocampus, brains memory hub. The brain normally shrinks with age, but the hippocampus shrivelled three times as quickly in those negative views of ageing two decades before. Further evidence came from examinations of the brain done after death. These tests, which were carried out an average of 28 years after the study started, showed those who held negative views of ageing when younger had higher levels of two proteins that are hallmarks of Alzheimers. The finding held when other factors such as age, education and overall health were taken into account. Advertisement The same applies to the notion of ageing. Dr Rediger claims that: 'negative thoughts about aging put you at risk of developing Alzheimer's.' 'Researchers found that the chronic stress generated by "negative self-perceptions wears down the hippocampus, the small, sea-horse-shaped portion or the brain that is responsible for you memories, emotions and even the beating of your heart.' By comparison, studies at Harvard and Yale's School of Public Health have shown that a truly positive attitude towards ageing improves health and extends life expectancy, he writes. Dr Rediger gives plenty of examples of how an individual's psychological well-being can influence their remission. He follows the story of a patient named Daniel, whose case was monitored by doctors in the 1950s. Daniel struggled with social interactions, and was the product of being raised in a very religious family, He wanted to be a pastor but didn't feel worth of the profession, and he was in a rocky relationship with a woman he held at a distance because he had strong feelings of guilt regarding sex and sin. By the time he graduated university, therapy was not bringing him any solace, and he hated his life, Dr Rediger writes. In January 1959, aged 26, Daniel was diagnosed with embryonal cell carcinoma of the testes. He went through an operation to remove the tumour, but it only made him more depressed, and four months after the surgery, the cancer had come back more aggressively, and spread throughout his body, from metastases in his chest to tumours visible on his neck. His prognosis was as bad as it could be, with no chance of survival, and weeks to live, Dr Rediger explains. At the same time, Daniel's therapist asked him what he wanted to do with the time he had left to live, and the cancer patient replied he wanted to get married and be ordained. With a growing sense of clarity, he put in the work to be ordained and started to plan a wedding with the woman he had been dating, with whom the relationship had improved, and tied the knot in July, six months after his initial diagnosis. At the same time, the tumours on his neck grew smaller, and within days of the ceremony, they had vanished completely, prompting his doctors to order x-rays. Exams showed that the tumours in his lymphatic system had gone completely, and that the metastases in his chest cavity had begun to shrink. 'They could think of no explanation; the only treatment he'd undergone since discovering the extent of the cancer had been palliative,' Dr Regider writes. In August 1959, the cancer had disappeared completely, and there was no evidence of illness in the pastor's body. 'The ups and downs of Daniel's aggressive cancer mirrored his psychological state at every turn, raising many important questions,' Dr Rediger goes on. He also cites more recent cases to underline his theory, including that of Claire Haser, a retiree from Oregon. In 2008, Claire was diagnosed with the most aggressive and lethal form of pancreatic cancer, called adenocarcinoma, which is known to progress quickly. 'A diagnosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma is a death sentence,' Dr Rediger writes. 'The questions is not if you will die from the disease, but when.' The only form of treatment possible is a surgical procedure called a Whipple, which consists in removing part of her pancreas along with her gallbladder, parts of her small intestine and possibly some part of the stomach and spleen. The heavy procedure can have a number of painful complications which could overtime turn into more health issues such as diabetes nor anemia. After speaking of the side effects with her physician and researching the procedure, Claire decided not to go through with the surgery, accepting she might be experiencing the last moments of her life. 'I decided to just let nature take its course,' she told Dr Rediger, 'I decided to live with as much zest and happiness as I could for however long I had left.' Five years later, in 2013, Claire was admitted to the hospital for reasons unrelated to her cancer, which required a CT scan of her abdomen. 'Though the doctors weren't looking for it specifically, her pancreas was visualized on the scan, and it was clean. Where there had once been tumour, there was none,' Dr Rediger writes. In spite of the amazing story of Claire and Daniel's recoveries, Dr Regider writes that spontaneous remissions are never fully investigated. 'We classify people like Claire as "flukes" and "outliers" and simply accept the narrative that they are explainable.' 'We don't know how to explain them, we shy away from publishing them for fear of professional ridicule, and we don't repeat them to the patients we see who are suffering from those very same diseases,' he writes, explains health professionals don't want to give patients 'false hopes.' Cured, by Dr Jeff Rediger is published by Penguin Random House. As the highly contagious COVID-19 disease has spread around the world, N95 masks are understood to be the best design to stop virus-laden droplets from entering the mouth and nose. But once-plentiful supplies have plummeted because Wuhan province in China ground zero for the virus is also home to the largest concentration of N95 manufacturers in the world. The majority of Americans are concerned that the federal and state governments will move too fast to end lockdowns put in place to mitigate the spread of coronavirus. According to a NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released Monday, 58 per cent of Americans feel the U.S. will start to reopen the country too quickly as the federal government implemented a plan to begin kickstarting the economy and ending lockdowns. Another 32 per cent say they feel the opposite, and believe the U.S. will take too long to loosen restrictions placed in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Seven per cent of the 900 registered voters surveyed April 13-15 said they are unsure of how they feel about the timeline and 3 per cent say they feel the country will move too quickly in some senses and too slowly in other ways. The poll comes as anti-lockdown protests have broken out across the country. Nearly 6 in 10 registered voters say they fear the U.S. will move too quickly to reopen the country The poll comes as large anti-lockdown protests continue to erupt around the country even though only 32 per cent of registered voters say they feel the country will move too slow to end social distancing orders Millions of Americans have lost their jobs or been furloughed as states went on lockdown and issued stay-at-home orders, causing all non-essential businesses to close operation and restaurants were forced to operate only on a delivery and take-out basis It also was taken at the same time Trump was assembling a team to release guidelines on reopening the country after he conceded it was up to governors to decide when their respective states are ready to end stay-at-home orders and loosen social distancing guidelines. Views on reopen also varies significantly between the parties, with 77 per cent of registered Democrats expressing concern that the country could move to reopen prematurely and only 39 per cent of Republican voicing the same worries. On the other hand, 48 per cent of Republicans predict the U.S. will take too long to end lockdowns and stay-at-home orders compared to the 19 per cent of Democrats who feel the same. This is exhibited in the nation-wide demonstrations, which broke out last week, as a vast-majority have identified themselves as Republican or Trump supporters. Hoards of protesters, usually not practicing social distancing, descended on state capitals to urge governors to reopen states and allow businesses to operate. Trump is eager to reopen the country and has a self-set goal goal for May 1, which is when the White House's expanded social distancing guidelines are set to expire. Protesters hold have march and chanted against lockdowns, claiming it's government overreach. One particular demonstration in Colorado, titled 'Operation Gridlock,' came to a head Sunday when protesters clashed with healthcare workers. A group of healthcare workers stood in the street to counter-protest the calls for re-opening, silently obstructing cars as they drove down towards Colorado's Capitol building. Trump is eager to get the nation off lockdown and kickstart the economy, and has self-imposed a deadline of May 1, but conceded it's up to the states to decide when to end their social distancing orders Other demonstrations were held Sunday in Tennessee, Oregon, Illinois, California, Montana and Washington State but there have been other protests throughout the week in places like Virginia, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Texas and more. Some claimed early on that anti-coronavirus lockdown demonstrations were only happening in states with Democratic governors, which soon proved to be false after Texas, the most populous red state, experienced a slew of protests. Trump has expressed his support for the protesters, tweeting last week that three governors, from Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, should 'LIBERATE' their states. The president also asserted at a White House coronavirus press briefing that the protests were peaceful and falsely claimed that demonstrators were practicing social distancing. An NHS nurse has criticised Boohoo for selling fashion masks at a time when healthcare workers are concerned about the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) when treating patients with coronavirus. The masks cost just 5 and one has the words eat, sleep, isolate, repeat written across the front. Boohoo states alongside the item that the masks are for accessory purposes only and should not be used as PPE. The online fashion retailer sells a number of fashion masks on its website, including one with the word Man written across it. Now, in response, an anonymous frontline NHS worker has spoken out to criticise Boohoo for selling such items. Boohoo are selling useless PPE fashion masks that are of no use to the public and are using their greed to make a mockery of people on the frontline, they told The Sun. I, myself am a frontline nurse and find it appalling that they feel the need to make PPE into a fashion statement when we are struggling with the provision of this in the hospitals. Boohoo has since issued a statement in response reiterating that its masks are not to be used as PPE, nor are they marketed as such. Selling masks as a fashion accessory has been popular with our global customer base for a long time and like many other brands we have offered them in a variety of styles as a part of collections, the statement begins. We are clear that this item is not suitable or designed to be used as protection and we are very sorry for any upset that the message on this particular item has caused and have immediately taken them off sale. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou The mask in question can still be viewed on Boohoos website, but the item appears to be sold out. Boohoos statement continues: Like everyone in the country we are immensely proud of the incredible work the front line NHS staff are doing and which is why our entire team are mobilised to identify how we can help. The retailer adds that it has gifted tens of thousands of items of basic clothing for NHS staff to wear under their scrubs. It is also currently producing thousands of scrubs, masks and gowns which the company will donate. We have also gifted hundreds of tablets for patients to use to stay connected with their families and we are responding to hundreds of individual requests from NHS staff and charities as fast as we can, Boohoo adds. We are keen to play our part and we are sorry that this item caused offence and did not reflect the efforts that our team are making. The number of letters arriving at the post offices here for dispatch might have reduced since the imposition lockdown, but postmen in Ranchi have been keeping busy delivering medicines and other essentials to homes and hospitals, a senior official said. Some of them have also found the addressees sceptical about receiving parcels or registering their digital signature on their phones due to threat of virus transmission, he said. "In a couple of areas, our personnel had to return with the parcel as people were scared of touching the consignment," said Sadhan Kumar Sinha, the senior superintendent of post offices in Ranchi. Sinha also said that postmen had on occasions delivered items even after midnight. "We are delivering medicines and medical equipment to Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences and MGM Hospital, Jamshedpur. Our postmen have been given sanitizers and soaps, and they exercise precautions, he added. An official release here, meanwhile, said that Additional Chief Secretary (Planning-cum-Finance Department), KK Khandelwal has directed all district deputy commissioners to seek cooperation from the Department of Posts for doorstep delivery of foodgrain, money, and other necessary items. "Postmen are equipped with smartphones. The manpower can be used to provide basic facilities like ration, medicine, money to the citizens," the release said, quoting the senior government official. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actress Alicia Silverstone opened up about body-shaming she experienced early in her career in a new interview. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) After skyrocketing to stardom as the lovably shallow Cher in "Clueless," Alicia Silverstone booked her next major film gig as Batgirl in 1997's "Batman & Robin." But the media called her another name: Fatgirl. Silverstone, who was 20 when Joel Schumacher's critically panned comic-book adaptation hit theaters, recently reflected on the body-shaming she suffered early in her career in an interview with the Guardian published Saturday. They would make fun of my body when I was younger, she said. It was hurtful, but I knew they were wrong. I wasnt confused. I knew that it was not right to make fun of someones body shape, that doesnt seem like the right thing to be doing to a human. Some of the abuse the "American Woman" star endured at the time involved tabloids printing the cruel nickname as well as paparazzi shouting it while hunting her down for photos. She also recalled being asked about her bra size during an interview. "That definitely wasn't my [favorite] filmmaking experience," she said of "Batman & Robin," which also starred George Clooney, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Uma Thurman. There were working circumstances that were less than [favorable] in terms of how things went down, she said. And no, I didnt ... come out like a warrior but I would just walk away and go, OK, I know what that is and Im done. Im not going near that again. Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl in 1997's "Batman & Robin." (Moviestore / Shutterstock) While Silverstone admitted she "stopped loving acting for a very long time" after starring in the Warner Bros. project, she has since rediscovered her passion and can now be seen in the marriage comedy "Bad Therapy," which launched digitally April 17. Later in the interview, the animal-rights advocate shared her thoughts on the coronavirus crisis, which has halted production on two of her upcoming film projects. She's been using her time during the pandemic to raise awareness about initiatives benefiting those on the front lines. "Im an activist so Im kind of used to suffering in terms of what is going in with the world with the climate and looking at the abuse thats going on, she said. This is very surreal and different, but at the same time, Ive been dealing with this for 25 years. An 80-year-old priest was arrested on Monday morning for opening a temple for devotees in Panvel in neighbouring Navi Mumbai, police said. Police got to know that Karumata Mandir in Owle area of Panvel was open since morning and was attracting devotees, after which a team visited the site, an official said. "For opening the temple despite prohibitory orders as part of the lockdown for the coronavirus outbreak, the 80- year-old priest was arrested under IPC and Epidemic Diseases Act and then released on bail," said Senior Inspector Ajay Kumar Landge of Panvel City police station. PTI ZA. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Asip Hasani (The Jakarta Post) Blitar, East Java Mon, April 20, 2020 13:43 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd301d0b 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Surabaya-Mayor-Tri-Rismaharini,surabaya,khofifah-indar-parawansa,East-Java,Sidoarjo,Gresik Free The Surabaya municipal administration and two regencies of its greater metropolitan area, Gresik and Sidoarjo, decided on Sunday to apply to the Health Ministry for permission to impose the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB). East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa said that the three regional administrations had agreed to apply to the ministry together to implement the PSBB during a two-hour closed-door meeting on Sunday afternoon at his residence in the provincial capital. "The multilayered measures that we have all taken to contain COVID-19 [transmission] don't seem to be enough," Khofifah told reporters after the meeting. Present at the meeting were acting Sidoarjo regent Nur Ahmad Syaifuddin, Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini and acting Gresik administrative secretary Muhammad Nadlif, as well as East Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Lucky Hermawan and Brawijaya Military Command chief of staff Brig. Gen. Bambang Ismawan. Khofifah said that the three administrations would be working with the East Java COVID-19 task force to draft their PSBB proposal for submitting to the Health Ministry for approval. "At the same time, we are drafting a gubernatorial regulation on the PSBB so that once the Health Ministry grants the PSBB, we need only two or three days to inform the public before implementing it," she said. Sidoarjo's Nur Ahmad told reporters that implementing the PSBB would mean that many factories in the regency would be prohibited from operating. Read also: 'Outbreak won't end in 14 days,' says Anies as he gears up to extend PSBB in Jakarta "The social and economic impacts of the PSBB will be bitter for all of us. But we must be brave in taking this correct but difficult decision if we want to stop this virus from spreading further," he said. Surabaya Mayor Risma, however, declined to answer questions from reporters after the meeting and headed straight to her car. East Java, home to around 40 million people, has the third highest COVID-19 tally in the country with 588 confirmed cases and 56 deaths as of Sunday. Surabaya is considered the epicenter of the outbreak in the province, with 299 confirmed cases and 31 deaths. "The number of confirmed cases in Surabaya has doubled at least four times," Khofifah said, adding that the virus had spread to all 31 districts in the city. Surabaya's close ties to Sidoarjo and Gresik meant that the PSBB should be implemented in the two regencies simultaneously, she added. Sidoarjo regency borders the provincial capital on the southeast, while the regency of Gresik lies to the west. Sidoarjo is the second hardest-hit regency in East Java with 57 confirmed cases and 6 deaths, while Gresik has the fourth highest tally in the province with 20 confirmed cases and two deaths. - A video of cops entering a gated Taguig compound has gone viral on social media - The footage was taken by a resident at Pacific Plaza Towers (PPT) where it showed one cop shouting by the poolside - According to the caption, the residents at the pool area were children of diplomats and foreign government dignitaries - The spokesperson of PNP said that as a policy, police will never get inside a private property unless they are invited by the administrator or owner PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed Cops entered the Pacific Plaza Towers (PPT), a gated compound in Taguig City, and reportedly "screamed" at the residents. One of the policemen allegedly waved a gun at the residents including children of diplomats. Joseph Castillo, an American and a resident of PPT, took a video of the incident and posted the video on his Facebook account. KAMI learned that in Castillo's post, he said that the Philippine police unlawfully overran the security and forced their way into the property with guns. He also stated that the police screamed at children of diplomats and foreign government dignitaries who were sitting with their families without a mask on. Castillo also recounted that it was around 5 p.m. on Sunday when he saw that one of the camouflage-wearing policemen was shouting and waving a gun at the residents of the condominium who were staying by the pool area. According to Inquirer, Mayor Lino Cayetano was reported to own a unit at the said residential condominium in Bonifacio Global City. Philstar stated that Brig. General Bernard Banac, spokesperson of the PNP said that "As a policy, police will never come inside a private property unless invited by the owner or administrator." He gave an assurance that the National Capital Region Police Office will be looking into the matter. According to GMA, the management of PPT is considering taking legal action against the police officials who stormed the compound. Here is the video posted by Castillo: PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! 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 also wondering how you can render help to frontliners? One Filipino, Pio, was able to find ways to help them out. You will see his unique and effective means in the video we created especially for you. Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel! Source: KAMI.com.gh New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday (April 19) that the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak in state, which has registered maximum coronavirus cases in the US, is "on the descent." "We are past the high point, and all indications at this point is that we are on the descent. Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do, but right now we're on the descent," Cuomo told a press conference. New York has been badly hit by the coronavirus with over 226,000 known infections and over 13,000 people have lost their lives in the state due to the deadly virus. It is "good news only compared to the terrible news that we were living with, which is that constant increase" in hospitalizations and deaths, Cuomo said of the latest data. "It's no time to get cocky and it's no time to get arrogant. We have a long way to go and a lot of work to do. This virus has been ahead of us every step of the way. We still have to make sure that we keep that beast under control," he added. The coronavirus COVID-19 on Sunday (April 19, 2020) as of 11 PM IST infected over 23.7 lakh people across the globe with taking more than 1,63,000 lives. As per Johns Hopkins University, over 23,74,141 people have been infected with the virus and around 1,63,372 lives have been lost due to the virus that was first reported in late December 2019 in Wuhan (China). The United States (US) has registered the most number of COVID-19 confirmed cases where the total number has surged to 7,42,442. Spain on the second position has recorded over 1,95,944 positive cases whereas Italy has more than 1,78,972 COVID-19 patients. Italy is followed by France (1,52,996 cases), Germany (1,44,387 cases) and the United Kingdom (1,21,168 cases). The other countries with the most numbers of COVID-19 positive cases are Turkey (86,306), China (83,805), Iran (82,211) and Russia (42,853). For the past three years, Hermann Ritter had lived as a fur trapper in Svalbard, a group of Norwegian islands that, in all regards, lies a great deal closer to the North Pole than to the couples comfortable home in Vienna. Her voyage to him would take several weeks, but at the end was the prospect of a homely cabin, and days spent reading, writing and painting, snug and safe by the fire. The journey today is somewhat less challenging, though the first sight of Svalbard is likely unchanged since Christianes day. The view from the plane, three hours after leaving Oslo, is of an endless white, with triangular white peaks rising above broad white valleys all the way to the horizon. There is no sign of human life, nor even a patch of land where human life might reasonably support itself. But still, humans came. The heady whiff of money, catching in the nostrils of the brave and gung-ho across Europe, first lured them here. Since Willem Barents discovered the archipelago in his search for a northern sea passage to China in the 16th century, sailors had returned home full of tales of a polar Eden, whose lands teemed with a polar bear, Arctic fox and reindeer, and where a man only need dangle an arm into the sea to pull out a seal or walrus. It prompted a rush of hunting expeditions so successful that the waters were cleared of the Greenland right whale in a matter of decades. By the time Christiane disembarked her boat at Kings Bay on the island of Spitsbergen, Svalbards appeal had shifted: the prize no longer lay solely in the furs destined for the salons of Paris, Berlin and London, but in the adventure to be had along the way. Obviously I have elderly parents myself. Profit wasnt important when you have the health of elderly people on the line, he said. But there was a serious problem. The equipment Mr Berry was willing to sell at cost price was sitting 2000 kilometres away in central Queensland. So Mr Berry hopped into his truck and began driving. He would stop only to sleep and eat. The different responses of Mr Berry and the NSW supplier underline the challenge facing the Australian government as it races to secure vital equipment for hospitals, even as its coronavirus containment strategy appears to be working. As federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said on the weekend, while announcing the Coalition had secured tens of millions of face masks, the medical supply industry is still facing unparalleled demand for vital goods. Australias corporate registry shows that multiple companies have been created in the past few weeks to capitalise on demand, often doing no more than buying stock and raising the price for resale. Senior law enforcement sources have said police are struggling to meet community expectations about their ability to enforce new anti-profiteering laws but that the anticipated dampening of demand as the rate of the spread of the virus falls will be more effective than handcuffs and warrants. If the large-scale efforts of the government to secure supply have been undermined by some of the suppliers who have set up shop overnight, surety of supply has been aided by people like Mr Berry. He drove for six days and 4000 kilometres to deliver his ventilators for use in several hospitals, some of them in southern NSW. Professor Denis King from the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District said the ventilators had made a huge difference to supporting our efforts in dealing with the challenging times ahead". Sourcing additional equipment thats in short supply worldwide has been difficult for healthcare providers across the globe [and to have] the manpower to help procure these goods has been an absolute blessing, Professor King said. Mr Berry estimates he didnt quite recoup his costs from selling his ventilators to the charity supplying hospitals and he refused an offer from the charity for more money. I knew there could be patients who needed them, so I wanted to hurry, he said, noting he was offered three times the price from an overseas buyer for the same equipment. The NSW supplier defends its harder-nosed approach to the same charitys call for ventilators. Loading Records show that it had advertised second-hand ventilators at $15,000 each when the firm was contacted by the charity on eBay on March 20. The charity said via eBay it was seeking ventilators at $9000 each but, after learning the NSW firm was offering an inferior second-hand model, the charity offered it $7500 per ventilator. The firm responded via text that it was getting offers from overseas". The charity responded by appealing to the firms altruism, stressing that it was much better to have them [the ventilators] in the hospital system here. Forty-eight hours later, the Sydney company replied with the bad news. My partner is not happy about the price reduction to $7500. He has offers from overseas for much more than that, the owner of the NSW business wrote to the charity buyer. Under pressure to deliver to hospitals, the charity relented and agreed to pay $9500 for each of the six second-hand ventilators. When asked by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald why his company had raised his overall price for his ventilators by $12,000 in less than two days, its owner was unrepentant. The Scottish government has called on Boris Johnson to extend the Brexit transition period by two years, as stalled trade talks restart. EU and UK negotiators are finally returning to negotiations using video conferencing, after several rounds of planned in-person talks were cancelled by the coronavirus pandemic. But with the timescale to get a trade deal by the end of the year already looking colossal, the government is coming under increasing pressure to extend the period before Britain will be dumped out of the single market. The benefits of coordinated European action have never been clearer, Michael Russell, Scotlands cabinet secretary for Europe, said. An extended transition will keep the UK as close as possible to the EU and provide an opportunity to re-think the future relationship. He said the UK government should today be asking the EU for the maximum two-year extension to the transition period. If the UK does not negotiate a free trade agreement by New Years Eve when the transition ends, it will revert to WTO terms. These are expected to be economically damaging. During the transition, the UK will follow EU rules and continues free movement. The ability to extend the transition period was kept in the withdrawal agreement by Boris Johnson, but the government claims it will not use the provision. Last week the prime ministers spokesperson said the government would not ask to extend the transition period and would reject any overtures by the EU, though none have yet arrived. The government was elected on a manifesto which made clear the transition period would end on 31 December 2020. That is now enshrined in primary legislation and it remains our policy, the spokesperson said. We will not ask to extend the transition period. If the EU asks, we will say no. Extending the transition would simply prolong the negotiations, prolong business uncertainty, and delay the moment of control of our borders. Extending the transition would mean we will have to make further payments into the EU budget. Michel Barnier and his UK counterpart David Frost both have coronavirus symptoms (EPA) It would also keep us bound by EU legislation, at a point when we need legislative and economic flexibility to manage the UK response to the coronavirus pandemic. For weeks now, various polls have suggested strong support among the UK public for extending the transition period to get negotiations done, given the disruption to the timeline by the pandemic. Talks have for weeks now been stuck on several issues: whether the two sides are negotiating one overarching agreement or many; the extent to which the UK will stay aligned to EU rules; fishing fleet access to British waters, and whether the UK will stay committed to human rights. Both sides have exchanged legal texts for proposed agreements, though only the EU side has made its public, with the UK insisting on secrecy. Both Michel Barnier and David Frost are among officials who had to spend time self-isolating with Covid-19 symptoms, further holding up proceedings. Naomi Smith, chief executive of pro-EU campaign Best for Britain, said: Given the huge amount of harm being done by the virus to the economy and the countrys health, most people will be wondering why the government is splitting its focus to conduct Brexit talks. Right now there is no bigger priority than coronavirus, and nothing should be distracting the governments attention. That is particularly the case for these talks, which can be extended to give both the UK and the EU room for manoeuvre. High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Show all 18 1 /18 High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Najaf, Iraq A man holds a pocket watch at noon, at an almost empty market near the Imam Ali shrine Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Bangkok, Thailand Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram (The Temple of the Emerald Buddha, part of The Grand Palace) Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Prague, Czech Republic An empty street leading to the historic Old Town Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Washington DC, US Lawn stretching towards the Capitol, home of Congress Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Jerusalem's Old City A watch showing the time in front of Damascus Gate Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world London, UK The Houses of Parliament seen from Westminster Bridge Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Wuhan, China Empty lanes in the city that saw the first outbreak of disease Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Havana, Cuba The Malecon road and esplanade winds along the city's seafront Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Cairo, Egypt A little busier than elsewhere: midday traffic in Tahrir Square Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Berlin, Germany The Brandenburg Gate, the only surviving city gate in the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Caracas, Venezuela Bolivar Avenue, opened in 1949 and the site of many demonstrations and rallies Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Moscow, Russia Spasskaya Tower (left) on the eastern wall of the Kremlin, and St Basil's Cathedral Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Istanbul,Turkey The harbourside Eminonu district is usually buzzing with activity Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New Delhi, India Rajpath, a ceremonial boulevard that runs through the capital Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Amman, Jordan The Roman amphitheatre that dates back to the 2nd century AD Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world New York City, US The main concourse of Grand Central station in Manhattan Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Kiev, Ukraine Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the site of many political protests since the end of the Soviet era Reuters High noon in a coronavirus-stricken world Accra, Ghana The odd walker out in the midday sun on Ring Road Central Reuters The government must unchain itself from the 31 December [exit date] so that it has the ability to properly focus on ridding the country of coronavirus. Speaking on Monday as talks kicked off again, a European Commission spokesperson told reporters at an online press briefing: You have said the pandemic will change everything but Im not sure thats true ... I just want to remind you that the negotiations between the EU and the UK have been going on for a long time. Its not as if we just met last Friday and came up with an agenda: the European Commission has a formal agenda which has been well fleshed-out and is entering into structured negotiations with the UK. The issue now is to try and make sure that the UKs exit from the EU and the transition period, if its not extended further from the end of the year, set a threshold for our negotiations with the UK going forward, pandemic or no pandemic. It is almost beyond parody that a senior staffer in the office of Prime Minister Scott Morrison would imagine it was a good idea to try to undermine the launch of Malcolm Turnbulls new book by leaking it before its release. This is the same book in which Turnbull writes that when he was prime minister, Morrison as treasurer was considered a leaker. Mathias Cormann, Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison at a joint press conference in 2018. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Turnbull wrote that he and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann had been at our wits end about how to manage Morrison's behaviour when he was treasurer. As Mathias said, we have a Treasurer problem, Turnbull wrote. And the problem was one of trust. I f a parents job is to worry, living through a global pandemic with a baby in residence in your belly is perhaps the ultimate training course. Certainly, its a learning curve of gargantuan proportions thats being faced by many, with mums and dads-to-be forced to add global health crisis to a list of more pedestrian new- parent worries which includes will my experience of childbirth be as awful as it was for Raquel from Only Fools and Horses? and what the hell am I supposed to do with a nipple shield? Of course, biological destiny and the great circle of life stops for no one, and so for those navigating this crisis with a plus-one in tow, the only option is to soldier on. But what are the cold, hard facts (NB: theres a whole lot of hearsay around and some really dodgy info on Twitter); what do you need to know to survive this truly bizarre antenatal experience with your sanity intact, and is it possible that you might even get to enjoy some of it? Here, at 38 weeks pregnant, is everything Ive learned about growing a human in isolation. The science matters The Government has advised that pregnant women be shielded from the threat of Covid-19. While the risk of infection is a real one and the same as for those who are not expecting children, pregnant women are often susceptible to heightened symptoms of virus, including flu, and so extra caution has been advised. The most up-to-date advice from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is that there is no increased risk of miscarriage or early pregnancy loss in relation to the virus. There have been several reported cases of young babies testing positive for coronavirus in the UK and elsewhere, though it is not yet clear how the virus is passed. In all cases decreasing the risk of contracting Covid-19 by staying home and social distancing as much as possible is considered the best course of action. Pregnant women who have experienced symptoms should notify their midwife. Know your rights Mothers-to-be and their families should be protected from the virus as much as possible, which means working from home. For front-line staff and key workers expecting children, things are less clear-cut, however employers must ensure safe working conditions for staff particularly for those in second and third trimesters and pregnant women have the right to refuse to work if those measures are not in place. Maternity rights initiative Pregnant Then Screwed is a great resource for those facing discrimination, and operates an employment helpline with legal advice. Baby school Antenatal and NCT-style education groups are a lifeline for new parents looking to meet others in similar positions and indeed for perfecting the ancient arts of nappy-changing and baby-burping. Sadly the IRL versions of those ended with the start of lockdown life. But there are a host of online alternatives. The capitals fast-growing community of independently led, unbiased antenatal groups were quick to offer online equivalents with Zoom meets and up-to-date support. Tip: look for groups in your local area so you can orchestrate real-life wine/coffee meets when all of this is over. Hello Baby, run by a midwife in Leyton, is a great example, but there are options in most London neighbourhoods. Keep moving The increased restrictions suggested for pregnant women make it difficult for those with babies on board to keep moving. As a result, maternity experts are growing increasingly concerned about mobility with lack of movement among the factors which contribute to conditions such as DVT (deep vein thrombosis) as well as general discomfort. Thankfully the capitals vibrant prenatal fitness community has leapt into action, with pregnancy yoga and Pilates among the classes offered in online format. Virtual one-to-one sessions and workshops including hypnobirthing and birth support are also widely available. Search the Mind Body app for classes in your area (that way you might even be able to attend the real deal at some point later this year). Frame also offers pre- and postnatal workout programmes online. Retail therapy With a new baby comes a whole lot of new stuff but how to prepare for yours when the shops remain closed? John Lewis is offering its nursery consultation service (considered something of a rite of passage for many new parents) in online form (appointments are like gold dust). For those keen to support independent retailers, sites such as Kidly, Smallable and the beautiful Sorens House are delivering at a reasonable pace. Go to the horses mouth Your mums friends sisters friend from the hairdresser who gave birth last Thursday in Glasgow is not the best source for the information you need. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is constantly updating its website with changes in policy. It is also worth going to your individual hospital trust for the most site-specific information. Hand-holding The suggestion that partners could be banned from delivery rooms has been a source of great concern for many pregnant women (and their support networks). There are no plans for this to happen in the UK. The Nursing and Midwifery Council is clear in its stance: provided a patient is well, birth partners are encouraged to be present. Depending on local trust restrictions, partners and supportive others may not be allowed to attend routine antenatal appointments and scans. New mums who are admitted to hospital following the arrival of their new baby are likely to find that their partners are not allowed access to the ward. Heading to theatre In the event of a C-section emergency or otherwise the RCOG insists that its clinical teams continue to do whatever they can to ensure that birth partners are present. During the pandemic, surgical staff will wear enhanced PPE equipment in order to safeguard the health of all involved. Staying home Londoners planning on a home birth may have been informed that this is no longer a supported option due to staffing provisions. However, as outlined by Birth Rights, the organisation dedicated to protecting the dignity and autonomy of women during childbirth, women are entitled to make their own decisions regarding how they give birth, as well as the use of a midwife-led maternity facility (where appropriate). Back-up, back-up Whether you need someone to let the cat out or look after your other children, social distancing measures mean enlisting back-up for your back-up is essential. Midwives are advising that women have a person on hand to replace their first birthing partner in the event that they are struck down with symptoms. Those who were previously relying on grandparents to look after other children while they go to hospital to give birth may also have to come up with new solutions. Babysitting app Bubble is operating throughout the crisis. Who to follow? The China-Europe Railway Express posts significant growth in the first quarter of this year, which can be attributed to its strong substitution function, excellent customized services and higher proportion of return trips. (Photo/Xinhua) The China-Europe Railway Express saw rapid growth in the first quarter of this year, with a total of 1,941 trips run by freight trains carrying 174,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of containers, increasing 15 percent and 18 percent year-on-year, respectively. "We used to look everywhere for shipments, but now there are endless containers every day. Thanks to the China-Europe Railway Express, more and more goods 'made in China' can be sold abroad, and more high-quality foreign goods have also entered Chinese families," said Huang Xin, the Party chief at Xinzhu Station of Xi'an West Railway Station of China Railway Xi'an Group Co., Ltd. in Northwest Chinas Shaanxi province. Huang Xin witnessed the explosive growth of the China-Europe Railway Express. "In the past, our shipping marketers had to go to Wenzhou city and Ningbo city to solicit shipments, because the freight rates were high and the shipments from Xi'an were small," recalled Huang, adding that now we have a lot of work to do and we often have to work overtime. With Xinzhu Station as only one example, according to the China Railway Group, in March the China-Europe Railway Express has made 809 trips, up 30 percent from the previous year, and carried 73,000 TEUs in cargo, growing 36 percent year-on-year. The strong substitution function of the China-Europe Railway Express helps accelerate its growth in the number of trips. The China-Europe Railway Express operates on a phased basis and does not involve quarantine inspection. It has a unique advantage under the circumstance of epidemic prevention and control, becoming an important logistics channel to ensure trade between China and Europe and unimpeded transportation of epidemic prevention materials for international cooperation. Stable and efficient operation with customized services have also served as the basis for the rapid growth of China-Europe Railway Express. Coastal foreign trade enterprises used to transfer their products exported to Europe to Yingkou Port and Dalian Port by sea, before exporting them abroad by China-Europe Railway Express, revealed Yao Xiang, manager of train operation department of Shenyang branch of Sinotrans Northeast Co., Ltd. Yao takes the shipments to Moscow, Russia as an example: it takes about 40 days by sea; while the running time of the China-Europe Railway Express is about 12 days, which is more cost-effective. The increasing proportion of shipments during return trips has also contributed to the increase in the number of trips. According to Shenyang Branch of China Railway Container Transport Co., Ltd., since the beginning of this year, the enterprise fixed shipments of Russian plates, European auto parts, machinery, equipment and daily necessities during the return trips. Myer is re-hiring 2,000 staff members to help meet online sales just weeks after standing down 10,000 workers and closing all department stores. The department giant - which has been an Australian institution for 120 years - closed all stores in March as it battles through the coronavirus pandemic. However, Myer vowed to continue to run its online store and has had to hire 2,000 workers to meet the demand. Myer is re-hiring 2,000 staff members to help meet online sales just weeks after standing down 10,000 workers and closing all department stores. Pictured: an empty Myer store in March Sales spiked over the Easter weekend with online sales increasing by 800 per cent, Nine News reported. 'There's no doubt our customers are seeking greater value during this period, and at Myer we are focussed on delivering that for them,' Myers Chief Customer Officer Geoff Ikin said. 'Furthermore, with our continued focus on online, it has allowed us to bring back more than 2,000 team members into work to assist with our online fulfilment during this very busy time.' The free delivery threshold has been dropped to $49 and the returns policy has also been relaxed. Myer became one of the biggest victims of the coronavirus retail fallout, which is leaving tens of thousands of Australians unemployed as stores shut their doors. The embattled department store has suffered plunging profits for almost a decade, long before coronavirus hit. A sign saying 'Center Closed' in front of an elevator during Coronavirus crisis in Queensland Its latest financial results posted on March 5 reflect this, showing total sales down 3.8 per cent to $1.6 billion. 'As team members will not be working they will not be paid during this period of imposed closure,' the statement read last month. 'Full time and part time members have greater flexibility to access their annual leave and long service entitlements in addition to government assistance measures.' It said it was 'fully supportive' of the government's social distancing measures, including people staying at home as much as possible. General Pants, Smiggle, and Peter Alexander have also temporarily closed due to the coronavirus fallout. The brands are owned by tycoon Solomon Lew's Premier Investments, which announced a shutdown of Australian stores in March. Australians queue at Centrelink during COVID-19 pandemic after thousands were stood down from their jobs Around 9,000 of the company's staff around have been stood down without pay until at least April 22. The group's bosses will be working from home without pay. Bosses at Just Cuts said they could 'no longer wait for the National Cabinet to do the right thing' and closed all salons, with both staff and clients at increasing risk from coronavirus. Around 8,000 workers for Woolworths pubs and pokies joint venture were stood down on March 24. ALH group, jointly owned by Woolworths and the Mathieson family, operates more than 300 licensed venues across Australia but was forced to shut these down after the government ordered all 'non-essential' businesses close due to coronavirus. RAG Group, which owns Tarocash, YD and Connor, closed 500 stores and stood down 3,000 workers on Friday. The same happened at Accent Group - which owns Athlete's Foot, Platypus and Hype - which announced the closure of 522 stores and the standing down of around 5,000 staff. This treatment of Asian Americans is immoral, but also dangerous to public health. Research shows that hateful speech and other actions against racial and ethnic minorities even seemingly small slights might make people sick, contributing to heart disease, respiratory illness and other chronic diseases. In an environment where people of any race feel threatened, they might be less likely to seek treatment out of fear and distrust of our medical system. This is especially dangerous in the midst of a pandemic when we should be lowering barriers to care, not raising them. TORONTO, ON - A team of researchers led by scientists at the University of Toronto (U of T) has delayed the onset of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in mice. They are cautiously optimistic that the result, combined with other clinical advances, points to a potential treatment for ALS in humans. Commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS is caused by the degeneration and loss of neurons that control muscles. There is no cure for ALS which currently affects between 2,500 and 3,000 Canadians. "Our experiment profoundly delayed the disease by preventing the degeneration of neurons in the cortex of the brain," says Melanie Woodin, a professor in the Department of Cell & Systems Biology (CSB) at U of T and a co-author of a study published recently in Brain. "It delayed typical symptoms of ALS like the deterioration of motor skills and weight loss. It also increased the survival rate." The result was achieved in mice that possessed the same gene mutation (SOD1) found in some human ALS patients. The researchers targeted neurons in the motor cortex -- the region of the brain that controls muscles -- with an engineered protein designed to correct an imbalance in neurons referred to as hyperexcitability. "Neurons communicate with each other through synaptic transmission, which involves both the release of chemical neurotransmitters and electrical activity" explains Woodin. "This communication can be either excitatory or inhibitory. Excitation is like the gas pedal in your car and inhibition is the brake pedal. Too much gas and you'll speed off the road; too much brake and you don't go anywhere. So, to drive properly, you need a balance between the two." In a healthy brain, a balance between excitation and inhibition ensures proper brain function -- enabling us to solve math problems, retrieve memories and feel emotion. But too much excitation in the brain's neurons can lead to neurological disorders like seizures, epilepsy, neuropathic pain, autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia and ALS. While human SOD1 gene mutation carriers display pronounced cortical hyperexcitability in the decade prior to the onset of ALS, it wasn't clear it was a cause of neuronal degeneration. "We knew before that there was a very profound imbalance between excitation and inhibition in the region of the brain that controls movement," says Woodin. "But that didn't tell us whether this hyperexcitability caused the onset of symptoms." "Now we know," says Woodin. "That in ALS mice with the SOD1 mutation, hyperexcitability in the motor cortex is causal to the onset of the disease." A path to a potential treatment in humans "The result is important because it points down a path for a potential treatment in humans," says Woodin, who is also the dean of U of T's Faculty of Arts & Science. The optimism that the result could eventually lead to a treatment in humans is bolstered by the fact that it comprises advances which have yet to be used together but that are proven on their own. Woodin and her colleagues are combining advances in viral technology with a revolutionary technique in neuroscience called chemogenetics. Proteins that had their structure altered were introduced into mice via a virus and delivered to neurons in the primary motor cortex. Once there, they were activated with a pharmaceutical drug -- but one which isn't approved for use in humans. However, other scientists demonstrated that a drug called clozapine, which is approved for use in humans for the treatment of certain psychiatric disorders, could also activate the protein. "The clozapine discovery was a game-changer for our work," says Woodin. "It revealed a clear path for clinical translation which just wasn't there when we first developed our hypothesis." And while chemogenetics was employed in the current study, it isn't currently used in human patients in part because of the challenge in delivering the chemogenetic "tool" to the right neurons. But an innovation being pioneered for human use by Dr. Lorne Zinman and Dr. Agessandro Abrahao offers a promising alternative. Zinman and Abrahao are testing a non-invasive procedure to deliver therapeutic agents to the motor cortex of ALS patients. The brain is protected by a natural barrier that keeps out pathogens like bacteria and viruses -- but that also keeps out therapeutics like drugs and proteins. With the new technique, the blood brain barrier can be temporarily and safely opened to deliver a protein to targeted regions of the brain. Zinman, a co-author on the paper, runs the ALS clinic at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and is an associate professor at the University of Toronto. Abrahao is an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at U of T and an associate scientist at Sunnybrook. "This advancement in decreasing cortical hyperexcitability has the potential to have a major impact on treating ALS in humans," says Zinman. "Much more work is needed but this advance shows great promise toward a path to stopping this disease." According to Dr. David Taylor, vice president of research at ALS Canada, "Despite the fact that both upper motor neurons in the cortex and lower motor neurons in the body are degenerating in ALS, much of the research to date has ignored the role of upper motor neurons." "Excessive activity of the upper motor neurons could be an important contributor to the disease and Professor Woodin's work focused on a novel way to stimulate neighbouring neurons that can put the brakes on this abnormal biology," says Taylor. "Her results in ALS model mice are exciting and hopefully this can someday be a treatment strategy tested in human clinical trials." ### Additional co-authors on the study include researchers at CSB, the Department of Psychology, the Institute of Medical Science and the Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases at U of T, as well as Laval University and the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. The research was supported by funding from the ALS Canada Research Program, in partnership with Brain Canada (through the Canada Brain Research Fund, with support from Health Canada). Additional funding was provided by Medicine by Design and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Note to editors: The full research paper described here is available at https://academic.oup.com/brain/article-abstract/143/3/800/5811033. MEDIA CONTACTS: Melanie Woodin Professor, Department of Cell & Systems Biology Dean, Faculty of Arts & Science University of Toronto dean.artsci@utoronto.ca +1 416 978 5413 Dr. Lorne Zinman Associate Professor, Department of Medicine Director, Sunnybrook ALS Clinic lorne.zinman@utoronto.ca +1 416 480 6100 x7729 Sean Bettam Communications + Public Affairs, Faculty of Arts & Science University of Toronto +1 416 946 7950 s.bettam@utoronto.ca Wearing protective masks ground crew at the Los Angeles International airport unload supplies of medical personal protective equipment, PPE, from a China Southern Cargo plane upon it's arrival on Friday, April 10, 2020. Associated Press/Richard Vogel Illinois' governor reportedly organized secret flights to haul millions of masks and gloves from China to bypass any Trump administration efforts to seize the products. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the details were kept secret after the Illinois government "heard reports of Trump trying to take PPE in China and when it gets to the United States." A number of reports have documented federal efforts to seize ventilators, masks, and other PPE for the national stockpile, even intercepting and diverting orders without explanation. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker organized secret flights bringing millions of masks and gloves to the state from China on charter jets in an effort to bypass potential Trump administration efforts to seize the products, The Chicago Sun-Times reported. Two invoices from the state revealed $888,275 purchases for "aircraft charter flight to Shanghai, China for COVID-19 response," according to the newspaper. The state has reportedly spent $174 million on coronavirus-related purchases, such as ventilators, personal protective equipment, and hand sanitizer. The Sun-Times cited a source familiar with the purchases, who said the details were kept secret "because we've heard reports of Trump trying to take PPE in China and when it gets to the United States." Pritzker's press secretary declined to give the newspapers details on the flights, but noted the "challenges" Illinois has faced to obtain PPE for frontline health care workers. Outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Yonkers Reuters "The supply chain has been likened to the Wild West, and once you have purchased supplies, ensuring they get to the state is another herculean feat," press secretary Jordan Abudayyeh told the Sun-Times. "These flights are carrying millions of masks and gloves our workers need. They're scheduled to land in Illinois in the coming weeks and the state is working to ensure these much-needed supplies are protected and ready for distribution around the state." Story continues A number of reports have documented federal efforts to seize ventilators, masks, and other PPE for the national stockpile, even intercepting and diverting orders without explanation. Pritzker has vehemently criticized Trump for his handling of the coronavirus. In a CNN interview on April 14, Pritzker said he had "given up" on the Trump administration's promises to deliver medical supplies. Trump has criticized Pritzker right back, saying he "is always complaining." Prizker also described fierce bidding wars against the Trump administration, as well as other states, for PPE and other items from overseas. Last month, an Illinois official even sped up a highway with a $3.4 million check to personally meet a supplier's deadline to obtain 1.5 million N95 masks, the Sun-Times reported. Read the original article on Business Insider A group of people have rescued a dolphin which was stranded on a beach in Dublin earlier today. It took a number of people at least three attempts to get the mammal back out in the water at Portmarnock Beach. At first, rescuers thought it was a harbour porpoise, but they now believe it was actually a dolphin. Today was special. An amazing group of people and Brandy the dog worked together to save a harbour porpoise who stranded on Portmarnock beach. The second in a week. It took 3 attempts to get him out to deeper water. Fingers crossed for the tired little guy. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/4MgFD0ZVrc Sabrina Joyce-Kemper SJK (@kemper_sabrina) April 20, 2020 Sabrina Joyce-Kemper was one of those involved, and she said it was great to be able to save it. She said: "He had gotten stranded and was struggling in the water. A number of amazing people had already, in their clothes walked in and tried to bring him in past the waves which were very strong. "He kept coming back out and other people would then take over, because it was quite tiring, to eventually bring him back on the third or fourth attempt. "He managed to get past the waves and we didn't see him come back out again, so hopefully he has made it." Nathan Bain is becoming well known as a guest racecaller and as the regular racing commentator at Ontarios Dresden and Leamington Raceways. Hes also one of the original USHWA Youth members, and wants to encourage new applicants for USHWA Youth Membership in 2020/21. As an aspiring journalist and broadcast announcer in the harness racing industry, I have been fortunate to have been given an opportunity to join the USHWA Canadian chapter as a Youth member. Now this opportunity is once again available for other youth to gain the same experience with their local USHWA chapter, said Bain. It was 2018 when I was recruited by Melissa Keith to join as a Youth member, and USHWA has helped me promote my work in the industry and help get my name out there, as that was challenging to do living in southwestern Ontario. Also joining the organization in 2018 were Ryder Skinner (Delaware Valley chapter) and Jessica Hallett (Florida chapter). All of these participants renewed their memberships the following year and continue to participate in racing related activities. In 2019, the Canadian Chapter welcomed the newest Youth member, Nicholas Barnsdale of Toronto, Ont. The nomination deadline is June 1, 2020, and any potential youth members can self-nominate, or be nominated by anyone who is familiar with their contributions to harness racing. The youth (under 21 years of age) nominated must be a harness racing writer, photographer, video producer, or other contributor to the sport. 2018 was the first year USHWA Youth recruitment began, thanks to the generosity of continued sponsor Tim Konkle, editor of Midwest Harness Report. He has sponsored the first year of dues of dues for all Youth members approved to join, and will continue to do so in 2020/21. Konkle is also the founder of USHWA's newest chapter, the Indiana chapter. Although circumstances have forced him to move from the Hoosier State, he continues to be the Director of the At-Large membership, as he was before temporarily being Indiana Director. In 2017, Konkle was named USHWA's Member of the Year for his steady recruitment and encouragement of new members and his willingness to volunteer for any and all manner of activities. His Midwest Harness Report is a monthly magazine which primarily gives in-depth coverage of harness racing in Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois; it began as the Hoosier Horse Review to chronicle racing, breeding and sales in Indiana. Nathan Bain says he is thankful that he became an USHWA Youth member. It has been so much fun being involved and getting to write nomination biographies for the Dan Patch Awards. I encourage more young people in the harness racing industry to get involved and make a difference. Please send nominations/questions to USHWA Youth Membership Committee chair Melissa Keith ([email protected]). (With files from USHWA, Nathan Bain and Jerry Connors) MINNEAPOLIS, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- To keep families and the community safe during the COVID-19 crisis, Children's Minnesota has turned the 2020 Walk for Amazing into a virtual event. Instead of a one-day walk at U.S. Bank Stadium, the annual fundraiser has become a month-long campaign of healthy and fun activities families can participate in while social distancing. Participants can direct the funds they raise to any program at Children's Minnesota. Register for Children's Minnesota Virtual Walk for Amazing "As a nonprofit health care system, we rely on the generosity of the community now more than ever to continue to deliver our unique, kid-focused care," said Dr. Marc Gorelick, president and CEO of Children's Minnesota. "Even though we're going virtual, Walk for Amazing remains a celebration and a chance to connect with others to do some good." There is no registration fee for the Virtual Walk for Amazing. Participants that had previously paid a registration fee can redirect it as a tax-deductible donation to Children's Minnesota, or have it refunded. Participants that raise at least $100 will receive a t-shirt for each participant. On Monday, May 4, Children's Minnesota will begin weekly themes to help inspire fun and healthy daily activities for families. The campaign will culminate on Saturday, May 30. On that day, Children's Minnesota will share photos and honor accomplishments on its social media channels. Boston Scientific, Prime Therapeutics, Cities 97, Colliers, Fidelity, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Upper Midwest and Priority Courier Experts remain as sponsors of the Virtual Walk for Amazing. Children's Minnesota is grateful for the continued support of these companies through this event change. Donate to Children's Minnesota Virtual Walk for Amazing About Children's Minnesota Children's Minnesota is the seventh largest pediatric health system in the United States and the only health system in Minnesota to provide care exclusively to children, from before birth through young adulthood. An independent and not-for-profit system since 1924, Children's Minnesota serves kids throughout the Upper Midwest at two free-standing hospitals, 12 primary and specialty care clinics and six rehabilitation sites. Children's Minnesota is regularly ranked by U.S. News & World Report as a top children's hospital. Find us on Facebook @childrensminnesota or on Twitter and Instagram @childrensmn. Please visit childrensMN.org. SOURCE Children's Minnesota Related Links www.childrensmn.org A Massachusetts doctor hatched a secret deal to buy 250,000 Chinese-made masks and respirators using disguised trucks, a secret warehouse meeting, and a $1million wire transfer - all of which was nearly derailed after he was paid a visit by the FBI. Dr. Andrew Artenstein, a chief physician executive at Baystate Health in Springfield, said that he arranged to pick up a shipment of respirators and face masks by using two large trucks disguised as food delivery vehicles so as not to tip off the feds. The hoops Artenstein had to jump through to obtain personal protective equipment read more like a spy novel than supply run. Artenstein said in Fridays New England Journal of Medicine that the saga began with a tip from a friend of a friend of a member of their supply team about a lot of face masks and N95 respirators. 'Protecting our caregivers is essential so that these talented professionals can safely provide compassionate care to our patients,' Artenstein wrote. Dr. Andrew Artenstein, a chief physician executive at Baystate Health in Springfield, Massachusetts, was questioned by the FBI after arranging a secret, $1million deal to buy PPE for his hospital in an elaborate scheme to avoid detection by the federal government Hospitals around the country have been stymied by shortages of critically needed personal protective equipment. Medics are seen above tending to an elderly patient in New York City on Monday 'Yet we continue to be stymied by a lack of personal protective equipment, and the cavalry does not appear to be coming.' Artenstein wrote that local hospitals have been frustrated by the inability to receive badly needed gowns and other protective equipment, which in many cases have been seized by the federal government even though shipments were bound for states. The situation has gotten so bad that instead of cooperating with the federal government, it has instead become an obstacle. 'Deals, some bizarre and convoluted, and many involving large sums of money, have dissolved at the last minute when we were outbid or outmuscled, sometimes by the federal government,' Artenstein wrote in the article. Artenstein revealed that he had received a tip 'from an acquaintance of a friend of a team member' about a large shipment of respirators and face masks. Before agreeing to the deal, he demanded to know that the face masks and respirators fit properly. After pulling together the money five times what the masks would normally cost team members were flown to a small airport near an industrial warehouse in the mid-Atlantic region. Artenstein arrived by car to make the final call. Two semi-trailer trucks, disguised as food-service trucks, met them there. The trucks would take different routes back to Massachusetts to escape detection. Hours before the deal, they were told to expect just a quarter of the original order. 'We went anyway, since we desperately needed any supplies we could get,' Artenstein wrote. 'Upon arrival, we were jubilant to see pallets of KN95 respirators and face masks being unloaded. 'We opened several boxes, examined their contents, and hoped that this random sample would be representative of the entire shipment.' Before they could wire the funds, Artenstein said two FBI agents arrived and started questioning him. Artenstein said he had to convince them the masks was headed to a hospital, not the black market. 'They were good guys,' Artenstein told The Boston Globe. 'And I mean that in the broad sense. 'They were trying to do their jobs and make sure this got to places where it was really needed.' The FBI agents allowed Artenstein and his team to take the masks and respirators back to Springfield. As the gear was being driven to Massachusetts, Artenstein said he then learned the Department of Homeland Security was considering redirecting the equipment. Artenstein than placed a call to House Rep. Richard Neal, the Democratic member of Congress who represents Springfield. Neal managed to get the masks and respirators released after getting in touch with the US Department of Health and Human Services. 'It was a tense period there for a few hours there,' Neal, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, told the Globe. Neal said he told federal officials 'there are a lot of lives that could be on the line because of this, and I wanted that equipment moved now.' The FBI told the Globe that it is working 'to ensure PPE is not being unlawfully distributed or hoarded.' Homeland Security representatives could not be reached to comment. Artenstein told the Globe that he believes Baystate may have started to flatten the curve. On April 12, the hospital took in 160 COVID-19 patients. As of Sunday, that figure declined slightly, according to the Globe. Despite getting the shipment of masks, he still needs protective gowns for his doctors and nurses. Artenstein said he was still in shock that a doctor such as himself needed to get involved in supply chain operations just to make sure his staff was fully equipped. 'Did I foresee, as a health-system leader working in a rich, highly developed country with state-of-the-art science and technology and incredible talent, that my organization would ever be faced with such a set of circumstances?' he wrote in the article. 'Of course not.' Massachusetts has become a hot spot of coronavirus infections, drawing the concern of federal officials and promises of aid from hard-hit New York as the states death toll prepares to double in less than a week. Deaths from COVID-19 are expected to surpass 2,000 this week in Massachusetts, where officials are scrambling to boost hospital capacity and trace new infections to curb the spread of the disease. 'We're right in the middle of the surge now,' Republican Governor Charlie Baker said Sunday on CBS Face the Nation. Vice President Mike Pence said the White House is closely watching the Boston area, and the coordinator of the federal coronavirus task force, Dr. Deborah Birx, said officials are 'very much focused' on Massachusetts. There were 146 new deaths reported in Massachusetts on Sunday, bringing the states death toll to more than 1,700. More than 1,700 new cases were reported, for a total of more than 38,000 across the state. That compares with more than 14,000 deaths in New York state and over 35,000 nationally. Massachusetts is hoping to bend the curve by using a group of 'contact tracers' to alert people who may have come in contact with someone who tested positive for the virus so they can self-quarantine or be tested themselves. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram Even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck Mexico, the country was already one of the most dangerous in the world for journalists, according to CPJ research. Although the number of confirmed infections and deaths in Mexico is still relatively low, the country is bracing for an exponential increase in infections and the inevitable strain it will place on the countrys healthcare system, according to local news reports. Mexican reporters and editors told CPJ that they are deeply concerned about the pandemic. Recently, dozens of reporters in the northern state of Coahuila asked the state government for tests after they covered a protest of medical personnel where an outbreak of COVID-19 was detected, according to reports. CPJ spoke with four journalists in phone interviews last week about the risks of covering COVID-19 in Mexico, the measures they and their outlets are taking to protect themselves, and the challenges they face in an already difficult media landscape. Their answers have been edited for length and clarity. Sergio Rodriguez, staff reporter, El Siglo de Torreon newspaper (Monclova, Coahuila state) Its difficult for reporters in my area to cover COVID-19. In Monclova, where I work as a correspondent for my newspaper, theres very little we can do to protect ourselves. The federal and state governments havent taken any measures to make sure our work is safer. The municipal government gave some face masks, as did my newspaper, but theyre just single-use, so they dont provide much protection. Our town is already pretty much in lockdown, so there arent many events or gatherings to cover. That said, I still have to get out there to report and to get photos. If I go to a hospital, my newspaper recommends I stay dozens of feet away from people. The risk here is real. A few weeks ago, there was an outbreak of COVID-19 in a federal hospital in Monclova. Medical personnel organized two demonstrations; they said the Mexican Institute for Social Security, which runs the hospital, didnt provide them with enough personal protective equipment. It turned out that several of the protesters tested positive for COVID-19. We had to mix with the doctors and nurses to interview them and take photos. Later, some of the reporters came down with symptoms similar to those of COVID-19, so last week we asked the state government to have us tested, almost 50 reporters altogether. Thankfully, as far as Im aware, none of us tested positive. I have to take my own precautions. I live with my wife and two children, and my daughter has a baby. When I arrive at home, I immediately clean all my equipment, my clothes go straight to the washing machine, and I take a shower. Thats not something the government recommends, its something I feel I need to do. Adela Navarro Bello is seen at the Zeta headquarters on June 28, 2011. (AFP/Ruben Victorio) Adela Navarro Bello, editor-in-chief, Zeta Magazine (Tijuana, Baja California state) Tijuana has one of the worst outbreaks of COVID-19 in the country. On April 15, we had 370 confirmed cases and at least 30 deaths. Weve been as careful as we can be with our own reporters, because were very concerned about their health. Since the third week of March, almost all of our journalists are working from home. Only two days per week, for eight hours, theres a small team of editors at the office. They practice social distancing at their place of work. Weve provided our reporters with gloves, face masks, and antibacterial gel when they have to go out on the street to report, only a very small number at any time. I think the most difficult aspect for us is the lack of transparency, the fact that the authorities are hermetic and will only provide us with information when they want to, and then as little as is convenient to them. The environment has become hostile; the state government says they dont trust us, that the media arent telling the truth. Theres an issue with the numbers. Zeta reported that there have been at least 240 cases of what hospitals call atypical pneumonia, which hasnt been officially reported as being related to COVID-19. We already reported on that in early April. The hospitals are in a deplorable state; medical services are very deficient. Weve been in touch with doctors at the federal Mexican Institute for Social Security, which runs most of the federal hospitals here. The IMSS isnt fully transparent. Its difficult to get access to whats happening inside and to get correct information through official channels, so we depend on what our sources in the healthcare system are telling us. I think this lack of transparency is very dangerous. Citizens here need to know how bad the situation is, and were just not getting enough information from the authorities. Theyre placing everyone, citizens and journalists, at risk. Tamara Mares, freelance reporter (Queretaro, Queretaro state) I havent graduated from university yet and I just recently started working as a reporter, so my experience is limited. That said, I think there are a lot of angles of COVID-19 that havent been covered yet. The governor has tested positive, but there has been a very tight control on information since. One of the biggest problems I encounter when reporting here is that the government wont give me much in terms of detailed information. I asked the state authorities to provide me with the number of confirmed cases in every municipality, and they refused to give me the information. They said they wanted to prevent infected people from being discriminated against in smaller communities. I dont go out to report much, and try to work using the internet as much as possible. There are many reporters who are very exposed here, though. They dont make a lot of money and they have very little in terms of social security or protection. As a young journalist, Im very concerned about the future of the Mexican press. Knowing that theres a severe economic crisis coming, even as Mexican media outlets are already struggling, is very disheartening. This is a crisis that wont be solved any time soon. Its going to be very difficult to find work. Novedades Quintana Roo staff reporter Alex Castro (Photo: Alex Castro) Alex Castro, staff reporter, Novedades Quintana Roo (Cancun, Quintana Roo state) Honestly, Im most concerned about the economic fallout for journalism. Itll be far worse than the actual pandemic were facing right now. Here in Quintana Roo, lots of media outlets have cut the salaries of reporters, laid off staff, or stopped publishing altogether. The economy of this state depends almost completely on tourism, and there are no more tourists coming in. If theres no advertisements from the private sector, most media end up depending completely on government advertising. With all these salary cuts, many of my colleagues are struggling to pay their bills. Some used to make only $320 per month, now they have to do their job with only half of that. If their families work in tourism, theres no more income if they lose their job. As far as I know, none of the media here provide their reporters with any kind of protective equipment. We pay for our own face masks, antibacterial gel, and other items. At least the government has been relatively conscious of the risks for reporters. All the press conferences and events organized by the state authorities have been suspended. We now mostly communicate with our sources through WhatsApp and other apps. The risks are still considerable, because most reporters in Quintana Roo dont have anything in terms of social security, and have to pay for medical expenses themselves. Many media organizations here dont pay for anything. Airlines, restaurants, retailers, farmers and a slew of other industries are getting billions of dollars in bailouts as the U.S. economy contracts because of the coronavirus pandemic but Americas oil companies are hitting a dry hole. U.S. oil futures prices fell to their lowest-ever level by far on Monday, at -$37.63 per barrel, meaning owners of the futures contracts were paying to offload them. It broke the previous low price record near $10 a barrel set in 1986 and comes as policymakers struggled to address the glut of crude that has seen the industry reverse a decade-long boom and sink into a deep recession that threatens to push dozens of companies into bankruptcy. U.S. policymakers for decades have focused their policies on ensuring the oil supply shocks that damaged the U.S. economy in the 1970s would not return, and they created a national reserve to backstop the market and ensure supplies were available to fill up the nation's fleet of automobiles and trucks. But with U.S. production hitting record levels late last year and storage tanks now brimming with fuel, Washington has few tools at its disposal to lift oil prices to levels needed to sustain the energy industry. The U.S. government's ability to fundamentally change this situation are minimal, said Raymond James oil analyst Pavel Molchanov. The real problem is the fact that upwards of 20 percent of global oil demand is currently offline, mainly due to the Covid-related lockdowns. President Donald Trump won praise last week for helping push Russia and Saudi Arabia to end a market standoff and reduce shipments oil. But those cuts won't take effect until next month, hurting near-term prices for crude and leaving oil producers scrambling to find storage for their production. A White House spokesperson referred questions about any new efforts to aid the oil industry to the National Security Council, which did not respond. A Department of Energy spokesperson did not reply to questions. Story continues After Congress rejected an Energy Department request for $3 billion to buy oil to top off the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the agency altered course and is now allowing companies to lease space in the facilities for 30 million barrels of oil. But even that amount, as well as another 47 million barrels that could flow into federal storage in the coming weeks, will do little to sop up the extra production that is adding more than 2 million barrels per day to private storage tanks. Reports that the Trump administration was considering paying oil companies not to pump oil under a plan that would reclassify those supplies still in the ground as part of the nation's strategic reserves have not comforted oil executives. Dan Eberhart, chief executive of oil services company Canary LLC, dismissed the talk of paying drilling companies to keep the oil in the ground as mostly headfakes. A tidal wave of bankruptcies is about to hit the sector, Eberhart said. U.S. May crude oil futures sunk under $6 a barrel as traders were forced to roll out of their investments ahead of the contract's expiration. The active June contract was down about $2.50 to $22.60 a barrel. And industry officials who have met with the White House have previously said that administration officials have assured Saudi Arabia that the federal government would not directly aid U.S. oil and gas companies, and would instead allow the market conditions to drive business decisions to reduce the oversupply in the market. OPEC, Russia and a groups of other producers agreed to cut production by 9.7 million barrels per day starting in May, and producers in the U.S. and Canada are shutting down wells in a retrenchment that's expected to remove millions of more barrels in the coming months. Until that supply shrinks or there is a rebound in global demand which is estimated to have declined by 20 million to 30 million barrels per day there is little chance the industry will return to firm footing. To make matters worse, a group of oil tankers that left Saudi Arabia before the country agreed to cut production is currently heading toward the U.S. That oil will further strain storage capacity unless another country buys them before they reach the U.S. Its like some movie from the 1980s where the U.S. president and the Soviet premier come to an agreement" to halt a nuclear war, "[but] one plane missed the call back, said one industry official tracking the ships but was not authorized to speak to the press. Advertisement By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 19, 2020 | FRANKFORT By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 19, 2020 | 07:13 PM | FRANKFORT Governor Andy Beshear today highlighted the work and sacrifices of a range of Kentuckians who are winning the fight against the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Remember in this crisis, what everybody does matters, the Governor said. And everybody who makes a good decision, does something heroic. Governor Beshear identified three areas where Kentuckians are answering the call to protect the health and safety of their fellow citizens. Health Care Heroes: The Governor praised the thousands of health care workers who are caring for the rest of us, many at a heightened risk of contracting the coronavirus. We have better results because we have better care and better caregivers than anybody could imagine, Gov. Beshear said. These are also our folks working in retirement homes and senior living facilities and doing so much. Front-Line Heroes: The Governor also put a spotlight on front-line workers who have kept the wheels of commerce and industry moving while other large sectors have shut down. This has changed the way that we think about that in this pandemic, Gov. Beshear said. We have our police, our firefighters, our EMS and our corrections officers. Wed normally think about them. We have our truck drivers, our utility workers, our grocery store employees, our janitorial and cleaning staff and custodians. We have more types of front-line heroes during this than wed ever thought of and appreciated. Everyday Heroes: Most important, Governor Beshear said, are the efforts of everyday Kentuckians. The sacrifices everyone has made is paying off in a lower infection rate, less stress on the health care system and ultimately lives saved. Everybody who every day does the right thing, the Governor said. Think about it: Just by following the guidance, by doing the right thing, by limiting our contacts, just by staying home your actions may have and likely did save lives. Isnt that the definition of being a hero? Sign Up for Drive-Through Testing: Governor Beshear urged people to sign up for testing at four recently announced new drive-through testing sites. People in and around the communities of Madisonville, Paducah, Somerset and Pikeville can sign up for testing that begins later this week. We need people in those areas, in the general geographic areas to sign up, the Governor said. The sites want to do more than 300 tests per day. I want to make sure we do every single one of those tests each day. Now, we have more than 300 in each of the regions that fall into those that are eligible. We need you to go ahead and start signing up. Those seeking to obtain a test can get location and registration details at KROGERHEALTH.COM/COVIDTESTING. Those eligible for the tests include people exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, including fever, shortness of breath and cough; health care workers and first responders who may have been exposed to coronavirus; and anyone with mild symptoms who also may have been exposed to COVID-19. The testing is done free of charge. The overall goal of the partnership is to conduct 20,000 tests over the next five weeks. Test results are expected within approximately 48 hours. Benchmarks for Reopening Economy: Governor Beshear reiterated the details about newly announced benchmarks that the commonwealth must meet in order to start reopening the states economy while keeping Kentuckians safe from the novel coronavirus. The Governor said the states seven benchmarks which reflect guidance from the White House would determine the phases for reopening parts of the economy. Benchmark criteria for Kentucky to move to the first stage: 14 days of decreasing cases Increased testing capacity and contact tracing Personal protective equipment (PPE) availability Ability to protect at-risk populations Ability to social distance and follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines on large gatherings Preparedness for possible future spike Status of vaccine and treatment For more information on the White Houses criteria and all three proposed phases of reopening, visit whitehouse.gov/openingamerica. So lets make sure as much as were looking at those benchmarks and were looking at the future, that we are acting in the present and we are doing the things that it takes to protect one another, Governor Beshear said. Case Information: As of 5 p.m. April 19, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 2,960 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 273 of which were newly confirmed. Weve had our highest number of new cases today, the Governor said. That doesnt mean we are not on the right track; we are. This is just how this virus works. Unfortunately, Governor Beshear also reported four new deaths Sunday, raising the states toll to 148 deaths related to the virus. We are still in the midst of this fight against a deadly and highly contagious virus, the Governor said. The seven newly reported deaths include a 93-year-old woman from Graves County, a 94-year-old woman from Hopkins County, an 85-year-old woman from Jackson County and a 61-year-old man from Jefferson County. Governor Beshear also shared a familys story of loss out of Hopkins County. Like all the coronavirus victims, Freda Furgerson Woods is not a number on the daily list. Her family shared their grief on social media after the 85-year-old woman from Hopkins County passed. My nana was a wife, a mother and a grandmother, one of her granddaughters wrote in a sweet tribute. She was a talker and also a storyteller. This July, she and her husband, Doug, would have celebrated 64 years of marriage. Now, even more heartbreaking for this one family, they have learned that their grandfather has also tested positive. Our hearts go out to the Woods family. We are thinking about you and when we light our houses green tonight we will be thinking about your beloved Nana and your grandfather as well, the Governor said. Freda and her family are one of the reasons we all have to do our part so we have fewer families mourning, fewer communities that are in harm. As Fredas family unfortunately knows too well, the threat is very real. This is why we are taking these steps. Governor Beshear continues to encourage Kentuckians to light up their homes and businesses green for those we have lost as a sign of compassion and renewal. At least 1,122 people have recovered from COVID-19 in Kentucky. Governor Beshear said this was great news and that about 38% of Kentuckians with the virus have recovered. To date, at least 32,319 people have been tested. At least 1,011 people have ever been hospitalized with 265 currently hospitalized. At least 532 have ever been in the ICU with at least 149 people currently in the ICU. Governor Beshear also offered an update on the racial breakdown of COVID-19 patients and victims, which unfortunately highlights existing disparities in health and health care access. The Governor said with about 76% of the known cases accounted for, 77.71% of Kentuckians who tested positive were Caucasian, 13.13% were African-American, 5.36% were multiracial, 3.75% were Asian and 0.05% were Native American or Alaskan Native. He also said with about 71% of the known cases accounted for, 92.61% of people who tested positive were non-Hispanic and 7.39% were Hispanic. On fatalities attributed to the coronavirus, with about 81% of the known cases accounted for, Kentucky deaths are about 77.5% Caucasian, 21.67% African-American and 0.83% Asian. On fatalities attributed to the coronavirus, with about 80% of the known cases accounted for, Kentucky deaths are about 99.15% non-Hispanic and 0.85% Hispanic. More Information: The Governor is asking all Kentuckians to continue to fight the spread of the virus by following his 10-step guidance, which includes practicing social distancing and staying healthy at home. Gov. Beshear says these efforts have the potential to save the lives of as many as 11,000 Kentuckians. Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov, kycovid19.ky.gov and the Governors official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Watch the Governors social media accounts at 5 p.m. ET each day for his regular briefing. Kentuckians can also access translated COVID-19 information and daily summaries of the Governors press conference at tinyurl.com/kygovespanol (Spanish) and tinyurl.com/kygovtranslations (more than 20 additional languages). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) encourages people to follow these steps to prevent illness. Kentuckians who want advice can call the state hotline at 800-722-5725 or call their local health care provider. Team Kentucky hashtags for social media #TeamKentucky, #TogetherKY, #Patriot and #HealthyAtHome. Almost 70%of young people (aged 16-19) in Ireland are optimistic that society will change for the better in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thats according to new research published on Monday, which was carried out by Young Social Innovators with its partner, market research and data specialists, Amarach Research. The results of the research come five and a half weeks since the closure of schools across the country, and offers rich insight into how young people are coping with life during the ongoing public health emergency, and of their perceptions of what life may look like afterwards. Key findings include: 37 per cent of young people are feeling calm, positive, motivated and enthusiastic during the current pandemic, while 53 per cent are feeling anxious, stressed or depressed. 66 per cent of young people surveyed have spoken to, or confided in, a family member or friend about how they are feeling as a result of COVID-19. Maintaining a connection to friends is important for young people amidst the crisis, with almost 70 per cent spending more time on the phone / internet with friends while confined to the home. Almost all young people surveyed feel they have some knowledge of COVID-19, with six in 10 stating that they know a lot. 70 per cent of young people are engaging with the news at least once a day, with over 80 per cent getting their news from television. There is clarity among the majority of young people regarding hand washing etiquette and social distancing, and they have a clear understanding of the importance of following Government guidelines. However, young people are less clear around what to do if someone in their family develops symptoms. The majority (94 per cent) of young people have stopped going out to meet up with friends; 80 per cent are keeping at least two metres apart from people when in public; 78 per cent are practising strict handwashing, and 68 per cent are practicing proper coughing hygiene. Almost 80 per cent of young people are using an app to keep in touch with friends, with Snapchat (83 per cent) and Instagram (57 per cent) the most-used platforms. There is a strong interest among young people in helping out in their community, with 52 per cent of those surveyed having a desire to help, or are already helping. More than eight in 10 young people feel COVID-19 is impacting on their life a lot. CEO of YSI, Rachel Collier said: "As Irelands young people come of age during unprecedented times, it is important that we understand how they are faring amidst such crisis and uncertainty. "We are encouraged by the level of awareness among young people, their interest in staying informed, their knowledge of Government guidelines, and their high levels of commitment to following these, all of which suggests they are playing their part in the national effort, and know what is expected of them to do so. "While we are buoyed that many young people are remaining positive amidst the emergency, we must acknowledge the many others who may not be managing as well. "While the research suggests that the young people surveyed are open to expressing how they feel with those close to them, we ask that parents, guardians and relations check up on the young people in their lives by phone or email, and offer a listening ear to any worries or frustrations they may have." Life after COVID-19 Sarah Rooney, Associate Director, Amarach Research stated: "Overall, the research reveals that the majority (68 per cent) of young people in Ireland are hopeful for the future, post-COVID-19, and are optimistic that society will change for the better. "Those surveyed hope that wider society will re-evaluate life, and appreciate that which may have previously been taken for granted. "They are also aware of communities coming together and hope that this will continue, as well as the positive environmental impact of the economic shutdown. "However, among those (32 per cent) who think society will be impacted for the worse, 40 per cent worry about the threat of recession." Ms Collier added that: "The strong interest among young people in helping their communities deal with the impact of the Coronavirus as demonstrated in these findings reinforces previous YSI / Amarach research in this area. "The YSI / Amarach Gen Z Index, published in May 2019, found that this age group are keen to make a positive difference in the world and rated such contribution as the most important indicator of a successful life. "Such contribution and participation should be encouraged and enabled as we collectively deal with and begin to emerge from this crisis to rebuild our country. "Any discussions of the kind of world we wish to live in after this crisis must include young peoples perspectives. "We must also listen to young peoples anxieties concerning a potential economic downturn, appreciating that it will likely be the second recession they have lived through, and be cognisant of the strain this may put on them and their families, and on their mental health in particular." Open Call to Teenagers #YSIOpenCall In light of these findings and as part of its response to COVID-19, YSI is launching an Open Call to Teenagers to submit ideas in response to the challenges they see emerging from this crisis. The Open Call to Teenagers to explore, create and innovate around issues caused by Coronavirus runs from 20th April until 31st May. YSI will provide support for young people to develop their ideas before submission. Those with the most potential for impact will be given the opportunity to pitch to a digital panel of leaders from across business, NGO and Government, hosted by Virgin Media. Ms Collier said: "YSI is looking for young peoples ideas on how to tackle the problems in our communities as a result of COVID-19. "I would ask them to look around their home, family or community and see what is working, what is not working, and what can be done to help in this time of crisis. "No idea is too big or too small, and I would encourage all young people to think about how they can explore, create, innovate and make a difference, and enter the YSI Open Call." For more information, visit: www.youngsocialinnovators.ie. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Berlin, Germany Mon, April 20, 2020 15:55 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd30c511 2 World Germany,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,treatment,patients,health Free Germany will foot the bill for treating novel coronavirus patients taken in from European Union neighbor countries as a gesture of goodwill, Health Minister Jens Spahn said Monday. Germany has been spared the worst of the coronavirus crisis seen in some of its hard-hit European neighbors, and has taken in patients -- mainly from France and Italy -- to relieve pressure on their overburdened healthcare systems. More than 200 seriously ill COVID-19 patients from other EU nations are currently in German intensive care units, at a cost of about 20 million euros ($21.7 million). "Germany will cover the treatment costs of these patients, that is what we understand by European solidarity," Spahn said ahead of a meeting of ministers tackling the virus crisis on Monday. "The willingness and capacity is there to admit more if necessary," he added. The number of coronavirus deaths and infections in Germany has remained well below some of its neighbors. As of Monday, Europe's biggest economy had over 140,000 confirmed cases and 4,404 deaths, while Spain and Italy have reported more than 20,000 deaths each. France has close to 20,000 fatalities while Britain has more than 16,000. Germany had 28,000 intensive care beds before the start of the crisis and has since increased that number to 30,000. Over 12,600 beds remained free Sunday according to the Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive and Emergency Medicine (DIVI). Spahn's announcement came as many parts of Germany prepared to reopen some shops and schools on Monday after weeks of lockdown. The health minister said Friday the pandemic was "under control". The Ghana Police Service has arrested two people in Tamale for violating the ban on social gatherings in the country as instructed by the president. The two persons were among a number of people at a marriage ceremony on Sunday at Kukuo a suburb of Tamale. Narrating the incident, the service said they were alerted by a caller about a marriage ceremony where they rushed quickly to the location and arrested the two young men. The duo Iddi Ibrahim a 34-year-old worker at the Northern regional coordinating council and Abubakari Yussif Dauda a 33-year-old businessman were arrested at the scene where they had parked their cars taking part in the ceremony. They have however cautioned the public to continue to observe the ban on social gatherings as the virus spreads through bodily contact: "The Police would like to reiterate that gathering in crowds is unlawful and it puts everyone at the risk of spreading the coronavirus disease." The two young men are in police custody and would be arraigned before the court of law tomorrow. In the past few weeks, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been widely hailed by the national media as a strong and pragmatic leader during the coronavirus outbreak. Some have even pegged him as a potential addition to Joe Bidens administration, should the former vice president win in November. Time and again, however, Cuomo has insisted that behind his response to the pandemic lies no political agenda. During his morning press conference on April 11, he tried to put the rumors to rest: Im not running for president. Im not running for vice president. Im not running anywhere. Im not going to Washington. Im staying right here. Biden is the only remaining Democratic presidential candidate after U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race on April 8. While Cuomo has referred to Biden as a personal friend and opened up his fundraising network to Biden in April 2019, he hasnt issued an official endorsement. But, what would happen to New York if Cuomo did assume a position in Bidens Cabinet? To put it simply, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul would be sworn in as the new governor and finish Cuomos term until the next scheduled gubernatorial election in 2022. This procedure isnt unprecedented or unusual but it wasnt always this way. Here are all the times when lieutenant governors have stepped in to carry out a gubernatorial term in New York. Gov. Daniel Tompkins Replaced by Lt. Gov. John Tayler In February 1817, Lt. Gov. John Tayler assumed the governorship when Gov. Daniel Tompkins resigned after being elected vice president alongside President James Monroe. Tayler was New Yorks sixth governor, but only served for four months and was replaced by DeWitt Clinton in a special election. He continued to serve as Clintons lieutenant governor through the end of 1822. Gov. DeWitt Clinton Replaced by Lt. Gov. Nathaniel Pitcher In 1826, Nathaniel Pitcher, then a congressman, was elected lieutenant governor of New York. But halfway through his term, he took over as governor because Gov. DeWitt Clinton died in February 1828. Pitcher served the remainder of the term and was replaced by Martin Van Buren the following year. Gov. Martin Van Buren Replaced by Lt. Gov. Enos T. Throop In 1828, Enos T. Throop joined fellow Democratic-Republican gubernatorial candidate Martin Van Burens ticket as lieutenant governor. But Van Buren resigned only two months into his term to become U.S. secretary of state. Throop took over as governor until he was elected to his own term in 1830. He never sought another term. Gov. Grover Cleveland Replaced by Lt. Gov. David B. Hill After Gov. Grover Cleveland was elected president in 1884, former assemblyman and then-Lt. Gov. David B. Hill became governor. He was elected to a full term in November 1885 and was reelected to a second full term as governor in 1888. Gov. Charles Evans Hughes Replaced by Lt. Gov. Horace White In 1908 election, Horace White became lieutenant governor on the Republican ticket with Gov. Charles Evans Hughes. When Hughes resigned in October 1910 to become an associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, White took over as governor until the end of the year. At the end of his term, White retired from public service to work at his Syracuse legal practice. Gov. Herbert Lehman Replaced by Lt. Gov. Charles Poletti Charles Poletti, who served as the lieutenant governor of New York from 1939 to 1942, became the first Italian American governor in U.S. history after then-Gov. Herbert Lehman went to work for the U.S. Department of State. Poletti was only governor for one month before serving in World War II, first as special assistant to the secretary of war and then as a civil affairs officer in the Army. Gov. Nelson Rockefeller Replaced by Lt. Gov. Malcolm Wilson Nelson Rockefeller and Malcolm Wilson were a powerful political duo even before they ran on a joint ticket as governor and lieutenant governor in 1958. The Rockefeller-Wilson ticket was reelected three times and Wilson served as lieutenant governor for nearly 15 years. But, after Rockefeller resigned as governor in 1973, Wilson assumed the governorship. He ran for reelection in 1974, but lost to Hugh Carey. Gov. Eliot Spitzer Replaced by Lt. Gov. David Paterson DavidPaterson had held the title of lieutenant governor for only a little more than a year when Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned amid a prostitution scandal in March 2008. Paterson became New Yorks first black governor and served out the rest of Spitzers term, after which Andrew Cuomo was elected governor. Nigerian authorities in the Rivers state have freed 22 Exxon employees who were arrested last week and quarantined for breaching a coronavirus containment order that restricts movement across the state. The Rivers State Government on Sunday released 22 staff of Exxon Mobil who were arrested for violating the State Executive Order restricting movement in the state, the state government said in a statement cited by Reuters. Nigeria has reported 627 confirmed cases of Covid-19, with 21 fatalities, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. To help contain the disease, the countrys petroleum industry watchdog ordered offshore field operators to reduce their workforce on platforms and extend their rotations to 28 days from 14 days. Meanwhile, as it also battles the effects of the supply-demand imbalance, Nigeria has slashed its oil prices by as much as $3 per barrel to attract more buyers. Even so, it may fail to do so as supply continues to far outweigh the demand for crude. The demand destruction and the low oil prices will hit many African oil producers, with Nigeria leading the pack with estimated revenue losses of $15.4 billion at $30 oil this year, estimates from the Atlantic Councils Africa Center showed last week. The coronavirus is also taking its toll, and things could get worse before they get better, at least according to the World Health Organization. The WHO warned last week that Africa could become the next epicenter of the disease, after Europe and North America. The number of known cases in Africa had risen by 51 percent over the week to Friday, April 18, the WHOs director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreysus said, while the number of reported deaths increased by 60 percent over that same period. Ghebreysus has said that the real figures are likely higher than those being reported. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: In a shocking incident, three people who were travelling in a car were beaten to death by a group of villagers in Palghar district of Maharashtra. The incident that happened on Thursday night in the Gadchinchle village came to light only after the videos of the horrific, shot by some of the villagers began making rounds on social media. SCREENGRAB In one of the several videos being circulated, a group of armed men can be seen attacking an elderly man with sticks while a police team was still around. According to reports two of those killed were Sadhus and the third was their driver. See this @mesunainah ma'am, police are running away from the saint and driver and letting villagers do what they want to do. I don't understand why police didn't use gun to stop villagers from lynching 3 innocent lives pic.twitter.com/lDBuetb0Ka Amit mallick (@Akmtweets1) April 19, 2020 The trio was travelling from Kandivali in Mumbai to Gujrat. In the village, a group of men mistook them for thieves and stopped their vehicle. Before they could seek police help, the mob began attacking them and also damaged their vehicle. Even after the police reached the spot they could not do anything as the violent mob turned on them. The mob attack was reportedly triggered by rumors that there were incidents of robberies by migrants during the lockdown. SCREENGRAB "I want to appeal to everyone to not believe in rumours. No one is coming to steal from your village or take your child's kidneys. Villagers have taken the matter into their hands and we will take necessary action," Kailash Shinde, the District Collector, said. An FIR has been filed against 110 people, who have been arrested, and out of which 101 accused have been sent to the police custody till April 30. Nine minors have been sent to a juvenile shelter home. Condemning the incident Maharashtra opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis said: "Seeing the visuals that have come out, Palghar incident of mob lynching is shocking & inhuman. It is more disturbing especially when we are going through such tough times otherwise too. I urge the State Government to immediately set up a High-Level Enquiry and ensure that people who are responsible for this are brought to justice at the earliest," he tweeted. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday night said that culprits involved in lynching of three men in Palghar district will be brought to justice. "The Palghar incident has been acted upon. The police has arrested all those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and the police personnel, on the day of the crime itself. "Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible," the CM said. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh has already announced a high-level inquiry into the incident. Recounting real-life experiences by retired servicemen is keeping the josh high among residents Police personnel stand guard at Model Town police colony, identified as a COVID-19 hotspot, during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, in New Delhi. PTI Photo Hyderabad: As a young Major from 8 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army, Col. SK Sinha (retd), then posted in Sri Lanka, was part of a battalion that killed a top LTTE leader in Jaffna in December 1988. Skirmishes between the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) and LTTE was an everyday affair. The IPKF personnel had to sustain on basic ration and limited water. Despite lack of food, water, sleep and everyday hardships, our morale was high. The present lockdown is nothing compared to those hardships. We have enough food, water, shelter and rest. There is nothing to complain about, Col Sinha (retd) says. For 285 odd families residing at Patels Green Park apartments in Yapral, adjoining the Cantonment, recounting real-life experiences by retired officers of the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force is keeping the josh high among all residents during this crisis. In this residential society, where quite a few serving and retired officials from Indian tri-services reside, along with civilians, the faujis have taken it upon themselves to not only motivate residents, but also to take measures to ensure safety of all residents, putting to use skills acquired during operations in war zones. When I recount such incidents, my civilian friends feel motivated to go through lockdown cheerfully, says Col. Sinha (retd), ex-Black Cat commando. He has plenty of stories to share from his experiences in Sri Lanka, north-east and Jammu and Kashmir, where he participated in several operations. While chasing terrorists in north-east, we would get stuck in jungles for several days with hardly any food, drinking water or a view beyond 20 metres. This lockdown is a minor aberration in a comfortable, safe environment, Col. Jayant Rao (retd) shares with residents on the community WhatsApp group. Several years of disciplined life has made them excellent leaders in time of calamities, he says. Another officer, Col. Rao (retd) tells residents how when he was posted in eastern sector along the Indo-China border, at a height of 15,000 feet, with minimum infrastructure, with heavy snowfall. We were cut off and went without supplies for almost two weeks. We were fighting the enemy right in front of us, hostile weather and limited resources. Such experiences leave us with an attitude to to face any challenge in life, he said. The faujis are taking special care of elderly people, including ageing retired officials. A group of five families have adopted elderly couples, and share three meals a day with them. This ensured that once cooks and maids left due to the lockdown, they would not have to suffer. Due to high blood pressure, tremors of hands and blood sugar, I was unable to do any household chores. Without maids or any help, I got depressed, and had even become suicidal. Now, these five families have adopted me and provide me food in turns. They pack food in disposable containers so I dont have to wash, revealed 70-year-old Wing Commander Unni Kartha (retd), who lives alone. Col. A. Narsimham (retd), society president, said they have formed into volunteer officers, who ensure all elderly resident are provided help at doorstep, including services of doctors, and other daily essentials. They coordinated with GHMC and got all staircases, lifts and premises sanitised. Two of three entry/exit gates have been shut. A majority of India's working class has shown optimism about the long-term economic stability amid the coronavirus outbreak in the country. Nearly half of Indian professionals are confident about achieving financial betterment in the next six months, according to LinkedIn's Workforce Confidence Index report. Around 72 per cent Indians are confident that their companies will bounce back in the next two years. However, those surveyed are wary about jobs' availability, the company's financial situation and the impact on incomes and personal savings in the short-term. During the lockdown, 25 per cent Indians have reported a decrease in their incomes; 39 per cent reported a dip in personal savings; 42 per cent in personal spending; and 31 per cent in their investments. The Workforce Confidence Index also highlighted that 39 per cent job-seekers believe there will be fewer opportunities available. "The survey revealed that 64 per cent of job-seekers will increase their time spent on job search in the next two weeks, while more than half will increase their time spent building their resumes," according to LinkedIn. On the contrary, self-employed individuals have expressed lower confidence in job stability and financial betterment. Moreover, 63 per cent job-seekers, 61 per cent of self-employed professionals and 65 per cent of full-time employees said they would increase their time spent in online learning during the lockdown. "Based on the inaugural findings of the Workforce Confidence Index, it is reassuring to see a majority of India's workforce remain confident about long-term outlook, and determined in the short-term to upskill, pivot, and adapt. We believe that exercising healthy doses of the 3Cs - confidence, caution, and compassion - can help us navigate these challenging times," Ashutosh Gupta, India Country Manager, LinkedIn said. On companies offering health and emotional services to employees, the survey found 55 per cent of respondents saying they were offered remote working options. Only 25 per cent have flexible or part-time working hours, the survey added. Findings showed that only 24 per cent of Indian professionals were receiving support from their companies for physical health and 22 per cent for emotional wellbeing. The LinkedIn Index was based on an online survey of more than 1,000 members of the website. Also read: 1,000 foreign firms mull production in India, 300 actively pursue plan as 'Exit China' mantra grows Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown Relaxation: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs CBC John Travers, 47, is looking for love. "I'm looking for my last first date, my last first kiss, my forever love, my soul mate, and my best friend," Travers recently wrote in a lengthy Facebook post. Travers is also quick to tell you he has the same "wants, needs, desires, and feelings as anyone does." Yes, I'm able to have sex, and I'm a very affectionate, very loving man and I believe in lots of cuddling and affection. - John Travers The London, Ont., resident has cerebral palsy and lives in an Midland County recorded its third coronavirus death Monday and Gladwin County recorded its first, according to state reports released Monday afternoon. Any death is unfortunate, and our condolences go out to all the families who have been impacted by COVID-19," said Fred Yanoski, Midland County Public Health director/health officer. "To date, all three deaths have been associated with elderly individuals with pre-existing health conditions, which we know are at a higher risk of a severe outcome from COVID-19. I want to stress that the limited testing we have had to date does not necessarily reflect the amount of COVID-19 disease in the community. At this point, we are only including lab confirmed cases in the case counts, not presumptive or untested cases. In other words, the mortality rate in Midland County may seem much higher that it likely is due to the small sample size. Midland County added two more positive COVID-19 cases, bringing its total to 47 cases and three deaths. Gladwin County is at nine cases and one death. Three cases were added to Bay County, which is now at 85 cases and two deaths, while Isabella County remains at 52 cases and seven deaths. Saginaw County added 15 more cases, bringing its total to 419 cases and 29 deaths. The state on Monday added 576 new cases on Monday and 77 deaths. Overall, Michigan is at 32,000 cases and 2,468 deaths. The state lists the total recovered at 3,237 cases, as of April 18, which represents COVID-19 confirmed individuals with an onset date on or prior to March 18, 2020, according to the state website, mich.gov. During this response, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is reviewing vital records statistics to identify any laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases who are 30 days out from their onset of illness to represent recovery status, according to the state website. The numbers will be updated every Saturday. As of Monday, MidMichigan Health system has completed a total of 1,596 tests, according to information from the medical center. Of those, 1,415 were negative, 104 positive and 77 are pending. The health system covers a 23-county region in Michigan. The average death age is 73.8, according to the state website, mich.gov, with the deceased ranging in age from 5 to 107. The state lists 38% of the deceased as 80-plus and 28% age 70-79. State statistics show 56% of coronavirus deaths are male and 44% are female. The state lists the majority of races in positive cases as 33% Black/African American; 30% Caucasian and 25% unknown, and the top three races in deaths as 40% Black/African American; 43% Caucasian and 11% unknown The total positive cases are 45% men, 54% women and 1% unknown. 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. We cannot stress enough how important it is for our community to be diligent in their community mitigation efforts," said Fred Yanoski, Midland County Public Health director/health officer. "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." 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 e-mail: 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. Japan's health minister Kato Katsunobu has called on the Group of 20 major economies to lead global efforts to overcome the coronavirus pandemic. Kato made the appeal at a teleconference of G20 health ministers on Sunday. The meeting had been originally scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia, the current chair of the grouping. Kato said the world has drastically changed due to the rapid spread of the virus. He urged the G20 nations to work together to improve medical systems and develop treatments and vaccines. The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, also joined the meeting. He stressed that African and other nations with vulnerable healthcare systems are facing a "critical shortage of supplies" because of "weak supply chains." Tedros called on the G20 countries to work together to increase the production and "equitable distribution" of essential supplies. He also called for removing trade barriers that he said "put health workers and their patients at risk." New Delhi, April 20 : The Union Health Ministry on Monday said social distancing is the only vaccine in the absence of any vaccine for this viral infection and the duration of doubling rate for coronavirus cases which was 3.4 days before lockdown has become 7.5 days in the past seven days. Odisha and Kerala, meanwhile, have a doubling rate of more than 30 days. At the daily press briefing, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry, said as on April 19, 18 states have better doubling rate average than the national average. "States where doubling rate is less than 20 days are - Delhi (8.5 days), Karnataka (9.2 days), Telangana (9.4 days), Andhra Pradesh (10.6 days), J&K (11.5 days), Punjab (13.1 days), Chhattisgarh (13.3 days), Tamil Nadu (14 days) and Bihar (16.4 days)", he said. Total number of confirmed cases in India are 17,265, 2,546 people have been cured and 543 have succumbed to the disease. Total number of active cases in India is 14,175. Cases added in the past twenty four hours are 1,553 cases while 36 have died."So far, 2,546 people have been cured and the recovery rate is 14.75 per cent," said Agarwal. He added that states where doubling rate is between 20 days to 30 days are Andaman and Nicobar (20.1 days), Haryana (21 days), Chandigarh (25.4 days), Assam (25.8 days), Uttrakhand (26.6 days) and Ladakh (26.6 days) The Health Mnistry said that states which have shown a doubling rate more than 30 days are Odisha (39.8 days) and Kerala (72.2 days). Agarwal added that 3 districts - Mahe (Puducherry), Kodaggu (Karnataka) & Pauri Garhwal (Uttrakhand) have not reported any fresh cases during the last 28 days, while six new districts have had no cases in the past 14 days. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text A United Kingdom High Court bench that was hearing the high-octane case against liquor baron Vijay Mallya struck down his extradition appeal on April 20. The 64-year-old flamboyant businessman, who used to own Kingfisher Airlines, had appealed to the High Court to turn down Indias extradition request to try him for graft and money laundering. In their judgement, the bench observed: We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India [Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED)], there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India. So, what are the options left with Vijay Mallya to upend the appeal of the Government of India? He now has 14 days time to apply for a certificate from the High Court that would state that an arguable point of law of general public importance which should have been considered was overlooked by both the courts hearing his appeal. If he is able to obtain such a certificate from the UK High Court, only then he will be able to appeal against the extradition request in the UK Supreme Court. However, it is highly likely that the certificate would be refused by the High Court, in which case, UK Secretary of State for the Home Department Priti Patel, will take the final call on the matter. If she gives her consent, Mallyas extradition process to India will begin. Barrack number 12 of the Arthur Road jail in Maharashtras Mumbai has been prepared to house the magnate once he arrives and it is expected that fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi will also be lodged in the same cell, if and when he is extradited. Notably, India has been pushing for Mallyas extradition over primary charges of dishonesty, which include misrepresentations made to banks to get loans and misusing those loans. Mallya has defaulted on a loan amounting to Rs 9,000 crores approximately to a consortium of Indian banks led by the State Bank of India. He is facing charges of money laundering, cheating, diversion of loan funds, alongside violating Sebi norms, among others. Mallya has, however, repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and offered to repay the loan amount. The Haryana government on Monday ordered a probe after four samples reported positive for coronavirus by a private laboratory tested negative in confirmation tests done at the government centres. No samples will be given for testing to the private lab, pending outcome of the probe, Health Minister Anil Vij said. Vij said an auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM), who worked in a containment zone in Ambala, had tested positive for the infection on Saturday. Three other people too, all members of a family from Sahjadpur village near Ambala city, had also tested positive on Sunday. The samples of all the four were sent to the private laboratory for testing, he said. "However, subsequently two more samples of the ANM were sent for confirmation to Kalpana Chawla Medical College at Karnal and Bhagat Phool Singh Medical College at Khanpur in Sonipat and their report came negative on Monday, said Vij. Her sample had been tested by the private laboratory, he said. Likewise, in Shezadpur, three people had been declared positive by this laboratory. When we sent their samples to the medical college at Khanpur, they tested negative, he said. Vij said he has asked the health department to bar sending any more samples for tests to the laboratory, even though it had earlier been given due permission by the government to conduct the tests, and get entire matter inquired into and if a case is made out against them, then that be registered too. I have directed the Additional Chief Secretary-Health for the probe into the matter. I have also asked him that that tests of all the people conducted by the laboratory in the state so far should be got conducted again from government labs, he said. The manner in which tests are being conducted by this laboratory has raised suspicion. If you take the example of these four patients in Ambala district, based on the earlier test report from this private lab, we sealed particular area and quarantined their contacts as well, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two older health workers still caring for patients into their 70s and 80s have both died on the same day of coronavirus. Great-grandmother Margaret Tapley was working as an auxiliary nurse at the age of 84 and hailed as a legend on the ward. Sophie Fagan, 78, had served the NHS for more than five decades, starting as a nurse before becoming a hospital care co-ordinator. Ms Tapley's heartbroken granddaughter said her grandmother was like 'an additional parent' Both were helping patients well past retirement age before passing away on Sunday. Mrs Tapley had continued her night shifts at Witney Community Hospital in Oxfordshire and worked the last one of her 40-year career on April 10. Her family said she had been suffering symptoms before being admitted to the Great Western Hospital in Swindon three days before her death. Her grandson Tom Wood, a senior A&E nurse, said she inspired him to go into healthcare. Ms Tapley's granddaughter Hannah Tapley, a champion high jumper who has competed for team GB, said her grandmother would text and call her everyday She took huge pride in her work but was so humble, he added. She embodied the nursing spirit. I struggle with one or two night shifts but grandma routinely did three a week. Mrs Tapleys granddaughter Hannah Tapley said: She was the most hard-working, caring and perfect woman. Devoting her life to others and working for the NHS doing night shifts at her age. Stuart Bell, chief executive at Oxford Health trust, said: She was a legend on the ward and throughout the whole hospital. Mrs Fagan began nursing in 1966 and had been working since 2000 as a care co-ordinator at Homerton Hospital in East London, where she died. Mrs Fagan began nursing in 1966 and had been working since 2000 as a care co-ordinator at Homerton Hospital in East London Sophie Fagan, front row second left, arrived from India in 1961 to begin her nurse training. She has died aged 78 after contracting coronavirus. Picture: Homerton Hospital Tracey Fletcher, trust chief executive, said: Sophie wanted to make a difference and caring for the elderly was her passion. Her taste for the brightest and most colourful jumpers, her elegance and her ability to talk to anyone made her stand out. Daughter-in-law Deni Fagan said she was dedicated to her son John and grandson Jack, 16. She described Mrs Fagan as a fit and healthy lady who just loved life, nothing would have stopped her from working. She just refused to give up her job....despite her age. It goes to show what kind of lady she was. We are really very proud of her. Acute care nurse Michael Allieu, 53, became the second worker at the Homerton to die from the virus over the weekend. Homerton Hospital nurse Michael Allieu, who has died after contracting coronavirus The University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust confirmed the death of Patrick McManus, a nurse at Stafford's County Hospital Joanna Klenczon a 34-year-old domestic supervisor who worked at the Northampton General Hospital (NGH) for 10 years before her death on April 9 after contracting Covid-19 NHS healthcare assistant Chrissy Emerson who died after testing positive for coronavirus. She worked at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn, Norfolk Controversial guidance issued to NHS doctors and nurses fighting the coronavirus crisis on the frontline have advised them to reuse PPE. It said disposable gowns can be re-used and masks should not be binned between patients - but gloves and aprons should still be disposed of as usual. Medics attacked the guidance, arguing no healthcare worker should risk their life without proper protection, while Labour urged Number 10 to fix the ongoing failure. But health chiefs argued there is no other option because of the unprecedented shortages of gowns and masks, saying: 'These are exceptional circumstances.' Public Health England, which issued the guidance, said it was in line with the World Health Organization's guidance for optimising the supply of PPE. Frontline NHS workers can be required to wear up to five or more pieces of protective gear at once when treating highly infectious COVID-19 patients. So, what does it mean for medics fighting COVID-19? Here, MailOnline reveals what the new guidance says - and how long PPE can be used for. Public Health England, which issued the guidance, said it was in line with the World Health Organization's guidance optimising the supply of PPE WHAT PPE ARE MEDICS SUPPOSED TO WEAR? Ambulance driver with no patient contact No PPE needed Paramedic with direct patient contact Gloves Apron Surgical mask Eye protection Nurse in intensive care Gloves Apron Coverall Respirator Visor Nurse with no patient contact Surgical mask Eye protection Receptionist Surgical mask Conducting COVID-19 swabs Gloves Apron Surgical mask Eye protection Advertisement MASKS Under usual circumstances, medics are told to change their masks between seeing each patient. But now they can be used for a session of work - which could be a ward round, or any other activity in one clinical setting. Health chiefs agree disposable respirators and fluid-repellent surgical face masks should be binned if they get damaged or soiled. But guidance says FFP3/FFP2/N95 respirators 'have a large capacity' and sessional use or re-use 'would not approach anywhere near that capacity'. The PHE advice also says medics should wash their hands immediately if they have to touch or adjust their masks. Masks with elastic ear hooks are recommended because they are easier to take off without accidentally touching the face. And the advice urges medics to bin masks if they are removed, unless they can be reused safely. For example, the guidance warns some respirators become deformed when they are used so would not fit correctly if put on again. Masks should also be 'carefully folded' if they are being reused, so that outer surface is held against itself to cut down contact with surfaces. These should then be placed in a clean bag or box, which can be sealed and marked with the medic's name. The PHE guidance also warns: 'There is insufficient evidence to consider homemade masks or cloth masks in health and care settings.' GOWNS Fluid-repellent hospital gowns and coveralls are deemed the gold-standard PPE for medics working with infectious diseases. But PHE guidance says because of the PPE shortage NHS workers can also non-fluid repellent gowns and laboratory coats with a disposable apron. WHAT DOES PHE SAY ABOUT REUSING PPE? The PHE guidance says it is 'generally considered good practice' to change masks, respirators and eye protection between patients. But it adds there is 'no good evidence' to prove it reduces the risk of infection to the healthcare worker or the patient. It says: 'Indeed, frequent handling of this equipment to discard and replace it could theoretically increase risk of exposure.' The PHE guidance says this is because medics may touch their face more when removing the PPE, raising their risk of becoming ill. Advertisement It warns that medics must wash their forearms as soon as the coveralls are taken off, to kill any potential bugs that may have reached the arms if full-length coveralls were not worn. And it also says they need to be washed in a hospital laundry after one session, with PHE saying hospital laundry capacity 'may need to be increased'. UK Infection Prevention and Control guidance recommends healthcare workers use gowns or coveralls for entire sessions. It also says if the overall becomes 'visibly soiled', it must be disposed of and labelled as infectious waste. Other than that, it should stay on until their next break. It says: 'Staff should doff the gown or coverall only when going from the clinical to non-clinical area of the ward, or if they are leaving the ward for a break. 'If leaving a higher risk area/theatre ward with a patient to transfer them to another area staff should retain their gown or coverall and other PPE.' Staff in 'proning' teams - who help turn patients over - should wear gowns for a full session but change gloves and aprons between patients. EYE PROTECTION Goggles should fit 'snuggly' over and around the eyes or glasses, according to the PHE guidance. Those made for healthcare professionals are typically reusable and are fitted with an anti-fog coating to ensure medics can see. Public Health England guidance says NHS staff must have certain types of facial hair styles to ensure respirators fit properly But visors - used in aerosol-generating procedures, such as intubating a patient - can be disposable. If in 'extremely short supply', medics are urged to re-use single-use visors. They must cover the forehead, extend below the chin and wrap around the face. They should be cleaned using a detergent - the same decontamination process used for any bit of PPE that needs to be donned again. The PHE guidance adds: 'They should be rinsed thoroughly to remove any residual detergent or cleaning product and left to dry.' Visors will degrade with repeated cleaning, according to the guidance, which says they should be 'resupplied regularly'. And medics are told goggles or face shield should be removed upon exiting a ward area, as per standard practice. GLOVES Non-powdered, nitrile gloves are the kind most commonly recommended for NHS workers. The PHE guidance says they must be disposed of after each use - and using them for an entire session 'should be avoided'. Gloves and aprons are the only things that should not be reused, according to the guidelines issued on Friday. Crucial 84-tonne shipment of coronavirus PPE from Turkey could be delayed AGAIN: Hospital leaders unite to attack government over 'bitter experience' of failed deliveries as supplies 'could run out TODAY' Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Another 596 patients died of the virus, the lowest toll in a fortnight; The daily number of those tested languished at 21,600 with just ten days to go to hit the Government's 100,000 target; The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, reached at least 80; Number 10 denied reports schools could reopen as soon as May 11 and said no date had been set for lifting the lockdown; Michael Gove attacked 'grotesque' claims Boris Johnson was 'missing in action' at the start of the crisis after he missed five meetings of the emergency Cobra committee; More than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to be told to wear homemade face masks when they leave the house; Chancellor Rishi Sunak was urged to boost his business bailout schemes amid warnings that up to 11.7million could be furloughed or left jobless over the next three months; Analysis suggests that more than 2,500 elderly patients are dying of coronavirus in care homes every week. The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, has now reached at least 80. Pictured (left to right): Habib Zaidi, 76, GP from Essex; Adil El Tayar, 63, Hereford doctor; Pooja Sharma, 33, Sussex pharmacist; Amged El-Hawrani ENT expert, Burton Pictured (left to right): Thomas Harvey, 57, London nurse; Alfa Saadu, 68, Essex doctor; Mohamed Shousha 79, London medic; Lynsay Coventry, 54, Essex midwife Pictured (left to right): Aimee ORourke, 39, Kent nurse; Liz Glanister, 68, Liverpool nurse; Areema Nasreen, 36, Walsall nurse; Consultant Anton Sebastianpillai Pictured (left to right): John Alagos, 23, Watford nurse; Glen Corbin, 59, from London; Rebecca Mack, 29, nurse, Morpeth; Janice Graham, 58, nurse, Scotland Pictured (left to right): Rahima Sidhanee, 68, London nurse; Josiane Ekoli, 55, Harrogate nurse; Cheryl Williams, ward housekeeper; Ade Raymond, London nurse Pictured (left to right): Dr Peter Tun, 62, specialist, Reading; Mary Agyapong, pregnant nurse; Dean McKee, 28, carer, London; Amanda Scott, 54, carer, Birmingham The warnings came as: Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted on Friday that medical gowns could run out within days, and official new guidance was issued telling staff to consider reusing some personal protective equipment. NHS chiefs say they had pinned their hopes on the delivery of 84 tons of equipment from Turkey to 'avert an absolute crisis over the weekend'. The RAF flight carrying the supplies was due to land in Britain yesterday morning but it was delayed for at least 24 hours, meaning some hospitals could run out altogether today. Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents health service managers, said: 'This is very serious and makes a difficult situation worse. 'It would have been better had the Government not made the announcement in the first place. It now looks more likely that supplies of gowns could run out in some places.' Organisations representing intensive care doctors said their members are facing 'increasingly difficult decisions'. They pledged to support any doctors who feel they have to down their tools due to inadequate PPE. The British Medical Association said the delay was 'devastating' and that shortages could force doctors to consider 'withdrawing from the frontline'. Chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: 'Given the Health Secretary's warning of the possibility of full-sleeved gowns running out altogether in some hospitals this weekend, doctors were banking on the Government's announcement of imminent extra supplies of PPE from overseas. Pictured (left to right): Maureen Ellington, Bristol nurse; Gladys Nyemba, Nottingham nurse; Andy Treble, 57, Wrexham hospital; Lourdes Campbell, 54, Bolton NHS Pictured (left to right): Amrik Bamotra, 63, Ilford hospital; Brian Darlington, 63, Crewe porter; Julianne Cadby, 49, NHS manager; Linnette Cruz, 51, dental nurse Pictured (left to right): London GP Syed Zishan Haider, 79; Jitendra Rathod, 58, surgeon, Cardiff; Alice Kit Tak Ong, 70, London nurse; Leilani Dayrit, 47, Rugby nurse Pictured (left to right): Barbara Moore, 54, Liverpool; Edmond Adedeji, 62, locum, Wiltshire; Fayez Ayache, 76, GP in Ipswich; Carol Jamabo, 56, carer in Bury Pictured (left to right): Carer Catherine Sweeney, 64; Donald Suelto, London nurse; Urologist Abdul Chowdhury, 53; Julie Omar, 52, nurse in Redditch Pictured (left to right): Elsie Sazuze, 44, carer, Cannock; Gareth Roberts, 63, Cardiff nurse; Sara Trollope, 51, London matron; Amor Gatinao, 50, London nurse Pictured (left to right): Donna Campbell, 54, from Cardiff; Elbert Rico, 52, porter in Oxford; Oscar King Jr, 45, porter in Oxford; Elvira Bucu, 50, care worker Pictured (left to right): Nurse Melujean Ballesteros, 60; Technician Kevin Smith, Doncaster; Leilani Medel, 41, nurse in Cardiff; Amarante Dias, 54, nurse in Somerset Pictured (left to right): Gladys Mujajati, 46, Derby nurse; Care assistant Stephen Agyapong; Patricia Crowhurst, 54, Teesside care; Jane Murphy, 73, Edinburgh A&E Pictured (left to right): Barbara Sage, 68, Bromley, London; Dr Krishan Arora, 57, London; Sonya Kaygan, 26, care worker; Jenelyn Carter, 41, Swansea nurse Pictured (left to right): Michael Allieu, London nurse; Radiographer Simon Guest; Wilma Banaag, 63, Watford hospital; Gilbert Barnedo, 48, London nurse Pictured (left to right): Rajesh Kalraiya, 69, consultant, Romford; Steven Pearson, 51, nurse, Cumbria; Linda Clarke, 66, Wigan midwife; Emily Perugia, 29, carer, London Pictured (left to right): Barry England, 999 paramedic; Gordon Ballard, manager, London; Mandy Siddorn, 61, technician, Chester; Unnamed at familys request Pictured (left to right): Carer Ruben Junior Munoz, Surrey; Andy Stamp, 65, IT admin, Liverpool; Margaret Tapley, 84, NHS nurse; Charles Tanor, 39, carer, West Mids 'Healthcare workers desperately need proper and effective protection now by whatever means possible. This really is a matter of life and death. Doctors and healthcare staff... are left fearful for their own health and safety this is shameful.' He added: 'They are treating their own colleagues in intensive care on ventilators and tragically see some of them not survive.' Professor Neil Mortensen, president elect of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: 'Like all doctors, surgeons are committed to saving lives. If the gowns run out they will be left between a rock and a very hard place. 'Do they put themselves, their colleagues and their families in the firing line, or do they take the risk of a patient dying on their watch for want of an operation?' Mr Hopson of NHS Providers took a swipe at the government for trumpeting the delivery from Turkey before it had arrived. He told Sky News yesterday: Its been rather unhelpful to focus on a single individual consignment. We have learnt from very bitter experience over the past two to three weeks that you cant guarantee gowns are going to arrive until they have physically arrived in the UK, the boxes have been unpacked and they have actually been tested. What we have found with other consignments coming in from other countries the boxes have been mislabelled and when youve opened them up they have actually got masks in not gowns, we know that several consignments have actually failed safety tests.' At least 50 NHS workers have now died after contracting coronavirus. NHS chiefs say supplies of gowns are 'critically low', and they need around 150,000 a day. On Friday PPE shortages forced Public Health England to issue new guidance saying doctors and nurses can treat coronavirus patients wearing only plastic aprons. Previous guidance required full-length waterproof surgical gowns for high-risk procedures. Yesterday a joint statement from the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, Intensive Care Society, Association of Anaesthetists and Royal College of Anaesthetists said members should 'carefully evaluate the risks' when deciding whether or not to treat patients. NHS chiefs say supplies of gowns are 'critically low', and they need around 150,000 a day. Pictured: Medical staff are seen putting on PPE at a testing centre in Rochdale, Greater Manchester It said: 'If shortages continue or worsen, our members will face increasingly difficult decisions. [We] will support those of their members who... decide against exposing themselves to significant risks of Covid-19 infection when PPE is clearly inadequate.' Education Secretary Gavin Williamson told yesterday's Downing Street press conference that the 400,000 gowns could arrive from Turkey today. He said: 'The whole resources of the Government and the nation are focused on making sure we have a gown supply that is needed by our amazing NHS.' The Government is under fire for failing to adequately stockpile PPE in January and February, as the crisis loomed. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove was yesterday forced to defend the decision to send 273,000 items to China in February. He said: 'We did sent protective equipment to China but we've received far more from China ... than we've given.' Lord Deighton, who led planning for the 2012 London Olympics, has been appointed to co-ordinate a 'national effort' to make life-saving gowns, gloves and masks. The Government has issued a 'call to arms' for British industry to make essential PPE items, with Burberry, Rolls-Royce and McLaren already producing equipment. However, other British manufacturers claim their offers of help are being ignored. Labour said the Government is 'not taking advantage of the huge desire within British manufacturing to help'. MP Rachel Reeves said: 'NHS and social care workers are being put in an impossible position. The Government has been too slow to get a grip.' As the world battles a public health emergency, there is bound to be heartbreaking news. It is now confirmed that Bend It Like Beckham or Balle Balle Amritsar to LA director Gurinder Chadha's buaji (paternal aunt) has passed away due to COVID:19. On Instagram, Gurinder Chadha shared the happiest pictures of her aunt with herself and her other family members. The filmmaker also wrote a moving note as a tribute to her aunt. The note read, " Today we said goodbye to my dearest bhuaji /aunt from #covid19 complications. She was my dad's little sister. She survived the Partition of India and sadly for us, her family no one could be with her in person in her final moments." Gurinder Chadha / Instagram She further provided more heartbreaking details by writing, "B UT two nurses in the Surrey hospital held her hand, FaceTimed her children who all chanted Sikh prayers during which her soul departed. God bless the #nhsheroes who made my dear aunts passing humane. " Reading this just broke our hearts as no one deserves to die like this. We all need to come together to stop the spread of coronavirus so that more lives are not lost. Please start by staying at home and staying safe. Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) The article quoted a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as saying that the world economic growth is forecast to drop by 3 percent this year. For the first time in 60 years, the Asian economy has been predicted to not expand. Meanwhile, the Chinese Government has announced that its economy downsized 6.8 percent in the first quarter. However, Vietnam has so far done a fairly good job in economic term. Though the figure in the first quarter is lower than the estimate, the growth still hit 3.82 percent, it said. Talking with DW, Carl Thayer from Australias University of New South Wales, said it was a noteworthy achievement. According to the article, Vietnam launched a strategy to contain SARS-CoV-2 from early. Therefore, data from the Johns Hopkins University showed that the total number of infection cases has only reached 268 to date. Despite social distancing measures, electronics and medicine-pharmaceuticals sectors still grew by 14 percent and 44 percent, respectively, in the first quarter, said the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (AHK) in Vietnam, adding that the Vietnamese Government is adopting different measures to prevent economic slowdown. It said like other countries, Vietnam has also faced difficulties, especially in services, tourism and aviation. The tourism sector lost 3-4 billion USD in the first quarter. Thayer also added that Vietnam could succeed in maintaining the balance between protecting peoples health and economic benefits in the short term./. A parishioner kisses the hand of Hrizostom, Metropolit of the Christian Orthodox Church in Bosnia, during the Easter Sunday service at Sarajevo's Congregational church. Photo: ELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP via Getty Images The holiest day of the year for Orthodox Christians was reserved and glum in many countries where churches were closed to worshippers for Easter services because of restrictions aimed at suppressing the spread of the coronavirus. From Moscow to Addis Ababa, believers were either banned from attending Sunday services or urged to stay home and watch them on national television broadcasts. In Georgia, where some churches remained open, some worshippers went through a long ordeal to attend services that began late Saturday night in order to conform with a nationwide curfew - arriving at churches before 9pm and required to stay until 6am. Serbia's curfew was even more strict, lasting 84 hours from Friday afternoon until tomorrow morning. The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Irinej, held the Easter liturgy at midnight without believers but there were reports that some people entered churches to attend morning services. Most churches in Russia were closed to the public, including Moscow's Christ the Saviour Cathedral, where the leader of the world's largest Orthodox denomination, Patriarch Kirill, conducted the night-time service in the presence only of other clerics, a choir and some church workers. In a video Easter message from his residence, President Vladimir Putin called on Russians to bear up during all the new restrictions in the country, where coronavirus infections are rising sharply. "There is no doubt that we will properly overcome the challenges that have confronted us," he said. "Our people often say: 'God helps those who help themselves.' And that is how we're acting. "But on this radiant holiday of Christ's resurrection, I would still like to say: 'All will be well, with God's help.'" Neighbouring Belarus, which has imposed no restrictions on movement, was an exception to the muted Easter celebrations in other Orthodox countries. Hundreds of thousands attended services at churches throughout the country, including authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. "As soon as this psychosis came, not even a disease, everyone rushed not to the church, but away from the church. It's not good," he said yesterday. Cardi B filmed herself wearing a mask for Insta Stories while she got in a bit of shooting practice this Sunday. The 27-year-old rap star modeled a plunging top that emphasized her surgically enhanced cleavage in the selfie video. She could be seen expertly holding her gun even with her ultra-long blue fingernails and firing it off outdoors. Looking fab: Cardi B filmed herself wearing a mask for Insta Stories while she got in a bit of shooting practice this Sunday Cardi kept cozy in a sweater while practicing with a handgun, but took the wrap off when she got her hands on a long gun. Earlier this month Cardi and Fashion Nova got together to give an hourly donation of $1,000 to people who have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Now a number of the lucky winners have been in touch with TMZ to share their testimonials of how the payments have helped them. A Tennessee cosmetologist called Kizzy, who has three daughters and was banned from working by the lockdown, said her $1,000 will go to car payments. Sizzling sensation: The 27-year-old rap star modeled a plunging top that emphasized her surgically enhanced cleavage in the selfie video Making it work: She could be seen expertly holding her gun even with her ultra-long blue fingernails and firing it off outdoors 'Im just truly honored and blessed that they chose me,' said Kizzy, who revealed she did not anticipate she would win. A Massachusetts nurse's assistant called Elvine is donating a 10th of her payout to a neighbor who used to work at a hotel but has been left unemployed by the crisis. Meanwhile a South Carolina single mother called Gala, who also supports her father, will use the money on bills, supplementing what she makes from the Army. Cardi's latest post comes the day her husband Offset announced that his great uncle Jerry has succumbed to coronavirus. Variety: Cardi kept cozy in a sweater while practicing with a handgun, but took the wrap off when she got her hands on a long gun Doing her bit: Earlier this month Cardi and Fashion Nova got together to give an hourly donation of $1,000 to people who have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic The 28-year-old wrote on his Insta Stories: 'Smfh this corona s*** done killed my great uncle Rip uncle Jerry damn man.' Afterward he asked fans to 'Pray for my family,' posting a picture of a black leather cross sewn onto camouflage fabric. Offset rose to fame as part of the musical trio Migos with his relatives Takeoff and Quavo, who have not commented publicly on the death. Impact: 'Its hard to feel good when so many people around you are going through s***,' Cardi said while going live on Instagram this Tuesday Family tragedy: Cardi's latest post comes the day her husband Offset announced that his great uncle Jerry has succumbed to coronavirus Takeoff is the nephew of Quavo, who is Offset's cousin, and the trio all grew up together in the Atlanta suburbs, according to a Spin profile from 2013. During a recent Instagram Live session Cardi spoke about how the pandemic had impacted those 'around' her. 'Its hard to feel good when so many people around you are going through s***,' she said Tuesday before a chat with Bernie Sanders. Cardi and Offset have been married since 2017 and they are the parents of a one-year-old daughter called Kulture. Spain's death toll tops 20,000, France's surpasses 19,000 People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 12:38, April 19, 2020 The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries. ROME -- A further 482 people had died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours in Italy, raising the country's death toll to 23,227, official data showed on Saturday. The total number of confirmed cases -- combining active infections, fatalities and recoveries -- rose to 175,925, an increase of 3,491 against Friday, according to fresh figures from Italy's Civil Protection Department. Also, there were 2,200 additional recoveries in the past 24 hours, bringing the total recoveries to 44,927, since the pandemic first broke out in the northern Lombardy region on Feb. 21. MADRID -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Saturday in a televised press conference that he would ask the Spanish Parliament to extend the current 'state of alarm' for a further 15 days until May 9. Sanchez's announcement came after Saturday's fresh figures from health authorities showed that Spain had reported more than 20,000 deaths from the coronavirus and had over 190,000 confirmed cases. The Spanish Health Ministry on Saturday confirmed that over 20,000 people in the country have lost their lives because of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. LONDON -- Another 888 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have died in hospitals in Britain as of Friday afternoon, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths to 15,464, the Department of Health and Social Care said Saturday. As of Saturday morning, 114,217 people have tested positive for the virus, marking a daily increase of 5,526, said the department. The figures were announced amid growing concerns over a serious shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline medical staff in hospitals. PARIS -- A further 642 people had died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours in France, raising the country's death toll to 19,323, official data showed on Saturday. BUDAPEST -- Six million masks and 3 million gloves arrived in Hungary from China, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto announced Saturday on his Facebook page. Four Wizz Air planes delivered the protective equipment from two Chinese cities through the air bridge between the two countries, said the minister, adding that since the opening of the air bridge in March, Wizz Air's planes have made about 50 round-trips flights between China and Hungary. After completion of customs clearance and quality control, the protective equipment will be brought to the central warehouse, and from there it will be distributed among hospitals and clinics, said Szijjarto. ATHENS -- The Greek Health Ministry announced on Saturday that COVID-19 infections have now reached 2,235 and deaths stood at 110 since the start of the outbreak in the country on Feb. 26. Since Friday, 11 new confirmed cases and two new deaths were registered, according to an e-mailed press release from the ministry. Currently, 67 patients were hospitalized in intensive care units, while 39 have been discharged from ICUs. BUCHAREST -- The number of healthcare staff infected with COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, increased by 50 in Romania in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 1,031, authorities announced on Saturday So far, a total of 8,418 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Romania, according to the Strategic Communication Group, the official coronavirus communication task force. The frontline medics account for over 12 percent of the total infections in the country. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Through the 1990s and into the next century, the British oil major BP grew rapidly under the swashbuckling leadership of John Browne, charging to the frontiers of oil exploration, acquiring rivals Arco and Amoco, and becoming the worlds third largest oil major behind Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell. The rapid growth did not come without costs. In 2005, an explosion at the companys Texas City refinery killed 15; in 2006, a BP-owned pipeline spilled thousands of barrels of oil into Alaskas Prudhoe Bay. Browne was gone by 2007, but three years later, the legacy of aggressive expansion and cost-cutting would come back to haunt the company and nearly destroy it. The explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform on April 20, 2010, ended BPs decades growth and forever changed a company where the pressure to deliver financial returns took priority over all else. Today, 10 years later, BP is profitable but a much smaller company. To pay off $69 billion in fines, settlements and expenses related to the tragedy, BP sold $75 billion in assets, including refineries in Texas City and Carson, Calif., and a stake in a large oil drilling joint venture in Russia. It scaled back its offshore ambitions and operations in the Gulf of Mexico and North Sea, and put a new emphasis on safety and environmental responsibility. BP says it has reduced unplanned and uncontrolled spills and other releases from its global operations by 65 percent over the past decade, raising its safety standards, adding and expanding training programs, and adopting new technologies to prevent accidents. The company also has become an industry leader in the energy transition, pledging to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 while investing in technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, developing cleaner fuels and operating the largest electric vehicle charging network in United Kingdom. In a speech in February, BPs recently appointed CEO Bernard Looney praised his predecessor, Bob Dudley, for guiding the company through a decade of epic challenge. We recovered, we returned to growth, Looney said. Ten years on, we are a safer, stronger and more disciplined company. Going Green: BPs new CEO sets net-zero carbon goal to fight climate change It took 11 deaths, an oil spill of 3.2 million barrels and widespread damage to the Gulf Coasts environment and economy to get there. Dudley, the first and only American to lead the British company, became CEO following the ouster of Tony Hayward, whose public relation gaffes including taking a sailing trip during the crisis and telling reporters his priority was to bring the well under control because, I want my life back became untenable. Dudley announced that any BP employee or contractor was empowered to stop operations if he or she believed safety was at risk. That, however, had been the case on the Deepwater Horizon platform, said Loren Steffy, a former Houston Chronicle columnist and author of Drowning in Oil, a detailed examination of the catastrophe. But no one exercised that authority. A lot of them worried about it, Steffy said. But none of them stopped the work because the cost of doing so was so great that the pressure to keep going completely overwhelmed any individual concern. Founded as the Anglo-Persian Oil Company in 1908, BP became one of Britains most vital companies when Winston Churchill switched the British Navy from coal-fired ships to fuel oil just before World War I. After World War II, the state-run company diversified its holdings beyond the Middle East to places such as Alaska and the North Sea. The British government sold its remaining shares in 1987, paving the way for a major round of expansion. Under Brownes leadership in the 1990s, BP bought rivals such as Arco and Amoco in multibillion dollar deals. At one point, the British company even had ambitions to buy its longtime rival Shell. Robert Bea, a BP expert and retired engineering professor at the University of California at Berkeley, said Brownes focus on finances over engineering ended up becoming the companys undoing. Cutting costs to help pay for acquisitions and boost investor returns, he said, undermined safety with disastrous results even before Deepwater Horizon. Investigators with the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, for example, blamed the 2005 Texas City Refinery explosion on organizational and safety deficiencies at all levels at BP. Theres nothing wrong with saving money but youve got to do it sensibly, Bea said. Theres two types of money todays and tomorrows. When you leave out tomorrows money, thats safety. You have to make investments to prevent disasters. Fuel Fix: Get energy news sent directly to your inbox After the Deepwater Horizon, Dudley fought hard to change that reputation and over his 10-year tenure inspired a new workplace culture and retooled operations around the world to make them safer. Despite the vasts amount of money spent by company on clean up, restoration, lawsuits and criminal and civil penalties, eight out of Dudleys 10 years as CEO were profitable. The company turned a $4 billion profit on $278 billion of revenue last year. Its a different company now, said Ramanan Krishnamoorti, director of the BP settlement-funded Subsea Systems Institute at the University of Houston. Theres a new culture of safety, a culture of how do we prioritize safety and environmental stewardship over profits. The company that emerged after 2010 much chastised, now has very different leadership in very different ways of doing business. Deepwater Horizons legacy, Krishnamoorti said, is still felt in other ways. Technology known as blowout preventers, which stop crude oil or natural gas from rushing up the well and into drilling rigs, has advanced greatly since the accident. Meanwhile, drones, robots and drilling technology used to monitor the burning and sinking drillship, cap the underwater well and prevent it from leaking again are now used onshore and offshore for monitoring and safety. The offshore industry, he said, is employing robots more widely to do dangerous underwater jobs or crawl into tight spaces reducing risks to workers. Ultimately, Krishnamoorti said, unmanned platforms will become the industry standard. This is still a work in progress, he said, and we are learning by doing. Pandemic: Several BP offshore workers test positive for coronavirus Environmentalists, however, dont believe BP or the offshore industry have changed and that technology has not been able to deliver on its promises. Diane Hoskins, executive director of the Washington-based environmental group Oceana, said offshore drilling and production is just as dirty and dangerous as they were 10 years ago. The group released a 35-page report tied to the 10th anniversary of Deepwater Horizon, detailing the damage and providing its own analysis of the offshore industry. Eighty-five offshore oil industry workers have died on the job and nearly 2,000 injured between between October 2011 and December 2018, according to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, the agency created in the aftermath of Deepwater Horizon to oversee offshore drilling. More than 4,700 offshore spills released a combined 20,400 barrels of crude between 2011 and 2018, the agencys figures show. That should be ringing alarm bells for everyone concerned about the environment, Hoskins said. Despite efforts by the Trump administration to open greater expanses of federal waters to drilling, the offshore oil industry never fully recovered from the Deepwater Horizion tragedy. By the time the Obama administration lifted its six-month moratorium on offshore drilling, the so-called shale revolution was underway, sucking away capital for offshore development. When the boom went bust, the industry downturn that lasted roughly from 2014 to 2016 hit the offshore energy sector particularly hard. The oil industry slowly began to recover in 2017. BP followed other oil majors by expanding shale holdings and operations, buying the U.S. shale assets of the Australian mining company BHP for $10.5 billion. With 114 drilling permits filed in 2019, BP is ranked as one of the top 25 drillers in Texas. BP still owns and operates four offshore oil production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and has plans for a $1.3 billion expansion of the companys Atlantis field off the coast of Louisiana. More: Read the latest oil and gas news from HoustonChronicle.com But just as the oil industry was beginning to recover, buoyed by higher prices and success in bringing down costs both on- and offshore, the coronavirus pandemic has collapsed demand and prices, creating an unprecedented crisis for the industry. BP has responded by cutting its budget by 25 percent. The British oil major now plans to spend $12 billion on new projects, down from the previously announced $16 billion. Ryan Todd, an analyst with the Houston investment bank Simmons Energy, said most of the $1 billion of cuts to the exploration and production portion of the companys budget will be aimed at its shale operations and will likely result in a 70,000 barrel-per-day drop in production. And despite having $32 billion of cash and credit on had, Todd said BP will still need to divest more than $10 billion of assets this year to maintain dividends to investors and continue paying off its obligations for the Deepwater Horizon accident. A $5.1 billion deal to sell BPs remaining Alaskan assets to Houston oil company Hilcorp Energy Co. is among the pending sales. The coronavirus pandemic is almost certain to change both BP and the industry again. A decade ago, a disaster of another type off the coast of Louisiana made it clear that BP and the industry could no longer operate as they had a lesson learned at an intolerable cost. Looney, BPs new CEO, remains convinced that the company must change again by embracing the transition to clean energy technologies. The company began to invest in solar and other clean energies in the 1990s; Looney said the company plans to invest more as it moves toward its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. We dont expect progress to be a straight line, Looney said. But make no mistake, the direction is set. We are heading for net zero. There is no turning back. sergio.chapa@chron.com twitter.com/SergioChapa Members of this community are well aware of the challenges faced by Gov. Mark Gordon and local authorities as they have attempted to balance public safety and the negative impact coronavirus restrictions have had on our economy. Gov. Gordon, in particular, has been criticized nationally for failing to issue a stay-at-home order. He has also been criticized for placing unnecessary restrictions on our economy, restrictions that have displaced workers and exacerbated the impact of market forces currently working against our energy industries. At the local level, the Casper City Council has discussed the pros and cons of creating sanctions aimed at enforcing social distancing recommendations. City staff, frustrated with inconsistent compliance with the governors social distancing orders, recommended the creation of an ordinance that would allow police to cite business owners who have remained open in defiance of the order, as well as individuals who gather in groups of more than 10. Many communities have created similar ordinances. Council did not agree that an ordinance of this type was needed and stressed the importance of voluntary compliance. Some have argued against the need for social distancing. There is no doubt that we have experienced significant economic disruption, loss of income and loss of health coverage tied to employment. Some have argued that the mental health costs of isolation create risk that exceeds that caused by the virus. Some have argued that we see higher death rates due to cancer or motor vehicle accidents. While this may be true, the threats associated with the coronavirus can be controlled and eventually eliminated, as opposed to other risks cited by those making these arguments. Some have even made the ludicrous assertion that local officials view the virus as an opportunity to create unconstitutional restrictions, as though this were the goal. As Rep. Cheney recently stated, the economic costs associated with a severe outbreak dwarf the economic costs associated with social distancing and temporary suspension of business activities. If we open up the economy before it is truly safe to do so, we risk having a much more serious and deadly problem on our hands. This is the exact scenario that played out with the Spanish flu more than a century ago, when the second wave was far more severe than the first. As with any prevention effort, successful implementation creates the perception that measures were unnecessary, when in fact they are very likely the reason for success. We believe that Natrona County has suffered fewer cases and fewer deaths not because the risk presented by the virus has been overstated, but because of our sense of community and the willingness of our citizens to comply with demands that have required significant self-sacrifice. A more pressing and immediate concern involves individuals who have tested positive but refuse to self-quarantine. Epidemiological studies clearly show that one individual who knowingly exposes others to this virus can easily start a chain reaction infecting large numbers of innocent individuals. A recent incident reported in this paper underscores the risk created by individuals who refuse to self-quarantine. Numerous individuals were unwittingly exposed by a local health worker who attended a house party, during which individuals reportedly scoffed at the risks associated with the virus. All of the exposed parties then created exposure risk for their friends and family when they returned to their homes or places of work. Actions of this nature support the argument for mandatory quarantining of individuals who have been exposed to the virus, an action no one wishes to take. To be clear, no one at the Department of Health or serving on the City Council desires unnecessary restrictions. We recognize and appreciate the voluntary compliance we have seen in our community. For the most part, it has been stellar. The risk at this point involves those who fail to take the virus seriously and the mounting pressure to relax our guard at a time when we are poised to reduce the impact of the virus. It is critical that we continue to maximize community compliance with Gov. Gordons order and follow the guidelines recently provided by President Trump. Restrictions will be relaxed when it is safe to do so. In the meantime, we need to link arms and face the true enemy the virus itself. We will defeat it in the long run, and our economy will gradually return to normal. In the meantime, we need to stay with our social distancing protocols and insist that those who have been exposed self-quarantine. Voluntary compliance is all we desire and hopefully all we need. Charlie Powell is a member of the Casper City Council and a former mayor. Dr. Mark Dowell is the Natrona County Health Officer and an infectious disease specialist. Taking umbrage at the Centre for sending teams to assess the "serious" COVID-19 situation in the state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, underscoring the "unilateral" and "undesirable" action, keeping her government in the dark. The Union home ministry said on Monday the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and that violation of lockdown measures may facilitate the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Union government has formed six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) for an on-the-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal. While one central team arrived in Kolkata, another reached Jalpaiguri district on Monday. Claiming that she was informed by "Union Home Minister Amit Shah late in the afternoon, whereas the central teams already landed in the state in the morning hours", the feisty Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said this was a breach of established protocols. "The central teams kept the state in the dark, approached the BSF for logistic support and were moving in the field without informing the West Bengal government," she wrote to Modi. The places mentioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs include Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. "I am sure you will kindly agree that such unilateral action on the part of the central government is not desirable at all, especially when both the central and state governments are working together relentlessly round the clock to contain the COVID-19 crisis," the chief minister said. Earlier in the afternoon, in a series of tweets, Banerjee sought to know the rationale behind the formation of the IMCTs and urged the prime minister and home minister to share the criterion for the assessment, without which her government "would not be able to move ahead". Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha, too, criticised the Centre's move to send teams to the state. State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chatterjee said the Centre is "pursuing politics" to demean the efforts of the TMC government in containing the infection. His views were echoed by senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty, who said this was not the time for "petty Centre-state politics" as everybody has to work unitedly in the fight against the pandemic. "It is true that the state is faulting on some aspects, but this is not the time for the Centre to play in order to score political points," Chakraborty said. West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh voiced support to the Centre's move and said the truth about the "lacklustre attitude" of the state government must be "exposed". "The central government did the right thing by sending teams. They would surely unravel how the lockdown is being violated and the state government is trying to hide the real picture," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The program ran out of money on Thursday, leaving many small-business owners wondering how they would survive. Lawmakers are working on a deal to add $300 billion to the program. Longstanding rules that require banks to know their customers backgrounds and sources of funds made it easier to take applications from existing customers rather than allow new customers access to the program. Some lenders, like Bank of America, turned away applications they received from borrowers who had gotten a loan or a credit card from another bank a decision that a federal judge said this month was consistent with the stimulus programs design. However, for applications they planned to consider, the banks were supposed to handle each one as soon as it came in, not set any aside until later. The business owners who are suing say the banks did just that. Each of the lawsuits, which are seeking class-action status, claims the banks put a priority on larger loans because the banks could collect higher fees on them. We deny the allegations, said Bill Halldin, a Bank of America spokesman. The lawsuits rely heavily on two reports that the S.B.A. issued describing the types of loans it had been processing. The most recent, on Thursday, showed far more loans of $150,000 or less going through the system than a report three days earlier. This suggests, the lawsuits claim, that the banks held off on considering many smaller loan requests until they had completed the larger ones. The S.B.A. reports do not identify banks by name. But the report on Thursday shows the largest lender, Lender 1, as having distributed more than $14 billion in the program. Chase released a statement a day later saying it had distributed that amount of money, more than any other lender. While spiking the article, says Guha, the Hindustan Times left open the possibility of my continuing to write on other (and presumably from the papers point of view safer) subjects. I have however chosen to discontinue my column in the newspaper. According to him, Six years ago, the then editor of the Hindustan Times invited me to write a fortnightly column. I agreed, on condition that there would be no censorship. While occasionally some changes to my text were made without my consent, there was no attempt to get me to rewrite my column or change its arguments. The article: In a two-part article published last month in the website Newslaundry, the writer Alpana Kishore subjected the project to redesign New Delhis Central Vista to critical scrutiny. The In answering this question, Kishore focused on one key element in the project: the provision for a grand new house for the prime minister, on Rajpath. Such self-indulgence, she argued, may be common in dictatorships, but was inappropriate for a Republic. If one thinks of Delhi as akin to London or Berlin, a capital of a democracy, then, argues Kishore, spending hundreds of crores on a second house for the prime minister ahead of fixing Delhis pressing problems like its catastrophic air pollution which causes 80 deaths per day and 45 percent of all premature deaths is a spectacularly insensitive move that puts a powerful elite firmly above the peoples good. On the other hand, if we are in the Beijing-Pyongyang-Moscow axis where citizens are passive spectators, it is absolutely normal. The In concluding her two-part essay, Kishore remarked: The biggest irony remains that a prime minister from the humblest of backgrounds should yearn for a house on Rajpath, no less, to endorse his vision of personal greatness and legacy. Would Emmanuel Macron demand and, more importantly, get a house on the Champs Elysees? Can even Trump order himself a second home on the Mall? She added: It brings back embarrassing memories of his name-embroidered Rs 10-lakh suit, only this time the vanity will be at the taxpayers expense. Kishores essay has no mention of the COVID-19 crisis; evidently it was written before the dimensions of the crisis became known. I shall come to this crisis presently, but let me first state that I share her concerns entirely. This project has been pushed through without wider consultation with the public, or even with domain experts in architecture and urban planning. In fact, as one who has seen the work of this firm of architects in Ahmedabad at first-hand, I have an additional concern: that they are utterly indifferent to history and heritage. A prime example of this was their design of a second campus for the Indian Institute of Ahmedabad. The original IIM-A campus, designed by Louis Kahn, beautifully blends traditional and modern practices, using red brick, open windows, and courtyards. It is a joy to see, walk through, study and teach in. Its successor is cold and soulless, built entirely of concrete; those assigned offices there yearn for a transfer to the original and much more welcoming campus. The prime ministers own justification of the project is that it was to mark not a personal but the 75th anniversary of Indian independence The prime ministers own justification of the project is that it was to mark not a personal but a national milestone the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. This is disingenuous, because past anniversaries overseen by past prime ministers had not called for such a spectacular extravaganza. Both the 25th and 50th anniversaries of independence had been suitably marked, by a special session of parliament. Apparently, what was good enough for Indira Gandhi and IK Gujral wouldnt quite do for Narendra Modi. The mews portal The Wire has now published the article.In a two-part article published last month in the website Newslaundry, the writer Alpana Kishore subjected the project to redesign New Delhis Central Vista to critical scrutiny. The first part asked the question: Why is redeveloping Central Vista a bigger priority than fixing the capitals catastrophic air pollution or plummeting life expectancy?In answering this question, Kishore focused on one key element in the project: the provision for a grand new house for the prime minister, on Rajpath. Such self-indulgence, she argued, may be common in dictatorships, but was inappropriate for a Republic. If one thinks of Delhi as akin to London or Berlin, a capital of a democracy, then, argues Kishore, spending hundreds of crores on a second house for the prime minister ahead of fixing Delhis pressing problems like its catastrophic air pollution which causes 80 deaths per day and 45 percent of all premature deaths is a spectacularly insensitive move that puts a powerful elite firmly above the peoples good. On the other hand, if we are in the Beijing-Pyongyang-Moscow axis where citizens are passive spectators, it is absolutely normal.The second part of Kishores article focused on the process by which the project was awarded: a process marked by secrecy and subterfuge, ending in the contract going to a firm of architects from Gujarat known to be particularly close to the prime minister. This firms previous projects, wrote Kishore, had depended for their execution upon the removal of obstacles like due process, impact assessments, public consultation, and well-established global best practices. The firms past record, in sum, was one of consistently manifesting an innate disrespect for the citizen.In concluding her two-part essay, Kishore remarked:Kishores essay has no mention of the COVID-19 crisis; evidently it was written before the dimensions of the crisis became known. I shall come to this crisis presently, but let me first state that I share her concerns entirely. This project has been pushed through without wider consultation with the public, or even with domain experts in architecture and urban planning.In fact, as one who has seen the work of this firm of architects in Ahmedabad at first-hand, I have an additional concern: that they are utterly indifferent to history and heritage. A prime example of this was their design of a second campus for the Indian Institute of Ahmedabad. The original IIM-A campus, designed by Louis Kahn, beautifully blends traditional and modern practices, using red brick, open windows, and courtyards. It is a joy to see, walk through, study and teach in. Its successor is cold and soulless, built entirely of concrete; those assigned offices there yearn for a transfer to the original and much more welcoming campus.The prime ministers own justification of the project is that it was to mark not a personal but a national milestone the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. This is disingenuous, because past anniversaries overseen by past prime ministers had not called for such a spectacular extravaganza. Both the 25th and 50th anniversaries of independence had been suitably marked, by a special session of parliament. Apparently, what was good enough for Indira Gandhi and IK Gujral wouldnt quite do for Narendra Modi. Even before the coronavirus pandemic hit us, this expensive redesign of the core of the national capital seemed a wasteful and self-indulgent exercise. It has now become much more so. For, an economy that was already flailing has been brought to the brink by the pandemic. The ill-planned lockdown has led to enormous human suffering. Working-class Indians, already living on the edge, are now faced with utter destitution. As many economists have argued, the millions of poor Indians rendered poorer by this crisis urgently need financial support from the Central government. Why cant the funds currently allocated to the Central Vista scheme estimated at Rs 20,000 crore and counting be diverted to help ameliorate their condition? Politically, the burden of this economic, social and humanitarian crisis is being borne by the states. They desperately need money not least, the money the Centre already owes them. A staggering Rs 30,000 crore are still due to the states from the Centre as their share of Goods and Services Tax revenues. Why does this still remain unpaid, while the Central Vista project has been sanctioned and a schedule for its tendering announced? It will be at least a year probably longer before the economy can begin to fitfully recover. The restoration of the social fabric may take even longer. Altogether, the country may take at least five, more likely ten, years before it can return to where it was before COVID-19 came to our shores. Surely the moral, political and intellectual energies of our leaders must be devoted above all to this economic and social rebuilding. In his speeches to the nation since the pandemic broke, the prime minister has repeatedly asked Indians to sacrifice sacrifice their time, their jobs, their lifestyles, their human and cultural tendency to be gregarious. Now citizens must ask the prime minister to sacrifice something for the nation as well. His project to redesign Central Vista was always controversial. It is now absolutely untenable. He should drop it. To my mind, the Modi governments redesign of New Delhi brings to mind not so much living Communist autocrats as it does some dead African despots. It is the sort of vanity project, designed to perpetuate the rulers immortality, that Felix Houphouet-Boigny of the Ivory Coast and Jean Bedel-Bokassa of the Central African Republic once inflicted on their own countries (for more on the first, see V.S. Naipauls essay The Crocodiles of Yamoussoukro ).Even before the coronavirus pandemic hit us, this expensive redesign of the core of the national capital seemed a wasteful and self-indulgent exercise. It has now become much more so. For, an economy that was already flailing has been brought to the brink by the pandemic. The ill-planned lockdown has led to enormous human suffering. Working-class Indians, already living on the edge, are now faced with utter destitution.As many economists have argued, the millions of poor Indians rendered poorer by this crisis urgently need financial support from the Central government. Why cant the funds currently allocated to the Central Vista scheme estimated at Rs 20,000 crore and counting be diverted to help ameliorate their condition?Politically, the burden of this economic, social and humanitarian crisis is being borne by the states. They desperately need money not least, the money the Centre already owes them. A staggering Rs 30,000 crore are still due to the states from the Centre as their share of Goods and Services Tax revenues. Why does this still remain unpaid, while the Central Vista project has been sanctioned and a schedule for its tendering announced?It will be at least a year probably longer before the economy can begin to fitfully recover. The restoration of the social fabric may take even longer. Altogether, the country may take at least five, more likely ten, years before it can return to where it was before COVID-19 came to our shores. Surely the moral, political and intellectual energies of our leaders must be devoted above all to this economic and social rebuilding.In his speeches to the nation since the pandemic broke, the prime minister has repeatedly asked Indians to sacrifice sacrifice their time, their jobs, their lifestyles, their human and cultural tendency to be gregarious. Now citizens must ask the prime minister to sacrifice something for the nation as well. His project to redesign Central Vista was always controversial. It is now absolutely untenable. He should drop it. In a major media controversy, top daily, the Hindustan Times, refused to carry well-known historian and Gandhi biographer Ramachandra Guhas fortnightly column Past and Present in its original form this Sunday, asking him to make major changes before publishing it. Guha, who had written on the folly and vanity of the Central governments Central Vista project in Delhi, immediately tweeted that the newspaper has censored the column. Amidst Covid-19 crisis, the Rs 20,000-crore Centra Vista project is in the midst of storm, with the opposition seeking to suspend it. Also opposed by urban experts and environmentalists, the project proposes to demolish and rebuild several historic buildings in a four-square-km area from the gates of Rashtrapati Bhawan to India Gate. In a shocking incident in Uttar Pradeshs Prayagraj, a police officer was allegedly beaten up by miscreants on his way home from work. PTI The victim is 58-year-old Arjun Singh, a SI at Holagarh Police Station. It happened about 500 metres away from station. After being done for the day, he left work when a group of people allegedly thrashed and attacked him with sticks. He was injured in head . Soon a police team arrived on the scene and rushed him to a hospital. By then the accused had made a run for it. The medics at the hospital treated the victim and discharged him on Saturday. Later in the day, as many as 17 people including five women were arrested by police for allegedly attacking the SI. Police have launched a search to nab the remaining accused. PTI Prayagraj Assistant Superintendent of Police Kuraku Venkat Ashok told the Indian Express that for the last four days, the police have been conducting raids in Kasturipur village which is located nearly two km away from Holagarh Police Station to nab people involved in selling and manufacturing spurious liquor. Around seven people were arrested by the police for their alleged involvement in the business of spurious liquor. Singh was part of the team that conducted raids in the village. PTI The miscreants were annoyed due to police crackdown on spurious liquor business and therefore they assaulted the SI while he was on his way back home in the evening. The Licensed Vintners Association (LVA), the representative body for publicans in Dublin, has described the possibility of pubs being unable to reopen until a vaccine for COVID19 is found as the nightmare scenario for the pub sector which will put many out of business for good. This follows comments made by Minister for Health, Simon Harris TD who told the Sunday Independent, So I cant see how people can be in packed pubs again as long as this virus is still with us and we dont have a vaccine or an effective treatment. In the same piece, Minister Harris suggested the vaccine or treatment wont be in place until 2021. Speaking in reaction to those comments, LVA Chief Executive Donall OKeeffe said, "That is the absolute nightmare scenario for the entire pub sector. If that happens then most pub businesses in this country will be out of business for good. The LVA and its members will absolutely support whatever measures are deemed necessary in the interests of public health, as we have done from the beginning of this crisis, but if closing pubs until 2021 is going to be necessary then it is essential that a pub specific support scheme is introduced. Otherwise there wont be a pub industry in this country by the time a vaccine is found." He added, "The LVA welcomed the strong Government support for the 50,000 staff laid off as a result of the crisis. This will have to be extended for the duration of the pub closure period. However unless it is supplemented with a specific support scheme to keep the pubs themselves afloat, the staff will have no jobs to return to. This is undoubtedly a very difficult time for everyone in this country. While Minister Harris is doing an exceptional job at a time of national crisis, his comments have really petrified the entire pub sector across the country and many are now concerned not only about how to survive this pandemic, but also whether they will still have a business when this crisis eventually passes." Source: www.businessworld.ie Labor has upped the pressure on the federal government over the "catastrophic" scenario facing universities, labelling a newly announced rescue package a "fraud" that fails to confront a revenue blow to be felt across the Australian economy. The government last week guaranteed $18 billion in funding for universities' domestic education in 2020 but the sector has warned the money does not address the implosion of international education caused by the COVID-19 crisis, which could cost them around $5 billion over the next six months and up to $19 billion over three years. Labor education spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek has accused the government of abandoning universities to a "catastrophic" situation. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen The government is also facing scepticism about newly-announced online short courses, designed for up to 20,000 Australians to re-skill during the period of social distancing and economic slowdown. Universities are concerned there is little financial incentive to provide the cut-price qualifications. Labor education spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek has now hit out at the rescue package, saying the government was abandoning a sector that supports 260,000 jobs. A n occupational therapist described as a "gentle soul" has died after contracting coronavirus. Tributes have been paid to Vivek Sharma who died on Friday after becoming ill with Covid-19. The 58-year-old, who had two sons, one of whom was due to be married this year, was described as kind and generous by colleagues. "We are sad to announce that Vivek Sharma, our clinical falls lead, died on Friday," a statement issued on Monday by Kent-based Medway Community Healthcare said. He had been isolating as a vulnerable member of staff due to underlying health conditions, and became ill with coronavirus. "Vivek was married with two sons, one due to marry this year. He was a valued member of MCH staff and an occupational therapist by background, and most recently worked in the falls team at Walter Brice Centre. He was a member of EMF (our employee forum), passionate about being a voice and advocate for staff and always happy to help. On behalf of the executive team, the board, and Viveks colleagues, we have spoken to his family and expressed our condolences. Our thoughts are with Viveks family and friends, with his immediate team, with those who worked closely with him, and with anyone who met and knew him. It comes as a 60-year-old nurse at Stafford County Hospital also died after contracting the virus. 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 Tracy Bullock, chief executive at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) described Mr McManus, as a "loveable character and brought kindness and compassion to all his patients". In a statement issued on Monday, she said: He was an exceptional leader and took staff and students under his wing. "His big Irish personality will be sorely missed by his friends and colleagues at UHNM." T he furlough pay scheme for employees who are kept on the payroll despite not working due to Covid-19 opens for applications today. The Coronavirus Job Retention scheme pays workers 80 per cent of their usual earnings, capped at 2,500 a month per person, meaning they will not be laid off from their place of work as businesses try to cope with the fallout from the pandemic. Around 5,000 HMRC staff will operate the scheme with money paid within six working days. Phone and webchat operatives will be on hand to answer applicants questions, the Treasury said in a statement. The scheme launched as the Government was warned that any delay in implementation would pose a huge economic cost for many companies. The Coronavirus Job Retention scheme was originally intended to run until June 1 2020, however, it has been extended until at least the end of that month. In a previous statement, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: Our unprecedented job retention scheme will protect millions of jobs across the country and is now up and running. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak speaks at a news conference on the ongoing coronavirus outbreak / REUTERS Its vital that our economy gets up and running again as soon as its safe and this scheme will allow that to happen. British Chamber of Commerce Director General Adam Marshall said that, while the government deserves credit for its "speed, scale and flexibility" in responding to the challenge, any delay could threaten businesses. Our research indicates that two-thirds of firms have furloughed some portion of their workforce," he said. "With Aprils payday approaching, it is essential that the application process is smooth and that payments are made as soon as possible. "Any delay would exacerbate the cash crisis many companies are facing and could threaten jobs and businesses. Many shops, restaurants, hotels and other service industries in the UK have found themselves with no customers after being forced to close amid the pandemic, and many other firms have had work cancelled. Any UK organisation with employees can apply for the Government help as long as they had set up a payroll scheme before February 28. This means that people who work for businesses, charities and public authorities will be entitled to the money if their employer signs up. If you started your job after February 28, 2020, you are not eligible for the scheme. If you were made redundant since February 28, you can be put on furlough if your employer rehires you. Businesses will be able to pay their employees 80 per cent of their regular monthly wage however they are also free to top this up if they wish. This means that if you earn 24,000 a year, you will earn a gross income of at least 1,600 a month on the furlough scheme. While on furlough, wages will be subject to the usual income tax and other deductions. Workers will have exactly the same rights they did when working including statutory sick pay, maternity and other parental rights, the right against unfair dismissal and redundancy payments should you lose your job. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast tax resolution services The COVID-19 crisis continues to threaten the financial viability of millions of U.S. individual and business taxpayers, said Sherri Gastelum, CEO of Platinum Tax Defenders. As the COVID-19 crisis continues to fill millions of American taxpayers with uncertainty regarding their financial future, many are and will be struggling to pay back taxes during this time of crisis. With that in mind, the tax resolution professionals at Platinum Tax Defenders have announced they will ramp up their tax resolution efforts to help individual and businesses settle their tax debt during this global pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis continues to threaten the financial viability of millions of U.S. individual and business taxpayers, said Sherri Gastelum, CEO of Platinum Tax Defenders. We understand what a difficult time this is, and will continue to be, for individuals and businesses, and so we want to ensure those in need of tax relief efforts that we are here. We will continue to work overtime to help individuals and businesses with their tax situations, and for new clients, were offering complimentary consultations. We encourage anyone whos worrying about how they are going to pay back their taxes to give us a call. As the federal government continues to provide increased tax relief measures to businesses and individuals across the country, the team at Platinum Tax Defenders is staying up to date on the most important COVID-19-related federal tax relief measures, as many of these new rules can result in large tax refunds for individuals and businesses. First, Platinum Tax Defenders wants to remind taxpayers that they now have until July 15 to make their federal income tax paymentsthe due date for federal income taxes was previously April 15. Additionally, this rule applies to individual taxpayers, as well as C Corporations, trusts, and estates. Furthermore, the federal government has also postponed the tax filing date from April 15 to July 15. This new measure also applies to individuals and businesses. Platinum Tax Defenders also reminds business taxpayers that the federal government is also offering a payroll tax deferral relief for all employers, and also self-employed individuals. Under this measure, businesses can defer the 6.2% employer portion of the Social Security tax component of FICA taxed owed. This deferral applies to the first $137,700 of an employees 2020 wages, according to a report from MarketWatch.com. This deferral period started on March 27, 2020, and will end on December 31, 2020. Additionally, half of the deferred amount will not be due until December 31, 2021. Additionally, the other half will not be due until December 31, 2022. Additionally, Platinum Tax Defenders reminds business taxpayers that this deferral measure is available to all employers. Furthermore, the federal government will not require businesses to show any proof of the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on their business. Additionally, Platinum Tax Defenders is here to help self-employed individuals with new tax relief measures being offered by the federal government. Self-employed individuals can defer half of their liability for the 12.4% Social Security tax component of the self-employment tax for the deferral period. Similarly, the deferral period began on March 27, 2020, and ended on December 31, 2020. Self-employed individuals have until December 31, 2021, to pay half of the deferred SE tax amount, and can pay the remaining half by December 31, 2022. As the federal government continues to announce new measures that will impact business and individual taxpayers during the COVID-19 crisis, Top Tax Defenders is here to help taxpayers across the United States with tax resolution efforts. For more information, visit the tax site, or call 866-866-8053. Germany confirmed Monday it aims to replace its ageing fleet of Tornado fighter-bombers with aircraft from both European manufacturer Airbus and US-based Boeing. Berlin is eager to balance European and American alliances via its military aircraft-buying scheme, but the decision to move ahead with the US purchases has angered some politicians who allege a lack of transparency. An official decision on the procurement plan will be sent to parliament's defence committee "in the coming days," defence ministry spokesman Arne Collatz-Johannsen told reporters in Berlin. "Fewer than a third" of the new aircraft would be American models, with the majority made up of European products, he added. A source close to the plans confirmed German media reports that the defence ministry prefers to hedge its bets between EU and US suppliers, by purchasing around 90 Airbus-made Eurofighters and 45 Boeing F-18 jets. A solution balancing allies on both sides of the Atlantic is seen by the conservative-led defence ministry as vital because even after the Tornados are retired, Berlin must maintain its air force's capability to carry American nuclear weapons as part of its commitments under the NATO military alliance. At present, the Tornado is the only Luftwaffe, or air force, aircraft certified to carry the nuclear bombs. "We recommend a mixed solution which would keep the European defence ministry running at capacity and what's more, concerning less than a third of the total, possibly come from non-European suppliers," Collatz-Johannsen said. German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer had told her American counterpart Mark Esper about the plans over the weekend, the spokesman said. Der Spiegel magazine recently cited a German federal auditors' report describing the 1970s-era Tornado as a "weapons system that has become obsolete, increasingly marked by technical faults and lack of availability." Collatz-Johannsen said operating the planes would "no longer be economical" by 2030, making 2025 the deadline for finding a replacement. Meanwhile a Franco-German next-generation fighter dubbed the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) is not expected to be ready until 2040. "That leaves us with a capability gap to bridge," the defence spokesman said. But minister Kramp-Karrenbauer's decision to inform the US early -- a final procurement decision is unlikely before the next parliament beginning in 2021 -- has angered some from the the centre-left social democrats (SPD), junior coalition partners in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government. "Nothing has been made transparent to us in any way," defence committee chief Wolfgang Hellmich told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily. "So far we have received nothing." While the defence spokesman said SPD Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas had been informed, the centre-left party's most determined opponents of nuclear weapons -- and of buying American planes to carry them -- are among its MPs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Relief given to state governments through Ways and Means Advances (WMA) relaxations is of "little" help, and Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh may face pressures to honour their payment commitments if the COVID-19 lockdown continues beyond May 3, a report said on Monday. In the report, India Ratings and Research said WMA relief is "too little to help", as it provides additional liquidity of only Rs 19,335 crore. It may provide some reprieve, but is not the solution for the shortfall in states' revenue and most states may be able to make payments in April 2020 using reserve funds, enhanced WMA limits, and other revenues. The state governments are facing a "double whammy" in the lockdown, which impacts their cash flows and also results in higher expenditures, it said, calling for more support from the Centre in such cases. The Centre and RBI have taken a slew of measures to help states, including raising WMA limits to state governments by 60 per cent of their existing limits for FY20 to help them borrow more from the market, increase in the time that a state can be in overdraft, allowing them to raise Rs 3.2 lakh crore in the April-September period and, also advance release of Rs 11,092 crore of central share from the state disaster risk management fund for FY21 andRs 6,195 crore revenue deficit, it said. The rating agency said it did an analysis of monthly expenditures of 18 states based on their FY21 budget projections for April 2020 and the liquidity available with them from various sources includingconsolidated sinking fund (CSF), guarantee redemption fund (GRF), government securities and auction treasury bills (ATBs). It found a majority fourteen of the states will be able to make payments on their commitments in April 2020. "However, four states - Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh - despite the support mentioned above, may face pressure in the near-run and may find it difficult to make payments, if the lockdown continues beyond 3 May 2020," it warned. It can be noted that starting with a three-week lockdown from March 25, the entire country has been under a lockdown to prevent the spread of infections of the dreaded virus. The Centre has relaxed the lockdown measures in certain unaffected parts to help the economic activity from Monday. Revenue from own sources for the states has dried up and if the lock down continues, many more states will find it difficult to make payments, it said, pointing out that several states have already deferred a part of salary payments. "In such a situation, the central government will have to do the heavy lifting of raising money and pass it on to the state governments for expenditure," the agency recommended, acknowledging that the central government is also facing headwinds by way of higher borrowing costs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Infosys, the country's second-largest IT company, is likely to report around 5 percent sequential decline in Q4 FY20 profit due to lower other income and absence of tax benefits. December 2019 quarter had non-recurring benefit of Rs 242 crore on income tax refund. According to brokerages, revenue growth in rupee terms could be in the range of 1.5-1.7 percent QoQ for the quarter ended March 2020 largely due to depreciation in the rupee against the US dollar, while there could be marginal growth in constant currency revenue, but dollar revenue growth is expected to be muted. "We expect revenues to grow 0.2 percent QoQ in constant currency terms (presuming 1 percent hit due to COVID-19). With cross-currency acting as a headwind of 30 bps, USD revenue may witness a marginal dip of 0.1 percent QoQ while dollar appreciation would lead to rupee revenue growth of 1.7 percent QoQ," ICICI Direct said. Find All Earnings Related News Here Kotak Institutional Equities also baked in a 1 percent hit to its estimates from missed billings and lockdowns in India and developed markets in the last two weeks of March 2020. "Without the COVID-19 hit, its revenue growth assumption would have been 1.5 percent QoQ in constant currency. At operating level, the earnings before interest and tax and margin could be stable for the quarter due to rupee weakness and lower travel expenses. "EBIT margin to remain stable on a QoQ basis despite lower billing and utilisation decline owing to COVID-19 outbreak, led by rupee depreciation, lower travel expenses and lower variable compensation payments to employees," said Sharekhan which expects 0.3 percent fall in dollar revenue and 5.7 percent decline in profit. But the key thing to watch out for would be its guidance. Most of the brokerages feel Infosys may not give guidance for FY21 given the lockdown in India and other parts of the world amid COVID-19 crisis. If it gives revenue and margin forecast then the guidance range could be more than the usual range due to potential COVID-19 impact. Sharekhan believes Infosys might not provide revenue growth guidance for FY21 owing to macro uncertainties. "If it provides annual revenue and margin guidance for FY21, the guidance range would be higher than its normal range of 2 percent." Kotak also feels the same. Like TCS, Infosys is also expected to report strong deal wins for the quarter ended March 2020. Other key things to watch out for would be the commentary on long term impact from likely slower client discretionary spending; deal win trajectory in wake of travel restrictions and pricing pressure; acquisition philosophy, commentary on COVID-19 impact on service delivery and execution given WFH mandates, travel restrictions and client permissions in critical projects; demand environment outlook across verticals especially BFSI, retail and energy; and opportunity in terms of higher outsourcing activities by clients and prospects of vendor consolidation. "We do not expect any change to capital allocation policy, nonetheless this will be an area of focus," Kotak said. The stock lost 12.3 percent during the March quarter and 13.75 percent in last financial year 2019-20, outperforming Nifty IT index (down over 18 percent in Q4 and FY20). No firm plans have been drawn up for the reopening of schools, but a roadmap is likely by May 5. "In two weeks' time people will need to know what the plan is around schools for the rest of the year and that is the intention," a senior Government source told the Irish Independent. Read More The source was responding to comments by Health Minister Simon Harris, who said he would like to see a partial reopening - such as one day a week - in the interests of pupil wellbeing. Mr Harris, who did not explain how such an idea might work, said that any decision on reopening would all depend on the advice of public health officials, who, along with monitoring the situation in Ireland, would be watching the experience of countries such as Denmark where schools have reopened. The minister's comment in yesterday's 'Sunday Independent' drew widespread reaction and advice to exercise caution. The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (Into) said any decision to reopen primary schools must be led by public health advice. The union said engagement with workers and their unions must take place in advance of any such decision and that the health and safety of teachers, pupils and parents must be guaranteed. Catriona Golden, principal of Ennis Educate Together NS, Co Clare, said: "You cannot social distance in a primary school - doesn't matter how many kids are there, doesn't matter how you set it up, it's absolutely not possible. "If we're going to be going back, that needs to be taken as a given." She said that it would be "cruel" to not allow children to hug their friends after not having seen them for months. Marie Therese Kilmartin, principal of Colaiste Bride in Clondalkin, Dublin, said that exploring the reopening of secondary schools would pose many logistical challenges. "There would need to be a lot of planning put in behind the scenes. Medical advice closed us down and medical advice would need to guide us into reopening," she said. Dr Gabriel Scally, author of the Scally report into the CervicalCheck controversy, said the minister's proposal could in theory work, but "it's too early" to say if June is a recommended time-frame. Dr Scally, the honorary professor of public health at the University of Bristol, said while he felt more time was needed to make such calls, Mr Harris's plan was "an interesting one". "It would depend how it's done. I don't see how the schools could do social distancing unless they brought only 20pc of children back one day, then another 20pc, so on. You couldn't bring all the children in a school back for one day a week," he said. Dr Scally said the plan would also depend on "if a child has any vulnerabilities, if they have bad respiratory problems, such as bad asthma, or cystic fibrosis or immune deficiencies". "To ask are there vulnerable people in the child's household, where there could be a problem if the child brought the virus back, is also an important question. But assuming that was all part of this plan and if local testing showed no new cases in each area, then there would be a good indicator for children to go back to school, with restrictions," he said. Labour education spokesman Aodhan O Riordain said: "It's totally impractical for a whole number of reasons to fly a kite about going back once a week in June without talking to unions and parents." The dispute over business interruption insurance claims during the Covid-19 pandemic has flared again, despite the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe having warned about the potential "reputational damage" to the industry. The insurance industrys stance has been that most policies do not cover a global pandemic such as Covid-19. However, Peter Boland of the Alliance for Insurance Reform said there has never been a dispute that the majority of policies do not provide this type of cover. Mr Boland said there were are a "substantial minority" of policies from a number of insurers which do provide cover in this instance, and these are not being dealt with in a timely manner. "Axa has already conceded [cover] on one of their policies covering over 4,000 shops, office and surgery policyholders," Mr Boland said. We have seen five policies so far, from various insurers and covering thousands of policyholders, that clearly cover damage inflicted by the pandemic. Included in this group are many publicans. The policies seen by the Irish Examiner state the insurer will cover financial losses resulting from an interruption to a business under certain circumstances. These circumstances include restrictions or closures imposed by a "public", "local" or "government authority", due to "an occurrence of a notifiable human disease", or in another policy, an "occurrence of any human infectious or human contagious disease, an outbreak of which must be notified to the local authority." One policy stipulates outbreaks of contagious or infectious diseases must occur on the premises or within 25 miles of the premises. Another policy also has a "prevention of access" clause, which the Alliance for Insurance Reform believes could provide cover for a business interruption claim during a pandemic. Mr Boland said with the exception of Axa, none of Irelands insurers have conceded liability on business interruption insurance. Minister Donohoe had also said some companies had adopted a "blanket rejection" approach and were not "treating customers fairly". "If this drags out for much longer, it will become an academic exercise, because those businesses who are relying on business interruption insurance claims will be forced to close," Mr Boland said. "On the issue of business interruption insurance, insurers understand that this is a cause of concern in the marketplace. This is a complex issue, no insurance market in the world provides widespread insurance coverage for pandemics and Ireland is no exception," Insurance Ireland said. However, insurers are very mindful of their commitments to the customer and will adjudicate each claim fairly and consistently in line with the policy terms and conditions. Insurance Ireland also said it was committed to the Finance Minister and Central Bank of Irelands directions on business interruption insurance, issued in early April. These directions specified that where there was ambiguity in the scope of cover, the insurer should rule in the claimants favour. "It is important to note, however, that each policy is different and there may well be other factors which lead to the adjudication of whether a claim is valid or not," the insurance industry group said. Amanda Knox joined a social media posting challenge during the coronavirus outbreak by posting an image of herself at age 20 on her way to Perugia, Italy. In the post on Instagram, Knox writes, 'Me at age 20. On a plane. To Perugia.' Without saying anything more, Knox was recalling when she and then-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were accused of murdering her roommate, British student Meredith Kercher. The reference harks back to when Knox and Sollecito would be accused of the 2007 brutal slaying of Kercher, who was found dead in the apartment she shared with Knox. Amand Knox posted this image on Instagram during a coronavirus social media challenge and wrote 'Me at age 20. On a plane. To Perugia' Without saying anything more, Knox was recalling when she and then-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were accused of murdering her roommate, British student Meredith Kercher (pictured) The 21-year-old had been sexually assaulted and stabbed in the throat. Knox, who became dubbed by the press 'Foxy Knoxy', and Sollecito were both convicted of Kercher's murder. However, she would later be acquitted twice of the crime after already having spent four years in an Italian prison. Knox returned to the US in 2011 after her murder conviction for the killing of Kercher was overturned. However, as she refused to return to Italy, she was retried and convicted a second time three years later. Then Italy's Supreme Court overturned her second conviction in 2015 and brought an end to her legal saga. She has since settled in Seattle and taken part in a Netflix documentary about her case. Knox also has written books and articles advocating for people wrongfully convicted of crimes. In January, Knox shared another photo of herself on Instagram wearing some of her old prison uniform as she prepared to marry poet Christopher Robinson a second time during a costumed wedding ceremony. Amanda Knox shared a photo of herself in January wearing some of her old prison uniform on Instagram as she prepares for her upcoming wedding to poet Christopher Robinson Knox tied the knot for the second time with Robinson on March 1 along with 100 guests during a space-themed ceremony at an Elks Lodge in Burien, Washington '40 days left until the wedding and 267 tasks left on the wedding To Do list,' Knox wrote on the post. 'I've locked myself in the craftroom and I'm wearing my old prison uniform. Literally the very same sweatshirt and sweatpants I lived in in Casa Circondariale Capanne, Perugia,' she added. Knox tied the knot for the second time with Robinson on March 1 along with 100 guests during a space-themed ceremony at an Elks Lodge in Burien, Washington. The couple had secretly married before that in December 2018. The easiest way to write is to just let the words come themselves. I dont coax them into being, I just let them flow through me and this book is a result of that. Author and multimedia artist Dana Karic has published her inspiring cookbook featuring delectable vegan and vegetarian recipes that at once promote health, nutrition, and wellness and provide readers the tools to cultivate a happier outlook and life. In The Happy Planet, Karic encourages readers to appreciate all the wonderful things and people in their lives and consciously choose health, love, and joy. Peppered with uplifting affirmations, called gift cards, and sage kitchen wisdom, Karics book encourages readers to either follow the recipes as written or embark on a culinary adventure by trying different spices and adding foods they like, such as meat and fish, to their hearts desire. Karic purposefully omits pictures of her dishes to eliminate the pressure many home cooks may feel to recreate the dish perfectly; instead, she empowers readers to unleash their own creativity and make a dish that appeals to them, presenting it in any way they wish. Writing is my greatest love. I write every single day, Karic said. I write to heal, I write to share, I write to organize myself and my thoughts, I write to explore my options and decide things, I write letters and notes! Writing for yourself is a beautiful thing. The easiest way to write is to just let the words come themselves. I dont coax them into being, I just let them flow through me and this book is a result of that. Ultimately, The Happy Planet not only teaches readers how to make an eclectic mix of mouthwatering, simple meals; it also serves up recipes for life. Karics book teaches others how to practice joy and relaxation, spend quality time with family, and develop their self-care skills all while nurturing their love of crafting tasty dishes for themselves and the people around them. The Happy Planet: Cookbook Recipes for Life By Dana Karic ISBN: 978-1-9822-3096-8 (softcover); 978-1-9822-3097-5 (e-book) Available through Balboa Press, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon About the author Dana Karic is a multimedia artist who creates music and art and has a deep love for writing. Karics fun, inspiring books are perfect for all ages, and through them, she is focused on helping people embrace their creativity, discover themselves, relax, and enjoy life. Karic is a lover of nature, culture, and travel, and she is passionate about teaching others to respect, and nurture humanitys most sacred relationships: those with oneself, the Creator, family, country, and the beautiful planet Earth. To learn more, please visit http://www.danakaric.com or http://www.thehappyplanet.com. General Inquiries, Review Copies & Interview Requests: LAVIDGE Phoenix 480-648-7557 dgrobmeier@lavidge.com Hyderabad: Chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday extended the lockdown in Telangana till May 7 to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The government said many of the relaxations announced by the central government would not be implemented in the state. He said the Cabinet will meet on May 5 to take stock of the situation with regard to the lockdown. He said although airlines were likely to restart domestic services from May 4, no domestic flight would be allowed in Telangana till May 7. He requested the people of other states not to come to Telangana state till May 7. Addressing a press conference after the Cabinet meeting, the chief minister said, Though the Centre has announced certain concessions to various sectors from April 20, as far as Telangana is concerned there is no question of any kind of relaxation. The Cabinet discussed all factors including the present status of the disease. It is a very clear and unambiguous decision based on ground realities. The chief minister clarified that under the Epidemic Disaster Management Act, the state government has powers on par will the Centre to act according to the situation. The Centre in its recent advisory had made it clear that state governments and Union Territories were at liberty to pass orders and take decisions divergent from those taken by the Centre. Chandrashekar Rao said the guidelines that were announced when the lockdown was first implemented would continue, including the night curfew and social distancing. He announced that food delivery services like Swiggy and Zomato would be banned from Monday till the end of the lockdown. This decision was taken on the back of the Delhi incident where 69 people were quarantined after a delivery executive tested positive. The chief minister said the cabinet decision to extend the lockdown was taken after extensive surveys carried out by the government and the media showed that an overwhelming majority of people were in favour of continuing the lockdown. About 95 per cent of the people contacted during the survey were firm on continuing with the lockdown in the interest of the people, he said. The chief minister said, I myself spoke over the telephone to a cross-section of society across the state including lawyers, doctors, farmers, youth and labourers. All of them were unanimous in stating that the lockdown should continue. He said that during his conversations they asked if the incidents of infection had gone down to justify the lifting or easing of lockdown norms. The chief minister announced that the distribution of 12 kg of rice and Rs 1,500 financial assistance to each of the 87.5 lakh white ration card holders will continue in May. Each migrant family will be given 5 kg of rice and Rs 1,500 next month. He said the relaxations which were announced for the pharma industry, rice, flour and dal mills will continue. The chief minister, while appreciating the peoples cooperation to the efforts of the government to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, appealed the people to extend similar cooperation and support till May 7. By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 20, 2020 | 10:38 AM | PADUCAH More than 400 sixth-graders in Ballard and McCracken Counties recently learned how their actions can positively impact western Kentuckys waterways.The U.S. Department of Energey says Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership, LLC, the Paducah Site deactivation and remediation contractor for the DOE, instructed the students prior to the current COVID-19 restrictions on how groundwater can get polluted and actions that can prevent groundwater pollution.The middle school groundwater lessons introduce students to the science of hydrogeology and related future career options. Students learn how to test pH levels in water and how soil textures impact the speed at which groundwater travels to larger bodies of water. The students also learn about environmental stewardship and how common products, such as motor oil, can negatively impact groundwater that flows through the earth into creeks, rivers, and oceans.Sixth grade is a good age to talk to students about groundwater because most students in that grade are learning about the water cycle in their science classes, FRNP Program Manager Myrna Redfield said. It is important for kids at this age to be exposed to S.T.E.M. topics, as well as have a better understanding of how the choices we make impact our environment.It is important for middle school students to understand how the choices we make today impact our rivers and oceans in the future, said Paducah Site Lead Jennifer Woodard of DOEs Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office. In addition to the groundwater lesson, students learned about the history of the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant and the careers available there.FRNP and DOEs partnership provides education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to students in grades K-12, and also offers a summer internship program for college students.Click the link below for more information. On the Net: Press Trust of India The government on Sunday prohibited e-commerce platforms from selling non-essential items during the lockdown, four days after allowing the companies to sell mobile phones, refrigerators and ready-made garments. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla issued an order excluding the non-essential items from the cart of e-commerce companies. The order said the following clause "e-commerce companies. Vehicles used by e-commerce operators will be allowed to ply with necessary permissions" is excluded from the guidelines. Asked why the government made a U-turn on the matter, Joint Secretary in the home ministry Punya Salila Srivastava said the Covid-19 situation has been very dynamic and the government is taking decision on a day-to-day basis. #IndiaFightsCorona Supply of non-essential goods by e-commerce companies to remain prohibited during #Lockdown2 to fight #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/6Jdvuzw6VJ Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) April 19, 2020 When the government has realised that allowing non-essential commodities to sell through e-commerce platforms may affect the proper implementation of the lockdown, the decision was reviewed and reversed, she said at a daily joint briefing on the COVID-19 outbreak The 15 April order had said e-commerce platforms were allowed to sell such items from 20 April. The reason for reversing the order was not known immediately, but there was a talk of some retail traders mounting pressure on the government that local shops be also allowed to sell non-essentials items, like e-commerce giants E-commerce platforms, however, are allowed to sell essential commodities such as food, pharmaceutical and medical devices. The previous order said, "Supply of essential goods is allowed, as under: All facilities in the supply chain of essential goods, whether involved in manufacturing, wholesale or retail of such goods through local stores, large brick and mortar stores or e-Commerce companies should be allowed to operate, ensuring strict social distancing without any restriction on their timing of opening and closure." A day later, Home Ministry officials said electronic items such as mobile phones, TVs, refrigerators, laptop computers, ready-made garments, stationery items for schoolchildren would be available on the e-commerce platforms from 20 April. Following that directive, a few e-commerce companies stated accepting online orders. Later on Sunday, the home secretary wrote a letter to the chief secretaries of all States and Union Territories giving a clarification on the subject. "...I would like to clarify that while operations of e-commerce companies for non-essential goods stands prohibited, however they will continue to operate for essential goods as has been allowed earlier and continue to be allowed," he said. Bhalla also requested the chief secretaries to clarify this to all the field agencies and also adequately disseminate amongst the general public so as to ensure smooth movement of the entire supply chain of essential goods, including by e-commerce. The guidelines and orders issued by the state governments and UT administrations in pursuance to the MHA orders may please be suitably modified to reflect the correct position, he said. The government also allowed movement of all trucks and other goods vehicles with two drivers and one helper, subject to the driver carrying a valid driving licence. An empty truck or vehicle will be allowed to ply after the delivery of goods, or for picking up goods Truck repair shops and dhabas (eateries) on highways, with a stipulated minimum distance as prescribed by the state and union territory authorities, will be allowed to operate. The lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24 March for 21 days in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic and later extended till 3 May. Extending it, the Prime Minister on Tuesday also declared that select necessary activities will be allowed to be opened up from 20 April in identified areas of the country. Michael Goonan was known for his heavy drinking and wild partying on Married At First Sight. And the 29-year-old company director has revealed that a particular incident was so out of control that producers forced him to take a drug test. Recalling the night he drunkenly kissed Hayley Vernon during filming in early October, Michael told KOTN Media on Sunday: 'We were all partying and having a good time, but woke up the next day without any memory... I was legless.' Crossing the line: Married At First Sight party boy Michael Goonan has revealed one particular incident during filming was so out of control that producers forced him to take a drug test The show's executive producer pulled Michael aside the morning after his bender and told him: 'You've actually ruined the whole show.' 'A guy like me, you need bars on the windows!' he added with a laugh. Michael was subsequently tested three times for illegal drugs, but every test came back negative. Human wrecking ball! Recalling the night he drunkenly kissed Hayley Vernon in early October, Michael told KOTN Media on Sunday: 'We were all partying and having a good time, but woke up the next day without any memory... I was legless' In February, Michael slammed reports that he'd used drugs during filming last year. Speaking to New Idea, the Melbourne-based businessman denied rumours he had been 'cautioned' for his supposed drug use and said he'd never taken cocaine on set. 'I was never warned or cautioned for the use of drugs on the show. I never took drugs on the show,' he said. In trouble: The show's executive producer pulled Michael aside the morning after his bender and told him, 'You've actually ruined the whole show.' He was subsequently tested three times for illegal drugs, but every test came back negative. Pictured with Stacey Hampton Michael added that producers had a 'zero-tolerance policy' on drugs, and he would have been kicked off the show if he'd been found with illegal substances. Despite this, some of Michael's co-stars allegedly spread rumours about him taking cocaine during filming. These unfounded suspicions resulted in the multiple drug tests. Michael, who was paired with Stacey Hampton on Married At First Sight, has since moved on with another bride, KC Osborne. The governor of Jigawa State, Muhammad Badaru, on Sunday, provided more information on how the first case of coronavirus was contracted in the state. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Sunday recorded 86 new cases with Jigawa having an index case of COVID-19, a deadly respiratory disease caused by coronavirus. The NCDC did not, however, provide details of the infected person in Jigawa. Before the NCDC announced the Jigawa index case, Mr Badaru briefed journalists, where he provided more information on the patient. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Kano State transferred a case to Jigawa after his sample was taken and tested by health officials in Kano. The case was earlier recorded in Kano by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and he was in isolation the centre in Kano before he was transported to Jigawa. While briefing journalists on Sunday night, the governor, Muhammad Badaru, said Jigawa recorded its first confirmed case of coronavirus in the state. The governor said the disease was contracted to the state through a resident businessman shuttling between southern Nigeria to Kazaure town in Jigawa. The patient, who owned a boutique in Kazaure town, developed symptoms of COVID-19 following a business trip from the southern region, Mr Badaru said. The governor added that the patient has also travelled to other states and health officials in Jigawa are in close contact with the states the patient earlier visited, for them to be able to trace his contacts. One of the samples taken from Kazaure Local Government Area returned positive. The patient has been transported to our isolation centre in Dutse, Mr Badaru said. The governor said contact tracing is currently going on and that all the identified contacts would be isolated, pending the outcome of test results to be carried out. Lockdown in affected LGA for seven days Meanwhile, Mr Badaru also ordered the lockdown of the affected Local Government Area, with effect from Monday night. In order to curb the spread of the infection in the state, Kazaure Local Government Area would be locked down for a period of seven days, starting from 20th April, 2020, 12 midnight, said Mr Badaru. I urge all citizens of the state to remain calm as we work collectively to overcome this pandemic. Security agents will work with civil society organisations to enforce the lockdown, the governor said. Kazaure Local Government in Jigawa shares a land border with the Daura Local Government Area in Katsina State. It is one of the five emirates in Jigawa with first class Emirs. A mother who stocked up on toilet paper for the coronavirus lockdown has been slammed online for trying to sell her stash for a huge profit. The Brisbane woman was among the hoards of people who started panic buying essential items in March, leaving supermarket shelves bare for weeks and many people unable to find essential items. She is now trying to offload 21 packets of toilet paper, each with 18 rolls. She's selling each pack of Quilton toilet paper for $20 online - double the price charged by Coles. 'Selling of excess toilet paper that I no longer need,' she wrote on the Facebook post. 'Don't attack me for making sure my family was prepared for the pandemic.' A mother who stocked up on toilet paper as the coronavirus pandemic began has been slammed for trying to sell her massive stash The Brisbane woman was among the hoards of people who started panic buying essential items in March, leaving supermarket shelves bare for weeks Many were outraged by the woman's post, calling her greedy and selfish. '369 rolls seriously that's not prepared that's greed,' one person wrote. 'While she overstocked she left nothing for the poor elderly or the normal people who didn't over stock, now she has realised what a f***ing idiot she was for stockpiling so she is trying to make a profit on it,' wrote another. 'Suck it up Princess, you hoarded it you use it!' another said. Toilet paper was the most in-demand product during the panic buying of March, with both Coles and Woolworths having to put a one-packet limit on the product due to shortages. And while most supermarkets had since been able to restock toilet paper, price gouging still remains an issue. Coles said panic-buyers had bought up three Christmases worth of stock in as many weeks amid the coronavirus pandemic (pictured, a store in Sydney) This shocking pictured showed an elderly man staring at an empty bread shelf after it was cleaned out by coronavirus panic buyers in March (pictured) Sydney retailer Bottlemart liquor store at Rockdale, in Sydney's south, was caught selling a single roll for $2.50 - about five times the price per roll when buying the bulk packets at supermarkets. So intense was the search for toilet rolls during the shortages that fights broke out in supermarket aisles. Two women were investigated by police after a fight broke out in an aisle over a packet of toilet paper. There are still strict limits imposed on staple items including tissues and paper towels as well as long-life food items such as pasta and rice. The one packet limit on toilet paper was still in force at most supermarkets. The media are really going off the deep end as coronavirus news saturates the airwaves and press. They're now trying to attach this issue to their favorite hobbyhorses pre-COVID-19. The problem is that they are claiming things that just aren't true. Take the Associated Press and the news outfits that run their pieces. First off, there's the title of this AP article, which was either the AP's headline or the headline of the station that ran the piece: "Trump campaign Team targets Democrat Advantage with People of Color." When will journalists recognize that white is a color? The first paragraph, definitely written by the AP, says it all: For the majority of people of color who believe Donald Trump is a racist unworthy of reelection, the Republican president can point to Alice Marie Johnson. I wonder why the majority of black Americans and Hispanics could possibly think the president is racist. Could it be that for the last four years, most of the media and other Democrats have called him a racist? Could it be that he has been called a racist for enforcing immigration laws that Congress passed? Could it be that the press continues to twist and lie about what Trump said at Charlottesville after a protest incident, all to gin up racial hate and division against Trump? Could it be that they called the China ban and Trump's characterization of the virus as the China or Wuhan virus racist? Could it be that anyone, including a teenage white Christian boy who wore a MAGA hat, who supports Trump gets called by the press "racist"? The press, in fact, is constantly using the term "white privilege" to gin up racial hate and division while pretending it is for unity. The media and other Democrats have been playing the race card for decades to keep blacks and other minorities voting for them and to keep those people dependent on government instead of giving them opportunities to move up the economic ladder. People who disagreed with Obama's policies were constantly called racists. The fictional "hands up, don't shoot" narrative was used to gin up racial hate and violence against white cops. How many cops were killed because of that fake narrative? People who said "all lives matter" instead of "black lives matter" have been called racists. How many lives are journalists willing to destroy just to put Democrats in power? Then, to return to the AP piece, there is this paragraph! Recent polls show that a majority of Americans agree that Trump's response to the outbreak has been too slow. It's more tale-bearing the telling of things that just aren't true from this press. I wonder why the majority of Americans say Trump acted too slow in addressing the virus. Could it be that every day, that is what most of the media and other Democrats regurgitate even though the WHO said in mid-January that the virus could not be transmitted human to human and Dr. Anthony Fauci said as late at Feb. 29 that COVID-19 wasn't that dangerous in the U.S.? The first death in the U.S. from the virus was around Feb. 29. Yet Trump acted on Jan. 31 to put in the travel ban, which experts say saved lives, a month before Fauci said the virus wasn't dangerous. At the time, the Democrat talking points were that the travel ban was xenophobic, racist, and an over-reaction, which most of the media agreed with. Over a month later, when the virus became more serious, the talking points changed for the media, entertainers, and other Democrats that Trump reacted too late. A little while later, out came the race card as more blacks died because more blacks had significant contributing health problems. Shouldn't people wonder why, after Democrats have kept blacks poor and dependent on government-run health care, blacks are more vulnerable to the most harmful effects of COVID-19? Doesn't this show that government-run health care is not the solution the Democrat talking points say it is? Summary: Basically, most of the media just regurgitate Democrat talking points to mislead the public to push the radical leftist agenda on climate change, taxes, race, immigration, abortion, or the virus and then take a poll with questions that match the talking points, and, surprise, a lot of the time, they get the results that match the indoctrination of hogwash. That's all it is, if that. But as Abraham Lincoln once reputedly said, you can't fool all of the people all of the time. At some point, this must stop. Photo illustration by Monica Showalter with use of public domain logo. In this article NFLX JBSS NA-CA 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 Asia-Pacific team. Global cases: More than 2.4 million Global deaths: At least 169,794 US cases: More than 782,100 US deaths: At least 41,816 The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University. 8:45 pm: US Treasury releases $2.9 billion in airline support, finalizes payroll agreements The U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday it has disbursed $2.9 billion in initial payroll assistance to 54 smaller passenger carrier and two major passenger airlines, while it finalized grant agreements with six major airlines. The Treasury is initially giving major airlines 50% of funds awarded and releasing the remainder in a series of payments. In total, Treasury is awarding U.S. passenger airlines $25 billion in funds earmarked for payroll costs. Airlines must repay 30% of the funds in low-interest loans and grant Treasury warrants equal to 10% of the loan amount. Treasury said Monday it has finalized grant agreements with Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines and United Airlines. Reuters 8:05 pm: California gets tech to support students' remote learning during pandemic Gavin Newsom, governor of California, speaks during a news conference in Sacramento, California, on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. Rich Pedroncelli | AP | Bloomberg via Getty Images California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his wife, documentary filmmaker Jennifer Siebel Newsom, announced that the state secured tens of thousands of laptops, iPads and other technology support for students learning at home during the Covid-19 pandemic, due to stay-at-home health orders throughout the state. In a statement, Newsom said donors of the technology included: Amazon, Apple, T-Mobile, Verizon. Meanwhile, Jack Dorsey via #startsmall, the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative and investors Ann and John Doerr donated a million dollars each to support remote learning in the state. T-Mobile and Google also previously partnered to donate 100,000 wireless internet hotspot devices for use throughout California. Lora Kolodny tweet 7:45 pm: Restaurants raising cash as coronavirus keeps diners away Darden shares are under pressure in extended trading, recently down about 3%. After the close, the owner of Olive Garden said it was raising $400 million via a stock offering to help raise cash. The underwriters also have the option to buy another $60 million in shares. Earlier in the day, Cheesecake Factory said that private equity firm Roark Capital was making a $200 million investment. What other firms could be next in line? Keep an eye on that. Roark recently riased $1.4 billion in a new fund. Darden had already sought other ways to ensure it has liquidity. It suspended its dividend and has implemented many other cost cuts. It also got a $270 million loan two weeks ago. Some good news for Darden, its cash burn rate has dropped to $20 million per week from the $25 million figure it stated on April 7. On that date too, the company said it had $1 billion in cash on hand. On the flip side, Darden said today that same-store sales are down 45% quarter to date. That compares with a quarter-to-date decline of 35% it reported two weeks ago. Robert Hum 7:30 pm: San Francisco begins mapping Covid-19 cases by ZIP code San Francisco Mayor London Breed said that her city is now mapping and reporting confirmed Covid-19 cases by ZIP code, as well as by gender, age, race and ethnic group. As of April 20, San Francisco had completed 11,254 tests, confirmed about 13% or 1,216 positive Covid-19 cases among residents, and reported 20 total deaths due to the virus. According to its latest analysis, people who lived in crowded homes, or who had limited ability to reduce their outings, and those with pre-existing health issues and lower income were at higher risk of a Covid-19 infection in San Francisco. Residents who were 31 to 40 years old represented 23% of confirmed Covid-19 cases. People who identified as Hispanic or Latino comprised 25%, and men represented 60% of confirmed Covid-19 cases overall, the study found. San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood had the highest number of cases per 10,000 residents, according to the new data tracker. Breed said on Twitter that the map reflects: "existing health disparities and inequality that existed within our city before COVID-19." Lora Kolodny tweet 7:08 pm: Disney is furloughing workers while other media giants aren't The entrance to the Magic Kingdom at Disney World is seen on the first day of closure as theme parks in the Orlando area suspend operations for two weeks in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) Paul Hennessy | SOPA Images | LightRocket via Getty Images On Monday, Disney began furloughing workers, temporarily stopping pay to as many as 100,000 workers, according to an estimate by the Financial Times. Over the last few weeks Disney has laid out its plans to impose unpaid leave, first for some non-union employees, then in a subsequent deal with 43,000 union workers. The media giant will pay 100% of health insurance costs for workers currently covered for up to 12 months. While the majority of those furloughs are at the theme parks, they also extend to all of Disney's other divisions, including the movie studio and TV division. Disney's also asked its senior executives to accept a pay cut, with no set end. Disney won't comment on the number of furloughs. Disney's extensive furloughs stand in sharp contrast to the other two media giants Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, and AT&T, which owns WarnerMedia which haven't yet announced any furloughs or layoffs. These are the three largest media conglomerates, in a category above all the others: Disney's market cap is $185 billion, Comcast's is $169 billion, and AT&T's is $222 billion. They do face some similar challenges: all three have movie studios that are suffering from the closure of theaters and all are seeing their ad revenue plummet as live sports has been halted. And all three are working to get ahead of the cord-cutting trend and have new services designed to own that direct-to-consumer relationship. But the finances of these companies are incredibly different. Parks and Resorts is Disney's largest division, responsible for 35% of its revenue in 2019. That division includes not only theme parks and resorts, but also a cruise line. In contrast, Comcast derived only 5.4% of its revenue from parks such as Universal Studios, and AT&T doesn't own any parks. Julia Boorstin 6:58 pm: Mark Cuban on Shake Shack initially taking small business loan: 'You're going to kill your brand' 6:49 pm: Updated map of US cases, which now total 782,159 6:41 pm: The plunge in oil prices is the last thing Boeing and Airbus need right now Grounded Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are seen parked in an aerial photo at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington, July 1, 2019. Lindsey Wasson | Reuters The coronavirus pandemic, the threat of airline bankruptcies and a global recession. Now a historic oil glut and price crash are adding to the woes of Boeing and Airbus. The duopoly that dominates most of the world's aircraft production spent more than a decade racking up record orders for planes they boasted could save millions in fuel. "One thing that kept the industry aloft during the great financial meltdown [in 2008] is fuel prices actually rose," said Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst at vice president at Teal Group, referring to record oil prices that year. Rising oil prices can help boost sales of more fuel-efficient aircraft, the opposite of sales trends for larger personal vehicles like SUVs. The Airbus A320neo and the Boeing 737 Max, each manufacturer's best-selling narrow-body airplanes were developed after the Great Recession when fuel prices were again rising and airlines were on the hunt for models that would help them cut fuel costs. But manufacturers have lost that selling point, adding to a slate of challenges that are expected to last at least into 2021, if not later, and a sharp turnaround from earlier this year when airlines couldn't get new single-aisle airplanes fast enough. Leslie Josephs 6:20 pm: TSA coping with Covid-19 as travel dwindles The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reported that, as of Monday April 20, 448 of its employees had tested positive for Covid-19, with 82 fully recovered and 4 having died due to the novel coronavirus. Miami International Airport Supervisory TSA Officer Victor Chung passed away on Sunday, as a result of complications from Covid-19 the TSA said. With travel dwindling, the TSA has adjusted the way it conducts security screenings at airports, in an attempt to keep its employees, and travelers, as safe as possible from the novel coronavirus. For example, the TSA now asks that travelers wash their hands before and after going through a security line, keeps them six feet apart, and allows them to pack hand sanitizer in containers up to 12 ounces in carry-on luggage. Lora Kolodny 6 pm: Stock futures rise slightly as oil prices stabilize Stock futures bounced slightly in overnight trading on Monday. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 25 points. S&P 500 futures added 0.3%. The gains came as the more actively-traded June oil contract rebounded by 2%. The May contract, which triggered Monday's stock sell-off with a bizarre move below zero into negative prices, remained negative. IBM dipped 2.3% in extended trading after the company reported a 3.4% decline in revenue in the first quarter from a year ago amid the spread of coronavirus. Coca-Cola, Netflix and Chipotle are on deck to report earnings on Tuesday. Yun Li 5:35 pm: Tennessee preps to reopen, conducts more prison mass testing Protesters rally at the Tennessee state capitol to speak out against the state's handling of the COVID-19 outbreak Sunday, April 19, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. Mark Humphrey | AP Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced Monday that businesses across the majority of the state will begin reopening as early as next week. The Republican governor says his mandatory safer-at-home order will expire on April 30, which will pave the way for 89 out of the state's 95 counties to begin opening businesses. However, Lee's announcement does not apply to the state's counties with the largest cities, including Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Madison, Shelby and Sullivan counties areas that are not overseen by Tennessee's Department of Health but have their own public health districts. "While I am not extending the safer at home order past the end of April, we are working directly with our major metropolitan areas to ensure they are in a position to reopen as soon and safely as possible," Lee said. Some businesses will be allowed to reopen as early as April 27, but it's unclear exactly which ones will be granted such clearance. Lee told reporters that such details would be finalized by his economy recovery team later this week. Associated Press 5 pm: Georgia's governor says some shuttered businesses can reopen Friday The Battery is a lively venue featuring shops, bars and restaurants from local chefs at Truist Park, home of the Atlanta Braves MLB team as the facility is currently closed while sports are on quarantine during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Atlanta, Georgia on April 18, 2020. David J. Griffin | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday rolled out aggressive plans to reopen the state's economy, saying many businesses shuttered to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus may reopen their doors as early as Friday. Kemp announced that gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys and tattoo parlors are among businesses that may reopen Friday as long as owners follow strict social distancing and hygiene requirements. By Monday, movie theaters may resume selling tickets and restaurants limited to takeout orders can go back to limited dine-in service. "In the same way that we carefully closed businesses and urged operations to end to mitigate the virus's spread, today we're announcing plans to incrementally and safely reopen sectors of our economy." Kemp said, In addition to calls from President Donald Trump, Kemp has heard scattered public calls in Georgia to lift restrictions. Associated Press 4:25 pm: New research suggests Covid-19 is less deadly, but more widespread An ambulance arrives in a beachside parking lot being used with R.V's as an isolation zone for people with COVID-19, on April 1st, 2020, at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles, California. John Fredricks | NurPhoto | Getty Images A new study suggests that Covid-19 has a lower fatality rate, but is more widespread in Los Angeles County than previously thought, according to the University of Southern California and the L.A. Department of Public Health. USC and the Department of Public Health released the preliminary results of antibody testing conducted for their joint study on Monday. Based on the first round of testing, the research team estimates that approximately 4.1% of the county's adult population has antibody to the virus and that approximately 221,000 adults to 442,000 adults in the county have had the infection.This new estimate is 28 to 55 times higher than the 7,994 confirmed cases of Covid-19 reported to the county in early April. The number of coronavirus-related deaths in the county has now surpassed 600, according to the Department of Public Health. "Though the results indicate a lower risk of death among those with infection than was previously thought, the number of Covid-related deaths each day continues to mount, highlighting the need for continued vigorous prevention and control efforts," said Dr. Paul Simon, chief science officer at L.A. County Department of Public Health and co-lead on the study, in a statement. Hannah Miller 4:05 pm: Dow drops more than 500 points to start the week after historic oil plunge Stocks fell sharply Monday, retreating after back-to-back weekly gains, as a historic decline in U.S. crude prices raised concerns about the economic damage being done by coronavirus shutdowns. A delay in funding the for the depleted small business rescue loan program also weighed on sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 592.05 points lower, or 2.5%, 23,650.44. The S&P 500 slid 1.8% to 2,823.16. The Nasdaq Composite pulled back 1% to 8,560.73. (Click here for the latest market news.) Boeing fell more than 6% to lead the Dow lower while Chevron and Exxon Mobil dropped more than 4% each. Energy, real estate and utilities were the worst-performing sectors in the S&P 500, falling more than 3% each. Fred Imbert 3:54 pm: New York nurses union sues state and two hospitals over 'war zone' conditions The New York State Nurses Association filed suit against the state and two hospital systems, alleging dangerous conditions that put health workers at risk and inflamed the country's largest coronavirus outbreak. The union, which represents 42,000 nurses across New York, alleged that the New York Department of Health failed to provide health workers with adequate protective equipment and directed health workers infected by Covid-19 to return to work sooner than advised by the state. The suit was filed in New York County Supreme Court. "More than seven in ten of our nurses are reporting exposure to COVID-19 and most are still untested. These lawsuits were filed to protect our nurses, our patients and our communities from grossly inadequate and negligent protections," NYSNA Executive Director Pat Kane said in a statement. "We cannot allow these dangerous practices to continue." Will Feuer 3:45 pm: New Jersey orders troubled nursing home to cease taking new patients after coronavirus deaths overwhelm facility The New Jersey Department of Health is ordering Andover Subacute Rehabilitation Center to "cease all admissions" and hire additional staff related to nursing and infectious disease after more than 70 suspected Covid-19 deaths overwhelmed the facility. The state's health commissioner, Judith Persichilli, announced during a press briefing that the nursing home must hire "a consultant administrator, a consultant director of nursing and an infection control professional." The facility is to report its progress and staff selection for approval to the department by the end of the day. New Jersey state surveyors inspected 21 long-term care facilities "looking at infection control, staffing, availability of personal protective equipment and implementation of an outbreak response plan," said Persichilli. All facilities that have been issued a deficiency report will be required to submit directed plans of correction to the Department of Health. The state reported 6,986 hospitalizations, including confirmed Covid-19 patients and people under investigation, and 177 new deaths. "Overall in our mortalities, 40% are associated with long-term care facilities," said Persichilli. Jasmine Kim 3:04 pm: Warner Bros. shuffles movie slate as theaters remain closed, production halts Gal Gadot stars as Wonder Woman in Warner Bros. "Wonder Woman 1984." Warner Bros. Warner Bros. is making some strategic changes to its movie release schedule in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. With cinemas shuttered and productions of upcoming films suspended, the studio has moved a number of its release dates. While Christopher Nolan's "Tenant" and the second "Wonder Woman" films will remain in their July and August dates, "King Richard," a biopic starring Will Smith as Venus and Serena Williams' father, has been pushed from November 2020 to November 2021. The change could give the film better chances at becoming an Oscar contender, since it's unclear how the awards season will shake out in the wake of Covid- 19. The "Sopranos" prequel film "The Many Saints of Newark" has also been pushed from its 2020 release date and will now hit theaters in 2021. Warner Bros. superhero slate has also been shuffled. "The Batman" has moved to Oct. 1, 2021 from June 25, 2021; "The Flash" will now arrive on June 2, 2022 instead of July 1, 2022; and "Shazam 2" has been moved to Nov. 4, 2022 instead of April 1, 2022. Additionally, the untitled Elvis Presley biopic from Baz Luhrmann has been moved to Nov. 5, 2021 from Oct. 1, 2021 and "In the Heights," "Scoob" and "Malignant" remain without release dates. Sarah Whitten 2:53 pm: California town Bolinas is testing all 1,600 residents for Covid-19 For the first time since the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S., an entire town will be tested, regardless of whether or not someone is showing symptoms. The testing is part of a research project put together by the Marin County community of Bolinas and the University of California, San Francisco. Tents are set up next to the town's fire department, and Monday morning volunteers and researchers will collect samples from all 1,600 residents of the community near Stinson Beach. The organizers of the project want to know how widespread COVID-19 is in the small town of Bolinas and how they can use that information to help other communities. NBC Bay Area 2:44 pm: An oil futures contract expiring Tuesday went negative in bizarre move U.S. crude prices dropped more than 100% and turned negative for the first time in history. The price of the nearest oil futures contract, which expires Tuesday, was the hardest hit, detaching from later month futures contracts, which continued to trade above $20 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery fell more than 100% to settle at negative $37.63 per barrel. Meanwhile international benchmark, Brent crude, which has already rolled to the June contract, traded 8.9% lower at $25.58 per barrel. The June WTI contract, which expires on May 19, fell about 18% to trade at $20.43 per barrel. The July contract was roughly 11% lower at $26.18 per barrel. Eustance Huang, Pippa Stevens 2:23 pm: Senate has no deal on the next coronavirus relief bill, but sets up possible Tuesday vote The Senate did not reach a deal on the next coronavirus relief bill in time for a brief Monday session, but set up a vote as soon as Tuesday afternoon to replenish a key small business aid program. "At this hour, our Democratic colleagues are still prolonging their discussions with the administration, so the Senate regretfully will not be able to pass more funding for Americans' paychecks today," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said during the pro forma session Monday. He said the Senate would meet again at 4 p.m. Tuesday to try to pass legislation to replenish the program. The House will meet as early as Wednesday to consider an emergency bill, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said Sunday. Jacob Pramuk 1:55 pm: Oil is getting crushed with one futures contract down 98% to record low under $1 U.S. crude prices plunged to their lowest level in history as traders continue to fret over a slump in demand due to the coronavirus pandemic. The price of the nearest oil futures contract, which expires Tuesday, was the hardest hit, detaching from later month futures contracts with a drop of more than 90%. This suggests that some believe there could be a recovery later in the year. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery tanked 95%, or $17.37, to trade at 90 cents per barrel, its lowest level on record. Meanwhile international benchmark, Brent crude, which has already rolled to the June contract, traded 6.2% lower at $26.35 per barrel. The June WTI contract, which expires on May 19, fell about 10% to $22.54 per barrel. The July contract was roughly 5% lower at $28 per barrel. Eustance Huang, Pippa Stevens 1:39 pm: France death toll crosses 20,000 France officially registered more than 20,000 deaths from coronavirus infections, becoming the fourth country to go beyond that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States, and the pace of increase of fatalities sped up again after several days of slowing. But the number of people in intensive care fell for the 12th consecutive day, suggesting the national lockdown put in place more than a month ago is having positive effects in containing the disease. France's public health chief Jerome Salomon told a news briefing the coronavirus-linked fatalities were up 2.8%, at 20,265, versus an increase of 2.0% Sunday. Reuters 1:37 pm: Why coronavirus is unlikely to lead to martial law in the US 1:29 pm: WHO says partisan politics and lack of global solidarity is fueling coronavirus pandemic The World Health Organization's top official said partisan politics and lack of global solidarity is helping to fuel the coronavirus pandemic, urging countries to work together as Covid-19 continues to spread throughout the world. "The cracks between people and the cracks between parties is fueling it," WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press conference at the agency's Geneva headquarters. "Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points. It's dangerous. It's like playing with fire." Without global solidarity, the worst of the pandemic is still "ahead of us," said Tedros. Berkeley Lovelace Jr. 1:09 pm: Cannabis companies pay federal taxes but are shut out of small business loans Different strains of cannabis are displayed for sale at the Harborside dispensary in Oakland, California, U.S., on Monday, March 23, 2020. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images April 20 is traditionally the biggest sales day of the year for the cannabis industry, but after seeing strong sales at the start of state shutdown orders, some stores have seen a sales slump. Particularly hard hit are shops in states heavily dependent on tourists, or where only medical marijuana has been deemed essential, not recreational. Sales in Colorado reportedly fell 21 percent in the second half of March from a year earlier, and Nevada sales fell 15 percent. "Some businesses are running into choppy waters," said Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore. However, these businesses cannot access federal aid because they are illegal in the eyes of the federal government. So Blumenauer and three colleagues from both parties are pushing for the next round of Small Business Administration loans to include the cannabis industry. "There are a quarter of a million people working in state-legal cannabis businesses, they pay almost $2 billion in taxes," he said, adding that the industry actually pays a disproportionate amount in taxes "because the crazy federal government rules don't allow them to deduct all their business expenses." Jane Wells 12:57 pm: Norwegian Air says 4,700 jobs at risk after unit bankruptcies and axed contracts Norwegian Air reported on Monday that four Swedish and Danish subsidiaries have filed for bankruptcy and that it had ended staffing contracts in Europe and the United States, putting some 4,700 jobs at risk. The airline is seeking to convert debt to equity, money from shareholders and Norwegian state guarantees in a bid to survive the coronavirus crisis. Earlier Monday Virgin Atlantic said it would survive the pandemic only if it receives financial support from the British government, while Virgin Australia is set to enter voluntary administration, according to sources close to the matter. Norwegian Air said the four subsidiaries in Sweden and Denmark were companies that employed pilots and cabin crew. The canceled agreements involve firms that provide crews based in Spain, Britain, Finland, Sweden and the United States. Combined, it said, some 4,700 pilots and cabin crew members would be affected while about 700 pilots and 1,300 cabin crew based in Norway, France and Italy remained unaffected. Reuters 12:49 pm: Insurers are denying coronavirus claims. Restaurants are fighting back An employee of Carmelina's in the North End of Boston tapes up paper in the windows of the restaurant, which is temporarily closing during the coronavirus pandemic, on March 25, 2020. David L. Ryan | The Boston Globe via Getty Images As the coronavirus pandemic upends the restaurant industry, insurers are denying restaurant companies' claims for payouts that could help their businesses survive. States across the country have mandated that eateries serve food only via takeout, delivery or drive-thru lanes to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Some restaurants have chosen to shutter temporarily for the safety of their employees and customers, while others have tried to adapt. Restaurant transactions plunged 41% in the week ended April 5 from a year earlier, according to the NPD Group. Restaurateurs, like many other business owners, thought the situation would be covered by business interruption insurance, which covers the loss of income suffered by a business after a disaster. But following the SARS outbreak, regulators approved an exception in such policies for viruses and bacterial outbreaks. Even when an exception is not spelled out in the policy, insurers are denying claims using the argument that the virus does not constitute physical damage to the property. But political pressure is mounting on insurers to reverse course. President Donald Trump has signaled that he believes that business interruption policies without specific pandemic exceptions should cover claims related to the coronavirus pandemic. Amelia Lucas 12:33 pm: New York coronavirus deaths still 'horrifically high' even as outbreak appears to slow, Gov. Cuomo says Coronavirus deaths in New York remain "horrifically high" even though some projections of the state's outbreak suggest it may be on the verge of a "descent," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. Some 478 New Yorkers died from the virus on Sunday, a decline from the daily death toll at the disease's peak when nearly 800 residents a day were dying, Cuomo said. A total of 507 people in the state died on Saturday, and 540 deaths were recorded Friday. There were 1,380 new Covid-19 hospitalizations in New York on Sunday, a slight tick down from 1,384 on Saturday, Cuomo said at his daily news conference. He stressed the importance of testing, announcing that the state is "starting the largest antibody testing ever done today." "Testing is going to require everyone to work together," Cuomo said, noting that the effort will require close cooperation between states and the federal government. Kevin Breuninger 12:20 pm: In Spain, coronavirus death counts prompt anger, confusion A coronavirus patient is lifted into an Ambuiberica ambulance by her son and emergency technician Marisa Arguello de Paula during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Llodio, Spain, April 19, 2020. Vincent West | Reuters Spain already has one of the world's highest death tolls from the coronavirus pandemic. But data indicating the true number of fatalities could be much higher is fueling public anger and could cause problems for Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's fragile government. Spain's total deaths rose to 20,852 on Monday. But the figure fails to account for those who were more than likely died by the virus but never tested. Fernando Simon, the national coronavirus emergency response chief, has acknowledged that the "real number of deaths is hard to know". The country has been in strict lockdown since March 14, although restrictions have been eased slightly since last week. But most people remain cooped up in their homes. And sometimes families burying their dead are not even certain what their loved ones died of. In a nursing home near Barcelona, an 85-year-old woman died on April 8 of "possible" Covid-19, said her daughter Amparo, citing a doctor's death certificate. Amparo, 56, who declined to give her last name, said her mother was not tested. She accused political leaders of not protecting citizens and dismissed the official tally as useless. "Additional people have died because (politicians) have not made sufficient testing possible so that we can know the reality," she said. "We have left them to die alone." The government has defended its count which only includes those tested and said that tracking confirmed deaths allows it to better study the outbreak's evolution, in line with the World Health Organization practice that only counts confirmed cases. Suspected deaths should be analyzed at a later stage, the government says. Reuters 12:09 pm: In-office Zooms, more breaks, testing Dr. Scott Gottlieb offers advice to reopening businesses Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC that employers need to have specific plans in place for how to safely return workers to the office or shop floor. That could even mean conducting Zoom video calls in the office to avoid having large meetings, the former head of the Food and Drug Administration said on "Squawk Box." "In an office, you could split your employees, have half of them work at home, half of them come into the office on alternating days," Gottlieb added. "You should continue to encourage telework where you can." Gottlieb said it's more difficult to maintain social distancing in manufacturing plants and other commercial environments, so employers should accommodate personal protective equipment. "Let people wear masks if they want to." "People need break rooms. They need to come off the shop floor and go into a break room but you might want to have more breaks over the course of the day and stagger them more regularly, so that smaller groups can take breaks so you don't have as much congregating," he advised. Kevin Stankiewicz 12:01 pm: These markets could see the sharpest drop in home prices during coronavirus pandemic Homebuying has weakened dramatically in the last month, as Americans hunker down to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. While some are still shopping online, doing virtual tours, the spring season was essentially over before it started. Although sales are way down, home values may not suffer as much, except in certain markets. Home prices were very hot at the beginning of this year and heading into the crisis, and the expectation is that while the gains in values will likely slow, prices will not fall nationally. That's because unlike during the subprime mortgage crisis, when there was a serous glut of homes for sale, there is now an increasingly severe shortage. Home values fell as much as 50% in some markets a decade ago, but market dynamics are far different now, and the supply-demand imbalance favors stronger prices. In the first two weeks of March, new listings were up 5% annually on average. By the second week of April, they were down 47%, according to realtor.com. April is usually the strongest month for new listings. Diana Olick 11:53 am: Shake Shack CEO says chain has ensured 'long-term stability' after returning $10 million PPP loan Shake Shack CEO Randy Garutti said that the company returned its $10 million loan from the Paycheck Protection Program after accessing other kinds of capital through the public markets. "We've ensured our long-term stability, now it's time for us to help our friends in the industry do the same," Garutti said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." The burger chain disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday that it had received $10 million from the federal program. Shake Shack also said Friday that it is planning on selling up to $75 million in shares to strengthen its cash position. Garutti said that the company initially applied for a PPP loan to keep as many of its employees as possible. Shake Shack has furloughed more than 1,000 employees and closed 17 company-operated U.S. locations, as of Friday. On Sunday evening, Garutti and Shake Shack's founder and chairman Danny Meyer, who owns roughly 7.8% of the company's shares, said that the chain would be returning the $10 million. Amelia Lucas 11:40 am: After a crazy 12 months, the S&P 500 is about back to where it started 10:36 am: US restaurants on track to lose $240 billion by the end of 2020, survey says A closed sign hangs on the door with a view of the empty restaurant during the coronavirus pandemic on April 14, 2020 in New York City. Rob Kim | Getty Images U.S. restaurants are on track to lose $50 billion in April, with losses amounting to an estimated $240 billion by the end of 2020, as the coronavirus crisis ravages the industry, according to a National Restaurant Association survey released Monday. Two-thirds of U.S. restaurant workers or 8 million people have been laid off or furloughed with the closing of 4 in 10 restaurants, but at least 60% of operators say existing federal relief programs will not help them prevent more layoffs, the survey found. Reuters 10:31 am: Retailers are begging for the government's help but Treasury might not listen Retail is reeling, as stores shutter and thousands of people lose their jobs while the coronavirus spreads. Now, the Treasury Department must decide whether the risk of the industry toppling is worth putting taxpayer money where many others would not. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has shown little appetite for risk and losses, even as he attempts to support a cratering economy. Many mid-sized retailers do not qualify for programs the government has begun to roll out to save ailing companies. They are too big to qualify for the Main Street lending program aimed at companies with fewer than 10,000 employees or $2.5 billion in sales. Their debt is too distressed to qualify for the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility aimed at larger companies. That means companies like Macy's, which has roughly $25 billion in sales but whose credit was downgraded to junk before the pandemic, may be out of luck if they want government relief. The retailer is working with investment bank Lazard to restructure its debt, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because the information is confidential. They added that the company is not focusing on bankruptcy. Lauren Hirsch 10:15 am: New York City extends cancellation of summer festivals, concerts, and parades through June Parade participants during the WorldPride NYC 2019 March on June 30, 2019 in New York City. Roy Rochlin | Getty Images New York City is canceling concerts, festivals and parades, including the 2020 Pride march, through June as the city seeks to drive down its coronavirus infection rate, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday. On Friday, De Blasio canceled nonessential events through May and a city-sponsored concert series that was scheduled start June 22. In extending the cancellations through June, de Blasio said it was a decision "we have to make." Most of the events will be rescheduled, he said. The new cancellations include the 50th annual gay pride parade marking the 1969 uprising at the Stonewall Inn. Will Feuer 10:08 am: Facebook just released its symptom tracking map Facebook released its first map that tracks coronavirus symptoms county by county and plans to update it daily throughout the outbreak. Facebook partnered with Carnegie Mellon University to create an opt-in survey designed to help identify Covid-19 hotspots before the cases are confirmed. The map breaks down the percentage of people per county who have self-reported coronavirus symptoms, such as loss of smell, cough and fever. It shows, for example, that 1.45% of people in New York County have reported coronavirus symptoms. But a huge portion of the map does not have enough participants to show any data. More than 1 million people responded to the survey within the first two weeks, according to Facebook. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company will roll out the survey globally this week, which will help it provide a more complete picture. Jessica Bursztynsky 9:46 am: Mohamed El-Erian sees US economy contracting up to 14% this year Mohamed El-Erian 190326 Anjali Sundaram | CNBC The U.S. economy could experience a double-digit percentage contraction in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, Mohamed El-Erian told CNBC on Monday, suggesting a much steeper decline than most other economists. "I think we may be at minus 10% to minus 14% growth for the U.S.," the Allianz chief economist said on "Squawk Box." "This is a big hit." El-Erian said the distinct nature of this economic hit a health crisis means traditional frameworks may not be applicable, acting as a further obstacle for a rebound. "The benefits you would expect normally, lower oil price means more dollars in consumers' pockets, even that doesn't work in this economy. So I'm a little bit more worried than what the consensus of economists out there is right now." Kevin Stankiewicz 9:35 am: Dow drops more than 400 points as oil prices fall on energy demand concerns 9:29 am: Outbreak at wind power plant in North Dakota shuts down production An outbreak of Covid-19 at a wind power facility in North Dakota has forced it to temporarily close, the latest example of how the pandemic is impacting the renewable energy sector. Over the weekend, North Dakota's Department of Health said there were 110 confirmed cases of coronavirus in people connected to the LM Wind Power plant in Grand Forks a total that includes employees and "their close contacts." The site, which produces rotor blades for wind turbines and employs 900 people, closed Wednesday after eight workers tested positive for coronavirus. In a statement, a spokesperson for GE which owns LM Wind Power said the Grand Forks facility would be temporarily closed for at least two weeks in order to "conduct an extensive disinfection process." Employees will continue to be paid "as usual" during this time, they added. Anmar Frangoul 9:17 am: The pandemic will likely leave a lasting legacy on retail: Fewer department stores A "Temporarily Closed" sign hangs in the window of Nordstrom Inc. store in the Midtown neighborhood of New York, U.S., on Friday, March 20, 2020. Gabby Jones | Bloomberg | Getty Images Before Covid-19 hit, the U.S., department stores were in trouble because they had failed to keep up with shoppers' changing tastes. These retailers had been investing in ways to win back customers. Now, their stores are closed to halt the spread of the virus. And no one knows exactly how long this will be the case. For J.C. Penney, the bankruptcy clock is ticking after it skipped a mid-April interest payment. Its turnaround plans have been sidelined by the coronavirus pandemic, which has forced the closure of all of its stores. Macy's, with liquidity drying up, has tapped advisors at investment bank Lazard and law firm Kirkland & Ellis to explore options that include new financing. Nordstrom in early April raised $600 million by placing some of its real estate assets into a separate company and borrowing against the new entity by issuing bonds. High-end department store chain Neiman Marcus on Wednesday missed a payment on some of its bonds, according to a letter sent to the retailer's board from Marble Ridge Capital, which owns a significant portion of the $137.7 million in bonds that mature in October 2021. Neiman Marcus now has until the middle of May to make the interest payment. After that, pending no payment, the company could be pushed into bankruptcy court by its bondholders. Lauren Thomas 9:09 am: Novartis, US drug regulator agree to malaria drug trial against Covid-19 Novartis has won the go-ahead from the Food and Drug Administration to conduct a randomized trial of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine against Covid-19, the Swiss drugmaker said Monday. Novartis plans to start recruiting 440 patients for its phase 3 or late-stage trial within weeks at more than a dozen U.S. sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. Use of the drug, also approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has soared after having been promoted by President Donald Trump, with some worried the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine for Covid-19 has short-circuited the FDA's oversight process. Reuters 9:03 am: Southeast Asia could be the next hot spot these charts show why The number of coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia has risen quickly in recent weeks, with mounting worries among experts that the region could turn into a hot spot for the fast-spreading disease. The region has reported more than 28,000 cases as of Sunday, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. Collectively, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore account for 87.9% of total cases reported in Southeast Asia, the data showed. Yen Nee Lee 8:53 am: United Airlines posts $2.1 billion pretax loss as coronavirus roils business, seeks more federal aid United Airlines reported a $2.1 billion loss for first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic drove travel demand down to the lowest level in decades. The airline said it has applied for up to $4.5 billion in government loans on top of about $5 billion federal payroll grants and loans it expects to receive to weather the crisis. United is the first major U.S. airline to detail the results of the virus on its earnings in the first three months of the year. The disease and harsh measures to stop it from spreading such as stay-at-home orders has ravaged air travel demand and prompted carriers to slash most of their flights. Leslie Josephs 8:48 am: Germany and others need to fund the post-virus recovery across Europe, Spanish minister says MADRID, SPAIN - FEBRUARY 26: Minister of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation Nadia Calvino attends 'Reino de Espana a la Trayectoria Empresarial' awards, in honour of Placido Arango 'In Memoriam' at El Prado Museum on February 26, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. Carlos Alvarez Germany needs to understand it will have to fund the post-pandemic recovery across Europe, Spain's economy minister told CNBC on Monday, just days ahead of another pivotal meeting for the European Union. The 27 European countries that make up the EU remain at loggerheads over how to mitigate the economic shock from Covid-19, despite putting together a half trillion euro package for more immediate spending needs earlier this month. Their main concern now is to present a second plan that will deal with the vast amount of virus-related debt that is expected to creep up across the region. Nadia Calvino, Spanish economic affairs minister and deputy prime minister, told CNBC on Monday that Germany has a budget surplus that it is "quite determined" to use. "Now, what we need is for them to understand that we need to also fund the recovery of the rest of the (EU) countries, that we need to fund the recovery of the whole of Europe," she added. Silvia Amaro 7:38 am: Putin says Russia has not yet reached its peak Russian President Vladimir Putin said the country has managed to curb the Covid-19 crisis but the peak of the outbreak is still ahead. The number of Russian confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 47,000 on Monday with a death toll of 405. (See additional entry below about Russia.) Reuters 7:25 am: Burger chain Shake Shack to return $10 million government loan Shake Shack said it will return the $10 million small business loan it received from the U.S. government, making the burger chain the first major firm to hand back money aimed at helping small businesses ride out the coronavirus crisis. The company was able to raise additional capital, CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said in a blog post. Last week, it raised about $150 million in an equity offering. The government's $2.2 trillion aid package is aimed at helping small companies keep paying their employees and their basic bills during the shutdowns so that they are able to reopen quickly when public health allows. Shake Shack said the money it received could be reallocated to the independent restaurants "who need it most, (and) haven't gotten any assistance." Reuters 6:50 am: US markets haven't priced in a 'significant second wave,' says Citi Private Bank Major U.S. stock indexes may have recovered from their recent lows, but Citi Private Bank warned that the worst may not be over. "In the event that we have a very significant second wave of disease in the United States that cause a further shutdown of the economy ... that clearly is not priced into the market," David Bailin, the bank's chief investment officer, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia." "The other thing that may not be priced into the market is the fact that this virus may take another 18 to 24 months to really cycle through the globe, and ultimately have a vaccine," he added. Yen Nee Lee 6:07 am: Putin is distancing himself from Russia's outbreak, but it could still damage him politically People in medical masks in Red Square in central Moscow amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared a week off work and urged people to stay home to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Cafes, restaurants, shopping malls and parks are closed in Moscow. Sergei Bobylev Russia's handling of the coronavirus epidemic is coming under increasing scrutiny and could potentially damage the credibility and legitimacy of President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin, experts say. Russia was arguably slow to recognize that the epidemic was coming to the country, even as it spread rapidly among its neighbors and in Italy, Spain, Germany, and France. On Sunday, Russia saw its largest daily rise in new confirmed cases, with its crisis response center reporting 6,060 new cases, bringing the total number of cases to 42,853. The number of reported deaths remains low, however, with total fatalities at 361. Holly Ellyatt 5:37 am: Spain's confirmed cases surpass 200,000, health ministry says Healthcare workers wheel a patient to a triage tent at the Maimonides Medical Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York, the United States, April 19, 2020. Michael Nagle | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images The number of people diagnosed in Spain has surpassed 200,000, the country's health ministry said. The ministry said the number of cases rose to 200,210 from 195,944 cases on Sunday. The total number of deaths has reached 20,852, up from 20,453 the previous day. Spain has overtaken Italy, which has 178,972 confirmed cases, as the worst-hit country in Europe, and second worst-hit country in the world after the U.S., which has almost 800,000 confirmed cases, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Holly Ellyatt 4:30 am: Austria calls for suspension of EU rules on state aid amid coronavirus crisis The family of a Wisconsin teenager filed a lawsuit against the sheriffs department for threatening to arrest her if she would not take down her COVID-19 related Instagram posts. Amyiah Cohoon, a 16-year-old student at Westfield Area High School in Westfield, Wisconsin, started to feel ill a few days after a school trip to Disney World and Universal Studios in Florida in early March. Her symptomswhich were consistent with COVID-19 the disease that is caused by the CCP virus, also known as the novel coronavirusturned so bad that she had to be taken to the hospital with severe respiratory problems. Initially, she could not be tested due to the lack of proper testing tools. The medics, however, treated her as a COVID-19 patient and put her on oxygen. Later, on March 25, she tested negative for the CCP virus, but doctors considered it was due to the time window for positively testing for the virus had probably passed. Furthermore, they said, the tests are not 100 percent reliable. Amyiah posted three times on Instagram about her condition, urging her classmates to stay inside and get tested if necessary; once to inform her classmates she was sick and going into self-quarantine, once from the hospital, saying she might have to stay in the emergency room, and once with a picture of herself wearing an oxygen mask. However, the school district was not happy with Amyiahs candid revelations on social media about her illness and sent a letter to all parents trying to soothe concerns about their children getting the virus too. Let me assure you there is NO truth to this, the message by Westfield schools District Administrator Bob Meicher read, according to Reason.com. This was a foolish means to get attention, and the source of the rumor has been addressed, Weicher added. When federal courts refused to draw sensible boundaries and allowed schools to play 24/7 online good behavior cop, abuses were inevitable. Still, if these allegations are true, theyre breathtaking. https://t.co/erutduVCxZ Frank LoMonte (@FrankLoMonte) April 17, 2020 To make matters worse, on March 17, Patrol Sergeant Cameron Klump from Marquette County Sheriffs Department attended the Cohoon family home in Oxford, Wisconsin. He ordered on behalf of Sheriff Joseph Konrath that Amyiah take down the Instagram post immediately, or else he would start taking people to jail, for disorderly conduct. Amyiah conceded, fearing that she or anyone in her family might end up being arrested. Still, later the family decided to consult the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty who filed a lawsuit [pdf] on Thursday on behalf of the family, contending the deputys behavior was an infringement on the first amendment, Amyiahs freedom of speech. The institute demanded a written, public apology and the guarantee that Amyiah would be unblemished and could repost her experiences with the illness on social media if she wanted to. Sam Hall, an attorney for the sheriff, said the Amyiah caused distress and panic among other parents by claiming she had the coronavirus while having tested negative for the virus, The Sentinel reported. Hall further contended, This case is nothing more than a 2020 version of screaming fire in a crowded theater, referring to a historical example in which the First Amendment did not protect speech. JERUSALEMIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his chief rival announced Monday that they have forged a deal to form an emergency government, ending months of political paralysis and averting what would have been a fourth consecutive election in just over a year. Netanyahu and former military chief Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue and White party, signed the agreement after weeks of negotiations for what they termed a national emergency government meant to steer the country through the outbreak caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. The deal calls for a three-year period. Netanyahu, who is under criminal indictment in three corruption cases, will remain prime minister for 18 months after which Gantz will replace him, according to the agreement signed by both men. Gantzs party will take control of a number of senior government ministries, including foreign affairs and defense, and Netanyahus party will gain influence over judicial appointments. I promised the state of Israel a national emergency government that will work to save the lives and livelihoods of the citizens of Israel, Netanyahu tweeted. After an inconclusive election on March 2, Netanyahu and Gantz agreed to try to form a unity government because of the burgeoning CCP virus crisis. The talks dragged on and stalled several times, sparking concern that the collapse of a deal would force the country into new elections. We prevented a fourth election, Gantz tweeted. We will protect democracy. We will battle corona and we will worry about all the citizens of Israel. Last months election, just like the campaigns last September and April, ended with no clear winner. But with a slight majority of lawmakers endorsing him, Gantz was chosen first by the countrys figurehead president to try to build a coalition government. Negotiations continued even after Gantz allotted time to build a coalition ended last week. The Knesset, or parliament, had been given until May 7 to select a candidate for prime minister. Otherwise, it would automatically have been dissolved, triggering new elections. Netanyahu is awaiting trial on charges of accepting bribes, breach of trust, and fraud. He has denied any wrongdoing. Citing the CCP virus crisis, the justice minister shuttered most of the court system and has delayed the trial by two months. Israel has identified more than 13,000 cases of the virus, with 172 deaths. While this week the country began relaxing some of its health restrictions, hundreds of thousands are out of work and the economy has come to a standstill. By Tia Goldenberg Reuters and NTD staff contributed to this report Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 16:00:26|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NANJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A China-Europe freight train loaded with 20 million face masks departed east China's Suzhou city on Monday and will arrive in Moscow in 12 days. In response to a supply agreement signed between China Sinopharm International Corporation and Russia in March, protective gear began to assemble in Suzhou before being transported to Russia on China-Europe freight trains. Zhang Fan, general manager in charge of the freight train service with Suzhou Newcity Investment and Development Company, said over 200 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) of supplies such as surgical beds and syringes are expected to be sent to Europe over the next month. Statistics show that the number of freight trains and containers have both seen an increase of over 50 percent in Suzhou in March. Enditem AHORA | Miembros de la Comision Multisectorial de Alto Nivel contra el Coronavirus se reunen bajo la direccion del presidente del Consejo de Ministros, @VicAZeballos, para evaluar las medidas del Ejecutivo en el marco del Estado de Emergencia Nacional.#PeruEstaEnNuestrasManos pic.twitter.com/7FMoMZ29Kf Thousands of Israelis, wearing masks and standing six feet apart, gathered in a striking socially distant protest against Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv on Sunday night, accusing him of destroying democracy as the country battles the coronavirus. The extraordinary scenes, captured on drones, showed well over 2000 people scattered across the citys iconic Rabin Square, keeping apart in line with quarantine regulations. Waving black flags, protesters demonstrated against attempts by the prime minister to stay in power by forming an emergency government with his chief rival Benny Gantz, the countrys ex-army chief. Mr Netanyahu is facing three corruption trials, charges he vehemently denies. The crowds also protested against new legislation aimed at fighting the deadly coronavirus amid concerns they stifle freedoms. Israel has recorded over 13,600 cases and 173 deaths, the government has passed controversial laws including allowing the domestic intelligence agency to track mobile phones to map the spread of Covid-19. Under the banner of "Save the Democracy," the protesters chanted against Mr Netanyahu saying "corona equals virus in the service of a dictator. They accused the prime minister of endangering the countrys democratic institutions and called on Mr Gantz's newly formed Blue and White party not to form a coalition with him. Among the prominent lawmakers who spoke at the rally were Mr Gantzs former elections partners including centrist politician Yair Lapid, who had campaigned by his side during the last three inconclusive votes on the promise an indicted Mr Netanyahu would not be prime minister again. At the protest, Mr Lapid spoke of being cheated. "This is how democracies die in the 21st century They don't die because tanks overtake parliament, they die from the inside, he said, according to Israeli paper Haaretz. Monday morning, he directly appealed to Mr Gantz on Twitter writing: Either you fight corruption, or you are part of it. Blue and White, choose a side. Moshe Yaalon, another former Blue and white co-leader and the countrys ex-defence minister, also gave a speech at the rally attacking the government for "starving" the public health system for decades. An Israeli woman wearing a face mask with "crime minister" written on it, takes part in a "Black Flag" demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images) Ayman Odeh, an Arab-Israeli member of parliament and chairman of the mostly Arab Joint List was quoted as saying the only way to fight the deadly coronavirus was a joint Jewish-Arab struggle. The protests appeared to have little impact on Mr Gantz, who announced on Monday he was in meetings with Mr Netanyahu about the new government. Mr Netanyahu has failed to sweep a conclusive win during an unprecedented three elections in under a year, as he has struggled to drum up support since being charged with fraud, breach of justice and accepting bribes. He denies the accusations and says he is the victim of a political witch-hunt. His political rivals have also failed to secure a majority of seats in the Knesset, resulting in a crippling deadlock that has seen the country ruled by a caretaker government, that cannot push through certain legislation or pass a budget. ( ) pic.twitter.com/LKDBzG9Z0y In this latest round both Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz failed to form a government sending the decision back to the parliament that has 21-days to choose a new leader to try to build a government or head to a staggering fourth election. There has been mounting anger at Mr Netanyahus handling of his legal proceedings. Mr Netanyahu's hand-picked justice minister delayed the prime minister's trial just two days before it was to begin, citing the pandemic. Fury was further stoked amid reports the power-sharing talks between Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz have stalled due to demands by the prime minister to sweep more control of judicial appointments as well as to secure assurances that he can remain in office even if he gives up the prime minister's job. Under Israeli law, public officials, with the exception of the prime minister, must resign if charged with a crime. Israel has rolled out one of the regions strictest lockdowns. In Jerusalem, home some of the worlds most sacred religious sites, public access has been stopped or severely curtailed to the Western Wall, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosques, as well as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre even during religious holidays. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 14:04:03 LANDOVER, Md., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AirBoss Defense Group (ADG) announced today that the Netherlands Defense Meteriel Organisation (DMO) has placed an initial order of 500 Bandolier Multipurpose Lightweight Explosive Clearing Charge Systems as part of a 5-year program to advance their demolitions capabilities. The contract also provides Bandolier training programs for DMO combat units. The Bandolier is a modern explosive charge designed to enhance soldier survivability and protection during combat operations, providing warfighters with a single, multifunctional device that can effectively clear any obstacle typically encountered on the battlefield in one lightweight, modular package. The Netherlands is the first North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) country to purchase the Bandolier system. The contract vehicle provides the ability for all 30 NATO member countries to easily procure Bandolier systems and ADG expects additional NATO orders to follow. The purchase of the Bandolier System marks a milestone event in the demolitions community, explains Michael McCormack, ADGs Chief Strategy Officer. The adoption of this modern, lightweight, highly versatile system by a Tier 1 NATO military power is a major update from the decades old use of standard bulk explosives (C-4) and other purpose-built explosive solutions. This integration will give the Dutch warfighter a significant edge on the battlefield. The Bandoliers patented design bridges the capability gap between larger, complicated breaching charges and standard bulk demolitions. Its unique modular design is light enough for dismounted operations, while remaining flexible enough to meet larger-scale mission requirements. NATO forces can now be supplied with a single, lightweight, easy to use explosive system, capable of performing a wide range of tasks, eliminating the need for multiple mission-specific systems. For more information, please visit www.adg.com . FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION DISCLAIMER Certain statements contained or incorporated by reference herein, including those that express managements expectations or estimates of future developments or ADGs future performance, constitute forward-looking information or forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, and can generally be identified by words such as will, may, could is expected to, believes, anticipates, forecasts, plans, intends or similar expressions. These statements are not historical facts but instead represent managements expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events and performance. Statements containing forward-looking information are necessarily based upon a number of opinions, estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management at the time the statements are made, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks, uncertainties and contingencies. ADG cautions that such forward-looking information involves known and unknown contingencies, uncertainties and other risks that may cause ADGs actual financial results, performance or achievements to be materially different from its estimated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Numerous factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking information, including without limitation: impact of general economic conditions; dependence on key customers; sufficient availability of raw materials at economical costs; weather conditions affecting raw materials, production and sales; ADGs ability to maintain existing customers or develop new customers in light of increased competition; ADGs ability to successfully integrate acquisitions of other businesses and/or companies or to realize on the anticipated benefits thereof, changes in accounting policies and methods, including uncertainties associated with critical accounting assumptions and estimates; changes in tax laws and potential litigation; ability to obtain financing on acceptable terms; environmental damage and non-compliance with environmental laws and regulations; potential product liability and warranty claims and equipment malfunction. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of ADGs forward-looking information. All of the forward-looking information in this press release is expressly qualified by these cautionary statements. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking information. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking information attributable to ADG or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this press release and, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, ADG disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly this forward-looking information except as required by applicable laws. Risks and uncertainties about ADG business are more fully discussed under the heading Risk Factors in AirBoss of America Corp.s (AirBoss) recent Annual Information Form and are otherwise disclosed in AirBoss filings with securities regulatory authorities which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Contact: David Costello Tel: 617.875.2492 Email: david@risingtidemhd.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b574d1ea-f16c-41e9-832e-7154267030fb Sudhir Suryawanshi By Express News Service MUMBAI: At least 53 media persons from Mumbai have tested positive for coronavirus, a city civic official said on Monday. These journalists will be kept in isolation and quarantined wards of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The BMC had taken the swab sample of 171 Mumbai biased journalists for COVID-19 tests at a health check-up camp. Out of 171, the 53 journalists swab samples came out positive for coronavirus while rest were negative. Out of the 53 journalists, most of them are photographers, camera persons with television channels and reporters who were on the field since the outbreak of coronavirus. The BMC officer said that most of the coronavirus positive journalists were asymptomatic. "No journalist is critical. The symptoms in the journalist are very normal but they have to be kept in isolation or quarantined. All journalists are asked whether they want to stay in the at home in isolation or BMC provided quarantined facility centre. We are keeping them in a suburban hotel," said Vishnu Sonawane, president of journalist Association in BMC. READ | Health reporter, TV journalist in Tamil Nadu test positive for COVID-19 One of the television journalists said that they have been asking their office to allow them to work from home but office instead of working from field and hospitals where are positive patients are reported. "We demanded the safety kids like mass loss and other equipment but we had given normal three-layer surgery mask, not other facilities. We were exposed to who this coronavirus outbreak very closely. We had no option but to work for the office and continue to do reporting from the field," he said requesting anonymity. BJP former member of parliament Kirit Somaiya has written a letter to Union Minister Dr Harshvardhan, BMC commissioner Praveen Pardeshi Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope and TV channels owner asking to take care of these reporters and their families. NCP leader and member of parliament Supriya Sule had also raised this journalist exposing two vulnerable situations. She had demanded the Rs 50 lakh insurance cover to all journalist who is working during this pandemic situations. WATCH: Is COVID-19 turning Asia's largest slum Dharavi into a ticking time bomb? The Union government has said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures risks the spread of the novel coronavirus further. Acting swiftly, the Union Home Ministry also announced that six inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) will visit these identified areas in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan within the next three days to make on-the-spot assessment and recommend remedial measures in a report to the Centre. In identical orders issued to the four states on Sunday, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 front-line healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. Reacting to the development, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the basis on which the Centre has proposed to deploy its teams was "unclear" and added "we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism". The home ministry said in some districts, a number of violations to the lockdown measures have been reported, posing a serious health hazard and risk for spread of COVID-19 which include attacks on frontline healthcare professionals, complete violations of social distancing norms outside banks, PDS shops and in market places, movement of private and commercial vehicles with passengers in urban areas and so on. These incidents, if they are allowed to occur without any restraining measures in hotspot districts or emerging hotspots, with large outbreaks or clusters, pose a serious health hazard, both for the population of these districts and for that living in other areas of the country, it said. After analysing the prevalence of such violations in major hotspot districts, it is clear to the central government that the situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai and Pune (Maharashtra), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri ( West Bengal), the home ministry said. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. There are 4,203 confirmed coronavirus cases in Maharashtra of which 223 people lost their lives, according to Union health ministry data. In Madhya Pradesh, out of the 1,407 cases, 70 people have succumbed to the disease. Rajasthan has reported 1,478 cases of which 14 people lost their lives. In West Bengal, there are 339 confirmed cases of which 12 people died due to the infection, according to health ministry data. After the government announced its decision, the West Bengal chief minister tweeted, "We welcome all constructive support & suggestions, especially from the Central Govt in negating the #Covid19 crisis. However, the basis on which Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including few in WB under Disaster Mgmt Act 2005 is unclear." "I urge both Honb'le Prime Minister @NarendraModi Ji & Home Minister @AmitShah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," she added. The orders, signed by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, in his capacity as the chairperson of the National Executive Committee under the Disaster Management Act, also said the six inter-ministerial central teams will visit these hotspot areas and make on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states. The teams, comprising five members each, will be headed by an Additional Secretary-rank officer of the central government. The six teams will make on-the-spot assessment of the situation, issue necessary directions to the state authorities for redressal of the situation, and submit their report to the central government in larger interest of general public. The IMCTs will focus their assessment on the compliance and implementation of lockdown measures besides issues like the supply of essential commodities, social distancing, hospital facility and sample statistics in the district, safety of health professionals, availability of test kits, PPEs, masks and other safety equipment, and conditions of the relief camps for labour and poor people. The orders also made it clear that the Ministry of Civil Aviation will provide air transportation, to and fro, from New Delhi to their respective place of visit (nearest airport), as their deployment is for an essential purpose of ensuring compliance to the lockdown measures. The state governments will have to provide logistic support to the IMCT, for their accommodation, transportation, PPEs and extend all cooperation for their visits to local areas, production of documents and records as requested by the IMCTs. There have been several incidents of attacks on healthcare workers and police by some people in different parts of the country, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, leading to injuries to doctors, paramedics and police personnel. The lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic. It was further extended till May 3. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Seoul, April 20 : South Korean tech giant Samsung has rolled out a new software update to Samsung Galaxy Z Flip which comes with improved camera Flex Mode and April security patch as well. The new software version has currently been spotted rolling out in Italy and should quickly make its way to other European countries with a worldwide release within a few days. Currently, in Flex Mode, the Camera app would show the viewfinder in the top half of the screen and the controls on the bottom half. With the latest update, that can be reversed with a double tap on the preview screen, further enhancing the tripod-like capabilities, reports GSMArena. The new update will show up in a notification once available. One can also download it manually from the phone's settings and then software update menu. Galaxy Z Flip features a 6.7-inch full-HD Dynamic AMOLED Infinity Flex display as the main display. On the outside, it has a 1.1-inch Super AMOLED display with a 112x300 pixels resolution and a pixel density of 303ppi. It is powered by a 7nm octa-core processor with 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-19 22:47:04|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A resident receives free rice from an automatic rice dispensing machine in Hanoi, Vietnam on April 15, 2020. Charitable initiatives like free rice machine or free supermarket have set up across the country to support those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Vietnam News Agency. (VNA/Handout via Xinhua) HANOI, April 19 (Xinhua) -- In a clear morning of April, hundreds of people of different ages, all in face masks, line up in the small and quiet street leading to the National Economics University in Vietnamese capital city of Hanoi. It is not the entrance exam season yet and they are not coming here to sign up for university for their children but to receive free rice, a staple that people in the Southeast Asian country can't live without. At the very end of the long line where people are strictly keeping a distance from each other in the social distancing period, a middle-aged woman anxiously asks a young officer in green public security uniform, who was deployed to ensure order, whether there would be any rice left when it eventually came her turn. "Please don't worry, there is enough rice for everyone," the young officer assured. Starting from Thursday, the university and the local authority launched a special initiative in the time of COVID-19 -- giving out free rice for needy people whose daily lives and livelihoods are affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, an idea which had become widespread throughout Vietnam. The university gave it a modern touch by developing a face recognition machine to make sure close contact between people is minimized and each person receives rice once per week. "One of the advantages of the machine is that it helps to minimize contact among people, which is crucial during this time, therefore we can avoid disease transmission, if there is any, while providing free rice," the director of the university's Center of Information Technology Application Le Viet Thuy, who, along with his team, are in charge of developing the machine, told Xinhua. This machine can recognize people's face when they stand as far as two meters away, he said, adding that it takes two days for the team to develop the machine. People are required to stand two meters from each other in accordance with the social distancing order effective in the city for more than two weeks as well as use hand sanitizer and have temperature checked by health worker before receiving rice. "I knew about this from my neighbor. It was very simple. I just need to queue in line, wait for my turn and get free rice. For many, three kg of rice might not be much but it can feed my family for some days. It makes me and other people here feel warm especially during this hard time," said Nguyen Thi Vinh, a resident in Dong Tam commune, Hai Ba Trung District of Hanoi. She used to make ends meet by selling iced tea near universities but had to stop her business nearly two months ago because she hardly had any customers. As Vinh returns home with a bag of rice, more people come to join the line, some of whom are vendors, grab drivers who are doing without any source of income. The initiative will be launched from April 16 to April 30, according to the university. As of Sunday evening, Vietnam's Ministry of Health confirmed a total of 268 cases of COVID-19 with no new cases reported for three consecutive days. There are no deaths recorded so far in the country. However, to prevent the spread of the epidemic in the community, the government enforced a social distancing order from April 1 to April 15 and extended it at least until April 22 for high-risk localities, which include Hanoi, now leading the country in the number of infection. The order of non-essential business shutdown and the stay-at-home suggestion make many people like Vinh out of work. Charitable initiatives like free rice machine or free supermarket have set up across the country to support those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Vietnam News Agency. At the "happy zero supermarket" in Hanoi, people can get a range of commodities to prepare a fine meal for their family, from rice, instant noodles, egg to seasonings like sugar, salt and fish sauce. People can come and get them for free as long as the total value of their items does not exceed 100,000 Vietnamese dong (4.3 U.S. dollars). Meanwhile, the 24/7 rice ATM model, an idea launched by a local entrepreneur in the southern Ho Chi Minh City in early April, has given out hundred tons of rice for free, according to Vietnam News Agency. Rice contained in a large water tank will pour to people's bags through a plastic pipe when people push the button. The kindness makes a ripple effect and spreads beyond Ho Chi Minh City as more provinces and cities across the country have imported this idea and followed the suit. Vietnam's government has approved a subsidy package worth over 62 trillion Vietnamese dong (nearly 2.7 billion U.S. dollars) to support the country's most vulnerable individuals, households and businesses hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Some 20 million people are expected to receive the financial support in cash for three months. Like Vinh and her family were anticipating the allowance from the government. Before she receives the subsidy, food is an immediate priority, she added. "I hope the epidemic situation will get better soon and we can all get back to our normal life," Vinh said. [April 20, 2020] Leafy Gram Launches New Social Networking Platform for the Cannabis Community ST. JOHNS, Fla., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- New Innovative Group Consultants, LLC announced today the launch of Leafy Gram, a new first-of-its-kind social networking app aimed exclusively at an audience aged 21+. They are marking 4/20 by opening up the platform for initial sign-ups, and the app is officially slated to launch in Summer 2020 in California and Puerto Rico. Leafy Gram was created to fill a long-standing need for millions of consumers and businesses who are seeking a deeper understanding of cannabis, the role it plays in society, and the increasing impact it will have on our lives in the coming years. For years, these individuals have been engaged in conversations about things like the best places to go for cannabis, who the best growers are, and where the friendliest locations are for users. However, until Leafy Grams launch, there has been no centralized platform for this dialogue. The legal cannabis industry in the United States is currently estimated around $20 billion, with projections close to $100 billion in North America and could reach over a $1 trillion globally within the next 10 years, said Earl Phillip, President & CEO of Leafy Gram. That unprecedented growth is due to an increase in states legalizing use, which is quickly attracting a passionate, highly diverse base of new users including women, millennials, and Baby Boomers. Theyre all hungry for information, insights, and opinions, and Leafy Gram will be the robust, highly interactive platform there seeking. Were truly excited to provide the community with this new resource, he said. Leafy Gram will be a place to discuss every cannabis-related topic, from medicinal, recreational, and business, to health and wellness, culinary and advocacy. It will enable users to connect with their existing friends and family, make new connections, and find out about offline events, businesses, and destinations all within an environment that prioritizes privacy. (One of Leafy Grams most unique features: they will not share information about its users without permission.) Lastly, Leafy Gram will provide a wide range of advertisers with their first opportunity to reach a valuable social community, thanks to its twenty-one-and-over audience. While other platforms lack an age-qualified audience, making it illegal for many business categories to place ads, Leafy Gram will provide a legal and highly relevant environment for customized advertising and sponsorships. For Press contact and more information about Leafy Gram, email [email protected] To participate in initial registration on 4/20, visit: hello.leafygram.co For additional media assets click HERE About Leafy Gram: Leafy Gram is a new social networking platform built for a global audience of millions who are passionate about or simply intrigued by the world of cannabis but who are currently lacking an appropriate environment to exchange information, share experiences, and elevate the conversation. The app will officially launch in Summer 2020. Leafy Gram is Where the Cannabis Community Connects. CONTACT: [email protected] A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/98a460c3-f174-4de2-970f-b4da0261e69c [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] The administration in the southern Vietnamese province of Dong Nai has approved a plan to compensate residents affected by the site clearance of an over-3,000-hectare area for the construction of a megaairport. An area of 3,027 hectares in Binh Son Commune, Long Thanh District in Dong Nai will be cleared to prepare for a megaproject to develop Long Thanh International Airport. The unit value of the compensation differs, depending on the type of land, ranging from VND161,000 (US$6.8) to VND6.573 million ($281.3) per square meter. Specifically, rural land in Binh Son Commune is valued at VND1.392-6.573 million ($59.6-281.3) per square meter, while owners of land for agriculture, aquaculture, and production forest will be compensated VND161,000-360,000 ($6.8-15.4) per square meter. The provincial Peoples Committee previously approved the compensation plan for nearly 1,800 hectares of land belonging to Dong Nai Rubber Corporation, which will be affected by the airport project. To provide affected residents with new homes, a project to build the infrastructure for a 282-hectare resettlement area was initiated in Long Thanh District on Monday morning. According to Le Quang Binh, director of the Dong Nai construction and investment project management board, the resettlement area is designed to house up to 28,500 residents. The construction site of a resettlement area for residents affected by the construction of Long Thanh International Airport in Dong Nai Province, Vietnam. Photo: H.M. / Tuoi Tre The developer will start building such infrastructure as electricity, water, and communications systems, a sewage treatment plant, and fire hydrants. By July, about 700 households are expected to have been given land plots inside the resettlement area to build their new houses, while the developer will continue constructing schools, medical facilities, and a cultural center, Binh elaborated. Located some 40 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City, Long Thanh International Airport is expected to ease pressure on overcrowded Tan Son Nhat International Airport upon its completion. The plan to build the airport was ratified by Vietnams lawmaking National Assembly in 2015, at a projected cost of $16 billion. Construction of the first phase is expected to start later this year and be finished by 2025, upon which the Long Thanh airport will be capable of serving 25 million passengers annually. When built to its maximum designed capacity, the airport will handle more than 100 million passengers on a yearly basis. The central government previously tasked the Dong Nai administration with retrieving land to prepare for the airport construction, compensating affected residents, and assisting them in resettling. These tasks, which are expected to cost over VND22.8 trillion ($977.3 million), are required to be carried out from 2017 to 2021. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! National Education Management Information System (NEMIS) is an online portal for managing and automating education data and other related administrative functions. The main objective of the NEMIS portal is to help the Ministry of Education gather accurate and real-time information on learners and learning institutions. Photo: canva.com (modified by author) Source: UGC Since the inception of the 2-6-3-3-3 skill-based education system, several changes in the sector came forth. One of them was the introduction of the NEMIS system. How can you access the platform? Do you need it? NEMIS portal Kenya guide What is NEMIS? This is a website managed by the Ministry of Education in Kenya that has automated end-to-end education data management and other associated administrative functions. The platform collects, analyzes, and provides real-time information that is often used in making critical education decisions. Administrative functions can also be handled here without undergoing the usual manual and tedious process that consumes a lot of resources and time. The system has a database that stores entities in the education sector. These include information about schools, students, principals, teachers, and other educational officers. Why do we need NEMIS? NEMIS helps in managing complex data in the education sector. It, in return, enables the harmonization of data. Gives real-time information to the students. NEMIS addresses the issues of better governance, which includes accountability, transparency, and efficiency. This helps the country develop a sound education system. The government will be able to monitor and evaluate education information. This will help enhance quality and assurance. Who is supposed to use NEMIS? The following stakeholders should have access to this platform: Ministries, departments, and agencies Ministry of Education Teachers Learners ICT professionals Parents/guardians Kenya primary school heads association Development partners Kenya secondary school heads association Kenya private school association National secondary school association Who can access NEMIS Portal? Any person can log into the information system NEMIS. However, this will depend on the nature of the information he/she wants and his/her level. Parents will all be able to track their children's performance online. To access the system, you must have a username and password assigned by the system administrator. NEMIS portal users include the Ministry of Education, development partners, National Treasury, KNEC, TSC, and other interested parties in education statistics. Information to be captured in NEMIS The Ministry of education uses the system to capture all information relating to the student, which includes; The names of the student as they are on the birth certificate Date of birth The nationality of the student The student home county and sub-county Gender Special needs, if any Parent contacts Parent/ guardian identification number Parent/ guardian contact number Email address What is UPI in NEMIS? Once you register on NEMIS, you will be given a Unique Personal Identification, commonly known as the (UPI) number you will use to access the system. Students can log in to NEMIS with the number and track their academic performance from primary school to high school and even tertiary levels. Parents can also access the same to monitor their children. System requirements for accessing NEMIS You will need the following to access NEMIS efficiently: A laptop or desktop running on Windows Vista or a higher Operating System. The PC must have a processor with a speed of not less than 2.4 GHz You must have 1 GB and above of Random Access Memory (RAM) 120 GB of free hard disk space is also required for your PC. You can use any browser. But for the best user experience, consider Google Chrome over the other browsers. Applications such as Open Office, Microsoft Office, and Microsoft Excel are needed to access the documents downloaded from the system. You will need access to the internet. The source must have a speed of more than 2MBPS. You can only achieve this speed with 3G, 4G or 5G connectivity. A digital camera is required for capturing images of your students. You will need a Printer. IT support personnel might be needed if your school population is enormous. NEMIS registration procedure Follow the steps below to enrol in the platform: Open your browser. Go to the NEMIS portal. Initiate the registration process: Tap the Register (if new) button. NEMIS portal registration dashboard. Photo: @Nemis Source: UGC 4. Enter your personal information: You will be asked to key in the following data: Your organization Username Surname Other names Gender ID number Title (Position held) Responsibilities Department and category Email Mobile number A password 5. Save the details: Once you have filled all the text boxes, tap on the Save button. 6. Successful registration: You will receive a notification if the process was a success. NEMIS portal successful registration preview. Photo: @Nemis Source: UGC How do I access NEMIS? Here are the steps to login: Open your browser Enter NEMIS education address Step two above will direct you to the NEMIS login Enter your password and then click login NEMIS modules The following four key segments make up this system: Institutions module It captures registration and other physical aspects of an individual institution. Below are the six sub-modules in the segment: Institution registration : You should register your institution in this section. : You should register your institution in this section. School infrastructure: All equipment and other fixed assets are captured here. All equipment and other fixed assets are captured here. School utility: Details of utility name and its type are found here. Details of utility name and its type are found here. Co-curricula: Co-curricular activities are captured in this section. This might include the time and all the highest achievements for the school in question. Co-curricular activities are captured in this section. This might include the time and all the highest achievements for the school in question. Teaching and learning material : Quantities of learning materials like the course and supplementary books are entered. : Quantities of learning materials like the course and supplementary books are entered. Emergency reporting: Necessary for emergencies and disasters that befall your school. Learners module The following details are recorded here: Unique personal identifier: Birth certificate, ID, or unknown numbers are entered so that the NEMIS system auto-generates a UPI. Birth certificate, ID, or unknown numbers are entered so that the NEMIS system auto-generates a UPI. Learner registration: Contact details of the learner should be entered. Contact details of the learner should be entered. Student mobility: Caters for all the changes if a student moves or changes an institution. It indicates the mobility type. Caters for all the changes if a student moves or changes an institution. It indicates the mobility type. Performance progression : The learner's performance in question will be captured right from the primary level to the tertiary level. : The learner's performance in question will be captured right from the primary level to the tertiary level. Learner talent: Lists the areas where the student is good at. Staff module Teacher mobility: For teachers, transfers, and history For teachers, transfers, and history Teaching areas: Indicates the subjects taught by the tutor in question Indicates the subjects taught by the tutor in question Study areas: Includes the training pursued. Includes the training pursued. Teachers responsibilities: Lists all the responsibilities assigned to a teacher Finance module The income and expenditure details of an institution are captured in this section. They include: Fees: Indicates the fee structures Indicates the fee structures Capitation: Sets up capitation for disbursement to the public school in question. Sets up capitation for disbursement to the public school in question. Income returns: Lists all the money received by the school during a specific year Lists all the money received by the school during a specific year Development fund: Includes all projects funded by the government in a particular year. Includes all projects funded by the government in a particular year. Expenditure returns: The amount of money a school spent, achievements made by the funds, and other details are captured. How to register a school in NEMIS To add a new institution to NEMIS, use the procedure below: Login to your account: You should first create an account using the process above. After you can access the platform Via the steps above. You will need your NEMIS number and email address to login. Go to the Institutions Module: You will see this option on the main menu once you have logged in to the system. Tap Institutional Registration: You will see this option under the Institutions Module. Register your institution: Fill in the given form. Make sure you give out the correct information. Confirm and proofread for errors and omissions. Once you are sure everything is okay, submit the forms. Note the give UPI number: You will be issued a UPI number for secondary school or the primary school you have added to the system. You will be using this number to access the institutions NEMIS account. If you encounter any technical difficulties, do not hesitate to reach out to the support team via the NEMIS contact numbers in this article. How to register Form 1 students in NEMIS Use the procedure below to add new Form 1 students to the education system: Get their admission letters: The first step should be collecting their school reporting documents. These documents have important information you will need in this procedure. The NEMIS admission letters for National, Extra County and County schools students can be downloaded from the education website. Log into the NEMIS platform: Use your school UPI and password to do so. Ensure you have all the requirements listed above to access this system efficiently. Go to the Learner module: You will see this option as soon as you are redirected to the dashboard. Tap Admit/Capture request: This option is visible from the drop-down menu. Search for the Student details in the system: You only need to type in his/her KCPE Index number or UPI number. Once done, tap on the search button. NEMIS will retrieve the particular student's information and display it for you. Admit the student: Tap on the "ADMIT" button to enrol the student on your institution. Confirm if their details are correct: Tap on View Learner from the Learners tab. Edit any misleading information. How to register primary school pupils The procedure to register primary school learners is a little bit complicated. This is because the learners are not in the system and need their details captured from scratch. Use the procedure below: Login to your account: Use your institutions login details to do so. Go to the Learners module: This option will be visible as soon as you can access the dashboard. Go to the registration tab: Remember that you are registering a new student, so do not confuse that with admitting. Capture their details: Enter their name as it appears on their birth certificates, their grade, talent, and so forth. Make sure the information entered is correct. Attach their photo: Use your digital camera or phone to take this passport-sized photo. The picture must be clear. Save the information: Proofread what you have entered, correct all the mistakes and omissions, then save the details to the system. How to receive a transferred student NEMIS portal student registration. Photo: @Nemis Source: UGC Use the procedure below to admit students coming from other schools: Login to your account: Use your school NEMIS details to do so. Go to the Learners module: The module will be visible as soon as you login to the system. Tap Receive Learner: This option can be found on the Learners tab drop-down menu. Search for the student: Enter his/her UPI number or Index number. Tap on the search button. NEMIS will process your request within seconds. Once you see the student's profile, move to the next step. If you can't, then chances are they are not registered, or you have entered the wrong UPI/Index number. Admit the student: Click on the Admit button to do so. The admission request will be moved to the "List of Admission Requests" tab. You can admit the student as soon as the relevant Ministry approves your request of Education officers. How to release students for transfer If one of your students wants to join another school, use the following procedure to remove him/her as one of your admitted learners: Login to your account: Use the correct login details to access the NEMIS system. Go to the "Learners" tab: The option is visible from your dashboard. Tap Release Learner: Once you place your cursor on the "Learners" tab in the main menu, this option will be in the drop-down menu that will appear under the module. Search for the student you want to release: Go to the students profile Release the student: Under their profile, you will see this option to remove any of the students who need to transfer. NEMIS registration deadline NEMIS registration deadlines change every year. For instance, in 2021, the deadline was on 30th March. To avoid missing the mush needed disbursements from the government, you must register your learns on time. Follow the Ministry of Education social media pages for news about upcoming deadlines. NEMIS contacts If you have any complain or issue about the system, reach out via the following: Ministry of Education Physical location: Jogoo House B, Harambee Avenue, Nairobi County. Jogoo House B, Harambee Avenue, Nairobi County. Postal address: PO Box 30040-00100, Nairobi, Kenya PO Box 30040-00100, Nairobi, Kenya Phone number : +254-020-3318581 : +254-020-3318581 Email: cs@education.go.ke Helpdesk Reach out to the support team via: Phone 1: +254-020-3318581 +254-020-3318581 Phone 2: +254700000000 +254700000000 Email 1: nemissupport@education.go.ke nemissupport@education.go.ke Email 2: nemis@education.go.ke NEMIS portal Kenya is an incredible invention in the education sector. It saves on time, addresses transparency, accountability, and efficiency in schools. Its staff module aids in deploying additional facilities and workforce as needed. Tuko.co.ke published an article about KUCCPS admission letters 2020/2021. Now that KUCCPS application results are out, it is time to hear from the institution that considered you for a study program. KUCCPS admission letters are official documents indicating provisional admission to university studies for a particular degree program. The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) has unveiled a list of universities that have already issued admission letters to successful applicants for the academic year 2020/2021. You can check out the comprehensive list and print your admission letter from the institution that accepted your application. Source: TUKO.co.ke Rite-Solutions was recently selected as one of 17 companies that will participate in a 5-year, $73.7 million contract to help the U.S. Navy develop future generations of its Undersea Weapons Family of Systems (FoS). The contract, announced by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) in Newport, RI, will develop core technologies in 12 functional areas such as payloads, propulsion, power storage and conversion, vehicle control, and command and control. We were awarded two functional areas where we have outstanding core capabilities: software development, and modeling and simulation, explains Dennis McLaughlin, President/CEO at Rite-Solutions. We are very pleased that NUWC recognizes our strengths in building high-performing teams and innovative software-based solutions, as reflected in this award. NUWC will release task-order requests for proposals in specific or combined functional areas that companies that received awards may bid on. Unlike contracts that source a finished product from a single company, NUWC will receive components from multiple companies. This contract is a very similar to the approach NUWC used with the Unmanned Undersea Vehicles (UUVs) Multiple Award Contract, adds Mike Coffey, Rite-Solutions Executive VP. NUWC is taking a best-of-breed approach to acquiring technologies that will enable them to develop, build and support these complex systems. They will integrate and test the different technologies in the prototype phases of weapons development, which will establish the blueprints for future production. As with the UUV FoS contract, Rite-Solutions is a prime contractor alongside other companies with demonstrated expertise in Undersea Warfare. We are pleased to be included on this contract, with some of the biggest and most reputable companies in the aerospace and defense industry, says Coffey. Image credit: Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport Rite-Solutions, Inc. is an award-winning small business specializing in system engineering, software development, information technology (IT), and cyber security for government and commercial segments. Rite-Solutions has offices in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Washington D.C., and Virginia. For more information, please visit http://www.rite-solutions.com. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 05:14:21|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close RAMALLAH, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Palestine approved a series of economic relaxations amid continued fight against COVID-19 in the Palestinian territories, senior officials said Monday. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who chaired an online meeting of the Palestinian Authority cabinet in Ramallah, called for "a systematic relaxation of the emergency measures in some West Bank areas." The official news agency WAFA reported that the decision of Abbas "was made on the eve of the Muslims' fasting month of Ramadan." "The crisis has put us before two choices: either to go for harsh precautionary measures or lose our people. Therefore, we do our best not to lose any of our people or their children," Abbas was quoted as saying. On March 5, right after the first coronavirus cases were recorded in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Abbas declared a state of emergency for 30 days, and then extended it for another 30 days. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaye said on Monday that the economic relaxations were made under the recommendations of the Health Ministry, the security apparatuses and the government. "The economic relaxations will consider the public safety, as health measures will be intensified in a way under the general principle to balance health and economy," he told a news briefing in Ramallah. Several economic establishments covering agriculture, food and private craftsmanship, each with fewer than three employees, will be allowed to operate in the districts with no recorded infections or a limited number of cases, according to Ishtaye. "They will be allowed to work from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and stores will open only on Friday and Saturday every week," he said. Meanwhile, food and medicine factories will be allowed to operate in the districts of Jerusalem, Ramallah, Bethlehem and Hebron "on condition that they abide by the mentioned rules," the prime minister added. "Factories which produce goods for export will be allowed to operate for 50 percent," Ishtaye noted. Mosques, churches, and places where people gather such as wedding and mourning houses will remain closed, while all public activities, such as parties, festivals, public receptions and mass breakfasts in Ramadan are still prohibited. Speaking about Palestinians who work in Israel, Ishtaye said the daily movement of workers is still banned, adding "those who violate the instructions will be punished." In the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run Ministry of Waqf and Religious Affairs announced in a press statement that it decided to ban prayers in all mosques across Gaza during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. Palestinian Ministry of Health said on Monday that the number of Palestinian coronavirus cases has reached 449 in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. Kamal al-Shakhra, director of Primary Healthcare in the Palestinian Ministry of Health, told a news briefing that seven new cases were recorded on Monday, with five in the West Bank and two in the Gaza Strip. Earlier in the day, the Palestinian Authority received a batch of medical aid from China, including protective outfits and nucleic acid testing kits. Enditem Workers enter the IRS building on Dec. 11, 2014, in Washington, D.C. A new IRS website can help get Americans their stimulus payment more quickly. Read more The IRS is bracing for another kind of epidemic: scammers trying to get their hands on the $1,200 payments being sent out to millions of Americans to bolster the economy. The payments, plus an additional $500 for each child, have begun hitting bank accounts this week, opening a wide avenue of opportunities for scams, identity theft and low-tech crimes such as stealing checks from mailboxes. "Right now, due to how vulnerable the population is, it's really prime picking for fraudsters to come out in full force," Donna Parent, the chief marketing officer at Sontiq, an identity theft protection company, said. The Federal Trade Commission "is reporting more than $13 million in fraud loss due to COVID-19 -- that's only going to exponentially increase with stimulus payment scams." The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the agency's watchdog, have already issued several warnings that scammers are posing as the IRS to try to get personal information from payment recipients that they can then use to steal the money. The inspector general is asking people to report any suspicious activity. "I understand scammers are already contacting innocent Americans by impersonating IRS or Treasury Department officials, offering so-called COVID-19-related assistance that requires the sharing of personal financial information," Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, wrote in a letter to the inspector general earlier this month. "These scammers then use that information to steal from their unsuspecting victims." The $1,200 payments are available to those earning less than $75,000 as an individual, including recipients of Social Security, disability and veterans benefits. Those earning above that threshold and up to $99,000 get a smaller payment. People in that population - including the elderly, those with less education and those who aren't tech savvy - are the most likely to fall victim to some of these scams, and are also the most likely to need the money, said Vanita Pandey, the head of strategy at Arkose Labs, a company that detects and prevents online fraud. The coronavirus outbreak means that a lot of people who weren't familiar with the internet are now using apps to communicate with family and friends or ordering groceries online, giving scammers ample opportunity to find easy targets, Pandey said. "IRS Criminal Investigation is actively working to combat scam artists trying to exploit Economic Impact Payments," the agency said in a statement Tuesday. "So far, the scams CI has already seen look to prey on vulnerable taxpayers who are unaware of how the payments will reach them. IRS CI is prioritizing these types of investigations to help protect taxpayers and the tax system." FAQ: Your coronavirus questions, answered Theres some common-sense moves that check recipients can take to protect their personal data as well as their payments. Avoid clicking on links sent in email or text messages that appear to be from the IRS. The IRS said it wont contact people by telephone, email, social media or text message to ask for personal information. The IRS is using tax return information from 2018 and 2019 to send the payments. For those who have direct deposit information on file from a tax refund in one of those years, the IRS will send the money directly to their bank accounts. People who didn't file a tax return in either year should submit their bank account or address information IRS as soon as possible to prevent a criminal from submitting incorrect information to divert payments. Social Security beneficiaries will automatically receive their payments, though those who just started receiving benefits will need to send their information to the IRS. That portal could give scammers an opening to hijack payments, because the website requires personal information like Social Security numbers that is available for sale for on the dark web after being compromised in security breaches at government agencies and private organizations, said Mike Chapple, a former computer scientist with the National Security Agency. "Exploiting this loophole isn't rocket science," Chapple, now an information technology, analytics and operations professor at the University of Notre Dame, said. "A criminal could purchase identity information on the dark web and then use it to falsely claim stimulus payments, directing the funding to their own bank account." The IRS is still figuring out how to get the funds to Supplemental Security Income disability recipients. People who get Social Security or disability payments who have dependent children will likely need to upload their information to the IRS to get the additional $500 per child. The agency opened an online portal Wednesday that will let people update their direct deposit or mailing address and, eventually, let recipients see the status of their payment and the day it is scheduled to be mailed or deposited. The IRS will also mail notifications to recipients about two weeks after their payment has been sent that will also include instructions about how to report that a payment hasn't arrived. The U.S. Postal Service also offers a heads-up to people about what's coming in the mail that day. Users can sign up online to get an "Informed Delivery" email about what is coming in the mail later that day. That can let mailed check recipients to know to be diligent in checking the mail so payments aren't stolen. It's hard to know yet just how much fraud risk there is with the stimulus payments. After Hurricane Katrina, about 10% of government payments were fraudulent, Kim Sutherland, a vice president at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, said. Identity theft has plagued the IRS in recent years, so much so the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration called it an "epidemic" in congressional testimony. Scammers have been able to steal taxpayer information and file fraudulent tax returns to illicitly get refunds. The agency has greatly reduced the prevalence of stolen tax refunds by upgrading detection systems. "The potential for fraud is present, but it is not substantially different from what IRS needs to deal with every tax filing season," said Jack Smalligan, a former Office of Management and Budget official who is now a senior policy fellow at the Urban Institute. "The IRS has an elaborate process to identify scams, particularly high-volume scammers." Still, thieves are able to adapt their schemes, said Marcus Christian, a former top attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida. Government agencies are much more adept at detecting and preventing fraud, but the stimulus checks present an unprecedented opening for scams, he said. Fraud isnt going to be reduced to zero, said Christian, who is now a partner at law firm Mayer Brown. There is some balancing of interests here: Get these out quickly to taxpayers, which will result in some fraud, and some taxpayers may have to go through an onerous burden to get rightful payment. Wellington: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has pleaded with New Zealanders to maintain their vigilance as she announced plans to lessen her country's lockdown restrictions from next week. The decision was taken at a crunch meeting of cabinet, where Ardern said she felt confident there was no widespread community transmission of COVID-19. It comes on the recommendation of top health adviser Ashley Bloomfield, to shift from the top-alert level four to level three as of Tuesday, April 28. The level three lockdown will be in place for another fortnight, to May 11, before another evaluation. ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish authorities blocked Saudi and United Arab Emirates news websites on Sunday, days after the sites of Turkey's state broadcaster and news agency were blocked in Saudi Arabia. The apparently reciprocal moves come four weeks after Turkish prosecutors indicted 20 Saudis over the killing of journalist Jamal Kashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, a killing that soured relations between Ankara and Riyadh. Internet users in Turkey trying to access the sites of Saudi news agency SPA, the UAE's WAM news agency and more than a dozen other sites saw a message saying that they were blocked under a law governing internet publications in Turkey ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish authorities blocked Saudi and United Arab Emirates news websites on Sunday, days after the sites of Turkey's state broadcaster and news agency were blocked in Saudi Arabia. The apparently reciprocal moves come four weeks after Turkish prosecutors indicted 20 Saudis over the killing of journalist Jamal Kashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, a killing that soured relations between Ankara and Riyadh. Internet users in Turkey trying to access the sites of Saudi news agency SPA, the UAE's WAM news agency and more than a dozen other sites saw a message saying that they were blocked under a law governing internet publications in Turkey. A spokesman at Turkey's Justice Ministry declined to comment on the actions and Saudi Arabia's government media office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Turkish website of the UK-based Independent newspaper, which is operated by a Saudi company, was one of the sites to blocked on Sunday, in a move that its editor said reflected political tensions between Saudi Arabia and Turkey. "We believe the tensions between Saudi Arabia and Turkey reflected on us," editor Nevzat Cicek told Reuters. Sunday's decision appeared to be "retaliation against Saudi Arabia", he said. Saudi Arabia had blocked access to several Turkish media websites a week earlier, including state broadcaster TRT and the state-owned Anadolu agency. Residents in the United Arab Emirates, a close ally of Saudi Arabia, said the Turkish websites were accessible on Sunday. Tensions between Turkey and Saudi Arabia escalated sharply after Saudi agents killed Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Last month Istanbul prosecutors indicted one of the prince's close aides and a former deputy head of Saudi general intelligence on charges of instigating Khashoggi's killing, as well as 18 men it said carried out the operation. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the killing was ordered at the "highest levels" of the Saudi government. Prince Mohammed has denied ordering the killing but said he bore ultimate responsibility as the kingdoms de facto leader. (Reporting Irem Koca; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by David Goodman) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. With COVID-19 affecting 206 countries, areas and territories, IBM is aiding government agencies, healthcare organizations, and academic institutions throughout the world use AI to put critical data and information into the hands of their citizens. There has been a flood of information requests from citizens, and wait times in many areas to receive answers can exceed 2 hours. Available for no charge for at least 90 days and available to IBM clients' 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. 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. For more information about Watson Assistant for Citizens, visit www.ibm.com/watson/covid-response. The Minister for Communications has told the chairman of the countrys broadcasting watchdog of his concern that RTE is not meeting some of its targets, including attracting younger viewers who are opting for new platforms. Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton, was responding to the chairman of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, Professor Pauric Travers, on the BAIs Annual Review of Performance and Public Funding of RTE and TG4 for 2018. Prof Travers had initially expressed his "concern" to the Minister regarding RTE missing financial targets and about the impact of funding cuts at TG4. Correspondence laid before the Oireachtas shows that Prof Travers wrote of TG4s failure to reach some core audience targets. This performance captures, quite starkly, the link between funding and the achievement of TG4s strategic objectives. Prof Travers also mentioned a shortfall when it comes to attracting younger viewers and the "growing fragmentation of younger audiences". He noted the high levels of public trust in RTE but added: "The Authority is most concerned at the net impact, which is ultimately the diminishing provision of public service content to lrish audiences. "ln the current climate of disinformation and fake news, stable and sustainable public service broadcasting is viewed as being more necessary than ever." He recommended a funding increase of 5.557m for TG4 and an increase of more than 12m for RTE. In his response, written on March 19 last, Minister Bruton said: " RTE and TG4 are both vital to the maintenance of our democracy, especially in a time where we have seen a significant rise in disinformation." He welcomed aspects of RTE performance but said he shared the concerns about the lack of reach to the youngest viewers "the viewers of the future", while also expressing concern at slippage in the publics trust in RTE and in terms of seeing it as value for money. I recognise that younger audiences are shifting to new platforms, away from linear TV and tend to prove more difficult for broadcasters to attract. However, this is a key demographic for the future. Minister Bruton defended the level of funding allocated to public service broadcasters and said both RTE and TG4 have seen increases in the amounts provided. He also referred to the newly-established Commission on the Future of Irish Public Service Broadcasting, which will make recommendations to the Government, and also said he shares the BAIs concerns about ongoing deficits at RTE. RTE has overhauled its programming to take the Covid-19 pandemic into account, including output for younger viewers now home from school, and within days of the Ministers letter, Dee Forbes, RTE director-general, said: People at home and abroad are coming to RTE in huge numbers right now." Amaravati, April 20 : A 35-year-old man died allegedly after he was assaulted by police for violating lockdown norms in Andhra Pradesh on Monday. The incident triggered protest in Sattenapalli town of Guntur district, prompting the police to suspend Sub-Inspector of Police, D. Ramesh, pending further inquiry. According to police, the officer had stopped Shaikh Mohammed Ghouse at a checkpost but he collapsed and died. Police also said the deceased suffered from cyanotic congenital heart disease and was operated and implanted with stents. It claimed that no physical injuries were found on the body. "The written complaint by the deceased's father mentioned no allegations against police. Case has been registered & is being investigated. Paralelly DGP has ordered departmental enquiry also. All procedures as per SC guidelines are being followed. The unfortunate demise is regretted," says the tweet from AP Police. Earlier, Ghouse's relatives alleged that the sub-inspector assaulted him resulting in his death. They said the man was on his way to a medical shop to buy medicines. Meanwhile, leader of opposition N. Chandrababu Naidu condemned the police attack on Muslim man. He demanded the government to pay compensation to the deceased's family. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief said the attack on the man going to the medical shop was highly condemnable. He said police should act with restraint in these difficult times. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Fifty-three journalists have been reportedly tested coronavirus positive in Mumbai on Monday. The number is expected to rise, HuffPost India reported citing officials. The samples of 167 Mumbai journalists were collected for conducting coronavirus tests, it added. The journalists include reporters, camerapersons and photojournalists, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's health committee member Amey Ghole told HuffPost India. India reported 1,553 new coronavirus cases and 36 new deaths in the last 24 hours, the Health Ministry said in its daily briefing on Monday. A total of 2,546 people have recovered so far in the country, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry, said. The total number of confirmed cases currently stands at 17,265 including 14,175 active cases and 543 deaths, he added. On Sunday, 31 new deaths were reported in India. Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in the country with the highest death toll at 223, followed by Madhya Pradesh (70), Gujarat (63), Delhi (45) and Telangana (18). Delhi, with 2,003 cases, is the second worst-affected state in terms of number of coronavirus cases after Maharashtra (4,203), followed by Gujarat (1,743), Madhya Pradesh (1,407) and Tamil Nadu (1,477). Meanwhile, as the partial exit from lockdown starts Monday, some states like Kerala have decided to ease restrictions while others like Punjab and Delhi have said no to any such relaxation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 had said the lockdown will be partially relaxed in some districts from April 20. The relaxation has been allowed in the sectors such as agriculture and banking. Also read: Coronavirus Lockdown India Live Update: COVID-19 cases rise to 17,656; death toll reaches 559 Also read: Coronavirus lockdown: Labourers allowed to return to work; local authorities to help find jobs Regenstrief and partners develop data dashboard for COVID-19 tracking and response in Indiana INDIANAPOLIS -- Regenstrief Institute and partners have developed a data dashboard to support COVID-19 tracking and response in the state of Indiana. The dashboard augments the state's existing information by providing data on patients' course of care through healthcare systems in Indiana. Data on hospitalizations and intensive care unit stays gives state leaders a more comprehensive picture of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on Hoosiers and the healthcare system, as well as perspective to anticipate emerging hot spots and surges. Partners in this effort are the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH), Indiana Family Social Services Administration (FSSA), Indiana Management Performance Hub (MPH), Regenstrief Institute, Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE), Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health and Indiana University School of Medicine. The partnership makes possible access to data from the majority of Indiana's health systems and laboratories. Access to these data during this emergency, and to the experts who help with interpretation, allows public health professionals to identify significant patterns and predict how to best respond as COVID-19 cases spread across the state. "This data is a key component to helping state leaders make critical decisions at crucial times during this crisis. The expertise and resources of our partners brought this concept to fruition," said Connor Norwood, PhD, chief data officer for FSSA and data leader for the state's COVID-19 response team. "We appreciate the contributions of Regenstrief, IHIE, IU Fairbanks School of Public Health and IU School of Medicine as we work to keep Hoosiers healthy." Among the capabilities that the state has leveraged are those provided by Regenstrief Institute, an international leader in informatics and health information technology, and IHIE, which manages the Indiana Network for Patient Care, the nation's largest interorganizational clinical data repository. "These critical data visualizations and tools were developed thanks to the extensive data assets, connectivity, expertise and longstanding collaborations we have in Indiana," said Peter Embi, M.D., Regenstrief president and chief executive officer and professor and associate dean for informatics and health services research at IU School of Medicine. "Collaborative efforts like this across the public and private sectors are especially crucial in times of crisis, and we are proud of the dedication and tireless work of our teams to create and maintain this resource that will help our public health officials make critical data-driven decisions for the well-being of our residents." Teams of individuals across these organizations continue to develop, deploy and maintain data services to combat the crisis. Key contributors to this effort include: Shaun Grannis, M.D., M.S., of the IU School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute; Brian Dixon, PhD, and Nir Menachemi, PhD, MPH of the Fairbanks School of Public Health and Regenstrief; Shandy Dearth, MPH, Thomas Duszynski, MPH, and Paul Halverson, DrPH from the Fairbanks School of Public Health; and many other professionals across multiple teams. ### About The Regenstrief Institute Founded in 1969 in Indianapolis, the Regenstrief Institute is a local, national and global leader dedicated to a world where better information empowers people to end disease and realize true health. A key research partner to Indiana University, Regenstrief and its researchers are responsible for a growing number of major healthcare innovations and studies. Examples range from the development of global health information technology standards that enable the use and interoperability of electronic health records to improving patient-physician communications, to creating models of care that inform practice and improve the lives of patients around the globe. Regenstrief Institute is celebrating 50 years of healthcare innovation. Sam Regenstrief, a successful entrepreneur from Connersville, Indiana, founded the institute with the goal of making healthcare more efficient and accessible for everyone. His vision continues to guide the institute's research mission. About the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI Located on Indiana's premier research and health sciences campus, the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI is committed to advancing the public's health and well-being through education, innovation and leadership. The Fairbanks School of Public Health is known for its expertise in biostatistics, epidemiology, cancer research, community health, environmental public health, global health, health policy and health services administration. About Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE) IHIE was founded in 2004 as a non-profit health information exchange that enables hospitals, physicians, laboratories, payers, and other health service providers to avoid redundancy and deliver faster, more efficient, higher quality healthcare to patients in Indiana. Today, by making information available to approximately 50,000 healthcare providers in Indiana and neighboring states, IHIE delivers services that make a real difference in health and healthcare. About IU School of Medicine IU School of Medicine is the largest medical school in the U.S. and is annually ranked among the top medical schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. The school offers high-quality medical education, access to leading medical research and rich campus life in nine Indiana cities, including rural and urban locations consistently recognized for livability. About Peter Embi, M.D., M.S. In addition to serving as the president and CEO of Regenstrief Institute, Dr. Embi is the Leonard Betley Professor of Medicine and associate dean for informatics and health services research at IU School of Medicine, associate director of informatics with Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute and vice president for Learning Health Systems with Indiana University Health. This story has been published on: 2020-04-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 Trend: Turkmenistan has announced a number of transactions on its State Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange, Trend reports with reference to Turkmenistan Today State News Agency of Turkmenistan. The total amount of registered transactions both for foreign currency and Turkmens manat was 68. Turkmenistan sold diesel fuel and base oil produced at the Turkmenbashi Complex of Oil Refineries to entrepreneurs from Switzerland, Malta, Kazakhstan, and Afghanistan for foreign currency. Handmade carpets were sold to Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, Malta, Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan. Polypropylene and gasoline produced at the Turkmengaz group of companies were sold to businessmen from Russia and Afghanistan. The total amount of transactions for foreign currency was over $33.9 million. Textile products were sold for the Turkmens manat to businessmen from the UAE, Turkey, China and Afghanistan, for a total amount of 2.6 million manat ($786,314). For the same currency, businessmen from Turkmenistan purchased high-density polyethylene, polypropylene ("GC" Turkmengaz"), cotton fiber, and handmade carpets. The total amount of transactions for the Turkmens manat was 35.1 million manat (over $10 million). Cork City Fire Brigade has stepped up to help overstretched paramedics throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, facing risks of infection themselves as they respond to medical emergencies. Were getting more medical call-outs, said Kevin Higgins, a fifth-generation firefighter. The ambulance is stretched with Covid patients. After each suspected case, the ambulance has to be thoroughly cleaned, with all the doors and windows left open to get rid of any aerosols. That cant be rushed, so its great for the public that theres another service there that can respond to emergency calls. And Cork City Fire Brigade is already geared up for these calls. For the last seven years, both the Fire and Ambulance services have responded together to approximately 200 cardiac arrests in the city each year an unusual if not unique arrangement in Ireland. Pooling these critical resources means that when just seconds can make the difference between life and death, someone can be there quickly. We have one minute to respond to a call, said Mr Higgins, a junior officer with Cork City Fire Brigade. There are about 30 firefighters available 24/7 in Cork City. We have Emergency First Responder training, we have a defibrillator, can deliver oxygen and provide advanced airways and CPR. So whoever gets there first stabilises the patient. Theres great teamwork. The Ambulance and the Fire Service really work together. And like the Ambulance Service, the Fire Service now needs to change its protocols and practices to cope with the coronavirus. In the current climate, the biggest risk is Covid, said Mr Higgins. You dont know until you get there whether its a Covid patient or not. You have to assume every patient is Covid- positive and put on full PPE suits, masks, goggles, gloves before going in to treat someone. Dealing with fires accounts for just 60% of the Fire Services work, while 40% of their callouts are in response to road traffic collisions, river rescues, ambulance assistance, or dealing with hazardous material spills. Since the pandemic, Cork City Fire Brigade has had at least two river rescues, one woman was rescued clinging to a bank of the River Lee after she fell in while out walking on Friday. Mr Higgins advised people to be careful if walking by waterways, areas which may see increased footfall during the pandemic. The number of kitchen fires has increased in recent weeks as more people now cook at home. There have also been gorse fires, which are, Mr Higgins said, expected over the warmer months. But some positives have also come from the crisis there has been a decrease in road traffic collisions and malicious fires. Were still getting our routine calls with an increase in Covid-related calls and the extra processes that go with that, he said. One of the biggest worries is that there could be an outbreak at the station. Weve split the teams over four different bases so if there was an outbreak, we would hope that it could be contained to one station. Stations have been closed to all non-essential visitors, and administrative staff are now working from home. But firefighters are still working full time, completing three hours of practical training every day and one hour of lectures cutting scrapped cars open; practising a river rescue with a firefighter in the water in a dry suit; using the hose, ladders, and pumps; practising for dealing with hazardous material; and updating their medical knowledge. Its very varied. Were constantly trying to keep up to date with new technologies and new knowledge, Mr Higgins said. Training is vital because in an emergency that training kicks in. Youre completely focused on doing CPR or cutting someone out of a car or getting them out of the river, he said. But afterwards you do think about that person. Things do sometimes get on top of you and situations can be difficult to deal with emotionally. But when we get back to the station, we usually have a cup of tea and talk about what happened together and that can be the best counselling. We have a good bond and we have great craic together. The Fire Service tends to draw people who want to make a difference. No one ever wants to need the Fire Brigade at their door, but were geared up to get there, help people, and hopefully leave the scene better than we found it. New Delhi, April 20 : The Delhi High Court on Monday applauded the doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers for their services in combating the Covid-19 pandemic. It also appreciated the work being done by government agencies, including police, armed forces and paramilitary forces. The High Court Bench, comprising Justices J.R. Midha and Jyoti Singh, expressed satisfaction over the steps taken by the central and the Delhi governments to provide medical treatment to the non-coronavirus patients, including pregnant women. The court said if a citizen had any grievance related to medical facilities, he/she could approach the authorities for redressal through helplines and dedicated WhatsApp numbers. "Publicise these helplines and continue rendering assistance to the people in need," the Bench said. The Bench was hearing a petition, seeking direction to the authorities to also provide medical aid to patients suffering from illnesses other than Covid-19. The plea, filed by law students Yash Aggarwal and Chitrakshi, said hospitals were refusing to entertain patients who had to undergo dialysis or chemotherapy and other medical emergencies, apart from Covid-19. While disposing of the plea, the court said Covid-19 was an unprecedented calamity and had not left any country untouched with its devastating effects. "Given the magnitude of the pandemic, the task undertaken by health workers or others on the frontline, both inside and outside the hospital, of rendering medical aid to a patient suffering with Covid-19, is a gigantic and Herculean task," it said. The court turned down the contention that non-Covid-19 patients suffering from cancer or kidney diseases were not being treated. Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) Thiruvananthapuram, April 20 : Even as Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan continues to maintain that all was fair in transfer of coronavirus data to US-based Sprinklr, a Congress leader, here on Monday, demanded a CBI probe into it after surfacing of the marketing firm's links with pharma major Pfizer. Pfizer is engaged in research to find a vaccine for coronavirus, besides other anti-viral drugs. "Vijayan blames us when we ask real questions on the shady deal with Sprinklr. A CBI probe is the need of the hour," former state Congress chief M.M. Hassan said. Senior Congress legislator V.D. Satheeshan said, "Everything is now crystal clear with the news surfacing about the relations of Pfizer with Sprinklr." "While the digital agreement was reached with Sprinklr in April, the data transfer started in March, " he said and added, it was only after Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala raised the issue that a non-disclosure agreement was signed. "Everything has been done shabbily and without following relevant rules while entering into the agreement with foreign firms. No due diligence was done. It's health-related data, and very personal," said Satheeshan. The Congress has sought CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury's reaction on the issue. Vijayan is refusing to give a 'convincing' answer to the opposition charge on the Sprinklr deal. Meanwhile, breaking the silence over the issue on Monday, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the second biggest ally in the Vijayan cabinet, in it official publication said data safeguard and privacy must be maintained with care. According to sources, the CPI(M) politburo is expected to take up the issue on Wednesday, while the state Secretariat will discuss it on Tuesday. China has critiqued India's revised FDI guidelines by calling it discriminatory and against WTO's principle of non discrimination. The guidelines have been revised to prevent opportunistic takeovers of Indian companies against the backdrop of coronavirus pandemic. China has rebuked Indias new guidelines for Foreign Direct Investment as discriminatory and in violation of WTOs principle of free and fair trade. Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement on Monday, April 20, that the additional barriers imposed by India for investors from specific countries violate the WTOs principle of non-discrimination. Moreover, the move is against the general trend of liberalisation. The reaction came in response to Indias decision to revise FDI rules to prevent opportunistic takeovers/acquisition of Indian companies, in the backdrop of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The revised rules state that an entity, which shares land border with India or where the beneficial owner of an investment into India is situated and is a citizen of any such country, can invest in India only through governments route now. Furthermore, the amendment ruled out that a citizen of Pakistan or an entity in Pakistan cannot invest in defence, space, atomic energy and other sectors/activities prohibited for foreign investment. They can invest in any other sector but under governments route. The rule also applies to all the existing and planned investments by foreign firms. Also Read: UP CM Yogi Adityanath condoles death of his father Anand Singh Bisht, says will be forced to miss last rites due to states fight against coronavirus Also Read: UP CM Yogi Adityanaths father Anand Singh Bisht passes away in Delhis AIIMS I thank the Govt. for taking note of my warning and amending the FDI norms to make it mandatory for Govt. approval in some specific cases. https://t.co/ztehExZXNc Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 18, 2020 Interestingly, the call to impose restrictions on FDI policy was voiced by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in response to Peoples Bank Of Chinas opportunistic investment in Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC). He had tweeted that the massive economic slowdown in India has made Indian corporates attractive targets for takeovers. The government must take steps to curb foreign entities to take control of any Indian corporate during a crisis like this. He later congratulated the government for taking note of his warning. Also Read: Coronavirus update: Total number of cases reach 17,265 with death toll at 543, selective relaxation in nationwide lockdown from today For all the latest National News, download NewsX App FILE PHOTO: Grape pickers harvest fruit from the vines at the Philippe Gonet vineyard during the traditional Champagne wine harvest in Montgueux, France, August 23, 2018. REUTERS/Charles Platiau - RC1CF3FEB3D0/File Photo When the coronavirus pandemic shut his restaurant German chef Patrick Mayer swapped his kitchen knives for farm tools and now spends his days harvesting asparagus work normally done by seasonal labourers from Romania. From Italy to Britain, travel bans to curb the spread of COVID-19 have left farms across western Europe short of hundreds of thousands of migrant workers, raising fears that crops could end up rotting in the fields. France and Germany have already launched job-matching schemes, appealing for people who have lost work during the pandemic to plug the gap. Britain is expected to announce a similar "Pick for Britain" campaign shortly. Spain, a major fruit and vegetable exporter, has meanwhile said it will allow illegal immigrants to take farm jobs alongside the unemployed - an idea also being aired in Italy amid fears the mafia could exploit the crisis. The labour shortage is an immediate headache for farmers in Germany where April marks Spargelzeit asparagus time a crop that is not only prized as a national delicacy, but also celebrated for heralding in the spring. Germany is the world's fourth biggest asparagus producer, growing about 130,000 tonnes a year. The "Spargelfest" (asparagus party) is an annual highlight in many places when communities gather to savour the slender white vegetable, sometimes referred to as "edible ivory". After closing its borders on March 25, Germany announced this month that it would relax restrictions to allow in around 80,000 seasonal workers in April and May. It also launched a website to find 20,000 locals, targeting the unemployed, those temporarily laid off, students and asylum-seekers. "I placed my ad one evening and the following day my mobile wouldn't stop ringing," said Simon Moser, who runs a farm in Lauffen am Neckar in southwest Germany. His new recruits include Mayer, who said the gruelling work nearly killed him in the first week. "This job is definitely different to what I usually do," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "With cooking, it's more about using the head, but with agriculture it's more about the body, which is exhausted and broken by the end of the day." The work has given him a new respect for Germany's migrant workforce, who mostly come from Poland, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary and earn the minimum wage of 9.35 euros ($10.26) an hour. "I tip my hat to them because what they achieve, not one German would want to do," Mayer said. "I look at Germany very critically now - that we're unable to pick our own produce from the soil because we're too lazy." MAFIA FEARS In Italy, farmers' association Coldiretti estimates labour shortages have left more than a quarter of produce at risk, including wine and oil. Italy normally depends on 370,000 labourers from countries including Romania, Morocco, India, Albania and Senegal. "These are perishable products that must be picked at the right time, otherwise they rot in the field. These operations cannot be postponed," Coldiretti's president Ettore Prandini said. With the first fruit harvests imminent, Coldiretti has launched an online platform to match job-seekers to local farms. Many of those signing up in the northern Veneto region normally work in the tourism industry which has been hammered by the global lockdown. One fruit farmer in Emilia-Romagna said he thought the crisis could lead to a positive long-term change in attitudes towards working in agriculture. But farmers say Italy will not be able to make up the shortfall locally and must also open a "green corridor" to allow in workers from eastern Europe. Coldiretti said the government was already in talks with Romania. Agriculture minister Teresa Bellanova has also suggested Italy should regularise hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants in the country so they can help on the land and to prevent their exploitation by the mafia. Spain, which needs to find 300,000 seasonal workers, is the only country so far to embrace illegal migrants as part of the solution. It has also said the unemployed will continue receiving state benefits while working as fruit pickers. The measures will remain in place for nearly three months to guarantee food supplies and give an income to those most in need amid spiralling unemployment. 'UNCHARTERED TERRITORY' In France, agriculture minister Didier Guillaume has called on out-of-work hotel staff, waiters, hairdressers and others to join "the great army of French agriculture" to replace 200,000 seasonal workers. An online platform called "Des bras pour ton assiette" (Arms for your plate) has already received more than 210,000 applications for jobs including harvesting, packing and deliveries. Even pensioners have expressed an interest, but they cannot leave their homes because of their heightened vulnerability to the virus. In Britain, which needs about 70,000 seasonal workers, several agriculture organisations have launched job-matching schemes which will continue in tandem with the expected national initiative. The government has said furloughed workers - who continue to receive 80% of their salary - can also take agricultural jobs. Farmers said they had already been inundated with requests, but the situation needed careful managing. They fear that when the lockdown is eased people will return to their old jobs, leaving them in the lurch and harvests spoiling in the fields. If this happens it could lead to produce shortages in the shops. "There has been a terrific interest in picking up these jobs, but we're in unchartered territory here," said Jack Ward, CEO of the British Growers Association. "What happens in the fields will determine how much food is available for the great British public, so it's hugely important we get this right." A month after all schools in Michigan were ordered to shut down, parents and students in the Dearborn Public Schools district are most likely wondering how the rest of the school year will play out. On April 16 Dearborn Public Schools received approval from Wayne County RESA to implement its Continuity of Learning Plan. The plan spells out how the District will continue to educate students during the state-ordered closure of school buildings to slow the spread of COVID-19. The Board of Education had discussed the plan at the April 13 meeting. During the public comment period, Secretary Mary Lane read a comment from a parent only referred to as Mrs. Beydoun, who is worried about her daughter falling behind in her advanced placement courses since she is doing schoolwork outside of the classroom. How is my student expected to learn herself new AP material? Lane read. I understand virtual learning is not ideal for any student, however, it is not fair for these students to have to teach themselves new, difficult materialWhat plans do you have for continuing the school year and grading? Supt. Glenn Maleyko said members from his instructional cabinet have talked to administrators, teachers and parents in the past few weeks to draft a contingency plan. The proposal was expected to be completed and presented to the Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency at the end of last week. We totally understand that we need to support students, said Maleyko. It is going to be challenging because we do have to reach out online and through other methods. However, what I can assure you is that part of the plan thats going to be submitted to Wayne County RESA does account for that; support for studentsthat can be phone calls, that can be emails, that can be many other forms of communication that are not direct in-person. I want to tell Mrs. Beydoun and all of the parents, we recognize the challenges that will be therelearning has not ended, and we will be there to support her child and all children in Dearborn Schools. Maleyko said the instructional cabinet team is composed of central office department chairs and consultants. They began drafting the districts contingency plan even before Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made her announcement March 13 to close all K-12 schools. Parents need to know that we will continue to support their children and their education for the remainder of the school year, he said. Students who truly cannot do the work will not be penalized. This would apply, for example, if the child or a parent is seriously ill. The District plans to hold its traditional summer school classes for struggling students if the stay-at-home order is lifted in time. Going forward, teachers will check in with students at least twice a week, via tools such as Google Classrooms, email or phone calls. If a teacher cannot reach a student, then school staff may try to contact the family to stress the importance of completing online work and to help resolve any obstacles that might be keeping the child from participating. Dearborn families who need to borrow a Chromebook are advised to email their principal to set up a time to get a device later in April. Education for special education students will continue to be individualized as much as possible. This is one of the most comprehensive and thorough plans I have read. It was well laid out and easy to follow, wrote Wayne RESA Supt. Randy Liepa. Jill Chochol, the executive director for student achievement at Edsel Ford, said she and the team worked remotely with teacher and principal volunteers the week of April 6, which was previously supposed to be spring break. They had the chance to see a preview of the draft, as well as give feedback to the cabinet. In addition, the team talked to between 20-30 teachers each in four groups ranging from kindergarten to 12th grade. To receive feedback from parents, Chochol said the cabinet remotely met with the Dearborn PTA. Unfortunately, theres no way for us to just put out surveys because were under a time frame, said Maleyko. It (the plan) doesnt require parent input, but thats how we operate. The plan also covers other elements required in the state closure order, such as assuring that all District staff will continue to be paid during the closure. Some staff could be assigned to different areas as needed. Not included in the actual plan is a new grading system that will be used to evaluate student work since the school closure. The District has established grading criteria for each level that holds students accountable for their work while following the do no harm provision of the governors order. Students performing at the lowest level in each category may be required to attend summer school or be prevented from continuing to the next level in the fall, if they do not have a compelling reason why they could not participate. Parents and students will be able to check their grades through Parent Connect and Student Connect accounts. Teachers will update grades at least weekly, according to the approved plan. The District still plans to end the school year on June 11. David Kaplan, 81, of Red Bank, Tennessee, passed away on April 18, 2020, after battling Alzheimers. Dave was born on Jan. 8, 1939, to the late Sam and Roberta Kaplan. Survivors include his loving wife, Nancy, of 56 years; son David Jr. (Sandra), daughter Angela Fox; and siblings Diane Cady, Shelby Kaplan (Jane), Robert Kaplan (Dottie). Dave graduated from City High School in 1957 and University of Chattanooga in 1962. He retired from Provident in Chattanooga after 33 years of service in 1995. Dave spent many years volunteering with the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum as a conductor and a board member. After retirement, he spent several years volunteering for The Red Cross. He loved serving there. A memorial service will be held in the coming weeks and a graveside service for the family will be held this week. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Tennessee Valley Railroad. Arrangements are held by Chattanooga Funeral Home, Crematory and Florist, East Brainerd Chapel, 8214 E. Brainerd Ave., Chattanooga, Tn. 37421. Panaji, April 20 : Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Naik on Monday met Union Minister for External Affairs S. Jaishankar in Delhi to discuss evacuation of thousands of seafarers, including around 8,000 Goan sailors, stranded across the world. "Met with External Affairs Minister Jaishankar ji today to discuss the issue of seafarers of Goa and from other parts of country who are stranded in different parts of world," Naik, a Lok Sabha MP from North Goa, tweeted. Naik in his tweet also said that "possible efforts are being made to bring back the stuck seafarers to their home" and that Indian embassies overseas had been advised to extend "all possible help to them". The Goa government is compiling a list of its over 8,000 seafarers, stranded on different ships at sea and various ports of call across the world. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said that his government with the help of the state's hospitality industry, schools and religious institutions is creating a pool of quarantine locations across the state, where these seafarers can be kept in isolation for the mandated period. H arry and Meghan have declared they will no longer engage with four British newspaper groups. The couple, now based in Los Angeles, announced that they will adopt a zero engagement policy and will never again speak to publications including the Daily Mirror, The Sun, the Daily Mail or the Daily Express. In a letter released to the Guardian newspaper, the Duke nd Duchess of Sussex said they will not respond to enquiries from journalists from those UK publications. They also said they will no longer offer themselves up to the specified newspapers and the groups that own them. The couple conceded that media had the right to report on them, but stated: This policy is not about avoiding criticism. Its not about shutting down public conversation or censoring accurate reporting. Like you, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex believe that a free press is a cornerstone to any democracy particularly in moments of crisis. At its best, this free press shines light on dark places, telling stories that would otherwise go untold, standing up for whats right, challenging power, and holding those who abuse the system to account. It has been said that journalisms first obligation is to the truth. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex agree wholeheartedly. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex farewell tour - In pictures 1 /37 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex farewell tour - In pictures The Mountbatten Music Festival Getty Images The Endeavour Fund Awards Samir Hussein/WireImage Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey AFP via Getty Images The Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham PA The National Theatres Immersive Storytelling Studio The Duke and Duchess of Sussex/Chris Allerton The Silverstone Experience PA Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey Getty Images The Endeavour Fund Awards Samir Hussein/WireImage The Endeavour Fund Awards AP The Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham PA The Mountbatten Music Festival POOL/AFP via Getty Images The National Theatres Immersive Storytelling Studio The Duke and Duchess of Sussex/Chris Allerton The Silverstone Experience AFP via Getty Images The Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham Getty Images The Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham via Reuters Abbey Road Studios @sussexroyal Abbey Road Studios @sussexroyal The Endeavour Fund Awards Getty Images The Endeavour Fund Awards PA The Endeavour Fund Awards Getty Images The Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham PA Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey Getty Images The Mountbatten Music Festival AP A sustainable tourism summit at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre PA Abbey Road Studios Jeremy Selwyn The Endeavour Fund Awards Getty Images The Endeavour Fund Awards AFP via Getty Images Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey AFP via Getty Images In the letter, which was sent to editors of the groups involved on Sunday evening, the couple said: Please note that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be engaging with your outlet. There will be no corroboration and zero engagement. Accepting that media should be able to report on them, the letter said: Media have every right to report on The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, good or bad. But it cant be based on a lie. They also want to be very clear: this is not in any way a blanket policy for all media. It suggests that UK tabloids have been responsible for publishing salacious gossip which they know to be distorted, false, or invasive beyond reason. The Duchess is due to face The Mail on Sunday newspaper in court in a virtual hearing on Friday over the publishing of a letter she wrote to her estranged father Thomas Markle. Prince Harry has launched separate legal claims against The Sun and The Mirror for alleged historic phone hacking. It comes just three weeks after the couple completed their final royal engagements, before stepping away from the monarchy on March 31. Both Prince Harry and Meghan say they have watched people they know as well as complete strangers have their lives completely pulled apart for no good reason by the media. TODO: define component type apester Representatives for the Sussexes added that the zero engagement policy would extend to both the Sunday paper and Online editions of each tabloid. In one final statement the letter concludes: We are encouraged that this new approach will be heard and respected. Communications for the couple will now be handled by Sunshine Sachs, a New York based PR firm, with only one UK based representative. The PR company is known for specialising in crisis communications for celebrities. It is not yet known which media outlets will continue to have contact with the Sussexes, but the letter details how the pair look forward to engaging with grassroots, regional and local press to further causes that desperately need acknowledging. The announcement came hours after Harry faced criticism for claiming the UKs Covid-19 crisis is not as bad as the public are being told by the media. He told Declassifed podcast that things here are better than we are led to believe through certain corners of the media. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Representatives Adam Schiff (D., Calif.) and Jerry Nadler (D., N.Y.) requested that Justice Department inspector general Michael Horowitz investigate attorney general William Barr for defending President Trumps decision to fire the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community (ICIG) Michael Atkinson. In a Monday letter, the heads of the House Intelligence and House Judiciary committees accused Barr of violating Department of Justice policies and rules of professional conduct during an interview with Fox News Laura Ingraham earlier this month, in which he said the president did the right thing in firing Atkinson, who filed the whistleblower complaint that dealt with Trumps conduct on a call with the Ukrainian president and touched off the presidents impeachment. From the vantage point of the Department of Justice, he had interpreted his statute, which is a fairly narrow statute, that gave him jurisdiction over wrongdoing by intelligence people and tried to turn it into a commission to explore anything in the government and immediately report it to Congress without letting the executive branch look at it and determine whether there was any problem, Barr explained. Schiff and Nadler said that Barr blatantly mischaracterized the firing, and suggested he was justifying the Presidents retaliatory decision to fire Mr. Atkinson. To the contrary, Mr. Atkinson faithfully discharged his legal obligations as an independent and impartial Inspector General in accordance with federal law, they argue. The two point to the coordinated efforts between the DOJ and the White House to keep the whistleblower complaint from being reported, as part of Barrs disturbing pattern of misrepresenting facts and falsely alleging misconduct by other government officials in order to defend the Presidents own misconduct. Following initial news of the whistleblower complaint in September, Schiff threatened to sue the White House for access to the complaint, explaining that we have not spoken directly with the whistleblower. In October, The New York Times revealed that the whistleblower had communicated with Schiffs staff before submitting the formal complaint. Story continues Schiff and Nadler, who in October warned that Barrs elevating of John Durhams Russiagate probe amounted to a vehicle for President Trumps political revenge, also cite U.S. District Judge Reggie Waltons decision last month for the DOJ to hand over an unredacted Mueller Report, over grave concerns about Barrs objectivity, as further proof of bias. Public confidence in our system of justice depends on the integrity, fairness, and impartiality of DOJs leadership, they close. It is, therefore, imperative that the Attorney General be held to the same high standard expected of all Department personnel, particularly in matters involving the Presidents own interests. More from National Review Contemporary abstract artist Edgar Medina wants to Send Some Joy by sending a small original canvas painting to a loved one. Each piece is a unique 6-inch by 6-inch canvas painting with the opportunity for customers to request personalized color schemes and attached notes, all for $100 per piece. COVID-19 RECOVERY: Hidalgo names state Rep. Armando Walle as Harris County pandemic recovery czar Medina is just one of many Houston artists who are trying to stay engaged with their communities while studios, galleries and art nonprofits remain closed to the public due to COVID-19. Right now our only job is to create art, said Medina. Studios are closed so we dont get the same traffic. Just a little bit of something goes a long way. Most of Medinas work is full of color, influenced by the colors of his Mexican heritage and combined with contemporary abstract influences from the United States. Medinas work is mostly inspired by nature, landscapes, sunsets and the Houston skyline. Being a painter for about ten years, he operates out his studio in Montrose and partners with local charities to assist in fundraising and community outreach efforts. Medinas work can be found at many local art shows and has been featured in fairs nationally including Chicago, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Miami, and Santa Fe. But as the quarantine continues, Medina wants to send positivity in order to cut through the negative news COVID-19 brings. I have been amazed by the number of orders that have started to come in over the past week; I think people are excited to share a small moment of positivity during the times, said Medina. I have been sending out pieces all over the country with some amazing heartfelt notes attached. One of Medinas most recent orders was for a nurse that is currently working on the front line. For Medina, being able to take part in that nurses happiness reaffirms his commitment to keep sending joy. To support Medina, go to www.medinaedgar.com/smallworksforsale/sendjoy. ryan.nickerson@hcnonline.com England, Scotland and Wales have announced 450 more deaths from the coronavirus today, taking the UK's total death toll to 16,510. The number is a fall on the 596 fatalities announced yesterday, Sunday, and half as many as were confirmed the day before that (888). Although the statistics are known to drop after a weekend, the sharp fall adds to growing evidence that the peak of the UK's epidemic has blown over. At least 120,000 people in Britain have been officially diagnosed with the virus since the epidemic began in late February, and more will be announced later today. The Department of Health will also release grouped data about how many more people have died in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It comes as a medicine professor at the University of Oxford has suggested the UK's outbreak may have peaked before the nationwide lockdown had even begun. Professor Carl Heneghan claims data shows infection rates halved after the Government launched a hand-washing drive and recommended people keep two metres (6'6") apart on March 16, before later rushing into the drastic lockdown. NHS England confirmed this afternoon that a total of 14,829 people have now died in its hospitals and tested positive for COVID-19. The patients whose deaths were announced today were aged between 40 and 101 years old, and 15 of them had no health problems before catching the virus. The youngest of those was 49. Just 85 of the deaths recorded happened yesterday, on April 19. 210 of the people counted in today's statistics succumbed to the virus on Saturday, April 18. A man who dated Carole Baskin for three years says the controversial Tiger King star has a 'very high sex drive,' and loves to get frisky in a hot tub but 'doesn't like people', DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal. Alan Schreier, 70, was in a relationship with the Big Cat Rescue founder between 1999 and 2001, after her husband Don Lewis mysteriously vanished. Alan, a retired real estate developer, met Carole, 58, online and after just two months of dating he moved into the wildlife preserve compound where she still lives in Tampa, Florida. 'I was on a couple of dating sites in the late 90s and one day I got this email from Carole saying: ''I know you but I don't think you know me, but if you want to know me I'm in People magazine this week'',' Alan said. 'At first I thought it was one of my friends playing a prank, so I went and bought the magazine and read about how she has one of the world's largest collections of big cats and how people have accused her of killing her husband, but it was never proven.' Alan Schreier, 70, dated Carole Baskin for three years between 1999 and 2001, after her husband Don Lewis mysteriously vanished in 1997. Alan, a retired real estate developer, met Carole, 58, online and after just two months of dating he moved into the wildlife preserve compound where she still lives in Tampa, Florida He exclusively told DailyMail.com: 'We got along and she was very attractive. We had a very good sex life, and she was quite affectionate with me' Carole's first husband Don Lewis missing in 1997 and has since been declared dead. His body was never found. 'I met Carole about a year and a half after her husband went missing, so it was still fresh,' recalled Alan. 'She told me that Don hung around some ''unsavory people'' Alan added: 'We had a very good sex life, and she was quite affectionate with me. She had a very high sex drive, maybe that's why it lasted for over three years. She liked it in the hot tub, we got our money's worth for the hot tub!' Carole's first husband Don Lewis missing in 1997 and has since been declared dead. His body was never found. 'I met Carole about a year and a half after her husband went missing, so it was still fresh,' recalled Alan. 'She told me that Don hung around some ''unsavory people''. She said he used to carry a lot of money around on him and she thought maybe somebody did something to him, perhaps kidnapped or killed him. 'Their marriage was faltering towards the end. She told me they were not getting along at all.' Despite Carole's interesting past Alan was keen to meet her in person. 'We had our first date at her place, I drove out to meet her and told everyone before I left: ''If you don't hear from me it's because I've gone to meet this lady who keeps the big cats who might have killed her husband''. 'But the date was great. She gave me a tour of all the cats on her property. We got along and she was very attractive. She usually dressed in cat prints, they looked good on her. 'We hit it off pretty quickly and started spending a lot of time together.' In 2001 Alan, who is Jewish, decided to take more of an interest in Carole's religion and he began visiting her church with her. 'I realized that her church didn't recognize the Old Testament and that seemed anti-Semitic in my mind, so I stopped going and that was the beginning of the end really,' Alan said Despite Carole's interesting past Alan was keen to meet her in person. 'We had our first date at her place, I drove out to meet her and told everyone before I left: ''If you don't hear from me it's because I've gone to meet this lady who keeps the big cats who might have killed her husband'' 'I met Carole about a year and a half after her husband went missing, so it was still fresh,' Alan recalled. 'She told me that Don hung around some ''unsavory people''. She said he used to carry a lot of money around on him and she thought maybe somebody did something to him, perhaps kidnapped or killed him.' Pictured: Carole and Alan (left) with friends Alan added: 'We had a very good sex life, and she was quite affectionate with me. She had a very high sex drive, maybe that's why it lasted for over three years. 'She liked it in the hot tub, we got our money's worth for the hot tub! 'At that time I owned a condo in Tampa which I had just sold, so she asked me if I wanted to move in with her and renovate her house.' Alan and Carole lived together harmoniously for about seven months, but problems arose when Alan's son Todd, then 15, moved in with them. Todd, now a 36-year-old real estate investor, does not remember his time at the Baskin household fondly, explaining Carole wasn't much of a people person and made him stay away from her side of the house. He said: 'I never spoke with her about her ex-husband but there was a big cement slab in the middle of the woods hat never had an explanation on it. That didn't make sense to me. That always like that was the only red flag thing that stuck out with me. ' Despite the soured relationship Carole had with both Alan and Todd, both are skeptical she killed Lewis. Alan said: 'I think it's bull spit. He was not nice to her. He was rough with her and so forth. So, you know, there's a part of me thinking, who knows? You know? I don't know. I still believe that she didn't do it.' Todd added: 'Do I think Carol personally, like schlepped him in the back of a truck and ground him up and then fed him no, absolutely not. 'Do I think that she might know like more than she's let anyone else know? Absolutely. How private and cold she is? Shes probably the world champion at keeping a secret.' Alan and Carole lived together harmoniously for about seven months, but problems arose when Alan's son Todd, then 15, moved in with them. Todd, now a 36-year-old real estate investor, does not remember his time at the Baskin household fondly. He said: 'Carole really does care about the cats in a creepy, weird way. She doesn't care about human beings at all, she's cold as ice. Totally emotionless' Todd added: 'I never spoke with her about her ex-husband but there was a big cement slab in the middle of the woods. That didn't make sense to me.' Pictured: Carole and her dead husband Don Lewis Despite the soured relationship Carole had with both Alan and Todd, both are skeptical she killed Lewis (pictured). Alan said: 'I think it's bull spit. He was not nice to her. He was rough with her and so forth. So, you know, there's a part of me thinking, who knows? You know? I don't know. I still believe that she didn't do it' Alan said: 'Carole is not a people person, she never really had any girlfriends and she wasn't into children at all. 'Carole wasn't the motherly type. Her daughter Jamie lived in a separate house on the property and cooked all her own meals. She had been living out there since she was a teenager. Todd explained: 'Carole always made it very clear that she didn't want me there. She hates people, she flat out told me that she hated me. 'She never really spoke to me and I made sure I was out of the house as much as possible.' Todd added: 'I was never allowed to have any friends over. She really doesn't like people, just the cats. 'Her daughter Jamie was very sweet, but Carole made her live alone. Jamie had to totally take care of herself. 'Carole is really religious but in a rather judgmental ''I'm better than you'' kind of way. 'Life there was so uncomfortable and weird for me. She and my dad had their own side of the house and I wasn't allowed in there at all. 'I used a separate bathroom. One day I came home and there was a bobcat in my bathroom. That was the only time I used their bathroom, dad said it was a special needs bobcat that Carole was taking care of.' In 2001 Alan, who is Jewish, decided to take more of an interest in Carole's religion and he began visiting her church with her. 'I realized that her church didn't recognize the Old Testament and that seemed anti-Semitic in my mind, so I stopped going and that was the beginning of the end really,' Alan said Todd continued: 'After I'd been living there for about ten months I went to live with my grandmother because I felt so unwelcome. 'Carole really does care about the cats though, in a very creepy, weird way. They're her whole life, 24/7. But she doesn't care about human beings at all, she's cold as ice. Totally emotionless.' In 2001 Alan, who is Jewish, decided to take more of an interest in Carole's religion and he began visiting her church with her. 'I realized that her church didn't recognize the Old Testament and that seemed anti-Semitic in my mind, so I stopped going and that was the beginning of the end really,' Alan said. 'We didn't have a fight or a big blow out. But one day, out of the blue, I came home and she said: ''I don't think we're going to make it, I don't see a future for us''. 'It was right before Thanksgiving, she caught me totally off guard. 'I had plans to visit my brother for Thanksgiving and when I got back she had packed up all my stuff, about 30 boxes, and she just told me to move out. 'So I moved out and we haven't spoken a word to each other since.' The suspect in a deadly Hanukkah stabbing rampage at the home of a New York rabbi has been ruled incompetent to stand trial on federal hate crime charges. A federal judge ruled Monday that a psychological evaluation found 39-year-old Grafton Thomas is "presently suffering from a mental disease or defect" rendering him unable to participate in his own defense. U.S. District Court judge Cathy Seibel ruled Thomas should be held in a medical facility for up to four months to determine whether he can regain competency to face the 10-count federal indictment, which charges him with attempting to kill or injure five Jewish congregants because of their religion. The eldest victim, 72-year-old Josef Neumann, was critically injured and died of his injuries last month. suspect.jpg Grafton Thomas CBS New York Thomas also faces state charges of attempted murder and burglary for the December 28 attack in Rockland County, but a judge there has not yet made a competency ruling because local prosecutors plan to bring murder charges before a grand jury in Neumann's death, reports the Journal News. The Rockland County District Attorney's office reportedly said it is reviewing the federal judge's ruling. Thomas has pleaded not guilty. He allegedly entered the Monsey home where dozens of people were celebrating the seventh night of Hanukkah, said words to the effect of, "Nobody is leaving," and then took out a machete and started stabbing and slashing people. One man in the home was hailed as a hero for throwing a table at the attacker and taking down his license plate number as he fled the scene. Officers who arrested Thomas about two hours later in New York City said he had blood on his hands and clothing, and found a blood-stained 18-inch machete in his car. Federal prosecutors said investigators who searched Thomas' home found handwritten journals referencing anti-Semitic beliefs, along with internet search terms including "Why did Hitler hate the Jews" and "German Jewish temples near me." But his lawyers have maintained Thomas is severely mentally ill and did not act out of hate. His lawyer Michael Sussman has said Thomas was experiencing auditory hallucinations and may not have been taking his medication for depression and psychosis before the attack. Story continues "His diaries, writings, failure to take medications for long stretches, his actions on the night in question all bespeak to his very serious mental illness," Sussman said in a statement to CBS News Monday. Sussman said "long-term hospitalization and treatment appear to be appropriate," but couldn't say whether Thomas would be able to assist in his own defense after treatment. Stay-at-home order protests continue as states ease coronavirus guidelines "CBS Evening News" headlines for Monday, April 20, 2020 Why some millionaires are receiving coronavirus stimulus funds As part of its contributions toward the fight to contain and prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Twellium Foundation has donated products worth thousands of Ghana cedis to frontline health workers, at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra. Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes The Twellium Foundation and Verna Changing Lives donation train made a stop at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to extend support to the front line health workers at the facility and also to assure them of the support of the public. READ ALSO: Food and Drugs Authority recalls COA FS supplement Making the donation, the Chief Marketing Officer of the Twellium Industrial Company, Mr. Ali Ajami expressed optimism that the war against the COVID-19 global pandemic in Ghana will not be lost at any level. He opined that his outfit hopes the donation would help enhance quality health care delivery. The items presented included protective gear, food, and nutrition, water, etc. In other news, Victory Bible Church International (VBCI), one of the leading Charismatic and Pentecostal churches in Ghana, has provided food items to over two thousand homes within the Awoshie-Anyaa communities in the Ablekuma North Constituency where the church is located. COVID-19: Victory Bible Church supplies food items to over 2,000 households in Awoshie. Source: Kasapafmonline.com Source: UGC READ ALSO: 7th COVID-19 address by Akufo-Addo: Lockdown lifted with effect from Monday, April 20 The church gave to the poor and needy within its locality items bag of rice, one liter of pure organic virgin coconut oil, three pieces of sardines each, two-kilogram semolina, loaves of bread and a pack of sachet water. The distribution was done at the churchs premises on Sunday, April 19, 2020. YEN.com.gh earlier reported that New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP, Lydia Seyram Alhassan on Saturday, April 18 donated 3000 bags of 5kg Rice, among others to the churches in the 11 electoral areas in the constituency. 51-year-old Fred Drah recovers from COVID-19 in Ghana | #Yencomgh READ ALSO: Shirley Frimpong Manso celebrates 10th birthday of her son Source: YEN.com.gh - MP Bobi Wine said he had offered to evacuate all Africans who were stranded in China in the wake of discrimination - Museveni, however, turned down his offer and said it was his responsibility to take care of Ugandans who were abroad - He said the MP was financially incapable to cater for all the Africans especially in quarantine centres The rift between Uganda President Yoweri Museveni and his political rival, Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, has played out after the latter's plan to evacuate Africans stranded in China was rejected by the former. The Kyandondo East MP had offered to fly back home all the Africans who were facing discrimination in the Asian country at his own cost. READ ALSO: 6 ways to care for each other during COVID-19 pandemic Bobi Wine had said he would evacuate all Africans from China to save them from discrimination. Photo: Bobi Wine. Source: UGC READ ALSO: 68-year-old first-time mother gives birth to twins However, according to Daily Monitor, Museveni declined the MP's offer and expressed doubts on Wine's financial capacity to cater for the returnees. The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Henry Okello, said it was the head of state's sole responsibility to take care of Ugandans. "Does he have the capacity to be held responsible for all of this? No. This is a foreign policy issue that you do not just wake up to do," the minister said. READ ALSO: Msanii Weezdom aacha kufanya muziki wa injili Museveni's government declined Wine's offer and said it could take care of its citizens. Photo: Yoweri Museveni. Source: Getty Images Okello said the government was registering all Ugandans who were abroad. Wine's People Movement Party said the legislator had the financial muscle to cater for the returnees. In a statement, the Kyadodo legislator had said he would partner with businessman Neil Nelson to airlift his African compatriots from the Asian country. "Together with my friend Neil Nelson, CEO Atlanta BlackStar, we are offering to airlift Africans and African-Americans being subjected to inhumane treatment in parts of China. " Only if we get an African nation and/or the US willing to receive them," said the youthful leader. The Kyandondo East MP said it was disheartening for African leaders to remain mum and watch as their helpless citizens were being tortured and frustrated by their international partners. 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 husband left me for our househelp - Justina Syokau of Twendi Twendi | Tuko Talks | Tuko TV. Source: TUKO.co.ke In the wake of the increasing number of COVID -19 cases in Ghana, the Omnibsic bank has intensified safety measures to protect its employees, customers and the general public. In line with health directives regarding the pandemic, the bank has modified its working hours to only five hours on weekdays (9am 3pm) and moreover, not more than six customers are allowed inside a branch in order to ensure social distancing protocols are adhered to. The well-being of our customers, staff and the general public remains the banks utmost priority. Bearing this in mind, it continues to amplify its efforts via the following measures to help in the fight against Covid-19, the bank stated. OmniBSIC bank is calling on customers to utilize its E-banking channels which includes telephone, mobile and internet banking channels in addition to card services for transactions to minimize the risk of infection by physical contact. The Bank has recently enhanced its mobile banking service to include bank account to wallet, wallet to bank account, direct merchant payments, funds transfer and many other transactions to prevent physical transactions among its clients. Customers are also advised to call the banks contact centre on 0307086000 or Toll-Free 0800100790 whenever they need support to do banking remotely. The mobile banking service works on any phone and does not require internet access to function, making it possible for all customers to access their account from any part of the country. Logistical support to help protect staff and customers has also been provided by the Bank to frontline staff in the execution of their duties. These include gloves, hand sanitizers, rubbing alcohol, face masks and temperature guns for all branches. The Bank has further installed hand sanitizers at all its Automated Teller Machines (ATM) to enhance physical hygiene among customers aimed at preventing infections of the virus. Meanwhile, the Bank uses the opportunity to remind the general public that earlier this year, it received GHC 130 million capital funding from the Ghana Amalgamated Trust Limited (GAT), thus completing the final step in meeting the minimum capital requirement introduced by the Central Bank. This comes as good news for the bank and its customers and further underscores the confidence that the Bank of Ghana has in OmniBSIC bank. Source: OmniBSIC Bank 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. Featured Video Quarantine is the perfect time to pick up a book, but if you need even more of a reason, April 23 is World Book Day. This may sound like another made-up holiday, but it's actually UNESCO-sanctioned. According to the UN, this day is celebrated as "World Book and Copyright Day" because it's the day that Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. It is also the birthday of a number of other authors. India's new FDI norms for investors from specific countries violate WTO's principle of non-discrimination, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement on Monday. It added that India's new FDI norms go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment. The official said the new policy introducing "additional barriers" was also against the consensus arrived at the G20 grouping to realize a free, fair, non-discriminatory and transparent environment for investment. "The additional barriers set by Indian side for investors from specific countries violate WTO's principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment," Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement. This comes after India amended its foreign direct investment (FDI) policy to prevent the hostile takeover of stressed firms amid the COVID-19 pandemic via the automatic FDI route. Earlier, China seemingly responding to India's move had said that it has done nothing but act as a 'responsible country' and has proven its international cooperation. Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong in a series of tweets said that China had been the first to alert the world regarding the pandemic and that it had helped become the 'world's factory' by decreasing the strain on global medical supplies. He stated that at a time like this 'cooperation' was needed instead of 'scapegoating'. President #XiJinping published an article entitled "Solidarity and Cooperation are the Most Powerful Weapons for the International Community to Defeat #COVID19". He calls on int'l community to strengthen confidence, act with unity & work together. https://t.co/g6wzz1jXdB (1/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 Viruses respect no borders and epidemics do not distinguish between race. The only way to defeat them is through concerted efforts of all. This global public health crisis has driven home the urgency and importance of building a community with a shared future for mankind. (2/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 #Chinese govt has acted in an open, transparent & responsible manner, actively engaged in int'l cooperation to jointly meet the common threat and challenge. We are resolved to protect the lives & health of the Chinese & other people across the world. (3/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 True friendship could stand the test of adversity. #China appreciates the valuable understanding & support from the int'l community at the most difficult moment, and has been supporting the global response to #COVID19 as its ability permits. (4/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 To safeguard public health security, efforts should be made on: resolutely fight an all-out global war against the outbreak; forge a collective response at the int'l level; support int'l orgs in playing active roles; strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination. (5/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 #China's response to the outbreak is swift, decisive and effective. It has made enormous sacrifice in battling the virus. This represents not only China's commitment to the safety and health of its own people but also a contribution to the cause of global public health. (6/6) Sun Weidong (@China_Amb_India) April 18, 2020 India amends its FDI policy In massive development, the Centre on Saturday, amended the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy to ensure no hostile takeover of firms facing stress due to ongoing COVID-19 lockdown. According to the amendment, neighbouring countries - including China, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan will require government approval for investing into Indian companies. Centre has also prohibited Pakistan from investing in Indian sectors of defence, space, atomic energy and sectors/activities prohibited for foreign investment. Apart from India, EU, US, Australia have checked Chinese FDI amid COVID-19 crisis. China's People's Development Bank had just last week picked up an over 1% stake in India's largest private lender HDFC bank. UAE-backed separatists warn of 'imminent war' with Saudi mercenaries in Yemen Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 6:43 AM UAE-backed separatists in southern Yemen have warned of an "imminent war" with Saudi-sponsored militants as divisions between the two sides continue to deepen. In a statement, the so-called Southern Transitional Council (STC) said it had informed ambassadors of major countries to Yemen and the UN envoy Martin Griffiths that "the outbreak of war is imminent". The group accused Riyadh-backed government of former Yemeni president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi of violating a power-sharing settlement signed between the two sides last year. The STC accused the former government of trying to regain control of southern provinces in violation of a "sustainable political agreement" reached last November. The statement also said that Hadi's loyalists had attempted to overrun Aden, which was seized by the separatists last August. Both the UAE-sponsored separatists and Saudi-backed militants loyal to Hadi serve a Riyadh-led military coalition which has been waging a bloody war on Yemeni people since March 2015. Equipped and funded by the United Arab Emirates, the separatists have long sought southern Yemen to secede. They had initially agreed to fight under the Saudi-led military coalition, but recently and after a decision by the UAE to effectively withdraw its forces from Yemen, the group has turned its weapons on rival militants loyal to Hadi. The infighting has highlighted deepening divisions between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the two countries that are leading the war on Yemen. Ties between the two sides have soured over a number of issues, including what the Yemenis view as Abu Dhabi's intention to occupy Socotra Island and gain dominance over major waterways in the region. The threat of an imminent war comes in the wake of a unilateral ceasefire declared by Saudi Arabia earlier this month, citing the coronavirus outbreak. Leading international weekly newspaper The Economist, however, raised doubts about the true objectives of the ceasefire on Saturday, saying Saudi Arabia was using the pandemic as a "fig leaf" for an exit from the Yemen "quagmire". "Cynics doubt that compassion is truly motivating Saudi Arabia. For years its bombs have hit hospitals, houses and schools in Yemenoften, it seemed, on purpose," the London-based publication said. "The Saudis want a way out and are using the coronavirus as a fig leaf," it said, citing Yemeni Analyst Abdulghani al-Iryani. According to the paper, "despite its vicious air campaign, Saudi Arabia has been unable to dislodge the Houthis from most of Yemen's population centers, including the capital, Sana'a". Its main ally, the United Arab Emirates, began scaling back its involvement in the war last year, The Economist said, adding in recent months they have held secret talks with the Houthis. "Gone is the hope of returning Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, the exiled Yemeni president, to Sana'a. Now the kingdom's goal is to stop Houthi missile strikes on its own territory," it added. Griffiths said on Friday that ceasefire negotiations between Hadi and Houthis were nearing completion despite continuing military activities on several fronts. "We are redoubling our efforts to bridge the outstanding differences between the parties," he said, adding he feared fighting would continue on the ground until an agreement was reached on the proposals. The UN envoy said the city of Ma'rib east of the capital of Sana'a "remains the center of gravity of this war". The US-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit conflict-research organization, estimates that the Saudi war has claimed more than 100,000 lives in Yemen since 2015. The UN says over 24 million Yemenis are now in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10 million suffering from extreme levels of hunger. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd contributes Rs 25 lakh towards CM Relief Fund COVID-19 India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Bengaluru, Apr 20: GRB Dairy Foods Pvt Ltd, a well-known FMCG company, has come forward to support the fight against coronavirus by contributing Rs 25 lakh towards the Karnataka state government's CM Relief Fund COVID-19. The company which has presence across India and overseas markets, plans to further contribute to the people of Karnataka in many other possible ways. COVID-19: Check full list of containment zones in Bengaluru Food kits with essential groceries worth Rs. 20 lakh is also being distributed in Karnataka by GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd. The content of food kits consists of essential items that include - rice, dal, sugar, salt, chilli powder, turmeric powder and sambar powder. Speaking on this humanitarian initiative, G R Balasubramaniam, Founder and Chairman, GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd said, "presently, we are facing a major health crisis, where the nation is fighting against the deadly coronavirus pandemic and this is our sincere effort in helping overcome the same. As a responsible and committed corporate citizen, we are concerned about the health and wellbeing of the society and the nation that we live in, and we are hopeful that this initiative of ours will aid the government in relief work and the food kits will help the needy people." In the wake of coronavirus outbreak, the central and state governments of India have appealed to the people to donate money for providing better healthcare and advanced medical support system to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and assist those who need help. About GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd: GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd was started in the year 1984 by Mr. G.R. Balasubramaniam, a person with exceptional product knowledge and business acumen. It has now evolved from a ghee manufacturing entity to a multi-product, multi-brand company. GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd has become synonymous with 'Purity' in the Indian market and over the years it has built a reputation and legacy for authentic traditional taste. GRB Dairy Foods Pvt. Ltd's commitment to excellence and its vision of providing best quality products is unwavering. The company takes pride in its three decades. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, April 20, 2020, 9:47 [IST] These are extraordinary times and we all are in uncharted territory. There is a lot of fear and negativity in all spheres due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. While the Corona Warriors are doing a tremendous job fighting from the frontlines, we at Adgully are embarking on an endeavour to highlight the positive developments during these challenging times. Adgully is featuring a series of brief interactions with industry leaders in India and find out how they are keeping their spirits up as well as keeping their employees motivated, also how they are joining in the fight against the adverse impact of the global pandemic. Rajeev Yadav, MD & CEO, Fincare Small Finance Bank, speaks about the various measures taken by his organisation to keep the operations going during this time of crisis. Being part of the essential services, Fincare Small Finance Bank has been working right through the lockdown period. What steps are you and your organisation taking to help the society at large or those engaged in the war against COVID-19? These are unprecedented times and we are all caught unawares as a race on many counts. On one side, there is a wave of negativity, fear and chaos with respect to the pandemic, which has engulfed a large part of the world. On the other, display of hope, resilience and empathy is making the world sit up and take notice. At Fincare Small Fincare Bank, we work in the space of improving financial well-being of our clients in rural and semi-urban India and we are committed to working with double enthusiasm and energy in helping our clients keep their livelihood going despite the challenges with a positive mind set. We are also keeping our employees motivated during these difficult occasions. Firstly, given that we are part of the essential services, we have ensured that our banking services remain operational in this period. Our on-ground staff have gone the extra mile to ensure that citizens get access to the Bank through branches, ATM, call center and the digital channels. Despite the lockdown, the Bank launched its WhatsApp Banking feature along with a conversational BOT to provide easy access to its customers. Our staff, much like other essential service workers, working at our outlets have done so by following all the norms, such as, donning masks, maintaining social distancing, sanitizing, etc., to help prevent the spread of the virus. As a responsible corporate citizen, we have issued multiple educational posters for reference of clients, especially in the area of cyber security, avoiding online frauds, etc., which have risen in this period. As per directive from the RBI, the Bank has extended moratorium for our micro-loans customers and has also given the option to non-micro-loans customers. As an organisation, we have also contributed to the PM Cares Fund, with the contribution from 7,000+ workforce a small gesture towards the fight against COVID-19. How are you keeping your employees motivated and are encouraging them to give their best, even as they are working from home? The workforce in the field normally does not get enough time to upgrade their skills and knowledge. However, the current lockdown is an incredible opportunity to do that. The bank has been using different formats to engage employees in different ways and keep them motivated. A series of E-learning courses, video-based training and quizzes have been introduced on several topical areas. Special groups have been created for sharing books and reading material summary, recipes for nutrition and tips on dealing with anxiety and being positive. Fitness is also being used to keep the downtime employees motivated. Various fitness activities and sessions are streamed and shared with all the employees every day. There are interesting rewards and recognition for the top achievers of the day. While the branch staff continue to battle it out and keep the outlets open, staff at our administrative offices have been advised to work from home in this phase. Here, the focus is on finding innovative ways to engage with the team to maintain their high spirits as well as productivity levels. All managers are in touch with their teams through Blue Jeans/ calls, advising them about the dos and donts to keep safe. As a pro-active measure, the Bank released the salary for the month of March 2020, five days in advance. Staff members who were unable to reach their home town due to the lockdown, were provided accommodation and food at a nearby residential facility of the Bank. Leadership personnel are proactively responding to any questions and allaying any concerns that team members may have. A Chat with CEO session was conducted to answer all queries and concerns from the entire workforce and it was very well received. In the present scenario, ones mental and emotional is likely to be impacted. While inner resilience and support of friends and family is the best coping mechanism, at times speaking to a professional can be helpful. The Bank has tied up with an agency for counselling services for its workforce. What is most needed in challenging times such as these: (a) From the general public: Stay Indoors Avoid Mass gatherings go out only if essential Stay positive and stay energised Keep yourself informed but do not follow every news on the pandemic Strictly follow the governments directives at all times (b) From the authorities: Clear communication and approach to avoid any confusion and panic. Ensure availability of essentials, especially for the poorer sections. (c) From business leaders: Balance the priorities of saving business and saving jobs Be ingenious in servicing existing clients and acquiring new ones Contribute to re-starting the economy in your own way Adopt digital in a big way it is the future that has arrived! Also Read: #FightBackCorona: Businesses need to empathise & communicate clearly: Rohan Mehta #FightBackCorona: Start planning for recovery - Nikhil Dey Vietnam's textile sector is reeling from a sudden loss of orders that could be catastrophic to many garment makers, with industry leader Vinatex contemplating a furlough of up to 50,000 workers. If the outbreak's impact persists, many businesses could go under, threatening not only Vietnam's economy but also the global supply chain that has supported such purveyors of fast fashion as Zara and H&M. "As things stand, 30% to 50% of jobs will disappear by May," said Vinatex CEO Le Tien Truong. The company has 200 or so factories in Vietnam and more than 100,000 workers within the group. The impact of the novel coronavirus first emerged in February, when procurement of Chinese fabric stalled. When things just began to return to normal in March, the second wave slammed the industry. Apparel demand has plunged in the U.S. and Europe, where many consumers have been told to stay home. Apparel vendors have canceled old orders and halted new ones. In Vietnam, cities like Hanoi have banned nonessential travel. Factories are allowed to remain open, but orders are not coming in. Some factories have started producing masks, though they amount to a drop in the bucket in making up for lost business. Vinatex, which commands a roughly 10% share in Vietnam, is owned in part by the state and 15% by Japanese trading house Itochu. The company counts apparel retailers Zara and H&M as clients. Orders for textiles and footwear are set to plunge around 70% on the year by value for April and May, according to data from Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade. Vinatex stands to lose 1 trillion dong ($42.4 million), even if the COVID-19 outbreak is brought under control by the end of May. That's nearly twice the 510 billion dong net profit turned in for 2019. If economic activity remains restricted longer, Vinatex will sink further into the red, putting the survival of many small and midsize factories in doubt. Even as Vietnam moved to modernize its industry by inviting big-name multinationals like Samsung Electronics, the textiles sector is still a major presence, accounting for around 10% of exports by value in 2019. The Sino-American trade war prompted companies to move production to Vietnam from China, burnishing the Southeast Asian nation's "next China" image. But now, the pandemic has upended the landscape. A large percentage of garment workers work near minimum wage. The wage works out to 3 million dong a month in regions with the cheapest labor costs. Fearing that widespread job losses could lead to social unrest, the Vietnamese government is rolling out a 62 trillion dong aid package for displaced workers and distressed businesses. Shutting down Vietnamese garment factories threatens to spill over to the global supply chain. The likes of Zara, H&M and Fast Retailing's Uniqlo would have trouble with procurement. The Asian sewing industry has secured an indispensable role in a garment industry that has accelerated its globalization over the past decade. Textile industry representatives from six Asian countries issued a joint statement April 9 urging clothing brands to fully compensate suppliers when canceling orders. Clients including H&M are keeping to their purchasing contracts for products that have reached the production stage, but a number of apparel companies are requesting extensions on payments for completed orders, according to a Bangladeshi industry group. Garment industries in developing economies are moving away from child labor, thanks partly to socially responsible investing. Honoring contracts has emerged as the next problem gaining attention. In the electronics industry, purchasers often pay troubled suppliers in advance to support cash flows. The coronavirus crisis is poised to test such partnerships in the apparel sector. Nikkei The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were sending text messages to Thomas Markle in the days before their wedding in May 2018, new court documents have revealed. The revelations have emerged ahead of a hearing on Friday between Meghan and Associated Newspapers with regards to the publication of a letter sent by the Duchess to her father in August 2018. The court documents disclose text messages sent on 14 May in which Harry urged Mr Markle not to speak to the press after he had already staged a series of paparazzi photographs. The texts were sent shortly before Mr Markle suffered a heart attack, meaning he was unable to attend the royal wedding. Mr Markle had been expected to walk his daughter down the aisle. Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u [sic], the message reads. U do not need to apologize, we understand the circumstances but going public will only make the situation worse. If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which dont involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks [sic]. Harry added that speaking to the press will backfire. Trust me Tom, he added. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1 [sic]. The court documents state that Mr Markle did not respond to Harrys messages and instead issued a public statement through TMZ revealing he had suffered a heart attack. The documents claim this was how Meghan discovered her father had been hospitalised. The documents state that Meghan then sent text messages to her father. World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Show all 24 1 /24 World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Italy World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Argentina World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Belgiam World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down US World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Brazil World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Chile World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Belgiam World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down Canada World reacts to Prince Harry and Meghan stepping down UK Ive been reaching out to you all weekend but youre not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts, she wrote. Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you dont respond. Mr Markle replied and said he was ok. The court documents reveal that Meghan also wrote, in a text to her father on May 5 2018: I've called and texted but haven't heard back from you so hoping you're okay. She then sent another message the following day, after learning her father had staged photographs for a photographer, explaining that she had attempted to arrange logistics and supplies for her father with care taken not to feed the press, the documents state. The duchess also told her father she was trying to protect him from heightened press intrusion and scrutiny and that he should keep a low profile until the wedding. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry leave St Georges Chapel at Windsor Castle after their wedding (PA) Barrister David Sherborne, who is representing Meghan in the case, said in the documents: The claimants husband pleaded with Mr Markle to let them help him. The documents also state that the duchess received an unpleasant message from her fathers phone number and was not sure whether or not it came from him. Meghan is suing Associated Newspapers, which owns The Mail on Sunday, for publishing parts of a handwritten letter she sent to her father. The Duchesss legal team state that the letter was obviously private correspondence and detailed her intimate thoughts and feelings about her fathers health and her relationship with him at that time. She is seeking damages for alleged misuse of private information, copyright infringement and breach of the Data Protection Act. Harry and Meghan end co-operation with tabloid press Lawyers for Associated Newspapers have said: The contents of the letter were not private or confidential, self-evidently or at all. Mr Markle has previously told the Mail on Sunday that he only released parts of Meghans letter because other parts were so painful. The revelations in the court documents come after Harry and Meghan announced they would no longer co-operate with the UKs tabloid media. On Monday, the couple, who officially stepped down from the royal family last month, said they would be enforcing a policy of zero engagement with four British publications The Sun, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail and Daily Express meaning representatives for the couple will no longer respond to requests from those titles. In Afghanistan, the Taliban has dispatched health teams to far-flung provinces to confront the coronavirus. In Mexico, drug cartels are offering aid packages to those feeling its economic impact. In Brazil and El Salvador, gangs enforce curfews to prevent its spread. As governments around the world have responded to the coronavirus, so too have armed insurgents and terrorist groups and drug cartels and gangs, a parallel underworld of public health policy and strategic messaging. EMPTY STREETS: Photos show how coronavirus has desolated New Orleans' French Quarter It is hardly the first time such groups have attempted to fill the role of government. But few crises in modern times have tested the limits of the world's nation-states as the coronavirus has, providing an opening for armed groups to step in where presidents, police forces and parliaments have failed. Some groups have attempted to weave governments' failures to control the virus into their own propaganda narratives. In Somalia, al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab fighters say the pandemic was spread "by the crusader forces who have invaded the country." The Islamic State has told followers to prepare to exploit their enemies while they are overwhelmed by outbreaks. In Yemen, Houthi rebels have accused Saudi Arabia of airdropping masks infected with covid-19. In eastern Afghanistan, where the Afghan government and the Taliban have clashed for nearly two decades, the rivalry over which group has a more effective health policy is now on full display. Esmatullah Asim, a provincial council member from Wardak province, watched the arrival of Taliban forces in medical gear this month and was impressed. Asim said the government quarantines only those who show symptoms at the border, but the Taliban quarantines every person who has returned recently from Iran. "The Taliban quarantine is much better than the government," he said. The group also raises awareness about the virus in the territory it controls, he said. "They stop the vehicles, telling the passengers how to prevent the spread of the virus." Even the U.S. State Department conveyed kudos. SHORT SUPPLIES: Groceries say we have enough food. Here's why shelves are empty "We join the Afghan Ministry of Public Health in welcoming the Taliban's efforts to raise awareness against #COVID19 and their offer of safe passage to health workers & international organizations working to prevent the spread of the virus," the department wrote in a tweet. Analysts who study the organizational structure of armed groups are now cataloguing dozens of instances of rebels and bandits making forays into public health policy. "In some cases, the government just isn't coming to help, so this is a chance for nonstate armed groups to appear to be the responsible, accountable actor," said Sarah Parkinson, an assistant professor of political science and international studies at Johns Hopkins University. "In other cases, it's concern for their own members. And in others, it's an attempt to use a piece of evidence in their own propaganda war." Some governments have acknowledged that armed groups could exploit their weaknesses after the virus fades, seizing on the aftermath of economic dislocation. The mayor of the Italian city of Palermo, Leoluca Orlando, warned this month that "a den of Mafia jackals" is poised "to exploit the desperation of the new poor from coronavirus." Other Italian officials have suggested that the mafia could provide its own loans or cash handouts to undermine the government. In Mexico, at least two drug cartels have begun providing aid packages to residents in places partially controlled by armed groups. In Michoacan, a video emerged last week of the Los Viagras cartel handing out plastic bags of food to hundreds of people. In Tamaulipas, a Mexican state that borders southern Texas, photos circulated of boxes full of sugar, oil and other staples distributed in large piles. On the top of each box was plastered the name of the donor: "Gulf Cartel," they said, "in support of Ciudad Victoria," the state capital. Falko Ernst, an analyst with the International Crisis Group in Mexico, said there was an "obvious tension" in the effort. LONE STAR BUNKERS: Texas-based bunker company receiving heavy orders as pandemic escalates "These groups are trying to be seen as catering materially and providing a notion of security in places where they are also directly preying on the population through extortion and kidnapping and violence," he said. "But in a lot of places, these groups are the least bad solution for populations that don't have anywhere else to turn." In Brazil's favelas, the messages come through WhatsApp. "Whoever is caught on the street will learn how to respect the measure," one gang warned a Rio de Janeiro slum. "We want the best for the population. If the government is unable to manage, organized crime resolves." Last month, as the Salvadoran government was enforcing one of Latin America's earliest and most stringent lockdowns, leaders of MS-13 decided that they would institute their own curfew. It was a rare overlap of policy between the gang and the government, which have fought each other for years. But it also reflected a reality in much of El Salvador: The police have limited access in neighborhoods under criminal control, and in those places, only a gang-enforced curfew would be observed. MS-13 explained its reasoning to the San Salvador newspaper El Faro: The policy was about protecting its own members, who probably wouldn't have access to medical treatment if they were infected. "If there are no respirators left and one of us is gravely ill, all tattooed, and an old woman appears who is in serious condition, they are going to disconnect the gang member and they are going to let him die," one member said. A similar overlap in policy has occurred in Afghanistan, where the Taliban has dispatched teams that distribute gloves, soap and masks in areas under its control. ON THE FRONTLINE: Houston H-E-B employees test positive for coronavirus But while the insurgents and the government agree on the need to combat the virus, they continue to fight each other. "We can't completely stop our attacks," Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said. He blamed the government for "compelling" them. Advocacy groups have encouraged more coordination between the Taliban and the Afghan government to tackle the coronavirus. Human Rights Watch proposed videoconferences with "representatives from the Public Health Ministry, the Taliban's health commission, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and key international humanitarian agencies." In many countries, police have been redeployed from rural to urban areas, giving criminal groups more room to operate with impunity - and to enforce their own health policy as the pandemic spreads. In some cases, "criminal groups will play the role of enforcer with full agreement and even at the request of the state," wrote Vanda Felbab-Brown of the Brookings Institution. "Such deals in which governments outsource the rule of urban and rural peripheries to criminal groups long preceded covid-19." Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the militant group that dominates Syria's northern Idlib province, has used the virus to burnish its credentials as a legitimate governing body, issuing orders restricting gatherings and distributing health information to the public. No cases have been reported in the province. Public health officials and aid workers say the spread of the virus in the crowded refugee camps of Idlib, among a population with little access to health care, would be calamitous. "The large number of our people gathered in a small geographic space, and the monumental population density in the camps, forecasts disastrous results if the epidemic spreads," said Ayman Jibis, the health minister for the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham-created Salvation Government. - - - Sieff reported from Mexico City. George reported from London. Fahim reported from Istanbul. The Washington Post's Sharif Hassan in Kabul; Haq Nawaz Khan in Peshawar, Pakistan; and Sarah Dadouch in Beirut contributed to this report. Tyrone defender Tiernan McCann has admitted that coming under a social media spotlight is not easy and has appealed to online critics to be very careful of what they say about players. McCann was retrospectively banned for two games last summer following an incident against Donegal. His hand came in contact with the face of Donegal defender Stephen McMenamin during a grapple for possession in their Ulster semi-final tie and his boot also struck the back of McMenamins head. It sparked a huge debate online with Sunday Game analysts later laying into the Killyclogher man who was also at the centre of a diving saga in 2015. Back then, McCann was criticised for dropping dramatically to the Croke Park ground after his hair was ruffled by Monaghans Darren Hughes, who was dismissed, during their All-Ireland quarter-final tie. McCann was apologetic after both incidents and said in an interview for Benetti Menswear that such storms have left him open to severe criticism on social media. Its not easy, its definitely not easy, especially with Twitter and social media these days, theres a platform there for people to say whatever they want, said two-time Ulster medallist. It can be very, very difficult. It can be very difficult for a family, people can write anything, personal stuff. Even if you look on a broader scale, in terms of some of the recent celebrities, Love Island and people on a higher... a million scales above a GAA player and theyre getting hundreds of thousands of messages and you can understand why people are under so much anxiety and depression these days. I think there has to be a widespread conscious effort from people to be very careful of what they say. Its only six or eight weeks ago that Caroline Flack took her own life, which was incredibly sad, over vile comments she was receiving online for a number of months. People have to be very, very careful. Im not saying Im an angel, far from it, but at times people have to take some sort of care over what they say online. And its not even me, I can take a lot of it but when you see your own family, your brothers and sisters getting very, very annoyed and people writing personal stuff about somebody they dont even know, somebody theyve seen a snippet of on the field and they think they know the person and dont, thats probably the most difficult thing to come to terms with. But Ill have to learn. McCann referenced how former colleague Sean Cavanagh was forced to explain himself to a work client after being labelled a cheat for infamously dragging down Monaghans Conor McManus in 2013. Hes an amateur athlete, it should not affect your life, said McCann. Its different if youre Harry Kane and youre getting 200,000 a week and its your job, and youre acting in an unprofessional manner in a professional capacity. For somebody doing something as a hobby, as a sport, and dedicating a lot of their free time and dedicating a lot of things, its definitely not right, its definitely not fair. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 06:11:28|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close OTTAWA, April 19 (Xinhua) -- More than 10 people, including a police officer, were killed and several others were wounded in a shooting spree in Portapique, Nova Scotia province of Canada on Sunday, according to CTV. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil called the incident "one of the most senseless acts of violence" in the province's history. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered his condolences. "My heart goes out to everyone affected in what is a terrible situation. I want to thank the police for their hard work and people for cooperating with authorities." "Our hearts are heavy with grief and sadness today as we have lost one of our own. Our thoughts go out to our member's family and friends," said Brian Sauve, president of the National Police Federation union, in a statement. Enditem Vijay Mallya on Monday lost a UK High Court appeal against his extradition, a major turning point that brings India closer to getting back the embattled liquor tycoon wanted in the alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to Rs 9,000 crores. The dismissal of the High Court appeal effectively clears the decks for Mallya's extradition to India to face the charges in the Indian courts, with 14 days for him to apply for permission to appeal to the UK Supreme Court. If he does apply, the UK Home Office would wait for the outcome of that appeal. But if he does not, under the India-UK Extradition Treaty, it would then be expected to formally certify the court order for the 64-year-old Mallya to be extradited to India within 28 days. "We have held there is a prima facie case both of misrepresentation and of conspiracy, and thus there is also a prima facie case of money laundering," the High Court concluded. This marks a major turning point for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) case against the businessman, who has been on bail in the UK since his arrest on an extradition warrant in April 2017. The former Kingfisher Airlines boss had appealed to the higher court against his extradition ordered by the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London in December 2018, and then signed off by then UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid in February last year, at a three-day hearing in February this year. Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench at the Royal Courts of Justice in London presiding over the appeal, dismissed it in a judgement handed down this week remotely due to the current coronavirus lockdown. "We consider that while the scope of the prima facie case found by the SDJ [Senior District Judge Emma Arbuthnot] is in some respects wider than that alleged by the Respondent in India (CBI and ED), there is a prima facie case which, in seven important respects, coincides with the allegations in India," the judges noted. They detail seven main points around which they based their decision to concur with Arbuthnot's extradition order. Based on the documents setting out the Indian government's case against Mallya, the judges said they found that the loans in question were disbursed as the result of a conspiracy between the named conspirators and that they were made despite Kingfisher Airline's weak financials, negative net worth and low credit rating. "The Appellant [Mallya] was party to false representations to induce the loans that funds would be inducted by way of unsecured loans, global depository receipts and equity," they note. "The Appellant was party to false representations about inward investment, an exaggerated brand value, misleading growth forecasts, inconsistent business plans. The Appellant's dishonest intention not to repay the loans is shown by his later conduct in trying to avoid the personal and corporate guarantees," they said. Mallya's legal team had sought to challenge the Indian government's case on multiple grounds, including whether their client would be safe at Barrack 12 in Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai where he is to be held on extradition. Most of the grounds had already been dismissed by the High Court, with permission granted to appeal only on one ground - challenging the Indian government's prima facie case against Mallya of fraudulent intentions in acquiring bank loans. "Mallya has 14 days to apply for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court. If he doesn't appeal removal within 28 days thereafter. If he does appeal, we wait for the outcome on that application," said a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which represented the Indian authorities in the UK courts. Representatives from the ED and the CBI had been present in court in February during the three-day hearing, at the end of which Mallya had once again reiterated his message for the Indian banks to take back 100 per cent of the principal amount owed to them. "I am saying, please banks take your money. The ED is saying no, we have a claim over these assets. So, the ED on the one side and the banks on the other are fighting over the same assets What all they are doing to me for the last four years is totally unreasonable," he said at the time. Mallya has been based in the UK since March 2016 and remains on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017. In her verdict at the end of a year-long extradition trial in December 2018, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had ruled that the "flashy" billionaire had a "case to answer" in the Indian courts. India and the UK have an Extradition Treaty signed in 1992 and in force since November 1993. So far, only one successful extradition has taken place from the UK to India under the treaty, that of Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was sent back to India in 2016 to face trial in connection with his involvement in the post-Godhra riots in 2002. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Health care workers stand in the street in counter-protest to hundreds of people who gathered at the state Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver. (REUTERS/Alyson McClaran) As tensions continue to boil over amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has placed large swaths of the nation at a standstill, a small group of health care workers blocked hundreds of protestors in Denver, Colorado on Sunday afternoon, resulting in a dramatic showdown. Alyson McClaran, a photojournalist based in Denver, said the medical workers stood in the street to counter hundreds who had gathered at the Colorado capitol in an event dubbed Operation Gridlock. The event was meant to voice some residents frustration with Gov. Jared Polis (D) stay-at-home orders as coronavirus continues to infect tens of thousands of people around the country. HuffPost has not been able to identify the health care workers seen in the photographs, but video taken at the scene showed one man dressed in scrubs standing calmly in front of a line of cars as a woman holding a banner reading Land of the Free screamed at him. You go to work, why cant I go to work?! the woman yelled in the footage. Ive saved peoples lives too! Two nurses, who have witnessed first hand the toll Covid is taking in Colorado, stood up and peacefully counter protested. Here is how they were treated. I had join them. pic.twitter.com/iJnNcqZxSv Marc Zenn (@MarcZenn) April 19, 2020 Colorado is currently under a stay-at-home order until April 26 and Denver has an extended version in place until the end of the month. To date, Colorado has experienced more than 9,700 cases of COVID-19 and at least 420 deaths. The U.S. as a whole has seen more than 761,000 cases and more than 35,000 deaths. In addition to deaths and sicknesses, the outbreak has wreaked havoc on the economy. Some 22 million people filed for unemployment benefits in the past four weeks, the worst period of joblessness in American history. Despite a landmark $2 trillion stimulus package meant to avert some pain of a financial crisis, some Americans who are running out of money have grown frustrated with... Continue reading on HuffPost SPRINGFIELD City officials are pleased about a recent increase in the supply of personal protective equipment for emergency personnel and the expansion of testing for COVID-19, but they cautioned against anyone dropping their guard during the coronavirus pandemic. Dr. Mark Keroack, president and CEO of Baystate Health, said prevention efforts have kept the local hospital system from being overwhelmed. But, he warned, Today, I want to tell you that we dont want to be like Singapore." Singapore, a densely populated nation of 5 million, put strict regulations in place in early March, and kept its number of COVID-19 case to about 300 a pretty amazing number, Keroack said. But then the country relaxed its regulations and overlooked virus hot spots, and cases rocketed to about 6,000, he said. Focusing on hot spots is a critical part of the effort in Western Massachusetts now, said Keroack, who was among the city and health care leaders offering a weekly update on the pandemic at City Hall. Mayor Domenic J. Sarno also warned against any rush to reopen a city largely shut down by the coronavirus, and urged people to keep protections in place. Like everybody, I would like to be able to open up yesterday, Sarno said . But we have one shot to do this thing right. Sarno and hospital officials said reopening and relaxing regulations too soon can cause cases to soar, particularly in hot spots such as denser residential areas, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. Hospital officials say there has been a flattening of hospital admissions related to COVID-19 over the past two weeks, even as the number of cases in Springfield continues to rise. Schools and municipal buildings have been closed since mid-March along with many local businesses and public places. Public gatherings have been prohibited. A number of statewide advisories, including the school closings, were given a deadline of May 4, and it is not yet clear whether theyll be extended. In order to open up" Springfield, the city needs to show it can identify hot spots and individuals testing positive for COVID-19, help heal those areas, and help isolate and mitigate the cases, Sarno said. Then you will have confidence that is long-lived, Sarno said. If you move too quickly, that confidence will be short-lived. Helen Caulton-Harris, the citys health and human services commissioner, said the hot spots are higher density areas and low income areas where COVID-positive cases are more prevalent. They often include communities of color, and areas where there are more elderly residents and people with more underlying illnesses, she said. Dr. Robert Roose, chief medical officer of Mercy Medical Center, said he is pleased that there seems to be an overall sense of stability, hope and promise. The city and hospitals must continue community mitigation efforts including closely monitoring new infections, including those populations at higher risk, Roose said. City and hospital officials said the public needs to continue protective measures such as frequent hand washing, keeping a safe distance from other people, staying home as much as possible, wearing masks in public, and staying home from work if ill. We all have been forever changed by this pandemic, Roose said. And it will be a very long time, if ever, we truly enter a post-COVID world. I do not believe now is the time to relax our efforts." Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:15:01|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close LUSAKA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of China on Monday donated medical materials to Zambia aimed at helping the country enhance its COVID-19 fight. The donated items included 5,000 gloves, 2,000 protective garments, 2,000 protective headgears and 2,000 masks. The bank decided to make a donation because it feels it was part of the community, said Wang Qi, managing director of Bank of China (Zambia) Limited. He said the bank feels that it was its responsibility to offer assistance after more than 20 years of existence in Zambia and that the bank has now become part of the country. He further said the cooperation between China and Zambia has been growing and that it was the duty of the current generation to take the relationship to a higher level. Enditem TDT | Manama The Fourth High Criminal Court recently sentenced three Indian nationals to three years of imprisonment for their involvement in human trafficking. The three defendants, two females and a male, were also fined BD2,000 each, blacklisted from re-entering the Kingdom in the future and ordered to bear the expenses of the victims repatriation. According to court files, the defendants contacted the victim, who was residing in India, last October. They promised her a job in Bahrain with a monthly salary of INR50,000 (around BD246). The victim said in her testimony that she was informed by the defendants that she would work as a masseuse and a hair dresser at a health club here. After the male defendant processed her documents and residency permit, the victim reached the Kingdom on November 12. She was received by both female defendants, who later took her to an apartment where she was informed that she would be working in the flesh trade. The victim told investigators that she initially rejected the offer but was threatened by the defendants. She also said that she was taken on the same day by the male defendant and one of the women to a customer, and then later taken to a ladies salon to be prepared to work as a prostitute. At the parlour, the victim managed to get in touch with the Indian Embassy, who notified the police about the matter. The woman was rescued by the police and agreed to cooperate with the police to ambush the male defendant, who came back to pick her up from the salon later. The man was immediately arrested and he led the cops to the apartment where his two female accomplices were residing. The male defendant was charged by the Public Prosecution with partially depending on vice to make a living, while the female defendants were both charged with running a brothel and fully depending on vice for a living. [April 20, 2020] MEDIA ADVISORY: Miss America to Give Science Lesson to Virginia Students Online K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN): WHAT: Virtual Science Lesson WHO: Camille Schrier, Miss America 2020 WHERE: Virginia Virtual Academy - Middle School Science Class WHEN: Monday, April 20, 2020, 1-2 p.m. EST / Contact Dana Still for a link to the session. WHY: Students at Virginia Virtual Academy attend classes online, and virtual lessons such as this provide the opportunity to connect with one another and celebrate a shared love of learning. Last year, Camille was named Miss Virginia after breaking from tradition to perform the "catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide" as her onstage talent. Her focus on women in STEM has raised awareness about inclusivity in the growing, in-demand career fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Camille graduated with honors from Virginia Tech with dual bachelor of science degrees in biochemistry and systems biology and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in pharmacy at Virginia Commonwealth University. About K12 K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN) helps students of all ages reach their full potential through inspired teaching and personalized learning. The company provides innovative, high-quality online and blended education solutions, curriculum, and programs to students, schools and enterprises in primary, secondary and post-secondary settings. K12 is a premier provider of career readiness education services and a leader in skills training, technology staffing and talent development. The company provides programs which combine traditional high school academics with career technical education through its Destinations Career Academies. Adult learning is delivered through K12's subsidiary, Galvanize, a leader in developing capabilities for individuals and corporations in technical fields such as software engineering and data science. K12 has delivered millions of courses over the past decade and serves students in all 50 states and more than 100 countries. The company is a proud sponsor of the Future of School, a nonprofit organization dedicated to closing the gap between the pace of technology in daily life and the pace of change in education. More information can be found at K12.com, destinationsacademy.com, jobshadowweek.com, and galvanize.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005024/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Hundreds of thousands of Japan's temporary workers could be terminated at the end of May as businesses hit by the pandemic move to slash costs, causing an unemployment crisis far bigger than the one after the 2008 Lehman shock. Contracts for temp workers are usually renewed on a quarterly basis, with notices for upcoming three-month stints sent out a month before the end date. Many contract workers received such notices at the end of February, spurring speculation of a "May shock." "Over 100,000 temp workers are supposed to have their contracts renewed at the end of May," said a source from an industrial group. "That's the first hurdle in protecting the employment of temp workers." After Japan eased restrictions on temp workers in 2004, the numbers have grown sharply to roughly 1.4 million. Since staffing agencies shoulder the burden of labor costs, companies are free to adjust their contract worker headcount as they see fit. During the 2008 global financial crisis, roughly 300,000 temps lost their job within a year. The impact first hit the manufacturing sector, due to the drop in global demand. About half a year later, the wave reached industries tied to internal demand, such as product distribution. This time around, there is no lag time between the manufacturing and nonmanufacturing sectors. The COVID-19 epidemic first dealt a blow to hotels and department stores, which rely on inbound demand from foreign tourists. The blowback soon struck manufacturers as well. "During the Lehman crisis, the nonmanufacturing sector absorbed laid-off manufacturing workers, but now we can't expect that," said Mitsuji Amase, deputy research director general at the Japan Institute for Labor Policy and Training. "It's very likely that the loss of jobs will surpass the Lehman period." Staffing agencies are required to pay leave allowances to temp workers that are let go by client companies, while looking for other employers to place them with. But as the pool of potential employers shrinks, labor costs at staffing agencies will balloon. Most of the 20,000-plus staffing agencies across the country are small to midsize firms. A succession of companies ending contracts will force these staffing agencies to remove workers on their rolls. They will work in Italy until April 25. Ukrainian doctors helping Italy fight against the novel coronavirus have extended their mission for another week. "Indeed, the mission was supposed to last two weeks, but a request was placed by the Italian side to extend our medical workers' stay in Italy for another week, that is, until April 25," Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said during an online briefing on April 20, according to the news outlet 112.ua. Read alsoUkraine reports 261 new COVID-19 cases in past day Before giving the green light to the request, the decision had been agreed with the doctors themselves, the minister added. As UNIAN reported earlier, a team of 20 doctors, including surgeons, neurosurgeons, anesthesiologists and nurses, were deployed to the region of Marche in central Italy early in April. As of April 20, Italy reported 108,257 confirmed coronavirus cases, including 486 in the past 24 hours. Some 433 people died of the coronavirus in Italy in the past day. ALBANY - It took nearly a month for Karrice Bowen to get approval to work from home despite asking daily while her anxiety spiked over the coronavirus pandemic. Bowen, who answers calls from New Yorkers seeking health insurance at a MAXIMUS call center in Albany, which contracts with the state, said her supervisor initially told her employees at the center dont work from home. She continued to ask, but her requests were ignored, she said. I was aware of the severity of it because I have friends who live in China. I was already aware of the devastation that it was causing, she said. When I heard that it had made it to the states, I was alarmed. I brought my own wipes, hand sanitizer and Lysol disinfectant sprays to her cubicle at the call center. Eventually, her anxiety over coming into the facility that houses hundreds of employees on multiple floors prompted her to take personal time off. She was finally told she could work from home last week, but would need to come with a personal vehicle to pick up the needed equipment. Since the coronavirus has taken its grip on the Empire State, MAXIMUS call center workers have ramped up efforts with the Communications Workers of America labor organization to demand the company take stronger steps to protect their employees. Company officials say they are following all proper federal and state guidelines and continue to enhance employee protections. The state Department of Labor could not specifically comment on whether anyone has reported MAXIMUS practices amid the pandemic, but encouraged employees to reach out with any concerns. "A New Yorkers right to a safe and sanitary working environment has never been more important -- and we take these complaints seriously, Labor Department spokeswoman Deanna Cohen said. We encourage any worker who feels they are being forced into an unsafe situation to contact our offices and file a complaint." The company employs about 10,000 workers in 11 call centers across the country, many through government contracts. There are three facilities in the Albany area. MAXIMUS and its subsidiaries have over $4 billion in contracts with the state primarily for enrolling New Yorkers into health insurance and other state programs, according to online records from the state comptrollers office. The company has received over $100 million this year for the services it provides, according to the comptrollers contract database. Lisa Miles, a senior vice president for MAXIMUS, said the company is considered an essential business with the assistance it provides to government entities, and thus continues to operate, but is following all recommended federal and state guidelines to protect its employees. Miles said less than 35 percent of the staff in Albany are working from MAXIMUS facilities now. She expects more employees will begin working from home as needed equipment and supplies become available. From our Albany location, our employees play a crucial role in helping people access Medicaid, the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHP), the Essential Plan, and other critical insurance benefits. These services are especially important during this difficult global health crisis, Miles said in an emailed statement. Ensuring the safety and wellbeing of MAXIMUS employees is also paramount to ensure citizens continue to have access to the most essential programs. Additional measures include urging staff who are sick or do not feel comfortable to stay home, mandating and strictly enforcing social distancing protocols at all MAXIMUS facilities, and increased sanitization schedules, Miles said. She said the company also is offering a flexible schedule for employees and an income protection plan that provides for paid leave for employees who incur COVID-19 related absences, such as quarantine, care for sick family members, or child care. The emergency paid sick leave must be provided to employees since the passage of the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which covers 80 hours, or two weeks, of paid sick leave in response to the pandemic. As of April 11, Miles said more than 900 employees at MAXIMUS Albany call centers have accessed the benefits. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. Bowen, who has worked for the company for about four years, said during a facility-wide closing in March, after another employee tested positive for the virus, she was told MAXIMUS would pay employees paid administrative leave for the day the company closed to clean the building. Later, Bowen said, employees were instead told it would be deducted from their emergency paid sick leave. Thats illegal, you cant do that, Bowen asserted. That emergency medical leave is 80 hours leave time in the event that you are sick with corona(virus). The company says the emergency leave also includes paid leave when MAXIMUS closes a site for precautionary cleaning or sanitation efforts. Its unclear whether MAXIMUS can use the hours in that manner, however. State labor officials said employers cannot use COVID-19 paid sick leave for administrative purposes. MAXIMUS continues to strengthen its protection for employees, Miles said, most recently ordering 725,000 face coverings to provide to employees across the country. The company is requiring employees to wear face masks when at the facilities, she said. We are continuously adding enhanced safety measures, Miles said. We are in the process of implementing health screenings to ensure anyone who is ill does not come to work. This will include twice daily temperature screenings. Miles said health screenings for MAXIMUS Albany operations began Friday. Previously on the 2020 Presidential Show, Democrats were slugging it out in never ending debates and the president was scheming to tarnish Joe and Hunter Biden. The presidents actions resulted in impeachment which his Senate allies quickly swept away. Biden survived the early primaries and miraculously turned his fortunes around in South Carolina. Then the coronavirus hit, and the news was all COVID-19 all of the time. Now that the pandemic seems to be reaching threshold levels and we are told that our social distancing has, may have begun to flatten the curve in some areas, it may be time to tune back in to the political drama that continues to unfold. Here are a couple of developments. President Trump enters the pre-convention fray with a huge cash advantage. Raising more than $200 million in the first quarter of 2020 would usually be enough to push any opponent into full panic mode. But the Democrats are displaying something that is not often seen in their ranks: optimism. Despite the money disadvantage, Joe Biden maintains a lead of 6-10 points over the President. This is largely because Biden got through the primary maze unscathed. Bernie Sanders and all his erstwhile opponents are now on board and singing from the same hymnal. President Obama weighed in with a ringing endorsement. Their common goal: defeat Donald Trump. Despite the taunting and the onslaught of a president who ignores any honorable rules of engagement, Biden still maintains solid favorability ratings. Folks know Joe Biden and they are getting on board without a trace of the hesitation that bogged down the Hillary Clinton campaign in 2016. There are also some real numbers to consider. In 2016, Trump or Clinton won without cracking 50 percent in 14 states. This is because third party candidates and those who simply skipped the box next to the presidential candidates names siphoned off enough votes to prevent majorities in those contests. Thats nearly 8.3 million voters who sat it out or tossed their support to challengers with no hope of winning. Most of those were registered Democrats or Independents who could not vote for Trump but would not vote for Clinton. Experts believe that 60 percent of those stragglers will find their way back to the Democratic fold. And the Democrats are not taking their fundraising and organization duties lightly. Reports from the field are that battleground states are staffing up in preparation for what will be an intense ground game in the fall. That is, there will be ample workers, technology, and media in Florida, Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania to name a few. In the all-important effort to get the vote out, the early signals are that the Democrats will not be out flanked. Finally, the most powerful ally in the battle with President Trump may be Trump himself. Instead of projecting himself as a steady leader in the coronavirus crisis, the president continues to send contradictory messages. He cant seem to pass up the opportunity to hold daily campaign rallies disguised as pandemic updates. He cant stop himself from bickering with the press and his own experts. In every war or crisis that posed an imminent threat to the country, Americans have rallied around their president. Think Roosevelt and the Great Depression; Reagan and the Cold War; George W. Bush and 9/11. These leaders projected calm and compassion in the face of adversity. They accepted the responsibility of leadership and their polling numbers rewarded them for it. Because of his own antics, the presidents numbers are falling; not rising. Two other things happened while we were all sequestered in April, both of which involve battleground states. In Wisconsin, the courts ruled that the primary would not be moved back to June or later. Voters waited in socially distanced queues for hours on end. They risked their health to exercise their right to vote. In that primary election, they sent an angry message to the Republican party by resoundingly ousting two GOP Supreme Court Justices. In Michigan, the governor was demeaned by the president as that woman from Michigan as he threatened to withhold assistance for her state. Why? Because she had the temerity to challenge the supply chain mechanism that was choking off help for her people. These two states now have additional reasons to return to blue. Since we are all binge-watching anyway, it is time to tune back into the race for president. This is a long-running program that promises more plot twists than Homeland, This Is Us and House of Cards combined. Mark S. Singel is a former Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania. He and Republican Charlie Gerow can be seen at 8:30 a.m. each Sunday on CBS21s Face the State. High-end seafood products, including tuna, crayfish and premium Shark Bay scallops will soon be available on supermarket shelves - for a fraction of the price. Coles stores in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland will be offering highly sought after premium yellow fin tuna for $35 per kilogram from Wednesday. The retail giant struck a deal with Heidi and Pavo Walker, whose 50 employees catch the sought-after produce off the coast of Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast. The husband and wife duo usually sell 80 per cent of their fish to the United States and Japan, and the remainder is auctioned off to some of the most well renowned chefs in Australia. Heidi Walker (pictured) - the owner of Walkers Seafoods - struck a deal with Coles to sell her premium tuna in stores amid the coronavirus crisis The business normally supplies the high quality produce internationally and to some of Australia's top restaurants - including Rockpool Bar and Grill (Pictured: A dish from Rockpool) Rockpool Bar and Grill, Stokehouse and MoVida are all regular customers. But the coronavirus had left their export-focussed business model in tatters. The couple was unable to deliver the fresh produce internationally, and many of their local customers were forced to close their doors to comply with the lockdown. The deal with Coles benefits customers, who are now able to snap up premium tuna for half the usual price. The tuna is priced at $35 per kilogram - down from $70 prior to the COVID-19 crisis - and will be available in 150 stores in the eastern states. Supermarket shelves were stripped bare at the peak of the coronavirus panic buying hysteria, but are slowly returning to normal The couple who own Walkers Seafoods (pictured) will continue to supply the product to Coles beyond the coronavirus crisis They catch the premium quality fish off the coast of Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast HOW TO MAKE RESTAURANT-GRADE MEALS FROM TUNA Rockpool Bar and Grill's head chef Corey Costelloe told GoodFood the key to cooking Walker's tuna is to only grill one side. He said to first bring the tuna steak to room temperature, season with salt and warm the serving plate. When the pan is hot enough, sear one side, then place it on the warmed plate to heat further. The tuna can also be served raw, and partners well with wasabi, olives, tumeric and ginger. Advertisement Coles general manager Charlotte Gilbert said the supermarket chain was 'delighted to partner with Walker Seafoods to support them during this time.' 'We've also recently begun stocking Western Australian crayfish into selected Coles delis during Easter and partnered with Far West Scallops for the supply of premium quality Shark Bay scallops. We will continue to partner with Australia's fishermen to bring the best quality sustainable seafood to Coles.' The Walker's said they had no intention to end their relationship with Coles when borders finally do re-open. 'We want the tuna to be accessible to all Australians, while also being ready to support chefs when restaurants reopen. It's likely we'll export less,' Ms Walker told GoodFood. She said the couple were desperate to keep their boats fishing and their 50 staff employed following the collapse of businesses all around them. 'Two weeks ago, I contacted Coles to see if they could help put our tuna in their supermarkets, and they jumped at the chance,' she said. James Marinopoulos, the sales manager of Melbourne Based wholesaler Red Coral, said the seafood now available to customers in stores was mind-boggling. 'A sashimi platter of scarlet prawns, Mooloolaba yellowfin and Ora King salmon is for all time. Only a month ago it would have been almost impossible to create at home. Now people can have all that premium seafood delivered to their door,' he said. The product is currently worth $35 per kilogram - half the price it was prior to coronavirus The couple reached out to Coles in order to keep their boats on the water and retain 50 employees Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rizki Fachriansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 19:53 631 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd31c231 1 National volunteers,database,COVID-19,coronavirus,virus-korona-indonesia,COVID-19-in-Indonesia Free The COVID-19 outbreak has prompted members of the public to launch their own crowdsourced databases on the spread of the virus in their respective communities in a bid to shed some light on cases that have otherwise slipped under the governments radar. One such database, LaporCovid-19, allows people to submit reports regarding the latest coronavirus-related updates in their immediate vicinity. Users provide information by responding to a digital questionnaire via the platforms official WhatsApp or Telegram group. Information collected through the social media channels is then compiled into a visual database that illustrates the scale of the contagion in a certain region, which can be accessed at laporcovid19.org. Irma Hidayana, one of the public volunteers who initiated LaporCovid-19, said the platform was designed to give people the opportunity to pass along information regarding the latest situation in their neighborhood, which might have gone unnoticed by the government. For example, people may provide information regarding themselves, their family members, or neighbors who died after exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, Irma said in a statement. She said that all information provided by the public would remain confidential. However, the platform would have access to the information to cross-reference data and eliminate errors, she added. Rajawali, another volunteer who contributed to LaporCovid-19, said he hoped the platform would be able to predict new clusters of the outbreak and save lives. Were racing against the virus, he said. Data is a very important asset. As of April 16, LaporCovid-19 had received 2,185 reports from WhatsApp and Telegram. Read also: With limited testing capability, Indonesia may battle COVID-19 blindfolded Meanwhile, medical practitioners affiliated with the Indonesian Healthtech Association have launched stopcov.id a digital platform that seeks to provide up-to-date data on medical diagnoses and the number of health supplies amid the surge in COVID-19 patients, among other things. According to stopcov.id founder Gregorius Bimantoro, the platform sourced its information from field reports submitted by health workers, hospital managers and medical equipment providers through a number of online health apps. He added that the platform also verified and analyzed the data it had collected to eliminate any discrepancies. We aim to facilitate health workers, policy makers and the general public in their fight against COVID-19. We compile various data on a single platform, stopcovid.id, so those who seek the most accurate information can quickly obtain it, Gregorius said. He said the platform also provided supplies of protective equipment and other medical equipment to designated COVID-19 referral centers across the country. Furthermore, the platform also cross-referenced COVID-19 patient data from a number of hospitals and clinics to capture the magnitude of the current health crisis, he added. The government was previously criticized for its apparent refusal to provide the latest and most accurate information regarding the outbreak, giving rise to community movements such as KawalCovid-19. Earlier this month, President Joko Jokowi Widodo made an about-turn and called for greater transparency regarding the ongoing mitigation efforts. The government has also recently developed its own COVID-19 application, called PeduliLindungi, but there have been reports about difficulties accessing the app. According to the official government count, Indonesia has recorded 6,760 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 590 deaths as of Monday. Tucson, AZ, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Associa Arizona announces the recent promotion of Claudia Oberthier, CMCA, AMS, PCAM, to vice president of management operations. Ms. Oberthier has more than 12 years of industry experience and has been a valued Associa team member since 2008, having begun her Associa career as an on-site community manager for the Chicagoland branch. She has since served in a variety of capacities, including portfolio community manager, education coordinator, and most recently as a regional director. As the new vice president of operations for Associa Arizona, Ms. Oberthier will focus on operational efficiencies, business development, client retention, employee training and education, and project service areas. With her extensive industry background and her unwavering commitment to Associa over the last 12 years, we know Claudia will be a tremendous asset to our team, stated Eli Crenshaw, Associa Arizona president. Associa Arizona is thrilled to welcome her to the team, and we are excited to see how her leadership will guide our management operations. Ms. Oberthier has earned the Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA) designation, Association Management Specialist (AMS) designation, and Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM) designation through the Community Associations Institute (CAI). She also obtained her law degree from Western University in Timisoara, Romania. With more than 200 branch offices across North America, Associa delivers unsurpassed management and lifestyle services to nearly five million residents worldwide. Our 10,000+ team members lead the industry with unrivaled education, expertise and trailblazing innovation. For more than 40 years, Associa has provided solutions designed to help communities achieve their vision. To learn more, visit www.associaonline.com. Stay Connected: Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/associa Subscribe to the Blog: https://hub.associaonline.com/ Story continues Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/associa Join us on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/associa Attachment Ashley Cantwell Associa 214-272-4107 acantwell@associaonline.com Electric vehicles sales, excluding e-rickshaws, in India grew by 20 per cent at 1.56 lakh units in 2019-20 driven by two-wheelers, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) said on Monday. In 2018-19, total EV sales in India stood at 1.3 lakh units, SMEV said in a statement. Out of the total sales in FY20, 1.52 lakh units were two-wheelers, 3,400 cars and 600 buses. The corresponding sale for the 2018-19 was 1.26 two-wheelers, 3,600 cars and around 400 buses, it added. "This figure does not include e-rickshaws which is still largely with the unorganized sector with a reported sale of around 90,000 units. The corresponding figures of the e-ricks sold in the previous year have not been documented," SMEV said. SMEV said the growth of EV sales in India was driven by the electric two-wheeler (E2W) segment. "In the E2Ws sold in FY2019-20, 97 per cent were electric scooters and a very small volume of motorcycles and electric cycles filled the rest of 3 per cent. Low-speed scooters that go at a max speed of 25km/hr and do not need registration with the transport authorities constituted a whopping 90 per cent of all the E2Ws sold," it added. In the electric four-wheeler segment, 3,400 units were sold in FY20 compared to 3,600 units in the previous fiscal year. The decrease in numbers is attributed mainly due to lack of bulk purchase of e-cars in FY19-20 and discontinuation of one of the leading car models, it added. SMEV said,"the acceptability of electric cars in the premium segment in the second half of the year was a positive signal of a quantum jump of a much higher volume of e-cars in FY 20-21." The e-taxi segment is also beginning to get some traction, though the range of e-cars and lack of charging spots in enough density are a deterrent in the growth of e-taxi segment, it added. When it comes to e-buses, big commitments by state governments did not translate into purchases. Commenting on the sales performance, SMEV Director General Sohinder Gill said, the EV industry is taking shape and we believe that despite the COVID-19, FY20-21 will be a defining year for all the EV segments." He further said,"while the EV industry is surely going to face the brunt of COVID-19 like any other automotive business, the clearer skies and the cleaner air in even the worst polluting cities is certainly leaving a permanent impression in the minds of the customers about how they can breathe easy and remain healthy if the society moves towards e-mobility."Gill said given the right impetus by the government and the industry, "the EV industry can spring back faster than the ailing IC vehicles segment". "A pertinent factor that may work in favour of E2Ws post-COVID would be the choice of switching over from crowded mass transport to the sensibly priced electric two-wheelers with almost the same cost of commuting, as of public transport," he added. He said there could be an inflection point in the EV industry in FY21-22 owing to several factors such as experiments like E2Ws being sold without batteries and customer paying for batteries as a fuel; e-commerce companies realising the economic benefits of EVs and converting their fleets. Also, e-carts becoming a convenient and cost-effective means of short distance logistics, e-taxis fleets beginning to make money due to lower operating costs may contribute to the growth of the EV industry. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Starting Monday, San Antonio-area residents will be required to wear face coverings in public places where social distancing is difficult. The new facial-covering rule, signed into law Thursday by Mayor Ron Nirenberg and County Judge Nelson Wolff, requires everyone 10 years or older to wear a cloth mask, scarf, bandanna or other similar item over the nose and mouth in public places where it is difficult to stay six feet away from others. Officials said other regions of the world have found face coverings effective in preventing the spread of the coronavirus by people with symptoms, as well as asymptomatic carriers who could be feeling perfectly healthy. On ExpressNews.com: Face coverings will be mandatory in public in Bexar County; COVID-19 cases jump to 918 When most people think about masks, they think that theyre protecting themselves from other people. But theres more science to show that it protects other people from you, said Dr. Junda Woo, medical director with Metro Health. It is not a substitute for social distancing, because thats a lot more powerful than wearing the mask keeping that six-foot distance, she cautioned. The requirement takes effect Monday. Here's what you need to know about the new rule: - Officials strongly recommend that you do not obtain or wear medical masks or N95 respirators because they are needed for health care workers and first responders. - By Monday, essential businesses still operating under city and county stay-at-home orders must provide face coverings for their employees and train the employees in appropriate use of the masks. - Under the emergency orders, violations can result in a fine of up to $1,000 or up to six months in jail. Nirenberg acknowledged enforcement of the face-covering rule will be challenging, but he said many people already are wearing them. Citations could be issued if there are "egregious violations." - Woo stressed the importance of wearing coverings properly over the mouth and nose, and washing or replacing them when they get moist. If youre wearing it until its moist, then you might be doing more harm than good, because those warm, moist environments allow bacteria and viruses to breed, she said. When that happens, Woo advises removing the covering without contacting the front, folding it without touching the area thats dirty, then putting it in a bag or other container and then washing the covering with soap and water. - Under the rule, face coverings do not need to be worn in the following circumstances: When exercising outside While driving alone or with passengers who are part of the same household as the driver When doing so poses a greater mental or physical health, safety, or security risk While pumping gas or operating outdoor equipment While in a building or activity that requires security surveillance or screening (such as banks) When consuming food or drink MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Jefferson Parish authorities have arrested a Harvey man wanted in connection with a fatal shooting that occurred in Terrytown last month. Sterling Robinson, 30, was booked Friday with second-degree murder, obstruction of justice, two counts of being a fugitive from other jurisdictions and three attachments, said Capt. Jason Rivarde, a spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office. Algiers man identified as victim in fatal shooting in Terrytown Friday The man killed in a shooting behind a Terrytown apartment building Friday evening has been identified by the Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office Robinson is accused in the March 13 death of Tavon Corley, 25, of Algiers. Corley was gunned down in the parking lot behind an apartment building in the 200 block of Helen Street in Terrytown, Rivarde said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Detective Harold Wischan identified Robinson as a suspect in Corley's death and obtained a warrant for his arrest in the case on March 18, one day after Corley had been taken into custody by New Orleans police on unrelated charges, court records said. Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up NOPD arrested Robinson March 17 and booked him with possession of crack cocaine, possession of ecstasy, possession of tramadol, domestic abuse battery, aggravated criminal damage to property and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, according to Orleans Parish court records. No details were available about the New Orleans case. Robinson was sentenced to five years in prison in 2016 after pleading guilty in federal court to possession of a firearm in connection with drug-related activities, court records said. He also has convictions for domestic abuse battery, aggravated assault, simple battery and violation of a protective order in Orleans Parish criminal court. Robinson was transferred from Orleans Parish Prison to the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center Friday. Two days later, he was rearrested and booked with an additional count of simple battery after attacking an inmate at the Gretna jail, Rivarde said. Bond on the charges related to the shooting was set at $550,800. But Robinson was being held without bond on the fugitive charges. - A barangay in Quezon City gave away relief packs that contained Spam and Libby's Vienna Sausage - It was touted as a very "sosyal" kind of relief packs considering that the items were expensive - This was their way of thanking their constituents for being a COVID-19 free barangay - Netizens gave various reactions, with many saying how they wished their own barangays would also give them the same, or even just one can of Spam PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed One barangay in Quezon City surely made their constituents happy with the relief packs that they received. No one must have expected to find Spam and Libby's Vienna Sausage in the packs. Barangay Dona Josefa gave these sumptuous canned goods in the relief packs as their way to thank their constituents for being disciplined since they are still COVID-19 free. In a Facebook post, Brgy. Chairman Louie Munoz shared photos of the relief packs that they would be giving out to their constituents. It contained four cans of Spam, four cans of Libby's Vienna Sausage and 2 kilos of rice. He also added the guidelines that would have to be followed in the distribution of the relief packs. They would be prioritizing PWDs, those who received relief packs from Mayor Joy Belmonte and Councilor Hero Bautista won't be given, and their second priority would be the poor and those daily wage earners who lost their jobs. Netizens mostly said that they wished they would receive the same packs. Others expressed their desire to live in the same barangay. PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! 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! One netizen made a difference by giving food to a Grab driver. Cha Calubaquib posted about how happy the Grab driver was when she gave him chicken for his family. You will find how truly inspiring the story is through the video that we created just for you. Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel! Source: KAMI.com.gh A Ugandan opposition MP is being held by police for distributing food to his constituents over weekend in Mityana district, about 70km (45 miles) from the capital, Kampala, the Daily Monitor newspaper reports. Francis Zaake, an independent MP, was arrested in his Mityana Municipality constituency for contravening a presidential directive on food distribution during the ongoing lockdown, Wamala region police spokesperson Rachel Kawala is quoted as saying. President Yoweri Museveni last week extended a nationwide coronavirus lockdown until 5 May. Restrictive measures imposed include the closure of national borders, including Entebbe International Airport, to passenger travel, a dusk-to-dawn curfew and a ban on public transport. The MP tweeted photos purporting to show security officers "breaking into his home". "The tormentors have broken into my home, they are breaking every door of my house searching to arrest me for the crime of sharing food with the starving people. Sad! 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. Featured Video Law enforcers are considering two versions of causes for an outbreak of wildfires in Zhytomyr region: dry hot wind and an attempted arson, Interior Minister of Ukraine Arsen Avakov said. "Arsen Avakov: Two versions of the causes for an outbreak of wildfires in Zhytomyr region are being considered dry hot wind and an attempted arson. That is why a team of specialists of the Interior Ministry is working in Zhytomyr region today. The investigation is in progress," the press service of the Interior Ministry quoted Avakov as saying during a meeting of the emergency operations center in Ovruch, Zhytomyr region, on April 19. Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak, Head of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine Mykola Chechotkin and the heads of Zhytomyr region and the State Forestry Resources Agency participated in the meeting. The delegation also checked the territory hit by wildfires in Zhytomyr region from air. BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Here are the latest developments on the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in China: -- Chinese health authority said Monday that it received reports of 12 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland Sunday, of which eight were imported. The other four new cases were domestically transmitted, the National Health Commission said in a daily report, noting that three cases were reported in Heilongjiang Province and one in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. No death was reported Sunday on the mainland. Two new suspected cases, all imported ones in Shanghai, were also reported. -- A total of 22 patients of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were discharged from hospitals Sunday on the Chinese mainland, according to the National Health Commission. Altogether 77,084 patients had been discharged from hospitals after recovery by the end of Sunday, the commission said in its daily report Monday. As of Sunday, 82,747 confirmed COVID-19 cases had been reported on the mainland, and 4,632 people had died of the disease. -- The Chinese mainland reported eight new imported cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Sunday, bringing the total number of imported cases to 1,583, the National Health Commission said Monday. The mainland also reported two new suspected cases Sunday, all imported ones, the commission said in its daily report. Of the total imported cases, 742 had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, and 841 were being treated in hospitals with 43 in severe condition, the commission said. No deaths had been reported from the imported cases. -- A new study suggested that the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) among hospitalized COVID-19 patients with hypertension was associated with lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to nonusers. Led by Li Hongliang, dean of the School of Basic Medical Sciences at Wuhan University, the team consisted of researchers from nine hospitals in central China's Hubei Province as well as researchers from the United States, Britain and Canada. -- An online trade fair assembling 100 medical supply manufacturers in east China's Zhejiang Province and more than 80 Italian medical institutions, multinational firms and business associations was launched Friday. Scheduled to conclude on April 22, the fair is expected to help meet the urgent demand for anti-epidemic supplies in Italy. It will also hold two targeted procurement sessions for Italian private businesses and for an Italian hospital respectively. California lawmakers of both political parties have a message for Gov. Gavin Newsom on the states coronavirus response: Start sharing full details about what youre spending. Tensions between Newsoms administration and lawmakers hung over a hearing at the Capitol in Sacramento on Monday, as Assembly members questioned why they havent received more information or been consulted on how the state is spending money to fight the virus. The hearing was the Assembly Budget Committees first oversight review of how California agencies are spending an estimated $7 billion in emergency expenses due to the pandemic. Assemblyman Phil Ting, the San Francisco Democrat who chairs the committee, started the hearing by praising Newsoms response to the crisis. Then, he quickly pivoted to a common complaint. Information hasnt always been readily flowing between the administration, the Legislature, Ting said. He added that lawmakers want information about how the state distributes masks and other personal protective equipment, as well as where it has leased hotel and motel rooms to house homeless people. Other lawmakers took personal exception. Assemblyman Jim Wood, a Santa Rosa Democrat who chairs the chambers Health Committee, said he has constantly been met with resistance when he has tried to work with Newsoms team. Its clear the administration is working with stakeholders, but not with the Legislature or legislative staff, he said. We have not been engaged, and we have been trying to engage. Wood said while hes pleased with Newsoms response to the pandemic overall, the state could take things to another level if the governors staff worked more openly with the Legislature and took advantage of members expertise. Newsom administration officials, who spoke via videoconference, agreed to share more information about decisions like where the state distributes life-saving resources, including ventilators. But they refused to release details of Californias $1 billion contract with a Chinese company hired to provide masks, a deal that has drawn scrutiny over the companys reported track record of selling defective products. Newsoms administration has said sharing specifics of the contract with the Chinese manufacturer BYD before any masks arrive could jeopardize the supply chain. The state paid half the cost up front. Mark Ghilarducci, director of the state Office of Emergency Services, defended that decision on Monday, saying there is worldwide competition, including with other states, for personal protective equipment. Releasing the contract, at this point, we believe jeopardizes the delivery of the very supplies that we actually need now, Ghilarducci said. This has been really challenging and complex for us, where governments and health care systems around the world are competing for the same commodities. We have seen things like fraud, promises not kept and substandard items. The deal was criticized after Vice News reported that BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, has previously been blacklisted from some federal contracts because of concerns about its product quality. That stance similarly irked members of a Senate budget subcommittee during a hearing last week. Lawmakers in both chambers have demanded details such as price per mask and quality standards. Assembly members doubled down on those questions. Assemblyman Vince Fong, a Bakersfield Republican, said lawmakers need to know more to perform their oversight function, even if the specifics arent made public. At least allow the Legislature to see those specifics as soon as possible, he said. Dustin Gardiner is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dustin.gardiner@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dustingardiner H John Voorhees III / Hearst Connecticut Media Brookfield is encouraging residents to make some noise Saturday night to cheer for those helping in the coronavirus pandemic, joining other towns in showing their support. Residents should gather outside their front doors from 7 to 7:05 p.m. with pots and pans, cowbells, and whistles or just their voice. INDIANAPOLIS -- Putting together research for publication can be a challenging and time-consuming process, heightened even further because of the current COVID-19 situation, during which non-essential labs have been hibernated and many researchers are now working separately and remotely, instead of collaborating within the same space. Despite those obstacles, Indiana University School of Medicine faculty and Regenstrief Institute research scientists had their research published in Nature Communications on April 14, which is an even more significant feat considering one of the leading authors has been quarantined in Wuhan, China for the last two months of their work. The team consists of Affiliated Scientist Jie Zhang, PhD, Regenstrief Institute Research Scientist Kun Huang, PhD, both Indiana University School of Medicine faculty members, Jun Cheng, PhD, of Shenzhen University and colleagues including Liang Cheng, M.D. of IU School of Medicine. The study was led by Dr. Zhang, an assistant professor of medical and molecular genetics at IU School of Medicine. The work focuses on the application of machine learning and image analysis to help researchers distinguish a rare subtype of kidney cancer (translocational renal cell carcinoma, or tRCC) from other subtypes by examining the features of cells and tissues on a microscopic level. Dr. Zhang said the structural similarities have caused a high rate of misdiagnosis. Within this publication, the researchers studied 74 tRCC samples, which constitutes the largest tRCC collection in the world. "The phenotype of this tRCC looks very much like clear cell renal cell carcinoma, or ccRCC, the most common type of renal cell carcinoma, so it's kind of difficult for pathologists to distinguish between the two," said Dr. Zhang. "To improve that, we tried to use the machine-learning technique, feeding in the digitized pathological image data to the analysis pipeline to train the computer to extract the features related to tRCC. This will help pathologists confirm the case, instead of just relying on their eyes." The first author of this paper, Dr. Jun Cheng started working with Drs. Zhang and Huang in 2016, while Dr. Jun Cheng was a visiting PhD student from China. He visited for the first time when Drs. Zhang and Huang were researchers at Ohio State University, before they joined IU School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute, and has also visited them since they transitioned to their current roles. Dr. Jun Cheng is currently an assistant professor at Shenzhen University and had traveled to his hometown of Wuhan for winter vacation. "I was planning to stay at home for 10 days," said Dr. Jun Cheng. "Three days later, the whole city of Wuhan was in lockdown (due to concerns of COVID-19) and the lockdown lasted for over two months." The city of Wuhan became the epicenter of the pandemic, with more than 50,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among the population of 11 million people. As he was working to revise their publication, Dr. Cheng could not return to his lab at Shenzhen University, since teachers and students who left for vacation weren't allowed to go back due to the pandemic. He only had a laptop at his home, but needed a high-performance computer to conduct data analyses. "Fortunately, one student in my lab didn't go home and stayed in school during winter vacation," said Dr. Jun Cheng. "She helped boot the computer in my lab and then I did all the experiments on it remotely." Dr. Jun Cheng also needed to repeat some of the analysis for the revised manuscript, which required a transfer of previously downloaded public data to China from Dr. Huang's lab in Indiana, and it took a week to complete the data transfer. "It was quite stressful to revise the publication during the quarantine, but finally we made it," said Dr. Jun Cheng. Dr. Huang described this publication as a true team science effort, involving both internal and international collaborations, both of which he said are essential. Liang Cheng, MD, Virgil Moon Professor of Pathology from IU School of Medicine and one of the corresponding authors in the paper, was able to collect additional tRCC and ccRCC samples within two weeks from a collaborator in Michigan for the additional analysis, which he described as an amazing accomplishment. "In many cases, we collaborate internationally because there is a huge innovation base that can help with our research," said Dr. Huang, who is also the Director of Data Sciences and Informatics for the IU Precision Health Initiative. "Even in difficult times, as long as we have enough resources and means of communication, we can still carry out collaborative research." This research focuses on renal cancer based on genetic markers rather than location of the disease. This study was supported in part by the IU Precision Health Initiative. The city of Wuhan was reopened earlier this month. ### Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday thanked the Indian government for providing large consignments of hydroxychloroquine and paracetamol tablets and 5,000 tonnes of wheat as aid during the Covid-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi responded to Ghanis tweet by saying India and Afghanistan share a special friendship and would combat the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) with solidarity and shared resolve, just as they have fought terrorism. Thank you my friend Prime Minister @narendramodi, and thank you India for providing 500K tablets of hydroxychloroquine, 100K tablets of paracetamol, and 75,000 metric tons of wheat that the first consignment of it (5,000) will reach AFG in a day or so, for the Afghan people, Ghani tweeted. Ghani also thanked the Indian government for further commitments to supply more items including medicines and equipment as availability increases in India. He added, In the difficult times of #Covid19, closer cooperation between allies and friends will prepare us better to fight this menace and save our people. People familiar with developments said the first consignment of 5,022 tonnes of wheat, out of a total of 75,000 tonnes being gifted to Afghanistan, was shipped in 251 containers from Kandla port in Gujarat to Chabahar port in Iran. This is perhaps the first time the Iranian port, granted a special exemption from US sanctions, has been used to ship supplies to Afghanistan during a humanitarian crisis. The consignment of wheat left Kandla port on April 12, and reached Chabahar port on April 15. The consignment was then transported by road to Afghanistan, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. The remainder of the 75,000 tonnes of wheat will be shipped from India in the coming weeks. This humanitarian gesture is meant to ensure food security during the difficult times of the Covid-19 pandemic, said one of the people cited above. Indias ambassador to Kabul, Vinay Kumar, met Afghan public health minister Ferozuddin Feroz and acting defence minister Asadullah Khalid on Sunday and handed over 800,000 hydroxychloroquine tablets and 170,000 paracetamol tablets for use by the health ministry and security forces. Feroz thanked India for its humanitarian aid and also recalled Indias extensive support to Afghanistan in the health sector, including the construction of hundreds of health centres, support for the Indira Gandhi childrens hospital and supplies of equipment and medicines. India has pledged more than $3 billion for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, making it the largest donor to the war-torn country in the region. 'A Hollywood tale', IRGC rejects US account of Persian Gulf encounter IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, April 19, IRNA -- Islamic Revolution Guard Corps' Navy rejected US account of its fast boats harassing US aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf as "a fake Hollywood tale" in a statement on Sunday, stressing that any miscalculation by the US would be responded strongly. The Fifth Fleet of the terrorist Navy of the United States as well as some of its political and military officials had previously made statements claiming that eleven fast boats of IRGC approached a group of US warships in northern Persian Gulf on April 15. The Public Relations of IRGC Navy released a statement on Sunday and labeled the US account of the encounter as being 'a Hollywood tale'. The IRGC statement said: "We recommend the US to obey International Law of the Sea and the maritime protocols when navigating in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman to avoid adventurism and fake accounts afterwards." The statement further said: "We have been observing unprofessional behavior form the terrorist US Navy in the Persian Gulf in recent weeks that posed serious threat to the peace and security of the region." IRGC Navy added that a warship belonging to US terrorists showed highly dangerous behavior, ignoring initial warnings, and blocked the way for IRGC's Shahid Siyavoshi ship in southeast of Farsi island at 23:00 on April 6, according to the data received from the Iranian ship black box. The US warship, as said by the IRGC Navy, finally cleared the way after seeing the warnings issued by its own companion ships. However, IRGC Navy continued to elaborate, the US warship in the early morning next day, once again blocked the way for the same Iranian ship 30 miles away from Iranian oil platforms with a dangerous maneuver. The US warship ignored even warnings of its own companions, until the Iranian ship managed to continue its path with a smart, professional move, according to IRGC statement. IRGC Navy added: "Therefore, the Navy of Islamic Revolution Guard Corps attempted to increase its patrolling capacity in the Persian Gulf in order to deter further illegal, unprofessional, dangerous and even adventurist behavior by the US terrorist Navy and also to bolster security of Iranian ships and fight against fuel smuggling." "On April 15, [IRGC Navy] dispatched a group of 11 boats to the regions previously specified on the map for shooting exercise but they encountered US warships and aircraft carrier; However, [Iranian boats] despite unprofessional, provocative behavior by the US terrorist Navy and their ignoring of warnings, bravely managed to force the US ships to keep away from the path of Iranian boats," the statement added. "As said repeatedly, it should be underlined that the illegal presence of the US terrorist regime is the source of evil and insecurity in the region and their exit from the West Asia is the only way forward to establish sustainable security in this region," the IRGC statement said. 9416**1416 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address the atmospheric temperature is increasing at an unprecedented rate the weather is getting increasingly variable from year to year. These days, you cant say hot, cool, wet or dry vintage any longer. Weather has become totally unpredictable, with extremes even within one growing season, began Diego Tomasi, director of the Centro di Ricerca per la Viticoltura e Enologia di Conegliano (CRA-VIT) in Italy. To emphasise his point, he projected onto a screen several graphs; one showing the increased variability of harvest dates in Burgundy in the past 15 years compared to the previous two centuries. What we now call climate change used to be called global warming. The experts introduced the change in name in order to emphasize that there are actually two things that we need to be aware of:Both of these things are happening simultaneously.Much of the evidence for both of these phenomena actually comes from agriculture, because we have good written records about harvest dates of various crops, often over centuries. These records show both of the patterns: harvest dates getting earlier and earlier on average, but also with erratic harvest dates from year to year.I have written before about Grape harvest dates and the evidence for global warming . In that post I discussed several datasets from around the world, which all show the same patterns. In particular, the grape harvest dates for Burgundy are valuable, because of the 700 years over which they have been collected, from 1350 CE. I noted: there has been a dramatic change in harvest date in recent years, with the earlier and earlier harvests since 1984 being attributed to global warming.The other weather pattern has also been emphasized in the wine industry recently ( The dirt on wine ):So, the obvious thing for me to do here is re-visit the Burgundy data, to show you the big picture.I have used exactly the same dataset as in my previous post, containing a complete record of the official start of the Burgundy grape harvest for every year from 1370 to 2018 CE, inclusive. Last time, I calculated a running average of 9-year blocks of harvest dates, but this time I calculated the standard deviation of the harvest dates, instead. This calculation describes how variable the harvest dates were, across each 9-year period a larger standard deviation indicates more variation from year to year (see my post on Statistical variance and global warming ).I have graphed the data above. Each dot represents one 9-year period. The horizontal line is simply the median value half of the standard deviations are below the line and half are above it. The dashed lines show the inter-quartile range half of the values are between the two dashed lines.For our purposes here, I have highlighted the final 32 values the final 16 are shown in red (since 2000) and the 16 before that in green. Note that red values are almost all above the upper dashed line (ie. in the top 25% of the variation) while the green ones are all below the lower dashed lines (ie. in the bottom 25% of the variation). This means that the recent harvest dates (this century) have been much more variable from year to year than were the ones immediately before that (the end of last century).This emphasizes the quote above from Diego Tomasi the Burgundy grape harvests are now much more variable than they have been within living memory.However, as I noted in my previous post on the Burgundy harvests, the graph also illustrates that there have been recordings of previous large variations in the weather; indeed, on occasion even more extreme than we are observing now. In that sense, the current change in the weather is not necessarily unheard of, although it is definitely unusual.This is what the climate-change skeptics are on about, and they are right when they point out that rapid changes in long-term weather have occurred before in our recorded history. This does not mean that the effects of the climate change will be any less, or that we do not need to respond to them. Our recent agricultural practices will have to change, irrespective of whether the current weather patterns have occurred before or not.This point is emphasized by a recent study of soil moisture over the past 1,200 years (see Climate change: US megadrought already under way ). The recent 20 years of relatively dry conditions is the fourth such period found by the study, so in that sense this is not unexpected (the previous megadrought ran from 15751603 CE). However, the authors also note that, while the current drought may be a natural event, it is being made much worse by climate change. That is, the effects of the natural event are being exacerbated. A woman from Penfield, N.Y, near Rochester unknowingly infected 17 of her 18 children with coronavirus because she did not show any symptoms after contracting the virus. The woman, Brittany Jenick, is reported to have infected the children, some of whom are adopted while asymptomatic five weeks ago. Jenick eventually become sick from the virus and the children also began to show symptoms. She described the experience as flu-like and she said that the virus hit her family like a freight train. Jenick said that the experience was terrifying, she was afraid for her life and she was considered that she was never going to be the same, she tells WHAM. The whole family is now slowly recovering after isolating for weeks. How she got infected It is still unclear how Jenick was infected. She stated that she asked her friend, Matt Moreno, the CEO of Purify Global, to sanitize her home. Moreno then brought in a team of 12 to scrub down her upstate home for two hours. The said team was wearing hazmat suits for protection the whole time while Jenick's family waited outside for them to finish. Also Read: Pregnant Nurse Dies Due to Coronavirus But Her Baby Survives Moreno said that she put on commercial grade gas masks with a cartridge that is meant to withstand a nuclear attack. So far, New York state, America's epicenter of the outbreak, has had more than 223,699 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and has a death toll of more than 12,000. Across America, there have been 600,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and more than 35,000 deaths. Asymptomatic patients According to the director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC, Robert Redfield, 25% of people who are infected with the new coronavirus do not present any symptoms or fall ill but can still transmit the illness to others. Redfield told NPR that they have confirmed that a significant number of individuals that are infected actually remain asymptomatic. The asymptomatic carriers are most likely contributing to the rapid spread of the coronavirus around the world and making it difficult for experts to assess the true extent of the pandemic. There are unidentified cases but it is mostly the sicker ones in the hospitals who are being tabulated. A report from the World Health Organization showed that the coronavirus outbreak in China started getting out of hand back in February. It also showed reports of those who tested positive of the virus but does not show any symptoms. Most of those who were asymptomatic on the date of their diagnosis went on to develop symptoms later. The report authors also wrote that the proportion of truly asymptomatic infections is unclear but it is relatively rare. In the WHO study, 75% of people in China who were first classified as asymptomatic later developed symptoms. That means that presymptomatic transmission is what is probably common. The authors also added that these findings have important implications for infection control and they added that a lot of public health approaches rely on the presence of signs and symptoms in order to identify those who are sick and isolate them. Related Article: Your Feet May Show Signs of Coronavirus Even If You Don't Have Symptoms @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Two guests at a wedding ceremony in Kukuo, a suburb of the Tamale Metropolis have been arrested by the Northern Regional Police Command for flouting the ban on social gatherings. The suspects, Iddi Ibrahim, 34 and Abubakari Yusif Dauda, 33 were arrested for violating the Imposition of Restrictions Bill, 2020, which gives legal backing to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's directives to deal with the threats posed by Coronavirus in the country. The bride, groom and the remaining guests, however, managed to escape during the raid by the police on Sunday afternoon. Briefing Briefing the media, the Northern Regional Crime Officer of the Ghana Police Service, Superintendent, Mr Otuo Acheampong said the Police received information at about 1 pm that a wedding ceremony was underway in the community. He said two patrol teams were dispatched to the scene and arrested the two suspects who were part of the gathering in blatant disregard to the ban on public gatherings and social distancing protocols. The wedding invitation "On 19 April 20 about 1300 hours, information was received that a wedding ceremony was underway at Kukuo, a suburb of Tamale. Two patrol teams responded and arrested two suspects who were part of the gathering in blatant disregard to Executive Instruments against public gatherings and social distancing," he noted. He added that the groom and bride who escaped arrest have been asked to report themselves at the Regional Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Supt Acheampong indicated that the two suspects were assisting the police with investigations, adding that they would be charged and arraigned before the court within the week. Background The government of Ghana suspended all public gatherings in the country following the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Ghana on Saturday, March 14, 2020. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo made this known in a televised national address Sunday night [March 15, 2020]. He said the new directives followed an earlier meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Coronavirus response which he chaired and led to deliberate on the issues. "I have decided, in the interest of public safety and protection of our population, to review the public gathering advisories earlier announced." He said among the gatherings suspended were church services, weddings, funerals and other social gatherings. 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. Featured Video With COVID-19 and trade tensions driving the shift of production lines from China to Southeast Asia, Vietnam, in particular, seems to have emerged as an attractive destination for investors and manufacturers alike, experts have predicted. Vietnam remains an attractive destination for investors (Photo: Savills Read) Vietnam remains a promising market with a growing trend of manufacturing companies looking to set up operations in the country, which has been happening for a number of years. Industrial park developers remain confident that demand for industrial land will continue to grow and therefore land prices are expected to increase in-line with the long-term potential of Vietnams industrial segment, said Stephen Wyatt, country head for JLL Vietnam. According to JLL, multinational manufacturers have been setting up operations in Vietnam for a number of years and this movement has accelerated over the past 12-24 months with companies looking to diversify their operations and supply chains due to tariffs on goods exported from China to the US. More companies are expected to follow suit as the cost of production rises. Data from the US Census Bureau show a 35.6 percent surge in goods imports from Vietnam last year, compared with a 16.2 percent contraction in goods imported from China. Data for this year will be distorted by the effects of the coronavirus on global supply chains, but the trend of manufacturing moving from China to South East Asia will continue, predicted Stuart Ross, head of industrial for South East Asia at JLL. According to JLLs latest market report, companies looking to diversify their manufacturing portfolio outside China are attracted to Vietnam thanks to its proximity to China, Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and the Governments ambition to establish Vietnam as a manufacturing hub for Southeast Asia. The average land price in the northern areas reached 99 USD per sq.m, up 6.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of this year, while the southern areas recorded 101 USD per sq.m, up 12.2 percent year-on-year in the last quarter last year. Ready-built factories recorded an average price of 3.5 - 5.0 USD per sq.m per month for both areas. In light of the current COVID-19 situation, the postponement of ongoing leasing negotiations and new requirements will become more apparent if the situation does not improve soon. However, JLL believes that the market is likely to recover and grow rapidly after the epidemic is well under control. The disruption in the global supply chain caused by the virus outbreak is urging businesses to diversify their manufacturing portfolios geographically, instead of being overly reliant on one market, JLL said. The company, however, said that not all manufacturing can be easily outsourced to Vietnam. Manufacturing wages in China are now more than three times those in Vietnam, but skilled labour in China is also higher. The sheer scale of China cannot be replicated: there are more migrant industrial workers in China than people in Vietnam. Furthermore, a large percentage of Chinas manufacturing is to serve the domestic market," Wyatt added. China is committed to growing high-value industries. As a leading manufacturer of solar panels, 5G networks, artificial intelligence and batteries, these industries are generally more favoured by local authorities. Lower-value manufacturing chains are often seen as adding to environmental pollution. As China moves towards becoming more eco-friendly, a cleaner, less space-intensive manufacturing sector will also free up land for rezoning to convert to residential spaces. According to JLL, many businesses are likely to rethink their supply chains in the long term to ensure continuity of their operations and to mitigate risks of future shocks. Coupled with initiatives to improve the sustainability performance and limit the environmental impact of wider operations, retailers may opt to produce and house more stock locally./.VNA FDI enterprises in Vietnam preparing for life after pandemic Foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam have been maintaining production despite difficulties caused by the COVID-19 outbreak while preparing plans to recover after the pandemic ends. YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan sent a condolence message to Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister. I was deeply shocked by the news of an appalling crime committed in New Scotland that killed 16 innocent people. I hereby offer my sincere condolences to you and to the friendly people of Canada over this ruthless act of violence that shocked all Canadians amid the ongoing fight against the plague of COVID-19. Please convey my most profound sympathy to victims families and friends. I wish them all fortitude and endurance, Prime Minister Pashinyan said in his condolence message. A suspected armed robber has been shot dead by the Police in the Gambaga District of the North East region. The deceased suspect Mahamadu and his colleagues Amadu Sumana, Hamidu Issaka, and Musah Alima attacked and robbed traders returning from Gbandabila market at Kolguna junction on Saturday, April 18, 2020. Police after receiving the information rushed to the scene but the suspects fled before their arrival. However, upon a tip-off that the suspects were at their hideout preparing another robbery on the Gushegu Gbintiri road, police proceeded there. According to the North East regional police commander, DCOP Charles Domanban, upon the arrival of the police at the hideout, the suspects opened fire on the officers, compelling officers to return fire. In the process, suspect Amadu was shot dead by the police while two other suspects, Musah Alima and Amidu Issaka sustained injuries. The two injured have been treated and discharged while the body of the deceased has been deposited at the Baptist hospital at Nalerigu. In possession of the robbers were, a short single barrel gun, a locally manufactured Sten gun, 17 pistol ammunition in a magazine, 10 AAA cartridges, a rope, a hood, 3 mobile phones, 2 hats, 3 packets of royal cigarettes and a nose mask. The suspects have been charged with Robbery and Preparing to Commit Crime; to wit Robbery. ---Starrfm.com.gh The 51-year-old gunman who opened fire across the northern part of the Nova Scotia province in Canada has been identified as denture-maker Gabriel Wortman, Royal Canadian Mountain Police (RCMP) confirmed. He started his shooting spree on Saturday evening in the rural town of Portapique at a home. Police have not confirmed if it was he owned the home where the crime spree started. Wortman was from the community and owned three properties in Portapique and three in Dartmouth, CBC reported. One of the properties in Dartmouth the gunman owned was a denture clinic. He worked as a denturist in the Halifax area. Initially, people thought Wortman was connected with the RCMP police after he wore part of what looked to be a Mountie uniform and drove an officer car during part of his spree on Saturday into Sunday. Recommended Gunman wearing police uniform kills at least 10 in Canada RCMP later confirmed the man had no connection to them. The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said about the homicides. In 2014, Wortman was in the news after he responded to a CTV story about a cancer survivor who lost her teeth and could not afford to replace them. He offered to make her a pair for free through his denture business. My heart went out to her, Wortman said at the time. Theres so many ways for people to get dentures, but it seems like the people who really need them are the people who are getting left behind. Police entered into a search for the gunman on Saturday night that spanned multiple areas of the northern province before it all came to an end at an Enfield gas station. Wortman was confirmed dead by the RCMP after he was arrested. It was confirmed on Sunday Wortman killed at least 10 people during his deadly spree, including RCMP Constable Heidi Stevenson, who was a 23-year veteran with the force. She was killed in the line of duty when responding to active shooter threat. A major study has deemed increasing testing and contact tracing in the community the "most promising approach" to lifting coronavirus lockdown measures in the short term. The report, from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) said isolating those with the virus and getting those who have interacted with them to quarantine is key to limiting further outbreaks. This approach was abandoned by the UK Government early on. Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt took to social media today to call for contact tracing to be "our next national mission". Mr Hunt, who is chairman of the Health Select Committee, said a national figure outside of politics was needed to spearhead contact tracing. He added: I hope we will get a move on so the Cabinet has a choice to the current national lockdown when they come to review this decision in three weeks time. The OECD report said Covid-19 infections would rebound rapidly if countries just moved to lift their lockdowns completely, while it urged them to ramp up contact tracing. It said: Once the number of infected people has successfully been brought sufficiently down, quick suppression of new waves of viral infections will be key. Testing strategies are central to achieve this. The study argued that strong and effective testing, tracking and tracing (TTT) is needed and is the most promising approach in the short run to bringing and keeping the epidemic under control without resorting to widespread lockdowns of social and economic life. Loading.... It added: The TTT approach may be used to block the initial or recurrent spreads of a pathogen, aiming for a rapid extinction of local, well-defined outbreaks that collectively can control an epidemic. The Government has come under intense scrutiny over its testing and contact tracing policy. Public Health England (PHE) advised ministers in early March that contact tracing should be stopped. Coronavirus: World's most affected countries PHE told the PA news agency in mid-March that this was because the virus is more widespread and we will not necessarily be able to determine where someone has contracted the virus. Contact tracing ceased in favour of what was described as a more "targeted approach". The UK approach has contrasted with other countries such as Singapore and South Korea. They have successfully kept up contact tracing to contain their outbreaks. Germany has also worked on contact tracing and has a far lower case and death rate than the UK. On Sunday, Englands deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries defended the UKs approach and questioned the link between high levels of contact tracing and low death rates seen in other countries. She told the No 10 press conference: We had a containment phase and it was very successful. We had strict quarantine regimes from high-risk areas, we followed up individual cases and families. But once you end up with seeding and cases across the community, our focus has to be on managing the clinical conditions of those individuals. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast Vietnam strongly protests Chinas establishment of the so-called Sansha city and related acts in the East Vietnam Sea as they seriously violate Vietnams sovereignty, the Vietnamese foreign ministrys spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said on Sunday. China announced on Saturday the formation of the so-called Xisha district at Vietnams Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, and Nansha district at the Southeast Asian country's Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, in the so-called Sansha city in the East Vietnam Sea. Vietnam has strongly affirmed many times that the country has sufficient historical evidence and legal foundation to assert its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos, Hang stressed on Sunday. Those moves of China are invalid and unrecognized, and they are not favorable for the friendship among nations and further complicate the situation in the East Vietnam Sea, the region, and the world, she added. Vietnam demands that China respect Vietnams sovereignty, abolish its wrongful decisions related to the moves, and not commit similar acts in the future, the spokesperson asserted. Vo Ngoc Dong, chairman of the Vietnamese administration in Hoang Sa, also issued a statement on Saturday objecting to Chinas so-called Sansha city. The Hoang Sa District Peoples Committee, which is administered by Vietnams central city of Da Nang and directly manages Vietnams Hoang Sa archipelago, resolutely objects to Chinas decision to establish the so-called Xisha district and Nansha district in the so-called Sansha city, Dong stated. Vietnam was the first country to explore, possess, and establish sovereignty in a continuous and peaceful manner on the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa islands, he continued. The Hoang Sa District Peoples Committee demands that China immediately stop its illegal activities in the two archipelagos. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Sixteen "high-risk contacts" of a pizza delivery agent, who was infected with COVID-19 last week, have tested negative for coronavirus in south Delhi, an official said on Monday. The 19-year-old pizza delivery agent had tested positive for the virus on April 14, prompting authorities to put 72 families he delivered pizza under home quarantine. "All 16 high-risk contacts of pizza delivery boy have tested negative. They are colleagues of the pizza delivery agent who was infected with coronavirus recently, south Delhi District Magistrate B M Mishra told PTI. Mishra said the district administration has not conducted COVID-19 test on members of 72 families as they have not shown any symptoms of the infection so far. The delivery agent was feeling unwell for some time and had a persistent cough since the third week of March. Later, he approached a hospital where he tested positive for the disease. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Nana Akufo-Addo has disclosed that the construction of a 100-bed Infectious Disease and Isolation Facility at the Ga East Municipal Hospital will be completed in six(6) weeks. The President made this revelation in his 7th Nation Address on Sunday, April 18, 2020 on the COVID-19 pandemic. According to him, the construction of the facility will be undertaken by a 48-Engineer Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces and funded through a public-private partnership. ''Last Friday, I was honoured to do the virtual sod-cutting ceremony for the construction of a 100-bed Infectious Disease and Isolation Facility at the Ga East Municipal Hospital, which is being funded through a public-private partnership, under the leadership of the Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund., and whose construction, with the assistance of the 48-Engineer Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces, will be completed in six (6) weeks. Members of the Private Sector Fund have, indeed, acted like citizens, and not spectators, in these testing times for our country, and their patriotism is to be loudly praised'', the President indicated. He further outlined other measures by the government to fight the pandemic saying ''we have also scaled up the domestic production of personal protective equipment, and our health care facilities, so far, have taken delivery of fourteen thousand, five hundred and fifty (14,550) scrubs, eleven thousand, nine hundred (11,900) gowns, nineteen thousand, nine hundred and eighty (19,980) head covers, two hundred and sixty three thousand, two hundred and eighty one (263,281) nose masks, thirteen thousand, and two (13,002) N-95 nose masks. Forty-one thousand, one hundred and seventeen (41,117) varying sizes of sanitizers have also been produced locally and delivered to our health facilities''. COVID-19 Case Count Ghana has recorded 1042 cases of the COVID-19 with 99 recovery cases and 9 deaths. Over 60000 people whose samples were taken have tested negative. The percentage of positive cases stands at 1.5% out of 68,591 samples. There is a backlog of eighteen thousand (18000) tests whose results are yet to be released. ''Fellow Ghanaians, since the first two (2) cases of infections were recorded on our shores, we have, till date, traced some eighty-six thousand (86,000) contacts, out of which we have test results of sixty-eight thousand, five hundred and ninety-one (68,591) contacts. There is, thus, a backlog of some eighteen thousand (18,000) tests whose results are yet to be received. The overwhelming majority of these contacts have been established in the last three weeks of the partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi. Out of this number, one thousand and forty-two (1,042) persons, i.e. 1.5%, have been confirmed as positive, with sixty-seven thousand, five hundred and forty-nine (67,549), i.e. 98.5%, testing negative; ninety-nine (99) persons have recovered and have been discharged; and nine hundred and thirty (930) persons, who have been isolated, are responding to treatment either in their homes or in treatment facilities. These nine hundred and thirty (930) persons, after their treatment, will soon undergo the mandatory two (2) tests to determine if they have also recovered from the virus or otherwise'', portions of the President's speech read. 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. Featured Video Toronto bus drivers and mechanics, members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), have staged several spontaneous work stoppages over the past five days due to the failure of Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) management to provide them adequate protection against the highly contagious and potentially lethal coronavirus. The work refusals began Wednesday evening after it was announced that another TTC worker, a subway driver, had been diagnosed with COVID-19. To date, 19 TTC workers have tested positive. When commuter GO Train workers and those at other services are included, at least 50 Toronto area transit workers have been infected. On Wednesday evening, 33 drivers at the TTCs Queensway garage and another 5 workers at the Wilson depot refused to be deployed to their assigned duties. At the Queensway facility, workers engaged in a robust rally denouncing management, shouting, Were not going to take it anymore. TTC workers have been demanding that management provide them with proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), particularly effective face-masks, as well as stepped up deep cleaning of their work areas. Toronto Transit Commission Bus (Image Credit: Steve Harris Flickr) Due to previous work refusals and other agitations, workers have succeeded in gaining certain protections. These include plexiglass barriers for drivers, rear door boarding, glove and hand sanitizer provision, and limited bus passenger loads. After initially opposing the provision of protective masks, the TTC switched course and agreed to distribute them. However, it only began giving them to some workers this weekend following the mounting job actions. In Canada, when a work refusal is made citing Occupational Health and Safety protections a Ministry of Labour inspector must attend the scene to adjudicate the issue at hand. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, there have been dozens of such work refusals across the country in multiple industries. However, government inspectors have routinely ruled against the protesting workers. At the Queensway and Wilson garages, inspectors ruled Thursday that workers must return to their posts. On Saturday morning, another work stoppage began at the Queensway garage led by at least a dozen mechanics. Four workers have been diagnosed with the virus there and another four are now displaying symptoms. Workers demanded that a localized outbreak be declared at the garage and that the site be shut down for two weeks while effective deep cleaning measures are undertaken. An earlier cleaning of the premises has not proven effective. The facility employs 100 mechanics and 600 drivers. All employees will now be tested for infection. The work stoppage continued into at least early Sunday morning. TTC workers have taken an important lead in fighting to safeguard their health and safety since the coronavirus crisis began. Last month, TTC afternoon-shift workers assigned to clean streetcars at the citys Roncesvalles Yard refused to carry out their duties. They cited the employers failure to maintain reasonable precautions to protect workers from the spread of COVID-19. As a result of their action, the citys morning rush hour experienced some delays. TTC management is fully aware of rising worker anger against their failure to take adequate safety precautions amid a global pandemic. When pressed further on the matter after the Roncesvalles job action, commission spokesperson Stuart Green acknowledged that its contingency plans included scenarios to alter transit schedules should more broad-based worker actions ensue. The conflict at the TTC reflects a broader process of social polarization under way across Canada and internationally. While transit workers, nurses, doctors, grocery workers, delivery workers, and others have taken strike action and protested for safe working conditions and decisive action to combat the pandemic, the ruling elites response to COVID-19 has been characterized by malign neglect. Governments and corporate management around the world are forcing workers to stay on the job under unsafe conditions and placing private profit ahead of human life. Transit workers across Canada and internationally have braved the virus threat to ensure that health care and grocery store staff and other essential workers can continue to commute to their jobs. But they have paid a heavy price for management failures to safeguard workers. In the United States, as of last week, 50 Metropolitan transit workers in New York City have died from the virus. The ATU has reported 16 dead due to coronavirus outbreaks in Boston, Detroit, New Orleans and St. Louis. The Transport Workers Union has reported another 7 dead. Transit workers, in response to this mortal threat, have staged their own spontaneous work stoppages in Detroit and Birmingham, Alabama. In Montreal, a wildcat strike broke out Thursday among Societe de Transport de Montr eal maintenance workers. The walkout occurred in defence of Gleason Frenette, a local union leader, who was suspended for 25 days after denouncing managements failure to implement social distancing and provide PPE to employees. Later Thursday, Quebecs pro-employer Labour Administrative Tribunal ordered the workers to return to their jobs, claiming that transit is an essential service. 14 Montreal bus drivers have already been infected with COVID-19. Hundreds more have not been tested, but have booked off sick with symptoms. In Edmonton, rank-and-file transit workers have called for work stoppages and begun an online petition that states, It is clear to front-line workers that those in power are making the crisis worse. By unnecessarily packing the buses and trains, failing to provide enough PPE to workers, and failing to frequently clean the vehicles, public transit has become a lethal pipeline for viruses. Workers can only protect themselves and their families from this deadly virus by taking independent class action in opposition to big business and their political establishment hirelings to fight for urgent measures to combat the coronavirus on a global scale. These should include: Accessible and universal testing! No expense can be spared in making available free testing to all those who show symptoms. Free high-quality treatment and equality of care! The most advanced medical care must be made available to everyone, regardless of income or insurance coverage. Paid sick leave for all workers! No one must be forced to work if they are sick or have been exposed to the coronavirus, endangering themselves and others. Protect refugees, prisoners and the homeless! Everyone must have access to high-quality and clean living conditions to prevent the spread of the disease. Safe working conditions! All workers must have a safe work environment and be protected against the spread of the virus. Where there is a danger, workplaces and schools must be closed and full compensation paid by the employers and the state. Health care and other essential workers must be provided all the equipment and resources necessary to protect them from the coronavirus. This author also recommends: Worker resistance grows internationally as governments push premature return to work [18 April 2020] Transit agencies and governments continue to exposer workers and riders to coronavirus pandemic internationally [14 April 2020] CONTACT: Pamela D. Wilson 303-810-1816 Email: Inquiry_For_Pamela@pameladwilson.com Golden, Colorado April 20, 2020 The Caring Generation Caregiving Programs & Podcasts for Caregivers Golden CO- Caregiving expert Pamela D. Wilson hosts The Caring Generation radio program for caregivers and aging adults this coming Wednesday, April 22, on the Bold Brave Media Network. The program airs live at 9 p.m. EST. The Caring Generation aired initially from 2009 to 2011 on 630 KHOW-AM in Denver, Colorado. Not All Caregiving Radio Programs and Podcasts for Caregivers Are Alike Not all caregiving radio programs and podcasts for caregivers are alike. Pamela D. Wilson is a rare caregiving expert with over 20 years of experience providing one-to-one direct care for elderly and disabled adults. As a court-appointed guardian, medical and financial power of attorney, the personal representative of the estate, a trustee, and a care manager, her extraordinary experience offers proven solutions for situations faced by family caregivers. The Caring Generation radio program airs live and becomes part of The Caring Generation podcast series featured in Wilson's Caring for Aging Parent's Blog. The podcast is available on Wilson's website for listening and downloading along with the show transcript. This senior care podcast is also available on major sites like Apple, Google, Spotify, Spreaker, Stitcher, Pandora, Castbox, Sound Cloud and Amazon Alexa, The Challenges of Living With Elderly Parents On The Caring Generation radio program this week, Wilson talks about the Challenges of Living With Elderly Parents. For some children, living with elderly parents is an easy decision they love their elderly parents. Spending time with elderly parents is like spending time with friends. Having positive relationships with elderly parents means that the initial thought of living with elderly parents is not a deal-breaker. For other adult children, thinking about the idea of living with elderly parents is a challenging decision. Childhood memories of parental relationships that were not always happy make the idea of living with elderly parents impractical. Successful living arrangements result from setting boundaries with elderly parents. Guest, Ruth Lippin, an attorney and licensed clinical social worker, joins the show to talk about managing stress related to caregiving situations and family relationships. Caregivers feel responsible for caring for elderly parents and need emotional support to work through uncertain feelings and memories that may be difficult to forget. Join Pamela D Wilson On The Caring Generation Radio Show Each Wednesday Join Pamela on The Caring Generation to learn the answers to these and other questions about living with elderly parents. The Caring Generation radio program airs live at 6 p.m. Pacific, 7 p.m. Mountain, 8 p.m. Central, and 9 p.m. Eastern every Wednesday night. Replays of the weekly programs are available in podcast format with transcripts on Pamela's website and all major podcast sites. More information about Pamela and her support programs are available on her website. # At the end of March, radios in France aired a public appeal for donations to help fund hospitals that are struggling to care for the increasing number of COVID-19 patients in the country. The appeal stated that all such donations would be tax deductible, but did not explain why the French state, the sixth largest economic power in the world, is in need of the generosity of private citizens to adequately fund the countrys healthcare system during a pandemic. Soon after this appeal, we have been informed that our hospitals are in desperate need of not only money but also protective equipment, including the most basic items such as masks and gloves. We have seen shocking images of nurses trying to treat patients while wearing garbage bags and swimming goggles for protection. The shortage was so severe that some hospitals felt the need to directly appeal to members of the public to send any protective equipment they may have. The situation was even worse in French overseas departments such as Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guiana, where the government was forced to accept the help of Cuban doctors in the fight against coronavirus in these territories. For Reunion Island, the best the French state could do was to deliver a bunch of mouldy masks. Many were shocked to see France, a country once famed for its strong social security system, fail to respond to this public health emergency efficiently. However, the French healthcare system was struggling long before the start of this pandemic. Last December, for example, 22 babies infected by bronchiolitis in Paris had to be transferred to Rouen, Amiens, Caen or Reims, because emergency paediatric services in the capital were too overwhelmed to take care of them. So, how exactly did a country which was praised by American documentary maker Michael Moore as a healthcare paradise in the 2007 film Sicko end up in this situation? No magic money for healthcare or research In 2019, France experienced one of the longest and most widespread strikes in its recent history in response to the changes President Emmanuel Macron proposed to make to the pensions system. Hospital workers also attended these protests, not only to protect their pensions but also to demand better working conditions and funding. During these protests some even carried banners that read the state count the money, we will count the dead, but the government chose to ignore their plight. A year earlier, when President Macron visited the University Hospital of Rouen to promote his governments autism plan, a caregiver told him in front of tv cameras that the number of available hospital beds and services in the country are decreasing daily and that the healthcare system urgently needs more money and more staff. Macron swiftly ended the conversation by claiming that there is no magic money to give to the hospitals. Within the same year, a collective of researchers met with the president and begged for five million euros to maintain 50 jobs in the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). Macron chose not to give this relatively small funding to the body that would lead the research efforts for cures and vaccines in the face of major epidemics, such as the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. The fact that repeated calls by healthcare workers and researchers for more funding fell on deaf ears was not surprising to anyone who had been following Macrons political career. Macron served as the minister of economy under President Francois Hollande and was in charge of implementing his controversial labour reform that brought thousands of French citizens to the streets to defend their most basic rights. During his presidential campaign he presented himself as the candidate of change and won a resounding victory against the far-right candidate Marine Le Pen. However, once he took the presidency, he forgot his promise of delivering change and did nothing but follow the neoliberal policies of his predecessors. While not hesitating to give controversial tax breaks to the rich, he focused on saving money by weakening the welfare state and slashing the benefits citizens receive. While Macrons austerity-focused neo-liberal agenda undoubtedly contributed to the deterioration of Frances social security system, the dismantling of the countrys public health service started decades ago. In 1983, Socialist President Francois Mitterands government decided to follow strict austerity policies for the first time, in a move that was contrary to the core values of the Socialist Party. Since then, consecutive governments pulled France further into austerity, stripping the healthcare system to its bare bones and leaving the country defenceless against public health threats such as pandemics. According to French economist Thomas Porcher, French hospitals lost a total of 70,000 beds in the last 15 years thanks to these austerity policies, with 4,200 beds being lost in 2018 alone. Last year, a third of the grounds of Pariss oldest hospital, Hotel Dieu, was sold to a real estate developer, which plans to transform these historic buildings into shops and restaurants. As a result of decades of policies that valued profit over lives, today the French healthcare system is in such a bad state that the head of ER at Pariss prestigious Pompidou hospital, Philippe Juvin, who is also a member of the right-wing Republican Party, recently had to admit that in terms of health, France is underdeveloped. Frances social security system was once the envy of the world. But today, despite being one of the wealthiest countries in the world, France is struggling to deliver adequate healthcare to its citizens during a global pandemic. Macron, like his predecessors, is running France like a business focused on profit and nothing else, ignoring the principles of equality, fraternity and solidarity that are at the core of our national identity. But, as the coronavirus pandemic sadly proved, healthcare is not a business and cannot be treated as such. Cuts to this essential public service not only cost lives, but also damage the core values the French Republic claims to stand for. The choices that have been made over the last decade have been slowly but surely dismantling what used to make our country so proud. As French healthcare workers continue their fight against this deadly virus that has already claimed thousands of French lives, our government needs to immediately change course and start making up for the mistakes they have been making for decades. If they do not act fast, the days when France was known and praised as a welfare state that values the health and wellbeing of its citizens will be nothing but a distant memory. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. The Royal Courts of Justice in the United Kingdom on April 20 dismissed fugitive Indian businessman Vijay Mallya's appeal against a 2018 extradition order by a lower court in the country. Mallya had appealed against an order for his extradition to India. He is wanted by the Indian government under charges of financial fraud to the tune of about Rs 9,000 crore in borrowings from several Indian banks by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines. Read More | UK court dismisses Vijay Mallyas appeal against 2018 extradition order Here is a timeline of the eventual downfall of the liquor baron: April 20, 2020: Royal Courts of Justice in London quashes Mallya's appeal against a 2018 order for his extradition to India. February 4, 2019: The then UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid orders Mallya's extradition to India. January 2019: A special PMLA court in India declares Vijay Mallya a 'fugitive economic offender'. He becomes the first person to be declared as such under the new law. December 10, 2018: UK court orders extradition of Vijay Mallya. December 5, 2018: Mallya 'humbly' offers to pay back banks the entire principal loan amount. The offer came hours after Christian James Michel, the alleged middleman in the politically sensitive Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland chopper deal, was extradited to India from the United Arab Emirates on December 4. November 2018: 13 Indian banks secure a favourable order from UK court to use information disclosed in court as part of a worldwide freezing order against the 62-year-old businessman in a case involving the sale of a luxury superyacht. October 2018: A London court orders that six of Mallya's luxury cars to be sold to recover dues. Reports said the six cars include a 2012 Maybach 62, a 2006 Ferrari F430, and a Porsche Cayenne with James Bond number plates. The cars had the signature 'VJM'. September 2018: After questioning the condition of Mumbai's Arthur Jail, where he would be staying if extradited, Mallya sees a video of the jail later in September and calls it 'impressive'. June 2018: Files application with Karnataka High Court to sell assets worth Rs 13,900 crore. Adds he is tired of the 'relentless pursuit' to recover dues from him. May 2018: In a ruling in favour of banks, a UK high court refused to overturn an Indian court's worldwide order for freezing of Mallya's assets. March 2018: A UK court says obvious that Indian banks broke rules to lend to Kingfisher Airlines. October 2017: Mallya was once again arrested in London following an Enforcement Directorate affidavit. April 2017: Mallya arrested in London on India's request for extradition. April 2016: Enforcement Directorate approach special court to issue non-bailable arrest warrant against Mallya. April 2016: Ministry of External Affairs revokes Vijay Mallyas passport. April 2016: Hyderabad court convicts Vijay Mallya in case filed by GMR Hyderabad International Airport for a bounced cheque. April 2016: Banks rejected Mallya's offers for payment of dues worth Rs 9,000 crore. March 2016: Mallya offers to pay Rs 4,000 crore by September to banks. March 2016: On March 9, Mallya leaves India. March 2016: Mallya is in discussion with banks to settle the debt. February 2016: The SBI-led consortium moved the debt recovery tribunal to attach Mallya's passport. December 2015: CBI questions Mallya in Rs 900-crore IDBI Bank loan. October 2015: CBI conducts raids on Vijay Mallyas offices in connection with Rs 950 crore loan provided by IDBI Bank. April 2015: United Spirits Limited asked Mallya to step down as chairman and director on alleged fund diversion. February 2015: The SBI-led bank consortium takes possession of Kingfisher House in Vile Parle. December 2014: United India Bank recognises UBHL, guarantor of Kingfisher Airlines, as wilful defaulter. March 2013: Kingfisher Airlines net worth falls to negative of Rs 13,000 crore. February 2013: UBHL seeks shareholders approval for Rs 450 crore for Kingfisher Airlines. 2012: Mallya gives guarantees of Rs 5,904 crore for carriers loan. 2011: Eleven bank accounts were suspended by service tax department for non-payment of Rs 70 crore. 2011: The airline's accumulated losses reach more than 50 percent of its net worth. 2009: The airline's debt reaches Rs 7,000 crore. March 2008: Kingfisher Airlines' debt touches Rs 934 crore due to spike in oil prices. 2008: UBHL paid Rs 550 crore for a 26 percent stake in Air Deccan. June 2007: Kingfisher Airlines decides to purchase debt-ridden Air Deccan. Vijay Mallya sets up Kingfisher Airlines to cater to the premium segment. System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f04828eb558)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482808020)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f04828eb558)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482808020)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f04829387a8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482808020)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0482808020)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f048162ec80)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f04827e4860)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f04827e4860)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 At least two persons were arrested for allegedly assaulting two Indian Reserve Battalion personnel at the Mizoram-Tripura border, a senior police officer said on Monday. Around 100 people assaulted the two jawans, identified as C Lalhruaitluanga and R Zairemmawia, who were guarding the border at Zomuantlang in west Mizorams Mamit district on Saturday, according to Mizoram's Deputy Inspector General of Police (Northern Range) Lalbiakthanga Khiangte. Four volunteers, two from Tripura and the other two from Mizoram, of a village-level task force guarding the inter-state border were playing cards. The trouble started when the jawans asked them to stop and remain vigilant, police said. They incited their friends from the village on the Tripura side. Some 100 people then beat up the two IRB personnel with firewood and bamboo stick, police said. The two men somehow managed to escape. They were admitted to the Aizawl Civil Hospital and were discharged on Monday, officials said. At Zomuantlang, volunteers from Mizoram and Tripura are jointly guarding the inter-state borders to prevent public movement in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The volunteers were assisted by the Mizoram Police and Indian Reserve Battalion personnel. Khiangte said the Tripura Police arrested three persons on Sunday evening in connection with the incident. They were identified as Santilal Chakma (31), Bimal Chakma (19) and Mohanlal Chakma (27), all from Kawnpui-I village in Tripura, he said. Santilal escaped while undergoing a medical check-up at a hospital a few hours later, he added. A massive search operation has been launched in both Mizoram and Tripura to nab the absconded and other culprits involved in the assault, Khiangte. Efforts are also on by the Mizoram Police to get the custody of the arrested persons, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BEIRUT - After nine years of war, Syria is broken into three rival parts unable to work together and ill-prepared to cope with the coronavirus, an enemy that knows no conflict lines. Medical personnel in Kurdish-run northeastern Syria have resorted to making protective gear out of garbage bags. The territory has been cut off from outside aid, including UN shipments that used to arrive from Iraq but were vetoed by Syrian government ally Russia. In the last opposition-held enclave in Syrias northwest, health officials are cobbling together what little they have to protect four million people crammed into a territory buckling under repeated government offensives. Promises by the World Health Organization to deliver ventilators, protection equipment and other supplies have mostly not materialized. President Bashar Assad controls the rest of the country, including the main cities. WHO has steered most of its anti-coronavirus help through his government, forcing the UN agency to work with an opaque system that hasnt extended help to non-government areas. Hardin Lang, a former UN official and vice-president of Refugee International, said the more vulnerable territories should be the priority. He said that working with a government that often distributes aid based on political considerations could be questionable when you have a population that is completely dependent on you and cross-border assistance. Syrian authorities have conducted coronavirus tests only in Damascuss central lab, making it hard to track infections. The Kurdish-run northeast, also home to four million people, has had to send its samples by plane to the capital. The flaws of the system emerged last week when Kurdish officials found out two weeks after the fact that a death in their area was from COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. The Damascus government did not officially announce it or inform local authorities nor did WHO, prompting accusations by Kurdish authorities of a coverup. WHO says it is dealing with a global shortage and is working to raise resources for Syria, which it calls a priority area. So far, Syrias official count is 39 infections and two deaths, all in or around Damascus. The civil war has devastated Syrias health system. Advanced countries were unable to isolate such a virus. So imagine a region that has faced a destructive war for nine years, said Ciwan Mustafa, northeasts health director. Hundreds of medical facilities have been bombed, mostly in government airstrikes; half the hospitals and health centres are functioning only partially or not at all, while 70 per cent of the medical personnel have fled the country. More than 80 per cent of the population live in poverty, millions have been displaced and hundreds of thousands are crammed into overcrowded camps. For weeks, government officials denied the danger. Shiite pilgrims from Iran and Iraq continued to visit shrines near Damascus. Fighters, allied with the Syrian military, travelled back and forth from those countries. By early March, restrictions began with a partial closure of borders and shrines. When the first case was announced on March 22, the government enforced a curfew and suspended military conscription. Several towns were isolated and over a dozen quarantine centres set up. WHO is providing the Health Ministry with medical and lab equipment, testing kits, protective gear and training workshops, said Dr. Nima Abid, the agencys acting representative in Damascus. It is setting up testing labs in the regions of Aleppo, Homs and Latakia. Abid cited global shortages when asked about the obstacles to aid reaching non-governmental areas, adding that such deliveries require government permission. Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Syria researcher, said that since the uprising began in 2011, Damascus has had a policy of denying aid to rebel-held areas and to the Kurdish-run northeast, in hopes of weakening the population there. A 2013 polio outbreak was partially blamed on the government denying vaccinations to areas outside its control. So far, WHO airlifted from Damascus 20 tons of supplies, including ventilators and protective gear, mostly to a hospital in a government-controlled pocket in the northeastern city of Qamishli. Those trying to reach the hospital risk arrest as they cross military checkpoints, Tsurkov said. The northeasts medical sector was further crippled by the war against the Islamic State group and Turkeys military campaign, which restricted water supply. Tens of thousands of IS supporters and members are crammed in camps and detention facilities in the area. UN aid deliveries from Iraq were halted in early 2020 after Russia vetoed a resolution allowing continued shipments across that border. The pandemic then forced the closure of the Iraqi border to almost everyone. Many aid workers left. Those remaining have negotiated only sporadic border openings with Iraqs northern Kurdish semi-autonomous region, bringing in some supplies, including finally two testing machines. In Syrias rebel-held northwest, authorities have closed schools and mosques and urged people to stay home. Thats a challenge, when nearly one million people displaced in the latest government offensive now live in tents or temporary shelters without water or electricity. WHO, consulting with Idlib authorities, drew up a $30-million (U.S.) plan to create 28 isolation units and prepare three new facilities for coronavirus patients. But the agency has yet to bring the supplies. Thirty ventilators are sitting in Turkey, awaiting budget approval. WHO sent Idlib 5,900 test kits, and they are being closely rationed, used only in very suspect cases 197 so far, all negative. The WHO plan is still mere words on paper, the top health official in Idlib, Munzer al-Khalil, wrote in an open letter, accusing the UN of discrimination. Even if northwest Syria is not an official state, its citizens are Syrians, first and foremost they are human beings and deserve an adequate response. He said WHO now wants to refit existing hospitals for COVID-19 cases instead of setting up new facilities, a change he feared would strain overstretched resources. Adding to the concerns, the UN resolution that allows cross-border aid from Turkey expires in June. Al-Khalil used available resources to set up the only ward in the territory for suspected virus cases. The ward in an Idlib city hospital has only two doctors, four nurses, 32 beds and four ventilators, said hospital director, Dr. Khaled al-Yassin. As al-Yassin spoke to The Associated Press, a father tried to bring in his 10-year-old son, feverish with a chest infection suspected of being coronavirus. Al-Yassin had to turn him away. We dont have isolation wards for children, he told the distraught parent. Al-Khalil said that over the course of the war, he has treated victims of chemical attacks and made life-or-death decisions about evacuating hospitals before a government attack. The virus has brought new levels of stress, he said. This time I feel it is much bigger than us. For the Front Steps Project, local photographer Kristen Sawatzky (above, with her dog Otto) took pictures of local families in exchange for donations to charity. PHILADELPHIA--Convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 patients -- an experimental approach of giving a transfusion of plasma collected from a donor who has recovered from COVID-19 to a patient with an active infection -- is the focus of a new two-part research initiative at Penn Medicine. Researchers will first collect plasma from people who have recovered from their infection under a donor research protocol. The second part involves conducting clinical trials to test the safety and efficacy of giving that plasma to moderately and severely ill hospitalized patients. "People who have recovered from COVID-19 rapidly develop antibody responses. Early reports suggest that these plasma antibodies can boost the immune response in severely-ill patients," said Katharine Bar, MD, an assistant professor of Infectious Diseases in Penn's Perelman School of Medicine. "By developing and implementing these research protocols in tandem, we will be able to use scientific and evidence-based methods to learn if, and how, convalescent plasma therapy helps patients. We're working to start our clinical trial as soon as we possibly can, because we urgently need to determine if this approach works and if it is safe." Bar will lead the clinical trial team at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. Nicole Aqui, MD, an associate professor of clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, is leading the transfusion medicine team that began a research protocol to collect plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients this month. "In addition to being home to the world's leading coronavirus basic science researchers with decades of experience, Penn has a longstanding expertise in apheresis collection. We are fortunate to have the opportunity to partner with infectious disease specialists to enable critically important clinical trials," Aqui said. Researchers will begin enrolling patients into the clinical trial following approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for an Investigational New Drug application. The first trial will include 50 patients and take up to four months to complete. Up to two units, or 500 milliliters, of plasma will be given to each patient enrolled in the trial. "Because we will be using plasma collected at Penn in the clinical trials, we are going to know detailed information about the connection between the donor plasma and its effect on the patient recipient," said Don Siegel, MD, PhD, a professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and director of Transfusion Medicine and Therapeutic Pathology. "We'll learn how to detect the presence and type of antibodies in a given plasma unit, how the patient did after receiving that particular unit, and hopefully be able to complete our understanding of the role passive immunity plays in treating our patients." Physicians have been using convalescent plasma therapy to treat viruses for more than a century--including during the Spanish Flu epidemic. More recently, the therapy has been used to treat SARS-1, MERS and the H1N1 flu. Plasma is generally collected in two ways, through a major collection and distribution organization like the American Red Cross or in an academic medical setting like Penn. "What takes Penn's investigative approach to the highest level is the integrated partnership between immunologists, microbiologists, transfusion medicine physicians, critical care physicians, infectious disease researchers and pulmonologists who are working side by side with great urgency and precision to more deeply understand the disease and the full impact of this and several other interventions," said Emma Meagher, MD, Vice Dean and Chief Clinical Research Officer in the Perelman School of Medicine and a professor of Medicine and Pharmacology. "We have scientists with decades of experience at the bench collaborating with world-class clinicians providing care at the bedside - this is what Penn does best." said Andrew Fesnak, MD, an assistant professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and a co-investigator on the donor protocol. Two recent papers have shown positive results among critically-ill COVID-19 patients treated with convalescent plasma therapy. One study of ten severely-ill COVID-19 patients in Wuhan, China determined that one unit --200 milliliters--of convalescent plasma led to the improvement of clinical symptoms within three days and the disappearance of the virus from the blood in seven days. The study authors said results indicate the therapy is a promising rescue option for severely ill patients. Another study from China similarly showed clinical improvement among five critically-ill patients with COVID-19 and Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). However, both were uncontrolled, observational studies describing small groups of participants. Scott Hensley, PhD, an associate professor of Microbiology, has developed COVID-19 antibody assays to determine the level of antibodies in the convalescent plasma used to treat critically-ill patients and in the clinical trial. Hensley is also leading a project at Penn that will support testing for health care workers on the front lines using new COVID-19 serology tests, which determine infection and potential immunity to the virus. Researchers at Penn are also studying other treatment options, like hydroxychloroquine, working on vaccine development, and investigating the structure and behavior of the virus at the genomic level. ### Franz Tost does not yet know exactly how his team will go to Austria when the Formula 1 season of 2020 starts at the beginning of July. According to the team boss of AlphaTauri this is one of the points that the FIA is investigating together with FOM and Liberty Media. Tost thinks he will have to take some 65 men to the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg. Travelling together with Ferrari "When it comes to travel, there is hope that the roads can be used again in July", Tost kicks off at the German Speedweek.com. Should that not be the case, then according to the 64-year-old chief a chartered plane is the other option. "If it can't be otherwise, we can do that together with the staff of Ferrari. But due to all travel bans and border closures we have to wait and see if that's possible." However, due to the still prevailing coronavirus, there is still little clear about the movement of people and goods in the near weeks and even months. "This is exactly one of the reasons why we are currently able to present so little concrete. I hope that enough time has passed in July, that the borders are open again," Tost adds. Personnel from AlphaTauri and Ferrari come from Italy to Austria, but the majority of Formula 1 teams are based in Great Britain. "They could take a charter plane and land in Zeltweg or Graz. I assume that travelling professionals have to submit a health certificate", the former driver thinks aloud. Read more F1 2020 season start: Marko sees opening races in Austria as the best solution AlphaTauri expects to have to take around 65 with them. But how many employees have to be present on site during a Grand Prix to function properly? "We discuss this without committing ourselves to specific numbers. We would limit ourselves to those specialists who are absolutely necessary for the use of the car," says Tost, who states that staff from the marketing and media departments will probably be able to stay at home. "At AlphaTauri, we would be able to make ends meet with 60 to 65 people." Yoga is arguably more popular than ever before. Around the world, millions of people use yoga to escape the stresses of daily life, while the NHS website describes it as a safe and effective way to increase physical activity, especially strength, flexibility and balance. And with the world smaller than ever before due to coronavirus, yoga can be an easy and relaxing way of keeping fit in your living room. The best thing about yoga is its simplicity. All you really need is a mat, a YouTube video and something comfortable to wear. But when buying kit for yoga, it can be surprisingly complicated. There are long tops, short tops, cropped tops, tight tops and loose tops and thats before youve even considered the type of fabric. The first thing to consider when setting out to buy a yoga top is what kind of yogi you are. Its far more important to find a top that suits your practice than it is to stick with one brand. If you prefer a dynamic session, youll want a top with good ventilation. Those who like a gentler class should be looking for a loose, long top that gives them room to move. Depending on how rigorous your practice is, you might also want to look for tops with sweat-wicking and odour-resistant properties. We tested all of the below tops during dynamic ashtanga and vinyasa sessions in the comfort of our living room. Our checklist included whether the tops allowed us to move freely, how breathable they were and, most importantly, whether they were comfortable. Weve whittled the options down to our favourite pieces so whether you prefer a rigorous session after work or love nothing better than a gentle YouTube class on a lazy Sunday morning, we can guarantee you'll find a top that suits you. You can trust our independent reviews. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections, which are formed from real-world testing and expert advice. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. Lululemon love tank pleated Think yoga brands and one of the first companies you'll name is probably Lululemon. Founded in Vancouver in 1998, the brand sells yoga-inspired, high quality clothing. It has increased in popularity hugely over the years, moving from Canada to the wardrobes of keen yogis across the globe. And it's easy to see why. This tank is affordable, stylish and, most importantly, clearly designed with yoga in mind. Made from cotton, it is soft to the touch, but cleverly includes a little Lycra fibre to help it maintain its shape (even after washing). Its loose fit means it layers easily, so you can keep warm during winter classes, or you can add a sports bra underneath if you want some extra support. At hip length, it covered us well during practice and offers the additional flexibility of being able to be tucked into your bottoms should you want to ensure it stays in place. This everyday essential is available in eight sizes, from a UK size 4 to a size 18, and four different colours (we can recommend the plum). It was a close competition but this top just pipped the others to the post. Buy now 35 , Lululemon {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Bam double layer reflect bamboo top Launched in 2006, Bam specialises in bamboo clothing. This double layer top is made from sustainable materials, so it's a good choice for any eco-friendly yogis out there, while the benefits of bamboo fabric include a luxurious feel, moisture-wicking qualities and UV protection (perfect for anyone looking to drag their mat outside as we head into summer). As well as offering yogis an eco-conscious choice, this top is super soft and comfortable. The lower layer provides coverage to the hip helping you to remain confident and relaxed throughout your session, while the top layer is flexible and enables a full range of movement despite the sleeves. The sizing was accurate (its available from a UK size 8 to a size 16), and it comes in two colours, teal and prune. Overall, it's an easy-wear tee that isnt just great for yoga, but also for meditation and generally mooching on the sofa. Buy now 39 , Bam {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Sundried grivola 2.0 women's loose top Sundried may not be as well known as some of the other big brands in our roundup, but we love its ethos. The company believes in quality, eco-friendly, affordable sports apparel. This top in particular is part of its pioneering "eco charge" range and is made from recycled coffee grounds so any yogi looking to do that extra bit for the planet should go no further. Its flattering loose fit makes it perfect for yoga, enabling a full range of movement and covering from the neck to the hip. It offers similar sweat-wicking qualities as other products on the market and is super easy to care for, claiming that it dries 200 times faster than cotton (we can't guarantee this, but we can say that it doesn't lose its shape and dries fast). It's also versatile. We found ourselves lounging around in it on more than one occasion, so if you're looking for a yoga top that will take you from the mat to the sofa, then this is surely the one. Plus, at 30 it's a real bargain. Buy now 30 , Sundried {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Runderwear women's low-impact crop top We love to alternate between a yoga session and a jog round the nearest park. If youre anything like us, then youll love this light and bright crop top from Runderwear, which is known for its chafe-free products. The lightweight fabric is seam-free, so theres no need to worry about any rubbing even in the most vigorous sessions, and the top includes mesh panels, which increase breathability and help wick sweat away from the skin. Made predominantly from polyamide, its soft to the touch, while the compression fit ensures it stays in place from downward dog to sun salutations. The brand recommends this top for women with an A or B cup size (check out its whole range if youre in need of some more support) and its available in four sizes, from a small to an extra large. You can either wear it on its own or team it with a longer top if youre wanting a little more coverage. It is one of the cheapest tops we tried at just 25 and is highly versatile, satisfying runners, gym goers and yogis alike. You cant go wrong. Buy now 25 , Runderwear {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Icebreaker women's cool-lite motion seamless tank The name might not exactly evoke feelings of being warm and comfortable, but Icebreaker's tank top is soft, comfortable and high performing. Made from merino wool, with nylon and polyester to help with durability, this was one of our favourite tops. Morning, noon and night we found ourselves reaching for it and it even became a staple part of our pyjamas during a week in bed with coronavirus. What makes this top stand out is its material as well as its design. The dropped armholes mean there is plenty of room to move around, while the fit is loose but flattering. We loved the simple, bright designs, and the fabric didn't get damp or heavy even in the sweatiest of workouts (plus, it was thick enough to keep us warm during savasana). Like many of the other tops, the flatlock seams stop any stray threads accidentally chafing you mid-workout. At 70, is a bit pricey but if you're looking to spend a bit more, you won't be disappointed. Buy now 70 , Icebreaker {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Gore R3 women mistica sleeveless shirt Gore is well known for its performance wear and the brand has been a favourite of ours for some time. Engineered for running, but great for yoga too, this top is a product that we just keep going back too. Thin and soft, this high quality tank weighs just 75g so you hardly know you're wearing it at all. Sweating is taken care of quickly thanks to the breathable material, which is also slightly stretchy ensuring it moves with you during those all-important flows. The low neckline helps to prevent chafing, while there is an added bonus of a small hidden front pocket, which you can shove keys or a bank card into should you need to leave the house. We also loved the stylish design of this top, which includes reflective details for those evening jogs or trips to the yoga studio. Available in five sizes, from a XS to XL, this is one of the more expensive tops we tried but we think it is well worth saving your pennies for. Plus, it is super versatile and doubles as a great running top. Buy now 59.99 , Gore {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} Hummel Sue seamless top We confess, we're not usually a big fan of form-fitting tops for exercise, but we'd like to make an exception for this seamless top by Scandinavian brand Hummel. Unlike a lot of similar products, this top enhances your silhouette, acting more like a second skin than a piece of clothing. Made predominantly from polyamide, it stretches without losing its shape and stays in place throughout workouts, ensuring you don't need to worry about unwittingly showing off your belly in the middle of your practice. The racerback style and low neckline make it the perfect option for showing off your latest sports bra purchase, and the top itself offers a bit of support. Its only available in three combined sizes (XS/S through to XL/XXL), but we loved the fiery coral colour and would recommend it highly for yoga and gym workouts especially if you're prone to overheating. Buy now 16.50 , Hummel {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} On active-t breathe Swiss brand On designs simple, technical products, which seek to not only enhance performance but look great. At just 145g, this is one of the lightest tops we tried, making our practice feel almost effortless. We liked the soft-touch lyocell fabric (which is made from eucalyptus wood) and found it held its shape well, even after multiple washes. There was more than enough room to move from warrior II to triangle post (and, crucially, back again), but we didn't think it was particularly flattering, clinging to all the wrong places, and we found it slightly too short to tuck into our Lycra for inversions. To help combat this, wed recommend getting a slightly bigger size than usual. Buy now 60 , On {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} New Balance transform performance tank New Balance is well known by athletes and amateurs around the globe, so we were excited to try this tank, which is a cross between the tighter form-fitting tees and the looser tops. We found it offered us the flexibility we needed while still looking super stylish. The classic racerback and New Balance branding are attractive, but it's not just style over substance. Like many of the products, the brand's bespoke technology helps to wick sweat away from the skin, keeping you cool and dry during sessions, while the flatlock seams help to prevent any rubbing. It's super easy to care for, as it's machine washable and made from 100 per cent polyester, and affordable at just 25. Our only complaint is that the peach colour we tried is a tad see-through so make sure you've got your best sports bra on underneath. Overall, a solid tee from a well-established brand. Buy now 25 , New Balance {{#hasItems}} Price comparison {{/hasItems}} {{#items}} {{ merchant }} {{ price }} Buy now {{/items}} {{#hasItems}} {{/hasItems}} The verdict: Yoga tops There are so many great products on the market, it can be hard to know what the perfect yoga top is. But for both beginners and seasoned yogis, we think Lululemons love tank offers a high quality and, crucially, affordable choice. Luckily for you, lots of the other products we tried were also fab from Sundrieds eco-friendly tee, to Icebreakers cosy tank and Gores technical top making it easier for you to find something that suits your style. Namaste to that. IndyBest product reviews are unbiased, independent advice you can trust. On some occasions, we earn revenue if you click the links and buy the products, but we never allow this to bias our coverage. The reviews are compiled through a mix of expert opinion and real-world testing. The Chinese base at Fiery Cross Reef, March 2019. Beijing says Fiery Cross will now serve as an administrative district center overseeing the disputed Spratly Islands. China has upped the ante amid rising tensions in the South China Sea by declaring two new administrative districts for the contested region and releasing a new map naming all the islands and reefs it claims. The provocative moves come as Beijing faces diplomatic pushback from some of its Southeast Asian neighbors against its sweeping assertion of sovereignty across the resource-rich sea. It also takes place as the Chinas Coast Guard and maritime militia pressure other claimants, even as they grapple with the global coronavirus pandemic. Most recently, China has deployed a survey vessel and escort ships near an oil field off the coast of Malaysia. Chinas announcement on the administrative measures came this weekend. The State Council, Chinas top administrative body, approved the creation of two new municipal districts: Nansha District, which is based at Fiery Cross Reef, an artificial island built by China that it says will oversee all of the Spratly Islands and their surrounding waters; and Xisha District, based on Woody Island, which will oversee the Paracel Islands. It follows the July 2012 declaration of Sansha City on Woody Island as Chinas administrative center for the region. The two new districts cover a vast but largely uninhabited area. They are incorporated under Sansha, which itself has only 1,800 permanent residents. Chinas Global Television Network on Saturday described Sansha as a prefecture-level city that compromises only 20 square kilometers of land area but oversees nearly two million square kilometers. The declaration comes despite unresolved territorial disputes across that area, and efforts by China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to forge a binding code of conduct. Vietnam, which claims both the Paracels and the Spratlys, immediately condemned the announcement of the two new districts by China, calling it a serious violation of its sovereignty. Pooja Bhatt, author of Nine-Dash Line: Deciphering the South China Sea Conundrum, said Chinas move was intended to cement its territorial claims, which were undermined by a Permanent Court of Arbitration verdict from 2016. That verdict found that most of the land features it occupies in the South China Sea were actually rocks originally, due to lack of human habitation and economic activity. By inhabiting them now, China in time seeks to have these features regarded as islands entitled to territorial waters and exclusive economic zones, she said. Second, having administrative units can justify the presence of military and defense installations for protection purposes, Bhatt said. Furthermore the establishment of these cities increases the area of operation over the vast maritime domain in the South China Sea. China has constructed airstrips and military infrastructure at a number of the artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea in recent years, including at Fiery Cross Reef, where commercial satellite imagery provider ImageSat International recently spotted military aircraft. On April 6, the U.S. State Department had mentioned the landing of military aircraft at Fiery Cross. In that statement, the U.S. accused China of exploiting nations distraction over COVID-19 to expand its unlawful claims in the South China Sea. Also on the weekend, in a move calculated to demonstrate Chinese jurisdiction of the new districts, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and Ministry of Natural Resources released a new map naming each feature in the South China Sea it claims an exhaustive list that was last updated in 1983. The move by China to assert jurisdiction comes after a dueling series of diplomatic notes by China and rival claimants that were submitted to the United Nations. Malaysias initial submission claiming a part of the seabed in December sparked a protest from China, which in turn sparked further protests against Chinas claim from the Philippines and Vietnam. China issued its latest statement on Friday, and adopted a notably more aggressive tone towards Vietnam. China always opposes the invasion and illegal occupation by Viet Nam of some islands and reefs of Chinas Nansha Qundao, and the activities infringing upon Chinas rights and interests in the waters under Chinas jurisdiction, its submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) read. Nansha Qundao refers to the Spratly Islands. China resolutely demands that Viet Nam withdraw all the crews and facilities from the islands and reefs it has invaded and illegally occupied, the note added. Bhatt believes the continental shelf dispute and Chinas new districts will figure prominently in the years discussions between China and ASEAN. Vietnam is currently protesting Chinese actions the loudest and may be best-placed to press the issue further as the current chair of the 10-nation ASEAN bloc, she said. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will not attend the last rites of his father Anand Singh Bisht, who breathed his last on Monday morning at All India Institute for Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi after a prolonged illness. The Chief Minister will not attend it due to the lockdown in place to combat the further spread of novel coronavirus. The Chief Minister will, however, be visiting his native place after the lockdown ends. I am deeply saddened by the demise of my father. I wished to see him one last time but due to ongoing pandemic, it is my responsibility towards the 23 crore people of the state. I could not pay last visit to my father. Tomorrow on April 21 during the last rites of my father, I will not be able to attend due to lockdown in place for defeating the coronavirus. I would like to request people related to follow the lockdown guidelines and not to participate in huge numbers. I am paying tributes to my respected father, will visit post lockdown, said Adityanath in a statement issued. Meanwhile, several politicians across the party lines, also paid tribute to the departed soul of Adityanaths father. Samajwadi Party chief and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav tweeted, I extend my heartfelt condolences on the demise of father of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also expressed condolence to the departed soul and said, My heartfelt condolences on the demise of father of UP CM Yogi Adityanath, Mr Anand Singh Bisht. May God give the power to the family to bear the pain. Senior BJP leaders including party Chief JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had visited AIIMS to meet Anand Singh Bisht last evening. [ libretto ] 04.20.20 Oswald: The Musical A ct I. Open with a chorus line of high-stepping Jack Rubys in characteristic Jack Ruby garbdark suit and tie, white shirt, short-brimmed fedora. As they exit Lee walks on singing an ominous minor-key variation of Tonys Somethings Coming from West Side Story. The Kid from Nawlins? Watch Me Now? This Time Ill Make It? Whatever. Segue to the Oswaldss dingy bedroom. Marie reads a copy of Life magazine with JFK on the cover. Lee sits on the bed in his boxers, staring at the floor. Dialogue indicating hes just underperformed sexually. Marie turns the magazines pages with a snap subtly suggestive of gunfire. Flashback: Lee living in Minsk after his stint in the Marines, meeting Marie for first time. Neither able to understand the other, but Lees pidgin Russian giving them plenty to giggle about; just a couple of kids, basically. Lee and Marie sing a bilingual duet: The Language of Love? A Minx in Minsk? Comrades in Arms? Balalaikas playing as well as other indigenous instruments. Back to bedroom: Marie comments what a lucky girl Jackie is. Lee lifts his head. The audience registers his anguish. Lee rips the cover off Maries magazine. Giving full vent to his jealousy, he slaps Marie who curls up on the bed, weeping. After Lee exits she sings the poignant ballad, I Miss You, Mother (Russia)? So Far Away? Borsch, Babushka, and Belarus? A seemingly contrite Lee returns, crawls into bed with Marie and pulls the sheet over them. Act II. Open with a scene at the 544 Camp Street address where Lee meets his new radical friends. They speak of JFKs betrayal of the anti-Castro Cubans, his failure to supply air support at the Bay of Pigs, his sell-out to the Cuban dictator. Dialogue consisting entirely of one-liners and rapid patter, plus macho insult humor from George de Mohrenschildt, the conspirators ringleader and Lees instant father-figure. All very light and upbeat. Flashback: Lee in Marines barracks being tormented by fellow soldiers who play keep away with his copy of Das Capital and sing Oswald Rabbit, their cruel nick-name for the Marxist-leaning bookworm. Back to Camp Street. The scene ends with Donald Ferrie, the quirkiest of Lees new friendsfey, hairless, given to violent sexual innuendoleading them all in a rousing song a la Stubby Kayes Sit Down Youre Rockin The Boat from Guys and Dolls. No direct mention of assassination made at this meeting, but the songCamping It Up On Camp Street? Lying Low? Dispatch in Dallas?hints strongly at future events. For the rest of the act the stage is divided between the Oswaldss bedroom and the Oval Office, JFK bending a Marilyn Monroe-like figure over his desk, the Oswalds flailing about under the sheets. Lee, distraught after yet another failure and JFK, flush with post-coital success, meet in white bathrobes down-stage center for the show-stopping duet, America. JKF enumerates in song his many world-shaking achievements, Lee his many embittering disappointments, illustrating in aching contrast the fickleness of the American Dream. Act III: The curtain rises on the sixth floor of the Dallas School Book Depository. Lee gathers cardboard boxes and builds his snipers nest. The window is right over the orchestra pit. It appears hes preparing to fire into the audience, a little pushy symbolically, but effective. He takes the rifle out of the long brown paper bag and loads it. He checks the sight, moving the barrel from one side of the house to the other. While peering out in anticipation of the motorcade, he sings Payback? Entering History? On The Street Where You Die? Anyway, a downbeat number in the Kurt Weil mode, the music rising to a crescendo as Lee fires three shots into the orchestra pit. The lights come down. Next scene: The Dallas County Courthouse. Oswald clutches the bars of his cell and sings of his love for his wife, a song called simply Marie. Marie, whos been listening stage right, runs to him, her arms reaching through the bars. Members of the Dallas police force come and pull her away. Alone, she sings the heartrending Crime of Passion. Segue to Oswalds news conference with attack-dog reporters at the Courthouse done in a rapid-fire Gilbert and Sullivanish stylebut with an American flavor. Afterwards, before his transfer to the county jail, Oswald insists on a change of clothes, a delay that gives Jack Rubyskulking stage leftjust enough time to reach the garage where Lee will soon appear in handcuffs. In a number reminiscent of Stanley Holloways With a Little Bit of Luck from My Fair Lady, Ruby expresses his eagerness to atone for a life of petty crime and small-time gangsterism. Lee emerges on the arms of the Dallas Police singing Patsy! in a keening, falsetto voice. Jack rushes him, the gun pointed at Lees abdomen. The scene freezes in the famous photograph of Oswalds open-mouthed cry of pain and horror. The lights come down. A spotlight appears center stage. Marie, dressed in mourning, walks into it and reprises Crime of Passion. A second female voice is heard. Jackie, also in black, steps out and joins Marie in a haunting duet. The song ends. The women stand together, holding hands, heads bowed. All is solemn and still. Suddenly the house lights come up, the orchestra begins to play. Enter the Jack Ruby dancers. Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect Theresa Greenfield is the former president of a small commercial real estate business. WATERLOO U.S. Senate candidate Theresa Greenfield hit the campaign trail Saturday in front of a computer screen. The Des Moines businesswoman and one of five candidates seeking the Democratic nomination in the June 2 primary hosted a virtual meet and greet using a Zoom meeting joined by more than two dozen residents, many from Black Hawk County. Jon Bowzer Bauman of the legendary rock and roll doo-wop group Sha Na Na joined the electronic chat to play a couple of songs and voice his support for Greenfield to win the nomination and defeat incumbent Republican Sen. Joni Ernst in November. Welcome to political campaigning during the COVID-19 pandemic, where door-knocking, living room speeches, and crowded campaign rallies have been scuttled by the need for social distancing. Greenfield, a 56-year-old former president of a small commercial real estate business, focused the hour-long Zoom gathering on her support of Social Security while criticizing Ernsts record on the program and votes against the Affordable Care Act. Social Security and Medicare have just been fundamental to taking care of one another, whether youre a young widow like me or whether youre a granny somewhere across this country, she said. Greenfields first husband was a union electric lineman who died in a workplace accident. I suddenly became a widow, a single mom with a 13-month-old and another one on the way, she said. Im here to tell you I wouldnt be here today, I wouldnt have achieved all that Ive achieved, without Social Security and those union benefits. Along with his fame from Sha Na Na, which appeared at Woodstock and the movie Grease, Bauman represents Social Security Works, a national organization that advocates for strengthening the federal program. Bauman showed off his classical music chops with a keyboard version of Frederic Chopins Etude in E Major dedicated to his mother, a former Social Security recipient and sang a version of the classic rock song Good Night Sweetheart. In between songs, Bauman called Ernsts record on Social Security abysmal and said Social Security Works was taking the rare step of endorsing Greenfield during a primary race. Other candidates seeking Iowas Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate include Michael Franken of Sioux City, Kimberly Graham of Indianola, Eddie Mauro of Des Moines, and Cal Woods of West Des Moines. Love 0 Funny 3 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Over the weekend, President Trump and the Coronavirus Task Force held a Press Conference at the White House. Trump was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words: Thank you very much. Good afternoon. We continue to see a number of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak. Its been very devastating all over the world. A hundred and eighty-four countries. Probably more. That number was as of a week ago. Dr. Birx will walk through some of these trends in a few moments, but theyre very positive trends for winning. Going to win. Were going to close it out. While we mourn the tragic loss of life and you cant mourn it any stronger than were mourning it the United States has produced dramatically better health outcomes than any other country, with the possible exception of Germany. And I think were as good or better. On a per capita basis remember that: On a per capita basis, our mortality rate is far lower than other nations of Western Europe, with the lone exception of possibly Germany. This includes the UK, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, France. Spain, for example, has a mortality rate that is nearly four times that of the United States, but you dont hear that. You hear we have more death. But were much bigger countries than any of those countries by far. So when the fake news gets out there and they start talking about the United States is number one but were not number one; China is number one, just so you understand. China is number one by a lot. Its not even close. Theyre way ahead of us in terms of death. Its not even close. You know it. I know it. And they know it. But you dont want to report it. Why? Youll have to explain that. Someday Ill explain it. Since we released the guidelines to open up America again and this was two days ago a number of states, led by both Democrat and Republican governors, have announced concrete steps to begin a safe, gradual, and phased opening. Texas and Vermont will allow certain businesses to open on Monday while still requiring appropriate social distancing precautions. And I can tell you the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, he knows what hes doing. Hes a great governor. He knows exactly what hes doing. Montana will begin lifting restrictions on Friday. Ohio, North Dakota, and Idaho have advised non-essential businesses to prepare for a phased opening starting May 1st. Throughout this crisis, my administration has taken unprecedented actions to rush economic relief to our citizens. As an example, you dont hear anymore about ventilators. What happened to the ventilators? And now theyre giving you the other; its called testing. Testing. But they dont want to use all of the capacity that weve created. We have tremendous capacity. Dr. Birx will be explaining that. They know that. The governors know that. The Democrat governors know that; theyre the ones that are complaining. Through the Paycheck Protection Program, weve already processed nearly $350 billion to 1.6 million small businesses across the nation to keep American workers on the payroll. So were asking the Democrats to get it done. This should be bipartisan. This should be 100 percent vote. And its really been incredible. The $350 billion thats been approved is so popular, and its keeping businesses open. Itll be open hopefully forever. Our swift action is directly supporting 30 million American jobs. Amy Wright, from North Carolina, as an example, said the program is a game changer for her and her family. Its coffee shops. And she has 120 employees, many of whom have developmental and intellectual disabilities. And now theyre all staying, and theyre getting paid. And shes got a dream, and its going to take place very quickly when she opens again. So, Amy, good luck. North Carolina great place. Scott and Julie Alderink helped lead a church and own a restaurant in South Dakota, with about 15 employees. They were already starting layoffs. Layoffs were moving along rapidly. But now theyve hired their employees back, and they can keep the restaurant open. And itll be moving quickly very quickly as opposed to not having anybody and probably not having a place to have all of these people employed. She would have been out of business. She would have been done. The Paycheck Protection Program funding is now fully drained. Its out. Its gone. Three hundred and fifty billion dollars to small businesses. And, in turn, it goes to the employees of those small businesses. Lawmakers must stop blocking these funds and replenish the program without delay. The Democrats have to come onboard. I used to read that these were Democrat programs, not Republican. It seems to have switched around a lot, hasnt it? Huh? Switched around a lot. The republicans want it. I think the Democrats probably do too. But they also want other things that are unacceptable. This is about COVID. This is about the plague and what its done to us. This isnt about extraneous things that theyve been trying to get for years and that our country doesnt want them to have. As we enter the next stage of our battle, we are continuing our relentless effort to destroy the virus. My administration is taking steps to protect high-risk communities by providing funding for 13,000 community health center sites and mobile medical stations. In order to equip them with the most advanced and robust testing capabilities, these sites are incredible. What they can do is incredible. The job they do is incredible. These centers provide care to 28 million people living in medically underserved urban and rural regions, including many African American and Hispanic communities. Were taking care of them. And its so important, because youve all been reading about the disproportionate numbers on African American, and youre reading a little bit less about Hispanic, but likewise Hispanic communities. The numbers are disproportionate. In fact, were doing big studies on it right now. We dont like it. Not right. Nationwide, weve now conducted over 4 million tests, and Deborah will be talking about that. Its double the number conducted by any other country on Earth. So thats more than two times, actually, the number conducted by any other country on Earth. You hear so much about testing. What weve done is incredible on testing. And I started with an obsolete, broken system from a previous administration or administrations. But I would really say administration for a different reason because testing has become so advanced over the last number of years, and we have the most advanced of all. I spoke with other nations this morning the leaders and they all are talking about our great testing capability, and some of them want to know what to do; what how can they get involved, because they need it for their own countries. In Louisiana, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and other hotspots, we have also tested more people per capita, by far, than Italy, Spain, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, and all other major countries. So think of that. In New York, for instance, per capita testing is 6 percent higher than in Singapore. In fact, theres a typo. Its 67 percent higher. Thats a big difference. Id say theres a big difference between six percent and sixty- I was looking; I said, 6 percent doesnt look too good. Its 67 percent good job out there higher than Singapore; 64 higher than South Korea; and 47 percent higher than Australia. So its 67 percent higher than Singapore, which is a very advanced place in terms of what theyre doing. My administration has also been speaking frequently with many of the governors to help them find and unlock the vast unused testing capacity that exists in their states. Dr. Birx discussed yesterday the commercial and academic laboratories, and the states have tremendous unused capability, which they can use. The governors should use it. Tremendous unused capability, and theyre waiting for business from these governors that some of them complain. I must tell you, for the most part, were getting along great with them, but some of them like to complain. But I still go back because the hardest thing of all, by far, by a factor of 20, is the ventilators. And now were the king of ventilators. We have ventilators. Were going to be helping other countries very soon. Were going to be helping Mexico. I spoke with the President of Mexico. Hes great. A great guy. And I told him were going to be helping him. They desperately, in Mexico, need ventilators, and I told him were going to be helping him very substantially. Were in a position to do that. Were building, now, thousands a week. And theyre coming in rapidly, and theyre very, very high quality. But were also helping governors to develop strategies to smartly deploy their testing capacity to protect vulnerable and underserved populations, while getting Americans at lower risk safely back to work. So, again, we have tremendous testing capacity. Now, a lot of people like the Abbott test that we came up with. Abbott is a brand-new technology, brand-new test. Its great. Its five minutes, boom, you put it in. And were making thousands of machines. Abbott is making thousands and thousands of machines. But not everybody is going to get that one, but theyre going to get others. We have numerous platforms which well talk about in a minute. Unfortunately, some partisan voices are attempting to politicize the issue of testing, which they shouldnt be doing, because I inherited broken junk. Just as they did with ventilators where we had virtually none, and the hospitals were empty. For the most part, the hospitals didnt have ventilators. We had to take care of the whole country, and we did a job, the likes of which nobody we assembled an army of young, brilliant people. For the most part, young; a couple of older ones. But for the most part, they were young, brilliant geniuses that did a job like nobody would believe. I wish you could have seen it. Around the clock. And now the rest of the world is coming to us, asking if we could help them with ventilators because theyre very complicated, very expensive. Theyre very hard to build. And we have them coming in by the thousands. But you dont hear that from even the governors. Nobody is complaining about ventilators. And if there was a surge, we could have ventilators to them within hours, because we have in stockpile almost 10,000 ventilators. You dont hear about hospital beds. When I first started, everyone was talking, Oh, hospitals beds. Hospitals beds. The governor of New York correctly asked me for hospital beds, and we got the Army Corps of Engineers out, and they built them. He needed them. I mean, he we went I know he said that we were projecting. Were not projecting New York. Were listening to the governors. He wanted them. He needed them. And we gave him thousands of beds in Javits Center. We brought the ship. And then the ship, we had it converted to COVID-19. And that was a big deal, by the way, because of ventilation and all the things we had to do. But we did. And fortunately for him and for us, all of us they havent used either one very much because the numbers have gone down significantly. But it was there, and it was built, and it was beautiful. Two thousand nine hundred beds. It was incredible what they did. They did it in a matter of a few days. But, unfortunately and it was very good; the relationship was very good. And Im, frankly, glad they dont need them, but they were there. Louisiana, the same thing. I think the governor a Democrat, good guy and he will, I think, tell you a story that we had more than enough, and I said, Well, were supposed to build one more. I called him and I said, You know, if we dont have to build this hospital it was an additional anywhere from 500 to 1,000 beds. If you dont need it, would it be possible that we dont build it? Wed like to build it someplace else, or not build it at all and save money, which is okay for government to use it someplace else. And he called call me back the next day and he said, Sir, we dont need it. I said, Thats great that you say that. I appreciate it. And he didnt need it. But we were ready to go, and we took good care of Louisiana. We took good care of Michigan. We took good care of every place. We didnt we didnt miss a trick. And were in great shape on testing. We have different platforms. We actually have nine different platforms. And on Monday, were going to be adding one; thatll be 9 to 10. I dont like to count on them before theyre up, but well have anywhere from 9 to 10 platforms with a tremendous testing capability. And people can go, and especially with phase one. Now, at the same time just like with ventilators were building now the best ventilators. Just like with ventilators, our testing is getting better and better. I took the first test. The first test was not pleasant. This was not a pleasant thing. I said, You got to be kidding to the doctor. You got to be kidding. Up your nose and then we hang a right, and it goes down here. And then well wiggle it around here, under your eye. And then well pull it out and well say I said, No, thats theres no way that can happen. Is that the way it goes? You sure? This was a very unpleasant test. And then I was tested a few weeks later with the new test that just came out, the Abbott, where they just touch your nose, basically. And they put it in a machine, and literally, a few minutes later, they tell you if youre fine. And I was lucky in both cases, because Ive seen the damage that this does to people. But we have great tests. Theyve really gotten better and better and better as we go along. But we have a tremendous lab capability laboratory capability all over the country. And for some reason, the governors, theyre not a lot of them are, but some of the governors like to complain, and theyre not using it. We have tremendous capability. Were ready for them. And, as we go along, just like with ventilators, well get better, more advanced, and, you know, itll be well be able to do things that nobody would have even believed possible. But we started off with a broken system. We inherited a broken, terrible system. And I always say it: Our cupboards were bare. We had very little in our stockpile. Now were loaded up. And we also loaded up these hospitals. And, you know, were talking about payment. We gave billions of dollars worth of things to hospitals, and well have to work that out at some point. In fact, I guess theyre going to be working that out with Congress. But we loaded up hospitals. The federal government loaded up hospitals with things to take care of people that are very desperately were not we werent worried about payment at that time. We said, Youll take care of it at the right time. But we gave billions and billions and billions of dollars worth of medical goods and medicines and equipment to hospitals. And well well work it out with them. But people dont like to talk about that. So we have done a job that nobody believed this was a military and private enterprises march. We marched and, unfortunately, with the other side, because theyre viewing it as an election. How did President Trump do? Oh, he did, uh, terribly. Lets see. He did uh, yeah, he did terribly. Oh. But we just got them the ventilators that they didnt have, that they should have had. We just got them hospital beds by the thousands. We just got them testing that they dont even know how to use. In some cases, they have machines that theyre only using 5 percent and 10 percent of the machine, because they have an advanced machine and they dont know how to use it. It can use it can do much more. So weve had people explain how to use it. So, I dont know, I dont think I do that on the other side. I dont I really dont. I think that here we have a crisis that we have to work together, and I hope were going to work together. But were moving along, and were moving along well. Were moving along well. This should not be a partisan witch hunt you know? like the Russia hunt that turned out to be a total phony deal. Unfortunately, some of these voices, though, are attempting to to bring this into politics. And whether its testing or ventilators or hospital beds, or other dimensions of our sweeping public health response we have had a sweeping response. In speaking to the leaders of other countries this morning, they said, This is incredible the way youve done this so quickly. You know, were only talking about a few weeks since everybody knew this was such a big problem. And the rest of the world is watching, and they respect what weve done because I dont think anybody else I know nobody else could have done what weve done. And we started with garbage. As our experts said yesterday, Americas testing capability and capacity is fully sufficient to begin opening up the country, totally. Indeed, our system is by far the most robust and advanced anywhere in the world, by far. The rest of the world will tell you that. I spoke this morning to a friend of mine, President Moon of South Korea. He just won the election. He won it by a lot. He had a big victory, which I was happy about. And he was saying what a great job weve done in this country. I told him the same thing. He said what a great job weve done here in this country. So I appreciated that. He had a great by the way, he had a great victory and were very happy about that, from the standpoint of our country. Were working very well with them South Korea. As we approach and the approach that we use but as we approach, hopefully, the downward side of whats going on, I think youre going to see some incredible hard facts and evidence that what we did was right. Theres a lot of talk about herd the word herd. I dont want to show you charts of people that went a different way, but its scary. Its scary. We would have had, I think, millions of people die had we done a different way. And I think numbers are just coming out where theyre estimating 60,000 people will die. Thats horrible. I always say one person is too much, especially in this case, when it could have been stopped in China. It could have been stopped in China, before it started, and it wasnt. And the whole world is suffering because of it. But this herd concept and everybody had to think of it at the beginning, because, look look at us: We had the greatest economy in the history of the world. Better than China; better than any country in the world; better than any country has ever had. We had the highest stock market in history, by far. And Im honored by the fact that it has started to go up very substantially. Thats because the market is smart. The market is actually brilliant. Ive seen it. And theyre viewing it like weve done a good job. They view it that way. Because if you would have told me that were at 24,000 or beyond, and the highest we were ever was we never hit 30. We were getting close to 30, so lets say around 29,000. Were at 24. If we were heading down, I would start to say, Oh, wow, we may be heading into territory where I started. I didnt like that. Now were way up. But if you would have said to me with what weve gone through not caused by our country or our people or any I mean, not caused by certainly anybody within our country. But if you would have said that, after going through this horrible plague, that wed have a stock market thats much, much higher than when I started, much higher than where I started and I think its you know, I think we have tremendous momentum. We have a big election coming up, but I think we have tremendous momentum. First, we get rid of the plague. And because of what were doing with the PPP, what were doing with the Paycheck, as we call it, I think we have a chance to have these companies get back to action quickly. But our approach to testing is based on facts, data, and very hard evidence, not partisan agendas or coordinated political talking points. Mike Pence, whos a phenomenal guy, hes making the commencement address right now at the Air Force Academy, where theyre being very politically correct. Everyone is standing not 6 feet but 10 feet apart. Okay? And its very different. I made that speech last year. Im going to West Point. I think theyre changing the date to June 13th because of whats going on in New York. Theyre moving into June 13th. West Point. So Im doing their commencement speech, and theyre going to have its sad because but its a big start theyre going to have the cadets. They may not have the parents, but theyre going to have the cadets. The parents are so proud of them. I know at the Air Force Academy, where Mike is speaking right now, they dont have the parents; they have the cadets. Theyre very, very widespread. And you talk about social distancing I mean, they are really spread. I looked at it. They using 10 feet. So hes hes doing that. But theyre having it. Its very important to have it. And thats a great thing. Thats a great thing. Thats a big start. So hes there right now. And I will tell you, they hes a gentleman, Mike Pence. A real gentleman. And they requested the Democrat senators requested a phone call with him yesterday. And I think they had, for the most part, all of them on like, approximately 47. I heard it was just about all of them, whatever it might be. I dont want to be wrong by 1 or 2 or 10 and have the press say, He lied. He told a lie. Terrible, terrible. Whatever it was. But they have 47, and I guess most of them were on. I heard they were so rude. I used a term today I said, rude and nasty. But I heard they were so rude. No matter what he said, which was all very positive in terms of winning this battle against the invisible enemy no matter what he said, they were fresh. They were nasty. And it was, I heard, just a terrible thing. And I said, Mike, thats politics. Thats what it is. If we came into this room today and said, The battle is over. We have won. Its 100 percent gone. The Democrats would say, The President has done a horrible job. He has done a disgraceful job. It is a shame how bad he is. You know, its its this is the talking points; this is political. And it would be nice not to have that, especially when weve done the job weve done. I mean, all you have to do is look at the big the big V for victory or V for ventilator. Take a look at it. Everybody said they had us on that; they had us. They thought they had us, but we got them done at numbers that nobody would have believed. And we did use our Act, our Production Act, and we used it. But didnt use it we didnt need it like a hammer. All we had to do for the most part we used it, actually, in a number of cases. But for the most part, all we had to do is talk about it. All we had to do is say, Were going to use it if you dont do this. And everybody was, you know, for the most part, good. We used it a couple of times because it didnt work out the easy way, but it worked out the hard way. But whether it was masks or ventilator, it was incredible what weve been able to do. So this is a very critical time for the American people, and the American people deserve real information, and responsible and thoughtful dialogue from their elected leaders and from the media. The media has been some very honest, but some very dishonest. You know that. You know that. I mean, I even read a story where Mark Meadows a tough guy he was crying; he was crying. This was a Maggie Haberman. You know, she won a Pulitzer Prize for her coverage of Russia, but she was wrong on Russia. So was everyone else. They should all give back their Pulitzer Prizes. In fact, it turned out that the crime was committed by the other side. The crime was not committed by this side; it was committed by the other side a bunch of bad people. You saw the reports coming out over the last two weeks. They got caught. So Maggie Haberman gets a Pulitzer Prize? Shes a third-rate reporter. New York Times. And we put her name up here last week. You saw that. People thought it was a commercial. It wasnt a commercial. It was like a commercial, but it wasnt a commercial. It was just clips. And because we exposed her as being a bad reporter, what happened is she came out and said Mark Meadows was crying. And they made it sound I said, Mark and its okay if he did. I wouldnt you know, look. But I think he was crying probably really, for the wrong reason they had it down. But hes not a crier. And if he was I know criers. I could tell you people that you know that are very famous. They cry, and thats okay too. But it was a nasty story in so many ways. It was fake news. And she only did it because we exposed her for being a terrible, dishonest reporter. She is. Ive known her for a long while. I havent spoken to her in a long time. I made the mistake: I take a picture with her at the desk, a long time ago. Every time she does a story, if I say I havent spoken to her in long many, many, many months, maybe years. I dont speak to her. Shes fake. A lot of people are fake. A lot of people We got a lot of fake people. But what happens is she writes this story as retribution. Puts it in the New York Times. And the New York Times is a very dishonest newspaper. Its my opinion. Its not an opinion. Its actually, from my standpoint you know, the very hard thing to figure, though: Most people wouldnt know that, but I know it because I know the facts. And they make up I said it today; they make up words. Sources say Most often used: Sources say You know what sources say means? Sources say means they have nobody. And they make it up. Okay? And they have a few other type statements that mean the same thing. But sources say is the most often-used express- in the Washington Post; New York Times, especially; CNN fake news. CNN. They should really be mandated, and I mean mandated to use a name. If theres a source, use a name. Say that Kayleigh Kayleigh McEnany said or somebody. And youd find out that the number one, the source wouldnt say it. The sources dont exist. I dont believe the sources exist. And I try and tell this you know, the beautiful thing about doing these conferences is that we have tremendous numbers of viewers, and Im able to reach the viewers without having to go through fake news, where they make a good story into a bad story. So, with all of that, its been an incredible period of time. Weve done a fantastic job. Were the talk of other nations. The leaders of other nations are calling us for help. Theyre calling us for equipment. Theyre calling us for testing capacities. Now, with the testing, we are going further. Deborah is going to talk about that now. With the testing, we have some other tests coming up that are going to be, I think, phenomenal. I think theyre going to blow away everything as soon as they come out, and were going to get them out as soon as possible. But Id like to ask Dr. Birx to come up and say a few words about where weve come, how far weve come, and more importantly, where were going from this point. Because honestly, its its quite amazing. Thank you very much. DR. BIRX: Thank you, Mr. President. If we could have the first slide. I wanted to give you an update on where we are as states and as counties and as cities. I know you all are watching carefully. The numbers have shifted over the last few days. What happens when nations when states change the reporting from confirmed to probable? So now all probable cases are included. They had to add them back in. Even though the cases may have been from March, they were added over 14, 15, and 16th of April, and states may continue to be adding them. Eventually, were hoping that those get accounted for on the day when the presumptive cases or the probable cases were counted. But right now, theyre added in, in one fell swoop. So this is New York and New Jersey, and I think we all know how difficult and what a difficult time both New York and New Jersey have had. I call your attention to the axis; it goes up to 250,000 cases. So you can get a frame of how were talking about some of the other metro areas. Next slide. This is the 25 metro areas the top 25 metro areas. And you can only see the New York metro area in this slide. Again, the axis goes up to about 300,000. It includes the New Jersey part of the metro area, as well as part of southern Connecticut. Next slide. But if I take New York out and the reason I wanted to do that now the axis is one-tenth of the previous axis. So that previous ax- the previous slide, 300,000. This slide, 30,000. So that will give you a frame of reference for some of these other metros. The reason I wanted to show you this is this is cumulative cases. And we are still tracking, very closely, the issues in Chicago and Boston. But on this slide, I hope you can see the yellow line; that is Detroit. And Detroit and this mayor of Detroit has really done an extraordinary job, and the people of Detroit have done an extraordinary job with their social distancing. The other line I want to call your attention to is the line here. This is New Orleans. And I think frankly, I was concerned about New Orleans because they had a lot of preexisting comorbidities. They only they have two or three major hospitals, but a large cover, a very large area of geographic area. And that other blue line that you can see its down right here thats the Seattle line. And you can see that their response, because of the nursing home alert, they were one of the first states and the first metro areas to really move to social distancing. And so theyve really never had a peak, like many of the other metros. Next slide. Then I just want to take you through some of these new case graphics. That was cumulative cases. This is daily cases. And obviously, theres a lot of variability, and variability in reporting, but you get a sense over time, when you look at daily cases. So New Orleans is on the on panel on your left, and Baton Rouge on your right. But you can see clearly, New Orleans, about a month ago, very low levels, probably less than 50 cases. Large peak and spike around the beginning of April. And they have come down, and they have it down to very few cases. Again, I showed you before how both their syndromic cases have come down, as well as their actual case number of cases. Next slide. This is Seattle. So you can see they had a much lower peak. And this is when we talked about flattening the curve, this is what flattening the curve looks like. It becomes a longer, slower decline, but it ever gets very high, and then goes back down. Next slide. And then this is Detroit. And we always look at the metros as a consolidated. So this is both Wayne and Oakland in Michigan. And we really want to thank the mayor for the incredible job that they have done to really ensure that everyone is receiving the adequate healthcare and testing, and theyve done quite a good job with testing in Michigan. But all of these states Louisiana and New York have tested 30,000 per million inhabitants. Those are some of our highest numbers across the board. And next slide. And so the President talked about the case fatality rates, and we really weve lost a lot of Americans to this disease, and we pray and hope for each one of them that are in the hospitals and the excellent care. What this graph illustrates is the amazing work of the American people to really adhere to social distancing. This was some this was nothing we had ever attempted to do as a nation, and the world hadnt attempted to do. But they were able to decrease the number of cases so that, in general, most of the metro areas never had an issue of complete crisis care of all of their hospitals in the region. And so you can see our case fatality rate is about half to a third of many of the other countries. THE PRESIDENT: And, excuse me, does anybody really believe this number? Does anybody really believe this number? DR. BIRX: I put China on there so you could see how basically unrealistic this could be. When highly developed healthcare delivery systems the United Kingdom and France and Belgium and Italy and Spain with extraordinary doctors and nurses and equipment have case fatality rates in the 20s, up to 45, and Belgiums extraordinarily competent healthcare delivery system, and then China at .33, you realize that these numbers, even and this includes the doubled number out of Wuhan. And so I wanted, really, to put it in perspective, but I wanted you also to see how great the care has been for every American that has been hospitalized and how extraordinary work of our doctors and nurses in our laboratorians on the front line who have been doing an excellent job. Next slide. And then we also wanted to show THE PRESIDENT: If I might add, though, also DR. BIRX: Yeah. THE PRESIDENT: the number for Iran. Does anybody really believe that number? You see whats going on over there. Does anybody put that slide back, if you would. Does anybody believe this number? Does anybody believe this number? You saw more bags DR. BIRX: And this is why THE PRESIDENT: on television than that. DR. BIRX: This is why the reporting is so important. And I think you remember, almost six weeks ago, maybe a month ago, I was telling you what Italy was showing to us and what France was telling to us, and the warnings that they gave to us and said, Be very careful. Theres an extraordinary high mortality among people with preexisting conditions. And we used their information to bring that to the American people. That came that alert that alert, before we even had significant cases, came from our European colleagues on the front line. And thats why we keep coming back to how important, in a pandemic and a new disease, its really critical to have that level of transparency because it changes how we work as a nation. It allowed us on over March 15 to make an alert out there about vulnerable individuals and the really, they need to protect them, and my call-out to millennials to really protect their parents, protect their grandparents, and get that information out to everyone that there were preexisting conditions that put people at greater risk. That information came from our European colleagues who were in the midst of their battle themselves. And so there is never an excuse to not share information. When you are the first country to have an outbreak, you really have a moral obligation to the world to not only talk about it, but provide that information thats critical to the rest of the world to really respond to this credibly. And I really want to thank our European colleagues who have worked so hard to get us that information, even in the midst of their own tragedies. And I think that really shows how important transparency is. And we go to the next slide. We can show you this really encouraging and great news: So we know that fatalities will continue to lag because people are in hospitals still, and some are still sit in intensive care units. But these COVID-like illnesses this is our hospitalizations that are related to flu per 100,000 Americans. This is this years flu season. And you can see our COVID-like illnesses. And this is all of them, probable and confirmed cases. Our hospitalizations are declining. Now, I showed you metros that have made tremendous progress, and weve been up here many times talking about it being 6, 10, 15 additional cities. And now were really just focused on Chicago and Boston and Massachusetts, and really some issues that Providence is starting to improve now. So their relationship to the two large outbreak cities. But this is really reassuring to us, the progress were making across the country against this disease. And Im just really want to conclude by thanking again the American people for making these type of graphics possible; thank the data team who puts these together for me. So they are working until about 3:30 every morning to make sure that we have the most up-to-date information. Thats the data that goes to our supply-chain individuals to ensure that every hospital in every state and every community has what they need based on data, and to make sure that were serving the needs of the American people as effectively as possible. Thank you, Mr. President. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Deborah. Fantastic job. Is this yours? DR. BIRX: Yes. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. The fact is that weve been learning a lot from Deborah and Tony and so many of the professionals, the director. PEPFAR: Were spending the United States, without help, to the best of my knowledge mostly in Africa, $6 billion a year. And thats on AIDS. What weve done for AIDS in Africa is unbelievable. We spend $6 billion a year. Thats been going on for a long time. Nobody knows that; youve never heard that. Ive never heard that. Six billion dollars a year. Millions of people are living right now, and living very comfortably, because of the fact that we have found the answer to that horrible, horrible plague. That was a plague. But we spent $6 billion a year. And from what I hear, its very well spent, done by professionals, including this great professional right here. That was the thing that you worked hardest on and something that was very close to her heart. So its you know, its something that I think people should start hearing. The World Health Organization: Were just finding more and more problems. And we spend this money really well. There are other ways we can spend the $500 million. Thats $500 million; this is $6 billion. But we can find other ways to spend it where people are going to be helped, we think, in a much greater in a much greater way. Were doing some research on certain people that take a lot of credit for what they do. And NIH is giving away a lot of money a lot of money. Wed give away for years for many years, theyd give away a lot of money. And some people complain and some people dont. Some people are extremely happy. So were looking into that also. Theyre giving away approximately, as I understand it, recently, more than $32 billion a year. Thirty-two billion. And so weve been looking at that for a while, and were going to be having some statements to be made about that. Thirty-two billion dollars a year. Its a lot of money, and we want to make sure its being spent wisely. And weve been doing that, by the way, and well have some statements on that. And those are much bigger numbers then what were talking about with national if you if you look, with the with our friends from wherever they come from. You know, 500 500 million is a lot of money, but its not a lot compared to the kind of money that we give out. I think, over the years, its been averaging about 32 billion dollars. Thirty-two billion. So weve had our eye on that one for a while. We also talked about the lab in China where, I guess, $3.7 million was given some time ago. And were looking at that very closely. Chief of Staff has that pretty much under control. But its money that too bad it got spent there. But that was spent what year was that, Mark? That was four or five years ago? MR. MEADOWS: That was over the last six years. Yes. THE PRESIDENT: Six years ago, approximately. So were looking at that. And thats the lab that people are talking about. All right, so were looking at a lot of things. Theres tremendous waste in our government. We found it in many different ways and in many different forms. And this is one of them. This is one of them. We can spend I was talking to Dr. Birx we can spend $500 million using all of it in a much more efficient manner if were if we choose to do that. And itll be to the good of many more people than are getting it right now. But you look at the mistakes that were made I mean, so late, long after I said we have to close off our country. They were actually against our closing off our country to China. When I did that in January, they were against that. They didnt like the idea of closing off our country. They said it was a bad thing to do, actually, and theyve since taken that back. But it was a very lucky thing that we did it. Very lucky. We would have had numbers that were very significantly greater. Tony Fauci said that. He said it would have been very significantly greater had we not done that. So weve made a lot of moves that were good moves, but its still a very depressing subject because its a lot of death. And if it was stopped very early on at the source, before it started blowing into these proportions, you have 184 countries that would have been in a lot better shape. But our country is getting back, and I expect that were going to be bigger, better, and stronger than ever before. The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML. Englands deputy chief medical officer has been heavily criticised for defending the governments failure to boost coronavirus testing with some independent experts calling for the medical team advising Downing Street to consider resigning. Although Boris Johnson and his ministers have absorbed most of the attacks for the sluggish increase in testing, Dr Jenny Harries was denounced for claiming a larger number of tests would not necessarily have reduced the UKs death toll. Asked about Germanys superior rates of testing and lower death rates, the senior adviser said a causal link was not yet established. She added: I think the actual mechanism between the two is still not clear. Anthony Costello, professor of global health at University College London, suggested both chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty and his deputy should step down if they did not see links between testing and death rates. The former World Health Organisation director tweeted: Deputy CMO Jenny Harries still believes that testing policy in the UK has been correct. And she doesnt understand links between tests and Covid-19 death rates. Is this CMO policy? If so, they should resign. Dr Rupert Beale, head of the cell biology of infection lab at the Francis Crick Institute, added: Agree completely. Next level incompetence bordering on malice. Time for wholesale resignations and a reordering of the so far pathetic UK response. The government maintains a target of having 100,000 Covid-19 tests each day by the end of April. The latest daily figures shows just 21,626 tests were carried out on Saturday. Sir Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser who chairs the scientific advisory group for emergencies (Sage), last week admitted there had been a failure to increase testing as fast as it needs to scale. Yet he too claimed it was too simple to say testing saves lives, telling ITV it was not possible to equate Germanys relatively high rate of testing with the countrys relatively low number of deaths. Dr Harries defended the countrys approach to managing the spread of the virus on Sunday, suggesting it had been right to focus on managing patients rather than the testing operation after the initial phase. She said: We had and we still have a very clear plan we had a containment phase and it was very successful But once you end up with seeding and cases across the community, our focus has to be on managing the clinical conditions of those individuals. The adviser also called for a grown-up conversation about personal protective equipment (PPE), and also claimed that the UK has been an intentional exemplar in preparedness to the virus. Professor Devi Sridhar, chair of Global Public Health at Edinburgh University, responded to Sundays No 10 briefing by suggesting it was time both politicians and senior advisers showed some humility on the UKs response. She said: What Id love to hear: We made a mistake and didnt prepare. We underestimated this virus and treated it like a flu that would run through the population. We have not protected our front-line staff, and our most precious resource. But we will try now to listen and improve our response. Birmingham GP Rizwanul Haq referred to the comments about having an adult conversation as ridiculous and patronising statement, adding: I dont see her volunteering on being on the frontline without proper PPE. Professor John Ashton, the former regional public health director, has also been highly critical of the governments slow response to the outbreak and the narrow group of chums advising the prime minister. Not getting a grip in the early days all flowed from the prime minister not taking it seriously enough and the advice he was getting depending on a narrow group of chums, the chief medical officer and the chief scientist, he told the Liverpool Echo. Two staff members from the disaster management control room at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)s headquarters in Fort, Mumbai, have tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), civic officials said on Monday. The second floor of the building near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) railway station that houses the control room has been sealed and is being sanitised. Covid-19-related monitoring is not affected as there is another control room in central Mumbais Parel, officials said. Two people from the disaster control room tested positive for Covid-19 and the room was sealed on Sunday night, an official said on the condition of anonymity. All high-risk contacts of the staffers will be tested and some heave already been quarantined, the official added. The disaster control management is now working from an office in Parel. The control room, a monitoring unit, has a helpline number (1916) where citizens can call during distress and disasters. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) - The Department of Health (DOH) on Monday said it requested for the procurement of mechanical ventilators worth 1.3 million as part of its battle against coronavirus disease. DOH Spokesperson Rosario Vergeire said in a virtual presser that the procurement was made through Department of Budget and Managements Procurement Service. Sa ngayon po ito ay ginagawan ng market study para makasiguro po na competitive at cost-effective ang ating proposal at yung mga mapo-procure nating mga units, said Vergeire. [Translation: A market study is currently being done to make sure that our proposal is competitive and cost-effective, the same goes with the units to be procured.] However, DOH did not mention where the ventilators will be procured. Most parts of the world are scrambling to buy ventilators for COVID-19 patients. Early this month, scientists from the University of the Philippines are reportedly developing ventilators. Meanwhile, DOH also said that it is awaiting the delivery soon of personal protective equipment for frontline health workers. Among these are 300,000 N95 face masks, 271,100 gowns, 18,000 coveralls, 26,250 goggles, 52,500 shoe covers, 52,500 aprons and 500 non-contact infrared thermometers. KAMPALA The government of Uganda has allowed 268 foreigners to leave the country despite the ongoing lockdown over coronavirus. This was disclosed by the spokesperson of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Mr Jacob Siminyu, while addressing journalists in Kampala on Monday, April 20. Mr Siminyu revealed that on April 17, two planes; Ethiopian Airlines and Rwanda Air flew out of the country with the foreign nationals. He further explained that Ethiopian Airlines left with 221 people who were heading to Sweden and Norway. Rwanda Air, he said, flew to different destinations, including Japan and UK. Mr Siminyu explained that the two planes flew out with express permission from the President and in coordination with the governments of the different nationals. In the ongoing lockdown over coronavirus, the President banned air travel as well as any other entries into the country except for cargo. Mr Siminyu further explained that that some truck drivers are beginning to forge travel documents and that so far, they have arrested many of them at border points. Truck drivers are increasingly becoming the major carriers of coronavirus, with three of them so far testing positive. Related The employees of the state agency in charge of regulating the insurance industry in Texas might not put it this way, but in a sense, operationally at least, they have been preparing for the current health crisis brought on by the new coronavirus for a couple of years. It was around two years ago that Insurance Commissioner Kent Sullivan pointed his 1,300-plus member staff at the Texas Department of Insurance and Division of Workers Compensation toward the goal of creating a more nimble, agile, modernized, best practices organization. Since then productivity and efficiency have increased dramatically, even more so during the current work-from-home environment brought on by the COVID-19 epidemic, according to Sullivan. Upon embarking on the modernization plan, one of the first things the department did was to move away from desktop computers to laptops for every employee and to strengthen the agencys technological capability so that employees would be able to work from home in a high-quality seamless way, Sullivan said. In addition, there was a push to go paperless, and while TDI is not there 100%, there has been a dramatic shift toward a paperless workplace over the past two years, he said. Those capabilities, which we had already put in place for various reasons coincidentally they served us really well when we were all hit by the pandemic, he said. When Austin, the states capitol and home location for most state agencies, implemented its stay at home order on March 24 with the goal of limiting the spread of COVID-19, TDI was ready from an operational standpoint, Sullivan said. The work weve done for the past few years has put us in a position where people really can effectively telecommute, so we were able to do all of this fairly early on, Sullivan said. The transition from central office to the home office for 90% to 95% of TDIs employees took place over one weekend, and staff productivity has been extremely robust since that time, he said. Productivity and efficiency had already been improving at the agency, but in the weeks since the agency moved home there have been even greater improvements, according to Sullivan. Our folks, I really am proud what theyve been able to accomplish. They really havent missed a beat. Some TDI staff, including field personnel, had already been working remotely to a certain extent even before the pandemic hit. About a third of TDI employees were already working from home at times, according to TDI Deputy Commissioner for Public Affairs Stephanie Goodman. It varied from our call center staff who worked from home several days a week to staff who only worked from home one day a week or on occasion, Goodman said an email. Sullivan sees the ability offer the opportunity to work remotely as a great recruiting tool, one that the agency already has been using and plans to continue promoting in the future. I will tell you candidly that in some areas that require specialized experience or knowledge, being in the government and dealing with the government pay scales, we were in something of a disadvantage in terms of recruiting, Sullivan said. And one of the advantages I thought we could use and I think weve used to some success was to be able to tell people that under the right circumstances they could telecommute on a more aggressive basis than otherwise might be offered by some of the private sector jobs they would be looking at. Agent Licensing, Call Times Agent and adjuster licensing, as well as communication with the various stakeholders both consumers and diverse insurance sectors, including agents are areas where the department has experienced a big increase in efficiency and productivity, in the past two years and in the past two months. Sullivan said in an interview with Insurance Journal in May 2019 that before the department began its modernization initiatives, TDI call center wait times were averaging 30 to 45 minutes, even more in the aftermath of a major event, like a weather disaster. Immediately after Hurricane Harvey you might have waited upwards of an hour to get through to somebody, Sullivan said at the time. Since then, wait times have been dramatically reduced. For agent phone calls wait times have dropped to about 30 seconds during the pandemic, compared with more than more than one minute and 30 seconds just a year ago, according to TDI. Additionally, TDI staff answered more than 12,000 consumer calls in March, with wait times averaging under 30 seconds. Processing times for agent and adjuster licensing have also decreased significantly, from an average of 5.6 days in March 2019 to a little more than a day currently. Before TDIs modernization efforts began two years ago, wait times for an applicant to receive their license could even take up to six or eight weeks. Goodman said the licensing process initially was a bit of an operational challenge when the pandemic first hit partly because testing and fingerprinting vendors were required to shut down, not just in Texas but across the country. We got very little notice that our testing and fingerprinting vendors would be closing their sites. We worked with the Governors Office to suspend some state requirements and develop an alternate process in short order, she said. One of the things that we did was to relax the rules on a temporary license, added Nancy Clark, chief of staff of TDIs Administrative Division. Unlike in some other states, Texas statutes allow for temporary licensing. Agents are allowed to operate under temporary licensure if they already have a job that is dependent upon that license, she said. TDIs Licensing, Continuing Education Adjustments More details on TDIs adjusted rules for agent licensing and continuing education can be found on the departments website: tdi.texas.gov. Below are some highlights: New and Temporary Licenses Due to the closures of license testing facilities, TDI is able to issue temporary licenses without the required testing or additional fees. Fingerprints may be submitted later and training is available online. Temporary applications and appointment certification forms must be submitted online. Temporary licenses will remain active until further notice and the $100 additional fee for the temporary license will be waived.. Only emergency adjuster licenses will be issued until testing and fingerprinting sites reopen. License Renewals and Continuing Education Time for renewals will be extended by two months for licenses set to expire in March or April and late fees will be waived. Agents will be allowed more time to complete continuing education and CE fines will be waived. Source: TDI While the department hasnt seen an uptick in licensing applicants during the current health crisis, the interest in agent licensing has been steady, and applications have been filed for licenses all lines of insurance, Clark said. The agency had only recently completed the task of moving the licensing process to one thats completely online, so the application process has been widely available and theyve been coming in every day on a steady basis, she said. Insurance Impact and Solvency Sullivan said hes aware of the conflicts that have arisen between businesses that have been forced to close and their commercial insurers over carrier denials of business interruption coverage during the pandemic. Other than that, so far, the only other line of insurance he has seen as being significantly affected by the coronavirus epidemic is personal auto. Insurers have been filing auto policy changes of various kinds including those for rebates, refunds and premium credits in response to the fact that people arent driving as much during the stay at home orders. Goodman said the department has been proactive in getting those filings processed as soon as possible. Weve been able to review COVID-19 related form filings the same day we received them, she said. It remains to be seen what effect, if any, the COVID-19 pandemic will have on insurer solvency, Sullivan said. Thats because we are still very much in the middle of it. Theres simply no way to know what the solvency impact is going to be until it plays out. Sullivan said going forward the department will continue to make operational improvements. Were going to keep moving. Weve stayed on this path of best practices and investing in infrastructure and were going to continue down that road, he said. Related: Topics COVID-19 Agencies Texas Training Development TEKAMAH The Tekamah Police Department is pleased to report that the two subjects of an AMBER Alert, issued Monday morning, were located in Kansas, are safe, and are in the process of reuniting with their parents. The AMBER Alert was issued by the Nebraska State Patrol at the request of the Tekamah Police Department in the 8 a.m. hour this morning. Tekamah PD believed the two boys, Marco and Isaac De La Garza, had been abducted by their step-grandfather Tanner Leichleiter, from their home in Tekamah. The investigation developed information that the vehicle they were traveling in, a white 2009 Ford Expedition, may be in Kansas. That information was shared with law enforcement personnel throughout Kansas and the AMBER Alert was extended into Kansas by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. At approximately 11:00 a.m., deputies with the Sedgwick County Sheriffs Office located the vehicle and were able to take Tanner Leichleiter into custody and safely recover Marco and Isaac De La Garza. The two boys will be reunited with their parents. Leichleiter is being held in the Sedgwick County Jail. The investigation conducted by the Tekamah Police Department is ongoing. The Felix Project, our Help The Hungry appeal partner in London, has quadrupled its supply of food to vulnerable Londoners to 42 tonnes the equivalent of 100,000 meals a day. In the four weeks since lockdown, they have delivered 565 tonnes a staggering 1.35 million meals. This extraordinary humanitarian effort carried out with 22 delivery vans manned by a small army of volunteers comes in the wake of rising food poverty and worrying new research on unemployment. The Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex estimated at the weekend that at least 6.5 million jobs could be lost, a fifth of the national total, with the duration of the lockdown being critical as to whether job losses will be short-lived. It comes on top of a YouGov poll for The Food Foundation revealing that 8 million people in Britain face food insecurity and that 3 million have already experienced hunger. As Felix scrambles to respond to the deepening distress with no government support, donations to our campaign, in conjunction with sister title the Evening Standard, are crucial to fund their fast-expanding operation. Today we can report a hugely generous donation from the Garfield Weston Foundation, who agreed to an emergency grant of 500,000 to be shared equally between The Felix Project and FareShare, Londons two biggest food surplus distributors, for their work supporting the most vulnerable families in the wake of the coronavirus. Philippa Charles, director of the Garfield Weston Foundation, said: Alongside significant grants to the National Emergency Trust among others, our trustees are keen to ensure that those most vulnerable and affected by this crisis receive the immediate support they need. We are delighted to support this partnership between two effective charities with which we have had long-standing relationships. Another donor to our appeal, which is approaching 2m, was the Oso Foundation, whose trustee Karen Jankel, said: Doing the weekly grocery shop may have its challenges for most of us, but at least we can afford to put food on the table. The ethos behind The Felix Project appeals to us as we hate the idea of waste and so by giving them our donation, we feel as though were making a small difference twice over. On Friday, Felix delivered 16 truckloads of nutritious food to community hubs in eight boroughs Barnet, Enfield, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Islington, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest and a further 26 truckloads to 75 charities, schools and holiday clubs. All in all, this is the daily equivalent tonnage of three-and-a-half double-decker Routemaster buses. With more borough hubs set to come on stream in the coming days, demand for their services is set to rise yet further. The Independent is encouraging readers to help groups that are trying to feed the hungry across the country find out how you can help here. Follow this link to donate to our campaign in London, in partnership with the Evening Standard. (Alliance News) - Coro Energy PLC on Monday reported a widened annual loss as a result of higher expenses, especially interest expense on its eurobonds. The upstream oil and gas company posted a USD7.9 million loss for 2019, widened from USD4.5 million the previous year. General & administrative expenses were 6.2% higher at USD5.1 million from USD4.8 million while finance expense totalled USD2.7 million compared to nothing the year before. Of the USD2.7 million, USD2.3 million was interest on borrowings. The company completed the issue of EUR22.5 million of three-year eurobonds in April 2019. These were recognised at fair value and have been recorded at amortised cost. Post year-end, Coro allowed the agreement for its USD6.9 million acquisition of a 42.5% interest in the Bulu production sharing contract, offshore Java in Indonesia, to lapse. Government approvals for the deal had yet to be obtained and concerns arose around the future of its operating partner as well as possible new requirements to satisfy a development plan for Bulu. The firm has implemented cost saving measures post year-end gven the Covid-19 pandemic as well as "challenging market conditions". "We believe that excellent opportunities in the oil and gas sector remain, particularly in strong regional gas markets like Asia; and the board remains confident we have the appropriate strategy to succeed. Whilst in the near term we have moved decisively to protect our cash resources, when capital markets reopen and the environment for M&A improves, the company will be well positioned to take advantage of the opportunities that will undoubtedly arise. In the meantime, we thank shareholders for their patience and wish them safe passage through this turbulent period," said Coro. Shares in Coro were down 7.3% at 0.39 pence in London on Monday afternoon. By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. If you own shares in Galway Metals Inc. (CVE:GWM) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Modern finance theory considers volatility to be a measure of risk, and there are two main types of price volatility. The first type is company specific volatility. Investors use diversification across uncorrelated stocks to reduce this kind of price volatility across the portfolio. The second type is the broader market volatility, which you cannot diversify away, since it arises from macroeconomic factors which directly affects all the stocks on the market. Some stocks see their prices move in concert with the market. Others tend towards stronger, gentler or unrelated price movements. Beta is a widely used metric to measure a stock's exposure to market risk (volatility). Before we go on, it's worth noting that Warren Buffett pointed out in his 2014 letter to shareholders that 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' Having said that, beta can still be rather useful. The first thing to understand about beta is that the beta of the overall market is one. Any stock with a beta of greater than one is considered more volatile than the market, while those with a beta below one are either less volatile or poorly correlated with the market. View our latest analysis for Galway Metals What does GWM's beta value mean to investors? Given that it has a beta of 1.60, we can surmise that the Galway Metals share price has been fairly sensitive to market volatility (over the last 5 years). If this beta value holds true in the future, Galway Metals shares are likely to rise more than the market when the market is going up, but fall faster when the market is going down. Share price volatility is well worth considering, but most long term investors consider the history of revenue and earnings growth to be more important. Take a look at how Galway Metals fares in that regard, below. Story continues TSXV:GWM Income Statement April 20th 2020 Could GWM's size cause it to be more volatile? Galway Metals is a noticeably small company, with a market capitalisation of CA$44m. Most companies this size are not always actively traded. Relatively few investors can influence the price of a smaller company, compared to a large company. This could explain the high beta value, in this case. What this means for you: Since Galway Metals tends to move up when the market is going up, and down when it's going down, potential investors may wish to reflect on the overall market, when considering the stock. In order to fully understand whether GWM is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Galway Metalss financial health and performance track record. I urge you to continue your research by taking a look at the following: Past Track Record: Has GWM been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of GWM's historicals for more clarity. 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. 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. KANSAS CITY, MO--Drug resistance is a major obstacle in cancer treatment--leading to relapse for many patients. In a new study, published online April 20, 2020, in Nature Cell Biology, researchers from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Children's Mercy Kansas City, and The University of Kansas Cancer Center report on a promising new strategy to overcome drug resistance in leukemia, using targeted doses of the widely-used chemotherapy drug doxorubicin. The study's researchers found that low doses of the anthracycline antibiotic doxorubicin inhibit the interaction between two molecular pathways that work closely together to promote tumor growth and resistance to therapy. The targeted approach also clears the way for cancer-targeting immune cells to do their work, an unexpected and novel finding, according to the study authors. "In low doses, doxorubicin actually stimulated the immune system, in contrast with the typical clinical doses, which were immunosuppressive, killing healthy immune cells indiscriminately," says John M. Perry, PhD, a researcher with the Children's Mercy Research Institute at Children's Mercy. He completed his postdoctoral work at Stowers and is first author of the report. The findings are the result of a decade-spanning collaborative effort among researchers at the Stowers Institute, Children's Mercy, The University of Kansas Cancer Center and other institutions, evolving from their studies on how normal, healthy stem cells self-renew. Early in their studies, Stowers Institute Investigator Linheng Li, PhD, and Research Specialist Xi He, MD, showed that the protein kinase Akt could enhance Wnt signaling via phosphorylating beta-catenin, thus promoting tumorigenesis in the gut. Perry further investigated the Wnt/beta-catenin and PI3K/Akt pathways in the hematopoietic (blood-forming) system. Using a mouse model with genetic modifications of the Wnt/beta-catenin and PI3K/Akt pathways, Perry found that the two pathways cooperate to drive stem cell renewal, thus resulting in excessive blood-forming stem cell production. But instead of just expanding the stem cells, the permanent activation of the pathways caused the mice also to develop leukemia. Intrigued, the researchers shifted their focus to inhibiting interaction between those same pathways to target leukemia stem cells. Many drugs that directly target the Wnt/beta-catenin or PI3K/Akt pathways eventually fail because cancer cells evolve resistance to them, and broadly-acting chemotherapeutic drugs can have harsh side effects and systemic toxicity. The researchers collaborated with Scott Weir, PhD, and Anuradha Roy, PhD, at The University of Kansas (KU) Cancer Center, to search for an alternative among the compounds cataloged in the center's small molecule library. "Our idea was to find a drug with the goal of blocking the interaction between Wnt/beta-catenin and PI3K/Akt and reduce the toxicity," says Li, who serves as liaison between Stowers and the KU Cancer Center and co-leads the center's cancer biology research program. The team conducted high-throughput drug screening, which showed that doxorubicin did the best job of inhibiting the interaction between the two pathways. They found that the drug's inhibitory powers worked at low doses, which offers an advantage over administering it at high doses as a chemotherapeutic drug where it can cause lasting heart damage in some patients. Samples collected from pediatric leukemia patients at Children's Mercy were also central to the study. A diagnostic sample was collected from each patient before and after chemotherapy treatment to compare therapy-resistant leukemia stem cells to therapy-sensitive leukemia stem cells. Then the samples were transplanted into mice to test whether they developed leukemia and whether low-dose doxorubicin treatment improved their survival and reduced leukemia development. "We found that mice receiving patient sample transplants with therapy-resistant leukemia stem cells rapidly developed leukemia, but low-dose doxorubicin treatment improved survival by reducing leukemia stem cells," Perry says. "However, mice receiving patient sample transplants that did not contain therapy-resistant leukemia stem cells did not respond to low-dose doxorubicin treatment. These results showed that chemoresistant leukemia stem cells from patients could be functionally reduced with low-dose doxorubicin treatment, at least in an in vivo animal model assay." After successful testing in mouse models, the researchers worked with Tara Lin, MD, at the KU Cancer Center to conduct a small-scale clinical trial to test low-dose anthracycline treatment on adults with treatment-resistant acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The trial used daunorubicin, a chemotherapy drug in the same class as doxorubicin, which is widely used in treating AML. Bone marrow was collected immediately prior to treatment and again post-treatment. Half of the study participants responded to the treatment and had reduced numbers of leukemia stem cells exhibiting the Akt-activated beta-catenin biomarker. In addition to these encouraging results, the overarching study also revealed surprising insights into immune escape--a hallmark of cancer development in which cancerous cells evade the immune system and proliferate. Mechanistically, they found that leukemia stem cells express multiple proteins known as immune checkpoints, which turn off immune responses that might otherwise recognize and eliminate leukemia stem cells. Another team member, Fang Tao, PhD, uncovered that beta-catenin binds to multiple immune checkpoint gene loci. Low-dose doxorubicin treatment reduced expression of these immune checkpoints, including PD-L1, TIM3, and CD24, which exposed otherwise resistant leukemia stem cells to immune-mediated cell killing. Going forward, at Children's Mercy, Perry is conducting further research to understand ways to screen other drugs that synergize with low-dose doxorubicin to kill resistant cells while reactivating anticancer immunity in pediatric patients. His team has recently launched a clinical trial on low-dose doxorubicin in pediatric patients. At Stowers, the Li Lab is investigating similar strategies for overcoming cancer therapy resistance in solid tumor cancers including breast cancer, glioblastoma, and colon cancer. "The research holds promise as a more effective strategy to overcome cancer therapy resistance and immune escape that can be used in combination with other cancer therapies including chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy for patients with leukemia and other types of cancer," Li says. Low-dose doxorubicin also avoids the harsh side effects of high-dose doxorubicin, potentially offering patients a better quality of life. In high doses, doxorubicin damages the heart muscle. Even when patients survive long-term, highly toxic anticancer treatments often cause long-term health problems and reduced life expectancy. "Pediatric patients should live another half-century or more, so we need to do a better job of ensuring not only long-term survival, but healthy and productive lives," Perry says. ### In addition to Li and Perry, study coauthors from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research include Fang Tao, PhD, Xi C. He, MD, Shiyuan Chen, Linhao Ruan, PhD, Xiazhen Yu, MD, PhD, Debra Dukes, Andrea Moran, Meng Zhao, PhD, Aparna Venkatraman, PhD, Pengxu Qian, PhD, Zhenrui Li, PhD, Mark Hembree, and Ariel Paulsen. Lead collaborators at other institutions include Scott Weir, PhD, Andrew Godwin, PhD, and Tara Lin, MD, from The University of Kansas Cancer Center; Anuradha Roy, PhD, and Melinda Broward from the University of Kansas, Lawrence; Erin Guest, MD, Keith August, MD, and Alan Gamis, MD, from Children's Mercy; Dong Xu, PhD, from the University of Missouri; Sitta Sittampalam, PhD, from the National Institutes of Health; and Xiuling Lu, PhD, from the University of Connecticut. This work was supported by funding from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Children's Mercy, Braden's Hope for Childhood Cancer, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Kansas Bioscience Authority, Hall Family Foundation, University of Connecticut Academic Plan Grant, American Chemical Society (award ACS PRF 5247200 to RMK), National Science Foundation (CAREER award DMR 0748398 to RMK), and National Institutes of Health including the National Cancer Institute (Cancer Center Support Grant P30CA168524 to KU Cancer Center) and the National Institute of General Medical Science (award R01GM100701 to DX). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. Lay Summary of Findings In a new study, published online April 20, 2020, in Nature Cell Biology, researchers report on a promising new strategy to overcome drug resistance in leukemia, using targeted doses of the widely-used chemotherapy drug doxorubicin. The findings are the result of a decade-spanning collaborative effort among researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Children's Mercy Kansas City, The University of Kansas Cancer Center, and other institutions, evolving from studies in Linheng Li's laboratory at Stowers where first author John Perry, PhD, completed his postdoctoral fellowship. The researchers found that low doses of doxorubicin, a standard treatment for several types of cancer including leukemia, inhibits two molecular pathways, Wnt/beta-catenin and PI3K/Akt, which work closely together to promote tumor growth and resistance to therapy. The team also found that low-dose but not high-dose doxorubicin activated anticancer immunity against therapy-resistant leukemia stem cells, an unexpected and novel discovery. The research holds promise as a more effective strategy to overcome cancer therapy resistance and stimulate immunity that can be used in combination with other cancer therapies including chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy for patients with leukemia and other types of cancer. Low-dose doxorubicin also avoids the harsh side effects of high-dose doxorubicin, potentially offering patients a better quality of life. About the Stowers Institute for Medical Research The Stowers Institute for Medical Research is a non-profit, basic biomedical research organization dedicated to improving human health by studying the fundamental processes of life. Jim Stowers, founder of American Century Investments, and his wife, Virginia, opened the Institute in 2000. Currently, the Institute is home to about 500 researchers and support personnel, over 20 independent research programs, and more than a dozen technology development and core facilities. Learn more about the Institute at http://www.stowers.org and about its graduate program at http://www.stowers.org/gradschool. Canada Nickel Company Inc. Upsizes Private Placement Financing Posted by Publisher Internet Canada Nickel Company Inc. (?Canada Nickel? or the ?Company?) (TSX.V: CNC -? https://www.commodity-tv.com/play/canada-nickel-company-recently-ipo-with-huge-nickel-resource-in-canada/ ) is pleased to announce that the unit component of the best efforts private placement financing previously announced on April 02, 2020 (the ?Offering?) is now oversubscribed and as a result the syndicate of agents led by PI Financial Corp., which includes Red Cloud Securities Inc. and Haywood Securities Inc., have exercised their agents? option and the Company has upsized the Offering. The Offering will now consist of up to 1,642,890 units (the ?Units?), up to 5,000,000 flow-through common shares (the ?FT Shares?) and up to 4,113,900 flow-through units (the ?FT Units?) of the Company to raise aggregate gross proceeds of up to approximately C$4.69 million. Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby commented, ?We are grateful for the support from existing investors and welcome new investors who have recently become acquainted with the Canada Nickel story. Demand for the private placement was higher than we expected which has led to today?s announcement of an increase in the total funds to be raised which will be used to continue to advance our Crawford nickel-cobalt sulphide discovery.? Each of the Units, FT Shares and FT Units will be offered by way of a best efforts private placement at a price of C$0.35 per Unit, C$0.40 per FT Share and C$0.515 per FT Unit respectively. The Agents are working with a charitable promoter in respect of the sale of the FT Units. Each Unit will now consist of one common share in the capital of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a ?Warrant?). Each Warrant shall entitle the holder to acquire an additional common share at a price of C$0.57 for a period of 30 months following the closing of the Offering. The exercise of the Warrants shall be subject to the following acceleration provision: if for any twenty (20) consecutive trading days the volume-weighted average trading price of the Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the \Exchange\) exceeds C$0.85 at any time after the Closing Date and until the expiry date of the Warrants, then the Company is entitled, at its option, to accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants to a date that is not less than 30 days from the date when such notice is given. The Issuer will notify warrant holders by way of press release that the warrants have accelerated and provide new expiry dates in such press release. This clause may not be used to extend the expiry date of the Warrants. Each FT Unit will consist of one flow through common share in the capital of the Company and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a ?FT Warrant?). Each FT Warrant shall have the same terms as the Warrant forming part of the Unit. The net proceeds of the Offering will be used to fund advancement of the Company?s Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Discovery and for working capital purposes. The closing of the Offering is anticipated to occur on or around May 5, 2020 (the ?Closing Date?) and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a statutory hold period in Canada expiring four months and one day from the Closing Date. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the ?U.S. Securities Act?) or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. About Canada Nickel Company Canada Nickel Company Inc. is advancing the next generation of nickel-cobalt sulphide projects to deliver nickel and cobalt required to feed the high growth electric vehicle and stainless steel markets. Canada Nickel provides investors with leverage to nickel and cobalt in low political risk jurisdictions. Canada Nickel is currently anchored by its 100% owned flagship Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project in the heart of the prolific Timmins-Cochrane mining camp. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements This press release contains certain information that may constitute \forward-looking information\ under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward looking information includes, but is not limited to,? the timing of the closing of the Offering, the total amount raised under the Offering, the potential of the Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project, strategic plans, including future exploration and development results, and corporate and technical objectives. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could affect the outcome include, among others: future prices and the supply of metals, the future demand for metals, the results of drilling, inability to raise the money necessary to incur the expenditures required to retain and advance the property, environmental liabilities (known and unknown), general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties, results of exploration programs, risks of the mining industry, delays in obtaining governmental approvals, and failure to obtain regulatory or shareholder approvals. 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 information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. All forward-looking information contained in this press release is given as of the date hereof and is based upon the opinions and estimates of management and information available to management as at the date hereof. Canada Nickel 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 required by law. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR DISEMMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES Residents wear face masks as they walk past volunteers manning a checkpoint at the entrance to an alley in Beijing on Feb. 21, 2020. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images) Chinese Top Public Security Official Placed Under Investigation A high-ranking public security official in China has been placed under internal investigation, though whether it has to do with Beijings handling of the CCP virus outbreak is unclear. Sun Lijun, 51, a vice minister within Chinas Ministry of Public Security, is suspected of serious violations of Party discipline and the law, according to an online announcement on April 19. Hes now under investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and National Supervisory Commission, the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) internal anti-corruption watchdogs. The public security ministry is in charge of Chinas police system. The two agencies didnt provide further details about Suns alleged wrongdoing, but the turn of phrase in the announcement is an oft-used euphemism for corruption. Sun played a significant role in Beijings effort to combat the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. In January, Beijing set up a coordination group for the prevention and control of the virus, under the Politburo Standing Committeethe Partys top decision-making body. Sun was a member of the group, which is headed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, according to Chinese state-run media reports. On Feb. 20, the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission reported on its website that Sun was among a group of Chinese officials who accompanied Yin Yonga former mayor of Shanghai who became Party secretary of Hubei Province on Feb. 13to listen to local prevention reports at the Wuhan Public Security Bureau a day earlier. Wuhan, the epicenter of Chinas outbreak, is the capital city of Hubei. Sun also appeared on Xianwen Lianbo, a daily news program on state-run broadcaster CCTV, on March 9. The program showed that Sun attended an oath-taking ceremony at a local police station in Wuhan, for two police officers who joined the Party after taking part in the virus response. On Sunday evening, when Zhao Kezhi, Chinas public security minister, held a meeting for police officials. According to Chinese state-run media, the meeting discussed how Sun had for a long time ignored the Partys discipline and political rules. In recent years, many Party officials who were charged with disciplinary violations later were convicted in formal court proceedings. Persecution of Faith Group Sun, a native of Qingdao in eastern Chinas Shandong Province, became the vice minister in March 2018. Prior to his post, Sun was a deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Shanghai municipal government; director of the public security ministrys office in dealing with affairs in Macau, Hong Kong, and Taiwan; as well as a deputy director of the Central 610 Office. The 610 Office was a Gestapo-like secret police force that was established expressly to carry out the persecution of Falun Gong adherents. It was nominally abolished in 2019, but its functions have continued to be carried out by other regime security forces. Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual practice that involves meditative exercises and moral teachings based on truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. Since July 1999, the CCP regime has severely persecuted Falun Gong, with hundreds of thousands of adherents detained in prisons, labor camps, and brainwashing centers, often while also being tortured. Thousands have died, according to the Falun Dafa Information Center, though the true number is likely far higher. The pandemic has not slowed down the regimes persecution campaign. According to Minghui.org, a website that monitors the persecution of Falun Gong in China, 384 Falun Gong adherents were arrested and 363 harassedamong them 313 saw their homes ransackedin March alone. Hebei Province saw the most cases of arrests with 48, followed by Liaoning Province with 45 and Shandong Province 44. In the same month, fifteen adherents were given court sentences due to their faith. Three adherents were persecuted to death, according to Minghui.org. Political Infighting A source familiar with internal Party affairs who does not wish to be named told the Chinese-language Epoch Times that Suns downfall had to do with political infighting within the Party, as Sun is part of a political faction loyal to former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin. Since current Chinese leader Xi Jinping took power in 2012, he has utilized an anti-corruption campaign to purge the Party of Jiang faction officials. According to the source, Sun posed a threat to Xi because he is a high-ranking official within the Jiang faction. Sun was former director of the first and 26th departments of the public security ministry, which according to the source, is in charge of the security detail for top Party officials family members. Current leader Xi decided to eliminate such a high-level threat, as there have been recent rumors of a political coup against Xi, the source added. Suns downfall means that Xi is now in control politically. Previously, Xi purged high-level Jiang officials such as former Chinese security czar Zhou Yongkang and Meng Hongwei, former vice minister of public security and Interpol president. Before being sentenced to life imprisonment in 2015, Zhou, who climbed up the political ladder by carrying out the persecution campaign against Falun Gong, plotted with former Party boss of Chongqing Bo Xilai to stage a coup against Xi. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 21:36:11|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NEW YORK, April 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. oil prices plummeted almost 40 percent on Monday to nearly 11 U.S. dollars per barrel, the lowest level since 1998. As the last settlement day of the May contract, investors rushed to close out their trade positions on Monday, pressing down the prices. The June contract was down 11.9 percent at 22.06 dollars. The havoc COVID-19 pandemic wrecked across the world has translated into plunging oil prices. Traders are also becoming increasingly concerned that oil storage facilities are reaching their limits as stockpiles continue to build owing to the crashing demand caused by the surging number of confirmed cases. Enditem I dris Elba has made an unexpected suggestion for life after coronavirus, raising the possibility of annual pause button on people's busy lives. The actor, 47, and his wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba have spoken about contracting coronavirus, calling the experience definitely scary and unsettling and nervous. You know, everyones sort of feeling the way we have been feeling, but it has definitely been sort of just a complete upheaval, the Luther star told The Associated Press last week. But Idris feels that there are life lessons to be learned, and the pandemic serves as a reminder that the world doesnt tick on your time. Recovering: Idris and Sabrina Elba both suffered from coronavirus / Getty Images I think that the world should take a week of quarantine every year just to remember this time. Remember each other. I really do, he said. Idris and Sabrina, 30, are recovering in New Mexico, where the actor was filming when he became sick, and are now focused on their new roles as United Nations Goodwill Ambassadors. They are working with the United Nations to lessen the impact of Covid-19 on farmers and food producers in rural areas. People forget that 80 percent of the poor population live in these rural areas, Sabrina said. What we are really worried about at the moment, and why we are launching this fund is that those people are being forgotten. In their new roles as UN Goodwill Ambassadors, Idris and Sabrina have joined forces with the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to launch the new US$200 million (160m) fund. New job: Idris and Sabrina have both been appointed United Nations Goodwill Ambassadors / Getty Images The actor believes people in rural and poor areas are likely to suffer more in the pandemic. If you imagine being in a village where no one even knows the name of your village or your population, and that you live in a slum where there is one room and six of you live in it, he said. Social distancing is almost laughable. What we are really worried about at the moment, and why we are launching this fund is that those people are being forgotten, Sabrina said. While health, you know, is so important at the moment we dont want people to forget about what comes after that. Both Idris and his wife have roots in Africa; his parents are from Sierra Leone and Ghana, while Sabrina is of Somali descent. The pair went to Sierra Leone in December with the United Nations to see how IFAD has assisted people there. Idris said he was particularly concerned as to what the coronavirus pandemic could do on the continent in countries already suffering economically. We have to think about the forward planning. Whats the fallout going to be? he said. The couple have been recovering in New Mexico after suffering mild symptoms, but plan to return to London as soon as they can get a flight. Idris said he had to miss his six-year-old sons birthday because of the lockdown but hes hoping to see him as soon as I can. Weve been fortunate, he added. We have been staying in a lovely place thats been very comfortable for the time. But were looking forward to going home. Unreliable internet service in Dairy Flat has become even more of a problem as parents and students work from home under the Alert Level 4 lockdown measures. A petition started on April 8 requesting that fibre be rolled out to the area, already has more than 500 signatures. It was started by the Dairy Flat representative on the Rodney Local Board, Louise Johnston, and will be presented to Parliament by Helensville MP Christopher Penk. Dairy Flat School principal Debbie Marshall says a number of students and their families are struggling with learning from home due to poor internet connections. To assist with this, Debbie has requested learning packs for delivery to families. I have alerted the Ministry of Education and they are aware of the issue, she says. Fran Earwaker, who teaches at Dairy Flat School, says trying to hold Zoom lessons with her class is challenging. As long as its a nice sunny day its ok, but as soon as it starts to rain my internet disappears. This is very annoying when I have 22 children on my screen waiting for me to reconnect, as happened last week, Fran says. She says hotspotting from a phone is out of the question as the 3G reception is minimal. A steady internet connection that doesnt disappear when it rains would be great! Louise Johnston says although the lack of ultra fast broadband has been highlighted by the reliance on the internet during lockdown, those frustrations are nothing new. Dairy Flat and Coatesville have not been included in upgrades to rural broadband, and are among only 13 percent of New Zealand that have no access to fibre. Reliable internet is a modern day necessity, Louise says. Her petition asks central Government to increase the funding of the rural fast broadband initiative and include Dairy Flat and Coatesville in the next rollout. She says it is frustrating that, in 2015, Auckland Council did not include Dairy Flat in the priority areas for expansion of rural broadband services that it recommended for Government funding. Louise says last year she and Rodney Councillor Greg Sayers met with the Council statistics department to try and understand how the underlying data that led to the omission of Dairy Flat was derived, but were unable to find answers. The petition can be found on the Change.org website look for Upgrade Failing Broadband Infrastructure in Dairy Flat and Coatesville. DALLAS, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC ("Oncor") plans to release its first quarter 2020 results on May 4, prior to Sempra Energy's (NYSE: SRE) first quarter 2020 conference call. Oncor's earnings release will be available on Oncor's website, oncor.com. Sempra Energy will conduct a conference call at 12 p.m. ET, May 4 that will include discussion of Oncor's first quarter operational and financial results. Investors, media, analysts and the public may listen to a live webcast of the conference call on Sempra Energy's website, sempra.com, by clicking on the appropriate audio link. Prior to the conference call, an accompanying slide presentation will be posted on Sempra Energy's website. For those unable to participate in the live webcast, a replay of Sempra Energy's call will be available a few hours after its conclusion on Sempra Energy's website or by dialing (888) 203-1112 and entering passcode 8909332. Oncor's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2020 will be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after Sempra Energy's conference call and, once filed, will also be available at oncor.com. Headquartered in Dallas, Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC is a regulated electricity distribution and transmission business that uses superior asset management skills to provide reliable electricity delivery to consumers. Oncor (together with its subsidiaries) operates the largest distribution and transmission system in Texas, delivering power to more than 3.6 million homes and businesses and operating more than 139,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines in Texas. While Oncor is owned by two investors (indirect majority owner, Sempra Energy, and minority owner, Texas Transmission Investment LLC), Oncor is managed by its Board of Directors, which is comprised of a majority of disinterested directors. SOURCE Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC Related Links http://www.oncor.com CORONERS FINDINGS ON THE INQUEST INTO TANYA DAYS DEATH Tanya Days family members say their lives will never be the same. (ABC News: Nicole Asher) On 9th April 2020, Coroner Englishs findings on the inquest into Tanya Days death were streamed online. Tanya Day died in December 2017 after she had sustained a severe injury from a fall while in police custody. She had been arrested for public drunkenness in Castlemaine after falling asleep on a V/Line carriage travelling to Melbourne. The inquest into her death has historical significance as the first coronal inquest into the effects of racism on an Aboriginal death in custody. This was only possible through the tireless campaigning by Days family who maintained that a criminal offence had occurred, that racism led to Days death, and that the police should not be investigating crimes they commit. Significant outcomes of the finding are: A referral to the Director of Public Persecutions to investigate whether the indictable crime of negligent manslaughter had occurred. For recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody 1991 be implemented, including the abolition of the offence of public drunkenness that led to Tanya Days death. For the Coroners Act be revised to give more control over inquest investigations to coroners, rather than have police investigating themselves. Racism did not influence police handling of Days custody. While it is good news that the officers in charge of Days custody are to be investigated for their crimes, it is disappointing, but not surprising, that racism was not found to have lead to Days death. On the same day as Days arrest, another woman was picked up by the cops in Castlemaine for being drunk. However, this white woman was merely driven home. The polices defence for choosing to arrest Day, when compared to driving another woman home, was that Tanya Day did not have a home to go to in Castlemaine since she was travelling. However, the police are very aware that there are safer places than a police cell for someone who is intoxicated. Tanya Day had a blood alcohol level of 0.33 percent when she was arrested, and so she should never have been taken to a police cell, but rather to a hospital. The police officers did not complete the proper risk assessments and did not assess Days risk of falling. Days injury occurred within less than an hour of her being in the cell and went unnoticed by the officer on duty until approximately three hours later. Rather than performing the job correctly, the officer was checking Days conditions only by briefly looking through her cell window. The cops excuses were that the Victorian Police Manual is just a guideline and that they would prefer to leave a drunk person alone to sleep it off, rather than properly supervising them, talking to them, etc. This is a rubbish excuse as everyone knows that heavily intoxicated people must always be watched. The contradicting logic of the cops is this: Tanya Day was too drunk to talk to or supervise, but she was also not drunk enough to be taken to the hospital or for the proper risk assessments to be performed. The coroner did admit that she found racism to have influenced the decision of the conductor on her V/Line carriage. This is because it was the first time the conductor had ever chosen to call the police on a sleeping passenger, even though he comes across sleeping passengers three times a week. The situation, therefore, would have been avoided if the conductor had instead called the ambulance. The actions of the conductor are a reminder that it is unsafe to call cops into the community and should only be done as a last resort. Interestingly, the conductor was found to have been influenced by racism for calling the cops, but not the cops who outright did not perform their safety obligations or exercise their duty of care for Day. The cops decision to throw her in a cell, rather than take her to a hospital was clearly influenced by her Aboriginality, especially when contrasted with the actions of Castlemaine police on that same day in driving a drunk white woman home. Perhaps the blaming racism on the conductor was a diversion from the polices inherent, systemic racism. Days family said that although they were happy that the coroner found the conductor was influenced by racism, they were disappointed that the cops werent found to have been influenced by systemic racism. They maintained that Day would still be alive if she were not Indigenous or if recommendations from the Royal Commission in 1991 had been implemented almost thirty years ago. In the familys statement they also acknowledge that the findings mark the beginning of justice for [their] mum. New levels of closures were ordered as the weekend arrived at parks on the Peninsula, with 15 county parks, 13 open space preserves, four state parks and three boat ramps shut down to help stop the spread of COVID-19. In San Mateo County, health officials also ordered that travel be restricted to within 5 miles of a residence. Just a handful of city-operated parks were left open for recreational access over the weekend. When Gov. Gavin Newsoms shelter-in-place order included a provision for hiking, biking and running for fitness, many county parks, open space preserves and state parks on the Peninsula were overwhelmed with visitors. Park officials verified overflowing parking areas, trails with clusters of people and mountain bikers at times riding at high rates of speed. We know that simply being in nature can provide a much needed respite during challenging times like these, but if we cant keep our open space preserves safe, we cant keep them open, said Ana Maria Ruiz, general manager of the Midpeninsula Open Space District. Were urging the public to cooperate and avoid crowding. Ruiz said the district would reopen 11 of its 13 open space preserves on weekdays, but that all trails would remain closed to mountain bikes and horseback riding after a recent spike in use and accidents. The two preserves that will be closed seven days a week are Windy Hill, which spans from Portola Valley to Skyline Boulevard, and Teague Hill in Woodside. Three county boat ramps and associate parking areas Oyster Point in South San Francisco, Coyote Point in San Mateo, and Pillar Point in Half Moon Bay have been shut down by the San Mateo Harbor Commission. California State Parks scrapped a tentative date posted earlier this month to reopen some parks on the outskirts of the Bay Area to hiking, and three parks in Santa Cruz County, eight in Monterey County, 11 in Sonoma County and 22 in Mendocino County were kept closed to all parking and access. All 280 state parks and beaches in California are closed. Any decision to reopen additional state parks will be made in close coordination with state and local public health officials, the governors office and the state Office of Emergency Services, said Adeline Yee of California State Parks. In Sonoma County, where volunteers and docents run Jack London State Historic Park, two volunteers, Kathy Hillback-Ely and her husband, George Ely, said the way of life they had created has vanished. We are really missing our volunteer activity at Jack London Park, Hillback-Ely said. Were looking forward to getting back up there. Activity now has been pretty much just taking long walks around town. In San Francisco, major parking areas for access to beaches and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area are closed. In Marin, all parking and drive-in access to state parks, Marin County Parks and Open Space, and the Marin Watershed have been shut down. Access is permitted on trails for those who bicycle, hike or run to the trail heads. In the East Bay Regional Park District, eight of 73 parks are closed to all access, including Point Isabel, Castle Rock, Sunol, Del Valle and Tilden, said spokesman Dave Mason. The trail head at Stanford Avenue for Mission Peak has been closed and fenced, with an alternative trail head accessible at Ohlone College. 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. Facilities are closed at all parks, including restrooms, noted East Bay Regional Park District general manager Bob Doyle, who said visitors should bring a garbage bag and pack out their litter. Another sweeping closure is at lakes that provide fishing and boating in the East Bay hills, including San Pablo, Lafayette, Del Valle and Los Vaqueros, ordered by the water districts that operate them. The governors shelter-in-place order includes the provision that individuals may leave their residence to engage in outdoor activity, provided the individuals comply with the Social Distancing Requirements, such as, by way of example and without limitation, walking, hiking, or running. Public health officials are advising the public to walk, run, hike and bike in their local neighborhoods and walk to parks, said Yee of California State Parks. In an earlier version of this story, the city in which Montara State Beach is located was misidentified in a photo caption. It is Montara. Tom Stienstra is The San Francisco Chronicles outdoors writer. Email: tstienstra@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @StienstraTom Imagine you have COVID-19 and youre having trouble breathing. Youre able to get to an emergency room stocked with available ventilators, but you learn youre barred from access to these life-saving devices because of a state rule that says, No ventilator use allowed: If everyone cant have a ventilator, no one can. Insane. Unimaginable. The outrage would be palpable and justified. Yet, when it comes to providing our children life-preparing education during this crisis, similarly outrageous government rules have been in place, with districts actively banning students from learning because of a rule that says, If everyone cant learn, no one can. Consider the facts: On March 13, Gov. Wolf ordered the closure of schools statewide, effective March 16. On April 9, he announced this closure would extend through the remainder of the academic year. Across the state, some schools such as cyber charter schools were already teaching virtually and were prepared to continue operating essentially uninterrupted. And some traditional school districts were also well-equipped to make the transition to online learning. But not in Philadelphia, where the District made an outlandish decision: If every child couldnt learn, no child should learn. As a result, children in the School District of Philadelphia have not had any official schooling since March 13 and they are not scheduled to resume learning until May 4. A solid seven weeks of lost instruction. Why? Because some students did not have the technology at home to participate in online learning. So instead of helping as many students as possible while working to extend that help to all students, the District decided that because some students couldnt learn, no students should learn. Finally, a month after schools closed, Philadelphias public school students received the needed technology from the District. It will still take a few weeks, however, to implement software and internet access for the students. Its worth noting that during his time, a bulk of Philadelphia charter school students not only received technology through private means, as the District did not provide technology to charter students but are already in the phase of finding software and identifying hotspots for access so children can learn. Outrageously, even while lagging behind charters in educating students, the District has placed a resolution before the School Board seeking to cut charter school funding. This even though charters already receive less money per-pupil than the District and have proven more effective during this crisis. Sadly, this misguided approach to educating in time of crisis isnt limited to Philadelphia. When Gov. Tom Wolf closed schools, he included public cyber charter schools, even though these schools were already operating online. After cyber schools received clarification that they could, indeed, continue educating students, they quickly resumed classes. They also offered to help the state Department of Education set up its own online learning system the Department ignored the offer. Indeed, not everyone was happy that cyber students could continue to learn. The Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) decided if students couldnt attend traditional brick-and-mortar public schools, they shouldnt be able to attend public cyber charter schools either! PASA lobbied to ban students from enrolling in cyber charters during the current shut-down. The reason? They were concerned families might decide they prefer cyber charters and transfer permanently. For fear that their product wasnt good enough to keep students long term, PASA wanted to block students from learning, period. Falling short in that effort, PASA then lobbied this time successfully to ensure cyber charters would not get paid for any students who enrolled after March 13. To their credit, cyber charter schools are taking in and teaching new children, without additional student funding. Imagine if hospitals treated patients the same way the education establishment has treated children placing self-interest and self-protection ahead of saving lives. The backlash would be unthinkable and merited. Its time public education officials look in the mirror and ask themselves who and what theyre really defending. And its past time they put their self-interests aside and do what is right for families and students regardless of who gets the credit. Matthew J. Brouillette, a former high school and middle school teacher, is president and CEO of Commonwealth Partners Chamber of Entrepreneurs. www.thecommonwealthpartners.com. Mexico and the United States on Monday agreed to extend restrictions on non-essential travel across their border by another 30 days, Mexico's foreign ministry said. The move covers "all non-essential land traffic" on the common border "after reviewing the development of the spread of COVID-19 " in both countries, the ministry said in a statement. The measures first went into effect on March 21. US President Donald Trump said at the time the move was necessary to prevent the spread of the infection "to our border agents, migrants and to the public at large." Secretary of State Mike Pompeo later said trade between the two countries would continue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With no directives addressing problems faced by individual sectors, industries willing to resume production in West Bengal in a controlled manner from April 20 stared at unanswered questions on Sunday even as their counterparts in other states made elaborate plans. Asked by the state government to resume work with 15% workforce, the Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA) on Sunday asked all mills to send online applications to authorities for starting operations on Monday. The notice was issued on Sunday by Debasish Roy, IJMAs director-general. Roy did not say whether the top body of the jute industry was ready to resume production from Monday. We are awaiting permission from the government, Raghavendra Gupta, IJMAs chairperson, said on Monday morning. IJMA members, however, said they were willing to restart work and follow safety guidelines but 15% workforce would lead to losses because so few people cannot run all machines. According to IJMA, West Bengal has 69 jute mills that employ 250,000 people. The state government should understand the technical aspects. Only the IJMA can decide how many workers are needed to run a mill effectively, Tapan Sen, the national general secretary of the Centre for Trade Unions (CITU), the labour arm of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said. The bakery industry in the state has been affected badly with around 10 to 12% of the 2500 companies operating on a restricted scale, claimed Ariful Islam, chief executive of the West Bengal Bakers Association. Bakers in Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai told us that they are operating without any hindrance. In Delhi, bread is even being supplied by the government among other relief materials, Islam said. On one hand, we are being asked to operate as part of essential service while on the other, vehicles transporting bread are being stopped on highways for allegedly breaking lockdown norms. Today, for example, two vans were stopped in Howrah. This has been happening ever since the lockdown started, Islam said on Sunday afternoon. How can we resume operation? The ones that are operating are supplying products only to the local areas. We have written to the Kolkata Police commissioner and director-general of the state police, said Islam. CITUs Sen said that a part of the steel industry kept operating with a fraction of the workforce as furnaces cannot be shut down during the lockdown. He said firing steel furnaces and reaching the required temperature once they have cooled down are expensive and lengthy processes. The Durgapur Steel Plant was among many that did not stop operation. The steel sector should not have much problem resuming production but workers will face trouble reaching their workplace with public transport suspended, Sen, a former member of the Rajya Sabha, said. With people in many areas affected and certain zones marked red, keeping public transport suspended is also a situational compulsion, Sen added. A cabinet minister, who did not wish to be named, said he was not aware whether the government will meet representatives of various sectors or issue any order on Monday. An employee of a logistics company that runs Amazons sorting centre at Dankuni sad they have been handling only essential materials wearing protective gear, including personal protection suit and face shield. We were ready to handle non-essential goods as well but a circular was issued by the Union home ministry on Sunday saying supply of these by e-commerce companies will remain prohibited, the employee said on condition of anonymity. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Flash The Group of 77 (G77) and China on Sunday issued a statement expressing their support for the World Health Organization (WHO) in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. "The Group of 77 and China is deeply concerned at the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the most serious public health crises in modern history," the statement said, adding that "the first priority is to save lives." "The group, therefore, acknowledges the leading role of the World Health Organization led by its Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and extends its full support and appreciation for its work in providing information, technical guidance, training and other assistance to developing countries to help them prepare for and efficiently respond to the pandemic," the statement said. The group and China share United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' view that solidarity counts in the international efforts to curb the virus and its shattering consequences, they said. They emphasized that "the international community must unite in its efforts to ensure access to scientific guidance, training, equipment, essential medical supplies, and concrete life-saving services to countries in greatest need and in regions where the full impact is yet to be felt." The statement includes a call on the international community "to maintain and, where possible, increase their support for the WHO, which, by the mandate given to it by member states, has a critical and central role to play in supporting developing countries to confront a crisis of epic scale that threatens to erase the gains made over the past decades." "We reiterate the need to strengthen international solidarity and multilateral cooperation and partnership in the fight against a disease that is our common enemy," according to the statement. The Pentagons chief weapons buyer said that they expect a three-month slowdown across the major equipment programs because of COVID-19, although it is too early to say the pandemic had affected any key milestones. Ellen Lord, undersecretary for Acquisitions and Sustainment at the Department of Defense, told reporters that delays were largely due to closures up and down the supply chain. For two years, the Pentagon has been pushing to forge new weapons and equipment as it revamps and modernizes to counter Chinas two decades of runaway military growth. Military leaders frequently emphasize the United States is in a race for modernization with adversariesand have tried to cauterize any effect of the pandemic on the U.S. military-industrial base. Right now there isnt a specific COVID penalty that we see for a specific program, Lord said during a briefing on April 20. However, we do anticipate about a 3-month slowdownat slower rates in terms of execution than we saw before. So, were looking at schedule delays and inefficiencies and so forth, she said. And we are just now looking at key milestones that might be impacted. A common hypersonic glide body (C-HGB) launches from Pacific Missile Range Facility, Kauai, Hawaii, at approximately 10:30 p.m. local time, March 19, 2020, during a Department of Defense flight experiment. (U.S. Navy photo/Released) The impact is felt most keenly in the aviation sector, but also in shipyards and in space acquisitions, Lord said, in reference to the major defense acquisition programs (MDAPs). Since the outbreak of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, 106 prime contractors have closed, Lord said, with 68 having reopened; 427 vendor-based companies have closed and 147 having since reopened. The Pentagon has taken various measures to maintain the cash flow and shore up the industry. Before widespread lockdowns across the states were introduced, the Pentagon earmarked workers in the defense industry as critical infrastructure workers. The department has also increased the ongoing payments given to contractors for work already completed as they work through a program. The rate of what are known as progress payments for large contractors rose to 90 percent from 80 percent, and to 95 percent for small contractors from 90 percent. According to Lord, more than 1,500 contractors are now being paid at the higher rate. She praised Lockheed Martin and Boeing for ensuring that these payments would be passed down the chain to smaller subcontractors. Like other sectors of society, the Pentagon has had to make other adjustments to cope with the pandemic, including canceling some joint exercises, limiting overseas troop movements, and adjusting some training requirements. However, military leaders insist that their combat readiness is little affected and have warned adversaries not to see the pandemic as an opportunity to test U.S. military strength or resolve. The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt is currently sidelined in Guam after an outbreak of the CCP virus on board, while the crew is systematically evacuated and the ship cleaned. One crew member has died from the virus. The aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) transits Apra Harbor as the ship prepares to moor in Guam on Feb. 7, 2019. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Terence Deleon Guerrero) However, the Roosevelt could still quickly be deployed if needed, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters earlier this month. Chinese naval activity and paramilitary aggression in the Pacific has continued amid the pandemic, including a carrier group carrying out drills near Taiwan, with some observers suggesting they have notched up their activities. Experts previously told The Epoch Times that it isnt possible to assess the real impact of the pandemic on Chinas military strength. That effect is hidden by long-running military secrecy, the fact that Beijings data on the virus cant be trusted, and the lower value that the CCP places on the lives of troops who might be hit by an outbreak. This week marks the seventh anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh, in which 1,134 people were killed and thousands more injured. Following the disaster, Fashion Revolution has been calling for transparency in the fashion industry, with millions of people across the globe taking part in an annual campaign designed to encourage brands and producers to respond in support of greater industry transparency. Since Fashion Revolution started, people from all over the world have used their voice and their power to demand change from the fashion industry. And its working. The industry is starting to listen, the organisation states on its website. Weve seen brands being open about where their clothes are made and the impact their materials are having on the environment. Weve seen manufacturers make their factories safer and more of the people in the supply chain being seen and heard. Designers are now considering people and planet when creating new clothing. Citizens are thinking before they buy. But the story is far from over. We are only just getting started. While Fashion Revolution continues to drive accountability in the fashion industry, the organisation acknowledges that more needs to be done to ensure clothing is produced, sourced and consumed in a way that is cleaner, safer and fairer for everybody and the environment. So, what can you do to help? From attending virtual events to writing a love story to your favourite piece of clothing and shopping responsibly, here are five ways you can get involved with Fashion Revolution Week 2020. Ask #whomademyclothes and #whatsinmyclothes? This week, Fashion Revolution aims to encourage millions of people to ask brands on social media who made their clothes in a bid to hold retailers accountable for who manufactures the garments they are selling and how those workers are treated. On the Fashion Revolution website, visitors can find a pre-written Tweet to brands by pressing a button which says: Use your voice on Twitter. A tweet then appears with several blank spaces for specific details, which reads: Im name and I want to thank the people who made my clothes. Hi @brand, #whomademyclothes? Signed, email, country. After filling out the blank spaces, you then have the option to publish the tweet. This year, Fashion Revolution is also encouraging people to ask #WhatsInMyClothes? to challenge brands on the environmental impacts of the materials they use. The organisation suggests people post selfies on social media and tag the brand they want to question in the photo so they can respond. Question fashion brands and retailers about coronavirus Fashion Revolution has also composed an email that people can send to brands questioning them on the treatment of workers in their supply chains amid the coronavirus outbreak. As global consumption slows dramatically during the Covid-19 crisis, fashion brands have been abandoning their orders with suppliers and ceasing to pay for in-production goods, leaving factories unable to pay garment workers amid closures, the organisation states. Together, we can tell brands to take responsibility for all workers in their supply chains by sending our email template to the brands we buy from. Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 Show all 22 1 /22 Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS/Henry Nicholls Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 PA Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS Extinction Rebellion block roads at London Fashion Week, February 2020 REUTERS The email template, which can be found here, asks brands what effect the pandemic is having on garment makers who are already paid so little and have no social safety net to fall back on. I understand that this is causing an unprecedented economic crisis and that people like me may be buying fewer clothes right now. But, now is not that time to turn your back on your suppliers and their workers, it continues. Attend a virtual event Every year, Fashion Revolution hosts a series of events to help highlight its cause but due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis, it is having to do things a little differently this time round. For 2020, the organisation will be streaming an exciting line-up of virtual events, making its globalised schedule accessible to everyone around the world. From workshops and talks to a live-streamed panel, you can register for a weeks worth of educational and creative experiences here. Some of this year's events include "Fashion Question Time" which is a panel with industry experts that will be live streamed on Friday 24th April at 11.00 AM BST through Fashion Open Studio and a "Virtual Stitch & Bitch" which will be live streamed here on Sunday 26th April at 5.00 PM BST. Share your clothing love story As well as campaigning for better treatment of workers in retailers supply chains, Fashion Revolution is urging people to shop less and more responsibly. By keeping our clothes for longer, cherishing them and taking better care of what we already own, we can dramatically reduce the environmental impact of our wardrobes, the organisation states. To encourage people to celebrate and make the most of what they already own, Fashion revolution is asking fashion fans to share their own clothing love story on social media using the hashtag #LovedClothesLast. This could be a letter penned to your favourite pair of jeans, an essay about the loungewear getting you through lockdown, a poem about the dress thats been passed down from generation to generation. You can read The Independents guide on how to buy ethical and sustainable fashion here. Buy the Fashion Revolution fanzine Each year, Fashion Revolution publishes a fanzine dedicated to help convey its message and raise funds to keep the campaign going. For a creative campaign such as ours, the medium is ideal as it can convey complicated messages in a visual way, without taking anything away from the rigour of the conversation, says Orsola De Castro, Fashion Revolutions global creative director and co founder. Recommended These are the fabrics with the worst environmental impact Each zine has its own identity which also to me reiterates how the multiple issues we tackle are so different, and have a different set of solutions. The organisations latest fanzine, titled Action Required: 10 Global Goals That Will Change Fashion, is an investigation of the fashion industry's relationship with 10 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), including gender equality, decent work and economic growth, responsible consumption and production, and climate action. This year, the issue takes on a new format, presenting each of the chosen SDGs in its own mini issue, printed on paper that has been repurposed, recycled or would have previously been thrown away. The proceeds of this non-profit fanzine will support the cause of the Fashion Revolution. You can order your copy here. Remember all those Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston reunion rumors that have been circulating of late? Fans were apparently excited for a while about the possibility, but it is reportedly hurting Angelina Jolie deeply. Without Maddox, Jolie could have had it worse when all those reports about her ex-husband going back to his ex-wife were all over the internet. Jolie is not the one to be vocal about what she's feeling, especially over personal matters, so after she filed for divorce from Brad Pitt in 2016, she stayed quiet about what she's truly feeling. Instead, when people saw her or heard about her, it was always about her and some movies or humanitarian projects. Even though their breakup came at a shock for those who rooted for them since 2005, people eventually just accepted the fact that they could no longer stay in each other's lives. Suffice to say, people believe that Jolie must not love Pitt anymore, even though they had been people's couple goals for a good 12 years. According to OK! Magazine's April 20, 2020 issue, Angelina is apparently not over her ex yet. Despite the split three years ago, she's still recovering and, at times, still hurting. It can be presumed that the rumors between Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt lately did not sit well with her. To add to that, negative emotions are at an all-time high for everyone during the Covid-19 pandemic, putting most people, even celebrities, in anxiety. Fortunately for Jolie however, is that in the middle of this crisis, Maddox has come home from South Korea to be with her. She's the reason that she has not gone totally down yet and, in fact, smiling more each day, a source says. "Maddox is the one person in the world Angie listens to so if anyone can lift her spirits, it's him," the source told the publication. "Angie is so grateful to have him around again. Everyone's noticed a change in her manner. She hasn't smiled this much in months!" it went on. The insider furthered that Maddox has been helping Angelina in managing the large household by helping his many siblings in "keeping up with his online classes." Jolie, on her part, is not just wallowing about her and Brad Pitt's failed marriage or the Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston reconciliation rumors, though. In the middle of the crisis, the once goodwill ambassador of the United Nations is once more, contributing to the fight of another world issue, this time a pandemic of unprecedented effect. She recently put out the warning that in the middle of the coronavirus crisis, adults may be overlooking the problem of abused children and youth. These children may be prone to be abused now because they are called to isolate at home, without school, friends, and other people to help them cope. According to Jolie, adults are often the ones to first notice if a young person is undergoing abuse at home, but because of the lockdown, abused children or young people might feel as if they had now been abandoned by the world to the hands of violence at their very own home. READ MORE: Adults Beware! Angelina Jolie Raises Scary Consequence of Coronavirus On Children Advertisement A veteran police officer and an elementary school teacher who were both mothers are among at least 18 people killed in the most deadly mass shooting in Canadian history. Gunman Gabriel Wortman, a 51-year-old denturist, was shot dead by police after a 12-hour slaughter across the eastern province of Nova Scotia. Disguised as a police officer and driving a fake cop car, he reportedly 'executed point blank' constable Heidi Stevenson when she rammed his vehicle in an attempt to apprehend him. Lisa McCully, a teacher at Derbert Elementary, was informally identified by her sister in a heartbreaking Facebook post last night. Nurse Heather OBrien was also identified by her daughter in a Facebook post shared Sunday night that read: 'A monster murdered my mother today.' Police said Wortman had been on the run since Saturday night, when officers were alerted to shots fired in the town of Portapique, around 60 miles from Halifax. Wortman appeared to slaughter most of his targets at random, but police sources told the Toronto Sun the first two victims were the gunman's ex-wife and her new boyfriend. The sources said: 'He's been planning this for a while. He had the uniform and two decommissioned police cars.' Several others were injured and are being treated at a local hospital, including a male Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer. The mass shooting, which are incredibly rare in Canada, coincided with the anniversaries of the 1995 Oklahoma bombing and the 1993 Waco Siege in Texas. Victim: Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and a mother-of-two was shot dead Victim: Lisa McCully, a mother-of-two, has been informally identified as a victim of yesterday's gun rampage in the eastern province of Nova Scotia Royal Canadian Mounted Police Constable Heidi Stevenson (left) reportedly rammed her car into gunman Gabriel Wortman (right) who shot her at 'point blank range' Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP officer Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and a mother-of-two, was responding to the shootings when she was killed in the line of duty. Stevenson reportedly rammed her car into Wortman's vehicle to try to bring him to a stop, before she was shot at 'point blank' range, according to the Toronto Sun. At a press conference on Sunday, RCMP Assistant Commissioner Lee Bergerman confirmed Stevenson's death, saying: 'Heidi answered the call of duty and lost her life while protecting those she served. Earlier this afternoon I met with Heidi's family and there are no words to describe their pain. 'Two children have lost their mother. And a husband has lost his wife. Parents have lost their daughter and countless others lost an incredible friend and colleague.' At least 18 people have been confirmed dead in the attack - the National Post reports 17 - but civilian victims have not yet been formally named. McCully was named locally by her sister on Facebook last night. Jenny Kierstead wrote: 'This is so hard to write but many of you will want to know. 'Our hearts are broken today as we attempt to accept the loss of my sister, Lisa McCully, who was one of the victims of the mass shooting in Portapique last night. 'Our condolences go out to the other family members who are affected by this tragedy. Thank you for your support, it's a hard day.' McCully taught at Debert Elementary where she was a 'passionate teacher' and a 'shining love' in the lives of her family and friends, the teachers union said in a tribute. Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia Sunday. Police first announced that they had arrested Wortman at the gas station but later said he had died Workers with the medical examiner's office remove a body from a gas bar in Enfield, Nova Scotia on Sunday. Late Sunday morning, there were half a dozen police vehicles at the scene of the gas station where the suspect died. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-colored SUV was being investigated. A Wentworth volunteer firefighter douses hotspots near destroyed vehicles linked to Sunday's deadly shooting rampage on Monday Family members also paid tribute to Corrie Ellison on Sunday afternoon, with his cousin Juliene Henderson writing: 'Tragic and surreal..RIP to my cousin Corrie and to the several others killed. 'Just texted him this AM to see if his Dad was ok (his Dad lived in portique) ..not knowing he was out there and already killed. ' Wortman's rampage, in which he also burned buildings, ended shortly before noon local time, when police located him at a gas station around 60 miles south of where the shootings occurred. His rampage took him across the province, with police describing several crime scenes and multiple burning buildings. A police spokesperson said, without further details, that the gunman was killed after an officer intervened and it has been reported Wortman was shot dead. Photos showed several armed officers surrounding a car at the gas station and a body was later taken from the scene. A Gabriel Wortman is listed as a denturist in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP matches video footage of a man being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014 The Atlantic Denture Clinic, owned by Wortman, is guarded by police in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, on Monday Several victims were discovered both outside and inside a house in Portapique, sparking the manhunt through multiple communities, police said. RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told a press conference: 'The search for the suspect ended this morning when the suspect was located. And I can confirm that he is deceased.' Leather said that at one point, the suspect appeared to be wearing part of a police uniform and was driving a vehicle made to look like an RCMP cruiser. RCMP tweeted several times that he was not an officer and warned he was considered 'armed and dangerous.' Leather said: 'The initial search for the suspect led to multiple sites in the area, including structures that were on fire. An independent agency, the Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT), which probes certain incidents involving the province's police, said in a statement that a confrontation had occurred in Enfield, which is near the Halifax airport, 'resulting in officers discharging their firearms. The suspect was found to be deceased at the scene.' Police warned that Wortman may be driving what 'appears to be an RCMP vehicle, releasing this image, and said he may be wearing an RCMP uniform Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers prepare to take a person into custody at a gas station in Enfield, Nova Scotia on Sunday Describing the scene as 'chaotic,' officials said at least 18 people were killed across multiple locations in the small town. The number could grow during the search of other crime scenes Police said they had no indication of a motive, but RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told CBC there was no indication 'at this point' of a terrorist intent. 'What I would say is that it appears to be at least in part, very random in nature. We are in the early stages of an incredibly detailed and complex investigation that has forever changed countless lives.' Yet police sources told the Toronto Sun it was a calculated attack which Wortman had been plotting for a while. 'That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act,' Leather said. He added that police believe he acted alone. Leather said they would investigate whether the attack had anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic but no link has been found thus far. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a statement that he 'was saddened to learn about the senseless violence in Nova Scotia,' and he hopes for a full recovery of the wounded. 'As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time,' Trudeau said. A Gabriel Wortman is listed as a denturist in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, a person who makes dentures, according to the Denturist Society of Nova Scotia website. A suspect photo issued by the RCMP matches video footage of a man being interviewed about dentures by CTV Atlantic in 2014. Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) monitor Portapique Beach Road, as a fire truck travels along it during the search for Gabriel Wortman on Sunday Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers speak with a man, as two RCMP vehicles travel on Portapique Beach Road, after the police finished their search for Gabriel Wortman Local resident Dave Brown was seen putting up a memorial for the community after the shootings, nearby the road where the shootings occurred. Several bodies were found inside and outside one home in the small, rural town of Portapiqu Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada. The country overhauled its gun-control laws after gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique college in 1989. Before this weekend's rampage, that had been the country's worst. It is illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. The country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks to purchase a weapon. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil called the shootings 'one of the most senseless acts of violence' in the province's history. He added: 'To the families of the victims and those that are feeling afraid, my heart goes out to you.' On Saturday night, Cpl. Lisa Croteau, public information officer with the RCMP Nova Scotia, said police received a call about 'a person with firearms' around 10.30pm and it later 'evolved into an active shooting investigation.' Tom Taggart, a lawmaker in the municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken. 'This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable,' Taggart said by phone from his home in Bass River, near the lockdown area. 'People live here because of the peace and quiet and it's just an absolute tragedy,' he said. Taggart said he didn't know Wortman well, but spoke to him a few times when he telephoned about municipal issues. Taggart described knowing Wortman's 'lovely big home' on Portapique Beach Road. He said Wortman owned a few other properties in the community and was believed to divide his time between Portapique and his business in Dartmouth. He described Portapique as 'cottage country,' with about 100 year-round residents and 250 in the summer. 'You just don't even dream that this is going to happen,' he said. 'I can't fathom it.' It's a network jungle these days with predators relentlessly searching for ways to infiltrate corporate resources. IT leaders are responding with a variety of different microsegmentation approaches, all designed to isolate workloads from each other and prevent unauthorized lateral movements. We asked three enterprises to share why they deployed microsegmentation technology in their networks and how it's working. Here are their stories. Distributed firewalls via VMware NSX Todd Pugh, CIO at food products manufacturer SugarCreek, manages a fully virtualized private data center. Like his counterparts at organizations worldwide, his goal is simple: to frustrate and deter network attackers. "Above all, we protect our databases," he says. "We do anything and everything to keep uninvited guests out of our databases." READ MORE: Microsegmentation architecture choices and how they differ These days, that requires more than traditional perimeter protection. "In the early days, everything was protected from the outside-in using firewalls at the edge," Pugh says. As attackers refined their skills, basic edge protection could no longer be counted on to provide effective protection. "We discovered that firewalls needed to be closer to the data," he says. The solution is to break the infrastructure into microsegments, with a firewall guarding each resource. "Our approach is using VMware NSX, which lets us put a distributed firewall right next to each application or VM," Pugh says. "With microsegmentation we protect our infrastructure at every layer of the stack so that if something ultimately happens, any sort of breach could potentially be confined to just that one layer." Pugh believes that multiple microsegments, each guarded by a firewall, is the best way to defend against attacks without compromising performance. "The beauty of the distributed virtual firewalls is that if virtual machines need to communicate, and they are on the same host, then the traffic never leaves the host," he observes. "It shortens the path to get between the data." The speed improvement has been impressive. "You're going from gig speeds of the network to bus speeds of hosts, which is dramatically faster," Pugh says. "Then, as things move to the cloud, we've already established firewalls within NSX, so if we move things from our data center to a cloud, be it a hyperscaler or a public private cloud, the firewall rules follow the application." Pugh says At least five militants were killed in an exchange of fire with Pakistani security forces in the country's restive North Waziristan tribal district, bordering Afghanistan, an official said on Monday. The heavily-armed terrorists carried out a raid on security force's check-post late last night, about 10 kms west of Miranshah in North Waziristan. During the exchange of fire, five militants and a soldier were killed while three security personnel were also injured, Army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. The victims were airlifted to a hospital in Miranshah. The area was cordoned off and a search operation was conducted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) RIYADH, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia is hosting the Group of 20 (G20) health ministers virtual meeting, Saudi G20 presidency announced on Twitter on Sunday. The ministers are meeting to advance a joint response and coordinate an action plan for combatting the COVID-19 pandemic and relieving its implications on society, according to an earlier G20 statement. G20 members will be joined by leaders from Spain, Singapore, Jordan and Switzerland, and international and regional organizations including the World Health Organization and the World Bank Group, the statement said. Saudi Health Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah is set to deliver a virtual press conference at the conclusion of the G20 meeting. A whilstleblower nurse has today claimed that 80 per cent of NHS staff working on one hospital ward have contracted the coronavirus due to a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) being provided to them. An NHS medic has said that staff working on non-coronavirus wards at Arrow Park Hospital on the Wirral were left with inadequate PPE. The anonymous staff member said there are now 15 staff members who are not working as they are suspected to have the virus. Arrow Park Hospital had originally received British Wuhan evacuees that had been flown back to the UK from the hub of the pandemic. Staff are pictured above wearing personal protective equipment, many NHS workers have said there is a shortage An NHS medic has said that staff working on non-coronavirus wards at Arrow Park Hospital on the Wirral were left with inadequate PPE Speaking to The Sun, the medic said one nurse had gone home and has now passed the virus on to her husband who remains in a critical condition. They said: 'Until this week we'd been given no PPE whatsoever. We were just using our usual gloves, not even paper masks. 'All the best stuff is being reserved for intensive care, which is fine, but the rest of the wards are being left to struggle. 'We are putting our lives on the lines and the government is failing us'. Arrow Park hospital had originally received British Wuhan evacuees that had been flown back to the UK from the hub of the pandemic. Those arriving at the hospital are pictured above in February The medic said people would be shocked if they were able to witness conditions in the hospital right now and added that little community testing was also putting lives at risk. They added that people with suspected coronavirus are still being brought to the hospital. Claiming that many don't actually have the virus but that as soon as they are admitted to a Covid-19 ward there 'is a huge chance they will get it'. 'Some people are being given a death sentence by not being tested outside hospitals', they added. A spokesperson for Wirral University Teaching Hospital said staff were following Public Health England advice and self-isolating if they developed symptoms 'Staff are following Public Health England advice and self-isolating if they develop symptoms. 'This is to protect the safety of our staff and patients. During this time, we can assure you that our hospitals remain adequately staffed. 'While we don't discuss staff members' personal medical information, if any staff members have any concerns at all, we have established ways for these to be raised through their line manager or through a Freedom to Speak Up Guardian'. 'There is adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) throughout our Trust and staff are encouraged to wear PPE in line with national guidance.' This morning Dr Rachel Clarke, who works in palliative care in Oxford, told Good Morning Britain that the government needed to be honest about the lack of PPE in hospitals. 'Take the last month, the official Public Health England advice on PPE has changed three times and the most profound of those has been a down grade on standards of PPE. 'We all know its not based on the best science, science hasnt changed three times in the last month. So they have downgraded the level of PPE.' She added that many medics understood there was a shortage because of the pandemic, but that not enough was being done. MailOnline has contacted the NHS trust that oversees the Wirral University Teaching Hospital. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 18:03:45 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 657 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SYRACUSE, NY / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2020 / Leaving "no stone unturned," Stanley Law Offices, a personal injury firm with offices across Upstate NY, will host a timely online Live Q&A focused on working through thorny legal issues during a state of lockdown. This includes discussion about workers' compensation, social security disability income, unemployment insurance, mortgage, rent, and credit card payments and legal obligations, and what to anticipate once the judiciary and administrative agencies are no longer in a state of suspended animation.After we come out on the other side of the darkness of COVID-19, life will never truly return to normal. The isolation of social distancing and adapting our lives online, the shuttering of schools and businesses, widespread layoffs and the sorrow of losing so many souls to the novel virus has left an enduring mark on our psyche.Yet with the impacts of the public health crisis seemingly reaching a plateau and a heart-to-heart conversation underway between our officials about reopening the economy, we have to begin to think about restarting our judiciary and adjudicating a backlog of claims for many people who are casualties of a system that has been largely stalled due to the pandemic."We have seen a lot of ingenuity from the courts and certain other agencies like the Workers' Compensation Board in their use of technology in staying open on a limited scale," said Joe Stanley, Partner of the Stanley Law Offices. The virtual courts, however, have heard only essential and emergency matters on their dockets, leaving many litigants anxious to obtain much-needed relief in pending matters that have been postponed under the court's abbreviated schedule. "Although the courts have been on pause, the suffering of many injured people have not. To the contrary, times have gotten worse for these folks," Joe Stanley points out.In a barnburner online session streamed on Facebook Live, Tuesday, April 21st at 3:00 PM EDT, this dedicated panel of attorneys will speak to the worries of many who have pent up and unresolved legal matters, as well as others who have recently suffered a financial impact from the coronavirus outbreak.Founding attorney Joe Stanley will open the conversation with an overview of the laws relating to personal injury and accidents and make some premonitions on how the courts will transition back to business once the lockdown has been lifted. He will be joined by his colleague Stephanie Viscelli, who will talk about the challenges facing property owners and tenants alike who have experienced a COVID-19 related hardship and temporarily cannot meet their mortgage or rent payment obligations as a result of a shortfall in income. Stephanie will also address the credit card company debate and what consumers' rights are.A staunch advocate for workers and particularly those with disabilities, Megan Fallon will speak about the unique concerns facing individuals with worker's compensation issues including Social Security Disability recipients and claimants. With a tsunami of new unemployment claims expected to be filed among those out of work because of the upheaval wrought by the coronavirus outbreak, Attorney Anna Robbins will provide guidance in navigating a complicated regulatory regime.Moderated by Angela Moonan, the public is invited to become a part of this important conversation by submitting their questions during this Facebook LIVE session.People wanting answers can go directly to the Stanley Law Offices Facebook page LINK:https://m. facebook.com/CuzJoeKnows/ About The Stanley Law Offices, LLPThe Stanley Law Offices, LLP has five offices located in Central New York and northern Pennsylvania, including Syracuse, Binghamton, Watertown and Rochester, NY, as well as Montrose, PA. The firm focuses on personal injury law, car crashes, construction accidents, premise liability injuries (slip and fall cases), workers' compensation, social security disability income, and all accident-related law. For more information, please call 1-800-608-3333, or visit http://www.stanleylawoffices.com For media inquiries, please call Angela Moonan at 315-559-5530.SOURCE: Stanley Law Offices Nokia 9.3 PureView could be the flagship-level smartphone that HMD Global will unleash on its rivals. It has been rumoured to pack a Snapdragon 865 SoC, an 108-megapixel camera, an under-display camera, and a 120Hz display. Now, a fresh report claims the two of these rumours are "mostly confirmed". The Nokia 9.3 PureView could be one of the first commercial smartphones to sport a camera under the display. Previously, the under-display camera technology was showed off by Oppo on a prototype, but its commercial debut was announced for some time in June. Now, Nokia 9.3 PureView could join the Oppo phone as it is said to launch in the latter half of 2020. According to a report by NokiaPowerUser, citing the sources close to HMD Global, the Nokia 9.3 PureView has been confirmed to come with a 120Hz display. There were strong rumours that HMD Global is taking several leaps in the development of the next flagship and that include a display with 120Hz refresh rate. While it was not previously clear what material will be used for the display, the speculation that there will be a camera under the display does allude to an OLED panel. The Nokia 9.3 PureView will have a "highly impressive display" that will feature the company's proprietary PureDisplay V3 technology, per the report. According to the sources, it will be "one of the best seen on any smartphone." HMD Global has been experimenting a lot with the Nokia 9.3 PureView, if hitherto rumours are to be believed. Previously, it was reported that the company weighed in cameras sensors from both Sony and Samsung before finally zeroing in on the 108-megapixel Samsung sensor. Now, the sources told NokiaPowerUser that HMD Global was testing a pop-up selfie camera as well, in addition to the under-display technology. In fact, one of the early rumours had mentioned there could be a pop-up camera for selfies on the Nokia 9.3 PureView. But, eventually, HMD Global has apparently gone for the under-display camera technology after it was presumably successful in overcoming the complexities. Oppo was the first company to showcase the technology on a prototype. The Nokia 9.3 PureView has been rumoured to come with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor under the hood. It could also have a bigger battery and likely support for wireless charging. HMD Global has been working on the Nokia 9.3 PureView for a long time now. Its release has reportedly been delayed multiple times due to various reasons, including the coronavirus-induced lockdown and disruptions in the manufacturing and supply chain in the mobile phone industry. Gettyimagesbank By Anna J. Park Korea's benchmark KOSPI moved turbulently due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the first three months of the year. Starting at 2,175.17 points at the beginning of the year, it once crashed by 32.98 percent to 1,457.64, March 19. Amid the stock market volatility, however, most analyst reports published by major securities firms here turned out to be focused on the "buy" side, seemingly excessively unbalanced. This was in contradiction to foreign brokerage houses' reports, as about 20 percent of them had "sell" recommendations According to recent documents submitted by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) to ruling party lawmaker Kim Byung-wook, 30 out of 32 brokerage houses in Korea did not even once publish a report with a "sell" recommendation during the first quarter. On average, 89.4 percent of the reports published by the securities firms promoted "buying," while "neutral" took up 10.5 percent, and "selling," 0.1 percent. In the case of foreign brokerage firms, 18.4 percent of their reports during the same period recommended "sell," 60.2 percent "buy," and 21.4 percent "neutral." Market observers say such a discrepancy between local and overseas-based foreign securities firms comes mainly from the differences in how the reports are circulated and who they are targeting. "Analyst reports by foreign securities firms primarily target institutional investors, while local brokerage houses mostly target individual investors," Nam Gil-nam, a senior research fellow at the Korea Capital Market Institute told The Korea Times. "Furthermore, as most local firms' reports are open to the public, they have a far-reaching impact on the domestic stock market, especially when the reports have sell recommendations. Not only individual investors who own those stocks, but also companies at issue respond very sensitively to such reports," he said, adding that analysts are under some pressure so that they cannot freely express their own views. The senior research fellow also stressed that reports by foreign securities firms are mostly exclusively offered to institutional investors, which allow the authors leeway in their analysis. He added some local securities firms are trying to change to a paid report system, but not all of them. Most of the countries across the world are on a total lockdown due to the Coronavirus outbreak and workaholics are the most impacted by this lockdown. While many people continue working from home, anyone running a business is under the stress of not being able to earn a single dime and above all, being caged at home. These are the ones who are easily bored and are addicted to working long hours and are losing their minds sitting at home. Reuters Recently, a businessman from Moscow decided to take up a low-paying, but physically active job of delivering meals amid the Coronavirus outbreak as he was bored sitting at home. Sergey Nochovnyy, 38, said that he joined a delivery company as he wanted to look at things from a different perspective and get outdoors during the lockdown as there is a restriction of movement. Reuters So, he ended up taking a job thatll allow him to move around for his work. The authorities of Moscow have asked the people of non-vital industries to stay at home to fight the Coronavirus. And just like India, people can only go outside to buy groceries and medicines. Also, the lockdown spurred the demand for delivery jobs and thats when Sergey decided to take up one. The 38- year-old businessman said that he walks around 20 Kms a day to deliver food. The businessman who returned to Russia last year after spending 12 years in china, now makes around $13-20 a day as a deliveryman. Twitter_AP He was earlier making approximately $2 million a year with his consulting business. However, he took the job as the job offers physical activity as thats what he was missing amid the lockdown. He is actually an inspiration for all millennials out there. We hope that we win over the pandemic and people can go back to work as they did before the lockdown but right now staying indoors is equivalent to staying safe! In Bristol, there are too many bodies that died from coronavirus. With that, morgues are already full of dead bodies urging Bristol to create a makeshift mortuary which is needed for their handling. This comes as the deaths due to the coronavirus is ripping through the UK in a grim swathe. It only took one week to make it from a vehicle depot to accommodate approximately about 240 bodies. The Bristol site is to house the bodies in a place before the funerals. This is also a more dignified place instead of a freezer. Overall, the mortuary is made up of six freezer equipped containers, covered by a large gazebo. Several leaders in different faiths were in a ceremony to inaugurate its use and gave prayers for the pandemics victims. The mayor of Bristol, Marvin Rees was present when the mortuary was presented to the public. Mr Rees said in his speech, "This is a difficult time for everyone in our city and we know the reason for building this place of rest is distressing for our communities. We must take all preparations necessary so we can provide a dignified place to rest for citizens who sadly lose their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic." He added that the event displayed by the attendance of many faiths show support in times of crisis. "We stand with people from all faiths and no faith because We Are Bristol together," he said. Hospitals in the UK with dead victims are stacked with too many felled by the COVID-19. Unlike other mortuaries, this is the first one to have the public enter such a structure that is reserved for authorized personnel. Also read: Coronavirus Weak Spot Discovered: Researchers Find Out That Virus is 'Low Shielding' The council allow several faiths to see the mortuary as transparency to the public is needed. It was expressed to the attendees at the mortuary site that no funeral are ever happening there. The Bristol city council had the ceremony to let those who were there explain how the mortuary works. Assurance was given that the capacity to process is sufficient, and the corpses felled by the foreign virus will be treated honorably before funerals take place. There were some religious leaders who attended via Zoom, that included Rabbi Monique Mayer and Hindu representative, Shiv Sama. Still there will be restrictions in place at the mortuary to protect the staff, and support given the nature of the activities in the site, City council members in Bristol have informed that the site is still not operational to inform those living close to the processing center. The mortuary is found in a residential street though vehicles will back into a covered spot and to ensure all dignity is kept. An infection control point will be put and those carrying the corpse will transfer the deceased on a gurney to anyone of the six freezers before sent off to a funeral. There is also three-section walkway for staff to use and keep away contamination from a dead body. All staff will wear PPE and follow procedure. Marvin Rees added, "I never thought I would have to deal with this kind of issue as mayor." The necessity of such a make shift mortuary is needed to keep the dignity of the perished, and protect the living from the coronavirus. Related article: COVID-19 Conspiracy: Is it True that US Govt Gave $3.7 M Grant to Wuhan Lab? @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An aid worker employed by humanitarian agency Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF) died in the northeast Nigerian state of Borno after contracting the new coronavirus, a spokesman for the organisation said on Sunday. Borno is at the epicentre of one of the worlds worst humanitarian crises, spawned by a decade-long Islamist militant insurgency that has left 7 million people in need of aid. The death of an aid worker in a part of Africas most populous country where camps house many of the roughly two million people displaced by the insurgency will prompt fears of the highly infectious lung disease spreading quickly among malnourished people, many of whom suffer from other diseases. An MSF spokesman confirmed the death of one of the aid agencys workers but did not provide further details. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) late on Sunday said it had recorded a cumulative total of 627 confirmed cases and 21 deaths including one in Borno. No further details were given. The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, in a statement earlier on Sunday said camps for displaced people needed to be decongested due to the pandemic and a number of fires in the last few days. Post Views: 5 Malaysia and Vietnam, militarily weaker than China, are expected to protest through diplomatic channels over a Chinese survey ship fleet that entered disputed waters this month, inviting a long but nonviolent standoff. Both Southeast Asian countries are monitoring the movement of the Chinese Haiyang Dizhi 8 fleet, which multiple news reports say passed through disputed tracts of the South China Sea last week. The same vessel spent four months in 2019 in an oil-rich tract of the sea claimed by Vietnam and blocked Vietnamese crews from exploring for oil underwater. This time both states will probably protest diplomatically to China but do little more, analysts believe. They lack Chinas overall military might. Malaysias prime minister, in office for less than two months, also has little foreign policy experience. Against that muted response, China could keep its survey fleet in disputed waters and stymie the energy drilling efforts of Malaysia and Vietnam, experts believe. Its just the status quo, said Carl Thayer, emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia. China is doing its survey work and Malaysias searching for oil, and occasionally they have harassment and close calls -- diplomatic pressure behind the scenes and then at some point weather changes or what not and China, if Malaysia doesnt cave in, takes the vessel and brings it back, Thayer said. This sort of friction surfaces regularly in the broader South China Sea dispute. China, Malaysia, Vietnam, and three other governments claim all or part of the 3.5 million-square-kilometer waterway. They prize it for fisheries, shipping lanes, oil, and natural gas. China has grown more powerful than the other claimants over the past 10 years by landfilling tiny islets for military installations. Claimant states have made little headway diplomatically in settling disputes. The U.S. Navy periodically passes ships through the South China Sea as a warning to Beijing. New PM in Malaysia Malaysia's Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, a former interior minister appointed in March, will probably take a low-key approach to Chinese presence in the sea, analysts say. His predecessor Mahathir Mohamad had publicly questioned the basis for Chinas claims and warned against use of any warships. This new prime minister is no Mahathir, said Oh Ei Sun, senior fellow with the Singapore Institute of International Affairs. He is not well known for taking a harsh diplomatic or political stand. Expect instead low-key negotiations between Malaysia and China, which in turn will move its vessels peacefully but deliberately in the disputed waters, Oh said. China resents Malaysia for filing documentation in December to the U.N. Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf about plans to extend its rights in the South China Sea beyond 370 kilometers from its baselines, Thayer said. China claims about 90% of the sea and cites historical usage records as support. Malaysia began in October looking for oil and gas just outside those 370 kilometers. A British company-managed contract drillship West Capella became the heart of the standoff that has also attracted Chinese coast guard vessels, the U.S. think tank-operated Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative says on its website. The survey ship came last week with about 10 escort boats and might return with 20 or 30 an unprecedented show of force by China toward Malaysia said a scholar doing research for the Malaysian government. The vessel was sailing near Chinas mainland east of Hong Kong as of late Sunday, according to ship-tracking website Marine Traffic. Vietnam learned from 2019 In July last year, the same Chinese energy survey ship began patrolling near Vanguard Bank 352 kilometers off the coast of southeastern Vietnam. Vietnam operates an undersea energy exploration platform near Vanguard Bank. The vessel left in October. Vietnamese and Chinese boats rammed one another in 2014 when China allowed an oil rig into disputed waters. But when the survey vessel showed last year, China just kept Vietnam away from its oil drilling site and the standoff came down to who blinks first, Thayer said. Vietnam will probably protest again this time and avoid the use of force, scholars say. In that case, Haiyang Dizhi 8s fleet could spend two to three months in disputed waters this year by using landfilled islands for resupply, said Nguyen Thanh Trung, Center for International Studies director at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam hopes eventually for backup from other Southeast Asian states, he said. This is like the annual, Nguyen said. It seems to me this is the second time the survey ship is back to the South China Sea. If the Southeast Asian countries do not collaborate right now, maybe next year the survey ship will be back again and maybe they will choose another area of the South China Sea for the survey. The Canadian Space Agency's newest radar satellites are transmitting flood data and their first test is in the Red River Valley. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 20/4/2020 (631 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The Canadian Space Agency's newest radar satellites are transmitting flood data and their first test is in the Red River Valley. Three 1,430-kilogram satellites were launched by U.S.-based SpaceX on a Falcon 9 rocket in June 2019. Months were needed to calibrate the satellites, which are part of CSAs RADARSAT Constellation Mission (thus known as RCM satellites). "When youre trying to measure something as fast-moving as a flood, you want to provide as much current and frequent information as possible, Roger De Abreu said. (Supplied) They mark the countrys third generation of radar satellites. "Because the satellites launched at the same time, they needed time to be able to spread across the Earth. It took about two weeks for the satellites to enter their proper orbits. Because they circulate on the same orbit, but they chase each other, so they are about 30 minutes apart," Daniel De Lisle, RCM mission manager, told the Free Press by phone from CSA headquarters in Quebec. On Dec. 19, the trio of RCM satellites were declared operational and began providing information to a dozen Canadian federal departments. The 2020 spring melt and rising waters of the Red River offered the first chance to test out the new equipment in an emerging flood situation. Three 1,430-kilogram satellites were launched by U.S.-based SpaceX on a Falcon 9 rocket in June 2019. (Supplied photo) "We can provide about 170 different types of imagery from those satellites, so we can have very small precision, looking at things as small as one metre, or we can have very broad images," De Lisle said. Previously, the space agencys capabilities were limited to a single satellite that transmitted targeted information with a greater time delay, sometimes two to 12 days. The new satellites travel at a speed of 27,200 km/h, passing around the Earth once every 96 minutes. Information is transmitted and updated daily, if not more often. Roger De Abreu, acting director of the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (a division of Natural Resources Canada) says when it comes to emergency response situations, the change in the flow of information is invaluable. "Thats a tremendous improvement. When youre trying to measure something as fast-moving as a flood, you want to provide as much current and frequent information as possible," De Abreu said. "It means a lot to those downstream, to the people who are trying to build a situational awareness of the flood, at the federal level, but also at the provincial level. Also to those responders who are trying to marshal resources." The satellite trio is also contributing to Canadas commitment to the International Charter Space and Major Disasters co-operative agency, which represents the combined efforts of 17 member countries and 61 satellites tracking and monitoring disasters. Natural Resources Canada will also be using information from the satellites to improve national flood-plain mapping and understanding of flood risks. Numerous federal agencies and researchers benefit from the data the RCM satellites provide; Agriculture Canada uses it to analyze crops, the Department of National Defence uses it to track ships. Also, a large part of knowledge about how the country is evolving due to climate change is informed by these radar satellites, monitoring everything from how vegetation is changing to creeping permafrost thaw. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. "Canadas radar satellites are really good at measuring, from space, changes in the Earths subsidence or deformation, as it rises and falls on the scale of millimetres or centimetres. So one thing that happens with permafrost is that as the top layer of the permafrost melts and freezes every year, theres a heaving that goes on, and thats important to understand when youre building (structures) and whatnot," De Abreu said. In a country as large as Canada, there would be no other way to effectively monitor changes across the land mass without leveraging off the CSA and its technology. "You cant effectively manage something if you cant see it," De Abreu said. "All decisions require a degree of environmental intelligence understanding what your country is today, what it was in the past, and where its going in the future and the ability to tap into satellites that are crossing this country every day is important to that. Its critical." sarah.lawrynuik@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @SarahLawrynuik An outbreak of the CCP virus at a wind power plant in North Dakota shut down production on April 20, 2020. (Google Maps) CCP Virus Outbreak at Wind Power Plant in North Dakota Shuts Down Production An outbreak of the CCP virus at a wind power plant in North Dakota shut down production. In a statement to news outlets, a spokesperson for GE, which owns LM Wind Power, said its facility in Grand Forks will be temporarily closed for a minimum of two weeks so the firm can carry out an extensive disinfection process, while employees will be paid as usual during the closure. We will continue to support our employees and monitor their condition as we determine when and how we can restart the plant safely, the spokesperson said in the statement. The power plants outbreak of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, a type of novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, has surged to more than 110 cases, said North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. It came after the North Dakota National Guard tested hundreds of people on April 16 at the LM Wind Power facility. North Dakotas health department later confirmed more than 110 confirmed cases of the virus connected to the plant, and at least eight workers have tested positive, CNBC reported. The company opened its fourth Chinese factory in 2017. According to a press release, the company employed 2,300 people in China at the time. The company is one of the few foreign firms operating in the Chinese offshore wind market, reported Chinessima. LM Wind Power is gaining ground in Chinas competitive domestic landscape thanks to leading technology and highly-reliable manufacturing. Our company works with four out of the top five offshore wind turbine manufacturers in China, said Alexis Crama, offshore VP at LM Wind Power. Volunteers hand out food at Reyes Produce in Houston, Texas, on April 13, 2020. (Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images) On Saturday, the states health officer, Mylynn Tufte, issued a quarantine order for LM Wind Power workers. They now have to be in medical isolation at their homes unless otherwise authorized, she said in a statement. As COVID-19 continues to spread across North Dakota, staying home as much as possible continues to be one of the best ways to reduce your exposure to the coronavirus, she said. The outbreak could possibly overwhelm local health care systems, said a local hospital administrator. While this is still under investigation and we dont have the final results, we know that this is a very serious event, Steven Weiser, the president of Altru Health System, said in a press conference, reported the Grand Forks Herald. He added: The potential impact we now face has the ability to overwhelm our health care workers and our health system. This is a big deal. We need you to take this seriously and respond appropriately. Sparsely populated North Dakota remains among the U.S. states least impacted by COVID-19, the disease caused by the highly contagious virus. Only Montana, Alaska, and Wyoming have fewer cases, according to a Reuters tally. While some hot spots like hardest-hit New York have seen their rates of hospitalizations and other numbers start to level off, North Dakota was moving in the opposite direction, Burgum said. Reuters contributed to this report. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., on Monday asked Attorney General William Barr to deny requests from infamous Ponzi schemers Bernie Madoff and R. Allen Stanford for early prison release due to the coronavirus pandemic. "Releasing either of these individuals, or anyone similarly situated, would be an affront to those affected by their evil schemes, and a complete failure in the administration of justice," Kennedy wrote in a letter to Barr. The coronavirus has swept through the U.S. prison system, infecting thousands of inmates and guards. In federal facilities, 495 inmates and 309 staff have tested positive for Covid-19, according to the Bureau of Prisons. Twenty-two federal inmates have died from the virus, the BOP says. Barr in late March directed the BOP to release eligible nonviolent inmates to home confinement because of the threat the disease posed to vulnerable prisoners. He expanded that order on April 3 to include more federal inmates. Madoff, who turns 82 on April 29, had already asked to be freed from his 150-year prison sentence to live out his final days with a friend before succumbing to a terminal kidney disease. His lawyer last month called for all inmates threatened by the coronavirus to be released. Kennedy told Barr that he is "concerned that it is only a matter of time" before Stanford, 70, asks for early release from his 110-year sentence. "Our efforts should be focused on protecting those who protected us; our parents, grandparents, and military veterans who led crime-free lives," Kennedy said in the letter. An inmate at a Louisiana prison claimed he was choked unconscious by a sheriff's deputy for repeatedly asking for medical assistance for his COVID-19 symptoms. Bradford Skinner, a 39-year-old inmate at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, told Buzzfeed News that the incident happened on April 4 with an unnamed deputy. Cell phone footage of the shocking altercation showed the deputy forcefully holding Skinner, whose hands were handcuffed, by the neck before shoving his torso over a railing. Bradford Skinner (center), an inmate at a Louisiana prison, said he was chocked by a sheriff's deputy because he asked for medical assistance after experiencing COVID-19 symptoms The deputy then held Skinner down by his neck while two additional prison employees placed his legs in shackles. Suddenly, Skinner's arms fell limp and he slumped onto the ground after deputies attempted to pull him upwards. 'That man in handcuffs, they doing that to that man,' one inmate in the background said. 'That man cant breathe, look,' another added. Cell phone footage of the incident appeared to show the deputy choking Skinner (left) until he fell unconscious Skinner (pictured) then slumped to the ground when prison officials attempted to lift him back up over the rail According to Skinner, he was the victim of a physical assault because he asked prison officials more medical care. 'I am being punished for being sick. If this wasn't on camera, it would have been swept under the rug and fell on deaf ears,' he said. Skinner had previously been tested for COVID-19 after suffering symptoms, but neither he nor his lawyers have received his test results as of April 14. 'This disturbing video lays bare two dangerous epidemics in our country police brutality and COVID-19 both targeting black Americans in alarming numbers,' said Sarah Chervinsky, one of Skinner's lawyers. 'It is unacceptable for three law enforcement officers to participate in choking an unarmed man into unconsciousness, especially when that man has COVID-19 symptoms and requested medical help.' Inmates across the United States have revealed their fearful of what a COVID-19 outbreak could look like inside prisons. Social distancing guidelines are increasingly hard to enforce inside prisons where several inmates live in close proximity and spend their days in the same facilities. Medical services behind bars have long been substandard and even hand sanitizer is considered contraband in some facilities because of its alcohol content. The Federal Bureau of Prisons reports that 495 inmates and 309 staffers tested positive for COVID-19. 22 inmates have died. It should be noted that these numbers reflect federal inmates and staff who have undergone COVID-19 tests - not those who've yet to gain access to testing. Pictured: People concerned about the health of prison inmates during the coronavirus disease outbreak protest outside the Washington state capitol with as efforts continue to slow the spread of the coronavirus disease As of Sunday, there are 2,426 total confirmed cases throughout the American prison system. Sheriffs office spokesperson Casey Hicks revealed there were around 12 inmates with confirmed COVID-19 cases at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison as of April 15. 18 inmates who also tested positive were transferred to a section of the maximum-security prison in in Angola, Louisiana, that is designated for diagnosed prisoners. Skinner said he began to have chest pains, difficulty breathing and coughing on April 3. He reportedly asked an unnamed warden for medical care, but was given a lemon, ginger and honey to make tea. The next day, Skinner said he again asked for medical assistance from the same official but was denied. He asked a prison captain for assistance but the captain contacted the warden, who was allegedly told to write up Skinner for inciting a riot. Skinner said he asked to call his family, and that's when other deputies arrived. He said that was the last thing he remembered before the recorded incident. Hicks would not confirm with Buzzfeed News that Skinner had undergone COVID-19 testing, but said he was being held in a section of the prison with healthy inmates. William Most, Skinner's lawyer, said the father-of-three had previously been in a quarantine section of the prison. But officials at the prison claimed the incident with Skinner, who had been working in a work-release program facility, happened after he attempted to escape. Warden Dennis Grimes said in a statement that Skinner 'attempted to escape by jumping from a moving van and attempted to assault a guard before trying to escape again and incite a riot. 'The inmate continued to refuse compliance and then would not move for transportation. He was taken to our facility and checked out by medical and cleared for booking into the prison where he currently remains in good health. 'Louisiana Workforce staff stated that he will additionally be charged with Escape, Assault and Inciting a Riot.' Advocates and some officials worry that a COVID-19 outbreak could devastate the prison system Hicks doubled down on the prison's allegation against Skinner and added that officials 'could not place him [in] leg restraints due to his combative actions... they called our prison for assistance and the video takes place...after that.' Many officials reportedly claimed Skinner had not disclosed the the warden's account to his lawyers. Although Most said the sheriff's offices timeline matches that of Skinners, he argued that the level of force used was unnecessary. 'Choking someone to the point of unconsciousness by the throat while theyre wearing handcuffs and exhibiting passive resistance is illegal, full stop,' Most said. Meanwhile, advocates and others are working to get nonviolent offenders released from East Baton Rouge Parish Prison during the pandemic. Skinner was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to drug possession charges. Lacie Dauzat, the pretrial release unit supervisor in the East Baton Rouge Office of the Public Defender, said the prison houses those awaiting trial and those already convicted. 'If anything comes out of this pandemic, it may be shining a light on criminal justice reform and how it's needed more than ever,' said Dauzat. 'No one is realizing that the majority of people housed in parish jails are pretrial, they have not been found guilty. Theyre in there simply because they cant afford bond amounts.' Dauzat said prison officials have made efforts to accommodate prisoners during the pandemic by providing hand sanitizer, face masks, soap, waived all medical drug fees and allowed inmates to contact their lawyers. After visitations stopped in March, the prison set up free family calls, as well as implemented routine temperature checks for staff or people coming inside the prison. Rev. Alexis Anderson, who is part of the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison Reform Coalition, said officials were placing too many restrictions on which prisoners could be released during the pandemic. 'The idea that they literally are creating new ways to not let these people out, we just think that everybody is going to be accountable for this,' he said. As the number of COVID-19 cases soar past 770,000 in the United States, so do the number of infections in prisons. At Marion Correction Institution in Ohio, three quarters of inmates and 109 staffers have coronavirus. 20 percent of confirmed cases in Ohio are from prisoners. Inmates at Lansing Correctional Facility in Kansas rioted after 14 staff members and 12 prisoners tested positive for COVID-19 in early April Prisoners rampaged through offices, broke windows and set small fires in apparent protest at the spread of coronavirus. The outbreak continued for several hours before the facility was secured, a prison official said. It's unclear what started the riot, said Randy Bowman, spokesman for the Kansas Department of Corrections. But in the video, one of the inmates can be heard to say: 'Y'all don't want to give us no healthcare, this is what we do'. Lansing prison has drawn attention recently amid the coronavirus crisis, with the corrections department reporting 14 staff and 12 inmates with confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the facility. In the video, many of the prisoners can be seen wearing masks Several prisons, including high profile inmates, have requested they be released from jail amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes Attorney Michael Avenatti, who represented adult film actress Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against President Donald Trump. Avenatti, 49, claimed that a recent bout if pneumonia in September put him at greater risk for contracting the coronavirus. Michael Avenatti (pictured) was granted temporary release from his New York City prison by a federal judge in California He was released from the Metropolitan Correctional Center on a $1million bond and placed into quarantine for 14 days at a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to ensure he's not infected with the coronavirus. ABC News reports that once he's completed the mandated quarantine, Avenatti will be allowed to leave for Los Angeles to stay at a friend's home for 90 days. A federal California judge, who granted Avenatti's release, has ordered that he will not be allowed out of the home except for emergencies and must wear a monitoring bracelet. He also can't use the internet, make financial transactions of more than $500 or open a new bank or credit accounts. Avenatti was initially denied temporary release in late March after U.S. District Court Judge James Selna found no credible reason to remove him from custody. Three quarters of inmates and 109 staff at Ohio prison have coronavirus - as it's revealed 20 percent of cases in the state are prisoners Around 73 percent of the inmate population, plus 109 members of staff, at an Ohio prison have tested positive for coronavirus. Statistics from the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation & Correction (ODRC) reveal that the entire Marion Correction Institution is in quarantine but 1,828 people are in isolation with COVID-19, leaving only 667 inmates separated. Of those incarcerated across the state, 2,400 had tested positive Sunday. In Ohio, there were 11,602 cases and 471 deaths as of Monday morning. In addition to the 2,495 incarcerated at Marion, 109 members of staff have the virus. At Marion Correction Institution, 1,828 people are in isolation with COVID-19 and 20 prisons across the state are in full quarantine One Marion employee, 55-year-old correctional officer John Dawson, died April 8. He had worked at the prison since 1996 One employee, 55-year-old correctional officer John Dawson, died April 8. He had worked at the prison since 1996. Eight staff members have recovered. The staggering figures are released amid calls from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for prisoners across the state to go free as coronavirus spreads rapidly behind bars. The Department of Rehabilitation & Correction (DRC) has taken an aggressive and unique approach to testing, which includes mass testing of all staff and inmates at the Marion Correctional Institution, the Pickaway Correctional Institution, and the Franklin Medical Center (which is Ohio's medical facility for inmates). Housing at all of those facilities is a combination of cells and bays, the ODRC mentions in its report. At Pickaway, 380 inmates are in isolation and the remaining 1614 are in quarantine after 384 tested positive for the disease. Sixty four members of staff have tested positive and two have recovered. There were five confirmed COVID-19 related inmate deaths and one probable. At Franklin, 102 inmates are in isolation after 103 tested positive. Forty six staff members tested positive. There has been one confirmed COVID-19 related inmate death. The state has reduced meals from three to two daily, blocked visitors and made telephone and video calls free, plus inmates are allowed to wear cloth masks. Staff and vendors must undergo temperature checks before entering. One inmate said that even before the outbreak, hygiene at the facility was a problem. 'The thing that irritates me most is they want to do everything with the same gloves on,' inmate Daniel Phipps, who is paralyzed from the waist down, told WOSU. 'They do not change their gloves at all. And I'm not talking about just one or two of 'em, I'd say 70 per cent of them do not change their gloves on the regular.' 'Even just looking at my bed right, now there's stuff caked up all in it, dirt, so if you easily catch infections and you just had a surgery, this is really not the place you want to be,' pregnant inmate Lacey Carroll said. 'A lot of people get infections after surgery here, abscesses.' Correctional officer Michael Rider claimed most of the staff there that had contracted coronavirus had been guarding COVID-positive inmates that had been transferred to the Wexner Medical Center for care which only has 23 beds. He has urged for more personal protective equipment. At Franklin Medical Center, 102 inmates are in isolation after 103 tested positive. Forty six staff members tested positive. There has been one confirmed COVID-19 related inmate death 'I dont care if Im in the room or outside of the room, if Im there, I want an N-95 mask,' Rider said. 'Im not getting that. Our staff is not getting that. Our staff is becoming ill.' The DRC started mass testing on April 11 and results are still pending. Twenty prisons are under full quarantine, totaling 29,974 inmates. As of Sunday, there were 2,426 confirmed cases throughout the entire prison system in the state. That's approximately 21 percent of the wider Ohio population. A total of 244 staff are infected across the state where there are 12.727 employees - 6,655 corrections officers, 491 parole officers and some 2,000 medical workers. The DRC noted 637 had tested negative. 'Because we are testing everyone including those who are not showing symptoms - we are getting positive test results on individuals who otherwise would have never been tested because they were asymptomatic,' the DRC explained. 'The total tested and total pending are part of the large mass testing currently underway.' Health authorities in New York are today beginning to carry out coronavirus antibody tests to try and work out how many citizens have had COVID-19 already. The blood tests, which look for signs of past infection, are considered by many to be key to lifting lockdown measures and controlling the virus's spread in future. The state, home to 19million, aims to test 14,000 random people - 2,000 a day - this week as it scales up efforts to get its outbreak under control. New York has been devastated by the virus and has recorded more cases (243,000) than any country in the world and more than 17,000 people have died. State governor Andrew Cuomo said yesterday the 'aggressive' testing effort will offer US officials 'the first true picture' of the scale of the coronavirus outbreak there. In the UK, where Number 10's slow uptake of testing remains a controversial topic, fewer than 4,300 tests have been carried out since they began this month. Public Health England is believed to be carrying out all of its antibody testing in one laboratory in Wiltshire and to be shunning commercial tests in favour of its own. Germany and Finland have all also begun antibody testing, while the Italian region of Lombardy plans to carry out 20,000 a day. New York State governor Andrew Cuomo (pictured touring a science lab on Long Island, NY) said yesterday the 'aggressive' testing effort will offer US officials 'the first true picture' of the scale of the coronavirus outbreak there When someone gets infected with a virus their immune system must work out how to fight it off and produce substances called antibodies. 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. Mr Cuomo, giving a briefing on the situation in New York, said yesterday: 'You could argue that we are past the plateau and we're starting to descend, which would be very good news.' But health experts say for places to emerge safely from lockdown and avoid second waves of infections, they must be able to do widespread testing. Swab tests must be available to catch infected people before they spread the virus, and antibody tests must be used to evaluate how many people might have some natural immunity, reducing the risk of fast-spreading outbreaks. Vice President Mike Pence said on Friday the US had the capacity to do a sufficient amount of testing for states to move into a phase one of reopening. WHAT IS AN ANTIBODY TEST, AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT TO A 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. Advertisement Governors and state health officials, however, say there is nowhere near enough test kits and equipment available. Mr Cuomo said in a briefing yesterday: 'Any plan that is going to start to reopen the economy has to be based on data and that means it has to be based on testing,' Politico reported. 'You have all these scientists and all these experts who are basically trying to extrapolate from the data, but we don't really know how many people were infected - how many people had coronavirus but self-resolved? 'We don't really know because we haven't been able to do testing on that large a scale, but we're going to start, and we're going to start here in the state of New York with antibody testing.' Antibody testing remains controversial in the UK because the Government insists it cannot find a commercial test good enough to use on the public. The Department of Health bought 3.5million antibody testing kits but expert examination of them found they were not accurate enough to use. Standards released by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said antibody tests must be at least 98 per cent accurate. The only commercial test to have been approved in the US - produced by a company called Cellex - is approximately 95 per cent accurate. The UK last month made a provisional order for 17.5million antibody tests from nine different companies, on the condition that they passed validation by Oxford University scientists. But researchers at the prestigious university found none of them were reliable enough to be rolled out to the masses. Included in the 17.5million order were 2million tests from China that cost Britain a huge 16million. Officials are now scrambling to try to get that money back. The Department of Health set out antibody testing as its fourth pillar in its programme to understand the true size of the outbreak in Britain. It said: 'Robust population surveillance programmes are essential to understand the rate of infection, and how the virus is spreading across the country. 'They help us to assess the impact of measures taken so far to contain the virus, to inform current and future actions, and to develop new tests and treatments.' PHE said in guidance released on April 4 that it was in the process of analysing the first 800 samples collected. It said PHE was in the process of scaling up its antibody testing programme to carry out around 5,000 per week. Its end goal is to have up to 20,000 people who will be repeatedly tested over a 12-month period, to paint a clearer picture on the truth about immunity. The most up-to-date DH figures, released yesterday, show 4,287 antibody tests have been carried out, including 377 on Saturday. But the number of people actually tested will be lower because health bosses keep the samples sent to the Porton Down lab anonymised. It comes as Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche announced it would be launching a 'highly specific' antibody test by early May. Roche - one of the 'big four' diagnostics companies in the world - said it will be able to manufacture 'double-digit millions' of the devices by the end of June. While Roche did not specify how the tests will work, it is thought samples will need to be processed in a lab and will not be suitable for use at home. Scientists say antibody tests will be crucial to building up herd immunity against the coronavirus, which may be the only long-term protection until a vaccine is made. Herd immunity is a situation in which so many people have had a disease already and are protected from it that it cannot spread quickly through a community - those who are immune effectively create roadblocks against the disease. It comes after the WHO warned there is no evidence to prove that people who have recovered from coronavirus will not catch it again. The UN body warned world leaders against investing too heavily in the tests to show if a person has already had the virus, because they do not guarantee immunity. WHAT ARE ANTIBODY TESTS? HOW DO THEY WORK? AND WHY HASN'T BRITAIN APPROVED ANY YET? HOW DO ANTIBODY TESTS WORK, AND HOW ARE THEY DIFFERENT TO SWABS? Scientists still don't know if developing antibodies means lifelong immunity and whether tests will ever be accurate Does everyone who has survived coronavirus develop antibodies? When someone is exposed to coronavirus, the body begins making proteins known as antibodies which fight the infection. If these antibodies can successfully contain the virus and stop it spreading within the body, symptoms will normally start to reduce in patients. The immune system will then completely destroy all the virus in someone's body - leaving them with no long-term health effects if all goes well. Everyone who develops Covid-19 will produce these antibodies, but small amounts of the virus may remain in the body for a few days after they feel fully recovered hence the importance of self-isolation. Scientists are unclear whether developing antibodies means immunity will be lifelong - and they may only last an average of two years Once someone has recovered from a viral infection, their body will retain cells known as lymphocytes in their system. These effectively remember viruses the body has previously encountered, meaning it should quickly fight them off again. This means your antibodies will probably stop the virus before it causes any noticeable symptoms - also known as 'immunity'. However, immunity can decrease over time for some viruses, which is why some people get revaccinated with 'boosters' which can prompt the immune system to make more antibodies. The issue with Covid-19 is that because it is so new, scientists are currently unsure whether people who recover from the infection are immune to catching it again. Furthermore, the World Health Organisation has warned there is limited evidence that coronavirus survivors were guaranteed future immunity to the disease. Some early animal studies suggested that antibodies could block reinfection for at least two weeks. But research on the new coronavirus' closest relative - SARS - shows a patient generates antibodies that last an average of two years. Tom Duszynski, an expert in epidemiology at Indiana UniversityPurdue University Indianapolis, said: 'Doctors are finding antibodies in ill and recovered patients, and that indicates the development of immunity. 'But the question remains how long that immunity will last. Other coronaviruses like SARS and MERS produce an immune response that will protect a person at least for a short time. 'I would suspect the same is true of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus strain that causes Covid-19), but the research simply hasn't been done yet to say so definitively.' Once the test is developed, are they accurate enough to see people who have antibodies? Guidelines from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that a person has recovered from Covid-19 when they have been fever-free without medication for three days in a row. They must also show an improvement in other symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath - as well as testing negative for the virus twice in two tests taken at least 24 hours apart. As for the antibody test, government officials in the US and UK are yet to find one that is good enough for widespread use. Columbia University expert Dr Susan Whittier has admitted it could take years to find a test which will be accurate enough, although scientists are trying to find a blood-based test within a few months. The main issue is within identifying the exact antibodies produced by a body with a healthy immune system to fight the infection, which scientists are divided on. This means antibody tests have been produced with various designs so far, some of which have failed to work with enough accuracy because they are not specific enough for SARS-CoV-2. Viruses are made up of many proteins, called antigens, of which some are shared with other viruses but only a few may be unique to Covid-19. The proteins specific to the virus will trigger the production of antibodies that neutralise the virus, stopping it from replicating. Dr Whittier said: 'We have to figure out what part of the virus is going to be really specific for that virus.' NHS England national medical director Professor Stephen Powis said today that officials 'don't have the perfect test for antibodies yet', but the UK is working on one which will assess the real number of infections in the community. He said: 'What's important now as we are a few weeks further on is actually getting the real number on infections in the community and that is best done by testing antibodies i.e. testing people who have caught the virus, and then developed an immune response and then have antibodies in their blood. 'We are beginning to see some studies from other countries that are doing that, it's not straightforward, firstly because the tests are still being worked out and we don't have the perfect test for antibodies yet. 'We don't know how many people produce antibodies when they have the virus and when they produce it and how long they last for. 'That's the important information that will give us an actual figure that is much more closer to the number of infections. 'That work is ongoing in the UK at the moment so we can have that information in the UK rather than relying on other countries.' Advertisement An antibody test detects if someone has previously had coronavirus and has since recovered, even if they are unaware they were infected. There are two different types of antibody tests - one which is done at home and takes a few minutes, and another which is posted to a lab to be analysed. Both versions of the test are carried out using a finger pricker to extract a blood sample. People using the DIY home tests place their sample in a screening device which takes a few minutes to scour the blood for antibodies. These are substances created and stored by the immune system when someone gets ill. If a person has COVID-19-specific antibodies, it means they have already defeated the virus and are likely to have gained some immunity to it. The antibody tests - also known as 'serological tests' - were described as a 'game changer' by Prime Minister Boris Johnson last month. As well as painting a clear picture of who is safe to return to work, they are convenient and cheap. The devices cost between 6 and 20 and can be posted to people to be conducted from their own home. They work like a home pregnancy test, giving a 'positive' or 'negative' result within 10 to 15 minutes. Antibody tests differ to a swab test, known as a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, which the Government currently uses. A PCR test can only tell whether a person currently has COVID-19 because it picks up on active viruses currently in the bloodstream. Saliva samples have to be sent to a lab where scientists scan the DNA for evidence of the virus. The PCR test is more reliable but takes longer - up to two days - while the antibody test is faster but more likely to produce an inaccurate result. WHY IS BRITAIN NOT MASS TRIALLING ANTIBODY TESTS? The Government promised weeks ago that they would be rolled out en-masse. Britons were told they would be able to buy them from Amazon or Boots. But none have so far proved to be reliable enough for the public. The tests have only been trialled on 3,000 patients at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down, near Salisbury. By comparison, Germany is trialling the tests on tens of thousands of its population. Last month, the UK Government ordered 3.5 million finger prick tests, mainly from Chinese manufacturers. Later it announced it had placed provisional orders for 17.5 million tests from nine firms including some based in the UK. Among them were two tests made by Chinese companies. Britain paid an estimated 16 million for them. But the deals were on the condition that they could pass reliability tests by scientists at Oxford University. Researchers at the prestigious university did not approve any of them, meaning it could now be months before they are used in the UK, if at all. The tests were said to give 'false positive' results too often, meaning they incorrectly tells people they are immune. This might give people false confidence that they can't catch the bug and put them at risk of infection. After being stung by the faulty Chinese antibody tests, the UK Government is said tonow be looking for 'home grown' devices made by British firms. But UK-based manufacturers are struggling to access blood samples of infected patients to trial their devices on. Essex-based Biosure said there was 'a national shortage' of samples. It is now calling for blood donations from members of the public who were either diagnosed with, or were suspected of having, the virus. A spokesperson told MailOnline: 'We have discovered there is no current UK based bio-bank for confirmed positive COVID-19 blood samples. 'We recognise the Government is under immense pressure with this global crisis, so for swift action we need to call to the nation for urgent support. 'We are asking people to fill in an on-line questionnaire so we can build a database of people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and who would, if needed, be prepared to provide a small sample of their blood. 'People who fit the criteria will be contacted and sent a collection kit though the post, so that a blood sample could be self-collected at home and posted back for inclusion in our validations.' WHICH COUNTRIES ARE USING ANTIBODY TESTS ALREADY? No country has successfully implemented a nationwide antibody testing programme. But the kits are being used alongside swab tests in South Korea, Germany, the US, Italy, Finland and China. Germany became the first in Europe to carry out large-scale coronavirus antibody testing last week. The country launched three studies - one analysing blood donations, one involving the country's worst-hit areas and a representative study of the broader population. In the first, 15,000 samples will be taken every fortnight from blood donations. The second will look at blood samples taken from about 2,000 people. Preliminary results from these two projects are expected to be published in May. In the third study, 15,000 people in 150 regions across Germany will be tested for antibodies. The research will begin next month. Finland has also announced a similar - but much smaller - antibody testing programme. Finnish broadcaster Yle said the country will start testing 750 random blood samples every week. The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is also carrying out antibody testing. It is analsying blood donations of Washington and New York City residents - two of the worst-hit regions in the States. A separate survey is looking at random samples of people across the country, and a third is studying health workers. In Italy, Giancarlo Maria Liumbruno, the director-general of the Italian National Blood Center, is said to be trying to roll out antibody tests within weeks. Mr Liumbruno said the country has more than 1.7 million blood donors the country could screen to see if they've had COVID-19. Mr Liumbruno said he plans to use the antibodies to treat coronavirus sufferers. Trials of this process have already started in some hospitals in Lombardy, Northern Italy - at the heart of the nation's outbreak. Plasma from patients who recovered and tested negative for at least two weeks is used on those still battling COVID-19. HOW ACCURATE DO THEY NEED TO BE TO WORK? There is not enough information on antibody tests to know for certain how accurate they need to be. Early studies appear to show they give very few false negatives (meaning they rarely are wrong are determining if someone has never had the infection). But UK officials are worried by how often the devices give false positive results. This could give people false confidence that they are immune. For this reason, England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty has described them as 'dangerous', saying a bad antibody test was worse than none at all. But some scientists say that, even if the tests are just 50 per cent accurate, they at least give officials a clearer picture of who is infected. One top scientist, who wished to remain anonymous, told MailOnline: 'Even if the sensitivity is not good enough to pick up every single instance, if youre testing asymptomatic subjects (who otherwise you wouldnt test at all) then anyone identified positive... is one more person identified and isolated. 'The safe method of testing - just a finger through a screen, or car window - and the level of protection that affords those carrying out the testing is also key. 'Way better than having to get up-close-and-personal to throat/mouth swab every person you want to test.' WHY IS IT SO DIFFICULT TO MAKE A RELIABLE ONE? The development of an antibody tests require some knowledge of the proteins that form the coat of the virus. Viruses are made up of many proteins, called antigens, of which some are shared with other viruses. Only a few may be unique to the particular virus. The proteins specific to the virus will trigger the production of antibodies that neutralise the virus, stopping it from replicating. 'We have to figure out what part of the virus is going to be really specific for that virus,' Dr Whittier, who heads up Columbia University and New York Presbyterian's microbiology lab, told DailyMail.com. Those sections of the viral protein coat must then be produced in the laboratory, using cell lines, to be tested in an immunoassay. Scientists 'take that protein, put it in the bottom of a plastic well and put the blood serum in it and see if there's something that will stick to it,' said Dr Whittier. That 'something' would be the antibodies in the patients' blood. Anna Petherick, a lecturer in public policy at University of Oxford, said immunoassays will form the basis of home testing kits for people who think they have had COVID-19. 'But their development takes time,' she explained in The Lancet. 'Expressing the protein in the right structure is often the most difficult step. 'In a nonnative system, such as a bacterial cell, the complex protein structures can come out slightly deformed, enough to stop antibodies from recognising them as they would the original viral coat protein. 'There are also questions about which antigens (proteins) are best for this purpose. 'Some diagnostic developers are cagey about giving away too many details, although the viral spike protein is universally perceived as the obvious candidate.' Various labs making antibody tests might not even be testing for exactly the same antibodies. Some tests may confuse antibodies produced in response to the virus that causes COVID-19 to those made for other coronaviruses. 'There are a lot of other coronaviruses, and the issue is you need to find what target is specific for this virus so it's not going to cross-react,' Dr Whittier said. Typically, finding the correct target would 'take months or years, and we're trying to do it in weeks to months,' Dr Whittier said. 'We don't know the specific antigens or targets to look for. 'It seems to the lay public like it's taking a super long time, but from a lab perspective it's happening at lightning speed.' Labs are testing specific antigens by using the blood of patients who have been confirmed to have the infection. It will reveal if the antigen they have identified causes the antigens to stick. If it doesn't, it is not accurate. 'At Columbia, we validated an antibody assay that was developed in Asia and tested lots of our [blood] serum that we had from patients and it turned out it was really specific - it only picked up SARS-CoV-2, which is good,' said Dr Whittier. 'But it was only 50 per cent of patients who should have had antibodies. 'So if it was positive, that was good, they definitely have antibodies'. But if it was negative, 'you might as well be flipping a coin'. Needless to say, Columbia ditched that test. And with FDA guidelines relaxed in an effort to get more tests out more quickly, there's less assurance that validation is done with a comprehensive sample of patients. Dr Whittier says that the package insert for one test she looked at said the company had only tested their test on about five patients. 'That's crazy,' she said. 'Normally that would never happen, but in the middle of a pandemic, you're allowed to push assays out because maybe perfect is the enemy of good.' ANTIBODIES PROVIDE IMMUNITY - BUT HOW MUCH PROTECTION AND HOW LONG IT LASTS VARIES When we contract an infection, the immune system goes to work creating specialized weapons against whatever invader we came into contact with, called antibodies. Once we've encountered a pathogen and develop antibodies to it, these proteins sound the alarm when the invader returns and neutralize it. But not all antibodies are created equal, and not everyone develops the same number of antibodies. For example, it's well known that once you get chicken pox, you're almost certainly immune to it and will never be infected again. That's not true for antibodies against other pathogens. Immunity for other infections wears off relatively quickly. Flu is fairly well understood, but the virus has many strains which mutate readily. Antibodies produced against each variation of flu we encounter are quite specific to that unique infection. So when we come into contact with an evolved or different strain of flu the next season, the antibodies we developed the prior year don't do us much good. That's why flu vaccines are 'recombinant' - they're made based on a combinations of several strains of flu, triggering the production of a variety of antibodies to block the strains scientists think we might making their way around the globe that year. The most common coronaviruses - those that cause seasonal colds - trigger fairly weak antibody responses, lasting only a couple of weeks, which is part of the reason you might get multiple colds in a single year. However, research on the new coronavirus's closest relative - SARS - is somewhat more encouraging. By the second week after someone is infected, they've generated antibodies that seems to last an average of two years. But we simply don't know how similarly antibodies for the virus that causes COVID-19 will behave because we've only known it existed for four months. WHAT DOES A POSITIVE CORONAVIRUS ANTIBODY TEST REALLY MEAN? EVEN THE EXPERTS DON'T KNOW... YET Time and volume of people infected are two key crucial ingredients for an antibody test. They tell scientists how many antibodies are enough to make someone immune to reinfection, and how long that immunity lasts. And labs developing antibody tests have neither on their side. 'We can't tell you that, because we don't have a gold standard to compare it to,' Dr Whittier said. The FDA gave emergency use authorization to the first antibody test for coronavirus in the US on April 2 - less than two weeks ago. That's about as long as scientists think that it takes for a patient to mount an antibody response to SARS-CoV-2. Dr Whittier said: 'Twelve to 14 days is when most individuals are having an antibody response, but we don't know if it's protective, and we don't know how long it lasts.' Having the antibody test is the first step to answering those questions. But some people will develop antibodies more quickly than other, and some will develop greater quantities of antibodies than others. It will take following these people and testing them repeatedly to learn what the 'gold standard' for immunity is. What's more, the first antibody tests only returned results about whether antibodies were present. They did not reveal what volume someone's body had produced them. Now, labs are starting to produce 'semi-quantitative' tests, that can tell if someone has 'a little antibody or a lot of antibody,' Dr Whittier said. As more people are tested for levels of antibodies, not just their existence, epidemiologists can study what levels provide protection and for how long. But for now, 'we don't know what we don't know,' Dr Whittier says. All passengers arriving from overseas will be asked to register where they plan to self-isolate under plans being considered by the Government. Stricter rules on people arriving into ports and airports from abroad are being examined following controversy over the arrival of nearly 200 workers from Bulgaria into Ireland to pick fruit for fruit company Keelings last week. The proposals would involve those arriving into the country being asked to register their name and the location where they will self-isolate for the next fortnight in line with public health guidance. Temperature checks on passengers arriving here are also being mooted. Centres Those who cannot provide an address may be directed to one of the State's self-isolation centres, such as the 1,000-bed facility at Citywest. Two sources with knowledge of the proposals said they would be considered at a meeting of the Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 today but no decision has yet been made. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said while ports and airports would remain open, the Government "need to keep travel to a minimum". Keelings said all the workers who arrived from Bulgaria last week had been medically screened before they travelled and had their temperature checked when they arrived They were then taken to their housing in Dubin, cannot work for 14 days and must restrict movement. Business Minister Heather Humphreys said while she accepted there was serious concerns, they were "essential workers". B ritains technology sector today welcomed the Governments plans to give Covid rescue loans to start-ups but urged the system to be opened up to more businesses. Chancellor Rishi Sunaks so-called Future Fund will offer from 125,000 to 5 million which can then be either paid back or converted into equity in future, allowing the taxpayer to share in potential increases in value of the businesses. Loans will match funds put up by private sector investors. The move is widely welcomed by a sector struggling from a collapse in revenues, but critics argued it should be mandatory for the loans to convert into equity. If not, the best businesses would repay the debt, leaving the taxpayer only owning stakes in the weaker ones. Others were concerned only venture capital firms loans would qualify for match funding, leaving businesses backed by angel investors through the Enterprise Investment Scheme out in the cold. Brent Hoberman, founder of Lastminute.com who now runs the investment firm Founders Factory, said: We welcome this with open arms. It is a statement of intent that will continue the UKs leadership in Europen tech. However, we are keen to encourage the Government to go further to unlock even more private capital. Start-ups were worried about the complexity of applying. One said: This looks like a huge amount of paperwork, both in applying for the loan and then renegotiating terms with all our existing shareholders who will be diluted if it converts to equity further down the line. Russ Shaw, founder of Tech London Advocates, a network of tech entrepreneurs, welcomed the measures but warned: It could take a little while for the money to come through. He urged for more use of R&D tax credits and the Innovate UK grants agency. (Newser) The death toll in Sunday's Nova Scotia shooting rampage has gone up to 17, including the gunman, the CBC and Global News report. That makes it the deadliest mass shooting in Canada's history, the AP reports. A Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer is among the dead; Constable Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force, was a mother of two. The 51-year-old suspect disguised himself as a police officer and shot several people in their homes and in other locations around Portapique, where he is believed to have lived part-time, starting Saturday night. He also set several homes in the area on fire. story continues below The suspect, who wore a RCMP uniform and made his car look like a RCMP cruiser, was ultimately intercepted by officers about 55 miles away at a gas station in Enfield by late Sunday morning. Police say he may have targeted his first victims but then gone on to kill "randomly." The suspect and police exchanged gunfire at some point and the suspect ultimately died, but it's not clear how. A male RCMP officer also received non-life-threatening injuries. Mass shootings are fairly rare in Canada; prior to Sunday, the deadliest one had left 14 dead, plus the gunman, in 1989 at Montreals Ecole Polytechnique college. "This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history, said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. (Read more mass shootings stories.) NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Brad Paisley wants to raise a glass to friends, family and frontline workers in the middle of the global pandemic, so just send him a text. With the release of his new single No I in Beer, the country star has been surprising people on video conference calls to share in a virtual happy hour. CORONAVIRUS UPDATE: Texas City grocer confirms employee who showed up for work tested positive for COVID-19 The song originated in 2018 with co-writer Kelley Lovelace, but the chorus of Were all in this together felt right for the moment to release, Paisley told The Associated Press from his home in Franklin, Tennessee. As this pandemic began, everybody adopted this catchphrase, Were all in this together, said Paisley. And I had this song rolling around in my head. Instead of just a rousing drinking song, Paisley thought it could also raise spirits, too, when people needed to find a little happiness. Its not just a Well get through whatever youre going through thing, said Paisley. Its literally a rallying cry. Its a fight song. Paisley said he updated some of the original lyrics, which now include a call out to the frontline workers during the spread of the coronavirus, including nurses, first responders, farmers and truck drivers. Its a just a shout-out to the people who are keeping this country going, said Paisley. RETURNED FUNDING: Shake Shack to return $10 million loan intended for small businesses In the spirit of virtual happy hours that have been popular online, Paisley wanted to connect with fans, especially since he couldnt play the song while touring. Paisley, like most touring artists, had to reschedule his concert plans this year. So Paisley put a phone number on social media and asked people to text him the link to their conference calls. He already joined a group of elementary school teachers in Illinois, a young man celebrating his 21st birthday and a group of healthcare workers. On his computer desk, hes got a few handy beer cans ready for a computer screen toast. Its inspiring, said Paisley. They are just staying connected anyway they can. Long before the virus brought to the forefront issues like economic insecurity and lack of access to food, Paisley was working to help people in his community make ends meet. A year ago, Paisley helped break ground in Nashville on a free grocery store called The Store that aimed to help needy families. In partnership with his alma mater Belmont University, The Store opened last month, but the developing pandemic made the organization adapt quickly to fit the immediate needs of the community. They shifted to handing out food at the door to prevent the spread of the virus and delivering food to elderly people who are at risk of serious health problems if they catch the coronavirus. QUIET CROWDS: NFL discusses playing in empty or half-full stadiums His producer, Luke Wooten, even pitched in and recruited his recording studio interns to help The Store deliver food to a local retirement home. They went down the hallways and left food at the doorways of each of these elderly folks, said Paisley. And then as the volunteers got to the end of the hall, all the folks came out of their doors and gave them a standing ovation. And it brought them to tears. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ashley Tang (The Star/ANN) Kuala Lumpur Mon, April 20, 2020 13:09 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fe0df 2 SE Asia Pesantren,Magetan,COVID-19-cluster,Malaysia Free A new COVID-19 cluster has emerged from students returning to Malaysia from Indonesia on April 16, says the Health Ministry. Health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah said the cluster consisted of 43 students who had returned from Temboro, which has been declared a red zone in Magetan, Indonesia. "From that overall number, 34 students have been quarantined in Melaka and nine in Kuala Lumpur. "This shows that the government's actions to take steps to quarantine and screen all Malaysians who are returning from overseas is right. "This will ensure that all imported cases will not infect Malaysians locally," he said during his daily press briefing on Sunday. Separately, Noor Hisham also said that the Health Ministry would soon be starting to conduct clinical trials on the effectiveness and safety of the Remdesivir drug to treat Covid-19 patients. Noor Hisham said patients who are positive but do not show any symptoms would probably not be chosen for the clinical trial. "We will look at those who are showing symptoms. We will look at the patients in the third category who have inflammation but don't require oxygen, category four patients that have inflammation in the lungs and require oxygen, and those in category five, who come to the hospital in the late stages and require ventilator support," he said. He said nine ministry hospitals which are taking part in the World Health Organization (WHO) "Solidarity Trial" are ready to start recruiting research participants from among the Covid-19 patients who fulfill set criterias. Noor Hisham said the evaluation was based on three key aspects; safety, quality and early efficacy of the drug based on available data. On April 6, the Health Ministry announced that Malaysia was selected to participate in WHO's global "Solidarity Trial" to test several drugs to treat Covid-19. Noor Hisham said due to the importance of the clinical trial in the fight against COVID-19, the Medical Research and Ethics Committee (MREC) and National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency approved the research protocol and clinical trial import licence for the Remdesivir drug in four working days. Topics : This article appeared on The Star newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, April 21 2020 Top diplomats from 13 countries of a cross-regional network, including Indonesia, Singapore and Canada, have agreed on key principles for keeping transportation links and supply chains open to cushion the impacts of COVID-19 on the global economy and trade. Facilitated by Canada, the informal network called the International Coordination Group on COVID-19 (ICGC) consists primarily of half of the Group of 20 countries Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, South Korea, Turkey and the United Kingdom with the addition of Morocco, Peru and Singapore. It was recently established to look for a shared commitment to promote and protect free trade and other selected measures to tackle COVID-19. The fresh declaration was made by foreign ministries of ICGC in a Friday evening teleconference, after it was deliberated at a recent senior officials meeting. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login (Newser) Lori Vallow is in an Idaho jail as authorities try to figure out what happened to her two missing children. That's no longer the investigation she factors into. KTVB reports Vallow and husband Chad Daybell are being probed in the death of Chad's late wife, Tammy Daybell. Her October death was ruled natural and Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow married two weeks later, reports the Deseret News. But her death re-entered the spotlight after police were in November told that children Joshua Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 17, hadn't been seen since September. The 49-year-old's remains were exhumed in December; the results of the autopsy and toxicology tests that were conducted are pending, reports East Idaho News. story continues below The two are being investigated for murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy in connection with Tammy Daybell's death. Chad Daybell has not been charged with anything. Vallow has been charged with felony child abandonment and next has a Friday court hearing in relation to her request that her bond be lowered from $1 million to $10,000. Lori Vallow also has a dead spouse, and Fox 10 reports on emails it obtained that were written by Charles Vallow, who was shot to death by Lori Vallow's brother last July. In messages to Banner Life Insurance, Charles Vallow accuses his "soon to be ex-wife" of placing a password on his life insurance policy account in a bid to prevent him from removing her as beneficiary of the $1 million policy; he made his sister Kay the beneficiary, writing "I want nothing to go to Lori or any member of her family." (Read more Lori Vallow stories.) Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi marched into the Prime Ministeras Office Wednesday morning with an ultimatum about the governmentas emergency economic relief plan for the coronavirus. Abandon the A300,000 per qualified household cash handout and go with A100,000 per person without income restrictions, the leader of the Liberal Democratic Partyas junior coalition partner told the prime minister and LDP chief. Otherwise, risk alienating a public that is growing increasingly weary of the pandemic and frustrated with the way the administration is handling it. aThe prime minister responded, aI will consider it with a course of action,aa Yamaguchi said Wednesday after meeting with Abe. aMy understanding is he responded to the suggestion positively.a On the following day, Abe ordered a reorganization of the supplementary budget proposal his Cabinet approved a week earlier, a highly unusual step for which he was later forced to apologize during a nationally televised news conference. The turnabout marked an extraordinary moment in the over seven-year-long reign of Abe, putting Komeito, which dared to challenge the prime ministeras single-handed decision-making authority, under the spotlight and providing a glimpse of the ruling coalitionas mounting exasperation with his administration. Analysts speculate Komeito chose to go bold with Abe after worrying that his targeted approach would leave out many individuals and families in need, including those in its Buddhist support base organization Soka Gakkai, which is a key voting force for the ruling coalition. Learning the limited payment plan was not received well in opinion polls, the party might have also believed that a wider-reaching package was necessary to preserve the coalition. Until the flip-flop, the administration was all set to proceed with giving out A300,000 to individual households where incomes have been halved due to the virus outbreak or cut to a level that would allow the household to qualify as exempt from paying residential tax. The plan was based on an LDP proposal put forth by its policy council chairman, Fumio Kishida, even though he initially pushed for a uniform monetary handout as a way to provide immediate relief for those struggling due to the pandemic. In the meantime, Komeito proposed distributing a cash handout of A100,000 per person to those who experience steep income declines, on March 31. Some members, though, put pressure on Komeitoas leadership to go further and distribute the amount to all citizens swiftly, which the opposition parties also supported. Those with stable and high incomes could reimburse through a year-end tax adjustment or final tax return, they argued. Ramadan, a time of heightened spiritual reflection, devotion and worship, which begins the evening of April 23 and ends the evening of May 23, will be markedly different this year. With the COVID-19 pandemic necessitating the need to institute social distancing, self-quarantine and the elimination of group gatherings to save lives, prayers during the holy month of Ramadan will take place not in mosques, but at home, much the way Jews adjusted to closed synagogues during Passover, and Christians adapted to empty churches on Easter Sunday. Imam Mohammad Ali Elahi, of the Islamic House of Wisdom in Dearborn Heights, said that while congregations will not gather at mosques, services will be broadcast online. Normally, when people would gather for evening prayers, they would be standing shoulder to shoulder while following the ritual, as well as shaking hands and hugging. This kind of tradition is showing the love and mercy of the month of Ramadan in a passionate way, inside the mosque, he said. Obviously, we cannot have a typical presence, and we cannot have that ritual. Elahi said the community meal, the breaking of the fast together, will also not take place this year. If this ban continues until then, we are going to miss that part, he said. Anything that has to do with the physical participation and togetherness, thats not going to happen at Ramadan, but the spiritual part, the educational part, the prayer part, and the connection at the level of Zoom and Facebook, they continue. Elahi said congregations and the community will follow state and medical guidelines issued to limit the spread of COVID-19. We believe in respecting the laws and regulations, especially during the month of Ramadan, which is a month of peace, he said. Elahi said Ramadan is a time of fasting and prayer, and a time to provide for the less fortunate. He said his congregation at the Islamic House of Wisdom, 22575 Ann Arbor Trail, in Dearborn Heights, will continue its drive-through food distribution for those in need during Ramadan, at 11 a.m., with food brought to the recipients car. Call 313-359-1221 for more information. Ramadan is about fixing our relationship with God, and with ourselves, our family, our neighbors, our community, and to return to God, show more understanding, build bridges and promote reconciliation, he said. Its a month of mercy and forgiveness. We ask God to forgive us, then we have to forgive one another and promote peace, patience, piety and prayer. Imad Hamad, executive director of the American Human Rights Council, said fasting, prayers and time spent with ones immediate household, with the elaborate meal preparation of Ramadan, will continue despite the quarantine. Faith will not surrender to any circumstances, he said. Peoples reflections get stronger during difficult times. Hamad said Ramadan customs will adjust to the current reality of social distancing. Ramadan is a month of fasting, sharing, caring, reflections and giving, he said. This will not change, regardless of circumstances. It is a time to be closer to God. Hamad said saving lives is an Islamic mandate, so group gatherings at mosques, Iftar dinners and other multi-generational gatherings will not occur, to avoid putting people at risk. With the serious concern over COVID-19, it has become more important not to take a risk, he said. The persons health and well-being come first. The family gatherings will be sorely missed. The daily Iftar dinner was a precious family time. Hamad said technology can help connect family and friends, even if the initial learning curve is challenging. Regardless, the spirit of Ramadan and its blessings will continue and will shine brighter than ever, he said. Its a bright light amidst the coronavirus darkness. Hamad said one advantage to this years Ramadan will be that it will be easier for school children and non-essential workers to stay up late and sleep later the next day. He said that while some Muslim scholars are recommending that people stay hydrated during COVID-19, the majority of the scholars feel that healthy Muslims may still observe the traditional fast. Muslims believe in the power of prayers, Hamad said. We ask the community to be patient during such trying times, and to continue to pray to God to lift this disease, heal those who are affected by the virus and be merciful to those who die from it. Zinab Zriek of Dearborn, a teacher at Dearborns Fordson High School, said that while Ramadan will be different in many ways this year for Muslims around the world, its true essence will remain. Muslims have to change their mindset from thinking about themselves, to thinking about others, she said. This means social distancing the health and well-being of others is now on the line. Zriek said some of her fondest memories when growing up were of breaking fast during Ramadan with family members she didnt see on a regular basis. This Ramadan, I will take the opportunity to connect with immediate family, and to check-up on distant relatives and friends with a simple text message, a call or even FaceTime, to connect spiritually, she said. Zriek said she is grateful to be able to work from home during the pandemic, and to have students, family and friends to connect with virtually, as well as a cozy home and a full refrigerator. This made me think of the individuals around the world that are not as lucky, and the refugees in war-stricken countries, she said. So, this Ramadan, being a little more thankful, connecting with God and my family, and giving more is something I will focus on. Dearborn attorney Majed Moughni said he will also miss Ramadan family gathering, but realizes that community safety and health comes first. If we can help protect life, that is more important than the gatherings, he said. This Ramadan will be like no other we have seen, like no other our generation has experienced, with no restaurant buffets to break the fast, and no Eid prayers or celebrations. Moughni said mosque services posted online, and live via Zoom, will let people experience the services. What will be easier, for many students, is they can sleep in, and stay up late, he said. In a way, that is a blessing of this quarantine, if there is such a thing. Mona Makki, director of the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services Community Health and Research Center, said ACCESS is developing talking points for faith leaders and others to encourage people to be safe by staying home and practicing social distancing during Ramadan. The holy month of Ramadan is a time of deep spiritual discipline, she said. It is also a time of self-reflection, charity, prayer and generosity. I think the timing of Ramadan will help individuals better cope with the stressors of a global pandemic and to remain hopeful and positive. Over 2.4 million cases and 166,000 COVID-19 related deaths have now been reported across the globe. Over 2.4 million cases and 166,000 COVID-19 related deaths have now been reported across the globe. Here is are some major developments that occurred over the weekend. Spain and Italy report lower death tolls Italy reported the lowest number of deaths in a week whereas Spain reported the lowest figure in nearly a month, with 399 deaths in the last 24 hours. In Spain, total cases have now exceeded 200,000, and deaths have also exceeded 20,000. After April 27, parents will be allowed to take children below the age of 12 out for walks. Further restrictions will remain in place - people are only allowed to go out for essential activities, such as food, work, or medical emergencies. In Italy, residents cant go beyond 200 meters of their houses unless they have a compelling reason to. The rise in domestic abuse is a cause of concern throughout the country. Germany, Australia and New Zealand are gradually opening Germany, which is composed of 16 states, has given local authorities discretion in emerging from the lockdown - with some conditions. While all car and bike dealerships can open, other shops must be smaller than 8,600 square feet or they cant open yet. Further, citizens must maintain a distance of five feet and still respect physical distancing. One state has even allowed religious congregations to take place. New Zealand will gradually reopen today. Construction will restart, and schools will restart on the 27th of April. Similarly in Australia, schools will be reopened and people will be allowed to go outside to exercise. Earlier, there could be no public gatherings of more than two people - these restrictions will also be lifted. COVID-19 outbreak in Afghan presidential palace Ashraf Ghani, Afghanistan's president, is in self-isolation after over a dozen members of the presidential palace tested positive. President Ghani has himself tested negative. Concerningly, it is believed that a document that arrived in the office caused the outbreak. Afghanistan has only registered about 1,000 cases but a dearth of testing kits has stalled testing in the capital, Kabul. Further, an exodus of Afghani workers from Iran has also triggered fears of a much larger outbreak. China fires back at the call to investigate origins of the virus The Australian foreign secretary, Marise Payne, said in an interview on Sunday that the origins of the virus should be investigated. She said that recent developments have inspired little confidence in Chinas transparency. This comes after investigative reportage has unearthed a tardy, repressive initial response. The Chinese foreign secretary, Geng Shuang said he had grave concerns about the comments made by Australia and that they were an insult to the people of China. Studies conducted so far have shown, and experts agree overwhelmingly, that the virus originated in a wet market in Wuhan. Olympics unlikely to happen even in 2021 Professor Kentaro Iwata, a public health expert, said yesterday that it was unlikely the Olympics would take place next year. Even if Japan has the virus under control, it is unlikely that the disease would be contained all over the world, making the event unlikely. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has said that it is too early to comment on next year yet. For more information, read our article on Domestic violence during COVID-19. 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. The insides of living cells can be seen in their natural state in greater detail than ever before using a new technique developed by researchers in Japan. This advance should help reveal the complex and fragile biological interactions of medical mysteries, like how stem cells develop or how to deliver drugs more effectively. "Our system is based on a simple concept, which is one of its advantages," said Associate Professor Takuro Ideguchi from the University of Tokyo Research Institute for Photon Science and Technology. The results of Ideguchi's team were published recently in Optica, the Optical Society's research journal. The new method also has the advantages of not needing to kill the cells, damage them with intense light, or artificially attach fluorescent tags to specific molecules. The technique combines two pre-existing microscopy tools and uses them simultaneously. The combination of these tools can be thought of simply as like a coloring book. "We gather the black-and-white outline of the cell and we virtually color in the details about where different types of molecules are located," said Ideguchi. Quantitative phase microscopy gathers information about the black-and-white outline of the cell using pulses of light and measuring the shift in the light waves after they pass through a sample. This information is used to reconstruct a 3D image of the major structures inside the cell. Molecular vibrational imaging provides the virtual color using pulses of midinfrared light to add energy to specific types of molecules. That extra energy causes the molecules to vibrate, which heats up their local surroundings. Researchers can choose to raise the temperature of specific types of chemical bonds by using different wavelengths of midinfrared light. Researchers take a quantitative phase microscopy image of the cell with the midinfrared light turned off and an image with it turned on. The difference between those two images then reveals both the outline of major structures inside the cell and the exact locations of the type of molecule that was targeted by the infrared light. Researchers refer to their new combined imaging method as biochemical quantitative phase imaging with midinfrared photothermal effect. "We were impressed when we first observed the molecular vibrational signature characteristic of proteins, and we were further excited when this protein-specific signal appeared in the same location as the nucleolus, an intracellular structure where high amounts of proteins would be expected," said Ideguchi. Ideguchi's team hopes their technique might allow researchers to determine the distribution of fundamental types of molecules inside single cells. The quantitative phase microscopy outline of major structures could be virtually colored in using different wavelengths of light to specifically target proteins, lipids (fats) or nucleic acids (DNA, RNA). Currently, capturing one complete image can take 50 seconds or longer. Researchers are confident that they can speed up the process with simple improvements to their tools, including a higher-powered light source and a more sensitive camera. Collaborators at Osaka University, other departments at the University of Tokyo and the Japan Science and Technology Agency also contributed to this research. ### Research Article M. Tamamitsu, K. Toda, H. Shimada, T. Honda, M. Takarada, K. Okabe, Y. Nagashima, R. Horisaki, T. Ideguchi. 20 April 2020. Label-free biochemical quantitative phase imaging with midinfrared photothermal effect. Optica. DOI: 10.1364/OPTICA.390186. https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.390186. Related Links Ideguchi Lab website: https://takuroideguchi.jimdo.com/ Graduate School of Science: https://www.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/index.html Research contact Associate Professor Takuro Ideguchi Institute for Photon Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo Tel: +81-(0)3-5841-1026 Email: ideguchi@ipst.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp Press officer contact Ms. Caitlin Devor Division for Strategic Public Relations, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 133-8654, JAPAN Tel: +81-080-9707-8178 Email: press-releases.adm@gs.mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp US Ambassador to Russia John J. Sullivan said Monday he was disappointed over failing to attend the hearing of American national Paul Whelan, suspected in espionage, in Moscow MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th April, 2020) US Ambassador to Russia John J. Sullivan said Monday he was disappointed over failing to attend the hearing of American national Paul Whelan, suspected in espionage, in Moscow. The hearings on the case resumed earlier in the day. The US ambassador was not allowed to attend, just like last week, when he was not let in due to the coronavirus-linked restrictions. Sullivan told reporters that he would continue to raise the issue of Whelan's closed hearing. The diplomat called on the Russian authorities to ensure that Whelan could contact his family and receive medical help. Sullivan expressed hope that the court would be honest and unbiased. The spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said Friday that Whelan had received medical treatment and declined to have surgery. She added that Whelan, at his request, had a check-up in a city clinic and was prescribed a medicine for his condition. Zakharova stressed that the court proceeded in strict compliance with the law. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced Whelan's detention at the end of 2018. According to the FSB, he was detained during an espionage activity. He may face up to 20 years in prison. Whelan has a citizenship of the United States, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. According to Whelan's brother, Paul had come to Moscow for a friend's wedding. In Brazil, the once-thriving villages of indigenous tribes are now struggling to survive amid Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's term. The billboard at the entrance of a small village located in the Amazon has become a relic of the past. The sign, which was erected in 2012, is now covered in fallen palm trees. Alto Jamari is a tiny hamlet in Rondonia state. It is home to about ten families of the Uru Eu Wau Wau indigenous tribe. It is also one of the many villages fighting for survival as their forest slowly diminishes due to illegal logging and deforestation in Brazil. More and more outsiders are invading tribal territories, eager to exploit the forest's resources. The COVID-19 crisis also poses a deadly threat to the communities. Coronavirus Pandemic The people who live deep within the Amazon are very vulnerable to the global health crisis due to their location being far from a health center. The villages often have poor sanitary conditions and are days away from hospitals that are ill-equipped and overburdened. Authorities are keeping the communities isolated. Government workers who have direct contact with the tribe members wear personal protective gear to prevent infecting the members. A Brazilian judge recently banned missionaries from entering indigenous lands to avoid virus transmission---a health crisis that could lead to genocide within the isolated tribes. The government's efforts, however, are hampered mainly by Bolsonaro's disregard for their culture and their rights. Ethnocide President Jair Bolsonaro has been very receptive to the idea of opening up the Amazon rainforest to commercial development. He expressed his eagerness to integrate the indigenous people into broader society on multiple occasions. Since the start of his term, he has introduced a bill that allowed companies to mine in indigenous territories. The bill encourages wildcat miners and illegal loggers, causing deforestation on roughly 51 percent of the Amazon region in the first quarter of 2020. During his presidential campaign, Bolsonaro promised to allow large-scale farming in the Amazon---a move that could potentially destroy the rainforest. The development plans progressed aggressively since he took office about a year ago. Critics warn that the new policies may play a part in ethnocide---the systematic destruction of the culture. Bolsonaro began dismantling the system that protects indigenous communities. He cut the funding of the National Indian Foundation the previous year. The federal agency is responsible for preserving indigenous rights. He vowed to arm every farmer with a rifle and to strip the indigenous people of their lands. He believes their isolation impedes Brazil's economic growth. As of February, Bolsonaro proposed a bill that effectively legalizes illegal mining in the rainforest. He also hoped to authorize oil and gas exploration and building hydropower plants on indigenous lands. Under the plan, tribe members will be allowed to consult on the project. They will, however, not be given any power to veto any final installation on their land. Many illegal operators have displayed hostility against the tribes, with some opening fire at village entrances. "What we're seeing is the result of a government that is in favor of deforestation in the Amazon," a tribe member said. "It has emboldened invaders to come into our territories." Want to read more? Check these out: The U.S. coronavirus death toll reached 40,628 by Monday morning as state governors publicly worried they wont have the amount of tests needed to safely reopen parts of the economy. The administration, I think, is trying to ramp up testing. They are doing some things with respect to private labs, Maryland governor Larry Hogan, a Republican, said Sunday on CNNs State of the Union. But to try and push this off to say that the governors have plenty of testing and [that] they should just get to work on testingsomehow we arent doing our jobis just absolutely false. Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, criticized the lack of a national testing system to coordinate the effort against the pandemic. It would be nice if we had a national strategy that was working with every state, so every state knew what was coming, Whitmer said. Fellow Democratic governor Graham Northam of Virginia complained, Weve been fighting every day for PPE. We have supplies now coming in. Weve been fighting for testing.We dont even have enough swabs. On Saturday, President Trump criticized governors over lack of testing, saying states had enough tests and simply werent using them. They dont want to use all of the capacity that weve created. We have tremendous capacity, Trump said at a White House press conference. They know that. The governors know that. The Democrat governors know that. Theyre the ones that are complaining. Throughout the past week Trump has also vacillated between claiming that he retained the authority to open states economies, a position that drew bipartisan backlash, and recognizing governors authority to lift business closures imposed in the wake of the pandemic. More from National Review Advertisement Boris Johnson today moved to snuff out Cabinet pressure for an early easing of lockdown, making clear that a second peak in the coronavirus outbreak is the biggest threat to the country. The PM has intervened from his recuperation at Chequers to warn there must not be any let-up in the draconian curbs until scientists are sure the disease will not flare up again. Mr Johnson has told First Secretary Dominic Raab and senior aides that 'moving too quickly' would be the worst outcome for both the economy and public health. The premier's stance emerged amid signs of Cabinet splits over how quickly to ease the restrictions, with fears the crippling impact of lockdown on business and jobs will kill more people than the virus itself. Hawks in government have been pointing out the NHS now has some spare capacity to treat patients, and suggesting that it should be allowed to 'run hot' to revive the economy after the current lockdown period ends on May 11. Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove are thought to be among those pushing for an earlier release. But Mr Sunak fell into line this evening, insisting the best way to bolster the economy was to protect public health. 'We must continue to slow the spread of the virus to make sure fewer people need hospital treatment at any one time,' he told the daily Downing Street briefing. Government sources have also been frantically playing down a 'traffic light' exit strategy circulated by senior Tories over the weekend, which could see schools partly reopened by mid-May. Early June is said to be more likely. The PM's official spokesman fuelled speculation that Mr Johnson will be back sooner rather than later today, briefing political journalists that he is getting 'daily updates' at Chequers - although stressing that he is not yet doing any 'official work'. Asked for Mr Johnson's stance on the timing of lockdown, the spokesman said: 'The big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy. If you move too quickly the virus could begin to spread exponentially again.' On another day of coronavirus chaos: The UK has today announced 449 more coronavirus deaths - the fewest for a fortnight - taking Britain's total death toll to 16,509; England declared 429 deaths and a further 20 were confirmed across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. And 4,676 more people have tested positive for the virus, taking the total number of patients to 124,743; Nicola Sturgeon said she will publish a 'framework' for decisions on the lockdown this week, but warned that social distancing will be needed for some time to come; A vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients; The daily number of those tested languished at 21,600 with just ten days to go to hit the Government's 100,000 target; The death toll of frontline NHS and care home staff, from heart surgeons and nurses to porters and volunteers, reached at least 80; Michael Gove attacked 'grotesque' claims Boris Johnson was 'missing in action' at the start of the crisis after he missed five meetings of the emergency Cobra committee; More than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to be told to wear homemade face masks when they leave the house; Chancellor Rishi Sunak was urged to boost his business bailout schemes amid warnings that up to 11.7million could be furloughed or left jobless over the next three months; Analysis suggests that more than 2,500 elderly patients are dying of coronavirus in care homes every week. Mr Johnson recording a video message on Easter Sunday at Number 10 after his release from the hospital, before leaving for Chequers to recover from his illness Chancellor Rishi Sunak held the line on the need to keep the lockdown in place this evening, telling the Downing Street briefing that the best way to bolster the economy is to protect public health Fury as vital PPE kit from Turkey is delayed AGAIN Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Advertisement Some ministers have been pushing a blueprint that would see restrictions start being eased as early as May 11, when the current lockdown period ends. The 'traffic light' proposals suggest reopening schools part-time, and gradually allowing non-essential shops to get up and running again in an 'amber' phase. Pubs and restaurants, and the over-70s would face many months more on a 'red signal' in isolation until a vaccine can be found or the outbreak fades altogether. However, Health secretary Matt Hancock has been stressing that before easing restrictions the government should suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate dwindles. And Mr Sunak said of the prospects of lifting restrictions tonight: 'We are not there yet.' 'At this stage of the crisis we are absolutely focused on sticking to the guidance,' he said. Referring to the Government's five tests for lifting the lockdown, he said: 'We are not there yet and it is very clear that, for now, what we should focus on is following the guidance, staying home to protect the NHS. 'Anything else that people might be speculating on is wrong, we are crystal clear on that message.' A government source told the Times: 'The idea that we will be rushing to lift measures is a non-starter. 'If the transmission rate rises significantly we will have to do a harder lockdown again.' Downing Street has signalled that there will not be any movement on releasing an 'exit strategy' until the end of the month. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she will publish a 'framework' on how decisions will be taken about the curbs later this week. 'The initial version of this work will not set out what measures will be lifted and when,' she told the daily Scotland briefing. 'We are simply not yet in the position to take those decisions in a properly informed way.' She added: 'It will also be clear in the work we set out later in the week that living with this virus, as we will need to learn to do, is likely to mean some restrictions on everyday life in the form of social distancing for some time to come.' The wrangling comes amid a growing backlash over the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Mr Johnson has been accused of 'skipping' five Cobra meetings in January and February as the pandemic emerged. A devastating Sunday Times article claimed ministers 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan. A Whitehall source said the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment) during a vital period before the outbreak took hold in Britain. The government also shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China despite warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. But in an extraordinary detailed response last night the government insisted the report contained 'falsehoods' and distorted the picture of its actions. Earlier, Mr Gove confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but described the idea this amounted to neglect as 'grotesque'. 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' He said the UK had sent PPE to China in the initial phase of the crisis, but stressed it was not from the core pandemic stockpile, and Beijing had sent far more back since. Number 10 insisted Mr Johnson, who is currently recovering from coronavirus at Chequers after spending several nights in intensive care last week, 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Revelations of Mr Johnson's concerns come as it emerged pubs and restaurants could remain closed until the winter, as Michael Gove (pictured) said hospitality would be 'among the last to exit the lockdown'. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak (right) wants to minimise the damage of the lockdown to businesses. Matt Hancock (left) - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care - argued that before easing restrictions the government should try to suppress the virus for longer so its transmission rate becomes much lower. A senior Downing Street adviser told the investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. As his more junior colleagues took the reins on virus mitigation, Mr Johnson's personal life reportedly commanded his attention, namely how to break the news of Carrie Symonds' pregnancy to his family. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. It also emerged the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News yesterday that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. But asked at the daily No10 press briefing about Mr Johnson's absence from Cobra meetings until the beginning of March, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: 'The Prime Minister from the moment that it became clear that there were challenges in terms of coronavirus developing in China has absolutely been leading our nation's effort to combat the coronavirus, making sure that resources or money is not a concern for any department, especially the health service.' He added that 'many Cobra meetings' are led by the departmental minister. He said: 'The focus the Prime Minister was putting on this and has continued to put on this has meant that this is the whole Government effort.' Ministers face fresh fury today as a vital shipment of coronavirus protective kit from Turkey looks set to be delayed again - with medics warning they might be forced to stop treating patients. Hospitals are on the verge of running out of some life-saving supplies after the 84-tonne delivery, including 400,000 protective gowns, failed to arrive last night. Medical bodies say shortages mean doctors could need to make 'difficult decisions' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced with fanfare on Saturday that the consignment was coming, before Education Secretary Gavin Williams humiliatingly admitted last night that it had been postponed. Mr Williamson said he 'hoped' it would be in the UK today, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden predicted this morning that it will leave Turkey today. However, Chris Hopson, chief of NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts, said this morning there was 'low confidence' the materials will actually arrive. 'As of an hour ago there is relatively low confidence it will arrive today. If it is going to arrive today is will probably arrive late in the day,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He accused ministers of raising the hopes of health staff saying they had 'bitter experience' of promised PPE either failing to arrive, or turning out to be either faulty or the wrong kit. Hospital bosses have slammed the government over shortage of PPE amid warnings trusts may run out of protective gowns today as medics threaten to stop treating coronavirus patients over fears for their own safety. Medical bodies say the shortages mean doctors could be forced into a 'difficult decision' between exposing themselves to the virus or 'letting a patient die on their watch'. It comes as the death toll among health workers including frontline NHS staff and care workers hits 80. The shortages have led to a chorus of criticism that those fighting in the frontline against the virus are being betrayed as the Government fails to 'get a grip' on the escalating crisis. Meanwhile, Mr Sunak is facing mounting pressure to boost his business bailout so that the Government increases its guarantee on loans to struggling firms to 100 per cent. The Treasury will today announce a further 1.25billion package to support innovative firms hit as the virus lockdown causes the economy to stutter to a halt. It will include a 500million loans fund for high-growth companies and 750million in loans and grants for small firms focused on research and development. 'At a very basic level, this is wrong': Government hits back at claims Boris Johnson 'skipped' Cobra meetings and ministers dragged their feet and 'lacked grip' over COVID-19 response in lengthy 14-point rebuttal Downing Street has hit back at newspaper reports that Boris Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of 'falsehoods' and 'errors' after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the Government 'missed the boat on testing and PPE' (personal protective equipment). The article also claimed the Johnson administration 'just watched' as the death toll mounted in Wuhan, China. The government confirmed the prime minister missed five Cobra meetings in January and February as the outbreak began to take hold in other countries. A senior Downing Street adviser told the bombshell investigation that Mr Johnson's decision to take 'country breaks' at Chequers underscored his lack of urgency in the early stages of coronavirus planning. The insider also alleged that Whitehall had been fixated on Brexit, and long-term crisis preparations fell by the wayside as key staff were diverted from pandemic contingencies to thrash out no-deal planning. But last night, the Government pushed back on the claims, saying in a six-page rebuttal published online that it was 'guided at all times by the best scientific advice'. It comes after Michael Gove admitted that Boris Johnson was not present at the meetings, but claimed 'most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them' Gavin Williamson also insisted that Boris Johnson was 'driving' the government's coronavirus response despite 'skipping' five Cobra meetings at the start of the outbreak. The very first point in the government's rebuttal says 'at a very basic level, this is wrong' in response to allegations that ministers brushed aside the dangers of coronavirus in mid-January. A government spokesman said: 'This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressing the nation from 10 Downing Street as he announces the lockdown on March 23 The Government's full 14-point response to claims that ministers dragged their feet over coronavirus response Claim On the third Friday in January Coronavirus was already spreading around the world but the government 'brushed aside' the threat in an hour-long COBR meeting and said the risk to the UK public was 'low'. Response At a very basic level, this is wrong. The meeting was on the fourth Friday in January. The article also misrepresents the Government's awareness of Covid 19, and the action we took before this point. Health Secretary Matt Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The government's scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Mr Hancock instituted daily coronavirus meetings. He updated Parliament as soon as possible, on January 23rd. The risk level was set to 'Low' because at the time our scientific advice was that the risk level to the UK public at that point was low. The first UK case was not until 31 January. The specific meaning of 'public health risk' refers to the risk there is to the public at precisely that point. The risk was also higher than it had been before - two days earlier it had been increased 'Very Low' to 'Low' in line with clinical guidance from the Chief Medical Officer. The WHO did not formally declare that coronavirus was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) until 30 January, and only characterised it as a global pandemic more than a month later, on 11 March. The UK was taking action and working to improve its preparedness from early January. Claim - 'This was despite the publication that day of an alarming study by Chinese doctors in the medical journal The Lancet. It assessed the lethal potential of the virus, for the first time suggesting it was comparable to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed up to 50 million people.' Response - The editor of the Lancet, on exactly the same day 23 January - called for 'caution' and accused the media of 'escalating anxiety by talking of a 'killer virus' and 'growing fears'. He wrote: 'In truth, from what we currently know, 2019-nCoV has moderate transmissibility and relatively low pathogenicity. There is no reason to foster panic with exaggerated language.' The Sunday Times is suggesting that there was a scientific consensus around the fact that this was going to be a pandemic that is plainly untrue. Claim - It was unusual for the Prime Minister to be absent from COBR and is normally chaired by the Prime Minister. Response - This is wrong. It is entirely normal and proper for COBR to be chaired by the relevant Secretary of State. Then Health Secretary Alan Johnson chaired COBR in 2009 during H1N1. Michael Gove chaired COBR as part of No Deal planning. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps chaired COBR during the collapse of Thomas Cook. Mr Hancock was in constant communication with the PM throughout this period. At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared COVID19 a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern', and only did so only 30 January. Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the COBR meeting. Examples of scientific commentary from the time: Prof Martin Hibberd, Professor of Emerging Infectious Disease, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: 'This announcement is not surprising as more evidence may be needed to make the case of announcing a PHEIC. WHO were criticised after announcing the pandemic strain of novel H1N1_2009, when the virus was eventually realised to have similar characteristics to seasonal influenza and is perhaps trying to avoid making the same mistake here with this novel coronavirus. To estimate the true severity of this new disease requires identifying mild or asymptomatic cases, if there are any, while determining the human to human transmission rate might require more evidence.' Dr Adam Kamradt-Scott, Senior Lecturer in International Security Studies, University of Sydney, said: 'Based on the information we have to date, the WHO Director-General's decision to not declare a Public Health Emergency of International Concern is not especially surprising. While we have seen international spread of the virus, which is one of the criteria for declaring a PHEIC, the cases in those countries do not appear to have seeded further local outbreaks. If that was to start to occur, it would constitute a greater concern but at the moment the outbreak is largely contained within China.' Claim - 'Imperial's Ferguson was already working on his own estimate putting infectivity at 2.6 and possibly as high as 3.5 which he sent to ministers and officials in a report on the day of the Cobra meeting on January 24. The Spanish flu had an estimated infectivity rate of between 2.0 and 3.0, so Ferguson's finding was shocking.' Response - Infectivity on its own simply reveals how quickly a disease spreads, and not its health impact. For that, it is necessary to know about data such as associated mortality/morbidity. It is sloppy and unscientific to use this number alone to compare to Spanish flu. Claim - No10 'played down the looming threat' from Coronavirus and displayed an 'almost nonchalant attitudefor more than a month.' Response - The suggestion that the government's attitude was nonchalant is wrong. Extensive and detailed work was going on in government because of Coronavirus, as shown above. Claim - By the time the Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on March 2 'the virus had sneaked into our airports, our trains, our workplaces and our homes. Britain was on course for one of the worst infections of the most insidious virus to have hit the world in a century.' Response - This virus has hit countries across the world. It is ridiculous to suggest that coronavirus only reached the UK because the Health Secretary and not the PM chaired a COBR meeting. Claim - 'Failure of leadership' by anonymous senior advisor to Downing Street. Response - The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the Government response to Covid 19, providing the leadership to steer his Ministerial team through a hugely challenging period for the whole nation. This anonymous source is variously described as a 'senior adviser to Downing Street' and a 'senior Downing Street adviser'. The two things are not the same. One suggests an adviser employed by the government in No10. The other someone who provides ad hoc advice. Which is it? Claim - The government sent 279,000 items of its depleted stockpile of protective equipment to China during this period in response to a request for help from the authorities there. Response - The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China. Claim - Little was done to equip the National Health Service for the coming crisis in this period. Response - This is wrong. The NHS has responded well to Coronavirus, and has provided treatment to everyone in critical need. We have constructed the new Nightingale hospitals and extended intensive care capacity in other hospitals. Claim - Among the key points likely to be explored are why it took so long to recognise an urgent need for a massive boost in supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers; ventilators to treat acute respiratory symptoms; and tests to detect the infection. Response - The Department for Health began work on boosting PPE stocks in January, before the first confirmed UK case. Discussions on PPE supply for COVID-19 began w/c 27 January (as part of Medical Devices and Clinical Consumables), with the first supply chain kick-off meeting on 31 January. The first additional orders of PPE was placed on 30 January via NHS Supply Chain's 'just-in-time contracts'. BAU orders of PPE were ramped up around the same date. Friday, 7 February, the department held a webinar for suppliers trading from or via China and the European Union. Over 700 delegates joined and heard the Department's requests to carry out full supply chain risk assessments and hold onto EU exit stockpiles where they had been retained. Monday, 10 February, the department spoke with the major patient groups and charities to update them on the situation regarding the outbreak and to update them on the steps it was taking to protect supplies. Tuesday, 11 February, the department wrote to all suppliers in scope of the Covid 19 supply response work those trading from or via China or the EU repeating the messages from the webinar and updating suppliers on the current situation relating to novel coronavirus. The NHS has spare ventilator capacity and we are investing in further capacity. Claim - Suggestion that 'lack of grip' had the knock-on effect of the national lockdown being introduced days or even weeks too late, causing many thousands more unnecessary deaths. Response - The government started to act as soon as it was alerted to a potential outbreak. Mr Hancock was first alerted to Covid 19 on 3 January and spoke to Departmental officials on 6th Jan before receiving written advice from the UK Health Security Team. He brought the issue to the attention of the Prime Minister and they discussed Covid 19 on 7 January. The government's scientific advisory groups started to meet in mid-January and Hancock instituted daily meetings to grip the emerging threat. We have taken the right steps at the right time guided by the scientific evidence. Claim - Scientists said the threat from the coming storm was clear and one of the government's key advisory committees was given a dire warning a month earlier than has previously been admitted about the prospect of having to deal with mass casualties. Response - The government followed scientific advice at all times. The WHO only determined that COVID 19 would be a global pandemic on 11 March. Claiming that there was scientific consensus on this is just wrong. Sage met on January 22 but the first NERVTAG meeting was held on 13 January (NERVTAG is the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group see here https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/new-and-emerging-respiratory-virus-threats-advisory-group ). Claim - The last rehearsal for a pandemic was a 2016 exercise codenamed Cygnus, which predicted the health service would collapse and highlighted a long list of shortcomings including, presciently, a lack of PPE and intensive care ventilators. Response - The Government has been extremely proactive in implementing lessons learnt around pandemic preparedness, including from Exercise Cygnus. This includes being ready with legislative proposals that could rapidly be tailored to what became the Coronavirus Act, plans to strengthen excess death planning, planning for recruitment and deployment of retired staff and volunteers, and guidance for stakeholders and sectors across government. Claim - By February 21 the virus had already infected 76,000 people, had caused 2,300 deaths in China and was taking a foothold in Europe, with Italy recording 51 cases and two deaths the following day. Nonetheless NERVTAG, one of the key government advisory committees, decided to keep the threat level at 'moderate'. Response - This is a misrepresentation of what the threat level is. This is about the current public health danger and on February 21, when the UK had about a dozen confirmed cases, out of a population of over 66 million, the actual threat to individuals was moderate. In terms of the potential threat, the government was clear on 10 February the Secretary of State declared that 'the incidence or transmission of novel Coronavirus constituted a serious and imminent threat to public health'. Advertisement 'This is an unprecedented global pandemic and we have taken the right steps at the right time to combat it, guided at all times by the best scientific advice. 'The Government has been working day and night to battle against coronavirus, delivering a strategy designed at all times to protect our NHS and save lives. 'Our response has ensured that the NHS has been given all the support it needs to ensure everyone requiring treatment has received it, as well as providing protection to businesses and reassurance to workers. 'The Prime Minister has been at the helm of the response to this, providing leadership during this hugely challenging period for the whole nation.' The tone of the statement, posted on the official gov.uk website, was much more aggressive than that used by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove on Sunday morning TV appearances when he described the article as 'off beam'. Mr Gove had confirmed the Sunday Times report that the PM had not attended five meetings of the key Government committee Cobra in the run-up to the crisis, but insisted this was not unusual. He confirmed the PM did not attend the meetings, but added: 'He didn't. But then he wouldn't. Because most Cobra meetings don't have the Prime Minister attending them.' Number 10 also insisted Mr Johnson 'has been at the helm' of the government's response to the crisis. Speaking earlier today, Mr Gove said the accusation the PM purposefully sidestepped these five meetings was 'grotesque'. He had earlier told Sky News's Sophy Ridge: 'The idea that the Prime Minister skipped meetings that were vital to our response to the coronavirus, I think is grotesque.' That stance was echoed by the Government spokesman who said: 'It is entirely normal and proper for Cobra to be chaired by the relevant secretary of state. 'At this point the World Health Organisation had not declared Covid-19 a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern', and only did so only on January 30. 'Indeed, they chose not to declare a PHEIC the day after the Cobr meeting.' In reference to the report that the UK sent 279,000 items of protective equipment to China earlier this year, the Government spokesman said: 'The equipment was not from the pandemic stockpile. 'We provided this equipment to China at the height of their need and China has since reciprocated our donation many times over. Between April 2-April 15 we have received over 12 million pieces of PPE in the UK from China.' Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth told Sky News: 'There are serious questions as to why the Prime Minister skipped five Cobra meetings throughout February, when the whole world could see how serious this was becoming. 'And we know that serious mistakes have been made, we know that our frontline NHS staff don't have the PPE, that they've been told this weekend that they won't necessarily have the gowns which are vital to keep them safe. 'We know that our testing capacity is not at the level that is needed. 'We know that the ventilators that many hospitals have received are the wrong types of ventilators and there are big questions as to whether we went into this lockdown too slowly, and now we hear the Prime Minister missed five meetings at the start of this outbreak. It suggests that early on he was missing in action.' Former chief government science adviser David King told Sky News today that he could not recall a Cobra meeting during his time in Whitehall that was not chaired by Tony Blair or Gordon Brown. He told Sky News: 'What really is emphasised in that piece is the fact that the government ministers had their eye off the ball. 'They were totally focused on other issues such as Brexit, and the celebration of us emerging from Europe. 'The Prime Minister had other things on his mind, and we're fully aware of this, but apparently he didn't attend five Cobra meetings on this issue. 'And when Michael Gove says 'but prime ministers don't attend all Cobra meetings', I cannot recall a Cobra meeting when it was called with Blair or Brown as prime minister when the prime minister wasn't in the chair.' Damian Green, former de facto deputy prime minister under Theresa May, told Sky News it was 'not unusual' for the Prime Minister to miss Cobra meetings. He said: 'Cobra meets more often than people think. 'Cobra meets quite a lot and quite often it's not chaired by the Prime Minister. 'There are times when the PM has to be there to chair it, when big decisions need to be made. 'It's perfectly sensible to be chaired by the Health Secretary.' It also emerged today that the government shipped 260,000 items of personal protective equipment to China amid warning sirens from doctors that the UK was woefully under-prepared to cope with a pandemic. Medial care staff have expressed alarm as surgeons are being advised 'not to risk their health' by working without adequate PPE amid fears that hospitals could run out of supplies. The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS) said it was 'deeply disturbed' that medics could be asked to reuse items or wear different kit when treating Covid-19 patients. Healthcare staff treating positive patients have been given guidance that they should wear long-sleeved disposable fluid-repellent gowns but, because of shortages, they have just been advised they could be asked to reuse PPE or wear aprons. The fear from medics comes as more than 15,000 patients have now died in hospital after testing positive for the disease in the UK, with thousands more deaths expected in care homes. Jordans national flag airline has enough cash to keep head over water until June but will apply for government tax break to address adverse effects of the lockdown imposed by authorities to curb the spread of the novel covid-19 disease, the airlines Chief Executive Officer (CEO) has said. I dont think its time to talk about losses, but to talk about cash preservation to survive, chief executive officer Stefan Pichler said in an interview to Bloomberg. We can last for a couple of months. Pichler also told the US media that Royal Jordanian doesnt plan to ask the government for cash. Royal Jordanian according will only seek tax breaks and payment deferrals. As most countries around the world, the Middle East kingdom has grounded all its airlines and put a near halt to commercial traffics as part of measures to stem contamination from the disease. The industry could burn through $61 billion in the second quarter alone, Bloomberg quoted the International Air Transport Association as saying. UK networks are drawing inspiration from the current lockdown situation. ITV has announced Isolation Stories, four drama shorts from writer and producer Jeff Pope (Philomena, Stan & Ollie, A Confession, Little Boy Blue). 15 minute episodes will reflect what families are going through after weeks of lockdown, featuring moments that are funny, sad, heartwarming and poignant. Each will also be filmed in conditions that production teams has never faced before. Executive Producer Jeff Pope said, Like everybody else I have been isolating at home, and in my case watching my wife suffering badly with the virus. I wanted to do something to catch the mood. I knew it would be very difficult to try and shoot dramas in these circumstances, but I felt the public would understand if things were a little rough and ready, if we at least had a go. Executive Producer Tom Dunbar said, Exceptional circumstances require us to think in a brand new way about creating drama. Our priorities are the safety of all involved in the production and finding a way to work within all the restrictions to create something relevant and resonant. ITVs Head of Drama, Polly Hill, said, Its amazing that Jeff has managed to make these short films so quickly, to reflect the times we are living in. These are moving and funny tales of isolation with an incredibly talented team on and off screen. They are stories told from isolation to an audience in isolation. Its not often drama can be made this quickly so huge thanks to everyone involved in making this happen and I hope they bring some joy to the audience, in what we know are difficult times. No Australian broadcaster has been confirmed as yet. Rajesh Abraham By Express News Service KOCHI: After the devastating floods that took place two years in a row, one expects the Kerala government to be more vigilant and have acted on experts' advice. Far from it, the state is sitting on two a crucial set of proposals -- one submitted to the World Bank by Japan Water Agency (JWA) suggesting short and long term measures including study on flood control measures for Kerala river basins; and another by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to train around 20 engineers from the state in Japan for dam operations to mitigate the floods. There is also a suggestion for the setting up of a 'Dam Management Authority' or 'Reservoir Management Authority' to bring all the reservoirs under one entity to control the operations in a coordinated way considering other dams in the same river basin. This authority should be comprised of engineers, Researchers, Policy experts, Economists and environmentalists, NGOs, LSG representatives in different Tiers. This will help to focus on the efficient and effective utilization of water resources. While the JWA proposal was submitted around August last year, the JICA recommendation for training Kerala engineers at various dams and institutions in Japan was made around October-November last year. The JWA recommendation followed the visit of Prof Toshio Koike, director of International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM) under UNESCO, early last year. Some of the other recommendations by JWA included ensuring flood control capacity that should be used only for the purpose of flood mitigation and study on the necessity for function enhancement of existing dams, in addition to the study on flood control measures for Kerala river basins. JWA also proposed identifying challenges in realizing integrated reservoir operation of several dams and consideration of measures to solve challenges and installation of new rainfall and water level/discharge observation stations; and installation of flood forecasting, monitoring and evacuation system for Kerala rivers. Abdulla Bava, senior research scientist, Advanced Technology Institute, Japan, talking to The New Indian Express over the phone from Japan, said Kerala has lot similarities with Japan in terms of climatic and topographic conditions, and the floods in both countries are caused by riverine floods. Geography of Japan river basins, precipitation characteristics, flow and nature of the rivers and flood characteristics are very similar to Kerala and, therefore, the flood mitigation strategy and technology developed and deployed in Japan are the most suitable for Kerala. Considering the riverine origin of floods, Japan flood mitigation technology is not only suitable for Kerala and many other parts of India but many countries in South, South East Asia, South America and Africa because of similarity in mountainous terrains, cascading rivers with steep profile and torrential summer monsoon rains, Bava, who was instrumental in bringing Prof Koike to Kerala last year, said. Therefore, it is quite natural that the World Bank is promoting the Japan flood mitigation technology in most of the countries in these regions. The Japanese agencies such as Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Tourism, National Institute for Land and Infrastructure Management, Public Works Research Institute, ICHARM, JWA and JICA are actively involved in setting up flood early warning, monitoring and evacuation systems in Sri Lanka, Philippines, Myanmar, Iran Brazil and African countries with the help of World Bank and Asian Development Bank. The same can be adopted successfully in Kerala, said Bava. Proposals * Dam or Reservoir Management Authority to bring all reservoirs under one authority * Study on flood control steps * Ensure flood control capacity to be used only for the purpose of flood mitigation * Study on function enhancement of existing dams President Nana Akufo-Addo has disclosed that 280 million cedis has been allocated to absorb water bills for Ghanaians in the months of April, May and June. This amount also covers relief packages to the vulnerable in society. Delivering his seventh update on COVID-19, President Akufo-Addo highlighted that GHC 1.2 billion has been contributed towards the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme which is to provide livelihood for households and also support businesses in the country. According to him, the government is hopeful the alleviation programme will help cushion Ghanaians as the nation fights against the COVID-19 pandemic. ''I know the effects of the measures to contain the virus have been difficult for many, and that is why I mandated the creation of the GH1.2 billion Coronavirus Alleviation Programme to support households and businesses. Out of this amount, two hundred and eighty million cedis (GH280 million) is being used to provide food for the vulnerable and free water for all Ghanaians for three (3) months, i.e. April, May and June, three hundred and twenty-three million cedis (GH323 million) is being used to motivate our health workers, and six hundred million cedis (GH600 million) of assistance is being provided to micro, small and medium-scale businesses. I expect disbursements of the six hundred million cedis to start in May'', he said. Source: 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. Featured Video The founder of Huawei Technologies Ren Zhengfei hopes that with time, he will later on be forgotten. According to the 75-year-old, he is just an old man and asks "what's the point of remembering me?" continuing by saying that people should think more about the future and the world compared to him. "My biggest wish is to drink coffee in a cafe unnoticed," he said in an exclusive interview with South China Morning Post. Although this might seem like a simple wish, this still seems out of reach for the popular chief executive of the whole world's largest telecommunications equipment supplier, which is right now caught in the center of a US-China technology competition. Meng Wanzhou in house arrest Meng Wanzhou, has been in Canada as of last December 2018 at the behest of the United States and is still currently under house arrest facing bank fraud charges. She is currently awaiting hearing that will decide her fate as to whether or not she will be extradited to the United States. In May last year, Washington themselves have added Huawei to a list of 68 companies to be blacklisted due to the company's threat to national security which Huawei has repeatedly denied. Before the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, Ren Zhengfei had actually never given a single televised interview and has only entertained journalists on a very rare basis. There are many Huawei employees that the Post has previously spoken to which include those working at Huawei's very on Shenzhen headquarters. It is said that they have never ever met with the chief executive in person. The towering influence that Huawei has started to gather is pretty obvious in the company's internal online forum known as the Xinsheng community. There are quite a lot of posts about Ren Zhengfei that include certain transcripts of his dialogues with the company's executives about certain reforms as well as his personal takes on several topics. They were said to always been put at the front and center. Read Also: Samsung's Galaxy S20 Ultra has an Update Glitch: Is the Tech Giant in Trouble? The founder of the Huawei giant The founder of Huawei holds a reputation of being a sure straight-talker. One of his long-time employees, who remains unnamed, recalled how Ren Zhengfei would publicly scold him at a certain exhibition after he had failed to answer the questions which the founder asked regarding the products and partnership satisfactorily. At those certain interviews, Ren Zhengfei was also known to "speak what he thinks freely" and his staff do nothing to stop him, even if the company itself feels like some of his answers were not the best answers for the public relations aspect of the company that could even have adverse effects. Read Also: iPhone SE Reveals How Expensive Previous Apple Products Actually Are! $49 for 128GB, $149 for 256GB and More There were several people from the company (who requested to be unnamed) that said that sometimes he would give answers that are "not the best answers from a public relations perspective and might even have some adverse effects." Although Ren Zhengfei wants to become low key, his raging company together with the popularity of Huawei still prevents him from doing so. Ottawa, April 20 : A man disguised as a police officer went on a shooting rampage in Canada's Nova Scotia province, killing 16 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country's history, officials said, adding that the suspected gunman was also dead. On Sunday, several bodies were found inside and outside a residence in the small town of Portapique, about 100 km north of Halifax, what police called the first scene, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) said in a news report. Bodies were also found at other locations. Overnight, police began advising residents of the town, already on lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, to lock their doors and stay in their basements. Several homes in the area were set on fire as well. Police identified the man believed to be the shooter as Gabriel Wortman, 51, who was thought to live part-time in Portapique. Authorities said he wore a police uniform at one point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer. Police first announced that they had arrested Wortman at a gas station in Enfield, outside Halifax, but later said he had died. It was not clear how, and they did not explain further. RCMP spokesman Daniel Brien confirmed that 16 people had been killed in addition to the suspect, the CBC reported. While they believe the attack did not begin as random, police did not say what the initial motive was. RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said many of the victims did not know the shooter. "That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather was quoted as saying in the CBC news report. He added that police believe he acted alone, adding that gunfire was exchanged between police and the suspect at one point. In an update on Sunday evening, RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki said the incident was not being considered terror-related at this time. Lucki said she believed the shooter had an initial "motivation" at the beginning that "turned to randomness". "This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history," the CBC report quoted Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil as saying. In a statement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said: "As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time." The number of victims in the Sunday rampage exceeds the shooting at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique in 1989, which killed 14 women and injured 14 others in 1989. COVID-19 has even changed the way people protest. Dozens of immigration demonstrators plastered their vehicles with slogans bashing Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Sunday, parked outside of the agencys San Antonio office on the Northeast Side and leaned on their horns. We as organizers need to get creative to continue to raise our voices for the most vulnerable, said Carolina Canizales of SA Stands. At issue is the agencys alleged inaction when it comes to protecting immigrants in their custody at facilities in Pearsall and Dilley as well as in Karnes County. So far, no cases of COVID-19 among detainees or employees have been reported at those sites. But ICE has not provided protective face masks or hand sanitizer to detainees in those facilities, said Debra Hernandez, an organizer for Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. Nor has the agency given detainees soap or cleaning supplies for shared bathrooms or allowed social-distancing, she said. A ICE spokeswoman pointed to the agencys website, which broadly disputes the claims made by protesters. The agency does provide supplies like soap and hand sanitizer to detainees and houses those deemed particularly at risk for contracting the disease away from others. ICE says it has opted to reduce the population at its detention facilities by at least 30 percent and has been staggering meal and recreation times to increase social distancing. During Sundays protest, a few dozen people with RAICES and SA Stands gathered outside of ICEs San Antonio office, calling on the agency to release all detainees to prevent the spread of the outbreak. Security guards blocked drivers from pulling into the parking lot of the Jefferson Bank building near Loop 410 and Harry Wurzbach Road where the ICE office is located. So at least 40 cars instead piled into the parking lot of the neighboring CatholicLife Insurance building, where drivers proceeded to blare their horns in a deafening cacophony. Vans, SUVs, trucks and cars bore messages like free them all, prevent mass death and ABOLISH ICE, STOP THE SPREAD. If protesters left their vehicles, they wore face masks and kept their distance from one another a marked contrast with conservative demonstrators who gathered in front of the Texas Capitol on Saturday calling for stay-at-home restrictions to be lifted. Were all trying to stay as safe as possible, Hernandez said. But we need to send the message that, if we dont let these people out of detention centers, everybodys going to get COVID. Hernandez said people being held in those facilities are getting sick. There are families there that already have sick children, children with diarrhea, throwing up, Hernandez said. Each facility houses about 200 families or detainees, Hernandez said, and ICE has been releasing some. Almost 700 detainees have been released from ICE custody nationwide after they were deemed higher risk for having severe illness, the agency says. ICE has also limited how many new detainees it brings into detention centers, it says. Fear of the virus already has sparked tension within ICE facilities. Guards at the Pearsall immigrant detention center pepper-sprayed about 60 immigrants who rioted in March and demanded their release because they feared they would catch the disease. 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 Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 18:36:00|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close A teacher gives a lecture on epidemic prevention to students at the junior high school of Xi'an Foreign Language School in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, April 20, 2020. All junior and senior high schools in Xi'an have resumed class as students in the first and second years returned to school on Monday. (Xinhua/Liu Xiao) Acts of intimidation marred the final round of legislative elections in Mali on Sunday that aim to revive confidence in its embattled institutions despite a bloody jihadist conflict and a virus pandemic. In central Mali, the president of a voting station was forcibly removed and representatives of the electoral commission "chased away by armed men", one of the representatives told AFP. Military sources confirmed the incident. Elsewhere, voting was cancelled after jihadists threatened to attack voters, witnesses said. Already on Saturday, voting equipment had been destroyed by unknown assailants in northern Mali. The election had been repeatedly delayed, and the first round on March 29 was disrupted by jihadist attacks as well as the kidnapping of opposition leader Soumaila Cisse. 'Consolidate our democracy' "I voted. It is important despite the economic situation. We need new MPs to consolidate our democracy," Moussa Diakite, a 23-year-old student, told AFP. Another student, Hamchetou Toure, said she wore a face mask and observed social distancing rules as she voted in the semi-desert country, which has so far recorded 216 cases of the virus including 13 deaths. Among measures taken by the government are a nighttime curfew, school closures and restrictions on some activities -- but people still filled markets, mosques and public transport. The observer umbrella group Synergie said anti-virus protection kits had been distributed to over 96 percent of polling stations that it visited across the former French colony. It said poll workers wore masks in over 87 percent of the stations visited. Mali, one of the world's poorest countries, is struggling with an Islamist revolt that has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Sunday's runoff in the West African nation of 19 million people is for 147 seats in the National Assembly. Voting was taking place in the capital as well as the troubled central town of Mopti and Gao in the north, according to residents. Delays It is the country's first parliamentary poll since 2013 when President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita's Rally for Mali party won a big majority. Turnout in the first round averaged over 35 percent nationwide but was less than 13 percent in the capital Bamako. The hope is that the new MPs will endorse changes to the constitution that will promote decentralisation. By MICHELE CATTANI (AFP/File) The election was meant to take place in late 2018 after Keita was returned to office but the poll was postponed several times, mainly because of security concerns. A "national dialogue" staged last year to discuss Mali's spiral of violence called for the ballot to be completed by May. The hope is that the new MPs will endorse changes to the constitution that will promote decentralisation. That is the key to pushing ahead with the government's plans for peace. It signed a deal with armed separatists in northern Mali in 2015 but the pact has largely stalled. Violence in that region began in 2012 and was then fanned by jihadists. Defying thousands of French and UN troops, the jihadists took their campaign into the centre of the country and now threaten neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger. Mali's conflict zones and poor healthcare infrastructure place it in the category of countries that health experts say are at high risk of coronavirus. Keita, addressing the nation wearing a face mask, said "every health and security" precaution would be "rigorously applied" during Sunday's vote. Polling stations were to close at 1800 GMT, with the first provisional results to be announced at the start of the week. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 02:56:47|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close MOSCOW, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro discussed the recent situation in connection with the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic during a phone conversation on Monday, the Kremlin said in a statement. "The importance was noted of the adoption by the international community of coordinated measures to combat the new global threat, including the initiative put forward by Vladimir Putin to create 'green corridors' free from trade wars and sanctions during the crisis for deliveries of medicines, food, equipment and technologies," it said. "Nicolas Maduro expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Russian side, including supplies of testing systems," it added. Putin and Maduro also touched upon other pressing issues on the international agenda and issues of bilateral cooperation, according to the statement. Enditem One woman who called 911 said she was hiding in a bathroom and told the dispatcher she was trying to get to her car, but the dispatcher told her not to go anywhere. Once the dispatcher told the woman that police had arrived, the woman fled. (Source: Getty) With the coronavirus crisis grounding most international and domestic flights, frequent flyers may find themselves at a loss with their carefully-accumulated points. Though Qantas and Virgin have reintroduced certain domestic routes to allow stranded Australians to return home and for coronavirus frontline personnel to travel, non-essential travel is still largely banned. But that doesnt mean your frequent flyer points have all gone to waste: heres what to do with them while theyre in hibernation. 1. Redeem them for goods According to Champagne Mile publisher Adele Eliseo, you can redeem your frequent flyer points with Qantas and Virgins loyalty program reward stores to exchange points for products. High end electronics jostle alongside luggage and kitchenware products, all enticingly displayed and cheerfully offered at what would usually represent questionable redemption rates, she said. However, you should know that due to the panic-buying, Qantas has restricted limits to two items per store, while some Velocity members have reported delays. 2. Redeem for gift cards If youre in a rush to liquidate your points, gift cards could be an effective way to use them, although you may not be getting the most bang for your buck. The fact is, in the current climate, even seasoned Frequent Flyers have taken to splashing points on gift cards, said Eliseo. As a result, both Qantas and Virgin have taken steps to limit redemptions. You should know that higher-figure gift cards have been removed, while Virgin will limit you to only one gift card redemption a day. 3. Keep saving them According to Point Hacks frequent flyer expert Daniel Sciberras, its a good idea to use the time to save more points. Qantas has a feature that lets you know which websites also let you earn Qantas points while you shop, he said. When you visit a Qantas partners website, it will provide you with an alert, so you dont miss out on any points, Sciberras said. Some retailers include The Iconic, Adidas and JB HiFi. Story continues Start accumulating points that you can redeem in the airline stores or choose to save for when flights are back up and running. 4. Redeem the points Domestic routes will open sooner than international routes, so if you fancy a local holiday, spend your points on domestic flights down the line, according to Eliseo. Alternatively, if you have your heart set on international travel, try to book as far out as possible and opt for high traffic routes which are likely to stay in operation. You can book flights well into 2021, she added. Premium cabin points redemptions, particularly those in business and first class, offer an excellent value proposition if you can nab them. As an example, right now, via the Qantas website, savvy Frequent Flyers can use points to lock in business or first class flights between London and Tokyo for April 2021. And if your booking doesnt go ahead, airlines are expected to deal with cancellations fairly, so you shouldnt be too out-of-pocket if your flights cant go ahead when the time comes. 5. Hold onto them The coronavirus pandemic will come to an end at some point so if you know exactly where youd like to go and when, you can use the points on flights well into the future. Redeeming points on flights continues to offer the highest-value redemption, compared with any other service or product available. While air travel isnt a possibility at the moment, the travel bans will eventually lift, said Sciberras. Rather than using your points on products you dont need now, consider not touching them and using them on award flights once the bans and restrictions are lifted. You are likely to be itching to travel once this is all over. Make your money work with Yahoo Finances daily newsletter. Sign up here and stay on top of the latest money, news and tech news. Follow Yahoo Finance Australia on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. ALBANY Perhaps no time in recent history has there been a greater need for robust and accurate community journalism. And for the already struggling local newspaper industry, which relies heavily on advertisements from regional businesses that have been forced to shutter in recent weeks, the coronavirus pandemic has dealt yet another blow. "It's been as brutal a stretch as I have ever seen," said Brian Corcoran, publisher of The Post-Star in Glens Falls, "And we are struggling through the best we can." Diving advertising revenues have forced newspapers in the Capital Region and across the country to make tough choices. As of Sunday, about 80 newspapers and magazines nationwide have laid off or furloughed staff, or reduced their printing operations because of the pandemic, according to a list compiled by Poynter. The Daily Star in Oneonta has cut back publication from six days per week to five. Advance Local, which owns a chain of titles that includes The Post-Standard in Syracuse, announced furloughs and paycuts Thursday. The Post-Star's parent company, Lee Enterprises Inc., is slashing executive pay by 20 percent and furloughing staff members for two-week periods in April through June, Corcoran said. "In a lot of places, advertising just vaporized, and things werent really that robust in terms of ad revenue for newspapers to begin with," said Diane Kennedy, president of the New York News Publishers Assocation. "So it's an extremely painful transition to what, we dont know." Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Full coronavirus coverage Through it all, several Capital Region newspaper publishers have said they've seen increased print and digital subscriptions, indicating the public is recognizing the vital role served by local journalism. For most, though, that may not be enough to offset lost ad revenue. "Whether that will help newspapers transition to a mostly subscriber-based business model, I'm not sure," Kennedy said. "But I hope it does." One place that has already made that transition is The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. The paper saw a 20-percent dip in year-over-year ad revenue in March, and expects that drop to be as high as 38 percent this month, publisher John DeAugustine said. But the paper generates about 15 percent more in revenue through subscriptions than it does in advertisements. "We were in the best position that The Daily Gazette has been in in 15 years going into this crisis," said DeAugustine, who previously served as the development director at the Times Union. "We really felt like we had a strategy to manage business, to put great local content out there, to remain a critical part of the communities we serve. I am not as optimistic that the economy will recover very quickly ... but I believe local newspapers will remain critical. We should be able to build a business around it, and I am confident that we will." Still, DeAugustine said, the paper had to furlough its events team. Newsroom layoffs have also taken place, but were generated by the Gazette's acquisition of the Amsterdam Recorder last year, not the pandemic, he said. "Were going to run the business like a business," DeAugustine said. "If the revenue declines, we will make adjustments, but at this time there are no major cuts we see that well have to make in the future." Overall year-over-year revenues at the Times Union are down 40 percent, while advertising revenues are down in the 50 to 60 percent range and consumer revenues are down four to five percent, publisher George R. Hearst III said. "With the retail marketplace virtually closed and stay at home being in place at least through May 15th, I dont see the trends changing anytime soon," Hearst said. "On the bright side our digital subscriptions sales are running very strong, and the site traffic on timesunion.com is up considerably. Big stories, solid journalism and superior products produce great results." Hearst said he does not "anticipate the need to radically change our business model." "To the contrary, I believe that new business opportunities may be identified that would allow us to expand our presence in the greater upstate region," he said. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. The Altamont Enterprise, a weekly newspaper that covers the Hilltowns in Albany County, has "basically changed everything," the paper's editor Melissa Hale-Spencer said. The paper has thinned from about 40 pages every edition to 24. Hale-Spencer writes about 15 stories every week. This week's edition of the paper saw more than 30 opinion pieces, and subscribers and contributors are growing, she said. For Hale-Spencer, putting out a printed product is "more of a calling than a business proposition." "Especially in the Hilltowns, and especially among our elderly readers, we still have a lot of people who dont have internet," she said. "We cover a news desert in the Hilltowns, and no one else covers it unless it's a murder." The NewsGuild-CWA labor union, which represents thousands of journalists and support staff across the United States, has called on the federal government to provide taxpayer funds to stymie what the union's President Jon Schleuss described as an "extinction-level event" for the industry, the Washington Post reported. Some publishers and editors may be hesitant to accept that kind of support from the government. But Kennedy, the NYNPA president, said it would not be any different from federal funding provided to public-radio stations like NPR. "I dont see where it impacts their news coverage at all," she said. "I dont think of that as a concern as long as its not a case where individual newspapers have to ask for the funding from their particular local legislature." Despite the setbacks the news industry has seen in recent years, and despite the pain inflicted on local newspapers by the pandemic, each editor and publisher said they were still optimistic about the future of news gathering. "Im optimistic because theres a community need for it," said Corcoran, The Post Star's publisher. "The New York Times and Washington Post [aren't] going to be covering whats going on in Glens Falls, New York." Michael.Williams@timesunion.com PARIS (Reuters) - France registered 395 more deaths from the coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the total to 19,718, as the pace of increase in fatalities continued to slow and the number of people in intensive care fell. PARIS (Reuters) - France registered 395 more deaths from the coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the total to 19,718, as the pace of increase in fatalities continued to slow and the number of people in intensive care fell. France's public health chief Jerome Salomon told a news briefing that the total number of people in intensive care units fell for the 11th day in a row, to 5,744 - the lowest level since March 30. (Reporting by Matthieu Protard and Sarah White; Editing by Alexander Smith) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. People hold placards supporting then-candidate for the post of Director General of World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during a rally in front of the United Nations offices on May 23, 2017, in Geneva. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images The director-general of the World Health Organization, audibly near tears, pleaded with world leaders not to use the virus as a political tool to drive a wedge down party lines. "Whoever has whatever ideology, whether that person is from left or right or center, they should work together to fight this virus, to save these real people," WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. Tedros said maybe it's the case that some politicians "don't understand" the deadly implications of their actions: "Maybe they're lucky. They may not understand it. Maybe they had an easy ride in life, so they don't understand what this means." Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Well over 165,000 people around the world have died from the novel coronavirus. But on Monday, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged political leaders around the globe not to forget that each of those numbers stands for a person's life, that they were, "the mother of somebody, the father of somebody, the daughter of somebody, and the son of somebody," before they died of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. He suggested any leaders who are dismissing the pandemic must have had "an easy ride in life, so they don't understand what this means." An emotional Tedros, audibly near tears at moments, once again pleaded with world leaders not to use the virus as a political tool to drive a wedge down party lines. "Whoever has whatever ideology, whether that person is from left or right or center, they should work together to fight this virus, to save these real people," Tedros told reporters, during a virtual press conference streamed from Geneva. "Please work together. Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points. It's dangerous. It's like playing with fire." Story continues Tedros, who is originally from Eritrea, a country which was at war for 20 years until 2018, looked back on his own experiences dealing with needless death and suffering during the conference. "When I think about the losses of lives, it reminds me of my own experience," he said. "These are real people dying and I'm just warning people who may think that these are numbers. They're not numbers. These are people." Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has his temperature taken as he arrives at Ruhenda airport in Butembo, to visit operations aimed at preventing the spread of Ebola and treating its victims, in eastern Congo, Saturday, June 15, 2019. AP Photo/Al-hadji Kudra Maliro This isn't the first time the director-general has gotten, by his own telling, "emotional" during a WHO press conference. Earlier this month, Tedros mentioned he's received death threats while dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic response because he is black, and said "I don't give a damn." Tedros did not mention Trump by name on Monday, but instead suggested that "cracks between people, between parties, is fueling" COVID-19. "Without national unity and global solidarity, trust us, the worst is yet ahead of us," he said. Tedros' comments came just a day after Trump applauded US protesters who formed crowds over the weekend, in fierce opposition to their own state lockdown orders, which are aimed at stopping coronavirus transmission by keeping people far apart. "I watched a protest and they were all six feet apart. I mean, it was a very orderly group of people," Trump said at the White House on Sunday. "Some governors have gone too far. Some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate." Governors, both Republican and Democratic, vehemently disagreed with the President's statements Sunday, which are not backed by sound public health advice about how to control COVID-19, nor are they consistent with the White House's own advice about how to best control the outbreak, by avoiding social gatherings during this time. Tedros, who trained as an immunologist before moving on to serve in politics, as an Ethiopian minister of public health and foreign affairs, became the first person from Africa to lead the WHO in 2017. "I know the tragedy that comes from disease, from pandemics, from war, from hate, equally from poverty," Tedros said. "To keep quiet and not say what I see is wrong." In a thinly veiled dig at world leaders who are using the crisis to score some political points, like Trump, Tedros said maybe it's the case that politicians simply "don't understand" the implications of their actions. "I know war. I know poverty. I know how people really are influenced by all this," he said. "Maybe for people who don't know this, maybe they're lucky. They may not understand it. Maybe they had an easy ride in life, so they don't understand what this means." Read the original article on Business Insider Donald Trump again defended his coronavirus record during the latest White House briefing with a Wall Street Journal op-ed and a video of New York governor Andrew Cuomo, a staunch critic, as props that praised him. Mr Trump, who has denounced most media criticism of his coronavirus management, claimed on Sunday that no country is close to achieving the same successes as the US. With an edition of The Wall Street Journal in hand, the president cited the articles headline and declared that his administration had rewritten the rule book on emergencies. Admitting that it was a very nice feeling to be praised in the opinion piece, the president read just one paragraph out loud to the room of White House reporters and said: at least of what I read, it was a great article. Hes given pride of place to federalism and private enterprise, lauded the patriotism and proficiency of our fantastic governors and mayors, read Mr Trump, adding: I do call them fantastic when its appropriate. On Sunday, Mr Trump was keen to screen evidence of Mr Cuomos praise and complained that the good part of the governors comment had not been shown. What the federal government did, working with states ... was a phenomenal accomplishment, said the governor in the first video. These were just extraordinary efforts and acts of mobilisation, and the federal government stepped up and was a great partner, and Im the first to say it. We needed help and they were there. New Yorks Mr Cuomo had enraged the president on Friday after saying that he should get up and go to work instead of watching TV, whilst deriding the zero, zilch, nada in unrestricted aid seen by states. On Twitter, Mr Trump took aim at the Democrat and wrote: Governor Cuomo should spend more time doing and less time complaining. Get out there and get the job done. Stop talking! With the US coronavirus death toll passing 40,000 on Sunday, one CNN reporter questioned why the president had devoted so much time during the briefing to self-congratulation. Mr Trump retorted: Youre CNN, youre fake news ... You dont have the brains you were born with. Saying that he was standing up for everyone that has done such an incredible job, the president then compared himself to Abraham Lincoln and bemoaned Abraham Lincoln had very bad treatment too. The BJP's Karnataka state president Nalin Kumar Kateel MP on Monday said those who attacked healthcare workers and police at Padarayanapura in Bengaluru should be sternly dealt with and booked for treason. Addressing reporters here, Kateel said certain miscreants had gathered at the place last night and indulged in vandalism and attacked doctors, health workers and the police. The culprits behind the attack should be booked for treason and their assets impounded like the Uttar Pradesh government is doing against violators of law, he said. Kateel said the virus does not check caste, creed or religion while striking in an area. At a time when the entire country is united in the fight against coronavirus infection and are implementing aggressive steps to contain the pandemic, some are out to defeat the very purpose of the fight, he said. Condemning the attack on government officials, Kateel said each person involved in the attack should be brought before the law and punished. As many as 59 people were arrested on Monday for attacking police and health officials at the minority dominated Padarayanapura in the city when they went to quarantine some people, police said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Australia is positioning to lead the push for a review into the world's response to the coronavirus outbreak as it looks to be one of the first countries to exit the global pandemic. Although the Morrison government has not yet committed to easing restrictions and is intent on preventing a second wave of COVID-19, it is turning its attention to reforming the World Health Organisation and its relationship with China. Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne has called for a review into the world's coronavirus response. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Foreign Minister Marise Payne this week called for the review, urging China to allow transparency in the process and saying the organisation should run the inquiry. China has accused the United States of running a campaign of "smear and stigmatisation" that has politically manipulated other countries against Beijing and the WHO. China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday Australia should not "blindly follow" calls for a global inquiry. The Morrison government is now exploring the possibility of the United Nations appointing an independent investigator to review the world's response to the pandemic, which would probe China and the WHO's handling in the early days of the outbreak. See Full Image Gallery >> Introduced in 1950, the innovative Aurelia is one of the most sought-after Lancia models made after World War II. Collectors pay a premium for cars with a documented racing history, and one-offs built as in-house experiments are fascinating, so it's no wonder a 1951 coupe that ticked both boxes deserved a 4,000-hour restoration. United Kingdom-based shop Thornley Kelham explained a wealthy privateer racer named Giovanni Bracco purchased this 1951 Aurelia new in Italy and took it racing almost immediately. It finished second overall in that year's Mille Miglia, first at the Caracalla Night Race, and it earned first in its class (and 12th overall) in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. These were impressive results for the Aurelia, whose main claim to fame was being the first regular-production car equipped with a V6 engine, but Lancia was no stranger to podium finishes. Its story took an intriguing turn when it showed up at the 1951 edition of the Carrera Panamericana with a markedly lower roof line. Bracco knew the Lancia family well, and he arranged to have its top chopped at the factory to make it more aerodynamic. He crashed on the fourth day of racing, sold it to a Mexican architect, and returned home. It re-appeared at the following year's Carrera Panamericana and finished ninth before disappearing. Some speculated it was hidden in America; others assumed it had been crushed and recycled. The first hypothesis was correct, but proving it was easier said than done. The car had received a redesigned rear end Thornley Kelham described as hump-backed and Volkswagen Beetle-like. Some of the original parts had been cut out and discarded, which made the restoration process exponentially more challenging. The shop fabricated a new, period-correct rear end using 3D scans and fiberglass molds. It then painted it black, its original color, before giving it a coat of red, the color it wore when it was entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and finally spraying a second coat of black, the color it was painted in when it raced in the Carrera Panamericana. It was fitted with seats from an Ardea Lancia's V4-powered entry-level model when it raced, so Thornley Kelham sourced a pair and re-trimmed it. Period-correct lettering added a finishing touch to the restoration. Story continues The V6 engine and the four-speed manual transmission were completely rebuilt. All told, resurrecting this one-of-a-kind Aurelia required 4,000 hours of work spread out over a three-year period. "Decades of modifications and misuse made this perhaps one of the most difficult restorations we've ever done," explained Simon Thornley, co-founder of Thornley Kelham, in a statement. The shop is currently working on a project that looks even more ambitions than reviving the Lancia. It's in the process of bringing a 1930 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 purchased new and raced by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini back to life after decades of neglect. You Might Also Like Amid the coronavirus outbreak, over 2,000 people in Israel took part in Black Flag protest on April 19 while practising social distancing and stood at least six feet apart. The images and videos from the protest at Tel Aviv have taken the internet by storm and most netizens have even compared the discipline of Israeli protesters, who kept COVID-19 guidelines in mind, with the ones taking place in America. The pro-democratic protests in the country were carried out against some of Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu's policies introduced at the time of pandemic to curb the spread. Israel Massive Black flags protest tonight in Tel Avivs Rabin Square. Calling for legislation to bar Benjamin Netanyahu from serving as Prime Minister. Asked to stand on chalk-dream Xs. Two meters(6 Feet) apart, for the #coronavirus era protests.#CoronaVirusUpdates pic.twitter.com/4Hwcw19G4E Terrence Daniels (Captain Planet) (@Terrence_STR) April 19, 2020 While the coronavirus infections in the country reach 13,491 with at least 172 fatalities, the protest reportedly included speeches from prominent lawmakers in Israel from the centre-left bloc such as Benny Gantzs Kahol Lavan. The Yesh Atid Chairman, Yair Lapid reportedly said in his speech that this is how Democracies die in the 21st century. The Black flag protests had apparently gained momentum in March when hundreds of people drove their cars to Jerusalem to protest against the anti-democratic measures taken by the government to stem the drastic spread to coronavirus. Read - Israelis Accuse Netanyahu Of Endangering Democracy Read - Thousands Of Israelis Brave COVID-19 Health Risks To Protest Against Benjamin Netanyahu Israel to begin lifting COVID-19 restrictions Just before the Black Flag protest, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu had said that the precautionary measures that his government took to curb the further spread of coronavirus have proven themselves. Therefore, due to positive results, from April 19, they will begin to lift certain restrictions from the nation. According to Netanyahu, the ease of restrictions will include resuming work for some employees especially in manufacturing and service industries and opening certain stores. However, the citizens will still have to follow rules to curb the further spread of COVID-19 disease. The Israeli cabinet is yet to reveal their decision on Netanyahus recommendations. In the press conference, according to reports, Israeli President said that his nations mortality rates were among the lowest in the OIECD countries, while the testing numbers are among the highest. Read - Israel Test Booth Allows Staff-patient Separation Read - Israel To Begin Lifting COVID-19 Restrictions After 'positive Results' Sharon Stone paid an emotional tribute to her 'adopted grandmother' Eileen Mitzman, who was about to die in the hospital alone after contracting coronavirus. Stone, 62, shed tears as she remembered Eileen, an AIDS activist whom she met years earlier just as she was beginning her work in the field. A heartbroken Stone reflected on Mitzman's legacy in video posted to her Instagram account on Sunday. 'Tonight she's going to die in New York hospital,' Stone tearfully said. 'She has coronavirus, but she will die because she is septic and has other illnesses and none of us can go there to be with her.' Heartbroken: Sharon Stone paid an emotional tribute to her 'adopted grandmother' Eileen Mitzman, who was about to die in the hospital alone after contracting coronavirus (pictured 2009) In her video, Stone recounted Mitzman's life story, from her AIDS activism to meeting her husband Neil in elementary school. 'Hi, I want to talk to you about someone very special to me, who became my adopted grandmother,' Sharon said at the start of the video. 'Her name is Eileen Mitzman. I met her, a long time ago when I was beginning to work as an AIDS activist so many years ago. I met she and her husband Neil in New York at an event at Dr. Krims house. 'She was just about to go and speak to then-President Bill Clinton, and she asked me what she should speak about, and she started to tell me the story of her life. She was a young woman who grew up in Brooklyn and her dad was a bookie. 'He wanted to be a cop but he was too short, and so the cops let him be the bookie because they trusted him then. And she grew up and she told her fellow classmates that her dad was a bookmaker, and they thought that he made books. In memory: A heartbroken Stone reflected on Mitzman's legacy in video posted to her Instagram account on Sunday Painful loss: Stone, 62, shed tears as she remembered Eileen, an AIDS activist whom she met years earlier just as she was beginning her work in the field 'She and her husband Neil met when he was a crossing guard in elementary school. He went away to war and she wrote to him everyday and when he came home he married her.' Sharon revealed she became their adopted granddaughter after all three suffered painful losses. Choking back tears, Sharon adds, 'And they had a beautiful long life together until he passed away a couple years ago. I met her because she and Neil were two of the heads of Concerned Parents for AIDS Research, because her daughter was one of the first daughters to die AIDS. 'Her boyfriend was a bartender at Studio 54. Their other daughter died in a car accident coming home from prom. So I ask them if they would be my adopted grandparents, since mine had passed away. And they became my adopted grandparents and my fellow HIV/AIDS worker. 'They became my adopted grandparents': The actress revealed she became their adopted granddaughter after all three suffered painful losses 'She will die a warrior': Stone then urged her followers to scream outside their window tonight in memory of Eileen 'We worked very hard together to do a lot of good in this world. Tonight she's going to die in New York hospital. She has coronavirus, but she will die because she is septic and has other illnesses and none of us can go there to be with her,' Sharon says as a tear falls down her cheek. 'But she will die a warrior, and I think we should grieve like warriors now because holding grief will only make us sick and affect our lungs and our respiratory systems in a way that we should not allow that to do,' she said, becoming more and more emotional. She then urged her followers to scream outside their window tonight in memory of Eileen. Happier days: Stone and Mitzman attended the eighth annual Elton John AIDS Foundation 'An Enduring Vision' Gala in 2009 'So tonight I want you to go out your window and I want you to scream and I want you to fight back and I want you to scream and I want you to cry, and I want you to scream out against this thing for Eileen, because I don't want her to die alone. I want you to hear her rage on against the dying of the light. 'I want her to hear you scream for her, because she was furious about what is happening. She was furious about the way this was being handled, she was furious, she was furious about the way AIDS was handled, and she was furious about the way this was being handled. 'And I want you to let her know that you respect her life and that you respect her death. So I'm going to post a picture of her when I saw her in January, and I want you to rage on into the dying of this light. And I want you to know that I respect those of you who have lost your loved ones and couldn't be there with them. 'And I respect the deaths that are happening during this time, I do not take them lightly and I do not think they were deserved. So for Eileen Mitzmen, who is going to be with her beloved husband Neil, and her two daughters, rage on into the dying of that light. Thank you.' Fern Mallis, the creator of New York Fashion Week, also paid tribute to Eileen with a heartfelt post on Instagram on Sunday. Mallis revealed Mitzman passed away the night prior after contracting the virus. Memories: The actress shared several snaps of Eileen onto her Instagram account, including one with Stone's sister Kelly Union home minister Amit Shah called up Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday to enquire about the lynching of three people in Palghar last week, PTI reported. The three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were heading towards Gujarats Surat in a car to attend a funeral late on April 16. Their vehicle was stopped in Palghar district and the men were dragged out of their car and beaten to death on suspicion that they were thieves. The dead men were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). Also read: Mistaken for thieves, 3 lynched to death by 200-strong mob in Maharashtras Palghar The news agency said Uddhav Thackeray talked about the Palghar lynching incident and the steps taken to nab those involved in the crime over the phone with Amit Shah. Police have detained more than 100 people involved in the killing of the three Surat-bound men. The Maharashtra government has also ordered a high-level probe into the Palghar mob lynching incident. The police have arrested all those accused who attacked the two sadhus, one driver and the police personnel on the day of the crime itself, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray had said earlier. Nobody guilty of this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible, Thackeray said in a tweet. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has also urged the Shiv Sena chief to take strict action against the culprits involved in the lynching of the three men in Palghar district. As this deadly virus continues to impact every part of our lives, scammers are looking to take advantage of all the chaos, said Kareem Carter, special agent in charge of criminal investigations for the IRS, in a press release from the Northern District of California U.S. Attorneys Office. They will prey on our hopes and fears to steal your money, your personal information, or both. In what turned out to be a case of mistaken identity, Indian actor Aamir Khan's photo was shown as that of the murder accused MQM leader named Amir Khan by a Pakistani TV channel. On realising their mistake, the channel was quick to change the image on their screens but by then a screenshot bearing the actors image along with the description was shared by a Pak Journalist and it soon went viral on social media. Pakistan journalist Naila Inayat tweeted the image, Headline: After 17 years MQM leader Amir Khan exonerated in a murder case. Didnt know Indian actor Amir Khan was in Pakistan for the last 17 years.. Headline: After 17 years MQM leader Amir Khan exonerated in a murder case.Didn't know Indian actor Amir Khan was in Pakistan for the last 17 years.. pic.twitter.com/YcUmg6LKfk Naila Inayat (@nailainayat) April 16, 2020 The channel was heavily criticized for the blunder. But neither has the actor spoken about the incident nor the channel apologized for the error. Aamir like the rest of the film industry is currently waiting for the lockdown in India to be lifted before they can resume work. He was shooting for Laal Singh Chaddha, an official remake of 'Forest Gump'. by Mathias Hariyadi As family members prayed, two people burst into their home saying that such a gathering had been banned. Yesterdays incident and related videos posted on social media sparked interest among ordinary Indonesians. Jakarta (AsiaNews) A family whose members belong to the Christian Batak Protestant Church (HKBP) were praying yesterday at home, when two men burst into their house accusing them of holding a banned gathering. Currently, all public activities are banned Indonesia and people are told to stay at and work from home. During the incident, which occurred in Rawa Sentul, a hamlet in Jayamukti, a village in Cikarang sub-district, Bekasi Regency (West Java), the two men, the hamlet chief and a neighbour of the family in question, tried to enforce the ban with force and rudeness, telling family members to stop praying. A tape of the event was posted on social media, sparking controversy among Indonesians, showing the family standing their ground against the hostile intruders. Once he realised that he was being filmed, the village chief got angrier and tried to snatch the mobile device from the woman taping what was going. Failing this, he left, aware that the scene would be soon posted on social media. "We are used to praying together, said Arion Sihombing on his social media platform, but those two arrived suddenly at our home and ordered us to stop praying. We fear that these people will bring their followers for more hostile acts. He added that yesterdays act was not the first time that his family was the object of hostilities. This happened to us 12 years ago, when we faced a mob protesting against us because we met to pray as a family. We were under pressure for a month and every night they threw stones at our home. After that, the family stopped worshipping together, then yesterdays incident occurred. After the video appeared on social media, it went viral, with many people slamming the village chief and the neighbour for their hostile act. Hours later, the issue was resolved peacefully at the local police station. But this kind of issue remains delicate as it involves family religious activities. For the past few weeks, the local Christian community has been unable to meet and services are only available online. Catholic parishes too hold their daily and weekly services online. During Holy Week, Card Ignatius Suharyo led the Mass in Jakartas basilica, with at least 30,000 people following it live on their mobile phones. Thousands more did the same watching on television. When Pope Francis gave his Urbi et Orbi blessing and the plenary indulgence, tens of thousands of Indonesian Catholic groups followed them. Live streaming and broadcasting by the Indonesian Church and the Vatican are something relatively new in Indonesia. However, thousands of Catholic congregations now use social media to find information about TV channels and online media platforms to follow such services. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Contract Research Outsourcing market worldwide is projected to grow by US$40.7 Billion, driven by a compounded growth of 11.2%. Clinical, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 12%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market. Poised to reach over US$50 Billion by the year 2025, Clinical will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth. Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910444/?utm_source=PRN - Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 9.8% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$1.6 Billion to the region's size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$1.3 Billion worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Clinical will reach a market size of US$2.6 Billion by the close of the analysis period. As the world's second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 14.5% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$9.8 Billion in terms of addressable opportunity for the picking by aspiring businesses and their astute leaders. Presented in visually rich graphics are these and many more need-to-know quantitative data important in ensuring quality of strategy decisions, be it entry into new markets or allocation of resources within a portfolio. Several macroeconomic factors and internal market forces will shape growth and development of demand patterns in emerging countries in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. All research viewpoints presented are based on validated engagements from influencers in the market, whose opinions supersede all other research methodologies. - Competitors identified in this market include, among others, Albany Molecular Research Inc. Charles River Laboratories International Inc. Chiltern International Ltd. ICON plc, Inc Research LLC InVentiv Health Inc. Jubilant Biosys Ltd. Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings PAREXEL International Corp. Pharmaceutical Product Development LLC. Pharmaron PRA Health Sciences Inc. Quintiles IMS Holdings Inc. Ricerca Biosciences LLC Sygnature Discovery Limited SynteractHCR WuXi AppTec Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910444/?utm_source=PRN I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. MARKET OVERVIEW Recent Market Activity Outsourcing of R&D Projects to Propel CROs Services Market Growth Drivers in a Nutshell Evolving Macro Trends Driving CRO Demand CROs to Significantly Drive Outsourcing Penetration Focus on Efficient, Quality Services to Drive Specialty CROs Market Rise in Investments to Boost Growth Key Therapeutic Areas of Clinical Trial Research Primary Factors Influencing CRO Market Pharma and Biotech Companies to Increase Dependence on CROs Outlook Notable Regional Developments Future Model of CRO Global Competitor Market Shares Contract Research Outsourcing Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2020 & 2029 2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS Albany Molecular Research, Inc. (USA) Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (USA) Chiltern International Ltd. (UK) ICON plc (Ireland) INC Research, LLC (USA) InVentiv Health, Inc. (USA) Jubilant Biosys Ltd. (India) Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (USA) PAREXEL International Corp. (USA) Pharmaceutical Product Development, LLC. (USA) Pharmaron (China) PRA Health Sciences, Inc. (USA) Quintiles IMS Holdings, Inc. (USA) Ricerca Biosciences LLC (USA) Sygnature Discovery Limited (UK) Sygnature Discovery Limited (UK) WuXi AppTec (China) 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS Increased Spend on R&D Outsourcing Enhancing Site Selection and Patient Enrollment CROs Enter into Alliances to Improve Efficiencies Adoption of Digital Technologies Gains Pace Rising Late-Stage Services Demand and Budget Restraints Drive Market Growth Toxicology Services Gain Notable Attention Pharma Companies Enter into Licensing Agreements with Biotech Companies for New Drug Discovery - A Mutually Beneficial Strategy Pharmaceutical & Biopharmaceutical Trends to Support CRO Penetration Focus on Regulatory Oversight and Enhanced Transparency Bodes Well for CROs eClinical Solutions Gain Traction Other Noteworthy Market Trends CROs Monetize Data Service Differentiation - A Sustaining Strategy CROs Tie Up with Diagnostic Companies for Patients Research Networks Move to Cloud Application of Mobile Devices to Collect Real Time Data Gains Ground CROs Provide Exclusive Offers to Lure Big Pharma Challenges Faced by Contract Research Organizations On-shore versus Offshore CRO Business Cutthroat Competition among CROs Management of Clinical Investigation Surging Global Population Offers Increased Growth Opportunities Aging Population Boosts Opportunities for CRO Increasing Healthcare Expenditure to Spur Demand for Generics 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE Table 1: Contract Research Outsourcing Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 2: Contract Research Outsourcing Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2009-2017 Table 3: Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 4: Clinical (Service Type) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 5: Clinical (Service Type) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 6: Clinical (Service Type) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 7: Discovery (Service Type) Potential Growth Markets Worldwide in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 8: Discovery (Service Type) Historic Market Perspective by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 9: Discovery (Service Type) Market Sales Breakdown by Region/Country in Percentage: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 10: Pre-Clinical (Service Type) Geographic Market Spread Worldwide in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 11: Pre-Clinical (Service Type) Region Wise Breakdown of Global Historic Demand in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 12: Pre-Clinical (Service Type) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 13: Laboratory Services (Service Type) World Market Estimates and Forecasts by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018 to 2025 Table 14: Laboratory Services (Service Type) Market Historic Review by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009 to 2017 Table 15: Laboratory Services (Service Type) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 III. MARKET ANALYSIS GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share (in %) by Company: 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 16: United States Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 17: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in the United States by Service Type: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 18: United States Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CANADA Table 19: Canadian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 20: Canadian Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Review by Service Type in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 21: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Canada: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Service Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 JAPAN Table 22: Japanese Market for Contract Research Outsourcing: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 23: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 24: Japanese Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 CHINA Table 25: Chinese Contract Research Outsourcing Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 26: Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in China in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 27: Chinese Contract Research Outsourcing Market by Service Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European Contract Research Outsourcing Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2020 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 28: European Contract Research Outsourcing Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 29: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 30: European Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 31: European Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018-2025 Table 32: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Europe in US$ Million by Service Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 33: European Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 FRANCE Table 34: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in France by Service Type: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 35: French Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 36: French Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 GERMANY Table 37: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 38: German Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 39: German Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ITALY Table 40: Italian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 41: Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in Italy in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 42: Italian Contract Research Outsourcing Market by Service Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 UNITED KINGDOM Table 43: United Kingdom Market for Contract Research Outsourcing: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 44: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 45: United Kingdom Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SPAIN Table 46: Spanish Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 47: Spanish Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Review by Service Type in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 48: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Spain: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Service Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 RUSSIA Table 49: Russian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 50: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Russia by Service Type: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 51: Russian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF EUROPE Table 52: Rest of Europe Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018-2025 Table 53: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Rest of Europe in US$ Million by Service Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 54: Rest of Europe Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 55: Asia-Pacific Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 56: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2009-2017 Table 57: Asia-Pacific Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 Table 58: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Asia-Pacific by Service Type: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 59: Asia-Pacific Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 60: Asia-Pacific Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AUSTRALIA Table 61: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Australia: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 62: Australian Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 63: Australian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 INDIA Table 64: Indian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 65: Indian Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Review by Service Type in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 66: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in India: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Service Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 SOUTH KOREA Table 67: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 68: South Korean Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 69: Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 70: Rest of Asia-Pacific Market for Contract Research Outsourcing: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 71: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 72: Rest of Asia-Pacific Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 LATIN AMERICA Table 73: Latin American Contract Research Outsourcing Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2018-2025 Table 74: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2009-2017 Table 75: Latin American Contract Research Outsourcing Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 76: Latin American Contract Research Outsourcing Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 77: Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in Latin America in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 78: Latin American Contract Research Outsourcing Market by Service Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 ARGENTINA Table 79: Argentinean Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018-2025 Table 80: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Argentina in US$ Million by Service Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 81: Argentinean Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 BRAZIL Table 82: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Brazil by Service Type: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2018-2025 Table 83: Brazilian Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 84: Brazilian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 MEXICO Table 85: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Mexico: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 86: Mexican Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 87: Mexican Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 88: Rest of Latin America Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 89: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Rest of Latin America by Service Type: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 90: Rest of Latin America Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 MIDDLE EAST Table 91: The Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2018-2025 Table 92: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 93: The Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2009, 2019, and 2025 Table 94: The Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 95: The Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market by Service Type in US$ Million: 2009-2017 Table 96: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in the Middle East: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Service Type for 2009, 2019, and 2025 IRAN Table 97: Iranian Market for Contract Research Outsourcing: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 98: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Iran: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2009-2017 Table 99: Iranian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Analysis by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 ISRAEL Table 100: Israeli Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018-2025 Table 101: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Israel in US$ Million by Service Type: A Historic Review for the Period 2009-2017 Table 102: Israeli Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 SAUDI ARABIA Table 103: Saudi Arabian Contract Research Outsourcing Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 104: Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 105: Saudi Arabian Contract Research Outsourcing Market by Service Type: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2009, 2019, and 2025 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 106: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 107: United Arab Emirates Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 108: Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 109: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Rest of Middle East: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type for the Period 2018-2025 Table 110: Rest of Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Service Type: 2009-2017 Table 111: Rest of Middle East Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 AFRICA Table 112: African Contract Research Outsourcing Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Service Type: 2018 to 2025 Table 113: Contract Research Outsourcing Market in Africa by Service Type: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2009-2017 Table 114: African Contract Research Outsourcing Market Share Breakdown by Service Type: 2009 VS 2019 VS 2025 IV. COMPETITION Total Companies Profiled: 115 Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p04910444/?utm_source=PRN About Reportlinker ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place. __________________________ Contact Clare: [email protected] US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001 SOURCE Reportlinker Related Links www.reportlinker.com FLINT, MI A lawsuit claiming the city of Flint improperly raised its water rates will get a new day in court. After reconsideration, the state court of appeals decided on April 16 the case will get a new trial. The decision came after the court was directed to reconsider the lawsuits unjust enrichment claims by the Michigan Supreme Court on Dec. 13, 2019. The Supreme Court remanded the case to the lower courts for consideration of the plaintiffs unjust enrichment claims considering a previous ruling on a third lawsuit filed by Genesee County Drain Commissioner Jeff Wright, records show. Genesee County will pay back $975K in insurance refund lawsuit The court of appeals agreed to give the case more attention than it previously had. The court also agreed the case warranted a look at unjust enrichment. Former city council President Scott Kincaid filed the lawsuit in May 2012, claiming the city didnt follow its policy for raising water and sewer rates by 35 percent and improperly spent the funds it collected. Kincaid said he felt like he had no other option but to file the lawsuit after emergency mangers and the mayor raised the rates. We have been fighting for more than eight years because of what we believed at the time, the city raised its water and sewer rates illegally and we want the residents to be paid back what they are owed, Kincaid said. This will either go to the circuit court or we will settle. This is now all coming to an end and we will prevail. City officials said theyre pleased to see that the court of appeals dismissed four of the six claims and are reviewing the full decision to identify Flints options. Kincaid and other residents filed the first lawsuit in the Court of Appeals in May 2012. It was filed first in the Court of Appeals because the plaintiffs claimed Flint violated the state Constitutions Headlee Amendment by raising its water rates twice without the councils permission. The Court of Appeals dismissed the lawsuit in July 2012, ruling it didnt have jurisdiction over some of the plaintiffs claims. The lawsuit was then filed in the Genesee Circuit Court a few days later. Valdemar Washington, an attorney representing Kincaid, said the court of appeals made the right decision. In 2011, water and sewer rates were raised by 57 percent and people shouldnt be required to pay that and there hasnt been a reduction in what people pay since that time. Now its time, Washington said. We would love to sit down and discuss a resolution for the issues that have risen from the case. The lawsuit was later dismissed by Circuit Court Judge Richard Yuille, who ruled the city was entitled to raise its water and sewer rates by consent of Michael Brown, the emergency manager at the time. Yuille's ruling was appealed to Michigan's Court of Appeals, reversed and taken back to the circuit court in June 2015. State appeals court dismisses Flint water rate lawsuit The city later motioned the Court of Appeals to dismiss the case, which it did by ruling the matter had already been decided. The supreme court also ruled on a related case on Dec. 13, 2019. The other is a class-action lawsuit filed by residents Larry Shears and Margaret Fralick which claims the city improperly raised water rates and misused $15.7 million in the water and sewer fund. It was remanded to Genesee Circuit Court. Judge orders Flint to cut water rates 35 percent in sweeping injunction Washington has asked the city to consolidate the cases and to consider resolving the issues out of court. 20.04.2020 LISTEN The communication officer of the National Democratic Congress has stated that the lifting of partial lockdown by President Akufo-Addo at the time the country is witnessing enormous growth in positive cases of Covid-19 cannot be backed by science. In a write-up, Sammy Gyamfi stated that the decision is clearly politically-motivated which is calculated to allow the Electoral Commission the space to undertake its entrenched and illogical determination to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections and nothing more. He questioned why the President Akufo-Addo would impose a partial lockdown with the objective of halting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, at a time we had only recorded 137 cases across just four (4) regions of the country and with 5 deaths, but turn around to lift the partial lockdown, at a time our positive case count has galloped to 1,042, across ten (10) regions and with nine (9) deaths? Sammy Gyamfi described the Presidents decision as political expediency ahead of Public safety. Read Full Statement Below: LIFTING OF PARTIAL LOCKDOWN BY PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO; A CHOICE OF POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY OVER PUBLIC SAFETY. The lifting of the partial lockdown by President Akufo-Addo, at a time the country is witnessing astronomical increases in positive COVID-19 cases, particularly horizontal infections, is totally premature and lacks scientific basis. It is clearly a politically-motivated decision, calculated to allow the EC the space to undertake its entrenched and illogical determination to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections and nothing more. Either than that, why will President Akufo-Addo impose a partial lockdown with the objective of halting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, at a time we had only recorded 137 cases across just four (4) regions of the country and with 5 deaths, but turn around to lift the partial lockdown, at a time our positive case count has galloped to 1,042, across ten (10) regions and with nine (9) deaths? Countries with far lower cases have not lifted or relaxed their lockdown restrictions. Yet, we who are currently the country with the highest COVID-19 cases in West Africa, have against expert advice, lifted our partial lockdown. Doesnt this defy science and commonsense? President Akufo-Addos decision to lift the lockdown at this crucial time, is a reckless political gamble that portends great danger for this nation. Ghanaians must never forgive him if this unimaginable decision exacerbates our COVID-19 situation. The blame for any fatality that is occasioned by this reckless decision must lie squarely with the President. What the President has essentially done, is to place political expediency ahead of Public safety. And what that shows, is that human lives dont matter to President Akufo-Addo. May God be our help. SAMMY GYAMFI Esq. Jill Moon | Hearst Illinois BENLD Police are seeking information about vandalism in a Macoupin County town in which windows have been broken, some completely out of the frames, at several buildings. Vandalized properties include the Benld Public Library, the Cahokia Township building, Benld Civic Center, a vacant building on Central Avenue, the old post office building on North Main Street, the Benld Laundromat and another building on North Main Street. Sunny Leone has shared a candid video of husband Daniel Weber singing praises about the actor in a video message for her fans but the placards he showed to the camera told a different story. Daniel, who also doubles up as Sunnys manager, praised her cooking and for looking beautiful all the time but his placards said she was terrible in the kitchen and all she wore during her stay at home was pyjamas. Sunny shared the video on Instagram with the caption, Hmmm...just saw this! Tomorrow I will show you what @dirrty99 is really doing all day! REVENGE!! Its on! In the video, Daniel says his equation with Sunny is perfect at home as she helps him out with everything like laundry and other stuff and her cooking is crazy (in a good way) as she cooks all kinds of things. He also says, She is really dressed up like beautiful and its phenomenal. However, the placards in his hands read, Help me! She is driving me crazy. She sleeps all day, her cooking sucks, shes so lazy, she lives in pyjamas, she takes selfies all day. He was later joined by Sunny who went on to say hello to the camera. Sunny and Daniel are parents to 4-year-old daughter Nisha and one-year-old twin boys Noah and Asher. The actor had recently told Hindustan Times in an interview about how she was keeping very busy during lockdown as she has three kids and a tonne of household duties. She said, The lockdown definitely has not been easy. I have three very small toddlers who need a lot of attention and school time. This place needs to be cleaned and all the household duties need to be taken care of. Its not that its so difficult to do each of the things, its just that there are not enough hours in the day to do it all, she said. Also read: Taapsee Pannu shares pic of when she dressed up as a bride for Manmarziyaan, reveals what was on her mind Sunny has been running an online chat show on Instagram during lockdown. She interviews celebrities and had recently taught her fans about making emergency masks in just 30 seconds. Follow @htshowbiz for more The city of Sublimity, population 3,000, has taken on an ambitious public health project. After a local nursing home saw an outbreak of 16 positive coronavirus tests, the town is leading an effort to provide every city resident with cloth face masks. The project, Masks for Neighbors, expects to make 12,000 homemade masks to distribute not just door-to-door in Sublimity, but to surrounding communities in the North Santiam Valley of Marion County. City Councilor Greg Atkin, a retired firefighter, medic and department of corrections supervisor, is leading the effort. We had a small outbreak at a local retirement home, he said. Numbers released from the Oregon Health Authority show 16 known cases at Marian Estates in Sublimity, and one death. Its always been my worst nightmare that something like that would run through our retirement center," Atkin said. "So we were talking, what can we do to help them? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says having access to washable cloth masks can help slow the rate of infections because wearing a mask can help prevent a sick person from spreading the disease to others. So Atkin put out a call on NextDoor and the citys Facebook page, asking for help sewing masks. Almost immediately, with 10 minutes, we had people saying, Ive got fabric, Ill donate it,' he said. I contacted a number of sewers and quilting guilds in our area, and said, If we put a project together would you be willing to help us? And of course everybody was overwhelmingly, Yes, we can certainly do that. Atkin received some 400 yards of donated fabric and purchased another 1,300 yards online. The scope of the project quickly expanded from the communitys elderly residents to everyone in town. About half the residents of Sublimity, Atkin estimated, are senior citizens. Local businesses have stepped up to help, too: Bernina Stretch and Sew in Keizer is cutting fabric, Santiam Cleanery in Stayton is washing it, and Silver Fall Engraving in Silverton and Cruise Master Engraving in Sublimity are using their laser cutting machines to cut fabric patterns. Sublimity has always been that kind of community, Atkin said. Ive lived here for 35 years and Ive never not been amazed. When theres someone with a need, the community steps up to fill it. It is that kind of community where theres that strong volunteer spirit. The project launched on April 6, and so far volunteer sewers have completed more than 2,000 masks. Masks have already gone out into the community, with priority given to the towns frontline workers, retirement homes and residents at a 55-and-older mobile home park. Atkin wants to give workers multiple masks for use throughout the day. Then, members of the Stayton/Sublimity Community Emergency Response Team will go street by street, door to door stepping back at least six feet, of course, after knocking offering cloth masks to households. Police and firefighters also will help with distribution. Atkin anticipates it will take three more weeks to sew another 10,000 masks. I think were up to 50 sewers in the community, as far as Keizer all the way up to Lyons and points in between, he said. Sublimity, Stayton, Aumsville, Turner. Just a lot of folks who have stepped up and said, Were home, and wed love to help you. On Friday, Atkin learned the city received a $5,000 grant from the Marie Lamfrom Charitable Foundation to help cover costs of the project, namely the purchase of fabric. Its definitely a labor of love with neighbors who want to help neighbors keep safe during this virus, Atkin said. As long as theres a need there, we will fill it. To get involved, or to request a mask, contact Atkin at greg.atkin@cityofsublimity.org. -- Samantha Swindler; sswindler@oregonian.com; @editorswindler Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Adrian Wail Akhlas (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 17:49 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd318aa5 1 Business stimulus,fiscal-policy,BKF,COVID-19,coronavirus,state-budget,economic-growth Free The Finance Ministrys fiscal policy agency (BKF) has voiced concerns that the governments Rp 436.1 trillion (US$28.14 billion) stimulus may be insufficient to prevent economic meltdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. BKF head Febrio Nathan Kacaribu said on Monday that the government was considering whether to boost its stimulus spending as the existing stimulus packages may not be enough to counter the severe economic impacts of the pandemic. We have doubts that the stimulus packages will be enough, Febrio told reporters during a teleconferenced press briefing. The government will anticipate this because there are some discouraging signs. The governments baseline scenario is for economic growth to reach 2.3 percent this year with 2.9 million people losing their jobs. Under a worst-case scenario, however, the government believes the economy could contract by 0.4 percent while 5 million people lose their jobs. With this kind of crisis, the government must share the burden, said Febrio, who was previously macroeconomy and trade research head at the University of Indonesias Institute for Economic and Social Research (LPEM-UI) before his BKF appointment early this month. He called on banks and businesses to take aggressive action by rolling out funds to combat the meltdown. The government expects the pandemic to peak in the second quarter of this year, with economic growth contracting. Meanwhile, first quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth is projected at 1.1 percent, he added. This projection may be wrong if the pandemic lasts longer, Febrio said. We will try to contain the virus and lessen the impact but the burden must be shared because the government will not be able to do this alone. The government has set aside Rp 436.1 trillion for the stimulus, equivalent to 2.5 percent of the countrys GDP, for healthcare spending, social safety nets and business recovery programs so far focusing on manufacturing and tourism. The government will set aside Rp 150 trillion from the stimulus package to support small and medium firms affected by the COVID-19. Febrio did not provide further details as the government was currently formulating the stimulus. The government will also grant larger tax breaks to cover 11 business sectors similar to the incentives designed to allow manufacturing companies to weather the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including individual income tax exemptions, import tax deferrals and 30 percent corporate tax discounts. The 11 sectors are food, trade, electricity, oil and gas, mining and coal, forestry, tourism and the creative economy, telecommunications, logistics, transportation and construction, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said on Friday. From an economic standpoint, the COVID-19 shock could damage businesses and cause widespread bankruptcies, Sri Mulyani said. We are trying to focus our stimulus to lessen the COVID-19 economic shock on citizens. Meanwhile, chief economist at private lender Bank Central Asia (BCA) David Sumual said the governments stimulus package was relatively small compared with other countries including neighboring Singapore and Malaysia, with stimulus packages reaching 12 percent and 17 percent of GDP, respectively. We are hoping that the government can provide greater stimulus packages for small businesses and low-income households, David told reporters during the same press briefing. However, the governments stimulus needs to be welcomed despite limited fiscal power. Loading the player... Coronavirus impact: Steel demand expected to contract 7.7% in 2020, says ISA The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) has revealed in a survey that the Confidence index of India Inc fell to the lowest level in the 4th quarter of 2019-20. This was due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic which has brought economic activity to a standstill. The index has fallen to 42.9 in the quarter, against 59 in the previous quarter. It had stood at 37.8 in the second quarter of 2008-09, when India was battling the effects of the global financial crisis. The United States has carried out more tests for the novel coronavirus pandemic than 10 other countries, including India, taken together, President Donald Trump has said. Trump asserted on Sunday that the US continued to make steady progress in its war against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the country had tested 4.18-million people. "That's a record anywhere in the world," he said. Amid the ongoing coronavirus lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that India's young working professionals can show the way in ensuring a healthier and prosperous future.Adaptability, efficiency, inclusivity, opportunity, and universalism are the essential ingredients of any business model for the post coronavirus world, Modi said in a LinkedIn blog.Indian steel demand is expected to plunge to multi-year lows in 2020, hit by slowdowns in the construction, automotive and rail sectors as India fights the coronavirus with a protracted lockdown, a leading industry body said.Steel demand in India is set to contract 7.7% in 2020 with "significant downside risks", the Indian Steel Association (ISA), which represents some of the top steel producers, has said.Amid the coronavirus-induced lockdown, aviation regulator DGCA on Sunday told airlines to stop taking bookings. The first phase of the lockdown was from March 25 to April 14. The second phase began on April 15 and would end on May 3.A man disguised as a police officer went on a shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, killing 13 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country in 30 years. Officials said the suspected shooter was also dead.The Controller General of Accounts (CGA) office has transferred over Rs 36,659 crore by using direct benefit transfer (DBT) in the bank accounts of just over 16 crore beneficiaries during the coronavirus lockdown. The government transferred the amount under various central schemes through the digital payment technology named Public Financial Management System (PFMS), the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Sunday. DBT helps in crediting the amount directly to the beneficiary's bank account while cutting down any leakage. When the coronavirus outbreak hit one of the largest and most troubled nursing homes in the Northeast, coughing and feverish residents were segregated into a wing known as South 2. The sick quickly filled the beds there, so another wing, West 3, was also turned into a quarantine ward. But the virus kept finding frail and older residents, and one culprit became clear: The workers themselves were likely spreading it as they moved between rooms and floors, outfitted with little or no protective equipment. The nursing home, Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center II in Andover, N.J., which has 543 beds, was chronically short of staff and masks, and over the past two years it had received poor grades from federal and state inspectors. Residents were crowded three to a room, and as the outbreak worsened, so did sanitary conditions. Spilled food littered the floors. Workers said they hurriedly made their rounds, dispensing medicine, changing bedsheets, feeding those who could not feed themselves and doing other tasks that brought them into close contact with residents. Some workers bought rudimentary face shields from a recreation supervisor who purchased a box online for $160 (U.S.). By last week, employees were pleading for help from the government and for donations of personal protective equipment in Facebook posts. But it was too late. After receiving an anonymous tip last Monday, police found 17 bodies in bags in a small holding room at the Andover facility. The startling discovery illustrated the toll that the coronavirus outbreak has taken on the nations nursing homes and other congregate facilities that house societys most vulnerable, including older people and those with mental and physical disabilities. By Sunday, at least 70 Andover residents had died and dozens of the 420 remaining residents and staff members had either tested positive for the virus or were sick with fevers, coughs or both, according to county officials. The coronavirus crisis has killed more than 7,000 people at nursing homes across the country, The New York Times has determined, and has even ravaged facilities with sterling reputations. But it has been especially devastating at nursing homes like Andover that have long come under criticism for quality of care, inadequate staffing and questionable business practices. This examination by The Times of what happened at Andover is based on interviews with current and former workers, administrators and relatives of residents, as well as a review of property records, financial filings and inspection reports. Federal and state officials said they were investigating. Relatives of residents, as well as a union that represents some workers there, have called on the state to take over the home. The state has not responded to such a request, but Gov. Philip D. Murphy said Saturday that he was considering sending in National Guard medics to nursing homes around the state, after having previously deployed them to two homes for veterans. Earlier in the week, Murphy had called the deaths at Andover not just outrageous, but unacceptable. The owner and operator of Andover said in statements that they had dealt responsibly with an unprecedented crisis that was harming nursing homes across the region. But relatives of residents who died at Andover said they were angered at the way the home had responded. After an outbreak was declared at the home on March 29, one of the first to die was Albert Roberts, 76. His nephew, Brian J. Roberts, said an Andover worker called his mother the morning of April 1 with the news. His uncle had not been tested for the virus, and the worker seemed to go out of her way to mention that Roberts never had a fever. Why is that the first thing youre saying? Brian Roberts said. The whole thing is just shrouded in suspicion. His uncles body, which went straight to a funeral home, is awaiting cremation. As of Sunday, about 40 per cent of the 4,202 coronavirus deaths in New Jersey had been linked to long-term care facilities, and health officials have begun to focus on the role that workers have played in the spread of the outbreak. We have found that staff going from facility to facility, and then within facilities, have lent itself to some of the problems that were seeing, Judith M. Persichilli, the states health commissioner, said on April 7. Many workers at Andover discussed conditions inside the home only on condition of anonymity because they did not want to violate health care confidentiality or were concerned about losing their jobs. The workers said they were devoted to the residents but were ill-prepared for the outbreak, with little training and even less protective gear. They said they felt all but abandoned by the homes management and state and federal officials. The staff are sick, and the residents are sick, said a longtime worker at the home. Its an overwhelming thing. Andovers management has blamed the pileup of bodies on after-hours holiday weekend issues over Easter and Passover, as well as the high number of deaths. Workers said the bodies were placed on the floor and on gurneys inside a small air-conditioned room routinely used as a temporary morgue. Four of the bodies were taken away by a funeral home after being discovered, and the others were moved to a refrigerated truck, Andovers police chief, Eric C. Danielson, said. Located in a rural area of New Jersey, 90 kilometres northwest of New York City, Andover consists of two related facilities that are across the street from each other with separate staffs. A smaller one, Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center I, houses mostly older people and has 154 beds. The larger one, Andover II, has long been a place of last resort, taking residents with advanced dementia as well as some people who had been imprisoned or discharged from psychiatric wards. The 70 deaths amid the outbreak occurred there. One government survey found that 46 per cent of long-term residents at Andover II were receiving antipsychotic medication, versus the state average of 9.5 per cent for nursing homes. It is one of just eight long-term care facilities in New Jersey with less than 20 square metres of space for every resident, according to a Times analysis of nursing home data collected by regulators. Beds are spaced about one metre apart, separated by a cloth curtain, workers said. Andover has struggled in the best of times. It has had two owners in less than four years. In 2017, a former owner agreed to a $880,000 fine for billing Medicaid for providing materially substandard or worthless nursing services. Andover II generated $42.06 million in 2018, mostly from Medicare and Medicaid, according to federal records. Both Andover nursing homes are now owned by affiliated entities of a Chicago-area health care investment firm called Altitude Investments, which paid a total of $81 million to the former owner in 2017, a filing shows. Altitude in turn leased the properties to a group called Alliance Healthcare, which manages the day-to-day operations of the homes. Alliance Healthcare is run by Chaim Scheinbaum, and his co-partner, Louis Schwartz. Earlier this year, health officials in New York recommended that Scheinbaums application to take over the operation of an upstate nursing home be rejected, citing character and competence and other factors. No further explanation was given. Scheinbaum and Schwartz declined to be interviewed. Their lawyer, Christopher Porrino, a former state attorney general, noted that across the country, the virus had hit nursing home residents hardest. Andover Subacute is on the front lines of this crisis, co-operating with public health officials to prioritize patient safety while caring for the remains of patients who have tragically passed including a surge of those lost over the Easter holiday even as New Jerseys morgues and funeral homes are being overrun by this deadly disease, Porrino said in a statement. Before the outbreak, Andover II received low ratings on federal and state inspection reports, which cited serious staffing problems. Each resident receives an average of 46 minutes with a skilled nurse a day, according to the federal nursing home report card. The New Jersey average is 100 minutes. In 2018, Andover nurses sent a letter to Scheinbaum complaining that on some nights, each of them had to oversee as many as 75 residents by themselves a number far beyond what is considered safe. Its a place where the owners have always prioritized profit over the well-being of patients and staff, said Michaeline Picaro, a registered nurse who signed onto the letter. Picaro managed a wing at Andover II from 2015 until last year and remains in contact with many current workers. Theres always been staffing shortages and supply shortages, she said. This is not just a COVID situation. People say Why dont you leave? Well, if youre an ethical person, you dont leave. You try to do the best you can with what you have. It is not known how the virus first entered Andover, but by late March, residents were falling ill and testing positive, and tensions were rising over how it was being handled. As the outbreak worsened, signs began appearing on doors in every hallway warning: COVID-19 patient. A worker wept openly after a longtime resident died. Housekeepers stopped coming in because of the danger, so recreation staff members were asked to clean rooms. Workers said management at first provided masks only to registered nurses, not to others who also interacted with residents, including housekeepers, recreation therapists and nursing assistants. Even so, the firm that owns the buildings, Altitude Investments, suggested that the crisis was under control. The firm said in a letter to investors in Israel that as of April 2, two residents had been sent to the hospital, others were being treated on site and residents were being separated to prevent the spread of the virus, according to the letter, which is in Hebrew. William Rothner, president of Altitude, said in an email Sunday that the letter was based on information provided by the operator, which rents the buildings, and that his firm had offered to provide assistance. On April 6, a week before the bodies were found by police at Andover, a well-liked and longtime worker died. She had commuted with co-workers daily from her home in Kearny, N.J., in a van that also made pickups in Newark, which has the highest reported number of cases and deaths from the virus in Essex County. After she died, fear of the virus grew among workers. Some stopped coming to the home, leaving an already lean staff even more short-handed, three workers said. By last week, at least 32 workers at Andover II had tested positive for the virus, according to county records reviewed by a federal official. Concerns about the lack of protective equipment and exposure to the virus had spread so widely among Andover staff that Dr. Joseph J. Casella, the medical director of Andover I, the smaller facility, said he had not ventured inside since the crisis began. Whether or not me being there or not would not have made a change in the outcome of these patients, Casella said. Thirteen residents of the smaller facility have died since the outbreak began, including eight who had tested positive for the virus. Late last week, the state attorney general began an investigation into Andover. Federal and state health officials also launched inspections. State officials said they issued several citations and ordered the owners to create a corrective action plan by Monday and to make hires for three key roles: an infection prevention specialist, a chief nurse and an administrative manager. One Andover employee who is home sick said she was worried that the official intervention may be too little, too late. The state should have been looking at that place for a long time, she said. It shouldnt have taken a global pandemic for them to realize: Somethings wrong. Favorable Views on Mail Option A Simple Solution, with Complications Five states already mail ballots to every eligible voter, and several include all-mail voting as an option. Source: National Conference of State Legislatures. The Fraud Question Educating Voters Cautious Optimism The 2020 general election was never going to be calm, but the COVID-19 pandemic has brought worst-case scenarios out of the shadows and into the forefront of planning. That means secretaries of state, election officials, legislators, lawyers, voters rights groups and other stakeholders are gathering strategies and resources to safeguard both public health and democracy.Its a given that the election in November will be different than ones we've held in the past, said Wendy Underhill, director of the Elections and Redistricting program for the National Conference of State Legislatures. States can scale up their existing processes, or they can adopt new processes with the expectation of more mail-in ballots and fewer in-person voters.We've got to reduce the number of people who have to show up in person to vote, and the only way to do that is vote by mail, said Chad Dunn, director of litigation for the UCLA Voting Rights Project and a co-author of its election policy recommendations. Weve got to flatten the curve. All states have some form of voting by mail , such as absentee ballots. Polls of voters from both parties show majority support for giving every voter the option of no-excuse mail voting, and a recent Reuters poll found that 72 percent of Americans want this.As election officials, we shouldn't ignore the message that voters are sending, said Neal Kelley, the registrar of voters for Orange County, Calif., the countrys fifth-largest voting jurisdiction. This country has been using widespread absentee voting since the Civil War.Orange Countys March primary followed procedures outlined in Californias 2016 Voters Choice Act . These included mailing a ballot to every voter, 11 days of in-person voting at any location in the county and multiple options for returning ballots, including prepaid envelopes and ballot boxes. Overall, 82 percent of those who participated in the election voted by mail.Envelope and instruction designs are key, said Kelley. Plain language provides confidence to voters. More importantly, we put barcodes on outbound and inbound envelopes. This allows for full service tracking of the ballot, from outbound mail, full circle back to our office, and then adjudication.Utah also has had success with mail-in voting. We've had a very organic process since 2012, with more counties deciding to go vote to vote by mail, said Justin Lee, the states director of elections. We have 90 percent of our voters casting their ballot by mail now, and turnout is up.The best time to have decided to do this was two years ago, he added. The second-best time to decide is now.Expanding vote-by-mail is not an easy process. It means more printing, more postage, more storage space for returned ballots, more ballots to verify and count, more people, more equipment, more Web support and more money to make all of these things possible. Citizens who mail votes can practice social distancing, but workers who handle ballots need safeguards.It's not like you can just say, Let's go vote-by-mail tomorrow, said Underhill. Youve got to make a lot of sub-choices along the way.To reduce the possibility of contagion, senior citizen poll workers may have to be replaced by workers less susceptible to the virus. Replacements must be recruited in the numbers required for revised practices at polling places and they may need to be trained through distance-learning technologies.Registering voters in person will be restricted, if not impossible. Expanding online registration is another piece of it, said Max Feldman, counsel in the Voting Rights and Elections Program at the Brennan Center for Justice. That means systems that are going to be able to process all the registrations that come in, even if government offices are shut down in response to the crisis.These factors account, in part, for the $2 billion in additional funding that the Brennan Center says is needed to deliver the November election safely. A recent federal stimulus bill includes $400 million for election security, but grants from it require a 20 percent match that some states cant meet. U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar, Chris Coons and Ron Wyden have called for the next stimulus bill to include sufficient funding and direction to states to expand vote by mail, early voting and online voter registration. Voter's rights groups have recently called for $4 billion to make this possible.Uncertainty about funding brings the risk of delays. Time is wasting, said Dunn. The scanners that have to be purchased, the printing that needs to be done, the staff that have to be located and trained, the standards that have to be put into place all these things have got to start happening right now.A big challenge is the bad addresses that can hinder efforts to vote by mail and cost money to fix. To address the problem, 31 states are members of the nonprofit Electronic Registration Information Center, which at minimum, allows members to share their motor vehicle registration and central voter databases.Those two databases are required, said Pam Wilmot, executive director of Common Cause Massachusetts. Other databases can be shared at the state's option. Then those are combined with federal databases like federal change of address, death records and other things like that to ensure that the information that a state has is the most accurate and up to date.If ballots do reach voters and many more mail-in ballots are returned, observed Underhill, you can't open them all on Election Day and be able to provide results in what Americans have come to think of as an appropriate time. States could change the law from open on Election Day to can begin to be processed but not counted one week, two weeks, prior to Election Day.Georgia state House Speaker David Ralston has said that his states plan to mail a ballot to every voter will be devastating to conservatives, echoing claims by other politicians. Election officials see things differently. We have seen nothing here in Utah that shows one party has benefited over another, said Lee. It's working for both parties.His experience is reflected in a new study from Stanford researchers. They looked at three states that introduced vote-by-mail programs gradually, by county, between 1996 and 2018, and found that no party benefited, though an increase in turnout was observed.The Brennan Center notes that vote-by-mail pioneer Oregon has seen about a dozen cases of actual fraud from 100 million mailed ballots, a rate of .0012 percent. We compare signatures to the signatures we have in our database for every single ballot, Lee said. Honestly, the bigger concern has been that signatures are sometimes not counted because someone had a broken arm or just wrote a messy signature.Guidelines for signature verification and other election security measures are readily available, including resources compiled by the Department of Homeland Securitys Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.Election fraud in any form is virtually nonexistent in America. An investigation of this question involving 1,000 interviews, thousands of documents, and analysis of 12 years of election fraud complaints found the rate of such events was infinitesimal.In fact, absentee voting brings a major security benefit. One of the positive aspects of vote-by-mail ballots is that they are human readable paper ballots, providing a reliable method for critical post-election audits, said Kelley.Despite the renewed interest in voting by mail, in-person voting remains both vital and popular. Expanding vote by mail options is certainly critical, said Wilmot of Common Cause. But getting rid of in-person voting is not something that the American public supports, nor is it an appropriate response.For voting by mail to succeed, the ballot has to get to you, and that's not a done deal for many segments of our population, particularly Native populations, low-income, high-transient populations, she said. There has to be a backup process.Expanding same-day registration will help voters who are at risk of being disenfranchised. That means exact rules regarding identification requirements, communicated clearly to the public and poll workers alike. Polling stations can facilitate distancing through smart design, sufficient numbers, extended voting periods and the willingness to serve voters from any precinct. Voters who have completed but not mailed their ballots can drop them off at polling stations and avoid lines. Curbside voting has already been implemented in several states, and has been advocated by federal, local and state officials.Not all voters will use their mail-in ballots. It took Washington state five years to completely move from polling places to all vote by mail, and before that we had a 10-year ramp-up of permitted atmosphere voting, Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman noted in a press call organized by Senator Klobuchar. Overall, it was a 15-year transition from polls to mail, she said. There really isn't a one-size-fits-all solution for the 2020 election.Whatever election officials decide to do, It's critical that states are transparent about what they're doing and that they're transparent about it in advance so that there's no question about what the rules are going to be in the elections, said the Brennan Centers Feldman.Among the centers recommendations , materials will need to be provided in languages other than English, as required under the Voting Rights Act.Communications plans must include proactive and reactive strategies to address misinformation spread via social media or other channels that can misdirect voters, discourage them from participating, or cast doubt on the validity of results.Voters and media outlets need to know that counting will take longer than usual. Everybody would prefer accurate results to fast results, said NCSLs Underwood. When it's framed that way, everyone gets on board.Paul Pate, the Iowa Secretary of State, is president of the National Association of Secretaries of State, which is tracking efforts by election officials to deal with issues related to COVID-19. He said its important that election officials assure voters they can trust the system thats in place That's not always easy to do when you've got people who are saying the sky is falling.Weve got a lot of challenges, but the people who run elections have had to deal with hurricanes, tornadoes and other catastrophes during an election phase, he said. They are good risk managers.If anybody can pull this off, election officials can. They are the salt of the earth, the most practical people ever born, said Underhill. Only people who have a can-do, meet-the-deadline kind of personality stay in the field.Note: Since this article first appeared, the Brennan Center published additional details about state voting and registration policies, which you can find here Oh no! How will multi billion dollar Disney corporation survive a protest from One Million Moms(official number of Facebook likes: 101,000)!?! Edited at 2020-04-20 02:31 am (UTC) Reply Thread Link I might give them sliiiightly more credit if they were more honest about it, but then again, probably not. But yeah, everybody knows its nowhere near a million. Reply Parent Thread Link They have even less than that on Twitter! Reply Parent Thread Expand Link why do people still pay attention to One Million Moms? Isn't only like a thousand moms? Fuck em Reply Thread Link tbh. I think it's because media wanted to say 'look, we have a gay character in this children show: look how progressive we are' but since most people will tell them: 'bitch, so?', they choose to go the OMM complain about [insert topic here]. Reply Parent Thread Link lmao i believe it Reply Parent Thread Link I hate that these bitches are tax exempt Reply Thread Link Really? I guess in this world, I shouldnt be surprised. Reply Parent Thread Link what the actual... Reply Parent Thread Link So like 20 moms on facebook? Reply Thread Link Bye Karens. Reply Thread Link Id bet a 1000 trump bucks that they arent gonna boycott during this. They just want to be entitled brats. Reply Thread Link Ducktales is back? I was worried they cancelled it. Anyway, these bigots need to get a life. Reply Thread Link It just started again, this was from the season premiere. Reply Parent Thread Link Thanks. I dont have the Disney Channel so I watch it sporadically. Edited at 2020-04-20 02:58 am (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Link The varying figures of truly how many moms make up one million moms is my favorite thing about the comments so far. Reply Thread Link I was just making fun of them a minute ago lmao our city had one of those stupid "let us out!" protests with like 50 people, it's such weak energy Reply Thread Link They're still around? Reply Thread Link I'd say "don't they have anything better to do," but, well, none of us do right now. But this is still stupid. Reply Thread Link is this from a new season? because I don't remember seeing this Reply Thread Link Yep. Season 3 just started airing. Reply Parent Thread Link Its from the season premiere which aired a couple of weeks ago. Reply Parent Thread Link Which just makes it funnier lol Reply Parent Thread Link oh yay Ducktales is back! Reply Thread Link y'all weren't watching it anyway and your kids will find a way if they like the show. Reply Thread Link Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) The country's main novel coronavirus testing center in Muntinlupa City has scaled down its test processing operations after at least 40 of its staff have tested positive for COVID-19. The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) on Monday denied the testing facility will temporarily close down, but it is prioritizing processing the test results of its employees. "Sa ngayon po kasi because we are testing all the staff here, iyun po ang aming priority. 'Yung samples ng aming employees at lahat ng taong nagwo-work dito. So until matapos namin yun tsaka kami magpo-process ng external samples," RITM Director Dr. Celia Carlos told CNN Philippines' Balitaan. [Translation: Right now we are testing all our staff. Processing their test sample is our priority. When we finish that, that's the only time we will start processing external samples.] RITM is the facility that can process the most number of COVID-19 samples at 2,000 tests daily. But Carlos said there is a need to scale down operations. Of the at least 40 RITM employees who tested positive for COVID-19, the doctor said they are not sure if the workers contracted the virus at work or in their communities. "Around 40 something po ang nag-positive pero hindi naman po sila severely ill. 'Yung iba po mildly sick lang so naka-quarantine lang po sila dito sa aming dormitory facilities. 'Yung iba po na medyo serious ang symptoms, hindi naman very serious, nasa hospital po sila inadmit," she added. [Translation: Around 40 have tested positive for COVID-19, but they are not severely ill. Those with mild symptoms are quarantined at our dormitory. Those with more serious symptoms are admitted in hospitals.] She added, "Health of the employees is the primary concern of the agency. If anyone is sick, you need to address (that) and if there are several people who are sick, we need to take the action quickly to prevent the spread of the disease." The RITM director said there are still employees who are healthy and continue to report to work, but she appealed for additional manpower of around 60 medical workers. RITM continues to accept samples but only from Muntinlupa, Paranaque, Las Pinas, and Pasay City. The Health Department on Sunday said the RITM slowdown may impact the tallying of COVID-19 cases in the coming days. Philippines has 15 other operational testing laboratories nationwide. More than 700 doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers in the country have contracted the coronavirus disease, the Department of Health said on April 17. This is a three-fold increase from the number it reported last week. A total of 22 health workers have died from the disease. John Oliver has spoken out against US president Donald Trumps tendency to get his information directly from right wing TV channel Fox News. Speaking on his HBO series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the British-American comedian pointed out instances in which Trump has repeated phrases heard on Fox News, such as the coronavirus lockdown being a cure worse than the disease, which he said multiple times in a speech after hearing it used by Steve Hilton. Its pretty depressing to hear the president just parrot what he heard on TV the night before, said Oliver. And if hes gonna do that, the very least he could do is pick a better show than Steve Hiltons The Next Revolution. He continued: Why not go with Below Deck: Sailing Yacht? It wouldnt be helpful during a pandemic, but at least it wouldnt be actively harmful. That is what is infuriating here. Even though Trump has access to the countrys top experts, hes still getting advice from watching TV. In the episode, Oliver also took aim at high-profile radio host Rush Limbaugh, who had claimed that the coronavirus was akin to the common cold, noting, incorrectly, that it is the 19th coronavirus. The term Covid-19 is an abbreviation of Coronavirus disease 2019. They call it that because it was first identified in 2019, you gigantic potato, quipped Oliver. Just no. But also no to the coronavirus being the common cold. No to it being not uncommon. No to your gold microphone... Most of all no to your stupid quarantine beard. You look like if Santa was MeTood, kicked out of the North Pole and forced to move to a condo in Tampa with all linoleum floors. Facebook has launched a special app for watching and streaming games. The new platform called Facebook Gaming is available now and is intended to take on rivals such as Twitch, YouTube and Microsoft's Mixer. It offers similar features to those competitors such live streams of players and their games alongside special Facebook ones, including app-based games that have previously been available within the main app and Messenger. It also allows players to share their videos with their friends and family on Facebook. The Facebook Gaming app is available now for Android, and it is working on an iPhone version. The release is thought to have been hurried up to ensure that players could get online during lockdowns in response to the coronavirus pandemic. "Our global streamer community has demanded a standalone Facebook Gaming app for a while, so we're excited to finally launch it on Google Play," Vivek Sharma, vice president of Facebook Gaming, said. "We are building homes for the many types of gaming communities on and off Facebook. "The Facebook Gaming app is a prime example of gaming's resurgence at Facebook over the last few years, and we're just getting started." 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 The app has been in testing since at least 2018, and a full release has been rumoured for some time. (Natural News) McHenry County, Illinois, located near Chicago, is making headlines due to a recent decision by one of its judges requiring the local health department to hand over all names of known Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) patients to law enforcement. McHenry County Judge Michael Chmiel reportedly entered a temporary restraining order forcing the hand of the McHenry County Health Department (MCHD) to disclose to police the names of all patients actively infected with the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19). MCHD had previously refused to inform local law enforcement about the identities of these folks due to privacy laws. But because the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) seems to be steamrolling all other rights and liberties that Americans are afforded by the Constitution, why not breach patient privacy by ratting out the infected to the cops too? The Chicago Tribune reported that MCHD refused to reveal the names of infected patients because of conditions outlined in the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, for instance, which prohibits this type of privacy breach. While we are compelled to provide the information, responded MCHD to the ruling, it remains the professional health opinion of the agency that having to reveal the identities of Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) patients to police is excessive. In MCDHs professional public health opinion, given what we know about how this disease spreads, the general lack of testing, epidemiological data and the stay-at-home order, providing the personal names of cases exceeds the minimum information needed to protect law enforcement, the agency further indicated in a statement. Five law enforcement agencies disagreed and filed suit, demanding the names of patients having tested positive. Friday evening, the court issued a temporary order to release the names. While we are compelled to provide this information, MCDH has requested the tightest control of this private medical information, whereby it will be provided only to the Emergency Telephone System Board (ETSB-911) for dissemination on a call-by-call basis. Be sure to listen below to The Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, warns that this type of egregious tyranny is far more dangerous to Americans than the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) or any other virus, for that matter: McHenry County State Attorneys Office sides with sheriff over MCDH In weighing in on the matter, the McHenry County State Attorneys Office sided not with MCDH, which wants to protect patient privacy, but rather with the local sheriff. This reportedly left MCDH feeling abandoned, especially since it now stands at odds with law enforcement which has the backing of the local state attorney. This is significant because the State Attorney Patrick Kenneally had previously represented MCDH, but no longer can due to this conflict of interest. When theres a conflict where the states attorneys office can no longer represent both sides, then the states attorney picks the side that it thinks is right, Kenneally reportedly stated. According to reports, the information that MCDH is having to provide to local law enforcement is limited, and is only being given on a case-by-case basis when a dispatcher is sent to respond to an incident that could potentially involve an infected patient. The stated purpose of this privacy breach is to protect law enforcement from potentially becoming infected with the virus themselves. However, weve seen in other parts of the country that officers are failing to abide by social distancing decrees and failing to wear face masks and gloves, and yet insisting upon getting up close and personal with violators of these new rules. To keep up with the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), be sure to check out Pandemic.news. Sources for this article include: CNSNews.com NWHerald.com NaturalNews.com ABCNews.Go.com The Haryana government on Monday cautioned people to not purchase liquor from unauthorised sources during lockdown as it may be spurious and life-threatening. The Haryana government has not allowed any person or individual to conduct the sale of liquor in the state after March 27. However, after the closure of retail liquor vends, the cases of sale of illegal/illicit liquor have come to notice," an official statement said here. In this regard, several government agencies including the Excise and Taxation Department and Police have been continuously working to curb illegal sale of liquor, it said. In view of the current situation, the general public is hereby advised to not purchase liquor from any unauthorized source. It may be spurious, injurious to health and life-threatening, it said. Further, if any such activity including manufacturing and sale of illegal liquor is detected, the same may be brought to the notice of concerned Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner or Police Department, for necessary action, it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India on Monday started a staggered exit from the world's biggest lockdown as curbs on economic activity in rural areas were lifted but business remained sporadic as some companies decided to wait for the complete lifting of restrictions on goods and people's movement. The government had last week allowed industries in rural areas and farmers as well as makers of information technology hardware to resume operations as it looked to revive stalled economic activity that suffered an estimated Rs 7-8 lakh crore of loss. FMCG companies, like many other industries, had to face major hassles of supply chain disruption and fall in available labourers following the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing lockdown imposed to curb its spread, are looking to maximise production with easing of curbs. Major auto OEMs, however, are looking to restart operations in a phased manner only post-May 3 when the extended lockdown is scheduled to be lifted. This because functional retail and vendor network are still absent, blocking cash flows. Work from home is expected to continue for employees in the information technology and business process management industry for some more time as many states like Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana have decided to continue with full lockdown without any relaxations. The three states house a sizeable number of IT-BPM firms. The government on its part looked at public sector firms for anchoring the biggest part of economic revival. To begin with, state-owned oil firms have decided to resume as many as 511 projects involving over Rs 42,000 crore of investment with immediate effect. Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), Indian Oil Corp (IOC), GAIL, Oil India Ltd and six other public sector firms identified projects that either in rural areas or have in situ labour for the resumption of work, oil ministry sources said. These projects will involve Rs 2,210 crore of payout to suppliers and labourers in the first month and generate around 7 crore man-days of employment. With the government allowing manufacturing-related relaxations in certain green zones starting Monday, FMCG companies hoped this will help them indirectly in restarting activities in industrial clusters. But, full ramp-up of the supply chain may take 30-40 days, once the lockdown is fully lifted. Consumer goods companies are expecting to ramp up production capacity to 60-65 per cent from current levels of 40-50 per cent. While the government has permitted restarting construction activities, real estate developers continue to face problems particularly over the availability of labourers. Most migrant labourers had returned to their native state following the imposition of nationwide lockdown on March 25. The government has not yet started the inter-state movement of labourers and so companies continue to face the problem. Companies like Patanjali, Ruchi Soya, Dabur and Parle Products that have been operating their plants in a scaled-down manner during the first phase of lockdown with limited workforce suggested giving manufacturing permission to their several suppliers, which are mostly MSMEs and fall within the city radius, as it is affecting the smooth functioning of the supply chain. "Factories of Patanjali and Ruchi Soya were operational even during the lockdown because we operate in food and essentials. However, there were issues regarding transportation and supply chain, etc during the lockdown, which I expect to ease out slowly," Yoga Guru Ramdev told PTI. According to him, Patanjali witnessed almost two to three-fold jump in the demand for its several products and expected that the supply of such products would be increased in the market going forward. Similarly, Dabur India Executive Director-Operations Shahrukh Khan said, "Almost all of Dabur's factories are operational today, producing a range of ayurvedic medicines, hygiene products like hand sanitizers, hand wash, and daily essentials, with strict implementation of SOPs for social distancing at offices, workplace, factories, proper sanitization of buildings, factories". He further said, "We are now trying to maximize production, given the supply chain constraints, and material and manpower availability". Parle Products Category Head Mayank Shah said that food was exempted and factories were open but at a reduced capacity of around 40-45 per cent following the restraint imposed by the government on the number of workforce. IT companies are still awaiting clarity from a few other states to determine the future course of action. Industry body Nasscom had advised members that where state-specific approvals come in, members should look at a staggered approach and start with 15-20 per cent workforce in the first phase, and subsequently scale it up depending on the situation on the ground. "The home ministry guidelines had allowed IT-ITeS companies to operate with up to 50 per cent strength from April 20 and we had suggested member companies to take a staggered approach and start with 15-20 per cent workforce in phase I, and then increase it depending on the on-ground situation," Nasscom Senior Vice-President and Chief Strategy Officer Sangeeta Gupta told PTI. However, states also have their own rules that have to be followed for allowing IT companies to open offices, she said, adding that Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have already clarified that no such activity will be allowed. "Also, IT companies are just settling into the work from the home mechanism, they have taken requisite permissions from clients for this, and so I do not think they will be in a hurry to get employees back to offices and risk their health," Gupta said. About 90 per cent of IT employees and 70-80 per cent of BPO and small and medium businesses in the sector are estimated to be working from home to ensure business continuity. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Presidential Adviser for Health and Prevention Affairs Mohamed Awad Tag El Din said Egypt's coronavirus infection curve is still within the expected range, pointing to the positive correlation between the infection cases and deaths. Speaking to Extra News channel on Monday, Tag El Din said the treatment protocol in Egypt is one of the best ways for treating the virus patients, noting that there is no specific COVID-19 treatment protocol for the positive cases. Egypt had started the clinical trials using the Japanese antiviral drug Avigan, he pointed out, wishing it would be successful in treating the infected cases. The presidential adviser urged citizens to follow the precautionary measures against the coronavirus, stressing the state's decisions aim to prevent crowds and protect their lives. Search Keywords: Short link: A man armed with knives and a hammer has been shot dead after he threatened police in a tense confrontation in Sydney's south. Officers rushed to Bay Street at Rockdale just before 12.40am Monday over concerns for a 51-year-old man's welfare. They searched nearby bushland with assistance from the PolAir and Dog Unit before the fatal confrontation with the man. A man armed with knives and a hammer has been shot dead after he threatened police in a tense confrontation in Sydney's south Officers rushed to Bay Street at Rockdale (pictured) just before 12.40am Monday over concerns for a 51-year-old man's welfare He was allegedly armed with knives and a hammer and threatened police. The man was shot by police and died at the scene despite attempts by paramedics to save him. A critical incident team from the Homicide Squad is now investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident. The incident will now be subject to an independent review and has been referred to the NSW coroner. The coroner will determine the cause of death and make any findings about the events leading to the man's death. Police are urging anyone who may have witnessed something at the scene to come forward with any information. State Senate leader Phil Berger (foreground) and Sen. Harry Brown, R-Onslow. | Photo: Carolina Journal North Carolina is funding a study that will help decide lawmakers' stance on reopening the economy and aSenate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, announced in a news conference Wednesday, April 15.Lawmakers gave Wake Forest Baptist Health $100,000 for random antibody testing to gather data on how many N.C. residents had the coronavirus. As part of the initiative, 1,000 at-home antibody test kits will be sent to a representative sample of North Carolinians. Money for the study will come from a General Assembly discretionary account.Berger said leaders around the world are making decisions without reliable data.Berger said.More than 100 people protested the shutdown Tuesday, when they gathered in downtown Raleigh to reopen the economy. At least one protester was arrested, drawing national attention. ReopenNC, the Facebook group that organized the protest, had 34,000 members at press time. An opposition group, Stay Home NC, included 5,900 members at press time.North Carolina had 5,123 cases, 431 hospitalizations, and 117 deaths attributed to COVID-19 as of Wednesday afternoon.Republican lawmakers' stance on reopening the economy could partly depend on the data Wake Forest Baptist researchers collect in collaboration with Atrium Health. N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen recently compared current coronavirus models to " weather forecasts ."Berger said.The funding from the legislature was just a start. It could eventually cost tens of millions of dollars, said lead researcher Dr. John Sanders, chief of Infectious Diseases at Wake Forest Baptist Health Internal Medicine section.Researchers already shipped several hundred tests. They plan to send test kits to 25,000 patients between Wake Forest Baptist and Atrium Health by early May. They hope to enroll 500,000 to 750,000 patients in the study over the next four to six weeks.Sanders said.Most of that understanding will be based on reported coronavirus symptoms. Participants will report their symptoms in an online portal run by Oracle, a California-based tech company.DHHS already tracks symptoms via a statewide surveillance network called NC Detect. The state began collecting information about symptoms amid coronavirus testing shortages and delays in late March. The agency said it was unaware of the General Assembly's study before Monday's announcement.Sanders says his system will help researchers use data that NC Detect doesn't collect. His researchers can ask patients questions through electronic health records and continue to track symptoms instead of waiting for self-reporting from hospitals and providers. They hope to pick up coronavirus cases that would otherwise remain undetected.The Oracle tracking database will be made available to local health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Sanders said.They also hope the system will uncover more information about how people with antibodies react to the virus.Sanders said.The study is similar to testing by Stanford University, whose researchers hope to learn how deadly and prevalent the virus is in California.Sanders said.The study does have some "inherent" weaknesses in the quality of its tests and the sampling of patients. Researchers will build in ongoing ways to validate the accuracy of the tests and make sure their data is reliable. They are also reaching out to people at higher risk, ensuring data accurately represent the state's residents, Sanders said. Sumi Sukanya dutta By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Even as India has now recorded over 15,000 COVID 19 cases, a study by the Institute of Mathematical Science has suggested that reproductive factor the rate at which every infected person transmits the disease to others could be one of the lowest in India, compared to most other countries. The study also said that the extensive lockdown measures may not have been effective in the containment of the infection in Maharashtra but have been helpful in some states such as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The reproductive factor or R0 refers to how many other people will catch the disease from a single infected person, in a population that hasnt been exposed to the disease before. The R0 for COVID global R nought for COVID 19 has been estimated between 1.5-4 and in India, it now stands at 1.83 which is towards the lower end of the spectrum, Sitabhra Sinha, lead researcher of the paper Epidemiological dynamics of the COVID19 pandemic in India: An interim assessment said. Between April 6 and April 15 the infectivity rate has been estimated at 1.53 while on an average it has been 1.83 so far. The researchers also discerned a significant deviation in the exponential rate of growth of the number of active cases in India beginning from April 6, approximately two weeks after the beginning of a nationwide lockdown put in place on March 24 as a containment measure. Given that up to two weeks following the beginning of the lockdown, we expect the growth of the number of active cases to primarily arises from infections which had happened prior to lockdown, it seems reasonable to attribute this deviation to the response of the epidemiological dynamics to the lockdown, the researchers noted. The study estimated that in the absence of the extensive lockdown imposed in the last week of March, the total number of active COVID-19 cases in India would have been in the range of 35,000-50,000 by April 20. It, however, said that as the value of R0 is substantially greater than 1 in the country, this suggests that in the absence of other containment measures, a lockdown by itself may be insufficient to prevent the epidemic from growing once the restrictions are removed. The paper also analysed the number of active cases from those states where the epidemic has resulted in a large number of infections and found large variations in the nature of the growth of the number of active cases in different states. While, Maharasthra, which has the highest number of active cases, showed an exponential growth curve similar to that for the country as a whole, the effective reproduction rate estimated for the period April 4-15 was 1.7 lower than the value of R0 estimated for India, but significantly higher than the value of R measured for India over the same time. Unlike that seen in the nation-level data, there is no discernible effect of the lockdown in the data for the state, noted the researchers. States such as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, show a linear trend for growth of cases instead of an exponential nature suggesting the epidemic may have been contained in these states. Ashley Graham shared a heart-melting Insta Stories video this Sunday of her baby son Isaac, who is four weeks and one day old. In the video her newborn could be seen laying on the couch and mewling while wearing a 'FREE HUGS' tee. The 32-year-old is hunkering down with her family in her hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska amid the coronavirus pandemic. So sweet: Ashley Graham shared a heart-melting Insta Stories video on Sunday of her baby son Isaac, who is four weeks and one day old New mom: The plus-size model, 32, shares her firstborn with husband Justin Ervin Earlier this week she posted some footage of herself breastfeeding her baby, against a mutating digital backdrop showing various cityscape views. Ashley shares Isaac with her husband Justin Ervin and the couple will celebrate her 10th wedding anniversary in August. Although the family live in New York, they all traveled out to Nebraska to ride through the pandemic at the home of Ashley's mother Linda Graham. 'About a month ago, my husband, my baby, and my mom all drove from New York to Nebraska,' she told Oprah magazine in a recent Instagram Live interview. 'It was 20 hours! Obviously we stopped to feed Isaac and to pee, but that was it,' revealed the plus-size supermodel. Precious: In the video her newborn could be seen laying on the couch and mewling while wearing a 'FREE HUGS' tee Couple: Ashley and Justin will celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary in August. They're pictured at the 2019 Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills Ashley continued: 'We had a lamb roast in the car with us, so we made lamb roast sandwiches in the car...we didn't even stop to eat!' Ashley explained: 'We didn't know what was gonna happen in New York, we just wanted to be in a place where we had space and outside accessibility.' The Nebraska girl, who was scouted at an Omaha mall as a teenager, shared that 'in New York in a two-bedroom apartment, we were like: "We don't know how we're gonna do this!" So thank God for my mom, that she had this house here.' Ashley posted Insta Stories footage this Thursday revealing it had begun to snow where she was, to the point the grass in the backyard was completely covered. 'I just feel like this really rude, Mother Nature, very rude,' said the model. 'And it's actually sticking! Oh my gosh!' Everyone on 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days is looking for love. Well, at least all of the Americans are. Some of them met their significant others randomly through social media but others were specifically searching for foreign lovers through dating apps and websites. David Murphey is one of the latter. In fact, he specifically searches out women from Ukraine to be with. So, his relationship with Lana is no surprise. David Murphey | Instagram @davidjmurphey David Murphey only dates Ukrainian women In an Instagram Q&A, Murphey got candid about his dating habits. Murphey got into international dating when a friend showed him a dating website. When the internet was brand new a tenant of mine showed me a website where you could meet Russian and Filipino women, he wrote to a fan. I had an interest in Russians. Within months, the Ukrainian women on the site outnumbered the Russians. I went to both countries. A few years later, Ukraine became more Western-like and you didnt even need a visa to go there. Russia requires a visa and you have to register everywhere you go. It was just harder to travel in. So, for over a decade, he has only dated Ukrainian women. I stopped dating in the USA 15 years ago, he wrote. Every time I did I would start thinking about Ukraine, so I stopped trying so my heart was free just in case I went to Ukraine. I have dated well over 100 women in Ukraine. Turned down many marriage proposals and have been turned down twice myself. How much does David spend on dating Ukrainian women? Dating attractive Ukrainian women definitely comes at a price, as we have seen on previous seasons of the show. But Murphey reasons that he would have been spending that money anyway. I was spending $2,000 per month dating when I was dating in the USA, he wrote when a fan asked how much money he spent on the dating sites. Dinner, shows, activities, and travel. When the website came out I just transferred that expense to them. I know, I know. If you earn 4k a month, this is crazy money, but not if you earn 15k plus. None of this money is lifechanging to me. And according to Murphey, there is no cheap way to date a Ukrainian woman through one of these sites. No matter what you do, the relationship will come at a steep price. Even if you did it the cheapest way possible, you are still going to be out $15,000 just to get someone here finally. But this will be the same cost if you find someone equally as far away. This is using legitimate methods of meeting someone. Never respond to someone on social media and never ever send any money. It seems like Murphey has dating foreign women down to a science and has protected himself better than some of the shows previous cast members like Caesar Mack, who notoriously sent thousands of dollars to his girlfriend Maria, who then stud him up and broke his heart. Well have to wait and see how Murpheys relationship with Lana pans out. 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days comes on on Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on TLC. As the Democrats hope to second-guess their way to victory over President Trump this November, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is doing her bit. According to her, Trump has done everything wrong. If only she and her colleagues were at the controls When Pelosi appeared yesterday on FOX News Sunday excerpt below, entire segment here Chris Wallace played the February 24 news clip of Pelosi inviting tourists to come on down to Chinatown. In the February 24 clip Pelosi assured viewers: Everything is fine here because precautions have been taken. Incidentally, I cant find any evidence that Pelosi tweeted out the local news clip out on her own Twitter feed or that she subsequently deleted such a tweet. Indeed, at her own Newsroom site, one can still find the text of Pelosis February 24 remarks to the press at the Dim Sum Corner Restaurant following her meeting with local business owners in Chinatown. In her prepared remarks on February 24 Pelosi reiterated the message in the news clip: Im here todayto say to everyone: we should come to Chinatown. Precautions have been taken by our city. We know that there is concern surrounding tourism, traveling all throughout the world, but we think its very safe to be in Chinatown and hope that others will come. Its lovely here. The food is delicious, the shops are prospering, the parade was great. Walking tours continue. Please come and visit and enjoy Chinatown. Pelosi was asked following her prepared remarks: [H]ow irrational is it that people are staying away from Asian-owned business not only here, but all over the U.S.? Pelosi generalized the assurance that all was well despite the spreading epidemic: Well, thats one of the reasons we are here today. It doesnt make any sense, but its not just Asian-owned now. You see in Italy where the shows the fashion shows and all of that were done without an audience because people they just didnt because people were not coming. So, again, this fear is I think unwarranted in light of the precautions that are being taken here in the United States. I cant speak for any other country. And further: So, thats why we want people to come to Chinatown. Dont be afraid. Enjoy it all. Its beautiful and there are some good bargains here now, so its a good time to come. Asked whether racism was keeping people out of Chinatown, Pelosi responded: Well, I cant I dont know that. I wasnt in that conversation. But, I do think that because it started in China, theres a concern that are the is the Chinese government doing what it needed to do early enough, and now as we go forward. But that should not be carried over to Chinatown and San Francisco. I hope that its not that. But, all I can say is that Im here. We feel safe and sound, so many of us, coming here to not only say that its safe, but to say thank you for being Chinatown. Thank you. Wallace asked her yesterday, If the president underplayed the threat in the early days, Speaker Pelosi, didnt you as well? Pelosi responded: What we were trying to do is end the discrimination, the stigma that was going out against the Asian-American community. And in fact, if you will look, the record will show that our Chinatown has been a model of containing and preventing the virus. She added that her confidence in Chinatown residents prompted her trip, saying it was intended to offset some of the things that the president and others were saying about Asian Americans and making them a target.I was saying that you should not discriminate against Chinese Americans as some in our administration were doing by labeling the flu. Everything that Pelosi said to Wallace was utterly false. What was Trump or anyone else in the administration saying about Asian-Americans except what great Americans they are? What a disgusting crock. US President Donald Trump on Sunday said his government wants to send a team of experts inside China to investigate coronavirus, a day after he warned Beijing of consequences if it was knowingly responsible for the spread of Covid-19 which has killed over 41,000 in America. Describing the coronavirus as a plague, Trump, during his White House news conference on Sunday, said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. "We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want ... The severity and speed of the coronavirus pandemics carnage around the world has been simply mind-boggling. Many poor households are already facing starvation while even well-off individuals are staring at financial ruin, courtesy of the rude disruption occasioned by a pandemic that has particularly hit the labour market hard. READ ALSO: Homa Bay family insists burial was real, says relatives bought coffin in Nairobi President Uhuru Kenyatta made several decrees to improve money flow in the economy and cushion vulnerable groups during the pandemic. Photo: State House. Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Opinion: Fellow Kenyans, COVID-19 is no joke Restrictions aimed at curbing COVID-19 spread have shattered businesses, kept consumers away and thrust many people out of work. It is telling that in the USA, a staggering 22 million people have been rendered jobless in a span of a month and are now looking up to the government for survival. The case is not any different in Kenya where the government has been forced to initiate interventions to not only fight COVID-19 but to also alleviate suffering in households that are more vulnerable to the pandemic. Billions of shillings have already been injected into different kitties towards this end. President Uhuru Kenyatta has led from the front in not only setting up the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund Board but also in both mobilising and allocating funds as the country fights the pandemic. The Central Bank of Kenya has availed KSh 7.4 billion to fight the pandemic; with KSh 2 billion recovered in the ongoing fight against corruption channeled to the fund. The Senate has extended KSh 200 million from its kitty toward the same cause. County governments have on their part had their collections boosted by the national government to the tune of KSh 5 billion. Even more importantly, the state has from today April 20, started paying out KSh 8.5 billion to the elderly under the cash transfer programme. An additionally KSh 500 million is being paid to people living with severe disabilities while a new programme will see needy households receive weekly stipends. READ ALSO: Museveni rejects Bobi Wine's offer to fly back home Africans stranded in China These interventions are timely and welcome and should ideally go a long way in helping many vulnerable Kenyans sail through one of the most turbulent eras of our time. But this is Kenya, and many of us have a genuine reason to doubt that all these funds will go to their rightful use. In a country synonymous with graft, we have seen people even shamelessly steal from the dead. During disasters and other emergency situations, persons entrusted with the distribution of relief aid have been known to divert supplies to benefit themselves. The infamous Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) scam, for instance, saw officials channel billions of shillings meant for compensating and resettling displaced people to their personal accounts. Administrators, political leaders, law enforcers and relief food transporters have been accused of even diverting and selling relief food meant for people facing starvation in arid and semi-arid parts of the country. Yet, it is inevitable that the relief supplies must be channeled through these very hands. The coronavirus crisis notwithstanding, let us ensure there are centralised command points that guarantee accountability and fair play in the distribution of cash, food and other supplies to the needy. With the heavy amounts of cash in circulation during the COVID-19 crisis response, Kenyans must be watchful and see to it that all the funds are put to their rightful use. All officials involved must be made to account for every single cent spent at every single stage as it would be the height of wickedness for anyone to seek overnight riches at the expense of direly needy Kenyans. Anyone exploiting the current national pain for personal gain must be made to pay an excruciating price. The writer is Sammy Kwinga, a regular commentator on social, economic and political affairs. The views expressed in this opinion piece are his and do not necessarily represent the position of TUKO Media Ltd in any way. 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. Kenyans in China speak out on the discrimination of Africans by Chinese citizens | Tuko TV. Source: TUKO.co.ke BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A man suspected of killing as many as four people across Alabama and robbing several others was arrested after an hourslong search by police, authorities said. Derrick Hightower, 32, of Columbus, Georgia, had been shot in the arm before being taken into custody Saturday afternoon in Birmingham, news outlets reported. Police said they believe he was wounded during an exchange of gunfire with officers. Authorities said they suspect Hightower of one slaying in Birmingham, two in Dadeville and a fourth in Auburn. Hightower thus far has been charged with capital murder in the shooting death of Nancy Nash, 54, who was found slain Friday near a burned pickup truck in Auburn. Kentrice Hill, 21, also was charged with capital murder in Nashs death on Friday morning. Shes being held in the Lee County jail without bail. Hours after Nash was found dead, Hightower was named as suspect in shooting deaths of a couple found Friday evening at a home in Dadeville, about 25 miles (40 kilometres) northwest of Auburn. Willie Tidwell, 61, and his wife Barbara Tidwell, 65, were found dead in the home after a possible robbery, Dadeville Police Chief Johnathan Floyd said. Late Friday, Birmingham police were notified that a stolen vehicle involved in a homicide in Auburn was spotted at a hotel, Birmingham Deputy Chief Scott Praytor told a news conference. Investigators told news outlets that Nashs black pickup truck was found at a hotel. Officers responded and reported seeing a silver sedan trying to leave the area. While officers tried to stop the sedan, Praytor said, a man inside fired shots at police. Officers shot back, and the suspect jumped from the car and ran away. The sedan rolled into a ditch. No officers were injured. Investigators traced the license plate on the sedan to a Birmingham home where Antione Harris, 36, was found shot and killed. Praytor said it appears Harris was killed before dawn Saturday. Police searched the area for hours. Hightower ultimately surrendered on Saturday morning and was taken to a hospital to be treated for his arm wound. Hightower also was accused of robbing three people Friday morning at an urgent care centre in Chelsea, the Shelby County Sheriffs Office said in a release. Chelsea is about 90 miles (145 kilometres) northwest of Auburn. Hightower is expected to be taken to Auburn to face charges in Nashs death, authorities said. It was unclear whether Hightower or Hill had attorneys who could comment on their behalf. Three Yemeni civilians killed in Saudi-led shelling despite 'ceasefire' Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 4:02 PM At least three civilians have been killed and another sustained injuries when militiamen loyal to the country's former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, shelled a residential neighborhood in Yemen's southern province of Ta'izz despite a two-week ceasefire declared by the Saudi-led coalition. Local sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arabic-language al-Masirah television network that the Saudi mercenaries fired projectiles at Wadi Hanash village in the At Ta'iziyah district of the province Sunday afternoon. The sources added that two women and a child were killed whilst a man was injured when their house was struck in the shelling. Separately, Saudi units launched artillery rounds and mortar shells at residential areas in the Razih district of Yemen's northwestern province of Sa'ada. There were, however, no immediate reports about possible casualties and the extent of damage caused. Saudi-led warplanes also carried out eight airstrikes against the Khabb-wa ash-Sha'af district in the northern Yemeni province of Jawf. No reports of casualties and damage were quickly available. Elsewhere in the Sirwah district of the central province of Ma'rib, Saudi-led warplanes pounded several areas on three occasions. There were no casualties and damage immediately reported though. Last week, Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the spokesman for Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement, roundly rejected as fraudulent the Saudi-led coalition's ceasefire, saying the declaration deceitfully targets the world public opinion. He said Yemen has seen an escalation in fighting and airstrikes carried out by the coalition at the same time that the siege of Yemen continues. "The declared ceasefire is deceitful and meant to mislead the world public opinion. If there were a serious intention and absolute willpower towards peace, the UN Security Council should have passed a formal resolution to stop the absurd war on Yemen and lift the unjust siege; rather it sufficed to a worthless statement in order to appease the [Saudi-led] alliance," Abdul-Salam added. The US-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit conflict-research organization, estimates that more than 100,000 people have been killed since Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched the devastating war on Yemen in March 2015. The UN says over 24 million Yemenis are now in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10 million suffering from extreme levels of hunger. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address CAIRO - Across the Muslim world, the fasting month of Ramadan that begins this week will be unlike any other in memory as the coronavirus pandemic alters the rituals and rhythms of centuries-old traditions and practices. Egyptian religious authorities have barred charity tables, which over the generations have offered free sunset meals on street corners and beside mosques for those breaking the daytime fast. Saudi Arabia's grand mufti has said prayers during Ramadan - including the evening prayer typically held in mosques overflowing with worshipers - and the Eid al-Fitr festivities that follow the end of the fasting month should be held at home. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was practically apologetic as he asked Iranians on Sunday not to visit holy shrines during Ramadan or participate in iftar gatherings, the festive evening meals. "In the holy month of Ramadan, we won't have the usual ceremonies, like iftar," Rouhani told the nation's coronavirus task force, his comments later released publicly. Holy shrines and mosques, he said, "will be closed for another two weeks pending new meetings." But clerics claiming the mantle of righteousness have in some places challenged the official prohibitions. In Pakistan, where the government ruled that only groups of five or less could attend prayers at mosques, security forces broke up several large prayer gatherings, igniting clashes between worshipers and police. And the country's religious establishment has pushed back against the restrictions, with a group of 50 prominent clerics issuing a warning to the government last week to ease them and stop the arrests. On Saturday, the government gave in and dropped the limits on mosque attendance. "The people want to see their political and religious leaders on the same page and any conflict would be counterproductive," President Arif Alvi told reporters Saturday, according to local Pakistani news outlet Geo News. - - - From Egypt to Malaysia and beyond, the coronavirus has cast a long shadow over the world's 1.8 billion Muslims as they prepare for the holiest month of the year. In many countries, authorities have enacted comprehensive lockdowns, imposed curfews and ordered travel bans in addition to suspending mosque prayers and banning other religious gatherings. The strict measures, combined with closures of borders and airports, have hit the poor especially hard as unemployment soars and food prices spike. Over the weekend, Egyptian religious authorities urged that any charity be given to the poor before Ramadan starts because the traditional charity tables will be barred. Also banned is the itikaf ritual in which Muslims spend the last 10 days of Ramadan in mosques to pray and meditate. Egypt's mosques have been shuttered since last month to prevent the spread of the virus. Saudi Arabia has said it is suspending visas for Muslims seeking to make pilgrimages to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, popular during the month of Ramadan. The Prophet's Mosque in Medina announced last week that it was banning events to dispense evening meals to the poor to break their fast. "This year, Ramadan will be different," said Gehad Soliman, 27, an engineer in Cairo. "And there is nothing we can do about it." Soliman said she would choose a place in her house to perform the Ramadan rituals. Forgoing the iftar gatherings would be "truly painful" because most of her family will not be able to come over. "We are a very close family, we gather all the time," she said. "But now we keep on telling each other that we cannot meet anymore for the sake of our health. We are doing this to protect our loved ones more than ourselves." - - - Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been reluctant to order a blanket shutdown for fear that the measures would damage the already struggling economy. Instead, local governments have issued their own restrictions, closing most businesses across the country and ordering people to remain in their homes. The prominent Pakistani newspaper Dawn voiced support for the government restrictions in an editorial. "This should not be seen as an affront to religion; rather, it is an attempt to save the lives of the general public," the editors wrote. But clerics have criticized the approach, claiming the measures disproportionately hurt the country's poor and devout. And many devout Pakistanis believe congregational prayer is necessary for the country to defeat the coronavirus. "We have to return to Allah to pray for ending this coronavirus," said Maulana Hamid ul-Haq, the son of slain Pakistani cleric Maulana Sami ul-Haq and deputy head of a religious seminary that historically had links to the Taliban. While the closure of schools, public transit and most businesses has been extended into Ramadan, the government announced that mosques will be opened to large groups for worship during the holy month. In northwestern Syria, where the extremist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebel group, or HTS, holds sway, the local Islamist government announced earlier this month that Friday prayers would be paused for two weeks to protect residents from the spread of the virus. The next day, defying the order, a previous HTS commander held Friday prayers in a mosque in Idlib, according to a Telegram channel that reports his news. - - - In Afghanistan, aid groups and religious organizations have reported a surge in people requesting food assistance. Coronavirus-related lockdown measures in cities across the country, restrictions on domestic movement and the closure of international borders have driven food stocks down and unemployment up. Abdul Fatah Jawad, a member of Jamiat Eslah, an Islamist group with a large charity wing, said requests have skyrocketed and are outpacing donations. "People are calling, texting and some show up in person, crying and begging for donations," he said. "Some families do not have food even for a week. The situation is extremely critical." Jawad said his organization usually donates about $75,000 to the poor in the lead-up to Ramadan but this year has already distributed more than $100,000, and the holy month has not yet begun. In Yemen, too, there is growing concern among the poor. Sameer Ahmed Alharbi, 32, a university student and father of two in the central province of Marib said food prices have increased dramatically. People, he said, are neither prepared for Ramadan nor the coronavirus. Last week, Yemen saw its first confirmed case of the virus. "Ramadan is approaching, and we haven't been able to buy enough food," Alharbi said. "Now with the threat of this disease, if it spreads in our country, it will be catastrophic." Mosques, he said, are open, as are markets. "We haven't seen any precautionary measures taken by the local authorities in this regard," he said. "The local authorities announced a curfew three days ago from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m., but people have not adhered to it. People are very reckless." - - - George reported from London. The Washington Post's Sarah Dadouch in Beirut; Heba Farouk Mahfouz in Cairo; Paul Schemm in Dubai; Sharif Hassan in Kabul, Afghanistan; Shaiq Hussain in Islamabad, Pakistan; Haq Nawaz Khan in Peshawar, Pakistan; and Ali Al-Mujahed in Sanaa, Yemen, contributed to this report. Being a Christian is not just fulfilling the Commandments: they must be done, this is true; but if you stop there, you are not a good Christian. To be a good Christian is to let the Spirit enter you and take you, take you where he wants." Vatican City (AsiaNews) - At this dramatic moment, political leaders must seek the good of the country and not their own. Introducing Mass in Casa Santa Marta Monday morning, Pope Francis said: Let us pray today for the men and women who have a political vocation. Politics is a high form of charity. He went on to pray that political parties might seek together the good of the country and not the good of their own parties during the current Covid-19 crisis. Beginning his homily, Pope Francis reflected on Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews and a righteous Pharisee. He would go to Jesus by night because he knew that those who associated with Jesus were not looked on well. Nicodemus felt restless because he knew that Jesuss actions had been foretold by the prophets. Coming up to Jesus, he confesses: Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him. Pope Francis notes that Nicodemus confession stops before the therefore, the what next. This hinders him from understanding fully and from making the leap he needs to make. Responding to Nicodemus, Jesus said: Unless one is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus understands this statement literarily. So he asks how one can be born again as an adult. Jesus explained that to be born from above is to be born of the Spirit. The Spirit is unpredictable, said Pope Francis. Jesuss own definition of the Spirit describe it as the wind blows where it wants and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so is everyone born of the Spirit. A person who is docile to the Spirit is one who lets himself or herself be carried from one place to another by the Holy Spirit. It is in this way that a person attains freedom in the Spirit. Being a good Christian is not only fulfilling the commandments, explains Pope Francis. If you stop there, you are not a good Christian. To be a good Christian is to let the Spirit enter into you and take you where He wants you. Like Nicodemus, we may be tempted to stop before the therefore, the what next because we do not know what step to take, or we do not trust God enough to let His Spirit enter into us. However, to be truly born again, we must be willing to allow ourselves to be guided in the freedom of the Spirit even though we do not know where we will end up. Pope Francis explained that in the face of difficulties and closed doors, the disciples went to the Lord in prayer and they were filled with the Spirit. Thus, prayer is what opens the door to the Spirit and gives us freedom. Pope Francis noted that in the First Reading, the Christian community was a little bit afraid when Peter and John returned to the community after being interrogated by the priests. They turned to God in prayer and effectively had a second Pentecost the place where they were gathered trembled, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They became emboldened and preached the Word of God courageously. This is being born of the Spiritnot stopping at the therefore; at the therefore of the things I have always done, at the therefore beyond the commandments, at the therefore beyond religious habits, Pope Francis said. Concluding his homily, the Pope prayed that through prayer, we might receive the gift of courage from the Holy Spirit, even though we may not know where it will lead us. May the Lord help us to always be open to the Spirit, so that it will be He who brings us ahead in our life of service to the Lord. The 1970s was a time of huge significance in Vietnamese history, not least for the generation who responded to the movement 'Putting away pens to go to the battle'. Thousands of young people gave up their studies to march to the frontlines with the belief that victory was at hand. In 1970, when the fight against the Americans in the south stepped into a fiercer period, the liberation forces in southern frontlines needed more troops. The north published a mass national conscription order, encouraging young people including students to join the liberation army. More than 10,000 students in the north stopped their studies to go to battle in the south between 1970 and 1972. Students from Hanoi National University say goodbye to their families, friends and teachers to depart for the southern battle in 1971. VNA/VNS File Photo Many of them were in their first year while others had nearly graduated; some even were preparing for further study overseas. The busiest army recruitment period was in 1971 when thousands of students joined right at the start of the new academic year. The army joining ceremony held on September 6, 1971, took place in the yards of many universities. Young students were seen off by their friends and teachers. Most of them looked quite young with joy in their faces wearing white shirts. People join a farewell ceremony for young people in Dong Da District, Hanoi on August 9, 1964. VNA/VNS Photo Van Luong All the newly-recruited students were sent to camps to be trained for war. During the training period, every night, each new soldier had to carry 20kg of soil in a bamboo basket to march and run for endurance training. At the end of their training, the students were divided into suitable units like students from University of Science and Technology were sent to the artillery force and signal corps, medical students to military medical service, mining and geology students to engineering corps and economics students to the infantry. Yet most of the students were assigned to fighting units like Regiments 95, 101 and 18 of Divisions 325, 338 and 308, which fought in Binh-Tri-Thien battlefield in the central region. A farewell ceremony to young Hanoian people, who volunteered to join the army to fight against American aggressors in the south, in Hanoi Opera House on July 11, 1969. VNA File Photo In early 1972, a train full of newly recruited soldiers, most of whom were students, departed from Kep Station (in the northern province of Bac Giang) to Vinh Station (in the central province of Nghe An). From Nghe An, they marched on foot to battle. When the train passed Hang Co Station (todays Hanoi Station), many letters were dropped from the train to the roads, recalled Nguyen Duc Thuan, a student from the College of Teachers. On the envelope, there were words like: Please if anyone picks up this letter, send it to house No, or Wish for a return date, My beloved Hanoi, or simply Marching to B battle, date [to southern battle fields]. The white letters covered the whole road at that time," Thuan recalled. In their backpacks, besides personal items, many students did not forget to take along some books and notebooks as diaries. Along the road, many of them sent letters back home to families, teachers and friends. When they had brief moments of respite from their duties, they wrote in their diaries. The fierceness of the war is reflected in their diaries, like in a poem by martyr Nguyen Van Thac, a student from the National University, sent to his girlfriend Nhu Anh. The poem reads: em trang trong la em cua em em thanh pho va sao troi lan lon em cua anh xep kin ay bom an Phao sang chap chon tron trao voi sao sa (Peaceful night is yours City night with stars twinkling Mine is full of bomb and ammunition Flares mingle with stars) Inspiration for todays youth The students appeared in various fierce battles, from Quang Tri Ancient Citadel to East Southern battle, joining in liberating Buon Ma Thuot and marching to Sai Gon for the final victory on April 30, 1975. Tanks and infantry of Army Corps 2 pass a river towards Sai Gon. VNA/VNS File Photo Many of them became heroes of the Peoples Armed Forces like Vu Xuan Thieu, Tran Thanh Hai (from University of Science and Technology), Bui Ngoc Duong (University of Civil Construction), and Vuong Dinh Cung (University of Agriculture). Five years after the country mobilised students to join the army, among the 10,000 that signed up, more than half lost their lives. Some died in the south, some in Laos but the greatest losses were seen in the 81-day campaign protecting Quang Tri Ancient Citadel in 1972. Some of them lost their lives at the entrance of Sai Gon such as martyr Nguyen Van Tu (University of Science and Technology), at 10am on April 30, 1975, just two hours ahead of victory. Soldiers from Commando (Special Forces) Brigade 316 pose for a photo after the fight to protect Rach Chiec Bridge a strategic bridge on Bien Hoa Highway, facilitating Vietnamese troop to march to Sai Gon. The fight at the bridge on April 27 and 28, 1975 has been considered as the last fierce fight of the historical Ho Chi Minh Campaign. VNA/VNS Photo Quang Thanh After reunification, the students who survived the war went back to their studies, but many of them were physically, mentally and emotionally scarred for life. Many became scientists, professors at universities, army leaders, and writers. Their generation has become a bridge linking the past and present. The Motherland highly appreciated generations of teachers and students giving up pens to join the army to make contributions to the nations victory, wrote late General Vo Nguyen Giap. Their patriotism will remain a flame brightening all generations of Vietnamese youth in the cause of developing the country, to make the country a wealthy, peaceful and happy nation. VNS By Thu Hanh Ho Chi Minh Campaign Strategic battle The general offensive in the spring of 1975, with the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign as its pinnacle, ended successfully, leading to the ultimate victory of the resistance war against the US aggressors and the country's reunification. Ho Chi Minh City marks Reunification Day with fireworks Firework displays took place in Ho Chi Minh City on the evening of April 30 to mark the 44th anniversary of Southern Liberation and National Reunification. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1 per cent to 5,719 after the Government's traffic light lockdown strategy was revealed - as Aston Martin shares rise three per cent with its new boss vowing to restart factories. The FTSE opened flat at 5,786 this morning amid government discussions on how to end the lockdown and get the economy up and running again. The blue chip index remained unchanged after last weeks late rally as countries around the world enter discussions on how to ease coronavirus restrictions. It had jumped more than two per cent on Friday on hopes that a coronavirus drug could prove effective. And shares in Aston Martin jumped after Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll formally took over as executive chairman on Monday, after purchasing a 25% stake in the business. In January, the owner of the Racing Point Formula 1 team announced a 500 million funding deal to support the troubled car firm. The company also confirmed that Toto Wolff, Mercedes' Formula 1 team principal, has bought a stake in the business as part of its major rights issue. The company said its rights issue has been accepted by 98% of the company's shareholders. Mr Stroll said the business's 'pressing objective' is to restart production of its first SUV model, the DBX. Britain's FTSE 100 opened flat at 5,786 this morning amid government discussions on how to end the lockdown and get the economy up and running again. A 'traffic light' plan for easing the crippling lockdown curbs is being pushed by some ministers - although Downing Street is flatly denying it has a fixed plan yet He said the company will also look to drive its marketing efforts as the outbreak unwinds in order to help rebuild the company's order book. Aston Martin's production facilities at Gaydon and St Athan have been closed since last month, with the manufacturer taking advantage of the Government's furlough scheme. Mr Stroll said: 'In the midst of the most challenging environment globally that any of us have ever experienced, all of my and the management team's energies will now be dedicated to building on the inherent strengths of the company, its brand, engineering, and the skills of its people to forge the foundations of a bright future. 'Our ambition for the company is significant, clear and only matched by our determination to succeed.' By 8:45am the FTSE was up 16.28 points at 5803.24, despite the prospects of an early end to the crippling lockdown receding as Boris Johnson was understood to be prioritising staving off a second wave of infections. Meanwhile caution gripped Asian share markets today amid expectations a busy week of corporate earnings reports and economic data will drive home the damage done by the global virus lockdowns. Yesterday a traffic light system of easing the lockdown restrictions were revealed, which would see the country get up and running again in stages after May 11. But today it emerged the PM has told colleagues his 'overriding concern' is to avoid a second peak in the pandemic that would plunge the country back into turmoil. Mr Johnson is still recuperating from the disease at Chequers, but conveyed his views during a two-hour meeting on Friday with foreign secretary Dominic Raab, senior adviser Dominic Cummings, communications director Lee Cain, and cabinet secretary Sir Mark Sedwill. Government sources have also been frantically playing down suggestions circulated by senior Tories that schools could be reopened by mid-May, saying early June is more likely. Mr Johnson recording a video message on Easter Sunday at Number 10 after his release from the hospital, before leaving for Chequers to recover from his illness Revelations of Mr Johnson's concerns come as it emerged pubs and restaurants could remain closed until the winter, as Mr Gove said hospitality would be 'among the last to exit the lockdown'. Chancellor Rishi Sunak and cabinet secretary Michael Gove are pushing for some restrictions to be lifted soon to avoid economic instability. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has said it was 'plausible' that UK GDP had plunged 35 per cent in the second quarter. It is also the case in governments around Europe and in the US, as several countries ease restrictions in a bid to get their economies up and running again. Dozens of Boko Haram militants found dead in Chad prison Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 8:34 AM Dozens of jailed suspected Boko Haram militants have been found dead in a prison cell in Chad's capital. Chad's chief prosecutor, Youssouf Tom, announced on Saturday that 44 prisoners had been found dead in their cell in a prison in the capital, Ndjamena, on Thursday. The dead men were among a group of 58 suspects captured during a major army operation around Lake Chad that was launched in late March and continued into early April. The captives had been transferred to Ndjamena on Tuesday evening and were awaiting court trial. An autopsy carried out on four of the dead suspects revealed traces of a lethal substance in their bodies. Some rights advocates complained that the prisoners had received ill treatment prior to their deaths, claiming that officials had locked the prisoners in a small cell and denied them food and water for three days. The government denied the allegations of mistreating the prisoners. "There was no ill treatment," Chad's Justice Minister Djimet Arabi, told AFP in a telephone interview. "Toxic substances were found in their stomachs. Was it collective suicide or something else? We're still looking for answers." He said an investigation had been launched into the incident. One prisoner who had not died and who had been transferred to hospital for treatment on Thursday was "faring much better" and had rejoined "the other 13 prisoners still alive and who are doing very well," the minister said. Chad used to be a member of the Joint Multinational Task Force (MNJTF) fighting the militants originally from Nigeria in the Lake Chad region. But it pulled out of the joint force after the major operation in March. Boko Haram's 11-year-old campaign has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people in northeastern Nigeria and neighboring countries. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address R Sivakumar By Express News Service RANIPET: Continuing with its technological support to the fight against COVID-19 pandemic, Boiler Auxiliaries Plant of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BAP-BHEL) located in Ranipet has rolled out its 50th unit of the innovative disinfectant sprayer. BHEL Ranipet Executive Director C Murthy handed the 50th unit of the disinfectant spraying machine, BHELMISTER, to Rajahmundry Municipal Corporation in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, according to a senior official. "The 50th unit was delivered to Rajahmundry Municipal Corporation. Altogether six units of disinfectant sprayers were delivered to different municipalities in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu on Saturday," he said. The officials of Ranipet BHEL innovated the customized disinfectant sprayer, which converts liquid disinfectant into atomized particles, late in March following a request made by the Ranipet district administration. The first of the prototype sprayer with capacity to throw up the disinfectant to a distance of 10 meter was rolled out on 28 March. The Ranipet district administration deployed the machine at Melvisharam, one of the hotspots of COVID-19 infection in the district, to mass sanitizing of public places. Buoyed by the efficiency of the sprayer designed and manufactured by the Water Systems unit of BHEL in Ranipet, several other districts, including Vellore and Erode, approached the heavy electrical giant for supplying the machinery, the official noted. "Till now, we have received 100 enquiries and 63 firm orders from various municipal corporations and district administrations across the country. Out of the firm orders for 63 units, 51 units have been dispatched till date and remaining 11 units are likely to be dispatched before 22 April," he noted. Among the orders delivered till date, 3 units have been delivered to DRDA Salem District, 10 units to Madurai Municipal Corporation, 3 units to Tiruchirapalli City Corporation and 2 units to Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation. The calibrated version of BHELMISTER can spray the disinfectant to a maximum distance of 20 meters. Advertisement By Rep. Richard Heath Apr. 20, 2020 | MAYFIELD By Rep. Richard Heath Apr. 20, 2020 | 11:24 AM | MAYFIELD The 2020 Regular Session adjourned just before midnight on Wednesday, April 15, more than four months after convening in January and six weeks after COVID-19 altered so much about the world as we knew it. Without a doubt, our lives have been irrevocably changed and disrupted as our public health officials work to flatten the curve and fight COVID-19. The House of Representatives had to change our way of doing business, and we took the unprecedented step of voting remotely to comply with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention safety guidelines. However, even with so many aspects of our lives changing rapidly, one thing has remained the same. No matter what circumstance we face, the Kentucky General Assembly continues to fight and defend the right to life. On the last day of the 2020 Session, the House approved Senate Bill 9, the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. This pro-life legislation has several sections that define how our state abortion clinics will operate. However, the core of this bill mandates that any baby born alive after a botched abortion will receive proper medical care. Health care workers will be required to provide life-saving medical attention to newborns born under this circumstance. I believe that it is our duty as elected officials to take every step possible to ensure that all babies are protected. The bill gives these babies the same protections under the law as any other person in the Commonwealth. Any provider who willfully withholds care from an infant born from a failed abortion could be charged with a felony. The second important tenet of this legislation removes power from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and gives our state's attorney general, the authority to oversee abortion clinicsto ensure they are acting legally under regulations. It only makes sense that publicly elected officials, and not government bureaucrats, would have the power to regulate an industry that is responsible for the loss of thousands of babies each year. I feel confident that our current pro-life attorney general will succeed with this responsibility. Finally, and perhaps most timely given our current pandemic, this bill dictates that abortions are elective, non-essential medical procedures. He reasoned that elective medical procedures require the use of PPE, or personal protective equipment, which is needed to fight the outbreak. However, theGovernor has refused to deem abortions as elective procedures, not only saving lives but also freeing up valuable personal protective equipment to be used in COVID-19. This stance is not only contradictory but extremely disturbing and troubling. We should be taking every step to preserve scarce medical equipment, and not wasting it on the destruction of innocent lives. The Governor and the abortion clinics cannot have it both ways. They cannot halt elective procedures that will ease pain and improve the health of patients, while still using PPE to preform harmful abortions. Every day, medical personnel are furloughed because of a lack of resources due to the stoppage of medical procedures. It's disingenuous for the Governor to allow abortions to continue while our hard-working medical professionals are dealing with forced layoffs. I was proud to join my colleagues in addressing these discrepancies through Senate Bill 9. Everyone must be held to the same standard, and this bill does exactly that. This General Assembly has been called one of the most pro-life bodies that the state has ever seen, and I am proud that we continued this trend up until the very end of this session. While we are no longer in session, I still want to hear from you regarding local concerns or ways I can assist you through the remainder of this crisis. I can be reached through the toll-free message line at 1-800-372-7181 or here at home. You can also contact me via e-mail at Richard.Heath@lrc.ky.gov. A number of hospitals in Indonesia have implemented a new policy of the use of face protective equipment for newborn babies in a bid to prevent coronavirus infection. Footage from the BMC Hospital in Padang City in West Sumatra province on Monday (April 20) shows a newborn being immediately fitted with a face shield. Dr. Afdal, who handles a number of newborns, said the hospital was trying to be preventive, so they can be sure all newborn babies are healthy. "We do not know whether the child's parents or the environment are exposed to COVID-19 or not. So this is our step to protect the baby from the spread of the virus," Afdal said. GUILDERLAND Abercrombie & Fitch Co., which announced back on April 6 that it was furloughing all of its retail store employees in North America amid the COVID-19 crisis, cut 86 workers at Crossgates Mall, according to a filing with the state Department of Labor. The temporary layoffs included those who worked for the Abercrombie and Hollister Co. stores as well as the abercrombie kids and Gilly Hicks brands. Nigerias presidential task force on COVID-19 has denied issuing any statement apologising to the public over the flouting of social distancing measures witnessed during the burial of the former chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari. The statement, which has been reported by some media platforms, is said to have been signed by the secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha. The public had been riled when they saw pictures and videos of top government officials flouting the rules on social distancing and hygiene put in place to stem the coronavirus scourge ravaging the country. Mr Mustapha, who doubles as the chairman of the task force, has been responsible for the coordination of the activities of the team in the testing and management of coronavirus cases in Nigeria. But the director of press at the office of the SGF, Willie Bassey, told PREMIUM TIMES the statement is fake. According to Mr Bassey, it was a calculated attempt to ridicule the office and the person of the SGF. He urged Nigerians to disregard the report. The statement is fake, and an attempt to ridicule the SGF. Kindly disregard, Mr Bassey said. Burial PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the former chief of staff, who died on Friday in Lagos and had his remains flown to Abuja on Saturday morning, was buried according to Islamic rights at the military cemetery in Gudu. As his body was being moved to the cemetery, a crowd of relatives, supporters and well-wishers thronged the burial ground to pay their last respects. Mr Mustapha was amongst those sighted at the burial Saturday morning. Several senior government officials and politicians were also seen in the crowd. However, only those who lowered the body wore personal protective equipment at the burial, despite reports from across the world of people contracting the virus at burial ceremonies. READ ALSO: The National Centre for Disease Control had warned that improper burial of a coronavirus victim could lead to infections. In its guidelines, the NCDC warned that should a burial be held, the number of attendees should be limited. The disease control office, which does not regularly comment on individual cases, also specifically warned Saturday morning that attendance should be limited at Mr Kyaris burial. Even at this time, as we mourn loved ones lost to COVID-19, including the recently deceased, Presidents Chief of Staff, Mallam Abba Kyari, we need to refrain from attending mass gatherings to prevent the further spread of #COVID19, the NCDC said. However, the NCDCs warning seemed to have been disregarded by the attendees, including government officials and the chairman of the task force. As part of immediate consequences, some presidential aides who work directly at the presidential villa, and also journalists, who were observed to have been part of the burial ceremony, were asked to self-quarantine for 14 days. They were denied access into the villa by the security operatives. Nigerians demand apology Reacting to the development, many Nigerians had criticised the government for the non-adherence to the physical distancing rule now applied globally. Some demanded that an pfficial apology be issued to the popular thespian, Funke Akindele-Bello, who was recently tried and sentenced by a Lagos State magistrate court, along with her husband, AbdulRasheed Bello, also known as JJC Skillz. Mrs Akindele-Bello and her husband were convicted for hosting a birthday party in their Amen Estate home during the Ccronavirus lockdown. The court sentenced the couple to 14-day community service after they pleaded guilty to a one-count charge of violation of social distancing order preferred against them by Lagos State government. Fake news On Monday afternoon, the statement credited to the task force, surfaced across major social media platforms including WhatsApp and Facebook pages. The statement, which was titled; We Acknowledge Mistakes Made during Burial of Late CoS PTF, noted that the apology was in response to the concerns raised by Nigerians over the non-adherence to the physical distancing measures and mass gathering restrictions at the Gudu Cemetery. It reads in part; The nonobservance of physical distancing and the flouting of mass gathering restrictions at the cemetery were due to the failure of crowd control measures. Advertisements We acknowledge that mistakes were made, we have learnt from these mistakes and would ensure that future events are adequately regulated in accordance with the Presidential Task Force and the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) protocols. The statement, however, added that the body of the late chief of staff, was prepared for burial in line with the NCDC interim guidelines for the safe management of a deceased person with COVID-19 infection. The false statement added; As a matter of fact, the body of anyone who dies from COVID-19 infection will not be released for burial without following these guidelines. Consequently, the body of the late Chief of Staff was thoroughly decontaminated, put in a body bag and then a sealed coffin in Lagos before being flown to Abuja. On arrival in Abuja, all safety measures required to protect those handling the body were strictly adhered to, from the plane to the burial ground. At no time was the body openly exposed to the environment. In his annual State of the City speech, mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles has told his citys residents not to underestimate the scale of the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus lockdown and implored them to commit to the reconstruction of a better, fairer city after the danger from the pandemic has passed. He made his address just days after the University of Southern California released a study finding that less than half of the countys residents said they held a job in April, meaning that around 1.3 million jobs were lost in March alone. His voice breaking, Mr Garcetti made no attempt to shield viewers from reality: Tonight, I stand before you because our citys charter directs the mayor to publicly address the Council on the state of the city. Ive never before hesitated to assure you that our city is strong. But I wont say those words tonight. Our city is under attack. Our daily life is unrecognisable. We are bowed and we are worn down. We are grieving our dead. But we are not broken, nor will we ever be. Los Angeles county, home to some 10 million people, has seen more than 12,000 confirmed diagnoses of coronavirus and around 600 deaths. The city issued a so-called safer at home order at the end of March, closing nonessential retailers and telling the public to stop gathering outside the home. When combined with the effects of radically decreased domestic and international travel, commerce and trade, the result has been devastating to the local economy. Citing a 95 per cent drop in air passenger traffic and a precipitous drop in city revenues, the mayor made no bones about the situation. All of us remember the 2008 recession, Mr Garcetti said. Until now, it was the biggest economic blow of our lifetime, and it hurt. But theres no way to sugarcoat this: this is bigger, and it will hurt more. Scores of city workers will have to be furloughed, meaning they will effectively lose ten per cent of this years income, while several departments will have to operate on a bare minimum of resources. From a fiscal perspective, this is the worst its ever been. However, Mr Garcetti refused to dwell on the dire present. Instead, he also used his speech to set out a new direction for the city post-pandemic, imagining a future where the injustices and inequalities of the present day could be collectively tackled and defeated. We live, in the words of my friend Antonia Hernandez, in a city that is an imperfect paradise. While our weather and our people are unmatched, we, like everyone, struggle with our challenges. We grapple with homelessness, with children growing up unequally, with traffic and pollution, with decades of neglect that have piled up. And while we set the pace for the nation in so many ways, in innovation, in freedom, in belonging, we must ask of our city and our nation, at this time, is normal really what we want to come back to? Before the pandemic began, Los Angeles had one of the USs worst homelessness problems. Like several major cities in California, it saw the number of people sleeping rough rise dramatically in 2019. The homeless population created by the growing crisis itself reflects the citys long history of inequality, with black Americans heavily overrepresented among those living on the streets. It was with this reality in mind that Mr Garcetti made his call for Angelenos to support their neighbours not only now, but in the years to come. Our city is hurting. How could it not be? But our city is ready. Our eyes are open wide to the high demands of justice. Our arms, outstretched, announcing to a neighbour we may not touch that we will not let you fall. Our hearts, Los Angeles, are stronger than ever. We are the City of Angels and we will fly again. As much of the world is occupied with the pandemic, a new war with not just political, but social overtones is being launched to denude and destroy Indias border areas. Even as Delhi is channelling all its resources into fighting a fast-spreading virus, another kind of war is being waged across multiple points on the western front. Apart from the recently thwarted infiltration attempts in Kupwara where five paratroopers of an elite unit lost their lives, the Line of Control has been on fire. Further inland, the Kashmir Valley has witnessed a proliferation of terrorist groups, all claiming to be represent the true voice of Kashmiris. And to the east, the Punjab border has become active as terror group use modern technology to move weapons and drugs. It's like K-2 all over again, with a heady mix of post 9/11 terrorist methodology. Anyone who follows the turbulent India-Pakistan relations of the 1980s will remember that Pakistan once rather successfully ran a Khalistani as well as Kashmiri uprising, putting the Indian establishment into a tailspin. Though that hasnt been replicated since it's not for want of trying. Firing along the Line of Control has risen significantly after the reorganisation of the state following the abrogation of Article 370, with about half of the 3,200 incidents recorded after this. A definite rise is apparent this year, with 1,197 incidents so far, a figure which is far higher than the same period last year. Militant cadres are being pushed in earlier than before despite severe weather, indicating highly trained and motivated cadres. Notably, some of these are Kashmiris youth who went across on legitimate visas and returned as diehard militants. This was the case in the Kupwara encounter, with two of the three local youth having crossed via the Attari border. That this group were able to kill highly trained paratroopers points to a very high level of training. In actual operation, motivation is not enough. Opening fire is not easy in any circumstances when a normal person simply freezes in fear. The desperation to push in militants may be due to the high kill rate, the rather cringe-worthy term used in counterterrorism operations. Some 41 militants have been killed in the last three months, leaving some 200 plus active, half of whom are foreigners. Intel reports warn of a high concentration of militants on launch pads, which is the last point before they begin their journey. Incoming consignments of arms are expected to increase, with at least one large consignment seized in Keran recently. All of this comes alongside another track of terrorist strategy. Even as of two years ago, militant groupings had become increasingly self-contained, with no clear organisational hierarchy. This was an operational strategy, which meant that if you nabbed a leader in Anantnag, for instance, you had little information about who was operating in adjoining districts. Now there is a strategic shift. A motley crowd of smaller groups have surfaced, among them The Resistance Front(TRF) which announced its first attack last year immediately after the reorganisation of the state. It is active on all social media channels and has taken to claiming any and every attack. Backtracing of its handles shows an IP address in Islamabad. Detained cadres only know that their orders come from an Andrew Jones or a Bilal who may be directing another small group. The TRF seems to be centred around Sopore. Yet another is the Tehreek Millat I Islam (TMI) of Nayeem Firdous also active on social media, which amplifies their actual presence on the ground, which is rather restricted to South Kashmir. Then there is the newly announced Islamic State Wilayat for Kashmir, which operates around Bijbehera, and which again has a far larger media presence than on the ground. Then there is the rather less than glorious Al Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent, which is centred around Anantnag. The strategy is simple. As the noose put around Pakistans neck by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and other international bodies tightens, the attempt is to create both indigenous groups and international groups. At a time of extreme weakness, Islamabad assumes this is enough to keep India busy. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh obliged by announcing targeted strikes against launch pads in Pakistan. The next thing will be Islamabad taking foreign diplomats and journalists to view the damage on its villages and cry foul. All of this is expected. What is receiving less international attention is the activities of the other K, the Khalistani groups. In March, the National Investigation Agency filed a charge sheet against nine members of the Khalistan Zindabad Force under not only the Arms Act but also for using drones to fly in fake currency, explosives and arms. A total of eight such sorties were flown, using Chinese commercial drones, flying from about 2kilometres inside Pakistan territory. The Punjab Police are pursuing leads towards a possible Kashmir connection in terms of the weapons consignments, which also included satellite phones, and that rare commodity, ammunition packs. This testifies to the almost legendary savvy of these militants, accustomed not only to gun-running operations but also narcotics smuggling. The war for control over the narco routes may have led to the murder of Harmeet Singh in Lahore in February this year. He was listed against some 17 cases in India. Add to this, the seizure of about 200 kilograms of heroin in the Amritsar area, which provides the perfect case of narco-terrorism. Other drugs being seized in Kashmir include prescription drugs including alprax and codeine. A whole generation of youth in Punjab have been affected, and Kashmir stands next in terms of the level of seriousness. Local hospitals see drug abuse in boys as young as eight. Meanwhile, social media is seeing a resurgence of the call for Khalistan, through a Referendum 2020 following the announcement of the Kartarpur Corridor. As much of the world is occupied with the pandemic, a new war with not just political, but social overtones is being launched to denude and destroy Indias border areas. While security agencies may be pardoned for focusing more on the terrorist aspects, the decay and loss caused by narcotics cannot be set aside. A Pakistan that is bereft of adequate funds is more dangerous due to the alternative routes it pursues to get its objectives. Meanwhile, the hundreds of health workers fanning out to the lowest levels could also be tasked to get data on drug addiction to get reliable statistics on the extent of a subterranean problem. Meanwhile, pandemic or not, those borders to the west are likely to get more active as summer comes. Stay ready. Luxembourg's Consumer Association (ULC) has criticised the government for keeping small shops and restaurants closed. The association stressed that smaller businesses are struggling to survive the crisis and to maintain employment. ULC stressed that the precautionary measures applying for larger stores that are still open could easily be implemented in smaller shops. The association urged the government to revise their strategy and decision to keep shops and restaurants closed. These establishment should also be allowed to reopen under strict guidelines, the association argued. ULC similarly argued that hairdressers should be allowed to go back to work. It would be easier for them to implement safety measures than it is for large supermarkets, they underlined. Hairdressers and clients would have to wear facemarks and use an appointment system to guarantee physical distance. ULC also urged consumers to respect the 2m physical distance in stores. The association also voiced concerns about elderly citizens who are cut off from their families in care homes and hospitals. Close relatives should be able to visit the elderly again if strict precautionary measures are respected, ULC argued. The Laredo Police Department descended upon Vanessita Court late Thursday due to a report of a deceased person. Unfortunately, officers would go on to find four bodies that night. LPD announced on Friday afternoon that Samuel Enrique Lopez has been arrested in connection to the death of four family members, including a 2-year-old child. Lopez, 20, has been charged with capital murder of multiple persons and capital murder of a person under the age of 10 years of age. Capital murder, a capital felony offense according to Texas law, carries options for punishment including life in prison or the death penalty by lethal injection. Lopez was transported to Webb County Jail and is being held with no bond. Officers arrived on location at the 4500 block of Vanessita Court late Thursday after a call of an unknown nature at a nearby residence. After allegedly finding visible signs of a potential crime scene at a residence, police said they discovered that they could not locate members of that household. LPD said it searched the area and found three bodies in an adjacent lot. Meanwhile, a 2-year-old child was later found in a separate location. LPD said that Lopez was identified as a person of interest and was brought in for questioning. Police said that the case later led them to the 4700 block of Arias Court where the childs body was discovered. The four alleged murders are more than the city had previously in 2020. Laredo's third murder allegedly occurred one day prior as a Laredo Customs and Border Protection officer was arrested in connection with the shooting death of a Laredo firefighter on late Wednesday night. Six foreign tourists who had been living inside a cave at Rishikesh in Uttarakhand since March 24 have been sent to quarantine at an ashram near the town, news agency AFP has reported. According to the report, the six tourists two women and four men hailing from France, the United States, Turkey, Ukraine and Nepal were staying at a hotel before they ran out of money and moved to the cave. "Before the lockdown began, they were living in a hotel in the Muni Ki Reti region but they moved to the cave after they ran out of money," Rajendra Singh Kathait, a police inspector, told the news agency. They had, however, saved some money to buy food and other supplies, Kathait said. Follow all the LIVE Updates here. 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 six tourists have now been moved to the Swarg Ashram, where they would be quarantined for the next 14 days. According to the report, they are not showing any symptoms of the novel coronavirus. The state's tourism department has said about 700 foreign tourists remain stranded in Rishikesh. The government has launched "Stranded in India", a website, to help travelers from abroad. Lockdown 2.0 | A complete list of activities that will resume from today There are over 16,000 coronavirus cases in India, including 543 deaths, due to the disease. KABUL -- Afghan officials say 19 pro-government forces have been killed in Taliban attacks in the northern province of Takhar. The Taliban militants attacked local forces operating under the command of the Afghan National Army in Khwaja Ghar district from several directions overnight, district chief Mohammad Omar said on April 20. Omar said the fighting continued until early in the morning. The Defense Ministry said the attacks had been repulsed and that the Taliban had suffered casualties. The Taliban did not immediately comment on the assaults. Fighting has continued across Afghanistan after the Taliban inked a deal with the United States in Doha, Qatar, in late February. The agreement was intended to pave the way for prisoner exchanges between the militant group and the government in Kabul -- which have already begun -- and potential peace talks among Afghans. With reporting by dpa Fashion designer Stella McCartney has furloughed hundreds of her staff and asked those who remain working to take a pay cut during the coronavirus crisis. McCartney will use taxpayers' money offered as part of the Government's job retention scheme to pay salaries, in a move similar to Victoria Beckham, who has been slammed for furloughing people despite her 335million fortune. One employee said staff were 'extremely hurt' by the decision taken by McCartney, who has a personal fortune estimated at more than 60million. 'What she has done is morally wrong and socially unacceptable,' said one of the workers who has been placed on furlough. Fashion designer Stella McCartney (above, last October) has furloughed hundreds of her staff and asked those who remain working to take a pay cut during the coronavirus crisis. The owner of the brand favoured by Hollywood celebrities will use taxpayers' money offered under the Government's job retention scheme to pay the salaries of those not working Unlike Victoria Beckham, who has put 30 staff on furlough, McCartney, 48, has told her staff there are no plans to top up their wages with any enhanced package. Staff who work at McCartney's two flagship stores in London have received letters informing them of the company's decision. (Above, McCartney's store in Mayfair) An insider told MailOnline that as many as half the 1,400 employees at 51 stores worldwide were being placed on furlough. (Pictured, the designer's store in Old Bond Street) Stella McCartney, the daughter of former Beatle Paul, is now one of the most recognised names in fashion with her designs favoured by celebrities. She is seen above, right, with her father, and sister Mary 'We had all expected much more from Stella, but she has shown no loyalty. She prides herself on social credentials, but we have just been dumped.' Unlike Victoria Beckham, who has put 30 staff on furlough, McCartney, 48, has told her staff there are no plans to top up their wages with any enhanced package. Under Chancellor Rishi Sunak's rescue package, firms can claim up to 80 per cent of wages to a maximum of 2,500. Meghan Markle wore one of Stella McCartney's 1,500 coats at Remembrance Sunday and had her design her gown for the reception of her wedding (pictured), in May 2018 Stores in cities such as New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas have also been forced to close due to lockdowns imposed on non-essential stores in an attempt to halt the spread of Covid-19. (Above, one of Stella's stores, in Manhattan) Mrs Beckham plans to make up the 20 per cent for those put on the Government job scheme. But she has still been heavily criticised for asking the Government to pay the other 80 per cent of her wages, when her handbag collection alone is thought to be worth 1.5million. Her fashion label charges 1,500 for a dress and Mrs Beckham recently bought a 17million penthouse in Miami with her husband David. The couple also splashed out 100,00 on their eldest son Brooklyn's 21st birthday celebrations. But she said the 30 staff across marketing, customer services and those working in her Mayfair shop will be furloughed for two months 'so far'. Stella's stores around the world Stella McCartney operates 51 freestanding stores (with 1,400 employees) in locations including: Manhattans Soho Londons Mayfair and Brompton Cross LAs West Hollywood Paris Palais Royal Milan Tokyo Shanghai Beijing Her collections are distributed in 77 countries through 863 doors including speciality shops, and department stores, as well as shipping to 100 countries online. Source: stellamccartney.com Advertisement Meanwhile staff who work at McCartney's two flagship stores in London have received letters informing them of the company's decision. An insider told MailOnline that as many as half the 1,400 employees at 51 stores worldwide were being placed on furlough. Stores in cities such as New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas have also been forced to close due to lockdowns imposed on non-essential stores in an attempt to halt the spread of Covid-19. The website for the Stella McCartney brand features the slogan : 'We are all in this together' and shows two models tugging at one of her expensive handbags. As well as stores in London, McCartney's sportswear, clothing and accessories are sold in Harrods and Harvey Nichols. They have all been forced to close since Boris Johnson announced the lockdown. McCartney, the daughter of former Beatle Paul, is now one of the most recognised names in fashion with her designs favoured by celebrities. Meghan Markle wore one of her 1,500 coats at Remembrance Sunday and had her design her gown for the reception of her wedding. Victoria Beckham has furloughed 30 staff at her struggling fashion label despite having a staggering family fortune of an estimated 330m. Pictured with husband David and daughter Harper Mrs Beckham is understood to be topping up their wages in an enhanced package by paying the remaining 20 per cent though she is not obliged to do so. Victoria Beckham's store, Hong Kong What is 'furlough'? The subsidy scheme with a 40bn price tag Before the lockdown, the word furlough was obscure and rarely used in the UK. But as Britains coronavirus crisis has deepened, it has become part of everyday language for families worried about their financial futures. It refers to an unprecedented scheme announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak last month to protect jobs as the economy is ravaged by the impact of coronavirus. Under the scheme, the state will cover up to 80 per cent of the salary of workers in March, April and May if companies keep them on the payroll instead of laying them off. The payments are capped at a maximum of 2,500 a month. More than nine million workers are expected to be furloughed, or effectively put on taxpayer-funded leave. Employers pay their workers but reclaim the subsidy from HM Revenue and Customs at the end of this month. Last week, Mr Sunak announced the wage subsidy would be available until the end of June, adding that he will extend it again if necessary. However, the extraordinary scheme comes with an eye-watering price tag. According to The Resolution Foundation think-tank, it will cost taxpayers 40 billion for every three months that it is open. Advertisement The Stella McCartney brand has a turnover of more than 500million a year and she is the sole owner of her company having bought out a joint partner two years ago. The designer, who is married with four children, is likely to face a backlash over her decision to seek taxpayer money for her staff. A spokesman for Stella McCartney told MailOnline not all staff had been placed on furlough. They refused to comment on salary cuts for staff. TV presenter Piers Morgan led the condemnation of Victoria Beckham calling her a a 'pampered prima donna. He questioned why she was able to receive taxpayer money to pay her staff after Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said businesses should only use the taxpayer-funded scheme 'if they had to'. Speaking on Good Morning Britain, he said: 'I think each person and each company should ask themselves: do they have to rely on the taxpayer? 'Because this scheme is meant to be for if you are about to make someone redundant and you haven't got the money to continue to employ them, then you can rely on the Government to stop people being made redundant'. Mrs Beckham's company, based in Hammersmith, West London, has not made a profit since it launched in 2008. In 2018, it suffered losses of 12.3 million. The year before that, Mrs Beckham lost 10.3 million, but the business was propped up by her ex-footballer husband. By Gina Lee Investing.com Oil continued their slide from the previous session on Monday in Asia, falling to its lowest level in two decades as producers continue to grapple with a supply glut. International Brent oil futures dropped 1% to $27.80 by 10:17 PM ET (3:17 AM GMT) and WTI futures slid 5.03% to $23.77 as the May futures contract expires on Tuesday. Investors remain unconvinced that OPEC+s cut of nearly 10 million barrels agreed to in early April will ease oversupply as countries continue to extend lockdowns imposed to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, and economies contract. The current prices show that the OPEC+ cuts proved to be a blip, with oil prices at the mercy of the virus once again, Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights, told Bloomberg. Until we approach a lifting of the lockdowns in the U.S., oil may drift lower or remain rangebound around current levels. David Lennox, resource analyst at Fat Prophets, agreed with Hari. The output cut that weve seen, or supposed to see coming, isnt sufficient to cover the 25 million to 30 million barrels of daily demand thats being destroyed by Covid-19. We have to see a peak for COVID-19 globally to get a clearer picture of how much demand will be destroyed, he told Bloomberg. There were also concerns that countries storage capacity is rapidly running out. Concern continues to mount that storage facilities in the U.S. will run out of capacity, with stockpiles at Cushing rising almost 50% since the start of March, Australia&New Zealand Banking Group said in a note. But We hold some hope for a recovery later this year, the noted added. Meanwhile in Asias oil hub of Singapore Hin Leong Trading requested court protection from its creditors amid allegations it hid around $800 million in losses from futures trading. Related Articles U.S. oil falls more than 10% to lows not seen since 1999 Gold Continues Retreat Despite Decreased Risk Sentiment Food crisis will not take place in China: agriculture minister Press Service International are pleased to announce a first of its kind publication, God In Lifean anthology from the columnists of Christian Today Australia and New Zealand. The team behind this remarkable tome are publishersTony and Rebecca Moore (Rebecca is a fellow senior writer, Sunshine Coast), and editorDavid Goodwin (former WarCry editor, Melbourne). Video hosted by Tony and Rebecca Moore This beautifully presented book is a reassuring reminder that God is not distant, that He is our ever-present help in every area of our livesinterested in the smallest things to the largest and never absent in times of need. A refreshing look at Gods unwavering love, these reflections of Gods love in many aspects of life will help draw your attentions away from the complexities of the world and onto His ever-loving face. Addressing topics such as purpose, anxiety, loneliness, relationships, courage, perseverance, social issues, betrayal, promises, and even snake-shooting, this book is unique in all its characteristics. The talented writers of Christian Today Australia gather from a very broad range of backgrounds which include: doctors, filmmakers, university students, school teachers, pastors, those living with physical challenges, mums, dads, musicians, and even a retired journalist and CEO of the (then) Australian Rough Riders Association (Pro-Rodeo). Their diverse backgrounds create an astounding kaleidoscope of colourful perspectives on life which are tied together by a very special threadtheir faith in Jesus Christ. We see the unchanging, unmistakable, character of Jesus, weaving its way throughout all the stories, showing the very nature of God in the lives of very different people, revealing once again that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Established in 2005 by Dr Mark Tronson, Press Service International has a vision and goal to equip and encourage young adult writers to voice their faith in Christ to their generation and beyond. Supported by Mr Basil Sellers AM, Press Service International has done just thatpublish Gods glorious deeds to the nations, telling everyone of the amazing things He does (Psalm 96:3). God In Life has been published to assist with fundraising efforts for the writers of Christian Today Australia who give of their time freely for the edification of others. The profits raised will go towards assisting and upskilling the writers for their annual conferences where they gather together to set goals and vision for the upcoming year. In purchasing this anthology, you directly help financially support these writers to grow their gift and develop their voice. Each writer will have copies to sell from May onwards, and you will be personally helping them by purchasing directly from a writer you know. God In Life will also be available online through any good bookstore as of May, 2020. Enter the title God In Life or the ISBN: 9780648460237. Alternatively, you can contact publishing@starlabel.com.au for more information. President Nana Akufo-Addo has commended the Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund for initiating and raising funds for the construction of an infectious disease treatment and isolation facility at the Ga East Hospital in the Greater Accra Region. A ceremony to break ground to mark the start of the construction of the project took place on Friday April 17, 2020, with trustees of the fund, top health officials and the main project managers in attendance. The facility, which is estimated to cost about 3.5 million US Dollars, is expected to be completed within six weeks and will serve as the main treatment facility for covid-19 patients in need of critical care. The Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund expects to raise money to sponsor similar projects in at least three other regions of the country to deal not only with covid-19 but also help the nation to tackle future infectious disease epidemics. Highlights: Ceremony To Break Ground For Infectious Diseases Isolation Treatment Facility President Akufo-Addo, who was the special guest of honour for the ceremony to mark the start of the project, made a virtual attendance, witnessing proceedings and delivering an address via video in observation of social distancing protocols. He commended the Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund for initiating and sponsoring the project. I stand on behalf of the people of this country to say a big ayekoo, a big congratulations to you, he said. This fund that has been created by private sector operators to assist in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is an excellent idea, its an excellent initiative, and it is a tremendous demonstration of your commitment to the welfare of our nation. This is a patriotic calling to the highest quality. And I want to thank all of you very much for this initiative. The president added: It has always been my belief that the public authorities of our country cannot by themselves deal with all the problems of our country. There is a lot that the citizenry, private institutions, can do and you [the Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund] have given us a first-class example of that, raising a substantial amount of money in such a short period of time [and] designing this project. This is a first of its kind and I am excited by the idea you are going to spread it across the nation. The Chief Executive of CH Group, Kwaku Bediako, who is one of the trustees of the Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund, invited Ghanaians to donate to the fund in support of the battle against the covid-19 outbreak. The idea that we are building this structure is very appealing to a lot of people and therefore weve already started receiving funds for [similar] projects outside Accra as well. We are looking at Kumasi, Tamale [and] Takoradi. he said. What we are doing is going to come fully fitted, its going to have all the kits and will be able to help take care of 100 people at any particular time. The project in Accra is expected to cost $3.5 million and so far I can confirm that we have been able to put together more than 50% of the money and we hope to achieve the rest rather quickly, still asking for donations and requesting that anybody who can help, no matter how little, should try and do that. The construction of the of the infectious disease treatment and isolation facility at the Ga East Hospital is being spearheaded by the Corps of Engineers of the Ghana Army. The Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund says it has received adequate support from the Ministry of Health and several other government agencies to enable it to bring the project to fruition. Architectural Animation of Ghana's First Infectious Diseases Isolation And Treatment Centre Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund The Ghana Covid-19 Private Sector Fund is an initiative by private business people who set it up with a seed fund of One Million Ghana Cedis, while campaigning to raise at least One Hundred Million Ghana Cedis from local and international businesses as well as the general public to aid the fight against Covid-19 in Ghana. For more information on how to donate/contribute, please visit: www.ghanacovid19fund.com Gemma Collins and AJ Pritchard have faced criticism online for having bonfires over the weekend despite advice against doing so amid the COVID-19 lockdown. The TV personalities sparked outrage as each took to social media to share footage of themselves at open-air fires, following pleas that residents refrain from doing so, as such activity would diminish the quality of the air. TOWIE star Gemma, 39, took to her Instagram Stories to show a clip of her nighttime fire ablaze as she wrote: 'Guys, Im having a cheeky little bonfire. What else is there to do in lockdown?' Criticism: Gemma Collins and AJ Pritchard have faced criticism online for having bonfires over the weekend despite advice against doing so amid the COVID-19 lockdown The image shared by Gemma - who is staying with her brother and his family in Essex during the lockdown - showed a fire contained by a brick-walled fire pit. Meanwhile, AJ, 25, shared a snapshot of a fire in full blaze on the grounds neighbouring a local park by his parents' home in Stoke-on-Trent. With piles of wood ablaze, his brother Curtis Pritchard, 24, stood in the background with two large paintings - apparently destined for the fire. Blaze: AJ, 25, shared a snapshot of a fire in full blaze on the grounds neighbouring a local park by his parents' home in Stoke-on-Trent Bonfire: TOWIE star Gemma, 39, took to her Instagram Stories to show a clip of her nighttime fire ablaze as she wrote, 'Guys, Im having a cheeky little bonfire' 'Little Spring Clean...' AJ captioned the snapshot, which was accompanied by another of the dancer posing with his girlfriend Abbie Quinnen in a field. Criticism flooded in on the comments section of AJ's post, with one follower writing: 'Really? Unnecessary fires arent something anyone should be promoting. The emergency services are under enough pressure and fires can easily get out of hand.' Added another: Not good to be lighting fires atm! People with breathing difficulties are badly affected, plus the environment could do without it, all of the wood could have been recycled...' [sic] 'All the people with covid or at risk of covid eg asthma or copd have to breathe in the smoke,' commented a third follower. Strike a pose: Dancer AJ also shared a snap of himself posing with his girlfriend Abbie Quinnen Outraged: Criticism flooded in on the comments section of AJ's post, with followers pointing out both the risks posed by diminished breathing quality to the environmental impact Discussing the environmental impact, another said: 'I'm hoping the furniture in the background didnt go into the fire. Could have been given to charity. 'Most of that could have probably been recycled instead its contributing to pollution.' MailOnline has contacted representatives for Gemma Collins and AJ Pritchard for comment. The controversy comes as more than 100 top doctors backed calls for the public to wear homemade face masks to protect themselves and others from contracting coronavirus when they leave their homes. They signed a letter saying they were 'increasingly alarmed at official inaction over the need for the public to wear face masks'. Sunshine: Over the weekend, AJ shared snaps of himself enjoying the sunshine as he spent time with his girlfriend and family amid the lockdown Ministers could make a decision this week on whether to order the use of protective equipment for millions of Britons in the workplace and on public transport. The doctors spoke out ahead of a meeting of the Government's scientific advisers tomorrow to review evidence on whether masks should be made compulsory. Britain is out of step in its guidance, with other European countries including Germany, Italy and Spain now recommending their use. The doctors are backing the Masks4All campaign which is calling for 'ordinary homemade masks' to be worn by the public to help stop those with the disease spreading it to others. Signatories of the letter include John Ashton, a former president of the Faculty of Public Health, and Martin McKee, a professor of European public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Family first: Popular TV personality Gemma is currently staying with her brother and his family amid the lockdown. Pictured in March 2020 Their missive to The Times said: 'Official UK policy is illogical The latest guidance on PPE [personal protective equipment] says that people should wear masks in hospital waiting rooms 'to reduce both direct transmission and environmental contamination'. Why not elsewhere? The thousands of coronavirus mutual aid groups could make enough homemade masks for everyone, so it would cost next to nothing. Instructions are easily available, for example, at masks4all.org.uk.' A petition has also been started by Masks4All urging the Government to make masks mandatory in the UK. The group advises making 'reusable cotton masks from simple items you can find in your house', such as scarves or towels. The campaigners stress that surgical masks and respirators should be reserved for health professionals. Authorities across Europe, including in Germany, France and Spain, have put their faith in masks as part of their postlockdown plans. The coverings are already common in China, Japan and South Korea. Sir Patrick Vallance, chief scientific adviser, has warned that the decision is complicated by a lack of evidence that wearing a mask can prevent users from contracting coronavirus. However, they can prevent any infected wearer from spreading the virus further through coughs and sneezes. Decision: Ministers could make a decision this week on whether to order the use of protective equipment for millions of Britons in the workplace and on public transport London Mayor Sadiq Khan has urged the Government to change its advice on masks to combat the spread of the virus. He was supported by former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who said such a move would be 'sensible' given how social distancing can be impossible on trains and buses. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said it was 'inevitable' the Government would have to change its advice, which at present states that masks are only needed in hospitals. To date, more than 120,000 people in the UK have been diagnosed with COVID-19, with a devastating 16,060 having died after contracting the respiratory virus. Death rates from prostate cancer are predicted to fall in 2020 in the EU, largely due to better diagnosis and treatment, according to new research published in the leading cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1] today (Monday). In the latest predictions for cancer deaths in the EU for 2020, researchers led by Carlo La Vecchia (MD), Professor at the School of Medicine, University of Milan (Italy), show that since 2015 there has been a 7% reduction in deaths from prostate cancer, with a predicted age standardised rate for 2020 of 10 men per 100,000 of the population [2]. A total of 78,800 men are predicted to die from the disease this year. Poland is the only EU country where death rates from prostate cancer are not falling; instead the researchers predict a rise of 18% since 2015: an age standardised death rate of 15 per 100,000 men, with 6,100 men predicted die from it by the end of 2020. Prof La Vecchia said: "Poland started with the lowest death rate from prostate cancer between 1970 to 1974, but then rates increased up to the year 2000, stabilised for a while and then rose again up to 2020. So Polish prostate cancer death rates are now the highest predicted. This is difficult to explain. It is possible that the recent relatively high rates are due to delayed adoption of modern diagnosis and treatment. "Across the EU as a whole, the key message from these prostate cancer death rates is to adopt up-to-date surgery and radiotherapy techniques, together with newer androgen deprivation therapy. This may have a relevant impact on prostate cancer mortality even in the absence of cure, since a proportion of elderly men may survive long enough to die from other causes. The prostate specific antigen test, PSA, may also play a role, but it is difficult to quantify this at present. It has major impact on incidence, but an unquantified impact on death rates." Although prostate cancer death rates are declining, the actual numbers of men dying from the disease are predicted to increase due to the EU's aging populations. In 2015 74,998 died from the disease, compared to 78,800 predicted to die in 2020. This pattern is seen in the predicted death rates and actual numbers of deaths for all cancers in the EU and for the ten major cancers analysed in more detail. The researchers predict that death rates from all cancers will decline by 5% in men and 4% in women between 2015 and 2020, giving death rates of 130 per 100,000 and 82 per 100,000 respectively; but the predicted numbers of deaths will increase by 5%, reaching 1,428,000 by the end of this year: 798,700 in men and 630,100 in women. The researchers looked at cancer death rates in the EU 28 Member States [3] as a whole and also in the six largest countries - France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the UK - for all cancers, and, individually, for stomach, intestines, pancreas, lung, breast, uterus (including cervix), ovary, prostate, bladder and leukaemias for men and women [4]. This is the tenth consecutive year the researchers have published these predictions. Prof La Vecchia and his colleagues collected data on deaths from the World Health Organization from 1970 to 2016. Prof La Vecchia said: "Overall cancer death rates in Poland are predicted to be 28% higher than the EU average for men and 21% for women. This gap between central-eastern and western Europe is due to patterns in tobacco consumption, but also to a slower adoption of up-to-date prevention, disease management and treatment. "In the EU as a whole, cancer death rates for men are falling. More than half of this is due to declines in death rates from tobacco-related cancers. These include not only lung cancer, which accounts for over a third of the decline, but also cancers such as head and neck and bladder cancers. In other words, it is due to fewer European men smoking, which started a few decades ago." However, death rates are rising in women for cancers of the lung and pancreas; there is a predicted increase of 6% in death rates for lung cancer between 2015 and 2020 (15.1 deaths per 100,000 and about 100,000 deaths) and an increase of 1.2% in pancreatic cancer (5.6 deaths per 100,000 and 46,200 deaths). Death rates from lung cancer among women overtook those from breast cancer in 2016 and this trend is continuing. The researchers predict the death rate from breast cancer this year will be 13.5 per 100,000 (95,900 deaths), down 7.3% from 2015. Prof La Vecchia said: "Death rates from lung cancer in women have been increasing persistently in the EU over the past decade, although the rate of increase is now slowing. Between 2010 and 2020 female lung cancer rates in the EU increased from about 13 to over 15 per 100,000. In the absence of effective intervention on tobacco smoking in women, the overall rate will probably reach 16 or 17 per 100,000 in 2030 and only level off in the subsequent decade." Co-author, Dr Eva Negri, a senior researcher at the University of Milan, said: "There are some differences between countries in female lung cancer death rates. For instance, French and Spanish rates are rising more than British or Italian ones. This again reflects smoking habits in different generations of women in various countries and underlines the importance of convincing women to give up smoking, not only in Poland or the UK, which now have the highest rates, but also in France or Spain, which still have relatively low overall rates. This will help to control the persistent epidemic of lung and other tobacco-related cancers in women. "Tobacco remains the main cause of cancer mortality in Europe, accounting for around 20% of total predicted cancer deaths; the marked decline in the deaths in men compared to women reflects the differences in past smoking habits between the two sexes." The researchers predict that compared to a peak rate of cancer deaths in 1988, over 5.7 million cancer deaths will be avoided in the EU in the 32-year period up to 2020. In 2020 alone, a total of 406,000 deaths from cancer are predicted to be averted (282,000 in men and 124,000 in women). For prostate cancer, 462,000 deaths will have been prevented over the 32-year period and 40,000 in 2020 alone. Co-author, Fabio Levi (MD), Emeritus Professor at the Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne (Switzerland), said: "Pancreatic cancer trends remain unfavourable across Europe. Control of tobacco and action on overweight, obesity and diabetes could improve such trends. No relevant advances have been observed in the diagnosis and treatment of this cancer, which has a particularly poor prognosis. Therefore, greater investment in research is required." ### [1] "European cancer mortality predictions for the year 2020 with focus on prostate cancer", by G. Carioli et al. Annals of Oncology. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annonc.2020.02.009 [2] Age-standardised rates per 100,000 of the population reflect the annual probability of dying. [3] At the time of this analysis, the EU had 28 member states, with Croatia joining in 2013. However, Cyprus was excluded from this analysis due to excessive missing data. [4] The paper contains individual tables of cancer death rates for each of the six countries. People enjoy the spring weather in Stockholm over the weeknd. (Getty) The population of the Swedish capital Stockholm could achieve herd immunity from coronavirus within weeks, a health chief has claimed. Dr Anders Tegnell, the man responsible for drawing up the countrys controversial coronavirus strategy, said infection rates in the capital are slowing because people had developed a resistance. According to our modellers, we are starting to see so many immune people in the population in Stockholm that it is starting to have an effect on the spread of the infection, he told local media. Our models point to some time in May. People strolling through the streets of Stockholm amid lax lockdown restrictions. (Getty) These are mathematical models, they're only as good as the data we put into them. We will see if they are right. Sweden, which has a population of around 10 million, has seen 13,822 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus as of Saturday and 1,511 deaths. Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice Asked about the death rate, Dr Tegnell said: It is not a failure for the overall strategy, but it is a failure to protect our elderly who live in care homes. Sweden is widely seen as having taken a more low-key approach in its attempts to stop the spread of the disease. It's kept primary and secondary schools open, and hasn't closed its borders or forced people to stay indoors. Swedish foreign minister Ann Linde has previously hit out at foreign governments, in particular US president Donald Trump, for criticising the more relaxed measures. "We are doing roughly what most other countries are doing, but we are doing it in a different way, Linde said earlier this month. No lockdown and we rely very much on people taking responsibility themselves. "We do not have a strategy that aims at herd immunity at all. "But on the other hand we don't have that total lockdown. That means that some countries think we are not doing anything, but we are doing what is right for Sweden." Story continues Coronavirus: what happened today? Click here to sign up to the latest news, advice and information with our daily Catch-up newsletter New survey data may shed light on why Australia has so successfully flattened the coronavirus curve. The Australian Bureau of Statistics released the results of its first survey on the impact of the pandemic on households across the country on Monday, the same day the country recorded 13 new cases of COVID-19. About 1,059 Australians took part in the ABS telephone survey in the first week of April about the impact on jobs, hours worked, health precautions, hygiene, social distancing, self-isolation, flu vaccination and travel. Australia recorded 13 new cases of the virus on Monday with six from New South Wales, five in Tasmania and one each in ACT and Victoria An ABS survey has revealed that most Australians are obeying newly enforced public health guidelines. Pictured is Sydney's Coogee Beach on Monday after it was reopened for exercise A massive 98 per cent of those surveyed said they had been practising social distancing, while 88 per cent were taking the lockdown seriously by avoiding public spaces and events. About 87 per cent have cancelled personal gatherings in the previous four weeks. 'The majority of Australians are adhering to public health guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19,' ABS household surveys program manager Michelle Marquardt said. Australia recorded 13 new cases of the virus on Monday with six from New South Wales, five in Tasmania and one each in ACT and Victoria. Despite the plummeting rate of new cases, more than two-thirds (68 per cent) of Australians remain concerned about their health amid the outbreak which has claimed 71 lives in the last three months. Around 98 per cent of those surveyed said they had been practising social distancing. Pictured are police enforcing the law in Sydney's eastern suburbs on Saturday Almost nine in ten Australians (87 per cent) are washing their hands and/or using sanitiser more than usual. Around half are heeding advice to not touch their face while one in six (17 per cent) wear a face mask whenever they leave the home for essential purposes. KEY FINDINGS * At the start of April, 68% of people were concerned or very concerned about their personal health due to the spread of COVID-19. * Almost everyone reported that they were keeping their distance from other people (98%) with many also avoiding public spaces and events (88%) and cancelling plans to gather with friends and family (87%). * At the start of April, 63% of people in Australia over the age of 18 had a job. * One in four people (26%) who had a job in the first week of April worked less hours than usual in the previous week, whilst 13% worked more hours than usual. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics Advertisement Already 2.2 million have have had a flu vaccination this year while another 12.2 million intend to be jabbed as the winter flu season draws closer. More than half (52 per cent) of Australians changed or cancelled their travel plans in March as Australia and other countries around the world went into lockdown. On the job front, around 12 per cent of employed Australians were working more hours than usual as a result of coronavirus while almost a quarter (24 per cent) were working less. 'The survey found that the proportion of people who had a job fell by three percentage points between early March and early April' Ms Marquardt said. Two thirds (66 per cent) of surveyed Australians had a job in the first week of March, which dropped to 63 per cent by early April. The ABS have since contacted surveyed households for follow up questions on their current job situation, how government stimulus payments were spent, financial and psychological impacts and how they communicate with friends and family. The ABS will release data from the second survey in early May and plans to provide further detail from surveyed households over the coming months. The John Alden Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is lending a helping hand to healthcare and essential workers on the front lines of the pandemic, ensuring that Midland area residents and facilities have more protective wear resources to face the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. The John Alden Chapter responded to the medical mask shortage by hand-sewing masks to donate throughout the community. As of April 14, the John Alden Chapter of Midland has sewn and donated 434 masks to medical and senior services in the community and beyond. Its members are continuing to sew to meet the needs of our community. Delayed action turned a public health crisis into a larger humanitarian one, as evinced by the testimonies of migrant labourers stranded near Kamasin. And as always, there is some impasse between what measures are announced and what is actually implemented on ground At some distance away from Kamasin in Banda, Uttar Pradesh, the dense foliage of the jungle parts to reveal a ramshackle, dilapidated building. Once a college, the structure has now been repurposed to serve as a quarantine centre for returning migrant workers to weather the storm that is the coronavirus and its handmaiden, the nationwide lockdown. Four men wait listlessly on the porch for some news, some help, some food - anything. They are just the "lucky" few of Indias 120 million migrant workers who survived the journey home on foot, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nationwide lockdown to combat the spread of the coronavirus on 23 March with just four hours of notice. Yet, they cannot rejoice at their homecoming. Aravind Yadav, one of the labourers, says, When we first got here, we had to go get tested. The doctor cleared us. After that, the secretary called us to the college. But, when we reached here we realised that there were no arrangements made for us." Yadav narrates his experience in one of the 2,230 coronavirus quarantine camps in Uttar Pradesh created to feed and house migrant labourers who have been displaced due to the lockdown that mandated a shutdown of all non-essential businesses. There are over 26,476 such camps across India, with Kerala, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh leading the numbers. However, these relief camps are proving to be far from reassuring. Yadav further adds, "At night, we have to sleep here there are 4 of us left. There is no homeguard, no provisions for our safety. Mosquitoes bite us, there are no lights or fans. They don't even give us proper food. Sometimes, someone will wander in with food at 12 or 1 in the day... the village head sends the food, who knows where he gets it from. We know nothing. This is our condition. No one comes to check in on us, to see whether were dead or alive. Theyve just stashed us in this jungle." "Snakes and scorpions can bite us here, in this old building. If something happens to us, there is no one to check in on us at night. We can't even use our phones, since there is no electricity to charge them. So we cant even call our families if something happens," he adds. A cleaner at a FedEx office in Delhi recounts his harrowing six-day walk to his hometown in Kamasin after his business was shut down, and the conditions that awaited him at the facility. "We couldnt find any water, our feet have blisters. All of our shoes broke on our long walk here. We were just trying to get home in these arduous circumstances. Now that weve got here, weve been locked up and told to stay put," he said. The worker spoke of the devil-and-deep-blue-sea situation hes in, "All the companies have shut (back in Delhi), so I could not arrange for food and I came here. But its the same here." Ashok Kumar, a worker from Delhi and erstwhile resident of Kamsin, concurs, "I came by foot, somehow. My hands and feet have blisters and are all worn down. Sometimes I just couldnt walk, and so Id lay down by the side of the road. There were no running cars or even bullock-carts to be able to hitchhike." The lockdown has devastated an already flagging economy, growing at a snails pace of 4.7 percent. As of January 2020, 7.16 percent of India is unemployed, leaving a large section of its population vulnerable. It is no surprise, then, that the lockdown has pushed an already precarious population to conditions of desperation, triggering a mass exodus of migrant labourers from cities back to their homes, hundreds of kilometres away. These migrant labourers form 20 percent of the nations workforce. Further, anywhere between 85 percent to 94 percent of Indias labourers belong to the informal sector, which accounts for almost 50 percent of the national income. These migrant labourers within the informal sector earn barely enough for their subsistence and have no socio-economic safety nets, contracts, or safeguards to help them tide through tough times. In Yadav and Kumars case, the state is failing its poorest citizens, who are eager to cooperate with the law if it means that they can go home again. First ousted from the cities they helped to build, their village homes too have been rendered a nightmare because of the trials that await them in State-mandated quarantine. Neither Kamasins inhospitable quarantine facilities nor the presence of their community, are wont to offer some comfort to the workers."We have one drum barely of potable water. If you go to someone elses tap, they accuse you of carrying coronavirus and polluting their tap, and forbid you from coming there anymore. Weve come such a long way on foot, and there have been no arrangements for us here. In fact, were more likely to fall ill here, and then, who will treat us? Theyll let us go in 14 days and evade responsibility if we fall sick the day after. Then, our families will have to take care of us and arrange for medicines. We are mandated to stay here, so they should at least take care of us. Otherwise they should let us go," Kumar said. He further added, "One boy fell ill. We have been trying to contact the pradhan (chief) and the supervising officer since 3 pm, but there has been no response. We called an ambulance, they said they could only come by 6 om, after almost 2-3 hours. When someone is dying, why are they asking us to wait for 3 hours? This is why we finally had to walk and take the boy to the government hospital. The Secretary tells us that there is no other arrangement that can be made here, and that we can order food from our houses if we want special treatment. He tells us that we can go home if we want, and to not ruin his mood or bother him. If he sends us food, it's stale or uncooked food, often leftovers that are going bad. Now tell me, wont people get sick eating food like that? asked Kumar. The Centre has announced a $23 billion welfare scheme for the poor to offset the current emergency. This move was widely criticised as inadequate, and as merely a rebranding and tweaking of pre-existing schemes. Further, the central governments orders that states provide food and shelter to its vulnerable populations through relief camps to prevent a migrant exodus proved to be too late to be effectively executed. Delayed action turned a public health crisis into a larger humanitarian one, as evinced by the testimonies of the labourers stranded near Kamasin. And as always, there is some impasse between what measures are announced and what is actually implemented on ground. Kumar said, We even went to the higher ups, and asked them to give our families written notice that they are responsible for anything that happens to us. They refused. They said they were following orders from above. So we said, then use the funds they have given you to make the necessary arrangements for us! They have no response. Now it's been two days since theyve called us. We even got tested, and were locked up in the DGIS Inter College, and they still haven't made any proper arrangements for us. Now tell us, how can we stay like this? There has to be some proper facility now. They are being paid to keep us by the government, this is not just some arbitrary exercise. Five men even ran away. Now theres just the four of us left. What do we do? In the village, there're three more people from outside, theyre still not being brought to this facility. Theyve stashed a few of us here just to save face and prove a point. Now what is to be done? Either take care of us, or let us go. Ostracized by their neighbours for allegedly being vectors of the virus, denounced by the state, and even abandoned by their families who need to keep working to put food on the table, these labourers are marooned. The Prime Minister has since announced an extension of the nationwide lockdown until May 3, triggering yet another large scale movement of populations eager to return home. As the recent violence in Surat and Mumbai has demonstrated, the states preparedness remains woefully inadequate. Lockdown 2.0 doesnt bode well for Indias poorest; they are being forced to fight for their dignity just as hard as they have to fight for their lives. As Aravind Yadav laments, They feed us like we are dogs. They say were not guests. We may survive corona, but we wont survive this. Khabar Lahariya is India's only grassroots, feminist news and media platform, run by an all-women team of reporters, editors, and media practitioners, reporting on media-dark geographies of the north Indian hinterland. The World Health Organization insisted Monday that it sounded the alarm on the novel coronavirus right from the very start and had hidden nothing from Washington about the deadly pandemic. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there were no secrets at the UN agency after being blasted by the United States for allegedly downplaying the initial COVID-19 outbreak in China. "We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight," Tedros told a virtual briefing in Geneva. The virus, which emerged late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has so far infected more than 2.4 million people globally and killed more than 165,000, according to an AFP tally. The United States has by far the highest death toll of any country, at more than 40,000 fatalities, and President Donald Trump has faced criticsm over his handling of the pandemic. Washington is the biggest contributor to the WHO but Trump is freezing funding, alleging that the organisation mismanaged and covered up the spread the virus. Tedros said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the WHO headquarters in Geneva meant there was nothing being concealed from Washington. The WHO said there were 15 staff from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US health protection agency, detailed specifically to work with the organisation on its COVID-19 response. "Having CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one. Because these are Americans working with us. It just comes naturally and they tell what they are doing," said Tedros. "WHO is open. We don't hide anything. Not only for CDC, them sending messages, or others -- we want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly." The US State Department has said the WHO was too late in sounding the alarm over COVID-19 and is overly deferential to China. It questioned why it did not pursue a lead from Taiwan flagged up on December 31 about reports of atypical pneumonia in Wuhan Debate has raged over the significance of Taiwan's email, which informed the WHO of the reports from Wuhan, and of at least seven patients being isolated -- something that would not be necessary for a non-infectious disease. The United States said Thursday it was "deeply disturbed that Taiwan's information was withheld from the global health community, as reflected in the WHO's January 14, 2020 statement that there was no indication of human-to-human transmission". But Tedros insisted that the WHO was already aware of reports emanating from Wuhan -- and said Taiwan's email was only seeking further information. "One thing that has to be clear is the first email was not from Taiwan. Many other countries were already asking for clarification. The first report came from Wuhan," said Tedros. "Taiwan didn't report any human-to-human transmission," he stressed. WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan said the email made no reference to anything beyond what had already been reported in media. "Clusters of atypical pneumonia are not uncommon. There are millions of cases of atypical pneumonia around the world in any given year," he explained. Ryan said that the WHO tweeted the existence of the event in Wuhan on January 4, and on January 5 provided "detailed information on the epidemic" which all countries could access. Tedros also urged leaders not to exploit the pandemic for their own political capital. "Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points," he said. "It's like playing with fire. It's the political problem that may fuel further this pandemic. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) (Kansas City) -- In conjunction with the National Pork Industry Forum, the pork industry donated 40,000 servings of pork to Harvesters, which is a community food bank in Kansas City. David Eaheart, who is the senior director of communications and Prairie Fresh marketing for Seaboard Foods, says this donation is all about caring for the community. Story by Ela Zambrano Photos by Heifer Ecuador The countryside and the city have always moved at different rates. In times of emergency, things are no different. While quarantine has immersed Ecuador's cities in a mandatory stillness, in rural areas, small farmers have sped up their harvesting, never losing sight of the fact that farmers and people in the city are facing a common enemy. Our rate of work has changed; on the one hand, we cant move around, but at the same time we are obliged to improve our production system to supply families in cities, who are worried about running out of food," said Rosa Mena, who farms outside of Quito, Ecuador's capital city. Rosa belongs to the Pamba Mikuna (or food field) group, a collection of farmers who plant and harvest in the vicinity of Calderon, Llano Grande, Guayllabamba and Ascazubi. This crisis has meant that now small farmers and organic produce are valued," said Margarita Haro of the El Marco Agricultural Cooperative. Margarita and other members of the co-op are filling food baskets that will be distributed to Conocoto and Sangolqui, some of Ecuadors fast-growing urban areas. When we deliver our products, people tell us we are just as important as doctors, who are working non-stop in hospitals while we deliver their food," Haro said. In this time of emergency, Rosa, Margarita and thousands of other small farmers have one clear goal: to supply urban families with produce. Thanks to Heifer Ecuadors Future of Food Project, they are able to do just that. A year and a half ago Heifer Ecuador began working to help rural farmers connect with consumers and open new markets where they can easily sell their harvests. This visionary endeavor has meant that now, when over 17 million Ecuadorians are quarantined at home, farmers can respond quickly to the new, increased demand for produce. Through the Future of Food Project, Heifer Ecuador is working alongside the Pamar Chacrin organization, delivering baskets with agroecological produce to consumers in quarantine. This increased demand means increased profits for farmers and cooperatives. Pamar Chacrin, a group of small-scale farmers, has grown into a small enterprise because of the growing demand driven by the confinement. We are quite busy, working around the clock, preparing baskets filled with produce that will be delivered at peoples homes, and its a hard task. We help farmers sell their produce and we help supplying the city with produce," said Nelson Pamar, the President of Pamar Chacrin. Not only is this positive for consumers, but each member of the group has earned an additional 200 dollars each week, ensuring that they are financially stable, even during this pandemic. Just 18 days ago, these farmers were still selling their produce at fairs and open-air marketplaces and the quarantine has raised challenges that the group has diligently worked to conquer. When the health emergency was announced, we no longer had anywhere to sell our food, and we were worried, but we didnt just cross our arms immediately, we organized to deliver baskets containing grains and beans, vegetables, quinoa and bok choy at our customers homes," Pamar explained. Heifer Ecuadors business chain specialist, Esteban Ucho said, in this southern zone of Ecuador, in the first two weeks, they (members of Pamar Chacrin) have delivered 200 baskets per week. This third week of quarantine, they have increased their capacity to 300 baskets and even then, they cannot cover the whole current demand. To attempt to bridge this gap, Heifer Ecuador is working to accelerate the design of a digital system for home delivery: We partnered with PideUnDoMi an app operating in Azuay the consumer pays the cost of delivery, which goes directly to the person delivering; farmers sell their produce; and families in the city get healthy food, said Ucho. In Ecuador, 88 percent of farms are operated by small and medium-sized producers. Families in the city have learned to appreciate the value of these farmers and, through a digital culture, now have a way to get produce from the field to the table, truly achieving a fair trade between consumers and producers. Protocol for Disinfection in Gathering Centers of the Dairy Network in the Andes (DNA) in Ecuador by Heifer Ecuador Rosa Mena reports she and the other farmers in her group had already developed good practices to safely handle produce, but when COVID-19 hit Ecuador, they received training on the Biosafety and Food Handling Protocol to apply during harvest, post-harvest, and packaging. For this, Heifer Ecuador, alongside Ecuadors campus of the Simon Bolivar Andean University have prepared a guide that has been distributed nationally, both by local governments and the Ministry of Agriculture. We have always treated food carefully, but now we are even more careful with the details, explains Rosa. Additionally, Heifer Ecuador has given farmers suits and gear for their personal protection. This protective gear includes organic fumigation equipment, disinfectants to spray food, and food containers and disinfectant to spray footwear and vehicles. In the countryside there is also concern about the risk of contagion. For this reason, farmers are safeguarding the health of their neighbors who go to town to deliver baskets. When they get back home, Rosa says, we clean and disinfect the truck thoroughly where we take the baskets. In the Galapagos Achipelago, the situation is similar. Located 1000 kilometers from mainland Ecuador, the area is a UNESCO Natural Heritage site where Heifer Ecuador and the Ministry of Agriculture are working. Though actions are being taken to stop the spread of COVID-19 here, open-air markets remain open to prevent supply shortages in San Cristobal Island and to guarantee that urban areas will not go hungry. In this case, Heifer Ecuador has provided farmers living here with 40 kits of personal protection gear (overalls, special masks, and gloves) to protect them properly as they sell their harvests. Agroecology Becomes The Answer By 19 March, Ecuador had been in confinement for two days to keep COVID-19 from spreading. The quarantine closed many large market fairs and small farmers worried because their crops piled up in their homes. On that date, Heifer Ecuador distributed, a catalog made in collaboration with the Consortium of Provincial Autonomous Governments of Ecuador (CONGOPE) and various farmer organizations. Because of this catalog, 186 producers in nine provinces were and continue to be advertised to consumers: This started because it became urgent to inform cities about the options for accessing nearby agroecological food baskets at home," says a producer in Quito. Farmers are preparing baskets of produce for delivery to consumers in quarantine. Today, not only have many agroecological farmers have seen basket sales grow during the quarantine some have even tripled their profits. And its positive for consumers as well who, often, arent sure when they can leave their homes to shop. Consumers cannot move from their homes, restrictions on mobility were changed constantly, so the schedule of when one could go out was never clear," explained Silvana Gonzalez, coordinator of the Network of Rural Entrepreneurship and Rural Innovation. The world health crisis has challenged many routines, enabling solidary to spring up, and many cities have rediscovered the value of small family farms and their healthful produce. These difficulties have made the concept of food security especially tangible for us all. Furthermore, many farmers are cultivating long-term customer loyalty with their new buyers. This is solidarity and pragmatism," said Silvana. If you respond during an emergency, it will be hard for customers to turn away from you. You solved their food problem when they needed it the most. I think they will become loyal customers. Despite the industry-wide shutdown, the Puff, the Magic Dragon-inspired feature film debut of Del Kathryn Barton will start shooting before the end of the year, the dual Archibald Prize-winning artist says. Barton made the prediction as Screen Australia announced it had granted her film Puff production investment as part of its latest funding round. Artist Del Kathryn Barton aims to start shooting her first feature film by December. Credit:Louise Kennerley "It's already been three years of toil and collaboration to get to this point," said Barton. "And yes, of course these uncertain, challenging events we're all facing have impacted to some extent. But we are at this stage confident we'll be shooting by the end of the year, which is great." Puff is inspired by her massive painting sing blood-wings sing, a five-panel, 12-metre wide work unveiled in 2017 as part of her The Highway is a Disco show at the National Gallery of Victoria. 20.04.2020 LISTEN Former Rivers State All Progressives Congress Publicity Secretary, Senibo Chris Finebone has expressed happiness over the release of 22 Exxonmobil staff by Gov. Wike. The ex Spokeman of the party in a terse press statement circulate to journalists today said, I feel happy that the innocent oil workers have regained their freedom from what I consider hostage taking. You see, the governor is not as brave or naive as people think. He knows when to huff, puff and threaten in front of the camera to rally his base and enjoy momentary applause. And he also knows when the real hammer is about to fall and how to cow, beg, throw in the towel and scamper to safety with style. One day he will tell the real story why he hurriedly released the 22 Exxonmobil staff Finebone declared. He dismissed stories going around that eminent persons intervened for their release. Forget the story about eminent persons intervening. Okay, can he name those eminent persons who intervened, how they intervened, where and when? he asked. 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) - Shanta Gold ( AIM:SHG ), an East Africa miner, announced gold production of 20,167 ounces, up from 19,550 in the previous Q4 quarter. The adjusted EBITDA was $15.0 million compared to $8.6 million in the previous quarter. All-in-sustaining-costs dropped to $833 ounces compared to $902 ounces in Q4. The company reiterated annual guidance of between 80,000 to 85,000 ounces at an all-in-sustaining-costs between $830 to $880 in 2020. During the quarter, we announced the acquisition of Barricks Kenya assets. As a result, Shanta is expected to transform into a multi-asset and geographically diversified company with a portfolio of low-cost gold mines, and the potential to become a significant producer," said CEO Eric Zurrin. "We look forward to publishing the West Kenya Project economics and the Singida economics in the coming months. We anticipate low capital costs at both projects driven by the highly attractive grades. The company meanwhile continues to make excellent progress in reducing its hedge book and transitioning towards a net cash position. The company has implemented various COVID-19 containment measures. Posted by Jeremy on at 06:24 PM CST North America & Europe Europe only For the first time ever the LEGO VIP rewards programme is offering physical - instead of virtual - rewards, andis part of the launch. Oddly this inaugural offering is only available to North American and European customers as LEGO has decided to place regional limitations.By redeeming their amassed VIP points, members are able to get a maximum of two of each product, with a restriction of one item per order. There's no end-of-offer date stated so it is reasonable to assume that it'll last until stocks run out.Those interested in the signed Maz Kanata minifigure have until the end of the day to enter the sweepstakes - at 50 VIP points a throw - that could win you the minifigure accompanied by a still photograph signed by Arti Shah , encased in a UV case.Future promotions in the VIP Rewards programme are due to include a signed 75252 Imperial Star Destroyer as well as signed copies of the LEGOVisual Dictionary (2019 edition). Gates pleaded guilty in February 2018 to lying to the FBI and conspiring to conceal tens of millions of dollars he and Trump 2016 campaign chairman Paul Manafort earned in undisclosed lobbying for a pro-Russian politician in Ukraine. He remained Manaforts right-hand man when Manafort served as campaign chairman until that August. Gates gave Muellers office ample basis to investigate coordination between the campaign and Russia or possible obstruction of justice, Jackson said. Anne McCloskey is a retired GP and is also an Aontu councillor on Derry City and Strabane District Council. In this article, she highlights her concerns over the impact that the ongoing coronavirus lockdown is having on society. I suppose it was the sight of our Bishop Donal Mc Keown, furtively going at dawn to bless the graves of the faithful departed in Derrys main cemetery on Easter Sunday morning that finally made me realise that something isnt right here. Overnight, it seems, all basic civil liberties have been withdrawn. We are under virtual house arrest, and we stay where we are told. We stay because of the honourable desire not to make a bad situation worse by our actions. We stay at home to save lives, and protect the NHS. Thats what weve been told. Our politicians are being led by the science, and we trust them. The stoical acceptance by the entire population of this lockdown-the total suspension of civil society, the denial of the right to work and earn a living, to see relatives and friends, to socialize, to move around, to go to church, to play sport - is a testament to the heroism of our people. Lions led by donkeys. 3.6 billion people worldwide are likewise arbitrarily detained. What we are not being told is that there is no scientific evidence whatsoever of the benefits of a lockdown, and a growing awareness that the cure may be much worse than the disease. Coronavirus has swept across the world causing illness and the premature death of many thousands of our people, especially as might be expected, of the elderly and ill. It behaves much as we expect pandemics to. They are bad news. Since the severity of infection seems to be related to initial viral load, Covid 19 has tragically killed many young and healthy frontline health workers, who were in close contact with very ill patients, without even the most basic of protective equipment. This was a catastrophic failure of care brought about by a healthcare sector which has been under-funded and under-equipped for decades. Lions led by donkeys again. Covid 19 is a new disease, and the behavior and characteristics of the causal agent are largely unknown. The science on which our politicians rely is disputed by some of the most eminent professors across the globe, and there are widely varying views as how best to minimize mortality. What is not in dispute is that any infectious disease spreads from those who have it to those who havent. When Covid was identified in China and later spread to Europe, and when courageous and decisive decisions could have made a real difference nothing was done. When airports should have been shut down, the Cheltenham race meeting went blithely ahead, and planeloads of rugby fans from the eye of the epidemic in Italy were landed in Dublin and allowed to enjoy the pubs and clubs of the capital. Basic epidemiology concerning an island would have dictated that to have closed the country down at that stage would be sensible. It wasnt done. What is also not disputed is that early identification of Covid cases by testing those with symptoms, and then tracing and isolation of contacts could have made a real difference. But the lack of systems, equipment and most importantly the vision to implement the programme meant valuable weeks were lost. So, after not doing what might have worked, the politicians now follow the science. What we are not told is that this is based on computer modelling, calculating predicted mortality rates without having any idea of the denominator in the equation. A primary school child could tell you that you cant calculate a percentage outcome without two numbers! The mortality rate is the number of deaths divided by the total numbers of people infected. The second number we dont know. Global experts in epidemiology, virology and infection control differ widely in their opinions, but what seems likely is that for the vast majority of our population Covid 19 will be a mild illness, with perhaps four out of five people who are infected having few or no symptoms. Many of us will already have had it. This seems to be the pattern in other countries. The test being done now looks for viral RNA, and is only positive during active infection. It does not tell if one has had the disease in the past, and is immune. The serological RDT antibody test, not yet being done here, which measures past infection, and hence immunity rates, should give more useful information. But meantime, as if to make up for lost time, the country is shut down. The projected mortality rates from Imperial College and others, upon which the lockdown and hysterical media coverage is predicated is only that-a prediction, unsupported by facts. We simply do not know how dangerous Covid 19 is. So the relentless media images of mass graves, competition for ventilators, acres of intensive care beds manned by soldiers and students do not reflect reality. In the north, 1300 NHS beds are occupied, 1900 unoccupied. Entire hospital wings are empty, the Covid centres are quiet. Hopefully this will continue. This is broadly speaking the situation across these islands. People are tragically dying, of course, in this pandemic. But it is now estimated by people working on the ground that at least half of the excess deaths may be due to the lockdown itself, and the fear it generates, as well as to suspension of much of the vital work which the health service always does. Hospital avoidance, the fear of contact with places where the disease may be, makes people reluctant to seek help for serious medical problems. Of sixty people scheduled to have diagnostic endoscopies to check for cancer in Dublin on a day last week, only four attended. Many others have difficulty accessing appointments or assessments. The suspension of normal service is leading to delays in diagnosis and treatment and is costing many lives. Lockdown is not, of course, as is its supporters imply, a question of saving human life versus mere money. This is not the algorithm. The inevitable catastrophic drop in economic activity, the millions pushed into unemployment, unable to pay rents or feed their families, the small businesses closed which will never open again, the fall in tax revenue to pay for our health service and welfare provision-all of this is not outcome neutral. As always, the poor and less able will be disproportionately affected. Many will die and many more will have their lives changed forever. Our children will be paying for a generation. We are heading for austerity the likes of which we have never seen. There is real distress. We hear stories of heroism and communities pulling together. But there are other narratives-of the alcohol misuse and domestic chaos that confinement can worsen, the isolation and loneliness of our older people, the worsening of mental health problems from lack of services and support, the despair of those whose small businesses are unlikely ever to open again, or those who are now unwaged. We see children not getting to school and the restless frustration of our young, denied the company of their peers and the unique, magical, never to be repeated joy of springtime as a teenager. People are being told that to go outside is akin to inflicting death on their neighbours and betraying the NHS staff. That they must not visit family and friends, even at a 2m distance, that they cant walk on beaches or in the parks even in family groups. That they seek the comforts given by the off-license, but not of the churches. This is non-evidence-based insanity. We also know that countries where hygiene measures, social distancing, contact tracing and isolation of the vulnerable are being used are having comparable medical outcomes to those who have opted for total lockdown. Countries where leaders have had the courage to choose not to trash their economies and subject their people to a denial of autonomy and human rights unprecedented in world history. We will not easily recover from this pandemic. The virus will pass. But as a society, and in terms of how we regard concepts such as autonomy, rights and freedom, all is changed. Lockdown has been described as medieval medicine. It is. But it is also the abandonment of good people by a craven, intellectually deficient and morally bereft political class. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Export of Turkish cars to Azerbaijan increased by 41.17 percent from January 2020 through March 2020 and exceeded $21.9 million, Trend reports citing the Turkish Trade Ministry. In March 2020, Turkeys car export to Azerbaijan decreased by 15.66 percent compared to March 2019, amounting to $4.9 million. In 1Q2020, export of cars from Turkey to world markets dropped by 10 percent compared to the same period of 2019, and amounted to $6.9 billion. Meanwhile, Turkeys car export amounted to 16.3 percent of the country's total export. In March 2020, Turkey exported cars worth $2 billion to world markets, which is 28.5 percent less compared to the same month of 2019. Turkeys export of cars amounted to 15.4 percent of the country's total exports. From March 2019 through March 2020, Turkey exported cars in the amount of $29.8 billion. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu If theres one thing that expresses how Melburnians are feeling, its our street art. Being in a coronavirus pandemic is inspiring artists to get painting, whether its to express political views and fears, to thank heroes or just to point out the absurdity of the situation. Street art by skubzmope at Prahran Square. Credit:Wayne Taylor In a mural in Prahran Square in Prahran, the artist skubzmope depicts a toilet roll with DONT PANIC! printed on its paper. The slogan featured in Douglas Adams absurdist sci-fi novels The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy , and the mural is close to two supermarkets where there was panic buying of toilet paper. Television actor Kavita Kaushik has said that she feels love and empathy towards Hrithik Roshan after reading Kangana Ranauts latest controversial statements. Kavita said that Shekhar and his son Adhyayan Suman are also owed an apology. Hrithik was embroiled in a massive controversy a few years ago when Kangana said that they were in a relationship but he maintained no such relationship existed. Both of them filed lawsuits and counter-suits against each other, which went on for almost two years. As for Adhyayan, he had mentioned multiple instances of physical and verbal abuse in his one-year relationship. I have gushing emotions of love, respect , empathy and more for @iHrithik https://t.co/K0VJvXdN1R Kavita (@Iamkavitak) April 19, 2020 Also, a huge apology is owed to @shekharsuman7 and @AdhyayanSsuman , they are a sweet family and the hate they got from an eager to judge, feeding on lies smeared popcorn audiences is so damn heartbreaking everyone was so cruel to them at that time cos of the 'woman card' https://t.co/kRZ8kycwJ2 Kavita (@Iamkavitak) April 19, 2020 Kavita, on Sunday, retweeted a tweet that read, #KanganaRanaut Two sisters are united in thinking India is their grandfathers property. Rangoli wants 2024 elections to be cancelled. Kangana wants a ban on twitter. Kavita added in her repost, I have gushing emotions of love, respect , empathy and more for @iHrithik. Also, a huge apology is owed to @shekharsuman7 and @AdhyayanSsuman, they are a sweet family and the hate they got from an eager to judge, feeding on lies smeared popcorn audiences is so damn heartbreakingFolded hands everyone was so cruel to them at that time cos of the woman card, she wrote. Adhyayan replied to her saying, Sometimes it is better to leave things to destiny ! Thank you for your kind words kavita. Also read: Taapsee Pannu shares pic of when she dressed up as a bride for Manmarziyaan, reveals what was on her mind Kanganas sister Rangoli Chandels Twitter account was recently suspended after she made some controversial tweets with a communal undertone. Defending her sister, Kangana had requested the Indian government to ban Twitter in India. I know the nation is going through a lot right now but we have to find a way to completely demolish these (social media) platforms and start our own platforms, she said. Follow @htshowbiz for more Pakistan's spy agency chief on Monday briefed Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Arif Alvi on the alleged incidents of firing across the Line of Control (LoC) and the security situation in the region. According to an official statement, Khan met President Alvi at the Aiwan-e-Sadr and the two were briefed by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed over the security situation. "The meeting strongly condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations by Indian forces across the Line of Control (LoC)," according to the statement. It also alleged that the people of Jammu and Kashmir Kashmir were being denied basic health facilities even during the coronavirus crisis. The two leaders also discussed the current situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak in Pakistan. Alvi appreciated the steps taken by the government to control the spread of coronavirus in the country. He also lauded the initiative of the Prime Minister regarding debt moratorium for the developing countries, the statement said. Pakistan's coronavirus cases on Monday rose to 8,516 as the government urged the people to strictly follow the official guidelines and stay at their homes. More than 175 people have died due to the virus in the country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New cases at Beaumont nursing home Test results showed 10 additional employees and residents at Beaumont nursing center tested positive for the coronavirus Sunday, according to Jefferson County Judge Jeff Branick. Read more here. Texas state parks reopen Texas State Parks re-opened for day-use only April 20 as part of a broader effort to begin reopening the state of Texas. Read more here. Port Arthur testing site delayed Fewer than 24 hours after Port Arthurs mayor officially announced his city would get its own testing site for everyone, regardless of symptoms, Jefferson County officials denied that was even a possibility for Friday morning. Read more here. PN-G bond plans move ahead Port Neches-Groves Independent School District has held several virtual meetings about construction and development of new elementary school buildings using bond funds, despite campus closures due to the coronavirus. Read more here. High school senoirs march on through year of disruptions Pandemic is the last of many difficulties faced by the class of 2020. Read more here. THE Supreme Court on Monday, April 20, directed judges of first and second level courts nationwide to immediately review pending cases and release qualified persons deprived of liberty (PDL) to decongest detention facilities amid the continued spread of the novel coronavirus. The Office of the Court Administrator issued OCA Circular No. 91-2020 Monday, or three days after nine detainees at the Quezon City Jail and nine personnel of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) were confirmed to have tested positive for the new virus. The circular signed by Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez directed all judges of these courts to comply with the said guidelines (for decongesting jails) without unnecessary delay, using their sound discretion. They shall immediately act motu proprio on cases of PDLs who have been detained for a period at least equal to the minimum of the penalty for the oftense charged, and if warranted, may release such detainees on their own recognizance, provided the court is assured of where the accused can be located while their cases are on-going trial, the circular stated. The detainees who will be released are required to provide contact numbers and the exact address where they will be residing as well as the contact numbers and exact addresses of two of their nearest kin. Motions for recognizance and provisional dismissal of cases resulting to the release of PDLs from detention may be considered urgent and must be immediately set for hearing, the circular stated. Judges may transmit release orders electronically based on Supreme Court Administrative Circular 33-2020 and OCA Circular 89-2020. First level courts include the metropolitan trial courts, municipal trial courts, municipal circuit trial courts and Sharia circuit court. Second level courts are the regional trial courts, Sharia district court and family courts. The release of detainees will be based on the guidelines for decongesting jails by enforcing the rights of the accused to bail and to speedy trial as provided in the Supreme Court en banc Resolution No. 12-11-2-SC dated March 18, 2014. Story continues Section 5 of this resolution provides that a PDL may be released after serving the minimum imposable penalty. The accused who has been detained for a period of at least equal to the minimum of the penalty for the offense charged against him shall be ordered released motu proprio or upon motion and after notice and hearing, on his own recognizance without prejudice to the continuation of the proceedings against him, the resolution stated. Section 10 of the same resolution allows provisional dismissal when the delays are due to the absence of an essential witness whose whereabouts are unknown or cannot be determined, or whose presence cannot be obtained by due diligence though his whereabouts are known. A case may also be provisionally dismissed if: the hearing has been twice postponed due to the non-appearance of the essential witness, and both the witness and the offended party; there is proof of service of the pertinent notices of hearing or subpoenas upon the witness and offended party; and the public or private prosecutor shall first present during the trial the essential witness to the case before anyone else. An essential witness refers to the person whose testimony dwells on the presence of some or all of the elements of the crime and whose testimony is indispensable to the conviction of the accused. (MVI/SunStar Philippines) At least 20 police personnel were injured in a clash with a mob which alleged that the authorities were secretly disposing of the body of a person who died due to COVID-19 in West Bengal's Alipurduar district. The incident happened on the banks of the Teesta river in Salkumarhat area in the early hours of Monday, police said. Locals alleged that a police team arrived in the area with an earth mover after midnight to secretly dump the body of a person who died of COVID-19. As locals got wind of the alleged plans, the officials met with resistance, they claimed. As the clash continued, the policemen opened fire, injuring a youth, while leaving the spot, the locals alleged. Three police vehicles were also torched by the mob. The policemen could only leave the area by a road that passes through the Jaldapara forest, officials said. Denying the allegations of the locals, Superintendent of Police Amitava Maity told reporters that a case has been lodged and they are trying to identify those behind the incident. He said it was being investigated who was behind the firing. Director General of Police Virendra, who was on a visit to Malda to supervise the preparedness to tackle coronavirus, said 20 policemen were injured in the mob attack and the condition of one of them was serious. He said the attack on police is unfortunate and if the locals had any grievances they should have taken it up with the authorities. Meanwhile, 751 people were arrested in Kolkata till 8 pm on Monday on various charges for violation of the total safety restrictions, police said. A total of 14 vehicles were also impounded during the period as the occupants could not cite valid reasons to bring out their cars, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Burma Myanmar Presidential Pardon Condemned for Exclusion of Political Prisoners Prisoners released from Mandalay Prison under the presidential pardon on April 17. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy YANGON More than 50 political prisoners, including satirical performers and pro-democracy activists who were jailed for criticizing the military, missed out in Myanmars largest mass pardon in recent years. President U Win Myint pardoned nearly 25,000 prisoners on April 17, including 87 foreign prisoners, to mark Myanmars New Year to ensure the peace of mind and to address humanitarian concerns. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), only 18 political prisoners were included in the largest prisoners pardon in 10 years, and 58 political prisoners remain in jail. Among those behind bars are six members of the Peacock Generation satirical performance group, pro-democracy activist and former army captain Nay Myo Zin, prominent Rakhine politician Dr. Aye Maung and author Wai Hin Aung. The Peacock Generation members were found guilty of trying to persuade military personnel to mutiny or neglect their duties and insulting the army for satirizing the military during 2019s New Year festival. They faced a total of eight lawsuits filed by military officers and were sentenced to a total of 2 years in prison after three separate trials in late 2019. Nay Myo Zin was given a one-year prison sentence for speaking out against the military leadership in September 2019 and faces three more charges filed by military officers. Dr. Aye Maung and Wai Hin Aung were sentenced to 20 years in prison for high treason and another two years for state defamation in March 2019 for remarks deemed to be encouraging to the Arakan Army, which was later labeled a terrorist group. The AAPP called for the unconditional release of all political prisoners. The presidents pardon order also includes reducing death sentences to life sentences. Those sentenced to more than 40 years had their terms cut to 40 years and prisoners facing 40 years or less had their sentences reduced by a quarter. Big crowds gathered outside Yangons Insein Prison, which freed over 2,700 prisoners on April 17, despite the government banning gatherings of five or more people to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Amnesty International said it was appalling that prisoners of conscience and peaceful activists were largely excluded from the presidential pardon. Moreover, crowded prisons and detention centers are a very dangerous hotspot for COVID-19, it added, calling on the authorities to protect prisoners, especially those who were peacefully exercising their rights. In a democracy, we shouldnt have even a single political prisoner, Ko Aung Myo Kyaw of the AAPP told The Irrawaddy. He added that all political prisoners should be freed, especially because of the added threat of COVID-19 as the country needs strength and contributions from all. They were imprisoned under oppressive laws in the first place. It is a loss of strength for the nation, especially at this time, he said. You may also like these stories: Myanmar Citizens Face COVID-19 Prosecutions for Breaching Rules Myanmar COVID-19 Cases Reach 111, Most Traced to Pastor-led Gatherings Terrorism justification case against radio journalist suspended over coronavirus RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov 13:49 20/04/2020 MOSCOW, April 20 (RAPSI) - The Second Western District Military Court on Monday decided to suspend a case against journalist of the radio Echo of Moscow in Pskov Svetlana Prokopyeva charged with justifying terrorism due to the coronavirus epidemic, lawyer Galina Arapova told RAPSI. The parties cannot personally take part in the proceedings. The hearings will resume after the sanitary and epidemiological situation is normalized, Arapova said. On Monday, the court held the first hearing on merits through videoconference. The case paper read that the journalist voiced on-air an opinion that the state authorities induced the youth to radical actions when discussing the self-destruction of a 17-year student in the premises of the Federal Security Service (FSB) in the city of Arkhangelsk. The case of Prokopyeva was submitted to prosecutors in late 2019 but it was returned to investigators for further examination. In October 2019, the Presidential Council for Human Rights applied to a prosecutor in defense of the journalist, stating that her statements could not be recognized as public justification of terrorism. AB Amber Grid, legal entity code: 303090867. Address: Savanoriu pr. 28, LT-03116 Vilnius, Lithuania. On 20th April, 2020 during the Ordinary General Meeting of Amber Grid Shareholders the Consolidated Companys audited Annual Financial Statements and Annual Report for year 2019 has been approved. The audited consolidated financial results of Amber Grid for the year 2019 do not differ, in substance, from the estimates for the twelve months of 2020 that was announced on 6 February 2020. Revenue for the year 2019 amounted to EUR 54.8 mln. Net profit for the year 2019 amounted to EUR 11.8 mln. EBITDA was EUR 24.3 mln. The shareholders of Amber Grid approved of the Boards proposal to leave the profit in the company having regard to the last years decision of the market regulator to set a significantly lower permissible income level for the company for 2020 due to exceeded return on investment in previous years and also in view of the increased funds requirements for investments in the GIPL construction. The Company also prepared Social Responsibility Report for the year 2019 which is included in the annexes of the material event. Annexes: 1. AB Amber Grids complete set of consolidated and company financial statements and consolidated annual report for 2019 together with Independent auditors report 2. AB Amber Grid Profit Allocation for 2019. 3. AB Amber Grid Social Responsibility Report for 2019. More information: Laura Sebekiene, Head of Communications of Amber Grid, ph. +370 699 61 246, e-mail: l.sebekiene@ambergrid.lt Attachments Delhi has stumbled into another crisis with the food distribution centres and ration distribution centres in the city on the radar for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). On Sunday, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that a volunteer who used to distribute cooked food at a hunger centre tested positive for Covid-19, following which he issued orders to ensure that all officials, other volunteers and people who frequent the centre for food are tested with rapid antibody kits at the earliest. Also, government officials said on Sunday, the father of a food supply inspector entrusted with distributing ration to several municipal schools and hunger centres in the city which have been turned into temporary ration collection points during the lockdown died of Covid-19 last week. The officer is now suspected of the infection. His samples have been collected but the result is awaited. So far, around 700 employees and volunteers associated with the schools and hunger centres frequented by the inspector have been quarantined and the workforce has been replaced, said a senior official in the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC). Kejriwal, in his press address on Sunday, also said officials and volunteers deployed across all food distribution centres would be tested with the rapid testing kits at the earliest. Delhi on Sunday received 42,000 rapid kits from the Indian Council of Medical Researchs total lot of 500,000 kits that arrived from China last week. During the ongoing lockdown, the 1,500-odd hunger centres a term used for food distribution points and school-turned-ration centres have become a lifeline for millions of Delhi residents, especially more than 1 million daily wage migrant labourers who have no work and cant return to their states. Currently, in its hunger centres and ration points, the government provides food to around 1 million people twice a day and ration to more than 8 million beneficiaries, including those who do not have ration cards and are currently being given essentials on the basis of e-coupons, said deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia. These are hard times for the poor. The migrant workers are the most vulnerable in a pandemic. The government should ensure that they are in a position to cook their own food and have minimum savings to meet their daily essential needs. In each journey to a food centre, with the crowd and the long queues where social distancing is a concept unheard of, the poor people have to subject themselves to an immense amount of risk. The case of food centres coming on the radar is alarming, said Animesh Das, a trade union activist and member of Delhi governments minimum wage board. Amita Baviskar, a professor of sociology at Ashoka University, said: The crisis has hit the lower middle and working classes. They cant earn, and most of them havent received any cash transfer from the government. They are already in acute distress. For this section, which is the vast majority of Indias workforce, a prolonged lockdown with no relaxations will be a catastrophe. WORKFORCE ISSUE District administrators across the city said that they are all set to start testing the workforce deployed at hunger centres, shelter homes and ration points, but several of them raised concerns over a visible shortage of people to conduct the exercise. We are serving food at around 104 locations in the district. All those engaged in supply and distribution of food at these centres will be screened and their samples will be taken. People deployed at shelter homes along with frontline workers will also be tested for the virus, district magistrate (Central) Nidhi Srivastava said. A senior administrative official of the west district said that the sampling of all staffers engaged at hunger centres would start from Monday. He said that testing of people living at shelter homes in the district is already being conducted. We will soon begin testing of volunteers and officials deployed at shelter homes and also engaged with the duty of food distribution. It will be done on a priority basis, the official said, who wished not to be identified. Several district magistrates and sub-divisional magistrates said that the number of people engaged at hunger centres is high so the strength of the teams that collect samples for testing will have to be increased for a better outcome. Around 1,200 people are engaged in food supply and distribution services across 89 hunger centres in the west district. So, we will require more people to conduct the testing process. This has been conveyed to the higher authorities, an administrative official of west Delhi district said. According to district administration officials, there are at least three members in one health department team which collects samples. The team comprises a doctor, lab technician and a nurse. Deepak Shinde, district magistrate (North) said that testing exercise is already underway in containment zones and sampling of hunger centres workers would also start from Monday. We have requested the health department to provide more staff to effectively conduct the exercise, he said. Over the weekend, Merit Coffee installed sneeze guards in all of its locations in San Antonio to help protect its staff and customers from the coronavirus. The local coffee company partnered with the same business (SaniSafe) that manufactured the protective partitions for H-E-B last month, according to creative manager for Merit Coffee Justin Frey. CURBSIDE: An updated list of San Antonio restaurants offering takeout and delivery The sneeze guards were installed in the San Antonio locations on Friday. Austin coffee shops received the shields Saturday and the cafes in Dallas will implement the new safety precaution this week. Merit Coffee has remained open during the coronavirus pandemic as dine-in restaurants and beverage shops are allowed to sell its products to-go, according to Gov. Greg Abbott's shelter-in-place order. During the pandemic, many businesses have closed indefinitely or have had to furlough or layoff staff members. For Merit Coffee, Frey said that has not been the case as the community has "thankfully" supported the company throughout the pandemic. READ ALSO: H-E-B is installing protective shields at all checkout lanes to ensure social distancing "Being open, it's a responsibility to keep everyone safe," Frey said. "We want to do our part and let the community know we take their safety seriously. They are the reason we are still open and we are so grateful for that." There are five Merit Coffee cafes in San Antonio: Stone Oak (700 E. Sonterra Blvd.); Alamo Heights (5903 Broadway St.); Medical Center (7338 Louis Pasteur Dr.); Leon Springs (24175 W IH10); and Shavano Park (4115 Pond Hill Lane). All locations are open for curbside or takeaway from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. However, the Alamo Heights and Medical Center cafes close at 6 p.m. on Sunday. For more information on its to-go options, visit meritcoffeetogo.com. Priscilla Aguirre is a general assignment reporter for MySA.com | priscilla.aguirre@express-news.net | @CillaAguirre KAMPALA Uganda is tracing for a 27 year old Kenyan national truck driver who tested positive for coronavirus following routine testing for truck drivers at all Uganda border entries. The 27-year-old male Kenyan was among 1,114 truck drivers who were tested on Sunday April 19. One new case confirmed among 1,114 truck drivers today, Ugandas Health Minister Jane Ruth Aceng said. The new case is a 27 year old Kenyan truck driver who arrived at Malaba border and efforts are underway to track him and evacuate him back to Kenya, she added. Ministry of Health says the driver will be repatriated to Kenya for treatment, meaning, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Uganda remain at 55. Dr. Aceng said 350 samples from the community were also carried out with all return negative for COVID-19. The drivers had crossed over into Uganda from the neigbouring countries in the last few days. This is the fourth long distance truck driver to test positive for coronavirus in Uganda. He is however the second Kenyan national to test positive for coronavirus in Uganda. On Tuesday, April 14, President Yoweri Museveni extended the national lockdown for another 21 days to allow the country to study the situation longer. Addressing the nation on Sunday night, President Museveni congratulated Ugandans for the progress realised thus far in the fight against the coronavirus. We have defeated the locusts, we shall defeat coronavirus, we shall defeat the floating island. I really want to congratulate all of you Ugandans. The President however, said that anybody who has died of the coronavirus must be buried where they have died. While some Ugandans have died of the virus abroad, Uganda has not registered any COVID-19-related death within its boundaries. So far, 55 people have been tested positive for the virus in Uganda, with 28 discharged after successful treatment. Related Continue Reading Here are the latest developments on the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in China: -- The National Health Commission said Sunday that it received reports of 16 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland Saturday, of which nine were imported. The other seven new cases were domestically transmitted, the National Health Commission said in a daily report, noting that six cases were reported in Heilongjiang Province and one in Guangdong Province. -- The National Health Commission said as of Saturday, the mainland had reported a total of 1,575 imported cases. Of the cases, 728 had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, 847 were being treated with 47 in severe condition. The overall confirmed cases on the mainland had reached 82,735 by Saturday, including 1,041 patients who were still being treated, 77,062 people who had been discharged after recovery, and 4,632 people who died of the disease, the commission said. -- Shanghai reported seven imported cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Saturday, the municipal health commission said Sunday. All of them were Chinese citizens returning Shanghai from countries including Britain, the United States and Russia. They have been sent to designated medical institutions for treatment. -- Beijing will recognize health status of personnel commuting from its neighboring regions as a way to facilitate their commute, local authorities said Saturday. Beijing rolled out a mini-program showing health status and travel records for better epidemic management in early March. Only those without travel records outside the national capital can show "no sign of abnormality" on the app. -- Wuhan, once the hardest-hit city by novel coronavirus disease, has been classified as a low-risk area of the outbreak as the city has met the criteria of no newly confirmed cases for the last 14 days, according to the latest assessment released Saturday by local authorities. By the end of Friday, the central province of Hubei, which administers Wuhan, had 76 low-risk cities and counties and none with high risk or medium risk, according to the provincial COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control headquarters Saturday. -- No new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease were reported in Hubei Saturday, local health authority said Sunday. On Saturday, the province reported no new deaths from COVID-19, and the death toll of the province stayed at 4,512. Rishi Sunak Danny Lawson/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo The UK government plans to launch a 500 million coinvestment fund for startups struggling to survive COVID-19. Half that cash will be government money issued via convertible notes, with the private sector expected to match funding on a deal-by-deal basis. Business Insider reported in March that startup backers were seeking up to 300 million in rescue funds for early-stage startups. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. British venture-backed startups strapped for cash during the coronavirus pandemic will get a helping hand from the government. To keep the UK's tech and life-sciences industries afloat as COVID-19 bites, the Treasury has announced a 1 billion bailout package targeted at startups and innovative small and medium-size businesses. There are two parts to the bailout package. The first is a coinvestment fund called the Future Fund, which is expected to make up to 500 million, or $625 million, available to venture-backed early-stage startups. The government has now rubber-stamped an initial 250 million, or $300 million, of taxpayer cash for the Future Fund, with the private sector expected to make up the remaining half. Business Insider first reported on this fund in March, when investors warned that thousands of startups could collapse thanks to the coronavirus-related economic slowdown. As expected, the Future Fund will be managed by the state-backed British Business Bank and is scheduled to launch in May. The fund will offer eligible startups 125,000 to 5 million via convertible notes that will convert to shares on the startup's next funding round. This funding, however, must be matched by private backers. In other words, this won't just involve government cash propping up startups; it will also see the UK government taking stakes in some of the country's fast-growing early-stage startups. Sources indicated last week, however, that the government was unlikely to hold its equity through later funding rounds. Instead, they said, it was probable that late-stage investors would be given the option to buy the government out. Story continues According to a Treasury statement on Sunday, startups applying to the Future Fund will need to have raised 250,000 from private backers within the past five years to qualify. The Treasury has yet to publish all the eligibility criteria. The package doesn't apply to the UK's bigger "unicorn" startups, which are in separate discussions with the government on accessing the Treasury's financial plans for businesses. Twelve larger-stage tech firms wrote to the government earlier in April asking for financial help and warning that the tech sector was "at risk" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those discussions are ongoing. The remaining 750 million funding tranche of the 1 billion package is targeted at small and medium-size enterprises that are focused on research and development and are thus likely to be burning cash. That funding will be available through the UK's innovation agency, Innovate UK. Read the original article on Business Insider Dr. John Leyba has been named the new dean of the College of Science & Mathematics at the University of North Georgia (UNG). Leyba has served as interim dean for the past year and had been associate dean of the College of Science and Mathematics at UNG since 2018. Before that, Leyba was the head of the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. He was hired for the job in August 2014 after working for Newman University in Wichita, Kansas, for 12 years and subcontractors for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for more than 11 years. "During my time as interim, it was surreal. But I got a good feel for the job and I enjoyed doing it," the father of eight children said. "So when UNG posted the job, it hit home that I had to apply." After a national search, Leyba was hired and will become official on May 1. "We felt it was important to conduct a national search to identify the next dean for the College of Science & Math," said Dr. Chaudron Gille, provost and senior vice president of Academic Affairs. "Dr. Leyba brings a wealth of experience in industry as well as years of academic leadership to the position. He was clearly the most qualified candidate and was unanimously endorsed by the committee." Leyba earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Northeast Missouri State University, now called Truman State University, in 1986. Four years later, he received his doctoral degree in nuclear chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. As the new dean, Leyba has set his sights on completing current goals and establishing new ones. Some of the current projects Leyba established were the electronic newsletter called "Momentum" and the College of Science & Mathematics Facebook and Instagram pages. The newsletter is sent to stakeholders and supporters to showcase the college's efforts. The two social media platforms are used to inform students and alumni about the college's activities. "Scientists are not the best communicators," Leyba said. "We need to blow our own horn about what we are doing and accomplishing here." Leyba also anticipates the completion of the new North Georgia Astronomical Observatory near UNG's Dahlonega Campus as well as the creation of a small observatory on the Gainesville Campus. He is also anticipating the completion of the new greenhouse in Gainesville. Both the North Georgia Astronomical Observatory and Gainesville greenhouse were part of the College of Science & Mathematics' strategic plan that Leyba helped author and looks forward to implementing. "The strategic plan got everyone on the same page with a common set of goals," he said. "An important part was the inclusivity of all campuses. It had an important milestone for each campus. No campus is more important than another. As a team we will move forward and achieve those goals." To do that, Leyba plans to continue a tradition he learned from a boss in the private sector. Early in his career, Leyba worked for the DOE's Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina, and the Rocky Flats Site in Colorado. "Every Friday, my first boss would walk the halls. He'd come into your office and talk to you about anything," Leyba said. "That's what I would like to do. I want to show up on any campus unannounced and walk the halls." There he wants to acquaint himself with all of the faculty and staff and learn their personalities, interests and ambitions. He also wants to determine the needs of each campus. "Each one has its own strengths and challenges. They can tailor their courses to the campus and students' needs," he said. "As a manager, I want to enable people to do their jobs better." China used to be public ownership. People could not have their own property. The income of government employees is just different on several levels. Different isnt big. The food, oil, sugar, etc. were all ticketed. Farmers are not allowed to raise animals such as chickens, sheep, and pigs in their own range. Raising farm animals is to grow the tail of capitalism. It will be confiscated by the village. In the name: cutting the tail of capitalism. Because of the left-wing ideology, economic development was tied up, and the people were poor for a long time. Later, reform and opening , first in Anhui, farmers signed contracts with villages to produce cereals. It increased a lot of the enthusiasm of production. Gradually the farmers' lives improved. The problem of food shortage was solved usually in the spring season: autumn is still far away, but food from last year is eaten out. There was a slang in that time if you want rice, look for Wanli. At that time, Wanli was the governor of Anhui Province. Farmers sign contracts with villages starting from AnHui. This was the initial chapter of reform and opening. Since then, in the pragmatic spirit of regardless of white cats and black cats, cats catching mice is a good cat. The spirit widen and more widen the road of reform and open. The new era has started. Over the past few decades, economic development has achieved extraordinary success. The situation in the United States is another extreme. Once the topic is about democracy, no one dares to speak anything else. Some just pursue the form of democracy, it causes inefficient and decision not easy. . For example, the commuting system in the Bay Area needs to be improved. If Bart can reach San Jose, it will be much better. But the locals are against it. Because if Bart is connected, all kinds of people will go there. Some areas, the housing shortage is harsh, but we cant build new houses because local residents often oppose it for their own vested interests. As a result, the interests of small groups are protected, but regional issues cannot be solved. In recent years, wildfires in California have caused a lot of damage. Its a disaster. Certain groups of people believe collapsed trees, branches, and leaves should stay where they are, cant be removed. Even it will increase the risk of causing a wildfire. So those areas cant be cleaned up. Its about right and wrong. Nothing about democracy. Sometimes, some things need to be done with all their might. Such as wartime. Without personal will, one must obey orders and commands. Usually our environment is not as harsh as in wartime; but we can't to be too casual. It is not difficult to understand if you have the spirit of wartime, the task will be completed better. We heared news about people being bought to votes or lobbying for something. For some people, money is more important. There are also various rumors of interference in all kinds of elections. In both China and American sometimes even law isnt guaranteed. In a situation like this, talking about democracy is too luxury and too shallow. Democracy is our essential spirit, but it must be supervised and implemented well. Procedures to let Democracy come true and come right should be improved time by time. Democracy cant just be a slogan and cant just in form. Production of one face shield by 3D printing takes about three hours. (Photo: wbk, KIT) The number of SARS-CoV-2 infections in Germany presently is more than 130,000, it is increasing worldwide every day. Also hospitals in and around Karlsruhe need sufficient protective equipment. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) now wishes to support them in managing the Corona crisis by providing in kind contributions and scientific-technical services. The corre-sponding requests for and offers of help are coordinated cen-trally. So far, 200 face shields have been produced by 3D print-ing for the ViDia hospitals under a joint project with Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences. More face shields will follow. In addition, several boxes with respiratory masks, gloves, and protective gowns were handed over to the Fire Protection Au-thority of the City of Karlsruhe for further distribution. Moreo-ver, a Chinese partner institute has promised to donate to KIT 20,000 respiratory masks. These will then be forwarded to the municipal hospital and other institutions of the city. We understand that KITs social responsibility does not only cover research and academic education. We are deeply rooted in the region of Karlsruhe and there is no doubt that we want to contribute to the local efforts to cope with the Corona crisis, says the Presi-dent of KIT, Professor Holger Hanselka. I am very happy that we can hand over to the hospitals in Karlsruhe respiratory masks and face shields, among others. Let me thank all parties involved for their high commitment and solidarity. At KIT, requests for and of-fers of help are pooled centrally and coordinated by the Vice-President for Innovation and International Affairs, Professor Thomas Hirth. From the 3D Printer: Face Shields for ViDia Hospitals In case of direct contact with patients infected by COVID-19, plastic face shields are very helpful and should be worn by physicians and medical staff in addition to respiratory masks. At the moment, such face shields are hardly available anymore or can only be bought at inflated prices. For this reason, the Karlsruhe ViDia hospitals asked for support. KITs Institute of Production Science (wbk) and the Institute of Product Engineering (IPEK), together with Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, quickly established a production network that provides the ViDia hospitals with face shields from 3D printers. Using an online template, the partners developed a 3D printing pro-cess. The face shields are produced by 30 printers normally used for prototype construction and research relating to additive manu-facture. Printing of one face shield currently takes about three hours. So far, KIT scientists have delivered 200 face shields to the ViDia hospitals, more will follow soon. Meanwhile, other institutes of KIT, such as the Institute of Fluid Mechanics (ISTM) and the Physikalisches Institut, have joined the network. We are very happy and grateful for the good and unbureaucratic cooperation with KIT and Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences. In this extraordinary situation, it is very encouraging to experience quick support by local institutions, says Richard Wentges, CEO of ViDia Christliche Kliniken Karlsruhe. 20,000 Respiratory Masks for City Institutions In addition, KIT will be donated 20,000 respiratory masks by the South Western Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of En-gineering Physics in Chengdu, a partner institute of KIT in a re-search program of the Helmholtz Association. As soon as the masks will arrive in Karlsruhe, KIT will hand them over to the munic-ipal hospital and other municipal institutions, together with additional respiratory masks and gloves from KITs internal stocks. "On behalf of the employees of Stadtisches Klinikum Karlsruhe, who use these materials every day in the treatment of Covid-19 patients, I would like to thank the KIT for this emergency aid," says the Medi-cal Director of the Stadtisches Klinikum, Professor Uwe Spetzger. In addition, wbk delivered 140 face shields to the Karlsruhe section of the German Red Cross for its 80 emergency medical care staff members. Researchers of KITs Institute for Automation and Applied Informat-ics (IAI) use their 15 3D printers to also produce face shields. They support the Germany-wide initiative Maker vs. Virus that brings together people and organizations needing protective equipment with makers producing this equipment. Together with ZKM, another group of employees of the FZI Re-search Center for Information Technology, an innovation partner of KIT, delivered 275 face shields to the municipal hospital. This high voluntary commitment across many institutions is great, says Professor Thomas Hirth, KIT Vice-President for Innovation and International Affairs, who coordinates the relief action on behalf of entire KIT. We want to support institutions in the region with both in kind contributions and scientific-technical services. To help as quick-ly, effectively, and specifically as possible, we will centrally pool ex-ternal requests for and internal offers of help. A project team in agreement with the Crisis Unit of KIT will coordinate scientific-technical support and transportation of the in kind contributions to external recipients. Being The Research University in the Helmholtz Association, KIT creates and imparts knowledge for the society and the environment. It is the objective to make significant contributions to the global challenges in the fields of energy, mobility, and information. For this, about 9,600 employees cooperate in a broad range of disciplines in natural sciences, engineering sciences, economics, and the humanities and social sciences. KIT prepares its 23,300 students for responsible tasks in society, industry, and science by offering research-based study programs. Innovation efforts at KIT build a bridge between important scientific findings and their application for the benefit of society, economic prosperity, and the preservation of our natural basis of life. KIT is one of the German universities of excellence. People across the country are missing dishes from their favourite restaurants and cafes as this UK enters its fourth week of lockdown. Dozens of high street favourites, including McDonald's, Greggs and Pizza Express have shared their top secret recipes so food fans can recreate their popular dishes at home. And now IKEA has jumped on the bandwagon to release the the DIY method for their famous meatballs. Revealing how people can recreate the much-loved dish in six simple steps, IKEA is challenging fans to make some delicious meatballs themselves, a feat which is usually left for their furniture. IKEA has shared the method to make their famous meatballs at home, as their stores close amid the coronavirus pandemic The Swedish staple, a popular choice for those visiting the cafe of the furniture giant, are usually served hot, but are also available frozen in the Swedish Food Market. While all of their 22 UK stores shut at the start of the lockdown, some of their food markets have re-opened to key workers, vulnerable customers and co-workers, giving them the opportunity to purchase essential food items. The car parks of its Wembley and Gateshead stores have transformed into drive-through testing centres for NHS staff. Here, they tell FEMAIL the simple method for making the dish at home. How to make Ikeas meatballs at home Makes 16 20 INGREDIENTS For the meatballs 500g beef mince 250g pork mince 1 onion finely chopped 1 clove of garlic (crushed or minced) 100g breadcrumbs 1 egg 5 tablespoons of whole milk salt and pepper to taste For the cream sauce dash of oil 40g butter 40g plain flour 150ml vegetable stock 150ml beef stock 150ml thick double cream 2 teaspoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard METHOD For the meatballs 1. Combine beef and pork mince and mix thoroughly to break up any lumps. Add finely chopped onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg and mix. Add milk and season well with salt and pepper. 2. Shape mixture into small, round balls. Place on a clean plate, cover and store in the fridge for 2 hours (to help them hold their shape whilst cooking). 3. In a frying pan, heat oil on medium heat. When hot, gently add your meatballs and brown on all sides. 4. When browned, add to an ovenproof dish and cover. Place in a hot oven (180C or 160C fan) and cook for a further 30 minutes. Swedish cream sauce 5. In frying pan, melt 40g of butter. Whisk in 40g of plain and continue cooking, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes, allowing the flour to cook through. Add 150ml of vegetable stock and 150ml of beef stock and continue to stir. Add 150ml thick double cream, 2 teaspoons of soy sauce and 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Bring to a simmer and allow the sauce to thicken. Continue to stir. 6. When ready to eat, serve with your favourite potatoes either creamy mash or mini new boiled potatoes. Enjoy! Advertisement Yesterday, thousands of people rallied in Tel Aviv to Save Democracy, many of them young. Protesters followed distancing and other coronavirus restrictions. For Sobhy Makhoul, the emergency has revealed dirty political games and revived the centre-left, which has been on the political margins for some time. A coalition deal is a high-stake game. Jerusalem (AsiaNews) The COVID-19 pandemic "has revealed many latent problems in the State of Israel" and "has awakened groups and currents, especially on the centre-left, who have been "absent from Israeli politics over the past 15 years, said Sobhy. Makhoul, a member of the Maronite Church in Jerusalem and administrator of the Christian Media Center, spoke to AsiaNews about yesterdays pro-democracy rally in Tel Aviv, which brought together thousands of people, especially young people. There is a new soul, said the Christian leader. Things will be different after the coronavirus because the latter revealed dirty political games that have endangered rights and freedoms in Israel. Shouting Save democracy, thousands of people took to the streets in Israels economic capital, wearing protective masks and waving black flags, to protest against caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, protesters had to avoid assembling and comply with the two-metre distance requirement imposed by the Health Ministry to counter the pandemic. Netanyahu is on trial for corruption on three different charges. The first hearing was scheduled for 17 March, but was postponed by two months because of the coronavirus outbreak. To stay in power, he began negotiations with his main rival, Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue White coalition, unsuccessfully so far. Yesterday several supporters of the centrist leader were at the rally, to show their opposition to any grand coalition. During the election campaign, Gantz, who was later elected Knesset speaker, strongly rejected the idea of striking a deal with Netanyahu. However, he seems to have changed his mind following the pandemic in favour of a national unity government with a set time frame. For Sobhy Makhoul, Netanyahu is trying to get a deal with Gantz only to save his skin" from political and legal disaster. He "does not want to be tried" and "is using the coronavirus emergency to show himself as a leader capable of solving problems who deserves the peoples support. In reality, even in managing the pandemic, the current government has been very divided, especially the prime minister against Defence Minister (Naftali) Bennett. This has fuelled confusion. Had the military handled it, confinement would have been better. So far, Gantz and Netanyahu have failed to agree because of the high stakes for Israeli democracy, ranging from judicial appointments to political influence on the justice system. Over the years, Likud "has distorted the original character of the State of Israel, which was socialist, explained the Christian leader, in favour of a semi-capitalist policy. The lack of great leaders is another factor. The last one was Shimon Perez, after him, we have had only swindlers. This is why "many Likud old timers are against Netanyahu's leadership" but cannot stand up to him. Still, there are signs of reawakening in the country, yesterday's pro-democracy rally for example. Yesterday many young people were at the rally, Makhoul said. The government promised to support the economy, but so far it has offered only words and this has driven people into the streets. The caretaker government has not yet approved the 2020 budget and things look uncertain, he added. Netanyahu is playing his last cards because he knows that he could lose in a fourth election. People have begun to understand that he just wants to save himself. On Saturday afternoon, about 200 protesters defied social distancing rules to gather in front of the Texas capitol, calling for leaders to lift social and economic restrictions enacted to slow the spread of COVID-19. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg labeled the Austin event "careless" and "reckless" during his daily briefing that evening. "Whats going on outside in these protests is pure ignorance," Nirenberg said. "Folks who congregate may in fact be carrying the virus and not even know it, but end up infecting someone they love who will die from it," he said. "I know this is difficult. We don't take any pleasure in having to close things down temporarily, but we're trying to save lives." The protesters chanting "Let us work" and "Fire Fauci" took turns yelling into megaphones as police officers stood by. The rally, organized by an Infowars host, was the latest in a burst of similar demonstrations across the country. On ExpressNews.com: Responding to Infowars call, protesters mass in Austin to call for lifting of restrictions On Friday, President Donald Trump appeared to throw his support behind the demonstrations, tweeting "LIBERATE MICHIGAN" and "LIBERATE MINNESOTA," two states led by Democratic governors. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said Sunday that while the protestors "may think they're macho by being out there," they posed a threat to their communities by gathering in close proximity without face masks. "They're not only threatening the people that were at that rally," Wolff said. "They're threatening everybody else because all those people are going to go somewhere else." "Its just hard for me to conceive that people can be that stupid," he added. Mark Dunphy is a breaking news and general assignment reporter for MySA.com | mark.dunphy@express-news.net | @m_b_dunphy MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Union civil aviation minister Hardeep Puri said on Monday restrictions on passenger flights will be lifted only when the Centre is confident that the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) has been controlled. He added that no decision has been taken to restart flights. Puris comments came a day after aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) asked airlines not to accept bookings until further notice. DGCA said none of its circulars regarding the extension of lockdown allowed airlines to restart the bookings for journeys from May 4. Several airlines, Indigo and Vistara, stopped advance bookings after the order. The government has extended the nationwide lockdown imposed on March 25 to May 3. I want to once again say that flight restrictions that are in place as a result of Indias fight against COVID19 will be lifted once we are confident that spread of the virus has been controlled & it poses no danger to our country & people, Puri tweeted. Since some airlines did not heed our advisory & opened bookings & started collecting money from flyers, a directive was issued to them on 19th April restraining them from doing so, he said in another tweet. The minister said airlines were informed that they will be given sufficient notice and time to commence bookings. The Centre also issued an advisory on 17 April asking domestic and foreign airline operators to issue full refund for bookings till May 3. The advisory was only for those passengers who booked flights during the first lockdown period (March 25-April 14). Authorities clarified that the order did not apply to passengers who booked flights prior to the lockdown. Butte police reports Man with dementia attacked There were a number of arrests this past weekend for partner or family member assault. According to Undersheriff George Skuletich, the number of cases was a little higher than a regular weekend, but he does not necessarily attribute the increase to problems imposed by self-isolation. Brandon Tucker Lane, 36, of Butte was arrested for partner or family member assault (with serious injury) and partner or family member assault (with reasonable apprehension), both felonies. At 3 p.m. Friday, police officers headed to the 1900 block of Gaylord Street to assist Probation & Parole staff. Officers found a 78-year-old male suffering from dementia with severe bruising to his entire face and bleeding. His caseworker from the Department of Health and Human Services was also at the residence. The victim was transported to St. James Healthcare where he was admitted due to his injuries. According to Probation & Parole, the victim had been beaten by Lane, who had also punched a teenager in the side of her head and pulled her hair. She attempted to get away from him by running to a bedroom. Lane forced his way in and grabbed her by the throat. She was able to get away and ran from the residence. More assaults A report of a male/female disturbance brought police officers to the 1900 block of Roberts at 9:45 Friday night. Officers spoke to the woman, who told them when she arrived home from work, her ex-boyfriend, Norman Bradly Fritz, 39, of Butte was destroying her property. She also told police that he did not live there anymore and did not have permission to be there. She was also fearful of Fritz, as he had assaulted her in the past. Fritz was arrested for partner or family member assault, a misdemeanor, and felony burglary. Daniel Wine, 49, of Butte was arrested Friday night for partner or family member assault (reasonable apprehension) and obstructing a police officer, both felony counts. Police responded to the 4800 block of Harrison Avenue, where, according to the victim, she and Wine had been arguing for most of the day. While the officer was speaking with the victim, Wine came out of a bedroom and began harassing the officer and told the officer to leave. Wine was arrested and transported to the Butte Detention Center as he had placed the victim in fear and interfered with the investigation. Ryan Shaun Michael Sitton, 31, of Deer Lodge was arrested Sunday afternoon for misdemeanor partner and family member assault, misdemeanor trespassing to property, and for a restraining order violation. Officers responded to a call regarding an unwanted male in the vicinity of Evergreen Drive. Just prior to this call, Butte dispatch had reported that Sitton had violated a restraining order by texting the victim. Sitton had fled the area in a red Audi and officers stopped the vehicle in the area of Mount Highland and Elizabeth Warren. At that time he was placed under arrest for the restraining order violation. Other officers continued to the residence on Evergreen. According to the victim, Sitton entered the residence by forcing his way in and assaulted a relative, causing injury. Disorderly female Shortly before 10:30 a.m. Friday, police officers arrived at St. James Healthcare on a report of an unwanted female who refused to leave hospital property. Even after officers arrived, Karee Ann Gillis, 41, of Butte continued to be disorderly and swore at police and hospital staff. Due to her behavior and refusal to leave, she was placed under arrest and transported to the Butte Detention Center for misdemeanor disorderly conduct and misdemeanor trespass to property. Harassing people Saturday morning Isaiah Other Bull, 27, of Butte was reportedly harassing customers and refusing to leave the area of Town Pump, 531 S. Montana St. When officers arrived, they recognized Other Bull, whom they have dealt with in the past. He again refused to leave the area and began to threaten officers. He was arrested for misdemeanor failure to disperse. Felony escape A call came in about 3 p.m. Saturday about a wanted man, Jeremy Dennis Marr, 45, of Butte, who was seen in the area of Staples. The caller stated that Marr got into a white Ford Explorer and headed north on Harrison Avenue. He was stopped near Busch and Garland Streets and placed under arrest for felony escape out of Powell County. Aggravated DUI Dispatch received a call at 4:45 a.m. Sunday about an erratic driver in a white KIA in the 2300 block of Locust. It was reported that the driver was speeding in the area and honking the horn. Officers located the vehicle and the driver, Skyler Marie Stuber, 20, reportedly staggered out of the drivers side door. After field sobriety maneuvers, Stuber was placed under arrest for aggravated driving under the influence. At the Butte Detention Center, she took the breath test and blew over twice the legal limit. Violation of release Police officers arrested Brian Birgbauer, 41, of Anaconda at Northwest Pawn, 712 E. Front St., for a felony warrant out of Anaconda-Deer Lodge County for violation of release conditions. Taking a nap Shortly before 8 a.m. Friday, police went to Little Caesars Pizza on a call about a man sleeping in his car. The man told police when they woke him up that he was just taking a nap before he headed home to Helena. Neighbors fighting A call came in late Friday night that two neighbors were throwing things at each other in the 200 block of Nassau. When officers arrived, however, both parties had gone back into their respective homes. Love 0 Funny 2 Wow 4 Sad 4 Angry 9 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan today went live on Facebook and stated the following: Some of our beloved Armenian organizations and institutions of the Diaspora may be and are a source of disappointment because several organizations and institutions have served as a mediator between the Government of Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora for quite a long time. Today, this is changing because I am talking to both Armenia and the Diaspora. However, in general, there is a problem in terms of structure, and the sooner we state the problem, the more correct we will be when it comes to Armenias policy on the Diaspora. For instance, 30-40 years ago, 90% of the Armenian Diaspora was linked to this or that Armenian organization or institution of the Diaspora. In other words, there was an institutional structure. Unfortunately, this logic has changed over the past 40 years. The sooner we record this, the more effective the relations between Armenia and the Diaspora will be, Pashinyan declared. Big relief: Labourers can work within state after screening says MHA India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Apr 20: The Union Home Ministry has allowed the intra-state movement of migrant labourers residing in relief camps and shelters to their respective work paces. However, the Ministry said that this would be allowed if they are found to be asymptomatic. Thorough screening must be done, before allowing the movement of migrant labourers within the states, the MHA also said. Fresh exemptions for lockdown period: MHA allows construction in rural areas Due to the spread of coronavirus, workers employed in industry, agriculture, construction and other sectors have moved from their respective places of work and are housed in shelter and relief camps being run by the UTs and state governments. Since additional new activities, outside the containment zones have been permitted in the consolidated guidelines with effect from April 20, these workers could be engaged in industrial manufacturing, construction, farming and MNREGA works, the MHA said. As per the standard operating procedures for movement of stranded labour within the state and UT, migrant labourers living in temporary relief camps and shelters should be registered with the concerned local authority and their skill mapping carried out to gauge their suitability for various kinds of works, the Home Ministry also said. If the labourers wish to return to their places of work within the state or UT, they should be screened and those who are asymptomatic would be transported to their respective place of work, the SOP states. During the journey by bus, sake social distancing must be ensured and the buses need to be sanitised as per the guidelines of the health authorities. The authorities would have to provide food and water for the duration of the journey, the MHA has also said. This is the first in a series of position papers published by Okyeame an online community of Ghanaian professionals worldwide*. We note the lifting of some restrictions announced on the 19th of April, but we believe that the points raised are still relevant since the threats from COVID-19 remain. Okyeame says that while the government is doing well with its handling of the COVID-19 crisis so far, a lot of care is needed for the reliefs to be effective. Okyeame says that as a country, we need to look beyond the immediate crisis and plan for the 2020 elections while preparing for the longer-term economic impacts. This paper addresses two questions: 1. Elections 2020: Are there any likely impediments to the holding of the Elections in December 2020 as a result of COVID-19? What are the likely contributory factors? Options can be explored, and what are the key issues for each option? 2. Government Reliefs: The COVID-19 reliefs being announced are popular, but will they trigger future problems for the State and its Institutions? Are there better alternatives? If so, what are they? How are we going to pay the bill down the line? 1. COVID-19 and Elections 2020 a. We find it difficult to imagine circumstances that would prevent the holding of the December elections. Nevertheless, it is probable that the election calendar and related activities would be affected by the current partial lockdown. In particular, we believe that the following timetables have been automatically truncated: the compilation or revision of the voters register, the passing of the 2020 Constitutional Instrument (CI) to govern the elections, the hiring and training of election officers; and the campaign window. As such, we call on the Electoral Commission and relevant stakeholders to layout, discuss and agree on a revised plan to address the new reality. b. On the question of the voters register, we are concerned that the window for compiling a new register, testing a new system and training employees and stakeholders to use the system appears to be closing. We must have a contingency plan for dealing with a scenario where a new register becomes impractical. The EC must provide reasonable assurance that it is capable of reverting to the existing system if it becomes clear that there is no time to emplace a new system. c. We have noted with concern that two attempts to lay a CI before Parliament have failed. We call on the Electoral Commission to work assiduously in addressing this problem so that it can lay a CI before Parliament that is capable of passing before the end of May 2020. d. Cognizant of the partial lockdown, we nevertheless call on the EC to come out with a plan to hire and train workers that can be implemented as soon as the lockdown is lifted but, in any event, no later than mid-May. e. We call on the IPAC to meet and discuss ways and mechanism that will provide a level playing field for the political parties and those seeking elected public office to campaign. Among others, this could include subsidizing data cost that allows them to reach voters via internet or other electronic means. f. While we are confident that the current situation will be resolved by December, we nevertheless call on the EC to develop a blueprint for voting that takes social distancing into account. g. We are aware of some debates about what will happen on January 7, 2021 if elections do not come on. We do not believe this is a realistic scenario and therefore would not add our voice to that debate. h. While appreciating the importance of quick action during an emergency, we encourage the President to act within Article 31 of the Constitution by submitting any such proclamations to Parliament for approval. There is a lot of wisdom in the emergency architecture in Article 31 in building in parliamentary oversight and in setting time limits for such proclamations. i. The President and Government must ensure that any emergency actions taken in this crisis period must be constitutional, and as far as possible avoid the profligate use of Executive Orders. In addition, we urge Government to consider narrowing the scope of the recently issued EI 63, which seeks to collect a wide range of user personal data from the telecommunication operators. 2, Government Reliefs a. Undoubtedly, the lockdown has disrupted the economic and social lives of most Ghanaians. Therefore, we commend government for its attempt to provide relief in the form of water, electricity and food in addition to some tax and salary incentives to frontline health staff engaged in combatting COVID-19. b. Even as we provide these reliefs, we must also start thinking about how we will finance the unexpected costs. Government must also consider support for employers to restart their businesses, to hire employees and to acquire supplies. c. The sheer magnitude of the financial burden compels us to prioritize our spending and examine our national budgetary objectives. We cannot continue as usual after this virus has been overcome. We call on all stakeholders to come together to have an honest and forward-looking conversation, devoid of partisanship, on what we can afford and what we must give up in the post-COVID Ghana. d. We must learn hard lessons from this experience, including the lesson that there may be times that we cannot rely on foreign hospitals, schools or even essential supplies. As such, we must prioritize investment in infrastructure, including equipping our hospitals and making our local firms competitive. We must aggressively build a self-reliant economy where our agri-business feeds our local industries using funds grown locally to meet our challenges. This also means that we must prioritize the improvement of our capital markets. The time has come for Ghana to grow and place more dependence in Ghanaian entrepreneurs and investors. Non-discriminatory Investment incentives must be made available to our home grown businesses. In these days of closed borders, the need for self-reliance emphasis has never been stronger. e. We must aggressively confront the evil twins of corruption and state capture, and build an inclusive economy that creates opportunities for all and leaves no one behind. The laws must be put to work and be seen to work. f. If we are able to do these things, we would be better prepared to handle a future shock to the economy. If we fail to learn the proper lessons and move along as usual, then we may not be so lucky if we experience a future shock. g. We would be successful in managing our interventions if more implementation improvement is effected by the field operatives. The current poor translation of policy and strategy into safe and comprehensive social intervention actions does not inure to the benefit of the target beneficiary communities. h. In Ghana and elsewhere in Africa, this crisis has again shown that we really need to formalize our economies and have a good database of residents. Without this, redistribution or transfers to the vulnerable has been haphazard and not well targeted. Chaotic scenes of food distributed have been circulated on social media. We should consider matching phone numbers with national ID card numbers and using Mobile money (cash) transfers to targeted groups. i. Universities, businesses, and organizations are relying more on online facilities during this pandemic. It is the inevitable consequence of lockdowns and physical distancing. In response, the government has given Vodafone and MTN additional spectrum at no cost for three months to enable them support the additional demand. However, we have to look beyond three months. We should invest in strengthening our IT infrastructure, and give targeted tax breaks and incentives for specific IT expenses by companies. j. With this pandemic, the telecommunications companies must also be encouraged to provide reliefs and discounts on their price regimes, otherwise the critical recommendation for Ghanaians to increase their use and deployment of the digital economy to assist in the fight against the virus may not be realised. *About the Okyeame Network Okyeame is the oldest social media group of Ghanaians. Started in 1990 by a group of Ghanaian students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA, USA, Okyeame has grown over the years to engage thousands of Ghanaians abroad and at home in robust discourse on Ghanas social, political, and economic development. Okyeame counts among its members and alumni, many prominent Ghanaians in all fields including academia, industry, law, and government. For further information or to join the Okyeame network, please send an email to: [email protected] Actor Joaquin Phoenix took the iconic character of Joker and reinvented it once again in an Oscar-winning role. But in another world he could have ended up playing the Joker's crime-fighting counterpart - Batman. The star was reportedly pegged as a potential Batman by Darren Aronofsky in Warner Bros project with a new take on the Dark Knight some years ago. His vision didn't materialise, but in an interview to Empire magazine, the director but opened up about his plans at the time, and how far they differed from those of the studio. Warner Bros fancied a much more clean-cut Bruce Wayne. "The studio wanted Freddie Prinze Jr and I wanted Joaquin Phoenix. I remember thinking, 'Uh oh, we're making two different films here.' That's a true story. It was a different time. The Batman I wrote was definitely a way different type of take than they ended up making," Aronofsky said. Christopher Nolan, who eventually bagged the project, borrowed elements from Frank Miller's Batman: Year One comic. Aronofsky's take was a closer adaptation of that influential series, with nods to Death Wish, The French Connection and Taxi Driver. Aronofsky wanted to go very dark, with Batman veering into torture territory. "The Batman that was out before me was Batman & Robin, the famous one with the nipples on the Batsuit, so I was really trying to undermine that, and reinvent it," he explained. Follow @News18Movies for more At least 16 people were killed in a shooting rampage in Canada's Nova Scotia on Sunday, police said. IMAGE: Royal Canadian Mounted Police members pack up after the shooting in Great Village, Nova Scotia, Canada. Photograph: John Morris/Reuters Officials said the suspected shooter was also dead. Brian Sauve, President of National Police Federation Union, said a police officer was among those killed in a shooting and another was injured. Police identified the man believed to be the shooter as Gabriel Wortman, 51, who was thought to live part-time in Portapique. Authorities said he wore a police uniform at one point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser. "This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history," said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. An Iraqi woman was pictured writing in pain on her hospital bed after she was allegedly set alight by her abusive husband - before dying of her wounds. Malak Haider al-Zubaidi, 20, was photographed in hospital in the city of Najaf last week before dying of multiple organ failure caused by her burns on Saturday. The horrifying images have caused outrage on social media since appearing online. Malak Haider al-Zubaidi, 20, was photographed writing in pain in her hospital bed in Iraq last week after she was allegedly doused with petrol and set alight by her abusive husband Malak's family say husband Mohammed Al Mayahli, a police officer, had banned her (left and right, before the attack) from speaking to them for eight months before the attack took place Husband Mohammed Al Mayahli, a police officer, is now facing calls for prosecution along with his family which is said to include a high-ranking member of the military. Malak's family say he was abusive to her and had cut off all contact for the last eight months, causing her to become distressed. They say that on the day she was burned, Mohammed attacked her with a phone charging cable before she was doused in petrol and set alight. He has denied the attack, uploading a post to social media claiming that she was suffering mental illness and set herself alight. Activists accuse the family of acting above the law because Mohammed's father is a general in the army. Following the outrage, an investigation has been launched. Shortly after the images were taken Malak died of her injuries, sparking outrage on social media and calls for her husband and his family to face prosecution Iraq's penal code gives husbands the right to 'discipline' their wives and there are no laws which criminalise domestic violence. However, the country's constitution prohibits 'all forms of violence and abuse in the family'. Stephen Hickey, Britain's Ambassador to Iraq, wrote on social media: 'We feel a great deal of sadness about Malak al-Zubaidi's case, and we hope the investigation is completed quickly. 'We would like to remind you that domestic violence, whether it is physiological or physical abuse, is a prevailing problem around the world.' Mark Bareta (left) and Oliver Lekeaka alias Field Marshal PhotoGrid from Facebook photos Belgium-based Cameroonian activist Mark Bareta has fired Lekeaka Oliver aka Field Marshal, leader of the Lebialem-based Red Dragons armed group fighting to make of Cameroon's North West and South West Regions an independent country christened Ambazonia. In a fiery missive addressed to the self-styled general on April 18, Mark Bareta officially revoked the title of Field Marshal, calling on others to henceforth treat the armed fighter with scorn owing to his shameful pursuits. I hereby state forcefully that Field Marshal, Oliver of the Lebialem County is not worthy of the title, Bareta thundered. He has brought disgrace and shame in the name of the Ambazonia Forces. He has become too partisan and Ambazonia does not need a fighter like him. On my name, on this date, I hereby popularly strip you off the title of Field Marshal and for the first time, I will ask you to reconsider being an Ambazonia fighter, take a retreat and do self-examination. Bareta advises Field Marshal to leave the Lebialem forests and join his blood brother Chris Anu in Maryland. Anu is Secretary for Communication and IT at the Interim Government of Ambazonia hitherto led by jailed Julius Ayuk Tabe. Hear Bareta: I call on all sister forces not to accord him such respect of Field Marshall anymore and if necessary pull him out of all defense groups. Oliver may now leave and join his brother and his group in Maryland as a politician so that he can continue the surrogacy there. Oliver may consider this as a safe passage because I know this plan of action is/was already on the way from his end. Now, Oliver has an excuse: You can now say Mark Bareta asks you to leave and I accept. Bareta says Field Marshals dismissal follows audios in which Lekeaka Oliver alias Field Marshal and his brother Chris Anu accuse Julius Ayuk Tabe of plunging the people of Cameroons North West and South West Regions into a war that has brought untold suffering and pain to the masses. listening to the audios coming from the Field Marshal of Lebialem with all types of lies and insults on President Sisiku Ayuk Julius Tabe, one cannot stay silent anymore. It seems henceforth, we will be commenting openly on acts committed by our forces no matter the name or group. This will surely help them become the best versions of themselves. It was shameful listening to the audios made by Field Marshal stating that Sisiku declared the war. I thought it was Biya who declared the war. How come Oliver is saying otherwise? Oliver goes to the extent of saying that Sisiku was taken out of the prison few days back to sign a Federation deal plus all types of lies on Sisiku I could not even say here And this is somebody that has murdered 100, 200, 300 Cameroun soldiers in his dream and the Sako-IG supporters will go ranting on media knowing fully well they are outright lies, said Bareta. Bareta ends by describing as a bunch of ungrateful bastards Samuel Ikome Sako who passes for President of the Ambazonia Interim Government as well as Chris Anu and his brother Oliver Lekeaka. Cameroon-Info.Net recalls that on February 8, 2020, Paul Tasong, Cameroons Minister Delegate to the Minister of Economy, Planning and Regional Development, described Field Marshall as an illusion. I insist that the so-called Field Marshal is an illusion. He has long escaped from Lebialem and is begging us to help him obtain a passport so he can leave the country. His brother, Christopher Anu has gone back to his alleluia church in Texas from where he is preaching death. The Red Dragons is a propaganda machine to divert our attention while they steal our wealth, said Tasong. We can no longer allow a family of highway robbers control our destiny. Lekeaka has broken into every credit union bank in Lebialem and stolen the savings of the entire population. His brother has swindled funds raised in America by his cohorts to burn down our beautiful Cameroon. Their sister was arrested as FCFA 366 million of stolen money from Lebialem and the diaspora was traced to have landed in her bank account. They are confiscating the cocoa harvested by the hard working Lebialem farmers. There was a powerful introduction to The Late Late Show on Friday night on RTE. Ryan Tubridy spent several minutes extemporising direct to the camera to congratulate the Irish people. They had saved hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lives. He talked of how the direction of growth of the coronavirus had been changed by the lockdown. One has only to do the simple maths on a doubling of infections every six days to reach millions within weeks. I did the sums myself and worked out in early March that a million Irish people would be infected by the start of June. And, at the rate of doubling, that figure would be two million within another week. At a rate of 1% dying, that would mean 20,000 in Ireland alone before the summer holidays. Of course, the virus would run out of people to infect or would find it harder to jump to fresh meat if most of us had already been taken down. That would be the herd immunity that the British flirted with as the solution. Boris Johnson had talked of being the Superman who would defend the right of commerce to continue to function. We would "take it on the chin". And, in fairness to him, he did. What opened his eyes to reality was not the prospect of huge numbers of people dying. His friends in the Daily Telegraph had even talked of the economic benefits of a "cull" of pensioners. The decisive moment was when he realised that the National Health Service would collapse under the burden, many of the victims would die in their homes untreated, and it cannot have escaped his consideration that a Tory Government, which had pruned the NHS like a rose bush, would get the blame for that. So we then saw a Tory Government follow the example of communist China and do something that Boris on his Caribbean holiday would never have contemplated: shutting down almost everything. By then this was what Western democracies did to save their health services. Even Angela Merkel stressed in a speech last week that her objective was keeping the infection rate at a level the health service could cope with. And we have seen some magnificent journalism in the last week from inside the intensive care units of hospitals, likening the doctors and nurses to front line troops in a war. And every Thursday night we go out onto our doorsteps and applaud those magnificent people. When this is over we will, hopefully, deal with the political incompetents who left them ill-equipped; and those who let care homes manage unaided and didn't even count their losses among the dead; and the idiots who let London bus drivers die for want of protective masks. But Tubridy's speech was not about blame, it was about thanks. And not specifically for the front line warriors in the hospitals, but for the rest of us. We are the ones who saved most lives. "You did it," said Tubridy. "You." The trajectory towards megadeath and the breakdown of the health service was tamed by ordinary people following the rules, staying at home, keeping their distance and washing their hands. A mathematician could probably put a number on the lives saved by each diligent individual. Collectively, it was tens of thousands. More lives even than those saved in the care homes and hospitals. And Tubridy was saying we had a right to feel good about ourselves for doing that. And he is right. We do. And, yet, it had felt to most of us as if we were doing nothing. It's not too hard for me. I have good living space. I am a pensioner and my mortgage is paid. I still have an income from work that I can do at home, though I have slept in a few times and missed invitations to go on the Nolan Show. For some, there is real effort and sacrifice in how they manage this. There was a woman interviewed from a high-rise flat last week. She spoke of having two children who bickered. She tried to teach them and entertain them. She spends a lot more time in bed now. That woman deserves massive credit for what she is doing. How do you keep a social distance from everyone if you access your home in a lift? Yet there is a lot of suspicion out there that the lockdown and social distancing are doing more harm than good. The success of the lockdown can be misrepresented as evidence that it wasn't needed. Business wants to get back to buying and selling. Johnson himself was, at the start of this, determined to set an example to the world of his own personal heroism by keeping commerce at the front of our concerns. And Donald Trump is cheering on protesters in the United States who want their state governors to relax the rules. YouTubers are raging about how their constitutional freedoms should not be compromised to fight the virus. And, framing it all as a war, which it is, one loon went as far as to say that Americans had died for freedom before and should be ready to die for it again. Major protests are planned in several US states in the coming weeks and they will probably end up providing a demonstration of the need for a longer lockdown. The blowhards will not be persuaded. Would they insist on walking past a rattlesnake because they have a right to? And probably most of us are getting a bit sick of the lockdown anyway. You queue for half-an-hour to get into Tesco. You go out for a walk and try to keep six feet away from everybody, and runners and cyclists zip past you without a thought. In fact you forget yourself sometimes to give people a bit of space, because that's what happens when you are exercising; your mind wanders, you relax your guard. What Tubridy got right on Friday last was the need to acknowledge that lockdown is not just tedious, but hugely successful. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar had mimicked Churchill by saying that, at the end of this, never would so much be owed to so few, meaning the healthcare professionals. Actually, most is owed to the many. And most of the many had very little to do but stay home and watch daytime TV and save lives. For others, it has been hell. We should coin a medal for them. As for the nurses - pay them properly. The vanishing of Victor Fernandez Alvarez, a Mexican journalist whose detached head was discovered this month, has revealed a division between the media and law enforcement as "violence against journalists" has intensified in a union-controlled Mexican port. According to reports, Alvarez went missing the first week of April after he was allegedly threatened over his investigative reports on the Acapulco port area, on the Pacific coast of Mexico. His family notified local prosecutors immediately. However, the latter refused to file the report of a missing person and told the disappeared journalist's loved ones to come back after 72 hours. In relation to this, the public prosecutors revealed, the cut-off head, which was discovered on the corner of a high school in the area last Saturday, belonged to the journalist. Case Still Covered in Mystery Press freedom organization, Articulo19 director, Ana Cristina Ruelas said, Alvarez's case remains covered in mystery. She added that the journalists doubt the local institutions who they regard as to be in conspiracy with a planned crime. The organization leader emphasized that the only sure thing is that, Alvarez vanished in Acapulco's port area, and that the same prosecuting attorneys who are supposedly investigating the journalist's disappearance, have been antagonistic toward the journalists lately. The violence journalists are experiencing, according to Ruelos, specifically in the State of Guerrero, has intensified "to a level we never witnessed before," and this, she continued, is very alarming. Incidentally, in both the cities of Acapulco and Igual, there have recently been various threats reportedly, by organized crime groups against some media practitioners." Jorge Zuriel Delos Santos Barilla, the Attorney General of the state, did not give an immediate response to an email sent him requesting for comment. Alvarez as the Third Journalist Reportedly Killed in Mexico The alleged murder of Alvarez is the third similar case where a journalist was reported killed in this country since the start of 2020. In January, Fidel Avila, a radio journalist, was also discovered killed after he went missing a few months before. Then, on March 30, another journalist identified as Maria Elena Ferral was shot dead by an unidentified man riding on a motorcycle in Veracruz, the state Mexico known for having intense violence against journalists. Presently, according to the Committee for the Protection of Journalists, 14 journalists remain missing in the country. A few days after the discovery of a dismembered head, which was thought to be Alvarez's, an anonymous account on Twitter posted some screenshots of threats which the members of the alleged narcotics cartel, along with the list of the names of news reporters, which included his. The said tweet was posted along with the "matapulco" hashtag. This is a combined Spanish word, which means "kill and Acapulco." Part of the screenshot is another threat closing with, "Let's see if the commanders who invite you for food and drink will protect you," and that the alleged "cleansing" has already begun with journalists. Check these out! MONROE A Bridgeport teenage has been charged in connection with thefts from vehicles in the Barn Hill Road area. The 17-year old was charged April 18 with second-degree larceny, third-degree burglary, sixth-degree larceny and two counts of criminal attempt of sixth-degree larceny. Police said a second individual was involved in the thefts but was not identified. Police responded to a Fairlea Drive home about 3:43 a.m. April 18 on a report of some people apparently attempting to enter vehicles in the driveway. Police said the officers did not locate anybody but found a white Audi A4 later determined to be stolen out of Greenwich. During the course of the neighborhood canvas, officers located several vehicles that had been left unlocked and were ransacked, said Monroe Police Lt. Stephen Corrone. At 5:42 a.m., Corrone said a Monroe police sergeant observed someone behind a residence on Nickel Place. A K-9 from Westport Police Department was called to assist with the search. While waiting for the K-9, Corrone said an Uber driver was seen on an adjacent street and someone was spotted walking to the vehicle from a residence on the street. The individual was identified as a juvenile male from Bridgeport. The juvenile stated he was in the area to meet a friend who lives there, said Corrone. A check with the area homeowners proved this to be false, since none claimed to know the individual. Property was later located in the area with stolen items from vehicles located in the Barn Hill Road area. Corrone said area surveillance footage recovered from Monroe residents identified the juvenile suspect as one of two people involved in the thefts. Officers were unable to locate the second suspect. The juvenile suspect was released to a parents custody and is due in Bridgeport Juvenile Court on June 3. brian.gioiele@hearstmediact.com tech2 News Staff Editor's Note: The NASA-SpaceX joint human spaceflight was scheduled for liftoff on Thursday, 28 May, 2.00 am IST (Wednesday, 27 May at 4.32 pm EDT) from the Launch Complex 39A from the Kenndy Space Centre, Florida. However, due to bad weather conditions, they had to cancel the launch. It has now been re-scheduled for 31 May, 12.52 AM IST. NASA and SpaceX are all set to launch its astronauts, almost 10 years after the fatal Space Shuttle accident that shut down their human spaceflight program. The space agency and the private aerospace company have decided to launch on Wednesday, 27 May at 4.32 pm EDT (Thursday, 28 May, 2.00 am IST) from the Launch Complex 39A from the Kenndy Space Centre, Florida. Astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken will blast off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, departing from the same Kennedy Space Center launch pad used by shuttle Atlantis in July 2011, as well as the Apollo moonshots a half-century ago. Coincidently, Hurley had served as pilot on the last shuttle mission and will be the spacecraft commander for SpaceXs Dragon crew capsule. Only three countries have launched human beings into orbit since 1961 - Russia, the US and China, in that order. SpaceX would be the first company. As with most missions, this date could change depending on pre-flight testing and last-minute emergencies. However, if all goes as planned, the mission would mark the first time NASA launches its astronauts from US soil, since 2011. It is also too soon to tell how the novel coronavirus pandemic that shut down the entire world will affect this mission affect this launch and what will it mean for visitors. Recently, Expedition 63 that launched on 9 April had an empty launch due to fear of the transmission of the disease. Next months mission will be the final test for Crew Dragon before it starts regularly flying astronauts to space for NASA, under its Commercial Crew Program, a public-private initiative. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced the mission with a tweet about Elon Musk, billionaire entrepreneur and owner of SpaceX sending two astronauts to the ISS aboard the Falcon 9 rocket. BREAKING: On May 27, @NASA will once again launch American astronauts on American rockets from American soil! Bridenstine wrote on Twitter. Learn more about the mission: https://t.co/z6aPUkUJ37 Jim Bridenstine (@JimBridenstine) April 17, 2020 Hurley and Behnken have extensive experience in space and have been involved in NASA's Space Shuttle flights. Behnken will be the joint operations commander in this mission and was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2000. He has completed two space shuttle flights - STS-123 in March 2008 and STS-130 in February 2010 and performed three spacewalks during each mission. Hurley was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2000 and will be the spacecraft commander for Demo-2. He has completed two spaceflights - STS127 in July 2009 and STS135, the final space shuttle mission, in July 2011. He was the pilot and lead robotics operator for both missions. NASA has not announced how long they will be spending in the space station and it is currently 'under review'. The agency is wondering if their stay can be extended from a week to six months as this will ensure that the station is staffed with NASA astronauts continuously. With the space station crew now down to three, Hurley and Behnken will have to help maintain the orbiting lab. Since 2009 the ISS can, at one point, support six astronauts. According to a NASA blog, the Crew Dragon that will be used in this flight can stay in orbit for around 110 days but the specific duration will be determined once the astronauts are in the station. As a NASA requirement, the crew capsules should be able to stay in orbit for up to 210 days and the decision will be taken considering the readiness of the next commercial crew launch. US Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle program was a reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system that was operated from 1981 to 2011. Its official program name was Space Transportation System (STS). It has launched man satellites and interplanetary probes, as well as the Hubble Space Telescope and helped in the construction and servicing of the International Space Station. However, the program was deadly with two major disasters, shutting it down forever. On 28 January 1986, the STS-51-L disintegrated 73 seconds after its launch, due to an equipment failure and killed seven astronauts on board. Again, on 1 February 2003, a spacecraft disintegrated during re-entry and killed all seven of the STS-107 crew. Soyuz missions NASA has been working with SpaceX's and Boeing's to develop its own human space flight program but there have been countless delays with the private companies' crew capsules which in turn has forced NASA to continue to buy seats on Russia's Soyuz rockets. They have become a very expensive necessity for the US space agency as Russia has scaled back it program to just two missions a year. For this mission, as a precaution, NASA has bought seats on the Soyuz rocket. The Soyuz capsules have been the only way to transport the crews the space station since 2011. Boeing Boeing has had a lot of trouble with developing a safe and functional crew capsule that can take NASA astronauts to the ISS. Its last flight test was a massive failure and NASA has even opened an investigation into this disaster test flight. Boeing Cos CST-100 Starliner astronaut capsule had a successful launch of its first unmanned test mission, but an automated timer error prevented the spacecraft from attaining the correct orbit for it to rendezvous and dock with the space station. It is supposed to have another test flight, later this year. With input from agencies Also Read: What do we know SpaceX's astronaut suits and the vehicle they use to travel to the launchpad; launch on Sunday, 31 May, 12.52 am IST The owner of a Roanoke fitness center has been cited for remaining open in violation of a statewide order directing gyms and other businesses deemed non-essential to temporarily close. It looks like it's going to be second time unlucky for Hayden Quinn on MasterChef. The Back to Win contestant, who placed sixth on season three in 2011, appears to once again fail to reach the finale in this year's competition. Daily Mail Australia can reveal the 34-year-old celebrity chef is already back home in Sydney, despite the show still being in the final stages of production in Melbourne. Second time unlucky! It looks like MasterChef Australia's Hayden Quinn (pictured) won't reach the finale this year, after placing sixth on season three in 2011 Hayden was pictured in Bunnings Balgowlah on Friday morning. He chatted to employees about the show while stocking up on DIY items before returning to his nearby Northern Beaches home. His presence in Sydney seemingly confirms he leaves the show early once again. Last week, producers confirmed filming was still under way in Melbourne, with the cast and crew observing the government's COVID-19 regulations. Home already? The 34-year-old celebrity chef is already back home in Sydney, despite the show still being in the final stages of production in Melbourne. Pictured in Bunnings Balgowlah on Friday morning A long way from the kitchen! He chatted to employees at a Bunnings store in northern Sydney while stocking up on DIY items before returning to his nearby home A spokesperson from production company Endemol Shine Australia said that hand sanitising stations and additional sinks were being provided. 'Under the current circumstances, we are introducing new measures for the foreseeable future,' they told the Huffington Post. Judge Jock Zonfrillo said earlier this month that contestants from interstate were staying in Melbourne on the weekends because of travel restrictions. 'It's tough for me personally. My family, wife and kids, are in Adelaide while I'm here in Melbourne filming,' Jock told Hit Mid North Coast on April 9. 'It's tough': On April 9, MasterChef judge Jock Zonfrillo (pictured) said that contestants from interstate were staying in Melbourne on the weekends because of travel restrictions Poh Ling Yeow said on April 1 that MasterChef was only 'halfway through' production, and social distancing had made things difficult on set. 'It looks a little bit different. Everyone is stood 1.5m apart from each other following the government regulations, and we're pushing ahead,' she told Hit 105. 'We don't have a live audience, so we're in a privileged position to keep going.' WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the federal government is stepping up efforts to obtain vital supplies for coronavirus testing, hours after several governors from both parties faulted his administration for not doing enough to help states. Public health experts say testing on a larger scale is a crucial step before resuming normal social and economic activity in the country. But Trump defended the administration's approach of leaving testing largely to states. "Testing is a local thing," Trump said at a White House briefing. He said too many governors were relying on state government labs and should turn to commercial labs to help them process more tests. He didn't name any particular states or officials. But earlier Sunday, Republican and Democratic governors were unanimous in putting the onus on the federal government to help secure vital testing components, including swabs and reagents, the chemical solutions required to run the tests, which the governors said have been in short supply. "To try to push this off to say that the governors have plenty of testing, and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren't doing our job, is just absolutely false," Republican Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland told CNN's "State of the Union." "Every governor in America has been pushing and fighting and clawing to get more tests, not only from the federal government, but from every private lab in America and from all across the world." Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia, which is working closely with officials in neighboring Maryland and the District of Columbia, called Trump administration claims of sufficient testing "delusional." "We've been fighting for testing," Northam, a physician, told CNN. "It's not a straightforward test. We don't even have enough swabs, believe it or not. And we're ramping that up." Trump, displaying a nasal swab to reporters, said the federal government was procuring millions more swabs, and then claimed some states had lost the ones they were already sent. "We also are going to be using, and we're preparing to use the Defense Production Act to increase swab production in one U.S. facility by over 20 million additional swabs per month," Trump said. "We've had a little difficulty with one. So we're going to call in - as we have in the past, as you know, we're calling in the Defense Production Act, and we'll be getting swabs very easily. Swabs are easy." White House officials did not respond to requests for details about how the measure would be implemented. As of Sunday evening, there was no official documents released showing that the Defense Production Act had been invoked for swabs. Seema Verma, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, also announced that nursing homes will be required to inform the CDC when they confirm a positive case of covid-19 in their facilities. Some of the most severe outbreaks have occurred in those facilities. The pushback from governors came on a day that the total number of confirmed deaths from covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, passed 35,000. Although some states have reported a leveling off in the number of deaths and new infections, nationally those figures are still rising. More than 749,000 confirmed infections have been reported as of Sunday night. Experts say the number of tests has not kept pace with the severity of the infection. Nationally, the number of tests has plateaued to an average of about 146,000 per day. But some state officials, business leaders and public health experts say that is woefully short of the several hundred thousands or perhaps even millions of daily tests it might take to safely restart the economy. Some governors said only the federal government had the authority to make decisions that could speed up the deployment of testing kits. Ohio's Republican governor, Mike DeWine, said his state's "big problem" is that the federal Food and Drug Administration has not prioritized companies that are "putting a slightly different formula together" for their testing kits. "I could probably double, maybe even triple testing in Ohio virtually overnight" if the FDA would do that, DeWine told NBC News' "Meet the Press." Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, said on NBC that her state has "the capacity to double or triple the number of tests that we are doing, but we need some of these supplies." "The reagents and the swabs are absolutely essential," she said. "You can't process all these tests if you can't take the sample and protect it and move forward through testing. And so while our capabilities are there, these important supplies are not." In Massachusetts, which is now seeing a surge in infections of covid-19, Republican Gov. Charlie Baker emphasized that states need "guidance" from federal agencies, including the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "especially the ability to put the foot on the accelerator with respect to advancements in testing." "Everything associated with testing ultimately has to be approved by the CDC and the FDA," he said on CBS News' "Face the Nation." Trump defended his administration's performance, tweeting on Sunday afternoon: "Just like I was right on Ventilators (our Country is now the 'King of Ventilators', other countries are calling asking for help-we will!), I am right on testing. Governors must be able to step up and get the job done. We will be with you ALL THE WAY!" For all the bipartisan agreement that testing must increase, there were signs that the public's patience was fraying with restrictive orders to remain at home and stop working. In Washington state, more than 2,000 protesters showed up at the Capitol in Olympia calling on Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, to lift a stay-home order meant to slow the spread of the virus, according to the Washington State Patrol. Smaller protests have erupted across the country in response to state stay-home orders. Trump has signaled his support for some, tweeting that residents of Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia should "liberate" their states after demonstrations last week. On Saturday, a few dozen protesters gathered outside the Utah Capitol, demanding that officials allow people to return to work. Protests were planned for Monday in California and Pennsylvania, and for later this week in Missouri and Wisconsin. Vice President Mike Pence, when asked on Sunday talk shows whether Trump was inciting citizens to rise up against their state governments, defended Trump's comments and pledged to work with governors to safely reopen the economy. A former head of the FDA, who served under Trump, agreed with governors who were critical of the administration and said that the federal government must do more to safely resume normal activity. The administration has pursued a "loose strategy" and needs to focus more closely on obtaining supplies, Scott Gottlieb said on CBS News' "Face the Nation." "I think states are largely on their own trying to get testing resources into their states," he said, noting that the shortage of swabs and reagents is a more urgent matter than lack of lab capacity. "If you have the government more engaged in trying to manage that supply chain, getting supplies to the states that need it most, and trying to look for ways to increase manufacturing at a national level, that could help the states get the supplies they need," he added. Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose state has seen by far the largest numbers of infections and deaths from covid-19, said states also must begin wide testing for antibodies, which could indicate who was already infected with the virus and may be immune. He pledged at a news conference that New York would pursue antibody testing "in the most aggressive way in the nation." The FDA has authorized four antibody tests on an emergency basis, but dozens more have been put on the market without any review by the federal agency. Some experts, including at the FDA, are concerned that those unvetted tests may be of dubious quality and yield unreliable results. Since the first case of covid-19 was confirmed in the U.S., public health officials have called for more testing, both as a means of understanding how many people were infected and isolating people with the virus before they can infect others. Deborah Birx, the Trump administration's coronavirus response coordinator, shifted the emphasis of the debate slightly, telling CBS that mass testing in areas that do not have known outbreaks of the virus could be counterproductive. "Testing needs to be focused critically where you start to see early evidence [of transmission] because no test is 100% specific and 100% sensitive," she said. "And so if you test and overtest in areas where there isn't virus, you can end up with false positives and false negatives." Experts agree that future testing will need to focus aggressively on outbreaks and be accompanied by tracing contact of the people who may have been exposed to the infected patient. But before that can occur, health officials say they need much more testing to develop baselines that will indicate when a new outbreak is happening. Birx said the White House task force was "working with every laboratory director across the country . . . to really understand and find solutions for them on their issues related to supplies." She questioned whether nearly a million tests a day were necessary and emphasized that outbreaks have to be addressed on a case-by-case basis, rather than with a single national approach. "This has to be looked at as a community by community," she said, resisting questions about when the country would know that it was safe to begin a return to normal life. "It needs to be down to the communities so the communities can see what happens in their communities and make decisions with the local and health officials and the state officials, what can be opened and what needs to remain closed." Some communities have decided that time is now. In Florida, local officials allowed the public back onto some beaches, after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday said beachfront governments could make those decisions on their own. Despite admonitions to maintain social distancing, local news showed photos and videos of shoreline dotted with people closer than six feet apart. - - - The Washington Post's Meryl Kornfield, Samantha Pell and Steven Goff contributed to this report. Surging power bills spark anger BANGKOK: Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong will meet power authorities urgently on Monday (Apr 20) to iron out growing complaints by households over unusually high electricity bills. By Bangkok Post Monday 20 April 2020, 09:39AM A notice by the PEA explaining that people using air conditioners can save money by setting the temperature to 26-27C instead of 23-24C. Image: PEA Many social media users were taken aback by their electricity bills having doubled, or even tripled, in the past month. They are demanding the government find a solution, insisting they have worked from home to prevent COVID-19 spreading and it is now time for the government to help them with the resulting increase in demand for electricity. Several complaints said the increase even given the increase in demand were still abnormally high. On his Facebook, Mr Sontirat said yesterday he would call an urgent meeting with the Energy Regulatory Commission and related agencies to decide on electricity-related measures, on top of those already rolled out to help alleviate the plight of the public. The measures already in place are free electricity for small households, returning the home electricity meter deposit to 21 million households and a temporary 3% discount on electricity rates. Many complainants said they had used the deposit return to pay the steep bills. In his tweet, Mr Sontirat, also secretary-general of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, said in response to the complaints: Im not taking the matter lightly. Senator Kamnoon Sidhisamarn, on his Facebook, conveyed the experience of a friend who lives in a tiny condominium and usually paid between B1,600 and B1,900 a month before the stay-at-home policy came. His latest bill shows he owed B3,400. The 3% discount works out to around 100 baht, which is not much, Mr Kamnoon said. The senator said the government should waive the first B1,000 of electricity charges and offer a 50% discount for the rest of the bill over the next three months. That would help them cope with financial burden during the current crisis, Mr Kamnoon said. Mr Kamnoon, a member of the Senate standing committee on tackling poverty and social disparity, asked Mr Sontirat take up on his idea and pass it to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. A Facebook user named Nattee Taweesit said his power bill surged from B1,800 to B3,800, and later to B6,000 last month. He called the hike outrageous. Even if three more air conditioners and two refrigerators were installed, the charge shouldnt have jumped three or four times, he said. This is a household, not a factory, he added. Pol Lt Col Ekkarat Hun-ngam, chief of Bang Saphan Noi Police Station in Prachuap Khiri Khan who ran in last years general election under the Thai Liberal Partys banner, said his electricity bill has risen from B900 to B2,000 a month. His post drew responses from other Facebook users who shared a similar experience about rising electricity costs over the past few months. Meanwhile, Somphong Prempri, governor of Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), said consumers with queries about their bills should inform the PEA. A major spike in electricity bills may have stemmed from an increase in energy consumption during the hot summer months. However, he admitted a three-fold increase is not normal and needs to be looked at. Electrical leakage can also cause high bills, he said, adding the PEA usually compensates consumers in that case. Read original story here. Walentyna Janta-Polczynska, among the last surviving members of the Polish government in exile, which was formed after Nazi Germany invaded Poland, died on April 2 in Queens. She was 107. Her death, at a hospital, was confirmed by her niece and closest survivor, Karolina Rostafinski Merk. Ms. Janta-Polczynska known then as Walentyna Stocker emigrated to New York after the war and married Aleksander Janta-Polczynski, a journalist and poet. They opened an antiquarian bookstore in New York, and their home in Elmhurst, Queens, became a gathering spot for Polish artists, writers and expatriates who had fled the Communist dictatorship that had taken power after the war. She became known as the first lady of American Polonia. When Poland was invaded in 1939, Ms. Janta-Polczynska was studying English in London and was soon hired by the Polish embassy. She was promoted to personal secretary to General Wladyslaw Sikorski, the prime minister of the Polish government in exile and commander of the Free Polish Armed Forces, and became his confidante. Former President John Mahama is suggesting to the government to extend the partial lockdown it has imposed on some parts of the country as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Ghana. John Mahama, who is also the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in a tweet said the extension has become necessary because of advice from health experts and the upsurge in the number of COVID-19 cases of the disease in Ghana makes it necessary to extend the restrictions on movement in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area including Tema and Kasoa as well as the Kumasi Metropolitan Area. Many Ghanaians are anxious as they await a televised address from President Nana Akufo-Addo with updates on Ghanas fight against COVID-19 and also an announcement on whether or not the existing restriction of movement will be extended. Ahead of that update, John Mahama believes it will only be appropriate that President Akufo-Addo announces an extension on the restrictions. Recent developments have made it clear, the extent of the spread of the virus. The last report put the number of confirmed cases at 834. Many health experts continue to suggest the necessity and appropriateness of an extension of the restrictions on movement. John Mahamas position has been shared by a health Economist, Dr. Gordon Abeka-Nkrumah who cautioned the government against lifting the restrictions on movement. Dr. Gordon Abeka-Nkrumah on The Big Issue said Ghana is at its critical stage in the fight against the novel coronavirus and any move to remove the current restriction of movements will affect the progress made so far. Lockdowns have economic gradients. So the best we can do is to make sure that, we get people to stay home in the next week or two. We make sure we ramp up tests and isolate people and then we can encourage the wearing of masks so that we can then come out. Because if we don't do that and we joke, what will happen is that, we may go back again and lockdown entirely in a way that we probably can not handled. We need to get a bit more firm and get this to work, he said. ---citinewsroom Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 01:52:30|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BAGHDAD, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Health Ministry on Monday confirmed 35 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections to 1,574 in the country. The 35 new cases are 13 in the capital Baghdad, 12 in Basra, eight in Muthanna and one in Najaf and Dhi Qar each, the ministry said in a statement. So far, 82 patients died from the disease while 1,043 others recovered, the statement said, adding that no death was registered during the day. The Iraqi authorities have taken several measures to contain the outbreak of COVID-19, including imposing a nationwide curfew. The Iraqi authorities decided on Sunday to partially lift the earlier imposed curfew hours from April 21 to May 22, except for Friday and Saturday during the period. The partial curfew will also cover most of the holy month of Ramadan, which is expected to start on April 24 or 25 according to the Islamic lunar calendar. The measures also included continuously preventing internal and external travels as well as the movement between the provinces. Earlier in the day, a third batch of Chinese medical aid arrived in Baghdad as part of China's assistance to boost Iraq's capability to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. On March 7, China sent the first batch of medical aid to Iraq, with a medical team of seven Chinese experts to work with their Iraqi counterparts to fight the coronavirus, while the second batch of aid arrived on April 8. Enditem If youre someone who frequently attends Broadway of Off-Broadway musicals or you simply favor movies of the musical assortment youre likely in need of some musical melodies and heartwarming harmonies amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) quarantine. If you have Amazon Prime, youre in luck, because there are a handful of classic movie musicals you can stream for free! So, lets dive into the movies you should rewatch or stream for the first time. Amazon Prime Video | JOSEP LAGO/AFP via Getty Images 1. Fiddler on the Roof (1971) Tradition and religion clash with an ever-evolving social landscape as a Jewish father tries to maintain his traditional values in a household with five daughters three of whom wish to marry for love, defying the wills of a matchmaker. The story is about family, its about courage, its about love and loss, confusion and internal conflict. To make matters even worse, the family isnt exactly well off, leading to the iconic showtune, If I Were a Rich Man, which Gwen Stefani later adapted. Yet, other enjoyable numbers include Matchmaker, To Life, Miracles of Miracles, and Tevyes Dream. Yet, of course, the film saves space for a tearjerking number or two. 2. Hair (1979) John Savage is in New York City for the first time ready to enlist in the U.S Army during the Vietnam War. However, the situation grows complicated when he meets up with a motley crew of central park hippies. Romances arise between the country boy and a city girl as the war rages on amid protestand men grow their hair in defiance. From Hair and Aquarius to Let the Sunshine In and Hare Krishna, the movie boasts several musical numbers that have gained recognition and popularity outside the Broadway production and subsequent movie. 3. Little Shop of Horrors (1960) Who could forget the flower that feeds on human flesh and blood? With a reboot starring Chris Evans as The Dentist in the pipeline (albeit it a bit far in the future), what better time to watch the classic tale? Suddenly, Seymour is waiting for you to begin streaming the musical. 4. Bye Bye Birdie (1995) The original Bye Bye Birdie came out in 1963, and while you can rent this movie for less than three dollars, the 1995 version is free, so the choice is yours! When an Elvis-like teenager gets drafted, all his fans are outraged, but no one could be more worried than his manager! If for no other reason than to listen to The Telephone Hour, you must watch one of these takes on Bye Bye Birdie, if not both. 5. Cinderella (1965) To those of you who were hoping to see at least one Disney movie on this list, youre in luck. The 1965 version of Cinderella starring Ginger Rogers, Walter Pigeon, Lesley Ann Warren, and more is available to stream for free with your Amazon Prime membership. So, are you ready to watch the one about the girl, her silver slipper, and the carriage that turns into a pumpkin when the clock strikes midnight? Why are Americans so obedient, so servile? That isnt the image they hope to show the world but there they are, a herd of sheep in Trumps presence, baaa-ing approvingly. Everybody feels the evil, but no one has courage or energy enough to seek the cure, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote of Americans in 1830. Again, why? Donald Trump stumps up to the podium every day and makes a fool of himself. He spouts nonsense for hours thus replicating his now-dead campaign rallies, lying, talking nonsense, insulting women, shouting at men, threatening to fire government staff for disagreeing with him, planning vengeance on Democratic governors, pronouncing words wrong and adding numbers incorrectly, sending crude racist remarks over to China, and making his terror and neediness plain. Look at me, he says, the way toddlers do when they step over the kitten rather then squashing it, I did it! Shakespeare knew his Trumps, devising insults that would be wildly suitable 440 years later. Hes a most notable coward, an infinite and endless liar, an hourly promise breaker. Thou cream-faced loon! Where gotst thou that goose look? Nut-hook, nut-hook, you lie. Would thou wert clean enough to spit upon That trunk of humours, that bolting-hutch of beastliness, that swollen parcel of dropsies, that huge bombard of sack, that stuffed cloak-bag of guts, that roasted Manningtree ox with the pudding in his belly, that reverend Vice, that grey Iniquity, that father Ruffian, that Vanity in years? I think of these things as I leave the house for a 10-minute walk to escape Trump. On return, I stand outside my front window and photograph Trump on a TV screen inside, spraying venom and stupidity. It reinforces the strangeness of life right now. Why do Americans, alleged rugged individualists, upholders of liberty, haters of king and government, put up with this grotesque man? Theyre in the habit of doing so, some American observers have said. Most presidents though not Nixon or Dubya generally talked sense before and Americans grew used to listening. But its more than habit. Americans bow down to authority just as Britons do to monarchs and aristocrats; they doff their cap. They actually play a silly song, Hail to the Chief, when a president enters a room and have done so since 1829. Americans worship titles. We refer to former prime ministers, but a president is called President for the rest of his life. On political talking heads shows, a long-retired diplomat is always called Ambassador. Generals remain generals even after retirement, which seems hopelessly pompous. Same with PhDs calling themselves doctors, especially now when medical doctors are needed but doctors of philosophy less so. Titles are very important to Americans. So is paperwork. Americans are meticulous about identity, paperwork proving identity, green cards, and citizenship status, always demanding endless perfect forms, especially from anyone hoping to enter their country. Many Americans, especially in the Midwest, are of German descent and share the German love of meticulous paperwork. Germans in Germany, however, are coping with coronavirus very well, thanks to close tracking, tracing and testing. This habit offered them no honour in the Nazi era but I can see its usefulness now. But obedient paper-loving Americans are paying with their lives because they are obediently following a Trump, not an Angela Merkel. Cant they spot the difference? In Canada, we dont even want a low-key prime ministerial residence at Harrington Lake repaired, even though its foundation is sinking and the floors are getting bendy. We take our desire for equality to extremes. Americans worship the almighty dollar and rate themselves according to their accumulation of same. They cherish inequality because theyre told everyone has an equal chance to put their head down and work on getting rich. This old myth will not die. Trump is keeping the rich seat warm. Why complain? I wish one of the extremely rich, white men physically close to Trump at his daily pep rally would turn to him on camera and say No. Youre a president not a king, youre a crook and a phony and a moron, too mean and stupid to be allowed to destroy the nation we love. Its not much but it would be a start. Heather Mallick is a columnist based in Toronto covering current affairs. Follow her on Twitter: is a columnist based in Toronto covering current affairs. Follow her on Twitter: @HeatherMallick Read more about: Colliding black holes aren't always as evenly matched as scientists expected, according to a cosmic chirp astronomers have puzzled over for a year. On April 12, 2019, gravitational wave detectors picked up a signal of space-time ripples caused by colliding black holes which in and of itself has gone from groundbreaking to nearly mundane over the past five years. But as scientists studied the detection more closely, they realized that it didn't match the signals they have seen so far. Instead of two evenly matched black holes, the new detection seemed to be triggered by a lopsided merger in which one black hole was three or four times more massive than the other. Scientists affiliated with the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) announced the discovery April 18 at an online meeting of the American Physical Society. "It's an unlikely observation," Maya Fishbach, a doctoral candidate at the University of Chicago who presented the new discovery, said during her talk. "It's an exceptional event because we just wouldn't have expected it based on those first 10 binary black holes." Related: Eureka! Scientists photograph a black hole for the 1st time An artist's depiction of mismatched black holes colliding. (Image credit: N. Fischer, H. Pfeiffer, A. Buonanno (Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics), Simulating eXtreme Spacetimes project) Scientists studied those 10 mergers during LIGO's first two observing runs, conducted between 2015 and 2017. Each time, no matter how big the collision, the two black holes involved were about the same size. Then, just weeks into LIGO's third observing run in 2019, the newly reported signal appeared and turned that trend on its head. We had detected several binary black hole mergers before, but never one where the bigger black hole is nearly four times more massive than its companion," Frank Ohme, a LIGO scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics in Germany, said in a statement . "Its clear we are just beginning to understand the diversity of black hole binaries out there, and I am excited to decipher the universe's secrets every day a little more." The newly announced discovery involved objects about 2.4 billion light-years away, Fishbach said, with one black hole about eight times the mass of our sun and the other about 30 times the mass of our sun. "This is roughly equal to the ratio of filling in a regular Oreo to [that] in a Mega Stuf Oreo," Christopher Berry, a gravitational-wave scientist at Northwestern University, wrote in a blog post about the detection. (Don't get too excited: "Investigations of connections between Oreos and black hole formation are ongoing," he added.) The detection gives scientists a better understanding of how black holes pair up. "We are learning that systems of this kind exist and how rare they are," Giancarlo Cella, researcher at Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare in Italy and the data analysis coordinator for LIGO's European counterpart Virgo, said in a statement . "This will allow us to deduce how they formed." LIGO's third observing run, which was cut short by the spreading coronavirus pandemic, netted a treasure trove of more than 50 detections, Fishbach said. Scientists are still analyzing those observations, so other unbalanced mergers could be hiding in that data. But even just the one asymmetric merger dramatically reshapes the range of black hole pairs scientists are now prepared to expect. "This one event represents a big step forward in our understanding of the population," Fishbach said. The new research is described in a paper posted on April 18 by the LIGO collaboration but not yet published or peer-reviewed. Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her @meghanbartels . Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook . Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday (April 20) sought to know the rationale behind the formation and deployment of Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) in several districts to assess the enforcement of lockdown norms in states. She urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to share criteria for the assessment, without which the Bengal government not not be able to take any further step. Taking to social media, Mamata shared a post on Twitter, that read, "We welcome all constructive support and suggestions, especially from the Central government in negating the COVID-19 crisis. However, the basis on which the Centre is proposing to deploy IMCTs in select districts across India including a few in WB under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 is unclear." "I urge both Honb'le Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ji and Home Minister Amit Shah Ji to share the criterion used for this. Until then I am afraid, we would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism," she said in another tweet. Earlier in the day, West Bengal Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha said that the Centre did not consult the West Bengal government before sending the inter-ministerial teams. He said the ICMT teams were sent to the state without following laid-down norms and said the members deployed have been roaming several areas, but the administration here has not been kept in the loop. Six IMCTs have been constituted by the Centre to assess the situation regarding the violations of lockdown, social distancing norms and attack on doctors in states like Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal, and submit a report to the government. In Bengal, seven districts which are under the radar are: Kolkata, Howrah, North 24-Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, East Medinipur and Jalpaiguri. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of lockdown measures as per the guidelines, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, the safety of health professionals and conditions of the relief camps for labour and poor people. A lab technician at Northwell Health. Andrew Theodorakis/Getty Images Northwell Health, the largest health system in New York, is giving its frontline workers a $2,500 bonus and a week of paid time off for their work responding to the coronavirus pandemic. The bonuses are available for healthcare workers like nurses and doctors as well as housekeepers and other "unsung heroes," the health system said in a news release Monday. In total, 45,000 workers are eligible for the bonus and time off. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Related Video: What Doctors Around the World Are Facing as They Treat Coronavirus A huge New York hospital system is giving its workers bonuses and extra vacation to thank them for their work during the coronavirus pandemic. Northwell Health, which operates 23 hospitals, is giving workers a $2,500 bonus and a week of paid time off, the health system said in a statement on Monday. The bonus and time off are available to healthcare workers like nurses, doctors, and respiratory therapists that have been directly involved in caring for patients. The rewards also extend to other "unsung heroes," the health system said. That includes housekeepers, environmental service workers responsible for keeping the hospitals clean, and workers in corporate roles as well as those helping patients outside of the hospitals. In total, the organization expects 45,000 workers are eligible. Northwell is the largest private employer in New York. Never miss out on healthcare news. Subscribe to Dispensed, our weekly newsletter on pharma, biotech, and healthcare. The health system, which has hospitals on Long Island as well as in Manhattan and Queens, has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. As of Monday, Northwell had discharged more than 6,100 patients that had been hospitalized with COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. More than 2,600 patients are still hopsitalized within the system. Northwell's decision to pay bonuses stands in contrast to some other health systems, which have cut staff or reduced salaries amid the pandemic, as Business Insider previously reported. Read the original article on Business Insider Three far-right, pro-gun brothers are behind a slew of anti-quarantine Facebook groups galvanizing protests and urging tens of thousands of followers to decry state lockdowns. Ben Dorr, the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights and siblings Christopher Dorr, the director of Ohio Gun Owners, and Aaron Dorr, the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners are behind at least four state anti-quarantine Facebook groups with a combined following of over 200,000 members. The three have created Facebook groups calling for protests in Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. While at first glance the demonstrations cropping up across the nation appear to be organic, the coordination of these brothers on Facebook means theyre actually being engineered by a network of conservative directors. Their activism echoes President Donald Trump's tweets for the governors to 'liberate' states on coronavirus lockdowns, claiming states like Virginia have their Second Amendment rights 'under siege'. Scroll down for video Three conservative, pro-gun brothers Ben Dorr (above), Christopher Dorr, and Aaron Dorr are running at least four massive state anti-quarantine Facebook groups urging the public to protest. Ben is the political director of a group called Minnesota Gun Rights Christopher Dorr (left) is the director of Ohio Gun Owners and Aaron Dorr (right) is the executive director of Iowa Gun Owners Ben Dorr created a Facebook group entitled Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine on Wednesday, which now has over 99,000 members. Dorr and group members created an event for a drive-in rally at the state capital of Madison scheduled for Friday Chris Dorr created Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine that has over 65,000 members. All the pages had similar description pages saying: Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms' Chris Dorr also created the Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine page, which has more than 14,000 members Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. In the description page he wrote: While seizing power at a breathtaking pace, Andrew Cuomo is sending NY's economy into a death spiral! This is madness. We are fighting back, with action steps fro New Yorkers who want to make their voices heard' The Dorr brothers appear to manage a series of pro-gun groups that range across different states from Iowa, Minnesota to New York. All seek to discredit organizations like the National Rifle Association for being too restrictive on gun safety. The three attended the gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia in January of this year. Ben Dorr created a Facebook group entitled Wisconsinites Against Excessive Quarantine on Wednesday, which now has over 99,000 members. Its description says: 'It's time to OPEN OUR STATE and STOP Gov Evers' Excessive Quarantine! Politicians are on a power trip, controlling our lives, destroying our businesses, passing laws behind the cover of darkness and forcing us to hand over our freedoms and our livelihood!' Dorr and group members created an event for a drive-in rally at the state capital of Madison next Friday according to a Washington Post report, that has already seen hundreds of members pledge to participate. The page also guides visitors to a website called 'Wisconsin Firearms Coalition' where people are encouraged to join for a fee. Another page asking users to join a Minnesota group of the Firearms Coalition offered several rates for membership, from $35 to $1,000. Chris Dorr created Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine that has over 65,000 members and Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine, which has more than 14,000 members. Brothers together: Aaron Dorr (left), Ben Door (third right in beanie) and Christopher Dorr (second right giving a thumbs up) pictured in front of a pro-gun rights flag at a gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia on January 20 Christopher Dorr is listed as the director for the board of Ohio Gun Owners, pictured above speaking in a video about the organization Aaron Dorr speaking in a video about Missouri's Firearms Coalition He is listed as the director for the board of Ohio Gun Owners, according to his social media. 'Chris first got involved in the fight to defend and advance our 2nd Amendment rights back in 2009 in his home state of Iowa where he helped Iowa Gun Owners get Shall-Issue law passed in 2010,' his biography on the Ohio Gun Owners website says. Aaron Dorr created New Yorkers Against Excessive Quarantine group which has over 24,000 members. The descriptions on all of their pages are practically identical, accusing local governors of abusing power and controlling the lives of constituents. Similar Facebook groups have since cropped up in Michigan, Illinois, Texas and Delaware. In these Facebook groups some people peddle right-wing conspiracy theories. In the Wisconsin page, members posed the theory that Governor Tony Evers imposed a lockdown to appease pharmaceutical giants. The groups also call for 'drive-in' protests that practice social distancing but still express dissent towards officials. Justin Bailey, of Tacoma holds an assault rifle and a flag as he protests in Washington on Sunday Residents protest stay-at-home orders involving the closing of beaches and walking paths in Encinitas, California However, these brothers are known to local politicians. 'The brothers will do anything to fan the flames of a controversial issue, and maybe make a quick nickel,' Republican Clel Baudler, a former Iowa state legislator, said to the Post. The Dorr brothers have bypassed certain laws that require them to register as lobbyists, which makes these Facebook groups appear as if they're operated by grassroots activism. However, Facebook says it won't take down the group because the activity is not illegal in the states where the groups are based. On Sunday President Trump defended anti-quarantine protests, calling demonstrators 'good people' who were suffering from 'cabin fever.' 'They want their lives back. I've never seen so many American flags. These people love our country. They want to get back to work,' Trump said in a press briefing on Sunday. On Sunday President Trump defended anti-quarantine protests, calling demonstrators 'good people' who were suffering from 'cabin fever' The protest organization efforts by the conservative figures also points to a division along party line on the lockdowns. Nearly 70 percent of Republicans said they supported a national stay-at-home order. Meanwhile, 95 percent of Democrats backed such a measure, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll. Still public health experts say that the stay-at-home orders are necessary to slow the spread of COVID-19 that has killed more than 40,000 so far. But the Trump administration is already touting a three-phase strategy to reopen the country. If people feel that way, youre allowed to protest. Some governors have gone too far, some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate, Trump said Sunday. Some conservative, pro-Trump groups have already helped organize and promote demonstrations. Last weeks dramatic protest in Lansing, Michigan, was organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition whose founders are Republican state lawmaker Matt Maddock and his wife Meshawn Maddock who sits on the Trump campaigns advisory board. She spoke on Jeanine Pirros Fox show on Saturday, leading the host to tell her, 'Keep going. Thank you.' Last weeks dramatic protest in Lansing, Michigan, was organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition whose founders are Republican state lawmaker Matt Maddock and his wife Meshawn Maddock who sits on the Trump campaigns advisory board. She spoke on Jeanine Pirros Fox show on Saturday, leading the host to tell her, 'Keep going. Thank you.' .@meshawnmaria joins me tonight, and we chat about the ongoing protests in her state over the Coronavirus shutdown. pic.twitter.com/1Xj0f3Khir Jeanine Pirro (@JudgeJeanine) April 19, 2020 Fox host Tucker Carlson chimed in saying: Thank you for coming on tonight, and thank you for exercising your constitutionally protected rights as an American. The Michigan Freedom Fund also promoted those demonstrations and spent hundreds of dollars to advertise protests on Facebook. The group is headed by Greg McNeilly, an adviser to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos family. While Facebook has deployed a team of fact checkers to buckle down on banning false and misleading posts promoting false cures and dangerous myths about the pandemic, some are pleading for the tech giant to stop these anti-government organizers as well. 'Its understandable that people are upset about the difficult situation were in, but theyre clearly being riled up by people with an obvious anti-government agenda,' Portland software company writer Zachary Elwood, who blogs about disinformation and has tracked some activity by the Dorr brothers said. 'Facebook shouldnt make it so easy to do that.' BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr.20 Trend: National accord in the country has grown to an unprecedented level, said Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev during a meeting held through videoconference with the participation of Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Population Sahil Babayev and Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov, Trend reports. Of course, Azerbaijan as a responsible and reliable member of the world community has taken very important steps to strengthen solidarity in this area both domestically and internationally. I can say that national accord in the country has grown to an unprecedented level, said President Ilham Aliyev. The head of state noted that this once again shows the greatness of our people, demonstrates that we as a people and as a state show maximum solidarity on difficult days, help each other, in particular, provide assistance to low-income families. Naturally, first of all, the state, entrepreneurs, public organizations, individuals we once again demonstrate the best qualities inherent in our people. As you know, the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, in which Azerbaijan is currently the chairing country, has become the first organization in the world to conduct a summit in a video conference format. This summit once again demonstrated our solidarity and unity. It showed that we stand by each other on difficult days, said President Ilham Aliyev. The head of state said that the thousands of letters he has received in recent days indicate that the Azerbaijani people appreciate the work being done by the state. Of course, this inspires us even more. This suggests that although people's lives were complicated by the quarantine regime that affected peoples normal life and created problems for many, the vast majority of our people, while aware of this situation, support the state. We must continue to be active in the fight against this disaster, take preventive measures and try to overcome this difficult situation with small losses, said President Ilham Aliyev. The Congress on Monday accused the BJP of playing on the lynching incident in Maharashtra and said the saffron party's attempts at politicising and communalising the issue were shameful. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the incident of mob lynching in Gadchinchli village on the border of Dadar Nagar Haveli is extremely unfortunate and the Congress party unequivocally condemns it. On the night of April 16, three Mumbai residents who were on their way to Surat in Gujarat were lynched by local residents in Maharashtra's Palghar district on the suspicion that they were thieves. "There is no communal or Hindu-Muslim angle to the attack as is being sought to be projected by those, who see an opportunity in every such incident to inflame communal passion. We urge all such persons and groups including political parties and a section of the media to desist from doing so," Surjewala said in a statement. "Tragically, BJP and its eco system as also a section of media are attempting to project the incident with communal overtones. These attempts to politicise are deeply shameful and must be rejected with the contempt they deserve," he said. The party's chief spokesperson said there was no place for violence in a civilized society and the strictest possible action must be taken against the accused. Earlier in the day, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused the BJP of playing on the Palghar incident. "I think the BJP is playing at a very very disturbing moment in our society's history," Jairam Ramesh told journalists at a press conference held online. In the statement, Surjewala said the Congress has urged Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to ensure an expeditious trial and punishment for the guilty. The coalition government of Maharashtra has lodged an FIR and arrested 110 people, he said, adding that it has also ordered a CID Crime Investigation by DGP Atul Kulkarni. All the arrested persons are local adivasis from Vikramgarh Taluka in Palghar district, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In 2015 Steve Demetriou was appointed CEO of Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (NYSE:J). This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at other big companies. 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 process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid. Check out our latest analysis for Jacobs Engineering Group How Does Steve Demetriou's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies? At the time of writing, our data says that Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. has a market cap of US$11b, and reported total annual CEO compensation of US$15m for the year to September 2019. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$1.3m. We note that more than half of the total compensation is not the salary; and performance requirements may apply to this non-salary portion. When we examined a group of companies with market caps over US$8.0b, we found that their median CEO total compensation was US$12m. Once you start looking at very large companies, you need to take a broader range, because there simply aren't that many of them. Pay mix tells us a lot about how a company functions versus the wider industry, and it's no different in the case of Jacobs Engineering Group. Speaking on an industry level, we can see that nearly 22% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 78% is other remuneration. Readers will want to know that Jacobs Engineering Group pays a modest slice of remuneration through salary, as compared to the wider sector. So Steve Demetriou is paid around the average of the companies we looked at. While this data point isn't particularly informative alone, it gains more meaning when considered with business performance. The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at Jacobs Engineering Group has changed from year to year. Story continues NYSE:J CEO Compensation April 20th 2020 Is Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. Growing? On average over the last three years, Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. has seen earnings per share (EPS) move in a favourable direction by 5.3% each year (using a line of best fit). In the last year, its revenue is up 9.7%. I would argue that the improvement in revenue isn't particularly impressive, but it is good to see modest EPS growth. Considering these factors I'd say performance has been pretty decent, though not amazing. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future. Has Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. Been A Good Investment? I think that the total shareholder return of 58%, over three years, would leave most Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. shareholders smiling. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size. In Summary... Steve Demetriou is paid around what is normal for the leaders of larger companies. While the growth could be better, the shareholder returns are clearly good. So considering most shareholders would be happy, we'd say the CEO pay is appropriate. Shifting gears from CEO pay for a second, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Jacobs Engineering Group that investors should be aware of in a dynamic business environment. Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity 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. An underground party at a barbershop in Brooklyn, attended by more than 50 people in defiance of social distancing rules, was broken up by police. Police descended on eNVee Barbershop on Avenue L near 87th Street in Canarsie, shortly after 10pm Sunday, to find a large group of people partying in the basement of a business which is meant to be closed. Some 60 summonses were issued by police to those violating social distancing rules in the city, and two people were arrested in connection to a gun also found at the party. NYPD helicopters were deployed to make sure all partygoers were detained. NYPD descend on eNVee Barbershop shortly after 10pm on Sunday to round people up Partygoers from eNVee Barbershop seen huddled against shutters close to where the party happened on Sunday night One man held at the scene by police claimed on social media he was a cameraman shooting a music video by the group. NYPD refuted this saying there was no music video and that the party was held with 'no purpose', according to a report by New York Daily News. The Brooklyn bust follows a plea on Saturday by New York Mayor Bill de Blasio for New Yorkers to inform authorities of those who violate social distancing rules. 'How do you report places that aren't enforcing social distancing? It's simple: just snap a photo and text it to 311-692,' he tweeted. People are encouraged to use their phones to summon police if they see grocery stores failing to enforce social distancing, people not keeping six feet apart, or not wearing face masks on public transport, for example. 'We will make sure that enforcement comes right away,' he vowed. From the outside, eNVee Barbershop on Avenue L near 87th Street in Canarsie, seems closed How do you report places that arent enforcing social distancing? Its simple: just snap a photo and text it to 311-692. #AskMyMayor pic.twitter.com/WQdCcVf1Rl Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) April 18, 2020 Health experts have said staying home and limiting contact with others have been essential measures in restricting the transmission of coronavirus. Mayor de Blasio urged New Yorkers they were doing the right thing informing on their neighbors, adding: 'That's going to stop spreading this disease and that's going to save lives.' New York Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered the closure of barber shops, beauty parlors and nail salons on March 21 to help limit the spread of Covid-19. Governors of New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania issued similar edicts. The United States coronavirus death toll stands at 41,186, with some 771,980 cases countrywide. The death toll in New York stands at 13,959, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University, and over 242,786 confirmed cases. Six new cases have been reported in Kerala on Monday even as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan made it clear that the state had no differences with the Centre on fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. Earlier in the day, the state was forced to withdraw some concessions announced to ease the lockdown after the Union Government toughened its stand saying these measures would be against its earlier directive to implement the lockdown till May 3. We have been following the directive of the union government. There is no tiff or differences with the Centre, he said adding some of the directives of the state were misunderstood due to some confusion. He said the state has no plan to allow dining in restaurants and barber shops will not be allowed till the lockdown was lifted. The CM said all the new cases were reported from Kannur in north Kerala, one of the four districts in the red zone. Out of 408 total cases, 286 have been discharged and 46,323 people are under observation in the state. He said the state has the best recovery and least mortality rates in the country. When asked about the Sprinklr controversy, the CM refused to say anything. I have better things to do. I dont have any plan to go after such controversies, he said. The Opposition Congress has sought his resignation saying the states valuable data was handed over to an American software firm. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in the state, the state IT department had inked an agreement with the US firm to process a huge volume of data collected by grassroot health workers of the state. Though no money was involved in the contract the opposition alleged that it was a breach of privacy and vital data. Later, it was found that the state cabinet and law department were not consulted before signing the deal and the data firm had tied up with many global pharmaceutical giants. As the controversy flared up, state IT secretary M Shivasankar, also the CMs private secretary told the media on Saturday that he had taken the decision personally, as the pandemic situation was getting out of control in the state. Later, he also appeared in a promotional video of the deal which was removed from the Sprinklrs website after the controversy cropped up. We direly needed an entry that could wet a considerable amount of health data to identify the infection pattern to streamline the containment strategy. Spirnklr agreed to provide the service without charge. The arrangement did not warrant the prior vetting of the finance or legal departments. It was my decision at a desperate time, he said justifying the deal. But the opposition said he owned up to save the Chief Minister. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:11:11|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close COPENHAGEN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The City of Copenhagen's Health and Care Administration authority on Monday thanked the Association of Chinese Restaurants, which represents 108 Chinese restaurateurs in Denmark, for donating 66,000 FFP2 face masks to help fight against the novel coronavirus. "It is a magnificent example of citizenship from these small businesses who have joined together and supported us in our efforts to prevent COVID-19 infection among some of our most vulnerable citizens," said Copenhagen Mayor for Health and Care, Sisse Marie Welling, in a statement. "I am very happy with the donation and thank you on behalf of the elderly and our employees in Copenhagen," she said. According to the statement, the city had "found it difficult to buy protective equipment," which led to Heidi Wang, a member of the Citizens' Representation for the Liberal Alliance, to contact her network, including Peter Chou Lin, spokesperson for the Association of Chinese Restaurants, who set up a fundraiser over social media. "We have to look after each other here in Denmark, and we are part of the community. Nurses and social workers save lives, but they should not risk their lives just by doing their jobs," said Chou in the statement. The Chinese restaurateurs' fundraiser collected 300,000 Danish kroner (nearly 44,000 U.S. dollars) which helped purchase 66,000 FFP2 face masks which have already arrived from China and are "due to be distributed among the city's nursing homes and home care workers in the next coming days," the statement said. The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Denmark has risen by 453 to 7,515, with a death toll of 355, according to fresh figures from the Danish Statens Serum Institut on Monday. Enditem A key benchmark of US oil prices plunged to a 21-year low on Monday, amid continued fears about oversupply in the market. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures (CL=F) dropped over 37.2% to $11.46 per barrel on Monday, a level not seen since 1998. The slump represents the biggest one day drop in percentage terms since 1982. Brent oil futures (BZ=F), the international benchmark, were more resilient. Brent was down just 5.8% to $26.44 per barrel at the same. The steep fall in the price is because of the lack of sufficient demand and lack of storage place, given the fact that the production cut has failed to address the supply glut, said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Avatrade. Oil prices have been under pressure since late February, amid fears about oversupply in the market and slumping demand due to the coronavirus pandemic. US oil prices have been particularly hard hit, with high fixed-costs in the US shale industry. An oil rig stands against the setting sun in Midland, Texas on Friday, April 17, 2020. (Odessa American/Eli Hartman/AP) US oil prices plunged 30% in a day in early March after Saudi Arabia started a price war with Russia by increasing oil production and slashing prices. The feud was resolved two weekends ago when the OPEC+ oil cartel, which Saudi Arabia and Russia are both part of, agreed to cut global oil output by 9.7m barrels per day. It represented the largest single cut to oil output ever. However, the decision has done little to arrest the slide in oil prices. The price war coincided with slumping demand for oil globally, as nations closed their economies due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The OPEC+ et. al. deal did not address the lack of demand globally, said Sebastien Galy, a senior macro strategist at Nordea bank. Air travel has all but ground to a halt around the world and countries around the world have told citizens to stay at home as much as possible, reducing demand for vehicle fuel. The International Energy Agency (IEA) last week said it expects global demand for oil this month to fall to a level not seen since 1995. Story continues Galy said OPEC+ were likely to announce further cuts to production in the coming weeks. Saudi Arabia and Russia have the capacity to wait this out for potentially months, the rest do not, he said. Time is therefore ticking and over the next few weeks OPEC+ should come to the table led by Saudi Arabia for far more substantial cuts. Health care workers in Northern Ireland have expressed alarm over official coronavirus guidance in England and warned the Stormont authorities not to adopt it. Public Health England said where there are acute shortages and it is safe to do so, it approves the re-use of personal protective equipment. The Department of Health said the guidance is not implemented in Northern Ireland at this point. Anne Speed, Unisons head of representation in Northern Ireland, said: This is an extremely alarming guidance that has been developed by Public Health England. Unison wrote to the Department of Health on April 18 on behalf of all health unions indicating that we will not accept Northern Ireland adhering to this revised guidance. We have been advised by the Department that the guidance is not being implemented in Northern Ireland at this point, though we remain concerned that the department has not definitively ruled out issuing such guidance in future. The priority must be delivering the personal protective equipment that is required for all workers, not only in hospitals, but also in nursing homes and in the community. Public Health England has said 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. It added: 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. Around 250,000 gowns have been transferred from Northern Ireland to England, on the basis that they will be resupplied once Englands stocks arrive. Ms Speed added: Given this new guidance from Public Health England, we are seriously questioning when this will happen. We are demanding transparency over the status of our personal protective equipment stockpile. The debate over such equipment has continued for weeks in Northern Ireland. Questions have surrounded a failed bid to secure kit from China as well as the speed with which millions of pieces of equipment from the rest of the UK has been distributed. Ms Speed said: The Minister for Health must publicly reassure all health and social care workers that this guidance will not be adopted for Northern Ireland in the future. There must be full engagement on any proposed future guidance. Unison will not accept decisions that affect our members being made over our heads. Some hospitals in England, particularly London, are hard-pressed by the number of coronavirus cases coming through. A statement from Stormonts health department said: This guidance on the re-use of PPE is not implemented in Northern Ireland at this point, and if or when it might be required the department will consider this taking account of the national and scientific evidence and will provide further advice at the appropriate time. Such consideration will be undertaken if required, and only following full engagement and in consultation with professional bodies and trade union representative organisations. Further guidance will be issued shortly through the Public Health Agency in Belfast on the re-use of suitable visors and goggles in Northern Ireland. Sacked Kano State Commissioner for Works, Muazu Magaji has opened up on his sack and denied that he celebrated the death of President Muhammadu Buharis Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari. Magaji was sacked on Saturday by Governor Abdullahi Ganduje for allegedly celebrating the death of Abba Kyari. In several, now deleted, FaceBook posts, Magaji gloated over Kyaris demise, describing it as freedom for Nigeria. Win win Nigeria is free and Abba Kyari has died in the epidemic the death of a martyr if he is a believer, the person is complete, Magaji wrote. In a subsequent post, the commissioner said the office of the chief of staff to the President is too powerful and it should be broken into two. For the good of Nigeria and Mr President The CoS office should be split A PPS (principal private secretary) and a humble manager of his office as CoS It is currently too powerful for a non-elected official. However, he issued a statement on Sunday on his Facebook page, saying he never celebrated the death of Abba Kyari. Assalamualaikum, dear people of Kano and Nigeria at large, I want to sincerely clear up what a lot of people may have misunderstood and set the record straight. As a Muslim and a patriotic Nigerians, I was only misunderstood by people to think that I celebrated Kyaris death, the truth is I did not. Not only that, I made several posts mourning Kyaris death on my same facebook account and through my special assistants but the general public couldnt commend such or claim I did such post, rather tend to capitalize on a full-phrase post that is given another set of definition and direction as well as negativity in other to tarnish my reputable image as a member of H.E. Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje Administration and his loyalist and that of our National Party APC. The use of win win phrase is basically an attempt to explain the Islamic Promise on the people that died as a result of any kind of pandemic. The late Mallam Abba Kyari was privileged to die as a result of Covid-19,making him among the beneficiaries in Islam. He is conferred with the automatic privilege of martyrdom. Our Rasul S. A. W assured on the path of martyrdom in Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Jihad wal-Siyar. Even Sheik Isah Ali Pantami has taken time to explain more of this..By this, the death of Mallam Abba Kyari is a big win for him, which is almost the dream of every Muslim, he said. He added that on the other hand, Nigeria equally has the opportunity to restructure the office of the Chief of Staff, where I called Mr President to ensure that we can utilize the pandemic challenges into more strengths, by disintegrating the power of the office for a rapid administrative flow, which over and above anything, our constitutional democracy is meant to achieve and function so often. However, in an emotional reaction to my posting, agents around the office of the Chief of staff misunderstood my whole meaning, infuriated from the loss of their benefactor, as such petitioned my principal His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje the Governor of Kano State, they twisted the narrative with explanation completely out of context and lacing it with religious and cultural connotations that made it necessary for our Principal the Executive Governor to show leadership and solidarity with the dead by relieving me off my position in Kano State as his Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural. Magaji said he was confident that the governor must make such a difficult decision as a conditional sacrifice to appease the aggrieved individuals who were aggrieved, especially from their loss and that he understood the difficulty of the circumstances, both from misunderstanding his post, to the Governors decision and in general the pains of people in Abuja. According to him, Wholeheartedly, I want to use this opportunity to reiterate that as a devout Muslim, I could not have celebrated the death of any human being; because its against my culture, social civilization and most importantly the teaching of my religion. I equally want to appeal to all people, especially those in Kano to give people the benefit of doubts by accepting their explanation on what they actually and truly mean by themselves. I sincerely apologised for any misunderstood action, reaction and inactions, we are all in a difficult times that anxiety, worries and depression makes understanding and misunderstanding becomes difficult. I am so sorry for any pain I may have caused both the families of the late chief of staff and my boss His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. I am forever loyal to my boss; the Governor of Kano State and indebted to all the people of Kano state. I want to plentifully remain grateful to His Excellency for the opportunity he gave me to serve my state under his administration and I am pleased to leave not on account of fraud, insubordination, dishonesty, treachery, disloyalty, betrayal, act of incompetence or undermining the government or the people of Kano; but due to this unfortunate misunderstanding and miscommunication of my Facebook post. I assure you that everyone will calmly understand my meaning by revisiting everything Ive said. I am only humane, perfection is never part of our creation, he said. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates The Ruby Princess cruise ship will leave Australian shores on Thursday but the fate of the 190 crew members infected with coronavirus remains unknown. NSW Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said on Monday the ship docked at Port Kembla in Wollongong, was restocked, refuelled and ready to go. 'We would be keen to see that go on Thursday I think people right around NSW would like to see that happen,' he said. Mr Worboys said before crew members can be flown home they will have to meet health requirements. The Ruby Princess was previously organised to leave on Sunday but remained as too many crew members were struck down with coronavirus. Since then the amount of infected has increased from 153 to 190. Mr Worboys said authorities were negotiating to place some of the over 1,000 crew members onto charted flights home. 'There is a great opportunity now over the next few days to get those people off and back to their home countries,' he said. 'It's important that we get this right. There are a number of connecting facts they need to be well, we need to get them to the airport and we need to get them onto charted flights back to their countries. 'It's something we can't get wrong and we will take our time.' A spokesperson from NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia it was not able to confirm how many passengers would be travelling by plane or by boat. The Ruby Princess cruise ship will leave on Thursday despite 190 crew members of the over 1000 on board suffering from coronavirus. Pictured is the ship docked at Port Kembla in Wollongong It is not clear how many will be flown home but plans have previously be raised that a skeleton crew of healthy members would sail the ship back to Manila. An antibody test developed by Westmead Hospital in Sydney is being used to screen crew members for signs they once had coronavirus. NSW Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said on Monday the ship was restocked, refuelled and ready to go NSW health said in a statement on Monday the number of crew with coronavirus had risen to 190. 'There are also 13 Ruby Princess crew members in NSW Health facilities, 12 of them having tested positive for COVID-19,' it said. The Ruby Princess first landed in Sydney Harbour March 19 before it was allowed to release almost 2,700 passengers without any health checks or orders to quarantine. Since then more than 600 infections and 21 deaths have been linked directly to the ship. Mr Worboys said authorities were negotiating to place some of the over 1,000 crew members onto charted flights home. Pictured are crew members visible from the shore The Ruby Princess first landed in Sydney Harbour March 19 before it was allowed to release almost 2,700 passengers without any health checks or orders to quarantine Many passengers immediately boarded flights across Australia while others even flew overseas to get home. NSW Police are conducting a homicide investigation into the fiasco, raiding the ship and surveying passengers on two recent cruises. They were asked whether they saw signs of anyone with coronavirus symptoms on board, about cleaning standards, and if they have videos from the voyage. However, legal experts told Daily Mail Australia the investigation would not lead to any criminal charges and it was unclear why police were investigating at all. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 20) - More Filipinos can expect to receive their cash assistance from the government in the coming weeks. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said Monday it will finish distributing cash aid to qualified recipients by the end of the month. "Tuloy-tuloy ang ating mga local government units, sabay-sabay ang kanilang pagbibigay, at base sa ating pagtatala at sa ating estimates, kung tuloy-tuloy ang trend, matatapos natin ang pamimigay ng ating subsidiya bago matapos ang buwan na ito," DSWD Undersecretary Camilo Gudmalin said in a briefing Monday. [Translation: The local government units continue to distribute the cash aid, and based on our estimates, if this trend continues, we will be able to finish distributing our subsidies before the end of this month.] Gudmalin said that the DSWD has so far distributed over 6 billion to at least one million non-4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program) beneficiaries and more than 16.3 billion to 4Ps beneficiaries, through their cash cards, nationwide. "Umabot na sa mahigit na 22 billion ang naipahatid sa 4.7 million beneficiaries ng social amelioration program," Gudmalin said. [Translation: More than 22 billion worth of cash aid has been distributed to 4.7 million beneficiaries of the social amelioration program.] Under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, the government's Social Amelioration Program shall provide 18 million families a monthly allowance between 5,000 to 8,000 for up to two months, depending on the prevailing minimum wage rates in the area where they live. Gudmalin said that 74.5 billion has been given to 1,359 local government units (LGUs) across the country, and is ready for distribution. This makes up 90 percent of the 81 billion that was already given to DSWD regional offices. The Department of Budget and Management said Friday it has handed nearly 199.98 billion to the DSWD for distribution to over 18 million low-income household during the enhanced community quarantine. READ: DBM: Nearly 200B released to DSWD for COVID-19 cash aid The DSWD provided additional assistance to local governments needing family food packs, with over 445,000 food packs worth 173 million distributed to LGUs needing it across the country. Meanwhile, 86 million worth of aid was given to at least 18,000 Filipinos with COVID-19 related cases, like those needing medical and burial assistance, Gudmalin said. More than 323 million has also been given to at least 40,000 public utility drivers in the National Capital Region, Gudmalin added. Amid reports of Filipinos using the government's cash aid for vices, the DSWD has called on recipients of the cash aid to use it properly, buying only the essentials. DSWD also said that illegal recipients of cash aid should refund it to the government. For many people, rats are unwanted guests in the house. But in China, they can be a delicacy on the dining table. Chinese bamboo rats, a possible coronavirus carrier, have been a sought-after food source in the country for centuries and hailed for their 'nutritional value'. Tens of thousands of farmers raised them, chefs cooked them in dozens of ways and web users celebrated '100 reasons to eat them' - until the pandemic brought the trade to a standstill. Chinese farmers were rearing about 25 million bamboo rats when the government launched a temporary ban on the trading and consumption of wild animals in February in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The picture shows a farmer in Guizhou holding two bamboo rats in 2012 A picture on Mr Zhushu, a forum for bamboo rat breeders, lists 30 ways to cook the rats' meat. One of them (pictured), sliced boiled bamboo rat, is presented in the shape of a rodent Other ways of cooking the rats, recommended by Mr Zhushu, include grilling (pictured), roasting, pan-frying, boiling and simmering into a soup. The rats are mostly farmed in southern parts of the country, such as Guangxi and Guangdong where locals welcome exotic meat Chinese bamboo rats, or 'zhu shu' in Mandarin, are known for their portly figure and fat cheeks. A wild rodent species feeding on bamboo, these huge rats can weigh up to five kilograms (11 pounds) and grow to 45 centimetres (17 inches) long. They are by no means a new dish in the country. It is said that eating bamboo rats was a 'prevailing custom' in the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256BC). According to traditional Chinese medicine, their meat can detoxify one's body and improve the functions of one's stomach and spleen. The apparent health benefits are recorded in ancient Chinese medical encyclopaedia Ben Cao Gang Mu, penned by celebrated pharmacologist and physician Li Shizhen in the 16th century. The book describes the rats as 'rabbit-sized rodents which many people eat and taste like ducks'. According to traditional Chinese medicine, the meat of bamboo rats can detoxify one's body and improve the functions of one's stomach and spleen. Others believe it can 'beautify' the diners. The picture from December, 2012, shows a bamboo rat on a farm in Guizhou Province Although the exact source of the virus remains unclear, Dr Zhong Nanshan, China's leading epidemiologist, claimed in January that the epidemic might be linked to the eating of bamboo rats or badgers. A farmer in China's Guizhou Province is pictured holding a bamboo rat in 2012 Moving forward more than 400 years, bamboo rats' popularity soared in China in 2018 when two young men from the province of Jiangxi started to upload videos of them breeding the animals. Chinese farmers had already domesticated the wild species in the 1990s, but it wasn't until the emergence of 'Hua Nong Brothers' that they became a trendy food ingredient to millennials. The duo, with more than three million fans on video platform Watermelon, have come up with different reasons to eat the rats. They also show the viewers how to butcher and cook them. 'Hua Nong Brothers', a social media sensation from Jiangxi province, successfully marketed bamboo rats as a trending food ingredient to the country's younger generations. Liu Suliang, a member of the duo, is seen holding one of their bamboo rats in one of their viral videos The duo, with more than three million fans on video platform Watermelon, have come up with different reasons to eat the rats. They also show people how to butcher and cook them (above) In one episode, they claim that one of their rats is too wounded due to a fight with other rats and has to be eaten. They make it into a roast. In another, they suggest the viewers should barbecue any rats suffering from heatstroke. In 2018, their clips proved to be so popular they sparked a trending topic called '100 reasons to eat bamboo rats' on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent to Twitter. Chinese bamboo rats, or 'zhu shu' in Mandarin, are known for their portly figure and fat cheeks Chef and food writer Wang Gang shows viewers how to cook fried bamboo rats on YouTube A pest no longer, but a delicious meal, bamboo bats can fetch up to 1,000 yuan (113) per pair alive or 280 yuan (31) per kilo grilled, according to Mr Zhushu, an internet forum for bamboo rat breeders. On one page, the forum lists 30 different ways to cook bamboo rat meat, from grilling and roasting to pan-frying and simmering into a soup. Articles on the forum claim that these rats are rich in protein and can make the diners 'prettier'. On YouTube, Chinese chef and food writer Wang Gang, who has 1.35 million subscribers, shows his viewers how to cook fried bamboo rats in a video that has been viewed for more than six million times. Experts believe the coronavirus came from wild animals sold as food in a live animal market in Wuhan. The picture shows vendors selling live crayfish at the Wuhan Baishazhou Market Since the coronavirus pandemic emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December, experts have been trying to identify the source of the pathogen, and many believe it came from wild animals sold as food. Although the exact source of the virus remains unclear, Dr Zhong Nanshan, China's leading epidemiologist, claimed in January that the epidemic might be linked to the eating of bamboo rats or badgers. Other experts have named bats, snakes or pangolins as the likely source. In February, China's top legislative committee banned all trade and consumption of wild animals temporarily in the wake of the health crisis. At the time, there were an estimated 25 million bamboo rats on various Chinese farms, mostly in southern parts of the country, such as Guangxi and Guangdong where locals welcome exotic meat. In Guangxi, a largely agricultural province with around 50 million people, more than 100,000 people were raising roughly 18 million bamboo rats, a local official told China News Weekly. Wild bamboo rats are pictured on a rat farm at Ganfeng Village in China's Luocheng in 2014 The trend of breeding bamboo rat has come into being largely due to the government's support for wildlife husbandry as a way to relieve poverty in rural areas. In Qinzhou, a city in Guangxi province, 18 less-fortunate families in one village were able to improve their financial situation through rearing bamboo rats, according to a report by Xinhua from November, 2019. One of the families was said to have taught 20 other impoverished farmers in other parts of Guangxi to raise the rodents, and the industry was flourishing in the region. Although the coronavirus has been linked to a Wuhan market selling live wild animals, only a minority of bamboo rats were sold that way in China, according to an expert. 'Usually, live bamboo rats would be delivered directly to restaurants and food stalls dealing exotic food,' Dr Peter Li told MailOnline. 'A small percentage of the bamboo rats, no more than 10 per cent, would be displayed and slaughtered at the wildlife wet markets in Guangdong and Guangxi,' added Dr Li, who is the China Policy Specialist from animal welfare charity Humane Society International. Dr Li refuted the alleged health benefits of these rats, calling them 'the traders' perpetuate unscientific and unsupported rumours'. An investigation carried out by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the coronavirus had been passed onto humans by wild animals sold as food at the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market (pictured on March 30), Xinhua reported in January China's last health crisis, SARS, was linked to masked palm civet. The picture shows the cat-like mammals seized by officials at Xinyuan wildlife market in Guangzhou on January 5, 2004 With the temporary wild animal ban in place, the nation's bamboo rat breeders, as well as their millions of rats, are facing a bleak future. Last month, several breeders in the county of Dongyuan, Guangdong, culled more than 3,000 bamboo rats in a desperate measure to limit their financial loss, reported Beijing News last week. Dr Li called for the Chinese government to help those farmers transit to 'more humane livelihoods such as growing mushrooms'. He urged: 'China has thousands of wild animal breeding facilities that are facing closure or transition because of the government's recent policy change from supporting wildlife breeding to phasing it out, and no doubt millions of animals are going to be impacted. 'The policy change is welcome and necessary but animal welfare must not be sacrificed in an effort to implement the change.' The pandemic has killed more than 165,000 people and infected over 2.4 million globally. A volunteer is pictured checking the temperature of a delivery driver in Wuhan on April 15 China is yet to decide if the wild animal ban will be a permanent ruling and what species will be affected. However, the possibility of bamboo rats being allowed back on the dinner plate would be slim, according to Ma Yong, the deputy secretary of China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation. This is because China has only domesticated bamboo rats for 30 years and still lacks adequate disease-control research and quarantine standards for the species, Ma told China News Weekly. Even though they have grown from bamboo-chomping, forest-roaming animals to a farming, dining and even internet phenomenon, the coronavirus has, once again, changed the fate of bamboo rats irreversibly. And millions of them, together with millions of farmers and diners, are now awaiting a final judgement from Beijing. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Singapore Mon, April 20, 2020 16:15 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd30f34e 2 SE Asia Singapore,coronavirus,COVID-19,infection,infectious-diseases,pandemic,health Free Singapore reported a record daily jump of more than 1,400 coronavirus cases Monday, taking its total to over 8,000, with almost all new infections linked to dormitories housing foreign laborers. The city-state was initially successful in keeping its outbreak in check with a strict regime of testing and contact-tracing, but is now facing a fast-moving second wave. Health authorities in the financial hub, which now has the highest number of infections in Southeast Asia, reported 1,426 new cases, taking its total to 8,014, including 11 deaths. Cases have surged since authorities started carrying out widespread testing of foreign workers living in crowded dormitory complexes, many of whom are construction workers from South Asia. Around 200,000 workers live in dorms and typically toil for long hours earning in the region of $400 to $500 a month building the city-state's glittering skyscrapers and shopping malls. Following criticism of poor living conditions in the dorms, the government moved thousands of workers to other sites -- including apartments and floating accommodation usually used in offshore industries -- to try to lessen the chances of infection. Several dormitories with serious outbreaks have been quarantined, with workers not allowed to leave the premises for two weeks. The government is providing meals, and cleaning services have been ramped up. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the weekend warned that the number of foreign workers found to have contracted COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, is likely to rise further as more are tested. "Fortunately, the vast majority of the cases are mild because the workers are young," Lee wrote on Facebook. While the government is working to stop transmission in the dorms "it will take some time to show results, so we must expect to see more dorm cases for while longer", he said. The city-state this month introduced tough restrictions aimed at halting the spread of the virus, including closing schools and advising people to stay at home. Since then, the number of new infections reported among Singaporeans has slowed -- only 16 of the cases reported Monday were citizens or people holding permanent residency status. China has launched a furious war-of-words over a letter by German magazine Bild editor accusing China of being the cause of the Covid-19 outbreak and demanding massive reparations. Meanwhile, the French foreign ministry has summoned the Chinese ambassador to France over an article that slanders staff of French nursing homes. What China owes us, a provocative article in German tabloid Bildpublished on 15 April, put a price tag of nearly 150 billion for damages inflicted on the country by Covid-19 pandemic. The itemized invoice included 24 billion in lost tourism revenue from March to April, 7.2 billion in losses for the German film industry, 1 million per hour in costs for Lufthansa, and 50 billion in lost profits for German small businesses. China responded in anger an open letter to Bild editor Julian Reichelt pointing out that China warned the world early of the dangers of the virus, while rejecting any obligation to pay damages. It also reproached Bild nationalism, prejudice, and hostility against China. Political legacy Reichelt countered with another open letter, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping rules by surveillance, which is a denial of freedom, charging that Beijing didn't respond to western requests after it discovered the virus in Wuhan. It concluded that ...China is known as a surveillance state that infected the world with a deadly disease. That is your political legacy. Bild has had a previous private spat with the Chinese embassy in Berlin after the newspaper invited maverick Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong to Germany in September 2019, at the height of mass protests against the growing influence of Beijing. Wong then also met with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. China's ambassador reacted furiously at the time, charging that Germany allows a separatist like Joshua Wong to enter its territory to use it for anti-Chinese, separatist activities, and reproaching foreign minister Maas for openly meeting with him. The Chinese embassy then organised a press conference, but refused entry to Bild journalist Philipp Piatof, saying there wasn't enough room. 'Restoring distorted facts' The Chinese- German spat follows a confrontation between France and Beijing after the Chinese embassy in Paris on 12 April published a French language article entitled "Restoring distorted facts - Observations of a Chinese diplomat posted to Paris." In the post, an unnamed diplomat suggests that careworkers in Western nursing homes had abandoned their jobs, leaving residents to die. Beijing dismissed the incident as a "malentendu", with a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry saying Beijing had never given any negative criticism of France's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and had no intention of doing so. The response came after French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian summoned China's ambassador to France to express his clear disapproval of recent comments over how France is dealing with the coronavirus crisis. I can't accept that anyone, including the Chinese embassy, slanders staff of our retirement homes, he says in an interview published by Le Monde on April 20. - A video of soldiers walking the streets in a barangay in Pasay is circulating in social media - They were walking in line formation, looking like they're marching for battle - There were approximately 46 soldiers who were deployed in the area - The barangay captain of Brgy. 178 said that he was the one who requested for the presence of military PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed A video of soldiers in line formation in Maricaban, Pasay has gone viral. The video, which was posted on ABS-CBN, showed about 46 soldiers in line formation, walking in the middle of the road. The soldiers were deployed at Barangay 178 and it was upon the request of Barangay Chairman Boyti Timabag. According to him, he was the one who requested Camp Aguinaldo for soldiers to be deployed in his area because of the many individuals who were reportedly not following the community quarantine. Some of the reactions of netizens to the video are as follows: sana ganyan dito sa tanyag. taguig para matapus na ung covid19 at makapag trabaho na lit. At di na aasa pa sa dswd na pili lang. Sana lahat nalng lagyan ng ganyan kasi mas madami talaga ang hindi sumusunod.kahit umaga palang nakakabulahaw na ang mga ingay ng ng uumpukan Salute po sa inyo... Gobless and stay healthy po kayo. Wish ko sana d2 dinnsa lugar namin.. May mga nag iinuman pa imbes na mk tulong purwesyo pa. PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! 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! One netizen made a difference by giving food to a Grab driver. Cha Calubaquib posted about how happy the Grab driver was when she gave him chicken for his family. You will find how truly inspiring the story is through the video that we created just for you. Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel! Source: KAMI.com.gh FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed Facebook logo is seen placed on a keyboard in this illustration By Fanny Potkin JAKARTA (Reuters) - Facebook Inc is preparing to apply for regulatory approval in Indonesia to launch mobile payments in partnership with three local digital fintech firms, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The plan, if approved, could be among the first such services under the unified payment service Facebook Pay it, which the social media platform unveiled in November. It allows users across its various platforms including WhatsApp and Instagram to make payments without exiting the app. The move comes amid early partnership talks between the social network and ride-hailing and payments firm Gojek. Four sources said Facebook wants to capitalize on the Indonesian market and is preparing for regulatory approval in the country. The three e-wallet operators are Indonesian ride hailing firm Gojek's GoPay, fintech startup OVO, which is backed by Singapore-based riding hailing firm Grab, and state-backed LinkAja,the people said. Bank Indonesia assistant governor Filianingsih Hendarta, who heads Payment system policy, told Reuters local firms had approached the regulator to ask about tentative approval for a payments partnership with Facebook. "So far no one submitted the formal application. Some of them just came to discuss during the consultative meeting with BI (Bank Indonesia)," Hendarta said. Reuters reported in August that Facebook's WhatsApp had been in talks with these firms to launch digital payment services in Indonesia. A spokeswoman for Facebook said the company was seeking to bring digital payments to more countries and believed "digital payments will... open up extraordinary opportunities for businesses to grow." "We are in conversations with partners in Indonesia, however the discussions are ongoing and we do not have anything further to share at this stage," she added. OVO CEO Jason Thompson said: "As an open ecosystem platform, we're always seeking new partnerships to increase cashless transactions... including with Facebook." Story continues Gojek declined to comment. LinkAja was not immediately available for comment. Facebook is keen to accelerate its expansion in Southeast Asia. Indonesia, home to 260 million people and the region's largest economy, is one of the largest markets globally for Facebook and WhatsApp, with over 100 million users. Facebook is also in separate talks to partner with Gojek, which counts Alphabet's Google and Chinese e-commerce JD.com among its backers, two sources said. "The talks could lead either to a strategic partnership, a collaboration, or an investment," one person with knowledge of the matter said. The talks, which predate the coronavirus outbreak, are at an early stage. Elsewhere in Asia, Facebook has held talks to buy a multi billion dollar stake in Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd's telecom unit, media reports said. Gojek declined to comment. Facebook referred Reuters to its general statement. Having evolved from a ride-hailing service founded in 2010 to a one-stop app offering online payments, food ordering and even massage services, Gojek is valued at $10 billion. (Reporting by Fanny Potkin; Editing by Miyoung, Kim Coghill and David Gregorio) WHAT: An exciting new project that aims to quantify the nursing behavior of humpback whale calves in the Maui breeding grounds. The project is a collaboration between the University of Hawaii at Manoa Marine Mammal Research Program, the Goldbogen Lab at Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station and the Friedlander Lab at University of California, Santa Cruz. WHO: UH Manoa Marine Mammal Research Program Director Lars Bejder, PhD candidates Martin van Aswegen and Will Gough. HOW: Researchers deployed non-invasive suction-cup tags with cameras, acoustic recorders, depth sensors and accelerometers onto seven humpback whale calves. The camera recordings are providing researchers with seldom seen nursing behavior (including nursing bout frequency and durations) and social interactions between individuals. The accelerometer data allows them to quantify the fine-scale behavior, movement and breathing patterns of tagged whales. The fieldwork also consisted of flying drones over the tagged whales, allowing researchers to calculate their overall length, body condition and health. WHEN: The project took place over 10 days in February 2020. WHY: The data collected will provide important insights into the needs of humpback mothers and calves in the Maui breeding grounds. OTHER FACTS: Every winter, about 10,000 humpback whales migrate to Hawaii , with the main purpose of breeding. The time period during which adult females and their newborn calves spend on the Hawaiian breeding grounds (typically January - March) represents a critical time. , with the main purpose of breeding. The time period during which adult females and their newborn calves spend on the Hawaiian breeding grounds (typically January - March) represents a critical time. No feeding occurs during the breeding season, so the whales are reliant on energy stored from the earlier feeding season in Alaska. The tag deployments were made possible with the generous support of Marc Lammers from the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale Sanctuary, Stephanie Stack and Jens Currie from the Pacific Whale Foundation and the Oceanwide Science Institute. Molokai Ocean Tours, PacWhale Eco-Adventures and Rachel and John Sprague were all instrumental in helping to retrieve the tags once they were off of the whales. Keep up to date through the MMRP website and social media platforms (Twitter and Instagram: @MMRP_UH, Facebook: MMRPUH, Youtube: MMRP UH) to build awareness. To help achieve its mission, the program is also accepting donations to fund research initiatives and student scholarships. All donations are tax-exempt. All research activities were conducted in accordance with NOAA permit #21476 and institutional animal care and use committee approval. All drone activities were conducted in accordance with FAA Part 107 regulations. ### VIDEO: TRT 2:12 (NOTE: "Permit Number: NOAA #21476" MUST be on screen at least :05 seconds during use of any whale video below AND must be included in any photo captions) SOUND: Lars Bejder, Director, UH Manoa Marine Mammal Research Program (:15) "So we can actually see what these animals are seeing and encountering and experiencing themselves. And it's quite unique and rare footage that we're obtaining, which is allowing us to quantify these nursing and suckling bouts that's so important." Bejder (:12) "What we are trying to understand with these new technologies is how much time the calves need to nurse from their moms to be able to get strong and big enough to make their journey back up north." BROLL: (NOTE: "Permit Number: NOAA #21476" MUST be on screen at least :05 seconds during use of any whale video below AND must be included in any photo captions) 1 shot from boat on the water 1 shot of humpback whale and calf spouting near surface 1 shot of tagging calf from boat 2 shots mother and tagged calf swimming 1 underwater shot from camera on tagged calf 1 shot tagging calf from boat 1 split screen showing underwater and overhead drone shots of whale and calf 1 overhead shot of calf swimming above mother 1 underwater shot of calf nursing 1 underwater shot swimming past another whale 1 shot Lars Bejder on land holding up device to track tags Photos: 1. UH researchers tag a humpback whale calf off of Maui (NOAA permit #21476) 2. A humpback whale nurses her calf. (NOAA permit #21476) 3. A humpback whale and calf with suction cup tag (NOAA permit #21476) Link to video and sound (details below): https://bit.ly/2VxXBzv (NOTE: "Permit Number: NOAA #21476" MUST be on screen at least :05 seconds during use of any whale video below AND must be included in any photo captions) Feng Zhi Tian, a dairy farmer in Inner Mongolia, looks out onto the grasslands in Tuanjiecun, Inner Mongolia, China, on April 30, 2019. (Betsy Joles/ Getty Images) Exclusive: Chinas Inner Mongolia Reports False Virus Data Amid Fears of Separate Plague Outbreak A series of internal government documents from Chinas Inner Mongolia region has revealed that local authorities have been downplaying the scale of the CCP virus outbreak there. Data obtained by The Epoch Times showed that authorities kept an internal tally of people who tested positive for the virus, which was far higher than the figures publicly announced. From April 8 to April 11, the local health commission only announced 31 imported cases in total (0 plus 27 plus 2 plus 2)46.27 percent of the figures reported in the leaked documents. Local hospitals are also taking steps to increase their capacity for treating COVID-19 patients, confirming the situation is more severe than authorities publicly admit. On April 14, state-run newspaper Beijing News reported that Manzhouli city in Inner Mongolia was building a makeshift hospital for treating COVID-19. The hospital has two buildings, with 800 bed capacity total, according to the report. The city currently has 600 hospital beds for virus patients. The makeshift hospital will be put to use once 80 percent of the 600 beds are occupied, according to the report. Meanwhile, Inner Mongolia has also seen an outbreak of the bubonic plague among local rodents. Humans can contract the plague if they are bitten by a rodent flea that is carrying the plague bacterium, or if they handle an animal infected with the plague. The documents revealed that on April 9 and April 10, Baotou, Inner Mongolias largest industrial city, and Ulanqab reported eight rodent plague cases in their municipalities. To kill the rodents, the Inner Mongolia government bought over a hundred tons of poison. Authorities are concerned the disease could jump to humans. Previously in November 2019, Inner Mongolia announced that three people were infected with the bubonic plague after consuming a wild hare that was infected with the plague. Since then, authorities have not publicly announced any updates. A screenshot of the internal document Hulunbuir Center for Disease Control and Prevention Test Result Report in Inner Mongolia, China, on April, 11, 2020. (Provided to The Epoch Times by insider) Imported CCP Virus Cases On April 11, 124 people entered Inner Mongolia via the land port in Manzhouli. Thirty-two of them were diagnosed with the CCP virus, according to the internal documents from the center for disease control and prevention in Hulunbuir, the prefecture city that governs Manzhouli. Because Manzhouli borders Russia, all passing through the land port would have come from Russia. The documents listed the names of the travelers, all with Chinese names. On April 10, 2 of 24 who entered the Manzhouli port tested positive for the virus. On April 9, 23 of 67 who entered Manzhouli tested positive. On April 8, the number was 10 out of 111. In total, between April 8 to April 11, 67 returnees from Russia (32 plus 2 plus 23 plus 10) had been diagnosed with the virus. However, the regions health commission announced no new imported cases in the entire region from 9 a.m. of April 11 to 7 a.m. of April 12. The commission announced 27 new imported cases on April 10; two new cases on April 9; two new cases on April 8. Because the commissions official figures are a total for tested samples at all ports of entry in the region, this means more cases may have been underreported. For example, beginning on March 25, some flights from overseas destined for Beijing International Airport stopped at Hohhotthe capital city of the regionfor testing the virus. Some of these passengers were diagnosed with the virus as well. On April 20, the commission announced that 118 imported cases have been diagnosed since March 23, including 74 travelers from Russia, 22 from the UK, 19 from France, two from the United States, and one from Spain. The commission didnt announce details of which port of entry the diagnosed cases were detected. The Inner Mongolia government closed the Manzhouli land port at 8 p.m. on April 8, claiming that too many Chinese nationals returning from Russia were infected with the virus. On April 11, the government also closed the Heishantou land portleaving no land ports with Russia open. A screenshot of the internal document about tightening control on Hubei people arriving in Inner Mongolia, China, on April, 11, 2020. (Provided to The Epoch Times by insider) Domestic CCP Virus Cases Inner Mongolia has not announced any new domestic infections from Feb. 19 until April 20, when it announced one new domestic infection: a person who was infected in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, and then entered Ewenki Autonomous Banner in Hulunbuir. So far, there are no details about this patient. The Epoch Times also obtained documents that recorded the number of discharged virus patients who later developed virus symptoms again or tested positive again. From Jan. 31 to March 24, authorities tracked the progress of 65 discharged patients. Nine of them presented symptoms after being discharged. Two of the nine tested positive in nucleic acid testing for the virus. Meanwhile, three of the other 56 patients who did not present symptoms tested positive again. In total, five (three plus two) discharged patients relapsed, meaning the relapse rate was 7.69 percent. Nine others were placed in quarantine for further medical observation. Another document, released on April 11, explained that each regional government had to monitor the people traveling from the virus epicenterHubei provinceand the ground zeroWuhan city, the capital of Hubei. For Inner Mongolia, authorities said special passageways for Hubei people at airports, railway stations, bus stations, and so on, should be set up. Furthermore, every Hubei person must be tested, quarantined, monitored for 14 days after they arrive in Inner Mongolia. Then, they have to report their health status to authorities every day for another 14 days. The document did not mention how many people from Hubei were diagnosed after arriving in Inner Mongolia, but emphasized the need to contain these cases. In another internal document, released by Chinas State Council to each region on April 7, the central government asked each local authority to resume business operations based on the severity of local outbreaks. If it is severe, factories should resume production step by step. The central government also asked local authorities to disinfect public transportation vehicles, limit peoples gatherings, and so on. Two cats watch a mouse walking on the pavement in Kuwait City on March 8, 2017. (YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images) Plague Another document revealed that since the first outbreak on March 15, 2020, 21 sites in four leagues [a local jurisdiction] or municipalities in the region have reported an outbreak of the plague among local rodent populations. There are 12 leagues and municipalities in Inner Mongolia, meaning a third have reported an outbreak. The document listed six cases that occurred recently. For example, on the evening of April 10, government staff found two Mongolian gerbil carcasses in the fields of a village in Xilin Gol League. Test results released on April 12 revealed that the gerbils died of the plague. A screenshot of an internal document about a plague outbreak in Inner Mongolia, China on April, 13, 2020. (Provided to The Epoch Times by insider) An internal document dated April 3 said, Currently, the plague among rodents is severe. An outbreak between humans is highly possible. It urged authorities to control and prevent the disease promptly. Severe thunderstorms could be headed to Connecticut on Tuesday. The National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for Fairfield, New Haven and New London counties on Tuesday afternoon. There is a low probability for widespread hazardous weather meeting NWS warning criteria Tuesday afternoon, as an approaching cold front triggers a few thunderstorms, the NWS said in its advisory. The strongest of these storms could produce brief strong winds and hail, the NWS said. The Nigerian presidents chief of staff died on Friday from COVID-19, the presidency said on Saturday, making him the most high profile person in the country to die in the coronavirus outbreak. Abba Kyari had acted as the gatekeeper to 77-year-old President Muhammadu Buhari. After his re-election last year, Buhari ordered ministers to channel all communications through him, Reuters reported. Kyari had underlying health problems including diabetes. Reuters reported on March 24 that he had contracted the disease. Mallam Abba Kyari, who died on 17th April 2020, at the age of 67 from complications caused by the coronavirus, was a true Nigerian patriot, said Buhari in a tweet, using an honorific title for Kyari. He referred to Kyari as his loyal friend and compatriot for the last 42 years who, as chief of staff, strove quietly and without any interest in publicity or personal gain to implement the presidents agenda. Kyari travelled to Germany in early March with a delegation of other Nigerian officials for meetings with Siemens AG. He attended meetings with senior government officials upon his return to Nigeria before he was diagnosed as having contracted the new coronavirus. Nigeria has 493 confirmed cases and 17 deaths, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. Buhari, whose public pronouncements are rare, himself has undisclosed medical ailments and spent five months in London for treatments in 2017. Kyaris death might leave a potential opening for a rethink of policy at the heart of government. Analysts said the governments statist approach since Buhari took office in 2015 was in large part influenced by his chief of staff, a former executive at the United Bank for Africa Plc. Antony Goldman, head of Nigeria-focused PM Consulting, said Kyari was the central figure in driving forward government policies on agricultural reform, investment in infrastructure and power. Kyari was very close to Buhari and arguably the most powerful man within the administration, said Malte Liewerscheidt, vice president of Teneo Intelligence in a note. Kyaris death removes the centre of gravity from Buharis inner circle and might provide an opening for more reform-minded elements such as Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, he said. Kyaris death could be very significant because he showed an immense ability to wield power in the context of a largely absent president, said Clement Nwankwo, director of the Abuja-based Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre think-tank. There is no evidence that the chief of staff shared that power with anyone. He was totally trusted and it isnt clear who could fill those shoes, said Nwankwo. Kyari died at a private hospital in the commercial capital, Lagos, a statement issued by Lagos state government said. His body was flown to the capital, Abuja, on Saturday. He was buried at a cemetery in the city in a private ceremony after funeral prayers at his residence, said Buharis spokesman Garba Shehu. Saluting the efforts of bankers to provide services amid coronavirus threat, the Finance Ministry on Monday said public sector banks (PSBs) have provided insurance cover to employees in case of an unfortunate death due to the deadly virus. Banks have also expressed their commitment to ensuring the well being of their employees by providing protective gear and medical care. statBanks have appointed dedicated doctors for its employees and also set up helpline to attend to the concerns of staff, sources said. "Salute to all bankers providing services across India in this critical time. To ensure their safety, PSBs have provided health cover (incl of #Covid-19) to all employees and also lumpsum compensation in case of an unfortunate death due to #Corona," the Finance Ministry said in a tweet. According to sources, banks have designed their own customised product keeping in mind interest of their employees and up to Rs 20 lakh lumpsum amount will be paid to relative in case of unfortunate event due to COVID-19. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman have praised bankers for imparting their duty in these challenging times. Financial services are part of some of the essential services which have been operational during the lockdown that will continue till May 3. Several banks including SBI, Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India and Indian Bank have taken various steps to ensure safety of their employees and protect them from coronavirus. For example, the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) has set up a quick response team to keep the staff motivated amid the coronavirus outbreak, The bank has set up a helpline number manned by doctors and psychologists to assist its staff and employees to deal with the coronavirus outbreak as well as stress and anxiety related to this, sources said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Angela Hill Bay City News Foundation Mr. Limata, a first-grade teacher at Emerson Elementary School in Oakland, opens his Facebook Live story-time sessions Romper Room-style, bidding a buoyant good morning to each name that pops up on his screen. "Good morning Maya! Good morning to you, Luis and Leslie! Good morning to you Robin! Ah, there's Leon and Mateo, good morning! Ruby, we have the whole crew today! "Hope everybody is having a great time at home," he says in his graceful Zambian accent. "Now, are you ready for, 'I Am a Cat'?" They are indeed. And on this day, Mr. Limata - his full name is Peter Limata Limata (there's a story behind that too) - dressed in an "I hecka (heart) math!" shirt, leans forward on his sofa in front of a wall of art, makes a couple of school-related announcements and gives a shout-out to grocery workers, doctors and nurses everywhere. Then he opens the picture book, his eyes widening when he turns the page to a lion, cheetah, tiger, puma and panther that are laughing at a silly little house cat named Simon. Mr. Limata laughs out loud with them in a hearty guffaw of "Hahahaha!" Schoolteachers everywhere are trying to connect with their students online during stay-at-home orders and school-year cancellations. Others at Emerson are reading books online too, and one even hosted an online dance party. But thanks to the expansive reach of the internet, story time in a first-grade class in Oakland or San Mateo or Livermore has grown to fit a global classroom. "The idea for me came the Sunday after the closure, like, 'What can I do to give the kids continuity to those awesome story time moments we usually do in class?'" he said. "And since then, it has been growing every day." He knows the kids in his class will tune in. "But then we started getting siblings and friends and grown-ups too, and now it's people from Chicago, Baltimore, New York and even England and Scotland. It's crazy," he said. On any given day, 30 to 50 children join in. "It's really fascinating to see how kids across cultures are able to relate through the characters and the adventures in the book and on these online platforms." Since the shelter-in-place orders began, Mr. Limata has read books like "Dragons Love Tacos" by Adam Rubin, "Hair Love" by Matthew A. Cherry, "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" by Mo Willems and classics like "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak. When the book of the day was "Alma and How She Got Her Name," by Juana Martinez-Neal, he shared his own story and encouraged the viewers to chime in. "My full name is Peter Limata Limata," he said, explaining his family name of Limata, originally spelled Jimata from the Nkoya tribe in Zambia, meant "huge first raindrop from heaven." "Then I was born in November around the beginning of the rainy season in Zambia, so for my middle name it made sense to be the 'first raindrop from heaven,'" he told his viewers. "What is the story behind your name? Share your name's story and we might be able to share during story time!" Names are indeed important, and he soon discovered that if he missed a "good morning" to someone, he'd hear about it right away. "I'll get an email, 'You didn't call my name!' So I have to be sure to welcome everybody," he said. This story was originally published by Bay City News Foundation. Please use the original link when sharing: https://www.localnewsmatters.org/2020/04/17/inspire-me-oakland-teacher-hosts-virtual-story-time-for-viewers-around-the-world/ 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. Senior BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar said on Monday that a "secular-communal narrative" is being deliberately pushed by certain quarters in the battle against the coronavirus, and asserted that everybody must cooperate in the spirit of "one people, one India". Speaking to PTI, the Information and Broadcasting minister said his government is against "fake of all kinds" and accused its critics of peddling "utter falsehoods" and not even offering apology when exposed. He cited cases of attacks on health workers and lamented that these incidents are not discussed as they should be. The coronavirus pandemic does not discriminate along religious, caste or creed divides, and all have to fight it unitedly, he asserted. "Therefore everybody must cooperate in dealing with those who are asked to take tests or be quarantined or be admitted to hospital if found positive. Everybody must cooperate in the spirit of 'one people, one India'," Javadekar said. Asked about claims that the incident like the spread of the coronavirus through the Tablighi Jamaat congregation has been used by some quarters to target a community, he said these are "utter falsehoods" which must be nailed. "India is one country and one people. The government does not discriminate. The campaign against COVID-19 is best example of where health workers despite resistance in several cases have been going from door to door to find out patients," he said. Some people deliberately push this secular-communal narrative, he added. Targeting a section of critics, the minister said a lawyer-activist claimed that a mother drowned her five children due to hunger the family suffered during the ongoing lockdown. It, however, turned out that the incident was triggered by a scuffle between the woman and her husband, and the family had no shortage of food, he said. Javadekar also cited the case of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath being wrongly ascribed a statement that he had never made. Even when the real truth comes out, they do not apologise, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Manipur on Monday became the second state after Goa to report there were no cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) after two patients recovered, chief minister N Biren Singh said. Goa said on Sunday that last of its seven Covid-19 patients had been declared as recovered and no fresh cases were registered after April 3 in the coastal state. I am glad to share that Manipur is now Corona free.Both patients hv fully recovered and have tested negative.There are no fresh cases of the virus in the state.This has been possible because of cooperation of public &medical staff and strict enforcement of lockdown (sic), Biren Singh tweeted. The northeastern state had reported only two cases of the coronavirus infection, according to the Union health ministry figures. Authorities had said on Sunday that Manipurs second Covid-19 patient had tested negative for the first time since undergoing treatment. Prof Ch Arunkumar, medical superintendent of Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) hospital in Imphal where the patient is admitted, said on Sunday that the man tested negative in his fourth test. The man had tested positive for Covid-19 on April 2. Manipur had reported its first Covid-19 case on March 24 and the patient was discharged on April 12 after being cured. She is at home for the mandatory 14-day quarantine. A pro-government and an independent economist find the governments economic incentives to kick-start the economy reasonable and well-balanced. A former liberal minister and a left-wing commentator, on the other hand, accuse the government of mismanaging the economic crisis. A centrist analyst predicts that after the health emergency, the government will face tremendous difficulties in managing the economy. In Magyar Nemzet, Csaba Szajlai welcomes programs by the government and the National Bank intended to boost the Hungarian economy. Szajlai recalls that the government plans to spend 9,000 billion Forints, around 20 per cent of the GDP to kick-start production. The conservative economist, who in the past was often critical of the Orban governments economic path, thinks that the Orban package will help the Hungarian economy recover without creating long-term systemic risks. As a result of low deficits and shrinking public debt over the past ten years, the Hungarian economy is in a much healthier state than it was at the time of the 2008 global financial crisis, and therefore the government has more elbow room to boost the economy through public spending, Szajlai claims. On Portfolio, Krisztian Kertesz also finds the governments proactive policies reasonable and well-balanced. He cautions, however, that loose monetary policy and increased welfare spending may prove counterproductive. Kertesz fears that cheap money may not go to sectors that are harmed by the coronavirus emergency, but rather boost less risky businesses. Kertesz adds that increased government support may also keep those businesses alive that are not worth saving. In conclusion, Kertesz praises government intervention to shore up the exchange rate of the Forint, along with the recently announced loan repayment moratorium and tax cuts, as the best tools to help the economy. In Nepszava, Istvan Csillag, on the other hand, scorns the governments economic emergency policies. Csillag, who served as Minister of Economy under a former socialist-liberal government, accuses the government of penalizing opposition-led municipalities and multinational companies, in order to entrench itself in power. The liberal economist speculates that the government wants to bleed opposition parties dry by cutting funding and criminalizing the spread of fake news. He suggests that the government wants to take over lucrative companies as well. Csillag contends that the subsidies announced by the government to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus are too little too late to help Hungarian companies avoid insolvency. He calls for increased welfare benefits to help Hungarians in need. In a passing remark, he calls on the opposition to create a shadow government and use the economic crisis to come up with meaningful policy recommendations. 168 Oras Peter Somfai fears that the number of Hungarians living in poverty and deprivation will skyrocket. The left-wing commentator quotes inhabitants of a poor village in the countryside and contends that starving Hungarians left without a job and proper welfare have already started to break into shops to get food. Somfai speculates that public order will break down as such incidents become more frequent. To avoid this, he recommends increased welfare spending, and lambasts the government for abandoning those families most in need. In an interview with Magyar Narancs, Gabor Torok predicts that the government has a bumpy road ahead even if it manages the health emergency well. The centrist political analyst thinks that it will be very difficult to overcome the harsh economic implications of the coronavirus lockdown. Torok believes that until the 2022 Parliamentary election, the government will need to strike a balance between popular demands for increased government welfare spending on the one hand and calls for more support for pro-government companies. Torok goes so far as to wonder if the government may call an early election after the pandemic before it starts confronting the economic consequences This opinion does not necessarily represent the views of XpatLoop.com or the publisher. Your opinions are welcome too - for editorial review before possible publication online. Click here to Share Your Story Arielle Trumble - a nurse in the operating room who works to educate colleagues on how to work with COVID-19 cases at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle, Washington, U.S. - says, "I have a duty of care. We're prepared for the worst as we hope for the best." Senior Colonel Wu Qian, Director General of the Information Office of China's Ministry of National Defense (MND) and Spokesperson for the MND, answers reporters' questions at a monthly press conference on Feb. 28, 2020. (eng.mod.gov.cn) BEIJING, April 20 -- The Chinese military is strongly opposed to the US recent unjustified accusation against China and urges the US to stop meddling in the South China Sea, said Senior Colonel Wu Qian, spokesman for Chinas Ministry of National Defense, in a written statement on the afternoon of April 20. Wu said that recently a Vietnamese fishing boat illegally entered the waters off Chinas Xisha Islands and hit a vessel of the China Coast Guard (CCG). Both spokespersons for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the China Coast Guard have briefed on the incident and made clear Chinas position. The facts and responsibilities for this incident are clear and unquestionable. China was carrying out law enforcement activities within its sovereignty and in accordance with the law and regulations, Wu stressed. The United States Department of Defense ignored the facts, confused the public and made groundless accusations against China, trying to sow discord on the South China Sea issue and create excuse for its military presence over there. The Chinese military is firmly opposed to this. We urge the US side to stop making groundless charges and meddling in the South China Sea, so as to avoid further damage to regional situation, Wu added. By Associated Press TORONTO: Canadians on Monday mourned the shocking rampage that left 18 dead in a rural community in Nova Scotia, after a gunman disguised as a police officer opened fire on people hunkered down in their homes, setting many ablaze in the deadliest mass shooting in the countrys history. Officials said the suspect, identified as a 51-year-old, was also among the dead in the weekend attack. Police did not provide a motive for the killings. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the gunman killed at least 18 people over a large swath of northern Nova Scotia. "The vast majority of Nova Scotians will have a direct link with one more more of victims. The entire province and country is grieving right now as we come to grips with something that is unimaginable, Trudeau said. The pandemic will prevent us from mourning together in person, but a vigil will be held virtually to celebrate the lives of the victims, Trudeau said, adding it would take place Friday night through a Facebook group. Trudeau asked the media to avoid mentioning the name of the assailant or showing his picture. "Do not give this person the gift of infamy," he said. Police began advising residents overnight Saturday in the rural town of Portapique, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) north of Halifax, to lock their doors and stay in their basements. The town, like all of Canada, had been adhering to government advice to remain at home because of the coronavirus pandemic and most of the victims were inside their homes when the attack began. Several bodies were later found inside and outside one home on Portapique Beach Road, the street where the suspect lived, authorities said. Bodies were also found at several other locations within about a 50-kilometer (30-mile) area from the neighborhood where the shootings began late Saturday, and authorities believe the shooter may have targeted his first victims but then began attacking randomly. Several homes in the area were set on fire. At least four white forensic vans were seen Monday morning entering the neighborhood where the shootings began. Authorities said the suspected gunman wore a police uniform at one point and made his car look like a Royal Canadian Mounted Police cruiser. That fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act, Mounted Police Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said. He said many of the victims did not know the shooter and authorities believe he acted alone. According to his high school yearbook, he long had a fascination with the Mounties. "future may including being an RCMP officer, the yearbook profile said. The dead officer was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and a 23-year veteran of the force. Another officer was wounded. Also among the dead was school teacher Lisa McCully, who worked at a local elementary school. Nova Scotia Teachers Union President President Paul Wozney said. Our hearts are broken along with those of her colleagues and students at Debert Elementary," he said. Two health care workers at local nursing homes were also among those killed, according to Von Canada, a long term health care company, which identified them as Heather OBrien, a licensed practical nurse, and Kristen Beaton, a continuing care assistant. The gunman, who owned a denture practice in in the city of Dartmouth, near Halifax, lived part time in Portapique, according to residents of the town. Police initially said he had been arrested Sunday at a gas station in Enfield, outside Halifax, but later said he had died. It was not clear how, and they did not provide further details, although one police official said that there was an exchange of gunfire between the suspect and police at one point. Cpl. Lisa Croteau, a spokeswoman with the provincial force, said police received a call about a person with firearms late Saturday night, and the investigation evolved into an active shooting investigation. Christine Mills, a resident of the area, said it had been a frightening night for the small town, with armed officers patrolling the streets. In the morning, helicopters flew overhead searching for the suspect. Its nerve-wracking because you dont know if somebody has lost their mind and is going to beat in your front door," she said. Tom Taggart, a lawmaker who represents the Portapique area in the Municipality of Colchester, said the quiet community has been shaken. This is just an absolutely wonderful, peaceful quiet community and the idea that this could happen in our community is unbelievable, Taggart said. He said he didnt know the gunman well, but spoke to him a few times when he phoned about municipal issues and described knowing his lovely big home on Portapique Beach Road. The gunman is listed as a denturist a person who makes dentures in the city of Dartmouth, near he owned, was closed for the past month because of the coronavirus pandemic. Leather, the police superintendent, said authorities were investigating whether the attack had anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic but no link has been found thus far. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada. The country overhauled its gun-control laws after gunman Marc Lepine killed 14 women and himself at Montreals Ecole Polytechnique college in 1989. Before this weekends rampage, that had been the countrys worst mass killing. It is illegal to possess an unregistered handgun or any kind of rapid-fire weapon in Canada. The country also requires training, a personal risk assessment, two references, spousal notification and criminal record checks to purchase a weapon. A van attack two years ago in Toronto left 10 people dead and 16 wounded. The suspect, who drove his van on a busy Toronto sidewalk, said he carried out the attack in retribution for years of sexual rejection and ridicule by women, is awaiting trial. Human beings are locked up. The world is shut down. Who's benefiting? Wild animals. While we remain behind bars (not literally, but it definitely feels like it), wild animals have been appearing everywhere and proving to us that nature does just fine without us interfering with its dynamics. If anything, we interrupt it. The animals must be thinking, "Is it finally just us now? Do we get to claim our habitat?" ANI Just like these flamingos who have showed up in Navi Mumbai during migratory season and if there is one word that describes this view, it's 'breathtaking'. Every year these flamingos migrate to Mumbai and while the Lesser Flamingos comes from Kutch, Gujarat, the Greater Flamingo fly in from Iran. ANI The whole scene looks like the sea has turned soft, delicate pink with flamingos covering every single bit of it. Just a few days ago, flamingos had appeared in Navi Mumbai and put on quite a show for the residents of Seawoods. A Seawood resident named, Sunil Agarwal, had shot a video and written, 'With the full moon comes higher high tide which brings in more water and which attracts even more #Flamingos. The Talawe Wetlands & TS Chanakya Wetlands are part of this intertidal zone and not some man made water body. Please ask CIDCO & Urban development department to declare this area as Flamingo Sanctuary at the earliest as was discussed by us in January 2020 meeting'. Nature at its best. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 23:47:30|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close GENEVA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Two UN agencies said on Monday that as scientists around the world work to develop a vaccine against the novel coronavirus, governments must use every opportunity possible to protect people from the many diseases for which vaccines are already available. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a joint statement that the urgent need for a COVID-19 vaccine underscores the pivotal role immunizations play in protecting lives and economies. "When routine vaccinations are missed, the risk of disease outbreaks increases," the joint statement said. According to the joint statement, in 2018, approximately 527,000 children missed their first dose of measles-containing vaccine in the WHO European Region, and then in 2019, the measles virus exposed immunity gaps in Europe, infecting over 100,000 people across all age groups. "Protecting children, adolescents and adults from vaccine-preventable diseases through vaccination is a must for the sustainability of health care systems," the statement noted. The two agencies also urged countries to be prepared to vaccinate those at higher risk and ensure everyone, including the most marginalized, will have equal access to a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available. "As we step into a new future, vaccines will continue to serve as a foundation for health and well-being for all. It is through solidarity, joint action and tireless commitment to leaving no one behind that we can create a healthier future together," read the statement. Enditem New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to media on the White Island volcanic eruption during her post-cabinet press conference at Parliament in Wellington on Dec. 16, 2019. (Marty Melville/AFP via Getty Images) New Zealand Announces It Will Ease Tough Virus Lockdown Measures Next Week WELLINGTONNew Zealand will next week ease some of the worlds strictest lockdown measures taken to tackle the CCP virus pandemic, also known as the novel coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday, after a month of tight restrictions slowed the spread of the disease. The left-leaning Labor government of the Pacific nation introduced its highest lockdown measures for its 5 million population in late March, shutting down offices, schools and all non-essential services including bars, restaurants, cafes, and playgrounds in a bid to completely eliminate the virus. New Zealand will move out of alert level 4 on April 27, a few days longer than the scheduled one-month lockdown, after which it will be in alert level 3 for two weeks, Ardern said in a news conference. On the recommendation of the Director General of Health, who is confident there is currently no widespread undetected community transmission in New Zealand, today we are able to take a balanced approach in transitioning through alert levels and restarting our economy, Ardern said. Australias right-leaning Prime Minister Scott Morrison on April 16 commented at the differing strategies taken by the ally nations, saying that the New Zealand strategy required very extreme economic measures compared to Australias suppression strategy. It is quite possible that by pursuing the suppression strategy, you actually get eradication as a by-product and the Chief Medical Officer said that today, he said. One doesnt necessarily exclude the other. Its more about the level of economic restrictions that youre prepared to put in place, which also come at a great cost both to lives and livelihoods. The New Zealand dollar jumped about half a percent after the announcement, rising from negative territory to $0.6050, its highest in three sessions. Construction, manufacturing, and forestry businesses would be allowed to operate under the new rules, meaning hundreds of thousands of people will resume work, local media reported. Shops, malls, hardware stores, and restaurants will remain shut under alert level 3, but can permit online or phone purchases. New Zealanders stuck at home for a month were immediately on social media asking whether restaurant takeaways and malls would open, while checking rules for travel and resuming activities including bush walks and surfing. The government has said swimming at the beach, a day walk, or fishing from a wharf would be allowed in level 3. Experienced surfers would be allowed, and tramping and biking is ok for day walks on easy trails. Some travel would be permitted around the country for essential services and a handful of other cases. Air New Zealand Chief Revenue officer Cam Wallace said there was significant spike in bookings just five minutes after Arderns announcement. The line graph is trending upwards, havent seen that in weeks! he tweeted. Schools will be able to open partially up to year 10 but attendance will be voluntary. Funerals and weddings will be able to go ahead, but limited to 10 people. Ardern said she still wants the vast majority of people to work and learn from home. Next Phase New Zealands hard and fast lockdown approach, shutting its borders and announcing a state of national emergency before it recorded a COVID-19 death, has been credited with containing the highly contagious disease. Just nine new cases of COVID-19 were recorded on Monday and no new deaths, taking the total to 1,440 cases with 12 fatalities. Decisions on whether restrictions can be relaxed further will be made on May 11, Ardern said. If we want to make sure that we are a health success story, and ensure our economy can start to operate again without the virus taking off, we need to get the next phase right, she said. The worst thing we can do for our country is to yo-yo between levels, with all of the uncertainty that this would bring. New Zealand has scaled up testing, with more than 85,000 people tested. The countrys transmission rate, the number of cases each person with the virus passes it onto, is now 0.48, less than half a person each. Overseas the average is 2.5 people, Ardern said. By Praveen Menon. Epoch Times staff contributed to this report. UK and US media evoke the spirit of the Second World War during the coronavirus pandemic by using language relating to force and combat, a study reveals. The use of a war rhetoric particularly verbs to invoke a call to action are abundant in news reports on British and American news sites, including the Daily Mail. UK-based language experts who analysed media coverage of the pandemic in different countries say German coverage instead favours more scientific language. This is likely because Germans dont associate the Second World War with victory and instead relate it to Nazi rule possibly the darkest period in their history. The use of war rhetoric is designed to raise morale during the current difficult period of social distancing, economic uncertainly, increasing unemployment and an escalating death rate. But researchers claims the UK and the US which are thought likely to end up with the highest COVID-19 death rates when the pandemic is over could eventually move away from military analogies. Chart shows collocations of coronavirus in the UK press. Only verbs and modifiers were included since they were the largest grammatical categories of collocations. As can be seen, the words that occur in the vicinity of coronavirus are often words taken from the domain of warfare or violence UK newspapers have been 'competing with each other to frame the virus in terms of war and combat', linguists at the University of Reading have said. Although the use of such language could be to help keep up the morale during these testing times, the research team claim more scientific language as seen in German coverage will be more successful to beat COVID-19 . PIctured, firefighters putting out a blaze in London after an air raid during The Blitz in 1941 As soon as it became obvious that the new coronavirus posed a serious threat to public health in Britain, newspapers across the country were competing with each other to frame the virus in terms of war and combat, said Dr Sylvia Jaworska, associate professor in Applied Linguistics at the University of Reading. The reality is that the coronavirus doesnt distinguish between friends and enemies and no matter our physical strength or character they will not be enough to slow the death rate on their own, said Dr Jaworska. Clear communication, along with effective testing and treatment options, will be what wins the fight against COVID-19. A similar situation, although with fewer instances of war and fight references, can be observed in this chart of US press coverage, including words such as fight, combat, kill and hit EXAMPLES OF WW2-STYLE LANGUAGE IN UK AND US MEDIA The Daily Mail called on the public to summon the Blitz spirit to face coronavirus because we are at war and need to deal with the outbreak in the same way our predecessors did (March 11) The Guardian reported in private hospitals joining forces to fight the virus (March 14) and scientists who formed the new front in the battle against coronavirus (March 13) The Sun urged Brits to invoke the spirit of the Blitz to beat the coronavirus (March 17). The New York Times asked whether Our fight against coronavirus [is] worse than the disease? (March 20) and declared that the US is not winning the fight (March 30). Advertisement The researchers also created word charts that illustrate the frequency of words used in UK, US and German coronavirus coverage. In the UK, newspapers have used war references, such as battle, combat, defeat and fight or even indicators of physical violence including hit and tackle relating to the pandemic. This includes The Daily Mail, which started a trend on March 11 by calling on the public to summon the Blitz spirit to face coronavirus because we are at war and need to deal with the outbreak in the same way our predecessors. This type of rhetoric, mostly verbs to imply action, seems to be suggesting that the measures required to slow the pandemic are similar to those needed to win a war or fight,' said Dr Jaworska. In the US, on March 20, the New York Times started using similar language, including a reference to our fight against coronavirus. The slight time difference is likely due to the US governments slow response to the seriousness of the global health crisis, researchers said. Researchers said German coverage relating to science was 'conspicuously absent' from word maps for the UK and US - these include informieren (to inform), untersuchen (to investigate/test), entwickeln (to develop) and vergleichen (to compare) and the verb testen (to test). 'All the verbs point to the significance of an approach grounded in science and also communication about the disease,' they said. Using war metaphors can mobilise public health efforts however, it can have an opposite effect for those on the NHS frontline who are feeling pressure, Dr Jaworska said. This is especially the case if health workers who are risking their lives in service of their country feel they are not winning the battle. Analysis from German media coverage, meanwhile, revealed heavy uses of words such as inform, investigate, test and compare, suggesting an approach grounded in science. This reflects Germanys focus on scientific testing and understanding of the virus and seeing as a disease rather than the traditional framing of an enemy, the linguists have claimed. Testing and developing treatment options for COVID-19, as demonstrated in Germany, as well as clear public communication, will be more successful than wartime-like language, the linguists have said in their research paper Germany also began mass testing for COVID-19 ahead of other European countries and is allowing some non-essential shops to reopen as part of a gradual easing of its lockdown measures. War rhetoric and words coined during the reign of the Nazis or used in its media coverage at the time such as 'totaler krieg' (total war) and 'endlosung (final solution') are not generally still in use. It would indeed be rather odd, to say the least, to see the German press evoking the Blitz spirit during the COVID-19 pandemic, the team write in their study, which has been published in Viral Discourse. Researchers analysed thousands of articles about the coronavirus and COVID-19 published between January 7 and the end of March 2020 from press coverage of the pandemic in the UK, US and Germany. January 7 was the day Chinese authorities officially reported the presence of a novel virus. The material was made up of UK coverage from the The Daily Mail, The Times, The Sun, The Mirror, The Telegraph and The Guardian; US coverage from The New York Times, The New York Post, USA Today and Los Angeles Times; and German coverage from Der Spiegel, Die Tageszeitung (TAZ), Die Welt and Bunte. STAGE THREE RESTRICTIONS ON POLITICAL ACTIVITY On 31st March, the Victorian government introduced Stage Three Restrictions in order to combat the spread of COVID-19. The only difference that stage three restrictions make is that social distancing is now enforceable by law. In Victoria, there are only four reasons you are permitted to leave your house without incurring a $1652 fine: shopping for what you need - food and essential supplies medical, care, or compassionate needs exercise in compliance with the public gathering requirements work and study if you cant work or learn remotely In order to comply with social distancing and remain politically active, unions and activists have had to be creative in how to plan protests. An example of this are the 1st May Movements car convoys in Sydney that involve placarding your car and driving with other protestors. This does not break social distancing. United Workers Union (UWU) also organised a CARe convoy for the #NoWorkerLeftBehind campaign on 9th April for Brisbane and Melbourne. Again, this protest did not break social distancing. Many expressed confusion about whether they would be fined $1652 if the cops caught them participating in the convoy. On the day, the UWU CARe convoy was hassled by the cops. However, it did not receive the level of policing as a convoy protest the next day. On 10th April, the Refugee Action Collective (RAC) organised a car convoy to demand the release of refugees held in Mantra City Hotel, Preston. Six days before the convoy, after receiving threats from Victorian Police, RAC released a media statement that said they would defy laws if necessary and that the cavalcade protest is safe, detention centres are not. One of the organisers, Chris Breen, noted that the protest will be safer than going shopping, safer than travelling on public transport, safer than non-essential work that continues, and safer by an order of magnitude than being stuck in a sealed corridor in the Mantra. Refugees at Mantra have been brought to Australia under the Medevac legislation, but they remain in detention in crowded spaces under the watch of Serco security guards that have broken social distancing. On the day of action, Chris Breen was arrested in his house for inciting illegal political activity. He was held at Preston police station for nine hours in which the police constantly broke social distancing rules, had his phone and computers (even his sons computer) seized, and his court date set for 6th August. This charge was not from current state emergency laws, but from the anti-protest law in the Crimes Act 1958 (Section 321G). At the protest, twenty-six individuals were fined $1652 for breaking stay at home rules, totalling almost $43,000. In a Facebook post, Chris Breen detailed what he had gone through. He mentioned the CARe Convoy and how although unions did not experience the same repercussions as RAC, it sets a dangerous precedent for the police to shut down union activity when it is most vital. Increased police powers do not mean a safer environment. We have seen anecdotes of policing solely targeting low-income areas, workers, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The project covidpolicing.org.au has been started by a group of legal and human rights advocacy organisations to gather reports on how new police powers are being used. The first weekly roundup on Monday 13th April consisted of twenty-eight reports, one from Queensland, one from Tasmania, one from South Australia, five from New South Wales, and twenty from Victoria. Most reports spoke about feelings of fear and harassment of being stalked and intimidated by police. The number of reports are too small to make any significant generalisations, but the project expects to gather more reports as word spreads about more of their activities. An increase in surveillance technology use and investments has been observed across Australia. As pointed out in The Workers Weekly Guardian (Editorial, #1910), we must be wary of the current crisis to become a precedent for fascistic tendencies as experienced after 9/11. Refugee Action Collective are calling for: Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie and Sausan Atika (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20 2020 Jakarta is likely to extend the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB), as a 14-day period is not long enough to bring COVID-19 in the Indonesian capital under control, its governor has said. The PSBB was to be in effect for 14 days, but in reality, this kind of outbreak is not going to be over in 14 days, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said by video link on Thursday, during a meeting with the COVID-19 mitigation supervisory team of the House of Representatives. Jakarta, the epicenter of the Indonesian outbreak, was the first region to impose the PSBB, which is in effect from April 10 to 23. The citys implementing regulation on the PSBB conforms to the guidelines issued in a Health Ministry regulation, which requires regions to apply for the PSBB before introducing localized measures to contain the spread of the viral respiratory disease. to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content e-Post daily digital newspaper No advertisements, no interruptions Privileged access to our events and programs Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login WASHINGTON - The White House and Congress on Monday tried to design another giant bailout package aimed at combating the coronavirus pandemic's economic and health fallout, scrambling to resolve last-minute snags over loan access and testing. "We have I believe come to terms on the principles of the legislation, which is a good thing, but it's always in the fine print," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said on CNN Monday evening. "And so now we're down to fine print, but I feel very optimistic and hopeful that we'll come to a conclusion." Pelosi said she hoped for action Tuesday in the Senate and Wednesday in the House. If a deal is reached, the nearly $500 billion measure would become the fourth virus-related bill rushed through Congress in two months at a total price tag of almost $3 trillion. The negotiators' urgency shows how worried Republicans and Democrats are about the deteriorating economy, which has seen massive job losses and led to the closure of many American companies. But they are also dealing with growing political pressures amid bipartisan outrage about how some of the bailout programs have been handled so far, particularly the uneven distribution of loans to small businesses. The new package would amount to roughly $470 billion in new spending, with $370 billion directed to small businesses, $75 billion going to hospitals, and $25 billion set aside for testing. President Donald Trump hailed the emerging deal at his daily coronavirus briefing Monday evening, calling it "a great plan" and saying he hoped for a Senate vote on Tuesday. "We're talking about $75 billion for hospitals and other health-care providers," Trump said. "Many providers and their employees have taken a huge financial hit in recent weeks. . . . Hospitals have really been fantastic." Funds for testing emerged Monday as one of the last things to resolve. Democrats were pushing for a "comprehensive national testing strategy," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a tweet. The Democrats were seeking "free testing for all, and expanding reporting and contact tracing," Schumer said. Pelosi said on CNN that "we need a national strategy for testing." But Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and other Trump administration officials were seeking a "state-driven approach and flexibility," according to a senior administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private talks. The official said "states must outline their plans for testing and share those" with the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services so they can "inform their public about what they intend and help us allocate resources appropriately." The differing approaches echoed the dispute growing nationally as governors blame the federal government for the shortage of tests while Trump and other administration officials insist that there have been record numbers of tests performed and that governors need to try harder. It was not immediately clear what a solution to the testing dispute might look like, though officials involved said they were making progress on the issue. The package comes several weeks after Congress devoted a record $2 trillion to arresting the economic fallout from the coronavirus, underscoring the depth of the crisis and the growing demand for a robust federal response. More than 22 million people have lost their jobs in the past month amid a dive into recession. The new measure would seek to devote another $310 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program, an initiative created by last month's Cares Act that was initially funded $349 billion but has since run dry. The Small Business Administration stopped accepting loan applications for the program last week after 1.6 million firms obtained taxpayer-backed, forgivable loans. The White House and Republicans demanded more money for the program, but Democrats said they would only support the measure if they received more money for hospitals, cities and states. The White House and Democrats appeared to resolve most of their differences Sunday, but sticking points remained Monday. In addition to the dispute over testing, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus released a letter calling for $65 billion in the small business loan program to be channeled through Community Development Financial Institutions, which are a type of lender that tends to cater to smaller firms and non-profits. "These institutions play a leading role in serving farmers, as well as veteran, family, women, and minority-owned small businesses in rural, urban and suburban communities," caucus Chairman Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, said in a statement. Democrats led by House Small Business Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., were also pushing for inclusion of other small lending institutions that operate in underserved areas, including the Minority Depository Institutions and SBA Microloan Intermediaries. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat whose New York City district has been hard-hit by the virus, also announced her opposition, saying Congress must do more faster to help impacted communities. "I'm not here with the luxury of time," Ocasio-Cortez said in a video. "I need legislation that is going to save people's lives." As negotiators from the Trump administration and congressional leadership worked behind the scenes to resolve the outstanding issues, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced on the floor that the Senate would convene Tuesday at 4 p.m. with the goal of passing a deal at that time. There had been hopes of approving an agreement in the Senate on Monday, but the deal was not finalized in time. "At this hour, our Democratic colleagues are still prolonging their discussions with the administration, so the Senate regretfully will not be able to pass more funding for Americans' paychecks today," McConnell said. "However, since this is so urgent, I have asked that the Senate meet again tomorrow in a new session that was not previously scheduled, and the Democratic leader has agreed to my request. It is past time to get this done for the country." After speaking on the floor, McConnell donned a face mask to talk briefly to reporters at the Capitol, telling them, without offering details, that negotiations are continuing. As they finalized the package, lawmakers were circling around an increase of $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program, of which $60 billion would be reserved for smaller financial institutions to distribute. Half of that would be provisioned for lenders with less than $10 billion in assets and the other half for institutions with between $10 billion and $50 billion in assets. An additional $60 billion in loans and grants would go to a separate small business emergency lending program that is out of money. Congressional aides, however, cautioned that talks were ongoing and details remained in flux. Lawmakers and the administration worked late into the night Sunday trying to hammer out the agreement, but Democrats said Monday that issues remained unresolved on the hospital spending and some elements of the small business programs, in addition to testing. They also insisted that they had not abandoned their push for some relief for state and local governments whose budgets have been hollowed out by the pandemic, but Republicans and administration officials continued to reject those demands. If the Senate succeeds in passing the legislation Tuesday, the House could attempt to vote on it as early as Wednesday. Both chambers are out of session, but Republicans have made it clear that they will insist on a roll-call vote in the House, which will require a majority of lawmakers to be present. In videos on Twitter and in an interview with CNBC, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the principal author of the Paycheck Protection Program, defended it amid reports of large companies getting loans, in some cases with more than one affiliate receiving the maximum $10 million. The loans are supposed to go to companies with fewer than 500 employees and are forgivable if the businesses keep workers on their payrolls. Rubio said some companies had been approved for loans that he didn't think should have, but he hoped regulations would be tightened to prevent that from happening. "Look, there were glitches made, no doubt about it, but in the end take comfort in the fact that the money has to go to the workers ultimately, it doesn't really matter who the worker's working for we want to keep them employed. This is not a bailout of any company," Rubio said. "But I think certainly the goal here is to get money into the hands of businesses who don't have anywhere else to go for money, including the stock market, shareholders, other sort of credit lines." House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., spoke in favor of the emerging agreement in an interview on Fox Business, accusing Democrats of holding it up to make a variety of demands. "What it would do is something that we've been requesting for the last two weeks, more funding for the small business program," McCarthy said. "This business program has worked very well more than 1.6 million businesses requested the money to pay their employees, to pay their rent." - - - The Washington Post's Seung Min Kim, Mike DeBonis and Paul Kane contributed to this report. A celebrity stylist who dresses some of Australia's top models has tipped a newly launched $40 tracksuit to be one of the country's best-selling ensembles during coronavirus isolation. Donny Galella was browsing online when he spotted a $20 burgundy hoodie and matching $20 sweatpants made from plush velour on Big W's website. After inspecting the set in person, the Sydney stylist said it 'feels luxurious' and looks considerably more expensive than its affordable price tag. 'I have a feeling this will fly off the shelves,' he told Daily Mail Australia. Sizes eight and 18 have already done just that and are completely sold out, but you can still get your hands on sizes 10, 12, 14 and 16 in select Big W stores and from the brand's official site. Scroll down for video Celebrity stylist Donny Galella was browsing online when he spotted this $40 burgundy tracksuit made from plush velour on Big W's website Availability for individual stores can be checked online to save you taking a wasted trip. Made from cotton and polyester blend velour, the tracksuit is soft, stretchy and stylish, making it the perfect choice for lounging around the house and working from home during lockdown which will continue for at least another four weeks. Celebrity stylist Donny Galella says soft, stretchy fabrics like cotton, jersey and velour should be our first choices for isolation It can be machine washed at a regular temperature but it's not suitable for tumble drying because high heat forces synthetic fibres like polyester to contract, causing clothes to shrink. Mr Galella previously told Daily Mail Australia that soft, stretchy fabrics like cotton, jersey and velour are perfect for lazy days in isolation. Velour tracksuits are part of the 'off-duty' uniform for catwalk megastars and some of the world's most famous internet influencers, with model Gigi Hadid and Instagram sensation Tammy Hembrow rocking the look to run errands and relax in their upscale homes. 'They are super soft and comfy, perfect for couch time,' Mr Galella said. Velour vs. velvet: What's the difference? Velour is a plush, knitted fabric similar to velvet. It's usually made from a blend of cotton and synthetic materials like polyester, while velvet is typically made from natural fibres like pure silk or cotton. Velvet is also made from longer 'piles' of fabric, while velour is made from shorter. This means that while velour is soft and plush to touch, velvet tends to feel richer and fuller. Source: CanvasEtc.com Advertisement Mr Galella believes it's important to 'get ready for the day' in isolation just as you normally would, to help you maintain a sense of normality and motivation during these extraordinary times. He said women who dial onto conference calls while working from home should avoid wearing striped, polka dotted and checked fabrics, as they tend to distort creating a blurry 'strobe' effect on camera. He recommended bright, block colours like mustard, wine and blush pink instead. 'Lots of psychological studies suggest certain colours can positively impact your mood and impact your emotions,' Mr Galella said. 'So during these uncertain and gloomy days, embrace colours that help lift your spirits.' Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - April 20, 2020) - Chinook Energy Inc. (TSX: CKE) ("Chinook") is pleased to announce that today it received shareholder and court approval for the previously announced plan of arrangement (the "Arrangement") pursuant to which Tourmaline Oil Corp. ("Tourmaline") will acquire all the issued and outstanding common shares of Chinook. Pursuant to the Arrangement, Chinook shareholders will receive $0.0675 cash for each common share of Chinook held. The Arrangement was approved by shareholders of Chinook holding greater than 96.4% of the common shares who voted on the Arrangement at Chinook's annual and special shareholder meeting (the "Meeting"). The Arrangement is expected to be completed on April 21, 2020. In addition to the Arrangement, shareholders also approved other annual business matters including fixing the number of directors at four, the election of four directors and the appointment of KPMG LLP as auditors. Detailed voting results for all resolutions will be posted under Chinook's profile at www.sedar.com. On a vote by ballot, each of the following four nominees proposed by management was elected as a director of Chinook at the Meeting. Nominee Votes For Votes Withheld Jill T. Angevine 104,082,558 3,648,167 Robert J. Herdman 104,193,392 3,537,333 Robert J. Iverach 104,183,717 3,547,008 Walter J. Vrataric 104,913,993 2,816,732 About Chinook Energy Inc. Chinook is a Calgary-based public oil and natural gas exploration and development company with a large contiguous Montney liquids-rich natural gas position at Birley/Umbach, British Columbia. For further information please contact: Walter Vrataric President and Chief Executive Officer Chinook Energy Inc. Telephone: (403) 261-6883 Website: www.chinookenergyinc.com Jason Dranchuk Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer Chinook Energy Inc. Telephone: (403) 261-6883 To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54628 More than 1,500 Britons stranded in New Zealand will be repatriated to the UK on five charter flights this week from Christchurch and Auckland - but will have to pay up to 800 for a ticket. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said those most at risk from coronavirus, like those with existing health conditions, pregnant women, or the elderly, will be prioritised on three flights. But some have claimed that it would be safer for Britons to stay in New Zealand as it has only suffered 12 deaths and has had under 1,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, whereas the UK has had 16,060 deaths and over 120,000 confirmed cases. Earlier today New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the country will ease a nationwide lockdown next week after claiming success in stopping 'an uncontrolled explosion' of the virus. Jacinda Ardern (pictured above) said the country will ease a nationwide lockdown next week The first plane is expected to depart on Friday and flights will continue to run every second day, with alternating departures from Auckland and Christchurch, the FCO said British High Commissioner to New Zealand Laura Clarke said the flights are being arranged to bring 'the most vulnerable' home The first plane is expected to depart on Friday and flights will continue to run every second day, with alternating departures from the two airports, the FCO said. Services are being part-funded by the Government's 75 million scheme to organise flights from countries where commercial services have been halted due to the pandemic. Tickets back from New Zealand will cost 800 per person. Travellers able to prove financial hardship may be able to get an emergency loan from public funds. British High Commissioner to New Zealand Laura Clarke said the flights are being arranged to bring 'the most vulnerable' home. She said: 'We will also be including children under 12 and their families. If you fall into those categories my team will be in touch with details on how you can book the flights. 'I know that many others of you will be disappointed that this offer does not extend to you, but it's important that we look after those who are most in need in the first instance.' Social media users reacted to the decision to send Britons back to the UK from New Zealand Lord Goldsmith, the minister responsible for New Zealand, said: 'We promised we would do everything we could to help get Britons home. 'Getting a commercial flight from New Zealand is now extremely difficult, so we are now going to bring back vulnerable British travellers on charter flights and will continue to support those who remain in the country.' Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said: 'We continue to work around the clock to get British travellers home. We have now chartered 5 flights to bring home vulnerable British travellers stranded in NZ, starting this week. My thanks to the New Zealand Government for their assistance.' Three flights will be leaving Auckland (pictured, Auckland airport during lockdown) and two from Christchurch Dominic Raab tweeted his thanks to New Zealand as it revealed it would be sending Brits home Some 2,600 Britons have returned to the UK on commercial flights from New Zealand since the outbreak began, the FCO said. Earlier this month MailOnline spoke to Holly Lacey-Freeman, 29, and her boyfriend Tom Robinson, 32, who were about six months into their travels around New Zealand before the coronavirus pandemic struck. Ms Lacey-Freeman said: 'Right now there is no solid guarantee the flight or route will remain open - some people have either had their flights cancelled (again) or been unable to board the plane due to the airlines overbooking.' It is unclear whether the couple have now returned to the UK. The FCO says it has so far brought back more than 7,300 people on 35 flights from 13 countries and is currently pushing to bring back thousands more across the globe. Some 2,600 Britons have returned to the UK on commercial flights from New Zealand since the outbreak began, the FCO said. Pictured: Auckland airport It also estimates that 1.3 million people have returned to the UK on commercial flights since the end of January, when concerns about coronavirus began to escalate. However, tens of thousands of Britons remain unable to get home from countries around the world, including some still stuck in Peru after being unable to access the UK's final rescue flight from the country. Speaking earlier today, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said: 'We have done what very few countries have been able to do,' Ardern said. 'We have stopped a wave of devastation.' She said New Zealand would move its maximum Level Four alert to Level Three from late evening on Monday, April 27, and remain there for two weeks to assess the situation. The announcement means businesses deemed safe can reopen, along with some schools, while limits on local travel are also relaxed and gatherings of up to 10 people allowed for events such as weddings or funerals. While restrictions will be loosened slightly, social distancing rules will remain. 'I couldn't feel prouder of the start we have made together but I also feel a huge responsibility to ensure that we do not lose any of the gains we have made either,' she said. New Zealand entered a four-week lockdown in late March, which included closing the island nation's borders, countrywide stay-at-home orders and shuttering all non-essential businesses and services. The draconian measures made the South Pacific country one of the most successful in containing the virus, with around 1,100 known cases among the five-million population, including 12 deaths and 974 recovered patients. It had seven confirmed new infections on Monday. The global coronavirus disease COVID-19 pandemic is ravaging the world, affecting 185 countries and territories and infecting 2.4 million people. Now, a team of scientists aims to shed light on the variants of the novel coronavirus strains in India, showing how changes correspond to its transmission and how it causes disease. The research is published on the pre-print server bioRxiv. The novel coronavirus, officially called severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), first emerged in a seafood market in Wuhan City, Hubei Province in China in December 2019. From February, the virus wreaked havoc across South Korea, Iran, Italy, and Spain. From there, it spread across Europe and on to the United States. The United States is now the epicenter of the virus, with more than 759,000 reported cases and more than 40,000 deaths. Spain, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom have all reported increasing cases as many countries are now in lockdowns to prevent the spread of the virus. Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Transmission electron micrograph of a SARS-CoV-2 virus particle, isolated from a patient. Image captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Credit: NIAID Variants of novel coronavirus Knowing the variants of the virus can help scientists determine the virus's behavior and how it affects populations. This way, governments can impose health measures that are effective in stemming the virus spread, including social distancing measures. As yet, there are no approved vaccines and drugs for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and developing these is a significant challenge. The SARS-CoV-2 has RNA as its genetic material, and it gets mutated frequently. Understanding the nature of mutation may help in developing a potential drug. Also, it may give direction to understand the next cycle of mutation in the viral genome. Therefore, it is vital to understand the nature of variation in different strains of the novel virus. The study The researchers from the Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering Indian Institute of Technology in India released their findings from the whole genome sequence analysis of viral genome sequences submitted from India. The data consists of 440 genome collective genome sequences, which were from the SRA, GISAID, and GenBank projects from across the globe. Twenty-eight different strains were identified in the report. The team studied the sequence alignment of the genome sequences and found that there was a new mutation in the NSP3 gene of SARS-CoV-2 Indian strains. There are also regular and frequent changes from around the world. The changes were traced back to March, whereas these changes were not present in samples collected in January in Wuhan City, suggesting that the virus strain has mutated. India has more than 17,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with 559 deaths. However, the country is suspected of having more cases than what is reported since testing is limited. With the increasing number of cases, the virus might have changed to enhance its transmission and virulence, which describes the severity of the viral infection. The team's observation shows that two of the early collected samples from patients with travel history to China underwent sampling with a gap of three days. The second sample from a patient had a change in the gene, suggesting the patient may have been infected with both as S-type and L-type of the virus strain. The L type of strain is deemed more aggressive, while the S type was the one that has spread in China. The L type's prevalence decreased after early January, and the more common S type is more frequent today, thanks to quarantine measures that may have reduced the ability of the aggressive type to spread. Analyzing genome sequences Studying genome sequences and possible virus strains can guide scientists in the development of vaccines and treatments for the SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the Indian population, the new incorporation of one or more mutations can be linked to its transmission. The changes observed can be added to a group of changes in the virus in the country. This information is crucial for the government to plan a series of steps to curb the spread of the virus in populated countries, with India being the second most populated country in the world. Scientists across the globe worry that if the virus can spread rapidly in the country, it will significantly overwhelm its health care system. "There is an emergent need for more public data sharing from the Indian community to track new subtypes of the virus, the impact of the changes it is incorporating, and where the hotspot for therapeutics lies. India is observing the rapid increase in the number of cases despite country lockdown, it analyzes viral strains more crucial," the team concluded. Important Notice bioRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. (Photo : Pixabay) Scam experts have their eyes at the stimulus exams Americans began receiving to help overcome the financial contagion of the coronavirus. The IRS's deposits will hold rolling out inside the coming days. IRS said it created a website to inform Americans who've yet to receive their stimulus funds once they can expect to acquire them. According to IRS, the federal authorities deposited the first batch of relief cash into a few Americans' bank bills over the weekend. pic.twitter.com/2bSHOTjMAS #IRS deposited the first Economic Impact Payments into taxpayers bank accounts today. We know many people are anxious to get their payments; well continue issuing them as fast as we can. For #COVIDreliefIRS updates see: https://t.co/hEEWmgHA9V IRS (@IRSnews) April 11, 2020 Fraudsters on the loose Federal officials said fraudsters are trying to cash in on that cash as millions more get their one-time bills in the coming weeks, by direct deposit or mail. The $2 trillion coronavirus relief law (the CARES Act) signed Mar. 27 provides up to $1,200 per individual or $2,400 per married couple and an additional $500 with an eligible child. Scammers also contribute to the fake-check at scams, cellphone calls, and phishing scams that steal consumer information and different nefarious activities, officers said. "History [showed] that criminals take every opportunity to perpetrate a fraud on unsuspecting victims, especially when a group of people is vulnerable or in a state of need," said Don Fort, the head of criminal investigations at the IRS. "While you are waiting to hear about your economic impact payment, criminals are working hard to trick you into getting their hands on it," the official said. ALSO READ: Authorities Warn Public About IRS Phone Scam: What You Should Know Here are some things to understand to defend yourself, in step with the IRS and Federal Trade Commission. No action needed The enormous majority of humans don't want to take any action to get their payments. The IRS will calculate and automatically ship the economic effect price to eligible taxpayers who filed tax returns for either 2019 or 2018, maximum seniors and retirees. Who's eligible? Single filers with income exceeding $99,000 and $198,000 for joint filers with no children are not eligible for the bills. Where to get info? For trusted data and updates about IRS bills - including eligibility, how to sign up for the direct deposit, or where to document a quick tax form - start with the IRS website dedicated to financial alleviation payments. ALSO READ: Coronavirus Stimulus Checks Disrupt Online Banking: How To Track Yours With the IRS Checks are not in mail yet Paper checks, for those without direct deposit, will begin arriving in May at the earliest. If you get a remedy check earlier than then, or you get a check while you're expecting a right away deposit, it's a scam. Overpayments? The IRS won't ship you an overpayment and make you ship the money lower back in cash, gift cards, or via a cash transfer. Scammers may additionally ship an official-looking test for extra than what you have been expecting - $3,000, for example - after which call. They'll tell you to keep your $1,200 payment and go back to the rest. The fake-test scam will go away you owing cash to the financial institution. Is IRS 'trying' to contact you? The IRS won't contact you - whether by phone call, text, or email - to get personal and bank account information. Hang up on calls related to stimulus payments, don't click on on any hyperlinks or attachments in emails or texts related to the tests. The same goes for websites and social media. Some scammers are sending official-looking messages, inclusive of postcards with a password to be used on-line to "get entry to" or "verify" your payment or direct deposit information. Early access not No one has early access to this IRS project. Anyone that says to is a scammer. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. TEHRAN, Iran, April.20 Trend: The dispatching director of the National Iranian Gas Company Mahdi Jamshidi Dana announced the start of repairs of the pipelines that are use for the import of Iran's gas to Turkey, Trend reports citing ILNA. Turkey has started repairing the gas pipelines on its soil, and has announced that these repairs will take several weeks, Jamshidi Dana said. Regarding the reason for the delay in resuming gas exports to Turkey, he said that due to the reduction of Turkey's need for gas in less-cold season and the restrictions caused by the coronavirus, the repair of Iran's gas export pipeline to this country by Turkey has been delayed." The exports are still stagnant, he added. Turkey's gas imports from Iran were suspended on April 1st due to a pipeline explosion on Turkish soil. The incident took place near the Bazargan border, and Turkey is responsible for repairing the damage. Donald Trump continued on Monday trying to shift responsibility for coronavirus testing to state governments, accusing some governors of "playing a very dangerous political game." The president made the allegation in a pair of tweets that also amounted to Mr Trump again saying he knew best that state governments were requesting too many ventilators a few weeks back. Since, however, tens of thousands of infected Americans have passed away, driving down the need for the breathing machines. And, as always, the increasingly aggrieved US president described Democrats as using the coronavirus pandemic as a political bludgeon, aiming to deliver a knockout punch ahead of November's election. "Last month all you heard from the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats was, 'Ventilators, Ventilators, Ventilators.' They screamed it loud & clear, & thought they had us cold, even though it was the State's task. But everyone got their V's, with many to spare," the president wrote. Hospitals around the country, however, have reportedly experimented with all sorts of non-ventilator alternatives, from machines designed for sleep apnea and moving patients into positions other than laying on their backs to help them breath. But Mr Trump, a black-and-white thinker by all accounts, continued to publicly focus only on the number of ventilators in federal and state stockpiles, which do exceed the expected demand even as coronavirus cases surged to their anticipated peaks in places like the New York metropolitan area. 'Now they scream....," he wrote over two tweets "... 'Testing, Testing, Testing,' again playing a very dangerous political game." "States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done," he added. "This is easy compared to the fast production of thousands of complex Ventilators!" But a list of state chiefs executive, including Maryland Republican Larry Hogan, over the weekend accused the president and other White House leaders of being untruthful about there being adequate testing. "To try to push this off and say the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, that somehow we aren't doing our job, is just absolutely false," Hogan, chairman of the National Governors Association, said Sunday on CNN. "Every governor in America has been pushing and fighting and clawing to get more tests," he said, "not only from the federal government, but from every private lab in America, and from all across the world." Ryan Murphy will definitely show Tinseltown in a way we have never seen before in his first project with Netflix. The 54-year-old screenwriter unveiled the trailer for his seven-episode limited series, titled Hollywood, on Monday. The program will feature aspiring filmmakers and actors trying to make it big in the industry in an alternate reality version of post-World War II Hollywood. Steamy: Ryan Murphy unveiled the trailer for his seven-episode limited series, titled Hollywood, on Monday as it featured Laura Harrier and Darren Criss passionately kissing The three-minute trailer featured plenty of drama centered around fame, race and sexual orientation. Laura Harrier stars as actress Camille Washington who earned a lead role in a film by Darren Criss's character Raymond Ainsley. They seem to move on to a romantic relationship as one of the biggest eyebrow-raising moments of the trailer came when they passionately kiss. Stunner: Laura Harrier stars as actress Camille Washington who earned a lead role in a film by Darren Criss's character Raymond Ainsley Earning her stripes: Before the opportunity, she was often cast as a background character The tone of the trailer is set at the very beginning as it starts at a gas station where Patti Lupone's character Avis pulls up and gives the secret password 'dreamland.' When that word is uttered the manager of the gas station Ernie, played by Dylan McDermott, explained: 'You get in the car with them, have a drink maybe, and sometimes... sometimes you have to service them.' David Corenswet, who plays aspiring actor Jack Castello, definitely feels uncomfortable with the proposition as he says: 'No. I came here to be a movie star!' Legend: The tone of the trailer is set at the very beginning as it starts at a gas station where Patti Lupone's character Avis pulls up and gives the secret password 'dreamland' Interesting: When that word is uttered the manager of the gas station Ernie, played by Dylan McDermott, explained: 'You get in the car with them, have a drink maybe, and sometimes... sometimes you have to service them' Taking a stand: David Corenswet, who plays aspiring actor Jack Castello, definitely feels uncomfortable with the proposition as he says: 'No. I came here to be a movie star!' Interaction: Another main character on the show is screenwriter Archie Coleman played by Jeremy Pope as he is introduced to Holland Taylor's character Ellen Kincaid Nice to meet you: She says, 'You're colored. I love it' before planting a big kiss on his lips Another main character on the show is screenwriter Archie Coleman played by Jeremy Pope. An interesting point comes early when Holland Taylor's character Ellen Kincaid is introduced to him, seems shocked and says, 'You're colored. I love it' before planting a big kiss on his lips. Not everything is perfect in this alternate reality, however, as things take a turn when a burning cross is shown on the front yard of Camille and Raymond's lawn. Sad: Not everything is perfect in this alternate reality, however, as things take a turn when a burning cross is shown on the front yard of Camille and Raymond's lawn Tough times: Archie is shown holding hands with a man on the red carpet before he is shown screaming: 'F*** these white people in charge! They don't play fair, so why should we?' Archie is shown holding hands with a man on the red carpet before he is shown screaming: 'F*** these white people in charge! They don't play fair, so why should we?' Queen Latifah, who plays Hattie McDaniel, is later shown giving Camille words of advice as she said: 'It ain't about whether you win or lose, what's important is being in the room.' Lots of drama is shown before the trailer ends on a rather humorous note. Sage advice: Queen Latifah, who plays Hattie McDaniel, is later shown giving Camille words of advice as she said: 'It ain't about whether you win or lose, what's important is being in the room' Pleased: Camille flashes a smile The final scene shows a formal dinner party as Hollywood talent agent Henry Wilson, played by Jim Parsons, introduces his new client Rock Hudson (Jake Picking) to Vivien Leigh (Katie McGuinness). Rock says: 'So I take it you're in Gone With the Wind?' Before, he could answer Henry says: 'Yes. Are you f***ing kidding? She's godd*** Scarlett O'Hara you f***ing Hayseed.' The limited series also stars Samara Weaving, Michelle Krusiec, Joe Mantello, and Maude Apatow. 'Are you f***ing kidding?' The final scene shows a formal dinner party as Hollywood talent agent Henry Wilson, played by Jim Parsons, introduces his new client Rock Hudson (Jake Picking) to Vivien Leigh (Katie McGuinness) This will be the first project for Ryan Murphy in his partnership with Netflix after signing a five-year contract of $300million back in 2018. The hit director is once-again collaborating with Ian Brennan, who he has previously created successful shows Glee, Scream Queens and The Politician with. Hollywood is set to stream on Netflix beginning May 1. The President of Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) in University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Adedayo Williams, has tested positive for COVID-19. Mr Williams disclosed this in a WhatsApp message he sent to his colleagues and obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday. The UCH spokesperson, Toye Akinrinlola, also confirmed the news in a phone chat with NAN. Good afternoon, dear colleagues and friends. Having been on the field caring for others, I thought it wise to subject myself to a voluntary screening for COVID-19. The result turned out to be positive on Saturday evening, April18. I presently do not have any symptom and I am currently on self-isolation, awaiting a repeat test. I implore everyone I have had contact with recently to immediately go on self-isolation pending the time they will be tested. READ ALSO: Those concerned should also properly inform their Heads of Department. I strongly advise every healthcare worker to always take precautionary measures as COVID-19 is real and spreads fast, even though some persons infected are asymptomatic. Please stay safe always. Thank you, Mr Williams said in his message. UCH had in March suspended part of its outpatient services to reduce the risk of Coronavirus epidemic within the hospital community. (NAN) Industries rely primarily on human capital, that is why Mexico's Ministry of Labor and Social Security (STPS) launched a platform to maintain the workers' knowledge and skills as they are forced to work from home amid the COVID-19 crisis, according to a recently published article. The initiative dubbed, "Juntos por el Trabajo," which translates to "Together for Work" is part of the prevention measures commenced during the National Sana Distancia, or Healthy Distancing Day. Together for Work is a website where workers, employers, and the general public can find tools, guides, dissemination material, training courses, and practical advice, which they can use to improve skills and competencies through online classes offered by one of the modules on this platform. This way, anyone can go through virtual training even when they are at home during the quarantine period. READ: Gender Distancing: Some Latin American Countries Taking Radical Steps Modules are also available at the site to be utilized by companies and workers as they opt for teleworking modality, also known as the "home office," as an alternative for companies to maintain their usual activities while complying with preventive measures of social distancing against the COVID-19. These modules contain tips and toolkits for taking advantage of teleworking. Taking care of the job is taking care of ourselves In Mexico, small companies are big employers, and regardless of their size, they embody the majority of the business sector in the country. Amid the crisis, these companies are risking their workers and doing everything possible to conserve sources of employment. To help these companies, they can download an emblem from the module Seal Together for Work to promote the services they offer remotely and let consumers know that, if they support that business, they keep sources of employment alive. ALSO READ: Cartels' Humanitarian Act: El Chapo's Daughter and Mexican Cartels Give Aid Amid COVID-19 In a fifth module, workers can get in touch with the Office of the Ombudsman and Adviser in charge of the Federal Attorney for Labor Defense. Today more than ever, it is necessary to endorse solidarity and co-responsibility in labor relations. It should be clear that there is no legal basis to separate workers or unilaterally modify working conditions. Moreover, within the microsite is the Action Guide for Work Centers before COVID-19, which the STPS, in coordination with the Ministry of Health, made available for the adoption of measures that collaborate in the prevention and care of Coronavirus. READ MORE: ICE and CDC Launch Investigation After Deported Migrants Test Positive for COVID-19 Lastly, it is vital to highlight the importance that workers and employers remain informed continuously through official channels of the Government of Mexico to know how to proceed at all times. For more concerns, you can visit coronavirus.gob.mx, or visit the YouTube Channel of the Government of Mexico and call the government hotlines 800-717-2942 and 800-911-7877. As of Sunday, April 19, Mexico has 8,261 confirmed COVID-19 cases nationwide, with 686 deaths and 10,139 persons under investigation. Rather than extensive testing like the RoK and Singapore, Vietnam focuses on tracing possible contacts with infection cases (Source: VNA) With 268 infections, including 198 fully recovering and zero fatality, Vietnam, which borders China, where the COVID-19 originated, has become an example in the fight against the pandemic for Western countries, the article said. It quoted Kidong Park, the World Health Organisation representative in Vietnam, in his interview granted to the Journal du dimanche newspaper, as saying that right after the first cases reported in China, Vietnam has stayed vigilant to this threat. In mid-January, a committee on disease response was established, gathering representatives of relevant ministries and sectors, doctors and scientists to make forecasts on the disease outbreak. In a meeting, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also declared a war against the COVID-19 and required all people to fight the disease like fighting the enemy. Compared to other Asian nations like the Republic of Korea and Singapore, Vietnam does not have enough financial resources to combat the pandemic. Therefore, the 94-million-people nation has conducted a low-cost strategy by focusing on massive quarantine and tracing of all possible contacts with infections (known as F1, F2, F3 and F4), the article stressed. It said that Vietnam has ordered a compulsory 14-day quarantine period for all people entering the country, suspended all flights linking to China right after it recorded the first case, and tightened the control over the 1,000km land border line, The closure of all schools after the lunar New Year holiday in late January, and locals face mask wearing when going out are also among measures taken by the country, it added. The article also affirmed that these measures have been implemented effectively thanks to the abidance of the inhabitants and their support for the Governments efforts. Delhi SC/ST Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Monday urged Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to ensure stern action against alleged harassment of a woman resident doctor at AIIMS on the basis of caste and gender. The woman doctor had attempted suicide on Friday, according to reports quoting her colleague. "Cases of atrocities against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes continue to increase. Nothing has changed under the BJP and Congress governments (at the Centre). There is no difference. Why are such cases not taken seriously?" the minister tweeted in Hindi. Tagging a report on the alleged harassment of the doctor, Gautam urged the Prime Minister's Office and the Union health minister to ensure strict action in the case. The Resident Doctors' Association of AIIMS had also written to Vardhan alleging inaction on the part of the administration in this regard. Terming it a serious case of caste and gender-based discrimination, the RDA claimed that the resident doctor had made repeated appeals to the AIIMS administration, but their inaction prompted her to "take the drastic step". It added that the woman resident doctor also wrote to the Women's Grievance Cell, SC/ST Welfare Cell of AIIMS and national commissions for SCs and STs, but no appropriate action was taken. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Trial by Fire and Sand: Russian Armata Battle Tank Gets Tested in Syria Sputnik News 18:28 GMT 19.04.2020 As Russia's minister of trade and industry explained, the T-14 Armata main battle tank has no analogues in the world, and is constantly undergoing a cycle of additional tests and upgrades. It appears that one of the most advanced armored combat vehicles in Russia's military arsenal, the T-14 Armata main battle tank, has undergone testing in Syria, the site of a violent armed conflict which has raged since 2011. As Russian Minister of Trade and Industry Denis Manturov explained, such tests help understand how the tank would perform under battlefield conditions, and allows any kinks to be ironed out before the vehicle becomes available for export. The minister also pointed out that the tank has no analogues in the world, and that it is constantly undergoing additional tests and upgrades. The T-14 Armata is currently the world's only post-war third-generation tank, designed for direct combat engagements and close infantry support. The tank's key features include an unmanned remote-controlled turret and a specialized capsule that houses the vehicle's crew. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 11:52:32|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) saw profits and revenues dive during the first quarter, due to multiple downward factors including the novel coronavirus epidemic and slumping oil prices, the country's state asset regulator said Monday. Revenues fell 11.8 percent year on year to 6 trillion yuan (about 857.14 billion U.S. dollars) during the first quarter, while profits plunged 58.8 percent year on year to 130.4 billion yuan, Peng Huagang, spokesperson for the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, told a press conference. Over 80 percent of central SOEs reported falling revenues during the period, he said. However, most central SOEs fared better in March as the epidemic waned and they revved up work resumption. Their revenues reached 2.2 trillion yuan last month, recovering to the level seen in January. It's a "hard-earned result," as the central SOEs have faced unprecedented challenges such as the coronavirus epidemic and slumping oil prices during the first quarter, Peng said. So far, 99.4 percent of central SOEs have resumed production, he added. Investment in key industries has kept steady growth in the first quarter. Fixed-asset investment of petrochemical SOEs jumped 12.4 percent year on year, while that of telecommunications SOEs and electricity SOEs grew 12.3 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Central SOEs will endeavor to stabilize operations, bolster supply chains, as well as prevent bankruptcies, dramatic pay cuts and layoffs, Peng said. Enditem , We're sorry, this article is not currently available Australians have been warned that taking cash out of their superannuation could be a 'terrible idea'. Under new rules to help people through the coronavirus crisis, Australians can take $20,000 out of their retirement funds tax-free. Eligible applicants can take $10,000 of their super between 20 April and 30 June 2020 and a further $10,000 until September 24. But experts have warned this should only be done in absolute emergencies. Graham Cooke of financial comparison website Finder told Daily Mail Australia: 'Taking cash out of your super is a terrible idea. Australians have been warned that taking cash out of their superannuation is a 'terrible idea' 'For some people it will be necessary in an emergency situation - but they should only take the minimum that they need.' This is because retirement savings grow cumulatively over time so any money taken out now may significantly reduce the value of your super when you retire, he said. Mr Cooke said the benefits of the cash being tax free are outweighed by the likely loss over time from cashing out. He also warned that now is a bad time to be cashing out because the stock market has been hammered by the coronavirus crisis. 'Supers have been heavily hit because of the downward movement of the stock market so now is not a good time to be removing cash,' he said. Under new rules to help people through the coronavirus crisis, Australians can take $20,000 out of their retirement funds tax-free over the next two years Any money taken out now may significantly reduce the value of your super when you retire, experts have warned Super funds are typically 50 per cent shares, 20 per cent bonds and five per cent cash with the rest invested in 'alternatives' that typically include infrastructure assets like toll roads, airports and commercial office buildings. Last month research group SuperRatings estimated balanced super funds, mainly invested in growth assets, had dived by 10 to 12 per cent since the share market peaked on February 20. SuperRatings CEO Kirby Rappell also warned against cashing out. 'If we look back over the past 12 years typically we've found that is has not been a great bet the move out into cash,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'People need to be cautious generally to switch into cash.' SuperRatings calculated that $100,000 invested in cash during the low point of the GFC would be worth $90,000 now because prices have increased. But $100,000 invested in a balanced super fund at the same point in 2008 would be worth $121,000. Mr Cooke said older Australians have less to lose from cashing out. 'If someone is close to retirement and needs to take some cash out to tide them over for a couple of years then that's not so bad,' he said. Kaehler was approved for a loan through the Paycheck Protection Program, a Small Business Administration program meant to help businesses keep workers on the payroll during the pandemic, before the program ran out of money. The portion of the loan used to cover payroll costs is forgivable as long as at least 75% of the proceeds are used to keep paying employees. 'Untiemly' wins award at 2020 Kansas City FilmFest International 03/29/20 Source: Mehr News Agency Iranian feature 'Untimely', directed by Pouya Eshtehardi, has won the 'Best World Cinema Feature' at the 2020 edition of the Kansas City FilmFest International in the United States. Untimely (2020), directed by Pouya Eshtehardi 'Untimely' is about a young private, Hamin, doing his military service in a watchtower in the borderline of Iran and Pakistan. Up in the watchtower, Hamin reviews the past years and the things that happened to him and his sister since their childhood. The feature will also be screened at the 68th edition of the Columbus International Film & Animation Festival in the US. The Iranian movie has also won the best film, best director, and best cinematography awards at the fifth edition of Tokyo independent films celebration in Japan. Kansas City FilmFest International is the longest-running and largest film festival in the Kansas City Metro Area which held its 24th edition from April 14 to 2020. Does driving a 265K supercar count as a form of exercise? Thats the question Sydney police had to answer just after midnight on Saturday night and it didnt take them long to answer. No it f*cking doesnt, was their, loosely paraphrased response. The driver was given a $1,000 fine. But the saga didnt end there; the driver then lived up to every rich dickhead stereotype under the sun, responding: wont hurt with my $15 million. Leaving aside the lack of human solidarity shown in a crisis, this is a pop psychologists (read: our) wet dream: how insecure do you have to be to feel the need to impress police with your wealth whilst already driving a McLaren 650S? We digress. The story gets even more bizarre as we learn the driver, a 43-year-old man, argued driving was a form of exercise before being fined for breaking stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus lockdown. This came after, having been pulled over in Kings Cross in Sydneys CBD, the driver told officers he was on his way to Wolloomooloo to get petrol with a friend despite living over 30 kicks away in Fairfield in the citys south. When police told him he was breaking the law, he lashed out: Do what you want mate, I dont care. This $1,000 fine wont hurt with my $15 million. According to Daily Mail Australia, police have issued at least 45 lockdown infringement notices in the last 24 hours in New South Wales alone. Australians have been urged to stay home unless absolutely necessary, and cannot travel in groups of more than two people, reported Daily Mail Australia yesterday. The only acceptable reasons for leaving the house include daily exercise, collecting essential supplies like food or medicine or to go to work. Other infringement notices that were handed out on Saturday included a group of four men aged between 18 and 23 who were travelling in a car together on the mid north coast and a Mount Druitt man who told officers he was on his way to a friends house to smoke weed,' Daily Mail Australia added. Two men, aged 71 and 77, were also fined after they were moved along with warnings twice on the same day before being caught breaking the rules again. RELATED: Private Jet Party Learns Hard Way What Counts As Essential Travel Although Australias number of known cases of the virus are relative to much of the rest of the world quite low (there are currently 6,598 known cases in Australia, including 70 deaths), and the curve is flattening, individuals can still be fined $1,000 for breaking social distancing rules and businesses up to $5,000. So even though Prime Minister Scott Morrison has indicated the government will begin looking at loosening restrictions (if case numbers continue to plummet), for now you best stick to burpees in the park rather than laps in your supercar. Capische? Read Next Green Party presidential front-runner Howie Hawkins. Photo: Erik McGregor/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images If the 2020 presidential election becomes another tense, tight contest like the last one, with candidates battling for Electoral College votes across a complex battleground, minor-party voting could again be an important factor in the outcome. Of the many factors that led to Donald Trumps threading-the-needle win, an unusually high level of votes for Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein is impossible to dismiss entirely, as the Guardian noted immediately after the election: [Trumps 12,000-vote margin was] significantly less than the 242,867 votes that went to third-party candidates in Michigan. Its a similar story elsewhere: third-party candidates won more total votes than the Trumps margin of victory in Wisconsin, Arizona, North Carolina and Florida. Without those states, Trump would not have won the presidency. In part because Johnson and Stein were each running for a second consecutive time, they did very well by the standards of their parties: Johnson (and running mate William Weld), who was on the ballot in all 50 states, won nearly 4.5 million votes; only once (four years earlier, with Johnson as the nominee) had the Libertarians topped 1 million votes. Stein and Ajamu Baraka, on the ballot in 45 states, didnt match Naders enormous 2000 vote, but with around one percent of the total, they beat the previous three Green presidential tickets combined. Both the Libertarians and the Greens will have new nominees this year who will have to work for name identification and credibility. But the bigger problem they face is the threshold challenge of ballot access, with the coronavirus pandemic complicating the task immeasurably, as Bill Scher explains for Politico: In 2016, the Libertarian Party was on the general election ballot in all 50 states; this year, it has secured ballot access in just 35. Similarly, the Green Partywhich in 2016 had its best election ever by making the ballot in 44 states, with a further three states granting the partys candidate official write-in statushas qualified for the November ballot in only 22 states At present, neither the Libertarian Party nor the Green Party has qualified for the ballot in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Iowa or Minnesota. Additionally, the Green Party has not secured a place on the ballot in Arizona, Georgia or Nevada, and the Libertarian Party is missing from Maine. Collecting the petitions necessary for minor-party ballot access is always a chore. Getting it done during a pandemic is extremely difficult. Unsurprisingly, third-party representatives are asking states to waive petition requirements entirely (as Vermont just did, via legislation), or at least delay existing deadlines. But they also plan to go to court with a combination of traditional and pandemic-related arguments that barriers to the ballot infringe upon voting rights. Prospects for success are at best mixed, as Scher reports: Those kind of cases are not slam dunks because courts are generally wary of changing election rules, said Rick Hasen of University of California Irvine School of Law, citing litigation over this months primary election in Wisconsin, which culminated in the U.S. Supreme Court deciding that the state could not extend the deadline for mail-in ballots because existing state law implied they needed to be postmarked by Election Day. The Court majority was not very moved by arguments about Covid-19 being a compelling enough reason to change from the ordinary requirements of an election, Hasen said. I would be shocked if the minor parties do as well in terms of ballot access this year as they did [in 2016], said Michael S. Kang of Northwestern Universitys Pritzker School of Law. He argues because of a lack of binding precedents, judges have a lot of discretion. In turn, he expects a mixed response with some states providing relief and others refusing to change the rules. Ballot access aside, the minor parties will simply be struggling for attention during the pandemic, much like other political actors who are not in a position to command media coverage of official actions germane to public health and economic recovery. And its unlikely they will attract as much support as Johnson and Stein did. Green front-runner Howie Hawkins is known to some for his claim that he was the originator of the Green New Deal but is not a national figure. And the Libertarians seem to be going through a purist phase, departing from their recent practice of handing their presidential nomination to dissident Republicans like Johnson. The current front-runner, Jacob Hornberger, is committed to the very poorly timed idea of abolishing the Fed and moving to a deflationary hard-money currency. Yes, independent (and ex-Republican) congressman Justin Amash is flirting with a Libertarian candidacy; a lot may depend on whether the party delays its May convention in Texas. Amash could raise Libertarian prospects significantly, in part because hes from the key battleground state of Michigan and gained significant national attention by voting for Trumps impeachment. Ballot-access appeals by the Greens and the Libertarians could open the door for other minor parties, notably the far-right Constitution Party, which is already on the ballot in 15 states, including battlegrounds Florida, Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin. The best-known candidate for that partys nomination (which will be determined by phone balloting May 12) is former West Virginia coal baron Don Blankenship. Most famous for a strange, more-Trumpian-than-Trump Senate Republican primary run in 2018, featuring wild charges that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was involved in the drug trade, Blankenship has the wealth to self-finance something of a campaign. The relevance of any minor-party presidential candidate, of course, will depend on the dynamics of the major-party competition. Arguably a key factor in the abundant 2016 protest vote was the widespread belief that Hillary Clinton had the presidency in the bag. Its extremely unlikely that opinion leaders or voters will be so confident in the outcome this time around. But crazy things can happen in crazy-close elections, so keeping an eye on the Greens, the Libertarians, and even the theocrats of the Constitution Party as the battle for ballot access unfolds would be a good idea. Colorado health workers wearing scrubs and face masks stood in traffic to block oncoming protest caravans that called on officials to end statewide stay-at-home measures intended to slow the spread of coronavirus. Two Denver-area health workers stood at a crosswalk to remind protesters why the lockdown efforts are in place, as the state reported more than 400 deaths and 1,200 hospitalisations related to Covid-19. Organised by a group of far-right provocateurs, Operation Gridlock demonstrations continued across the US over the weekend to demand businesses reopen and protest quarantine efforts that public health officials have urged Americans to take seriously. Demonstrators many waving campaign flags supporting Donald Trump or the Gadsen flag, popularised with right-wing libertarians and the Tea Party movement insist on downplaying the scale of the crisis while also shifting blame to China and accusing the media of exaggerating health risks and the death toll. Few appeared to wear any face coverings. On Sunday, hundreds of people gathered around Colorado's capitol, blocked traffic around nearby streets and honked horns while waving signs accusing the government of "tyranny" and spreading fear. Protesters also falsely compared the virus death toll which has climbed to more than 40,000 in the US within four months to annual deaths from the flu. Drivers leaned out their cars to wave signs and scream at the nurses standing in their way. One man left his car to yell into the face of one health worker standing in the street. Another video captures a woman wearing a "USA" T-shirt and holding a "land of the free" sign as she yells at a health worker to "go to China if you want communism." "You go to work, why can't I go to work?" she yelled. The pandemic has devastated local economies and left millions of people out of work, with unprecedented jobless claims reaching more than 22 million. More than 233,000 Colorado residents have filed for unemployment benefits. 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Show all 15 1 /15 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade against lockdown orders outside the State House in Annapolis, Maryland on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US People take part in a protest for "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" outside the Michigan State Capitol building in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Alex Jones, host of conspiracy theory outlet Infowars, joins the 'Reopen America' protest against lockdown measures in Austin Texas on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A group of protesters rally against lockdown orders outside the Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond on 16 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A protester holds a sign comparing Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer to a Nazi during a demonstration at the State Capitol in Lansing over coronavirus lockdown measures AP 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A 2020 Trump Unity sign is displayed during a protest against coronavirus lockdown measures at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan AP 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Anti-lockdown protesters drive by the Ohio State House in Columbus on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US A protester takes part in a rally outside the Ohio State House in Columbus on 18 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US People take part in a protest for "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" outside the Michigan State Capitol building in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form part of a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures outside the North Carolina State Legislature in Raleigh on 14 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters rally against lockdown measures outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Protesters form a motorcade in opposition to state lockdown measures around the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing on 15 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US Police urge people to spread out during a protest against lockdown measures outside the Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond on 16 April AFP/Getty 'Live free or die': Anti-lockdown protests sweep US An armed protester taking part in a demonstration against coronavirus lockdown measures outside the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan EPA On Friday, Colorado Governor Jared Polis said officials will determine "what to expect as the economy opens" and it nears the end of its stay-at-home measure, which expires on 26 April. Denver's stay-at-home mandate expires at the end of May. He said: "As we move towards opening things, we have to be able to sustain the social distancing, and that means doing it in a different way because we want to make sure we don't exceed the hospital bed capacity." (REUTERS (REUTERS) The protests have attracted global media attention and scrutiny, though more than 80 per cent of Americans believe quarantine efforts are the right call amid the pandemic, and 89 per cent of Americans are staying home as much as possible regardless of a mandate to do so, according to a recent Huffington Post poll. But the president has been impatient to "reopen" the US economy despite public health uncertainty and warnings from health officials that moving too quickly to resume business as usual would endanger millions of Americans' health and revive a second and third wave of the virus. A set of White House guidelines for states to follow must meet certain criteria before local governments can begin lifting quarantine measures, but within days of rolling out the plan, the president has encouraged his followers to pressure their local governments to begin reopening. On Friday, he told his supporters to "liberate" three states with Democrat governors, which was swiftly condemned as a dangerous call for violent insurrection amid the crisis. On Sunday, he told reporters that "if people feel that way, you're allowed to protest" and claimed that "some governors have gone too far" with stay-at-home measures. Without clarifying, he said that "some of the things that happened are maybe not so appropriate" despite nearly every state imposing similar efforts to shutter businesses and limit public gatherings. A wave of Taliban attacks on checkpoints across Afghanistan has killed 29 members of the security forces, officials said Monday. In northern Takhar province, 19 security personnel were killed in a battle Sunday night in the district of Khwaja Ghor, according to Jawad Hajri, spokesman for the provincial governor. The Taliban fled the scene after reinforcement arrived, Hajri added. Meanwhile, in northern Balkh province, a Taliban attack on Sunday morning in the Sholgara district killed seven, according to Adil Shah Adil, spokesman for the provincial police chief. A child was caught in the crossfire and wounded during the attack, which also killed five Taliban, he added. And in western Badghis province, the Taliban struck an army checkpoint early on Sunday morning, killing three soldiers and wounding 10, said Tahsel Haideri, spokesman for the provincial police chief. The Taliban, who have not claimed responsibility for the attacks, and President Ashraf Ghani's government in Kabul are in the process of exchanging prisoners as part of a peace deal signed by the U.S. and the Taliban at the end of February in Doha, Qatar. The release of up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners and 1,000 government officials held captive by the insurgents ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations is a condition of the US-Taliban deal. At the heart of most of the talks, say Taliban and US officials, is the demand for a reduction of violence. The Taliban have not been attacking US and NATO troops since the agreement was signed but have struck Afghan forces in outlying areas. Washington wants a reduction in those attacks. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As the Covid-19 crisis continues, Arklow Meals on Wheels has expanded its service to seven days a week, delivering almost 700 meals a week. Hot meals are also being delivered to around 30 elderly people living in the Avoca area. 'We are making almost 700 meals a week,' said Hilary Sharpe, chair of Arklow Meals on Wheels. Around 20 volunteers have come forward to help as drivers, kitchen staff, and helpers while following the strict physical distancing and sanitation regulations set out by the HSE. Arklow Meals on Wheels has also now a local link in the national system that is providing support for elderly or vulnerable people during the Covid-19 crisis. 'We have wonderful team of volunteers who would do anything. They are happy to bring up a bag of shopping when they are delivering a meal,' Hilary said. Meanwhile, many local people and groups have come forward to offer donations and support to the Arklow Meals on Wheels during this challenging time. Julie-Ann Farrell and her family have donated 100 Easter eggs which were delivered by the service on Easter Sunday. Members of the community in Arklow also left cards with Hilary, which were be included with the Easter egg. Meanwhile, fitness instructor Aisling Nolan organised the recent online 'Release Wellness at Home' event which raised over 1,000 to support this local cause. Costa in the Tesco supermarket was among many of the local businesses which donated perishable food to the service. The committee of Arklow Meals on Wheels have extended their thanks to everyone who has donated or supported them at this time in any way. A potentially huge flu season appears to have been headed off by the hand-washing, quarantine and social distancing measures designed to control COVID-19. Confirmed cases of influenza dropped from 7002 in February to just 95 in April so far as the governments measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 kicked in. No flus is good news. Credit:Dreamstime Similar numbers in February 2019 led to 18,667 infections in April last year. The steep drop has some experts pondering whether some of the measures used to control COVID-19 should be used in future to prevent horror flu seasons. Embattled liquor baron lost a crucial appeal against his extradition to India on Monday, with the UK High Court ruling that the ex-boss of Kingfisher Airlines did have a prima facie case to answer in the Indian courts over the alleged Rs 9,000-crore fraud associated with loans sought from Indian banks for his now defunct airline. The dismissal of the High Court appeal effectively clears the decks for Mallyas extradition to India to face the charges in the Indian courts, with 14 days for him to apply for permission to appeal to the UK Supreme Court. ALSO READ: Take my money and use it to fight coronavirus, says Vijay Mallya If he does apply, the UK Home Office would wait for the outcome of that appeal. But if he does not, under the India-UK Extradition Treaty, it would then be expected to formally certify the court order for the 64-year-old Mallya to be extradited to India within 28 days. ALSO READ: UK High Court defers bankruptcy plea by SBI-led banks against Vijay Mallya It is a significant achievement in continuing war against economic fugitives who have been managing to stay away from the judicial process, CBI spokesperson R K Gaur said. Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy has continued its winning streak in Poland following the award of three projects totaling 184MW at the countrys last auction round. The company will supply 63 wind turbines to several customers including independent private investors to national and international utility companies. These contracts help to consolidate Siemens Gamesas strong market position in Poland, which is based on solid partnerships with local as well as international players and offering tailored solutions to enable the most competitive bids. These adjudications follow five other projects awarded at the 2018 auction with a capacity of 153 MW, underlining the competitiveness of Siemens Gamesa technology in the 2 MW and 3 MW class in the Polish market. In total, Siemens Gamesa has now secured the supply of turbines for eight projects from the 2018 and 2019 auctions, taking the current installation volume in the Polish market up to 337MW. The electricity generated by the Siemens Gamesa wind turbines in these eight projects is sufficient to supply 530,000 households. "We are very pleased with our current success, in particular because we have been able to support the bids of a broad range of customers in the projects," said Enrique Pedrosa, Chief Regions Officer at Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy Onshore business unit. "Siemens Gamesa has established itself as a strong partner for developers and operators in Poland. We will continue to focus on close cooperation and high-quality technical solutions for this market. The Polish wind energy market began a new growth phase following the successful auction of around 1GW of capacity in 2018 and a further 2GW at a subsequent auction round in 2019. These auctions help to make Poland one of the most active and dynamic wind energy markets in Europe and worldwide. Siemens Gamesa has operated in Poland since 2003 and since then has installed a total capacity of more than 1 GW of clean energy. In addition, Siemens Gamesa is currently responsible for the maintenance of more than 600 turbines with a total output of 1.3GW. -TradeArabia News Service Four food processing workers at a poultry firm in Georgia and two in Iowa died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus. Tyson Foods spokesman Gary Mickelson said three of the employees worked at the companys chicken processing plant in Camilla, while the fourth person worked in a supporting job outside the plant. Two other workers died in Columbus Junction, Iowa, Mickelson said. He did not say how many employees in total in the plants have the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that emerged from mainland China last year. We realize everyone is anxious during this challenging time and believe information is the best tool for combating the virus, Hector Gonzalez, Tysons senior vice president for human resources, said in a statement. Thats why were encouraging our team members to share their concerns with us, so we can help address them. The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which represents 2.000 workers at the plant, said in a statement that many employees were sick or quarantined. Its too little too late here, said Edgar Fields, president of the union in a statement last week. Several U.S. plants have closed because of outbreaks, including a large plant owned by Smithfield Foods in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, that produced roughly 5 percent of U.S. pork before it was shut down after more than 518 workers became infected, in addition to 126 non-employees who have become infected after coming into contact with a Smithfield employee, according to the South Dakota Department of Health.. The plant was visited by representatives from its Chinese Communist Party-tied parent company one month before the first COVID-19 case was confirmed at the facility. After the first illness was confirmed at the plant on March 26, the facility quickly became the epicenter of the states outbreak of the CCP virus. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem wrote in an April 11 letter that 238 plant employees had contracted the virus, accounting for 38 percent of the states confirmed cases at the time. Executives from WH Group, Smithfields parent company in China, regularly visit the plant. The visit took place roughly a month after President Donald Trump had banned travel from China. All of the employees spoke on the condition of anonymity. Smithfield Foods declined to comment to The Epoch Times; WH Group didnt respond to a request for comment. The Associated Press, Reuters, and The Epoch Times Ivan Pentchoukov and Jack Phillips contributed to this report. Anyone whos working in food delivery during the pandemic deserves to wear a superhero cape. And they really deserve a better tip than we normally give them. Recently, I interviewed two etiquette instructors in Alabama, Robin Wells of Tuscaloosa's Etiquette Manor Alabama and Kathie Martin of the Etiquette School of Birmingham, about tipping during coronavirus. "The important thing to remember," Martin says, "is those kind souls providing services for us during this pandemic are often risking their lives to do so. Not, perhaps, to the extent doctors, nurses and other medical professionals are, but they are still putting themselves out there in a dangerous environment to ensure that we have what we want and need." Wells adds, "In this current situation, it really is 'neighbor helping neighbor' more so than 'tipping etiquette.' Let your heart and your budget dictate how much you should tip." That said, below are some guidelines. For food delivery, we should normally be tipping 18 to 20 percent, but during the pandemic, if you can, bump that up to 25 percent, Martin and Wells say. For restaurants that offer "touchless" delivery, with tip given in advance electronically and delivery instructions to leave your order at the door, knock and then leave, reducing interaction, that's a good idea. If touchless delivery isn't available or you dont opt for it, thoroughly wash your hands, for 20 to 30 seconds with soap and hot water, before dealing with the delivery person at the door. "Just out of respect for them and yourself," Wells says. "And keep a space between you." If youre using cash to pay, put it in an envelope if possible, to give the delivery person a safer way to handle the money, and further deal with that cash once they get back to the restaurant. During the pandemic, many restaurants that previously didnt deliver or do much take-out have switched to a curbside pickup emphasis, to keep their lights on. During normal times, for an inside pickup food situation, Martin suggests a $2, $5 or greater tip for the person bringing your food out. A tip is especially appropriate in pandemic times, at least doubling the amount you would have (given) last year, Martin says. Take in mind how bulky and heavy the goods are and tip accordingly. Drive-thru is a mode of food service most of us haven't tipped for previously. But in our current situation, Martin and Wells both say, while not necessary generally, a tip of a dollar or few is a kind gesture. Which service industry workers can certainly use a bit of now. Once restaurants reopen for dining room service, a 20 percent tip for solid service is customary. If I visit an establishment that is still struggling when things get back to normal, Wells says, I probably will continue to tip a little more for about a month. Then, its back to looking for exceptional service to bring up that tip over 20 percent. In cases of subpar dining service, not leaving a tip (or leaving a sarcastically tiny amount) reflects more on you than the server, who is the last in a chain of workers responsible for your order and might not be at fault. Instead, Martin says, to tactfully communication to management/ownership your dissatisfaction, so that problem can be corrected. In a dining situation, its never appropriate to not tip, Martin adds. But what about deliveries for items other than food? Excluding UPS/FedEx type services, Martin says we should tip 15 to 20 percent, for, say, a pharmacy deliveries, etc. If you cant quite afford a percentage of the total bill, make it as much as you comfortably can, Martin says. Wells feels going up to 25 percent for, say, home delivery of a dishwasher might be a bit much - but for dog food, light bulbs and other necessity items 25 percent would be generous, for the convenience. Martin and Wells are big proponents of annual tips, typically given during the holidays, to those who provide consistently good service throughout that year. Think hairdressers, babysitters, house cleaners, pet groomers, landscapers, etc. The amount given should equal the cost of one regular service, Martin says. And come December, dont forget sanitation workers. During this pandemic and any time, our garbage collectors deserve special consideration, Wells says. They dont know whats in our garbage, yet they consistently pick it up, along with our other discards, at their own peril. After working around 30 years in corporate and non-profit sectors, Martin became interested in teaching etiquette after reading a magazine article about that subject. Over the years, she's taught everything from business etiquette to children's etiquette. Wells' professional background is in marketing. Her etiquette classes evolved from that, the marketing of a person essentially. Wells says coronavirus could end up resulting in more generous tipping afterward. I think people will have a better overall sense of appreciation for our service workers, she says. I hope so anyway. For more on Etiquette School of Birmingham visit etiquettebham.com, and for more on Etiquette Manor of Alabama visit facebook.com/EtiquetteManorAlabama. MORE ON CULTURE Tiger King: Alabama ties to bonkers Netflix hit Can this star-studded startup revolutionize video streaming? This Alabama band will record a vinyl single just for you John Prines Muscle Shoals album, Alabama inspirations How songwriting helped an Alabama vets PTSD Justin L DeFriese, 91, passed away peacefully on Saturday, April 18, 2020, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He was preceded in death by his parents, Garland and Nellie DeFriese, his loving wife, Anne Miller DeFriese to whom he was married for 63 years, his son, James DeFriese, and brother, Alan DeFriese. He is survived by his son, Mark DeFriese (Shannon), his daughter, Lee Anne Million, his grandchildren, Jack Million, Sullivan Million, Mackenzie DeFriese, Madison Grace (Wes), and sister, Jean Miller. He was born on Dec. 4, 1928, in Birchwood, Tn. He graduated from Rhea Central High School and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga with a degree in Industrial Engineering and attended Georgia Tech. He worked at Combustion Engineering for 35 years as a nuclear engineer manager. After his retirement he worked for Partners for Economic Progress where he was the original manager of the Business Development Center Incubator. He was deeply involved in the Chattanooga and Dayton communities. He was a devoted member of the Red Bank United Methodist Church for over 50 years, where he held numbers board positions. In Red Bank he served on the Red Bank Appeals Board, the Red Bank Recreation Board, the Red Bank Community Food Pantry, and was a member of the Red Bank Lions Club. He was involved in the Chattanooga Jaycees, Orange Grove School Board, Hamilton County Speech and Hearing Center, and Hamilton County Storm Water Board. In Dayton he was involved in the Historical Society and the Main Street Boards. Justins family and friends will always remember his as being profoundly dedicated to his Lord, family, community, and church. A level-headed leader who always looked for the best in people. A private service will be held for the immediate family only and a celebration of life service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Red Bank Community Food Pantry, Red Bank United Methodist Church, 3800 Dayton Blvd., Chattanooga, TN 37415 or online at RedBankFoodPantry.org. Arrangements are by the North Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home Crematory and Florist 5501 Highway 153 Hixson, Tn. 37343. Share your thoughts and memories at www.chattanooganorthchapel.com. A motorist has been branded 'disgusting' after he displayed a 'f**k the NHS' sign on his car window. NHS workers up and down the country have been putting their lives at risks to fight the coronavirus pandemic across the country and the sign spotted in Wales sparked outrage. The message was spotted by a woman in the Home Bargains car park in Mold as she went shopping at about 4.30pm on Saturday. She photographed the sign, which was taped inside one of the car's rear windows and said: 'F**k the NHS. They get paid to save our lives. We don't get paid to save there lives.' The sign in the car window can be seen above. People in the local area were outraged by it Speaking to North Wales Live, the woman said: 'I was shocked and appalled someone could be so disrespectful towards the NHS and all they are doing. 'Not just during Covid-19 but every day. I think they are doing a fantastic job and really are true heroes. ' The images were later shared on Facebook and quickly sparked fury across the region. The woman's Facebook post read: 'Not often things annoy me, but this got me angry. The message was spotted by a woman in the Home Bargains car park in Mold (pictured above) on Saturday 'Firstly, you used the wrong 'there' it should be 'their lives'. 'Secondly, I'm pretty sure one day in your life mate you'll end up in hospital [...] Maybe then you can witness the fantastic hard work of all staff in the NHS, those on the front line, and all they do to save lives each day and realise, they really don't get paid enough for what they do, nor enough credit.' Some of the hundreds of comments on the post included: 'What goes around comes around [...] This person will learn an important lesson when they need the help of the NHS. Think on this, whoever you are.' Social media users were disgusted with the image that was circulated on Facebook Another person said: 'They do get paid...but they don't get paid enough for what they have to do.' An angry reader said: 'Disgusting, absolute moron, NHS is something we are all so fortunate to have.' Do you know the driver? Get in touch email Terri-Ann.Williams@mailonline.co.uk LITCHFIELD One of the biggest concerns facing the nation is the effect of the coronavirus on businesses. Locally, that concern for some is becoming a question of staying open until the pandemic passes, or closing altogether. To hear the concerns of some of those business owners, First Selectman Denise Raap held a Zoom business meeting to hear about the challenges theyre facing and how the town can help. Raap also is owner of The Village, a restaurant and bar on the Green. Liz Eriksen, owner of KitchenWorks on West Street, one of the many shops and restaurants on the Litchfield Green, attended the discussion, along with a few others including Economic Development Commission Chairman Cleve Fuessenich. This week, President Donald Trump said he would allow states to resume and reopen nonessential businesses after May 1, but also said the governors of each state would be responsible for a specific date. He also on Friday urged three states to liberate amid growing protests from residents against the stay-at-home restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus. After setting up a road map to gradually reopen the crippled economy, Trump on Thursday took to Twitter with the kind of rhetoric some of his supporters have used in demanding the lifting of the orders that have thrown millions of Americans out of work, according to a story by The Associated Press. The coronavirus is still a big concern in Connecticut. On Friday, Connecticuts fatality rate increased to more than 1,000 people. Gov. Ned Lamont also said recently that schools will remain closed until at least May 20, possibly longer. With so much uncertainty about when they might be allowed to reopen, retail store owners like Eriksen are worried. She said the vendors from whom she purchases inventory are telling her they cant fill orders right now. Vendors are already saying theyre backed up, she said. Its not good when people come in and dont find what they need. Will they come back? I dont know. Patti Dauten, owner of Pattys Restaurant on Route 202, said running the business on takeout only isnt earning as much money. I think business is going to come back, Dauten said. But it takes me all week to make what I used to make in a day. Raaps restaurant is closed for now. Were looking at our menus, to make them smaller, make more items to-go, she said. We were doing our to go menu (at first) but we decided it would be best to sit back for a couple weeks. Even when the state opens, we dont know how things are going to go. The group brainstormed ideas to draw more people to West Street and other business areas to shop. Coupons, discount cards, a winter festival and hiring a person dedicated to promoting the businesses in town were some of the topics they discussed. Raap also asked Fuessenich what the EDC could do to help promote the business community. In the past, the EDC has stayed away from promoting a local business, but I hope that can change, Raap said. Litchfield Area Business Association did a pamphlet once, promoting businesses. Can the EDC do that? The EDC has been talking about that, and how we can help, Fuessenich said. Raap said the Northwest Hills Council of Governments Tim Goode was working with local towns to put together a resource guide, offering information on what to do, and what businesses offer. The guide could provide information on what restaurants are available for weddings, for example. Goode has done similar guides for Kent and Woodbury. He had a grant that can be used for it, and ask businesses to join for a fee, Raap said. Now its on hold because businesses are closed. But something like that could highlight businesses in local towns. We need to drive people to come to our town, discover our town, she said. That to me is the biggest thing. Eriksen said shed support such project if it showed results. Theres got to be someone out there who does this for a living, who promotes a town, she said. If theyre reliable, Id be willing to pay for it. But Ive joined (promotions) for $100 here, $50 there, and nothings ever come from it. Eriksen also wondered how to get locals to shop in town, rather than going to another place to get the same things. They say they cant shop in town, she said. People as a whole say its too expensive. I try not to be overpriced. Theres value in (shopping at home), Raap said. People say theyll go to Torrington for certain things; theyll buy a bottle at a place elsewhere, to save a buck. Thats part of what the EDC should be working on, (showing) how important it is to shop local. Bantam resident Anne Haas agreed. Thats the importance of shopping local, she said. It goes back into the community. When restaurants finally reopen, Raap said, owners will be facing a new normal, noting that customers might be skittish about sitting close together, and prefer to have their food to go. The challenge now is not to say, OK, its Saturday our doors are open, spring is here, Raap said. Now its, What do we do? This is the new normal. Fuessenich talked about the idea of a discount card, fueled by participating businesses, that a person could use to receive a 10 percent discount on anything from those businesses up to $1,000. Its something like the old Green Stamps, if anyone remembers those, he said. Initially, something like that could drive business into Litchfield. Suppose someone buys the card for $10, and shops in Litchfield. They spend $300, and theres still $700 left. Thats an incentive do come back and do more shopping. But until the pandemic ends, store owners like Eriksen are skeptical on what will happen when it does. I dont see people going back to normal, she said. Whats normal? We just dont know, Raap said. Raap hopes to have more discussions with the business community in the future. She can be reached by email at 1stselectman@townoflitchfield.org. When a Pakistani man came looking for his ancestral home in India, he had not intended for it to be a long stay When a Pakistani man came looking for his ancestral home in India, he had not intended for it to be a long stay. Things had lined up just right for Ehsan Ahmad. The visa hard as it is to get between traditional adversaries had been received months in advance. The timing was tight with just a week to account for the trip but what started out as an inspirational back-to-roots script, found some unexpected plot twists. Almost fancifully, however, it turned out to be a memorable and charming experience for Ahmad. I reached on 12 March via the Attari-Wagah border. I am from Sargodha division in Pakistan. My ammi and abbu live in Pakistan while I work as a marketing manager with a private firm in Washington DC, Ehsan told Firstpost over the phone. He has been living and working in the US for the past eight years. Ehsan was one of 41 Pakistani nationals, stranded in India for weeks due to the coronavirus lockdown, repatriated to their country on 17 April via the Attari-Wagah border crossing. Planning a trip to India since last November, Ehsan said the plan came to fruition only in March. There was a lot of tension on the border so I could not travel. My visa had been issued too. But we heard scary stories related to violence over the Citizenship law and NRC, which is why my trip kept getting cancelled. My visa had arrived in November, but I decided to make the trip now as only a week was left for the visa to expire, he added. A single child of a retired marketing manager and a retired teacher, Ehsan had heard many fascinating stories from his ammi about India. Unfortunately, his mother never got the chance to visit her ancestral home. She was born in Pakistan, but they never went back, not even to visit. My maternal grandparents came to Pakistan from Bhangwan after the Partition, said Ehsan. His grandfather, Mohammad Iqbal, was a soldier in the British Army when Partition occurred. Sargodha, where Ehsans parents live, is nearly 200 kilometres from Lahore, and falls in the Punjab region of Pakistan. In our Punjab, it is a big deal to have known and lived in your ancestral home. I wanted to do that for my mother. But no one could predict that I will be stranded amid the COVID-19 lockdown, he said with a slight chuckle. Ehsan reached Gurdaspur on 12 March. His visa was valid for just one week, which meant that he would have to return to Pakistan by or before 19 March. The day I reached India, I went to Gurdaspur. My mothers village was in a place called Bhangwan, said Ehsan. A small village near Amritsar, Bhangwan is not more than an hour and 15 minutes from Gurdaspur on a two-wheeler. Ehsan was living at an Ahmadiyya community guest house in Gurdaspur. I had already made friends there. Sab azeez hain aur sabne khub madad ki (everyone has become dear to me, and all of them helped me a lot). Clueless as to where to start his search, Ehsans local friends started by speaking to neighbours. Ehsan said the neighbourhood in Bhangwan is made up of mostly Sikh families. They were so warm and kind. I told them about my grandfathers family. Most of them didnt know my grandparents because they lived there a long time ago, but they served the best gud ki chai, says Ehsan. After interacting with several other families and visiting a quaint maqbara of a famous peer (saint), Ehsan met a family which had been living there for more than two decades. They recognised the name Ghulam Mohammad. He was my grandfathers elder brother. When I told them that he was my ammis father, they were pleasantly surprised. They welcomed us in and showed us photos of where the house stood once. They also gave us interesting trivia about the village. Apparently, it was part of Pakistan for almost a week before it was again marked inside the borders of India, Ehsan added. By 15 March, Ehsan had found what he had come for. He saw the soil where his maternal home once stood and was also happy to meet people who knew his grandfather. I had four more days left before I left for Pakistan, he said. Meanwhile, on 15 March, the Union health ministry said that India had reported 110 confirmed COVID-19 cases. According to Ehsan, there was no talk about a lockdown till then. On 19 March, when Ehsan reached the Attari-Wagah border, authorities told him that the border has been shut for two weeks in India. I was worried. My visa was expiring that very day and I did not know anyone in India. My only hope was to get an extension on the visa, said Ehsan. He headed to the Foreigner Regional Registration Offices in Amritsar. The Foreigner Registration Office is the primary agency to regulate the registration, movement, stay, departure, and also recommend the extension of stay in India. Officials at the FRRO told Ehsan that due to the lockdown, extension of his visa could take a while. Also, the Amritsar FRRO did not have the authority to issue FRRO for Pakistani citizens. Ehsan either had to write to the Ministry of External Affairs or had to apply for it online. He picked the latter. I realised I would have to stay in Gurdaspur for the next two weeks, said Ehsan. In two weeks, Ehsan made friends, got chummy with the locals and enjoyed unmatched hospitality. Describing the trip as something that was meant to be. He was planning the trip for a long time. On 21 March, India announced the janta curfew and three days later (24 March) Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a nationwide lockdown for 14 days. The guest house that Ehsan lived in also housed citizens from other nationalities. There were German and Mauritian nationals. We were quarantined, but we were astonished at how everyone helped each other, he said. Everyone at the guest house was tested by government healthcare staff and were quarantined for two weeks. Ehsan said that they had no trouble with food and lodging, as the guest house arranged for everything. Initially, it was a big scare. Two weeks is a long time to stay inside a room without talking to anybody. But there were a few hours in the day when the curfew was relaxed for us to buy essentials. I befriended so many people in the market area. They would later come by the guest house and we would chat by my window. Locals would send me homemade food. I felt like one of them. I used to look forward to Modis speeches as excitedly as any other Indian, said Ehsan, quite amused with himself. Sitting in his guest house room, Ehsan got in touch with many across the country who were from Pakistan and were stranded in India because of the lockdown. Using social media and WhatsApp, Ehsan said he got in touch with over 200 Pakistanis living in India. I emailed the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi on 28 March. I called them, too. They asked me to send over the details and I passed on that information to everyone else, said Ehsan. The mission first told the group that they will try and repatriate the citizens by 4 April, 2020, ten days before the lockdown was scheduled to officially end. Ehsan then found an unusual ally to help him. I have been following Justice Markandey Katju and I have seen his work, and I thought he could help, said Ehsan. Justice Katju told Firstpost that he still doesnt know how Ehsan got in touch with him. I got an email from Ehsan. I dont differentiate between people based on their nationality or religion, I think thats why people reach out to me. I do whatever I can. In this case, I contacted my old friend Prabhu Dayal, a retired Indian Foreign Services officer who in turn got in touch with the joint secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs," said Justice Katju. "The High Commission closely followed-up and coordinated with the Indian side as well as the relevant stakeholders in Islamabad for early repatriation of the Pakistanis, an official with the Pakistan High Commission said. Deputy secretary of Public Relations in the Ministry of External Affairs, Mahesh Kumar, told Firstpost that the groundwork is mainly done by missions. It is the case in every country. The citizens first get in touch with the mission and the foreign ministry facilitates at the final stage. On 16 April, when the Pakistan High Commission told Ehsan and the rest that they will be going back to their homes, Ehsan wrote another email to Justice Katju. I just want to offer my deepest gratitude to both of you (Dayal and Justice Katju) for highlighting the case of stranded Pakistanis and with your efforts, 41 of them were repatriated through special permission via the Attari Border. I can not express my words for the love and support you have shown to a stranger like me and wrote on my behalf to MEA. Despite the lockdown and the bleak situation in India, it was a memorable trip that will remain forever etched in my memory. : Six more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Kerala on Monday, taking the total active cases to 114 while over 46,000 are under observation, even as the state government decided to test all those in quarantine in two to three days. Kerala has so far reported 407 COVID-19 cases, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters here. Twenty-one people, including 19 from Kasaragod, were cured on Monday, while two are from Alappuzha. "The six new cases are from Kannur district and five of them have come from abroad. One case was the primary contact of an infected person. A total of 46,323 people are under observation in the state and 398 are in isolation wards of various hospitals," Vijayan said. Till now 19,756 samples have been sent for testing in the state. "We have sent 19,756 samples for testing.We will also test all those who are under quarantine in hospitals within next two or three days," Vijayan added. There was a phase when Kerala accounted for the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the country but today we have the highest number of recovered cases, he said. "Our recovery rate is the highest while mortality rate due to coronavirus is the lowest in the country at 0.58 per cent as compared to the world average of 5.75 per cent and 2.7 per cent in India. For a State with high population density, Kerala has the maximum number of COVID-19 testing facilities," he said. The southern state reported the first coronavirus case in the country on January 30, when a student who had returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus, tested positive. This was followed by two more students, both Wuhan returnees. The second wave of the infection hit the State on February 19 when a three-members of a family who had returned to Kerala from Italy tested positive. The number of new cases started increasing gradually as people who were coming to Kerala from other countries started reporting positive and this peaked on March 30 when the state had the highest number of 32 new cases being reported on a single day,he said. "There was a time when we thought the situation might go out of control. At one point, which was on April 4, we had the highest number of people under surveillance in the state, a total of 1,71,355 persons and today, it has come down to 46,323." Kasaragod district has in particular shown much resilience in fighting the pandemic in the last two months as the district had the highest number of 169 confirmed cases within the State. Now 142 have recovered and the rest 27 patients are on their way to recovery with no serious issues. The way Kasargod fought back should be a role model for the country, Vijayan added. There would be no relaxation in safety guidelines during the lockdown period and the exemptions announced so far are in concurrence with the Centre, the chief minister said. He asked everyone to move towards more healthy and safe practices in lifestyle. "The threat of coronaviurs won't go off immediately, we should learn new habits for the prevention of the infection and this should start from our children." The government was aware of the mental trauma suffered by the nurses from Kerala in Delhi and has started a helpline at Kerala House in the national capital. A helpline for the nurses has been opened at the Kerala House in Delhi and there will be at least 35 counsellors from 10 AM to 5 PM to attend them, Vijayan said. The state government was awaiting permission from the Drugs Control to initiate the trial for plasma therapy, he said adding the Institute of Advanced Virolgy has received the membership in Global Virus Network, an international coalition of medical virologists. Pointing that the expats in various counties, including the Gulf were facing lot of hardships due to the lockdown, Vijayan said there are at least 20 Lakh non- resident Keralites in the Gulf and efforts were taken to provide them all help. "The state government is ready to take care of the expats if the Centre was ready to bring them back to Kerala and all necessary arrangements have been readied near the airports to quarantine those who will return from abroad," Vijayan said. He also said the state has 38 COVID-19 speciality hospitals, the most in the country. Meanwhile, Vijayan refused to respond to the data collection allegation raised by opposition Congress party in the last few days and said he has other important works to attend to when the state was engaged in fighting the virus pandemic. "No time to respond to the controversies.I am not worried about the allegations, why should you all be? I have more important works to do during this pandemic season," Vijayan said, refusing to respond to questions from the media on the data collection row. The Congress has been raising allegations that a US company had been entrusted with the task of collecting the data of virus infected patients and that it was a violation of their fundamental rights. The ward-level committees, set up by the government for the anti-coronavirus fight, was collecting information of those in home isolation, elderly persons and those at the risk of the disease using a questionnaire in this regard and upload it in a server of a private agency, according to the opposition. Thecongress has alleged that the data, collected through the government machinery, was being uploaded not in the government server but in that of a foreign company. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Abidjan, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Apr, 2020 ) :Burkina Faso's security forces allegedly executed 31 unarmed detainees in the northern town of Djibo, Human Rights Watch said Monday, calling for an official inquiry. "The Burkinabe security forces apparently executed 31 men in a brutal mockery of a counterterrorism operation that may amount to a war crime and could fuel further atrocities," said Corinne Dufka, Sahel director at Human Rights Watch. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 14:24:24|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close Chilean Deputy Health Minister Paula Daza speaks during a press conference in Santiago, Chile, April 19, 2020. Chile's total confirmed cases reached 10,088, with 133 fatalities, the Health Ministry said on Sunday. (Chilean Ministry of Health/Handout via Xinhua) MEXICO CITY, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Latin America has registered more than 100,000 cases of COVID-19 as the pandemic spreads through the region, with Brazil and Peru together accounting for over half of the caseload. Brazil reported 38,654 cases and 2,462 deaths as of Sunday after 115 patients died of the virus in the past 24 hours, registering a mortality rate of 6.4 percent, the Health Ministry said. The worst-hit region in Brazil was Sao Paulo, the richest and most populous state, which has seen 1,015 deaths and 14,267 cases. Peru reported 1,208 new cases on Sunday, bringing its total caseload to 15,628, with 400 fatalities. The country is ranked the second in the region in the number of infections, only behind Brazil, Peru's Ministry of Health said. Among the infected people in Peru, 1,349 have been hospitalized, with 167 in intensive care units. In Chile, the number of confirmed cases reached 10,088, up by 358 from a day earlier, the Ministry of Health said Sunday. The death toll increased by seven to 133 in the past 24 hours, and all the new deaths were in central parts of the country, including the capital Santiago and its metropolitan areas Valparaiso and Nuble. Chile is conducting an average of 4,000 tests a day and has 570 respirators available throughout its public and private healthcare system, said Deputy Health Minister Paula Daza, adding that 54 percent of the patients in intensive care units are aged over 60. Some 4,338 patients have recovered and are now eligible to receive a "discharge card" that exempts them from further social distancing measures, said Daza. The government recently made it compulsory to wear a face mask in elevators and public spaces which more than 10 people may enter, such as supermarkets. Since strict stay-at-home measures were taken, residents are permitted to go grocery shopping twice a week, with all other non-essential commercial businesses closed. Ecuador has registered 9,468 cases and 474 deaths, with 446 new infections and 18 deaths reported in the past 24 hours. An additional 817 deaths are likely to have been caused by the virus but have not been verified, health authorities said. The Dominican Republic has registered 4,680 infections and 226 deaths caused by the virus. The Cuban government on Sunday reported 49 new cases and two deaths, bringing the island's total caseload and its death toll to 1,035 and 34, respectively. Of the 49 new cases, 41 had contact with infected people, while the source of infection for the other eight remains unknown. Cuban experts expect the pandemic to reach its peak on the island in mid-May. In Mexico, where 8,261 people have tested positive and 686 people have died, health authorities on Sunday denounced an increase in attacks against medics, which were presumably provoked by fear and ignorance regarding the pandemic. In an online video, Health Minister Jorge Alcocer and Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell explained that healthcare workers were not a risk of infection. "The virus is going around throughout the country and the people who are taking care of the patients are not the source of infection. On the contrary, these health professionals ... are saving lives," Lopez-Gatell said. Enditem I considered it quite an honor for him to say that that night, but I had no idea just how much that would truly come to mean these two very long months later, Hogan said, standing near his wife at Mondays news conference. [April 20, 2020] W Technologies Inc. (WTCG Pink) Assigned Global Rights to Market Unit for the potential of removing Viruses from confined spaces after sixteen years of development in Germany. (www.wtechnologiescorp.com) Coronavirus has shut down business around the world, with the development of these products it will enable offices and public spaces that are confined to be rehabilitated and utilized as virus free. BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- W TECHNOLOGIES ACQUIRED AN LOI TO DISTRIBUTE MEDICAL DEVICES WITH GLOBAL RIGHTS OF THE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED AND DESIGNED OVER THE LAST 16 YEARS TO REMOVE VIRUSES (www.viroxxmedical.com). W Technologies Inc. has entered an assignment of a binding letter of intent (LOI) for the exclusive and global rights to a proprietary technology designed to remove viruses. W Technologies is not making any expressed or implied claims that the technology has the ability to remove the SARS-CoV-2 virus (also known as the Coronavirus) other than as warranted by the German company. The terms of the LOI are as follows: W Technologies is assigned the contract for other considerations and an issuance of $3 million dollars in shares of WTCG at a cost of .50 per share. W Technologies will issue up to 5 million common shares to accredited investors in a private placement at a price of 0.50 per shares with a share purchase warrant exercisable at 0.75 with an expirtion date of May 1st, 2021. The German company claims "to have developed this unit for over 16 years and with the assistance of the University of Marburgs testing facilities they have proven that active viruses are removed from the air and destroyed in confined spaces." This statement has not been independently verified. Important - this device does not heal those with the virus, but protects the healthy. The device has been approved as a medical device and the effect has been confirmed by the Philipps-University of Marburg/Germany. It is currently being sold to Deutsche Bank, Frankfurt Airport, and up to 50 doctor's offices are being equipped every day to allow the workspace to be virus free. Approx. 60% of the customers are medical practices and pharmacies which have an abundance of public traffic. The unit is not sold to private individuals. About W Technologies Inc. (WTCG - Pink) W Technologies is an investment company that seeks to enhance shareholder value over the long term by opportunistically making various investments in manufacturing and production facilities. For further information please contact us at [email protected]al.com or 310 691 2470 We seek Safe Harbor. Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-5 under the Securities Act of 1934 and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than the statements of fact, included in this press release may include forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. W Technology undertakes no obligations to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances or to reflect unanticipated events or developments. If you have any questions regarding information in these press releases please contact the company listed in the press release. Our complete disclaimer appears here For Information Contact W Technologies 310 263 8188 [email protected] [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath spoke to his Maharashtra counterpart Uddhav Thackeray on Monday and sought action against the accused in the Palghar incident in which three people were lynched over rumours of them being kidnappers. Thackeray has reportedly assured Adityanath that stern action would be taken in the matter. "Spoke to Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray yesterday evening regarding murder of saints of Juna Akhara Swami Kalpvrikshgiri, Swami Sushilgiri and their driver Neelesh Telgarhe. I have urged him to take strict action against the culprits," he said in a tweet in Hindi. In another tweet, Adityanath said, "The Chief Minister of Maharashtra said that some persons have been arrested, and strict action will be initiated against rest of the accused persons after identifying them." Swami Kalpvriksha Giri, Swami Sushil Giri and their driver Neelesh Telgade attacked and killed on Thursday night upon rumours that they were kidnapping children to harvest organs, including kidneys. The police reached the spot and when they put the victims in the police car, the mob attacked them again. Policemen have also been injured in the incident. Though all three were finally brought to the hospital, they were declared brought dead. Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh has already announced a high-level inquiry into the incident, that occurred on the night of April 16 when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were headed towards Surat in a car to attend a funeral. More than 110 people have been taken into custody. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is better known for yelling at journalists than consoling them. But when Mr. Pompeo got on the phone with the publishers of The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times on March 21, he said he was there to offer help, according to a person with direct knowledge of the call. And he acknowledged that the Trump administrations latest shot at China had been, if not wrong, poorly timed. Thats because on March 2 a month after President Trump banned travel from China, and the day the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States passed 100 the State Department announced a long-planned expulsion of about 60 employees of five Chinese state media outlets working in the United States. The U.S. move gave the Communist Party the perfect excuse to get rid of pesky American journalists who had, over the previous two months, offered the world a window into Chinas deadly mistakes in responding to the outbreak of the virus. On March 17, China slammed that window shut, announcing the expulsion of reporters for The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and New York Times, and forcing the firing of Chinese nationals who worked for those outlets as well as for Voice of America and CNN. Given the fact that its vital to have good information out of China right now because of coronavirus, the U.S. decision was pretty disastrous timing, said Megha Rajagopalan, a correspondent for BuzzFeed News whose visa was not renewed in 2018 after she reported about the mass internment of Muslims in China. Ms. Rajagopalan and other expelled reporters stressed, however, that the U.S. crackdown in no way compares with the brazen Chinese efforts to undermine a free media. The Sri Lankan government on Monday dropped its decision to relax the nationwide curfew and extended it to April 27 following a sudden spike of 41 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. The island nation has been under a 24-hour curfew since March 20 to combat the deadly viral infection. On Sunday, the government announced to partially lift the curbs from Monday to boost economic activity. Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi had said the government was able to tackle the community spread of the deadly virus and was, therefore, looking at the need to revive the economic activity, stalled due to the lockdown since mid-March. However, following the 41 COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office said the planned easing of the curfew won't happen in the backdrop of the sudden spike in the numbers and it has been extended till April 27. Following the curfew extension, a meeting of the Election Commission scheduled for Monday afternoon to decide on the date of the parliamentary election has also been postponed. The election, which was originally scheduled for April 25, was indefinitely postponed in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. Sri Lanka has so far reported 295 COVID-19 cases, including seven deaths, and 96 recoveries, since the first viral infection was reported in the country on March 11. Over 3,500 people, including foreigners, remain quarantined in more than 40 centres across the country following the coronavirus outbreak. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) WASHINGTON, April 20, 2020 -- The flavor and aroma of a fine chocolate emerge from its ecology, in addition to its processing. But can you be certain that the bar you bought is really from the exotic locale stated on the wrapper? Now, researchers are presenting a method for determining where a particular chocolate was produced -- and someday, which farm its beans came from -- by looking at its chemical "fingerprint." The researchers are presenting their results through the American Chemical Society (ACS) SciMeetings online platform. "The project originated out of an idea I had for a lab in one of the courses I teach," says Shannon Stitzel, Ph.D., the project's principal investigator. "The method we used to analyze chocolate bars from a grocery store worked well in the class, and the exercise piqued the students' curiosity. So, I started reaching out for more interesting samples and tweaking the technique." Many factors can affect a chocolate's flavor and contribute to its unique chemical make-up. The process of making chocolate begins with the pods of the cacao tree. The genes of the tree the pods are harvested from, as well as the environment the tree is grown in, can affect the composition of the final product. Processing steps can also change a chocolate's complex chemistry. Generally, after cocoa beans obtained from the pods have been fermented, dried and roasted, they are ground into a paste, called cocoa liquor, which contains cocoa solids and cocoa butter. Sugar and other ingredients are added to the liquor to make chocolate. Any of these steps could be varied slightly by the company performing them, leading to differences in chocolate composition. Even more variation between chocolates from different regions can come from naturally occurring yeast in the pods that surround the beans, which can affect the fermentation process, thereby influencing the flavor compounds in chocolate. Authenticating the country of a chocolate's origin is an important piece of information. Drilling down to the specific farm where a chocolate's beans were grown could help verify that the product is "fair trade" or "organic," as its label might suggest, or that it has not been adulterated along the way with inferior ingredients. Early on, Stitzel's experiments at Towson University involved a well-known method for geographic determination. She used elemental analysis, which has been used to identify the source of a myriad of unknown materials. However, Stitzel wanted to go further and analyze the organic compounds in cocoa liquor to see if any of them remained after various processing steps. If so, they could be used as markers for more precise authentication testing. Through a friend in the industry, Stitzel acquired single-source samples of cocoa liquor from all over the world. Her undergraduate student, Gabrielle Lembo, used liquid chromatography (LC) to separate the cocoa liquor compounds from various samples and mass spectrometry (MS) to identify their chemical signatures. Lembos results showed that LC-MS is a robust analysis technique. Compounds, such as caffeine, theobromine and catechins, are detected in different patterns that make up a signature fingerprint. This fingerprint indicates provenance and cannot easily be finagled by nefarious producers. Stitzel says that eventually their method could be used to help map out the expected flavor profiles of a chocolate, given its chemical signature. And she says it would be interesting to first determine the fingerprint of a cocoa bean, then gather fingerprints with each consecutive processing step to see how they change. For now, her students are expanding the application of the analysis method by looking at the chemical signatures of various forms of fair-trade and organic coffee. ### The researchers acknowledge support and funding from the National Science Foundation and Towson University's Jess & Mildred Fisher College of Science & Mathematics. The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. ACS' mission is to advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and its people. The Society is a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple research solutions, peer-reviewed journals, scientific conferences, eBooks and weekly news periodical Chemical & Engineering News. ACS journals are among the most cited, most trusted and most read within the scientific literature; however, ACS itself does not conduct chemical research. As a specialist in scientific information solutions (including SciFinder and STN), its CAS division powers global research, discovery and innovation. ACS' main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio. To automatically receive news releases from the American Chemical Society, contact newsroom@acs.org. Follow us on Twitter | Facebook Title Chemical signatures from UPLC/MS for cocoa provenance determination Abstract The production of chocolate products is a global industry that needs a method to determine the geographic origins of its most essential component, cocoa. Traceability of cocoa is becoming more important for quality control in the chocolate industry, so that consumers can know they are purchasing products that adhere to fair-trade regulations, organic farming practices, etc. Many of the steps in the process of producing cocoa can influence the chemical makeup of the different aspects of the final product including the flavor profile and aroma. Each region where cocoa is gown has variations in soil composition, weather and farming practices that influence the cocoa bean development. Additionally, differences in post-harvest treatments including fermentation and roasting conditions influence the overall chemical composition of the resulting cocoa liquor used to make finished chocolate products. These differences result in unique chemical signatures that can identify cocoa liquors by their country of origin. Many studies have employed GC/MS, ICP/MS, and HPLC to quantify and detect the presence of certain classes of compounds in cocoa, but there are fewer studies focused on provenance determination via chemical signatures. Previous work by this group has been able to accurately determine the country of origin of cocoa samples using ICP/MS to construct a unique elemental profile for each country. Use of LC/MS provides an opportunity to evaluate a wide variety of molecules for generating chemical signatures. The cocoa sample preparation and conditions for UPLC/ESI-TOFMS used to obtain unique chemical signatures from cocoa liquor samples are described. Several classes of compounds were identified from the mass spectral data, and the semi-quantitative analysis method was verified with a cocoa standard reference material. Discriminate analysis was used to identify cocoa liquor samples from five different countries. The method was able to accurately group and identify country of origin in 95% of samples. Future directions include moving beyond country level provenance determination, to regional discrimination within countries, and potentially differences in signatures due to genetic strains of cacao. New Delhi, April 20 : Over 8,000 teachers of 714 schools run by North Delhi Municipal Corporation (North MCD), who have been working day and night in food distribution and door-to-door awareness campaign against COVID-19, have found themselves entangled in a political tussle between the BJP-led North MCD and the AAP state government. These teachers claim that they have not received salaries since February leaving them out of cash and the lockdown period has only worsened the effects with shopkeepers denying them credit facilities. "They have deployed us on food distribution duties and told us to visit every door to screen people for COVID-19, but what about the salary? Last salary that we received was for January, since then not a single penny has been credited to our accounts," Ramnivas Solanki, President of MCD Teachers' association said. Ramnivas claims that the association has written to the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister and the Mayor for the same but all efforts have gone in vain. "Chief Minister's office said that our plea was forwarded to the concerned office for appropriate action. But we are yet to get fruits for our efforts," he added. The Mayor of North MCD however claimed they have asked for about Rs 1,000 crore from the state government but the latter has not been willing to provide the same. "State government is like a guardian to civic bodies and now when we are in trouble they must give up politics and give Rs 1,000 crore immediately for smooth functioning of the body," Mayor Avtar Singh told IANS. An official from the Delhi government however claimed that the state government has paid the civic body all its dues and if still it claims to be cash strapped then it must check where the money has gone. Of the 8,000 teachers, the civic body owes approximately over a Rs 100 crore for these two months of salary. The salary for a teacher of MCD school starts from around Rs 50,000 per month and may well go up to around Rs 1 lakh per month depending on the experience and post of the teacher. Currently these teachers reach schools daily at 10 am and distribute food to the migrant labourers, and others from weaker sections of society. The teachers are then told to reach door-to-door and check if any family has a suspected case of coronavirus, for which they have been provided a temperature gun to measure body temperature of respondents. : A 22-year-old trainee in the Army Training Centre in Wellington near here was found hanging dead from a tree on the centre's campus in the early hours of Monday, police said. A few trainees noticed the body of Sampathkumar, hailing from Madurai and informed senior officials, the police said. Sampathkumar had joined training four months ago. The reason for the alleged suicide was yet to be ascertained and the body was kept at the mortuary in Coonoor, they said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A $5,000 reward has been offered and a composite sketch released as a 39-year-old Easton woman continues to recover after being shot March 31 in her car on an exit ramp from Interstate 78 East in Greenwich Township, Warren County, New Jersey State Police report. Cory Vernon was on her way to work at QuVa Pharma in Bloomsbury when she was wounded, a company spokeswoman said. The business is offering the reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case, police said in a news release. It is the first time the rapidly growing and essential business, which employs about 800 in Texas and Hunterdon County and manufactures a broad range of ready to use pharmaceuticals for hospitals that include sedation aids that assist in the care and comfort of COVID-19 patients, has made such an offer, the spokeswoman said. The effort to identify the shooter, she said, is key to the companys culture when it comes to helping essential employees such as Vernon, who is part of the labeling and packaging of the products in the Bloomsbury operation. We feel a sense of pride in helping out, the spokeswoman said. Vernon, who was conscious and alert after being shot, remains in a hospital following surgeries after she was shot just before 6 a.m. in the head, hand and chest. Detectives believe the male shooter was driving a dark sedan east between 5:40 and 5:55 a.m. between the I-78 entrance off Morgan Hill Road in Williams Township and Exit 6 near the Warren-Huntercon County border, police said. The white male was wearing dark clothing, police said. A trooper from the state police Forensic Photography and Composite Artist Unit created a rendering of how the shooter may appear, the news release said. New Jersey State Police vehicles are stopped the morning of March 31, 2020, on the shuttered Exit 6 on Interstate 78 East after a woman was shot along the exit ramp in Greenwich Township, Warren County.Tim Wynkoop | lehighvalleylive.com contributor Anonymous tips can be sent to the Warren County Prosecutors Office Crime Tip Hotline at 908-475-6643 or 866-942-6467 of by going to https://www.wcpo-nj.us/crime-tips.php. Anyone with information can also contact state police Perryville at 908-730-7042. Tips can be anonymous. A GoFundMe set up to help with Vernons medical expenses has raised more than $14,000. 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. New Delhi, April 20 : Officials of senior ranks in all central government ministries returned to their office from Monday onwards, following a directive in this regard, amid the nationwide lockdown due to coronavirus scare. The central government had issued an order to all the ministries that from April 20, 100 per cent attendance of the officials of the rank of Deputy Secretary and above is mandatory. Only 33 per cent officials of lower rank will have to come to the office, that too as per requirement. Officials were seen entering the Shastri Bhavan and other central government offices in New Delhi at 9.30 a.m. on Monday. Vehicles of all employees resuming duties at their respective offices were sanitized even as they underwent thermal screening before they were allowed to enter. Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar reached his office at Shastri Bhavan here at 11 a.m. and held a meeting with top officials including Information Secretary Rajiv Mittal. Apart from the minister, officials above the rank of Under Secretary came in the ministry. Officers below the Under Secretary rank are being called on alternate days. Only 33 per cent of the full employee staff has been asked to report for duty at offices. Apart from this, officers of the rank of Under Secretary to Director have been asked to come to office as per the need. Also, people who have their own vehicles or live nearby are directed to come to offices. Also, the work in the Armed Forces, Health and Family Welfare, Disaster Management, Meteorological Department, Central Information Commission, FCI, NCC, Nehru Yuva Kendra and Custom Offices will continue as usual. Offices of the states and Union Territories will also open from Monday. Apart from this, work will routine continue in the offices of Police, Home Guards, Civil Defence, Fire and Emergency Service, Disaster Management, Jails and Urban Bodies. Other departments of the states will work with limited staff. Group A and B officers will come to the office if and when required, while only 33 per cent of Group C and below will come. The district administration and treasury will work with a limited number of employees. However, employees engaged in the delivery of essential services will remain exempt. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has pledged to purge Armenias government, judiciary and security apparatus of remnants of the countrys former leadership, accusing them of trying to discredit him and scuttle his far-reaching initiatives. In a video message streamed live on Facebook on Sunday night, Pashinian charged that many Armenian media outlets are also sympathetic to the former regime and keen to undercut him. Its probably about time that real purges within the government took place, he declared before hitting out at former President Serzh Sarkisian and his political allies. They still have lots of their people in the government and the law-enforcement system, he said. They do because we said that there will be no vendettas and gave everyone a chance. But now the time for using that chance is up. The state governance system must be cleansed of Serzhs remnants Nobody can blame us for doing that because they had that chance and havent used it, added Pashinian. He did not name anyone. The remarks followed a scandal that marred Pashinians live address to the nation broadcast on Friday evening by Armenian Public Television. Several other, private TV broadcasters, some of which are controlled by Pashinians political foes, were allowed retransmit it. It emerged afterwards for at least 15 minutes preceding the broadcast, Public Television also filmed Pashinians preparation for the address which focused on the Armenian governments response to the coronavirus epidemic. The sensitive footage was leaked to some of his detractors who circulated it on social media to mock the prime minister. On Sunday morning, Pashinians spokeswoman, Mane Gevorgian, accused Public Television of negligence and a lack of professionalism, saying that it should have alerted the premier that he is being recorded. Gevorgian also lambasted the state-funded broadcaster for giving the other TV channels access to not only the speech but also what preceded it. The Public Television management denied any wrongdoing. It insisted that prior to the broadcast one of its employees informed the prime ministers aides about the filming. Nevertheless, Public Televisions executive director, Margarita Grigorian, resigned on Monday, saying that she takes responsibility for the incident. In a statement, Grigorian also implicitly accused other broadcasters of violating ethical standards of journalism and leaking the footage. She described that as a stab in the back. In his late-night Facebook message, Pashinian downplayed the incident while attacking swaggering scumbags who he said are taking advantage of his administrations tolerance of political dissent. He stressed that during the 2018 Velvet Revolution in Armenia he prevented their lynching by angry crowds that toppled Sarkisian. People were demanding that we take the scumbags, who are swaggering now, out of their homes and swat them in the streets, he said. But we said no, this is not our work style. Pashinian went on to allege that Armenias former regime is stepping up its smear campaign against him because of what he described as major progress made in ongoing corruption investigations conducted by law-enforcement bodies. He said they are also worried about the Armenian parliaments passage of government bills on judicial reform and confiscation of assets deemed to have been acquired illegally. The 44-year-old former journalist also blasted the Armenian media, saying that that up until the 2018 revolution 99 percent of media outlets and 70 percent of journalists received money from the [former] authorities. They are not getting that money now and the entire media field is furious with that, he claimed. NORWALK A longtime Norwalk resident, parental rights advocate and educator announced shes running against Senator Bob Duff to represent Norwalk and Darien in the Connecticut Senate. Elisavet "Ellie" Kousidis filed paperwork late last month to run as a Republican for the state senate seat which has been held by Duff for the last 15 years. Kousidis is a 20-year Norwalk resident and award-winning media specialist at Rippowam Middle School in Stamford. Shes also the founder of Active Citizenry USA, a grassroots organization dedicated to parental rights, and has a parental rights advocate, pushing back against state-mandated vaccines. That is what really helped me learn how to navigate through the legislature and how to take on more people, Kousidis. I want to educate people on the legislative process and get them inspired. Im an educator and my husband is a small business owner. There are certain policies in Connecticut that are impacting us negatively. We want to make sure those go about differently...Its going to be a challenge, but Im excited about the opportunity to make the changes necessary for our state. Kousidis and her husband are both first-generation American citizens and are raising their family in Norwalk. In 2018, Kousidis won the Stamford Public Education Foundations Excellence in Education award. Shes also written several grants that brought in $400,000 to update the library at Rippowam, as well as secured funding to increase student technology and help bring in a device per student into the schools. Kousidis and her colleagues also had a research proposal on the positive role school connectedness plays on improving student outcomes accepted by the National Association for School Psychologist to be presented at their conference. In addition to advocating for better tax policies to help small businesses and limit state spending, Kousidis is also hoping to cut down on the bureaucracy in Connecticut public schools, according to her website. Im very excited about her wanting to take on this challenge, said Republican Town Committee Chair Carl Dickens. I think shell be a very good candidate. Were going to give her all the support we can and look forward to a very spirited race and campaign for Republicans to win the 25th. Duff, D-Norwalk, has represented the 25th district since being elected in November 2004. As the elections get closer, local Republican candidates are emerging for the upcoming races. Patrizia Zucaro, a Republican and attorney from Westport, is expected to launch her campaign next week against Democrat Stephanie Thomas to represent the 143rd district, which parts of Westport, Wilton and Norwalk, in Connecticuts General Assembly. State Representative Gail Lavielle announced last month she wont pursue a sixth term. Republican Fred Wilms, who previously served as state representative for the 142nd district, announced in January he was running against Democrat Lucy Dathan to reclaim his old seat representing Norwalk and New Canaan. State Representative Terrie Wood will run again as the sole candidate to represent the 141st district which includes parts of Darien and Norwalk. Former city clerk Ellen Wink is running for state representative of the 137th district against Democrat Chris Perone who is pursuing a ninth term representing Norwalk. Patrick Murphy, who ran for the Common Council last year, is running against incumbent Democrat Travis Simms to represent Norwalk in the 140th district. Karen Doel Lyons is running for reelection for the registrar of voters. The Norwalk RTC will also send 16 delegates to a convention later this spring to select a candidate to run against Rep. Jim Himes, D-4. Dr. David Goldstein, Joseph Villani and Jonathan Riddle are some of the candidates from Norwalk putting their name forward for the congressional seat. erin.kayata@hearstmediact.com Truscott (pictured) resigned from the Labour Party after he was secretly taped offering to assist in getting amendments on legislation before the Upper House tabled in return for money Shamed lord hunts down Covid spivs... Most politicians need a brass neck to survive in the Westminster jungle. But former Labour energy minister Lord Truscott is in a league of his own. Truscott fears unscrupulous types may try to cash in on the pandemic, so in a written question to ministers, he asked: What steps are they taking to prevent the emergence of a black market in food, medicines, pharmaceuticals and other essential supplies as a result of any shortage in such supplies due to Covid-19. Truscott knows all about financial exploitation. In 2009, he and a fellow Labour peer became the first members of the Upper House in almost 400 years to be suspended, after breaking the rule that states Lords must always act on their personal honour. (Viscount Savile was banned in 1642 for siding against Parliament with Charles I, who later lost his head.) Truscott resigned from the Labour Party after he was secretly taped offering to assist in getting amendments on legislation before the Upper House tabled in return for money. In 2017, Truscott trousered 57,000 in tax-free attendance allowances in the Lords, after speaking just three times in a year. Just the man to raise concerns about people cashing in... Never knowingly modest, ITV political editor Robert Peston has been boasting at the expense of his colleagues again Peston: the ego has landed... Never knowingly modest, ITV political editor Robert Peston has been boasting at the expense of his colleagues again. At the weekend he tweeted: The threat of Covid-19 to wreck our way of life was already clear to senior health experts on January 22 (this day is etched on my brain because I argued that day with my colleagues that we had to discuss it on [my] Peston show). Im told his colleagues are distinctly unimpressed by his disloyalty but not the least bit surprised at the egotism. They fell out so badly over Brexit that Sir Nicholas Soames, an MP for 37 years, was briefly booted out of the Tories by Boris Johnson. But Soames, who is now firmly back in the Tory fold, is a forgiving soul. He says of Boris: Hes moved up a notch from being a party political leader to being a real national leader. I salute him for it. And Soames should know, of course. Hes the grandson of Sir Winston Churchill. They fell out so badly over Brexit that Sir Nicholas Soames (pictured), an MP for 37 years, was briefly booted out of the Tories by Boris Johnson Would David Camerons government have been better prepared for coronavirus? George Osborne seems to think so. The government I was part of had a risk register which wed regularly interrogate. Pandemic flu was very high up on the register, the former chancellor reveals in an analysis for corporate clients. But he goes on to state: Its self-evident not enough thinking had gone into this. You are so right, George. But who exactly didnt do enough thinking and when? Rory Stewart (pictured) went to Eton and Oxford, and had his 21st birthday party at the members-only Athenaeum Club in Pall Mall. Id call him posh Former Tory Cabinet minister Rory Stewart, who briefly ran for the Tory leadership, was asked by GQ magazine if he regards himself as posh. Oh what a tortured response followed thereon. Lower upper middle class. Not as funny to say lower middle class the joke is important there, opined Stewart. Whats funny? Stewart went to Eton and Oxford, and had his 21st birthday party at the members-only Athenaeum Club in Pall Mall. Id call him posh. Health minister Nadine Dorries (pictured) now thankfully recovered from Covid-19 hails one advantage of lockdown Return of the cavaliers Sussex Tory MP Tim Loughton is concerned about the imminent return to Westminister after the Easter recess and the impact of lockdown. Whether we return virtually or in person, it is certainly going to be the first Cavalier Parliament for some time, given the impact of hairdressers not being designated as key workers! Meanwhile, health minister Nadine Dorries now thankfully recovered from Covid-19 hails one advantage of lockdown. So, the neighbours didnt even frown at me in my PJs clapping for carers at 8pm. Thats how I roll now. Dress for Zoom calls, mowing the lawn, walking the dog and then straight back to nightwear. You can take the girl out of Liverpool, but ... Well, she said it. CHICAGO, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- United Airlines today announced that it has transformed one of its cargo facilities at George Bush Intercontinental Airport into a food distribution center to aid the Houston Food Bank's efforts to feed families in need during the COVID-19 crisis. The idea to convert the cargo space came from one employee, Mark Zessin, a United baggage team member who spends his days making sure customers' belongings get where they need to. Now, he's leading a team of hard-working employee volunteers at the bustling facility. "We take great pride in having employees throughout the United network who are always looking for ways to make every action count, even in these extremely trying times," said Sharon Grant, vice president of Global Community Engagement at United. "This is a great example of the power in working together with our nonprofit partners on addressing their challenges and creating unique solutions to ensure the community is served." Beyond the distribution centers, United team members across the system are finding ways to support COVID-19 first responders and those impacted by the virus. To date, United has: Donated more than 159,000 pounds of food to food banks, hospitals and other organizations from United's catering facilities and Polaris lounges Donated 2,800 amenity kits to healthcare workers on the frontlines providing aid Donated $100k worth of advertising space in London to UNICEF to support its education efforts around COVID-19 and protecting children around the globe worth of advertising space in to UNICEF to support its education efforts around COVID-19 and protecting children around the globe Operated more than 355 cargo charter flights that have moved over 5.6M kgs of cargo (including PPE, medical equipment, mail and other general cargo) kgs of cargo (including PPE, medical equipment, mail and other general cargo) Operated nearly 100 repatriation flights returning nearly 17,000 people home who were stranded abroad due to the COVID-19 pandemic Provided free flights for doctors, nurses and medical professionals traveling to New York , New Jersey and California to help battle COVID-19 Employee volunteers in Houston are receiving, packing, sorting and distributing food and other items to families in need. To date, employees have sorted and bagged nearly 160,000 pounds of food and household products and volunteered nearly 5,000 hours. "United and its team members are selflessly stepping up to help their neighbors by adapting their cargo center to be a produce inspecting, sorting and packing operation. Much of this food will be used at our new large-scale distribution model called 'Neighborhood Super Site' which expect to see 3,000 to 5,000 vehicles each event. Volunteers will also pick up product at the cargo center to then make safe, no-contact deliveries to reach households that must stay quarantined for their safety and the safety of others," said Brian Greene, president and CEO of the Houston Food Bank. "This assistance to serve the most vulnerable population during this pandemic is amazing. United is a dedicated and important partner of the Houston Food Bank, and we will not forget this generosity." The Houston Food Bank is one of United's critical needs partners. Over the last four years, United has invested more than one million dollars in the organization that annually serves more than 104 million meals to food insecure individuals and families in Southeast Texas. In addition to this current effort, United and the Houston Food Bank also partnered to distribute food and supplies to Federal employees during the 2019 Federal government shutdown. For more information on United's efforts to assist during the COVID crisis, visit: https://hub.united.com/united-together/. SOURCE United Airlines Germany and other parts of Europe took tentative steps to ease lockdown measures on Monday as more countries saw death rates from the coronavirus fall, but officials warned the battle against the pandemic was far from over. The World Health Organization defended its handling of the crisis against scathing criticism from Washington and others, with its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisting the UN body had been warning against the virus "from day one". Spain recorded its lowest death toll in weeks on Monday, Britain its lowest in a fortnight and Italy saw its first drop in the number of cases since its first infection was recorded in February. The encouraging came as tight restrictions in place for weeks were lifted in parts of the continent, with some shops reopening in Germany and Denmark and parents dropping their children off at nurseries in Norway. The hope is tempered by fears of new waves of infections, warnings that life will not be back to normal for many months and deep concern over the devastating impact the virus is having on the global economy. But even the smallest return to normality was welcome. In the German city of Leipzig, fashion store owner Manuela Fischer said she was "incredibly happy" to be welcoming shoppers again. In Norway, Silje Skifjell dropped off her boys Isaak and Kasper at a nursery in the north of the capital Oslo. "He was so excited we had to leave the house early to come here and see the other children," she said of four-year-old Isaak, her eldest. "I almost cried, he was so happy to see his friends." Governments around the world are mulling how and when to ease lockdowns that have kept more than half of humanity confined to their homes. The virus has so far infected more than 2.4 million people globally and killed more than 165,000, with nearly two thirds of the victims in Europe, according to an AFP tally. Germany, which has been hailed for keeping fatalities low despite a significant number of cases, is allowing smaller shops to reopen in some regions from Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Leipzig resident Abheshek, 25, said he welcomed a requirement to wear masks but was feeling some trepidation. "I'm afraid when all these people come together the coronavirus will spread a bit more." Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to stay disciplined, warning: "We stand at the beginning of the pandemic and are still a long way from being out of the woods." Denmark also reopened some small businesses, including hair salons, massage and tattoo parlours, dentists and driving schools, while Italy allowed bookshops to open their doors. France, which on Sunday recorded its lowest number of hospital deaths since March 23, also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said. But he added: "To imagine that, because the situation has stopped worsening and is starting to improve, the epidemic is behind us, would be a mistake." In Australia, the authorities in Sydney reopened three beaches for walking, running, swimming or surfing, while New Zealand announced it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." And in the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- the governor of hard-hit New York, Andrew Cuomo, said the outbreak was "on the descent". Many governments are anxious to get their countries up and running again, with huge parts of their economies shut down, millions thrown out of work and economists warning of a second Great Depression. Spain on Monday became the latest country to warn of unprecedented economic hardship, with the central bank the country's economy could contract by a whopping 13.6 percent this year. In the United States, which has more than 759,000 confirmed infections and nearly 41,000 deaths, some are increasingly chafing under stay-at-home orders and are taking to the streets to protest. Anti-lockdown demonstrations over the weekend drew hundreds of people in several states, including Colorado, Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio. President Donald Trump fuelled another bout of fury over the weekend by lending support to the protests against the lockdown restrictions -- which medical experts say save countless lives. Trump, under fire for his handling of the crisis as he faces an election later this year, has lashed out at the WHO for its early handling of the outbreak and cut US funding for the global health body. Responding Monday during a virtual briefing in Geneva, Ghebreyesus said the WHO had been warning of the dangers of the virus from start. "We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight," he said, adding that "there is nothing hidden from the US" about the pandemic. China also hit back at US criticism, which has seen some in Washington push conspiracy theories claiming the virus could have originated at a maximum-security virology lab in its central city of Wuhan. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday said he spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and requested him to facilitate the return of migrants from Rajasthan stuck in other states due to the lockdown. Gehlot said the Centre should consider the plight of the labourers and allow them to return to their homes. "I spoke to the union home minister and said the Government of India should treat Rajasthan in a different manner. Larger number of migrants from Rajasthan live in other states be it Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and they are traders, employees, workers, shop keepers etc and want to come back," he told reporters. He said the home minister has asked him to discuss with the officials and respond on Tuesday. "They (migrant labourers) want to go back home and once the situation improves, they would return with a new confidence. The Government of India should take up the matter," he said. "I have asked the prime minister, have written a letter too to explain the situation of migrant labourers. They are mentally broken and are depressed now," he said. After Uttar Pradesh, he said, Assam, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have also agreed to take their students back from Kota. UP had sent 250 buses for the return of the students. He said there are 4,000 students in Kota who are from various parts of Rajasthan and arrangements to send home are being made. The CM said the Centre should also take a decision to release more wheat soon. The CM said the state government was strengthening its health infrastructure. We are managing challenges at the health and economy front in a balanced manner, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) During this challenging time facing middle market businesses, Newport LLC has released several short videos entitled the Newport Business Brief. The most current release provides guidance around five best practices for managing your IT and technology issues in this new remote workforce environment. Newport LLC has identified 5 remote workforce best practices that are critical to effectively create and maintain remote workplace management while your employees are working from home during the COVID-19 crisis. Aside from the cultural issues for employees associated with working from a remote location and not with coworkers, integrating great technology solutions are necessary to creating and maintaining your remote work environment. Following these 5 guidelines will help you successfully set up a remote work environments: 1. Review the company's current systems capability and performance. Talk to the company's IT leader or Managed Service Provider and ask these questions: Does the company understand all of the remote access mechanisms they have? Has the company maintained our service levels on their technology? What new vulnerabilities arise with a remote workforce in terms of unauthorized access, hacking and confidentiality? How is security maintained with respect to user identity, validation and authorization? Its important for you to know whether your systems are safely and reliably meeting your current needs. 2. Next, take a look at the telework platform of the company. Standardize your digital communication platforms wherever possible. With so many teleconferencing platforms to choose from ZoomSkype TEAMS Go-To-Meeting its best to settle on one and make sure everyone is trained on how to use the system and its security features. 3. Another critical area is connectivity. Its a good idea to poll your remote workforce and know who has strong, fast, reliable service, and who doesn't. In any event: Know where your weak spots are and Allocate budget to reduce bandwidth bottlenecks and adjust roles and responsibilities if necessary. 4. Data security is another important topic, and a real spot of vulnerability in a remote workforce environment. Do your employees log into a secure system via VPN or benefit from some other system-wide protection, or are they actually working on a platform that is only protected by the virus/malware program on their home computer? Know your line of defense. If you are depending on home protection, standardize on a virus/malware package, make sure everyone installs it and runs that protection scan every day. Also, if business data will be stored on a home computer, you should require a backup protocol. 5. Finally, remain vigilant for phishing attacks. These are occurring every day as bad actors try to take advantage of new processes with anxious and distracted workers. Among the best practices we see are all-employee cyber security training and for critical processes, like transfer of money or proprietary documents, have adequate controls such as dual authentication. Newport LLC can help your business face the many challenges during this time of crisis and potentially recovery. Be vigilant. Be creative, and as always, stay safe. Lynn Lednicky is a partner in the Houston office of Newport LLC. Pets in Turkey are being abandoned in increasing numbers as Turkey's coronavirus crisis deepens, activists say. Animal rights activist Tugay Abukan says over the past three weeks some 100 dogs have been dropped off in a suburban forest in Istanbul. The increase is in line with other animal activists who estimate a 20% surge in the number of dogs fending for themselves since the start of the pandemic. "It is thought that they carry the (new) coronavirus and people are afraid. But there's no such thing," says 41-year-old Abukan. Turkish social media is abuzz with calls for citizens to feed stray animals to prevent starvation during stay-at-home orders. Over 82,000 people have tested positive for the new coronavirus according to Turkey's healthy ministry. The ministry has also reported nearly 2,000 deaths from the disease. 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 video of two Russian military planes - a Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-31 intercepted/fighter and a Tupolev Tu-95MS Bear-H strategic bomber - coming in an eyeball-to-eyeball situation with a NATO F-16 Fighting Falcon has gone viral. The video purportedly uploaded by a former Russian Air Force fighter pilot shows the pair of Tu-95MS and MiG-31 flying, and the F-16 ahead of the Russian fighter. Shot by the MiG-31 pilot, the video reveals that the Tu-95MS is on the left of the combat aircraft while the F-16 is to the right of the Russian fighter jet. But it is not clear which NATO country scrambled the F-16 jet to intercept the Tu-95MS and the MiG-31 escorting it. The MiG-31 is seen coming parallel to the F-16 with the Russian pilot repeatedly saluting and giving a thumbs-up to NATO fighter pilot. After a few second the NATO F-16 veers off to the right and flies away from the two Russian planes. However, the date and time of the incident are not clear. While the Tu-95MS has four engines and is a long-range, turboprop, strategic bomber as well as missile carrier, the MiG-31 Foxhound is a long-range supersonic interceptor jet. The MiG-31 is a twin-seater and is the first fighter from the former Soviet Union's stable to have true look-down and shoot-down capability. MiG-31 can track 10 and destroy four targets from long distances. The jet can take down targets flying between 50 metres to 28,000 metres. It usually carries four long-range Vympel R-33E air-to-air missiles to shoot the enemy at extremely long ranges while four short-range R-60MK missiles and two Bisnovat R-40TD1 medium-range missiles are also part of its arsenal. Some MiG-31 variants can also carry the AA-12 Adder missile as well as AS-17 Krypton anti-radiation missile (ARM). One six-barrel Ghs-6-23M 30mm internal cannon with 800 rounds of ammunition is also fitted in the jet. Carrying stand-off cruise missiles, the Tu-95MS can fly for well over 15 hours at a stretch with the record being a 17-hour patrol flight over the Aleutian Islands in May 2011. The bomber has a crew of seven, including a pilot and a co-pilot. Some versions of Tu-95MS can carry six 2,500km-range Kh-15 air-launched cruise missiles while others are armed with six Raduga Kh-55 (AS-15) subsonic air-launched cruise missiles. The Tu-95MS-16 variant has 16 Kh-55 missiles in its arsenal while a slight modification can allow the bomber to take off with eight Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles or 14 Kh-65 anti-ship missiles. The plane has two Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23 twin-barrelled, 23mm automatic cannons at the rear. Built by Lockheed Martin, the F-16 Fighting Falcon is one of the most famous combat aircraft and there are over 4,500 in service with the air forces of different countries. The single-seat, single-engine F-16 has nine hardpoints for weapons. The armament may include air-to-air missiles like AIM-9 Sidewinder, Raytheon AMRAAM, Raytheon Sparrow, MBDA Skyflash, ASRAAM, and the MBDA R550 Magic 2. The jet can also missiles to hit targets on ground and sea. These include Maverick, HARM and Shrike for ground-based target and Harpoon and Kongsberg Penguin for anti-ship operations. During an interview on Azatutyun Radio, President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian talked about the initiative and idea of the creation of Hay Park (Armenian Park) in the premises of Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex. The President stated that the world needs to reassess itself after the coronavirus pandemic and noted that the post-coronavirus period starts today. We need to start thinking about how were going to live after the coronavirus today. In Armenias case, for instance, we can start from the public health sector. The air is two-three times cleaner than it was before the coronavirus. So, we have to think about making sure the air is always clean, he said, adding that the parks of Yerevan are its lungs and that the people need parks in order to live healthy. In this context, President Sarkissian shared his idea of creating Hay Park (Armenian Park) in the premises of Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex. We Armenians will soon commemorate the victims of the Armenian Genocide and remind the world that not recognizing the Armenian Genocide or forgetting the lessons of history presents a danger to all mankind. In light of this, I would like to make a proposal that I have been thinking about for years. If you view the area stretching from the Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex to Hrazdan Stadium, you will see a tremendous space which, if Im not mistaken, is approximately 103 hectares. This area hasnt been cultivated, and Yerevan needs a large park. I offer to establish a pan-national park that will start from the premises of Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex and stretch along those 103 hectares, he said and provided details of his idea. The park will be composed of parts presenting the regions of the historic homeland of Armenians, the Armenians of the Diaspora and the modern-day cities, districts and institutions of our homeland. This will be symbolic in the sense that the whole territory will be divided into separate parts, and trees will be planted. It would be nice, if there were nearly 1.5 million trees (one tree for each of the 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide). This park will depict the historical losses and Armenian statehood today, including Armenia and Artsakh. President Sarkissian said he has addressed letters to the government, the Prime Minister and the mayor of Yerevan with the proposal to discuss the issue. First of all, this is a recommendation to remember the tremendous losses of the Armenians 105 years later and combine efforts to create a park that will be called the Armenian Park, he said, adding that the main idea of the Armenian Park is a pan-national project. If the government and municipality approve of this idea, I will personally raise funds and organize the activities because I believe this will serve as a major contribution in the sense of national unity, special attitude towards our history and public health, he said. WATERBURY, Conn., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE: WBS), the holding company for Webster Bank, N.A. and its HSA Bank division, announced today that HSA Bank has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the existing health savings accounts (HSA) of State Farm Bank, F.S.B., a subsidiary of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, America's largest property and casualty insurance provider. This acquisition offers State Farm Bank's HSA accountholders new and easy ways to manage their healthcare spending and saving through an industry-leading HSA provider with more than two decades of experience. Under the agreement, approximately 24,000 accounts, including an estimated $140 million in deposits, will transition from State Farm Bank to HSA Bank, the nation's leading bank administrator and depository of HSAs. Expected closing is in the second or third quarter of 2020. No other terms of the transaction are being disclosed. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions. "We look forward to welcoming State Farm Bank HSA accountholders to HSA Bank," said Chad Wilkins, President of HSA Bank. "We are excited that State Farm selected HSA Bank as the HSA custodian of choice, and are well-equipped to help accountholders make healthcare financial decisions that are best for them in every stage of life." Joe Monk, President and CEO of State Farm Bank added, "State Farm and HSA Bank share a common goal to help people live confidently. HSA Bank is well positioned to help accountholders save and plan for healthcare expenses today and in retirement, and we believe it is a positive move for customers." Current State Farm Bank HSA accountholders do not need to take any action. Accountholders will receive communications in advance of the transition. Barclays Capital Inc. advised State Farm in connection with this transaction. *** About Webster Webster Financial Corporation is the holding company for Webster Bank, National Association and its HSA Bank division. With $30.4 billion in assets, Webster provides business and consumer banking, mortgage, financial planning, trust, and investment services through 157 banking centers and 309 ATMs. Webster also provides mobile and online banking. Webster Bank owns the asset-based lending firm Webster Business Credit Corporation; the equipment finance firm Webster Capital Finance Corporation; and HSA Bank, a division of Webster Bank, which provides health savings account trustee and administrative services. Webster Bank is a member of the FDIC and an equal housing lender. For more information about Webster, including past press releases and the latest annual report, visit the Webster website at www.websterbank.com. About HSA Bank HSA Bank is a trusted leader in consumer-directed healthcare (CDH), focusing on Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) for over two decades and serving as both the bank and administrator. Discover how we can support your benefits strategy with our comprehensive account-based health benefit solutions that include HSAs, Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs), Commuter Benefits, COBRA Administration, and HSA investment solutions such as HSAdvisor+. With a reputation for outstanding service and thought leadership in the CDH space, we offer one platform and one portal for all of our members. HSA Bank inspires 3 million members and more than 35,000 employer groups to "own your health" by making it easy to access, understand, and afford healthcare. As of December 31, 2019, HSA Bank has $8.5 billion in total footings (assets) comprising $6.4 billion in deposit balances and $2.1 billion in assets under administration through linked investment accounts, and is a division of Webster Bank, N.A., Member FDIC. About State Farm The mission of State Farm is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their dreams. State Farm and its affiliates are the largest providers of auto and home insurance in the United States. Its nearly 19,000 agents and approximately 58,000 employees serve approximately 84 million policies and accounts over 81 million auto, fire, life, health and commercial policies and over 2 million bank and investment planning services accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 36 on the 2019 Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com. SOURCE Webster Financial Corporation The technology industry is expected to experience explosive growth and even more innovative disruption in the coming years, especially considering the abrupt pivot companies are faced with in having to move to remote workforces due to the coronavirus crisis," Karla Jo Helms said Technologent is a Global Provider of Edge-to-Edge Information Technology Solutions and services for Fortune 1000 companies. Headquartered in Irvine, California and with offices spread all across the nation, Technologent helps companies outpace the new digital economy by creating IT environments that are fast, flexible, efficient, transparent, and securewithout these characteristics, companies miss the opportunity to optimally scale. Karla Jo Helms, Chief Evangelist and Anti-PR Strategist of JoTo PR Disruptors, recently signed Technologent and recognizes the opportunity in the ever-changing technology industry. The technology industry is expected to experience explosive growth and even more innovative disruption in the coming years, especially considering the abrupt pivot companies are faced with in having to move to remote workforces due to the coronavirus crisis, Helms said as the moderator during the first TOP COVID-19 Summit: Quarantined Press Conference held last month. Amidst the pandemic, 66% of the countrys employees are working remotely at least part of the time.(1) While JoTo PR Disruptors has been operating as a remote workforce since 2015, Helms says she knows this transition can be challenging for those venturing into unchartered territory. And as COVID-19 continues to push organizations worldwide to quickly enable their workforce operations with more remote capacity as well as enhance their teleworker strategy, Technologents services prove to be of vital importance. Technologent mobilizes the power of technology to turn businesses IT needs into reality. The companys Remote Access, Remote Collaboration and VDI Bursting Solutions are all specially designed to empower new possibilities and turbocharge businesses with speed, security, and reliability: both for today and the future. JoTo PR Disruptors has a history of innovative PR services that demonstrates their ability in gaining consistent news traction within the media for national and international organizations, helping provide front-line information to the media about industry disruptions, and technological solutions aimed at making markets better for consumersespecially now, when the world continues to face increasing uncertainty and companies need to be analyzing their communication and marketing strategies accordingly. This is not the time to cut back on your communications. In all my years of crisis management, we operated on a primary principle: nature abhors a vacuum. And in a time of crisis, people have a tendency to communicate lessdo not fall into this trap, Helms advised during the press conference. Promote first, communicate foremost. Number two, straighten out the administrative lines. Number three, get in sense of the economy. Do these steps in this orderotherwise, you will contract, and you won't be able to economize on what you don't have. About JoTo PR Disruptors: After doing marketing research on a cross-section majority of 5,000 CEOs of fast-growth trajectory companies and finding out exactly how they used PR, how they measure it and how they wanted the PR industry to be different, PR veteran and innovator Karla Jo Helms created JoTo PR and established its entire business model on those research findings. Astute in recognizing industry changes since its launch in 2009, JoTo PRs team utilizes newly established patterns to create timely PR campaigns comprising both traditional and the latest proven media methods. This unique skill enables JoTo PR to continue to increase the market share and improve return on investment (ROI) for its clients, year after yearbeating usual industry standards. Based in Tampa Bay, Florida, JoTo PR is an established international public relations agency. Today, all JoTo PRs processes are streamlined PR services that have become the hallmark of the JoTo PR name. For more information, visit JoTo PR at http://www.jotopr.com. About Karla Jo Helms: Karla Jo Helms is the Chief Evangelist and Anti-PR Strategist for JoTo PR. Karla Jo learned firsthand how unforgiving business can be when millions of dollars are on the lineand how the control of public opinion often determines whether one company is happily chosen or another is brutally rejected. Being an alumna of crisis management, Karla Jo has worked with litigation attorneys, private investigators and the media to help restore companies of goodwill back into the good graces of public opinionKarla Jo operates on the ethic of getting it right the first time, not relying on second chances, and doing what it takes to excel. Karla Jo has patterned her agency on the perfect balance of crisis management, entrepreneurial insight and proven public relations experience. Helms speaks globally on public relations, how the PR industry itself has lost its way and how, in the right hands, corporations can harness the power of PR to drive markets and impact market perception. 1. 66% Of U.S. Employees Are Working Remotely at Least Part-Time During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Yahoo! Finance, Yahoo!, 16 Apr. 2020, finance.yahoo.com/news/66-u-employees-working-remotely-115300325.html. HAAM, Mission Northeast, Huffman Food Pantry seek donations The call couldnt have come at a more opportune time. Could Millie Garrison use a semitruck full of food. Garrison is executive director of Humble Area Assistance Ministries, known regionwide as HAAM. In recent days, her staff had been giving their families double amounts of the food they usually hand out in anticipation of stay-at-home orders and concern about COVID-19. We are so blessed, Garrison recalled. One of our covenant congregations, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, had a truck coming from Salt Lake City filled with food items. They wanted to know if we could use it. The answer, of course, was yes. Definitely yes. Twenty-six pallets of food filled HAAMs pantry. A skeleton crew is working our mobile food drop, Garrison said, delivering ready-to-cook meals for our most needy and vulnerable families. Were dropping off meals to our covenant congregations to deliver to their most needy and vulnerable parishioners, and to the May Community Center in Huffman. Its a team effort serving families at Mission Northeast. Just days ago, HAAM provided basic need services to 1,281 individuals. The numbers continue to rise, Garrison said. HAAM is providing food packets to families identified through Humble ISD, she added. These deliveries are in addition to the free breakfast and lunch pickups Humble ISD provides their students weekdays at six elementary school locations. Two days of breakfast and lunch can be picked up on Fridays. Mission Northeast, based in New Caney, is beginning its fifth week of no contact, drive-through food distribution, according to Pam Dickson, director. We have a reduced staff and small core of very dedicated and hardworking volunteers working beautifully and efficiently on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8 to 11, said Dickson. Mission Northeast is not accepting clothing donations and there are no client services inside their building at 22098 Loop 494 in New Caney, but they are accepting donations of nonperishable food and hygiene and cleaning supplies. The Huffman Food Pantry also now operates as a drive-up, according to Director Diane Chen, giving food to people in their vehicles on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9 a.m. to noon, at First Baptist Church Huffman, 25503 FM 2100 in Huffman. They serve Huffman residents or those whose children attend Huffman ISD. Identification and proof of residence is required. The Huffman Food Pantry is a ministry of First Baptist, partnering with a number of Huffman churches, United Methodist, West Lake, Community Baptist, Victory and Praise, Lutheran and Atascocita Community churches as well as the Lions Club, Boy Scout Troop 1775 and Catholic Charities in stocking the pantry and providing 40 meals a day, according to Chen. We average 100 to 120 families a month and have 500 in our database, said Chen, but in times of crises we easily double that number. Were seeing families who havent come to us in more than two years. Huffman Lions Club members help keep the food pantry running. Garrison, Dickson and Chen emphasize their need for financial donations rather than food items. There are so many guidelines that must be followed when accepting or distributing food and frankly, HAAM has the ability to purchase food at a much lower cost so that we can make a donated dollar go pretty far, Garrison said. Also, one of HAAMs major sources of income, their retail shop, is closed and they couldnt hold the annual Pillars of the Community banquet, their major and only fundraiser each year. With no revenue coming in, were relying on the generous donations of our supporters, and with no end in sight, the needs of our families will continue far into the summer and beyond, said Garrison. We are bracing for what we know will be extremely challenging times when we readjust to the new normal when our families are recovering from months with minimal or no employment, said Dickson. Were already seeing former clients who were employed returning for assistance because of job loss. Not being able to purchase our inventory in bulk is tough, said Chen. We really need a store or organization that allows us to purchase the products we need in cases. With a mission of help and hope, HAAM is an interfaith organization helping residents in crisis within northeast Harris and east Montgomery counties. Thirty-three Lake Houston area churches make up HAAMs Covenant Congregation. Mission Northeast covers 800 square miles and 11 ZIP codes, providing services free of charge for persons living in poverty. The Huffman Food Pantry is a community- supported resource located on the First Baptist Church Huffman campus, 25503 FM 2100 in Huffman. To donate to Humble Area Assistance Ministries, haamministries.org, Mission Northeast, missionne.org, or Huffman Food Pantry, @HuffmanFoodPantry, or for more information about Humble ISDs free meal pickup, humbleisd.net/meals. The Karnataka cabinet on Monday decided to continue the current lockdown measures in force till May 3 without any relaxation in the state after initially hinting that curbs would be lifted in phases. It has been decided that there would be no relaxation in lockdown which is on currently. The existing arrangements will continue, chief minister B S Yediyurappa told reporters. Primary and secondary education minister Suresh Kumar at a briefing in the evening said, It was a unanimous decision to continue the lockdown. If required we may revisit the decision after 4-5 days. Right now we have decided to go ahead with the current restrictions till May 3. Follow coronavirus latest updates here. The decision came as the government reviewed the situation following an attack late Sunday night on health workers and civic administration officials by some residents of Padarayanapura ward in Bangalore. Videos of the incident went viral shortly after the incident. The health workers had gone there to shift to quarantine several primary and secondary contacts of some of members of the Tablighi Jammat who had attended its congregation in Delhi last month and had tested positive for Covid-19. They were to be shifted to hotels designated as quarantine zones. The area where these people lived is very densely populated and has been declared as a red containment zone in the city. The health workers and some BBMP (civic body) staff apart from a few police officials were seen being attacked by a mob. An upset Yediyurappa condemned the attack and damage to public property saying such acts would not be tolerated and those guilty would be brought to book under law. On Monday morning, police arrested 59 people including a woman rowdy sheeter called Firoza. Home minister Basvaraj Bommai said that five FIRs have been registered and that cases have been registered under the Disaster Management Act. All the arrested people will be handed over to the Crime Branch of the police for further investigation and prosecution, sources said. Minister Suresh Kumar said that the state was contemplating bringing in an ordinance on the lines of those in Uttar Pradesh and Kerala to confer special powers to the government to enforce containment measures and also provide protection to health workers. The UP ordinance also ensures that those who destroy government property are made to pay for it, while the Kerala one provides for imprisonment of up to two years and a fine of up to Rs 10,000. We are examining similar legislation by other states and will bring an ordinance in the state in this regard, he said. The incident also has led to a political slugfest with several BJP leaders saying that the local MLA had a hand in the violence. Former minister and Congress MLA B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan who represents the area, however, denied having a role in the violence. I had asked the officials not to go in the evening/night and that I myself would help them in the morning, he said. Yediyurappa hit back at Khan saying, Who is he to dictate whether officials should go to an area of not? Former chief ministers Kumaraswamy of the Janata Dal (Secular) and Siddaramiah of the Congress too backed the government and said action should be taken against whoever was responsible for the violence on Sunday night. Eighteen new cases of Covid-19 emerged in the state on Monday, taking the total number of affected people to 408 out of which 112 have been discharged and 16 have died. Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has been delivering his daily news conferences from the Thompson Center in Chicago, said he is weighing public safety and the economy as he considers the effects of the stay-at-home restrictions, which have shuttered many businesses and kept people at home throughout the state. But with Illinois coming off a grim week in which about a third of the total cases confirmed since the outbreaks start were tallied between April 12 and Saturday, the governor said he needs to consider the ramifications of softening restrictions too soon. The existence and escalation of COVID-19 cases made Queen Elizabeth II extremely frustrated. After all, it caused her to postpone one important royal duty in her life. With the coronavirus ravaging the U.K., Queen Elizabeth II was forced to leave Buckingham Palace and take shelter at Windsor Castle -- along with her husband Prince Philip -- to self-isolate. Although she is in good health now, the sudden increase of coronavirus cases in the United Kingdom forced the religious Queen to cancel the events she was supposed to attend last Maundy Thursday. According to ITV Royal Editor Chris Ship, Her Majesty felt "more than frustrated" not to be able to attend the Maundy Thursday service and other events during the Holy Week. "We know that Maundy Thursday means a lot to her," Ship said during his appearance on ITV's Royal Rota. "In fact, the whole of Holy Week before Easter means a lot to her." Queen Elizabeth II, after failing to complete her duties this year, chose to send the Maundy money to its recipients instead. The tradition was to let the awardees get it from her in person. "It is always sent to the number of people to match the monarch's age. She will be 94 this year. So it is 94 men and 94 women," Royal expert Lizzie Robinson seconded the royal editor's statement. This 2020, the Queen also ordered everyone to scale down her birthday celebrations since she believes that it would be inappropriate for her to hold a sumptuous and opulent party when everyone in the country is experiencing fear due to the coronavirus pandemic. No Special Birthday Marking Aside from canceling her Holy Week engagements, the gun salutes for Queen Elizabeth II's 94th birthday will also be postponed for the first time due to the worldwide health crisis. "There will be no gun salutes. Her Majesty was keen that no special measures were put in place to allow gun salutes as she did not feel it appropriate in the current circumstances," a Buckingham Palace source said. The source added that the Queen's birthday this year will not be marked in any way, as the royal family decided to keep everything in private. On Saturday (April 19), the announcement has been confirmed by Ship through a tweet, explaining how it would be the first time that Queen Elizabeth II requested to cancel the special celebration in her 68-year long reign. "All of the changes are in line with Her Majesty's wishes," the royal editor quoted a Palace source. "It's already been announced there will be no Trooping the Colour ceremony in June (the official birthday parade) and no plans for any 'alternative marking of her official birthday.'" Instead of a lavish party, the Palace is expected to celebrate Her Majesty's 94th birthday on April 21 on social media. Still, this kind of family-related affair will remain private and exclusive to the members of the royal family. Meanwhile, the Trooping the Colour -- which has also been canceled -- is the traditional parade held in mid-June to mark the official celebration of the Queen's birthday. This event was started by King George way back in 1748. A shooting rampage in small-town Nova Scotia, Canada was reported this weekend. The gunman killed 12 people, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. RCMP confirmed to CNN that 13 people had died in the mass shooting, but could not confirm if the death toll included the suspected gunman. According to RCMP National Headquarters spokeswoman Catherine Fortin, their important investigational work is continuing and out of respect for the families of the victims, they can't provide any additional information yet. At a media conference, the police described chaos with multiple 911 calls coming in late on April 18 at a property in Portapique, Nova Scotia. Shooting rampage The RCMP Chief Superintended Chris Leather told reporters that when police arrived at the scene, the members located several casualties inside and outside of the home. The police said that they are not certain how many people died or were injured in the incident. One officer died on the shooting, and she was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and 23-year-old veteran of the RCMP. Another officer is in the hospital receiving treatment for non-life threatening injuries he suffered in the incident, the RCMP stated. Also Read: Homeowner Finds Plastic Bag Containing Newborn Baby With Umbilical Cord Still Attached Leather also said that the search for the gunman lasted for 24 hours and it led them to several crime scenes that were miles apart. Eventually, the suspect was caught at a truck stop on April 19. Leather stated that the search for the suspect ended this morning when the suspect was located and he can confirm that he is now dead. According to Nova Scotia RCMP, the suspected gunman was Gabriel Wortman, 51. He eluded police for hours before he was killed at the truck stop when he tried to shoot at the officers in the area. Gunman's motivation The manhunt was complicated because the suspect is said to have been wearing an RCMP uniform. He was also driving a car that was made to look like a police car. Leather said that the fact that the gunman had an RCMP uniform and a car that was made to look like a police car means that it was not a random act. However, Leather said that it was too early in the investigation to tell what the gunman's motivation was. A law enforcement told CNN that the authorities were searching at numerous crime scenes, beginning in Portapique and reaching to Enfield, where the suspect was eventually caught. The premier of Nova Scotia, Stephen McNeil, called the shooting spree one of the most senseless acts of violence in the province's history. At a media conference on coronavirus, he told reporters that he never imagined that he would wake up to the horrific news that an active shooter was on the loose in Nova Scotia. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted "Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the shooting," adding "we're keeping all of you in our thoughts." National Police Union President Brian Sauve said that the members' hearts are heavy with grief and sadness of the incident after the lost one of their own. He then praised the officers who helped end the attack. Related Article: Man Dismembers and Eats Father After Stabbing Him to Death @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. What was illegally cleared in the rainy season will be burned in the dry season to clear the land, said Claudia Azevedo-Ramos, a researcher at the Center for Higher Amazonian Studies at the Federal University of Para. There is a high probability of experiencing fires as serious or more serious than those we faced in 2019. NHS worker Paul Skegg walking out of intensive care. (SWNS) A frontline NHS worker has made a miraculous recovery after suffering a complication of the coronavirus. Believing he was on his deathbed, radiographer Paul Skegg, 42, decided to propose to his girlfriend via his tracheotomy tube in Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford, Kent. The COVID-19 complication thought to be one of the first of its kind in the UK meant Skegg suffered total muscular paralysis of his whole body. He proposed to his girlfriend, Katy Lavender, on FaceTime, and to nobodys surprise her answer was a resounding yes. 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 6 charts and maps that explain how coronavirus is spreading The 42-year-old suffered a complication of COVID-19. (SWNS) Lavender, who works as a radiographer at a different NHS trust, said yes in front of all of the ITU (intensive therapy unit) staff eagerly looking on and waiting for her reply. Read more: Scientists dismiss claim that coronavirus pathogen is expressed in testicles Skegg fought the virus for 11 days in intensive care before making a full recovery and being allowed to return home to see his now fiancee. Dr Jonathan Kwan, divisional medical director at the Kent hospital, said: He thought he was in his last leg and he took a deep breath and mouthed the proposal through his tracheotomy tube. To no one's surprise, Katy accepted to the immense delight of all the ITU staff looking after him. It was an extraordinary happy occasion to otherwise sweaty hard-slog routines of ITU. Skegg, who has worked for the NHS for 24 years, walked out of intensive care to a guard of honour and massive round of applause from fellow NHS workers. Read more: Domestic violence app sees 30% rise in alerts during lockdown He was admitted into hospital on 3 April with what turned out to be a complication of the coronavirus known as Guillain-Barre syndrome. The very rare complication causes the bodys immune system to attack its nerves. It starts with a tingling sensation or weakness and can lead to total body paralysis. Story continues Dr Kwan believes it to be the first case of the condition in Kent and possibly in the whole country. The doctor praised the critical care team in charge of looking after Skegg throughout his time in intensive care, describing their therapy throughout his illness as groundbreaking. Read more: Why is the pandemic triggering vivid dreams? In order to treat Skeggs complication, the treatment involved an immunoglobulin infusion, a plasma extract from blood donations supplied by the National Blood Transfusion Service. Without this, Paul might have been on the ventilator for much longer. His rapid recovery is just short of a miracle, Dr Kwan said. Today, we lined the corridor for one of our own and clapped this front-line NHS staff home following a 16-day stay at Darent Valley Hospital. (Alliance News) - City stockbroker and wealth manager WH Ireland Group PLC on Monday confirmed it is in talks with rival Cantor Fitzgerald Europe for a possible acquisition of parts of Cantor. Shares in WH Ireland were up 5.8% at 46.00 pence each in London in morning trade. "The company notes the recent press speculation and confirms it is in discussions with Cantor Fitzgerald Europe with regards to the possible acquisition, transfer or introduction of certain assets of part of CFE's Mid Cap and AIM Corporate Finance business," WH Ireland said in a short statement. It plans to provide further updates to the market as required. WH Ireland noted there can be no guarantee of any transaction being completed, as the talks are at a preliminary stage. Bloomberg News, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that US-based broker Cantor Fitzgerald was planning to cut hundreds of jobs across divisions due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Earlier in April, WH Ireland warned that it would miss out on profitability but still report a narrowed loss for the financial year that ended March 31, as its performance in February and March was hurt by the virus outbreak, which deflated equity prices and stopped some corporate activity. For financial 2020, WH Ireland estimated its operating loss before exceptional items was GBP2.2 million, narrowed from GBP6.3 million the year before. Revenue was expected to decline by 10% to GBP21.3 million. By Tapan Panchal; tapanpanchal@alliancenews.com Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. Mumbai, April 20 : Mumbai and Pune - which figure among the red list of 11 cities in the country - also rank among the earliest and worst-hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, officials said here. Though the Centre's assessment came after analysing the alleged lockdown violations in the 11 cities, the problem of Mumbai and Pune is compounded further by their sheer huge population figures. Also, in Mumbai, Dharavi - Asia's biggest slum and the world's most congested area - has significantly added to the Covid-19 figures. With a population of around 800,000 crammed in barely 2.25 sq. km area in central Mumbai, Dharavi compares unfavourably in terms of population density, with the total city population of around 1.70 crore scattered over roughly 350 sq. kms. Moreover, Dharavi is largely a slum pocket compared with the rest of Mumbai which has glittering districts standing cheek by jowl with shabby slums. Dharavi has touched 168 total Covid-19 cases, including 30 added on Monday, and 11 deaths till date. In view of the blatant lockdown violations despite at least 11 lanes in the area being strictly isolated, Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh personally led a posse of 500 policemen on a march in Dharavi on Monday to reinforce norms and health safety rules. Mumbai has notched 139 deaths out of the state total of 232, and 3,032 positive cases from the state total of 4,666. Pune, however, follows a distant second with 594 positive cases and 49 deaths so far. As far as the Mumbai Metropolitan Region is concerned, it has recorded 3,607 positive cases (out of 4,666) and 155 fatalities (out of 232). MMR comprises regions of Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban District, Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts. Interestingly, the state has largely avoided the Corona scourge being spread by those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi with Maharashtra recorded around 50 such cases only - negligible compared to the massive total of 4,666 Covid-19 cases here. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 06:23:42|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close People queue to enter a bicycle shop in Berlin, capital of Germany, April 20, 2020. Starting from Monday, shops in Germany with a maximum sales area of up to 800 square meters are allowed to open under new regulations for hygiene as well as access and queue control. (Photo by Binh Truong/Xinhua) GENEVA/BERLIN, April 20 (Xinhua) -- As countries in Europe started to relax their confinement measures with caution, the chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that more than 100 countries have joined the efforts to evaluate the treatment trials for COVID-19. "This week, we expect that more than 600 hospitals will be ready to start enrolling patients," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Welcoming the accelerated development and validation of tests to detect COVID-19 antibodies, Tedros said this will help the world to understand the extent of infection in the population. LIFTING MEASURES Germany's coronavirus cases surpassed 140,000 on Monday, with a remarkably low fatality rate of 3.1 pct among confirmed COVID-19 infections, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. Starting from Monday, shops in Germany with a maximum sales area of up to 800 square meters are allowed to open under new regulations for hygiene as well as access and queue control. Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a "gradual" and "cautious" exit strategy from COVID-19 measures, saying "Despite everything, we are still at the very beginning of the pandemic and are far from out of the woods." Bavaria, the German state with the most confirmed cases, has become the third state in Germany with some form of face mask obligation. In Saxony, a mouth and nose protector or scarf must already be worn when shopping and using public transport, while in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, masks will become mandatory in public transport on April 27. In Serbia, service shops, green markets and construction sites will start working in full capacity from Tuesday, with obligatory protective measures against COVID-19, the government said in a press release. Citizens older than 65 who have been spending their time in strict isolation for more than a month will be allowed to go out for a half an hour walk three times per week, between 6:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m., in a circle of 600 meters around their place of residence. RESEARCH ON INFECTIONS As Italy reported on Monday for the first time a fall in its total active COVID-19 infections and Spain saw its lowest single-day fatalities in the past four weeks, a research institute in Portugal has created a Biobank to study COVID-19. The Joao Lobo Antunes Institute of Molecular Medicine is storing biological samples from COVID-19 patients in the country to create a database that will enable experts to understand why people react differently to the novel coronavirus. "We started a collection because we feel that there is a great interest in characterizing the immune response of different patients to infection by COVID-19," Sergio Dias, co-director of the Biobank, told Xinhua. "What we intend to do is create a repository of samples from COVID-19 patients, accompanied by respective clinical information, which can later be used in studies of immunological characterization of the response to COVID-19," he explained. For now, the Biobank only collects blood samples to obtain plasma, serum and circulating cells from four groups -- those hospitalized and recovered; admitted to intensive care in a complex clinical situation; cured of the disease with almost no symptoms; and doctors who had contact with patients who had tested positive for the virus. "We know so little about this virus and how it interacts with its human host. Therefore access to clinical samples is scientifically and clinically extraordinarily relevant," Dias said. Biobank's samples will be made available to the entire international scientific community, he said, adding "We can share our know-how." LOWELL, Mass., April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On April 20, 2020, the Board of Directors of Enterprise Bancorp, Inc. (the Company) (EBTC) announced that, in light of emergency legislation recently passed by the General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and signed into law by Governor Charlie Baker on April 3, 2020 temporarily permitting Massachusetts public corporations to hold meetings of stockholders solely by means of remote communication due to the ongoing public health impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Companys 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the Annual Meeting) will be held solely through means of remote communication. Stockholders will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting in person. The previously announced date and time of the Annual Meeting (Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) have not changed. Stockholders of record as of the close of business on March 2, 2020, the record date for the Annual Meeting, who wish to participate in the Annual Meeting by means of remote communication may do so in one of two ways: In order to vote and ask questions: log onto www.meetingcenter.io/245755568 with your control # provided on the proxy card and password EBTC2020; OR Listen only: call 1-866-579-7167. Those planning to participate in the Annual Meeting by means of remote communication should connect to the teleconference at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the Annual Meeting. If you are a beneficial owner and hold your shares in "street name," please contact your bank, broker or other nominee for additional instructions on how you may participate in the Annual Meeting. Please refer to the Annual Meeting materials previously filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission for additional information. The Company encourages eligible stockholders to vote on the proposals prior to the Annual Meeting using the instructions provided in the proxy statement previously distributed. The proxy card included with the proxy materials previously distributed should continue to be used to vote shares in connection with the Annual Meeting. Stockholders will also have the opportunity to vote their shares during the Annual Meeting. Story continues About Enterprise Bancorp, Inc. Enterprise Bancorp, Inc. is a Massachusetts corporation that conducts substantially all of its operations through Enterprise Bank and Trust Company, commonly referred to as Enterprise Bank. Enterprise Bank is principally engaged in the business of attracting deposits from the general public and investing in commercial loans and investment securities. Through Enterprise Bank and its subsidiaries, the Company offers a range of commercial, residential and consumer loan products, deposit products and cash management services, digital banking options, and insurance services. Enterprise Bank also provides a range of wealth management, wealth services and trust services delivered via two channels, Enterprise Wealth Management and Enterprise Wealth Services. The Companys headquarters and Enterprise Banks main office are located at 222 Merrimack Street in Lowell, Massachusetts. The Companys primary market area is the Greater Merrimack Valley, Nashoba Valley, and North Central regions of Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire (Southern Hillsborough and Rockingham counties). Enterprise Bank has 25 full-service branches located in the Massachusetts communities of Lowell (2), Acton, Andover, Billerica (2), Chelmsford (2), Dracut, Fitchburg, Lawrence, Leominster, Lexington, Methuen, Tewksbury (2), Tyngsborough and Westford and in the New Hampshire communities of Derry, Hudson, Nashua (2), Pelham, Salem and Windham. The Company is also in the process of establishing a branch office in North Andover, MA and anticipates that this location will open in the second half of 2020. This press release contains statements that the Company believes are forward-looking statements. These statements relate to the Annual Meeting, including its plans, objectives, future performance or business. You should not place undue reliance on these statements, as they are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results and performance in future periods may be materially different from any future results or performance suggested by the forward-looking statements in this release. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified in our risk factors contained in the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements found herein to reflect any changes in the Companys expectations of results or any change in events, except as may be required by law. Contact Info: Joseph R. Lussier, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer (978) 656-5578 Oxtails were the first sign to Jeffrey Boney that something was wrong. He dived into one of his favorite dishes from the Reggae Hut in Houstons Third Ward, thrilled the restaurant gave him more oxtails than normal: six, instead of four. But when Boney got back to his office with his order, he could only manage a few bites of the rice, peas and vegetables and just one oxtail before losing his appetite entirely. Then days later, a more serious sign came: he started coughing up blood. Boney, who originally thought he might just have a stomach bug, instead learned he had tested positive for COVID-19. The outgoing businessman and Missouri City councilman is among a growing number of African Americans to be stricken with the new coronavirus. Public health officials have said a disproportionate number of blacks are dying from the disease in Houston and nationwide. Boney, a city council member since 2017, said he was profoundly affected by the experience, relying on not just his doctors and family but a higher power. I had to really lean on my faith because although the doctors and nurses were there, I was practically alone, Boney, 45, said during an interview last week from his home over Zoom. Impact on black community Nationwide, the African American community is being ravaged by COVID-19. In Louisiana, blacks make up 70 percent of deaths tied to the disease. The new coronavirus has already claimed the lives of nearly 2,000 African Americans in New York City, where they are twice as likely as whites to die of it. An Associated Press analysis of available state and local data found that one-third of those who have died from the disease are black, though they account for about 14 percent of the population in those areas. About half of states are not providing a demographic breakdown of fatalities, the AP reported. Officials and experts have offered a range of explanations for the disparity, from pre-existing conditions that are more prevalent in the black community diabetes, asthma and obesity to a lack of health insurance and African Americans holding more front-line jobs that bring them into contact with the public. In Fort Bend County, where Boney lives, county figures show 34 percent of positive cases are African Americans compared with 19 percent for whites. In general, African Americans are usually the population that is more severely affected by a lot of diseases, so we wouldnt expect it to be any different, Dr. Jacquelyn Minter, director of Fort Bend County Health & Human Services, said last week before the race and ethnicity data was publicly available. Boney, who was on medication for high blood pressure before his hospitalization, said he isnt surprised by the disproportionate impact on the black community. Theres always been this saying that when America catches a cold, black people catch pneumonia, Boney said. I think thats so true with almost any and every thing that we deal with, including now this COVID situation. Symptoms worsen Boney can vividly recall the day he started feeling symptoms March 17. An associate editor at the Houston Forward Times, a black-owned and independently operated newspaper, Boney said he worked straight through that day without stopping to eat breakfast or lunch. Around 5:30 p.m., he headed to the Reggae Hut restaurant to pick up a carryout order. Hed felt a little off that day, thinking maybe he had come down with a stomach bug. But he knew things were not right when he totally lost his appetite. He decided to self-isolate from his family, sleeping in a master bedroom alone and away from his wife of 23 years, Sharwin, and their three college-aged kids. As the days passed, his symptoms worsened. He had frequent diarrhea and still didnt want to eat. He called his primary care doctor, who suspected a stomach virus or food poisoning. He was advised to continue to self-quarantine and take over-the-counter medication. When his condition still didnt improve, Boney phoned his friend, state Rep. Ron Reynolds, and asked for advice. Boney didnt have the typical symptoms of the coronavirus such as a fever or shortness of breath, but he wondered if he should get tested nevertheless. What do you think I should do? Boney asked Reynolds. Reynolds mentioned that Boney was not feeling well to U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, and she put him in touch with Dr. Joseph Varon, chief medical officer for United Memorial Medical Center in Houston, so Boney could get tested March 25. He anxiously awaited the results for two days. When he started coughing up blood that Friday, he called Varon. He learned then he had tested positive. Just knowing what was going on was a relief to Boney. I knew something was wrong with my body, Boney said. I knew something was abnormal. Leaning on faith At United Memorial, Boney also learned that he had pneumonia in both lungs. The virus was attacking his liver, kidneys and lungs. His heart rate and blood pressure were high. During his days in intensive care, Boney felt isolated. He never was placed on a ventilator but didnt get much sleep, either. He remembers hearing people struggle to breathe and the sound of machines going off. Patients would come into the special COVID-19 wing and be gone the next day. He wondered what had happened to them. Being alone and away from family, Boney says he had to depend on something greater than himself: his faith in God. A self-described 1000 percent extrovert, he also used FaceTime and phone calls to check in with family. The doctors and nurses lifted his spirits, too. They looked like aliens in their PPE gear, he said, but they pinned pictures to their clothing so Boney could know who they were. They made him laugh. Just as Boney was starting to feel better, another CT scan revealed a blood clot in his right lung. These have proved common in many COVID-19 patients and can be fatal. Boney was given blood thinners to break up the clot. The doctor also used intravenous Vitamin C and cortisone to help treat his illness. Varon, a pulmonologist, said Boneys positive attitude stood out. One of the problems that you have when youre in the COVID unit, youre isolated, Varon said. Youre in the middle of a room that has really no contact with the outside world. So, patients get very depressed, patients get very sad. We elected to make him happy. More testing needed When Boney returned home from the hospital April 5, his family was waiting for him with balloons and music. Boney did a little dance as he walked through the door of his Missouri City home. Now hes catching up on TV series like How to Get Away with Murder and The Blacklist. He likes to go outside and watch the wind blow through the trees. Hes taken two negative tests for the coronavirus. Members of his family havent shown any symptoms so far, but they plan to get tested. Boney hopes his story puts a human face on the deadly virus and helps people understand that anyone can get infected. He is pushing to expand testing to people who arent showing symptoms, which several Houston-area counties have begun doing. If I wouldnt have gotten tested, if I wouldnt have seen the doctor, if I wouldnt have been coughing up blood and went to the ER I probably wouldve ended up dying at home with this virus, Boney said. He acknowledged getting a little emotional as he reflected on the experience, adding, Im just thinking about how things couldve turned out so differently for me. brooke.lewis@chron.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Berlin, Germany Mon, April 20, 2020 08:33 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2e8b2c 2 World Germany,Holocaust,anniversary,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic Free German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas pledged on Sunday to fight Holocaust denial as a trio of former Nazi concentration camps mark the 75th anniversary of their liberation in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic. Memorial ceremonies have had to be cancelled or dramatically scaled back for the camps at Sachsenhausen, Ravensbrueck and Bergen-Belsen. "Over 20,000 people lost their lives in Sachsenhausen concentration camp. If we held a minute of silence for each of them, there would be silence for two weeks," Maas said in a video statement. "But the fight against forgetting may not be silent," he added. Germany assumed the chairmanship of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance last month, and Maas said it would use the year at the helm to "fight against those who deny or distort the history of the Holocaust." "When remembrance is vilified as a cult of guilt and victims reframed as perpetrators, be this in Germany or abroad, we Germans cannot remain silent," he said. Sachsenhausen, located just north of Berlin, is one of several former camps which were liberated by Allied forces 75 years ago this week. The Sachsenhausen memorial center, which had planned a number of events from Friday to Tuesday but has closed along with others, moved commemorations online with a series of video clips including Maas' statement. Smaller ceremonies were also held on Thursday at Sachsenhausen and nearby Ravensbrueck. At Bergen-Belsen in Lower Saxony, memorial center employees laid flowers at the "Wall of Inscriptions", while Germans across the country observed a minute's silence to mark the liberation anniversary last Wednesday. More than 50,000 people died at the Bergen-Belsen camp, including the diarist Anne Frank, whose accounts of the Holocaust have become a symbol of the suffering inflicted by the Nazis during World War II. Commemorative events originally planned for Sunday have been postponed to April 2021, and some of the planned speeches were also delivered online. "For us in Lower Saxony, Bergen-Belsen is the place that shows us the cruelty and mercilessness of the darkest part of our history," said regional state premier Stephan Weil. H igh Street giant Primark on Monday did a major U-turn on its refusal to pay suppliers in Asia for clothes ordered amid the Covid-19 crisis, offering nearly 400 million for cancelled goods. The retailer in crisis with all of its 376 stores shut and no online operation provoked a public outcry last month after it cancelled payments for clothes already being made and shipped from low cost suppliers in Asia. Today it committed to pay 370 million of the unwanted stock. The shipments are on top of the 1.5 billion of stock already sitting in Primark stores, depots and in transit. The retailer had previously only committed to paying for orders that were in transit or booked for shipment by March 18. Primark said on March 23 it had informed suppliers that it would stop placing new orders, angering suppliers in Bangladesh. Primark sources from across East Asia and Europe and works on relatively swift 30-day payment terms, a factor behind the abrupt decision, sources said. Primarks move puts Sir Philip Greens Arcadia, Matalan, Edinburgh Woollen Mill and Asdas George brand under pressure as they have also cancelled clothing orders. The group initially attempted to improve relations by establishing a fund to ensure workers in developing countries were paid directly for work on Primark products that were in production. But there was scepticism about how practical this would be if factories were forced to close. The fund remains open. Primark chief executive Paul Marchant said: We have been in close and regular contact with our suppliers over the last few weeks to find a way forward, and to pay for as much of the previously ordered product as possible. Transparency and clarity have been at the heart of our longstanding relationships with our supply base and we were obviously disappointed that we were not initially able to commit to this stock. Our partnerships with our suppliers are invaluable and we want to continue to support them as we navigate our way through this global crisis. Today the retailer said it hopes to re-commence placing future orders for Autumn/Winter stock once there is further clarification of the reopening of stores. Independent retail analyst Nick Bubb said: It looks like a massive U-turn by Primark, after the outcry over its brutal treatment of Bangladeshi suppliers. Investors should be pleased that Primark is doing the right thing and not screwing its suppliers. ABF last week confirmed it is eligible for the state-backed Covid Corporate Financing Facility loan scheme. The shutdown is costing Primark 650 million in lost sales a month, but ABF has moved to reassure investors it has access to 1.9 billion of funds. Mostafiz Uddin, the chief executive of the Bangladesh Apparel Exchange, said Primarks reputation had already been tarnished by the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building which housed factories for western fashion brands including Primark and killed 1134 people. He told the Standard: Im not asking for anything from them but commitment. People remember Rana Plaza when people stood with placards outside Primark on Oxford Street. People will not forgive them. We need to co-operate and find a solution. Uddin said funds to support workers was not the answer. My workers say I do not want charity. I just want a job. One or two months salary does not matter, there is no need to pay charity. Just pay the money that has been contracted. Uddin - who has worked with Primark in the past but no longer supplies the retailer - said his business, Denim Expert, had had orders cancelled by Peacocks and Burtons owned by Sir Philip Greens Arcadia group. A man in custody suspected in four killings, a fire at the University of Alabama, and the Leigh Morgan talks about the weather thats ahead. Listen to Down in Alabama, above. Get this post and more in your weekday Down in Alabama newsletter by subscribing here. You can also hear Ike each weekday by looking for Down in Alabama on the device of your choosing. Click here for the Spotify podcast page Click here for the Alexa skill page on Amazon Click here for the iTunes podcast page Click here for the Stitcher podcast page Deepika Padukone has been among the major names in the film industry to open up on her battle against depression. The actor has even set up an NGO that deals with mental health, and is known to regularly share her views on the sensitive topic, to boost the morale of those in similar phases. The Bajirao Mastani star now is set to take this initiative on a global level, as the world battles the deadly COVID-19. READ: Deepika Padukone To Talk About Mental Health With WHO Chief Amid COVID-19 Crisis With conditions not conducive due to lockdown and other restrictions taking a toll on people, Deepika is joining hands with the World Health Organisation for a session on mental health. After the actor announced the session to be held via an Instagram live session on April 23, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus conveyed his gratitude to the 34-year-old for her efforts and advocacy on the importance of mental health during the difficult time of COVID-19. He added that the world was together as he expressed his eagerness for the session on Thursday. READ: From Nayanthara To Deepika Padukone, These Celebs Got Their Tattoos Changed Post Breakup Heres the tweet: Thank you @deepikapadukone for your efforts and advocacy on the importance of #mentalhealth during this difficult time of #COVID19 we are all facing. I look forward to our @instagram Live on Thursday. Together!https://t.co/bNbYUXg4Gy Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) April 19, 2020 Earlier Deepika had informed her fans of the session with a graphic and the words prioritizing mental health during the pandemic and beyond. The duo seeks to dwell on the lessons they can learn about mental health for the future. READ:Sonakshi Sinha To Deepika Padukone; Bollywood Divas Share Post-lockdown Plans Earlier, Deepika had taken the #SafeHands Challenge, nominated by Ghebreyesus, and shot a video washing her hands to highlight the importance of washing hands in the fight against COVID-19. Apart from Deepika, another Indian star who worked in Hollywood, Priyanka Chopra, had joined hands with WHO by participating in an Instagram live session with doctors from WHO on COVID-19 information and misconceptions. READ:Unseen Pic Of The Day: Fans Swoon Over Deepika And Anushka's Beauty In This 2009 Pic SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA UnemployedCalifornians wont be the only ones struggling to pay their bills in the comingmonths. Most, if not all,of the states 1,037 K-12 school districts, which rely heavily on money from thestates general fund, will likely have to rework their own spending plans forthe new school year. Although anexecutive order signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last month guarantees schooldistricts will continue to receive revenues budgeted for the current schoolyear, its the coming school year that concerns school administrators. With state taxrevenues and other sources of income expected to plunge, school boards willlikely be forced to redraft their fiscal year 2020-21 spending plans that werealready well along toward being finalized when the coronavirus forcedclassrooms to close in March. We dont knowanything; its as simple as that, says Mike Fine, chief executive officer ofthe Financial Crisis & Management Assistance Team (FCMAT), a state-funded organizationcreated in 1992 to provide school districts with financial and managementadvice on a voluntary basis. This is looking a lot like 2008. Fine said schooldistricts should be running different financial scenarios, if they haventbegun already, because nobody knows what the new school year will bring. Hebelieves school districts will be faced with extraordinary expenses requiredfor distance learning and other services provided by districts such as feedingstudents and child care. For Fine and hisstaff at FCMAT business may soon be booming. On the Brink Troy Flint, of theCalifornia School Boards Association which represents nearly every district inthe state, said schools are in a worse financial position now than they were inthe great recession of 2009. Were on afinancial precipice where many districts will be in a precarious position and othersmay end up in receivership if theres a prolonged recession, he told Patch.Whats uncertain is just how far the state will go in providing financialassistance beyond its broad assurances that school districts will be taken careof. Story continues State and localsources provide most of the annual revenue for California schools, althoughfederal funds contribute. In addition to a share of local property taxes amounting to about 30% of each countys one percent tax levy schools relymost heavily on state funding derived from a portion of the states personalincome tax, sales tax and corporate and insurance tax collections. StateLottery proceeds also provide school districts with additional revenue. With millions ofCalifornians out of work, businesses shuttered and tax deadlines extended, anaccurate picture of revenues from income and sales taxes probably wont emergeuntil mid-summer, after the June 30 deadline for approval of school budgets,although a hint of revenue shortfalls will come in Mays state budget revisionand school districts will have a better picture of just how bad things mightbe. Complex Process An annual ritualalmost incomprehensible to the average taxpayer, the process of constructing aschool district budget is in large part dependent upon navigating a maze ofcalculations projecting how much state aid will be received under the LocalControl Funding Formula, a K-12 financing system implemented in 2013 replacingan even more confusing school funding method utilized for nearly 40 years. If youre asking how any revenue shortfall will affect state governmentin terms of the timing [when revenues are received] that will be an assessmentmade as we finalize our updated forecasts for the May Revision, H.D. Palmer,deputy director of the states finance department, told Patch. Palmer said its important to note that compared to the financial crisisof 2008-09, the states cash position is much better today than it was then. The Governors January budget proposal for FY 2020-21 projected anextremely healthy financial condition, Palmer said, but the states cashposition will be reassessed as part of the budget revision next month. Newsoms proposed budget, submitted to the state legislature Jan. 10increased state general fund spending for basic K-12 education to $61.6billion which included $3.15 billion to help reduce school districts annualcontributions to the state Teachers and Public Employees Retirement Funds andpay down the unfunded portion of those pension funds. Billions Short Yet a report issued by CaliforniasLegislative Analysts Office on April 5, predicted that revenues are likely tobe at least several billions of dollars lower than anticipated in January, althoughcompared to prior recessions the state enters this period of economicuncertainty with significant reserves. But the LAO warned that any decline instate revenues, as the state is likely to experience in response to thecoronavirus emergency, is likely to reduce school funding. According to the LAO, in February the statehad about $17.5 billion in reserves -- $16.5 in the Budget StabilizationAccount and $900 million in Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties. There wasanother $377 million in a special state reserve account specifically forschools. In addition, the LAO estimated the statesschool districts themselves had a total of $12.8 billion in reserves that couldbe spent for any purpose, an amount that would cover expenses for about twomonths. Whatever happensin May, the most pressing problem for school districts as they reconsiderbudgets in such uncertain times will be that of cash flow: How much theyll actuallyreceive from the state and, more importantly, when theyll get it. Until a betterrevenue picture emerges, its expected school districts will use at least partof what theyve squirreled away to make ends meet. Every district isrequired to set aside money for emergencies based on a percentage of theirprevious years expenditures. Many districts set aside only the minimumrequired while others budget more, with larger districts frequently reportingreserves substantially in excess of whats required. Over and abovethese required reserves, other sources of money may also be available to somedistricts. Funds budgeted in two other categories -- committed and assignedcould be redirected by school boards or district administrators if necessary. Where schoolboards have committed funds for specific purposes, such as equipment purchases,this money can be used for something else if a resolution is approved to changethe purpose. Funds assigned by administrators for particular expenses can alsobe redirected if necessary. Flint says thatabout half of the districts were already dipping into their reserves before thecoronavirus shut down schools, forcing school officials to begin operating inan uncommon environment. Reserves Required School districtsare required by state law to continue providing services in a time of crisisregardless of the costs, Flint said. Its the unanticipated costs created bythe health emergency that will make budgeting difficult for school officialsbecause they still have employee payrolls and benefit expenses which comprise80% or more of district budgets. Those expenseswill continue, albeit at reduced levels, until classrooms reopen. Although mostfull-time teachers will continue to receive paychecks because of labor contractrequirements, many districts have already furloughed scores of classifiedemployees, such as teacher aides, custodians and food service workers. Since benefitcontributions are based upon percentages of payroll, most notably to theCalifornia State Teachers Retirement Fund (CalSTRS) and the California PublicEmployees Retirement System (CalPERS) which provides pensions to classifiedemployees, these are expected to be temporarily reduced. Yet these giantcreditors, who themselves have been taking a short-term bath on investments,expect to be paid regardless, although they recognize everybodys hurting. Spokespersons forboth CalSTRS and CalPERS told Patch the pension funds will be working withschool districts on a case-by-case basis if they experience financial hardshipsand this includes potential waivers of penalties for late payments. However, retireeswill continue receiving monthly pension checks on time. While itsuncertain what will happen with the states May budget revision, a hint ofwhats in store may be the State Lottery, which last year contributed $1.5billion to K-12 school districts. Lottery distributions are estimated toaccount for as much as 2% of many districts revenue. Weveconcluded the current coronavirus public health emergency has negativelyimpacted sales by an estimated 25-30%, Lottery spokesman Jorge DeLaCruz toldPatch. As of April 9, DeLaCruz said some 900 Lottery dealers confirmedthey were closed due to the coronavirus about 4% of the states 22,154 retailoutlets selling Lottery products. According to thelatest data available, during the first half of the current fiscal year Lotterypayments to school districts totaled $617.1 million. Just how much thosepayments will drop wont be known until distributions are calculated for thesecond half of the current fiscal year in September. Whatever happens,Flint says the coronavirus pandemic presents an opportunity to remakeCalifornia public schools by encouraging a comprehensive approach to educationrather and a piecemeal approach. If nothing else,Flint said, the public is getting a better idea of how much schools are a hubof community and what happens when classrooms are closed. This article originally appeared on the Santa Cruz Patch CONNECTICUT Gov. Ned Lamont announced that he is directing his administration to boost Medicaid payments for all of the states 215 nursing homes by an additional five percent above the recently announced ten percent increase. Together, the 15 percent across-the-board financial relief will provide an additional $65 million in Medicaid payment increases to the states nursing homes. The administration notified nursing home association leaders and representatives of the nursing home employees union in letters that were delivered this weekend. Connecticuts nursing home operators and their employees provide an incredible service to the people of our state, including the 22,000 residents receive direct care in nursing homes on a daily basis, Lamont said. I want to extend my profound gratitude to them, particularly during this unprecedented global pandemic that is having a particularly adverse impact on the elderly and individuals with disabilities residing in long-term care settings. The states increased financial support will be applied toward: Employee wages, including staff retention bonuses, overtime, and shift incentive payments; New costs related to screening of visitors; Personal protective equipment; Cleaning and housekeeping supplies; and Other costs related to COVID-19. In addition, in recognition of the continuing needs of nursing homes during this crisis, the Lamont administration is also announcing implementation of the following additional measures to the states Medicaid program: The state will provide an across-the-board rate increase of 10 percent for non-COVID beds, retroactive to March 1 (previously, the 10 percent increase was to take affect April 1). The state will provide an additional across-the-board rate increase of 5 percent for non-COVID beds for the period of April 1 through June 30, bringing the total increase during this period of 15 percent. The state will reimburse at $400 per day for COVID-positive residents in non-COVID recovery facilities. This rate is in effect for a maximum of 30 days per bed. The states advance of $11.6 million from the initial 10 percent rate increase, which was received by skilled nursing facilities on April 7, is now being extended back to March 1 adding $12 million in immediate revenue. Story continues Don't miss local and statewide news about coronavirus developments and precautions. Sign up for free Patch alerts and daily newsletters from all across Connecticut. See related: CT Coronavirus: Deaths, Cases For Each Nursing Home Released The state is also assisting with start-up costs and $600 per-day payment to all facilities that are designated by the Department of Public Health as suitable to be re-opened for the purpose of serving residents with COVID-19 who are being discharged from hospitals and who need nursing home level of care. Altogether, the extra across-the-board Medicaid payments for all nursing homes totals $65 million. Another $15.4 million is dedicated to special nursing home services for COVID-positive residents. In addition to the increased state assistance, it is also anticipated that nursing homes will receive enhanced support through the federal government from Medicare, a program wholly administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. For example, a significant percentage of symptomatic COVID-positive nursing home residents will be able to shift over to Medicare coverage at the Medicare per diem (estimated at $536), providing financial relief to the nursing home industry. The federal government is also providing general relief for all Medicare providers under the recently adopted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that is expected to provide substantial resources to nursing home facilities. State begins site visits to every nursing home in Connecticut to extend additional support To provide additional support to the states nursing homes and long-term care facilities, the Connecticut Department of Public Health has announced that its staff will be making physical, on-site visits to all of Connecticuts 215 nursing homes and long-term care facilities over the next seven to ten days. The departments Healthcare Quality and Safety Branch, with guidance from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, will conduct infection control surveys during each visit. This will be a first among states in the region, as all nurses in the Facility Licensing and Investigations Section have been fit-tested for N95 respirators, which is a federal requirement. To view the form that will be used during these site visits, click here. See also: CT, 6 Other States Take Another Step Toward Reopening Economy Latest Town-By-Town Number Of Coronavirus Cases As Cases Approach 18,000 Boating Is Ok But You Need To Follow These Rules This article originally appeared on the Across Connecticut Patch By Trend The number of Turkish citizens looking for job in Ukraine significantly increased from January 2020 through March 2020, Turkish Employment Agency (??KUR) told Trend on April 20. According to the agency, the number of Turkish citizens visiting Ukraine to find work through ??KUR increased by 29.8 percent in the first quarter of 2020, compared to same period of 2019. In particular, 61 Turkish citizens visited Ukraine via ??KUR during the reporting period. In 1Q2020, 4,077 Turkish citizens went abroad through ??KUR, which is 23.9 percent less compared to the same period of 2019. In March 2020, 74,331 citizens were provided with jobs through this agency in Turkey. Some 32.1 percent of the total number of employed citizens accounted for women and 67.9 percent for men. In March 2020, 96.6 percent of the total number of citizens provided with jobs accounted for the private sector. The number of unemployed in Turkey in the reporting month amounted to over 3.6 million people, 48.9 percent of which are women, and 51.1 percent are men. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Shake Shack is returning the $10 million loan it received under the CARES act. The fast-casual chain was among the companies to obtain financial assistance under the $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program intended to help small businesses get through the coronavirus pandemic. But when the program ran out of money last week, some large national chains, like Potbelly and Ruths Chris, came under fire for receiving loans after being identified in a Politico story. On Sunday, CNN reported Shake Shack got a loan, too. Later, in a letter posted on Linkedin, Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer and CEO Randy Garutti said the company would give the money back. The PPP came with no user manual and it was extremely confusing, they wrote. The best chance of keeping our teams working, off the unemployment line and hiring back our furloughed and laid off employees, would be to apply now and hope things would be clarified in time. Though the program was intended for businesses with less than 500 employees, Shake Shack, with nearly 200 locations in the U.S., qualified because it employs about 45 people per location. "There was no fine print, anywhere, that suggested: Apply now, or we will run out of money by the time you finally get in line, Shake Shacks executives explained. When all of the funds were exhausted, businesses across the country were understandably up in arms... We now know that the first phase of the PPP was underfunded, and many who need it most, havent gotten any assistance, Meyer and Garutti wrote. So, after securing separate funding in an equity transaction Friday, the company decided to return the loan. We urge Congress to ensure that all restaurants no matter their size have equal ability to get back on their feet and hire back their teams, Shake Shacks leaders posted. Its inexcusable to leave restaurants out because no one told them to get in line by the time the funding dried up. A deal to replenish the small business loan program could come as early as Monday. We have a good chance of getting the deal. We want the deal, President Donald Trump said at a press briefing Sunday. We want to take care of our workers. We want to take care of our small companies. Male Champions of Change Credit:Golding How is it that decades after first realising gender inequity was a serious problem, the good burghers at the Commonwealth public service have yet to fix the issue? Not to worry, they can simply splash out to become Male Champions of Change. The Australian Bureau of Statistics was the latest agency to fork out for the program, founded by former Sex Discrimination Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick some 11 years ago. Last week it handed over $55,000 for annual membership to the organisation, which aims to boost the number of women in executive positions with the help of male champions. The Male Champions of Changes latest report on the ABS, for the record, notes women occupy 100 per cent of key management personnel positions. That might surprise Australian Statistician David Gruen, who took over from David Kalisch (also a man) last year. At the very least, the representation of women at the top of the ABS is nearing parity. Just over 43 per cent of the 520 public servants on executive levels were women on June 30 last year according to the agencys annual report. On Monday, Australia announced that it will now force technology giants such as Facebook and Google to pay news companies for using content. This, the government said, was meant to ensure a level playing field, and came after an 18 month investigation into the power of these digital platforms by the countrys competition and consumer commission. Earlier this month, Frances top competition authority asked Google to negotiate with media companies, both publishers and agencies, for using snippets on its search engine and news aggregator and pay them proper remuneration. Both Australia and France are right. For too long, there has been an unfair ecosystem that has been built around the digital news landscape. Media organisations invest tremendous resources personnel, editorial gatekeeping, overhead costs and distribution. Big digital intermediaries such as Facebook and Google take their content and push it on their platforms. But operating under ambiguous regimes, they pretend not to be media companies. This means they neither have the legal accountability that media organisations have, nor do they incur the same levels of expenditure. But they monopolise the revenue that streams into the digital news world. This has made several genuine media organisations unviable reducing their profitability, forcing them to scale down their operations or even close down. This, in turn, hits not just particular companies but hurts democracy and the right of citizens to be informed. This crisis has become even more acute given the economic slowdown after the coronavirus pandemic. India is not immune from either the trends in the digital news world, or the slowdown. Media companies now face additional challenges. For traditional print platforms, circulation has dipped because of unfounded fears about the possibility of the infection spreading through newspapers. Revenue is hit due to the curtailment of advertisement spend by private companies as well as the government. In this backdrop, it is time for the government to institute clearer rules for intermediaries. It is time to get Facebook and Google to meet their legal obligations it is no surprise that there is a proliferation of fake news on some of these platforms in the absence of stronger accountability rules. It is also time to get them to pay the rightful share of compensation to those platforms whose content they use and leverage to build their own audiences and profits. India must carefully consider other global examples and put a stop to the reckless and unfair trade practices adopted by digital intermediaries. It is, indeed, time for a level playing field not just to help media, but also to preserve democracy and keep up the news-gathering mechanisms that are so essential to keeping citizens informed. Rent Control and Limiting Tenant Security Deposits: Still a Bad Idea Commentary Profits tend to equalize over all industries, setting aside differential risk. If profits are 50 percent in industry A, 10 percent in B, and minus 20 percent in C, then money will be diverted heavily from C to A. This will drive returns in A down, and boost them in C. This is only a tendency. Perfect equalization is a will o the wisp, but these are strong, indeed, irresistible tendencies. Unless, that is, government steps in and slows down or even stops this otherwise inexorable process. Something of the sort seems now to be occurring in residential rental housing. Prices are rising, there are vast shortages in numerous cities, homelessness is on the upsurge, and all too many people who could afford low rentals have been reduced to sleeping in their cars. Is this all due to some sort of market failure? Not a bit of it. Real estate in other sectors suffers from no such ailment. Hotel space is plentiful. There is no analogy to this crisis as regards retail establishments, office buildings, or factories. Indeed, there is a bit of a surplus in shopping mall square footage as electronic sales have done to supermarkets what the latter did to mom-and-pop groceries a few decades ago. Why the stark, sharp, indeed, gigantic difference? Isnt real estate all the same? No. Rent controls have been imposed upon only one type of building, the residential, not other varieties. Imagine if matters were reversed; that is, posit that rent controls were placed on commercial and industrial real estate but not on personal domiciles. Then, the exact opposite would ensue. Virtually all people would be safely ensconced in affordable rental units, while businesses would be set up in what? Empty lots? Old buses? Campers? Tents? Who knows for sure. We can only deduce from economic principles that this sector of the economy would be in dire straights. Why is this? Because not only do profits tend to equalize in all types of commercial endeavor, but also this process diverts funds away from property subject to price ceilings. Thats why investors build luxury apartments (which are rarely controlled since rich people are thought not to need the protection of rent control), and not those for the impecunious and the middle class. Builders do no such thing in uncontrolled commercial arenas. There are automobiles for the upper, middle, and lower classes; there are restaurants to fit pretty much everyones pocketbook. Ditto for clothes, shoes, groceries, you name it. Thank goodness for the economic freedom that prevails there. Economic illiterates now want to preclude landlords from asking for two or three months worth of security deposits, in order to help tenants. Ask yourself if this will encourage more or fewer people to invest in and maintain residential real estate. Of course, even less money will flow into apartment dwellings when these new initiatives are implemented. More and more of them will be converted into condominiums, office space, anything to escape additional encroachments on the property rights of landlords. Wide Agreement Economists often disagree on many issues. Were a contentious lot. But not on rent controls and other impediments to landlords such as prohibiting them from demanding stiff apartment deposits. This agreement stretches all the way from Nobel Prize-winning economists on the right, such as Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek, to those on the left. For example, in the view of socialist Gunner Myrdal, Rent control has in certain western countries constituted, maybe, the worst example of poor planning by governments lacking courage and vision. According to Assar Lindbeck, a Swedish economist on the committee that chooses Nobel Laureates, In many cases, rent control appears to be the most efficient technique presently known to destroy a cityexcept for bombing. In support, Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Co Thach opined: The Americans couldnt destroy Hanoi, but we have destroyed our city by the very low rents. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) now wants to extend rent control laws all throughout the country. This will only make matters worse. His heart is undoubtedly in the right place, but his understanding of the dismal science is woefully inadequate. He rejects Venezuela as a failed state, but its due precisely to the sort of price controls he favors for housing that its difficult to obtain toilet paper and beer in that country. Why is it that people swallow this economic nonsense for rental housing but would see through it were price controls set up for beer or toilet paper? Perhaps this is due to the thought that theres something unique about home and hearth. No. Economic law works the same in all realms of the economy. Walter Block is the chair in economics at Loyola University in New Orleans. He is also an adjunct scholar at the Mises Institute and the Hoover Institute. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- George Sanders, President of Goldcliff Resource Corporation (Goldcliff or the Company) (GCN: TSX.V, GCFFF: OTCBB PINKS) reports that the Information Circular and all proxy-related materials have been sent to all registered shareholders entitled to vote at the Annual General Meeting (the Meeting) to be held at 10:00 am on Tuesday, April 28, 2020. As permitted by the Companys Articles, and in accordance with the recommendations of public health officials, the Company will not hold a physical meeting, but will now hold the Meeting by conference telephone and by video conferencing. Registered shareholders and proxy holders are invited to attend the meeting as follows: 1. Audio Conference Toll-Free 1-800-901-0218. You will be connected to the Bennett Jones Conference Centre (Company counsel). Passcode 373 918 3066 2. Video Conference Please contact Computershare, Attention: Francesca Power, Relationship Manager, at Francesca.Power@computershare.com to confirm your eligibility to vote and to give your email address in order to receive an invitation to attend the Meeting. The conference facilities will be open starting at 09:45 Pacific Daylight Time on April 28, 2020, in order for registered shareholders and proxy holders to register with Computershares representative, who will be acting as the scrutineer for the Meeting. The Company looks forward to hosting the Meeting and wishes all shareholders the best of health in these unprecedented times. For further information, please contact George W. Sanders, President, at 250-764-8879, toll free at 1-866-769-4802 or email at info@directroyalty.com . GOLDCLIFF RESOURCE CORPORATION Per: George W. Sanders George W. Sanders, President Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of this news release. Why? They seem to be protesters that like me, he said gleefully. He continued to egg on partisanship and cultural warfare Friday with insurrectionary tweets. LIBERATE MINNESOTA! he shouted, virtually, following this quickly with similar tweets about Michigan and Virginia. All three states have Democratic governors. On Sunday, Washingtons Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee called Trumps comments dangerous during an appearance on ABC while Marylands Republican Gov. Larry Hogan pointed out Trumps self-contradiction on CNN: I dont think its helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the presidents own policy. (CNN) At least nine people were killed, including one Mountie, during a weekend shooting rampage in small-town Nova Scotia. At a media conference Sunday evening, police described chaos with multiple 911 calls coming in late Saturday at a property in Portapique, Nova Scotia. "When police arrived at the scene the members located several casualties inside and outside of the home," Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Chief Superintendent Chris Leather told reporters. Police said they are not certain how many people died or were injured. The deceased officer was identified as Constable Heidi Stevenson, a mother of two and 23-year veteran of the RCMP. Leather said a search for the suspect lasted overnight and led them to several crime scenes, miles apart. The suspect was eventually spotted late Sunday morning at a truck stop several miles away from the crime scene. "The search for the suspect ended this morning when the suspect was located and I can confirm that he is deceased," said Leather. Nova Scotia RCMP identified the suspected gunman as Gabriel Wortman, 51. He eluded police for several hours overnight Sunday as fires were reported in many locations in the area. The manhunt was complicated by the fact that the suspect is believed to have been wearing as least part of what looked to be an RCMP uniform, and may have been driving a vehicle made to look like a police car, Leather said. "Of course that's an important element in the investigation, the fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather said. A law enforcement told CNN earlier that authorities were searching half a dozen crime scenes, beginning in Portapique and stretching to Enfield, where the suspect was apprehended. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police had warned the public on Twitter that Wortman may have been wearing a RCMP uniform and driving a silver Chevrolet Tracker that appeared to be a police vehicle. But they clarified that he was not employed by the RCMP. As they chased the gunman, police told residents to stay inside and lock their doors, warning that he was considered "armed and dangerous." Stephen McNeil, the Premier of Nova Scotia, called the shooting spree "one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history." At a media conference on Covid-19, he told reporters: "I never imagined when I went to bed last night that I would wake up to the horrific news that an active shooter was on the loose in Nova Scotia." Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted, "Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the shooting," adding "we're keeping all of you in our thoughts." Boris Johnson has urged caution over relaxing the UK-wide coronavirus lockdown prematurely due to fears of a second damaging wave of infections. The prime minister, who is still recuperating from Covid-19 at his countryside Chequers residence, made the intervention in a meeting with senior aides on Friday. Mr Johnson was joined by the foreign secretary Dominic Raab, who has been deputising at No 10 in the prime ministers absence, and his influential adviser Dominic Cummings. During the meeting, the prime minister, who is receiving daily updates from ministers, raised his concerns about a second peak if the government lifts restrictions too soon potentially inflicting even greater damage on the economy and public health. Coronavirus: London on lockdown Show all 29 1 /29 Coronavirus: London on lockdown Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man walks down a deserted Camden High Street Photos Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Goodge Street Station is one of the many stations closed to help reduce the spread Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown An empty street in the heart of Chinatown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown People in masks in Chinatown a day after the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A near-empty Piccadilly Circus during the first week of lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Sonja, my neighbour, who I photographed while taking a short walk. It was nice to briefly chat even from a distance Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple sit on the empty steps of the statue Eros in Piccadilly Circus Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Making sure I stay two-meters apart DArblay Street, Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A mannequin behind a shop window. UK stores have closed until further notice Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A notice displayed on a shop window in Camden Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown As part of the lockdown, all non-essential shops have been ordered to close.Image from Camden High Street Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A skateboarder wearing a mask utilises his exercise allowance in the Camden area Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Communities have been coming together in a time of need Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman stands alone in a deserted Oxford Street. Up until a few weeks ago, on average, half a million people visited the street per day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A couple walk hand in hand down a street in Soho, a day before the stricter lockdown was announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown During the first week of March, shoppers focused on stockpiling necessities ahead of a countrywide lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Many supermarkers are operating a queuing system to make sure only a limited amount of customers are allowed in at anyone time Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Stay Safe Curzon cinemas are temporarily closed under the new measures Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Pubs, restaurants and bars were ordered to shut as part of the lockdown Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street There are fears that coronavirus could lead to permanent closure of struggling shops Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden Town is eerily silent on a normal working day Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Shops and supermarkets ran out of hand sanitisers in the first week of the lockdown. As we approach the end of the second week most shops now have started to stock up Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty streets around Soho Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A noticeboard on Camden High Street urges the public to stay at home Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Camden High Street, one of Londons busiest tourist streets turns quiet Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Thriller Live confirmed its West End run ended in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown Empty and eerie Soho streets after stricter rules on social distancing announced Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A woman pauses for a cigarette on Hanway Street, behind Tottenham Court Road Angela Christofilou Coronavirus: London on lockdown A man steps outside onto Hanway Street, that sits behind what is usually a bustling retail hub Angela Christofilou The idea we will be rushing to lift measures is a non-starter, a government source told The Times. If the transmission rate rises significantly we will have to do a harder lockdown again. On Monday, a No 10 spokesperson added: The big concern is a second peak. That is what ultimately will do the most damage to health and the most damage to the economy. If you move too quickly then the virus could begin to spread exponentially again. The public will expect us to do everything we can to stop the spread of the virus and protect lives. It comes amid tensions within the government over when to ease the severe restrictions imposed by Mr Johnson four weeks ago to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the UK. Cabinet minister Michael Gove rejected briefings at the weekend that the government could adopt a three-stage traffic light approach to easing the lockdown, which would start with some non-essential shops reopening their doors at the beginning of May. Opposition parties have also called on ministers to set out a strategy for deciding how and when to lift the lockdown. Speaking to BBC Radios Radio 4 Today programme, Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, said: Throughout all of this weve been driven by the facts and the scientific evidence. When we introduced these so-called lockdown measures, we said wed review them on a three-week basis. We set out the sort of things we would look to if we were able to ease those lockdown conditions. Pressed on whether it was the prime ministers preference to be cautious and not lift the lockdown due to fears of a second peak of the virus, he added: What the prime minister has said consistently through this is that we will base our actions on the facts and the clinical evidence. The first step is to understand whether it would be safe to end the current restrictions. Then based on the evidence, we will take appropriate measures. The prime minister said he expected this peak to last around three months whats happened is kind of consistent with that. But we will take the appropriate measures based on the facts and the evidence and that has not changed. Coronavirus deaths have surged past 150,000 worldwide with nearly a quarter of them in the United States, where new rallies against lockdown orders are being held after President Donald Trump lent his support to the protesters. Evidence is mounting that social distancing successfully slowed the pandemic after more than half of humanity -- 4.5 billion people -- were confined to their homes. Governments around the world are now grappling with when and how to ease lockdowns that have crippled the global economy, even as the COVID-19 death toll climbs further in hard-hit countries. Demonstrators in three US states staged rallies this week to demand an end to the restrictions, with the largest protest in Michigan attracting 3,000 people -- some of whom were armed. Trump has largely left decisions on easing lockdowns to state officials even as he laid out guidelines for a staged reopening of the national economy. But his call to "liberate" Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia in a series of tweets Friday were rebuked by the Democratic leaders of all three states. "I do not have time to involve myself in Twitter wars," said Virginia governor Ralph Northam. - Africa death toll tops 1,000 - The United States accounts for nearly a third of the 2.25 million coronavirus infections reported globally. It has also recorded over 37,000 deaths, more than any other nation, followed by Italy, Spain and France which have all been ravaged by their own outbreaks. Many countries are testing only the most serious cases and the number of confirmed infections is likely to be only a fraction of the true total. Virtually no corner of the world has been left untouched, with deaths in Africa passing 1,000. Nigeria announced the death of President Muhammadu Buhari's top aide, the highest-profile person to succumb to the virus in Africa's most populous nation. Meanwhile, many of the world's 260 million Orthodox Christians are preparing to mark Easter without attending church services. The Russian Orthodox Church has asked the faithful to celebrate at home, even though many places or worship will remain open. Services in Turkey will be closed to the public and broadcast on the internet. In Zimbabwe, mass rallies and military parades to mark the country's 40th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule were cancelled. And Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II will not mark her birthday on Tuesday with a traditional gun salute. Britain's overall death toll is officially almost 15,500, but a charity says the number of virus deaths in care homes alone could be as high as 7,500, five times more than estimated. - Cover-up claims - China's death toll jumped to 4,632 on Friday after it raised by 50 percent the number of fatalities for the city of Wuhan, where the respiratory disease first emerged late last year. Trump, who has angrily shot back at claims he reacted too slowly to the virus threat, has accused Beijing of downplaying the impact of the disease within its borders. "It is far higher than that and far higher than the U.S., not even close!" he tweeted. Trump did not offer evidence to back his claim, but pressure has mounted on Beijing to come clean over its handling of the initial outbreak. Leaders in France and Britain have also questioned China's management of the crisis but Beijing hit back, saying it had not concealed information about the illness. - 'My family is hungry' - Signs that the outbreak could be easing in parts of Europe prompted Switzerland, Denmark and Finland to begin reopening shops and schools this week. Germany's health minister said Friday that the virus was "under control" after 3,400 deaths, and the country is now beginning the delicate task of lifting some restrictions without triggering a secondary outbreak. Some shops will be allowed to reopen Monday, and some children will return to school within weeks. Parts of Italy began emerging from lockdown too, with Venice residents strolling around quiet canals. Iran also allowed some Tehran businesses to reopen Saturday despite the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, as many faced a bitter choice between risking infection and economic ruin. "How can I stay keep staying home? My family is hungry," said Hamdollah Mahmoudi, 45, a shopworker in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. "And one gets mentally sick without work." But Spain, where the death toll topped 20,000, has extended its strict lockdown, while Japan, Britain and Mexico have all expanded their current movement restrictions. - 'It's heartbreaking' - Signs of the economic carnage wrought by the pandemic are mounting, with China reporting its first GDP contraction since at least the early 1990s after several decades of breakneck growth. The Trump administration pledged another $19 billion in relief for farmers reeling from a massive jolt to agricultural markets with schools and restaurants shuttered across the country. Part of the funds will be used to buy up surplus dairy products and produce that farmers have been destroying, unable to get it to consumers or food processors. "Having to dump milk and plow under vegetables ready to market is not only financially distressing, but it's heartbreaking as well to those who produce them," Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said. African state leaders and global financial bodies warned Friday that the continent needed tens of billions of dollars in additional funds to fight the outbreak. The IMF also warned the virus could spark another "lost decade" in Latin America and backed debt moratoriums for the region's fragile economies. The Kerala government on Monday said there was some "misunderstanding", due to which the Centre had objected to dilution of thelockdown protocol after the state had allowed opening of restaurants and MSME industries in municipal areas among others. The Union Home Ministry has taken strong objection to Kerala government's decision to allow opening of restaurants, bus travel in cities and opening of MSME industries in municipal areas, saying it amounts to dilution of its lockdown guidelines. In a letter to the Kerala government, the Home Ministry said the state government on April 17 has circulated revised guidelines for lockdown measures which allowed opening of activities which are prohibited in the Centre's consolidated revised guidelines issued on April 15. State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran denied there was dilution of the lockdown guidelines. "We have given relaxations in accordancewith the Centre's guidelines. I think there is some misunderstanding,based on which the Centre has sought an explanation. Once we give an explanation, it will all be sorted out. The Centre and the state have the same stand with regard to fight the pandemic. There is no contradiction in the stand taken. It's just a misunderstanding we will clear it," Surendran told mediapersons. He also said the lockdown and easing the protocol was a new thing for the state and the country and the state government will clear the doubts in a few hours. The additional activities allowed by the government of Kerala, include opening of local workshops, barber shops, restaurants, book stores, MSMEs in municipal limits, bus travel in cities and towns for shorter distance, two passengers in the back seat of four-wheelers and pillion riding on scooters. Hundreds ventured into the streets on Monday after the state government diluted the lockdown protocol. This amounts to dilution of guidelines issued by the Home ministry and violation of its April 15 order issued under the Disaster Management Act 2005, the Home Ministry said. The Kerala government has announced relaxation of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in two zones, allowing among others private vehicles movement in an odd-even basis and dine-in services at hotels from Monday. The Left government had colour-coded 14 districts of the state into four zones-- Red, Green, Orange-A and Orange-B, for containing the Covid-19 pandemic. Four-wheelers are permitted to carry two passengers besides the driver and in case of a two-wheeler, only the driver will be allowed while the pillion rider is allowed in case the person is a family member. On dine-in services, a government order said it is allowed at hotels and restaurants until 7 pm in Green and Orange-B zone from Monday and in Orange-A zone from April 24. However, take-away counters can function until 8 PM, thestate government had said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) China targets chaotic market of mask fabric Global Times By GT staff reporters Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/19 22:28:41 Chinese regulators are ratcheting up a crackdown on price gouging and other illegal activities in the chaotic market for melt-blown fabric, a key material in medical masks, warning profiteers to expect heavy punishment if they continue to exploit the global pandemic. The move came after the price of melt-blown fabric prices multiplied up to 40 times higher amid the desperate global demand for masks. It will help ensure the quality and stability of medical supplies - a critical issue for China not just economically but also politically as some foreign elements continue to smear China's pandemic aid efforts, analysts said. The price of melt-blown fabric rose nearly 40 times to about 700,000 yuan ($98,980) a ton in half a year, with some likening its production to a "money printing machine." Surging prices As the virus spreads fast across the world, demand for melt-blown fabric has surged in China, the largest face mask filter raw material provider in the world. "It's extremely hard for us to find channels for purchasing melt-blown fabric," Chen Lianjie, an executive at Zhejiang Kanglidi Medical Articles Company, told the Global Times on Sunday. Chen said the company faces a daily shortage of three-quarters of the raw material. "A local government agency offered some help, but we have to rely on ourselves to buy the majority of the material - either through small workshops or Sinopec," he said. Two out of 200 samples from small workshops met standards for medical use, Chen said. Meanwhile the price of the Sinopec material has climbed as high as 700,000 yuan, fueled by middlemen. A manager at a domestic melt-blown fabric import and export company told the Global Times that Sinopec melt-down fabric prices soared as it became known for being of the highest quality. No stock was left within a week, he said. China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are ramping up efforts to expand production of melt-down fabric, with centrally-administered SOEs' supply reaching 42.5 tons a day by late March, the Xinhua News Agency reported. Some face mask manufacturers without medical equipment qualifications also scrambled for the raw material, Li Lin, general manager of Anhui Fumei Medical Company, told the Global Times. They in turn manufactured for Chinese import and export companies who have legally required documentation needed to export from China, he said. "A face mask production machine generally costs 300,000 yuan, but some small workshops that aim to make a quick buck may bid up to 1.6 million yuan for a machine, which impacts large face mask enterprises' production expansion," Li said. Li said his company has overseas orders for about 200 million face masks for export to countries including the US, Germany and Italy, requiring another 500 tons of the material. An insider at the China Nonwovens & Industrial Textiles Association who requested anonymity told the Global Times Sunday that the mask market was distorted by the pandemic, with supply rapidly ballooning to several hundred million a day from a pre-crisis level of 20 million. "When you have so much demand at one end and skyrocketing materials at another, and so many new producers rushing into the sector, pressing hard for earlier delivery, it is just inevitable that chaos arises from all this. Supervision and regulation is needed here," the insider said. Severe crackdown On Wednesday authorities in Yangzhong, a city in East China's Jiangsu Province, with a recently acquired reputation for manufacturing melt-blown fabric, banned 867 companies from making it. An owner of a Yangzhong melt-blown fabric manufacturer who only gave the surname Yao, told the Global Times on Sunday that his factory stopped for three days, with all transport blocked for their product. It's understandable that the government ordered a halt, the owner said. "Almost everyone is manufacturing melt-blown fabric in Yangzhong, with some household workshops in rural areas jumping on the bandwagon, resulting in undesired quality and hygiene conditions." The Ministry of Public Security said over the weekend that authorities have cracked down on 42 suspected profiteers involved in 20 cases, with amounts totaling 34.45 million yuan. The crackdown has effectively contained the wild rise in prices of melt-blown fabric, the ministry said. Offenders had hoarded and resold melt-blown fabric for exorbitant profit through raising prices or arranging fictitious transactions. The State Administration for Market Regulation has cracked down on speculative producers since March. It has asked eight provinces and municipalities including East China's Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces to launch special inspections of the melt-blown material to stabilize prices and prioritize handling complaints about the price of the fabric, while stressing investigation of lawbreakers. Zhejiang and South China's Guangdong Province also held meetings with producers to warn them not to speculate and profit from medical supplies critical in the fight against COVID-19. Chinese experts said maintaining an orderly market for the production and sale of medical supplies used for combating COVID-19 was imperative for China, which has risen to become the world's foremost provider of such supplies. In March, electric car maker BYD, backed by Warren Buffet, declared itself the world's No.1 maker of masks with a daily capacity of 5 million. Sinopec, which has a dozen production lines for melt-blown fabric, said last week it would be the world's largest producer by May when it achieves annual output of 10,000 tons. Sinopec announced April 6 that it didn't consign any company or individual to sell its melt-blown fabrics and asked those involved to stop their illegal behavior. Sinopec would hold those parties accountable for damaging its trademark and disrupting market order, the company said. Global cooperation Ensuring the quality of goods was mostly the buyer's responsibility, Indian businessman Arjun Bahri Dhawan, who is purchasing medical supplies from China, told the Global Times. Some Western media have raised quality concerns over face masks imported from China. AFP reported in March that the Netherlands recalled 600,000 face masks manufactured in China, claiming they did not meet minimum quality standards. Chen Hongyan, an industry expert, told the Global Times that some countries sent middlemen to pick up face masks, who, in order to make a profit, tended to purchase cheaper masks intended for civil use. "These countries themselves are responsible for the incident, as they should go through official channels like government agencies or associations, rather than middlemen," Chen said. More foreign companies have also shifted into production of the vital fabric. German firm Innovatec has said it plans to manufacture an extra 2,000 tons of melt-blown fabric by the middle of June, with a further 1,000 tons planned by the end of the year, according to a Reuters report. Bai Yu, president of the Medical Appliances Branch of the China Medical Pharmaceutical Material Association, told the Global Times that Germany, as the country with the most advanced equipment, could easily transform itself into a major melt-blown fabric manufacturer. But there is a time gap of two to three months before Germany could do so. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address During shelter-in-place, Guy Fieri can't hit the road to try new diners, drive-ins and dives, but he can still take a trip to Flavortown. Starting April 24, Food Network is launching a three-episode takeout edition of Fieri's popular series "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." In each episode, Fieri will check in with chefs around the country previously featured on the show via video chat to see how they're holding up and how they're transforming their business to meet the new takeout-only market. And don't worry there's still cooking involved, too. Each chef Fieri talks to has also sent a full list of ingredients straight to his home kitchen, where he will prepare their featured recipes while they guide him through the steps. BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20 Trend: Republic of Korea has announced a list of its companies that plan to cooperate with Turkmenistan, Trend reports with reference to Business Turkmenistan informational portal. This initiative was discussed at the meeting of Turkmen-South Korean Business Council held in Ashgabat on April 17, 2020, which was held via videoconference. Korean Hyundai Engineering, LG International and GS E&C companies expressed their readiness to cooperate with Turkmenistan to strengthen and modernize the technical base of the fuel and energy sector of the country. Furthermore, Korea Marine Equipment Research Institute KOMERI has offered to organize seminars and to supply equipment for the marine fleet. Doosan Heavy Industries which specializes in water management system and energy, offered to cooperate in the construction of a drinking water plant on the Caspian Sea coast. The Korean side also presented its online TradeKorea trading platform, which provides an opportunity for mutual sales of goods. The participants expressed confidence that regular contacts will help to strengthen trade and economic relations as well as improve the partnership between Turkmenistani and Republic of Koreas businessmen. From the Turkmens side, the meeting was attended by representatives of the fuel and energy sector, transport sector, textile industry, water management, as well as Turkmendenizyollary Agency, Balkan Shipbuilding and Repair Plant Open Joint Stock Company, Deniz Sowda Floty Closed Joint Stock Company. Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and companies specializing in various fields represented South Korea at the meeting. By Express News Service GUNTUR: A 28-year-old person died allegedly after beaten up by police for coming out of `non-emergency' work during lockdown leading to tension in Sattenapalli town in Guntur district of the State on Monday morning. Police said that the deceased was suffering from a chronic heart ailment and denied that the victim was beaten by them. They claimed that the deceased collapsed when the police confronted him for coming out of the house during the ongoing lockdown. Mohammed Ghouse, a resident of Venkatapati Colony in Sattenapalli, came out of his house in the morning and was returning home after reportedly purchasing medicines around 8.40 am when police stopped him. The police allegedly beat up Ghouse for coming out without any reason. Ghouse, a heart patient, collapsed there itself and was shifted to a private hospital where he was declared dead. Enraged over this, locals of Venkatapati Colony staged a protest in front of the Sattenapalli Urban police station demanding action against the policemen responsible for the death of Ghouse. ALSO READ | Two cops, six other frontline workers in Srikalahasti infected Additional Superintendent of Police (Guntur) K Chakravathi rushed to Sattenapalli and pacified the agitating locals and assured action against the policemen, if they are found guilty. Locals, who withdrew the agitation, later took the body of the deceased from the hospital and once again staged a protest on the main road leading to tension. Senior police officials rushed to the spot and are monitoring the situation. Guntur Range IGP J Prabhakar Rao said that Ghouse was suffering from a heart ailment and collapsed when he was confronted by the police for coming out when the lockdown is in force. However, he added that a departmental inquiry will be conducted and if any policeman was found guilty, action will be taken. Opposition leader and TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu condemned the police action leading to the death of Ghouse and demanded exgratia to the family of the deceased. YSR Congress MLA from Sattenapalli Ambati Rambabu also demanded action against the police officials responsible for the death of the youngster. A suspected armed robber "lured" a young couple to a secluded spot by a canal to supposedly sell them cocaine before stealing from the woman at knifepoint, a court heard. Jonathan Frazer (33) allegedly pushed the woman to the ground and held a knife to her throat before taking 450 from her pocket. Judge Paula Murphy refused to grant bail at Dublin District Court and adjourned the case for the directions of the DPP. Mr Frazer, from Knocknarea Avenue, Drimnagh, is charged with robbery and possession of a knife. Detective Garda Mark Melbourne said the accused made no reply to the charges after caution. Objecting to bail, Det Gda Melbourne said the alleged victim and her boyfriend made their way to the Grand Canal walkway, Bluebell, at 12.30am on April 6. Expand Close The lock at Bluebell on the Grand Canal, close to where the alleged robbery took place / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The lock at Bluebell on the Grand Canal, close to where the alleged robbery took place They went there for the purpose of buying a bag of cocaine and had arranged to meet the accused through phone calls. It was alleged he "lured" them to a quiet and secluded location and when they met, he pushed the woman to the ground, held a knife to her neck and took 450 from her pocket before leaving the scene. Gardai were alerted and saw the accused at Bluebell Avenue, where he tried to flee on a bike but fell off it and was subsequently arrested, Det Gda Melbourne said. A knife and phone were recovered from near the bike, the court heard. Citing the nature and strength of the proposed evidence, Det Gda Melbourne said the woman's boyfriend had named Mr Frazer and described what the alleged robber was wearing, a green tracksuit. Det Gda Melbourne said the accused was arrested minutes from the scene and was wearing a dark green tracksuit. Fear Gardai believed the phone that was found had been used to lure the alleged victim to the scene. Swabs had been taken from the phone and knife. The garda said the accused appeared to be in a dispute with a local criminal which was "escalating". The alleged victim was put in fear by the alleged robbery, the court heard. Judge Murphy said that while there was a presumption of innocence, she believed it was necessary to refuse bail and she remanded the accused in custody. At least 16 people were killed on Sunday after a gunman dressed like a police officer went on a shooting spree across several communities in Nova Scotia, Canada. This is the deadliest such attack in Canadian history. One of the victims is Constable Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and mother of two. Authorities said the suspect, identified as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, is also dead. Police were first alerted to a shooting at a residence in Portapique, about 60 miles north of Halifax, where several bodies were found inside and outside of the house. From there, police pursued the suspect through several other communities, and are investigating "multiple crime scenes." The chase ended at a gas station in Enfield. Authorities said they believe the suspect did target the victims at the Portapique home, even though several of them did not know him, but his later attacks were random. RCMP Chief Supt. Chris Leather said the suspect used a gun and possibly "other methods" during his rampage, as several homes in the Portapique area were set on fire. Because there are so many different crime scenes, police said the death toll could rise. More stories from theweek.com What do animals think? A parade that killed thousands? Late night hosts are bemused at Trump's encouragement of the 'virus huggers' flouting his own advice Press Release April 19, 2020 Bong Go lauds approval of small business wage subsidy program for MSME employees, middle class amid COVID-19 health crisis Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go lauded on Sunday, April 19, the positive response of the Executive Branch to numerous appeals for more support to the middle class amid the ongoing crisis caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in the country. The government will soon release the approved guidelines for the implementation of the small businesses wage subsidy (SBWS) program to help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) cope with, support the middle class and mitigate the adverse effects on the economy caused by the COVID-19 health emergency. "Malaking bahagi ng ating ekonomiya ang mga MSMEs, at habang tumatagal ang COVID-19 situation sa bansa, kailangan ding suportahan ng ating gobyerno ang kanilang kapakanan para buhayin ang maliliit na negosyo at maiahon ang mga empleyado nila mula sa krisis na ito," Go said. "Ngayong aprubado na ang panukala ng Department of Finance para sa small business wage subsidy (SBWS), sisiguraduhin natin na lahat ng Pilipinong apektado ay matutulungan sa abot ng ating makakaya at mapangalagaan natin ang ating ekonomiya kahit nasa gitna tayo ng krisis," he added. Go also noted that with the assistance that will be provided to MSMEs, owners can, in turn, help their employees who are mostly from the lower middle class, especially with the extension of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon and in many parts of the country. Through the SBWS, the DOF will set the guidelines and determine MSMEs nationwide which are eligible for the subsidy. Each eligible worker belonging to the low- to medium-middle class under the identified affected business will be provided with a wage subsidy between P5,000 to P8,000. According to the DOF, the subsidy will run for two months, unless the enhanced community quarantine is lifted earlier. The program will benefit over 3.4 million workers and will cost P51 billion. Employers will be submitting applications on behalf of their respective employees. According to DOF, the Social Security System will be accepting applications until April 30, 2020. In order to be qualified for the program, small businesses should "maintain the employment status of all eligible beneficiaries before the ECQ and throughout the SBWS period" and that "employees cannot resign during the ECQ period," according to program description posted on DOF's website. Go, who also sits as a member of the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee monitoring the progress of the implementation of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, has previously cited the need to push the SBWS to support MSME employees. In previous statements, Go said, "Nagpapasalamat po tayo sa ating finance agencies dahil dininig nila ang ating apela na suportahan ang mga MSMEs. Tulungan natin ang mga ito na buhayin ang kanilang negosyo dahil sila rin ang bubuhay sa ating ekonomiya lalo na kapag natapos na ang krisis na ito," "Importante ang suporta na ito para mapagaan ang pinapasan ng mga negosyo at ng mga empleyado nila. Kung gusto nating mas mabilis manumbalik ang sigla ng ating ekonomiya, mas mainam na ngayon pa lang ay tulungan na natin ang maliliit na negosyante na makabangon," he added. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Riza Roidila Mufti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 18:54 631 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd31a4f2 1 Business Airlines,airfare,ceiling-price,floor-prices,transportation-ministry,regulation,physical-distancing,PSBB,large-scale-social-restrictions,seat-capacity Free Domestic airlines welcome the governments plan to increase both ceiling and floor airfares since the policy could reduce airlines burden amid the pandemic that has left travel-related industries devastated, an industry group says. The Indonesia National Air Carrier Association (INACA) said higher ceiling prices could help airlines cope with a new regulation that caps passenger capacity at 50 percent per flight in support of the universal public health advice of physical distancing. The rule was stipulated in Transportation Ministerial Regulation No. 18/2020. It is inevitable that with the decreasing seating capacity, the seat load factor [on airplanes] will be decreased too, and it will increase the cost per seat per aircraft, said Denon on April 16. To reduce our burden, the INACA positively responds to the Transportation Ministry plan to increase the ceiling and floor prices of airline tickets. Civil aviation director general Novie Riyanto said the ministry was currently finalizing the ceiling and floor prices for airfares, which would consider stipulations in the new ministerial regulation on transportation controls to slow the spread of COVID-19. The new ceiling and floor prices, however, will be temporarily imposed during the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB), said Novie as quoted by Kontan on April 16. The increase in ceiling and floor prices is implemented as a compensation for the airlines who have to bear losses because they are only allowed to fill a maximum of 50 percent of their total seat capacity for passengers. The air travel industry is one of the hardest-hit sectors by COVID-19, which has led to a sharp drop in air travel demand globally. Finance Ministry data as of April 17 estimated that the national airlines revenue loss had reached Rp 207 billion as a result of the pandemic. Worship service at center of COVID-19 outbreak South Korean health officials traced more than 1,000 suspected COVID-19 cases to one woman in her 60s who went to church. Officials had managed to prevent a major outbreak of the coronavirus for four weeks, tallying only 30 cases. Patient 31, however, was tested on February 15 and went the next day to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, whose founder claims to be the second coming of Christ. Within a few days, hundreds of new coronavirus cases were connected to the sect. Coronavirus shutdowns apply to churches Legal experts say religious gatherings are not exempt from government bans on social events, despite robust US protections of religious liberty. Many governors called for large events to be canceled starting in mid-March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended holding no meetings of 50 people or more for eight weeks, which affects about 80 percent of religious congregations. Most churches moved services online, but a few refused to stop meeting. If states decide to enforce the ban, the Supreme Court has found governments may substantially burden religious exercise when it serves a legitimate state interest, when the law is generally applicable, and when the burden is as light as possible. The coronavirus is expected to devastate the economy of the Holy Land, which depends heavily on Christian tourism. When more than 100 cases were confirmed in Israel and dozens in the West Bank, the Israeli government mandated a 14-day quarantine for everyone entering the country from March to Easter. The Palestinian Authority instituted similar restrictions in the West Bank. ... 1 You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe now. Subscribers have full digital access. Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke with Maldivian President Ibrahim Solih on the health and economic challenges the COVID-19 pandemic poses for the island nation. The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together. India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 20, 2020 "The special bond between India and Maldives strengthens our resolve to fight this common enemy together," the prime minister tweeted. For latest updates and live news on coronavirus, click here India will stand by its close maritime neighbour and friend in this challenging time, he said. (UPDATED. See below.) Harvard got some bad press today, and deservedly so. First, it turns out that even as Americans are standing in breadlines, Harvard got $9 million from taxpayers. Second, America learned that a Harvard professor thinks children must be pushed into public education to protect them from uneducated, abusive, religious parents. Harvard University has a $40.9-billion endowment, the largest academic endowment in the world. This is separate from the tuition students pay to fund most of the college's day-to-day operations. The annual tuition for Harvard is currently $47,730, but fees, room, and board bring a year at Harvard to $72,000. Harvard may be wealthier than half the countries in the world, but it's still greedy. When the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act sent $9 million in taxpayer money to Harvard, it accepted it: Harvard University will receive nearly $9 million in aid from the federal government through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the Department of Education announced last week. The CARES Act the largest economic stimulus package in American history was signed into law on March 27. It allocates nearly $14 billion to support higher education institutions during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Of the $8,655,748 Harvard is slated to receive, the government has mandated that at least half $4,327,874 be reserved for emergency financial aid grants to students. The Department of Education will distribute the first $6.28 billion to colleges and universities to cover expenses such as course materials, technology, food, and housing students have incurred "related to disruptions in their education due to the COVID-19 outbreak," according to a April 9 press release. Harvard's $40.9-billion endowment is subject to conditions. Still, it's impossible to believe that Harvard has no way to tap into that money to provide "emergency financial aid grants to students" without having to grab taxpayer money. Greed isn't Harvard's only problem this week. An article in the latest issue of Harvard Magazine went viral today. It's entitled "The Risks of Homeschooling" and recounts ideas from Elizabeth Bartholet, the Wasserstein public interest professor of law and faculty director of the law school's Child Advocacy Program. According to Bartholet, keeping children in the hellhole of an American home, one without credentialed parents and, quite possibly, with excess religion, is destroying a generation. The only way to save these children is to put them in public schools you know, the ones that routinely fail American children. Bartholet's most predictable complaint is that the 50 states don't impose strict rules on parents, thereby allowing people without the proper credentials to teach their own children. Another concern is that if children are kept at home, there's no way teachers can report suspected child abuse. If the state's not spying on you, you must be doing something wrong. As proof of this, Bartholet points to Tara Westover's memoir, Educated, about her childhood with survivalist parents who educated her minimally while off the grid. Apparently, one memoir is enough to indict an entire cohort of homeschooling parents. For Bartholet, though, the worst thing is that homeschooling is...Christian! But surveys of homeschoolers show that a majority of such families (by some estimates, up to 90 percent) are driven by conservative Christian beliefs, and seek to remove their children from mainstream culture. Bartholet notes that some of these parents are "extreme religious ideologues" who question science and promote female subservience and white supremacy. These evil Christians have prevented legislators from following the more enlightened German and French legislatures, which have banned homeschooling entirely: She views the absence of regulations ensuring that homeschooled children receive a meaningful education equivalent to that required in public schools as a threat to U.S. democracy. "From the beginning of compulsory education in this country, we have thought of the government as having some right to educate children so that they become active, productive participants in the larger society," she says. [snip] In the United States, Bartholet says, state legislators have been hesitant to restrict the practice because of the Home Schooling Legal Defense Association, a conservative Christian homeschool advocacy group, which she describes as small, well-organized, and "overwhelmingly powerful politically." [snip] "The issue is, do we think that parents should have 24/7, essentially authoritarian control over their children from ages zero to 18? I think that's dangerous," Bartholet says. "I think it's always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless, and to give the powerful ones total authority." The illustration supporting the article shows a sad homeschooled child, locked behind bars in a house made of books, watching public school children play. The books making up the house are "Reading," "Writing," "Arithmatic" [sic], and "Bible." Ironically, Harvard was established in 1636 as a private institution to educate Christian ministers. It's still private, but now it feeds hungrily at the taxpayer trough and teaches its students to hate Christianity. UPDATE: Following the uproar about the $9 million, Harvard announced on April 22 that it would not accept the money. [April 20, 2020] Pre & Post COVID-19 Market Estimates-Noise Detection and Monitoring Market 2020-2024 | Demand from the Manufacturing Industry to Boost Market Growth | Technavio The noise detection and monitoring market is expected to grow by USD 527.61 million during 2020-2024. The report also provides the market impact and new opportunities created due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact can be expected to be significant in the first quarter but gradually lessen in subsequent quarters - with a limited impact on the full-year economic growth, according to the latest market research report by Technavio. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005048/en/ Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Noise Detection and Monitoring Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Request challenges and opportunities that influence COVID-19 pandemic - Request a free sample report of noise detection and monitoring market The manufacturing industry comprises of various operations such as crushing, riveting, shake-out (foundries), punch presses, drilling, plasma jets, cutting torches, and sandblasting. These processes produce harmful noise levels that negatively impact the health of workers. This is necessitating the need for regular inspection of noise levels along with the use of hearing protection equipment. These factors are driving the demand for noise detection and monitoring devices, leading to market growth. 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=IRTNTR43142 As per Technavio, the integration of wireless connectivity will have a positive impact on the market and contribute to its growth significantly over the forecast period. This research report also analyzes other significant trends and market drivers that will influence market growth over 2020-2024. Noise Detection and Monitoring Market: Integration of Wireless Connectivity Prominent vendors are offering noise detection and monitoring devices with built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities. This enables end-users to connect the devices to smartphone, tablet, or computer to remotely monitor noise levels. It also keeps users updated about the battery life and memory capacity of the devices. Such operational benefits offered by the integration of wireless connectivity are expected to have a positive impact on the growth of the global noise detection and monitoring market. "Provision of devices with intrinsic safety approvals and the growing vendor focus on the development of advanced noise data management software will further boost market growth during the forecast period," says a senior analyst at Technavio. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform Noise Detection And Monitoring Market: Segmentation Analysis This market research report segments the noise detection and monitoring market by end-user (industrial and commercial) and geographic landscape (APAC, Europe, MEA, North America, and South America). The North America region led the noise detection and monitoring market in 2019, followed by APAC, Europe, South America, and MEA respectively. However, during the forecast period, APAC is expected to register the highest incremental growth due to an increase in the manufacturing output from emerging markets such as India and China. Technavio's sample reports are free of charge and contain multiple sections of the report, such as the market size and forecast, drivers, challenges, trends, and more. Request a free sample report Some of the key topics covered in the report include: Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Vendors covered Vendor classification Market positioning of vendors Competitive scenario About Technavio 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/20200420005048/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Brisbane, Australia Mon, April 20, 2020 08:58 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2e93b2 2 World Australia,media-industry,Google,Facebook,news,content Free Australia announced Monday it will begin forcing Google and Facebook to pay news companies for content, in a landmark move aimed at shielding traditional media from the tech giants' digital dominance. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said a mandatory code of conduct to be unveiled by July would require the firms to reimburse Australian media companies for using their news and other content. "What we want to see is a level playing field. What we want to see here is a fair go for the companies and for the journalistic content that is prepared," he told Channel 7. It comes just weeks after France's competition authority ordered Google to negotiate with publishers over payments to reuse snippets of content in its news aggregator and Google Search. Google and Facebook have had a huge impact on Australia's news industry, with the number of newspaper and online journalists falling more than 20 percent since 2014 as digital advertising revenues were overwhelmingly captured by the two titans. The new regulations follow an 18-month inquiry into the power of digital platforms by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which recommended an overhaul of existing regulations. Frydenberg said the government was imposing the measures after discussions on a voluntary code failed to make headway, with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on advertising revenues hastening the need for action. "That hasn't made meaningful progress so now we are taking the decisive decision to create a mandatory code, seeking to be the first country in the world to ensure that these social media giants pay for content," he said. A similar move by Spain saw Google shut down its News service there in 2014, while the company has threatened to do the same in response to the new French laws. Australia's new regulations will also cover the sharing of data, and the ranking and display of news content, to be enforced by binding dispute resolution mechanisms and penalties. An estimated 17 million Australians use Facebook each month and spend an average of 30 minutes on the platform a day, while 98 percent of Australian mobile searches use Google. By John Miller and Michael Erman ZURICH/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG said on Monday it will test the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine in a randomized trial to see if the much talked about medicine is actually effective against COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The company hopes to have data on its efficacy by June, a lead researcher for the trial told Reuters. The decades-old generic medicine has been touted by U.S. President Donald Trump and others as a "game changer" treatment for the highly contagious respiratory illness, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized it use in COVID-19 on an emergency basis. But there is not yet scientific proof that it works. There are currently no approved medicines or vaccines specifically for COVID-19. "Right now, we're in a sea of anecdotes, and a lot of non-professional, poorly-informed people are making recommendations that are swaying how the public and patients view this (drug)," Dr. Richard Chaisson, the Johns Hopkins University professor leading the trial, said in an interview. Novartis said it got the go-ahead from the FDA for the trial and it hopes to start recruiting 440 patients within weeks at more than a dozen U.S. sites. Results will be reported as soon as possible, the company added. Use of the drug, which is also approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, has soared since Trump started promoting it. But critics have expressed concern that the administration's advocacy for an unproven medicine has short-circuited the FDA's oversight process. "We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease, said John Tsai, Novartis's top drug developer. "We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study." Companies such as Novartis, Roche and Gilead Sciences Inc are testing older medicines developed to treat other diseases for signs they could be repurposed to tackle the coronavirus epidemic. Story continues Gilead just expanded a trial of its antiviral drug remdesivir, which previously failed as a treatment for Ebola. Still, some fear the championing of hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 has overshadowed potentially dangerous side effects like vision loss and heart problems. Novartis Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan has also said the medicine is one of his biggest hopes against the pandemic. Chaisson said many of the clinical trials to research the drug are "either small or uncontrolled or overly ambitious." He said the Novartis trial is designed to test the drug's effectiveness quickly, and could yield results in June. There are several additional studies of hydroxychloroquine underway, including at the University of Washington and University of Minnesota, as well as work by the National Institutes of Health in the United States. Novartis' Sandoz generics unit has pledged to donate 130 million doses of the medicine. Sanofi has also said it will donate 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to 50 countries. (Reporting by John Miller, editing by John Revill and Bill Berkrot) Press Release April 20, 2020 Senators saddened by Alvarez's passing Senators were saddened by the passing of former Sen. Heherson Alvarez who succumbed to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) Monday, April 20, 2020. He was 80 years old. Senate President Vicente Sotto III said he mourned the passing of a "respectable leader and a good friend," who he had the opportunity to work with when he first joined the Senate in 1992. "I feel more pain with his loss as I and the rest of my colleagues at the Senate and our counterparts at the House of Representatives cannot even give him the proper recognition and reverence due to a former member of Congress, given that his passing comes during this time when the country is gripped by this infectious, fatal virus and a necrological ceremony cannot possibly be held," Sotto said. He said Alvarez's legacy will continue to live on in the hearts of the people and that his name will forever be etched in the country's history. The Senate has been flying its flag at half-mast as a symbol of mourning for the passing of Alvarez. Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto recalled Alvarez's soft heart for the common people. He said Alvarez spent a lifetime championing their rights and freedom. As Alvarez's colleague during the 11th Congress in the House of Representative, Recto said the late senator crafted policies and defended them on the floor with a skill of a seasoned parliamentarian and the undiminished passion of a patriot. "He spent his last years representing one client - Mother Earth - so that our grandchildren will have clean air, safe water, blue skies. He was no longer a politician with the next election in mind, but a statesman concerned about the next generation," Recto said. Senate Majority Leader Migz Zubiri said he was saddened by the death of "one of the original environment advocates." "The Senate has lost another pillar of its rich history, and the saddest part is that we will not be able to properly honor him befitting an honorable statesman due to the Covid-19 protocols which prevents us from doing so," Zubiri said. He said the Senate will sponsor and adopt a resolution honoring Alvarez once Congress resumes the plenary session on May 4. Born in Santiago Isabela on October 26, 1939, Alvarez served as senator from 1987 to 1998. He also served in the House of Representative, was a secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resouces and became the first secretary of Agrarian Reform in 1986. Alvarez studied Liberal Arts at the University of the Philippines (UP) and earned his Master's Degree in Economics and Public Administration from the Harvard University. He was a recipient of the UP Outstanding Alumnus award. He was one of the youngest delegates to the 1971 Constitutional Convention. He opposed the Marcos administration and was a recipient of the Outstanding Human Rights Award by the Fund for Free Expression in New York. Alvarez founded the Earth Savers Movement and authored the resolution declaring April 22 as "Earth Day." He was the first Asian to be honored with the Outstanding Public Policy Achievement Award from the prestigious Washington-based Climate Institute. He authored the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), the centerpiece program of the Aquino administration, and the Law Creating the Department of Energy which was the basic instrument of the Ramos administration in solving the brownouts in 1993. About 80,000 people affected by recent Northern California wildfires are making a multibillion-dollar decision that could have enormous consequences for their lives and the future of the states electric grid. Survivors of catastrophic fires caused by Pacific Gas & Electric Co. power lines in 2015, 2017 and 2018 are now voting on PG&E Corp.s closely watched plan to pay them for their losses and resolve its bankruptcy case. They have until May 15 to cast ballots, and while thousands have already done so, many are holding out, hoping to improve the terms of a $13.5 billion settlement deal or weighing which way they should vote. The outcome will shape the manner in which PG&E compensates people who lost property or loved ones in the 2015 Butte Fire, the 2017 Wine Country wildfires and the 2018 Camp Fire. Those disasters collectively killed well over 100 people and razed thousands of homes from the North Bay to the Sierra Nevada foothills in Butte County, where the town of Paradise was almost totally destroyed in the Camp Fire. PG&E needs two-thirds of the fire victims to approve its plan, which covers both the parent corporation and its utility subsidiary. The bankruptcy judge could use votes from another group of creditors such as insurance claims to approve the plan, but he is unlikely to do so, given that the victims are at the heart of the case. While most of those who have voted so far supported the company plan, attorneys say, a vocal group of remaining victims is sharply critical. Others simply have not decided. Victims can also change their votes until the May 15 deadline passes. People are overwhelmed and theyre scared, said Helen Sedwick, a Sonoma County resident whose home burned in the 2017 Nuns Fire. Theyre scared that somebody elses vote is going to affect them. PG&E and lawyers for many fire survivors say the companys bankruptcy plan is the best way to get victims sorely needed funds to help rebuild their lives and the only real option on the table. But some are deeply dissatisfied with the way their claims would be treated if the plan passes. Among their concerns is the fact that half of the settlement, or $6.75 billion, should be funded through PG&E Corp. stock, whose value has become even more difficult to forecast because of the market volatility caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The settlement that a group of victims lawyers inked with the company in December bases its calculations of the stocks value on an estimate of future profits. One financial analyst said this month that the stock portion would really be worth $4.85 billion. Attorneys for a creditors committee of fire victims in the bankruptcy case recently tried to secure a guaranteed $6.75 billion in stock so if shares decline in value, more would be issued to make up for it but they have so far been unsuccessful. Victims would not receive stock directly; the company would fund a trust that would sell shares to pay claims over time. PG&E Corp. and subsidiary Pacific Gas and Electric Co. continue to work diligently to obtain approval for their bankruptcy exit plan in court, said spokeswoman Lynsey Paulo. The company wants to get victims paid fairly and in a timely manner, she said. Paulo said PG&E believes it is on track to have its bankruptcy plan approved by June 30, a deadline it must meet in order to use new state funding that will shield it from future fire costs. The company would fund the victims trust as soon as possible thereafter, she said. The future of PG&E is also at stake as voting progresses. If PG&E does not meet the June 30 deadline, the company could be forced to put itself up for sale, according to a deal it struck with Gov. Gavin Newsom. The state of California, or someone the state supports, could be the buyer. Some victims lawyers have warned that the result of that process would delay payments to their clients by years and give them far less money in the end. Sedwick, the Sonoma County fire victim, said that argument feels a little bit like theyre putting a gun to our heads and saying, Vote yes or else. I dont like to have to make a decision feeling like theres a gun to my head, and I resent them setting it up that way, Sedwick said. She said she hasnt yet decided how she will vote on the bankruptcy plan. Attorneys are hosting video conference calls to discuss the voting process with their clients, since pandemic restrictions are preventing them from meeting in person. Many clients are voting through a website, but at least one large law firm has set up a way for clients to text or email their votes. Others are casting a physical ballot in the mail. Thus far, its almost universal that theyre voting in favor of it, said San Diego attorney Gerald Singleton of the 7,000-some fire victims he represents. There certainly are a handful of people who say no, and I get that. I completely support it. Everybody has to do what they think is right. Singleton said most of his clients have not voted yet. He is recommending they vote yes. UC Hastings College of the Law Professor Jared Ellias, who has closely followed the case, said the tenuous voting process is likely unprecedented in nature for Chapter 11 bankruptcies. The intense lobbying by critics opposed to the plan also makes it stand out, he said. You have these transmission networks where folks who dont support the plan can make the case to other fire victims without having to go through the lawyers, Ellias said. That is remarkable. The creditors committee of fire victims originally had 11 members. Three of them have now resigned in protest over the way the bankruptcy plan would treat the claims of victims. They can now freely speak out about their concerns. Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes Karen Gowins, a survivor of the Camp Fire who was the most recent committee member to resign, said the companys current plan just really scares me to death, citing her professional background as an accountant. She doubts that PG&E will actually be able to provide $13.5 billion for victims. Gowins expects PG&Es plan to prevail. But it makes me very sad, she said in an interview after her resignation this month. I dont want my name on any part of it. Its just not the right thing to do. Some victims who object to the PG&E plan and their lawyers are attracted to an alternate idea that would transform the company into a customer-owned cooperative akin to a credit union. That proposal was endorsed by a coalition of local government leaders led by San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. But it doesnt have any committed financing and has never been formally advanced in the bankruptcy case. Theyre telling (victims) to vote no but offering no viable alternative plan, said Amanda Riddle, a Bay Area attorney who represents survivors of fires PG&E caused. Former PG&E executive Dan Richard, who has advised the coalition behind the co-op plan, said the group has discussed its vision with banks, and one major lender was particularly interested in leading the financing. He acknowledged that its not set in stone, though, as the co-op proposal is currently in a backup position to the PG&E plan. What weve got is a high degree of confidence, but we dont have the actual formal commitment at this point, Richard said. Fire victims have also sought to preserve as much of the $13.5 billion settlement as possible. Last month, PG&E agreed to plead guilty to 85 felony counts, 84 of them for involuntary manslaughter, over the Camp Fire. The company must pay $4 million in connection with its guilty plea, and it originally sought to use the $13.5 billion victims fund for those costs, angering fire survivors. Those costs will now be paid through a separate $11 billion insurance claims settlement, an arrangement that U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali saw to in an order last week. The judge is allowing the company to use the fund to pay about $19 million in administrative costs. Additionally, the Camp Fire criminal case was supposed to advance in court this Friday, when PG&E was scheduled to be arraigned. That court date has now been delayed to May 26, according to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey. J.D. Morris is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jd.morris@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thejdmorris The National Grange is suing an Oregon-based business called The Hemp Grange, alleging unauthorized use of its federally registered trademark name. The National Grange, formerly known as The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, was founded in 1867 to promote the interests of farmers and farming in the United States and has a network of more than 2,000 local chapters in the country. It contends the hemp marketing and retail business in Oregon is unfairly benefiting from the National Granges reputation and is harming the National Grange reputation by suggesting the two businesses are somehow related. Defendants use of the name and mark The Hemp Grange with goods and services related to those offered by the Grange is therefore likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception as to the affiliation, connection, or association of the The Hemp Grange with the Grange, or as to the origin, sponsorship, or approval of Defendants goods and services by the Grange, the suit says. The Hemp Grange, according to its website, is a CBD manufacturer and retailer ''specializing in the extraction of high-quality CBD and sale of cannabis products.'' The suit, filed in federal court in Medford, alleges trademark infringement and seeks a court order barring The Hemp Grange from using Grange in its name and requiring the Oregon business to destroy its business cards and advertisements and cancel registration for the Internet domain name thehempgrange.com. Messages left for Thomas Dubiel at TheHempGrange in Grants Pass were not immediately returned Monday. Attorneys for the National Grange became aware of the Oregon business earlier this year after it had registered its website domain name. National Grange lawyers tried to contact Dubiel by mail and by phone. In a March phone call, Dubiel and another man reached at The Hemp Grange by lawyers for the plaintiffs claimed that their use of the name didnt violate the National Granges trademark rights and invited the Grange to bring a lawsuit, according to the suit now filed. -- Maxine Bernstein Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212 Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian Subscribe to Facebook page Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter By Express News Service BENGALURU: Jagajeenram Nagar police on Monday arrested 59 residents including a woman who created ruckus and assaulted medical staff during quarantine. Five FIRs lodged and they have booked under section IPC 353, 307 under NDMA Act, 353, 332, 324, 201. "We have taken them into custody for interrogation. Officials needed to quarantine some people who had primary and secondary contact with three COVID-19 patients," Additional Commisioner of Police (West) Soumendu Mukherjee said. "I met the Chief Minister and briefed him about yesterday's attack. He has told us to act strictly which I told the same to my officials. We won't tolerate such acts by anyone. I am going to Padarayanapura now," Home Minister Basavraj Bommai said. @BBMPCOMM & @DCPWestBCP deny assault but cases booked for vandalism. Videos show physical assault took place. Anusha Ravi Sood (@anusharavi10) April 19, 2020 It may be recalled that residents of Padarayanapura on Sunday evening went on a rampage and vandalised a pandal and police check-post when a team of BBMP officials along with police arrived there to take 58 secondary contacts of a deceased COVID-19 patient into quarantine. As the patient died on Sunday, the BBMP health officials drew up a list of secondary contacts who had to be quarantined and tested for coronavirus. Police sources said that all these 58 people had been identified and it was decided to quarantine them at a hotel. 25 BBMP staffers and police personnel went to the houses of the contacts and convinced 10-12 of them to be quarantined. "Though they all cooperated and were ready to come with us to the hotel where they were supposed to be quarantined, other residents in the locality started demanding that they need not be taken out and arrangements be made to home-quarantine them," he added. "While we tried to convince them that it was being done in the interest of other residents in the locality, about 200 people went on the rampage, vandalising the pandal and chairs, where police staff would sit and the area was sealed off," said a police officer, who was part of team. Padarayanapura has been sealed off since April 11 after five COVID-19 positive cases were found in one house. Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan asserted that doubling rate of COVID-19 cases has increased from three days before imposition of lockdown in March to 9.7 days now. "The rate of growth of new cases has been steadying for a while. As per the data received today by 8 a.m., over the past seven days, the doubling rate is 7.2 days, for the past 14 days it is 6.2, and over past 3 days it stands at 9.7. Before the lockdown, India's doubling rate was about 3 days," he said. "Same way, if you look at growth factor -- from 15th March to 31st, it was 2.1, whereas in April it has come down to 1.2 which is a good drop of 40 percent which is a positive indication and is really encouraging for the whole country," he said. The figures indicate that the total number of cases are not increasing and may start stabilising, he added. Harsh Vardhan's comments came after he reviewed the situation at Delhi's Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital. Source: IANS Advertisement The Health Minister said that the doubling rate is lower despite the fact that number of tests done every day have increased by almost 14 times. The much-awaited expansion of the single-member Madhya Pradesh cabinet under Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan might take place on Tuesday, sources said on Monday. "The Cabinet expansion will take place tomorrow (Tuesday) around noon," official sources said, adding that the size of the ministry is likely to be kept small. The exact number of probable inductees is not known yet. The cabinet has not been expanded since Chouhan took oath as chief minister for the fourth time on March 23, after his predecessor Kamal Nath of the Congress stepped down. However, Chouhan could not get time to set up the council of ministers amidst the coronavirus pandemic. "Since March 23, Chouhan has served as the lone member of Cabinet for the 28 days, which is a record of sorts in the country," BJP sources said. They said that five to six ministers are likely to be inducted into the cabinet. Opposition Congress has been slamming Chouhan and the BJP over absence of council of ministers at a time when the state is battling surge in COVID-19 cases. Senior Congress leaders Kapil Sibal and Vivek Tankha on Monday petitioned President Ram Nath Kovind, arguing that Chouhan government in its current format is unconstitutional. They also slammed absence of a full-time Health minister in Madhya Pradesh amidst the coronavirus crisis. For BJP, it will be a tightrope walk to accommodate six loyalists of former Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia who had joined the BJP. All six were ministers in the erstwhile Kamal Nath government. It is likely that only two-three leadersfrom the Scindia camp might be taken on board by Chouhan, sources said, adding that the name of former Health minister Tulsi Silavat is doing rounds. Besides the then six ministers, 16 other MLAs of the Congress had also resigned from the party, which eventually culminated into the collapse of Nath government. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As record numbers of New Jerseyans file for unemployment benefits in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic 718,000 in the past four weeks is there enough money in the state till to keep on paying? The state is assuring workers that the Unemployment Trust Fund will not run out of money. New Jerseys fund is actually pretty robust by New Jersey standards, especially when compared to the Great Recession, when it did actually run out of money after lawmakers for years raided billions of dollars from it to pay for other programs. That crisis did not mean workers were denied benefits, but the state was forced to borrow from the federal government and later enacted a law banning raids from the fund. While we dont know how long the pandemic will last, or how many unemployment claims will be filed, we are confident in our ability to continue to provide benefits to all New Jerseyans who are eligible, the states Department of Labor said. But steps have to be taken by the state to ensure the trust funds health. Calculations by The Tax Foundation show the trust fund could run out of money in 13 weeks if the state doesnt take any steps. The state essentially has three options to stay solvent, said Jared Walczak, director of state tax policy with The Tax Foundation. It can supplement the fund with money from elsewhere in the budget, take out federal loans or raise unemployment insurance taxes. States are rightly concerned about raising unemployment insurance taxes on businesses right now, since the priority is ensuring that businesses are open to rehire laid off workers once the health crisis abates, he said. Given the ability to take out federal loans, most states are likely to avoid raising unemployment insurance taxes during the immediate crisis. But it may not be that easy, Walczak said. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Walczak said his projection is based on U.S. Department of Labor solvency levels, historic claims data and present-day initial and continuing claims. The estimate takes into account how solvent New Jerseys fund is, its reserves and uses a model that looks at New Jerseys worst three years from the past two decades. Based on recent numbers, New Jersey is paying benefits to about three times as many recipients than the 169,561 average from its worst three years, Walczak said. And those numbers grow every week, he noted. At the169,561 average, he said, the fund could cover about 36 weeks. At the current pace, it comes out to 13 weeks. GIVING THE NUMBERS CONTEXT The state Department of Labor didnt address the specifics of the Tax Foundation report, but it offered some additional information. The trust fund is comprised of both employer and worker contributions. These are used to pay unemployment benefits, the labor department said. The bulk of these payments is collected quarterly, with due dates of April 30, July 31, Oct. 31 and Jan. 31, so the trust fund balance fluctuates. (Last Monday, the state Senate passed a bill that would allow small businesses to apply to delay paying the taxes collected on behalf of the state, including unemployment compensation contributions). New Jersey is in the fortunate position of having had a healthy trust fund balance when the pandemic began: $2.58 billion as of March 31, the labor department said. Heres how the balance has changed since the end of December 2019: Balance 12/31/19: $2.89 billion Balance 01/31/20: $2.95 billion Balance 02/29/20: $2.79 billion Balance 03/31/20: $2.58 billion Balance 4/10/20: $2.40 billion The state labor department said the CARES Act provides for states to be reimbursed by the federal government for certain unemployment costs, including the $600 weekly additional payment, the 13 weeks of extended benefits, the unemployment compensation for gig workers, freelancers, independent contractors and the self-employed, as well as the first week of initial claims. If a state trust fund dips to a certain point, it can receive interest-free loans from the federal government, it said. But Wakczak of The Tax Foundation said the solvency level where New Jersey started the year means the state would indeed have to pay interest on any federal loans. Although New Jerseys unemployment compensation trust fund is in better shape now than it was after years of state officials raiding it for other purposes, it remains underfunded, and the states resources are inadequate for even a typical recession, to say nothing of the crisis we now face, Wakczak said. New Jerseys weekly unemployment payouts for the past five weeks were: 3/02-3/06: $42.9 million 3/09-3/13: $45.9 million 3/16-3/20: $47.4 million 3/23-3/27: $57.9 million 3/30-4/03: $89.8 million Total: $283.9 million New Jersey isnt the only state facing challenging numbers. According to the Tax Foundation, six states are in the position to pay out fewer than 10 weeks. California is the worst, with only about 26 days worth of funding for unemployment claims, the report said. Overall, only six states would be able to pay out a years worth of benefits, it said. 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. NJ Advance Media Statehouse reporter Samantha Marcus contributed to this report. Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter. Workers of the Spanish pizza restaurant chain Telepizza went on strike on Saturday after 11 employees were sanctioned for refusing to work in unprotected environments. Days before, Glovo, Deliveroo and Uber Eats workers staged a protest in Madrid, which was dispersed by the police. Strikes and protests are growing against the Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos governments murderous policyendorsed by the Stalinist Workers Commissions (CCOO) and social democratic General Union of Labour (UGT) unionsof sending millions of non-essential workers back to work, no matter the death toll. Spains COVID-19 deaths rose to 20,453 yesterday, while the number of recorded infections has passed 195,944, including 30,000 health care workers. The government now plans to make children, one of the most contagious age groups, leave home next week and return to school, as part of its de-escalation of confinement measures. The vast majority of workers oppose this policy. Last Saturday, Telepizza workers went on strike, called by the General Confederation of Labour (Confederacion General del Trabajo-CGT), their third strike this year. While previously they struck against precarious jobs and wages, now they are striking against managements decision to impose disciplinary sanctions on 11 workers, including suspending them from employment and wages for 20 days, after they refused to work without personal protective equipment (PPE) and health and safety protocols. Telepizza workers have been denouncing the lack of health and safety equipment for weeks. When the state of alarm and lockdown was announced three weeks ago in Spainlifted partially last week for millions of non-essential workersTelepizza was classified as an essential service. Many Telepizza staff opposed this, saying junk food offered by Telepizza is not an essential service. This did not stop the Madrid region from striking a deal with the firm to offer meals to 12,000 schoolchildren from low-wage families while schools remain closed. The following day, workers in Palencia decided to not go to work. One worker told El Norte de Castilla: Most of the workers agreed not to go to work. So we didnt go because we consider it unsafe and we are not offering an essential service, like supermarkets. On Saturday, the strike (huelga) became a trending topic on Twitter, #HuelgaTelepizzaCovid, with tens of thousands of tweets in support from workers in similar situations. One worker wrote, All my support to our sanctioned colleagues. All of us have to do the same. I hope the example sets a spark. Self-organisation and strike! While the CGT has been forced to call the strike amid mounting anger, in truth it has done everything possible to isolate the strikers. While it is smaller than the CCOO and UGT, it controls layers of the union bureaucracy in auto manufacturing (GM, SEAT, Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen, and Ford), as well as in the civil services, post offices, banking, health and education sectors. It has received over a million votes in trade union elections, but has not mounted any broader action during the pandemic and is working to isolate the Telepizza strike. CCOO and the UGT have remained completely silent on the strike, working as policemen for the PSOE-Podemos government. Both union confederations have sanctioned the policy of the government and companies to not provide safe working environments and PPE, declaring the day before the government ordered millions back to work that such precautions are difficult to apply in the vast majority of workplaces. On Thursday, nearly 100 riders from Glovo, Deliveroo and Uber Eatsthe on-demand courier services that purchase, pick up, and deliver meals and food productsprotested in the centre of Madrid against pay cuts, precarious conditions and the lack of PPE. Protests also happened in Seville, Malaga and Cartagena. All erupted outside the official trade unions. Protesting on their motorbikes and bicycles in the empty streets of Madrid, they demanded the companies provide them with PPE and a bonus for working in an unhealthy environment. The companies have refused so far, claiming the workers are independent contractors and therefore the company is not required to cover these costs. Workers at Glovo, a Spanish start-up founded in 2015 and valued at over $1 billion, also went to company headquarters in Madrid to protest the unilateral reduction of the base rate, from 2.50 to 1.20 per order. Soon after, police intervened to identify protesters and disperse the demonstration. This represents the second open confrontation between police and workers since the start of the pandemic. A few weeks ago, police assaulted steelworkers in the Basque country protesting against being forced back to unsafe, non-essential jobs amid the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. Podemosa petty-bourgeois populist organisation, hailed by the pseudo-left as Europes next radical democratic party, after the defeat of the Syriza (Coalition of the Radical Left) government in Greeceis showing its true face. Syriza went down in history for blatantly betraying its election promises, imposing the harshest austerity measures and anti-refugee policies of any recent Greek government. Podemos is following suit, using its time in government to force millions of workers back to work amid a deadly pandemic, a move endangering the lives of countless thousands of workers. The criminal role played by Podemos exposes its allies such as Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn, Jean-Luc Melenchon of La France Insoumise, and Katja Kipping of Die Linke, and is a warning of what would happen if they came to power in the US, UK, France or Germany. While it is not yet known how many infections and deaths will result from this policy, it is clear that the progressive PSOE-Podemos government is terrified at growing social opposition to their policies and is working with the armed services to prepare repression of the working class. On Sunday, the head of the General Staff of the Civil Guard, Colonel Jose Manuel Santiago, commented overtly on this in the daily press conference on the pandemic. He said that one of the Civil Guards functions in the pandemic is to minimize the opposition climate to the governments crisis management. He made this remark while discussing how the Spanish government monitors fake news, which, Santiago said, is provoking social stress. The Interior Ministry was forced to make a statement hours later, claiming this was a lapse on Santiagos part. Santiagos statement underscores the terror of the PSOE and Podemos at growing opposition among workers to their back-to-work policy amid the pandemic, and highlights the growing sentiment in ruling circles to use the army against the population. According to a poll on Saturday by El Pais, 59 percent of the population supports the argument that Confinement must be kept to the maximum, even if this implies greater economic deterioration and more unemployment. The role of Podemos, which includes significant sections of the officer corps within its ranks, is a warning to workers in Spain and internationally. It is critical to fight for the formation of rank-and-file action committees in workplaces and factories, to fight to defend lives and livelihoods and to build a new revolutionary leadership in the working class fighting for a socialist perspective against Podemos. Only through the formation of such committees can the Spanish working class fight to halt all non-essential production, and provide protection to all workers in essential industries. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ad Age, the most-trusted source for the advertising, marketing and media industry, today released its prestigious 2020 Ad Age A-List, representing the best advertising agencies and production companies in the country. Selected by the Ad Age editorial staff from hundreds of submissions, these awards honor the forward-thinking leaders, creators and innovators in the industry today. "While no one can predict what can happen this year given the effects of the global pandemic on the economy, those on Ad Age's Agency A-List have shone in 2019 and are positioned to continue to succeed in the future," said Ad Age Executive Editor Judann Pollack. Wieden+Kennedy tops the Ad Age A-List as Agency of the Year for the third consecutive year in a row. Their win marks the first three-peat since Ad Age first began naming an Agency of the Year in 1974. "Wieden+Kennedy has led the list for three years running not just because of its outstanding creative work, but also for its independent spirit and willingness to break the rules. This is the agency that gave us the Bud Light knight, KFC's ever-changing cast of colonels and Nike's 'Dream with Us' ads featuring Serena Williams. W+K also broke industry barriers against category conflict last year by working for two rivals in the same industry: McDonald's and KFC," said Pollack. Wieden tops the chart of 10 other notable shops that defined the industry in 2019, including Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, Johannes Leonardo, TBWA, Mindshare, BBDO, McCann Worldwide, Code and Theory, Weber Shandwick and Humanaut. The Ad Age A-List also honors the year's Standouts and Agencies to Watch. Other Ad Age A-List honors include: Agency of the Decade: Droga5 Coming off its acquisition by Accenture Interactive, Droga5 was named Ad Age's Agency of the Decade, for 10 back-to-back years of groundbreaking ideas that challenged advertising convention while pushing the industry as a whole to think bigger. While many speculated whether the deal would extinguish not just the agency's independence but also its creative firepower, 2019 proved just the opposite, with the shop scoring more creative hits for The New York Times , HBO and Harley Davidson . , HBO and . Production Company of the Year: Smuggler Smuggler topped Ad Age's Production Company A-List for the fifth time since it was founded, bolstered by groundbreaking projects like Skittle's Broadway musical that ran on Super Bowl Sunday as well as other notable production such as Sandy Hook Promise's back-to-school ad in disguise and Apple's entertaining film "The Underdogs." back-to-school ad in disguise and Apple's entertaining film "The Underdogs." Brand CMO of the Year: Fernando Machado , Global CMO, Restaurant Brands International , Global CMO, Restaurant Brands International Burger King's marketing has been reborn since Machado joined in 2014, following an award-winning career at Unilever. He led Burger King to new creative heights including the Whopper Detour campaign that rewarded diners with one-cent Whoppers if they were near McDonald's, a Super Bowl spot featuring Andy Warhol , and the launch of the Popeye's chicken sandwich that put the chain on the map. The engineer by trade is now helping to guide Popeyes and Tim Hortons in new directions. Whoppers if they were near McDonald's, a Super Bowl spot featuring , and the launch of the Popeye's chicken sandwich that put the chain on the map. The engineer by trade is now helping to guide Popeyes and in new directions. Executive of the Year: Brian Whipple , Group Chief Executive, Accenture Interactive , Group Chief Executive, Accenture Interactive Brian Whipple , Accenture Interactive's CEO, earned this year's nod for having the foresight to bolster his company's technological muscle with the power of creative ingenuity from companies like Droga5 and other hotshops, including Spanish agency Shackleton, social media outfit Adaptly and design firm Fjord. The Ad Age A-List also recognizes the Comeback Agency of the Year, Multicultural Agency of the Year, International Agency of the Year, Creative Agency of the Year, In-House Agency of the Year, Media Agency of the Year, Data/Analytics Agency of the Year and Design Agency of the Year as well as 2019's other top production companies. To view all 2020 Ad Age A-List recipients, go to AdAge.com/AList2020. About Ad Age Ad Age is a daily must-read for an influential audience of decision makers and disruptors across the advertising, marketing and media landscape. Created in 1930 to cover a burgeoning industry with objectivity, accuracy and fairness, Ad Age is built on a bedrock on journalistic integrity. Today, Ad Age is a global media brand focused on curated creativity, data and analysis, people and culture, and innovation and forecasting. Ad Age is Important to Important People. SOURCE Ad Age Logo of the Exxon Mobil Corp is seen at the Rio Oil and Gas Expo and Conference in Rio de Janeiro PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria (Reuters) - Nigeria's Rivers State has quarantined 22 Exxon Mobil Corp. employees for violating an order introduced last month restricting movement into the state to curb the spread of the coronavirus, its governor said on Friday. River State's capital Port Harcourt is the hub of the oil industry in Africa's biggest producer of crude. "Security agencies arrested 22 staff of Exxon Mobil who came into the state from neighbouring Akwa Ibom State in violation of the extant executive order restricting movement into the state," Governor Nyesom Wike said. "We do not know the coronavirus status of these individuals." Wike said the workers were quarantined in line with relevant health protocols and will be charged in court. The state has recorded two cases of coronavirus so far. Exxon Mobil said in a statement it was working with the Rivers State government to resolve the matter. An oil workers union said Exxon staff coming into Port Harcourt on essential duty had been arrested and quarantined. It demanded the establishment of testing centres in Port Harcourt so oil workers going to rigs could be tested, rather than being held in quarantine for two weeks first. On Monday, Nigeria extended lockdowns in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun State for an additional 14 days to combat the virus. The West African country has closed its air and land borders and imposed curbs on cargo vessels allowed to dock at its ports. The number of cases has been rising in Nigeria, with 442 cases so far and 13 deaths. Nigeria's petroleum regulator has ordered oil and gas companies to reduce their offshore workforce and move to 28-day staff rotations instead of the usual 14 days as part of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus. (Reporting by Tife Owolabi, Camillus Eboh and Libby George; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by David Clarke) Angela Wandinger-Ness says going through the sweeping coronavirus pandemic bears some resemblance to the experience she had when the Chernobyl nuclear plant went into meltdown more than three decades ago. The University of New Mexico pathologist was doing postdoctoral fellowship training in Heidelberg, Germany, at the time. Wandinger-Ness says the community, deeply concerned about radioactivity, took the Geiger counters she and her colleagues were using for research but didnt know how to use them and didnt really know the meaning of them. This pandemic is quite a bit different but the (German) community was really freaked out because there was a lot of misinformation given out, she says. A lot of denial that had happened. Wandinger-Ness, who has been at UNM since 1998, has a long list of honors and achievements. An academic who also calls herself a serial inventor and entrepreneur, she has been awarded six patents with six more pending. Her research has centered on some particular types of enzymes and their potential as drug targets for treating cancer. Wandinger-Ness latest accolade is the 2020 Lifetime Mentor Award, given by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. It recognizes her for mentoring 270 students over her 29-year teaching career, particularly minorities, women and others who are under-represented in STEM fields. Part of her motivation comes from being the daughter of German immigrants who moved to the U.S. after World War II and from feeling the animosity many still held toward Germany. Movies at the time would portray Germans always as evil people, and kids would sometimes call her Nazi. So Wandinger-Ness learned to keep her German heritage to herself something she could do because being white and growing up in this country, its very easy to blend in. But she saw that wasnt true for everyone. Minorities in this country dont always have that luxury and get called out for it, she says. I think its very important to be cognizant of that and to promote diversity at all levels diversity of perspective, diversity in all shapes and forms. Did you always know you were going to be a scientist? I thought I would be a biologist. I really liked biology always. What sparked your interest? Just the natural world around me. I just find nature and just being outdoors so interesting. Biology fascinated me. I never really was interested in medicine, per se. I didnt want to be a physician. Im a bit squeamish. I think the key thing that probably distinguishes people who like science as opposed to medicine is that (some) want to help others, and they get gratification about doing something now. Immediate feedback and gratification. Thats not what science is. Science is something that is a thought process. Most scientists are introverts. It involves a lot of thinking and careful planning. You do experiments, and they may not work and so theres a lack of immediate gratification. Why is mentoring so important to you? If you ask any group you ask students or older people, it doesnt matter theres always a few people who were extremely influential in their lives. It could be a teacher, it could be a mentor and a mentor could have a broad definition. It could be a friend, a church member, they can have many different titles. It doesnt have to be in your field, I dont think. Its someone who gives you career advice and helps you find your path and your passion. And so that was certainly true for me. These people are so instrumental in our lives, and I feel like thats something I wanted to give back. Who were your most important mentors? First of all, my parents. I was always interested in science, and my parents certainly promoted that. And then I remember being in a biology class in eighth grade. That teacher was extremely demanding, and I just loved it. It was really my passion. But then there were times where I wasnt sure that I could persist. For example, when I was finishing my graduate education, I really was sick and tired of people telling me what I needed to learn. I knew the things that interested me, and I was getting a degree in biochemistry and I really hated physical chemistry. I took it twice. I managed to pass it, but I really didnt like it and so then I (thought) earning a Ph.D., I just have to do more of this stuff for another five years? Im really not interested in that. So I stopped out, and I worked in a laboratory as a technician. The person who I worked for treated me as if I were (a) graduate student, and he really taught me both experimental skills and also the intellectual thinking ability about science. That motivated me to apply to graduate school. What was your first job? My first job was when I was an undergraduate. I started working in clothing retail sales. It made me realize Im really not cut out for sales. How do you equate being a scientist with being an entrepreneur? The best analogy for being an academic scientist is that youre an entrepreneur, because you have to produce a product, you have to hire your people, you have to raise the money and you have to advertise your product. You have to promote yourself. You have to put your science out there in the public view to a certain extent. Which aspect of this do you find the most difficult? Right now, I would say to you that making people recognize the difference between facts and alternative facts, and fiction and science fiction. I think social media is a good thing because information is disseminated, but theres a flip side. You give voice to a lot of people who can say a lot of things online that may not be true, and its very hard to discount that. So the challenge scientists have is really how to communicate with the public in a way that can be heard and that can be accepted. What makes you successful? I guess being comfortable with yourself and what you want, and then trying to pursue those things as best you can, but not taking rejection as an indictment that youre a failure as a person. Take feedback and use it to improve. I remember having a dance teacher who once said, If I critique you, its because I think youre worth it. I guess also following the things that Im interested in. I think science is very collaborative and collegial and I really like that aspect of it. Do you have any regrets? Not necessarily. I think as a scientist, you have to be an optimist and persevere, and so I always tell my trainees that you make a decision and then you dont worry whether its right or wrong. You just move forward, and if you dont like where you are, you make a new decision. Its better than saying I shoulda, coulda, woulda. You say, OK, I took this opportunity, I learned this, this is what Im taking away and now Im going to make a new decision. For me, always moving forward is really important. One-on-One with Angela Wandinger-Ness THE BASICS: Angela Wandinger-Ness, 62, born in Asbury Park, New Jersey; Post-doctorate fellow, European Molecular Biology Lab, 1986-1991; Ph.D. in biochemistry, UCLA, 1985; bachelors in biochemistry, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 1979. POSITIONS: UNM Health Sciences Center, associate pathology chair, since 2019; UNM School of Medicine Biomedical Research Education Program, director of post-doctoral training, since 2019; Victor and Ruby Hansen Surface Endowed Professor in Cancer Cell Biology and Clinical Translation, since 2015; Director, CURE Native American Undergraduate and High School Student Training Program, director, since 2014; Teaching/researcher at the UNM Department of Pathology since 1998; Northwestern University, assistant professor of biochemistry, molecular and cell biology, 1991-1998; European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany, 1986-1991. Cases of the coronavirus in New Jersey increased Monday to at least 88,806 cases with 4,377 reported deaths while Gov. Phil Murphy noted the outbreak appeared to be slowing in the state. Officials announced 3,528 new positive tests while expressing hope that a sweeping lockdown in the state and aggressive social distancing were working to beat back the contagious virus. It is slowing, Gov. Phil Murphy said during an afternoon briefing with reporters in Trenton. We have achieved relative stability. Were now seeing those rates slow. The number of newly hospitalized patients are on a downward trend. The latest totals include 177 more deaths. The number of patients hospitalized with coronavirus or suspected of being infected by the pathogen has declined and may be a better sign of where New Jersey is in the outbreak, rather than positive tests, the governor added. The numbers on hospitalizations are a definitive measure, Murphy said. This data helps inform our decisions as we look to a re-opening strategy. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage Heres a roundup of coronavirus news: N.J. releases statewide list of coronavirus cases, deaths in nursing homes: New Jersey officials after weeks of refusing to release a list of nursing homes where the patients have died or tested positive for coronavirus on Monday released an accounting of facilities where COVID-19 has taken a toll among the elderly. The list includes nearly every long-term care facility in the state. There have been 1,779 deaths, with 10,500 cases testing positive at 450 long-term care facilities, according to officials. Gov. Murphy plans to give 'broad blueprint this week for re-opening N.J. from coronavirus lockdown: Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday he would provide a a broad blueprint by the end of the week on how the state will begin to re-open the near-lockdown restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak and return to some new normalcy. N.J. coronavirus outbreak increases to 88,806 cases with 4,377 deaths: The coronavirus outbreak in New Jersey increased Monday to 88,806 cases with 4,377 deaths as officials confirmed more than 3,528 new positive tests while expressing hope that increase in cases has continued to slow after aggressive social distancing that has put the state in a near lockdown for weeks. Where is the coronavirus in N.J.? See the latest map, update on county-by-county cases. After the deaths of 13 EMS workers, coronavirus is forcing some N.J. squads to drop service: Thirteen EMS providers from around the state have died from complications of COVID-19 since March 31, according to the New Jersey EMS Task Force and multiple first-aid squads. And hundreds of other EMS workers have fallen sick with COVID-19 symptoms in recent weeks, causing a strain on rescue units, nearly a dozen members of the emergency response community told NJ Advance Media. Reopen churches during the coronavirus lockdown, N.J. state senator says: A New Jersey state senator called on Gov. Phil Murphy to reopen churches and houses of worship in New Jersey closed during the coronavirus pandemic. Republican state Sen. Mike Doherty launched a petition Sunday asking for houses of worship to be reopened with social distancing measures. The petition has just under 700 signatures as of Monday morning. Coronavirus cases in the United States: There were 778,176 cases reported in the country as of Sunday afternoon, according to information from the the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. 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. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter. NJ Advance Media staff writers Matt Arco, Brent Johnson, Jeff Goldman, Katie Kausch, Ted Sherman and Keith Sargeant contributed to this report. Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook. A Rio Tinto contractor who tested positive for COVID-19 after travelling to Bali in March had not been to any mine sites since arriving back in WA, the companys iron ore boss has revealed. The workers virus was initially picked up last week during a quick blood test before Rio Tinto flights which identifies viral antibodies. The initial test came back positive and further testing revealed he had COVID-19. The worker had not visited any mine sites. Credit:AFP The worker copped a lashing from Premier Mark McGowan on Saturday, who described him as "selfish and irresponsible" for travelling to Bali during March. The federal government banned all international departures on March 24 and four days later implemented the two-week mandatory quarantine period. Wearing blue rubber gloves, Emmanuel Nambo and his wife, Aida Mariano, signed the closing documents for their long-awaited home, the one they helped build themselves. At the South Side offices of Habitat for Humanity of San Antonio, the first-time homebuyers slid the paperwork underneath a plastic glass barrier back to Esperanza Ramon, the Habitat official overseeing the closing last week. Through the same opening in the barrier, she handed them the keys to their new house. The couples raised eyebrows were the only visible signs of their joy pale-blue masks, a defense against the novel coronavirus, covered their smiles. Ramons face also was covered with a mask, but her eyes were twinkling, and it seemed she was smiling, too. We were happy with the response from everyone, Nambo, 35, said in Spanish through an interpreter. Without Habitat, we wouldnt be able to have our home. The couple, who have three young sons, are one of 15 families whose celebration of their new Habitat homes was profoundly altered by the COVID-19 pandemic and governmental orders barring public gatherings. Dedication by video The nonprofits spring house dedication is usually held in the neighborhood where the homes are built, bringing together the large group of people involved in the major achievement. With social distancing requirements and gatherings limited, that wasnt possible this year. So the organization staged a virtual dedication by video of the 15 new homes in the Lenwood Heights subdivision on the West Side, near Acme and Commerce. The video can be seen on YouTube. Our reasoning was to do everything we could to stay on schedule for our families, said Stephanie Wiese, vice president of Habitat for Humanity of San Antonio. These families did so much work, and we wanted them to have the finality of their work be able to move into their homes and celebrate all of our partners who made this happen. On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio swimmer raises $90,000 for Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity of San Antonio is an ecumenical Christian organization that works with low-income families to build affordable homes. As of January 2020, the nonprofit has built and sold 1,128 homes to qualified families. Its goal is still to build 50 homes this year, despite the coronavirus-induced economic downturn. The homes have three or four bedrooms and two bathrooms each. They cost $75,000 to $80,000 apiece, purchases financed with 20-year, zero-interest loans. Wiese said that until early March, more than 350 volunteers were at the site during construction days. The number of volunteers has since dwindled to a handful who are working with Habitat staff members to put the finishing touches on the 15 houses. Each family that is going to buy a house is required to put in 300-plus sweat equity hours. That includes taking homebuyer readiness classes and working at the construction site on others homes as well as their own. Four of the 15 families have closed on houses so far. The remaining 11 closings are scheduled to be completed by early May. Centers still open Wiese said Habitat Home Centers are exempt from the stay-at-home orders and are open to members of the public in need of building materials. Social distancing practices are in place at all three centers: 311 Probandt, 5482 Walzem Road and 8125 Meadow Leaf Drive. Were still looking for families who have a need for affordable homeownership, Wiese added. Were still here for them. In the dedication video, Travis Eades, lead minister at San Antonios Oak Hills Church, blessed the new homes. The church is a sponsor of the building effort. Brenda Uvalle, 26, who will be buying one of the homes, spoke on behalf of the 15 families. On ExpressNews.com: Habitat for Humanity volunteers launch 2019 fall building campaign She thanked the workers and volunteers for the hours they spent caulking, painting, hammering and building frames. She thanked volunteers for donating a minute, an hour, a day of their time. And she thanked the people who had written prayers with markers on wood beams throughout the homes as they were being built. On behalf of the families, Id like to give a special and warm virtual hug to Habitat for all that you have done, said Uvalle, a single mother, and all you are continuing to do. April 4 was landscape day, the last day that members of the 15 families worked, as volunteers, on the respective houses that would be theirs on closing day. Uvalle was alone that day, watering the lawn, when she realized how far she had come with the help of Habitat, an organization she said offered her a hand up, not a handout. Then the tears began to flow. Wow, she recalled saying, were almost there. Nearby, Nambo had brought his son, who couldnt help before because he wasnt yet 14, the required minimum age. Now 14, he worked with his father to tend the lawn outside the house they would be calling home. He was able to put in some hours and dedication to that, Mariano, 34, said of their son. It made us very proud. Vincent T. Davis is a reporter in the Greater San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Vincent, become a subscriber. vtdavis@express-news.net | Twitter: @vincentdavis CROMWELL Even before its full impact became known, town officials were taking steps to protect employees from contracting the coronavirus. We have been taking precautionary steps right along from March 9, Town Manager Anthony J. Salvatore said Friday. That day, Salvatore issued a directive closing Town Hall to the public except by appointment, and asked Building Maintenance personnel to redouble their efforts to sanitize Town Hall. Subsequently, The Cromwell Fire Department graciously offered to come in and disinfect our facilities, and we rapidly and gladly accepted their offer. Town Hall gets the treatment three times a week as part of an effort to check the spread of the virus and also reduce the anxiety level among employees, Fire Chief Michael R. Terenzio said. For his part, Weve put some protocols in place as part of the effort to protect the staff, Director of Public Works Louis J. Spina told the Town Council during a virtual meeting last week. Two public works employees have recently been out of work, he said. One of them was tested, but thankfully, he was not infected. Salvatore last week issued a directive that would limit the number of people who can ride in a town-owned vehicle. Were only allowing one employee to a vehicle, he told the council, adding, This protocol applies to the entire staff, with the exception of the Police Department. Given that sometimes multiple officers must respond to a scene, I left that up to Chief (Denise) Lamontagne, he told the council. As much as possible, Lamontagne said, she tries to adhere to having one officer per vehicle. Salvatore Nesci, the towns emergency management coordinator as well as the public health coordinator, said, Were following all the CDCs safe working environment guidelines. And we are open to addressing the concerns of all our staff, he said Friday. Ive got to commend the staff: everyone is doing a great job, he said. The efforts of the town staff do not go unnoticed and are appreciated, Mayor Enzo Faienza told the council. Ive heard from a lot of people about what an exceptional job the town staff is doing all around town, and how it is comforting to the residents and how is has helped to generate a good feeling for them, he said. Faienza asked Salvatore to convey those comments to the staff. Salvatore said he would. He also said, Everybody is doing an outstanding job. All the employees are still at their posts. As just one indication of the support for the town staff, Councilor James Demetriades said the Creative District is providing vouchers for the staff to be used at Cromwell Pizza & Pasta on Main Street. jmill@middletownpress.com Scientists have identified the binding pocket for molecules that can stabilize a key braking mechanism in cancer -- opening the door to the development of drugs that target it A team of scientists led by the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center and Case Comprehensive Cancer Center has identified the binding site where drug compounds could activate a key braking mechanism against the runaway growth of many types of cancer. The discovery marks a critical step toward developing a potential new class of anti-cancer drugs that enhance the activity of a prevalent family of tumor suppressor proteins, the authors say. The findings, which appear in the leading life sciences journal Cell, are less a story of what than how. Scientists have known for a while that certain molecules were capable of increasing the activity of the tumor suppressor protein PP2A, killing cancer cells and shrinking tumors in cell lines and animal models -- but without information about the physical site where the molecules interact with the protein, trying to optimize their properties to turn them into actual drugs would require endless trial and error. "We used cryo-electron microscopy to obtain three-dimensional images of our tool-molecule, DT-061, bound to PP2A," says study co-senior author Derek Taylor, Ph.D., an associate professor of pharmacology and biochemistry at Case Western Reserve University and member of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. "This allowed us to see for the first time precisely how different parts of the protein were brought together and stabilized by the compound. We can now use that information to start developing compounds that could achieve the desired profile, specificity and potency to potentially translate to the clinic." The researchers propose calling this class of molecules SMAPs -- for small molecule activators of PP2A. Along with cancer, PP2A is also dysregulated in a number of other diseases including cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. And the researchers are optimistic the findings could also open opportunities to develop new medicines against diseases like heart failure and Alzheimer's as well. Team science The research required a marriage of scientific disciplines and areas of expertise, notes co-senior author Goutham Narla, M.D., Ph.D., chief of the division of genetic medicine in the department of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. "It's an illustration of how collaboration and team science can solve some of the questions like this that scientists have been asking for many years," Narla says. "Solving the structure without the biological knowledge of how best to apply it against cancer, would only be half of the story. And if we were just activating PP2A, killing cancer cells and slowing the growth of cancer without the structural data -- that would be a really nice half-story as well. But working together, we now have a story about being able to drug this previously undruggable tumor suppressor." The study was led by first authors Daniel Leonard, an M.D. and Ph.D. student and member of Narla's lab when the research was at Case Western Reserve and the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, and research scientist Wei Huang, Ph.D., of the Taylor lab. There has been a lot of activity and excitement in recent years around the development of kinase inhibitors -- small molecule compounds that go after the protein kinases whose dysfunction is involved in the explosive growth and proliferation of cancer cells. That is, turning off cancer's "on switch," Leonard explains. The new research attacks cancer from the opposite side of the equation, turning on cancer's "off switch" by stabilizing protein phosphatases whose malfunction removes a key brake on cancer growth. In the paper, the researchers speculate how a combination of both approaches simultaneously might offer an even more powerful one-two punch -- potentially helping to overcome cancer's ability to evolve to thwart a singular approach. "The binding pocket we identified provides a launch pad for optimizing the next generation of SMAPs toward use in the clinic -- in cancer, and potentially other diseases," Huang adds. ### Additional authors include Danica D. Wiredja, Yinghua Chen, Daniela M. Schlatzer, Janna Kiselar, Nikhil Vasireddi and Abbey L. Perl of Case Western Reserve University; Sudeh Izadmehr, Nilesh Zaware and Matthew D. Galsky of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Caitlin M. O'Connor of the University of Michigan; Zhizhi Wang and Wenqing Xu of the University of Washington; David L. Brautigan of the University of Virginia; and Stefan Schuchner and Egon Ogris of the Medical University of Vienna. The research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01 CA240993, R01 GM133841, R01 CA181654, F30 TRN216393, T32 GM007250), and an American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship (17POST33650070). DT-061 was developed at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, which has filed for patent protection on the tool compound. Narla, Ogris and Taylor have ownership interest in RAPPTA Therapeutics, which has licensed the cryo-EM coordinates for the clinical and commercial development of novel series of small molecule PP2A activators from the University of Michigan and Case Western Reserve; the authors and institutions stand to benefit financially. The Medical University of Vienna has filed a patent on a monoclonal antibody used in the study. Paper cited: "Selective PP2A Enhancement Through Biased Heterotrimer Stabilization," Cell. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.038 Alesha Dixon gave fans a rare glimpse at her loved ones on Sunday evening as they prepared for a fifth week of nationwide lockdown. The Britain's Got Talent judge, 41, is adhering to strict governmental guidelines in the fight against coronavirus COVID-19 by staying at home with partner Azuka Ononye and their two children, daughters Azura and Anaya. And taking to Instagram as the weekend drew to a close, Alesha shared a very rare shot of the entire family with her one million followers. Family: Alesha Dixon shared a rare photo of herself with partner Azuka Ononye and their two children, daughters Azura, six, and Anaya, eight months, on Sunday evening Posing in front of a mirror, the star wears a crop top and vibrant red skirt as she cradles eight-month old Anaya while oldest daughter Azura, six, wraps her arms around her mother's waist. Joining them, former backing dancer Azuka places a protective arm around the youngster while standing alongside his family for the group shot. Adding a simple caption, Alesha wrote: 'My loves.' Cute: The following day Alesha celebrated the eight month anniversary of Anaya's birth Baby girl: Alesha and Azuka welcomed their youngest daughter in August 2019 The following day the former Mis-Teeq rapper revealed it was exactly eight months since her youngest child's birth on August 20th 2019. Sharing two images of Anaya,she wrote: 'Baby girl is 8 months old today! Where did the time go!?' Alesha previously shared a video of Azura driving around the vast grounds of their Hertfordshire home in a mini Mercedes SUV for an ultimate Easter egg hunt. Here we go: Alesha previously shared a video of Azura driving around the vast grounds of their Hertfordshire home in a mini Mercedes SUV for an ultimate Easter egg hunt Successful hunt! The mother-of-two also uploaded a photograph of her daughter with her basket full of the chocolate eggs she'd successfully hunted down She ensured her little girl had lots to search for as she cruised along in the car, with plenty of chocolate eggs to collect in her white basket. The mother-of-two took to her Instagram stories to share footage of Azura driving around in the child sized vehicle from the luxury car brand. Alesha also uploaded a photograph of her daughter with her basket full of the chocolate eggs she'd successfully hunted down. The government has urged the public not to be tempted to head outside this weekend and follow lockdown guidelines despite the sunny weather. Courtesy of Royal Asiatic Society Korea By Steven L. Shields When the weather is clear and the sun shines bright, one can see for several kilometers to the north from the trenches on the slopes of "Hill 235." In the valley below, the Imjin River flows westerly until it joins the Han River on its journey to the Yellow Sea. When the spring and summer foliage is lush, it's difficult to see that one is standing on the edge of the world. The Imjin River is a place where death and destruction once rained down on a few thousand heroic defenders of the South. The southern banks of the Imjin run along the DMZ. Closer inspection reveals barbed wire and other warlike construction. One can see across the DMZ into North Korea, and realize that this watery boundary is still a place where the war has only been halted, but not resolved. The Battle of the Imjin River was then, and is today, the largest Communist offensive in war. It was preceded only by a few years when the Soviet Army launched its attack on Berlin at the end of World War II. On that spring day in April 1951, almost 1 million Chinese troops and thousands of North Korean troops launched a massive attack along a 60-kilometer-long front to retake Seoul only 45 kilometers away. The very best of army regiments stood in their way. These regiments were from the United States, Republic of Korea, Belgium and other United Nations forces from more than a dozen countries. The United Kingdom had deployed some of its best units: the Royal Ulster Rifles, the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, the King's Royal Irish Hussars and the "Glosters" (1st Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment). During the winter of 1950-51, United Nations and ROK forces had retreated from the North, where the fall 1950 offensive had pushed the North Koreans back beyond Pyongyang. With the Chinese entering the fray with the massive numbers of volunteers they threw at the U.N. defenders, a retreat was the only course of action. As the combined Chinese and North Korean forces launched their offensive on April 22, 1951, the United Nations tried to hold the line at the Imjin. By the end of the third week of April, a further retreat began. In the face of the huge onslaught, and outnumbered 7:1, the U.N. forces began their retreat. But in the melee, the Glosters, who were entrenched on Hill 235, got cut off from any possible avenue of escape. The Chinese troops surrounded the hill. The Glosters were squeezed to the summit. Hour-by-hour the Glosters' positions were overrun as the Chinese moved up the hillsides. The fighting was intense, but the Glosters had no means for resupply. They were cut off from the rest of the U.N. forces and supply lines. They fought to literally the last round of ammunition, and then in desperate hand-to-hand combat. At the end of the battle on April 25, more than 600 men lay dead in the trenches and on the hillside. The Glosters had been overrun. This was the only time a U.N. unit was completely wiped out. Today, the ROK military occupies their defensive positions. The Imjin is the secondary line of defense between Seoul and the DMZ. Trenches overlooking the Imjin River. /Courtesy of Royal Asiatic Society Korea Nearly 25 coronavirus patients were forced to spend hours on a street after they were denied admission at the Ahmedabad civil hospital, prompting the Gujarat government to rush senior health officials there to resolve the matter. The patients were later admitted to the hospital after being out on road for about six hours. The matter came to light on Sunday night after one of the patients recorded her plight on mobile phone and shared it on social media platforms. In the viral video, shot around 8.45 pm on Sunday, some men and women were purportedly seen standing outside the civil hospital and claiming that they were coronavirus patients, waiting since 3 pm to get admitted. "We are total 25 persons whose coronavirus reports came out positive yesterday. We are waiting outside the civil hospital since 3 pm. Its already 8.45 pm. We have not even had food. We are made to wait outside and no one is giving us a response. Please help us," the woman said in her video. State principal secretary (health) Jayanti Ravi on Monday said as soon as they came to know about the issue, senior officials, including health commissioner Jai Prakash Shivahare, rushed to the civil hospital and accommodated the patients at the medical facility. They were also given food after they were admitted in the hospital on Sunday, she told reporters in Gandhinagar. "For admission, patients were supposed to bring their case papers. But, there were some discrepancies in those papers, which created problem in data entry. Our officials resolved the issue and admitted the patients. We will make sure such incidents do not take place in future," she added. Meanwhile, Gujarat Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia slammed the state government over the 'plight' of a police constable admitted to the civil hospital a few days back after his coronavirus test report came out positive. The constable called the police control room two days back, claiming he was asked to sleep on the hospital's floor. He also said there was no ceiling fan at the place where he was lodged in the hospital. The issue came to fore after a brief note of his message to the police control room went viral on Sunday. "Is this how we want to treat our Corona Warriors? A policeman was not given a bed in the hospital. Government must do something about it," Modhwadia tweeted on Sunday. Responding to it, the state government shared some videos of the hospital to clarify that patients were given the best treatment. In one of the videos, the constable who had complained was seen on a bed and surrounded by doctors. He was even seen thanking the hospital staff and the government on behalf of Ahmedabad police. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As the COVID-19 pandemic ravages a world still grappling with vast uncertainty over the virus, a new and unnerving pattern has emerged in some patients. Though novel coronavirus symptoms thus far have presented chiefly within the respiratory system, the infection is swiftly showing to be an all-out, system-wide assault that reaches far past the lungs. Doctors in hot spots across the globe have begun to report an unexpected prevalence of blood clotting among COVID cases, in what could pose a perfect storm of potentially fatal risk factors. In New Orleans, a man in his 30s was admitted to the hospital a week into treatment for the flu, severely sick. Developing shortness of breath, chest pain and an abnormally rapid heart rate -- he was tested for coronavirus -- doctors realized those symptoms also are typical of a pulmonary embolism: a potentially deadly blood clot that can move from the legs to the lungs and damage the heart. The man's blood work already showed heart damage, though he had no known underlying medical conditions, no recent travel, no recent surgeries. His chest scans, shown first to ABC News, revealed a massive clot. Termed a "saddle embolus" because it hooks over branches of both pulmonary arteries, it was severely stressing the right side of the heart, unable to push blood against the clot already in its strained state. "Thankfully, we were able to find this and treat this early, otherwise it probably would have killed him," Dr. Siyab Panhwar, a cardiovascular consult for the patient, told ABC News. PHOTO: An echocardiogram (ultrasound) of the heart of a man in his 30s, tested positive for coronavirus, showing damage to the right side of the heart. (Dr. Siyab Panhwar) The patient's system, riddled with inflammation -- increasingly a pattern among patients with COVID-19 -- in such a heightened state may have been doing more harm than good because inflammation -- a defensive mechanism in the body -- can increase clotting. The body's response creates a domino effect that may cause further harm, doctors told ABC News. Patients' systems are strained by numerous factors triggered by the virus -- stressed lungs, severe inflammation -- that set in motion the clotting effect. Story continues MORE:Why screening for fevers won't be enough to catch coronavirus cases It's growing so common with severe COVID cases, doctors are recognizing it as a new pattern of clotting called COVID-19-associated coagulopathy, or CAC, which is notably associated with high inflammatory markers in the blood, like D-dimer and fibrinogen. "This virus is affecting the lungs, but it appears to be causing inflammation of the whole body," Dr. Viren Kaul, a pulmonary critical care specialist at Crouse Health and an assistant professor of medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University, told ABC News. With those patients at a higher risk of clotting, doctors must identify those individuals a quickly as possible. In Spain, among the hardest-hit nations, clotting cases have become so prevalent in novel coronavirus patients that doctors have begun routinely treating individuals with therapeutic doses of anticoagulation medication. "In the beginning of the outbreak, we started only giving them medicine to prevent clots. We saw that it wasn't enough," Dr. Cristina Abad, an anesthesiologist at Hospital Clinicos San Carlos in Madrid, told ABC News. "They started having pulmonary embolisms, so we started [full] anticoagulation on everyone." Nearly half of the COVID-19 deaths in Spain have been in Madrid. PHOTO: An echocardiogram (ultrasound) of the heart of a man in his 30s, tested positive for coronavirus, showing damage to the right side of the heart. (Dr. Siyab Panhwar) The exact cause of increased clotting in COVID patients remains unclear -- as novel as the virus itself. But Abad said she believes the increase in clotting is from the severe inflammation, fluid and stress to the respiratory system. MORE: 'Massive blindspot': Missing data in COVID pandemic leaves US vulnerable In the U.S., doctors on the front lines of the COVID battle have been crafting new protocols as the world scrambles to understand more about this virus. Dr. Salim Rezaie, an emergency medicine physician at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio focused on understanding COVID-19 and its association with clotting, said he's been tracking telltale signs of clotting through their byproduct, D-dimer proteins, which break off in the body and spread through the bloodstream. Those help determine anticoagulant dosages. "The crux of all this is, what does that mean for the body's larger system?" Rezaie said. "The evidence is really new, and it's not robust. People are just trying to do the right thing, give the most benefit, but not cause more harm." Panhwar shared a story of a patient who was nearly discharged before additional symptoms were discovered, adding: "We're seeing really swift decompensation for patients with severe symptoms." "About 40 years old, she was going to self-quarantine, she was walking out the door, and she went into sudden respiratory arrest," Panhwar continued. "She was intubated and coded in a matter of 30 minutes. So when that happens, our suspicion of pulmonary embolism is very, very high. But without screening for it, we can't know for sure." "It can happen so quickly. It can be very traumatic. This disease is unlike anything we've seen," he added. Some COVID-19 patients have been crashing, hard and fast, from sudden events -- pulmonary embolisms, cardiac arrests, respiratory failures -- leading some doctors to wonder whether such cases were spurred by a clot for which they didn't know to look. PHOTO: A CT Scan of a heart from a man in his 30s, tested positive for coronavirus, with a massive saddle embolus in the pulmonary arteries. (Dr. Siyab Panhwar) But symptoms of a worsening COVID infection mirror those of a severe clot in the lung, which, doctors have said, further blurs the lines of a diagnosis already difficult to clarify. More observation and research will be required. "Separating the two entities, talking about clots in the lungs and worsening COVID infection, can be difficult, which is the challenging thing," Kaul said. But even screening for clots amid the current threat of infection presents additional difficulties: Every surface of full-body CT scan machines must be wiped down, thoroughly, which requires additional resources and takes more than an hour. It's yet another clog in the system. "It's really like the Wild West," Panhwar said. "We're in uncharted territory." Lily Nedda Dastmalchi, D.O., M.A., an internal medicine resident physician at The George Washington University, is a contributor to the ABC News Medical Unit. Sasha Pezenik is a reporter/producer with ABC News. This report was featured in the Tuesday, April 21, 2020, episode of Start Here, ABC News daily news podcast. "Start Here" offers a straightforward look at the day's top stories in 20 minutes. Listen for free every weekday on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, the ABC News app or wherever you get your podcasts. Why are so many COVID-19 patients also seeing blood clots? originally appeared on abcnews.go.com The United States on Monday named its first ambassador to Belarus in more than a decade as it seeks to nudge the close Russian ally toward the Western orbit. President Donald Trump tapped career diplomat Julie Fisher, a top State Department official for Europe who has served in Moscow, to be the US ambassador to Minsk. Fisher requires confirmation by the Senate. While her nomination did not generate immediate opposition, it is uncertain when the Senate would act as lawmakers are staying out of Washington due to the coronavirus pandemic and will later head into election season. Alexander Lukashenko, the authoritarian leader of Belarus, in 2008 threw out the US ambassador after the George W Bush administration imposed sanctions on the president, his allies and a state oil company following elections seen as unfair and a crackdown on protesters. In a sign of warming ties, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in February met Lukashenko in Minsk in the first visit there by a top US diplomat since 1994. While saying the United States was not trying to drive a wedge between Belarus and Moscow, Pompeo said the United States wanted to help the country often described as Europe's last dictatorship to be a "sovereign." Pompeo also offered to export US oil to the landlocked country, which was embroiled in a price war with Russia. Shortly after Pompeo's visit, Lukashenko travelled to Russia and said President Vladimir Putin pushed him to merge Belarus outright in return for cheap energy. The United States and Belarus agreed in principle to exchange ambassadors after trips to Minsk last year by David Hale, the top US career diplomat, and John Bolton, then Trump's national security advisor. Bolton, a hardliner on Russia, had been keen to nurture US relationships with neighbouring nations including Belarus and Ukraine. Despite his administration's push, Trump has voiced admiration for Putin and has been especially critical of Ukraine -- with his pressure on Kiev leading to his impeachment. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Britains tabloid media harassed and manipulated the father of Meghan, Britains Duchess of Sussex, leading to a rift between them, documents filed by the British royals lawyers to Londons High Court on Monday said. Meghan is suing Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Mail on Sunday tabloid, for breaching her privacy by printing a letter she sent to her father, Thomas Markle. In the document to the High Court ahead of a hearing on Friday, Meghans lawyers said tabloid newspapers, particularly the Mail, had harassed and humiliated her father. They added that tabloid newspapers also contributed towards a fallout between them and misquoted from the letter she sent him. READ ALSO: The legal action came after Meghan and her husband, Prince Harry, Queen Elizabeths grandson, announced they would no longer work with four of Britains major tabloid newspapers, saying they were guilty of false and invasive coverage. (Reuters/NAN) T he Prince of Wales has paid tribute to NHS staff who have made the "ultimate sacrifice" serving the British public during the coronavirus pandemic. Prince Charles was speaking at the official opening of the temporary field hospital at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, calling it a huge source of pride. Ysbyty Calon Y Ddraig, the Dragons Heart Hospital, is the largest temporary hospital in Wales and the second largest in the UK, providing up to 2,000 additional beds for Covid-19 patients. The heir to the throne made a touching video message and said he had witnessed the age-old values of generosity and courage in response to Covid-19. Charles also honoured frontline workers who died fighting the strain and thanked employees who continued to work. The future king contracted coronavirus but has since recovered. Speaking from his residence in Scotland, he said: It has now been weeks since our lives were changed in so many far-reaching ways by this pernicious virus. We have seen streets become empty and workplaces fall silent. But we have also seen individuals and communities meeting these strange new circumstances with the age-old values of generosity and courage that the people of Wales have always understood so well. We hope and trust that the measures which have been taken, and the hardship that so many are enduring, will help hasten the day when the shadow of this disease will finally be lifted. Prince Charles honoured the NHS workers who had died from coronavirus / BBC Wales pool Speaking about the dedication of front line workers he added: Such commitment, of course, has come at a price. And as the days have gone by, we have become ever more painfully aware of those in our National Health and public services who have made the ultimate sacrifice in caring for others, giving their lives in the service of their fellow men and women, without thought of reward, and without regard for self." Prince Charles said his hearts goes out to those who have lost loved one and said they will be remembered. Words simply cannot express the gratitude and humility that such compassionate courage inspires in us all, and our hearts go out to all who have lost their loved ones in such a tragic way," he added. Today, we honour their memory, and can resolve, in words long used to commemorate those who fell in other conflicts: ay haberth nid a heibio their sacrifice shall not be forgotten. Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Monday said everyone will have to pause and reflect on the way they lead their lives whenever the nationwide lockdown is over. To contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a 21-day lockdown in the country, starting March 25. However, the lockdown was recently extended till May 3 as the number of cases kept rising in the country. In a Q&A session on Twitter with fans and followers, Shah Rukh was asked whether it would be a different world after the lockdown was over. "I think we will all have to press pause... reset and then play our worlds going forward," the actor replied. When a user asked him what he has learnt these days, Shah Rukh reiterated that we all need to slow down a bit. "Look and feel life and nature a bit more than just seeking instant gratification 24/7," he added. Another tweeple told the actor to keep fans updated about whether his next film be with director Rajkumar Hirani, Atlee or Siddharth Anand. Shah Rukh, whose last cinematic outing was 2018's "Zero", answered in his signature witty style, "Is it alright if I can forward the scripts to you also? Don't stress will do lots of films my man." When given a choice between Hollywood masters Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan, the actor went for an option close to home. "Wow both are awesome and I have met them... but Raju apna sa lagta hai... nahi (Raju is like one of us, right)?" Shah Rukh said hinting at a collaboration with Hirani. There have been reports that the 54-year-old star may sign his next with the "Sanju" director. One of the fans also asked him how he was spending time during lockdown. To which Shah Rukh replied, "In spite of contributing to the population boom, having three kids to be with is a treat. They are in all shapes and sizes, so the day goes by being with them each for a couple of hours. Then spend rest of the day cleaning up their toys!" The actor and his wife, interior designer-producer Gauri Khan have three children - Aryan, 22, Suhana, 19, and AbRam, six. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) No coronavirus impact on cement revenue in 9MFY20 but March data dispersed in Pakistan 20 April 2020 The Federal Bureau of Statistics of Pakistan has released cement export data for the nine-month period of July 2019-March 2020 (9MFY19-20). It carries more or less same trend of eight months and does not show any significant impact on overseas dispatches amid the spread of coronavirus in country. However, exports in March 2020 show a contraction due to the lockdown during the latter half of the month, which continues. Pakistans cement industry has earned an export revenues of US$210.07m by exporting 5.586Mt of cement and clinker in 9MFY19-20, compared to US$221.25m from 5.206Mt of exports in the year-ago period. This represents a 5.1 per cent decline in terms of value in dollars but a growth of 7.3 per cent in terms of quantity during this period, as reported by Federal Bureau of Statistics. In local currency terms, the export value increased by 12.4 per cent to PKR32.8bn (US$195.3m) from PKR29.18bn during this export period. However, the value per tonne fell from US$42.49/t in 9MFY18-19 to US$37.60/t in 9MFY19-20. In March 2020 export revenues became heavily eroded by 32.1 per cent in terms of value, and by 32.6 per cent in terms of quantity on MoM basis. The revenue reached US$16.15m on the export of 434,499t from US$23.79m with cement exports of 644,711t in February 2020. This represents a contraction of over 32 per cent in both terms of value and quantity. In addition, when compared with data of March 2019 (US$15.39m from 366,708t), a positive trend was observed. The value of exports increased by 4.92 per cent and 18.49 per cent in terms of quantity on YoY basis. According to the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers' Association (APCMA), cement exports to Afghanistan rose by 49.2 per cent to 1.843Mt in 9MFY19-20, but there were no exports to India during this period. Cement exports from Pakistan to other international markets by sea fell by over six per cent to 1.406Mt. However, clinker exports continued to advance, recording growth of 100 per cent with clinker dispatches of over 3Mt. Published under While the crisis has engulfed us and has therefore been dominating all news, one question many of you will no doubt have been asking (or more likely haven't been asking) is what has happened to Majorcan rapper-in-exile, Valtonyc. Well, what has happened to him? What actually does he do with himself in Belgium? It's not as if he's managed to secure himself a gig at the European Parliament like Carles Puigdemont has. Pertinent to the crisis, does he have a European health card on him, just in case? Can he phone the Balearic health service and get IB-Salut to automatically renew the card if it runs out? Answers to these questions and more remain a mystery, but for a brief time Valtonyc reappeared in our lives, thanks to the Farmers Union. It was only brief because the Farmers Union was rapidly subject to threats on social media on account of this reappearance. The Sa Pobla rapper had returned to agricultural roots in having his image feature in the Farmers Union campaign to get us all to buy local. When the image emerged, those who don't take too kindly to Valtonyc warned the union that if the image wasn't removed, then they wouldn't buy local. The image was removed, the gen-sec of the union explaining that Valtonyc had been used because he's "well known" (to some anyway) and refusing to be drawn into controversy. All the union was interested in was "defending the consumption of local produce as a necessary means of supporting Majorca's farmers". The union was meanwhile engaged in its ongoing spat with the agriculture ministry. An alliance has been formed with the Asaja agricultural businesses association and the small farmers and livestock breeders association for the purpose of issuing regular demands for promoting local produce. This farming alliance doesn't seem to rate the agriculture minister, Mae de la Concha, or senior officials at the ministry who Mae took on when she was made minister. These senior officials were necessary, given that Mae's background - prior to having become something in Podemos and then finding herself in the Balearic government - was running a bookshop in Minorca. Nevertheless, and despite certain officials having been uprooted from the mainland and therefore being in receipt of the twenty-two grand a year salary bonus, they haven't convinced the Farmers Union and others. The latest statement from the farming alliance was a demand to use tourist tax revenue to promote local produce. Has the alliance not noticed that there aren't any tourists? Undeterred, it made its demand, and the ministry was swift in responding that it has made available 850 grand for precisely the things that the alliance was seeking. One of Valtonyc's rapping targets was Jorge Campos, the leader of Vox in the Balearics. It was in fact Jorge, in days before Vox had become a reality on the islands, who presented the original denuncia that ultimately led Valtonyc to the Supreme Court and to the upholding of the 42-month sentence that had been passed on him. Showing no interest in Valtonyc, Jorge was instead setting out a list of things for the Balearic government to do with regard to tourism. There is a Vox motion for parliament to consider, and it was full of eminently sensible proposals, such as eliminating the tourist tax; so sensible that it won't be done. Otherwise, Vox rising star, Macarena Olona, was pursuing a similar theme to that of the previous week, when she had called Pedro Sanchez a gravedigger. This time she had a go at the "socialist-communist" government of PSOE and Podemos for wishing "to introduce regulation of euthanasia" in Spain. Octogenarians, she opined, were not being allowed to go to intensive care units. Doughnut Majorca What could it possibly mean? Numerous theories were being advanced to explain the mysterious image and message that was appearing on social media. "Majorca will be a doughnut", the message suggested, adding the hashtag #Mallorcadonut. It wasn't, it was said, anything to do with any doughnut maker. It seemed to be political, with linked Twitter addresses including those of republican-oriented parties such as the CUP and Crida. Perhaps it was a metaphor for how Majorca will be as a consequence of the crisis; a hole having been created in the heart of the island. Who knows, but when one thinks about it, Majorca is something of a doughnut anyway. Most of the population and development is on the coast, while there is comparatively little in the centre, other than the farmers constantly arguing with the agriculture ministry. Walking the Mariano way Former prime minister Mariano Rajoy must either be thinking thank God I'm no longer PM (some say president) or believing that he could be making a better fist of things than Pedro. Were he still PM, Mariano may have pursued UK policy - that of letting people out to exercise. Photos emerged of Mariano dressed in sportswear and with a heart-rate monitor as he was out and about walking, which in Mariano's case is a sort of racewalking. The interior minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, having become aware of Mariano seemingly flouting confinement regulations, said that "appropriate investigations are being carried out". The U.S. Secret Service said that adding Donald Trump's name to coronavirus relief checks was a security measure as it released an image of an example check Monday. The image was released, it said, as a way to help Americans identify any counterfeits. USSS also claimed in releasing the image that the president's name is included on the checks to act as a 'genuine security feature.' It cited other security measures as watermarks and microprinting on the check. American adults are now receiving direct deposit payments and physical checks for $1,200, and $500 per child, as a measure included as part of the CARES Act signed into law by the president at the end of March. The United States Secret Services released an image of an example check Americans will receive for coronavirus relief, which includes President Donald Trump's name. They say his name on the check is a 'genuine security feature' The checks come as a record number of Americans filed for unemployment in the last month after losing their jobs or being furloughed in the midst of the coronavirus crisis more than 22 million Americans have applied for benefits Reports emerged that the checks were being delayed because Trump wanted his named printed on them but a Treasury spokeswoman said printing the president's names on the checks would not delay their delivery The checks are meant to help Americans making $95,000 or less to deal with the economic and financial fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, which has led to record-breaking unemployment levels with more than 22 million Americans out of work. Reports emerged last week that the funds were being delayed because the president wanted his name on the checks. While senior Internal Revenue Service officials told The Washington Post that they believed the addition of Trump's name could slow the printing of the checks, a spokesperson for the Treasury Department said that would not cause a delay in delivery. 'Economic Impact Payment checks are scheduled to go out on time and exactly as planned there is absolutely no delay whatsoever,' a Treasury spokeswoman said in a statement to USA Today last week. 'In fact, we expect the first checks to be in the mail early next week which is well in advance of when the first checks went out in 2008 and well in advance of initial estimates,' she continued. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also claimed Sunday that it was his idea to have Trump's name included on the $1,200 payments passed in the CARES Act. 'That was my idea. He is the president, and I think it's terrific symbol to the American public,' Mnuchin said Despite reports of Trump's insistence on his name being included on the checks, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin claimed Sunday that it was all his idea. 'We did put the president's name on the check - that was my idea,' Mnuchin said. 'He is the president, and I think it's terrific symbol to the American public,' he told CNN anchor Jake Tapper in an interview. Democrats have proposed the next CARES Act include a measure that sends more checks to Americans, and even have floated the idea of the checks being recurring until lockdowns and stay-at-home orders have lifted. Mnuchin, a former Democrat and current Trump administration official, has been leading the efforts of bipartisan negotiations between the White House and Democratic and Republican lawmakers in coronavirus relief and stimulus legislation. Syrian air defences opened fire and shot down several missiles launched by Israeli warplanes near the central historic town of Palmyra, state media said. Syrian state TV gave no further details about the attacks on Monday night, the latest to hit central Syria in three weeks. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said the Israeli strikes targeted Iranian and Iran-backed fighters in the desert near Palmyra. It had no immediate word on casualties, adding that Israeli warplanes were flying over neighbouring Lebanon. Iran is a strong backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad and has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters to fight along his troops in Syria's nine-year conflict. The strikes came hours after Iran's Foreign Minister Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif was in Damascus where he met with Assad and his Syrian counterpart. Israel has in the past used Lebanon's airspace to launch attacks on Syria and Israeli drones and warplanes were flying over Lebanon earlier on Monday. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Last month, Israeli warplanes fired missiles on the Shayrat air base also in the central province of Homs. In recent years, Israel has repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Syria against targets belonging to Iran and its regional proxies. Last week, an Israeli drone fired two missiles at and near an SUV carrying members of Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah group in Syria close to the border with Lebanon. No one was hurt in the attack. Israel on Saturday accused Hezbollah of "provocative" activity along the Lebanese-Israeli frontier and said it would complain to the UN Security Council. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Representative of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Vietnam Rana Flowers made the statement during her online working session with Minister of Education and Training Phung Xuan Nha on April 17. Minister Nha said that due to the Covid-19 outbreak, all schools in Vietnam have been temporarily closed and other forms of teaching via the internet and television have been created to ensure the safety of students. The Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) is completing instructions on online teaching for teachers and parents via video clips. The Minister hopes that UNICEF will support the Ministry to develop this manual. He also asked UNICEF to help the MoET perfect and update common lectures and learning materials for teaching and learning on television. It is crucial to develop systems related to the results of teaching via the internet and television for preschool and high school grades; therefore support from UNICEF will be necessary, noted Minister Nha. He said that the Ministry is building a set of criteria on safe schools to ensure maximum safety for students, while expressing his hope that UNICEF will fund the process of finalising the criteria. For her part, the UNICEFs Chief Representative Rana Flowers expressed her appreciation and gave thanks to Vietnamese government and MoET for their efforts in response to the Covid-19 epidemic. In addition to the US$800,000, UNICEF is always willing to connect with other non-refundable aid sources in support for Vietnamese education, she added. Ms Flowers also emphasised that UNICEF has proactively worked with partners in cooperation with technological corporations and companies to provide free learning solutions for Vietnamese students, promoting a digital platform for distance learning. The Fund has discussed with several agencies the holding of courses on digital knowledge and skills for students, especially those who are living in difficult regions, she said. UNICEFs Chief Representative agreed to support the MoET in developing a set of criteria on safe schools, while pledging to provide equipment to install clean water systems at schools. The need to mitigate anthropogenic impacts on species and natural systems has resulted in conservation science developing as a major multidisciplinary area of study. Aiding these efforts has been the implementation of innovative technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud, data analytics, virtual reality, green technology, and cutting-edge surveillance and tracking equipment. Dr Duncan MacFadyen, Head of Research and Conservation at Oppenheimer Generations A new way of engaging with the environment Tech as a conservation tool Novel and innovative conservation technology is enabling researchers and conservationists to make greater impact in understanding the ecology of species and the ecosystems in which they live and ultimately finding more reliable ways to keep our planet safe.The annual Oppenheimer Research Conference (ORC), is a leading academic research conference that uniquely offers a diverse and multi-disciplinary programme, currently in its 11th year, hosted by Oppenheimer Generations. The conference provides a platform that brings together researchers, scholars, and stakeholders across multiple specialisation areas, within natural sciences and conservation, to share and present their experiences.New technology is regularly a topic of exploration on this platform and highlighted in numerous research studies presented. It brings new ways of collecting, collating and management of data as well as the ability to implement new learnings more efficiently in order to manage the health of our planets ecosystems.Last year at ORC 2019, a Virtual Reality (VR) film premiered at the conference. The film gave an immersive experience, with a production that raises awareness around the threat and impact of climate change and the knock-on effect on ants and termites, which in turn impacts survival of the ground pangolin, an endangered species in southern Africa.Under the theme of Advancing Conservation Consciousness, the introduction of the AR App by Internet of Elephants was featured and the founder, Gautam Shah, served on a panel challenging the conservation paradigm.The AR App enables a new way of engaging the public with wildlife conservation. It delivers an innovative and engaging digital experience to enable a deeper understanding of wildlife and build closer relationships between people and wildlife. This enables people across the world to interact with species which they would normally never encounter.Cloud and AI technology is enabling scientists to process vast amounts of data which relates to living ecosystems and the impact they have on the environment. For example, the planets human population increases by more than 200,000 people every day with global consumption and inequality on the rise.Through data gathering and analysis, scientists and conservationists can study the impact of this on finite natural resources and the affect it has on other living organisms and the ecosystems they inhabit. From these studies, they can predict trends in areas of overconsumption leading to environmental degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change. They can also use these insights to provide guidance on how we can act more responsibly to avoid or curb the destruction of natural resources which will ultimately lead to the ill-health of people, animals and destruction of the planet.Furthermore, there are several ways in which technology can serve as a tool to curb destructive behaviour and aide the conservation efforts of wildlife in Africa. In the context of poaching, one method that technology has enabled to decrease or deter poachers, are fences that are often equipped with technology that detect cell phone activity which sends an alarm signal to a central security centre when fences are breached. The use of drones in antipoaching is becoming a useful tool, especially when equipped with artificial intelligence.Then there is an eco-friendly technology also known as clean tech, green tech and environmental tech which can help preserve the environment through energy efficiency and reduction of harmful waste. Green tech innovators use the latest environmental science and green chemistry to reduce the harmful impact of human activity on the earth. Biomimicry, learning from inventions from nature, are becoming mainstream in building practice and in other spheres of society.New innovations in the field of green technology have included highly efficient LED lights, which could be used to make countless other gadgets more environmentally friendly, as well as promising growth in lesser-known renewable energies like algae oil.The invention of satellite collars has reduced stress and interference when reaching animal movements and behaviour. Modern collars can be remotely released without the need to recapture the research animal. Camera traps have also become a useful tool in research circles, enabling researchers to gain information on animal densities and movements with minimal interference.Tech is not going to solve all our problems, but it is offering environmental research ways to make better choices which is further supported with tools to aid in deterring destructive behaviour through improving our knowledge. Knowledge is key to understanding our impacts on often fragile systems.Technologists (entrepreneurs, engineers, funders) have an important role to play in conservation efforts. Avoiding a mass extinction event is going to be everybodys business: government, policymakers, business leadership, conservationists and everyday citizens. But well all be better off with an improved tool set and that is where conservation technology plays an active role.The 11th ORC 2020 which takes place later this year, will continue its efforts to provide a platform that promotes these new research opportunities, enhance research outcomes, and guide meaningful action. Our mission is to support the next generation of academics, researchers, and conservation/environmental stewards who are tirelessly working to create a better planet for us all. Williamstown Fire District Moving to Hire Owner's Project Manager for Station Project WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. The Prudential Committee decided recently to move forward with finding an owner's project manager to help the fire district develop a plan to build a new station on Main Street. At its Wednesday meeting, held via video conference, four members of the five-person board that governs the fire district decided to draft a Request for Services to issue in hopes of finding an OPM. It would be the latest in a series of steps the district has taken to develop the 3.7-acre parcel next to Aubuchon Hardware that voters agreed to purchase in 2017. Last year, Municipal Resources Inc. of New Hampshire conducted a comprehensive needs assessment for the fire district that found, in part, "The Water Street Fire Headquarters no longer provides efficient and effective shelter for fire apparatus and equipment." Although the district has for years been making plans to replace the Water Street facility, district officials at Wednesday's meeting argued that the likely aftermath of the current health crisis will create opportunities for public safety projects like the new station. "I am of the opinion right now that with everything that has occurred the last 30 to 60 days there's going to be money coming forward for departments such as this, and we could realize a real windfall for this department," said David Moresi, who was elected to the committee late last year when it expanded from three to five members. "We should all get together and develop a plan sooner rather than later." Veteran Prudential Committee member Ed Briggs agreed, as did the district's clerk/treasurer. "Money is going to be flowing, and shovel-ready projects are going to get the green light," Corydon Thurston said. "We need the OPM to help us get the architect selected and the drawings done. It's all about getting the design ready to go so you can plop the plan in front of the feds." Chairman John Notsley cautioned that it might be premature to present voters with a warrant article to begin paying for the project, but Thurston countered the committee could ask for authorization to borrow a modest amount, like $500,000, for design work. "That's not going to have a huge tax impact, and it can be rolled into a construction bond later," Thurston said. "It's a phase of the project. I think we'll have the town's endorsement on that." And, Thurston argued, that by getting a project "shovel ready" and eligible for post-pandemic grant opportunities, the fire district would potentially save its voters money. "If we're not ready and lose out on grant funding, it's all going to be on the backs of the taxpayers, and it's going to be a bigger bill," Thurston said. The committee members agreed to draft an RFS for an owner's project manager based on the procurement document issued last fall by the city of Greenfield, which also is looking to build a new fire station. "Once there is an OPM in place, we have a path going forward," Moresi said. "That's what their job is, to be the leader of this whole process." The Prudential Committee on Wednesday also discussed assembling a building committee to help guide the process. Thurston recommended that the committee cast a wide net, including residents of the district who do not currently have ties to the fire department but who could be valuable resources in the process. The committee discussed having more frequent meetings in addition to its regular monthly meetings to get the OPM selection process on track. In other business on Wednesday, Chief Craig Pedercini gave the committee an update on local efforts to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, including the work of the Northern Berkshire COVID-19 Operations Center. "They're the center for receiving any type of personal protective equipment we may want to get," Pedercini said. "It's working really well. I think things are funneling into the command center. We have daily phone conversations pretty much every day. It's a great thing to get in on it and listen." Pedercini said that in addition to himself, Williamstown's town manager, police chief and health inspector all participate in the calls. "We're hearing things that are important to us, for instance how many people we do have in isolation who might potentially have COVID and how many who tested positive," he said. "We're allowed to know their addresses but obviously not allowed to know who they are. That's against HIPPA regulations. "The biggest issue right now has been the Williamstown Commons [nursing home]. As of today, there have been 14 deaths over there and 45 to 50 people, I think, who they have quarantined. That's a real hot spot for our area not just Williamstown but the Northern Berkshire area." As for the fire station itself, Pedercini closed it down to visitors several weeks ago and acquired disinfectant supplies to clean the facility. "If everybody takes care of themselves and does a little extra when they're at the station, I think we'll be OK," he said. To date, all of the department's regular call volunteer firefighters are healthy, Pedercini reported. One person who is a part-time resident and helps the department out while in Williamstown has tested positive. "He's managing," Pedercini said. "But you can tell he has this nasty cough that he can't get rid of. My recommendation was to stay in New York." Advertisement Tornadoes have killed two people and a house fire believed to have been caused by lightning claimed a third person, after severe weather blasted the Deep South. The three victims were elderly people in Georgia and Mississippi, the latter of which has seen six out of seven tornadoes and hails stones the size of eggs, as parts of Texas, North Carolina and norther California suffer amid 150 storms. Jerry Johnson, 70, died when his home took a 'direct hit' from the storm in the Sandy Hook community or Marion County, Mississippi. The National Weather Service said it had received reports of large hail and broken power poles in the area, and emergency management officials said 20 homes were damaged. Penny Temples sits in the yard of the heavily damaged home she shares with her husband Brian in Baxterville, Mississippi, Monday. The Temples' house was struck by a tornado passing through Lamar County on Sunday evening The Baxterville, Mississippi of home Brian and Penny Temples is seen Monday after it was heavily damaged after being struck by a tornado on Sunday evening. Severe storms are raking parts of the Deep South Firefighters work to control a three- alarm fire in the attic space in Moody Music Hall on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in the wing housing the rehearsal hall for the Million Dollar Band, Sunday Jerry Oliver Williams, 61, of Henry County, Georgia died when winds flipped his home in an area that was on tornado watch around 11.30pm on Sunday. 'He was in a mobile home, and the mobile home was destroyed by a tornado. He was in the wreckage of the mobile home. His wife and child were with him, and they were OK,' Coroner Derek Wright said. Nearby, the Southwest Marion Volunteer Fire Department, station 3, suffered damage during a tornado that struck Marion and Lamar Counties on Sunday. Images showed it flatted to the ground. In south Georgia, the Wilcox County Sheriff's Office said lightning struck a rural home during a storm early Monday, causing a fire that killed one person. News outlets identified the victim as an elderly woman and reported that state fire investigators would determine a cause. The deaths came as firefighters worked through storms to contain a blaze at the main music building at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Authorities haven't determined the cause of the fire, but it happened while strong storms with lightning were in the area. Firefighters work to control a three- alarm fire in the attic space in Moody Music Hall on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in the wing housing the rehearsal hall for the Million Dollar Band, Sunday Jerry Oliver Williams, 61, of Henry County, Georgia died when winds flipped his home in an area that was on tornado watch when the incident occurred around 11.30pm on Sunday. The Storm Prediction Center received more than 250 reports of possible tornadoes, high winds, hail and storm damage from east Texas to central Florida on Sunday and Monday The worst parts of the storms were over Florida, South Carolina and Georgia Monday. But more bad weather is on the way as two new systems are expected to come in from Tuesday 'Showers and thunderstorms are expected to form by early Wednesday morning across portions of northern Texas and Oklahoma, but the threat for severe weather will increase into the afternoon as the atmosphere destabilizes,' AccuWeather reports Firefighters saved most of the instruments and uniforms belonging to Alabama's 'Million Dollar Band,' Mayor Walt Maddox said in a tweet. Rainfall totals in excess of 2 inches (5.08 centimeters) were widespread, and isolated spots in central Alabama received more than 8 inches (20.32 centimeters) of rain in a day, the weather service said. More than 35,000 homes and businesses in Alabama and Mississippi were still without power around noontime Monday. The Storm Prediction Center received more than 250 reports of possible tornadoes, high winds, hail and storm damage from east Texas to central Florida on Sunday and Monday. The worst parts of the storms were over Florida, South Carolina and Georgia Monday. Penny Temples is comforted by her sister, Sherry Broom, outside Temples' tornado damaged home in Baxterville, Mississippi Family portraits still hang on the wall of Brian and Penny Temples' house in Baxterville, Monday, despite the severe damage caused to their home when a tornado struck the area on Sunday Pastor Zach Smith stands in front of his church, Hurricane Creek Baptist Church, in Sandy Hook, Mississippi. on Monday morning, April 20. The church sustained major damage on Sunday when a tornado struck Marion county The Southwest Marion Volunteer Fire Department, station 3, seen Monday, suffered damage during a tornado that struck Marion and Lamar Counties on Sunday A tornado touched down on Interstate 75 in north Florida, tossing a portable building being hauled by a truck into a nearby pickup truck, where the driver suffered minor injuries, authorities said. Teams from the National Weather Service will assess tracks to determine where tornadoes struck. The storms hit a week after a two-day outbreak of more than 100 tornadoes that began Easter Sunday killed at least 36 people across the region. But more bad weather is on the way as two new systems are expected to come in from Tuesday. 'Showers and thunderstorms are expected to form by early Wednesday morning across portions of northern Texas and Oklahoma, but the threat for severe weather will increase into the afternoon as the atmosphere destabilizes,' AccuWeather reports. Flash flooding, more hails and tornadoes were set to hit the southeast into Thursday. DAMASCUS, Syria - Syrian air defences opened fire and shot down several missiles launched by Israeli warplanes Monday night near the central historic town of Palmyra, state media said. Syrian state TV gave no further details about the attacks, the latest to hit central Syria in three weeks. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said the Israeli strikes targeted Iranian and Iran-backed fighters in the desert near Palmyra. It had no immediate word on casualties adding that Israeli warplanes were flying over neighbouring Lebanon. Iran is a strong backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad and has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters to fight along his troops in Syrias nine-year conflict. The strikes came hours after Irans Foreign Minister Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif was in Damascus where he met with Assad and his Syrian counterpart. Israel has in the past used Lebanons airspace to launch attacks on Syria and Israeli drones and warplanes were flying over Lebanon earlier Monday. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Last month, Israeli warplanes fired missiles on the Shayrat air base also in the central province of Homs. In recent years, Israel has repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Syria against targets belonging to Iran and its regional proxies. Last week, an Israeli drone fired two missiles at and near an SUV carrying members of Lebanons Iran-backed Hezbollah group in Syria close to the border with Lebanon. No one was hurt in the attack. Israel on Saturday accused Hezbollah of provocative activity along the Lebanese-Israeli frontier and said it would complain to the U.N. Security Council. Member of Parliament for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Lydia Alhassan has added her voice to an ongoing debate that NPP Members of Parliament (MPs) are distributing food to only members of their party during the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking to the media, Maa Lydia debunked such claims and stated that she and her team have never been biased in the distributing food to the vulnerable population. According to her, she is an MP for the entire Ayawaso West Wuogon and therefore makes sure to treat every constituent equally. She stressed the food distribution is observed among all needy persons and not on partisan lines. I am the MP for Ayawaso West Wuogon and not for one particular party. We are making distribution to various homes. We dont look at party colours but individuals, she said. The MP also urged her constituents to adhere to the precautionary measures to curb the spread of the COVID-19 in Ghana. Together we will make Ghana rise again. Ghana has recorded 1042 cases of the pandemic with 99 recoveries. 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. Featured Video A 50-year-old man, who was discharged from hospital after recovering from COVID-19, has been booked along with 14 others as he was given a rousing reception at his home town in violation of the lockdown rules,police said on Monday. The man from Sirkazhi in Nagapattinam district had tested positive for the virus a few days after his return from Delhi recently. He was admitted to the Tiruvarur Medical College Hospital and received treatment for over two weeks. On Sunday, he was discharged from the hospital after fully recovering from the infection, police said. When he arrived at his home town last evening in an ambulance, a large number of his friends gathered in the locality and gave him a rousing reception. With the video of the event going viral and as the reception was accorded against lockdown guidelines, Sirkazhi village administrative officer Babitha lodged a complaint with police. Police inspector Manimaran has registered cases against 15 people, including the COVID-19 recovered man, charging them with violation of lockdown rules. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 95-year-old man put the coronavirus pandemic into perspective on Monday night, comparing it to the "sheer hell" he experienced as a prisoner of war on the Thai-Burma railway. Union movement leader Sally McManus took two messages from what the survivor, 95-year-old Jim Kerr, said on the ABC's Q+A. "What did he say [that] mattered when everything else is stripped back?" Ms McManus said. "Freedom and mateship." Jim Kerr was a prisoner of war on the Thai-Burma railway. Credit:Q+A The two values, to her, were clearly of a piece. But much of the show was spent in debates where they appeared at odds. At least 53 journalists have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Mumbai. Shiv Sena leader and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporations health committee member Amey Ghole said that samples of 167 journalists had been collected for testing, of which 53 have come out positive. The 53 journalists, including reporters, photojournalists as well as cameramen of various news organisations, have now been quarantined, Ghole told Moneycontrol. Click here for LIVE updates on the coronavirus pandemic Ghole added that the number is "likely to go up". 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 financial capital of India has reported over 2,700 cases, reporting 456 new cases on Sunday alone. The total number of cases in Maharashtra is currently over 4,200 the highest in the country whereas, the death toll in the state stands at 223. Click here to track all the news on the coronavirus pandemic Please note: The story was updated with latest developments Iranian officials have denounced US President Donald Trumps comments that the United States is ready to help the country fight the coronavirus. Ali Rabiei, spokesman for the Hassan Rouhani administration, speaking about Trumps recent statements that if Iran wanted aid to fight the coronavirus outbreak they can ask for it, said, This comment by the president is a personal opinion and we have said multiple times that for us it does not make a difference who lives in the White House. Rabiei said that the difference with Trump is that he makes accusations due to his inability to cooperate with the world and his incorrect understanding of regional issues and domestic [US] issues. Rabiei said that even if a Democrat becomes president, we will not have talks if they do not stop the bullying, sanctions and assassinations. He added, Our recommendation to America is rather than finding the same culprits correct your path. He also reiterated Irans position that the United States return to the talks between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany under the nuclear deal that the United States exited in May 2018. Irans Foreign Ministry also rejected any talks with the United States, calling it an illusion to think Iran would enter negotiations with the United States. The ministry's spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said at a press conference that the United States cannot be trusted to stick to its commitments and think it can take advantage of Irans positions fighting a pandemic to negotiate. He added that while the United States is currently short of medical supplies Washington claims it wants to help Iran with ventilators. Rather than receive help from the United States, Mousavi said, If there are items for which we do not have a domestic need, we are ready to help the American people. After the US exit from the nuclear deal, they reapplied sanctions. Iran has asked for sanctions relief in order to purchase supplies and goods from foreign markets, a request that the United States has rejected. Medical supplies are not subject to US sanctions under a general humanitarian exemption. As Iran begins the second step of reopening its economy on April 20, after the widespread nationwide shutdowns due to the coronavirus, officials are warning citizens that they are not in the clear. Rabiei told reporters, Essentially we do not have a normalized situation and we have to continue to be cautious. We have no choice but to live with social distancing and observe health protocols. Rabiei said that the country is battling on two fronts right now: sanctions and keeping its citizens healthy. He said that Iran is now producing 4,000,000 masks a day, up from 400,000, and that ventilators and test kits are also produced at home, and soon available for export if needed. As the economy opens up, the administration has been under pressure by some to open up religious places. Mahmoud Vaezi, Rouhanis chief of staff, said that the closure of mosques and other religious sites would remain in place until May 4. He said that the decision was made by the National Headquarters for Combatting the Coronavirus, which the president chairs. Irans confirmed coronavirus case numbers have continued to decrease in the last week. According to Kianoush Jahanpour, Irans Health Ministry spokesman, in the last 24 hours 1,294 new infections have been confirmed and 91 individuals have died. According to official figures, 5,209 people have died and the total number of infections has reached 83,505. Former Home and Away star Kate Ritchie is working on her marriage with estranged husband Stuart Webb. According to a report in New Idea magazine, the troubled couple have been attending 'counselling' for their issues. 'Stuart has been trying to show Kate that he's a changed man and is serious about getting his life in order,' a 'friend' allegedly told the publication. Patching it up: Former Home and Away star Kate Ritchie is working on her marriage with estranged husband Stuart Webb The 'source' claimed the pair have recently been meeting up to 'work through things' as Stuart knows 'this is his last chance.' Kate and Stuart were last spotted together in February to celebrate daughter Mae's first day of school. The reunion came three months after the actress 41, reportedly moved out of their marital home after police took out an interim AVO on her behalf against the NRL star, 39, following an incident at her house in Randwick. In December, Stuart made headlines for his five-time drink driving history. His driving history was revealed in a police fact sheet, as he faced court for blowing 0.083 when he was pulled over by highway patrolmen in the city's east in March last year. Stuart came in front of a magistrate on the same day that NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia that he will not be charged over a separate 'incident' at home with Kate in October. Working hard: According to a report in New Idea magazine , the troubled couple have been attending 'counselling' for their issues. The couple are parents to daughter Mae, six That ended in an interim AVO being brought against him, which banned him being in Kate's company within 12 hours of drinking alcohol. Court documents about the March incident said Stuart had 'glazed and bloodshot' eyes when he was pulled over by highway patrolmen in Randwick. He had just run a red light and was also driving home on a suspended licence. In court documents, police described Webb as a drink driving 'repeat offender'. Daily Mail Australia confirmed Kate had moved out of the couple's marital home in Sydney's Randwick, in October. Recently, the former couple have reportedly been spending weekends away in a last bid to save their marriage. If youre about to hop from your current Samsung phone to a Galaxy S20, dont expect your keyboard info to come along for the ride. Samsung has stopped syncing keyboard data through its Cloud service as of April 13th, according to a notice seen by SamMobile. Your word predictions, saved words and language details (among other things) wont carry over when you switch devices. Its an unusual move when the company syncs virtually everything else, such as the browser and notes. The notice reaching customers was dated March 15th, but it appears to have only reached customers in recent days. This wont be a huge issue if youre willing to switch to alternatives like Gboard or SwiftKey, some of which have unique features on top of syncing. Still, its something of a hassle if youve amassed years of custom words on Samsung devices you may be forced to start from scratch. Two years after wolves had returned to Oregon, OR-7 broke away from his pack in the northeast corner of the state and set out on his own. The path in front of him, heading southwest, would have been unfamiliar territory to the roughly 2-year-old wolf, or to any member of his species for that matter. Wolves had re-established in Oregon in 2009, and none had crossed the Cascades -- until OR-7 did in November 2011. We thought they would slowly creep out (of northeast Oregon), first to the Blue Mountains, then maybe the Ochocos, maybe someday over the Cascades, said Derek Broman, carnivore coordinator for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Him bolting like that was a pretty big deal. It kind of blew the doors off. Now, about a decade later, OR-7 is presumed dead. He was last caught on a trail camera in August. At about 11 years of age, the canid was at the upper end of a wild wolfs lifespan and, during the states annual wolf count, OR-7s pack was observed but the elder wolf was nowhere to be seen. No body has been found, but the evidence lends itself to suggest that he died, Broman said. The wolf who would be known by some as Journey left a lasting legacy. In one of the last known photos of OR7 taken Aug. 19, remote cameras caught pictures of the elder wolf on Sun Pass State Forest lands in Klamath County. After he set out from northeast Oregon, he skirted around Bend and continued south across the high desert and sagebrush steppe, looking for a mate. By February of the next year, OR-7 had traveled the length of the state and crossed into California, the first time a wolf had been reported in that state since 1924. OR-7 would return to Oregon and find the mate he was looking for, establishing the Rogue Pack, the first in the western part of the state since the species was extirpated. Along his travels, tracked by a GPS chip embedded in a collar, OR-7 gained a massive following. Wolf advocates celebrated his expedition, even holding a naming contest that bestowed upon him the Journey name. Livestock producers worried for their cows and sheep as OR-7s presence signaled the return of predators to parts of the west theyd been absent from for decades. The path taken by OR-7 after he broke off from his path and settled down to form the Rogue Pack. Once he settled down and began raising pups, OR-7 didnt enjoy the same level of fame he did as a traveling wolf. He wasnt the most prolific reproducer, successfully rearing pups in only three of the six years he acted as a breeding male. But the Rogue Pack was prolific in one area: conflict with ranchers. In 2019, the pack was responsible for nine of the 16 reported attacks on livestock statewide. Broman said its the states goal to avoid these types of conflict, but OR-7, even as a source of contention, helped spread awareness about the issues involved in having wolves back on the landscape. Given that his pack was responsible for an outsized proportion of attacks on livestock, it showed that most other packs werent prone to that type of behavior. When OR-7 broke off from his pack in 2011, fewer than two dozen wolves were known to be in the state. In the 2019 wolf report released last week, Oregon had at least 158, organized into 22 packs. I think OR-7 changed how we think about wolves and about our relationship with them and with wild places," Steve Pedery, conservation director for Oregon Wild, wrote in an op-ed about OR-7. "He symbolized redemption and the hope that if humans could get beyond their fear, nature and wildlife can recover and thrive. We dont know for sure if OR-7 is dead," he said. "But if he is, I hope he passed somewhere in the wild forests around Crater Lake, and in the territory he reclaimed for his species. And far, far away from human eyes. -- Kale Williams; kwilliams@oregonian.com; 503-294-4048; @sfkale Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. The State Bank of Vietnam has directed the banking sector to develop a VND250 trillion ($10.87 billion) credit support programme to help companies hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the noble sentiment, the funds are largely out of reach for agricultural businesses. Huy Long An Company, a local fruit grower, processor, and exporter, was excited to learn about the credit support programme because it has massive orders and the requisite materials and needs only capital for processing. Vo Quan Huy, director of Huy Long An Company, contacted a bank to learn about the procedures for taking up a loan. However, he was warned that it is difficult for businesses, especially agricultural firms, to access this VND250 trillion package for multiple reasons. Although the central bank has directed 10 banks to work out the credit support programme, they will take a lot of time to appraise their support packages. Meanwhile, the branches of these banks do not dare to issue preferential packages due to the lack of guidance on disbursement. For now, the support is inaccessible for our businesses, Huy said. At the same time, agricultural companies proposal to extend debt payments to June have also run aground. The banks advised me to reconsider my application because rescheduling loans would make the existing loans bad debt. In addition, this move will be a stain on the firms credit history, Huy said. Agricultural businesses are hard-pressed to maintain operations because in the past three months, about 48,200 tonnes of agricultural goods, worth VND410 billion ($17.83 million), were left unsold, according to statistics from the Vietnam Digital Agriculture Association (VIDA). According to the survey, 80 per cent of businesses reported suffering damage from COVID-19. In general, in the first quarter of this year, surveyed enterprises reported an average decrease of 30-50 per cent in revenue on-year, with some putting the plunge at around 70 per cent compared to the time before the pandemic. Furthermore, these businesses face financial pressure and find it more difficult to pay loan interests as they have to maintain production with reduced revenue. In addition, the large volume of unsold goods inflates expenses on warehousing and conservation. With these mounting difficulties, many agricultural firms saw this package as a lifeline that would help them through the pandemic. However, most enterprises were rebutted citing a lack of guidance or authorisation by official authorities or the banks boards of directors. In addition, several businesses reported gentle warning by banks that if they persist with their applications for support due to the impacts of the epidemic, they will be added to the list of unsafe firms and will find it much harder to take up subsequent loans. Huy from Huy Long An Company, feels that the VND250 trillion package was not aimed for agricultural businesses due to the compulsory requirement of collateral, which is considered an abject weakness of the businesses in this sector. Those find it more difficult to prove the value of their assets than other enterprises because the brunt of their assets are farms with fruits and processing facilities. Besides, agricultural land receives lower valuation during the mortgage process than land used to develop real estate projects. The collateral condition will likely exclude many (if not the large majority of) agricultural businesses. In addition, these firms have been tasked with ensuring the nations food security, making their operations essential in the fight against the pandemic and the everyday functioning of the nation. Thus, a special mechanism would be ideal motivation for agricultural enterprises to maintain steady operations and meet the demand. Nguyen Hoang Anh, permanent vice chairman of the VIDA said at the associations recent online meeting with approximately 100 enterprises in attendance that the government should issue a credit package particularly for the agricultural sector with procedures and criteria tailored for their needs. This particular support programme should combine capital assistance with insurance and tax incentives to ensure plentiful production by both farmers and firms. Once their operation and processing activities are on track, firms will be to pay their debts, tax, and even contribute to society once the pandemic is under control, Hoang Anh said. Another factor speaking for the proposal is the promotion of agricultural goods export. As numerous sectors in quick succession reported plunging export turnovers in the past three months due to COVID-19, agricultural goods are looking at bright prospects thanks to positive export performance. Notably, according to statistics published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), in the first three months of this year, this sector achieved a trade surplus of $2.9 billion, up 48.9 per cent on-year. The total export-import turnover of agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products was $15.2 billion. The figure for March alone was $3.5 billion, $1.6 billion of which came from agricultural products. Khuat Viet Hung, director of Hoi Vu Co., Ltd. the largest gherkins and canned food producer in Vietnam said that the pandemic contributed to boosting its exports to Russia. Particularly, after Russia closed border gates and suspended raw agricultural product imports from China, the demand for canned food began soared. Meanwhile, according to Huy, the demand for food which strengthens the immune system such as bananas has hiked. The export opportunities are reinforced as numerous countries have suspended imports from China. Thus, the company is waiting for the support package to implement its expansion plan to meet this demand, otherwise it would have to use its equity capital. Agricultural businesses are in urgent need of support, thus the specifics of any upcoming credit package should be hammered out soon, determining which enterprises can enjoy the support without cumbersome inspections, Huy said. Nguyen Quoc Toan, director of the MARDs Agro Processing and Market Department forecasted that even more opportunities for agricultural exports are opening up as the Chinese market is forecasted to recover in May. In addition, the United States and European markets may recover in the third quarter of this year. This necessitates agricultural companies to prepare now, not only by planting and sowing in time but by acquiring e-commerce capabilities if they wish to seize the opportunities. Toan added that it is an ideal time to digitise the agricultural sector. Enterprises need to co-operate with state management agencies to control the production process as well as the traceability of goods in order to meet the market demand, Toan said. A support package for the sector in this country would contribute to realising these plans. VIR Oanh Nguyen Which investors are pouring money into agriculture? Tran Ba Duong, a member of top 10 stock billionaire, president of Thaco, an automobile manufacturer, has joined hands with the King of Catfish Duong Ngoc Minh, president of Hung Vuong Group (HVG). Medical supply exports unimpeded, firms say From:ChinaDaily | 2020-04-20 07:42 China does not restrict medical supply exports, and is ramping up efforts to ensure product quality to help the global fight against the novel coronavirus outbreak, businesses and analysts said. Their comments follow some foreign media reports that claim China has tightened restrictions on exports of face masks and other personal protective equipment. Chen Qiaoshan, a medical analyst at market research consultancy Analysys in Beijing, said: "As far as I know, by now, China has not restricted any exports of medical supplies. It is only intercepting defective medical equipment to ensure the quality of exports." As the contagion has been effectively controlled in China, in addition to meeting domestic demand, Chinese medical equipment producers are also stepping up efforts to offer assistance to overseas markets, Chen said. "There is no reason for the country to restrict the export of medical supplies," she added. A recently issued government document stipulates that starting April 1, exporters of COVID-19 test kits, surgical masks, protective gowns, ventilators and infrared thermometers have to 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 meet the quality standards of the importing country or region. The document was jointly released by the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Customs and the National Medical Products Administration. While adopting new measures to ensure the quality of products, China has not restricted medical supply exports, according to businesses. Yuan Zhen, deputy general manager of Jiangsu Yuyue Medical Equipment & Supply Co, said that since the start of the outbreak, the company's exports of medical equipment have never been restricted. The company said that by Friday it had received orders for more than 30,000 ventilators and nearly 1 million forehead thermometers from over 70 countries and regions. Thirteen thousand ventilators and 500,000 forehead thermometers have already been delivered. Other domestic medical companies also said that their overseas medical supply orders were not blocked. Global demand for major medical supplies has skyrocketed as a result of the outbreak. To meet the demand, many Chinese manufacturers have been working overtime. Recognized as a global manufacturing powerhouse, China accounts for about one-fifth of the global production of multifunction ventilators and for about 50 percent of global face mask output. "As the domestic situation has been controlled, China has pledged to step up efforts to offer daily necessities and medical supplies to the overseas market," said Zhang Yansheng, a researcher at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges. "The stance shows that China is a very responsible country," Zhang said. At a news conference on Thursday, Gao Feng, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce, said China has not and would never restrict the export of medical supplies. Chinese customs authorities have taken measures to expedite the customs clearance of exported anti-epidemic materials, Gao said. According to the ministry, 58 economies and four international organizations had signed medical procurement contracts with Chinese enterprises as of April 8. From April 1 to 12, China exported 16.6 billion yuan ($2.4 billion) worth of inspected medical supplies, according to the General Administration of Customs. Tehran, April 20 : Iran has applied for a loan of $50 million from the World Bank to fund the country's fight against the coronavirus pandemic, it was reported on Monday. "The groundwork has been prepared and the loan request is being processed in coordination with relevant bodies, such as (Iran's) central bank," Xinhua news agency quoted Kamel Taqavinejad, the deputy health minister, as saying. This is the first time since 2005 that Iran has applied for such a loan from the World Bank, Taqavinejad said. According to the official, Iran has also requested a $141 million loan from the Islamic Development Bank for buying medical equipment. On March 12, the Central Bank of Iran announced that it had asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $5 billion loan to combat the pandemic in the country. However, reports said later that the US had blocked Iran's request for the emergency loan. Iran, which was once the hardest hit Middle Eastern country, has reported 82,211 coronavirus cases, with 5,118 deaths. Novartis has reached an agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to proceed with a Phase III clinical trial of hydroxychloroquine in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 disease Trial is designed and implemented quickly to address the need for science-based investigation following early preclinical and clinical evidence 1,2,3 that hydroxychloroquine may help hospitalized patients with COVID-19 disease that hydroxychloroquine may help hospitalized patients with COVID-19 disease Company will also make its hydroxychloroquine intellectual property available to support broad access if medicine is approved for COVID-19 Study complements Novartis commitment to donate up to 130 million doses of hydroxychloroquine globally to support the COVID-19 pandemic response Novartis has a broad COVID-19 research and development commitment, including multiple large sponsored and investigator initiated clinical trials of its medicines Basel, April 20, 2020 - Novartis has reached an agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to proceed with a Phase III clinical trial with approximately 440 patients to evaluate the use of hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 disease. The clinical trial drug supply will be provided by Sandoz, the generics and biosimilars division of Novartis. The large trial sponsored by Novartis will be conducted at more than a dozen sites in the United States. Novartis plans to begin enrollment for this study within the next few weeks and is committed to reporting results as soon as possible. To help achieve broad access to hydroxychloroquine as quickly as possible in these extraordinary circumstances, Novartis will make any intellectual property within our control that relates to the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat or prevent COVID-19 available through non-exclusive voluntary licenses, appropriate waivers, or similar mechanisms. "We recognize the importance of answering the scientific question of whether hydroxychloroquine will be beneficial for patients with COVID-19 disease," said John Tsai, Head of Global Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer at Novartis. "We mobilized quickly to address this question in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study." As the new virus continues to spread and claim lives around the globe, doctors and patients are eager for treatment options. In some cases, clinicians are evaluating drugs that have been approved for other diseases, hoping that these will also work against COVID-19. Patients in the trial will be randomized into three groups. The first group or arm will receive hydroxychloroquine. The second group will receive hydroxychloroquine in combination with azithromycin, which is an antibiotic therapy. The third group will receive placebo. Patients in all treatment groups are receiving standard of care for COVID-19. Researchers at the company compressed months of work into a few weeks to design the large clinical trial in order to rapidly respond to the need for COVID-19 disease treatments. The clinical trial complements a commitment by Novartis, through Sandoz, to donate up to 130 million tablets of hydroxychloroquine to supply global clinical research efforts in the event the medicine is proven beneficial for treatment of COVID-19. Sandoz has already donated 30 million tablets to the US Department of Health and Human Services and is dispatching futher shipments to countries based on requests from governments around the world. "We are donating hydroxychloroquine tablets for COVID-19 patients including for use in this and other clinical trials with the hope that researchers and healthcare workers can quickly and scientifically determine whether hydroxychloroquine can help patients around the world combat this disease," said Richard Saynor, CEO of Sandoz. "We will continue to fulfill orders for existing customers to ensure the medicine remains available to US patients who rely on it for other indicated uses." As part of its research and development commitment, Novartis has formed a clinical investigation team to provide rapid access for approved clinical requests and support of clinical evaluation of its medicines to be repurposed and address the needs of patients with COVID-19 infections. In addition to hydroxychloroquine, Novartis plans to sponsor or co-sponsor clinical trials to study ruxolitinib and canakinumab for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 infections. Requests for investigator-initiated trials have been granted for COVID-19-related clinical studies of ruxolitinib, canakinumab, imatinib mesylate, secukinumab, hydroxychloroquine and valsartan. About hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19 The drug hydroxychloroquine has garnered interest in the medical community after showing preliminary promise in small clinical studies, including one with co-administration with the antibiotic azithromycin.1 In addition, hydroxychloroquine has demonstrated antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 in laboratory tests.2,3 Hydroxychloroquine has long been used for the treatment of malaria and certain autoimmune diseases.4 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 (https://www.novartis.com/coronavirus). 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 "to sponsor," "to proceed," "commitment," "to support," "to determine," "continues," "evaluating," "to donate," "to supply," "ensure," "to provide," "potential," "can," "will," "plans," "may," "could," "committed," "to commit," or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential marketing approvals, new indications or labeling for the investigational or approved products described in this press release, regarding potential future revenues from such products, or regarding drug discovery collaboration efforts and support of clinical trials for existing Novartis medicines, a USD 20 million Novartis COVID-19 response fund, a commitment to donate up to 130 million doses of hydroxychloroquine, and the Sandoz commitment to maintain stable prices on a basket of essential medicines that may help in the treatment of COVID-19. 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 the investigational or approved products described in this press release will be submitted or approved for sale or for any additional indications or labeling in any market, or at any particular time. Nor can there be any guarantee that such products will be commercially successful in the future, or that the activities and efforts described in this release will be achieved or succeed in the expected time frame, or at all. In particular, our expectations regarding such products and activities and efforts described in this release 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 AG's 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 people's 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 world's 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 (https://www.novartis.com). Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at https://twitter.com/novartisnews (https://twitter.com/novartisnews) For Novartis multimedia content, please visit https://www.novartis.com/news/media-library (https://www.novartis.com/news/media-library) For questions about the site or required registration, please contact media.relations@novartis.com (mailto:media.relations@novartis.com). References Gautret et al. Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment of COVID-19: Results of an open-label, non-randomized clinical trial. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents. In press 17 March 2020. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2020.105949 Wang, M. et al. Remdesivir and chloroquine effectively inhibit the recently emerged novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in vitro. Cell Res. 30, 269-271 (2020). https://www.nature.com/articles/s41421-020-0156-0 (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41421-020-0156-0) https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm'setid=9d22f0a8-170b-4c3e-8c2e-a5cf64b9958b (https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm'setid=9d22f0a8-170b-4c3e-8c2e-a5cf64b9958b) # # # Novartis Media Relations E-mail: media.relations@novartis.com (mailto:media.relations@novartis.com) Anja von Treskow Novartis Global Media Relations +41 61 324 2279 (direct) +41 79 392 8697 (mobile) anja.von_treskow@novartis.com (mailto:anja.von_treskow@novartis.com) Eric Althoff Novartis US External Communications +1 646 438 4335 eric.althoff@novartis.com (mailto:eric.althoff@novartis.com) Ryan McBride Novartis Global Drug Development Communications & Advocacy +41 61 324 12 88 (direct) +41 79 156 92 97 (mobile) ryan.mcbride@novartis.com (mailto:ryan.mcbride@novartis.com) Steffen Kurzawa Sandoz Communications +49 80244-762590 (direct) +49 170 901 2622 (mobile) steffen.kurzawa@sandoz.com (mailto:steffen.kurzawa@sandoz.com) Novartis Investor Relations Central investor relations line: +41 61 324 7944 E-mail: investor.relations@novartis.com (mailto:investor.relations@novartis.com) Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (R) shakes hands with External Affairs Minister Louis St. Laurent as he hands over the Liberal leadership, and thus the prime minister's office, to St. Laurent on Nov. 15, 1948. In the centre is Governor General Harold Alexander. (The Canadian Press) What Would Canadian Foreign Policy Look Like Under Former Liberal PM Louis St. Laurent? Commentary Some western powers hit by the pandemic, such as the United Kingdom, United States, France, and Australia have spoken out about the high cost of the Chinese regimes lack of transparency, which allowed the virus spread around the world. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab went so far as to say the U.K.s relationship with Beijing will no longer be business as usual, in a sign of a toughening stance toward the communist regime over its handling of the outbreak. But in Canada theres been nary a whisper of criticism aimed at the regime by the Liberals, and even less so any talk of lessons learned leading to changes in Canada-China relations post-crisis. I suspect a very different approach would have been taken by some past Liberal leaders who guided Canada in a time of disruption or change. A case in point is Louis St. Laurent, the prime minister who held office during the early years of the Cold War and who helped cement Canadas reputation in the Western alliance against communism. A Quebec native with a modest personality and patriotic heart, St. Laurent entered politics late in life, serving in William Lyon Mackenzie Kings cabinet as both minister of justice and minister of external affairs. He was a stern anti-communist and had no doubt about the threat communism posed, nor did he equivocate on supporting America in the fight against it. In a 1947 lecture titled The Foundations of Canadas Policy in World Affairs, he outlined the basic principles that would define Canadian engagement, especially during his tenure as prime minister (1948-1957). Consistent with his religious beliefs, St. Laurents broad conception of the international environment during the Cold War was one engulfed by a battle between a discernible good and a discernible evil. He emphasized a unified Canada, the protection of political liberty, and the rule of law and its impartial administration. This was to be coupled with practical action that relied on an effective multilateralism, which emphasized closeness with the British Commonwealth, pro-Americanism, and working within international structures to facilitate stability. St. Laurent and his external affairs minister Lester B. Pearson were enthusiasts for the United Nations in its infancy due to Canadas limited abilities and the belief that the U.N. was necessary for economic and political reconstruction in the post-Second World War era. What proved to be more efficacious was the establishment of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949, of which St. Laurent was one of the main designers, alongside U.S. President Harry Truman and British Prime Minister Clement Attlee. With the attempt by North Korea to absorb the South laying bare the communist intent to expand aggressively, St. Laurent supported the American and U.N.-led effortcomposed mostly of NATO membersto counteract it. Framing it as a police action intended to prevent war, Canada mustered a force that would total 26,791 personnel to help defend South Korea from the malevolent designs of Kim, Stalin, and Mao. Continuing his fidelity to NATO and its objectives, St. Laurent furnished forces to be stationed throughout Western Europe, particularly France and West Germany, and worked with the United States on an air defence system to protect the continent. Some say the current Liberal governments foreign policy resembles this approach. The government has dispatched forces and aircraft to places like Latvia and the Mediterranean as a member of NATO. It has supported peace-keeping operations in Mali and Uganda and shown support for pro-democracy efforts in Venezuela. However, its broader conception of foreign affairs and Canadian identity is almost inseparable from the United Nations agenda. St. Laurent was convinced the U.N. was good for achieving Canadas national interests and security, but he and others actually had an idea of what Canadas distinct interests were and were willing to go against fashionable opinions to stand up for them. The current Liberal government thinks our unique interests are synonymous with whatever the imagined consensus at the U.N. is and is desperately afraid of doing anything to disrupt it. Consequently, it makes foreign policy rudderless since the U.N.s fatuous promotion of universal values is empty. On paper, the body is preoccupied with furthering certain liberal values but has no way to enforce any sort of standard as it allows any state to be a member no matter their character or governing styles. Since 2016, the Liberals have been pursuing a seat on the U.N. Security Council, which means having to curry favour with some of the worlds dictators and despots to get the required votes, not to mention the political costs in terms of the concessions made to those whose votes Canada is counting on, possibly at the expense of raising the ire of traditional allies. Given how the Chinese regime has co-opted the U.N. and the World Health Organization, and Ottawas uncritical obeisance to its dictates, its even more clear that this is not a good approach to foreign policy. Member states are not involved in these forums so they can participate in some grand, noble project; they treat them as an extension of great power competition, which manifests in the ridiculous spectacle of Chinas presence on a U.N. panel concerning free expression, because values dont matter as much as who can wield influence. Even early on, St. Laurent discerned these problems within the U.N. In a 1947 speech to the General Assembly, he lambasted the veto privilege of the Soviet Union and how it hindered the ability of the Security Council to function properly. Expressing his frustration with the limits of the U.N.s universalism, he said democratic and peace-loving states may, after becoming nettled with a council frozen in futility, seek safety through an association of like-minded states willing to accept more specific international obligations in return for a greater measure of national security. This exact concept would soon come into fruition with the establishment of NATO. Its indisputable that Canada has to rely on multilateral institutions, but it should focus on narrowly defined ones in which interests are more homogeneous. In this way, pursuing collective security is also more possible because threats are easier to identify and action is more easily agreed upon. The current government believes in Canada as a moral superpower, which dismisses the limits of our nations reach. It leads to Canada distancing itself from the United States as it tries to befriend all nations, obsessing over soft power and its image at the expense of sound strategy. It also fails to understand the nature of intransigently revolutionary powers like communist China, whose actions to fulfill a vision of a rejuvenated nation will not be altered by sermonizing about equality and rights. Far more effective would be plausible threats of punishmentsomething at which large, open bodies like the U.N. have proved unreliable. Leaders like St. Laurent grasped that the international system is highly contingent, and statesmen must adapt their sensibilities to events. Sticking to their progressive talking points, the Liberals instead convince themselves they can control events, change minds, and mould affairs to fit their sensibilities. Thus they have no plan when things go awry, such as in the case of the arrest of Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver and Beijings subsequent retaliationarbitrarily detaining two Canadians in China and banning imports of Canadian canola and pork. Given the possibility that the West may have to navigate something like a new Cold War after the pandemic dies down, revisiting St. Laurent would be most instructive for Liberal policymakers. Shane Miller is a political writer based in London, Ontario. Follow him at @Miller_Shane94. Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. (Removes extraneous header. No other changes.) BANGKOK, April 20 (Reuters) - Thailand on Monday reported 27 new coronavirus cases, bringing the nation's total to 2,792 cases, a senior health official said. Of the new cases, 16 had come into contact with a previously confirmed case, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman for the government's Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration. No new deaths were reported for the third consecutive day. Thailand has had a total of 47 fatalities, and 1,999 patients have recovered. (Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat) Shelley Davies waits for her delivery at Plants and Friends./Douglas Zimmerman/SFGate LATEST, April 20, 4:30 p.m. Four Bay Area counties announced new cases of the coronavirus Monday: Marin County reported four additional cases, bringing the total to 199. Napa County reported four additional cases, bringing the total to 48. Solano County reported 11 new cases, for a total of 180. Santa Clara County announced 52 new cases, for a total of 1,922. Santa Clara County also announced additional deaths, bringing the death toll in the county to 83. April 20, 2:50 p.m. San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott announced the San Francisco Police Department had issued more citations to individuals over the weekend who were either operating a non-essential business or were not complying with social distancing orders. A total of 16 citations have so far been issued: seven to businesses and nine to individuals. In addition, 67 people had been "formally admonished" for not obeying the mandate, meaning an incident report had been taken. "Hundreds" more have been given informal warnings. The announcement comes after a sunny weekend that drew locals to the city's public parks. Notably, reports surfaced that some who visited Dolores Park over the weekend had been kicked out of the park. The SFPD, however, denies that claim, with a spokesperson telling SFGATE officers were "reminding people to spread out and practice social distancing per the Shelter in Place (SIP) public health order." April 20, 2:45 p.m. SFMTA Director Jeffrey Tumlin announced a number of Muni lines will soon be placed back in service or will be expanded. Four modified partial lines will recommence service on April 25, with buses running portions of the 5-Fulton, 12-Folsom/Pacific, 28-19th Avenue and the 54-Felton. "The service additions will increase coverage across the city and connect to additional essential services," reads an alert on the SFMTA site, so that locals can more easily visit hospitals and other important resources. Additionally, the SFMTA will be supplementing three currently running routes the N, the L and the 9-San Bruno with more frequently running buses, based on rider complaints of overcrowding. More information here. April 20, 2:30 p.m. The city of San Francisco has released more detailed COVID-19 cases in the city, segmenting them by zip code in a map, Mayor London Breed announced in a press conference Monday. As Breed said, the data illuminates some of the disparities we knew, that residents in some neighborhoods who are more at risk of income and health discrepancies have disproportionately tested positive for the coronavirus. In particular, the map shows an outsized number of cases in parts of SoMa, the Dogpatch, Potrero Hill, Hunter's Point, the Bayview and the Mission. We see in the Mission there are more cases, which is consistent with our findings, Breed continued. About 25% of those infected are Latino, but the Latino community represents 15% of the population, so theres a huge disparity there." April 20, 1:15 p.m. The coronavirus death toll in the Bay Area crossed 200 on Monday when Contra Costa County reported two new fatalities. The total is now at 201, with several counties' daily reports still outstanding. April 20, 12:45 p.m. The number of Bay Area patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 continued to decline over the weekend. Here are the previous seven days' worth of data reflecting the total number of confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients hospitalized across the nine counties that comprise the San Francisco Bay Area: - Monday, April 13: 750 (0.1 percent decrease from previous day) - Tuesday, April 14: 758 (1.1 percent increase from previous day) - Wednesday, April 15: 740 (2.3 percent decrease from previous day) - Thursday, April 16: 673 (9.1 percent decrease from previous day) - Friday, April 17: 674 (0.1 percent increase from previous day) - Saturday, April 18: 617 (8.5 percent decrease from previous day) - Sunday, April 19: 606 (1.8 percent decrease from previous day) The 9.1 percent decrease from April 15 to April 16 was the largest single-day decrease the region has seen since county-by-county hospitalization data has been available. The drop from April 17 to April 18 was the second-largest single day percent decrease. For reference, April 7 marked the day of the most reported hospitalizations with 831. Here are the previous seven days' worth of data reflecting the total number of confirmed and suspecting COVID-19 patients in intensive care units across the nine Bay Area counties: - Monday, April 13: 238 (1.7 percent increase from previous day) - Tuesday, April 14: 225 (5.5 percent decrease from previous day) - Wednesday, April 15: 214 (4.9 percent decrease from previous day) - Thursday, April 16: 217 (1.4 percent increase from previous day) - Friday, April 17: 224 (3.2 percent increase from previous day) - Saturday, April 18: 213 (4.9 percent decrease from previous day) - Sunday, April 19: 205 (3.8 percent decrease from previous day) April 20, 12:45 p.m. At a noon press conference, California Gov. Newsom focused on the state's efforts to ensure all children in the state have access to distance learning as schools are closed amid the coronavirus pandemic. The governor said it has been a "two week sprint" to provide Internet access and tens of thousands of devices including iPads and chromebooks to students without connectivity at home. Apple, Google and others have made generous donations. The governor introduced his wife, First Lady Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who has been a part of the state's effort to expand distance learning opportunities. "She's been working the phones," he said, of his wife calling on private companies for donations. The first lady said 1 in 5 students in the state lack connectivity and a survey conducted by the state found 50% of low-income families and 42% of families of color "are worried about distance learning because they dont have a device at home." Jennifer said the effort to get more kids connected started with a call to action to companies and a pledge from Google of over 4,00 chromebooks. The state has since secured 70,000 devices. "Ive been so moved by the efforts to help close the states digital divide, she said. The governor also provided an update on the number of cases in the state and said 42 lives have been lost in the last 24 hours. The number of hospitalizations went up 1.9% in the past day and the number of patients in intensive care units jumped 2.8%. Newsom said that while the numbers are encouraging and the curve flattening, "hospitalizations are still growing." Newsom said on Wednesday, he will provide more details on the state's goals to enter new phase with the shelter-in-placer order relaxed. April 20, noon The East Bay city of El Cerrito announced Monday the annual Fourth of July festivities are canceled. This is the city's biggest event of the year and usually attracts about 3,000 people to Cerrito Vista Park. April 20, 11:40 a.m. Fencing was put up around Golden Gate Park's Hippie Hill to prevent people from gathering on Monday for 4/20, the celebration of all things marijuana that has been cancelled this year amid the coronavirus pandemic. Road blocks are also set up to deter access to the area of the park where people usually gather to smoke. At a press conference last week, San Francisco Mayor London Breed said, "We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year. Police officers will be patrolling the area. We will cite people and if necessary arrest them." April 20, 10 a.m. San Francisco updated its COVID-19 case count on the public health department website Monday morning to reflect 59 more cases, bringing the total to 1,216. The death toll remains 20. The county and city reported 99 more coronavirus cases over the weekend. While cases spiked in San Francisco in the past three days, hospitalizations are down with no new hospitalizations reported Monday. The last day hospitalizations were reported is Saturday with 77 coronavirus patients in S.F. hospital beds and 27 in intensive care units, the lowest number since March 4. San Mateo County announced 82 new cases for a total of 920 on Monday morning. Total deaths remain 28. April 20, 8:20 a.m. As the number of global cases of the coronavirus nears 2.5 million, the U.S. death toll passed 40,000 over the weekend. In the Bay Area, 197 people have died. San Francisco reported 99 more coronavirus cases over the weekend, bringing its total tally up to 1,157. The city's death toll stayed at 20. Last month, an outbreak was announced at S.F.'s Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center and, as of Sunday, 19 individuals with ties to the city's largest nursing home have tested positive. This includes 15 staff members and four residents. County officials have said they expect more cases to pop up at the facility with 750 residents. One additional death and 53 new cases of the virus were reported in Alameda County on Saturday. There are now 1,114 known coronavirus cases and 41 deaths in the county. Alameda County's death toll trails only Santa Clara County, where there are 73 fatalities. Elsewhere in the East Bay, Contra Costa County reported 37 new cases and one new fatality, bringing the total case number up to 685 and death count to 20. San Mateo County reported 41 new cases with no new deaths on Saturday. There are 838 confirmed cases and 28 deaths in the county. Marin announced eight new cases, bringing the county total to 195. The death toll remains 10. Sonoma County reported only one new case. There have been two fatalities total in the county. Note: Many counties only report new cases on Saturday and not Sunday. Cumulative cases in the greater Bay Area (due to limited testing these numbers reflect only a small portion of likely cases): ALAMEDA COUNTY: 1,191 confirmed cases, 42 deaths For more information on Alameda County cases, visit the public health department website. CONTRA COSTA COUNTY: 707 confirmed cases, 22 deaths For more information on Contra Costa County cases, visit the public health department website. LAKE COUNTY: 6 confirmed cases For information on Lake County and coronavirus, visit the public health department website. MARIN COUNTY: 199 confirmed cases, 10 deaths Fore more information on Marin County cases, visit the public health department website. MONTEREY COUNTY: 141 confirmed cases, 4 deaths For more information on Monterey County cases, visit the public health department website. NAPA COUNTY: 48 cases, 2 deaths For more information on Napa County cases, visit the public health department website. SAN BENITO COUNTY: 44 confirmed cases, 2 deaths For more information on San Benito County cases, visit the public health department website. SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY: 1,216 confirmed cases, 20 deaths For more information on San Francisco County cases, visit the public health department website. SAN MATEO COUNTY: 920 confirmed cases, 28 deaths For more information on San Mateo County cases, visit the public health department website. SANTA CLARA COUNTY: 1,922 confirmed cases, 83 deaths Fore more information on Santa Clara County cases, visit the public health department website. SANTA CRUZ COUNTY: 106 confirmed cases, 2 deaths For more information on Santa Cruz County cases, visit the public health department website. SOLANO COUNTY: 180 confirmed cases, 2 deaths For more information on Solano County cases, visit the public health department website. SONOMA COUNTY: 181 confirmed cases, 2 deaths For more information on Sonoma County cases, visit the public health department website. In California, 1,057 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported, according to Johns Hopkins University. For comparison, New York has 17,131, New Jersey 3,840 and Illinois 1,134. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here. Mr Antonio Guterres, the United Nations Secretary-General, has appealed to families and leaders at all levels to protect and safeguard the well-being of children as the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across the globe. He said they foresee an alarming pattern with the pandemic placing so many of the worlds children in jeopardy, hence the need for countries to act now. This was contained in a press release issued in Accra and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA). It said thankfully, children have so far been largely spared from the most severe symptoms of the disease, however, their lives are being totally upended. The United Nations, in a report that highlights the risk children face regarding their current education status, said that almost all students are now out of school due to the pandemic. It said even though some schools are offering distance learning, this is not available to all as children in countries with slow and expensive internet services are severely disadvantaged. According to the UN, a staggering 310 million schoolchildren nearly half of the worlds total rely on school for a regular source of daily nutrition adding that even before COVID-19 the world faced unacceptable rates of childhood malnutrition and stunting. It said with children out of school, their communities in lockdown and a global recession biting deeper, family stress levels are rising. Children are both victims and witnesses of domestic violence and abuse. "With schools closed, an important early warning mechanism is missing. There is also a danger that girls will drop out of school, leading to an increase in teenage pregnancies. And we must not ignore the growing risks children are facing as they spend more time online," it stated. It said this is important as it could leave children vulnerable to online sexual exploitation and grooming. A lack of face-to-face contact with friends and partners may lead to heightened risk-taking such as sending sexualized images. And increased and unstructured time online, the statement said, may expose children to potentially harmful and violent content as well as a greater risk of cyberbullying. It called on governments and parents to play effective roles in keeping children safe adding, "social media companies have a special responsibility to protect the vulnerable". The report said reduced household income would force poor families to cut back on essential health and food expenditures, particularly affecting children, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. It said currently polio vaccination campaigns have been suspended and measles immunization campaigns have stopped in at least 23 countries. "And as health services become overwhelmed, sick children are less able to access care. "With the global recession gathering pace, there could be hundreds of thousands additional child deaths in 2020." "These are just some of the findings of the report we are issuing today, its conclusion is clear," it added. We must act now on each of these threats to our children. It said this is the time to act on each of the threats to children and urged that leaders do everything in their power to cushion the impact of the pandemic. What started as a public health emergency has snowballed into a formidable test for the global promise to leave no one behind and urged governments and donors to prioritize education for all children. It recommends they provide economic assistance, including cash transfers, to low-income families and minimize disruptions to social and healthcare services for children. "We must also prioritize the most vulnerable children in conflict situations; child refugees and displaced persons; children living with disabilities." "Finally, we must commit to building back better by using the recovery from COVID-19 to pursue a more sustainable and inclusive economy and society in line with the Sustainable Development Goals," it 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. Featured Video Over 3,000 people were detained for violating the ongoing lockdown here on Monday and around 273 cases registered, police said. According to the data shared by Delhi Police, 3,562 people were apprehended under Section 65 (persons bound to comply with reasonable directions of police officers) of the Indian Penal Code. Besides, there were 273 cases registered under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code till 5pm, according to the data. It also stated that 331 vehicles were impounded by the police and 160 cases were registered against people for stepping outside their houses without wearing masks. Since March 24, as many as 1,01,618 people have been detained for violating lockdown orders in the city. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Express News Service CHENNAI: Though doctors in the frontline are fighting COVID19, the ones who die are being robbed of a dignified burial. In the third such incident in Tamil Nadu, corporation officials were forced to give up their plans to bury a 55-year-old doctor, who died of COVID 19 on Sunday, in the Kilpauk cemetery. Late in the night, they took the body to the Velangadu burial ground that is about three kilometres away. But even as a JCB machine was involved in digging, an angry mob from the neighbourhood objected to burying the body in the crematorium and went on to vandalise the ambulance in which the doctor's body was kept. A few officials and staff even suffered bleeding injuries in the assault. Only after the police provided protection could the body be buried, that too hurriedly and without using the JCB machine. The deceased, a neurologist and chairman of a private hospital, was admitted at Apollo Hospitals at Greams Road on April 8, and died on Sunday at the hospital. He is suspected to have contracted the infection from a patient he was treating. His 27-year-old daughter, also a doctor, also tested postive for the virus and is undergoing treatment. Late on Sunday night, corporation staff were preparing for the burial of the doctor at the TP Chatram burial ground in Kilpauk when close to forty residents protested and were engaged in heated arguments with the police. The residents blocked the road and shouted slogans that the body must not be buried there, said a corporation official, adding that the mob was unmindful of social distancing rules or Section 144 and many did not cover their faces too. After discussions failed, the officials decided not to bring the body to Kilpauk burial ground, but instead to the Velangadu burial ground on New Avadi Road 2.7 kilometres away. Dr K Pradeep Kumar, colleague and friend of the deceased doctor, said when they started digging a grave at Velangadu burial ground, a group of people came with sticks and stones to attack them. A JCB machine was used since as per WHO guidelines, COVID-19 patients must be buried at a depth of 12 feet. The ambulance windshield was damaged and they started throwing stones on the body kept in the ambulance. Corporation officials, ambulance drivers and assistants were injured and bled, said Dr Pradeep. Assistant Executive Engineer Kalaiyarasan, Executive Engineer Senthil Kumar and the ambulance crew - Anand and Damodaran - suffered injuries in the assault. Dr Pradeep, after telling the injured to go back to the hospital, drove the ambulance with broken panes back to the New Hope Hospital of the deceased doctor and roped in two ward boys for help. I made multiple calls to police officers and health department officials and with police protection, we drove the body again to the Velangadu burial ground, said Dr Pradeep. The deceased was buried with strong police protection. I dropped sand with my hands hurriedly with tears rolling. This should not happen to anyone in future, added Dr Pradeep. The JCB machine could not be operated since the operator had left fearing the attack. The Chennai police has arrested 20 people so far for damaging the ambulance and creating a ruckus at Velangadu burial ground at Anna Nagar in the wee hours on Monday. Cases have been booked under Section 188, 147, 148, 341, Tamil Nadu Private Property Prevention of Damage and Loss Act. Earlier, the doctor was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Vanagaram. Since his daughter also tested positive for COVID-19 on April 11, she could not participate in the funeral. Last week in a similar incident, residents denied burial of another doctor who died of COVID-19 at the same private hospital. In another incident in Coimbatore district, villagers protested against the last rites of a government doctor who died due to dengue and typhus thinking it was a COVID-19 case. A senior police officer told The New Indian Express that the suspects would be produced before the magistrate. He denied that some gangs are behind such incidents. It is because of misinformation that the people agitate and oppose the funeral of Covid-19 victims, he said. Maharashtra NCP president Jayant Patil on Monday asked the BJP not to politicise the Palghar lynching incident in which three persons were beaten to death by a mob apparently on suspicion that they were thieves. Referring to a tweet of BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, Patil, a Cabinet minister in the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government in the state, said the NCP had no involvement into the incident. In his tweet, Patra shared one of the videos of the Palghar lynching and asked people of Maharashtra to identify a person seen in it. Replying to Patra, Patil tweeted, "Stop misleading. Gadchinchale Gram Panchayat in Palghar is ruled by BJP and the Sarpanch Chitra Chaudhari was present at the time of incidence. NCP has no involvement in the incident. A party worker had gone to venue on the police request. Stop politicizing the issue". The state government has already ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on the night of April 16 when three Mumbai residents who were on their way to Surat in Gujarat in a car were lynched by villagers in Palghar district on the suspicion that they were thieves/ child- lifters. The Congress has accused the BJP of trying to give communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased are believed to be seers. Earlier in the day, senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah called up Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and said there was no communal angle to the mob lynching incident. Maharashtra Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant also accused the BJP of playing "communal politics" to derive a political mileage from the incident. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has a total of 37 Covid positive cases with the latest case being of two doctors and a patient. Municipal commissioner Ganesh Deshmukh said, A 54-year-old doctor residing in Kharghar tested positive today. He practises at Sewri in Mumbai. He has been admitted to MGM Hospital in Kamothe. Another doctor from Khanda colony has tested positive. One Covid positive patient was admitted to the hospital on Sunday. Navi Mumbai reported three Covid-19 positive cases on Monday while one case was reported by Panvel City Municipal Corporation (PCMC). The total Covid positive count in Navi Mumbai is 69 cases. There are 19 containment zones in the city. Two people, who work in a company at Rabale, MIDC, have tested positive. They were among the 40 workers of the company quarantined after an engineer in the company had tested positive. Six workers have tested positive, of which, two live together in Navi Mumbai. A 22-year-old resident of Kopar Khairane has tested positive. He works on a contract basis in a company in Rabale. Navi Mumbai municipal commissioner Annasaheb Misal said, We are taking steps to ensure people do not have to go out of their houses even for essential goods. We have an app for ordering groceries and vegetables. WASHINGTON The contributions of young, undocumented immigrants in the battle against the novel coronavirus will become part of the Supreme Court record in time for the justices' upcoming decision on their fate. The high court agreed Monday to consider a new filing from a legal services organization at Yale Law School, as well as the National Immigration Law Center, that argues the Trump administration's decision to terminate the Deferred Action for Childhood Admissions (DACA) program should be blocked in light of the pandemic. "Health care providers on the front lines of our nations fight against COVID-19 rely significantly upon DACA recipients to perform essential work," the group wrote in a letter to the court late last month. "Termination of DACA during this national emergency would be catastrophic." The effort took on political overtones days later when Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, warned that such a decision "will leave a gaping hole in our health care system that is liable to cost American lives." About 27,000 DACA recipients work in the health care field, out of nearly 700,000 brought to the USA without legal papers as children. They rely on the program for temporary protection from deportation and work authorization. USA TODAY spoke with DACA recipients working as nurses and paramedics last month in California, Florida, Texas and in the suburbs of New York City, where the coronavirus has hit hardest. Some faced a shortage of personal protective equipment, often wearing the same masks for an entire hospital shift. Others were well-supplied but nervous nonetheless. More: Undocumented immigrants working on pandemic's front lines fear for health and home Veronica Velasquez is a DACA recipient working as a physical therapist at a Los Angeles community hospital. President Barack Obama created the program in 2012 after failing to get a more ambitious plan through Congress. Four years later, federal courts shot down his effort to extend similar protections to more than 4 million undocumented adults. Story continues The Trump administration was prodded into curtailing the program when Texas threatened a lawsuit. Federal courts from California to New York stepped in, leaving the program in place and setting up the Supreme Court showdown. During oral argument in November, the court's conservative majority appeared likely to side with the administration. If the justices simply refuse to overrule the Department of Homeland Security's decision, a new president just as easily could renew the program. If they declare the entire program unlawful, Congress would have to enact legislation to replace it. Jesus Contreras is a DACA recipient working as a paramedic in Houston. In legal papers submitted last October, the Association of American Medical Colleges cited federal warnings about "the risk of a pandemic" as a reason to keep DACA recipients contributing to a "robust health workforce." "Infectious diseases can spread around the globe in a matter of days due to increased urbanization and international travel," the group warned. "These conditions pose a threat to Americas health security its preparedness for and ability to withstand incidents with public-health consequences." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: DACA: Supreme Court agrees to new filing on recipients' pandemic work Delhi to ease restrictions, if Covid cases come down in next 2-3 days: Health Minister Lata Mangeshkar health update: Doctor says,'She in ICU with Covid-19 and pneumonia, will be under observation' Meerut hospital apologises for controversial ad on Muslims and COVID-19 test India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Meerut, Apr 20: A hospital in Uttar Pradesh has apologised for a controversial advertisement which said that Muslim patients and their caretakers coming to the hospital must test negative for COVID-19. "The advertisement was an appeal to all the people to follow the government guidelines so that everyone stays safe. It has nothing to do with religion. We apologise as some word hurt people's sentiments. The hospital never intended to hurt anyone's sentiments," said Dr Amit Jain, radio oncologist at Valentis Cancer Hospital, news agency ANI reported. Will admit only coronavirus free Muslims says hospital, faces FIR The newspaper advertisement released by the Valentis Cancer Hospital on Friday also said most Hindus and Jains are "misers", and asked them to contribute to the prime minister's fund to help fight coronavirus. Facing flak on social media, the hospital came up with another advertisement on Sunday, carrying an apology. The original advertisement blamed the Tablighi Jamaat -- whose congregation in Delhi last month was seen as a coronavirus hotspot -- for spreading the disease in the country and then set conditions for admitting Muslim patients. They must get themselves and their attendants tested for coronavirus and bring the report along, it said. Police have registered a case against hospital manager Amit Jain, Incholi SHO Brijesh Kumar Singh said on Sunday. Asked to comment on the controversial advertisement, Meerut's Chief Medical Officer Raj Kumar said, "This is certainly wrong and we are sending a notice to the administration of the concerned hospital." He said further action will be taken after a reply is received from them. In the second advertisement issued Sunday, the hospital said it apologizes if anyone's sentiments are even slightly hurt. Referring to the coronavirus pandemic, the hospital said it wanted people of all religions to fight the emergency together. "We never had the intention to hurt anyone's feelings. If anyone from the Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Sikh or Christian community has been hurt, we extend our heartfelt regrets." The new advertisement said the hospital was wrong in calling Hindus and Jains "misers". The hospital administration could not be contacted despite several attempts. Kurdistan is committed to the OPEC+ oil production cut deal and will reduce output accordingly, the government of the semi-autonomous Iraqi region said in a statement following a meeting between Kurdish and Iraqi officials. Reuters reported that at the meeting, the two sides had agreed that Kurdistan would report monthly oil production figures to Baghdad. "We agreed on cutting oil production in line with OPEC +'s decision," the Kurdistan Regional Government's finance minister, Awat Sheikh Janab, told media after the meeting, as quoted by Kurdistan24. "We agreed in principle that we [the Kurdistan Region] are part of Iraq, and Iraq's compliance is also our responsibility," the Kurdish official added. Iraq has committed to reduce its oil production by as much as 23 percent beginning next month. That would be down from an average daily of 4.5 million bpd at the moment. The portion of the total that would fall to Kurdistan to cut was not specified. Two weeks ago, OPEC+ agreed to remove 9.7 million bpd of oil from the market, with the cuts beginning next month and remaining in effect until the end of June, after which the group will start to ramp up production gradually. From 9.7 million bpd in May to June, the cuts will decline to 7.7 million bpd for the period July to December 2020, and then further to 5.8 million bpd until the end of April 2022. So far, the decision has not had a positive effect on oil prices, even with the added weight of cuts from other oil producers outside the expanded block. On the contrary, Brent has fallen to about $27 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate was trading below $12 a barrel at the time of writing. Last week, the energy ministers of Russia and Saudi Arabia said they were considering deepening the cuts further without providing any specific figures. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Queensland's online education portal has crashed on the first day of term two, leaving parents and students unable to access remote learning. Only the students of essential workers, as well as vulnerable children, were required to attend school when school returned on Monday amid the coronavirus crisis. High demand resulted in a 'temporary disruption' to the Learning@Home website, the state's education department said, and they were working to resolve the issue. Scroll down for video A student remote working on April 5 in Tarpoly Creek in rural New South Wales. On the first day of term two in Queensland, the state's remote learning portal has crashed - leaving students unable to be home schooled during the coronavirus crisis The online portal is a vital resource tool for students to learn remotely under adult supervision. Parents and carers took to social media wanting to know when the portal would be back online. 'We apologise for this short term interruption as we adapt to the learning at home model. Please remain patient as we work through it. Thank you,' the Queensland Department of Education tweeted multiple times. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said Queensland's education minister would look into the outage and respond. 'I think we always said there was going to be some teething issues and probably its been overwhelmed by the number of people that are actually logging on so happy to look into that issue,' she said. Ms Palaszczuk said Queenslanders were living through an unprecedented period and her government was doing its best to facilitate remote learning for all students. The Queensland Department of Education tweeted multiple times they were 'working through' the IT issues which led to the remote learning portal crashing 'We are providing everything we possibly can to ensure our children are still getting educated,' she told 4BC radio. 'Let's see how the next few weeks ago.' Queensland opposition leader Deb Frecklington said she had already been contacted by angry parents, and called on the government to give families the choice as to whether their children go to school. 'Parents have every right to be angry and frustrated at Annastacia Palaszczuk today,' she told The Courier-Mail. 'Parents should have been able to send their kids to school if they wanted too. Pictured: An empty classroom at a primary school in Brisbane on March 30. Queensland's online portal suffered a 'temporary disruption' due to high demand on the first day of term Thousands of new electronic devices have been purchased for schools and print learning material has been prepared. The school restriction measures are expected to be reviewed in five weeks and helplines have been established for those who have questions or need help. 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 Authorities in the state were anticipating about 10 to 15 per cent of Queensland students to attend schools from Monday. There are roughly 870,000 school students enrolled across the state. It comes as the Palaszczuk government warns there will be no early end to the state's lockdown restrictions over fears it could lead to a spike in infections. Border checkpoints will also remain in place with a warning they could be tightened even further. In the 24 hours to Sunday morning, police fined 70 people in the state for breaching public health directions and performed 29 compliance checks of people in quarantine. At the Queensland border, 2698 vehicles were intercepted in the 24 hour period and 11 vehicles were turned back. On Saturday the Queensland government announced it had offered $200 million to help rescue Virgin Australia. The cash-strapped airline suspended trading in its shares to continue talks on financial aid and restructuring, after its request to the Australian government for $1.4 billion in loans was rejected. State development minister Cameron Dick said it is important Australia continues to have two airlines to support tourism, jobs and regional investment. Mr Dick called on the Morrison government to also step in and provide help. New Delhi, April 20 : The office of Ayushman Bharat that comes under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has been sealed and 25 employees have been quarantined after an employee who is PS to the Additional Chief Executive Officer, tested positive for COVID-19. "As soon as the employee was confirmed with novel coronavirus our office was sealed. At least 25 employees have been quarantined," the source told IANS, adding, "thankfully the staff was not much because 50 per cent employees are working from home. The total number of confirmed cases of novel coronavirus in India is at 17,656, with 559 deaths so far, according to data published by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday. 14,255 are active cases of COVID-19, and 2,841 individuals have recovered so far. A DOCTOR in Wargrave has raised doubts about the effectiveness of equipment sent out by NHS England to protect healthcare workers from coronavirus. John Kennedy, who has been a GP for more than 30 years, was speaking after the deaths of a number of doctors and nurses from covid-19. The surgery in Wargrave received about 300 aprons and a similar number of face masks from NHS England last month. However, Dr Kennedy does not believe the masks provide adequate protection and in fact pose a risk to medical staff and patients. He said: The masks are fluid-resistant to prevent droplets from getting into the mouth but dont have the splash protection against droplets that we should have. If the droplets get into mucous membranes the virus gets into the system. We didnt have full face masks or any eye protection. You need this when youre seeing patients. When we saw the kit we realised there was a problem because we were not being sent the equipment recommended by the World Health Organisation. Public Health England is adamant that the current kit is sufficient. Every other healthcare system in the world and the World Health Organisation recommends something else. Why are we so different? Whats the evidence base for making that decision? If there are good reasons, then fine. They should be able to convince us if there are. The Doctors Association UK has begun collecting anonymous reports from its network of frontline medics about continuing shortages of personal protective equipment. It says 72 per cent of doctors cannot get hold of an FFP3 mask when they need one, 77 per cent report shortages of long-sleeved gowns and 43 per cent cannot always use a visor or goggles when they need them. This is based on 500 reports so far from 193 hospital trusts and GP practices. Dr Kennedy accepted demand for personal protective equipment had skyrocketed and this could result in the equipment taking longer to reach the frontline. The logistics of getting the stock out is very complicated, he said. This is not just one GP practice in the country wanting protection. Lots of members of the public are also buying this protection and go on the sites where we would normally buy it and gobble it up before we or anyone in social services can get it. The virus has increased demand a thousand-fold thats the order of magnitude. There are more than 3,500 GP practices in England, so thats a very different scenario than just trying to get the equipment out to a few hundred hospitals. Patients coming in should be given a mask too because if theyre coughing and spraying droplets everywhere thats also not a good idea. We do not want them spreading droplets and virus to us. Equally, we do not want to be spreading virus to them. In a way that doubles the equipment usage because every time you see patients you should change your equipment and dispose of it properly in clinical waste. Every practice in the country is in the same boat. If we are changing our equipment all the time we would bomb through it in two days, so its better not to do this and have some rather than none. Some of the staff at the Wargrave surgery, which comprises about 35 healthcare professionals, went into isolation because of fears they may have contracted the virus. A partner began working from home because members of his family had symptoms and another worker recently returned following a two-week isolation. Two members of staff have also been off sick. Dr Kennedy said: Is the average health worker at risk? Definitely, because were seeing far more people than the average member of the population is right now. Theres good evidence internationally that anywhere between 10 and 40 per cent of people are shedding virus when they have no symptoms or very minimal symptoms, which is a risk when patients come to visit. The issue is that if we go off ill without testing, were off for two weeks and we know thats denuding the frontline. A significant part of being a GP is recognising theres a risk for us in contracting an illness from patients. There has always been an element of being in harms way. Dr Kennedy, who was expecting another delivery of protective equipment last week, also praised the health service and the public for their overall response to the crisis. I think the NHS and society has made monumental efforts over the last few weeks, he said. I have never seen change on a scale that is anything like what Im seeing at the moment. What is going on is phenomenal. This is not a once-in-a-generation challenge. This is a once-a-hundred-years challenge. Im amazed by the way the NHS and my colleagues are stepping up to it. Meanwhile, staff at the surgery claim they are doing all they can to protect themselves and patients from contracting the virus. Patients are asked to only visit when necessary and footfall has been reduced by moving over to a telephone consultation system. The surgery admits that there have been difficulties in ensuring social distancing on the premises. There will now be a member of staff in protective equipment waiting at the front entrance. They will take any samples and bring items, such as prescriptions, dispensed medications and letters, to visitors. If patients have an appointment, they will be screened with a set of questions and a temperature check before they enter the building. Compared to the same time last year, demand for particular items, such as inhalers, has quadrupled and the total number of dispensed items has almost tripled. A spokesman for the surgery said: Our dispensary, local pharmacies and the medicines supply chain have coped amazingly well with this explosion of demand. Patients have been very understanding of the demands on the service. We have a number of extra staff now in dispensary and response times are better than ever. The surgery is being supported by local volunteer drivers, who have been able to assist with the collection and delivery of medicines for elderly and vulnerable residents. The Hart Surgery in Henley has not had a delivery of any personal protective equipment, including surgical masks with visors, gowns and gloves, from NHS England in the last three weeks. It is having to use up its reserves and items donated by private company. Lagosians in their numbers took to twitter last night as NCDC announced Nigeria has recored 86 new cases of coronavirus, crediting 70 to Lagos. Many wondered how the virus is being spread despite the stay at home order which many have been observing. Someone asked to be returned to his village, while another asked the DJ to play Ijoba Orun. Tho most of the comments are hilarious, some however are very meaningful, like a tweet that read; NCDC Dropped it like a banger.86 new cases70 in Lagos and you dont want to stay in your house? Look at Me, You are a mumu. More of their reactions below @rinudear 70 in Lagos alone? Lord, I have never repeated classes in my life but can we please repeat 2019 . @olafweshy 70 in Lagos. Are you whining me?DJ, please play me IJOBA ORUN. @realdreylo NCDC always comes to announce these cases in the night so that when we sleep we will forget about it. 86 new cases?!! 70 in lagos!! Does lagos think this is the presidential election? @ Bhadmusakeem 70 in Lagos is huge tho. @obongnovel 70 in Lagos, Lord I want to go back to my village. @toluteezy 70 in Lagos, Lagos keeps topping the league everyday, I thought Lagos is on lockdown. So who is spreading the virus? @the ajebutter104 NCDC Dropped it like a banger.86 new cases70 in Lagos and you dont want to stay in your house? Look at Me, You are a mumu. @shybloggerpr 70 in Lagos is not what is paining me alone, but the fact that Ive been locked indoors for over 3 weeks just because I want to stop the spread and yet the numbers keep increasing. @random_ized 70 in Lagos the way things are going we are graduating from lockdown to shutdown. @volqx NCDC just dropped the new cases and we have 70 in Lagos only, guys forget the 3-month assumptions, I think everyone should start sewing Christmas clothes. @swaggzeez 70 in Lagos in the last 24hours. God should please save us. This America just a month ago, from 200 deaths and its 40k today. God wont let our own case be like this. @ernest_onefe 70 in Lagos, Brace yourselves guys. This is gonna be a long break . @ispeakintegrity So disheartening! 86 New cases. The numbers arent beautiful. And 70 in Lagos. Do I need to tell Lagosians that this year may be for LockDown? @bola_blvck 70 in Lagos?? I dont believe this. @hoezia Me viewing the breakdown of the new cases. 70 in Lagos ke!! God help us. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates Flash Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research received on Sunday a batch of anti-coronavirus materials donated by China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. According to the Chinese Embassy in Egypt, the materials include 100,000 surgical masks, 15,000 N95 masks, 1,000 protective suits and 1,200 testing kits. When receiving the materials in the Chinese Embassy, Egyptian Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdel Ghaffar expressed his gratitude, calling China's handling of the coronavirus a great success. "These materials will relieve pressure on the hospitals affiliated to Egyptian universities that are under the supervision of the ministry and will help cure more coronavirus cases in Egypt," said Ghaffar. Chinese Ambassador Liao Liqiang expressed appreciation for the help the ministry provided for the Chinese students in Egypt, adding that Egyptian students in China are safe and sound. "The donation of the materials reflects the deep relations between the two countries and there are solid reasons that the bilateral relations will go deeper after COVID-19," said Liao. On the same day, the Chinese Embassy in Egypt held the seventh online press conference on COVID-19, in which Liao briefed the anti-coronavirus situation in China and cooperation between the countries in this regard. Another batch of anti-coronavirus materials is scheduled to arrive in Egypt next Tuesday, and a third batch is under coordination between the two sides, Liao said. "The impacts of the coronavirus on the major bilateral cooperation projects in Egypt are limited and there will be no change in the investments policy by the Chinese side in the future," Liao added. With 76 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and seven deaths, the Liberian legislature has approved President George Weah's request to declare a state of emergency to contain the further spread of the virus. But MPs insisted on provisions to ensure transparency of the money earmarked to help Liberians. Weah had earlier written to the legislature requesting its concurrence to impose a state of emergency and declare a 21-day lockdown. The 60-day state of emergency is aimed at helping healthcare workers locate sick people and respond to cases promptly, measures that were put in place throughout the country during the Ebola epidemic from 2014-12016. Lawmakers approved the lockdown and quarantine imposed by Weah, but added that anyone appearing in public streets and buildings must wear a protective device that covers at least the nose and mouth, according to the joint resolution. Based on the advice of health experts, the senators also imposed a quarantine in the affected counties. Controversy over stimulus plans Weah sought legislative approval to allocate 23 million euros for food distribution to households in counties affected by Covid-19, but in a letter to the legislature, he said the budget could go up to 37 million euros. The World Bank has agreed to finance this gap off-budget to the tune of nine million euros, using resources reallocated from existing projects, Weah wrote. But during legislative deliberations which lasted for nearly three days, several lawmakers, including Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr, of Bomi County District #1, questioned granting exclusive powers to appointed public officials implementing the stimulus package due to fear of corruption. About a year ago, we had $25 million mop-up exercise; today, we are still discussing the outcome of the $25 million mop-up. We are now talking about infusing another $25 million, Snowe said, referring to money that was intended to cover excess Liberian dollars that were in the market. In February 2018, an investigative report by Kroll Associates, an international auditing firm hired by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) outlined discrepancies and recommended a full-scale forensic audit of disbursements from the Central Bank of Liberia for the period January 2016 to December 2018. Months later, the General Auditing Commission (GAC) submitted its report after being directed by the president to investigate the missing money. After the GAC report was submitted, the government also mandated the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) to conduct another investigation into the mop-up exercise. To date findings of that report is yet to be made public. Reaching a compromise Reacting to the lawmaker's concerns, acting Senate President Albert Chie said a joint Emergency Oversight Committee will be put together by both the Speaker of the House of Representatives and himself to exercise oversight over all of the programmes to ensure transparency. Chie said the 23 million euros would be earmarked to support food distribution, prioritising vulnerable people such as disadvantaged youths, homeless, orphans, senior citizens, healthcare workers and security on the frontline. Free water and electricity will be supplied to households during the 60-day period, Chie added, stressing that the measures are intended to alleviate hardship. Special bank loans Weah told the legislature that market women and informal petty traders with loans will be the ones who suffer significantly during the stay at home order. He proposed that the government repay their loans in full, as part of the requested budgetary reallocation. All health workers shall receive monthly hazard pay for regular as well as volunteer workers as provided for by international organisations, according to the joint resolution. Speaking to RFI in downtown Monrovia, a number of street sellers with loans welcomed the gesture by the government. I am just appealing to those who will be in charge of this process to please ensure the real beneficiary can benefit, said Ernest Ojuku, 40, a used clothing seller. He said he is worried the money might get in the wrong hands if not monitored. We don't want to see a reoccurrence of the mop-up money. I am warning them to implement this exercise as the president's desire especially for us that are suffering, he added. Ojuku is among several small business people whose market tables were destroyed by the government in the commercial hub of Waterside in order to decongest the city and limit the spread of the coronavirus. If kids return to school in New Jersey before summer vacation, their classrooms will surely look different and could include masked faces. Thats an idea Gov. Phil Murphy floated during a media briefing last week on the coronavirus outbreak. I would bet the answer is yes, that we will be masked when kids go back to school. That will be my personal guess, he said. For now, the governor said it was an opinion, not a mandate." Several questions would arise if such a mandate were given. Providing masks could fall on parents, but enforcing their use would become the responsibility of teachers. What happens if a child drops their mask, loses it or contaminates it by trading with a friend? How can one teacher enforce social distancing in a cramped classroom of 30? It seems a bit unwise as well as impractical, said Kenya Hameed, a clinical neuropsychologist with the Learning and Development Center of the Child Mind Institute. People are just wearing them for brief amounts of time. What would it be like to have a mask on for eight hours a day?" Getting adults to properly wear masks without contaminating themselves presents a challenge. Among kids, a larger learning curve emerges, particularly for pre-school and elementary school children. Younger children watch faces closely to learn new words and associate emotion with material, and have been shown to struggle to identify others if their faces are partially covered. Kids have difficulty recognizing faces holistically. They tend to pay attention to parts of the face, said Kang Lee, a professor of applied psychology and human development at the University of Toronto, who has studied childrens relationships with masks. Sometimes when you wear a mask, they cannot recognize you. Even though they know each other from the last year, or a couple years, now when they return to the classroom, they may have difficulty recognizing each other and their homeroom teachers. Still, the mask talk is hypothetical. Murphy has ordered all schools closed until at least May 15, and about half of all states have closed for the remainder of the academic year. Education experts, including Richard Bozza, the executive director of the New Jersey Association of School Administrators, have expressed doubt that schools will reopen before September. As the number of daily deaths related to the outbreak appears to slow, uncertainties about life going forward remain. CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage The governor is not going to reopen schools until it is safe for students and staff to be in school, said Steve Baker, a spokesman for the New Jersey Education Association. I dont see any scenario where he rushes that decision without getting clearance from epidemiologists and medical professionals that its safe now to reopen." But he did say schools would face a particular challenge as they enter the new normal" period between the first major outbreak and widespread availability of a vaccine to finally eradicate the virus. I think everyone acknowledges the challenges that would be involved, especially with young students, being able to understand and properly use masks, follow social distancing, Baker said. And it might prove more trouble than its worth. For weeks, officials discouraged the use of masks in public, and pushed people to save them for health care workers. Then they changed course only within the past few weeks. Its still not clear how well masks stop the spread of the virus. To avoid scaring young students, adults would have to teach them about the importance of masks and staying apart, while trying to mitigate their anxiety. Its going to scare them, Hameed said. On top of that, it makes it so much more difficult for kids to focus on why they are there. Older students might not do much better with a mask directive. Teens spend their high school days socializing all over campus, often feel invincible and may pressure each other to ditch their masks, she said. Despite the holdups, Lee said kids can adapt, and could learn how to recognize people by their voices, or a name or character used on a mask. Teachers might take tips from special education teachers who have developed ways to work with visually impaired students when it comes to communication and reading skills, he said. Whether or not masks become required in schools, the outbreak has already begun to change the Western cultural perception of masks. In some Asian countries, like Japan, masks are a common sight, and often worn by people who want to avoid catching an illness, although Americans tend to associate them with illness. For children, that change could come soon. Maybe through this COVID-19 experience, we probably are going to see some cultural shift in the way we perceive who is behind this mask," Lee said. "When you now ask kids to wear a mask, they start to learn, wearing a mask does not mean you are sick, it means you want to be healthy. Amanda Hoover can be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters. A third grader in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, watches a lecture on a tablet PC at home. /Yonhap By Bahk Eun-ji Working parents of first-, second- and third-graders at elementary schools are struggling to find someone to take care of their young children as more of them began the spring semester, Monday. More than 5.4 million elementary, middle and high school students nationwide began the new school year online amid the coronavirus pandemic. Under the Ministry of Education's guidelines, first- and second-graders in elementary school were offered TV programs and handout materials rather than taking real-time interactive classes like older students are doing. The programs aired on the state-run Educational Broadcasting System (EBS). Stinky Whale Washes up on N. Oregon Coast Beach near Pacific City Published 04/19/2020 at 5:54 PM PDT By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff (Pacific City, Oregon) The north Oregon coasts Sand Lake Recreation Area near Pacific City received a rather large and unsettling visitor on Friday. A camp host at the area discovered the corpse of a 39-foot gray whale had washed up, a male that had probably been deceased for at least a week, according to officials. (Photos courtesy Tillamook County Sheriff's office). Jim Rice, head of the Marine Mammal Stranding Network based out of Newport, said this one had been dead for a week or more and was pretty ripe. He and another volunteer came up from Newport and took some samples for a necropsy, but hopes are not high for conclusions on how it died as it was fairly decomposed. Rice and the volunteer were there for a few hours, but he said a whale corpse that was fresher would be more reliable for any lab test results. He did add it seemed underweight. There was nothing obvious about how it died, Rice said. No signs of fishing interaction or a predation event. Necropsies are the regular procedure for whales that wash up on the Oregon coast and the Washington coast, as part of regular scientific research but also to determine if there are any new trends in whale deaths. In fact, Rice said there has been some unusual mortality in gray whales in the last year There is no firm word on what is planned with the whale body afterwards, whether it will be buried or left for wildlife to consume. However, Tillamook County Sheriffs joked on Facebook about whats next, referencing the infamous exploding whale incident in Florence 50 years ago. We at the Sheriffs Office do not recommend they use dynamite this time to dispose of it, they said on Facebook. It didnt go well last time. Rice said Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department will make the decision on how it may be disposed of or if simply left there. The agency will take into account cost and other factors, including any danger to humans. Decomposing whales are not a healthy thing for humans and their pets to be around. Keith Chandler is manager of Seaside Aquarium and the Marine Mammal Stranding Networks response manager for the northern Oregon coast and southern Washington coast. He had the same hopes for the whales fate as Rice. Both said since no one is allowed on the beaches at this time it should be left there for birds and other wildlife to devour. Theyre already doing that now. The birds are certainly having a feast on it now, Rice said. Occasionally, whales wash up in an extreme state of decomposition and may not even be recognizable as a whale. In the last century these became known as globsters, which not only smell really bad but they look like hairy blobs because of their extreme decay. The term globsters has been tied to some paranormal legends of strange monsters emerging from the sea, a legend that grew from a lack of understanding of what globsters really were. If youve ever been near a decomposing whale, you know how badly they can reek. So how does Rice and other members of the network deal with that when working on a whale corpse on the beach? You get kinda used to it, he said. I just try to stay upwind from it as much as I can. Ive been doing this for a very long time. Some people put Vics VapoRub under their noses, though. More about Oregon Coast Whales - more photos of this whale below More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging..... More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining..... Coastal Spotlight LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles Back to Oregon Coast Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted The Valentis Cancer Hospital in Meerut, which earlier issued an advertisement in a newspaper stating that Muslims and their caretakers must test negative for COVID-19 before undergoing treatment at their facility, has tendered an apology. Meerut: The Valentis Cancer Hospital in Meerut, which earlier issued an advertisement in a newspaper stating that Muslims and their caretakers must test negative for COVID-19 before undergoing treatment at their facility, has tendered an apology. The apology came after the hospital management was booked by the police for the Friday advertisement which also said most Hindus and Jains are misers, and asked them to contribute to the prime ministers fund to help fight coronavirus. The original advertisement blamed the Tablighi Jamaat whose congregation in Delhi last month was seen as a coronavirus hotspot for spreading the disease in the country and then set conditions for admitting Muslim patients. They must get themselves and their attendants tested for coronavirus and bring the report along, it said. Police registered a case against hospital manager Amit Jain, Incholi SHO Brijesh Kumar Singh said on Sunday. Asked to comment on the controversial advertisement, Meeruts Chief Medical Officer Raj Kumar said, This is certainly wrong and we are sending a notice to the administration of the concerned hospital. He said further action will be taken after a reply is received from them. "The advertisement was an appeal to all the people to follow the government guidelines so that everyone stays safe. It has nothing to do with religion. We apologise as some word hurt people's sentiments. The hospital never intended to hurt anyone's sentiments," said Dr Amit Jain, Valentis Cancer Hospital. Meanwhile, Meerut SSP Ajay Kumar Sahni said, "We have registered a case. We are taking action as per the evidence available." According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Uttar Pradesh has 1,084 COVID-19 cases, including 108 cured/discharged/migrated and 17 deaths. With inputs from agencies Hitting out at the Centre for sending teams to the state to assess the implementation of the ongoing lockdown and its reported violation in some areas, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, asserting that such action was unilateral and not desirable. She said the two inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) did not contact the state government, which was supposed to look after the logistic arrangements on their arrival. The Centre has said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and warned that violation of lockdown measures may facilitate the spread of the novel coronavirus further. In identical orders issued to Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan on Sunday, the Union home ministry said there were several incidents of violence against frontline healthcare professionals, complete violation of social-distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. While one central team arrived here on Monday, another reached Jalpaiguri district. Banerjee said the basis on which the Centre proposed to deploy its teams was "unclear", adding, "We would not be able to move ahead on this as without valid reasons, this might not be consistent with the spirit of federalism." She said these observations of the Centre were "devoid of any facts" and "do not lend credibility" to its claim. For example, of the districts identified, Kalimpong reported the last incidence of infection on April 2. Similarly, the last incidence of infection reported in Jalpaiguri was on April 4 and in Darjeeling on April 16, Banerjee wrote to Modi. It showed that the selection of districts and the observations were made unilaterally and it was nothing but a figment of imagination and unfortunate, the chief minister said, adding that her government was proactively enforcing the lockdown measures as notified by the Centre and maintaining a close liaison with the Union ministries concerned. She also pointed out that West Bengal had announced a lockdown before the Centre did so. "...and even before the extension of the lockdown, which was called on April 14, the state government had already extended the lockdown till April 30," Banerjee said. "I am sure you will kindly agree that such unilateral action on the part of the central government is not desirable at all, especially when both the central and state governments are working together relentlessly round the clock to contain the COVID-19 crisis," she added. The central teams will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of the state's health infrastructure, safety of health professionals and the condition of the relief camps for labourers and poor people, a home ministry spokesperson said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Dr. Ala Stanford administers a nasal swab test for the coronavirus on Mark Anthony Prior of Tioga at Miller Memorial Baptist Church in Philadelphia on Saturday. Dr. Stanford procured nasal swab kits and a van for this mobile testing site to make sure African Americans are getting tested for the coronavirus, since they have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Read more We are weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic, and its frustrating that so many who want to get tested for the coronavirus havent been. People get turned away because their symptoms are mild or because they arent elderly. Others lack prescriptions. Some dont know where to go or dont have a car for drive-up options. Enter Ala Stanford, a board-certified surgeon and founder of R.E.A.L. Concierge Medicine Co. Shes putting larger health-care institutions to shame with her approach, because shes taking coronavirus testing to the streets literally. On Thursday, Stanford got into a rented van and made house calls where she conducted on-the-spot nasal swab tests. Then, on Saturday, she recruited a group of health-care workers, stood in the cold and rain with them outside Miller Memorial Baptist Church in North Philly, and conducted additional testing on more than 130 people. We had postal workers. We had grocery store people. We had health-care folks that had been around COVID-positive people, but because they were not displaying symptoms, they couldnt get tested," Stanford told me on Sunday. I had someone from the Department of Corrections coming over to get tested [and] someone who had just gotten out of jail. Thanks to Stanford, people who might not have otherwise been tested are now awaiting their results. At a time when so many health experts are bemoaning how the virus is disproportionately impacting black people, shes going directly to neighborhoods that have been identified as epidemiological hot zones. Its amazing how quickly Stanford got her operation up and running. Shes a force of a nature. I have so much respect and admiration for Stanford. I met her 10 years ago when she was performing a series of successful surgeries on a little Haitian girl who had been born without an anus. Ive also acted as a mentor in a program for local children that shes run. After learning that African Americans make up 52% of coronavirus cases in Philadelphia, Stanford announced the creation of Black Doctors COVID19. I was getting so frustrated by people telling me what they were going to do, and how long it would take and why it wouldnt work, Stanford said. "I was just like, OK, let me check my office and see what I have in the way of supplies. Let me see what my friends have in the way of supplies. And was like, We are going to do this while they figure it out. Because I cant sit around and wait. Stanford already had some coronavirus tests in her office in Jenkintown. A fellow physician gave her some more, and she ordered an unspecified number from LabCorp. After Saturday, her next stop was the parking lot of Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in East Mount Airy on Monday. On Wednesday, her team will be at Pinn Memorial Baptist Church in West Philly. The plan is to test people every other day in various church parking lots around the city. Testing is free, but people are asked to register in advance at realconciergemedicine.com. So many people want to donate to the GoFundMe and I appreciate that, but we need masks and gowns more than anything, she told me. Donations can be dropped off at Salem Baptist Church in Abington. Her friend and pastor, the Rev. Marshall Mitchell of Salem Baptist, assists with logistics. They teamed up previously during missionary trips to Haiti. For us, this is faith in action," Mitchell said. "Its medicine in the streets. Luckily for residents who live in zip codes hardest hit by the coronavirus, its also access to testing and much-needed health-care advice thats closer to the blocks and streets where they live. And to think all of this happened because Stanford grabbed some coronavirus tests and got into a van driven by her husband and started hitting the streets. I hope she inspires others to adopt similar tactics not just here but nationwide. Financial District, North Beach Photo: Dominic Simpson/Flickr Here are some notable crime incidents in SFPD's Central District since our last biweekly recap. The district encompasses Chinatown; the Financial District; the Embarcadero; Russian, Telegraph and Nob Hills; North Beach and Union Square. Attempted package theft On April 11 at approximately 5:47 a.m., a 30-year-old man forced entry into the lobby of a college dorm on the 1000 block of Bush Street (between Jones and Leavenworth). He attempted to steal packages but was caught by security and arrested. Woman robbed of purse in broad daylight On April 10, a 65-year-old woman was approached by a woman aged between 16 and 20 in the intersection of Francisco and Mason streets. A struggle ensued, and the younger woman got away with the victim's purse, which contained $100, a credit card, a driver license and a medical insurance card. The robbery occurred at 1:20 p.m. No arrest has been made. SF Public Works truck set on fire On April 9, a 30-year-old man set fire to items on the back of an SF Public Works truck at Jones and Sutter streets. While some of the supplies stored on the truck were damaged, the truck itself remained undamaged. The incident occurred at 2:15 p.m. No arrest was made. Headphones, phone taken in robbery near Stockton Street Tunnel On April 8 at 4:30 p.m., a 28-year-old woman was walking northbound at the Stockton Street Tunnel at Stockton and Sutter streets when three women aged between 16 and 20 approached her from behind. The women then assaulted her, before taking her headphones and a phone. They then fled southbound on Stockton Street. No arrest was made. The victim suffered non-life threatening injuries from the encounter. Trash can set on fire, wall damaged An unknown suspect set fire to a trash can on the 1400 block of Grant Street (between Green and Union) on April 8 at 2:35 a.m. The fire damaged the side of a wall. The suspect fled the scene. No arrest was made, nobody was injured. Story continues SFPD arrests third suspect in Chinatown robbery The last suspect involved in a robbery that took place on July 15 last year at approximately 1:09 p.m. at Stockton Street and Pacific Avenue was arrested on April 1. 22-year-old Christopher Jefferson of Sacramento was taken into custody with the assistance of the Stockton Police Department in Stockton, CA. Jefferson was later booked at San Francisco County Jail on charges of robbery, assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, aggravated battery causing serious bodily injury and elder abuse. He remains in custody. His next court date is currently set for May 13. During the robbery in 2019, three suspects approached a 56-year-old San Francisco resident, lifted him up off of his feet and threw him to the ground. The second victim, a 69-year-old San Francisco resident, attempted to intervene and was knocked unconscious. During the attack, the suspects stole a watch from the wrist of the first victim. Both victims were transported to the hospital for head injuries. As for the other two suspects 19-year-old Dashawn Pierson was arrested in October 2019 and 20-year-old Akeem Smith was arrested in January of this year. Anyone who has information about any of these incidents is encouraged to contact SFPD via the department's anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444, or text TIP411 with "SFPD" at the start of the message. Heres why we usually dont include suspect descriptions in crime reports. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that lifting coronavirus restrictions too early could cause a dangerous second wave of infections. The body responsible for leading global health responses has advised countries to be wary about ending their lockdowns too soon, despite the fact that economies are suffering. WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that by already relaxing some of their protective measures, worst hit parts of the world like Italy and Spain could be promoting a deadly resurgence in infections . He was speaking at a regular news briefing from Geneva, and told the virtual conference that the organisation was working with governments to put together effective strategies for easing restrictions, but that this had to be approached with caution. "Lifting restrictions too quickly could lead to a deadly resurgence," Dr Ghebreyesus said. "The way down can be as dangerous as the way up if not managed properly." Businesses opening His comments come as Italy and Spain have already begun relaxing their measures, with a small number of businesses in Italy given permission to reopen next week. These include bookshops, launderettes and children's clothing shops. Only food stores and pharmacies have been open so far. The regulation changes came after the number of deaths in Italy fell from 610 last Thursday to 570 on Friday and the number of new cases also dropped slightly from 4,204 to 3,951, and despite the Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte extending the national lockdown until 3 May, warning that the gains made so far should not be lost. Spain has already begun relaxing measures (Photo: Getty) Spain has already begun relaxing measures (Photo: Getty) In Spain, which recorded its lowest daily death toll in 17 days on Friday, with 605 people dying, some non-essential workers in sectors like construction and factory production are being allowed to return to their jobs on Monday. Recent figures show there have been 15,843 registered deaths related to the virus in the country to date - Europe's highest number of confirmed cases. Virus spreading elsewhere Prime minister Pedro Sanchez told MPs in Madrid "the fire starts to come under control," adding that the country would have total victory over the virus. Mr Sanchez is the latest European leader to suggest the situation may be stabilising. But Dr Ghebreyesus has warned that the virus is now spreading rapidly in other countries like Africa, where he said Covid- 19 had reached rural areas. Pedro Sanchez said the Coronavirus epidemic was beginning to come under control (Image: La Moncloa) Pedro Sanchez said the Coronavirus epidemic was beginning to come under control (Image: La Moncloa) "We are now seeing clusters of cases and community spread in more than 16 countries on the continent," he said. "We anticipate severe hardship for already overstretched health systems, particularly in rural areas, which normally lack the resources of those in cities." Restrictions remain The leaders of several nations, including the United States , had previously marked this Easter weekend as the provisional date when restrictions would be lifted. Most nations, however, have now backed away from that, instead extending their lockdowns and shelter-in-place rules to the end of the month. In the UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who has been deputising for Boris Johnson while he remains in hospital, warned that it was still too soon for ministers to begin lifting the social distancing rules introduced last month. He said the lockdown measures would "have to stay in place until we've got the evidence that clearly shows we've moved beyond the peak". There have been 1.6 million cases of Coronavirus globally so far and 101,000 deaths. Dr Tedros said the WHO was working with affected countries on strategies for safely and slowly easing their restrictions, but that the pandemic had exposed weaknesses in the health care systems of even the strongest nations, and it could not be too soon. ---inews.co.uk The United States, Canada, and Mexico have extended CCP virus-related travel restrictions for another month, it was announced Monday. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in confirming the development, said an additional 30 days will be added to the restrictions, meaning that it will end around May 20. Officials did not provide an exact end date. In close collaboration, the US, Mexico, and Canada have each agreed to extend restrictions on non-essential travel across their shared borders for 30 additional days, Acting Secretary Chad Wolf said in a statement. As President Trump stated last week, border control, travel restrictions and other limitations remain critical to slowing the spread and allowing the phased opening of the country. In close collaboration, the US, Mexico, and Canada have each agreed to extend restrictions on non-essential travel across their shared borders for 30 additional days. Acting Secretary Chad Wolf (@DHS_Wolf) April 20, 2020 The United States and Canada announced on March 18 that nonessential traffic across the border will be blocked. The United States made a similar announcement about travel to Mexico two days later on March 20. At the time, officials said the restrictions would expire after 30 days before they would be subject to a review on whether an extension was necessary. President Donald Trump said that southern border travel restrictions were designed to reduce the incentive for a mass global migration that would badly deplete health care resources in the country during the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus pandemic. On Monday, Mexicos foreign relations secretariat confirmed on Twitter the agreement to extend the restrictions, saying it came after reviewing the development of COVID-19 propagation in Mexico and [the United States]. And Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated on Saturday the United States and Canada agreed to keep the border closed for another month, saying it would be likely much longer before the restriction is done away with. The agreement is the same terms. Its just extended for another 30 days. It will ensure we continue to get essential goods and services back and forth across the border, Trudeau told reporters. The prime minister added in French the restrictions will remain in place for many, many weeks to come, according to a translation from The Associated Press. The United States has more than 700,000 confirmed cases, while Canada has 36,000 confirmed cases and Mexico has more than 8,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. From The Epoch Times Chalong Police check for COVID in death of Canadian man, 70 PHUKET: Chalong Police are waiting for a post-mortem examination to confirm the cause of death of a 70-year-old Canadian man whose body was found in his rented apartment in Chalong on Saturday (Apr 18), and to determine whether man had contracted COVID-19. COVID-19Coronavirusdeathpolice By Tanyaluk Sakoot Monday 20 April 2020, 06:14PM Capt Somkiet Sarasin of the Chalong Police told The Phuket News today (Apr 20) that he was called to the mans apartment, on Chao Fa East Rd, near Chalong Police Station, at 11am on Friday. The man, originally from Cochrane, Canada, was believed to have died at least several days before his body was discovered, Capt Somkiet said. The owner of the apartment told me that the man had been staying there for five years and that he lived alone, he added. There was nothing in the room that indicated what may have caused his death. There were no signs of a struggle in the room or on his body, Capt Somkiet noted. Canadian consular officials have been notified of the mans death, Capt Somkiet said Rescue workers wore plastic raincoats and face shields as basic personal protection gear as a precaution while recovering the mans body and transporting it to Vachira Phuket Hospital, Capt Somkiet added Doctors are examining the body today [Apr 20] in the hope of determining what caused the mans death. Doctors will also test for COVID-19. The result of that test should be available in a couple of days, he said. File photo of a logo stands outside of a Shake Shack store in New York, U.S., Sept. 27, 2017. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters) Burger Chain Shake Shack to Return $10 Million Government Loan Shake Shack Inc. said it will return the small business loan it received from the U.S. government, making it the first major firm to hand back money provided to help businesses ride out the impact of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus lockdown. The company will immediately return the entire $10 million U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loan as it was able to raise additional capital, CEO Randy Garutti and founder Danny Meyer said in a blog post on April 20. Shares of Shake Shack, which raised about $150 million in an equity offering last week, fell about 3 percent to $42 on Monday morning. SBA, which is a key part of the governments $2.2 trillion aid package, is aimed at helping small companies keep paying their employees and their basic bills during the shutdowns so that they are able to reopen quickly when public health allows. More than 25 percent of the total $350 billion fund went to fewer than 2 percent of the firms that got relief, including a number of publicly traded companies with thousands of employees and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual sales. This led to a backlash from smaller establishments and mom-and-pop restaurants, one of the hardest-hit sectors as diners stay at home due to lockdowns. Ruth Hospitality Group Inc., Potbelly Corp., and Fiesta Restaurant Groups Texas Taco Cabana are among the chains that have borrowed money. Several franchises of McDonalds Corp and Dunkin Brands Group Inc. are also said to have applied for the loan. If this act were written for small businesses, how is it possible that so many independent restaurants whose employees needed just as much help were unable to receive funding? Garutti and Meyer wrote. Shake Shack said the money it received could be reallocated to the independent restaurants who need it most, (and) havent gotten any assistance. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a tweet said he was glad to see that Shake Shack would return the loan. Mnuchin told CNN on Sunday that a deal being discussed with Congress would include $300 billion more for the Paycheck Protection Program loan program for small businesses. President Donald Trump said on Sunday Democrats and Republicans were nearing an agreement on extra money to help small businesses. Shake Shack runs around 189 restaurants in the United States, with about 45 employees in each outlet. The company closed about half of its 120 locations worldwide, and furloughed or laid off more than 1,000 employees after sales fell 28.5 percent in March. This is the alleged paedophile hailed as a Covid-19 hero in court. Co Down businessman Andrew Williamson is facing child sex charges but his lawyer revealed the 32-year-old has been "using his entrepreneurial skills" to source tens of thousands of surgical masks from China which he has been distributing "in the fight against Covid-19". Solicitor Conleth Downey made the revelation at Banbridge Magistrates' Court last week as he sought a bail variation for Williamson who is accused of inciting a 14-year-old boy to have sex. He implored the judge to remove Williamson's curfew and electronic tag, arguing "this man is doing his bit in the fight against Covid-19". Mr Downey said that having obtained personal protective equipment (PPE) from contacts in China of his own volition, Williamson was in turn selling the equipment to pharmacists and businesses "on an industrial scale the length and breadth of the country". "There are no time constraints to the virus ... Covid-19 doesn't have a curfew, it doesn't stop between 10 and 7," he said. The defence solicitor said that with many pharmacies staying open to 10pm "the police could be waiting at his door to arrest him at 10.05 which would seem to be very extreme". He told District Judge Nigel Broderick that Williamson was supplying tens of thousands of surgical masks, saying: "In this day and age the very image of an essential worker is being presented to you today." Williamson, from Old Bleach Green in Banbridge, is on bail charged with engaging in sexual communication with a child, inciting the boy to engage in sexual activity, and breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order by having contact with a child, all alleged to have been committed on May 17 last year. A previous hearing heard claims police received a report that the alleged victim had received sexually explicit photos and messages on Snapchat from an account linked to Williamson. "Some of the messages were asking the 14-year-old to perform a sexual act and he would perform the same act," the court heard, with claims that the contact continued despite the boy disclosing his age. The defence case is that he thought he was communicating with a 22-year-old woman named Sarah. In court on Thursday, a prosecution lawyer objected to Williamson's bail being varied as police feared there was a risk of committing further offences due to previous breaches of bail, highlighting that with Covid-19 regulations "he should not be leaving the house regardless". She also argued that "with limited police resources, taking away the curfew and the tag would make it more difficult to monitor him". "I accept that what he is doing is essential but ... I just don't see how the curfew can be varied to accommodate that, given the risks," the lawyer submitted. Mr Downey contended, however, that if Williamson were going to flee, "why did he not stay in Dublin" when he was allowed to cross the border for four days to collect the PPE. Outlining how he incorporated his 500 Global Ltd as a registered company back in December 2018, Mr Downey told the court: "Mr Williamson would describe himself as an entrepreneur who had the foresight to realise that this was trouble in the making ... and to source and supply this essential PPE equipment." Judge Broderick said while Williamson's actions were "altruistic and helpful endeavours", he was not satisfied that he should remove the curfew and electronic tag entirely. "I'm prepared to some extent to amend the bail slightly but I feel that some curfew and the provision of the tag remains proportionate," said the judge. Williamson's curfew was varied from 10pm to 7am to 12 midnight to 6am and his case listed for mention on May 21. Although the curfew was varied, Mr Downey said he would be lodging an appeal of the judge's decision at the High Court. Companies House records reveal Williamson is the founder and sole director of several companies including Disaster Supplies Stockpile UK Ltd, which he founded in November. He describes his occupation variously in companies records as a wholesaler, company director and CEO. A 31-year-old engineering student has been arrested here in Chhattisgarh for allegedly running fake Facebook accounts posing as a woman and posting provocative comments that could hurt social harmony, an official said on Monday. One of his accounts was in the name of 'Nisha Jindal', which had over 4,000 people in the friends list and 10,000 followers, including businessmen, journalists and policemen. The accused, Ravi Pujar, was arrested on April 17 from his house in Kabir Nagar area, the police official said. A 33-year-old Raipur-based businessman, who was following Nisha Jindal since the past couple of months, said the revelation about the fake account came as a shocker to him as he believed it was the profile of an influential woman. "Messages mentioning meetings with high-profile people like ministers, chief of investigative agencies and foreign delegates were used to be posted on the account, he said. "The profile was being followed by some prominent persons that made me believe it was genuine, the businessman said on condition of anonymity. Raipur polices cyber cell started tracking Pujars fake profiles since last month after getting complaints about comments containing divisive and hate contents being posted on them regularly. "To zero-in on the accused, the police posed as a civilian, sent a friend request to Nisha Jindal and had chats with the accused. After gathering complete details of his modus operandi, we arrested him, said Superintendent of Police (Urla area) Abhishek Maheshwari. To make aware those following the bogus account, police posted on it a photograph of Pujar with the comment 'I am in police custody, I am Nisha Jindal'. The accused was pursuing an IT engineering course since 2009 at a private college here and was yet to complete it, the official said. He created fake account in the name of 'Nisha Jindal' in 2012 using photo of a Pakistani model, and since then was posting comments on communal issues that could potentially hurt the social harmony, he said. The accused also created five other Facebook profiles with fake identities of women and used to remain active on the social media platform for about 13 to 14 hours in a day, Maheshwari said. Surprisingly, he has no genuine social medial account in his name, the official said. To influence the followers, the accused mentioned self as being member of international organisations, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Health Organisation (WHO) and World Trade Organisation (WTO), the official added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New Delhi, April 20 : With the Health Ministry saying that 80 per cent of the Covid-19 cases are either asymptomatic or with mild symptoms, health experts on Monday said lockdown and social distancing are the only way to prevent transmission from asymptomatic cases in a populous country like Indian with limited testing capacity. According to Dr Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the US, as many as 25 per cent of people infected with the new coronavirus remain asymptomatic. In a recent interview with NPR, Redfield said: "That's important, because now you have individuals that may not have any symptoms that can contribute to transmission". According to Dr Neha Gupta, Consultant, Infectious Disease, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, 25-50 per cent patients do not have any symptoms as per CDC and Iceland data, and are contagious. "That's why lockdown is even more essential to prevent transmission from these likely to be missed out asymptomatic cases when the population is large and testing capacity is limited,' Dr Gupta told IANS. "Lockdown restrictions can be eased out in areas where no COVID 19 is documented in the last 14 days as most cases take this to recover. But the incubation period can be as long as 27 days and 2.5 per cent of the COVID-19 can develop infections beyond the 14-day incubation period," she informed. India is currently under an extended lockdown till May 3. Telangana has even extended it further, to May 7. Dr Yugal Kishore Mishra, Head of Cardiac Sciences and Chief of Clinical Services Officer at Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka said that the surge of COVID-19 patients with asymptomatic or mild symptoms poses yet another challenge in combating this pandemic. "Given India's economic condition and heavy dependence on unorganised sectors, it is a fact that we need to exit from Lockdown in a phased manner. With a large number of asymptomatic cases, there would certainly be a threat of its further spread, however, with adequate testing, quarantine and treatment facilities, India can handle the situation well compared to other countries," Mishra elaborated. However, people will have to follow guidelines such as wearing masks, gloves, use of sanitizers, maintain good hygiene by washing hands frequently and thoroughly. "Social distancing would remain the main safeguard against COVID-19. Hence, if lockdown is lifted in a staggered way, we can contain even second wave efficiently and effectively with preventive and curative measures," he added. Unless your name is Ken Block and you own the Hoonicorn Mustang, an example of Fords pony car that spins all the four wheels has been unheard of so far. However, as FoMoCo looks to go down the electrification avenue for its Camaro fighter, the new Mustang might get all-wheel drive, albeit as an option. Is an AWD Mustang still a pony car? According to Autocar, the new-gen 2020 Mustang will retain the V-8, but will also adopt a hybrid setup and, for the first time in the nameplates history, an all-wheel-drive setup. Fords current S550 Mustang has enjoyed a lot of popularity even across the pond in countries like Germany (and Europe in general) so Ford will be looking at ways to spice up the performance front for the next generation but also comply with the EUs tougher and tougher emission laws. The same outlet says the new Mustang is codenamed S650 and wont touch base before 2022. However, when it does, the pony car might also be derived in a hybrid version. Mind you, according to a patent filed by Ford back in 2017, the V-8 in the Mustang GT will still be offered in a standalone model, but customers will also be given the possibility of opting for a hybrid drivetrain mixing the said V-8 and two e-motors. As per the patent, the V-8 would spin the rear wheels as before, while the two electric motors will spin the front wheels for extra oomph and better road control when the rear end starts to lose traction. The hybrid setup could, in fact, work twofold: on one hand, it can boost the Stangs performance credentials on demand, while on the other, it can help towards higher fuel efficiency. Around the city, the hybrid Mustang could rely a lot on electricity for starting up and cruising as long as the accelerator isnt pushed too hard, which would take some burden off the internal-combustion V-8. Plus, in the process of all this, Ford would benefit from a lower emission average throughout its range. The question that remains, however, is just how much of a pony car would the Mustang be with AWD. Having power sent to all fours instead of solely on the rear axle contradicts the front-engine, rear-wheel-drive concept behind every pony car/muscle car out there. Needless to say, while info about the AWD & hybridized Mustang is still very scarce, well keep an eye on the topic and keep you posted as soon as new details emerge. 2020 Ford Mustang lineup Type DOHC Ti-VCT direct injection turbocharged I-4 DOHC Ti-VCT direct injection turbocharged I-4 DOHC Ti-VCT dual fuel port direct injection V8 DOHC Ti-VCT dual fuel port direct injection V8 DOHC Ti-VCT port fuel injection V8 DOHC Ti-VCT port fuel injection V8 Displacement 138 cu. in. (2,300 cc) 138 cu. in. (2,300 cc) 302 cu. in. (5,038 cc) 302 cu. in. (5,038 cc) 315 cu. in. (5,163 cc) 315 cu. in. (5,163 cc) Bore x stroke 3.45 in. x 3.7 in. (87.55 mm x 94 mm) 3.45 in. x 3.7 in. (87.55 mm x 94 mm) 3.63 in. x 3.65 in. (93.0 mm x 92.7 mm) 3.63 in. x 3.65 in. (93.0 mm x 92.7 mm) 3.70 in. x 3.66 in. (94.0 mm x 93.0 mm) 3.70 in. x 3.66 in. (94.0 mm x 93.0 mm) Compression ratio 9. 5:1 9. 37:1 12.0:1 12.0:1 12.0:1 9. 5:1 SAE horsepower 310 @ 5,500 rpm 330 @ 6,000 rpm 460 @ 7,500 rpm 480 @ 7,000 rpm 526 @ 7,500 rpm 760 @ 7,300 rpm SAE torque 350 ft.-lbs. @ 3,000 rpm 350 ft.-lbs. @ 3,000 rpm 420 ft.-lbs. @ 4,600 rpm 420 ft.-lbs. @ 4,600 rpm 429 ft.-lbs. @ 4,750 rpm 625 ft.-lbs. @ 5,000 rpm Source: Autocar By PTI BEIJING: China on Monday firmly rejected US President Donald Trump's demand to allow an American team into Wuhan to investigate the origins of the novel coronavirus, saying it was also a "victim and not a culprit" of the COVID-19. Describing the novel coronavirus as a plague, Trump on Sunday said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province. "We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want to see what's going on. And we weren't exactly invited, I can tell you that," Trump told reporters. The US has launched an investigation into whether the deadly virus "escaped" from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Reacting to Trump's comments, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a media briefing here that "the virus is the common enemy for all mankind". "It may appear at anytime anywhere in the world. Like any other country, China is attacked by this virus. China is a victim instead of the culprit. We are not co-worker for this virus," he said in a hard-hitting response to Trump's plan to send a US probe team. As the COVID-19 death toll in US crossed 41,000 and the total infections more than 764,000, highest in the world, Trump and several US politicians pressed for action against China for not sharing enough details of the virus early on, when it first emerged in Wuhan. The overall death toll in China as of Sunday stood at 4,632 after its recent revision of figures of fatalities in Wuhan by 50 per cent. Geng said, "since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has been acting in an open, transparent and responsible manner with the most thorough and strong measures to stop the spread of the COVID-19". He said China's efforts to contain the virus has provided "valuable experience for the international community" to deal with the outbreak in their own countries. "This is also part of our important contribution. The international community appreciated China for doing this," he said. Pointing to H1N1 influenza which was detected in US 2009 as well as HIV/AIDS and the 2008 financial crisis in America which turned into global economic crisis, Geng asked, "Did anyone ask US accountability?" He also turned down Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne's call for an international inquiry into coronavirus including its origins in China. Payne said there should be a global inquiry without the involvement of the World Health Organisation (WHO) which has been accused by America of siding with China. Geng said, "the remarks by FM of Australia are totally groundless. We express grave concern and firmly reject that." About allegations that the virus originated in Wuhan, Geng said "origin of virus is a serious scientific issue, which requires an assessment from scientists. We hope Australia (will) look at the issue in objective and meticulous manner." COLONIE PVA of Colonie received fast-track approval from the federal government late Friday to start making special emergency-use ventilators to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The company, which normally makes devices for the electronics industry, switched gears to make the medical devices as states like New York ran low on ventilators needed in hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients. "I've never been more proud of the people around me in the 30 years I've been doing this," PVA president Tony Hynes said during a Monday press conference. The company claims it is the first non-medical device company in the country to get the fast-track approval from the Food and Drug Administration to make the ventilators, known as PREVENT. The FDA has already granted other companies such fast-track approval to make devices under a special COVID-19 regulatory process designed to get equipment to market quickly. Although Gov. Andrew Cuomo had showcased PVA's efforts last month to make ventilators as the state was facing a potential shortfall of the critical equipment at the beginning of the pandemic, the PVA orders could end up in other states depending on who wants them, said Frank Hart, PVA's director of global sales and marketing. The company isn't selling any to New York state directly. "Right now the units will get delivered where needed," Hart said. "We were originally hopeful to provide to New York state to counter their projected shortages. Right now we will be satisfying customers through our existing global sales channel, and projects are currently active for other states, individual healthcare facilities and individual donors that have wished to make gifts to these institutions." Latest coronavirus-related cancellations, postponements The latest coronavirus numbers in NY Sign up for the Times Union coronavirus newsletter Full coronavirus coverage PVA intends to make 250 of the devices a day, more than double its initial estimates. The first devices will be shipped by April 30. Hynes said the devices cost roughly $6,000, about one-fifth the cost of a traditional ventilator. The company makes every component except the circuit board. Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years. "Our original projections of 100 units a day were based on our initial prototype," Hart said. "We have made significant design improvements over the last month that allow us more capacity." The PREVENT ventilator is different from a traditional ventilator and designed for emergency use when a patient is not breathing, when quick action is required and the use of a traditional ventilator is not an option. But PVA, which is employing 15 people on the PREVENT line, says it plans to make the devices a standard product going forward. The original design was developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which has made the design available to the public for the swift manufacturing of such devices for the coronavirus response. PVA also got help from Hudson Valley Community College's department of respiratory therapy. The United Kingdom Department of Health & Science has also approved the use of the device. "It is our expectation that we will take PREVENT to full FDA approval for long-term availability," Hart said, adding that the company is expecting to be making PREVENT under the temporary approval for the next three to four months. The company was recently awarded a $35,000 grant from National Grid to offset the $58,000 the company had to spend to re-tool its manufacturing floor to make the devices. A controversial study has linked screen time among babies to autism. (Getty Images) Experts have largely dismissed research that links screen time among babies to autism. Scientists from Drexel University, Philadelphia, argued evidence has linked the time a youngster spends viewing digital media with impaired development. Read more: What is the difference between autism and Asperger syndrome? After looking at the television habits of more than 2,000 babies, they concluded screen time at 12 months old was significantly associated with autism-like symptoms at age two. Other experts have rejected the study, calling it absurd, fatally flawed and low quality. Autism can make it difficult for an individual to communicate. (Getty Images) More than one in 100 people in the UK are thought to be on the autism spectrum. In the US, one in 54 children are said to have some form of the disorder. Writing in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, the Drexel scientists claimed genetics are responsible for between 50% and 80% of an individuals autism risk, adding the non-genetic contribution is also significant but poorly understood. They argued social media viewing has rarely been studied for autism, despite interfering with parent-child interactions and offering little opportunity for learning. Read more: MMR vaccine is effective and does not cause autism, study confirms According to the NHS, nobody knows for sure what causes autism. To learn more, the scientists analysed the TV habits of more than 2,000 babies who took part in the National Childrens Study. Caregivers reported whether the 12-month-old viewed television or videos, answering yes or no. They were also asked how many hours of TV the child watched at 18 months, the time they spent reading to the youngster at one year and how often they played with the child. Results suggest the babies who viewed screens at one-year-old were 4.2% more likely to develop autism symptoms. These can include struggling to communicate, a dislike of loud noise and repeatedly doing the same thing. The scientists called the statistically-significant finding modest but notable. Story continues They argued screens interfere with social learning, which could alter brain processing. Alternatively, children who are predisposed to autism may have a preference for screens or parents may use them to soothe symptoms. The results also suggest the infants whose parents played with them every day were 8.9% less likely to have autism symptoms at two. In typically developing children, parent-child interaction correlates with brain development, wrote the scientists. They added, however, the association between parent-child play and autism-like symptoms could be driven by the behaviour of children who are beginning to develop [autism] symptoms because they may be more difficult to engage socially. High screen viewing at 18 months was not associated with the disorder. The study found babies whose parents play with them every day were less likely to develop autism symptoms. (Getty Images) There is nothing more harmful than poor science The research has largely been met with criticism. Dr James Cusack from the charity Autistica argued the apparent 4.2% increase in symptoms is small. Assessing a two-year-old also carries little weight considering children develop at different rates and it is hard to accurately diagnose autism at such a young age, he added. It is absurd to claim, based on these results, that screen time has any association with autism or how autistic someone is, said Dr Cusask. Families deserve better science than this. In the very unlikely event this study was accurately detecting autism or the presence of traits, this study would still be fatally flawed. This is because a result like this could be simply down to an increased preference for screen time in children who show increased traits associated with autism. Dr Cusack referenced an editorial accompanying the research where a doctor from the Seattle Childrens Research Institute suggested medics restrict screen time in order to fulfil the Hippocratic oath to do no harm. I would argue, on the contrary, there is nothing more harmful than poor science, he said. Families should not be concerned that allowing their young children to watch screens will cause autism, it would be absurd to reach this conclusion based on this evidence. Another expert wondered whether increased TV time may be a consequence, rather than a cause, of autism. From this study we cannot tell which is cause and which is effect, said Professor Uta Firth from University College London. I worry the paper will do harm if it feeds the blame the parents meme. The NHS stresses autism is not caused by bad parenting. Read more: A man with autism asks, 'Would someone like me?' and Twitter responds with love Professor Andrew Przybylski from the University of Oxford claimed the method behind the research was poor. The authors do something we have seen many times before and go through such datasets for technology-related questions and then publish implausible conclusions which are not backed up by evidence, he said. Unvalidated measures of screen time were used in this analysis and we are already up to our eyeballs with low-quality studies like these. Others worried about the timing of the research, which was released as much of the world is on lockdown amid the coronavirus outbreak. This is especially frustrating given the current pandemic situation, where screen-based video calls are the only way that families can maintain social contact with each other, said Dr Peter Etchells from Bath Spa University. Dr David Nunan from the University of Oxford agreed, adding: We are seeing a lot of opportunism on the back of COVID-19 [a respiratory disease that can be caused by the coronavirus]. It would be sad if this paper, which provides no answer as to whether more screen time results in autism, leads to worry among families, teachers and the children in their care. One expert, however, was more accepting of the research. This is an exciting and important new study, which will inevitably be controversial given the reluctance of autism researchers and wider society to consider the role of parenting in the developmental trajectory of autism, said Dr Punit Shah from the University of Bath. While we should be cautious not to read too much into this individual study and be mindful of its potential to cause unwarranted blaming of parents, it suggests the role of the environment in autism warrants much more attention than it currently receives. Investigators on Monday scoured crime scenes from the worst mass shooting in Canadian history to try to understand why a dental worker with no criminal past killed at least 18 people. The gunman, identified by police as 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, began his rampage late Saturday in the seaside village of Portapique, Nova Scotia, dying 14 hours later in a hail of police gunfire outside Halifax, 100 kilometers (62 miles) away. "Just how could this happen, we may never know why," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told a news conference. "But we do know this: no one man's action can build a wall between us and a better day, no matter how evil, how thoughtless, or how destructive." The death toll, initially put at 16, rose to 18 on Monday, Trudeau said, with police warning that more bodies could be found in the rubble of five burned out homes and buildings. "We expect there to be more victims," said RCMP Chief Superintendent Chris Leather. Among the victims so far identified were a veteran constable with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, a nurse, an elementary school teacher, prison guards and a retired firefighter. "This happened in small towns -- in Portapique, Truro, Milford and Enfield -- places where people have deep roots, places where people know their neighbors and look out for one another," Trudeau said. A "virtual vigil" has been planned for Friday at 7:00 pm (2200 GMT). Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil told public broadcaster CBC that the investigation and the grieving process would be "complicated" by the coronavirus pandemic -- and the vast geographic area of the crime spree. - 'Unprecedented violence' - Forensic investigators fanned out to 16 "chaotic" crime scenes across the province that is home to Canada's Atlantic navy fleet. Some of the victims were not known to the shooter, while others were specifically targeted, said Leather. "It's too early to tell what the motivation was," he said. "It appears to be, at least in part, very random in nature." German Chancellor Angela Merkel led international expressions of sympathy, telling Trudeau in a note: "This senseless and cruel act has shaken us all deeply." After the first gunshots rang out in Portapique, where Wortman owned two properties, police found casualties inside and outside a home and also responded to a series of blazes. Neighbors told The Globe and Mail newspaper that Wortman set fire to homes and shot residents as they ran out. An acquaintance said Wortman drove to his house in a mock squad car, wearing a police uniform, and banged on the door clutching a rifle and a pistol. "He wasn't killing enemies, he was killing his friends," said the man, who hid with his wife and called the police. "He was trying to beat down our door. It was beyond terrifying." Police said Wortman, still posing as a policeman, later stopped a vehicle near Debert and shot the occupants. "A monster murdered my mother today," Darcy Dobson wrote in a Facebook post about victim Heather O'Brien, a nurse in Truro. "At 9:59 am (Sunday) she sent her last text message to our family group chat. By 10:15 she was gone. She drove down the same street in the same town she drives through every single day. She was kind. She was beautiful. She didn't deserve any of this." Two vehicles were also lit on fire on Highway 102. Constable Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the force and a married mother of two, died at the scene. A male officer suffered non-life-threatening wounds and was recovering Monday at home, Leather said. - Coronavirus link probed - An RCMP tactical team, a dog unit and officers from other police agencies eventually caught up with Wortman -- who had swapped cars -- at a gas station in Enfield, near Halifax airport. The gunman exchanged fire with police, who "were involved in terminating the threat," Leather said. Media reports said the shooter was a denturist who owned clinics in Halifax and Dartmouth that were closed as part of the pandemic lockdown. Wortman was also reportedly obsessed with policing, having refurbished several old squad cars, and struggled with alcoholism. "He was one of those freaky guys, he was really into police memorabilia," Nathan Staples, who once sought to buy one of the vehicles, told The Globe and Mail, describing Wortman's home as a "shrine" to the RCMP. CCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters that authorities may "never know" the motive for the Nova Scotia shooting Nova Scotia gunman Gabriel Wortman, seen here in a picture provided by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, shot dead at least 18 people in a rampage that lasted several hours Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) tactical unit confer after the shooting suspect was killed in an exchange of gunfire Constable Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year veteran of the Mounties, was among the victims Map locating shooting rampage with multiple victims in Portapique, Nova Scotia, on Sunday. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, April 20, 2020 12:51 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2fa47d 1 Business Indonesia,garlic-import,AgricultureMinistry,Trade-Ministry,Ramadan2020,Idul-Fitri,temanggung Free As of last month, the Agriculture Ministry has issued recommendations to import more than 460,000 tons of garlic to ensure sufficient supplies and stabilize soaring prices during Ramadan and Idul Fitri when food demand usually surges. Between March and May, the government actually needs to procure only around 196,000 tons from overseas to meet demand at home, said Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo. Coupled with domestic production, the ministry estimates there will be a surplus of more than 116,000 tons at the end of May. Speaking during an online hearing with House of Representatives Commission IV overseeing food and agriculture on April 16, Sharul said the garlic imports were necessary to stabilize prices during Ramadan, which will begin April 23. With the current stock, we expect it will be under control and safe, god willing, at least until Idul Fitri, he said. With garlic prices already soaring since the start of 2020, the ministry is now seeking not only to stabilize prices but also to mitigate the impacts of disruption to the logistics sector caused by the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic. The average price of garlic rose roughly 30 percent to Rp 44,900 per kilogram from January to March, according to data from the Information Center for Strategic Food Prices (PIHPS), the governments food price tracker. This is well above President Joko Jokowi Widodos preferred price range of between Rp 20,000 and Rp 30,000 per kilogram. Domestic garlic production is also expected to increase in the coming months as Temanggung in Central Java, the countrys center of garlic production, is now in the middle of harvest season. Last year, the regencys harvest yielded more than 24,000 tons, or 27 percent of national production. With a garlic shortage at home and demand surging ahead of Ramadan, the Trade Ministry issued last month a regulation to allow companies to import garlic from overseas without having to obtain a permit. As of April 16, 34 containers carrying 29 tons of garlic each had arrived at Tanjung Priok port in North Jakarta from China, the world's largest garlic producer, said Trade Minister Agus Suparmanto. Based on Trade Ministerial Regulation No. 27/2020, local companies can import without a permit until June 30, Trade Ministry Domestic Trade Director General Suhanto told The Jakarta Post via text message on Thursday. With the rupiah depreciating against the United States dollar and the COVID-19 pandemic disrupting logistics, importing garlic from China is not only more expensive but also more difficult, according to the Indonesian Onions and Root Vegetables Entrepreneurs (Pusbarindo) trade association. China, where the SARS-CoV-2 virus first emerged in late December, has ended its massive lockdown measures. However, business activities have not fully recovered. Even in normal times [] it was difficult for companies to fulfill 100 percent [of the permitted import volumes] in one or two months, Pusbarindo chairman Valention told the Post in a phone interview on Thursday. Moreover, financial capacity varies from one firm to another. According to data from the Agriculture Ministry, garlic imports declined by around 20 percent to more than 465,000 tons between 2018 and 2019. PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-20 07:04:03 April 20, 2020 First-quarter highlights Sales amounted to EUR 4.2 billion, with a 2% comparable sales decrease Comparable order intake increased 23% Income from continuing operations was EUR 42 million, compared to EUR 171 million in Q1 2019 Adjusted EBITA margin was 5.9% of sales, compared to 8.8% of sales in Q1 2019 Income from operations amounted to EUR 43 million, compared to EUR 245 million in Q1 2019 EPS from continuing operations (diluted) amounted to EUR 0.05; Adjusted EPS amounted to EUR 0.18, compared to EUR 0.29 in Q1 2019 Operating cash flow amounted to EUR 143 million, compared to EUR 14 million in Q1 2019 Free cash outflow was EUR 57 million, compared to an outflow of EUR 206 million in Q1 2019 Frans van Houten, CEO The start of 2020 was marked by the COVID-19 outbreak, and we have mobilized our resources since January to address this unprecedented challenge. At Philips, we are focused on our triple duty of care: meeting critical customer needs, safeguarding the health and safety of our employees, and ensuring business continuity. I am very proud of the commitment, hard work and resourcefulness of our employees to keep Philips fully functioning, and I would like to thank them for that. COVID-19 significantly affected our results in this quarter. There was increased demand for our professional healthcare products and solutions, with comparable sales and order intake growth for the Connected Care and Diagnosis & Treatment businesses. Comparable order intake grew 23%, most notably in diagnostic imaging, hospital ventilators, and patient monitors. We are investing more than EUR 100 million to steeply ramp up our production volumes, in close collaboration with our suppliers and partners. At the same time, there was a significant decline in demand for our Personal Health portfolio and we saw Image-Guided Therapy procedures trending down as the quarter progressed. This resulted in a 2% comparable sales decrease and an Adjusted EBITA margin of 5.9% for the Group. The impact of COVID-19 gradually increased in the course of the first quarter, initially affecting our businesses in China and Asia Pacific starting late January, and subsequently affecting our businesses in the rest of the world from March onwards. On that basis, we expect that all our geographies will be impacted throughout the second quarter. This is expected to result in a steep revenue decline for our Personal Health businesses and a sizable high-single-digit decline for our Diagnosis & Treatment businesses, partly offset by a significant increase in revenue of our Connected Care businesses. Assuming we can convert our existing order book for the Diagnosis & Treatment and Connected Care businesses as planned, elective procedures normalize, and consumer demand gradually improves, we aim to return to growth and improved profitability for the Group in the second half of the year. Consequently, for the full year 2020 we aim to achieve a modest comparable sales growth and Adjusted EBITA margin improvement. Given the current uncertainty and volatility, we will not provide more specific guidance for 2020 at this time. Business segment performance The Diagnosis & Treatment businesses recorded 2% comparable sales growth, led by mid-single-digit growth in Diagnostic Imaging, partly offset by a low-single-digit decline for Image-Guided Therapy due to the postponement of elective procedures. Comparable order intake was in line with Q1 2019, with double-digit growth for Diagnostic Imaging offset by a double-digit decline for Image- Guided Therapy. The Adjusted EBITA margin increased to 6.3%, as growth and productivity were partly offset by an unfavorable mix. Comparable sales in the Connected Care businesses increased 7%, with double-digit growth in Sleep & Respiratory Care. Comparable order intake showed a very strong double-digit increase, driven by strong demand for patient monitors and hospital ventilators. The Adjusted EBITA margin increased to 9.8%, mainly due to growth and productivity. The Personal Health businesses recorded a comparable sales decline of 13%, with all businesses declining due to significantly decreased consumer demand, resulting in an Adjusted EBITA margin of 7.1%. Philips ongoing focus on innovation and strategic partnerships resulted in the following key events in the quarter: Building on Philips initial increase in hospital ventilator production in the first quarter, which already enabled the supply of additional ventilators to hospitals in the most affected regions in China, southern Europe and the US, Philips plans a further fourfold production increase by the third quarter of 2020. This plan will enable Philips to deliver 43,000 fully featured, critical care ventilators to the US government in 2020, while simultaneously delivering such ventilators to the rest of the world. To further address the unprecedented demand for ventilators, Philips introduced the Philips Respironics E30 ventilator for emergency use when a fully featured critical care ventilator is not available. Philips is targeting a production of the new ventilator - which has been designed for large-scale production - of 15,000 units per week in April. Philips introduced several dedicated telehealth solutions to help relieve the tremendous pressure placed on scarce resources by the growing number of COVID-19 patients. Based on its proven Patient Reported Outcomes Management solution, which is being used by more than 100 healthcare institutions globally, Philips enabled Dutch hospitals and GPs to remotely screen and monitor patients with COVID-19. In connection with the COVID-19 emergency, the US FDA has granted a temporary waiver for the use of consumer monitors with the Philips IntelliSite Pathology Solution, providing extra flexibility for US pathologists to work from home. For example, a leading health system in New York has expanded the Philips IntelliSite Pathology solution installed at its hospitals with additional scanners, enabling pathologists to remotely access an increased volume of digital images of patient tissue, thereby supporting real-time pathology interpretations in critical cases and improved patient outcomes. Continuing its success in forging long-term strategic partnerships, Philips signed several new agreements. For example, Philips entered into an 8-year strategic partnership with Paracelsus Clinics in Germany, offering solutions that maximize the availability of imaging systems and leverage digitalization and process optimization to realize quality and efficiency improvements. Demonstrating the efficiency of Philips Enterprise Monitoring-as-a-Service model, US-based Jackson Memorial Hospital estimates it will save more than 13,000 staff hours from workflow improvement and automation of manual tasks using Philips monitoring solutions. Moreover, nursing staff gave the new patient monitoring solution a 90% satisfaction rating, up from 8% prior to the new system and software. Cost savings In the first quarter, procurement savings amounted to EUR 36 million. Overhead and other productivity programs delivered savings of EUR 59 million. Executive Committee update Rob Cascella, currently Chief Business Leader of the Precision Diagnosis businesses and member of the Executive Committee, jointly responsible for the Diagnosis & Treatment segment together with Bert van Meurs, will take on the role of Philips strategic business development per May 1, 2020. He will remain a member of the Executive Committee. Kees Wesdorp, currently General Manager of Diagnostic Imaging, will succeed Rob Cascella in his current roles and become a member of the Executive Committee reporting to Philips CEO Frans van Houten. Frans van Houten: I would like to express my gratitude for Robs considerable contribution to Philips since he joined the company in 2015. Under his leadership, the Diagnosis & Treatment businesses have achieved a major step-up on the quality front and pivoted to outcomes-driven solutions. Most recently, Rob established and led our Precision Diagnosis businesses and was jointly responsible for the Diagnosis & Treatment segment. I am pleased that Rob will lead Philips strategic business development, and that Kees will be his successor. Kees will join the Executive Committee with a strong accomplishment record, having led the transformation of the Diagnostic Imaging business by increasing customer and employee engagement, renewing the product and solutions portfolio, and improving profitability. I am confident that he will further build out the Precision Diagnosis businesses through the transformation to solutions, continuing to drive robust growth and increased profitability. Kees and Rob will be working closely to ensure a seamless transition, with formal handover on May 1 of this year. Capital allocation Philips has a strong balance sheet and robust liquidity position. In view of the possible continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Philips has taken the following measures to further enhance its liquidity position: Share buyback program As of the end of the first quarter of 2020, Philips has completed 50.3% of its EUR 1.5 billion share buyback program for capital reduction purposes that was announced on January 29, 2019. On March 23, 2020, Philips announced that the second half of the program will be executed through individual forward transactions, to be entered into in the course of 2020, with the settlement dates extending into the second half of 2021. Further details can be found here . Euro Medium-Term Note In the first quarter, Philips successfully placed EUR 500 million fixed-rate Sustainability Innovation notes due 2025 and EUR 500 million fixed-rate notes due 2030. Dividend Philips maintains its proposed dividend of EUR 0.85 per common share against the net income of 2019. The distribution of this dividend will be in shares only, instead of the currently proposed distribution in cash or in shares at the option of the shareholder. To that effect, Philips withdraws the dividend proposal that was already submitted to the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders to be held on April 30, 2020. Philips plans to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders expected to take place in the second half of June 2020, the agenda of which will include the revised proposal to declare a distribution of EUR 0.85 per common share, in shares only. The increase in issued share capital is expected to be offset by the share buyback program mentioned above. In line with the measures described above, the Supervisory Board and the members of the Board of Management have agreed that the 2019 Annual Incentive for the Board of Management will be paid out in shares instead of cash. More information on the realization of the 2019 Annual Incentive can be found in the Remuneration Report, as included in the 2019 Annual Report (p 70-71). Regulatory update Philips continues to fulfill its obligations under the Consent Decree [1] and remains in dialogue with the US FDA. In connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, Philips is working with the FDAs Emergency Response and Product Evaluation teams to provide them with relevant information, such as Philips production ramp-up plans for critical products and solutions to combat COVID-19. Philips is actively seeking and has obtained authorizations through the FDAs Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) process for the expanded use of several of its devices during the COVID-19 public health emergency, including for the Philips Respironics E30 ventilator, which received authorization on April 8, 2020. [1] Under the Consent Decree, Philips continues to export its range of AED devices and manufacture and distribute its HS1/OnSite/Home automated external defibrillator (AED) model in the US. The company may also continue to service the AEDs and defibrillator/monitors provided that certain conditions are met and provide consumables and the relevant accessories. Click here to view the release online For further information, please contact: Ben Zwirs Philips Global Press Office Tel: +31 6 1521 3446 Email: ben.zwirs@philips.com Martijn van der Starre Philips Global Press Office Tel.: +31 6 2847 4617 E-mail: martijn.van.der.starre@philips.com About Royal Philips Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2019 sales of EUR 19.5 billion and employs approximately 81,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at www.philips.com/newscenter . Forward-looking statements and other important information Forward-looking statements This document and the related oral presentation, including responses to questions following the presentation, contain certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of Philips and certain of the plans and objectives of Philips with respect to these items. Examples of forward-looking statements include: statements made about the strategy; estimates of sales growth; future Adjusted EBITA; future restructuring, acquisition-related and other costs; future developments in Philips organic business; and the completion of acquisitions and divestments. By their nature, these statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances and there are many factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these statements. These factors include but are not limited to: changes in industry or market circumstances; economic and political developments; market and supply chain disruptions due to the COVID-19 outbreak; Philips increasing focus on health technology; the realization of Philips growth ambitions and results in growth geographies; lack of control over certain joint ventures; integration of acquisitions; securing and maintaining Philips intellectual property rights and unauthorized use of third-party intellectual property rights; compliance with quality standards, product safety laws and good manufacturing practices; exposure to IT security breaches, IT disruptions, system changes or failures; supply chain management; ability to create new products and solutions; attracting and retaining personnel; financial impacts from Brexit; compliance with regulatory regimes, including data privacy requirements; governmental investigations and legal proceedings with regard to possible anticompetitive market practices and other matters; business conduct rules and regulations; treasury risks and other financial risks; tax risks; costs of defined-benefit pension plans and other post-retirement plans; reliability of internal controls, financial reporting and management process. As a result, Philips actual future results may differ materially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in such forward-looking statements. For a discussion of factors that could cause future results to differ from such forward-looking statements, see also the Risk management chapter included in the Annual Report 2019. Third-party market share data Statements regarding market share, including those regarding Philips competitive position, contained in this document are based on outside sources such as research institutes, industry and dealer panels in combination with management estimates. Where information is not yet available to Philips, those statements may also be based on estimates and projections prepared by outside sources or management. Rankings are based on sales unless otherwise stated. Use of non-IFRS information In presenting and discussing the Philips Groups financial position, operating results and cash flows, management uses certain non-IFRS financial measures. These non-IFRS financial measures should not be viewed in isolation as alternatives to the equivalent IFRS measure and should be used in conjunction with the most directly comparable IFRS measures. Non-IFRS financial measures do not have standardized meaning under IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. A reconciliation of these non-IFRS measures to the most directly comparable IFRS measures is contained in this document. Further information on non-IFRS measures can be found in the Annual Report 2019. Use of fair value information In presenting the Philips Groups financial position, fair values are used for the measurement of various items in accordance with the applicable accounting standards. These fair values are based on market prices, where available, and are obtained from sources that are deemed to be reliable. Readers are cautioned that these values are subject to changes over time and are only valid at the balance sheet date. When quoted prices or observable market data are not readily available, fair values are estimated using appropriate valuation models and unobservable inputs. Such fair value estimates require management to make significant assumptions with respect to future developments, which are inherently uncertain and may therefore deviate from actual developments. Critical assumptions used are disclosed in the Annual Report 2019 . In certain cases independent valuations are obtained to support managements determination of fair values. Presentation All amounts are in millions of euros unless otherwise stated. Due to rounding, amounts may not add up precisely to totals provided. All reported data is unaudited. Financial reporting is in accordance with the accounting policies as stated in the Annual Report 2019. Certain prior-year amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation. Effective Q1 2020, Philips has simplified its order intake policy by aligning horizons for all modalities to 18 months to revenue, compared to previously used delivery horizons of 6 months for Ultrasound, 12 months for Connected Care and 15 months for Diagnosis & Treatment. At the same time, Philips has aligned order intake for software contracts to the same 18 months to revenue horizon, meaning that only the next 18 months conversion to revenue under the contract is recognized, compared to the full contract values recognized previously. This change eliminates major variances in order intake growth and better reflects expected revenue in the short term from order intake booked in the reporting period. Prior-year comparable order intake amounts have been restated accordingly. This realignment has not resulted in any material additional order intake recognition in Q1 2020. Market Abuse Regulation This press release contains inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation. Attachment [April 20, 2020] Metis National Council Launches New Website OTTAWA, April 20, 2020 /CNW/ - The MNC has launched its new website (www.metisnation.ca) which is Mobile-Friendly! The mainpage of the MNC website features the latest news articles, press releases and videos providing information on the Metis Nation and the activities of the Metis National Council. Press releases and advisories are also distributed through Canada Newswire and e-mailed to the members of MNC General Assembly. The Metis Nation Gateway consists of online information portals that focus on five specific aspects of Metis Nation self-determination: political development; social development; economic development, cultural development; and meeting the global challenge of climate change. The Sixties Scoop portal is an online platform which support the nformation needs of the Metis Nation related to the Sixties Scoop. The Portal will allow Metis Nation Sixties Scoop Survivors and all Metis Citizens to access up-to-date information that is essential in the development of a Metis Nation Sixties Scoop resolution agreement between the Metis Nation and the Government of Canada. The Metis Veterans portal is a central source of information related to Metis Nation veterans and the Canada-Metis Nation Veterans Recognition Payment Agreement. The website is part of our on-going efforts to keep citizens throughout the Metis Nation Homeland and beyond informed on developments and initiatives at the national and international level concerning Metis Nation Veterans. The mainpage also features photos, videos, and publications such as annual reports, fact sheets, newsletters, and bulletins. Become our friend on Facebook! The Metis National Council Facebook page included photos, press releases and announcements, and links to news, videos and information. You can also sign-up for short, timely messages by following us on Twitter under "@MNC_Tweets". To learn more about any of our communication activities, please get connected and get information from the MNC by visiting our new website! New MNC website: www.metisnation.ca Metis Nation Gateway: www.metisportals.ca Metis Nation Veterans Portal: www.metisveterans.ca 60's Scoop Portal: metissixtiesscoop.ca The MNC represents the Metis Nation in Canada at the national and international levels. The Metis Nation's homeland includes the 3 Prairie Provinces and extends into the contiguous parts of British Columbia, Ontario, the Northwest Territories and the United States. There are approximately 400,000 Metis Nation citizens in Canada, roughly a quarter of all Aboriginal peoples in the country. SOURCE Metis National Council [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] UK FCO in latest interference in Hong Kong's internal affairs Iran Press TV Sunday, 19 April 2020 5:40 PM In the midst of a global pandemic, with the UK suffering more than most countries from the coronavirus outbreak, the British government has seen fit to renew its interference in China's internal affairs. According to a Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) spokesperson, the UK is "concerned" about political developments in Hong Kong and is "following" events "closely". The FCO statement goes on to demand protection for "protests" in Hong Kong and lectures the Chinese government, in addition to the local administration in Hong Kong, on the merits of a "meaningful political dialogue". What the FCO calls "protests" is a reference to agitation by essentially pro-British elements in Hong Kong which used a proposed extradition law (which has since been put on hold) as a pretext to weaken Beijing's control over the special administrative region. Back in August 2019 China warned the UK in no uncertain terms to stop interfering in its internal affairs by lending support to rioters and agitators in Hong Kong. But China's strong diplomatic warnings to the UK throughout summer 2019 have not deterred the FCO from continuing to reach out to the so-called protestors, even though the movement has essentially petered out. Indeed, the latest FCO statement can be seen as an attempt to revive the protest movement with a view to maintaining a potentially significant pressure point on Beijing. A British colony for 155 years, Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule in 1997 under the "one country two systems" formula. China has often complained that Britain exploits this arrangement to interfere in Hong Kong's affairs. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Money Heist creator Alex Pina has said that he was urged to kill off the character Berlin from the show because he didnt fit with the times. Pina expressed some dissatisfaction with the request, which reportedly came from top bosses. I said I had no intention of taking him out of the series, Pina said in the documentary, Money Heist: The Phenomenon, which was released in conjunction of the shows fourth season on Netflix. Someone said to me, This character doesnt fit with the times. You should take him out of the series. Pina acknowledged the fact that Berlin was a misogynist, narcissist and psychopath in many ways, but added that without characters such as this, television is bland its boring because less things happen. Pina continued, But we could have a character like that in the series and the audience could freely decide whose side theyre on, right? Played by Pedro Alonso, Berlin was one of the most popular characters on the show, a fact that the actor acknowledged. He said in the documentary, People need to get their heads checked because Im sure hes not the character youd want your daughter to marry. [But] that dominant side to him, his leadership, repulses us but it gives us a certain sense of safety. Also read: Uttarakhand police use Netflixs Money Heist character to ask people to stay home After two successful seasons, Money Heist was picked up by Netflix. Pina in a recent interview suggested that Berlin could feature in a spin-off series of his own. Berlins case for his own show is very clear; hes a misogynist, a psychopath, egocentric, a narcissist, a delinquent, a rapist. But still there are lots of people who adore him, because he values friendship, loyalty or fraternity, Pina told Oprah magazine. Follow @htshowbiz for more The Centre on Monday said the COVID-19 situation is "especially serious" in Mumbai, Pune, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata and a few other places in West Bengal, and violation of lockdown measures risk the spread of the novel coronavirus. In a communication to state governments and union territories, the home ministry said there have been several incidents of violence against COVID-19 frontline healthcare professionals, complete violation of social distancing norms and movement of vehicles in urban areas. These should be stopped, it said. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday, according to the Union health ministry. The situation is "especially serious" in Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, Jaipur in Rajasthan, and Kolkata, Howrah, East Medinipur, North 24 Parganas, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, the ministry said. "Violation of lockdown measures reported, posing a serious health hazard to public and risk for spread of COVID-19," it said. The central government has constituted six Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) to make on-spot assessment of the COVID-19 situation in these places and issue necessary directions to the four states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and West Bengal -- for redressal. The teams will submit their report to the central government in the larger interest of the general public, the ministry said. "The IMCTs will focus on compliance and implementation of the lockdown measures as per guidelines, supply of essential commodities, social distancing, preparedness of health infrastructure, safety of health professionals and conditions of relief camps for labourers and poor people," a home ministry spokesperson said. The lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic. It was further extended till May 3. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Fandango is buying Vudu, Walmart's video on-demand service. (Fandango) Fandango isn't selling movie tickets right now, due to the coronavirus crisis that has closed the nation's cinemas. But the NBCUniversal-owned company is in a buying mood as it looks to sell users more movies online. Los Angeles-based Fandango has signed an agreement to acquire Vudu, the video-on-demand service owned by Walmart, a spokeswoman confirmed Monday. Financial details were not disclosed. The company declined to comment further. Fandango, run by President Paul Yanover, plans to use Vudu to increase its presence in the growing digital entertainment space. The company already has a service called FandangoNow, which lets users buy and rent films, similar to Apple's iTunes and Google Play. Vudu announced the deal in a blog post addressed to users. The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based firm said its service would continue to exist after the sale, which is expected to close in the next several months. "While there will be many more exciting things to share in the months ahead, nothing about the Vudu experience is changing your movie & TV library is safe, and you will continue to have access to all your Vudu apps across your favorite devices," the company said in the post. "Vudu will continue to deliver an amazing experience, and we promise that the future will bring more new features, offerings, and other benefits as we join the Fandango family," Vudu said. The deal comes as Fandango's parent company, Comcast Corp.-owned NBCUniversal, is increasingly experimenting with early video-on-demand releases for its theatrical movies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Universal Pictures on April 10 released "Trolls World Tour" on digital platforms, charging customers $20 to rent the DreamWorks Animation movie. Universal did not say how much money the release generated in sales, but said the results exceeded the company's expectations. "Trolls World Tour" is the top-selling movie on FandangoNow for the second weekend in a row, the company said Monday. Story continues NBCUniversal is also rolling out its new streaming service, Peacock, which is looking to stand out in an increasingly crowded landscape of direct-to-consumer outlets. The media giant will make the low-cost Peacock service widely available on July 15. Last week, it offered a preview to customers of parent company Comcast. Peacock, featuring NBC-owned shows such as Parks and Recreation and Law & Order, will compete with a burgeoning group of new services such as Disney+, Apple TV+ and Quibi. Fandango has worked to grow its brand in recent years from a mere ticketseller to a more all-encompassing service for film fans. In 2016, it bought the influential film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Burbank-based studio Warner Bros., a subsidiary of AT&T Inc., owns a minority stake in Fandango. Walmart, the Bentonville, Ark., retail giant, acquired Vudu in 2010 as the once-booming DVD business declined. Vudu was founded in 2004 and faced early struggles with a business model of selling internet-connected set-top boxes that allowed users to purchase digital movies. In 2008, Vudu began turning away from hardware by striking deals to integrate its software into devices from other companies. Times staff writer Wendy Lee contributed to this report. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers an speech at his Jerusalem office on March 14, 2020, regarding the new measures that will be taken to fight the CCP virus in Israel. (Gali Tibbon/AFP via Getty Images) Israels Netanyahu to Remain Prime Minister After Reaching Emergency Government Deal With Opposition JERUSALEMIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his chief rival announced Monday that they have forged a deal to form an emergency government, ending months of political paralysis and averting what would have been a fourth consecutive election in just over a year. Netanyahu and former military chief Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue and White party, signed the agreement after weeks of negotiations for what they termed a national emergency government meant to steer the country through the outbreak caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. The deal calls for a three-year period. Netanyahu, who is under criminal indictment in three corruption cases, will remain prime minister for 18 months after which Gantz will replace him, according to the agreement signed by both men. Gantzs party will take control of a number of senior government ministries, including foreign affairs and defense, and Netanyahus party will gain influence over judicial appointments. I promised the state of Israel a national emergency government that will work to save the lives and livelihoods of the citizens of Israel, Netanyahu tweeted. After an inconclusive election on March 2, Netanyahu and Gantz agreed to try to form a unity government because of the burgeoning CCP virus crisis. The talks dragged on and stalled several times, sparking concern that the collapse of a deal would force the country into new elections. We prevented a fourth election, Gantz tweeted. We will protect democracy. We will battle corona and we will worry about all the citizens of Israel. Last months election, just like the campaigns last September and April, ended with no clear winner. But with a slight majority of lawmakers endorsing him, Gantz was chosen first by the countrys figurehead president to try to build a coalition government. Negotiations continued even after Gantz allotted time to build a coalition ended last week. The Knesset, or parliament, had been given until May 7 to select a candidate for prime minister. Otherwise, it would automatically have been dissolved, triggering new elections. Netanyahu is awaiting trial on charges of accepting bribes, breach of trust, and fraud. He has denied any wrongdoing. Citing the CCP virus crisis, the justice minister shuttered most of the court system and has delayed the trial by two months. Israel has identified more than 13,000 cases of the virus, with 172 deaths. While this week the country began relaxing some of its health restrictions, hundreds of thousands are out of work and the economy has come to a standstill. By Tia Goldenberg Reuters and Epoch Times staff contributed to this report Paris (AFP) - Police fought running battles in at least five suburbs of Paris overnight with residents who accused officers of using heavy-handed tactics to enforce France's strict coronavirus lockdown. Residents burnt cars and shot fireworks at police, who responded with rubber bullets and tear gas in the northern suburbs of Villeneuve-la-Garenne and Aulnay-sous-Bois, witnesses and police said on Monday. The violence began on Saturday when a motorcyclist was injured during a police check in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, prompting a crowd to gather. A police statement said the group targeted officers with "projectiles" in a near two-hour standoff. The motorcyclist crashed into the open door of a police car and required surgery for a broken leg. Residents allege the door was opened deliberately so that the rider would smash into it. The 30-year-old will lodge a complaint against the officers, his family and a lawyer told AFP, while prosecutors have opened an investigation. By Monday morning, calm had returned to Villeneuve-la-Garenne after a second night of standoffs with police, according to an AFP journalist. There were also standoffs in nearby Aulnay-sous-Bois, where police claimed they were "ambushed" by residents in a district of dense, high-rise social housing of mainly immigrant occupants. Police said they arrested four people after being targeted by residents using fireworks as projectiles. The troubles spread to at least three other suburbs in the same department as Villeneuve-la-Garenne, with projectiles thrown at police and rubbish bins set alight, officials said. Across Ile-de-France -- the region that includes the capital and its surrounding suburbs -- roughly 15 cars and some 50 bins were burnt and seven people were arrested. - 'Confinement and tensions' - After the motorcyclist was injured on Saturday, rights group SOS Racisme called for full details of the incident to be divulged and urged police to use restraint "in this time of confinement and tensions". Story continues Earlier this month, prosecutors opened an investigation into the death in detention of a 33-year-old man arrested for allegedly violating the home confinement measures imposed by the government to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Police said the man resisted arrest. According to his sister, he had suffered from schizophrenia. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said on Sunday police had carried out 13.5 million checks since the lockdown started on March 17. More than 800,000 people were written up for violations of the order, which allows people to leave their homes only for essential purposes. Several complaints were lodged against French police during recent months of pension reform protests and "yellow vest" anti-government rallies. Some schools in Kalyan have started the new academic year on Monday through online classes. We have three-hour class for students from kindergarten to Class 10, said Bhagyashree Pisolkar, Principal, Meridian School, Kalyan. BK Birla School, Kalyan, started online classes for students from kindergarten till Class 12. For students of Class 3 and above, school starts at 9am and ends at 2pm. Those from Class 1 to 3 have classes for three hours. Students can submit their homework through email. Many students attended online classes wearing school uniforms, said Ranjna Jangra, principal. Every evening, when Pasqualina Conte returns home from a draining day as a nurse in a Milan emergency room for coronavirus patients, she longs to hold her 9-year-old son, Andrea. But for 50 days and counting, the two have not hugged. At sunrise, Conte has the breakfast table set. Barely an hour later, she will be slipping on her protective gear at San Carlo Hospital, one of the medical facilities at the epicenter of Italy's COVID-19 outbreak in Lombardy. Schools are closed, so she drops Andrea off on her way to work at a friend's. Andrea's father left them when he was 3 months old, she says. At the outbreak intensified, Conte - in a state of panic - wanted to send Andrea to his grandparents in Italy's south. But by the time the thought occurred to her, lockdown rules forbade such travel. When Conte and Andrea leave their home, each wears a mask and disposable gloves. She takes no chances even though she has repeatedly tested negative for the virus. I could become positive from one moment to the other at work, says Conte, who is 45. Some 30 nurses in Italy who contracted COVID-19 have died, according to an Italian nursing association. Conte wears a surgical mask at home, taking it off practically just to eat and sleep. Her day is packed: Patients to examine. Swab tests to administer. A video call from an isolated patient's daughter. Some eight hours later, Conte slumps on a bench, then wipes away tears. Later, she will sit at the edge of her bed at home and explain what made her cry to an Associated Press photographer who documented her day. Conte recalls how only she was able to adjust one patient's pillows just right to make it easier for her lungs to do their work. Eventually, the woman needed to be connected to a respirator. Conte says the woman told her she didn't fear being sedated because, she said, When I wake up, I'll find you. But recalling a doctor's grim assessment of her patient's chances, Conte chokes back tears: She won't wake up. Andrea was angry when the emergency began. He told me all the other parents were home with their children, Conte says. Some nurses, Conte said, took leaves of absence. The idea that I wouldn't go (to work) because there was this emergency never in the least entered my head, she says. With time, Andrea has begun to see the situation differently. He has offered what's in his piggy bank to help nurses like his mother. Some days she returns a bit destroyed after work is finished," Andrea says. "I'm proud of her, I'm very proud. She's on the front line. Hearing Andrea say that is comforting, but it's not the same as holding him. For 50 days, there are no kisses, no hugs,'' Conte says. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sympathetic state lawmakers and regulators in states both red and blue promise to make COVID-19 a major cost driver for workers compensation insurers. The governors of Kentucky, Arkansas, North Dakota and Florida and state regulators in Illinois, Washington, Michigan and Missouri have issued executive orders or amended rules to expand eligibility for workers compensation. Most of those decrees ease the path for benefits only for healthcare workers and first responders, but an emergency order by the Illinois Workers Compensation Commission creates a presumption that work is the cause of COVID-19 if contracted by any frontline worker identified in Gov. J.B. Pritzkers March 20 stay-at-home order. That includes workers at grocery stores, laundries, banks and hardware stores, among other businesses. Kentucky Gov. Andrew Beshear issued a similarly broad executive order that created a COVID-19 presumption for workers in grocery stores, child-care centers, domestic violence shelters and rape crisis centers, in addition to first responders and healthcare workers. In the meantime state legislators are also pushing to expand benefits for COVID-19. Earlier this month, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R), Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) signed into law bills that create a COVID-19 presumptions for first responders and some healthcare workers. Bills to create presumptions for COVID-19 have been introduced in the New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Utah state legislatures. Steamroller Philadelphia defense attorney Cliff Goldstein said he saw the avalanche of presumption bills coming as soon as heard the first reports of the disease spreading into the United States. I dont think theres any way to stop that steamroller, he said. Data from the California Division of Workers Compensation bears him out. As of Thursday, 1,527 claims coded for COVID-19 on claims notices had been filed, according to agency spokeswoman Erika Monterroza. Goldstein is not the only defense attorney predicting a flood of COVID claims. There will likely be many workman compensation claims because of the ease of filing, there is no requirement to prove negligence, and for many people their greatest contact with others, and hence the greatest chance of contracting the virus, is at work, David Boies, managing partner of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP in New York, told Bloomberg News. Goldstein said presumption legislation promises to be a boon for claimants attorneys, who will take a percentage of any permanent disability benefits awarded. You are just dangling meat in front of hungry lions, he said. Goldstein said his office Chartwell Law in Valley Forge has already received a handful of claims, some of them death claims. He said employers should resist any kind-hearted urge to quickly approve such claims based on the employees job category. Instead, each claim must be individually investigated, he said. COVID-19 claims that require admission to an intensive care unit will likely run into the six figures for medical costs alone, he said. Whats more, employers will be taking full responsibility for whatever complications arise from a coronavirus infection far into the future. Goldstein said Congress passed a pair of relief bills in March that should make it easier for employers to delay acceptance of a claim. The legislation requires employers with fewer than 500 employees to grant up to 80 hours of sick leave to workers sickened by the new coronavirus, which will be reimbursed with tax credits. Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order Thursday that requires the same benefit from employers with more than 500 workers. For workers who lose their jobs because of coronavirus, the federal emergency law also allows up to 16 weeks of unemployment insurance benefits at rates ranging from $875 to $1,500 per week, depending on the state, Goldstein said. Vulnerable Occupations Claimants attorney Julius Young in Oakland, Calif. said those benefits wont make workers whole. Usually workers lose their health insurance if they lose their job, which makes workers comp a vital benefit for employees who were made sick because of their exposure to the public while at work. Also, some workers may be permanently disabled by COVID-19. He said presumption bills make sense for workers who cant avoid constant contact with the public. A lot of these people in vulnerable occupations shouldnt have to go through this roulette-like maze wondering whether they are going to be covered, Young said. Young said the federal benefits will help in the short-term. He said state regulators should start thinking about whether and how any federal benefits paid can be offset from workers compensation awards. Medical research indicates that there is a real possibility of permanent disability from COVID-19. According to Science Magazine, the lack of oxygen and widespread inflammation caused by COVID-19 can damage kidneys, liver, heart, brain and other organs. Studies show that severe pneumonia caused by other diseases sometimes lead to scarring that causes long-term breathing problems. Pneumonia also increases the risk of future illnesses, including heart attack, stroke and kidney disease. In one study of 138 patients hospitalized in Wuhan, China due to pneumonia from COVID-19, 20 percent suffered acute respiratory distress syndrome. A separate study published by the New England Journal of Medicine in 2011 found that of 109 survivors of ARDS, 51% suffered physician-diagnosed depression, anxiety or both. Perhaps more relevant to workers comp, that study found that just 77 percent of the 83 patients who survived throughout the study period had returned to work five years after being treated. The study found that only 39% of patients were able to walk the distance expected for their age group in six minutes five years later, suggesting a high degree of physical impairment. As of yet, none of the major workers compensation rating organizations has released any projections on the potential impact of COVID-19 on workers comp loss costs. The National Council of Compensation hopes to release next week an analysis of potential claim costs under a variety of scenarios, said Executive Director Jeff Eddinger. For example, one scenario project costs if a large percentage of workers who contract COVID-19 file claims and 100 percent are found to be compensable. He said the analysis will make projections for a variety of infection and claim-acceptance rates. Eddinger said NCCI does not yet have any data on how many claims have been filed. He said insurers dont report their losses until six months after the policy period expires. But he said there is some data available. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that between 10 percent to 20 percent of COVID-19 cases were healthcare workers. The California Workers Compensation is working on similar projections, said President Alex Swedlow. About the photo: Registered medical assistant Lauiesha Plummer administers a nasal COVID-19 test to a patient at a drive-thru testing site Thursday, April 16, 2020, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) while the economic hardships due to the coronavirus lockdown are more evident, the restrictions also add to social inequities in less visible ways. The lockdown due to the novel coronavirus outbreak has greatly added to the woes of families of child sexual abuse survivors in Mumbai, a recent study by the Aarambh India Initiative of NGO Prerana and ADM Capital Foundation has found. As part of the study, the NGO interviewed 127 families with whom it is presently associated, most of them being from the underprivileged sections of society. The researchers say that for many families, the challenges of dealing with the aftermath of child sexual abuse have been compounded by a sudden loss of income and a lack of social support. Increased vulnerability Uma Subramanian, a co-founder of the Aarambh India Initiative, mentioned several instances in which the lockdown has aggravated the problems that families of child sexual abuse survivors face. She said, For example, one girl whom we are supporting presently has cerebral palsy. Her father is accused of sexually abusing her, and was arrested for a brief while. He was later released on bail, after which he refused to financially support the family any longer. The childs mother works as a daily wage labourer, and work has dried up for her due to the lockdown. The restrictions on movement also mean that it is difficult for her to access the required medical support for the child. Subramanian said, What complicates matters further is that the mother faces stigma from her neighbours and relatives for having filed a criminal case against her own husband. They have also refused to help her in any way. Subramanian also narrated the case of a boy who was recently sexually abused at his school. She said, After the case was reported, both the victim as well as the boys who were suspected of having abused him were told not to attend school for some days. After our intervention, the boy who had faced abuse was able to return to school. However, after just a few days, the school was shut due to the coronavirus outbreak. Further, the boys who are suspected of having abused him stay in the same neighbourhood, which makes matters worse. She said, If the boy had been able to get back to school, it would have helped him cope with the situation, he would have returned to his usual routine. However, the lockdown rendered this impossible. Economic status Among the families that were a part of the NGOs survey, the overwhelming majority drew their sustenance from the unorganised sector. Out of those who were working, as many as 93 percent were in the unorganised sector as domestic workers, masons, carpenters, plumbers, other contractual workers, construction workers, drivers, sex workers, shoemakers, etc. Click here for Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates Out of the respondents who were employed, as many as 78 percent had not received their payment or wages for the month of March. The survey notes, Many of them expressed concerns and were unsure as to when they would receive the payments. Another concern for the families of child sexual abuse survivors appeared to be depleting stocks of essential items. Nearly half of the families (48 percent) said that they would run out of ration in about a weeks time. On the other hand, only 21 percent of the families said that they had ration that could last up to a month. Out of the total respondents, 53 percent said that there was a ration shop in their community, while 47 percent answered in the negative. Among the families that said that there was a ration shop nearby, eight families said that there were no stocks available when they visited the shop. The report noted that due to this situation, families are put in a position where they have to consider healing from sexual violence as a secondary priority. The findings of the NGOs survey fall into a larger pattern of vulnerable social groups being at a greater risk of violence due to the coronavirus lockdown. The National Commission for Women (NCW) recently said that there has been a steep rise in crimes against women amid the ongoing restrictions. The NCW has said that it received as many as 239 complaints of domestic violence from 23 March to 16 April. In comparison, during the previous 25 days from 27 February to 22 March, 123 complaints were lodged. As this article on Firstpost noted, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, empowers women to file complaints against their abusers. However, it notes, How will a victim access this machinery when there is a nationwide lockdown, basic services are hard to come by, autos and buses are not plying the roads, the homes of others are out of bounds due to social distancing, and the police force (which may have offered some help) is deployed in enforcing the curfew? Thus, while the economic hardships due to the coronavirus lockdown are more evident, the restrictions also add to social inequities in less visible ways. MONTREAL He appeared obsessed with the police and owned eerily realistic copies of police uniforms and a homemade replica squad car. He fitted dentures for customers, many of them elderly admirers of his comforting bedside manner. He had a childhood fascination with air guns. The day after a deadly rampage in a small and sleepy seaside community in Nova Scotia, a picture began to emerge of the killer, Gabriel Wortman, the soft-spoken, seemingly amiable 51-year-old denture specialist behind the worst mass shooting in Canadian history. The death toll totaled at least 19 including Mr. Wortman. Mr. Wortman, who ran two denture clinics in Nova Scotia, began the massacre late Saturday night in the town of Portapique, a close-knit beachside village of about 100 residents on the Bay of Fundy. It ended 12 hours later at a gas station in Enfield, 55 miles away, with the gunman dead, bodies strewn across a more than 30 mile area, five houses smoldering in flames and 16 crime scenes. Among the dead, all adults, were a police officer, two nurses and an elementary schoolteacher. Stephen McNeil, the premier of Nova Scotia, described the massacre as one of the most senseless acts of violence in our provinces history. India on Sunday rejected criticism by Pakistans top leadership of the deliberate and violent targeting of Muslims, saying such remarks were an attempt to shift focus from Islamabads abysmal handling of its internal affairs. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) had criticised what they described as the deliberate targeting of Muslims by the Indian government against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. External Affairs Ministrys spokesperson Anurag Srivastava rejected the criticism by saying: The bizarre comments by the Pakistani leadership are an attempt to shift focus from the abysmal handling of their internal affairs. Instead of concentrating on fighting Covid-19, they are making baseless allegations against their neighbours. In a reference to incidents of the oppression of Pakistans Hindu minority, Srivastava said, On the subject of minorities, they would be well advised to address the concerns of their own dwindling minority communities, which have been truly discriminated against. Also read: Imran Khan hits mute on Saarc Covid-19 pledge, India sends $1.7 mn relief Khan had followed up on tweets by the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the OIC and compared the Indian governments treatment of Muslims to what Nazis did to Jews in Germany. The deliberate & violent targeting of Muslims in India by Modi Govt to divert the backlash over its COVID19 policy, which has left thousands stranded & hungry, is akin to what Nazis did to Jews in Germany, Khan tweeted. The deliberate & violent targeting of Muslims in India by Modi Govt to divert the backlash over its COVID19 policy, which has left thousands stranded & hungry, is akin to what Nazis did to Jews in Gerrmany. Yet more proof of the racist Hindutva Supremacist ideology of Modi Govt. Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 19, 2020 In a tweet, President Arif Alvi, a close aide of Khan, accused the Indian government of suppressing the Kashmiri people through extreme violence, torture and oppression. In recent months, Khan has repeatedly criticised the Indian governments attitude towards the countrys Muslim minority and the external affairs ministry has pushed back against his remarks, describing them as interference in Indias internal affairs. The Indian side has also targeted Khan for failing to counter cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistani soil. The OICs Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission had, in a string of tweets, condemned what it described as the unrelenting vicious Islamophobic campaign in India maligning Muslims for spread of #Covid-19 as well as their negative profiling in media subjecting them to discrimination & violence with impunity. Also read: Pakistan Supreme Court orders removal of health advisor to PM over Covid-19 It urged the Indian government to take urgent steps to stop the growing tide of #Islamophobia in the country and protect the rights of its persecuted Muslim minority as per its obligations under (international human rights) law. Indias foreign minister was invited as a special guest to a meeting of foreign ministers of OIC states in the UAE last year, marking a high point in New Delhis often testy relations with the Islamic grouping. However, in recent months, the OIC has repeatedly criticised the Indian governments handling of the situation in Kashmir and attacks on Muslims. The external affairs ministry has rejected this criticism. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 12:08:25|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close URUMQI, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, issued e-vouchers to unleash consumption potential. The e-vouchers, worth about 108.5 million yuan (about 15.3 million U.S. dollars), will be issued in three rounds starting from Saturday, said the commerce bureau of the regional capital. Residents in Urumqi can get the vouchers on Alibaba's online-payment service Alipay and enjoy a rebate when making payments at offline shops. Meanwhile, the city will also hand out 50,000 tourism consumption coupons, which could be spent in seven tourist sites in the city. In early March, Chinese authorities released a guideline on boosting consumption to cushion the blow of the COVID-19 epidemic on economic activities. Enditem Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Sao Paulo, Brazil Mon, April 20, 2020 08:12 632 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd2e86db 2 World Brazil,Jair-Bolsonaro,demonstration,stay-at-home,coronavirus,coronavirus-prevention,COVID-19,pandemic Free Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro on Sunday joined hundreds of demonstrators outside army headquarters in the capital Brasilia protesting stay-at-home orders issued by state governors. The crowd of around 600 called on the army to intervene in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic and demanded the closure of Congress. Some held up posters declaring "Military intervention with Bolsonaro". "I am here because I believe in you and you are here because you believe in Brazil," the president told the crowd from the back of a pick-up truck. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, has constantly criticized partial quarantine measures adopted by governors, including those in charge of the country's most populous states, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, to halt the spread of the coronavirus. On Friday, he sacked his health minister, who supported the restrictions that Bolsonaro says are damaging the economy. Brazil, with a population of more than 200 million, has the most COVID-19 cases in Latin America -- more than 38,000 as of Sunday, with more than 2,400 deaths. During his address, which was interspersed with fits of coughing, the president made no response to the crowd's call for military intervention nor the demand to close Congress. "You must fight for your country. Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro said. The most populous states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro on Friday extended partial quarantine measures. A majority of Brazilians approve the government's confinement regulations despite its impact on the economy, according to a poll published Saturday. Pure Fyre by KristaLyn A. Vetovich As readers journey alongside the characters in Pure Fyre, they are also taken on a journey of the self, Vetovich said. This book teaches them to trust their own instincts, to have faith in themselves and a higher power and purpose, and to embrace what makes them unique. High-vibe author and astrologist KristaLyn A. Vetovich recently published her latest New Age, fantasy novel: Pure Fyre. This novel is set in a high-vibe world where the characters tap into their powers by using metaphysical concepts, such as connecting with crystal energy and spirit guides. Pure Fyre follows Spyre as he is forced to save The Kingdom of Condel and its leader, Eofyn. He is set on this journey because the other creatures of the realm wanted him to team up with Eofyn to help overthrow his king, Afor, who conquered The Kingdom of Condel. Throughout the novel, as Spyre adventures from one kingdom to another, various fantasy characters present themselves such as elves, trolls and dragons. Pure Fyre entertains readers with a mystical, adventure tale and teaches them valuable life lessons. An essential lesson Vetovich teaches readers is finding your place in a world where you dont feel like you fit in, which is represented through Spyres journey. Throughout the novel, Vetovich includes strong female characters to inspire female readers to find their personal strengths. Finally, Vetovich teaches readers to find their inner power, which is represented by the Pure Fyre within Eofyn. As readers journey alongside the characters in Pure Fyre, they are also taken on a journey of the self, Vetovich said. This book teaches them to trust their own instincts, to have faith in themselves and a higher power and purpose, and to embrace what makes them unique. Pure Fyre By KristaLyn A. Vetovich ISBN: 978-1-9822-3919-0 (softcover); 978-1-9822-3921-3 (hardcover); 978-1-9822-3920-6 (electronic) Available at the Balboa Press Online Bookstore, Amazon and Barnes & Noble. About the author KristaLyn A. Vetovich is a high-vibe author and astrologist. Through her books, she helps readers find emotional healing and inspires them to connect to the lives they want. She is an expert in various healing modalities including reiki, crystal healing, Advanced IET, and Advanced ThetaHealing, with additional certifications in Hellenistic astrology and chirology. She graduated in 2011 from Susquehanna University with a degree in English literature. She hopes to help authors, specifically those who want to write high-vibe fiction, overcome their writing anxieties and inspire them to become published writers like her. Currently, she resides in a treehouse in Elysburg, Pennsylvania with her husband and corgis, Jack and Zelda. To connect with Vetovich, please visit her website: http://www.kristalynavetovich.com/. For Interview Requests & Review Copies, Please Contact: LAVIDGE Phoenix Krista Tillman 480-648-7560 ktillman@lavidge.com ### The trade for dairy replacement stock has taken a hit as a result of mounting milk-price uncertainty. The cost of calved heifers has fallen by 100-150/hd, and demand for stock has tightened due to the Covid-19-related slump in dairy markets. Milk prices came back 2c/l for March supplies and further cuts are likely in the coming months unless dairy commodity prices improve. However, the market for dairy calves remains steady, despite the numbers being shipped to the continent falling sharply. Limerick-based dairy trader, John Egan, said new entrants into milk continued to be the main buyers for calved dairy heifers but he admitted that the recent cut in milk prices had put doubt into farmers minds. Mr Egan said that where top-quality heifers were making up 1,600/hd two months ago, similar quality animals were now making 1,450/hd. He said most buyers were looking for heifers that were Holstein-British Friesian crosses, with an EBI of 150-plus. Tom McCarthy of Bandon Mart conceded that demand for dairy stock has eased over the last few weeks. He maintained that dairy farmers had gotten more cautious and that major investments and plans for expansion had been put on hold for this year. I think farmers are battening down the hatches, Mr McCarthy explained. He said the bulk of the calved heifers were being bought for 1,150/hd to 1,350/hd, with the Top of the Pops making up to 1,400/hd. However, traders report a difficult market for in-calf heifers, with heifer calves viewed as a nuisance by farmers. Meanwhile, local farmer demand for calves has helped keep a floor on the market, despite Covid-19 undermining the export trade. Calf exports have been well back to both Netherlands and Spain over the last few weeks as the crisis has disrupted local demand and transport. However, farmer buying in the marts remains strong, particularly for older and better quality calves. In Kilkenny last week shipping-type Friesian bulls sold for 25-60/hd, with farmer types making from 60/hd to 140/hd. Continental bulls sold for 150-360/hd, while heifers made from 80/hd to 350/hd. Angus and Hereford bulls sold from 70/hd to 370/hd, with heifers selling for 60-210/hd. Shipping-type Friesian bulls made from 30/hd to 90/hd in Kilmallock last week, while farmers paid to a top of 130/hd for Friesian bulls. Continental bulls made from 200/hd to 310/hd, while heifers generally sold for 180-280/hd. Hereford and Angus bulls made from 150/hd to 270/hd. A security employee disinfects shopping carts at the entrance of a garden store in Munich, Germany, Monday. AFP Photo Berlin: Parts of Europe hit hard by the deadly coronavirus pandemic took tentative steps towards resuming normal lives on Monday, with Germany allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarting nurseries. There were encouraging signs over the weekend in Europe with daily death tolls dropping in Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open on Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Adding another flicker of hope in Europe, Norway allowed children to go back to nurseries on Monday, although some parents expressed reservations over the decision. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month, and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". Authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. In the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the outbreak was "on the descent". Cuomo cautioned that it was "no time to get cocky", although the warmer weather lured New Yorkers out of their homes and into parks over the weekend. "I feel a little guilty being here, at the same time for my own mental sanity this is probably what I need," said real estate agent Taylor Henderson at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Across the other side of the world, New Zealand announced Monday that it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." Iran, which has the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, also allowed some "low-risk" businesses to reopen Saturday. Social activists and religious organisations have condemned the lynching of three people by a mob in a village in neighbouring Palghar district on Thursday night while on their way to attend a funeral in Surat in neighbouring Gujarat. The incident happened near Gadchinchale village on the Dhabadi-Khanvel road under Kasa police station limits. Three people from Kandivali in Mumbai, identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) and driver Nilesh Telgade (30), were pulled out of their car and beaten to death in the presence of a police team that had rushed to the site to save them. Vishwa Hindu Parishad national spokesperson Shriraj Nair called a it a barbaric incident and demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation, adding that it was a failure of the police. He also took a swipe at "activists and actors who are eager to pounce on issues of mob lynching when it comes to a particular community". Social activist Anjali Damania said the "NCP- controlled state Home department was engaging in goondaraj", and cited other incidents like a man being beaten up by police staff guarding state minister Jitendra Awhad as well as the arrest of a reporter in connection with a migrant mob assembling during lockdown on April 14 in Bandra in the metropolis. Former IPS officer YP Singh demanded a through probe and said police could not be blamed entirely as some forest staff seen in the assault video should also have intervened to save the victims. Former Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar blamed the local superintendent of police and said the latter's teams were yet to arrest those who spread rumours that led to the lynching. Over 100 people have been arrested so far in the case, officials have said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A caravan of jobless workers in Florida protested the states unemployment application system Sunday, as many say they continue to struggle to file unemployment claims in the state. Workers with Unite Here Local 355, the hospitality workers union in South Florida, taped signs to their cars and drove to House Speaker Jose Olivas Miami office, asking for a fix to Floridas unemployment system. These are folks who are making somewhere in the range from $10 to $13 an hour, said Wendi Walsh, secretary and treasurer for Unite Here Local 355. They struggle in the best of times to make ends meet and of course this is causing them to not pay their rent. For now, evictions are not happening, but that is going to get lifted at some point. Workers who have been unemployed during the coronavirus pandemic protested outside the office of House Speaker Jose Oliva on Sunday. The caravan was part of a statewide action organized by the union, which represents nearly 7,000 hospitality and tourism workers in South Florida. The protest comes about a month into the states job loss crisis caused by the coronavirus crisis. Floridas unemployment system, which is overseen by the Department of Economic Opportunity, has been mired in setbacks, including a dysfunctional website, under-staffing and a growing backlog of claims. Last week, Gov. Ron DeSantis said that of 850,000 active claims, just over 33,000 unemployment applications have been processed. According to recent data released by the state, Miami-Dades unemployment rate more than doubled in March, a figure that could still not account for many of the unemployed workers whose application status is uncertain. Amid the chaos, DeSantis has also replaced the head of DEO Ken Lawson with Jonathan Satter, secretary of the Department of Management Services. Still, the faulty system has left an unknown number of unemployed workers who say they dont know the status of their applications or whether they have been received. Mustaf Alijaj, a former doorman at the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami Beach, said it took him two weeks since he first began applying for unemployment to send in his application. While he tried numerous times to access the state unemployment website and call the main phone line, Alijaj said he resorted to mailing a paper application. Story continues Its just been really frustrating at this point. Im just tired. Im watching the news; they keep saying theyre going to hire more people, Alijaj said in a virtual news conference held by Unite Here. Aprils rent already came and went. Mays rent is coming up and I have no money coming in. Alijaj said he was laid off on March 19. A month later, he doesnt know if his paper application has been received or is being processed. Democratic State Rep. Javier Fernandez said he was calling on the state to just issue checks and to prioritize sending out payments over auditing applications suspected of abuse. All weve heard thus far from the DeSantis administration is excuses, Fernandez said. We should just get them the help they need and well worry about the folks who are going to abuse the system on the back end, to involve the civil and criminal [authorities] ... and crack down on abuses. Fernandez added that the state should consider extending unemployment benefits, which is capped at $275 per week. Meanwhile, Oliva said the claims have overwhelmed the unemployment system, but he is encouraged to see the steps DeSantis has taken. I share their concern with this and the many other effects of this shutdown, Oliva said in a statement sent through a spokesman. It is my hope that people will go this month from an unemployment check to a paycheck very soon. Ines Santiesteban lost her job on March 21 as a housekeeper at the Diplomat hotel in Hollywood. She said it took her two days to be able to file an unemployment application, but still doesnt know the status of her claim. Every day I go in and check, every morning, afternoon and night, to see if my application is being processed and nothing changes, Santiesteban said. We work really hard but the system doesnt work. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 20:15:04|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close THE HAGUE, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Dutch Minister for Medical Care Martin van Rijn personally welcomed an aircraft from China with 800,000 face masks for medical personnel at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport on Monday morning. The protective equipment against the novel coronavirus arrived via a Boeing 747 from Shanghai. It was the first flight of an airbridge between the Netherlands and China for the transport of medical equipment and masks. In total, 6 million face masks are expected to arrive from China in the forthcoming days. "Great news that there is now an airbridge for protective equipment with China," Van Rijn said on Twitter. "The first flight of this was welcomed last night at Schiphol with hundreds of thousands of masks, 30,000 coats and 30,000 safety glasses. More will follow in the coming days, including millions of masks." The face masks are professional FFP2 ones that are currently in short supply in the Dutch healthcare. Wearing face masks is so far not mandatory in the Netherlands for ordinary people. Enditem Parts of Europe hit hard by the deadly coronavirus pandemic took tentative steps towards resuming normal lives on Monday, with Germany allowing some shops to reopen and Norway restarting nurseries. Governments across the world are debating how and when to ease the lockdowns that have kept more than half of humanity -- 4.5 billion people -- confined to their homes and crippled the global economy. After emerging in the industrial central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, the respiratory virus has claimed roughly 165,000 lives, with nearly two thirds of the victims in Europe. But there were encouraging signs over the weekend in Europe with daily death tolls dropping in Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open on Monday. Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4. Adding another flicker of hope in Europe, Norway allowed children to go back to nurseries on Monday, although some parents expressed reservations over the decision. Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Spain registered 410 new fatalities on Sunday, the lowest daily count in almost a month, and a figure that health ministry emergencies coordinator Fernando Simon said "gives us hope". Authorities are even starting to shut some makeshift facilities set up to relieve the overburdened health system, including a morgue at a Madrid ice rink. France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit. "We are scoring points against the epidemic," said French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. In the United States -- the country with the highest number of deaths and infections -- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the outbreak was "on the descent". Cuomo cautioned that it was "no time to get cocky", although the warmer weather lured New Yorkers out of their homes and into parks over the weekend. "I feel a little guilty being here, at the same time for my own mental sanity this is probably what I need," said real estate agent Taylor Henderson at Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Across the other side of the world, New Zealand announced Monday that it will ease a nationwide lockdown next week, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying: "We have stopped a wave of devastation." Iran, which has the Middle East's deadliest outbreak, also allowed some "low-risk" businesses to reopen Saturday. - Bleak Ramadan - But after Christians around the world marked Easter with subdued ceremonies, Muslims in the Middle East and beyond are preparing for a bleak Ramadan -- the holiest month in the Islamic calendar -- which begins later this week. Mosque prayers have been suspended and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. Several countries' religious authorities, including Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Abdulaziz al-Sheikh, have ruled that prayers during Ramadan and Eid be performed at home. Mosque prayers have been suspended and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries. "Our hearts are crying," said Ali Mullah, the prayer leader at the Grand Mosque in Mecca. "We are used to seeing the holy mosque crowded with people during the day, night, all the time... I feel pain deep inside." - Anti-lockdown protests - In the United States, which has the more than 759,000 confirmed infections and nearly 41,000 deaths, some are increasingly chafing under stay-at-home orders and are taking to the streets to protest. Anti-lockdown demonstrations over the weekend drew hundreds of people in states including Colorado, Texas, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio. Many waved American flags, and some carried weapons. But others stayed in their cars or wore protective masks. President Donald Trump fuelled another bout of fury over the weekend by lending support to the protests against the lockdown restrictions -- which medical experts say save countless lives. In Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro -- who has repeatedly claimed the virus threat is overblown -- joined hundreds of protesters in Brasilia who objected to state governors' stay-home orders. Brazil has the most infections in Latin America, a region where an AFP tally on Sunday showed total cases had surpassed 100,000 with nearly 5,000 deaths. "Count on your president to do what is necessary so that we can guarantee democracy and what is most dear to us, our freedom," Bolsonaro told the protesters in an address that was interspersed with fits of coughing. burs-qan/kma In Germany, which been among the most successful in Europe to contain the disease and where authorities have declared it "under control", smaller shops in some regions were to re-open Hard-hit Spain, where a nationwide lockdown has been extended, also said it would ease restrictions to allow children time outside France also said a nationwide lockdown in force for a month was beginning to bear fruit In the US,which has nearly 41,000 deaths, some are increasingly chafing under stay-at-home orders and are taking to the streets to protest Mosque prayers have been suspended for Ramadan and Iftar feasts cancelled in many countries For the first time in years, weed aficionados were not able to gather at Golden Gate Park's Hippie Hill and light up a joint at the annual 4/20 celebration. Although not officially sanctioned or permitted until 2017, the annual event has been tolerated for years by San Francisco officials. However, this year due to the COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings, the yearly 4/20 Hippie Hill event, which usually attracts thousands of people from across the Bay Area, was canceled. "We will not tolerate anyone coming to San Francisco for 4/20 this year," San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced at a press conference last week. "Police officers will be patrolling the area. We will cite people and, if necessary, arrest them." To additionally deter people from attempting to smoke in the park, a combination of San Francisco police officers, sheriffs, and park rangers patrolled a chain-link fence that was set up to cordon off Hippie Hill in Robin Williams Meadow. Sections of JFK Drive, Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Bowling Green Drive closed to vehicular traffic and parking was prohibited on Kezar Drive. MORE: Nearly half of COVID-19 patients are obese By early afternoon a park ranger confirmed to SFGATE there have been no attempts to enter the fenced-off area of the park. Here's is a look at the measures taken to close off Hippie Hill in Golden Gate Park on 4/20. Los Angeles, April 20 : Actress Salma Hayek says she has been told to "sound dumber and speak faster" by directors in her career. In an interview to Total Film magazine, the "Like a Boss" actress revealed how she was inspired by her Polish teacher while growing up in Mexico, and her initial interactions with directors, reports femalefirst.co.uk. "I had a Polish acting teacher in Mexico, and he taught me so many wonderful things aside from acting. You could never miss a class. One time, one of the people in the class didn't come and showed up after three days with a paper from the doctor. He came over to him and said, 'Is that your death certificate?' He said, 'No'. And he said, 'You can walk out and never come back'," she recalled. The actress continued: "If you're doing theatre, will you go to the audience and say you were sick? You were not sick enough. If you were in the hospital, I'd understand. But two days in bed ... don't show up with that paper to my class. This is not a joke. You are either committed to this class or you don't belong here." The 53-year-old star started her career on Mexican serial "Teresa" in 1989. The actress says she hasn't been able to put the lessons into practice much during her career. She went on to narrate an incident when was instructed to dumb herself down. She said: "Unfortunately, I never had a lot of chances to do parts where I could use a lot of the things I learned. Or you learn them and they don't let you. I've had directors say to me, 'Dumber and faster. Sound dumber and speak faster!'" Since start of coronavirus lockdown, at least five women have been killed at the hands of their abusers, activists say. Banging pots and pans and waving homemade banners, scores of Palestinians have expressed their solidarity with women enduring various forms of domestic violence during a lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The initiative on Monday, which saw both women and men stand at their windows and balconies across the occupied Palestinian territories and historic Palestine, was aimed at shedding light on the plight of women who are locked down with their abusers. According to a tally combined by Talat, an independent political feminist movement that organised the campaign, 11 Palestinian women have been killed as a result of domestic violence so far this year, with five of the fatalities occurring since the implementation of the lockdown in early March. Of these five, four succumbed to gun wounds. Talat activist Soheir Asaad said that while for many quarantine suggests being safe at home, for others it is hell. It means living with someone who could end your life, Assad told Al Jazeera from Haifa, describing the reality faced by some women during the lockdown. . # #__ " ". pic.twitter.com/Q6W0KwMnxv #: = (@tal3at_sept26) April 18, 2020 Assiwar, a womens support NGO, says the number of calls it has received in recent weeks has risen by 30 percent, notwithstanding a plethora of messages landing on its social media platforms. Other groups report similar increases, with the Palestinian Working Women Society for Development (PWWSD) saying its counseling hotline received 924 calls between March 22 and April 15. Lamia Naamneh, head of Assiwar and a womens rights defender for more than 20 years, said most appeals for help involve women who have received death threats. Just yesterday, a call led us to a woman who was only able to speak to us via Facebook Messenger chat while at home, Naamneh told Al Jazeera on Monday. She said she was threatened, beaten, and we had to send the police to get her transferred to a safe house, she said. Naamneh added there has also been a surge in cases of both sexual violence and domestic abuse against children following the implementation of the lockdown measures. Demonstrators hold signs during a protest demanding legal protection for women, in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank [File: Mohamad Torokman/Reuters] At the same time, there are major concerns that many cases of domestic violence go unreported. Fear is the biggest barrier faced by abused women Fear of being ostracised, excluded, abandoned, of not being a good mother or daughter, said Amany Khalifa, a social worker who also participated in Mondays campaign. The situation becomes even more difficult when authorities do not work to protect women, she told Al Jazeera from occupied East Jerusalem. We cannot ask an inherently violent institution to change the reality of Palestinian women. It is common for cases to be under-reported in certain areas of the West Bank, such as in Area C which is under full Israeli military control. This is because it is difficult for the police to reach homes in these areas, according to PWWSD coordinator Futna Khalifa, who notes there are checkpoints hindering the movement of Palestinians. Many Palestinian families live in small apartment complexes, and the small spaces can increase the chances of friction and conflict between a husband and wife, Khalifa said. This is especially true for those women who already faced abuse prior to the lockdown. What may have been psychological abuse, may have turned into a physical form of abuse during this time. Disrupt public sphere While many women across the world share similar realities, abuse is especially complex and systematic for Palestinian women, Talats Asaad said. Palestinian women live in fragmentation and endure the various consequences of the Israeli occupation, she added. This is a unique reality that Palestinian women in particular live under, Assad noted. Talat, which translates to rising up, emerged in September last year following the murder of 21-year-old Israa Gharib in the occupied West Bank. It seeks to create a discourse where violence against Palestinian women is talked about within the context of Palestinian political and national liberation. We understand violence as social, economic and political injustice against women not only as domestic violence, Assad said. These aspects have affected the way we experience violence and our ability to resist it and even talk about it. Alongside the strict measures in place due to the pandemic, the situation is compounded by the pressures of Israeli occupation, economic subjugation and political apathy, activists say. This is why we wanted to create a space for Palestinian women to be part of our movement, Assad said of Mondays initiative. If we cant be on the street we are all in our homes and we will not be silenced. Khalifa agreed. Its very important for a voice to appear in the public sphere, to disrupt it, because life cannot continue while there is this huge presence of violence against our women. She added: We have to realise that colonial violence and patriarchal violence are connected. Home not a safe space There are only two safe houses designated for Palestinian women in Israel, which results in a constant lack of space to accommodate newcomers. What further complicates the situation these days is that NGOs such Assiwar have first to ensure that the new arrivals are not carriers of the coronavirus. Often, these women are required to reside in hotels for 14 days at their own expense, a luxury most cannot afford. Were fortunate that friends who support our work have agreed on several occasions to take these women in, Naamneh said, adding that some women end up on the streets after not being admitted to safe houses. Meanwhile, many Palestinians who work in the Israeli service sector have lost their jobs in the past few weeks, which has worsened an already dire economic situation. While being confined to their homes, many tend to take out their frustration on vulnerable women who are left without refuge during the lockdown, Khalifa said. Violence is often practiced when the abuser is frustrated, which is manifested in the form of abuse, she said. This is why homes are not a safe space for many women. Making things worse is the fact that the Israeli police do not pay attention to Palestinian communities, Naamneh said. When the occupation doesnt prioritise our safety, it is easy to kill when youre in an unsafe environment. The UAE government on Monday announced to operate special repatriation flights from four Indian cities to bring back its nationals stuck in the country due to the restrictions on air travel amidst the coronavirus pandemic, media reports said. Sharjah-headquartered budget carrier Air Arabia will operate the repatriation flights from Mumbai, Delhi, Kochi and Hyderabad, Khaleej Times reported. While the special flights from Mumbai and Delhi will operate on Monday, those from Cochin and Hyderabad will operate on Tuesday, it said. "Air Arabia remains committed to bring stranded citizens back home as well as supporting requests to operate repatriation flights and is working closely with UAE authorities in this regard. The airline announced earlier that it's operating a mix of repatriation flights as well as cargo flights during the month of April to multiple destinations," it said in a statement on Monday. Further information about the repatriation and cargo flights is available on the website or can be obtained by contacting the Air Arabia call centre on 06 5580000, it said. Last week, the airline announced new passenger repatriation as well as cargo flights to nine countries -- Afghanistan, Iran, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Sudan, Egypt, India and Nepal -- from Sharjah International Airport. The Indian government has banned all domestic as well as international air travel until May 3 in view of the coronavirus pandemic which has killed over 160,000 people globally. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bardot fans were left disappointed last week when Sophie Monk refused to join her former bandmates for a 'virtual concert' to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the group's debut single, Poison. Tiffani Wood, Belinda Chapple and Katie Underwood hosted a livestream to mark two decades since the song's release, but the former Bachelorette was notably missing. And according to New Idea, Sophie, 40, refused to be involved in any reunion plans because she 'is doing well enough on her own and doesn't need them'. Snub: Sophie Monk wasn't involved in the virtual Bardot reunion last week because she 'is doing well enough on her own and doesn't need' her old bandmates, according to New Idea An insider claimed Sophie was 'playing hardball' in negotiations because she wasn't really interested in getting the band back together. A source made similar claims to Daily Mail Australia last month, saying: 'Sophie wants nothing to do with [Bardot] and hasn't spoken to them for years.' In an official statement, the Love Island host said she would not be taking part in the reunion 'due to a busy schedule' but wished them the best of luck. Hardball: An insider claimed Sophie (centre) was 'playing hardball' in negotiations because she wasn't really interested in getting the band back together With or without her! Bardot fans were disappointed last week when Sophie refused to join her former bandmates for a 'virtual concert' to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Poison. Pictured: Tiffani Wood (top left), Belinda Chapple (top right) and Katie Underwood (bottom left) However, Sophie and her boyfriend, Joshua Gross, did have enough free time last week to join Australian Idol star Anthony Callea and his husband, Tim Campbell, for an Instagram Live double date. Anthony and Tim, who happen to be Bardot super fans, mentioned that it was '20 years since the release of Poison'. Sophie quickly changed the subject and said: 'But look at corona[virus]. It's just knocked down any celebrations of 20 years hasn't it?' Tim asked if that was 'a good thing or a bad thing', to which Sophie laughed and replied: 'It's a grey area.' 'Grey area': Last week, Sophie blamed coronavirus for her reluctance to join her former Bardot bandmates for a virtual singalong. Despite this, she found the time to livestream a double date with her boyfriend, Joshua Gross, and Anthony Callea and his husband, Tim Campbell For years Sophie has been reluctant to rejoin the girl group, which was active between 2000 and 2002. Returning member Tiffani revealed on Sunday that the band was very close to organising a reunion when things all went south. She told Stellar magazine that members Katie, 44, Belinda, 45, and Sally Polihronas, 43, got together on a four-way call and discussed it - but Sophie did not take part. No time! Sophie told Daily Mail Australia last month, 'Due to a busy schedule I'm not able to be involved in any Bardot commitments. Good luck to the girls and I wish them all the best' 'We all got on [a call], except for Sophie, and had a chat. It went so well that we were close to doing something, but old wounds opened up and people's lives are busy,' she explained. Tiffani added: 'I've heard Sophie say "never say never", but she's never said yes or maybe she's said no every time, which is fair enough. She's doing her own thing. But we all have our own reasons, and it's not going ahead.' A proper reunion is not out of the question, she said, but it won't happen for years. Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters The coronavirus pandemic has brought mass unemployment . To prevent a spate of homelessness, governors across the US have promised moratoriums on evictions, and mortgage forgiveness for those who cant keep up with their payments. But many renters say the protections do not go far enough, and some are threatening rent strikes. Related: Coronavirus US live: Cuomo says New York cases 'coming down' but warns against rush to reopen Ricardo Reis, who owns 16 properties in Michigan, says there is a stigma against landlords, which means people are less empathetic about their needs during such times. Everyone has an impression of us as being rich and greedy. A lot of tenants will be thinking, how can they ask [us to pay] during this time? But in reality, there are costs involved, says Reis. Those costs include property taxes, insurance, maintenance and mortgage payments. Although homeowners will be provided with mortgage relief during the pandemic, many renters are wondering why they should still pay rent. But plenty arent aware that commercial property owners landlords, in other words are not entitled to this benefit. Furthermore, forbearance programs only defer mortgage payments, rather than completely forgiving the cost. They are seeing this as an opportunity, as opposed to asking for help and relief to inflict damage on the landlord as some sort of a class warfare, says Jay Martin, the executive director of the community housing improvement project (Chip) in New York. Many landlords say this class-warfare view the moneyed landlord versus the renter is misguided. Reis, who also manages properties on behalf of a property management company, says that renters are used to a faceless landlord and dont realize that on the other side is a family looking to pay the mortgage. Tenants have a misconception that landlords make a lot of money, because they think what they pay goes straight into the landlords pocket, says Reis. In his state,he says most make less than what is presumed. Story continues In Michigan, landlords make around $200 to $300 per month for each property, after expenses are accounted for. He adds that the risk landlords take on is high: they take the loan , risk foreclosure if they cant pay the mortgage, and could potentially lose everything. Its an extremely risky position. And as they say, with risk comes a little bit of reward and in this case thats dependent on their tenant making their payment on time. Reis believes most tenants wont pay rent if they dont have to, and so criticizes the government for leaving landlords with that risk by offering eviction moratoriums. The state is trying to put it on landlords to house individuals for free, he says. Reis says the government should instead bolster social housing if they believe that people should live rent-free. He says understands people might look at his 16 homes as a lot. But he says: For a true real estate investor, its not a lot. My wife is a school teacher. Greg Margulies, a landlord in LA, is not worried about rent strikes. He says most people understand the consequences of not paying rent. What could be more greedy than withholding rent that you have the ability to pay? Jay Martin Theyll only band together for a very short time until the first eviction paper comes [through]. Then I think it will hit home, said Margulies. He owns four properties in LA and still has a mortgage on each of them, and he says his property taxes on each building costs him between $500-$1,000 per property. While eviction moratoriums prevent them from being evicted now, in the long term, landlords still have the upper hand: I cant imagine most landlords are going to look favorably on renters who band together like that. I expect they will get their leases non-renewed, even if they dont get evicted. Margulies empathizes with the fact that there are currently millions out of work. He stresses that most landlords want to work with tenants, to keep them in their properties, not to work against them he has allowed one tenant who could only pay partial rent, and another who has had to defer payment. But that sympathy can only go so far, he says. At the same time, [they] still get to stay in the unit: you have a safe place to sleep, youre away from the virus. Its unfortunate youre not working, but that should have nothing to do with paying for what you used. You still have to pay for gas, you still have to pay for groceries. Asked what message he would give to renters thinking of striking, Margulies advises them to keep in contact with their landlord. We are not blind to whats going on in the world we see that the world has been turned upside down. We are willing to work with tenants, but if you ignore the landlord, thinking its going to go away, its not. But Reis warns that reforms such as moratoriums or rent caps, which are intended to help the tenant, will always ending up costing them as landlords cut corners to seek to make costs back. Related: Sex during lockdown: are we witnessing a cybersexual revolution? | Ciara Gaffney Moratoriums sound great right now, but come fall [we will have to start changing] how we screen tenants, he says. Its opened up our eyes, we realize there is just not enough security if the government can freeze rents or put a moratorium in place and just leave us stranded. Martin says it is the behavior of renters rather than landlords that should concern people at the moment. What could be more greedy than withholding rent that you have the ability to pay? [You will] damage the entire housing market, push it towards collapse. To me, its incredibly short-sighted. A RETIRED Fleet Street photographer who was called the most acclaimed of his generation by his former newspaper has died. John Downing MBE worked for the Daily Express for 40 years, during which time he visited more than 100 countries to chronicle wars, natural disasters and other crises. The 79-year-old, who lived in Reading Road, Henley, with his wife Anita DAttelis, passed away in the early hours of Wednesday last week. He had been battling cancer since December 2018 and it was his wish to remain at home under the care of Sue Ryders palliative care hub in Nettlebed. Mr Downings death comes just months after the publication of his book, John Downing: Legacy, a 192-page volume featuring highlights from his award-winning career. While in service he was shot at from a helicopter by government forces in Nicaragua, interrogated in a Ugandan police station by Idi Amins henchmen and almost blown up when the IRA bombed the Grand Hotel in Brighton. He was made an MBE for services to journalism in 1992 and retired in 2005. Mr Downing was born in South Wales on April 17, 1940 and moved to London with his family when he was eight. He took up photography aged 13 and three years later started an apprenticeship with the Daily Mail in Fleet Street, during which time he photographed Rudolf Nureyevs first performance in Britain. After completing the apprenticeship, he moved across the street to the Daily Express and put himself at the front of the queue for foreign assignments by ensuring all his vaccinations were up to date. His first job was the 1971 war in East Pakistan, which led to the creation of Bangladesh, during which he won several awards for his photos taken in refugee camps. One striking image depicted a Western nurse attempting to calm down and vaccinate a terrified young Bangladeshi boy. Mr Downing was sent to Uganda the following year and was soon arrested in a crackdown on foreign journalists. He had a gun held to his head and was assaulted during questioning but kept his cool and was released unharmed. He captured several exclusive shots of the stations holding cells, which were dubbed the black hole of Kampala. In 1984 he was the only photographer inside the Grand when the IRA targeted Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher at the annual Conservative Party conference. After ensuring the safety of a fellow guest, he took a series of shots just seconds after the blast and several more of an unfazed Mrs Thatcher being rushed to safety. During the Eighties, when Mr Downing was promoted to chief photographer, he spent time with the native mujahideen fighters of Afghanistan as they resisted their countrys occupation by the Soviet Union. He also followed the so-called contra rebels who were fighting against Nicaraguas left-wing Sandinista regime and had to flee his boat when troops opened fire on him from above. Mr Downings career also took him to Vietnam during the tail end of the war and to the area around Chernobyl just one year after the nuclear disaster. He witnessed conflicts in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Beirut, Iraq, Somalia, Croatia, Rwanda and Bosnia and covered the 1985 Mexico City earthquake which left more than 5,000 dead. Closer to home, he photographed elderly residents being rescued by boat during floods in Surrey in the Sixties and attacks on the street by gangs of skinheads a decade later. He also shot famous people, including Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Raquel Welch, the Beatles, Sophia Loren and Diana, Princess of Wales. Mr Downing was named British press photographer of the year seven times, among other accolades, and awarded an honorary fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society in 2011. In an interview with the Henley Standard last year, he said: I keep looking back and thinking what a good time I had. The thing Im most proud of is that newspapers used to be peoples main source of information and as a photographer you have got to be the eyes of the reader. In 2004 Mr Downing met his wife, a professional pianist, through the London Welsh Male Voice Choir, with which he continued to sing until the later stage of his illness. Ms DAttelis was the choirs accompanist. The couple were married in 2007 and moved to Henley in 2012 to be nearer Eton College, where Ms DAttelis had just secured a teaching job. They joined Phyllis Court Club and the towns canoe club and Mr Downing was also a volunteer lock-keeper at Shiplake. Following a period of worsening illness, he was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs, which typically develops years after exposure to asbestos. He compiled his book at the suggestion of friends and was helped by three former colleagues as well as the Getty photo library, which now holds many of his images and allowed him to use them free of charge. A crowdfunding campaign to meet the publication costs raised 30,000. Mr Downing leaves behind his wife, his son Bryn from a previous marriage and granddaughters Olivia, 16, and Madeleine, 13. A small, private funeral will be held followed by a larger celebration when the coronavirus pandemic has passed. His family urges wellwishers to make a donation to Sue Ryders emergency appeal. The coronavirus pandemic is forcing states to consider postponing their summer bar exams, upending the career plans of around 46,000 graduating law school students, the Wall Street Journal reports. Why it matters: A person must pass the bar before they can practice as an attorney in most states and the bar exam is often only offered twice a year. The job market for lawyers is also starting to contract as law firms reduce staff and cut pay because courts are closed and settlement discussions are on pause. Law students often face tens of thousands of dollars of debt after their educations, and the current uncertainty could have a terrible impact on their future finances. The big picture: New York, Hawaii and Massachusetts have already planned to cancel or delay their summer bar exams. The National Conference of Bar Examiners, which administers the exam, said it would make additional tests available for the fall for states that postpone. Some groups have lobbied for states to issue exemptions to allow graduates to practice law in a limited capacity until they can take the exam safely in 2021. The Utah Supreme Court said this month that it is considering waiving the exam requirement for recent law school graduates. What they're saying: "The job market is beyond grim, and then they are in this no mans land," New York State Bar Association President Hank Greenberg told the WSJ. Go deeper: College students rebel against full tuition Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial. As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread around the world, hospitals across this country and in many other nations have reported serious shortages of sedatives, painkillers, and paralytics needed to treat coronavirus patients. Many states have supplies of these drugs that could be used to alleviate those shortages and treat seriously ill and dying patients. These states, though, have decided shortsightedly and dangerously to maintain these stockpiles for their intended purpose: executions. Advertisement Lethal injection drugslike fentanyl, midazolam, vecuronium bromide, and rocuronium bromideare urgently needed to help save people seriously ill with COVID-19. And death penalty states with stockpiles of those drugs now have a choice to make: Is it more important to guard those supplies so that in the future they can be used to execute convicted murderers, or should they release them to help save innocent lives? So far, they are choosing to let innocent people fighting the illness today suffer. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Why are execution drugs useful as medication in this pandemic? The most seriously ill need to go on ventilators that require those patients to be kept on sedatives and painkillers. Hospitals use midazolam and fentanyl to sedate those patients and use vercuronium bromide and rocuronium bromide in ventilation and intubation. Advertisement Advertisement So severe is the current emergency drug shortage that earlier this month the Drug Enforcement Administration, which regulates the production and supply of controlled substances, loosened production restrictions and approved more imports of the narcotic medications necessary for patients on ventilators. Earlier this month, seven leading anesthesiologists, pharmacists, and medical academics took the unusual step of writing an open letter to the corrections departments of all 28 death penalty states asking them to give health care facilities needed medications. They said that drugs currently stockpiled for lethal injection could be used to save the lives of potentially hundreds of patients suffering from COVID-19 and potentially thousands of patients in other ICU settings. Recently enacted laws allowing states to keep secret their death penalty procedures prevent us from knowing how many and which states actually have such stockpiles. However, we do know that 19 death penalty states have execution protocols calling for the use of sedatives and paralytics. Advertisement Advertisement Only three statesFlorida, Nevada, and Tennesseehave disclosed that they possess large stockpiles of sedatives and paralytics for executions. And, according to one report, Florida alone has a quantity of rocuronium bromide large enough to intubate about 100 COVID-19 patients. The health care professionals appeal has come at a moment of growing doubts about the death penaltys fairness and reliability, yet citizens of many states still support it and officials in those places are willing, if not eager, to use it. The coronavirus is also complicating the administration of capital punishment. Death row inmates are contracting the disease and being moved to hospitals outside prisons. In addition, even the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, long noted for being unsympathetic to death penalty appeals, has stayed three executions citing the current health crisis and the enormous resources needed to address that emergency. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Since the middle of March, executions planned in Texas, Tennessee, and Ohio have been put on hold. Those scheduled for May and June, and perhaps longer, are likely to be halted as well. Yet so far no death penalty state has said it will repurpose lethal injection drugs. They seem reluctant to do so because for many years those drugs have been hard to obtain. Drug shortages often have stopped executions from going forward. As a result, some states turned to nefarious suppliers to obtain lethal drugs, while others brought back previously abandoned methods of execution like the electric chair and the firing squad. Advertisement Advertisement Death penalty supporters now confront a grim irony. The very case that they make as to why the United States still needs capital punishment should make it hard for them to resist calls to relinquish lethal injection drugs. Advertisement Many proponents of capital punishment say they favor it precisely because of their commitment to the sanctity of life. As the philosopher and death penalty supporter Ernest van den Haag put it, the sanctity of life is best safeguarded by executing murderers who had not respected it.* And despite evidence to the contrary, supporters still claim that because the death penalty deters murders, capital punishment does, in fact, save lives. Some even have chided the Roman Catholic Church for opposing the death penalty in the name of a culture of life. Justice Antonin Scalia, himself a devoted Catholic, strongly disagreed with the churchs view that the death penalty can only be imposed to protect rather than avenge and therefore is almost always wrong. Scalia observed that for the believing Christian, death is no big deal. Advertisement Others argue that capital punishment, in fact, makes valuable contributions to a culture that respects life. As Ann Widdecombe, a former member of the British Parliament, put it, To ignore the deterrent effect is to condemn innocent people to death and a state that does that is morally responsible for those deaths. Is that really what the pope is advocating? Advertisement Advertisement If those who embrace capital punishment indeed value life, they should join medical professionals now urging states to quickly provide drugs that hospitals need to treat COVID-19 patients even if it impedes the states ability to carry out executions in the future. By Widdecombes logic, if they fail to do so, they will bear some responsibility for deaths that otherwise could have been prevented. The authors of the open letter got it right when they wrote, At this crucial moment for our country, we must prioritize the needs and lives of patients above ending the lives of prisoners. 20.04.2020 LISTEN Director of Health Promotion and Chairman of the National Risk Communication & Community Engagement Committee for COVID-19, Dr. Dacosta Aboagye believes President Akufo-Addo made the right call on lifting the partial lockdown imposed on some parts of the country. President Akufo-Addo in his 7th address to the nation on Sunday evening lifted the partial lockdown imposed on Accra, Kumasi and Kasoa. The announcement has received mixed reactions from the public. A section of the public thinks it is early while others are of the view that the president made the right call. But Speaking to Dr. K on Salt FMs morning show, Dr. Dacosta Aboagye said the president made the right call based on information that had been provided to him. According to him, every decision taken by the president since Ghana recorded its first case of the virus has been well calculated and based on data made available to him by stakeholders. The president took the decision based on the data and science available to him, he said Dr. Aboagye said the decision to lockdown parts of the country and close our borders was made based on recommendations from the Ghana Health Service of which he is a member of. According to him, the data showed the virus was imported into the country hence the decision to close down the borders to and manage the numbers that had already entered the country. Dr. Aboagye added that one of the reasons for the lockdown was to allow health officials conduct enhanced contact tracing and aggressive testing in hotspot communities. According to him, based on the numbers now, they had achieved the goal of keeping the virus under control hence the presidents decisions to lift the partial lockdown in parts of the country. Dr. Aboagye said the Ghana Health service started started formulating a way to fight the spread of the virus when it was first recorded in China in December last year. Source: Saltfmonline.com Thiruvananthapuram, April 20 : An Italian national, who came as a tourist to the state capital and later contracted the novel Coronavirus, was discharged on Monday from a state-run hospital here after testing negative. "Kerala will always be in my heart. I will never forget the treatment and the care that I received, when I was here. I was taken care of very well. I will now return to Italy, but I will certainly revisit Kerala," said the Italian. It was on March 13 that the Italian tested positive and since then he was under the treatment in the state-run hospital. After he tested negative, he then completed the prescribed isolation and was discharged. He will return to Italy on Tuesday, as his Embassy has made all arrangements. Asked about the situation back home, where the pandemic has hit hard and Italy is third in the most number of cases after the US and Spain, the cured Italian said, "Things are bad especially in northern Italy." The total number of Covid-19 cured in Kerala is 272. Kerala which has tackled the nipah virus earlier has shown great resilience after becoming the first state to report the novel Coronavirus earlier in January. -- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text Lucknow, April 20: UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath has issued an emotional statement, in which he has said that though he wanted to see his father for the last time, his duties in fighting the pandemic were more important. Lucknow, April 20: UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath has issued an emotional statement, in which he has said that though he wanted to see his father for the last time, his duties in fighting the pandemic were more important. The chief minister said that he would not be able to attend the cremation of his father due to the lockdown and appealed to the family members to maintain the safety protocols during the cremation. He asked family members that the minimum number of persons should participate in the cremation. Yogi Adityanath further said that he would visit the family and his mother after the lockdown is lifted. The chief minister who was in a meeting when the news of his father, Anand Singh Bisht's demise came in. The chief minister, sources said, heard the news but continued with the meeting. He also asked other ministers and leaders not to visit him in the hour of grief. Meanwhile, the cremation of the chief minister's father will take place in Haridwar on Tuesday. -- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed NEW YORK, NY, April 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PharmaCyte Biotech (OTCQB: PMCB) recently entered into a licensing agreement with Hai Kang Life Corporation (Hai Kang), where Hai Kang granted to PharmaCyte a license to the technology related to its COVID-19 diagnostic testing kits. The inventor of that technology is no stranger to responding to worldwide outbreaks of infectious diseases. He is the Founder and Chairman of the Hong Kong-based biotechnology company, Hai Kang, Professor Albert Cheung-Hoi Yu, Ph.D. Under the leadership of Prof. Albert Yu, Hai Kang has been fast and accurate in responding to global infectious disease outbreaks, such as avian influenza, SARS, H1N1 influenza and now the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak, the virus that causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Professor Albert Yu is a renowned neuroscientist and bio-entrepreneur who has devoted over two decades in neuroscience and infectious disease research, and he has had significant contributions to molecular neurobiology and molecular diagnosis. Professor Yu is the Vice-Director of the Neuroscience Research Institute, Professor of the Department of Neurobiology and also a Professor at the Infectious Disease Center at Peking University. The professor is also the Director of the Asian Fund for Cancer Research and the Chairman of the Hong Kong Biotechnology Organization, and he agreed to talk to us about the tests that he and his team at Hai Kang have developed for SARS-CoV-2, a test he says is the most sensitive in the world. Question 1: Explain the current virus testing landscape related to COVID-19? Professor Yu: There are two main testing methods; real-time PCR and antibody-based testing. The real-time PCR tests detect viral nucleic acid (RNA) using primers and probes that specifically recognize target gene sequences in the virus genome. Both manual and automatic variations are available. Antibody-based methods detect host antibodies that are produced in response to the infection. As well as tests that are done in laboratories, some antibody-based tests are point-of-care kits or even home kits. Question 2: What is the test that you and your team developed for COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2, and how is it different from the test you previously developed during the SARS outbreak? Professor Yu: The test developed for detecting SARS-CoV-2 is the Enhanced Real-Time PCR (ERT-PCR) method. The technology is the same as the previous test for SARS, but the primers and probes used in the current test is specific for the novel coronavirus. This means test results are positive only if the SARS-CoV-2 target sequences are present in the test sample. Question 3: How do these tests work? Professor Yu: Routine RT-PCR methods utilize reverse-transcription plus TaqMan real-time PCR using specific primers and probes. Our ERT-PCR method, however, incorporates a reverse-transcription plus PCR step prior to TaqMan real-time PCR. The primers and probes target the ORF1ab and N genes of SARS-CoV-2. The two primer pairs for the first PCR step were designed to flank two regions larger than but encompassing the two flanked by the sets used for the second real-time PCR step. After the first-round of amplifications, the amplicons act as a template for the second round of amplification such that the template for the real-time PCR step is dramatically increased. This ensures that even very low amounts of SARS-CoV-2 target sequences could be detected, increasing the method sensitivity. Question 4: How is the test you developed superior to the other tests mentioned above? Professor Yu: Compared to the routine RT-PCR tests, our test is more sensitive. Its limit of detection is down to 1-2 copies per reaction, so it is most useful for detection of infections where the viral load is low, for example, during the pre-symptomatic and post-symptomatic phases and for asymptomatic cases. These situations are where the routine RT-PCR tests most likely give false-negative results. In comparison with antibody-based tests, because they have a delay time before the antibodies reach detectable levels, likely post-infection over seven days, our test is more accurate than antibody-based tests for early detection. Moreover, where large volumes of tests are required, pooling of samples for ERT-PCR testing can increase sample throughput. The pooling strategy expedites the screening process for which the accuracy can be ensured by the highly sensitive ERT-PCR test method. Question 5: What is the path forward to get these test kits into the hands of consumers? Professor Yu: We are preparing to file for U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) approval with our US partner, PharmaCyte Biotech. Once the test has FDA EUA, it will enter into production for commercialization. Question 6: Are your tests home kits or do they have to be administered by a doctor in a clinic/hospital setting? Professor Yu: The tests are not home kits. Specimens can be collected at home using appropriate collection kits and strictly following the instructions for specimen collection. Specimens whether collected at home or in a clinic/hospital setting are then sent to testing laboratories and the actual tests have to be done by trained personnel at the laboratory. Question 7: Explain why this test for COVID-19 is going to be necessary for much longer than the next few weeks/months? Professor Yu: It is expected that the first wave of COVID-19 will persist for the next few months. There is speculation that there may be a second wave and there is suggestion that the disease will become a seasonal disease. It is therefore imperative that random screening for SARS-CoV-2 continues even after the first wave of the disease subsides so that we can monitor for its re-emergence. Our ERT-PCR is best suited for this purpose because it allows for sample pooling and detection of low viral loads. To learn more about PharmaCyte Biotech visit: https://www.PharmaCyte.com and to learn more about Hai Kang Life visit: https://www.haikanglife.com/index.php/en/ About PharmaCyte Biotech PharmaCyte Biotech, Inc. is a biotechnology company developing cellular therapies for cancer and diabetes based upon a proprietary cellulose-based live-cell encapsulation technology known as Cell-in-a-Box. This technology will be used as a platform upon which therapies for several types of cancer and diabetes are being developed. PharmaCytes therapy for cancer involves encapsulating genetically engineered human cells that convert an inactive chemotherapy drug into its active or cancer-killing form. For pancreatic cancer, these encapsulated cells are implanted in the blood supply to the patients tumor as close as possible to the site of the tumor. Once implanted, a chemotherapy drug that is normally activated in the liver (ifosfamide) is given intravenously at one-third the normal dose. The ifosfamide is carried by the circulatory system to where the encapsulated cells have been implanted. When the ifosfamide flows through pores in the capsules, the live cells inside act as a bio-artificial liver and activate the chemotherapy drug at the site of the cancer. This targeted chemotherapy has proven effective and safe to use in past clinical trials and results in little to no treatment related side effects. PharmaCytes therapy for Type 1 diabetes and insulin-dependent Type 2 diabetes involves encapsulating a human cell line that has been genetically engineered to produce and release insulin in response to the levels of blood sugar in the human body. PharmaCyte is developing the use of genetically modified liver cells and stem cells, as well beta islet cells, to treat diabetes. The encapsulation will be done using the Cell-in-a-Box technology. Once the encapsulated cells are implanted in a diabetic patient, they will function as a bio-artificial pancreas for purposes of insulin production. About Stock Market Media Group Stock Market Media Group is a Content Development IR firm offering a platform for corporate stories to unfold in the media with press releases, research reports, corporate videos, radio-style CEO interviews and feature news articles. This article was written based upon publicly available information. Stock Market Media Group may, from time to time, include our own opinions about the companies, their business, markets and opportunities in our articles. Any opinions we may offer about any of the companies we write about are solely our own and are made in reliance upon our rights under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and are provided solely for the general opinionated discussion of our readers. Our opinions should not be considered to be complete, precise, accurate, or current investment advice, or construed or interpreted as research. Any investment decisions you may make concerning any of the securities we write about are solely your responsibility based on your own due diligence. Our publications are provided only as an informational aid, and as a starting point for doing additional independent research. We encourage you to invest carefully and read the investor information available at the web site of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission at: www.sec.gov, where you can also find all of PMCBs filings and disclosures. We also recommend, as a general rule, that before investing in any securities, you consult with a professional financial planner or advisor, and you should conduct a complete and independent investigation before investing in any security after prudent consideration of all pertinent risks. We are not a registered broker, dealer, analyst, or advisor. We hold no investment licenses and may not sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. Our publications about PMCB are not a recommendation to buy or sell a security. Stock Market Media Group and its management may benefit from any increase in the share price of the profiled companies and hold the right to sell the shares bought at any given time including shortly after the release of the companys profile. Section 17(b) of the 1933 Securities and Exchange Act requires publishers who distribute information about publicly traded securities for compensation, to disclose who paid them, the amount, and the type of payment. Under the Securities Act of 1933, Section 17(b), Stock Market Media Group discloses that it expects to be remunerated fifteen thousand dollars monthly from September 2019 to September 2020, paid for by a third party via bank wire, to produce content related to PharmaCyte. This article is the opinion of Stock Market Media Group and was written based upon publicly available information and interviews conducted by SMMG. Stock Market Media Group does not own any shares in PharmaCyte and never accepts compensation in free-trading shares for its marketing services of the company being profiled, however third parties that might have compensated Stock Market Media Group may hold free-trading shares of the company being profiled and could very well be selling, holding or buying shares of the companys stock at the same time the content is being disseminated to potential investors; this should be viewed as a definite conflict of interest and as such, the reader should take this into consideration. If Stock Market Media Group ever accepts compensation in the form of free trading shares of the company being profiled and decides to sell these shares into the public market at any time before, during, or after the release of the companys profile, our disclaimer will be updated accordingly reflecting the current position of those free trading shares received as compensation for our services. For more information: www.stockmarketmediagroup.com Contact: Editors note: This story has been updated with a modified route for Saturdays adult bike ride event. A pair of bike rides and an online fundraiser have been launched in support of a 13-year-old Bethlehem Township crash victim fighting for his life, friends and family members said Monday. Jonathan Hanchick of Bethlehem, a seventh grader at East Hills Middle School, was riding his bike with his cousin and friend, both juveniles, along Freemansburg Avenue at about 4 p.m. Saturday. The boys were headed to Freemansburg Borough to fish -- something they did every day that past week, said Alicia Boice of Bethlehem Township, Jonathans aunt. The boys were riding east in the 1600 block of Freemansburg Avenue when Jonathan was struck by 42-year-old Quincy Paul Johnson of Bethlehem, also heading east in a BMW, according to police. Police state in court records witnesses saw Johnson toss a beer can on the side of the road, the odor of alcohol was coming from his breath and marijuana was smelled in the vehicle. Johnson is facing aggravated assault while driving drunk and related offenses in the incident. He is being held at Northampton County Prison in lieu of $75,000 bail. Boices 15-year-old son, a freshman at Liberty High School, called 911 from his cellphone, she said. Jonathan was then taken by ambulance to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township with what police are describing as a traumatic brain injury. The boy was listed in serious condition Sunday, said Police Sgt. Shaun Powell. Powell said Jonathan was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash but state law does not require bicyclists over age 11 to wear one. Jonathan Hanchick of Bethlehem Township, a seventh grader at East Hills Middle School, was struck Saturday, April 18, 2020 along Freemancburg Avenue in Bethlehem Township. Friends and family said he remains in "serious condition" at the hospital. Friends and family on Monday said Jonathan remains on life support at the hospital. A GoFundMe fundraiser has been launched by Melissa Groller of Bucks County, Jonathans grandmother, to help offset growing medical expenses. As of 4 p.m. Monday, $300 of a $9,000 goal was raised by four donors. (Jonathan) has a very long road to recovery, the posting states. Please give what you can to help with his medical expenses -- every little penny will help his mom be able to pay for his bills. We appreciate everybody that can help and thank you for those who do help; it means the world to us. Two bike rides also are being organized in support of Jonathan. The first is planned by Boice for children who know Jonathan, who will ride at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday with adult escorts from Liberty High School, 1115 Linden St. in Bethlehem, to a residence on Avon Road in Bethlehem. The children will then make posters and cards to display in Jonathans hospital room, Boice said. The second is a motorcycle ride for adults being organized by Bruce Kovacs of Bethlehem, a family friend, at 1 p.m. Saturday. That ride will take participants from the Stefko Shopping Center, 1880 Stefko Boulevard in Bethlehem, down several main roads, ending at the Tohickon Boat Launch on Lake Nockamixon in Nockamixon, Bucks County. Participants are asked to wear masks and practice appropriate social distancing. Jonathan, the older brother of three sisters, is an honor roll student at East Hills Middle School in Bethlehem. He enjoys working on anything with a motor, as well as motorcycles, bicycles, and cars, Kovacs said. Johnson allegedly admitted to investigators that he drank from the beer can tossed and smoked marijuana that day prior to the accident. His drivers license was suspended in 2012 due to a driving under the influence conviction. He hasnt had a valid drivers license in Pennsylvania since at least 2001 and has been convicted of driving without a license seven times since 2012, according to court records. Additionally, records state Johnson has two drunken driving conditions -- one in 2009 and another, in 2012. There was no attorney listed for Johnson in court records. He is due back in court for a preliminary hearing tentatively scheduled for 9 a.m. May 4 before District Judge Patricia Broscius. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. The ruling Congress in Maharashtra on Monday alleged that majority of the people arrested for the last week's mob lynching incident in Palghar district were members of the BJP. State Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant also accused the BJP of playing "communal politics" to derive a political mileage from the incident in which three people, including two seers, were killed by a mob apparently on suspicion of being thieves or child-lifters. The saffron party has refuted the charge and reiterated its demand to probe the role of the police in the incident. "The village Divashi Gadchinchale is known as BJP bastion for last ten years including the post of village head. The current head is also from BJP. Most of the people arrested in the lynching incident are from BJP (sic)," Sawant tweeted. He also mentioned certain rumours of communal nature, saying a thorough probe is necessary into their circulation and connection to the lynching incident, if any. "Who is behind such rumours that is turning people violent. It should be investigated. The BJP should be ashamed of its dirty politics of communalising the issue. The party that failed to stop similar incidents in last five years is now politicising the issueis a serious thing (sic)," he said in another tweet. In the wake of the incident, several BJP leaders slammed the Shiv Sena-led coalition government--also comprising the Congress and the NCP--for the "administrative" failure to protect the Hindu seers. However, Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Pravin Darekar refuted the charges raised by Sawant. "Going by the people and their political affiliations, a zilla parishad member of Congress is also seen in the video footage available of the attack on the seers and their driver. "So, should we say that the party (Congress) is behind the attack? We are talking about the failure of the police and home department, and not communalising it," he stated. The incident took place on the night of April 16 when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar district. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). Earlier on Monday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to take action against those giving communal colour to the lynching incident. The state government has already ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh had warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. Palghar Police had arrested 101 people in connection with the lynching incident. Two policemen were suspended on Monday for alleged dereliction of duty. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) B oris Johnson is said to be cautious about relaxing existing lockdown restrictions due to fears such a move could unleash a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. The Prime Minister told senior Government figures during a meeting on Friday his priority was to "help Britain recover" and "return to what aides have described as a 'new normal'" after the Covid-19 crisis, the Times reported on Monday. He reportedly raised concerns that easing current measures could lead to a second peak of the virus, and result in another economically-damaging lockdown being implemented. Mr Johnson himself is continuing to recover from a Covid-19 infection which left him in intensive care for several days earlier this month. He is not expected to return to frontline politics until next month, but is said to have been delivering orders in recent days to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who is standing in for the PM. Meanwhile, the lockdown is set to last until at least early May after the Government on Thursday extended the measure for another three weeks. Announcing the move, Mr Raab said: "Overall, we still dont have the infection rate down as far as we need to." The overall death toll nationwide is expected to be significantly higher, however, when deaths in care homes and the community are taken into account. Pointing to an apparent slowing of hospital deaths over the weekend, Englands deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries said the development was positive news. But she cautioned against reading too much into the figures, saying they reflected the usual drop in cases confirmed at weekends. First two patients discharged from NHS Nightingale London Asked during the daily Downing Street press briefing on Sunday whether the UK is past the peak of coronavirus, Dr Harries said: We could jump to all sorts of positive conclusions about that but we shouldnt. I do think it is fair to say that we do know from the hospital data that we are starting to plateau across. She added: If we dont keep doing the social distancing, we will create a second peak and we definitely wont be past it so this is no reason to consider that we have managed this. But I do think things look to be heading in the right direction. That came as Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, speaking alongside Dr Harries, ruled out opening schools over the summer to help plug gaps in learning caused by weeks of lockdown. He insisted that five tests would need to be met before any easing of social distancing measures could be implemented. Coronavirus in numbers: UK hospital death toll rises to 16,060 Detailing these criteria, Mr Williamson said: First we must protect the NHSs ability to cope, and be sure that it can continue to provide critical care and specialist treatment right across the whole of the United Kingdom. Second, we need to see daily death rates from coronavirus coming down. Third, we need to have reliable data that shows the rate of infection is decreasing to manageable levels. Four, we need to be confident that testing capacity and PPE is being managed, with supply able to meet, not just todays demand, but future demand. [April 20, 2020] New Office Expansion Enables PCMA to Accelerate Growth in Private Client Lending PCMA, the pioneer and leading voice in Non-Bank Private Client Lending, today announced it has signed a 5-year corporate headquarters lease in Irvine, California to accommodate its rapid growth and leverage the area's diverse mortgage/technology talent pool. The high identity office building will help PCMA expand brand visibility within the "Valley of Mortgage Finance" as the leader in Non-Bank Private Client Lending. Temporarily headquartered in Aliso Viejo, PCMA first launched its foray into Private Client Lending in 2017. Today, the company is moving into the coveted Irvine Concourse to execute on its next phase of growth. This expansion is due to the company's rapid business growth in Private Client Lending: From Dec. of 2018 to the first half of 2019, PCMA has increased client acquisition and corresponding origination volumes by nearly 200%. PCMA's growth in this area matches continued growth in the Private Client Lending space, requiring new credit solutions tailored to meet the complex and unique needs of the Mass Affluent and High Net Worth. "An identity space of this degree comes to market once in a lifetime and we were very fortunate to find such a nice and wel-served space. We really wanted to limit the impact that relocation could have on our employees. I don't think we could have found a better location for our team. Our new location and enhanced operational efficiencies will help us continue to grow and develop to keep pace with the rapidly growing Non-Bank Private Client Lending space," said John Lynch, CEO And Founder of PCMA. PCMA strategically chose the office space due to the buildings unique location along with high visibility signage, giving PCMA a unique branding/marketing opportunity rarely provided to companies due to the buildings unique location along the bustling 405 FWY. "I'm so proud of our team and the tremendous growth we've seen over the past 6 months," said Lynch. "Our move to Irvine, along the 405, is another move that cements our leadership in the Private Client category. Our growth and corporate culture will continue to arbitrage talent and opportunity in this highly competitive market and we are super excited for our future." About PCMA PCMA is the leading non-bank private client lending organization serving the needs of their mass affluent and high net worth clientele. PCMA offers qualified individuals and institutions bespoke lending solutions across all major residential asset classes. PCMA is a diversified financial enterprise offering private client solutions through a direct to consumer and distributed retail business model. PCMA strives to build trusting and enduring relationships by putting clients and professional partners at the center of all they do. PCMA is headquartered in Orange (News - Alert) County, CA. Additional information is available at www.pcma.us.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200420005018/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] How on earth do you not have an opinion on aid to American cities and states? Mr. de Blasio said during his daily press briefing. He compared Mr. Trumps lack of response to the financial shortfall facing New York City in particular to President Gerald Fords dismissal of the city during the fiscal crisis of the 1970s. There was that famous Daily News cover that said Ford to City: Drop Dead, Mr. de Blasio said. So my question is, Mr. Trump, Mr. President, are you going to save New York City or are you telling New York City to drop dead? Which one is it? The mayor announced last week that New York City would have to cut more than $2 billion in municipal services over the next year. The state government has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on April 16 People carry essential items from a ration store in from Pelhar village in Palghar, Maharashtra. PTI photo Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has said stern action will be taken against those involved in the lynching of three men in Palghar district. The state government has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident that took place on April 16. "The Palghar incident has been acted upon. The police has arrested all those accused who attacked the 2 sadhus, 1 driver and the police personnel, on the day of the crime itself," Thackeray tweeted late Sunday night. "Nobody guilty in this heinous crime and shameful act will be spared and they will be brought to justice in the strongest way possible," he added. State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said a high-level inquiry has been ordered into the incident. He warned against giving any communal colour to the incident, as two of the three deceased were believed to be seers. "Those who attacked and who died in the Palghar mob killings are not from different religions. I have ordered Maharashtra police and @MahaCyber1 to take action against anyone instigating communal hatred in the society or on social media," Deshmukh said in a tweet on Sunday. "Police have detained 101 people involved into the killing of three Surat bound people in Palghar. I have also ordered high level inquiry into this killings," he said. Deshmukh said police are keeping a close eye on those who wanted to use the incident to create a rift in society. The incident took place on April 16 night when three men from Kandivali in Mumbai were going in a car towards Surat in Gujarat to attend a funeral. Their vehicle was stopped near a village in Palghar. The three were dragged out of their car and beaten to death with sticks by a mob on suspicion that they were thieves. The deceased were identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35), and their car driver Nilesh Telgade (30). JOS, Nigeria, April 17, 2020 (Morning Star News) A Christian student was killed in an attack by Muslim Fulani herdsmen in Kaduna state on Thursday night (April 16), a week after a pastor was slain at his church building residence in southern Nigeria, sources said. After his college in northwest Nigeria was closed due to the new coronavirus, Sebastine Stephen was visiting his home in Kaduna states Gbagyi Villa, a suburb of the city of Kaduna, when armed Fulani attacked at about 11:30 p.m., according to area residents text messages to Morning Star News. Sebastine Stephen was shot when the armed Fulani herdsmen attacked Gbagyi Villa area in Chikun Local Government Area in the southern end of the city of Kaduna, area resident Hosea Yusuf told Morning Star News. Stephen raised alarm, warning residents about the invasion of our community as he was still outside at the time the herdsmen came to attack the community. The herdsmen instantly shot him and then proceeded to enter one of the houses close to them, where they kidnapped a couple. Stephen was a Christian attending classes at Federal Polytechnic, Kaura Namoda, in Zamfara state, Gbyagyi Villa resident Titus Patrick told Morning Star News. Kidnapped were Jack Nweke and his wife, also Christians, area residents said. The Fulani herdsmen were over 50 carrying sophisticated guns and shooting sporadically, Chris Obodumu told Morning Star News. After they killed the young man, Sebastine Stephen, they then broke into the house of Mr. Jack Nweke and abducted him with his wife, leaving behind their three children. The gunshots that killed Stephen alerted neighbors, and when they attempted to come out to confront the herdsmen, the Fulanis shooting sounded like that of sophisticated weapons, Obodumu added. He said he feared the herdsmen may return to attack again. Another area resident, Sunday Musa, confirmed the killing and kidnapping. They were shooting randomly at residents while retreating, because the alarm raised by Sebastine had attracted the attention of the other residents, who in turn alerted security agencies, Musa told Morning Star News. Gbagyi Villa community leader Martins Emmanuel said the herdsmen simultaneously attacked both Gbagyi Villa and the nearby area of Mararaban Rido. Pastor Killed in Delta State In southern Nigerias Delta state, church members identified two armed men who came to the church building the night of April 10 and shot and stabbed pastor Stephen Akpor as Fulani herdsmen. He was 55. Pastor Akpor, whose residence was on the church premises, was praying and counseling members of his church in Ibusa at about 8:30 p.m. at Breakthrough Cathedral, a local fellowship of the Celestial Church of Christ, church leaders told Morning Star News via text messages. Two herdsmen came to a branch of our church, Celestial Church at Ibusa in Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta state, where they shot him as he was praying and counseling five members in the church, a senior leader of the church, Isaiah George, church, told Morning Star News. Pastor Akpor reportedly retreated to his room before the assailants shot him through a window. The pastors wife was inside the building at the time, but she and the other church members escaped unhurt, George said. The herdsmen shot the pastor several times and then stabbed him to death, George said. Another church leader, Peter Lotobi, said he received a phone call at the time of the herdsmen attack and immediately contacted police. By the time the police got to the church, the herdsmen had already killed the pastor and retreated from the church premises, Lotobi told Morning Star News. His corpse was removed and taken by the police to the mortuary of General Hospital, Ibusa. Pastor Akpor reportedly is survived by five children along with his wife. Attacks by armed Muslim Fulani herdsmen, most of them in the north-central part of the country, have drifted to southern Nigerian states as far back as 2016. Recently Muslim Fulani herdsmen in southern communities have reportedly taken over farmlands. On Jan. 30, Christian Solidarity International (CSI) issued a genocide warning for Nigeria, calling on the Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council to take action. CSI issued the call in response to a rising tide of violence directed against Nigerian Christians and others classified as infidels by Islamist militants in the countrys north and middle belt regions. Nigeria ranked 12th on Open Doors 2020 World Watch List of countries where Christians suffer the most persecution but second in the number of Christians killed for their faith, behind Pakistan. If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit http://morningstarnews.org/resources/aid-agencies/ for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved. If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at https://morningstarnews.org/donate/? Article originally published by Morning Star News. Used with permission. Photo courtesy: Getty Images/Pontuse The list of concert cancellations continues to grow as both venues and artists, after wiping the slate completely clean in April, have now set their sights on May. May concerts at local casinos, clubs, and arenas have all been canceled or moved to the ubiquitous TBA. Five Finger Death Punch, originally slated for May 5 at the DCU Center in Worcester has simply been removed from the calendar. In fact, the calendar on the DCU website doesnt even include the month of May. Searching around the site one will eventually find a note that all tickets that require a refund due to a cancelled event needs to be returned to the point of purchase (Ticketmaster). Mohegan Sun has canceled arena shows with Niall Horan (May 1) and has postponed dates with Ozuna (May 30) and Schitts Creek (June 7). The venue has yet to postpone shows with Patti LaBelle (May 3) and Dave Chappelle (May 9). LaBelle is no longer listing the event on her website. The banner across the top of Mohegan Suns website recently changed its re-opening date from April 15 to April 30. Foxwoods has postponed all shows through Keshas May 30 date except for a Candlebox performance scheduled for May 7 in the Fox Theater. Candleboxs own website has them off the road until a July 10 date in Ohio. The Toyota Oakdale in Wallingford, CT has put a hold on the May 7 date with the Temptations and Four Tops along with AJR on May 15. Here in the Pioneer Valley, the Academy of Music has re-thought its May calendar, removing all shows including the May 3 performance of They Might Be Giants. While MGM Springfield has temporarily suspended operations the casino still lists a May 31 date with The Commodores in the Aria Ballroom with tickets on sale through Ticketmaster. As May gets swept away, concert fans can look to June. That months brings Tony Bennett (June 6) and Jackson Browne (June 21) to Foxwoods, the Dave Matthews Band (June 16, 17) to Mohegan Sun and the beginning of the outdoor concert season at places like the Xfinity Theatre in Hartford which is set to host Sugarland on June 6. Depending on which news outlet you prefer those dates are either completely plausible or dangerously irresponsible. Shop for concert tickets here: StubHub, SeatGeek, Ticketmaster. Health care workers in Colorado clashed with protesters who demonstrated on Sunday to demand an end to the states stay-at-home order. Dramatic video of the Denver protest went viral when a nurse in full scrubs was captured standing in front of a woman protesting from her truck. As the nurse silently blocked the truck from moving in a counter-protest, the woman wearing an American flag T-shirt and holding a sign that read land of the free shouted, Go to China if you want communism. Image: A health care worker stands in the street to counter protest hundreds of others that are demanding the end to stay-at-home orders in Denver on April 19, 2020. (Alyson McClaran / Reuters) Image: A health care worker stands in the street while protesters demand stay-at-home orders be lifted outside of the State Capitol in Denver on April 19, 2020. (Alyson McClaran / Reuters) The health care worker was one of a few who tried to counteract the protest yesterday that hundreds attended in Colorado, where over 400 people have died from coronavirus. Alexis, a Denver nurse who spoke to NBCs affiliate in the city but did not provide her last name, said the demonstration on Sunday felt like a slap in the face to medical workers and was backwards. I dont want to be stuck in my house either. I dont think many people at all are enjoying this. Thats not the point, she said. Image: A protester against stay-at-home orders yells near a health care worker outside of the State Capitol in Denver on April 19, 2020. (Alyson McClaran / Reuters) Image: Health care workers stand in the street as a counter-protest to those demanding the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver (Alyson McClaran / Reuters) The protest lasted about four hours at the state capitol, where demonstrators called Colorado Gov. Jared Polis a tyrant and demanded an end to the stay-at-home order, the Denver Post reported. One participant, Mary Conley, told the Post that death is a part of life...and its time to start living again. The protest was part of a wave of demonstrations against the lockdown orders across the country, encouraged by President Donald Trumps LIBERATE tweets over the weekend. Susquehanna Township police are hoping neighbors can help them solve a burglary that occurred late Sunday or early Monday at a home in the 3400 block of North Third Street. We are looking for assistance from any neighbors in the area that may have security camera footage with a suspicious person(s) between the hours of 11 p.m. on April 19 to 2 a.m. on April 20, police said. Anyone with information or footage can contact Detective Kevin M. Scott at 717-909-9238 or kscott@susquehannatwp.com. Robert Loomis, an editor who bloodlessly transformed embryonic manuscripts by a pantheon of 20th-century American authors into award-winning and best-selling books, died on Sunday in Stony Brook, N.Y. He was 93. His wife, Hilary Mills Loomis, said he died at Stony Brook University Hospital after being airlifted from his home in Sag Harbor, where he had fallen earlier in the day. If Mr. Loomis was known to the reading public only from the acknowledgments pages of his authors books, he was revered in literary circles and respected in the publishing industry for his keen judgment about which writers and books held the greatest promise, and how to fulfill their potential. He was also known for his forbearance in forgiving delays that few publishers would tolerate from an author. In this screengrab, Idris Elba and Sabrina Elba speak during "One World: Together At Home" presented by Global Citizen on April, 18, 2020. (Getty Images/Getty Images for Global Citizen ) Actor Idris Elba Launches UN CCP Virus Fund for Poor Farmers British actor and filmmaker Idris Elba launched a new United Nations fund on April 20 to help farmers in poorer nations, calling on richer economies to provide aid to prevent needless hunger and suffering stemming from the CCP virus pandemic. Elba and his wife, model and activist Sabrina Dhowre Elba, gave their support to a fund set up by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), to help stop economic shocks caused by COVID-19 triggering a global food crisis. The couple, who were also designated on Monday as goodwill ambassadors for IFAD, contracted the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus themselves in March although reportedly only suffered mild symptoms. The worlds advanced economies are in the midst of this pandemic right now and, of course, they must do everything they can to help their own people, said Elba, 47, in a statement. A communal agent measures the body temperature of traders at the opening of Rood Wokos great market in Ouagadougou on April 20, 2020. (Olympia De Maismont/AFP via Getty Images) But the fact is, global action is also a matter of self-interest. As long as the pandemic is still raging anywhere, it will pose a threat everywhere, he added, urging donors to ramp up financial support to keep rural food systems operating. IFAD, a U.N. agency that promotes rural development, said it would put $40 million into the new fund to counter the effects of the pandemic on food production, market access, and employment in developing countries. It also aims to raise at least $200 million more from governments, foundations, and the private sector. In December Elba and his wife visited rural Sierra Leone, where IFAD provided financial services to communities hit by Ebola. A homeless man eats his food using a credit card during a food distribution by the Cleveland Civic Committee in Cleveland, near Johannebsurg, South Africa, on April 20, 2020. (Luca Sola /AFP via Getty Images) Since the CCP virus began to spread in developing nations, IFAD has been finding ways to help rural familiesmany of them poor farmersdeal with the diseases ripple effects. In eastern Senegal, where a curfew and market closures make it hard to sell produce or livestock, the agency is supporting cash transfers and subsidies via smartphones, and distributing seeds and fertilisers ahead of the planting season. In Indias Odisha state, it has worked with local authorities to get watermelons transported to markets, avoiding the loss of 600 tonnes of fruit due to COVID-19 restrictions. Pest-control sprayers demonstrate their work on the thorny bushes in the desert that is the breeding ground of desert locusts for a visiting delegation of Somali ministry officials and experts from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in the desert near Garowe, in the semi-autonomous Puntland region of Somalia on Feb. 4, 2020. (Ben Curtis/AP Photo) IFAD President Gilbert F. Houngbo, who was raised in rural Togo, West Africa, said farmers were worried about losing their income during the pandemic as lockdown measures in many places could stop them selling crops and buying seeds and fertilisers. He warned if this happened, progress in the fight against poverty could be upended for the first time in three decades. What we are talking about is the risk of a health crisis creating a food crisis, he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. (But) I think we have to go even beyond the risk of food insecurity and look at it as we, as a global community, going backwards in the fight against poverty. By Megan Rowling Epoch Times staff contributed to this report. Wireless Zone, a Verizon authorized retailer and the nations largest wireless retail franchise, donated $25,000 to No Kid Hungry on March 20, 2020 through its philanthropic Wireless Zone Foundation for Giving. No Kid Hungry is one of the Wireless Zone Foundation for Givings core charitiesgroups supported annually that are selected for their service of all Wireless Zone communities. No Kid Hungry is a national campaign working to end childhood hunger in America, responding to the current crisis by ensuring that all children get the healthy food they need while school is closed and all year long. In light of recent events, Wireless Zone expedited the grant, initially scheduled to be voted on in coming weeks. With schools closing due to the current health crisis, children across the country will be missing the essential meals they rely on, said Shelley Nemic, President of Wireless Zones Foundation for Giving. This is such a great opportunity to help a campaign in immediate need and take care of the children whom we aim to help. According to No Kid Hungry almost 539 million meals at school have been missed by kids due to closures. In response, No Kid Hungry is working to provide emergency grants to food banks and community groups, divert resources to help the hardest-hit areas, make sure families know how to find meals while schools are closed, and continue their regular work of ensuring every kid gets three meals a day. About No Kid Hungry: No child should go hungry in America. But 1 in 7 kids lives with hunger in America. 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. About Wireless Zone: Founded in 1988 as "The Car Phone Store,the Wireless Zone system has become the nation's largest wireless retail franchisor and was ranked the No. 1 franchise in its category by Entrepreneur magazine. Each store is independently owned and operated, exclusively offering Verizon Wireless products and services. The Wireless Zone system has been honored with Verizon's Best Customer Service award for five consecutive years and is franchised and operated by Wireless Zone LLC. For more information, visit http://www.wirelesszone.com. About The Wireless Zone Foundation for Giving: The Wireless Zone Foundation for Giving was founded in 2003 after identifying a need and desire to give back to our communities. Today the Foundation raises a substantial amount of money to support a large number of local charities and causes in the communities in which we do business. We also have time-honored relationships with our national charities including Make-A-Wish, Autism Speaks, Childrens Tumor Foundation and St. Judes as well as No Kid Hungry, Best Friends Animal Rescue, Homes for our Troops and Sandy Hook Promise. Mumbai, April 20 : As many as 53 mediapersons, mostly from the electronic media, have tested Covid-19 positive at a special camp organised for them, here last week BMC Reporters Association president Vishnu Sonawane said the affected mediapersons had been isolated at the Fern Hotel in Goregaon suburb, north-west Mumbai. "Tourism Minister Aditya Thackeray, Mayor Kishori Pednekar and the BMC Health Committee chief Amey Ghole arranged for this isolation centre. The BMC is taking full care and all are requested not to go to the hotel's vicinity," Sonawane said. Earlier during the day, TV Journalists Association president Vinod Jagdale confirmed to IANS that from the test reports received by afternoon, 30 had tested positive. The figure might go up, he added. Taking note of the development, Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Joint Secretary Luv Aggarwal on Monday expressed concern over mediapersons getting affected. Requesting mediapersons to exercise all precautions in the line of duty, Aggarwal assured reporters in New Delhi that all those requiring testing based on sampling criteria would be tested. Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Bala Nandgaonkar and Bharatiya Janata Party's Kirit Somaiya have separately urged the government and the electronic media to ensure proper treatment for the affected mediapersons. Somaiya and Nandgaonkar also called upon the state government to provide mediapersons Rs 50 lakh insurance cover "on the lines of health personnel as even media is an essential service fraught with risks during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic". After the TVJA and Mantralaya & Legislature Reporters Association made a request, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Aditya Thackeray directed the BMC to conduct the special screening camp for mediapersons last week. Coordinated by Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi, 171 mediapersons were screened on April 16-17 near the Mumbai Press Club, the reports of which have started coming. The mediapersons, who mostly perform field duties, were given tips to ensure their personal safety in public places, wearing masks, using sanitisers, etc in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. Iran's foreign minister has held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as both countries grapple with the coronavirus outbreak. Photographs posted to the Iranian government's Twitter account showed Assad and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wearing masks and gloves as they met on April 20 in the Syrian capital, Damascus. The two men used the meeting to criticize the United States for not lifting sanctions imposed on both countries. Syria and Iran, its closest ally in the region, are under U.S. sanctions that they both say are affecting their fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The Trump administration has criticized Tehran for its alleged support of extremist violence in the Middle East, testing of ballistic and nuclear weapons, and support for Assad. Along with Russia, Tehran has provided crucial military support to Assad during the countrys civil war, which entered its 10th year last month. More than 400,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict began. The civil war has devastated Syria's health system, and aid workers and rights activists have warned the government is incapable of preventing the coronavirus from spreading. During his meeting with Assad, Zarif said Washingtons real agenda in not lifting its cruel sanctions on countries fighting this disease has now become clear," according to a statement from Tehran. Syrias presidency quoted the Syrian leader as criticizing the United States for keeping economic sanctions in place on countries like Syria and Iran "despite these exceptional humanitarian conditions." Irans economy is suffering under intense U.S. sanctions after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Washington has dismissed the idea of lifting sanctions, saying they do not block humanitarian aid and medical equipment from reaching sanctioned countries. Zarif also met with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem in Damascus. Iran is one of the Middle Eastern countries worst hit by the coronavirus epidemic. More than 5,200 people have died in Iran with more than 83,500 reported cases, according to official figures. But many Iranians and international experts think the government has intentionally underreported the extent of the pandemic in the country. Syrias official count is 39 infections and two deaths, all in or around Damascus, though most experts believe the number is far higher. For weeks, government officials denied any threat, allowing Shi'ite pilgrims from Iran and Iraq to visit shrines near Damascus. Fighters, allied with the Syrian military, traveled back and forth from those countries. By early March, restrictions began with a partial closure of borders and shrines. With reporting by AFP and AP After shooting down an Israeli drone, Iran secured an advanced missile and have now copied and reproduced it for their own use reports Al-Masdar. The Iranian military has tested a new anti-tank missile that seems to resemble one of the Israeli projectiles that was shot down in Syria, the Russian publication Avia.Pro reported, citing new video footage of the Islamic Republics test. According to the publication, the Russian electronic warfare system, Krasukha-4, brought down an Israeli drone during one of Tel Avivs attacks on Syria, which allowed Moscow to seize it and later study it. The next attack by the Israeli military on the positions of the Syrian and Iranian militaries in Syria encountered unexpected troubles for Tel Aviv. One of the missiles launched by Israel turned was shot down by the Russian electronic warfare system, presumably, we are talking about the Krasukha-4 system, which is the long-range electronic warfare system in Syria, after which the missile was successfully removed from the country by Iranian intelligence services, studied and completely copied, they claimed. In the video shared on social media of the new Iranian missile test, Avia.Pro reports that, you can see the similarities between the Iranian copy of the Israeli Spike missile. The accuracy with which the copied Israeli rocket hits the target is very impressive. At the same time, experts do not exclude the possibility that in the near future Iran may well try to use Israeli missiles against Tel Aviv itself. If the characteristics of the Iranian missile correspond to those of the downed Israeli missile, the Iranian military may well try to use the missile against the Israeli military in the event of repeated attacks , the Avia.Pro specialist notes. Neither Iran nor Israel have commented on the appearance of a replicated Israeli missile in the Islamic Republics arsenal. 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 one-minute silence for the fallen heroes of the NHS was backed by the Government today. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said it was a good idea that may be taken up formally. Mr Dowden told the BBC: Actually, as Culture Secretary, I have responsibility for ceremonials and things like minute-silences, and we are actively looking into that and think it is a good idea. It follows a campaign by trade unions and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer to commemorate NHS workers who have lost their lives on the front line of the coronavirus struggle. Asked whether it could be an official Government-led event, he said: Yes, I think it could be but we will make an announcement on that at an appropriate time." Unison, the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives are calling on politicians, employers, workers and those on lockdown to join the silence at 11am on April 28. Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast TODO: define component type apester BOGOTA, Colombia, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL;NYSE: EC) ("Ecopetrol") announced the filing of its annual report under Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). With the filing of its annual report under Form 20-F the Company complies with its reporting obligations with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), its bondholders and lenders. The annual report includes, among others, the financial statements of Ecopetrol in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board that were audited and certified in compliance with internal control over financial reporting by the auditing firm Ernst & Young Audit S.A.S. for the years 2017, 2018 and 2019. Investors may receive a hard copy of Ecopetrol's 2019 Form 20-F free of charge by requesting a copy from the contact below: Investor Relations Officer Lina Maria Contreras Mora Phone: +571-234-5190 E-mail: [email protected] The 2019 Form 20-F can also be accessed by visiting the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or Ecopetrol's website at www.ecopetrol.com.co. This release contains statements that may be considered forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All forward-looking statements, whether made in this release or in future filings or press releases or orally, address matters that involve risks and uncertainties, including in respect of the Company's prospects for growth and its ongoing access to capital to fund the Company's business plan, among others. Consequently, changes in the following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those included in the forward-looking statements: market prices of oil & gas, our exploration and production activities, market conditions, applicable regulations, the exchange rate, the Company's competitiveness and the performance of Colombia's economy and industry, to mention a few. We do not intend, and do not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. For further information, please contact: Head of Capital Markets Juan Pablo Crane de Narvaez Phone: (+571) 234 5190 E-mail: [email protected] Media Relations (Colombia) Jorge Mauricio Tellez Phone: (+ 571) 234 4329 E-mail: [email protected] SOURCE Ecopetrol S.A. Related Links http://www.ecopetrol.com.co The World Health Organisation chief has insisted 'nothing is hidden from the US' on Covid-19 as he claimed the agency has been warning about the virus 'from day one.' Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who leads the organisation, said today 'there is no secret in WHO' as he confirmed no information about the pandemic was withheld from the US. He said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the headquarters in Geneva 'means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one'. Some 15 staff from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have been seconded to the UN agency since January, joining two US government officials assigned there long term. 'Having CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one. Because these are Americans working with us. It just comes naturally and they tell what they are doing,' Mr Ghebreyesus said. 'WHO is open. We don't hide anything. Not only for CDC, them sending messages, or others - we want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly.' The remarks come after Washington accused WHO of initially downplaying the coronavirus crisis, which has infected some 771,980 people in the US with 41,186 deaths confirmed. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (pictured) said today 'there is no secret in WHO' as he confirmed no information about the pandemic was withheld from the US The United Nations agency also claimed today it had been warning about the dangers of coronavirus, which has killed more than 164,000 people globally, 'from day one.' 'We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight,' Mr Ghebreyesus told a virtual briefing in Geneva. He added that divisions between people and political parties were 'fuelling' the pandemic, but was not specific. Last week, Donald Trump launched an extraordinary attack on the agency, putting $500million in funding on hold while an investigation is conducted into its handling of the pandemic. Mr Trump singled out what he called the WHO's 'dangerous and costly decision' to argue against international travel bans to combat the pandemic. The US move has sparked a backlash from Beijing, as well as health experts who insist it is not the right time to be stopping the cashflow. Other major donors including the EU, UK and Australia have made clear they will continue with funding. A spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said last Wednesday that the UK's contribution - usually around 200million a year - would not be withheld. 'Our position is that the UK has no plans to stop funding the WHO, which has an important role to play in leading the global health response,' the spokesman said. 'Coronavirus is a global challenge and it's essential that countries work together to tackle this shared threat.' He said the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the headquarters in Geneva 'means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one' Last week, Donald Trump launched an extraordinary attack on the agency, putting $500million in funding on hold while an investigation is conducted into its handling of the pandemic Asked if the Government was disappointed by Mr Trump's move, the spokesman said: 'I can only set out the UK's position and that is we have no plans to stop funding the WHO.' The US State Department has said the agency was too late in sounding the alarm over Covid-19 and is overly deferential to China. It questioned why it did not pursue a lead from Taiwan flagged up on December 31 about reports of atypical pneumonia in Wuhan. Debate has raged over the significance of Taiwan's email, which informed the WHO of the reports from Wuhan, and of at least seven patients being isolated - something that would not be necessary for a non-infectious disease. World Health Organisation chief says 'nothing was hidden from the US' Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who leads the World Health Organisation, has insisted 'nothing was hidden from the US' on Covid-19. He told a virtual briefing in Geneva today: 'Having CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one. 'Because these are Americans working with us. It just comes naturally and they tell what they are doing. 'WHO is open. We don't hide anything. Not only for CDC, them sending messages, or others - we want all countries to get the same message immediately because that helps countries to prepare well and to prepare quickly.' He added 'there is no secret in WHO' as he insisted the agency has been warning about the dangers of coronavirus since 'day one.' 'We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight,' he said. Advertisement The US said last week it was 'deeply disturbed that Taiwan's information was withheld from the global health community, as reflected in the WHO's January 14 statement that there was no indication of human-to-human transmission'. But Mr Ghebreyesus insisted that the WHO was already aware of reports emanating from Wuhan - and said Taiwan's email was only seeking further information. 'One thing that has to be clear is the first email was not from Taiwan. Many other countries were already asking for clarification. The first report came from Wuhan,' he said. 'Taiwan didn't report any human-to-human transmission,' he stressed. WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan said the email made no reference to anything beyond what had already been reported in news media. 'Clusters of atypical pneumonia are not uncommon. There are millions of cases of atypical pneumonia around the world in any given year,' he explained. Mr Ryan said that the WHO tweeted the existence of the event in Wuhan on January 4, and on January 5 provided 'detailed information on the epidemic' which all countries could access. Mr Ghebreyesus also urged leaders not to exploit the pandemic for their own political capital. 'Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points,' he said. 'It's like playing with fire. It's the political problem that may fuel further this pandemic.' Critics of the WHO, including Mr Trump and many Republicans, have questioned why the group has consistently supported the Chinese Communist Party's position on a number of key issues. After China on Friday revised its death toll estimate upward, a WHO official praised the move as 'an attempt to leave no case undocumented.' Dr Deborah Birx, America's coronavirus response co-ordinator, on Saturday said even the revised Chinese numbers lacked credibility. 'We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight,' Mr Ghebreyesus told a virtual briefing in Geneva today 'I put China on there so basically you can see how unrealistic this would be,' she said of a chart which showed China's official case mortality rate at 0.33 per 100,000, orders of magnitude below every other country. The WHO has also parroted Beijing's insistence that the virus crossed to humans at a wild animal 'wet market' in Wuhan, despite US intelligence which indicates it escaped from a Chinese laboratory during bungled experiments. The Wuhan Institute of Virology Lab is China's only bio-safety level four facility, and was known to be carrying out experiments to identify emerging coronaviruses in bats - not as a bioweapon, but to prove Chinese superiority in isolating potential disease threats. US diplomatic cables sent just two years ago show American scientists had strong concerns about alleged sloppy safety procedures at the lab. Critics of WHO even hit out at a star-studded concert for raising money for the agency last week amid allegations it had mishandled the early stages of the pandemic. The 'One World: Together at Home' event, led by the WHO and non-profit group 'Global Citizen', was broadcast across multiple television channels worldwide on Saturday. The event's corporate sponsors and other donors had already given $150 million, earmarked for the WHO's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, organisers said. But Trump's supporters, as well as critics of the WHO from all around the world, immediately lashed out on social media and in reviews on online streaming platforms which carried the concert. 'Yes, we need useless celebrities preaching to us how this isn't China's fault and how we should just all live as one nation,' one scathing Amazon review of the concert read. 'No thank you this is for the WHO,' another tweeted. 'NO THANK YOU.' 'If I could give No stars I would,' one Amazon reviewer wrote. 'WHO lied! People died!! Let's not forgot this!!! While we're home given up our freedom and most of us without jobs these CELEBRITIES ask us to help raise money for the WHO?! Forget it!' Mr Ghebreyesus, a former official in Ethiopia's Marxist party with a PhD in community health, also delivered a video address during the concert, which drew particular backlash. 'Disgrace, you have no ground to stand on after this episode. Failed to signal what was coming out of [China] failed to confirm a pandemic until it was too late, you were behind the curve permanently,' one person tweeted. April 20, 2020 N.B. English translation is for convenience purposes only The shareholders in Aino Health AB (publ), reg. no. 559063-5073 (the "Company") are hereby convened to the annual general meeting on Monday 18 May 2020 at 17.00 at the Company's office at Skeppargatan 8, level two, Stockholm. To reduce the risk of the spread of COVID-19) if further measures are deemed necessary. Right to participate at the general meeting Shareholders who wish to attend the general meeting must: on Tuesday 12 May 2020 be registered in the share register kept by Euroclear Sweden AB; and notify his or her intention to attend the general meeting by mail to Aino Health AB (publ), Skeppargatan 8, 114 52 Stockholm stating "annual general meeting", or by telephone +46 (0)107 888 600, or by e-mail to jochen.saxelin@ainohealth.com (mailto:jochen.saxelin@ainohealth.com) at the latest on Tuesday 12 May 2020, preferably before 15.00. Such notification shall include the shareholder's name, personal identification number or corporate registration number (or similar) and preferably address and daytime telephone number, number of shares, details on advisors (no more than two) if any, and where applicable, details of representatives or proxies. Nominee-registered shares To be entitled to participate in the general meeting, shareholders whose shares are registered in the name of a nominee must temporarily re-register their shares in their own names in the share register maintained by Euroclear Sweden AB in order to be entitled to attend the general meeting. Such registration must be duly effected in the share register on Tuesday 12 May 2020 and the shareholders must, therefore, advise their nominees well in advance of such date. Proxy Shareholders represented by proxy must submit a dated power of attorney. If the power of attorney is executed by a legal person, a certified copy of the certificate of registration or equivalent must be attached. The power of attorney may not be valid for a period longer than five years from its issuance. The original power of attorney and certificate of registration should be submitted to the Company by post at the address mentioned above in due time prior to the general meeting. The company provides the power of attorney forms upon request and this is also available on the Company's website www.ainohealth.com. Proposed agenda Opening of the general meeting and election of chairman of the general meeting Preparation and approval of the voting list Election of one or two persons to verify the minutes Determination as to whether the meeting has been duly convened Approval of the agenda Presentation of the annual report and the auditor's report and the consolidated financial statements and the auditor's report on the consolidated financial statements Resolutions on: a) the adoption of the income statement and the balance sheet, and of the consolidated income statement and the consolidated balance sheet; b) allocation of the Company's result according to the adopted balance sheet; and c) discharge from liability for each of the members of the board of directors and the managing director. Determination of the number of members of the board of directors and deputy members of the board of directors. Determination of remuneration to the board of directors and the auditor. Appointment of members of the board of directors, chairman of the board of directors and deputy members of the board of directors, if any. Election of auditor. Proposal to authorise the board of directors to issue new shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments Closing of the general meeting. Proposals to resolutions Item 7b) Allocation of the Company's result according to the adopted balance sheet The board of directors proposes that the annual general meeting disposes over the Company's result in accordance with the board of directors' proposal in the annual accounts. Additionally, the board of directors proposes that no dividend is paid for the financial year 2019. Item 8 - Determination of the number of ordinary members of the board of directors and the number of deputy members of the board of directors It is proposed that the annual general meeting resolves that the number of board members shall be five without any deputies. Item 9 - Determination of remuneration to the board of directors and the auditor It is proposed that the remuneration to the board for the period between the annual general meeting 2020 until the annual general meeting 2021 shall be SEK 100,000 to the ordinary board members not employed by the Company and SEK 150,000 to the chairman of the board, that no remuneration shall be paid to the ordinary board members who are employed by the Company and that audit fees should be paid in accordance with approved account pursuant to customary billing terms. Item 10 - Election of members of the board of directors, chairman of the board and deputy members of the board of directors, if any Martin Bunge-Meyer has declined re-election as member of the board of directors. It is proposed by a larger number of shareholders Jyrki Eklund, Tanja Ilic, Daniel Koob and Klas Bonde are re-elected as members of the board of directors and that Troy Suda is elected as new member of the board of directors. It is further proposed that Tanja Ilic is re-elected as chairman of the board of directors until the end of the next annual general meeting. Information regarding new board members Troy Suda Troy Suda is Chief Product Officer at Ticketmaster International. He has responsibility for defining and implementing Ticketmaster's product strategy across after 28 different markets across Europe, Latin America, Asia, Australia & New Zealand. Troy leads a team of Product Management, Product Strategy & Design experts in UK, Sweden, Canada, Germany & Australia and is based in Ticketmaster International's headquarters in London, UK. He has over 15 years' experience in product development and management, and product marketing, along with a track record of successes in the financial services, e-commerce, retail and travel environments. Troy has held a number of senior roles in high profile brands in Europe including leadership roles at Hotels.com (Expedia Inc) and Lonely Planet. Troy has also held various marketing, strategy, and product development roles during a decade long tenure at Australian retailers Coles Group & Myer. Having studied at numerous institutions across the world, Troy holds both a Bachelor of Business (Marketing) and Master of Commerce (E-Commerce) and has been educated at RMIT University (Melbourne), The University of Melbourne and Columbia Business School (New York). Item 11 - Election of auditor It is proposed that MAZARS SET Revisionsbyra AB is re-elected as auditor with Helene Sjostrom as auditor in charge. Item 12 - Proposal to authorise the board of directors to issue new shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments It is proposed that the general meeting of shareholders resolves to authorise the board of directors for the period up to the next annual meeting of shareholders to resolve, whether on one or several occasions, to increase the Company's share capital and issue new shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments, within the limits of share capital and numbers of shares set out in the Company's of the articles of association from time to time. The board of directors shall be authorised to adopt decisions on an issue of shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments with deviation from the shareholders' pre-emption rights and/or an issue in kind or an issue by way of set-off or otherwise on such terms and conditions as referred to in Chapter 2, Section 5, second paragraph, points 1-3 and 5, of the Swedish Companies Act. An issue in accordance with this authorization shall be on market conditions. The board of directors shall be authorised to decide on the terms and conditions regarding issues under this authorisation and what persons shall be entitled to subscribe for the shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments. The reason to propose that the board of directors shall be authorised to resolve on an issue with deviation from the shareholders' pre-emption rights and that the board shall be authorised to decide on an issue in kind or an issue by way of set-off or otherwise on such terms and conditions as referred to above is that the company shall be able to issue shares, warrants and/or convertible instruments in connection with acquisitions of companies or businesses and to carry-out directed new issues in order to raise capital to the company. It is proposed that the managing director is authorised to make such minor adjustments to this resolution that may be necessary in connection with the registration with the Swedish Companies Registration Office and Euroclear Sweden AB. Majority requirements Resolution under item 12 above requires, for its validity, that a minimum of at least two-thirds of the votes cast and the shares represented to support the resolution. Number of shares and votes At the time of publication of this notice, the total number of shares and votes of the Company is 15 934 979. The Company does not hold any own shares. Information at the annual general meeting The board of directors and the managing director shall, upon request by any shareholder and where the board of directors determines that it can be done without material harm to the Company, provide information of circumstances which may affect the assessment of a matter on the agenda, conditions that may affect the assessment of the Company's or its subsidiary's financial situation and the Company's relationship with other group companies. Documentation The annual report and the auditor's report, the board of director's complete proposal under item 12 above, as well as other documents according to the Swedish Companies Act will be held available at the Company's office (Skeppargatan 8 i Stockholm) and at the Company's website (www.ainohealth.com) no later than 20 April 2020. The documents will also be sent, without charge, to shareholders who so request and inform the Company of their postal address. The documents will also be available and presented at the general meeting. Stockholm in April 2020 Aino Health AB (publ) The board of directors This information is information that Aino Health AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, at 7.30 PM CEST on April 20, 2020. For more information: Jyrki Eklund, CEO Aino Health, Phone: +358 40 042 4221 Certified adviser Erik Penser Bank +46 8 463 83 00 certifiedadviser@penser.se About Aino Health Attachment 100% of their wine proceeds will go to charity. (Getty Images) Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have been busy during the coronavirus lockdown. The couple have been working on their very own wine, aptly named quarantine, with all of the proceeds of the wine going to select charities helping out during the pandemic. They announced their new venture on Kutchers Instagram account, sharing their collaboration with Noking Point, a US-based wine maker. The Pinot Noir from Oregon, US, costs 40 for two bottles. They said they came up with the idea after drinking and eating on virtual calls with their friends - as weve all been doing during lockdown. Read more: Former royal chef teaches us how to make Queens scones In the evenings we like to do virtual dates and virtual hangouts with friends, and one of the things that we like to do on those virtual dates is drink, eat, share a glass of wine, reconnect. They explained to their fans. And the other thing we've been working hard on is helping out a lot of charities. We've been finding charities that have been focusing on getting PPE (personal protective equipment) into the country, feeding kids, assisting families who've lost their jobs, businesses that are in distress, and Mila came up with the brilliant idea of combining the two things. They explained how theyve teamed their love of wine with the need to help people during the COVID-19 pandemic and come up with a new charitable business venture. Read more: Friends launch online barber shop during lockdown 100% of the profits from the wine will be spread across four charities that the pair have spent time researching to ensure theyre doing good work - GiveDirectly, Direct Relief, Frontline Responders Fund and America's Food Fund. The aesthetically pleasing wine bottle simply reads quarantine at the bottom and toasting to at the top. This allows people to decorate their bottles as they wish to mark who theyre toasting their wine to. Story continues Whether it's a friend who you're sharing an evening with or somebody who's doing something great or if you're by yourself because you're at home with your damn kids, that you love so much. They explained. Read more: Prince Harry praises British response to pandemic Their two children, Wyatt Isabelle, five, and Dimitri Portwood, three, werent in the video, but they referenced being at home with them during the lockdown. Kutcher also shared a cute photo of the children holding up a sign saying thank you for all youre doing on his Instagram page. The caption read: To every one on the front lines. Medical workers, delivery folks, grocery store employees, people with kind hearts and generous spirits, and every person that has no choice but to go to work right now. Together we got this! An NSA detainee, who escaped from a hospital in Jabalpur after testing positive for coronavirus, was caught by police in Madhya Pradesh's Narsingpur district on Monday morning, an official said. The man escaped on Sunday when he and other patients were being shifted to a super-specialty facility in the Jabalpur Medical College and Hospital. This person and three others had been detained under the National Security Act (NSA) for attacking health workers and police in Indore. They had been shifted from a jail in Indore to Jabalpur. The detainee tested coronavirus positive on April 11. "He was nabbed at Madanpur check post in Tendukheda town of Narsingpur around 6.30 am while he was trying to steal a bike for escaping further," district Superintendent of Police Gurukaran Singh said. The accused had a fight with the police personnel at the check post when they tried to arrest him, trainee deputy superintendent of police Ashish Jain said. After escaping from the Jabalpur medical college, the accused boarded a truck to reach Madanpur, Jain said. "We are trying to find out his contact history after he escaped from Jabalpur so that all those persons can be quarantined," he said. After he escaped from the hospital, four policemen were suspended for negligence in duty and two cash rewards of Rs 25,000 and Rs 10,000 were announced by the Inspector General, Jabalpur Range, and Jabalpur's Superintendent of Police for any information leading to his arrest. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Trump Questions Coronavirus Numbers Announced By China, Iran Radio Farda April 19, 2020 President Donald Trump questioned the coronavirus pandemic numbers announced by China and Iran in his daily press briefing on April 18, asking "Does anyone believe" these numbers? After more than a month from the acceleration of the pandemic in the West, the numbers China has officially announced are very low compared to countries such as Italy, Spain, France and even Germany. China's death tally shows just three fatalities per one million population, while in most Western countries it ranges from 100 to 450 deaths. Trump also threatened China saying it should face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the pandemic. At the press briefing, Dr. Deborah Brix, a member of Trump's coronavirus task force team called China's official figures unreal, pointing to a chart showing numbers in different countries. President Trump then asked, "You see what's going on over there," referring to Iran. "Does anyone believe [Iran's] number? Does anyone believe [China's] number? "We saw more bags on television than that", Trump added. Iran's latest numbers put the death toll a little over 5,000 and infection cases at over 80,000. Many in Iran have questioned the officially announced infection and death figures. Radio Farda's preliminary estimate based on local media reports puts the numbers much higher. But the Iranian parliament's research center on April 15 issued an estimate saying at least 600,000 are infected with the deadly virus. Iran says its official numbers are based on multiple tests on patients at different intervals todetermine if a case can be included in the official numbers, but its testing ability is limited and much lower than in Western countries. Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/trump -questions-coronavirus -numbers-announced- by-china-iran/30563996.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Advertisement Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signed an agreement with rival Benny Gantz, ending a year of political deadlock in the country. The deal will see the two leaders share a rotating premiership. Netanyahu will continue to serve for the next year and a half before he is replaced by Gantz, who will be his deputy for the first rotation period. Gantz's number two, Gabi Ashkenazi, will serve as foreign minister. It marks a significant relinquishment of power by the incumbent prime minister, who is under criminal indictment in three corruption cases. He denies any wrongdoing. Thousands of protesters lined the street's of Tel Aviv on Sunday to call for Netanyahu's removal from power and an end to coalition talks between his Likud and Gantz's Blue and White party, which they said amounted to a threat to democracy. Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his rival Benny Gantz have signed an agreement that will end a year of political deadlock in the country Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Sunday to warn against what they said was a threat to democracy from ongoing coalition talks between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former rival Benny Gantz Some 2,000 protesters, according to media estimates, gathered in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv after following a call launched on Facebook by the 'Black Flag' movement which condemns Netanyahu's continuing rule Israel's parliament was tasked with forming a government on Thursday after speaker Gantz and Netanyahu missed a deadline to seal an alliance, but negotiations between the sides were ongoing The two men said they were forming a 'national emergency government' in a statement. They will meet this evening and are expected to release statements to supporters, Israeli media reports. The final agreement included the majority of Netanyahu's demands, Israeli news station Channel 12 reported, including the annexation of parts of the West Bank and on the composition of the panel responsible for appointing judges. It will also have to be signed by Likud's right-wing religious partners before being voted on in the Knesset. It is not expected to be formally signed off until Israel's independence day, April 28. Wearing face masks and keeping two yards apart, some 2,000 activists gathered in Rabin Square on Sunday following a call launched on Facebook by the 'Black Flag' movement which condemns Netanyahu's continuing rule. Israel's parliament was tasked with forming a government on Thursday after speaker Gantz and Netanyahu missed a deadline to seal an alliance, but negotiations between the sides appeared to be deadlocked. Israel has reported more than 13,000 coronavirus cases and 172 deaths. A partial lockdown has confined most Israelis to their homes, forced businesses to close and sent unemployment to about 26 per cent. Gantz and Netanyahu could still agree on an emergency unity government to help Israel confront the COVID-19 pandemic, prospect the protesters spoke out against. Wearing face masks, waving black flags and keeping two yards apart, the protesters observed social distancing rules in force to fight the coronavirus. Gantz (right) and Netanyahu could still agree on an emergency unity government to help Israel confront the COVID-19 pandemic. Pictured: The pair in September with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin A partial lockdown has confined most Israelis to their homes, forced businesses to close and sent unemployment to about 26 per cent Wearing face masks, waving black flags and keeping two yards apart, the protesters observed social distancing rules in force to fight the coronavirus Pictured: One protester holds a poster reading, 'crime minister' Israel has reported more than 13,000 coronavirus cases and 172 deaths and protesters ensured they kept a safe distance on Sunday 'Let democracy win', said one placard, while some protesters had written 'Minister of Crime' on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahu's upcoming trial for corruption The protesters want Netanyahu to be removed from office. Pictured: Protesters keep their distance from each other 'Let democracy win', said one placard, while some protesters had written 'Minister of Crime' on their masks, an apparent reference to Netanyahu's upcoming trial for corruption. Many waved black flags as a symbol for threats against Israel's democracy. 'You don't fight corruption from within,' said Yair Lapid, the new opposition leader, of his former ally Gantz. 'If you're inside, you're part of it.' Democracies in 21st Century died because 'good people are silent and weak people surrender', Lapid said. 'You don't fight corruption from within,' said Yair Lapid, the new opposition leader, of his former ally Gantz. 'If you're inside, you're part of it.' Pictured: Protesters wave Israel flags and turn their phone lights on as they safely stand apart The protesters gathered at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv to air their grievances with Israeli prime minister Bejamin Netanyahu Demonstrations are allowed under Israel's coronavirus restrictions, as long as participants maintain distance from each other and wear face masks Under the banner of 'Save the Democracy,' protesters called on Gantz's Blue and White party not to join in a coalition led by a premier charged with corruption Netanyahu, who denies any wrongdoing, is also under criminal indictment in three corruption cases. Demonstrations are allowed under Israel's coronavirus restrictions, as long as participants maintain distance from each other and wear face masks. Under the banner of 'Save the Democracy,' protesters called on Gantz's Blue and White party not to join in a coalition led by a premier charged with corruption. Gantz has campaigned for clean government, but said that the coronavirus crisis has forced him to go back on his election pledge. Kim Stafford has turned his Instagram feed into an evolving chronicle of his thoughts, concerns, desires and fears during the coronavus pandemic. In the past few weeks, Oregons Poet Laureate wrote about the unexpected beauty of Zoom video calls, Dr. Anthony Faucis smile, and how he thinks the world will honor those whove died of COVID-19 when this is all over. On the latest episode of Beat Check with The Oregonian, Stafford talked about his writing process, how his view of the world has changed during the pandemic and much more. Then, on the second half of the show, The Oregonian/OregonLives Brooke Herbert and Beth Nakamura, photojournalists who created photographs and videos to pair with some of Staffords pandemic poems, discussed their recent project. Heres the full episode: You can subscribe to Beat Check with The Oregonian on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. -- Andrew Theen; atheen@oregonian.com; 503-294-4026; @andrewtheen Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories. One of Brazils most wanted criminals has been sent home from Mozambique to face justice. Gilberto Aparecido dos Santos was allegedly a leader of one of Brazils most powerful criminal groups Sao Paulo-based First Capital Command (PCC) drug gang. The alleged drug baron known as Fuminho had been on the run for more than two decades. He is accused of overseeing the flow of cocaine around the world. Dos Santos was arrested in Maputo on Monday in a sting operation involving agents from Mozambique, Brazil and the US. A Brazilian air force plane, with dozens of police on board, flew him back to his home country in the early hours of Sunday morning. The PCC which began as a prison gang has spread across Brazil. Its now reported to be sending tonnes of cocaine to Europe and Africa. Follow Us on Facebook @LadunLiadi; Instagram @LadunLiadi; Twitter @LadunLiadi; Youtube @LadunLiadiTV for updates WASHINGTON As Congress works to add funding to a $350 billion loan program meant to help small business survive the coronavirus outbreak, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, led by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, is pushing for tens of billions of dollars specifically for small banks and credit unions. The paycheck protection program, which offered forgivable loans to keep employees on the payroll, ran out of money in just two weeks, leaving many small businesses hanging. Congress is working to add as much as $300 billion to it, with leaders suggesting a deal is near and could get a vote as soon as this week. TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox But many of the banks that lent the initial batch of money worked only with their existing customers, and many small businesses never got a chance. Castro, a San Antonio Democrat, says Congress needs to make sure that doesnt happen again. The new batch of funding should set aside at least $65 billion for micro lenders, small community banks and credit unions working with smaller, Latino and minority owned businesses, Castro wrote in a letter on behalf of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Small Business Administration chief Jovita Carranza. The caucus is also calling for at least $50 billion in Economic Injury Disaster Loans and $15 billion in disaster grants as businesses that are unable to benefit from PPP are turning to disaster loans and grants to help bridge them through the pandemic. A LOT OF FOLKS ARE LEFT BEHIND: Federal small business loans run dry The letter also said the new funding should come with mandatory reporting requirements so we do not have to rely on anecdotal evidence and ensure that small-business relief is benefiting all communities, including Hispanic communities. As we face the prospect that coronavirus could obliterate Hispanic wealth, which was already crippled by the Great Recession, and that the pandemic continues to threaten the 4.5 million Latino-owned businesses that have about 2.3 million employees on payroll, it is essential that federal aid reach these communities, Castro wrote. So far, $28.5 billion in paycheck protection loans have been approved for 134,737 Texas businesses, according to data from the Small Business Administration. The loans were available to companies with fewer than 500 employees and have gone to a range of businesses from accounting and architecture firms to fast-food chains, including San Antonio-based Taco Cabana. But more than 500,000 businesses in the state may be eligible for the loans based on their size, according to data from the Texas Workforce Commission. ben.wermund@chron.com Chennai, April 20 : The Tamil Nadu police have arrested 20 persons for attacking an ambulance and also for protesting against the funeral of a doctor who had died of Covid-19. The 55-year-old doctor died on Sunday night at a private hospital near here and his body was taken to a crematorium. However, the locals there held a protest against the funeral fearing the spread of the virus. They also attacked the ambulance and healthcare officials. Later police arrived at the scene and the doctor's body was buried. This is the second such incident in the city. Some days back a doctor from Nellore died of Covid-19 at a private hospital and when his body was taken to a crematorium the locals protested against it. The police took back the body to the hospital mortuary and he was cremated during the early hours. The opposition from the locals to the final rites of the doctors who died due to Covid-19 has shocked the medical community. Sunday, April 19, 2020 at 10:54PM Photo by Belle Co for Pexels Microsoft has plans to be carbon negative by 2030, and now it hopes to lend a helping hand to other interested third parties who are working to improve the environment. The Planetary Computer project wants to take data and process it through artificial intelligence and machine learning to provide satellite imagery, environmental and biological data and more to partners and customers. The hope is the data can be used for decision-making about environmental issues, both in the public and private sectors. Planetary Computer is more than a single machine. It is an extension of Microsoft's AI for Earth, which puts AI tools in the hands of its partners working on the ocean, wildlife, forestry, and agricultural endeavours. The company plans to invest more in areas like land cover mapping, land usage information, and species identification. The aim is that it can use and build its digital resources with more data that third parties can use to preserve wildlife and the environment. The company will collaborate with the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network, offering them a US$1 million grant. The organization will monitor the Earth's biodiversity closely and develop measurements that are accurate enough for conservationists and researchers to use. With resumption of various business activities from Monday, the finance ministry has asked public sector banks to ensure timely credit to businesses that have been affected due to the COVID-19 related disruptions. Last week, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had released a set of select business activities that will be allowed from Monday. In a letter dated April 16, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) wrote to the chairman of State Bank of India and heads of other state-run banks that the timely origination, sanction and disbursement of fund and non-fund based credit is critical for revival of economic activity. "Therefore, banks are advised to place in the public domain their time bound outreach and processing plans with clear-step timeframes and communicate clear responsibilities and timeframes to all levels for securing sourcing of loan requests and their appraisal, sanction, documentation and disbursement," the letter read. The finance ministry has suggested an indicative timeframe to banks right from the processing to disbursement of funds under various credit support to businesses. To provide working capital demand loans for existing MSME, corporate and agriculture borrowers, under the COVID-19 Emergency Credit Line, banks have been advised to keep a timeframe of three to six working days. Similarly, the timeframe for providing financial assistance to self-help groups should also be within three to six working days, it said. The letter said the reassessment of working capital up to Rs 5 crore for existing borrowers should be done within six to nine working days and the same for above Rs 5 crore should be completed within 12 to 15 working days. "Banks are advised to draw a detailed activity-wise timeframe to achieve the turnaround time sought," the letter read. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) She gave birth to a baby boy just one month ago. Jenna Dewan took to TikTok to show off some of her killer dance moves and, by extension, her beautiful postpartum body in a new post on Sunday. The 39-year-old professional dancer joined the social media platform du jour after she had said just a few days prior that she was missing the 'emotional release' dance. Wow! Jenna Dewan took to TikTok to show off some of her killer dance moves and, by extension, her stunning postpartum body in a new post on Sunday, just a month after giving birth Jenna used the mirror filter in her video which she captioned: 'Okay okay okay...I'm here @tiktok! Challenge accepted @sarafoster!' Clearly she hasn't missed a beat when it comes to her profession because Jenna then busted out some incredible dance moves to Justin Bieber's Intentions. The dance was choreographed by dancers on Justin's team and then TikTokers take to the app to perform the routine, though most aren't as spectacular as Jenna. In the video the beautiful brunette had her hair down and was makeup free as she danced in a matching blush toned sweatsuit. Back at it: The 39-year-old professional dancer joined the social media platform du jour after she had said just a few days prior that she was missing the 'emotional release' dance Jenna used the mirror filter in her video which she captioned: 'Okay okay okay...I'm here @tiktok! Challenge accepted @sarafoster!' Wow! Jenna already has her abs back after giving birth last month to her baby boy Callum The cropped pink hoodie showed off Jenna's post-baby body, including her surprisingly flat abs just weeks after she gave birth. Fans and friend's flooded the comments section of the post to gush about how stunning the athlete and actress looked. One fan wrote: 'Get it girl!!! Just days after giving birth shes already got her dance body back!' Moves! Clearly she hasn't missed a beat when it comes to her profession because Jenna busted out some incredible dance moves to Justin Bieber's Intentions in a routine created by his dancers Quarantine style: In the video the beautiful brunette had her hair down and was makeup free as she danced in a matching blush toned sweatsuit Getting back to herself: Last week Jenna said she had been missing the 'emotional release' that she gets when she dances Actress Kate Hudson penned: 'Wait...what?! U had a baby five seconds ago! Amazing' It seemed that Dewan was itching to get back to her passion for dance and had shared a professional throwback snap last week. 'Missing this today! Dance has always been my emotional release, where i connect the strongest, feel my most sensual, powerful and free,' she captioned the Instagram. 'Might have to start tik tok after all' Baby bump! During her pregnancy, Jenna kept her followers up to date with her bump and frequently posted adorable photos of her momma-to-be style Welcome to the work: In March, Jenna her actor fiance Steve Kazee welcomed their first child together, son Callum (Pictured April 14) In March, Jenna her actor fiance Steve Kazee welcomed their first child together, son Callum. She began dating the Broadway star in 2018, following her separation from her ex-husband Channing Tatum in April of that year, with who she shares six-year-old Everly. Jenna and the Magic Mike star finalized their divorce in November 2019, two months after she and Steve announced they were expecting their first child together. STOCKHOLM, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Azelio has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chilean company Industria Mecanica VOGT S.A. (VOGT) to assess energy storage projects for the mining industry in Latin America. The MoU frameworks a collaboration over a 10 MW capacity of Azelio's energy storage from 2021 until 2024. The parties expect to trigger further projects after this initial agreement. Azelio's long-duration energy storage system coupled to solar PV will be used to supply VOGT's pumping systems for the mining industry with renewable electricity around the clock. The first projects are aiming for 50 kW in Q1, 2021 and 100 kW in Q3, 2021, followed by an additional 2 MW in 2022, 3 MW in 2023, and 5 MW in 2024. VOGT is a leading regional supplier of pumping systems for the mining industry, with clients including some of the biggest metallic and non-metallic mining companies operating in Latin America. The pumping systems require electricity 24/7, currently provided by diesel generators in off-grid locations. With this MoU, VOGT seeks to complement its offer to supply the pumping systems with reliable and clean electricity. Aside from reducing the environmental impact, Azelio's technology will also significantly lower the electricity cost, linked to expensive diesel. Furthermore, VOGT is interested in becoming Azelio's local partner in the Chilean market to co-develop projects and perform operations and maintenance related to Azelio's technology. "Joining hands with an established company like VOGT and to introduce our technology to the mining industry is a very positive step for Azelio. We look forward to demonstrating the commercial and environmental values of Azelio's long-duration energy storage," says Jonas Eklind CEO of Azelio. "We are excited to initiate this collaboration with Azelio and jointly develop its energy storage offer in the region. It is an opportunity for us to improve the value to our clients with a cleaner and cheaper electricity supply for our pumping systems," says Alberto Campos, General Manager of VOGT. For further information, please contact Jonas Eklind - CEO Email: [email protected] Tel: +34-699-30-86-36 Ralf Wiesenberg - VP Business Development Email: [email protected] Tel: +34-699-30-86-36 This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/azelio/r/azelio-signs-mou-with-partner-in-chile-for-energy-storage-supply-to-the-mining-industry,c3091806 The following files are available for download: https://mb.cision.com/Main/16031/3091806/1231985.pdf Release https://news.cision.com/azelio/i/azelio-energy-storage,c2775165 Azelio Energy Storage SOURCE Azelio Commuters wear protective masks as they exit a train at a subway station during rush hour in Beijing, China on April 20, 2020. (Lintao Zhang/Getty Images) Authorities on High Alert About Northern China Virus Outbreak, as Beijing District Is Marked High-Risk Chaoyang district in Beijing city was officially designated a high-risk region for the virus outbreak on April 19. This is the first such region outside of Hubei province, Chinas CCP virus epicenter, that authorities publicly acknowledged. Meanwhile, the virus continues to spread in northeastern Chinas Harbin city. Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of Beijing municipal CDC, said at a press conference on April 20: A region with more than 50 infections and a cluster outbreak within 14 days will be counted as a high-risk region. However, Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang province, did not get this designationdespite authorities having announced at least 58 domestic diagnosed patients between April 9 to April 19, and several cluster outbreaks occurring at Harbin Medical University (HMU) First Affiliated Hospital, Harbin No. 2 Hospital, as well as in residential compounds. The majority of the city is set as low risk areas. Only Daowai and Nangang districts were classified as medium risk regions. Pang did not provide details about the cases in Chaoyang district, but the citys health commission has only announced three domestic cases in the whole city between March 24 and April 20. The Epoch Times also obtained a series of internal documents from the Heilongjiang provincial government, in which authorities admitted that the outbreak in Harbin is in an aggregated, explosive situation. Chaoyang District State-run newspaper Beijing News reported on April 20 that people from Chaoyang district were being treated differently when they travel to other cities. It doesnt matter whether the person is working or living in Chaoyang district. Before he or she enters our residential compound, he or she has to stay at a quarantine center for 14 days. The cost is 175 yuan ($25) per day, and must be paid by the person, the report quoted a government staff in Shijiazhuang city, Hebei province as saying. Beijing News received similar answers from government staff in Tianjin, Langfang, and other cities. Chinese women wear protective masks as they stand outside closed shops and restaurants near the Forbidden City in Beijing, China on April 19, 2020. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images) On April 16, the Beijing municipal health commission announced three domestic infections. According to the announcement, a Chinese student took a flight from Miami to San Francisco on March 22, then flew to Hong Kong, and arrived in Beijing on March 24. Because the student has had rhinitis, coughing, and gout for years, he was sent directly from the airport to a hospital for diagnosis. The test results came back negative. The student was sent to a quarantine center for medical observation on March 28. On March 30, the student was transferred to another quarantine center after another passenger who took the same flight from Hong Kong to Beijing was diagnosed with the virus. On April 8, the student was transported back to his home in Chaoyang district after all tests came back negative. On April 10, the student developed a fever. On April 13, he had more severe symptoms and his father sent him to a hospital. That day, he tested positive for the virus and was counted as an imported case. After the student was sent to hospital, his mother, young brother, and grandfather started to have symptoms. All three were diagnosed on April 15 and counted as domestic cases. So far, its unclear the real reason behind the high-risk region designation. Harbin On April 20, a netizen shot a video and shared online about a residential unit that was sealed at Jincheng compound in Acheng district, Harbin. A notice from the local government can be seen on the entrance door, stating that residents who live at the unit are suspected of being infected. The video then shows a woman working in the local neighborhood committee. She said that the residents inside were in fact diagnosed with the virus. Meanwhile, the Heilongjiang task force set up to combat the virus sent out a Warning Notice on April 13, analyzing the outbreak in Harbin in recent days. The Epoch Times obtained a copy of this internal notice. Screenshot of the Heilongjiang provincial government document about the CCP virus outbreak in the capital of Harbin, issued on April 13, 2020. (Provided to The Epoch Times by insider) It described reasons such as: residential compounds did not restrict peoples gatherings and allowed people to have parties, which caused cluster outbreaks; and hospitals did not control the situation properly, causing the virus to spread broadly and quickly among staff and patients. It also faulted the Harbin city government. On March 31, 39 people [in Harbin] were diagnosed positive. But the city government didnt track down the patients recent activities and where they were infected. It didnt even strengthen control measures, the document stated. The Heilongjiang health commission did not publicly announce the 39 cases mentioned above. On April 17, the provincial government issued another internal document about reinforcing the reporting of cases within the province. The government asked city and county governments to choose the correct political side in cooperating with provincial authorities and reporting local cases. It added that any authority that does not report outbreaks to the provincial government will be punished by law. It is worth mentioning that the Harbin government clarified on April 15 that the person whom they initially claimed to have transmitted the virus and caused a new outbreak was not the culprit. State-run newspaper Heilongjiang Daily reported that the person is a 22-year-old woman surnamed Han, not the previously described man. She entered China on March 19 from the United States and has been tested several times for the virus. All results were negative. Waterford has shot to the top of the table when it comes to divorce applications, according to the latest figures from the Courts Service. The Deise County has leapfrogged Carlow and Dublin, which make up the rest of the top three based on divorce applications per head of population. Newly released details of divorce and judicial separation for 2018 show that there were 3,864 applications to the circuit court for divorce that year. Another 1,238 couples looked for a judicial separation, which can allow husbands or wives to part company in a more straightforward way. In terms of divorce applications, the rate per 100,000 nationally was just over 81. Ten counties exceeded that figure with the rate in Waterford highest of all at 102 divorces per 100,000 of population. Second was Carlow (97), followed by Dublin (92). The lowest rate was in Co Cavan where there were 54 divorce applications for every 100,000. Dublin had by far the highest number of applications for divorce with a total of 1,233 couples looking to split. Next was Cork, with 463, while Leitrim, the country's least populated county, had just 25. Women were considerably more likely than men to apply for divorce. Some 55.8pc of applications - or 2,155 in total - came from wives. Judicial separation remained an option for many couples with 861 women and 377 men applying in 2018. The outcome of divorce settlements were most likely to include "extinguishing succession rights" with that a feature of 3,174 cases decided last year. The next most likely outcome of a divorce was a pension adjustment order (1,869), custody or access orders (1,365), or a periodic payment to a child (1,208). According to the Courts Service, each divorce settlement can include a multiple of such conditions. A small number of applications were also made for "nullity" nationwide with 20 such cases recorded. Among the reasons allowed for a "nullity" declaration are mental incapacity, lack of consent, or that one or other of the couple is "incapable of sexual intercourse". A doctor explains cervical disc disease to a patient at a hospital in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, in this file photo. /Korea Times file By Bahk Eun-ji Nearly 1 million Koreans were treated for cervical degenerative disc disease in 2018, according to data from the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS). Cervical disc disease occurs when one or more of the cushioning discs in the cervical spine begins to deteriorate. Cervical discs work as "cushions" between the vertebrae of the neck. When discs are damaged it can result in significant discomfort, with many experiencing neck and radiating arm pains. Although many cases of neck pain are mild and resolve themselves on their own within a few days, sometimes it can be so painful that it affects a person's daily life, interfering with the ability to sleep, work or drive. According the NHIS data, 959,000 patients were provided with medical expenses for the disease (disease code: M50) in 2018. In 2014, 871,000 were beneficiaries of the insurance, an average annual increase of 2.4 percent. About 269 billion won was spent to treat the problem in 2018, climbing from the 223 billion won spent in 2014. By age, patients in their 50s accounted for the largest group, with 284,097 or 29.6 percent. Among them, 162,532 were women, while 121,565 were men in 2018. People in their 80s who have cervical disc disease increased to 31,760 in 2018, compared to 2014 when 19,862 suffered from the problem. Women in this age group appeared to be particularly vulnerable with 2,067 per 100,000 people in 2018, up 16.3 percent from 2014's 1,778 per 100,000. However, men were generally more vulnerable overall in age groups increasing 12.2 percent annually, while the average annual increase rate was 8.5 percent. Over the past five years, the cost of medical treatment per person increased to 280,000 won in 2018, up 9.8 percent from 256,000 won in 2014. In regard to the reason for the steady increase in the neck disease in people in their 50s and older, experts said it is mainly because cervical disc disease is a degenerative condition, worsening as time progresses. "Spinal discs weaken over time and become more vulnerable to injury, meaning that aging increases the risk of a bulging or herniated disc. Bad posture or being overweight for a long time can contribute to the disc bulging," said Park Yoong, a professor of the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) Ilsan Hospital. San Francisco, April 20 : Elon Musk-led SpaceX has conducted a static fire test of its Falcon 9 rocket which is scheduled to launch the next fleet of 60 Starlink satellites in a mission called "Starlink 6" on April 23. That rocket is expected to launch from the historic Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, Space.com reported on Sunday. This will be the fifth Starlink mission this year and the company's seventh batch of operational satellites since 2019. "Static fire test of Falcon 9 complete - targeting Thursday, April 23 at 3:16 p.m. EDT, 19:16 UTC, for launch of 60 Starlink satellites from LC-39A in Florida," SpaceX tweeted shortly after the test. The first stage rocket booster supporting this mission previously supported the first flight of SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule to the International Space Station in 2019, launch of the RADARSAT Constellation Mission, and the fourth Starlink mission. Starlink is SpaceX's ambitious project to launch and operate its own network of broadband satellites, which will provide low-cost Internet to remote locations on a global level. A Falcon 9 rocket will also launch SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts to the International Space Station on May 27. This "Demo-2" mission will be the final major step before NASA's Commercial Crew Program certifies Crew Dragon for operational, long-duration missions to the space station. Yemen's rebels released on Monday a former culture minister and writer who was a vocal critic of their rule, his lawyer said, a day after his arrest. The rebels, known as Houthis, stormed Khalid al-Rwaishan's home on Sunday in a suburb of the capital Sanaa at dawn, seizing personal papers and documents, before taking him to an undisclosed location, according to his lawyer Waddah Qutaish. Security officials in Sanaa said leaders of the Khawlan tribe, to which al-Rwaishan belongs, secured his release. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media. Many fighters from that tribe have joined the Houthis in their uprising against the internationally recognized government of Yemen. Born in Sanaa in 1962, Khalid al-Rwaishan served as culture minister in 2006 in the government of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Al-Rwaishan did not leave Sanaa in 2014 when the Houthi rebels captured the city and much of northern Yemen, toppling the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabo Mansour Hadi. He had been critical of the rebels for detaining thousands of Yemenis, including rights advocates, during the country's grinding civil war. The Iran-allied Houthis have detained scores of activists, journalists and lawyers. Rights groups have documented dozens of cases of forced disappearances and arbitrary arrests, and say detainees have been tortured to death inside Houthi-run facilities. Yemen's war erupted in 2014, when the rebels seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of the country's north. Months later, a U.S.-backed, Saudi-led coalition intervened to oust the rebels and restore Hadi's government. Yemen's conflict has killed over 100,000 people and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis, leaving millions suffering from food and medical shortages. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Stephanie Kelly NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures turned negative on Monday for the first time in history, ending the day at a stunning minus $37.63 a barrel as traders sold heavily because of rapidly filling storage space at the key Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery point. Brent crude, the international benchmark, also slumped, but that contract was nowhere near as weak because more storage is available worldwide. The May U.S. WTI contract fell $55.9, or 306%, to settle at a discount of $37.63 a barrel after touching an all-time low of -$40.32 a barrel. Brent was down $2.51, or 9%, to settle at $25.57 a barrel. "The storage is too full for speculators to buy this contract, and the refiners are running at low levels because we haven't lifted stay-at-home orders in most states," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago. "There's not a lot of hope that things are going to change in 24 hours." Physical demand for crude has dried up, creating a global supply glut as billions of people stay home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Refiners are processing much less crude than normal, so hundreds of millions of barrels have gushed into storage facilities worldwide. Traders have hired vessels just to anchor them and fill them with the excess oil. A record 160 million barrels is sitting in tankers around the world. U.S. crude stockpiles at Cushing rose 9% in the week to April 17, totaling around 61 million barrels, market analysts said, citing a Monday report from Genscape. The June WTI contract traded more actively and settled at a much higher level of $20.43 a barrel. The spread between May and June at one point widened to $60.76, the widest in history for the two nearest monthly contracts. With U.S. oil prices trading in negative territory, that means sellers have to pay buyers for the first time ever to take oil futures. It's unclear, though, whether that will trickle down to consumers, who typically see lower oil prices translate into lower prices for gasoline at the pump. Story continues "Normally this would be stimulative to the economy around the world," said John Kilduff, partner at hedge fund Again Capital LLC in New York. "It normally would be good for an extra 2% on the GDP. You're not seeing the savings because no one is spending on the fuels." Investors bailed out of the May contract ahead of expiry later on Monday because of lack of demand for the actual oil. When a futures contract expires, traders must decide whether to take delivery of the oil or roll their positions into another futures contract for a later month. Usually this process is relatively uncomplicated, but this time there are very few counterparties that will buy from investors and take delivery of the oil. Storage is filling quickly at Cushing in Oklahoma, which is where the crude is delivered. [EIA/S] "Pricey shut-ins or even bankruptcies could now be cheaper for some operators, instead of paying tens of dollars to get rid of what they produce," said Louise Dickson, oil markets analyst at Rystad Energy. Prices have been pressured for weeks with the coronavirus outbreak hammering demand while Saudi Arabia and Russia fought a price war and pumped more. The two sides agreed more than a week ago to cut supply by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), but that will not quickly reduce the global glut. Brent oil prices have collapsed around 60% since the start of the year, while U.S. crude futures have fallen around 130% to levels well below break-even costs necessary for many shale drillers. This has led to drilling halts and drastic spending cuts. MORE DATA SPARKS GLOBAL ECONOMIC CONCERNS Weak global economic data also pressured prices. The German economy is in severe recession and recovery is unlikely to be quick as coronavirus-related restrictions could stay in place for an extended period, the Bundesbank said. Japanese exports declined the most in nearly four years in March as U.S.-bound shipments, including cars, fell at their fastest rate since 2011. Halliburton Co, which generates most of its oil business in North America, joined its larger rival Schlumberger in taking impairment hits in the first quarter and issued a bleak outlook for North America. (Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York; additional reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin in London, Florence Tan in Singapore and David Gaffen and Devika Krishna Kumar in New York; Editing by Simon Webb, Dan Grebler and Jonathan Oatis) Flash Up to 47 people were killed in organized attacks on villages in the northwestern Nigerian state of Katsina on Saturday, local police said Sunday. A group of gunmen attacked the villages of Danmusa, Dutsenma and Safana early Saturday and detachments of police, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Airforce and Civil Defence and Department of State Services have been deployed to the area, Katsina police said in a statement. Also on Sunday, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, whose state of origin is Katsina, issued a statement pledging to punish the criminals who kill innocent people. "In line with my commitment to security of the people, these attacks will be met with decisive force," he said in his statement. Earlier in the day, Nigerian defense spokesman John Enenche said damage was recorded on the side of the gunmen who terrorized local villages in Katsina on Saturday while military forces carried out multiple operations on the same day, killing scores of Boko Haram militants across the northern part of Nigeria. On March 7, my husband, Stan, and I headed out with Mike Riley, Mentz town historian, to Monroe Community College for the annual Canal Society of New York State Winter Symposium. Soon we were gathered together in a large conference room overcrowded with canal enthusiasts from all over the state. Friendly greetings were exchanged with handshakes, hugs and smiling faces happily shared as we sat down elbow to elbow to hear the days presentations. There were hints that the COVID-19 virus was spreading, but little did we know that by a week later, we would be encouraged to cancel any gatherings of more than 50 people. We were looking forward to the next weekend to attend the Camillus Erie Canal Societys annual recognition dinner, where Liz Beebe would be honored for her retirement as director and a lifetime of dedicated service to establishing and operating the Camillus Erie Canal Park with her husband, Dave. Later that week we got the disappointing news it had been canceled for now, and postponed to an unknown later date. Life forever changed after that fateful day in Rochester. The contrast of social gatherings like this compared to the stark reality of our current mandated physical distancing a month later marks a dramatic and huge turning point in history. Now, as I begin to write this article, its Easter weekend, where we had snow on the ground on Good Friday. Mark DeCracker, of Lyons, posted the snowman pictured with this column on Facebook. Would we have even known what the mask represented back in December? Or would we have probably thought it was just a winter scarf? How quickly our reality changed. Would one of our biggest worries be when we would be able to find a roll of toilet paper on the grocery shelf again? More importantly, when would we again be able to gather with extended family and friends for holidays, dinner, weekly church services or our favorite sporting event? Proms, graduations, weddings, birthday and anniversary parties, and even more sadly, funerals continue to be put on hold. How would businesses be able to survive? How would museums stay open? How can we successfully navigate this change? Not soon after the daily reports of how quickly the virus was spreading did I receive a notice of the New York State Association of Public Historians urging municipal historians to document this event that will go down in history as forever changing our lives as we once knew them. How much we will return to what we thought was normal remains to be seen. We dont do uncertainty well, but we now are being given an opportunity to slow down and pause to reflect on all the important things we took for granted. As historians, we were reminded that social distancing was a lesson learned when the influenza epidemic hit in 1918. Devon Lander, state historian, shared in a recent podcast that it was just last year when New York celebrated the 100th year anniversary of mandating the appointment of municipal historians in 1919, a year after the influenza outbreak. James Sullivan, the state historian at that time, realized that history would need to be documented at the local level at the outbreak of World War I, and proposed a state law be adopted to appoint local historians to ensure the history of this event would be adequately documented. That's in contrast to a year earlier, in 1918, when the history of the influenza outbreak is sadly lacking on the local level. So whats the point of me telling you all this? Whats this got to do with history? We now realize that knowing what has happened in the past is informing what we are doing now. We need your help. If we as historians are to fulfill our appointed duties, we need you, the public to share how this has affected your life. I have started a daily diary and timeline, starting with when the first case was reported. On Dec. 1, 2019, the first known patient experienced symptoms of a pneumonia-like illness, and Chinese media reported the first case presented as far back as Nov. 17, 2019. Now its here, and its a part of what we are experiencing all over the world in our day-to-day life. No story you have to tell about your daily experiences during this monumental time in history is too small or unimportant. What are you seeing? What are you doing differently now? What are you feeling? What has changed in your day-to-day life and write it down? What are your opinions on how well or ill-prepared we were for this pandemic? I urge you to contact me or your local municipal historian to archive your responses. There is also an online form to follow, and your responses can also be documented at the state level at: https://forms.gle/ZUxePXJLcQC2fKCK8. Historians locally are encouraging you to start a daily diary, write poetry, create art, take photographs, write a song, make scrapbooks and share them. We may be living in isolation but we are social beings all sharing these experiences that will inform our future. What are your hopes and dreams for a better world? We need a vision for a better future and finding ways to leave this world a better place for future generations. It starts by knowing your experience matters, and what you can do to make a difference by sharing it to carry that vision into our future. No matter where this article reaches you, I wish you good health and a grateful time for sharing this important time in history. Cheryl Longyear is the historian for the town of Montezuma and can be reached at P.O. Box 476, Montezuma, NY 13117 (3150 776-4656 or cml115@tds.net. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 Bukidnon (CNN Philippines, April 20) Two big sugar companies in northern Mindanao resumed milling operations on Monday. BUSCO Sugar Milling Co. Inc. and Crystal Sugar Co. Inc. in Bukidnon province resumed their operations after Governor Jose Maria Zubiri Jr. lifted his shutdown order on April 16. Agriculture Secretary William Dar earlier appealed to the governor to lift his order as the "restrictive policy would only result in artificial shortage and thus price spikes." Zubiri ordered the temporary shutdown of operations of the two milling companies on March 28, as the province implemented its strict general community quarantine due to the COVID-19 crisis. The two milling companies play a vital role in the economy of Bukidnon, where thousand of sugar planters rely on the sugar industry. Zubiri recently received a "show cause order" from the DILG. Interior Undersecretary Epimaco Densing said Zubiri's executive order temporarily stopping all operations of companies in the province hampered the activities of firms producing food such as pineapples, bananas, and rice. This was denied by the local executive. There is one confirmed COVID-19 case in Bukidnon recorded by the Department of Health on April 10. Stringer Melchor Velez contributed to this report. ALBANY The New York State Nurses Association filed three lawsuits Monday seeking to force the state Department of Health and two downstate hospitals to improve conditions for nurses who allegedly lack adequate protection equipment and are working in unsafe conditions treating COVID-19 patients. The lawsuits also name Montefiore Medical Center and Westchester Medical Center. An Australian man has been arrested in Thailand and is expected to be extradited to his native New South Wales on charges of child sexual abuse. William James Petrie, 63, was arrested in Thailand's Chachoengsao Province, east of Bangkok, on Easter Saturday by the country's Crime Suppression Division police. The warrant for Mr Petrie's arrest was issued by NSW Police. Credit:Edwina Pickles Mr Petrie as arrested at the request of the Australian embassy in Thailand, local media reports. "We understand that William Petrie was arrested in Thailand on Sunday 12 April 2020 pursuant to an Australian extradition request. "Mr Petrie is wanted to face prosecution in New South Wales for [alleged] child sexual offending," a spokeswoman from the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department said in a statement. Mr Petrie is expected to be extradited to NSW, where the warrant for his arrest was issued. The Herald understands the allegations are being investigated by officers from the Brisbane Waters Police Area Command. He is expected to be charged in relation to the alleged sexual abuse of a child from before he moved to Thailand, the Bangkok Post reports. He had been living in the province for five years with his Thai wife and her family, she told local media. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 06:02:13|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NUR-SULTAN, April 19 (Xinhua) -- As Kazakhstanis strive to battle COVID-19, uplifting stories of sacrifice, generosity and solidarity across the country have boosted confidence to get through the pandemic. In Kazakhstan, more than 26,000 health workers have been fighting against coronavirus since March. Many work in an emergency mode and haven't seen their families for weeks. Oksana Shishkina is an intensive care nurse at the hospital of Semey Medical University in the East Kazakhstan Region. Mother of a 17-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, she has been racing against time to save COVID-19 patients since April 2. "I have been working in intensive care department for 25 years. A nurse should rescue lives and be merciful, we were taught this. I want to help and I love my work. I am glad I can help," said Shishkina. Treating COVID-19 patients is a high-risk task. According to statistics, about 28 percent of COVID-19 cases in Kazakhstan are health workers. But many choose to take the risks for the goodness of others. Dmitry Sanin, 27, works in a hospital in Karaganda. He has not seen his family for a month. "My colleagues and I work in the contaminated area. We have to take all precautions to prevent infection. We wear masks, glasses, gloves, rubber shoes. We can't even take a sip of water. If it is difficult to finish the six-hour shift, you can finish it early - another person will take the turn, " Sanin said of his working hours. Sanin, like all doctors, has advocated to the public: "We stay at work for you, you stay at home for us." Similar slogans such as "Stay at home if you don't want to be with us!" appear on ambulances which pass through downtown areas with sound signals and flashing lights. Respect, gratitude and support are pouring in for health workers who have been regarded as heroes by ordinary people. "It is evident that health workers are very tired, but they support the patients as much as they can. They work around the clock and listen to the discontent of patients. They don't even go home," said Alina Dzhanzakova, a blogger who has recovered from the COVID-19 after being hospitalized for two weeks in Almaty. In a residential block located in northwest Nur-Sultan, two artists have painted a giant picture of a female doctor on a building facade to honor health workers on the front-line. "We are together," the artists wrote in the picture. Local artists also dedicate songs and poems to express solidarity with health workers. More people turn their gratitude into actions, trying to make a difference in the lives of others. Free food was delivered to health care workers at the entrance of hospitals. Businessmen organized free vacations for health care workers in resort areas during their quarantine period before returning home. Some 300 medical workers were provided with free rooms of five-star hotel in the capital. Some donate money in the anti-virus fight, some carry food and medicine to the elderly, some sew masks, and others pay for the aircraft transportation of urgently needed cargos. The contribution of Kazakhstani doctors has also been appreciated by the Chinese medical team which has been in the Central Asian country to assist the ongoing anti-virus efforts since April 9. "It takes a strong man to save himself, and a great man to save another," said Lu Chen, deputy team leader of the Chinese medical team, in a speech during their visit in Karaganda. Lu cited the phrase from Stephen King's novel "The Shawshank Redemption" to emphasize the role of doctors and nurses in the battle against COVID-19. While calling health workers "real heroes," Kazakh Health Minister Yelzhan Birtanova said he is confident that Kazakhstan would secure a victory over COVID-19, thanks to professionalism of doctors and nurses, scientific achievements and discipline of all people. "I know many of you are unrealistically tired, and emotionally exhausted. Many cannot go home and hug your children. Many are scared. Many have become infected ... Despite this, you get up every day, go to work and save lives. You save people not for money, not for fame, because the work is like that, because it's nothing different. I'm proud of you!" said Birtanova, who saluted health workers across the country. Kazakhstan has reported 1,711 confirmed cases and 19 deaths as of Sunday. Some 401 patients have recovered. Enditem A day after a 24-year-old migrant labourer in a relief camp in Roorkee tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the Uttarakhand government has stepped up screening of about 4000 other such workers across the state. The migrant labourer, who tested positive for the coronavirus, had come to Rishikesh from Hathras in Uttar Pradesh to work but was caught on March 30 near Roorkee and sent to a relief camp. He along with three others were going back to Hathras by taking a lift from a truck driver. After he tested positive for the deadly virus on Saturday, 24 other migrant labourers who were staying in the same relief camp, were isolated by the health department. Their samples were also sent for testing to detect possible infection. Amit Negi, secretary of the state disaster management department who is looking after various government operations to contain the virus spread in state, said there are about 40,000 migrant labourers in Uttarakhand with 4000 of them in government relief camps. The 4000 migrant labourers staying in relief camps are being screened by doctors daily to detect any rise in body temperature as a symptom of Covid-19 infection. They are being continuously monitored by the health department to ensure none gets infected, Negi said. The senior bureaucrat added that most of the relief camps are in Haridwar, Dehradun, US Nagar, Pithoragarh and Haldwani areas of the state. Doctors have been instructed to thoroughly examine migrant labourers in the relief camp. Apart from this, precautionary measures like maintaining social distance at the camps as well as while eating are also being strictly ensured to prevent the spread in the relief camps, he said. The Uttarakhand government has said it is taking care of labourers from other states stranded in the state due to the Covid-19 lockdown. We are taking all the necessary care of these migrant labourers here by providing them food and shelter for those who have nowhere to go. We are ensuring that nobody faces any problem regarding food and shelter, Madan Kaushik, cabinet minister and government spokesperson, said. Uttarakhand has allowed industrial activities in rural areas and industrial estates of the state from April 21 with prior permission from state government and concerned authorities. It has, however, asked the industries to resume operations only with the available local labour and not from outside. Jammu: A police personnel was shot dead by terrorists in the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday (April 20). The incident took place at around 9:30 pm on Sunday at Hiller Achabal area of Anantnag district, said Jammu and Kashmir police. The deceased cop, identified as Manzoor Ahmad Dar, a native of Hiller Bahai Kokernag. He was immediately rushed to a local hospital where he was declared brought dead by the doctors. Soon after the incident, the area was cordoned off by the police and a team of the police force was rushed to the site. According to the police, the terrorists launched the attack while Dar, a head constable, was at his home. On Saturday, three Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans lost their lives and two others were injured in a terrorist attack in Sopore town of Baramulla district. Both injured CRPF personnel underwent surgery on Saturday night and are currently said to be in a stable condition. 42-year-old Rajeev Sharma from Vaishali in Bihar, CB Bhakare (38) from Maharashtra's Buldhan and Parmar Stayapal Singh (28) from Sabarkantha in Gujarat lost their lives in the attack. The police said terrorists had attacked a joint party of CRPF and the state police in Sopore. TORONTO, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Russel Metals Inc. (RUS - TSX) announces that, as set out in the notice sent to shareholders, the 2020 annual general meeting of its shareholders (the "Meeting") will be held on Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. (EST) at the Company's offices in Mississauga, Ontario. Due to restrictions on mass gatherings implemented by the Government of Ontario in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and out of concern for the wellbeing of all participants, stakeholders will not be permitted to physically attend the Meeting. Only those individuals necessary to constitute quorum, as required by the Company's bylaws, will be in attendance. Russel Metals encourages all shareholders to vote in advance of the meeting by proxy by 10:00 a.m. on Friday, May 1, 2020 in the manner set out in the meeting materials that have been sent to shareholders. Shareholders and other interested parties will be able to listen to the Meeting by dialing into 416-764-8688 (Toronto and International callers) and 1-888-390-0546 (U.S. and Canada). A replay of the call will be available at 416-764-8677 (Toronto and International callers) and 1- 888-390-0541 (U.S. and Canada) until midnight, Tuesday, May 19, 2020. You will be required to enter pass code 846208# in order to access the call. The conference line will be muted to improve the quality of the call for all participants. If you have any questions you would like to pose, please email them in advance to [email protected] under the subject line "AGM Question" or call the Investor Relations Line at 905-816-5178 with your question by Friday, May 1, 2020. Russel Metals is one of the largest metals distribution companies in North America. It carries on business in three metals distribution segments: metals service centers, energy products and steel distributors, under various names including Russel Metals, A.J. Forsyth, Acier Leroux, Acier Wirth, Alberta Industrial Metals, Apex Distribution, Apex Monarch, Apex Valve Services, Apex Western Fiberglass, Arrow Steel Processors, B&T Steel, Baldwin International, Color Steels, Comco Pipe & Supply, Couleur Aciers, DuBose Steel, Elite Supply Partners, Fedmet Tubulars, JMS Russel Metals, Leroux Steel, Megantic Metal, Metaux Russel, Metaux Russel Produits Specialises, Milspec, Norton Metals, Pemco Steel, Pioneer Pipe, Russel Metals Processing, Russel Metals Specialty Products, Russel Metals Williams Bahcall, Spartan Energy Tubulars, Sunbelt Group, Triumph Tubular & Supply, Wirth Steel and York-Ennis. If you would like to unsubscribe from receiving Press Releases, you may do so by emailing [email protected]; or by calling our Investor Relations Line: 905-816-5178. SOURCE Russel Metals Inc. Related Links http://www.russelmetals.com President Trump startled Washington last week by launching an attack on Voice of America, which for 80 years has been charged with presenting and explaining American values and policy abroad. Trump called it a disgrace that the current VOA leadership was allowing its service to repeat Chinese talking points on the COVID-19 virus. A White House statement also took issue with the news agency that called Chinese efforts in Wuhan to contain the virus a model for other nations. The statement also noted that VOA relied on unverified (and subsequently proven false) Chinese-government statistics in some reporting. Official Washington liberals swung into action to denounce Trump. Colbert King, a columnist for the Washington Post, accused Trump of employing a tactic straight out of the Joe McCarthy playbook: smear and persecute with demagogic attacks on patriotism, while offering no proof whatsoever. Its called McCarthyism, he added. Others accused Trump of an unprecedented attack on his own executive branch. Please, its far from it. In 1943, VOAs first director was forced to resign by FDRs White House after the administration learned that some of the directors key hires hewed too closely to a pro-Soviet line. Later that same year, Roosevelt himself said that a VOA broadcast with a slur on Italys king should never have been made and that his appointee was taking vigorous steps by way of reprimand. In his memoirs, former president Eisenhower recounted that in a state of some pique he informed his State Department that VOA was attempting to undermine his administrations foreign policy by trying to create false news. From the early 1950s through the collapse of the Soviet Union, VOA sharpened its mission. It remained objective, but it, and especially allied services such as Radio Free Europe, also had the strategic objective of countering propaganda and disinformation in a positive way. Those broadcasts paid a big dividend, as numerous dissidents, including Lech Walesa and Vaclav Havel, have testified. Story continues But since the end of the Cold War, VOA has retrenched and seen its budget cut to $200 million a year. It still runs an extensive news operation, but the part of its original mandate that aimed to present Americas story in a persuasive way has withered. Look no further than Hillary Clinton for that view. On leaving office as secretary of state in 2013, she lamented, in testimony before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Our Broadcasting Board of Governors is practically defunct in terms of its capacity to be able to tell a message around the world. So were abdicating the ideological arena, and we need to get back into it. Her view was widely shared, which is why, in 2016, President Obama signed into law a reorganization, of VOA and related broadcasters, that took authority over them away from the board of governors and put it more directly under the control of the executive branch. Presidents now have the ability to appoint, with Senate confirmation, a full-time CEO who will report to the president, just as cabinet secretaries do. President Trumps anger stems in part from the fact that his nominee for CEO of the Agency for Global Media (which runs VOA) has been in limbo for 22 months. Documentary filmmaker Michael Pack has seen more than 15 of his films broadcast on PBS, which has exacting professional standards. He has pledged that if confirmed as CEO, he will insist on the independence of VOA. But hes been denied a confirmation vote because of foot-dragging and spurious conflict-of-interest allegations by Democratic members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Its chairman, Idaho GOP senator James Risch, has so far been unwilling to call time and hold a vote. The charter of VOA declares that it will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussions and opinion on these policies. Some of its programming must by that standard take the form of a broadcast editorial page that lets Americas friends and foes know what Washington is doing and why. Yet staff of VOAs policy office, which produces editorials, has been cut by some 50 percent. In 2008, Jeffrey Trimble, the staff director of the Broadcasting Board of Governors that oversaw VOA at the time, actually claimed, It is not in our mandate to influence. If thats true, why are the taxpayers shelling out $200 million a year for VOA in an Internet age saturated with media sources? As it is, VOA reminds observers of a media playground where theres too little supervision. That lack of structure often leads to serious management snafus, such as when Sasha Gong, the head of VOAs Mandarin service, and two of her colleagues were fired for broadcasting a live interview with a Chinese whistleblower who was making charges of corruption against Chinese-government officials. VOA officials defend the firings, saying they resulted from failures to follow explicit instructions from management and good journalistic practices. A current VOA employee contacted me to point to other management lapses, including the 2018 firing of 15 of its employees in Africa after they accepted bribes from a foreign official. On April 9, the very day the White House first attacked VOA, it broadcast a two-minute video in Mandarin that amounted to a propaganda commercial from Chinese foreign-ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, the originator of the discredited theory that the novel coronavirus originated in a U.S. military laboratory. VOAs own introduction to the video read: Chinese foreign-ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular press conference on April 9 that the China epidemic-concealment theory and opacity theory are groundless. He emphasized: We have introduced it many times using the timeline. . . . After the outbreak, China reported the outbreak to the World Health Organization for the first time, shared the new coronavirus gene sequence with the countries of the world at the first time, and launched international cooperation on the prevention and control of the disease for the first time. The general positive evaluation of the United States the United States has smooth access to the epidemic information and data from China. Given what we now know about Chinas complicity in delaying news of the dangers of the virus, it is bizarre to give Zhao a U.S.-government platform. Even Chinas ambassador to the U.S. has labelled Zhaos theory crazy. So isnt it also crazy for VOA to remain silent as he absurdly defends Chinese-government transparency? Amanda Bennett, Voice of Americas head, has defended her agencys reporting on China by citing other reports that have been more critical. She has also noted that most of VOAs journalists, like those of other U.S. media outlets, have been effectively barred from reporting on the virus from inside China. My VOA source responds that many individual VOA reporters covering China do good work. But the final decisions as to what goes on the air are made by editors and bureaucrats in Washington, he says. They often go a different way. Its they who must have their judgment calls evaluated and soon. There was a time when VOA was led by officials who understood the full scope of its mission and how it had to pursue impartial news reporting while also explaining the views of the U.S. government. News is something commercial broadcasters can do well. Government broadcasting is needed when the U.S. wants to communicate a message to a key audience that would otherwise not hear it, Robert Reilly, who served as the Voice of America director from 2001 to 2002, wrote in the Wall Street Journal in 2017: This is why the Voice of America was never envisaged in its charter as simply a news organization. Its duty was always to reveal the character of the American people and thereby the underlying principles of American life. We need an honest appraisal of just how much bang for the buck the American taxpayer is getting from VOA and its allied broadcasters in this era of Chinese aggression, Russian propaganda, and Islamic terrorism. Pursuing that goal isnt McCarthyism. Its called accountability. More from National Review Lunch from the future? Some may say that. Instead it was lunch from the sky. While local restaurants across the state and down the street are navigating the Stay Safe, Stay Home order due to the coronavirus pandemic, Kiki Air a drone delivery service started by a Yale student has partnered with four local establishments to deliver sandwiches, coffee, pastries and snacks as the crow flies. On Wednesday afternoon I borrowed my girlfriend's iPhone (the Kiki Air app is only available for iOS, not Android), ordered a Reuben from one of my favorite sandwich places in New Haven, Meat & Co. and waited not long. CT Insider: In aerial photos: What Connecticut looks like when nearly everyone stays home About 10 minutes later I got a call: Hi, did you order a Reuben from Meat & Co.? Were about to take off. Well be there in about 30 seconds. Just like that I was looking at the bright blue sky, with a few fair weather clouds hanging around, as I heard the buzzing of a drone overhead. Still on the phone, I became an air-traffic controller. I was standing in my driveway, but the camera on the drone cant see people. The pilot told me it is a privacy feature. So, over the phone I directed the drone as close to overhead as possible before I was told, OK, were going to release the package. From about 50 feet, my sandwich wrapped in two layers of paper and stuffed in a teal padded envelope wrapped in string came tumbling out of the sky, crashing onto my driveway. I thanked the pilot, picked up my lunch and went inside. My unwrapped sandwich had one glaring issue: It was cold. I guess thats what you get when you order a traditionally hot sandwich to be delivered through the sky on a 50-degree day. DATABASE: Here's where you can order a meal to go in Connecticut - - - In February, Kiki Air suspended operations to work with Yale University and the federal government to improve its protocols. Yale, and most of New Haven, sits within Class D airspace, which requires FAA authorization to fly a drone. As of publication, Kiki Air was delivering to two neighborhoods East Rock in New Haven and Spring Glen in Hamden and had partnered with Olmo, The Jitter Bus and The Mystic Cheese Company in addition to Meat & Co. The app uses location data from your phone, so if you're not in the authorized location, you will not be able to place an order. And it's strict. I originally tried to order from my front yard and it didn't work. But it's pretty cool that I can get a sandwich delivered by drone to my backyard (where my driveway is). Kiki Air did not return a call for comment. After nine years of war, Syria is broken into three rival parts unable to work together and ill-prepared to cope with the coronavirus an enemy that knows no conflict lines. Medical personnel in Kurdish-run northeast Syria have resorted to making protective gear from rubbish bags. The territory has been cut off from outside aid, including United Nations shipments that used to arrive from Iraq but were vetoed by Syrian government ally Russia. In the last opposition-held enclave in Syrias northwest, health officials are cobbling together what little they have to protect four million people crammed into a territory buckling under repeated government offensives. Promises by the World Health Organization to deliver ventilators, protective equipment and other supplies have mostly not materialised. Taher al-Matars home in northwest Syria is in ruins but he has gone back to live there anyway, driven by dire conditions in camps for displaced people, where he fears any outbreak of the coronavirus would be devastating. Its better than living in the camps. We were there, we lived the humiliation, said al-Matar, 42, in the town of Nairab, where his house, close to a front line dividing territory held by rebels from Russian-backed Syrian government forces, was destroyed by a missile three months ago. They tell us to stay home because of corona but in the camps, the tents are right next to each other and people cant keep their distance. Like al-Matar, thousands of Syrians have started moving back to the Idlib region since a truce brokered by Russia and Turkey took effect in March, halting an offensive in the last remaining rebel stronghold. Saher al-Ali, 32, a driver, also went back to Nairab to try fixing his house. What will happen next, only God knows, he told Reuters news agency. Where was I supposed to live? In the camps or in the street? If the battles come back, we will flee again. President Bashar al-Assad controls the rest of the country, including the main cities. WHO has steered most of its anti-coronavirus help through his government, forcing the UN agency to work with an opaque system that has not extended help to non-government areas. Hardin Lang, a former UN official and vice president of Refugees International, said the more vulnerable territories should be the priority. He said working with a government that often distributes aid based on political considerations could be questionable when you have a population that is completely dependent on you and cross-border assistance. Syrian authorities have conducted coronavirus tests only in Damascuss central lab, making it hard to track infections. The Kurdish-run northeast, also home to four million people, has had to send its samples by plane to the capital. Priority area The flaws in the system emerged last week when Kurdish officials found out two weeks after the fact that a death in their area was from COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. The Damascus government did not officially announce it or inform local authorities nor did WHO, prompting accusations by Kurdish authorities of a cover-up. WHO says it is dealing with a global shortage and is working to raise resources for Syria, which it calls a priority area. So far, Syrias official count is 39 infections and two deaths, all in or around Damascus. 200414202039334 The civil war has devastated Syrias health system. Advanced countries were unable to isolate such a virus. So imagine a region that has faced a destructive war for nine years, said Ciwan Mustafa, the northeasts health director. Hundreds of medical facilities have been bombed, mostly in government air attacks; half of the hospitals and health centres are functioning only partially or not at all, while 70 percent of medical personnel have fled the country. More than 80 percent of the population live in poverty, millions have been displaced and hundreds of thousands are crammed into overcrowded camps. For weeks, government officials denied the danger. Shia pilgrims from Iran and Iraq continued to visit shrines near Damascus. Fighters allied with the Syrian military travelled back and forth from those countries. By early March, restrictions began with a partial closure of borders and shrines. When the first case was announced on March 22, the government enforced a curfew and suspended military conscription. Several towns were isolated and more than a dozen quarantine centres set up. WHO is providing the health ministry with medical and lab equipment, testing kits, protective gear and training workshops, said Dr Nima Abid, the agencys acting representative in Damascus. It is setting up testing labs in the regions of Aleppo, Homs and Latakia. Abid cited global shortages when asked about the obstacles to aid reaching non-government areas, adding that such deliveries require government permission. Denying aid Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Syria researcher, said since the uprising began in 2011, Damascus has had a policy of denying aid to rebel-held areas and to the Kurdish-run northeast, in hopes of weakening the population there. A 2013 polio outbreak was partially blamed on the government denying vaccinations to areas outside its control. So far, WHO airlifted from Damascus 20 tonnes of supplies, including ventilators and protective gear, mostly to a hospital in a government-controlled pocket in the northeastern city of Qamishli. Those trying to reach the hospital risk arrest as they cross military checkpoints, Tsurkov said. The northeasts medical sector was further crippled by the war against the ISIL (ISIS) group and Turkeys military campaign, which restricted water supply. Tens of thousands of ISIL supporters and members are crammed in to camps and detention facilities in the area. UN aid deliveries from Iraq were halted in early 2020 after Russia vetoed a resolution allowing continued shipments across that border. The pandemic then forced the closure of the Iraqi border to almost everyone. Many aid workers left. Those remaining have negotiated only sporadic border openings with Iraqs northern Kurdish semi-autonomous region, bringing in some supplies, including finally two testing machines. In Syrias rebel-held northwest, authorities have closed schools and mosques and urged people to stay home. That is a challenge when nearly one million people displaced in the latest government offensive now live in tents or temporary shelters without water or electricity. Mere words WHO, consulting with Idlib authorities, drew up a $30m plan to create 28 isolation units and prepare three new facilities for coronavirus patients. But the agency has yet to deliver the supplies. Thirty ventilators are sitting in Turkey awaiting budget approval. WHO sent Idlib 5,900 testing kits and they are being closely rationed, used only in very suspect cases 197 so far, all negative. The WHO plan is still mere words on paper, the top health official in Idlib, Munzer al-Khalil, wrote in an open letter, accusing the UN of discrimination. Even if northwest Syria is not an official state, its citizens are Syrians. First and foremost they are human beings and deserve an adequate response. He said WHO now wants to refit existing hospitals for COVID-19 cases instead of setting up new facilities, a change he feared would strain overstretched resources. Adding to the concerns, the UN resolution that allows cross-border aid from Turkey expires in June. Al-Khalil used available resources to set up the only ward in the territory for suspected virus cases. The ward in an Idlib city hospital has only two doctors, four nurses, 32 beds and four ventilators, said hospital director Dr Khaled al-Yassin. As al-Yassin spoke to The Associated Press news agency, a father tried to bring in his 10-year-old son, feverish with a chest infection suspected of being coronavirus. Al-Yassin had to turn him away. We dont have isolation wards for children, he told the distraught parent. Al-Khalil said during the war he has treated victims of chemical attacks and made life-or-death decisions about evacuating hospitals before a government attack. The virus has brought new levels of stress, he said. This time I feel it is much bigger than us. The US wants to send a team of experts to China to investigate coronavirus, President Donald Trump has said, a day after he warned Beijing of "consequences" if it was knowingly responsible for the spread of COVID-19 which has killed more than 165,000 people globally, including over 41,000 in America. Describing the coronavirus as a plague, Trump, during his White House news conference on Sunday, said that he is not happy with China where the pandemic emerged in December last year in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. We spoke to them (Chinese) a long time ago about going in. We want to go in. We want to see what's going on. And we weren't exactly invited, I can tell you that, the President told reporters. I was very happy with the (trade) deal (with China), very happy with everything and then we found out about the plague and since we found out about that I'm not happy, he said. The US has launched an investigation into whether the deadly virus "escaped" from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. 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 He has repeatedly expressed disappointment over China's handling of the coronavirus disease, alleged non-transparency and initial non-cooperation from Beijing with Washington on dealing with the crisis. Based on an investigation, we are going to find out, Trump told reporters. A day earlier, he warned China that it should face consequences if it was "knowingly responsible" for the spread of the novel coronavirus, upping the ante on Beijing over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. If they (China) were knowingly responsible then there should be consequences. You're talking about, you know, potentially lives like nobody's seen since 1917, Trump said on Saturday. The opposition Democratic Party said that Trump has falsely claimed he acted early by restricting travel from China when it was little too late and he continued to downplay the virus throughout February. The number of COVID-19 deaths in the US crossed 41,000 and the total infections were more than 764,000 so far. New York, the epicentre of the deadly COVID-19 in the US, has 2,42,000 cases and over 17,600 fatalities so far. It has registered a 50-percent decline in new cases over an eight-day period. The novel virus, which emerged in China in December last year, has killed over 160,000 and infected more than 2.3 million people worldwide. Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here A student from a university in Gujarat has complained to the National Commission for Women that a man hacked into her online class and indulged in indecent behaviour with her. Expressing concern over the safety of women online, the women rights body said it has taken cognizance of the incident and written to Shivanand Jha, Director General of Police, Gujarat, to probe the matter immediately. The National Commission for Women (NCW), in a statement, said it sought strict legal action against the culprit. "The Commission takes cognizance of this incident, and is disturbed by the cybercrime committed by the miscreants, and is concerned about the online safety practices and especially the security of women on internet," it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said the use of face masks in public places will be made compulsory in the state starting from next week. Mr Sanwo-Olu at a press update on Monday said this is part of the measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the state. Wearing of face masks is attributed to the rising double-digit cases that the state has begun to record and the need to stall the further spread of the virus in communities. On Sunday April 19, we saw the highest daily increase, nationally and in Lagos State. Lagos saw 70 new cases, taking our total tally to 379. Of this newly confirmed 70 cases, 8 originated from our neighbouring state, he said. The governor said local tailors have been assigned to produce one million locally made face masks which will be distributed in the coming week. No need to panic Mr Sanwo-Olu assured Lagosians that there is no need to panic as the number of confirmed cases increase. As we implement these strategies, and take testing deeper into our neighborhoods and communities, we expect that we will see more positive cases. I must use this opportunity to commend all the teams who are carrying out this active community case search, he said. The commissioner for health in the state, Akin Abayomi, earlier hinted the press on Sunday that the state will enforce the use of face masks. He said the use of face mask does not protect against COVID-19 but rather protects people around an infected person from contracting the infection from droplets. Mr Abayomi said the state is not encouraging the public to go and purchase medical face masks because it would deprive the medical community of the medical masks they require for their professional activity. There is some theoretical evidence that wearing of masks may indeed reduce the amount of droplets in the environment from the infected person and that is the reason why we are beginning to define the strategy of face masks for the general community. He said the state has empowered seamstresses to start mass production of face masks, discouraging panic purchase of medical face masks. Meanwhile, the state governor urged Lagosians to play their part in curbing the spread of the virus by maintaining social distancing and practising good personal hygiene. In view of the rising number of COVID-19 cases, the Gujarat government has extended till April 24 the curfew which has been in place in parts of Ahmedabad, Surat and Rajkot to check the further spread of coronavirus infection, state DGP Shivanand Jha said on Monday. The curfew was imposed on separate dates in these three cities, and was supposed to end on April 21. The curfew is now extended till 6 am on April 24, the Director General of Police (DGP) said. "During the period of the ongoing curfew, many cases are detected in the areas placed under total restriction in the three cities, so it was decided in a high-level meeting held today by chief minister Vijay Rupani to extend the curfew further," Jha told reporters. In Ahmedabad, 25 of the total 34 deaths are from the areas which have been under the curfew, he said. "Similarly, majority of the (COVID-19) cases in Surat are from the areas which have been under the curfew, and same is true for Rajkot," the DGP said. He said announcement on relaxation in the curfew hours to allow people to buy essential items will be made soon. Till today, a three-hour relaxation between 1 pm to 4 pm was given to women so that they can buy essential items. The curfew was imposed in walled city and Danilimbda police station areas of Ahmedabad on April 14. The city has so far reported 1173 coronavirus positive cases with 34 deaths. Similar restricts were imposed in Salabatpura, Mahidharpura, Lalgate, Athwalines and Kamrunagar police chowky of Limbayat police stations in Surat on April 15. These areas have reported more than 175 of the total 269 COVID-19 cases in Surat. The curfew was clamped in Jungaleshwar area of Rajkot on April 16, which has reported 30 of the total 38 COVID-19 cases. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Deepak, 28, carries a bright yellow backpack labelled Kisan Shakti as he moves along the first floor of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Deepak is one of the five members of the housekeeping staff tasked to sanitise the building four times a day. The assistants to the senior officials sitting outside the offices get up from their seats as Deepak sprays the disinfectant on the tables and couches. We have been doing this since last month, once a day, says Deepak. Now we use this bleaching liquid more frequently than before. The change in schedule comes with the governments latest directive, asking deputy secretary and above officials to rejoin office on Monday after nearly a month of work from home. A third of the junior staffers are also supposed to come to office, according to rosters decided by the head of the departments. Joint secretary and above ranks officials have been coming to office since last week. Thermal scanners, masks and sanitiser are the new buzzwords in the corridors of North Block. At the very entrance, temperatures are scanned as CISF officials offer sanitiser to those entering the premises. Officials not wearing masks are an anomaly. While the ministries have provided masks to the employees, many have chosen to invest in their own with varying versions from surgical masks to extra-protective ones. However, even with over a third of the staff returning to work, there is silence in the corridors. Can you get us two cups of coffee or tea, but swacchta se (maintaining cleaniness), a senior official asked a member of his team only to be told that the canteen wasnt serving anything today. Officers would socialise earlier, said a second ministry official. But now the canteen is shut, there is no chai (tea), so there is no charcha (conversation). There are also officers carrying their own lunches and personal water bottles from home. In the post-corona world, new rules to live and work by are being laid down, a third official said. Most of us now carry own lunches, make our own tea and even bring water bottles from home. Its a lot more self-reliant than the ministries were earlier. I even make sure I switch off the lights in my room before I go home. I drink my milk tea at home in the morning, added the third official as he laughed. In office, its only green tea for me. Moreover, most officials operate from within the four walls of their room. While senior officials have their own chambers, in case of junior officials extra care has been taken to ensure not more than two are in the same room. We have nearly eliminated the paper-trail, the first official said. Only the most confidential documents are on paper anymore. Moreover, we have critically reduced the number of meetings, even while at work we operate on phone, whatsapp and video calls on the NIC platform. We have a four-day rotational shift, said a CISF official posted outside one of the ministries in North Block. After that we get break days and then return to work. The CISF officials are the ones who sanitise and thermal scan those entering the buildings. In many cases, officers are only calling supporting staff who have their own private vehicles and live nearby. I have only one multi-tasking staff, said the first official. And the only reason he was called in is because we needed to go through certain files. But with Delhi still in lockdown, and a lack of public transport, many junior staffers are finding it increasingly difficult to reach work. Junior-level officers normally travel using DTC buses and the metro, an official told Hindustan Times. There was a proposal to provide a transport allowance, but when theres no transport, how will the allowance help. Commuting has been tough as there arent enough vehicles for junior staff. We are supposed to carpool with others and tying up gets a bit tough. They have asked to try getting private cars for whoever can manage, one government official said requesting anonymity. Ministry staff has also expressed concerns over lack of social distancing measures while car-pooling. Social distancing is not maintained when you have to pool with others. The entire point gets negated, another ministry personnel said. In certain cases, the ministry provides a vehicle for junior staffers while other times many senior officials have taken to sending their own cars to pick and drop the officials. I picked up one of the members of my team from Bengali market today, said the first official. He doesnt have a car. Drivers working for the officials live nearby and normally walk to office. We walk to office and drive the officers when needed, a driver who has been working with one of the ministries for the last thirty years said. The new thing about my job is that along with cleaning the car, I now sanitise it using a spray as well. According to Abdul Khan, a Delhi Police officer posted outside the Central Secretariat, the place has never been as eerily quiet before. Earlier we would have lots of people in this area, Khan said. Tourists, visitors and officers all would be here. There would 400-500 people waltzing in the lawns. Now a lot fewer of them come in. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON No Ukrainian army casualties have been reported. Russia-led forces mounted six attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, on Orthodox Easter on April 19, despite ceasefire agreements. "The enemy opened fire from 82mm mortars prohibited by the Minsk agreements, as well as from grenade launchers of various systems, sniper rifles, and small arms," the press center of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) Headquarters said in a statement on Facebook on Monday morning. Read alsoThree Ukrainian soldiers wounded amid five enemy attacks on April 18 Hot spots were the villages of Pisky, Shyrokyne, Luhanske, as well as the town of Maryinka. No Ukrainian army casualties have been reported. "There were no casualties among Ukrainian troops amid shelling by the armed forces of the Russian Federation over the past 24 hours," the JFO HQ said. "The Joint Forces resolutely responded to all the acts of provocation staged by the enemy." According to Ukrainian intelligence reports, two enemy troops were killed and another two were wounded on April 19. From 00:00 to 07:00 Kyiv time on April 20, the Russian occupation forces have been inactive. No losses among Ukrainian troops were reported. No coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Ukraine's Joint Forces. "The situation in the JFO zone remains under control," the HQ said. Rep. Greg Steube: On Reshoring Manufacturing and Making Chinas Leaders Pay for the Coronavirus Pandemic How would the Chinese Government COVID 19 Accountability Act, recently proposed by Congressman Greg Steube, help America recover from the coronavirus pandemic? How is COVID 19, or CCP virus, waking Americans up to the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party? And is China now undercutting produce prices in the US? In this episode, we sit down with Florida Republican Congressman Greg Steube, who serves on the House Judiciary, Oversight and Reform, and Veterans Affairs committees. This is American Thought Leaders , and Im Jan Jekielek. Jan Jekielek: Congressman Greg Steube, such a pleasure to have you on American Thought Leaders. Rep. Greg Steube: Thanks so much for having me. Mr. Jekielek: The new legislation that youre proposing that caught my eye. Its the Chinese Government COVID-19 Accountability Act. Weve been talking about this topic a lot on the show lately, and theres a new headline to consider here out of Wuhan, China. Weve just discovered that the death toll is apparently 50% higher than what they were saying before. That speaks a bit to accountability. What are your thoughts? Rep. Steube: As Americans, [given] what were hearing from the government of China, I dont think we can believe anything that were seeing. Suddenly, the amount of people that died from COVID-19 in Wuhan has gone up by 50%? That didnt happen overnight when theyre opening Wuhan back up as we speak. I think theres some real challenges internationally, with nations trusting what China is telling them. We know now that doctors that sounded the alarm have disappeared. We dont know what happened to them; theyve passed away, and we dont know how. There are all these things that clearly the Chinese Communist Party was trying to keep tabs on and keep down the information of what was really happening with this virus, and its not appropriate for other countries to rely upon that information. Mr. Jekielek: Ive frankly found it a bit worrisome that a number of our media here in the U.S. actually just kind of accepted the Chinese number at face value when we know a lot of the numbers cant be counted on like that, even these new numbers, frankly. Rep. Steube: Yeah, its disappointing. The mainstream media was literally just putting out what the Chinese Communist Party was putting out, and those arent reliable. Its not reliable information. You dont know where its coming from or if the government is just creating these things to try to have some type of narrative that the Chinese government wants to have. Unlike [in] America, where you have checks and balances in our government and you have free association of press, you dont have free association of press [in communist China]. When all this started happening, they started kicking out American reporters, the Wall Street Journal reporters and other reporters from the United States, out of their entire country so that there wasnt information that they couldnt control coming out. Those are the challenges that we faced being reliant upon anything that comes out from the Chinese Communist Party. Mr. Jekielek: You support this temporary defunding of the WHO pending investigation of Chinese influence. Can you tell me more? Rep. Steube: [I support it] 100%. When there are now reports that the Chinese were feeding the leader of the WHO information of what they wanted him to say and how they wanted him to say it. The WHO was even saying in the very beginning that this doesnt spread by human-to-human contact. We know that to be absolutely and utterly false. The Chinese government was trying to perpetuate this information, Oh, this isnt spreading human-to-human, when it actually was. How many lives could have been saved if we got the actual, accurate information in the beginning of this pandemic from the Chinese government? Had the Chinese government acted swiftly and quickly, I think that it would never have left the shores of China and wouldnt have come to the United States, because they would have known what was going on, and didnt want this information disseminated to the entire world. So, if were not getting accurate information from the WHO, then why is the United States being a part of it, and [why do] we send the most money of any country in the world to support them? So absolutely, I support the president in pulling back our funding to ensure that at least the information that theyre disseminating is accurate. Mr. Jekielek: Some folks weve had on the show are actually concerned with the U.S. involvement in these international institutions, or lack of it. The thing thats been voiced a number of times recently is that what actually happens when the U.S. pulls back is China tries to come in, fill the vacuum, and gain more control. Based on everything youve said and the information we know, [giving them] more control isnt a very positive thing. Rep. Steube: Well, I dont think supporting organizations that arent disseminating correct information is what Americans want to have done with their tax dollars. When I got elected, one of the things that was constantly asked to me on the campaign trail was, Why are we sending all this money, our taxpayer dollars, to all these foreign governments, to all these different entities, when they dont have Americans in the United States perspectives foremost in their minds? I dont disagree with that. I think Americans should have some hostility and pause to determine where our money is going, and how its being spent. If its not to organizations that have whats best for the world in mind, we shouldnt be sending our money there. Mr. Jekielek: So, this whole situation with COVID-19, or coronavirus, or Wuhan coronavirus, or actually CCP virus as we call it at The Epoch Times, is exposing a lot of connections and dependencies between the U.S. and China that are questionable. This is something youve actually been vocal about. Weve learned recently when it comes to supply chains that the Chinese government is requiring permits for companies if they wish to actually leave China at this time. Im wondering what thoughts you have on this? Rep. Steube: Were in the process of putting together a piece of legislation that would provide tax incentives for American companies to bring their manufacturing back to the United States. I think that if anything that comes from thisafter weve dealt with the actual response in ensuring that Americans are safe, and the government is responding appropriately to that[it will be that] we look at those relationships that we have with China, and [ask] why are we getting all of our PPE, our personal protective equipment, for hospitals from China? Why are we getting all our pharmaceuticals in foreign countries? I think thats something that we need to look at for the safety and security of the United States, and so were putting a bill together that would incentivize, from a tax perspective, those companies to come back to the United States and manufacture that PPE here on our shores. Then we [will] have assurances that its actually being made and manufactured in a way that is safe to the United States. Then when we have a pandemic like this, we can actually get those supplies from American manufacturers on the soils of America instead of being reliant upon China, or Italy, or other countries that are manufacturing the products. After this has all passed and were looking at how we can protect our country moving forward, I think that is going to be something that Congress looks at. How can we ensure that the things that are protecting Americanspharmaceuticals, protective equipmentshould be manufactured in the United States? Mr. Jekielek: Larry Kudlow mentioned the relocation of companies and supply chains and that the U.S. might even be interested in footing the cost of some of those relocations. What would you think about that? Rep. Steube: Well, I think we can do that in a tax incentive; you can do that through tax breaks. Whatever theyre getting in China or Mexico or these other foreign companies, lets make it beneficial financially for them to invest in the United States, bring their companies here, and manufacture here. That creates jobs; that [helps build] the economy in our community, in our country; and then were not relying upon foreign governments to get certain types of products. If you do it through tax incentives and not direct money of tax dollars going to companies, the American people support that a lot more. [We can] do it in a way that they would want to be very encouraged to come to the United States and open up manufacturing here. Mr. Jekielek: I want to talk a little more about your other bill about accountability in a moment. What do you see right now as we speak, as the strongest evidence, that the Chinese Communist Party is actually responsible for this global pandemic? Rep. Steube: Well, we know where it came from. We know it came from Wuhan, China. Theres obviously a lot of disagreement and speculation as to [exactly where]. Did it come from a wet market? Did it come from this lab that we know is there? Another piece of information that I just found out recently is that we as an American government were supporting researchers through NIH funding to do research at this Wuhan facility. Why in the world are American taxpayer dollars, through the NIH, going to China to do research on viruses and all sorts of other things that the American people didnt know about? So, I think theres also going to be scrutiny on things like that. Why in the world are we sending our tax dollars to a lab in Wuhan, China, to investigate viruses and other types of warfare? We certainly know it came from Wuhan, China; we do not know if it came [from] or escaped this lab. Did somebody purposely unleashed this virus to see what type of response it would have? We dont know the answers to that, and I hope through these different acts that different members are filing that we find out where exactly it did come from, and what was done from the Chinese perspective to dampen the information on it that put all of us in the world at risk. Mr. Jekielek: When we were preparing for this interview, I learned that the awareness of the threat of China is relatively recent to you and frankly, to most Americans. Im wondering if you could chart that progression. Of course, the trade war was part of this. How is it that this perspective among you and your colleagues in Congress has changed over the past years? Rep. Steube: Well, it started years ago. I can remember I was in state-elected office and a practicing attorney when the Chinese drywall issue impacted Florida hugely. Theres been huge things like the Chinese drywall. I dont think our businesses ever saw a dime from China to compensate them from the losses that they had from that. I just had a call yesterday with the Florida Farm Bureau, and they were telling me that Chinese products and produce are now dumping Chinese products in the United States. Why in the world do we want to buy produce from China when we have American farmers who are struggling, certainly during this time? Its kind of been over the years: youve seen more and more information, whether it be trade, whether it be Chinese drywall, whether it be produce. I think more and more Americans are becoming aware of this, and it shows that the president was right to lead on a fair trade agreement with the Chinese long before any of this happened. More and more people have been paying attention to this as more things like the Chinese drywall, this pandemic, and now, suddenly China is dropping produce in the American market [have occurred]. Those are things that I think Americans are going to be very cautious about, and I think youre going to want to spend a lot more time focusing on. Mr. Jekielek: This is interesting, the produce piece. Can you dig into that a little bit more? For me, this isnt something weve talked about much yet. Rep. Steube: I didnt know anything about it until my call yesterday with the Florida Farm Bureau. Individuals from all over the state have the opportunity to ask questions, and my district is a very rural, agricultural district. My districts the number one citrus-producing district in the entire country, so obviously agriculture is a big piece of this district, and the Florida Farm Bureau plays a part of that. They brought [this issue] up to me through a question that was posed: Why is China allowed to be able to dump produce into the United States? Is this because of the trade deal that was just negotiated? Was that a piece of it? That was the first information that I had gotten about it, and it came from a producer here in the United States who is now having to compete with citrus from China. So, why are we bringing citrus from China to compete with domestic farmers here in the United States? So, just this morning after the call which was late last night, I sent out an email to my staff to find out from the USDA: is this true? And if its true, why in the world are we bringing in produce from China to compete with our domestic farmers? Mr. Jekielek: Since were talking about your district, I saw that you had a virtual town hall recently. What is the state of people? What are people seeing right now? What are their biggest concerns? Rep. Steube: Its kind of morphed as the pandemic has kind of changed. In the very beginning, as soon as I got back from D.C., I called every one of my hospitals and every one of my county medical societies to make sure that they had all the PPE they needed. They had everything they needed from a healthcare perspective to protect themselves and treat those that were getting tested positive for this. That was in the beginning, and then [the concern] became loss of jobs and unemployment in Florida. Theres been a real challenge with Floridians getting their unemployment compensation, and thats a state-run program. The feds just disperse the money, and the state runs the system. Now, today, the paycheck protection programs run out of money, so now I have small businesses [concerned]. I had a call this morning with a CPA who was telling me that two thirds of his clients that have now applied for this funding are freaking out because they dont know if the amount of money is going to get replenished. For the last week or so, the president has authorized more money to try to go into that program and asked Congress to just reauthorize more money into that program, and Speaker Pelosi and Chuck Schumer are holding that amount up for other things that they want. Were trying to call on everybody to put pressure on the Democratic leadership to say, Look, the time for politics is over. Lets focus on getting small businesses the relief that they need. Right now thats the focus, but its changed as this pandemic has changed focuses, and now you have struggling businesses that kept their employees on knowing that the government was going to reimburse them for paying those employees. Now they dont know what to do because theyve made that commitment to their employees, and the government has not [given them] the money to reimburse them for those payments. I hope that Congress can come up to an agreement and get that money to them. Weve been putting pressure on the Democratic speaker, but unfortunately, were in the minority in the House and we cant make that decision. Speaker Pelosi makes that decision. Right now, thats the challenge, and the focus is ensuring that our small businesses get the help that we told them that they were going to get. Mr. Jekielek: The president has talked about reopening the economy and presented the plan to do that. How does that work for your district? Are you already aware? Is it gonna happen soon in Florida in general? Rep. Steube: Just this morning, the mayor of Jacksonville repealed his executive order on people going to the beaches, so youre seeing them in parts of Florida. I get information every day from my district, specific by county, of test positives on cases and deaths from COVID-19, and Ive been seeing the number trend downward. There was an article in the Florida Digest this morning about comparing COVID-19 daily deaths to stroke, cancer, heart disease, and its nowhere near cancer and heart disease, so youre starting to see that bell curve run down because of the response the government leaders have had. Ive been encouraging government leaders [like] Floridas governor to open up the state of Florida. I think youre seeing the curve flattened; I think youre seeing cases go down. People know what the CDC recommendations are now for social distancing. If they dont want to go out, they dont have to, if theyre at risk, but I think its time where we should start opening up businesses and slowly allow the economy to come back. Mr. Jekielek: Its amazing to hear the changes, the moves forward so to speak, in Florida. I imagine theres a lot of folks all over the country that are thinking similarly, and well be collecting those stories and that information. But lets jump to your bill, the [Chinese Government COVID-19] Accountability Act. Your bill is basically about the way in which the U.S. will be able to go after China and actually obtain financial restitution, is that right? Rep. Steube: China should be held financially accountable for what [the U.S.] incurred and the impact that its had in the United States. Our last bill, the phase three bill, costs $2.2 trillion of our tax dollars. Thats on top of the $4 trillion that we spent this year. We only take $3.5 trillion in. Thats more than $6 trillion that weve spent, all to respond to a virus that should have been kept within Chinas shores. [The Chinese Government COVID-19 Accountability Act] gives the president the ability to negotiate how that would work. Do we not pay a certain amount of interest on the debt that we owe China for some of the debt that we have? Do we have them reimburse us for medical expenses? [It] gives the President the authority and the ability to negotiate that. China should be held financially responsible for the cost to the United States of having to respond to a virus that emancipated from their shores. Mr. Jekielek: This is one bill of a concert of bills. Theres a bill that Ive been quite interested in, which is Senator Hawleys calling for stripping the sovereign immunity that the Chinese regime enjoys with respect to this issue. What are your thoughts on that one? Rep. Steube: I think youre going to see a litany of bills filed by members of Congress [that] relate to China. There was a group text today with a number of different Republican congressmen about bills and getting peoples support for different aspects of this. How do we now deal with them from a manufacturing standpoint, from a trade standpoint, knowing that were not getting accurate information from their government? I hope that Congress gets back to work. There are Republicans that are encouraging leadership: look, health care workers are out there working. We should be in Washington dealing with these issues on the front lines and ensuring that our government is well-postured to be able to respond and dealing with the things that we need to deal with from a trade perspective with China. Mr. Jekielek: Are you expecting bipartisan support for your bill? Rep. Steube: I would certainly hope so. I would think that we can check our party affiliations at the door and know that China caused this, and China should pay the United States back for the cost that it caused our government. Im hopeful that we can have a bipartisan approach to this. We do have a common part of a caucus that is post-9/11 vets who served our country. Its called the For Country Caucus, and its a bipartisan group of individuals who served their country in the military. Im going to bring that bill up during that call this afternoon, and hopefully, I can get some bipartisan support for that. Mr. Jekielek: This is actually quite interesting. We were talking earlier about how this whole situation is exposing the realities of Chinese influence, and [China] having co-opted certain international organizations. I saw that you were actually involved in the resolution related to China suddenly appearing on the UN Human Rights Council. Im wondering if you could share your thoughts about that. Rep. Steube: Its fascinating. If you look at the list of human rights abuses that the Chinese Communist Party has committed against their people [and] the lack of freedoms in their country, the fact that they would get a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council is just beyond the pale, in my opinion. So, we filed a resolution that were not going to be a part of that organization until China is removed as a member of the human rights committee. Theres no reason why they should be on there. Theyre one of the worst violators in the world of human rights violations, and so having somebody like China on the Human Rights Council is a little bit hypocritical. Its not appropriate [to have] somebody thats committed so many human rights violations. Mr. Jekielek: What people argue in these kinds of situations is: how can you get someone who is doing the violations to change if theyre not part of the organization thats trying to change things? At least thats what I hear people tell me. Rep. Steube: The UN should be holding them accountable for their violations. That [United Nations Human Rights] Council should be holding them accountable for their violations, and thats how you get them to change their behavior. Hopefully, by our engagement on this issue and the country of the United States backing out of these different things that [China is] involved with and clearly controlling, we can have more change in their behavior. Mr. Jekielek: Theres been a lot of discussion about Huawei. For that matter, China Telecom is another one thats in discussion right now: China Mobile. What are your thoughts about these organizations or these companies? Rep. Steube: There were reports that the Chinese government was holding hostage PPE, and face masks, and face shields, and telling other countries, Yeah, well send it to you, but youve got to sign this contract for Huawei. That should tell you what their real intentions are: trying to infiltrate all of these different countries and all the information that these countries have. Im very cautious about how we should approach that from a national security perspective, and I would encourage other governments to not take the free money that China is dangling in front of them in exchange for having them control all their information in their country. Mr. Jekielek: Congressman Steube, its quite remarkable that 77% of Americans blame China for the coronavirus, or CCP virus. Thats according to this recent Harris Poll. To me, that represents quite a dramatic shift from general perceptions of China even 10 years ago when the Kissinger doctrine was what guided American thinking, the idea that if a lot of money is invested in China, China will change, and there was this benevolent perception anyway. Im wondering if you could please speak to that. Rep. Steube: Globalization works as long as all the actors are acting appropriately and honestly. A pandemic like this shows you your weaknesses as it relates to national security, where youre getting all of your products from, and where youre getting all your manufacturing from. When suddenly, you cant get face masks and face shields, because theyre all manufactured in China, and Chinas holding on to them, thats a real problem. When all of your medication or pharmaceuticals are produced overseas, thats a real problem for the health, safety, and welfare of Americans. This has really exposed some national security issues, and I think Americans are starting to see that its not a good idea to be getting all these things from foreign governments, especially communist foreign governments. Americans are looking at this much more closely now and realize that, Hey, maybe shipping off all our pharmaceuticals and the manufacturing of healthcare supplies to China isnt a great idea, even though we can get it for a cheaper price. I bet you Americans today, if I asked my district Would you pay a little bit more money to ensure that youre getting a face mask and a [inaudible] produced in the United States by American companies? I bet that response will be in the 90 percentile. This has really exposed how important it is from a national security perspective to get our food from the United States, to get healthcare supplies from the United States, to get medicine from the United States, and I think youre going to see more and more legislation encouraging businesses to bring that business back to the United States, which would have another effect of creating jobs at a time when obviously we have record unemployment due to this. Youre really going to see peoples attitudes change as it relates to our relationship with China. Mr. Jekielek: Were going to finish up in a moment. Any final words before we do? Rep. Steube: No, just thank you for the opportunity. I appreciate it. Mr. Jekielek: Well, its such a pleasure to have you on the show. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity. American Thought Leaders is an Epoch Times show available on Facebook and YouTube and The Epoch Times website. By Express News Service MUMBAI: Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray has warned against communalisation of Palghar incident where three people were killed by the villagers on suspicion of them being thieves. Thackeray said that two policemen have been suspended and over 100 persons arrested in connection with the lynching case. "We have suspended two policemen and appointed ADG CID Crime Atulchandra Kulkarni to investigate the matter. Over 100 persons have been arrested, including the five main accused. There is nothing communal in this whole incident," Thackeray said. "I got a phone call from Union Home minister Amit Shah regarding the incident. I informed him about the ground reality. He asked me to deal with the situation," Thackeray said. Thackeray also raised the issue of social media troll army which is giving communal colour to Palghar incident and spreading hatred. "I told him (Shah) to deal with these people (troll army). I have decided to act against those dividing the society on religious line," Thackeray added. The incident happened on April 16 and some people were arrested on the following day. Later, police arrested 110 more people including nine juveniles. The government will not spare anyone involved in this gruesome incident, the chief minister said. Three persons from Mumbai wanted to got to Gujarat via Trimbakeshwar, Palghar Dahanu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. "When the trio reached Dadra and Nagar haveli, the authorities there did not allow them to move further. As they were forced to return, rumour spread in Gadchinchale village, about 110 kilometre from Palghar, that the trio were robbers. They were subsequently lynched. Had Dadra and Nagar Haveli authorities informed us about their returning back to Maharashtra, we would have done something to protect them," said Thackeray. Sarah Kiehl held her cellphone facing a coronavirus patient in Truman Medical Center's intensive care unit so the man's family members could pray over him in Spanish as he lay unconscious and intubated, clinging to life. "It was beautiful and tragic all at the same time," Kiehl said as the family saw their brother, father and grandfather alive, one last time. Kiehl stood alongside several of her coworkers at the Kansas City, Missouri hospital helping with the same experience so multiple households could deliver their final goodbyes just before the man died. "It was very hard to know that we were having to be at a distance and the fact that this was the first time that we were having to do this, but it was absolutely not the last time." The patient who died was living in the US without legal permission, according to his family Kiehl said, and he spent a week battling his symptoms in Truman Medical's ICU with his condition rapidly deteriorating. No other details about the patient were provided due to medical privacy HIPAA laws. The hospital didn't have his medical history so providing a proper treatment plan was especially difficult, requiring those treating him to guess what -- in addition to his viral Covid-19 symptoms -- could be making him so sick. "This person has a medical history; it's just not written. It's just not documented," the 28-year-old Kiehl recalled her coworker saying during the man's treatment. Dealing with patients who present multiple chronic diseases isn't new for hospitals like Truman Medical, which services majority lower income and minority communities. But the sheer volume of people has made caring for these particularly vulnerable patients more difficult. Health care workers in Chicago, Kansas City, Missouri, and Flint, Michigan, spoke to CNN about how the everyday challenges they face, including language barriers, staffing turnover, and a patient population rife with chronic illness -- some known, some unknown -- have been exacerbated by an unforgiving virus. Language barriers Kiehl said she explained to the patient's sister over video that these were his last moments. It was one of her hardest days since the pandemic started. The sister dutifully translated back to the rest of her family at their home, and she heard them praying in Spanish. Visitors aren't allowed in the hospitals to limit infection spreading, Kiehl added, so what would have been his last moments surrounded by loved ones was instead the man left to die alone, similar to other Covid-19 patients she'd seen since. "It hit me that there are so many humans in hospital beds all across the nation surrounded by people that don't speak their language," she said. When the patient was conscious early on, his caregivers communicated through four interpreters on staff or blue translator phones with two receivers and a translation service relaying messages between the two in order to limit exposure. But Kiehl couldn't help but think that despite these efforts, the language barrier and the necessary distance being used to keep staff safe was causing some thoughts to be lost. "It's truly and deeply heartbreaking knowing that there are most likely things being missed in their experience or in their requests that they might not be verbalizing out of fear of not being understood," she added, describing a sense of helplessness that at times permeates over the staff. Constant stream of ambulances Just before the end of Ian Gatton's 12-hour shift at St. Bernard Hospital three weeks ago, the emergency room in the hospital on Chicago's South Side was completely full. About 25 people occupied every bed with the patients spilling out and lining the hallways. The waiting room was also jam-packed with people hoping to see a doctor. But it didn't end there. Within 45 minutes, a constant stream of 10 ambulances brought more. "It's kind of like a roller-coaster," Gatton told CNN. "It doesn't matter how busy you are. You still have to take the people that the Chicago Fire Department is bringing you." He added, "Everybody stayed late" because of their commitment to their work. The registered nurse continued with his shift helping to triage the incoming patients -- a majority with preexisting conditions like diabetes, hypertension or asthma, he said, while presenting flu-like symptoms. Nearly 14 hours into his shift, Gatton finally felt he could leave. The only hospital in Englewood, St. Bernard serves a neighborhood with a nearly all black population of about 25,000 people and nearly 60% of households making less than $25,000, according to federal statistics. St. Bernard says it struggles to retain staff who often move on to hospitals with deeper pockets, including some that pay almost triple. When nurses fall ill or present Covid-19 symptoms, the hospital's options are limited. As a standalone hospital, it's not able to transfer patients to less slammed facilities, Gatton said, adding that the city is not allowing hospitals to use ambulance bypass that would divert sick patients to other hospitals when its ER is at capacity. "We are not able to pay those high dollars for salaries," Yolanda Penny, director of nursing told CNN in an interview. Penny added that those workers who leave can make more at bigger hospitals or almost triple their earnings at nursing agencies. "Trying to keep our staff engaged, committed to our mission for our hospital is a huge challenge for us." Starting from a deficit In Flint, Michigan, Amy White, a registered nurse at McLaren Hospital said she was used to seeing a near equal split between white and black patients admitted to her ICU. Since the pandemic, that has changed. Now a majority of the patients are black. One reason, she believes, is because many of those patients didn't have the luxury to stay at home and stay safe. "They're our store clerks, they're our restaurant workers. Most of them are not sitting safe in an office, they're in the community," she said though she noted it's hard to know whether income level or the prevalence of preexisting conditions is tilting the ICU population toward more black patients. What's clear is patients at McLaren stay sicker for longer at the hospital, AFSME Local 875 and registered nurse President Kelly Indish says. "Their chance of coming off (the ventilator) is a lot less than someone who doesn't have all these comorbidities," Indish said. "They definitely are sicker coming in than some hospitals that don't see that type of population." Truman Medical, too, is a hospital who sees and services that population and bills itself as Kansas City's essential hospital, functioning as the state's safety net. The two-hospital system operates a large urban medical center with 250 beds in addition to another campus with 100 beds. A substantial source of their income comes from federal programs; A total of 25% of its patients have no payer source, 40% use Medicaid and the rest are split between commercial insurance and Medicare. Last year, the hospital says it completed nearly $150 million in uncompensated care. The hospital says before the pandemic, it already operated on lean margins. Now its revenue sources have vanished, because of the cancellation of elective surgeries and outpatient visits. Charlie Shields, Truman Medical's President and CEO said his system sees evidence that Covid-19 has disproportionally impacted black people, as they test at a rate of 9% positive vs. 2% for the white population -- that's out of about 1,600 people the hospital has tested so far. Shields cited the inability for patients to get themselves to the hospital to get tested and lack of working lines of communication -- like a reliable phone -- to reach patients as some of the ongoing issues the hospital faces, now made worse by the pandemic. The hospital also works with homeless patients who need a safe place to isolate as they await the results of their Covid-19 tests or recover following a positive test. It's one of the many ways the virus is exposing the nation's more deep-seated social and health issues." Our patients in general, start from a deficit. They haven't received health care consistently. They've maybe had bad experiences with health care, so they don't trust the system," Kiehl said. "Covid-19 simply highlights the gravity of that problem." In Chicago, 72% of the people who have died from Covid-19 are black, though they make up 30% of the population, officials said. The Englewood neighborhood where St. Bernard services is plagued by systematic inequalities -- like few places to buy fresh food -- which help deepen the health disparities among minorities in the city because it increases obesity and diabetes; two preexisting conditions that the CDC warns increases the likelihood of serious Covid-19 illness. Dr. Rochelle Bello, St. Bernard's head of infectious diseases, said the hospital often is competing with more affluent hospitals like Rush University Medical Center for supplies like PPE. "We are serving a patient population that is vulnerable, so we probably need to procure that equipment sooner than Rush because our clients have more comorbidities," or preexisting conditions, she said. A puzzle with missing pieces and a race against time For the man in Truman Medical without a history, the nurses in the end never could confirm if he had any preexisting conditions like diabetes, heart disease or cancer. But Kiehl guessed something other than Covid-19 contributed to his death. She said it's not uncommon to see people with chronic conditions left untreated due to various barriers to receiving health care. That makes creating treatment plans harder to do. "You're putting together a puzzle with missing pieces. Probably really relevant missing pieces," Kiehl said. Because of the intensity of Covid-19, those pieces need to come together quickly in order to give the patient the best chance, she added. "We had another [Covid patient] that actually had no idea they had cancer because they hadn't accessed health care. It precluded their immune system from being capable to fight the virus," Kiehl said. And according to Kiehl, that patient eventually succumbed to complications from their illness and the virus. Ottawa, April 20 : A man wearing a police uniform went on a shooting rampage in Canada's Nova Scotia province, killing 17 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country's history, officials said, adding that the suspected gunman was also dead. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on Sunday night the suspected shooter, 51-year-old Gabriel Wortman, was killed after being intercepted by officers, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) said in a news report. Of the 17 victims, RCMP Constable Heidi Stevenson was killed in the rampage, while a male officer suffered non-life threatening injuries. RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki told CBC News on Sunday evening said the fatalities surpassed the 14 victims killed in the 1989 Polytechnique massacre in Montreal. Lucki said she believed the shooter had an initial "motivation" at the beginning that "turned to randomness". RCMP Chief Supt. Chris Leather said the first reports of an active shooter came earlier on Sunday from Portapique, a community about 40 km west of Truro, which residents described as a quiet place to live that attracts people from the provincial capital of Halifax in summer. Upon arrival, police found "several casualties" inside and outside a Portapique residence, he said, but they could not locate the suspect. He added there were "multiple sites in the area including structures that were on fire", CBC News reported Later in the day, the suspect was stopped about 90 km away in Enfield, a scene that was surrounded by a half dozen police vehicles. Yellow police tape surrounded the gas pumps, and a large silver-coloured SUV was being investigated by police. A body was seen lying at the gas station but the police did not comment on whether it was Wortman. Through the morning Sunday, police updates about the active shooter investigation included warnings that Wortman was considered dangerous and may have been dressed as an RCMP officer in a lookalike RCMP vehicle. "The fact that this individual had a uniform and a police car at his disposal certainly speaks to it not being a random act," Leather was quoted in the CBC News report as saying. "This is one of the most senseless acts of violence in our province's history," the CBC report quoted Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil as saying. In a statement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said: "As a country, in moments like these, we come together to support one another. Together we will mourn with the families of the victims, and help them get through this difficult time." The call for COVID-related material in multiple languages to serve the US minorities from different regions of the world, including Hispanics, is pertinent as ever. Having not enough information being circulated in non-English speaking communities is one of the first concerns of the coronavirus pandemic. According to a recently published article, Chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), emphasized that it was the government's primary responsibility to ensure that Hispanics, had access to resources that kept them safe and aware of public health precautions being taken around the country, especially as the latest report suggests that COVID-19 has affected black and Latino communities in the United States the most. In New York City, almost 34 percent of COVID-19 deaths have been Latinx individuals, and the numbers also mean that the virus is killing black and Latino patients at twice the rate of whites. READ: Cartels' Humanitarian Act: El Chapo's Daughter and Mexican Cartels Give Aid Amid COVID-19 As of this writing, an online dashboard shows there are already 772,665 COVID-19 cases in the USA, with 41,155 and 70,859 recoveries. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has made efforts to include more translated material on its website, and other organizations have stepped in to make sure that language barriers aren't an issue for people looking to get more information in the Spanish language. One of those entities is the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), which recently partnered with Hornitos Tequila to launch a social media campaign and user kit called #AyudaEnEspanol, that aims to make critical information accessible to Spanish-speaking individuals. ALSO READ: ICE and CDC Launch Investigation After Deported Migrants Test Positive for COVID-19 The online kit, which is accessible at https://lulac.org/covid19/espanol/, is made up of more than 40 pages of consolidated COVID-19-related resources from government and CDC sites, and also includes critical information about how to access and apply for government benefits, how to get help for seniors, and what to do to secure other benefits and job training. LULAC is encouraging people to share a link to the site with the hashtag #AyudaEnEspanol to spread the word. Latino actor Emilio Rivera also promoted the campaign through an Instagram post with the caption: "I've been getting messages that a lot of our a Spanish speaking community are not getting the benefits they are entitled to during the Covid-19 because of the language barrier.Please go to lulac.org/ayudaenespanol They are there to help, Please pass the word around . Much Love and Respect Always. #AyudaEnEspanol - He Estabo recibiendo mesajes de que muchos en Nuestra comunidad de habla hispana no estan recibiendo los beneficios a los que tiene derecho durante El Covid-19 por barreras de idioma ,Por Favor visita lulac.org/AyudaEnEspanol estan para ayudarte ,Por Favor Corre La Voz . Con Mucho Amor y Respeto Siempre . #Emiliorivera #elpadrino #Ayudaenespanol" READ MORE: "Cuidate Mija," Latina Stars Take Notes from Our Abuelitas to Inspire People to Stay Safe at Home Meanwhile, medical students from Harvard Medical School and physicians also launched the COVID-19 Health Literacy Project, which contains information in 35 languages, including Navajo, Swahili, and Creole, to address other minorities. Despite these efforts, resources for Latinos who speak native or Indigenous languages remain limited and a challenge yet to be addressed by authorities. Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-21 06:05:50|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close BRUSSELS, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission together with several partners on Monday launched a European COVID-19 Data Platform to enable the rapid collection and sharing of available research data in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak. The European Commission said in a press release that the new platform will provide an open, trusted, and scalable European and global environment where researchers can store, share and analyze a wide variety of findings on coronavirus. The datasets will include DNA sequences, protein structures, data from pre-clinical research and clinical trials, epidemiological data, among others. "Scientists around the world have already produced a wealth of knowledge on coronavirus. But no researcher, lab or country could find the solution alone. This is why we want to help scientists to access data and share it with the others, across borders, disciplines and healthcare systems... It will make science respond even better and faster to what society needs," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a video speech. Enditem By Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Ricardo Lagos, Juan Manuel Santos, and Ernesto Zedillo Fernando Henrique Cardoso Ricardo Lagos Juan Manuel Santos Ernesto Zedillo Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-20 12:08:14|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close SYDNEY, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A two-year international investigation into a website where users pay for child abuse material has lead to the arrest of 16 people in Australia, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said on Monday. Authorities were also able to remove four Australian children from further harm. The investigation was initiated by U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), who provided information to international police and child protection organisations. HSI uncovered an illicit marketplace where users paid for access to child abuse material, and were able to provide user data leading to arrests in several countries including the United States and Australia. Acting on the information, Australian police executed 18 search warrants, arresting 16 people on 738 charges and removing four children. HSI Australia Attache Adam Parks said the current COVID-19 pandemic may place children at even higher risk. "More so than ever, children are increasingly online for their schooling, to socialize with their friends and family, and to play games," Parks said. "Let this be a warning that law enforcement is undeterred by COVID-19 and remains on-duty to keep our children safe in Australia, the United States, and online." Victoria Police Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team manager Detective Acting Inspector Karen Bennett said perpetrators continued to act via extensive online networks, regardless of the considerable harm inflicted on victims. "These crimes see people using significant established networks to share child abuse material and take advantage of vulnerable children. They have devastating impacts for victims and the wider community," Bennett said. "Victoria Police will continue working closely with partner agencies to address this considerable issue both in Australia and overseas." Enditem While not at an increased risk for COVID-19, its all the more important right now for both children and adults with diabetes to keep it closely monitored and under control. As a diabetic, you dont have a higher risk of catching COVID-19. But if you catch COVID-19, you can have a lot more complications, said Dr. Minu George, a pediatric endocrinologist. Thats what the data is showing. So we want to try our best to keep all our kids and adults in Oklahoma with diabetes healthy during this time. George, whos with OU Medicines Harold Hamm Diabetes Center, talked about what Oklahomans with diabetes need to know about COVID-19 during an online interview session with media members Monday. George said about 1 in 300 children nationally and in Oklahoma have type 1 diabetes and will require insulin for the rest of their lives. Type 2 primarily affects adults, but Oklahoma does have at least a few hundred children who have it, he said. Harish Bijoor By China and India, in that order, have been in the news for the right economic reasons for a long time now. The two nations comprise 37% of the total population of the world. The biggies are possibly the largest consumption hubs for everything a human can eat, drink or partake as commodities and brands. The two nations have recorded the fastest pace of growth in GDP terms, one behind the other. And each seems to want to make a point of its own. China says communism does it for them. And India says democracy is the ultimate elixir of it all. And both vie with one another to pit the two political and economic models one against the other. And the two have been at war forever as well, it seems. Hotheaded and cold war alike. The amendment of the Foreign Direct Investment policy to put a ban on investments through the automatic route by entities from countries that share a border with India is long-pending and an interesting decision. This DPIIT (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) announcement of April 18 seems to want to stop both direct investments and indirectly routed ones via Singapore or Hong Kong. To that extent, this looks like a blanket ban policy that means what it says for now. For now. An economic pandemic: The fact remains that we are in the midst of a health pandemic, and equally importantly, are going through an economic pandemic that has had Indian companies in a tizzy. The markets, its movers and its men are scurrying. The stock market has taken a bad beating. The markets have been waiting for investments from overseas to stoke the sentiment of domestic players to participate and play as well. And here comes the walling of China. A bit of a beating really. The stock market play is a forever hope-oriented play on FDI for now. And the biggest destination from which all this is expected is from the US and China. The biggest selfish point of hope has been the stated and unstated desire that the position of China as a manufacturing hub of the world is going to be shaken, stirred and re-positioned. The continent of hope: The ardent hope in India, and possibly many other emerging markets of the world such as Vietnam, Mexico and Ethiopia, would be that many of the manufacturing bases that plan to shift out of China will come to them. Thus far, the high ground of India has been the fact that it is the image leader in terms of IT and the ITES industry and that of China is its manufacturing muscle. The hope that India seems to thrive on at this moment is that IT and ITES will hold their image positions, being solution providers to the world, and that China will lose its manufacturing label of repute to India. The only problem for this seamless shift, if at all, is the big fact that we are infrastructure challenged. China has a ready-made infrastructure built, tested and operationally fit across the facilities at its many ports, air hubs, shipping centres, logistics and land-transfer fleets, and its famed manufacturing clusters. As hopes of every kind float around, China has been really active on the count of being the much-needed funder of world growth. Chinese companies have been active even through the pandemic, with clear examples being the recent hiking of investments in HDFC Bank by the PBOC (Peoples Bank Of China). Money is what money buys: If you look deeper and beyond, and if you believe in conspiracy theories of every kind, China has taken sure-footed steps to be in India with as much depth and vigour as it is allowed to demonstrate. The category of e-commerce, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, fintech and edtech, among many other sunrise sectors of the Indian market, have deep investments from Chinese firms. If the investors are a Tencent, Alibaba and ByteDance, the beneficiaries are a Flipkart, MakeMyTrip, Big Basket, Paytm, Byjus and Ola! The truth is that there is a little bit of China in every sunrise industry in India. Do we want more of China or less of it is the point to debate. While the Chinese perspective is one that says money must find its way to fund the best enterprises globally, with the mindset that geography is history, the world may not look at it in the same easy manner. China and companies of Chinese origin and investment intent need to sit up and smell the coffee. The world is becoming more and more difficult. The world wants to know the colour of money now. Where does it come from? What is the intent of this money? Where and how was it generated? And many uneasy questions of those kinds for sure. China will now equally want to hedge its bets on manufacturing. If companies decide to move manufacturing out of China into India, Vietnam, Canada, Mexico or any other competing country, China might still want to be the funder of that shift. Ownership today is not necessarily only geographic. Ownership is what money buys. And the yuan is looking for that ownership. And money does speak. And where will this money speak more? In Sri Lanka? In Vietnam? In Mexico? We need to wait and watch. The world economy is in a shambles. Every country will want to uplift itself from the morass left behind by Covid-19. While India has built a wall against predatory investments for now, it needs to be seen as to how this policy will change with time.For the moment, India has just about introduced China to The Great Wall Of India. Touche! Harish Bijoor is Brand Guru & Founder,Harish Bijoor Consults (Email address: harishbijoor @hotmail.com) Sarbjit is a 2016 biographical movie helmed by Omung Kumar. The plot of the movie revolves around the real-life story of an Indian Man, Sarbjit Singh, who was sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the year 1991. He spent 22 years in prison for alleged terrorism and spying. Randeep Hooda essayed the role of Sarbjit and Richa Chadda played his wife in the movie. Along with them, Aishwarya Rai was seen in a pivotal role in the movie. Here are a few trivia about the biographical drama Sarbjit. Sarbjit Trivia Aishwarya Rai and Randeep Hooda, both the actors said yes for Sarbjit within just 15 minutes of narration. Real-life Sarbjits condition was much worse than it was shown in the movie. As per reports, there was no sanitation, no light, no ventilation in the confinement where he was kept. His body has begun to rot when he met his sister Dalbir Laura first met him in the Jail. Sarbjit had reportedly lost 70% of his body weight and had severe infection all over his body. His teeth and nails were black as coal. ALSO READ| Richa Chadha's Witty Instagram Captions To Take Cues From For Your Next Post In real life, Dalbir Kaur had also asked Salman Khan to help in Sarbjits case however it couldnt be shown in the movie because of his previous controversies with Aishwarya Rai. Sarbjit was Jacky Bhagnanis first movie as a producer. ALSO READ| Richa Chadha's Cabaret' Movie's Interesting Trivia That Fans Must Know About Aishwarya Rai can be seen essaying the role of a character ageing from 20 to 60. Aishwarya Rai reportedly did not meet Sarbjits sister before shooting the movie. Randeep Hooda reportedly lost 18kgs within 28 days to prepare for his role. Pakistani Jail shown in the movie was shot at a fort in Palghar, Maharashtra. ALSO READ| Richa Chadha Donates Groceries To A Gurudwara Feeding Daily Wage Workers In March 2016 the shooting of Sarbjit was halted for over four hours and one of the producers of the movie was arrested for hurting national sentiments while shooting a rally sequence with anti-Indian slogans in Urdu. The scene was not liked by the locals which resulted in filing a complaint against the makers. However, the producer was released as they had proper permission to shoot the movie. The director of the movie was questioned about casting Aishwarya Rai as Dalbir Kaur in Sarbjit. Both of them have no resemblance. The director reportedly replied saying it is the story of the character and not about its resemblance. ALSO READ| Richa Chadhas Best Films On Netflix That Will Help Kill Boredom During Quarantine Get the latest entertainment news from India & around the world. Now follow your favourite television celebs and telly updates. Republic World is your one-stop destination for trending Bollywood news. Tune in today to stay updated with all the latest news and headlines from the world of entertainment. NEW YORK, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Penguin Random House, as part of READ TOGETHER, BE TOGETHER (#ReadTogetherBeTogether), a movement launched by the U.S. children's divisions of Penguin Random House, Penguin Young Readers and Random House Children's Books, in partnership with Meredith Corporation's PARENTS, has donated 750,000 books to First Book, a nonprofit social enterprise dedicated to equal access to quality education. The donation was made to meet the urgent need expressed by educators coping with school closures as a result of COVID-19. More than 6,000 educators in the First Book Network, who are still working to serve kids in need, have made urgent requests for books, both to help students continue learning, but also to provide a needed sense of normalcy. First Book has been raising funds to cover the cost of shipping the desperately needed books and resources to programs and schools serving kids in need. The books donated by Penguin Random House will be deployed to programs and schools that are currently delivering books, food, and supplies to our youngest citizens who are isolated and locked out of a learning environment. More than 300 of Penguin Young Readers and Random House Children's Books brand books that kids love will be donated, including LLAMA LLAMA GIVES THANKS by Anna Dewdney, CHOMP by Carl Hiaasen, BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY by Ruta Sepetys, and THE CAT IN THE HAT SONGBOOK by Dr. Seuss. In addition to the book donation, Penguin Random House is also covering the cost of shipping the books to First Book, valued at $25,000. "We would not be in a position to make such a powerful impact on children in need without the support of our amazing partners at Penguin Random House," said Kyle Zimmer, president, CEO and co-founder of First Book. "This generous donation is so meaningful. Books super-charge learning for kids in need, who are particularly vulnerable right now. When schools closed, these kids lost a place that was not only providing education, but so many different forms of critical support. These beautiful new books make it possible to provide tremendous support for kids who need it, while also encouraging a love of reading. Not a day goes by that we aren't grateful to Penguin Random House for their ongoing support." Madeline McIntosh, CEO of Penguin Random House U.S., said, "It is a privilege to again join with First Book to help bring our authors' and illustrators' works to children and communities in need. We know that books have the power to connect and sustain us, particularly in challenging times, and we want to do all we can to directly reach children and ensure we are developing lifelong readers." Originally set to launch in summer 2020 with nationwide retail, educator and consumer activations, the READ TOGETHER, BE TOGETHER program began on March 23rd with a series of daily virtual story times with bestselling and award-winning authors and illustrators, and celebrity readers as a response to COVID-19 school closures. The full READ TOGETHER, BE TOGETHER campaign will be announced early this summer, and will include specially priced exclusive editions of child-and-parent favorite titles that will be available at retailers throughout the country. Weekly event schedules can be found at readtogetherbetogether.com. First Book and Penguin Random House are long-standing partners, united by the mission to help children everywhere access books and educational materials regardless of their socioeconomic situation. Last year, Penguin Random House joined with Former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama to announce that the company would donate an additional 300,000 children's books to First Book, building upon its previously announced donation of one million of its children's books to First Book in the Obama family's name. Plans for the 1 million-book donation were originally announced in 2017 when Penguin Random House acquired world publication rights to publish books by President and Mrs. Obama. Penguin Random House Penguin Random House, the world's largest trade book publisher, is dedicated to its mission of nourishing a universal passion for reading by connecting authors and their writing with readers everywhere. The company, which employs more than 10,000 people globally, was formed on July 1, 2013, by Bertelsmann and Pearson. As of April 1, 2020, Bertelsmann is full owner of the company. With more than 300 imprints and brands on six continents, Penguin Random House comprises adult and children's fiction and nonfiction print and digital English- German- and Spanish-language trade book publishing businesses in more than 20 countries worldwide. With over 15,000 new titles, and more than 600 million print, audio and eBooks sold annually, Penguin Random House's publishing lists include more than 80 Nobel Prize laureates and hundreds of the world's most widely read authors. The PARENTS brand, the leading source for busy, millennial moms, reaches 9.3 million readers monthly through an award-winning magazine and over 19 million through its digital and social platforms. PARENTS serves up trusted advice that empowers moms and dads to care for their kids with confidence and find ways to enjoy the ride. PARENTS is produced by Meredith Corporation. About First Book Founded in Washington, D.C., in 1992 as a 501(c)3 nonprofit social enterprise, First Book is a leader in the educational equity field. Over its nearly 30-year history, First Book has distributed more than 200 million books and educational resources, with a value of more than $2 billion. First Book believes education offers children in need the best path out of poverty. First Book breaks down barriers to quality education by providing its network of more than 475,000 registered teachers, librarians, after school program leaders, and others serving children in need with millions of free and affordable new, high-quality books, educational resources, and basic needs items through the award-winning First Book Marketplace nonprofit eCommerce site. The First Book Network comprises the largest and fastest-growing community of formal and informal educators serving children in need. First Book also expands the breadth and depth of the education field through a family of social enterprises, including First Book Research & Insights, its proprietary research initiative, and the First Book Accelerator, which brings best-in-class research to the classroom via relevant, usable educator resources. First Book Impact Funds target support to areas of particular need, such as rural communities or increasing diversity in children's books. For more information, visit firstbook.org or follow the latest news on Facebook and Twitter. Contacts: Claire von Schilling EVP, Director, Corporate Communications & Social Responsibility Penguin Random House [email protected] / 212-782-9876 Melanie Boyer Senior Director of Communications, First Book [email protected] / 202-639-0115 SOURCE First Book Related Links http://www.firstbook.org